﻿44 
  THE 
  UNFATHOMED 
  UNIVERSE 
  

  

  as 
  simply 
  as 
  possible, 
  as 
  completely 
  as 
  possible, 
  and 
  as 
  consistently 
  

   as 
  possible. 
  But 
  this 
  view 
  of 
  Laws 
  of 
  Nature 
  as 
  merely 
  descriptive 
  

   formulae 
  must 
  not 
  be 
  exaggerated; 
  the 
  formulae 
  often 
  imply 
  a 
  great 
  

   deal 
  of 
  preliminary 
  analysis 
  and 
  reduction, 
  which 
  is 
  ' 
  explanation 
  ' 
  

   of 
  a 
  sort 
  ; 
  they 
  must 
  be 
  verifiable 
  by 
  all 
  normally 
  constituted 
  minds 
  ; 
  

   and 
  that 
  they 
  bear 
  close 
  correspondence 
  to 
  the 
  actualities 
  of 
  Nature 
  

   is 
  shown 
  by 
  the 
  way 
  in 
  which 
  we 
  use 
  them 
  safely 
  in 
  prediction. 
  

   Moreover, 
  the 
  descriptive 
  formulations 
  of 
  science 
  must, 
  in 
  relevant 
  

   cases, 
  be 
  followed 
  by 
  a 
  historical 
  or 
  genetic 
  account 
  of 
  the 
  sub- 
  

   jects 
  of 
  study 
  especially, 
  of 
  course, 
  when 
  we 
  are 
  working 
  w 
  r 
  ithin 
  

   the 
  boundaries 
  of 
  the 
  realm 
  of 
  organisms. 
  

  

  The 
  limitations 
  of 
  natural 
  knowledge 
  are 
  great. 
  We 
  know 
  Nature 
  

   only 
  in 
  the 
  mirror 
  of 
  our 
  minds; 
  we 
  are 
  limited 
  by 
  our 
  senses; 
  we 
  

   cannot 
  make 
  scientific 
  progress 
  without 
  taking 
  partial 
  or 
  abstract 
  

   views, 
  and 
  the 
  correlation 
  of 
  these 
  is 
  difficult; 
  our 
  fundamental 
  con- 
  

   cepts 
  (like 
  'matter/ 
  'energy/ 
  ' 
  organism 
  ') 
  are 
  not 
  self-explanatory, 
  

   but 
  big 
  with 
  mystery; 
  they 
  are 
  not 
  final, 
  but 
  in 
  process 
  of 
  develop- 
  

   ment; 
  the 
  law 
  of 
  gravitation 
  is 
  perhaps 
  the 
  finest 
  example 
  of 
  a 
  

   far-reaching 
  descriptive 
  formula, 
  but 
  it 
  does 
  not 
  tell 
  us 
  why 
  the 
  

   apple 
  falls 
  to 
  the 
  ground; 
  in 
  some 
  departments 
  of 
  science 
  we 
  try 
  

   to 
  give 
  historical 
  descriptions 
  or 
  to 
  trace 
  genetic 
  series, 
  but 
  we 
  know 
  

   little 
  of 
  any 
  beginnings; 
  the 
  world 
  is 
  full 
  of 
  unsolved 
  concrete 
  

   problems 
  thus 
  such 
  a 
  common 
  phenomenon 
  as 
  cell-division 
  remains 
  

   in 
  great 
  part 
  an 
  enigma; 
  there 
  are 
  hints 
  of 
  facts 
  beyond 
  our 
  present 
  

   horizon; 
  and 
  so 
  on. 
  In 
  an 
  age 
  of 
  extraordinarily 
  rapid 
  scientific 
  

   discovery, 
  we 
  stand 
  wondering 
  before 
  an 
  unfathomed 
  universe. 
  

  

  The 
  world 
  without 
  has 
  played 
  an 
  important 
  part 
  in 
  the 
  evolution 
  

   of 
  the 
  human 
  spirit. 
  Its 
  enigmas 
  have 
  educated 
  our 
  intelligence; 
  

   its 
  practical 
  problems 
  have 
  trained 
  our 
  will; 
  and 
  in 
  Animate 
  Nature 
  

   in 
  particular 
  Man 
  has 
  found 
  a 
  school 
  of 
  feeling. 
  In 
  her 
  varied 
  

   opportunities 
  Nature 
  has 
  helped 
  in 
  polishing 
  the 
  mirror 
  of 
  our 
  

   minds 
  in 
  which 
  we 
  see 
  her, 
  and 
  there 
  is 
  no 
  reason 
  to 
  believe 
  that 
  

   the 
  polishing 
  is 
  finished. 
  As 
  regards 
  feeling 
  for 
  Nature, 
  however, 
  

   the 
  scientific 
  mood, 
  now 
  so 
  dominant, 
  is 
  antipodal, 
  and 
  the 
  scientific 
  

   systematisations 
  may 
  be 
  actively 
  hostile. 
  Nature-poetry, 
  symbolism, 
  

   Natural 
  Theology, 
  philosophical 
  idealisations, 
  and 
  religious 
  spiritual- 
  

   isations 
  valuable 
  as 
  they 
  may 
  be 
  to 
  attuned 
  minds 
  fail 
  in 
  many 
  

   cases 
  to 
  find 
  any 
  satisfactory 
  organic 
  response, 
  and 
  the 
  life 
  of 
  

   feeling 
  has 
  been 
  impoverished. 
  Yet 
  to 
  try 
  to 
  leave 
  feeling 
  out 
  in 
  our 
  

   view 
  of 
  Nature 
  is 
  to 
  try 
  to 
  close 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  right-of-way 
  paths 
  to 
  

  

  