Little Falls weekly transcript. (Little Falls, Morrison Co., Minn.) 1894-19??, 1895-12-06
A B. BAD . !. EFFECT Fl I ]!
Business Failures are Dam.
aging to the City and
Should be DiscOur-
aged.
A Careful Investigation
Should be Made Into
Assignments.

Any business failure is Il misfO.'
tune for the city in which it occurs
as the reasonable supposition is thai
it indicates that the community i,
not prosperous. and that unusua
care should be taken in extending
credit and confidence to any citizens
OF the city. Failures may he caused
In various ways-by poor manage
ment, by unusual losses, by general
hard tir,es and lack of business in q
community, or by direct fraud
Business failures are recognized as
legitimate by the law, and the law
provides means by which man who
liz unable to pay his debts may place
his property in the hands of the court
tor disposal, and the proceeds used
for the best interests Of the creditors.
The fact that such proceedings are
provided by law, and sanctioned by
the best commercial usages, and
sometimes necessarily taken advan-
tage of by upright and honest men,
who do SO to protect all creditors
alike (when it is plain that it will be
impossible to pay all in fully shows
that the system itself is benefit
rather than an injury to business
interests. But the very provisions
that are intended to relieve
the honest debtor, and protect
the creditor, may he used
to defraud the creditors. damage the
locality and demoralize legitimate
business. That such fraudulent as
signments are sometimes made. is
amply proven by court records.
While occasionally such frauds are
detected a nd punished, often the wide
~ scattered creditors will do moth
ing, when they have best reason to
believe that they were defrauded.
They assume that local sympathy
with a citizen will aid in shielding
him; it is also difficult to prove fraud
when the perpetratOr has cautiously
planned for months and maybe
years; the creditors see no hope of
recovering any money, feel thankful
that it is no worse for them, and de-
cline to send more money after sure
losses. A fraudulent failure will
often make a clearer showing on the
books than an honest one-for the
professional "tailer" knows we'll how
to make his books have a plausible
appearance. For these various rea-
sons many men who deliberately de-
fraud creditors are never made to
suffer for their crime-either by the
law or openly expressed public senti-
ment. AS many failures are entirely
legitimate, every man who fails de-
mands the same public sympathy
and consideration that is justly and
heartily given to the honest but un-
fortunate one. And sometimes the
great test fraud is lOudest in protest.
ing his sorrow for the men he has
defrauded, he proclaims his honesty,
and stoutly protests against any re-
marks against his character-even
befOle he knows of such cOmment-a
guilty conscience is it's own accuser.
The fraud initiates the honest man,
and often overdOes himself in self
defense-realizing, probably, how
sorely he needs some defense.
That an honest man who fails may
again engage in the same business
as manager or proprietor is also en-
tirely legitimate. The conditions
that caused his former failure may
have passed away; his friends may
come tt his assistance; capitalists
may have confidence that his future
management will bring success, and
lend him money; the very creditors
who lost by one failure may be en-
tirely satisfied that the causes were
beyond the mans control, and again
supply him with goods; he may be
engaged as an employe with general
or limited power to buy and sell-in
many ways can he continue his
former occupation with advantage
tn himself, his creditors, or his en-
ployers, and to the community.
And here again Mr.. Fraud assumes
the shield of honesty to prey on le-
ultimate mercantile business. What
the honest dealer may do, the fraud
is the careful imitatOr inland a
chain of failures sometimes follows;
all along the same line, but gradu-
ally getting more complete, artistic
and scientific. While nothing sue
ceeds like success, nothing fails like
failure-success in failure often
brings successful failure, as failure
brings success.
The Greengard assignment is one
that has many peculiar surround
ings, and the existing conditions
have prompted a great deal OF pub
lie comment. The manager was I.
Greengard, and the owner was