it became necessary to have a larger office force to handle it.
Orders poured in day after day and it was evident we were getting
the preference from all the large and most of the small buyers
throughout the country.

It had been our policy to give just as careful attention to the
small business as to that of more importance, but we now began to
consider the wisdom of letting the former go. In the aggregate it
was a handsome business of itself, but in detail it required so
much time and attention, it was a question in my mind whether it
paid us to longer cater to it.

That the future had a much larger business in store for us we felt
assured and we wanted to get ready for it in advance of its coming.
Gradually we commenced to weed out the little fellows.

Some of these small concerns had become so accustomed to sending
us their orders and were so well satisfied with the way we had
treated them that they objected strongly to being turned down.
Still, we were in the line of progress and had outgrown that class.

The argument we gave them was, that as we were selling the large
dealers so extensively, it was unfair for us to take this small
business, which ought to go to the dealers without the interposition
of a broker. Ultimately we succeeded in getting most of them off
our books without any hard feeling.

That we were wise in ridding ourselves of this small trade was
soon evident. It strengthened us greatly with the large dealers,
who now secured most of it direct, and that we could afford to part