clothing to the naked, shelter to the homeless, by caring for the sick,
advancing loans to those who are struggling toward self-support, etc.
The rule of charity is based on respect for the personality of others.
We are required to assist those who are too weak to hold their own, with
a view of putting them on their feet again. The aim of all charity
should be to make those who are dependent on it independent of it. From
this point of view all mere almsgiving, all that so-called charity which
only serves to make the dependent classes more dependent, stands
condemned. But the true test of charity, upon which the greatest stress
should be laid, is to be found in the way it reacts upon the charitable
themselves. Right relations, whatever their nature, are always mutually
beneficial. Does the deed of charity react beneficially on the doer? is
the test question to be asked in every instance. Take the case of a
person who gives large sums to the poor in the hope of seeing his name
favorably mentioned in the newspapers. The motive in this case is
vanity, and the effect of this spurious sort of charity is to increase
the vanity of the donor. The reaction upon him, therefore, is morally
harmful. Again, take the case of a person who gives capriciously, at the
bidding of impulse, without considering whether his gifts are likely to
be of lasting benefit to the recipients. He is confirmed in his habit of
yielding to impulse, and the reaction is likewise morally injurious. On
the other hand, the retroactive effects of true charity are most
beneficial. In the first place, a reaction will take place in the
direction of greater simplicity in our own lives. A person can not be
seriously and deeply interested in the condition of the poor, can not
truly realize the hardships which they suffer, without being moved to
cut off superfluous expenditure. Secondly, true charity will teach us to
enter into the problems of others, often so unlike our own; to put
ourselves in their places; to consider how we should act in their
circumstances; to fight their battles for them; and by this means our
moral experience will be enlarged, and from being one, we become, as it
were, many men. True charity will also draw closer the bond of
fellowship between the poor and us, for we shall often discover virtues
in them which we do not possess ourselves; and sometimes, at least, we
shall have occasion to look up with a kind of awe to those whom we are
aiding. In connection with the discussion of charity, let the teacher
relate the biographies of John Howard, Sister Dora, Florence
Nightingale, Elizabeth Fry, and others, who have been distinguished for
their devotion to the suffering.
3. _Cheer up the sad._ Explain that a bright smile may often have the
value of an act of charity. In general, emphasize the duty of
suppressing irritability, ill humor, and moodiness, and of contributing
to the sunshine of our households.[19]
4. _Console the bereaved._ The afflicted are for the moment weak and
dependent; it is the office of loving charity to make them independent.
Here the same train of reasoning is applicable as above in the case of
the poor. It serves no useful purpose merely to sit down by the side of
the sorrowful and to weep with them. They do need sympathy, but they
also need, at least after the first paroxysms of grief have subsided, to
be roused.
The true cure for suffering is action. Those who suffer need to be
nerved to action; they need to be shown, above all, the new duties which
their situation entails. He who can point out to them the way of duty,
and can give them of his own strength to walk in that way, is their best
friend--he is the true consoler.
5. I have yet to speak of mental charity and of moral charity. Mental
charity is practiced by the wise teacher, who puts his pupils on the
road to knowledge, who helps them to discover their true vocation, and
who, when they are involved in doubt and difficulty, succeeds in giving
them the clew by which they can find an exit into mental clearness and
light.
6. Moral charity is practiced by those who bend down to the sinful and
the fallen, and awaken in them a new hope and trust in the good and in
themselves. The charity which effects moral regeneration is perhaps the
highest type of all, and of this I know no more fitting nor more sublime
example than the dealing of Jesus with the outcasts of society.
NOTE.--Without attempting to forestall further philosophical
analysis, we may perhaps assume, as a working hypothesis, as a
provisional principle of deduction in ethics, the principle of
organization. The individual is an organ of humanity. It is his
duty to discharge, as perfectly as possible, his special functions;
hence the need of insisting on respect for individuality
throughout. Even the self-regarding duties would have no meaning
were not the complex whole in view, in the economy of which each
member is required to perform his part. As in every organism, so in
this, each separate organ serves, and is served in turn by all the
others, and can attain its highest development only through this
constant interaction. To complete the thought, it would be
necessary to add that certain organs are more closely connected
than others, and form lesser organisms within and subservient to
the whole. This, however, is merely thrown out as a suggestion
addressed to the student of ethics.
