"There must be a law of uniformity governing the Universe; otherwise such perfect order would not exist. But who can determine what that law is?
"I cannot understand the cause of so much variance in the answers. If I had held any preconceived ideas upon the subject, it would be different entirely, as I would then know my personal opinion upon it had colored the minds of my subjects. In such a case, however, there would be uniformity of opinion and avowal, while now there is almost utter variance.
"There seems to be logical reasoning on the part of each of them, but it is impossible to reconcile their statements. One says practically the opposite of the other. Which is right? Are any of them right, and what is the cause of this diversity of opinion? I confess I am as much interested in the cause of their disagreement as in the question itself.
"I believe myself to be a true student of life; that is, a person desirous of obtaining and mastering a true knowledge of the exact laws of existence, and hold myself aloof from all such preconceived plans of my own brain's concoction as may prejudice me, looking always for reasons and facts which teach me methods better than I know.
"My soul sickens at the word 'consistency.' Some of my colleagues seem to regard consistency as the essence of wisdom, but I cannot understand it that way. To me, consistency implies a clinging to old ideas and customs, and is therefore a symbol of negativeness instead of progression. I want to advance:—to grow in wisdom and knowledge, though that advancement means the abandonment of every past idea, however choice and excellent that idea may have seemed, either at the time of its acceptance or now.
"A true student aspires to gain truth however much it may wound his past thoughts, and I can only regard life as a school of experience, wherein what to-day we consider precious, may tomorrow become valueless. There is where I differ from my colleagues. I am willing to admit that two of them at least are far beyond me in technical knowledge, but it seems to me the further they advance in technical knowledge, the less pliable and elastic are their ideas.
"Somehow, I cannot comprehend advancement or progression without change,—'change,' of course, means the adoption of new ideas. If I believe the same as when a mere child, how can I have gained in wisdom? I cannot rid myself of the idea that consistency, that is, always believing what you used to believe, instead of being the essence of wisdom, is rather a pronounced indication of ignorance.
"Everything, so far as I am able to distinguish facts from that (to me) inestimable book, Nature, tells me to continually search for and demand new complications and expressions of types of life.
"The same law must hold good with man. How can I plan and work successfully under the same conditions that would have furnished my father success? I cannot do it, for the forces necessary and sufficient, at even that recent date would be totally inadequate and impotent to meet and overcome conditions the present produces. Advancement in science, invention and education has made a corresponding advancement in thought and methods of achievement imperative. Strict consistency to my father's methods might, it is true, bring me some degree of success, but if I wish to be found among the successful men of the present, I must study existing conditions as closely as he did those of his time, striving to keep my methods up to present advancement, appreciating the value of his labor and methods, and knowing the suitability of them as compared to the conditions he was called upon to operate. As he strove to improve upon the methods of his predecessors, so must I strive to improve upon his, adopting those which he demonstrated to be successful, and applying them as stepping stones to higher accomplishment.
"Such a procedure cannot be called 'consistency,' but I know despite what my colleagues say, that my own deductions upon this subject are correct, for all nature bears me out in the assertion.