The Management of Life 91 



knowledge and invention, in hygiene, in social organi- 

 zation. It will include, too, such measures as have 

 been discovered or as shall be discovered for improv- 

 ing the living material itself, for improving the race. 

 This, so far as it is practicable, is the most direct 

 method open to us for raising the level of hf e. It is to 

 be done, so far as we can see now, through making 

 better the combinations of living materials that are 

 to develop into the new generations. This requires 

 some control of the matings that are made, requires 

 the prevention of the propagation of individuals that 

 are imperfect in constitution. All this is a difficult 

 task in our present state of knowledge and of social 

 organization. 



But in all this promotion of the fulness and ade- 

 quacy of life for later generations, by whatever 

 means, there is an unlimited field for interest, for 

 ideals, for effort. 



Thus, to sum up, the ideals of conduct, morality, 

 ethics, grow directly out of the urge to live that is 

 common to all organisms. Their essence lies in effort 

 toward the advancement of life, toward the promo- 

 tion of its fulness, variety, and adequacy; they are 

 the management of life toward these ends. As life 

 does indeed advance, more and more things are found 

 to require consideration in this management ; its aims 

 broaden in successive steps. First, most direct, there 

 are the needs of the single individual in the face of 

 the difficulties presented by the world and by the 

 existence of other individuals. Soon the urge is 



