Illustrations of a Law of Evolution of Thought [pp. 373-393]

8THE PRINCETON RE VIE W.
growth is arrested, and it becomes traditional, and finally petrifies or decays. But if under the fostering influence of art the:
self-conscious reason becomes developed and begins to study the:
principles of art, i.e., the laws and forces of nature involved in
art-in other words, if science should arise and be applied to.
art-then is the latter thereby impregnated with a new germinal
principle which confers on it immortal life and eternal growth.
Thus there are two kinds of art, viz., the empirical and the ra —
tional or scientific. The one is temporary and limited, the otherpermanent and indefinitely progressive. The one is the neces-,
sary condition and agent of scientific culture, the other is the
perfect expression and the embodiment of the degree of scientific
culture attained. Thus science is born of art, but turns againand perfects art. Science is the daughter of art-celestial
daughter of an earthly mother-but when sufficiently grown
turns again to help and glorify and confer immortality on her
earthly mother.
But it is evident that in passing from the empiric to thescientific stage it often happens that imperfect science attempts?.
to guide an already highly developed art. In such transition
state art may be even injured by the hasty and too confident
application of science; for the accumulated results of experiencemay be better than the reasonings of an imperfect science. But
this is only a transition state. In the end science always perfects.
art, and conversely art is indefinitely progressive only through
science.
Now social organization may be regarded as an art, the high-.
est of all arts. This art also was of necessity at first empirical,
and indeed is so even until now. We are only now trying to.
understand the rational principles of this art. We are only now
trying to lay the basis of a science of society. We are even now
in a transition state in which imperfect reason is interfering;
with the truer and better results of accumulated experience, and.
the art of social organization is likely to suffer. But when weld
understand fully the principles of social organization and thelaws of social progress-in other words, when sociology becomes,
a true science-then this science will build the social structure
on rational principles, and the art of social organization will have
entered upon the scientific stage, and wilt thenceforward become
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