THE DUTY OF GRATITUDE.--Upon this subject much might be said, did not
the fact that the time at our command is nearly exhausted warn us to use
even greater brevity than heretofore in dealing with the topics that
remain. To bring out the right relations between benefactor and
beneficiary, let the teacher put the question, Why is it wrong to cast
up the benefits we have conferred to the one who has received them? And
why, on the other hand, is it so base in the latter to show himself
ungrateful. The reason is to be found in the respect due to the
personality of others, to which we have so often alluded. Kant says that
every human being is to be treated as an end in himself, and not merely
as a means or a tool. In effect, the person who ignores benefits says to
his benefactor: You are my tool. It is unnecessary for me to recognize
your services, because you are not an independent person to be
respected, but a creature to be made use of at pleasure. Ingratitude is
a slur on the moral personality of others. On the other hand, he who
casts up benefits practically says you have forfeited your independence
through the favors you have accepted. I have made your personality
tributary to mine.
An excellent rule is that of Seneca. The benefactor should immediately
forget what he has given; the beneficiary should always remember what he
has received. True gratitude is based on the sense of our moral
fellowship with others. The gifts received and returned are mere tokens
of this noble relationship (as all gifts should be). You have just given
to me. I will presently give to you twice as much again, or half as
much, it matters not which, when occasion arises. We will further each
other's aims as best we can, for the ends of each are sacred to the
other.
DUTIES TO SERVANTS.--Having spoken of the duties which we owe to all
men, I may here refer to certain special duties, such as the duties
toward servants. These may also be introduced in connection with the
duties of the family, after the filial and fraternal duties have been
considered. I have space only to mention the following points:
1. Servants are laborers. The same respect is due to them as to all
other laborers.
2. They are not only laborers, but in a special sense helpers. They are
members of the household in a subordinate capacity, and in many cases
identify themselves closely with the interests of the family. They are,
as it were, lay brothers and lay sisters of the family. From these
considerations may be deduced the duties which we owe toward servants.
DUTIES WITH REGARD TO ANIMALS.--I can not admit that we have duties
toward animals. We can not very well speak of duties toward creatures on
which we in part subsist; but there are duties with respect to animals.
Man is a rational being, and as such takes a natural delight in that
orderly arrangement and interdependence of parts which are the visible
counterpart of the rational principle in his own nature. We ought not to
step on or heedlessly crush under our feet even a single flower. Much
less should we ruthlessly destroy the more perfect organism which we see
in animals. Add to this that animals are sentient creatures, and that
the useless infliction of pain tends to develop cruelty in us. As a
practical means of fostering kindness toward animals, I suggest the
following: Get your pupils interested in the habits of animals.
Familiarity in this case will breed sympathy. Speak of the building
instincts of bees; of the curious structures raised by those wonderful
engineers, the beavers. Give prominence to the love for their young by
which the brute creation is brought into closer connection with the
human family. Mention especially the fidelity which some animals show
toward man (the saving of human lives by St. Bernard dogs, etc.), and
the uses which we derive from the various members of the animal
creation. As to the fact that we use animals for our sustenance, the
highest point of view to take, I think, is this, that man is, so to
speak, the crucible in which all the utilities of nature are refined to
higher spiritual uses. Man puts the whole of nature under contribution
to serve his purposes. He takes trees from the forest in order to build
his house, and to fashion the table at which he takes his meals; he
brings up metal from the depths of the earth and converts it into tools;
he takes clay and forms it into vessels. He also is permitted to pluck
flowers wherewith to garnish his feasts, and to make them the tokens of
his love; and in the same manner he may actually absorb the life of the
lower animals, in order to transform and transfigure it, as it were,
into that higher life which is possible only in human society. But it
follows that he is a mere parasite and an interloper in nature, unless
he actually leads the truly human life.
FOOTNOTE:
[19] For the teacher I add point 4. The duties mentioned under 5 and 6
may be practiced in a simple way by the young in the form of aiding
their backward schoolmates, and observing the right attitude toward
those of their companions who are in disgrace.
XV.
THE ELEMENTS OF CIVIC DUTY.
It should be the aim of the school not only to connect the system of
school duties with the duties of the previous period, but also to
prepare the pupils morally for the period which follows. The school is
the intermediate link between life in the family and life in society and
the state. The course of moral instruction, therefore, culminates for
the present in the chapter on civic duties. Needless to say that at this
stage the subject can be considered in its elements only.
