Public spirit is patriotism in action; it is the application of Christianity to the commonwealth; it is effective loyalty to our country, to the brotherhood of man, and to the future.

It is the use of a man by himself for the general good.
Public spirit is the one great antidote for all the ills of the Nation, and greatly the Nation needs it now.

In a day when the vast increase in wealth tends to reduce all things, moral, intellectual and material, to the measure of the dollar; in a day when we have with us always the man who is working for his own pocket all the time; when the monopolist of land, of opportunity, of power or privilege in any form, is ever in the public eye--it is good to remember that the real leaders are the men who value the right to give themselves more highly than any gain whatsoever.
It is given to few men to serve their country as greatly as President Roosevelt has done, yet vastly smaller services are still tremendously worth while.

I question whether there has ever been a time and place (except in violent crises) when the demand for public spirit was greater than now and the results of it more assured.

Public spirit is never needed more than in times of prosperity, and it is never more effective.
It is the boat which is floating easily and rapidly with the stream that is most in danger of striking the rocks.
The reasons why public opinion may be so effective in the United States are not far to seek.