m the savage to the saint--from animal
instincts to the self-sacrifice of martyrs and heroes. We cannot escape
the conclusion that the race has evolved, is evolving and will continue
to evolve until mental and moral perfection has been attained.

If neither the theory of the materialist nor the popular notion that the
soul is created at birth is satisfactory, we have only reincarnation
left as a working hypothesis; and if we accept the evolution of the soul
as a natural truth, then reincarnation becomes a necessity in explaining
the known facts of life.

But there are some students of life who appear to refuse the hypothesis
of reincarnation while wishing to accept the idea of the evolution of
the soul. But how would that be possible? If the soul is evolving it is
under the necessity of developing by the laws of growth. They were
discussed in Chapter IX.

Those who desire to put their ideas about the soul and its immortality
into harmony with the facts of evolution sometimes ask why it would not
be possible for the soul to leave the material plane forever at the
death of the physical body and then pursue its evolution on higher
planes. In the vast universe there must be opportunity for all possible
development, it is argued.

But why go on into other regions when the lessons here have not been
learned? That would be a violation of nature's law of the conservation
of energy. The average human being is in the elementary grades, with
scores of incarnations ahead of him before he will be in a position even
to take advantage of his opportunities and thus make fairly rapid
progress. To talk of going on to higher planes for further evolution is
like proposing that a child shall leave the kindergarten and enter the
university.

We are evolving along two lines, the mental and moral, and a little
consideration of the matter will make clear two important points--that
we have much to learn and that the physical plane is wonderfully
arranged for our instruction. We have conditions here for developing
mentality that do not exist on higher planes. The absolute necessity of
procuring food is an example. Death is the penalty for failure to obtain
it. Hunger was the earliest spur to action at the lowest level of
evolution and even now at our high point of attainment it is one of the
chief factors of racial activity. In providing the necessities of life
and in gratifying our multitude of desires mentality is developed.
Business and