Ld'FJfl: ITS ORIGIN ANS> NATURE 59 
tion and betterment. Ever since the appearance 
of life upon our planet, it has been increasing in 
power and complexity; mind has been rising 
higher and ever higher in the scale. To what 
end? If all is to end in nothingness, it is a 
senseless world indeed! 
Newton’s first law of motion tells us that a 
body will remain forever at rest unless some 
force acts upon it, and sets it in motion; but 
that, when once in motion, it will continue 
moving indefinitely, provided no other energy 
acts upon it, and nothing stops it. The move¬ 
ment goes on forever as it is. There is no 
change. (Note that.) But, in the evolution of 
life, we certainly find change; it is progressing, 
becoming more and more complex. Yet, if 
life were a mere blind force, this should not be 
so; there should be no alteration and no im¬ 
provement. Some factor or energy is at work, 
therefore, causing this change and improve¬ 
ment—either an external agency, or some inner, 
invisible power of life. 
We have seen that life must have become 
manifest on this physical plane at some definite 
time in the past; it must discontinue its activ¬ 
ities at some definite time in the future. All 
progress, all evolution, must take place between 
these extreme points. Our world certainly came 
into being at some time in the past, and will 
as certainly die a natural death at some dis¬ 
tant date in the future. This intervening period 
may be many thousands of millions of years; 
but what is that compared to eternity? 
At some time in the past, then, life came into 
being—or, on any theory, commenced its active 
