The western sentinel. [volume] (Winston-Salem, N.C.) 1887-1926, 1889-03-21
YOUNG MAN, READ THIS.
AND PROFIT BY THE LESSON 1T
TEACHES. 5.-r

1OUNU MAN, hEAD lalO.
AND PROFIT BY THE LESSON TT
TEACHES. s1 t5,-f
A Good Name Rather Than Great
Riches as the Cornerstone OF Success
Guard Your Reputation.
The business and even the social in
tercourse and relations Of men and
women are so hedged about With bond
and .ssurety and solemn promise or
oath that it sometimes appears as
though there were no such things as
faith and trust. Yet, in spite Of all
precautions taken to prevent viola
tion of contracts and agreements or of
good faith, one hears Of much dishon
esty, and, in spite of the dishonesty,
there is, after all, a great deal of faith
and trustfulness in men. sAnd there is
good reason for this, too, because. ev-
cry mans experience tells him that
ultimately trust must be reposed in
somebody, and that the violations of
it are, in fact, SO rare that they may
be treated as exceptions. ..-.
The real use..ss sscf the -guards land
checks and bonds and sureties is not
so much to keep men honest who are
already SO, but to furnish kind of
protection against the few dishonest
people whose disposition has not been
disclosed, and also to provide legal
records Of business transactions that
might not be explainable in case of
the death of one of the principals
thereto if it were not for the notes, re-
ceipts and other written evidences
thus provided. Much of the business
of the world is carried on, at least
temporarily, without the guards about
it which are considered, as a general
rule, desirable..i if not necessary. Thus
money, sometimes in large sums, is
loaned without receipt or. evidence of
Indebtedness being taken at the time /;
trusted clerks are authorized to draw
checks upon large balances in bank
without any guards being placed, for
the time at least, against an abuse. of
the privilege; in.a..thousand::and one
ways men show that they have faith
in each other, and the more expert
snce they have the greater faith they
put in good character and reputation.
1t would be unfair to the tempted
to be careless or Indifferent in this
matter. The exigencies of the.moment
may require that the. Ordinary guards
against all abuse of trust should be
ignored, but this should not be allow
ed to develop into a careless trustful-
ness alike injurious to1..the clerk or
agent who is trusted as to the princi-
pal.
To prevent misunderstanding and
disputes every transaction should be
recorded as promptly as possible, re-
ceirts given and taken, no matter how
thoroughly trusted may be giver and
receiver, notes and bonds should be
delivered by friend to friend as though
they were strangers to each other, in
all transactions where such papers are
customarily made cut; accounts should
be audited, no matter how fully trust
ed the book-keeper may be, and, in
short, business methods should be as
closely followed as possible in all bus.
mess transactions. With the utmost
care to guard not only against dishon-
esty, but against the temptation to
dishonesty, cases will frequently arise
where trust must be reposed in men
and it is then that good reputation
proves its value.
Among careful, observant men GOOD
reputation in another is built up slow
ly. No man, however honest he may
be, can earn it or get it in day, 8
week or even year. It is established
insensibly by his daily acts. Is he
honest in little things, punctual in
meeting his engagements, particularly
in the matter of paying money? L
he frank, open, sincere in all he say
and does? These are the question:
that unconsciously occur to and arr
answered by the observant man o
business in relation to his clerks ant
other employees, and to the men will
whom he habitually does business. 1
the answers are in the affirmative weel
in and week out for long period o
time, the subject of the inquiry ha
gradually established a good reputa
tion which may some day, and quit
unexpectedly to him, be converted
into money capital, laying the tounda
| ton of his fortune. Such a youn,
man may, for example, have an op
portunity TO enter a business firm, 5u
be without the means to furnish nee
essary capital or to give security 70
its repayment to lender. It is thel
that his good reputation may enabl
him to borrow money on his simpl
note from some observant bushes
friend who has watched his career
and is willing, under these exceptions
circumstances, to violate business rule
and accept the risk necessarily at
tending such a transaction.
No better thought can be instille
into the minds of the young than th
high value of a good name. It shoul
not be fought merely because Of il
material value, yet this considerable
should not be wholly ignored. It
well, too, thar emphasis should be lai
upon the fact that it must be earne
by long course of upright conduc
It was Cassie, the noble-spirited so
dier, who took the right view Of rel
utation when he exclaimed, 20, I has
lost my reputationl I have lost Il
immortal part of myself, and what r
mains is bestial." That is the vie
that every young man should have
his reputation. He should guard
as the Immediate jewel of his soul, ar
preserve it by scrupulous observan'