Non-Membera can obtain this publication from the Secretary, post free 2/- per- annum.

MAY, 1932.

The Monthly Record of

South Place Ethical Society, CONWAY HALL, RED LION SQUARE, W.C.I.

Telephone: CHANCERY 8032

eBJE~TS 0F THE SeeIETY • .. The Objects of the Society lire the study IInd dissemination of ethical principles ODd the cultivation of 11 rational religious sentiment."

SUNDAY MORNING SERVICES. The following DISCOURSES will' be delivered, the Services beginning at

ELEVEN O·CLOCK.

April 24.-C. BELlSLE BURNS, M,A., B.Ut.-The Standard of Uving and Economic Nationalism.

Sonata in C Minor, Op. 13 (PatMtique) for Pianoforte ... Beethoven I. Grave--Molto Allegro e con brio. n. Adagio cantabile.

m. Rondo: Allegro. MR. WILL1AM BUBcH.

{ No. 42. All around us, fair with flowers. Hymns No. 25. 0 brother man, fold to thy heart thy brother I

May 1.- C. BELlSLE BURNS, M.A., B.Ut.-The Elite and the Mass. Bass Solo--The Pilgrim's Song Tschaikowsky

MR. G. p. Dow~:u.. oprano Solo--The Fairest Isle Pure ell

MISS HEBE IMPSON.

{No. 123. The man of life upright.

Hymns No. 100. What is it that the crowd requite.

May B. - C. BELlSLE BURNS, M.A., B.Ut.-Mechanism and the Arts. Sonata in E Minor for Pianoforte ... ......... Haydn

I. Allegro moderato. n. Andante con moto. m. Presto. MR. WILLIAM BuscH.

Hymn. i No. 59. In silence mighty things are wrought. No. 87. We have not wings, we cannot soar.

May 15 (Whit Sunday).-NO SERVICE. May 22.- S. K. RATCLlFFE.-America Bass solo--The worldly hope

in the Beeps.

MR. G. C. Dow:MAN. oprano olo--With Verdur Clad ...

MISS HEDE B!PSON. Hymns o. 53. Rise I for the day is passing.

1 -o. 66. All common things, each day's events.

May 29.-JOHN A. HOBSON, M.A.-Remaking the World.

Lehmann

Haydn

First Three Movements from Duo in A, Op. 162 for Pianoforte and Violin • 'rlillbrrl I. Allegro moderato. 11. cherzo e Trio: Presto. In. Andantino.

MR. WILLIA:\! BusoH and MR. ISIDORE SCHwn,LER.

{ No. 45. All a re arC'hitects of fate. Hymns No. 13:~. Lie open, soul! around thee press.

The Committee request the audience to refram from appLa'lue. Pianist: MR. WILL1AM BUSCH.

A Hymn Practice, to which all perwns desiro1Js of impr01,ino the hllmn .~inoin(1 '£re invited, is held at the close of each Servir-e.

A CoZZection is made at earh Service, to enable those present to contribute to th4 C:tpen.H~S of th, Society.

VISITORS WELOOME. OFFIOIAJ, CAR PARK-Opposite Main Entrance

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MEMBERSHIP.

An." person in sympathy with the Objects of the Society is cordially invited to become a MEMBER. The amount of subscription is optional, but it is hoped that members will subscribe as generously as possible. The minimum is 2s. 6d per quarter, or 10s. per annum. Any person interested in the Society's work, bUl not wishing to become a member, may join as an ASSOCIATE, the minimum 8ubscription being 5s. per annum. Full-time students at universities and secondary schools are invited to become Associates for a subscription of 28. 6d. per annum Further particulars may be obtained before and after the Sunday Services, or OD

application to the Hon. Registrar, Miss R. HALLS, Con way Hall, Red Lion Square. W.C.!.

Secretary and Manager F. M . OVERY, Conway Hall, Red Lion Square, W.C.]

R0N0RllRY aFFH~ERS.

Trea&urer C. E. LISTER, 17, Churston Mansions, W.C.!. Sunday Lecture Secretary F. W. READ, 65, Harley Road, Harlesden, N.W.lO. JIinute3 Secretary Miss E. PALMER, 74, Falkland Park Avenue, S.E.25 Registrar of Memben and J Miss R. HALl,S, 121, Studdridge Street, Parsons

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The GENERAL CO~nllTTJm will moet on Wednesday, :JIa.I' 4, at 6.30 p.m. at Con way Hall. Correspondence dealing with matters for consideration should he forwarded to F. M. OVERY, Secretary, Conway Hall, Red Lion Square, W.O.I, at the earliest possible moment. All matters relating to finance, hould be addresstlo to the Treasurer.

Secretaries of Sub-Committees are requested to note that any matter which they wish to insert in the MONTHLY RECORD should be in the hands of the Editor J. B. COATES, 5, King's Garth, S.E.23, as early in the month as possible.

FUNERAL SERVICES can be arranged by the Society. Application should be made to the Secretary, F. M. OVERY, Conway Hall, Red Lion Square, W.C.l. (Telephone: Chancery 8032.)

MEMBERS INCAPACITATED.-Will any reader who bears of a member 01 the Society incapacitated througb sicknesb kindly inform the General Secretary . Conway Hall, or communicate with any other officer of the Society.

