AS TROUT OMIC AL ILLUSTRATION S .

RELIGIOUS TRUTH,

ILLUSTRATED FROM SCIENCE,

ADDRESSES AND SERMONS

ON SPECIAL OCCASIONS.

BT
EDWARD HITCHCOCK, D.D., LL.D.,
LATE PRESIDENT OP AMHERST COLLEGE, AND NO'W PROFESSOR OP NATURAL
THEOLOGY AND GEOLOGY.

BOSTON:
PHILLIPS, SAMPSON AND COMPANY.
1857.

Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1856, by
PHILLIPS, SAMPSON AND COMPANY,
In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the District of Massachusetts.

STEREOTYPED AT THH
BOSTON STEREOTYPE FOUNDRY.

PREFACE.

The quarryman, who has made excavations in the
rocks for architectural materials, sometimes looks over
the fragments which have been thrown aside, and finds
blocks that seem to him worth preserving. Thus have
I been doing with the literary debris, which has been
quarried and wrought on special occasions, and after
wards thrown aside. With some new dressing, I have
ventured to hope that a part of them are worth pre
serving, and this volume is the result. A brief history
of the several articles is subjoined.
The first article, entitled The highest Use of Learn
ing, was" my Inaugural Address when assuming the
presidency of Amherst College, April, 1845.
The second, on The Relations and Mutual Duties
between the Philosopher and the Theologian, was de
livered as an Anniversary Address before the Porter
Rhetorical Society, at the Andover Theological Semi-

PREFACE.

nary, in 1852. It was subsequently published in the
Bibliotheca Sacra, from which it has been copied, by
permission. The third, on Special Divine Interpositions in Nature,
was given before the Theological Seminaries of Bangor
and Newton, in 1853. This, also, was published in the
Bibliotheca Sacra for 1854.
The Wonders of Science compared with the Wonders
of Romance, is a Lecture which has been delivered
before literary associations in the cities of New York,
Brooklyn, New London, Norwich, Lowell, Charlestown,
Salem, Newburyport, and Springfield ; also at Amherst
College, and in some other places. It has never before
been published.
The Religious Bearings of Man's Creation was
preached as a Sermon before the Convention of Con
gregational Ministers, in Brattle Street Church, Boston,
May, 1854. It was also delivered as an Address before
the Theological Society of Dartmouth College, in
August, 1854. It has likewise been preached in Am
herst College, in Springfield and Conway, Massachu
setts, Brooklyn and Buffalo, New York, and Milwaukie,
Wisconsin. In August, 1856, it was preached in Rev.
Dr. Sprague's Church, in Albany, on Lord's Day
morning, at the time of the meeting of the American
Association for the Advancement of Science. By the

PREFACE.

local committee of that association it has been pub
lished in connection with a Sermon by President Hop
kins, of Williams College, delivered in the afternoon
of the same day.
The Sermon entitled TJie Catalytic Power of the
Gospel was preached before the Massachusetts Home
Missionary Society, at its anniversary in Boston, in
May, 1852. It was published by the Society in pam
phlet form.
The Attractions of Heaven and Earth has been
preached as a Sermon in Amherst College, in Amherst,
West, East, and North Parishes ; in Hatfield, Whately,
Enfield, South Deerfield, Conway, and Richmond,
Massachusetts. Its chief peculiarity is the employment
of diagrams. It has never before been published.
The Sermon entitled Mineralogical Illustrations of
Character, has been preached only in Amherst College,
at an evening lecture. Its chief peculiarity is the
employment of a few mineral specimens for illustra
tion. This is the first time it appears in print.
The Inseparable Trio was an Election Sermon,
preached January 2, 1850, in Old South Church,
Boston, before His Excellency George N. Briggs, His
Honor John Reed, the Honorable Council, and the
Senate and Hous*e of Representatives of Massachusetts,
by whom it was published in the pamphlet form. It is
1*

b PREFACE.
added to this volume from a growing conviction of the
importance of the leading principle advanced in it.
A Chapter in the Book of Providence was delivered
as an Anniversary Address before the Mount Holyoke
Female Seminary, at South Hadley, in 1849, and pub
lished in a pamphlet form. I give it a place in this
volume chiefly to exhibit the outlines of the character
of one of the most energetic and benevolent females
of modern times.
Tlie Waste of Mind is also an Address at the anni
versary of the same institution, in 1842. It was pub
lished by the trustees in a pamphlet form.
Excepting the two or three last of the preceding
articles, it will be seen that scientific facts and prin
ciples are employed to prove or illustrate religious
truths. This fact embraces so large a part of the
volume, that I have felt justified in placing it upon
the title page.
I might have added many more articles of analogous
character, but fear that I have already presumed
too much upon the interest of the public in such
productions. Amherst College, November 20, 1856.

CONTENTS.

Page
THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING  9
THE RELATIONS AND MUTUAL DUTIES BETWEEN THE
PHILOSOPHER AND THE THEOLOGIAN, .... 54
SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE, . . 98
THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED WITH THE
WONDERS OF ROMANCE  132
THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S CREATION, . . 192
THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL, . . . .223
THE ATTRACTIONS OF HEAVEN AND EARTH, . . 255
MINERALOGICAL ILLUSTRATIONS OF CHARACTER, . . 285
THE INSEPARABLE TRIO,  303
A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE, . . .335
THE WASTE OF MIND  376

THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING.

The cause of education, in this country at least, is almost
universally popular. Yet were we to pass around the inquiry
among the different classes of society, why they regard it so
important, we should probably receive very different answers.
One man, himself uneducated, places its chief value in the
means it affords of defence against the impositions of the de
signing and unprincipled. Another values it chiefly because
it enables him to take advantage of the ignorance of the world
in promoting his schemes of self-aggrandizement. A third
looks upon the means which education affords for acquiring
property, as its highest use. A fourth regards the personal
reputation, respect, and influence, which learning bestows, as
its chief advantage. A fifth thinks of it mainly as an instru
ment of advancing civilization, and multiplying the comforts
and luxuries of life. A sixth estimates most highly its influ
ence in elevating the lower classes of the community above
the condition of mere animals and drudges, and in making
them understand that the body is not the only part of man to
be cared for. A seventh places the highest use of learning
in its power of disciplining and liberalizing the mind, and
delivering it from vulgar fears, superstitions, and prejudices ;
and in giving to men just views of their rights, relations, and
destinies. An eighth thinks most of the boundless fields of
(9)

10 THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING.
enjoyment which knowledge opens to the human mind, of a
far more noble and refined kind than any dependent upon
animal nature. A ninth makes its most important use to con
sist in its bearings upon religion, both natural and revealed.
Now, in my opinion, this ninth man has the right of the
matter most decidedly ; and yet I fear that his opinion is not
the most common, or the most popular. But to my convic
tion, the religious applications of learning are by far its most
important use ; and the occasion seems to be a fit one to de
fend and illustrate this opinion. It needs, I believe, both
defence and illustration. For though the belief is general
that religion may derive some benefit from particular branches
of learning, there is still an impression lingering on many
minds, that some sciences are unfriendly in their bearings
upon religion, and that others have no relations to religion.
Much less is it generally believed that the strongest reason
why we should sustain common schools, academies, and col
leges, is, that we are thus promoting the cause of true reli
gion. But if this be indeed true, then, when we give our
property, our influence, or ourselves, to the cause of learning,
we shall do it with a heartier good will and a more entire con
secration ; and we shall the more cheerfully bear up under
the trials, fatigues, disappointments, and perplexities that lie
in our path.
I would not, indeed, undervalue the secular advantages of
learning. They are so obvious and so important, that I could
not do it if I would. Those whose experience reaches back
fifty, or forty, or even thirty years, have evidence in their
own consciousness of the economical value of learning, too
strong to be overcome by any speculative argument depreci
ating its importance. When we compare the present condition
of the world, and our own condition, with what they were in

THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING. 11
our early days, we cannot but be. deeply impressed with
the rapid progress of society, and the multiplication of secu
lar advantages, and the means of comfort and happiness,
growing out of- the advancement of learning. Branches of
science and literature, which, at the beginning of this centu
ry, were tabooed to all who were not residents within the
walls of universities and colleges, and even some branches
that scarcely had an existence then, are now the theme of
familiar conversation in the workshop, on the farm, in the
stage coach, the rail car, the steamboat, and the packet. And
so simplified are the elementary principles of many of these
branches, as to be brought within the comprehension of the
child at the primary school. Instead of the stinted sources
of information then possessed in a few small newspapers and
periodicals in some of the larger cities, and a few republica
tions of small European works, the country is now flooded
with newspapers of all sizes below one that will swallow up
an octavo, and with periodicals and books to suit all tastes, all
purses, and all fancies, from the penny pamphlet up to the
seven hundred dollar volumes of Audubon.
Still more striking has been the progress of the useful arts
from the application of scientific principles. In Great Brit
ain, at this moment, steam performs a work that would re
quire the unaided labor of more than four hundred millions of
men ; and a work as great probably, in proportion to the pop
ulation, in our own country. Improvements in machinery
and in chemical processes have doubtless within this century
made a still greater deduction from the amount of labor ne
cessary ; and these improvements reach every class of the
community ; pointing out to them an easier path to compe
tence, and affording them leisure to cultivate their intellectual
and moral powers. Then, too, how striking the change in

12 THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING.
respect to intercommunkation, both on land and water! We
now hardly give a serious parting to our friend who starts
upon a trip of only some five hundred or a thousand miles,
so soon shall we see him again. And even when we have
bid him adieu, as he starts on foreign travel, we hardly begin
to reckon his absence by months, certainly not as formerly
by years, ere he greets us again ; having made the tour of
Europe, or perhaps stood within the Holy City, or coasted the
shores of the Black Sea and the Caspian, or gone down the
Red Sea to India and the Celestial Empire, and returning by
the Isthmus of Panama, he has completed the circuit of the
globe. And besides the problem has just been solved, of car
rying on a conversation and transacting business with our
friend when absent, even though hundreds, and it may be
thousands, of miles intervene between us.
Now, these are advantages derived from the progress of
learning so obvious as to be known and read of all men ; and,
therefore, we are apt to suppose them the chief advantages.
Whereas the applications of literary and scientific truths to
religion lie more out of sight, and can be appreciated fully
only by him who is well acquainted both with learning and
religion, and who looks at their relations with the eye of a
philosopher. We must dwell a little, therefore, upon these
relations in order to sustain the position that has been taken.
I need not argue before such an audience as this the supe
rior importance of religious principles to all others. This will
be admitted ; for all other truths have reference to time, these
to eternity : all others regard man's mortal, these his immor
tal interests : all others are limited by created natures ; these
centre in the uncreated God. Religious principles, therefore,
are in their very nature of infinite moment. Other truths
have gradations of value ; but these are invaluable, because

THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING. 13
necessarily immortal and infinite. Every thing, therefore, in
literature or science, that discovers, illustrates, or confirms
the eternal principles of religion, swells into an importance
proportionably great. It remains, then, only to show that the
wide fields of learning afford us such illustrations over their
entire surface, and the position will be made out, that the re
ligious applications of literature and science are the most
important of all their relations ; and that, consequently, when
we consecrate our property, our influence, or our lives, to the
cause of education, we consecrate them to one of the noblest
of all human enterprises.
Accompany me now, my friends, as we rapidly pass around
the circle of literature and science, in order that we may see
what are the relations between religion and the different
branches of human learning.
We meet, first, with the ancient classics, whose study forms
so important a part of a liberal education in modern times.
The religious principles which they contain are, indeed, fa
tally false ; and not much more consonant with modern views
is their philosophy. Nevertheless, they afford most important
aid in elucidating revelation. The very absurdity of the my
thology and philosophy of the classics brings out, by contrast,
in bolder relief the beauties and glories of Christian doctrines
and Christian philosophy ; and instead of leading the student
to embrace polytheism, they prepare his mind for the recep
tion of the gospel. Besides, many passages of Scripture
would be unintelligible, and others unimpressive, without that
knowledge of ancient opinions and manners which the clas
sics disclose. And then, too, how unfit to give a correct
interpretation of Scripture is he who is unacquainted with
the languages in which it was originally written ! It does not
prove this position false to state, what is certainly true, that
2

14 THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING.
many men have faithfully preached the gospel, and been in
strumental of the conversion of great numbers, who were
ignorant of classical literature. So there have been surgeons
and physicians unacquainted with anatomy, physiology, and
chemistry ; and they may have performed many skilful op
erations and effected many cures, and thus done much good.
But other things being equal, no one would feel as safe in the
hands of such practitioners as in those familiar with the struc
ture of the human system, and with the laws that govern it,
and with the chemical nature and action of medicines. In
difficult cases such practitioners would shrink from prescrip
tions and operations ; or if they rashly attempted them, would
be very likely to tie the omo-hyoid muscle instead of the ca
rotid artery ; or to administer nitric acid in connection with
mercury ; or by some analogous blunder, to put the patient's
life in jeopardy. And mistakes alike dangerous, sometimes
infinitely more so, because they involve the loss of the soul,
must he be liable to make, who engages in the ministerial
office ignorant of the original languages in which the Scrip
tures were written. And if one such fatal mistake should
result from his ignorance, what a terrible drawback would it
be upon a whole life of devoted usefulness !
In modern times human learning has become so prodigious
ly expanded, and so many new branches have been estab
lished, that it is difficult to discourse intelligibly concerning it
without defining the terms which we employ. In France and
Germany, the word literature embrace's the whole circle of
written knowledge ; and with many English writers it has the
same wide signification. But often the meaning is restricted
to those branches which treat of the social, moral, and intel
lectual relations of man. Polite literature, or belles-lettres,
is still more limited in its meaning ; embracing poetry, ora-

THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING. 15
tory, and perhaps history, biography, and some other miscel
laneous subjects. The term science is applied to those
branches whose principles are considered as well settled ;
and with the exception of some parts of mathematics, the
term is chiefly confined to the material world ; although mor
al science, and intellectual science, are phrases frequently
used. Adopting these definitions, we might arrange all human
knowledge under the three heads of Literature, Science, and
Art. Let us first inquire into the influence of modern litera
ture upon religion.
And here it must be acknowledged in the outset, that not a
little of the influence of modern polite literature has been
very disastrous to religion. For much of it has been pre
pared by men who were intemperate, or licentious, and se
cretly or openly hostile to Christianity ; at least to its peculiar
doctrines. And their writings have been deeply imbued with
immorality, or infidelity, or atheism. Yet the poison has been
often so interwoven with those fascinations of style, or thought,
characteristic of genius, as to be unnoticed by the youthful
mind, delighted with smartness and brilliancy. And even
when the plague spots have been pointed out, it has tended,
like the prohibition of the fruit of the tree of knowledge in
Eden, to excite an irresistible desire to open the proscribed
volumes, even though they should prove a second box of Pan
dora. Perhaps no branch of literature has been oftener and more •
successfully employed as a vehicle for the propagation of in
fidel opinions than history. Rightly understood, and faithfully
interpreted, it gives strong light and confirmation to revelation
and to morality. But sceptical ingenuity has often been able
to make its voice as ambiguous as a Delphic oracle, and as

16 THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING.
fallacious as ventriloquism. In pagan Greece and Rome,
their historians, except perhaps Tacitus, were even over cred
ulous on the subject of polytheistic religion. And so in mod
ern times, previous to the last century, the historian was
usually the supporter of revealed truth. But the talented yet
anomalous Bayle, in that manual of irreligion, his Critical
Dictionary, led the way in converting facts into an engine
against Christianity. Voltaire and others learned the lesson,
which was perfected by Gibbon and Hume. So often, how
ever, have their sophistries and cavils been exposed, that it is
only the unwary who are now entrapped. The great mass
of historical literature also, your Rollin and Ramsay, Miiller,
Schlegel, Heeren, Goldsmith, Smollet, Russell, Turner, Rob
ertson, and a multitude of others, are favorable to religion ;
although a Von Rotteck, in the costume of a baptized infidel,
rejects biblical history as fabulous. Religion, therefore, need
have no fears from her alliance with History ; and, indeed,
she may hope for many a rich harvest of illustration and con
firmation from future researches ; for there are other papyri
to be unrolled, other hieroglyphics to be deciphered, and other
Sir William Joneses and Champollions to be raised up.
Another most sacrilegious perversion of polite literature
consists in clothing immorality and irreligion in the vestal robe
of poetry. I say sacrilegious ; for poetry is the natural hand
maid of pure religion. Hence it was chosen by the Holy
Ghost as the appropriate language of prophets and other in
spired men. But it is the appropriate language of all strong
emotions, and may, therefore, be employed for giving an
attractive dress to immoral and irreligious sentiments, as well
as to those which are virtuous and holy. Accordingly, so
wide has been this misapplication of the poetic talent, that in
almost every age its highest efforts have been consecrated to

THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING. 17
polytheism, or war, or amorous intrigues, or intemperance, or
to secure favor from the great, by flattering their vanity. In'-
deed, though the Old Testament is full of poetry, and though it
has ever been employed in the religious worship of Jews and
Christians, yet it seems not to have been imagined till lately,
that this delightful art had been perverted and degraded by
being employed to sustain heathenism, and to pander to intem
perance, licentiousness, and war ; nor that it could ever be
ma'de thoroughly Christian, and thus exalted in character and
effect. The great poets of antiquity were so fully heathen,
and some of them, as Anacreon and Horace, had woven so
many garlands for the intoxicating cup, that it seems to have
been taken for granted that th« muse could never be made to
pour forth numbers as sweet and enticing on loftier and purer
themes. Even the splendid efforts of Milton and Dante did
not open the eyes of Christians to the true use of poetry. In
deed, the polytheistic and warlike numbers of Homer and
Virgil, and the bacchanalian songs of the ancient lesser poets,
were piety and purity, compared to the philosophic blasphemy
of Shelley, the atheism and profligacy of Byron and Moore,
and — must I add ? — the bacchanalian songs of Robert Burns.
Furthermore, if it be true, as Milton affirmed, that a poet's
life is itself a true poem, we shall be obliged sadly to swell
the list of modern poems devoted to vice and irreligion. For
when biography informs us that Addison, Prior, and Steele
were intemperate, that Thomson was a voluptuary, Goldsmith
dissipated, Sterne a decided sensualist, and that even Johnson
could practise abstinence but not temperance, and when we
know, that though Pope's constitution was too delicate to al
low him to indulge in luxurious excesses, yet his writings
show a bad preeminence of wantonness and indecency, we
are led to exclaim with Milton, —
2*

18 THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING.
" God of our fathers, what is man !
Nor do I name of men the common route,
That, wandering loose abroad,
Grow up and perish as the summer fly, —
Heads without name, no more remembered, —
But such as thou hast solemnly elected,
With gifts and graces eminently adorned,
For some great work — thy glory."
And then, too, consider the moral character of modern dra
matic poetry, so decidedly worse than the noble tragic poetry
of antiquity. From the days of Dryden to the present, — for
even Shakspeare, with all his splendid moral sentiments, was
undoubtedly a libertine in principle and practice, — scarcely a
dramatic poet has appeared %hose " entire unweeded vol
umes," as Hannah More calls them, can be conscientiously
recommended, save the Comus and Samson Agonistes of Mil
ton, and a few other plays of kindred character. We have
seen, too, that lyric poetry — more influential than any other
upon public morals — has been prostituted to the cause of in
temperance and revelry, from the time when Anacreon indit
ed his ' H yt] fisXaiva nlvsi,ar\d Horace his Nunc est bibendum,
down to the period when Burns exclaimed,
" We'll tak' a cup o' kindness yet,
For auld lang syne ; "
or, still later, when the echo came from Moore, —
"Friend of my life, this 'wine cup sip."
But thanks be to God, that in these latter days he has cre
ated some greater and some lesser Christian lights, and placed
them in the poetic firmament, where they already begin to
rule the day and the night. First came Milton ; a permanent

THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING. 19
sun, not immaculate indeed, but full of glory, and destined
for a long time to rule the day. Then appeared a milder lu
minary ; foremost in the train of evening, and delightful to
look upon, as reflected from the volumes of Cowper. And a
noble train of kindred lights, most of them indeed lesser stars,
have since shone in the literary heavens, bearing the names
of Watts, Heber, Montgomery, Young, and others ; to which
I might add several lights that have dotted the darkness of our
western hemisphere. We were also startled, not long since,
by the flash of a meteor shooting athwart the eastern heavens,
and having marked out the Course of Time, vanishing from
sight,— " As sets the morning star} which goes not down
Behind the darkened west, nor hides obscured
Among the tempest of the sky, but melts away
Into the light of heaven."
Nor ought I to omit to point to that noble luminary, which,
for so long a period, has been burning with a mild and steady
light above the lakes and mountains of Northern England,
and which gives us some foretaste of what the literary hem
isphere will be when poetic inspiration shall consent to receive
a higher inspiration from the fountain of Scripture — far purer
than Castalia. To bring about that golden age of poetry,
should be the grand object of its cultivators ; especially of
those who can claim the nascitur, non jit. Then, and not1 till
then, will it be seen how noble an auxiliary to virtue and re
ligion is the poetic element in man.
There is another department of polite literature that has
been, still 'more than poetry, monopolized by vice and irreli
gion, and which, I fear, will be still harder to reclaim. To
minds averse to close thinking, to those whose tastes and hab
its are all artificial, and who have never acquired a relish foi

20 THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING.
the beauties and wonders of nature, as well as to those who
are the slaves of appetite, and passion, the novel and the ro
mance have ever possessed irresistible attractions. And since
these three classes form, to a greater or less extent, the prin
cipal part of society, this is the literature that is most widely
and abundantly diffused. And while the demand has created
a supply, so, according to a principle of political economy, a
surplus supply has increased the demand. The pen and the
press have been prolific beyond all precedent ; and the quality
of the article has varied according to the demands of fashion.
At one time the gross and disgusting descriptions of Fielding
and Smollet met the popular taste. Anon, what Hannah
More calls the " non-morality " of the Great Unknown, was
in excellent gout. And since that prolific fountain has been
dried up, others, who, alas for the cause of virtue and reli
gion are too well known, have not failed to disgorge tales of
all sorts, suited to every variety of appetite, from the most
delicate and refined to the most gross and grovelling. For,
like the frogs of Egypt, these productions have not been con
fined to the boudoirs oi the literati, nor to the centre tables
and withdrawing rooms of wealth and fashion, but have
found their way to the kneading troughs of the kitchen ; com
ing there, it may be, in one of those, enormous products of
the modern press that might be mistaken for a winding sheet,
and which, I fear, has proved the winding sheet of many a
noble intellect.
I am aware that not a few authors, disgusted with these
perversions of fictitious literature, have made many praise
worthy efforts to turn its current into the channels of virtue
and religion. Nor have they failed to obtain many interested
readers. But I fear that in most cases it is the well-arranged
story, and not its moral, which has awakened interest ; —

THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING. 21
" First raising a combustion of desire,
With some cold moral they would quench the fire."
But Leviathan is not so tamed. Yet the fact that the love
of novelty is so strong naturally in the heart, shows us that in
some way or other it was meant to be gratified. And when
we learn that the wonders of nature far transcend the won
ders of romance, is it not evident, that if men can be brought
to love nature, and those branches of knowledge which unlock
her Elysian fields, this desire can be fully satisfied with real
ities, without the aid of fiction ? I have little hope that any
successful headway can be made against that morbid love of
fiction which has become the almost universal passion, until
you can implant in man's heart a love of unsophisticated na
ture. This once done, and the fascinations of romance would
become powerless under the overmastering influence of the
new affection. To restore nature, therefore, to the throne of
the heart, and expel the meretricious usurper, is the noble
work that lies before the scholar of the nineteenth century.
And when it shall be accomplished, as I doubt not it will be,
and the deluge of fictitious literature that now almost buries
the civilized world, shall have passed into the limbo of for-
getfulness, it will be found that a mighty barrier to the prog
ress of true knowledge and true religion has been taken out
of the way, and that the heart which is alive to nature's beau
ties is well prepared to love the God of nature, as well as the
God of revelation.
It is not necessary to spend time in showing that rhetoric
and oratory, two other important branches of polite literature,
are capable of the same perversion to unworthy purposes as
the subjects already noticed. In every human heart there are
chords, which, when struck by the silver bow of the rhetori
cian, or the magic wand of the orator, cannot but vibrate and

22 THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING.
give back a response. But when stormy passion, or reckless
irreligion, sweeps over those chords, they return only discord
ant sounds, that grate harshly upon the ear of virtue and pi
ety. But when they are touched by the delicate and skilful
hands of true benevolence, the tones which they return resemble
the music of heaven, and they excite the spirit of heaven all
around. To promote that spirit is doubtless the grand object
to which the Creator intended the flowers of rhetoric and the
strains of eloquence should be devoted. How immensely im
portant, then, that Christian scholars should rescue these
branches from the hands of the unprincipled and the wicked,
and convert them to their legitimate use, as auxiliaries ©f vir
tue and religion !
Some worthy men, I know, look with a jealous eye upon
the use of rhetorical and oratorical skill in aid of religion.
They feel as if no attempt should be made to set off and rec
ommend the naked truth. But, as remarked by Dr. Camp
bell, how much better for the minister of the gospel to write
so as to make the critic turn Christian, than to write so as to
make the Christian turn critic !
It is not in human nature to avoid receiving a powerful im
pression from a skilful choice and collocation of words ; and
why should not religion avail itself of this means of giving
truth a keener edge ? It may, indeed, be carried to excess,
as Dante seems to have done in his descriptions of the phys
ical torments of perdition. But Milton, while he has given
an awful distinctness and force to those same torments, has
not exaggerated them ; and why may not religion use this
power, as any other proper means, to impress divine truth ?
In this respect, thus far, the children of this world have been
wiser than the children of light.
In passing from literature to science, on the great circle of

THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING. 23
human knowledge, we meet with intellectual and moral phi
losophy. But so obvious is the connection between the latter
and the principles of religion, that we need not delay upon its
elucidation. For every theory of morals, that is not radically
defective, makes the origin of moral obligation identical with
that of religious obligation. So that, in fact, moral philosophy
is only one branch of natural theology. I regard politics,
also, or the principles by which nations should be governed
and regulated, as only a branch of ethics ; or, rather, as a
special application of the principles of morality and religion ;
though I greatly fear that expediency and self-interest have
thus far been the basis of political action more frequently
than moral or religious principle. By some writers, intellect
ual philosophy, or psychology, or metaphysics, as they would
rather choose to denominate the science, has been supposed,
upon the whole, quite disastrous to religion. For when they
consult ecclesiastical history, they find that the most fatal er
rors in religion have usually been based upon some false sys
tem of metaphysics, and that behind its hypothetical and
unintelligible dogmas, the ablest sceptics have intrenched
themselves. They regard " the modern philosophy of the
human mind, for the most part, as a mere system of abstrac
tions," " having almost nothing to offer of practical instruc
tion ; " and although " the philosophy of the agency of sen
tient and voluntary beings is a matter of rational curiosity,
it is nothing more."
I quote here, for the most part, the language of an able re
cent author. But admitting the truth of these statements,
they show one thing at least ; that unless theologians are fa- >-
miliar with the systems of mental philosophy, so ably defend
ed by eminent men, how can they hope to expose and refute
such men when they employ metaphysical subtleties to per-

24 THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING.
vert religious truth ? If the theologist does not display equal
acuteness with the ontologist, the latter will triumph in his as
saults upon religion. And if it be a false metaphysical philos
ophy that has led a man to adopt a false religious creed, how
important that the advocate of religion should be able to meet
the errorist on his own ground, and not only to show him that
he started wrong, but to put him upon the right track ! " If it
be a murky or misty region," says a late writer, " carry the
blazing torch of demonstrated truth into every cloudy cave
and den, encompass every fastness where error lurks, and
pour in the fire of a burning logic. The surest way to get
protection from the open, and especially the secret ravages
of a mischievous beast, is to hunt him down in his own
lair." *
But it is said, that all experience shows that there is no
safety save in keeping religion entirely aloof from metaphys
ics. What centuries of disaster followed the attempt of the
ancient fathers to incorporate the metaphysics of Platonism
with Christianity ! And how much longer in the dark ages
did the pall of ignorance and a perverted Christianity vest
upon the world, because it was held down by the Peripatetic
Philosophy, resting on it like an incubus ! In our own day,
too, we have seen a glacial period commence in a portion of
the church, from the freezing influence of German meta
physics, which threatens to be as long and as rigid as the
analogous geological period.
Now, were the question whether it were better for men to
receive with childlike confidence the declarations of the Bi
ble, without reference to ontological systems, all, probably,
would reply in the affirmative. But the difficulty is, that in-
* Professor Fiske's Address at East Windsor, p. 8.

THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING. 25
genious and speculative men will construct their philosophical
strait jackets, into which they will force the doctrines of
revelation. And when the friends of piety see that Religion
is panting and almost strangled by this cramping Procrustean
process, how shall they liberate her ? They must have help
to do it ; and denunciation and mere zeal will not bring help.
They must show by a careful examination and measurement
of the entire warp, and woof, and cut of this philosophical
dress, that however agreeable it may be to the latest fashion,
it cramps the heart and the vitals, stops the circulation of the
blood, and is shrivelling up the extremities ; and then will all
the friends of religion join in stripping off the murderous
vestment. Do you suppose that the errors of Platonism, and
the peripatetic philosophy would ever have been weeded out
from Christian doctrines, except by men who had so thorough
ly examined them as to be in no danger of plucking up the
truth also ? Who but metaphysicians could have exorcised
that famous Plastic Nature, conjured from the " vasty deep,"
by so powerful a necromancer as Cudworth ? Who but men >
versed in the subtleties of dreamy abstractions could have
coped successfully with the Scottish prince of sceptics, when
he had gathered a dense fog around him, and under cover of
it had assailed the first principles of all religion ? Had Kant
been unskilled in the abstruse speculations of mental philoso
phy, he could not so effectually have demolished the panthe
ism of Spinoza ; and still more essential is such knowledge
to show the fallacy of those more recent forms of the same
doctrine, the natural pantheism of Schelling, and the idealism
of Fichte.
Another effort of the German mind is to show that the ar- .
gument from design, to prove the divine existence, as ad
vanced by Derham, Ray, Paley, and the Bridgewater Trea-
3

26 THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING.
tises, is false, and that the idea of God is derived from a sort
of intuition of the pure reason ; nor could the external world
possibly excite the idea of God. These opinions have gained
not a little credence in this country, falling in, as they do,
with what is called a spiritual philosophy, or transcendental
ism. Now that there is a moral order in the world, and in
the mind itself, and that the understanding, perceiving this,
naturally infers that a Being of infinite moral perfections must
be the author of both, — because we instinctively refer every
effect to a cause, — cannot be doubted. But on this view,
this moral argument, as it is called, becomes only a single ex
ample of the argument from design ; and by no means inval
idates or supersedes other forms of the argument derived from
the external world. Dr. Paley's argument was indeed defec
tive, because he did not refer to mental philosophy to prove
the spirituality of the Deity. But that defect is abundantly
supplied by Chalmers, Crombie, and Brougham, so that now
the argument which Paley labored to establish is impregna
ble ; but it will require the vigorous efforts of men versed in
abstruse metaphysics to bring it out of the fog and dust with
which it has been enveloped.
I have alluded to transcendentalism, dignified as it has been
by the name of " spiritual philosophy," in distinction from the
Baconian or inductive, which is called " sensuous." This is
also a product of German metaphysics ; and when one sees
what an absolutely unintelligible jargon is used in its enunci
ation, by its ablest originators, such as Fichte, Schelling, and
Hegel, he finds it difficult to conceive how it has exerted such
an influence upon religion. But the fact is, there is always
to some minds, especially in youth, a wonderful charm in a
philosophy that is esoteric. They love to believe themselves
capable of discovering a hidden meaning in facts and princi-

THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING. 27
pies, which the uninitiated cannot discover. Hence, let some
man of real talents and learning, as Swedenborg, for instance,
solemnly and pertinaciously declare that he does " see what
is not to be seen," and he will not want followers, who soon
come to have a clear vision for double senses and spiritual
meanings. Indeed, a man of talents has only to be obscure
in his style and meaning, in order to be regarded by a large
proportion of the world, and among them not a few recently
fledged literati, as very profound. On the contrary, that beau
tiful simplicity and clearness of style and thought, which are
the result of long and patient investigation, and which charac
terize the highest order of talent, are regarded by the same
class as evidence of a superficial mind and destitution of gen
ius. Accordingly, the temptation is very strong with writers
and public speakers, who would be popular, to wrap them
selves in the mantle of mystery and obscurity ; so that the
remark of Dr. Griffin is too true, that the last attainment of
the orator is simplicity ; and we may say the same, also, in
respect to the philosopher. But if men of talents will mount
in the air balloon of metaphysical speculation, into transcen
dental regions of clouds and nebula?, and through their speak
ing trumpets announce the discovery of new worlds, unknown
to the Bible or to science, Christian men must ascend after
them in a similar vehicle, bearing with them the torch of
truth, to ascertain whether a fog bank has not been mistaken
for a planet.
I have thus far spoken of the value of mental science as a
necessary means of detecting religious errors originating in
the same science. But it has also many direct and important
bearings upon religious truth. Did the time permit me to
point them out, however, it would be little more than a repe
tition of what has been recently said better and more fully

28 THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING.
than I can do, by one of my colleagues.* I pass, therefore,
to another important sign in the great zodiac of human knowl
edge. On that circle mathematics follows naturally after
metaphysics, because it furnishes us with the noblest exam
ples of abstract truth in the universe.
But I fancy that I hear one and another whispering, " What
possible connection can there be between mathematics and
religion ? " The pure abstractions of this science do not,
indeed, lead the mind directly to a Deity, since they may be
conceived to be necessary and eternal truths. They are not
the result of an induction from facts, but of a comparison of
ideas. And it is the facts of the natural world that most strik
ingly discover to us the wonders of adaptation and design,
and lead the mind irresistibly to infer a Supreme Being. But
what is the basis on which most of this adaptation and design
rests ? Chiefly, I answer, the laws of mathematics. Look up
to the heavens, and you will find those laws controlling all
the movements of suns and planets with infallible precision.
Every movement on earth, also, which is either mechanical
or chemical, is equally dependent upon mathematical laws.
Vital operations, too, so far as they result from chemical and
mechanical forces, must be referred to the same principles.
I do not assert that life and intellect are governed by mathe
matical laws ; but their operations have all the precision of
mathematics, and, I doubt not, could be predicted by angelic
minds, certainly by the Deity, with as much certainty as the
astronomer foretells an eclipse or transit ; and really I do not
see but the same principles would guide the calculation in the
one case as in the other. In short, so entirely dependent are
the movements of the universe upon mathematical laws, that
* Professor Fiske's Address at East Windsor.

THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING. 29
to alter or annul these laws would be to restore the reign of
Chaos and old Night. Let but a single axiom or corollary of
mathematics be changed, and I doubt not that wild disorder
and ruin would soon take the place of the adaptation and
beautiful design that now meet us at every step. Mathematics
then forms the very framework of nature's harmonies, and is
essential to the argument for a God. Instead of having no
connection with religion, it lies at the foundation of all theism.
It seems to me, also, that mathematics aids us in the con
ception of some religious truths, difficult from their nature to
be conceived of by finite minds. All the attributes of the
Deity, being infinite, are of this description. But the contem
plation of an endless series in mathematics gives us the near
est approach to an idea of the infinite which we can attain.
Follow the series, indeed, as far as our powers will carry us,
and we are still no nearer the end than when we started.
But we have got hold of the thread that would conduct us, if
our Dsedalian wings did not fail us, across that interminable
abyss which separates the finite from the infinite ; and when
we transfer our mathematical conceptions to the Deity, we can
hardly fail to meditate upon his glories with deeper amaze
ment. To many minds all explanations of the biblical doctrine of
the Trinity appear so absurd and contradictory as not to ad
mit of belief. Let it, however, be stated to such a man, for
the first time, that two lines may approach each other forever
without meeting, and it will appear to him as absurd as the
doctrine of the Trinity. But after you have demonstrated to
him the properties of the hyperbola and its asymptote, the ap
parent absurdity vanishes. And so after the theologian has
stated, that by divine unity he means only a numerical unity,
 in other words, that there is but one Supreme Being, and
3* '

30 THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING.
that the three persons of the Godhead are one in this sense,
and three only in those respects not inconsistent with this
unity, every philosophical mind, whether it admit or not that
the Scriptures teach the doctrine of the Trinity, must see that
there is no absurdity or contradiction in this view of it.
Hence it may happen, and indeed it has happened, that the
solution of a man's difficulties on this subject may originate
in a proposition of conic sections.
Other peculiar truths of revelation receive striking support
from the application of mathematical principles. Among
these is the doctrine of special or miraculous providence.
Professor Babbage, in that singular yet ingenious work,
called the Ninth Bridgewater Treatise, has shown mathemat
ically, that miracles may have formed a part of the original
and foreordained plan of the universe, and that their occur
rence may be as really the result of natural laws as ordina
ry events — a doctrine which, indeed, had been previously
advanced by Butler. And in this way is the famous objection
of David Hume to miracles proved by mathematics to be
groundless. Other religious applications of mathematics might be point
ed out. But we must hasten forward to that wide space on the
circle of human knowledge, occupied by the inductive sci
ences. These comprehend, in fact, all those branches that
relate to the material universe ; and when we have glanced at
them, we shall have completed the circuit of literature and
science. And here, at the outset, we remark, that from these sciences
have been gathered that great mass of facts which constitute
the essence of natural theology, by such men as Newintyt,
Ray, Derham, Wollaston, Paley, Brown, and the authors of
the Bridgewater Treatises. The a posteriori argument for

THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING. 31
the divine existence rests upon them, and, indeed, almost all
the truths pertaining to the character of the Deity and his
government that nature discloses. They are arguments which
all men can readily understand and appreciate ; for although
a few metaphysical minds have endeavored to throw doubt
over the validity of the argument from design, as I have al
ready stated, yet this is in fact the only evidence that does
interest and satisfy the great mass of men. When they see
such wonderful effects as physical science discloses, they are
led irresistibly, by a universal law of the human mind, to re
fer them to some adequate cause ; and no cause can be ade
quate save an infinite Deity. Natural theology has selected
only the most striking of these effects. But in truth every
fact of inductive science furnishes an argument for theism.
So that to a man in a morally healthy state, every scientific
truth becomes a religious truth, and nature is converted into
one great temple, where sacred fire is always burning upon
the altars, where hovers the glorious Shekinah, and where,
from a full orchestra, the anthem of praise is ever ascending.
In accordance with this view, we find that the most gifted
minds, and indeed a large majority of all minds that have de
voted themselves to inductive science, have been the friends
of religion. And here we reckon the princes of the intel
lectual world, such as Newton, Kepler, Galileo, Pascal, Boyle,
Copernicus, Linnaeus, Black, Boerhaave, and Dalton ; and
among the living such men as Herschel, Brewster, Whewell,
Sedgwick, Owen, and a multitude of others. The very same
argumentation that leads such original discoverers to derive
the principles of science from facts in nature, carries them
irresistibly backward to a First Cause ; and, indeed, the induc
tive principle, as developed by Bacon, forms the true basis on
which to build the whole fabric of natural religion ; and he

32 THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING.
who fully admits the truth of natural religion, is in a state of
preparation for receiving revealed truth to supply its defi
ciencies. So that, upon the whole, the inductive sciences are
of all others most favorable to religion, and the most intimate
ly connected with it.
I shall doubtless be met here by the objection, that not a
few distinguished men, found in the ranks of inductive science,
have been thorough sceptics. And here the names of some
of the most able mathematicians of modern times, such as La
Place and D'Alembert, will be adduced. We shall be re
ferred to the Nebular Hypothesis of the former, and to the
Encyclopaedia of the latter ; both of them intended to lay the
axe at the root of all religion, and to cover nature with the
pall of atheism. But such anomalies as these are explicable
in consistency with the general position that inductive science
is eminently favorable to religion. For in the first place,
these men were atheists in spite of science, rather than
through its influence. The spirit of the times, and of the
country in which they lived, was dissolute and atheistic ; and
the moral feelings of D'Alembert, at least, were so corrupt
that nothing but atheism could keep conscience quiet. In
the second place, they were distinguished in abstruse mathe
matics, rather than in inductive science ; and it cannot be de
nied, that when men devote themselves almost exclusively to
abstractions of this nature, they are apt to look with suspicion
upon the less certain, but far higher and more important
evidence of moral reasoning ; or rather, they attempt to ap
ply the subtleties of the higher mathematics to religion, and
of course fail of arriving at correct results, because the sub
jects are totally diverse, and must be understood by entirely
different modes of analysis. Bonaparte, who was quick to
discover character, made La Place one of his ministers, but

THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING. 33
soon saw that he did not discharge his duties with much abil
ity, because, as the emperor said, " he sought subtleties in
every subject, and carried into his official employments the
spirit of the method of infinitely small quantities," employed
by mathematicians. But the grand difficulty with such men
is, that by confining their attention so exclusively to one de
partment of knowledge, and to the cultivation of one set of
faculties, by a well-known law of physiology they dwarf all
the other powers, and really become less capable of judging
of other subjects than ordinary men, who cultivate all their
faculties in due proportion. This is strikingly exhibited in
the Nebular Hypothesis of La Place. He really thought that
it rendered a Deity unnecessary in the formation of the uni
verse. But the merest tyro in moral reasoning sees, that,
even admitting the hypothesis, a designing, infinitely wise,
and powerful Deity is just as necessary as without it. It only
throws farther back the period when this designing and crea
tive interposition was exerted ; and even the Christian philos
opher feels no difficulty in adopting this hypothesis, through
fear of its irreligious tendency. The fact is, that La Place,
though a giant in mathematics, was only a liliput on other
subjects. It ought not to be forgotten, also, that neither of
the eminent infidel mathematicians whom I have named were
original discoverers, like Newton, Copernicus, and Boyle. In
making their discoveries, these latter men were led to take
broad views of science, and to examine the original as well
as final causes of events ; whereas such men as La Place
and D'Alembert only carried out and illustrated the principles
discovered by others. In tracing out these illustrations, they
did, indeed, discover amazing acuteness ; but their views were
so much confined, that they were but poor judges of the rela
tions of science to religion. They were excellent mathema-

34 THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING.
ticians, but poor philosophers. For in the noble language of
Sir John Herschel, one of the brightest living ornaments of in
ductive science in Europe, " the character of the true philoso
pher is, to hope all things not impossible, and to believe all
things not unreasonable." But the character of these men
would be better described by saying, that they doubted and
denied every thing that could not be proved by mathematics.
They are examples of malformation and distortion in the
philosophical world, instead of fair proportion and full devel
opment. There is another circumstance which has deepened the im
pression that the inductive sciences are, to some extent, un
favorable to religion. Scarcely any important discovery has
been made in these branches, that has not been regarded for
a time, either by the timid and jealous friends of religion, or
by its superficial enemies, to be opposed at least to revelation,
if not to theism. When Copernicus demonstrated the diurnal
and annual revolutions of the earth, the infidel saw clearly
that the facts were in opposition to the Bible ; and the theolo
gian was of the same opinion, and arrayed Scripture authority,
as well as compact syllogisms, against the new astronomy.
But the Christian soon learned that he had misunderstood the
language of the Bible, because he had read it through the
medium of a false astronomy. So too, when the Brahminical
astronomy was first brought to light, and the epoch of the
Tirvalore tables was thought to be nearly as early as the
Mosaic date of man's creation, scepticism began to exult.
But the tone changed when it was ascertained that this epoch
was supposititious. More recently, French infidelity saw in
the Zodiac of Denderah a refutation of the biblical chronol
ogy. But when it was ascertained that the position of the
signs on that Zodiac, in respect to the colures, had reference

THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING. 35
to the commencement of the Egyptian civil year, and not to
the precession of the equinoxes, this fancied discrepancy also
vanished : and now, when both biblical interpretation and as
tronomy are better understood, every one confesses, not only
that the science is in harmony with revelation, but that it af
fords some of the most splendid illustrations of religion to be
found in the whole circle of learning.
When, at the beginning of the present century, the great dis
covery was announced, that the principal part of the solid
materials of the earth had been oxidized, or in popular lan
guage had been burned, both the baptized and the unbaptized
infidel at once declared, that the final destruction of the earth,
as described by Peter, was impossible, since it is no longer
combustible ; and since the apostle had thus erred, because
not acquainted with modern chemistry, the idea of his inspira
tion must be given up. It was ere long found, however, that
the apostle's language had been misunderstood, through the
influence of the false opinion, still widely entertained, that to
burn a substance is to destroy or annihilate it. But when
chemistry showed that combustion only changes the form of
substances, and cannot annihilate a particle, the apostle's
meaning was found perfectly to correspond to such an idea :
and it is now obvious, that he meant to teach simply, that
whatever upon or within the earth is combustible, will be
burned, and the whole mass of the globe be melted. . So that
now the tables are completely turned ; and we find, not only
no contradiction between his language and chemistry, but a
striking proof of its inspired origin, in the fact, that though
written when chemistry was not known, it should be found in
perfect harmony with the researches of that science. And
the same remark may be applied to the whole Scriptures in
their relation to all science. The most eagle-eyed sagacity

36 THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING.
of the nineteenth century has been unable to detect a single
discrepancy between the two records. The same cannot be
said of any false religion. The Shasters of Hindostan contain
a false astronomy, as well as a false anatomy and physiology,
and the Koran distinctly avows the Ptolemaic system of the
heavenly bodies ; and so interwoven are these scientific errors
with the religion of these sacred books, that when you have
proved the former you have disproved the latter. But the
Bible, stating only facts, and adopting no system of human
philosophy, has ever stood, and ever shall stand, in sublime
simplicity and undecaying strength ; while the winds and the
waves of conflicting human opinions roar and dash harmlessly
around, and the wrecks of a thousand false systems of philoso
phy and religion are strewed along its base.
But the religious applications of chemistry do not consist
simply in illustrating a passage of Scripture. It abounds with
the most beautiful exhibitions of the divine wisdom and be
nevolence ; and notwithstanding the ingenious developments
by Prout, in his Bridgewater Treatise, and by Fownes in his
Prize Essay, I must believe that this field is only just entered,
and that most precious gems will be found in almost every
part of its wide extent. What admirable skill and benevolence
does the doctrine of definite proportions and atomic constitu
tion in chemical compounds present! Here we see nature
incessantly performing processes, on which organic life and
comfort depend, with a practical mathematics as perfect as
the theory. And then, how wonderful is the isomeric consti
tution, recently discovered, of those proximate principles that
form the food of animals and plants ! How beautiful, too, the
mode — only recently ascertained — by which this nourish
ment is brought within their reach, and introduced into their
systems ! See, too, what wonderful benevolence, as well as

THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING. 37
wisdom, is displayed in the laws and operations of heat, by
which its very excess in tropical regions produces, by evapo
ration, the paradoxical result of cooling and rendering habi
table that burning zone ; and on the other hand, the congela
tion and condensation, produced by its absence in frigid regions,
renders the atmosphere warmer and the climate habitable.
Think, also, how, in the case of water, by an apparent excep
tion to a law of nature, just as it enters into a state of con
gelation, the great bodies of that liquid in our rivers and lakes
are prevented from freezing up in the winter, so that the
longest summer would not thaw them out. And finally, what
substance in nature is so wonderfully adapted to its manifold
and seemingly opposite uses as water !
" Simple though, it seem,
Emblem of imbecility itself,
As most regard it, yet in fact, the food
Of all organic life ; the fruitful source
Of power in human arts ; and in the clouds,
The storm, the mountain stream, the placid lake,
The ocean's roaring and the glacier's sheen,
The landscape's frostwork, or its icy gems,
Hence springs the beautiful and the sublime.
A power, indeed, pervading nature through ;
Now moving noiseless through organic tubes,
To keep stagnation from the vital frame ;
And now the Atlantic dashing to the skies,
Or rushing down Niagara's rocky steep,
Earth trembling, staggering, underneath the shock :
Effects so diverse, opposite, to gain
By one mild element, a problem this,
No wisdom, short of infinite, could solve."
No sciences have furnished so many and so appropriate
facts, illustrative of natural theology, as anatomy and physi
ology. They have been the great magazine whence writers
on that subject have drawn their most effective weapons in
4

38 THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING.
their war with atheism : but being so fully described in so
many treatises, I need not enter into particulars. Compara
tive anatomy and physiology, however, of more recent date,
have not yet been so extensively employed for religious illus
tration as they will be ; although Bell's Bridgewater Treatise
upon the hand affords us a foretaste of what may be done.
The developments of these sciences are truly marvellous.
Who would have believed, for instance, fifty years ago, that
such is the mathematical correlation, not only of different
parts of an animal, but of parts of different animals, that from
a single fragment of the bone of an unknown creature, the
skilful anatomist can construct his whole skeleton, and then
clothe it with muscles, blood vessels, and nerves, and point out
its food, its habits, and its haunts ? Yet this has been done in
many instances ; and the subsequent discovery of the whole
skeleton has confirmed the accuracy of the principle employed,
and the results obtained. What a striking proof of the exist
ence and agency of a Being infinitely wise and powerful,
to contrive and create the universe ! For, in fact, we find
that the correlation of animal structures, so beautifully devel
oped by Cuvier, Owen, and others, is but a specific example
of the great law of harmony, that links together, by a golden
chain, the great and the small, the past, the present, and the
future, throughout the universe.
The science of physiology, however, has often been looked
upon with jealousy by the friends of religion, as leading its
votaries to materialism. It would not be strange, indeed, if
men, who see such astonishing effects result from exquisite
material organization, and who give but little attention to the
functions and laws of intellect, should come to think it possi
ble that even thought may be only a result of that organiza
tion. But the difficulty lies, not in the science, but in these

THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING. 39
partial views — in that common failing of literary men, to at
tempt to group every thing under a favorite science, and ex
plain every thing by it. And further, when I find even pro
fessedly Christian men defending materialism, and some of
its ablest advocates admitting that the soul may be something
" immortal, subtle, immaterial, diffused through the brain,"*
(I use their very words,) I cannot believe that the views of
such men, as to the nature of the soul, differ much in reality
from those of the strict immaterialist, although they use
different terms. Nor will the practical influence of their
opinions, false as they undoubtedly are, when understood in
their strict sense, be likely to be very disastrous ; although
there is a grosser form of materialism, that is made the basis
of a hateful system of atheism.
There are two recent offsets from physiology, which have
been supposed fraught with influences unfavorable to religion.
I refer to phrenology and mesmerism. The first has been
thought to favor materialism, and to lessen human responsi
bility ; and the latter, to bring miracles into disrepute, and to
direct us, for the cure of the body and the soul, to a class of
dreaming pretenders, whose responses are about as much to be
relied on as those of the oracle of Delphos, the god of Ekron,
or the witch of Endor, and whom it is about as impious
to consult. The merits of these new branches of science,
this is not the proper occasion to discuss ; nor is it easy as
yet to ascertain definitely what principles in them are settled.
But admitting their pretensions, the first seems to -leave the
question of materialism just where it found it ; since it is as
easy to see how an immaterial soul should act through a
hundred organs as through one. Nor does it seem to me
more difficult, on natural principles, to see how the mind may
* Elliotson's Physiology, p. 39.

40 THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING.
act at a distance, through the undulations of a mesmeric me
dium, than to see how light and heat are transmitted by the
waves of a luminiferous ether. On the other hand, if physi
ology and phrenology tend to materialism, certainly mesmer
ism tends even more decidedly to immaterialism ; as the con
version of several distinguished materialists will testify. It
does, also, open to the Christian (admitting its statements to
be true) most interesting glimpses of the mode in which the
mind may act when freed from flesh and blood, and clothed
with a spiritual body. Indeed, I doubt not that, in regard both
to phrenology and mesmerism, the general principle will prove
true, that the more ominous of evil any branch of knowledge
seems to be in its incipient state, the more prolific it will ulti
mately become in illustrations favorable both to morality and
religion. The wide dominions of natural history, embracing zoology,
botany, and mineralogy, the theologist has ever found crowded
with demonstrations of the divine existence, and of God's prov
idential care and government ; and every new province that
has been explored by the naturalist only serves to enlarge
our conceptions of the Creator's works, and to impress us
more deeply with their unity and perfection. These new
conquests in unknown regions have been astonishingly numer
ous within the last half century ; but in the direction pointed
out by the microscope they have been most marvellous. The
existence of animals too minute to be seen by the naked eye
has, indeed, long been known ; but it was not till the re
searches of Ehrenberg that any just conceptions of their in
finite number and indefinite minuteness were entertained.
We now know that nine millions of some of these animalcula
may live in a space not larger than a mustard seed, and that
their numbers are many million times greater than that of all

THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING. 41
other animals on the globe. Indeed, the microscope has laid
open a field into the infinitesimal forms of organic and inor
ganic nature quite as boundless, both in number and extent,
as the telescope discloses in infinite space. Nor can we find
any limits in the one direction more than the other ; and thus
does the microscope, in the same manner as the telescope,
prodigiously enlarge our conceptions of the perfections of the
infinite Author of the universe.
These researches have cast not a little light upon a certain
hypothesis, that has been, in one form or another, often thrown
before the world since the days of Democritus and Epicurus,
usually for the purpose of sustaining a system of atheism. It
supposes an inherent power in nature, capable of producing
plants and animals without parentage, by an imagined vital
force, essential to some forms of matter. The ancient phi
losophers imputed these effects to a " fortuitous concourse of
atoms." In modern times this general statement has been
made more definite by Lamarck, Geoffroy St. Hilaire, Bory
St. Vincent, and others, who suppose that Nature — in their
vocabulary sometimes dignified by the title of Deity, but still
unintelligent, and merely instrumental — gives origin only to
" monads," or " rough draughts " of organic beings ; and that
these, by " an inherent tendency to improvement," and " the
force of external circumstances," become animals of higher
and higher organization ; until at last the orang-outang aban
doned his quadrupedal condition, and stood erect as man, with
all his lofty powers of intellect. Before the invention of the
microscope, a multitude of insects and worms were thought
to have this equivocal origin, and to pass through these trans
mutations — an example of which every Latin scholar will
recollect in the directions of Virgil for the production of a
swarm of bees out of the carcass of an animal. But as op-
4*

42 THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING.
tical instruments have been improved, and observations have
become more acute, the origin of nearly every animal visible
to the naked eye has been found to be by ordinary genera-
tion. The advocates of the spontaneous production of organic
beings, however, still clung to the animalcula and the entozoa.
But it is now clearly demonstrated that all the former class
have been derived from parents; and that more abundant
means are provided for their reproduction than for any of the
higher tribes of animals. The same is true of the entozoa
— a single individual of which is capable of producing more
than sixty millions of progeny ; and it would be very strange
for nature to take such extraordinary pains for their propaga
tion if it might have been accomplished spontaneously. Not
a single certain example, indeed, of the spontaneous produc
tion of living beings can be adduced ; and if there are a few
cases where parentage has not been yet discovered, the past
history of the subject makes it almost certain that it needs
only more perfect instruments, or more extended observa
tions, to prove that the same great law of reproduction em
braces all animated nature. And as to the transmutation of
species, geology has shown that it has never taken place ; while
physiology demonstrates that species are permanent, and can
never be transmuted. The individual does, indeed, pass through
different stages of development, some of which resemble the
perfect forms of species inferior to it in the organic scale. But
the limits of these developments are fixed for each species ;
nor is there a single known instance in which an individual
has been able to stop at any particular stage, and thus become
another species.
In view of these facts, it is not strange that most of the men
best qualified to judge on such a subject — as for instance,
Owen, the ablest of comparative anatomists ; Ehrenberg, the

THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING. 43
first of microscopists ; and Muller, most eminent in physi-
ol°gy — should reject these hypotheses of spontaneous gen
eration and transmutation. Nevertheless, the unusual interest
which has been manifested by the recent work entitled Ves
tiges of the Natural History of the Creation — wherein these
hypotheses, as well as the nebular hypothesis, are ingeniously
defended, and that, too, without denying the original interven
tion of a divine Power in nature — show us that a long-drawn
contest is yet before naturalists on these subjects, ere these
fancies shall be forced into that extramundane receptacle of
things abortive and unaccomplished, described by Milton as
" a limbo large and wide," on the back side of the moon.
And yet, my conviction is that this contest will not have so
important a bearing on the cause of religion as some theol-
ogists imagine. For, even though these hypotheses should be
established, an intelligent, spiritual; infinite Deity is quite as
necessary to account for existing nature as on the more com
mon theory, which supposes the universe commanded from
nothing at once in a perfect state. Indeed, to endow the par
ticles of matter with the power to form exquisite organic com
pounds, just at the moment when circumstances are best
adapted to their existence, and then to become animated, nay,
endowed with instincts, and with lofty intellects, — all which
results the advocates of these hypotheses must impute to the
laws impressed upon originally brute matter, — such effects,
I say, demand infinite wisdom, power, and benevolence even
more imperatively than the common theories of creation. I
doubt not that in general these hypotheses have been adopted
to sustain atheistic opinions, or to remove the Deity away from
his works. But unbiased philosophy sees that they utterly
fail to accomplish either of these objects. And I confess that
I reject them more because they have no solid evidence in

44 THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING.
their favor than because I fear that they will ultimately be of
much injury to religion ; especially so long as such works as
Whewell's Indications of the Creator are within the reach of
the scholar.
The religious bearings of geology alone remain to be no
ticed. And no science, except perhaps astronomy, has excited
so much alarm as this for its supposed irreligious tendencies.
But so soon as theologians discovered that while the Mosaic
chronology fixes the date of man's creation, it leaves the an
tiquity of the globe unsettled, and, therefore, a fit subject for
philosophical examination, they began to see that this science
might be made to shed much light upon religion. Indeed, it
already excels every other science in the importance of its
religious applications ; and notwithstanding the noble begin
nings by Dr. Buckland, Dr. J. Pye Smith, Dr. Chalmers, and
others, the work of development is but just begun. Would that
my time and the reader's patience might permit us to take a
leisurely survey of this interesting field. But a glance must
suffice. To say nothing of the illustrations of the meaning of re
vealed truth derived from this science, — of collision between
them there is certainly none, — it furnishes us, in the first
place, with a new argument for the existence of a Deity.
This argument rests upon three leading facts of the science
independent of one another ; so that we may doubt or deny
one or two of them, and yet not reject the argument. The
first is, that there was a period when no animals or plants
existed on the globe, and, therefore, an epoch when they
were created ; which must have required a Being of infinite
perfections. The second is, that there have been on the
globe several nearly entire extinctions and renewals of or
ganic life, each of which demands the agency of such a

THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING. 45
Being. The third is, that man was only recently created —
almost the last of the animals ; and since he is at the head of
creation, nothing in nature has demanded a higher exercise
of wisdom and power than his production ; and, therefore, it
must have required a Deity.
It is obvious that these same facts prove clearly the non-
eternity of the present condition of the globe ; and even
though we admit the ancient doctrine of matter's eternity,
yet its most important modifications, requiring a Deity no less
than its creation, must have been produced in time, and this
conclusion is all that is essential to theism. And thus geol
ogy, which has been supposed to favor the idea of the world's
eternity, is the only science, as Dr. Chalmers has splendidly
shown, that can prove its non-eternity.
These same facts, and others that might be named, demon
strate the occasional interference of the Deity with the settled
order of nature : in other words, they show us splendid mir
acles of creation. And thus is all presumption against the
miracles of revelation done away ; and also all objections
against special providence and special answers to prayer.
This science, too, opens to us views into the arcana of past
duration, as deep and illimitable as astronomy does into the
arcana of space ; and there is made to pass before us a splen-
flid panorama of the vast and varied plans of Jehovah ; while
chemical change is disclosed to us as the great conservative
and controlling principle of the universe, superior even to the
laws of gravitation. The unity of the divine plans is also ex
hibited to us by the records of this science, on a far wider
scale than the existing economy of nature can show. And,
finally, it brings before us a great number of new and pecu
liar proofs of divine benevolence, that throw new glory over
this attribute of the Deity ; derived, as they are, from facts

46 THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING.
heretofore supposed to prove divine malevolence, or at least
vindictive justice.
We have now taken a glance at the entire and vast circle
of human learning. And is not every mind forced irresisti
bly to the conclusion, that every branch was originally linked
by a golden chain to the throne of God, and that the noblest
use to which they can be consecrated, and for which they
were destined, is to illustrate his perfections and to display
his glory ? If so, let me conclude my too protracted remarks
by a few inferences.
In the first place, what a monstrous perversion and misap
prehension of learning it is, to consider it as hostile to religion.
It is not difficult to explain how a Christian, who is very
ignorant, and who learns that literary men are often sceptical,
should distrust the influence of learning upon religion ; nor
how a mere smatterer in science, himself sceptical, should
flatter himself that his great learning made him so. But how
strange that any talented and well-informed man, be he Chris
tian or infidel, should not see that all science and a large part
of literature are
" But elder Scripture writ by God's own hand ! "
It must be the strongest prejudice, or the most decided ha
tred to religion, which can suppose that one work of the sam%
infinitely perfect God should oppose another ; for, in fact,
learning and religion are only different shoots from the same
parent stock ; and if their fruit be of opposite qualities, it
must be because man has grafted upon one or the other the
apples of Sodom. To set learning against religion is as un
natural as to array brother against brother on the field of
combat. We see, secondly, that those engaged in directly promoting

THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING. 47
religion, and those devoted to learning, ought to look upon
each other as laboring in a common cause.
If their labors are such as they should be, they will help
each other ; and, therefore, they ought to rejoice in each
other's success. For though a new branch of learning but
half understood may sometimes put on an aspect threatening
to religion, we need never fear but the final result will be a
new support to religion ; and, therefore, the religious man
should dismiss all fears and jealousies in respect to sound
learning ; while, on the other hand, every increase of true
religion has an auspicious bearing upon the cause of learning.
We see, thirdly, that the preacher of the gospel may con
sistently devote himself to the work of instructing the young
in literature and science. For, in the first place, he need not
by such a change necessarily abandon the direct preaching of
the gospel occasionally. In the second place, by faithful in
struction in learning,. he may greatly promote the cause of
religion, and train up many, perhaps, to exert a still wider
influence in its favor. Finally, how much better that such a
man should use science and literature legitimately for the
support of religion, than that they should be perverted by a
sceptical teacher to undermine it ! In spite of these reasons,
however, we are frequently told that for a minister of the
gospel to become a teacher of human learning, is to abandon
his high calling, and forfeit his solemn vows ; as indeed he
may do, by engaging in such pursuits from merely secular
motives. In the fourth place, we see that the more eminent a man is
for learning, the more eminent he should be for personal piety.
Why, indeed, should not the latter increase in his heart, as the
former does in his intellect ? For every new accession of
knowledge is but a development of some attribute or plan of

I
48 THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING.
the Deity. The entire field of human learning all rightfully
belongs to religion, and should be regarded by the Christian
scholar as consecrated ground. The farther he advances in
it, the more does he see of the Deity ; and as he returns from
communion with Nature in the very holy of holies of her
temple, he ought, like Moses from the holy mount, to show a
radiant glory on his countenance.
In the fifth place, what importance does the subject give to
the pursuits of learning, and the institutions of learning !
If knowledge is power in secular matters, it is no less so in
religion. I know that a higher power is essential to the suc
cess of the latter. But I know, too, that religion without
learning almost infallibly degenerates into fanaticism or dead
formalism ; and indeed, at this day, true religion will not flour
ish except in connection with learning ; and, therefore, al
most every denomination is now striving to found and sustain
literary seminaries. Nor is their importance yet duly esti
mated, because but few realize how indispensable is their
agency in promoting the noblest of all objects, the salvation
of men ; and, therefore, in our land at least, with a few ex
ceptions, their foundations are too narrow, and the super
structure too frail.
In the sixth place, how justly are those honored, and how
wide an influence do they exert, who found and endow liter
ary institutions from religidbs motives !
They may be charged with unhallowed ambition, by men
who think only of the secular influence of these institutions.
But he who considers what is the highest use of learning, and
how immense will be the influence of a well-endowed semi
nary upon the cause of religion, cannot but look upon such
bequests as the noblest of charities ; especially when he re
members how much more enduring is that influence than

THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING. 49
when money is given to most other benevolent objects. What
names stand higher on the Christian's roll of fame than those
of Harvard, and Yale, and Dartmouth, and Williams, and
Brown ? And through how many coming centuries of our
country's history will their example stimulate others to go
and do likewise ! By liberal bequests to literary institutions
while yet feeble and struggling for existence, their names
have become inseparably fixed upon them, where they will
remain long after the pyramids of Egypt shall be crumbled
into dust. In what other way could they have exerted so de
sirable, extensive, and enduring an influence upon the world?
In the seventh place, what a noble yet immense work lies
before Christian scholars, viz., to make all learning subser
vient to its highest purpose !
Sadly have many branches been perverted, and strong is
still the disposition to divert all learning from its noblest use.
To arrest this downward tendency, and to bring back all lit
erature and all science to the service of religion, is an object
of the highest ambition, adapted to call forth the strongest
efforts of every Christian scholar. And let all such take
courage. For religion is the natural home of all branches
of learning ; and though some of the sisterhood have been
seduced into the service of sin and the world, and have for
gotten their paternity, yet when reminded of their sacred
origin, gladly will they return to the paternal hearth, and
pile richer gifts upon the altar, where they presented their
earliest offerings.
In the eighth place, we learn how important it is that every
literary institution should make the promotion of religion the
leading object of its system of instruction.
Other objects of subordinate importance it may ami ought
to endeavor to accomplish ; but to make these the chief things
5

50 THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING.
aimed at, while religion is thrust into the background, is as if
a man should build an elegant mansion for the sake of im
proving the landscape, and with no intention of living in it ;
or as if a community should erect a church for the sake of
holding town meetings and political caucuses in it, and hearing
lyceum lectures, with no intention of using it as a place of
worship, except perhaps occasionally.
There is, indeed, a great cry about excluding sectarianism
from our literary institutions, and throwing them open to per
sons of all religious opinions. Now, in this country, where
we have no established church, it is difficult to define a secta
rian, unless it be a man who differs from us in religious sen
timents. So that in fact, with the exception of a few, who
have no opinions or care on this subject, we are all sectari
ans ; and to exclude sectarianism from a literary institution
is to exclude all religion from it. And such is usually the re
sult, when it attempts so to trim its course as to suit all par
ties. But really, of all kinds of intolerance, that is the worst
which is furious for toleration, and that the worst kind of
sectarianism which is fierce for irreligion. The only true
liberal and manly course for an institution to adopt, is, openly
to avow its creed, and not to disguise its desire to have all the
youth adopt it who resort thither ; while at the same time it
uses no other means but argument and example to convert
them, nor permits their religious opinions, whatever they may
be, to have any influence in awarding literary honors. In
this respect the motto of the ancient Tyrian queen should be
adopted by every teacher : —
" Tros Tyriusve nullo discrimine mini agetur."
Such a course does, indeed, make the institution sectarian ,
that is, it shows a preference for some particular system of

THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING. 51
religion. But it is an honest course, and the only honest one
that can be taken. For if an institution professes to regard
all religious opinions with equal favor, who can avoid the sus
picion that it is either a stratagem for introducing some un
popular system, or that it indicates an almost universal scep
ticism on the subject ? Indeed, how can a man, who has any
just sense of religious obligation, consent to be placed in cir
cumstances where he cannot recommend openly those reli
gious views which he deems essential to salvation ?
In the ninth place, we see that a professorship of natural v
theology is an appropriate one in a college.
The main business of such a professor is to go over the
same ground as we have now glanced at, and to trace out the
bearing of all literature and all science upon religion. And
if this be, indeed, the most important use of learning, why
should it be left unprovided for ? or depend upon the voluntary
efforts of the different instructors, whose hands are already
quite full ? I make these remarks, because such a professor
ship is unusual in our colleges; and I have feared that the
one with which I have been recently honored may seem to
have been got up for the occasion, to eke out a deficiency of
titles. But it is not so ; and it is proper to say, that I have in v
fact, for the last ten years, attempted to perform the duties of
such a professorship.
Finally, to the principle which I have endeavored to prove,
we owe the establishment of many modern literary and sci
entific institutions, and eminently of that within whose walls
we are assembled.
By recurring to the history of the origin of some of the ¦>
most distinguished scientific societies and literary institutions
of Europe, it will appear that one of the leading objects v
which their illustrious founders had in view, was to extend a

52 THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING.
knowledge of the Christian religion, along with the arts and
sciences, to remote and barbarous nations, particularly those
of the south-eastern Asia. Among the institutions thus origi
nating were the Royal Society of London, the French Acad-
emy, the Berlin Academy, the Academia Naturae Curiosorum,
the University of Halle, and the Institutions of Franke at
Halle ; and among the distinguished men who have labored
in this work we find the names of Boyle, Montucla, Leibnitz,
Wolf, and Humboldt.* I fear, indeed, that this object has
been often lost sight of by these institutions ; but their origin
furnishes us at least with the testimony of most able and com
petent witnesses to the truth of the position which I have now
vindicated and illustrated, as to the highest use of learning.
But to come nearer home : we shall see that this institution
originated in a deep conviction of this same truth in the minds
of those noble-hearted men, who, in faith and prayer, laid the
foundations on which we are called upon to build. The very
first paragraph of the constitution of what they then called a
charity institution contains it ; and in the first article it
is said, " In contemplating the felicitous state of society
which is predicted in the Scriptures of truth, and the rapid
approach of such a state, which the auspices of the present
day clearly indicate, and desiring to add our feeble efforts
to the various exertions of the Christian community for
effecting so glorious an event, — we have associated together
for the express purpose of founding an institution on the gen
uine principles of charity and benevolence, for the instruction
of youth in all the branches of literature and science usually
taught in colleges." Here we see no other reason assigned
for founding the institution but a wish to promote the cause
of religion ; as if no other benefits to result from it were
* Oratio in Academia Fridericiana Halensi, &c. habita ab. D. J. S. C,
Schweigger, p. 4, Halle, 1834.

THE HIGHEST USE OF LEARNING. 53
worth naming. Let this fact never be forgotten by those who
manage and instruct in this college. God forbid that the
time should ever come when any instructor here shall be
ashamed, or backward, to acknowledge that the advancement
of pure religion — even the Christian religion — is the grand
object for which he labors and makes sacrifices.*
Let us never forget, that promotion cometh neither from
the east nor the west, nor from the south. But God is Judge.
He setteth up one, and pulteth down another. How easy for
him to blast the fairest schemes, and to prosper the weak and
the trembling ! Nor let our confidence in him, or in the
prosperity of this institution, be shaken, because it has been
called to pass through straits, and other conflicts may still
await it. We believe that these storms in its youth are in
tended, by a wise Providence, only to make its roots strike
deeper, and to give its trunk greater strength, and its branches
wider extension in its maturity. Only let faith hold on firm
ly to the principle, that God will assuredly crown with suc
cess every sincere effort to bind the wreath of learning around
the brow of Religion, and cheerfully and resolutely shall we
consecrate ourselves to the great work of sustaining and ad
vancing this institution ; and though we shall not be allowed
to labor long here, or elsewhere, yet while we live, and when
we die, we may confidently utter in behalf of its pupils, its
guardians, and all its future interests, the prayer of a hea
then, with a Christian meaning and a Christian spirit : —
w Dii probos mores docilii juventse,
Dii senectuti placida? quietera
Romulse genti date remque prolemque
Et decus omne ! "
* Several pages relating to the college, its discouragements and encour
agements, are here omitted. 5*

THE RELATIONS AND MUTUAL DUTIES BETWEEN
THE PHILOSOPHER AND THE THEOLOGIAN.

The history of the manner in which philosophy has been
treated by theologians, and theology by philosophers, is very
instructive and suggestive. Some of the former have taken
philosophy into a close and most cordial embrace, and allowed
it to modify, and even form a part of the foundation of their
whole system of doctrines ; and, as you looked at the stately
pile, you could not be certain whether the human or the divine
had most to do in its erection.
Another class have been as jealous of philosophy as if its
touch were infectious, and its infection death ; and it would
seem as if they took special pains to make their professedly
biblical system of truth look as distorted and angular as possi
ble, lest they should be suspected of having used the mould
ing and the dressing tool of reason to give it form and sym
metry. On the other hand, the tendency among philosophers has
been to rank theology below the other sciences. Some of
them have maintained that the two departments are quite in
dependent of each other, and that the question of agreement
between them is one with which they are not concerned.
Their business is to discover the truths of science, and to leave
theology to take care of itself. Others admit the desirableness (54)

RELATIONS OF THE PHILOSOPHER AND THEOLOGIAN. 55
of a reconciliation, but are quite jealous of any claims, on the
part of revelation, to superior authority.
But though thus diverse and conflicting have been the views
of theologians and philosophers respecting their mutual rela
tions and duties, yet the history of the connection or opposi
tion between theological and philosophical systems has consti
tuted no small part of the annals of the church. And from
that history we learn two things : first, that there is an im
portant connection, and consequently there are important
duties, between the theologian and the philosopher ; and
secondly, that these relations and duties have been, and
still are, sadly misunderstood or neglected. No code of
principles, defining those relations and duties, has yet been
elaborated ; and hence these classes have often treated each
other like the partisans in a border warfare ; and prejudice
and illiberality have been the impelling forces, rather than
Christianity or philosophy.
These remarks will probably lead you, gentlemen of the
society at whose request I stand here to-day, and other re
spected auditors, to anticipate a discussion on the Relations
between the Theologian and Philosopher. Such is my inten
tion ; or, to state the subject more specifically, I propose to
enucleate and examine the principles which should regulate
the intercourse and feelings of these two classes of society.
I employ the term philosophy in its broadest signification
embracing all science, physical, intellectual, and moral. Yet
for special reasons, I shall rest my eye chiefly upon, and de
rive my illustration from, inductive or physical science. For
in the first place, circumstances beyond my control, and con
nected chiefly with health, have turned my attention main
ly to this department of philosophy ; secondly, the claims and
bearings of moral and intellectual philosophy, oftener, and

56 MUTUAL RELATIONS BETWEEN
with a power which it would be in vain for me to aspire after,
have been brought before you. And finally and especially, a
deepening interest seems to be gathering around physical sci
ence, both as a rich repository of arguments for, and illustra
tions of, religion, and a magazine of missiles to hurl against it.
In attempting to discuss such a subject, it is gratifying to
find one's self addressing the members of an institution where
the freest and the fullest investigation of all truth is encour
aged, and where evidence, not authority, is the test by which
every principle is tried ; an institution, which, while it boldly
and honestly maintains its own views of religious truth, exer
cises the charity of the gospel towards those who reject them,
and expects to convince them only by manly argument. It is
not flattery, but justice only, to say that it is eminently by the
labors of the distinguished men who have presided here, fol
lowing in the steps of Edwards, Hopkins, Bellamy, and Em
mons, that evangelical Christianity has assumed such a shape
as to render its reconciliation with philosophy possible. Mon
uments evincing the truth of this position rise all around me.
The Nestor of biblical philology is not, indeed, here to-day ;
but his works are, and they evince how much he has done to
unfold the true meaning of the Word of God, and how fear
lessly, yet impartially, he sought for the truth ; never inquir
ing, while engaged in his investigations, whether the results
would favor this or that theological system, but whether they
brought out the true mind of the Spirit. And he well knew
that if that could once be surely ascertained, it would be found
in entire harmony with all other. The Nestor of theology is
still here ; and so are his works ; especially the last and
greatest one, which gives us results of nearly half a century's
careful examination of systematic theology. Those results,
presented in language of such simplicity as only true greatness

THE PHILOSOPHER AND THEOLOGIAN. 57
and conscious strength know how to use, and with a calmness
and fairness of reasoning which only a perfect knowledge of
the subject, and a thorough conviction of its truth, could em
ploy, stand up before my eye, as one of the noblest monu
ments which human skill and piety can raise to God's glory
and man's good. I mean not that the work is perfect, nor that
keen criticism, nor that the large-pupiled eye of prejudice
and envy cannot find weak spots in it ; nor that I should not
myself dissent from some minor points defended in it. But
as an American, and a Christian, I rejoice, and bless God that
the venerable author has been spared to place the top stone
on this column of eternal truth, which I predict shall abide
fresh and strong, when the Washington Monument and the
Bunker Hill column shall become only crumbling mounds.
As an American, and a Christian too, when lately on a for
eign shore, it was gratifying, and I hope to some better feel
ings than mere national pride, to be able to point to a certain
Bibliotheca, whose pages, each trimester, open, to the scholar
and the Christian, productions which combine philosophy more
profound with biblical analysis more accurate than any other
evangelical periodical in the English language with which I
am acquainted. Let this -testimony, too, be regarded only as
an act of justice, and not of flattery.
This allusion to the Bibliotheca reminds us — as indeed
almost every thing else does to-day — of another strong pillar
of this institution, whom Providence has recently smitten
down.* Nor is it this Seminary alone that feels the stroke.
When such a man falls, it brings a cloud over the whole re
public of letters, and creates a wide blank, especially among
the cultivators of sacred literature. It will be deeply felt
even on the other side of the Atlantic, where his able works
* Professor B. B. Edwards.

