Mat 31, 1918] 



SCIENCE 



525 



our attention, but no casual glance will re- 

 veal beauty in it, and to appreciate that 

 beauty to the utmost we must become ab- 

 sorbed in contemplation, must, as we often 

 say, "enter fully into the spirit of the 

 thing." This is another value attached to 

 the study of esthetics, that it develops the 

 power of concentrated observation. 



It thus appears that the cultivation of 

 esthetics not onlj- tends to develop sj'm- 

 pathj' and from that as a starting-point, 

 becomes a prominent factor in the develop- 

 ment of idealism, but also develops judg- 

 ment, power of concentrated observation, 

 and respect for the opinions of others, be- 

 ing thus also a factor in the production 

 and spread of democratic ideals. The mul- 

 tiplication of objects of beauty in our cities 

 — parks, with all that usually goes with 

 them, fine buildings, and works of art — is 

 I'Ot extravagance, nor is it of little conse- 

 quence that we seek to secure beauty in all 

 the details of our surroundings. The effect 

 of these things, acting gradually and ex- 

 erted unconsciously upon the citizens, pro- 

 duces in time results which no one can 

 measure but of the value of which there 

 can be not the slightest doubt. 



In this connection we should be reminded 

 of the fact that esthetics is but rarely 

 taught as such, and indeed, the daily con- 

 tact with beautiful things, working si- 

 lently but none the less surely, is more ef- 

 fective than conscious efforts to secure re- 

 sults, which too often defeat themselves by 

 the opposition of the persons whom it is de- 

 sired to affect. Esthetic training may be 

 secured from the study of literature, of 

 science, or of the arts, if care be used to 

 take advantage of the opportunities con- 

 stanth' offered. 



The study of animal life is peculiarly 

 suited to form the basis of esthetic training, 

 and, indeed, no one can acquire even a rudi- 

 mentary knowledge of zoology without be- 



ing influenced esthetically. There is in the 

 case of the animal, not only the beauty of 

 form and of color which belongs to so 

 many natural objects, but also the beauty 

 of motion, in the case of birds the beauty 

 of song, and in all higher animals even 

 greater esthetic possibilities are revealed in 

 the degree to which their natures are akin 

 to that of man. Animal nature study de- 

 velops sj-mpathy, judgment and the power 

 of observation, and always excites the 

 closest attention, thus possessing exactly 

 the esthetical values referred to above. It 

 is cleai'ly opposed to all that is dogmatic, 

 and properly presented or acquired con- 

 tributes to liberality of thought and respect 

 for the points of view of others. 



In another waj' animal nature study is 

 supreme among the subjects which may 

 form the basis of training in esthetics. 

 Just as the earliest artistic efforts of primi- 

 tive man seem to show that of all the ob- 

 jects about him animals appear to have 

 most attracted his attention and stimulated 

 first his imagination, so in childhood we to- 

 day are first most strongly impressed by 

 the living animals about us. "While chil- 

 dren may be to a degree interested in trees, 

 and flowers, and the inanimate things 

 around them, the most effective approach 

 to nature study in the ease of younger chil- 

 dren is through the stud}' of animals and 

 this is the logical beginning of esthetic 

 training. 



It thus appears, if the points which have 

 been referred to are well taken, that the 

 cultivation of esthetics is highly valuable 

 to us as individuals, to the communities in 

 which we live, to the nation of which we are 

 a part, and to mankind as a whole, and 

 since the study of animal life is preemi- 

 nently fitted to serve as the beginning of 

 such cultivation and is peculiarly appropri- 

 ate as material for its continued prosecu- 



