DAY-BOOK......A. Concord, N. H. Jan. 1, 1826. Inventory of all my property and debts, taken this day by me, Charles Hastings, of Concord. At the commencement of every year, if no oftener, the trader, farmer or mechanick should make an inventory of his property, either in the general form above, or by entering the articles individually; also of his debts, securities, &c. ; in order that he may know the exact state of his af fairs. Entered. 3 To 3 yds. broadcloth, at $3.50 per yd. $10.50 at •60 4.20 1470 Feb. 28. When an article is posted from the Day-Book into the Leger, it will be proper, opposite the article, to note the same in the margin of the DayBook, by writing the word Entered, or making two parallel strokes with the pen; to which should be added the figure denoting the page in the Leger, where the account is. Jan. 1. To balance of former accounts, Dr. 1826. cts. 1826. 12500| March 3. By his note of this date, payable in 30 days, for balance of his account, account, Isaac F. & W. Williams, Concord, N. H. $cts. 1826. $cts Feb. 28. To cash paid their order, 7500 Jan. 1. By balance of former account, 75,00 * In posting articles into the Leger, some accountants write every article, also the quantity and price of each, instead of the term, sundries; but this is not usual. Cr. $cts.|| 1826. $cts. 1470 || Feb. 28. By cash in full, 1470 $cts. 1826. 14. By March 10. To cash paid his order this day, 175 |March 14. By his bill, $cts. 12/791 Cr. | $cts. 1175 The Leger may be ruled with Dr. and Cr. both on one page, as in the preceding form, or with Dr. on the left hand, and Cr. on the right hand pages, as may be most convenient. hand pages must be numbered alike. In the latter case, however, the left hand and right It is the practice of some accountants in single entry, to have a column ruled on the page of the Leger, for the purpose of marking against each entry the page of the Day-Book whereon it is originally made. But this, in common business, is wholly unnecessary-the date, in most cases, being a sufficient guide to any entries in the Day-Book. When all the transactions are correctly posted into the Leger, each account is balanced by subtracting the amount of the less side from the amount of the greater, and entering the remainder or balance on the less side, by which the two sides are made equal. When the place assigned in the Leger for any person's account is filled with items, the person's name must not be entered the second time, but may be transferred to another page in the following manner, viz. Add up the columns on both sides, and against the sum write," Amount transferred to page -" inserting the number of the page where the new account is opened. After titling the new acCount and entering the number of the page in the index, write on the Dr. side of the new account, "To amount brought from page 99 inserting the number of the page from which the old account was brought, and on the Cr. side," By amount brought from page —," inserting also the page where the old account was; and place the sums in the proper columns. When the first Leger is filled up, a new one may be opened as follows, viz. At the end of the preceding Leger, draw out a balance account, entering the debits and credits on their respective Dr. and Cr. side, and transfer each unbalanced account to its respective Dr. or Cr. side to the new Leger. The first Leger may be marked A, the second B, and so on in alphabetical order. To find the profit and loss, for any given time, an inventory of the property and debts must be taken, and the net amount of which, when compared with the net amount of property at commencing business, will show the profit and loss. In Book-Keeping by Double Entry, a variety of books are made use of, some of which, though not absolutely necessary to the mechanick or farmer, would be convenient and useful to him on many accounts. 1. The Cash Book.-This should be made of a sufficient quantity of paper ruled in the form of a leger, with columns on each page for entries of cash received and cash paid. The practice of entering sums as received, and all sums as paid out, may serve on some occasions to correct misunderstandings on settlement of accounts, besides the opportunity it affords of ascertaining at any time the state of a man's money concerns. 2. Account of Expenses.-This may be kept in a separate book, ruled like a Day-Book, or it may be entered as an account in the LegThe prudent farmer or mechanick will ever feel anxious to know the amount of his contingent expenses, the better to ascertain the exact state of his income. er. 3. Letter Book.-As bad consequences frequently result from a neglect to preserve copies of letters sent on business, a book should be kept for the purpose of entering and preserving a copy of every letter or memorandum concerning business which is sent away by an individual. |