Work for Women

by George J. Manson

It is said by the publishers of books that women make excellent book-agents; they cannot hope to make as much money as the very best male agents, but if they have the necessary qualifications they can do very well. The prerequisites required can be summed up under four heads:

First of all, a woman must have pretty good health; if she has not, she will not be able to go through the necessary amount of physical exercise involved in the work. But it is not necessary that she shall be perfectly sound in body. Many a woman enters the business because she has a delicate constitution, and because she believes that the exercise she will be obliged to take will do her good. And if her ailments are not too serious, she is seldom disappointed in this respect.

Second, she must have a great deal of what business men call "push," and what some people might term impudence. She cannot afford to be nervous about going into stores, offices, and houses, and offering what she has for sale. Nor will it go well with her if she is bad-natured, and shows temper when she is not greeted cordially by the master or mistress of the house. She must have smiles and pleasant words for those who do not buy as well as for those who do.

Third, she must be a good judge of human nature, and on this one commandment, probably, hangs all the law and the prophets of book-canvassing. For, if she has been a student of mankind she will use great judgment in her vocation. She will call at the proper time, at the proper place, upon the kind of people who will most likely want to see her, or rather the book she has to offer. She will, by her demeanor, win the respect of the men, the admiration of the women, and the love of the children. It seems like saying a great deal too much, but it is a fact, that there are some lady book-agents whose calls are remembered as angels' visits, so agreeable were they in their manners, so charming in conversation. It must be admitted, however, that there are not many such women roaming up and down through the country.

Last of all, she must have great perseverance, and work continuously. Women get very easily discouraged, no matter what occupation they pursue, if they do not very quickly see some substantial return for their work. The idea that "hope springs eternal in the human breast," was certainly never meant to apply to women; nor, maybe, was it meant to, seeing that it occurs in the "Essay on Man." The female book-agent is very much depressed if she does not make good earnings at the start. Her depression so affects her spirits that she cannot be as industrious as she otherwise would, and so she does more and more poorly until, finally, she gives up the business. Men agents do not, as a rule, become discouraged so easy. They know that provided they have got a good book, published by a good house, it is only a question of time when they will be making good earnings. Women should go to work in the same spirit.

If poor success is apt to discourage a woman (and, in what I say now I am only the mouthpiece of several publishers I have seen), a run of very good luck is liable to demoralize her. It is said that some lady agents, after making a considerable sum of money in a short space of time, will at once stop work, and, retiring to their homes, will not think of following the employment until their means are exhausted. Of course that is foolish. While they are spending their time in idleness some new-comer has been assigned to the field they found so profitable. When they return to work it is with a listless spirit, and it will be quite a while before they can summon up that old-time energy, which comes, in any vocation, from long and continuous performance.

Women book-agents—and, in defence of this ungallant remark, I must state again that "I say the tale as 'twas said to me"—women book-agents are apt to waste a great deal of time in the spring and fall in getting their wardrobes ready for the coming season. "Who ever knew of a man," remarked a cynical publisher, "stopping work for two or three weeks because he was going to have a suit of clothes made? No one. And yet you will find a female book-agent stop canvassing in the busiest season in order to superintend the making of her dresses." Of course, all lady book-agents do not adopt this practice, but it is well to allude to the custom, because it is very unbusiness-like, and furnishes a hint in the direction of how not to succeed.

Two classes of women, publishers find, seek the employment of book-canvassing. A great many young ladies enter the business—it might be said skip into it—with all the gayety and with all the inexperience of youth. These young persons are about eighteen or nineteen years of age; they are buoyant of nature, full of hope, bursting with self-confidence. They work a few days or weeks, then abandon the business, tearfully proclaiming that it wasn't any thing like what they thought it would be.

The really successful female book-agent belongs to the second class. She is of middle age, sometimes single, sometimes a widow, or, it may be, she is married, and is bravely assisting a sick or unfortunate husband in the support of the family. Such a woman enters the business with the idea of making it her vocation. If she is a single lady or a widow, she is not on the look-out for a husband, when she should be carefully watching for customers. Having passed the youthful stage of life, she is apt to be a pretty good judge of human nature, and, at all events, she will be quick to learn the ways and weaknesses of men when she is thus forced to daily come in contact with them.

The earnings of this latter class of women are sometimes very large. Of course, the reader understands that book-agents almost invariably work upon a commission.