Golden Steps to Respectability, Usefulness and Happiness by John Mather Austin
page 57 of 142 (40%)
page 57 of 142 (40%)
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medium of health and sound. From the world that rolls, to the summer
flies that float on the air and glance in the sun, the truth is proclaimed that all is activity. Man cannot be idle--should not."[3] [Footnote 3: T.W. Brown.] "One of the most mischievous phrases in which a rotten Morality, a radically false and vicious Public Sentiment, disguise themselves, is that which characterizes certain individuals as destitute of financial capacity. A 'kind, amiable, generous, good sort of man,' (so runs the varnish,) 'but utterly unqualified for the management of his own finances'--'a mere child in everything relating to money,' &c. &c.--meaning that with an income of $500 a year, he persisted in spending $1000; or with an income of from $2000 to $3000, he regularly spent from $5000 to $8000, according to his ability to run in debt, or the credulity of others in trusting him. "The victims of this immorality--debtor as well as creditor--are entitled to more faithful dealing at the hands of those not directly affected by the misdemeanors of the former. It is the duty of the community to rebuke and repress these pernicious glosses, making the truth heard and felt, that inordinate expenditure is knavery and crime. No man has a moral right thus to lavish on his own appetites, money which he has not earned, and does not really need. If public opinion were sound on this subject--if a man living beyond his means, when his means were commensurate with his real needs, were subjected to the reprehension he deserves--the evil would be instantly checked, and ultimately eradicated. "The world is full of people who can't imagine why they don't |
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