Heads Win

Summary

Heads Win" unfurls as a poignant testament to the transformative power of self-cultivation, charting the trajectory of Jim Godfrey, an unassuming operative within the vast machinery of the Goliath Electric Company. His initial, earnest bid for an assistant foreman's mantle is met with a dismissive rebuff, highlighting a glaring lacuna in his practical knowledge. This ignominious rejection, compounded by his subsequent termination, casts Godfrey into a frustrating professional limbo, where the unforgiving landscape of the job market offers little solace to an individual deemed "unskilled." It is the sagacious counsel of his wife that serves as the catalyst for his intellectual metamorphosis, prompting his enrollment in an Electrical Engineering program with the I.C.S. Through rigorous application and an unwavering commitment to mastery, Godfrey not only reclaims his modest station at the Goliath works but transcends it, his burgeoning expertise rendering him an increasingly invaluable asset. The narrative crescendos with a moment of critical exigency: the catastrophic failure of a massive, electrically-actuated drawbridge. With an almost heroic precision, the now-assistant foreman, fortified by his meticulous engineering studies, swiftly deciphers the intricate mechanical entanglement, restoring functionality and averting potential catastrophe. This decisive act of technical prowess not only underscores his indispensable value but propels him to the esteemed position of assistant superintendent within the very industrial titan that once deemed him wanting.

Synopsis

"Heads Win" tells the story of Jim Godfrey, who was employed in a humble capacity at the works of the Goliath Electric Company at Springfield, N. J. When he sought to advance himself to an assistant foreman-ship he was rejected because of his lack of knowledge of any useful occupation. He lost his temper when he was "turned down," was dismissed from his position, and when he sought a new one, found many doors closed to him because he was incompetent to perform skilled work. His wife induced him to take a course with the I. C. S. Electrical Engineering was his selection, and he studied so faithfully and so well that while acquiring information he was returned to his old position at the Goliath works and became efficient at his unimportant task. His industry and growing efficiency attracted attention and he was made assistant foreman. While holding this place his opportunity came when there was a break in the machinery of a great drawbridge, electrically controlled. There was need of immediate service and this was performed by the assistant foreman, who, fortified by his course in electrical engineering, found the source of trouble, corrected it and won for himself the assistant superintendency of the mammoth plant at which he was employed.