Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1907-03-06
OUTSIDE POINT OF VIEW

What follows is largely from an ar
ticle by Mr.. Hugh McColl In the Hib-
bert Journal, London. 1t is entitled
Chance or Purpose" It's an attemp,
to prove the mortality of man, using
the brain as a witness. Apologies are
offered the editor for using SO much
space, but none to the reading pub
lie. Skip it. It's theoretical. Some OF
us that believe there is a governor OF
this universefi. and but little else OF
so-called religious doctrines and faith
are willing to follow this writer when
he says:
Once admit the existence Of an in
visible intelligent creative power, or
combination of powers. AID the GUS
tomary arguments against the possi-
bility of future life fall to the
ground These arguments turn almost
wholly on the connection between the
brain and the conscious ego of our
personality, and especially upon the
| observed connection between certain
portions OF our brain and special men
tai processes. A certain portion of the
brain is injured; thereuron a cores
ponding injury is inflicted on the mind
not on the mind as whole. but on
some special faculty, leaving the other
faculties untouched. Therefore, says
the atheist, the mind, the conscious
soul or ego, is not one and invisible
Its separate faculties are separately
connected with separate faculties Of the
ego also, till finally there is nothing
Left
But, he says, no one has the same
brain for two consecutive years. How
can one brain be responsible for the
workings of it's predecessors? Thus:
According to the materialist, the
murderer ought not to be punished
Cor crime committed more than a
year ago. The brain that planned
the homicide is long since gone, and
the present brain Is innocent OF crime.
II the brain is innocent, so is the ego
according to the materialist. To quote
further
Let us examine closely this asser-
ton that our conscious soul or ego
is inseparably connected with the brain
and that therefore with our death this
lego passes wholly out of existence.
The first question that presents itself
is this: with what, brain is our ego
SO intimately connected? the brain
that is ours now, or the brain that
was ours year ago? For, from the
material standpoint, the two are
wholly different The material brain
with which our ego did it's thinking
year ago has already passed clean
away, and has been replaced by fresh
material particles, forming a new brain,
with which it does it's thinking now.
Yet does, not the ego itself endure,
and remember much of the thinking
which it performed with the aid of
the brain that is no more? If the
whole position
can ego that uses up one brain after
another, or that passes from brain to
brain as they succeed each other, from
the birth of the first to the death of
the last, can not be said to be in
separately connected with any of the
series. Either the ego of our PERSONAL
ity and consciousness changes cOntin-
ually with the changing brain, so that
every fresh brain has a fresh ego, or
else this ego remains constant while /
the brain changes. Consider the con-
sequences of the first alternative. Let
us suppose that a murderer has been
apprehended, found guilty, and con-
demned to death for crime committed
more than a year ago. Is not this
clear injustice? The really responsibility
ego has passed away with the brain
that planned the crime; the present
ego and the present brain should not
be held responsible for crime com
mitted before they came into exis-
tence. But where is the barrister who
would venture to take this line of ar
gunent in addressing the jury?
Another proof of the existence of an
ego independent of the material brain
is the phenomenon of memory. One
brain recollects what was not it's own
experience, but that of preceding
brain. Is 1t not the real human be-.
ing, the ego, who remembers? In thi 4
writer's words:
How is it that the ego of today
knows so much-it is hardly logical to
say remembers + so much-of the
thoughts, sayings, and doings of the]
ego that is no more? Is it by some kind
of brain tradition? May we supposed
that each expiring cell transmits its ,