THE MERCHA] AND THE NEW NATIONAL SPIRIT S BY CopyrigM?. CQBJRIGHT DEPOSIT. " There are not more useful mem- bers in a commonwealth than mer- chants." ADDISON " The noblest motive is the public good." VIRGIL THE SPIRIT OF THE NATION Illustration reproduced from a war-time newspaper advertisement of Marshall Field & Company The Merchant and the New National Spirit by Forrest Crissey X r Published by Marshall Field & Company Chicago, U. S. A. t^/7^o^ Copyright iy2o by Marshall Field & Company Chicago SCI.A627739 NOV 16192! -w* { $ A STORY WRITTEN AS A TRIBUTE TO THE MERCHANTS OF THE COUN- TRY FOR THEIR AID IN A PERIOD OF NATIONAL CRISIS; AND TO RECORD THE NEW AND BETTER CONCEPTION OF THE MERCHANT'S RESPONSIBI- LITY AND HIS INFLUENCE IN COM- MUNITY AND NATIONAL LIFE. NOTE: — The five full page illustrations immediately following are reproduced from photographs of displays exhibited by Marshall Field & Company in the State Street windows of their Retail Store in Chicago and later in the windows of their Wholesale Store in New York City. These displays attracted widespread attention. I. THE STANDARD BEARERS-UNITED STATES The first of a series of window displays by the Retail Store of Marshall Field & Company during the war THE MERCHANT AND THE NEW NATIONAL SPIRIT By Forrest Crissey OUT of the World War has arisen a New National Spirit which is the greatest asset this country can schedule today. Its cost in sacrifice staggers the im- agination; but it is a law of life that we cannot pay dearly without receiving a rich return. A new-born realization of what it means to be a citizen of the world's greatest republic is, perhaps, the most priceless thing that the great struggle has given to true Americans. Despite its reality and power, this New National Spirit seems to defy definition. This is a characteristic which it holds in common with many of the greatest things in life. Certainly it involves a high and almost universal recognition of the fact that no man can live unto himself alone and live worthily. Again, this spirit is a national impulse which puts strong emphasis on the word Service. It applies this standard of measurement to every business, industry, calling and organization and asks: "Can you justify your existence to your community, your state and your country on the score of service — service in the broadest and best sense of the term?" It is a spirit which is bound to touch every activity of this people with a distinct and thrilling influence. Industry and commerce come under its spell as surely as do the civic and social interest of the nation. Busi- ness can no more escape this new baptism than can II. THE STANDARD BEARERS-GREAT BRITAIN With set face, battling without fear 10 religion, art or literature. Nothing that greatly concerns human welfare is beyond the reach of its inspiration. It touches trade as potently as it does politics. To call it the New National Spirit is, in a sense, a mis- nomer, because its seed has always existed in the heart of this people; but it remained for our great national experience of the war to bring this seed into bloom. The New National Spirit is Revealed in the Merchant's Attitude Toward the Community In business — in trade — this New National Spirit reveals itself in intimate form. The merchant reflects its stimulating influence. To him it has come as one more great step in Service. He it is who is and always has been the central unit in the material activities of the community. In fact, his presence has been the first requisite of community existence. He is the corner stone of the community structure. This fact is clearly recognized in every analysis of the economic position held by the local merchant in the general scheme of commerce and of community building. The first step towards understanding the new spirit which was born to this nation from the travail of its war experience is the clear recognition of the fact that it implies service to the community; a consistent and substantial contribution to the general civic welfare of the hamlet, the town, the city, the state and the nation. The followers of no other pursuit can face this test with greater confidence or pride than can the merchants of this country. They have, from the first, been natural and industrious community builders. They have given splendid and abundant proof that they possess this spirit of devotion to high constructive ideals and to community and national interests. If, for example, the work done by the thousands of merchants throughout this country could have been sub- tracted from the total of our war activities, the nation would have been astounded at the magnitude of the vacuum thus created. With scarcely an exception, the merchants of every town and city of the United States have been at the center of patriotic endeavor. This has been almost inevitable because their communities have come to