Editorial July 8, 1905 Issue

The Relation of Sickness and Poverty

Archibald McLellan

SOME persons who have attended our Wednesday evening meetings for the first time have been more or less mystified and unfavorably impressed by the fact that many references are made by the speakers to the great improvement which has taken place in their financial condition since they have accepted Christian Science as their rule of living; and because the connection between sickness and poverty has not been understood, although a little thought upon the subject would have shown them that the two are usually as closely related as parent and child, these investigators have gone away from the meetings in a somewhat dissatisfied frame of mind. Would it not be well, therefore, for those who thus refer to their material affairs to give a reason for their betterment which will be intelligible to the casual attendant, and thus avoid all danger of misunderstanding.

To those who do not know that poverty is so largely the result of sickness we commend the following statement by Jane Addams in the Chicago Inter Ocean. She writes, "The subject of poverty has been more scientifically investigated in recent years, and especially in the last year, and it has been found that intemperance ranks only third in the causes of poverty. In some cities it ranks fifth.

"Sickness and accidents both have had greater effects on the workingman and on mankind in general in reducing him to lower straits financially. Sickness has played a surprisingly large part, and outdistances intemperance, while accidents also take precedence over intemperance."

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