236 CULTURE 



was used to measure the extent of his riches : 

 she was worshipped in Egypt, even by the 

 Hebrews under Sinai : she is worshipped in 

 India, and traces of this cult may be discovered in 

 Europe. Could not the forces of Nature be domes- 

 ticated also ? Fire was tamed by some remarkable 

 genius, whom some nations have deified and all 

 should revere. The sun, the rain, the winds of 

 heaven could at least be conciliated by worship. 

 With the increase of population wars arose, and 

 the victorious leader, or a foreign conqueror, was 

 remembered with the honours of a supernatural 

 hero. Around these definite conceptions of divi- 

 nity there upgrew a tangle of dreads and beliefs 

 erroneous connections of cause and effect 

 which darkened the mind with the degrading 

 superstitions of fetishism and magic. Yet we 

 must remember that from these fantastic imagin- 

 ings, this visionary logic, have been distilled 

 religions of spiritual faith and moral endeavour, 

 and that from them are descended our modern 

 ideas of art and ethics. 



In the quest for causes our reasoning instinct has 

 taken the lead : but it has been closely attended by 

 our other instincts, which have at some times 

 prompted its suggestions, and have at all times 

 commended or opposed the ideas, visionary or 

 practical, to which it has pointed. Thus the 

 institution of slavery, which was declared by 

 reason to be a means of securing comfort and 

 leisure, was confidently approved by the selfish 

 instinct : the social instinct firmly consolidated 

 the respect for the family which co-ordinated its 

 efforts in the chase or in war. The reproductive 

 instinct confirmed polygamy, and might infuse 

 into religion conceptions which actually idealized 

 the obscene : the provident instinct sweetened 

 the industry which reason dictated as the means 



