New-York tribune., 1918-01-16
The Biology of the War
of His Nation and the Penalty That Incurred
William Archer, in "Thc Wetnin Gazenc'
The Mem York Tribune Foreign Press Bureau

rupts him that gives and him that ta.s,,
Perhaps the most interesting nor.;s
DR.. Nicolai's treatise is that in which 'H ~ os
verizes the pseudo -Darwinisn which .' | pal-
war an indispensable selectve sy.n.H s' IN
mechanism for promoting the survival l1 w.,
fittest. He has no difficulty, of cou... as
showing that, on the contrary, it enshi.'' IA
unfittest to survive, and TO hand On ths;' 10
firmties to posterity. It is, says Dr. NJ. NJ, ,a
(using the English Words, not a "stru.s, s,'oh
life" but "struggle for DEATH: 's'e ior
"The selection effected by war has
days become negative selection, and - r.sa s'ese
conditions are most artfully devised 'ssus'a ~
prive it Of all biological usefulness ~ w.
suit of universal military service in 49,
lar is that it is precisely the 6ttss, wv ~
succumb." WOO
SO far, DR.. Nicoai's thought follow, r.r
t1odden path. What are particularly o,,..s ss'
and valuable in his work are his ansIra!. Ieus
the fundamental conditions of terre...,
existence and his demonstration ths. '' ;.
time has now come for adapting man, ,s' s
to these conditions, not by a fatalist;. ~. a'
render TO blind atavisms and retrour.d. ~
stncts, but by the exercise Of conscions ~
telligence.
In the lower animals, says DR.. Mat.
"the development of the brain was And :.
dependent on the development Of the aa.s
organs, the number OF which is essent,n-
limited:
"Arstotle already knew that no horned =,
antercd animal at the same time noss...'
the teeth Of beast Of prey-that in far,
each animal one weapon and one onlv l. u
lotted. Thus animals have either good ss..
or good noses-they are 'eye-animsl,, =.
nose -animals'--never both together.
"The brain, then, remained the trus 80.
want of it's master through thousands M.
thousands OF years, until the revolution e,r.
which first set the brain free and then pl,e.s
it on the throne.
Man the Master of Things
"This revolution has occurred onlv in ma,
For man alone has taken she stone IN h,
grasp, ana thus converted his unreirfor,ss
into reinforced hand In 50 doing. he h,5
not, indeed, fashioned any rev bodily orvsr
but he had achieved an 'organ-proiscto
through which he acquired new capaci.s,
just as though he had actually developed
new bodily organ. But-here We come uuop
the momentous diffcrence-the ACQUISITION ::
not burden upon its possessor; he can lsy
down the new organ when he no longer need,
1T. and he can exchange it for other organs
Thus he can gradually provide himself with
multiplicity Of organs such as no animal
could possibly sustain.
THE new organs of course influence And
develop the brain as the old organs did, But
whereas formerly the brain had to wait until
the new organs made their appearance, +
could now make its own new organs, and d.
velop In virtue of its own strength It's
through this self f-production OF organs hr
the brain acquires freedom and indep.
dence."
The tool, and that more elaborate tool IL.
machine, arc thus seen to be at once the h.
struments and the symbols of that advance
beyond the brutes which has made man "thl
master of things" Is it to be conceived .hrI
he is to renounce his liberty and enslsr
himself to the giant brood of Instruments
destruction which, in the very wantonness 4
his mastery over matter, he has called into
being?
DR.. Nicola shows that such madness Is IN.
thinkable; that war, under modern conditions
is impotent to achieve any nationally desir
Bile result; and that. on the other hand tas
human brain, set free from the appalngF
wasteful preoccupations of war is bound to
achieve an indefinite series OF extremely de-
sirable results, some of which are alresd!
clearly foreshadowed and almost within OF,
grasp:
"Man he says is free to develop on sH
sides; but-ths is the one imperative coli-
tion-the development Of the brain must s
promoted il the movement Of humaniws"
be forward movement. In other Fcrds
every victory of the man of sense onF The
Diookhead means progress. and is q sgi
positive selection; every victory of the bS
head over the man of sense means retr0grss |
sion, and is sign OF negative selection