22 THE FARMER AND THE NEW DAY 



THE SPIRIT OF THE NEW DAY 



One approaches such a subject with caution, for each 

 person who tries to understand for himself the mean- 

 ing of the new time will, of course, come to a point 

 of view a little different from that of any one else, and 

 will moreover express his views somewhat differently. 

 When one is dealing with so big a thing as the rebuild- 

 ing of human society, it becomes almost foolish to 

 prophesy. Great currents are sweeping us on. We 

 cannot control them and we are not even sure where 

 they are taking us. Their direction may change over- 

 night; because for a long time after peace comes, hu- 

 man society will be subject to volcanic disturbances 

 that may change the entire face of the earth. But even 

 if we cannot tell just what is going to happen, we 

 may with some measure of confidence describe the great 

 hope and the great faith in the new spirit that will 

 animate human affairs when once more the efforts 

 of men can be used for construction instead of for 

 destruction. There are at least four big items that 

 seem to stand out as parts of the spirit of the New 

 Day. 



i. In General, a Far Better Chance for the " Com- 

 mon Man." It is one of the strangest perversities of 

 our human nature that the very thing that spurs us on 

 to achievement may be the thing that becomes the great- 

 est obstacle to true progress. The desire to advance, 

 to achieve, is for all practical purposes an ambition 

 to excel. One of the mainsprings of progress has been 

 just the intense desire to excel others. We admire the 

 driving power of such desire; we despise the person 

 who " doesn't want to get ahead," who " lacks ambi- 

 tion." Yet this trait of ambition has led to preroga- 



