738 



FARMERS' REGISTER, 



[No. 12 



" Away then, with 3'our expensive follies, and 

 you will not then have so much cause to complain 

 of hard times, heavy taxes, and chargeable liimi- 

 lies, for, 



"Women and wine, game and deceit. 

 Make the wealth small, and the want great." 



And farther, "what maintains one vice, would 

 bringuptwochildren." You may think, perhaps, 

 that a liule tea, or a liltle puncii now and then, 

 diet a little more cosily, clothes a liltle finer, and a 

 little entertainment now and then, can be no 

 great matter ; but remember, "many a little makes 

 a mickle." Beware of little expenses; "a small 

 leak will sink a great ship," as poor Richard says; 

 and again, "who dainties love, shall beggars 

 prove ;" and moreover, "fools make feasts, and 

 wise men eat them." 



' Here you are all got together to this sale of 

 fineries and nick-nacks. You call them goods, 

 but if you do not take care, they will prove evils to 

 6ome of you. You expect they will be sold cheap, 

 and perhaps they may, lor less than they cost ; 

 but, if you have no occasion for them, they must 

 be dear to you. Remember what poor Richard 

 says, "buy what thou hast no need of and ere 

 long thou shalt sell thy necessaries." And aorain, 

 " at a great penny-worth pause awhile." He 

 means, that perhaps the cheapness is apparent 

 only, and not real ; or the bargain by straitenino' 

 thee in thy business, may do thee more harm than 

 good. For in another place he says, "many have 

 been ruined by buying good penny-worths." 

 Again, " it is foolish to lay out money in a pur- 

 chase of repentance ;" and yet this folly is prac- 

 tised every day at auctions, for want of minding 

 the almanac. Many a one, for the sake of finery 

 on the back, have gone with a hungry belly, and 

 half-starved their "families ; " silks and satins, 

 scarlet and velvets, put out the kitchen fire," as 

 poor Richard says. These are not the necessaries 

 of life, they can scarcely be called the convenien- 

 cies ; and )'et, only because they look pretty, how 

 many want to have them 1 By these, and other 

 extravagancies, the genteel are reduced to pover- 

 ty, and (breed to borrow of those whom they for- 

 merly despised, but who, through industry and 

 frugality, have maintained their standing ; in 

 which case it appears plainly, that "a ploughman 

 on his legs is higher than a fjentleman'on his 

 knees," as poor Richard says. Perhaps they have 

 had a small estate left them, which they knew not 

 the getting of; they think " it is day, and it will 

 never be night : that a little to be spent out of so 

 much is not worth minding ; but always taking 

 out of the meal-tub, and never putting in, soon 

 comes to the bottom," as poor Richard says ; and 

 then, " when the well is dry, they know the worth 

 of water." But this they might have known be- 

 fore, if they had taken his advice ; " if you would 

 know the value of money go and try to borrow 

 some ; lor he that goes a borrowing goes a sor- 

 rowing," as poor Richard says ; and indeed so 

 docs he that lends to such people, when he goes 

 to get it again. Poor Dick farther advisesj'and 

 Bays, 



"Fond pride of dress, is sure a curse. 



Ere fancy you consult, consult your purse." 



And again, " pride is as loud a beggar as want, 



and a great deal more saucy." When you have 



bought one fine thing, you must buy ten more, 



that your appearance may be all of a-piece ; but 

 poor Dick says, " it is easier to suppress the first 

 desire, than to satisfy all that follow it;" and it is 

 as truly folly tor the poor to ape the rich, as for the 

 frog to swell in order to equal the ox. 



" Vessels large may venture more, 

 But little boats should keep near shore." 



It is, however, a folly soon punished ; for, as poor 

 Richard says, " pride that dines on vanity, sups 

 on contempt ; pride breakfasted with plenty dined 

 with poverty, and supped with infamy." And, 

 after all, of what use is this pride of tippearance, 

 lor which so much is risked, so much is sufi'ered 1 

 It cannot promote health, nor ease pain : it makes 

 no increase of merit in the person ; it creates envy, 

 it hastens misfortune. 



' But what madness must it be to run in debt 

 for these superfluities 1 We are offered by the 

 terms of this sale six months' credit ; and that per- 

 haps has induced some of us to attend it, because 

 we cannot spare the ready money, and hope now 

 to be fine without it. But ah ! think what you 

 do when you run in debt ; you give to another 

 power over your liberty. If you cannot pay at 

 the time, you will be ashamed to see your creditor, 

 you will be in fear when you speak to him, when 

 you will make poor pitifiil sneaking excuses, and 

 by degrees come to lose your veracity, and sink 

 into base, downright lying ; for, " the second vice 

 is lying; the first is running in debt," as poor 

 Richard says ; and again to the same purpose, 

 " lying rides upon debt's back ;" whereas a free- 

 born Englishman ought not to be ashamed nor 

 afraid to see or speak to any man hving. But po- 

 verty often deprives a man of all spirit and virtue. 

 " It is hard for an empty bag to stand upright."' 

 What would you think of that prince, or of that 

 government, who should issue an edict forbidding 

 you to dress like a gentleman or gentlewoman, on 

 pain of imprisonment or servitude? Would you 

 not say, that you were free, have a right to dress 

 as you please, and that such an edict would be a 

 breach of your privileges, and such a government 

 tyrannical? And yet you are about to put your- 

 self under the tyranny, when you run in debt for 

 such dress! your creditor has authority', at his 

 pleasure, to deprive you of your liberty, by con- 

 fining you in a gaol for life, or by selling you for a 

 servant, if you should not be able to pay him. 

 When you have got your bargain, you rr.ay, per- 

 haps, think little of payment ; but, as poor Rich- 

 ard says, " creditors have better memories than 

 debtors ; creditors are a superstitious sect, great 

 observers of set days and times." The day comes 

 round before you are aware, and the demand is 

 made before you are prepared to satisfy it ; or, if 

 you bear your debt in mind, the term, which at 

 first seemed so long, will, as it lessens, appear ex- 

 tremely short ; time will seem to have added 

 wings to his heels as well as his shoulders. 

 "Those have a short lent, who owe money to be 

 paid at Easter." At present, perhaps, you may 

 think yourselves in thriving circumstances, and 

 that you can bear a little extravagance without in- 

 jury ; but 



" For age and want save while you may. 



No morning sun lasts a whole day," 



Gain may be temporary and uncertain, but ever, 

 while you live, expense is constant and certain ; 

 and, " it is easier to build two chininejs than to 



