Personal Recollections of Birmingham and Birmingham MenEdwards, Eliezer
History
Personal Recollections of Birmingham and Birmingham Men
Edwards, Eliezer
Birmingham (England)
His marvellous success did not arise altogether from brilliant mental
qualities. I am disposed to attribute it to higher reasons. It seems
to me that his high moral sense of integrity and right, and the
benevolence of his character, had more to do with it. These led him
constantly through life to give his customers excellence of quality in
the goods he made, combined with moderation in price. In the execution
of a contract he always gave better rather than inferior goods than
he had agreed to supply. He would never permit any deterioration
of quality either in material or workmanship. Where his competitors
sought to reduce the cost of production, so as to enable them to
sell their goods cheaper, his ambition led him to raise and improve
quality. The fact of his goods being always honestly made, of good
materials well put together, gave him the preference whenever articles
of sterling excellence were required. He was one to whom the stigma
implied in the term "Brummagem" would not apply, for he consistently
carried out principles of integrity in business, and so earned for
himself the right to be held up as a type of a high-minded, upright,
conscientious English merchant.
But he had a higher and a nobler mission than that of mere
money-getting. He was a practical philanthropist. Quietly, modestly,
unostentatiously, "he went about doing good." Placed in a position of
command over many young people, he, early in life, recognised the fact
that his duty to them was not fully done when he had paid them
their wages. He resolved to do his best to raise them, mentally and
socially. In this he was so successful, that at this moment there are
many men occupying positions in life unattainable by them but for his
assistance. There are clergymen, merchants, musical professors, and
others, who began life as boys at Winfield's; and there are probably
some scores of large manufactories now in active operation in the
town, the principals of which, but for Mr. Winfield's large-hearted
and practical provision, would have remained in the ignorance in which
he found them.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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