94 THE NEW METHOD 



is linked by visible or invisible chains, with every 

 atom of matter on the globe. He is as intimately 

 connected with the three kingdoms of nature as the 

 tree with the earth and the air which its roots and 

 leaves penetrate ; nor can this intimate connection 

 cease for a moment. The unity of nature establishes 

 the unity of science. The unity of science makes the 

 study of education a necessity, and gives a clew to 

 the natural order of mental unfolding. 



Man is a product of nature and the culmination of 

 her works ; his whole being is permeated through 

 and through by nature's forces and nature's laws. 

 The highest and most valuable knowledge that man 

 can possess is knowledge of himself. Knowledge of 

 himself is the culmination of all science — the great 

 problem in whose solution all science is concerned. 

 The growth of the tree no more depends on the ele- 

 ments of earth, air and water, and the forces of nature 

 that marshal them into life and organization, than 

 man depends upon a knowledge of the whole realm 

 of nature if he would attain to either physical or 

 mental perfection. 



We violate the laws of life at every step, and shall 

 continue to do so, until we qualify ourselves to under- 

 stand them in all their complexity, by the proper 

 study of all classes of objects and phenomena — all 

 the laws and all the forces of nature — laws of matter 



