NOTES AND ABSTRACTS 555
passion, with the anticipation of glory and fame, or when the gratification of animos- ities is the dominant desire, all feelings contradictory to these suffer a total eclipse, and death becomes desirable as a means to obtain what to the passing fancy seems a greater and the supreme end." GUGLIELMO FERRERO, Appleton's Popular Science Monthly, December, 1897.
Charity and Progress. Philanthropy has a tendency to perpetuate the unfit Progress demands their elimination. It works itself out through selection. " Selec- tion implies two things : it implies something selected, and no less surely
something rejected, left behind to perish as unfit." How can aspirations of philan- thropy be reconciled with the mandates of the law of progress ?
It necessitates the separation of the weak and incapable from the strong and capable, that the utmost may be done for them in hospitals, homes for incurables, asy- lums, or retreats for feeble-minded. Here there is to be no marrying or giving in marriage, or breeding of the unfit.
Associated with these institutions are the organizations of scientific charity which give comfort, help, encouragement, and temporary refuge to the discouraged men and women who are on the downward road of degeneration or toiling upward to the rank of the efficient. These organizations must have such a carefully coordinated admin- istrative system that they will not lose in efficiency through inelasticity or waste energy through lack of of cooperation.
" Thus is the real paradox solved, the sacrifice of the strong to the weak recon- ciled with progress, because intelligent self-sacrifice of the strong to the weak makes the strong stronger and the weak more strong. To him that hath the capacity to receive shall be given the priceless boon of opportunity, and from him that hath not shall be taken away the power of degrading himself and society. The philanthropy of the future will be wise as the serpent and gentle as the dove. With these two emblems conspicuous upon its banners, the motto liberty, equality, fraternity may safely float above the lower alternative standard of liberty, equality, and natural selection. Here lies the golden mean we sought. The riddle of philanthropy and progress is answered, the hydra-headed sphinx of evolution satisfied." EDWARD CUMMINGS, The Quarterly Journal of Economics, October, 1897.
Social Renovation and the Historic School. The historic school in Ger- many rejects entirely natural right, but our historic school believes in a natural right which would be better named " rational," because natural right has sometimes been sup- posed to be the right of obeying instincts, sometimes a union of abstract principles, some times the rights acquired at birth. Natural right gives a sketch of the social edifice, historic right traces a detailed plan and indicates where future additions can be made. There is an essential constitution of humanity arising from natural and divine law. The peculiar constitution of each society is the share of historic right. There are species of societies, as of plants. Evolution should be in the line of the species and type. Men have an innate right to be well governed, but the form of government is the resultant of many acquired rights, depends on the species of the nation, on historic rights. The sophisms of equality may be seen from this. All men are equal as to innate rights, but become unequal by facts, necessary or accepted. Father and son have the same innate rigths, having the same human nature, but paternity gives to the father an acquired right which the son does not possess. A people lives on three things, truth, order, food. Truth satisfies the highest wants of the soul. Order assures peace and justice in society. Food satisfies the material needs of man. From these three needs follow the essential laws of human association. In French history the church held an eminent place. To ignore Christ in the very constitution of the country. as in 1789, was as anti-historic and anti -patriotic as it was anti-Christian. The family is the cell of social tissue. Old France had provided for good organization f the family. The first condition that a family may fulfil its social function is stability. Nothing can he built on dust, and yet to that, for a hundred years, legislation has tended to reduce the family. The men of 1789 gave their country to political geomet- ricians to be made over by arbitrary plans. In place of an evolution they preferred
