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Show AN INSIDIOUS VICE. C ambling- Is Worse Thaa Drunkenness Business Integrity. "Gambling is the skulking, poisonous poison-ous foe to business integrity," said an experienced business man. "You can see the signs of drunkenness," he said, "and guard against being damaged by a drinking partner or employee, but more often than not you know nothing of the gambler's downward progress until your losses tell the tale. I have Eeldom seen a case in which the habit of gambling did not have the companion compan-ion habit of lying. The lying gets wors as the gambling becomes confirmed. Tour gambling associate comes along with such a cheerful mask of falsehood that you are indignant when somebody intimates that he is treading the dangerous dan-gerous path of dalliance with cards oi horses. "Some years ago I had a little experience expe-rience which I've no doubt many mer--chants can duplicate. I was a managing manag-ing partner in a branch of one of the most extensive houses in St. Louis. We had a salesman whom we valued highly. high-ly. It came to our knowledge that ho was falling in love with poker. I said that he must be warned. The othei partner thought he was all right, but consented to the warning. In a few months the man collected Mil an lost the money at poker. I then insisted on reporting a discharge to the main firm, but my partner stuck to his faith in the man's promises. Finally we compromised com-promised by retaining the delinquent on condition that my partner notify tha firm that he would be personally re sponsible for losses caused by a repeti tion of the occurrence.- We also sent to every customer a notice that all bill? 6hould be paid directly to our head quarters. "Before six months had passed tha salesman m'anaged to collect a bill of $1,500 and lost every dollar. "My partner took the money out of his pocket and reimbursed the firm. It is not necessary to tell anybody who knows gamblers that he never received a cent from the man he had befriended "The preacher and the lawmaker may grade other vices as more heinous, but the merchant and the banker whe know what is good for them are moi afraid of gamblers than of anything else." St Louis Globe-Democrat |