Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1918-11-01
BUSINESS CAREER
OF PETER FLINT
A Story of Salesmansl,ip BY
Harold Whitehead
III,
CCxxXI1I

|
i bull made with those wool brokers'
yesterday. 4
When the broker who owned the office !
asked me what 7 was selling OF course
! I opened up with n boost of our land.
He raised his eyebrows In mock sur
prise at my boosting and gasped, Gosh
Where is the unparalleled opportunity
located?"
"Leeviiie Park. sir, mere forty-five
minutes from
| ITS forty-fve minutes from Bro-oad-
way" sang the four other brokers' and
then they all howicd with laughter.
| Don't let me very you, KID the
frst one said. Tell me more OF this
glorious spot
Well. let myself go on describing
the iS,d--and. believe me, when let
myself go ] can describe TO beat the
band
Finally one Of the others said, "Aw
quit II, Hank, you've fooled the young
nut enough
That's all right" said. trying to
grin. although I felt my temper rising
rapidly. many a man has started 10
fool with something and then seen he
has the real thing
The broker got up and looked at me
hard for a minute. Then he said. II
don't think you're one of the regular
rounders-pretty new to the game in
III old New York, amt yer?''
Yes"
Listen to me- bo The land you're
trying to sell may be all right--prob-
ably s--but you'd never sell 1t to fell
lows like US. We wool brokers are in
the habit Of dealing in thousands and
thousands of dollars worth of wool
every week Sometimes we take a ficr
on something bigger than your whole
bloomin' estate
Now what chance would you have TO
hook us up to IS a month cheap-skate
affair." Your lands right and we're
right. but the two don't run together,
savvy?'
You know, 7 saw az once he was right
and I felt real glad he told ME. II was
worth while being fooled TO get real
tip. I never thought of seeking a finan-
cal class of prospects before.
What class of guys would you call
on if you was me?''
with that land and your punk
grammar I'd try the ianitors Of build
ing. foreign societies, store clerks and
the run OF fellows who either make about
$25 week or who live cheaply. like
Dagoes do"
| thanked him for the suggestions and
beat IL, feeling pretty small. I wish ia
had CUTS enough to tell him what &c.
. c." told me when ! spoke of Dagoes.
Oh, I haven't told you how Bruno
Duke planned to sell that big stock of
lavender for the druggist. We'll, Duke
, told us after the craftsmanship class over
our beer and bread and cheese Chat has
become regular stunt with us).
| This is what he said
First of all, I wanted to associate
that lavender with something that at
tracted people. Now. when people think
of lavender. they think of sweet-laun-
dcred linen. spotlcss furniture and apple
faced old ladies'
THAT was my cue, SO told the drug
gist to find dear old lady! He gulped
with astonishment and evidently thought
I was crazy When he knew 7 meant
| it, he said: My clerks grandmother is
a fine Old lady--but wouldn't a good
looking girl do better? There's the
cashier?
His cashier looked like a Bowery edi-
, ton of 'Carmen'-and useless for my
plan.
"He arranged for the old lady to be
, there on the next Saturday. In the
meantime I'd borrowed fine old ma
, hogany bedroom suite and bed from a
second d-hand furniture dealer. Snowy
2 white bed linen and a stack of sheets
towels and such like gave me all the
! props I wanted
( Then we had that lavender put up in
ten. twenty-five and fifty-cent packages.
Mostly twenty-hve-cent size.
"On Saturday morning had the win
dow trimmed with the bedroom set and
the old lady was coached for her stunt
she was a sweet-smelling old thing, too,
: : and looked just right.
. "Al she had to do was stand in the
: window and put the linen in the Dress
ing-table drawers, placing packets OF
, lavender between the articles and look
:, ing pleased. When she had put 'em
away she smoothed the bedcothes and
:, then--took the linen out again. smelling
it as she did so and looking pleased. A
sign in the window read:
E SWEET LAVENDER
!. Brings back memories of happy days
and makes the whole house like a
E summer day in the country. Untii
e sold ten, twenty-five and fifty
5 packages.
q "Three times on Saturday the police
: made us stop the display-the crowd
= blocked the whole street-and sell
q Well. before II that night he had sold
l every bit of lavender except that in the
window,
1 "Thc druggist gave that 10 the old
, lady"