The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1873-07-22
lack OF Thougiat i'm simple Acts or
Life. - -. -.

Herbert spencer In The Popular Science Monthly
We have but to observe human action as
&c meets us ut every turn to see t!iat the ave-
rage Intelligence, incapable OF guiding con.
duct even In simple matters, where but
very moderate reach OF reason would SUI
flee, must fail In apprehending with due
ciearness the natural sanctions OF ethical
principles. The unthinking inaptitude with
which even the routine of life is carried on
by the Lass Of men shows clearly that they
have nothing like the insight required for
sef.guidance in the absence Of an anthorita-
tive code of conduct. Take days expert
encc. aud observe the lack Of thought indi-
Gated from hour TO hour.
You rise in the morning, and while dress
Ing take phial containing tonic, OF WHICH
q little has been prescribed for you; out
after the first few drops have been counted,
succeeding drops run down tho side OF the
phial-atl because the lip is shaped without
regard to the requirement.. Vet millions of
such phials are annually made by glass
makers, and sent out by thousands Of drug
sists, so small being the amount Of sense
brought to bear on business. Now, turning
to the looking-glass, you find that, il not of
The best make, 1t fails to preserve the atti.
tude 10 which you putt ; Or, il what Is called
y i" box" lookiDg-glass, you see that
the maintenance Of its position Is In
sured by an expensive appliance That
would have been superfiuous had lit
tie reason been used. Were the adj
iustmeut such that the centre Of gravity of
the glass came In the line joining the points
of support (which would be quite as easy
an adjustment) the glass would remain
steady in whatever attitude You gave II.
Yet. year after year, tens of thousands Of
luoking-glasses are made without regard to
SO simple need. Presently you 20 down
to breakfast, and taking some Harvey or
other sauce with your fish, find the bottle
has defect like that which you found in
the phial; it is sticky from the drops which
tiickle down, and occasionally stain the ia
ble-cloth. Here are other groups of traders
similarly so economical Of thought that they
do nothing TO rcctify this Inconvenience.
Having breakfasted, you take up the pa
per, and, before sitting down, wish to put
some coal on the fire. But the lump you
seize With tie tungs slips out Of them, and
il large you make several attempts before
you succeed i'm lifting it-all because the
euds OF the tongs are smooth. Makers and
vendors of fire-irons so on, generation alter
generation, without meeting this evil by the
StlDplc lCicuy VA SNib5 to 'uooS SAAAooeA SaNse
some projecting points, or even roughenng
them by few burrs with chisel. Having
at length grasped the lump and put it on
the fire. you begin to read; but before you
have got through the first column, you are
i,minded by the changes of position which
your sensations prompt, that men Sill fail to
make easy-clairS. And yet the guiding prin-
ciple is simple enough. Just that advantage
secured By using soft seat in place of hard
oue-the advantage, namely, Of spreading
over large area the pressure of the weight
TO be borne, and so making the pressure less
intense at any one points an advantage to
be Sought in the form Of the chair. Ease is
to be gained by making the shapes and rela.
tive inclination Of seat aud back such as Will
evenly distribute the weight of the trunk
and limbs over the widest possible support
inS surface, and with the least strainipg OF
toe parts out of their natural attitudes. And
yet only now, after these thousands OF years
of civilization, are there being reached (and
that not nationally but empircally) approx
Emtions to the structure required.