The Society does not hold itself ,·es110nsible f01· views expressed or reported ;11 the" RECORD."

PRYNS HOPKINS, M.A., PH.D., ON "RELIGION AND THE FAMILY."

Pryns Hopkins approached his subject first from the behaviourist standpoint. and gave a brief history of the sexual behaviour of man aJld of his pre-hum an ancestors.

Dealing first with the primates, the lecturer said that, according to Zuckerman, the unit of their ociety was a kind of horde in which there was one overlord who had attached to him a harem of the females . Periodica lly there was a re-grouping after :1

terrific fight, whIch usually originated from one of thE' other male monkeys , who lI'ere bachelors , starting a flirtation with one of thE' female '.

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There has been much controversy as to the nature of the sexual customs of the earliest human societies. but there seems now to be some agreement that in the earliest societies which anthropologists have studied marriage is monogamous but there 16 erotic play among young people and the formation of temporary unions among post-adolescents, who gradually settle to one mate after experience with others. There is much to be said for the above system, in which everyone enters marriage with some experience and also with a partner who has been tried out and selected.

The marriage conditions of Inter societies are more artificial , being influenced by ideas taken from magic and religion. In ancient Egypt there was a great deal of freedom of intercourse between the sexes without any slur being attached to it; and there was family life of an affectionate type. The sexual customs of Babylonia show a greater ha rshness of human nature and more dominance by the male. Before marriage every woman had to submit herself in the temple to some stranger for money. Among Semitic tribes generally a commercial motive entered into sexual relationships. Marriage was often made by purchase, and women were enumerated in lists of property.

While women were no longer regarded ns property under Christianity, St. Paul told women to be subordinate to their husbands and spoke of marriage in disparaging terms. The delight which the ancient world had taken in physical health and beauty and the na.tural - instinctive love between the sexes came to be felt as unworthy of men whose souls were given to higher loyalties.

Under Zoroastrin.nism there was polygamy; Zoroaster fought against asceticism, and taught that it was disgraceful not to have many children. Numerous children were necessary in thoso days when society was precarious and wars and pestilences frequent. Hindu marriage was usually monogamous and entered into at a very early age. The Hindus pl:wed an exaggerated emphasis upon chastity, Ilnd widows were not allowed to re-marry.

Coming to the attitude of modern psychology to marriage, the lecturer said that psychologists do not now regard the human being as the rntionnl being dis­tinguished from the lower creation that he was once thought to be. Modern psy­chology realises the primary importance of the fundamental instincts of man, nnd holds that the purpose of reason is to find mea ns of satisfying the instincts. There is, however, much difference of opinion as to the nature of the fundamental in­stincts. The behaviourists have shown that many tendencies once regarded as instincts cannot be so l'egarded; chicks, for example, can be conditioned to follow a broom or the owner of the hen-yard instead of the mother, so that there is no instinct for the chick to follow the mother-hen.

Dealing with the development of the sexual instinct, the lecturer said that the phenomenon of auto-eroticism and erotic play is its first important manifesta­tion. If auto-eroticism is repressed as a result of the condemnation of the mother, it persists in the unconscious and may give rise to dangerous complexes. The child whose nuto-eroticism has not been repressed, on the other hand, outgrows it in the normal course of his sexual development.

To understand the origin of religion and the growth of religious conceptions it is necessary to probe into our experience to discover the early repressions which built up complexes or caused the projection of a god or gods. .Analysis shows that the ideal of the father is projected ns an image which becomes a god, and that the idea of original sin is built up from the incestuous desire of the child for the mother. All religions ha,e a system by which man is reconciled to God by conquest over original sin; this springs from the need of the son to reconcile himself to his father by the conquest over his sinful desire for his mother. The founders of religions have usually been men whose sex lif<- was ahnormal , and the idea of original sin which, ns has been seen. arose naturally from the rivalry between the son and the father for the mother'§ love, lias been so extended that all sex life has been regarded as unclean. The idea has arisen that reconciliation between man and God must tak place through thc renunciation of sex . Psycho-analysis helps us to see why most religions have dealt with the problem of sex in an unfortunate manner.

A rhila needs physi('al care, economic security, and love, which it will only obtaill

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if its parents are sexually sa'.;isfied. It is important not to create complexes in the child by punishing it for the natural development of its libido; the child who ill not repressed will develop a full and healthy emotional life.

There has been too much moralising in the past, saying that things which are natural and instinctive should not be, and endeavouring to make all sexual life conform to one pattern. Given the possibility of pre-marital relations so that marriage is entered upon with knowledge, and with experience of one's partner, marriages should b6 happy and the influence of the parents on the children beneficial.

J. B . C.

MR. JOHN MURPHY ON "GOETHE." The celebration of the centenary of Goethe's death, in England, on the Con­

tinent and in America, furnishes striking evidence of the continuance of very wide­spread interest in his life and work. In Germany, as might be expected, a great number of books on Goethe ha\Oe appeared-biographies, monographs, essays and new editions, complete or partial, of his works, including the splendid " Propylaen " edition, just completed, in which all his writings appear in chrono­logical order.

