St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1894-05-27

store filled with secondhand goods. and
second. because people with an equity in
their goods don't give them up. and it is
rare case. so rare as to be curiosity.
when defaulted contract shows any<
thing but loss to the merchant. The
fact is, that, instead of the merchant
being desirious to resume possession OF
goods where payments are i'll arrears,
he will do most anything
RATHER THAN TAKE THEM BACK.
U Undoubtedly there may be a case oc,
casionally where there is downright in-
ability Oh the part Of a customer to make
his payments, even after repeated eX-
tensions have been granted: and tho
merchant, before his security is abb
sOlutely worthless through use and
wear and tear, has to realize ON 1t: but
in such rare cases even, the distress
caused the customer is neraly al
ways exaggerated, and, instead of los
ing anything. he is the gamer by his
transaction, as the amount that he has
paid will not cover the depreciation in
the security, and may be classed simply
as reasonable sum which he has paid
for the use of the goods. Put it at its
worst, the amount of foreclosei con.
tracts is extremely small. aud it is not
one case in hundred where the slight
est suffering, to say nothing OF even
inconvenience, results tnerefrOm. tits,
therefore. we believe, unWise to con-
denim plan so generally beneficent
and thoroughly equitable in its char
acter and scope, because of an Occa.
sfonal default and surrender.
We have, and presume every Iner.
chant using the installment or contract
plan has. OH his books scores of CUSTOM
ers who are months and months overdue
with their payments. We assure you
that it is matter of:the last resort and
only ill the case of total inability or dis
inclination to pay, after repeated extern
sions have been granted, that goods are
taken back. The merchant doesn't
want them. They always pay him a
loss, and they don't come back when
the purchaser has any equity i'll them.
1t is all very well for person ITO do
marry and are not able to do so on
cash basis. to wait until they can"
This sounds first rate. So would it
sound first rate to state that every one
ought to pay cash for his goods and in
cur no obligations whatever, but what
q circumscriOed. narrew, cOmfortleSs
and uIfanjoyable lite this would be il
everybody practiced this doctrine.
Against the statement that the couple
which starts out OIL the credit system
will seldom, il ever. catch up to the cash
one. and in all likelihood their children
will be brought up on the credit plan as
well, we will poiut to the hundreds Of
homes right in this city where there
would never have been hardly stick
of furniture or anything except the
most meager furnishings were it not for
the instailment plan. Instead of the
money having gone into the home it
would have gone into drink, fincry, un-
necessary amuSements and the thou
sand and one things pulling on ones
purse continually.
There is no need of making a bugbear
where none exists. An ounce of eX-
perience is worth a ton of theory. Our
experience has demo nstrated to US most
conclusively that in the making of
homes the unification of interests of
husband and wife, the incubation of
habits of thrift and economy, the rear
ing of children in the atmosphere, not
Of debt, but of honorable enjoyment of
what they perhaps are helping pay for,
there is no more potent and more
blessed factor than the contract or in
stallment plan.
t Nothing has been said in this COM
munication regarding the benefits 10
the community at large through the
large establishments and consequent
large number of employees necessary to
handle the Immense volume of business
created by the contract or inStallment
plan, and only mere hint has been
made of tine great benefit to the mercan-
tile community through the strengthen
ing of the credit of the houses employ
ing this method, as against those selling
OH open account without security.
Broadly, as between cash and credit,
ha Iey
the more desirable, both for the seller
and purchaser; but, unless we are to
assume that all credit is vicious, there
can to our mind be nothing more dis
tinctly valuable to any community than
the traduced, nevertheless much
appreciated, contract or installment
plan.
AS stated at the commencement of
this article, it is immaterla. to us wheth-
er we sell our goods for cash Or condi-
tional credit. We honestly believe,
source OF inestimable comfort, conveu-
fence and happiness to thousands; that
1t tends to habits OF thrift, economy and
sobriety; that 1t is ap educator to ones
children, and therefore to the commune
ity at large.
Yes! We believe thoroughly in the
contract and inStallment plan. We be-
lleve 1t Is, responsible for more happy
homes, outside of love. than any other
one thing. 1t also tends to bring the
merchant and his customer in closer
re atiOn to each other, and make them
more closely interdependent.
We believe the abuses of the plan by
either merchant or purchaser are so
infrequent as to be hardly worthy of
notice. 1t is a mistake to suppose that
it is used only by the so-called working
people. Clergymen. attorneys, profess
sional men of all classes, shopkeepers
as well as clerks. employers as well as
employees, know its desirable features
and the judicious assistance it affords,
while the constant ana increasing de-
mands for all the advantages accruing
under 1t is the best evidence of its need
AID usefulness. w. l.. HARRIS.