THE THREE OFFICE-BOYS—A TALK ON GOOD MANNERS AND HOW
THEY HELP TOWARD SUCCESS

Once a new office-boy was needed in a certain office, and Tom was hired. Tom was well able to do the work, was quick and energetic, but he lost his place in a week, just because he had no manners.

When he brought the letters to his employer’s desk he slammed them down anywhere, and went off whistling. He whistled all the time, without thinking that it interfered with his master’s work. He kept drumming with his heels on the floor while waiting for orders. He never shut the door after him. He often wore his hat into the room. His clothes were not kept clean. He was playing when he should have been at work. You see at once that Tom was too careless and thoughtless to have good manners or keep a good place.

Next they tried Fred. Now Fred knew that Tom had been dismissed because of his lack of manners, and so he made up his mind that that fault should not be found with him. He wore his best clothes when he should have worn his business suit, but his best clothes, alas! did not conceal the fact that his hands were very dirty. He gave his employer the letters with a low bow, but, alas! he often forgot to bring them at all. He stood, hat in hand, a pattern of politeness, while his master was giving him orders, but he did not carry out those orders faithfully. In short, he was all the time thinking so much about himself and how he was appearing that he did not half do his work, and so he did not appear well at all, and he, too, was dismissed.

The third boy, Edward, stayed because he had truly good manners. The secret of his good manners was his sincere desire to help and please his employer, and his forgetfulness of himself. He put his whole mind on what he was doing, and so he was always attentive and ready and cheery and prompt. He not only kept his place, but he got promoted time and again, until now he is a member of the firm.

The thing I want you to learn from this story, boys and girls, is that the best rule for good manners is the Golden Rule. If you are all the time trying to serve others, quite forgetting yourselves, you need never be afraid of your manners, for they will be absolutely perfect.