The forty-five volumes of this edition constitute a sort of biography, but hardly one calculated to supersede the efforts of the ordinary biographer, who confines his survey to reasonable dimensions. Another sort of biography is that presented by Bode, who collected into three rather portly volumes, in chronological order, an enormous number of private letters about Goethe by all sorts of people, young and old, some famous, like Schiller, Humboldt and Heine, others so obscure as to be otherwise unknown to fame. ("Goetbe in vertraulichen Briefen seiner Zeitgenossen") The output of Goethe books in England is second only to that of Germany. Prof. Robertson, Mr. Lowes I?ickinson ~nd Mr. H. W. Nevinson, to mention only welt known names, have just published books which will be welcomed by every student, while in the background are the recent two-volume biography by Mr. Hume J'lrown ann the slie:hter but not negligible books of Mr. Syme and Sir John Seeley. Italy is represented in recent Goethe literature by her most distinguished critic, Benedetto Croce, who has found in the German poet an adequate, though perhaps not entirely congenial theme; while America, though unlikely to recognise quite her own spirit in the exquisite prose of Santayana, can hardly make a more welcome contribution to the subject than his magistral essay in "Three Philoso­phical Poets." It looks, indeed. as if the life and work of Goethe were an in­gredient in European culture and excite a certain measure of interest in every part of the world to which that culture has been carried by a century of diffusion.

Yet grateful as this stream of fine books may be to the student of Goethe, there is some doubt whether the very spectacle of it may not discourage a reader new to the theme. It is worth while, therefore, to mention that G. H . Lewes's, " Life and Works of Goethe" in the Everyman series is still one of the best biographies and that Eckermann's "Conversations with Goethe," translated in the same series, gives the reader a more adequate impression than can be got from any other book of the man in his magnificent old age.

One of the chief reasons for the universal interest in Goethe is that he is not only one of the most remarkable persons of modern times but also perhaps the best known man in history. His own writings and those of his contemporaries show him to us in one aspect or another almost continuously from his boyhood until the day of his death. He himself has told us that his works are" fragments of a great 90nfession." The value of his poetry as of his novels is independent, as it should be, of any knowledge of the circumstances of their creation; yet that knowledge adds a new significance to a great deal of his work . "Faust" and "Wilhelm Meister" belong, as autobiographical documents, to the story of t.he growth educa­tion, struggle, failure and triumph of the complex and restless being that was 'Goethe.

Mr. Murphy gave a rapid sketch of this stor:v and spoke of the poetic genius,

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the man of science, the lover, the critic, the sage. It is possible that an hour's talk may have conveyed some impression of the massiveness and many-sidedness of this personality. At least, perhaps it suggested that the study of Goethe's career has in a. special measure the emotional, the scientific and the moral interest which reflective readers have always found in the spectacle of human life.

J. M.

MR. J. A. HOBSON ON "THE RECORDING ANGEL. V." Continuing his allegory of the Recording Angel and the Terrestrial Messenger,

Mr. Robson dealt with the world situation to-day. No optimistic picture of the situation could be drawn in view of man's apparent

divorce from reason and good will. The unholy alliance of economic nationalism and profiteering capitalism had sown the seeds of economic discord and chaos and was paralysing international trade. The dangerous ideal of a self-sufficient state was gaining ground. This ideal was elipecially attractive to nations like the U.S."!'., China and Russia, whic}l might concAivably reach a fairly complete state of self­sufficiency. Such would certainlY not be the case with nations like Britain which relied so largely on imported f-ood. 'It was probably one of the worst possible con­sequences of the War that Britain should have surrended to economic nationalism in the guise of Imperialism and have adopted a policy of Protection. Advocates of British Imperialism did not realise that the dominions were also striving to be in­dustrially self-sufficient. A policy of economic imperialism was one of great danger as our colonies would have less and less need of Britain's manufactures as time went on .

The apparent defeat of the forces of Reason and Goodwill seemed to be leading to a gigantic catastrophe. There were two main factors which might prevent disaster. Mr. Robson had spoken in It previous lecture of the possibility of a spiritual revival. By this he meant that the growing sense of impending catastrophe might halt humanity on the brink of the precipice. The present state of emergency might cause a rally of the reserve forces of self-protection and cause a rapid growth of sanity. Philosophers had spoken with contempt of the" herd-mind," but it had this quality-a collective sense of self-preservation, which was a kind of general will. A sudden revelation of dangerous error might cause a quick change of direc­tion, a common urge to remedial action. But this alone was not enough. It was imperative to realise that opportunism and planlessness no longer paid, that "muddling through" was at best the effort of muddled minds. The time had come for man to make a conscious, collective effort on a wide basis for the control of sociai policies. More than ever was the reality of human interdependence apparent.

