12 A PSYCHOLOGICAL TRUTH 



living wood of the bush (which in a human 

 would point to a knowledge of dendrology) 

 ensures a double purpose ; for not only does 

 the suspended hammock shelter and keep the 

 inmate out of harm's way, but when spring 

 returns the larva wakes to find itself in the 

 midst of a plentiful food supply. Were this 

 precautionary measure forgotten or omitted 

 for a single season, it would mean the extinc- 

 tion of a species which has probably been 

 extant for 20,000 years. 



The man in the street may say it is a case 

 of " blind instinct," and perhaps describe it 

 as the " manifestations of a maggot " ; but 

 to the thinking mind there underlies a pro- 

 found psychological truth. 



Creatures in the insect world, at all events, 

 can learn nothing from practice, for they grow 

 so quickly and are so short-lived that there is 

 no time for mistakes which can only occur 

 accidentally ; a mistake means the sure ex- 

 tinction of the individual. Then again, the 

 changing from one state to another necessi- 

 tates a fresh sequence of acts. Some of these, 

 as we have seen, are never repeated ; there- 

 fore it is clear that what these creatures 

 accomplish is not by means of acquired 

 knowledge. 



In pure nature, by which I mean life 



