the art of right living - ellen richards

7/28/2019 The Art of Right Living - Ellen Richards

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THE ART OF RIGHT LIVINCx


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The Art of Right Living

By Ellen H. Richards

" It is not birlh rates that want raising,but Ideals."

Mankind in the Making,H. (;. Wells

Whitconib & BarrowsBoston, 1904


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4i

PUBLi 'HEALTHLBEIART

Copyright, 1904ELLEN IL RICHARDS

Composition and Kht-lrotyping hyThomas Todd, 14 Ihuori Strei-f, Hoston, Mass.


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A Condensation of a Course of LecturesGiven at the Summer School of the South,Knoxville, Tennessee, June to July, 1904


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6 The Art of Right LivingBesides this appalling slaughter, three

thousand to five thousand deaths annuallyin each large city, we have to consider whatMr. Wells aptly calls the partial death rate," that dwarfing and limiting of an innumer-able host of children who do, in an under-fed and meager sort of way, survive." Noother living thing is so weighted with theload of mere living as is the human being.The loss in working power to the state

is indicated by the undersize of the adultswho have to suffer a handicap loss of fromfifteen to twenty pounds in weight and threeinches in height due to poor nutrition andunsanitary surroundings.America is said to worship efficiency, but

this worship has not included the humanbeing, that self-developed machine whose" duty " is a thousand times more valuablethan that of any man-made machine.

In these pages we shall consider thefactors which go to make up the efficienthuman individual, and treat these factorsalso with reference to their development inschool life, for it is to the formation of righthabits in the child that we must look forimprovement.


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The Art of RigJit Living 7To the teachers of manual training andof domestic science we must look for help

along these lines. Indeed, it may well beclaimed that the latter subject especially hasits justification in its golden opportunity toemphasize the fundamentals of wholesomeliving.

If, as is sometimes claimed, the scientif-ically trained man is to lead the world tobetter things, he must secure a suitableenvironment for himself. Therefore theattention of the more thoughtful through-out the country must be directed to theperfection of the human body as a machine.

Of the primal forces of all living matter,nutrition easily ranks first and affects theothers most profoundly.

The end and aim of nutrition isNutrition energy, force, power. 1 he humanbody (the plant or animal as well) mustmake this for itself. It cannot be pumpedin. Man is not a battery to be chargedfrom outside, though he is an automobile.

Education is not complete unless allpowers work together. Brain gymnasticsare no more commendable than bodily gym-


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8 The Art of Right Livingnasties as mere exercises, and if one-sidedare as fatal to all-around development.The reasonable human being does not

live for his body or his brain, but for allhis forces working together for results. Heis conscious of a sense of responsibility tothe race, to the community in which helives.

Production of energy is the object oflife ; direction of energy is another thing.But the healthy, happy person is not liableto be a criminal. Prisons and reformatoriesare filled with those whose twisted nervesand starved muscles mean knotted brainsand troublesome, uncontrolled impulses.We possess a body, a machine to use inaccomplishing our ideals. If we do notlearn to use it to the best advantage ourideals cannot be fulfilled.The purpose of this human machine is

to furnish energy for the mind to apply toits needs. The mind has no other sourceof energy, no supply station from which itcan be pumped in.The power at the service of body and

soul must be manufactured within the body.To this end it needs care and training, food,


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The Art of Right Living 9exercise, and sleep, as well as an environ-ment which shall give it a fair chance.

There are two recognized ways of im-proving the quality of human beings: oneby giving a better heredity starting themin life with a stronger heart, better diges-tion, steadier nerves ; the other, by so com-bining the factors of daily life that even aweak heart may grow strong, a poor diges-tion may become good, and frayed nervesgain steadiness.The first method, however attractive intheory, is, in the present state of science,impracticable ; but the second method ofsecuring a more efficient human communityis within our grasp if only each group ofmen would live up to the light now avail-able. We are like wanderers in a darkcorridor, dark only because we do not reachup and turn on the light. To refuse to liveas well as we may because science cannotexplain all the facts from which inferencesare drawn is as foolish as for the samewanderers to ask : " Can you explain to usthe nature of electricity.-* If not, then werefuse to use its light."The science of right living has not yet


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TO The Art of Right Livingbeen worked out in all its details. Never-theless, certain rules of practice are so wellestablished that only obstinate or idioticmen have any excuse for denying theirexistence. History teaches the universalityof the rule that the art is developed longbefore the science in any branch of appliedknov/ledge.The attempt made here is not to teach

a system of ethics, but only to call attentionto certain points in practical, every-day liv-ing which make for such improved condi-tions in environment as will permit a highermoral and intellectual development.

