to personally conduct the negotiations with her with reference to it.
This I was obliged to decline to do, because, as I then explained to
her, I was not familiar with the details of the business. In that
conversation I advised her not to take any hasty action, and when she
expressed fears about the future of the business, stating, for
example, that she could not get cars to transport sufficient oil, I
said to her that, though we were using our cars and required them in
our business, yet we would loan her any number she needed, and do
anything else in reason to assist her, and I did not see why she could
not successfully prosecute her business in the future as in the past.
I told her, however, that if after reflection she desired to pursue
negotiations for the sale of her property some of our people, familiar
with the lubricating oil business, would take up the question with
her. As she still expressed a desire to have our company buy her
property, negotiations were taken up by Mr. Jennings, and the only
other thing that I had to do with the matter was that when our experts
reported that in their judgment the value of the works, good will, and
successorship which we had decided to buy were worth a certain sum, I
asked them to add $10,000, in order to make doubly sure that she
received full value. The sale was consummated, as we supposed, to the
entire satisfaction of Mrs. Backus, and the purchase price which had
been agreed upon was paid.

To my profound astonishment, a day or two after the transaction had
been closed, I received from her a very unkind letter complaining that
she had been unjustly treated. After investigating the matter I wrote
her the following letter:

November 13, 1878.