Evening star., 1939-12-30

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In Field, Laboratory
And Study
By Thomas r. Henry.
COLUMBUS, Ohio, Dec. 3o-The ar
mored nations may be following the way
Of the brainless dinosaurs toward extinc-
ton, to be replaced by a new political
and social order as the gigantic reptiles
were replaced by the small, quick-witted
mammals.
This was the warning of DIR. Julian s.
Huxley. English biologist and author, be-
fore the American Association for the
Advancement Of Science here last night.
He stressed the enormous increase in
the strength Of fortifcations, such as
the Maginot and Siegfried Lines, which
have kept Germany and the allies at
deadlock on land for the past three
months at enormous expense. Coupled
with this, he said is the complete organ
ization for war Of the totalitarian powers.
The natural parallel in biology, DR..
Huxley said, is that of the giant reptiles
of the Mesozoic geological period, about
1000 600 years ago. They were the
largest flesh eaters the earth has known,
such as the tyrannosaurs, and the most
heavily armored animals, such as the
stegosaurs.
They answered bulk with bulk, ag-
gression with defensive warfare" he said.
But they were all doomed to extinction
as soon as the changing environment
gave the insignificant but brainier little
mammals their chance. The contraction
of the world due to better communica-
tions provides the corresponding change
of environment today. Brain power
spent on devising new systems is newt
ably destined to supplant the present
armored monsters Of the nation-state
era. The only question is whether it
shall be now, or after more waste and
destruction
war has got out of scale with its
function. During many centuries it op-
Grated wastefully enough, yet with GER
tain efficiency, in adjusting the vsria-
tions of balance OF power caused by
geographical discovery, economic change
and population pressure But today both
its destructiveness and its expensiveness
have got out of hand, and have become
wholly incommensurate with any posi-
tive results which it may help to accrue"
The situation is complicated, DR.. Hulk
ley stressed, by the apparent decline of
traditional religion, even In its most lib
eral aspects. and the search of the world
for new super personal driving force
With the old beliefs fading in the 10Th
century, he said, they were replaced by
a curious materialistic idealism whose
articles of faith were the inevitability of
progress, and the power of knowledge to
improve human nature and bring about
prosperity and peace. This now has
faded in disillusion he said. Three great
nations already have set up new pseudo
religions, all involving the glorifcation
Of the state, The most radical OF these
is that of Germany with its race god, he
said Neither italy nor Russia represents
religio-philosophy.
The doctrine, he said, inevitably has
brought recrudescence of intolerance,
persecution and cruelty which has con-
tributed largely to the final shattering of
the belief In progress in other nations.
The by-products by this situation are
to be noted. First is the unprecedented
rof,,ooo y,rch1ov,o vfhiHt, ~ hoe toN
unprecedented partly because of the vio-
lence and extent of the persecution and
partly because of the nationalistic un-
willingness of other states to absorb new
alien elements. Second is the distor-
ton of truth which it has brought about.
A biological analogy here would seem to
be the incredibly small brains of the
giant Mesozoic reptiles"
But, Dr. Huxley stressed, the analogy
ends with pointing the way to destruc-
ton, with few hints from the course of
evolution as to the way out. The con-
clusion that the result will be lot of
small, energetic and brainy states, cor
responding to the primitive mammals, is
thrown out. he said, by the rapid binding
together of the world through faster
transportation and communication and
the economic impossibility Of carrying
on such a. system.
1t is inevitable, he stressed, that the
world eventually become a single eco
nomic unit, for which there is no parallel
The failure of the League of Nations, he
said. could be attributed to the fact that
it was ahead of its time. In the past 20
years, he believes, there has been a
notable advance of thinking from world
point of view. The League, he said, had
no power because it had no money-the
largest sum Of the appropriations for Its
support being less than the annual
budget of the London County Council for
sewers alone.
Deplores Dies Attack on