58 MUTUAL RELATIONS BETWEEN
have been long known and appreciated. This is not the place
to give his life, or his eulogy, which has already been done in
a most satisfactory manner. But there is one trait of his
writings and his character which it is proper I should notice.
Though devoting himself chiefly to classical and biblical litera
ture, yet his active and scrutinizing mind was not satisfied till
he had mastered the leading principles of almost all branches of
learning ; and he kept his eye open to the progress of secular
as well as sacred literature and philosophy. His accurate
judgment appreciated full well the importance of bringing all
branches of human learning into harmony ; for he well knew
that there can be no real discrepancy between one kind of
truth and another. Hence, when philosophy and revelation
were in apparent collision, he knew that the one, or the other,
or both, were not fully understood ; and therefore he wel
comed every new ray of light which literature and science,
history and observation, might cast upon the Bible, and the
Bible might cast upon philosophy. In a word, he had those
enlarged and liberal views, in regard to the relations and
mutual duties of the theologian and the philosopher, which
made him, in this respect, a model man. From those narrow
views and prejudices — the odium theologicum — which too
often result from exclusive attention to one department of
knowledge, he was remarkably free. He never substituted
denunciation for argument ; not because he was indifferent to
the truth, but because he had so much confidence in its naked
power and ultimate triumph. It is such men who are wanted
in the ranks of theology, to command the respect of philoso
phers and the confidence of Christians. O Andover ! how
deep the wound inflicted upon thee in his removal !
" Hei mihi ! quantum
Preesidium, Ausonia, et quantum tu perdis, Iule ! "

THE PHILOSOPHER AND THEOLOGIAN. 59
But thanks be to God, that he was spared so long as to be
able to make an abiding impress here. Nay, the cause of
learning, of education, of religion throughout the land, shall
long feel the influence of his labors ; and other lands shall
share in the rich legacy which he has left.
And now, before an audienee trained by such men, and
under the influence of such principles, I feel confident that I
shall be heard with candor, and, I hope, with sympathy, while
I attempt to ascertain and enucleate the principles that should
form the mutual creed of the theologian and the philosopher.
The first means which I shall employ for determining this
platform of principles consists in an appeal to reason and
Scripture. We need, however, as a basis for our inquiries, to define
the limits and the functions of philosophy and of theology.
The first searches out and classifies the laws of nature ; the
second presents the principles of religion, natural and re
vealed, in a scientific or systematic form. Theology, there
fore, has a right to employ whatever facts and reasonings it
can find in philosophy, illustrative of religion. The principles
of reasoning, too, are the same as in philosophy. But it pos
sesses, in addition, an infallible standard of appeal for all
subjects that are above reason. The object of philosophy is
to explain the phenomena of nature, mental, moral, and mate
rial ; that of theology is exclusively to defend and enforce the
moral relations of the universe. Hence the two subjects are
almost entirely distinct in their aim. The only point where
they pursue the same track is in the department of moral
philosophy, which has derived from revealed theology the
only true foundation on which to build, and that is, the
character of man as a fallen being. Incidentally, however,
the two branches treat of the same subject ; as, for instance,

60 MUTUAL RELATIONS BETWEEN
the creation, the deluge, and the destruction of the world and
its organic races. Bat since revelation does not pretend to
teach science, nor even to use language in its strictly scien
tific sense, we ought to expect, in such cases, only that there
shall be no real, although there may be an apparent, discre
pancy between the two records.
Thus distinct, in nature and in function, are these two great
departments of human knowledge. Both do, indeed, connect
with the same Infinite Source of all knowledge ; but they oc
cupy separate and clearly defined provinces, and those at
work in one field need not encroach upon, or despise and
overlook, those in the other. Providence intended that they
should be mutual helps, and mutually deferential. That the
ology has a vast preeminence, does not justify an undervalua
tion of philosophy, as if it were of no consequence.
This course of remark leads naturally to the attempt to lay
down as the first article of the mutual creed of the philosopher
and the theologian, this principle : That on the question of
authority, while science should receive all the credit which its
various degrees of evidence deserve, theology has a higher
claim to any branch of knowledge not strictly demonstrative.
A mathematical demonstration no sane mind can resist ; and
little less certain are the physico-mathematical sciences. But
where scientific conclusions depend only upon probable evi
dence, observation, and experiment, for example, there is
some room for mistake and false inference. And is it not
reasonable to maintain that theology has a higher claim to
credence than the probabilities of any single science ? For
the evidences of its truth, drawn from so many sources, and
so diverse, must be considered as outweighing the evidence of
any single science dependent upon experiment or observation.
If, therefore, a direct collision could be made out between

THE PHILOSOPHER AND THEOLOGIAN. 61
such a science and religion, and we were compelled to choose
between the two, theology must carry the day.
I make this supposition, not because such an alternative
ever has occurred, or ever will occur, but merely to show
what are the relative claims to deference of theology and
probable science. Not unfrequently, where only an apparent
discrepancy has manifested itself between revelation and some
yet imperfect science, the self-confident sceptic considers the
fate of Christianity as decided. But that is only a flippant phi
losophy which will not rank revealed truth above any single
science founded upon probable evidence. Not only does the- ^
ology stand above all other sciences in the importance and
dignity of its principles, but in the authority with which it
speaks ; for it rests mainly on inspired testimony.
On the other hand, however, not a few divines demand for
theology, not only superior authority, but will allow none at
all to science, in matters of religion.
" We have," say they, " an inspired record, and its declara
tions are not to be set aside, or modified in the least, by any
pretended discoveries or theories of blind and perverted hu
man reason. God has spoken, who cannot lie, and his Word
is to be received implicitly, whatever may become of the sup
posed facts or conclusions of weak and ignorant man."
Such reasoning overlooks one important principle. AU will
agree that when we know certainly what God has revealed,
we are to receive it without modification. But he has re
vealed himself through human language, and given us no in
spired interpreters. We are to ascertain the meaning of
Scripture essentially as we do that of any other writings.
Accordingly we do not hesitate to resort to philosophy and
history, as guides in our exegesis. Nor do we refuse the
light that comes to us from the deciphered hjeroglyphics of

62 MUTUAL RELATIONS BETWEEN
Egypt, and the disinterred relics of Nineveh. Why, then,
should not the testimony of science be employed to elucidate
the meaning of Scripture, especially when it opens archives
a thousand times more ancient, and no less distinct, than those
of Egypt and Nineveh ? No reasonable philosopher asks that
science should be allowed to set aside or modify any thing
which God hath spoken, but only that it should be employed
to ascertain what he has spoken ; for without the aid of sci
ence men have sometimes been unable to understand aright
the language of Scripture — as in the rising and the setting
of the sun, and the immobility of the earth, described in the
Bible. Before astronomy had ascertained the earth's true
diurnal and annual motions, the scriptural statements were
not, and could not be, understood aright. And the same
may be true in respect to phenomena dependent upon other
sciences. A second principle of this creed — if it be not too obvious,
and too generally acknowledged, to require a formal statement
— takes the ground, that as a means of moral reformation and
regulation of human affairs philosophy has little power, and
is not to be brought into comparison with theology. Both
reason and experience have given so many striking illustra
tions of this truth that it seems strange any should wish to
repeat the experiment. But it is done every few years ; nay,
at all times we find men zealous in advocating some new phil
osophic scheme for reforming and perfecting human society,
whose essential element is something different from, the meth
od pointed out in the Bible. The new system may have some
principle in common with Christianity ; but the author of it
relies rather on the differences which he has superadded than
on the agreement. Yet what multitudes of such schemes, after
an ephemeral excitement, become the byword of the world,

THE PHILOSOPHER AND THEOLOGIAN. 63
and pass silently into that oblivious receptacle of things, "Abor
tive, monstrous, or unkindly mixed," described by Milton !
" All these, upwhirled aloft,
Flew o'er the back side of the world, far off,
Into a limbo large and wide, since called
The Paradise of Fools : — to few unknown
Long after." —
A third important principle, which reason teaches as appro
priate for this mutual creed, is, that entire harmony will be
the final result of all researches in philosophy and religion.
It is strange how any other view of the matter can be enter
tained by men who profess to believe that the God of nature
is the God of revelation. For what are nature and revela
tion but different developments of one great system, emanat
ing from the same infinite Mind ? Yet not a few theologians
look upon science as a dangerous ally of revelation, and main
tain that we are not to seek for harmony between them. " The
Bible," say they, " was given for our infallible guide, and it
is of little consequence whether its teachings coincide with
those of philosophy. The history of the church shows us that
the two have always been in collision, and it is a dangerous
enterprise for the religious man to labor for their reconcil
iation. Let him follow the teachings of revelation implicitly,
nor suffer any of its statements to be modified by the 'pre
tended facts or theoretical deductions of science."
Does this seem to any to be a caricature ? Take, then, the
words of a distinguished American divine. " We are not a
little alarmed," says he, " at the tendency of the age to re
duce the great facts narrated in the Bible to the standard of
natural science." " Human, science is a changing and rest
less thing. It is well that it is so." ,

64 MUTUAL RELATIONS BETWEEN
On the other hand, not a few scientific men, although pro-
fessing respect for the Bible, and faith in it, yet feel as if its
statements should have no weight, even upon any matter of
fact which comes under the cognizance of philosophy. Sci
ence, it is thought, has its own appropriate evidences, which
must be admitted, whatever else goes against it. The Bible
was not given to teach science, and therefore it was never
intended to be authoritative in such matters.
Now, if these two classes of men were to lay it down as a
settled principle that all science and all religion are certain
ultimately to harmonize throughout, it would remove this
mutual jealousy and distrust ; nor would the parties be dis
posed to stand aloof from each other, and to treat one another
as enemies. If they are ultimately to be entirely one, then
they are essentially so now, and all discrepancy is apparent
only. Therefore should the philosopher and the theologian
feel as if they were brothers, whose business it is, in mutual
good will, to elucidate and bring into harmony different por
tions of the same eternal truth.
Another article of this mutual creed should be, that scien
tific men may have the freest and the fullest liberty of inves
tigation. They have not always had it. " We remember,"
says Melville, " how, in darker days, ecclesiastics set them
selves against philosophers, who were investigating the mo
tions of the heavenly bodies, apprehensive that the new the
ories were at variance with the Bible, and therefore resolved
to denounce them as heresies, and stop their spread by per
secution." Open persecution is unpopular now ; but I fear
that a remnant of the same feelings still lingers in some minds.
They will not say directly to the scientific man, " Abstain
from your researches, for they seem to threaten injury to
religion," but their fears of some disastrous influence make

THE PHILOSOPHER AND THEOLOGIAN. 65
them jealous of the man, and fearful that his scientific con
clusions may lead himself and others astray ; and hence they
withdraw their confidence from him, and thus take the most
effectual way to alienate and make a sensitive mind sceptical.
But how narrow are such views ! and how idle the fear of
collision between science and revelation ! How much more
noble and truly Christian are the sentiments of Dr. Pye Smith !
" Only let the investigation be sufficient, and the induction
honest ; let observation take its farthest flight ; let experiment
penetrate into all the recesses of nature ; let the veil of ages
be lifted up from all that has hitherto been unknown, if such a
course were possible — religion need not fear ; Christianity is ,
secure, and true science will always pay homage to the divine
Creator and Sovereign, of whom, and through whom, and to
whom, are all things, and unto whom be glory forever.''''
The difference in the character of the language of science
and that frequently employed in religion suggests a fifth article
of the supposed platform. Different principles of interpreta
tion, to some extent, are demanded in the two departments.
True science employs terms that are precise, definite, literal,
with scarcely more than one meaning, and adapted only to
cultivated- minds. Religion, especially the Bible, makes use
of language that is indefinite, loose, and multiform in signifi
cation, often highly figurative, and adapted, not only to the
popular mind, but to men in an early and rude state of soci
ety. Science, for instance, could not, as the Bible can and
does, represent the work of creation in one chapter as occu
pying six days, and in the next chapter as completed in one
day. It could not, like the Bible, speak of the sun's rising
and setting, and of the earth's immobility. Meteorology could
not describe the concave above our heads as a solid expanse,
having windows or openings for the rain to pass from the
6*

66 MUTUAL RELATIONS BETWEEN
clouds beyond. Nor could physiology represent the bones to
be the seat of pain, or psychology refer intellectual operations
to the region of the kidneys. Neither could systematic the
ology in one place represent God as having repented that he
had made man, and in another exhibit him as without vari
ableness or shadow of turning. But all this can the Bible do
in perfect consistency with its infallible inspiration, because it
was the language of common life ; and common sense can
interpret it, so that every suspicion of self-contradiction shall
vanish. Indeed, had its language been strictly scientific, it
might have formed a good text book in philosophy, but it
would have been a poor guide to salvation. Yet the attempt
to force the language of the Bible into the strait jacket of
science has been prolific of mistakes and errors.
Another principle, which maintains that the Bible has an
ticipated some scientific discoveries, should be settled and
form a part of this mutual creed. In my view it should be
settled in the negative. For if we admit that one modern
discovery can be found in the fSible, how can we vindicate
that book in those numerous cases where it speaks of natural
phenomena in accordance with the monstrously absurd no
tions which prevailed among those to whom it was originally
addressed ? If it describes the science of the nineteenth cen
tury in one instance, why not in all ? But admit that it was
foreign to the object of revelation to teach science, and we
can see why its descriptions of natural things accord with
optical, but not physical, truth ; and, then, there is no diffi
culty in enucleating the true meaning of the sacred writers.
Interpreted by such a principle, we should not conclude that
Job meant to reveal the Copernican system because he speaks
of the earth as hanging upon nothing ; especially as in an
other place he refers to the pillars on which the earth rests.

THE PHILOSOPHER AND THEOLOGIAN. 67
But both phrases are quite natural and proper for one of the
most allegorical books of the Bible when regarded as vivid
poetical images. The grand distinction between the Bible and
all other professed revelations is, not that it has anticipated
scientific discoveries, but that there is nothing in its statements
which those discoveries contradict or invalidate. Often has
the sceptic announced such discrepancies; but, in the end,
the Bible has always been shown consistent with itself and
with science. Now, this is true of no other professedly in
spired books. The Koran and the Vedas are often in direct ""
collision with astronomy, geology, anatomy, and physiology ;
and when you have proved them false in science you have
destroyed their authority in religion. Proudly above them all
stands the Bible ; and so long as it can maintain this position -
we may be sure of its divine original ; for any mere human
production, embracing so many authors, and reaching through
so many thousands of years in its history, could not have
avoided collision with scientific truth.
Once more : theologians and philosophers should mutually
require that those who undertake to pronounce judgment
upon points of connection between science and religion should
be well acquainted with both sides of the question. I do not
say equally well acquainted ; for so limited are the human
faculties that he who is eminent in one department of knowl
edge can hardly be expected to be equally familiar with an
other. But a respectable knowledge of any subject is essen
tial to decide upon its relations to other subjects. And
it ought to be a settled principle, that an opinion upon any
point of science or religion is entitled to no respect if it can
be shown that the man does not understand the subject upon
which he writes. For eminence in one department of knowl
edge gives a man no claims to credence in another which he

68 MUTUAL RELATIONS BETWEEN
has never studied. A man, for instance, may be most dis
tinguished in science, so that his word is law ; and yet, never
having given his attention to theology, he is utterly unfit to
judge of the bearings of scientific facts or theories upon re
ligion. We listen with great respect to the opinions of an
eminent divine upon those theological principles to which he
has devoted so much thought and study. But if he undertakes
to dogmatize upon matters of science, when his very language
shows him quite ignorant of its principles, and swayed by
prejudice, what claim can his opinions have to our reception
or respect ?
The distinguished Scotch divine, who uses the following lan
guage respecting geology and geologists, no doubt supposed
himself doing an important service to religion by his denunci
ations. " Geology," says he, " as sometimes conducted, is a
monument of human presumption, which would be truly ri
diculous were it not offensive by its impiety." " Thus puny
mortals, [geologists,] with a spark of intellect and a moment
for observation, during which they take a hasty glance of a
few superficial appearances, dream themselves authorized to
give the lie to Him who made and fashioned them, and every
thing which they see." The same may be said of another
eminent divine, who applies similar remarks to the whole of
physical science. " The third fact," says he, " here revealed,
[in Genesis,] is, that this world was created in six days.
Here, again, the Scriptures are at issue with science. Mod
ern geologists tell us that this is not possible ; and all we need
reply to the bold assertion is, with men this is impossible, but
with God all things are possible.'1'' " Natural science is con
fessedly progressive, and, therefore, comparatively crude.
Geology is in its infancy." — Spring.
Now, whatever effect such language may have upon persons

THE PHILOSOPHER AND THEOLOGIAN. 69
who have given no attention to science, what but a bad influ
ence can it have upon the naturalist, who sees, on the very
pages from which I have quoted, the most decisive evidence
that the writers do not understand the subject ? not from want
of ability, but because other studies have engaged their at
tention. Suppose that, in reading a commentary on Job, the
writer had inadvertently disclosed the fact, that he knew noth
ing of the Hebrew grammar, nor even of the Hebrew alpha
bet. From that moment his criticisms, however much of
talent they might discover, would be regarded with indiffer
ence, if not with pity or contempt, by the Christian and the
scholar. It would be easy to quote examples of an analogous char
acter from the philosophers. I might refer to the extraordi
nary and even ridiculous exegetical principles adopted by the
phjjsico-theologists of the last century to prove their favorite
dogma, that the principles of physical science are all to be
found in the Bible, as given by Catcott in his work on the
Deluge, and by Hutchinson in his twelve volumes entitled
" Moses's Principia." But more appropriately may I refer to
a writer of our own times, eminent enough in science to be
selected to write one of the Bridgewater Treatises. In his
interpretation of the phrase " windows of heaven," in Gene
sis, Mr. Kirby makes it mean " cracks and volcanic vents in
the earth, through which water and air rushed inwardly and
outwardly with such violence as to tear the crust to pieces."
I quote another example from a naturalist and philosopher
still more eminent, not because it has the dreamy character
of that just given, but because I know how the following pas
sage has struck some of the most distinguished and liberal
Hebrew and biblical scholars in our land. While they sat
gladly at the feet of this author in all matters of physical

70 MUTUAL RELATIONS BETWEEN
science, they regretted that the same discrimination and long
study had not been given to the science of biblical interpreta
tion before an exegesis of Genesis had been thrown out so
confidently, which is contrary to the obvious sense and to the
almost universal opinion of biblical writers. I speak not here
of the truth or falsehood of the theory of this distinguished
man, whose writings exhibit so much of the true spirit of re
ligion, and who takes so noble a stand against the flippant
scepticism of sciolists, but refer simply to this particular exe
gesis of Genesis.
" The advocates of identity of origin for all the several
races of men, as springing from only one primitive pair,"
says Professor Agassiz, " have no argument to urge in sup
port of that position, but simply a vulgar prejudice, based on
some few obscure passages of the Bible, which may after all
be capable of a different interpretation." " To suppose ,that
all men originated from Adam and Eve, is to give to the Mo
saic record a meaning that it was never intended to have."
It is very probable that some may be ready to apply to me
personally the exhortation, Physician, heal thyself. For some
do regard me as having violated the rule which I am urging
upon others, by advancing interpretations of Scripture which
no sound biblical scholar can admit. On two points espe
cially has this charge been made. I have advocated that ex
egesis of Genesis which permits the intercalation of a long
and indefinite period between the beginning and the first dem
iurgic day ; and, also, that exegesis of Peter, which makes
him teach that this earth and its atmosphere, after being
burned up and renovated, will become the new heavens and
the new earth.
Now, were these interpretations original with myself, and
now first proposed in opposition to the whole array of biblical

THE PHILOSOPHER AND THEOLOGIAN. 71
critics, I might well confess myself guilty, and conclude that
my zeal to sustain a favorite theory had blinded my judgment.
But in fact, these views, both of Genesis and of Peter, have
been advocated by the early fathers of the church, and by a
large number of the ablest modern interpreters and divines.
As to the meaning of Peter, Dr. Griffin says, that the view
above referred to " has been the more common opinion of the
Christian fathers, of the divines of the reformation, and of the
critics and annotators who have since flourished." I must
disclaim, therefore, both the honor and the odium of these
views, and say, that if I am wrong in their advocacy, it is be
cause I have been led astray by such men as Augustine, The-
odoret, Justin Martyr, Origen, Luther, the elder Rogenmiiller,
Tholuck, Dathe, Pye Smith, Patrick, Chalmers, Knapp, and
Griffin. Finally, it ought to be a position admitted by the philoso
pher and the theologian, that the facts and principles of sci
ence, brought before an unsophisticated mind, are favorable
to piety. A contrary impression prevails extensively ; just
because not a few scientific men, in spite of science, and not
through its influence, have been sceptics. Their hearts were
wrong when they began the study ; and then, according to a
general law of human nature, the purest truth became only a
means of increasing their perversity. .But had their hearts
been right at first, that same truth would have nourished and
strengthened their faith and love. Why should it not be so ?
For what is true science but an exhibition of God's plans and
operations ? And will any one maintain that a survey of what
God has planned and is executing should have an unfavora
ble moral effect upon an unperverted and unprejudiced mind ?
If it does, it must be through the influence of extraneous
causes, such as pride, prejudice, bad education, or bad hab-

72 MUTUAL RELATIONS BETWEEN
its, for which science is not accountable. O, no ! the temple
of Nature is a holy place for a holy heart. Pure fire is al
ways burning upon its altar, and its harmonies are ever hymn
ing the praises of its great Architect, inviting all who enter to
join the chorus. It needs a perverse and hardened heart to
resist the good influences that emanate from its shrines.
A consideration of the mutual interest of ihe theologian
and ihe philosopher constitutes a second means for determin
ing ihe principles by which their feelings and intercourse
should be regulated.
It hardly needs a formal argument to show, that it is for
the interest of both to bring revelation and science into entire
harmony. The established and intelligent Christian will not,
indeed, be greatly disturbed because an alleged scientific dis
covery is said to come into collision with the Bible. But there
are others, predisposed to believe revelation, who will gladly
seize upon such examples to fortify themselves in scepticism.
Religion, therefore, suffers by merely apparent incongruity
between science and revelation. Nor can it be a matter of
indifference to philosophers, to be looked upon as throwing
doubt upon man's highest hopes and interests, by those who
defend these interests, and who have taken a most important
part in time past in advancing science. Suspicion and alien
ated feeling between Jhese classes operate most disastrously
upon both ; and, therefore, mutual interest demands their unit
ed efforts to remove apparent discrepancies.
A second consideration of importance, in this connection, is,
that science is the great storehouse of facts on which is based
the whole system of natural religion. And when we recol
lect that natural religion does not stop with the mere demon
stration of the being and attributes of the Deity, but estab
lishes his natural and moral government over the world,

THE PHILOSOPHER AND THEOLOGIAN. 73
and man's correspondent obligations, — also his common, spe
cial and miraculous providence, and the doctrine of his pur
poses or decrees, — we see how important is this use of science.
At this day, indeed, how can the theologian dispense with its
facts in their religious applications ? Let the works of Ray,
Derham, Wollaston, Paley, Crombie, Brown, Chalmers, and
the other authors of the Bridgewater Treatises, testify to their
importance. For though the divine may stand firm upon the
evidence of history, prophecy, and internal character to sus
tain the Bible, yet if he can show that its truths are in agree
ment with nature, and are even sustained and illustrated by
it, his appeal, in this thinking and reasoning age, will come
home with much more convincing power. He cannot dis-
• pense with the facts of science and yet be a workman that
needeth not to be ashamed.
On the other hand, the philosopher should not forget that
the religious applications of science are its most important
use. When he thinks what knowledge has done in elevating
and civilizing society, and in multiplying the comforts and
luxuries of life, he is apt to forget its religious bearings. But
these, in fact, transcend in importance its worldly influences,
as much as eternity transcends time. And most sadly does
he degrade science who overlooks its religious applications.
These form the ground of its truest dignity, and they alone
link it to the permanently grand and the eternal.
But philosophy may also be employed in defending and
illustrating revealed truth. Of this we have a splendid exam
ple in the " Analogy " of Bishop Butler, whose grand princi
ple has been applied successfully by Barnes to nearly all the
peculiar doctrines of revelation. Of all efforts to meet scep
tical objections to evangelical Christianity, this is the most
thorough and complete ; and were this work more carefully
7

74 MUTUAL RELATIONS BETWEEN
studied, along with such authors as Chalmers, Harris, Whewell,
Sedgwick, Isaac Taylor, and McCosh, who extend and illus
trate analogous principles, the flippant and superficial sci
olism of the day, that would metamorphose the Deity into
natural law, would find little favor.
Nor are these religious applications of philosophy confined
to the older and more mathematical sciences. Nay, those
more recent, and dependent mainly upon experiment and ob
servation, when rightly understood, are remarkably prolific of
religious illustrations. Chemistry and physiology, for exam
ple, throw much light upon the doctrine of the resurrection
of the body, and vindicate it against objections otherwise un
answerable. The former science, also, points us to the true
meaning of those scriptures that describe the destruction of
the world by fire ; showing us that it is change of form in the
matter of the globe, but not its annihilation. Meteorology
teaches us how to understand the language of Scripture re
specting the firmament above us. And geology, especially,
lends confirmation to the biblical history, of man's creation as
a comparatively recent event ; it shows us how we should
understand the scriptural cosmogony, points out a new argu
ment for the divine existence, and lends such decisive cor
roboration to the revealed doctrines of special and miraculous
providence, and divine benevolence, that these truths could
not consistently be excluded from the creed of philosophy,
though the testimony of the Bible were lost.
Surely, then, the interests of theology demand that the reli
gious applications of science should not be overlooked ; and,
on the other hand, science should count it the highest honor
to be able to throw even a ray of light upon God's written
word. I venture here to suggest another use to which science may

THE PHILOSOPHER AND THEOLOGIAN. 75
be applied by the theologian. It is well known that sharp
discussions not unfrequently occur respecting the meaning
of the language of the ablest divines after their decease ; and
they are charged with teaching contradictory principles. It
is well known, also, how great complaint is often made, by
controversial writers, of the misunderstanding of their views
by their opponents. But how seldom do discussions of this
sort occur respecting the meaning of eminent mathematicians,
natural philosophers, and naturalists ! Nor does this result
from entire unity of views, and the certainty of every princi
ple discussed in these sciences. But it springs mainly from
the definiteness and precision of the language which is em
ployed. Take botany or chemistry, for example : how can
men be in doubt about the meaning of a sentence, when al
most every word in it has a settled and usually a single sense ?
I do not suppose that equal precision could be introduced into
theology, because it treats of natures more subtile than those
of physical science. But I suggest whether divines, in the
definition of their terms, might not advantageously consult
the directness, singleness, and precision of physical science
more, and the wariness, subtilty, and equivocal senses of met
aphysics less. I fancy that in the style of Dr. Chalmers,
which, although sometimes too stately, is always clear, we
have an example of this improved phraseology. I doubt
whether posterity will hesitate much as to the meaning of his
writings ; and perhaps the unsanctified ambition of the earlier
periods of his ministry, which led him to devote so much time
to mathematics, chemistry, and natural history, will be thus
overruled to the benefit of theology.
Every true philosopher, no less than the religious man,
should be desirous that his pursuits may accomplish the most
possible for the good of society ; fipr benevolence is a duty of

76 MUTUAL RELATIONS BETWEEN
natural as we'll as revealed religion. Now, the cultivation of
science alone, in a community where atheism or infidelity
predominates, is most likely to prove a great curse. Knowl
edge pufleth up ; and hence mere scientific acquisitions tend
to foster pride, selfishness, and inordinate ambition, and -to
exalt the brilliant iew at the expense of the degraded many.
4 The result will be, that the most furious passions of our nature
will exhibit their deadliest malignity in a community where
science is cultivated, but spurns the aid of religion.
What a terrible illustration of this truth has been exhibited
during the last century in the centre of European civilization !
Never did France show more of brilliant scientific skill than
during the savage days of her first revolution ; and her whole
subsequent history teaches us how dangerous it is to commit
the power which science bestows into irreligious hands. The
meteoric explosion which was the result, not only rent that
unhappy country to atoms, but sent its iron fragments into
every European land ; and the death groan that followed has
hardly yet died upon our ears. It was a dear-bought yet im
pressive lesson of the danger of committing scientific power
into the hands of irreligion ; and it should lead the philos
opher to feel the necessity of spiritual influence to control the
energies of science. Truly, as Coleridge remarks, " all the
products of the mere understanding partake of death ; " and
as Lord Bacon still more appropriately observes, " in knowl
edge, without love, there is ever something of malignity."
But there is another important fact on this subject. The
general diffusion of scientific knowledge through a community
can never take place without the aid of Christianity. There
may be an aristocracy of learning, as in the case just quoted,
but religion alone will provide for general education. Left to
the influence of any other principle, the favored and enlight-

THE PHILOSOPHER AND THEOLOGIAN. 77
ened few will keep down and oppress the ignorant masses.
Popular education is found only in connection with revelation.
So says the history of the world ; and an analysis of human
nature shows us that it must be so. Hence every philosopher
who is a friend to his species will feel it his duty to promote
the diffusion of Christianity as well as of science. Thus only
can the greatest good be secured to the whole.
The third means of ascertaining and settling the principles
that should regulate the intercourse and feelings of the the
ologian and philosopher is by an appeal to history and obser
vation. We thus learn the results of many well-tried experiments
on this subject; and these should have all the force of law,
and be incorporated into the code of mutually obligatory
principles. They are more certain than the a priori de
ductions already considered, and I could wish that my space
would allow a fuller enumeration of what has thus been
taught One of the principles thus developed is the danger of exalt
ing philosophy above revelation. Unhappily, we can hardly
glance at a page of ecclesiastical history without finding in
structive examples. Perhaps the Platonizing tendencies of
the Christian fathers for many centuries are the most striking
illustration in former times. It is hardly strange that those
who came out of the schools of philosophy into the school of
Christ should be gratified to find, and be ready to suppose
they could find, a correspondence between the doctrines of
their old and new masters. And how natural, in such a case,
to accommodate the principles of the new leader to those of
the old one ; or rather to exalt the teachings of the first above
those of the last. Thus did the fathers ; and though Platonism
was again and again driven out of the church, again and again
7*

78 MUTUAL RELATIONS BETWELN
was it brought back — demanding from time to time a new
exorcism. But though this incubus rested on the church for so many
centuries, and often well nigh stopped its breath, modern
divines seem to have gained little wisdom by the severe les
son. Plato and Aristotle, indeed, no longer vex the church
by name. But their spirit, like the exorcised demon of old,
walking through dry places, and seeking rest in vain, has
commissioned seven other spirits to return into the sacred
enclosure, not merely to modify Christianity, but to expel it.
Hence, in modern theological literature, we have profound
works on the gospel, whose object is to prove the gospel a
fable ; treatises on dogmatics, without any doctrines ; and
lives of Christ, from which Christ is excluded. Instead of
one or two leaders, as of old, we now have scores. Having
the shoulders of those old giants, Plato and Aristotle, to stand
upon and start from, it is only necessary to be provided with
a huge pair of transcendental wings to seem very large to a
wondering world, as they soar away into the mysterious ether,
into which those old giants found it difficult to rise, because
the clogs of common sense hung so heavily upon them.
Justice requires me to add, in this connection, that the phi
losophy which has thus been exalted above revelation so often
and so disastrously is not that of induction, but of abstrac
tion ; not that of Bacon, and Newton, and Whewell, but that
of Hobbes, and Hume, and Diderot. I know that there
always has been, and still is, a strong jealousy of physical
science, as if it were hostile to religion ; but where is the
evidence of such hostility? What philosopher of the Ba
conian school has ever erected within the church a tower that
overlooked and overawed Christianity itself, and made it a
resort for those too proud to submit to revealed truth ? But

THE PHILOSOPHER AND THEOLOGIAN. 79
how often has the deductive philosophy done this ! Divines
seem prone to forget the distinction drawn with such a vig
orous hand by Isaac Taylor. " The entire mass of intel
lectual and theological philosophy," says he, " divides itself
into two classes — the one irreconcilably opposed to the other.
The first is, in its spirit and in all its doctrines, consentaneous
with human feelings and interests. The second is, both as a
whole and in its several parts, paradoxical. The first is the
philosophy of modesty, of inquiry, of induction, and of belief.
The second is the philosophy of abstraction, as opposed to
induction ; and of impudence, as opposed to a respectful
attention to nature and to evidence. The first takes natural
and mathematical science by the hand ; observes the same
methods, labors to promote the same ends, and the systems
are never at variance. The second stands, ruffian-like, upon
the road of knowledge, and denies progress to the human
mind. The first shows an interminable and practicable,
though difficult, ascent. The second leads to the brink of
an abyss, into which reason and hope must together plunge.
The first is grave, laborious, and productive. The second
ends in a jest, of which man and the world and its Maker
are the subject."
A second instructive fact taught us by history and observa
tion, is the strong tendency to substitute a dogmatic and
denunciatory spirit for knowledge and argument. Men of
superior intellect and extensive erudition are very apt to do
this in respect to subjects to which they have never given
special attention. Some new science or discovery has been
brought forward in such an aspect as seems to the theolo
gian to conflict with religion. He has never studied the sci
ence, it may be, and cannot therefore hold an argument on
the subject. But he feels deeply the wound inflicted on

80 MUTUAL RELATIONS BETWEEN
revelation, and he cannot sit still and see that cause suffer
which he loves so well. He denounces the new discovery,
therefore, and gives no doubtful intimation that its advocates
are sceptics, trusting to his reputation as a theologian to en
force his opinion upon the public. Some, whose organ of
veneration is large, swallow the ex-cathedra judgment with
no wry faces. Others, more discerning, see through the ruse,
and sigh over human weakness. Scientific men look upon
the whole with silent contempt, nor deign to attempt an
answer to dogmatism and personal abuse.
Sometimes, however, a scene equally absurd is witnessed
on the other side. A scientific man, desirous of extending his
discoveries into the domain of religion, ventures upon inter
pretations of Scripture, or statements of doctrine, that show
him quite ignorant of both. The practised theologian points
out the fallacy of his reasoning so clearly as to wound his
pride. But, instead of generously confessing his error, he
resorts to charges of bigotry, narrow-mindedness, and igno
rance of science, and dogmatically maintains that science is
to be followed, whatever becomes of revelation. He shows
towards it and its defenders the same bitter, bigoted spirit
which he censures in his opponents. Their arguments he
cannot answer, because he has never studied hermeneutics or
theology. And so he wraps himself up in the cloak of self-
conceited wisdom, and substitutes contempt for logic. Men
talk much of the odium theologicum, as if it were the quint
essence of gall. But really, the odium scientiftcum is often a
much more concentrated mixture. The most illiberal of all
bigots are those who fancy themselves the very pinks of lib
erality ; and pride never assumes such lofty airs as when it
curls the lip of the self-satisfied philosopher who is destitute
of Christian humility.

THE PHILOSOPHER AND THEOLOGIAN. 81
The disastrous influence of mutual jealousy and hard
speeches between theologians and philosophers is a third les
son most impressively taught by history and observation.
Although many distinguished divines have been eminent phi
losophers, and science is largely indebted to the clerical pro
fession, yet, in general, the two classes have kept very much
apart from each other. This is particularly the case in re
spect to the cultivators of physical science. In general they
have an impression that theologians feel no sympathy with
their pursuits, and are not only ignorant of science, but preju
diced against it, as unfriendly to religion. And the fact that
so few in the ministerial office do regard attention to natural
science, by the ministry, as entirely appropriate, fosters this
false notion. But it awakens deep prejudices in these scien
tific minds against clergymen, because they cannot see why
the ministers of God should not take interest enough in his
material works to study them. Prejudice prevents that inti
mate acquaintanceship which would be its cure. It engenders
distrust, and produces severe judgments, and keeps those
apart who should be cordial friends, because they are both
engaged in the same great business of developing the works
and ways of the Almighty.
This jealousy and want of acquaintance with each other
produces a reaction on the part of theologians, who, also,
become censorious and distrustful of men of science. They
learn that some such are sceptics, and they presume that
nearly all are. Hence, when some new scientific discovery, is
announced, which seems unfavorable in its bearings upon rev
elation, theologians are at once suspicious that the author of
it is intentionally aiming a blow at Christianity — although the
greater probability is that its bearings upon religion never
entered his mind. But too often, in such cases, the zealous

82 MUTUAL RELATIONS BETWEEN
vindicator of the truth throws out such an insinuation in the
public ear, and if the scientific man is not a meek Christian,
the ungenerous suggestion may convert into an enemy of the
faith one who before was only negligent of it, or indifferent
towards it.
But this is not the worst of it. Such a course produces a
conviction on the public mind, that men of science teach one
thing, and theologians another. Nor can there be a doubt
that there is a strong disposition among intelligent men, who
are not pious, to take sides with science, even when it seems
hostile to revelation ; and thus may the severe and unfounded
judgment of the theologian, in respect to science, confirm and
multiply men of sceptical views.
This point may be illustrated by the history of geology.
Ever since Cowper, in his oft-quoted lines, charged geologists
with digging and boring the strata in order to disprove the
history of Moses, almost all subsequent writers have repeated
the accusation ; and I doubt not that the almost universal be
lief now is, that the works of geologists abound with open or
covert attacks upon revelation. But the impression is entirely
erroneous. In perhaps four out of five of those works, you
will find able attempts to reconcile the facts of geology with
Scripture ; but I have never met with a single attempt, in any
language, by any respectable geologist, to adduce the facts of
the science to the discredit of revelation. Many of them are,
doubtless, sceptical ; but they have not done this thing, as they
are charged. If it has been done at all, it is by men of no
reputation as geologists. Yet probably it will require another
quarter of a century to rid the public mind of this false im
pression.* * How easy would it be to substantiate these statements by quotations from
the most eminent geological writers of the last fifty years ; such as Jameson,

THE PHILOSOPHER AND THEOLOGIAN. 83
Now all these false notions would be avoided, if men of
science and theologians would cultivate a closer acquaintance.
If men of science were often to come into contact with di
vines, instead of finding them narrow-minded, bigoted, and
unfriendly, as they now suppose, they would, in general, be
gratified by their enlarged and liberal views, their ability and
candor in looking at scientific truth, and their ardent love of
all kinds of knowledge, and cordial efforts to promote it ; and
many they would find to be successful and eminent cultivators
of science. In like manner would scientific men appear in a
quite different light to theologians. Instead of subtle and
designing enemies of Christianity, they would find many to be
its firm friends ; and nearly all entertaining for revelation the
Silliman, Buckland, Coneybeare, Mantell, Sedgwick, Lyell, MacCulloch,
Miller, &c. But I will refer only to a recent work by two eminent French
geologists, C. D'Orbigny, and A. Gente, published in Paris in 1851, entitled
" Geologie appliquie aux Arts et a 1' Agriculture." Coming from a city gen
erally regarded as the centre of European scepticism, and whose learned
men have been considered as unfriendly to the Bible, it is gratifying to find
that these authors, after a laborious attempt to bring revelation and geol
ogy into harmony, pass the following noble eulogium upon the sacred
volume : —
" In view of the chronological agreement between Genesis and the most
authentic geological facts, we cannot but accord to this mysterious book
Bomething profound and supernatural. If the mind is not convinced, it at
least bows reverently before such writings, brought out in an age when we
cannot suppose the first elements of the natural sciences were known, and
which embraces a development of the principal events of which our globe
has been the theatre. We find in Genesis something so simple, so touching,
and so superior in respect to morality and philosophy, that the sceptic, as
tonished moreover at the genius that could foretell facts which scientific re
searches should demonstrate so many ages afterwards, is forced to acknowl
edge that there is in this book the evidence of an inspiration secret and
supernatural ; an inspiration which he cannot comprehend, which he cannot
explain, but which strongly affects him, presses upon him, and controls him."
-p. 107.

84 MUTUAL RELATIONS BETWEEN
highest respect. Their chief fault is, that in their ardent and
exclusive devotion to science, they are apt to neglect that
higher attention to religion which its claims demand — a charge,
however, which I fear lies equally against most other classes
of society. They would find, in fact, almost without excep
tion, that these men were ready publicly to express their re
gard for religion ; and while they would contend for the full
est liberty of investigation into every department of nature,
they would resent the charge of intentionally aiming to injure
the credit and authority of revelation.
If I mistake not, a reference to the British Association for
the Advancement of Science will not only confirm these sug
gestions, but show that British divines "are ahead of Ameri
cans on this subject. That association embraces all the most
eminent scientific men in the kingdom, as well as many from
the continent ; and they meet yearly to spend a week together
in scientific discussions. Here we might expect, if any where
among the cultivators of physical science, an exhibition of
religious scepticism. But the fact is, a decidedly religious
tone has always been exhibited in that meeting. Whenever a
fitting opportunity presented, the addresses of the presiding
officer, and of the members, have exhibited a spirit not only
religious in the general sense of the term, but in its Christian
sense. Said Sir R. H. Ingliss, the president, in 1847, " I will
only add my firm belief, that every advance in our knowledge
of the natural world will, if rightly directed by the spirit of
true humility, and with a prayer for God's blessing, advance
us in a knowledge of himself, and will prepare us to receive
his revelation of his will with profound reverence." In echo
ing similar sentiments from Dr. Abercrombie,- at the meeting
in Edinburgh, in 1834, Professor Sedgwick remarked, that
" the pursuits of science, instead of leading to infidelity, have

THE PHILOSOPHER AND THEOLOGIAN. 85
a contrary tendency ; they tend rather to strengthen religious
principle, and to confirm moral conduct."
One of the most gratifying features of the meeting of this
body in Edinburgh, in 1850, which I had the pleasure of at
tending, was the strong religious influence which was mani
fested. This resulted, in part, perhaps, from the fact that the
meeting was presided over by that truly Christian philosopher,
Sir David Brewster. But his noble address was warmly sec
onded by others. Said Dr. Robinson, the eminent astrono
mer, in complimenting Dr. Mantell's lecture on the gigantic
extinct birds of New Zealand, " This lecture speaks to us of
God ; yea, more, it speaks to us of Jesus Christ," — alluding
to the fact that these birds were discovered by missionaries ;
and that sentiment was warmly cheered by the immense audi
ence, of more than one thousand persons, embracing some
twenty of the nobility, a hundred members of the Royal So
cieties of England and Scotland, sixty professors in the uni
versities and colleges, a hundred physicians, and a hundred
clergymen. Ay, a hundred clergymen ; and in the fact I dis
cover the main secret of the religious tone that has charac
terized these meetings. And here it is, as it seems to me, our
British brethren are ahead of us in this country. For there
is also an American Scientific Association, on essentially the
same plan as the British. It has now been in existence twelve
years, and I have attended all its annual meetings save two ;
nor have I ever seen any other feeling manifested than re
spect for religion. But I am sorry to say, that I have met
there only a very few of my clerical brethren. If they de
sire to witness in this body as decided an influence in favor
of religion as is exhibited on the other side of the Atlantic,
they have only to attend its meetings and take an active part
in its labors. 8

86 MUTUAL RELATIONS BETWEEN
A fourth lesson taught by history and observation is, that
neither philosophy nor biblical interpretation have yet arrived
at a perfect and unchangeable state.
Mathematics is the only science that can lay claim to infal
libility, and even this admits of progress ; so that new reli
gious applications may arise from new researches. The
other sciences range widely along the scale of probability
and certainty in their conclusions. Many points in them all,
and in some nearly every point, admit of further elucidation,
such as may considerably modify their religious bearings.
Let the history of philosophy, even in the exact sciences, and
eminently in the psychological and moral, teach us how vain
is the pretence that they can assume no new phase in relation
to religion. How cautious, therefore, should the philosopher
be, to distinguish between the settled and the changeable prin
ciples of science, before he pronounces any of them in col
lision with inspired truth !
On the other hand, however,. let the theologian remember,
that, though the principles of the Bible be infallible and un
changeable, not so is its interpretation. Passing by the wild
rationalistic theory of accommodation in biblical hermeneutics,
it is still true, that on many principles of their science exe-
getical writers are not agreed. The result is diversity of sig
nification, when they interpret the word of God. Yet to
avoid misapprehension, let me avow my conviction, that, so
far as the essentials of salvation are concerned, the Bible is
so plain a book, that no theories of interpretation, advocated
by honest Christian men, can conceal these great truths. In
fact, so prominently do they stand out in the Scriptures, that
it needs no rules to make them intelligible, save what com
mon sense and common honesty supply ; and hence no soph
istries of the interpreter can long conceal them from the

THE PHILOSOPHER AND THEOLOGIAN. 87
people. But very different is the case with some of those parts
of Scripture hard to be understood, and of others, which can
not be understood till researches and discoveries in philology,
history, and science have given us the clew. So long as these
discoveries continue to be made will the meaning of some
passages of Scripture be liable to modification ; and at pres
ent these branches of learning are far enough from perfection.
It is impossible, therefore, that the meaning of some portions
of Scripture should not receive some modifications for a long
time to come ; and he does the most injury to the cause of
religion, who rejects every new interpretation, and considers
it dangerous to disturb the settled notions of men as to the
meaning even of the less important portions of Scripture.
He must have a weak faith in the Bible who fears to have
every passage in it subjected to the most thorough scrutiny,
under the concentrated light which all literature and all sci
ence can pour upon it. And he must have a very narrow
view of literature and science who fancies that they have
done all they can do to elucidate the sacred text. Yet how
common the notion among divines, that, while " human science
is a changing and a restless thing," theology — not merely its
framework, but its entire covering, coloring, and appendages
— has long since received its last finish !
The fifth lesson taught us by history and observation is the
weakness and folly of predicting or apprehending injury to
Christianity from scientific discoveries. Such fears and pre
dictions are not uncommon. On the one hand, the infidel, by
a hasty inference, feels confident that the new discoveries
will give a deadly blow to what he regards a false system ;
and he exults in the anticipated discomfiture of the Christian
church. Some intelligent Christians, also, become alarmed
at the threatening aspect of the new views, and tremble for

88 MUTUAL RELATIONS BETWEEN
the result. But how vain are all such fears and predictions !
It is the fiftieth time in which Christianity has seemed to the
sanguine sceptic and the timorous believer to be in great peril ;
and yet not even an outpost has been lost in this guerilla war
fare. Discoveries in astronomy, geology, chemistry, and
physiology have often looked threatening for a while ; but
how entirely have they melted away before brighter light and
more careful study ! Moreover, every new assault upon
Christianity seems to develop its inherent strength, and to
weaken the power of its adversaries ; because, once discom
fited, they can never rise again. It will be time for the infi
del to begin to hope, when he shall see, what he has not yet
seen, a single stone struck from one of the bastions of this
massive fortress by his artillery. And strange that any be
liever should be anxious for the future, when the history of
the past shows him that every science, which for a time has
been forced into the ranks of the enemy, and made to assume
a hostile attitude, has, in the end, turned out to be an effi
cient ally.
History and observation sustain us in going further than
this ; they show us that, as a general rule, the more threaten
ing have been the developments of any science in its earlier
periods in respect to Christianity, the more strong and abun
dant have been its ultimate support and illustration of religion.
The introduction of the Copernican system of astronomy
seemed, to the divines of that day, utterly irreconcilable to
revelation ; and they contended against it as if the life of re
ligion were at stake. Nevertheless, the demonstrations of
physics triumphed over councils and decrees ; but instead of
proving the death of religion, what Christian does not rejoice
in the rich illustrations and auxiliary support which revelation
has derived from astronomy ? especially in furnishing to the

THE PHILOSOPHER AND THEOLOGIAN. 89
commentator the true principle of interpreting texts of Scrip
ture that relate to natural phenomena. So, too, chemistry
was employed for a time by the exulting sceptic, and to the
alarm of the timid believer, in disproving the future confla
gration of the earth. Yet not only has this envenomed arrow
fallen harmless to the ground, but the science has furnished
materials enough for at least one volume as a prize essay,
entitled " Chemistry as exemplifying the Wisdom and Benefi
cence of God ; " and other similar volumes might easily fol
low. During the early part of the present century, no science
excited so much of this false alarm as geology. But already,
if I do not mistake public opinion, the tables are well nigh
turned, and, save here and there a disconsolate few, who have
so long been chanting the death song of Christianity that they
can never change their notes, the ministers of Christ now find
among the religious applications of this science rich illustra
tions of divine truths ; and from the disinterred relics of the
deep-bedded strata there come forth a voice in defence of
the peculiar doctrines of the reformation, and a new argument
for the divine existence. So that, in fact, this new field of
religious literature is already becoming attractive and pro
lific in publications. To geology, therefore, may be applied
the riddle of Samson: Out of the eater comes forth meat, and
out of the strong comes forth sieeetness.
Now, in view of such results, we may confidently predict
that some recent and yet imperfect sciences, lying on the out
skirts of physiology and psychology, although at present
greatly perverted by sciolism, and made to bear unfavorably
both upon morals and religion, will in the end afford a sup
port to both, proportionably strong. What they need now is
careful investigation by clear-headed men of the Baconian
school, who are familiar both with physical and intellectual
8*

90 MUTUAL RELATIONS BETWEEN
science. But so long have these subjects been in the hands
of charlatans, or of men with limited and partial views, that
able and respectable philosophers, especially among the cler
gy, shrink from their investigation, lest the title of phrenolo
gist, or mesmerist, or spiritualist should destroy their repu
tation and usefulness. It ought not so to be ; and I am satis
fied that not until this thorough investigation takes place will
these branches of knowledge be placed upon the same sure
footing on which other departments of experimental science
rest. At present they seem to me like some large temple, or
palace, mostly buried by rubbish, with only here and there
some tower, or minaret, or column projecting above the sur
face. Around these detached parts groups are gathered, en
deavoring to show that each tower or column is a complete
temple. But not till the vast piles of rubbish are removed
will the real temple exhibit its true proportions and character.
When this is done, I fancy that the structure will be found a
noble one, and worthy of the infinite Architect.
I have time to derive only one other lesson from history
and observation on this subject. They show us how unwise
it is to denounce any new discovery, or theory in science,
when they are first broached, as hostile to religion ; and es
pecially to take the ground that if the new views are true,
the Bible must be false. There is a strong temptation to do
this. Men of ardent temperament, who love the Bible, when
any thing is advanced which can be construed into hostility to
its statements, feel as we all do when any thing is suggested
derogatory to the character of a near friend. We rush to
the defence without waiting for the dictates of prudence ; and
thus we may injure instead of assisting our friend. Much
more liable are we to injure the Bible. There is no need of
such haste. Christianity stands on too firm and broad a base

THE PHILOSOPHER AND THEOLOGIAN. 91
to be overturned by one or a hundred such blows as have
hitherto been aimed against it. The true policy is to wait for
a time, to see whether we fully understand the new views,
and whether they conflict with the letter or the spirit of revela
tion. Suppose the theologian should take ground which he is
compelled afterwards to abandon, and to fall in with the new
discovery. With how bad a grace will he come over to the
new ground after severely denouncing as infidels those who
adopted it ! How likely to lose the public respect, and to make
sceptics of those who were before only indifferent ! How
mortifying must it have been to the theologians who, one
hundred and fifty years ago, denounced astronomy, to see its
discoveries at length introduced into the almanac, and testify
ing of their bigotry to all classes ! Who can doubt that many
a man, in despising them, was led to despise the sacred cause
which they were appointed to defend ? Yet the theologians
honestly believed that to admit the earth's annual and diurnal
revolution would overthrow the Bible. But how much better
to have waited a little before avowing their convictions !
How little heed, however, do men give to the mistakes of
their predecessors ! The same eagerness and hot haste have
been manifested in our own day to rush into the conflict with
scientific men, as they have brought out new discoveries ap
parently unfriendly in their bearing upon revelation. Divines,
eager for the onset, have not waited till they could study the
subject and understand it, but have rushed upon the foe, confi
dent that by abstractions and denunciation, if by no other weap
ons, they could crush him. Often have they found themselves
in conflict with a windmill, and all they have accomplished
has been to make themselves ridiculous, as with fallen crest
and trailing plumes they have left the field. A little delay
would have taught them that sometimes, at least, the better
part of valor is discretion.

92 MUTUAL RELATIONS BETWEEN
Allow me to refer to a very recent example, where the cau
tion which I recommend would have been wisely adopted.
Some of our zoologists have advanced views respecting the
specific unity and unity of origin of the human race, that are
in conflict with the common understanding of revelation ; and
at once able divines took the ground that such views are irrec
oncilably opposed to the whole scheme of the Bible. They may
be so ; but why declare it before the subject has been more
thoroughly discussed, and we are sure that we understand
it ? It may turn out — and such is my own conviction —
that the zoologists have too hastily decided this question, be
cause they judged of it chiefly from facts in the limited field
of their own science. Suppose it should appear that eminent
naturalists are divided in opinion on the subject. Suppose
that, when they assert that there are several species of men,
they are unable to tell us what constitutes a species, and can
not draw a line of distinction between species and varieties.
Suppose that we should find zoologists entirely disagreed on
the subject of hybridity. Suppose it should appear that the
laws of distribution in the species and varieties of the lower
animals, which is the grand argument for proving a diversity
of origin in the case of man, should be found greatly modified
in respect to him, by his cosmopolite character and ability,
through superior mental endowments, to adapt himself to
different circumstances. Suppose we should find examples
of varieties of men, who have passed from the highest to the
lowest races, save in color, through the influence of deterio
rating causes long acting. Suppose it should appear that eth
nology and psychology are entitled to as much weight in their
testimony on this subject as zoology, and that they should pro
nounce in favor of a unity of origin. Suppose it should be
found that many other elements of this most difficult subject

THE PHILOSOPHER AND THEOLOGIAN. 93
are yet not well enough understood to reason from, and de
mand long and patient investigation. Or make the most un
favorable supposition, viz., that the preponderance of evidence
favors the idea of a diversity of origin. Is it quite certain that
we must give up the Bible, or its more important doctrines ?
Would the discrepancy appear so great as it did when the
Copernican system was first announced ? Shame on us, that
we feel so fearful in respect to God's Word, and those eternal
truths that form the groundwork of the scheme of salvation !
Right is it that we should address ourselves manfully to every
argument that bears upon revelation ; but how unwise, when
it is wholly unnecessary, to take ground which we may be
compelled with a bad grace to relinquish ! .,
In conclusion, let me recapitulate the principles, which, as I
have endeavored to show, should be the common creed, and
regulate the intercourse and feelings of the theologian and
philosopher. They should start with the principle that theology is entitled
to higher respect, as a standard of appeal, than any branch of
knowledge not strictly demonstrative.
It should also be admitted that, as a means of moral refor
mation and a regulator of human affairs, philosophy has little
comparative power.
They can agree, also, in the position, that entire harmony
will be the final result of all researches in philosophy and re
ligion. To the scientific man should be granted the freest and the
fullest liberty of investigation.
The language of science and of Scripture, as well as of
popular religious literature, requires different, or at least modi
fied, principles of interpretation.
Revelation has not anticipated scientific discovery.

94 MUTUAL RELATIONS BETWEEN
It is required that those who pronounce judgment on points
of connection between science and revelation, should be well
acquainted with both subjects.
The facts and principles of science, to an unprejudiced, un
sophisticated mind, are favorable to piety.
They form a vast storehouse for the use of natural theology.
They cast light upon and illustrate revelation.
The harmony of science and revelation is mutually bene
ficial. The cultivation of science, without the restraints of religion,
often proves very disastrous.
The general diffusion of science through a community is
impossible without religion.
The precise language of science may be useful in stating
the principles of theology.
History shows impressively the danger of exalting philoso
phy above revelation.
And the evils of substituting a denunciatory spirit for knowl
edge and argument.
It shows us also the evils of mutual jealousy and hard
speeches between theologians and philosophers.
And the folly and weakness of predicting injury to revela
tion from scientific discoveries.
The more threatening to religion the developments of any
science at first, the more abundant will be its defence and
illustration of religion ultimately.
Finally, it is unwise hastily to denounce any new discovery
as unfriendly to religion, and much safer to wait till its nature
and bearing are well understood.
Now, in conclusion, is not a code of this description needed ?
I feel the imperfection of this first effort to draw it out ; but I
offer it as the beginning of a necessary work. Had the

THE PHILOSOPHER AND THEOLOGIAN. 95
common ground on which divines and philosophers may stand,
been cleared up and marked out centuries ago, how many
violations of sacred charity and good manners, how many un
reasonable jealousies and prejudices, how many angry contro
versies might have been prevented ; and how much nearer to
entire harmony might science and religion ere this have been
brought ! And how many more examples would the page of
history have presented of genuine, humble-hearted, Christian
philosophers, and of high-minded, liberal-hearted, philosophic
divines !
It is such men that are wanted in the ranks of science and
the ranks of theology ; and the principles which I have point
ed out at this time are well adapted to form them. Could I
excite a desire in the hearts of our students in theology to take
this high position, I should not have written in vain. For
what is a Christian philosopher ? He is a man who loves
Nature, and with untiring industry endeavors to penetrate her
mysteries. With a mind too large for narrow views, too
generous and frank for distorting prejudice, and too pure to be
the slave of appetite and passion, he calmly surveys the phe
nomena of nature, to learn from thence the great plan of the
universe as it lay originally in the divine mind. Nor does he
stop when he has found out the mechanical, chemical, and
organic laws of nature, but rises to those higher principles by
which the moral relations of man to his Maker are disclosed.
Hence he receives with gratitude and joy those richer dis
closures of truth which revelation brings. To its authority
he bows reverently and rejoicingly, and counts it the best
use he can make of science to render it tributary to revela
tion, and to the cultivation of his own piety. He exhibits a
generous enthusiasm in the cultivation of science ; but he has
a stronger desire to have it associated with religion ; and hence

96 MUTUAL RELATIONS BETWEEN
he cherishes a high respect for those whose business it is to
teach it. Indeed, the noblest example of a true Christian
philosopher is seen in the able and faithful minister of the
gospel, who employs a thorough knowledge of science, not
merely to enlighten the ignorant, but to illustrate and enforce
the higher principles of religion.
On the other hand, if I were to give a definition of the
highest style of a philosophic divine, it would be synonymous
with that of the Christian philosopher. I should represent
him as one whose grand object is to glorify God in the salva
tion of men, by means of the gospel of Christ, but who made
the whole circle of knowledge, literary and scientific, sub
servient to his great object.
Thus may the philosopher and the theologian be combined
in the same individual. And why should they not ? To whom
is it more fitting to be an interpreter of nature, than to him
who interprets God's work of revelation ? Were such an
identity more often realized, there would no longer be need to
draw out a code of principles for regulating the conduct and
feelings of those no longer twain. It would be like laying
down a set of rules for regulating the conduct of the different
members of the same individual towards one another.
If, then, the theologian and philosopher may be thus identi
fied, it must be because the principles of theology are in har
mony with those of philosophy. Theology does, indeed, de
velop principles which the sounding line of philosophy cannot
reach. But so far as the two systems can he compared, they
coincide. And we may be sure that whatever goes by the
name of science, which contradicts a fair and enlightened
exhibition of revealed truth, is -only false philosophy. To
develop this harmony should be an object of the Christian
ministry, second only in importance to its first aim — that of

THE PHILOSOPHER AND THEOLOGIAN. 97
the personal salvation of men. Indeed, so enlightened at this
day is the popular mind in matters of science, that a large
class of intelligent men will not listen to the claims of Chris
tianity till they are satisfied it does not conflict with science.
It is gratifying to find our young brethren, as they issue yearly
from our theological institutions, so well qualified, by their
enlarged and accurate knowledge both of science and theology,
to engage successfully in this noble work. We bid them God
speed in it ; and so does the voice of history. For it tells
them that the issue of every assault upon religion, with weap
ons drawn from science, has been to bring revelation and phi
losophy into closer agreement ; and hence may we confidently
anticipate ultimate and entire harmony. It is gratifying, also,
to remember, amid all the conflicts of opinion on earth, that
all truth originally sprang from the same pure source — the
infinite mind. But as it enters this world, its rays are sepa
rated, colored, and distorted, by the media through which they
pass ; by human ignorance, prejudice, pride, and passion. It
is the noble work committed to divines and philosophers, so to
prepare and adjust the rectifying glasses of reason and revela
tion, that they shall collect and rearrange these scattered rays
into a pure and uncolored beam, that shall spread the light of
heaven over the darkness of earth. O, as I look down the
vista of years, the sweet vision rises before me. The storm
of conflicting opinions has passed by, and I hear only the
distant, dying thunder, while the spent lightning plays harm
lessly around the horizon. The sun of truth looks forth in
glory behind the retiring cloud, on whose face it has painted
a bow of harmonious colors — a sign of peace to the world,
as its evening comes on, and a pledge of the cloudless and
immortal day that is to succeed.
9

SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE.*

' No subject of theology has in it more true moral sublimity
than the government of God over this world. Yet it is emi
nently a practical subject. Our views of it afford a test of our
piety and a type of its character. Nay, there is one feature
of this government that has been regarded as the chief dis
tinction between revealed and natural religion. We refer to
Special Divine Interpositions. These have been supposed to
be peculiar to revelation ; while nature moves on by uniform,
unchanging and unchangeable laws ; nor does the whole his
tory of those laws, as given by natural science, show a single
example of interference or modification on the part of the
Deity. We venture to call in question the correctness of these
views. If we have read nature aright, it teaches a different
lesson. That lesson may be worth learning. We choose for
our subject, therefore, Special Divine Interpositions in
Nature, as made known by science.
Let us, in the first place, endeavor to affix a definite mean
ing to the phrase Special Divine Interpositions.
But here, perhaps, it may be necessary to interpose a re-

* This address, essentially as here given, was delivered at the anniver
saries of the Newton and Bangor Theological Seminaries. (98)

special divine interpositions in nature. 99
mark, to prevent misunderstanding. We assume, as the basis
of much of our reasoning, those views, now almost universal
among geologists, and very common among theologians, which
teach that this world existed through a vast and indefinite
period before man was placed upon it. Such an opinion we
think perfectly reconcilable with a fair interpretation of Scrip
ture, though this is not the place to go into the proof. But
let no one imagine, when we take such views for granted, that
we mean to cast the slightest doubt upon the inspiration and
literal truth of revelation. Let us be believed rather, when
we express the conviction that, if admitted, they afford a
strong corroboration and illustration of some most important
doctrines of revelation.
We proceed now to affix a definite meaning to the phrase
Special Divine Interpositions.
It requires but a few years' experience in this world to
satisfy any observing mind, that natural operations are carried
on in a settled order ; that the same causes, in the same cir
cumstances, are invariably followed by the same effects. We
call this uniformity of operation the course of nature ; and
the invariable connection between antecedent and consequent
we call the laws of nature. If we should see a new force
coming in to disturb this settled order, we should call it a
miracle. It might do this by a direct counteraction of nature's
laws ; and this is the common idea of a miracle. But if an
unwonted force were added to those laws, the result would be
a miracle ; and so would a diminution or suspension of their
action ; for in either case, the effect would be out of the ordi
nary course of nature, and this we take to be the essential
idea in a miracle. Perhaps the best and briefest definition of
a miracle is, an event that cannot be explained by the laws of
nature. » It may, and usually does, contravene those laws ;

100 SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE.
but it may show only that their force has been increased or
diminished. This, then, is one example of special divine interposition.
Is there any other ? Most writers, theologians as well as
others, would probably answer in the negative. For they
admit only two classes of events in the universe — the mirac
ulous and the ordinary ; the supernatural and the natural.
/ And yet most of them maintain that God exercises over the
world a special providence. It is, indeed, true, that very wide
differences exist as to the meaning of this phrase. One theo
logian tells us that the providence of God " over the human
family is termed special," and that " over those persons who
are distinguished for virtue and piety is called most special." *
Another calls that providence special " which relates to the
church." t Another regards providence " special when it
relates to moral beings, to men and human affairs." J
But whatever may be the views of this phrase among
technical theologians, the leading idea attached to it among
Christians generally is, that God provides and arranges the
circumstances in which men are placed, so as to meet the
exigencies of individuals, just as he would have them met,
and so as will be best for them. In other words, he provides
means exactly adapted to meet the specific wants of indi
viduals. Now, it is an interesting inquiry, whether this can be accom
plished by the ordinary and unmodified operation of the laws
of nature. We confess ourselves unable to conceive of but
two modes in which it can be done.
It is not difficult to imagine how God, at the beginning, when
* Storr and Flatt's Biblical Theology, p. 240.
t Buck's Theological Dictionary.
t Knapp's Theology, Vol. I. p. 501. ,

SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE. 101
he established the laws of nature, did so arrange their opera
tion as to bring about such results as the exigencies of every
individual would demand, and at the exact moment desired.
Human intellect is, indeed, confounded, when it attempts to
conceive of a foresight so vast as to embrace in a glance the
history of every individual of the race, and then so to arrange
the countless agencies of nature, that every item in the his
tory of the numberless millions of our race should be as care
fully and exactly provided for as if only one individual were
concerned. But we are certain that all this is perfectly easy
to infinite intelligence. To suppose the contrary, is to de
stroy the idea of omniscience ; and therefore we are bound
to believe what we cannot comprehend.
It will help us to conceive how God might thus arrange
and adapt the laws of the universe to meet particular exigen
cies, if we consider how it is that most events are brought
about in our experience. We are apt to regard them as de
pendent upon a single second cause, or, at most, upon a few
causes, just because one or two are the immediate antece
dents. But how few events are there that have not been
essentially modified, at least as to the time and manner of
their occurrence and in intensity, by what may be called lat
eral influences ! We see a given cause operating, and we
are apt to feel that we know what will be its ultimate effect
But we forget that every event in the universe has a connec
tion with all other events ; that, in fact, the whole series of
causes in the universe constitutes a plexus, or network, in
which if you remove one of the fibres, you remove the
whole. Every occurrence is, indeed, dependent mainly upon
a leading cause ; but the result may, after all, be prevented,
or greatly modified, by any other cause. So that, as Bishop
Butler remarks, " any one thing whatever may, for aught
9*

102 SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE.
we know to the contrary, be a necessary condition to any
other." *
Conceive of a vast hollow sphere, in which balls of various
sizes are moving in every direction, and with all degrees of
velocity. Fixing your eye upon a single ball, you see it
moving towards a given point, and, if it meet with no obstruc
tion, you are sure that point will be reached. It may pass
through its whole course untouched. But when your eyes
are opened to discern the countless multitude of other balls
flying through the same sphere, you feel almost sure that it
will be deflected from its course, and its motion accelerated
or retarded, by a multitude of collisions ; nor can you pre
dict, by any mathematics which the human mind can master,
what will be the exact course of that single ball. But how
easy for God to do it ! and how easy for him so to place the
other balls, and to give them such momentum, as will carry
the single one to a given point at a given time 1
Now, this supposition gives us a not unapt representation of
the manner in which the events of the world of matter and
of mind are brought about. They are almost never the re
sult of a single secondary cause, acting directly and simply,
but of a great multitude of causes, modifying one another,
and conspiring to bring out the final development. All these
agencies were originally ordained and arranged by the Deity,
in the manner that seemed best to infinite wisdom, which had
infinite power at command. Can it be that they were put
into operation without any plan, or with only a general object
in view ? Who does not see that God might, at the begin
ning, have given to these countless forces such degrees of
strength, and such adjustment and direction, that they would
* Analogy, Part I. Chap. VII.

SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE. 103
bring about just such results in the history of every individual
as would be desirable ? Thus would every case of special
providence be met as certainly as if he should interfere mi
raculously at the moment in each man's life when special
interposition would be desirable.
But with such a complex system of second causes in opera
tion, it is easy to see how the same object could be accom
plished by such a modification of some of those causes by the
Deity, at any given moment, as would produce the desired
result. And this might be done out of human view, so that
man would see only the ordinary operation of nature's laws,
and, therefore, there would be no miracle ; for any event that
can be explained by the regular operation of nature's laws, as
already remarked, is not a miracle.
To most men these two modes of providing for special
providences — the one by a disposition of the laws of nature
in the divine mind from eternity, the other by some change
effected at the moment by divine interference in the complex
causes of events — we say, these two modes will seem to
most persons very unlike. Indeed, they cannot see how there
should be any thing special in an event that was provided for
in the counsels of eternity, and which transpires as the result
of arrangements then made. In order to make it special,
they feel as if it were necessary that the Deity should inter
pose, in some way or other, at the time of its ¦ occurrence,
just as the mechanic finds it necessary to modify his machine,
if he wishes to accomplish some specific object not provided
for by its regular operation.
Now, we feel confident that such impressions result from
our limited views ; or rather, from the difficulty which finite
creatures experience in understanding the mode in which an
Infinite Being thinks and acts. It is hard to divest ourselves

104 SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE.
of the idea that, in his processes of thought and action, God
is altogether such a one as ourselves. But there are certain
principles, true of the divine mind and divine action, that
cannot enter at all into human powers and human conduct.
One is, that no new plan or motive of action can ever enter
the divine mind ; and, consequently, whatever plans we find
developed in God's government must have been perfectly
formed in -the counsels of eternity. Another principle is,
that God never acts except under the guidance of those fixed
principles which we call law. Hence miracles are brought
about by fixed laws as much as common events ; that is, in
the same circumstances we may expect the same miracle.
The law of miracles does, indeed, differ from all others ; and
this constitutes a miracle. But to suppose that God ever acts
without the guidance of a settled principle is to impute to
him a want of wisdom and character which we should be
slow to charge upon an eminent man. No less absurd is it
to suppose the Deity ever to act by the impulse of after
thoughts, as men do ; or that he ever does any thing which
he had not, eternal ages since, resolved to do in manner and
time exactly as it takes place.
If these are correct positions, what possible difference can
it make whether we suppose God to have arranged the agen
cies of nature at the beginning so as to meet every exigency,
or to interpose whenever necessary to accomplish specific
purposes by some new force or law ? Why is not the one
as special as the other ? If he did in eternity arrange and
balance the forces of nature in a particular manner, with
the express design of meeting a particular exigency, what
matter how many ages intervene between the arrangement
and the event ? If a miracle was needed at a particular
moment of human history, and God originally so arranged

SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE. 105
the universe that the law of miracles should come in just at
the right moment, would the event be any the less special
than if we suppose he stood by at the moment, like a finite
being, and by his power arrested or counteracted the laws of
nature ? And the same is true of the means by which a spe
cial providence is brought about. An eternal provision made
for it shows merely the perfection of the divine plans and
operations, but takes nothing from its speciality.
A question may arise in some minds whether such views
do not make all events special, though such a statement be a
solecism. For if God has arranged the agencies of his nat
ural and moral government so that all events happen just as
he intended, on what ground is it proper to say that one of
them is more special than another ? Do they not all meet
some particular exigency ? And what more can any of
them do ?
The fallacy of such an objection lies in the assumption that *
all events are equally the objects of God's intention. If it
were proper to apply such a term to God, we might say that ,/
there is such a thing as an incidental providence — that is,
an event which transpires as the necessary result of a certain
arrangement, but which was not the specific object of such
arrangement. Perhaps our meaning may be made obvious
by reference to an illustration already employed.
We refer to the supposition of a vast hollow sphere, with
balls flying through it in all directions, and of course often
interfering with one another. Take a particular ball, and
admit that God has so adjusted its direction and velocity that,
in spite of collisions, it shall reach a given spot at a stated
time. Suppose that thus to reach the point is the grand object
God has in view in setting the ball in motion. Yet, on its
way to that point, it might encounter a multitude of other

106 SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE.
balls ; and each collision would constitute events as distinct
and as certainly foreseen and determined upon as the final
one. But they might not accomplish any specific object, and
be merely incidental to such a system of moving bodies.
God might, indeed, in infinite wisdom, make them subservient
to other objects besides the ultimate one ; but they might be
mere incidental occurrences in such a system, which even
Omnipotence could not prevent without altering the system.
Now, have we not here two classes of events, equally the
result of divine power and wisdom ? Yet one of them is
special, and accomplishes a definite object ; the other is
merely incidental, and may or may not be used for a spe-
/ cial purpose. Just so can we see how the special prov
idence of God may be distinct from common providence,
although both are equally the work of God. He has so ar
ranged the agencies of his government, that certain specific
objects shall be accomplished infallibly. But through the
operation of those agencies a multitude of other events are
brought about incidentally, which, although related to special
providences, are not such in themselves.
Another inquiry may arise in reference to some of the
preceding reasoning. We have endeavored to show that spe
cial providences may be the result of an original adjustment
of the agencies of the natural and moral world, or of direct
interposition by the Deity out of sight in modifying those
agencies. Now, the question is, Which of these methods is
actually employed in the divine government ? Can we deter
mine which ? If by special interposition at the moment, is
not the evidence of such interposition precluded by the very
supposition we have made ? For the statement is, that the
interposition must be made out of our sight; while within
view, the event seems to be brought about by the ordinary

SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE. 107
laws of nature, since, if made within sight, it would be mirae-
ulous. All we can prove, therefore, is, that God can thus
interpose and modify events within sight, by altering their
antecedents out of sight ; and this is all that seems necessary
for the purposes of religion. Hence it is that the Scriptures
never raise any such questions as this, but simply and boldly
assert the agency of God in the leading events in the history
of nations, communities, and individuals.
From the preceding course of reasoning we think we may
consider the following positions as established : —
First, that there are two modes in which divine interposi
tion may take place — the one by miracles, and the other by
special providences.
By a miraculous providence we mean such a superintend- l
ence over the world as interferes, when desirable, with the
regular operations of nature within the sphere of human vis
ion, and brings about events either in opposition to natural
laws, or by giving them a greater or less power than in their
normal state.
By a special providence we mean an event brought about
apparently by natural laws, yet in fact the result of some
special agency on the part of the Deity, either by an original
arrangement of natural laws, or the subsequent modification
of second causes which lie beyond man's sphere of vision.
Secondly, that both these modesof interposition take place
in accordance with fixed laws or rules of action ; so that there
is a law of miracles and of special providence, as well as of
common phenomena.
Thirdly, that the difference between miracles and special
providence lies in this, that the former cannot, and the latter
can, be explained by the laws of nature.
Fourthly, that special providences may be the result of an

108 SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE.
original arrangement of the laws of the natural and moral
world such as to produce special results, or of a direct mod
ification of those laws at any time by divine power in some
of the links of causation out of sight.
And, finally, that the events are equally special, whether
the result of an original ordination in the divine mind, or of
direct modification of natural agencies at the time of their
occurrence ; nor can we, from the nature of the case, prove
in which mode, or whether by both modes, divine wisdom
acts. The main question now returns upon us — whether there
is any evidence of special divine interposition in nature, save
those which revelation has recorded. All such interpositions
must, indeed, occur in natural operations, since it is their sus
pension or modification that constitutes the interposition ; but
the inquiry is, Does science, or common history, apart from
revelation, contain any such records ?
We waive the inquiry, at the present time, as to the evi
dence which uninspired civil history may contain of special
interposition, both because the field is too wide for the limits
of this article, and has already been to a considerable extent
explored. But the records of physical science have not hith
erto, to our knowledge, yielded much of this kind of fruit.
Our object, at this time, is to attempt to gather at least one
cluster from that field.
It must be confessed that, as a general fact, physical sci
ence seems barren of any evidence of special divine inter
ference — presenting us, instead, with operations as uniform
and unchanging as mathematical laws can make them. Nev
ertheless, if we do not greatly mistake, on some portions of
the vast field we can discover the imprints of special and
miraculous providence.

SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE. 109
We shall speak first of special providence, but only in a
brief manner.
From the nature of the case it might be presumed that we
should need a revelation to show that God had originally
arranged, or directly modified, natural agencies so as to meet
exigencies in the case of individuals or communities. For, as
man sees it, such providence seems to be brought about by
unmodified natural operations. It is hardly sufficient to prove
special providence to find that great wisdom is shown in con
triving and adjusting the laws and agencies of nature so as
to meet the necessities of the animate creation. We want
the proof that those laws and agencies have been so arranged
and modified as to meet particular exigencies, and with those
exigencies specially present in the divine mind. For all the
purposes of religious faith, it is sufficient to show that God
can do this ; and therefore we need not expect that nature
will offer many examples which clearly show it to have been
done. But believers in special providence suppose that they
can find proof in their own experience, or that of others,
that God has thus interposed either to bless or punish them.
When they perceive that various causes have conspired —
causes, it may be, both remote and undesirable — to bring
about a certain result, they call it a special providence. We
know that we need to be slow and cautious in drawing such
inferences ; but not unfrequently the evidence is so clear and
decided, that not to do it would be hurtful scepticism. We
will mention one or two analogous cases in nature.
It is no longer a conjecture, but a settled fact, that our
globe has been the seat of several distinct economies of ani
mal and vegetable life ; that whole races, if not over the whole
globe at once, yet over wide districts, have become extinct,
and been succeeded by new families ; and the new species
10

110 SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE.
have been quite different from the old, requiring new condi
tions as to location, climate, and food. Now, in every in
stance yet known to us, the new races have been met by
conditions exactly adapted to their wants. And this has taken
place although the state of the globe has been one of slow
but constant flux, both from the escape of its internal heat,
the vertical movements of continents, and the action of vol
canoes and water. When we consider how delicate a bal
ancing of these and a multitude of other agencies would be
requisite to accomplish such an object, how many causes
must have been adjusted and made to converge to a given
point through a long series of ages, it does seem to us that
this case should be regarded as something beyond a mere
wise and benevolent ordination of nature's laws, and as a
special adaptation foreseen and provided for by the Deity,
either by an original adjustment of natural laws, or by their
subsequent modification, so as to bring the case fairly within
the definition of a special providence. If any think that, by
thus regarding a case of this kind, we should include all
examples of wise adaptation as special providences, we can
only say that there certainly is a difference that should be
recognized between cases of this sort, which seem to have
been the special object of divine wisdom and intention, and
those incidental events which result from the adjustments
necessary to bring about the special events.
But the records of science furnish us with another class
of examples in nature, still more indicative of a special prov
idence. They are cases in which complicated causes have
operated through vast periods of duration anterior to man's
existence, or even anterior to that of scarcely any of the
more perfect animals, in order to provide for the wants and
happiness of those animals, especially of man. Laws, appar-

SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE. Ill
ently conflicting and irregular in their action, have been so
controlled, and directed, and made to conspire, as to provide
for the wants of civilized life untold ages before man's exist
ence. In those early times, vast forests, for instance, might
have been seen growing along the shores of estuaries ; and
these, dying, were buried deep in the mud, there to accumu
late thick beds of vegetable matter over large areas ; and
this, by a long series of changes, was at length converted into
coal. This could be of no use whatever till man's existence,
nor even then, till civilization had taught him how to employ
this substance for his comfort, and for a great variety of
useful arts. Look, for instance, at the small island of Great
Britain. At this day 15,000 steam engines are driven by
means of coal, with a power equal to that of 2,000,000 of
men ; and thus is put into operation machinery equalling the
unaided power of 300,000,000 or 400,000,000 of men. The
influence thence emanating reaches the remotest portions of
the globe, and tends mightily to the civilization and happiness
of the race. And is all this an accidental effect of nature's
laws ? Is it not rather a striking example of special prospec
tive providence ? What else but divine power, intent upon a
specific purpose, could have so directed the countless agen
cies employed through so many ages as to bring about such
marvellous results ?
Or take an example on a still more gigantic scale. It is
already ascertained that, by the same process of vegetable
growth and decay in the hoary past, thick beds of coal have
been accumulated in the rocks of the United States over an
area of more than 200,000 square miles, and probably many
more remain to be discovered. Yet, upon a moderate calcu
lation, those already known contain more than 1100 cubic
miles of coal ; one mile of which, at the rate it is now used,

112 SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE.
would furnish the country with coal for a thousand years ; so
that a million of years will not exhaust our supply. What an
incalculable increase of the use of steam, and a consequent
increase of population and general prosperity, does such a
treasure of fuel open before this country ! If our numbers
should become only as many to the square mile as in Great
Britain, or 223, there is room enough this side of the Rocky
Mountains for 500,000,000 ; and including the western slope of
those mountains, for 700,000,000 ; equal almost to the present
population of the globe. And yet all that has been thus far
seen in this country, and all that is in prospect, is only an ac
cidental, or incidental, event in his theology who admits no
special providence in nature. We are not of that number, for
we not only believe that God, through vast cycles of duration,
directed and controlled the agencies of nature, so as to bury
in the bosom of this continent the means of future civilization
and prosperity, but that a strong obligation hence results for
every one living here to throw all his energies into the work
of making this land a glory and a blessing to the nations.
Let us go once more on the wings of imagination back to
that remote period of our world's history, when most of its
present continents were beneath the ocean. As we hover
over the waters, we see them agitated by internal forces, and
now and then smoke and ashes, and it may be flames, issue
from their surface. Submarine volcanoes are pouring forth
their contents ; and could we look beneath the troubled waves
we should probably see beds of various kinds thrown out by
the volcano, spreading themselves along the bottom. Among
these beds we should probably see gypsum and common salt.
But what has this to do with special providence ? Let the
ages roll on and we shall see. By and by that ocean's bed
is slowly lifted above the waves. Those waves, during its

SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE. 113
emergence, cover it with a soil adapted to vegetation. Man
at length fixes his dwelling upon it. He discovers, among
the exposed strata, the gypsum and salt which he so greatly
needs, and which by ingenuity and industry he can extract.
And thereby can he greatly multiply his comforts and his
numbers. In like manner might we go back and trace out the origin
of the various ores, the marbles, the granites, the porphyries,
and other mineral treasures so important to an advanced state
of the arts, and of civilization and happiness. And we should
find them originating in agencies equally remote, equally cha
otic and irregular, and seemingly as much removed from all
connection with man's long subsequent appearance. But it
does seem to us that, during the long series of preparatory
agencies, we can every where see the finger of God's special
providence pointing to the final result.
But we turn now to inquire, in the second place, what evi
dence we have, in the records of science, of God's miracu
lous providence ? And we take the position that, in the nat
ural history of our globe, we meet with phenomena explicable
only by miraculous intervention.
Not to speak of the earliest condition of the world, which
hypothesis alone can describe, let us follow back its history
only to the time when legitimate theory shows it to have been
in a molten state. That its internal parts are still in that con
dition, and that its now solid crust was once so, seem to us to
be proved by fair inference from facts ; and such is the opin
ion of almost all scientific men. Think of it now in that
condition — a shoreless ocean of fire. It is not difficult to
conceive how, by the radiation of its heat, a solid crust should
form, and at length the water condense upon its surface, while
volcanic force should form such inequalities as would make
10*

114 SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE.
beds for the oceans, and elevations for continents. Nay, by
the action of the waves and the atmosphere, soils might be
accumulated upon the surface. But, in spite of all that
merely natural operations could do, what a scene of utter des
olation and loneliness would it present ! That wonderful
power which we call life, and the still more mysterious prin
ciple of mind, would be absent. How, then, were the num
berless forms of organism, animal and vegetable, possessed
of life and instinct, and some of them with powers of intellect,
— how were these introduced ? If miraculous interposition
be not necessary here, we know of no exigency in which it
can be ; and we may as well dismiss the idea from our phi
losophy and our theology. Just see what the problem is :
nothing less than to take a world of rock, more or less com
minuted by water, and to convert it into essentially such a
world as the present ; to take a world utterly dead and deso
late, and spread through its atmosphere, its waters, and its
solid surface, ten thousand forms of life and beauty. Has
nature any hidden inherent power to do all this ? Why, then,
can we not lay our finger upon a single manifestation of cre
ative power in nature in these latter times ? O, that power is
the prerogative of the Deity alone. AVho shall have the bold
ness, and even the impiety, to transfer to blind, unintelligent
law, what demands infinite intelligence and infinite power,
miraculously exerted ?
And yet there have always been men who have done this ;
not, indeed, in the bold language in which we have stated the
principle. Yet some of them have confessed that their object
was to sustain atheism. Others have said merely that they
meant to show that every thing, even the creation of animals
and plants, was accomplished through the inherent self-creat
ing power of law ; but they left the origin of the laws to each

SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE. 115
one's own convictions. Nay, some have attempted to recon
cile this creation by law, not merely with theism, but with a
belief in revelation. This is the form in which this hypothe
sis ha^ clothed itself in our own day. In such a dress it has
ventured forth from the philosopher's study, where it has so
long been isolated, and become incorporated with the fashion
able literature of the day. And it has enough of plausibility
about it to make it popular with men who have only a gen
eral, but not a minute acquaintance with science, and who,
afraid to live without some religious system, are yet unwilling
to adopt one that brings God near. This is not the place to
discuss such views. We will only say, that true philosophy
must reject this hypothesis ; first, because the facts adduced
to sustain it, when scrutinized, are too few ; and secondly,
because for every fact seemingly in its favor, a thousand tes
tify against it. Accordingly, all the great living and recently
deceased masters of physical science reject it. Does it ap
peal to anatomy and physiology ? Cuvier, Owen, and Car
penter cry out against it. Does it evoke the aid of chemistry ?
Berzelius, Turner and Liebig see its shallowness. Does it
call on zoology for aid ? Agassiz and Ehrenberg can refute
its claims. Does it search the archives of geology for sup
port ? Sedgwick, Miller, Lyell, and D'Orbigny can show how
certainly they will fail there. Or, finally, does it appeal to
botany ? Hooker and Lindley, Torrey, and Gray, know that
it will certainly glean nothing to sustain it on that flowery
field. The fact is, it is only here and there that a second-
rate naturalist will sympathize at all with such dreamy views.
But there is another, and perhaps a more plausible mode
of evading the general argument for the miraculous introduc
tion of organic life upon our globe. When we descend into
the rocks a certain distance, say six or eight miles, we reach

116 SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE.
those that contain no remains of animals or plants, and show
the metamorphic action of heat, by which they have been
partially or wholly melted. Now, most geologists consider
this horizon as the starting place of life on our globe, and that
the rocks below it were formed before the existence of animals
or plants. But some — and they eminent geologists — main
tain that these lower rocks did once contain organic remains,
which have been obliterated by the influence of the intense
heat, and that, therefore, we cannot tell when life first ap
peared on the globe. For aught we know, these metamor-
phisms may have been going on forever.
A few years ago it might have been difficult to prove di
rectly that this hypothesis is false, though the history of the
rocks afforded many presumptions against it. But the re
searches of the last few years among the oldest of the fossi-
liferous rocks have furnished its full refutation. For it has
been ascertained, that both in Great Britain and in this coun
try, stratified rocks, several miles in thickness, exist below
those containing fossils, and yet retain so much of a mechan
ical character, and are so partially metamorphosed, that if
ever animals and plants existed in them, they would not have
been obliterated. The metamorphic action has not been suf
ficient to melt down the pebbles and fragments originally de
posited, and therefore not great enough to destroy the harder
parts of organic beings, had they been present. Here, then,
we have an indisputable horizon of life, below which there is
no reason to suppose it ever to have existed.
But even if we admit that the apparent is not the real ho
rizon of life in the rocks, there is another scientific fact that
proves it did once begin, however far back we may suppose
the metamorphic cycles to have extended. In other words,
we can prove that there was a time when life did not exist on

SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE. 117
this globe, and consequently a time when it was first intro
duced. And this is the argument : —
If any body, such as the earth, having a certain tempera
ture, be surrounded by a medium, or by other bodies, with a
lower temperature, it is certain, from the laws of heat, that
the warmer body will continue to give off its heat to the colder
ones, till at length they will be brought to the same tempera
ture, unless the higher temperature of the central body is
maintained by the perpetual generation of heat within itself.
Now, we know that at present the earth is placed in exactly
this condition ; for it can be proved that the temperature of
the space surrounding it is at least fifty-eight degrees below
zero. Consequently heat must be continually given off into
the planetary spaces ; and unless there be some internal source
of heat, the earth must he growing colder. When did this
cooling process commence ? Those who believe an indefinite
series of organic beings to have existed on the globe, will not
surely fix a beginning, because that would be yielding the
main point in their hypothesis. Yet it is certain that, if the
earth has been cooling for an indefinite period, the time must
have been when its surface was too hot for animals and plants
to live upon it ; nay, when it was in a melted state. There
must have been a time, therefore, when the first animals and
plants were commanded into existence by the miraculous fiat
of Jehovah. For the idea that the earth possesses within
itself a power for the indefinite renewal of its heat as it es
capes, finds no support in philosophy. We can conceive how
heat might be produced while combustible substances were
burning, but we know of no possible way by which an indefi
nite supply could be evolved.
We are unable to conceive how any philosophic mind can
escape the force of such reasoning as this, which natural the-

118 SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE.
ology brings forward to prove a period in the history of this
world when it was destitute of organic races. But this is
not the only argument which science can offer to prove mi-
raculous*interposition in nature. A second proof, quite inde
pendent of the first, is found in the fact that the earth has
been the seat of several nearly independent systems of life,
since animals and plants were first introduced. A certain
group, wisely adapted to one another, and to the state of the
air, the waters, and the surface, as well as to the food and the
temperature, have flourished for a long period ; and, as some
of these circumstances have changed, they have either grad
ually died out, or have been simultaneously destroyed by some
catastrophe ; so that few if any species have survived. Af
terwards new races have been introduced, exactly fitted to the
altered condition of things. These also, after flourishing long,
have disappeared, and another and another system has suc
ceeded, until we can distinctly trace five economies previous
to the existing races. Many writers say that the number of
systems has been much greater ; and, were we to limit our
views to portions of the earth, it is undoubtedly true. But
we can show that all the races, animal and vegetable, have
been changed at least five times, over the whole globe ; and
five such changes are as good for the argument as five hun
dred. For though we can see how, by natural operations,
organic beings can be destroyed, yet what but infinite wisdom
and power can re people the lifeless waste ? This question
we have considered under our first argument, and hope we
have shown that nothing but miraculous power could have
done it.
But there are some peculiarities that attended the introduc
tion of successive races, which deserve notice. From the
nature of the case, the world must have been preparing, by

SPECIAL DIVINE- INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE. 119
the reduction of its temperature and increased productiveness
of its soil, for a greater variety of organic beings, and for
those of more delicate and perfect organization. And we find
that, at the successive epochs of creation, there was a corre
spondent increase of the higher races, " a gradual ascent to
wards a higher type of being," * in connection with " a grad
ual improvement in the style and character of the dwelling
place of organized beings." f This is called the doctrine of
progression ; and it obviously points to a beginning, not only
of organic races, but of the present system of inorganic na
ture, and requires miraculous divine interposition.
It is well known, however, that at least one distinguished
geologist takes opposite views of this subject, and maintains
" that the existing causes of change in the animate and inan
imate world may be similar, not only in kind, but in degree,
to those which have prevailed during many successive modi
fications of the earth's crust." This is called the doctrine of
uniformity, or non-progression. It is not intended by its able
advocate to teach the world's eternity, although it has that
aspect ; nor does it conflict with the idea of miraculous inter
vention in the creation of animals and plants ; for it admits
that " the succession of living beings has been continued, not
by the transmutation of species, but by the introduction into
the earth, from time to time, of new plants and animals ; and
that each assemblage of new species must have been admi
rably fitted for the new states of the globe as they arose, or
they would not have increased, and multiplied, and endured
for indefinite periods. J
Even the doctrine of non-progression, then, is consistent
with miraculous interpositions in nature. Much more does
* Sedgwick. t Hugh Miller.
J Lyell's Manual of Elementary Geology, p. 501.

120 SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE.
the doctrine of progression demand it. And we confess our
selves campelled to subscribe to the latter doctrine. So far
as inorganic nature is concerned, we have already assigned a.
reason for this opinion. Perhaps the evidence from organic
nature is not as strong, because we cannot say certainly how
many of the more perfect animals will yet be discovered in
the older rocks. But so far as we do know, the progression
has been very decided. More than 24,000 species of animals
have been dug out of the rocks, 700 of which are mamma
lia or quadrupeds. But 695 of these occur within 2000 or
3000 feet of the surface, while in all the 54,000 feet below,
only five species have been found. Birds, the next less per
fect class of animals, are scarcely more abundant in these
lower rocks. Reptiles are more numerous, and extend to a
greater depth, while the fishes, the least perfect of all, are
still more abundant, and are found nearly at the bottom of the
series. And the same increase of numbers would be found
were we to descend still lower on the scale of animals. All
this accords with the doctrine of progression, and so do the
facts respecting plants. Now, making the largest allowance
for future discoveries, it seems hardly possible that it will ever
appear, that as large a proportion of the higher orders of ani
mals and plants existed in the earlier periods of our globe as
at present.
But we hasten to offer one more proof of God's miracu-
¦J lous interposition furnished by the records of science. It is
the creation of man. All observation teaches us that he was
one of the last of the animals that was placed upon the earth.
In vain do' we search through the six miles of solid rocks that
lie piled upon one another, commencing with the lowest, for
any trace of man. And it is not till we come into the upper
most formation, — we mean the alluvial, — nay, not till we get

SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE. 121
almost to the top of that, merely in the loose soil that is
spread over the surfade, that we find his bones. And yet
these, formed of the same materials as the bones of other
animals, would have been as certainly preserved as theirs in
the lower rocks had he existed there. The conclusion is irre
sistible, and it is acquiesced in by all experienced geologists,
that man did not exist as a contemporary of the animals found
in the rocks. At least five vast periods of time, with their
numerous yet distinct groups of organic beings, passed over
this globe before the appearance of man. This is not a
dreamy, hypothetical conclusion, but a simple matter of fact,
which has been scrutinized with great care, and by some un
friendly to revelation, who would gladly have found it other
wise. But no fossil man or works of man have been discov
ered below alluvium, (in which we include drift;) nor would
any really scientific man risk his reputation by maintaining
the existence of the human species earlier than the alluvial
period. What an astonishing exhibition does this scientific fact bring
before us ! Suppose we could explain by chemical and or
ganic laws how the inferior animals were gradually developed
from one another in the successive periods of our world's his
tory. Yet here we have the phenomenon of a being intro
duced at once, superior somewhat in organic structure to the
other animals, but raised immeasurably above them all by his
lofty intellectual and moral powers — a being destined to take
the supreme control of all inferior natures, and, so far as need
be, to subject them all to his will ; and, in fact, to convert the
elements into servants to do his pleasure. The anatomist can,
indeed, describe his organization ; the physiologist can point
out the functions of his organs ; and the zoologist can assign
him his rank at the head of animate creation ; but how is the
11

122 SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE.
psychologist baffled when he attempts to unravel the wonders
of his spiritual powers ! and the theologian, when he looks
into the depths of his moral and immortal nature ! And did
it demand no miracle to bring such a being upon the stage,
and fit him exactly to his condition ? What greater miracle
does even revelation disclose ? Admit, if you choose, that
all other events on the globe — even the creation of all other
organic beings — might have been accomplished by ordinary
laws ; yet, so long as the great fact of man's creation stands
out so conspicuously on our world's history, we need nothing
more to establish, beyond cavil, the reality of divine interpo
sition in nature. God has impressed his own signet so deeply
upon this last act of creation, that scepticism dare not directly
attempt to deface it. And this grandest miracle of nature is
also the greatest of revelation. It stands up a lofty and im
movable rock, amid the ocean of existence, to arrest and beat
back the waves of unbelief, and to reflect the glories of divine
power and wisdom.
We might add other arguments corroborative of the same
principle. But if the three which we have adduced, inde
pendent and cumulative as they are, do not satisfy, we despair
of producing conviction. We may be laboring under some
hallucination on this subject ; but we cannot see why the evi
dence of special divine interpositions in nature is not as clear
and decided as in revelation. The only difference seems to
be, that in the one case we depend on the testimony of living
witnesses ; in the other, upon the conclusions of science. But
if such interpositions have been made in nature, it is easy to
see how important are the bearings of the fact both upon the
ology and upon piety.
See, for example, how the miracles of nature take away all
presumption against the miracles of revelation. We all know

SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE. 123
that this has been a favorite point of attack both in ancient
and especially in modern times. The grand argument has
been, that miracles, being contrary to all experience and all
analogy, cannot be proved by human testimony. We remem
ber the metaphysical network woven by Hume on this sub
ject, which he fancied too strong for any Christian champion
to break through ; and we know, too, how many professed
Christians at this day assume in their theology that miracles
are only ingenious myths. Little did these men imagine what
a record on this subject lay concealed within the stony leaves
of the earth's crust, or that the hammer of the miner and
the geologist would bring facts to light that would sweep away
at once all their ingenious quibbles. So long as Christians
could meet them only with abstract reasoning they felt strong.
But now we lay open the solid rocks, and show them there
miracles of creation as wonderful as the miracles of revela
tion, and of them, the creation of man, perhaps the most
remarkable of all, is the same in both records. We show
them that interference with- nature's usual course has been a
rule of God's government from the remotest times ; and the
conclusion is. irresistible, that what God has done during the
earlier economies of our world he will be likely to repeat
during the human era, should his purposes require it.
Not less effectually does this subject remove all improb
ability from the doctrine of special providence in the case of
individuals and communities. Nay, the facts which we have
presented form an a fortiori argument for the exercise of
such a providence. For if we find proof registered on the
rocks, that God has taken care to adapt the state of the world
wisely and benevolently to the nature and wants of the lower
animals that have peopled its changing surface, and prospec
tively and specially for the comfort and happiness of man as

124 SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE.
a race, we may with still stronger confidence presume that he
will see to it that the exigencies of individuals of that superior
race will be taken care of. Henceforth, then, when we wit
ness the exhumation, from the quarries, of the strange beings
that once occupied the earth, let us not regard them as mere
objects of an idle curiosity, but as so many arguments to show
us that God will take care of our individual interests ; and
when we wander through the deep-seated coal mine, or any
other excavation where human industry is extracting mineral
treasures to advance civilization and happiness, let our faith
gather thence an argument for implicit trust in that prov
idence which, in the depths of past ages, buried up these de
posits for the special use of civilized man. How delightful
for the Christian thus to find food to nourish his faith, where
most men see only rugged rocks, and think only of accumu
lating wealth !
So, too, this subject takes away all presumption against the
doctrine of special divine influence on the human mind ; for
if God would work miracles to accomplish his purposes in the
natural world, much more ought we to expect that he would
exert those influences upon the human mind which are not
inconsistent with free agency, and are essential to prepare it
for a higher state of existence. This he can do without a
miracle ; and it is an exigency which the whole history of his
providence leads us to expect will be met in this manner.
See, too, what a new and interesting argument may be de
rived from this subject for the divine existence. The usual
argument, that from design, requires us to prove, or assume,
a beginning to the matter of the universe ; and here the athe
ist, hiding himself in the fogs of the doctrine of chance, and
an eternal series of things, can make a quite formidable show
of argument. But admitting miracles in the modifications of

SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE. 125
matter, we need not carry our thoughts back beyond those
modifications, and may leave the question of the origin of
matter untouched, without any injury to theism. We thus
get rid of a multitude of dreamy abstractions which have so
long enveloped the argument for the divine existence with a
mist. We force the atheist out of the obscurities of the de
ductive, into the clear light of the inductive, philosophy. We
bring the subject down from the airy region of metaphysics,
and place it on the firm ground of common sense.
This subject, also, may be made to subserve another pur
pose, no less important. It aims a deadly blow at all those
subtle systems of religion founded on the supposed unending
uniformity of nature's laws, and their inherent power to ac
complish all the changes of the organic and inorganic worlds.
Some of these systems, as we have remarked in another con
nection, admit that there might be a Deity to ordain these
laws originally ; but that is a question of no great importance,
since it is the laws themselves, and not divine intervention,
that have taken the world in the state of nebulous vapor, con
densed it into a sphere, brought in at first a few species of
animals and plants of the simplest organization, in the state
of monads, and from them gradually developed all the higher
forms of life by the force of external circumstances and an
internal tendency to improvement, until, at length, as the last
act of the drama, man, in the form of the negro race, was
evolved from the semi-quadrupedal orang, and, still pressing
onward, has assumed the loftier character of the Caucasian.
Now, either the entire history of our globe, which has been
dug out of its stony archives, is false, or this hypothesis is
untrue. The history is based on facts, gathered from a thou
sand fields, widely scattered, yet all teaching the same lesson ;
the hypothesis is speculation merely, springing from a few
11*

126 SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE.
supposed facts, half buried in fog and twilight. Which shall
we adopt ? Philosophy cries out, responsive to the voice of
nature, It is God, and not mere law; an infinitely wise and
powerful God, the God who doeth wonders, whose miraculous
interpositions are recorded in the volume of nature, as well
as in the volume of revelation.
Finally, this subject identifies the God of nature with the
God of revelation. We greatly mistake the general senti
ments of" mankind, if they do not feel that the Deity recog
nized by science, is a quite different being from the Jehovah
of the Scriptures. The first is regarded, indeed, as infinitely
perfect, but as distant and uninterested in human affairs,
binding the iron chain of law around all created things. But
the God of revelation is an infinite Father, who is ever near
his children, watching their every step, with an ear ever open
and quick to hear their cry for help, and with a heart of
boundless love to sympathize with them in all their trials. It
is these different aspects in which the Deity is presented, that
makes the religious man jealous of those views of theology
which science offers ; and it is because he does not wish to
feel that God is so near, and so observant of his actions and
thoughts, that often the scientific man is disgusted with the
God of revelation. But this subject shows us the same God
in both dispensations. He who so often interposed mirac
ulously for his ancient chosen people, and providentially, at
least, for the followers of Christ in every age, — that same
God, as modern science informs us, has shown the same
watchful care over the material creation in all ages, and
specially interposed, whenever necessary, for the welfare and
happiness of all sentient beings. And herein does the pious
heart recognize in the God whose glory is seen in the heavens,
and who has filled this lower world with beauty, the same

SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE. 127
infinite Father, whose wisdom and mercy shine so gloriously
in the plan of redemption.
If these views becorrect, do they not give to the works of
creation a double charm to the Christian heart ? And do they
not suggest the inquiry, whether those who preach the gospel
might not make much more use than they do of natural reli
gion ? If we mistake not, there is a prevalent jealo'usy of
facts and principles derived from nature ; just because those
facts have been sometimes perverted to throw discredit upon
revelation. But we have long been satisfied that, from the
fields of natural science, efficient support may be derived to
some of the peculiar, and to the carnal mind the most offen
sive, doctrines of revelation. We have brought forward, in
this article, only a single cluster of the fruit from that field.
But other and richer clusters, we doubt not, would reward the
search of abler minds. See what such men as Chalmers and
Harris have done ; and let all, who now preach or who mean
to preach the gospel, follow in their steps, and we doubt not
that Christians, instead of being fearful that science and rev
elation are in conflict, would find that they sustain and illus
trate each other, and that the heart of piety might be warmed
at the shrine of nature, as well as at the cross ; for, in an im
portant sense, the cross may be found in nature, and nature
in the cross.
But, after all, the tendency of the age is to substitute that
which is artificial for that which is natural. Hence it is, that
the Christian passes with indifference the works of God,
while his soul rouses and his eye brightens when it turns to
the works of man. O, what a magnificent temple it is which
Jehovah has made our dwelling place ! It is a vast whisper
ing gallery, echoing and reechoing with his name and his
praise. How much do they lose who always have its vast

128 SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE.
dome above them, and its lofty columns around them, and yet
hear none of those whispers or echoes, nor feel any of the
inspiration of the place, but whose supreme attention is de
voted to " the gewgaws and trinkets, the puppet shows and
histrionic feats, which fashion, and ambition, and sensuality
have surreptitiously introduced there ! " How insensible lo
every noble impulse has his heart become who has neither
eye nor ear for the charms of Nature ! For she is the kind
mother of us all. In her arms were we cradled, on her
bosom were we nursed, and her voice falls on every well-
attuned ear like the music of heaven. It is indeed the mu
sic of heaven ; for Nature's harmonies are but a transcript of
the divine perfections, and her voice is, therefore, the voice
of God.
We fear, however, that such sentiments do not accord with
the experience of most Christians. They look upon the sys
tem of nature as a field well adapted to regale the fancy,
gratify the taste, and delightfully exercise the understanding,
but not to warm the heart and feed the spiritual taste of piety.
Creation is, indeed, a splendid temple, but it is cold and life
less. No sacred fire burns upon the altar ; no crucified
Redeemer is there to fix the attention and absorb the affec
tions ; no Spirit of grace speaks gently to the soul. The
religion of sentimentalism may flourish by communion with
nature ; but the piety that saves the soul and blesses the
world must seek for its nourishment at the foot of the cross.
True, it is at the cross we must learn how to be saved, and
how to save others. But because we cleave with supreme
affection to the God of redemption, must we abjure the God
of nature ? If it. feed our devotion to muse on the character
of that God who devised and executed the marvellous plan of
redemption by a long series of miracles in human history,

SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE. 129
«
shall it afford no nourishment to our new-born nature to find
that the Author of this vast universe has interposed, in a no
less special and wonderful manner, to fit up this world that it
might become a proper theatre for the display of redeeming
love ? Is there not something wrong in our hearts, if we do
not recognize the same wonder-working, beneficent God in
the natural as in the moral world ? Creation and redemption
are but parts of one great system, and we may not disjoin
what God has united ; neither may we depreciate one part of
the scheme in order to exalt the other. We will try to unite
them in our experience, as well as in our judgment. Then
shall we see the same great truths imprinted upon nature
which shine forth in 'redemption. Then shall all our com
munion with nature serve only to strengthen our love of the
cross, while the more powerfully we are constrained by the
love of Christ, the more delightfully and profitably shall we
wander among the works of God. O, how meagre is his en
joyment of creation's beauties who looks at them with only
the eye of the cold, calculating philosopher, or the mere en
thusiasm of the poet, but not with a Christian's heart ! It is
only such a heart that can vivify the scenes of the natural
world with the presence of God. Nature has charms, in
deed, for the mere man of taste, and of philosophy. But it
is not till we bring in the religious element, that the affection
becomes such as God would have it, a pure and a sanctifying
emotion. It is no wonder that such a love as this should be a deep
fountain of happiness in every condition of life. It does not,
like almost all earthly affections, become weaker with ad
vancing life, when the pressure of cares, disappointments, and
the infirmities of old age come upon us. The man may be
come weary of the world, and be deserted by it. Feeble

130 SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE.
health may infuse wormwood into the common pleasures of
life ; treachery and ingratitude may convert professed friends
into enemies, and pierce his heart with many a pang ; and
old age, with its failing senses and failing powers, may deaden
his sensibilities to almost every thing else ; but if in early life
a religious love of nature has taken possession of his soul, he
will ever find it a sweet solace in the hour of desertion and
bereavement; and, even amid the frosts of old age, the sacred
flame, less bright only than his immortal hopes, shall spread a
sweet light along his dark passage to the grave.
Such a view of nature as this was taken by the writers of
the Bible. The labored distinctions which we make between
common and miraculous events were unknown to them. In
every event they saw and joyfully recognized God's hand ;
and hence it so often happens that the sentence which begins
with praise to the God of nature ends with ascriptions of
glory to the Redeemer.
Nor is this all ; for these same views of this subject are
taken in heaven. For the redeemed from among men, as
they stand upon the sea of glass, and sing the song of Moses
and the Lamb, exclaim, " Great and marvellous are thy
works, Lord God Almighty.'" Yet these ransomed ones are
ever ready to join in what seems the common chorus of
heaven : " Blessing, and honor, and glory, and power be unto
Him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb forever
and ever.'''' In heaven, therefore, at least, will the God whom
science describes be identified with the God of redemption.
Would that it were so on earth ! It will be, when educated
men, especially ministers of the gospel, shall have fully de
veloped the harmonies between nature and revelation. Here,
then, is an object, second only to that of the personal salva
tion of men, inviting the labors of those who go forth, after

SPECIAL DIVINE INTERPOSITIONS IN NATURE. 131
long years of preparation, from our theological seminaries,
burning with the desire to do what they can for the good of
man and the glory of God. The field is open and inviting,
and the ripening grain abundant. May those who take the
sickle have a large share in so noble a work, and late in life
return, bringing their sheaves with them.

THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED WITH
THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE.

Ladies and Gentlemen : The whole number of works,
original and reprinted, that were published in the United
States during the year ending with June, 1834, was 623. Of
these, 126, or about one fifth, were novels and tales. In
Great Britain, 1112 works were published in the year 1833 ;
of which 71, or about one fifteenth, were novels and tales.
In France, during the same year, 7011 works were issued;
of which 355, or about one twentieth, were novels and tales.
I have not been able to obtain a complete correspondent
statement for any year subsequent to 1834. The following
numbers, however, from the American Publishers' Circular
for April, 1856, show a great increase of works of fiction.
" In all departments, except that of fiction," says Mr. Norton,
" there were published in this country, in the year 1855,
about 800 different works ; adding for the new and old novels
that owed birth or resuscitation to this year, the new issues
will reach, in round numbers, to two thousand." This makes
the works of fiction three fifths of the whole.
These numbers afford some criterion of the taste of the
reading part of the community in the countries specified.
And what I wish particularly to be noticed at this time is, the
much greater demand in this country for works of fiction
(132)

THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE AND ROMANCE. 133
than in Great Britain or France. Were I to include poetry
in the list, however, it would swell the works of imagination
in France to one ninth of the whole, and in Great Britain to
one seventh ; while the poems published in this country during
the same time were not numerous enough to alter the propor
tion above stated. But it is to novels and tales that I wish to
confine my attention. For very few of the injurious effects
supposed to result from romances can be charged upon poe
try, especially if it be not read in connection with romances.
I think I may safely draw the inference, from the facts
stated, that our countrymen show a very strong predilection
for a light and fictitious literature. And I might add other
evidence, were it needful. It would be shown in the register
of every circulating library, as it is in almost every public
original exhibition in the college and the academy. Young
men, in such a case, will select those subjects in which they
feel the most interest ; and how much more common is it, on
such occasions, to hear discussed the character and merits of
writers who address chiefly the fancy, than those who develop
the substantial principles of accurate science and philosophy 1
It is seen, also, in the character of a large part of our peri
odicals, which their editors scarcely dare send forth to the
public, if not set off with one or two original tales. Except
ing a few business newspapers in our larger towns, most of
our hebdomadals also must be adapted in the same way to the
public taste ; and the amorous story often stands in singular jux
taposition with the solemn realities of practical religion in the
adjoining column. But the taste of all classes must be suited.*
* Yet it would he hut an act of justice to readers that the motto for such
newspapers should be, in the words of Burns, —
" Perhaps it may turn out a song,
Perhaps turn out a sermon."
12

134 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED
And last, though not least, our religious literature must be
clothed in the drapery of fiction, or it will be passed by as
old-fashioned and uninteresting ; while the latest religious
romance will be seen occupying a conspicuous place upon the
centre table. Nor will the devoted Christian — devoted, at
least, to this kind of reading — suffer sleep to close his eyes,
till it has been read through, and the enchanting story, if
not the religion of the book, is deeply lodged in his memory.
But it is not my object at this time to go into a detailed
exposure of the evils of novel reading. Suffice it to say, that
when the father learns that his son, who is in a course of
public education, has become devoted to this kind of literature,
he abandons the hope that he will ever rise higher as a scholar
than to become a writer of tales for some newspaper or peri
odical, or possibly the author of a play, that shall at least
once appear upon the boards of Thespis. Or if his son be
destined for business, instead of learning, the father expects
that remissness and effeminacy will take the place of manly
enterprise and success. The mother, too, who finds her
daughter, in spite of all her warnings and rebukes, given up
to secret midnight communings with the latest romance,
almost abandons the hope of ever interesting her in those
domestic pursuits that have always been the glory of New
England women, or even in the higher and purer branches of
literature. Indeed, she will be thankful if her daughter, in
the ebullition of some glowing fancy scene, does not evapo
rate into ether, and pass into that place described by Milton, —
"  All these, upwhirled aloft,

Flew o'er the back side of the world, far off,
Into a limbo, large and wide, since called
The Paradise of Fools : — to few unknown
Long after." —

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE. 135
But I forbear : for I repeat that I have no intention of mak
ing a direct attack upon the passion for romance that has taken
so deep a hold upon the community ; and I beg pardon if any
should be led, from my remarks, to fear a transmigration into
the limbo of Milton. I wish to look at the fact, that so gen
eral a taste for romance exists, with the eye of a philosopher ;
and to inquire what that strong, deep-rooted principle of hu
man nature is, that lies at the foundation of this taste. And
although I doubt not that some are attached to romances be
cause their baser passions there find fuel to inflame them, yet
I prefer to believe, in general, that this taste has a nobler
origin, and results from that strong love for whatever is new
and wonderful, which is found in every human bosom, — es
pecially in the morning of life. That desire was given us for
wise purposes. Whenever it is suffered to waste itself upon
fiction, it is perverted ; and what was intended for our happi
ness becomes our bane. God has filled this beautiful world
with enough of thrilling realities to feed and gratify this pas
sion to the utmost, through the whole course of our pilgrim
age. Passing by all other sources whence it may receive
gratification, I request the attention of this audience — es
pecially the youthful part of it — to some of the wonders
developed by modern science. My object is to convince my
hearers, that here is a far wider and nobler field, and a pro
fusion of more delicious fruit, and sparkling gems, than fiction
can offer. My hope is, that I may thus divert the attention
of some who have begun to sip of the Circrean cup of ro
mance, to the pure Castalian fountains of science, where the
sparkling nectar of truth rises up to meet them.
But in exhibiting the wonders of science, where shall I
begin ? The field is immense : it is the universe ; and it
is all filled up with wonders ; and the more critically these

136 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED
are examined, the more do they multiply and enlarge. It
must be, therefore, only a glance that we can now take. I
feel like the man whohas undertaken to exhibit in one short
hour the mazes and the beauties of an extensive series of
gardens and parks, where the labor of centuries has been
expended in collecting, arranging, and ornamenting the fruits
and the flowers of every clime, and in forming every variety
of alley, terrace, and arbor, of cascade, lake, and fountain.
The conductor, as he hurries his visitors through one enchant
ing and mazy spot after another, can only pluck here and
there a flower, or point to the clustering fruit, or to some
charming landscape. This is all I can hope to do, as we
move at railroad speed through the wide fields of science.
I begin with the science of mind, which, although abound
ing in unprofitable speculation, still presents us with many
important and wonderful truths. There is reason to believe,
for instance, that no idea which ever existed in the mind
can be lost. It may seem to ourselves to be gone, since we
have no power to recall it ; as is the case with the vast ma
jority of our thoughts. But numerous facts show that it
needs only some change in our physical or intellectual con
dition to restore the long-lost impression. .A servant girl,
for instance, twenty-four years old, who could neither read
nor write, in the paroxysms of a fever, commenced repeating
fluently and pompously passages of Latin, Greek, and He
brew ; and it afterwards appeared, that in her early days a
learned clergyman, with whom she lived, had been in the daily
habit of walking through a passage in his house that opened
into the kitchen, and repeating aloud the very passages which
she uttered during her fever. How many interesting infer
ences crowd upon the mind in view of such facts ! What an
amazing power do they prove to exist in the soul ! And what

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE. 137
astonishing developments will be made in this world or an
other, when the vast magazine of thoughts within us shall be
unsealed ! And who can avoid the inquiry, what kind of
thoughts he is daily pouring into this storehouse !
The capacity of the human mind for knowledge is another
of its wonderful powers. By every accession of knowledge
is that capacity enlarged ; nor have the limits of that expan
sion ever been reached, or imagined. Indeed, the nature of
the mind leads us to the conclusion that there are no limits.
And it has already been shown that whatever knowledge the
mind acquires it can never lose. What a magnificent con
ception, to attempt to follow the mind along the path of its
immortal existence, and to see it forever drinking in the stream
of knowledge, whereby it constantly accumulates strength, and
has- the sphere of its capacity enlarged, yet remaining eter
nally infinitely inferior to the Deity ! Yet who can conceive
of the vast amount of knowledge it will ultimately attain, or
its more than angelic intellectual might ?
No less wonderful is man's capacity for happiness. Here
too we find no limits but infinity. The happy emotions of to
day only qualify the soul for stronger emotions to-morrow,
provided all the strings of the delicate instrument are in tune.
Nor is the increase in an arithmetical, but in a geometrical
ratio. Who shall set limits to the expanding series ? or who
will doubt but God can fill to overflowing the most enlarged
capacity through eternal ages ?
Alike unlimited is man's capacity for misery. In this world
his sufferings sometimes rise to a fearful height. Nor can we
discover in the nature of mind any reason why an increase
of knowledge should not add a proportionate intensity to suf
fering. Who can tell what fountains of misery may be broken
up, or when, in the round of eternal ages, the angry billows
12*

138 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED
shall cease to roll over the soul that has broken loose from
the great law of rectitude and happiness ? O, it is not strange
that an inspired writer should declare, that man is not only
wonderfully but fearfully made. His unlimited capacity for
misery is surely a most fearful trait in his intellectual consti
tution. Not less fearful is the supremacy that is given to Conscience
in his moral nature, especially when we recollect with what
unbending severity she applies her scorpion lash upon the
soul that has fallen under her displeasure. Yet no less
promptly does her approving voice cheer the soul that is
struggling along the strait and narrow path of duty, and brings
down into the heart the spirit of heaven. In short, to the mas
tery of conscience every one must sooner or later submit.
Rightly has it been called God's vicegerent in the soul ; and
though it be a part of ourselves, we can as easily annihilate
the soul as to escape from its dominion. And when we think
how terrible are its inflictions sometimes upon the guilty, and
recollect our unlimited capacity for misery, we cannot but in
quire with solicitude whether its commission does not extend
to another world ; and though an affirmative answer may
shock the ear of guilt, it will make the heart of virtue beat
high with delightful anticipations.
Even this slight reference to some of the powers of the hu
man soul show that it is a maze of wonders. What is there
in the boldest flights of imagination to compare with it ? Here
then the ingenuous mind can find enough to feed its strongest
love of the new and the wonderful, without the aid of ro
mance. Another department, no less interesting, is mathematics.
And in the entire certainty of its conclusions it possesses an
advantage over every other branch of knowledge. I know

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE. 139
that it is not uncommon to speak of mathematics as a dry
study ; but it is dry only for the reason that the grapes were
sour to the fox — because he could not reach them. The
truth is, that to those who have the resolution and persever
ance to master its noble truths, it becomes one of the most
fascinating of all pursuits. This is particularly true of the
higher and more difficult parts of the subject — those sublime
heights where your own fellow-citizen, the prince of Amer
ican mathematicians,* soared so high, and gathered so many
laurels, which he wreathed around the very cycles of the
heavens. It is said that he who has the strength of wing to
carry him fairly into the ethereal regions of the differential
calculus, often becomes more fascinated than men in any
other pursuit. So many new and unthought-of truths flash
upon his mind, as he follows the golden thread of demonstra
tion, that he seems to breathe an atmosphere almost freed
from the grossness of earth. In such pursuits we can easily
believe the English mathematician sincere when he exclaimed,
Crede mihi, extingui dulce erit mathematicarum artium stu
dio — "Believe me, it will be sweet to die in the study of
mathematics." But though mathematics be full of curious and fascinating
truths, yet such is the nature of the subject that I shall scarce
ly be able to clothe even one fair example in a popular dress.
Let me attempt one or two founded upon the doctrine of
infinitesimals. To one who has not thought on the subject
this. proposition seems not a little paradoxical, viz., that a man
may approach nearer and nearer to a fixed object eternally,
and yet not be able to reach it ; yet by slackening his pace in
a certain ratio, the result would be that he could never reach
* Dr. Nathaniel Bowditch, formerly a resident of Salem, where this lec
ture was first given.

140 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED
the object, although he might make an infinitely near approach
to it.
Another proposition may be new to some, and worthy of
being named. It is this : two lines may approach nearer
and nearer forever without meeting, — the asymptote to the
hyperbole, for example. This, too, is very easily conceived,
though likely to produce scepticism when first announced.
A third proposition asserts that one infinitesimal may be
infinitely smaller than another. Here the mathematician starts
with something infinitely small, — for that is the meaning of
an infinitesimal, — and he asserts that another thing may be
infinitely smaller. And this he demonstrates. How stupid
must that intellect be which is not roused and interested by
such paradoxes !
The science of moving forces, or mechanics, abounds with
principles and demonstrations that are novel and striking to
the beginner. But for the reasons mentioned in speaking of
mathematics, they cannot be now exhibited. Perhaps the fol
lowing proposition may at least be amusing, although it can
hardly be regarded as true, except theoretically. Any force,
however small, can put in motion a body however large, and
by a sufficient number of repetitions, give it a velocity infi
nitely great. When, for instance, a man stamps with his foot,
he moves the earth ; and could he prevent the reaction of
gravity, and were to continue to stamp long enough, he would
not only put the earth in motion, but give it a velocity greater
than it now has in its orbit. But the nov cttoj, the place to
stand on, which Archimedes demanded, can never be ob
tained ; and therefore this experiment can never be tried.
The mechanical properties of fluids, and especially of the
atmosphere, are some of them of a remarkable character.
Light and yielding as we regard the air, what but experiment

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE. 141
would satisfy us that a musket ball, that has a velocity suf
ficient to range seventeen miles in a vacuum, actually falls
short of half a mile ; and that so rapidly does the resistance
increase with the velocity, that it would become at length so
great that a ball would be stopped as if fired against a* stone
wall !
Another property of fluids that leads to some singular re
sults is their power of pressing in all directions alike. Hence
it becomes true that, any quantity of a fluid, however small,
will balance any quantity, however large. Hence the hydro
static bellows ; by standing on which and blowing forcibly
into a tube, a man may raise himself from the floor — or still
more certainly by pouring into that tube a single pint of wa
ter. Hence, too, by inserting a tube, not more than the tenth
of an inch in diameter, in the strongest vessel filled with wa
ter, and then making the tube sufficiently strong and pouring
water into it, the vessel may be burst ; that is, the weight of
a single quart of water is sufficient to burst asunder an iron-
bound vessel. Or by fitting a strong piston to a large cylinder,
the powerful machine called the hydrostatic press is formed,
by which trees are torn up by the roots, porous bodies aston
ishingly compressed, and enormous weights elevated.
This same principle (of equal pressure in all directions)
prevents us from being conscious of the great weight of the
atmosphere. Indeed, we are not aware that any pressure is
upon us ; and unless we move very rapidly, or against a strong
wind, we scarcely realize that the air offers any resistance.
Hence a man unacquainted with pneumatics can hardly be
made to believe that every square inch of surface upon his
body does in fact sustain a weight of fifteen pounds, and
that the whole weight of the atmosphere that lies upon him is
not less than fourteen and a half tons ; while the whole sur-

142 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED
face of the earth sustains a pressure of twelve trillions of
pounds, or six thousand billions of tons.
The extent to which matter may be divided, both mechan
ically and chemically, may be regarded as one of the wonders
of modern science. Little, indeed, is said at this day respect
ing the infinite divisibility of matter ; which, if theoretically
possible, is now generally regarded by philosophers as in re
ality untrue. With Sir Isaac Newton, they now mostly con
sider it " probable that God in the beginning formed matter
in solid, massy, hard, impenetrable, movable particles, of such
sizes and figures, and with such other properties, and in such
proportion to space, as most conduced to the end for which he
formed them."
These ultimate particles are called atoms ; and although
none of them have ever been rendered cognizable by the
senses, yet it can be shown that they must be inconceivably
small. Gold may be spread over silver wire so thin that
fourteen million films of it would make a pile only one inch
thick ; while fourteen million films of common writing paper
would form a pile three quarters of a mile thick. Gold may
be beaten so thin that one twenty millionth part of a grain is
visible to the naked eye, and one fourteen hundred millionth
part through a microscope. Yet in each of these fragments
there may be, for aught we know, millions of atoms. A cer
tain species of fungus, (bovista giganteum,) has been known
to attain the size of a gourd in one night ; and it is calculated
that the cellules, of which it is composed, must amount to
47,000,000,000. If it grew in twelve hours, this would give
4,000,000,000 per hour, or more than 66,000,000 each min
ute. Animalcules have been discovered so small that 1,000,-
000 would not exceed a grain of sand, and 500,000,000 could
sport in a drop of water. Yet each of these must have blood-

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE. 143
vessels, nerves, muscles, circulating fluids, &c, like larger
animals. What, then, must be the almost infinite littleness
of a particle of these fluids ! Yet chemical solution carries
this division of matter probably still farther. Thus it has
been demonstrated that an atom of lead must weigh less than
the one three hundred and ten thousand millionth part of a
grain, and an atom of sulphur less than the one two trillionth
part of a grain. The bulk of the atom of lead must be less than
the eight hundred and eighty-eight trillionth part of a cubic
inch. But it seems almost useless to make such statements ;
for who can form any correct idea of things so inconceivably
minute ? *
If, however, we regard light as a material substance, results
still more astonishing follow. It can be shown that, in such
a case, the particles of light cannot weigh more than one
million millionth part of a grain ; for if larger, they would
destroy the organs of vision.f On the same principle, it has
been calculated that the particles of light that flow from a
candle in a second are more than six billion times as many
as the grains of sand in the whole earth, if each cubic inch
contains one million.^ The opinion that light is material,
however, has given place to what is called the undulatory
theory. This supposes the universe to be filled with a very
subtle elastic fluid, called the luminiferous ether, and that the
vibrations of this ether communicate the impression of light
to the eye just as the vibrations of the air convey to the ear
the idea of sound. But, upon this hypothesis, the inferences
are no less wonderful than upon the supposition that light is
material. It is a demonstrated fact, for instance, that light
moves at the rate of nearly 200,000 miles (192,500) per
* Prout's Bridgewater Treatise, p. 36.
f Turner's Sacred History, Vol. I. p. 24.
% Ferguson's Lectures, Vol. I. p. 228.

144 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED
second ; and who can conceive of vibrations spreading on all
sides of a luminous body with such a velocity ? Take, for an
example, one of the fixed stars. Astronomers have demon
strated that the distance of the nearest star cannot be less
than twenty billions of miles, while stars of smaller mag
nitude must be situated at a distance immensely greater.
Now, it has been shown by Dr. Wollaston that the light of
Sirius is only one twelve thousand millionth part (11,839,-
530,000) as great as the light of the sun ; and the light of
the star Vega, of much smaller magnitude, is 180 millions of
times less than that of the sun. Yet, if the eyes of the ten
thousand millions of animals on the globe were all turned
towards this star at the same instant, each one would have a
distinct image of it formed upon the retina. And if the mil
lions of millions of other worlds, scattered through space, are
peopled as thickly as our own, and every eye there were
directed to that star at the same time, each eye would see it
as distinctly as if no other one were gazing upon it. What
an astonishing power, then, is light ! Who does not feel him
self lost in attempting to comprehend its nature !
But, still further, philosophers suppose they have demon
strated that the different colors in nature are produced by a
difference in the number of vibrations in the luminiferous
ether, and that, in a single second of time, the eye is affected
by these movements as follows : —
In red, . . 477,000,000,000 of times ;
In orange, . 506,000,000,000 of times ;
In yellow, . 535,000,000,000 of times ;
In green, . 577,000,000,000 of times ;
In blue, . . 622,000,000,000 of times ;
In indigo, . 658,000,000,000 of times ;
In violet, . 699,000,000,000 of times.

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE. 145
Is it strange that man looks upon light with an awe ap
proaching devotion, and that Milton should exclaim, —
" Hail, holy light ! offspring of Heaven, first born,
Or of the eternal, coeternal beam " ?
I will only add, in this connection, a statement of La Place
respecting attraction : " I have ascertained," says he, " that
between the heavenly bodies all attractions are transmitted
with a velocity which, if it be not infinite, surpasses several
thousand times the velocity of light." His annotator esti
mates it as eight million of times greater than that of light.
Were there time for the details, the science of optics would
furnish many other illustrations appropriate to my object —
such as the diffraction of light, the splendid colors of their
films, and the phenomena of polarization and double refrac
tion. But I must hurry forward. Nor can we be long de
tained even upon the sublime developments of astronomy.
Since the most common and striking of these have been so
often and familiarly described in public lectures, and even in
the primary school manual, I shall confine my remarks to
some principles that are less generally known, or to recent
discoveries. I have always regarded it as one of the greatest achieve
ments of astronomers that they have been able to weigh the
bodies of the solar system, so as to state how many pounds
avoirdupois they contain, and to ascertain their relative weight
compared with that of water. It is certain, for instance, that
the mass of Jupiter is more than 322, and less than 323,
times the mass of this globe — so accurately has this work
been accomplished. The mass of the sun is 359,551 times
greater than that of the earth and moon, and 700 times
greater than the united masses of all the planets. The
13

146 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARE!)
weight of the most important bodies of the solar system, com
pared with water, is as follows : —

Sun, . .

. 1.40

Mars, .

. 0.71

Moon, .

. 3.37

Jupiter, .

. 1.42

Mercury,

. 15.24

Saturn, .

. 0.56

Venus, .

. 5.15

Uranus,

. 1.53

Earth, .

. 5.48

From this statement we learn that Saturn is composed of
matter only half as heavy as water; while Mercury is consid
erably heavier than quicksilver, and a third heavier than lead.
Our own globe, also, taken as a whole, is twice as heavy as
common rock, and half as heavy as lead — a fact which
shows the great density of its internal parts.
The disturbances that take place among the heavenly
bodies in consequence of their mutual attraction constitute
a branch of knowledge the most profound, it is said, in the
vPbole circle of human science — requiring all the aid of the
most difficult and subtle mathematical analysis. In this field
such men as Newton and La Grange, La Place and Bowditch,
have won their noblest honors ; and I may add, it is only
such minds that can disentangle the mazes of this labyrinth.
The problem to be solved was this : given the directions and
velocities of about thirty mutually-attracting bodies, to find
their places after any number of ages. And to give some
idea of the complexity of the problem, it may be stated that
one of these bodies, the moon, is subject to no less than sixty
perturbations in her longitude. And to show how successful
astronomers have been in estimating these, it may be stated
that the lunar tables actually contain twenty-eight corrections,
or equations, to be applied to her mean place to obtain her
true place ; and the result never varies from the truth more

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE. 147
than five seconds of a degree. But the most interesting re
sult to which these investigations have led is the great truth,
that, in spite of these perturbations, the permanence of the
solar system is secured ; nay, that these very disturbances
are the means of preserving it from ruin. Formerly, astron
omers thought they saw in the motions of the heavenly bod
ies a tendency to ruin. The moon, for instance, has been for
thousands of years coming nearer and nearer the earth in
every revolution ; and the eccentricity of the earth's orbit has
been diminishing, as has also the obliquity of the ecliptic to
the equator. * But it is now shown that all these irregularities
are periodical ; and that after having proceeded in one direc
tion for a time, — it may be for hundreds, or thousands, or
even millions of years, — they will reach a limit which they
cannot pass, and oscillate in the opposite direction ; and the
limits of oscillation are too narrow seriously to affect the sta
bility of the system or the comfort of its inhabitants. This
demonstration, first wrought out by La Grange and La Place,
and afterwards corrected by Bowditch, is one of the proudest
achievements of modern science, and proves that our system,
in itself considered, is eternal.
But a question has long been agitated whether all space is
not occupied with very thin and subtle matter, which must
offer a resistance to the motions of the heavenly bodies, and
bring the system to ruin at last. And modern astronomical
discoveries seem nearly to have settled this question in the
affirmative. The universal diffusion of light, heat, and elec
tricity, especially if the undulatory theory of light be true,
render such an opinion probable. But the observations that
have been made upon what is called Encke's comet, which
revolves round the sun in three and a half years, make it
almost certain that this medium does exist. That comet,

148 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED
being nothing but a mass of thin vapor, is retarded much
more than the planets, which are solid, and has actually ad
vanced in its orbit, since its discovery, ten days more than
can be explained by the laws of gravity, exclusive of a
resisting medium. Some thirty thousand years will elapse
before it will fall into the sun, and many millions of years
before the same cause would precipitate the planets to the
centre ; but it is an interesting conclusion that, ultimately and
inevitably, if such a cause exist, ruin must ensue.
Modern discoveries respecting the nature of comets in gen
eral open a wide field for the play of the imagination. It
seems now to be proved that nearly all of them (say, perhaps,
800) are nothing but thin vapor ; for the fixed stars are visi
ble directly through their centres. They must, of course, be
far less dense than the thinnest cloud. And yet these bodies
move round the sun in obedience to the same laws as the
planets, though liable to greater irregularities. The trains
which accompany them, and which are sometimes, as in the
comet of 1811, more than 130 millions of miles long, are
evidently produced by the action of the sun, but in what way
it seems difficult to conceive. In all ages, great anxiety has
been manifested lest a collision should take place between the
earth and one of these bodies. But the knowledge we now
have of their nature teaches us that, even should one of them
be encountered in the earth's annual circuit, it is not probable
that matter so tenuous could pass through the atmosphere,
and that the only effect of such an occurrence would be some
slight meteorological change, or perhaps, as one of our coun
trymen suggests, who has distinguished himself by attention
to this and kindred subjects, another splendid meteoric shower
might signalize the event.*
* Olmsted's Astronomy, p. 242.

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE. 149
The comet called Biela's, from its discoverer, which re
volves around the sun in»about seven years, in one of its recent
returns, divided into two parts, which moved on together,
with no apparent mutual influence. This fact proves, if
proof were wanting, the extreme tenuity of the matter. The
parts move along together just like two wreaths of smoke or.
vapor, and have occupied the same relative position for at least
one revolution, except that they are receding from each other.
So successful have Lord Rosse and others been in resolv
ing nebula?, of late, that some astronomers are confident that
all of them will be found, at length, to consist of stars. But
such masses as the Magellanic Clouds of the southern hemi
sphere, and especially the facts respecting spiral nebula?, make
it more probable that some of them consist rather of diffused
patches of self-luminous vapor, analogous to comets. On the
hypothesis that they are made up of fixed stars, it is quite
impossible to account for their spiral form. But if the mat
ter has been in motion in a resisting medium, it would have
assumed a spiral form, and be disseminated all along its
course towards the centre of attraction.
The curious facts that are established by modern astrono
mers respecting double stars prove that the great law of grav
itation extends to other systems beyond the solar. More
than one quarter of the stars, according to Struve, are double ;
and, in several instances, it is proved that these stars revolve
about each other in elliptic orbits, in periods between 43
and 1200 years. Taking these facts in connection with the
periodical disappearance and reappearance of some stars,
with th<j occasional sudden bursting forth of a new star, and
the total extinguishment of others, we are led to doubt
whether our solar system is a type, in all respects, of the
entire universe, though probably the same general laws pre-
13*

150 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED
vail in all worlds. But how difficult to conceive of revolving
planets in a system that has two suns, one of which revolves
around the other ! Infinite wisdom may have plans and ob
jects in the collocation, movements, and physical condition of
worlds totally inconceivable by human powers.
Even as long ago as the time of Halley, that astronomer
suggested that probably the solar system had a motion in an
orbit around some remote centre ; and the idea has been fre
quently revived in more recent times, and subjected to the
test of observation. And though some still profess to be
sceptical on the subject, it seems difficult to resist the convic
tion that it is true. For the stars in one part of the heaven
gradually approximate towards one another, while in the op
posite part they recede. In what other way can we explain
such a fact, but by supposing that we are approaching the
stars in one direction, and receding from them in the other?
The point towards which we seem to be tending is in right
ascension about 260°, in declination 34° north, corresponding
to the constellation Hercules. Astronomers even profess to
have determined the velocity approximately with which we
are moving — which is 154,185,000 miles in a year, 422,000
in an hour, and 57 each second. Whether the remote cen
tre that regulates this movement may be occupied by a vast
sun, or the attraction may be but the aggregate of the influ
ence of a vast number of smaller bodies embraced in the
same system, it may never be possible to know ; yet possibly
the discovery may one day be made.
The rapidity with which the new planets, denominated as
teroids, have been discovered of late, is one of the most
remarkable features of modern astronomy. These all move
between Mars and Jupiter; and though forty are now known,
their united mass is less than a quarter part of the weight

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE. 151
of the earth. The hypothesis, that they have all originated
from the bursting asunder of a planet that once revolved be
tween Mars and Jupiter, is gaining strength, notwithstanding
the powerful attack upon it by Leverrier. Professor Alexan
der, of this country, suggests that the form of this original
planet was a mere flattened disk, that flew asunder from its
centrifugal force. If so, it is not improbable that those much
smaller masses that not unfrequently fall from the heavens,
called meteors, had the same origin. If they had, the great
problem for astronomers and meteorologists to solve is to
make out the series, by discovering asteriods of less and less
size, and meteors of larger size. Leverrier suggests that,
probably by the close of this century, 100 of the asteriods
will have been discovered and described.
Astronomers had demonstrated that the nearest fixed star
could not be less than 20 billions of miles from the earth.
But they were not satisfied till they could determine the ac
tual distance. I believe that Bessel, of Prussia, was the first
who ascertained the annual parallax of a star, viz., 61 Cygni,
and found it to be 0".3136; that is, the diameter of the earth's
orbit, equal 190 millions of miles, as seen from this star, sub
tends an angle of one third of a second only. From this he
deduced its actual distance to be more than 62 billions of
miles, (62,481,500,000,000.) Light, travelling from this star
at the rate of 200,000 miles per second, would require more
than seven years to reach the earth. The parallaxes of other
stars have since been ascertained, and some of them are much
smaller — not more than the 0.027th of a second. This would
make the distance of this star 731,136,000,000,000 miles, and
light from it would require 120 years to reach us. What,
then, must be the parallax and distance of the telescopic stars !
A flash of lightning on the earth would be visible on the moon
in a second and a quarter ; on the sun, in eight minutes ; on

152 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED
Jupiter, when farthest from us, in 52 minutes ; on Uranus, in
two hours ; on Neptune, in four hours and a quarter ; on the
star Vega, of the first magnitude, in 45 years ; on a star of
the eighth magnitude, in 180 years ; on a star of the twelfth
magnitude, in 4000 years ; and such stars are visible through
the telescope. One of these remotest stars, therefore, may
have been struck out of existence as long ago as man's crea
tion, and yet be still visible in our telescopes. What prodi
gious demands does science make upon our faith, and upon
our powers of conception too !
The rapid progress which has been made within a few years
past in the sciences of galvanism and electro-magnetism has
made it nearly certain that electricity, magnetism, galvan
ism, and electro-magnetism, are all but modifications of one
great power in nature, and that is the electric fluid. In com
mon electricity, we witness this fluid in a state of uncontrollable
intensity. In galvanism, we see it flowing in an uninterrupted
current. In electro-magnetism, we see that magnetism is pro
duced whenever a constant current of electricity can be made
to pass through a body ; and if those currents can be made
to flow permanently, then permanent magnets will be pro
duced. On the other hand, currents of electricity, which may
be made visible, may be induced in coils of copper wire, by
making and breaking the connection of a bar of soft iron with
a permanent magnet ; that is, electricity may be produced by
magnetism, and it seems almost certain, therefore, that mag
netism is only a modification of electricity.
These discoveries have thrown a flood of light upon many
of the most curious and recondite operations of nature. The
astonishing effects of the galvanic fluid upon animals recently
killed, although it does not demonstrate that the mysterious
principle of life is identical with electricity, yet proves a very
intimate relation between the two things. By the application

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE. 153
of galvanism, for instance, to the head of an ox recently
killed, his mouth opened with a bellowing noise ; a linnet,
that had lain dead for some minutes, was made to spring up,
flutter its wings, and breathe six or eight minutes ; and seve
ral times, criminals, after hanging by the neck until they
were dead, have had all the muscles of their bodies put in
violent motion, full and laborious breathing has been pro
duced, and every muscle in the murderer's face has been
thrown into fearful action, so that rage, horror, despair, and
ghastly smiles were exhibited in his countenance in such a
hideous combination as to produce sickness and fainting
among the spectators.
Physiologists have in vain endeavored to explain by what
principle the numerous distinct parts, solid and fluid, that are
found in animals and plants, can be separated from the blood
and the sap. They could see that most delicate and compli
cated chemical operations must be concerned ; but the ques
tion was, by what secret power these operations were accom
plished. Galvanism throws at least a glimpse of light upon
the subject. The galvanic fluid, when passing through bodies,
especially those in solution, exerts an astonishing power of
decomposing or separating them into their elements, and thus
giving those elements an opportunity to form new combina
tions. And, indeed, I know of nothing more wonderful in the
whole records of science than this mysterious power. Now,
may it not be that every animal and every plant contains with
in its organization a galvanic combination, sufficiently power
ful to elaborate all the secretions which its nature requires ?
Indeed, the most distinguished philosophers of our day have
suggested that in animals the brain may be this electric pile,
which sends along the nerves, as conductors, its successive
shocks, whereby the pulsations of the heart are produced, and

154 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED
the proximate principles found in animals are secreted from
the blood. Hypothetical as this idea may seem, when first
announced, there is one fact that throws over it an air of
probability. We do know that several species of fish, by
means of a galvanic arrangement in their heads, have the
power of giving powerful electric shocks. The gymnotus
electricus, or electric eel, for instance, gives a shock, ac
cording to Humboldt, powerful enough to kill a man, and by
repetition even a mule, horse, &c. May not a weaker power
of this sort, which is all that is necessary, be found in every
animal and plant ?
Galvanism, also, shows us ho.w many metallic veins may be
formed even now in the solid rocks, and how the crystals and
gems dug from thence may be produced. Electro-magnet
ism shows us that it is only necessary to suppose the revolu
tion of electric currents around the earth, in order to show
why the magnetic needle takes a north and south direction ;
while thermo-electricity gives us a reason why that needle has
a daily variation. In electro-magnetism, also, we find a prob
able solution for that most remarkable phenomenon, the au
rora borealis and australis. That it is an electro-magnetic
phenomenon seems proved beyond all doubt by the fact that
its beautiful coruscations all radiate from one of the magnetic
poles, though the precise manner in which electro-magnetic
currents operate to produce it is still involved in obscurity.
After all, the instantaneous development of a very great
attractive force in some electro-magnetic experiments seems
to me the most marvellous effect exhibited by this science.
Take, for instance, the electro-magnet, which is nothing but a
bent piece of soft iron, coiled with several hundred feet of
copper wire. This iron has no magnetism till the extremities
of the wire are connected with the poles of a very feeble

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE. 155
galvanic battery, when instantly, as if by magic, a prodigious
magnetic force is communicated to the iron — ¦ even a force
of two thousand or three thousand pounds, which vanishes as
soon as the connection with the battery is broken. Now, is
it not amazing that this powerful force should be communicat
ed in a moment through a wire not more than one twentieth
of an inch in diameter ? Do we not here catch a glimpse of
a prodigious natural force, which lies hidden and silent all
around us, and which, if it could only be fully developed,
would arm man with an energy almost irresistible ? I confess
I do not yet despair of his being one day put into full posses
sion of this power.
The next wide field that opens before us is chemistry : and
how many marvellous things invite our examination ! But I
must not forget that my first object should be to hurry for
ward. Yet I must linger long enough to point out a few flow
ery spots.
The atoms, or particles, of all matter, are subject to the
influence of two forces — attraction and repulsion. When
the first predominates, solid bodies are formed ; when the lat
ter prevails, elastic gas, or air, is the result ; when both are
equally balanced, liquids are produced. The antagonist to
affinity, or attraction, is heat ; and it is always because bodies
contain this principle in different degrees, that some are solid,
some liquid, and some gaseous. Men are accustomed to think
of heat only in that state in which it affects our senses ; but
in fact the greater part of it is in a hidden or latent state, and
no body is so cold but a great amount of heat can be elicited
from it, either chemically or mechanically. If, for instance,
all the heat contained in the snow and ice that has mantled
New England during the past winter had been suddenly ex
tricated, there can be hardly a doubt but a general conflagra
tion of the surface would have been the result.

156 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED
The operation of latent heat in changing the forms of bodies
produces some very paradoxical results. Thus, in freezing,
water gives out 140° of heat, which becomes sensible ; and
the great amount of congelation in cold climates is doubtless
one of the principal causes that render them habitable and
comfortable ; for the harder the frost, the greater the amount
of heat given out. On the other hand, when water evapo
rates, it takes up into a latent state nearly 1000° of heat ;
and this probably it is, chiefly, that renders the torrid zone
tolerable, since the heat of a vertical sun must produce a vast
amount of evaporation. Once more, by a singular exception
to a general law, that cold contracts all bodies, it is well known
that water, in freezing, expands, so that the ice swims in it ;
and being an almost perfect non-conductor of heat, it prevents
the water beneath from giving off its heat, and so it will not
freeze.* Were it not for this singular anomaly, — ¦ this inter
ference of one law with another, — all the streams and lakes
in such a climate as ours would be frozen to their bottoms,
and the summer would hardly suffice to thaw them out.
Not less wonderful are the effects of affinity, or the power
by which the elements are combined, so as to form compound
substances. In these combinations it has been found that the
elements unite only in definite quantities, and each substance
has its peculiar combining proportion, — a law which forms a
mathematical basis for chemistry, — and exhibits strikingly
the wisdom of the Deity, showing us that perfect system pre
vails in the minute, as well as in the most extensive opera
tions of nature. But it is impossible for me to do any justice
at this time to a subject so difficult as that of definite propor
tions. He only can fully appreciate its beauty who has long
* This is rather a new law coming in than an exception to a law ; for it is
not confined to water, and seems to be the result of a new arrangement of
the particles in the act of crystallization.

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE. 157
been devoted to the delicate and difficult department of chem
ical analysis.
The vast variety which nature produces by the union of a
few elements is one of the most wonderful results of chemi
cal affinity. It is true chemists describe a little over sixty of
these elements ; but sixteen of these constitute almost the
entire mass of the globe, and scarcely more than four are
essential to form the vast variety of the animal and vegetable
kingdoms. It is amazing, also, to see how very great a dif
ference between two compounds is often produced by a slight
variation in the proportion of their ingredients. Oxygen and
nitrogen, for instance, mixed in the proportion of one of the
former to four of the latter, constitute the atmosphere, the
very pabulum of life to animals and plants. But combine
them in the proportion of fourteen parts nitrogen and eight
parts oxygen, and you form the exhilarating gas, little better
adapted to respiration than the vapor of alcohol or ether.
Add eight parts more of oxygen, and a gas results, which,
taken into the lungs, would be almost certainly fatal. Add
successively eight, sixteen, and twenty-four parts more of
oxygen, and three distinct acids would be formed, eminently
hostile to life. What perfect wisdom and perfect benevolence
must have arranged the chemical constitution and agencies of
this world, to adapt them to the delicate organization of ani
mals and plants ! And how very slightly the elements of life
differ from the elements of death 1 The most delicious fruits
of the vegetable kingdom, for instance, are composed of oxy
gen, hydrogen, and carbon, and sometimes nitrogen; and the
most fatal vegetable poisons have the same composition, dif
fering only in the proportion of the ingredients.
The magic power of chemical affinity is still more manifest
in the entire change of properties which takes place in sub-
14

158 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED
stances upon combination. Suppose you should direct your
cook to provide an entertainment of all the varieties of food
which the market and the culinary art could furnish, and he,
taking a chemical fancy into his head, should set before you
and your guests a dish of charcoal, and a vessel of water,
telling you that if you wanted any nitrogen in addition, the
atmosphere would furnish it. Now, he could truly plead that
he had set before you oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen, and car
bon ; and that if he had loaded your table with the most cost
ly viands and fruit, it would have added little more. But you
would think his chemistry a poor substitute for a good dinner.
Once more : a mere difference in the arrangement of the
particles of a substance makes a world of difference in its
properties. Suppose, for instance, that when Messrs. Bun-
dell and Bridges received orders to prepare Queen Victoria's
crown for coronation day, instead of surmounting it with dia
monds, they had covered it with charcoal points, and present
ed a bill of £1, instead of £100,000, or half a million of
dollars. .It would probably have hardly quieted the royal dis
pleasure to have been informed that the chemical constitution
of charcoal is precisely the same as that of the diamond, and
that a slight difference in the arrangement of the particles
could be of no consequence.
The complete neutralization and concealment of the most
powerful substances, by means of strong chemical affinity, is
another remarkable effect of this agency, and a striking ex
ample of divine beneficence. For had these substances been
left free, the destruction of organic beings must have been
certain. Almost every one knows, for instance, how fatal a
poison is phosphorus, and how eminently and powerfully com
bustible it is. But this substance abounds through all nature
— in the solid rocks, in the soils, in plants, and especially in

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE. 159
the bones of animals ; nay, it is found even in the brain.
A middling-sized man, for instance, contains a pound of it,
which, if in a free state and inflamed, would burn him up and
every thing around him. But now, nothing is more incom
bustible than a bone. No one suspects what a terrible agent
he carries within him ; nor has any one reason to fear it, be
cause it is disarmed. And so it is throughout nature — so
concealed, indeed, that nothing but delicate chemical tests can
discover its existence. The same is true of chlorine, which,
in a free state, is eminently terrible. And were all of this
element that is now chained in the ocean to be liberated in
one day, it would sweep this fair world of all its tenants, and
its beauty. In short, modern chemistry has afforded us a
glimpse of a multitude of agents within us and around us,
which, in a free state, are of terrific power. But the lion is
converted into a lamb by the strong chain of affinity.
In meteorology, although prolific in remarkable phenomena,
I shall notice but two or three. In the first place, consider
what a remarkable envelope of our globe is its atmosphere !
We have first an atmosphere of gas, a mixture of oxygen
and nitrogen, decreasing in density upwards in a geometrical
ratio. In the second place, we have an atmosphere of vapor
equally extensive ; for the gas is a solvent of water, and the
average amount of vapor in the air would form a stratum of
water on the earth's surface five inches thick ; and the amount
of water annually deposited in the form of dew actually
amounts to four inches in depth. In the third place, we have
an atmosphere of that subtle ether which probably pervades
all space, and occupies the interstices between the particles
of matter, and gives rise to the phenomena of light, heat, and
electricity. And yet this atmosphere, so complex in its char
acter, seems to us the most simple of all things.

160 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED
The power of natural evaporation possessed by the atmos
phere is very surprising. From experiments made in Eu
rope, it appears that the quantity of water evaporated from
the surface of Great Britain amounts to 32 inches, or
142 thousand millions (141,832,558,752) of tons annually,
while the quantity of rain that falls is 36 inches, or 160 thou
sand millions of tons, (159,561,628,596.) *
In order to prevent universal stagnation and death, it was
necessary that the atmospheric elements should be allowed
some degree of motion. But the limits of their oscillations
must be very narrow, or desolation would follow their move
ments. And how perfectly is this object accomplished, though
seemingly impossible ! for when Eolus has once escaped from
his cave, who shall bind him again ? Almighty wisdom and
power are alone adequate ; and though occasional ruin fol
lows the elemental strife, yet security is the law, and desola
tion the infrequent exception.
In advancing to those sciences that relate to the animate
part of creation, anatomy and physiology, the first of which
treats of the structure, and the latter of the functions, of
organized beings, first arrest our attention ; and they so
abound with wonders, that the remaining time which your
patience will allow me might be all profitably devoted to
them. But so many familiar and popular works have been
published upon anatomy and physiology, that I may fairly
presume every person of good education has some ac
quaintance with many of the most striking facts in these
sciences. Who, for instance, has not some knowledge of the
structure of that most exquisite of all organic contrivances
the eye ? Who cannot toll something of the mechanism of
* Thomson on Heat and Electricity, p. 267. Turner's Sacred History,
Vol. I. p. 32.

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE. 161
the ear ? of the bones, especially the vertebral column, —
of the organs of digestion and assimilation, — of the muscles,
and their mysterious power of contraction, — and above all,
of the circulation of the blood, with the structure and func
tions of the heart and the lungs ? Who knows not that his
five senses depend chiefly upon distinct sets of nerves, all
proceeding from one great centre, the brain, and yet incapa
ble of performing the functions of one another ? And who
does not remember what thrilling impressions the first devel
opment of these subjects made upon him ? how he trembled
to hear his heart beat, and to feel his lungs heaving, and
almost feared to move, lest the harp of thousand strings
should be untuned ?
But there is a department of these sciences, called Com
parative Anatomy and Physiology, which has of late been
cultivated with extraordinary success, and whose marvellous
results are less known. I cannot, therefore, entirely neglect
them. When a man, not conversant with anatomy, looks upon the
bones of an animal promiscuously mingled together, he does
not perceive any striking harmony and relation between them.
But a careful and extensive comparison reveals the astonish
ing fact, " that from the character of a single limb," (I use
the words of an able comparative anatomist,) " and even of
a single tooth, or bone, the form and proportion of the other
bones, and the condition of the entire animal, may be in
ferred." " Hence, not only the framework of the fossil skel
eton of an extinct animal, but also the character of the mus
cles, by which each bone was moved", the external form and
figure of the body, the food, and habits, and haunts, and mode
of life of creatures that ceased to exist before the creation of
the human race, can, with a high degree of probability, be
14 *

162 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED
ascertained."* These statements have been established by
the severest tests. For a single tooth or bone of an unknown
animal has been put into the hands of the anatomist, and from
it he has constructed the entire skeleton and a description of
the whole animal. Afterwards a complete skeleton has been
discovered, and found to correspond with the one described
by analogy. Truly, there is mathematics in hones, as well as
in lines, angles, and numbers.
It is an interesting process to take a particular organ of the
human frame and compare it with the analogous organ in the
lower classes of animals, and to see how its functions and
structure gradually change ; but always in such a manner as
will adapt it more perfectly to the condition and wants of the
animal. So manifold and striking, for example, are these
adaptations in that most remarkable organ, the hand, that a
distinguished anatomist has made it the entire subject of one
of the famous Bridgewater Treatises. Or take the organs' of
motion, and compare the movements of the sloth with those
of the deer, the antelope, the hare, the grasshopper, or the
flea. The sloth consumes several days in getting from .one
tree to another — which he never does till nearly starved.
But such a change is rarely necessary, and therefore the mus
cles are not adapted to it. Yet the cicada spumaria, a spe
cies of locust, can leap two hundred and fifty times its length.
If a man could leap the same distance in proportion to his
size, he would be carried a quarter of a mile ; and an ox or
an elephant still farther — far enough, indeed, to dash him in
pieces. A flea weighs less than a grain, and can leap an
inch and a half. A man, at the same rate, would pass over
12,800 miles, or half round the globe ! The legs of one
* Buckland's Bridgewater Treatise, Vol. I. p. 109.

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE. 163
insect, the water boatman, (notenecta,) are so fitted that
he always swims upon his back. Another, the bat-mite,
(pteroptus,) has the power of instantly throwing its legs up
wards so as to walk upon its back. Another, the dragon fly,
can project a stream of water from its body, and thus be
driven forward on the principle of the rocket.
Not less variety exists in the organs of respiration. We
are apt to feel that breathing can be performed only by lungs.
But the membranous air bags of reptiles are quite different.
Frogs and tortoises swallow air, and hence have been known
to live more than a month with their mouths and nostrils
closed ; although there is reason to believe that the common
opinion that frogs live for centuries without air, enclosed in
stone, is unfounded. Fishes breathe by their gills, and insects
by means of tubes in various parts of their bodies.
Man, too, finds it difficult to conceive how animals can exist
without heads. But a large class that inhabit sea shells are
called acephala, — that is, headless animals, — and the skill
which they discover in the formation of those beautiful struc
tures which form their habitations throws into the shade the
architecture of that biped race who not only have heads, but
boast that they constitute the head of this lower creation.
The delicate changes in the organs of vision to adapt them
to the condition and wants of animals are among the most
remarkable provisions of divine wisdom for their comfort.
We cannot see well in water, because our eyes are fitted for
the air.; nor can fish see well in air, for the same reason.
By using very convex spectacles we might have distinct vision
in water ; and so, were a whale disposed to take an excursion
on land, the optician might doubtless provide him with a pair
of spectacles through which he could see as well as many
travellers of our own species have done. But his glasses

164 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED
must be concave. Some insects, as the gyrinus, which live
chiefly upon the surface of the water, have two pairs of eyes,
or perhaps a division of one pair into an upper and lower part
— one set for looking into the water, and the other for look
ing into the air. The eyes of insects generally are fixed
immovably in the head, and, therefore, they need some pro
vision to enable them to see on all sides. This is accom
plished by making their eyes polygonal, like a multiplying
glass, which, in fact, amounts to giving them as many eyes as
there are facets ; for each plane will produce a separate im
age on the retina. In this sense the house fly has 14,000
eyes — that is, 7000 facets to each eye ; the dragon fly,
25,000 ; the butterfly, 35,000 ; and the mordella, 50,000.
How perfect must be the structure of the eye to keep so
complex an organ in repair ! Another fact in relation to the
eye of the cod fish is still more striking in this connection.
The crystalline lens in that fish, which is never half an inch
in diameter, has been proved to be made up of more than
5,000,000 fibres, which are united together by more than
62,500,000,000 teeth !
The instincts of animals afford a prolific source of exam
ples appropriate to my object. But presuming that many
marvellous facts on this subject are known to all, I shall pass
rapidly over it. Perhaps, however, no department of science
presents facts so nearly approaching to romance as this. In
deed, the earlier works on zoology contain not a few statements
that are really fictitious. Many, for example, still suppose that
serpents have the power of charming their prey, and even
man, within the reach of their fangs ; a notion which is of a
piece with the ancient stories about the sirens, — the dulce ma
lum in pelago, — or with the modern notions about the conver
sion of a horsehair into a snake. But making all due allow-

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE. 165
ances for such fancies, there still remains in the history of
animal instincts a vast mass of facts that are truly marvel
lous. Perhaps in nothing do these instincts seem more like
perfected reason than in the construction of the habitations
of animals. Who does not know what geometry as well as
perfection of government there is in a beehive ? Nor are
they less striking in a vespiary. Indeed, the queen of the
wasps is far more enterprising and energetic than the queen
of the honey bees. For during the winter nearly all the
wasps die, and the queen has to rear up an entirely new col
ony, and provide for them. But before autumn she not un-
frequently rules over no less than 30,000 subjects — and all
her own children. I must not, however, go into details on
these points. But there is one fact connected with the history
of bees, though not very relevant to my subject, which I men
tion for the special benefit of young men. Naturalists admit
that the most satisfactory account of the instincts and habits
of bees was furnished by the elder Huber, who constructed
glass hives, and other apparatus, so that he could watch their
movements. But of what use were glass hives to him ? for
he was stone blind. The mystery is easily explained. " He
saw the bees," says his biographer, " through the eyes of the
admirable woman whom he married." Now, I wish the young
gentlemen who hear me to understand that it is no uncommon
occurrence for a man to find his wife as great a blessing as a
good pair of eyes.
The instincts of the spider are quite as remarkable as
those of the bee, the wasp, and the ant. Though the most
ferocious of all animals, she will fight with desperation in
defence of her young ; but when the cocoon containing them
is torn from her, she will simulate death so perfectly, that her
limbs may be torn off one by one, and yet she will show no

166 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED
sign of life ; but let her cocoon be brought within her reach,
and she will seize it with desperate strength. The process by
which the spider weaves its web is as remarkable as any
thing in the animal kingdom ; but the description would be
too prolix.
I must not leave the comparative physiology of animals
without adverting to the subject of their transformation, or
metamorphosis. Every animal, in the successive stages of its
existence, undergoes more or less of change. It is said that,
in man, the particles that compose the infant are several
times entirely replaced by others before the period of old
age. But some animals undergo sudden and remarkable
changes. Serpents cast off their skins, and crustaceans, such
as the lobster, their shells, annually. The frog is first hatched
in the form of a tadpole, — or, as we more commonly say in
New England, a polliwog, — which has the form of a fish
with a large head, but without legs or fins. Gradually this
creature becomes a frog, with four legs. But the most per
fect example of metamorphosis is that of insects, especially
the winged species. They are hatched as a caterpillar, or
grub, which is called their larva state. Next they enclose
themselves in a cocoon, and become torpid. This is their
pupa or chrysalis state. From this condition they emerge
into their imago or perfect state, as elegant, lively, winged in
sects. Such cases have been beautifully denominated emblems
of immortality. The larva state, in which the animal is in an
active, but depressed and imperfect condition, may well be
likened to the present life. The torpidity and confinement of
the pupa state well represents our detention in the grave ;
while the imago or perfect state beautifully typifies our con
dition when this corruptible shall have put on incorruplion,
and this mortal shall have put on immortality.