In the words of that prophet of the newrepublic, Mr. H. G. Wells, it is our duty" to secure an ideal environment for childrenin as many cases as possible."These improved conditions include knowl-

edge of the essential requirements of thegrowing child, safe water to drink, and plentyof it, good food, sleep, exercise, etc. Theneed of water is put first for two reasons:it is oftenest neglected and it is a funda-mental need for all life. A certain dilutionwith water is a sine qua non of all thechemical changes which we associate with


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The Art of Right Livins^ iigrowth. The fermentation of grape juiceand the keeping qualities of grape jelly andof raisins are familiar examples. The ex-treme instability of milk and the greaterpermanence of butter and cheese illustratethe same thing. In concentrated solutions,biological action goes on with lessenedvigor; in dry substances, with extremeslowness or not at all.The practical lesson to be drawn from

these well-known facts is that human beingsas well as bacteria require plenty of waterto dilute the blood stream constantly circu-lating through their tissues, if the millionsof little living cells of which these tissuesare composed are to thrive and do theirwork, by chemical changes converting intoenergy the food supply brought to them insolution by this blood stream.

Sluggish circulation means less power ofwork, of thought, of pleasure. The sensesare dulled ; life is a burden instead of a joywith a sense of power. But there is a moreserious danger in this clogged condition.In the very nature of things, the load of thiscirculating current is easily decomposablematerial. Beef juice freshly prepared, milk


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12 The Art of Right Livingfreshly drawn, are assimilated and givestrength ; allowed to stand in a warm place,putrefactive changes set in which causethem to become toxic. Persons taking themin that condition may suffer "ptomainepoisoning."The fluids of the normal human body are

so nicely balanced as to chemical propor-tions, that if they are perverted from theirnormal action by overloading, by reducedtemperature, by unsuitable combinations,certain of these objectionable changes takeplace inside the body and auto-infectionoccurs. Most cases of acute indigestionand cholera morbus, as well as other lessmarked digestive disturbances, are due toinability of the secreted fluids of the bodyto take care of the material submitted totheir action. The first place in this listof dangerous circumstances may well begiven to lack of sufificient water to permitquick change and quick carrying away ofuseless material.An attack of indigestion may often berelieved by taking a pint of hot water.

If the habit of drinking sufficient wateris well established, there will be less dangerof any sudden disturbance.


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The Art of Right Living 13The danger of taking too much water is

not great, for there are three ways of ehmi-nating the unnecessary quantity: throughthe skin, the lungs, the kidneys. (EHmina-tion by the skin is not enough consideredin deciding upon the clothing.) The dan-ger is less than in taking too little, becausein the former case the regulating forceshave a chance to act ; in the latter, the callfor more water is unheeded, often becausenot understood.The problem of a safe water supply is,

therefore, very closely linked with the es-sentials of wholesome living. This will beconsidered later.The circulating fluids of the body carry

food in solution to the living cells, hencethe food eaten must be such that the secre-tions can convert it. Charcoal, although anexcellent fuel in the grate, is not fuel forthe human body, because it cannot be madeinto a usable form. Starch, sugar, and fat,on the other hand, can be so used, and there-fore they are foods for man as well as forthe fire. Cellulose, woody fiber found inall plants, serves as food for many animals,but in very slight degree for man.


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14 The Art of Right LivingSafe exercise comes next afterPhysical Motion . , ,safe water in a study of phys-

ical needs.The necessity for fluidity in the circulat-

ing blood stream is not the only necessity.There must be a strong push to the cur-rent to keep it moving through the networkof arteries, veins, and especially capillaries,those threadlike passages which are soeasily clogged. Stagnation starves the cellswhich need food constantly.This push is given by the heart pumpingthe blood with such force that it must finda passage. The heart is stimulated by exer-cise ; the lungs are forced to carry a fuller,deeper tide of air, giving oxygen to developmore energy from the dissolved food.

Without exercise the blood stream flowsgently. If the food is accurately balancedto the body's needs, the person may notsuffer, but the least carelessness in diet isupsetting.The need of physical motion in order

to keep up that circulation which meansgrowth and strength is seen in the infantand young child in constant motion in alltheir waking hours. Because of this neces-


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The Art of Right Living 15sity children must not be kept to rigidpositions for long periods even in school.The call for oxygen is another note disre-

garded through ignorance and carelessness.The child should learn to heed this call

as much as any other. It is imperativethat fresh air, not used-up, breathed-over-and-over-again air, should flow through thelungs.The food can be converted into useful

material only through combination with theoxygen of the air. The toxic substancesearlier referred to are liable to be formedin greater or less degree if too little air isavailable.

Nothing will take the place of fresh air.It is one of the necessities of right living.The child should be taught to recognizestale air and to demand fresh air as he nowdemands a drink of water. Study rooms athome and in school must have better facili-ties than nine-tenths now have in order tolessen the "partial death rate."The discovery that the dreaded white

plague may be prevented and even cured, iftaken in time, should certainly help teachersand parents to enforce rules of plenty of air,


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1 The Art of Right Livingto secure the cooperation of the children fortheir own benefit, and of taxpayers in thecertainty of less expense for hospitals andfunerals. I fully believe that if one-tenththe money now devoted to hospitals wasspent in a crusade for better living condi-tions, most of the institutions within tenyears would close for want of patients.

Simple devices in the ordinary house willserve if once the cardinal principle of cir-culation is taken to heart. Heated air rises,and since nearly all " bad " air is heated air,therefore let it out at the top of the spacebefore it has a chance to vitiate the rest.It will mean a little more coal or warmerclothing, but an incalculable gain in health.Tight joints in all gas and plumbing fix-tures are also indispensable. The sense ofsmell seems to be going the way of teethand hair. Half the houses one enters revealto the educated nose leaks of one or bothgas and waste pipes. Dullness, stupidity, illtemper, headache, and a host of evils attrib-uted to Providence or our ancestors, all arebred from our own ignorance of the simplestof nature's laws.

