Questions And Exercises: Chapter XXI. Business Reports

§ 101. In place of writing a summary of this section, suppose you begin your study of reports by correcting some of the following paragraphs in the light of all preceding chapters. They are from the daily reports of a salesman who is excellent in all respects except the details of his English. (The names are of course fictitious.)

1. Yours of the 19th at hand and in the absence of my Dummy which is in the East at present will state that the Steam End of the catalog will consist of the first two hundred pages intact, the gas fixture fittings and tools with exception of the plumbers tools which consists of about 234 pages without the index.

Mr. Graybiel can give you the exact pages, or the latter end of this week I will be able to give you the exact number of pages and which ones they consist of if necessary.

2. Relative to your several letters please keep me posted relative to whether you have been able to save the Fullerton Order or not as I cannot see any way out of it but I will have to make another trip and call on these people and get the orders back both the New Jersey and New York I do not think I will corre-spond with either one but wait until you advise me what results you meet with and then will call on them next week as I cannot afford to meet with these cancellations wherein a little diplomacy will save them.

3. Your letter of the 30th at hand and pleased to hear that you are getting the jobbers straightened out Brett Co., will increase their order if you follow my suggestion of allowing the Peters Co., to act as a dummy for their catalogue as it is exactly what they ask me to change from the original when I took their order, they being the only ones lending this suggestion up to that time, consequently paid no attention to them but they claimed they would increase their order to a thousand if I would make these changes, so govern yourself accordingly.

4. I have written Mr. W. F. Baumbach Neebish Mich to correspond with you as they are in the market for 5000 Mill supply catalogues and advised him that you are in position to give him up to date service as you are publishing a number of catalogues at the present writing.

5. Your letter of the 30th at hand and pleased to learn that you have the Supply Co order straightened out in your mind. Relative to the Blank Co's order no doubt the same can be adjusted to your satisfaction if you will allow Mr. Jocone to call on Mr. Olds and explain that the catalogue will be delivered next year, consequently the money will not come out of this year's business; he will then be able to get proper adjustment on the order, which through your correspondence will never be obtained.

6. The last claus in your letter is certainly news to me as my orders call for 4400 Catalogues and up to the present writing; it is impossible to send you French's assigned order as he has not decided what he wants for the steam and his order to me, included 1000 of each and asked me to hold it up until he decided on what he wanted, but see no reason why you cannot proceed with his other

Order and advise me if there are any orders which you have not received assigned orders for, referring from my orders No. 8 to 18 inclusive.

§102. Write an abridgment of the paragraphs from Mr. Moody's book. Reduce about one half.

§ 103. Enumerate the officers of your business who make reports, and say to whom the reports are made. If you are not in business but in school or college, find out and report the same facts concerning your school or college. Cast all this material in the form of a report to your instructor. In one paragraph give the facts. Then in a second paragraph give a vivid personal account of the steps you took to get them. Thus the first half of your report will be formal, while the second will be informal - and possibly amusing.

§ 104. Study the following reports, which - Except for the names - are printed exactly as they came from two men on the road. Then write a short criticism or appreciation of each. It is of course impossible for you to judge of their business value without knowing the business situations. But you can report something on five points: (a) their quality as to details of English, (b) the colloquial tone and the probable social relations between manager and salesman, (c) the actual amount of information given - whether it seems to be small or large, (d) the tone as modest or boastful, (e) whether the report seems to be the work of a successful salesman.

July 18, 1910, Montreal. Dear Beaton:- -

The Phelps Co. will surely buy a book. Warwick learned a lot about catalogues today that he had never thought of before. He had not even appreciated what a difference the condensation of our pages would make.

He is coming to the meeting on Wednesday, and will make a layout at that time. It will be their first book, and he does not want it to exceed 450 pages, if he can help it.

Most of the owners and directors of the company are non-resident, and Warwick is simply a manager. I understand, however, from several of the manufacturers that his word always goes through. They are not members of the Association, but he is coming over to get in touch with the manufacturers at the meeting.

They are way behind on catalogue matters here in Canada. About all they have are the ones sent over from the States. The Canadian B. P. Co. have a bulletin affair exactly like the one the Stearns people are thinking of, and it is a flat failure. A Toronto firm has a book, and the Stearns Co. a branch here. That is all.

If these people don't make a cleaning with one of our books, I miss my guess. After talking things over, Warwick thinks the books will pay for them-selves in a year.

Yours truly

Phila., 6/1/10

Mr. D. C. Beaton, Mgr., Dear sir:

I had quite a talk with Mr. Vandercook yesterday and went over the catalogue game with him in a general way only. He said that he wasn't ready yet to talk definitely. As the old manager is still there it is evident to me that they are not ready, naturally they don't want to select a book.

