The Union times. [volume] (Union, S.C.) 1894-1918, 1914-12-18
PAY AS FAR
AS YOU CAN
Secretary Kennedy Urges All
Debtors to Pay as Much as
Possible on Their Accounts
and Suppress Hard Times.

There has never been as much long
suffering and leniency shown debtors
as has been shown them within the
last few months. Rubber is capable
of being stretched and expanded to a
great degree, but even rubber will
reach its elastic limit and collapse if
more pressure is added.
l am writing to three classes of
debtors: those who can pay but are
negligent and Indifferent; those who
deliberately hide behind the general
financial depression as a pretext to
avoid their obligations, and those who
want to pay their debts but are not
able to do so, because of circum-
stances over which they have no con-
troll.
What 1 shall say does not in any
way apply to the man who is making
the necessary sacrifices and meets his
obligations. l have respect and ad-
miration for such a man.
There is one bit of debtor philoso-
ply which is false as false can be,
that: "The man | owe has plenty and
does not need it anyway" and should
never be indulged in by anyone. A
similar line of reasoning is followed
by the boy who eats his playmate S
share of apples because he thinks
ne will not want any when he finishes
his play. If the man you owe had not
been in need of an increase you would
not have had loan from him or been
extended credit. Get the idea out OF
your head that the other fellow does
not need what you owe him. He,
most likely, needs it as much as you
do and has much greater right to it
The man who has shown bv his ac-
tions or words that he is trying to
avoid the payment of his just debts
this fall may be assured that the in
difference that he has shown his cred
itors will be multiplied to him when
next spring, he asks for credit of the
man he treated so contemptously a
few months before. You may think
you will drop your man and go &c
some one else for credit, so you may
but most likely the new man you &c
to will make very close inquiry into
your debt paying ability before he
will extend you any accommodation
rs Naturally our sympathies are with
the man who honestly tries but fails
It Is very sad and pathetic to see q
| man. exhaust all his resources and
then fail to discharge his honest
| debts. When a corporation turns
over all its resources and assets to its
creditors its obligations are legally
and morally discharged, if not paid
because corporation is soulless. But
with the individual it is different, he
is morally bound to pay a debt al
| though he has turned over all his col
lateral or security to his creditors and
| 1T is not enough to discharge the debt
An individual is under moral obliga.
| tions until the debt is paid. For ex-
ample: Suppose l bought horse from
man and lacked fifty dollars of pay
| ing for it and mortgaged the horse tc
| secure the man from whom | bought
the horse against loss, upon my fail
ure to finish paying for it. And the
horse was killed by lightning and il
was no fault of mine-morally | am
bound to pay the man the fifty dollar
balance due him for the horse. The
man who fails to pay his debts this
year should be sure that he has made
every honest effort within his power
to pay them. Then if he owes a bal
ance and wants credit another year he
should have frank talk with the man
ne owes and ask him to include what
you owe on this years account in
your account for next year. Then live
as economically as you possibly can
until you pay your just debt. The
greatest thing you can can do if you
cannot pay your honest debts this
year, is to pay what you can in such
way as to maintain your credit.
The man who demonstrates his
debt-paying ability this fall by meet
ing all his obligations needs no ad-
vice from any one, and will have little
difficulty in getting credit another
year.
A. G.. KENNEDY.