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE. 167
Among the lowest tribes of animals, the polypi are distin
guished for their anomalies. The simplest form of one of
these animals is a fleshy tube, open only at the top, and the
opening surrounded by flexible arms, called tentacula. On
each side of the tentacula are usually fine fibres, like hairs,
called cilia?. These are capable of such rapid motion that
the eye cannot follow them ; and the object of their move
ments usually is to produce eddying currents of water around
their mouths, in order to bring food within their reach. A
good example of these animals is the hydra, which is found
in fresh water. It may be described as consisting of nothing
but a stomach, with tentacula around its mouth to draw in its
prey. It is an enormous glutton when it can obtain food, yet
it will live four months without it. When two hydras contend
for a worm, the stronger not only swallows the morsel, but
also his antagonist and his own tentacula ; the two latter,
however, usually escape without being digested. When this
animal is turned inside out, as it may be, digestion goes on
equally well — a power which would be very convenient for
the biped gormands of the Caucasian race. But the most
remarkable fact relating to these animals is, their power of
repairing almost any injury which they receive that does not
absolutely annihilate them. If they be divided lengthwise
into several strips, each piece will in a few hours become a
tube ; and in a day new tentacula will be produced and ready
for taking in food. Or, by cutting up several hydras, differ
ent parts may be made to grow together, and become one
animal. In this way, every variety of monster which " fancy
yet has feigned or fear conceived " may be originated ; and
this is actually the way in which the hydra with seven heads,
which has often been the occasion of gross imposition, has
been formed.

168 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED
In the greater number of cases, the simple polypi, that
have been described, are attached to a stony or horny axis,
which they themselves secrete and build up. And it is re
markable that multitudes unite to build up a habitation with
the same regularity as if a single will guided them. It is
a question among naturalists whether, in such a case, the
individuals that thus combine ought not to be regarded as a
single animal. In a single specimen of flustra there are
sometimes more than 18,000 polypi. Each polype has 22
tentacula and 50 cilia? ; so that in the whole specimen there
are 396,000 tentacula and 39,600,000 cilia?. In another
species, Dr. Grant calculates that there are 400,000,000 of
cilia?. And these are all busy upon that one specimen, of
only a few square inches. How immense, then, must be the
number of polypi and their cilise upon those vast coral struc
tures which, in the tropical seas, form reefs several hundred
miles long !
I shall mention here one other physiological fact relating
to the lower orders of animals, because I believe it to be ex
tremely rare, and I happen to have a few specimens to illus
trate it. A very few examples are on record in which plants
of the fungus tribe, such as sphaeria and isaria, have been
known to grow out of the bodies of insects or their larva?, in
the West Indies and South America, even while they were yet
alive. I have specimens from Wisconsin, in which a species
of sphagria has grown two or three inches long from the head
of a small grub.*
In proceeding onwards through the fields of science, just
on the borders of the domains of physiology and psychology,

• For details on this curious subject, see Griffith and Henfrey's Mico-
graphic Dictionary, article Parasites.

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE. 169
two gateways open laterally, through which we catch a
glimpse of scenery the most enchanting, though the fogs of
night still rest upon much of it, and the sun, yet but a little
above the horizon, has not been able to dissipate it. Over
these gateways is written Phrenology, Mesmerism, and Spir
itualism. Shall we pass through them ? I answer, No ; for
around the entrance I see not a few, whom I recognize as
veterans in science, arrayed in opposition to one another in
earnest controversy. On the one side it is maintained that
these passages lead into regions of knowledge, not only smil
ing with flowers, but clustered with golden fruit ; that, in fact,
here, and here only, are found the clear fountains of intel
lectual science. On the other hand, it is said that these pas
sages lead only into the regions of fancy and romance ; that
nothing here is fixed and settled ; and that a few parhelia and
rainbows, painted on the clouds and fogs that hover on the
outskirts of physiology and metaphysics, have been mistaken
for golden mountains ; in short, that nothing can be found
in those regions of morass and fog deserving the name of
science. Now, it is not my intention, in this lecture, to enter into a
discussion of contested principles and facts, but only to state
those in which the highest authorities are agreed ; and there
fore we will pass by phrenology and mesmerism. But I
must be allowed to make one or two remarks upon the man
ner in which these and some other subjects of a scientific
nature have been treated both in this and other countries.
As to the truth or falsehood of these subjects, I pretend not
to decide. I have not studied them thoroughly enough, either
to advocate or oppose them. But, unless we must discredit
testimony which would be deemed sufficient to establish the
truth in any other science, they do present us with many
15

170 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED
curious and remarkable facts, which, to say the least, are
explained with great difficulty by ordinary scientific princi
ples. Now, what, in such a case, is the course which every
true philosopher ought to take ? Evidently, if he follow Newton
and Bacon, he ought to examine those facts calmly, and with
a scrutiny proportionate to their anomalous and marvellous
character. The philosophy of those facts is a subsequent
matter, and should be left untouched till facts enough are col
lected to force the mind to theorize ; and very possibly, in
this case, the real philosopher would decide that he could do
nothing more than to collect facts, and leave posterity to form
the theories. But how different from all this has been the
course pursued in respect to phrenology, mesmerism, and
spiritualism ! On the one hand, many have become violent
partisans for the theories before they could be half acquainted
with the facts, and have set themselves up as leaders and
oracles in these sciences before they had strength enough to
sustain for a moment the panoply of philosophy. On the other
hand, it has been maintained that the facts respecting these
sciences could not be true, because they conflicted either with
the principles of sciences already established or with those
of religion — thus virtually declaring that nothing new can be
learned respecting mind or matter. On these grounds, an
appeal is made to the strongest prejudices and passions of
human nature against the claims of the new sciences ; and a
popular odium is thus excited against those who cultivate
them. The mass of men become afraid of such as innova
tors and enemies of religion ; and it requires not a little moral
courage and attachment to science to induce a man to pur
sue his investigations in the face of so much obloquy and
illiberality. But to return from this digression. In treating of compar-

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE.

171

ative anatomy and physiology, already have I glanced at the
domains of zoology, and brought before you some objects
from the great menagerie of nature. A few statements, there
fore, respecting the number of species and individuals which
her zoological gardens contain, with a short description of
one most remarkable class, will be all that I shall attempt.
It is impossible to give an exact estimate of the number
of species of animals on the globe that have been actually
named up to the present moment, because I cannot have
access to all the works where new ones are being continually
described. A few years since, however, the number was as
follows : —

Mammalia, ....
Birds, 
Chelonians, (tortoises,)
Vertebrata. ¦{ Saurian Lizards,
Serpents, 
Batrachians, (frogs, &c.,)
, Fishes, 
Articulata, f Vermes, (worms, &c.,)
or •{ Crustacea, (lobsters, &c.,)
Entomozoa. l^Hexapoda, (insects,)
Mollusca, (shells,) . .
Radiata, or Phytozoa, .

2,030
7,000 120
460300 175
8,000 770792
65,000 11,482 4,818
100,947

Now, it is certain that this estimate must be very far below
the actual number of species on the globe, especially in
respect to the smaller animals. Thus it is stated by a late
distinguished entomologist, Dr. Harris, that there are six spe
cies of insects to every species of plants. And since the

172 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED
number of species of flowering plants already described
amounts to at least 60,000, the species of insects must ap
proach half a million. Indeed, judicious naturalists suppose
that the species of animals existing on the globe cannot be
less than a million — perhaps more.
A few facts respecting the numbers of individuals in par
ticular species of animals may give a still deeper impression
of the extent of the animate creation. And here the recollec
tion immediately recurs to those vast swarms of locusts that
hav# sometimes laid waste entire kingdoms — shut out the
sun, as their armies, several feet thick, and miles in width,
flew through the air. Among fishes, perhaps the shoals of
herring which annually migrate southward from the arctic
seas are the most incredibly numerous. Often these vast bodies
move in columns that are several leagues in width and many
fathoms thick, and so close together that they touch one
another, and sensibly impede ships ; and this stream continues
to move past any particular spot nearly all summer. In
Norway, 400,000,000 are annually taken ; near Gottenburg,
700,000,000 ; and by other nations, " numbers without
number." No less numerous are the tenants of the air. Captain
Flinders saw a flock of sooty petrels pass over him, in Van
Diemen's Land, which could not have contained less than
150,500,000.* But a flock of pigeons which passed over
Mr. Audubon, on the banks of the Ohio, he estimates at
no less than 1,000,115,000,000 individuals — which would
require for their support 8,712,000 bushels of grain per day.f
The gelatinous animals, called medusa?, often small and even
* Quarterly Review, 1814, p. 27.
t Jardine's American Ornithology, Vol. II. p. 196.

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE. 173
microscopic, swarm in the arctic seas, so as to give a color
to the water for hundreds of miles ; and a cubic foot of
water, taken up indiscriminately, was found by Captain
Scoresby to contain 100,000.* And he estimates that, if
80,000 persons had been counting since the creation, they
would not yet have been able to number those that exist in
the arctic seas at the present moment.f I have already stated
that the wasp will multiply 30,000 fold in one summer. The
queen of the termites, or African ant, will deposit 80,000
eggs in 24 hours. A cyclops, a species of insect, is capable
of multiplying so prodigiously, that in four months her de
scendants would amount to 4500 millions. A single herring
is capable of depositing from 20,000 to 37,000 eggs ; a carp,
200,000; the tench, 383,000; and the flounder, 1,000,000.
But the common oyster might produce 1,200,000 ; and if
these were each to become a full-grown oyster, they would
fill 1200 barrels.
The last tribe of animals, called animalcula, or infusoria,
which are all microscopic, present examples' of increase still
more surprising. Indeed, the splendid discoveries of the
Prussian naturalist Ehrenberg have disclosed a world of
wonders in the microscopic department of nature no less
astonishing than those brought to light by the telescope. He
has described no less than 1000 species of animalcula, which
swim in salt and fresh water, in many of the fluids of the
living and healthy animal — in short, in all vegetable and
animal substances, and in the atmosphere. The smallest of
these animals are not more than one forty thousandth of an
inch in diameter ; and so thickly are they sometimes crowded
together, that a small drop of fluid contains 500,000,000, or
* Eoget, Vol. I. p. 143. f Kirby, p. 450.
15*

174 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED
nearly as many as the human beings on the globe. Formerly
it was supposed that these animals were little more than
simple particles of matter, endowed with vitality. But
Ehrenberg has ascertained that they possess mouths, teeth,
stomachs, muscles, nerves, glands, eyes, — and in short, all the
important organs of the more perfect animals. Some species
have from one hundred to two hundred sacs or stomachs con
nected with an intestinal canal ; and the thickness of the
membrane that lines these stomachs he estimates at one fifty
millionth part pf an inch.
The rate at which these animals multiply is prodigious.
An individual of the hydatina senta had increased, in ten
days, to a million ; in eleven days, to four millions ; and in
twelve days, to sixteen millions. But this is moderate, com
pared with another species, which is capable of multiplying,
in four days, to one hundred and seventy billions !
But perhaps the most remarkable facts remain yet to be
mentioned. Minute as these animalcula are, they are covered
with a case or shield, composed either of pure silex or oxide
of iron ; and when the animal dies, these shields are depos
ited at the bottom of the water. In this way, incredible
though it may appear, have beds of silicious or ferruginous
matter been accumulated, many feet thick, which has been
sometimes changed in part into solid rock. The polishing slate,
for instance, a kind of rotten stone near Bilin, in Germany,
is entirely composed of these skeletons, 14 feet in thickness ;
and another bed of infusorial earth, near Lunenburg, is
more than 28 feet thick. Yet it requires 41,000 millions of
these skeletons to make a cubic inch, which weighs 220
grains. So that a single skeleton weighs the 187 millionth
part of a grain. Many of the hardest minerals, such as flint
and opal, have been found to be composed of the same re-

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE. ( 175
mains ; and bog iron ore is said to have a similar origin. A
kind of silicious marl, similar to that from Bilin, exists prob
ably in almost every town in New England, beneath peat
bogs. In some places, in Massachusetts, this deposit, mixed
with a little clay, is fifteen feet thick ; and in Virginia are
beds of fossil animalcula from twelve to twenty-five feet thick.
We have now arrived at the ne plus ultra of the animal
kingdom, and yet who can tell what new mysteries will be
unfolded by future improvements in optical instruments ? I
turn, therefore, to the vegetable world, — literally a flowery
field, — and yet I shall have time to refer to only a very few
facts, abundant as they are.
A moderate estimate of the number of species already
described in the vegetable kingdom makes it 69,403. Of
these, 9100 are flowerless, and their structure is cellular ;
such as mosses, lichens, fungi, and sea weeds. 60,303 have
regular flowers, and they have a vascular structure. Of
the latter class, 10,629 are monocotyledons, and 49,674 are
dicotyledons. The largest known flower is the Rafflesia Arnoldii, a para
sitic plant, a sort of vine, that bears a flower three and a
half feet in diameter, growing in Sumatra.
Microscopic plants are no less abundant and remarkable
than microscopic animals. Indeed, many of those which I
have described as belonging to the infusoria are regarded as
plants by some of the ablest naturalists.
In the Alps, as well as in high latitudes, the snow has
sometimes a red color ; and it is found to proceed from the
presence of a minute fungus, the htematococcus nivalis.
The snow seems to be the soil natural to its growth. It is
said to be associated with living infusoria, which die when
the snow melts.

176 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED
A still more remarkable fact is, that fermentation is, in most
cases, the result of the growth of a fungus called the yeast
plant, the vinegar plant, &c., or torula cerevisice. The cells
of this plant multiply rapidly by the decomposition of the sub
stances in a state of fermentation, and hence the evolution of
carbonic acid. The cells of this yeast plant are from one
twenty-four hundredth to one three thousandth of an inch in
diameter. Whether the process of digestion in the animal
stomach consists of the same process, does not yet seem to
be determined ; but there is certainly great similarity in the
processes. Should digestion come into the same category, it
would be indeed a marvellous development.
Crystallography and mineralogy might furnish abundant
materials for my subject ; but want of time compels me to pass
them by ; and I can only add a few things from geology — a
science so abounding in marvels that a late popular writer
denominates his work on that subject the Wonders of Geology.
A careful examination of all the rocks in the earth's crust,
accessible to man, results in the conclusion, that the whole
crust of the globe — at least several miles thick, and probably
to its centre — has undergone an entire change, and most of
the rocks several changes, since their creation. The unstrat-
ified rocks, which probably form the whole of the interior of
the globe, have been melted, as all admit. The stratified class,
tying above the unstratified, have been worn from the latter,
and then deposited in water. Afterwards, they have been
solidified by heat, and some of them so nearly melted as to
become crystallized, constituting the metamorphic rocks. The
loose materials now covering the surface have also been sub
sequently worn off by atmospheric and aqueous agencies,
from whatever rocks were exposed. So that probably no
particle in the earth has now the form in which it was origi-

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE. 177
nally created. How different this from the common views of
the earth's condition !
A second conclusion, forced upon the practical geologist,
is, that the continents of our globe have been for long periods,
and most of them several times, beneath the ocean, and have
been subsequently elevated from thence, or the waters have
been drained off. At least two thirds of these continents
are covered by rocks, thousands of feet thick, abounding in
the remains of sea animals and plants, which lived near where
they are now found, and could not have been drifted far. To
accumulate materials, with their fossil contents, several miles
thick, must have required immense periods of time. The
fractured and upturned condition of most of the older rocks
proves that they have been elevated by some internal force,
acting vertically or laterally, to form continents. But in
some places the strata, especially the newest, have never
been disturbed, and in such cases it seems most probable that
the waters have been drained off. Again, we have evidence
often of the subsidence of the same continent that had long
been above the waters, and then a second emergence. Nay,
three, and even more vertical movements of this sort are
sometimes shown by the geological monuments. Indeed, we
have proof that existing continents are now experiencing sim
ilar changes, in some places rising, and in others falling, yet
so slowly as to be unnoticed, save by the most careful ob
servation. These vertical changes have not been effected without
causing a vast amount of erosion at the earth's surface.
While the continents were below the ocean, this work was
aided in high latitudes by enormous icebergs, charged with
boulders, and driven by the currents along the surface,
grinding down its salient parts, and sweeping along the

178 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED
abraded materials, even hundreds of miles from their original
beds. The grooves and polished surfaces thus produced still
remain in such countries as the northern parts of the United
States, Scotland, and Scandinavia, wherever the rock has not
been decomposed, and the huge boulders lie every where
strewed along the course of these ancient icebergs.
As the continents rose, lakes and rivers would be formed,
whose currents would bring together and accumulate those
large deposits of sand and gravel, which in our country show
themselves in the form of old beaches, ridges, and terraces,
which can be found at least two thousand feet above the pres
ent ocean, and which attest unequivocally the former presence
of the ocean, and the gradual drainage of the land.
The amount of abrasion by these various causes has been
very great. In Great Britain, — in South Wales, for instance,
— nearly ten thousand feet in thickness have been worn away.
Indeed, it is a moderate estimate to say that more matter has
been swept into the ocean from England and Scotland than
now remains above the waters. The same is doubtless true
in this country, although the observations here have not been
so accurately made.
How deeply interesting to every ingenuous mind must it be
to trace out on the earth's surface the marks of these stupen
dous and wonderful changes ! They lie scattered along every
man's path ; yet how few have an eye open to see them !
How many would prefer the baseless visions of romance to
these mementos of the earth's wonderful history !
But geology has other wonders. Wherever on the globe
the temperature of deep excavations has been ascertained, —
and the experiment has been made at hundreds of places in
Europe and America, both in mines and Artesian wells, to the
depth of two thousand feet, — the heat has been found to

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE. 179
increase at the mean rate of one degree for every forty-five
feet. At this rate, water would boil at the depth of a little
more than a mile, and all rocks would be melted at the depth
of sixty miles. Shall we, therefore, conclude that all the
internal parts of the earth are actually in an incandescent,
melted state ? Many of the ablest geologists have not seen
how they could escape this conclusion, especially when they
see how it explains the spheroidal figure of the earth ; also
the phenomena of active and extinct volcanoes ; the protru
sion of the unstratified rocks ; the numerous elevations of
mountains and continents that have taken place, and the fact
that a tropical climate once prevailed in the northern re
gions of the globe, even to the arctic circle. Besides, it
has been proved by the profound mathematical researches of
Baron Fourier, that even though all the internal parts of the
earth, below the depth of eighteen or twenty miles, are five
hundred times hotter than boiling water, — that is, in a melted
state, — it would not increase the temperature at the surface
more than one degree in two hundred thousand years. So
that even if such be the case, it cannot sensibly affect the
climate. Although, therefore, it would be presumptive to say
that this doctrine of internal heat is as well established as the
Newtonian doctrine of gravitation, yet every candid mind
will acknowledge that it bears the strongest marks of proba
bility, and that it lacks but little of being placed among the
settled principles of science. And yet what an immense and
startling conclusion !
Still more certainly demonstrated is another related con
clusion, viz., that the whole globe in early times was in a
melted state, and has been slowly cooling ever since. It is
certain that its internal parts are now at a higher temperature
than the surface, and that the planetary space around the

180 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED
earth is as low as 70° below zer-o on Fahrenheit's scale. The
laws of heat show, therefore, that the process of refrigeration
must be now going on, and however little heat now escapes,
it increases as we run backward through past ages, until we
reach a period when it must have been great enough to have
melted all known substances. And that such a state of things
once existed, the character of the rocks demonstrates. For it
is agreed on all hands that all the unstratified formations were
once melted. Almost equally unanimous is the opinion that
the stratified rocks, whether crystalline or sedimentary, were
derived chiefly by abrasion from the unstratified. The sphe
roidal figure of the earth, exactly such as would be taken by
a fluid globe revolving with the velocity of the earth, confirms
this conclusion. And so do the facts as to the tropical and
ultra-tropical character of the organic remains in the older
rocks in high latitudes. Original fluidity and subsequent re
frigeration are seemingly the only theory that will explain the
elevation and subsidence of continents and mountain ranges.
Moreover, the slow passage of worlds from a liquid and even
a gaseous to a solid state, seems to be a law of the material
universe. So that really the evidence appears to be over
whelming, to prove the early igneous fluidity of the earth.
And scientific men will not long hesitate, if some of them now
do, to place this among the demonstrated verities of philoso
phy, as the basis of reasoning in physics and in religion.
But after all, probably the history of the remains of animals
and plants, found buried hundreds and thousands of feet deep
in the rocks, and often converted into stone, is generally re
garded as the most interesting part of geology. In Great
Britain the rocks containing these relics are from ten to
eleven miles thick, and in this country much thicker. Not
less than 30,000 species of animals and plants have already

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE.

181

been found in the rocks ; and with the exception of a few
near the top of the series, chiefly in clay and marl, they are
different, often widely, from those now living on the globe ;
and hence the conclusion seems irresistible, that the fossil
species must have lived and died before the present races had
a being. Moreover, on comparing together the remains in
the different groups of rocks, they are found to be so entirely
unlike as to prove that they could not have been contempo
raries ; and hence the conclusion is, that several successive
groups of animals and plants have been created, and after
occupying the earth for a long period, have been destroyed
to make room for another grolip, better fitted to the altered
condition of the surface ; and that at least five or six changes
of this sort took place before the creation of man and his con
temporaries. Nor do geologists suppose that this view con
flicts with revelation. For although Moses fixes the date of
the creation of the present races of organic beings on the
earth, which appeared about 6000 years ago, he does not fix
the time of the creation of the globe ; which he says took
place in the beginning, — a term perfectly indefinite as to
time, — and therefore between that event and the appearance
of men upon it, immense periods might have rolled away,
during which the fossil races might have lived and died. And
that those periods must have been immensely long, no one
conversant with the details of geology can doubt, although
the proof cannot be here given. What enlarged and refresh
ing views does this theory exhibit to us of the plans and be
nevolence of the Deity !
Another interesting conclusion on this subject is, that when
these fossil animals and plants lived, the climate of these
northern regions must have been tropical, or even ultra-trop
ical. They are often much larger than their representatives
16

182 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED
of the same races that now live between the tropics ; and
often perfect giants compared with the pygmy races that are
now found in northern regions.
Perhaps the most remarkable animal of the saurian tribe
was the iguanodon — an enormous reptile that lived on land
and fed on vegetables, and resembled the iguana of the West
Indies. The average length of this animal was thirty feet,
and its circumference fourteen feet. I thought it might give
a more impressive idea of this reptile to exhibit a drawing of
it of the natural size. (Exhibited in the lecture.)
I have no doubt but this drawing gives a tolerably accurate
idea of this huge animal, although of course less perfect than
if the living specimen had stood before the artist. It shows
you what sort of inhabitants had possession of Great Britain
before the Anglo-Saxons. The largest analogous reptile now
living there is only a few inches in length. How different
must have been the climate and vegetation of that country
from what they now are, to nourish such monsters ! I do not
think there is any evidence that this animal was very ferocious
and savage, and therefore I have had his organ of benevo
lence drawn large. Nevertheless, I confess that the drawing
strongly reminds me of Milton's description of Satan : —
" "With head uplift above the waves,
That sparkling blazed, his other parts besides
Prone on the flood, extended long and large,
Lay floating many a rood, in bulk as huge
As whom the fables name of monstrous size,
Titanian or earth-born, that warred on Jove ;
Briareos, or Typhon, whom the den
By ancient Tarsus held, or that sea beast,
Leviathan, whom God of all his works
Created hugest that swim the ocean stream."
In the valley of Connecticut River especially, but also in

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE. 183
several other places in this country, and in Europe, the tracks
of a large number of animals have been found in the sand
stone, and some of them are of an extraordinary character.
In Massachusetts and Connecticut, not less than sixty species
have been brought to light, twelve or fifteen of which were
made by four-legged, but the rest by two-legged animals ;
and some of these must have been as gigantic and heteroclitic
as any that have been disinterred in any country. Some of
them appear to have been three-toed birds, with feet sixteen
to eighteen inches long, with a stride from four to six feet.
Another was a biped, with four toes, and a foot about twenty
inches long — apparently a two-legged frog, with a foot two
or three times as large as that of an elephant ! Another track
indicates an animal with three forward toes some fifteen inches
long, and a small hind toe ; and though a biped, its tail has
left a distinct trace on the rock. Such animals have no rep
resentatives among living races, yet they were once common
along this river.
With what interest and enthusiasm does the antiquary open
and attempt to decipher and arrange the mutilated rolls of
some ancient papyrus that has just been brought to light, and
whose contents reveal a new and an earlier chapter in a na
tion's history, or tell of the former existence of some race
before unknown ! Shall not the geologist be pardoned if he
indulges some of the same feelings when he discovers and can
read, even though imperfectly, archives of far more ancient
date, bring fresh before his mind races of animals, new and
peculiar, that tenanted the globe untold ages before man be
came its possessor ? If an event becomes more interesting
the farther it is thrown back into the past, geological facts
must in this respect take the precedence of all others. For
the most ancient event in chronology — the six days' work of

184 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED
creation — I had almost said is the most recent in geology.
From thence we wander back through a duration which can
be measured only by the succession of events, and not by
chronological cycles, except to ascertain from existing agen
cies that the intervening periods have been vastly long. Then,
too, the records, which the geologist digs from the rocks, of
animal and vegetable existence at immeasurably remote pe
riods, are often as fresh as if intombed yesterday. Their
most delicate parts — even the eye in some instances — are
as perfect as when the animal was alive, and the footmarks,
which he sees following one another in succession, are as dis
tinct as those of living animals passing over the mud or snow
before his eyes ; while the pattering of a shower, that fell on
the same surface thousands of ages ago, is as fresh before him
as if every drop had been instantly petrified.
How many millions of men have spent their days, and final
ly sacrificed their lives, in order to leave some memento of
their labors that would go down to posterity ! and yet not a
vestige of their existence remains upon the earth ! But the
birds and reptiles that passed over the surface long before the
globe was fit for the residence of man, have left marks of
their transit which can never be effaced. The proudest mon
uments of human art will moulder down and disappear ; but
as long as there are eyes to behold them, the sandstone of the
Connecticut valley will never cease to remind future genera
tions of the gigantic races that passed over it when in a half
formed state. Reptiles and birds, a problem ye have solved
Man never has — to leave a trace on earth
Too deep for time and fate to wear away.
It would be appropriate to my subject to indulge the imagi-

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE. 185
nation, for a few moments, in viewing science prospectively ;
that is, in predicting from its past history its future triumphs.
But I am admonished that your patience has already been
severely taxed, and can, therefore, only allude to a very few
prospective applications of science to the welfare and happi
ness of society.
Notwithstanding the wonders which steam is accomplishing
in our day, whoever will compare the description of the first
steam engine invented by the Marquis of Worcester, in 1663,
with those which now sweep with giant strength over land and
sea, will be satisfied that it has still greater triumphs to achieve.
But the chemist is conversant with several agents of analogous
character, but of far greater power ; and he cannot but con
fidently expect that the time is not distant when some of
these will take the place of steam ; because safer, more pow
erful, less costly, and more easily managed. Indeed, I know
of but one thing, and that is the resistance of the air, that will
prevent the attainment of a velocity by the locomotive and the
boat indefinitely greater than that now attained.
If a lecturer twenty years ago had predicted what is now
daily witnessed in hundreds of electric telegraph offices, he
would have been looked upon as a visionary dreamer. I well
remember how I trembled for my reputation as a sane man,
when I uttered the following sentence, in a lecture written
about the time of the earliest experiments with the telegraph
by Professor Wheatstone in England, and Professor Morse in
this country : " There is every reason to believe," I said,
" that by Professor Morse's telegraph, which he has already
tried over an extent of a mile or two, information will be con
veyed as fast as a printer can set up types. So that were
such a train laid between Washington and this place, [Salem, J
the president's message, or any interesting speech, might be
16*

186 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED
in print at an office here within an hour or two after its de
livery." Such a result is now so constantly realized, that it
has ceased to excite any special attention, and the civilized
world are now confidently anticipating the time as near at
hand when these marvellous wires shall encircle the globe,
and two or three hours suffice to bring intelligence from the
antipodes. What we may reasonably anticipate from the extraordinary
developments of photography, it is difficult to say. It would
not be very strange, however, if by combining galvanism with
photography, the same picture, which is sketched by the sun's
chemical rays, should be engraved by electricity. Indeed, an
approximation to such a result has already been attained.
Since chemists can ascertain the elements of the most use
ful substances, the prospect seems fair that they will be able
to unite these elements yet more extensively than they have
done, so as to form the substances. And, indeed, within a
few years they have ascertained that linen rags, by the action
of a cheap acid, will produce more than their weight of sugar,
and that a coarse but palatable bread can be made of saw
dust. Who can tell how soon the time may come when the
poor man will only need to purchase a cord of wood to sup
ply his family with bread during the winter ? *
The fear has often been indulged that many of the colder
countries of the globe must ultimately become nearly unin
habitable, from a failure of fuel. An application of a geo
logical discovery in Germany has, it seems to me, thrown a
gleam of light on this point. The rapid increase of heat as
we descend into the earth, and the ease with which Artesian
wells are formed to a great depth, led a manufacturer to bore
* Herschel's Discourse, &c, p. 48.

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE. 187
one, that he might bring warm water to keep his machinery
free from ice during the winter. Not only did he succeed in
this object, but by conducting the water in open pipes through
his whole establishment, it gave off heat enough to render
fires unnecessary. Is not here an inexhaustible source of heat
accessible to human industry and ingenuity ?
In my view, the most interesting thought connected with
anticipated improvements in science and art, is the large
amount of leisure which will be thereby afforded to the great
mass of mankind for intellectual and moral improvement.
But I do not believe that Providence will allow these dis
coveries to come out fully till men learn how to improve that
leisure aright. For if they only foster idleness, they will
prove a greater curse than a blessing.
But I forbear, lest I should seem to be venturing too far
into the regions of the uncertain and the fanciful.
I have now presented before you specimens, selected from
the different sciences, of the wonders which they can offer to
the youthful mind, as a substitute for the wonders of romance.
And can I doubt what will be the choice of every noble and
ingenuous soul ? Does it need any analysis of the labors of
the most celebrated writers of fiction to make every one feel
how infinitely superior is nature to all their fancies ? And
science is the history of nature — the history of the works of
the Deity. And shall the inventions of man come into com
petition with the inventions of the Deity ?
" O Nature ! how in every charm supreme !
Whose votaries feast on raptures ever new !
0 for the fire and voice of seraphim,
To sing thy glories with devotion due ! "
It has not been my intention to make this audience ac-

188 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED
quainted with the sciences upon which I have touched. But
I wished to give a sample of the wonders that will meet him
at every step, who resolutely engages in the study of any de
partment of science. I say a sample only ; for the farther
he advances, the more enchanting will the prospect become,
and the richer and more plenteous the gems that will reward
his search. But not so with the devotee of romance. Though
for a time he may seem to be quaffing nectar, yet, ere long,
to use the graphic language of inspiration, it shall even be as
when a hungry man dreameth, and behold he eateth ; but he
awaketh, and his soul is empty : or as when a thirsty man
dreameth, and behold he drinketh ; but he awaketh, and behold
he is faint, and his soul hath appetite.
Will it not be pardoned if one who for thirty years has been
almost constantly engaged in the examination of nature should
bear testimony, from his own experience, to the charms and
pleasures of science ? I know it would be vanity for me to
pretend to a profound acquaintance with science, or to distinc
tion in it. But I cannot feel that it is vanity to profess a strong
attachment to it. Indeed, how ungrateful in me not to rec
ommend with enthusiasm that which has spread before me
so many and such delightful prospects along the path of life ;
which has furnished a delightful retreat from the agitations
and vexations of the world ; which has thrown so many gleams
of light into the darkest part of my path ; which has led me
to many a clear and sparkling fountain, and permitted me to
breathe an atmosphere of peace and happiness ! Often have
I known the time, when, through feeble health, the languid eye
looked out with indifference, if not absolute disgust, upon all
the ordinary objects of life ; but never has a view of nature,
dressed in the garb of science, failed to rally back the sinking
powers, relume the leaden eye, and diffuse animation and joy

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE. 189
through the soul. A distinguished writer of fiction and false
philosophy, in chagrin and disgust, expressed a regret that he
had ever been born. But leaving every thing else out of the
account, I can bless the day in which I was born, because I
have enjoyed so much in studying the works of nature. And
when I see so many noble-minded youth placing all their
hopes of earthly happiness, some in the hot strife after polit
ical distinction, some in the possession of wealth, equipage,
and power, some in following the tasteless round of fashion
able amusements, and above all, when I see some whose
chief source of happiness lies in a devoted attachment to fic
titious literature, how gladly would I win them into those fields
of science, at which we have this evening glanced, and thus
save them from the disappointment and disgust which I know
they will ere long experience, and which may lead them also
to lament that they were ever born !
Many, many are the bright eyes that are turned upon me
at this moment ; eyes sparkling with health and hope. Must
any of these be palsied by the withering touch of such disap
pointment ? O, if their possessors will not place their hopes
of happiness in factitious and unnatural pursuits, but in a
knowledge and a love of nature, they will have a refuge amid
all the storms and fluctuations of life, and those eyes may be
bright and sparkling even amid the frosts of age.
" 0, how canst thou renounce the boundless store
Of charms which Nature to her votary yields ? —
The warbling woodland, the resounding shore,
The pomp of groves, and garniture of fields ;
All that the genial ray of morning gilds,
And all that echoes to the song of even ;
All that the mountain'? sheltering bosom shields,
And all the dread magnificence of heaven : —
0, how canst thou renounce and hope to be forgiven ! "

190 THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE COMPARED
I would not undervalue other sources of happiness, which
are mercifully provided for us in this world. I only wish to
show that the pursuit of science, as a means of happiness,
has strong claims upon the attention ; that it does not interfere
with any other innocent enjoyment ; that it is able effectually
to overcome that appetite for artificial excitement and dissipa
tion which makes so many miserable ; that it furnishes in
youth a rich fund of happiness ; to the man in middle life, a
delightful relaxation from business and professional duties ;
and that, unlike most other sources of enjoyment, the relish
for it grows stronger by age, so that in advanced life, when
the common objects of life cease to interest, those of science
still possess the charm of novelty.
Let me not, however, be understood to imply that there are
not pursuits and pleasures of a more noble and satisfying
character than even those of science. I would not bring them
into competition with the results of active benevolence and
piety. But the two pursuits are not inconsistent with each
other ; and he who chooses can make the pleasures of both
his own. Such a man has reached the highest point of earth
ly happiness. For every wonder of science now becomes
invested with the double interest of being beautiful in itself
and an exhibition of divine wisdom. And then, what de
lightful anticipations crowd upon his mind ! He soon learns
that even the veteran in science can obtain but little more
than a glimpse of nature in this world, and that much cloud
and darkness rest upon the brightest spots. Yet he knows
that the works of the Deity will form objects of study in a
future state, where nothing intercepts the pure rays of truth,
and that those works are vast enough to fill and feast the soul
through the round of eternal ages. Such hopes as these con
stitute the true nobility of man : —

WITH THE WONDERS OF ROMANCE. 191
" For how great
To mingle interests, converse, amities,
With all the sons of reason scattered wide
Through habitable space, wherever born !
To call heaven's rich, unfathomable mines
Our own ! To rise in science as in bliss !
To read creation, read its mighty plan,
In the bare bosom of the Deity !
In an eternity, what scenes shall strike !
Adventures thicken ! novelties surprise !
What webs of wonder shall unravel there !
What full day pour on all the paths of heaven,
And light th' Almighty's footsteps in the deep ! "
Young, N 6.

THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S
CREATION.

And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed
into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became n living soul.
Genesis ii. 7-
Sceptical minds are fond of selecting and giving prom
inence to those facts, historical or scientific, that have an un
favorable bearing upon religion. This is natural ; and why
should not the friends of religion sometimes illustrate subjects
derived from the same fields, which strengthen our faith, and
clarify our views of the great principles of natural and re
vealed truth ? Guided by this principle, I propose this morn
ing to discuss the religious bearings of man's creation.
Of this event we have two records ; the one revealed, the
other scientific. Let us look at the details of both, and then
we shall be able to seo the religious relations of the subject.
The scriptural account of man's creation is full, explicit,
and peculiar ; more so than any other event of the six days'
work. I shall call your attention to a few only of the prom
inent facts therein developed ; particularly such as have a
parallel in the scientific history of our world.
1. Revelation teaches us that man was the last of the ani
mals created.
None of them, were produced till the fifth day, when the
(192)

THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S CREATION. 193
waters were commanded to bring forth abundantly the mov
ing creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the
earth in the open firmament of heaven. And God created
great whales, and every living thing that moveth, which ihe
waters brought forth abundantly after their kind, and every
winged fowl after his kind. At the beginning of the sixth
day, God also said, Let the earth bring forth the living crea
ture after his kind, cattle and creeping thing and beast of
the earth after his kind. Next follows, as the closing act of
the demiurgic week, the introduction of man.
If we turn now to the scientific historv of our race, we
shall find essentially the same account of its origin as revela
tion presents. If Science cannot say positively that man was
the very last of the animals created, she can and does say,
that he was among the most recent. The arguments to prove
this point are exceedingly simple and satisfactory. The chief
one is this : —
We find rocks in various places on the earth to have accu
mulated in the course of past ages, to the depth of eight or
ten miles, and in them we find buried the remains of the ani
mals and plants that lived at the different periods when the
successive strata were formed. Many new species were in
troduced from time to time, but nowhere on the globe do we
discover human remains till we rise to the newest formations ;
not in fact till we reach the loose covering of soil, clay, and
gravel spread over the surface, and called alluvium, whose
lower part has been more usually denominated drift, or dilu
vium. This deposit is never more than a few hundred feet
thick, usually not over one or two hundred ; and I know of no
example in which it is pretended that human bones occur as
deep below the surface as one hundred feet. Yet the whole
depth of rock from which animal remains have been dug out
17

194 THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S CREATION.
is between 50,000 and 60,000 feet, and at least 30,000 spe
cies of animals differing from any now alive have been dis
interred in the rocks. Yet man is not among them. But no
reason can be given why he is not, had he lived in any of the
periods before the alluvial ; for his bones, being composed of
the same materials as those of other animals, would be no
more subject to decay than theirs ; as is proved, in fact, by
their appearance upon ancient battle fields, where they lie
mingled with those of horses and elephants.
The precise period when man first appeared on earth has
been a question of deep interest among scientific men, and
their eyes have been wide open to every fact bearing upon
the subject. In earlier times, when comparative anatomy was in
its infancy, the bones of other animals were mistaken for those
of man, and in one case a fossil man was announced quite
deep in the rocks, which turned out, beneath the scrutinizing
glance of Cuvier, to be a gigantic salamander ; and the bones
of mammoths were in Switzerland regarded as those of giants,
and in England as those of the fallen angels. But since com
parative anatomy has applied to fossil bones principles and
modes of investigation little less certain than those of math
ematics, every able geologist has abandoned the expectation
of finding human remains below the superficial deposits, the
lowest of which are, in a geological sense, very recent. In
the words of Sir Charles Lyell, " If there be a difference of
opinion respecting the occurrence in certain deposits of the
remains of man and his works, it is always in reference to
strata confessedly of the most modern order ; and it is never
pretended that our race coexisted with assemblages of animals
and plants of which all, or even a large proportion of the spe
cies, are extinct."
It is well known that geologists have divided those loose

THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S CREATION. 195
deposits that cover the surface, and are more or less confused
ly mingled together, into two formations, the lowest called
drift or diluvium, and the highest called alluvium. That hu
man remains exist in the latter no one doubts, though it may
be a question whether they fall into the class properly called
fossils. But the main question is, Do any of these remains
occur as low as the drift ? On this question we shall find
some diversity of opinion. But here let me make one or two
preliminary remarks. The first is, that geologists are not at
all agreed where drift ends and alluvium begins ; so that what
one calls drift, another calls alluvium. Nor do I believe it
possible to fix a line of demarcation between them, just be
cause no such line exists in nature. With Professor Pictet,
Sir Charles Lyell, and others, I believe that we ought to con
sider drift and alluvium as forming a single series, and that
life has not been interrupted, or entirely renewed, but only
some species destroyed during its deposition.
Another remark is, that in my own opinion, the causes
producing drift are still in operation, as well as those pro
ducing alluvium ; and that, in fact, the two classes of causes
have had a parallel operation from the first ; and, therefore,
the two formations should be regarded as contemporaneous,
rather than successive. From the earliest times, glaciers, ice
bergs, waves of translation, and landslips have been forming
drift, and are still forming it. And so the oceans, lakes, and
rivers have ever been at work to deposit alluvium. I admit
that these causes have not always acted with equal intensity,
and that the greater part of drift is anterior to the great body
of alluvium. But admitting any degree of parallelism in the
operation of these causes, the discovery of human remains in
drift does not necessarily show them to be of great antiquity.
Their age can be settled only by settling that of the deposit

196 THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF Man's CREATION.
in which they occur. Moreover, from this unsettled state of
opinion as to these formations, it does not follow, because one
observer announces human remains in drift, that others would
admit them to belong to that deposit. When such announce
ments, therefore, are made, we should draw no inference as
to the antiquity of the remains till the discoverer has told us
what he means by drift.
I ought, perhaps, to add, that there is a like want of agree
ment among able writers in the meaning which they attach to
the term fossil. Originally it included every thing, mineral
as well as organic, dug from the earth. Says one distin
guished writer, " Geologists now use the word only to express
the remains of animals and plants found buried in the earth."
— Lyell. Says another, " An organized fossil body is one
which has been buried in the earth at an undetermined epoch,
and has been preserved, or left there unequivocal traces of
its existence." — M. Deshayes. A third defines a fossil as
" every organized body, or vestige of it, found naturally
buried in the earth's strata, in a state different from the nor
mal and actual conditions of existence." — M. D' Orbigny.
A fourth applies the word fossil to " every organic body found
naturally buried in the earth, which has been preserved, or
has left traces not doubtful of its existence ; provided that the
deposit in which it occurs has been formed under the influence
of circumstances different from those now passing before our
eyes." — M. Pictet*
Now, some writers have taken it for granted, that if they
can only make out that man is found in a fossil state, he must
have lived before Adam. But until the meaning of this term
* Traite de Paleontologie, par Professeur F. J. Pictet, Tome Premier, p.
17. See also Lehrbitch der Geognosie, von Dr. Carl Friedrich Naumann,
Brster Band, p. 812. Dr. Naumann's views correspond essentially with
those of Sir Charles Lyell.

THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S CREATION. 197
can be made more definite than it now is, a fossil man is not
necessarily preadamic He may not even be antediluvian.
Let us now look briefly at the most remarkable examples
of organic remains that have been thought to prove the great
antiquity of the human race, if not geologically, yet chrono
logically considered.
In the British Museum, and the Eoyal Cabinet in Paris, are
specimens of human skeletons from Guadaloupe, in solid rock,
hard as marble. To a person unfamiliar with rocks, these
seem very striking examples of fossil men. But in fact this
rock is daily forming in all the West Indian Archipelago, by
the cementation of fragments of corals and shells worn off
and collected by the waves ; and it is not probable that these
individual specimens are more than a few hundred years old
— the skeletons perhaps of Caribs or Galibis, who fought a
battle on the spot where they were found, about the beginning
of the eighteenth century.
The most numerous examples of human bones, supposed to
be fossil, occur in limestone caverns, buried in mud, or stal
agmite, with the bones of other animals, recent and extinct.
Such cases are described in Greece, in several places in the
south of France, in Belgium, in England, and in Brazil. The
bones are usually separated from one another, and mixed up
with those of extinct species of rhinoceroses, hyenas, bears,
and other terrestrial quadrupeds, as well as with those of liv
ing species. Still more recently human remains have been
found in the Suabian Alps, in connection with those of the
mastodon, though I cannot say whether these occur in caverns.
Now, in regard to all such cases, several considerations
should lead us to be very cautious in inferring that man, and
the extinct animals found in such circumstances, were con
temporaries. For, in the first place, these caverns were, for
17*

198 THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S CREATION.
the most part, formed by subterranean streams, which carried
the bones into them from without, and, therefore, those of
widely different periods might have been mixed together.
Again, earthquakes often produce great changes in these
streams, and mix up confusedly alluvium and drift. Once
more, such caverns have in various periods been tenanted by
man ; and there has he buried his de.ad, while succeeding
generations have dug up their bones, and mixed them with
those of the extinct animals. We need not wonder, there
fore, that the most cautious geologists have hesitated to admit
that in any of the cases yet described, the evidence compels
us to believe that the human remains were deposited at the
same time with those of extinct hyenas, bears, and mastodons.
In the language of Sir Charles Lyell, " It is not on the evi
dence of such intermixtures that we ought readily to admit,
either the high antiquity of the human race, or the recent
data of certain lost species of quadrupeds."
In our own country several examples of fossil men have
been announced, of late, with much confidence. At Natchez,
it is said that a human pelvis was found in clay, beneath
" a diluvial deposit ; " in Florida, a jaw and foot in a con
glomerate coral reef, limestone, said to be at least ten thou
sand years old ; another beneath four ancient cypress swamps,
near New Orleans, sixteen feet below the surface, whose pe
riod of sepulture has been put at 57,600 years ago.
Every practical geologist knows well how extremely uncer
tain are all such calculations of the time requisite to form an
alluvial deposit of a given thickness ; first, because we have
so very few data for comparison, and secondly, because the
work is so very different in some places from what it is in
others. Moreover, the many causes by which the remains of
recent animals might become mixed with the extinct ones,

THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S CREATION. 199
render it necessary to scrutinize all such cases as the above,
with extreme care, before we can confidently assign a very
high antiquity to these supposed fossils ; and accordingly,
most of the ablest geologists, who have carefully examined
the facts in these examples, are not convinced of their reli
ableness. But suppose we admit all that is claimed in the cases that
have been stated, viz., that human remains do occur in such
situations as to prove that man was a contemporary of some
of the extinct races of animals — will this prove a higher an
tiquity to man than the Bible allows ?
Not necessarily, I reply ; for we have undoubted proof
that since the biblical epoch of man's creation, several large
animals have disappeared from the globe. In New Zealand,
for instance, no less than eleven species of gigantic birds, and
several other species in Madagascar, Rodriguez, and Bourbon,
have become extinct, probably within a few hundred years.
For we find their half burned bones mixed with those of man
on spots which were once the scenes of cannibal feasts. How
false the inference which should hence make these human
bones of very great antiquity, because found among extinct
animals ! Again, the great mastodon of this country often
occurs buried in our peat swamps, as at Newburg, only a
few feet below the surface ; and apparently, therefore, this
animal did not perish till a very late epoch in the alluvial pe
riod ; nor is it possible to show that it may not have been
alive since the fifth day's work of creation. Should we then
even find a human skeleton in the same deposit as that of the
mastodon, we might still reasonably doubt whether it had a
preadamic existence.
I trust that these details will not be regarded as inappro
priate on the Sabbath, when it is recollected how important to

200 THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF BIAN's CREATION.
my object it is to show from science the recent origin of man,
and what strenuous exertions are made at the present day to
establish his preadamic existence. I only regret that I cannot
go more into details, but I feel as if the following positions
were incontrovertibly established.
First, that the occurrence of human remains in drift does
not certainly show man's preadamic existence.
Secondly, neither is it shown by finding his bones mixed
with those of some extinct animals.
But thirdly, there is too much doubt still attached to all
cases of the supposed antediluvian origin of human remains
found in the earth, to allow any one to conclude certainly that
they occur either in ancient drift, or among extinct preadamic
races, except by accident.
Yet, fourthly, admitting their occurrence in such circum
stances, it is still emphatically true, that according to science,
man is among the most recent of the animals created, since
his remains have never been found as low as 100 feet, while
in the more than 50,000 feet of rock below, abounding with
other animals, they are not found.*
* It may gratify some readers, if, in addition to the opinion of Sir Charles
Lyell, in the text, I add that of a few other eminent geologists, whose writ
ings happen to be at hand, respecting the time of man's appearance on the
globe. " It may be stated," says Professor John Phillips, " as a general admis
sion, that man did not exist on the globe during the secondary and probably
not during the epoch of eocene and pleiocene formations, and that sufficient
evidence for his coexistence in northern climes with the mammoths and hip
popotami is yet wanting ; but as the races of oxen, horses, camels, &c, had
then begun to exist, it is not, perhaps, an unreasonable expectation that,
eventually, this question will be decided in the affirmative." — Phillips's
Manual of Geology, p. 438. London 1855.
" Does man exist in a fossil state ? " inquires M. Alcide D'Orbigny. " By
consulting well-established facts, we have no doubt of the truth of the affirma-

THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S CREATION. 201
2. Man, according to the inspired account, was placed at "
the head of all creatures on earth.
tive, particularly in the sense which we give to the word fossil. (See text,
p. 196.) Now, since we admit man to be in a. fossil condition, we may
inquire to what epoch his remains belong. The last geological stages —
the Subapennine and Fahlunien — which preceded the existing epoch, do
they show any where traces of human remains either in marine or terrestrial
deposits ? "We think we can reply in the negative ; for no well-established
fact will sustain the opinion that they do occur therein. Human remains
are peculiar to caverns, or osseous breccias, or alluvions. It follows from
thence that fossil human remains, whenever they have been carefully ob
served, are met with, in all cases, along with other beings of the existing
epoch, and are fossil in contemporaneous deposits. Human bones are want
ing entirely in the two last stages (geological) which have preceded our
own.'' — Cours Elementaire de Paleontologie et de Geoloaie, §c, par M.
Aleide D' 'Orbigny. Premier volume, p. 162. Paris, 1849.
" Have human fossils been found ? Did man appear on the globe before
the present epoch ? " inquires Professor Pictet. " Such is the important
question to which modern science seems to give a negative answer, although
at various times it has been judged otherwise. The true question appears to
me to be the following : What animals peopled Europe when man first
appeared, and, by consequent, at what geological period can his origin be
placed ? All paleontologists, at this day, are agreed that there is no proof
of his existence during the tertiary epoch or the anterior epochs. All who
admit the view, which I have elsewhere exhibited, of the relations of the
diluvial and modem epochs, will know also that this question may be treated
without prejudice, and according to facts alone. I have shown, in fact, that
we may probably regard these two periods as forming together a single
series, during which life has been neither entirely interrupted nor renewed,
at least in Europe ; and during which partial, local, and successive inunda
tions have deposited several formations, destroying only some species."
After reviewing the facts, Professor Pictet concludes, " 1. That man was not
established in Europe at the commencement of the diluvial epoch ; 2. That
some migrations probably took place in the course of the diluvial period ;
3. That the definite establishment of man in Europe, and the occupation of
that continent by a numerous population, probably took place after the great
mundation which deposited the rolled fragments in the caverns and on the
plains of the continent." — Pictet's Traite de Paleontologie, §e., Tome
Premier, p. 145 et seq. Seconde edition. Paris, 1853.

202 THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S CREATION.
And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our
likeness ; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea,
and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all
the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the
earth. So God created man in his own image, in the image
of God created he him, male and female created he them.
And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful,
and multiply, and replenish ihe earth, and subdue it ; and
have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of
the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the
earth. Who is not struck with the exalted character and office
assigned to man in this passage by his Creator ? And the
features of his character that give him this preeminence are
distinctly stated. It is not his physical organization ; for
though fearfully made in this respect, he is scarcely superior
to some of the monkey tribe denominated quadrumanous, or
even to the mammiferous animals. But his exaltation rests
on his intellectual and moral powers. That rich sentence,
So God created man in his own image, in the image of God
created he him, is full of meaning and interest. The image
of God ! What is that ? Who would dare apply such lan
guage to man, if God had not done it ? A Being of infinite
moral and intellectual attributes, immaterial and immortal,
condescends to state, without qualification, that he has stamped
his own image upon a creature of his hand, and therefore
gives him dominion over all other creatures in the same world.
If some of them show a spark of intelligence, not one discov
ers a single moral characteristic ; and as to intellect, if any
of them possess it at all, it is immeasurably inferior to man's.
If the idiot and the long-degraded savage show a mental heb
etude and grossness even inferior to many of the brutes, the

THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S CREATION. 203
proper inference is, not that the race are allied to the quad-
rumana, but that in such cases the development of mind is
prevented by natural or artificial obstructions. On the other
hand, the loftiest exhibition of mental and moral power
which any of our race have exhibited may be taken as the
measure of the intellectual ability of the whole race ; because
there is every reason to presume that, when man is freed
from the fetters and clogs that now obstruct the full develop
ment of his powers, the mind now apparently the weakest
will manifest latent powers equal to the strongest. God's
own image is instamped on every soul ; and though sin and
sorrow may for a while mar it, or cover it with rubbish, yet
when it is polished anew by a divine hand, it will shine forth
in its original freshness and beauty. In a higher sphere,
where the deteriorating influences of sin are not felt, it will
be seen how worthy man is to wear the crown of this lower
world. If we place side by side sketches of the heads of the dif
ferent races of men, beginning with the Caucasian, and pass
ing through the Mongolian, the Malay, and the American, to
the negro, we find marked and characteristic differences ; and
if we extend the comparison to the cranium of the orang
outang, we seem to have proceeded only a little farther on
a descending scale ; so that, if we judge of the animal by its
head, we shall be ready, perhaps^ to conclude that the lowest
type in the human series is only slightly elevated above the
highest on the quadrumanous scale. But this is a false infer
ence, if we look no farther than the physical organization.
The most prognathous, thick-lipped Hottentot stands far above
the semi-quadrupedal orang. Says one of our ablest Amer
ican comparative anatomists,* " The organization of anthro-
* Professor Jeffries Wyman.

204 THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S CREATION.
poid quadrumana justifies the naturalist in placing them at
the head of the brute creation, and placing them in a position
in which they, of all the animal series, shall be nearest to
man. Any anatomist, however, who will take the trouble to
compare the skeletons of the negro and orang, cannot fail to
be struck at sight with the wide gap which separates them.
The difference between the cranium, the pelvis, and the con
formation of the upper extremities, in the negro and Cauca
sian, sinks into insignificance when compared with the vast
difference which exists between the conformation of the same
parts in the negro and orang."
But mere physical differences are of small consequence
compared with such as are intellectual and moral. I shall
not, indeed, Jake the ground that the inferior animals exhibit
no traces of what we call mind in man — such as memory,
imagination, volition, and reason. Admit, if you please, —
what, in fact, seems to be almost beyond question, — that we
do see evidence in brutes of the possession of mental faculties
similar to those in man ; yet who has so low an opinion of
his own mental powers as not to see an immense disparity
between the psychological characteristics of brutes and of
men ? The difference does not lie merely, or chiefly, in the
original strength or weakness of these faculties. For if
measured by such a test, we might well hesitate to ascribe a
marked superiority to man ; since in his infancy he is- of all
animals one of the most helpless, and with less of instinctive
power than they, and with a tardy development of intellect,
he really often appears to disadvantage by their side. But
let time pass on, and while the brute makes scarcely no prog
ress, you will see a surprising expansion and invigoration of
the powers of the infant, as it rises to the stage of youth and
manhood. Excepting in the case of idiocy or disease, you

THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S CREATION. 205
cannot stop, though you may retard, the expanding process ;
and by cultivation you may wonderfully accelerate and per
fect it. But all such labor will be nearly wasted upon the
brute. His instincts are capable of some improvement ; but
when you try your hand upon his mental powers, you will see
at once that you have got no foundation on which to build.
A few animals may, indeed, with great care, be taught to do
some things mechanically ; but their instruction consists chiefly
in severe bodily inflictions, and fear and memory seem to be
almost the only powers that are quickened ; so that the feats
which they perform manifest nothing almost of mental acu
men. As to the power of abstraction, indeed, there is nc
evidence that the brutes are capable of it in any degree.
In order to see the immense intellectual disparity between
man and the brutes, compare the attainments of the most
remarkable specimens of the latter with those of the loftiest
human genius in the full maturity of his powers. Suppose
you call on the chimpanze, the gorilla, or the " half-reasoning
elephant," to make the comparison : they are incapable even
of understanding what you mean ; and in that fact you see
their vast inferiority. The entire field of what we call knowl
edge lies absolutely beyond their reach. You may subject
them to the best discipline of which they are capable during
their whole lives ; and yet you cannot get them possessed of
a single idea, either literary or scientific.
It may be said that the idiot, and even the Hottentot, or the
negro of Central Africa, seem almost equally incapable of
such ideas, and of drawing a comparison between themselves
and the cultivated savant of civilized lands ; and yet all these
are men.
Of the idiot I shall speak shortly. But in respect to the
Hottentot and the negro, it is not true that they cannot com-
18

206 THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S CREATION.
prehend scientific truths. You have only to subject them to
the culture that has been bestowed upon civilized man, espe
cially if continued through successive generations, and not
only shall they be able to understand science, but it may be
to rise almost to the level of the Newtons, the La Places, the
Leibnitzes, and the Cuviers of proud Europe. Africaner,
while prowling with the lion and the hyena for his human
prey, may be only a little the most sagacious brute. For, as
Cicero says, " What is the difference whether a man take the
form of a brute, or, having the figure of a man, show the
savageness of a brute ? "
But when Africaner has been subdued by the gospel, and
learns to aspire after knowledge, he shows that early disci
pline was alone wanting to make him as well known for men
tal and moral excellence as he was for savage ferocity. But
his former fellow-tigers and hyenas could neither be thus
tamed nor educated. He shows himself possessed of an in
tellectual principle within, that exalts him far, far above them.
I admit that, as a matter of fact, a large proportion of the
human family exhibit but a feeble intellectual development,
and, in popular language, are justly represented as but little
above the brutes.. But even though the majority are thus
degraded, are they to be taken as a measure of the mental
power of the race, or shall we rather look upon the princes
of the intellectual world as fair samples of what the whole
race might become, if all obstructions were taken out of the
way ? I have already intimated that I am an advocate of
the latter view. For we do know that the most powerful
intellect is reduced to the weakness of infancy by the force
of bodily disease ; and that minds, seemingly weak in early
life, have become strong when health was invigorated, and
peculiar circumstances roused them to action. It is also true

THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S CREATION. 207
that a blow upon the head, producing some change in the
brain, has been followed sometimes by an almost total loss of
some of the mental faculties, and sometimes by their marked
invigoration. We have cases, also, in which recovery from
swoons that were supposed to be death, has been succeeded
by the total loss for a time of all knowledge previously gained,
until, all of a sudden, and preceded by some alteration in
the brain, the mind has recovered in a moment all that it
had lost.
From such facts, the inference is certainly plausible that
the intellectual diversities among men may be owing to phys
ical causes, rather than difference of original calibre. If
changes of physical structure or condition do, in some cases,
materially clarify and invigorate the mental powers, the pre
sumption is certainly fair that, if all minds were brought into
the same circumstances in this respect, they would exhibit
equal power ; and even idiocy, it may be, would be trans
formed into genius of the highest grade. If so, then may we
take the most extraordinary developments ever made by re
nowned scholars as a measure of the intellectual dynamics
of the race. And how immeasurably higher on the scale
would such a standard place man than the most elevated
point reached by the brute !
But man's chief glory lies in his moral nature — that is, v
in his power of distinguishing right and wrong, virtue and
vice; instinctively approving of the one, and disapproving of
the other ; feeling a satisfaction when he conforms to the one,
and dissatisfaction when he yields to the other. This power
assimilates him more than any thing else to the Deity, whose
approval of holiness and hatred of sin are infinitely strong.
Now, these moral faculties are entirely wanting in the
brutes. They may be taught to perform certain actions, and

208 THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S CREATION.
refrain from others ; but there is not the shadow of proof
that they have any consciousness of right and wrong. Their
actions are all prompted by instinct, or by the fear of punish
ment, or the hope of reward. There is no conscience within
to approve or to condemn ; nor have they any idea of a
Moral Governor, who will reward virtue and punish vice.
This, the grandest idea of which created beings are capable,
is man's sole prerogative of all beings in this lower world,
and it constitutes his highest distinction.
It may be said — and correctly, too, as I admit, though
contrary to long-received opinions — that there are degraded
races of men, who not only have no idea of "any being supe
rior to themselves, but no moral sense to accuse or excuse
their actions ; so that not even murder, or any other mon
strous crime, will awaken the slightest self-condemnation ; *
and hence it is maintained that man's boasted moral nature
is the result of conventional rules, and therefore not an origi
nal implanted power of divine origin. But the existence of
moral feelings is too nearly universal in the human bosom,
and too nearly identical in character in all hearts, to be re
ferred to fluctuating human opinions. And the very few
cases in which the moral sense seems to be wanting are ex
plained plausibly by admitting that extreme degradation and
unrestrained wickedness, committed from generation to gen
eration, can so sear the moral sensibilities that they seem
utterly dead for a time. Nevertheless, let the truth be poured
in upon such a soul, with an accompanying divine influence,
and moral life will be again awakened, whose cords shall
vibrate to the slightest touch.
But not so with the brute. By no process can you awaken
* See Moffat's Southern Africa, pp. 89, 17T, 182, &c, sixth edition.

THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S CREATION. 209
or create moral sensibilities in his nature. Indeed, the idea
of exhibiting moral truth to a brute is ridiculous. Writers of
a certain school of material philosophy do, indeed, speak of
the morale, as well as the physique, of the lower animals.
But it is a monstrous perversion of language, and would not
be employed by any one who has any just ideas of the ex
alted nature of the moral faculties.
3. According to Scripture, the creation of man was a „
miraculous and unusually important event.
Observe in what different terms the creation of man is
described from, that of the inferior animals. When God
would introduce the latter, he said, on the fifth day, Let the
waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath
life, and fowl that may fly in the oven firmament of heaven.
And God said, on the sixth day, Let the earth bring forth the
living creature after his kind, cattle and creeping thing, and
beast of the earth after his kind ; and it was so. Here the
command appears to be directed to the earth and the waters,
to put forth a power for the production of these organic
races ; and it might be argued, perhaps, with some plausi
bility, that this power was inherent in the elements, and not
communicated with the command. Thus, instead of a mira
cle, it might be only a development by natural laws of the
germ of organic existence in elementary matter. But whenv
we come to the creation of man, intervening agencies are set
aside, and the object seems important enough to demand the
direct agency of Jehovah. Nay, he uses the plural form of
expression — the language of sovereigns when from the midst
of counsellors they issue their mandates. God speaks as if
in council, and says, Let us make man in our image, and after
our likeness. Then he is described as having put forth his
power to execute his decree : So God created man in his
18*

210 THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S CREATION.
020» image, in the image of God created he him. In the next
chapter, where the inspired historian recapitulates the work
of creation, he uses a form of expression no less dignified
and impressive : And ihe Lord God formed man of the dust
of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils, the breath of
life, and man became a living soul. One cannot but notice
in all these passages how differently man's creation is de
scribed from that of the inferior animals. To produce them,
God merely directs agencies already in existence to do the
work ; and the simple fact of their creation is stated. But
to create man, he comes forth, as it were, from his hiding
place, and, taking in his hand the dust of the ground, he
moulds it with divine skill, and then breathes into it a portion
of his own mental and moral life, and then fits up paradise
to receive this emanation of his skill — this image of him
self. If this was not a miracle, if it was not a stupendous
miracle, revelation contains none, nor can language describe
one. I am awed, when I read the lofty description of man's
creation in Genesis. There is a fulness and dignity about it
which I find connected with no other event in Scripture. It
impresses me with a sense of man's original elevation and
importance in the scale of being ; and though he has fallen,
I do not forget that his mental characteristics remain essen
tially unchanged, and that by the work of redemption his
moral powers may be reinstamped with the divine image.
No less distinctly does science, or rather natural religion
founded upon science, teach the miraculous origin of man.
To speak of miracles as taught by natural religion is,
indeed, a new feature in theology. But it is a neology thai
has a scientific basis, and a most favorable bearing upon the
whole system of religious truth. For what is a miracle ?
What else but an event inexplicable by the ordinary laws of

THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S CREATION. 211
nature, and which therefore demands special divine interfer
ence to bring it about ? Now, then, the question is, Can the
creation of man be explained by the ordinary laws of na
ture ? Science shows unequivocally that there was a period
when he did not exist on this globe ; nay, she can nearly fix
the epoch of his appearance.
Was he brought in by natural law ? There is, indeed, a
dreamy hypothesis that attempts to explain the origination of
organic beings by the inherent force of law. But to explain
thus the appearance of a moral and intellectual being as
unique and exalted as man, has so ridiculous an aspect to
common sense, that the boldest scepticism, with perhaps a
few exceptions, dare not directly advocate it. It is so obvious
that some new and special power must have been concerned
in his creation, that unbelief is baffled and confounded — just
as it would be now if another being, as much superior to
man as he is to other animals, should start into life before
our eyes.
But it is said that, after all, man's creation, like every other
great event of the universe, must have taken place according
to law ; for how absurd to suppose God ever to act without
law ! that is, without a settled principle of action ; and if an
event is conformed to law, does it not take away the idea of
special divine power ? In other words, is not a miracle,
according to the common understanding of the term, an im
possibility ?
I fully admit that there is a law of miracles, as well as of
common events ; but this law may contravene, intensify, or
weaken nature's ordinary laws, and therefore it requires
God's wisdom and power to introduce and give it effect. It
is an alteration of the established course of things ; nor does
the fact, that God acts according to fixed rjles, make such a

212 THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S CREATION.
change any the less special and designed to meet a particular
exigency. Now, of all the events which science shows to have tran
spired on this globe, none bears upon it so distinctly the marks
of special miraculous power as man's introduction. The
records of the earth's past history, engraven on its rocky
strata, do indeed show us other events, and even economies
of life, which miraculous power can alone explain. But as
man is confessedly placed at the culminating point of all ter
restrial economies, and forms, indeed, the crown of this lower
world, his introduction is not only a miracle, but the most
glorious of all miracles earth has ever witnessed. Nay,
though I cannot fathom creative power in any of its manifes
tations, I confess that the mystery of producing dead matter
out of nothing does not seem greater than to take that matter
and mould it into a living man, and then unite with it intellect
ual and moral powers, such as ally this creature to its Crea
tor, and require an immortal existence for their development.
It seems to my mind to be the crowning exercise of infinite
wisdom and infinite power, and therefore the most wonderful
of all miracles.
Such is the parallelism between the facts of revealed and
natural religion, as to the creation of man. It forms a solid
and firmly compacted basis, on which we may erect some
inferential truths of no small importance.
My first inference from this discussion is a presumptive
argument in favor of the Mosaic chronology.
I refer to the chronology of man and contemporary animals ;
for it is well known that in respect to the chronology of the
matter of the globe, many regard the Scriptures as not re
sponsible, because they do not give the date of its origin, but
only say that, In the beginning, God created the heavens and

THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S CREATION. 213
the earth. And in regard to the date of man's creation, com
pared with the advent of Christ, as well as of many interven
ing events, particularly the antediluvian, it has long been
known that there is room for a diversity of opinion, amount
ing to some thousands of years, according as we follow the
Hebrew, the Samaritan, or the Septuagint text ; so that when
I speak of a presumption from my subject in favor of the
Mosaic chronology, I mean, in favor of its general accuracy.
Whichever system of biblical chronology we follow, the crea
tion of man and existing animals was comparatively recent ;
and science teaches the same lesson, although geological
periods cannot be reckoned definitely by years.
Perhaps it may be thought that a coincidence so general,
between the scientific and revealed records, is of small im
portance. But I judge otherwise. For undesigned coinci
dences are among the best of collateral proofs of the truth of
Scripture ; and in this case, the coincidence is as exact as the
nature of the case will admit. Had there been discrepancy
on this subject, how eagerly would it have been seized upon
to throw discredit upon biblical chronology ! This is a point
against which scepticism aims its deadliest shafts. It is pleas
ant, therefore, to find our confidence in the accuracy of
Scripture history strengthened by the record which we find
instamped upon the rocks.
My second inference enters a protest against those materi
alistic views, widely prevalent at the present day, which sink
men, or at least some varieties of men, almost to ihe level of
the brutes.
It is not strange, perhaps, that such views should be
adopted, when we look at some of the prevailing systems of
anthropology. It is first assumed that the size and shape of
the cranium determine the intellectual and moral character ;

214 THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S CREATION.
and since some of the races in this respect approach certain
brutes, it is inferred that in character they approximate as
nearly as in phrenological development. For the next step
is to deny, or at least to doubt, the existence of any thinking
principle in man, independent of matter, and of course the
mental and moral calibre will depend upon the size, delicacy
of organization, and facile action of the brain. The third
step is, to take the ground that the different races of men are
not mere varieties, but distinct species, with plurality of ori
gin. The Caucasian is always placed at the head of the spe
cies, and the negro at the foot. According to the theory, the
inferior species are incapable of elevated ideas or religious
emotions. " Lofty civilization," says a recent writer of this
school, " in all cases has been achieved solely by the Cauca
sian group. The black African races, inhabiting the south
of Egypt, have been in constant intercourse with her, as we
prove from the monuments, during four thousand years ; and
yet they have not made a solitary step towards civilization —
neither will they, nor can they, until their physical organiza
tion becomes changed. No line can be drawn between men
and animals, on the ground of reason. Did space permit, I
could produce historical testimonies, by the dozen, to over
throw the postulate which claims for certain inferior types of
men any inherent recognition of divine Providence — an
idea too exalted for their cerebral organizations, and which is
fondly attributed to them by untravelled or unlearned Cauca
sians, whose kind-hearted simplicity has not realized that
diverse lower races of humanity actually exist, uninvested by
the Almighty with mental faculties adequate to the percep
tion of religious sentiments or abstract philosophies, that in
themselves are exclusively Caucasian." *
* Types of Mankind, pp. 461^63.

THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S CREATION. 215
How diverse are such views of the human family from
those presented in the Bible ! And God said, Let us make
man in our image, after our likeness. So God created
man in his own image, in the image of God created he him.
He hath made of one blood all nations of men to dwell on all
the face of the earth; and Christ commanded his disciples to
go into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
At last, however, physiologists have found out, by an exami
nation of the crania, that " diverse lower races of humanity "
have never been invested by their Creator with the mental
faculties adequate to the perception of religious sentiments,
which belong exclusively to the Caucasian race.
These degrading views of the human family are also con
trary to the lessons of experience. For two hundred years,
at least, almost countless experiments have been tried by able,
conscientious, and persevering men, upon every variety of
our race, to see if they were capable of intellectual and
moral culture. To this work, thousands upon thousands of
devoted missionaries have consecrated their lives ; and from
every quarter of the globe — from the wigwam of the Amer
ican Indian, the mud hut of the African negro, and the kraal
of the Hottentot, as well as from the burrow of the Green-
lander, and the cities of the semi-civilized Mongolian — the
same testimony has been sent back. Not only are all these
races capable of such culture, but vast multitudes of the
young have shown nearly as much intellectual power and sus
ceptibility to religious emotions as the Caucasian race, and
have been reclaimed from their savage state, instructed in the
arts of civilization, and have lived the life and died the death
of the Christian. Yet all this evidence passes for nothing
with the anthropologists to whom I have referred. With
them a single degree more or less in the facial angle, a half

216 THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S CREATION.
inch added to, or subtracted from, the circumference of the
cranium, or a shade lighter or darker in the color, weighs
more than the testimony of a thousand missionaries, whom
they speak of as unlearned Caucasians, whose " kind-hearted
simplicity " renders them incapable of judging of the intel
lectual and moral ability of those among whom they spend
their days.
But finally, these degrading views of man are contrary to
self-consciousness. I will admit, if you please, that in bodily
organization I am paralleled by the quadrumana. But I am
conscious of intellectual and moral powers within me, which,
although now intimately linked to matter, and perhaps may
be, in some other form, forever, are still distinct from matter,
independent of it in nature, and raising me immeasurably
above all forms of organization, and every being not pos
sessed of like powers. If, by my physical structure, my
animal life and instincts, I am allied to the brutes, by my
higher faculties I am assimilated to my Creator ; and I glory
in the thought that I was made in his image. In such a na
ture there can be nothing defective, or degrading, but sin.
This, I acknowledge, has made dreadful havoc with my
nobler powers. But the fair columns erected by an infinite
Architect still stand with their entablatures and arches, and I
look with confidence to the same divine hand to clear away
the rubbish and the defilement, and to make the whole temple
more beautiful and glorious than even Eden could boast. For
I look forward to an immortal existence, and to a state of
sinless perfection — nay, more, to the society of holy angels
and communion with the infinite God. In the conscious pos
session of such powers and aspirations, which ally me to all
that is exalted and noble in the universe, how instinctively do
I recoil from views which make thought and conscience

THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S CREATION. 217
mere functions of the brain, to perish, of course, with
organization !
My third inference derives from this subject a refutation -J
of the most plausible arguments for atheism and pantheism,
and presents a new argument for the divine existence.
There are two points which atheists consider their strong
holds ; the one is the eternity of the world, and the other the
eternal succession of processes and races. And so long as
they could be met only by abstract metaphysical reasoning,
they could not be fairly driven from these coverts. But the
fact of man's creation cannot, by the utmost ingenuity, be
woven into conformity with these dreamy hypotheses. Had
it been made known only by revelation, atheism would have
evaded its force by denying the authority. But science,
teaching the same fact, cuts off this subterfuge. Or did not
both these records give so very recent a date to the human
species, unbelief might have hidden itself behind the veil of
antiquity. But now the fact is too firmly established to be
denied, that the most perfect and exalted of all terrestrial
races was introduced, probably, the latest of them all ; and
thus is demonstrative evidence furnished of a direct and spe
cial intervention of wisdom and power such as no being but
God possesses. Suppose, then, you admit the eternal exist
ence of matter, and even the eternal succession of the lower
animals ; still you have in man's creation as imperious a ne
cessity for a Deity, as the origination of matter, or any of its
other modifications, would demand. And it must be a per
sonal Deity, not a mere blind force pervading nature, such as
pantheism admits ; for to create man, infinite wisdom, as well
as infinite power, must be brought into exercise.
The argument from the design, every where apparent in
nature, for the divine existence, requires an admission that
19

218 THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S CREATION.
the existing processes and races had a beginning. But this
the atheist denies, as we have already seen, and not without
some degree of plausibility. Yet in man's creation we have
a work demanding an infinite Deity, accomplished within a
definite period. It is not, indeed, the original creation of mat
ter, but rather its re-creation, with the bestowment of the
higher principles of life and intellect. It may be regarded,
therefore, as a new argument for the divine existence, or
rather, perhaps, the old argument cleared of every difficulty,
and having the freshness and transparency of demonstration.
My fourth inference derives from the subject a refutation
of the wide-spread doctrine of creation by law, and of the
unmiraculous development of the higher from the lower forms
of organic life.
This hypothesis, though old as Democritus, and finding a
lodgment occasionally in the brain of here and there a clois
tered sceptic, has never till our day assumed a popular dress,
and ventured forth to gain the attention of the crowd, and
become the theme of discussion in the place of public resort,
and even by the fireside of private life. La Place first at
tempted to show how suns and systems might be formed from
eternal matter in a nebulous state without a Deity. Next, the
French naturalists, improving upon Democritus, described the
process by which inorganic matter became organic, in the
lowest and simplest degree ; and, finally, with the aid of
Anglo-Saxon sceptics, they traced the development of the
vital particle called a monad in its upward progress, through
higher and higher tribes of animals, till, finally, even man
was evolved from the quadrumana, by what was called " a
tendency to improvement " and " the force of circumstances."
And all these changes depended, not upon miraculous inter
vention, but upon the operation of laws eternally inherent in

THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF Man's CREATION. 219
nature ; so that the hypothesis may properly be denominated
creation ly law.
To sustain these views, appeal has been made to almost
every department of nature, especially to those parts over
which, through difficulty or defect of investigation, obscurity
still hangs. But though unsustained by any department of
science, it seems to me that its absurdity is eminently mani
fest from the creation of man. The mere attempt to state
the process by which the orang outang is converted by natu
ral law into the human species can hardly fail to excite the
smile of common sense. But if the views presented in this
discourse are true, it will excite a sigh, rather than a smile,
to find that reasonable and intelligent men have no higher
idea of the intellectual and moral nature of the immortal mind
than to suppose it capable of derivation by a natural process
from the orang outang — nay, from a vitalized, but scarcely
organized monad. How strange, how impious even, to talk
of the evolution of God's image from a quadrumanous brute !
Make out, if you please, a near corporeal relation ; but who
that is not himself brutalized can try to bridge over the wide
gulf between man's higher nature and the most sagacious
brute by that abused and ill-understood phrase, a law of
nature ?
My fifth inference not. only removes all presumption against
Christianity as a miraculous dispensation, but furnishes a
strong presumption in favor of the miracles of revelation.
We have seen that the most remarkable miracle of the
Bible, the creation of man, is also a miracle in the history of
science, and the most striking, too, of all the miracles in that
history. It contains others — such, for instance, as the crea
tion of the inferior animals. But I would fix my eye, at this
time, solely on man. From the dust of the ground I see him

220 THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S CREATION.
start into life in the full perfection of his powers, and with a
nature so much superior to that of any other terrestrial crea
ture as to preclude the idea of any connection, save that they
all belong to the same great system of organization. Philos
ophy is utterly baffled in attempting to explain by any known
laws and processes of nature the derivation of such a being
from any preexisting races. Strive as she does to avoid it,
she is forced to the conclusion that special divine wisdom and
power must be called in to explain such a phenomenon. So
long as revelation alone asserted the recent origin of man,
scepticism could imagine his existence in an endless series.
But now that the earth itself has opened its mouth to confirm
the testimony of revelation on this point, miraculous power
alone can solve the great problem of his existence.
And what a host of sceptical doubts and surmises, which
have long been fastened as vipers to the hand of Christianity,
does that one great miracle of nature paralyze ! so that, in
stead of seeing her fall down dead, as an unbelieving world
have long expected she would, they now behold her shaking
them off, and feeling no harm. The moment you bring the
famous cavil of Hume respecting testimony, or the mystic
hypothesis of Strauss, or the shadowy dreams of the anti-
supernaturalists, or the fancied inspiration of the infidel spir
itualists, into the presence of this one great fact of man's
miraculous creation, they fall flat upon their faces, like Dagon
before the ark of God. A miracle once admitted in the his
tory of nature, and all presumptions against analogous mira
cles in Christianity vanish like fog before the sun. Nay,
more, we obtain a positive presumption in favor of all which
revelation describes. The ponderous metaphysical and ra
tionalistic tomes that have been written to disprove the mirac
ulous character of Christianity, and their equally voluminous

THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S CREATION. 221
replies, now lose their potency, and we may suffer them to
pass into the limbo of forgetfulness.
If these things are so, then may I add, as another infer
ence, that we gain from the whole subject a presumptive proof
of the truth of revelation.
If science had been discrepant to revelation in relation to
the creation and character of man as much as it is now in
agreement, it surely would have been seized upon as cast
ing suspicion upon Christianity. Why, then, should not these
remarkable coincidences strengthen our conviction of its
truth ? When the writer of Genesis placed man's creation
on the last of the demiurgic days, who told him that when the
earth's rocky archives should be deciphered man's registry
would be found only near the close of the long roll ? When
he represented the work as eminently miraculous, who told
him that the science of the nineteenth century would teach
the same ? And when he placed man at the head of crea
tion on earth, who told him that psychology and ethics would
make the same classification ? Who told him ? How nat
ural the conclusion that it was the same infinite Instructor
whose hand laid the foundations of the earth, filled it with
life and beauty, and who therefore could not be mistaken in
its history !
In view of this whole discussion, may I not add, in conclu
sion, that it furnishes an instructive example of the use that
may be made of natural religion by the minister of the
gospel ?
Imperfectly as the subject has been presented, may I not
presume that my hearers feel that the teachings of science,
in relation to man's creation and character, do lend a strong
confirmation of the biblical aecount, and that this united tes
timony throws much light upon several important principles
19*

222 THE RELIGIOUS BEARINGS OF MAN'S CREATION.
in the theory of religion ? I have touched, however, upon
only a single point, where natural and revealed theology
meet ; and doubtless other points, equally prolific of impor
tant instruction, lie along the line of junction, waiting only
careful investigation. And is not this sort of research what
the spirit of the present age demands ? Infidelity has long
since claimed the testimony of science as on her side ; and I
fear that too often the expounders of revealed theology have
half admitted the claim, and felt that the less they had to do
with natural religion the better. But this jealousy of the
religious bearings of science is entirely unfounded ; and if
ever she has seemed to speak against revealed truth, it was
ventriloquism, and not her natural language. Let the preachers
of the gospel diligently explore the fields of natural religion,
and many a rich gem of truth shall reward their search,
which, polished by the hand of learned piety, shall sparkle
even in the fair crown of Christianity. To preach Christ
crucified should be, indeed, their chief aim and effort. But if
they would be workmen that need not be ashamed, they should
be able to draw the illustration and defence of the truth from
the whole field of nature, as well as of revelation. And
whether they seek responses at the shrine of God's word, or
his works, or his providence, they will find unity, harmony,
and mutual corroboration. The rays of truth coming through
these different media may, indeed, be of different colors ; but
they will be found sweetly blending into one unbroken bow
of light, painted on the retiring cloud of error and sin, and
presaging the glories of earth's latter day.

