The White Pine news. [volume] (Ely, Nev.) 1906-1910, 1909-02-07

geography is coming to be more and
more a part of the discussions of the
American Historical association
President Adams subject was
History and the Philosophy of His
tory and in an Introductory way he
spoke of the visions by poets and his
torians of the ancients of the whole
human history as ii it were the I'M
folding of a fore ordained plan,
bringing steadily on "one far OF, di-
vine event. to which the whole crea-
tion moves" From ancient times
philosophers and theologians have
never ceased to behold and to pro-
claim a destined and movable out
come for the efforts of mankind
philosophy of history. THE mystery
of life of the race. of the final out
come of mems works and dominions,
presses constantly upon us. said
professor Adams do all our ends
and efforts tend only to temporary
results, TO certain reaetion2 The men
who have made it their special bust
ness TO compile and preserve the rec
ord of the past action of the race
! have not concerned themselves with
results.
Historians who wrote before the
nineteenth century fall into two
groups. first. those whose object was
to make record of past events. to
tell the story and let posterity know
what happened: and those who were
first anxious to produce literature.
who desired to tell the truth but
VI
rather than knowledge, the hope of
. earning name and fame for them
selves among the great writers OF the
day. In neither of these classes do
We find men who have concerned
themselves with science or the phil
osophy of history. About 80 years
ago new influence began to make
itself felt upon those engaged in
studying and recording what had
happened in the past. an influence
/ towards more scientific methods of
studying: the facts of history. |
have called the movement scientific:
1t is one thing to raise the question,
is human action dominated by law
and quite different thing to ask
Can methods of investigation which
are strictly scientific be applied to
the past action of the race In such
way as to give our knowledge of
what happened greater certainty
I The result has been a science of in
vestigation and a method of training;
the future historian which have ia
ken possession of the world of his
torical scholarship. All technically
( trained historians for so years have
been trained according to those
ideas. They probably have not con-
cerned themselves with the problems
of science of the philosophy of his
tory.
But perfection of methods of in
vestigation is not the only result of
the nineteenth century which affects
our held of work. During the last
four decades there arose a new vari-
ETY. of interests, new groups of schol-
airs formed themselves, new points
of views were occupied, new sciences
born, new methods loudly proclaim
ed We are tempted to call these
new Interests offshoots of history.
Certainly their attitude towards ira
ditional history has not been that of
dutiful children towards a parent
Their emthods have been those of
political historian. If may use the
term, and We may view their rise as
an attack upon our position. For
three quarters of a century the po-
litical historian has won their APP
plause and admiration of the world,
and our right to the field is now in
question. our methods and our ideals
assailed.
Prof. Adams said there were five
lines of attack upon the position of
the true historian: First, the polit-
zeal scientist; second. the geograph-
ers who are aggressive in spirit
third. the intellectual movement
which has truly comprehensive
idea of history and which deals with
influences among the most profound
WHICH have shaped human affairs.
The fourth line of attack is that of
sociology. which being an aggressive
and vigorous school of thought. is
seeking an ultimate explanation of
human hfafnrv Tho affh and