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HOW TO COMPLETE
THE REFORMATION.
A LECTURE
EDWARD MAITLAND.
PUBLISHED BY THOMAS SCOTT,
MOUNT PLEASANT, RAMSGATE.
Price, Sixpence.
�I
BS9SB
�HOW TO COMPLETE THE REFORMATION.
I.
T is nearly two hundred and thirty years since John
Milton uttered these words :—
I
“Now once again, by all concurrence of signs, and by
the general instinct of devout and holy men, as they daily
and solemnly express their thoughts, G-od is beginning to
decree some new and great period in his church, even to
the reforming of reformation itself. What does He then,
but reveal himself to his servants, and as his manner is,
first to his Englishmen ? ’’
Nearly two hundred and thirty years, and not only
has the Reformation never been reformed, it has
never even been completed. Two hundred and thirty
years since the signs of the times led one of the most
highly inspired of Englishmen to believe that God
was then decreeing to begin the reforming of the
Reformation, and there is scarcely a portion of our
vast social system into which the animating principle
of that Reformation has yet found its way : still are
our laws in many respects based upon principles
essentially antagonistic to it; still are our Churches,
whether established or independent, for the most
part but servile repetitions of that old Romish system
from the influence of which it was the express
function of the Reformation to detach them. Still
does our education, whether in family or school, con
sist mainly in the inculcation of habits of thought and
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How to Complete the Reformation.
tenets wholly inconsistent with the broad purpose of
the Reformation.
Not that the Reformation, either in its principles
or practice, has been formally repudiated or virtually
discontinued; except perhaps by an insignificant
section. So far from this being the case, the movement
of which it was the initiation, continues under a more
significant name and in a more comprehensive form
than ever was contemplated by its originators: being
known to us by the modern designation of Liberalism.
But this Liberalism, while demonstrated both by
family resemblance, pedigree, and character, to be
the one and true heir of the Reformation, and though •
a sturdy and capable stripling, and well fitted to
sustain and extend the honours of its ancestral line,
sadly needs schooling. Through want of a logical
comprehension of its real character and functions, it
not unfrequently turns its back completely upon
itself and its parent, setting their interests and
principles entirely at nought. Through lack of
thoroughness it halts and falls far short of its proper
goal; and a halting Liberalism signifies an incomplete
Reformation.
Regarding this young Liberalism as the hope of the
world to come, at once the Atlas on whose broad
shoulders the future of Humanity rests, and the
Hercules by whose labours it is to be purified from
the defilements of past ages of ignorance, superstition,
and barbarism; regarding, in short, Liberalism as
synonymous with the development of the human intel
ligence and moral sense,—I trust I may be allowed
to speak freely of the characteristics which appear to
me as marring its perfections, and to point out the
proper path to the fulfilment of its high destiny.
II.
It has long been generally agreed that the fun-
�How to Complete the Reformation.
7
damental principle of the Reformation was the right
of private judgment, and of action in accordance
therewith. The assertion of that principle was a
protest on the part of individual liberty against
an organisation that sought to engulph the world
beneath an overwhelming regime of uniformity.
It involved, moreover, the right of every indi
vidual to all possible means of developing and
informing his judgment.
The fundamental principle of Liberalism may be
broadly stated as consisting in the tenet that opinion
should govern the world, in all respects in which the
world needs governing, such opinion to be the result
of the free, genuine, deliberate thought of living men.
To accept these definitions,—and I <fb not see how
it is possible to decline them,—is to admit the
essential identity of Liberalism and the Reformation.
It is to recognise it as the function of Liberalism to
carry out the intention of the Reformation ; and it is
to admit that only by accomplishing the programme
of Liberalism is it possible to complete the Refor
mation.
In dealing, then, with the completion of the
Reformation, we deal really with the development of
the programme of Liberalism.
In this relation I propose to show, First, the main
respect in which both the Reformation and Liberalism
have as yet failed to carry out their own principles ;
and, Secondly, the precise and most necessary step to
be taken in reversal of such failure.
