The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1918-10-31

between the two poles of individ-
uallsm, taking the latter term in its
strictly philosophical adaptation.
When we choose the individual
or society and champion the one
against the other we set up false
alternative and reveal a radically
wrong conception of the origin of
individuality and of sociality and.
therefore, of the relation of the In
dividual and society to each other.
Every human being is not only the
child of his parents but the child of
the race, and inherits the universal
racial characteristics. He is en-
dowed not only with the individu-
alistic instincts of self-preservation
but also with the social instincts of
affection, imitation, bashfulness,
shame, love of appreciation. sympa-
thy and the like, which link him to
his kind. Our powers are, Of
course, developed by their use, what
a muscle is depends on what it
does. Placed under such unatural
conditions that it could never be
used, muscle could never be de-
veloped. A sense of duty is de-
veloped only by doing duty. He
that doeth righteousness is right
eous. If an infant could be reared
by a wolf, and by this unhuman
foster mother brought to self
support without ever having come
into contact with his own kind, he
would be in character much more
wolfish than human; his intellect
ual and moral life would remain
dormant, because he would never
have been brought into intelligent
and moral relations with intelligent
and moral beings. Apart from his
fellows a human being could not
develop his moral or intellectual
nature, that is he could not become
a man. We are told that Helen
Keller remembers when she had
only physical appetities and de-
sires. In other words she can
remember when she was an animal,
perhaps the only living human be-
ing of whom this has been true.
There was wonderful possibilities
intellectual and moral life and
beauty lying dormant in her brain,
but they we're only possibilities
because she was cut off from socie-
ty. No one can doubt for moment
that had she remained thus isolated
her intellectual and moral life
would have remained undeveloped.
That is, she was individualized
through social relations. And if,
instead of coming under the train
ing of a wonderfully patient and
skillful teacher, she had been placed
among the Eskimos of Alaska, and
hearing had been given to her,
evidently her degree of individual
ion would have been as slight as
the sociality of those savages is
low. What mother has not been
almost appalled, as she has seen the
face of her still-infant child in
famed with rage, and the passion
ate desire for revenge. Its chubby
hands are not always raised to
caress; but too often to strike, as
mind and heart develop, darker and
meaner the trails unfold with every
natural grace. There is canker
worm in the bud, and unless it is
removed there can not be a perfect
flower. On the other hand, society
can achieve a higher order only by
individualizing the individual. Or
ganisms rise in the scale of being
just in proportion as their organs
increase in number, variety and
complexity. Variety is much more
than the spice of life, it is an index
of life's rank. All progress in the
world of life has depended on cell
differentiation. Individuals may be
called the cells of the social organ
ism, and the primitive group, in
which there is only q very limited