A young man, whose name we are not at liberty to give, told us of a dramatic incident which illustrates the value that keen business men attach to preparedness and quick decisions. Up to about a year ago this young man was head accountant for his company. The Board of Directors had been in session about an hour one afternoon when a messenger came to his desk and told him that he was wanted in the board room.
As he entered the room the president snapped at him, "Would you advise us to issue a block of collateral trust bonds to finance a new addition to our factory which will cost about $60,000?"
"No," said the accountant, "the company's credit is good enough for an issue of $60,000 one to three-year notes without security. If necessary, the new building could be mortgaged after construction, and, at the present rate, the business could pay off the whole loan in five years."
A rapid-fire series of questions followed, covering
the financial, advertising and sales policy of the firm, to each of which the accountant gave concentrated thought, quick decision and convincing reply.
The president's final question was, "How would you like to become treasurer of this company at $6,000 a year?"
In the letter that told of this incident this subscriber said:
"I don't know whether I owe most to you or to my friend in the Carnegie Steel Company who urged me to enrol for your Course and Service. I could have answered few if any of the questions asked me without the knowledge I gained from it. I found out later that the president knew all the time I was following your Course, and wanted to prove to the rest of the directors that I could intelligently consider and discuss business problems."
Mr. Charles C. Chase, in the Advertising Department of Brown Company, of Portland, Maine, brings out another method of securing help in deciding questions that are outside the scope of his previous experience. He says:
"To the fellows who have asked me about the Course and what I believe it will do for them, I have said: