CHAPTER III 



THE NATURE OF SOCIETY 



OCIENCE at all accurate and reliable is of 

 ^ very recent origin. And even yet the solid 

 land of demonstrated law is but a tiny island 

 in a universe of uncharted depths. The super- 

 ficial facts about the earth, the physical and 

 chemical properties of the commoner sub- 

 stances, and the principles of mechanics are 

 fairly well known. The phenomena of plant 

 and animal life are much less clearly under- 

 stood. Psychology, particularly in its applied 

 aspect as the art of education, is so uncertain 

 as scarcely to warrant classification as a sci- 

 ence. And when we come to the generaliza- 

 tions of the social sciences we find ourselves 

 beside the deep seas of fable and opinion, while 

 scientifically planned social organization has 

 scarcely passed the initial stage. The most we 

 can hope to do, then, in pointing out the nature 

 of society, is to indicate a few of the out- 

 standmg historical features of its evolution. 

 The emphasis will be placed upon the spiritual 



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