Man in the Light of Evolution 



drink. The more a man knows, the more he 

 longs for knowledge. The best long most In- 

 tensely for the highest. While the lower mo- 

 tives enslave, the higher give the most complete 

 freedom to the man absorbed In their pursuit. 



The line of evolution Is not straight. We 

 might compare It to an ever-widening ascending 

 spiral, In which progress, while ever upward. Is 

 often apparently In almost opposite directions, 

 as the earth swings toward and away from the 

 sun In Its elliptical orbit. The final goal Is clear, 

 but the direction of movement varies from stage 

 to stage. We may speak of evolution as one 

 process in reference to Its end; we may speak of 

 it with equal justice as a series of processes. 



Life Is first half vegetable, then more and 

 more purely animal, finally human. Natural 

 selection works first for good digestion, then for 

 tough and powerful muscles, then for shrewd- 

 ness, finally for righteousness and love. The 

 spur to action varies from stage to stage, and new 

 motives arise. Life Is at first largely chemical 

 or physical. Consciousness and thought seem 

 hardly more than by-products. Life remains 

 dependent upon chemical and physical forces 

 and processes, but all these are directed by a 



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