24 THE EVOLUTION OF SCIENCE. 



then we have to discover what these elements are, and, 

 if possible, the origin of them. 



Now, the gift of language, as the vehicle of abstract 

 thought, created the possibility of the evolution of litera- 

 ture, but it could not ensure it. So, likewise, the flexi- 

 bility of the human hand in obedience to the human 

 will, and the innate sympathy of the mind with nature, 

 only created the possibility of the development of art 

 and science. All these were like dead seeds. That some 

 spirit was needed to animate them is evident. The sim- 

 ple power to express a thought does not make a poet nor 

 a historian. A man may be able to carve an image or 

 sketch a figure, and yet be destitute of the ability to 

 become an artist. In addition to these fundamental 

 elements there must be a motive : and besides the motive 

 there must be the faculty to devise means to make it 

 effective. We shall And that an appropriate motive 

 and the faculty of invention are the elements of their 

 life and growth ; and no account of the evolution of lit- 

 erature, art and science can be complete which does not 

 define these elements, and at least attempt to give some 

 reasonable hyphothesis of their source. 



But at this point the vastness of the subject confronts 

 us. Thus far it has been proper to speak of literature, 

 art and science together, because, in the earliest periods 

 of human history, the mental and mechanical operations 

 of men were not only limited but also blended. The 

 first step in the evolution was the introduction of lan- 

 guage, skill and observation ; and these came into man's 

 possession at once, constituting a common stock of abil- 

 ity by which men accomplished their individual or trib- 

 al purposes. The second step in the progress was the 

 differentiation of these into the distinct germs of litera- 

 ture, art and science. This is the point which we have 

 already reached in this discussion. 



And now three separate pathways open before us. 