look to their leadership in all matters of civic welfare and progress. Their close identification with their own communities and the habit of constructive thinking, which this intimate relationship has developed, made their leader- ship in supporting the nation in its fight for human liberty inevitable. The man who had become accustom- ed to think in terms of community building and com- munity welfare could not fail to respond with a high patriotic ardor to the greatest demand that has ever been made upon this nation. And the merchants of this country did not fail to maintain their standard of community devotion — rather, they raised it! Untiringly they toiled to see that the great national emergency was met and that they and their com- munities were not behind in the service to their country and humanity. It would be difficult to find a town or city in which the merchants were not wheelhorses in work of raising war funds. In thousands of cases these patriotic activities had first call on their time and energies, and their own business — beset by peculiar wartime difficulties — took second place. As a faithful and alert champion of the nation — the largest community unit— the merchant has discharged his patriotic responsibilities up to the high standard of expectation created by this consistent devotion to the interests of his local community. The expression of this New National Spirit by the merchants of this country is as diversified as are the communities in which merchants carry on their callings. It is as varied as the forms in which true local patriotism may find outlet. How a Group of Merchants Took the Lead in Community Service Here is one example of how this spirit has touched and quickened a community of about thirty thousand inhabitants. A half dozen merchants of a Mid-Western city decided that its merchants were not doing enough for their community, and that they would be able to become better community builders if they went about the job in as systematic and businesslike a way as if they were seeking only to reduce their costs and correct trade abuses. First they hand-picked their members as carefully as if they were going to establish an exclusive social club. Only those merchants having a high reputation as being "square" and progressive were invited to become members. 13 III. THE STANDARD BEARERS- FRANCE Clutching to his heart the emblem of his beloved country Those who accepted the invitation were warned that the club would meet every Friday noon and that those "absent without leave" would be fined; that the ses- sions of the club would be for the consideration of the community's business, and not the profit of the stores; that a substantial working fund with which to do things for the benefit of the city would have to be subscribed, and that each member would be required to sign a pledge that he would always place a demand by the club to do something for the community above the demands of his own business. These conditions were emphasized, and no merchant was allowed to join this group of community builders under the impression that he would not be required to meet these conditions when it happened to be inconvenient to do so. When this club of community patriots, picked from the ranks of merchants, started, it numbered thirty; today its membership is forty. At the first meeting the original thirty members sub- scribed $2275.00 "as a starter" to be used for doing "some of the larger things for the community, the state and the nation." These men, who had always thought in terms of the community, knew that it takes money to carry the initiative in community work and "get things going" — ■ especially when there is a determination to "tackle the bigger things." One of these bigger things was the building of a road to the neighboring military encampment, during the IV. THE STANDARD BEARERS-BELGIUM Midst ruin and desolation, clinging to his colors 16 war. Conditions made it virtually impossible for this road to be built by public appropriation without delaying the work almost indefinitely. The merchants themselves not only gave $40,000, but the Merchants' Club raised $140,000. Later it was found necessary, or at least desirable, to build another road to the military encampment. This club "camped" at the door of the board of supervisors and made it clear to its members that this public improvement was a community demand that must be met promptly. The appropriation was made and construction work began at once. When the Liberty Loan drive was about to start, the members of the Merchants' Club — then numbering thirty-five said: "This is the most important public event that our town has ever faced. We must see to it that it has the right start — a getaway that will give it a big mo- mentum. Now let's dig deep, right here and now, and give it a shove that will put it over quick!" Before these thirty-five