Untitled

Taranaki Daily News, 3 January 1914, Page 8

Terror ever lurks in the unknown. A Japanese cK-rk, so the. storv goes, applied for a situation in a London re---chant s oil ice. lie vra S told tluit lie might come on trial, and if in the course of a week lie cmi'd do anything to justify Jt. lie would receive a permanent appointment, As a test lie was instructed to write polite but firm letters to tlie most notoriously "longwinded customers on the firm's liooks. that was on the Holiday. On the Wednesday came a reply to each letter. Jn each letter was enclosed a cheque and an abject apology for the delay in the settlement 01-tlie overdue account. The } oung Japanese, on being' intirrogatcd by tile principal of the firm, replied that he had obeyed his instructions. ITe lia'l written politely and firmly. The letter sent to. the customers read.-—"Dear Sir, —"Tt i.5 with great regret that we find } oil have not paid your honorable account. We have carefully regarded the case, and are pained to inform vou that, unless you >end lis a remittance hv Wednesday morning-, we shall have to'take a course of action that will cause you the utmost astonishment.". The narrator of the story expresses the belief that it was the horrible uncertainty as to what might he the con-enuenees of non-pay-ment that produced those twen f " remittances. Tn this case at any rate the politeness ami firmness worked together with the liest results.