The subject of my Lecture is capable of expression
by a still more condensed term. The ability of the
individual to develop and use his own judgment
involves directly the question of the education of his
understanding. Do not recoil at the word education,
trite and hackneyed though it be. I have not
brought you here to take you over beaten paths. The
side from which I propose to attack this Matterhorn
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How to Complete the Reformation.
of our social system, has scarcely, if ever, yet been
assailed. And if the method employed seem at first
somewhat indirect or obscure, I must ask you to
consider that it is because the process I propose to
adopt is rather that, of piercing into the centre and
tunnelling upwards through the interior, than of
scrambling up by the outside ; and that when we do
attain the summit it will be without risk of a fall,
and at the gain of a suddenly revealed panoramic
view.
The view which I am desirous of presenting to
you is that of the possibility of realising all our
wishes, and more than our hopes, in the matter of
our National Education by means of the utilisation of
the Church-establishment: and this, not by destruction
or disestablishment, not by deprivation or spoliation,
but by conversion or re-construction. Even to its
own accepted definition of the original intention of
that vast organisation, but one word needs to be
added to make it all that we want. Originally
designed to minister to our moral and spiritual
necessities, it has only to be adapted to our moral,
spiritual, and intellectual needs, to insure at once the
fulfilment of the programme of Liberalism, and the
completion of the Reformation.
If it be the fact that the addition of this single term
intellectual to the category of the functions of the Church,
has the effect of reversing or modifying the whole of its
previous conditions of existence, and setting it to work
in a track that is in any degree strange and repugnant
to it,—we need no further proof that the Reformation
has never yet reached the Church, be it of England
or of Scotland, “ as by law established.”
And so also we may say of the independent
nonconformist churches, that if their spirit be anta
gonistic to that free intellectual development which is
absolutely inconsistent with dogmatic teaching in any
department of knowledge whatsoever, we need no
�How to Complete the Reformation.
9
farther proof that the Reformation has not yet reached
even the Protestant dissenting bodies. And these
form a class, be it remembered, that specially affects
Liberalism in its politics.
To appreciate the position I am here taking up, it
must be borne in mind that, though fighting Rome
with its own weapons, and using dogma to combat
dogma, the Reformation was essentially a repudiation
of all dogma. Using Biblical Infallibility as an
engine of destruction against Papal Infallibility, the
Reformation, by its very assertion of the right of
private judgment in the choice of Infallibilities,
struck at the principle of all Infallibility whatever.
III.
The Reformation, therefore, not only had, properly,
no dogma of its own, but it was a protest against all
dogma whatsoever. Of which of the Churches, or
sects, to which the Reformation gave birth, can it
now be said that it has no dogma 1 If there be one,
that one, and that only, is entitled to be called a
reformed church.
For, only where there is freedom to follow truth by
means of evidence, and without deference to ancient
authority or foregone conclusion, has the Reformation
been completed: only there are the principles of
Liberalism practised : only there is the judgment of
the individual subjected to a regime favourable to
the production of that genuine Opinion which, accord
ing to the doctrine of Liberalism, alone ought to
govern the world.
For ourselves as a nation we claim to be governed,
at least in matters of common concern, by the opinions
of the majority of our citizens. It is well known
that large numbers of those citizens are altogether
uneducated and illiterate; and that of those who
claim to be neither uneducated nor illiterate, a large
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How to Complete the Reformation.
proportion have no genuine opinions whatever ; but
derive that which they regard as their opinion,
from mere prejudice, habit, or authority, traditional
or other, and altogether independently of any known
facts. In short, judging by what we know of the
nature of the instruction given to our youth both at
home and in school, in college and university, in
church and in chapel, it is impossible to avoid the
conclusion that so far from really governing ourselves,
so far from carrying out the principle of the Reforma
tion and of Liberalism that Opinion ought to govern
the world, such opinion to be the result of the free,
genuine, deliberate thought of living men,-—we are
in reality governed by the dead, by means of tenets
adopted from them mechanically and retained by
habit.
It was Hegel who first, I think, taught us to see in
the papal system a continuation of the domineering
spirit of ancient Rome; spiritual terror being
substituted for material force as the basis and main
stay of its authority: and in the Reformation, an
assertion of the rights of individual nationalities
against Rome’s all-absorbing regime of uniformity.
If Liberalism be a step further in advance, it is so in
respect of its claiming a similar right on behalf of
every individual to judge for himself both indepen
dently of his nationality, and in all matters, secular,
as well as religious.
