26 BOOK OF THE DAMNED 



relatively symmetric composition flies alighting upon a painter's 

 attempted harmony, and tracking colors one into another suffrag- 

 ist getting up and making a political speech at a prayer meeting. 



If all things are of a oneness, which is a state intermediate to 

 unrealness and realness, and if nothing has succeeded in breaking 

 away and establishing entity for itself, and could not continue to 

 "exist" in intermediateness, if it should succeed, any more than 

 could the bora still at the same time be the uterine, I of course 

 know of no positive difference between Science and Christian Science 

 and the attitude of both toward the unwelcome is the same "it 

 does not exist." 



A Lord Kelvin and a Mrs. Eddy, and something not to their lik- 

 ing it does not exist. 



Of course not, we Intermediates say: but, also, that, in Inter- 

 mediateness, neither is there absolute non-existence. 



Or a Christian Scientist and a toothache neither exists in the 

 final sense: also neither is absolutely non-existent, and, according 

 to our therapeutics, the one that more highly approximates to 

 realness will win. 



A secret of power 



I think it's another profundity. 



Do you want power over something? 



Be more nearly real than it. 



We'll begin with yellow substances that have fallen upon this 

 earth: we'll see whether our data of them have a higher approxi- 

 mation to realness than have the dogmas of those who deny their 

 existence that is, as products from somewhere external to this 

 earth. 



In mere impressionism we take our stand. We have no positive 

 tests nor standards. Realism in art: realism in science they pass 

 away. In 1859, tne thing to do was to accept Darwinism; now 

 many biologists are revolting and trying to conceive of something 

 else. The thing to do was to accept it in its day, but Darwinism 

 of course was never proved: 



The fittest survive. 



What is meant by the fittest? 



Not the strongest ; not .the cleverest 



Weakness and stupidity everywhere survive. 



There is no way of determining fitness except in that a thing 

 does survive. 



"Fitness," then, is only another name for "survival." 



