Alexandria daily gazette, commercial & political. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1808-1812, 1809-11-23


hence. They take credit with eagerness and
with confidence; because, without consult
ing their understandings,they blindly follow
the impulse of romantic hope. !" The
g thing is rather dear, and | might do with
6 out it, but can have SIX months credit
/" Six months credit It's half as good as
sc though it were given out of hand tor
" surelyI can make payment in all that
" time, and scarcely feel it," Well,among
a thousand possibilities, it's barely posi-
bic that man who has no money now, nor
any adequate means to raise It, may never
theless have money enough six months
hence. Hope fastens upon this single pos
sibility She ventures in the lottery when
the chances are nine hundred and ninety
nine to one against her, and draws blank.
Payday arrives the creditor come. /" You
&C must wait !; the world, you know, is full
/" of disappointments, and have had my
" share Of them; will positively pay you
/" in sixty or ninety days; but cant for the
/" life Of me do it now"
There are some who would scorn the i'm
putation of falsehood or of knavery yet
they readily promise, by word or by note,
without even intending to perform tEeir en-
eagements bunctualy: they know they
must paw at last, but mean to shuttle it of
as long as they can, and never think OF be-
stirring themselves in earnest till after they
have received two or three dltns, or writ.
There are some who are slack to pay, when
it is completely in their power: they wait
to be urged ,and discharge their honest debts
with as much loathness, seemingly, as
m:ser gives aims. There are some who are
particularly needless of the smaHsums they
owe. They suffer little bills which they
could pay at any time, to be presented to
them over and over and over again, till the
trouble of collecting nearly equals the va
lue of the debts. Finally, there are some
who, though they neveriexpect to pay at all,
add to the misfortune of their creditors by
| amusing them as long as they possibly can.
with fair and fsttering promises.
Now it happens that large part of these
are classed by the world among your milky,
good natured people. They are thought not
to havs the Ainty rigor of your strait-laced
| dealer, who is punctual himself and exac,s
the same of those he deals with. They are
careless, but condescending /; hardly just,
but profusely liberal hating to pay away,
but free to giue away, and even to thro7O
| away. But after allowing them all due ere
too that they don't mean the mischefs which
| they occasion it may be affirmed for truth
that community generally suffers ten fold
4 tho ri ,,rf,, t/,ll hon
from all the downright robbery and theft
| that are committed in it. tits seldom that
one is robbed of his money, or has his
goods stolen whereas disaPpointments ari-
sing from want Of punctualty are evils that
| are felt daily, and by ali by farmers, me-
chanics and laborers, as we'll as by mer-
| chants and traders. One disappointment
of this kind frequently occasions many more
A owes sum to B, and B owes it to C.,
| and so on, perhaps, throughout all the let
tiers of the alphabet and by reason that A
| disappoints B, all are disappointed.
Many of those who are needless of their
pecuniary engagements have become so by
| habit. Their first negligence began in ear
| ly life, and in trivial affairs ; and the first
| violation of sheir promises gave them, per-
| haps, considerable uneasiness. By frequent
repititions, their minds became callous
tilfat last they are brought to forfeit, their
word without shame or conjunction. 1t is
therefore necessary and important part of
education to guard the young mind against
this evil. Children and youths should be
taught punctuality, both as moral duty
! and as necessary step to their own interests
and responsibility in life !: Ispeak of laujM
engagements only for criminalengage-
ments are absolutely null, and ntuer to be
! fulfilled" They should be cautioned often
against being imprudent or prodieal in pro-