THE CATALYTIC POWER OE THE GOSPEL.

The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid
in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened. Matthew xiii. 33.
It is not often that the discoveries of modern science eluci- ->
date and make more impressive the language of Scripture.
The text, however, is one of these rare instances. It de
scribes, indeed, a very familiar process, — that of bread
making, — which, as a practical matter, has been known from
very early times. But the principles on which some parts of
the operation depend are even yet among the most recondite
in chemical science. Something is known of them, however ;
and although the person who is acquainted only with the pro
cess of leavening bread must be struck with the peculiar force
and appropriateness of this illustration, yet the man ac
quainted with its rationale cannot but realize it more deeply.
I shall feel justified, therefore, in spending a few moments in
scientific details, which would be appropriate to the chemical
lecture room ; nay, I should feel condemned if I did not take
this course, because I am confident that I can thus make ihe
beauty and force of this passage more obvious and impressive.
And in doing this, and introducing a few technical phrases, I
hope my hearers will not charge me with pedantry, till they
have heard me through. Gladly would I avoid these scien-
(223)

224 THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL.
tific details, could I in any other way bring out the full
strength and appropriateness of the text.
The phrase kingdom of heaven, in this passage, demands a
passing exegetical notice. The radical idea contained in it, as
well as in the cognate expression kingdom of God, is that of
dominion or government. Even when it means heaven itself,
as it sometimes does, this original idea clings to it ; for in
heaven, the most prominent manifestation of the Deity will
be through his government. In the New Testament, how
ever, this phrase often designates the reign of the gospel dis
pensation ; and hence it very naturally is sometimes put for
the principles of the gospel. Such seems to be its precise
meaning in the text. Christ evidently meant to say, that the
truths of the gospel, when brought into contact with society,
operate like the leaven of the bread maker, when mingled
with the dough.
And how, precisely, does this operate ? Chemistry, to
some extent, informs us. It is an example of those changes
in bodies, which, for the want of a better name, is called
Catalysis. This term embraces a great variety of decompo
sitions and recompositions, which are not explained by the
common principles of analysis and synthesis. In catalysis,
the mere presence of a certain body among the particles of
another produces the most extensive changes among those
particles ; and yet the body thus operating is itself unaffected.
Thus a stream of hydrogen poured upon a piece of platinum
will take fire — that is, unite with the oxygen of the atmos
phere through the influence of the platinum ; and yet that
metal will remain unaltered.
In cases of catalysis, more analogous to the example re
ferred to in the text, the substance itself, which is the agent
of the change, is in a decomposing condition. This is the

THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL. 225
case with leaven, or, as it is sometimes called, ferment or
yeast. One sees, from the commotion among its particles,
that a change is going on in its internal condition, and that
new compounds are forming out of its elements. Introduced
in that state into the meal, it communicates a change to the
whole mass, analogous to that which it is itself experien
cing. This is called fermentation. In bread, it is not al
lowed to proceed very far, but is arrested by the heat of
the oven.
It is found that the remarkable power of leaven to change
the character of compounds depends on a peculiar principle
which it contains, called Diastase. This substance is so
powerful in its action, that one part of it, mixed with two
thousand parts of starch, will change the whole into sugar in
a few hours.
It had long been a great mystery how so small a quantity
of one substance should be able to effect such a change upon
so large a mass of another. But the discovery that leaven in
its active state contains a fungous plant, which multiplies with
prodigious rapidity, and is sustained by the matter into which
the leaven is introduced, furnishes an explanation. This
yeast plant, as it is called, consists of myriads of cells,
scarcely more than one three thousandth of an inch in diam
eter ; and it has the power of converting sugar into alcohol
and carbonic acid, and finally into vinegar. All the steps of
the process by which the starch of flour is changed into these
various products may not be fully understood ; but it seems
settled that the starch affords the nourishment to the plant, at
least in all ordinary cases of fermentation.
The history of catalytic changes, then, furnishes us with
two principles of importance in elucidating the text. The
first is, that it needs but a very small quantity of leaven to

226 THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL.
produce a complete change in a very large amount of farina
ceous matter. The second is, that it is only necessary to
start the process of change in one or a few spots in the mass,
where the particles of the leaven happen to be, in order to
have it permeate the entire heap. It is not necessary that a
particle of the leaven should actually come in contact with
every particle of the mass. It need only commence a pro
cess in one spot, which will spread of itself through the
whole, or at least to a great extent.
To return now to my text, — such a power does Christ
declare the gospel to possess. The kingdom of heaven is like
unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures
of meal, till the whole was leavened. Hence I take for my
subject on this occasion, The Catalytic Power of the Gospel.
[ wish to show that wherever that is cast into the dead and
inert mass of human society, it shows a quickening, expand
ing, and multiplying power possessed by no other human in
stitution. In order to avoid misapprehension, let me premise one or
two remarks. Because I shall attempt to show that gospel
truth has a mighty power over the human heart, let no one
imagine me a disbeliever in the necessity of a special divine
influence to give that truth success. In that doctrine most
I cordially do I acquiesce ; and when I speak of a peculiar effi
cacy of the truth, I assume that the conversion of men is not
by might, nor by power, but by the Spirit of the Lord of hosts.
J My only object is to show that the truth, in itself, possesses a
peculiar adaptedness to win its way and transform society.
And surely it will encourage our efforts, as well as make
us feel more deeply our obligations, to learn what an ad
mirable instrument God has put into our hands with which
to labor.

THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL. 227
Let us now look at the evidence of the catalytic power of
the gospel.
In the first place, such a power is derived from the adapted^
ness of the gospel to human wants.
How well adapted it is to promote the temporal welfare and*
happiness of man, may be seen by comparing the condition
of society in Christian lands with that of heathen and Mo
hammedan countries. So striking is the contrast, that truly
and literally we may say of Christianity, it has the promise
of the life that now is, as well as of that which is to come.
But it is mainly of man's spiritual wants that I speak at this
time. For though felt more or less by all, and by many with
great intensity, they are met and satisfied nowhere save in
the gospel. Yet how purblind men are to this panacea !
They search for remedies every where else. They run the
whole round of sensual gratification in the vain expectation
of relief; but they find only a bitter aggravation of their suf
ferings. They toil for wealth, for honor, for power, and per
haps are eminently successful. But the void in their hearts is
only made larger and more painful. They resort to social
enjoyments, or to learning, or to splendid worldly enterprises ;
but all in vain ; the terrible craving of their nature continues,
and, like the cast-out unclean spirit, they go through dry
places, seeking rest, yet finding none. They resort finally to *
deeds of charity, to self-mortifications, and to the rites of a
religion of forms ; and here they fancy they must find peace.
But if they do, it is only a false and a transient peace — the'-'
peace of self-delusion, not the peace of God. And when
some trying exigency of life overtakes them, the visor drops
from their eyes, and the cheated soul within cries out in an
guish for something to lean upon in the hour of suffering and
of death.

228 THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL.
Such are the vain phantoms which most men pursue
through all their days, urged on by the deep, restless, unsatis-
/ fied wants of their nature. Nor does one in a thousand' fancy
that he is walking in a vain show, until God's Spirit opens his
¦S eyes to see the plague of his own heart. He is amazed and
J overwhelmed by the view. Such deep and dreadful deprav
ity, pervading his whole nature, he never once suspected.
He can live with such a heart no longer. Ah, he sees now
what he wants, and, prostrate in the dust, he cries out, Create
in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within
m,e. His prayer prevails. He rises a new creature in Christ
Jesus. The aching void in his heart is filled — filled with
divine love and divine peace. He is saved by the washing of
regeneration and the renewing of the Holy Ghost. He has
found, at last, the grand panacea which nature could never
discover. " This remedy did wisdom find
To heal diseases of the mind,
The sovereign balm, whose virtues can
Restore the ruined creature, man."
During the preparatory process that goes before regenera
tion, as well as in the act, the peculiar adaptedness of an
other great doctrine of the gospel to human wants is made
most manifest. The man is deeply conscious of having
broken the law of God ; and when he is made to feel how
reasonable that law is, and how holy, he does not see how he
can be pardoned. The law only condemns him, but discloses
not one gleam of hope. He looks around solicitously for
some way of escape. He inquires whether he can himself
make any offerings to God that will be a ground of pardon.
Especially may not the sacrifice of animal life avail ? To such
sacrifices have men in all ages and countries resorted, either

THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL. 229
by the promptings of instinct or revelation. And it shows, at
least, how general is the conviction of men, that sin cannot
be pardoned without some expiation made by a substitute.
But a voice from the Scriptures replies, It is not possible that
the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sin. The
sinner sinks down in despair at this announcement. How
well prepared, then, to receive another, issuing from the same
inspired record ! — The blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth us
from all sin. Christ being come, a high priest of good
things to come, not by the blood of goats and calves, but by
his own blood, he entered in once into the holy place, having
obtained eternal redemption for us. The great central truth
of a vicarious atonement gradually opens upon his agitated
mind. At first, he sees it only dimly and doubtingly. But,
ere long, his heart perceives that here is the divine remedy
for its otherwise hopeless case. Here, mercy and truth meet
together ; righteousness and peace embrace each other. Thus
God can be just, while he justifies the believer. Faith can
doubt no longer. It rushes to the cross, and pardon, peace,
and holy joy succeed to anguish and despair. The most
pressing want man ever experiences — the desire of for
giveness — is thus fully met ; and ever after, the pardoned
sinner, addressing his Saviour, exclaims, —
" E'er since by faith I saw the stream
Thy flowing wounds supply,
Redeeming love has been my theme,
And shall be till I die.
"Then in a nobler, sweeter song,
I'll sing thy power to save,
When this poor lisping, stammering tongue
Lies silent in the grave."
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230 THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL.
The character of the Being who made the atonement is
another doctrinal point most wisely adapted to the wants of
man. Whatever may be said as to those engaged in intel
lectual pursuits, and accustomed to abstractions, the great
body of men have ever associated some material or human
\ characteristic in their idea of God. And the Old Testament,
out of regard to this want of human nature, has made most
of its representations of the Deity quite anthropomorphous.
But it is in the character of Jesus Christ that this want is
most fully met. In that character, the divine and the human
are so beautifully blended as to invite confidence without de
stroying veneration. Had it been said only that the Word
was with God, and was God, man would feel as if there were
an infinite gulf between him and his Saviour. But when it is
added, that the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us,
the idea of a common nature draws us to him, and especially
when he calls us his brethren, and declares that he was
tempted in all points as we are, for the very purpose of af
fording succor to them that are tempted, and to stand as our
Daysman, our Advocate and Intercessor, our hearts can no
longer resist the appeal, and we approach the throne of
grace boldly, because we know that we have a sympathizing
Friend to plead our cause. And yet he is an almighty Friend ;
and what more can we ask ? No wonder that the heart
cleaves to such a Saviour with a supreme and undying love.
" Clothed with our nature still, he knows
The weakness of our frame,
And how to shield us from the foes
Whom he himself o'ercame.
" Nor time, nor distance e'er shall quench
The fervor of his love ;
For us he died in kindness here,
For us he lives above."

THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL. 231
It is hardly strange that to the acutest minds, unenlightened
by revelation, this world should seem to be a hopeless enig
ma ; or that it should be looked upon as a state of retribution,
and that the half Christian Manichee should imagine two su
preme principles, one of good and the other of evil, holding
with each other an everlasting war. But there are two doc
trines of revelation that solve the dark riddle, and show to
the eye of faith the full-orbed glories of the Divine Benevo
lence behind the thickest clouds. One of these doctrines is,
that the world is in a fallen condition, and because sin has
entered it, suffering has followed ; so that, in fact, the whole
creation groaneth and travaileth together in pain. The
other is, that God's providence sits watchfully above the
whole scene, and so controls every event, that the final result
shall be happiness and glory. It is wonderful how these
truths resolve the most agitating doubts, and anchor the soul
to a rock amid the fiercest tempests of life. Faith does not
fear but that infinite power, wisdom, and benevolence will
bring order out of confusion, peace out of discord, holiness
out of pollution, and everlasting happiness out of temporary
misery. She can see how wisely adapted even the evils of
life are to the moral discipline essential to a fallen being.
And when the tempests howl around, and the billows come
pouring over her, it is enough for her to know that all things
work together for good, to them that love God. She has
reached that happiest condition of human existence, unre
served submission to the will of God.
Springing from such a system of doctrines, cordially em
braced, there are hopes and consolations such as nothing else
can give. All other hopes and consolations fail to satisfy ;
but these leave nothing to be desired. The man does not
cease to be interested in this world, but he is more interested

232 THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL.
in another. The consciousness that his eternal future is safe
makes every blessing the sweeter which he receives on his
way thither ; and it also lightens every labor, and neutralizes
every trial. So near to immortal and unalloyed happiness,
of how little consequence to him are the short-lived incon
veniences he meets in his brief sojourn below, especially
when he knows how necessary his trials and labors are to
prepare him for eternal joy ! O, if such a man has not
within him the elements of happiness, they cannot be found
on earth. Daily the manna falls from heaven around him ;
and even in the thirsty desert, he can smite the rock, and the
cool and refreshing waters will gush out. And he knows
that, when he comes to the banks of Jordan, the waters,
touched by the wand of faith, will divide for his passage.
Such is the wonderful adaptation of the gospel system to
human wants. How could it do more to fill and satisfy them ?
Now, my argument is, that whenever men are made conscious
of their spiritual wants, and such a gospel is made known to
them, it will be eagerly embraced. And if embraced by a
few, they cannot but make it known to others ; and thus, if
no untoward influences prevent, will the whole mass at length
be leavened. It does, indeed, meet with a powerful obstruc
tion in human depravity ; and were it unadapted to the neces
sities of man, it could make no progress ; but now it has a
catalytic power, which enables it to find its way through the
sluggish mass.
In the second place, man's conscience testifies to the truth
of the gospel system, and thus prepares the way for its ad
mission to the heart.
Of all the powers of the human soul, conscience has suf
fered least from the blasting influence of the apostasy of the
race. The corrupt heart is able to make every other faculty

THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL. 233
its pander and slave ; but conscience always stands erect and
unsubdued, ready to lift her voice in defence of the right, and
to rebuke the wrong. Her mouth may, indeed, for a time,
be forcibly closed, and her sensibilities blunted, by the hot,
searing iron of iniquity ; but her internal vitality remains
unaffected ; and when, at length, her liberty and vigor are
, restored, her retributions will be terrible.
Now, it is an interesting fact that unperverted conscience
is a stern advocate for evangelical religion. Tell an uncon
verted man that his heart is deceitful above all things and
desperately wicked, and his pride and self-sufficiency will
resent the charge ; but his conscience knows it to be true.
Tell him that with such a heart he could not be happy in
heaven, and that therefore he must be created anew in Christ
Jesus, and his corrupt inclinations will muster a stout defiance
against the mortifying truth ; yet the faithful inward monitor
often compels him to acknowledge its reality. Hence you will
often see the strange anomaly of a man confessing his utterly
lost condition by nature, and his entire unfitness for heaven
without a new heart, and yet so bolstered up by pride and
self-sufficiency, that he feels little anxiety, and makes no
efficient efforts to change his condition.
Again, in spite of all the struggles of perverted reason,\J
conscience often compels men to acknowledge the justice of
the penalty annexed to sin. Sophistry may enable them to
make out a very clear demonstration of the inconsistency
between divine benevolence and eternal punishment. But
conscience compels them to acknowledge that they deserve
it. They know that, with such wicked hearts, they could
never experience any thing else but punishment ; and they
are conscious of having done nothing to lay God under obli
gation to give them a better heart ; so that, without his
20*

234 THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL.
interposition, eternal misery follows as a natural conse
quence. But though thus dependent upon God's grace, conscience
will not release them from their obligations to love and serve
him ; for that faithful and keen-eyed observer testifies that
their inability arises from a perversion of the powers which
God has given them, and not from any natural defect ; and
therefore they are as much bound to love and obey their
Father in heaven as a perverse child is to exercise filial affec
tion, and do service to his earthly father.
In this dilemma, how strenuous an advocate for the doc
trine of special grace does conscience become ! Instead of
pleading the sinner's apology on the ground of inability, and
striving to release him from obligation, she charges him with
having crippled himself, and therefore as lying under the full
weight of responsibility to the divine law. Yet how certain
to perish, if the special power of God do not interpose !
In the human conscience, then, we have a powerful instru
mentality for the diffusion of the gospel. Once let the leaven
of its great principles be brought into close contact with that
conscience, and, in spite of the hostile influence of pride,
selfishness, and passion, it will rouse and transform the torpid
soul, and make it henceforth alive to duty and to God. That
soul will, in fact, become a new creature in Christ Jesus, old
things having passed away, and all things become new. But
such a perfect network of sympathies is human society, that
you cannot change the feelings and character of one in
dividual, and not send a like influence into the hearts of
those around him. Let one man's conscience be roused to
do its office, and his neighbor's conscience cannot be wholly
quiet. So numerous are the points of contact between men,
that no one can remain long wholly ignorant of a moral

THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL. 235
change in his neighbor, nor unaffected by it when known.
Thus through the force of conscience a self-propagating
power is imparted to religious reformations. Once start the
process in a particular spot, and conscience will become the
catalytic agency to transmit it from individual to individual,
we cannot tell how widely.
In the third place, the history of Christianity shows it to </
be possessed of an extraordinary catalytic power.
Recall to mind the circumstances under which the gospel
was first introduced. Its Author, a poor, persecuted wan
derer, chose twelve illiterate fishermen for his council, his
heralds, his body guard, and his successors in propagating
his system of truth among men. The whole world, too,
stood armed to the teeth to resist its introduction. All its
prejudices, its social, political, religious, and even its military
power, was ready to be arrayed against the gospel ; and, in
fact, all these forces were employed to arrest its progress,
and to root it out of the world. Ten times within three hun
dred 3'ears did the mighty Emperors of Rome assail Chris
tianity with fire and sword. And they felt sure of a triumph ;
for how could a few feeble, contemptible fanatics, without
wealth, power, or influence, resist an array that had conquered
the world ? But how little did these worldly-wise rulers know
of the inherent vitality, the self-sustaining and self-propagat
ing power of the gospel ! So that, in fact, while they sup
posed they were giving the finishing blow to the system, it
was silently and irresistibly working its way into the hearts
and affections of all classes of the community, till at length,
in the beginning of the fourth century, it became the estab
lished religion of the empire.
Perhaps you will say this was the effect of the miraculous
agency that was manifested, in the church in apostolic times.

236 THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL.
This might have had some influence in the first introduction
of Christianity ; yet far less, even then, I apprehend, than is
generally supposed; for it is usually quite easy to get rid of
the influence of a miracle by imputing it to imposture, jug
glery, and delusion, as we know was done in those days.
But it is not settled whether the power of working miracles
was possessed by any after the days of the apostles ; cer
tainly that power was withdrawn a century or two before the
days of Constantine. Nor have we evidence that there was
any thing peculiar in the divine influence which was exerted
upon the hearts of men in primitive times. It seems to have
operated then, as now, according to the established laws of
mind, and in proportion to the means employed. Further
more, we have the testimony of the Bible to the position, that
men are no more apt to be convinced by miracles than by
the ordinary truths of the gospel ; for if they hear not Moses
and the prophets, neither would they be persuaded though
one rose from the dead. We must, therefore, impute the
extraordinary success of the gospel in early times, and in the
midst of fiery persecution, mainly to its adaptation to human
wants and the human conscience.
In subsequent periods of the world's history, this same
experiment has been often repeated. And it has ever been
true that the kingdom of heaven cometh not with observa
tion. No loud trumpets have sounded its advent ; no pow
erful array of means has ushered it in. A few obscure men,
without money or influence, and perhaps with little of worldly
wisdom or policy, unarmed saved by the Bible and faith,
have gone into the arena of conflict, like David to meet
\Goliath. And so inadequate have the champions and their
weapons seemed, that the world have looked upon them with
as much contempt and derision as Philistia's giant did upon

THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL. 237
David. And yet the despised pebble has found its way to
the giant's forehead, and the Galilean has conquered.
Take Great Britain, for an example. The conquests of
that kingdom by Julius Caesar, by the Saxons, the Danes, and
the Normans, are all on record, and constitute distinctly-
marked epochs of history. But who can tell us when and
how Christianity won its more thorough and enduring con
quest, penetrating where the arms of the Roman, the Dane,
and the Saxon could not reach, and converting tribes of the
rudest heathen into civilized and Christian men ? It is, in
deed, said that Augustine and a few other monks were once
sent as missionaries to Britain ; but how feeble an instrumen
tality to accomplish a work a thousand times more extensive
and important than all the conquests to which Britain has
ever been subject, or which she has made by her arms since
her political existence began. Had there not been an unseen,
self-propagating power to carry forward the work, begun
only in here and there a spot by humble missionaries, the
whole mass could never have been so thoroughly per
meated. The same fact exhibits itself when we compare Christian
with pagan or Mohammedan nations. In the latter you meet
with much more of the external manifestations of religion
than in the former. Temples, images, processions, public
prayers, and other rites, are rife every where ; but, after all,
you perceive that little influence, save an injurious one, is
exerted in such countries upon the public morals, manners, or
welfare ; yet, in Christian lands, it is manifest that an influ- v
ence has gone deeper into the public heart and conscience ;
and hence you find more kindness, amenity, and decency,
more of civilization, and respect for morality and piety. The
rude and ferocious elements of human nature are more tamed

238 THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL.
and moulded by Christian influences than by pagan or Mo
hammedan. I believe this is true of all nominally Christian lands, al
though we must confess that, in many of them, the gospel has
been well nigh deprived of its vitality, and little more than its
external covering remains. But even there Christianity exerts
a decidedly better influence than the most refined system of
human invention. Moreover, we may impute whatever of
good moral influence is exerted by Mohammedanism to the
principles — and these are not few and unimportant — which
it has purloined from the Bible.
Again, you will find that just in proportion as Christianity
has been corrupted, and the Bible is withheld from circulation
among the people, will the literary, civil, social, and moral
condition of a nation be degraded. Suppose you had the
power to pass suddenly from such a country as New Eng
land, or Old England, or Scotland, into Austria, Russia,
Spain, or France. Would you need a geographer to tell }rou
that you were in a land where a withering blight had come
over the pure gospel ? While you would meet crucifixes,
oratories, cathedrals, chapels, and confessionals every where,
you would find the Bible nowhere. And while you would hear
Te Deums, and chanted prayers, and the praises of the virgin
and the saints in all places of worship, and on all days and
hours, you would listen in vain for unadulterated gospel truth
at any time. And while the antiquated walls of monasteries
and convents would meet you in every place, the academy
and the school house would be wanting in all places. And
when you became acquainted with the character of the great
body of the population in those lands, you could not doubt
that the gospel, which you had seen doing so much in the
country from which you came to elevate, enlighten, and bless,

THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL. 239
was here shorn of the lock of its strength, and had been
moulded and trimmed to adapt it to systems of superstition,
ignorance, intolerance, and despotism.
The whole history of the missionary enterprise, foreign
and domestic, affords decisive proof of the leavening influence
of the gospel. To mere worldly wisdom, the most striking
feature of that enterprise is the total inadequacy between the
means employed and the expected results. When a man,
who has been accustomed to estimate the amount of outlay
and preparation requisite in any successful undertaking in
commerce, manufactures, or agriculture, or who knows the
amount of effort necessary in a successful political campaign,
— when such a man looks at the very slender instrumentality
which the ablest missionary societies employ for the conver
sion of the world, it seems to him a want of wisdom amount
ing to infatuation to go forward. Why, men are more tena
cious of their false systems of religion than of any thing
else ; and yet you send one, or two, or half a dozen plain,
powerless men among twenty or fifty millions, and are disap
pointed if, in a few years, you do not hear of numerous
conversions. Alike inefficacious do such feeble instrumentalities appear
to the heathen and the Mohammedans themselves ! .And this
is one of the grounds on which missionaries are allowed to
pursue their work unmolested in countries most hostile to
their plans. Imagine, for instance, that the Emperor of
China, or the Shah of Persia, or the Sultan of Turkey should
learn that one, or two, or even half a dozen unarmed, inof
fensive men had taken up their abode in Canton, or Oroo-
miah, or Constantinople, with a view to preach the doctrines
of Christianity, and to teach the principles of human science
and literature to the young. Do you think that either of

240 THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL.
these despots would have any fears excited that the estab
lished religion of the country was in danger ? Would he not
treat the suggestion with contempt, and look on the mission
aries as deluded men, whose efforts to proselyte would be
harmless, and whose literary instructions would be valuable
to the empire, and therefore their residence might be toler
ated ? And if a British minister would be gratified by having
these teachers protected, how ready would he be to issue the
decree which should place them and their followers on a foot-
' ing with their other Christian subjects. But let these rulers
learn something of the catalytic power of the gospel, by see
ing multitudes converted, as if by a mysterious influence, and
you would see the sword of persecution unsheathed and mar-
i tyrs multiplied. And it is mainly because such conversions
have not been in general extensive enough to arrest the atten
tion of rulers, that persecutions by the government are so in
frequent. I fear that they are yet to put the faith and courage
of the church severely to the test. For by and by, heathen
and Mohammedan nations will learn that the leaven of the
gospel, hid in the community by the humble missionary, has,
unperceived, sent its transforming power through the whole
torpid mass, and that their false systems are crumbling into
ruins. A still more manifest example of this mighty though unno
ticed influence is often seen in our own land, when the do
mestic Missionary Society sends its benevolent agencies into
some waste place where iniquity is triumphant. In such a
place are found, it may be, a few humble Christians, but the
wealth, the fashion, and worldly influence are all hostile to
the truth ; and when the missionary calls around him the few
followers of Christ at the prayer meeting and in the church,
it only makes matter for amusement and ridicule among

THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL. 241
others, who, in view of the apparent feebleness of the instru
mentality, exclaim, with Sanballat and Tobiah of old, What
do these feeble Christians 7 Will they revive the stones out
of the heaps of the rubbish which are burned 1 Even that
which they build, if a fox go up, he shall even break down
their stone wall. But the despised leaven silently operates ;
God's Spirit comes down to urge the movement forward, and
the great mountain that seemed so strong crumbles down and
becomes a plain. The gospel triumphs ; decency and refine
ment of manners take the place of obscenity and vulgarity ;
temperance succeeds to drunkenness ; peace to discord ; thrift
and enterprise to decay and poverty ; and spiritual religion to
errors of every name. Yet so quietly was the change effect
ed through the gospel's catalytic power, that opposition and
scepticism stand amazed.
From this principle of the self-propagating power of the
gospel, thus established, we may derive inferences of great
importance, and eminently adapted to encourage and strength
en those engaged in the missionary enterprise, whether do
mestic or foreign. Indeed, since the recent rapid expansion
of our population across this broad continent, these terms, do
mestic and foreign, have become nearly synonymous.
In the first place, this subject should inspire us with strong
confidence in the power of divine truth.
The current of worldliness often sets so strongly against
the truth, and the means appointed for its diffusion seem so
simple and inadequate, that we are apt to be disheartened, and
to forget the mighty power which the doctrines of the gospel
possess to work their way amid obstacles, and become mighty
through God to the pulling down of strong holds. But when
we recollect what that truth has done in time past, how it has
transformed whole nations as if by magic, how at this mo-
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242 THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL.
ment, abused and perverted as we know it to be, it makes
Christian nations stand out on the world's panorama so con
spicuously, and when we think of its wonderful adaptation to
the deepest wants of man, and what a stern advocate it finds
in the human conscience, and especially how thorough is the
renovation of the individual who gives himself up entirely to
its influence, we ought to be ashamed of our distrust of its
power, and to feel that we have in our hands an instrument
which, by God's blessing, can and will create anew and sanc
tify our lost world. So that wherever we have an opportunity
to bring the gospel in contact with the human conscience and
reason, we ought to urge its claims with as undoubted an as
surance of its efficacy as a woman exercises when she hides
only a modicum of leaven in three measures of meal.
Secondly, the subject is full of encouragement to those who
are laboring in weakness with great obstacles and dis
couragements, in the dissemination of ihe truths of the
gospel. Let them remember that the leaven, when mixed with the
meal, seems to be lost, and little or no visible effect is pro
duced, until at length it is found that the whole loaf is thorough
ly leavened. Let them remember, too, that the pure gospel,
when brought in contact with men's consciences, is as sure to
commence a catalytic process there, as good leaven is in the
meal, although without special grace it will not result in con
version. Nor will the laborer, perhaps, perceive any good
effect produced for a long time, and possibly not while he
lives. But moral reformations usually move very slowly on
ward. It needs time for the leaven to work. And in many
cases the sower is not permitted to gather the sheaves. But
if they are finally reaped, he that soweth and he that reapeth
will rejoice together. Let him who is faithful in doing his

THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL. 243
duty in some barren field of labor, be assured that the truth
has never yet failed to manifest, sooner or later, its "transform
ing power. His field of labor may be narrow, and his dis
couragements many ; but let him bear in mind that he has
a mighty instrument to work with, and an almighty God
pledged to sustain him.
In the third place, the subject shows the fallacy of the doc
trine, that the world is growing worse, and will continue to
grow worse, in spite of all efforts to spread the gospel.
The world does indeed abound with wickedness, and often
the success of the truth in a place is the occasion of a grosser
development of iniquity. But the truth has the advantage,
because it meets and satisfies man's highest wants so complete
ly, and enlists in its favor the human conscience. And
whence arises this want of confidence in the truth, as an in
strument of the world's conversion, among these our brethren,
some of whom are missionaries, and yet they do not believe
the world can be converted by the gospel, but will continue to
grow worse till the Saviour makes a visible display of his
power ? Have they not felt the power of truth in their own
souls ? and have they not seen its mighty efficacy upon the
souls of others ? Do they doubt its ability, when applied by
God's Spirit, to convert the world ? If the world is growing
worse, how happens it that all Christian nations, even where
the gospel is dreadfully perverted, are so far superior in char
acter and condition to pagan and Mohammedan nations ?
Surely these men forget the catalytic power of the gospel, as
developed in history. True, the improved physical, social,
and intellectual condition of a nation is far from being its
conversion to God. But it is an important prerequisite to that
conversion. And it does imply that some in that nation are
truly converted ; and why is not all this an earnest of the

244 THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL.
final and complete triumph' of pure religion, if its compara
tively few genuine disciples do their duty ? For every acces
sion to their number increases their power ; and why may not
that leavening influence go on till it has reached the world's
entire population ?
In the gospel, then, you have an agency abundantly ade
quate to the work ; and why then call in miraculous power ?
for we know that it is a settled principle of the divine gov
ernment, not to work a miracle when established agencies are
sufficient. Finally, this subject should greatly encourage and ani
mate the hopes and efforts of those engaged in ihe work of
missions. They learn from it that they need not be discouraged,
though the common principles by which men judge of the
probable success of their enterprises, should show their chance
to be small. The fact that they are following a divine com
mand, to go into all the world and preach the gospel to every
creature, may, indeed, be sufficient to give them courage and
perseverance amid powerful difficulties. But it is important,
also, to know what an extraordinary instrument they possess
for carrying on the enterprise ; how it works its way into the
hearts of men, and silently changes their characters and the
whole aspect of society, and sends down an influence, they
cannot tell how far, into generations unborn. It is, indeed,
quick and powerful, sharper than a two-edged sword, pier
cing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and
of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of ihe thoughts
and intents of the heart. It takes a stronger hold of society'
than all other influences, and abides longer. Its secret energy
rouses human society into action, and propagates the catalytic
change from individual to individual, from family to family,

THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL. 245
from community to community, and sometimes from kingdom
to kingdom. Nor can the missionary tell, when he deposits the
leaven of the gospel in one spot, even though scarcely heeded
there, but he has started a process which shall go radiating
outwards over a whole continent ; for thus it has often done.
But though thus adapted to cheer the missionary in every
land, this principle affords much more encouragement in some
countries than in others ; and most of all, on American soil ;
to the home missionary here. To prove and illustrate this
from the analogies of my text, let us recur to certain facts
respecting catalytic operations in nature, which I neglected at
the commencement of this discourse.
The essential principle to which I mainly refer is this : that
in order to make leaven or any other catalytic agent operate, it
is necessary that the mass to be leavened should be in a certain
state, as to consistency, temperature, and permeability. The
baker well knows that it is of no use to hide leaven in a mass
of frozen dough, nor unless its temperature is a good deal
above the freezing point. So if from any other cause it has
become condensed and rigid, the leaven cannot spread itself
among the particles, and little or no effect will be produced,
even though the leaven be in the best condition.
Apply now these principles to the dissemination of the gos
pel. Attempt to propagate its truths in a country where hea
thenism, or Mohammedanism, or corrupt Christianity, is firmly
established, is sustained by the learned few, and the ignorant
and superstitious many, and by wealth and influence ; is
linked inseparably to the government, and can show a long
list of illustrious defenders. By such causes the false system
has been knit firmly together, and is settled down into a hard,
impenetrable mass, which resists all change. Without a mir
acle you would expect that if the truth should make any head-
21*

246 THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL.
way, it would be slow and difficult. Whereas in a nation
where a false religious system sits loose upon the people, and
has little social or governmental support, and especially where
commerce, education, and free principles are breaking up the
torpid and indurated mass, the way is prepared for the gos
pel's catalytic power to show its mighty transforming energy.
Facts now corroborate the truth of these principles. For
never has the gospel made rapid progress in any country
where a false system of religion has intrenched itself behind
the prejudices, the social habits, the pecuniary interests, the
splendor of rites and forms, and governmental favor ; and its
most signal triumphs have been witnessed where the false sys
tem has but a feeble hold upon the public mind, or men have
begun to think for themselves. Certain conditions seem ne
cessary, in order that the leaven may work ; nor where these
are wanting are we to expect success, any more than that the
laws of chemistry will be set aside in the process of bread
making. God does sometimes, indeed, give unexpected suc
cess by the power of his Spirit, to show that, after all, the
efficiency lies with him. But such cases are exceptions,
which we cannot calculate upon, and are not our rule of judg
ment or of duty.
From these principles we should confidently infer, that Mo
hammedanism, and especially popery, would offer more pow
erful obstructions to the spread of the gospel than any other
systems of error. Hence it is, that while missionary stations
are multiplied among the heathen, they are yet so few in the
great centres of Mohammedan and Papal influence in Asia
and Europe. Nor can we doubt, that long after every heathen
pagoda has been converted into a Christian temple, — nay,
long after the Bible shall have supplanted the Koran in every
mosque and minaret, — will the perverted Christianity of

THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL. 247
forms, propped up by leagues and bayonets, present its yet
unbroken front, to be breached only in the battle of that great
day of God Almighty.
On the other hand, from these same principles, we infer •J
that nowhere on earth is there such a preparation for the
spread of pure Christianity as in our own land. Here we
have no inert and indurated mass of dead formalism to break
up ; no frozen and petrified system of rites and ceremonies
to arrest the leavening process ; no iron arm of government
to check the onward movement. But the genial light and
warmth of free institutions and of general education have
brought the community into a state most favorable for receiv
ing the gospel and giving it free course. Wherever faithfully
planted, it is sure to communicate and spread its vitalizing in
fluence outward and onward ; and if Christians will only do
their duty, they may be sure that the whole land will be
leavened. And here I ought to mention another chemical principle
that has a parallel in the condition of our country. Chemists
tell us that elements in their nascent state — that is, when first
produced — unite far more readily than they do afterwards.
Now, the elements of our social condition are as yet, in a
great measure, in a nascent state, and therefore more ready
to be operated upon and form valuable combinations than in
the old world, where every thing has long since become im
movably fixed, either by affinities within or pressure without.
0, how important that the gospel exert its catalytic power
upon our population, before that same binding and paralyzing
process pass upon them ! The wide world does not furnish
another field of missionary labor so promising. I mean not
by this, that other countries are not open to the gospel, and
that missionary efforts should be limited to our own land.

248 THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL.
God bless these efforts and increase them a hundred fold in
I every land. But I do mean, that our country preeminently
invites and demands efforts for its evangelization. I do mean,
that it is a more promising and a more important field than
any other on the globe, and therefore calls for every heart
and every hand to engage in it.
Do I seem to any to be taking too strong ground ? Let me
propose to them an experiment, which I sincerely wish all my
hearers could try, to test this opinion. Let them take the next
steamer across the Atlantic, and in one fortnight they would
find themselves on ground very favorable for a comparison.
They would be traversing lands where state religions exist,
with all their pompons and imposing rites and ceremonies,
with their exclusive and intolerant spirit, and their hostility to
freedom of opinion, and to all that is vital in personal piety.
Religion there is sustained by governmental decrees and by
bayonets. Throttled in the embraces of the state, its lifeless
form is made use of as a speaking trumpet, through which
are proclaimed, not the doctrines of God, but of man ; such
as the divine right of kings, the duty of unreserved submis
sion to the government and the church ; the infallibility of the
church, not of the Bible. The sweet countenanee of gospel
charity has been changed into that of a persecuting fiend ;
and the snaky locks of a Gorgon cover her head, freezing and
petrifying all around. All places are full of religious forms,
but alas ! to find its power you must search long and deep.
The very highways are studded with crosses and crucified
Christs, with oratories and images of the virgin, while the
towns abound with vast and venerable cathedrals and chapels,
full of golden images, splendid paintings, and sacred relics ;
and the magnificent organ peals along the sounding arches
and thrills the wondering soul, as the gilded priests chant

THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL. 249
their Te Deums, their Pater Nosters, and their Ave Marias.
You enter the convent at the sound of the vesper bell, and a
thousand white-veiled nuns are kneeling around you, and gor
geous music lends enchantment to the vesper hymn. Every
where in the streets you meet the cassocked priest, and often the
imposing procession, while the multitudes uncover their heads
as it passes. In short, to an American, accustomed to the sim
plicity of our modes of worship, the most prominent feature
in European lands, save in the glorious fast-anchored isle, —
and even there to great extent, — is, that in spite of the most
imposing externals, the whole is little more than heartless for
mality — a wretched substitute for the bread of life. Yet
when he sees how firmly rooted is this system in the pride
and prejudice, the worldly interest, the interests of despotic
governments, and a swarming priesthood, and how it is woven
into the very texture of society, he cannot but feel that little
short of a miracle will be required for effecting a revolution.
With what deep interest, then, after only a few weeks of
such observation in those lands, will the heart of the Christian
American turn towards his own country ! In the hallowed
language of our gubernatorial proclamations, he will exclaim,
" God save the Commonwealth of Massachusetts ! " Save her
religion from the base alloy of formalism, superstition, and
intolerance. Save her system of education from the blighting
touch of aristocracy and priestcraft. Save her free institu
tions from the savage ferocity of the ignorant and unprin
cipled many, and the grinding oppression of the despotic few.
Save her, for the sake of the country. And God save that
whole country, for her own sake, and the sake of the world.
For to save her is to save the world ; and to lose her is to lose
the world.
It needs only a short pilgrimage through the old world to

250 THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL.
excite such sentiments as these in the heart of a Massachu
setts American. And his prayer to God will be, that he may
live to go back and labor harder than he has ever done, to
build up the cause of pure religion, of learning, and of free
dom, in that land which he has now learned to be the only one
on earth where, for the present, this indissoluble trio of noble
institutions has any chance of wide-spread success. And if
this man learns only this lesson by his foreign tour, it is
worth all the sacrifice and expense of ten thousand miles of
voyage and travel.
What a noble work, then, is committed to our hands!
1 What an inviting field has the Home Missionary Society be
fore it 1 The man who enters it finds society not only in a
state more favorable for casting in the leaven of the gospel,
but that the influence of his labors is felt almost to the ends
of the earth. Let him be laboring to build up some obscure
waste place, say in Massachusetts. He may seem to be un
noticed and neglected. But he is doing his part towards sus
taining and perpetuating the free and the religious institutions
of the country, and therefore, in fact, the eyes of many mil
lions in Europe are watching his labors with deep interest,
and with earnest prayers for his fidelity ; for their chief hope
of the world's emancipation rests on the success of civil and
religious liberty here. And if the true gospel be not preached
and received among us, free institutions must for the present
fail. In preaching the gospel, therefore, in the obscurest
nook of the land, a man may feel that he is working for the
whole country, nay, for the whole world. Indeed, Providence
is sending representations from the whole world to our doors.
By multitudes they pour in upon us from every European
land, and swarms of Asiatics are crowding into the valleys
of California. So that in fact we may become missionaries

THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL. 251
to Papists, Mohammedans, Boodhists, and other heathen,
without leaving our own shores.
What responsibility, then, attaches to the name and posi
tion of an American ! When, in foreign lands, I have met
kings and queens, dukes and marquises, counts and viscounts,
they appeared to be men and women of only the ordinary
stature ; but when I first set my foot again upon our own
shores, and met free-born Christian Americans, it seemed to
me that I was looking upon giants, because God has given
them the power of giants to bear up the pillars of freedom, «
of education, and of religion, and to cast down the pillars of
ignorance, superstition, and despotism.
If your patience is not quite exhausted, allow me to add
one or two further suggestions, growing out of a scientific
view of the text.
In order that leaven should operate effectually, or even
operate at all, it must itself be in an active condition, and of
a proper temperature. In proportion as its thermometric
state is too high or too low, or if there be an admixture of
inert substances, or its own decomposition be slow or partial,
will its catalytic power be diminished. It must be in such a
condition that a living plant can flourish within it. For if
there be no life in it, no vital power will be communicated to
the surrounding mass.
So it is with the moral leaven of the gospel. If its purity
be marred by an admixture of error and vain speculation, or
if it be cast into the community distorted by ignorance, or
disfigured and blackened by the fires of fanaticism, or en
veloped in the ice of formalism, feeble will be its influence,
if indeed it do not become a nuisance. Instead of proving
the wisdom of God and the power of God unto salvation,
men will see in it only the weakness of human wisdom and

252 THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL.
strength, overpowered by the superior might of human de
pravity. Now, it is this perverted and deficient gospel, that too often
fiuds its way into our waste places, into our new settlements,
and among the floating population of our cities. If has the
name of Christianity, and usually contains some truth, but a
larger proportion of error ; so that while it produces traces
of religion, it shows more of fanaticism, or bigotry, or self-
righteousness and formalism. How important, then, that into
fields thus grown over with briers and weeds, a pure and holy
gospel should be carried by pure and holy men ! Those en
gaged in sending this gospel abroad, through our Home Mis
sionary Societies, should have their piety in that living, active
condition, without which their prayers, example, and efforts
will only deepen the spiritual slumbers of ignorance and sin.
And still more important is it, that the direct agents in this
work should preach an unadulterated gospel, not only by their
voices but by their lives.
Finally, astonishing as is the power of leaven to change
the mass into which it is cast, there is a limit to that power.
One part may, indeed, transform two thousand parts of the
meal ; but if the latter be increased much beyond that pro
portion, not only will all the excess remain unaffected, but it
will operate to prevent the leaven from producing its full
effect. Nay, it may nearly or quite destroy that effect.
Hence, if the leaven and the mass to be leavened be enor
mously disproportionate, the best leaven may become
powerless. Now, to apply this principle to home missionary efforts, I
fear, my brethren, that this is just what we are doing in our
country. The mass to be leavened by the gospel is out of all
proportion to the means employed. In 1850, we built be-

THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL. 253
tween four and five thousand miles of railroad, at an average
cost of fifty thousand dollars per mile. During that same
year, we expended only enough upon domestic missions to
construct five miles of railway. And railways are only one
branch of American enterprise out of many. How exceed
ingly small, then, must be the proportion of our pecuniary
means devoted to an enterprise which transcends all others in
our country in importance ! For if that fail, all others will be
smitten with a deadly blight. Irreligion cannot triumph with- '
out trampling in the dust our systems of general education,
of public enterprise and freedom, and crushing the hopes of
liberty through the earth. Our hopes, therefore, must centre
in the Home Missionary cause. We make enormous outlays,
and labor without weariness to advance our worldly schemes,
and that, too, where the means employed have little or none
of the catalytic power inherent in the gospel, and where the
results bear no proportion in importance to the work of Home
Missions. God has committed to American Christians the
noblest enterprise which he has given to the present genera
tion in any part of the world. And he has put into our
hands an instrument with which to accomplish it, a thousand
times more efficacious than those employed in commerce, in
manufactures, in agriculture, or indeed any ordinary art or
pursuit. How dwarfed must be our piety, how low our stan
dard of patriotism, how contemptible our philanthropy, if we
do not supply the means necessary to prevent the leaven of
the gospel from being overpowered and neutralized by igno
rance and depravity ! Ought we to be satisfied to expend
fifty million dollars annually for railways, and only one thou
sandth part as much in working out the grandest problem in
politics, in education and religion, of this generation ? O, if
any cause has motives powerful enough to rouse men to
22

254 THE CATALYTIC POWER OF THE GOSPEL.
action, it is this. If we enter into the work resolutely and
cheerfully, with humble reliance on God's help, we are sure
of success. And success will bring such a day of brightness
and blessing to this wide continent, as never yet has visited
any other. Though the deluge of ignorance, despotism, and
false religion should ingulf every other land, ours shall stand
high above the flood, and beat back its angry waves ; and, ere
the close of the present century, one hundred millions of
Christian freemen shall here be found richly enjoying those
social, political, educational, and religious rights and privi
leges, which God originally gave, but which man has hith
erto unrighteously withheld.

THE ATTRACTIONS OE HEAVEN AND EARTH
ASTRONOMICALLY ILLUSTRATED.

For I am in a strait hetwixt two, having a desire to depart and to be with
Christ, which is far better. Nevertheless, to abide in the flesh is more
needful for you. — Philippians i. 23, 24.
Attraction and repulsion are the two great principles by
which the spiritual, as well as the material, world is con
trolled. The former tends to unite mind to mind and matter
to matter, the latter to drive them asunder. And the struggle
that is going on between them originates most of the move
ments of matter and of mind in the universe. When we
speak, however, of mental attractions and repulsions, we use
language figuratively. We mean by the first only those
mutual affections which unite those who have similar opinions,
and feelings, and aims ; and by the latter we mean those
antipathies which result from dissimilar opinions, feelings, and
aims. There is, however, a strong analogy between the
literal attractions and repulsions of matter and the affections
and antipathies of mind, so that the latter may be illustrated
by the former. And to some illustrations of this sort I wish
to call your attention at this time.
The text represents Paul as almost balanced between two
powerful attractions — those of heaven and those of earth.
(255)

256 THE ATTRACTIONS OF HEAVEN AND EARTH
So far as his own happiness was concerned, the attractions
of the heavenly world were vastly the more powerful ; for
he says that to depart and be with Christ is better beyond
expression — using the strongest superlative in the Greek
language, and to which we have no phrase exactly corre
sponding, but which Dr. Doddridge renders by the words bet
ter beyond expression. When he thought of the glories of
the heavenly state, and of being admitted to the immediate
society of Christ, his heart was drawn upward by an almost
overwhelming force. But when he thought of leaving his
Christian friends and converts in a dangerous world, and that
by his continuance with them he might help them in their
spiritual warfare, and be the means of the conversion of
others, he felt the ties that bound him to his friends, and his
duty holding him to the world with an equal power ; so that,
upon the whole, he could not decide in which direction he
was more forcibly drawn.
The attractions of heaven and of earth are the two great
influences by which men in all ages, and especially Christian
men, are governed. Very few indeed are in doubt which is
the stronger force ; for, alas ! most of us know very well that
our hearts cleave to this world with almost irresistible im
pulse, while heaven seems distant and but feebly attractive.
Still we shall find, now and at all times, some at almost every
point along the scale between the extremes of entire devotion
to the world and entire devotion to God ; and it may not be
unprofitable to spend a few moments in drawing some illus
trations of the mode in which these two influences operate
from the laws of attraction which control the heavenly bodies,
as they are developed by the researches of modern astron
omy. Most of these illustrations are derived from the manner
in which the earth, moon, and sun operate upon one another

ASTRONOMICALLY ILLUSTRATED. 257
— the sun representing heaven, the moon the Christian, and
the earth the central point of all influences which act on man
this side eternity.
And here I ought, probably, to apologize for an innovation
which I shall venture to make upon the usual mode of ser
monizing, by the introduction of a few sensible illustrations,
or diagrams, to make my meaning intelligible and impressive.
My reasons for this course are the following : First, I do not
suppose I could otherwise make my meaning clear even to a
highly intelligent audience ; secondly, the only object of the
diagrams is to make scientific truths understood and remem
bered, not to indulge in curious scientific speculations ; third
ly, I conceive that the religious applications of science are its
most important use ; and I know not how such a use can be
made of science, if we may not employ enough of sensible
illustrations to make its truths clearly understood. However,
if the novel course which I adopt seem objectionable to any
after I shall have finished, let it be condemned. But when I
recollect how often science has been used in opposition to
religion, I do not anticipate condemnation in this attempt to
make it auxiliary to the sacred cause of holiness, although the
object of my illustrations is not to prove any point, but merely
to elucidate and impress religious truth.
In the first place, in order to cause any body to revolve
around a larger one in a circular orbit, so as to be always
equidistant from it, it is necessary that a certain amount of
force be imparted to the revolving body, and in a certain
direction. In the case of the planets, the two forces are so
balanced as to produce a nearly circular motion ; but in the
case of the comets, they are so unequal, — the impulsive or
tangential force so predominates over the attractive, — that
they move in elliptical orbits. Now, let us imagine the earth
22*

258 THE ATTRACTIONS OF HEAVEN AND EARTH
(E, Fig. 1, Frontispiece)* moving in a circular orbit around
the sun, (S,) by a proper equilibrium of the two acting forces,
and at a certain point of its orbit (say E) to receive a new
impulse in the direction of its motion. The consequence
would be to change its orbit from a circle to an ellipse. It
would, however, return to the place where the additional force
was given ; and when it reached that point, which would be
the perihelion of its orbit, suppose it to receive another new
impulse, and at each return another. The effect would be
to make it revolve in orbits more and more eccentric, until
at length they could not be distinguished from what the math
ematicians call a parabola — a curve which never returns into
itself. In other words, the earth would at last go off, to a
returnless distance, or beyond the control of the centre
around which it had revolved.
Make another supposition. Imagine the earth, when re
volving in a circle, at a certain point of its orbit (E, Fig. 2)
to come under the influence of an impulsive force which, like
gravity, shall ever afterwards continue to act upon it. The
effects will be, that it will receive a constantly increasing
velocity, and consequently will be continually receding farther
and farther from the centre, describing a sort of helix, which
never returns into itself. Thus would the body be carried an
infinite or returnless distance from the centre.
These two cases, it appears to me, afford a good illustra
tion of professed Christians who act under the influence of
impulses derived neither from the Bible nor the Spirit of
God. So long as they are controlled by the divine Spirit, or
by motives derived from the Bible, they will move around the

* In all the figures, the body colored yellow represents the sun, the green
one the earth, and the red one the moon.

ASTRONOMICALLY ILLUSTRATED. 259
great Centre of light and love in circular paths with uniform
motion and steady light. But whenever they give themselves
up to other impulses, from whatever quarter, they are sure to
be carried farther and farther from God in eccentric paths ;
and nothing but his interposition can save them from flying
off beyond the hope of return.
Take the case of the man who gives himself up to the
influence of worldly impulses. Its riches, honors, or pleas
ures become the powerful controllers of his movements, and
urge him forward with a constantly accelerated force. Reli
gion has not lost its hold upon his conscience ; and he still
fancies that he is revolving around the law of God, as the
centre of attraction. But to all others it is obvious he is
flying off farther and farther from that centre, and therefore
getting more and more out of its control. Like the revolving
earth, when, as I have supposed, it receives a new and con
stantly accelerating impulse, the path of this Christian con
forms less and less to the divine law ; he feels less and less
the power of heavenly things, and they seem more distant.
The light of God's countenance becomes fainter and feebler.
Meanwhile the impelling power, the love of the world, rapidly
gains strength ; and in a little time, without being conscious
of it himself, and unless special, marvellous, I had almost said
miraculous grace bring him back, he will become a wander
ing star, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness
forever. Or take the case of the Christian controlled and impelled
by spiritual pride. Harmoniously and beautifully did he
commence his revolutions around divine love, as the centre
of attraction, and with a sense of duty to impel him onward.
But he chanced to discover his own picture in the glass of
vanity, and made it his idol. Spiritual pride came in at once

260 THE ATTRACTIONS OF HEAVEN AND EARTH
and took the control of his heart ; and now, instead of wor
shipping God, he adores his own exalted piety. Bigoted and
censorious towards others, he can see no loveliness in their
characters, nor tolerate any thing that does not conform to
his own selfish standard. While he boasts of his religious
enjoyment, and fancies himself living near to God, he is in
fact driven so far from God that it would be strange if he
should ever return.
Next comes the case of the fanatic. A frenzied zeal took
the place, in his heart, of that charity which suffereth long and
is kind, by which he seemed to be controlled in the early days
of his religious course. That zeal did, indeed, greatly quicken
his race, but it was only to drive him farther from the true
source of all knowledge and light ; and away he went, with
lightning speed, into the region of ignes fatui, which he mis
took for the Sun of Righteousness ; and the wild dreams of
fancy which were floating in that limbo he mistook for new
revelations ; and the sparks of his own kindling he took to be
fire from heaven. The word- of God he interpreted by im
pulses, instead of sound learning, which he regarded as a
satanic delusion. Impelled by passion himself, he strove to
urge others forward by the same blind impulse ; and reason
in religion he denounced as the enemy of all proper zeal in
the cause of God. The divine prophecies he interpreted,
too, by impressions, and made up for deficiencies by inter
larding his own dreams and fancies. With him, some terri
ble event — the downfall of an empire, the devastations of
an earthquake or a volcano, a wasting sickness, the second
coming of Christ, or the destruction of the world — was al
ways near at hand, and for the best of reasons, viz., his own
strong impressions. Such a man as this often shows, never
theless, some valuable fragment of Christian feeling and con-

ASTRONOMICALLY ILLUSTRATED. 261
duct. But in what an eccentric orbit does he revolve ! His
eccentricities usually become greater and greater, until at last
he flies off in an orbit which carries him entirely out of the re
gions of common sense and rational religion — never to return.
A case, however, may be quoted from the opposite extreme.
A man begins his religious course in a circular orbit — that
is, there is a proper balance in his mind between the influences
and principles that form a religious character. He bows
down to the authority of the Bible, and receives it as a little
child. With him, it is evidence enough for any doctrine or
precept if he can be assured that God has announced it. But
at length his heart begins to be less interested in religious
things, and a spirit of speculation and scepticism takes pos
session of his mind, and becomes a new and mighty impulsive
power which carries him rapidly away from the quiet path in
which he had been moving. He soon finds religion to be
full of difficulties which he cannot solve. Having broken
loose from his former principle, that he would implicitly re
ceive whatever statements God had made, and which formed
his sheet anchor, he is now adrift on the stormy sea of spec
ulation, with human reasoning only for his compass. One
doctrine after another, fairly subjected, as he fancies, to this
ordeal, and found wanting, he throws overboard, until his
creed has become a mere wreck of old opinions, with noth
ing in their place. His increasing scepticism calls forth the
animadversions of his Christian brethren ; and this wakens in
him a pride of opinion to defend his new views. He soon
finds, however, that the full inspiration of the Scriptures stands
in his way ; and he clearly perceives that the sacred writers
sometimes reason incorrectly, and therefore they sometimes
reason without inspiration. Thus is he driven farther and
farther away from the controlling influence of the Bible by

262 THE ATTRACTIONS OF HEAVEN AND EARTH
the new and powerful impulse which speculation and scepti
cism have given him ; and the more the Bible and its doc
trines sink in his estimation, the less is the hold of practical
religion over his heart. In short, his path is becoming wider
and wider from God and heaven, and of course their power
over his heart and conscience is less, while the force which
urges him away from God is gathering strength ; nor can we
have any hope but in the all-powerful grace of God that his
wanderings will ever cease.
I proceed to a second illustration, which may be derived
from the relative situation and mutual attraction of the sun,
earth, and moon. When the moon is exactly between the
earth and sun, it is obvious that it will be attracted in opposite
directions by these bodies ; and it is only because it is so
much nearer the earth than the sun, that it is not at once
drawn away towards the latter so as utterly to forsake the
former. It is easy, now, to conceive that it might be re
moved so near to the sun, (say to A, Fig. 5,) that it should
henceforth cease to be governed in its movements by the
earth, and obey only the attractive influence of the sun. On
the other hand, it might be brought so near the earth, —
certainly, if brought in contact with it, (say to B,) — as to be
governed entirely by it, and no longer be affected by the
sun's attraction, except as constituting a part of the earth.
This last supposition reminds us of the individual who has
suffered the love of the world to gain so strong a hold upon
him that he is beyond the reach of the influence of religion.
He cleaves to the world as firmly as the moon would, should
she fall from her orbit. Heaven, with all its glories, exerts
upon him apparently no power. It matters not that all in the
universe which is pure, and noble, and truly worthy is there
assembled. They have no charms for him. There are un-

ASTRONOMICALLY ILLUSTRATED. 263
folded in infinite splendor the glories of the eternal God ; and
there the Lamb that was slain is enthroned the chiefest
among ten thousands, and altogether lovely. There is gath
ered in sweet communion and everlasting love the countless
throng of the angels of light ; and as they take up their golden
harps, the whole company of the redeemed from earth join
in the sweet song of Moses and the Lamb. It is the New
Jerusalem, whose foundations are precious stones, whose
gates are pearls, and whose pavements are gold ; the city
through which flows the river of the water of life, with the
tree of life on its banks ; the city whence all that is sinful and
all that is mortal is forever excluded ; the city where every
thing grand, and beautiful, and attractive to a pure mind
meets together. And yet this man can look with stupid un
concern upon the picture, and feel not one desire to be of the
number who are admitted to its joys. Nay, he turns away
with loathing from the sight, and says to the vanities of the
world, These be my portion — these the objects to which my
heart cleaves with fond desire, and which I prefer to heaven.
0, is it not a contemptible choice for an immortal soul, made
in the image of God ? And yet it is a most common choice.
All around us we see multitudes deliberately preferring earth
to heaven — a world of change, of ignorance, sin, sickness,
and death, to a world where all is permanent, and holy, and
happy. But, blessed be the power of God's grace, there are
some who have given up their hearts to the full influence of
that glorious world, and feel from day to day its mighty
attractions. Though not insensible to the affairs of this world,
they are more alive to that which is unseen and eternal.
They have learned to relish the employments, as well as the
enjoyments, of heaven. Often, in the retirement of the soul,

264 THE ATTRACTIONS OF HEAVEN AND EARTH
and away from the sight of their fellow-men, do they hold
communion with that pure world. Not with their mortal eyes,
but with the eye of faith, do they gaze and gaze upon its un
speakable glories ; and the ear of faith listens to the songs
of the redeemed, until their hearts heave with strong emotion,
and pant after God as the hart panteth after the water
brooks. As they muse the fire burns, and their souls are
borne away by a strong impulse towards the celestial city.
In short, they do sometimes approach so near it, and drink
so deeply into its glories, that their souls become deeply
imbued with its spirit. Now, such men live so near to heaven
that their conversation is there, and the attractions of earth
are comparatively feeble. They are aptly represented by
the first supposition which I made, wherein the moon was
imagined to be removed so far from the earth, and so near
to the sun, that the attraction of the earth had become almost
null upon it, and that of the sun almost the only controlling
force. It is the same with eminently holy men, who have
long been disciplined in the school of Christ They have in
a great measure got the victory over the world, and heaven
seems to them not a distant place, but near at hand. They
seem to stand so near its confines, that when the clouds of
doubt and unbelief clear away, as they often do, and the Sun
of Righteousness pours down his bright beams, they can look
across the dark valley between the two worlds, and see the
sweet flowers of the world beyond, its noble rivers and plains,
its magnificent mountains, and its sunny vales ; and this world
shrinks into insignificance in the comparison ; and, like Paul,
they cannot but feel a desire to depart and be with Christ.
And around their Saviour they see the bright throng which
he has redeemed by his blood, and made them kings and
priests unto God. And how can they but long to go and

ASTRONOMICALLY ILLUSTRATED. 265
join that happy circle ! — a circle which sin can never pollute,
nor death ever break. O, what a happy state is it, thus to
live under the full influence of the heavenly world, thus to
feel its strong attractions, thus to have its spirit breathed
into our souls, and thus, as it-were, to begin its songs and its
joys while yet on earth !
I derive my third illustration from the manner in which the
earth and moon perform their journey together around the
sun, and around each other. This is not generally under
stood. We know that the moon accompanies the earth around
the sun, and we see it every month complete its revolution
around the earth. We are hence apt to infer that its actual
path must be an exceedingly irregular curve. But it is not so.
Excepting some very slight disturbances of its motion, which
need not here be taken into the account, its actual path in the
heavens differs very slightly from that which the earth makes
in its annual revolution ; that is, it differs very little from a
circle. Indeed, were the moon's path to be drawn thirty feet
in diameter, it would require a practised eye to distinguish the
curve from a true circle. (Fig. 4 shows the paths of the
earth and moon for one month ; the black line representing
the earth's orbit, and the red one the moon's path.)
Thus it appears that the moon, as well as the earth, obeys
the influence of the sun in its annual revolution ; and yet it
does actually move round the earth, and perform important
service for its inhabitants every month. And it is to these
two facts in connection that I wish to call your particular at
tention. It is a well-known fact, that the most eminently holy Chris
tians frequently exhibit a very strong and tender affection for
their families, if they have any, or for their friends and neigh
bors, and manifest a deep interest in secular pursuits, and in
23

266 THE ATTRACTIONS OF HEAVEN AND EARTH
the welfare of the community and country in which they live.
And it has often been inquired how such deep interest in
worldly things was consistent with supreme love and devotion
to God. Indeed, this inquiry has often distressed the Chris
tian himself, and he has feared -that his strong attachment to
friends and neighbors, and his lively interest in worthy objects
of a worldly kind, were unfavorable indications in respect to
his character for piety. But in the moon's motion behold a
solution of these doubts and difficulties ! While she most
faithfully performs her duty to the earth, (if I may be allowed
such a personification,) she is not for a moment unmindful of
her relation to the great centre of the solar system. Looking
to,her fidelity to the earth, we should suppose her unmindful
of any other influence ; whereas, in fact, she is every mo
ment obedient to a higher attraction. And so long as she
obeys that higher influence, there can be no interference be
tween the two movements. Just so with the Christian. So
long as the will of God forms the great controlling central
power by which all his affections and conduct are regulated,
— so long as every minor influence which the world exerts
upon him is kept completely within the control of that higher
influence which emanates from the eternal world, — he need not
fear any interference between his affection to his family, his
friends, and his country, and his affection for God. It is just
as consistent for him to yield to the impulse of nature, which
prompts him to love and serve his friends and his country,
while at the same time he loves and serves God supremely,
as it is for the moon to obey the influence of the earth, and
constantly to revolve around it ; while at the same time she
moves in a still wider circle around the sun, and is perfectly
controlled by that great centre. Nay, to yield up the heart
to divine influence, — to give God a supreme place in the af-

ASTRONOMICALLY ILLUSTRATED. 267
fections, — brings into the heart a livelier affection for man
kind than nature gives. For nature would limit that affection
by friends and by country • but supreme love to God rebukes
such selfishness, and bids us love our neighbor as ourselves ;
and then informs us that all mankind are our neighbors.
We learn, then, that the Christian need not fear that his at
tachment to friends and to other worldly objects is improper,
or injurious, so long as it does not interfere with his love and
duty to God. If he suffers them to draw off his affections
from God, or from heaven, as his final home, so that he is
turned aside from the path of duty, then indeed they become
a dangerous, and may become a fatal influence. If the inter
est which he takes in his friends or favorite worldly pursuits
diminishes his interest in the things which are unseen and
eternal, — if their society draws him away from communion
with God and heavenly things, — then, indeed, have they be
come the controlling power of his heart and his life; and if the
charm be not broken, he will be driven from God beyond re
covery. But no man need fear, when he finds his attachment
to his friends, or country, or secular pursuits, increase, pro
vided he finds a correspondent increase of interest in God and
eternal things.
To introduce my fourth illustration, let us suppose the moon
placed directly between the earth and the sun, while between
the moon (A) and the sun is a fourth body, (R, Fig. 3,) which
repels instead of attracting the moon. The consequence
would be, that the latter would be drawn nearer to the earth,
and therefore be more attracted by that body ; hence it would
be driven farther from the sun, and be less attracted by it,
until that fourth repellent body be taken away.
It is true, that among the heavenly bodies we know of none
that repels the others. They all mutually attract. But we
know that on earth repulsion is one of the great regulating

268 THE ATTRACTIONS OF HEAVEN AND EARTH
powers of nature, as in electricity and magnetism. It cannot
be objectionable, therefore, to suppose, for the sake of illus
trating religious truth, a repelling body situated between the
moon and the sun.*
Between the Christian and heaven there is also an object
from which nature shrinks back with dread and aversion. At
one time his imagination pictures it as a dark valley, where
no ray of light enters, where no friendly voice is heard by
the lonely passenger, but where hideous and menacing forms
ambush his path. At another time his fancy paints it as a
deep and dismal defile, where he must go alone, and where a
hideous monster stands in panoply complete, to dispute his
passage, and to awaken in the disembodied spirit indescriba
ble terrors. In short, it is what men universally call death,
and from which nature, almost without exception, recoils in
dismay. But from earth to heaven there is no passage save
through that region of terror. Many a Christian would glad
ly leave the earth and go to possess his inheritance in the
skies, did he not dread a boisterous passage through that un
trodden valley. Nature approaches the brink of the preci
pice, and strains her eye to penetrate the gloom ; but she can
discern only the swift and dark waters of Jordan rolling by,
and the unrelenting countenance of the King of Terrors, with
his menacing dart, while ever and anon the dying agonies of
one and another victim assail her ear. She shudders at the
prospect. "The pains, the groans, the dying strife,
Fright our approaching souls away ;
Still shrink we back again to life,
Fond of our prison and our clay."
* I might have taken stronger ground. Says Professor Loomis, " The
phenomena exhibited by Halley's comet at its return to the sun in 1835, re
quire us to admit the existence of repulsive as well as attractive forces." —
Recent Progress of Astronomy, 3d edition, p. 147.

ASTRONOMICALLY ILLUSTRATED. 369
Some, indeed, through fear of death, are all their lifetime
subject to bondage. Their weak and disordered nerves, their
morbid and excitable fancies, start at the rustling of a leaf.
No wonder, then, if their souls are overcome when they think
of taking a last look upon this fair world, of grasping the
hand of friendship for the last time, and of taking the fearful
plunge, which throws them at once into the hands of that un
sparing conqueror, whose heart never yet relented. No won
der that they cling to the world with a desperate grasp, and
almost cease to feel the attractions of heaven. But let faith
now put into nature's hand her magic wand, and it will be the
traveller's passport through the dark valley, and the smitten
waters of Jordan shall divide, and a ray from heaven come in
to trace out his pathway. Let the Christian endeavor, while
faith is in lively exercise, to render death familiar by frequent
meditation, and he will find, that —
*' Death and his image, rising in the brain,
Bear faint resemblance — never are alike ;
Fear shakes the pencil, fancy loves excess,
Dark ignorance is lavish of her shades,
And these the formidable picture draw."
He will find that the physical pains of death he has over
rated, and that often, instead of an unknown dreaded agony,
it is the sweet and quiet termination of all mortal suffering.
If he must close his eyes on all the loved objects of time and
sense, it is only to open them upon the infinite glories of
heaven. If beloved earthly friends can accompany him no
farther than the brink of the dark passage, yet friends still
more beloved — his God, his Saviour, his Sanctifier — stand
on the other side with arms outstretched to receive him. Ah,
yes, it is the same Saviour who has himself, in the nature and
with the feelings of a man, passed alone through that gulf,
23*

270 THE ATTRACTIONS OF HEAVEN AND EARTH
and across that turbid stream, and to his fearful followers he
cries, O Israel, fear not ; for I have redeemed thee ; I have
called thee by my name. When thou passeth through the wa
ters, I will be with thee ; and through the rivers, they shall
not overflow thee : when thou walkest through the fire, thou
shall not be burnt. Death shall be swallowed up in victory.
Jesus Christ hath, indeed, abolished death, and brought life
and immortality to light. He has taken away the sting of
death, that is, unpardoned sin. The monster's spectre indeed
still haunts the dark valley through which the believer must
pass, and brandishes his broken and harmless dart. But faith
can sing the conqueror's song, even within the grasp of this
once terrific, but now powerless and vanquished foe.
It is by meditations like these that the repulsive power of
death is gradually overcome, and the timid believer begins
again to feel the strong attractions of the heavenly world.
Nature, indeed, will never feel a complacency in death, con
sidered by itself ; but its terrors diminish as they are more
closely examined, while the glories that lie beyond loom up
higher and brighter, so that, to use the language of an eminent
saint, " the river of death appears as an insignificant rill,
that can be crossed at a single step, whenever God gives per
mission." As it muses, the soul waxes strong in the Lord
and the power of his might, and with holy confidence ex
claims, — One hour, and the dark storm goes by ;
One step, and on the heavenly shore,
I stand beneath a cloudless sky,
And drink in joy forevermore.
My fifth and last illustration supposes the moon placed, as
before, between the earth and the sun. But in addition to
this, it supposes a number of other bodies in contact with the
earth, (as Fig. 6,) which exercise a very powerful attraction

ASTRONOMICALLY ILLUSTRATED. 271
upon the moon, and of course draw it more or less away from
the sun, giving to the earth more, and to the sun less, influence
over its motions.
Imagine now that these bodies, thus surrounding the earth,
should quit it one after another, and pass over to the sun, (as
shown on Fig. 7,) attaching themselves in like manner to his
surface. It is easy to see how such a transference would di
minish the moon's attraction towards the earth, and increase
its attraction towards the sun ; so that it might easily be made
to break loose entirely from the former, and pass towards, if
not directly into, the latter.
The objects that attract the Christian to this world are often
numerous and powerfully attractive. We have seen that he
may cherish a strong attachment to worldly and worthy ob
jects, if the love of God so reign in his heart as to bring every
thing else into subordination. We have seen that love to God
sanctifies and ennobles every inferior affection. And the fact
is, that no class of men exhibit a stronger affection for every
worthy object than devoted Christians.
They ardently love their friends. And in this they do
but follow their great Exemplar. Even the young man, who
turned away sorrowful from the exhortations of Jesus, was
still loved by him for his interesting traits of character, and
by the tomb of Lazarus the Saviour wept ; so that the Jews
exclaimed, Behold -how he loved him. He did not love any
thing in his friends that was sinful : neither does the Christian.
But for all those amiable qualities which make them good
members of society he does love them ; and still stronger is
that affection, if he witnesses in them the graces of true re
ligion. For he regards 'such friendships as germs which will
expand and ripen in heaven.
The Christian also loves the intercourse of his fellow-men.

272 THE ATTRACTIONS OF HEAVEN AND EARTH
His religion has not made him a misanthrope, nor eradicated
that love of society which nature has implanted in every bo
som. He only strives to correct what is wrong, and elevate
what is low, in social intercourse ; and no man takes a deeper
interest than he in whatever promotes the general welfare of
the community.
The Christian also loves his country. To promote her
welfare, to defend her institutions, to preserve her liberties,
and to eradicate whatever is unjust, cruel, and debasing, he is
ready to make any sacrifices consistent with his duty to God.
He loves science and literature. To cultivate them him
self he knows to be the only sure way of giving him enlarged
views of truth and duty, and he knows, too, that many of the
principles of science will survive the ruin of this world, and
become a part of the science of heaven. And to promote
knowledge in others he knows to be one of the most impor
tant means of the promotion of religion, and of saving piety
from degenerating into frigid scepticism or wild fanaticism.
The Christian loves nature. He loves it most because it is
the great temple of Jehovah, whose lofty columns and arches
show divine wisdom and love in their construction. Wher
ever he wanders through its vast galleries and labyrinths, he
hears God's voice and sees his hand at work. Indeed, all na
ture is but one vast sounding gallery, echoing and reechoing
with Jehovah's name and Jehovah's praise. He loves nature,
too, because he was cradled in her arms and nursed on her
bosom, and her sweet voice ever touches a sympathetic chord
in his soul, and brings out the sweetest melody to which earth
ever listens. Every thing which man's harpy fingers have
touched bears the defilement of sin ; but nature is untar
nished, and her virgin robe reminds us of that which she
wore in the bowers of Eden. And therefore does the Chris-
tian love nature.

