Commttnicatfon&.
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FOR THE FREE JKESS.
"Prompt payment the life of business "
From the earliest dawn of my man
hood to the present day, teaches me that
in all the private or commercial transac
tions of mankind, that prompt and nunc-
tnal payment is far the best, both for the
seller and purchaser. It is even so for
the man engaged in the most humble or
private pursuits, as well as the lawyer,
doctor, or merchant. I have been enga
ged in the latter, for many years, and per
sonal observation and experience have
satisfactorily taught me, that the long and
present system of credit arid indulgence
is dangerous both to the. creditor and
debtor, more particularly the latter; for
since I have tliu satisfaciion of knowing
these things to be undoubtedly true in
theory, 1 also have the mortification of
Knowing it to be -equally so by practice
and experience. And had 1 not have ev
er given into this old and long since esta
blished custom, and at the same time
could have done the same amount or ex
tent of business, I have no hesitation in
saying, I should have saved or have made
hundreds of dollars, if not thousands,
where I have, or shall eventually lose it.
For instance, 1 will point out some of
the evils alendant on the credit system.
In the first place if a person has an arti
cle to sell well, Tom, Dick, or Harry
may become the purchaser; he takes the
article and gives his note, say at six or
twelve months. Now it's impossible for
the creditor to know at all times, what is
or what may be the fate of this man be
fore this debt arrives at maturity; nltho'
himself and all the neighbors believed
him to be as perfectly good and as sol
vent as need be, for any reasonable a
mount. But when you come to test the
thins, to your astonishment and surprise
you find that every species of property he
has in possession, is held by a deed in
trust or mortgage by some other person.
It's true that the law has ordered, that
those instruments shall be recorded for
evnry man's inspection; but this is not
known by every man, and a great many
persons might not even think of such a
thing as searching the public records, for
the purpose of ascertaining who were
solvent or insolvent. For a man who
never thinks or practices evil himself, is
not apt to suspect others of it; conse
quently they believe all to be honest and
correct until they prove themselves oth
erwise. And in a general way wicked
and perverse men endeavor most strenu
ously to induce the public to believe that
all is right with them.
Secondly, whenever you have to resort
to a legal course to come at your rights,
there your troubles and difficulties are in
creased, and very often heavy expences
incurred by it and finally lose the origi
nal debt.
Thirdly, very often you might have
promised some of your creditors large
sums of money on a certain day, at the
same time you are dependent on your
debtors for the monej; you call upon
them, and perhups every man of them
will give you this most solemn promise
that it shall come by such a day, being
in time to meet your promise. VVeh
you rest satisfied until the day arrives,
when perhaps two or three out of those
eight or ten very punctual debtors of
yours, who passed you their word and
Jiouor, appeared and complied. The
next day you have to meet your promise;
well, you falling very far short of the sum
required, from the non-compliance of
your debtors, you know not what to do.
Being not like those who promised you,
by all means you intend to do what is
right and to comply with your engage
ments, and would not falsify your word
or promise for any consideration; and
now you have to g0 off perhaps some fif
teen or twenty miles to some capitalist,
and borrow the money at from 15 to 20
per cent, to meet your promise; which
any real high mmded or honorable man
would do rather than sacrifice his word
and disappoint a friend. Though I very
much regret from my personal knowl
edge of mankind to say, that 1 fear men
t this high aud honorable character are
few and far between. Not onlv so, but
this gentleman who will do justice under
all and any circumstances is not only put
to a vast deal of trouble and perplexity,
but the per cent, he has to pay in order
to get the money, actually amounts to
more than the nett profit arising from the
sale of the goods, wares, &c. sold to those
eight or ten highly worthy and distin
guished customers. Sirch men asthosc,
if they may be so called, have no feeling
or generosity about them; lor if it was
possible that you cotild indulge them to
that great day when Gabriel shall sound
his last trump, the most slanderous and
abusive language they could possibly
heap upon you would be too charitable
for them; beside any and all other injury
they could do you.
Fourthly, was the present system abol
ished, and a uniform cash and barter sys
tem established in its stead, it would cer
tainly redound to the interest and advan
tage of the whole community; though 1
am induced to believe but few would at
first think with me and it certainly
would prove rather oppressive for the
first year or two, but after that no doubt
all would be much pleased with it. It
certainly would be a considerable saving
to both buyer aud seller, particularly to
the commercial partot the community, in
the way of clerk hire, books, pen, ink, pa
per, tec. which is no small item to the
man who does an extensive credit busi
ness whereas, provided he done a cash
business, all this expense might easily be
avoided. And what is the result of it?
why this is the fact, the merchant lays a
per cent, on his goods over and above
sufficient to cover all those and many oth
er incidental expenses. Besides, where
he purchases his goods for cash, and he
sells on twelve months credit, he of
course calculates the interest on his mo-,
ney and also adds that in his per cent
age on his goods; not only so, but if he
sells on a twelve months' credit, he of
course would not sell the article as low
by ten or fifteen percent, as thouuh he
sold for the ready money or barter.
