Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1901-05-01
QUAINT WAYS IN RIO.
TO DISPUTE A BILL is TO MAKE
oNEsELF AN ouTcAST.

The Brazalian Capital la the Easiest
a Place In. che World to Get Credit
ANA the Hardest Place In Which TO
Dodge a Debt.
"Rio is the easiest city in the world
to get credit ill.," said a New Orleans
"a who lived for awhile. at the Bra
lillian capital, "but it's the worst place
in the world in which to dodge q debt.
All business there is done ON the semi
annual account system, and you can
get anything you wan and have it
charged without difficulty, but. the, end
Of every six months is settlement day,
and if you are not on hand with the
cash-well, I'll give you a little expert
ence of my own to show you what hap
pens. y'."ts
II went to the city as the representa-
tive of a well known American house,
and at the outset l was surprised to
find that 1t was practically impossible
for me to pay for anything. Don't
bother about that, senior the store
keeper would say. I will make an ac-
count of It, OF course my American
friends soon explained the system to
me, and, while I didn't like it, 1 thought
best to conform to the custom. of the
country without rendering myself dis
agreeable by kicking,
"About two months after my arrival
l went to a native shoemaker's one
day, ordered a pair of English riding
boots, and, as l had been used to wear
ing ready made footgear, 1 mentioned,
incidentally, that my number was 81.
The shoemaker gravely made a note of
the fact and promised to send around
the boots as soon as they were done.
Several weeks elapsed, when, one morn
ing. a porter came staggering into the
Office almost buried under an enor-
nous load Of English top boots. To be
exact, he had II. l was thunderstruck,
but as he could give me no explanation
except that they were mine I rushed
Immediately to the shop, where the
proprietor received me blandly and in
sisted that he had merely sent what /
had ordered. You said that you de-
sired them to the number Of eight and
a hail. he added, and I accordingly
made you eight pairs and one boot, a
right, which, if you desire, I will ex-
change for p left But, good heavens
I protested, you ought to have known
there was some mistake! Why on
earth should l order half q pair of
boots?' He shrugged his shoulders.
That was not for me to inquire he
said. 49,. r
II realized that the fatal reputation
for eccentricity which Americans en-
joy the world oyer was partly respon-
sible for the middle. Still it was an
~inexcusably stupid blunder, and, after
vainly arguing for an hour, I put him
on notice that I would only accept one
pair. When / returned, I Sent back the
other Is and considered the incident
closed. / heard no more about it, in
fact, until exactly six months later,
when | received a bill for 81 pairs Of
riding bouts at SIS each-total, $127.5O
gold-and a polite notification that ~
pairs awaited my pleasure at the shop.
foThat made me furious. I sent the
man my check for SIS and told his
messenger to sue me and be hanged.
But he didn't sue me. They have a
much more effective method down
there. - ".'
within a week every tradesman
with whom I did business advised me
courteously that he had closed my ac-
COMMUNICATING that my future GUS
tom was not desired. Moreover, the
foreign colony all gave me the cold
shoulder, and when I dropped in at the
club the frost was something awful.
SAT last I sent for a particular friend.
Look here,'I said, I want you to tell
me frankly why am getting this ta-
boo Because you haven't paid for
your boots,' he replied. But this is
monstrousp said /. You know very
yell that I never ordered 81 pairs of
BOOTS. of course not said he, but
you'd best pay for 'em all the same. It
ruins a man here,' he went on to- ex-
plain. If he allows any bill to pass set
clement day. No explanation is per-
mitted, and everybody joins in cutting
him. It seems hard, but we have to do
it to sustain this credit system. If we
didn't, we'd all be ruined by bad ac-
counts ~ % - " : =,
II. groaned in spirit, but I sent the
shoemaker $112.50 and told him to let
me have the rest Of my boots. I was
SO mad I could have worn out the
whole n on his anatomy, but I pre-
served my outward calm and was
promptly reinstated socially and fnan-
cially throughout the town. Later on
| used seven pairs Of boots as Christ
mas presents to friends and gave the
one odd one to "a one legged beggar