The New York herald., 1874-10-04
T Y N D ALLIS M.
Interview with DR.. C. NJ. 0'Leary, Of
Manhattan College.
A Catholic Opinion Oh the New Excitement,
About an Old Discussion.
Tyndall's Materialism the 0utgrowth oi
Madness Of Kethod."

Yesterday afternoon a HERALD reporter called
on DR.. G. NJ. OLeary, at Manhattan College, to OH
tain his views on Tyndallism. II may be remem-
bered that the Doctor gathered thunderbo
around MS devoted head AZ Albany two years ago
when he read paper entitled .srae Ethical AS
pcct or Modern Science" IN which Huxley. Darwin
and Mill were dssected with tne keen scapel or
Catholic theology. Al the time the Doctor was the
only Catholic theoogian n the Convocation, anc
ior hours he answered the arguments pat forward.
against the premises taken aud the conclusion ar
rived at in his paper. In the interview below it
Will be seen that the Doctors views are severely
Catholic and that lie has gwen the subject much
attention. According to him ryndaliism is moth.
ing new, for the differences between his doctrine
as lately annunclated, and those OF Leucippus
and Ep!cnrus are very sight.
In answer 70 an opening question as to his gen.
eral opinion OF Tyndal!s new posi- tlon the Doctor
said -
'To thorough understanding OF the question
at issue between Christian theology and the
science which opposes 1t a glance AT the changes
winch philosophy has undergone within the last
hundred wears is indl @penstu The frame OF
nina in which ryndall asserted the supremacy Of
matter was not the gro vth o a Is nor ths result
OF his individual speculdt'ons, but dated back to
that turn IN the history oi philosophy which ther
studies OF Locke IN England, Splnosa IN &c r
many and Condilac IN France gave rise to.
These Ih!losopners believed that all IDEAS have
their origin III the senses and ald the
foundation Of materialism ov making the
process OF intellectIon pend upon sensation.
Locke, while admitting his belief in til, spirituality
OF the SOUL at the same time conce ed to matter
the possiolity .! producing tnought. Condiilac
invented an ideal statue IN which ne deve oped all
the subtle and elaborate operations OF the MIND
from the simple sensations, vnile VoItalre clearly
pJhy words, re pe,ese et e sa corps je men sdiS
pas dardr3td1e.,n -
.Who were those who asserted the supremacy
md q ii
toestabllsh an identity between l. and spirlf?n
We'll" SAID the Doctor. 'De LII Metric, Hell
vetus and Dihobach, IN various ways, expressed
Their belief in me identity OF S lrlt and matter
not LED to their conclusion, however, by
OF TynualL The barriers between the antago
nlstic forces Of matter and spirit being
materiasm became easy. Chemistry and the mi
croscope poured fresh hoo IS OF gnl on the puz-
zling relation between mud and uody Digestion,
secretion ana the other purely physical processes.
( which had hitherto been con 'dered vital, were
shown TO take place in ACCORDANCE win the laws
whlcn governed analogous operatons outside Oh
! the body. Nerve power began to be understood.
and by the experiments Of Fioure ns, Btcnat and
Nlrcho", cereb al functions We're locanzed. The
| tendency or physiology was to usurp the domain
answct the tests OF It's methods OF inquiry Not
long ago professor IN the Pans school OF Medi.