Now, let us consider the regime to which every one
of us has been subjected, and to which in turn
nearly every one of us subjects or has subjected his
children ; and ask whether there is a topic of import
ance concerning which we have ourselves grown up,
or we have allowed them to grow up, with unbiased
judgment to form an independent opinion. Is it not
notoriously the case that both in things political and
things social, in things religious and even in things
scientific, there is scarcely a child in the country that
�How to Complete the Reformation.
11
is suffered to grow up without having its mind so
fettered and moulded by foregone conclusions, based,
at least in great part, on dogmatic authority and not
on any impartial review of the balance of evidence,
as to be absolutely incapacitated for forming any
genuine independent opinion whatever? Defining
Dogma as doctrine claiming to be accepted in virtue
of the authority by which it is laid down, and by no
means in virtue of its being possible, provable, useful,
or true, it cannot be too persistently set forth that
every sect, every teacher, every parent, that rests the
education of a child upon a dogmatic basis, instead of
cultivating its power of independent judgment, is an
enemy to the principles of Liberalism and of the
Reformation, is still the servitor and agent of Rome.
Does it not now begin to appear that, so far from
the Reformation having ever been completed, it has
scarcely advanced a step beyond its initial movement?
By profession we hold it immoral to inculcate opinion
by compulsion of authority, yet in practice we do it
universally and constantly.
The fact is, that to the guiding spirits of the
Reformation, or at least to their immediate successors,
the emancipation of Thought was a Frankenstein from
which they shrank back in terror so soon as they
began to discern the giant’s real dimensions. They
could not re-inclose it in the narrow limits from
which it had so lately been released; but what they
could do to arrest its movements and restrain its
force, they did. Its chains, re-cast, re-gilt, and a
little stretched, were insidiously replaced. A new
tyranny was created, a new Trinity, as it were,
having three persons,—Articles, Creeds, and Tests;
and one God—Biblical Infallibility. To the com
pulsory service of this complex divinity was the
soul of every individual in the State by law devoted
the moment he drew the breath of life. Its require
ments, among which were included “all the Articles
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How to Complete the Reformation.
of the Christian Faith,” every helpless infant was
compelled by its sureties to promise and vow, that
when it should come of age, it would most surely
keep and perform. Passing from infancy into child
hood, the individual was bred up on, and so saturated
with, the dogmas of the Catechism, that, like an
insect taking its colour from the leaves on which
it feeds, he had no choice, on reaching youth, but to
take upon himself in Confirmation, under the delusion
that he was doing so voluntarily, everything his
sureties had pledged him to. Every essential func
tion of his nature was placed under ecclesiastical
control. Certificates of compliance with the require
ments of Orthodoxy were exacted before he was
permitted to earn an honourable living. Still deeper
implication in church dogma was necessary to enable
him to contract an honourable marriage. When in
health, he incurred penalties if he absented himself
from a place of the established worship. When sick,
a profession of Orthodoxy was necessary to entitle
him to spiritual consolation. When dead, to burial
among his fellows. When risen, to admission into
heaven.
It was Rome again, with its headquarters at home
instead of abroad. The Reformation was in ashes.
Out of its ashes rose Liberalism. Its commencement
was not propitious. Liberalism, it is true, released
the individual from compulsory compliance with the
State-Church regime; but it called forth a number
of competing regimes, each more or less inimical to
that liberty which consists in the development of
individuality. For each separate system required
conformity to special tenets. Membership was in
consistent with the love of truth for its own sake and
apart from the Cause. In thus requiring adherence
to any set of opinions, the non-conforming bodies
were constituted upon the precise model of the estab
lished church, as the Church was upon that of Rome.
�How to Complete the Reformation.
13
It pleases some of our most liberal clergy to call dis
senters by the name of Non-conforming Churchmen.
Far nearer the mark would it be to describe both
dissenters and members of the established churches
of England and Scotland as “ Non-conforming
Papists.” Protestantism equally with Romanism,
asserted as more than possible, the incompatibility of
Faith with Knowledge. Where the acquisition of
knowledge might lead to a modification or renuncia
tion of Faith, it became a necessary condition of
church membership, or Orthodoxy, that knowledge
be not pursued to a point at which it might become
incompatible with the faith of the sect. In thus
admitting this incompatibility the Reformation re
verted to Rome, in spite even of its new guise of
Liberalism.