:Mow, my fellow citizens, is it not redu
ced to a certainty, that the buyer or con
sumer of the article pays all these ex
penses eventually! In my humble opin
ion they do. This system operates some
thing like the tariff, the consumer pays
all at last though this credit system is
more in the hands of the people and
might be avoided, and no doubt will be
in a few years when the people come to
reflect upon and understand the thing. T
am so well convinced of the fact, and have
sustained so many losses by "it, that I
have pretty well determined for the small
remnant of my life, that I will neither be
credited myself nor credit others. And
I hope most seriously, thdt no one will
take umbrage at these suggestions, as
they are intended for the mutual benefit
of all, and I hope all may profit by them
the rich cannot reasonably complain,
and the poor ought not. As I am poor
myself, I am among the last that would
injure them knowinglyand please take
it for granted, that my sole object is to
arouse the feelings of my friends and the
public on this subject.
A xccll icishcr to all.
s,,,, '
SATURDAY, MAY 11, 1833.
interest would be promoted by a rail roar
from this place to the mountains; what
vast amount of their produce, which th
are now obliged to consume, would be
transportation to market; what a new
impulse would be given to their industrv
by this state of things; how much thj
would save in the expedition and chca
ness of transportation of goods.
them consider these things, and then
come forward to the aid of the people of
Wilmington and Fayetteviile, who have
subscribed liberally to the Rail R0a
Stock. It is not a scheme for the bene
fit of those towns alone, but equally )
more for the benefit of the farmers, 'tj1(J
landholder, the merchant and the rnp.
chanic of the west. And shall it be said
that they will do nothing for themselves!
Where is the subscription made by tlietxi
to the Rail Road Stock! Does it comport
with the character of the wealthy and in
telligent people of the western port of
North Carolina, to answer that lint r.Mrv
share has been subscribed for west of
Fatal Accident. In Oxford, Mass. on
the 27th ult. Mr; Aaron Elliott, aged 23,
lost his life by one of those accidents of
which several instances have recently oc
curred in different parts of the country.
He was grinding scythes at a stone about
six feet in diameter and weighing nearly
two tons. While revolving at the rate of
about three hundred times a minute, the
stone parted into three pieces; one of the
fragments, weighing about eight hundred
pounds, passed in a direction upwards,
with astonishing force, carrying away the
joist of the floor above and lodging in the
second story of the shop. This fragment
struck the head of Mr. Elliott, threw him
with great violence about twenty feet
from where he was setting, and thus in
stantly left him a lifeless and mutilated
corpse. The accident has deprived a
wife and five children of an affectionate
husband and father.
A letter from New Orleans dated lGth
inst. states that 15 cases of Cholera oc
curred that day among the boatmen.
(t3h would appear from the following arti
cles, that the contemplated Central Rail Road in
this Slate, as well as the Yadkin and Cape Fear
Rail Road, have shared the fate of Ihe Tarborough
and Hamilton Rail Road, beingabandoned for the
present. The Raleigh Re?ister says:
The scheme authorised by an act of
last session, tor forming the Cape rear
and Yadkin Rail Road, is abandoned bv
the Subscribers in Wilmington andits,are ha.f, 7ee?f subscribed for wes
vicinity. Dr. Wm. f. Wort, one of thej "J,"" : . "ww tuuracienzc
Commissioners for receiving subscrip-1 such cr,mml apathy in regard to their
lions to it, informs the subscribers, that ! w.9 and fMbest interests of their State!
ho is now rundv to nav thnm hnrlr' th ! 13 our deliberate opinion that the onlv
money deposited on their shares, after! 10po of or.th Caro,ma lor many years
deducting 12 per cent, for disbursements, I t0 comc' . 13 In.tlle constction 0f t,;s
the inhabitants of the western counties road; and tbal 11 cnn ony be doncbyihc
having failed to subscribe a cent towards
effecting the proposed object.
The proposed Central Rail Road, also
authorised by an act of the same body,
may also be considered as abandoned for
the present.
Internal Improvements. The Wilmington
People's Press, in a few remarks in relation to
internal improvements, makes the following ve
ry happy hit at the apathy which so generally
prevails on the subject in this State:
"Every body seems to be sensible that
some energetic measures arc requisite
for the salvation of the State, and when
ever any public improvement is propo
sed, all nod assent; and they continue to
nod, nod, nod, till they get fast asleep
dream of ruinget the night mare
wake up in a fright rub their eyes feel
in their pockets to see if they've been
robbed inquire how the rail road pro
gresses, and whether the bridge is built
but never put in a. cent, nor stretch
forth a hand, to aid in works calculated to
prosper the State and enrich themselves."
