MONEY MAKES DIFFERENCE.“He sees thousands of other people， bookkeepersor clerks or chemists or wagon hands， busy at theirwork and envies them from the bottom of his soul.
They have their independence， their self-respect andmanhood， and he simply cannot convince himselfthat he is a good man， too， though he argue it outand arrive at a favorable verdict hour after hour.
“It is just money which makes this difference inhim. With a little money he would be himself again.
“Some employers take the most shocking advantageof people who are down and out. The agencies hangout little colored cards offering miserable wages tobusted men—12 a week， 15 a week. An 18 aweek job is a plum， and anyone with 25 a week tooffer does not hang the job in front of an agency on acolored card. I have a want ad clipped from a localpaper demanding a clerk， a good， clean penman， totake telephone orders for a sandwich shop from 11A.M. to 2 P.M. for 8 a month—not 8 a week but8 a month. The ad says also， ‘State religion.’ Canyou imagine the brutal effrontery of anyone whodemands a good， clean penman for 11 cents an hourinquiring into the victim’s religion？ But that is whatbusted people are offered.”
THE FEAR OF CRITICISM
Just how man originally came by this fear， no onecan state definitely， but one thing is certain— he hasit in a highly developed form. Some believe that thisfear made its appearance about the time that politicsbecame a “profession.” Others believe it can betraced to the age when women first began to concernthemselves with “styles” in wearing apparel.
This author， being neither a humorist nor a prophet， is inclined to attribute the basic fear ofcriticism to that part of man’s inherited nature whichprompts him not only to take away his fellowman’sgoods and wares， but to justify his action byCRITICISM of his fellowman’s character. It is a wellknown fact that a thief will criticise the man fromwhom he steals-that politicians seek office， not bydisplaying their own virtues and qualifications， butby attempting to besmirch their opponents.
The fear of criticism takes on many forms， themajority of which are petty and trivial. Bald-headedmen， for example， are bald for no other reason thantheir fear of criticism. Heads become bald becauseof the tight fitting bands of hats which cut off thecirculation from the roots of the hair. Men wear hats，not because they actually need them， but mainlybecause “everyone is doing it.” The individualfalls into line and does likewise， lest some otherindividual CRITICISE him. Women seldom havebald heads， or even thin hair， because they wear hatswhich fit their heads loosely， the only purpose of thehats being adornment.
But， it must not be supposed that women are freefrom the fear of criticism. If any woman claims to besuperior to man with reference to this fear， ask her towalk down the street wearing a hat of the vintage of1890.
The astute manufacturers of clothing have notbeen slow to capitalize this basic fear of criticism，with which all mankind has been cursed. Everyseason the styles in many articles of wearing apparelchange. Who establishes the styles？ Certainly notthe purchaser of clothing， but the manufacturer. Whydoes he change the styles so often？ The answer isobvious. He changes the styles so he can sell moreclothes.
For the same reason the manufacturers of automobiles（with a few rare and very sensible exceptions）change styles of models every season. No man wantsto drive an automobile which is not of the lateststyle， although the older model may actually be thebetter car.
We have been describing the manner in which people behave under the influence of fear of criticism as applied to the small and petty thingsof life. Let us now examine human behavior whenthis fear affects people in connection with the moreimportant events of human relationship. Take forexample practically any person who has reached theage of “mental maturity” （from 35 to 40 years ofage， as a general average）， and if you could read thesecret thoughts of his mind， you would find a verydecided disbelief in most of the fables taught by themajority of the dogmatists and theologians a fewdecades back.
Not often， however， will you find a person whohas the courage to openly state his belief on thissubject. Most people will， if pressed far enough， tella lie rather than admit that they do not believe thestories associated with that form of religion whichheld people in bondage prior to the age of scientificdiscovery and education.
Why does the average person， even in this dayof enlightenment， shy away from denying hisbelief in the fables which were the basis of mostof the religions a few decades ago？ The answer is，“because of the fear of criticism.” Men and womenhave been burned at the stake for daring to expressdisbelief in ghosts. It is no wonder we have inheriteda consciousness which makes us fear criticism. Thetime was， and not so far in the past， when criticismcarried severe punishments-it still does in somecountries.
The fear of criticism robs man of his initiative，destroys his power of imagination， limits hisindividuality， takes away his self-reliance， and doeshim damage in a hundred other ways. Parents oftendo their children irreparable injury by criticisingthem. The mother of one of my boyhood chums usedto punish him with a switch almost daily， alwayscompleting the job with the statement， “You’ll landin the penitentiary before you are twenty.” He wassent to a Reformatory at the age of seventeen.