Withorwithouttheaccompanimentofthathypothesisofnebularcondensation
whenceitnaturallyfollows，thedoctrinethattheSunisgraduallylosing
hisheat，hasnowgainedgeneralacceptance;andcalculationshavebeenmade，
bothrespectingtheamountofheatandlightalreadyradiated，ascompared
withtheamountthatremains，andrespectingtheperiodduringwhichactive
radiationwillcontinue。Prof。Helmholtzestimatesthatsincethetimewhen，
accordingtothenebularhypothesis，themattercomposingtheSolarSystem
extendedtotheOrbitofNeptune，therehasbeenevolvedbythearrestof
sensiblemotion，anamountofheat454timesasgreatasthatwhichtheSun
stillhastogiveout。Healsomakesanapproximateestimateoftherate
atwhichthisremaining1/464thisbeingdiffused:showingthatdecrease
oftheSun\'sdiametertotheextentof1/10，000wouldproduceheat，atthe
presentrate，formorethan2000years;orinotherwords，thatacontraction
of1/20，000，000ofhisdiameter，sufficestogeneratethelightandheat
annuallyemitted;andthatthusatthepresentrateofexpenditure，theSun\'s
diameterwilldiminishbysomethinglike1/20inthelapseofthenextmillion
years。*Ofcourse
theseconclusionsarebutrudeapproximationstothetruth。Untilquiterecently，
wehavebeentotallyignorantoftheSun\'schemicalcomposition，andeven
nowhaveobtainedbutasuperficialknowledgeofit。Weknownothingofhis
internalstructure;anditisquitepossiblethattheassumptionsrespectingcentraldensity，madeintheforegoingestimates，arewrong。Butnouncertaintyinthedataonwhichthesecalculationsproceed，and
noconsequenterrorintheinferredrateatwhichtheSunisexpendinghis
reserveenergy，militatesagainstthegeneralpropositionthatthisreserveofenergyisbeingexpended，andmustintimebeexhausted。ThuswhiletheSolarSystem，ifevolvedfromdiffusedmatter，hasillustrated
thelawofequilibrationintheestablishmentofamovingequilibrium;and
while，asatpresentconstituted，itillustratesthelawofequilibration
intheperpetualbalancingofallitsmovements;italsoillustratesthis
lawintheseprocesseswhichastronomersandphysicistsinferarestillgoing
on。ThatmotionofmassesproducedduringEvolution，isbeingslowlyrediffused
inmolecularmotionoftheetherealmedium;boththroughtheprogressive
integrationofeachmass，andtheresistancetoitsmotionthroughspace。
Infinitelyremoteasmaybethestatewhenalltherelativemotionsofits
massesshallbetransformedintomolecularmotion，andallthemolecular
motiondissipated;yetsuchastateofcompleteintegrationandcomplete
equilibration，isthattowardswhichthechangesnowgoingonthroughouttheSolarSysteminevitablytend。§172。Asphericalfigureistheonewhichcanaloneequilibratethe
forcesofmutually—gravitatingmolecules。Ifanaggregateofsuchmolecules
rotates，theformofequilibriumbecomesaspheroidofgreaterorlessoblateness，
accordingtotherateofrotation;andithasbeenascertainedthattheEarth
isanoblatespheroid，divergingjustasmuchfromsphericityasisrequisite
tocounterbalancethecentrifugalforceconsequentonitsvelocityround
itsaxis。Thatistosay，duringtheevolutionoftheEarth，therehasbeen
reachedanequilibriumofthoseforceswhichaffectitsgeneraloutline。
TheonlyotherequilibrationwhichtheEarthasawholecanexhibit，isthe
lossofitsrotation;andthatanysuchlossisgoingonwehavenodirect
evidence。Ithasbeencontended，however，byProf。Helmholtzandothers，
thatinappreciableasmaybeitseffectwithinknownperiodsoftime，the
frictionofthetidalwavemustbediminishingtheEarth\'smotionroundits
axis，andmusteventuallydestroyit。Nowthoughitseemsanoversightto
saythattheaxialmotioncanthusbedestroyed，sincetheextremeeffect，
tobereachedonlyininfinitetime，wouldbeanextensionoftheEarth\'s
daytothelengthoflunation;yetitseemsclearthatthisfrictionofthe
tidalwaveisarealcauseofdecreasingrotation。Slowasitsactionis，
wemustrecognizeitsretardingeffectasexemplifying，underanotherform，
theuniversalprogresstowardsequilibrium。（*）ItisneedlesstoshowindetailhowthosemovementswhichtheSun\'srays
generateintheairandwaterontheEarth\'ssurface，andthroughthemin
theEarth\'ssolidsubstance，（*）one
andallteachthesamegeneraltruth。Evidentlythewindsandwavesandstreams，
aswellasthedenudationsanddepositionstheyeffect，illustrateonagrand
scale，andinendlessmodes，thatgradualdissipationofmotionsdescribed
inthefirstsection，andtheconsequenttendencytowardsabalanceddistribution
offorces。Eachofthesesensiblemotions，produceddirectlyorindirectly
byintegrationofthoseinsensiblemotionscommunicatedfromtheSun，becomes
dividedandsubdividedintomotionslessandlesssensible;untilbygradual
orsuddenarrestofeach，andproductionofitsequivalentinmolecularmotion，
thereisanescapeofitintospaceintheshapeofthermalundulations。
Intheirtotality，thesecomplexmotionsconstituteadependentmovingequilibrium。
Aswebeforesawthereistraceablethroughoutthemaninvolvedcombination
ofrhythms。Theunceasingcirculationofwaterfromtheoceantotheland
andfromthelandbacktotheocean，isatypeofthesevariouscompensating
actionswhich，inthemidstofalltheirregularitiesproducedbytheirmutual
interferences，maintainanaverage。Andinthis，asinotherequilibrations
ofthethirdorder，weseethattheenergyeverincourseofdissipation，
iseverrenewedfromwithout:therisesandfallsinthesupplybeingbalanced
