IV. H. C. King, Rational Living, pp. 93-102. W. dew. Hyde, The
Five Great Philosophies of Life, chaps, I-IV. H. Bashdall, Theory of
Good and Evil, book II, chap. III.
CHAPTER XI
THE SOLUTION OP SOCIAL PROBLEMS
DUTY, like charity, begins at home; and we need to take the motes out
of our own eyes before we can see clearly how to help our fellows.
To keep physically well, pure, and prudent, following worthy purposes
and smothering unruly desires, is our first business; and there would
be much less to do for one another if every one did his duty by himself.
But even with our best endeavors we need a helping hand now and then,
and, indeed, are continuously dependent upon the work and kindness
of others for all that makes life tolerable, or even possible. And
the other side to this truth is that we are never free from the
obligation of doing our duty squarely by those whose welfare is in
some degree dependent upon us. No man can, if he would, live to himself
alone; life is necessarily and essentially social. Personal and social
duties are so inextricably interwoven that it is impossible except
by an artificial abstraction to separate them. The cultivation of one's
own health, for example, is a boon to the community; and to care for
the community's health is to safeguard one's own. Every advance in
personal purity, culture, or self-control increases the individual's
value and diminishes his menace to his fellows; while every step in
social amelioration makes life freer and more comfortable for him.
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