intolerable, negligence; but lest this should be pleaded as an exception
to my general rule, and to invalidate the argument, give me leave to
add, that, though this man grew rich in spite of indolence, and a
neglect of his book, yet, when he died, two things appeared, which no
tradesman in his wits would desire should be said of him.

I. The servants falling out, and maliciously accusing one another, had,
as it appeared by the affidavits of several of them, wronged him of
several considerable sums of money, which they received, and never
brought into the books; and others, of sums which they brought into the
books, but never brought into the cash; and others, of sums which they
took ready money in the shop, and never set down, either the goods in
the day-book, or the money into the cash-book; and it was thought,
though he was so rich as not to feel it, that is, not to his hurt, yet
that he lost three or four hundred pounds a-year in that manner, for the
two or three last years of his life; but his widow and son, who came
after him, having the discovery made to them, took better measures
afterwards.

II. He never did, or could know, what he was worth, for the accounts in
his books were never made up; nor when he came to die, could his
executors make up any man's account, so as to be able to prove the
particulars, and make a just demand of their debt, but found a
prodigious number of small sums of money paid by the debtors, as by
receipts in their books and on their files, some by himself, and some by
his man, which were never brought to account, or brought into cash; and
his man's answer being still, that he gave all to the master, they could
not tell how to charge him by the master's account, because several
sums, which the master himself received, were omitted being entered in
the same manner, so that all was confusion and neglect; and though the