Altruism 13 



with profound modifications of interpretation; modifi- 

 cations which in all probability will increase as man's 

 vision of truth enlarges. But one thing seems to be 

 certain. The theory of a universal, remorseless struggle 

 for existence between man and the more formidable 

 of his animal foes does not square with the facts so 

 far as we know them. For this is no transient, unim- 

 portant departure from the truth of the theory, such as 

 we saw in the case of man's short-sighted treatment of 

 the buffalo, or of beneficent forms of bird life. This 

 is no local, circumscribed mistake of only temporary 

 effect. It seems to be fundamental. Metempsychosis 

 appears to have been well-nigh universal as a belief, 

 not alone among primitive man, not only in the Egyp- 

 tian, Indian, and far Eastern civilizations, in the Chal- 

 dean, Persian, and Greek speculative beliefs; but it 

 prevails even to-day in over one half of the human race. 

 To say that man's ignorance has caused it, that it has 

 all been due to a mistake on man's part, does not 

 help out the theory in the least. Whatever the cause 

 or causes, the theory does not seem to square with the 

 facts. To upbraid man for his superstitious fears 

 which have made us modify our mathematically pre- 

 cise theory would be to show even greater childishness 

 in the way of intellectual petulance than he has shown 

 in the way of childish fear. 



Altruism 



The same failure of our evolutionary theory to square 

 directly and fully with the facts in the case, you will 



