the Heroic Virtues 219 



many tendencies for good and there are also many 

 tendencies for evil. Chief among the latter is the 

 way in which, in great industrial centres, the segre 

 gation of interests invites a segregation of sympa 

 thies. In our old American life, and in the country 

 districts where to-day the old conditions still largely 

 obtain, there was and is no such sharp and rigid 

 demarcation between different groups of citizens. 

 In most country districts at the present day not only 

 have the people many feelings in common, but, what 

 is quite as important, they are perfectly aware that 

 they have these feelings in common. In the cities 

 the divergence of real interests is nothing like as 

 great as is commonly supposed; but it does exist, 

 and, above all, there is a tendency to forget or ignore 

 the community of interest. There is comparatively 

 little neighborliness, and life is so busy and the popu 

 lation so crowded that it is impossible for the aver 

 age man to get into touch with any of his fellow- 

 citizens save those in his immediate little group. In 

 consequence there tends to grow up a feeling of 

 estrangement between different groups, of forgetful- 

 ness of the great primal needs and primal passions 

 that are common to all of us. 



It is therefore of the utmost benefit to have men 

 thrown together under circumstances which force 

 them to realize their community of interest, espe 

 cially where the community of interest arises from 



