FOREWORD TO THE READER.

The mud-sills of this book are hewn from the presupposition that the person who reads it has not only the essentially¹ necessary equipment to do his own thinking, but also a more or less practiced habit of doing it. It is upon such foundation the superstructure of this volume was built. It is written in the hope of promoting, or provoking, thought on certain subjects, along certain lines—not to create or school thinkers. So, if the reader lacks the necessary cranial furnishing to do his own thinking, or, if having that, he has a cultivated habit of letting other people do his hard thinking and an ingrown desire to let them continue doing so, such reader may as well stop at this period. In fact, he would better do so. The man who has his thinking done by proxy² is possibly as happy and comfortable on a siding as he would be anywhere—as he is capable of being. I have no desire to disturb his state or condition of static felicity. Besides, such a man might “run wild” or otherwise interfere³ with the traffic if switched onto the main line.

Emerson has somewheres said, “Beware when God turns a thinker loose in the world.” Of course Emerson cautioned about constructive⁴ and fighting thinkers, not thinkers who think they know because somebody told them so, or who think they have thought till they know all about some unknowable thing—the ratio of the diameter to the circumference⁵ of the circle, how to construct two hills without a valley between, to build a bunghole bigger than the barrel, and the like.

There are thinkers and thinkers. Emerson had the[6] distinction between them clearly in mind no doubt when he wrote that quoted warning. So, also, has the thinking reader. It is for him this volume is planned; to him its arguments and statements of fact are intended to appeal. Its chapters have been hurriedly written—some of them written under conditions of physical distress⁶. The attempts at humor may be attempts only; the irony⁷ may be misplaced or misapplied; the spade-is-a-spade style may be blunt, harsh or even coarse to the point of offensiveness. Still, if its reading provokes or otherwise induces thought, the purpose of its writing, at least in some degree, will have been attained⁸. It is not asked that the reader agree with the conclusions of the text. If he read the facts stated and thinks—thinks for himself—he will reach right conclusions. The facts are of easy comprehension. It requires no superior academic knowledge nor experience of years to understand them and their significance—their lesson.

Just read and think. Do not let any “official” noise nor breakfast-food rhetoric⁹ so syncopate and segregate¹⁰ your thought as to derail it from the main line of facts. Lofty, persuasive¹¹ eloquence¹² is often but the attractive drapery of planned falsehood, and the beautifully rounded period is often but a “steer” for an ulterior motive—a “tout” for a marked-card game. Do not be a “come-on” for any verbal psychic¹³ work or worker. Just stubbornly persist in doing your own thinking, ever remembering that in this vale of tears, “Plain hoss sense’ll pull you through when ther’s nothin’ else’ll do.”

As a thinker, you will now have lots of company, and they are still coming in droves. Respectable company, too. Mr. Roosevelt suddenly arrived a few days since at Columbus, Ohio. Then there is Mr. Carnegie and Judge[7] Gary. The senior Mr. Rockefeller, also, has announced, through a representative, that he is on the way. These latter, of course, have been thinkers for many years—thinkers on personal service lines chiefly, it has been numerously asserted. Now, however, if press accounts are true, they have begun to think, a little at least, about the general welfare, about the common good—about the other fellow.

Whether this change in mental effort and direction, if change it be, has followed upon a more careful study of conditions which have so long, so wastefully¹⁴, or ruthlessly and viciously governed, or results from the fact that the advancing years have brought these gentlemen so near Jericho that they see a gleam of the clearer light and occasionally hear the “rustle of a wing,” I do not know. Nor need one know nor care. That they come to join the rapidly-growing company of thinkers is sufficient.

Chicago, March 1, 1912.

1 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

2 proxy   

n.代理权，代表权；（对代理人的）委托书；代理人

参考例句：

• You may appoint a proxy to vote for you.你可以委托他人代你投票。
• We enclose a form of proxy for use at the Annual General Meeting.我们附上委任年度大会代表的表格。

3 interfere   

v.(in)干涉，干预；(with)妨碍，打扰

参考例句：

• If we interfere, it may do more harm than good.如果我们干预的话，可能弊多利少。
• When others interfere in the affair,it always makes troubles. 别人一卷入这一事件，棘手的事情就来了。

4 constructive   

adj.建设的，建设性的

参考例句：

• We welcome constructive criticism.我们乐意接受有建设性的批评。
• He is beginning to deal with his anger in a constructive way.他开始用建设性的方法处理自己的怒气。

5 circumference   

n.圆周，周长，圆周线

参考例句：

• It's a mile round the circumference of the field.运动场周长一英里。
• The diameter and the circumference of a circle correlate.圆的直径与圆周有相互关系。

6 distress   

n.苦恼，痛苦，不舒适；不幸；vt.使悲痛

参考例句：

• Nothing could alleviate his distress.什么都不能减轻他的痛苦。
• Please don't distress yourself.请你不要忧愁了。

7 irony   

n.反语，冷嘲；具有讽刺意味的事，嘲弄

参考例句：

• She said to him with slight irony.她略带嘲讽地对他说。
• In her voice we could sense a certain tinge of irony.从她的声音里我们可以感到某种讥讽的意味。

8 attained   

（通常经过努力）实现( attain的过去式和过去分词 )； 达到； 获得； 达到（某年龄、水平、状况）

参考例句：

• She has attained the degree of Master of Arts. 她已获得文学硕士学位。
• Lu Hsun attained a high position in the republic of letters. 鲁迅在文坛上获得崇高的地位。

9 rhetoric   

n.修辞学，浮夸之言语

参考例句：

• Do you know something about rhetoric?你懂点修辞学吗？
• Behind all the rhetoric,his relations with the army are dangerously poised.在冠冕堂皇的言辞背后，他和军队的关系岌岌可危。

10 segregate   

adj.分离的，被隔离的；vt.使分离，使隔离

参考例句：

• We have to segregate for a few day.我们得分离一段日子。
• Some societies still segregate men and women.有的社会仍然将男女隔离。

11 persuasive   

adj.有说服力的，能说得使人相信的

参考例句：

• His arguments in favour of a new school are very persuasive.他赞成办一座新学校的理由很有说服力。
• The evidence was not really persuasive enough.证据并不是太有说服力。

12 eloquence   

n.雄辩；口才，修辞

参考例句：

• I am afraid my eloquence did not avail against the facts.恐怕我的雄辩也无补于事实了。
• The people were charmed by his eloquence.人们被他的口才迷住了。

13 psychic   

n.对超自然力敏感的人；adj.有超自然力的

参考例句：

• Some people are said to have psychic powers.据说有些人有通灵的能力。
• She claims to be psychic and to be able to foretell the future.她自称有特异功能，能预知未来。

14 wastefully   

浪费地，挥霍地，耗费地

参考例句：

• He soon consumed his fortune, ie spent the money wastefully. 他很快就把财产挥霍殆尽。
• Small Q is one flies upwards the bracelet youth, likes enjoying noisily, spends wastefully. 小Q则是一个飞扬跳脱的青年，爱玩爱闹，花钱大手大脚。