to deal with these problems. In economic and social affairs progress seems to be made most rapidly by building upon past achievements. Something certainly may be learned from the experiments of thousands of years. This historic survey is to be found in Part III. Dependents are of various kinds and classes. While certain basic principles apply to all classes, experience shows that special principles and methods must be applied to special classes, such as the aged, widows, feeble-minded, epileptics, the sick, etc. The extent of each of these special classes, the historic methods of treating them, the principles of treatment which experience has approved, and suggestions as to improvements on present methods are set forth in Part IV. No study of these problems would be complete without a discussion of preventive agencies and methods. If we hope to reach a reasonably adequate solution we must consider whether, in addition to the ambulance at the bottom of the precipice, we should not provide a fence at the top in order to lessen the number who fall over. Further, the kind of fence must be considered. The study shows that poverty and dependency are resultants of very diverse and complex social and economic maladjustments. Industry, legislation, social institutions, schools, churches, customs, group habits, attitudes and ideals all affect the problem. These have been considered in Part V. These problems are problems of sociology. The principles of sociology are involved in their comprehension and in their solution. Hence, in the last chapter has been discussed briefly the relation of these problems to sociology. A study of them helps us to understand our social organization and something of the social processes, as in a cross section we see the way in which the mind of society works. Here we see the social organization in some of the products. Just as in physiology the study of pathological conditions throws light upon the functions of the healthy human body, just as in psychology we come to understand better the normal mind by exploring the abnormal mind, so in sociology the study of poverty and dependency-abnormal social phenomena-teaches something concerning the nature and functions of normal society. CHAPTER II APPROACH TO THE PROBLEM OF DEPENDENCY POVERTY as a problem for the social mind arises only in a com plex civilization. As long as society was organized on the tribal basis and property was owned in common by the group or the kindred, poverty was not a problem. However, with the organization of society upon a civil basis, with the growth of individual ownership, and with the development of classes in society, exploitation of the common resources for the benefit of the few and to the disadvantage of the many occurs. Since people are unequal in capacity to produce enough for a livelihood and to care for themselves, as soon as individual ownership of property arose, economic inequalities developed. Along with the development of individual ownership of property went hand in hand the break-down of common responsibility for the welfare of all in the group. Until the State develops a consciousness of common responsibility for every member of it, the results of unequal conditions and variations in personal capacity guarantee that some should suffer. Historical Methods of Approaching the Problem of Dependency. As soon as poverty became a problem, some people in every society gave thought to it. Sometimes these were the thinkers of the group. These endeavored to formulate a theory as to the proper way to treat the poor. In every society distress evoked response on the part of sympathetic individuals; mutual helpfulness characterized the individuals in early human society, no matter what the form of social organization. This sympathetic reaction toward distress by early groups, while having very little rationale, served nevertheless to meet. the immediate need of the unfortunate. The motive that led to the relief of distress in this way might be called the sympathetic motive. It was largely an instinctive reaction to suffering made visible. If there was any rationality in it, it was imagination of the consequences to oneself of being in similar circumstances. The religious life of primitive man was a very real and intense matter. Soon after poverty had become a problem to men's minds, |