St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1899-10-04


plans Henry Maxwell asked himself if
this was the Milton Wright he used to
know, eminently practical, business
like, according to the regular code Of
the business world, and viewing every
thing first and foremost from the stand
point of "Wifl it pay"
There is no use to disguise the fact,
Mr. Maxwell, that | have been COM
PEELED to revolutionize the whole method
of my business since made that prom
Use ! have been doing great many
things during the last 30 years in this
store that l know Jesus would not do,
but that is small item compared with
the number Of things begin to believe
Jesus would do My sins of commission
have not been as many as those of omis-
sion in business relations.
"What was the first change you
made?" asked Henry Maxwell He felt
as if his sermon could wait for him in
his study. AS the interview with Mil
ton Wright continued he was not so
sure but he had found material for
sermon without going back to his study
~ think the first change / had to
make was in my thought Of my en-
ployees came down here Monday
morning after that Sunday and asked
myself What would Jesus do in his
relation to these clerks, bookkeepers,
Office boys, draymen, salesmen2 Would
he try to establish some sort of personal
relation to them different from that
which have sustained all these years ?
| soon answered the question by saying,
Yes Then came the question of what
1t would lead me to do.
II did not see how could answer it
to my satisfaction without getting all
my employees together and having
talk with them So | sent invitations
to all of them and we had a meeting
out there in the warehouse Tuesday
night
"A good many things came out of
that meeting cant tell you all !
tried to talk with the men as | i'm
agined Jesus might 1t was hard work
for have not been in the habit of it,
and | must have made mistakes But /
can hardly make you believe, Mr. Max
well, the effect of that meeting on some
of the men Before it closed saw more
than dozen of them with tears on
their faces. kept asking, What would
Jesus do?' and the more asked it the
further along it pushed me into the
most intimate and loving relations with
the men who have worked for me all
these years. Every day something new
is coming up, and | am right now in
the midst of reconstructing of the
entire business, so far as it's motive for
being conducted is concerned. am SO
practically ignorant of all plans for CO.
operation and its application to business
that ! am trying to get information
from every possible source | have late
ly made special study of the life of
Titus Salt, the great mill owner of
Bradford, England, who afterward built
that model town on the banks of the
Aire There is good deal in his plans
that will help But | have not yet
reached definite conclusions in regard
to all the details. | am not enough used
to Jesus methods But see here"
Milton eagerly reached up into one of
the pigeonholes Of his desk and took
out paper
~ have sketched out what seems to
me programme such as Jesus might
go by in business like mine want
you to tell me what you think about
it
'wHAT JESUS WOULD PROBABLY DO IN
MILTON WRIGHT PLACE AS A BUSINESS
MAN
81 He would engage in business for
the purpose of clarifying God and not
for the primary purpose of making
money
20 All money that might be made
he would never regard as his own, but
as trust funds to be used for the good
of humanity
"3 His relations with all the per-
sons in his employ would be the most
loving and helpful. He could not help
thinking of them all in the light of
souls to be saved. This thought would
always be greater than his thought of
making money in business
"A He would never do single dis
honest or questionable thing or try in
: the remotest way to get the advantage
of any one else in the same business.
"5 The principle of unselfishness
and helpfulness in all the details of the
business would direct its details
"6 Upon this principle he would
shape the entire plan of his relations to
his employees to the people who were
his customers and to the general bust
ness world with which he was con
nected.
Henry Maxwell read this over slowly
1t reminded him of his own attempts
the day before to put into concrete
form his thought of Jesus probable &C.
ton He was very thoughtful as he
looked up and met Milton Wright's
eager gaze.
"Do you believe you can continue to
make your business pay on those lines2'
al do Intelligent unsefishness ought
to be wiser than intelligent sel6shness,
don t you Think If the men who work
rs employees begin to feel a personal
share in the profits Of the business and.
more than that, a personal love for
themselves on the part of the firm,
won't the result be more care, less
waste, more diligence more faithful
ness2'