davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1909-06-10
CRAFTSMANSHIP AND coLLEC-
TlONS.

Usually the man who looks after
collections thinks he has nothing to
do with craftsmanship; he doesn't try
to know anything about It, and merely
sets his heart on a low record of loss
of accounts placed IN his hands.
In the first place, II the margin Of
profit is large, very free credit can be
given It is better to lose few ac.
counts OF those who fail to pay, II
the amounts are small rather than
lose a much larger volume OF business
through applying a strict credit rule.
A few years ago when the bicycle
craze was at its height, the largest bi.
cycle tire concern in New York had
credit man who would not give any
dealer credit unless he was rated by
the mercantile agencies. or could Offer
unqualified references. A change was
made and the new credit man gave
very free credit to all the small re.
pair shops over the country, which
had sprung up in a night, and ap.
peared honest In intent but had no
rating, and though the percentage Of
lost credits rose considerably the net
profits are said to have increased
from s3.OOO.OOO 10 s7.OOOOOO year. A
liberal credit man had more than
doubled the profits
If accounts are large and the mar
gin of profit small. one or two losses
will eat up the profits on many sales,
and more care must be exercised on
the credit and collection end of the
business.
We will suppose, however, that 4
small storckeeper is slow pay, but
never has large account, and buys
steadily. II he can he kept In good
humor so that his indebtedness makes
him feel he must buy everything from
you II is far better TO take the risk Of
losing a small amount when at last he
goes under, than to press him so hard
that he begins TO place his cash bust.
ness elsewhere, In which case you
lose the small sum he owes you, and
his business for a year or so as well
Clever craftsmanship would turn the in.
debtedness into a means Of cllnChing
a really large total volume Of business.
The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1909-06-10
A GOOD SYSTEM OF COLLECTION
LETTERS.

The salesman is as free in talking
about terms as the policy of the house
will allow, or else he says as little
about payments as he can, in order to
keep attention on the desirabllity Of
what he has 10 sell.
But as soon as the sale is completed.
the order should be acknowledged
from the office in polite letter, which
affords an excellent opportunity 10
make quite clear how and when pay
ment is expected. II the customer
knows at the start what is expected Of
him. 1t will be far easier to get money
from him later than II any doubt or
confusion exists in his mind.
When payment is due the customer
should be notified promptly. Most peo-
pie do not pay until asked. In some
cases II may be sufficient to send a
simple statement. Some firms have
on the statement a form OF notifica.
ton that draft will be made If pay
ment Is not made on or before q set
The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1909-06-10
cannibaIism in Africa.

4 grisly story OF Gannibalism comes
from German East Africa a magician
named Malukausi. his wife and two
adult sons had accustomed them.
selves to the taste of human flesh, but
naturally had some difficulty In obtain.
ing IT, They managed, however, grad
ually to draw into association with
themselves eight women, whom Ma
lukansi promised TO teach his magic
arts on condition that they should sup
ply human bodies for the qualification
Of his hideous appetite. Thus secret
cannibalistic society Of 70 persons
was formed. According to tine evi.
Gtnce given at the trial the victim
consumed at their loathsome rcpasts
were In all cases relatives. and fire..
qucntly children, OF the eight women
whom Malukansi had got into his
tolls. Every woman oi the band used
to take part in these orgies, even
though II was her own child that was
being eaten All 10 admitted to hav
ing INDUCED in canniballsm and some
OF the women expressed their prefer.
encc for the flesh of children, which
they said was beautifully tender
Ten OF these orgies were condemned
to death. and have since been exc.
| cuted.
The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1909-06-10
THE IMPORTANCE OF ENERGY IN
LETTER WRITING.

