A FALLACY MADE IN GERMANY 



These factors are his reason, which gives him a 

 sense of the true and the false, and his conscience, 

 which gives him a sense of right and wrong. These 

 faculties subordinate the rule of might to the rule 

 of right. They have resulted in the establishment of 

 standards of conduct for individuals, for communi- 

 ties, and for organized governments that do not 

 exist among the lower animal orders, and only in a 

 very limited sense in the lower human orders. 



There is no question of right and wrong among 

 the plants of the field, or the trees of the forest, or 

 the birds of the air, or the beasts of the earth — 

 only the question of power to survive; might in the 

 sense of power of adaptation settles the question. 



Since the dawn of history man's moral and in- 

 tellectual faculties have come more and more to the 

 fore, the moral standards always lagging a little be- 

 hind the intellectual and the aesthetic standards. 

 Among nearly all the more advanced ancient races 

 the concepts of justice, of mercy, and of fair dealing 

 were dull and sluggish in comparison with their in- 

 tellectual acumen and their artistic achievements. 

 The Greeks would lie and steal and set on foot 

 piratical expeditions against their neighbors, while 

 yet they produced such men as Aristotle and Plato, 

 and such artists as Phidias and Praxiteles. 



In our day the whole civilized world was shocked 

 and alarmed by the moral lapse of a great people 

 ranking among the highest in intelligence and ma- 



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