ASTRONOMICALLY ILLUSTRATED. 273
Such are the objects that draw the Christian's soul to this
world with strong attraction, and tend, therefore, to weaken,
or to make less sensible, the attractions of heaven. But as
time advances, and changes come over him, and adversity
shrouds his prospects in clouds and storms, and death's ruth
less hand tears one and another fond object away, these earth
ly ties grow weaker, and one after another are sundered ;
leaving the soul to be more easily drawn upward towards the
world of cloudless skies, of permanent repose — the great at
tracting centre of the universe.
It is more especially, then, to the case of the advanced
Christian — advanced in years and in piety — that my illus
tration under my last head applies. He may have commenced
his religious course early, and have become convinced even
then of the vanity of the world. But after all, the world then
appeared to him in a far more fascinating aspect than it now
does, after a few decades of years have taught him many im
pressive lessons of its emptiness. It then lay before him an
untrodden field, glowing with the charms of novelty, and as
seen through the prism of youthful fancy, decked with a thou
sand rainbow hues. As he pressed eagerly on, and plucked
from time to time the golden fruit that hung temptingly over
his path, he did not know how much of it would prove like
the apples of Sodom.
" This more delusive, not the touch, but taste,
Deceived : he, fondly thinking to allay
His thirst with gust, instead of fruit,
Chewed bitter ashes ; which the offended taste,
With sputtering noise, rejected."
So long as the delusion lasted, the young Christian felt him
self strongly drawn towards the earth. But in advanced life
he has been so often deceived by its fair fruit, and drank so

274 THE ATTRACTIONS OF HEAVEN AND EARTH
often of its bitter waters, that he no longer anticipates a ful
filment of its fair promises ; and though he has enjoyed
enough to make him very thankful, he has enjoyed too little
to make him desire to tread the same path over again. He
has learned that this world was never intended to afford a
pleasant and permanent home, but only comfortable accom
modations for a journey. He has ceased, therefore, to feel
the strong attraction to earth, which health, and hope, and
novelty, and youth, threw around him in early life. Faith,
and hope, and desire, now reach forward towards that world
Whose fruits and streams
Are life and joy ; where day eternal shines ;
Where love, ineffable, immortal, reigns.
One of the objects of lawful pursuit by the Christian is the
acquisition of wealth, with the intention of using it for worthy
objects. And this is an object that often presents a fascinating
aspect to the youthful mind, and becomes one of the strong
cords that bind him to the world, if he is successful in the
pursuit. When he first begins to recline upon the downy
couch of affluence, and fawning friends multiply, and the
fashionable world condescends to smile upon him, how distant
and uninviting appears his home in heaven, and how terrible
the passage thither ! He can enter fully into the meaning of
the Son of Sirach, when he says, O death, how bitter is the
remembrance of thee to a man that is at ease in his posses
sions ; unto the man that hath prosperity in all things, and
hath nothing lo vex him. But it will not be long before this
man will find, that as he sinks deeper and deeper into his bed
of down, it is underlaid by a bed of thorns. He will find
that the apostle spoke true words when he said, They that will
be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many

ASTRONOMICALLY ILLUSTRATED. 275
foolish and hurtful lusts, which droivn men in destruction
and perdition. For the love of money is the root of all evil ;
which while some coveted after, they have erred from the
faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorroius.
If God means to save this man, the effect of his experience
will be to teach him the truth of these things in season to
rescue him from utter ruin, and he will learn henceforth not
to trust in uncertain riches. The strong hold which they
have had upon his heart is broken, and he pants after the
riches of paradise. It may be, too, that his riches take to
themselves wings and fly away, and want succeeds to abun
dance. Then, when the friends of his sunny days forsake
him, and the world leaves him alone to bear the iron rule of
poverty, O, how sweet it is to look forward to his treasure in
heaven, where moth and rust do not corrupt, and where thieves
do not break through and steal !
Here let me add, that want and destitution, whether they
have succeeded to competence and wealth, or have been the
Christian's companions through life, are among the most
powerful means which God uses to make heaven sweet and
attractive. And it is in advanced life, especially, that pover
ty's cold skeleton hand seems most heavy and rigid. The
Christian may have toiled on through many a wearisome year,
unable to secure even a competence ; and now that age and
infirmity palsy his efforts, still must he labor on and struggle
harder in the unequal conflict. With what a strong impulse
will his heart reach out after an inheritance incorrupti
ble, undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved for him
in heaven ! How often has the widowed mother, toiling at
the midnight hour over her unfinished task, and unable to
provide for her numerous offspring, felt the talismanic power
of that reserved legacy in the skies ! How often has the

276 THE ATTRACTIONS OF HEAVEN AND EARTH
father's heart, fainting under his vain labors to satisfy his
children's hunger, wept tears of gratitude to that Saviour who
has purchased for him so precious a boon !
Another worldly good, which may have been with the
Christian an object of strong desire and effort, is a reputation
for learning and wisdom. And he may have been in a meas
ure successful. But God usually so orders events, that his
honors shall sit uneasily upon him, and prove a crown of
thorns rather than of flowers. When he commenced his
career of learning, those who had already climbed up the
steep and difficult way cheered him with encouraging words,
and held up the dazzling crowns which they had won, spar
kling with jewels, to stimulate his zeal. But no sooner had
he reached the eminence on which they stood, than he found
them equally ready to pluck off his laurels, and to crowd him
back again into a humbler sphere. So long as he was be
neath them, they were overflowing with benevolence and
patronage. But to have the ignorant boy, whom they had
helped out of the mire of poverty and ignorance, become
their peer, — nay, rise above them, and seize a richer crown
than theirs, — was more than human pride could brook. So
that the Christian scholar found that reputation had only
brought him into a battle field with powerful and implacable
enemies. In his path, too, he often found coiled up the viper
envy, charged with venom ; and the scorpion hatred often
crept under his pillow, to sting him in an unconscious hour.
In his own heart, also, he found the pride of science choking
the growth of the Christian graces, and poisoning the springs
of religious joy. In short, a few years of such experience
taught him that to be elevated in society is to be a mark for
the arrows of ignorance and sin ; and often, too, the intelli
gent and the virtuous will interpose no shield of defence, so
that you are left alone, with little power to do good.

ASTRONOMICALLY ILLUSTRATED. 277
" Truths would you teach to save a sinking land,
All fear, none aid you, and few understand.
Painful preeminence ! yourself to view
Above life's follies, and its comforts, too."
Progress in knowledge will also give a man many a forcible
lesson of the narrowness and imperfection of human science,
so that the wisest are compelled to see through a glass darkly.
Not only must they look through a glass which refracts the
rays and colors and distorts objects, but they must see them
darkly or obscurely.
These various disheartening circumstances, with which the
Christian scholar almost always meets, more or less, as he
advances in life, do not, indeed, wean him from the love of
science ; for he finds in its pursuit enjoyment as pure and
ennobling as any thing earthly can give. But they do tend
to rob learning and distinction among men of much of the
charm with which they are invested in the eyes of the inex
perienced. They do weaken science and reputation in their
power to chain the Christian's affections to this world; and
they lead him to look with strong desire and lively hope to
that sweet world of light and love where the grossness of
sense will be gone, where no unholy passions will mar and
pervert the truth, and where its rays will come pure, with no
intervening prism to distort them from their original source.
Vigorous health is orlfe of the strongest bands by which we
are fastened to this world ; for it is that which gives its full
relish to every other blessing, and without which they would
all become tasteless or disgusting. The man who enjoys this
health has only an indistinct apprehension of his liability to
death, although he may be an eminently holy man. But
advancing age brings its infirmities and pains to almost every
one ; and to many it brings occasional assaults of sickness or
24

278 THE ATTRACTIONS OF HEAVEN AND EARTH
constant feeble health. In the failing appetite, the faltering
step, the trembling hand, the aching head, the feverish pulse,
and the irritable nerve, they have constant premonitions of
the approach of dissolution. They perceive within them a
constant struggle between life and death — the latter becom
ing stronger and stronger, and the former weaker and weak
er ; and, like Job, they often feel as if they were a burden
to themselves. Life loses its charms because it cannot be
enjoyed; and the sombre hue of melancholy is cast over all
its scenes. But they know that there is a world where the
inhabitants shall not say, I am sick; and they trust it will
be their inheritance. O, with what earnest desire do their
thoughts stretch forward, and anticipate the time when they
shall enter the building of God — the house not made with
hands, eternal in the heavens ! Once, in the buoyancy of
health and youth, this world put on enchanting smiles. But
now the dream has passed by, and heaven only is clothed
with beauty.
But even though the constitution may long hold out, and
health continue, yet advancing years bring with them infirmity
and decay, which point in no doubtful manner to the close of
life. The flattened eye, requiring the optician's aid ; the ear
failing in its sensibility to sound ; the palate losing its keen
relish of savory viands, and the olfactories of sweet odors ;
the blood coursing sluggishly along the veins ; the brain tor
pid and heavy in its movements ; and the shrunk muscle,
easily tired, and moving heavily the failing limb, — all, all
tell the traveller that he has almost reached the end of his
journey. "Eheu, fugaces, Posthume, Posthume,
Labuntur anni ; nee pietas moram
Rugis et instanti senectse
Afferret indomita;que niorti."

ASTRONOMICALLY ILLUSTRATED. 279
Nor do the bodily powers alone give way. The mind, too,
dependent on bodily organization by unalterable laws for its
free exercise, sympathizes in the decline of the physical
powers. The proud heights which she once scaled can no
longer be reached ; the heavy blows which she once dealt out
can no longer be given. She may, indeed, say, like Sam
son, I will go out, as at other times, and shake myself; but
she will find that the lock of her strength has been shorn.
" Sic fatus senior, telumcrue imbelle sine ictu,
Conjecit."
First of all the memory feels the change, and reels, and
staggers, and sinks under her charge. Next the judgment
begins to waver ; and, last of all, the imagination comes flut
tering to the earth. O, who could bear thus to see his
immortal mind falling into ruins, were he not able to look
forward to her resurrection in a spiritual body — a body as
incorruptible and immortal as the soul itself ? But in view
of that renovation, with what cheerfulness can the Christian
see this earthly house of his tabernacle dissolve, and the
powers of his mind give way, because it shows him how soon
they will be delivered from their prison house of flesh and
sense, and henceforth expatiate and exult in the unshackled
freedom of heaven !
But there is a weight more heavy than flesh and blood
which drags down to the earth the Christian's soul. It is the
burden of a sinful heart ; and the longer he lives, the more
oppressive does it become, and the more deep his convictions
that he shall never throw it off till his spirit escapes from its
material tenement. But the oath and promise of God assure
him that he shall drop this body of death when he passes
over Jordan into the heavenly Canaan. That deliverance is

280 THE ATTRACTIONS OF HEAVEN AND EARTH
the strongest desire of his heart. Even though he may fear
to die, he pants for that emancipation ; and the more, as
longer experience makes sin more hateful, and his own sin
fulness more manifest and burdensome. It helps reconcile
him to death. It is one of the strongest attractions of heaven
that no sin will be there.
In like manner does the wickedness and wretchedness of
this alienated world weigh more and more heavily upon the
Christian's spirit, and make heaven's holiness and happiness
seem doubly sweet. He sympathizes with the feelings of
Cowper : — " My ear
Is pained, my heart is sick, with every day's report
Of wrong and outrage with which earth is filled.
There is no flesh in man's obdurate heart ;
It doth not feel for man."
Gladly indeed would the Christian labor as long as God
wills to bring man back to holiness and happiness ; but how
slight an impression do his efforts make, and the efforts of the
whole Christian church, upon the mass of human wickedness !
And how can he but feel a strong desire to reach that happy
shore, and that glorious community, which sin has never
polluted !
After all, the strongest ties that bind us to this world are
friendship and natural affection. How many tender and fond
associations cluster around the names of father and mother,
wife and children; brother and sister, friend and companion !
Point me to the man who has had all these tender relations
sundered, and who stands on earth as an isolated being, and
I will point you to one who has lost all sympathy with human
kind, and would gladly depart from a desolate world. Now,
mark the wisdom and benevolence of God in respect to this

ASTRONOMICALLY ILLUSTRATED. 281
subject. In the first place, new attachments are rarely formed
by us, of much strength, in advanced life, because the laws
of our nature forbid it. In the second place, God removes
the Christian's friends, one after another, as he can bear it ;
so that, if he be spared to advanced life, he finds himself
almost alone on earth, with but few ties to be sundered when
his turn comes to depart. How full of benevolence is such
a dispensation ! Could we form strong attachments in riper
years, we might, even at the last, find ourselves so fastened
to the world that the final separation would be full of anguish.
But now he cuts one earthly tie after another ; so that, when
the time of our own separation comes, this world has almost
lost its power over us, and the few remaining cords that bind
us to it are easily sundered. On the other hand, all our
departed friends have gone to that same world whither we
must go ; and there they form a centre of attraction of strong
power. We know that those of them who have entered the
celestial city will issue from its portals, and, clothed in im
mortal beauty, and with the warm and holy affection of glori
fied spirits, will welcome us to our everlasting home. O,
what mercy is here ! Come, thou disconsolate mourner,
whose heart has been made so often to bleed by the departure
of beloved friends, see how God is preparing to make your
own departure easy, by sundering beforehand the ties that
bind you to the world, and gathering your friends together
in the great centre of holiness and happiness, to draw you
thither with irresistible force. With such a power to draw
you away, and with so feeble a force to retain you, how slight
will be the final pang ! how triumphant your passage through
the dominions of tleath !
But the details that have now been given will justify a more
general inference. We may regard the astronomical illus-
o 1 *

282 THE ATTRACTIONS OF HEAVEN AND EARTH
tration which I last gave (Fig. 6 and 7) as describing a gen
eral principle of the divine administration, viz., that a leading
object of God's treatment of men is to weaken their attach
ment to this world, and to concentrate in heaven an attractive
influence of overwhelming power. And, really, when we
consider how much he does to weaken our hold upon the
world, and to draw us towards heaven, instead of wondering
that a few Christians are willing to die, we ought to wonder
that any of them are willing to live. This was, indeed, the
state of feeling with ancient saints. Their grand difficulty
seemed to be how to be reconciled to life, not to death. This
was the feeling of Job when he said, All the days of my ap
pointed time will I wait till my change come — as if he had
been anxiously looking for that time. This was the feeling
of Jacob when he exclaimed, I have waited for thy salvation,
0 Lord. And such eminently was the feeling of Paul when
he said, I have a desire to depart and be with Christ, which
is better beyond expression. O, what a mighty impulse
towards heaven reigned in the apostle's soul 1 He longed to
leap out from his bondage to matter, and become a disin-
thralled spirit before the throne. Whenever he alludes to the
subject, his soul is all on fire, and he exclaims, I am now
ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand.
I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have
kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown
of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, shall
give me at that day. He had reached that lofty point of
Christian experience when only a single tie bound him to the
world, and that was a sense of duty to his brethren ; and this
he might not sunder till God should give permission. But
all the other objects of his hope and desire had been trans
ferred to heaven, and there formed a mighty centre of attrac
tion. (See the representation in Fig. 7.)

ASTRONOMICALLY ILLUSTRATED. 283
And do our hearts, my brethren, vibrate in sympathy with
that of the apostle, or is the thought of departure chilling and
agonizing ? It is not strange .that he who is young in years
and in Christian experience, to whose unpractised eye the
world spreads out so many fascinating scenes, should find his
heart shrinking at the thought of death ; nor that he who is
in the midst of business and usefulness, basking in the sun
shine of public favor, and linked to the world at a thousand
points, should find the wrench terrible that separates him at
once from so many cherished objects. But if we are ad
vanced in Christian experience and in years ; if a large part
of the objects that once interested us have either ceased to
fascinate or have been transferred to the eternal world ; if
increasing infirmities admonish us how soon the soul's mate
rial tenement must be taken down, surely we ought no longer
to view death as an enemy, but as a friend come to deliver
us from sin and sorrow, to unbar our prison doors, knock off
our fetters, and to let the soul go out to breathe henceforth
the vital air of heaven. No Christian, whatever his age or
condition, ought to be wholly destitute of these feelings. But
they especially become him who has long been in the school
of Christ. He is in the condition represented by my last
illustration ; and his soul ought to swell with strong emotion
whenever he turns his eyes towards the heavenly world.
There are collected many of his earthly friends, and all his
heavenly friends, beckoning to him to come to their sinless
and unchanging home. O, what a group of beloved objects
are congregated there, and how ought we to look upon the
day of death as the time of coronation and victory !
"When life in opening buds is sweet,
And golden hopes the spirit greet,
And youth prepares his joys to meet,
Alas, how hard it is to die !

284 THE ATTRACTIONS OF HEAVEN AND EARTH.
"When scarce is seized some borrowed prize,
And duties press, and tender ties
Forbid the soul from earth to rise,
How awful then it is to die !
" "When, one by one, those ties are torn,
And friend from friend is snatched forlorn,
And man is left alone to mourn,
Ah, then, how easy 'tis to die !
" "When trembling limbs refuse their weight,
And films, slow gathering, dim the sight,
And clouds obscure the mental light,
'Tis nature's precious boon to die.
" "When faith is strong, and conscience clear,
And words of peace the spirit cheer,
And visioned glories half appear,
'Tis joy, 'tis triumph, then to die."

MINERALOGICAL ILLUSTRATIONS OF
CHARACTER.

Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile. — John i. 47.
Deceit and duplicity, cunning, craft, and artifice, are the
characteristics which we attach to guile. The man under its
influence does not exhibit his real character, but assumes a
false one, to accomplish some sinister end.
An Israelite indeed — such as Nathanael was, who is al
luded to in the text — is a man of great simplicity and purity
of character ; one who fears God, and endeavors to conform
his life in all respects to the precepts of the gospel. That
trait, which is here described as a freedom from guile, I
would denominate transparency of Christian character. Its
opposite we might call opacity of character. And these
terms may represent the extremes of good and bad in char
acter. Those conversant with the science of mineralogy will per
ceive that I have borrowed these terms from thence. I have •
conceived the idea of attempting to illustrate the subject of
character by the facts of that science ; not, indeed, because
there is any connection between mineralogy and Christian
character, excepting that what is true literally of certain min
erals is true figuratively of certain characters. Hence the
(285)

286 MINERALOGICAL ILLUSTRATIONS OF CHARACTER.
minerals, which are objects of sense, may be employed to fix
important moral principles in the memory. I know that this
mode of exhibiting religious truth has no little quaintness
about it. But if it convey no error, and makes the truth more
impressive, perhaps I may be pardoned for employing it;
since the highest use to which we can put science is to make
it subservient to religion. Nor, if we avoid the extremes of
the earlier writers, in their attempts to spiritualize natural
objects, can quaintness, which is in fact often only a high
degree of originality, be considered a great fault.
Between perfect transparency and perfect opacity of min
erals, as well as of character, there is an endless variety of
intermediate conditions. There are, however, certain well-
marked stages in this gradation in minerals, which well sym
bolize certain corresponding grades of character. I propose
to describe several of these by terms derived from mineral
ogy ; but I shall confine myself, at this time, to what are
called the optical characters of minerals, that is, their rela
tions to light.
1. I shall first describe ihe wholly transparent character.
The most perfect example of a transparent mineral is, one
through which the outlines of objects may be seen, and not be
colored, nor their position changed. We have fine examples
in quartz and selenite.
I wish I could say that the entirely transparent character
were as common as such crystals. But it appears, now and
then, pure enough at least to be entitled to the commendation
contained in the proverb — " An honest man's the noblest
work of God." He is emphatically the work of God ; not
simply as to the creation of his physical nature, but more
especially as to the new creation of the soul. The highest
specimens of moral purity which we meet among men, whom

MINERALOGICAL ILLUSTRATIONS OF CHARACTER. 287
divine grace has not transformed, will not come up to the
standard of Nathanael, in whom was no guile. Many unre
newed men there are whose characters are of a noble
stamp, but the simplicity and godly sincerity of elevated piety
are wanting.
As to the truly transparent Christian character, the world
stand in no doubt, though guile and malevolence, thereby
severely reproved, sometimes try to make out consummate
hypocrisy, where, to unjaundiced eyes, all is clear. They
know what such a man's principles are, for he avows them ;
and they know he will not flinch from maintaining them, even
though all others desert him :
" Among the faithless, faithful only he."
The public are not afraid to trust such a man with their
most important interests. They have no fears of chicanery
and trickery, because his integrity has been so often proved.
All this does not imply that the man of perfect transpar
ency of character should disclose all his plans and purposes
to the world. A pure homogeneous crystal does not show
every thing that it contains. Let the chemist subject it to the
power of reagents, and he will show that it is composed of
several elements, whose harmonious and perfect combination,
to the exclusion of foreign impurities, give it a beautiful trans
parency. So there may be plans and purposes in the mind
of the Christian which he does not disclose to the world,
because often that would be sure to defeat them. Indeed,
every man who means to be useful must have the power of
keeping out of sight his yet unattempted plans of usefulness ;
for if known beforehand, there is malignity enough in a
wicked world to thwart them, and their disclosure would do
nobody any good. But no man, who means to keep a con-

288 MINERALOGICAL ILLUSTRATIONS OF CHARACTER.
science void of offence, should ever form any plans or pur
poses which he is not willing to have laid open to the universe
at any moment ; and the only reason why he does not expose
them should be, that he may thereby accomplish more for the
good of the world. Concealed for such a reason, and they
do not disturb the clearness and beauty of his character ; but
kept out of sight for any other reason, and they mar his
transparency. I remark, also, that objects seen through the most perfectly
transparent crystal do not appear as distinct as when viewed
through a vacuum, or the air. This well illustrates the im
perfection of the best of human characters. Divine grace
does not choose to make them absolutely perfect in this world.
Perhaps it is no more possible that a descendant of Adam
should exhibit perfection, than that a crystal, formed out of
mineral matter, should transmit light without intercepting
some of its rays. It remains for a higher state of existence
to bring out the Christian character in its full glory. In that
city whose foundations are formed of the choicest gems, a
correspondent beauty and perfection will be developed in the
Christian's soul.
Thus far I have spoken of transparent crystals, that trans
mit only white light ; and these I have made the emblem of
the most perfect character. But the light is sometimes col
ored ; it may be deeply so ; and though the essential transpar
ency remains, objects seen through the crystal will be also
colored. Examples may be seen in amethyst, rose mica, and
red rock salt.
This fact symbolizes another variety of character, less per
fect than the first, yet more frequent. It is not very uncom
mon to meet with a man whose character in the main belongs
to the transparent class, yet he suffers himself to be swayed

MINERALOGICAL ILLUSTRATIONS OF CHARACTER. 289
by strong prejudices, and these color every object at which
he looks. He is sincere in desiring to view every object in
its true light, and is not aware that his eye always looks upon
colored objects. But an eagle-eyed world perceive it, and
though they do not perhaps doubt his honesty, they lose their
confidence in his judgment.
Another Christian, of the same general honesty and trans
parency of character, fixes his eyes so exclusively upon some
particular doctrines or duties, that they give a coloring to all
his views. He over-estimates their importance, and they injure
the symmetry of his religious character, producing as much
deviation from perfect transparency as color does in the crystal.
The same effect is sometimes produced upon character by
long-continued poor health. Some diseases do actually give
an unnatural color to objects seen through the eye. And
there are jaundiced minds, as well as jaundiced eyes. Nor
can the man avoid viewing the world with a morbid and
melancholy hue thrown over it, when the nervous system is
deranged, any more than a yellow tinge can be removed from
external objects, when the eye is suffused with bile. He
whose health is firm, and whose mental eye is clear, smiles at
the' delusions of the invalid, and takes pride in his superior
philosophy and religion. But let a slight shock be given to
his nervous system, and the same sombre cloud will over
shadow him, and his boasted philosophy and religion will
succumb to a deranged sensorium.
2. I shall in the second place describe the hydrophanous
character. Hydrophanous minerals are such as are not transparent
till they are immersed in water, when they become so ; as the
hydrophane, a variety of opal.
So it is with many a Christian. Till the floods of adversity
25

290 MINERALOGICAL ILLUSTRATIONS OF CHARACTER.
have been poured over him, his character appears marred
and clouded by selfish and worldly influences. But trials
clear away the obscurity, and give distinctness and beauty to
his piety. It is necessary often that the waves should roll
over him again and again, before his soul becomes thoroughly
permeated, and his character wholly transparent. But if God
means to make him an instrument pf eminent usefulness on
earth, or eminent in glory in heaven, he will not lift him out
of the waters till the work has been thoroughly accomplished.
3. The third character I would symbolically describe is
the semi-transparent.
Through a semi-transparent or sub-transparent mineral
objects may be seen, but there is no distinctness of outline,
as in gypsum, selenite, and quartz.
The semi-transparent character is no uncommon one, even
among professed Christians. Light enough is transmitted
from such, and through them, to lead us, in the exercise of
charity, to place them among the really pious ; yet every
thing about them is indistinct and cloudy. They have no
clear and definite ideas of the doctrines of the Christian sys
tem, and there is a correspondent looseness in respect to
Christian duties. Their religious experience, both at its com
mencement and subsequently, has no strongly marked fea
tures. There is no clear line of demarcation in their minds
between worldly morality and Christian ethics. Hence they
conform very much to worldly maxims and practices ; so
much so as to raise doubts of their piety in the minds of
many ; and yet they will cordially unite in every good work,
and thus often do they clear their characters from suspicion.
There is so much of flexibility in their principles and charac
ter, that you cannot tell where you will find them in times
when decision and independence are needed. In short, it

MINERALOGICAL ILLUSTRATIONS OF CHARACTER. 291
seems as if such persons were aiming to secure both this
world and the next, and you fear that they may lose both.
Semi-transparency may symbolize a character still more
unlovely and repulsive. The very mineral I have taken to
illustrate it — gypsum — was used under the name of phen-
gites, by some of the most hateful of the Roman emperors —
Nero, for example — for the windows of their palaces. So
nearly-transparent was it, that these tyrants could look out
and see what the people were doing, while the latter could
not look in and see what was going on there. And this is
just what jealous and cruel despots, and others of like dispo
sition, desire. Others they wish to scrutinize with eagles'
eyes, while they themselves keep in the dark, and from thence
give the assassin's stab.
4. I pass, fourthly, to describe the translucent character.
Minerals are translucent when light is transmitted through
them, but objects are not seen.
There are two varieties of translucency. In the first, light
seems to penetrate the entire mass, but not enough to produce
even semi-transparency. The difficulty seems to have been,
that the particles, when the mineral was in the process of
formation, were not thoroughly dissolved, and therefore could
not be so arranged by the laws of crystallography as to
allow the light to pass freely through. And yet it seems as
if the work had been nearly accomplished. Examples may
be seen in fibrous gypsum and rose quartz.
This mineral aptly represents the man who seems to stand
about upon the line between the world and the Christian.
There is so much that is good, both in his principles and his
practice, that you are disposed at times to class him with the
latter. But you cannot see through him, and there is too
much room left for guile and artifice to hide themselves, and

292 MINERALOGICAL ILLUSTRATIONS OF CHARACTER.
unexpectedly to develop unlovely traits of character, so that
you stand in doubt of him. You greatly wish that divine
grace had thoroughly dissolved native selfishness and world li-
ness, so that they should not so mar and mystify the whole
character. The man probably considers himself a Christian,
and possibly he is so, but of a very low grade of piety.
More likely he has only been convicted, but not converted ;
and great is the danger, if that be the case, that he, never
will be.
Another variety of mineral exhibits translucency only on
its edges. The central mass is dark ; but holding the speci
men to the light, and light is transmitted dimly through the
thin edges. Marble and flint, or hornstone, are examples.
In these specimens, we have a good symbolization of the
man, who has been brought so much under the influence of
Christianity, that it has modified his external conduct, pro
duced some regard for true piety, led to some outward refor
mations, and caused him to adopt some of the forms of reliT
gion. Yet the darkness of unregeneracy reigns within. The
central mass of character has never been permeated by the
subduing and remodelling power of divine grace, and there
fore no heavenly light can pass through. Friends, and pos
sibly the man himself, mistake the rays that struggle through
the edges of his character for genuine Christian experience.
But until the light can reach the soul's centre, if guile still
reigns there, along with selfishness, pride, and worldliness,
external translucency can avail nothing in the sight of God.
Nothing but divine alchemy can rearrange and transmute the
elements of character, so as to give it the transparency of
true religion.
5. My fifth symbolization embraces the doubly refracting
character.

MINERALOGICAL ILLUSTRATIONS OF CHARACTER. 293
A doubly-refracting crystal is transparent ; but it gives two
images of objects seen through it. Ordinary refraction pro
duces one, and extraordinary refraction another, by splitting
the ray. A good example is Iceland spar, or calcite.
Just so some Christian men, apparently without guile, and
found in the main on the right side, do sometimes so split the
rays of truth as to give a false image of things. They so
speculate and philosophize about doctrines, that the formula
ries they present have the aspect of heresy, although it is in
fact nothing but idiosyncrasy. So, in regard to Christian
duties, there is often some extraordinary refraction which gives
those duties an aspect different from the common one. The
moral reformations and Christian enterprises of the present
age, also, seen through their optics, put on features which no
other eyes can see. In short, there are peculiarities in their
mental or moral constitution that make it difficult for others
to act or think in concert with them. The truth is, the leaven
of self-esteem and love of distinction is working within them,
and so bends the ray of truth that a false image is formed,
which these men honestly believe to be the true one.
6. The sixth character which I shall describe is the phos
phorescent. Certain minerals, when rubbed against eaeh other, or ex
posed to a considerable degree of heat or to the light of the
sun, and then are removed to a dark place, will emit light for
some time, and sometimes beautifully, although previously
opaque. This is called phosphorescence. Examples are
quartz, fluor spar, and the diamond.
You have probably anticipated me in the character I would
symbolize by these examples. For how common is it to
meet with men who never seem to feel any interest in any
good cause till they are brought under the influence of others !
25 *

294 MINERALOGICAL ILLUSTRATIONS OF CHARACTER.
They have an excitable temperament ; and if others go before
them, and call after them to follow, they begin to throw off
phosphorescent sparks ; or when warmed by the tongue of
eloquence or the mesmeric power of sympathy, their souls
seem to be permeated by a phosphoric glow that promises
much. But as the light of the phosphorescent mineral fades,
and soon disappears, when the extrinsic heat is taken away,
and daylight is let in upon it, so do the ardor and zeal of
these men depart when foreign stimulants are withdrawn, and
they are left to their own resources. Their benevolence,
being the fruit of external excitement, and having nothing to
feed it within, soon dies away, and leaves the man as unfeel
ing, as narrow-minded, and as selfish as ever.
7. My seventh symbolization describes the dichroic char
acter. Dichroism consists in a mineral's exhibiting different colors
on different faces. Thus dichroite, or iolite, is often deep
blue along its vertical axis ; but on a side perpendicular to
this axis it is brownish yellow. The phenomenon results
from the manner in which the particles are arranged for
reflecting and transmitting light. The whole internal struc
ture must be changed before the same color shall be presented
on all the faces.
Moral dichroism consists in a man's being Janus-faced —
that is, double-faced both in his principle and his practice, in
order to secure popular favor and avoid odium. The chame
leon is said to have the power of assuming the color of the
object on which it fastens ; so this man means to conform his
creed and his practice to those which are most popular in the
community where he happens to live or sojourn. In one place,
he is orthodox; in another, heterodox; — in one, an advo
cate for temperance ; in another, loose in this matter, both in

MINERALOGICAL ILLUSTRATIONS OF CHARACTER. 295
theory and practice-; — in one place, proslavery ; in another,
antislavery. His moral and religious principles are not set
tled, or rather he makes them bend to his worldly interest ;
and you have no way of determining where to find him in any
circumstances, except to inquire what aspect self-interest will
require him to put on. Nor will it ever be essentially better
until divine grace shall have transformed and rearranged the
elements of his character.
8. My eighth symbol will illustrate a chatoyant char
acter. A chatoyant mineral exhibits a beautiful play of prismatic
colors as it is turned around. It is not a mere surface phe
nomenon, but proceeds from the internal arrangement of the
particles. The diamond affords, perhaps, the most perfect
example, unless it be the precious opal.
Mineralogists make some distinction between a play of
colors and a change of colors in crystals. But the difference
is unimportant in the point of view in which I am looking at
the subject ; and I include both those varieties under the term
chatoyant. Hence I should quote, as a third example, Lab
rador feldspar, or labradorite, which, though less brilliant
than the diamond, has the advantage of presenting a much
larger surface, glowing with prismatic hues.
I regard brilliancy of character as the trait most aptly rep
resented by the chatoyant property of minerals. I mean
chiefly brilliancy of intellect. This may be conjoined with
humble piety, without destroying its transparency ; and the
character thus formed becomes eminently attractive, and is
well symbolized by the diamond, the most precious and per
fect of all minerals. But brilliancy of parts is quite apt to
derogate from the purity and simplicity of Christian charac
ter, so that its transparency is marred, just as is the case with

296 MINERALOGICAL ILLUSTRATIONS OF CHARACTER.
the opal and the labradorite. We are delighted with their
splendor, but regret that we cannot see through them.
9. The irised or pavonine character is symbolized by my
ninth example.
Irised minerals often give a splendid exhibition of most of
the colors of the spectrum ; but it is produced by a mere
superficial film, while all beneath is opaque, as in a specimen
of anthracite coal.
The pavonine character, so called from its resemblance to
the feathers of the peacock, is so common as hardly to need
a particular description. It is the man who has a strong pas
sion for outside display, but has no corresponding sterling
qualities within. He may be gaudy as the peacock without
but just penetrate beneath the thin film of external charac
ter, and all will be found either hollow or opaque within
Frequently the interior will be found a hiding place for arti
fice, cunning, and duplicity, and always for vanity and self-
conceit. Such a character is frequently a rather harmless
one — not so much from a want of disposition as from a want
of ability to do much mischief.
There are some minerals — mica, for instance — that are
essentially transparent, but show the prismatic colors in their
interior. This is called iridescence ; but it differs little from
the irised character, which is limited to the surface. For the
interior iridescence proceeds from a metallic film introduced
into some crack or fissure, producing a brilliant tarnish there
of the same nature as that upon the irised surface. Exam
ple, iridescent mica or quartz.
The iridescent mineral has its counterpart among men ;
for we meet with not a few excellent Christian men who show
an inordinate fondness for external display. Costly and ele
gant dwellings and furniture, elegant horses and carriages,

MINERALOGICAL ILLUSTRATIONS OF CHARACTER. 297
and rich, if not gaudy, clothing, they do not regard as incon
sistent with their obligations to conform to the precepts and
self-denial of their Master. But this passion for show can be
regarded only as a flaw in their character, marring its trans
parency as iridescence does the pure crystal.
10. My tenth and last example describes the opaque char
acter. We find at least two varieties in this respect among miner
als. Some crystals, such as mica, are transparent in one
direction and opaque in another.
It is so with some men. In a Christian land, it is not unu
sual to meet with those who have very clear views of the
theory of religion, both doctrinal and practical, and you expect
to find their hearts and lives conformed to their belief. But
the moment you make the subject personal, you perceive that
the opaque side of their character is turned towards you, and
all is repulsive and dark. Christ met such a man in the youth
whom he loved, and who had kept all the commandments
from his earliest days. How clear did his creed and his
character seem ! But no sooner was the demand made for
the sacrifice of his money for the good of others, than the
crystal was turned, so as to be impervious to light. Selfish
ness had too firm a hold upon the heart to be cast out even
by the persuasive voice of the Son of God. And so it has
ever been, and is now, in the hearts of multitudes.
Another striking exemplification of the character under
consideration is seen in the manner in which many men treat
some of the important moral reformations now in progress —
say that of temperance. Converse with them, and they seem
to be strenuous advocates of the cause ; but ask them to co
operate with you in plans for its advancement, and you
develop a secret and unexpected hostility to the work in

298 MINERALOGICAL ILLUSTRATIONS OF CHARACTER.
every form. Public opinion has forced them to profess
friendship for it in general terms ; but when they are driven
to the wall, and compelled to act one way or the other, you
find out that the cause has no more bitter enemies. Their
seeming transparency has given place to blank opacity, where
guile, and duplicity, and self-indulgence lie coiled up together
in the darkness in snaky brotherhood.
The completely opaque mineral, such as coal, transmits not
one ray of light, and all within is of course entirely con
cealed. It fitly represents a character thoroughly bad within
and without. The only thing we like about it is, that there is
no attempt to assume a borrowed dress in order to conceal
the deformity within. The principles are bad, and the con
duct is bad ; and nothing but divine grace can transform the
dark and shapeless mass into order, transparency, and beauty.
I might go on to multiply symbolizations of character from
the scientific history of the mineral kingdom, especially were
I to derive my illustrations from other features of minerals
bsides the optical. But I have probably said enough. Yet a
few closing practical remarks will not be inappropriate.
1. These illustrations may suggest to us some salutary
cautions in judging of character.
Recollect that the transparent character is the standard.
Hence, if there be mystery about a man ; if he is jealous of
others, yet careful to hide himself ; if his virtues are cloudy
and indistinct ; if his opinions are colored by prejudice and
passion ; if he is trying to accomplish certain darling worldly
schemes, which depend mainly on popular favor ; if there is
more about him of cunning plans than of simple, straight
forward integrity ; if he assumes different aspects in different
positions ; and, especially, if he attempts to conceal his prin
ciples, and refuses to take a stand on the side of virtue and

MINERALOGICAL ILLUSTRATIONS OF CHARACTER. 299
right, and truckles and panders to error and sin in high places,
— then I would say, Be careful how you trust such a man. In
short, we have reason to fear for our- own and others' char
acters just in proportion to our departure from the true, trans
parent model of an Israelite indeed.
2. The subject affords us an illustration of complete Chris
tian sanctification.
The grace of God, when it first visited the Christian, found
his character, if not absolutely opaque, yet so much so that
even the light that was in him was darkness. That grace
sent the power of eternal truth into the chaos, and re
arranged the purposes and the affections, and made the soul
capable of transmitting more or less of uncolored light, so
that ever since the false colors of the world, the flesh, and the
adversary have been disappearing. But it is not till perfect
transparency shall be produced, and guile, with its train of
unholy passions, shall have disappeared, that the believer can
enter heaven. O, how great a change must still pass upon
most of us who profess religion, if we ever reach that holy
place !
3. Finally, how important for our success and usefulness
in this life is a perfectly guileless character !
Jesus Christ is described as one who did no sin, nor was
guile found in his mouth — as if that was the crowning excel
lence of his character. Indeed, an honest man is the noblest
work of God. And there have been many such — Israelites
indeed, in whom was no guile, though not absolutely free
from sin, as Christ was. Hours would be requisite merely to
mention the names of such, whose memory the church holds
dear ; and volumes would be needed to describe their charac
ters. 1 will refer to only two examples, and that briefly.
It is probable that the world has never seen such an ex-

300 MINERALOGICAL ILLUSTRATIONS OF CHARACTER.
traordinary instance of moral influence as was acquired among
all classes of men by the missionary Swartz, who for fifty
years preached the gospel in India. He lived in the midst
of Englishmen, Hindoos, and Mohammedans, and was ex
ceedingly plain and faithful to them all in his preaching and
exhortations. Yet such was the respect for him manifested
by them all, that even in the bloody wars waged among them,
all parties regarded him as a friend, and even pagan rajahs
gave orders to their soldiers not to interrupt his labors. And
often was property intrusted to his hands, as well as the busi
ness of pacificator ; and the Rajah of Tanjore committed the
education of his son, who was to succeed him, to Swartz.
" Combined with humility," says his biographer, " was that
singular and transparent simplicity, which so powerfully rec
ommended him to men of every rank and every religion, and
which was the grand secret of his unparalleled influence and
success. Can we wonder that one so pious, humble, upright,
and sincere should excite the veneration and conciliate the
confidence of all around him ; that Hindoo princes, observant
and acute, should cultivate his friendship, invite his counsel,
and invoke his protection ; that Mohammedan tyrants, subtle
and suspicious, should respect his integrity and accept his
mediation ; that European governors and officers, civil and
military, should intrust to him the most important concerns,
and cooperate with him in all his plans ; that by the great
body of the people, of every class, he should be revered,
idolized, and obeyed ? "
Another example, of analogous character, was the confi
dence reposed in the American missionaries on Mount Leb
anon, during a sanguinary civil war between the Druzes
and Maronites in that mountain, in 1845. Though the par
ties were bigotedly attached to their own corrupt religions,

MINERALOGICAL ILLUSTRATIONS OF CHARACTER. 301
and felt no sympathy with the object of the missionaries, and
though under the influence of the most ferocious hatred
towards each other, they all assured the missionaries that
their lives and property would be safe in the midst of car
nage, conflagration, and death. And so it proved. Nay, in
the very heat of the conflict, when blood flowed like water,
they requested the missionaries to act as mediators. " By the
blessing of God," say the missionaries, " we secured the con
fidence of both parties in the region where we reside, and
were assured on all hands that we had nothing to fear, who
ever should prove victorious. And when the wild whirlwind
of war actually swept over Abeih, we not only remained in
entire safety, but were able to afford shelter to multitudes of
the unfortunate ; nor was the sanctity of our asylum violated
in a single instance." O, what a mighty power there is in
Christian simplicity and integrity !
Should it not, then, be an object of the highest ambition
for every young man, especially, to establish a reputation for
a guileless character, which can be done only by actually
possessing it ? Let the community once get the impression
that such is not his character ; that, instead of being artless
and of unswerving integrity, he condescends to duplicity and
artifice, and to partisan jugglery, to carry his points, and
long will it be before he can disabuse the public mind of that
impression, and recover their confidence. Let him, then, take
care, in the first place, early to acquire this brightest jewel
in the Christian's crown, and then secure it by a guileless life ;
and he will find that he has a passport to usefulness and
honor which nothing else can give. Guile may sometimes,
indeed, carry a point, and gain an ephemeral reputation ; but
dreadful will be the reaction when the truth comes out — so
that in the end it will appear that honesty is always the best
26

302 MINERALOGICAL ILLUSTRATIONS OF CHARACTER.
policy. God grant that all of us may so live, that when we
depart, an admiring world may write on each of our monu
ments the inscription, In simplicity and godly sincerity, not
with fleshly wisdom, but by the grace of God, he had his
conversation in the world.

THE INSEPARABLE TRIO.

Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, (Jehovah.) — Psalm
xxxiii. 12.
Therefore my people are gone into captivity, because they have no knowl
edge. — Isaiah v. 13.
If therefore the Son shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed. — John
viii. 36.
An important reciprocal influence has ever been admitted
to exist between religion, education, and freedom ; but their
inseparable connection and mutual dependence have rarely
been maintained or demonstrated. If that can be done, the
present is surely an appropriate occasion for attempting it.
Such, therefore, is the theme which I shall present to this
highly respected audience.
The position taken on this subject is this : —
Religion, Education, and Freedom, are inseparable,
and mutually dependent.
It will give, perhaps^a clearer idea of this general prop
osition, if it be divided and illustrated.
First, then, true religion, an enlightened system of educa
tion, and genuine freedom, form the three great vital centres
of the social system ; just as the brain, the heart, and the
lungs are the centres of life in the animal system. Nor can
you separate these centres from one another in the one case,
(303)

304 THE INSEPARABLE TRIO.
any more than in the other, without destroying them all.
Without a brain to give sensibility and motion, there would be
no beating heart or heaving lungs. Without a heart to pro
pel the blood through the brain and the lungs, the latter would
collapse, and the former would be paralyzed. And did not
the lungs oxygenate and purify the blood, it would prove a
deadly poison to the brain and the heart ; and no vital warmth
would be imparted to the frame. So in the social system,
were there no religion to give sensibility to our relations to
God and our fellow-men, and to lead us to act from higher
motives than atheism or pantheism could inspire, education,
in its legitimate and liberal meaning, would never exist ; nor
could freedom be enjoyed ; since, without the purifying and
elevating influence of religion, the strong would oppress the
i weak, and keep them in hopeless servitude. So, if education
were stricken from the social system, religion would degen
erate into formalism, or fanaticism ; and freedom would soon
be drowned in licentiousness, or crushed by an iron despot-
i ism. And if freedom were to be smothered, religion would
lose its vitality, and become a mere tool of ambition ; and ed
ucation would be ostracized as a dangerous agent, at least in
the hands of the people at large.
j Secondly, no one of these vital centres of the social system
can be in health and vigorous action, if the rest are diseased
or palsied. For such is their mutual sympathy, that just so
far as one is defective, or its vitality lowered, by an admix
ture of erroneous principles, will the others be crippled and
benumbed. In the animal system, if disease has attacked the
brain, we expect, not only that the mind will be oppressed, or
act irregularly and wildly, but that the lungs and the heart
will partake of the disordered movement. In like manner, if
disease or poison be operating upon the heart, or the lungs,

THE INSEPARABLE TRIO. 305
we cannot depend upon the healthy action of the brain and
the mind. And the degree of irregularity existing in one of
these vital organs is the index of the derangement in the
others. Just so, if in any country a false or defective sys
tem of religion prevails, we may be sure to find correspond
ing deficiencies and errors in its system of education and its
principles of liberty. In like manner, if we find its inhabit
ants ignorant, we can safely infer that its religion is propor-
tionably erroneous, and its freedom defective. And if the
liberties of a country have been usurped by the despotism of
the many, or of the few, we may be sure that in the same
ratio, its religion will be corrupt and its plans of education
imperfect. Such is my explication and elucidation of the general prin
ciple advanced. I may seem to have taken strong ground ;
but I trust it can be maintained by an appeal to Reason, to
the Bible, and to Experience. I proceed, therefore, to de
fend my position by evidence drawn from these three sources.
Preliminary to this argument, however, let me say, lest my
positions should be misunderstood, that in maintaining the in
separable connection and mutual dependence of these three
pillars of a nation's glory and strength, I do not contend that
they are equally important. It will be universally admitted
that the brain, the lungs, and the heart are inseparably con
nected and mutually dependent. But who does not know that
the brain occupies a place, and executes functions in the sys
tem, of preeminent importance ? The influence that em
anates from it, along the conducting nerves, causes the heart
to beat and the lungs to heave : in fact, all the phenomena of
vitality depend upon it ; and so, in the present world, do the
far more wonderful phenomena of intellect. But it is nev
ertheless true, that disordered action in the heart, or the lungs,
26*

306 the inseparable trio.
will impair the functions of the brain ; so that we infer a mu
tual dependence ; while at the same time we assign the high
est place, and by far the most commanding influence, to the
brain. In like manner, in the social system, no observing and rea
sonable man will hesitate to place religion at the head of all
those influences by which the public good is promoted, the
national character formed, and its destinies shaped. Moral
obligation is the only power that can give genuine life and
regulated action to a nation's energies ; and if that do not
send its galvanic shocks into the whole system, not only will
education and freedom fail of vitalization, but paralysis will
seize upon the whole body politic ; — except that occasionally
a convulsive agony, the symptom of approaching dissolution,
may rack its frame and distort its features. Highest and
foremost, therefore, we place religion among the influences
that determine a nation's character ; although an important
reflex influence upon religion, from education and freedom,
must be admitted.
It may be desirable to state another preliminary explana
tion. In maintaining the mutual dependence of these three
great institutions of the social economy, so that when one
fails or is crippled, the others suffer the same fate, it should
be remembered that we speak of the community as a whole,
and not of individual exceptions. For such exceptions may
exist, of a striking character. The prevalent system of re
ligion may be very corrupt, and yet there may be found
bright and beautiful examples of individual piety. So there
may exist many splendid examples of scholarship, where the
masses are profoundly ignorant. And even under the gloomy
sway of despotism, individuals may be found enjoying a high
degree of personal independence. But single exceptions of

THE INSEPARABLE TRIO. 307
this sort cannot invalidate conclusions based upon tendencies
and results, which are generally the same, and whose failure
is only as one to a thousand.
But what do we mean by the term religion ? Simply, I
answer, the unadulterated system taught in the Bible, and
illustrated perfectly in the life of the Founder of Christianity,
and imperfectly, yet often beautifully, in the lives of those
followers of Christ who have been eminent for their self-
denying labors and vigorous faith.
And what do we mean by education ? Not a system that
provides for the gigantic scholarship of a favored few, while
the many are left under the cloud of ignorance ; but a sys
tem that carries the torch of science through every portion
of the community, offering it to all as freely as the daylight,
and opening the path for the poorest and the humblest genius \
to find his way to the summit of Parnassus.
And what do we mean by freedom ? Not liberty for a
few, or even a majority, while a large portion of the commu
nity are cut off from its blessings ; not liberty for the whole
without restraint ; not that reckless liberty, which abolishes
all the salutary distinctions of society, founded on talents,
character, and office, and levels every thing downwards, till
all are sunk to the lowest grade ; but we mean such a degree
of chastened liberty, as experience has shown most conducive
to individual happiness and the public good.
From these explanations I turn now to the evidence of the
general position, that religion, education, and freedom, are in
separable and mutually dependent. I make my first appeal
to reason ; in oiher words, to the nature of the case.
The problem is this : knowing the character of man, and the
nature of religion, education, and freedom, does reason alone,
irrespective of Scripture and experience, afford a presumption

308 THE INSEPARABLE TRIO.
in favor of the proposition, or against it? Reasoning a priori,
should we conclude these three leading institutions of the
social system to be mutually dependent, and so connected
that diseased action in one shall be communicated to all the
rest ?
In order to obtain a satisfactory answer to these inquiries,
let us make a series of suppositions.
Let us, in the first place, imagine that religion is stricken
from this trio. Can education and freedom long survive ?
To live without religion, is to be destitute of all sense of
moral obligation to God or our fellow-men, and to be free
from all influences and sanctions drawn from a future state of
retribution. In such circumstances we need not resort to any
theological dogma- to show that supreme selfishness would be
the controlling law of life, and consequently, that every man
would strive to gain as much power, and distinction, and prop
erty as possible. But the more talented and discerning few
would soon discover, that in proportion as the mass of men
were enlightened and free, would be the difficulty of gratify
ing their selfish desires. While, therefore, they might en
courage education and freedom among a favored few, they
would try to keep the many ignorant and in servitude. This
is, in fact, the very process that has been acted over a thou
sand times in the history of our globe. The masses must be
kept ignorant and degraded, or the few cannot monopolize
the power, wealth, and influence, which selfish nature urges
them to seek after with irresistible impulse. To root out
religion, then, is to aim a death blow at education and free
dom. Let us next suppose a nation to be blessed with religion
and freedom, but without education. Can she long retain the
former ?

THE INSEPARABLE TRIO. 309
Although the great principles and precepts of religion are
simple, they are liable to be misunderstood and misapplied,
if the intellect be uncultivated. Individuals quite ignorant
may become devotedly pious, in a community where there
are intelligent men to instruct them. But if the vast majority
are unlettered, religion will almost inevitably lose its power
beneath a multitude of external ceremonies, or run wild with
fanaticism. For these extremes are more fascinating to the
ignorant mind than the unostentatious piety of the heart, be
cause accompanied by more external glitter and noise. Be
sides, it is much easier for a heart in love with sin to practise
pompous rites and ceremonies, or to cry out with Jehu, Come
and see my zeal for the Lord, than to carry on a daily war
fare with sin within and without, and to set an example of
charity, humility, and self-sacrifice. Hence it is, that in an
ignorant community, religion never fails to degenerate into
formalism or fanaticism ; and not unfrequently the two have
been united.
No less essential is intellectual cultivation to the support of
genuine freedom. Men must understand its principles, or
they will either become the dupes, and ere long the slaves, of
unprincipled ambition, or they will mistake licentiousness for
liberty, and soon be glad to take refuge in the despotism of
one from the despotism of many.
Imagine next, that a nation is blessed with religion and ed
ucation, but has lost its freedom. Can the former flourish
under an arbitrary government ?
Tyrants are usually eagle-eyed to discover any influences
that are hostile to their usurped prerogatives. Now, the whole ¦/
system of the Bible aims a fatal blow against all unrighteous
authority, both because it brings all men on a level before
God, and because it shows such authority to be hateful in his

310 THE INSEPARABLE TRIO.
sight. Hence despotic power will not be satisfied till it has
robbed Christianity of its vitality ; and, alas ! it has usually
found a venal priesthood, ready to perform the mummifying
process. An enlightened system of public education is almost equally
hostile to arbitrary power as is Christianity. In fact, you
cannot enlighten the people, generally, without teaching them
their true character, and showing them that God made them
to be free. Either, therefore, the power of the tyrant or ed
ucation must fall ; and the same agency which he has em
ployed to embowel Christianity will be ready to obliterate the
primary school, and petrify the college and the university.
These suppositions sustain, I trust, the first part of the gen
eral proposition, that religion, education, and freedom are in
separable. But the second part maintains that there is such
a connection and sympathy between them, that to mar and
deteriorate one is to impart what the chemist would call a
catalytic influence to all the rest, whereby they shall be de
graded and become impure. To show this will require a
parallel series of suppositions ; and yet by an appeal to his
tory, we might convert these assumptions into facts. But that
belongs to my third argument.
We will suppose the religion of a nation to become cor
rupt, either by the introduction of false doctrines, or the sub
stitution of external forms for the piety of the heart, or by an
¦ amalgamation with the world. Now, unadulterated Chris
tianity is a stern advocate for the most liberal system of ed
ucation ; both because it courts the most rigid scrutiny, and
because, without intelligence in the community, its plain and
honest featuies would soon be buried, and its vitality smoth
ered, beneath the meretricious ornaments of formalism, or
burned over and blackened by the fires of fanaticism. But a

THE INSEPARABLE TRIO. 311
corrupt system of religion dreads a pure system of education,
lest its hypocrisy should be detected. It knows very well that
education must be so modified as not to admit of freedom of
discussion or freedom of opinion ; and that the great body of
the people must be kept in comparative ignorance, or they
will not submit to the trammels of a perverted Christianity.
And, therefore, it will be hostile to any system of education
that is not clipped and moulded to conform to its own de
graded standard.
Equally jealous of freedom you will find every false sys
tem of Christianity. Religious liberty, especially, cannot be
tolerated ; for, in such a case, the perversions of the truth,
made by an unholy priesthood, or designing politicians, would
soon be exposed, and then resisted. Uncomplaining conform
ity to the prevailing system is the imperious demand of every
corrupt religion. And since nearly every such system links
itself with the state, it can enforce conformity ; if not, at this
day, by swords and fagots, yet by the almost eq.ually power
ful engines of governmental favors and disabilities. Hence,
to pervert Christianity is to put a muzzle upon the mouth of
freedom. Suppose a defective system of education to prevail in a
country ; one, for example, where the majority of the people
are uninstructed, and only the wealthy and aristocratic have
access to the fountains of knowledge. The most inevitable
result would be, that the educated few would encroach upon
the rights of the ignorant many ; while the cunning priest
would easily exalt himself above all that is called God, or
that is worshipped ; so that, as God, he should sit in the
temple of God, showing himself that he is God, and thus
persuade the multitude that they must go to him for pardon
and life eternal, instead of Jehovah.

312 THE INSEPARABLE TRIO.
Or suppose arbitrary power to have gained the ascendency,
where the people are well instructed, and pure religion pre
vails. In such a case, we may calculate upon one of two
results. Either religion and education would teach the people
rebellion, — for there can be no doubt but both of them are
decidedly hostile tcf arbitrary power, — or the usurpers would
contrive to infuse a narcotic influence into the pulpit, to close
the primary school, and to render the press venal.
From the known selfish and ambitious character of man,
therefore, and the admitted sympathetic influence between
religion, education, and freedom, does not reason decide that
to obliterate one is to destroy the rest ? and to corrupt one is
to sink the others to the same condition ? In support of these
positions, I make my second appeal to the Bible.
It should not be forgotten, however, that the grand object
of the Bible is to instruct us in religion ; and no other sub
jects are mentioned, except as incidentally connected with
this. We ought not to expect, therefore, that we shall find
the general proposition which we are discussing, stated in so
many words. Its leading features, however, I think we can
find asserted and defended, directly or indirectly.
The Bible shows us, for instance, how indispensable to a
nation's happiness and glory is true religion. The passage
first named at the head of this discourse — Happy is the na
tion whose God is the Lord — is an example. It does not
say that such would be the effect of acknowledging and serv
ing any other God except Jehovah, the God of the Jews ; for
so he is called in the original. The poet would make no
difference between " Jehovah, Jove, and Lord."
But the Bible declares, that " though there be that are called
gods, whether in heaven or in earth, to us there is but one

THE INSEPARABLE TRIO. 313
God, of whom are all things, and we in him, and one Lord
Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him." It is
the service and love of that one God only, through that one
Lord Jesus Christ, that can render a nation happy. That
God declares that " he is a great king over all the earth ; a
governor among the nations ; " and he challenges their love
and service. " Let all the earth fear the Lord ; let all the
inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him." He goes
farther, and declares the consequence of disobedience. " At
what instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concern
ing a kingdom, to build and to plant it ; if it do evil in my
sight, that it obey not my voice, then I will repent of the good
wherewith I said I would benefit them. If they will not
obey, I will utterly pluck up and destroy that nation," saith
the Lord.
Thus does the Bible represent true religion as preeminently
important to a nation's happiness. It also declares knowledge
to be essential to the preservation of freedom and religion.
The second text named at the head of this discourse teaches
this, at least in part : Therefore my people are gone into
captivity, because they have no knowledge. Here the loss of
liberty is ascribed to ignorance ; and this, as we have seen,
corresponds with reason, and, as we shall see, with experi
ence also. In another place, it is said, " For the transgres
sions of a land, many are the princes thereof," — that is,
frequent changes and revolutions occur, — " but by a man of
understanding and knowledge, the state thereof shall be pro
longed ; " that is, its prosperity shall be lengthened out.
Again, it is said, " My people are destroyed for lack of
knowledge : because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also
reject thee." Again, " Wisdom and knowledge shall be the
stability of thy times, and strength of salvation."
27

314 THE INSEPARABLE TRIO.
If it be objected that the term knowledge, in the Scriptures,
usually means religious knowledge, and therefore does not
embrace modern science and literature, whose acquisition is
the chief thing in what we call education, it may be an
swered, first, that the term knowledge, in such texts as have
just been quoted, did embrace every kind of intellectual ac
quisition that entered into the Jewish system of education ;
of which, however, religion constituted nearly the whole.
Again, who will deny that the religious applications of mod
ern science and literature constitute their most important use ?
Nay, what principle of science (and of literature we may say
nearly the same) does not afford some illustration of the
divine character or government, or of man's moral relations,
and may not, therefore, be properly called a religious truth ?
Furthermore, it will be confessed, that the moral and religious
teachings and applications of modern education are precisely
the principles that are the most important to the preservation
of a nation's freedom and happiness. So that what the Bible
snvs of the bearings of knowledge and of ignorance upon a
nation's destinies, may be applied to the most valuable and
perfect system of modern education.
But the Bible proceeds a step farther, and shows us what is
the character of the man who is most perfectly fitted to the
exercise and enjoyment of freedom. This is pointed out in
the third passage prefixed to this discourse : " If, therefore,
the Son shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed." That
is, if the transforming power of the gospel has been exerted
upon a man, so that he has become free from the power of
sin, he is every whit free, — a freeman of the Lord, — fitted
rightly to appreciate and become a champion of civil liberty.
The Jews resented the imputation of Christ that they were
not free, and said, " We be Abraham's seed, and were never

THE INSEPARABLE TRIO. 315
in bondage to any man : how sayest thou, Ye shall be made
free ? " Jesus answered them, " Verily, verily, I say unto
you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin." Till
that chain be broken, he cannot be truly free ; as the poet has
finely expressed it —
" He is the freeman whom the truth makes free,
And all are slaves besides."
Finally, in the organization of the Christian church, as ex
hibited in the Bible, we have a divine testimony to the inti
mate connection between Christianity, freedom, and education.
It seems difficult to read the inspired history of the establish
ment of the church impartially, without coming to the conclu
sion that it was a pure democracy — or, rather, its govern
ment seems to be what may be called a theocratic democ
racy ; by which I mean a government of the people ; and yet
they are governed by the law of God, and their administra
tion consists mainly in carrying out the divine law. Each
church consisted of brethren, with equal rights. They
elected their own pastor and deacons, disciplined their own
members, settled their own difficulties, and were independent
of other churches, except so far as they asked for advice.
The pastors, too, were all equal, save so far as age, talents, or
superior piety, gave any the precedence. I do not say that
all Christian churches, in all circumstances* are required to be
organized on such a republican model. The Jewish church
— synonymous with the Jewish nation — was a theocracy ;
and I sincerely respect the opinion of eminent men, who
have thought the diocesan and metropolitan forms of church
government the best for men in other circumstances. I sin
cerely respect that opinion, I say, so long as they base it upon
expediency, and not upon the Bible. That book certainly

316 THE INSEPARABLE TRIO.
describes the primitive church, established by Christ and his
apostles, as an institution thoroughly democratic ; and is not
this a strong testimony in favor of free civil governments ?
especially when they, and they alone, harmonize with the
whole spirit of Christianity, which regards all men as breth
ren of a common Father. Indeed, though the Bible directs
Christians to obey whatever rulers Providence may have
placed over them, so long as they are tolerable, yet where has
it given a testimony in favor of any other except a free gov
ernment ?
In the characteristics both of the members and the minis
ters of the church, which the Bible has given, we find also a
testimony in favor of education, as "essential to the purity of
religion and freedom. It demands, first of all, an intelligent
and rational submission of intellect and heart to the authority
and will of God ; and then it directs believers to " prove all
things, and to hold fast that which is good" — a requisition
impossible to a mind entirely uneducated. Then, too, if we
read Paul's descriptions of the ministerial character, espe
cially in his Epistles to Timothy, we shall see a demand for a
very thorough mental discipline. Even under the old dispen
sation, it was said that " the priests' lips should keep knowl
edge." We are not, then, surprised to hear Paul exhorting
Timothy " to give attendance to reading," as well as to " ex
hortation and doctrine ; " also, to " meditate on these things,
and give himself wholly to them, that his profiting might
appear to all, and that he might make full proof of his min
istry." Surely, nothing but thorough literary discipline coujd
qualify a man for such a work. Theology, the noblest of all
sciences, is but the quintessence of them all ; and he only
who has studied them can extract and condense it.
Is it not clear, then, that the Bible, while it places religion

THE INSEPARABLE TRIO. 317
immeasurably above every thing else, does yet, directly, or
by fair implication, strongly advocate the most enlarged sys
tem of education, and the purest form of national freedom ?
And does it not represent the absence, or defects, of the two
latter to be fatal or injurious to the former ?
But I make my third appeal, in support of this position, to
experience — by which I mean history. And here the diffi
culty is not to find appropriate examples, but to make se
lections. Let us first look at some examples where attempts have
been made to sustain one or more of the institutions under
consideration, while the rest were wanting.
The ancient Jewish state was an example, where the reli
gious system, so far as it was developed, was pure, but the
education was defective. Excepting a knowledge of their
own history and religion, there was almost nothing that could
be called literature or. science ; and the views of the body of
the people were very narrow and bigoted. Mark, now, some
of the effects. One was, that in spite of the awakening
power of a miraculous dispensation, and the repeated warn
ings of Jehovah himself, and their strong national pride, they
were almost constantly falling into the idolatry of the sur
rounding nations. Another was, that Jehovah found it de
sirable, out of regard to what the Scriptures call the " hard
ness of their hearts," to allow certain practices among them,
which most enlightened nations shrink from ; such as polyg
amy, slavery, and bloody wars. Another effect was, that
instead of allowing them freedom, it was necessary often for
Jehovah not only to suffer them to have kings', but such kings
" as would chastise them with whips and scorpions." And
notwithstanding all the wisdom of Jehovah in managing their
national affairs, and his mercies, judgments, "and warnings, at
27*

318 THE INSEPARABLE TRIO.
the time of Christ they had become a province of the Roman
empire, and their religion had degenerated into the whited
sepulchre of phariseeism, or the yet more repulsive carcass
of sadduceeism.
Look now at an opposite example, in the effort made in
France, near the close of the last century, to establish free
dom and education without religion. It was like an attempt
to erect a noble edifice without any foundation. It was
worse ; it was like placing such an edifice upon ground that
was already rocking and heaving by the stifled fires of a ter
rific volcano. The fires of ferocious passions, fanned into
a sevenfold heat by the sirocco breath of atheism, did soon
break forth beneath that temple of liberty, and it was blown
to atoms ; while streams of scorching lava were belched forth
over every European nation, and the gloom of a military des
potism settled down upon the fairest portion of the globe, the
whole forming a memento of the terrible retribution that fol
lows an effort to dethrone God and deify human reason.
Another fact which history furnishes, illustrative of this
subject, is the intimate connection that has ever existed be
tween despotism, ignorance, and false or perverted religion
— par nobile fratrum. I am not aware of a single excep
tion, in the whole annals of our world ; and where the tyranny
has been the most grinding, the religion has been the most
corrupt, and the ignorance the most profound. As illustra
tions of this statement, in ancient times, memory shows, im
printed on her tablet, Assyria and Media, Persia and Egypt ;
in the middle ages, almost the whole of Europe ; and in
modern times, nearly all of Asia ; over whom the triple-
headed monster above named is seen enthroned in gloomy
sovereignty — a snaky Gorgon, converting every thing fair
and lovely to stone by his hideous aspect. On such a soil,

THE INSEPARABLE TRIO. 319
true religion, or popular education, or true freedom, could no
more flourish than the palm tree on the glaciers of Spitz-
bergen. It will doubtless be objected, that despotic governments
have often been liberal patrons of learning and of art, and
that countries thus governed have produced many splendid
examples of genius and scholarship. And why has this pat
ronage been extended ? Because such governments have
learned that knowledge is power, and so long as it is confined
to comparatively few, they can monopolize it, and make it
instrumental in upholding their authority. But they would
not dare to extend its blessings to the community at large,
because their power would be apt to change hands. Accord
ingly, we do not find that despotic governments encourage or
permit the great body of their subjects to seek the blessings
of an enlightened system of education ; or if, in a few in
stances, they have made education somewhat popular, they
have found themselves compelled, ere long, to allow more
liberty to their subjects.
All the ancient republics, and most of the modern, furnish
us with examples of the blighting influence of false religion
upon popular education and freedom. It will not be doubted
that, in the ancient republics, much freedom of thought and
action was enjoyed by certain classes; and we know that lit
erature and speculative philosophy were carried to a high
degree of perfection, and that the fine arts, also, were most
successfully cultivated. We are apt, however, to be dazzled
and deceived by the splendor of those literary and artistic
productions that have escaped the ravages of time, and are
yet the models of style and taste. We need to ascertain what
was the character of the freedom enjoyed in those republics,
and what the condition of the mass of the people. Accord-

320 THE INSEPARABLE TRIO.
ingly, history informs us that, in the Athenian and Lacedse-
monian states, a large majority were slaves, over whom their
masters exercised the power of life and death, and whom they
treated with the most inhuman rigor. Nay, since the debtor
became, ipso facto, the slave of the creditor, a large part of
those nominally free were in fact bondmen. Those, then,
who were really free, constituted, in truth, only a numerous
nobility, or aristocracy ; so that the government was really an
oligarchy. The military spirit, also, controlled and moulded
every thing else ; and we know how, in Sparta, it obliterated
the domestic relations, justified theft and deception, and sub
stituted an iron-hearted martial law for the tender charities of
life. If the fine arts were cultivated in the Grecian states,
yet agriculture and commerce were neglected and despised.
In Rome the state of things was no better. There you
find the same horrid system of slavery ; the same right of
life and death in the hands of the father and the master over
the child and the slave, — resulting in the practice of infanti
cide, murder, and gladiatorial combats. There, too, the patri
cians were engaged in endless contests for power with the
plebeians ; yet all united in submitting to the severest military
discipline, and, while professedly free themselves, in subject
ing all other nations to an iron yoke. In short, while you
find a small part of the people — a numerous aristocracy —
boasting of freedom, and well educated for the times, the
great mass are left ignorant and in servitude, and the whole
community is moulded by a martial code, inflexible and
bloody, which, indeed, nourished some of the sterner virtues,
but stifled the tender charities of life, and, while it guarded
with jealous care the honor and liberties of the state, kept a
large multitude in hopeless servitude at home, and with insa
tiable ambition preyed upon surrounding nations, till the world
and the Roman empire became synonymous terms.

THE INSEPARABLE TRIO. 321
Suppose, now, any one of the systems of government that
were adopted by these ancient republics, with its military
spirit, its slavery, and its religion, were to be introduced into
New England. What a contrast to the systems of govern
ment, religion, education, and social life, which now exist
among us ! Who of us would not rather choose any of the
monarchical, nay, even of the despotic, systems of civilized
Europe ?
After all, however, there were many noble hearts in those
ancient republics, in whom the true spirit of freedom glowed,
and who did all they could to impart true liberty and knowl
edge to their fellow-men. What, then, were the causes that
counteracted their efforts, and rendered it impossible for a
true system of freedom, or of education, to succeed ; which
in fact marred and blackened the fair countenance of liberty
and civilization wi*.h some of the most hideous features of
despotism and barbarism ? The philosophical historian and
politician have long attempted to answer these inquiries ; and
doubtless some of the causes they have assigned were power
fully instrumental of such results : but they seem to have
overlooked one great source of influence, and that is, reli
gion. They speak, indeed, of the necessity of public virtue
to the purity and preservation of freedom ; but they seem not
to realize that virtue which springs not from religion is spu
rious and ephemeral, and that consequently, if the religion be
false or corrupt, the virtue, the freedom, and education will
be proportionably defective. True, the polytheism of Greece
and Rome was the least offensive heathenism, modified as it
was by philosophy and poetry, which the world ever saw.
Still it was false enough, and pernicious enough, to , permit
opinions and practices inconsistent with genuine freedom and
popular education.

322 THE INSEPARABLE TRIO.
Were there time, it would be easy to point out similar cor
rupting and paralyzing influences, emanating from perverted
systems of religion, upon most modern republics. But this
would require too much of detail for the present occasion.
The history of the efforts made to establish free govern
ments in South America, and in Mexico, strikingly illustrates
and confirms the position taken in this discourse. The people
there doubtless wonder why their exertions to build up free
institutions have produced only a succession of civil wars,
with short intervals of military despotism. But when we
learn the intolerant character of their religion, we wonder not
at the ignorance and superstition of the people, nor that they
cannot be governed by any thing save despotic power. To
expect freedom with such a religion, and such ignorance, is
like looking for grapes upon thorns, and figs upon thistles.
Another historic fact, illustrative of this argument, is, that
a state religion has always exerted an unfavorable influence
upon popular education and civil and religious liberty. The
mere existence of a state religion, indeed, puts an end to
religious freedom, by the bestowment of governmental pat
ronage upon one denomination, and thus leaving the others,
at the best, to exist by mere sufferance. Despotism has al
ways found religion a most convenient instrument for riveting
its chains upon the people. The state first embraces religion,
as if for protection, but soon throttles it, and then uses its
lifeless form as a speaking trumpet, through which is pro
claimed the divine right of kings, the duty of unreserved
submission to their authority, and other anti-republican dog
mas. Witness Turkey, Italy, Russia, and Austria ; and, I
might add, almost every Asiatic kingdom. There you see the
perfected fruit of a union of church and state, in the almost
total ignorance, degradation, and servitude, of the people. In

THE INSEPARABLE TRIO. 323
some milder governments, however, as Great Britain, and
Prussia, and other German states, the attempt has been made
to combine state religion with the education of the people at
large ; and Prussia especially presents us with a model sys
tem, so far as the mode of instruction is concerned. But the
government directs what shall be taught the people, and takes
special care that monarchical principles and war doctrines
shall be instilled. And since every educated man depends
upon the government for a place, either in the state, the army,
or the church, very little of true freedom of opinion can be
enjoyed. Nor will a New England man think very highly
of the system of popular education in Great Britain — Scot
land excepted — when he learns that of the sixteen millions
of England and Wales, nearly half cannot write their names,
and nearly one third cannot read their mother tongue. Surely
there must be some powerful obstacle to the diffusion of
knowledge in such a country ; but a state religion and a sys
tem of aristocracy explain it all. Of all monarchical coun- J
tries, however, Great Britain possesses the most freedom, the
most intelligence, and the most true religion ; and would she
divorce church and state, almost the last incubus would be
removed from her prosperity and happiness.
But arbitrary governments, especially on the continent of
Europe, are beginning to learn that to instruct the people at
large is a hazardous experiment, even though the system of
instruction be carefully adapted to the support of their power
and the state religion. For if you once put the human
mind upon thinking, it will not always stop where you would
have it. And in the countries referred to the people are
demanding at least the right of popular representation in the
government ; and though cannon and bayonets may for a time
stifle this demand, it will soon gather explosive force enough,

324 THE INSEPARABLE TRIO.
if not regarded, to rend the throne to atoms. The rocking
thrones of continental Europe clearly evince that education
is in advance of liberty and religion. But the reciprocal
influence that exists between them will ere long bring thern
upon a level — by elevating the two latter, as we may hope,
and not by sinking the former.
History furnishes another support to this argument in the
fact that the countries most distinguished for freedom and
general education are those where the Bible is most widely
circulated. For examples we may refer to the United States,
Scotland, and Iceland. The latter country, separated from
all the world, with arctic snows upon and volcanic fires be
neath its surface, and too poor to be an object of cupidity,
though nominally subject to the Danish government, is in
reality a free state, and is blessed with a most effective, though
peculiar system of education, and with primitive simplicity of
piety. Scotland, too, is nominally a part of a monarchical
empire. But it were to be wished that all republics enjoyed
as much liberty, and their people were as well educated, and
their virtue and piety as pure and elevated. With the excep
tions above referred to, we might say the same of England,
where the Bible has a wide distribution. The republics of
Switzerland, too, may be quoted as a striking illustration of
this argument. For here we have professedly free states,
lying side by side, in some of which the Bible is restrained
in its circulation, and in others it is widely diffused ; and it is
said that the traveller needs no map to inform him when he
has passed from one description of these provinces into the
other. Now, it needs no time spent to show that, if education and
liberty follow in the track of the Bible, and, with a few unim
portant exceptions, are cramped and sickly where that book

THE INSEPARABLE TRIO. 325
is not diffused, — it requires, I say, no labored argument to
show that that book is eminently favorable to free institutions
and popular instruction. But if further evidence on this point
be required, we have it in the history of the Scotch Covenant
ers and the English Puritans.
Little did these men, who for two hundred years suffered
an unrelenting persecution from despots and hierarchs, ima
gine that they were working out and giving to the world
the great principles of civil and religious liberty. Driven *
from their native land by the persecutions of Mary, Provi
dence sent them to Geneva, where, in the church founded by
such men as Farel and Calvin, they found freedom of opinion
and the rights of conscience asserted. Having caught the"
spirit of that church, when permitted to return to England
and Scotland, they could not resist the impulse to establish
religious freedom there. But, in this attempt, they found
that they could not secure freedom of conscience without
securing also civil liberty. Hence they threw themselves
manfully into the contest ; and the result was the independ
ence of Scotland, and the establishment of the commonwealth
in England. A later, but still more important, result was the
settlement of this country by men who drew their religious
principles directly from the Bible, and who carried their lofty
ideas of religious freedom into the civil constitution and into
all their plans of education. To these men, therefore, was
the world indebted for the first clear development of the true
principles of civil and religious liberty. To them, says
Hume, the English people owe the whole freedom of their
constitution ; and, as a more recent and eloquent writer ob
serves, " then were first proclaimed those mighty principles
which have since worked their way into the depths of the
American forest, which have roused Greece from the slavery
28

326 THE INSEPARABLE TRIO.
and degradation of two thousand years, and which, from one
end of Europe to the other, have kindled an unquenchable
fire in the hearts of the oppressed, and loosed the knees of
the oppressors with unwonted fear." *
Such is what may be called the inseparable trio — religion,
education, and freedom. And such are the arguments by
which it is proved how strongly linked together they are by
a chain of influence that conveys with electric speed the
strength and purity, or the weakness and corruption, of one
to all the rest.
The subject suggests a multitude of important inferences ;
and with a brief notice of a few I will relieve your exhausted
patience. 1. It shows us the reason why arbitrary governments and
corrupt religions have been so much afraid of the circulation
of the Bible.
Their supporters have usually been sagacious enough to
discover that the Bible is a stern advocate for civil and reli
gious freedom, and uncompromising towards all corruptions
of its spirit. They know that the man who submits himself
fully and sincerely to its principles and spirit becomes thor
oughly republican, and hostile to false doctrine. Hence they
sympathize with the priest of a perverted Christianity in Eng
land, soon after the art of printing had begun to multiply
copies of the Scriptures : " We must root out printing," said
he in his sermon, " or printing will root us out." This was
a true prediction ; and in these times we are witnessing its
fulfilment. 2. The subject shows us that the religious element is fun
damental, in order to the support of free institutions.
Nor is it a false religion, or a perverted Christianity, that
* Macaulay.