byrisesandfallsintheexpenditure;aswitnessthevariationsofmeteorologic
activityinnorthernzonescausedbychangesoftheseasons。Butthefact
itchieflyconcertsustonoteisthatthisprocessmustgoonbringingthings
evernearertocompleterest。Thesemechanicalmovements，meteorologicand
geologic，whicharecontinuallybeingequilibrated，bothtemporarybycounter—movements
andpermanentlybythedissipationofsuchmovementsandcounter—movements，
willslowlydiminishasthequantityofforcereceivedfromtheSundiminishes。
Astheinsensiblemotionspropagatedtousfromthecentreofoursystem
becomefeebler，thesensiblemotionshereproducedbythemmustdecrease;
andatthatremoteperiodwhenthesolarheathasceasedtobeappreciable，
therewillnolongerbeanyappreciablere—distributionsofmatteronthesurfaceofourplanet。Thus，allterrestrialchangesareincidentsinthecourseofcosmical
equilibration。Itwasbeforepointedout（§69），thatoftheincessant
alterationswhichtheEarth\'scrustandatmosphereundergo，thosewhichare
notduetotheactionofthemoonandtothestill—progressingmotionof
theEarth\'ssubstancetowardsitscentreofgravity，areduetothestill—progressing
motionoftheSun\'ssubstancetowardsitscentreofgravity。Hereitisto
beremarkedthatthiscontinuanceofintegrationintheEarthandinthe
Sun，isacontinuanceofthattransformationofsensiblemotionintoinsensible
motionwhichwehaveseenendsinequilibrium;andthatthearrivalineach
caseattheextremeofintegration，isthearrivalatastateinwhichno
moresensiblemotionremainstobetransformedintoinsensiblemotion——
astateinwhichtheforcesproducingintegrationandtheforcesopposingintegrationhavebecomeequal。§173。Everylivingbodyexhibits，inafour—foldform，theprocess
wearetracingout——exhibitsitfrommomenttomomentinthebalancing
ofmechanicalforces;fromhourtohourinthebalancingoffunctions;from
yeartoyearinthechangesofstatethatcompensatechangesofconditions;
andfinallyinthearrestofvitalmovementsatdeath。Letusconsiderthefactsundertheseheads。Thesensiblemotionconstitutingeachvisibleactionofananimal，is
soonbroughttoaclosebysomeopposingforcewithinorwithouttheanimal。
Whenaman\'sarmisraised，themotiongiventoitisantagonizedpartly
bygravityandpartlybytheinternalresistancesconsequentonstructure;
anditsmotion，thussufferingcontinualdeduction，endswhenthearmhas
reachedapositionatwhichtheforcesareequilibrated。Thelimitsofeach
systoleanddiastoleoftheheart，severallyshowusamomentaryequilibrium
betweenmuscularstrainsthatproduceoppositemovements;andeachgushof
bloodhastobeimmediatelyfollowedbyanotherbecausetherapiddissipation
ofitsmomentumwouldotherwisesoonbringthecirculatingmasstoastand。
Asmuchintheactionsandreactionsgoingonamongtheinternalorgans，
asinthemechanicalbalancingofthewholebodythereisateveryinstant
aprogressiveequilibrationofthemotionsateveryinstantproduced。Viewed
intheiraggregate，andasformingaseries，theorganicfunctionsconstitute
adependentmovingequilibrium，amovingequilibriumofwhichthemotive
poweriseverbeingdissipatedthroughthespecialequilibrationsjustexemplified，
andiseverbeingrenewedbythetakinginofadditionalmotivepower。The
forcestoredupinfoodcontinuallyaddstothemomentumofthevitalactions，
asmuchasiscontinuallydeductedfromthembytheforcesovercome。All
thefunctionalmovementsthusmaintainedarerhythmical（§85）;bytheir
unioncompoundrhythmsofvariouslengthsandcomplexitiesareproduced;
andinthesesimpleandcompoundrhythms，theprocessofequilibration，besides
beingexemplifiedateachextremeofeveryrhythm，isseeninthehabitual
preservationofaconstantmean，andinthere—establishmentofthatmean
whenaccidentalcauseshaveproduceddivergence。fromit。When，forinstance，
thereisagreatexpenditureofmuscularenergy，therearisesareactive
demandonthosestoresofenergywhicharelaidupintheformofconsumable
matterthroughoutthetissues:increasedrespirationandincreasedcirculation
aidanextragenesisofforce，thatcounterbalancestheextradissipation
offorce。Thisunusualtransformationofmolecularmotionintosensiblemotion，
ispresentlyfollowedbyanunusualabsorptionoffood——thesourceofmolecular
motion;andtheprolongeddraftonthesparecapitalinthetissues，isfollowed
byaprolongedrest，duringwhichtheabstractedcapitalisreplaced。If
thedeviationfromtheordinarycourseofthefunctionshasbeensogreat
astoderangethem，aswhenviolentexertionproduceslossofappetiteand
lossofsleep，anequilibrationisstilleventuallyeffected。Providingthe
disturbanceisnotsuchastodestroylife（inwhichcasecompleteequilibration
issuddenlyeffected），theordinarybalanceisby—and—byre—established:
thereturningappetiteiskeeninproportionasthewastehasbeenlarge;
whilesleep，soundandprolonged，makesupforpreviouswakefulness。Not
evenwhensomeextremeexcesshaswroughtaderangementthatisneverwholly
rectified，isthereanexceptiontothegenerallaw;forinsuchcasesthe
cycleofthefunctionsis，afteratime，equilibratedaboutanewmeanstate，
whichthenceforthbecomesthenormalstateoftheindividual。Andthisprocess
exemplifiesinalargewaywhatphysicianscallthevismedicatrixnaturae。
Thethirdformofequilibrationdisplayedbyorganicbodies，isasequence
ofthatjustillustrated。When，throughachangeofhabitorcircumstance，
anorganismispermanentlysubjecttosomenewinfluence，ordifferentamount
