第105章 Chapter 13 Survivals of the Non-Invidious Interest

As indicated above， the exemption from pecuniary stress has been carried farther in the case of the leisure-class women of the advanced industrial communities than in that of any other considerable group of persons. The women may therefore be expected to show a more pronounced reversion to a non-invidious temperament than the men. But there is also among men of the leisure class a perceptible increase in the range and scope of activities that proceed from aptitudes which are not to be classed as self-regarding， and the end of which is not an invidious distinction. So， for instance， the greater number of men who have to do with industry in the way of pecuniarily managing an enterprise take some interest and some pride in seeing that the work is well done and is industrially effective， and this even apart from the profit which may result from any improvement of this kind. The efforts of commercial clubs and manufacturers' organizations in this direction of non-invidious advancement of industrial efficiency are also well know.

The tendency to some other than an invidious purpose in life has worked out in a multitude of organizations， the purpose of which is some work of charity or of social amelioration. These organizations are often of a quasi-religious or pseudo-religious character， and are participated in by both men and women.

Examples will present themselves in abundance on reflection， but for the purpose of indicating the range of the propensities in question and of characterizing them， some of the more obvious concrete cases may be cited. Such， for instance， are the agitation for temperance and similar social reforms， for prison reform， for the spread of education， for the suppression of vice， and for the avoidance of war by arbitration， disarmament， or other means； such are， in some measure， university settlements， neighborhood guilds， the various organizations typified by the Young Men's Christian Association and Young People's Society for Christian Endeavor， sewing-clubs， art clubs， and even commercial clubs； such are also， in some slight measure， the pecuniary foundations of semi-public establishments for charity， education， or amusement， whether they are endowed by wealthy individuals or by contributions collected from persons of smaller means -- in so far as these establishments are not of a religious character.

It is of course not intended to say that these efforts proceed entirely from other motives than those of a self猺egarding kind. What can be claimed is that other motives are present in the common run of cases， and that the perceptibly greater prevalence of effort of this kind under the circumstances of the modern industrial life than under the unbroken regime of the principle of status， indicates the presence in modern life of an effective scepticism with respect to the full legitimacy of an emulative scheme of life. It is a matter of sufficient notoriety to have become a commonplace jest that extraneous motives are commonly present among the incentives to this class of work -- motives of a self-regarding kind， and especially the motive of an invidious distinction. To such an extent is this true， that many ostensible works of disinterested public spirit are no doubt initiated and carried on with a view primarily to the enhance repute or even to the pecuniary gain， of their promoters. In the case of some considerable groups of organizations or establishments of this kind the invidious motive is apparently the dominant motive both with the initiators of the work and with their supporters. This last remark would hold true especially with respect to such works as lend distinction to their doer through large and conspicuous expenditure； as， for example， the foundation of a university or of a public library or museum； but it is also， and perhaps equally， true of the more commonplace work of participation in such organizations. These serve to authenticate the pecuniary reputability of their members， as well as gratefully to keep them in mind of their superior status by pointing the contrast between themselves and the lower-lying humanity in whom the work of amelioration is to be wrought； as， for example， the university settlement， which now has some vogue.

But after all allowances and deductions have been made， there is left some remainder of motives of a non-emulative kind. The fact itself that distinction or a decent good fame is sought by this method is evidence of a prevalent sense of the legitimacy ， and of the presumptive effectual presence， of a non-emulative， non-invidious interest， as a consistent factor in the habits of thought of modern communities.