Show I To Tigh gh Luck Tales of the Road I I Chicago Tribune Travelers for lor commercial houses houes when they si sit down for a storytelling session In the smoking room of a sleeping ear car or In the lobby of a hotel relate wonderful yarns arns of thEir their ex In selling gods goods to persons who did not want to buy But occasionally tey they turn from their trIumphs to the and departing from their usual optimistic line reveal a few of the seams Beams In the life Ufe of the salesman One of the hardest luck tales I ever heard was told by a a veteran In the corset line whO wh made the big central western towns and cItes cities for years It It was superstition that got him Into truble trouble Once when he was a mere kid In the business he happened to cal call the wrong number on a t telephone He wanted some other number but for forgetting getting I it caled called No 14 and started to talk busIness business He thoUght he was talking o the manager of a bIg house to wih with which h he ha had done busIness whereas he wa was conversIng wih with the head of a rival to whom he never had been able able to sel sell goods SomethIng tn In his talk Impressed the big man and he heade bade ade the young traveler to come up As a result he sold two big bis bills of goods In one day Instead of being satisfied he decare declared that No lH was his lucky number and thereafter for years no mater matter what town he struck nor how busy he was the first thing he did was to call up No lH He dropped In at a big Iowa town one afternoon His only customer was as the bIggest merchant In town and there realy really was no one else Iii Ih the place worth selling to But In spie spite of this he cled called up No 11 and got a re response response in a sweet voIce Convinced that his luck Juck still was good he corn com commenced to Jolly the gIrl having no Idea who she was She replied good and finaly finally he grew a bit In Interested interested and when she tred tired of It and started to say goodbye he Inquired I If he could sel sell her an anything in the cor corset corset set Une line The girl equal to the emer emergency gency calmly asked him what he rep represented represented resented He told her Shortly afterward ho he caled called on the house to sel sell corsets He was met wih with witha a brusque reception by the proprietor who ater after looking at the card re remarked remarked marked Ali Ah yes es We dont want anything I believe my daughter told you that over the telephone One ot of my friends had a sad cad and heartrending piece of hard luck once wih with an Ohio merchant He had been selling the man gods goods for years and al always always ways made it a a point to InquIre con concernIng corning the health of every one con connected wih with the merchant merchant who he knew wa was devotedly attached to hIs family One trIp he greeted the merchant ef effusIvely effusively and after asking about hIs health Inquired And how Is the wIfe dead replied the merchant The salesman was deeply affected He condoled wih with the merchant ex cx expressed pressed himsel himself as heartbroken In Inquired inquired Into al all the harrowing details and sold a big bi bill of at goods On the next trip he bustled In agin again How are you OU Air Mr Blank he saId Im Im gla glad to se see you looking so well welland and how Is the wife still dead raid Eald the me hant and not a shoestrIng would he bu buy One of the hardest luck storIes I ever heard was that of a hustling Chicago shoe salesman He was one of the best I men In his line and the house handed him the most Important work and the biggest commissions One of his specialties was landIng customers who were attached to other firms and nev never er would buy from his hi house He was convIncing earnest nd so pleasant pleasnt and agreeable personally that his success was ph phenomenal There was a bIg mer merchant merchant chant In one ot of te the biggest towns owns of Kansas whose business the fr firm was extremely anxIous to secure This man Wa was sent out to land the cUstomer For Foran Foran an entre entire afternoon he be argued talked and showed goods FinalY Finally the mer merchant merchant chant wavered and half agreed to change his place a trIal order SUccess appeared t tt hand when just before closing up the deal the mer merchant merchant chant happened to see the printing on the order blank and pulling I It over read It and remarked Just cancel dont want a athing athing thing Argument failed to shake him He want a thing from the house The sal salesman angered and dIsappoint disappointed ed insisted on a reason and the nier mer merchant e chant finaly finally explained d saying The head ot of your our firm Is named Arthur that got ot to do wih With It de demanded demanded the salesman Young man said merchant the fellow who eloped with my wie wife was named Arthur ArthurI I lost one of my firms best custom customers ers on my first trip Into a new western territory and although although I regained hIm afterward I it looked rather serious for fora a time time The fellow always wa was good for an order of from to 50 on each trip He owned a big general store In Ina Ina a smal small town ton and our travelers saw him four times a year He Hc was loyal to tot t the house and paid promptly always discounting so he was considered one ot of our best I dropped off the trIn train thereon there on m my maiden and went to see him I Introduced myself and after sizIng me up from head to foot he remarked Guess I dont want anything I was shocked and disappointed I hung around tal tallying on general sub subjects subjects and regretting that he need anythIng tred tried several times to reopen the subject and each time got cut ol off I took n a quIck around and saw that he realy really did need stuff but al although although though I remained over until the next day he refused to talk talkY Y 1 had to drive across countr country to the next town to make and when I start started started ed to drive back rain had falen fallen anti and the mud was deep so I put on an old suit a pair of heavy hunting boots boats and a slouch hat I drove up In front of his store and decided to make one more effort before gIvIng him up although I was satisfied that some rival had convInced hIm of the tho superIorIty ot of their gds goods The Tho mom moment nt he saW me he looked me over then extended his hand and asked how my predecessor sor was I told him beIng careful to explain that he had been promoted and had sent a special message ot of regards We Vc talked ahle awhile and then he re remarked remarked marked Guess Id Id better place an need some stuff bad badI I II I took an order for over 1600 worth I of stuff I hesitated to ask him why he had turned me dow down the previous day but finaU finally curiosIty gt got the beter better of me and I Inquired He ginned grinned a mIn mInute ute and then said Young fellow I kind of liked your looks but I going to buy of any feller that wears patent leather shoes I newer never wore patent leathers In that part of the country agin again |