Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1885-06-29
Effects of Debt.
WRITTEN FOR THE MoNIToR.]

uleoo, Soou equlpaSe, HDe luiuilule,
go without, rather than to procure it
on credit. Furthermore, by no means
risk all, or no considerable share of
your property in a venture which you
imagine, but are not positively certain,
will lift you suddenly to affluence.
Many things may occur to prevent
the realization of your hopes, and in
stead of finding yourself surrounded
by ease and luxury-the object of
your neighbors' envy-the chances
are that you will secure for yourself
years of toll and sorrow, as well as
the pity, and perhaps contempt, of
your 1eighbors. Let me give you a
little sketch of my own experience:
A few years ago, we had happy
home, and a small, but productive
and finely located farm. We owed
quite sum, yet not so large an
amount that with economy and in
dustry, we might not by this time
have paid it. My husband had
good business, and although in deli
cate health, yet with his income and
the farm, he had been able to sup
port our growing family. Naturally
ambitious and sanguine, however, he
thought, like thousands of others,
that there was speedier way of get
ting out of debt and obtaining CON-
forts for his family; hence he en-
barked in an enterprise perfectly hon
orable, in which others had succeed
ed, and why not he? But times had
changed, and at the end of two years,
he found himself twelve hundred dol
lars more deeply involved. With a
sad heart, but determined spirit, he
set to work to amend the consequences
of his rashness. Our property was
worth the amount of his indebted
ness, but there was no object in SELL
ing, as we should have nothing with
which to purchase another house, and
besides he was greatly attached to the
old homestead, which had become en-
deared to him by the associations of
his boyhood and the birth and child
hood of our own children. The place
was dear to his aged mother also, who
lived with us, as we'll as to all of us.
No! the farm must not be sold. 9th
er men whom we knew had paid
debts quite as large as ours from
the income alone of farms not much
more profitable than our own. True,
in addition to the interest on the sum
to be paid, my husband had to pay
yearly about seventy dollars premium
on his life insurance policy; but be-
sides the farm profits, he usually
earned four or five hundred dollars
annually, and our two boys were now
of an age to save us the expense OF
hiring help to carry on the farm
They had thus far been kept al
school, and taking them from it seem
ed the greatest sacrifice we were
obliged to make but we hoped thai
f we might yet be able to carry out oul
, intention of giving them a liberal ed
ucation. 1t must be said to thei
J, credit that without murmuring they
have readily given their assistance
and saved US many dollars by thei
industry.
Yes, my husbands project for pay
ing the debts and keeping the farm
n seemed quite feasible, and could b
y have effected his degign to consoli
date the many different sums due
0 and bring them into one debt, l Sc,
> no reason why in the ordinary cours
y of things, we might not have livet
happily and paid at our leisure. II
reduce them all to one, however, wa
e the chief difficulty. Those who LOAF
money on security, are not likely t.
: take property for more than hal
t its real value, consequently my hus
I band would raise but little more thai
half he required. In such esteem wa
he held, however, and SO prompt hat
. he always been to fulfill his financia
engagements, that no one troubled
v him, and thus he went on for tw,
k years, paying not only his interest
but something besides. During thi
time, several new farming utensil
had to be purchased to replace ole
ones, and our large sugar orchart
+ had to be fitted up with sugar house
evaporator, etc., in order to make i
i a source of profit.
: But notes on which he had alread,
obtained an extension of time wer
maturing, and although every on
was kind: the very fact that he coult
, not meet his obligations at the tim'
' they came due, was sufficiently har
? RAISING to one of my husbands sen
sitive and proud spirit to make hi.
a life miserable. In this extremity, b,
S applied to relative, and succeeded
by giving lien on personal proper
ty, in obtaining three hundred dollars
more. The lender was farmer will
the bump of caution remarkably wei
developed, and the trepidation unde
which he granted the loan, and th'
: advice which he felt it necessary t.
t give my husband although his ex
perience in business had been immeas
! urably less-that we scarcely knew
whether to consider it favor or 9th
erwise.
!, Another year has passed away, ant
i though we have had to buy severa
| tons of hay and other THINGS have