Dr. Frank Crane, well known to PSP readers from the PSP Classic column, set down for posterity a revealing story of one of the giants of American business. This story illustrates one of John Henry Patterson’s most important business lessons. It is clear, concise and easy to remember. It is also simple. It is to THINK!

When Mr. Patterson built his modern glass factory, the inevitable happened. A few small boys threw stones.

The factory was situated in a suburb of Dayton known once as Sliderville. It was tough. It was filled with mean dwellings and the children of the shanties roamed unchecked to play smash for amusement.

Mr. Patterson had been away. During his absence many windows were shattered by brickbats from the infantile sharpshooters of the army of the poor.

The foreman told the boss about it when he came home. Whereupon the boss did not do the usual thing. He hardly ever does. For the usual thing is usually the stupid thing. He did not hire special police and employ detectives to nab the offenders. He did not bluster nor threaten.

He sat down and – thought.

All about the offices of the company, now you can see cards hung on the wall, each with the word “THINK” printed in red.

The result of the boss’ thinking was this: Why do boys throw stones? Answer: It is because they haven’t anything else to do. Remedy: Give them something to do.

What does a boy like to do? Just what a man likes to do; to own something, to produce something, to make money, and to be outdoors.

So the boss laid out a tract of land in gardens, and invited the boys in the neighborhood to come and occupy. Each boy was given a little patch of ground and supplied with seed and tools; and over all was a head gardener who knew his business, to tell the boys how to raise things.

Those Boys’ Gardens have become an institution. I saw them, as neat a bit of ground as one would want. I should like to dig there myself; for there is no mortal fun like making things grow. These Gardens are now copied far and wide. Public Schools have Gardens. Why not? For a boy can learn quite as much, under due guidance, by digging into old Mother Earth as he can by digging into books.

But wasn’t that a human thing to do for the boys of the neighborhood? I think it was better than building them a Sunday School.