Wanted, a Man

WANTED, A MAN. BY MILTON BENNION, M. A., PROFESSOR OF PHILOSOPHY, UNIVERSITY OF UTAH. Young men frequently wonder whether they can find a place in society, and whether they can become financially independent. Occasionally, the question takes this form, "How can I get the most for the least effort?" In this latter form of the question there seems a due regard for economy, but the pursuit of a practical an- swer to this question is a .persistent cause of annoyance and loss to employers, and ultimately of failure to the employed. The great need today everywhere is for faithful and efficient workers. Not employes who care only for the wage they are to receive at the end of the day, or of the month, and who would rather turn away from difficulties than overcome them; but rather workers whose attitude is to discover where and how they can serve best, and who take care to do the task in hand faithfully and well. The important thing for a young man is to make sure that he acquires the moral, intellectual and physical qualities that will enable him to assume this last named attitude, and to fulfil its re- quirements. The moral qualification requires that a worker shall put his soul into whatever he undertakes. This means that he shall make the work a part of himself, so that he may feel any de- fect in it, as he would a defect in his own being; and that he may take the same satisfaction in the perfection of his work that he feels in his own personal advancement. This moral qualification is imperfect without the intellectual, which demands that a man shall put his head as well as his hands into his work. Complaint is often and justly heard against the man who is afraid of soiling his hands, who wants to live by his

WANTED, A MAN. 123 head alone. Complaint may be made, with equal justice, against the one who lives by his hands alone; that is, hands disconnected from his brain. With the development of civilization there is an ever increasing demand that a laborer shall put intelligence into his work, and society is all the time providing better means to en- able him to do this. Six or eight hours of intelligent, conscien- tious, vigorous work is worth more than twelve or sixteen hours of mere drudgery —work that is made drudgery by the stupidity of the worker. Proper insight into the purpose and the necessity of any labor, together with an intelligent grasp of the best means of doing it, saves it from becoming drudgery. There is no such thing, except as people make it so. A moral life is, in normal circumstances, almost a guarantee of the physical qualification. There are, to be sure, cases of natural physical weakness, or of infirmity resulting from unavoid- able illness, that disqualifies one for some sorts of employment. Where this weakness cannot be overcome, an occupation suitable to the physical condition should be sought; but in normal circum- stances, a clean, upright, virtuous life is the surest guarantee of physical strength and well-being. The great question in industrial life is not, What business pays? but, What man pays? In the same occupation and under the same circumstances, one man is very successful, while another fails. Almost any legitimate business pays with the right kind of a man to manage it, and fails with the wrong kind of a man. There is, today, no end to the demand for young men who can be depended upon to do promptly and well whatever they promise to do— young men who are absolutely reliable and thorough in their work. Such men will be sought first, not last. I recently heard an employer say ,"I will get Mr. to do this work only, if I can't get anybody else." Why? Because Mr. is more eager to draw his pay than he is to do a first class job. He will keep his word only as he has to do it to get his money; he does things in the easiest way, rather than in the best way, and is likely to modify the employer's orders to meet this end. When completed his work is usually unsatisfactory, and often has to be done over again. So careless, lazy, and dishonest a man is sure to lose all sorts of opportunities. He may have plenty of work, so long as

124 IMPROVEMENT ERA. fc work is plentiful, but when hard times come he is the first to lose his place. It is only one step from the vices already acquired to the crimes that, under these conditions, entice the morally weak. Such a man will very likely become a pessimist. Instead of rec- ognizing that he is his own enemy, he is apt to complain against everybody, and to be ungrateful for such favors as he receives. In contrast with this, the man who has been described as in de- mand today will find himself on the pathway of success and steady advancement. If unavoidable misfortune does overtake him, he has the ability to come out of it stronger in character, and still hopeful for the future. His associates are always ready to extend their good will, and he, in turn, appreciates the sympathy and integrity of his fellows. Salt Lake City, Utah.