Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1886-09-17
LIVE BY THEIR WITS.
4 GrOeer's Costly ENperienee-Moving Five
Times in Three Years-ProfeSsional Dead
Baltimore SUI

bSaIs.
Baltimore SUI
AZ you aware that many men in
Brooklyn live wholly ky their Wits"
asked an uptown grocer of a reporter.
-" No: l could name dozen heads of
families who for years have not had
dollar which. they could call their own,
but yet they live in brown-stone houses
and on the best the land affords. When
l say that the class of men mention
live by their wits. don't mean that they
are gamblers, or sharpers, as the term
implies. They are men who. having seen
better days and becoming reduced, think
that the world owes them a living. l
have reference TO that class who move
yearly, if not oftener, and strike all
tradeSmen in their neighborhood for
amounts ranging from S25 to $500.
Would you believe that man could sup
port family of five for six years wholly
on credit. l know of such a case and
have reason to regret my acquaintance
with the individual TO the tune of S2On.
About a year ago there entered my store
a gentleman. well dressed and seemingly
respectable. He bought q small bill of
goods, paying cash, and continued to
purchase daily for week. Finally one
day he said 1t was bore to pay each
time and would l allow him TO run
weekly bill! l readily consented TO this
arrangement. and, staange TO say, at the
end of the first week everything was set
tied promptly, l am now coming to the
interesting part of my story On send
ing in a bill for the groceries during the
second week was asked if | could not
let the account run by the month. Again
l consented. to oblige my customer. l
leave my business at certain periods of
the month entirely in the hands of my
clerk, and he knew l had consented to
run monthly account with my respect
able customer he thought nothing of the
fact that the individual had in three
weeks ordered three barrels of -four and
other groceries in proportion. At the
end of the month l presented my bill of
5000, but l was put off from time to
time, and, becoming tired, entered suit
to recover the amount"
You received a verdict of course?"
Yes, but the execution was returned
dissatisfied. My customer owned moth
ing. Every stick of furniture III his ele
gantly appointed house was in the nap-e
of his wife. Two weeks ago l had the
pleasure of seeing two barrels of my
best flour, three or four barrels of po
tatOes and many other articles which
originally belonged to me loaded on
trunk in front of my late customers
house. He had neglected to pay the
landlord four months rent, and was re-
quired to get out. On inquiry l learned
that the same aged and respectable gen
tlemen had feeced other tradesmen in
the vicinity for amounts somewhat small
er than mine. On pursuing the investI-
CATION further l learned that my late
customer had moved five times in three
years and had left large bills III each
neighborhood in which he had lived. l
have only mentioned the case to illustrate
how Systematically the dead beat
works"
rs there no way in which tradesmen
can avoid being beaten?"
"Yes; but one-t the cash system. But
still it is impossible to make everyone
pay cash. Many of my old custsmers
would be highly indignant if their hon
esty was questioned and l would lose the
larger part of my business. Oh, no; the
cash system is impraCticable, for many
reasons. There are black lists, but when
dead beats change their names what Is
man to do: l contend that if a man is
thoroughly dishonest, he will have ample
opportunity to practice his wiles.'
Are not many honest customer who
pay obliged to suffer for the shortcom-
ings of dead BEATS" said the report
err.
In measure, yes. If everybody
paid l have no doubt that groceries
would be cheaper Grocers must make
up their bad debts some way. and the
honest customer in the end is obliged to
suffer.