It is true that man is a part of nature, sub-


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The Art of Right Living 17ject to nature's laws, but he has a power ofcontrol over himself and his natural environ-ment, if only he will learn to use it, greaterfar than over other living things, for manhas a spiritual nature capable of high idealsfor himself, ideals which make self-control,foresight, and ambition possible ; idealswhich react on his bodily condition, stimu-lating or inhibiting physical reactions. Hehas power to set for himself a goal to strivefor, to ask " What shall I make of myself ?

"Hindrances to right living are mostly due

to our thoughtless acceptance of tradition,or to the heedless rush of modern life.From the study of plant and animal life

we have come to have a glimmer of under-standing of what life means. The plants allhave a meaning and purpose, and only thosethat fulfill it best survive, the others arechoked out in nature. The weak and use-less have scant courtesy in nature's rule, butman may interfere, and by soil, water, andfertilizer can develop in a few years suchresults as nature unaided would show onlyin hundreds of years, which proves that wehave gained partial control of life's secrets.The American Beauty rose, the chrysan-


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1 The Art of Ris;ht Livingthemum, and hundreds of beautiful flowersprove that the result may be more beauty ofform and color but without production ofseed, which is the general end of all naturallife. So in the animal world, the evolutionof the trotting horse, the production of vari-ous desired strains of color or form, provethat man has learned to obtain what hewishes to secure.

If by study and experiment man has dis-covered the laws of life to an extent shownby every agricultural experiment station inthe country, should we not expect that hehad learned how to develop himself? But,alas ! from every civilized community comesthe same cry deterioration of the physiqueof the men desired for soldiers, of the maidsin our houses, of girls in our colleges, of thegeneral physical condition when tested byrace standards.One reason is plain by our care in cer-

tain directions more weakly children andadults survive to exist, but not to add tothe social wealth of the community; butthere must be some more deeply-seated causethan survival of the unfit births. If a plantis put into very rich soil and protected it


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The Art of Right Living 19grows slender, with a weak stem and plentyof leaves, but bears no fruit. It cannot standalone, but must be tied up, lest it fall to theground and be trodden upon. An overfedanimal soon becomes ill and an over-pro-tected pet dog cannot bear the cold orwet.

In spite of all these lessons from plantand animal life, that life which we havelearned to know as of the same generalorder as our own, we go on, careless of allthe lessons, neglectful of all the conditionswhich might make us powerful in our ownline.

There seems to be in us all the sort ofself-righteousness exemplified in the oldstory of the Quaker who said, sighing," Mary, the world is all queer but theeand me, and I sometimes think thee is alittle queer."We seem to have assimilated so deeplythe idea that man is lord of all the earth,that we do not include man himself in theclass over which he rules ; we do not graspthe thought that man must be lord of him-self also, if he is not to succumb to nature'srule in the end.


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20 The Art of Right LivingNow the great difference between man

and beast is the power man has of lookingforward, of preparing for the future, of imag-ination, of conscious preparation ; but, alas,how little do we of this day use this powerWhen once we know the joy of control, weshall understand what man's dominion over-nature means.To master a fine horse, to drive an auto-

mobile, to sway an audience, is a recognizedstimulant; to control oneself, to see one'sown wishes developing, one's own powerincreasing, that also is wine to the spirit,and, if one's energies are directed in theright direction, a pleasure to all onlookers.

This joy of self-control should be taughtto children. Control of things comes easilythen ; control of self comes with greaterdifficulty, but patiently taught does becomehabit. Our manual training instruction isdoing much toward this. A boy must con-trol his own muscles before he can movehis tool as he wills.A good cook is always calm and con-scious of power, never fussy or flustered. Itis consciousness of ability to secure resultsthat makes her intolerant of weights andmeasures.


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The Art of Ri^ht Liviuj^ 21I trust we have somewhat clearly in mind

a picture of the wonderful process of theproduction of energy within the humanbody the ceaseless flow of the blood carry-ing food to the millions of cells, whose lifemakes our life, and bringing away the wastesubstance.

We have now to bring into consid-Eating , . . ^^ .eration certam pomts of mtermittentactivity. Eating, as a process of takingfood, is one of them. The blood flowsthrough its channels all the time; but thedigestive organs, which have to manufacturenew secretions to take the place of thoseused, must have time to do it in. Hence weshould take food only at regular intervals,the time between the taking depending uponthe character of the food, whether it digestsin half an hour or requires five hours.The demand of the body is an individual

factor different from the sijiking feeling inthe stomach waiting for its load. The morefully the body has used its supply the louderthis call.

Shall we take five meals or one meal inthe twenty-four hours ? That is, shall we


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2 2 The Art of Right Livingeat much or little at one sitting? Theanswer is another question : Which givesthe more efficient life to the individual ?This is the basis for decision.

Appetite is a healthy call, which we grownpeople have so restrained with our eye andtaste objections and imaginings that it haspractically left us. We frequently allow thelooks of a dish or the shape of a dish to stopour eating of needed food.