But - the old gentleman said, (literal quotation) "I am very favorably impressed with your plan and believe I will buy a little later on."

Knowing Mr. Vandercook as I do I take those few words to mean more than yards of evasion - & explanation.

So chalk his envelope as a live prospect and have it come up July 5th. Meantime I recommend sending a couple of sample books - say Smithers & one of the far south gang. Get em far apart. Send them addressed personally to Mr. Shear well Vandercook and write him a few lines of the opening bush. Be sure and put in personal cover so it wont float to the mill supply dept. The old gentleman always liked me pretty well so you can play my name up strong.

They will need between 200 & 800 pages and I think 2000 will, be a plenty.

No. 3 Buckminster hinge was the dope.

Yours

§105. Here is a report which was recently adopted by a certain board of supervisors. I have changed the order of the paragraphs, and ask you to consider whether there is a better order. Send in the first line of each paragraph, having numbered and arranged all in what you consider the most persuasive order.

SPECIAL COMMITTEE REPORT.

To the Board of Supervisors, Chippewa County, Michigan:

Gentlemen, - Your special committee appointed to examine the property at Charlotte river on Hay lake, which Mr. H. T. Dunbar offers to donate to Chippewa county, to be used in connection with an agricultural school, respectfully reports:

To show the enthusiasm of Mr. Dunbar on the project of furthering practical and scientific farming in this county, your committee begs leave to add to its report a letter from Mr. H. T. Dunbar to Otto Fowle written in answer to Mr. Fowle's letter to Mr. Dunbar, informing him that the vote by which the county residents authorized the issue of $20,000 bonds for an agricultural school would have to be taken again, because of a technical error. The letter is as follows:

Buffalo, May 8, 1910. Dear Otto: - -My offer is still open and will be. I am still improving the place. My books show that I have spent about $20,000 on the place. I expect to reserve the lot the cabin is on and possibly a small piece for a boat house on Charlotte river, but all the rest shall go to the school if desired. Furthermore, as long as my business affairs are prosperous, there will be a "helping hand" not far from where I happen to be. Mrs. Dunbar is ready for her part also. I am sorry for the mistake (the error of the bond proceedings) but better sure than sorry.

Yours,

H. T. DUNBAR.

Your committee would further report that there is now cleared and under cultivation on said land about thirty-five acres and about forty-five or fifty acres partially cleared, which is being stumped at the present time. But there is the fine residence equipped with the modern conveniences, water-works, plumbing, gas engine, etc., which would make an admirable residence for the teachers. The house, your committee is informed cost something like $6,000. Also a large bank barn with concrete foundation, well adapted for stock and farming purposes.

Your committee is much more than ever impressed by the generosity of Mr. Dunbar in offering this fine property for the use of the public and by the fact that this county is highly favored by the opportunity of securing, through this generosity, so beautiful and in every way excellent site for a county agricultural school

Your committee finds quite a portion of the property covered by a virgin growth of timber, which at a small expense could be made into a beautiful park, and which will afford an excellent opportunity for studying and practicing tree culture. Mr. Dunbar has expended a large amount of money in buildings and improvements, which will be well adapted to the school's uses and which, were these improvements not already made, would cost the county a large sum of money.

Your committee has carefully examined the lands and buildings, which Mr. Dunbar offers to the county for the purpose of an agricultural school and training and experimental farm, with the view to determine its fitness for the purposes named. Your committee finds the lands varied as to soil running from sandy to a clay loam, with some marsh and muck land partially drained, all of excellent quality and admirably adapted for varied farming. Your-committee was charmed with the location and believe it to be an ideal one for an agricultural school. The land is situated on Hay Lake, the branch of the St. Mary's river. It ascends from the river by a gradual rise back to the second level or clay loam land. The prospect is charming, affording a view across the expanse of lake, to the western entrance of both the middle and west Neebish ship channels. The land has excellent drainage afforded by its natural slope to the St. Mary's river, and by the fact that Charlotte river, a small stream, runs through nearly the center of the property.

Your committee believes the land generally of most excellent quality, running as before stated from a sandy to a clay loam, well adapted for farming purposes and especially adapted to fruit growing and truck farming.

In conclusion, your committee unqualifiedly recommends the acceptance of Mr. Dunbar's generous offer, believing that the opportunity for this county to secure the farm desirable for an agricultural school is one that would not often come to any community and which to us is a stroke of good fortune.

Dated, July 7th, 1910.

All of which is being respectfully submitted.

(Signed).

GEORGE WATSON, JOHN PARKER,

Committee.