New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1915-05-08
LITERARY CRITICISM
AND BOOK NEWS
DR.. Slosson's Noteworthy Contribution to
Popular Philosophical Literature-lhe
Memoirs of St. Simon.

his time he invests all nature with the
! soul element; not only man. but also,
/ in their measure, animals, plants, and
/ even what we term inanimate objects
| Rergson is scarcely less OF spiritual
/ ist; who began as materialst and
indeed a mechanist, but has become
the supreme prophet Of dualism, hailed
BY the French as the greatest phiioso-
pher since Descartes, and by Germans
as the greatest since Kant. Poincare
we NAV esteem as the foremost mathe-
nntieal astronomer Of the age. yet
here, since Emerson, he ranks as the
major prophet Of the beautiful. Who
was il who once banteringly spoke of
the enchanting beauties Of comic sec
tions7 Taken seriously, in him Pom
care would find kindred and con-
genial soul. With Keats he holds that
Beauty is truth, truth beauty-that is
all
Ye know on earth, and all ye need TO
know,
albeit the beauty is not merely that
which appeals 10 the senses, but that
OF science, even Of abstruse mathe-
MATES. appealing TO pure intellect
MetchnikofF, the prophet Of creative
genius, presents g striking contrast TO
these, yet no more than TO the illus
trious man whose scientific disciple he
was and whose administrative sue
cessor he Is. Pssteur was Gentle, de-
vout Christian believer, and conserva-
tive Metchnikoff is Hebrew, atheist
and radical. Nor, indeed, is his own
philosophy less paradoxical, with Its
strange combination Of orthobiosis and
euthanasis. the desire for life leading
10 an instinct for death. Oswald, too,
the prophet Of scientific symbolism, Is
paradoxical One of the foremost OF
chemists, approaching above most men
the marvellous synthetic and energetic
potentialities Of that most marvellous
Of all material sciences, he set his face
against the conclusions which others
reached and adopted, and proclaimed
as the ripe fruitage Of his researches
the overthrow Of scientific material
ism" Carlyle and James had before
him employed mathematical formulas
for the expression of philosophical
theories and principles, but no one
has rivalled him in the wedding Of
science with romance, and in the en-
ploymen. Of the resources o. physics
tc demonstrate the truths CT meta
physics. Haeckel, finally, stands the
supreme prophet Of materialism as
opposed 70 the spiritualism OF Maeter-
rnck and Bergson, and of monism as
opposed to the dualism Of the latter.
Yet his monism comprehends the tim
ity Of the Good, the True and the
Beautiful no less than does the very
different philosophy of Poincare. Be
yond all others Of these prophets, II
not in all the world, he is distin-
guished by his memorable Juror
against the Christian religion per So,
and by his opposing to what he deems
the bigotry Of faith that which It Is
difficult in some cases TO regard as
other than the bigotry of science.
Now, these are the major prophets OF
the times whom DR.. Slosson has been
studying, and upon whom he gives US
these singularly sympathetic, illuminat-
ing and authoritative commentaries.
He writes with the facility and the be-
quilting charm of one who produces
romance which deserves TO be best
seller" He affords an insight into the
personality and the domesticity Of each
subject, as we'll as into his mental
processes, his works, his teachings and
his influence upon the world, so that
when we have finished reading his vol
ume we feel that we have personally
associated with and sat as disciples
at the feet of all the prophets and
have all their photographers on the tips
OF our tongues. He does this with an
impartiality and a catholicity which
might we'll leave the reader who did
not know him In doubt as TO his own
philosophical beliefs wondering whether
Haeckel had been written upon by
disciple of Bergson, or Maeterlinck by
a follower of Metchnikof. We can,
indeed, recall no more striking example
Of an authors subordnating himself to
the sympathetic, discriminating and &C
curate exposition of a number of wide
| " differing and in some instances dia-
metrically opposing subjects. And all
this, by no means least of his achieve
ments, in q single little duodecimo,
which may be lightly held In the hand
or conveniently carried in the pocket;
70 be read and studied consecutively
or 10 be dipped into at random as oc-
! casion may permit Really, 1t is diff
| cult TO recall a more serviceable con-
tribution to popular philosophical liter
Ature than that which DR.. Slosson has
made In this volume.