The Harvester World: Volume 2, number 14, November 1911

              The Harvester World

S. S. Faes
INTELLIGENTLY DIRECTED EFFORT WINS
By S. S. Faes, Manager Charkow, Russia, Branch
The introduction of a new implement into a field already pretty well stocked with a similar article is generally attended with more or less discouragement at the start, and especially so when he who seeks to enter
the field is not posted on the goods he is trying to sell. We found that with gaso¬ line selling at prices ranging from forty-five cents per gallon as extreme minimum to a common maximum of sixty cents per gallon, as compared to thirty cents per gallon for kerosene and fourteen cents per gallon for crude oil or black naph¬ tha, we had our work cut out for us to sell the IHC engine, since we must ap¬ parently depend upon gaso¬ line for fuel, while our com¬ petitors' engines, already well introduced in the terri¬ tory, were being success¬ fully used with the cheaper oils above mentioned. The first attempt made by us to start the gasoline engine business in Russia was in the fall of 1906. The different Russian branch house managers were holding a business convention at Hamburg presided over by Mr. Couchman, who had called us together for a discussion of the general trade situation with a view to forming our policy for the following year's campaign. Among other matters it was announced that the Com¬ pany desired us to take up the sale of engines, and we were asked to state what we knew about the engine trade in Russia.
Having had no previous interest in this trade, nat¬ urally none of us knew anything about it, and there was no loud talking because of each wanting to have his say first. In fact, the silence was painful, and was event¬ ually broken only by Mr. Couchman himself, who told us he had been informed that the Company made an engine and that it was a good one; in fact, they hrfd written him that it was good. We had no reason to doubt this, and accepted the statement as a fact. Coming events proved that it was so; but let us prove it. It must be remembered that we, as a selling organiza¬ tion in Russia, knew no more about gasoline engines han a Kansas jack rabbit knows about a cinematographt —just about as much—in fact, we were much worse off in this respect than the home organization was when this deal was sprung on them. We got cold feet. The faces of the whole bunch looked like a picture puzzle. We always went to those Hamburg meetings loaded with statistics of more or less bulk and various relia¬ bility, on most subjects that we believed even Mr. Couchman was capable of forgetting, let alone those that we had every reason to think he would spring on us; but this time the gun wasn't loaded for him. We were like Mr. Mayer, our Odessa colleague, was the other day when that hold-up bunch called to pay their respects and get a contribution—our hands were up!
However, it was decided after some little sparring, to start learning something about the subject and in the meantime order samples over anyhow.    My personal
recollection is that Odessa, where I was at that time located, in charge of the McCormick division branch, was selected as the attacking point, and I was selected as the experimental victim.
The sample selected was a 15-horse power horizontal stationary engine with the electric battery ignition, and the enormous water tank. Same arrived in good time but in bad condition. One of the flywheels was smashed. This particular engine looked awful big to us — in fact so big that we had not the nerve to under¬ take to set it up. We had no idea how — could find no one that did know how—so we stored it! That is the first chapter in the history of our start in the engine business in Russia.    Big start, wasn't it?
In the fall of 1907, we again met at Hamburg to discuss past successes and failures, and to map out the following season's campaign based on our experience during previous years. In due time we came to the subject, "Gasoline Engines." It was then up to me to make a report of progress. It took less time than nerve to get up and confess that we had been afraid to set up our sample. Since few newly-introduced engines are sold in the original package, it didn't take long to convince the entire gathering that none had been sold.
Let us skip 1908, for it was uneventful so far as gasoline engine sale progress is concerned. -. ThelS-horse power sami)le was still unsold, although this was not my fault, for the facts are this was the 3'ear that the Russian business was consolidated and a number of new branch houses were opened at various central points. In the shuffle, I was transferred to a new territory, and in moving 1 was careful to leave the big 15-horser, which had become, to some extent, a back number, behind. Why in the world Mr. Mayer did not sell it in 1908 is more than we could ever find out. Perhaps it was because he was afraid to try to set it up.
About here is where Mr. Couchman came in again. He took the stand that because they sold engines in Germany where fuel was reasonably cheap, this was a sound reason why we should sell engines in Russia, if we tried. The result was that there was a fresh order for samples, but this time we had a few small fellows come over — something like twenty all told, and new tactics were adopted to get.things moving.
It seems the Riga office had in the meantime sold a small engine or two and began to brag about it. This woke us all up. If Riga could, why shouldn't we? In looking around for some one to help us, we found in Lacey Gray (a young man who had aciiuired something of a reputation as an automobile fiend) what we imagined would be material to sacrifice in the attempt to get a start, or, make a more creditable fail¬ ure than had been the case thus far.
He was keenly interested in engines—liked to hear them puff — and was tickled when trouble occurred, because it gave him a chance to study the machine and learn more about it.
We made him a specialist by creating an Engine De¬ partment, and putting him in charge of it with the understanding that his job depended on getting a start.
In experimenting around and studying the fuel ques¬ tion, we accidentally stumbled on to a new fuel in the shape of "white^naphtha" which, up to this time, had been used by scrupulous and unscrupulous oil mer¬ chants for the purpose of adulteration, owing to its being cheaper than kerosene, and invisible when mixed with same.
We conceived the idea of trying this white naptha as