This intermittent taking of food is to allowthe recuperation of the secretory glands andto avoid overloading the blood streamover-concentration of the blood in solution.

After a certain time the cells o^etSleep , , ^, , ^,worked out. 1 here is a greater de-mand upon them than they can fill, and thedemand must stop that they may catchup and we go to sleep. This means re-laxation of the muscles, which allows freerflow; release of nerve tissue, which openswide some channels; and stoppage of mostof the waste due to activity. It is a time ofbuilding up for the next day, and it is neces-sary to have this regularly, because man isnot a machine for perpetual action, since his


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The Art of Right Living 23living cells manufacture their own power.Some time must be given them in whichto accomplish it in a satisfactory manner.They cannot work and recuperate at thesame time.

Sleep permits this re-creation of power andforce by the cessation of voluntary motion,giving a sufficient time for rebuilding thetorn-down tissues. The brain cells, like allothers, need rest, but so obedient are they tostimulus that they go on and on after wewish them to stop work, like the anxiousmother unconvinced that tomorrow willserve just as well for the child's new dressor special cake.

But it is easy to see that there is greatneed of oxygen in this process, and thatplenty of fresh air at night is essential. Fearof night air has sent most of the consump-tives to their graves.

It is of the utmost importance to estab-lish correct habits of sleeping in the child.Sound, restful sleep from which one awak-ens to joy in living is the essential thing,whether the result is obtained after seven,eight, or nine hours. Restless nights, terri-fying dreams, do not permit that full repair


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24 The Art of Right Livingof worked out tissues which means efficientliving.The disturbance of digestion caused by

wrong food, the over-stimulation of the brainby bad air, by excitement, by worry, or byfear, or even just plain habit carelesslyformed, all are responsible in varying de-grees for lack of recuperative sleep. Ofthese probably the most difficult to remedyis habit. Some change of thought or sur-roundings is necessary to break a person oflying awake or of waking at undesirablehours. If it is once realized that sleep isan essential part of right living every saneperson will take care to secure good habitsand right conditions. Dr. Sargent's adviceis "to cultivate the habit of sleeping inde-pendently of circumstances."

Hurry and worry are the arreat-Amusement i i est hnidrances to nutrition andrecuperation. The cheerfulness of health,the happy, non-careworn life, is worth striv-ing for. Amusements, going to the play, tothe concert, to a pleasant party, give restto the overworked nerves. Therefore ouramusements should be planned to give this


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The Art of Right Living 25rest. We should form habits of furnishingsuitable amusement to the children and toourselves, only we must not lose sight ofthe aim of life and substitute amusement forwork. Some of us find greater pleasure inother work, some in absolute rest. Changeis beneficial, if only a meal at a neighbor'sor at a restaurant now and then. It is agood rule to dine out once a week, sincevariety in food is a sort of amusement.Re-creation must also be favored by changeof thought, by amusements, as we term thebrain-resting class of occupations. Thevalue of really entertaining performancesis incalculable.

Stimulus to heart action is found inlaughter, to exercise in good company.Who has not, unconsciously, walked mileswith an entertaining friend t

Most important of all is the removal ofdisturbing watch over functions which goon much better unnoticed. Like children,these primitive processes are apt to becometroublesome .in proportion to the attentionbestowed on them.

Eighty per cent of the so-called amuse-ments are not recreations. They exhaust


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26 The Art of Right Livingmore rapidly than they refresh. This touch-stone of efficiency should be applied byadults to themselves and by guardians tothe effect of entertainments upon children.Momentary excitement is not recuperation,remaking of nervous tissue.

After a time of repair, as in sleepExercise . ^ ^or m sedentary amusements, thewaste which results from all living processesmust be gotten rid of. A brisk exercise, orbath, or massasfe is needed to start ao^ainthe quick flow, to expel the CO2 which hascollected, and to cause the full tide ofbreathing to shake out the ashes, as itwere, from the human furnace so that thefuel may give energy.

For this purpose the exercise need not belong continued, but should be sufficientlybrisk to send the current of blood throughall the fine capillaries and the tide of airto the deepest lung cells. Until this clear-ance of the choked passage has taken placeonly a light meal should be eaten, for theforces of bodily activity are rarely sufficientfor two things at once.A long walk once a week cannot takethe place of brisk daily exercise.


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The Art of Right Living 27We have referred several times toWork , . n 1mental mfluence over nutrition, and

we come now to an important adjunct inthe art of right living joy in work, thetaking the mind off the drudgery of life.The daily work should not be drudgery,but most of us seem not to have found the

right work, and the monotony of the dailyround becomes deadly.

I am sorry for such, as I am sorry forthose to whom food becomes monotonous,so that they must have something differ-ent cannot eat the same thing twice insuccession. If one sees before him all thekinds of food there are at one meal, thereis nothing left for the next. This gratifiesthe mental desire for choice, but close ob-servers say that after scanning a bill of farea foot long they usually take the samethings day after day.