THE INSEPARABLE TRIO. 327
will do this ; but there must be genuine piety in the commu
nity, or liberty will ere long degenerate, if it does not utterly
expire. And it was the lot of Puritanism, for the first time
in this world's history, to discover, and by its sufferings and
struggles and triumphs to demonstrate, this most important
of all principles in the science of government. Even yet the
world is purblind to this truth ; and men are every where
struggling for liberty, and expecting to sustain it when ac
quired, though religion have but a feeble hold upon the
community. And when they are disappointed, as they always
are where pure religion does not prevail, enlightened states
men seem in general to overlook this fundamental defect, and
attempt to account for the failure upon other principles. But
the Puritan has ever been distinguished, — and in almost
every country but our own has been hated and persecuted, —
not more for the uncompromising features of his theology
than for his stern independence of character. Yet that inde
pendence is founded in his religion ; and not till his views
prevail, and his example be imitated, will men come into the
full realization of their dreams of freedom.
3. The subject shows us that the prevalence of true reli- S
gion will insure the prevalence of education and liberty.
Christianity is as stern an advocate of education among
all classes as for the freedom of all. Nor can it conceal
features so strongly marked ; so that wherever it prevails in
its purity it will insist upon enlightening men's minds, and in
breaking from their necks every yoke. And here, too, Puri
tanism has set the example. Wherever she has planted her
foofy her first care has been to rear a temple to Jehovah,
then to found the college, the academy, and the primary
school. 4. We see how important to the defence and purity of

328 THE INSEPARABLE TRIO.
true religion are education and freedom among all classes
of the community .
Though an ignorant man and a slave may exercise pious
feelings, he can neither defend Christianity against sceptical
objections, nor accurately expound its doctrines, nor guard
its spirit against the frosts of formalism or the wildfire of
fanaticism. When the metaphysician by subtle arguments
attempts to show that the external world has no existence,
and consequently no argument can thence be deduced for
the being of a God ; when the phrenologist makes virtue and
vice dependent rather upon cranial conformation than upon
moral causes ; when the physiologist maintains that mental
phenomena are a mere function of the brain, and that organic
beings, as well as all natural operations, may be the result
of law, without a Deity ; when the astronomer demonstrates
that the earth ig not fixed, nor does the sun literally rise and set,
as it was formerly supposed the Bible taught ; when the ge
ologist describes a preadamite earth of indefinite duration, and
the chemist declares that the world has already been burned,
and therefore can undergo no future conflagration ; and when
the philologist throws doubts over the obvious meaning of
Scripture, and converts its plainest truths into enigmas ; and
when baptized philosophy makes divine and poetic inspiration
synonymous, — O, what but ripe learning can .harmonize all
these apparently discordant elements, and vindicate and enu
cleate the pure truths of the Bible ? And what but general
intelligence can secure the mass of the community, amid
such angry waves, from making shipwreck of the faith ?
j 5. The subject shows us when it may be safe and expedient
to unite church and state.
t Let no one be startled when we maintain that church and
state should be united at the proper time. The only difficulty

THE INSEPARABLE TRIO. 329
is, that men have attempted it too early. We have endeav
ored to show that the government of the church, as described
in the New Testament, is a democracy, where the members
are governed by supreme, love to God and equal love to all
mankind. Now, suppose the church to be enlarged till it
embraces all the world, and all its members conform strictly
to these great principles. Suppose, moreover, that all civil-'
governments become strictly republican, and the rulers take
the law of God as the basis of all political action. How
much, in such a case, would the church differ from the state ?
Unless there are political measures that have no moral char
acter, the two institutions would be nearly, perhaps precisely,
synonymous. Both of them would be what I have called a
theocratic democracy ; and there would be but one govern
ment and one church in all the earth. That would indeed be
the perfect state of society so much talked of and so little
understood. Whe.n such a state of the world arrives, — alas,
how long will it be delayed ! — then let church and state be
united. Indeed, you cannot keep them apart. But till then,
their union will be as incongruous and incoherent as the parts
of Nebuchadnezzar's image of gold, brass, iron, and clay.
6. We see in this subject the reason why so many efforts
to secure freedom have failed of success.
Men under despotic rulers suppose that the grand point is
to obtain their freedom ; whereas a much greater difficulty is
to secure it. Knowing the character of the religion and the
state of education in France before the revolution in 1789,
and m South America more recently, we might have pre
dicted the anarchy and the despotism that followed the efforts
in those countries to establish independence. As republicans,
it was indeed natural for us to entertain hopes that the recent
convulsive efforts in continental Europe to establish free insti-
28*

330 THE INSEPARABLE TRIO.
tutions would not be wholly blasted. But we were too for
getful of the state of religion and of general education in
those countries. If a people who scruple not to hold their
political elections, their inductions to office, their public festi
vals, and their military reviews on the Sabbath can long
maintain a pure republicanism, then the history of the world
hitherto must go for nothing as a means of judging of the
future. The same may be said essentially of that nation
where the popular mind is left uninstructed. And when we
recollect, moreover, what millions are ready, at the beck of
despots and hierarchs, to smother every cry for freedom, we
ought to have been prepared to hear the dying shriek of
liberty which reached us before the last year's close from
every one of these countries but France, and for those rapid
developments even there which show her citizens yet unpre
pared for free institutions. These nations, it may be hoped,
will not sink back into as deep a political night as before ; yet
we may be sure they will sink to the level of the religion and
the education among the people.
7. This subject shows us that nations, as well as individ
uals, should make the principles of the Bible the basis of
their policy and their treatment of one another.
Strange that any other doctrine should have been promul
gated, and that the same men who acknowledged their indi
vidual obligation to love their neighbor as themselves, to do
unto others as they would that others should do unto them,
and to bless them by whom they are persecuted, and even
to love their enemies, should maintain that principles of expe
diency and policy should take the place of moral principles
in managing the affairs of nations. For what reason can be
urged to bind individuals to conform to the rules of the Bible
which will not apply to nations ? And if pure religion be, as

THE INSEPARABLE TRIO. 331
we have endeavored to show, the most important of all the
foundations on which a nation's liberty and true glory rest,
can that people expect prosperity if its government substitute
something else as the guide of their measures ? And yet,
had governments conducted towards one another according
to gospel principles, what an amount of blood and treasure
would have been spared, and what an amount of happiness
secured !
8. In the eighth place, if these three great interests of the
community are thus inseparable, then should the different
classes appointed for their protection and advancement be
united also.
He whose special business it is to watch over and defend
the interests of religion should be in sympathy and harmony
with those whose lives are devoted to the cause of education,
and with those who are appointed to manage our political
concerns. And so should these latter classes reciprocate that
sympathy towards the guardians of religion. They all should
mutually realize that, if the interests of any one of the trio
are not properly and efficiently provided for, the interests of
the others will suffer also. Instead of indulging illiberal
prejudices towards one another, all should feel as if they
had a common cause to sustain, and as if a wound could not
be inflicted upon one without reaching the whole. Thus
would they form a threefold cord, which both Scripture and
experience testify is not quickly broken.
Finally, the subject defines the great outlines of that policy
whicti the rulers of Massachusetts should ever pursue.
Far be it from me to allude to particular political measures
in the presence of the constituted authorities of this common
wealth. But my office and my subject force me to speak of
the great principles on which a government founded by the

332 THE INSEPARABLE TRIO.
Pilgrims should be conducted. Their first and constant aim
was to establish and foster the institutions of religion, educa
tion, and freedom. To sustain religion, they found it only
necessary to allow perfect freedom of opinion, and to protect
all in the peaceful exercise of those forms of worship which
conscience dictates to be right. They had learned by bitter
experience that to take religion into the embrace of the state
was only to cramp its vital powers, and convert it into a
furious, persecuting demon. Education, too, they did not
attempt to bring under governmental control ; but only by
liberal benefactions to stimulate individual efforts. And with
such a religion, and such means of education, they did not
doubt that the people would select those men to manage their
political affairs who would defend their liberties and wisely
administer the government. It is a matter of just gratulation
that all who have filled the places of honor and trust once
occupied by the Pilgrims in these respects have followed
essentially their system of policy. On questions of political
expediency they have had different opinions ; but on these
fundamental principles they have all been united. Indeed,
no Massachusetts statesman could outlive the storm which a
desertion of these principles would bring upon him. To
honor and sustain religion, diffuse knowledge among the peo
ple, and preserve true liberty, — this is a policy as settled in
Massachusetts as the laws of the Medes and Persians. She
cannot hope for superiority by her numbers, extent of terri
tory, or any natural advantages. But by the fostering care
of a free government over her religious and literary institu
tions, she can qualify and send forth, as she already has done,
strong men into every part of the earth to place a lever be
neath the abodes of ignorance, sin, and despotism, and lift
them up into the sunshine of Christianity, civilization, and
freedom.

THE INSEPARABLE TRIO. 333
To give Massachusetts such a character is the noble work
committed to the constituted authorities of the state now before
me. We congratulate them upon the honor of occupying
seats made sacred by so long a line of illustrious men, with
so illustrious a beginning. It is indeed a distinction to be
coveted to take the place of such men, and to have confided
to your management interests so momentous. And it is a
delightful evidence that the spirit of our fathers still lingers
here to find his excellency the Governor, his honor the Lieu
tenant Governor, the honorable Council, the honorable Senate,
and the House of Representatives, instead of converting the
Sabbath into a holiday or a business day, converting a busi
ness day into a Sabbath, and calling to their aid the ministers
of the gospel, that, at the commencement of their responsible
duties, they may recognize their dependence upon an over
ruling Providence, and baptize their legislation with the spirit
of religion.
It is gratifying also to know that the long and eminent
public services of the beloved statesmen who for six succes
sive years have filled the two highest places in the executive
department of the government have been a practical exem
plification of the principles which I have advocated in this
discourse ; and therefore, although I have given them no
instruction, I feel almost sure that I have had their sympathy.
Their oft-repeated reelection affords evidence that the people
of Massachusetts are not tired of hearing their rulers called
" the just." Nor can I doubt that all the other gentlemen
composing the government, and elected by the same people,
are imbued with the like spirit, and that their legislation, the
present session, will show that they regard religion, education,
and freedom as inseparable. God give them success in a
career so noble and important ! And God inspire all their

334 THE INSEPARABLE TRIO.
successors with the like spirit ! Then, though, by the expan
sion of our national territory, Massachusetts should become
relatively almost a point, yet shall it be a point radiant with
the light of piety, of learning, and of liberty. And as the
stars in the heavens above us, that revolve within the circle
of perpetual apparition, never sink below the horizon, so shall
this commonwealth ever shine bright in the political hemi
sphere — a morning star to usher in the full daylight of civil
ization, of freedom, and of happiness, to the benighted and
oppressed in all the earth.

A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE.

Amid all the darkness and confusion of this world, there is
one precious volume, to which the Bible furnishes the key,
and which, if carefully studied, shows us how to trace out
the relation of events apparently casual or discrepant, and
clears up most of the enigmas by which we are surrounded.
It is the book of divine providence. There is one chapter of
that volume which seems to me peculiarly appropriate to the
present occasion. Its leading object is to show that when God
has an important object to accomplish, he raises up, and pre
pares by the most appropriate discipline, the individuals or the
communities best adapted to the work. If I can succeed in
giving you the contents of this chapter, and thus establish and
illustrate this most important position, I shall feel as if I had
fulfilled the commission with which I have been honored
to-day. In the divine administration of the affairs of this world, it
becomes necessary to raise up instruments, sometimes to
punish, and sometimes to bless, individuals and communities.
Hence we can often see as much of providential design in the
history of the wicked scourges of the world, as of its choicest
benefactors. In looking over the page of history for examples illustrative
(335)

336 A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE.
of this subject, the difficulty is, not to find them, but, among
so many, to make an appropriate selection.
The Bible is eminently a book of divine providence ; or
rather, such is its object, that the events detailed in it are seen
to be more distinctly related to one another, and to a specific
object, than the details of profane history. Hence we must
not omit to appeal to that volume on the present occasion.
We may go back even to the antediluvian world. The
extreme wickedness of the race made it necessary that God
should specially interpose for its destruction by a flood of
waters. But he needed at least one eminently holy man, who
might be saved, and prevent the extinction of the race. Such
a man was Noah. He had the firmness to persevere for one
hundred and twenty years in building an ark, amid the scoffs
and jeers of all around him, who depended on nature's con
stancy, and laughed at God's threatenings. A man of ordi
nary piety, and of feeble mind, never could have sustained
such a trial, and therefore God raised up one, even in those
times of deep degeneracy, of extraordinary energy and piety ;
and thus was the object accomplished, and the race preserved.
The effect, however, of this terrible penal infliction was
soon lost, and idolatry and wickedness again triumphed.
God therefore determined to select a particular family as the
progenitors of a race to be kept distinct from all the rest of
the world, and over whom he would exercise a special and
even miraculous providence. It was important that the father
of this nation should be a man of extraordinary mental and
moral worth. No other man could lay broad and deep the
foundations of a new and peculiar nation. Abraham there
fore appeared at the proper time, and was made to pass
through such discipline as would have crushed an ordinary
man. The first startling command which he received was, to

A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE. 337
leave his father's house, his kindred and his country, and go
out, not knowing whither he went. In the exercise of uncon
querable faith he obeyed, and wandered long ere he reached
the promised land of Palestine. There, after various disci
pline, he was called to a trial of his faith, probably the most
severe which God ever imposed on man — I mean the com
mand to offer up his only son as a burnt offering. Yet, hav
ing obeyed, he became well entitled to be called the father of
the faithful.
But although descended from such a progenitor, it was ne
cessary that the Hebrew nation should pass through a long
and bitter experience to make them worthy of being called
the chosen people of God. Four hundred and thirty years
of hard bondage could alone train them for the work God had
assigned them ; and appropriate instruments must be prepared
to bring about this result. Joseph was appointed to lead the
way in bringing the whole of the descendants of Abraham
into servitude. Mildness and quiet submission to whatever
God laid upon him seem to have been the predominant traits
in his character. Such a man could bear to be made gov
ernor over all Egypt without losing his humility and fraternal
sympathies, even though sold as a slave by his brethren.
Thus were the Israelites decoyed, as it were, into servitude.
They found one of their own number to protect them, and
place them in the richest part of the country, so that they
multiplied exceedingly. Ere long, however, they began to
feel the rigors of their bondage, and sighed for a rescue.
The appointed time at length came. But now a different set
of instruments must be prepared for the work ; and God
knew how to provide them. On the one hand, it was neces
sary that a leader of great energy and wisdom should be
ready to undertake the gigantic labor. And such a man was
29

338 A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE.
Moses. He needed the best education that could be given
him in Egypt, and Providence took care that he should, in his
infancy, become the protege of Pharaoh's daughter. Yet he
must not lose his attachment to his own kindred, and there
fore he was permitted to witness such oppression of a Hebrew
as roused the man and the patriot within him, and led him to
take the sword of avenging justice into his own hand. Thus
was he compelled to flee from Egypt, and by a forty years'
discipline in a humble and obscure station, he became emi
nently fitted for the great work that was before him ; from
which, however, he now shrunk, because he had learned its
magnitude, and his own weakness. But when the harness
was fairly buckled on, and he felt God's arm underneath him,
he bore up manfully, and acquitted himself nobly, because
God had disciplined him for the work.
In order, however, that the power and justice of Jehovah
should be signally displayed, and the Egyptians severely pun
ished for their cruelties towards the Hebrews, it became ne
cessary that a savage and unfeeling tyrant should be placed
on the throne. And the Pharaoh who then occupied it was
eminently fitted to become the scourge of God. Even mira
cles could not subdue him for a long time, and there was
abundant opportunity for the display of God's power. If the
wonderful miracles that preceded and accompanied their ex
odus did not make an indelible impression on the Hebrew
mind and heart, nothing could do it. But they have ever
since been appealed to by that people as certain evidence of
God's special favor towards their race, and have served to
keep them distinct to this day from all other nations.
If we follow down the path of Jewish history, from the
earliest to the latest times, we shall be met continually with
illustrations of this subject. When God thought proper to

A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE. 339
rescue the Hebrews from the twenty years' cruel oppression
of Jabin, the Canaanite, he educated two women, Deborah, a
judge and a prophetess, and Jael, the wife of Heber, and in
spired them with a heroism that seems to have been wanting
in the men of that age, and led the first to the battle field, and
the last to drive a nail through the head of Sisera, and thus
deliver the land from bondage. How eminently fitted by na
ture and by discipline for the trying work assigned them
were Elijah and Elisha ! And by what a series of hardships,
privations, and dangers, was David, the shepherd boy, grad
ually conducted to the throne, and even made a type of the
Saviour ! How different the education of his son Solomon !
but as wisely adapted to the peaceful yet magnificent scenes
through which he was to pass.
An unrighteous decree for the destruction of the Jews
scattered through the one hundred and twenty-seven prov
inces of Persia and Medea, had been surreptitiously obtained
from Ahasuerus, and their fate seemed inevitable. But God
had long ago provided for their rescue, and prepared the ap
propriate instruments. Mordeeai and Esther were educated
and sent into the palace of the king for this very purpose ;
the first, a stern old man, inflexible in his religious character ;
and the last an amiable woman, of great personal beauty,
who had obtained a strong influence over the king, and yet
had not lost her attachment to her own people, nor become
insensible to the moral obligations that came upon her from
her exalted position. She therefore resolutely put her life in
jeopardy, and thus saved herself and her people, and brought
the avenging sword upon their persecutors.
When the captivity of the Jews in Babylon had continued
long enough to answer the divine purposes, Cyrus was placed
on the throne of Persia and Medea, with a heart prepared to

340 A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE.
promote their return to Palestine. This was accomplished
under Zerubbabel ; and when, after many years of trial, it
became important to have the walls of Jerusalem rebuilt, and
the population reformed from their idolatries and immoralities,
then appeared Ezra and Nehemiah, whom God had been
secretly educating for the difficult work ; and they carried
it through only as men disciplined in such a school could
do it.
It will be unnecessary, before this audience, to show how
perfectly adapted to his work was the Saviour of the world,
although in truth it be the most striking illustration of my
subject which the world has ever witnessed. But the facts
are already in your memories ; and were they not, volumes,
rather than a few paragraphs, would be requisite to elucidate
the subject.
For the same reasons, I need not dwell upon the history
of the apostles ; and yet gladly would I linger here, espe
cially upon that of Paul. Had you seen him, a proud, tal
ented young man, in the school of Gamaliel, intolerant in the
extreme towards every thing connected with Christianity,
standing by when Stephen was stoned, and encouraging his
murderers, and afterwards rushing like a tiger towards Da
mascus, to seize the unoffending followers of Christ, who, all
this time, could have imagined that such a school was the one
best adapted to prepare him for the great work before him ?
Yet it was just the experience he needed. His future work
required talents of the first order, a boldness and perse
verance amounting almost to rashness, and such a conviction
of the great truths of religion as could result only from per
sonal experience of their power. He who was to combat
Jewish prejudices must know from experience what they
were, and be familiar with the whole Jewish economy. He

A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE. 341
who was to teach and illustrate the doctrines of grace, in the
midst of fiery opposition, must have been converted miracu
lously. His convictions of his own wickedness and the de-
ceitfulness of his heart must have been intensely pungent,
and his sense of deliverance by a crucified Saviour intensely
vivid, or he never could set forth those truths justly and im
pressively. In short, now that we know the whole history of
Paul, we see that his entire course, previous to conversion,
was just the one best fitted to train him for the part God had
assigned him. And yet, before his conversion, we should
have wondered why God permitted such a furious persecutor
to live and make havoc in the church.
If we follow down the history of the church for three hun
dred years after Christ, we shall find evidence of the wonder
working providence of God in the ten terrible persecutions
which were then experienced. By these onsets, two impor
tant objects were accomplished, which probably could have
been secured in no other way. The first was the purification
of the church, and the second the speedy publication of the
gospel in almost every land. For those who were persecuted
without mercy at home were scattered abroad every where,
and they could not but speak the things which they had seen
and heard. Living thus in jeopardy of life, and hunted from
place to place, they grew rapidly in piety, and, by their holy
lives, won over many to embrace the true faith. Nor were
the instruments wanting to carry on these persecutions. God
had only to take away his restraining influences from the
emperors of Rome, and to worry and devour the virtuous and
the holy was only acting out the desires of hearts naturally
ferocious and cruel, and rendered doubly malignant and vile
by long indulgence. Hence it was, that after these despots
had been used to accomplish these important objects for the
29*

342 A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE.
church, God turned upon them, and punished them terribly
for their fiendish assaults upon the followers of Christ.
After these protracted onsets upon the church came the
hour of her prosperity, and Constantine proclaimed Chris
tianity to be the religion of the empire. But though Religion
could flourish and spread when the powers of earth were
arrayed against her, she could not endure success, and she
sank into the embraces of the world, and an almost total
eclipse came over her glories. For many a long century did
the darkness deepen, until at last, when the punishment of
apostasy and worldliness had been long and severe enough,
God prepared other instruments for the revival of true reli
gion. He chose, as a leading agent in this work, an Augus-
tinian monk ; or rather, he so ordered matters that this man,
after receiving a thorough education, should choose a monas
tic life, and become a zealous advocate of Papacy, and a
strict observer of its forms, in order that he might learn its
corruptions, and how to expose its perversions. It was provi
dential, also, that Luther should come in contact with an in
famous vender of indulgences, that he might be roused to put
his shoulder to the great work of the reformation. Around
him there also sprang up other eminent men, admirably fitted
for the various posts which must be occupied and sustained in
such a long-drawn and bitter conflict. That contest is not
indeed yet ended. But many a splendid triumph has been
already witnessed over bigotry, intolerance, ignorance, and
clerical corruption ; enough to insure final and glorious
success. If we turn our attention away for a moment from affairs
more strictly religious, we shall find in uninspired secular his
tory illustrations of my subject of no doubtful character. In
ancient times, and before the introduction of the gospel, it

A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE. 343
seemed important that human wisdom and philosophy should
have a fair opportunity to see how much they could do to re
form and elevate society without Christianity. Hence God
laid the foundation of the Grecian states, and gave to Solon
and Lycurgus a fair field for trying the experiment. It was
tried most thoroughly ; and if severe discipline, elegant lit
erature, sagacious philosophy, and refinement of manners
could have secured freedom and virtue in connection with
polytheism, the work would have been accomplished in
Greece. But her vaunted liberty was, after all, only the
freedom of an aristocratic few, while the majority were the
most abject slaves. And so it was with her literature and her
arts. Though she has left many monuments of refinement
and learning, yet the great mass of her inhabitants were bru
talized, trampled under foot by the few, degraded by immo
rality and superstition, and ignorant of the true God. And
even the wisest of her philosophers has left us a fine comment
on his theoretical theism, by directing, in his dying moments,
a sacrifice to be made to jEsculapius. He has left us, too, his
despairing and impressive conviction, that if God did not
vouchsafe to give a revelation, vain would be every effort to
reform and elevate the mass of men. In short, so well had
God's providence adapted the agents and the circumstances,
that the experiment never need be repeated, to show how
utterly impossible it is for man to rise to an elevated condition
of true liberty or virtue under the dominion of polytheism
and of philosophy alone.
We may not be able to understand all the reasons why
God permitted so disastrous an eclipse to come over the world
in what are called the dark ages ; but we can often see how
wonderfully adapted were the agencies which he employed
to relieve religion of its incubus, and open a new career for

344 A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE.
science and civilization. I have already referred to the lead
ing agents in the reformation from Popery. But there were
other reformations and improvements that demanded and
secured appropriate instruments. It is interesting to observe
how the art of printing sprang up just at the right moment —
at a time when the human mind was waking up from its long
slumber. But its advancement must have been arrested soon,
had not some one discovered — what it is said was known
much earlier in China, viz. — how to print upon wooden
blocks. Who the individual was that first brought out this
happy thought, or rather applied it experimentally, it may not
be possible to decide. But it was so rapidly improved that
the original inventor was forgotten, and at least three German
cities contend for the honor. The main point, however, which
I wish now to present before you is the fact that these dis
coveries were made just at that juncture in human affairs
when they were indispensable to bring on a high state of
civilization. In order to advance the same object, and others collateral
with it, the time had now arrived when it was desirable that a
new continent should be brought to light. But the great mass
of men, even the highly enlightened, were ready to regard
the suggestion that such a continent existed as a mere quix
otic dream. To breast this strong current of popular opinion
and feeling, it needed most extraordinary qualifications. But
they appeared in Columbus. So strong was the principle of
faith in his mental constitution, that he trusted even in a false
theory — I mean his notion that there must be a western con
tinent to counterbalance the eastern. He believed in this so
firmly that he was borne through almost insuperable difficul
ties and dangers to an ultimate triumph — just as, in some
parts of mathematics, an erroneous supposition leads to the

A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE. 345
truth. In vain did the courts of Genoa, Lisbon, and London
reject his proposals. Ferdinand and Isabella gave him at last
the desired aid. But in the superstitious fears and discour
agement of the sailors" he had a still more formidable diffi
culty. Yet his forty years' nautical experience enabled him
to triumph even here. The results of his success have even
yet only begun to be developed. But the uses to which Prov
idence has already put this western continent are an earnest
of the yet more important part it is destined to fulfil in work
ing out the destinies of the race.
The manner in which progress in civilization, learning,
morality, and religion has usually been made is by develop
ments made, first in one field and then in another, by individ
uals or communities fitted for the work. When, for instance,
the period had arrived in which it was desirable, that civiliza
tion should be carried into the inhospitable regions of Russia,
Peter the Great appeared, possessed of the requisite qualifi
cations. Had he not been a fierce and unyielding tyrant, he
never could have controlled the ferocity or overcome the
prejudices of an ignorant people. But he must also be will
ing to take the place of a humble learner, or he never could
have gone into the ship yards of Holland and England as a
common carpenter and blacksmith, and even at home to
make his own generals and admirals take precedence of him
self, while he was learning military and naval tactics. To
expect, however, that such opposite qualities should be long
exhibited by any man, and especially by one who was at the
head of forty millions of people, with unlimited power, was
absurd, unless some peculiar controlling influence was brought
to bear upon him. Therefore it was that God gave such a
power to the foundling girl Catharine, who could control the
fiercest paroxysms of the tyrant. In this singular manner

346 A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE.
did Providence do more for the civilization of Northern Eu
rope in that one reign than centuries have accomplished in
other lands.
Through many a dark century the Christian church had
forgotten the injunction of her risen Saviour, to " go into all
the world and preach the gospel to every creature." But the
eclaircissement of the truth by the reformation in the four
teenth century prepared the way for the revival of the mis
sionary spirit. It showed itself, indeed, at the first, in the
Romish church ; but it seemed rather a zeal for conversions
to Papacy than to Christianity. Yet the example roused the
Protestant world to engage in the work. And though it was
too much for any one man to have the honor of being the
prominent leader in such an enterprise, yet God prepared and
brought forward at the right time a large number, who went
forth, shoulder to shoulder, to this mighty conflict ; and as
they have fallen successively, others have always been found
fitted by nature and by grace to catch their mantles and urge
forward the world's conversion. The work is indeed most
arduous and difficult ; but Providence has found men emi
nently fitted for its successful prosecution.
As the precepts of the Bible became more and better un
derstood, benevolent men were led to search out the various
forms of human suffering, to lift up the dark curtain which
self-interest, or arbitrary power, or bigotry and intolerance
had covered over many a den of cruelty and wickedness, and
show to the world how man had brutalized his fellow, and
how he had, " Clothed in a little brief authority,
Played such fantastic tricks before high Heaven
As made the angels weep."
With a martyr spirit, Howard went down into the infected

A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE. 347
dungeons of the prisoner, and carried there, what never
before had visited him, the light of hope and Christian sym
pathy, along with such physical amelioration of his condition
as was consistent with the proper objects of imprisonment
and punishment. Buchanan went among the suttees and idol
temples of India, and sketched so vividly their horrid rites as
to arouse the Christian world to interpose the shield of pro
tection over the helpless victims, and to pour the light of the
gospel into the hearts of their oppressors. Nay, he penetrated
even the charnel house of the Romish Inquisition, and showed
the world how much worse than heathenism a perverted Chris
tianity may become.
Long had the abominations of the slave trade been un
heeded, and the groans of the victims of oppression smothered
by the thick folds of cupidity and a perverted public opinion.
But God's justice could not sleep forever ; and the time at
length came when he raised up the fit instruments for en
lightening the public mind and arousing the public conscience.
A leader among them was Wilberforce, who stood in the
British Parliament, like a rock from which the angry waves
of prejudice and passion were thrown back broken and dissi
pated. Defeated ten times, in that body, in his attempts to
bring the arm of the government to crush this horrid traffic,
he lived to see the eleventh effort, by his friend Pitt, success
ful. And since that day, the same Providence has provided
other instruments, not less adapted to advance the cause of
human liberty ; and it is easy to see that the days of this
unrighteous system of oppression are numbered, and well
nigh finished.
Equally well adapted was Wilberforce for another impor
tant enterprise ; and that was, to vindicate the truths of evan
gelical religion before the higher classes of Great Britain,

348 A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE.
and to show their practical influence upon the life. In his
own character, of beautiful simplicity and consistency, his
contemporaries saw a refutation of the vile calumnies with
which a flippant scepticism had assailed vital religion ; and,
since his death, his Practical View of Religion, already trans
lated into most of the languages of Europe, and having passed
through more than fifty editions in the English language, still
renders experimental religion respectable among the higher
classes of society, and doubtless proves the means of salva
tion to many.
But no less important was it that the lower classes of soci
ety, in professedly Christian countries, should be enlightened
and brought under the influence of the gospel. Hence God,
by a very simple instrumentality, started a system which has
already done much, and is destined to do much more, for
the rising generation in all lands, especially for the poor and
destitute. I refer to Sabbath schools, and to their humble
founder, Robert Raikes. The thought that led him to collect
the poor and the vicious for instruction on the Sabbath seemed
probably to him an accidental circumstance ; nor could he
have dreamed that that thought would prove a germ from
which would spring and spread a tree whose fruit should be
for the healing of all nations. But in God's plan the whole
system lay spread out in far wider ramifications than have yet
been developed to mortal vision. And yet how appropriate
the instrumentality by which it was commenced 1
In order that civilization should make much progress, it
was necessary that all branches of learning should be devel
oped. And the bright names that shine, as stars of the first
magnitude, along the path of literature and science, show
how admirably fitted, by nature and by discipline, were the
distinguished founders of the different branches of knowledge,

A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE. 349
and the great discoverers of nature's laws. Take, for an
example, such a man as Sir Isaac Newton, of whom it was
hardly exaggeration for the poet to say, —
" Nature and nature's laws lay hid in night ;
God said, ' Let Newton be,' and all was light."
With equal propriety might we say the same of Linnaeus in
natural history, and of Cuvier in comparative anatomy. In
the same category might we place the name of Jonathan
Edwards as the Coryphasus of metaphysical theology. In
his case, how interesting to observe the course of divine
Providence ! In the science to which he devoted himself, it
was not necessary, as in physical science, that there should
be a costly array of instruments to work with. By having
the Bible for his theology, and his own mental constitution as
the basis of his metaphysics, it was as easy, perhaps easier,
for Edwards to work out the difficult problems of liberty and
necessity, the freedom of the will, free agency, and divine
efficiency in the solitudes of a missionary life among the
American Indians as in the universities of Europe. At any
rate, those problems were so handled by the American divine
as to lead such a man as Dr. Chalmers to say, " There is no
European divine to whom I make such frequent appeals in
my class room as I do to Edwards ; no book of human com
position which I more strenuously recommend than his Trea
tise on the Will, read by me, forty-seven years ago, with a
conviction that has never since faltered, and which has helped
me, more than any other uninspired work, to find my way
through all that might otherwise have proved baffling, and
transcendental, and mysterious in the peculiarities of Cal
vinism. But society can never attain to a very advanced condition
30

350 A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE.
unless means are provided for the thorough education of the
female mind. Yet it was not till a comparatively late period
that this truth began to be admitted and appreciated. Nay,
through many a dark century did the opinion prevail — would
I could say it has even now entirely disappeared — that
woman was not capable of that discipline, enlargement, and
vigor of mind which man has exhibited, and therefore her
education was comparatively of little consequence. Man first
monopolized all the means of intellectual culture to himself;
and then, because the neglected female mind did not manifest
equal mental power and development as his own, he very
sagaciously inferred its inferiority. To show the absurdity of
such an unphilosophical inference, God has suffered, from
time to time, such a woman to appear as Mary Somerville,
the author of the Connection of the Physical Sciences ; and
to give to the sex generally an opportunity to show what are
their mental characteristics, he has, in recent times, raised
up such women as the five Misses More, to open seminaries
for the education of their sex, and to give to Hannah, the
youngest, a power with the pen rarely equalled as a means
of doing good among all classes and both sexes. Gladly
would I linger to show how finely adapted she was by nature
and by discipline for her important mission. But time will
not permit.
We may observe the same principles of divine Providence
in bringing out discoveries in the arts as in the sciences.
Neither the men who have made these discoveries nor their
contemporaries have been fully aware of the part they were
acting, or of the wide ultimate influence of their dimly-seen
and imperfectly-developed conceptions ; nor did they imagine
that Providence had any thing to do in the business. It
seemed a small matter when the Marquis of Worcester, in

A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE. 351
1655, described his " admirable and most forcible way to
drive up water by fire ; " yet it was the germ of the steam
engine, which has so much changed almost the whole aspect
of society. And when Savary threw his wine flask into the
fire, how apparently accidental was it that he was led thereby
to discover the mode of creating a vacuum by the condensa
tion of steam ! So, too, when the multitude on the wharf at
New York were laughing at the first unsuccessful effort of
Robert Fulton to work a steamboat, how much more easily
might they have been led to believe that he was given up of
Providence to infatuation than that he was a chosen agent to
work out one of the greatest improvements of the age ! The
discovery that takes precedence of all others in anatomy,
that of the circulation of the blood, brought so much obloquy
upon Harvey, and so diminished his practice as a physician,
that he was prevented afterwards from publishing other dis
coveries. The physician who first tied an artery was hooted
at. He who first used cantharides was imprisoned by the
London College of Physicians. The more recent and highly
important discovery of etherization, by one of our country
men, was made while its author was trying to perfect his
favorite art of dentistry. Yet in all these cases there was an
unseen Providence who gave these discoverers the right sort
of abilities, and placed them in the appropriate circumstances
for enucleating the happy thought. Nor does that Providence
allow any discovery to come out before the right time, or to
be delayed a moment too long.
But, after all, the history of the English Puritans and
Scotch Covenanters furnishes the most appropriate illustration
of my subject which I can offer. Ever since man's exist
ence on the globe, he has had indefinite yearnings after civil
and religious liberty ; and many a time has he attempted to

352 A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE.
realize these blessings by the most profuse sacrifices. But
every where, both in ancient and modern times, had he failed
'of his object ; at least, the great mass of the community had
always been in servitude. The time, however, was now
come when this great problem might be solved — but not
without great suffering and effort. God knew, though man
did not, that the germ of civil liberty lay coiled up in the
constitution of the Christian church. He therefore suffered
many of his true worshippers in England and Scotland to
experience a persecution from kings and hierarchies of two
hundred years' duration — from the days of Wickliffe to those
of Robinson. This awakened an intense desire for religious
freedom in the bosoms of the persecuted. But it was neces
sary, to bring about the result, that they should be compelled
to flee from their native country, and take refuge in Geneva.
There, in the church of Farel and Calvin, they saw the salu
tary influence of a democratic form of government ; and
when they returned to Great Britain, they could not but en
deavor to establish a church on the same foundation. They
had not aimed or thought of a republican civil government.
But they soon found that, if they would secure a church with
out a bishop, they must have a state without a king. The
result was freedom in Scotland and the commonwealth in
England. But when monarchy and hierarchy again tri
umphed, these men were driven once more into exile. They
did not know the reason ; but the subsequent developments
of Providence have shown that the object was to people this
country with men of deep-toned piety, whose attachment to
religious liberty would lead them to be stern advocates for
civil freedom. They had already been the means of securing
to the people of England all the liberty which their civil con
stitution contains at this day ; and now they were to accom-

A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE. 353
plish a mightier work, by laying the foundations of a wide
empire which should prove a refuge for the oppressed of
every land. True, at first that people must be tributary to
the mother country. But after a time, the arm of Providence
showed them a way to independence, and called into their
service an extraordinary leader, as distinctly pointed out for
their guide to freedom as Moses was to conduct the Hebrews
to the promised land. O, could these Puritans and Pilgrims
have seen the glorious results of their sacrifices and suffer
ings, how would the prospect have cheered them in the dark
est hour ! But they have seen it all long ere this ; and it has
often swelled into rapture their song in heaven.
But why should I go back into history, or abroad to other
lands, for illustrations of my subject, when the place and the
occasion furnish me with an example quite as striking as any
that history can present, and to us of much deeper interest ?
To pass by all others, whose presence we miss, but whose
lives might well illustrate our subject, every thing around us
to-day — the subdued greetings of friends, the starting tear,
this vacant seat, these badges of mourning, ay, and yonder
marble, too — reminds us that one is absent whose life has
filled a large page in the book of Providence. Is absent, do
I say ? Where can we turn our eyes without seeing her ?
Is she not present in every one's thoughts — in every one's
heart ? Nay, may she not be virtually present ? Do the
blessed cease to be interested in the welfare of the human
family because their home is in heaven ? Can it be that,
wherever she is, she should not desire to be present ? And
would not the God who gave her strength to do so much in
this place for his glory gratify this desire also ?
But if Miss Lyon be not here to-day, her works are ; and
they show us impressively for what purpose Providence raised
30*

354 A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE.
her up, and how well he adapted her for her work. Chron
ological dates and biographical details I leave to others ; but
the great lessons of providential wisdom, and design, and
goodness taught by her history I must not pass by.
What, then, was the chief object or objects for which our
lamented friend seemed specially adapted by nature and edu
cation ? Every one will doubtless answer, It was the promo
tion of female education. But this statement is too general ;
for to a great extent her labors were specific. She was,
indeed, an eminent teacher of the young , and this seems to
me the first great object for which Providence fitted her.
But there were some marked peculiarities in her teaching ;
the most important of which was the predominance she gave
to the truths of religion in all her. instructions. The second
great object of her life was the founding and management
of a new and somewhat peculiar seminary. Let us now see
what there was in her nature, and in the preparatory disci
pline through which she passed, that adapted her for the
eminent success which she attained.
And here I ought to acknowledge my indebtedness for
many facts and suggestions to those ladies, well known them
selves as distinguished teachers, who still live, and were long
associated with Miss Lyon as teachers and companions.
But I may be allowed to add that it is no second-hand rep
resentation which I make, but one founded upon a personal
and intimate acquaintance of more than thirty years, during
which my house was frequently made her home.
We will first consider Miss Lyon's physical adaptation to
the work assigned her.
God gave her a vigorous and well-balanced physical con
stitution. Her stature was at a medium ; the muscular
powers were displayed in great strength and vigor ; the vital

A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE. 355
apparatus was very strong, so as to give a full development
to the whole system, and impart great tenacity of life. The
brain was largely developed, and in proper proportion to
produce a symmetrical character. The nervous system was
full, yet free from that morbid condition which in so many
produces irritation, dejection, or unhealthy buoyancy of the
spirits and irregular action of the mind. In short, all the
essential corporeal powers were developed in harmonious
proportion. You could not say that any of the marked tem
peraments were exhibited, but there was rather a blending of
them all.
Now, just such a physical system seemed essential to the
part in life for which this lady was destined. Many, indeed,
have been distinguished as instructors of youth whose consti
tutions were frail, and whose shattered nerves thrilled and
vibrated in every exigency. But Miss Lyon had another
office besides teaching to execute, which demanded unshrink
ing nerves and great power of endurance. In building up a
new seminary, not conformed in many respects to the pre
vailing opinions, she could not but meet many things most
trying to persons of extreme sensibility, and needing an iron
constitution to breast and overcome.
We will consider, secondly, Miss Lyon's intellectual adap
tation to the work assigned her.
And it gives a just view of the character of her mind to
say that it corresponded to that of her body ; that is, there
was a full development of all the powers, with no undue pre
dominance to any one of them. It were easy to find individ
uals more distinguished by particular characteristics, but not
easy to find one where the powers were mo"e harmoniously
balanced, and where, as a whole, the mi .d would operate
with more energy and efficiency. She did, however, exhibit

356 A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE.
some mental characteristics, either original or acquired, more
or less peculiar. It was, for example, the great features of
a subject which her mind always seized upon first. And
when she had got a clear conception of these, she took less
interest in minute details ; or, rather, her mind seemed better
adapted to master fundamental principles than to trace out
minute differences. Just as the conqueror of a country does
not think it necessary, after he has mastered all its strong
holds, to enter every habitation to see if some private door
is not barred against him, so she felt confident of victory
when she had been able to grasp and understand the princi
ples on which a subject rested. Her mind would work like
a giant when tracing out the history of redemption with
Edwards, or the analogies of nature to religion with Butler,
or the great truths of theism with Chalmers ; but it would
nod over the pages of the metaphysical quibbler, as if con
scious that it had a higher destiny. And yet this did not re
sult from an inability to descend to the details of a science,
when necessary. Else how could she have so long and so
successfully conducted in her school the manipulations of a
chemical laboratory, or have kept her eye so keenly open to
all the details of the new seminary, or even of ordinary in
struction, for so many years ?
The inventive faculties were also very fully developed in
our friend. It was not the creations of fancy merely, such as
form the poet, but the power of finding means to accomplish
important ends. Nor was it invention unbalanced by judg
ment, such as leads many to attempt schemes impracticable
and quixotic. For rarely did she attempt any thing in which
she did not succeed ; nor did she undertake it till her clear
judgment told her that it would succeed. Then it mattered
little who or what opposed. At first she hesitated, especially

A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE. 357
when any plan was under consideration that would not be
generally approved ; but when, upon careful examination, she
saw clearly its practicability and importance, she nailed the
colors to the mast ; and though the enemy's fire might be
terrific, she stood calmly at her post, and usually saw her
opposers lower their flag. She possessed in an eminent
degree that most striking of all the characteristics of a great
mind, viz., perseverance under difficulties. When thoroughly
convinced that she had truth on her side, she did not fear to
stand alone and act alone — patiently waiting for the hour
when others would see the subject as she did. This was
firmness, not obstinacy ; for no one was more open to convic
tion than she ; but her conversion must result from stronger
arguments, not from fear or the authority of names. Had
she not possessed this feature of character, Mount Holyoke
Seminary never would have existed, at least not on its pres
ent plan. The peculiarity of its domestic arrangements,
especially, was pronounced injudicious and impracticable by
a large part even of the friends of female education, and
made a subject of ridicule by the enemies of the institution.
I once asked a judicious friend, who was opposed to this fea
ture, how long»the experiment must be successfully tried
before he would believe it practicable. Five years, said he.
Before his death the plan had been in successful operation
nearly twice that time ; arid yet he was not convinced. It
has now gone on prosperously for twelve years ; and never
were the prospects of its continued success brighter than now.
Like every thing human, it may be changed — as it could
be without endangering the prosperity of the seminary. But
its triumphant success for one third of a generation is a
striking illustration of the far-reaching sagacity and accurate
judgment of its originator.

358 A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE.
Besides this seminary, the most striking example of the
inventive powers of our friend is that only volume which she
has left us, — I mean the Missionary Offering, — called forth
by an exigency in a cause which she dearly loved, and whose
most striking characteristic is its missionary spirit. Yet it is,
in fact, a well-sustained allegory, demanding for its composi
tion no mean powers of invention and imagination.
Miss Lyon possessed also the power of concentrating the
attention and enduring long-continued mental labor in an
extraordinary degree. When once fairly engaged in any
important subject, — literary, scientific, theological, or eco
nomical, — there seemed to be no irritated nerves or truant
thoughts to intrude ; nor could the external world break up
her almost mesmeric abstraction.
This almost total absorption in a favorite subject did,
indeed, operate sometimes to render her conversation less
inviting, and even tedious, to others, because she dwelt upon
a subject too long and too minutely for those who were less
interested. I think this was one of her defects as a teacher ;
for the best instruction consists in saying just enough about a
subject to make it clear and impressive, while there is danger
of saying so much as to confuse and mystify. But it must
not be forgotten that teaching was only one of the great
objects of our friend's life. And this power of concentra
tion and absorption was essential to accomplish the other
grand objects of her existence.
It has been also complained, and probably with reason, by
those in feeble health, that her great power of physical and
mental endurance led her to expect too much of her pupils.
She tried, I know, to guard against this tendency, being well
aware how natural it is to estimate the capabilities of others
by our own. And it should also be known that it was not

A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE. 359
her design to attempt to educate those of feeble constitution
and delicate health, though she did not object to others making
the most possible of such greenhouse plants. But she aimed
rather to provide for those who might be able to stand in the
front rank in the great battle which learning and religion
have to sustain with ignorance and wickedness.
Another mental characteristic of our friend was her great
power to control the minds of others. And it was done, too,
without their suspecting it — nay, in opposition often to strong
prejudice. Before you were aware, her well- woven net of
argument was over you, and so soft were its silken meshes
that you did not feel them. One reason was, that you soon
learned that the fingers of love and knowledge had unitedly
formed the web and woof of that net. You saw that she
knew more than you did about the subject ; that she had
thrown her whole soul into it ; that in urging it upon you, she
was actuated by benevolent motives, and was anxious for
your good ; and that it was hazardous for you to resist so
much light and love. And thus it was that many a refractory
pupil was subdued, and many an individual brought to aid a
cause to which he was before indifferent or opposed.
Finally, I must not omit to mention her great mental energy
and invincible perseverance. That energy was a quiet power,
but you saw that it had giant strength. It might fail of suc
cess to-day ; but in that case, it calmly waited till to-morrow.
Nay, a score of failures seemed only to rouse the inventive
faculty to devise new modes of operation ; nor would the
story of the ant that fell backward sixty-nine times in attempt
ing to climb a wall, and succeeded only upon the seventieth
trial, be an exaggerated representation of her perseverance.
Had she lacked this energy and perseverance, she might have
been distinguished in something else, but she never would

360 A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE.
have been the founder of Mount Holyoke Female Semi
nary. But I hasten, thirdly, to speak of her religious adaptation
to the work assigned her.
And it is in her religious character, and there alone, that
we shall find the secret and the powerful spring of all the
efforts of her life which she would wish to have remembered.
But I approach this part of her character with a kind of awe,
as if I were on holy ground, and were attempting to lay open
that which she would wish never revealed. In her ordinary
intercourse, so full was she of suggestions and plans on the
subject of education, and of her new seminary, that you
would not suspect how deep and pure was the fountain of
piety in her heart, nor that from thence the waters flowed in
which all her plans and efforts were baptized and devoted to
God. But as, accidentally, for the last thirty years, the mo
tives of her actions have been brought to light, I have been
every year more deeply impressed with their Christian disin
terestedness, and with the entireness of her consecration to
God. Without a knowledge of this fact, a stranger would
mistake for selfishness the earnestness and exclusiveness with
which she often urged the interests of this seminary. But in
the light of this knowledge, the apparent selfishness is trans
muted into sacred Christian love. Her whole life, indeed,
for many years past, has seemed to me to be only a bright
example of missionary devotedness and missionary labor. I
have never met with the individual who seemed to me more
ready to sacrifice even life in a good cause than she was ;
and had that sacrifice been necessary for securing the estab
lishment of her favorite seminary, cheerfully and without a
moment's hesitation, do I believe, she would have laid down
her life. I would, indeed, by no means represent her as an

A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE. 361
example of Christian perfection. I could not do so great
injustice to her own convictions. But since her death, I have
looked back over the whole of my long acquaintance with
her, in almost every variety of circumstance, to see if I could
recollect an instance in which she spoke of any individual in
such a way as to indicate feelings not perfectly Christian, or
if I could discover any lurkings of inordinate worldly ambi
tion, or traces of sinful pride, or envy, or undue excitement,
or disposition to shrink from duty, or of unwillingness to
make any sacrifices which God demanded; and I confess
that the tablet of memory furnishes not a single example.
What I considered errors of judgment I can indeed remember,
but not any moral obliquity in feeling or action. They doubt
less existed ; but it needed nicer moral vision than I possess
to discover them.
I ought to add, that this eminence of Christian character
was founded upon a clear apprehension of biblical principles.
She thoroughly understood and cordially embraced the doc
trines of the Puritans, just as they lie in their massive strength
in the Bible — not as they often come forth, alloyed and
weakened, from the moulds of a self-confident philosophy.
To study these truths was her delight. To explain them to
her pupils was one of her most successful efforts as a teacher.
Would that I could present on canvas the picture of Miss
Lyon, as it lies in my memoiy, when she was engaged on
the Sabbath in the study of Christian truth. I have frequently
seen individuals in the somnambulic and mesmeric state, but
none of them apparently more unconscious to external scenes
that she was when thus absorbed in the contemplation of
divine truth. Would that she had left us some delineation of
her views and feelings in these biblical trances, and still more
of those exercises of soul in her nearer approaches to God,
31

362 A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE.
when away from every eye but the divine. But she had a
strong aversion to religious diaries, and was probably uncon
scious of any thing in her experience that would benefit the
world, if left on record.
There were two religious principles which exerted an over
mastering influence upon Miss Lyon's character. One was a
sense of personal responsibility ; the other, trust in an over
ruling Providence. As the Saviour, when he went up to
Jerusalem for the last time, with all his sufferings full in
view, advanced before his disciples, as if in haste to suffer, so
did she, when duty called, never wait for others, but was ever
ready to precede them, and measure the amount of her sac
rifices, donations, and efforts by her sense of duty, rather
than by the example of others. And it was this sense of per
sonal responsibility which she urged always upon her pupils,
and with great success. So strong, too, was her faith in a
special Providence, that delay and discomfiture in the execu
tion of her favorite plans produced little or no discourage
ment, but led her merely to inquire more carefully whether
there was not something wrong in her or her plans which
occasioned the delay; and having done all she could, she
would wait long and cheerfully for the divine manifestation.
And so often had she witnessed interpositions in her behalf
almost miraculous, that her faith might often be seen steady
and buoyant when that of others had yielded to appalling dif
ficulties and dangers.
As the result of such principles and such piety, the stan
dard of Miss Lyon's personal efforts and sacrifices in every
good cause Was so high as to put to shame the measure of
duty which most Christians adopt. I am assured, on the best
authority, that the amount of money which she devoted to the
cause of benevolence was more than double all which she

A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE. 363
expended for herself, excepting her board. What a bright
example for imitation ! and what blessed results should we
witness if one in ten among Christians were to come up to
such a standard ! Some have sneered at her rigid economy
as if it were parsimonious and unbecoming. But in the fact
just stated we see the motive of her economy. And let those
who would censure wait till their standard of beneficence is
as high as hers before they condemn the only means by
which she reached such a standard.
Another blessed result of her elevated piety was the almost
constant presence, in the schools which she taught, of that
special divine influence which brings about the conversion of
souls. She lived, it is said, to witness nearly thirty special
revivals of religion in all her life, and not less than eleven in
the twelve years' life of her new seminary — many of them
surpassing, in the comparative number of converts, almost
any revivals which I have ever heard of in any other com
munity. Indeed, it was almost an uninterrupted display of
divine converting power. And yet so busy and enthusiastic
in literary instruction were Miss Lyon and the admirable
band of teachers which she knew how to gather around her,
that you would hardly have thought of the existence of that
deep under current of piety, which seemed to flow from the
river of God, and to refresh the whole landscape. But the
current was always there, deep and strong ; and thence came
the power that kept the windows of heaven always open.
We will inquire, finally, into the adaptation of the disci
pline through which Miss Lyon passed to fit. her for her work.
And by discipline I mean all the circumstances of her
birth and education. We have seen that God gave her a
sound mind in a sound body. But without cultivation, they
would have been only as metal in the ore, or marble in the

364 A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE.
quarry. Therefore God placed her in circumstances appro
priate to the desired discipline. He brought her into exist
ence in the alpine regions of Massachusetts, where the pure
water from the rock, and the atmosphere uncontaminated by
pestilential miasms, send health bounding through the veins ;
where the deep ravines, the broad mountain slopes, and the
vast prospects that stretch away almost inimitably over a sea
of mountains elevate and expand the soul, and fit it for large
and ennobling plans and purposes. There, too, away from
the vices of a dense population, a religious influence predom
inates, and the manners, habits, and piety are in an unsophis
ticated state. In those plain and humble dwellings which city
opulence might suppose the abodes of poverty, you will, for
the most part, find the answer to Agar's prayer, Give me
neither poverty nor riches. The parents of Miss Lyon were
just in that state of moderate competence (not of deep pov
erty, as has been represented) which enabled them to make
their daughter comfortable and happy at home with industry
and economy, but which could not provide for her education
abroad. But they possessed one thing of far higher value,
and that was devoted piety ; and their prayers and labors for
their daughter were rewarded by her conversion. That
happy home she has vividly described in her Missionary
Offering — the dying scene of the beloved father, and " the
extraordinary prayers of the sorrowing mother " during
" that first cold winter of widowhood." Ah, it may be that
the father was taken away in order to excite those prayers,
and that they were necessary in God's plans to the future
eminent usefulness of the daughter ; and that, on the heav
enly Mount Zion, they are now rejoicing in the retrospect of
God's providence.
The marked preeminence of the young Mary soon raised

A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE. 365
up for her benefactors who aided her, though she had to
depend mainly upon her own exertions. After a time she
joined the school of the Rev. Joseph Emerson, at Byfield.
That gentleman's views and plans of female education seem
to have been a good deal in advance of his times, and doubt
less his instructions contributed largely to give the right
direction to Mary's mind. But at that school, twenty-eight
years ago, she came under the influence of an individual —
an assistant teacher then, and afterwards through life an inti
mate friend — who probably had more to do in the formation
of her character, and especially in fitting her to become the
founder of a new institution, than any other person — I had
almost said, than all others. That lady was Miss Z. O. Grant ;
concerning whom, as she is still living, propriety forbids me
to say all that I could wish. But I may say that under no
influence could Miss Lyon have come better adapted to pre
pare her for her work than that of one so fitted by nature, by
education, and by grace to be a „pioneer and a guide in im
proving and elevating the system of female education. It was
during their connection at Byfield two years, at Derry, New
Hampshire, five years, and an equal period at Ipswich, that
the leading principles on which the Mount Holyoke Seminary
was founded were suggested, discussed, and prayed over, and,
what is more important, were experimentally tested — so far,
at least, as the mode of instruction was concerned.
Thus it appears that the whole course of Miss Lyon's life,
and all the circumstances in which she was placed, were only
a continued school of discipline for the work assigned her.
She could not have seen the bearing of events at the time
they happened ; but, from the standpoint which we occupy,
we can see how almost every minute and often seemingly
casual circumstance in her history was important to the final
31*

366 A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF . PROVIDENCE.
and full development. The guiding hand of God's provi
dence is almost as distinct as when it went before the Israel
ites in their journeyings in a cloud by day and a pillar of fire
by night. This will be the more obvious if we contemplate
for a moment the manner in which the two grand leading
objects of her life were accomplished.
Upon her character as a teacher I need not dwell, because
it is so generally known and appreciated. Not less than three
thousand pupils have passed under the moulding influence of
her mind ; and it was not an influence to be easily forgotten
or shaken off. It came from the depths of the soul, and went
into the depths of the soul, unless resisted by a perversene^s
rarely found among respectable young ladies. It has been
objected, indeed, to her discipline, that it was too stern and
uncompromising ; and that many of the minor graces and
elegant accomplishments, which give a charm to female love
liness, were too much neglected. She may have erred in this
respect ; for she had become disgusted with the too frequent
substitution, in female education, of artificial for unsophisti
cated manners, and of superficial and showy accomplishments
for substantial and practically useful acquisitions. She never
felt called to study or to teach the technicalities and formali
ties of fashionable life ; and she placed in nearly the same
category some accomplishments which are generally regarded
with much favor — such as painting, embroidery, music, and
the like ; or, rather, she transferred these subjects from the
first rank, which they had long occupied, to the last in impor
tance. Whether the system of manners which she taught
and exhibited would be popular in the refined circles of Paris,
or London, or New York, I know not. But I do know that
she inculcated and exemplified that fundamental principle of
all good Christian manners, that we should treat all men with

A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE. 367
kindness, because we feel kindly towards them in our hearts.
Such manners were always acted out, as her numerous
friends can testify, in her truly hospitable home in this place.
But if any parents felt dissatisfied with this Christian educa
tion and Christian politeness, and preferred a fashionable
education for their daughters, Miss Lyon did not aspire to be
their teacher, nor felt emulous of the laurels that might be
won in such a field. It was enough for her if she could send
forth pupils with minds well disciplined and stored with
knowledge, with physical constitutions invigorated by exer
cise, temperance, and the practice of all other important
hygienic laws, and with hearts glowing with a desire to do
good. And when we recollect that nearly three thousand
such, scattered over the whole face of the globe, still survive,
what an impression do we get of the mighty work which this
single woman has accomplished, and of the vast influence she
is at this moment exerting upon the human family ! *
* I am indebted to Mrs. Banister (Miss Z. O. Grant) for the following
statement of the fundamental principles on which, in her opinion, Miss
Lyon's superior skill in teaching was founded. It is interesting to observe
the thoroughly Christian character of these principles.
" Some of Miss Lyon's excellences as an educator consisted, —
" In her knowledge and love of the character and government of God.
" In her knowledge of the human mind — its capacities ; its destiny ; of
the effects of habits, and the way to form them aright ; of the relation of
the human mind to its Creator and to its fellow-creatures, and of the obliga
tions growing out of those relations.
" In her entire and cordial reception of the Bible as a revelation of God
to man ; in her knowledge and love of this blessed book.
"In having the first and second table of the moral law written on her
heart; in her peculiar facility in leading others to an intellectual under
standing of this law.
" In her deep appreciation of the gospel as opening a way for the salva
tion of the lost ; her living faith in all its truths — especially in Him who is
the. truth.

368 A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE.
But there was another work, still more difficult to execute,
and probably more important in its effects, which she accom
plished ; and that was, to found, or rather create, the Mount
Holyoke Seminary. A minute history of that undertaking,
from its inception to its completion, would show how wonder
fully Miss Lyon and all concerned in it were prepared and
led along by an overruling Providence. But justice to my
subject and to the principal agents will not allow me to pass
it entirely over.
The prominent features of the Mount Holyoke Female
Seminary, as it was ultimately established, and by which it
differed from any other in New England, were the following.
I do not mean that in no other institution have they been
introduced partially ; but here alone have they been fully
carried out and brought into harmonious action.
1. This seminary is permanently endowed.
2. From its foundation to its topstone, it was carried for
ward by an appeal to Christian benevolence ; and the donors
were not encouraged to expect any other reward than that
which springs from doing good. Many judicious friends did
not believe it possible to procure the means on such exclu
sively benevolent principles. But it was done triumphantly.
3. Hence, thirdly, no one connected with the seminary as
" In her glowing benevolence to all for whom Christ died.
"In her burning zeal to do all in her power towards extending the knowl
edge of the Redeemer to every creature.
"In her understanding and heartfelt sense of the necessity of bringing
great and unalterable truths in contact with the human mind in a way suited
to produce their legitimate effects.
" In a practical belief that what ought to be done can be done.
" In a deep sense that, without God's blessing, all will be in vain.
" In an abiding reliance on God, and a cheerful expectation of his bless
ing."

A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE. 369
trustee, teacher, steward, or benefactor has any pecuniary
interest in it, except that some receive a small fixed salary.
4. Hence, fourthly, the charges to the pupils could be put
at a very low rate — not more than one third of the expense
usually incurred at our best female seminaries where a simi
lar course of study is gone through.
5. Hence, fifthly, instruction in doctrinal and practical
evangelical religion could be made, as it ever has been, the
most prominent feature of the institution, without any influ
ence from that worldly policy which, under the name of
excluding sectarianism, shuts out all religion of any practical
value. 6. All connected with the school constitute but a single
family. 7. The domestic affairs are all managed by the members.
The germ of this seminary may probably be found in a
remark made by Rev. Joseph Emerson to Miss Grant (now
Mrs. Banister) in 1823, when advising her to take charge of
the Adams Female Academy in Derry, New Hampshire :
" If you can put into operation," said he, " a permanent
school on right principles, you may well afford to give up
your life whenever you have done it." It was the hope of
realizing this thought that induced that lady to take charge of
the Adams school, where for five years she labored, with
Miss Lyon, to accomplish this object, and another five years
in the same school removed to Ipswich. It was not, however,
till they had been two years at Ipswich — that is, in 1830 —
that Miss Lyon could believe it possible, however desirable,
to obtain means for a permanent institution. At length, how
ever, she saw its importance ; and the two ladies labored
together for a year or two to find a permanent residence for
their school, which they intended should be adapted for

370 A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE.
bringing the higher and middle classes together. But at this
time the health of Miss Grant failed, and she went away.
Before she was again able to resume her place, all hopes of
bringing about this specific object were abandoned, and all
associations, whether called committees or trustees, were dis
solved ; though Miss Grant still clung, as with a death grasp,
to her favorite idea of permanency.
But though Miss Lyon thus yielded to this providential
blasting of her hopes, yet as she mused and prayed over the
subject, her interest deepened ; and this probably was the
object of Providence in the disappointment ; for success de
manded a spirit ready for any labor and any sacrifice. Sev
eral new projects occupied her attention, and she became
more and more impressed with the desire of laboring for the
middle and more indigent classes of society. This led her to
devise every possible mode of lessening the expenses of the
new seminary ; and among the rest, to the plan of having the
domestic affairs managed by the inmates of the school. She
at last made up her mind to leave her present place as teacher
at Ipswich, and go forth and see whether Providence would
open any way for accomplishing her favorite object ; although
for a time it was doubtful whether she or Miss Grant, whom
she still consulted, should take this course. Indeed, she
seemed as yet to be very much in the dark as to the way in
which she was to go, and did not expect such results as she
lived to witness. In a letter to Miss Grant, dated March 1,
1833, she thus remarks : —
" For myself, if I should separate from you, I have no defi
nite plan ; but my thoughts, feelings, and judgment are
turned towards the middle classes of society. For this class
I want to labor, and for this class I consider myself rather
peculiarly fitted to labor. To this class in society would I

A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE. 371
devote directly all the remainder of my strength, (God per
mitting ;) not to the higher classes, not to the poorer classes.
The middle class contains the main springs and main wheels
which are to move the world. Whatever field I should oc
cupy, it must be a humble, laborious work. How I could get
a footing sufficiently firm for my feet to rest upon the re
mainder of my days, where my hands could work, I know
not. But by wandering about a year or two, perhaps Provi
dence might open the door. I should seek for nothing per
manent after my decease as to the location of my labors ; but
I should consider it desirable that I should occupy but one
more field, that I should make but one more remove, till I
remove into my grave."
What a beautiful development of Christian character does
this extract present! What a waiting upon God, and confi
dence in his providence ! How and where she could get a
foothold to labor she knew not ; " but by wandering about a
year or two, perhaps Providence might open the door." How
does such faith remind us of that other servant of God, who,
when he was called lo go out into a place which he should
after receive for an inheritance, obeyed ; and he went out,
not knowing whither he went. What humility and readiness
to labor is here shown ! " Whatever field I should occupy, it
must be a humble and laborious work." Yet what holy
sagacity is exhibited in strongly desiring to labor for the mid
dle classes, because " they are the main springs and main
wheels to move the world " ! That is, she wished to labor
where her efforts would do the most good. And finally, what
perfect freedom from the ambition of having her name at
tached to some great institution, by which many have sup
posed she was actuated in her severe labors 1 " I should seek
for nothing permanent after my decease as to the location of

372 A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE.
my labors." How evident that such a state of mind was just
the one that was needed for the herculean task of founding
this institution ! and how obviously it was the natural result of
that long and severe discipline through which she had passed !
Could we have looked forward to the results which are be
fore us to-day, it would indeed have been a scene of high
moral sublimity to have seen this female going forth on this
great enterprise almost single-handed. I well remember the
first meeting, in this part of Massachusetts, of some eight or
ten friends of education, which was held at my house to hear
her statements. We saw the object, indeed, to be a noble
one, and therefore we could not but wish it God speed ; and
the address to the public, which that meeting called forth,
signed by John Todd, Joseph Penney, and Roswell Hawks,
did, indeed, express confidence in its ultimate success ; but I
fear, that had there not been faith somewhere else stronger
than ours, the walls of this seminary would not yet have
risen. Nevertheless, she who was willing to wait one or two
years to see if some door would not open, could discover a
bow of promise where others saw only a black cloud.
Steadily did she move onward in the work, cheered by the
slightest indication of success, and undiscouraged by ridicule,
hostility, and discomfiture. And it was not mere indifference
which she had to meet ; but respectable periodicals appeared,
charged with sarcasm and enmity to her plans. So ungener
ous did some of these attacks seem, that I volunteered a de
fence, and consulted her as to its publication. I found her
entirely unruffled by these attacks, and without any personal
feeling in respect to a vindication. She did not object to the
spirit or style of my defence, and I left it in her hands, to be
published, if she thought it best. But that is the last I ever
heard or saw of it.

A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE. 373
I need not further detail the progress of this work to its
completion, because it is too familiar to most of those who
hear me. It was, indeed, a long, and sometimes apparently
a doubtful struggle ; and faith less firm than that of the pre
siding genius of this enterprise would often have given out.
But remarkable wisdom seemed to have been given her in the
formation of her plans, and in the selection of agents and
guardians. She lived to see not less than sixty thousand dol
lars contributed by the Christian public ; yonder noble edifice
erected, with its accommodations for two hundred pupils ; the
debts of the institution all liquidated ; and the whole plan in
successful operation for twelve years ; during which sixteen
hundred young ladies enjoyed its privileges, and eleven re
vivals of religion stamped the seal of God's approbation upon
the enterprise and the institution. How much larger these
results than the anticipations of its founder when she said,
" I should seek for nothing permanent after my decease " !
and what a lesson of encouragement to all those who are
waiting in patient faith and hope to know what God will have
them do I
Such was Miss Lyon ; such the discipline through which
she was made to pass to fit her for her work ; and such the
magnificent results. We are amazed when we look back at
the amount and magnitude of her labors. Very few females
have done so much for the world while they lived, or have
left so rich a legacy when they died. Nor is the fair picture
marred by dark stains, save those of microscopic littleness.
From the days of her childhood to the time of her death, all
her physical, intellectual, and moral powers were concentrated
upon some useful and noble object, while selfishness and self-
gratification seem never to have stood at all in the way, or to
have retarded the fervid wheels of benevolence. I cannot,
82

374 A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE.
therefore, believe that it is the partiality of personal friend
ship which leads me to place Miss Lyon among the most re
markable women of her generation. Her history, too, shows
the guiding hand of special Providence almost as strikingly as
the miraculous history of Abraham, of Moses, of Elijah, or
of Paul. O, it tells us all how blessed it is to trust Providence
implicitly when we are trying to do good, though the darkness
be so thick around us that we cannot see forward one hand's
breadth, and bids us advance with as confident a step as if
all were light before us.
This picture, too, is a complete one. Her life was neither
too long nor too short. She died at the right time, with her
armor on and yet bright. But her friends saw that, strong as
her constitution naturally was, it was giving way under such
severe and protracted labor, and the infirmities of declining
years beginning to show themselves even at the age of fifty-
two. But with her Saviour she could say, " I have finished
the work which Thou (God) gavest me to do." All her im
portant plans had been carried into successful operation, and
tested by long experiment ; and the institution was in the
right condition to be committed to other hands. She had also
of late been rapidly ripening for another sphere of labor.
One of her friends, who had been more intimately connected
with her for several years past than any other, when at a dis
tance she heard of her sickness, felt confident that it would
be unto death ; for she had known how, for some months
previous, her friend had been feeding daily on manna, and
pluming her wings for her upward flight. Severe, therefore,
as her removal seemed, when first announced, it happened
just at the right time, and I cannot wish to call her back.
But I do feel, and many who hear me, I doubt not, feel it too,
— I do feel a strong desire to be borne upward, on an angel's

A CHAPTER IN THE BOOK OF PROVIDENCE. 375
wing, to the Mount Zion where she now dwells, and to hear
her describe, in the glowing language of heaven, the wonders
of Providence, as manifested in her own earthly course, as
they now appear in the bright transparencies of heaven. Yet
further, I long to hear her describe the still wider plans she
is now devising and executing for the good of the universe
and the glory of God ; and how admirably her earthly disci
pline fitted her for a nobler field of labor above ; so that those
providences which appear to us to have been consummated on
earth, were in fact only a necessary means of adapting her
to a work which shall fill and delight all her powers through
out eternal ages. Gladly, too, would I listen to her intensely
earnest inquiries respecting her beloved seminary arid friends
on earth, and learn whether, in some way unknown to us,
she may not be still able to administer to their welfare. O,
how sweet, too, would it be, could we listen to that rapturous
song of praise, which ever and anon she would pour forth to
her Redeemer, as his glories strike her eye, or his past kind
ness touches a chord of gratitude in her heart.
But alas ! how vain are all such aspirations ! And yet, my
Christian friends, if we are faithful to God and duty as she
was, in a very few days all this intercourse and communion
will be a reality. Some of us may not, indeed, be able to
sound so lofty a note of praise as our glorified friend, but our
song and our communion shall nevertheless be the music and
the intercourse of heaven ; and that will be enough.

WASTE OF MIND.

What more, or better, on the subject of female education,
can be said, than has been presented by the distinguished
gentlemen who have occupied this place on former anniver
sary occasions ? This was my involuntary inquiry, when
invited to address this audience to-day ; and it would have
decided me to decline the honor, had not another inquiry been
started : Why is it necessary that these addresses should be
confined to the subject of female education ? Why should
not the speaker be allowed the same wide field in which to
choose his subject, as is given to those who address young
men in our colleges, at their annual commencements ? I
adopt the opinion that such ought to be the case, and shall act
accordingly on the present occasion, leaving it to my succes
sors to follow my example or not, as they shall prefer.
The subject which I propose to bring before you is, in its
nature, of melancholy interest. Nevertheless, it is not easy
to excite human sympathy deeply in respect to it, although it
unfolds a wider and darker history of human wrongs than
that accursed traffic in flesh and blood which has justly
aroused the Christian world for its extermination. Slavery
and the slave trade are, indeed, a part of my subject; yet
only a small part. For I shall speak of the slavery of the
immortal mind — of its subjection, whether voluntary or in-
(376)

WASTE OF MIND. 377
voluntary, to any of the thousand petty tyrants that, from the
beginning, have lorded it over the human soul, and made
merchandise of its lofty powers, and crushed its expanding
energies. The wrongs which the human family have en
dured from slavery, technically so called, terrible as they have
been, sink into comparative insignificance when we take this
wider view of the subject, and behold, as I shall endeavor to
show, not a few millions merely, but earth's almost entire and
vast population, deprived of rights infinitely more precious
than personal liberty — the right and the power of cultivat
ing the faculties by which alone they are distinguished from
the brutes that perish. Here is a chapter on oppression and
slavery which has never yet been written. Indeed, what
arithmetic can tell us the value of the rights which have thus
been wrested from man, or the amount of the losses and suf
ferings he has endured ! And yet, as I said above, unless we
•bring physical sufferings into the account, there is little sensi
bility among men to the subject. It will not need an armed
police here to-day to defend me from violence while I discuss
it. But on the other hand, I have reason to fear that the
strong array of urbanity, and attention, and benevolence, and
patience, which I know form a strong body guard around this
audience, will hardly be able to defend them against drowsi
ness, or nervousness, as I proceed.
But I am dealing too much in enigmas. I denominate my
subject The Waste of Mind. It is not necessary, before
this audience, to enter into an argument to show that, unless
the intellectual powers are cultivated, man scarcely rises
above the brutes ; nay, in many respects, is their inferior.
Nor will it be any more doubted that the Creator endowed us
with these powers, with the precise design of having them
cultivated ; and of course, that he surrounded us with cireum-
32*

378 WASTE OF MIND.
stances favorable to their cultivation. If, then, individuals, or
communities, or nations do not cultivate their minds, either
through their own neglect or the fault of others, there is so
much dead loss to the world, so much waste of what God
placed within its reach, and whose value can be estimated
neither by gold nor by numbers. This is one variety of what
I call the waste of mind.
Again, let us suppose an individual or a community to sub
ject their powers to some sort of discipline, but to devote
them to things useless or hurtful. It is surely the mildest
language we can use, to call such perversion of the noblest
gifts and acquisitions a waste of mind. And this is, in fact,
the most common mode in which men incur the charge of
squandering away their noble powers and attainments. If
their newly-developed faculties promote neither their own
happiness nor that of others, nor advance the cause of sound
learning, nor the cause of religion, — if employed only to
aid in pampering gross bodily appetites, or in accomplishing
the destruction of their fellow-men, the pearl of Cleopatra,
dissolved to grace the feast to Mark Antony, is but a faint
emblem of this infinitely greater sacrifice.
In these two ways, then, I maintain that the waste of mind
always has been, and still is, immense. And to establish and
illustrate this position, I propose to present the subject in
three aspects : —
1. Historically.
2. Geographically.
3. Individually.
1. Historically. — To enable you justly to appreciate this
first part of my argument, it is not necessary to go into a de
tailed history of nations, but only to seize upon some of its
leading features. As a preliminary, I assert that there is no

WASTE OF MIND. 379
important difference between the members of the human
family, when placed in the same circumstances, in the facility
with which they acquire useful knowledge, and adopt the
arts and rules of civilized life. There is, indeed, a great
diversity in these respects between individuals ; but I am here
comparing nations, or tribes, with one another. And if their
susceptibilities of improvement are nearly equal, then, since
Providence furnished them in the earlier stages of society
with nearly equal means of improvement, it is fair to take
those who are the most advanced as a standard by which to
estimate the deficiencies of the others. Let us take for an
example our progenitors of Great Britain. They were not,
indeed, quite as low on the scale of intellect as some other
heathen nations. But the horrid system of Druidism, which
there prevailed, which could be satisfied with nothing but
human victims for sacrifice, must have been like the blast of
death to every thing pure, and lovely, and noble. They who
could submit century after century to such a system of gloomy
superstition, must have been about as much degraded as hu
man nature can be. Nor did the Saxon conquest, which
brought in little more than, swarms of pirates, with a religion
almost as debasing as Druidism, afford much alleviation to the
gloomy picture. Nevertheless, in the amalgamated character
which resulted, there were certain elements, which have, in
the course of centuries, brought out the noblest development
of human nature which the world has ever witnessed. What
a vast storehouse of cultivated intellect has the Anglo-Saxon
race been, all over the world, for the last three hundred years 1
What brilliant discoveries, what immense acquisitions, what
mighty conquests, have they made in art, science, and litera
ture ! And as a consequence, what vast accessions have
they made to the means of human usefulness and happiness !

380 WASTE OF MIND.
what streams of knowledge and of salvation are at this mo
ment flowing out from the little island of Britain, over more
than half the globe ! and what almost countless millions feel
the giant strength of her arm !
But is there any thing peculiar in Anglo-Saxon blood,
which enables that race to rise higher in intellect and art than
any other ? Surely not ; for even now other races compete
with them. The present state of that race, then, is only a
fair index of what the whole world is capable of becoming
— nay, of what it might have been, almost from the begin
ning, if it had not perverted the gifts of Providence. Indeed,
even among the Anglo-Saxon race, there is, at this moment,
an immense waste of mind, as I shall attempt to show in the
sequel ; so that even their brilliant career of knowledge and
civilization is far inferior to what the whole world might have
exhibited in past ages, if man had not been recreant to his
powers and privileges.
But from a picture so bright and fascinating, turn back
your eye, and see what the world has actually been during
the six thousand years of her history. Read that history ;
and what is the prominent idea which remains upon your
mind ? It will be war — merciless, heart- withering war !
Read again ; and retain the next strongest impression, and I
know you will say the second time — nay, the third time — that
the clangor of war drowns every thing else. But consult the
history once more, to ascertain what have been the employ
ments of man during the intervals when they have paused
amid their conflicts, and you will find the crafty and ambi
tious few engaged in intrigues with one another, and in rivet
ing more firmly the yoke of oppression upon the necks of the
ignorant and abused multitude. These are the items, I say,
that constitute ninety-nine hundredths of the history of man.

