October 29, 1886. 



SCIENCE. 



389 



man. A knowledge of natural j^henomena is now 

 regarded as a necessary qnalification in a man who 

 would instruct others in natural sciences. At some 

 fixture time a knowledge of social and industrial 

 phenomena will be considered a desirable qiialifica- 

 tiou in a writer on economic topics : when that happy 

 time comes, we will hear less about ' some one snaja- 

 jjing his fingers ' and turning the Avoi"ld upside down. 



Only one other point. N. M. B. says I gather facts 

 to suit a preconceived theory. If he had read the 

 book more carefully, he would have learned the true 

 state of the case ; namely, that I began my investiga- 

 tion with a theory opposed to labor organizations, 

 but was converted from my former opinion by an 

 overwhelming and irresistible array of facts disclosed 

 by serioiis investigation. 



N. M. B. is not the only one who exhibits gross 

 carelessness in reviews. The fault is common ; and 

 my own conscience pricks me when I remember one 

 critique which I wrote several years ago. But it is 

 time to emphasize the duty which a reviewer owes 

 not merely to the author, but to the general public, 

 to master the contents of a book before presenting an 

 estimate of it to the world. Richaed T. Ely. 



Johns Hopkins university, 

 Baltimore, Oct. 22. 



In a criticism of Professor Ely's ' Labor movement 

 in America,' by N. M. B., in your issue of Oct. 15, it 

 is stated that the evils which socialists ascribe to 

 ' the institution of private property ' are not the true 

 cause of the evils or labor troubles, but that they are 

 caused, as Aristotle held, by the ' wickedness of 

 human nature.' No standard for good and bad is 

 given by N. M. B., and the reader is left at a loss 

 what ' wickedness' maybe according to Aristotle or 

 N. M. B. It is fair to presume that selfishness — 

 utter, brutal, unmodified selfishness, the mere follow- 

 ing out of the brutal, selfish instincts of man, regard- 

 less of the welfare or interest of other selves — is 

 what Aristotle and N. M. B. mean. 



" Every one for himself, the devil take the hind- 

 most," is, then, the expression of the greatest wicked- 

 ness or worst trait of human nature : that is individ- 

 ualism, pure and simple. Opposed to that, on the 

 other extreme, as absolute goodness, would be 

 altruism. Between the two, as the golden mean, is 

 equity, or socialism, — live and let live ; each for all, 

 and all for eacli. The history or evolution of human 

 nature — that is, the ego altruistic or ethical part of 

 human nature — is simply a development from the 

 utter selfishness of the lowest brutes to the social in- 

 stinct of man. That is the very thing that makes 

 man, or the human character of the animal man. As 

 man develops from a mere individualist, he becomes, 

 therefore, better according to the degree in which he 

 develops his social or equity nature ; that is, as he 

 grows to be a socialist That answers Mr. N. M. B.'s 

 question, whether these labor agitators consider it is 

 the wickedness (total depravity ?) of man that needs 

 to be reformed, or the economic-social institutions. 

 The answer is. Both. Human nature has developed al- 

 ready from a low, beastly, selfish savage, to a golden- 

 rule man ; but our economic institutions are not 

 yet brought into accord with that development of 

 our human nature. To do that is the work and ob- 

 jects of the socialistic agitators. When that is done, 

 it will again have a reflex action on our nature (like 

 all material environment or social institutions), and 

 help to make human nature still better than it now is. 

 One of the agitators. 



On the figures illustrating zoological literature. 



When a zoologist takes up his pen, brush, or pen- 

 cil with the intention of executing a drawing of a 

 zoological subject, either new or old, with the view 

 of publishing it to the world, he assximes, in my 

 o^Dinion, one of the greatest responsibilities that can 

 fall to the lot of man. This responsibility is none 

 the less, of course, when the zoologist is obliged to 

 review the work done for him in this way by others, 

 and applies to all manner of figurative illustration 

 for zoological literature. On the other hand, I think 

 science is fully as much in debt to him who furnishes 

 her literature with an absolutely accurate, clear, and 

 instructive figure, as she is to the Avriter who pro- 

 duces in type a full, trustworthy, and comprehensive 

 description of the same subject. And, indeed, in 

 many particulars, a good drawing of any object in 

 nature, in the vast majority of cases, leaves a nmch 

 more lasting imi^ression ui^on the mind of the student 

 than does sometimes the most lucid of descriptions. 

 For instance, if we had never seen an elephant, 

 nor a good figure of one, how different would be the 

 ideas of different persons, were they to attempt to 

 draw an elephant simply from a description, however 

 good that description might be ! How important it 

 is, then, that original figures in zoology, including all 

 its branches, shotild be as perfect and correct like- 

 nesses of the object they depict, as possible ! 



The writer, who has thus far contributed some 

 thousand original drawings to the various depart- 

 ments of zoology, feels that no one more than him- 

 self needs the greatness of this responsibility laid 

 before him, and I am fully aware of the shortcomings 

 of some of my early attempts ; but, be it said in jus- 

 tice to myself, I believe at the present writing dupli- 

 cates, either in press or in the hands of i^ublishers, 

 of all of those that evidently reqtiired special im- 

 provement, are now furnished. 



Great encouragement is held out in the future to 

 all naturalists, in the numerotis methods that are be- 

 ing perfected, by means of which the originals are 

 accurately transferred to metal without the inter- 

 ference of another hand ; and more especially does 

 this encouragement come to those naturalists who 

 take great pains, and are skilful with their work. 



Electrotypy, however, and the ease it affords for 

 reproducing all manner of work, threaten such 

 scientists and nattiralists who illustrate their own 

 writings, with another danger, for which steps must 

 soon be taken to protect them. This danger comes 

 more especially from that class of writers who are 

 either indifferent artists or Mill not take the time t© 

 make their own figures. Such peojale are apt to be- 

 come very lax in the principles which pertain even 

 to the matter of courtesy in the premises, and often, 

 without your leave or by your leave, copy the draw- 

 ings of others by electrotypy to illustrate their own 

 books, which latter are only too often hastily made in 

 other particulars. 



And should an author have his writings and care- 

 fully execiited drawings come out from the govern- 

 ment press, why then these people to whom I allude 

 seem to think that they are under no obligation of 

 any kind whatever, and immediately plunder any 

 thing they see fit to use. This is a great injustice to 

 the original artist and describer: for in time it is 

 sure to rob him of his right, as government publica- 

 tions are rarely seen by the public at large ; and 

 the first thing "he knows his unacknowledged draw- 