The circumstance that adherence to any of these
associations was voluntary, so far as the law was
concerned, was something gained. Practically, how
ever, the gain was to a great extent neutralised by
the still backward state of the public mind. To
belong to the Establishment was alone considered
socially “ respectable; ” while for anyone to refrain
from identifying himself with some religious denomin
ation, was to incur universal reprobation : and to quit
one of them, having once been a member, was to insure
persecution and odium. And even if adults, if
parents were free, how was it with children ? What,
under the tuition of the Sects, was their chance of
growing up unfettered, and able to form their own
judgment ? Would it be greater than under the
tuition of the Church, or of Rome ? And if not,
where was the Reformation ? It may be true that
Legislation, even of the most advanced Liberal type,
cannot interfere to prevent parents from shackling
the minds of their children. But parents who do thus
shackle them, have no claim to be regarded as
Liberals, or followers of the Reformation. They are
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How to Complete the Reformation.
of Rome, Romish, no matter how bitter and bigoted
their so-called “ Protestantism.”
IV.
Let us take an illustration from Science, undeterred
by the recent dictum of a Cabinet Minister to the
effect that “Religion differs from Science in that
fresh discoveries can be made in Science but not in
Religion.” Though Secretary of State in a “ Liberal ”
Government, he forgot one very important discovery
that might be made in religion, namely, the discovery
that all existing religions are false religions. It is a
discovery that has been made more than once in the
history of the world, and more than once it has led to
the introduction of a new religion. What is to
prevent the same thing from happening again 1 But
it is an illusion to suppose that there is any such
essential distinction between Science and Religion.
The recognition of a truth, whether religious or
scientific, consists in an impression upon the mind.
The source and nature of the impression requires in
each case to be brought to the test of evidence,
that is, to be judged by the human understanding.
For the testing of evidence we have but one set of
faculties; and we have no faculty whereby we can
transcend those faculties. Certitude, or the conviction
that one is in the right, proves nothing beyond one’s
own individual sentiment; and nothing is more
common than for different people to be equally and
absolutely certain of the most opposite beliefs.
When I speak of dogma, I do not include beliefs
which we are forced, by their very nature, or by our
very nature, to hold without proof, simply because
we cannot conceive the opposite of them. For us
Space must be infinite, Time must be eternal, God
must exist, (if only as the nature of things,) because
these are among the necessary bases of our conscious-
�How to Complete the Reformation.
15
ness, and we cannot think otherwise. Dogmatism
would consist in imposing beliefs respecting them,
without regard to evidence or probability; not in
asserting their existence, for we cannot think of
them as non-existent.
As nothing is true for us unless capable of verifica
tion by evidence, so nothing is good unless capable of
justification by experience. It is as absurd and
immoral to dogmatise concerning metaphysical or
transcendental subjects, as concerning scientific ones.
And how absurd and immoral this would be, may be
seen by this illustration from astronomy. The effect
of requiring astronomers to pledge themselves always
to uphold a particular theory of the Solar System—as that the earth goes round the sun, or the sun round
the earth,—(it would make no difference in principle
which, for the instant even an ascertained truth is
converted into a dogma, it acquires all the pernicious
ness of a falsehood, inasmuch as it is received upon
grounds other than that of its truth)—the effect of
such a pledge would at once be to make Astronomy,
as a Science, altogether unreliable, and to expose its
professors to deserved suspicion that their teaching
was the result of self-interest, and not of the facts
they had ascertained. The extension of such a
system generally to other departments of knowledge
could have no other result than to convert the people
who were subjected to it, into a nation of liars.
Against its application to the more palpable truths of
Physical Science, both our sense and our moral sense,
so far developed under the Reformation, have with
considerable effect protested. Our legislature dare
not, if it would, countenance such dishonesty in the
department of Science. We have not yet attained
that degree of clear perception at which we should
equally prohibit its countenancing the like dishonesty
in the department of religion.
�16
How to Complete the Reformation.
V.
