2o THE LESSON or EVOLUTION 



ing the lower impulse. And it is this that causes 

 him regret or even shame. 1 



But the process, as described by Darwin, evidently 

 implies a considerable intellectual capacity, and, what 

 is still more important, the exercise of free-will ; for 

 no one could regret following a lower impulse unless 

 he felt that he had the power to choose a higher one. 

 Ethical development, therefore, could only commence 

 at a stage far above the highest apes, and probably 

 above the earlier forms of man. Meantime, while this 

 growth of sympathy was taking place, the evolution 

 of religion as already described would have been 

 going on, and the priest would have assumed a position 

 of great importance. It is lie who would draw up the 

 standard of right and wrong, and thus morality would 

 be reinforced and stimulated by the religious feeling. 



It therefore appears that ethical and religious de- 

 velopment were at first separate, but quickly coalesced, 

 until, as in Christian countries, they were completely 

 blended. But this mutual dependence is not so 

 pronounced everywhere. The Chinese and Japanese 

 have high codes of morals, with very indistinct notions 

 of religion ; while the Hindus have very strong re- 

 ligious feelings, combined with weak ideas of morality. 

 However, it is not possible to give even the slightest 

 outline of ethical evolution without mentioning the 

 religious element. The important point to remember 

 is, that ethical development is due to a conflict of 

 wishes in the individual himself, and is possible only 

 because man has the power of choosing one of these 

 wishes and acting upon it ; that is to the exercise of 

 free-will. It seems to me that free-will would be 



1 " Descent of Man," 2nd eel., p. 112. 



