A savage who had been shipwrecked in a river may note certain
things which serve him as signs of danger in the future. But
civilized man deliberately makes such signs; he sets up in
advance of wreckage warning buoys, and builds lighthouses where
he sees signs that such events may occur. A savage reads weather
signs with great expertness; civilized man institutes a weather
service by which signs are artificially secured and information
is distributed in advance of the appearance of any signs that
could be detected without special methods. A savage finds his
way skilfully through a wilderness by reading certain obscure
indications; civilized man builds a highway which shows the
road to all. The savage learns to detect the signs of fire and
thereby to invent methods of producing flame; civilized man
invents permanent conditions for producing light and heat just
whenever they are needed.--JOHN DEWEY, “How We Think.”
(464)