The Ouachita telegraph. [volume] (Monroe, La.) 1865-1889, 1879-07-25
ENERGY IN MERCHANTS.

ENERGY IN ARRCAANTS.
quirc the use of two or three articles
comprised In every general assortment
Of merchandise, which, however, could
not be had at any house in town. Are
not our merchants slightly amenable to
the charge of want of enterprise,
when having, as they do, such superior
facilities for supplying their establish
ments, they notwithstanding have in
quiries for articles of everyday use
they cannot supply? Such a thing, we
dare say, could not occur ON tho othor
side of Mason & Dixon's line. There,
business is made n study and is re-
duced to q system, no matter what
branch is followed. It ought to bo SO
here, and would be, II people generally
would consult their best interests.
Occasionally We meet up with
Southern man who appreciates the fact
that life, health and the vigor Of man
hood arc blessings bestowed upon us
for purpose-that labor, both mental
and physical, Is the true and only road
to independence, comfort and content
ment. Such man with such convic-
tions rarely ever fails in accomplishing
his purpose. The wide difference to be
seen in the careers of different mer-
chants alone, where one enters heartily
and with his whole energies into his
calling, and the other simply waits for
custom without endeavorlng to win it,
. will satisfy the most skeptical, If argu-
ment will not, that the path to pros
perity Is trod mainly by those who
rely not on luck but on energy. Per-
haps there is no occupation which
dwindles SO rapidly into ruin when not
we'll followed as that of a merchant.
Energy, in which word wo include
every honorable appliance of effort, Isl
the foundation, the body and soul of
mercantile success. It Is necessary In |
commencing business, and is In de-
mand every hour while business pro-
crosses. In the spring 1t looks ahead |
to summer, then to autumn, next to |
winter and SO on; standing like wary
sentinel on the outpost ready for action
at all times and seasons. The energetic
merchant Is not 80 slow AS to bo COM
PEELED to ascertain by inquiry the wants
of his market, but like a skillful gen.
eral, comprchends Mt once the situation,
even anticipates the demands of trade
and thus actually creates a business
prising would in all likelihood become
a bankrupt.
Something of this nature Is greatly
required in Monroe. There is, we have
no doubt, plenty of capital invested to
supply tho market with every article
required, but it is not sufficiently d.
versifiei. Tho dry goods store of to-
day, for all the inventions and inn |
provements Of the last few years, looks |
almost exactly like the dry goods store
of twenty years ago.
1t is this short-sightedness, to use a
cumbersome but expressive compound,
against which we are demonstrating.
This is a progressive age. For every
want tho ingenuity of man has In
vented corr csponding Nrticle, and the
various branches of trade afford In
some of Its notifications tho needed |
supply. A thriving trade is not neces- |
sariIy dependent upon tho expressed
wants Of buyers. Tho experienced mer-
chant is we'll aware that purchasers, as
general thing, arc oftener controlled |
by his taste and jullpment than nv
their own, SO that it Is he in reality |
who directs, or at least may direct, tho |
channels OF commerce. This is u great |
advantage, affording, rs it docs, a reli-
able means Of securing success and
amassing wealth.
We must all get rid of this lethargy
and inactivity, which, like shackles,
have fettercd us SO long. We have,
each and every one of us, seen individ-
uals who although engaged in business
ON a small scale, yet never were found