The Pleasantville press. (Pleasantville, N.J.) 1912-1929, 1923-05-23


with economic Degeneration. with 90
e.al dis.ntegration. wiz fh@essant D 0
iitiea' d~is.oration. wltl al of It's seefb.
ing and fefment If Individual aEd
class conflict. could but Impress me
with the primary motivation of social
FORCES. and the Necessity for broad
or thought upon their great is.
sues To humanity. And from Il all I
emerge an individuallst-an u~nashamel
!n~aividuallst. But lei me say also
r al am an American individualIst.
For America has been steadily develop
Ing the ideals that constitute progress
sive indiyidualism.
70 doubt, individualism u riot.
with no tempering principle, would pro
vide a long category Of inequalities. Of
tyrannies. Nominations. and lnjustlces.
America. how ever, has tempered the
whole conception Of individualism by
tie injection Of a definite principle.
and from this principle it follows thar
attempts at domination, whether In
government or in the processes Of in
Gustry and commerce, are under an
iLs.stent curb. If we would have the
values Of individualism, their stimula-
ton to initiative, to the development
of hand and intellect, to the high de-
yelopment of thought and spirituality,
they must be tempered with that firm
and fixed ideal of American individu-
alism-an equality Of opportunity. If
we would have these values we must
soften its hardness and stimulate prog.
ress through that sense Of service that
lies IN u people.
Therefore, it is not the ~fndlvidualism
of other countries for which I would
speak, but the i~ndividualIsm Of Amer
lea. Our i-ndiyidualism differs from
all others because il embraces these
great ideals: that while We build our
society upon the attainment Of tie in
dividual. we shat safeguard to every
Individual an equality Of opportunity
to take that position in the commun-
ity TO which his intelligence, character.
ability, and ambition entitle him; that
we keep the social solution free from
frozen strata of classes that we shall
stimulate effort Of each individual to
achievement; that through an enlarg-
ing ems Of responsibility and under
standing we shall assist him to this
attainment; while he In turn must
stand up to the emery wheel of COM
petition.
Indiyidualism cannot be maintained
as the foundation of a society If 1t
looks to only legalistlc justice based
upon contracts, property, and politi-
cal equality. Such legalistic safe
guards are themselves not enough. In
our individualism we have long since
abandoned the laissez faire Of the
Eighteenth century-the notion that 1t
IS every man for himself and the
devi! take the hlndmost." We aban-
doned that when we adopted the ideal
Of equality of opportunity-the fair
chance of Abraham Lincoln. We have
confirmed its abandonment in terms Of
legislation. of social and economic jus
tice-in part because we have learned
that it is the hindmost who throws
the bricks at our social edlice. In part
because we have learned that the fore
most are not always the best nor the
hindmost the worst-and in part be
cause we have learned that social in
Justice is the destruction of justice
itself. We have learned that the I'M
pulse TO production can only be main
tanned at a high pitch if there is a
fair division of the product. We have
also learned that fair division can
only be obtained by certain restric-
tions on the strong and the dominant.
We have indeed gone ever further In
the Twentieth century with the en-
hracement of the necessity Of a greater
and broader sense of service and re-
sponsibility to others as a part of IN
dividuallsm.
Whatever may be the case with re-
gard to Old World individualism land
we have given more back to Europe
than we received from herr the truth
that is important for US to grasp to-
day Is that there is a world of differ
ence between the principles and spirit
of Old World lndivldualism and that
which we have developed in our own
country.
We have, in fact, a special social
system Of our own. We have made it
ourselves from materials brought in
revolt from conditions in Europe. We
have lived ii; We constantly improve
il. we have seldom tried 10 define It.
Il abhors autoeracy and does not argue
with 1t, but fights 1t. It is not capital
ism, or socialism. or syndicalism, nor
a o breed of them. Like most
Americans. I refuse 10 be damned by
anvhody's word-classifcation Of II, such
as capitalism "plutocracy," "prole-
tariat" or "middle-class," or any other,
or 10 any kind of compartment that Is
based on the assumption of some
group dominating somebody else.
The social force in which I am inter-
ested is far higher and far more pre-
cious a thing than all these. 1t springs
from something infinitely more en-
during; II springs from the L source
of human progress-that each individ-
nal shall be given the chance and
stimulation for development of the
best with which he has been endowed
IN heart and mind It is the sole source
Of progress; 1t Is American lndividu-
alism,
The rightfulness of our individual
ism can rest either on philosophic, po-
,itiral. economic. or spiritual grounds.
r. can rest on the ground of being the
nnlr safe avenue TO further human