This craving for the new is strongest inthose who are not satisfied with their dailywork ; but for all of us it is well to forgetourselves and our worries.We cannot too strongly impress uponthe child how important to health is work,remunerative action; not necessarily remu-


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28 The Art of Right Livingnerative in coin of the realm, but in satis-faction with one's life. Work is necessaryin order to enjoy recreation. It is a lawof life, bringing dire disaster in the break-ing. Many so-called amusements are hardwork, and much, very much of the work ofthe world is or may be so interesting asto be really recreation, if not too longcontinued.

Perhaps we are not furnished with ascience of work, but we must accept workas a part of the art of right living. In ourhearts we know that work is the mainspringof existence, that it furnishes the motivepower for effort.The delight in life is what we can do

with it. A sense of power over thingsis one of the most human attributes. Itis the source of both good and evil; evilwhen used to oppress other human beings,good when it gives man a control which heutilizes to give happiness and satisfactionto his fellowman.

It is a want of this feeling of consciouspower which is largely accountable for thedegeneration of the wage-earner of today.He is, for the most part, unskilled. That


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The Art of Right Living 29is, he cannot do well the thing he under-takes. He has power neither over his tools,his materials, nor his own muscles.

This inner sense of ineffectiveness is theunrecognized cause of the restless discon-tent so prevalent today. No person whois accomplishing something, seeing it growunder his hands to what it was in histhought, is discontented. It is a mistaketo think that the fact of making the articlefor some one else and not for oneself is thecause of dissatisfaction. The true pleasureof work is in the doing and not in the pos-session afterwards, in most cases. We havelost pride in our work and have transferredour distaste for poor work to work itself, tothe great danger of our physical and moralhealth.

Teachers need to study the psychology ofwork, to utilize the natural desire of chil-dren for effective movements. It is a signnot to be neglected that every child triesto express his thoughts in making things.Of course his attempts are crude, but thenecessity is there.

There is probably no better way to begina child's training for right living than to


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30 The Art of Right Livinggive him a garden indoors or out. Thecare of a garden bed combines exercise,amusement, and work to a degree not at-tained by anything else. It adds indirectinstruction in the essentials of all life, andinitiates the child into the mysteries ofliving.

There is a fallacy in the statement thatthe chief incentive to work is usually pos-session of things. It is claimed that civili-zation is increase of wants, and that thegreatest incentive to work which the adultrecognizes is discontent with present pos-sessions. He works to secure what hehopes will give him that sense of satis-faction which we call contentment, a sensewhich a man rarely attains. It is like thebundle of hay dangling from the wagontop just ahead of the horse's nose, everalmost within his reach but never attain-able. Therefore we seem driven to theconclusion that we must look, each forhimself, the situation squarely in the faceand decide the nearest approach to the idealattainable, all things considered, and havingset that standard to hold by it until anotherstep is possible. If the horse is so blinded


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The Art of Right Livi7tg 31by eagerness to reach the hay that he stepsoff a precipice and falls, load and all, to thebottom, of what avail is it ?

Pleasure in work lessens expense of liv-ing more than any other single thing.Exercise properly taken means a keenerappetite and permits less expensive food.A simpler life is possible when mere livingis a pleasure.

In close connection with the psv-Pleasure r ichology 01 work lies a bit of thephilosophy of pleasure.The young stargazer is astonished to find

that his keenest vision is not directly infront, at the point toward which he is look-ing, but a little to one side. For instance,sweeping the heavens in search of possiblecomets, the observer catches glimpses ofshooting stars on one side of his line ofdirect vision. So in life our keenest pleas-ures are not those we seek so earnestly, butside lights upon our pathway, unexpectedhappenings.

If one lives for pleasure, one does notenjoy life in the degree possible to onewho lives for work and finds his pleasureunexpectedly.


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32 The Art of Right LivingThe psychology of work in-Aitn or Purpose -^ i r - ieludes a definite aim and

purpose in life, a purpose so dear to theindividual as to sweeten toil and minimizesacrifice.The great evil of present industrial con-

ditions is that this conscious purpose is forso many limited to the week's wage, that is,the end of effort is expressed in money, andthe thought of the purpose that money shallserve is too subconscious to be appreciated.In some way the average wage-earnermust be brought to see the end result,namely, a more comfortable, wholesome,and energy-producing life for him and his.If he strives for pleasure only it will eludehim. All great men and women have hadto struggle with obstacles, to deny them-selves in order to gain the goal of theirambition. Let no one think the order ofnature has changed in this time. "In thesweat of thy brow thou shalt eat thy dailybread," will hold true as long as the worldstands.

It behooves us all to have, early in life,a definite purpose in living, one so strongas to carry us light-footed over all impedi-


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The Art of Right Livhig 33ments, one so clearly in mind as to sustaincourage in all dark places. Only in thisway lies health of body and mind.The satisfaction in seeing the accomplish-

ment of the task set before one proves thetruth of the statement. It is not the meredoing, muscular motions, that causes thehealthful glow; it is the mental response,the sense of effectiveness, the consciousnessof power to do what the mind has willed.To secure a flower from an apparently in-accessible cliff, to row against a strongcurrent, to climb a tall tree ; numberlessinstances will occur to the reader. But alsothe filling of the wood box, the washing ofthe dishes, the tidying of the chamber,although given as tasks are bits of work tobe done, and when well done give a glowof satisfaction ; therefore this joy of doingshould be cultivated in children, a quickresponse of nerve to the stimulus of thetouch of things. Power to work is manscapital. Health is wealth only when thewill to do is also present.

