The spirit of democracy. [volume] (Woodsfield, Ohio) 1844-1994, 1878-01-29
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WooDsFIELD MONROE COUNTY OHIO TUESDAY,


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,esigning cause back of nature.n 600I
wears B. g In the person of Budha. re.
fected thought was awakened, and the
he set In motion was simply
a reeoil from the sensnslity ofthe Brah
Minis About the same timer Confucins
led in similar reformstiondih China.--
Then came the leading Greek philoso,
piers all seeking to find -out the great
pervading or underlying idea OF nature,
and each schoolnof philosophy contrib
uting some idea to thegsolutipn of the
problem, thereby securing q steady progdl
ress from vague and general ideas up 10
that of lone controlling and Intelligent
personal cause. The Ionic school, which,
aourished about 90 years B c., discov-
cred certain elements which they eonsid-
cred tounderlie nature. Then came the
Pathagoreans, who saw not only certain
primary elements in nature, but some
power regulating these elements.Id uog
Their attention was attracted toward
number and form as being prominent
part in the structure of the universe. =
And Sir John Herschel said that modern
SCIENCE goes to show that they did not
.unduly magnify number. But there
must be something beside number and
form to bind together the feetings Q And
so the Eleatic school discovered; some
thing beneath number and form--some
force or power which cannot be increass
ed or diminished, which seems TO be the
origin Of that great and important doc,
trine now recognised as the Conserve
lion of Force" The next prominent
philosopher after the Eleatics was Ansx-
agoras, and, although none Of his wri,
tings are left, there are plenty OF trust
worthy references to them among con.
temporares He introduced two inn
portant ideas: (l) The Noces, which is
the Greek term for mind Anaxagoras
could not avoid the conclusion that be-
hind nature there must be sn intellis
gence to produce all ii this variety and
harmony Of organization, and this pow
er he designated the Noees He also
introduced ~ )~The doctrine Of homo.
geneous elements which now holds "a
prominent place in science under the
form of chemical equivalents. b,.s ssnE
Then came the Sicilisn philosopher
Empedocles with his doctrine Of "friend-
ships and strifes" which now appears,i in
the great scientific truth expressed by
attraction and repulsion. Contempora-
ueous with this latter, philosopher was
Democritus Of whom Tyndsll gives q
correct enough account. But tue doc
trine Of Democrtus explains nothing
concerning the origin of. life, His atoms
are all without sensation, and the prob
lem is how to generate sensation, life,
aud personal intelligence from lot ,ol
insensate particles After Democrltus
comes Socrates; with his grand inyincir
BE truth OF Foresight and Design,
which has never been set aside, but has
continued to increase in strength to the
present time. He illustrates his aoc
trine BY reference to the eve. Says Soc
rates, Is not that tprovidence in mos,
eminent manner conspicuous which, be
cause the eye OF man is so delicate in its
conjecture, hath therefore prepared eye,
lids like doors whereby TO secure it
which extend of, themselves whenever il
is needful and again close when sleep
approaches, Are not these ,eyelids pro
vided, as it were, with a fence. on the
edge Of them to keep Of the wind ,ant
guard the eyeT " ." - ''Ds
Is it not to be admired that the ea
should take in sounds of every sort. anC
yet is not too much filled by themp Tha
the foreteeth of the animals should ebt
formed in such manner IS. is evidently
best suited for cutting its food aas those
on the side for grinding it to pieces T--
Nor did Plato the great pupil of Soc
rates, though differing from him in many
things, attempt to set 'asirle the grand
doctrine of intelligent designBiu mature
but addedto, it his equally important
doctrine Of 'ideas,' which be considered
the essence and archetypesr of the inf
mite mind--rhe principles to (which W.
refer, ip thought, lthe ngreat variety; ol
things, which principles however deyel
eped by experience, Cannot have orig
mated in it. Everything is governed b
the laws impressed upon it by the iatel,
ligence behind The oak takes one form
ALWAYS, and the beech another form in
accordance with laws impressed. bytiufi
mite, intelligence. Then comes Plato's
immortal pupil, Aristotle, who carried
forward the doctrines Of Plato and 500
rates by the introduction of his grea
doctrine in reference to causes, Of which
he discourses 4: Il )The material cause
| (2) The efficient caase;s (Sj The formal
cause; ~ The 6nal cause For an il
lustrstion he takes statue in which thu
rough marble would be the msteria
cause, the sculptor would be the efi1cien
cause, the likeness (that OF Hercules
for example) the formal cause, and the
purpose for which the statue was mad,
the final cause.
Bacon to whom the world is indebted
for the grand reeohstructioa of the phil
osophicaI method Of the ancieuts, hold,
fast by these four causes of Aristotle :.
Half century after Bacon, Descartel
took up the subject and established 8
complete distinction, between mind and
matter,s But he carried the distinction
so far that it required another grea
mind to harmonise them. This wa
found in the person OF Leibuitz, til,
lmost profound and .comprehensiv,
thinker Germany has ever produced
\ In his doctrine of "Pre.establishet
Harmony" which is> Aegrclaement o