Burlington Free Press

From the Boston Trumpet.

Heedlessness in Pecuniary Matters.

Men are too frequently heedless in regard to their promises. You desire one to perform some service for you; it may be labor of some sort, or merely the transaction of certain business to which you cannot conveniently devote your personal attention. He promises very fairly: and on the strength of his promise you neglect to procure other assistance. But he fails to redeem his promise, and you suffer harm, being unable to execute the design without his assistance.

Yet men are too often unconscious of the evil they occasion by such heedlessness. If they promise, with an honest intention to perform, but are prevented by some unforeseen and unavoidable obstruction, they are innocent. But when they promise heedlessly, without any intention to perform, or seeing no prospect to perform, or not caring whether they fulfil their promise or not they manifest a criminal disregard to faithfulness and truth, which is highly unbecoming the character of any one who makes the least pretensions to honesty.

To the same class of offences belongs the neglect to pay just and honest debts— There are those who are always ready to incur debts, but utterly heedless about paying them. Whether they need an article or not, they readily purchase, if they can obtain it on a credit. They are prodigal of promises. They will pay you at any time,—just when it may best accommodate you. But when you have opened your account, you cannot foresee the time when it will be closed. I do not speak of those who are unable to pay; but of those who are able, but so heedless and inconsiderate as either to forget the matter entirely, or to imagine it can make no difference to you whether they pay promptly or not.— They renew their promises often,—and break them as often; and you suffer harm from their heedlessness. And they also will suffer harm, sooner or later. They acquire the name of slack-payers, and find it more difficult to obtain credit than their neighbors, who perhaps have less property, but are more punctual.

As to that class of debtors, who contract debts which they never intend to pay. I only remark; if they contract such debts for absolute necessaries, to preserve the lives of their families, they have an excuse. But they are utterly inexcusable if they purchase what they do not need, unless they intend to pay. and see a reasonable prospect of paying for it.

Are any of us guilty of such criminal heedlessness? Let us remember that it indicates an unpardonable indifference to the feelings of our brethren, and even to their wants and sufferings. For it often occurs that our negligence in the performance of promises, or payment of debts, is a matter of serious inconvenience to them.— They are disappointed; and what is worse, they sometimes suffer loss or even distress through our fault. Knowing these facts, if we persist in such a course, promising what we have no honest intention to perform and contracting debts, and then neglecting to discharge them according to promise. when we might pay them without material inconvenience, we manifest a criminal indifference to the welfare of our brethren. If we will compare the principles on which such conduct is founded, with the requisitions of the gospel, we shall discover a striking inconsistency between them. We shall be satisfied that we are destitute of that spirit of universal and fervent love which the gospel requires. If we have been thus heedless hitherto, let us be so no longer, But let us rather obey the apostolic injunction ;—"Render therefore to all their dues:—owe no man any thing. but to love one another."—Rom. xiii. 7, 8.