Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1903-12-09
HERBERT SPENCER.

Tho death Of Herbert Spencer re-
moves from the world Of thought one
OF the most conspicuous men OF the age.
M the scope Of hts thinking and the
influence he eNerted upon the educat
ed portion Of mankind. he may be
called the Aristotle OF the nineteenth
century His mind penetrated nearly
every field OF scientific research and re-
turned with the riches thereof, which he
80 freely gave to the world. He wrote
OF music Of style, legislation, astrono-
my laws Of organic form, educational,
moral and other topics, and finally he
completed his literary career by re-.
statement of his Views and conclusions
regarding the stupendous subjects with
which philosophy is concerned
II Is worthy of notice at this time,
that the propositions made by the
school OF thinkers to which Darwin,
Huxley ana Spencer belonged, and
which, n quarter Of a century ago.
were accepted by the educated world
az the highest truth, no longer are re-
garded in that light A few months
ago, Lord Kelvin stated publicly that
science positively afIirms creative pow
or and makes every one feel miracle
In himself" II was not, he added, in
dead matter that men lived moved and
had their being. but IN Il creative and
directive power, which science COM
PEELED them to accept as an article OF
belief Modern biologists, he further
stated, We're coming once more to IA
firm acceptance OF something, and
that was vital principle; they
might be agnostics In science, but
they only knew the Creator In His
works and were absolutely forced by
science 10 admit and to believe with abb
solute confidence In directing power.
Lord Kelvin argued against the Cioer-
oman theory Of a fortuitous concourse
Of atoms, and said; "a million Of mil
lions OF millions OF years would not
give them 1.-THE sclentistsl a beautiful
world like ours He concluded his
statement as follows. Forty years ago
] asked LicbIg walking somewhere In
the country, If he believed that the
grass and flowers which we saw around
us grew by mere chemical force. lie
answered: No! not more than could
believe that book on botany describ-
ing them could grow by mere chemical
FORCES Every action Of a human free
VIII Is miracle Of physical, chemical,
and mathematical science"
This Is powerful testimony OF one
OF the foremost men in the scientific
world as to the inefllclency Of the Oar
-Spencerian philosophy, when the
phenomena of the world are to be ex-
planned As pointed out by writer in
theological review some time ago
ut has not given Ny the key with
which the mysteries Of existence can
be unlocked II has thrown no light
upon the question Of ultimate origin.
whether OF matter. OF life, OF mind, of
conscience, OF sin. II has left unsolyed
the fundamental metaphysical ques.
tlons differently decided by atheism
pantheism, deIsm and thesm. In it's
philosophical form it postuates an un.
known continuity, but apart from the.
lstc evolution, can not reconcile this
continuity with the progress It de-
scribrs In the citadel OF its strength
int biological ileld--it renounces, in
It's most recent form, all attempt to
explain the origin of species that Is,
TO assign Il vera causa for their APP
r9orance.' For a true knowledge OF
these things the world, scientific, or
unsclenlifc. depends entirely on the
light Of the ages" that comes 10 us
from Tho divine origin of all truth and
llsht and life