PROGRESS OF PSYCHOLOGY. 449 



preceding and determine succeeding mental states. 

 Thus, though these physical facts supply data indis- 

 pensable to the solution of psychological problems, 

 yet they do not themselves belong to the essential 

 subject-matter of psychology." * 



But the position of this acute thinker might be 

 misunderstood if we did not quote further. " The 

 life of the brain is part of the life of the organism 

 as a "whole, and inasmuch as consciousness is the 

 correlate of brain-process, it is conditioned by organic 

 process in general. It is clear that the unity and 

 connection of psychical states cannot be clearly con- 

 ceived without taking into account the unity and 

 connection of the processes of the organism as a 

 whole." f 



No enthusiast for physiological interpretation, 

 could at present wish for a more friendly greeting. 



But what of the future, since physiology is advanc- 

 ing by leaps and bounds ? " Let us consider what 

 would happen under ideally perfect conditions. If 

 the physiologist were to attain to as clear and definite 

 a conception of brain processes as the physicist pos- 

 sesses of light and sound vibrations; if he had also 

 an acquaintance with psychology sufficient to enable 

 him to set about establishing definite connections be- 

 tween elementary mental and elementary physiolog- 

 ical occurrences ; if, finally, he had at his command 

 psycho-physical means and methods adequate to this 

 undertaking then, indeed, we might hope for abun- 

 dant and valuable results. Indeed, it would seem 

 that under such conditions psychology would be 

 wholly absorbed into physiology so that a single in- 

 divisible science would result. But at present we 

 appear to be as far from such a consummation as 



* Stout, p. 27. f Stout, p. 23. 



