For he had a telephone installed within the first fortnight, and the
next day advertised in the _Gazette_ that orders by telephone
would receive prompt attention and be delivered without delay. Tracey
Tanner became his delivery-boy, deserting his father's stables for the
obvious advantages of three dollars a week with a chance to learn the
business.... Sothern and Lee were quick to recognise the advantage the
telephone gave Graham and Duncan, and promptly had one put in their
store; but the delay had proven almost fatal: Radville had already
got into the habit of telephoning to Graham's for a cake of soap, or
whatnot, and it's hard to break a Radville habit.
As business increased and the stock turned itself over at a profit,
Duncan began to branch out, to make improvements and introduce new
lines of goods. He it was who inoculated Radville with the habit of
buying manufactured candies. Up to the time of his advent, we had been
accustomed to and content with home-made taffies and fudges--and were,
I've no doubt, vastly better off on that account. But Duncan, starting
with a line of five- and ten-cent packages of indigestible sweets, in
time made arrangements with a big Pittsburgh confectionery concern to
ship him a small consignment of pound and half-pound "fancy" boxes of
chocolates and bonbons twice a week. And taffy-pulls and fudge parties
lapsed into desuetude.
Later, Sperry introduced him to an association of druggists, of which
he became a member, for the maintenance and exploitation of the cigar
and tobacco trade in connection with the drug business. They installed
at Graham's a handsome show-case and fixtures especially for the sale
and display of cigars, and thereafter it was possible to purchase
smokable tobacco in our town.
Again, he treated Radville to its first circulating library,
establishing a branch in the store. One could buy a book at a moderate
price, and either keep it or exchange it for a fee of a few cents. I
disputed the wisdom of this move, alleging, and with reason, that
Radville didn't read modern fiction to any extent. But Duncan argued
that it didn't matter. "They're going to try it on as a novelty, to
begin with," he said, "and it'll bring 'em into the store for a few
exchanges, at least. That's all I want. Once we get 'em in here, it'll
be hard if we can't sell them something else. You'll see."
He was right.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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