One of the many myths surrounding Foster suggests that he had no head for business and it was because of his own ineptitude that he suffered financially.  Among the treasures in the Center for American Music's Foster Hall Collection is Stephen Foster's account book, a page of which is shown here.  Not only did Foster keep meticulous records of his personal debts, but he also kept careful track of all of his song income, by title, and what he projected his future income on each song might be.