members pushed their chairs back from the luncheon table they had subscribed for $125,000 worth of Liberty Bonds. And that was only the beginning of their work in the drive. A kind of public service which this watchful group of merchants was always ready to perform "as a time- saver" is suggested by their action when the War Savings Stamps campaign opened. The official head of that drive confronted the troublesome fact that "What's everybody's business is nobody's business" especially in the matter of spending money without hope V. THE STANDARD BEARERS- ITALY On the heights, confident and unafraid 18 of its return. He needed street booths for the sale of stamps, and lumber was expensive. "Waste no time raising money for the booths — we'll build all that are needed," the Merchants' Club told him. Put all your time and pep into selling the stamps. " Without any delay the merchants' little group of community patriots built a dozen booths. A small matter? Yes, but it means much to any community to have an organization which is always ready to give its people that kind of service. And it is a matter of justifiable pride that these emergencies are constantly met by a group of merchants organized for the purpose of standing at attention, ready to serve the community. Long in advance of the Victory Loan these store- keepers were considering its problems. They decided that it would take "all the steam" that could possibly be generated and that this implied repeated appeals to the public. The modern merchant knows that gener- ous space advertising is the agency which reaches and moves the people. Therefore they agreed to provide forty pages of advertising in the daily papers of their city for the Fifth Liberty Loan Campaign. This is only an example of how the merchants of America everywhere are expressing that common im- pulse to serve their communities and their country. Merchants as Community Builders In a certain Northwestern state an association of merchants representing the entire commonwealth is bending its energies to a campaign of community building. Its first step in every locality is the formation 19 of a community club for the purpose of developing a broader and finer community spirit. It recognizes the home as the primary social unit and the community as a collection of homes. The home is the abiding place of the family and the community is the home of a natural group of homes. This is the viewpoint of the energetic league of merchants which has set itself the task of stimulating a closer sympathy and co-operation between the members of the farm families and the town families in every community. Many attractive community clubhouses are being built as a result of the efforts of this merchants' organization. The ordeal of the war fully justified the conviction that the retail merchants of America as a class are community builders as truly as they are trade builders. This great test brought into full flower that high pur- pose of good citizenship which is the companion trait of good merchandizing. This splendid spirit of Greater Citizenship is char- acteristic of the merchants of America generally; it is a common impulse which the tense national crisis of the World War brought into high relief. The Merchant is Recognized as a Forceful Constructive Influence The essence of the matter is that the merchant is a permanent constructive influence whose interests are those of his community and who is deeply rooted in the local soil. This phase of his civic and economic position has been altogether too slightly recognized. 20 Its broader and fuller appreciation, however, is at hand. In the degree that he has kept pace with pro- gress and caught the New National Spirit his con- structive influence is certain to expand. His influence in giving a higher interpretation to the term Service will extend from merchandizing to citizenship. Never forgetting that his basic responsibility to his community as a merchant is to furnish merchandise of the highest character — the kind that carries Service in the goods — he will inevitably accept also the further responsibility and the honor of being more to his community than a seller of goods — for economic law has decreed his position as a natural community leader and tradition has confirmed that decree. The mighty propulsion of the war pushed the merchant conspicuously to the forefront and the bur- dens and honors of local leadership and of high service to the permanent interests of his community have enlarged and intensified. By a multitude of new signs he is able to read, in larger and brighter letters than ever before, that he has chosen a life of local service, both as a merchant and a citizen, and that he will fall short of his high duties if he fails to become a living definition of what Service, in its larger meaning, implies. A New Conception of the Relation Between Employer and Employee Has Been Evolved The regenerating experience of the war and recon- struction has created a new relationship between employer and employee throughout America; it has induced a new Faith, a fresh and closer understanding than has ever existed before between the men at the extremes of the pay roll, and it is bound to be one of the most precious survivals of this momentous period. The merchants of America who have the true modern vision and who have felt the inspiring touch of the New National Spirit are alert to resent any line of separation drawn between their untitled workers and the owners and executives. To the management the men and women, the boys and the girls, who are grouped under the general title of Employees are the store in a broader sense than ever before, and the em- ploying merchant who does not recognize this fact fails to understand one of the prime essentials of the democ- racy of modern merchandizing. The Activities of Marshall Field & Company as an Example of Public Service Hundreds of instances might be given of how this New National Spirit of Service has been expressed by individual stores. An impressive example in point is suggested by the war activities of Marshall Field & Company. This example is forceful, not by reason of the magnitude of that merchandizing house, but be- cause its management grasped this spirit with rare com- pleteness and has reflected it with splendid clearness. The pictorial narrative sketching some of this great store's war activities is here presented because it affords a graphic example of what merchants all over America have done; because the spirit shown is typical of that which has actuated thousands of merchants through- out the United States who have been leaders and builders in their own communities. 22 STORE SERVICE AND DISPLAYS DURING WARTIME THE means by which the merchants of the country helped to arouse their neighbor- hoods to moods of courageous sacrifice, and to turn the efforts of their communities into channels of greatest productive value, are typified by the illustrations on the following pages. These illustrations, showing actual wartime activities of the retail store of Marshall Field & Company, can only partially indicate the intensity of the work of the merchant in devel- oping patriotic fervor through the many agencies for service and publicity at his disposal. 23 Returning soldiers parading beneath the great flag of the Marshall Field & Company Retail Store on State Street, amid a storm of confetti. 21 THE CANADIAN HIGHLANDERS IN CHICAGO When the Canadian Blackhawk High- land Regiment came to Chicago recruiting for Great Britain, Marshall Field & Com- pany held a luncheon in its honor at the Retail Store. An invitation was also extended its members to make full use of the reading, writing and smoking rooms during their stay in the city. 25 o o R r a s$ ■*- •*~* W ~-* a y Pi « a ~ss o ■ O 'i- .^, £ <^ ^ "§ ^ ^ _^ 5^ < ^ & ^ <*i <2 s a ~xs £v° R ^ rh ^S ~<3 Cj ^j g §c §11^ ^ a a i%5j r^j <5j '-a 26 21 PUBLICITY FOR FOOD PRODUCTION During the early spring of 1918 when our government sent out an appeal for an increased production of foodstuffs, Mar- shall Field & Company aided with a forceful window display emphasizing the needs for the establishment of home gardens. 28 yji BRINGING HOME THE IDEA OF FOOD CONSERVATION Food conservation week found Marshall Field & Company ready with a stimulating window display which brought a letter of gratification from Mr. Hoover. The War Service Bureau maintained a domestic science expert to answer all questions per- taining to food substitutes and food values. 29 SUGGESTED BOOKS FOR SERVICE MEN This book display was carefully assem- bled to provide suggestions for gifts to men in service. Books were packed and shipped abroad direct from the department. Cus- tomers also sent candy and comforts to men overseas through the Paris and London offices of Marshall Field & Company. 33 AN APPEAL FOR THE RED CROSS This window was conceived by Marshall Field & Company to illustrate the duties of our American Red Cross Workers in France. Such an appeal to the heart as this made work easier for those taking membership subscriptions. ANOTHER RED CROSS WINDOW The War Service Bureau, established by Marshall Field & Company, co-operated with the American Red Cross Society in soliciting subscriptions. This Company also organized a class for public instruction in making hospital supplies. 35 THE TRI-COLOR SHOP The Association for " The Fatherless Children of France" held a most successful bazaar in the Fancy Goods Section of Marshall Field & Company. This is one of several instances where this Company furnished sections for the use of relief work. STORE SECTION-RELIEF WORK ORGANIZATIONS In the sections set apart by Marshall Field £f? Company for war relief work many organizations were provided with meeting places and facilities by means of which notable service was given. 37 iiiif^ii aniHii-: MllftOiUnflUJ. An exhibit of the War Posters of the Allies shown by the Retail Store of Marshall Field & Company. 38 These posters, many the work of masters, did much to keep patriotic sentimeyit at its highest pitch. 39 AN APPEAL TO PATRIOTISM " One of the strongest silent appeals for the Liberty Loan I have seen," said a famous traveler on seeing this window of Marshall Field & Company, devoted to the Third Loan. 40 ANNOUNCING AN EXHIBITION OF WAR PAINTINGS A wartime window display of Marshall Field & Company's Store/or Men, devoted to the announcement of a Benefit Exhi- bition held in the Art Institute of Chicago. 41 SWISS ALLIES BAZAAR By courtesy of Marshall Field & Company the Swiss-Allies Commission held a bazaar in the Retail Store during two weeks of June, igi8. Paintings, rugs, carved wood and other articles made by prisoners of war were sold for the benefit of convalescent Allied soldiers interned in Switzerland. 42 RAISING MONEY FOR BELGIAN ORPHANS Miss Ruth Chatterton, a popular actress, Lieut. Philip Bar bier of the Belgian Military Staff, and Claudia Musio of the Metropolitan Opera Company participated in a special entertainment for the benefit of orphaned Belgian babies, in Marshall Field &? Company's War Service Bureau. 43 A SCENE DURING THE THIRD LOAN With the aid of the Women 's Committee of the Liberty Loan Campaign, a total of $1,509,400 was subscribed by the public through the Retail Store of Marshall Field & Company. This illustration shows Mary Pickford selling bonds in the Mens Grill. HELPING TO OVER-SUBSCRIBE OUR QUOTA Marshall Field & Company aided in the selling of Liberty Bonds by inviting heroes of the war, famous persons of the stage and movie favorites to make appeals to crowds gathered within the Retail Store. Above Leo Ditrichstein is shown taking subscrip- tions at a booth on the main floor. 45 V " ' CL 1 ^s>i—M^J It: "^M» '1 WtJ i wm« ...... __ H ' 1 ;|V ! I. -j^ : - * 1 H < ■^tf-w W jj '"^f' ' j^ v i*Ls^T ^| 'w^ J^^L^^^^^B^^k. ' -'— ■ ' ^l Srf£ l>#f\f^- ^1 Bfck: ;pHp'; :: ^^V ■» -^Hn Tk^^K ■> ,| j# *y / f 1 1 ft ^^mrw, w ' f ?' l-if ENTERTAINING MEN IN SERVICE On Saturday afternoons Marshall Field § ■*» ~Q <-i -. <4j -r r » -*d o 1° Is Rl5 hflWj ^5 R Q R R o> R '£ «V £ hs One issue of "Fashions of the Hour" a magazine published by the Retail Store of Marshall Field & Company for their Chicago Customers, was devoted to the American Red Cross. Among the contributors were Lord Northcliffe, H. P. Davison, Irvin Cobb, Arthur Guy Empey, Emerson Hough, Mabel Boardman, Edgar Lee Masters and John T. McCutcheon. Proceeds from the 150,000 copies printed, $5,600, were given to the Red Cross Society. 52 THE USE OF ADVERTISING SPACE IN THE NATIONAL CAUSE THE use of newspaper advertising to pro- mote an intense spirit of patriotism was one of the most common expressions of the merchant's desire to lead in public service in his community. A tremendous expenditure was willingly and enthusiastically made for this purpose. Typical advertisements, placed in Chicago newspapers by Marshall Field & Company, are shown on the following pages. 53 CHEERS AND HEARTY WELCOME for the mighty hosts now home again! The Rainbow Division! With colors symbolizing sunshine after storm; the end of a noble emprise; the Great Adventure! The Rainbow's end; the Pot of Gold — rejoicing hearts and a nation's gratitude! MARSHALL FIELD & COMPANY {A page to greet the Rainbow Division when it arrived in Chicago. Published May 8, 1919.) Conquerors! WELCOME— to the flower of the prairies, bearing the blossom of victory! ftHome* love greets with rejoicing those daring spirits who proved so sterling in the crucial test* ftThe same spirit that once dotted virgin expanses with the caravan of civilization — venturing, daring, conquering. CThe spirit of the Great West! MARSHALL FIELD & COMPANY {Published May 27, 1919, to welcome the Prairie Division on the day of its arrival in Chicago?) {Published in Chicago newspapers on Memorial Day, 1919) 56 CHEERS AND EMBRACES For our gunners and engineers! Hail, last of our Prairie Boys; welcome to the city that is home! . You have given noble account of yourselves; we are proud of you. We strew your path with flowers. MARSHALL FIELD & COMPANY ^ Welcome Home" publicity. At this parade held June 5, 1919 roses were strewn in the path of the soldiers as shown in the illustration.) 57 "THE DAWN OF PEACE" {Published as a full -page in newspapers, Armistice Day, November u, 1918.) 58 COMING HOME (Published Thanksgiving Day, 19/8, by Marshall Field & Company in honor of their employees in the service?) 59 ■ • ■ ■ ■ i ■ ■' - * * i % * • * * : * I *I5h * f * * * lit-S* ::«■:* * •*****, * * ; * , - : * * : : <*»•*::: *: «: : ******** : ; * » * * * * ♦ 1 1 t 4HI*-*.**-* • » * * * * »»*#%** * * * * * ! * « * * i ** *. * * '• J 7^