656 JOURNAL OF FORESTRY 



Criticism and suggestions for improvement are the life blood of an 

 organization, and this fact is recognized by all progressive leaders. 



3. Ability. — It is often thought that superior mental ability is the 

 first quality for success ; but experience shows that, unless founded on 

 integrity and loyalty, a brilliant thinker is apt to become eccentric, cyn- 

 ical, and even immoral, ruining his career for lack of character. Only 

 when combined with the stabilizing qualities which are equally the pos- 

 session of the plodder does the brains of an able man count in the race ; 

 but zvith these qualities he succeeds in direct proportion to his mental 

 endowments, whether these are the result of heredity, self-education, 

 or training acquired in school and college. To just the extent that edu- 

 cation improves a man's brain power and his mastery of his mind does 

 it give him an advantage and a value not previously possessed. 



4. Energy. — Laziness is a failing apt to be shared alike by the able 

 and the stupid. It is equally fatal. Laziness is more deadly when 

 mental than physical, though the two are closely related. Physical 

 energy is a good sign, but sometimes is misdirected or even uncon- 

 sciously substituted for mental energy. It is harder work to exercise 

 the brain in mastering new problems or absorbing essential details than 

 it is to exercise the legs. Mental energy means also the ability to stick 

 at a job requiring routine and to secure accuracy. It calls for concen- 

 tration and will power. Without it the tendency of the unfortunate 

 individual is to shirk responsibility, which means that he will never be 

 given promotions except as a matter of routine, and then grudgingly, 

 for he is not fitted for them. Preference for narrow specialization is 

 a manifestation of mental laziness. The individual refuses to make 

 the effort involved in broadening out. 



5. Hninanity. — Since all human efforts are co-operative, the man 

 who is most useful is the one who understands the other fellow best, 

 for without this knowledge co-operation is impossible. Selfishness, no 

 matter whether it is shown as self-conceit or egotism, self-concentra- 

 tion, or indifference to others, or self-indulgence, of which laziness 

 and intemperance are examples, kills a large portion of a man's useful- 

 ness. Trouble follows him, misunderstandings are his ordinary daily 

 fare, jealousy and suspicion a common frame of mind, and he is unable 

 to grasp even the necessity for many useful lines of effort. The im- 

 portance of the right attitude toward the individuals with whom the 

 Service does business is entirely lost on him. The same inability to 

 think about the other fellow renders him gullible, and usually he is 

 cordially disliked. 



On the other hand, the sincere desire to devote his energy to public 



