The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1922-01-19
THE GROWTH OF KNOWLEDGE

ton of the growth is to point out that
the gigantic oak tree once lay EMBODIED
in the shell of a tiny acord. and that
the acorn itself evolved from be-
ginning too small to be seen with the
naked eye.
1t Is just so with human knowledge,
as well as nearly every other thing in
the universe. An apprehension of this
fact would place the subject of educa-
ton Upon more rational plane than
ii now occupies in the minds of many
who have been trained to think that
knowledge is the substance of beliefs
instead of being the results Of expert
ments and deductions.
There are so many things in the
realm Of fact, that all of the knowledge
that has yet been accumulated may
be small compared with that which
is yet to come. No one has discover
ed the beginning of knowledge, any
more than he has discovered the Sc
cret Of life. There is supposed to be
in humAn consciousness an element
which raises it above the level of the
sense perceptions Of the lower animal
But there can be no doubt that the
lower animals, and even the plants,
have a perception of fact which can
scarcely be differentiated from knowl-
edge. Fact and knowledge should not
be confused. knowledge is q percep-
tion of fact, and not the fact itself
The fire is burning. That is a fact
1t remains a fact whether we know
1t or not. The cat may know that the
IA nd
cat has knowledge of that fact The
cat may not be able to reason as ex-
tensively as mar about the cause and
effect of the fire, but it knows some
of the effects of the fire.
Fer the present purpose it would be
too abstruse to discuss whether tho
turning of the flower toward the sun
light, or the sending of plant roots to-
ward the water, is a phenomenon which
may be classified as the possession of
knowledge by that form of life. Some
distinctions are clearly drawn between
instinct and knowledge which hinge
upon the element of consciousness.
In the more familiar realm of the
experiences of man. the subject of
knowledge is on less disputable ground.
At first, knowledge is only gained by
experiment. But as the brain develops
1t is able to arrive at more knowledge
by the process of deductiye reasoning.
The association of two or more known
facts may produce a knowledge of 9TH
er facts which cannot be ascertained
by experiment. Primitive man could
know the tree, because he could see
it, and feel it. and hear it, and taste
it, and smell it, 1t responds to all
Of his five senses. He could know the
sun i'm more limited sense, because
he could not hear it, nor taste it, nor
smell it. He could feel some of the
effects of it, and he could see some
portions of it. Therefore primitive
man had a limited knowledge of the
sun, which could not be much extend
ed by the range of his possible expert
ments. Yet observe how vastly the
range of that knowledge has been in
creased by the methods of science,
The growth of all knowledge is a most
Illuminating example of the power of
human brain.
The difference between error and
fact. in their relation to belief. is easily
shown. Man for countless generations
believed the sun moved. Even for
centuries after he became wise enough
to know that the earth was a sphere,
and was able with his skilled mathe-
MATES to measure the size Of it long
before he had ever travelled around 1t,
the ancient astronomer still believed
the sun revolved around the earth.
Men had always believed that since
they had wit enough TO believe any
thing. one daring Greek, Aristarchus,
did venture to PROFOUND the opposite
theory, but that idea was rejected I'M
til the time of Copernicus, fourteen
centuries later. The universal belief
OF mankind in that error did not make
it so. Here is a splendid illustration
of the futility of error as against the
truth. Error, no matter how numer-
ously supported must finally yield 10
truth
Joshua may have firmly believed
that the sun stood still while he fought
battle. He could prove that the
sun stands still for two days at the
summer and winter solstices, in its
journey north and south, and so why
not stand stin in its journey from
east TO west? such an argument need
not be answered. but it would have
been convincing TO Joshua.
Astronomy furnishes the most exalt-
ed field for scientific research. New