"For heaven's sake tell me what I ought to do, Mr. Burgess! If I hadn't been so bull-headed I never would have got into this mess."
"And," smiled Burgess, "you think it is bad business to risk losing ours?"
"Why—partly—I certainly didn't want to hurt your business," I said.
"Believe me, Black, a thing like that won't hurt our business; but it's good to change at times, so we have switched over to Stigler for a little while. Some day, perhaps, we will give you a chance at some more of our business; and now you really will have to excuse me."
I found myself walking back to the store feeling very disconsolate, indeed. I decided that, at any rate, I would not risk any more advertising on that wretched bread-making contest, until I saw what was going to happen. Charlie met me near the post office. "I guess we have lost the Empire account, haven't we?" he asked.
I groaned.
"Well, cheer up, Mr. Black, we all make mistakes—and it will be forgotten in a day or two. But—" and then he hesitated.
"Go on, Charlie," I said, "I really want to get your advice."
"All right, then. If I were you, Mr. Black, whenever you plan any advertising, see first of all that it is not going to hurt any one else's business; next, whenever you run a prize contest, run one without any strings attached to it; and, when you give a prize—give something other than what you sell."
"Do you believe in prize contests?" I asked Charlie.