This book was originally written as an elementary text in sociology for use in high schools, colleges, and reading circles where it is desired to combine the study of sociology with a study of current social problems on the one hand, and to correlate it with a course in economics on the other. The generous reception and wide use which the book has enjoyed since its publication seem to indicate that there is a demand for a simple, concrete text in sociology in which methodological discussions are reduced to a minimum and the facts are drawn as far as possible from contemporary social life.