374 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



tive. A certain "book" offered the public uses half its 

 pages in lauding the stock of the writer of it, who in 

 addition asks two stamps for his price list. Exploiting 

 the public, this, with a vengeance ! 



I take it for granted that the Beginner is keen to 

 know the very worst mistake an advertiser can make. 

 In my view, it is to present himself to a stranger with a 

 palpable untruth on his lips. Many experts consider a 

 convincing argument to be the acme of good advertising. 

 It seems to me that the advertiser who makes a state- 

 ment false on the face thrusts this argument full into the 

 reader's mouth : " If this man lies in getting my atten- 

 tion and telling me about his goods, would I not be an 

 idiot to believe that he will be honest when he fills his 

 orders.''" 



The public advertising mediums themselves do not al- 

 ways set the best of examples in this respect. Hardly one 

 of them bidding for patronage but will insist that, no mat- 

 ter how many times an advertiser has been disappointed, 

 it will make good for him. A few periodicals have offered 

 to repeat advertisements free if their claim prove untrue, 

 which is in effect selling at half price, advertising which 

 may or may not prove of value. 



Beside the picture of a man who seems to be trying 

 to look two ways at once appears, in a modern advertise- 

 ment, a voucher for the value of a certain guide to the 

 poultryman, — "With more sound, practical information 

 in it on the things you want to know than any other 

 book published." All the problems are solved, all the 

 secrets revealed, in this marvelous book — yet just under 

 my eye lie two similar books, one sold through several 

 editions at five dollars per copy, each of them claiming 



