What do you think?
Rate this book
Thrift - Samuel Smiles
his book is intended as a sequel to "Self-Help," and "Character." It might, indeed, have appeared as an introduction to these volumes; for Thrift is the basis of Self-Help, and the foundation of much that is excellent in Character.
The author has already referred to the Use and Abuse of Money; but the lesson is worthy of being repeated and enforced. As he has already observed,--Some of the finest qualities of human nature are intimately related to the right use of money; such as generosity, honesty, justice, and self-denial; as well as the practical virtues of economy and providence. On the other hand, there are their counterparts of avarice, fraud, injustice, and selfishness, as displayed by the inordinate lovers of gain; and the vices of thoughtlessness, extravagance, and improvidence, on the part of those who misuse and abuse the means entrusted to them.
Sir Henry Taylor has observed that "industry must take an interest in its own fruits, and God has appointed that the mass of mankind shall be moved by this interest, and have their daily labour sweetened by it." The earnings and savings of industry should be intelligent for a purpose beyond mere earnings and savings. We do not work and strive for ourselves alone, but for the benefit of those who dependent upon us. Industry must know how to earn, how to spend, and how to save. The man who knows, like St. Paul, how to spare and how to abound, has a great knowledge.
Every man is bound to do what he can to elevate his social state, and to secure his independence. For this purpose he must spare from his means in order to be independent in his condition. Industry enables men to earn their living; it should also enable them to learn to live. Independence can only be established by the exercise of forethought, prudence, frugality, and self-denial. To be just as well as generous, men must deny themselves. The essence of generosity is self-sacrifice.
The object of this book is to induce men to employ their means for worthy purposes, and not to waste them upon selfish indulgences. Many enemies have to be encountered in accomplishing this object. There are idleness, thoughtlessness, vanity, vice, intemperance. The last is the worst enemy of all. Numerous cases are cited in the course of the following book, which show that one of the best methods of abating the Curse of Drink, is to induce old and young to practise the virtue of Thrift.
Download Thrift Now!
The author has already referred to the Use and Abuse of Money; but the lesson is worthy of being repeated and enforced. As he has already observed,--Some of the finest qualities of human nature are intimately related to the right use of money; such as generosity, honesty, justice, and self-denial; as well as the practical virtues of economy and providence. On the other hand, there are their counterparts of avarice, fraud, injustice, and selfishness, as displayed by the inordinate lovers of gain; and the vices of thoughtlessness, extravagance, and improvidence, on the part of those who misuse and abuse the means entrusted to them.
Sir Henry Taylor has observed that "industry must take an interest in its own fruits, and God has appointed that the mass of mankind shall be moved by this interest, and have their daily labour sweetened by it." The earnings and savings of industry should be intelligent for a purpose beyond mere earnings and savings. We do not work and strive for ourselves alone, but for the benefit of those who dependent upon us. Industry must know how to earn, how to spend, and how to save. The man who knows, like St. Paul, how to spare and how to abound, has a great knowledge.
Every man is bound to do what he can to elevate his social state, and to secure his independence. For this purpose he must spare from his means in order to be independent in his condition. Industry enables men to earn their living; it should also enable them to learn to live. Independence can only be established by the exercise of forethought, prudence, frugality, and self-denial. To be just as well as generous, men must deny themselves. The essence of generosity is self-sacrifice.
The object of this book is to induce men to employ their means for worthy purposes, and not to waste them upon selfish indulgences. Many enemies have to be encountered in accomplishing this object. There are idleness, thoughtlessness, vanity, vice, intemperance. The last is the worst enemy of all. Numerous cases are cited in the course of the following book, which show that one of the best methods of abating the Curse of Drink, is to induce old and young to practise the virtue of Thrift.
Download Thrift Now!
- GenresFinanceNonfiction
294 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1878
30 people are currently reading
164 people want to read
About the author
Samuel Smiles
865 books58 followersSamuel Smiles (23 December 1812 – 16 April 1904), was a Scottish author and government reformer, who campaigned on a Chartist platform. But he concluded that more progress would come from new attitudes than from new laws. His masterpiece, Self-Help (1859), promoted thrift and claimed that poverty was caused largely by irresponsible habits, while also attacking materialism and laissez-faire government. It has been called "the bible of mid-Victorian liberalism", and it raised Smiles to celebrity status almost overnight.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
July 21, 2025
Thriftiness (managing resources wisely) never goes out of style. Thrift is not just about saving money, but about gaining independence and being prepared for life’s uncertainties. I appreciated the connection of thrift to personal responsibility and long-term well-being.
June 29, 2017
This is the second time I read this book and again I enjoyed reading it. I took many notes from this book. I'll give some of the passages that I found very interesting ( I have many more):
"He that would thrive must first ask his wife"
"It is said, that "When poverty comes in at the door, loves flies out at the window"
"Man's life revolves round woman. She is the sun of his social system. She is the queen of domestic life. The comfort of every home mainly depends upon her,—upon her character, her temper, her power of organization, and her business management. A man may be economical; but unless there be economy at home, his frugality will be comparatively useless. "A man cannot thrive," the proverb says, "unless his wife let him."