By this point I wish to bring you on the way to
the end I have in view. I wish you to discern dis
tinctly, as a landmark once seen never to be forgotten,
this axiom: That the, contract whereby the State recognises
and protects the endowment of dogma, is an immoral
contract. It is not only to institutions connected with
the State that this axiom has reference. It is equally
valid for all associations, public or private, which
invoke the public law to the enforcement of those
articles of their constitution which involve the
inculcation of dogma, whether in pulpit or schoolroom,
in science, religion, or morals.
The grounds on which the Church-establishment is
ordinarily attacked are many and various. Objection
is made that it is unfair to other dogmatic bodies that
any should be selected for the favour of the State :
that the State has no proper concern with religion :
that the church ought to be permitted to govern itself
without control by the secular power : that State
interference diminishes religious zeal: that its dogmas
are not true; and that the State, though quite right
to select a church for its exclusive patronage, has in
our case selected the wrong one. No objection has,
so far as I am aware, hitherto been taken on the
ground that all dogmatic teaching whatever is immoral,
independently of the nature of the thing taught, and
that the State has no right to countenance immorality.
What prevents this axiom from itself being a dogma,
is the simple but essential fact, that in support of it
the appeal is, not to authority, but to evidence, or exper
ience, and reason. There are among us intelligent and
active spirits who are striving to obtain the release of
the Established Church, not from the State, but from
its dogmatic trammels: some, on the ground that its
dogmas are false; and others on the ground that,
whether true or false, a national institution ought to
�How to Complete the Reformation.
17
be exempt from such limitation. With the end that
these have in view, I heartily coincide; but seeing
that they betray no conviction that those trammels
are immoral simply because they are dogmatic, I base
my adherence to their programme on other grounds.
VI.
I propose now to show, from the practical working
of the dogmatic spirit, how suicidal it is for a free
State to do aught to encourage its promotion.
It has often been said in ridicule of the principle
of democracy that truth and justice have nothing
to do with majorities. It certainly is characteristic
of minorities that the more insignificant they are in
point of numbers, the more confident they are apt to
be of their own infallibility. Fanaticism needs not
for its own satisfaction any confirmation by success in
winning adherents by conviction. The fanatic is
content to force his tenets down the throats of others,
careless of the slow process of the reason. Certain of
his own infallibility, the secular doctrinaire is but a
variation of the religious dogmatist. In so far as
political or social doctrinairism involves the submission
of the individual to a regime of uniformity, it savours
of mediaaval papalism. It becomes altogether of Rome
when it would impose that regime by force, whether
of physical violence, or the resistless compulsion of
early training. The spirit of fanaticism is everywhere
the same, and its root one, Infallibility, that
aged fiend which recognises its. divinely appointed
vanquisher and destroyer in modern Liberalism, and
shrieks and rages against it. No matter whether the
direction of a fanaticism be for or against the ancient
orthodoxy, it becomes one with it in spirit when it
adopts the tactics of that orthodoxy. Even the
fanatic for liberty turns renegade to the principles of
liberty when he seeks to compel others to be free.
B
�18
How to Complete the Reformation.
Liberty does not consist in releasing even slaves from
their fetters against their will. The liberal throws
his principles overboard, and turns bigot when he
seeks to propagate his creed by force. Infallibility,
having its basis in the emotions, and by no means in
reason, naturally sees no reason why it should not
force others to admit its claims. Liberalism, having
its basis in reason, is bound by the very constitution
of its being to repudiate compulsion as a legitimate
or even possible method of attaining success. Every
step won by such means is in reality several steps
backward. It is suicidal for reason to appeal to force.
Having to deal with reason and not with prejudice or
passion, it is eminently characteristic of true Liberal
ism to be patient. When in a minority, it has no
right to dominate by force. When in a majority, it
has no need to do so.
I have spoken of Liberalism as a capable and sturdy
stripling, but one that sadly needs schooling. Let
me indicate one of the blemishes by which the conduct
of its professors among ourselves has been marred of
late. The practice of holding great public meetings
in the neighbourhood of the Houses of Parliament, in
order, by a demonstration of physical force, to accelerate
the passage of a popular measure, is, for Liberals,
nothing less than a faithless abnegation of the funda
mental principles of Liberalism: for it involves an
appeal from the deliberate reason of the Legislature
to its fears:—fears of excesses that may be committed
by an excited multitude: such multitude itself pro
bably being for the most part utterly ignorant and
incapable of forming a sound judgment respecting any
great public question whatever. Be it once under
stood that the promotion of tenets or measures by
physical compulsion is the peculiar and especial
characteristic of Orthodoxy or Toryism, and it
becomes clear that however fair it may be to fight an
opponent with his own weapons, the cause of Liber-
�How to Complete the Reformation.