Civilization may be designated as a con-dition of wants. When we civilize a savagenation, we teach the people to want things


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34 The Art of Right Livingthey never had or cared to have. It is notthe things that are good for them, too oftenthe reverse, but it is the incentive to workin order to have more that arouses ambi-tion, stirs dormant faculties, and makes aman or makes a nation out of a horde ofineiiBcient people.

The free man with no respon-Environment ...... , , ,sibilities and plenty or moneymay choose his own climate and may followthe seasons if he will, but the greater partof mankind find themselves in fixed habi-tations, unable to rove.

Climate is not under man's control, there-fore he must adapt himself to it. He showshis power over conditions by varying food,clothing, exercise, and housing in accord-ance with local variations. The savage hasworked out for himself a series of uncon-scious guides. Shall civilized man do less ?

It would almost appear that the highercivilization rises the less common sense itshows, the less science it applies to dailyaffairs. Food suitable for Arctic regionsis used by the traveler in torrid zones.Heavy clothing is worn in heated houses,


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The Art of Right Living 35and work is carried on just as briskly inan excessively hot summer day as in a coolone. A little reflection would convince theintelligent person of the folly of it.The death rate is being lowered in all

cases under state control, but it is risingwith a counterbalancing rapidity in thesphere of individual responsibility. Thestate has not prescribed the menu for pub-lic banquets, hours of pleasure, rate of speedof the human machine ; the individual is atliberty to drop dead from heart disease, tosuffocate in close rooms until the whiteplague claims him. The state has appliedscience to engineering problems, drainedswamps, cleared out mosquitoes, furnishedgood water and drainage ; but the people donot take advantage of the relief offered, norwill they avail themselves to the full untilthe foundation is laid in the public schools,until the children imbibe with their threeR's this fourth R, the fundamental princi-ple of right living the means at hand formitigating climate when it is too severefor health, the means of improving soil andwater supply, for suppressing noise, dust,and for eliminating hurry.


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36 The Art of Right LivingIn short, the child at school should becomeaccustomed to the best conditions known to

science, and science knows far more than isyet applied in practice.

Although America has not becomearoused as Great Britain has to the un-doubted fact of tendencies toward physicaldeterioration, it is on the verge of anawakening. The public school is the nat-ural medium for the spread of better ideals,and if the teachers of cooking and ofhygiene would cooperate and use all thematerial which sanitary science is heapingon the table before them we should soonsee a betterment of physical status. Com-bined with medical inspection and sanitaryconstruction of schoolhouses, this wouldraise the general health of the communitythirty or forty per cent in five years andfifty to seventy per cent in ten years.The statistics of medical inspection in

public schools tell a pitiful tale wherever ithas been tried: thirty or forty per cent ofthe children are found with defective or dis-eased eyes, ten to twenty per cent with dis-torted spines, fifteen per cent with throatand nose trouble, all of which directly affecttheir intellectual proficiency.


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The Art of Rif^ht Living 37When these deficiencies are discoveredand reported to the parents, such is the

apathy or disbelief that seventy-five per centof the cases usually go unattended to ; there-fore the school nurse, who follows the casehome and explains the needs and sets forththe penalties, has become a necessity.Most of the teaching may be by indirect

methods, illustrations, and therefore it isthat the various facts about foods, cleanli-ness, dirt, infection, and personal methods ineating, sleeping, exercising, etc., offer such agood medium for the inculcation of kabiiswhile the child is yet plastic and takes asreadily as bad ones the good methods wemay present. This is economic, for then hedoes not have to struggle to unlearn beforehe can adopt new ways.We hear much of the need of educatingthe child for life, but little or nothing ofteaching him to live so that the life may beworth living. 'Tis true, more is the pity,that this is not recognized by the parent;but if the value of each individual to thestate is such as to warrant the spending often to fifty dollars a year on each little for-eigner born on our shores, it is worth a few


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38 The Art of Right Livingcents more to teach him so to live that hemay add to her resources.

It is of use to teach the children of thepresent school age, so that in turn they maybring up their children in a better way, andso that when they become taxpayers theywill see the value of this sort of instructionsufficiently clearly to sustain it.

Therefore the fourth R right livingmay well be included among the necessitiesof education, although the science is hardlysufficiently advanced as yet to be taughtdirectly.

There is a certain modicum of hygienealready in the schools, but it is not closelyenough related to the food habits, or to theideals and aims of the pupil, to affect thedaily life. Give a child an end for whichto work, and he will willingly bend hisenergies to the task.As was said in the beginning, domestic

science teachers have here a great oppor-tunity to show a justification for their workin the elementary schools. It is much easierto teach sanitary as well as moral lessonsindirectly but impressively by examplestaken from the familiar things of every-dayexperience.


