Social sciences; United States -- Politics and government -- 1909-1913
Isolated farms need no complicated
system of sewerage; but this does not mean that public control of
sewerage in a great city should be resisted on the ground that it tends
toward Socialism. Let each proposition be treated on its own merits,
soberly and cautiously, but without any of that rigidity of mind which
fears all reform. If, for instance, the question arises as to the
establishment of day nurseries for the children of mothers who work in
factories, the obvious thing to do is to approach it with an open mind,
listen to the arguments for and against, and, if necessary, try the
experiment in actual practice. If it is alleged that small groups of
farmers have prospered by doing much of their work in common, and by a
kind of mutual insurance and supervision, why of course we should look
into the matter with an open mind, and try to find out, not what we
want the facts to be, but what the facts really are.
We cannot afford to subscribe to the doctrine, equally hard and
foolish, that the welfare of the children in the tenement-house
district is no concern of the community as a whole. If the child of
the thronged city cannot live in decent surroundings, have teaching,
have room to play, have good water and clean air, then not only will
he suffer, but in the next generation the whole community will to a
greater or less degree share his suffering.
In striving to better our industrial life we must ever keep in mind
that, while we cannot afford to neglect its material side, we can even
less afford to disregard its moral and intellectual side. Each of us is
bound to remember that he is in very truth his brother’s keeper, and
that his duty is, with judgment and common sense, to try to help the
brother. To the base and greedy attitude of mind which adopts as its
motto, “What is thine is mine,” we oppose the doctrine of service, the
doctrine that insists that each of us, in no hysterical manner, but
with common sense and good judgment, and without neglect of his or her
own interests, shall yet act on the saying, “What is mine I will in
good measure make thine also.”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account