[D8959ACY], Letter from Alfred Ord Tate to Samuel Insull, July 27th, 1889
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Title
[D8959ACY], Letter from Alfred Ord Tate to Samuel Insull, July 27th, 1889
Editor's Notes
[eight handwritten pages; extremely difficult with bleed-through. Seems to be a thorough condemnation of George Gouraud, along with Tate's suggestion to allow him to fail. More legible by page 4.] Gouraud's entire business plan "is a sham" [p. 4] Now listen to my logic. The trump card which we hold is our right to make Gopuraud do an Agency business and cover his territory within a certain period to prevent its reversion to Edison. Gouraud has several months ahead of him in which to save his territory. If we bring pressure to bear upon him at the present time he will simply go to work and cover the ground--not efficiaciously but in a way to secure his rights; it will be an organization without head or tail to it and following it out through all its possibilities it may [illeg] of great embarrassment to us when we desire to dispose of ths business in a different manner. ## My belief is that we should avoid pressing him at the present time. In short that he should adopt tactics just the opposite to those we have been employing and if it can be done with safety, go a little further and block him---Hold him back so far as we can so that his territory may be left open to as great an extent as possible and then when wwe reach a point when he can't save himself bring to bear [illeg] possible pressure…." . . . . "It would be much easier for Mr Edison to form a syndicate to buy Gouraud out (and himself also) than for Gouraud to fom one to buy out Mr. Edison. . . ."
Author
Recipient
Mentioned
Date
1889-07-27
Type
Folder/Volume ID
D8959-F
Microfilm ID
127:819
Document ID
D8959ACY
Publisher
Thomas A. Edison Papers, School of Arts and Sciences, Rutgers University