PURPOSE IN NATURE 139 



affect conditions on this Earth ; that in the all in 

 its togetherness is Purpose ; and that it was due to 

 the working of this Purpose that conditions were 

 produced on the Earth which made the emergence 

 of life possible. To some it may seem that it was 

 only by chance that the atoms and molecules hap- 

 pened to come together in such a particular way that 

 from the combination the emergence of life was pos- 

 sible. To men of such restricted vision it would 

 seem equally a matter of chance that a heavenly song 

 resulted when a dozen choirboys came together, 

 opened their mouths and made a noise. But men of 

 wider vision would have seen that this song was no 

 matter of chance, but was the result of the working 

 out of a purpose ; that the choirboys were brought 

 together for a purpose ; and that that purpose was 

 resident in each of a large number of people 

 scattered about a parish, but who, though scattered, 

 were all animated by the same purpose of maintain- 

 ing a choir to sing hymns. So it is not unreasonable 

 to suppose that when the particles came together 

 under conditions that life resulted, they had been 

 brought together in those conditions to fulfil a 

 purpose resident in each of a number of beings 

 and groups of beings scattered about the Universe, 

 but who, though scattered, were nevertheless 

 animated by the same purpose. Anyhow, this 

 seems a more reasonable assumption than the 

 assumption that the particles came together by pure 

 chance. 



Beings with these superior faculties may very 

 possibly have emerged among the stars. It would 

 seem not at all improbable, therefore, that in some 



