Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1895-12-29

resentative Drummers of To-day
A large and entertaining volume
might be written about the travelling
men who represent at the present time
the many jobbing houses of this city
in the territory within one hundred
miles OF Wheeling, in the three States
OF Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Vir-
ginia. The men themselves were de-
cldedly objects of interest. their hust-
ling methods and ingenious ways, their
discretion and persistence; their abili-
tes IN the direction Of selling "a good
man large bill of goods which he
don l want, and their tact in cutting
down another party's large order to
put skeleton. coupled with a gentle
intlmauon about settlement of past
accounts, all without hurting his feel
lngs; their hardships and the humor-
GUS sides OF their experiences: their in
exhaustive fund OF good stories, and
thelr variations Of scenes and events.
would, II compiled in an adequate man
ner, make book of rare interest.
IL would take library, however, to
noiu mat broader and indefinitely more
interesting narration, history of the
travelling men of Wheeling. from the
uays De1ore the war, when samples were
carried In saddle-bags. a carpet sack, or
under the seat of a buggy, and when,
railroads being almost unknown in
tnis State, and not overly plentiful in
elther Ohio or PENNSYLVANIA long
Trips, over the most astonishing apollo
gles FOR roads, had to be made on horse
OacK' IN ouggies, or in wagons. Those
were the days which tried both the
souls and the physical endurance of the
angels Of commerce. and some OF the
journeys then made to the apparently
uou-torsaken West Virginia mountain
towns were almost equal TO anything
experienced by George KEENAN, in ST.
Derla, Spoke, Grant and Livingston in
AFRICA, or by those adventurous souls
VINO prefer to achieve reputation bv q
chase after that geographical will-O'
tne-wlsp, the North Pole. The days of
the war, too. threw some fearful and
wonderful experiences in the way OF the
rough-riding drummer. and between
uodglng rebel scouting parties and
pickets, wading through mud roads
!oruihs streams and hunting customers.
.ne iot OF the advance agents of the
local houses was strictly an unenviable
one. The commercial traveller of TO-
DAY, undesirable as his lot NAV appear
10 the casual observer, really has a per-
petual picnic compared with the fer
rors or the business during the sixties.
IN the wilds of West Virginia. In those
udyS there wasn't a railroad in the
state outside OF the B. & O., and scarce
~ motel worthy Of the dignity of such
name. Drummers had to stop at
farm houses. hire wagons for the trans
portatlon OF their samples over long
distances, bridges over the numerous
streams were few, and everything was
tough and undesirable except the meals
10 De had, and they, even in the most
unpromising regions, were often sur-
prlsingly good. Still, In this regard
many an old-time drummer. after a
day of fearful toll and exposure. often in
rain, mud and snow, wet to the skin
and thoroughly played out. has had 10
De SATISFIED with a supper of hog, hom-
my and corn meal and a shake-down in
and corn meal and a shake-down in
the loft OF some log cabin, through
the chinks Of which the wind whistled
and through the roof of which the stars
could be counted Most of the drum
mers Of those early times have been
gathered TO their fathers. or have drift
ed away to other fields of work but
a few still linger with us, among them
John Lashley, c. F. Zorn, Thomas E.
Beans, c. w. Seabright, Charley SEN
seney, Billy Bachman, and a few
others. Among others who are no
longer with us were Jim" Jacobs and
Billy Mitinger. These gentlemen
could tale unfold which would make
very interesting reading, particularly to
the present generation of travellers.
who are assiduously following an oc-
cupation which has been robbed OF
about all its old-time terrors. But of
these "reminiscences more at another
time. II is more particularly with the
travellers of the present day and the
mighty volume Of business that they
control that we propose to deal in this
sketch.
The activity, ability and general bus
mess knowledge of the travelling men
of to-day still secures to the local Job
bers and wholesalers the trade built up
by the pioneers Of long ago, and that,
too in the face of a fierce and never
ending competition from Baltimore.
Pittsburg, GAINESVILLE, Columbus, and
H,,.
rounding cities. This, too, has been
done in the face of radically changed
conditions and methods. Probably it
is not too much TO say that no other
class Of business men have been called
upon to so generally reform methods
during the last twenty years as has
the modern travelling man, and when
it must be remembered that the sue
cess won in the past and to be won in
the future has and will depend upon
pure ability to cope with and adopt the
rapid revolutionary methods constantly
presenting themselves, it must be con-
coded that this class represents the
very life-biood of large proportion of
the trade Of this city, and that the men
of the trunk and grip occupy no insig-
nificant position in the commercial af-
fairs of this community.
Travelling representatives from the
Wheeling wholesale houses have been
on the road for nearly forty years. but
possibly their modern history as to this
city. begins some twenty-five or thirty
years ago, and as has been said. some
of the old pioneers on the road who
corriad Samnles on hnrsa-han ar,d In