WASTE OF MIND. 381
Small, indeed, has been the space occupied by the deeds of
the noble few who have tried to stem the general current, and
to cultivate the arts of peace — to promote the progress of
science and civilization, of pure liberty, and the elevation of
the mass of mankind, by education and religion. Though
their history deserves folios, and will live when that of politi
cal intrigues and of wars shall be forgotten, yet if given only
in a proportionate space, it will be scarcely visible. For the
business of man, thus far, has been to persecute and destroy
his fellows, instead of blessing them ; to waste and pervert
his powers on unworthy or wicked objects, instead of using
them for the good of the world. That, I say, has been his
business ; while benevolent effort has been only the infrequent
exception. I shall doubtless be referred to Greece and Rome, as suffi
cient examples to redeem the ancient world from the heavy
charge of an almost universal waste of mind. These repub
lics are, indeed, the brightest spots on the picture. But seen
through the optics of Christianity, their light is mostly a lurid
glare. With all their boasted wisdom, the inhabitants were
idolaters ; they were slaveholders ; they were engaged in
almost perpetual wars ; and Rome, especially, in those most
unjustifiable of all wars, — wars of conquest. They had
more light than other nations ; but they employed it all for
the subjugation and destruction of their fellow-men, instead
of their salvation. A few among them did, indeed, cultivate
the arts of peace, and would gladly have blessed mankind.
But those who controlled the public affairs suffered the people
to grow up in ignorance, and made use of the discoveries and
reputation of their philosophers and sages to aggrandize the
nation, or a favored few, while the great mass, with much
seeming liberty, were in fact under the worst kind of bondage,

382 WASTE OF MIND.
Strike from the annals of these republics the history of their
wars, foreign and domestic, scarce one of which can bear the
light of Christianity, — strike from them the history of their
domestic oppressions, and add to them what never has been
written, the history of female degradation there, and of the
insufferable despotism which those exercised over their slaves
at home, who made the forum ring with their vaunts of lib
erty, — reduce and correct Grecian and Roman history thus,
and you will find little in it which the benevolence of Chris
tianity would not denominate waste of mind.
I shall probably be thought most sadly, if not criminally,
deficient in reverence for the classic ground of antiquity, by
this strong condemnation of the general course of conduct
pursued by these ancient republics. Where shall we find
oratory more overwhelming, rhetoric more correct, poetry
more beautiful, or philosophy more sublime, than in the writ
ings transmitted from the sages of antiquity, and still made
the basis of instruction in our higher schools of learning ?
Instead of undervaluing these productions, I would appeal to
them as a ground of encouragement to all literary men ; for
the whole history of the world scarcely furnishes such an
example of success, and such extensive influence exerted by
a few literary men. But, on the other hand, it should not be
forgotten, that these writings are held in such high estimation
not because they contain a correct philosophy, correct moral
or religious principles, or even correct rules of oratory.
Excepting as models of fine writing, and some rhetorical and
mathematical principles, and some true common sense max
ims, we are obliged to unlearn all which they contain ; and
were not the languages in which they were written eminently
classic, — that is, chosen as the medium of thought among
the learned, — there can be no doubt but these ancient authors

WASTE OF MIND. 383
would long since have been forgotten, or, rather, replaced by
authors better adapted to modern literature, modern science,
and modern religion. Nor should it be forgotten, that while
a meritorious few, in ancient times, did not waste their powers
and acquisitions, but devoted them to the good of mankind,
scarcely any opportunity was afforded to the common people
to discipline and enlarge their minds ; and thus an immense
amount of talent was smothered in embryo. But what I com
plain of most of all is, that nearly all the talent which was
elicited, and most of the discipline which was enjoyed, were
turned into the war channel ; and what should have been con
secrated to the good of mankind was devoted to their de
struction. Here again I shall probably come into collision with the
views of some who entertain a high regard for the distin
guished warriors of Greece and Rome, and who would rec
ommend them as examples to be followed by Christian youth,
and who look with a favorable eye upon wars in which such
men gathered their brightest laurels. I will not, indeed, take
the ground that all wars are forbidden by the spirit and letter
of the gospel ; but I shall utter the almost unanimous opinion
of the Protestant world, when I say that offensive wars are
the very antipodes of the Bible. Now, how very few of the
wars of Greece and Rome were not of this description !
Some of the earlier contests — as that when Greece was
invaded by Xerxes — were merely defensive. But as soon as
these nations, especially Rome, became sufficiently powerful,
the aggrandizement of the empire was unblushingly offered
as a sufficient reason for carrying fire and sword through
unsubjugated regions, however remote. A petty insult,
offered by a neighboring state, was deemed cause enough for
a bloody Peloponnesian war. Now, with the Bible in my

384 WASTE OF MIND.
hand, I boldly declare, that the talents and energies employed
in such wars as these are worse than wasted, and that the
leaders in them deserve execration instead of imitation. I
speak not of the blood and pecuniary treasure expended in
such wars. These may be, and have been, calculated ; and
they form a frightful aggregate. But to sacrifice upon the
altar of hate and unhallowed ambition a vast and incalculable
amount of immortal mind — to offer up there the intellectual
hopes and glory of a nation — should receive the name of
sacrilege rather than waste. And yet, what myriads of her
noblest minds did Greece and Rome cast into the insatiable
maw of the Moloch of war ! If we can forgive it in a heathen
nation, how ought it to be execrated in a land professing
Christianity !
It will indeed be said that we ought not to regard all the
intellect which is sacrificed, even in wars of ambition and
conquest, as lost or wasted. For such wars wake up the pub
lic mind to effort ; and we accordingly find that seasons of
great exigency are periods when remarkable developments
are made of individual talent.
There is certainly truth in this statement. But who are
the men thus awakened by war to extraordinary efforts ?
Only that small number who are leaders in the struggle.
And what effect is produced upon the community? Their
means of improvement are exhausted, and they are obliged to
struggle for a long time with the poverty brought on them by
the expenses of the war. It requires a quarter of a century
of prosperous peace to recover from the withering influence
of a single protracted war. Hence the aggregate of loss to
the community at large far outstrips the aggregate of gain to
individuals, even if we look only to mental improvement;
and hence the energies expended in such wars are worse than

WASTE OF MIND. 385
wasted. And the same is true of all wars. Though they
may promote the interests of a favored few, and even bring
out a development of individual talent, they effectually extin
guish the intellectual vitality of the great majority, whose
elevation is of far more importance to the world than that of
an aristocratic few. But it may be stated as a general fact,
that wars tend to degrade the many and exalt the few.
Thus the leaders soon learn to regard the life of a common
man with as much indifference as they would that of a beast
of burden. In France, during the reign of Bonaparte, con
scripts were styled by the leaders raw materials, and food for
powder ; and the question was discussed, how long a conscript
would last. Some said thirty-three, and others thirty-six
months ; and Napoleon once remarked, that he had a revenue
of three hundred thousand men. How different the spirit of
Christianity, which almost forgets the trifling distinctions of
worldly ambition, in looking at that infinitely more important
distinction which every man may claim — the possession of
an immortal mind ! Hence it is, that while Christianity does
not overlook the few, it aims chiefly to instruct and elevate
the many.
I am led by this remark to say in this connection, that the
introduction of Christianity into the world affords us the most
remarkable example of success in the cultivation of the hu
man faculties which history can furnish. The gospel had a
higher object in view than to promote intellectual cultivation,
and the few obscure men by whom it was first promulgated
were mostly uneducated. And yet that College of Fishermen
has done more to advance the cause of public education than
all other colleges and universities combined. And this has
been done by the principle just alluded to, viz., by extending
its instructions and regards to the whole human family. All
33

386 WASTE OF MIND.
other systems for doing good to mankind have been exclusive
in their regards ; and while they have benefited a few, they
have left the multitude to grovel in ignorance and wretched
ness. And so long have the latter been treated as if they
were but one step removed from the brutes, that, by a curious
principle of human nature, they have come to believe it, and
to hug the chains by which they are bound down to the dust.
But when the Bible has convinced the most degraded human
being that he is immortal, and capable of boundless progress
in knowledge and happiness, it has taken the greatest bar out
of the way of his advancement in human literature and sci
ence. Accordingly we find, that in those countries where the
Bible has been most widely circulated, and its influence felt,
popular education has achieved its greatest triumphs — as in
Greenland, Prussia, Great Britain, and North America. But
so soon as we enter those regions where the Bible is unknown,
or restricted in its circulation, we have entered also the do
mains of popular ignorance and degradation ; even though it
may be a land of colleges and universities, and boasting not
a few prodigies of genius and learning. He therefore who
means that his name shall stand high among the pioneers and
promoters of public education, must connect it with the Bible.
That is the only Archimedean lever by which he can raise
the world.
2. Geographically. — In entering upon the second division
of the subject, where I am to treat it geographically, it would
greatly aid our conceptions could I call in an experienced
missionary as a witness. Many such, however, have given us
their testimony, and to that I shall appeal. Let us suppose
such a one, of Anglo-Saxon origin, to go forth on a tour of
exploration, to form an estimate, not only of the moral, but
the intellectual condition of the world. As he quits our

WASTE OF MIND. 387
shores, probably forever, he almost forgets our many defects
and crying sins, when he recollects how many salutary influ
ences are here at work ; how the Bible finds a place in almost
every family ; how the school house is seen at almost every
corner ; how thickly the select school, the academy, and the
college are scattered over our soil ; and how, by these and
other means, knowledge is carried to the meanest hovel, and
elevates and dignifies its poorest inma*e. He crosses the At
lantic, and in exploring the fatherland, is no less — nay, in
some respects, is more gratified, and thanks God that he be
longs to the Anglo-Saxon race. He visits the continent, and
as he wanders through Prussia, Sweden, and some of the
German states, and some of the countries of Switzerland, he
begins to fancy that wherever he meets with a Caucasian
physiognomy, he shall find intelligence and freedom. He
enters France, and while he surveys the splendid monuments
of the Louvre, the Garden of Plants, and a thousand other
repositories of art and science in the capital of that empire,
he seems to have reached the emporium of knowledge, and
can hardly imagine that he is to meet with deep degradation
and ignorance in such a nation. But as he wanders over the
streets and lanes of that city, and especially through the De
partments, he is amazed to find, beneath such a splendid ex
terior, so much that is dark and disgusting, so much of igno
rance and infidelity among the mass of the population. But
when he learns that the Bible is in a great measure withheld
from circulation, he sees an adequate cause for all the igno
rance, corruption, and infidelity. And when he traverses
Spain, Portugal, and Italy, and sees hbw much deeper is the
cloud of ignorance and wickedness which broods over those
nations, and how much more sedulously the Bible is excluded,
he finds full confirmation of his conclusion that it is this book, J

388 WASTE OF MIND.
rather than a Caucasian physiognomy, which brings light and
liberty, as well as salvation. Among the teeming millions on
the banks of the Danube, he finds the same truth illustrated ;
and the degraded serfs of Russia's vast plains confirm his
i impressions. In short, he finds that where the Bible is a pro
hibited or scarcely known book, there the common man is
left unenlightened and undisciplined, and an incalculable
amount of wasted and perverted mind is the result.
But though we find so much to deplore in the mental con
dition of Catholic Europe, and much also in many parts of
Protestant Europe, still, in all those countries there does exist
a great amount of mental activity. Amid much that is sad
dening to the missionary's spirit, there is much to cheer and
inspire with hope for the future. It is not till he enters the
Oriental dominions of Mohammedanism, that he has any just
conceptions of what is meant by an utter waste and perver-
i sion of mind. The noble features of the Caucasian race do
indeed meet him under the turban of the Turk, the cap of the
Persian, in the sun-burned complexion of the Arab, even in
the savage aspect of the Koord and the Tartar, and especially
in the elegant countenance of the Circassian and the Geor
gian. But he is amazed to witness what a dreadful stagnation
of mind pervades all these nations. It is not utter barbarism
and destitution of all intelligence, but that strange state of the
human soul, when there is just light enough to make it feel its
own importance, and excite the idea that it has reached the
acme of knowledge, and that others, especially those of an
other religion, can furnish no additional light. In short, it is
just such a state of mind as the Koran is calculated to pro
duce, and which its author meant it to produce. Its spirit is
well illustrated in the syllogism by which the Caliph Omar
consigned the famous Alexandrian library, where was gath-

WASTE OF MIND. 389
ered most of the literature of antiquity, to the use of the
common soldiers for cooking their food. " If these books,"
said he, " are opposed to the Koran, they ought to be de
stroyed ; if they agree with the Koran, they are unnecessary,
and may therefore be burned." That is the spirit which
chimes in admirably with the demands of despotism, and
which in fact keeps at this moment one hundred millions of
Asia and Africa in deep and almost hopeless political and in
tellectual bondage.
But the missionary on his tour of observation has yet to
meet with examples of human ignorance, prejudice, and deg
radation still more revolting to the benevolent heart. He en
ters the self-styled " Celestial Empire " of South-eastern Asia,
and encounters the self-sufficiency and dogmatism of the
Mongolian race, still more insufferable than that of the Cau
casian followers of the false prophet. In China, almost every
thing is perfect ; in view of the native, it is perfect wisdom,
perfect intelligence, perfect freedom, and perfect happiness ;
in the eye of the missionary, perfect folly, perfect ignorance
and self-conceit, perfeet bondage to prejudice and custom, and
perfect wretchedness to the soul of Christian benevolence.
At any rate, the intellect of those almost countless millions,
which, if properly cultivated, might send a blaze of light all
over the globe, is now shut up in a nutshell ; and woe be to
the individual who ventures to look upon the outside. Strange,
that no one of the vast population, which from generation to
generation has swarmed in that empire, should ever have ven
tured a step beyond his predecessors, and that the highest
ambition of those who might have filled the world with their
literary and scientific glory has been to fill it with bohea and
young hyson.
The Chinese mind, however, is by no means in as degraded
33*

390 WASTE OF MIND.
a state as that of some other nations. The wide and popu
lous region of Hindostan and Japan, Farther India, and espe
cially of Australasia and Polynesia, as well as the almost
entire continent of Africa, exhibits an utter and almost unal-
leviated waste of mind. Of all the animals inhabiting those
regions, man is doubtless the farthest below what his Cre
ator intended him to be ; and, I had almost said, probably he
is the lowest on the scale of intellect. There is no part of
the world which the civilized man cannot penetrate, in spite
of the fiercest and strongest wild beasts. But there are many
regions which he has never been able to explore, because
the untamed savage is more dangerous than beasts of prey.
This fact is a fine comment upon those Utopian theories
which represent the savage state as more desirable than the
civilized. Those same beings whose cultivation might make
not only the region which they inhabit a paradise, but shed
blessings on other lands, are now the most degraded and dis
gusting objects which the earth contains, and the terror of
civilized man, and even of one another. Yet this is the con
dition of almost the whole of the two wide continents of Africa
and Australasia, and of vast regions in Asia. What a terrific
waste of mind the picture exhibits !
In all the regions we have now examined beyond the limits
of Christianity, there is one feature which I ought not to pass
unnoticed on this occasion. In all Christian countries, we
find woman brought into free companionship, if not equality,
with man. Unrestrained by any thing but propriety and reli
gion, she goes abroad to enjoy the beauties of nature, and to
mingle freely in society, of which, indeed, she constitutes the
chief life and ornament. But as soon as we enter the domin
ions of the false prophet, she is shut out from all society save
that of her own sex and of her tyrannical husband, or rather

WASTE OF MIND. 391
master; or if we meet her, it is only as a walking mummy.
Not even in her own house can she be seen, though in the
presence of her lord#; and to inquire of him concerning her
welfare, or that of her children, is an unpardonable breach
of etiquette. And the reason of this contemptuous and bar
barous exclusion and neglect, the traveller is gravely in
formed, is, that woman has no soul. Well might the traveller
retort upon the ignorant Mussulman that such an opinion
could be entertained only by the man who has no soul. It is,
indeed, one of the strongest marks of the grovelling and das
tardly spirit of Mohammedanism and paganism that they
degrade and abuse woman because she is feeble and defence
less. There is no meanness so great as his who takes advan
tage of the power which Providence gave him to protect the
weak and confiding in order to enslave them. Yet, aside
from the influence of Christianity, this has been a character
istic of human nature ; and woman has been the uncomplain
ing victim in all ages. The oppression has been the more
severe in proportion as man has been farther removed from
a civilized state. It is less in Turkey and Persia than in
China, where females are sometimes seen yoked to the
plough and the harrow. Still deeper is the degradation in
Hindostan, where the widow must either be burned on the
funeral pile or by a public opinion more terrible than literal
flames. And yet more intolerable do we find the female
condition in Australasia and Polynesia, in some of whose
islands the first addresses woman receives from her future
husband consist in being levelled to the ground by a club ;
next she is beaten till sense and life are almost gone, and
then dragged over the rough ground to his bark hut. And,
as we might expect, it is said that such a beginning of the
matrimonial connection is a fair sample of its character
through life.

392 WASTE OF MIND.
Excepting the southern portion of our own continent,
where are no bright lines to relieve the gloomy picture, we
have now accompanied the missionary over the entire globe ;
and though, to his mind, the spiritual condition of our race
may seem the most degraded and hopeless, yet their intel
lectual state is hardly less distressing. Few, and narrow, and
far between are the oases that smile on the wide mental
waste. Out of Europe and the northern part of our own
continent, the eye searches almost in vain for a green spot to
rest upon. And when we come to take a nearer view even
of the brightest spots, we shall find that the light falls on
these only in fitful and scattered rays, illuminating but a small
portion of the surface. To take this nearer view will consti
tute the third part of the subject, where I propose to examine
it individually. Under this head, I wish to point out some
of the employments and habits of individuals and classes of
men which either te*nd to check the progress of intellect, or
exert no influence, or a bad influence, upon society — for in
all these ways waste of mental power is the result. And it
ought never to be forgotten that Providence intended that all
the energies of the human soul, in their most cultivated state,
should be devoted to useful and worthy objects, and that they
cannot, without guilt, be expended upon those injurious to
society or to individuals, or which are of doubtful utility.
In entering upon the catalogue of pursuits injurious to
society, one of the first on the list, which will immediately
occur to every person, is the manufacture and sale of intoxi
cating drinks. A few years since, I should have been com
pelled to enter into a formal argument to convince even a
respectable audience that such employments are injurious.
But thanks to divine mercy, which has wrought so wondrous
a revolution of public opinion, this is no longer necessary.

WASTE OF MIND. 393
In theory, at least, most men now entertain correct views on
this subject. Yet it should not be forgotten that, as Hudibras
expresses it, — " A man convinced against his will
Is of the same opinion still."
For it cannot be doubted that there are many such conver
sions among those who join the general cry against alcohol.
And the future historian of temperance will probably be com
pelled to say of many such as Monsieur Paradin has said of
the ladies in the fourteenth century, when the monk Thomas
Connecte preached with great zeal and power against their
lofty head dresses. " The women," says he, " that, like snails
in a fright, had drawn in their horns, thrust them out again
as soon as the danger was over." It ought, also, to be re
membered that, even now, no less than twelve thousand per
sons are directly engaged all the time in the manufacture of
intoxicating drinks in the United States, — or, at least, such
was the case two years ago, — and ten times as many a part
of their time. It cannot be doubted that at least as great a
proportion.pf the inhabitants of Europe, and in wine countries
a much larger one, is devoted to this business ; so that, in this
country and Europe, millions are worse than wasting their
energies in this execrable employment.
I cannot, in conscience, avoid placing in the same category
the cultivation and manufacture of a poisonous plant, whose
narcotic and exhilarating qualities make it a general favorite,
in spite of the Counterblast of King James, the decrees of
popes and emperors, and the yet more powerful attacks of
physicians, clergymen, and scientific men in our own day.
Rarely will you find the individual addicted to its use who
will not confess the habit to be a useless and filthy one ; and

394 WASTE OF MIND.
yet appetite triumphs over his convictions, and he is made a
slave for life. The consequence is, that the demand for this
weed all over the world is immense — no less than twenty
millions of dollars being annually expended for it in this
country. And to its preparation thousands, and even mil
lions, of' immortal minds devote all their powers, instead of
consecrating them to the advancement of knowledge and the
happiness of man. But I am sorry to say that, so extensive
is the habit of using this intoxicating drug, that I fear I shall
have but little sympathy in its condemnation, and that I shall
be regarded as too ascetic for this narcotic-loving age.
Shall I now proceed a step farther, and reckon among the
hurtful, or at least useless, articles of cultivation and manu
facture, two other plants ranked by physicians among the
narcotics and stimulants, yet reckoned almost indispensable
by half the inhabitants of the globe as beverages to brace up
the nerves in the morning, and to chase away fatigue and the
headache in the evening? If they are useless, — if Provi
dence has provided a" better beverage to our hands, — the
waste of mind is truly incalculable involved in their prepara
tion ; for how many millions does it occupy ! But I forbear ;
for I tread here upon delicate ground, and come into collision
with customs and prejudices too formidable for me to grap
ple with on an occasion like the present, when I would give
pleasure rather than pain. I do not fear, indeed, that even
a strong condemnation of these articles would give pain to
the members of this institution ; for so well satisfied are they
with the pure nectar of nature, that they lay no tax upon
China or the West Indies for their morning and evening bev
erage.* But I trust that both they and myself, contented
* I ought to say that the young ladies are not required to refrain from tea
and coffee ; but the fact is that very little is used.

WASTE OF MIND. 395
with the personal benefits we derive from our aqueous sym
pathies, will exercise a very liberal charity towards those who
in this respect cannot come up to our standard. If we can
not agree that there is a waste of mind in employing millions
of men to prepare these fascinating decoctions, all reasonable
Christian men can agree as to a multitude of other employ
ments, which consume unnecessarily and wickedly the time
and the talents of the human family.
We shall all agree that this is done on a wide scale by
luxurious living — by pampering an artificial and fastidious
appetite. I think I may safely pronounce that system of
living luxurious which indulges the appetite beyond what will
give the most perfect development and enjoyment to the mind
and the body. No man who is not strongly Epicurean in his
habits can object to this principle. And yet who does not
know how grossly and widely it is violated the world over ?
The wants of nature are few and simple ; and, until we ac
quire a morbid appetite, that simplicity affords even more
gustatory enjoyment than the costliest viands of pampered
luxury. But how early are we learned to crave factitious
and stimulating compounds ! and how soon do we come to
regard them as indispensable ! Hence human ingenuity is
taxed to the utmost to meet the demands of a vitiated and
fastidious appetite ; and the culinary art becomes so compli
cated as to need an encyclopaedia to explain it, and a seven
years' apprenticeship to learn it. In short, the whole time
and physical and intellectual energies of three fourths of the
human race are devoted, at this moment, to cultivating, pre
paring, and compounding food for the body. Is it possible
that such was the intention of Providence, in endowing man
with so many noble faculties ? Was it meant that the great
business of life should be to gratify the palate ? Why, then,

396 WASTE OF MIND.
was man made superior to the brutes, if, with his exalted
powers, he can accomplish no more than the brutes ? O, no
— • those powers were given us to be employed upon noble
objects. We have departed from nature, and given to our
animal and inferior constitution so exalted a regard that the
intellect, the immortal part, has become its servant. Man
can be healthier and happier, if he will substitute simplicity
for compound cookery, and a natural appetite for a vitiated
palate. And, on this occasion, I ought not to forget that the evils
of this artificial state of things fall most heavily upon woman.
Among the great mass of the community, she is expected to
take the responsibility of culinary manipulations ; and, indeed,
eminent skill in this department is generally thought to be the
perfection of her education. Almost the whole of her time
must be devoted to the preparation of delicacies for the table ;
and it is only the shreds and patches of life that she can devote
to the cultivation of her mind. Gladly would she introduce
more simplicity and temperance at her domestic board — not
that she might escape responsibility and care, but that she
might store her mind with a richer fund of knowledge, and
thus furnish her guests with something to feast the intellect
and the heart, as well as the palate. But tyrannical custom
and tyrannical man bind her down in hopeless servitude to
morbid appetite. Her husband frowns upon any diminution
of the usual variety and delicacy at the table ; and then, to
reward her for her compliance with his wishes, he gravely
pronounces her the weaker vessel, and becomes convinced of
her inferiority to himself in intellect. Verily I believe that,
if ever there comes a millennium of learning, along with a
millennium of religion, woman will obtain some relief from
her culinary thraldom. Then, and not till then, can the ques-

WASTE OF MIND. 397
tion be fairly discussed and decided which forms a standing
topic in the college, the academy, and the lyceum — whether
she be inferior to man in intellectual power.
I have already alluded to war as eminently hostile to men
tal improvement. Probably no custom of society has been
more so ; and consequently it is chargeable with a vast waste
of intellect. It exerts this pernicious influence in part by
destroying the lives of many who might be the intellectual
ornaments of their country ; for the highest and most enter
prising minds are most apt to be drawn into the vortex of
vice, because they love its powerful excitement. The wars
of Julius Caesar destroyed not less than two millions ; those
of Alexander of Macedon, as many ; those of Napoleon, twice
as many. Nor can it be doubted that all the wars which have
blasted the globe have swept from its surface as many human
beings as now inhabit it. Again, war inevitably produces a
state of things most unfavorable to the advancement of knowl
edge. Literature and science can flourish only amid the calm
and security of peace. The war spirit awakens too much
excitement, and brings into too powerful action the ferocious
passions, to allow of- the cultivation of the intellect. The
public mind becomes a stormy sea, ingulfing every thing
which cannot live in a tempest. Finally, the great pecuniary
expenses of war, which fall most heavily upon the middling
and poorer classes, deprive them in a great measure, and for
a long time, of the leisure and money necessary for extend
ing the blessings of education through the community. The
agricultural and manufacturing interests of a country are left
by war in a deranged state, and a heavy public debt is usually
entailed upon the nation ; and to pay this debt, and restore
the business of the country to a healthy condition, demand the
34

398 WASTE OF MIND.
time and strenuous labors of the citizens. A few facts may
more strikingly illustrate this point.
There is, perhaps, no part of the world where a more
efficient system of general education is in operation than in
the State of New York. In 1830, with a population of one
million nine hundred and eighteen thousand six hundred and
eighteen, she expended one million one hundred and twenty
thousand dollars for common schools and academies, where
nearly all of her half million of children and youth were in a
course of education. To provide the same means of instruc
tion for the seventeen millions of the United States, in 1840,
would cost ten millions of dollars ; and to provide the same
for the twenty-five millions of Great Britain would need fifteen
millions ; and for the eight hundred millions of the entire
globe it would require four hundred and seventy millions of
dollars. Now, let us compare these sums with the expenses
of war.
The revolutionary war of this country with Great Britain
cost our government six hundred millions, while the individual
losses by the citizens of both countries must have been many
times as great. Suppose it the same, and here we have ex
pended on the American side, in seven years, money enough
to provide the present population of the whole country with
instruction like that enjoyed in New York for one hundred
years, and the population of Great Britain for eighty years.
The last war with Great Britain cost our government fifty
millions ; and, on the same principle as above stated, enough
money was spent to afford similar instruction to both countries
for ten years, although the war lasted but two and a half
years. A single war with Bonaparte cost Great Britain five
thousand two hundred and fifteen millions of dollars — suffi
cient to afford the means of instruction to all her population

WASTE OF MIND. 399
for three hundred and fifty years, and to give the same means
to all the world for eleven years. In 1835, the national debt
of Great Britain, incurred for war purposes, amounted to
threa-thousand eight hundred and ninety millions of dollars.
The interest on this is one hundred and forty-two millions,
and would furnish her inhabitants with the means of educa
tion for ten years ; that is, she pays a yearly interest that
would do this. The daily expenses of a man-of-war, when
in service, are about fifteen hundred dollars, or more than
half a million for a year. Nineteen such ships would of
course cost as much as to educate all the children and youth
in the United States. Ten such ships, to say nothing of the
sum requisite for their construction, would require a pecuniary
outlay as great as the income of all the benevolent societies
in Great Britain and the United States, which in 1840 was
five million one hundred and thirteen thousand four hundred
and twenty-two dollars.
The average expense of the Florida war, carried on with
only a few hundred Indians in the swamps of that country,
has been from two to five millions, from 1836 to 1840 — a
sum nearly equal to that collected, with vast labor, as the
fruit of Christian benevolence, among the forty millions of
Great Britain and the United States.
But the expenses of war are not confined to the period
during which the war lasts ; for it is the common maxim of
rulers, in time of peace to prepare for war. The sum paid
for this purpose by the United States, from 1791 to 1832, a
period of forty-one years, was seven hundred and seventy-
seven millions, or nineteen millions annually. This was
twelve times more than all the other expenses of the govern
ment during the same period, and would give instruction to
all the children of the United States for twice that number of

400 WASTE OF MIND.
years. In 1837 and 1838, we paid twenty-six millions an
nually for the same purpose. The expenses of the English
government, from the same cause, from 1816 to 1837, a
period of twenty-one years of peace, was two thousand and
ninety-one millions of dollars, or one hundred millions per
year — sufficient to educate her entire population for nearly
seven years. If we suppose the expenses of the United
States and the other governments of Europe to be only half
as great as those of Great Britain for war purposes during
peace, we should still have the startling aggregate of five
hundred millions annually — a sum sufficient for the educa
tion of all Europe and the United States for more than three
years, and of all the world for more than one year. If the
whole world expend as much in proportion to their numbers
for war purposes during peace, it would form the frightful
sum of one thousand six hundred millions of dollars — suffi
cient to educate all its population three and a half years.
Truly this is a peace establishment with a vengeance.
These statements seem more like the dreams of disordered
fancy than like sober fact. But they are most painfully true ;
nay, they fall far short of the reality. But, instead of looking
on the dark side of the picture, as I expected to do when I
began these statistics, they have thrown a bright beam of
promise upon the future condition of the world. They show
us how immense are the pecuniary capabilities of the human
family. They show us what an incalculable amount of funds
the world will have at its disposal, for the promotion of sci
ence, literature, and religion, when they shall be brought to
act according to the principles of reason and religion ; for
all that now goes into the war channel will then be consecrat
ed to the service of knowledge and benevolence. In spite
of all the oppressions and disadvantages under which the

WASTE OF MIND. 401
human family have hitherto labored, they have been able to
sustain this immense war tax which I have described. Nay,
I have mentioned only the direct expenses of war. But the
losses always sustained by withdrawing men from their regu
lar pursuits, by blocking up the outlets of trade, by idleness
and discouragement, and in a multitude of other ways, are
far greater. In addition to all this, in most countries men
have been compelled to sustain the extortions of tyrannical
rulers. Yet has the world borne all these immense taxes ;
and a few years of peace are generally sufficient to enable a
nation to recover its pecuniary independence. How vast,
then, will be its surplus pecuniary resources when war and
oppression shall cease, and all its energies can be devoted
unobstructed to the various pursuits of business ! Instead of
the stinted sums which men are now persuaded, with great
difficulty, to bestow upon objects of education and benevo
lence, and which leave those devoted to such pursuits to dis
couragement and heart sickness, because their hands are so
tied and their energies so cramped, there will then be ready
for every noble object more than is wanted. Millions will
then be substituted for thousands. This is indeed a bright
page of human history, on which we are permitted to gaze in
anticipation ; and it affords a cheering resting place for the
eye, when placed in contrast with the terrific waste of mind
which has been the consequence of war.
Do I seem to any to be indulging in dreams when I say
that most assuredly such a bright period will come ? But
do they doubt that the Bible predicts unequivocally a period
of universal peace, and the prevalence of general, if not uni
versal, benevolence ? In such a state, why will not the vast
treasures that have been wasted upon the destruction of men
be consecrated to the diffusion of knowledge and religion
34*

402 WASTE OF MIND.
through all the earth ? — objects that claim the first regard of
every benevolent heart. Assuredly this vision is not imagi
nation ; and it looms up in the future, — and I would fondly
hope not in the distant future, — a bright star of hope for this
abused and down-trodden world. The little which has hitherto
been contributed to raise man out of the slough of ignorance
and sin has accomplished a great deal. What splendid re
sults, then, will be witnessed when ample means shall be
placed within the reach of every human being for the highest
attainments in knowledge and holiness !
Although war has been thus preeminently instrumental in
the perversion and waste of human intellect, there is a kin
dred evil scarcely less hurtful to man's highest interests,
(hough more unnoticed in its operation. I refer to the various
oppressions from tyrannical rulers and masters, under which
the human family have been sighing and groaning for thou
sands of years. If I were to draw out in detail the physical
sufferings which result from such oppression, I could reach a
tender chord of sympathy in your bosoms. But when I merely
calculate the intellectual loss which the world has thereby
sustained, I feel that I can draw forth no responsive sigh.
And yet this is in reality a darker part of the picture than the
physical suffering presents ; for in this way have unnumbered
millions of minds been shut up in the hopeless dungeon of
ignorance and sin. But the world is incapable of estimating
its loss, because it has never enjoyed the blessing, and there
fore it cannot feel that loss. Nor can I describe it. I will
only refer you to one dark feature in that domestic oppression
which reigns in our own country, and for which, therefore,
we as a nation are responsible. In most of the states of this
Union where slavery exists, the law forbids that the slave
should be taught to read by severe penalties ; and in one state,

WASTE OF MIND. 403
at least, that penalty, upon a repetition of the offence, is death.
Now, if we admit all the reports that have ever been circulated
as to the physical cruelties practised upon the slave to be true,
they are hardly worth naming in comparison with this effort
to stifle and crush the undying souls of two and a half mil
lions of our inhabitants. Nor does the injury stop here ; for
when we find that the poor black man, whose intellect has
been thus crushed into the dust from generation to generation,
shows less of mental acumen than the free Caucasian, we
proudly and presumptuously infer his intellectual inferiority,
and hence justify his enslaved condition. We have, however,
the testimony of missionaries from almost every tribe under
heaven, which demonstrates that the minds of young children
every where exhibit almost equal mental strength and aptness
to learn. Hence the slaves of our own land might have risen
as high on the scale of knowledge and civilization as the free
white man ; and the immense disparity in this respect which
now exists may all be imputed to their degraded condition ;
and hence, too, the world must hold us responsible for all this
mental waste, who keep the chains of slavery riveted upon
these millions. O, this is a fearful responsibility ! I leave
out of the account the bodily sufferings of the slave. He
who maltreats my body injures only what was once brute
matter, and will soon be brute matter again. But he who
mars and manacles my soul lays a ruthless hand upon that
immortal principle which is an emanation of the Deity, which
allies me to the Deity, and which a righteous God will not
see abused with impunity,
In a free country like ours, there is a prodigious waste of v
mind in the excitement and discussions of party politics. The
mental efforts devoted often to a gubernatorial, and especially
a presidential, election would be sufficient, if turned into the

404 WASTE OF MIND.
channels of literature and science, to raise our country at
once to the highest rank on the scale of knowledge. Did
these periodical excitements prepare the mind to engage with
greater ardor in literary pursuits, they ought not to be viewed
as a waste of intellect ; but their tendency is decidedly the
reverse. No men are so little likely to become eminent in
science or literature as strong political partisans. The organs
of combativeness and self-esteem soon become so excessively
developed as to stifle the reflective faculties. In a few cases,
indeed, these electioneering battles must be fought to save the
liberties of the country; but, in general, an impartial and
uncommitted man will see that there is scarcely any thing to
choose between the rival candidates as to general character.
And when he perceives how sharp and furious the contest
becomes between the partisans, he will be reminded of Dean
Swift's couplet respecting disputes about music : —
" Strange that such high disputes should be
'Twixt tweedle dum and tweedle dee."
Notwithstanding the awful predictions by the defeated party
of the loss of liberty and every thing else valuable, the gov
ernment and the affairs of the country generally move on as
usual, leaving the philosopher and the Christian, while they
rejoice in the calm that has succeeded, to lament that such
powerful interests and giant efforts should not be devoted to
worthier objects.
In the strong passion for accumulating property which ex
ists among men, and which is said to be eminently character
istic of Americans, we find another source of a waste of
mind. In this country, students, like others, are usually
obliged to build up their pecuniary, as well as literary, for
tunes. The consequence is, that the love of money in too

WASTE OF MIND. 405
many cases supplants the love of knowledge ; and it is a
painful fact that a vast proportion of our publicly educated
youth close their literary labors with the day that gives them
a professional license. They seem to have submitted to the
drudgery of an eight or ten years' course of study chiefly for
the purpose of learning how to accumulate property. Pro
fessors and tutors have taken them to the Castalian fountain,
and tried to make them drink deeply of the pure waters.
They have been led abroad into the wide fields of nature, and
shown every thing there " sublimely great and elegantly
little." They have been taught to take those enlarged views
of men and things, and of their own responsibilities and capa
bilities, which will lead them to sacrifice selfish and petty
worldly interests to the cause of science, and to consider
themselves devoted through all their days to the advancement
of human knowledge and happiness. And now behold the
magnificent result. They have attained the sublime art of
acquiring money a little faster than the farmer or mechanic ;
and most heroically do they consecrate the remainder of life to
this most noble enterprise. They have been so long so near
the sun of science that their Daedalian wings are melted off;
and from their lofty flights through the wide universe, they
quietly settle down into the nutshell of a lynx-eyed money
catcher. To apply the remark of the poet, with a slight
variation, — " They narrow their mind,
And to money give up what was meant for mankind."
These remaiks may seem unreasonably severe. But can
the fact be doubted that a large majority of educated men do
give up almost entirely the further prosecution of science and
literature after they are established in one of the learned

406 WASTE OF MIND.
professions ? And how few ever accomplish more than to
accumulate a moderate fortune by a diligent attention to their
profession ! And ought a man who has enjoyed so many
advantages, and held converse with so many of the master
minds of former times, — ought he to catch none of their
spirit, and to be willing to abandon the noble pursuits of
knowledge, and to be satisfied with the mere ordinary routine
of a profession, useful, indeed, but requiring scarcely any of
the acquisitions which he has made during his education —
especially when the continued pursuit of some branch of liter
ature or science would make him more eminent and success
ful in that profession ? But the difficulty seems to be that
this continued devotion to literary pursuits would make his
profession les? profitable in a pecuniary point of view. Money,
indeed, is no' to be despised by any man; and, after all, very
few of our professional men are burdened with it. If it
comes into a man's hands as the fruit of his intellectual
labors and "his economy, he ought to be thankful, and to
make a wise improvement of it. But I complain that so
many should consider its acquisition as the chief object of an
education, and abandon the prosecution of science and litera
ture, because the two objects are thought to be incompatible.
And the fact is that, so well understood is this incongruity, a
large proportion of the youth in our colleges, even though
not compelled to it by poverty, are in the habit, after going
through them, of selling off the standard works which they
study there, and which they are taught to regard as next to
the Bible in value, just as if they should have no further use
for them. This appears to me to be the same almost as if
the mechanic should dispose of his tools after he had learned
the use of them by a seven years' apprenticeship. How
many men, also, who have become attached to some branch

WASTE OF MIND. 407
of literature or science in early life, soon abandon it, on en
tering upon their profession ! — not, surely, because it would
make them less learned or respected, but because they find
that the charlatans with whom they have to compete, having
no learning to impede them, are able to bear away the pecu
niary palm. In this case, the fault lies chiefly with the com
munity, who prefer the prompt, pliable, and voluble empiric
to the more modest and cautious, yet learned, lawyer or
physician. In the early relish which is acquired, in the present state
of society, for things artificial, I find another prolific cause of
a waste of mind. God has filled the world with a vast vari
ety of objects, animal, vegetable, and mineral, far more at
tractive and beautiful than any result of man's invention. He
has scattered them in immense profusion all around us, and
brought them into contact with all our senses. He has also
implanted in the human soul a strong love for these objects.
I never saw a young child who did not exhibit a decided rel
ish for natural objects. How eagerly will children pluck the
opening flower, or gather up the sparkling mineral, or chase
the gay insect, and gaze upon the brilliant bird ! Indeed,
they are constitutionally naturalists, and it is easy to excite in
them so much enthusiasm, that they will forget their ordinary
food, if you will lead them forth into the fields, and point out
to them the wonders of creation. But in the present condi
tion of society, this natural taste is not cultivated. They are
sent to the primary school, and there their attention is turned
to subjects that have little connection with nature. I do not
complain that they are taught grammar, and geography, and
history, and arithmetic ; but I do complain that there is not
mingled with these studies, so dull to them, some instruction
in zoology, botany, and mineralogy. The first lines of these

408 WASTE OF MIND.
branches might be taught to children as early at least as they
learn the alphabet, and it would be a very easy matter to
make four fifths of them no mean adepts in these branches in
very early life, and that, too, without interfering at all with
other studies. Once call into action their enthusiasm for nat
ural history, and you will find it a most powerful means of
preserving them from idleness and wicked companionship.
But instead of this course, evidently pointed out by the
providence of God, the attention of children is directed almost
wholly to things artificial. The boy soon learns that money
is the most important thing in this world, because it will pro
cure for him toys, and delicacies for the palate ; and as he
grows older, he looks forward for happiness to the possession
of a fashionable equipage, and other means of sensual enjoy
ment. The girl finds very early that dress and personal
appearance are the grand objects for which she should live ;
and as she grows up to womanhood, this is too apt to become
the ruling passion of her life. Every freak and every change
in' fashion are watched with more carefulness than her health,
her mental improvement, or any thing else. Thus does she
unconsciously waste enough of mental power to make her
very wise and very learned. Indeed, were all the anxiety,
and study, and ingenuity, and expense, which woman now
devotes, throughout the world, to these objects, to be given to
the cultivation of her mind, permanently endowed female
seminaries would be as common as colleges and universities,
and the world would have its admired galaxy of female au
thors, encircling the whole heavens — not, as now, a few
scattered stars, scarcely noticed.
Let me not be thought, however, by these remarks, so
utilitarian in my views as to suppose that attention to personal

WASTE OF MIND. 409
appearance, and to objects generally whose principal use is to
gratify the love of the harmonious and the beautiful, is a mere
waste of money and of mind. The elegant symmetry of
Nature's works, and the lavish manner in which she has
adorned her infinitely varied productions, often for no assign
able cause but to gratify the beholder, teach me a very differ
ent lesson, and show me that it is not only right, but a duty,
to imitate nature, by expending time and money to give an
attractive and elegant appearance to our persons, our dwell
ings, our streets, and indeed to all the products of our labors,
so far as it can be done consistently with higher duties. If a
man gives that time and attention to these objects which are
indispensable to the acquisition of knowledge, or if he devote
to them that wealth which should have been bestowed upon
the poor and the distressed, or any other object of benevo
lence, who would not say that he was doing wrong, morally
wrong? If he can satisfy the just claims of learning and
benevolence, no matter how much of his surplus time and
surplus money he gives to objects whose chief use is to gratify
the taste ; and I doubt not, that when men shall spend their
time and property more as God would have them than they
now do, a much greater portion will be devoted to works of
taste and ornament. But as the world now is, with so much
ignorance to be enlightened, and misery to be relieved, when
the calls of learning and benevolence are so loud upon us, it
is a most difficult point to determine how much we may con
secrate to purposes of mere ornament. And I complain, that
the noble powers of woman, so eminently adapted, if turned
into the right channel, to bless mankind, should so extensively
be suffered to waste themselves upon an affair comparatively
so unimportant as dress ; especially when I recollect, that
35

410 WASTE OF MIND.
"Loveliness
Needs not the foreign aid of ornament,
But is when unadorned adorned the most."
And confident am I that such would not be the case, were
the constitutional bias of the young for natural objects more
faithfully cultivated, and artificial objects made to assume in
their estimation a proper, that is, a subordinate place.
Another most pernicious effect resulting from this artificial
state of things in society, is that strong love of romance,
which now almost constitutes a universal passion. At least
one fifth part of all the works published in this country are
works of fiction ; and probably one half of the works actu
ally read are of this description. And they are devoured
with epicurean greediness by almost all classes, especially by
the young. Need I stop to convince this audience, that the
time and mental effort devoted to the preparation and perusal
of such works are much worse than wasted ? that they en
gender views and feelings decidedly hostile to thorough mental
discipline, and to temporal and eternal happiness ? Now, if a
love of nature were early and thoroughly cultivated in the
youthful bosom, I am confident that usually it would forestall
the love of fiction. For does the youth resort to works of
romance because he wishes to gratify a natural taste for the
new and the beautiful ? Where can he find such novelty and
such beauty as nature unfolds ? Is it a love of variety that
makes romance so fascinating ? Here, too, nature is as su
perior to human invention as the Author of nature is to man.
Or is it a love of the marvellous and the magnificent that
constitutes the chief attraction of the dreams of imagination ?
O, where are the wonders and sublimities that can be com
pared to those which open before the student of nature at
every step ? — wonders of fact, and not of fiction ; on which,

WASTE OF MIND. 411
therefore, the mind may feast continually without fear, and
find all its powers invigorated and refreshed. In short, to
him who has cultivated that love for the works of creation
which is originally implanted in all our hearts,
" God makes all nature beauty to his eye,
And music to his ear."
And yet what multitudes there are, even of refined and
cultivated minds, to whom nature is but a synonyme for vul
garity ; who can recite fluently every tale in the Waverleys
and the Bozziana, but whose knowledge of nature is limited
to an acquaintance with a few roses, dahlias, and other exot
ics, whose stamens have been changed to petals by cultivation,
so as to have lost the delicate beauty of their natural state !
Gladly would I linger on this part of my subject, and pre
sent other arguments to win the young to the study and love
of nature. As they advance in life, they will find that a love
of artificial objects and pleasures will pall upon the mind,
and ere long be succeeded by disgust. But a genuine love
of nature clings to the heart in all the vicissitudes of life ; in
adversity as well as in prosperity ; in sickness as well as in
health ; even to extreme old age, when almost every other
worldly source of pleasure is dried up. Hear the testimony
of Hannah More, at the age of eighty-two. " The only one of
my youthful fond attachments," says she, " which exists still in
its full force, is a passion for scenery, raising flowers, and
landscape gardening." Well, indeed, will it be for the young,
if they will follow the example of this venerable woman, and
early acquire a passion for scenery and flowers. For as they
pass through life, they will find the world often frowning upon
them ; but the flowers will always smile. And it is sweet, in
the day of adversity, to be met with a smile.

412 WASTE OF MIND.
The last prolific cause of mental waste, which I shall men
tion, is indolence and irresolution. Among the vast numbers
of men capable of rising to eminence in art, science, or lit
erature, and of making a deep impression on the world, how
few confer any lasting benefit upon their generation, by their
works, inventions, or discoveries ! And it seems to me that
the want of perseverance — in other words, indolence and
irresolution — is the principal cause of their failure. Go to
the primary school, and, among a hundred boys you will
usually find fifty exhibiting nearly equal natural abilities, and
making equal progress in learning. In the academy and the
college you will find as large a proportion, between whose
talents and scholarship you will see scarcely any difference.
Year after year, they will move forward shoulder to shoulder,
and come to the end of their literary course so nearly abreast,
that it requires a nice application of the merit gauge to give
them a difference of rank on the scale of honorary appoint
ments ; and the most sagacious application of the doctrine of
probabilities will not enable any one to predict with confidence
which of them will be distinguished above his fellows in fu
ture life. But let the history of those boys and young men,
whether from the primary school, the acadenty, or the college,
be consulted at the end of their lives, and you will scarcely
find a dozen, out of a hundred, who have risen to high dis
tinction in their business or profession, or made valuable dis
coveries, or left a deep impression upon the world. The
others may have done much good ; but why have they not
done as much as their dozen comrades, who, during the
years of their elementary education, were not able to outstrip
them ? We must allow something for feeble health, and
other unforeseen difficulties, hedging up the path of a few.
But in respect to the great body of these men, difference in

WASTE OF MIND. 413
application and perseverance will alone explain their difference
of success. The twelve had acquired, during their early
days, an ardent love of knowledge, and a deep sense of their
responsibilities to God and the world, and the result was, a
strong determination to make use of the vantage ground which
they had attained, for pushing their conquests still farther into
the dominions of art and science. Having prepared them
selves by an elementary acquaintance with the circle of
knowledge, they selected some particular department, to which
taste or duty invited, and concentrated their energies upon its
thorough examination ; being convinced that he who attempts
to master all subjects, though he may become respectable in
all, can be accurate and successful in none. Having chosen
their field, they went about its exploration as a business for
life. The morning's dawn and the evening's darkness found
them still at their work. Those seasons which most men
devote to relaxation witnessed in them little more than a
change of objects, whereby their exhausted energies were
recruited. Time they regarded as a treasure too rich to have
any of it wasted ; and therefore all its shreds and patches
were carefully used. The difficulties which they encountered
in their researches served only to awaken new effort, and
every new conquest gave them an earnest of future victories.
Feeble health may have retarded their progress ; poverty's
skeleton hand may often have been laid with a crushing weight
upon their heads ; the world may have passed them by in cold
neglect, or cast upon them a contemptuous frown, while the
discerning and liberal few may not have found them out. But
the unconquerable spirit within them stood erect in spite of all
these obstructions. The delight whieh every step of their
progress afforded by opening new wonders before them ; the
increased power which each acquisition gave them to advance
35*

414 WASTE OF MIND.
to other victories ; the desire of leaving their names perma
nently inscribed upon the history of man ; and perhaps also
those higher motives to diligence derived from a sense of
responsibility to Heaven ; all these motives were continually
sounding in their ears the onward cry. And onward they
went, triumphing over one difficulty after another, until the
world at last confessed their superiority, sought from them the
lessons of wisdom, and lavished upon them its honors. But
their former companions lingered in the race. They were
wanting in the untiring industry and indomitable spirit of per
severance which these twelve men exhibited, and therefore
they have not stood forth as the master spirits of their times,
nor secured the homage of the world ; and the wave of ob
livion has rolled over their memories. But having equal tal
ents in the commencement of their course with their more
energetic companions, their failure and the world's loss must
be imputed to their indolence and irresolution.
But I will not further weary your patience by pointing out
other causes of that waste of mind of which the world ex
hibits so many melancholy examples. Melancholy indeed is
the dark catalogue which I have already presented ; incalcu
lable the amount of that loss which the world has always sus
tained, and still sustains, from perverted and neglected intel
lect. Now, I maintain that God has given to the human fam
ily, as a whole, an inalienable right to all the intellectual labor
of which the individuals of that family are capable. What
ever deficiency, or perversion, or waste, there is in those la
bors, it is just so much downright robbery, for which some
body is accountable. So long, however, has this robbery been
practised, that the world has become insensible to its rights,
and knows not how to estimate its loss ; and individuals have
forgotten their responsibility. How great that responsibility

WASTE OF MIND. 415
is, the views which I have presented may assist us in deter
mining. Who of us does not shudder when he thinks of
that deep stain of guilt which rests on his soul who tears the
wretched African from his home, and shuts him up in hope
less servitude for life on the cotton, rice, and sugar planta
tions of the tropics ? Why are we so insensible to that far
darker crime by which a whole world have been kept in igno
rance and wretchedness for so many thousands of years?
Probably the reason is that, in this sense, we are all of us
slave dealers and slave holders ; nay, we enslave our own
souls. Such views as I have presented cannot but exalt our esti
mation of literary and scientific pursuits, and of all efforts
which are made to promote the cause of education. The
heart sickens when it sees how many and how powerful are
the causes in operation to pervert, and crush, and waste man's
intellect, and to keep those powers grovelling in the dust
which should be rising and soaring among the stars. But it
is cheering to know that there are some, and in this country
many, who are striving to rescue the noblest thing on earth,
the human soul, from its thraldom and degradation. They
stand, indeed, in the world's Thermopylae, and struggle against
a fearful odds. But they shall not fall there, like the band
of Leonidas. Nay, they shall see the deluge of ignorance
and sin which has so long been dashing over the fairest por
tion of the globe beaten back ; and the dry land of knowl
edge and virtue shall appear, and the flowers of hope and
happiness shall spring up, and the rich fruits of science and
religion shall fill the garners of every land.
A beautiful bow of promise already spans the horizon ;
for, when Christianity prevails in all lands and fully controls
all hearts, then those powerful causes of intellectual waste

416 WASTE OF MIND.
and perversion which I have pointed out shall pass away.
Intemperance in every form, and cruel war, and fierce party
collisions, and inordinate selfishness, and factitious and unnat
ural desires shall all be sacrificed upon the altar of benevo
lence ; and man shall shake off his indolence, and ample
means and motives shall be placed before the whole human
family for intellectual and moral culture. Then shall such
progress be made in science, literature, and art as will throw
into the shade all former bright spots in human history ; then
will the world learn for the first time how deep has been her
degradation, how incalculably valuable are the rights of which
for thousands of years she has been deprived, and how truly
frightful has been the waste of mind since the beginning. O,
how cheering to the lover of science to look forward to those
halcyon days which Christianity tells us shall assuredly come 1
Imagination need not fear that her most vivid colors can
outdo the original ; for if the little benevolence and the little
knowledge which have been in the world hitherto have ac
complished so much, what imagination can sketch the picture
when the hearts of earth's vast population shall all be swayed
by benevolence, and their minds all disciplined and expanded
by science ?
The institution whose anniversary we celebrate to-day is to
me an earnest that such a bright period is coming on. A
brief sketch of its history is, therefore, an appropriate close
to my remarks.
There is a place in Essex county, called Agawam by the
natives, which was visited by our pilgrim fathers nine years
before the settlement of Plymouth, and of which Captain John
Smith, of Virginia, gave the following account six years be
fore the Mayflower entered Massachusetts Bay. " Here,"
says he, " are many rising hills, and on their tops and de-

WASTE OF MIND. 417
scents are many cornefields and delightful groues. On the
east is an isle of two or three leagues in length — the one
half plain marsh ground, fit for pasture or salt ponds, with
many fine high groues of mulberry trees. There are also
okes, pines, walnuts, and other wood, to make this place an
excellent habitation." Nineteen years afterwards, the .pil
grims located themselves in this spot ; and, more than one
hundred years after, two young ladies had made the pleasant
village which had sprung up there the seat of a flourishing
female seminary. God had greatly smiled upon their efforts ;
for while they placed their standard of literary attainments
high, religion, not nominally only, but practically, was made
paramount to every thing else. The consequence was, that
Ipswich female seminary soon attracted the attention, not only
of the wise and the good in our own land, but even of visitors
from Europe ; for it sent a benign influence to the remotest
portions of this country, and even to far distant heathen lands.
Its moulding power gave to the female character that happy
shape which, while it fitted woman for great energy of action,
did not hide those milder virtues and that grace of manners
which make her influence almost irresistible over the human
heart. The ladies who had charge of this seminary were not in
sensible to the blessings with which God had crowned their
labors. They had the joy of witnessing, from month to month
and from year to year, a silent yet transforming divine influ
ence, whereby a large proportion of all who came there
unconverted returned to their paternal roof with the new song
of redeeming love upon their lips. They went back, also,
with a new and deeper sense of their responsibilities to their
fellow-beings, and with a strong determination henceforth to
devote the energies of their minds to the cause of human

418 WASTE OF MIND.
improvement and happiness. But as these teachers mused
on the subject, often would the inquiry arise, How shall the
blessings of our institution be perpetuated ? Often, when the
labors of the day were ended, and the silence of evening was
broken only by the whip-poor-will's song or the distant surf
breaking on the shore, would they muse upon this question
until the fire burned within them, and an irrepressible desire
arose to do something more than they had done for placing
the means of education permanently within the reach of the
daughters of America — especially those whose pecuniary
means are small, but to whom Providence has made up in
mind what is wanting in money. As they cast their eyes
over the land, though colleges and universities met them at
almost every step, not a single permanent female seminary
could be found. In many places, such schools had risen
up and become distinguished while some able teacher was
at their head ; but as soon as she was gone, the glory of
the institution departed. Their own would probably share
the same fate. Already did the occasional sinking of nature,
under their arduous labors, remind them that those labors
must soon forever cease. But could an institution like theirs
be moderately endowed by a benevolent public, so that
rooms, and apparatus, and books should be gratuitously fur
nished, the same system of instruction might pass from
teacher to teacher through successive generations. After
long deliberation and much prayer, one of these teachers
resolved to consecrate herself for the remainder of life, if
necessary, to carry this plan into effect. The other has not,
indeed, been permitted to build the temple ; but it was not
because, like David, she was unfit, but because an enfeebled
constitution has compelled her to retire from the arduous
duties of public instruction ; though I am happy to say that

WASTE OF MIND. 419
she is able to fill a private station with great dignity, useful
ness, and happiness.
The plan was thus laid, and the agent ready for the work ;
but what an herculean task to carry it into execution ! Who
could be made to believe that permanence in a female semi
nary was desirable ? Who, especially, could be persuaded to
give money for an enterprise of so doubtful utility and uncer
tain success? I believe the effort must have been a failure,
if, in the first place, the prime mover had not been a woman ;
if, in the second place, she had not in the outset appealed to
woman ; and if, in the third place, she had not acquired so
firm a conviction of the excellence of her cause as to feel
assured that God would ultimately make it triumph — so that
coldness, ridicule, and enmity would produce no effect but to
stimulate her to greater efforts and more fervent prayer.
Yes, she did first appeal to women ; and, to the everlasting
honor of the ladies of Ipswich, be it known that they raised
a purse of five hundred dollars to give the first impulse to
the cause ; and, what is still more to their credit, they did this
when they knew that the proposed seminary would be located
in some other part of the country. This was soon increased
to one thousand dollars by other ladies ; and if that sum had
not been raised, probably the walls of this seminary would
never have gone up. Thus the prompt impulse of woman's
generous heart has secured that object which man's cold wis
dom would have deemed quixotic, but which he is now willing
to acknowledge to be most noble in character and rich in
promise. It cannot be expected that, on this occasion, I should go
into minute details respecting the means used to advance this
enterprise, and the many difficulties which have been over
come to bring it into its present condition. There is but one

420 WASTE OF MIND.
individual who could write such a history ; nor could even she
give us an adequate idea of the toils and sacrifices which this
great work has cost — how hard it was at first to gain the ear
of the Christian public long enough to unfold the plan ; how
much harder still to make even a few believe in its feasibil
ity ; how the way seemed often so hedged up that prayer was
the only resort ; and, what was worse to bear with a Christian
spirit, how even influential fellow-Christians endeavored to
put down the enterprise by scorn and ridicule. Even most
of us, who have viewed it with deep interest from the begin
ning, will recollect how the pleadings of its eloquent advocate
produced in us only faith enough to say to her, We admire
the plan, and wish it might succeed, and any influence we
possess shall be cheerfully given to it ; but you must expect
a hard struggle to accomplish it. And, in fact, while we could
not but speak encouraging words, there was within us a faint
ing of the heart in anticipation of defeat. We forgot the
sentiment of Elliot, that " prayers and pains through Jesus
Christ can do any thing." And as we look around us to-day,
we stand rebuked for our misgivings and unbelief. Little
did I ever imagine that my eyes would be allowed to behold
one of the finest edifices in New England so soon completed,
and with its two hundred inmates already exerting a strong
influence in arresting the waste of female mind in our coun
try. I had thought of it as one of the visions which the early
Christian friends of this institution might be permitted to enjoy,
long after they had gone to their final rest, as they came down
hither on some errand of mercy. But to most of them the
vision is granted this side the grave ; and to-day are they per
mitted to mingle their congratulations at the completion of
this noble enterprise, and to unite in thanksgiving to that infi
nite Being whose blessing has crowned every effort to advance
it with success.

WASTE OF MIND. 421
The blessing of God, my friends, is indeed to be specially
acknowledged, on this occasion, as having been experienced
from the first conception of this institution to its completion.
Those who have borne the heat and burden of the enterprise
have found his providence their cloud by day and their pillar
of fire by night, and therefore their courage has not fainted.
The success of the seminary thus far has been only a fulfil
ment of the promise of Jehovah, Them that honor me I will
honor ; for holiness to the Lord was engraved upon its foun
dations, and stands out in bold relief upon the top stone.
From the first it has been distinctly understood that, while an
elevated and thorough system of instruction should be here
pursued, religion should receive a still higher attention, and
take the precedence of every thing else. This I conceive to
be the grand fundamental principle on which the institution
rests, and the secret of all its success hitherto, and the only
ground of hope for the future. God has set his seal to this
principle by the almost constant presence of that divine energy
by which the soul is converted. And while that principle is
practically regarded, it will continue to be blessed. Its teach
ers, its present mode of instruction, its peculiarities of do
mestic arrangement, may all be changed without essentially
affecting its prosperity, so long as this principle is made the
pole star of action. Nay, its influence shall become wider
and wider, deeper and deeper. By means of its example and
its well-educated pupils, it shall operate all over the land to
raise the standard of female education, and to rescue woman
from the perversion and waste of her powers. Man, too,
shall come under its humanizing influence, and be awakened
to new efforts in the cause of learning and benevolence. Nor
shall that influence be limited to the civilized portions of our
continent. Its daughters shall go forth, as some have already
36

422 WASTE OF MIND.
gone, with minds well disciplined and hearts burning with a
desire to bless mankind, to the persecuted red man of our
western wilds, and to the degraded heathen and Mohammedan
of far distant continents and islands ; and in every quarter of
the globe shall the ignorant, the oppressed, and the miserable,
especially abused and suffering woman, call down a blessing
upon its founders and its pupils. It shall add new power to
that lever which benevolence has placed beneath the regions
of ignorance and sin, and which is fast heaving them up into
the daylight of Christianity and science. It shall form one
of those radiant points from which the blended rays of knowl
edge and religion will go forth, to aid in forming that halo of
light which shall at length encircle the whole earth, and make
it noonday among all the nations.

-HXIPS, SAMPSON, & OO.'S PUBLICATIONS.
HISTORY.
$UttBtt.
HISTORY OF THE REIGN OF PHIHP II.
By William H. Prescott. With Portraits, Maps, Plates, &o.
Two volumes, 8vo. Price, in muslin, $2 per volume.
The reign of Philip the Second, embracing the last half of the sixteenth century,
Is one of the most important as well as interesting portions of modern history.
It is necessary to glance only at some of the principal events. The War of the
Netherlands — the model, so to say, of our own glorious War of the Revolution
— the Siege of Malta, and its memorable defence by the Knights of St. John; the
brilliant career of Don John of Austria, the horo of Lepanto ; the Quixotic adven
tures of Don Sebastian of Portugal ; the conquest of that kingdom by the Duke
of Alba ; Philip's union with Mary of England, and his wars with Elizabeth, with
the story of the Invincible Armada ; the Inquisition, with its train of woes ; the
rebellion of the Moriscos, and the cruel manner in which it was avenged — these
form some of the prominent topics in the foreground of the picture, which pre-
Bents a crowd of subordinate details of great interest in regard to the character
ami court of Philip, and to the institutions of Spain, then in the palmy days of
her prosperity. The materials for this vast theme were to be gathered from every
part of Europe, and the author has for many years been collecting them from the
archives of different capitals. The archives of Simancas, in particular, until very
lately closed against even the native historian, have been opened to his researches ;
and his collection has been further enriched by MSS. from some of the principal
houses in Spain, the descendants of the great men of the sixteenth century. Such
a collection of original documents has never before been made for the illustration
of this period.
The two volumes now published bring down the story to the execution of
Counts Egmont and Hoorn in 1568, and to the imprisonment and death of Don
Carlos, whose mysterious fate, so long the subject of speculation, is now first ex
plored by the light of the authentic records of Simancas.
HISTORY OF THE EEIGN OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA,
The Catholic.
By W. H. Prescott. "With Portraits. Three volumes, 8vo.
Price, in muslin, $2 per volume.
" Mr. Prescott'B merit chiefly consists in the Bkilful arrangement of his materi
als, in the spirit of philosophy which animates the work, and in a clear and ele
gant style that charms and interests the reader. His book is one of the most
successful historical productions of our time. The inhabitant of another world,
be seems to have shaken off the prejudices of ours. In a word, no has, in every
respect, made a most valuable addition to our historical literature." — Edinburgh
ftepieta.

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HISTORY OF THE CONQUEST OF MEXICO,
With the Life of the Conqueror, Fernando Cortez, and a Yieti
of the Ancient Mexican Civilization. By W. H. Prescott.
With Portrait and Maps. Three volumes, 8vo. Price, in mus
lin, $2 per volume.
" The more closely we examine Mr. Prescott's work the more do we find cause
to commend hie diligent research. His vivacity of manner and discursive obser
vations scattered through notes as well as text, furnish countless proofe of bis
matchless industry. In point of style, too, he ranks with the ablest English his
torians ; and paragraphs may be found in his volumes in which the grace and
eloquence of Addison are combined with Robertson's majestic cadence and Gib
bon's brilliancy." — Athencmm.
HISTORY OF THE CONQUEST OF PERU;
With a Preliminary View of the Civilization of the Incas. By
W. H. Prescott. With Portraits, Maps, &c. Two vols., 8vo.
Price, in muslin, $2 per volume.
" The world's history contains no chapter more striking and attractive than
that comprising the narrative of Spanish conquest in the Americas. TeemiDg
with interest to the historian and philosopher, to the lover of daring enterprise
and marvellous adventure, it is full of fascination. A clear head and a sound
judgment, great industry and a skilful pen, are needed to do justice to the sub
ject. These necessary qualities have been found united in the person of an ac
complished American author. Already favorably known by his histories of the
eventful and chivalrous reign of Ferdinand and Isabella, and of the exploits of
the Great Marquis and his iron followers, Mr. Prescott has added to his well-
merited reputation by his narrative of the Conquest of Peru." — Blackwood.
Mr. Prescott's works are also bound in more elaborate stylesr
— half calf, half turkey, full calf, and turkey antique.

§wg,
THE HISTORY OF MASSACHUSETTS,
By Rev. John Stetson Barry. To be comprised in three vnl-
umes, octavo. Volume I. embracing the Colonial Period, du\> a
to 1692, now ready. Volumes II. and III. in active prepara
tion. Price, in muslin, $2 per volume.
Extracts from a Letter from Mr. Prescott, the Historian.
m „™ t«. -ii- o ..„ Bosiok, June 8, 1865.
Messrs. Phillips, Sampson, & Co.
Gentlemen, — The History is based on solid foundations, as a glance at the ai
ttionties will show.
The author has well exhibited tho elements of the Puritan character, which he
has evidently studied with much care. His style is perspicuous and manly, free
partial med'S th°Praisaof a conscientious endeavor to be inl-
The volume must be found to make a valuable addition to our stores of colonial
¦"¦story. Truly yourS] WILLIAM H. PRESCOTT.

PHILLIPS, SAMPSON, & CO.'S PUBLICATIONS.
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THE HISTORY OF ENGLAND,
From the Invasion of Julius Caesar to the Abdication of James
II., 1688. By David Hume, Esq. A new edition, with the
author s last corrections and improvements ; to which is pre
fixed a short account of his life, written by himself. Six vol
umes, with Portrait. Black muslin, 40 cents per volume ; in
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The merits of this history are too well known to need comment. Despite the
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respected, and most generally read. Even the brilliant Macaulay, though seek
ing to establish an antagonistic theory with respect to the royal prerogative, did
not choose to enter the lists with Hume, but after a few chapters by way of cur
sory review, began his history where his great predecessor had left off.
No work in the language can take the place of this, at least for the present
century. And nowhere can it be found accessible to the general reader for any
thing like the price at which this handsome issue is furnished.
These standard histories, Hume, Gibbon, Macaulay, and Lingard, are known as
the Boston Library Edition. For uniformity of style and durability of binding,
quality of paper and printing, they are the cheapest books ever offered to the
American public, and the best and most convenient editions published in this
country. THE HISTORY OF ENGLAND,
From the Accession of James II. By Thomas Babington Ma
caulay. Pour volumes, 12mo., with Portrait. Black muslin, 40
cents per volume ; red muslin, 50 cents ; library style and
half binding, 50 cents; calf, extra, $1.25.
"The all-accomplished Mr. Macaulay, the most brilliant and captivating of
English writers of our own day, seems to have been born for the sole purpose ot
making English history aa fascinating as one of Scott's romances." — North Amer
ican Review.
"The great work of the age. While every page affords evidence of great re
search and unwearied labor, giving a most impressive view of the period, it has
all the interest of an historical romance." — BaUimore Patriot.

THE HISTORY OF THE DECLINE AND FALL OF THE RO
MAN EMPIRE,
By Edward Gibbon, Esq. With Notes by Rev. H. H. Milman.
A. new Edition. To which is added a complete Index of the

PHILLIPS, SAMPSON, & CO.'S PUBLICATION..
whole work. Six volumes, with Portrait. 12mo., muslin, 40
cents per volume; red muslin, 50 cents; half binding, or li
brary style, 50 cents per volume; half calf, extra, $1.25.
"We commend it aa the best library edition extant." — Boston Transcript.
"The publishers are now doing an essential service to the rising generation in
placing within their reach a work of such acknowledged merit, and so absolute
ly indispensable." — Battiinore American.
" Such an edition of this English classic has long been wanted ; it is et fflce
convenient, economical, and elegant." — Home Journal*

f ittprfo.
A HISTORY OF ENGLAND,
From the first Invasion by the Romans to the Accession of
Wilham and Mary in 1688. By John Lingard, D. D. From
the last revised London edition. In thirteen volumes ; illus
trated title pages, and portrait of the author. 12mo., muslin.
Price, 75 cents per volume.
" This history has taken its place among the classics of the English language."
— LoweU Courier.
" It is infinitely superior to Hume, and there is no comparison between it and
Macaulay'B romance. Whoever has not access to the original monuments will
find Dr. Lingard's work the best one he can consult." — Brownson's Review.
" Lingard's history has been long known as the best history of England ever
written ; but hitherto the price has been such as deprived all but the most
wealthy readers of any chance of possessing it. Now, however, its publication
has been commenced in a beautiful style, and at such a price that no student of
history need fail of its acquisition." — Albany Transcript.

Sfamarrhtt.
HISTORY OF THE FRENCH REVOLUTION OF 1848,
By Alphonse de Lamartine. Translated by F. A. Durivage
and William S. Chase. In one volume, octavo, with illustra
tions. Price, in muslin, $2.25.
Same work, in a 12mo. edition, muslin, 75 cents ; sheep, 90 cents.
A most graphic history of great events, by one of the principal actors therein.
"The day will come when Lartuxriine, standing by the gate-post of the Hotel de
Ville, and subduing by his eloqupnce the furious passions of the thousands upon
thousands of delirious revolutionists, who sought they knew not what at tne
hands of the self-constituted Provisional Government of 1S48, will be commemo
rated in stone, on canvas, and in song, as the very impersonation of moral sub
limity." — Meth, Quarterly Review.
" No fitting mete-wand hath To-day
For measuring spirits of thy stature, —
Only the Future can reach up to lay
The laurel on that lofty nature. —
Bard, who with some diviner art
Hast touched the bard's true lyre, a nation's heart."
James Russell Lowell, " To LumartineJ*

PHTLLIPS, SAMPSON, £ CO.'S PUBLICATIONS. '
HISTORY OF KANZAS AND NEBRASKA,
With a Map. Compiled with the assistance of the New Eng.
land Emigrant Aid Society, by Kev. E. E. Hale. Price, in
muslin, 75 cents.
This work is the result of labor and research, and will be found invaluable to
those who contemplate removing to Kanzas, as well as to those who for other rea
sons would acquire a knowledge of the geography and capabilities of the territo
ries. The extraordinary scenes which have transpired during their recent rapid
settlement are sufficient to attract the public attention strongly to whatever
may give authentic information.

iallfftt.
THE HISTORY OF CUBA,
Or Notes of a Traveller in the Tropics. By M. M. Ballou. In
one volume, 12mo., with illustrations. Price, 75 cents.
In this volume Mr. Ballou has given a well-written, but concise history of Cuba
from its discovery to the present time. Following this the author endeavors to
place the character and manners of the people and the scenery of the beautiful
island directly before the reader's mental vision. Authentic and valuable in
matter, attractive in manner, the book combines greater merits than any other
similar work.

HISTORY OF THE PROTESTANT CHURCn IN HUNGARY
From the Beginning of the Reformation to 1850. With ref
erence also to Transylvania. Translated by the Rev. J. Craig,
D. D., Hamburg. With an Introduction by J. H. Merle D' Au-
bign6, D. D., President of the Theological School of Geneva.
550 pages. Price, $ 1.25.
" This is a translation of a German work, of great reliability and value. The
matter it contains has been collated from a large mass of public and private doc
uments, and every pains has apparently been taken to render it what it professes
to he, a complete History of Protestantism in Hungary. The hearty indorse
ment of the work contained in the introductory chapter, by Dr. Merle D Aubigue,
the distinguished author of the 'History of the Great Reformation, will not
fail to secure for the book tho confidence of the Christian public while its attrac
tive style and instructive character entitle it to a place m the hbrary of the cler
gyman, the Sabbath school, and the private Christian." — National Era.

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ESSAYS, BY RALPH WALDO EMERSON,
First Series, in one volume, 12mo. Price, $1. Second Series,
in one volume, 12mo. Price, $1.
It is too late to present any labored analysis of the writings of Emerson, — too
late to set down any eulogy. Whoever loves to deal with first principles, and is not
deterred from grappling with abstract truths, will find in these essays a rare pleas-
are in the exercise of his powers. The popular ridicule which was heaped upon
the so^alled transcendental literature, at least so far as Emerson is concerned,
has passed away ; and these volumes are universally admitted to be among the
most valuable contributions to the world's stock of ideas which our age has fur
nished. Every page bears the impress of thought, but it is thought subtilized,
and redolent of poetry. Obscurity there is none, save to the incapable or the
prejudiced, or to those averse to metaphysical speculations.
NATURE ; ADDRESSES AND LECTURES,
By E. W. Emerson. In one volume, 12mo. Price, $1.
REPRESENTATIVE MEN,
Seven Lectures, by K. W. Emerson. In one volume, 12mo,
Price, $1.
" It is certainly one of the most fascinating books ever written, whether we
consider its subtile verbal felicities, its deep and shrewd observation, its keen crit
icism, its wit or learning, its wisdom or beauty. For fineness of wit, imagination,
observation, satire, and sentiment, the book hardly has its equal in American lit-
erature." — E. P. Whipple,
" It is a thoughtful book, and better adapted to please the majority of readers
than any previous attempt of the writer." — H. T. Titckerman.
" This is not an ordinary book." — London Atfienantm,

it.
CRITICAL AND MISCELLANEOUS ESSAYS,
By Thomas Carlyle. In one volume, octavo, with Portrait
Price, in muslin, $1.75.
ThiB vigorous and profound writer has been chiefly known to the public at
large from the caricatures of his style published by those to whom drapery and
ornament are of more consequence than vital force. The faults of Carlyle ar«
sufficiently obvious; they lie upon the very surface; but for nicety of analysis,
power, and closeness of logic, manliness of utterance, and genuine enthusiasm
for what h« deemB the good and true, no c ritic is more justly entitled to admiration

THE LATER ESSAYS OP THOMAS CARLYLE,
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muslin, 60 cents.

ESSAYS, CRITICAL AND MISCELLANEOUS,
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land. In one volume, octavo, with Portrait Price, in muslin,
$2.
Whoever wishes to gain the most extensive acquaintance with English history
and English literature In the briefest space of time, will read the Essays of Ma
caulay. It is emphatically the book to direct the student in his researches ; and
at the same time the brilliancy of the author's style, his learning and vast fund
of information, and the pertinency of his illustrations, render his writings as
fascinating to every thinking mind as the most splendid work of fiction. More
scholars and critics of the present day owe their first impulse to self-culture to
Macaulay than to any other writer.
" Undoubtedly the prince of the English essayists."

THE WORKS OF REV. SYDNEY SMITH,
(Consisting principally of articles contributed to the Edinburgn
.Review.) In one volume, octavo, with Portrait. Price, in
muslin, $1.25.
The Edinburgh Review, so long known as the leading Quarterly of Great Brit
ain, perhaps owed its existence and its reputation more to Sydney Smith than to
either of his illustrious compeers — Brougham, Macaulay, and Jeffrey. The good
sense and simplicity of his style, no less than his vigorous logic and bristling wit,
have rendered his name known wherever the English language is spoken. The
Interest in his writings will outlive the occasions which called them forth, and
they may now be placed among the British classics.

Itffna.
CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE EDINBURGH REVIEW,
By Francis Lord Jeffrey. In one volume, octavo, with Portrait.
Price, in muslin, $2.

PHILLIPS, SAMPSON, & CO.'S PUBLICATIONS.
In these articles of Jeffrey, the curious reader may see a history of English lit
erature for the last fifty years. Now that Scott, Campbell, Wordsworth, Byron,
and a few others are immortal beyond cavil or peradventure, with what interest
do we look for the first impressions which their works made upon the mind of
their contemporary and reviewer! Aside from his learning, vigor, acuteness,
and general impartiality, Jeffrey will be read for many years to come for his asso
ciation with the eminent names which have made the early part of this cen
tury bo illustrious.

8BUS0M.
THE RECREATIONS OF CHRISTOPHER NORTH,
(Contributed to Blackwood's Magazine.) By John Wilson. In
one volume, octavo, with Portrait of " Christopher in his Shoot
ing Jacket." Price, in muslin, $1.25.
The fame of Wilson, under his chosen pseudonyme, Christopher North, is uni
versal. The wonderful vigor, the wit, satire, fun, poetry, and criticism, all
steeped through in his Tory prejudices, with which his contributions to Black
wood overflowed, commanded the attention of all parties, and have left a deep if
not a permanent impression in the literature of the age. These articles are full
of the author's peculiar traits. Humor and pathos succeed each other like clouds
and sunshine in an April day. The character of the Scottish peasantry in some
of the Recreations, is depicted with as much power as in the author's famous
" Lights and Shadows of Scottish Life."

THE MISCELLANEOUS WORKS OF THE RIGHT HON. SIR
JAMES MACKINTOSH,
In one volume, octavo, with Portrait. Price, in muslin, $2.
This edition contains all the miscellanies of the author, reprinted from tho Lon
don edition of his works. The topics are various, from literature to politics. The
Revolution of 1688. it is well known, had engaged much of the author's attention,
and his articles upon that subject are among the most important and valuable in
the language.

MISCELLANEOUS ESSAYS,
By Archibald Alison, F. R. S., author of a History of Europe
during the French Revolution. In one volume, octavo, with
Portrait. Price, in muslin, $1.25.
ILe distinguished author of the History of Europe, In a series of critical art*

PHILLIPS, SAMPSON, * CO.'S PUBLICATIONS.
des, mostly „3on modern historical, subjects, has apparently given to the world
many of the studies upon which his great work is based. These Essays will be
read with profit by every student of European history.

THE CRITICAL AND MISCELLANEOUS WRITINGS OF
THOMAS NOON TALFOURD.
Author of "Ion," a Tragedy, &c, with a Portrait, and
THE CRITICAL AND MISCELLANEOUS ESSAYS OF JAMES
STEPHEN,
In one volume, octavo. Price, in muslin, $1.25.
The author of " Ion " may surely claim a place among the classic writers of
Britain. The essays here collected, though lacking the force and splendor of
style that belongs to Macaulay, are among the most elegant and attractive in the
language. They refer generally to lighter literary topics, instead of the severe
subjects with which Mackintosh, Alison, or Carlyle choose to grapple.
Mr. Stephen, also, has long been known as among the ablest of the great mod-

THE MODERN BRITISH ESSAYISTS,
Comprising the eight volumes octavo preceding. Price, in mus
lin, $12; in sheep, $16 j half calf, or half morocco, $18.

tyuuatt.
BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL MISCELLANIES.
By W. H. Prescott. "With a finely engraved Portrait. One
volume, 8vo. Price, in cloth, $2 ; in sheep, $2.50 j half calf,
or half antique, $3 ; full calf, or antique, $4.
" Mr. Prescott is an elegant writer, and there is nothing that comes from his
pen that does not strongly bear the marks of originality. The present volume
contains a series of papers on different subjects; biography, belles-lettres, criti
cism, &c, in which Mr. Prescott has put forward some beautiful ideas on the
attributes of mind, the formation of character, and the present condition of vari
ous sections of society. It will be read with avidity by the scholar and general
Inquirer." — New Orleans Buttzttn.

PHILLIPS, SAMPSON, & CO.'S PUBLICATIONS.
Mm.
LECTURES ON THE GENIUS OF WASHINGTON AIISTON,
By Rev. William Ware. Author of "Zenobia," " Aurelian,"
&c., &c. In one volume, 12mo. Price, 75 cents.
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almost visible to sight. * * * * The whole book is full of feeling, and
radiant with beauty." — Albany Knickerbocker.

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THE MECHANIC'S TEXT BOOK,
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on the Nature and Application of Mechanical Forces, the Action
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and Resistance of Materials, &c, &c. Compiled and arranged
by Thomas Kelt. To which is added, Valuable "Hints to Mechan
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THE ENGINEER'S POCKET GUIDE,
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The most valuable information for the mechanic, in a small compass, and in
clear and intelligible language.
MANUAL OF MAGNETISM,
By Daniel Davis, Jr., with 180 original illustrations. In one
volume, 12mo. Price, $1.
Extracts from the Preface.
" The present work is principally occupied with magnetism In its connection
with electricity. But the general phenomena of both these sciences are described
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appeared to require. It has been the aim to give the book a practical rather than
a theoretical character, and to introduce hypotheses no further than was essential
to a clear explanation of the phenomena described."
"In the preparation of this (2d) edition, alterations and additions have been
made to adapt it hotter to the purposes of a text book tor colleges aud high schools,
and also as a companion to the apparatus."

YALE UNIVERSITY LIB

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