THE BEAUTY OF CREDIT.

Waikato Times, Volume X, Issue 742, 20 March 1877, Page 3

THE BEAUTY OF CREDIT.

.'it'L^ ./i.ir'-i •'.).'■' A" 1 -.- ' (Prom the ' Poverty. Bay Standard.') I notice that a great deal has lately beeii;.yrftteji r amiT talked about the; evita avisiriLgi from what is called the credit* system. Why, the attempt to d<v away withHhe giving of credit is aVftttempfc to sap and undermine the o 'foundations ; upon "which the beauti^3' of our moral natures are built'iip; What is man without he has jßQnfidehce m his fellow man? If feeing .ceased to exist the whole 7 ; 1 social fabric must fall to: pieces like—^-well, I'ni not clever at concocting an original simile, aol wiHsa!y : at once like a thousand of , ,-jA/J •■"' :O "'■'" '":"' /' . .■ ''"' ''. ' *,' (, i go to a shop and say to the; tradesman^send me so many pounds of tea and sugar, and fresh butter. Pve^o joaoriey tipw v put it all down 1 m a book, and; I will payyouin a montihij^ ( V^el^. the tradesman puts, it "all "clown m a bppk and sends home the materials. See, then, what a, lovely confidence is , established between man" and His fellow preafure. It's beautiful to contemplate, especially on the part of the mart^wh J o"kaß got the goods. The montfy (comes round and the iiadisnian^ails and asks for hi/» acco'qßt./' 1 3Jiy.'aniiwer is- that I have gotun moneyifi^ I tell him he must

call again, say, m a fortnight. Now here are tw6 J itiore'^^ r rue 9k ue9 developed nght off. Candour on my "pan/ J an| patience oh' the par|i ot the tradesman. What did my•copy book tell me when I got into small hand ? : ; . > Why it told me: that "Candour and open dealing are- the honour/ of :man's nature." Was I .^not both open and candid? And Iwhatidid thei tradesman's copy book: ytell him -When, he got into small handf ' /J Why :J that "Patience and time run jthrpiigji the roughest day.". See, tlhen, flow from" a : simple trade' transaction the; gentle amenities of life are evolved. Mutual confidence, candour^ and patience! f ;

After a time the tradesman comes to me and says his' patience is used up. I , ireplyjyby;, t asking whether, when he runs out of an article he does not lay m another stock. He says he does, but be wants to know, how t|at can. effect- the, stand-, ing ■account 'between uW; I say just so. He must lay m another stock . of patience^ ' ■ ■> ■ Here it) ! witi be seen that I have made a valuable practical suggestion. = ( After a lapse of time the tradesman 1 Called again. He said he r had l got a .bill to meet, find J and other people, who oiwfecl, him , accounts pay them, he should not be able to meet it. i Then a feeling* of honest indignation "fired my soul. s I said, so. you bought goods of a ttjan upbn a 'fell, trusting, to the abiiijiy/ of .other men; enabling you ? tOiiineet .< that bill ? What: aight had y6u ; to db this v thihg? Seirid ike man, Jko, whom you owe^ the: bill to me "and .'to. bfhers.; Let us settle ;'wit|L.;ihjm..:-;iThe'.':inone7'''is his, not yours. See Chapman on Common Law? : Act,; 5^ 6, and 22 Vie. <r45. f There you will see the crassa gentla you have been; perpetrating. •What do you think of penal servitude for seven years, the last two years <m dron's, and Ithe ! first six months solitary confinement with bread;,, and water, diet: I , [Then theL tradesman lost his temper, and told ime he would summons me. I said that would be illegal. It would* be taking the law into nw own hands,; and the law to prevent that had invented an Insolverit^Opurt. ( To that tribunal I should appeal; I intended to fiie. He. got red hot at this, and and said he should oppose me, and \get< me. sent, to prison. I said that would suit me to a nicety. I had Jong . wattfed to complete my ! knowledge of the "'French language, and that would give me the opportunity. Then my friend saw I was chaffing him;' : and after 'saying 1 so, he burst otit laughing. Now I said, I was chaffiing you. Here is your money, but I met your fdemandj with a refusal m order to show you the rotten system you h^veallowea to getto sucli a head m this place. You know next to nothing of the circumstances of the largest number: of your customers, and yet you go. on trusting them until m the end, ypur books i*epresent a long list of bad debts m alphabetical older, .You, tempt men ;,to go' rbeyonbt, their meants, and the upshot' is, losses ; on , ajrsides. f When yon allow a man to 'owe you; mpney . you are his servent, waiting his will or, convenience, to pay.ypu. If he cannot payi and you cannot afford to lose, someone else must, and there are no two ways about it. . ./ Then, that tradesman m company! with' m^salf' went m into, a 'corner house,, and we partook of something out r 6f tumbiers. He said' then that unless, the credit" rackets Was stopped that there would Jbe si closing up with some oi them. A great moral wrinkle may be learnt from what has been here ' writ'ten, which is that many a mean, contemptible, dishoriest action can be covered with one of the many thousand proverbs men have invented, . not one m a .long catalogue being true. Show me a ! proverb, and .1 will stow you a fallacy. ;•!';:;:<;: ; ; - ': ■;': Snydeb. ■