50 Instinct, 



winter in the depth of its polar night. How pow- 

 erless every form of life would be under such chang- 

 es ! The adaptation of the plant, the Instinct of 

 the animal, the forethought, the wisdom and science 

 of man would be without avail, and all forms of life 

 would as surely perish as the nestlings of the bird 

 or the tender infant would perish without a parent's 

 care. 



The young bird just raises its head and opens 

 its bill to be fed. Without the responsive care of 

 the mother it must die. Little more than this act 

 of the young bird, in the series of acts necessary for 

 its support, is the act of the most cunning Instinct 

 or of human wisdom itself compared with all the la- 

 bors of mother earth to supplement their acts in 

 sustaining life or securing enjoyment. The earth 

 completes her circuit round the sun and gives each 

 year the conditions of some form of life from pole 

 to pole. She supplements, on a grand scale, the 

 structure, function and Instinct of all the tribes that 

 dwell upon her. No matter now how all these ad- 

 justments were secured. Structure and function 

 and Instinct are adapted to the conditions of the 

 globe, and all of these together secure or make pos- 

 sible the forms of life that now exist. And what a 

 multitude of conditions must combine in the struct- 

 ure and movements of the earth itself to foster the 

 wealth of life which she lovingly bears on her bos- 

 om ! In the summer months she cares for the 

 northern zone. She wakes to life the sleeping 

 germs, the waiting buds and bulbs, by lengthening 

 the day and wooing the vertical sun as the mother 



