The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1922-04-27
Member Of The Associated Press.
0E1d lied
EIlfSs@
PIES AND OPPORTUNITIES

A delicious article that may be styled beth
confectcn and food, has suddenly sprung into
popular favor. Only few weeks ago there were
thousands of people all over the country who asked
What is it2" when they heard The name "Es-
kimo Pie They were told that it was com.
posed of block Of ice cream dipped in delicious
chocolate. Once sampled, the pie made another
permanent new friend. But that Is net all there
is to the story The history of the pie reads Ike
a romance. ! he inventor or originator, {. K. Mel
son, son of the village confectioner at Onowa
Iowa, hawked his product around the territory
near his home for than four years. No per-
son had faith in its possibilities and therefore no
funds were forthcoming to back the enterprise
young Nelson had in mind But one day he did
succeed in interesting LEGAL capitalist 10 a small
extent; start was made in diminutive way and
little later ii was found possible 10 secure enough
backing to really do something worth while. To-
day the Inventor is receiving somewhere around
$4,000 week in royalties. He gets FIVE cents
a dozen from every factory IN the United States
and Canada; those who know anything about the
output even here in Polk county have a suspicion
that they would fare very well if they could have
that royalty for the pies consumed ii this territory
A local dairy company has the sole rights hers
and it is said they are turning out mere than two
hundred and fifty dozen pies a day right now, with
the demand steadily on the increase.
Those who have been privileged to see tie
process Of manufacture realize that The CONNECTION
is absolutely pure ard nourishing and put Up under
the strictest sanitary conditions. According to d
recent statement appearing in the newspapers,
scarcely a start has been made in introducing this
new product. Those Interested in the enterprise
have wisely decided to invest heavily in newspaper
advertising; as a result CT this campaign, it con-
fdentIy expected that although the pie has been on
the market only since the first Of January, the
gross income from royalties may amount 10 3d.
100000 in the next twelve months. Licenses for
the manufacture Ct tic pie are issued to concerns
throughout the country and it is said the demand
for the license is so general that it is almost inpos-
sible to keep Up with the requests.
Young Nelson's story is not only interesting but
encouraging from the standpoint that we have OPP
portunties around us every day Of which we fail
to take advantage. Of course people said it could
not be DONE this coating Ct ice cream with hot
chocolate but the best proof is to be had from
a visit to the local factory Incidentally, it might
be mentioned that the Lakeland product has the
reputation of being quite tie best in this territory
because of the excellence CT the ice and the
fine quality of the chocolate used. After the cakes
are dipped, they are transferred to a cooling room
where the temperature is away below freezing
point. Here they remain fer al least two days so
that when they are distributed for sale they are
completely frozen.
Again referring to the inventor. it seems that
he was brought up and educated in the little ham
let Of Onawa where his father operated an ice
cream manufacturing establishment. After Nelson
got through school his father put him in charge of
the plant where he gained knowledge Of ice
cream manufacture. Nelson conceived the idea of
dipping ice cream in chocolate and he worked on
the plan with varying success for several years.
His main difficulty arose from the fact that the
chocolate would not stick to ice cream. The elder
Nelson turned his ice cream plant over 10 another
man and failure resulted With little else but an
idea to sell, Nelson set out to find capital to per-
feet his Eskimo Pie scheme He went from town
to town and mel with constant rcbu6s Cover ice
cream with hot chocolatep Ridiculous said the
men before whom he laid his plan for new con-
lection. Finally he reached Omaha. where he met
Russell Slower, then connected with the Graham
Ice Cream Company Of that city. Slower reccg-
nizcd possibilities in Nelson's idea. He had been
superintendent Of big chocolate factory in Chi
easo and be saw way il which il was possible