The Birmingham age-herald., 1918-07-08
TlUo New Library Books
By DIR. GEORGE EAvEs

Never since the world began has there [ been so high d premium as now on the thinkers in democracies. All our world | is suffering an upheavaL Old alterations ] are being healed, while new antagonisms appear. The stratihed and solid rocks of yesterday are being rent by the pow erful torrents let loose from what seemed bar ks of enternal snow. Or, 10 put it in apostolic language. God is shaking not the earth only but also heaven. so that only the things that cannot be shaken are likely to remain. The world that was is being overflowed with long-pent-up floods, and is hasteuing also to the ven geance of aeonial fire.
 It is strange that such a shaking should have come so near to the century-mark following that cataclysm known as the French Revolution Then was the judg- ment day of feudal lordships, as now we also stand before the judgment seat os the Sen of Man to answer for de- naocracy, whether it's deeds are good or bad So, also, German. Austria and Turkey. with grooming hearts, must an swer for the deeds of their autocracies. For nothing is more certain than this
 
 Tag" At such a moment we need wise words 1 have been reading Benjamin l Kidd's book. published in America pos thumously. the sequel to his Social | EV olution." and apparently brought to | light by the events of July and August, | 1914. It's title is odd and misleading. The Science of Power" but it's mes- | sage is exceedingly fitting to the mo- ment. Both are in our library.
 i l wonder whether I can persuade the reader to put in his application at the 1 public library for both Kidd's books, | They don't categorically answer all his questions, but they will provoke his ad- miration, force him to answer his own questions, and provide him with new skill of understanding. They will help l to socialize him.
 | MT. Kidd was a seer. rather than | logician, as his present editor appro~ l prately observes. His was the intuition 1 which did much to arrest the indis- crminate praise of Darwinsm 9 years ago. I frankly and gratefully acknowl- edge my own debt to his 'Social Evolu- ton" at that time. It showed me that the struggle for existence, with eonse- quent survival of the strong. was no ac- count to give of the evolution of human societies and nations. These are based on free-will sacrifice and bound by l something stronger than enlightened seltishneSs.'
 Germany swallowed Darwin's theory in her peculiarly muish, headlong, thor
 ough going manner and proceeded to ap- ply it to the international situation. She reverts to the red domain of tooth and claw, the rule of the jungle and the cave.
 Only she uses the latest science to make
 her claws and teeth longer, sharper, stronger. She proposes herself as the
 home and source of the new human type, the superman, and she claims for the
 superman the ethics of the superbeast.
 MT Kidd presents all this, along with
 evidence that all the west has long been held under a quasiD Darwinism, and has,
 therefore, long been at war within itself, in what we call the class struggle. In
 contrast to this dominion by force he
 proposes dominion by power" and by "rower' he means the surrender of man.
 kind to sacrifice for its ideal That
 ideal is not clearly expended, but is evi-
 dently altruism, chivalry, brotherliness;
 and he expects that mere reason will be 1 dethroned in favor of this higher force, , which he conceives to be the peculiar ! contribution of womanhood. Instead of l the muscular and slaughtering male of } the race, woman will control, but not } through force: only through changing
 our racial or national psychology by adeouaue inuoctrnation of the children Within a generation kaiserism created a
 
 psychology. It is up to the west gen , eralIy to learn that tremendous lesson l and use it for decent ends, though Ger many used it for the ghastliest wicked ness
 s MT. Kidd says that the nation which l will yield itself thus to the emotion of . the ideal" and indoctrinate it's children l. | in the laws Of sacrifice. will dominate the world He does not say how this
 can be done to start with, unless that 1 nation makes itself safe by adequate armaments of military or naval prepared ness becoming a nation in arms until the new psychological outlook has been | achieved. Nor does he say how, even 1 after the due enthronement of the fem ] mine and of sacriicial passion, there will ] be any escape from crucifixon by an
 unseemly world, still idealizng national ambitions; but, unquestonably he re- t news the conviction that social welfare | is far from the region of organism far from the jungle and the brute, far from
 "Fotsdam and it's gang of cutthroats, far from the struggle for existence. One other word: If one reads, as he | should, "The Science of Power. < let him 5 re careful to study the preface of it's } American editor.
 There Is another new book in our li- hrary which is of the utmost interest r to whoso enjoys racine and humor and 5 exquisite style, set as framework for