ofanoldinfluence，therearises，aftermoreorlessdisturbanceofthe
organicrhythms，abalancingofthemaroundthenewaverageconditionproduced
bythisadditionalinfluence。ifthequantityofmotiontobehabitually
generatedbyamusclebecomesgreaterthanbefore，itsnutritionbecomes
greaterthanbefore。iftheexpenditureofthemusclebearstoitsnutrition，
agreaterratiothanexpenditurebearstonutritioninotherpartsofthe
system，theexcessofnutritionbecomessuchthatthemusclegrows。Andthe
cessationofitsgrowthistheestablishmentofabalancebetweenthedaily
wasteandthedailyrepair。Thelikeismanifestlythecasewithallorganic
modificationsconsequentonchangesofclimateorfood。Ifweseethata
differentmodeoflifeisfollowed，afteraperiodofderangement，bysome
alteredconditionofthesystem——ifweseethatthisalteredcondition，
becomingby—and—byestablished，continueswithoutfurtherchange;wehave
noalternativebuttosaythatthenewforcesbroughttobearonthesystem，
havebeencompensatedbytheopposingforcestheyhaveevoked。Andthisis
theinterpretationoftheprocesscalledadaptation。Finally，eachorganism
illustratesthelawintheensembleofitslife。Attheoutsetitdailyabsorbs
undertheformoffood，anamountofforcegreaterthanitdailyexpends;
andthesurplusisdailyequilibratedbygrowth。Asmaturityisapproached
thissurplusdiminishes;andintheperfectorganismtheday\'sabsorption
oflatentenergybalancestheday\'sexpenditureofactualenergy。Thatis
tosay，duringadultlifethereiscontinuouslyexhibitedanequilibrium
ofthethirdorder。Eventually，thedailylossbeginstooutbalancethedaily
gain，andthereresultsadiminishingamountoffunctionalaction;theorganic
rhythmsextendlessandlesswidelyoneachsideofthemediumstate;andtherefinallycomesthatcompleteequilibriumwecalldeath。Theultimatestructuralstateaccompanyingthatultimatefunctionalstate
towardswhichanorganismtends，maybededucedfromoneofthepropositions
setdownintheopeningsectionofthischapter。Wesawthatthelimitof
heterogeneityisreachedwhentheequilibrationofanyaggregatebecomes
complete——thatthere—distributionofmattercancontinuesolongonly
astherecontinuessomemotionunbalanced。Whatistheimplicationinthe
caseoforganicaggregates？Wehaveseenthattomaintainthemovingequilibrium
ofone，requiresthehabitualgenesisofinternalforcescorrespondingin
number，directions，andamountstotheexternalincidentforces——asmany
innerfunctions，singleorcombined，astherearesingleorcombinedouter
actionstobemet。Butfunctionsarethecorrelativesoforgans;amounts
offunctionsare，otherthingsequal，thecorrelativesofsizesoforgans;
andcombinationsoffunctionsthecorrelativesofconnexionsoforgans。Hence
thestructuralcomplexityaccompanyingfunctionalequilibrium，isdefinable
asoneinwhichthereareasmanyspecializedpartsasarecapable，separately
andjointly，ofcounteractingtheseparateandjointforcesamidwhichthe
organismexists。Andthisisthelimitoforganicheterogeneity。towhichManhasapproachedmorenearlythananyothercreature。Groupsoforganismsdisplaythisuniversaltendencytowardsabalance
veryobviously。in§85，everyspeciesofplantandanimalwasshown
tobeperpetuallyundergoingarhythmicalvariationinnumber——nowfrom
abundanceoffoodorabsenceofenemiesrisingaboveitsaverage;andthen，
byaconsequentscarcityoffoodorabundanceofenemies，beingdepressed
belowitsaverage。Andherewehavetoobservethatthereisthusmaintained
anequilibriumbetweenthesumofthoseforceswhichresultintheincrease
ofeachrace，andthesumofthoseforceswhichresultinitsdecrease。Either
limitofvariationisapointatwhichtheonesetofforces，beforeinexcess
oftheother，iscounterbalancedbyit。Andamidtheseoscillationsproduced
bytheirconflict，liesthataveragenumberofthespeciesatwhichitsexpansive
tendencyisinequilibriumwithsurroundingrepressivetendencies。Norcan
itbequestionedthatthisbalancingofthepreservativeanddestructive
forceswhichweseegoingonineveryrace，mustnecessarilygoon。Increase
ofnumbercannotbutcontinueuntilincreaseofmortalitystopsit;anddecrease
ofnumbercannotbutcontinueuntilitiseitherarrestedbyfertilityorextinguishestheraceentirely。§174。Theequilibrationsofthosenervousactionswhichconstitute
theobversefaceofmentallife，maybeclassifiedinlikemannerwiththose
whichconstitutewhatwedistinguishasbodilylife。Wemaydealwiththeminthesameorder。Eachpulseofnerveforcefrommomenttomomentgenerated，（anditwas
explainedin§86thatnervecurrentsarenotcontinuousbutrhythmical，）
ismetbycounteractingforces，inovercomingwhichitisdispersedandequilibrated。
Suchpartofitasdoesnotworkmentalchangesworksbodilychanges——contractions
oftheinvoluntarymuscles，thevoluntarymuscles，orboth;asalsosome
stimulationofsecretingorgans。Thatthemovementsthusinitiatedareever
beingbroughttoaclosebytheopposingforcestheyevoke，wehavejust
seen;andhereitistobeobservedthatthelikeholdswiththecerebral
changesthusinitiated。Thearousingofathoughtorfeeling，involvesthe
overcomingofacertainresistance:instancethefactthatwheretheassociation
ofmentalstateshasnotbeenfrequent，asensibleeffortisneededtocall
uptheoneaftertheother;instancethefactthatduringnervousprostration
thereisacomparativeinabilitytothink——theideaswillnotfollowone
anotherwiththeordinaryrapidity;instancetheconversefactthatattimes
