QUESTION TRADE TESTS 
Tig 
only way in which this knowledge can be obtained is 
through the applicant’s past record. If the applicant has a 
past record in the same company this is a simple matter. 
If not, it will be necessary to write for information to past 
employers whose names are given as references. However, 
answers to questions of this kind must invariably be dis 
counted. Unless an employee has been flagrantly lazy or 
committed an outright crime, a previous employer will 
hardly ever have the courage or desire to say anything 
detrimental about him, especially when he is trying to 
make a new start elsewhere. While this is a tribute to the 
generosity of the ordinary employer, it is at the same 
time a fact which generally discounts the value of all 
references. It may almost be stated as a rule that an 
interviewer should never give much weight to endorse 
ments from other sources unless the exact nature of these 
sources is known. As for the item, has tried other things and 
not liked them, nearly every man who has failed in previous 
positions will give this as his answer. He is quite unlikely 
to say: “I have tried several kinds of work, but I was a 
failure every time.” 
Another extremely important item is loyalty. The pres 
ence or absence of this popular quality is evidently to be 
determined by questions concerning the applicant’s atti 
tude toward former employers. There are various ways 
in which the interviewer may ask these questions, but 
the substance of them all must inevitably reduce itself 
to something of the following form: “How did you like 
your last employer?” What answer may the applicant 
be expected to give to such a question? If he was laid 
off for lack of work, he may simply say: “I haven’t any 
kick coming. I was laid off when the work ran down.” 
However, if he was discharged for incompetency he is