A Law of Nature
It is a law of nature we overlook, that intellectual versatility is the compensation for change, danger, and trouble. An animal perfectly in harmony with its environment is a perfect mechanism. Nature never appeals to intelligence until habit and instinct are useless. There is no intelligence where there is no change and no need of change.
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Context: The Time Traveller reasons about why intelligence fades when life becomes safe.
Not in a duel yet
Source: Chapter XIII, The Trap of the White Sphinx