Evening capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1888-1893, 1891-12-15

/ SCHOOL. iO nine eases our Of Ten tne
principles Of the employer become the
principles Of the employee. ask the
older merchants to bear me out In these
statements
II, when you were just starting In
life. in commercial life, you we're told
that honesty WIS not marketable, that
though you might sell all the goods in
the shop you must not sell your con-
science. that while you were to exercise
al industry and tact you were not to
sell your eonscience--if You were taught
that gains gotten by sin we're combusti-
bic. and at the moment of ignition
would be blown ON by tire breath of
God until all tile splendid estate would
vanish into white ashes scattered i'm the
whirlwind--tlIen that instruction has
been to you a precaution and help
ever since.
There are hundreds of commercial
establishments in our great cities which
are educating a class of young men
who will berthe honor of the land, and
there are other establishments which
are educating young men to be nothing
but sharpers. What chance is there
for young inan who was taught in an
establishment that it is right to lie, II
tbs smart, and that French label Is
all that is necessary to make a thing
French, and that you ought ai'rays
to be honest when it pays. and that it
10 wrong to steal unless you do it well 2
Suppose, nows a young man just
starting in life enters a place of that
kind where there are ten young men,
all drilled in the infamous practices of
the establishment He is ready to be
taught. The young man has no theory
of commercial ethics. Where lis he to
get his theory9 He will get the theory
from his employers
One day he pushes his wit ailttle be-
yond what the establishment demands
of him, and he fleeces customer until
the clerk is on the verge of being seized
by the law. What is done in the es-
tablishment2 He is not arraigned. The
head of the establishment says toaliim,
Now be careful, be CAREFUL young
man; you might be caught; but really
that was splendidly done; you will get
along In the world. warrant you"
Then that young man goes up until he
becomes head clerk. He has found
there is q premium on iniquity.
One morning the employer comes to
the establishment. He goes into his
counting room and throws up his hands
and shouts, ''Why the safe has been
robbed" What is tile matter9 Moth
ing, nothing; only the clerk who has
been pTacticing good while ON Gus
TONERS is practicing little on the em-
ployer No new principle introduced
into that establishment. 1t is poor
rule that will not work both ways.
You must never steal unless you can do
it well. He did it we'll am not talk
ing an abstraction am talking a ter
rible and crushing fact.
TEMPTATIONS IN TRADE.
Now here is young man. Look at
him today. Look at him five years
from now, after he has been under trial
In such an establishment. Here he
stands in the shop today, his cheeks
ruddy with the breath of the hills. He
unrolls the goods on the counter in
gentlemanly style He commends them
to the purchaser. He points out all
the good points in the fabric. He eff
fects the sale. The goods are wrapped
up and he dismisses the customer with
a cheerful ''good morning. and the
country merchant departs so impressed
with the straightforwardnes of that
young man that he will come again
and again, every spring and autumn,
unless interfered with.
The young man has been now in that
establishment five years. He unrolls
the goods on the counter. He says to
the customer. Now those are the best
goods we have in our establishment; !"
they have better on the next shelf He
says, 1--WE are selling these goods less
than cost they are making twenty per
cent. He says, "There is nothing like
them Ia all the city," there are fifty
shops that want to sell the same thing.
He says, "Now, that is a durable
article, it will wash" yes, it will wash
out.
Tho sale is made, the goods are wrap
ped up, the country merchant goes of
feeling that he has an equivalent for his
money, and the sharp clerk goes into
the private room of the counting house,
and he says, "Well, got rid of those
goods at last; really thought we never
would sell them; told him we were
selling them less than cost and he
thought he was getting good bargain; ;
got rid of them Rt last, And the head
of the firm says, That's well done;
splendidly donel"
Meanwhile God had recorded eight
lies-four lies against the young man,
four lies against his employer, for un-
dertake to say that the employer is re
sponsible for all the iniquities OF his
clerks, and all the inlquities of those
who are clerks of these CLERKS. down TO
the tenth generation, il those employ
ers inculcated iniquitous and damnlng
principles
| stand before young men this morn
ing who are under this pressure say,
come out of it. oh" yon say. II
can't; l have my widowed mother TO
support, and II a man loses situation
now he can't get another one" say,
come out of t. tlo home TO your
,,,,shar md sav n, la. ,sNfs,tl,ar can't