The claims of the state upon the moral attachment of the citizen can
hardly be presented too warmly. Life in the state as well as in the
family is indispensable to the full development of character. Man, in
his progress from childhood to old age, passes successively through
ever-widening circles of duty, and new moral horizons open upon him as
he grows out of one into the other. One of the largest of these circles,
and, in respect to moral opportunities, one of the richest and most
glorious, is the state. It may be said that the whole state exists
ideally in every true citizen, or, what amounts to the same, that the
true citizen embraces the interests of the state, as if they were his
own, and acts from the point of view of the total body politic.
Increased breadth of view and elevation of purpose are the moral
benefits which accrue to every one who even honestly attempts to be a
citizen in this sense.
Much attention is paid in some schools to the machinery of our
government. The pupils are expected to learn the exact functions of
mayors, city councils, and legislative bodies, the provisions relative
to the election of the President, etc. But while these things ought to
be known, they relate, after all, only to the externals of government;
and it is far more important to familiarize the pupils with the
animating spirit of political institutions, with the great ideas which
underlie the state. There are especially three political ideas to which
I should give prominence; these are, the idea of the supremacy of the
law; the true idea of punishment; and the idea of nationality. After we
have instilled these ideas, it will be time enough to dwell with greater
particularity on the machinery by which it is sought to carry them into
effect.
What method shall we use for instilling these ideas? The same which
modern pedagogy applies in every branch of instruction. The rule is,
Proceed from the known to the unknown; in introducing a new notion,
connect it with some analogous notion already in the pupil's possession.
The school offers excellent opportunities for developing the two ideas
of law and punishment. In every school there exists a body of rules and
regulations, or school laws. It should be made plain to the scholars
that these laws are enacted for their own good. The government of the
school should be made to rest as far as possible on the consent and
co-operation of the governed. That school which does not secure on the
part of the scholars a willing acceptance of the system of restraints
which is necessary for the good of the whole, is a failure. In such an
institution the law-abiding spirit can never be fostered.
The play-ground, too, affords a preliminary training for future
citizenship. On the play-ground the scholars learn to select and to obey
their own leaders, to maintain the rules of the game, and to put down
any infraction of them, whether in the shape of violence or fraud. They
also learn to defer to the will of the majority--a most important
lesson, especially in democratic communities--and to bear defeat
good-humoredly.[20]
The true idea of punishment should be brought home to the scholars
through the discipline of the school. The ends of punishment are the
protection of the community and the reformation of the offender. Nowhere
better than in the little commonwealth of the school can these moral
aspects of punishment be impressed; nowhere better can the foundation be
laid for the changes which are so urgently needed in the dealings of the
state with the criminal class. Everything, of course, depends upon the
character of the teacher. His reputation for strict justice, the moral
earnestness he displays in dealing with offenses, his readiness to
forbear and forgive upon the least sign of genuine repentance--these are
the means by which he can instill right notions as to what discipline
should be. It has been suggested that, when a particularly serious case
of transgression occurs, the teacher can sometimes produce a profound
moral effect on the class by submitting the case to them as a jury and
asking for their verdict.
The idea of nationality I regard as fundamental in political ethics.
There is such a thing as national character, national genius, or
national individuality. When we think of the Greeks, we think of them as
pre-eminent for their achievements in art and philosophy; of the
Hebrews, as the people of the Bible; of the Romans, as the founders of
jurisprudence, etc. And on turning to the modern nations we find that
the talents of the English, the Germans, the French, the Italians, etc.,
are no less diversified. Morally speaking, it is the mission of each
nation in correlation with others to contribute to the universal work of
civilization its own peculiar gifts. The state may be regarded as that
organization of the public life which is designed _to develop the
national individuality_; to foster the national genius in whatever
direction it may seek to express itself, whether in industry, art,
literature, or science; to clarify its aims, and to raise it to the
highest pitch of beneficent power.
