The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1922-08-28

it's worst One of the larger manufac-
turers of sweet chocolate was forced
by the business situation into pei
sition where it could not meet promp. =
ly note for some $2,O0O,O00 winch
was secured by the product OF the
plant. When the loan was made, the
bank merely named the product as
matter of form. The result was that
when the manufacturing company
could not pay. this bank found itsele
in the possession of what to any
American small boy would seem the
greatest treasure of which the human
mind could dream-$2, 100000 worth
of savory and succulent sweet choco-
late, all done up in tin foil packages
of and 10 cent sizes.
Unloading Candy ms
On Market.
In the slang of trade, the bank was
stuck if ever a bank was. What u
bank could do with 100000 worth
of sweet chocolate was too much for
the staff of competent financiers at
the head of the institution. First they
turned to the usual channels of trade.
the jobbers and wholesalers There
was no market; the stores were not
| buying chocolate. They were stocked
| up.
! Finally, in despair some brilliant
! executive of the bank conceived an
idea. He thought of the army of the
unemployed concerning which there
had been much publicity. He realized
that while it would be hard to sell
anyone 100000 worth of chocolate,
he might sell or 10 cents worth at
a time. He arranged with employ
ment agencies and through want ads
| for workers. Within a short time
literally thousands of people, out OF
work because of the depression, and
eager to do anything, were standing
on the street corners of New York
offering sweet chocolate for sale at
cut rates. The bank took on anybody
that would turn up. The metropolis
was thronged with statesmen waving
punches of the toothsome sweet at the
passing crowds. One could not walk
down the streets without being offere
| sweet chocolate-as little or as mucH
as might be wanted.
1t took only a few weeks The pub.
lie was accustomed to buying an oc.
casional bar of chocolate at a news
stand or at candy store. In such
normal times the desire on the part
Of the customer created the sale
Here things were reversed. The choc.
olate came to the customer. It met
him in the subway, on the elevated,
in theatre Hobbies, on every street
corner, in short It was next to impos-
sible to walk a block without being
offered chocolate at a bargain 1t
was inevitable that the psychology of
the situation succeeded in selling the
sweetmeat New York surrendered.
Its millions of people bought the chloe
olate in and 10 cent lots. The bank
got out with little if any loss and en-
ployment had been given for brief
period to many people.
Instances could be multiplied. A
Il great Chicago bank became an eX-
porter of food products, so much Of
this sort of security came into its
possession. 1t sent great shipIoads
of goods abroad. Other banks became
auctioneers.
Those times are passed. The gov
eminent figures show that liquidation
the paying up of loans-is practical
~ complete and the banks are in
perhaps a stronger position than ever
before in their history. But thous-
ands of bankers have learned that
banking is not always a mahogany
desk and marble counter job. Some
bankers get into the fur business
whether they want to or not