THE EVOLUTION OF MORAL CODES 79 



life of the species is usually an unconscious one, to 

 call it, as Drummond does, the '' struggle for the life 

 of others" is almost sure to be misleading. Most 

 animals never see their young, and may die before 

 they are born. Each animal, so far as he is engaged 

 in a struggle with nature is battling for his own exist- 

 ence, and not for the existence of others. His 

 instincts may lead him to conduct this battle in such 

 a manner as will prove a benefit to his offspring, but 

 he is unconscious of the fact and is eager only for 

 his own interest. With a few of the highest animals, 

 it is true, this principle develops into the mother's 

 love, in which the spirit of sacrifice is accompanied 

 by a knowledge of and interest in the offspring. But 

 this mother's love is only a small part of the more 

 fundamental law. It appears only after the young 

 is born and is always fleeting, while the sacrifice for 

 the life of the race is permanent. The term, 

 *' struggle for the life of others," therefore, is apt to 

 be misleading, and it is better not to use the phrase, 

 but simply to recognize that natural selection is 

 really directed toward the preservation of the species 

 rather than the individual, and that the latter is 

 readily sacrificed when his interest comes in opposi- 

 tion to that of the race. 



This principle of the struggle for the life of the 

 species is one foundation stone ujion which a moral 

 nature may have been built ; but it is in itself insuffi- 

 cient. It might lead to a sacrifice for the good of the 

 race. But mankind has certainly set up standards of 

 ethics which could not be comprehended by this gen- 

 eral force. Like other animals, man has a desire to 

 enjoy himself, and, as with other animals, his repro- 

 ductive instincts are among the strongest that influ- 



