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Credit is a commodity. Credit is purchased through ,~- the prompt retirement of all obligations not later than the dates upon which they become due, through the legiti- mate acceptance of the terms of discounts, and through the refusal to at any time make unjust complaints or arbi- trary deductions in making settlements. Perhaps a good many of the smaller business men have never considered credit in this light, assuming that since they are “good” for their bills, there is no need for punctuality in meeting any of their obligations and that their creditors are seeking their business so strenuously that they are able to secure all of the credit which they may wish. In fact, they become so self complacent that the creditor is treated with lordly condescension at settlement time. In the present day, the lax debtor, accustomed as he has been to being offered various inducements and special terms by his creditors’ representatives, is unable to comprehend why his com- petitors should prosper more than he. The competitor has learned to buy credit. Conversely, the lax debtor must be sold credit. The value of credit in present day business is of such tremendous importance, that in practically every case it

is the determining factor in the success or failure of the