Internal Improvements. We would
call the attention of our readers to the
following statements in relation to the
transportation upon the canals in New
York and Ohio. It will be seen that
goods are conveyed from New York to
Cincinnati, a distance of 1125 miles, for
24 cents per 100 lbs! notwithstanding
they have to undergo several tranship
ments, say at Albany, at Buffalo, at
Cleveland, and at Portsmouth. Let us
compare this with our condition, and look
for a moment at the cost of transporta
tion of goods and produce from Fayette
viile to any part of North Carolina. The
distance from Fayetteviile to Piltsboro'
in Chatham county, is 52 miles; and the
lowest price of hauling is 30 cents per
100 lbs. or one fourth more than the
price from New York to Cincinnati.
From Fayetteviile to Hillshnm.mli ; ia
miles, the price of hauling from 40 to 50
i . j ti . .
etteville to Salisbury, 110 miles, from 50
to 75 cents. All this vast difference of
expense is eltected by the enterprize of
inu puupiu oi uiose great States, New
York and Ohio, whose canals extend 669
mnes along tne route by which their
goods and produce are transported. Our
icant of enterprize leaves Pittsborouah
or iaieign more remote from Fayette
viile, for all commercial purposes than
Cincinnati is irom New York! Do not
our peopie see Dow tar they are falling in
the rear of the spirit of the times? How
completely they arc outdone by their
more enterprising brethren of the north
and west? Will they not put their own
shoulders to the wheel, and redeem them
selves from the disgrace and poverty
which will inevitably follow from their in
brethren of the western part of North
Carolina, to reflect how much their own
united efforts of all those whose
would be promoted by it. Faytt. Obs.
Ohio Canals, The gross amount of
tolls collected on the Ohio Canals durin
the last year, was $125,784889,000 oi
which were received on the Ohio, and
the remainder on the Miami Canal. The
estimated expenses of the Canals hare
been 5,163,725. Ohio paper.
ErThe Pennsylvanian of Tuesday
gives it as the current report in Philadel
phia, that "the French government have
dishonored the bills drawn by the Gov
ernment of the United States, in pursu
ance of the treaty of indemnity for the
claims of our merchants, which grew out
of the spoliations committed under the
authority of the Berlin and Milan decrees.
Virginia Elections. The following ia
a full list of the members elected to the
House of Representatives of the next
Congress, viz: Messrs. Loyall, Mason,
Archer, Gholson, Randolph, Davenport,
Claiborne, Taylor, Chinn, Stevenson,
Gordon, Patton, Mercer, Lucas, Beak,
Moore, Fulton, McComas, Allen, Wilson,
and Wise. Those whose names are ia
italic are new members consisting of
more than one half of the entire delega
tion. The Lexington Union states "that
the changes in the representation of Vir
ginia in the next Congress of the United
States are somewhat remarkable. The
whole of western Virginia has undergone
a total change. Every district west of
the Blue Ridge sends a new member
and men who at no former period have
been in Congress."
From the Richmond Enquirer;
Mr. Adams vs. Mr. Livingston. Some
one has remarked, that of all the senses
in the world common sense is the most
uncommon. Be this true or not, it is cer
tain that Mr. John Q. Adams has less
cents, or about double the price for 1125 comn sense n proportion to his re
miles. From Fayetteviile to Ralei" 55 markabLIe acquirements, than any other
miles from 40 to 50 cents. TnmV.,,, man who has been among us- His pen
runs away with bim. Rhetorician, poet,
dialectician, and ab.ove all controversial-
-1 . .v
ist,ne must hgure before the public and
he must be laughed at. We have noti
ced his first Letter to "Edward Living
ston, Grand High Priest of the General
Grand Royal Arch Chapter of the United
States, anl Secretary of State of the said
States" upon the Morgan subject. But
here we have him again in a second let
ter, perhaps addressed, as the French
man did, "to the silence of M. La Motte."
This second letter concludes in the fol
lowing ludicrous strains:
"In concluding this letter, I am bound to make
my acknowledgments for a poetical parody of its
predecessor, which I have seen in the newspaper
called the Globe, and by which I see you are dis
posed to treat the subiprt with WpIL
sir, so be it. The Globe is generally considered
as your political ors-an. In that rmmtrv which
. o - y
it IS said VOU are ahont tn viI Vnn rarr npf.
V " ' - . , j vM UIU , I
naps, at your hours of leisure and recreation, oc
casionally visit the first dramatic theatre in ite