64 THE LIFE OF SCIENCE 



wretched laboratories, or in other obscure corners scattered all 

 over the civilized world, with hardly any regard for political 

 boundaries, social or religious distinctions. "The wind bloweth 

 where it listeth." The secrecy of their work is enhanced by the 

 fact that it goes on in spite of the catastrophes, wars and revolu- 

 tions which retain the whole attention of the people. Wars and 

 revolutions are not essentially different from natural catastrophes 

 such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, floods or epidemics; 

 they are almost as impersonal and uncontrollable. For most men 

 these catastrophes are by far the most important events, and this 

 is natural enough, since their welfare is dreadfully affected by 

 them. Galileo's or Newton's discoveries do not raise the price of 

 food or shelter, at least not with sufficient suddenness to be per- 

 ceptible. For us, on the contrary, these discoveries which must 

 sooner or later transform man's outlook and, so to say, magnify 

 both the universe and himself, are the cardinal events of the 

 world's history. All the catastrophes, caused either by the untamed 

 forces of nature or by the irrepressible folly of men, are nothing 

 but accidents. They interrupt and upset man's essential activity 

 but, however formidable, they do not and cannot dominate it. 



7he essential history of mankind is largely secret. Visible his- 

 tory is nothing but the local scenery, the everchanging and capri- 

 cious background of this invisible history which, alone, is truly 

 ecumenical and progressive. From our point of view, peoples and 

 nations, even as men, are not to be judged by the power or the 

 wealth they have attained, not by the amount of perishable goods 

 which they produce, but only by their imperishable contributions 

 to the whole of humanity. 



