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JBALISI [Vol. LIII 



iial conditions or on imperfections in the mechanisms of 

 cell-division he holds to be inadequate. Now, in his be- 

 lief, it is these "spontaneous" variations (using the 

 former word literally) that furnish the raw material for 



Jennings sees in this postulate of indeterminism the 

 fundamental fallacy of vitalism. It certainly is the fea- 

 ture that would most seriously affect us as investigators. 

 For whether variations are regarded as uncaused or as 

 caused by an agent beyond the ken of scientific investiga- 

 tion matters little. Any attempt to account for them by 

 cxpcrinu'iital or observational means must be futile. 



2. Scientific biology endeavors to explain organic phe- 

 nomena on the basis of antecedent physical conditions, 

 though admitting that our knowledge of cause and effect 

 is in the last resort empirical, to the extent that much 

 which happens could not have been predicted in advance. 

 Vitalism explains organic phenomena— or a certain part 

 of them— on the basis of ends to be realized, and gives to 

 these ends a determining influence in providing the means 

 to tlieir realization. Since the a ter(/o "push" of phys- 

 ical causation would only by rare chance be directed in 

 haiitioii} with these ends, vitalism introduces a non- 

 physical agent to guide or control the former. Driesch 

 goes to great lengths to explain how "entelechy" can 

 play this role without coming nito conflict with the law 

 of the conservation of energy. 



In a certain sense the existence of such "ends" must 

 be admitted by all biologists. Attainment of the typical 

 form, self-preservation, racial preservation, etc., are 

 "ends" in the sense that organic processes in general 

 are observed to trend in those directions. Furthermore, 

 disturbances of this normal trend often seem to be cor- 

 rected automatically. Phenomena strictly analogous in 

 this respect can, of course, be instanced from the inor- 

 ganic woi-ld. All we have to do is to designate the ob- 

 served ii'oal ol' such a process as the "cud" aud the 



