Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-09-29
NEW BOOKS
AT RANDOM
/. C.. NJ.
I. C. M.

In the beginning God created the
heaven and the earth. And this act
set for all time the prime pre-occupation
Of mankind. That of explaining 70
himself and interpreting to others the
content and meaning Of this creation.
In particular. explaining that part OF
it serving as the "footstool' of the
Creator and, in more immediate sppli-
cation. as the standing ground Of hui
mainly. The earth and its neighbor-
sky, its gigantic heating and lighting
mechanism, the sun. These are the
chief material concern of man himself.
Savage, primitive and modern alike,
these have held as Its main absorption
and concern an explanation of the
stupendous creation. And each, accord
ing to his own time and circumstance,
has given testimony in his own fashion
of the omnipotence behind so great a
demonstration, testimony, too, Of mans
helplessness before 1t. All along the
way Of human advance stand records
of his journey. Bodies Of myth gather
at one point Stores Of legend at an
other. Prophets and seerS assemble
here with forecasts Of doom and prom
iseS of salvation. A long. long period
of fears and groupings created many re-
ligions out of the desperate state of
mere man. Even the Deity, you recall,
grew dubious and almost 'repented
that He had made man"
Then, in the course Of time-of an
inconceivably long time-the fears and
pure emotionalism of the human yield
ed, a little, to some sort of mental
draw-off from sheer terror and its in-
competencies. Man discovered that
within him was a means of foresight,
Of defending himself, simply by seizing
upon some fact and its immediate eff
feet. He tried 1t again. And again. 1t
worked. And man began to sense cause
and effect. Here was O pair, twins, so
to speak, In the fact that they went to-
gether Having sight of one, it was
possible to find the other one Of this
inseparable twain.
Then a new era In the business Of ex-
planning the earth and heaven and
mans part in both began. Religion,
still the main interest, began to sep
arate into diverse tenetS, creeds, dog
mas, isms, what not. Source of much
of the misery Of o whole world up Ito
this day.
But side by side with this older growth
began the rise of philosophy. This. also
breaking into schools Of opposition, into
cults of wide and bitter divergence. An
advance, however. since philosophy was
never so unfailingly passionate in its
claims, so bloodthirsty in Its zeal for
human perfection as the other has, &C.
cording to the history books, proved it
self to be.
Then a new seed began to stir the
soil beside the way of the pilgrims
progress. The seed of science. Here, too
an idea became a gospel. Its basic out
thrust Of action, the truth. Truth must
be the goal Of every pursuit. The truth
OF fact. Of facts in relation. No other
objective considerable for moment A
passion for truth. Upon this foundation
alone has grown q world of truth-finding
inventions to supplement the fallible
senses OF sight, sound, taste, touch
smell. Inventions innumerable for the
trying out of the natural resources OF
the EARTH for their possibilities in re-
spect to man itself. Even the human Is
being reconstructed by science in the
vision of his potential powers. in the
certainty Of his great future. Science
has invented q technique OF method
calculated to serve in high efficiency it,
single purpose of reaching the truth OF
every matter in hand. A method, by the
way. that is being adopted very gener-
ally in every undertaking. Not only
Of organizing bodies of fact into units
Of pictorial disclosure that. like the hui
man body or any other true organism
show principal and subordinate parts
in their proper relations of structure ano
function. The scientific method is no1
the common method of every enterpris:
Of Importance.
Now. just now, we appear TO be at the
summit Of the scientific rage for truth
and progress. Men and women of sensi-
tive and recoiling kidney deplore the
present and fear the future. This ma.
terialistic era" is to them the forecast
of lost and ruined world. Yesterday
Sunday. heard a man say. THE ole
idealism is gone" and wondered what
he meant. To be sure, we are, through
scientific marvel. drawn closer together
more intimately informed of the sorrows
and joys of the world. But I doubt II
ever there were finer. bigger, nobler
more loving enterprises on foot for the
wellbeing of all than there are today
And so wondered. What Is idealism
anyway?
Science is q prodigy. Not q doubt
about 1t, regular John Henry Of
performance. But, in contrast to that
herculean myth, science is truth. Only
about 500 years old, that is, in its mod
ern rise and approach. Yet as we look
upon its operations in every field OF
activity, not surprising If all Of us grow
bit nervous in a puzzled wondering
as to where man himself Is going to
come out from all of these true miracles
Bertrand Russell from his high emil
hence OF experience and wisdom draws
a few pictures of certain cherished in
stitutions OF society under the domi-
nation OF this new world of unfolding
power and tremendous significance. But
before he spreads the picture of the
new society that is to come he reviews
the basic and unacceptable foundations
OF The Scientific Society,"" the last
Of this three-part discussion.
Scientific knowledge" the first part
OF the study makes clear the scientific
method that has taken the world by
storm: The author gives examples of
1t and from these draws out its char
acteristcs, gathering in the fact that
this method does have certain limita-
lions. Again, he Is concrete and illus
trative, since he applies these limita-
lions, In a measure, to the fields of
metaphysics and religion. Interesting
in high degree. Fresh and direct and
sane In disclosure and support or denial
as this man clearly is. Just as he is of
q nigh degree OF ripened scholarship
and thought power.
Scientific Technique" engages the
second division of the study. This part
sets out the rise OF technique in scien-
tif1c research and in the results of that
activity. This is applied to the study
Of inanimate nature, then tn biology
Physiology and psychology become the
next topics Of consideration, with conn
parsons and contrasts set up At this
point among the two great schools Of
psychology that have, in recent times
set of behaviorist from introspectionist
through many sieges of assault and
about even claims of victory. one over
the other Society itself is analyzed
here under this survey of the scientific
technique.
The last division of the study turns
the chronicler into the prophet. mt
with the warming that of course. the