Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1915-07-12

"TF WE had had an organization like yours
j we would not have been compelled to go
out of business"
This is what the manager Of the Simpson
Crawford Company Of New York, said to
the manager of Gimbel Brothers after he
had seen the Gimbel force take hold of the
stock purchased from the retiring company
and get 1t ready for transfer and sale in
their Philadelphia and New York stores.
Such an efficient organization ought to
offer splendid opportunities to young men
and women anxious to get on in the world
One connected with 1t ought to absorb
knowledge Of the best business methods
without conscious effort, just as child
brought up in an educated family learns to
speak correct English adorned and made
picturesque by the colloquial metaphor
sometimes called slang, that he learns from
his playmates. The apt child picks up both
with equal facility, and uses both with equal
ease. once heard the 3-year-old son of a
physician, when asked where his grand
mother was, reply
"she is out on the steps, chewing the ragl"
And he was conscious Of neither disrespect
nor other improperly. The language of his
time was reacting upon his impressionable
intellect as truly as cream of tartar reacts
der biscuits that his mother ought not to let
him eat for supper.
Acid Test of Opportunity
With view of discovering how the allsalI
OF ambition could be brought in contact with
the acid Of opportunity right here in Phila-
delphia, called on A. A. Christian, manager
of the Gimbel store, and told him I wanted
to get some words from him that would en-
courage the young men and women of the
city who are just beginning to earn a living.
"They get too much encourag cement al
ready" he replied, with feeling. What
young people need is not encouragement, but
hard work Let them start in an honest
business and the rest depends on them. But
the business should be honest in the first
place. That settled, nothing else matters,
except the individual himself The trouble
with most young people is that they do not
care about anything except the money they
get. They take no interest in their work.
This store is full Of people who do not earn
IS a week for the company But those who
do take an interest have no trouble in get
ting on.
'Why!' he exclaimed, "if a boy sticks his
head above the rest so much" and he meas
ured about half the length of the first Joint
OF his first finger, "he will be seen by some
one in authority and pushed ahead. II we
do not push him ahead, some one else will
catch sight of him and take him away from
us. Young people have no chance? Why, we
force chances on them! Everybody does.
Every big business is going over the country
with fine tooth comb to find men who can
do things. But they are not easy to find
Taking the Shears to the sharpener
''If new boy comes in here and tell him
to get these shears sharpened"-he picked up
a pair that looked as II they needed it-"and
he asks me where the sharpener's shop is
and to look up his address in the directory
and how much he ought to pay a man be-
gins to swear. But that is what we are up
against all the time There are places where
shears are sharpened and we want some one
who knows enough to get the Job done when
we put it up TO him."
There opened then to my vision the long
vista Of the highway to success made smooth
with the block pavement OF the heads Of the
incompetent, where there would be elbow
room enough for all who choose to travel by
that road So I asked for the store proc
esses OF employment and advancement.
We have about 1000 people with us now"
Mr. Christian said. ''but In the holiday sea-
son we have about 5000 Every person who
comes in here is first put through the COL
lege OF salesmanship. We call II a college
instead OF school, because that sounds
bigger. But It is only a school, ana It does
not take very long for bright young man
or woman 70 learn all that Is taught there.
We tell them 70 be courteous ana accommo-
dating, and We show them how to make ont
q sales slip. ana we test them IN penman-
ship and simple mathematics 70 discover
whether they can compute the amount OF
the sale correctly. Then We put them be-
hind a counter and permit them 10 watch the
salespeopie AZ work When We are satisfied
that they can sell goods without making
serious mistakes We give thsm q saleshazss