Part 35 (1/2)

Every youngster likes a toy that moves. Get him one for Christmas! We have a large variety of moving and other Christmas toys. They are toys that will fascinate the youngster. They are strongly built toys, too, that will last.

Railroads, 50 to $4.00

Constructor outfits, 25 to $6.00

Bamboo, the wonderful tumbling clown, 50

Automobiles, moving animals, juvenile tool outfits--hundreds of other things the children will like.

Bring the youngsters in and let them enjoy the fun of our toy bazaar.

La.r.s.en told me that he had cleared away two long tables, placed them together, covered them with cheap oil cloth, and filled them up with toys, arranged in such a way that they could all be worked and handled easily.

”I have Jimmie keeping 'em going all the time. He is working harder, playing with them things, than he ever did in his life,” he said, with a chuckle.

I couldn't help smiling at La.r.s.en's cheeriness. He certainly had been different since we had had that dinner at home and had made Mrs. La.r.s.en realize that I was looking after his interests as well as my own.

I thought La.r.s.en had done quite well on that ad, although there were some things in it that I'd have changed.

He said that a lot of toys had been sold because he had them working. I had intended to do something of that kind myself, only I had felt too sick to attend to it. I remembered the big success we had had with electrical appliances when we demonstrated them in actual use.

There were only six days to Christmas! Still, if we had a good week we ought to clear those toys out.

La.r.s.en told me Stigler's five-and-ten-cent store was packed. He thought it was a good thing for us.

”Lots of folks go there,” he said, ”for 5- and 10-cent things. We're next door. They come to us for better stuff.”

Perhaps there was something in that, after all.

CHAPTER x.x.xI

A NEW COMPEt.i.tOR

The New England Hardware Company were to open their store on Macey Street on January one. I knew because I had received the following letter from them, which evidently they had sent to every house in town:

Dear Sir:

The New England Hardware Company open their Farmdale Store January 1, at 62 Macey Street. This store will be in charge of Mr. Roger Burns, who for many years was in charge of the kitchen goods department at the Bon Marche.

We earnestly solicit your patronage at our new store--not because by so doing you will help Mr. Burns (who has an interest in the profits of the company) but because you will get the best in kitchen hardware at cut-rate prices.

You will readily appreciate that an organization like ours can give you greater value than the usual hardware store, where the goods are bought in small lots by the proprietor or manager, who has many other duties to attend to. Our buyers are experts, who devote all their time to the study and search of markets; buying in tremendous quant.i.ties (for twenty-seven stores), and paying spot cash. We are thus able to sell merchandise for less than usual prices.

Mr. Burns hopes to meet all his friends on the opening day, January one. He has a surprise gift for every visitor to the store on that day.

Respectfully yours, NEW ENGLAND HARDWARE COMPANY.

That had struck me as being a pretty good letter. It certainly was a clever idea to get Burns as their manager because he was very popular in the town. When the Bon Marche failed he had come to me, but, of course, I couldn't use him. Then he had told me that the chain-store people had made him an offer, and he went to work in their Hartford store. At that time he didn't say anything about the possibility of coming back to Farmdale as manager of a store for them. I don't think, as a matter of fact, that he had any idea that they were going to open a new store.

Burns was a bully good fellow, and I honestly hoped he'd be successful, although I hoped the new store would not hurt us much. . . .