New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1892-07-20

- m infdel II appears, however, that while
m hoy Mr.. Huxley began reading stiff books
w. ~ abi,osophy; first of ALL Sir William Hamilton's
w On the Philosophy of the Unconditional;
"a combined with his philosophy much reading
= history also lie has kept it up ever since,
W. w when il not unfrequently disputed my
e,o,er work-time with my liege lady, Natural
ss..nees The habit Of thinking for himself be-
no confirmed and the more he thought the
4 ~ore he differed from all those positive people
n.arous denominations or theists, mate
'iolists or dealists, Christians free-thinkers.
nbo were sure they had solved the problem Of
'.;s,enca. 81 was quite sure had not, and had
nrettv strong conviction that the problem was
.souble" In that state of mind he joined that
.smarkabe confraternity of antagonists, the
Metaphysical Society, where every variety of phil
"sopbcal opinion was represented, and most Of his
.olieagues were lists of one sort another.
while he had not rag of q label to cover him
sef with"
$50 took thought and invented what l con-
osiyed 10 I've the appropriate title OF agnostlc.'
II came into my head as suggesuvey antltheuo
10 the 'gnostic of church history. who proiessed
70 know so much about the things Of which /
vas ignorant
He announced it; the term took, and when
The Spectator had stood godfather to 1T, any
nspcion in the minds Of respectable people THAI
:. knowledge Of its parentage might have awakened
was. of course, completely lulled.' Obviously.
therefore, agnosticism embodis no creed, but 10
uill appear from the following passage that it
has @ substantive existence;
"Agnosticism, in fact is not creed, but a
nethcd, the essence of which lies in the rigorous
application of single principle. That principle
= OF great antiquity; it is as old as Socrates
as old as the writer who said, Try all things hold
last by that which is good: it is the foundation
Az Rafo
,yiom that every man should be able 10 give
Ssson for the faith that is in him; it is the
great principle Of Descartes; it Is the flndamfn
raj axiom of modern science. Positively the
nrncipe may be expressed In matters OF the IN
felect, follow your reason as far as 1T VIII take
YOU without regard 10 any other consideration.
not pretend that conclusions ore certain which
ne not demonstrated or demonstrable That
AXE to he the agnOstic faith, which, II man
teep whole and undefed, he shall not be ashamed
q look the universe in the face, whatever the
mture may have in store for him.
Tie judicious reader will find in that single
,assage much that is most characteristic OF It's
.uthor his courage, his perfect sincerity, his
unfinching fidelity TO truth and 10 his own ideal ;
his cleverliess and force of statement This vol
ume Of essays, poemical as it is, contains on
many page the sufficient evidence Of these quail
ties and of others; and, perhaps, more than ALL
OF the manlness and masculine sense OF the Writer
of them. There is no more honest THINKER thah
Mr. Huxley there is in our time none who has
ID n often shown himself received to get to the
root of the matter wherever it may lead him; none
for whose intellectual energy his own world has
higher respect.
To him, also it has been given TO say what lie
means he is a writer, and the lucid directness OF
his STYLE is the more admirable because the sub
iects he handles are those in which others have
thought otscurity permitted to them. Not 50 MI
Huxley. He allows himself some liberties, but
not that His opponents think, no doubt, or some
Of them think, that he takes liberties with thcnl
lie is 10 respecter Of persons, as you have seen
in Mr.. Gladstone's case. But be has good hum'r'
as we'll as humor and nowhere in these encounters,
or after them, is there trace Of malice l. he
has to execute justice upon an offender he does
il In judicial spirit. The sufferer likes 1t no
better for that, but the reader likes IL better
likes man who can hit a tremendous DIV wi'h
/, smjle on his face, and without hardening his
heart. VI w -