Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1910-03-15

long been denied any serious part in
our splendid activities. OF course he
does not make sales by cutting prices;
any blockhead can give away goods
and no house will long pay man for
doing what 1t can do without him.
have known men who were heavy Of
wit, awkward Of speech, devoid of
personal attractiveness and wanting in
about all of these attributes which in
popular belief belong in the makeup
of travelling man, go out and make a
splendid and sustained record in
volume of sales and profits earned for
the house and after looking for his
that through the sincerity and sound
ness of his character as man, he has
been able to win and hold the conf
dence and the business of his custom
ers, while your sleek shifty, though
more talented fellow has lost out
The Travelling Man Defined.
"But aside from this and consider
ing him in his relations to society, the
travelling man has an interest for us
all his own. He is omnipresent. There
are more travelling men than lawyers
and that is saying great deal for his
numbers. How shall we fittingly
characterize the travelling man? To
! do so would bankrupt the dictionary.
Gle is good humored, breezy, opti'
mistic, enthusiastic, persuasive, per-
severing, charitable, public spirited.
hospitable and sociable. A walking
encyclopedia on all subjects Of popular
interest An authority on sporting
matters, is posted on politics and
religion. He can relate the best story.
the latest joke. the sweetest morsel
of gossep or scandal, knows the best
song and play, and has read the best
book just out. He can tell you where
to go to hear the brightest sermon
and the dullest, has all the hotels anil
railroads down pat. Next to the news
paper, he is our greatest disseminator
Of news. He takes out with him the
news Of the city and brings home the
simple annals of the village and while
he talks of his journeyings one fancies
one hears the voices of the woodland,
inhales the odors of the barn yard,
the fragrance of new mown hay.
"He knows all about the crops, the
weather and is an unfailing barometer
on the state Of the markets and the
conditions of trade. He is a good citi-
zen and an all-round bully good fellow
to meet.
The Men on the Firing Line.
"And, now what of his work, what
part is his in this wonderful age? Aft |
err the surrender at Appomattox, while
the confederacy lay crushed and the
north was in frenzy of joy, when
they wanted to pay all the glory to
Grant for their deliverance from the
horrors of war, this modest great man
said: Don't praise me; those boys |
out there did it; they were on the fir
ing line; they it was who compelled |
victory would not disparage the i'm
pOrtance of able managerial ability |
in the house. but as between the two,
attribute large measure of the sue
cess of jobbing or manufacturing !
concern to the travelling salesman who
goes out on the firing line and meets
competition, convinces the Indifferent
unwilling customer and sells goods at |
profit.
"He it is who stimulates, creates oft
en-, the demand which makes possible
the continued growth of the splendid
houses and factories of
which we here in Ottumwa are justly
so proud He introduces us to the
good, new and useful things of witch
firing, progressive travelling man. He
educates our tastes, broadens and null
tiplies our wants and throughout the
long range of things to eat and drink,
things to wear, tools to work with,
vehicles to ride on, houses to live in,
the very air we breathe, all are better,
are to be made better and more de-
lightful through the educational work
and missionary efforts of the travelling
man. Verify, he is the apostle of the
more bounteous life, the spirit incar-
nate Of this age of plenty.
Nov that men are to be rated less
by what they say than by the things
they do, the travelling salesman should
be accounted one of the real patriots.
[ have seen Uncle Sam portrayed as
salesman His tall plug hat
cut down few stories, the long tails
Of his coat shortened by about one
half, his whiskers trimmed but other
wise the familiar and unmistakable
features and makeup of Uncle Sam,
rugged out as a travelling salesman,
with a huge sample case, striding
across seas and into distant lands to
sell unto alien peoples the goods Of
our house, the greatest house on earth,
whose partners are 75,000,00O OF peo-
Die, whose trade mark is Old Glory,
our own America. To my mind the
artist here presents a fine picture.
Dur Uncle Sam stands for patriot
SIN, national honor, industrial and
commercial progress. Our Uncle
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