is the
picture of primitive man suddenly brought face to face with an unknown
world. With no knowledge of nature or art, with no theory or practice
of social order, he began to dig and to delve for the preservation of
life. Suffering the pangs of hunger, he obtained food; naked, he
clothed himself; {8} buffeted by storm and wind and scorched by the
penetrating rays of the sun, he built himself a shelter. As he
gradually became skilled in the industrial arts, his knowledge
increased. He formed a clearer estimate of how nature might serve him,
and obtained more implements with which to work

The social order of the family and the state slowly appeared. Man
became a co-operating creature, working with his fellows in the
satisfaction of material wants and in protecting the rights of
individuals. Slow and painful was this process of development, but as
he worked his capacity enlarged, his power increased, until he mastered
the forces of nature and turned them to serve him; he accumulated
knowledge and brought forth culture and learning; he marshalled the
social forces in orderly process. Each new mastery of nature or self
was a power for the future, for civilization is cumulative in its
nature; it works in a geometrical progression. An idea once formed,
others follow; one invention leads to another, and each material form
of progress furnishes a basis for a more rapid progress and for a
larger life. The discovery and use of a new food product increased the
power of civilization a hundredfold. One step in social order leads to
another, and thus is furnished a means of utilizing without waste all
of the individual and social forces.

Yet how irregular and faltering are the first steps of human progress.
A step forward, followed by a long period of readjustment of the
conditions of life; a movement forward here and a retarding force
there. Within this irregular movement we discover the true course of
human progress. One tribe, on account of peculiar advantages, makes a
special discovery, which places it in the ascendancy and gives it power
over others. It has obtained a favorable location for protection
against oppressors or a fertile soil, a good hunting ground or a
superior climate. It survives all opposing factors for a time, and,
obtaining some idea of progress, it goes on adding strength unto
strength, or is crowded from its favorable position by its warlike
neighbors to perish from the earth, or to live a