An Introduction to a Biology 



and in interpretation. It now remains to turn our attention 

 to the relation between those two processes. 



At present things are in a very bad way. Hardly any 

 trustworthy descriptions of things exist. Of course, if we 

 do not know a thing at all we can find out a great deal by 

 reading what has been written about it. But if we are engaged 

 in some investigation, and we desire some definite and final 

 information on a particular point, we usually end by finding 

 it much more satisfactory to investigate the point for our- 

 selves. We usually find that most of the available descrip- 

 tions are of little value for our purpose. The reason for the 

 valuelessness of most descriptions is that they fall between 

 the devil of the interpreter, whose description is spoiled by 

 his having made it under the intoxicating influence of his 

 own interpretation, and the deep sea of systematists, who 

 are not sufficiently interested in interpreting anything to 

 make their records so thorough that they may be of use 

 to those who are. We are stranded between the former, who 

 describe not wisely but too much, and the latter, who describe 

 not wisely but too little. So we have to determine the point 

 for ourselves. 



But I would not have you believe from what I have said 

 that I think it is desirable to eschew interpretation altogether. 

 It is of course true in biology that we are much less likely 

 to go wrong if we confine ourselves to description. But if 

 we do this we do not get any further ; we stagnate. If you 

 say, " I will go no further than description, on the ground 

 that it is better to keep on the safe side," do not be misled 

 by the meaning of the word " side " ; I mean, do not think 

 that the road leading to the goal of the biologist is like the 

 Palatine Road, with a safe side and an unsafe one, and that 

 you can choose on which side you will go. No. The division 

 is a transverse one ; let us imagine it to be opposite the 

 College. Let us imagine your starting-place to be the Con- 

 tinental Restaurant, and the goal to be Northenden ; the 

 safe, descriptive side, the town side of the division ; and 



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