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The Art of Right Living 39And this brinsrs up the fact that socialLaws ... t> rconditions, transportation, tenement

crowding, police regulations, labor problems,building laws, etc., are only partly under in-dividual control, but they are wholly a matterfor regulation by the community, made upof individuals whose consensus of opinionrules.The greater the number of individuals

well informed as to these questions, theeasier for a group, large or small, to liveup to their best ideals.

Instruction in the use of what may becalled large tools of community life shouldsurely find a place in the common schoolcurriculum.How can unknown laws be obeyed } Whyblame the newcomer for ignorance of street

cleaning ?What shall the state or city government

do and what must we do for ourselves } Oneof the most serious problems today is forpeople to see that they pay something forfree schools and free roads, for parks, waterworks, etc., that these are maintained inorder that all may have a better chance tolive effective lives. It is now seen that


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40 The Art of Right Livinglabor and force may be saved for eachfarmer who comes in twenty miles over agood road instead of a bad one. Time andthe strength of the team are saved, and agreater load is brought to market. Eachfamily using a good city water supply savestime and cost of single wells or cisterns, tosay nothing of doctors' bills.

Public improvements make a distinctsaving for all the community, of coursemore abundantly for those who use mostfreely, but they belong to all. Hence ageneral responsibility for care and conser-vation must be developed. It is of firstimportance to have this appreciated by thetaxpayer; responsibility for the homes willfollow this education in public affairs.

Legal ejiactmeiit is one of the best meansof educating ignorant, careless citizens, butin order to have them feel that it is for theirgood, and not a matter of oppression, it isnecessary to have a sanitary inspector whocan explain the reasons and expound themeans of conforming to the laws. In a fewenlightened cities, women inspectors aremaking progress in enforcing better livingconditions. If the idea could be started


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The Art of Right Living 41early in the history of smaller towns, itwould do more than anything else to keepthe soil and water supply from becominghopelessly contaminated.

" Scare " is a good thing rightly used, andbetter food laws and better enforcement ofthem may be obtained by the publicitygiven to cases of poisoning, for if we do notcare enough about our own laws to makethem obeyed, we cannot blame the ignorantforeigner.As to food adulterations, there is knowl-

edge enough today available to give us bet-ter materials, and it behooves all teachers ofdomestic science to familiarize themselveswith the publications of their own localboard of health, their own state, and of theUnited States government. Such a volumeas that of Mr. Albert E. Leach of the Massa-chusetts State Food Laboratory should bein every high school library and be freelyconsulted by the teachers of both chemistryand domestic science.A large portion of our population live inisolated situations, where each person is a lawunto himself. It has been the habit of edu-cators to devote the short terms of the rural


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42 The Art of Right Livingschools to mental gymnastics and intellec-tual training rather than to lessons in theuse of materials at hand for better living,or to lessons in the care of home sur-roundings. But why should this one-sidededucation be continued in the face of theknowledge, piling up mountain high, of thedanger of living in the midst of one's ownwaste ?The rural school offers a great field for

teaching the principles of better living, sinceexamples of animal and vegetable life aboundand space for experiments is at hand.America must follow England in teaching

elementary agricultural art, for instance, afew facts about rock and soil, the propertiesof clay, sand, and earth with reference to thedisposal of refuse, for the farmhouse well isa menace not to be tolerated now that itsdangers are known ; no elaborate treatiseon plumbing to be used, but a few illustra-tions in the course of a physical geographylesson, such as may be given with a bottom-less bottle inverted on a support. A littlecotton wool in the neck, or a piece of cheesecloth tied over the mouth, will serve as asupport for sand or clay or loam through


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The Art of Rii^ht Living 43which liquids will percolate fast or slowly,according to the nature of both. Mixedwith a little dyestuff or ink the water willlose color in passing through some soils, butnot when filtered through clean quartz sand.This illustrates the principle of purificationof polluted water by passage through a suit-able soil and the lack of it if the soil isnot suitable.A few illustrations showing how infec-tion is carried and of the use of disinfectantswill save hundreds of lives in our ruralcommunities.

It is a curious superstition, this conserv-atism of the school men in regard to whatit is permissible to teach. In the fear ofmaterialism, they go so far as to neglect theresources developed before their very eyesfor the promotion of health and efhciency.

If all our schoolhouses were built andcared for as well as the present state ofscientific knowledge permits, the efificiencyof the children now usinor them would beraised two hundred per cent in ten years'time. In our zeal for the mind, we havestarved and dwarfed the body.


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44 The Art of Right LivingAn enthusiasm for health must bearoused by some means if an effec-

tive human Hfe is to be maintained in themidst of the increasing menaces to its fullperfection.

Not only personal knowledge and beliefare to be promoted, but a social control isto be maintained. The community as awhole is to work tosfcther, to subordinateindividual preferences to the general good.Cooperation in sanitary matters is necessaryif the expense of decent living is not tobecome too great to be borne. The great-est municipal and domestic cost is nowthat of keeping clean. Abundance of water,good drainage, clean streets, good ventila-tion, sanitary markets, are demanding alarger per cent of income yearly. Probablyhalf the expense might be saved if childrenwere taught to take care of the apparatusin use and to put refuse in the properreceptacles.The streets are full of litter which shouldnever have reached them, and which coststo sweep up. Half the water is wasted,half the plumbing in houses gets out oforder because children and servants throw


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The Art of Right Living 45rolls of hair, match ends, and the like intothe hopper.

