THE DISCOVERY OF LAWS 69 



the new laws propounded must still be such that they 

 order the old experience, and they must therefore present 

 some features of great similarity to the old laws. Which 

 of the two alternatives we shall adopt depends upon 

 which method leads to the most satisfactory ordering of 

 the complete experience. For this reason the first 

 alternative is never adopted if the second is available ; 

 for it means that we must leave unordered a portion of 

 experience which we thought could be ordered. 



This is, I believe, the attitude that is actually adopted 



by men of science in establishing laws. And if that is 



so, the conception of prediction does not enter into explicit 



consideration at all. We do not try to find laws that 



will predict ; we only try to find laws that will order the 



rience that we have. It is possible to adopt that 



tide because, although we know that we shall have 



re experience which has not been taken into considera- 



t hat future experience can never force us to abandon 



ground we have gained and to " disorder " the order 



3 been established. Whatever the experience 



be, it will be possible either to order the increased 



.me of experience, or else to reject altogether from the 



subject-matter of science some portion of it, leaving only 



lindtT to be ordered. 



THE VALUE OF LAWS 

 13i. tctical man that attitude will not & 



[>pcur.-5 to drprive science ot all 



value. If scientific laws an- true, only becaUM 



..iterpivted so that nothing can 



I merely a child i 



rthy of u. If, when 



6 to-morrow, it only 

 in does not rise, we propose to alter 

 som 

 trilling. What the plain man mean^ by that assertion 