To the cool unprecedented onlooker
all advertising that is really good may
seem horribly exaggerated You ask,
what is the use in getting so excited
about the matter?
There Is Il great deal Of use The
ordinary man Is too busy, too tired
or too Indifferent to pay much atten.
ton TO what you have TO offer. II may
interest him. but he cant get up
enough interest to buy IT, He doesn't
feel quite like IT, The good adver.
Using writer must work up his en-,
thusinsm and excitement so that HE
WILL FEEL LIKE GIVING HIS OR.
DER. Fhe inertia must be overcome,
the natural inclination to be lazy and
let a good thing slip must be counter.
acted. and the reader must be excited
to the pitch whore he will not only as.
sent TO your arguments with his rea.
son. but actually do what you want
done.
Tho one way of making n man feel
like ordering is to throw contagious en-
ergy into your style.
For example. suppose you are trying
to sell fire cxtinguisher for home
use--a tube Of dry powder to hang on
the wall at various convenient places.
You feel the energetic movement of
words in the following:
Answer this question: In case of
fire, would your insurance really make
good your loss?
You are always the loser by fire,
however we'll you are insured, for in
surance does not cover injury to your
business, nor all the discomfort and
inconvenience that go even with the
smallest fire.
And then think of the horror OF
having your wife or daughter or
child, or even your servant. burnt to
death by reason of dresses catching
fire,
You can prevent these little acct.
dents VERY EASILY, and ut small
cost.
Hanks fire tube contains perfect.
ly harmless powder. II is Just large
enough to III the hand, and hangs on
the wall in kitchen, store. or factory.
The ring by which It hangs Is at
tached to n friction cap. All you have
to do Is to catch hold Of the fire tube
and give it jerk from the hook.
THAT this device is really practi
cal you may Judge from the fact that
tubes of this kind are required in
every theater, in every factory, in
every crowded department store.
That is the law Read just a few of
the stories of how these fire tubes
have saved thousands Of dollars worth
of property and scores of lives
Copyright 1907, by Joseph v Bowlesl
The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1909-06-10

pound. After taking one and one.
half bottles of the Compound, | am all
right again, and / recommend 1t TO
every suffering woman" MRs. MAY
DEAL, Winchester, Ind.
Hundreds of such letters from girls
and mothers expressing their gratitude
for what Lydia 4. Pinkhams Vege-
table Compound has accomplished for
them have been received by The Lydia
f. Pinkham Medicine Company, Lynn,
Mass
Girls who are troubled with painful
or irregular periods, backache, head
ache, dragging-down sensations, faint
ing spells or Indigestion, should take
immediate action TO ward off the seri-
Gus consequences and be restored to
health by Lydia +. Pinkham's Vege-
table Compound. Thousands have been
restored to health by its use.
If you would like special advice
about your case write u c0nfiden-
tial letter to Mrs. Pinkham, at
Lynn, Mass. Her advice Is free,
and always helpful.
The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1909-06-10
THE SYMPATHETIC DUNNlNG
LETTER.

There are certain classes Of custom.
ers. such as women, clergymen and
teachers. whose means are very mar
row. and who unavoidably fall behind.
though they are really honest or think
they are honest Threatening letters
only anger them. They have a certain
small income and they use II TO pay
the accounts they feel most like pay.
ing
For such the sympathetic dunning
letter is the one which succeeds best
1t is rather long letter. usually, is
filed with sympathy and the spirit of
kindness. and asks certain personal ia.
vors that can be granted. and will be
granted If the debtor is made to feel
right.
Such n letter might run like this.
Your obligation OF such and such
date Is now considerably overdue. We
feel quite sure, however, that payment
has been delayed because OF circum.
stances beyond your control and we
have no desire to press you In any un.
reasonable way though we should like
very much 10 be paid.
AS n personal favor, we wish you
would tell MS Just what resources you
are depending on for the payment of
this account, and as nearly as possible
the time at which we may expect re.
mittance. VIII you not kindly be quite
frank with us, so that we know just
what your situation Is ana what we
may expect, Then we will not annoy
you with useless duns and our very
pleasant relations will not be dis
turbed by any misunderstanding or
suspicion. We kindly ask the favor of
frank letter from you by return
mail"
A sympathetic dunning letter follow.
ing slightly irritating letter has often
brought an immediate remittance, and
this confidential, kindly way Of writ.
ing. when used as contrast with the
usual methods very often gets atten.
tiun which harsh letter would not
get at all.
At the same time there Is a class of
people who would be only too ready TO
take advantage OF an easy creditor.
Some credit men are so surprised at
the results that come from using the
sympathetic letter after the brutal dun.
ming letter has wholly failed that they
adopt the sympathetic letter entirely,
as an important new discovery. But
this is equally a mistake. Variety Is
what is wanted One kind of letter
will get some debtors, and another
kind will get different set, but 1t
takes all Kinds of letters to collect
money from all sorts Of people and.
indeed, some debtors are susceptible
only to combination or alienation OF
several different kinds of letters
The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1909-06-10