It is not necessary to go further intodetails. Each one can use numerous illus-trations to show that much of the increasedcost of living is due to carelessness to themaking of work.

Responsibility for things as well as forthe care of one's own person is a neededlesson. If the home does not teach this,the school must, and again we say that inthe manual training and domestic sciencedepartments this comes naturally and easily,and should be insisted upon.

It is not exalting the material, it is puttingit under our feet as a safe foundation uponwhich to build our own welfare.

It is marvelous, in our eyes, to see thepower men have gained over the forces ofnature, but it is by patient self-control thatthey have given us this power.The moment a user of this power losesa grain of his own nerve, things come to

grief a crash of the trolley, an overturnof the automobile.Some must suffer that the majority may

live. Disaster awakens attention, but we


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46 The Art of Right Livingshould study conditions and apply theremedy before the disaster.Man has power to study, to devise new

ways of gaining his objects, but he must havea clearly defined object to gain. Genius ispower in a single direction, not well bal-anced, and may exist in an ill-nourishedbody, but it is not safe for any one of us totwist his nerves in the hope of becoming agenius.

In cities, public opinion for good water,furnishing of safe water to drink in publicplaces, is one of the best evidences of civicimprovement.

Every town should secure good plumbinglaws, for there is always danger in unseenmachinery pipes once put into a house weare apt to feel secure. I hold that a womanshould not shrink from understanding allthe machinery of the house. There shouldbe an accessible plan of the pipes and wherethey go, especially in an old house. Allmetal is liable to be eaten through, to giveway suddenly. The joints are liable to startaway. Cracks come if joints are puttied,which they should not be.We react to environment, hence we must


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The Art of Right Liviiig 47act upon it to make it satisfactory. Sincethe future depends upon the children itbehooves us to see to it they have a fairchance. Dirt and disease threaten us withdeterioration.

Dr. Chadwick, father of sanitation, taughtthat it was possible to get behind the diseaseto the causes that led up to it, but still thesanitarian complains that people won't be-lieve. Let us turn to the faith of the childin what he is taught as our hope for thefuture.The great struggle lies with matter in the

wrong place garbage, flies, mosquitoes, etc. and as population becomes denser, withcrime and death rate. Our great lessonsin the possibility of reform are Panama andCuba and India. Native religion is thegreatest hindrance in many lands. Hereit should be the greatest help. Neverthe-less, every state in the Union has plaguespots as deadly as any a traveler hasdescribed.How can we make the people believethat it lies in their own hands.'' that asallow complexion and lack-luster eyes aredue to food and not to climate.-^ that list-


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48 The Art of Right Livinglessness and pain are not inherited? Onlyby adding this fourth R the art of rightliving to the school curriculum and teach-ing every child the means of making himselfan efficient human being.

Adaptation to environment is the greatneed of the American today ; and shall we,who boast that we outdo the world withour mechanical devices, stop short of atleast a long step toward the production ofa better race?


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SUMMARYLife should yield results; products of work done;

of life lived ; man should not " cumber " the ground.The efficient human being lives for himself, for

society, for the race.How he is made effective. Will power is exertedon material things by his well-balanced body and byreason of his sound knowledge. He sleeps, eats,works, plays all in a wholesome environment. Weknow that every plant or animal requires this, and manis no exception.

Food, limitations of; danger in excess. Assimila-tion, not ingestion, the test ; auto-infection ; sterility ofthe overfed plant or animal ; moral deterioration.

Sleep, need for ; habits in to be cultivated.Exercise, physical need for ; dangers in excess.

Food must be carried to the living cell and wasteremoved, ashes shaken from the fire, to permit fullnutrition.

Amusements in relation to health. Forget selfexert self unconsciously ; permit functions to go onwithout watching. Companionship, force of example.

Work. Life to be rightly lived requires a personalaim, a resolute purpose, incentive to exertion, to self-culture, to self-sacrifice all tending to health.

Environment of human life. Climate not under ourcontrol, we must adapt our habits to it. Food, cloth-ing, exercise varied to suit; soil and habitations im-

49


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50 The Art of Right Livingproved by engineering. Social conditions partiallyunder individual, wholly under community, controllabor problems, building laws, crowding in cities,transportation. Care of food, shelter and sanitation,in the main, under personal control. See that theyare all right for success in life.

Education in these directions the most importantschool topic. Right habits should come early. Knowl-edge to be given to the pupil as fast as substantiatedby scientific investigation. Thereby lives are saved,the state is enriched, general happiness is promoted.


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THIS BOOK IS DUE ON THE LAST DATESTAMPED BELOWAN INITIAL FINE OF 25 CENTSWILL BE ASSESSED FOR FAILURE TO RETURNTHIS BOOK ON THE DATE DUE. THE PENALTYWILL INCREASE TO SO CENTS ON THE FOURTHDAY AND TO $1.00 ON THE SEVENTH DAYOVERDUE.pmf.M Wf^^Wi (i,WfS,'s,!?ivOCT 7 196^-SEP 2 6 1963 ^^RuftEkiimv i i^.

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