THE HIGHER VALUES OF SCIENCE 303 



more general sense, as meaning thoughtful doubting of that 

 which cannot be proved, and shall consider the significance 

 of such a state of mind. What we shall try to show is that 

 some measure of skepticism regarding present practice is the 

 foundation for a spirit of toleration. The history of religious 

 toleration, for example, shows that skepticism, regarding 

 the authority for theological dogmas, was the force that 

 finally curbed persecution. Conviction that he is right is 

 part of the psychology of the persecutor. To doubt the 

 grounds for one's convictions means eventually the collapse 

 of intolerance. 



Religious toleration is fairly well established in western 

 society, but so-called heathen communities often exhibit a 

 spirit which puts us to shame. 9 If there is less of toleration 

 within the politico-economic field, a reasonable degree is 

 practiced, save in times of excitement when it appears that 

 intolerance is very near the surface. This is perhaps because 

 political and economic convictions matter so greatly in our 

 practical world, while theological convictions have come to 

 be regarded as unimportant. For example, if one is skeptical 

 as to the perfections of the existing social order, and chal- 

 lenges the conviction that the founders of the nation possessed 

 an omiscience enabling them to create a form of govern- 

 ment which must remain unchanged, his mental attitude is 

 far from unimportant in the eyes of the authorities. It 

 not only irritates, by going counter to what has been assumed 

 as a matter of course, it also suggests disagreeable possibil- 

 ities, such as changes in material and economic conditions. 

 Denunciation of skepticism is sound procedure for those who 

 would maintain the status quo in any field, because skepti- 

 cism eventually means toleration and hence possible modifi- 

 cation of the established order. 



The value of skepticism to the human mind lies in the fact 

 that it creates the frame of mind, which is willing to break 



9 A forceful statement of the religious toleration existing in a certain East 

 Indian state is given by Price Collier in "The West in the East," p. 274. 



