April 1, 1921] 



SCIENCE 



299 



espeoially of German) investigation. Too lit- 

 tle have we allowed rein to our own individ- 

 uality in the choice of subject and' the devel- 

 opment of method. 



Let it be panted that the people of Europe 

 have attacked the problems and developed the 

 methods best suited to their needs and their 

 temperament. This seems to be true. The 

 several important groups, following their own 

 native inclinations, have marvelously suc- 

 ceeded in organizing nature in useful ways 

 and have made conquests of the forces of the 

 environment never approached by any other 

 peoples. They have acted upon the realiza- 

 tion that the best truth which any mind or 

 any nation can create or discover is that 

 which comes to it in the course of spontaneous 

 activity. When we so proceed that our think- 

 ing is a natural expression of our native bent 

 our discoveries will become typical of our- 

 selves and we shall render into the whole 

 worth of mankind a good which we can not 

 attain by foUowing the lead of another people. 

 " He is great who is what he is from nature 

 and who never reminds us of others." 



Let us not run after the ways of another 

 people. Let us also not run from the ways 

 of another people. Let us follow our own 

 ideals; let us develop our own spirit in the 

 search for truth; let us be just to our own 

 temperament. Our civilization is based on 

 our Eiu-opean origin. We can not escape that 

 fact. There is no need to try to run away 

 from the nature which we have inherited. 

 But there is a fundamental necessity that our 

 thought shall not try to follow in the way 

 pointed out by European thinkers of to-day; 

 just as it is important that Europe shall con- 

 tinue to think in her own way and not seek 

 to be guided by us. 



We are a combination of social units which 

 have not existed together before and are not 

 now to be found together elsewhere. In some 

 measure and in some phases we have devel- 

 oped our own national intellectual spirit; the 

 present progress in American poetry, for in- 

 stance, is not inspired by European models 

 but is a native product arising from the basic 

 foundation inherited from our European an- 



cestry. But in scientific matters we still have 

 a great tendency to attack problems set by 

 European investigation rather than- to follow 

 otir own more spontaneous activity and so find 

 that truth which our temperament makes it 

 possible for us to discover more easily than 

 any other people. 



Our attitude in this respect is strongly con- 

 trasted with that of the great nations of 

 Europe. They have proceeded in ways of 

 their own. Though science is cosmopolitan 

 the scientific work of the greater groups in 

 Europe is national in spirit. !N"otwithstand- 

 ing the close interactions of the modern world 

 and the systematic exchange of scientific 

 knowledge, national traits find spontaneous 

 expression in the researches of different 

 countries. 



British science is characterized by the 

 spontaneity and individuality of the workers, 

 with consequent large power in fTmdamental 

 conceptions, so that a greater measure of 

 dominant ideas in the science of to-day goes 

 back to them perhaps than to those of any 

 other people. They do not congregate in 

 distinct schools and institutions. They are 

 not localized in definite centers. No army of 

 well-trained intellectual workers exists among 

 tliem. No compact body of pupils there de- 

 velops the work and ideas of any master. 

 The self-reliant strength of natural genius 

 dominates the scientific spirit. The British 

 have produced a disproportionate number of 

 new ideas and great departures. They have 

 no university eager to nurse and develop new 

 talent, so that the new thinker becomes de- 

 voted to nature. He lives close to the heart 

 of things and nature rewards his independ- 

 ence of other thinkers. 



German science is remarkable for the or- 

 ganization of the investigators and the result- 

 ing wealth of detail in developing the conse- 

 quences of fundamental ideas once introduced 

 and in preparing indexes and summaries of 

 the current literature of discovery. The uni- 

 versities of Germany form the most character- 

 istic institution of the German mind and 

 afford the most perfect expression of its 

 essential character, especially as regards sci- 



