Questions And Exercises: Chapter XXIV. The Business Letter In Detail. Part 2

The GREELEY-POUDRE District is situated a few miles north of Greeley in a very productive section, and we believe this to be one of the best irrigation districts that has ever been formed.

You will note from the circular that ample water supply is assured, and we believe these bonds will increase very rapidly in price. At this time we also make you price of Par and interest on these securities.

We are also enclosing a booklet "Our Opinion on Irrigation Bonds" which we believe you will be interested in, and will be glad to give you further facts if desired.

With our best respects, and hoping to hear from you we are,

Yours truly,

(c) Gentlemen:

LAND and WATER form the fundamental basis of all values. The ARID PLAINS of yesterday are the WEALTH PRODUCING GARDEN SPOTS of the future. The most fertile soils of the World are the Great Arid Plains of the Far West. The amplication of water thereon converts these waste lands into most profitable, cereal forage, garden truck and horticultural producers, and wealth-bearing Domains.

Where, in the early history of this country was located the Immigrant Trail upon which the hardy pioneer wended his tortuous course to the supposedly barren fields of Utah and the Great Fremont pursued the wily Indian even into his mountain lair, today is springing up vast fields of grain, pastures green and communities of young and vigorous manhood.

It requires Brawn, Brain and Money to reclaim these vast wastes, and the means to that end is found in the issuance of IRRIGATION BONDS, projected under the strong, wise and beneficent provisions of the Federal Law, known as the CAREY ACT, and the Laws in various States pertaining to the formation of Municipal Irrigation Districts. Other securities are brought out and marketed, good in themselves but are not expected to be paid in cash at maturity, while IRRIGATION BONDS are issued only for a comparatively short period of time and serially, with the expectation of being paid at maturity. Irrigation Bonds are paid off in Cash, not "Refunded." That is different I The vast resources and wealth producing conditions of land reclamation back of this class of security make full assurance that this will be done.

Laws regulate the hours of labor in nearly every other line of effort. But Labor Unions have nothing to do with the working hours of land which labors continuously night and day in producing wealth.

In Colorado for instance, a single Municipal Irrigation District of comparatively small area, under intensive, scientific and intelligent development, has reached a point in value in excess of the amount originally paid by the Government for the entire territory comprised in the "LOUISIANA PURCHASE."

The Business Man, Economist, or Financier, who will use his pen and speech against the quality of an irrigation security that is properly projected, must be suspected of something radically wrong in his mentality, and the one who does not believe that irrigation bonds, which have for their security a first lien upon all this wealth producing land, that, unlike any other security, is always enhancing in value and never depreciating or retrograding, must be weighted down in pessimism to a worse degree than the early Huguenots. With my best respects, I am

Very truly yours,

4. Try your hand at half a dozen opening sentences for sales letters, avoiding those used in the text. Before each sentence state what the article is that you have in mind for sale. Keep copies.

5. Bead again Chapter XVIII (Business Description) and then write short vivid descriptions of the articles alluded to above.

6. Bead again section ninety-nine. Then tell whether any of the following arguments is weak, and if so, of which type of weakness.

(a) Join us in our great refining project, for the greatest fortunes in the world have been built up by refining.

Who is the wealthiest man in the world? Rockefeller, is he not? He made his fortune from refining oil.

And Carnegie? He made his fortune from refining iron.

And Havemeyer? He made his fortune from refining sugar.

And Guggenheim? He made his fortune from refining copper.

And Goodyear? He made his fortune from refining rubber, (b) Just because your gasoline gives out and your Engine stops is no reason that you should discard your car - of course not.

You fill the tank again and go ahead.

Wise users of the Multigraph, Writerpress, Prmtograph and other similar duplicating machines are doing the same with their ribbons.

They are filling them up again - with ink - and going ahead.

They lengthen the life of the ribbon from 100 per cent to 300 per cent and turn out perfect work.

(c) Advertising, in commerce, has been compared to steam, in a locomotive.

It's a good comparison.

Both steam and advertising are prime movers. They start things, and keep them moving.

Steam alone, however, never made a railroad.

Advertising alone, never made a business.

One of the oldest axioms of commerce is this: "A satisfied customer is the best advertisement."

7. Select from newspapers or magazines half a dozen closing paragraphs that would make good endings to sales letters. If any strikes yon as inappropriate, quote it and criticize it.

8. A. Criticize as well as you can the selling value of the following series.

(a) Gentlemen:

There came to the small town where I was raised, a very young and earnest minister. Working seriously and continuously he made but few acquaintances, busying himself each week on his Sunday sermon.

Now it seems that he made but little progress although we all liked him and admired his industry. The trouble was that our folks could not be reached by an appeal addressed to them collectively. Soon our Little Minister discovered this fact and from then worked with marked success, for he spent the week calling on us individually. From that time we understood him better. His sermons were successful because he had reached us all individually during the week.