"Society at present suffers far more from waste of money than from want of money"
"What a serious responsibility does the man incur who marries! Not many seriously think, of this responsibility"
"The man who improves himself, improves the world"
"Social advancement is the consequence of individual advancement. The whole cannot be pure, unless the individuals composing it are pure. Society at large is but the reflex of individual conditions"
"We often hear the cry raised, "Will nobody help us?" It is a spiritless, hopeless cry. It is sometimes a cry of revolting meanness, especially when it issues from those who with a little self-denial, sobriety, and thrift, might easily help themselves. Many people have yet to learn, that virtue, knowledge, freedom, and prosperity must spring from themselves"
"The northern nations of Europe owe a portion of their prosperity to the rigour of their climate. Cold makes them save during summer, to provide food, coal, and clothing during winter. It encourages house-building and housekeeping. Hence Germany is more industrious than Sicily; Holland and Belgium than Andalusia; North America and Canada than Mexico"
"slavery also existed in the family. The wife was the slave of her husband as much as the slave whom he bought in the public market."
"Give the people knowledge,—give them better education,—and thus, crime will be abated,—drunkenness, improvidence, lawlessness, and all the powers of evil, will, to a certain extent, disappear"
"Complaints about the inequality of conditions are as old as the world. In the "Economy" of Xenophon, Socrates asks, "How is it that some men live in abundance, and have something to spare, whilst others can scarcely obtain the necessaries of life, and at the same time run into debt?" "The reason is," replied Isomachus, "because the former occupy themselves with their business, whilst the latter neglect it."
"All life is a struggle. Amongst workmen, competition is a struggle to advance towards higher wages. Amongst masters, to make the highest profits. Amongst writers, preachers, and politicians, it is a straggle to succeed,—to gain glory, reputation, or income"
"It matters not at what class you begin, or however low in the social scale, you will find that every man has somebody beneath him"
"Give a man money without working for it, and he will soon claim it as a right"
"he soon enough finds out that the clever hands of a woman are worth far more than her bright glances"
"The most worthless unit in a family is an ill-managing wife, or an indolent woman of any sort"
"The world need not be "a vale of tears," unless we ourselves will it to be so"
"The husband who has been working all day, expects to have something as a compensation for his toil. The least that his wife can do for him, is to make his house snug, clean, and tidy, against his home-coming at eve"
"Comfort, it must be admitted, is in a great measure relative. What is comfort to one man, would be misery to another"
"The Art of Living may be displayed in many ways. It may be summed up in the words,—Make the best of everything"
"He that would thrive must first ask his wife"
"It is said, that "When poverty comes in at the door, loves flies out at the window"
"Man's life revolves round woman. She is the sun of his social system. She is the queen of domestic life. The comfort of every home mainly depends upon her,—upon her character, her temper, her power of organization, and her business management. A man may be economical; but unless there be economy at home, his frugality will be comparatively useless. "A man cannot thrive," the proverb says, "unless his wife let him."
"Society at present suffers far more from waste of money than from want of money"
"What a serious responsibility does the man incur who marries! Not many seriously think, of this responsibility"
"The man who improves himself, improves the world"
"Social advancement is the consequence of individual advancement. The whole cannot be pure, unless the individuals composing it are pure. Society at large is but the reflex of individual conditions"
"We often hear the cry raised, "Will nobody help us?" It is a spiritless, hopeless cry. It is sometimes a cry of revolting meanness, especially when it issues from those who with a little self-denial, sobriety, and thrift, might easily help themselves. Many people have yet to learn, that virtue, knowledge, freedom, and prosperity must spring from themselves"
"The northern nations of Europe owe a portion of their prosperity to the rigour of their climate. Cold makes them save during summer, to provide food, coal, and clothing during winter. It encourages house-building and housekeeping. Hence Germany is more industrious than Sicily; Holland and Belgium than Andalusia; North America and Canada than Mexico"
"slavery also existed in the family. The wife was the slave of her husband as much as the slave whom he bought in the public market."
"Give the people knowledge,—give them better education,—and thus, crime will be abated,—drunkenness, improvidence, lawlessness, and all the powers of evil, will, to a certain extent, disappear"
"Complaints about the inequality of conditions are as old as the world. In the "Economy" of Xenophon, Socrates asks, "How is it that some men live in abundance, and have something to spare, whilst others can scarcely obtain the necessaries of life, and at the same time run into debt?" "The reason is," replied Isomachus, "because the former occupy themselves with their business, whilst the latter neglect it."
"All life is a struggle. Amongst workmen, competition is a struggle to advance towards higher wages. Amongst masters, to make the highest profits. Amongst writers, preachers, and politicians, it is a straggle to succeed,—to gain glory, reputation, or income"
"It matters not at what class you begin, or however low in the social scale, you will find that every man has somebody beneath him"
"Give a man money without working for it, and he will soon claim it as a right"
"he soon enough finds out that the clever hands of a woman are worth far more than her bright glances"
"The most worthless unit in a family is an ill-managing wife, or an indolent woman of any sort"
"The world need not be "a vale of tears," unless we ourselves will it to be so"
"The husband who has been working all day, expects to have something as a compensation for his toil. The least that his wife can do for him, is to make his house snug, clean, and tidy, against his home-coming at eve"
"Comfort, it must be admitted, is in a great measure relative. What is comfort to one man, would be misery to another"
"The Art of Living may be displayed in many ways. It may be summed up in the words,—Make the best of everything"
December 9, 2019
Confidently saunters along that finest of lines where profundity meets accessibility.
S. Smiles might just have been the best non-fiction writer to have ever lived.
Always a pleasure. 5 stars.
S. Smiles might just have been the best non-fiction writer to have ever lived.
Always a pleasure. 5 stars.
June 27, 2022
Would have been so much better if it wasn’t so repetitive. Not the best example of this type of work if you are interested in this subject from this era. But if you want to get into character for a lower class servant role in an upcoming play you are acting in this will help you to prepare your glazed look for your scenes with the philanthropist philosopher who visits your boss and rambles on for hours on end.
January 11, 2014
Masterpiece !
July 27, 2015
good but dated. good history
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews