EVOLUTION 187 



like the rays of light from a candle. A fact is really 

 influential only in its own immediate vicinity; but 

 the whole structure of many a system lies in the region 

 beyond the vanishing point. 



Such "vain imaginings" are delightfully seductive 

 to many people, whose life and conduct are even shaped 

 by them. I have been amazed at the large develop- 

 ment of this phase of emotional insanity, commonly 

 masquerading under the name of "subtle thinking." 

 Perhaps the name is expressive enough, if it means 

 thinking without any material for thought. One of 

 the great dangers of our educational system is in laying 

 special stress on training. There is danger of setting 

 to work a mental machine without giving it suitable 

 material upon which it may operate, and it reacts upon 

 itself, resulting in a sort of mental chaos. An active 

 mind turned in upon itself, without any valuable ob- 

 jective material, can never reach any very valuable 

 results. 



It may not be that science is the only agency, apart 

 from common sense, which is correcting this tendency; 

 but it certainly teaches most impressively, by object 

 lessons which are concrete and hence easiest to grasp, 

 that it is dangerous to stray very far from the facts, and 

 that the farther one strays away the more dangerous it 

 becomes, and almost inevitably leads to self-deception. 



In conclusion, it may be said that the attitude of 

 mind represented by the scientific spirit must bring in* 

 dependence in observation and conclusion, some idea 

 as to what an exact statement is, and some conception 

 of what constitutes proof. 