19
alism is only discredited and retarded by its adoption
of tactics which are inconsistent with its principles.
Besides, the adherence of an ignorant crowd proves
nothing beyond the fact that such a side has gained
its favour for the moment, a favour which is apt to
be far less dependent upon rational views, than upon
some shallow or deceptive consideration; a favour,
too, which may at any moment and upon slight pro
vocation be turned the opposite way. The worst
enemy of democracy is the Demagogue. By exciting
antagonism between class and class, he retards that
progress of conviction which is the only practical
test of the relative strength of opinions. Minds
forced into such an attitude, become necessarily nonreceptive as to new impressions. People are put
upon their mettle to resist conversion; recoiling from
violence, they recoil also from the doctrine of the
violent. And not only of the opposing parties, but
of the nation generally, is the capacity for deliberation
seriously diminished, when, instead of remaining calm,
clear and judicial in tone, it is stirred into turbidity
by noisy agitation. The fact that those who have
already been converted are impatient at the slowness
of others to be convinced also, constitutes no just
pretext for violence. The scholar does not the sooner
gain a knowledge of arithmetic through having his
slate broken over his head by an impatient master.
Indeed the violence of the latter is rather a confession
of his inability to teach. In a community in which
the governing power is vested in “the common-sense of
most,” the very use of force to effect a change is a
virtual confession that the advocates of that change
are still in a minority, and therefore, on the principles
of Liberalism, incompetent to demand that the change
be made at present. We shall indeed have reason to
congratulate Liberalism on its progress among us,
when we see the Legislature so imbued with its
principles as to vindicate them against all dema'
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How to Complete the Reformation.
goguery whatever, by boldly declaring, whenever it
may find itself menaced by demonstrations of physical
force, that it will postpone all consideration of the
questions at issue until such demonstrations shall
have wholly ceased. By such dignified assertion of
the rights of conviction as against compulsion in
matters eminently requiring the exercise of reason,
the cause of Liberalism would gain infinitely more
than it would lose by delay. It is in quietness and
confidence that its strength should lie.
It is in reality the Sectarian spirit that prompts the
demagogue to restrict the term people to a single class.
Forgetting that the people of any country consist of
the whole of its citizens, rich and poor, great and
small, learned and ignorant, those who have suc
ceeded, as well as those who have failed in life, the
demagogue delights in restricting it to the failures,
and strives ever to exasperate them against the rest,
and to obtain by dint of their uninstructed force that
which they have failed to demonstrate by reason to
be necessary and right. Impatience of the slow
process of reason, eagerness to seize results without
undergoing that preliminary discipline which is apt
to be even more beneficent than the results them
selves, is always characteristic of the shallow and
slenderly educated. One of the chief evils of dema
goguery, that is, of appealing to the passions rather
than to the reason of the community, consists in its
practice of stimulating this impatience among the
masses. Liberalism, aiming at reform, naturally com
mends itself in the first instance to those classes
whose condition is the most susceptible of improve
ment. Thinking more of the superficial and imme
diate than of the thorough and the permanent, and
knowing little of the patience whereby greatness,
whether individual or national, is alone to be
achieved, these classes are naturally liable to grasp
at any plausible measure that promises a temporary
�How to Complete the Reformation.
z1
alleviation of an evil, without considering what, in
the long run, may be the effect of the principle in
volved. When needed reforms fail to come from
above, that is, from the action of that educated class
which alone has leisure and culture sufficient to allow
of the necessary examination,—when, I say, reforms
fail to descend in beneficent dews and showers, they
are apt to be forced up from below with volcanic
destructiveness. The recent clamours for organic
changes on slight pretexts are an illustration of this.