The second factor which might help to ward off catastrophe was education. Modern history had been described as a race between education and catastrophe. Unfortunately the operation of the good effects of education tended to be very slow, while remedial action was urgent. The type of education given in our schools, also, was in grave need of reform. Learning alone was not enough, the storing of knowledge for the purpose of not using it. Our present education does not train the type of mind capable of social planning. A system of moral education based on such maxims as "it's not cricket" and "play the game" if divorced from a more solid foundation, only led to a spineless opportunism in p~blio affaIrs. The education of the public schools gave chiefly a training in sport, a sense of "good form," and a smattering of decorative literary knowledge. The education of the masses suffered from the defects of mass teaching and from the ~a.rrow time limits set to the process. In few schools was there any adequate teach­Ing of citizenship and modern history. Dead facts were regarded as safer than living ones . It had been said that education was the art of human salvation, and that the proper study of mankind was man. This had to be put into practice, and sufficient attention paid in our educa.tional system to a knowledge of the body and personal hygiene, and to biology and the social sciences. Above all, the pupils

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should be taught to think and act for themselves. Far from creating anarchy, thi$ would in the end assist the urge towards co-operation.

The new organs of education, the Press and the Radio, could help in the forma­tion of a world mind. At present there was a sometimes deliberate and sometimes unconscious falsification and distortion of news. In the main the press did little except, by its provision of sensational and sporting news, to supply a second-hand or, as it were, a sublimated satisfaction of lawless passions and repressed desires which life failed to satisfy.

A cause of hope in the present crisis was the breakdown of profit-making capitalism, from an internal malady. Capitalism was no longer working as a profit­making instrument, and it would need to be transformed by a "major operation." This should mean the re-organisation of industry on a sane and socially profitable basis. Such a change would deprive militant nationalism of its ma in foundation.

There was hope that this time of emergency would create the enlightened and courageous leadership needed to invok.e t hroughout the world the spirit of conscious planning and co-operation. The lecturer was opposed to dictatorship; he looked for hope to the efforts of an intellectual and moral elite operating in a free democracy. He believed that liberty could and must survive in a planned world, for liberty was the moral staple of true personality. G. K .

MR. C. E. M. JOAD ON "CONFUSIONS OF MODERN SCIENCE."

The lecturer referred first to certain cosmic questions which men have asked in all ages, such questions as whether the universe is a fortuitous collection of atoms or shows evidence of design; whether mind is a function of matter or is the supreme reality; whether good and evil are mere names we give to things we like or dislike, or there are eternal ethical principles of objective validity.

At most periods of history men have thought they knew the answers to the above questions; Christian theology, for example, asserts the existence of an omnipotent and good God, and of a world which bears everywhere the evidence of divine provi­dence. When science questioned the conclusions of Christian theology, it gave ita own confident answers to the questions. It taught that the universe is a vast machine without plan or purpose functioning through the automatic inter-action of its parts; that matter is the supreme reality; and that there are no objective aesthetic or moral standards. Most of us have grown up instinctively believing in the framework of thought accepted by 19th century science, regarding matter as the unquestionable reality, the abiding rock on which we can base our minds, the refuge from transcend ntal moonshine, and looking upon religion, morality, and art as mere projective whimsies of the mind of man.

Modern science does not give the confident answers to cosmic questions that were giYen by earli er sc ientists. Matter as described by modern physicists does not seem so hard and so real; it has become a "mush" of electricity, a wave of prob­ability undulating into nothingness. The material world is now regarded as possess­ing none but strictly electrical and mathematical qualities; the qualities of colour, shape and texture whi ch it seems to us to possess are regarded as being projected into it by the mind, so that what really exists in the outside world is not in the least\like what our senses perceive. Thus the rose does not really possess its perfume, the sun its radiance; that we perceive tbese qualities is merely proof of the archi­tectural powers of the human mind.

Regarding the universe in this way, our physici sts have seen that while our knowledge of the real nature of matter is inferential, our know­ledge of our own consciousness is direct And immediate. Jeans, Eddington and Einstein construct the universe in terms of mind, not matter, as they regard our own consciousness as the onl.v reality of which we have certain knowledge. They hold that consciousness cannot be explained on mechanistic terms, and there has

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been a flight of these and other eminent scientists to religion, as it is felt that t,he revelation of the universe given by such mediums as art and religion is more real and true, as it is more direct, than that given by physics and chemistry.

There has been a similar revolt, agains.t mechanistic theories in the field of biology. Such theories as holism and emergent evolution proclaim the priority of mind over matter, and regard life as being e~Rentially purposive, creative. The creative ovolutionist holds that the behaviour of a living organism is fundamentally different from that of a machine, and cannot be explained in mechanistic terms.

It is a strange paradox of modern ~(;i ence that while physics, the science of matter, is increasingly inclined to deny the reality of matter, psychology, on the other hand, the science of mind, is increasingly inclined to deny the existence of mind. While physical science has moved away from mechanistic theories . psycho­logy has moved towards them. Behaviourism has achieved unexpected success in interpreting behaviour without any but mechanistic assumptions, and Pay]oy '· ex­periments have afforded a substantial re-inforcement to that view. Pavlov has p;iven experimental evidence for the view that it is possible to make animals and human beings behave in almost any way.desired by merely conditioning their stimuli. In "Brave New World," Aldous Huxley has shown us some interesting possible application of Pavlov's discoveries to education. He describes the method by which children selected for theix: low intelligence might, by appropriate condition­ing, be turned into perfect Robots, devoid of any such disturbing emotions as a love of truth or beauty or a religious sense. The human being as shown to us by i

Pavlov is only an extraordinarily complicated automaton, and we are back again to a mechanistic theory of life, with the mind regarded as a function of material

processes. Are the confusions presented by modern science to be regarded as a reason for

abandoning science? The lecturer took the view that the stampede of scientists into mysticism and intuitionism, into sophism and theosophism that has resulted from recent scientific developments is one of the most regrettable features of our time. He felt that the difficulty of our position is largely due to the fact that scientists work in special departments of thought with the methods which give the best results in that department. It should be possible for there to be a kind of " clearing house" to which the results of all the sciences were brought and an attempt made to synthesise them. It was necessary to realise also that there are other ways of attaining truth than the scientific way. The intuitions of the ordinary man, the aesthetic experience of the artist, the collective experience of race, the experience of the saint are all methods of approach to truth. The lecturer believes that the worst of all " remedies" for our present confusion WitS !\ capitula­tion of the reason, a £light into superstition, nor was it necessary to abandon those methods of investigation which have brought us to our present position. What was needed was an extension of the methods which have already been used. with a greater effort towards a synthesis of the various branches of knowledge.

J. B. C.

THE STUDY CIRCLE. MR. A. CRAIG ON "A MODERN APPROACH '1'0 THE ETHICS OF SEXUAL

CONDUCT. "

At the Study Circle on March 18th, Mr. A. Craig read a paper entitled" A .Modern Approach to the Ethics of Sexual Conduct."

By " modernism" in sexual ethics he meant that school of thought of which ~ussell and the World League for Sexual Reform are p erhaps the most representa­tive exponents, and by " orthodoxy" that point of view which satisfied most respec­table people in this country before the war.

He showed that whereas practically all the orthodox agree that sexual well­d~ing consists in conformity with some theological or metaphysical ideal~ither the Will of God or "the Moral Law "-the modernist regards sexual ethical questions

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as practical problems in confi i ctin~ desire. and does not expect ~o find any rule of life or code of conduct which Will fit all cases. At the same tIme general pro­positions as to the form of sexual conduct likely to satisfy people could be very useful, but it was essential that they should be regarded as mere statements of probability.

Modernism took the yiew that in cases where no children were involved and where the. parties were agreed there. was no justification for so~ial. or legal inter­ference with sexual conduct. In thIS country orthodox moralIty mterferes to a considerable extent as instanced by the following: (a) criminal laws against male homo-sexuality and abortion; (b) the difficulties placed in the way of sexual rela­tionships between the unmarried; (c) the censorship of sexual literature and its virtual exclusion from public libraries.

In those cases where, although there were no children, yet the parties quarrel and appeal to the law or social opinion for protection, orthodoxy was ever ready to interfere and even to inflame jealousy in order to secure conformity to its ideals. Modernism would like to see people sufficiently responsible and adult to "paddle their own canoes" and bear theIr own griefs.

The proper attitude of the law or society where children are involved is the most vital problem of modernisIIJ.. The problem is how to put the mother on a foot­ing of social and economic equality with men and non-child-bearing women and to secure every child a fair chance in life. One things was clear-there should be no discrimination between "legitimate" and "illegitimate" children, and both parents should be equally responsible for the welfare of their c.hildren. The principle of voluntary parenthood should make the problem of satIsfactory propagatIOn easier for the modernist than it is for the orthodox.

Modernists should energetically support all movements for legal reform, and in their individual lives the slogan should be "Full knowledge and full oppor­tunity." Given this liberty guidance can be obtained by clear thinking and by reference to the experience of others. The modernist will be helped by having dis­carded the obsession that the only choice in the love life lies between celibacy and child-bearing monogamy, and by being freed from the idea that sexual urges which do not fit in with the latter system are necessarily deplorable and inferior.

The spread of modernism in sexual ethics is vital to the cause of progress-not only withm its own limits but in every sphere of sociology. Inharmonious sexual life is the greatest cause of waste of energy, intelligence and altruistic urges. How many of us have not seen stalwarts in the army of progress reduced to lassitude and ineffectiveness by marriage as it exists to-day! Many reformers in the economic and political field do not appreciate this. They often tend to look down on the sexual reformer and the sex propagandist. Yet he strives to conserve the raw material on which they themselves have to work-healthy intelligence.

Although the modernist is the last person in the world to think that he ha" found a panacea for the ills of mankind he does think that the greater part of the appalling mass of misery due to ill-adjusted love could be avoided by a rational attitude towards life. He dreams of a world where love shall be free to grow according to its own nature; where it will not be harnessed to material ends; where 'it will not be a poor caricature of what it should be. From such love might spring a race free from the fear that haunts so much of our ,·Oy. Men and women with hearts made kindly and tolerant by experience of such ove would go far to rid the world of much of its bitterness and strife-to free it from war and oppression and poverty.

MR. ARNOLD LANE ON " HEHA vrOURISM."

At the Study Circle on April 1st, Mr. Arnold Lane opened the disl'ussion with " paper on " Behaviourism."

Ps:vchology is to be defined as that science which deals with human behaviour, from the viewpoint of the organism as a whole. It is to be distinguished clearly from physiology, which deals with the functions of variolls organs of the body­organism.

Psychology has but lately emerged from a position of comparative obscurity as a part of philosophy, to become now firmly established as a science in its own right.

