abandoned by all respectable dealers in goods, greatly to the comfort of
both sellers and buyers.]

[27] [It was a fashion of trade in Defoe's time, and down to a somewhat
later period, to thrust the phrase 'God willing' into almost every
promise or announcement, the purport of which might possibly be thwarted
by death or any other accident. The phrase, in particular, appeared at
the beginning of all letters in which a merchant announced his design of
visiting retail dealers in the provinces; as, 'God willing, I shall have
the honour of waiting on you on the 15th proximo:' hence English
_riders_, or commercial travellers, came to be known in Scotland by the
nickname of God-willings.' This pious phraseology seems now to be
banished from all mercantile affairs, except the shipping of goods.]

[28] [Notwithstanding all this ingenious reasoning, we cannot help
thinking that it would be better if conditional promises were made in
conditional language. It is not necessarily to be understood in all
cases that a direct unreserved promise means something conditional, so
that there is a liability to being much deceived and grievously
disappointed by all such promises. A sound morality certainly demands
that the tradesman should use the practices described in the text as
rarely, and with as much reluctance, as possible, and that, like other
men, he should make his words, as nearly as may be, the echo of his
thoughts.]




CHAPTER XVIII