The Opelousas patriot. [volume] (Opelousas, Parish of St. Landry, La.) 1855-1863, 1859-04-16
Living Beyond one's Means.

sse'htS D~H
Living Beyond Ones Means.
The following article, is taken from the
:" money column - OF, the New Y ork Iudepen-
dent
We have once or twice, recently, alluded to
a practice prevalent anopg business men, of
|iiu7ng beyond their means-and TINS bringing
npnn themselves a failure which was no fault
If their mode of business. hut only Of their
manner of living. 1t is not safe to look at II
mans store to know his standing in business.
His splendid profits may entirely merge them
selves in his splendid dwelling, 50 that, if he
should suddenly fall, his assets would be found
TO consist chiefly Of carpets, mirrors, ~ftescoes,
pictures, marbles, furniture and a a.iety of
similar articles, all belonging tn the inside of
a " brown stone 'front.' Now, if what is poured
into the top Of a pitcher runs ont through a
hole in the bottom, it will take continual ponr-
ing to keep it full a sudden stoppage will
cave i, empty and dry. w feed hardly say
that it takes a large business to support a fine
house and when the fine house taxes The bust
ness to its utmost, a small reverse. which
now occasion it's ruin. The foundation of q
u'hl Q v tuIlC lo i0tI vi wv CtiTteI-
is his store. the other in his bouse. If he builds
too heavily on either of these, he will have the
whole roof down upon him. Many a man who
has been known as the architect Of his own
f"rtune,' has built ~unwiseIy upon one or The
other Of these foundations, and has at last beer
surprised with n worse fall than the tumbIine
Of the State Aarsenal.
l, is true, the line Of difference between living
uTthIp nrnsc r,an,', n,l ,sr l,-4l sl.
may sometimes be difficult to draw, so AS tt
give the greatest proper limit to free expendi
tnre. For instance, a man may lie able Il
keep a horse aud buggy, and live within hi.
means, who, if he were to keep Two horses ant
a carriage, would be living beyond them. A
man may keep u fine house in the city, and h,
able to afford it, who. as soon as he build;
another in the country, isgoing further thar
his money will follow. "A man may give a,
ice cream party and not feel it, WIN. when he
on the steps Of the St. Nicolas, and be living
frugaIly within his means, who, if he were. ono,
10 pay for his dinner at the hotel. wouId no
have a cent left for his supper. When a maj
is conscious that he is straining a puipt for s
point for a splendid house, or a fas, horse, or ,
grand solree, or all extrayagant table, he may
be sure that he is the man who is Giving be
yond his means,
The temptations to such extravaganza, il
such u city Us this, are very great. In this
respect, the improved architectural taste exbib
tied III our modern dwelling houses has exerteo
a favorable and also an untavorable, influence
on the community. favorable, so far as he nro
sress OF art and the cultnre of the people arc
concerned but uilayurabie having melted a
desire for ambitious display, in which men seek
10 indulge themselves beyond their means.
What wonld be called an elegant resideuc.
tSenty years ago, is now regarded az a mere
common three story honse. Compare old
arlstocratic Blocker street, with new, aristo
cratic. Fifth avenue! The best house in
Blocker street, which were the finest that our
fathers or elder brothers ever thought Of build
ing. are now mere respectable brick fronts
nothing more. But the least pretentions houses
IN Fifth avenue are solid brown stone, or solid
white understanding less. This .cha ..ee is.
IN the while. an improvement in the increased
beauty OF the city, yet it cannot bp denied that
the rage lnr luxurious aud Ostentafious living.
melted aud ios'ered by the introduction Of this
new element in our private architecture, has
never before been so great as given in account
ing Tor the last commercial crisis, alleged this
general e~Xsravagance as the cause of the revo.
luton.
When one-third Of the merchants of a great
city hang one-,llird Of their fortunes mon The
lace NANTES Of their wives, merely to make a
glitter by gas light at a grand soiree, ii is not
at all surprising that the ghost ola mescan,iIe
crisis should be seen stalking behind The guests
after they leave in III" dead hours Of the night,
The expense Of well-d.essed wife Or daughter.
t " tAe 1 Il Mfentiihss a. mac6 ~ a,aa1d -;
naily have bought the entire island Of Manbat-
IA before the times of Peter Stuyvesant,
When the . little bills F" for these TRIES are
sent ~ and pad, the crisis may be imagined
MS bringing up The rear, as Banqno's ghost!
we write a true epitaph when we saw That
many a mans failure has resulted, not from
losses IN his business, but from losses 10 which
he Is blind because they are hidden IN rarI.r
ups -, a"a,'esa laIllt"re and glided cor
and diamond rings. s@ !"