FRAIL

In the beginning of the life of the race all men hunted, fished, fought,
danced, sang, and loafed. These were the only manly vocations. There were
no clerks, no doctors, and, perhaps, no priests. In some races and under
some conditions to-day, all of the men are hunters and fishers, or
shepherds and stock-raisers, or all the men till the field. Some years
ago, in our country, practically all the male population worked at the
trade of agriculture, there being only a few preachers, doctors, lawyers,
merchants, and clerks.

In the nations of Europe to-day people are born to certain professions or
born to a certain narrow circle of vocations; some people are born to
manual labor, and, having once performed manual labor, are thereby firmly
fixed in the class of those who earn their living by their hands; others
are born in a class above that, and will suffer almost any privation
rather than earn their living by manual labor. In the United States this
same feeling is becoming more and more prevalent. Our physical work is
nearly all of it done by those who came to us from across the sea, and
native-born Americans seek vocations in some other sphere.

The common school is everywhere, and education is compulsory. The high
school is also to be found in all parts of the country. There are also
business colleges, technical schools, academies, universities, colleges,
professional schools, correspondence schools, and other educational
institutions of every possible kind. These are patronized by the
native-born population as well as by many of those who come to us from
foreign lands. The result is that, of the first great class which we shall
treat, there are comparatively few in relation to the whole population.
Even though this is true, there are all too many.

The first class of misfits is composed of those who are too frail for
physical labor and who are not well enough educated to take their places
amongst clerical or professional workers. These unfortunates do not like
hard, manual work; they cannot do it well; they are outclassed in it. They
do not hold any position long; they are frequently unemployed; and they
are often compelled to live by their wits. As a general rule, those in
this class are well equipped intellectually by nature, and would have
responded splendidly to educative efforts if they had been given an
opportunity. People of this class lack physical courage. They shrink from
hardship and will do almost