in THE PAST AND THE FUTURE 289 



therefore, in possession of the principle necessary to com- 

 plete the intelligent control of life, and it needs only to 

 work out its application. According to our previous 

 argument, which showed that each advance in harmony 

 makes the next step easier, this application, far from foun- 

 dering on any impossibility, should become more rapid and 

 certain as it proceeds. 



Our argument, it will be seen, does not show that the 

 movement towards harmony proceeds like a physical action 

 independently of human choice. It shows that it proceeds 

 through human choice. Formally stated, (i) our analysis 

 of the facts shows that it is possible, (2) our analysis of 

 values shows that it is good, that is, holds it up as a possi- 

 bility at which mankind should aim, (3) our analysis of the 

 motives that determine that social mind goes to show that 

 what is clearly propounded as good will in the end be 

 adopted, and only in this sense and on this condition can 

 we predict. We may conclude that the ideal of harmony 

 tends to realise itself, and that with progressively diminish- 

 ing difficulty, through the extension of intelligent control. 



4. But behind this result arises a larger and more difficult 

 question. We have shown that harmony, so far as realised, 

 is a factor in success. We have shown that the possibilities 

 of harmony can be extended by intelligence. But we have 

 not shown how far they can be extended. We have shown 

 that the conditions are malleable, but not how far they are 

 malleable. We may assume that the mind can ultimately 

 so far control its own action and its own products, such as 

 social institutions, as to achieve a complete internal har- 

 mony. But we cannot thus assume that it can also control 

 the physical conditions of life. May it not be that the 

 upshot of the most complete understanding of reality 

 would only be to show that there are elements which refuse 

 to be harmonised with the aims of mind, that there are 

 physical or biological limitations which set a term to 

 development and even to the existence of mind itself? 

 Say that our argument so far has gone to show that the 

 social mind may, and probably will, attain a condition of 

 complete internal harmony, together with such control 



