Light Readings...

Great Men and Bachelorhood

The American writer Wallace George believes that the great man must not marry, and that the system of married life rests upon selfishness, whereas the great man is by nature an altruist who cannot confine his daily efforts within a narrow circle without his genius being affected and shrinking, and the human horizon narrowing before it. The writer has set out this theory in his latest book, "Thought and Woman." Among the strangest things in this book is his statement that man has no enemy but woman: she does not inspire in him thought and the marvels of imagination, as many believe, but inspires in him, on the contrary, a spirit of contempt for thought, of disdain and belittlement of it. Woman, in Wallace George's view, is a creature inclined to confine man within a narrow circle until his mind is afflicted with dullness.

And if the man is great, a struggle breaks out between him and his wife. Thus the American writer counsels great men to remain bachelors, and says: "The happiness of the great man lies in celibacy and in devoting himself to the service of thought alone."

Children's Toys

Educators hold that the toys with which children amuse themselves may profit them more than the lessons they toil to understand and memorize; for toys very often exercise their minds in a splendid mental discipline, releasing their budding imaginations and training them to deal with difficult problems.

Since ancient times people have taken care to devise the toys that fathers present to their children at festivals and holidays — wooden soldiers and war helmets — to instill in them the spirit of military heroism.

Europe has given much care to children's toys and shown great ingenuity in them, until children's toys became a profitable trade; factories were set up for them and began producing enormous quantities, and Europe came to draw a large part of its wealth from this profitable trade.