Unlike introspectionist psychologists, the behaviourist dispenses altogether with sllch terms as soul, mind, consciousness, will. He maintains that these words R(>rl'6 no llseful purpose in an exact science, but rather cause much needless con­fu~ion anel obscurantism.

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The Behaviourist contends- his contention ~eing based uP.on, a.nd suppot."ted by experimental evidence- that the human mfant starts life with a limited nu'mber of pattern reactions to a certain limited number of .stimuli. Upon these unconditioned stimuli and the responses they call out, are bUIlt up, by the process known as association' or conditioning, a vast range of effective stimuli and con­ditioned responses. 'The process of conditioni~g involved is . simply . understo~d. The Behaviourist does not attempt to say why It occurs. It IS suffiCient for him that it does occur , and that it adequately explains the variety of phenomena which comprise human behaviour.

The Behaviourist classifies stimuli as implicit and overt--according to the place of the stimulus inside, or outside the organism. Stimuli are also classified , accord­ing to the particular sense involved in the perception thereof/ as visual, auditory (a laryngeal stimulus imparted by a speaker becomes an audItory stimulus to .he listener), visceral, tactile , olfactory, etc.

Unconditioned r esponses fall naturally into one of . the three classes of fear, rage and love reactions-the first two being negative, that is, urging the organism to quieten, or to escape from the sphere of influence of the stimuli; the last a positive reaction, to which the ol"!~ani sm responds by endeavouring to persist within the range of actIOn of the stimuh.

The Behaviourist contends t hat at every moment of the day and night, the organism is subjected t o various stimuli; visceral, kinaesthetic, and those perceived through the five overt senses.

Habit formation a nd the pr~cess of condi.ioning account for such phenomena as memory, verbal or tactile, thinking, reasoning, etc. The Behaviourist contends that there is no single form of human behaviour which cannot be explained by reference to Behaviourist psychology.

It is easily seen that Behaviourism is deterministic. This fact will cause hurt only to such students as cannot be happy without adhering to antiquated ideals and conceptions which~ they will probably admit, were never either clearly understood or practically usetul.

There will be found room still, in the modern world of strange, new , unfeeling terminologies and sciences, for aesthetics, art, beauty, spiritual idealism and human love. These words do mean something, provided they are used in connection with the ap,Propriate emotional viewpoint. To make them intrude into the sphere of an exact sCIence is to court disaster , confusion , and stern rebuff.

Lastly, an understanding of the way human beings behave, a complete under­standing of Behaviourism and its implications throws light upon anthropology Twentieth Century economics, and utopian ideais alike. A ray of hope is revealed that the causes of our world-wide distress are at last found , and that the principles upon which it is necessary to proceed if conditions are to be ameliorated have been discovered.

The mentalities-che v iscero-Iaryngeal habit system (to use the exact termin­ology of the Behaviourist)-of most people of to-day, are still barbarian, prehistoric. Preservation of these might perhaps be advocated upon archaeological grounds, but socially, they are damning obstacles to rational sane progress.

The social implications of Behaviourism are vast--many have yet to be worked out. This, at least, may be said; few indeed of our traditional opmions or institu­tions will be left standing, when once the crystal light of an understanding of psychology has permeated the minds of the people.

F. M. OVERY . . We are very glad to be able to report that Mr. F. M. Overy is making progress.

Rls breakdown in March caused great concern, and the Committee, in conveying their sympathy to him and to his wife, were actuated by the desire to express, not only their own feelings, but also those of the general body of members. The many years of arduous anC! de~oteC! work he gave to the Society as Honorary Secretary na~urally. come to mmd In ~lS p.res.ent t~ouble , and we but voice the warm friend­ship of hiS fellow members In wlshrng hIm back among us with all his old vigour and good spirits, as quickly as a complete cure from his ill-health will allow. We know that ~r. Overy i~ keen t? resuJ?e his ~uties at the earliest moment, but we trust he Will possess hIS s~ul ID pa~lence. "More hast~ less speed," is a wise motto to observe when one s health IS at stake. Mr. S. u. Green has kindly con­served to officiate in Mr. Overy's place in the meantime.

C. J. P.

10

ARTHUR HAWKINS . .. \xthul' Hawkinl>, whose death took place on April 11th, was a member tor only

three years, but had been conllected with the Society through the rambles and through the orchestra for at least 20 years.

He was very similar in nature and in character to his brother Frank .l::l.awklll". They had the same gentleness, patience and good hUJU(lur and the same capac'ity for doing unpopular jobs.

He rendered tbe Society a signal service in cataloguing tbe 2,000 works of his br(lthcr's Chamber Music Library.

ANNUAL MEETING. The Annual Meeting will be held on Sunday evening, May 29th, at 6.0 p .m.

There will be a social gathering at 5.0 p.m., at which light refreshments will be provided.

RAMBLES. Sunday, .\lay 1.-EpPING FOREST. Led by :\111. JA)IE.. Train 1.5, Liverpool

Street. Chenp return Is. Id. to Chingford. Tea at High Beech.

Sunday, :\1ay S.-STUDY Ol' MIGRANT AND RESIDENT BIRDS AND THEIR SONGS, AT BOOKHAM, SURltI;Y. Conducted by Mn. HAl\ULTON. Take cheap return, 2s. 5d., to Bookhnm from Waterloo, 1.15 p.m.

