Only the improvident patronized stores which gave long-term credit. It did not lead to disaster. Having made this first plunge, I kept on going deeper and deeper into debt during my thirty-five years of publishing seven newspapers. So there was a margin left for old age. My experience was not unusual.
Most businesses borrow to expand.
Credit has been as essential to industrial growth as were steam and electric power. They all are in debt. Our point of view has changed. Debt has become respectable, not only for the businessman but for the householder. Installment buying is a major force in our economy.