Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1907-02-01
SHAW ON BUSINESS,
Trade Tactics Here and In Emo
land Criticised.
CAUSTIC RAP FOR AMERICANS
British Critic Declares We Are "per.
feet Children In Business"-Clains
Our Stratum Of Roma anticism Pre-
vents Us From Knowing Real Thing

Our Stratum OF hom anticIsm fre
vents Us From Knowing Real Thing
George Bernard Shaw, the British
critic and playwright is never afraiCi
to express an opinion on any subject,
and apparently he Is never at a loss
for the opinion, says the Scrap Book.
The other day he expressed his views
on business, saying:
THE most striking popularity about
business men is that | have never met
one who understands the slightest
thing about business.
business men have certain set. con-
ventional methods Propose to them
| "a way of doing business that departs
from their usual method, and, although
the new way may mean more profit,
they will not accept it unless forced to,
and even then they believe they are be-
ing swndled.
My own way of doing business Is
perhaps novel, but it is neither harsh
nor unfair. But it is novel. and there
fore the men deal with object to it.
although they themselves are the gain
ers by / )ing things my way and not
the way in which they are used. Yet
they regard me with suspicion. 1t is
very much as il you offered man So
for doing something for which he had
previously been in the habit OF receiv
ing dollar and having him denounce
you as a swindler"
Not content with generalties. Mr..
Shaw went on to discuss Englishmen
and Americans as business men,
"In making an agreement with an
Englishman you may be sure of one
thing, if it is not entirely to his advan-
tage he will not keep it. An English
men when he wants Il house or money
or anything else knows that in order to
| get what he wants he has to sign
something. He does not care what he
signs as long as he gets what he
wants. After he obtains the money or
| the house or whatever else he stood in
need of, if he finds the agreement he
| signed disagreeable he will denounce
| the man who holds it as knave or
| scoundrel and as one who is trying to
| take unfair advantage Of him.
in my own experience with English
men, the terms of my agreements sat
isfactory at the time of signing, have
afterward proved irksome. They would
then come to me and say, Surely, Mr..
| Shaw, you cannot expect to hold us to
such outrageous terms and when ]
would point to the agreements bearing
| their signatures they would retort,
| Surely, Mr. Shaw, you are a gentle
man.
after all, the Jew is the only man
who knows what he is signing and
will keep absolutely to his agreement.
Americans are perfect children In
business. They have stratum OF ro-
manticism that prevents them from
Knowing what business really is. This
| childish romantic spirit impeis them to
| be doing things. to cut somebody out.
| to do something that nobody else has
done or to do a greater thing than any
| body else has ever done. Accidents of
course will happen. and sometimes
| they make money. But the percentage
| of failures in America is something
| terrible. We never hear Of these. Ev-
cry attention is centerel on the con-
spicuous few who have made success"
Shall we apply to Mr.. Shaw the
words Of Horace,
Aliena negotia euro
| Excussus propriis,
which. being interpreted, is, 81 attend
to the business of other people, having
| lost my own?" 1t were fairer perhaps
to say that in his role of witty play
wright everybodys business is Mr..
| Shaw's.