e vase; and from the
monotonous {135} strain of African music to the lofty conception of
Mozart. But this is a continuity of ideas covering the whole human
race as a unit, rather than the progressive development of a single
branch of the race.

Consider for a moment the mental and physical environment of the
ancient cave or forest dweller. The skies to him were marked only as
they affected his bodily comfort in sunshine or storm; the trees
invited his attention as they furnished him food or shelter; the
roaring torrent was nothing to him except as it obstructed his journey;
the sun and the moon and the stars in the heavens filled him with
portentous awe, and the spirits in the invisible world worked for his
good or for his evil. Beyond his utilitarian senses no art emotion
stirred in these signs of creation. Perhaps the first art emotion was
aroused in contemplation of the human body. Through vanity, fear, or
love he began to decorate it. He scarifies or tattoos his naked body
with figures upon his back, arms, legs, and face to represent an idea
of beauty. While the tribal or totemic design may have originated the
custom, he wishes to be attractive to others, and his first emotions of
beauty are thus expressed. The second step is to paint his face and
body to express love, fear, hate, war, or religious emotions. This
leads on to the art of decorating the body with ornaments, and
subsequently to the ornamentation of clothing.

The art of representation at first possessed little artistic beauty,
though the decorations on walls of caves show skill in lines and color.
The first representations sought only intelligence in communicating
thought. The bas-reliefs of the ancients showed skill in
representation. The ideal was finally developed until the aesthetic
taste was improved, and the Greek sculpture shows a high development of
artistic taste. In it beauty and truth were harmoniously combined.
The arts of sculpture and painting are based upon the imagination.
Through its perfect development, and the improvement in the art of
execution, have been secured the aesthetic products of man. Yet there
is always a mingling of the emotional nature {136} in the development
of fine arts. The growth of the fine arts consists in intensifying the
pleasurable sensations of eye and ear. This is done by enlarging the
capacity for pleasure and increasing the opportunity for its
satisfaction. The beginnings of the fine arts w