INTRODUCTION 



the origin of these virtuous* acts is in social 

 sympathy, and this social sympathy goes back 

 for its own source to parental affection. Fiske 

 follows the extension of such virtues to wider 

 and wider social relationships, as a process that 

 must run parallel to increasing social integra- 

 tion. He is thus able to indicate how in his- 

 torical times the sentiment of humanity can 

 grow to the level of a sense of duty to all man- 

 kind. 



With the criticism of the doctrine we have 

 here, as elsewhere, nothing to do. Its signi- 

 ficance as an expression of Fiske*s keen eye 

 for the importance of the more naive and child- 

 like side of human nature is very noteworthy. 

 There can be no doubt that the essentially 

 childlike nature of the man himself, a nature 

 that he preserved in the main intact despite 

 all his learning and throughout his long and 

 thoughtful career, was responsible for the ten- 

 dency of these speculations. In this portion 

 of the work, then, not the disciple of Spencer 

 speaks nearly so much as the man Fiske him- 

 self. 



28. The following chapters belonging to the 

 third part, the " Corollaries *' of the " Cosmic 

 Philosophy," deal directly with the problems 

 of religion, and with other problems closely 

 connected with religious issues. When we re- 

 Ixxxvi 



