The new dominion. [volume] (Morgantown, W. Va.) 1876-1904, 1881-10-29

Webster defines "soul or spirit" as
shat immaterial part Of man" Now
Mr.. W., which will You do, discard
Webster or hold on to him and be
consistent?
! But since the things Of God are
foolishness to those that are spiritually
blind and since MIR. w. cannot see
the truth when put in a clerical
form as he is pleased to express it,
we will give him the abstract of a
purely scientific investigation of the
| question by scientific thinker. 1t
is a scientific truth that nothing is
annihilated, therefore if We can prove
the soul to be q substantial some
thing it follows that it must always
exist. There can be no proof of the
soul being a substantial something
until the debris of materialism is
cleared away, therefore we begin at
this point. The germ of materialism
lies in the proposition that the mind,
soul, life are caused by "mode of
motions" dependent on a certain
molecular structure, = relative posi-
tion of atoms composing body;
that therefore, when this relation of
atoms is broken up and this "mode
of motion" stops all is over; mind,
soul, life, cease TO exist. Let us ex-
anime little and sec; and first we
remark that the trouble comes as US
ual from loose definition of terms,
a failure to distinguish between
"force" and motion and by using
the two INTERCHANGEABLE.
A water-wheel is turned by a cur
rent Of water; but the motion Of the
wheel is not the force from the water.
Motion is the effect resulting from
| the water--force as q cause. II the
force were synonymous with the mo-
tion then when motion ceases to be
force must cease TO be also, which
according to physics is an impossi-
bility because force is something and
no force is ever lost. Force and mo-
ton then are terms not 10 be con-
founded or interchanged; and their
relation is that of cause TO effect.
III the same way steam, the force
which drives the piston, is not the
motion of the piston but the cause of
its motion. Steam that in which the
force is seen, has a substantial exis-
tence as the cause of motion, while
motion has only an insubstantial ex-
istence. A step further, no one will
deny that there is force, substantial
though not material, in the magnet.
We saw the effects Of the water on
the wheel by substantial and mater
ial contact. Now we see the
efectof the magnetic force
on the particles Of iron, though there
is no material contact; yet the force
does as evidently exist and act
through impervious substance as
glass, as does the force in the tangi-
bic substance water. Magnetism
must therefore be an entity and not
mere "mode Of motion. Now Just
as magnetism acts in the external
world 50 life acts upon our bodies.
Therefore this life, soul or spirit, is
an entity as truly as is magnetism,
electricity, &c, and AS magnetism
proves its entitativc existence by its
substantial though invisible and i'm
material contact with matter. In
ike manner the soul or spirit proves
the nature of its essence and its sub
stantial entitativc existence indepen-
dent of matter. Therefore this sub
stantial something, the soul is, and
cannot cease to be. Spirituality ex-
presses an idea made up of mega
tive part and Of positive part. The
negative part consists in the exclu-
sion of some Of the known properties
Of matter, especially of solidity ofthe
vis inertia and of gravitation. The |
positive part comprises perception,
power, thought, will, action, by which
last term is meant the origination of |
motion; the quality perhaps, in
which resides the essential SUPERIOR |
ty of spirit over matter, which can
not move unless it be moved; and |
cannot but move when impellcd by |
another. We hope Mr.. w. will let |
the scales fall from his eyes and per
ceive things as they are.
Mr.. w. makes u wide mistake in |
advising me to return the "money |
have received from my congregation" /
l have never preached nor had con-
gregation.
With all the assumption and self
conceit imaginable Mr.. w. pretends
to argue on the obstruce question of
the souls nature and Immortality and
yet fails to catch the two distinct
meanings of the term soul not only
used in scripture but heard all
around US every day. But he goes
on prattling away as =. young child
about the ''souls that came out ofths
loins of Jacob" If Mr.. w. has no
maturer thoughts than these, silence
would be more BETTING on his part
on this subject.
The whole tone of the article is q
ranting outrage on truth. Amid the
noise of his volubility he rattles away
and in his arrogance the ''robustious
perriwig pated fellow" would lift up
his voice against the christian church
with its millions of intelligent and
true believers. 1t only shows the
narrowness of bigotry. As ut is
not science that christians regard
with susniciun hut .}oomatic ofheism