ofunusualenergy，naturalorartificial，thinkingiseasy，andmorenumerous，
moreremote，ormoredifficultconnexionsofideasareformed。Thatisto
say，thewaveofnervousenergyeachinstantgenerated，propagatesitself
throughoutbodyandbrain，alongthosechannelswhichthepassingconditions
renderlinesofleastresistance;andspreadingwidelyinproportiontoits
amount，endsonlywhenitisequilibratedbytheresistancesiteverywhere
meets。Ifwecontemplatementalactionsasextendingoverhoursanddays，
wediscoverequilibrationsanalogoustothosehourlyanddailyestablished
amongthebodilyfunctions。Thisisseeninthedailyalternationofmental
activityandmentalrest——theforcesexpendedduringtheonebeingcompensated
bytheforcesacquiredduringtheother。Itisalsoseenintherecurring
riseandfallofeachdesire。Eachdesirereachingacertainintensity，is
equilibratedeitherbyexpenditureoftheenergyitembodiesinthedesired
actions，or，lesscompletely，intheimaginationofsuchactions:theprocess
endinginthatsatietyorthatcomparativequiescence，formingtheopposite
limitoftherhythm。Anditisfurthermanifestunderatwo—foldformon
occasionsofintensejoyorgrief。Eachparoxysm，expressingitselfinviolent
actionsandloudsounds，presentlyreachesanextremewhencethecounteracting
forcesproducereturntoaconditionofmoderateexcitement;andthesuccessive
paroxysms，finallydiminishinginintensity，endinamentalequilibrium
eitherlikethatbeforeexisting，orhavingapartiallydifferentmedium
state。Butthekindofmentalequilibrationtobeespeciallynoted，isthat
shownintheestablishmentofacorrespondencebetweenrelationsamongour
ideasandrelationsintheexternalworld。Eachouterconnexionofphenomena
whichwearecapableofperceiving，generates，throughaccumulatedexperiences，
aninnerconnexionofmentalstates;andtheresulttowardswhichthisprocess
tends，istheformationofamentalconnexionhavingarelativestrength
thatanswerstotherelativeconstancyofthephysicalconnexionrepresented。
Inconformitywiththegenerallawthatmotionpursuesthelineofleast
resistance，andthat，otherthingsequal，alineoncetakenbymotionis
madealinewhichwillbemorereadilytakenbyfuturemotion，wehaveseen
thattheeasewithwhichnervousimpressionsfollowoneanotheris，other
thingsequal，greatinproportiontothenumberoftimestheyhavebeenrepeated
togetherinexperience。Hence，correspondingtosuchaninvariablerelation
asthatbetweentheresistanceofanobjectandsomeextensionpossessed
byit，therearisesanindissolubleconnexioninconsciousness;andthis
connexion，beingasabsoluteinternallyastheansweringoneisexternally，
undergoesnofurtherchange——theinnerrelationisinperfectequilibrium
withtheouterrelation。Conversely，ithappensthat，answeringtosuchuncertain
relationsofphenomenaasthatbetweencloudsandrain，thereariserelations
ofideasoflikeuncertainty;andif，undergivenaspectsofthesky，the
tendenciestoinferfairorfoulweather，correspondstothefrequencies
withwhichfairorfoulweatherfollowssuchaspects，theaccumulationof
experienceshasbalancedthementalsequencesandthephysicalsequences。
Whenitisrememberedthatbetweentheseextremestherearecountlessorders
ofexternalassociationshavingdifferentdegreesofconstancy，andthat
duringtheevolutionofintelligencethereariseansweringeternalassociations
havingdifferentdegreesofcohesion;itwillbeseenthatthereisaprogress
towardsequilibriumbetweentherelationsofthoughtandtherelationsof
things。Thelikegeneraltruthsareexhibitedintheprocessofmoraladaptation，
whichisacontinualapproachtoequilibriumbetweentheemotionsandthe
kindsofconductrequiredbysurroundingconditions。Justasrepeatingthe
associationoftwoideasfacilitatestheexcitementoftheonebytheother，
sodoeseachdischargeoffeelingintoactionrenderthesubsequentdischarge
ofsuchfeelingintosuchactionmoreeasy。Thusithappensthatifanindividual
isplacedpermanentlyinconditionswhichdemandmoreactionofaspecial
kindthanhasbeforebeenrequisite，orthanisnaturaltohim——ifbyevery
morefrequentormorelengthenedperformanceofitundersuchpressure，the
resistanceissomewhatdiminished;then，dearly，thereisanadvancetowards
abalancebetweenthedemandforthiskindofactionandthesupplyofit。
Eitherinhimself，orinhisdescendantscontinuingtoliveundertheseconditions，
enforcedrepetitionmustatlengthbringaboutastateinwhichthismode
ofdirectingtheenergieswillbenomorerepugnantthantheothermodes
previouslynaturaltotherace。Hencethelimittowardswhichemotionalmodification
perpetuallytends，isacombinationofdesirethatcorrespondtothevarious
ordersofactivitywhichthecircumstancesoflifecallfor。Inacquired
habits，andinthemoraldifferencesofracesandnationsthatareproduced
byhabitsmaintainedthroughsuccessivegenerations，wehaveillustrations
ofthisprogressiveadaptation，whichcanceaseonlywiththeestablishmentofequilibriumbetweenconstitutionandconditions。###第40章§175。Eachsocietydisplaystheprocessofequilibrationinthecontinuous
adjustmentofitspopulationtoitsmeansofsubsistence。Atribeofmen
livingonwildanimalsandfruits，ismanifestly，likeeverytribeofinferior
creatures，alwaysoscillatingfromsidetosideofthataveragenumberwhich
thelocalitycansupport。Though，byartificialproductionunceasinglyimproved，
asuperiorracecontinuallyaltersthelimitwhichexternalconditionsput
