The Seven Cures for a Lean Purse

Arkad is called to the king's palace to advise his counselors on wise investing. Babylon has fallen close to financial ruin because a few men have been able to acquire the majority of the wealth. The king desires for all people to have the opportunity to accumulate adequate wealth for themselves. For seven days Arkad speaks to a group of one hundred men and teaches them the seven cures for a lean purse - one lesson per day. The seven cures are as follows:

The first cure requires men to keep back one-tenth of their earnings and learn to live off of the remaining portion. In this way a man is assured of having at least a few coins to save for himself instead of waiting to see what he has leftover after all his debtors are paid. The second cure calls for men to control their expenditures. Not all expenses are necessary and a man must learn to distinguish between those purchases, which are needed, and which are merely desires. In this way a man can reduce his payments and learn to live off of nine-tenths of his earnings. For the third cure men are encouraged to make their gold multiply.