selling letters. there are plenty OF
others who win.
The logical steps of creating sale
through a letter are as follows:
First, fan up the slight or smoldering
natural longing In the customers
mind Unless there is want to be
filed, no business can succeed. But in
its natural state the want is too feeble,
too vague. The sales letter must fan
It up and make 1t n keen and conscious
desire, void in the mind that has got
TO be filled. The place to start Is with
the natural want of the customer. Not
with what you have to sell
Second, show jnst how the thing you
have fits into the natural vacancy, fills
the spontaneous and universal want.
The first appeal is to the common
sense and interested judgment Of the
customer Unless he can see clearly
Just why this article would be good
thing for him individually, no further
sales effort will avail anything.
Third. offer some outside proof that
your claims are justified. You may
think your article n good thing. but
you arc a prcjudiced party. Has this
article actually served anybody else,
any real purchaser, and Just what has
1t done? Bring out few facts such
as would make an impression on Il
Jury IN a court OF law Don't expect
people to take your mere word. Pro
ducc facts, evidence, as trained I'd
vocatc would do.
Fourth. indicate with great clcarness
and precision Just what you want the
prospective customer to do II your let
ter succeeds in interesting him. II is
mistake to assume he can guess
what YOU want Tell him exactly, pre-.
cisely, point for point. and don't expect
him to do very much-pcrhaps sign an
order blank all ready prepared, or mail
postal card asking for a catalogue
and so informing you he Is really open
for business.
The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1909-06-10
annorancn Aids Anpetite.

.errill Il. Gates. secretary OF the
board OF Indian commissioners, was
describing the splendid work that his
board is doing to wipe out the tuber-
culosis scourge Nhich ut one time
threatened to make the American In
dian extinct.
But the Indian" said MIR. Gates.
needs to be educated In sanitation.
He is shoc,.ingly ignorant there. In
fact. he Is as Ignorant as an old farm
or used to know In Warsaw.
"a friend dropped in on this old
farmer as he was frying bit of bacon.
Grand bacon, that. said the friend.
smiling affably.
Grand baconi Well, guess it is
grand bacor4' said the old man, turn
ing the slices In the pan. And it's
ione O yer murdered stun, neither.
That pig died natural death -
Washington Post.
The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1909-06-10

having n good time. you have been
happy. Why should you worry at the
thought of her going away? In form
ing your plans you have never consid.
cred her, unless II were to what eN.
tent II would be necessary to practice
deception. Why, my dear sir, so far
as can see, 1t would be a benefit to
you to be rid OF her. Then there will
be no one to disarrange your plans.
II will abolish the necessity for sub.
terfuge and save you any amount Of
worry. 1t leaves you an absolutely
clear coast"
Hang it. Lambert, don't be nasty
about the matter! ! always thought
that you we're one OF my best friends.
There are the proprieties to be OBJ.
served, you know. And then, If she
should go away, there would be talk.
And, after all, mans home Is his
home" he concluded weakly.
For that speech he gained Dr. Lam.
berts lasting contempt. Even the bad
half hour he had promised to give the
man faded from his mind; he doubted
whether he had weapon that Would
reach tender spot. However as.
Stunning his most winning expression,
he replied:
Yes, old man, It will be hard on
you. am sure. few nice women
will probably cut you dead. There
may even be q few lines in the paper,
but 1t is not likely that 1t will make
a big sensation by any means. But
don't take the worst view of 1t. You
can go away for awhile, and eventu.
ally II will all blow over"
Don't! Not the papers-don't say
that" Wintou broke in hoarsely, and
began TO walk rapidly back and forth.
Then you refuse to help me? Is that
what | am to understand"
Il am afraid there is nothing | can
do You see, 1t doesn't happen to be
case falling within the lines of my
professional duty. | could hardly go
TO Mrs. Winton and ask her to make
me the recipient OF her condolences
concerning her husbands misbehayior.
and It is hardly likely that she will
come to me for advice"
But she has such great confidence
in you, and"
And you would like to have me
trade upon that for your benefit?"
asked DR.. Lambert witheringly
Evidently there was weak spot in
the armor, for Winton abruptly paused
in his walk and stiifened.
oh, II that is the view you care to
take of tiff But come, Lambert, !
sha'n't say what intended. You can
help me If you will. and | know that
You will. | am going to the club. |
shall 1tay there until you ring me up.
The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1909-06-10
THE LOGICAL CONSTRUCTION OF
A SALES LETTER.

Craftsmanship In letters Is not a mat
ter of heaven.born genius Some will
be more successful than others, but
everyone who writes letters can and
should learn the points of salesman.
ship In letters, so that every letter
written will have some selling quality
In IT, a little II not much. Here Is the
opportunity for the girl stenographer
to get better salary, or the sub-assist-
ant bookkeeper to jump from $40 to
SIS a week One prominen; business
man has said, "All my clerks, stenog-
raphers and statesmen would be worth
25 per cent more to me IL they would
learn to write good letter. and |
would raise their salaries according
ly." II your employer won't raise your
salary when you learn to write real
The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1909-06-10
THE BRUTAL pUNNlNe LETTER.


Now and then a debtor is found who
Is so thick.skinned that nothing
seems to make any impression on him
but n club. Unfortunately. most col.
lection agencies look on all debtors
turned over to them as being such,
and make Their collections by means
4 a club The club often gets the
Honey. but It kills the customer at the
samo dime. That Is why merchants
are so slow about turning their collec.
tons over to agencies. they feel sure
they cannot hope to do any more bust.
ness with the customers when the
agency gets done with him.
But now and then we all run across
deadbcats. When We find that out we
do not want to do any more business
with them, and do not care how we
get the money so that We really col.
lect it.
The usual style OF brutal dunning
letter consists in threats Of lawsuits,
with its piled mp costs, and the use
Of the words dishonesty" deadbeat,'
rogue" etc.
1t should be borne in mind that II is
not legal to make any disagreeable
threat in regard TO a debt in writing
on a postal card. In fact. anything
that might injure the standing OF
person in the community, even in the
slightest degree, cannot be sent openly
on postal card.
Threats Of boycotting or blacklisting
are also Illegal
Offensive or abusive letters are not
permitted to 20 through the mail, even
when sealed.
IL is not permissible to talk freely
about lawyers, agents, and suits at
law, and TO picture the heavy expense
Of such proceedings. You can make
man feel the sting of the words
"deadboat" dishonest" etc, by say.
Ing you would not think Of placing the
person you write to in the list OF such
persons, or saying you know he Is not
that. The suggestion is enough, and
usually more effective than really call.
ing names. Sarcasm usually cuts
deeper than abuse on all occasions.
Obviously the brutal dunnlng letter
cannot be written in high temper, If
it is to be legal, aud It ought not TO
be used at all except In collecting
money from a notorious deadbeat
whose trade cannot possibly be worth
anything to you at any time In the fu
ture. II sometimes happens that these
thick-sklnncd people viii pass over Of
fensive words and go on trading with
you. but It seems a lowering Of self.
respect to indulge In such letters, and
have found that the mildly irritating
letters will prove as effective II re.
peated often enough
The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1909-06-10
By E. SPENCE DE PUE

When the air is so absolutely still
that feather will drop straight to the
9oor. and the atmospheric pressure is
so great that you can almost feel the
weight of II upon your shoulders, and
the loose electricity gets upon your
nerves and makes them tangle, then
old residents of San Francisco say
that II is earthquake weather. 1t was
the tail-end of just such a day that
Charlie Winton walked into DR.. Lam.
berts office and told his story.
DR.. Lambert listened impatiently
and was unreasonably angry, consider
ing the fact that IL was none of his
affair. But as there was no escape he
was compelled TO wait till the story
was finished. Winton concluded as
follows:
You see. those Internal letters in
my pocket gave the whole thing away.
She gave me no opportunity to reply,
spurned me. said something STACEY
about a broken heart, and vanished
| might have Strengthened things out
had she given me chance"
Yes" asked Dr. Lambert, YEARLY
81 am very sorry-for her"
The palpably discouraging tone
rather took Winton aback for a mo
ment, but, not being an exquisitely
sensitive mortal, he commenced
again:
You can help me out of the dlificul
ty, doctor, If you Will"
Il can't see that there is any diff
Guilty. Mr.. Winton," DR.. Lambert re
piled very placidly, and with narrow
ing of the eyellds.
But don't you see that she will
leave me?" he replied, gulping a little
from excessive self-pity.
What of 1t, According to your own
statement of the case. you have been
The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1909-06-10
The Right Way to Write Letters
C- By Sherwn Cody c.
Y System of How to Write Letters TIL

date. Others send another statement
In slightly different form II check IL
not received within a few days after
the date that has been fixed This may
be on the goth of the month, If pay.
ment is expected on the l0h or 18th
The habit Of sending friendly let
ters, half soliciting and half collection,
is another good method. One Of these
three methods should be used to make
sure that the matter Is not overlooked
at the time when Il should be attended
to. Letting things diff is the vice OF
the credit man
When the proper time for payment
has gone by, brief. polite letter Of
reminder and inquiry should be sent.
The ideal letter is one full Of good ma.
ture and friendly interest, and there Is
often much value in making this letter
also one soliciting sales, telling of
some new goods just received. or new
prices that are made, and the like.
Uniting craftsmanship with collection
demands undoubtedly is the right way
to hold customers while getting the
money.
Success in getting money from very
slow payers lies in slight but fire.
quent rritation--short letters refer.
ring to courtesy, honor, honesty, good
name, fairness, personal favor, Then,
when money is secured, a warm, per.
sonnl letter of thanks and appreciation
should be sent to smooth down the ir.
ritated feelings
The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1909-06-10

woman may be uncertain and coy"
remarked the boarding house phIloso-
pher, put she isn't hard to please.
That's Where the poet is wrong"
What new light have you had on
that subject, Mr.. McGlnnis?" asked the
landlady.
She'll put up with almost any kind
OF stick for husband and wear any
old thing on her head for hat"
The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1909-06-10

me regular, and
thatI would event
ually have dropsy.
! would bloat, and
suiferfrombearing.
down pains, cramps
and chills, and l
could not sleep
nights. Ny mother
wrote to Mrs. Pink
ham for adyice,a and
| began to take
LydiaE .Pinkham's
Neretahle Com
The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1909-06-10
Smoother Then.

The second-year debutante. as she
massaged her left cheek with rotary
movement, said:
"Of course love him. though he's
rather rough, confess"
Before threw him over" said the
third.ycar debutante, looking up from
the face.steaming machine, The shaved
every day"
The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1909-06-10
A Man7
He began again

He began again:
Could you marry n man who was o
cigarette flendg"
She looked him over before reply
ing. Are there any," she Isurmured
He's still trying to figare out whas
she meant
The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1909-06-10
MOTHERS
WHO HAVE
DAUGHTERS
Find Help in Lydia E. Pink
vegetable Compound

Winchester, Ind. Flour doctors
told me that they could never make
Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1909-11-24
five. Gored Yoke Skirt.

Every form of the yoke skirt is to
be much worn this coming season,
and this one is graceful and very gen
orally becoming. 1t a be either
gathered or tucked, and consequently
it suits a variety of materials. In the
illustration it is made from one Of the
new silk and wool crepes with trim
ming of folds of the material. AL
most everything fashionable is soft,
however, and the list Of available fab
RIGS is a long one The yoke means
perfectly smooth fit over the hips,
while the skirt fails in graceful lines
and folds, and this is true whether it
is gathered or tucked. For the long
skirt, which is suited to occasions of
dress, the many pretty silks and silk
and wool fabrics are appropriate.
while for the short skirt can be util-
lied such simpler fabrics as cashmere,
wolfe and the like.
The skirt is cut in five cores, and is