The spirit of democracy. [volume] (Woodsfield, Ohio) 1844-1994, 1879-05-27

hoo 'coSi wv ae tCh ySoto olu heso ~
vised all the ideas it mad at five, ,and then
think that these ideas are in perfect har-
mony with things. But the man at
twenty-five is ashamed Of those childish
thoughts and discards the greater bulk
of them, remodels and corrects the fest,
then with fully developed brain sets
himself about framing system of
thoughts for life. But all through life
he fuds it necessary to revise, remodel
and correct the same, bringing them
more and more into conformation with
facts. But the great difficulty, aud that
which has as much as anything else re-
tarded the progress of the human in.ei-
lect, is that OF accepting certain things
on authority, and setting them down as.
a finality, too certain to be doubteds too
sacred to be Investigated. No one has
arrived at the whole truth, and probably
never will. Still as the mind OF the race
develops new subjects for Investigation
will arise. Succeeding generations avail
ing themselves OF the thoughts and ex-
perience of the past will still be arriving
at new truths until the "coming man"
will as far surnass the present generation
as the present generation surpasses the
Anthrapoid Ape. And yetthere are peo-
Pile with fair intellecls and susceptible
education who, after they are forced to
abandon the account in Genesis as un-
trustworthy, and having no other any
where, will still tenaciously hold to the
old obsolete idea of creation. Discard
ing with contempt the idea OF evolution,
which is daily and hourly being manifest
to their eyes and senses. (They are
something like she shark which is said to
be so much influenced by habit that one
raised in a cistern of water, with glass
partition dividing it. will not, when the
partition is removed, pass the limits in
which it formerly moved.
1t is claimed that the phenomenon Of
life could never have come into matter
through the forces of evolution; what is
not involved can not be evolved, but
must be injected by some external source.
But we claim that matter is OF eternal
existence and force is q necessary condi-
ton OF matter, or law of the being of
matter and necessarily coeternal with the
same. The energy Of matter produces
motion, and that life is only degree or
mode of activity which arises from the
molecular and palor motion of matter.
The almost infinite degrees Of vitality de-
pends on the various collocaiions, CON-
binations aud compilations of matter, or
in other words on the physical organizs-
ton.
Says Prof. Tyndall: "Incipient life
manifests itself through the whole of
what we call inorganic nature. The par
ticles of matter Of which crystals are
built up are self-posited, being fixed ID
their places by their palor or molecular
forces. The malecues composing =
grain of corn are self-positeds by the
forces by which they act uponseach 9TH
er. In the eyes Of science an animal is
just as much the product of molecular
force as is the stalk of corn or the crystal
of salt" And again, vapor coalesces to
stars of snow. These crystals are mat.
ter. A formative power has obviously
here come into play which did not man.
ifest itself in either the liquor or the va
por. Was not the power potential in
both of them, requiring only The condi
tions OF temperature to bring it into ac'
tion2 If the hypothesis should be es-
poused that an imponderable formative
soul unites itself with the substance aftel
it escapes from the liquid, I should ask
At what moment did the soul come in
Did it enter at once or by degrees; per
feet from the first or growing and per.
fecting itself contemporaDeously y with its
lown handiwork Is it located or diff
fused? Does it move about as lonely
builder putting !he>b Of solid water il
their places as soon as the proper tenn
perature has set in, or is it distributed
through the entire mass of the crystal
II the latter then the soul has the shape
of the crystal. If the former, then wha
is the souls shape2 Has it eyes OIL
arms2 If not, I would ask it to be ex
planned how thing without these appl;
ances can so perfectly act the part of tn,
builder. What were the conditions and
residence of the soul before it Joined thu
crystal1 What becomes of it when tb,
crystal is dissolved2 The San ques
tons are pertinent in regard TO separate
entity of the human soul.
We have extended this article further
than we had originally intended. W,
might have made it more terse, more
epigramstic; but such as it is we consigr
it to the public. The clergy may de-
nounce it as impious; the philosophe
may condemn it as lacking sense; the
comedian may treat it as farce, and W.
shall still claim that it is not any greater
outrage on common sense than is The
popular notion of Creation.