On the other hand, we find frequent utterances which _indirectly_ refer to the ethical realm--for instance, expressions in reference to the ethical importance of an animal descent of man. Alex. Braun says: "Man _assents_ to the idea of being appointed _lord_ of the creatures, but then he may also acknowledge that he is not placed over his subjects as a stranger, but originated from the {247} beings whose lord he wishes to be. It is not an unworthy idea, but rather an elevating one, that man constitutes the last and highest member in the ancient and infinitely rich development of organic nature on our planet, being connected by the most intimate bonds of relationship with the other members, as the latter are connected among themselves with one another: not a pernicious parasite on the tree of natural life, but the true son of the blissful mother Nature." In reducing descent, which he accepts, to a development from an _inner_ force, and in ascribing to the Darwinian selection, with its struggle for existence, the value only of a regulator (he adopts this term of Wallace as a very striking one), Braun, in his concluding appeal to young students, calls especial attention to the ethical importance of a development proceeding from within, saying: "Life has its outer and its inner side; all its works and ways must follow mechanical laws, but its tasks and aims belong to a higher realm. We are permitted to take a glance into this realm through the all-embracing history of the development of nature, which leads up into our own inmost being, up to our highest end. Truly progressive development is the best wish for every youth," etc. Inasmuch as that in which Alex. Braun finds a satisfaction for the fulfillment of the ethical tasks--namely, a deeper knowledge of man's connection with lower nature, and the pointing to the proper tasks of the development of mankind,--has thus far been the substance of all sound systems of morality, we did not mention these and similar utterances, of which we could gather many more from other writers, in the preceding part of our {248} work--_i.e._, in describing those who ascribe to Darwinism a reformatory influence upon morality; but we rank these utterances with those which predict from the descent theory neither injury to morality nor any especial enlightenment regarding it.