18 The Higher Usefulness of Science 



Historically the mandate recalls unending discus- 

 sions on abstract philosophy in a dusty, musty past, 

 and causes something of a shudder; so the proposal to 

 devote this hour to it may seem like proposing to make 

 the hour dull and heavy. But we are living in a cruelly 

 heavy time. No matter how determinedly we may re- 

 solve to forget for the moment the gigantic events in 

 the midst of which we are, the deeper currents of our 

 conscious lives can not escape them. 



Calamity is the great tester of philosophy. A 

 period like this reveals to men the sort of theories and 

 ideals of life they have been nurturing as nothing else 

 can, 



The last few generations of Westerners have been 

 boastfully confident that they have largely outgrown 

 philosophy and have emerged finally into the clear light 

 of practicality. But what disillusionment we are un- 

 dergoing ! Who does not see now as probably he never 

 saw before, the necessity of probing to the roots every- 

 thing pertaining to human relations? And does not 

 about the first move in this direction discover that our 

 supposed practical age has in reality been permeated 

 with the most diverse and far-reaching though little 

 criticized doctrines? A few students have been all 

 along awake to the import of such doctrines as those 

 of materialistic determinism in human history, of 

 "economic society," and of Malthusianism ; but not till 

 lately have any considerable number of persons sup- 

 posed that these doctrines were of much practical con- 



