What to Do? Thoughts Evoked by the Census of Moscow

boot,-under the influence of the then novel physiological investigations of Biche, the old idea already set forth by Menenius Agrippa,-the idea that human society, all human

ined that his whole theory was erected on the very firmest of foundations. According to his theory, it seemed that since humanity is an organism, the knowledge of what man is, and of what should be his relations to the world, was possible only through a knowledge of the features of this organism. For the knowledge of these qualities, man is enabled to take observations on other and lower organisms, and t

se of self-knowledge, has been divided into three, actually into two, periods: the theological and metaphysical period, extending fro

se we have just as much right to admit the existence of a human organism, not subject to observation, as we have to admit the existence of any other invisible, fantastic being. This assertion was erroneous, because for

scientific crowd; but the "Critique of Applied Reason," that part which contains the gist of moral doctrine, was repudiated. In Kant's doctrine, that was accepted as scientific which subserved the existent evil. But the positive philosophy, which was accepted by the crowd, was founded on an arbitrary and erroneous basis, was in itself too unfounded, and therefore unsteady, and could not support itself alone. And so, amid all the multitude of the idle plays of thought of the men professing the so-called science, there presents itself an assertion equally devoid of novelty, and equally arbitrary and erroneous, to the effect that living beings, i.e., organisms, have had their rise in each other,-not only one organism from another, but one from many; i.e., that in a very long interval of time (in

nd according to His almighty power; but according to the theory of evolution, it appears that the difference between living creatures arose by chance, and on account of varying conditions of heredity and surroundings, throu

assertion strengthened Comte's assertion. And, moreover, according to the ingenuous confession of the founder of Darwin's theory himself, his idea was aroused in him by the law of Malthus; and he therefore pr

the crowd, that in the existent evil of human societies, men are not to blame, and that the existing order of things is that which should prevail; and the new theory was adopted by the throng

ne of his first works, exp

," he says, "are alike i

rceptibly grow in mass, so that some of them attain

at they can be regarded as destitute of all structure, they acquire during

of parts, their parts gradually acquire an interdependence, which eventually becomes so strong, that the lif

e of the units constituting it, which are born, grow, act, reproduce themselves, and die separately; while the political bod

ther; and it is proved that these differences are merely appa

resents itself: "What are you talking about? Why i

ing that comes into my head. Let us suppose it to be a forest,-the manner in which it sows itself in the plain, and spreads abroad. 1. Beginning with a small aggregate, it increases imperceptibly in mass, and so forth. Exactly the same thing takes place in the fields, when they gradually seed themselves down, and bring forth a forest. 2. In the beginning the structure is simple: afterwards it increases in complication, and so forth. Exactly the same thing happens with the forest,-in the first place, there were only bitch-trees, then came brush-wood and hazel-bushes; at first all grow erect

m. The forest is mutual re-action of individuals, which do not annihilate each other,-an aggregate; its parts may also enter into a more intimate union, as the hive of bees constitutes itself an organism." Then you will say, "If that is so, then the birds and the insects and the grass of this forest, which re-act upon each other, and do not destroy each other, may also be regarded as one organism, in company with the tre

ive science recognizes the scientific method as the sign of true knowle

ic method it me

soon as the Popes felt that nothing holy rema

nse was left in her she called herself se