Martinsburgh gazette. [volume] (Martinsburgh, Va. [W. Va.]) 1810-1825, 1825-12-08
THE REFLECTOR.

whole range Of though. which II so
much behOves us 10 know. because no
thng which 50 completely involves
oil our interests, as truth Whatever
be the subject Of Investigation, or
whatever the object Of investigation.
Or whatever the OBJECT Of pursuit, whr
ther po,ucal, moral, or religious, still
our hopes, or car fears; our success o.
our failures, are suspended mainly
rel in most cases wholly, upon our
Knowledge. or onr ignorance OF the
truth. This is the great commanding
prize, which all classes of men, with
differeat mo.iges, bot with nearly the
sam carnesiness, are pressing hard
after.
Some love truth, and pursue it for
its own intrinsic worth, and because,
like true mirror, it reflects the image
of al surrounding things, exhibiting
them in their just measure of excel
lensp az Yileaess Some search tor it,
aud reinscs to discover it, oniy as it
enaoles them 20 discover the way to
self aggrandisemens, or sensual indul
gence Others. who are abandoned
TO the rossest fslsehood, who win 10
themselves wrelched subsistence
from dishonest deeds, have a strong
at,achment 10 truth A kind Of nc
ces>ity IS laid UPON them 10 know the
truth, and TO have it constantly in view
OF their mind, Ihat they n1ay conceal
0 exhibit it, as best suits their turn
w assume it As maxim, than
which no Other ~ more evIdeot, that all
men have patural attachment TO truh,
and are constrained, by a law OF their
naiure, in every instance, 10 give il
thet assent AMI appreciation Ii we
attend 10 the operation of our own
Mods, in regard to any thing which
is the subject of thought, we find our
selves u1Avodably approving or dis
ap,rovjng the IDEAS, to which 1t gives
rise, according az we conceive them
TO b. true or false; aud although things
nv be presented ny the euoiect cal
cul ,ted to suspend our Judgment, ap
pearinQ, at first view, to have an e
DUAL number of true and false qualities,
yet AS soon as any thing new disco
vers Itself in the investigation, throw
lng be preponderance OF truth 90 one
sid OF the argument, rJther than the
o'her, we can 40 more avoid being
inlldtnted in Ike manner, than we
can deprive cau,e offs legitimate ct
feet, or cause balance Of unequal
veg lts to hang in equlllbrio
And further, this supreme influence
ofiruIh over the mind is not in any
degree weakened, because of the fact,
TIT we sometimes decide wrong -
Tbs world is full Of counterseis We
are surrounded on all sides by false
AM decep'ivr appearances. For these
Reasons, SOM, who have gwen more
beet to tn. idle Pigments Of magma
ton. than to good sense, have inform
ed IN ,nSind that the higher wisdom
to which they could arrive, was to
doubt the reality Of every thing; ia
othrr words, to receive nothing as
certain, however great the certainly
with which it might appear Bot
venuring 10 make our way beyond
CHS ne plus Ultra of The skep!ic's phi
lo,ophy, we will endeavour to satisfy
ourselves of the reality OF truth, and OF
its 20 Her over us, notwithstanding the
errors to which we are liable. We
nay err, for instance, on comparing
two things together, as to the superb
or eXcellence of one above the other,
and We may pres ntly, as is often the
fact, discover our mistake together with
the causes which led US to mistake -
When viewing two or more objects at
a distance, we may form an opinion
OF their relative bulk, and distance
from each other, and of their respec.
tive distances from Us; and in every
instance we may be deceived in cor.
seql nee of some defect in our organ
OF sIgtt; and to this Cause, having dis
covered the mistake, we attribute 1t
M 10 any uncertainty in the things
them>eVes Or while viewing the
distant bodies, should we he IN doubt
a 20 their difference III hnlk, we sure.
iy shonlh noi conclu lie, that there could
b. "a realty in any Judgment formed
Ofthrlr difference; MT. rather that our
incapAblli;y OF IDrmog correct ludg.
menl was owing TO some ImprriecliOn
III he sense, through which their image
was conveyed to The UNDERSTANDING
The power OF truth over the mind