influence the mental attitude almost as much as the mental attitude will
influence the tone. If you honestly feel resentful against some one,
but, having understood the foolishness of fury, intentionally mask your
fury under a persuasive tone, your fury will at once begin to abate. You
will be led into a rational train of thought; you will see that after
all the object of your resentment has a right to exist, and that he is
neither a doormat nor a scoundrel, and that anyhow nothing is to be
gained, and much is to be lost, by fury. You will see that fury is
unworthy of you.

Do you remember the gentleness of the tone which you employed after the
healing of your first quarrel with a beloved companion? Do you remember
the persuasive tone which you used when you wanted to obtain something
from a difficult person on whom your happiness depended? Why should not
your tone always combine these qualities? Why should you not carefully
school your tone? Is it beneath you to ensure the largest possible
amount of your own 'way' by the simplest means? Or is there at the back
of your mind that peculiarly English and German idea that politeness,
sympathy, and respect for another immortal soul would imply deplorable
weakness on your part? You say that your happiness does not depend on
every person whom you happen to speak to. Yes, it does. Your happiness
is always dependent on just that person. Produce friction, and you
suffer. Idle to argue that the person has no business to be upset by
your tone! You have caused avoidable friction, simply because your
machine for dealing with your environment was suffering from pride,
ignorance, or thoughtlessness. You say I am making a mountain out of a
mole-hill. No! I am making a mountain out of ten million mole-hills.
And that is what life does. It is the little but continuous causes that
have great effects. I repeat: Why not deliberately adopt a gentle,
persuasive tone--just to see what the results are? Surely you are not