prevented the indolence which he finds breaking insensibly upon him
afterwards, by being made easy, as they call it, in the assistance of a
partner.

3. But there are abundance of other cases which make a partnership
dangerous; for if it be so where the partner is honest and diligent, and
where he works into the heart of the business by his industry and
application, or by his craft and insinuation, what may it not be if he
proves idle and extravagant; and if, instead of working him out, he may
be said to play him out of the business, that is to say, prove wild,
expensive, and run himself and his partner out by his extravagance?

There are but too many examples of this kind; and here the honest
tradesman has the labouring oar indeed; for instead of being assisted by
a diligent industrious partner, whom on that account he took into the
trade, he proves a loose, extravagant, wild fellow, runs abroad into
company, and leaves him (for whose relief he was taken in) to bear the
burden of the whole trade, which, perhaps, was too heavy for him before,
and if it had not been so, he had not been prevailed with to have taken
in a partner at all.

This is, indeed, a terrible disappointment, and is very discouraging,
and the more so, because it cannot be recalled; for a partnership is
like matrimony, it is almost engaged in for better or for worse, till
the years expire; there is no breaking it off, at least, not easily nor
fairly, but all the inconveniences which are to be feared will follow
and stare in your face: as, first, the partner in the first place draws
out all his stock; and this sometimes is a blow fatal enough, for
perhaps the partner cannot take the whole trade upon himself, and cannot
carry on the trade upon his own stock: if he could, he would not have