Doubtless this idea, as stated, is too abstract to be grasped by the
young; but it can be brought down to their level in a tangible way. For
the national genius expresses itself in the national history, and more
especially is it incorporated in those great leaders, who arise at
critical periods to guide the national development into new channels. It
is at this point that we realize anew the important support which the
teaching of history may give to the moral teaching.[21] Thus the
political history of the United States, if I may be permitted to use
that as an illustration of my thought, may be divided into three great
periods. The struggle with nature occupied the earliest period--that of
colonization; in this period we see the American man engaged in subduing
a continent. The struggle for political freedom fills the period of the
Revolution. The struggle for a universal moral idea lends grandeur to
our civil war. The story of these three great struggles should be
related with such clearness that the idea which dominated each may stand
out in relief, and with such fervor that the pupils may conceive a more
ardent love for their country which, at the same time that it holds out
immeasurable prospects for the future, already possesses such glorious
traditions. There is, however, always a great danger that patriotism may
degenerate into Chauvinism. Against this, universal history, when taught
in the right spirit, is the best antidote. A knowledge of universal
history is an admirable check on spurious patriotism. In teaching it,
it is especially desirable that the contribution which each nation has
made to the progress of the world be noted and emphasized. Let the
teacher speak of the early development of the literature and of the
inventive spirit of the despised Chinese; of the high civilization which
once flourished on the banks of the Nile; of the immortal debt we owe to
Greece and Rome and Judea. Let the young be made acquainted with the
important services which Ireland rendered to European culture in the
early part of the middle ages. Let them learn, however briefly, of the
part which France played in the overthrow of feudalism, of the wealth of
German science and literature and philosophy; let them know how much
mankind owes to the Parliaments of England, and to the stout heart and
strong sense which made parliaments possible. It is not by underrating
others, but by duly estimating and appreciating their achievements, that
we shall find ourselves challenged to bring forth what is best in
ourselves.
There is still another reason why, especially in American schools, the
teaching of universal history should receive far greater attention than
hitherto has been accorded to it. The American people are imbued with
the belief that they have a problem to solve for all mankind. They have
set out to demonstrate in the face of doubt and adverse criticism the
possibility of popular self-government. They have thus consecrated their
national life to a sublime humanitarian idea. And the sense of this
consecration, echoing in the utterances of many of their leading
statesmen, has more or less permeated the whole people. But the mission
thus assumed, like the burden on the shoulders of Christophorus, is
becoming heavier at every step. The best citizens recognize that the
problem of popular self-government, so far from being solved, is but
beginning to disclose itself in all its vast complexity, and they
realize more than ever how necessary it is to get every possible help
from the example and experience of older nations. The political lessons
of the past can not indeed be mastered in the public schools. But a
preliminary interest in European history may be created, which will pave
the way for profitable study later on.
Furthermore, the American people have extended a most liberal invitation
to members of other nationalities (with few restrictions, and these of
recent origin) to come and join in working out the destinies of the new
continent. Not only is an asylum granted to the oppressed--this were the
lesser boon--but the gates of citizenship have been opened wide to the
new-comers. What does this mean, if not that the foreigners who come,
unless indeed they belong to the weak and dependent classes, are wanted;
and wanted not only in their capacity as workers to aid in developing
the material resources of the country, but as citizens, to help in
perfecting what is still imperfect, to assist in building up in time, on
American soil, the true republic.
In return for this privilege the citizens of foreign birth owe it to
their adopted country to place the best of their racial gifts at its
service. Much that the citizens of foreign birth bring with them,
indeed, will have to be eliminated, but, on the other hand, many of
their traits will probably enter as constituent elements into the
national character. The Anglo-Saxon race has now the lead, and will
doubtless keep it. But in the melting-pot of the American commonwealths
the elements of many diverse nationalities are being mixed anew, and a
new nationality distinctively American is likely to be the final outcome
of the process. Thus both the humanitarian ideal and the actual make-up
of the people betray a cosmopolitan tendency, and it is this tendency
which, more perhaps than anything else, gives to American political life
its characteristic physiognomy. If this be so, if the foreign elements
are so numerous and likely to be so influential, it is surely important
that the foreign races, their character and their history, be studied
and understood.
Besides explaining the political ideas, I should briefly describe the
actual functions of government. Government protects the life and
property of its citizens against foreign aggression and violence at
home. Government maintains the binding force of contracts. Government
reserves to itself the coinage of money, carries the mails, supports
public education, etc. In a word, government assumes those functions
which can be discharged more satisfactorily or more economically by the
joint action of the community than if left to private individuals or
corporations. But government also undertakes the duty of protecting the
weaker classes against oppression by the stronger, as is shown by
factory legislation in the interest of women and minors. How far this
function may profitably be extended is open to discussion; but that it
has been assumed in all civilized countries is a fact which should be
noted.
FOOTNOTES:
[20] _Vide_ Dole, "The American Citizen."
[21] See remarks on this subject in the third lecture.
XVI.
THE USE OF PROVERBS AND SPEECHES.
For the use of my classes I have made a collection of proverbs from the
Bible, from Buddha's Dhammapada, from the Encheiridion of Epictetus, the
Imitation of Christ, and other ancient and modern sources. Some of these
belong to the advanced course, others can be used in the grammar course.
I have time to mention only a few, in order to illustrate the method of
using them.