The Young Merchant Author:John Frost Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: MORAL QUALIFICATIONS, MANNERS AND ADDRESS. HOJfESTT. At the head of the moral qualifications of the merchant, every one will concur in placing HoNesty — o... more »ld-fashioned, unflinching, uncompromising honesty; not the half-way honesty which is ready to give into every questionable principle and practice that claims for its justification the supposed custom of trade, which quiets a clamorous conscience by quoting the practice of this or that competitor in the same business; but which sits calmly and impartially in judgment on every proposed measure or practice, and pronounces upon it according to the immutable principles of right and wrong. There never was a truer or a wiser maxim than that "Honesty is the best policy." It is especially so for the merchant, whose character and credit will not bear the least stain, or suspicion of a stain. When, therefore, the young merchant is tempted to do what he knows is not honest and honourable in the strictest sense, by the example of those who may seem even to stand high in the world's estimation, let him remember that the pecuniary loss which he may sustain by preserving his integrity, will be amplycompensated not only by the preservation of his own self-respect, but by the acquisition of a high character among mercantile men, which is the best and most important element of credit, and which can only result from a uniform observance of the strictest laws of integrity. We shall return to this subject under the head of "The Merchant's Duties." CANDOUR. Akin to honesty is candour. It is to this quality, people refer when they speak of an individual as a fair man. They mean by this, a man who is above petty tricks and artifices; who, without unnecessarily divulging matters of private concern, or violating confidence reposed in him, i...« less