The Minneapolis journal., 1904-07-16
A Question Of Coherency.

far to deprive them Of claims to reg
ularity.
A Question Of Coherency.
"A London critic, noting the appear
ance Of the autobiography OF the late
Herbert Spencer. quotes the philoso-
pher as saying Of Thomas Carlyle that
"he either could not or would not
think coherently."
This criticism is apt to remind the
rejecting reader Of the two authors
of the legend of the pot calling the
kettle black. Carlyle certainly was
not infrequently chargeable with in
coherency. He was the interpreter or
the German intellect to the English |
mind, and stimulated his countrymen
sealed book of German literature. He
was addicted to gross exaggerations
and oyerestimates, to unmeasured
sentences, scathing assertions and
continuous repetitions, with glints
of unmistakeable humor dotting the
solid phala,nxes Of his sesquipe edalian
language. He largely thought in Ger
man and wrote in English, and his
| sturdy and titanic originality beguiled
breaks in the continuity of his
| thought.
A genius like Carlyle has not
a thru train of ideas, running on
an inexorable main line, without fire.
quent shunting off on side tracks to
take a good look at the scenery on the
waysile. Carlyle's defects, incoher-
ence and all, are not formidable
counterpoise to his great merits. The
Sage Of Chelsea, if the details of his
religious belief are not clearly re-
2 vealed in his writings, shows his be-
lief to be Of a purely theistic quality,
4 holding that the man in harmony with
God finds Gods will the best for him
and the wisest. and there is nothing
for man to do in this world and the
u next but to take lit So" Charged
with pantheism because of some loose
expressions, Carlyle, nevertheless,
; shrank from atheism and agnosticisn
and such seni-agnosticism as Her
bert Spencer taught in his system OF
philosophy. He, the rugged Scottish
nature, used to expressing himself In
,, formidably big words, showed a very
tender side Of his nature in the few
poems he wrote, notably in "The
; Sewers Song" eas
Herbert Spencer, when the lack OF
. conference. in the two philosopher:
: comes to be compared, was the greater
: offender, strong as is the reputation o.
: Spencer for logical consistency O.
n thought. In his philosophy, which
after many years Of hard work, h
= completed shortly before his death
: Spencer found himself unable to stan'
: strenuously for straight agnosticism
- with which he had begun his work
Like others who had abolished Co.
= from the universe he found thai
= after all, men are addicted to lookin
: for something to worship and satisf
= the religious impulse within them, s
q he postulatedg a. new deity called 9TH
- Ultimate Reality The Unconditione
- Being, The Absolute But Unknowa
- BILE" and this substitute for existing re
= ligions which Spencer characterized 9
~ "unthinkable hypothesis" cannot b
~ reached by any despairing cry of mai
al cannot be reached by any of the be
81 Eings, of whose existence he was tt
MS original cause, but must be eternal
Ls' unknowable. Here is monument
OF incoherence which makes the who
IS laboriously- constructed philosophy
m Spencer end in really unthinkab b
ge hypothesis. The Unknowable cam
IS possibly become the basis for man
n religion. A dumb, Unknowable, u
g known Force cannot be reverence
on loved, obeyed or worshiped. TT
ne semi-agnosticisnn of Spencer is no be
Gus ter than full-howered agnosticisl
81 Human reason stands aghast before
oe blank abstraction which we are told
ns our god!
In Surely here is incoherence unutte
tiy able, perpetrated by man who h
Ill traversed the vast field of the wo
derful creation; found in it eviden
alo Of intelligent design and lavish ber
ole ficence; affirms that there must be
III intelligent and benefcent origir
loil cause, and yet presents the seeke
ing arter Cod with an I1nknowable Son
vas thing, which they can never kno
VI they may cry In agony to this hs
en- Something, but the Something is et
eA- nally dumb and unknowable!
of =
orc Ex-senator Davis, the nominee for '
president, says that from now on he
t be found doing everything In his po'
to promote the success of the ticket.
course he WILL and all know that he
w. do very great deal Indianapolis S
late tinel.
Yes, he can do great deal, and he
do it SO easily too. A few strokes
the virginian's pen will execute r