NATURE, HISTORY, AND ETHICS 397 



that there are general laws which apply universally and 

 unconditionally. This, of course, can never be proved. 



It is possible that new observations might be made 

 that compel science to rearrange all its laws. However 

 that may be, physical science is not absolute and 

 unconditional, because it supposes that what is true in 

 a thousand cases will not prove untrue in the next one. 1 



Thus science is influenced by considerations that do 

 not arise of themselves from reality ; it is also a product 

 of the human mind, and endeavours to achieve its task 

 of making reality intelligible. Hence physical science 

 has no right to oppose other sciences which modify 

 reality in order to attain their ends. 



The concepts which are formed with regard to the 

 universal alone cannot contain the particular. As the 

 laws of physical science deal with what applies always 

 and everywhere they cannot answer the question, what 

 exists at a particular point of space, what happens in 

 detail, and how that which exists came into being. 



These questions are dealt with by the historical 

 sciences or history, in the widest sense of the word. 

 Physical and historical science complete each other. 

 Hence we find scientific elements in history and 

 historical elements in science. 



The historical elements increase in physical science 

 in proportion as its ideas approach reality and depart 



1 The laws of science must not admit a single exception. In their 

 case the law is not confirmed, but completely destroyed, by the 

 exception. 



