Let nobody think I am unduly optimistic about the future of this earth of ours. The difficulty lies rather in visualizing what recent and current progress, and _accelerated_ progress, must inevitably bring about when continued for a long time. The only doubtful element appears to be whether the magnificent _élan vital_ of our race, which has enabled it to conquer the world, will last through the vast ages to come. But, fortunately, there is no sign of its exhaustion. Love is still the ruling passion and inspiration of humanity, which enables men and maidens to brave all the trials and dangers of life in unconscious devotion to a future as yet unimagined and unborn. * * * * * Transcriber’s Notes: ――Text in italics is enclosed by underscores (_italics_). ――Punctuation and spelling inaccuracies were silently corrected. ――Archaic and variable spelling has been preserved. ――Variations in hyphenation and compound words have been preserved.