cne deliberately asserted taat tue admission OF
the existence OF the soul as distinct principle
OF acton was injurious TO science Tor the reason
that II circumscrioed tue field Ol physiological re-
search by assuming tue existence OF that winch
could not be investigated bv cnem.cai aud physicO
chemical methods. Analogy became the law
that which was dis covered gave ortn the light by
which the undiscovered was 70 be sought out
The microscope revealed the TACT that organisms
are developed from cells, which reacn ma turlty ID
different ways; that pecuari'y OF junction de-
pends on special modes OF deve opment, giving
seuted itself the tempting analogy OF referring all
o!ganza IONS to a primitive Homogeneous cell
structures Of the universe by viewing them as the
outgrowth of a primoralai Mo.ecuie. Thus the
syngenesis OF thought and the manifold phenom
ASS
even an attempt At demonstration. A constant
perience led ryndail to the relec oi oil tnat DID
not respond TO his lavorte methods, and, while II
lett the condition OF scientific truth on nrmer
which, though advanced only as theories. invar~
ably confictcd with the received notions concern
ing the spirituality OF the soul. Tyndail owns that
mis- original moiecule has not yet been discovered,
but he avows MS strong belief tnat whereas mole
cular phy sizes have alone hitherto sned steady ano
Illuminating ray on the myriad problems " hich be-
set our every step. so our wnoie hope oil urIher
\ eucldatlon OF them lies III the same direction"
'fhen am to understand you as SAYING that
Iynda'i reject rejects all mat does not appear clear
me Lhods-- experience and observation ~
Exactly so' responded the Doctor. This new
phase oi materlallsm Is what may, in truth, be
called madness of method. 1t would destroy
1rce VIII. moral responsibility and the nope OF a
luture state oi existence In or!er TO SATISFY one
sized logicai aspiration. i5 was born Iii the a.
inosphere OF M an eXperen ence winch prec.udes the
has devoted Itself enthusiastically to the consider
alton OF special series OF truths ascertainable
only by special procedure 1t is irreslstDly IN
clined TO apply the same method VITA reference
/ TO truths not coming within the scope OF Its
operation. TO mind thus supecuvely const~
tuted nothing Is admissible but what conforms
\ TO the tests 1t Is accustomed 10 apply, and TINS
the logical consistency men oi tue Iyndail and
Huxley type claim Tor themselves IN wishing to-
suDmit every question TO the probation OF ex-
perIence. A similar error was c cJmmittcd by the
dosmatlsts or scholastic philosophers OF the SIX
OF physical lnyestisation niled their books
IL ~
4 whose specnlatons on metaphysics caanot oe over
estimated fell into ridiculous errors when treat
4 Ing OF purely physical matters mus and that
the exclusive application of the mlnd 10 any
phrase oil truth not only eXcites prejndices, but
| in measure incapacitates 1t or the study OF
other truths by shutting from view the proper in
struments o.! research. The ps, cnologists OF the
/ did not make due allowance or tue dependence OF
I the mind on the body, while Mili. huxey aad lyn-
dan, making the material organism paramount,
lgnore the influence OF tue soul.p
There seems among the orthodox lolh to be
4 1yndall. How do you think they best bc,
metY'
principle OF action in man essentially distinct rom
the body desire TO vlDdicate their ductriae they
must enter the arena with minds stored with
all the established deductions OF recent
physiology and grapple the dihcnltles
airectly and squarely Tho rcassertlon oi tho olo
argument OF design is but indirect reply tu
4 Tyndall's materalism. The issue must he met In
! no spirit Of evasion Or abhorrence Tor the per
! nicous consequences OF tue new coctfiaes; bus
! eacn assertion must be site1, the assumed sepa-
rated from the proved, ana especially inust the
| error be insisted upon OF endcavorlng To subject
to special tests truths whlcl, IN toe nature OF
Things are excluded from their operation. HuN-
i leg speaks OF a possible sensigenous molecule.
which generates thought ana sensation through
the nervous tissue, being led unquestIGnably to
the suppositon by the observation that an organ
isins originate in cells with which the special
functions OF eacn are intimately connected. The
hypothesis is plausible II there were no counter
doctrine In possession, as the casuisl5 say. But
| whenever q theory ~ advanced IN conflict with
! universal belief on which the hopes OF thousands
depend, which Is all momentous TO the interests
of society since IL hes at the root OF the doctrine
OF moral responsibility, that belie must be proved
! undenlably erroneous. Before, therefore. attack
ing so vital a doctrine by the Advancement OF an
adverse theory Its claims should be clearly dis"
proved. Tyndall sncers at the notion oi soul,
and forthwith proceeds TO theorize. SO lar the
school Is not only illogical. but dishonest, for
II spurns the most cherished belief OF mankind