the business transacted even in one day, nor would there be time or facilities to effect the exchanges that even the banks require if suddenly all credit were removed from affairs.
So potent is credit that even the touch of the hem of its garment has been known to save a man from financial ruin.
With reference to the power that the Rothchilds are said to have wielded in the realm of credit, the story is told of a man whose business was once on the very verge of ruin but who was convinced that he could easily weather the crisis in his affairs if a little restraint could be put upon his creditors. This man appealed to one of the great Rothchilds (who knew him but slightly but believed his story) for a loan, an indorsement, or a mere word that might pilot him through the dangerous straits. The great financier said to him:
“My friend, I have an errand down the street. Just take my arm and walk with me.”
And so as seemingly intimate business friends they passed among brokers of Paris. It was enough. The man’s creditors stayed their claims, the crisis was passed, and his business was saved. It was thought that did the work, the greatest power in the world.
THE TRUE TRUST AND THE FALSE
To know when to have confidence, where to place
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