POWELL] SOCIOLOCi'i CXXXVII 



tious to come and go before the ne\¥ teacliing of theory will 

 be founded wholly on principles derived from practice. This 

 will be the establishment of scientific ethics. 



The ag-encies of religion are multifarious; the teachers of 

 religion are potent. The organization of institutions of religion 

 are all progressive. They have not to be overthrown, but 

 only to be jjerfected. 



We have identified ethics with religion. The teachers of 

 religion may have erred in theories of ethics, and they may 

 have been instrumental in the enforcement of ethical doctrines 

 by unwise agencies. Some of these agencies have been of a 

 character utterly revolting to modern concepts of good and 

 evil conduct. Usually the religion taught has been the reli- 

 gion believed, though hypocrites have often nestled in the fold. 

 The claim for superior conduct and for the sanctity of its 

 teachings has enticed bad men into the ecclesiastical ranks. 

 Above all, and more than all, the establishment of an official 

 priesthood as one of the functions of government and one of 

 the aristocratic estates has been the cause of abuses and 

 horrors in the name of religion for which the student of 

 ecclesiastical history must forever blush. 



As astronomy was developed from astrology, as chemistry 

 was developed from alchemy, as medicine was developed from 

 necromancy, so ethics is the lineal descendant of animism. 

 Purified from animism, religion will remain forever to bless 

 }iiankind. 



Having set forth the nature of ethics, it now remains to 

 classify its subject-matter in compliance with the pentalogic 

 qualities. 



It is believed that the classification will occur to every atten- 

 tive reader and that its fundamental nature is evident. It is 

 necessary, therefore, to state the classification without further 

 elaboration. The subject is grouped into (1) the ethics of 

 pleasure and pain; (2) the ethics of welfare and want; (3) the 

 ethics of justice and injustice; (4) the ethics of truth and false- 

 hood; (5) the ethics of wisdom and folly. 



It is the province of ethics to teacli perfect character by pro- 

 moting conduct g'overned l)y principles instinctively enter- 



