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Show When a merchant lias an account on his books that be cannot collect, he call it a "bad debt," says an exchange. ex-change. If he called it a bad ''credit" the name would be just as ' good, and would be a con .stunt reminder re-minder to him of his own responsibility respon-sibility for the existence of such accounts. A very largo portion of the worthless store accounts opened every year are as great a reproach 1 to the creditors as they are to the ; debtors. If the latter are too dis- ; honest or too indigent to pay. the former are open to censure for admitting ad-mitting customers to credit on an, unknown basis. There should be no risk taken i n the matter of credit-giving. credit-giving. The customer's character and standing should be known before be-fore he is allowed on a credit footing. foot-ing. Knowledge, not faith in human nature, is tiie groundwork to bn i 1 d a cred it business upon. The weakest point in the retail trade of this country is its credit system. A merchant may be an excellent salesman, a fine stock-keeper, stock-keeper, a close buyer, a maintainer of prices, and may be all that is necessary for the doing of a sucr ; ccssful business, but may lose a great deal through worthless book debts. |