, 1921-12-13
VERY SADIE TRUE.

oNot tbe tired American business man represented
ms seeking rest in the front row at the musical COM
-, - remarks the Boston Transcript, but rather one
who is described as the thoughtful business man mas
written a letter to the editor of the Manuiacturefs
Record deploring what he regards. as the impoVerisheo
mentality of a pleasure-loving age. 1t is all very sad,
II true, but fortunately it may be shown that TINS
thoughtful business man is needlessly depressed IN
spirit. In his letter complaining OF a heeaiess "oiu
""we are becoming more and more a pleasure-iov-
ing people, hasty in our preparation for thinking,
hasty in our half-baked conclusions, and altogether in
creasingly trivial. 1t has become absolutely bad form
for gentlemen to discuss important things. Golf, base
ball, prize-fghting and social events are the only top
les admitted. 1t is said that we cannot make our peo-
nile give serious attention to public affairs-publc af-
fairs as distinguished from the affairs Of the poll
ticians.'
no time for the consideration Of serious matters in
general, and public questions in particular. Happen
ings in every American city give evidence Of that fact.
Chambers of commerce include in their programmes
gatherings for the discussion of the issues of the day.
Such meetings, whether following %luncheons and din
ners or not, are largely attended and the speakers are
given close attention. II is so In Boston; it is SO else
where. The City club here and similar clubs in other
cities hold meetings of the same kind. The demand
for them is one among other indications of a keen in
terest among business men in public affairs as dis
tinguished from the affairs of the politicians 1t is
true, of course, that there are many men successful
in business who know little outside the range of their
cwn affairs, but it is unfair because of these men
sweepingly to condemn Americans in general.
"In his references to the fondness of mankind for
sport and recreation, the thoughtful business man
has tinged with gloom one of the brighter aspects of
American life. 1t is not to the discredit of Americans
if they have learned not to talk shop after business
hours, and if, in their time devoted to recreation, they
do not interrupt their diversions to mourn over the
troubles of a stricken world. The man who plays
golf in the afternoon and talks about it in the even.
ing does not thereby demonstrate that he knows
nothing about public affairs, or has formed only half.
baked conclusions concerning them. The business
man who can give you offhand the batting record OF
Mr.. Ruth may, and probably does, have a pretty good
idea of what the Washington conference is trying to
do. Even the man who struggles for a seat at the
ringside may read books on economic questions.
And the business men, tired and otherwise, are
only a portion of a great American public which sup.
plies the audiences in hundreds of lecture halls and
at scores of forums In fact, instead of being neg
lected, public questions might be said to be subjects
of too much discussion. Perhaps the thoughtful bust
ness man is himself suffering from an overdose OF
weighty argument. 1t might do him good to play g
little golf and then, to use a ~colloquial expression, to
think again"