he must be exceedingly watchful; for it is the most dangerous state of
life that a tradesman can live in, for he is in as much jeopardy as a
seaman upon a lee-shore.

If the people he trusts fail, or fail but of a punctual compliance with
him, he can never support his own credit, unless by the caution I am now
giving; that is, to be very sure not to give so much credit as he takes.

By the word _so much_, I must be understood thus--either he must sell
for shorter time than he takes, or in less quantity; the last is the
safest, namely, that he should be sure not to trust out so much as he is
trusted with. If he has a real stock, indeed, besides the credit he
takes, that, indeed, makes the case differ; and a man that can pay his
own debts, whether other people pay him or no, that man is out of the
question--he is past danger, and cannot be hurt; but if he trusts beyond
the extent of his stock and credit, even _he_ may be overthrown too.

There were many sad examples of this in the time of the late war,[13]
and in the days when the public credit was in a more precarious
condition that it has been since--I say, sad examples, namely, when
tradesmen in flourishing circumstances, and who had indeed good estates
at bottom, and were in full credit themselves, trusted the public with
too great sums; which, not coming in at the time expected, either by the
deficiency of the funds given by parliament, and the parliament
themselves not soon making good those deficiencies, or by other
disasters of those times; I say, their money not coming in to answer
their demands, they were ruined, at least their credit wounded, and some
quite undone, who yet, had they been paid, could have paid all their own
debts, and had good sums of money left.