ABSTRACT
A moral principle is not merely a matter of personal taste, although this is a much greater part of it than is admitted by most authorities. Man is not naturally good or naturally evil, even though it be true to say that he naturally seeks his own happiness. Ambiguity arises, however, owing to defects in this process of intelligent appraisal. All the same men do in fact, of course, do evil things, evil in the sense of what is generally condemned. Freedom and openness of mind engender both an internal security, which makes it natural to tolerate difference because there is no cause to fear it, and a willingness to criticize without hostility which provides a safe escape for instincts of aggression. The recognition of obligation, of the duty to obey and the right to command, springs from a unity of purpose or a sharing of ideals overriding lesser dissidences.
