Wren and Martin Comprehension Exercise 147
One common mistake that many people have made is this: they have thought that it would be a very good thing if everybody had exactly the same amount of money, no matter whether they worked hard or lived quite idly. They forget that very few people would work at all if it were not for the money their work brings them, and that without work there would be no money. And they have imagined that if all the money in the country were equally divided everybody would be rich. Now that is a very great mistake, because there simply is not enough money to make everybody rich. If it were shared equally all round every one then would, on the basis of the calculations made in 1935, receive only about Rs. 65 a year. Today with a rise in the price level it might be Rs. 150 a
year. That may be more than you receive now or it may be less, but would certainly not make you really rich. It is quite true that there are in this country a small number of very rich people; but they are so few in comparison with the whole population that even if they were to share out all their wealth among the rest, it would make very little difference. It is said that if you flattened out that great French mountain Mont Blanc, the highest mountain in Europe, and spread it over the whole of France you would only raise the level of the land by about six inches. See if you can think out what that has to do with the question I have been talking about.
Many people, unfortunately, seem to think also that Government can always pay out money quite easily and in any quantity, and they forget, of else they do not know, that the Government can only pay out money that it has received in taxes – money that the tax-payer has had to work for.
And now here is one final mistake that I should like to warn you against, Don’t ever imagine that there is any thing to be ashamed of, or anything undignified, to grumble about in having to work hard for your living. If when you start work you can go into a job that suits you, so that you can really enjoy the work itself, so much the better: I hope that is what will happen, But if the work is not exactly the kind that you would choose, you must try to remember that you are helping to produce the things that other people need; you are “doing your bit” and playing your part In the work of the world- You are like a wheel, even if it is only 5 very tiny wheel, in the great world-machinery of trade and industry that is always busily at work providing for the wants of hundreds of millions of people, and you must “put your back into it” and see to it that your particular task is always done as well as you can possibly do it.
– Ernest F. Row
1. Why is it really necessary to work?
We must work to run the machine of world.
2. If all the money in the world were equally divided, everybody would be very happy. Do you agree?
No, everybody would not be happy. If all the money were divided, everyone’s share would just be Rs. 65. This amount will certainly make no one rich.
3. The author tells us about flattening Mont Blanc and the little difference it would make in raising the level of France. What is his point in giving us this example?
The author is trying to explain that if all the money of rich and poor people were equally divided, it would make very little difference.
4. Which is the best job in the world? Why must you embrace it lovingly?
According to the author, the best job for you is the job that suits you. So, you enjoy the job.
5. What is the meaning of: “put your back into it” “doing your bit”?
- Put your back into it – to work hard at something
- Doing your bit – completing your work
6. Paraphrase :”You are like a wheel…..millions of people.”
Like a tiny wheel, you are working in the machine of world. And, that machine of world is always busy working to provide the wants of hundreds of millions of people.
