The evening world., 1922-05-02
E TOL U TT o "
The A B c Of THIS Famous
Epoch-Making Theory
BY Ranson,e Sutton
XVI. THE NATURE AND eRowTH
OF MIND.
oopyrisht. isz2 cine New York Bvsnins
World) By Press Publishing Compnny.

VI mINbs
Is mind. or soul, or spirit, or con-
science, or whatever the sentient part
vi man may be called, something that
resides within the body without tssing
u part Of the body, or was 1t evolved
aJong with the body as a function OF
mo body? 1 speak Of mind and soul
as generally synonymous, although
mind Is the more inclusive noun; 1t
includes the sentiments. emotions and
feelings, of which the soul consists,
as we'll as the intellectual faculties.
The belief that mind, or soul, and
body are separate entities. which 1.-Two
together for a time then part COM
pany, is based on faith alone. No
shred of tangible evidence. such as
would be accepted in a court Of law.
has ever been produced, 80 far as am
aware, whereby the truth or falsity
of the faith can be tested. II any
reader Of The Evening World knows
of such evidence, sincerely trust he
will call my attention to It. Tho
photographs which Conan Doyle is
exhibiting and the ghosts which arc
thrown on the screen in moving PIC
ture shows are illusory. Why? Be-
cause everything that can be photo
graphed is substantial and, being sub
stantial, weighs something. We know
tnat a corpse weighs exactly as much
us the living person weighed; hence
a spirit leaving the body at the mo-
ment of death would not be Of
substantial nature and could not,
therefore. be photographed.
To men and women of open mind
submit few bits of evidence which
indicate that mind and body were
evolved together.
We know that the human body
starts as a single cell of protoplasm-
the ovum, which\ divides into two
cells, the two divide into four cells.
the four into eight and so on until
growth ceases. Meanwhile, the an
cestral impulse which caused the
ovum to divide also caused the null
tiplying cells to divide among them
selves the labor of living, as a result
of which different groups Of cells
have acquired different functions.
But every cell in the body can be
traced back to the same starting cell,
which is very like the single celled
organisms found in tainted water.
Do such lowly creatures manifest
mentality? Certain bacteria are the
nearest things to nothing that can
be called alive. Having neither
stomach nor mouth, they imbibe and
digest particles of food about as
drop of water absorbs and dissolves
in 4P tu 81
mouth and stomach are diffuseJ
throughout the body. In like manner
the undifferentiated senses-feeling.
hearing, tasting, seeing and smelling
are diffused throughout the tiny
mass of protoplasm.
Now, If a grain of salt be inserted
| under a slide of stagnating water,
| bacteria will be seen circling around
the salt area; 1t is injurious to them.
and they know enough to avoid 1t.
| If the salt be removed and an air
| bubble be inserted in its place, they
| will Immediately swarm into 1t, the
| oxygen in the air being helpful TO
| them.
| If a slide containing amoebde be
| placed under u microscope the largeJ
amoebae will be seen pursuing smaller
amoebae. Were the large amoebae
cats and the small ones mice, we
should certainly regard their behavior
as Indicative OF sense. For unless they
could perceive one another, how
would 1t be possible for one to pursue
and the other to fee?
Plants have never developed brains;
but. as protoplasm in any form may
receive and retain impressions, mind
materials exist in plant protoplasm.
There is mimosa plant which, like
Venus's fiy-trap, lives on insects. Its
leaves have to be tapped three times,
not by drops of rain but by the feet
or wings of insects. before they close.
IF something akin to memory were
not present, how would 1t remember
TO close at the third tapping?
The mind and body Of a child. origi-
mating in an ovum, grow simultane-
ously until mature, then deteriorate
together, senility being sure sign Of
| aid age.