Whit-Sunday, :May 15.-EYNJ<:s~·onD AND OT}'ORD. Conducted by Mr. CHARLES S. EW~O)I. Cheap return E~·nsford. Train, 9049 Yictoria, or 9.33 Holborn Viaduct,

2s. 8d. return. Ten at the Old Oast House, OUOl·d.

Sunday, ~Iay 22.-:\Irr,L HILL AND TOTTERIDGE. Conducted by MRS. CLEMENTS, starrinl! from ,!1'incltley "'ay, at :l p.m., after lunch in the garden. Those attend­inl! ~el'l'ice will be conducted there by MR. CLElIIENTiS.

uuuay, :\Iay 29.-BENTLEY HEA'l'H .I);D BARNET. Led hy Miss K. L. BUSH. Tra1l1, King's Cross Suburban, 2.1 p.m. Day return 1 et\' Bm'net, Is. 2d. Tea at Bentley Heath.

NOTE.-In all cases bring lunch, and if possible verify trains. Annual sUbscription of Is. is now due for the current year.

HOII. Secretary; Mus. G. JAMES.

CONWAY MEMORIAL LECTURE. The Conway Memorial Lectures! which are delivered annually in March, were

inaugurated in 1908, as a Memoria to Dr. Moncure Conway. The Committee is not yet in possession of the necessary capital for the permanent endowment of the Lectureship, and in the meantime it makes an earnest appeal to all readers of the MONTHLY REOORD either for sUbscriptions or donations, to ensure the continuance of the lectures. These should be sent to the Hon. Treasurer, Mrs. COOKBURN, Peradeniya, 18, Northampton Road, Croydon.

Twenty-three lectures have been given, and copies of these can be purchased at the book stall.

Hon. Secretary, ERNEST CARR, "Lyndall," EssendoR Road, Sanderstead, Surrey.

CLUB ROOM FOR MEMBERS. A room is available every week-day, from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m., for the use of

Members of the Society. Special tickets are issued, which can be obtained from Miss R. HALLS, Hon. Registrar. It will be necessary for Members to SllOW tbeir tickets at the entrance if tbey wish to use the room provided. It should be llnder­stood that, in view of certain commitments . it will not be always possible to use a part.icular room, but usually either the Library 01' the Club Room will be available.

11

ANNOUNCEMENTS. LIBRARY.-The Library is open on un day mornings before and after the Service

and on Mondays during the Country Dance Class. It is free to Members and Associates; Non-Members may borrow books on payment of Ss. per annum. Members are specially reminded that a slip must be filled in for each book borrowed. When books are returned they must be handed to the Librarians and not replaced on the shelves.

In view of the loss of books, borrowers will be held responsible for them or their value. In future, the slip filled in by the borrower will be returned on the book being handed to the Librarians.

Books returned by post should bear clearly the name of tbe Member returning them.

THE POETRY CIRCLE will meet on the second and fourth Fridays of the month in the Library at 7.30 p.m. As the list of members wbo have offered to give papers has not yet come to an end it has been decided by the committee to continue the Circle for a few more meetings. On May 13th a paper on Long­fellow will be given by Mr. E. NELLING. On May 27th a paper on "The Brontes and their Poetry" will be given by MISS OVERY. It is hoped that all Members and Associates who are interested will attend, and visitors are welcome. Further particulars frum the Hon. Secretary, MRs. MARIANNI!! IDIENs, 85, Windsor Road, ~r;u-est 9 ate, E.7.

THE RYDE REUNION will take place on Wednesday, April 27, in the library at 7.30 pm. A charge of 6d. will be made to cover expenses. There will be music, games, dancing, and refreshments.

COUNTRY DANCE GROUP.-Classes will be continued until the Monday before Whitsun (May 9). After Wbitsun, the usual Monday practices will be held in the Clubroom throughout the summer.

Those wishing to join the group please communicate with the Hon. Secre­tary, MISS P. M. OVERY. The classes and practices are limited to Members and Associates of the ociety.

THE TUDY CIRCLE.-In the future the Study Circle will meet weekly on Fridays, at 7.30 p.m., the papers beginning at 8 p.m.

On April 29, Mr. John tevenson, Barrister-at-Law, will give a paper on " The Law in Relation to Sex."

On May 6, Dr. Pryns Hopkins will give a paper on "The Child and the Difficult Teacher."

On May 13, A. S. N eill will give a paper on " The Free School." On May 20, Mrs. Janet Chance will give a papel· on "The Educational

Danger of the Chaste Woman." May 27: Details to be announced later. Questions and discus ion will follow the paper at each meeting. All

Members, Associates and their friends are cordially invited to the meetings. Hon. Secretary: l\Ir. A. M. , . FERNAXDES, Ringwood. Farm Way, Worcester Park, urrey.

S(!mTH "LIH2E SUNDRY e0NeERT S0eIETY. Sunday "opular eoncerts (ehamber Music).

The FORTY- IXTH EASON. April 24.-Last Concert of eason. The Brosa String (Juartet: Hrosa, WIse,

Rubens, Mannucci. Piano: Alan Bush. Vocalist: Dorothy Jielmrlch. At the Piano: Kate Leventon. Haydn's String Quartet in D, Op. 76, No. 5. AJan Hush's Piano Quartet. Schumann's tring Quartet in A major, Op. 4], No. 3.

