The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1910-09-22
ECONOMICAL HABITS.

ECONOMICAL HABITS.
1t is conducive to happiness to
habit of life we'll within
ones income, SO that adversely
may not require a radical change.
The poor and people of even mod
crate means are compelled to be
economical if they would avoid
falling in debt; it is those who
have good incomes who need to
be admonished to practice econo-
my. They need not be penurious
or deny themselves any rational
enjoyments, but they should es-
tablish such an economical habit
as would enable them to retrench
without discomfort if loss of in
come should require it. The in.
fluence of such an example upon
the children of a family is useful,
for children ought to be trained to
habits of thrift. The child who is
given money for the asking and
allowed to spend it freely may be
ruined by the indulgence. He
quickly forms habits bad in them
selves, from which he cannot
easily divorce himself when he is
thrown upon his own resources.
No matter what his expectations
may be, he should be taught to
live we'll within his income and to
spend his money with good judg-
ment. Where this parental duty
is neglected the spoiled child may
be rendered unhappy in his adult
life or be driven into a criminal
career. Very many of the crimes
againstproperty are committed by
young men who are not in actual
want. They have enough to eat
and homes to shelter them, but
they have wants of another kind
which cannot be satisfied by the
fruits of honest labor. They are
the victims of habits fostered by
overindulgence and by a failure
to instill in their minds habits of
economy. Objection is sometimes
made to any suggestion of econo-
my because it is COMPOUNDED with
penuriousness. This is not a we'll
founded objection. It is curious
to observe that it is the economi-
cal only who have any surplus
with which to help others; the men
who are known as generous, open
handed fellows are generally self
indulgent and have nothing left
for charity. There are economi-
cal persons who are also penuri-
Gus, but there is no necessary
connection between thetwo habits
The truly economical man is, in
the first place, honest. He does
not spend more than he gets, MOI
enter into obligations he cannot
fulfill. In this respect he is a bet
ter man than the generous fellow
who entertains his friends while
cheating his creditors. The eco
nomical man keeps an eye upon
the future and through his saw
ings provides for his old age, and
in this respect also he is better
than the liberal man who having
squandered his income, becomes
burden upon his friends or upon
the community. Moreover, the
economical man keeps his tastes
and passions under control, SO
that he forms no expensive habits,
the abandonment of which in case
of a failure of income would rem
der him unhappy. The measure
of economy which the individual
should practice varies with income
and the demand upon it, but ii
should always be such as to ena-
BILE him to live honestly and to
make some preparation for the
time when he may be unable to
earn living. He should live
within his income and avoid form.
ing expensive habits that he may
not be able to sustain.
Amendment No. Two.