Evening star., 1929-06-29
HARVESTER CHIEF
IS ABLE EXECUTIVE
Leqqe Held Well Qualified to
Serve on Farm
Board.
BY JOHN r. SINCLAIR.

NEW YORK, June eff Alexander
Legge of Chicago, president of the In
ternational Harvester Co. agrees to
serve on the new Farm Relief Board, it
will bring into the service of the Ma
! ton one of its most experienced, aStute
and able business men.
Mr.. Legge has been interested in the
farming problem nearly all his life. He
began his business career as youth
with the Mccormick Harvester Co., in
Omaha, Neb., in 1891.
So during the last 80 years he has
been associated with business that is
vitally bound up with agriculture pros
perity.
When the Mccormick and the Deer
ing people merged into the huge inter-
national Harvester Co. Mr.. Legge be-
came an important executive in the
business. Sixteen years ago, 1918, he
became general manage and seven years
ago president.
powerful that it can get along for a
time without farmers sharing in its
prosperity. But only for time, Sooner
or later the farmer must get his share
of that prosperity.
"He has waited a long time already,
and has been discouraged many times
in recent years. But ultimately he VIII
come into his own" is the way Mr.
Legge expressed it on one occasion.
While Mr.. Legge is a well known pig
business leader (aIthough Who's Who
in America" gives him but seven linesl,
the farmers have In him one OF their
stoutest and wisest champions. An ex-
cellent appointment.
Albert N. Marquis, founder Of Who's
Who in America" is "a dead ringer
physically for Thomas A. Edison
voineer by 10 or Is years, but with
many of the characteristics Of the IA
nous inventor.
Mr.. Marquis was born in Brown
County, Ohio. He was left an orphan IN
early childhood and reared by his
grandparents.
After a few years spent in his grand
fathers general store in Hammersville.
Ohio. he organized the publishing COM
pany of A. N. Marquis & Co. in Cln-
cinnati, Ohio In 1884 he moved to
Chicago, and Is years later began the
publication of what has become Ameri-
cas- most famous book-"Who's Who in
America" He was the sole owner OF
the publication until the incorporation
Of the company on May !, 1925.
"Yes it was hard at first to get the
people we wished to include to edit
their own copy" said Mr.. Marquis In
reminiscing the other day. That wore
of with the years. Now our problem
is how to get the most representative
names in Who's Who and keep out
many who are anxious to be in. We
have four times as many names IN
Who's Who as we had 80 years ago.
When a name goes in, 1t is because we
believe that name should be tIl No
influence can put a name in the book.
It has been tried hundreds OF times.
We never accepted q cent in 80 years
from any one included in Who's Who.
Our records today contain probably
gIliShed American men and Women-the
most complete file in existence"
Mr.. Marquis is still president and
editor-in-chief.
George Harrison Of Minneapolis,
dynamic manager of winston Newell q
Co, jobbers OF the Independent Grocers'
Alliance in the Northwest, acts as the
buying agent for more than 500 grocery
stores in that section. He says that
neither the "jobber nor the retailer
today is interested primarily in per-
centages, but both are interested in
volume and turnover"
"Modernize and systematic are the
watchwords of the independent grocer
today" said Mr.. Harrison in dis
cussing with me the future Of the in
dependent grocer.
This alliance, comprising several
thousand independent grocers through
out the Nation, selects responsible
jobber in each section to act as pur-
chasing agent. When this is accom-
plished the problem of membership in
the alliance becomes the important
thing. Naturally our buying power
with 500 stores is excellent, but in ad-
dition to that we cooperate by sending
engineers to each store member and
help set 1t up economically. Our en-
gineers stay there until the work Is
finished.
I'VE have remodeled over 500 in
dependent grocery stores since last Sep
tember Many grocery stores carry
from three to five times more stock than
Is needed. We cooperate, help to select
items and advertise those items gen.
orally throughout the district. Each
store is charged a small amount each
week for advertising, and the advertis-
ing brings out certain items that all
stores specialize in. Not store in our
| organization but what has shown an
increase in business since last Sep
tember."
Then you are not afraid of the chain
stores future any lonRer?"
This aggressive young business man
product OF the new school of mer-
chandising, was not slow in answering
There Is room for everybody, but
give me home town boy and a chain
store set-up, and success Is his middle
name"
tCopyright, 1929, by North American News
paper Alliance)