topopulation;yetthereiseveracheckingofpopulationatthetemporary
limitreached。Itistruethatwherethelimitisbeingrapidlychanged，
asamongourselves，thereisnoactualstoppage:thereisonlyarhythmical
variationintherateofincrease。Butinnotingthecausesofthisrhythmical
variation——inwatchinghow，duringperiodsofabundance，theproportion
ofmarriagesincreases，andhowitdecreasesduringperiodsofscarcity，
itwillbeseenthattheexpansiveforceproducesunusualadvancewhenever
therepressiveforcediminishes，andviceversa;andthusthereisasnearabalancingofthetwoasthechangingconditionspermit。Theinternalactionsconstitutingsocialfunctions，exemplifythegeneral
principlenolessclearly。Supplyanddemandarecontinuallybeingadjusted
throughoutallindustrialprocesses;andthisequilibrationisinterpretable
inthesamewayasprecedingones。Theproductionanddistributionofacommodity
implyacertainaggregateofforcescausingspecialkindsandamountsof
motion。Thepriceofthiscommodity，isthemeasureofacertainotheraggregate
offorcesexpendedinotherkindsandamountsofmotionbythelabourerwho
purchasesit。Andthevariationsofpricerepresentarhythmicalbalancing
oftheseforces。Everyriseorfallinthevalueofaparticularsecurity，
impliesaconflictofforcesinwhichsome，becomingtemporarilypredominant，
causeamovementthatis。presentlyarrested，orequilibrated，bytheincreased
opposingforces;andamidthesedailyandhourlyoscillationsliesamore
slowly—varyingmedium，intowhichthevalueevertendstosettle，andwould
settlebutfortheconstantadditionofnewinfluences。Asintheindividual
organismsointhesocialorganism，functionalequilibrationsgeneratestructural
equilibrations。Whenontheworkersinanytradetherecomesanincreased
demand，andwheninreturnfortheincreasedsupplytheyreceiveanamount
ofothercommoditieslargerthanbefore——when，consequently，theresistances
overcomebytheminsustaininglifearelessthantheresistancesovercome
byotherworkers;thereresultsaflowofotherworkersintothistrade。
Thisflowcontinuesuntiltheextrademandismet，andthewagessofarfall
thatthetotalresistanceovercomeinobtainingalivelihood，isasgreat
inthisnewly—adoptedoccupationasintheoccupationswhenceitdrewrecruits。
Theoccurrenceofmotionalonglinesofleastresistance，wasbeforeshown
tonecessitatethegrowthofpopulationinthoseplaceswherethelabour
requiredforself—maintenanceisthesmallest;andherewefurtherseethat
thoseengagedinanysuchadvantageouslocality，mustmultiplytillthere
arisesanapproximatebalancebetweenitspopulationandthatofothersavailablebythesamecitizens。Thesevariousindustrialactionsandreactionsconstituteadependent
movingequilibriumlikethatmaintainedamongthefunctionsofanindividual
organism，andlikeittendsevertobecomemorecomplete。Duringearlystages
ofsocialevolution，whiletheresourcesofthelocalityinhabitedareunexplored
andtheartsofproductionundeveloped，thereisneveranythingmorethan
atemporaryandpartialbalancingofsuchactions。Butwhenasocietyapproaches
thematurityofthattypeonwhichitisorganized，thevariousindustrial
activitiessettledownintoacomparativelyconstantstate。Moreover，advance
inorganization，aswellasadvanceingrowth，isconducivetoabetterequilibrium
ofindustrialfunctions。Whilethediffusionofmercantileinformationis
slowandthemeansoftransportdeficient，theadjustmentofsupplytodemand
isveryimperfect。Greatover—productionofacommodityisfollowedbygreat
under—production，andthereresultsarhythmhavingextremesthatdepart
widelyfromthemeanstateinwhichdemandandsupplyareequilibrated。But
whengoodroadsaremadeandthereisarapiddiffusionofprintedorwritten
intelligence，andstillmorewhenrailwaysandtelegraphscomeintoexistence
——whentheperiodicalfairsofearlydaysgrowintoweeklymarkets，and
theseintodailymarkets，thereisgraduallyproducedabetterbalanceof
productionandconsumption:therapidoscillationsofpricewithinnarrow
limitsoneithersideofacomparativelyuniformmean，indicateanearapproach
toequilibrium。Evidentlythisindustrialprogresshasforitslimit，that
whichMr。Millhascalled\"thestationarystate。\"Whenpopulation
shallhavebecomedenseoverallhabitablepartsoftheglobe;whentheresources
ofeveryregionhavebeenfullyexplored;andwhentheproductiveartsadmit
ofnofurtherimprovements;theremustresultanalmostcompletebalance，
bothbetweenthefertilityandmortalityineachsociety，andbetweenits
producingandconsumingactivities。Eachsocietywillexhibitonlyminor
deviationsfromitsaveragenumber，andtherhythmofitsindustrialfunctions
willgoonfromdaytodayandyeartoyearwithcomparativelyinsignificantperturbations。Oneotherkindofsocialequilibrationhasstilltobeconsidered:——
thatwhichresultsintheestablishmentofgovernmentalinstitutions，and
whichbecomescompleteastheseinstitutionsfallintoharmonywiththedesires
ofthepeople。Thoseaggressiveimpulsesinheritedfromthepre—socialstate
——thosetendenciestoseekself—satisfactionregardlessofinjurytoother
beings，whichareessentialtoapredatorylife，constituteananti—social
forcetendingevertocauseconflictandseparation。Contrariwise，those
desireswhichcanbefulfilledonlybyco—operationandthosewhichfind
satisfactionthroughintercoursewithfellow—men，aswellasthoseresulting
inwhatwecallloyalty，areforcestendingtokeeptheunitsofasociety
