The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1889-07-17
Thrift

otlilecs IL i = E&pflF EAillc- HIS Wit
ings are as happy as his name. and
abound in that practical philosophy
known IA common sense. have always
recommended the coming man 10 read
Smiles, and il - oat Of the wisdom Of
Smiles that write this essay
ThriR Of time Is equal 10 the thrift Of
money. Franklin said, Time IS gold"
II one wishes to earn money, it may be
done by the proper use of time But
time may also be spent in doing many
good and noble actions. Ii may be spent
in learning, in study, in art, in science, in
literature. Time can be econosnized by
| system. System is an arrangement to Sc
cure certain ends, 50 that no time may
be lost in accomplishing them. Every
business mar must be systematic and or
Derby; so must every housewife There
must be place for everything and ev-
erything in its place. There must also
be time for everything, and everything
must be done in time.
1t is not necessary to show that econo-
my is useful. Nobody denies that thrift
may be practiced. We see numerous ex-
ampies of il. What many men have al
ready done, sll other men may do Nor
is thrift painful virtue On the contra
~, it enables Us TO avoid much contempt
and many indignities. 1t requires Us to
deny ourselves, but not TO abstain from
any proper enjoyment 1t provides many
honest pleasures of which thrillessness
and extrayaganee deprive Us.
Comparatively few people can be rich /;
bat most have it in their power to acquire
By industry and economy, sufficient to
meet their personal wants. They may
even become the possessors of savings
sufficient to secure them agtinst penury
and poverty in their old age. 1t is not,
however, the want of opportunity, but
the want Of will, that stands in the way
of economy. Men may labor unceasing-
ly with hand or head but they cannot
abstain from spending too freely and liv-
/ ing too highly.
The majority prefer the enjoyment Of
pleasure to the practice of self-denial.
With the mass Of men the animal is par
amount. They often spend all that they
earn. But it is not merely the working
people who are spendthrifts. We hear
,f nor ,,-f,., e. .-a..-, b,,-, -. ...,s -.
and spending thousands a year, who sud-
denly die, leaving their children penni-
less. Everybody knows Of such clses.
At their death the very furniture of the
house they have lived in belongs to 9TH
ers. 1t is sold TO pay their funeral ex-
penses and the debts which they have
incurred during their thriftless lifetime
Money represents a multitude of OBJ
jects without value, or without real util
! ity; but it also represents something
much more precious, and that is inde-
pendenee. In this light it is Of great
moral importance.
As men become wise and thoughtful,
they generally become provident and
frugal A thogghtIess man, like a savage,
spendsas he gets, thinking nothing Of to-
morrow, Of the time of adversity, or Of
the claims of those he has made depend
ent upon him. But wise man thinks Of
IKE future he prepares in good time for
the evil day that may come upon him
and his family and he provides careful
ly for those who are near and dea- 90
him.
The habit Of saving arises. for the most
part, in the desire to ameliorate our So
| eial condition. rs we'll as To ameiiorate
the condition of those who are depend
ent upon US. Ii dispenses with every
thing witch is not essential, and avoids
all methods Of living that are wasteful
and extravagant. \ purchase made at
the lowest price will be dear, If it be
superauity. Little expenses lead to great.
Buying things that are not wanted soon
accuston as Us to prodigality in other
things
Cicero said, Not to have mania for
buying Is to Possess = reyenge.P Many
are carried away by the habItof bargain-
buying. -lIere ID something wonderfully
cheap; let Us buy il" Have you any
Use for it?' "No, not at present, but it
! is sure 10 come in useful some time. "
Fashion runs in this habit Of buying
Some buy old china, as much as will fur
nish ehina-silop. Others buy old pict-
ures-oId furnitnre-old wines-all great
bargains, There would be little harm in
buying these old things. if they were not
50 often bought at the expense of the
connoiseur's creditors. Horace Walpole
once said Il hope that there will not
be another sale, for have not an inch OF
! room nor farthing left
Socrates recommends fathers Of fami-
lies to observe the practice Of their thrift
ty neigh bors-of those who spend their
/ means to the best advantage-and to
profit by their example. Thrift is essen
TALLY practical, aud can best be taaght
by facts.
Samuel johnson FULLY knew the straits
of poverty He once signed his name
Impransus, or Dinnerless. He had walk.
ed the streets with Savage, not knowing
where to lay his head at night. johnson
never forgot the poverty through which
he passed in his early life, and he was al
ways consulting his friends and readers
TO avoid it. Like Cicero, he answered that
the best source of wealth or weIl-beine
was economy. He called il the daughter
of Prudence, the sister Of Temperance
and the mother Of Liberty.
Poverty" be said, stakes away 5,
many means Of doing good, and produe
es 50 much inability TO resist evil, boil
natural and moral, that it is by all virtu
Gus means TO be avoided Resolve, then
not to be poor; whatever you have
spend les. Frugality IS not only tn.
basis of quiet, but Of beneiieence- n,
man can help others who wants to hell
himself; We must hayeenough before vi
have to spare"
And again he said: Poverty is grels
enemy to human happiness. 1t certainl,
destroys liberty, and it makes some vir
tues impractieabIe, and others extreniei,
difficult All to hom want i
terrible, upon whatever principle. oush
TO think themselves obliged to learn tn