New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1888-04-29

intellect is not exempt from the strong influences OF
Joy and suffering, love and hatred, hope and fear. in
the development Of its powers. II may that Homer
Shakespeare, Goethe basking upon the whole in the
sunshine Of life, drew little supplementary force from
its trials and agtatons. But the history of not
less wonderful than any Of these, the Of Dante,
tells different tale; and OF tho latest and most
searching investigators Of his history tells and shows
us, how the experience Of his life co-operacd with
his extraordinary natural gifts and capabilities 10 make
him what he Under the three great heads Of
love, belief, and patriotism, HIS lfo continued
course Of ecstatic agonizng trials The strain Of
these trials was discipline; discipline experience;
and experience was elevation. No reader of his great
est work WILL believe, hold with the Reply that HIS
thoughts conclusions, judgments werc simple results
of an automatic process, in which the Will and afiec
lions had no share, that reasoning operations arc like
the whir OF a clock running down, and we can no
more arrest the process alter the conclusion than
the wheels can stop the movement or the noise
The doctrine taught in the Reply, that belief IS, as
q general nay, universal, law independent Of tho
Will, surely proves, when examined to be plausiblty
OF the shauowest kind Even in arithmetic, II boy,
through dislike Of his employment and consequent
lack OF attention, brings ont a wrong result for
his sum, it can hardly be said that his conclusion
absolutely and In all respects independent of his Will
Moving onward, point by point, toward the centre Of
the argument, will ncst take an illustration from
mathematics. II has q apprehendl been demonstrated
that tho relation OF tho diameter to the crcumfercnce
of circle is not susceptible Of full Numerical ex-
preston Yet from time to time trcatises are pub
shed which boldly announce that they set forth the
guadraturs Of the circle do not deny that this may
not, on the other hand Ia hazardous
70 assert that no grain Of egotism or ambition
has ever entered into the composition of any one Of
such trcatsesi have selected these Instances as,
perhaps the most favorable that can be found 20 tho
doctrine OF the Reply. But the truth is that, If We
set aside matters OF trivial import the enormous ma
tohty OF human judgments are those into which the
blasting power OF likes and diskes more or less largely
enters ] admit, indeed, that the iIlative faculty
works under rules upon which choice and inclination
ought to exercise Influence whatever Rut even
II Il were granted that In fact the faculty. of discourse
Is exempted from all such influence within ifs own
province yet We come no to the mark because
that faculty has TO work upon materials supplied 10
II by other faculties IL dravs conclusions according
90 premises, and the question has 10 be determined
whether our conceptions set forth IN those premises
arc not Influenced By moral causes For II
they DO so Influenced, then In vain Will be tho proof
that the understanding has dealt Loyalty and exactly
With tho Taterals u had to work upon inasmuch as,
although the Intellectual process be normal In ITSELF
the operation may have bean tainted alb initior by
colong and distortng influences which have fAlsifed
the primary conceptions.
Let me now take illustration from the extreme
opposite quarter to that which I first drew upon