BOOK-KEEPING. 187 
transfers, as well as tliofe for balancing accounts, are re¬ 
gularly entered in the wade-book, and from thence pafs 
through the journal to the leger. 
It is proper, before balancing the books, which is gene¬ 
rally done once a year, to fettle asmany perfonal accounts 
as pofTible ; to clear all arrears and fmall charges ; to take 
an exaft inventory of the goods on hand, as far as can be 
done ; and affix a moderate value to each article, accord¬ 
ing to the current prices at the time ; fuch a value as you 
would be willing at prefent to buy for. It is better to 
value the goods on hand in conformity to the current 
prices, than at prime cod : for the dellgn of affixing any 
value is to point out the gain or lofs, and the gain is in 
reality obtained as foon as the prices rife, or the lofs dif¬ 
fered as foon as they fall; therefore it is impollible to 
make up a juft date of the affairs, unlefs the prefent prices 
are attended to. 
Thefe things being done, proceed to make the balance 
as follows : Prepare two dieets of paper, ruled with money 
columns, in the form of Dr. and Cr. ; write Ptofit.Awd Lofs , 
as the title of the fird, and Balance, as the title of the le- 
cond. Prepare alfo fome paper for computing the ba¬ 
lances, and markdown the folios, titles, and funis, of each 
account in the leger, in regular order. If a trial-balance 
was made, the (urns may be tranferibed from it. Pafs 
by fuch accounts as are already clofed; alfo the accounts 
of Stock and Profit and Lofs, which are always the lad ba¬ 
lanced. Then fubtraft the lelfer fum from the greater, 
and enter the difference on either of the dieets that the 
nature of the article points out, and on the fide of that 
Iheet which correfponds to the greater fum of the account. 
More particularly, 
In perfonal accounts, enter the difference, which is the 
debt owing to you, or by you, on the proper fide of the 
balance-dieet. 
In the caffi-account, enter the difference, which is the 
money in hand, on the Dr. fide of the balance-feet. 
In accounts of goods or other property, if there is no¬ 
thing remaining on hand, enter the difference, which is 
the gain or lofs, on the proper fide of the profit and lofs 
Iheet. 
If the whole is dill on hand, enter the nrefent value on 
the Dr. of the batance-ffieet ; and, if this is different from 
the prime cod, charges included, enter the difference in 
the proper fide of the profit and lofs fiieer. 
If part is fold, and part on hand, place the value of the 
quantity on hand under the fum of the Cr. and add them. 
The fum is the whole return that will be obtained, if the 
red of the goods are fold at the edimated value ; and this, 
being compared with the fum of the Dr. which is the 
whole expence, fhews the gain or lofs. Enter the fame in 
the proper fide of the profit and lofs ffieet, and enter the 
quantity and value on hand on the Dr. of the balance-dieet. 
Obferve if the quantities in the inner columns are equal 
on both fides, when the goods are all fold ; or, if the dif¬ 
ference, when only part is fold, is equal to the quantity on 
hand. If they correfpond, you have a jud account ot the 
goods. If the Dr. is greater, there is fomething fhort, 
which you mud enter on the Dr. of the balance-dieet, and 
mark the caufe of the deficiency. If the Cr. be greater, 
there is an excefs, which you mud enter on the Cr. of the 
balance-dieet, together with the occafion of it. In ac¬ 
counts fublidiary to profit and lofs, enter the did'erence on 
the proper fide of the profit and lofs fiieet. When there 
is nothing written on one fide of an account, enter the fum 
of the article or articles on that Iheet which the kind of 
the account points out. 
When you have collefted all the balances, fum up both 
dieets, and add to the profit and lofs dieet the fums of the 
profit and lofs account in the leger: then fubtradt the lef- 
fer fum of each dieet from the greater. This being done» 
mark the fums of the dock-account on your computation- 
paper, and add to it the balance of the profit and lofs 
dieet on the fide which correfponds with the greater fum 
of that account: then fubtrafl the fmaller fum from the 
greater. The remainder will be equal to the difference of 
the fides of the balance-dieet, if the books are right, and 
the balances exattly colleiSIed. 
Though the books mud balance, if free from error, yet 
it is fometimes difficult to adjud them exactly, efpecially 
when the bufinefs is extenfive, and the error trifling. If 
there is dill a did’erence, which we do not think it worth 
while to make further fearch for, we may clofe the books, 
by making Profit and Lofs Dr. or Cr. for the fame. This 
introduces an article on one fide of the leger, which lias 
none correfponding to it on the other, but it is balanced 
by fome undifeovered error. 
The balance being druck, your next work is to clofe the 
books. The mod regular way is by inferting the follow¬ 
ing articles in the journal, and poding them in the com¬ 
mon manner to the leger. 
id. P rojit and Lofs Dr. to Sundries, for lofs, on the follow¬ 
ing accounts .—The particulars are taken from the Dr. of 
the Profit and Lofs dieet. 
2d. Sundries Dr. to Profit and Lofs, for gain, on thefollow¬ 
ing accounts .—The particulars are taken from the Cr. of the 
Profit and Lofs dieet. 
3d. Balance-account Dr. to Sundries, for debts and property 
belonging to me. 
4th. Sundries Dr. to Balance-account, for debts due by me. 
The particulars of this and the former are taken from the 
refpeCtive fides of the balance-dieet. 
5th. Profit and Lofs Dr. to Stock, for nett gain ; or 
Stock Dr. to Profit and Lofs, for nett lofs. 
£in. Balance-account Dr. to Stock, for nett flock. 
When the fird four of thefe articles are poded in the 
leger, all the perfonal, real, and fubddiary, accounts will 
balance, and you may add them as you go along. In ac¬ 
counts of goods, if there is any deficiency, you mud enter 
it on the Cr. in the inner column; and, if there is any ex¬ 
cefs, you mud enter it on the Dr. before you add the ac¬ 
count. Then the fums of every account and every co¬ 
lumn on the oppofite fides will be equal. 
The only accounts that now remain open are, Profit and 
Lofs, Stock, and Balance. The fifth pod balances the pro¬ 
fit and lofs account, and the fixth balances dock, and ba- 
lance-accounts. 
Some choofe to infert the particulars of the profit and 
lofs and balance dieets in the refpective accounts of the 
leger. Others again will baladce the accounts of goods, 
whenever the quantity is fold off'; and this method leffens 
the work at the general balance, which is always diffid¬ 
ently laborious. 
Thus may the date of any perfon’s affairs be brought 
in a fhort compals, under his view ; and the articles of 
the balance-dieet fupply materials for a new inventory. 
It is convenient, however, to alter the order, and arrange 
the real accounts together, and the perfonal ones together. 
It is not, however, necelfary to begin new books, nor open 
the accounts anew, unlefs the old folios be full. The 
accounts may be continued in the former folios; but it is 
bed to begin a new leger, if the old one is not likely to 
hold all the bufinels of the next year. Where feveral lets 
of books are tiled, it is common to didinguidi them by the 
letters of the alphabet, or by numbers. The fird wade- 
book, journal,and leger, are marked A ; the fecond B, or 
i. 2. and fo on. In the following, fpecimen the wade- 
book and journal are placed on the lide of each other, 
that the learner may the more eafdy compare and compie*. 
hend them. 
WASTE - 
