424 THE ORIGIN OF TRADITION 



been most noticeable where the great steps in skill were made — 

 when agriculture superseded hunting, when animals were first 

 domesticated, and when metals came into use. 



5. To differences in fertility we have to add differences in 

 contact as affecting progress in skill. Contact may be considered 

 as varying in quality and quantity and may be thought of as 

 influenced chiefly by two groups of factors which we may call 

 geographical and economic. We may first ask how it is that 

 differences in contact bring about differences in skill. 



From contact two results follow. The spread of tradition is 

 in varying degrees encouraged and progress in tradition is more 

 or less stimulated. For the most part differences in the spreading 

 of tradition are to be traced to differences in the quantity of 

 contact, though differences in quality also play a considerable 

 part, while differences in the manner in which progress is stimu- 

 lated arise chiefly from differences in the quality of contact. 



It is obvious that tradition can only be transmitted by means 

 of contact. Later developments such as writing and printing 

 allow of contact at a distance ; but for the most part it is personal 

 contact with which we are concerned. It is on the whole true 

 that, other things being equal, the more contact, the more swiftly 

 and easily is the existing mass of tradition disseminated throughout 

 any society, and that therefore the more fertile an area, the 

 greater the chance of the spreading of tradition. But other things 

 are by no means equal throughout history. At a certain stage, 

 owing to the working of what we may sum up as economic factors, 

 there comes about a profound change in the organization of 

 society, the nature of which is described below. This change 

 markedly favours the transmission of tradition and therefore we 

 have to remember that the amount of contact ascertained by the 

 density of population is by no means a fair measure of the degree 

 in which the passing on of tradition is facilitated. Further con- 

 sideration of this point may be left until we come to deal with 

 the changes referred to. Geographical factors also have a bearing 

 upon the transmission of tradition, but since their influence is 

 chiefly pronounced in the stimulus to skill arising from the 

 conflict of traditions of different quality we may leave them to 

 be dealt with later as a whole. 



Of more importance than the bearing of contact upon the 

 transmission of tradition is the part it plays as a stimulus to 



