Evening star., 1932-03-28
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL.

! To srasp In some degree, at least, the
| fun significance of this element of
wonder He can, that is, If he does not
| hold a prior mental idea that to attempt
| TO study about himself is wrong. that
| II makes a man a hypoChondriac and
yslitudinarian. Such words! But the
| effect they have had upon the lay mind
| has not been less amazing than their
length. One does not make himself
the former by reading a wise book, now
| and then. on how 10 manage the phys
/ ical and mental economy, nor does he
/ turn himself into a full-fiedged invalid
/ because he is able to recognize the first
SYMPTOMS OF some inimical bodily state.
X X
Another typical American obSesSion Is
| that one must live as the majority of
/ the people he knows live. 1t is Ques-
/ ton whether a majority was ever right
about anything in the realm OF personal
/ life But placing this entirely aside, 1t
would seem TO be true that no majority,
! however right, need be as correct i'll
principle for any one human being.
! Because 80 per cent OF the people one
/ knows 20 to the movies" does not
mean that the pictures are necessary
| to your life'S happiness. If an ordered,
sane life for you means leaving the
/ popular motion pictures out OF 1t, why,
/ then. for heavens sake be brave enough
| to leave them out and blandly ignore
| the curious conformerS who. with
arched eyebrows, inquire: why you
don't go to the movies, what do you
/ do. then, for entertainment" Enter
/ tainment for them, evidently, means
the motion pictures. and that Is their
privilege. But If you prefer good
book, in the name Of the pioneers Of
America stick up for your selection,
and have the commonplace nerve to
do as you please!
This is but one small instance Of
the difficulty an honest person may
have in q republic in living his own
life to please himself. so long as he
does no injury to another. Offhand it
would seem to be the easiest thing in
the world to do just that, to live ones
own life according to ones own
standards, but there is no task more
dlfhcult, especially If one Is Of senSi-
tive temperament which is impressed
by gibeS and the lack OF understanding
which they display.
What, you don't play bridge?"
Some people regard the non- bridge
player as strictly personal affront to
themselves. evidently. If the beleag-
uereo man were to turn on them and
say. mo, don't play bridge, and what
the -- Of it?" they would regard
themselves as grossly insulted, as no
doubt they would be- especially If
women, but it would serve them right
at that.
Another American obsession is that
which would require a human being to
display no interest in morals as an abb
Stract proposition. All that must be
| left TO the preacher on Sunday. One
may go then and listen respectfully, but
| must not discuss the sermon afterWard
/ on pain OF being an old-faShioned per-
son. Yet it is difficult to understand
how there can be any real civilization
without some regard to the question Of
morals in the abstract and a decent
! human desire to talk over mooted moral
issues with ones fellow human beings
| Failure to be interested in the right
! and wrong Of issues has led to civiliza-
| ton dangerously nearing the jungle
point again.
The living of a human life is not a
| one-Slded but many-sided proposition.
| in which all the recourses We have
must be brought into play. Probably
, few would be willing TO dispute this
/ proposition, but nevertheless there will
/ be found thousands of persons, espe-
/ cially in our modern cities, who seem to
/ live on an exactly opposite theory that
the only place they need to use their
brains is in earning their daily living
/ But there are many other human rela-
tionships which take even more solid
| thinking to make them a success. The
| spectacle of men of great wealth shoot
| ing themselves proves that money won't
make you happy. but it proves some
thing else as well, and that Is that a
human being has great deal more to
master in this life than his little line
of business,