The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1858-07-22
For the National Era
LORD BACON AND THE OLD METHOD.
Rochester, N. 7.

But impracticable aims and the too grea
reliance upon logic formed the chief obstacle,
to ancient discovery. The first thing sough
seems to have been perfect definition, or de
scription, of the form in the scholastic sense, OF
essence of the thing itself. Instead of being
content by patient observation and experiment
with learning some qualities or facts respect
ing the object of investigation, and thence as
cending to higher or more general truths, Aris
totle sought, by hssty and sensual induction
first of all, universal or complete definition O
the essence of the thing itself, and thence by
his logic, to arrive at particulars. Now, the
difficulties in arriving at truth by this means
are as yet insurmountable, and arise mainly
from our ignorance, the impossibility with oul
weak faculties of grasping the essence of things
and also from the imperfection of language.
know not what may be the nature and extent Of
future discoveries; but, 80 far as they have gone
or are likely to go, we find it impossible fully to
know, and hence to define, the nature or form,
Of things. To US is given only to sss qualities
ard to observe uses Deity can grasp the alb
stract, and knows the materials of his work. Our
inward sight only teaches us moral relations and
the most general ideas. OF matter, of thngS,
we learn by comparison, We know by likes.
With what shall we compare the elements? To
what is matter like, before its creation into
FORMS Could Aristotle succeed in giving q
perfect definition or description of air or water,
lie might perhaps by his logic, and with per.
feet language, deduce their qualities. But can
either be defined With all his research, and
that of al philosophers since bis day, what do
we know of them, other than certain qualities
or facts respecting them3 And these facts, while
they confound the vanity of ancient philoso.
ply, only serve to confirm our conviction that
the secrets of matter, as well as of spirit, are
only within the grasp of the Infinite Mind. So
of light, of sound, of heat We can affirm many
things in regard to each, but any attempted
definition of either must be mere statement of
some quality or use. We can say of light, that
it passes in right lines, and learn its laws of re-
fraction and reflection. do not ignore deduc,
ton after the establishment of facts; for having,
by observation and experiment, ascertained
these laws, We can by the aid of logic and
learn the whole science of optics
Thus, any fact or quality, clearly established,
becomes proper foundation for logical or
mathematical deduction. But where would
have been the optics of Newten, had he first
started with . definition of the essence of light,
and made Of that definition proposition from
which, BY strict syAegistie or mathematical in. 1
ference, and without further observation, to de.
duce all that is to be learned in relation to light
He might have delighted the world by the in.
genuity of his definitions and the strictness of
his logic bat his reasoning, being founded on
nothing but terms, would have brought forth
nothing but words. But it is not always or
necessarily true that . correct definition of
things furnishes basis for deducing their quail
tiles. Bacon himself, by an elaborate Undue.
ion, fancied that he had found the form of
neat. He pronounced it motion, Admit him |
correct, what quality or fact in relation to heat
IAN We hence deduce, except the negative one
hat it is not matters Call it motion, or matter,
,r anything else; can we hence, by syllogism,
earn the manner Of creating II, it, radiation,
t. reflection, and its effect upon other bodies
f it be said that such would not be perfect
definition, I am wiling to admit it and pro-
ounce such definition impossible.
But the imperfection Of language necessarily