Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1915-10-18
TALK IN ROUND MILLIONS
ON WAR-SUPPLY ORDERS
American Selling Agents Familiar
Sight Now In Capitals
OF Europe.
TAKE PLACE OF TOURIST
They Are Of Audacious and Adven-
turous Type, and Tell Interesting
Stories In Relating Experiences
With Conservative officials.

with Conservative officials.
PARIS. October 1.-THE American
agent. drawn by tho lure OF war con-
tracts and the exceptional demand for
american goods in all lines, Is be-
coming one Of the most familiar figures
Oh London Paris and the other war
capitals Of Europe. He Is taking tho
pace OF the American pleasure tourist.
who has almost disappeared from the
scene. and the channel boats, the great
hotels and the boulevards now have
goodly quota of Americans telling
their stories and relating their latest
experiences In dealing with officials
over war supplies They are of the
audacious and adventurous type and
prepared on short notice to talk In
round millions on a contract for horses,
guns. munitions. or supplies Of any
kind.
TWO OF the type OF war con-
tractors CHANGED TO meet at tho Grand
notei the other day. and, after tho
usual greetings and inquiries about
nome. one of them asked the other:
What is your line?"
Canned goods"
Doing any business?"
Fine: just closed n big contract
ration"
What kind of war rationr"
Well. we call II Irish stew In
America but over here. since the war
began. am calling II war ration,
ana II has caught on fine. We take
a certain portion of meat-pood first
class meat. and no poor stuN--and add
portion OF rice. portion Of onions
portion of carrots with seasoning
mat you see makes fine Irish stew
hut as l say over here we call il n
war ration
And v.ha. do ,.o, ,.t.,,.
on. We put UP that stew in one
pound tin cans, and after they eat the
iI'sh stew they're going TO use the
I'm cans for hand Erenades Now
mats n fact. and that's where our
goods appealed 70 these military peonIe
the mos,--the double use thev could
Eel OF them--lrst AZ a war ration and
men as hand grenade, and thar.
what closed the contract
THIS STORY Is TOLD
IN ALL SERIOUSNESS
inns was told in all seriousness and
was not story Of the road so that
mere is every reason to expect that
s'e" ihade In America viii soon
DC hourishinE allied troops and AZ
forwards serving them ~ 2 roccnt.cIe
'or explosives to offset LIQUID fro az.
pnEH'aung gas and other deadly con-
trivances.
The group Of American travelling -,,,
g
'alk was going or. and one of mo ro,,
corners remarked:
We got something that beats yo,,r
!f'sh stew, but those people a, IA.
LONDON war Office wouldn't adop, IL"
~ are" from his pocket a wad OF
p''"n'e metal that gradually unfoldcd
itsei! into the form OF a pertec, ,,l,,.a
IL was made OK minute links of s..oI
much AS ladies' link purse Is 1,5Is
''at me linked steelsglove rttted C.
me hand and was flexible 10 ali jts
movements " US
mat the wounded Indian ,rnnn. -,
me streets OF London invariably hav.
,"eir right hand In a sling. Tha, &c
because the Indian aghtcr when b..
rushes German trench. grabs the
ferinan bayonets as thew. ,t,r,,s, w
him, and when tho hayone, ~ $500 a,
""ch IL cuts an ugly doubleedrcd
wound in the Indians hand. Tbet,s
WY haif the Indian troops are in noe.
pita! with wounded hands
~ was 70 meet Just such .
condition and keep the Indian ON ,,a
firing line that we got This s,ne,' y" me
grove With that on his h,nd ~ -,
"'"" can jump In trench ana cr.h
Va ohct' with no danger Of n vo,,rd
ca hand But somehow ,bosa W..
people wouldn't see il: thev.ra
one 80 ~ ~ ,heir own light. for every
n L..
an indian soldier at the front. ''
IL appears TO he the conce,.
op.'oh among the commercial usn
.nd' IL Is very hard to do business u.;,h
inc average European Official. va"
ENDLESS AMOUNT
OF CIRCUMLOCUTION
.,ai the bureau systems make an
I'ess amount OF circumlocution ana
red tape, and It is dificui, ~ s,, aHn
VINO Is the official who has rho re.i I Ja
eia!oh' ana after that, the travo,ers
Say that hide bound conseryotfs,,
STANDS IN the way of the adoption ~
anything outside OF old. vel, ~
stood models. many of wbich
OF date They tell many strange ~
per'ences in their efforts TO rnacb -
right people. me
was told" said one OF the travel.
ers' that an introduction from nrori-
nent people was necessary ~ o., IN M,
any attention. One firm ADVERTISED In
tonuon mat they could furnish the
iisn' KIND OF introductions looked
tnem up and found they were house
agents. Then l heard that the Duke
Of - could give the sort ~ Io,,nr
required. So / managed TO sec him
ana told him that in America we we're
able TO tell customer when we saw
one. and was so anxious to see what
british customer looked like that I
would be willing to spend $1,000 to
nave one introduced to me. The duke
said he would be glad to Introduce the
very man who had the final signing of
contracts for my line of goods, and no
would bring him to me in two DAYS.
waited anNiously the second day but
ne did not come, and have been wait
ing ever since. But the duke can do
IL ~ ne wants to. there is no doubt"
another representative Of an extern
sive american industry related tho
following experience:
An artillery harness for six horses
Is being furnished to ono OF the bell
igerent governments for 1856. Tho
contract was first let as n whole 70 nm