Mexico weekly ledger., 1915-02-25

large corporation, the heads must del
egate a great deal to department man.
ayers, and in doing so, necessarily
lose that intimate acquaintance with
employees that goes far toward win
ming success.
1t is also just as necessary to have
touch with a customer as it is with an
employee. J have observed that we
seldom lose an account where the Gus
toner becomes well acquainted with
the officers Of the company, and in a
large corporation it is almost impos-
sible for its officers to know person
ally even a small percentage Of its
customers. When | state that the In
ternational Shoe Co., has more than
10000 customers on its books, it can
readily be seer why it is impossible
for me or any other officer of the
company to become personally ac-
quainted with even a small part of
the customers that we have on our
books.
| do not believe business is cold
blooded. In fact, there is no record
of any great business success where
the heads Of business looked at the
matter from this standpoint. Friend
ship in business goes a long ways and
counts just as much with the custom
err as it does with the employee. The
loyalty of customers and employees
to the Company is absolutely neces-
sary to its success, and unless there
is a feeling of mutual respect and re-
gard there cannot be any loyalty from
those we employ or from those with
whom we deal. In fact, | believe that
a great many misunderstanding
could be avoided if we could keep in
closer touch with all those with whom
we do business, even in the remotest
degree. For instance, had we done
our full duty, the officers of our Com
pany and the heads of the various de-
partments would be better acquainted
with you gentlemen here, and had we
done that | am quite sure there would
never have existed the feeling in the
mind of any one in Mexico that we
did not intend TO do our full duty and
| regret that my duties are so exact
ing that it has been impossible for me
to meet very many of the citizens in
the various towns and cities where
we have plants located,but / have not
had the time to do so.
The International Shoe Co., has
never contemplated abandoning its
factory in Mexico, and in fact it has
never been discussed as of the remot-
est possibility of our doing so. In
most cases where trouble arises and
where different opinions exist. it is
due largely to the fact that we do not
see the other mans side of the case
just as clearly or in the same light as
we see our own. You business men
here tonight, no doubt, know some
thing of the many difficulties and per-
picking problems and conditions that
have confronted the business world
during the past few months, and it
is not over-stating the case to say
that the larger the business the more
difficulties have had to be overcome.
Business conditions are improving
and we are fast adjusting ourselves
to the changed conditions brought
about by the war in Europe . The
consumption of the necessities of life
is going on and production must soon
be increased. Our stock of merchan-
disc in all forms at the beginning of
the war was about nine million dol
lars. Today it is slightly below nor
NAL, and in order to bring our mer-
chandise up to its normal condition,
based on the assumption that bus
mess will improve from now on, l am
pleased to say that it is our present
intention to again start the Mexico
Factory within the next thirty days
time.
! want TO assure you, Gentlemen of
the Commercial Club, of my pleasure
in being with you tonight, and to fur
Their assur you of my interest in the
City of Mexico, and my desire to CO.
operate with you in every possible
way, and when the international Shoe
Co., can serve you or whenever you
need our help, / want you to feel that
you are just as much at liberty to
call upon us as if our entire organiza-
ton were located there. We feel that
we r a part of your city and we
shall strive to be always an important
factor in your growth, development
and prosperity.
Paul Browns Address.
Paul Brown, editor of the st. Louis
Republic, one of the most brilliant
editorial writers in America, made
one of the most scholarly and inter-
esting addresses heard in this city
for many years. Mr.. Brown is a
talker who bears the reputation of
being "easy to listen to" and from
his speech Thursday evening, he de-
serves not only that compliment but
the added one of always having
something worthwhile to say and
knowing how to say it."
He said the present form of gov
eminent in this country was most
wasteful. That the most lawiess cor
poration in the United States was
the United States and then he pro-
ceeded to prove it. He had all the
facts and figures required at his
tongues tip and went into detail cit
ing government reports to show how
loosely the present method of gov
eminent expenditures are handled