Doors open 6.10. Concert begins 6.30. Admission Free. ilver Collection. " THE STORY OF A THOUSAND CO CERTS," by W. S. Meadmore illus­

trated with portraits of the Artists and two Drawings, together with a t,ist of Works. Number of Performances, Names of Artists, etc. Sixpence net. Post free 8d. from the Hon. Treasurer.

Committee Meeting on ,,'unday, April 24, at 5 p.m. Hon Trea.,urer: ANDREW E. WATSON, Con way Hall, Red Lion Square, W.C.l. Hon. Secretary: ALFRED J. CLEMENTS, 8, Finchley Way, N.3. Hon. A .'3i&tant Srcretarl/: Mrs. D. ]\f. CLEMENTS, 8, Finchley Way, N.S.

12

Secretaries of Sub-eommittees. Bookstall Building Concert

E. SNELLING, 8, Amberley Road, Leyton, E.I0. S. G. GREEN, 22, Overhill Road, S.E.22. ALFHED J. CLEMENTS, 8, Finchley Way, Finchley, N.3. ,-;. (;,\RR, 6, Essendon Road, Sanderstead, Surrey. MISS F. J. SIMONS, 11, Ashley Road, N.19.

Con way Memorial Music Rambles MRS. JAMES, 302, Dalston Lane, E.8.

Socia:i {MRS. 1. M. AI"DRIDGE, 152, King Henry's Road, N.W.3.

... Yhts. G. CATHERALL, 49, Cecile Park, N.S.

Study Circle

Sunday Services

lA. M. S. FERNANDES, "Ringwood," Farm Way, Worcester ... ) Park, Surrey. ... F. JAME~, 302, Dnleton LanQ, E.8.

-Mrs. D . .\1. CLEMENTS. A. J. CLEMENTS . J. B. COATES. E. F. ERRINGTON.

*E. J. FAIRHALI.. A.. M. S. lrERNANDE>I. W. FISH.

eeMMITTEE. S. G. GREEN. Mrs. F. M. HAWKINS.

"Mrs. G. JAMES. *F. JAMES.

Mrs. T. C. LINDSAY. "Mrs. A. J. LISTER. "C. J . POLLARD.

Mrs. E. RWHARDS. F. A . RICHARDS. Miss F. J. SIMONS.

* Miss P. SNELLING Mrs. V. STUTTIG . F. STUTTIG. A. S. TOMS.

*Retire at the Annual Meeting in May.

New Members: Mr. H. W. LEWIS, 7, Stanton Road, S.W.20. Mr. E. M. BARRAUD, 31, St. Stephen's Road, W.2. Miss J. F. BARRETT, 51, Dartmouth Park Hill, N.W.5. Miss D. L. BunCH, 57, Waller Road, S.E.14. Mr. A. C. FLETCHER, 61, Mercers Road, N.19. Mr. P . G. HUSBANDS, 109, Great Russell Street, W.C.1. Miss K. E. LEE, 49, Oakington Manor Drive, Wembley Hill, Middlesex. Miss M. POLLARD, 59, Eccleston Square Mews, S .W.I. Mr. R. S. W. POLLARD, The Penn Club, 9, 'I'avistock Square, W.O.I.

New 1tssociates: Mr. A. J . BEAN, 56, Verulam Road, S.E.18. Miss M. H. TRACY, 6, Beulah Hill, S.E.19. Mrs. H. J. WHITE, ' .' Woodthorpe," Townsend Avenue, N.14.

t2hanges of 1tddress:

1 1

2 4 6 8 8

9 13 13

Mr. G. L. FYMAN, Willianbury, Willian, Letchworth, Herts . Mrs. G. L. PYMAN, care of M. E. PITCHER; ESQ. , 16, St. Helen's Place, E.C.3. Mrs. N. BONFORD, 1, Coram Mansions, Millman Street, W.O.I. Mrs. E. E. McOoRMAcK, 62, Walsingham Road, E.5. Mr. and Mrs. L. O. ALDRIDGE, 18, Brockswood Lane, Welwyn Garden Oity. Mr. L. OAMERMAN, 61, Dartrnouth Road, N.W.2.

DI1tRY Fc!)R M1tY. Service 11 a.m. 15 Ramble: Eynsford and Ramble: Epping Forest Otford (see page 10)

(see page 10) 20 Study Circle 7.30 p.m. Country Dances 7 p.m. 22 Service 11 a.m. General Committee 6.30 p.m. 22 Ramble: Mill Hill and Study Circle 7.30 p.m. Totteridge (see page 10) Service 11 a.m. 27 Poetry Circle 7.30 p.m. Ramble: Bookham 27 Study Circle 7.30 p.rn.

(see page 10) 29 Service 11 a.m. Country Dances ... 7 p.m. 29 Ramble: CuflJ.ey and Poetry Circle 7.30 p.m. Barnet (see page 10) Study Circle 7.30 p.m 29 Annual Meeting ... 6 p.m.

Printed und Published by 'rHN UTOPIA PRESR, I_TD., 44, Worship Street, E.C.2.