, 1876-08-27

diameter Is this egg matter: hold 1t 70 oe 70,
as much as the seed of fern Or OF an OAK. MIG
months 90 to the making OF 1t into man. Are Inc
additions made during this period OF ges1lou ~
drawn from matter: think 50, undoubtedly. II
there be ANYTHING bes1de mnttcr In the egg, or III
the infant subsequently slumbering in the womb
what is 1t? The questions already asked win
reference to the stars Of snow may be mere re"
peated. Mr. MARr1SEAu will complain that ! a!n
Disseminating the babe Of It's wonder; but Is 1n's
the case? figure 1t growing in the womb woven
by something not itself, without conscious pa1'
ticipation on the part Of either father or motnes
aud appearing in due time, living miracle w,'A
all its organs and all their implications. Consider
the work accomplished during these nine months
in forming the eye alone-with its 1ens' anu 1tS
humors. and its miraculous retna behind Con-
sfder the eur with its tympanum, cochlea, anu
Cor.i,s orean-au instrument OF three thousand
str}nos built adjacent to the brain, ana employer
by it 70 sif separate and interpret antecedent 10
ali consciousness, the sonorous tremors OF the e1-
ternal world. All this has been accomplished, not
oDly without mans contriyance, but without bis
knowledge, the secret OF his own organlzauon
having been withheld from him since his olsth IN
the Unreasonable past until the other oay' Ma'tee
define AZ that mysterious thing by which all this
ia accomplished.
Summing up, however, Prof. TrsDA1s
argument, it appears that the most he has
done is to assert the suficiency of matter as
the creative principle. As against this comes
the assertion of the Christian that God, con-
trolling matter in all its operations, is the
creative principle. Prof. TxNDA11 arrives At
his conclusion BY pure reason, tho Chr1s~
tan by reason and faith combined There
is, however, g wide difference between Prot.
TYNDA1L, the Materialist, and Alr. MARTrNEAu,
the Christian. We select hr. MARTEsEAu
because he is not purely theologian, but IS
liberal enough to accept many OF the reVela~
tons of Science, even when they conflict
with Theology. When Prof. TxsDALh ven
lures beyond the limits of assertion, he IS IN
the dark. He says himself, show matter
came to have this power is question on
which Inever ventured an opinion" "The~
ories Of evolution 60 but q short way towards
the explanation Of this mystery" He can-
not even give this Power any form or name.
BE says: "When I attempt to give the
Power which see manifested in the universe
an objective form, personal or otherwise, it
slips away from me, declining all intellectual
manipulation. I dare not, save poeticaly,
use tho pronoun He regarding it; dare
not call it a Mind : refuse to cali it even
a Cause Its mystery overshadows me;
but it remains mystery, while the objective
frames which my neighbors try to make it
fit simply distort and desecrate it." How
the physical processes are connected with
the facts of consciousness he can never solve.
He says it is unthinkable. 'The chasm be-
tween the two classes Of phenomena is in
telIectually impossible" The Christian
gives another name to this Power. He
recognizes it, feels it, believes it, knows it
to be Divine. After he has named his Power,
Prof TySDAL1 gropes in darkness It is
only an assertion. The Christian walks in
light. By the use Of the organs Of Divine
apprehension, the Christian recognizes
cause which is all-suf6cient, which
explains every mystery, which has
name and form, which is rational
in its operations, which explains every
phenomenon, which gives harmony
to the whole system Of humanity and con-
sistency to the whole physical creation. It
is certainly rational It is intelligent. More
than all this, it brings peace, and JOY, and
comfort to the ono who believes it, and sup
plies an all-pervading need Assuming Prof
TgSDA11's doctrine to be correct, man per-
iahes with the making. His wonderful fab
ric, his consciousness, thought, feeling, emo
ton do not elevate him above the snow-crys-
tai, the oak, or the fern He Is only
brother to the c1ods OF the valley which cover
him when he is gone. Even if Prof. TYS-
DALI could make his doctrine absolutely con-
vincing, the intuitions Of the human soul
would spurn it. They would still cling to
that religion which, as MAR17sEAu beauti-
fully says, "is ever ready to work with the
will, to nnbind and sweeten the affections.
and bnthe the life with reverence, but refus-
ing to be seen, or to pass from a divine hue
OF thinking into human pattern of
thought"