together。Ontheonehand，thereisineachmanmoreorlessofresistance
againstrestraintsimposedonhisactionsbyothermen——aresistancewhich，
tendingevertowideneachman\'ssphereofaction，andreciprocallytolimit
thespheresofactionofothermen，constitutesarepulsiveforcemutually
exercisedbythemembersofasocialaggregate。Ontheotherhand，thegeneral
sympathyofmanformanandthemorespecialsympathyofeachvarietyof
manforothersofthesamevariety，togetherwithalliedfeelingswhichthe
socialstategratifies，actasanattractiveforce，tendingevertokeep
unitedthosewhohaveacommonancestry。Andsincetheresistancestobe
overcomeinsatisfyingthetotalityoftheirdesireswhenlivingseparately，
aregreaterthantheresistancestobeovercomeinsatisfyingthetotality
oftheirdesireswhenlivingtogether，thereisaresiduaryforcethatprevents
separation。Likeotheropposingforces，thoseexertedbycitizensonone
anotherproducealternatingmovementswhich，atfirstextreme，undergogradual
diminutiononthewaytoultimateequilibrium。Insmall，undevelopedsocieties，
markedrhythmsresultfromtheseconflictingtendencies。Atribethathas
maintaineditsunityforagenerationortwo，reachesasizeatwhichit
willnolongerholdtogether;and，ontheoccurrenceofsomeeventcausing
unusualantagonismamongitsmembers，divides。Eachprimitivenationexhibits
wideoscillationsbetweenanextremeinwhichthesubjectsareunderrigid
restraint，andanextremeinwhichtherestraintfailstopreventrebellion
anddisintegration。Inmoreadvancednationsofliketype，wealwaysfind
violentactionsandreactionsofthesameessentialnature:\"despotism
temperedbyassassination，\"characterizingapoliticalstateinwhich
unbearablerepressionfromtimetotimebringsaboutaburstingofbonds。
AmongourselvestheconflictsbetweenConservatism（whichstandsforthe
restraintsofsocietyovertheindividual）andReform（whichstandsforthe
libertyoftheindividualagainstsociety），fallwithinslowlyapproximating
limits。sothatthetemporarypredominanceofeitherproducesalessmarkeddeviationfromthemediumstate——asmallerdisturbanceofthemovingequilibrium。Ofcourseinthiscase，asinprecedingcases，thereisinvolvedalimit
totheincreaseofheterogeneity。Afewpagesback，itwasshownthatan
advanceinmentalevolutionistheestablishmentofsomefurtherinternal
actioncorrespondingtosomefurtherexternalaction。Weinferredthateach
suchnewfunction，involvingsomenewmodificationofstructure，implies
anincreaseofheterogeneity;andthatthus，increaseofheterogeneitymust
goonwhilethereremainanyouterrelationsaffectingtheorganismwhich
areunbalancedbyinnerrelations。Evidentlythelikemustsimultaneously
takeplacewithsociety。Eachincrementofheterogeneityintheindividual
implies，ascauseorconsequence，someincrementofheterogeneityinthe
arrangementsoftheaggregateofindividuals。Andthelimittosocialcomplexity
canbereachedonlywiththeestablishmentoftheequilibrium，justdescribed，betweensocialandindividualforces。§176。Herepresentsitselfafinalquestion，whichhasprobablybeen
takingshapeinthemindsofmanywhilereadingthischapter。\"IfEvolution
ofeverykindisanincreaseincomplexityofstructureandfunctionthat
isincidentaltotheuniversalprocessofequilibration，andifequilibration
mustendincompleterest，whatisthefatetowardswhichallthingstend？
IftheSolarSystemisslowlydissipatingitsenergies——iftheSunislosing
hisheatataratewhichwilltellinmillionsofyears——ifwithdecrease
oftheSun\'sradiationstheremustgoonadecreaseintheactivityofgeologic
andmeteorologicprocessesaswellasinthequantityofvegetableandanimal
life——ifManandSocietyaresimilarlydependentonthissupplyofenergy
whichisgraduallycomingtoanend;arewenotmanifestlyprocessingtowardsomnipresentdeath？\"Thatsuchastatemustbetheoutcomeofthechangeseverywheregoing
on，seemsbeyonddoubt。Whetheranyulteriorprocessmayreversetheseprocesses
andinitiateanewlife，isaquestiontobeconsideredhereafter。Forthe
presentitmustsufficethattheendofallthetransformationswehavetraced，
isquiescence。Thisadmitsofaprioriproof。Thelawofequilibration，not
lessthantheprecedinggenerallaws，isdeduciblefromtheultimatedatumofconsciousness。Theforcesofattractionandrepulsionbeing，asshownin§74，universally
co—existent，itfollowsthatallmotionismotionunderresistance:either
thatexercisedonthemovingbodybyotherbodies，orthatexercisedbythe
mediumtraversed。Therearetwocorollaries。Thefirstisthatdeductions
perpetuallymadebythecommunicationofmotiontothatwhichresists，cannot
butbringthemotionofthebodytoanendinalongerorshortertime。The
secondisthatthemotionofthebodycannotceaseuntilthesedeductions
destroyit。Inotherwords，movementmustcontinuewhileequilibrationis
incomplete，andequilibrationmusteventuallybecomecomplete。Boththese
aremanifestdeductionsfromthepersistenceofforce。Hencethisprimordial
truthisourwarrantfortheconclusionsthatthechangeswhichEvolution
presentscannotenduntilequilibriumisreached，andthatequilibriummustatlastbereached。Atthesametimeitfollowsthatineveryaggregatehavingcompoundmotions，
thereresultsacomparativelyearlydissipationofthemotionswhichare
smallerandmuchresisted，followedbylong—continuanceofthelargerand
lessresistedmotions;andthatsotherearisemovingequilibria。Hence，
