The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1908-12-07

looked after consignments and dis
posed of them 10 customers, Johh
looked after accounts Snd collections.
Occasionally, when | was very busy.
he would come out on the floor of the
warehouse help some and hear me
swear some But our relations. were
always pleasant. At that, / thought
he was too exact. He was methodic-
al to an extreme. careful as TO detsiis
and exacting to a fraction. Ii there
was cent due us he wanted IL. III
there was Il cent due a customer he
wanted the customer To have IL.
Through coming to see me Sam
got acquainted with John When
Sam became convinced that he could
successfully and profitably refine pc
troleum he came TO me and asked me
to go in with him and start small
refinery. told him there was no
chance. that John and | together did
not have more than $3.50 we could
spare out of our business: We. simply
he'd enough working capital. together
with our credit at the banks. TO enable
us TO make advances 10 consignors, pay
i insurance and rent. One day, to stop
his opportunities. said, We are so
poor we can't afford 10 hire a book
/ keeper. although John has TO do more
/ than he ought
Some time afterward he came To
/ the warehouse one morning and. ind
ing me very busy. went into the Office
and talked TO John When ! got a
little leisure he came out and began
TO talk oil. started 10 shut him of.
but when he said. Mr.. Rockefeller
thinks well of il, | impulsively re-
piled. Well, if John" will go in. ] will
After a moment of reflection I did
not regret that answer. I knew he
had presented the possibilities of the
business TO John and | had a lot OF
confidence in Johns judgment and
ability 10 get the enterprise going
That was what led to the organization
of the firm of Clark, Rockefeller Co.
and the little wooden refinery in
Kingsbury Run. which eventually ea.
banded into the dominating interest
In the Standard oil Company.
Il didn't make the money ! should
nave out Ol OIL, OUT tldt WEE my oNh
fault. | could not foresee its future,
Neither could Sam or he would not
under any circumstances have sold out
when he did. Before selling he was
. sore at John After selling he was
sore at himself
John had abiding faith in two
, things-the Baptist creed and oil. Il
. had believed in oil as he did dom
think | would care about that OF an,
other creed. He had the right ideas
about the oil business The volume O
) trade was what he always regarded q.
} of paramount Importance, and aftel
J familiarizing himself with the various
) interests affecting Ii. he sought to con
troll the production on the theory tina
by controlling the production the con
sumption could also be controlled.
Once in the oil business he devo'
ed all his energy and ability TO II
with the result that he extracted from
it about all that one man could
Whether he would ever have been Il
oil had he not met Sam Andrews !
I beyond human grasp. If Shurmer ha
not come to Cleveland in all probabi
ity l would not have come. II ha
mot in all likelihood Andrews woul
not. If Andrews had not induced Nj
!. Rockefeller to embark in the refinin
: business. was there anybody else VIII
. might have done it,"
Il