Maugham on money

In Chapter 51 of Maugham's Of Human Bondage, Cronshaw discusses money, which is very apropos:

"...There is nothing so degrading as the constant anxiety about one's means of livelihood. I have nothing but contempt for the people who despise money. They are hypocrites or fools. Money is like a sixth sense without which you cannot make a complete use of the other five. Without an adequate income half the possibilities of life are shut off...."

Now if only, over the years, Cronshaw had taken the money that he was spending on cigarettes and booze, and instead put it into a diversified basket of stocks and bonds, he might not be so sour and deprived in his middle age.

[Edit: As dan points out in the comments, it was not Cronshaw who made these statements, but Foinet, Philip's art instructor. I don't recall that Foinet had any financial difficulties, so it's not clear how he got this perspective. Maybe it came from the observation of generations of his students.]