388 BIOLOGY AND HUMAN LIFE 



community. For example, in a factory town where people are 

 often out of work, or where accidents are frequent, or where most 

 people never have a chance to become skilled workers, we are 

 likely to find a combination of poverty and this kind of anxiety. 



A great deal of unhappiness at work, and consequently of 

 bodily inefficiency and poor workmanship, comes from small 

 annoyances of various kinds, such as the rudeness or boisterous- 

 ness of fellow workers, the harshness or inconsiderateness of the 

 foreman, irritating noises, the monotony of the work, offensive 

 odors, bad lighting, and unsatisfactory toilet arrangements. 

 The worker as a rule is unaware of what annoys him, or he dis- 

 likes to complain. It is therefore seldom that difficulties are 

 discovered by those who could remedy them, and a worker re- 

 mains until he can stand it no longer or until an outbreak of 

 bad temper leads to a discharge. 



A very important and frequent source of mental disturbance 

 is the lack of harmony between the worker and the manager or 

 between the worker and the character of the work. This is a 

 serious matter both for production and for health and happi- 

 ness. Yet it is very difficult to make suitable adjustments in 

 every case, and sometimes it is not at all possible. Nor is it 

 always possible to place the responsibility for the bad condi- 

 tions, or rather bad relations. If a worker cannot get along 

 with the foreman or with his fellow worker, it may not be the 

 fault of either person ; each one may be all right in his own 

 way, but they simply do not belong together. The same thing 

 may be said where a person is not getting along well with a par- 

 ticular kind of work. 



290. Accidents. We usually think of an accident as some- 

 thing that happens out of the ordinary course, for reasons en- 

 tirely beyond our control. A closer study shows that at least a 

 very large proportion of accidents can be prevented. 



In many kinds of industry and in transportation there had 

 been a steady increase in danger from accidents until, some 

 years ago, engineers, insurance experts, health workers, and 

 managers were forced to take notice of the bad conditions and 



