COSMIC PHILOSOPHY 



the continuous equilibration of the organism 

 with its environment. In the maintenance of 

 such an equilibrium life has been shown to con- 

 sist. Accordingly, as we have seen, if the en- 

 vironment is suddenly and violently altered, the 

 organism perishes ; but when it is altered slowly, 

 the organism slowly adapts itself to it. If the 

 adaptation is not completed within a single gen- 

 eration, nevertheless a sufficient number of gen- 

 erations will complete it, just as the children 

 and grandchildren of an emigrant become more 

 and more thoroughly acclimated to their new 

 home. 



It is now to be shown that civilization is a 

 slow process of breeding, of adaptation, of ac- 

 climatization — mental and moral, as well as 

 physical, — of equilibration between the Com- 

 munity and the Environment. From age to 

 age the environment is slowly but incessantly 

 changing, and to its gradual changes the human 

 race, embodied in communities, is continually 

 adapting itself. As just observed, I am not re- 

 ferring to the physical environment alone ; for 

 in dealing with society we have to take into the 

 account those psychological factors which have 

 been shown to be by far the most considerable 

 of all. Leaving out of the account all minor 

 considerations of climate, food, or other physi- 

 cal circumstances, and looking at the psycholo- 

 gical factors alone, we must admit that the en- 

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