also，maybeinferredthetendencytoconservationofsuchmovingequilibria。
Foranynewmotiongiventothepartsofamovingequilibriumbyadisturbing
force，musteitherbesuchthatitcannotbedissipatedbeforethepre—existing
motions，inwhichcaseitbringsthemovingequilibriumtoanend。orelse
itmustbesuchthatitcanbedissipatedbeforethepre—existingmotions，inwhichcasethemovingequilibriumisre—established。Thusfromthepersistenceofforcefollow，notonlythevariousdirect
andindirectequilibrationsgoingonaround，togetherwiththatcosmical
equilibrationwhichbringsEvolutionunderallitsformstoaclose，but
alsothoselessmanifestequilibrationsshowninthereadjustmentsofmoving
equilibriathathavebeendisturbed。Bythisultimateprincipleisprovable
thetendencyofeveryorganism，disorderedbysomeunusualinfluence，to
returntoabalancedstate。Toitalsomaybetracedthecapacity，possessed
inaslightdegreebyindividualsandinagreaterdegreebyspecies，of
becomingadaptedtonewcircumstances。Andnotlessdoesitaffordabasis
fortheinferencethatthereisagradualadvancetowardsharmonybetween
man\'smentalnatureandtheconditionsofhisexistence。
Chapter23Dissolution§177。When，inChapter22，weglancedatthecycleofchangesthrough
whicheveryexistencepasses，inashorttimeorinatimealmostinfinitely
long——whentheoppositere—distributionsofmatterandmotionimpliedwere
severallydistinguishedasEvolutionandDissolution。thenaturesofthe
two，andtheconditionsunderwhichtheyrespectivelyoccur，werespecified
ingeneralterms。Sincethen，wehavecontemplatedthephenomenaofEvolution
indetail，andhavefollowedthemouttothosestatesofequilibriuminwhich
theyallend。Tocompletetheargumentwemustnowcontemplate，somewhat
moreindetailthanbefore，thecomplementaryphenomenaofDissolution。Not，
indeed，thatweneeddwelllongonDissolution，whichhasnoneofthosevarious
andinterestingaspectswhichEvolutionpresents;butsomethingmoremustbesaidthanhasyetbeensaid。Itwasshownthatneitherofthesetwoantagonistprocessesgoesonunqualified
bytheother，andthatamovementtowardseitherisadifferentialresult
oftheconflictbetweenthem。Anevolvingaggregate，whileontheaverage
losingmotionandintegrating，isalways，inonewayorother，receiving
somemotionandtothatextentdisintegrating;andaftertheintegrative
changeshaveceasedtopredominate，thereceptionofmotion，thoughperpetually
checkedbyitsdissipation，constantlytendstoproduceareversetransformation，
andeventuallydoesproduceit。WhenEvolutionhasrunitscourse——when
anaggregatehasreachedthatequilibriuminwhichitschangesend，itthereafter
remainssubjecttoallactionsinitsenvironmentwhichmayincreasethe
quantityofmotionitcontains，andwhichincourseoftimearesure，either
slowlyorsuddenly，togiveitspartssuchexcessofmotionaswillcause
disintegration。Accordingasitssize，itsnature，anditsconditionsdetermine，
itsdissolutionmaycomequicklyormaybeindefinitelydelayed——mayoccur
inafewdaysormaybepostponedforbillionsofyears。Butexposedasit
istothecontingenciesnotsimplyofitsimmediateneighbourhoodbutof
aUniverseeverywhereinmotion，thetimemustatlastcomewhen，eitheraloneorincompanywithsurroundingaggregates，ithasitspartsdispersed。Theprocessofdissolutionsocausedwehaveheretolookatasittakes
placeinaggregatesofdifferentorders。Thecourseofchangebeingthereverse
ofthathithertotraced，wemayproperlytaketheillustrationsofitin
thereverseorder——beginningwiththemostcomplexandendingwiththemostsimple。§178。Regardingtheevolutionofasocietyasatonceanincrease
inthenumberofindividualsintegratedintoacorporatebody，anincrease
inthemassesandvarietiesofthepartsintowhichthiscorporatebodydivides，
aswellasoftheactionscalledtheirfunctions，andanincreaseinthe
degreeofcombinationamongthesemassesandtheirfunctions;weshallsee
thatsocialdissolutionconformstothegenerallawinbeing，materially
considered，adisintegration，and，dynamicallyconsidered，adecreasein
themovementsofwholesandanincreasethemovementsofparts;whileit
furtherconformstothegenerallawinbeing，causedbyanexcessofmotioninsomewayorotherreceivedfromwithout。Itisobviousthatthesocialdissolutionwhichfollowstheaggression
ofmothernation，andwhich，ashistoryshowsus，isapttooccurwhensocial
evolutionhasendedanddecayhasbegun，is，underitsbroadest，aspect，
thereceptionofanewexternalmotion;andwhen，assometimeshappens，the
conqueredsocietyisdispersed，orwhenitscomponentdivisionsfallapart，
itsdissolutionisliterallyacessationofthosecorporatemovementswhich
thesociety，bothinitsarmyandinitsindustrialbodies，presented，andalapseintoindividualoruncombinedmovements。Again，socialdisorder，howevercaused，entailsadecreaseofintegrated
movementsandanincreaseofdisintegratedmovements。Asthedisorderprogresses
thepoliticalactionspreviouslycombinedbecomeuncombined:therearise
theantagonisticactionsofriotorrevolt。Simultaneously，theindustrial
andcommercialprocessesthatwereco—ordinatedthroughoutthebodypolitic，
arebrokenup;andonlythelocal，orsmall，tradingtransactionscontinue。
Andeachfurtherdisorganizingchangediminishesthejointoperationsby
whichmensatisfytheirwants，andleavesthemtosatisfytheirwants，as
besttheycan，byseparateoperations。Ofthewayinwhichsuchdistintegrations
aresetupinasocietythathasevolvedtothelimitofitstype，andreached
