The Harvester World: Volume 5, number 1, January 1914

              IHC Service Bureau
CHRONICLES OF   "THE DAWN OF PLENTY"

In December the big lecture completed a three weeks' tour of the Wichita territory. Many features connected with this tour were entirely new to our lecture work. To begin with, the Wichita general agency booked three weeks' time, and filled practically every night. P. O. Busselle, the general agent, told the advertising man, C. R. Russell, to go ahead, and Russell is all that his name implies. He went ahead, and in co-operation with the Wichita organization did a work which we hope other agencies will imitate.
The dates were made with dealers, commercial clubs and schools, and notwithstanding the fact that it rained almost every day, large crowds were the rule. " The Dawn of Plenty" was presented by Frank Stockdale and H. E. Cleveland, at Alva, Okla., Anthony, Kan., Kiowa, Kan., Cherokee, Okla., Wellington, Kan., Har¬ per, Kan., Medford, Okla., Conway Springs, Kan., Arkansas City, Kan., Moline, Kan., Augusta, Kan., Eldorado, Kan., Pond Creek, Okla., Halstead, Kan., Cheney, Kan., and Wichita.
All told, the lecture was seen and heard by about 10,000 people. This speaks mighty well for the Wichita agency, as well as for some of the live dealers in that territory. Mr. Matteson, an I H C dealer at Alva, Okla., writes: "The audience, one and all, says the lec¬ ture was the most educational as well as delightfully entertaining that has ever been heard in Alva, and the audience was representative of our best citizenship. To those who are desirous of giving their friends a rare treat, we have but one suggestion — get ' The Dawn of Plenty.' "
As we say in this lecture, "the genius in one man fires the genius in other men." Already other agencies are taking up the idea of booking "The Dawn of Plenty." The agencies at Kansas City and Kankakee are now making dates.   	
On December 6th, Ralph Bradford and Wm. G. Ullrey, who also are giving "The Dawn of Plenty," completed a trip into Georgia, directed by the Atlanta general agency and Dan G. Hughes, Assistant State Commissioner of Agriculture. This was a great trip, and at every place they had large and enthusiastic audiences. The lecture was given in the Grand Opera House in Atlanta during the time of the Corn Show to an audience of 2,500. This trip made such an impres¬ sion that Bradford and Ullrey will return in March to cover the entire state of Georgia. Already many appli¬ cations for dates have been received.
In November, Bradford and Ullrey gave "The Dawn of Plenty" for the Board of Trade at Newport, Rhode Island. The house was packed, and outside there was a string of automobiles which made the occasion look like grand opera night. Four days later the secretary of the Board of Trade telegraphed, asking for a return date. 	
Here is a part of a letter written by Rev. H. W. Hunter, of Higginsville, Missouri: "I hasten to let you know about the entertainment that 'The Dawn of Plenty' gave us last night, and to assure you it was the greatest thing of its kind that has ever been given in this town.   Indeed I ought to correct myself and say
that nothing of its kind has ever been given here. It is unique in all its work and detail. We are very much elated, and the people are almost talking their heads off over the entertainment.
"At the close of the lecture the entire audience rose to its feet, and by thus doing gave expression that it desires the other lecture, 'The Builders,' whenever you can book it here."
Mr. Hunter inaugurated a very novel piece of adver¬ tising. He took a store window, surrounded it with quotations from "The Story of Bread" and "The Dawn of Plenty," and then in the center of the window placed several loaves of bread. This attracted a great deal of attention, and helped to create an interest in "The Dawn of Plenty."
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WHAT IS IT WORTH?
That is the question. Almost every day we have some man connected with the Company ask what the Service Bureau service is v/orth to business—to sales. Here is an answer to these questions—-an answer that comes back to us from a Chicago night school.
The other day the principal of this night school came in and asked us for certain I H C Service Bureau books. In a few days he came back to ask if we had any lantern slides which we could let him use. We loaned him the set on the development of agriculture. After using this set twice, he returned, and, in order to be pleasant, as well as to have something to say, we said that we hoped his boys and girls appreciated the slides. He assured us that they did, and said that many of the boys and girls were thirty, thirty-five, forty, and even fifty years young. One of these boys recently bought a farm in Montana; ancther had taken up a claim in North Dakota ; and anc:her in Western Cana¬ da. He said that they were so interested after seeing the I H C machines shown on the screen that they stopped to ask him many questions. He told them about our Company and our machines, and they came into the office for some catalogues.
These three boys are going to turn farmers next spring, and they are going to use I H C machines. We could give hundreds of cases just like this where "The Dawn of Plenty," a set of slides, or a booklet has started a man toward the farm and toward modern methods and modern machines.
What is the worth of the Service Bureau service? It is worth all we put into it. The more we put in, the more we are going to get out.
BOUND CATALOGUES
We recently placed in the libraries of all the agri¬ cultural colleges a bound copy of catalogues showing the complete I H C line. The colleges have given the Company great thanks for this favor. They say that the catalogues are consulted very often by both teach¬ ers and students. This is just another case where by helping others we have helped ourselves.
When we consider the wide variety of students attend¬ ing our agricultural colleges and the wide range of subjects touched by I H C machines we can judge the publicity, and instruction, afforded by these catalogues.