Acme Sucker Rod Company founder Samuel Milton Jones (1846-1904) wrote these two volumes of letters addressed to his employees at the Acme Sucker Rod Co. in Toledo, Ohio between 1900 and 1901. The letters were enclosed in the worker's pay envelope each week, and dealt with ideas such as brotherhood, equality, the "Golden Rule," and how employers and employees could mutually benefit from their use in the business. For example, in Letter No. 18 "Judge Not That Ye Be Not Judged," Jones wrote that he knew his profit would be greater if he instituted a twelve-hour work day as most of his competitors had. However, he declared, "I will never go back to the twelve-hour plan even if the only alternative is bankruptcy." Other letters digitized here include "Co-Operative Insurance," "Trade Unionism," "Labor Day and Its Meaning," and "Murder of President McKinley." Each volume is approximately 125 pages and measures 5.5" x 8.5" (13.97 x 21.6 cm).

A self made man with very little education, Samuel "Golden Rule" Jones (1846-1904) was a developer of oil-drilling equipment, holding an important patent on an oil-drilling rod. As founder of the Acme Sucker Rod Company, Jones instituted his "Golden Rule" policy, which included an eight-hour workday, a one-week paid vacation and a Christmas bonus for employees. Jones was also a pioneer in refusing to hire child labor and investing in parks, playgrounds, kindergartens and public baths for Toledo residents. Entering politics he was the Republican Party's compromise candidate for mayor in 1897 and won election by a narrow margin. In this position he instituted the eight-hour day and a minimum wage schedule for municipal employees, in addition to other progressive reforms. When the Republicans refused to re-nominate him for mayor in 1899, Jones ran as an independent and won reelection. Jones served as mayor of Toledo until his death in 1904. He was also an independent candidate for governor of Ohio in 1899, finishing third.