The weekly Ottumwa courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1857-1872, 1865-11-23
The Merchant and Farmer.

circle? Do You know, in fact, any store
keeper who is not extremely affable to
you, even on short acquaintance. How
easily 1T is to create a friendship with
! theml How obliging, how polite, how
glad they are when you visit them! Are
YOU lonely-forlorn-abr ina strange
land, perhaps, with the memory i'm your
heart. like bruised flower, of dear ones
beyond the sea. You can turn to no kind
red spirit for salace, or u warm fireside
for a welcome and a rest. Bnt have cour-
age. Stroll down the ringing pavement.
i I.oiter in the stores. Buy in this one.-
! Price the finest. goods in that one. Fling 9
/ compliment across the counter when q
handsome, woman smiles at you from be-
hind it. Surely you will find a score OF
/ friends? But for the sake of your belief
in the goodness of the class, scan not the
motive that impels the word to the smile.
Set it down in good faith, to the credit of
the human nature of store-keepers.
| The particular store-keeper who is mn
| friend, is very methodical in his business
AT leastit seems SO TO me-a farmer with
farmer habits. 7 suppose they are all so,
and that they do not consider themselves
so very exact. Once year, he takes an
inventory ofthe value ofhis stock on hand
his outstanding debts, his cash receipts,
the cost Of labor to sell his goods, interest
on capital, insurance, taxes; and then he
knows Just how he stands, how much he
has made what line of his business it is
best to cling to in the future: and above all
lie knows whether he is right and safe.
and what limit he must set to his expen-
ses. Some of his business transactions
used to appear to ME rather small-honest
of course. but showing that he sets great
store on little things. He will take cent
ofa small boy for stick Of candy. He
will carefully weigh out two cents worth
of snuff to poor woman, and when he
does not happen to have the change for
her long boarded bill, he will spend five
minutes in going to the bank to get it, in
stead of generously saying 81 can't change
that,.siust now, and you may have the snuff
and welcome" He will search all the
money drawers in the store. and the safe,
too, any time, but that he will get the last
count with him, and buys something that
costs thirty-seven and a halfcents, he will
charge thirty-eight, to get pay, suppose,
for the paper he writes on. His boxes,
barrels, hogsheads, are all sold for some
thing,-hs stale goods worked off on GER
tain customers. In short, little things are
attended to. Nothing is wasted. He
ly,a hn1x ha lie In Il
ing at all times. And he prospers and
grows rich. ... ......... ..... "a
have another friend who is a farmer
a good uatured, easy. honeet, opon- heart
ed farmer. But withal he is very slack
and loose in his business. even for farm
er. Years ago, when he and merchant
were both Young men, his father died and
left. him good farm. He had a fair stock,
tools. and some money at interest. The
merchant had nothing but his abilities to
commence life with. The farmer was one
of his regular customers. He did not work
because he disliked to, and thought he
was able to live withou-. He spent some
of his money in fancy farming, and lost
some by trying to make too mnch out of
it. Then he neglected the farm. The
piled. Crops were half titled and wasted
and he found presently, that after paying
his help and taxes, he was short of money.
and it was convenient to make store bill.
Somehow it never became convenient to
pay the bill. At the end of each year the
merchant took his note on interest Time
went on and the merchant wanted him to
pay the notes.-the must have his capital
to use in some other direction. The farm
er had not the money but would borrow it,
but he thought it hard for the merchant
to crowd nne of his bes' customers. Well,
if he wanted To fix the matter permanent
lv he might give IA mortgage on his farm.
So it was executed, and it proved to be
truly permanent. Yearly, affairs grew
worse with the farmer. He began to real
ize his fatal mistake, but II WIS too late to
retrieve it. His fences and buildings were
down-his land foul and poor-his stock
small, he could not sustain himself, and
his farm passed out of his hands. ...
met the two men short time since,
and naturally I contrasted their lives. Ii
the farmer, thought /, had been as careful
of little things as the merchant--if he had
taken an inventory yeariy--if he had
looked closely after the pennies, and been
always content with even a slow prosper-
ty, he had been rich to-day. He started
wrong, andlacked either the nerve or the
wisdom to turn again. The same funda-
mental principles lie at the bottom of sue
cess in all we'll established pursuits. And
it is one of the greatest merits of farming,
| that it will bear up against the constant
| violations of those principles longer than
any other business. The legitimate farm
er does not smash down in a year. His
course is slow. If it is upward, his in
crease is like that of the ball rolled in the
snow. If downward his property slips
away so gradually that before he is aware
he may overpass the place of returning
| CHIEL.
The brave and gallant Gen. S. II. Curtis
was i'm town on Thursday last. He looks
hale and hearty, and will yet do the State
much good service. He came direct from
| Dakota, where he has been i'm attendance
at the Indian councils, and reports his
success i'm effecting a treaty of peace with
the representatives of eleven tribes, includ
| a,