The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-08-11
Happiness Real
 Business Asset

leaned back in his chair. T tell
 you" she contended, there's no such thing as real happiness. It's all propaganda"
 ''We know it's raining" returned the Business Woman, with q trace of irrl- tation in her voice, but it
 eNow, don't begin with 1t isn't rain ing raindrops; it's raining daffodiis, snapped the Crouch. ''Tm sick and tired so-called optimists try to make me believe somethin gthat isn't so. When the greatest optimist and highest sal aried man in the country announces that we are prosperous, does 1t send the hundreds of thousands of people out of jobs scurrying to the bank to de- posit money? When you get caught in the rain and are laid up with rheu- matism, can the widest stretch of imagination on. your part make you be- lieve that racking pain was caused by the pelting of yellow daffodils? l ask you, can it?
 The Jurist shook his head. "No," he answered, "but can hear the pain with more fortitude knowing that the rain is doing good somewhere. If we didn't have 1t, we'd have no crops. If we didn't have crops, we'd starve to death. The trouble with you is that you consider most of the real blessings of having the wider vision of the bene- fits conferred on mankind at large. There's good in everybody and every thing.
 The Crouch made an impatient ges- ture, eNobody's really happy. Every things make-believe. Even plain statement of fact now must be made under cover of cheerful camouflage." He turned to the Business Woman, What is happiness, anyway?" he ask ed.
 "It's just states of mind," she an- swered. Making fairy stories come true. That's all. When your mother were a child, you lived in the make believe world and were happy, and when she finished you always asked for more. Didn't you?"
 "Yes," asented the Crouch, "but that was childhood"
 ''The main thing, is that you were happy. You knew the stories were not true, and yet you clamored for more. Why not put those stories in terms of real life. Why not, for instance, imag- inc that harsh landlord is going to disposses a poor widow, and that you are the Kind Prince who arrives on the spot in time to pay the rent, fill the lander and receive the bless ing of the poor woman or, that a lit tie boy. has beeu run over and surgical attention. Imagine you're King of Make-Believe Land and sent him to the hospital to grow new leg. Don't you think such thing might bring as much happiness as the fairy stories of your childhood? The Ter rible Ogre still exists in many forms. The Poor we always have with us, and the Kind Prince is kept busy keeping She leaned forward and looked at him teasingly.
 ''Who told you?" he demanded, his face flushing. q never told any one"
 The Jurist laughed. T told, he acknowledged. 'tOld Mrs. Bender was shouting from the housetop what you had done for her and Jimmie Baxter.
 The Crouch looked pleased, but con tended weakly. "I didn't do anything. It just came my way. I did it from selfish motives. I didn't want to see some one else in that house. And as to Jimmie Baxter, he's been serving me with papers for several years, and wanted him back on the job. That was all, hate to be made uncOmfort- able"
 Then he added defiantly, q still con tend that if there were no unhappiness the world would stand still. It's the discontented, the dissatisfied people, who, striving to better their condition, turn the wheels of progress. But for them these United States would still be a British colony"
 If we were, all discontented and dis satisfied" returned the Jurist, "we'd soon be shut off to ours& Ives. Nobody loves grumbler or complainer. once knew an old lady whose greatest joy in life was in conjuring up the dreadful things that might happen in the future, The more distressing the calamities she pictured, the happier she was"
 The Business Woman turned to the Crouch. T think" she said, ''you underestimate the tremendous force that happiness is in the world-not only socially, but in business. Employ CTS are fast recognizing it as a com modity with a money value, and in some organizations special employees are set apart for the purpose of pro- noting happiness. In those offices the atmosphere is such that the grouehiest customer leaves with a smile on his lips. a'
 well all of US owe something to our fellow men," threw in the Jurist, land the best way to pay the debt is to make the world little happier for our pass ing through. A cheerful word, kind ly deed are like stone thrown in the ocean. It makes very small splash, but its effect is felt to the furthermost shores"
 "Very fine" grunted the Crouch, "but I still contend that if it were not for the diseontented and iissatis- fled the world would stand still"