hy of any honest
master; he cannot discharge himself as a master; for instead of taking
care of him he indeed casts him off, abandons him, and, to put it into
Scripture words, he leads him into temptation: nay, he goes farther, to
use another Scripture expression: he delivers him over to Satan.

It is confessed--and it is fatal both to masters and servants at this
time--that not only servants are made haughty, and above the government
of their masters, and think it below them to submit to any family
government, or any restraints of their masters, as to their morals and
religion; but masters also seem to have given up all family government,
and all care or concern for the morals and manners, as well as for the
religion of their servants, thinking themselves under no obligation to
meddle with those things, or to think any thing about them, so that
their business be but done, and their shop or warehouse duly looked
after.

But to bring it all home to the point in hand, if it is so with the
master and servant, there is the less room still for the master of such
servants to leave any considerable trust in the hands of such
apprentices, or to expect much from them, to leave the weight of their
affairs with them, and, living at their country lodgings, and taking
their own diversions, depend upon such servants for the success of their
business. This is indeed abandoning their business, throwing it away,
and committing themselves, families, and fortunes, to the conduct of
those, who, they have all the reason in the world to believe, have no
concern upon them for their good, or care one farthing what becomes of
them.

CHAPTER XIII

OF TRADESMEN MAKING COMPOSITION WITH DEBTORS, OR WITH CREDITORS

There is an alternative in the subject of this chapter, which places the
discourse in the two extremes of a tradesman's fortunes.

I. The _fortunate tradesman_, called upon by his poor unfortunate
neighbour, who is his debtor, and is become insolvent, to have
compassion on him, and to compound with him for part of his debt, and
accept his offer in discharge of the whole.

II. The _unfortunate tradesman_ become insolvent and bankrupt himself,
and applying himself to his creditor to accept of a composition, in
discharge of his debt.

I must confess, a tradesman, let his circumstances be what they will,
has the most reason to consider the disasters of the unfortunate, and be
compassionate to them under their pressures and d