CHAPTER XXXIII. 



KNOWING WHAT YOU ARE ABOUT. 



LEADING merchant in an Ohio town failed. 

 People who had trusted him and had funds in his 

 hands lost to the amount of $30,000 or more. He 

 had been in business some twenty years, and had 

 the confidence of the entire community. He sold 

 all kinds of goods and did a private banking busi- 

 ness. Everyone wondered at his failure. The creditors thought 

 there must be something wrong, and called for an investigation 

 before the probate judge. This ruined business man, as shown 

 by his own statements made under oath, had never kept any 

 regular cash account or any other accounts, by which he could 

 know just what he was doing at all times. He had plenty of 

 accounts with individuals too many but no account of bills 

 payable or receivable. After this testimony was made public, his 

 failure was no longer a wonder. He was a shrewd business man 

 in many respects, but here was a weakness on a vital point, as 

 you will all see at a glance. Any thinking man must say that if 

 he had been particular in his accounts, and known just w r hat he 

 was doing, when he began to run behind he would have looked 

 closely for the reason and probably so arranged as to keep on 

 without loss. As it was, he did not know whether he was losing 

 or making, or when he began to lose, or anything whatever about 

 it. He had large quantities of other people's money in his 

 possession; he did not know how much, and before he knew it, he 

 was badly under. He was an old and particular friend of mine, 

 and I have not the least doubt he intended to be an honest man, 

 but his carelessness amounted to dishonesty, as far as his creditors 

 were concerned, and my friend dropped in an hour from a very 

 high position (he had an ' ' Honorable ' ' attached to his name) to 

 a very undesirable one. 



Now for another pen picture : Mr. Ohmer, the well-known 

 Ohio horticulturist, tells of meeting a young friend of his who 

 had gone into business for himself. "Well, Tom," Mr. Ohmer 

 says, "are you making anything?" This sounds exactly like our 

 good friend Ohmer. He is very blunt and pointed, as well as kind 

 and genial. At first "Tom" looked as though he thought it was 

 none of Mr. Ohmer's business, and then melting under his friendly 

 look, which no man could doubt, he candidly answered, " I do 

 not know." "Well, you ought to know," said Mr. Ohmer, and 

 passed on. This was a dozen years, or more ago and Mr. Ohmer 

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