Three Possible Cases 349 



moralists repeat their precepts, practical men listen 

 with impatience, and say, in effect, "the same 

 eternal outworn old sayings which have been 

 repeated from time immemorial and which mean 

 nothing." They shake their heads and pass on. 

 And when the moralist, convinced of the disastrous 

 effect of the appeal to the instrument of force, 

 redoubles his efforts, and goes on to declare, "If 

 you are struck upon one cheek, turn the other 

 also," then with the evidence of such folly before 

 them it is no longer good-natured intolerance 

 which is expressed, but open hostility and hatred. 

 Morality is regarded in this case as an obstacle to 

 our happiness. It becomes an enemy. As a 

 result of the conviction of the fundamental 

 opposition between morality and self-interest, 

 men who act in accordance with the moral law are 

 looked upon with disdain and are considered as 

 feeble and timid, while those who, like Napoleon 

 and Bismarck, placed self-interest beyond all 

 ethical considerations are regarded as political 

 geniuses and heroes. 



The supposed opposition between morality and 

 self-interest results from the failure of the human 

 race to understand the advantages of association 

 and the importance of the factor of mutual aid in 

 increasing the vital intensity of the individual. 

 The chain of cause and effect which proceeds from 

 the moral action of the individual to the welfare of 

 the society or community of which he is a part, and 



