The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-10-17


posters and bills but I have given up that
Can you see any immediate results from
such advertising" / asked.
II should think So replied Mr.. Wanna
maker. "If you will come over here or to
our New York store some morning when
we have advertised a job lot Of bicycles or
of some other things and look at the long
line of people who are standing outside
waiting for the doors to open, you will see
how the advertisements in the newspapers
are read
"Then advertising is one Of the chief ele-
ments of business success, is it not?"
ut is one Of the elements, but not the
chief" replied the great merchant. 1.-THE
chief element is getting what the people
want, in keeping your eyes the parts of
the world where new things are made and
in giving them the best and the newest
things along the lines of their real or
fancied needs. My aim is to get the goods.
The advertisement is merely to tell the peo-
pie that / have them. I like an advertise
ment which merely describes what we have
in the store
How do you like doing business in New
York?''
VERY much. indeed. Have you been in
my store there?'
mo- / have not" replied.
ABOUT A. T. STEWART.
"You ought to visit my store the next
time you are in New York." said Mr.. Wan
amaker. 'It is worth visiting to see the
building, if for nothing else. A. r. Stew
art was a genius. / have been surprised
again and again as I have gone through
that building walking in that dead mans
shoes to find what knowledge he had of
the needs of a mercantile establishment.
Mr. Stewart put up a building which is to-
day. / believe far better arranged than
any of the modern structures which are be-
ing erected. He seemed to know just what
was needed
did you know Mr.. Stewart" 1 asked.
Eyes, I met him often when 1 was a
young man. / used to buy goods of him.
and have reason to think that he took a
liking to me- One day, l remember, l was
in his wooden department buying some
stuffs for my store here when he came up
to me and asked me if / would be in the
store for fifteen minues longer I replied
that I would. He then went away. At the
end of fifteen minutes he returned and
handed me slip of paper, saying:
" Young man, / understand you have
mission school in Philadelphia use that
for it..
Before could reply he had left. 1
looked down at the slip of paper. 1t was a
check for $1,000"
but A. T. Stewart was not noted for his
charities, was he, Mr. Wanamaker?"
HE did a great deal of good in secret"
was the reply. He was always doing
something for others He gave $4,000 to the
people who lost by the Chicago fire, and
N
million-dollar home for the working girls
of New York. He had many charitable
plans which were never carried out After
the Franco-German war he sent to France
lot of flour for the starving people of
Paris, and during the famine in Ireland he
sent a lot of provisions to that country.
He was, in fact, very charitable man."
How did Mr.. Stewart look, Mr.. Wanna
maker?
He was rather slight and of not over
medium height with fair hair and light
blue eyes. He was a man of fine tastes and
of much culture
WAS he a great merchant?'
Eyes; L think he the greatest this
country has ever had Look over his life
and you yin think the same. He was the
son of an Irish farmer. He first came to
the United States as teacher. When he
was twenty-one years old he bought $1,000
worth Of Belfast laces and linens and
opened a store for the sale of these in New
York. He slept at this time in the rear of
his shop. He turned his capital over and
increased his business until he had what
was said to be the largest retail store in the
world. The building alone cost Mr.. Stewart
nearly $3,000,000 and its current expenses
at the time of his death were about 81, 900 900
a year. In his two stores he was at this
time doing a business of about $200, 00O 900 a
year. He had, in addition to these, branch
houses in different parts of the world, and
he was the owner of number of mills and
factories. When he died it was said that
he was worth about $4,000, Co.,"
How about your connection with the
Postoffice Department? Have you ever re-
GREETED your cffical career there?"
Il can't say that L have" replied Mr..
Wanamaker. Il don't like to criticise the
postoffice and postal matters, now that am
out of office. The machine is not rightly
organized and managed as it should be. The
real boss of the department is Congress at
the other end of the city on the hill Con-
gress makes the laws which govern the de-
partment, and the postmaster general is de-
pendent on Congress for everything he gets.
There are scores of ways in which the bust
ness there might be bettered if the post
master general had only the power to act.
He has not the power, however, and our
postal system will never be what it should
be under our present conditions of govern
mont
''You were strongly in favor of postal saw
ings banks were you not?
yes" was the reply, Il thought they
would help the poor"
PROSPERITY IS HERE.
''How about the times, Mr.. Wanamaker;
is business improving?'
Eyes, somewhat" was the reply. 1.-THE
tariff has opened the gate, and the bene-
fetal effects which are coming from it have
been added to by the misfortunes of other
nations in having poor crops while we have
good ones. AS yet, however, there are still
many people unemployed. Many of those
who have secured work through the better
times are saving their money to pay their
debts. so we do not yet feel the good times
as we shall later on"
''Then you think our prosperity will con-
tinue?'
Il believe we will have a spell of good
times. We cannot expect that the crops
will always be poor in South America, In
dia and Europe and this element of our
present prosperity may be lacking next
year Still the tariff will start the mills to
going and our biggest demand after all is
the demand at home"