PART III 



DARWINISM, OR STRUGGLE FOR EXISTENCE 

 CHAPTER XI 



" DARWINISM IN MORALS " MISS COBBE'S PROTEST 



Darwinism may be applied to morals by analogy Or, as here, by 

 explaining man's evolutionary origin Miss Cobbe attacks Darwin's 

 explanation of the rise of morals out of intelligence plus sympathy 

 And the hypothetical palliation of murder Little trace of natu- 

 ral selection in Darwin's ethical statement Darwin's analysis may 

 be accepted, not his view of reason 



IT is not necessary again to recapitulate the lead- 

 ing points of Darwinism. Nor is it desirable to 

 pause at present in order to weigh some very grave 

 metaphysical objections 1 to the terminology and con- 

 ceptions with which Mr. Darwin went to work. We 

 are more concerned to ask how Darwinian ideas have 



1 Urged with great force by Dr. Hutchison Stirling, and incident- 

 ally brought out with masterly power in Mr. George Sandeman's Prob- 

 lems of Biology. Mr. Sandeman's statements go far to convince one 

 that Darwin's theory is only a possible way of putting the process of 

 evolution for purposes of study, and by no means an account of the 

 way in which the process actually took place. It might\ia.ve. happened 

 just so, by random shots, and constant weeding, in the course of end- 

 less time. But did it? 



Possibly Mr. Sandeman himself might prefer a more sweeping 

 verdict. See further in chapter xvii. 



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