There is many a wife, in your situation, who could not have been happy unless their husband would build them a handsome house and fill it with handsome furniture--even if he had to go in debt for his land to pay for it." Mary Erskine did not reply, though it gratified her very much to hear her husband commend her.
"Well," said she at length, "I am very glad that you have got good credit.

What should you do with the money, if you borrowed it ?" "Why, one thing that I could do," said Albert, "would be to build a new house." "No," said Mary Erskine, "I like this house very much.

I don't want any other--certainly not until we can build one with our own money." "Then," said Albert, "I can buy more stock, and perhaps hire some help, and get more land cleared this fall, so as to have greater crops next spring, and then sell the stock when it has grown and increased, and also the crops, and so get money enough to pay back the debt and have something over." "Should you have much over ?" asked Mary.
"Why that would depend upon how my business turned out,--and that would depend upon the weather, and the markets, and other things which we can not now foresee.

I think it probable that we should have a good deal over." "Well," said Mary Erskine, "then I would take the money." "But, then, on the other hand," said Albert, "I should run some risk of embarrassing myself, if things did not turn out well.

If I were to be sick, so that I could not attend to so much business, or if I should Jose any of my stock, or if the crops should not do well, then I might not get enough to pay back the debt." "And what should you do then ?" asked Mary Erskine.
"Why then," replied Albert, "I should have to make up the deficiency in some other way.