Evening star., 1934-04-08


States Circuit Court of Appeals and Repre-
sentative Mary T. Norton of New Jersey. Mrs
Shouse in her foreword says that the
economic significance Of such picture as is
contained in these pages is that, by locking
ahead time taken for special post graduate
courses can often be shortened by pre-voca-
tional (and frequently these are purely
.culturalO courses taken undergraduate.
1t also helps the round peg avoid the
square hole -
TREATIESE ON RIGHT AND WRONG. BY
H. L. Mencken. New York: Alfred A.
Knopf.
CINCE Mr.. Mencken unbuTdened himself of
, responsibility for the American Mercury he
has presumably had more time for reflection
on general ethical questions, instead of spe-
cifically current ones. His book is in the genre
Of Walter Lippmann's Preface to Morals and
John Cowper Powys' Meaning of Culture"
No one familiar with Mr.. Menckens other
work would for a moment think that he has
written text book of morals or even con-
ventional history Of ethics. He has, to be sure,
reviewed the ethical ideas of humanity from
the dawn of such ideas. in order to discuss them
critically and to analyze their adaptability to
the needs of the periods which saw their
origin. He believes that the scientific ap-
proach to ethics Is possible and that there is
no necessary connection between religion and
ethics but all the same they have been associ-
turies."
Mr. Mencken investigates the nature and
origin of morality and finds three possible sane
characterization, reason, instinct. The Jewish
and Greek systems used for illustration of
moral codes representing considerable advance
ment beyond the moral ideas of primitive peo-
pies. The Christian morality with its develop
ment through the centuries and in our
time, is given much attention. One section
discusses the relation of ethics to psychiatry,
rather old problem. though the term pSy-
chiatry is modern, for the insane were formerly
treated like criminals, guilty of unethical
ton. Mr.. Mencken admits the difficulty OF
determining just when psychiatry should rescue
the perpetrator of criminal act from prison
and consign him to hospital. Common sense
often revolts against the invalid theory for
those who practice crime as trade" so
ciety. indeed, is still too insecure for any one
to view crime really dispassionately." In the
final chapter are discussed some of the ethical
innovations proposed during the present CEN
tury such as those of the Russian bolshevsts
Bertrand Russell Havelock Ellis and Sigmund
Freud. Mr. Mencken concludes his balanced
examination of moral ideas with the statement:
Most of our worst vexations are not in the
field Of morals. properly called, but in that
of law hence, we may add, of government
He would probably admit. however, that bet
ter morals would be likely to make better
laws, unless he would ask, What is 'better?'"
There is an excellent annotated photography
THE ECONOMY OF ABUNDANCE. BY Stuart
Chase. New York: The Macmillan Co.
1.-THE Economy of Abundance is self defined
1t means an economic condition where an
abundance Of material goods can be produced
for the entire population of a given COM
munity." This is the new economy which Mr..
Chase hopes to see replacing the economy OF
scarcity. The machine age, he believes, is giving
way to the power age in which "the effort of
the worker ceases to be an index of produc-
tivity. Output becomes increasingly tndepend-
ent of the labor input," and leisure is result
antly more abundant. That the value OF this
leisure depends entirely on what is done with
it is the subject for another book by Mr.. Chase
or some one else. Because of the character
istics of the power age, industrial and agri-
cultural labor will be less and less needed, but
there will be an increasing demand for people
in service occupations doctors, dentists,
nurses, hospital attendants, teachers, research
workers, technicans, librarians, artists, authors,
public administrators. and SO on" The con-
sumner point of view is to be substituted for the
producer point of view and the standard OF
serviceability for that of vendbility. "The
power age can get along with very few workers,
but it cannot reach first base without con-
sumers"
If we ask how this change is to be brought
about Mr.. Chase replies that it is already on
the way and is moving with considerable mo-
mentum. Citizens already receive a surprising
amount of goods and services simply by virtue
of membership in the community" Among them
are public schools, libraries, museums, parks,
Fairgrounds churches, ZOOS, public health
service, municipal water, roads, police and fire
protection. (Of course few taxes are required.
Some pay them, but some do not. The tax
question is still to be worked out under the
economy of abundance.) "Thus considerable