< Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 74.djvu
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6

THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY

Leaving the worlds then, to pronounce its judgment on this question of ethics, or pragmatism, let us briefly consider the career of Herbert Spencer in its broad outlines as brought out by his complete works supplemented by the four posthumous volumes now before us. There is certainly no vehicle in America, if there is any in the Old "World, more appropriate to this task than the Popular Science Monthly. As has already been said by its present editor:

Readers of this journal are familiar with Spencer's work, for he contributed to it nearly a hundred articles. It was indeed established by Dr. E. L. Youmans in 1872 largely with a view to provide a suitable medium for printing Spencer's "Study of Sociology," and. . . may be regarded as one of the by-products of his genius.[1]

As is well known, the first article in the Popular Science Monthly (May, 1872) is by Herbert Spencer: "The Study of Sociology, I., Our Need of It," which is also the first chapter of the book he was writing on "The Study of Sociology" for the International Scientific Series. In his "Autobiography" (Vol. II., pp. 284-286) he says:

Before he left England my American friend [Dr. E. L. Youmans] volunteered to arrange for the carrying out of a suggestion which had arisen, I do not remember how, that the successive chapters of "The Study of Sociology"—the extra book in question—should be first published serially, in England and America at the same time. Here the Contemporary Review. . . was the contemplated medium; and a fit medium in the United States, Professor Youmans proposed to negotiate with as soon as possible after his return. . . . And now there arose an unlooked-for result from the understanding that had been made for simultaneous publication in America. Negotiations which Youmans had carried on with one or other periodical in the United States had all failed; and at the time when the first chapter had been put in type, neither he nor I saw how our plan was to be carried out. When the proof of this first chapter reached him it caused prompt and surprising action, as witness the following extract from a letter of his dated April 3, 1872:

"A thousand thanks for your favour of March 13th, with article on 'Study of Sociology' enclosed. . . You did wisely in sending it, and I decided upon our course in ten minutes after getting it. I determined to have a monthly at once, and in time to open with this article. . . We have started a monthly of 128 pages. . . I am utterly glad that things have taken the course they have. I have wanted a medium of speech that I can control, and now I shall have it."

The magazine thus started was The Popular Science Monthly; which, under the editorship of my friend, has had a prosperous career and done very good work.

Not only did the "Study of Sociology" thus all appear in the Popular Science Monthly, but Mr. Spencer continued to contribute to it chapters from his "Synthetic Philosophy" for many years, and declined to allow them to appear in other periodicals. When asked as

  1. ↑ Popular Science Monthly, September, 1908, Vol. LXXIII., p. 285.
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