"Aw, weel, noo," said Jock, "dinna fash yersel', mon! Ye may talk aboot yer pheelantropy an' yer wantin' ta help yer fella creeters, but you maun ken that you canna be doin' it unless ye fir-rst get the baubees. When ye took o'er tha beesiness, ye planned tae sell thirty thousand dollars worth o' goods the fir-rst year, and on that sales quota ye planned expenses to be twenty per cent." I nodded agreement. "By tha end o' November," he continued, "or, in other wor-rds, at the end o' the half year, ye were $1,128.00 behind your quota." "Yes," I said, "but we have caught that up." "Ye've done gr-rand," said Jock. "Noo frae June o' last year to the end o' February ye hae doone $22,640.00, or $140.00 above your quota. This means that tha third quarter o' your fiscal year showed an excess over its quota o' $1,268.00, which, if ye had keppit oop tha same pace through aw' tha year, would have meant an excess above your quota o' $5,072.00." "Wait a minute, Jock," I interrupted, "you're making my head go round with all those figures." And I took out my pencil and worked the figures. "Sither," continued Jock, "ye planned your expenses to be twenty per cent. on a $30,000.00 business, but, as a matter o' fact, it's costing ye twenty-two and one-half per cent. on that basis." "Let me see," I said, figuring vigorously, "Twenty per cent. of $30,000.00--that's $6,000.00." "That is so!" said Jock. "But you figure that, at the present rate, expenses will approximate twenty-two and one-half per cent. of $30,000.00--or $6,750.00." "Ye spoke tha truth," said Jock. "In other words, ye're losing $750.00 worth of profit which ye would a' had if ye'd conducted your beesiness better." "I guess I've--" "Tut, tut, mon," said Jock. "I'm no' saying ye haven't done grand. Ye've done splendidly, but ye should be able tae keppit your expenses doon tae twenty per cent. As a matter o' fact, when ye do more business I think ye'll be able to do so." "Where has that two and one-half per cent. extra expense gone to?" I asked. "I'll tell ye," said Jock. "Ye planned bad debts tae be one-half o' one per cent., or $150.00, whereas they are aboot one per cent. or $300.00." "Yes," I remarked ruefully, "I remember that we made a lot of bad debts when we first took over the business; but, since I have put in that new system of keeping closer track of charge accounts, we have had very little loss that way. We will be down to our one-half of one per cent. next year," I added cheerfully. "Maybe ye will," said Jock, "and then again, maybe ye won't. Ye will, if ye can keep your feet on the ground, and that seems deeficult for ye to do all the time, does'na it?