astateofmovingequilibrium，agoodillustrationisfurnishedbyJapan。
Thefinishedfabricintowhichitspeoplehaveorganizedthemselves，maintained
analmostconstantstatesolongasitwaspreservedfromfreshexternal
forces。ButassoonasitreceivedanimpactfromEuropeancivilization，
partlybyarmedaggression，partlybycommercialimpulse，partlybytheinfluence
ofideas，thisfabricbegantofalltopieces。Thereisnowinprogressa
politicaldissolution。*Probablyapolitical
reorganizationwillfollow;but，bethisasitmay，thechangethusfarproduced
byanouteractionisachangetowardsdissolution——achangefromintegratedmotionstodisintegratedmotions。Evenwhereasocietythathasdevelopedintothehighestformpermitted
bythecharactersofitsunits，beginstodwindleanddecay，theprogressive
dissolutionisstillessentiallyofthesamenature。Declineofnumbersis，
insuchcase，broughtaboutpartlybyemigration;forasocietyhavingthe
fixedstructureinwhichevolutionends，isonethatwillnotyieldandmodify
underpressureofpopulation:solongasitsstructureisplasticitisstill
evolving。Hencethesurpluspopulationiscontinuallydispersed:theinfluences
broughttobearonthecitizensbyothersocietiescausetheirdetachment，
andthereisanincreaseoftheuncombinedmotionsofunitsinsteadofan
increaseofcombinedmotions。Graduallyasthesocietybecomesstillless
capableofchangingintotheformrequiredforsuccessfulcompetitionwith
moreplasticsocieties，thenumberofcitizenswhocanlivewithinitsunyielding
frameworkbecomespositivelysmaller。Henceitdwindlesboththroughcontinued
emigrationandthroughthediminishedmultiplicationthatfollowsinnutrition。
Andthisfurtherdwindlingissimilarlyadecreaseinthetotalquantity
ofcombinedmotionandanincreaseinthequantityofuncombinedmotion——asweshallpresentlyseewhenwecometodealwithindividualdissolution。Considering，then，thatsocialaggregatesdiffersomuchfromaggregates
ofotherkinds，formed，astheyare，ofunitsheldtogetherlooselyandindirectly，
insuchvariablewaysbysuchcomplexforces，theprocessesofdissolutionamongthemconformstothegenerallawquiteasclearlyascouldbeexpected。§179。Whenfromthesesuper—organicaggregateswedescendtoorganic
aggregates，thetruththatDissolutionisadisintegrationofmattercaused
bythereceptionofadditionalmotionfromwithout，becomeseasilydemonstrable。Wewilllookfirstatthetransformationandafterwardsatitscause。Death，orthatfinalequilibrationwhichprecedesdissolution，isthe
bringingtoacloseallthosemanyconspicuousintegratedmotionsthatarose
duringevolution。Theimpulsionsofthebodyfromplacetoplacefirstcease;
presentlythelimbscannotbestirred;laterstilltherespiratoryactions
stop;finallytheheartbecomesstationaryand，withit，thecirculating
fluids。Thatis，thetransformationofmolecularmotionintothemotionof
masses，comestoanend。Theprocessofdecayinvolvesanincreaseofinsensible
movements;sincethesearefargreaterinthegasesgeneratedthantheyare
inthefluid—solidmattersoutofwhichthegasesarise。Eachofthecomplex
chemicalunitscomposinganorganicbody，possessesarhythmicmotionin
whichitsmanycomponentunitsjointlypartake。Whendecompositionbreaks
upthesecomplexmolecules，andtheirconstituentsassumegaseousforms，
thereis，besidesthatincreaseofmotionimpliedbydiffusion，aresolution
ofsuchmotionsasthecomplexmoleculespossessed，intomotionsoftheir
constituentmolecules。Sothatinorganicdissolutionwehave，first，an
endputtothattransformationofthemotionsofunitsintothemotionsof
aggregates，whichconstitutesevolution，dynamicallyconsidered;andwehave
afterwards，thoughinasubtlersense，atransformationofthemotionsof
aggregatesintothemotionsofunits。Stillitisnotthusshownthatorganic
dissolutionanswerstothegeneraldefinitionofdissolution——theabsorption
ofmotionandconcomitantdisintegrationofmatter。Thedisintegrationof
matteris，indeed，conspicuousenough;buttheabsorptionofmotionisnot
conspicuous。True，thefactthatmotionhasbeenabsorbedmaybeinferred
fromthefactthatparticlespreviouslyintegratedintoasolidmass，occupying
asmallspace，havemostofthemmovedawayfromoneanotherandnowoccupy
agreatspace;forthemotionimpliedbythisexpansionmusthavebeenobtained
fromsomewhere。Butitssourceisnotobvious。Alittlesearch，however，willbringustoitsderivation。Atatemperaturebelowthefreezingpointofwater，decompositionoforganic
matterdoesnottakeplace。Deadbodieskeptatthistemperatureareprevented
fromdecomposingforanindefinitelylongperiod:witnessthefrozencarcases
ofmammoths（elephantsofaspecieslongagoextinct）thatarefoundimbedded
intheiceatthemouthsofSiberianrivers;andwhich，thoughtheyhave
beenthereformanythousandsofyears，havefleshsofreshthatwhenat
lengthexposeditisdevouredbywolves。What，now，isthemeaningofsuch
exceptionalpreservations？Abodykeptbelowfreezingpoint，isabodywhich
receivesverylittleheatbyradiationorconduction;andthereceptionof
butlittleheatisthereceptionofbutlittlemolecularmotion。Thatis
tosay，inanenvironmentwhichdoesnotfurnishitwithmolecularmotion
passingacertainamount，anorganicbodydoesnotundergodissolution。Confirmatory
evidenceisyieldedbythevariationsinrateofdissolutionwhichaccompany
variationsoftemperature。Allknowthatincoolweathertheorganicsubstances
usedinourhouseholdskeeplonger，aswesay，thaninhotweather。