CHAP, xix HYPER-DARWINISM IN SOCIOLOGY 239 



religion. Above all we have the appeal to biology 

 more unhesitating than ever. 1 "It may be remarked 

 that nothing tends to exhibit more strikingly the 

 extent to which the study of our social phenomena 

 must in future be based on the biological sciences, than 

 the fact that the technical controversy now being 

 waged by biologists as to the transmission or non- 

 transmission to offspring of qualities acquired during 

 the lifetime of the parent, is one which, if decided in 

 the latter sense, must produce the most revolutionary 

 effect throughout the whole domain of social and 

 political philosophy." 2 Yes, it is striking ; most 

 extremely striking ; so remarkably striking, indeed, 

 that one would have expected the author to reconsider 

 the question, whether it is necessarily true, if not to 

 raise the question, whether it is even possibly true. 

 Comte himself, phenomenalist to the backbone, while 

 insisting on the connection of sociology with the lower 

 science of biology, insisted also on its separate province 

 and independent laws. Now it appears that sociology 

 like one of the colonies of France is to be merged 

 outright in the mother empire. Everything is to be 

 biological. Human wisdom, for the most part, is to 

 be an incidental deduction from the laws of life, as 

 manifested in four-footed beasts and fowls and creep- 

 ing things of the earth. Is it really the case that the 

 progress of science since Comte makes this conclusion 

 inevitable ? Or is it rather a retrogression in the 



1 Page 203, towards end of chap. vii. The same thing is to be noted 

 in Mr. Platt-Ball's little book against use-inheritance (see Preface, p. vii.) 



2 Mr. Kidd differs from Mr. Sutherland (1) in appealing to the 

 working of struggle rather than that of elimination among mankind. 

 Neither really succeeds in appealing to the struggle, or to the elimination, 

 implied in true natural selection; (2) Mr. Kidd allows reason to do 

 something it makes mischief ! 



