Con/onmfy to Environment 



itself. It adds a rudder or steering oar, and 

 now every swing of the rudder changes the re- 

 sultant of the forces of wind and tide. 



It seems evident that all surviving animals 

 conform to environment, and that those which 

 conform to the highest or best environment 

 progress. Conversely environment is that to 

 which all living beings conform. It includes all 

 those objects, forces, tendencies, which have any 

 effect or bearing upon life. But any force which 

 could not touch or in any way affect the life of 

 an animal would form no part of its environ- 

 ment. Music could form no part of the envi- 

 ronment of a totally deaf world of animals. 

 Only in so far as an object directly or indirectly 

 comes into the range of our experience and af- 

 fects our life can it be said to really form any 

 part of our environment. 



Our surroundings include all the objects and 

 forces of the universe; our environment, how- 

 ever broad, is limited. We cannot come into 

 close relations with all objects and beings. With 

 some our relation is very close, with others it 

 is remote and slight. Some forces and objects 

 move us powerfully, others very feebly or not 

 at all. The former play an important part in 



169 



