The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1904-07-22
AWAY FROM HOME
A Canton Man Expresses
His Views.

Under the heading, Arnold Reveals
His Methods" the Grand Rapids Ar
tizan-Record contains the following
interview.
Business has not been so good
this spring as we might have desired"
said j. L. Arnold, of the Canton Home
Furnishing company of Canton, o.
I'VE do no installment business. We
extend certain credits, but this is all.
Our trade is with the best class OF
people in our city. My business
methods are my own, and have
never paid any attention to what the
other man was doing. There was an
article published in trade paper
some months ago in regard to keep
ing stock clean and not forcing the
salesman to say to a customer that
certain piece Of goods would look
all right If it was only busted off.
/ showed that to all my clerks and i'm
pressed upon them that the time to
dust was before the customer was
shown the goods. Neither do l have
special sales. l don't believe in them,
and think TO a certain extent it tends
to cheaper the house which indulges
in them. When I have a piece of
goods which seems to be slow sell
ing, l install more ginger than ever
into my clerks, and by marking those
goods down and keeping my clerks
ct the task Of disposing Of 1t, have
always managed to move 1t in the reg
ular line Of work.
I'VE have had some little experience
with trading stamps In Canton, but II
has never proved profitable venture
for the house using them. We have
strong business mems association
there, which is unalterAbly opposed
to any such devices, and this has
managed to eradicate the evil in all
instances. Some little time ago a
number of new stores started the
scheme up again, but pressure was
brought to bear upon them and they
have about decided to abandon the
curing trade to strictly legitimate
methods.
MRS. Mckinley l see very frequent
ly, and she is in better health today
than she has ever been, at least in
many years. l furnished the McKin-
ley home just after Mr.. Mckinley
was elected president. Mrs. McKin-
ley is very fond of little girls, and she
has frequently taken my little daugh-
ter riding with her, and has seemed
to enjoy the outings fully as much as
the child.
Canton is growing and now has a
population of some 10000. The city
has always had steady growth and
has always been thriving place. I
cnce heard Judge Day say. that 1t had
more industries, and those more
greatly diversified, than any other city
of its class in the country. To this
might add 1t has more furniture
stores than any city OF its size in the
country, and that all Of them appear
to be prospering One thing is sure.
and that is that dull periods seem to
have less effect upon the prosperity
of our city than upon many other
places. We have eighty-seven fac
Sories there, and none of them are
small concerns. We make practical
ly everything which is manufactured
from watches TO safes and plows, and
all of them give employment TO large
numbers of men. The watch factory,
for instance, has the names Of 1000
men upon its pay rolls.
About the newest happening there
was the so-called race riot of a couple
OF weeks ago, which was not as seri-
GUS as made out in the newspaper
accounts. Some negroes came up
from Springfield and started the trou-