Preble County Democrat. [volume] (Eaton, Ohio) 1857-1859, 1858-03-11
Living Beyond oDr NTeo--

0SAOLo u u6TclleSS
despotism over their purses. The rich
Id their abundance do not feel the bur-
den; but when the same thing is at
tempted by those in moderate and
humble circumstances, then " comes
the tug of war" In order to ape the
attitudes of wealth, they exhaust all
their resources, and aver strain their
credit until it is perfectly thread. bare.
There is much in the habits and Gus
toms of society, says the Philadelphia
argus, furnishes a strong temptation to
this course-yet it is a serious evil. 1t
Is not right as between man and man: il
is an extravaganza that carries in its
train a pecuniary injustice. He who
lives beyond his means must supply the
deficiency from the pockets of his neigh
bors, very often upon the strength of a
deceptive credit. His very display gives
him an appearance of afiuence that mis-
guides the judgment of others. He
knowingly passes himself off for more
than he is worth, and what is this but a
species of fraud?
There rs of course an end to this habit
some where; the commercial reputation
of the individual must finally be swamp
edby the number of his unpaid indebted
nesses; yet the whole process is one of
dishonesty, even before this catastrophe
reveals it. He not only disgraces him
self thereby, but also jeopardizes the re-
putation of religion among men.
1t is, moreover, a very uncomfortable
habit. He who lives above his means,
generally owes more than he can paw,
and the farther he goes, the worse he
makes his condition. He becomes a
stereotyped borrower; pays one debt by
contracting another; has a great many
debts to pay-little, petty, annoying
bills scattered in all directions, which he
does not know how to meet. They are
constantly haunting him with their un-
pleasant clamors; they sacrifice his re-
putation, and give the community the
just impression that he is q poor paw
master. All this must be a source of
great annoyance and perplexity, far too
great to find an adequate compensation
In a little meaningless parade. 1t would
be far wiser, involving much less friction
of the nerves, to shine less aud enioy
more.
The tenn tations of the habit are both
numerous and dangerous. 1t tempts a
man to sacrifice his sense of honor. to
place a light estimate upon this word, to
be easy in promising, and very slow in
fulfilling. His moral principles become
loose, and pass into the state of decav.
His wants bride him, and he is likelv
under the plea of necessity, to do what
under other circumstance he would not
think of doing. Sometimes he is led to
contract debts, and then move away.
leaving them unsettled and unpaid
Perhaps he runs his credit in one place
till he runs it out; and then does the
same thing in another, till he finally
runs himself out.
he is tempted to acts of meauness, |
not to say dishonesty, such as dodgingI
his creditors; and making promises
which he does not seriously expect to
fulfill. His virtue is always taxed and
strained by his pride on the one hand, and
the Inconvenience of his extravaganza
on the other; and between the two, the
path of plain and simple honesty is made
very difficult. Sins seldom go alone;
one form of wrong generally leads to an
other; and hence he whose proud heart
requires what his lax conscience per-
mits, is on the highway of temptation.
What he may be led to do in certain
crises made by his folly, he cannot tell.
He may be so severely chafed and pinch
ed, as even to be guilty of the crime of
murder.
Aud then again, he who all
and more than all, for the purpose of
display. has not a penny for the offices
of charity; he can give nothing to aid
the poor, to promote the public good, or
to disseminate the knowledge of the
gospel. He is always himself too poor
for his work; and quite likely soothes
his conscience and corrupts his heart
with the plea of his own poverty. He
would be glad to do something, but he
cannot-he is s % poor. Very true; but
let him inquire into the reason of his
poverty. He lives too fast: he spends
too much on himself and family; he
keeps up more parade than he can
support and this is the chief reason
why he is unable to contribute to the
interests of charity and benevolence.
How much more c~ommendable is that
MIN who is economical and frugal that
he may be liberal; who restraints his
own passions from excessive indulgence,
that he may devote at least q portion of