The function of Liberalism is to enlarge, not con
tract our liberties. When the constitution of society
is such that it does not afford sufficient room for the
co-existence of two undoubted rights, Liberalism,
rather than sacrifice either of these rights, is bound
to enlarge the terms of the social contract, until it
can include and reconcile both. The masses, in their
keen appreciation of the evils of interference with
the liberty of election, have shown themselves ready
to sacrifice one of the most essential of a freeman’s
rights in order to secure another. There is strong
reason to fear that, by having recourse to compulsory
secrecy as a protection against interference, they are
seeking a remedy which will prove worse than the
disease. It is a far higher stage of liberty which
allows us to act as we please, openly and without fear
or favour, than that which allows us to act as we
please only on condition that we let nobody know
how we act. In demanding secrecy we abandon our
claim to this higher liberty, and with it the freeman’s
noblest privilege. I know well that it is through no
love of darkness for its own sake that our toiling
classes have clamoured for the Ballot. Far rather
would they, with our great Patriot-poet, cry, “ Hail!
holy light,” than with the arch-fiend call to the sun
to tell it that they “ hate its beams,” and prefer the
concealment of darkness. I know too that, thus far,
at least, it is the wealthy and so-called educated
�22
How to Complete the Reformation.
classes who, by their abuse of their privileges and
powers, have driven their poorer fellow citizens to
crave the shelter of secrecy. That this should be so,
is only a further proof of the worse than worthlessness
of much of the education hitherto given. It has
never comprised a knowledge of those first principles
of human association, which constitute the basis of
social morality, and the recognition of which con
stitutes the very alphabet of Liberalism. But to sub
stitute a compulsory secrecy for the publicity which
is the high privilege and distinguishing badge of the
Freeman, at least before the Legislature has exhausted
all possible means at its disposal, is to purchase one
right by the sacrifice of another, instead of endea
vouring to secure both. True thoroughgoing Liberal
ism, despising mere expedients, and repudiating
mechanical remedies for moral defects, ever aims at
the highest, and would rather endure a prolonged
condition of discomfort, than lower its aim to an
inferior standard.
VII.
The only wonder, however, is that the cause of
Liberalism has not been marked by far more and
greater errors. The “ Church ” of a country ought,
as its chief educational and civilising agent, to be
the leader and example to all parties. Such advan
tage our Liberalism has failed to enjoy. Where the
Church is dogmatic, it cannot influence Liberalism
for good. The two have no points of coincidence.
Where the Church’s own weapon is compulsion, it
cannot be expected to teach men the use of reason.
Our own day has witnessed a most startling instance
of the tremendous folly and wickedness of the appeal to
violence. France, as befits the elder son of a dog
matic Church, ever does appeal to force. As regards
her foreign relations, her hand is always on the hilt.
�How to Complete the Reformation.
23
And at home her minorities do not wait to convince,
but always strive to coerce the majority. Of all
those who in France are at issue with the Commune,
the Church is the least entitled to utter a word of
reproach. The Church has no right even to condemn
it as Atheistic. An infallible theory of Labour and
Capital may as fairly be regarded as a fitting object
of veneration by some, as an infallible priest or book
by others. The Communist of modern Europe may
have a vision of the possibilities of Humanity • bright
and glowing with blessedness in its exemption from
poverty and woe, and of the efficacy of his doctrines
to make that vision a reality. And the realisation of
his vision is as high and legitimate a subject of ambi
tion for him, as the establishment of the supremacy
of his church is for a cardinal archbishop. Each has
his ideal, at once the initial and the final cause of the
universe ; and his ideal ps to him as God. Call that
ideal what he will, Jehovah, Jesus, Church, or
Humanity, neither can substantiate the charge of
Atheism against the other. The sole radical differ
ence of faith lies between those who trust to reason,
and those who believe only in force. Violence is the
legacy of Cain, a legacy shared alike by Catholic and
Communist. In the long run it ever reacts upon its
employer. It is in more senses than one that the
blood of the martyr has proved the seed of the Church.
There is good reason for ascribing much of the suc
cess of the doctrine so shocking to the developed
moral sense of men, the doctrine of bloody sacrifices,
of a deity that requires to be propitiated towards
mankind by blood, even human blood, the blood of
his nearest and dearest, to the legend that represents
Abel as dying a martyr to his faith in it. A far hap
pier moral may be found in the tale which represents
the first man who wantonly sacrificed life, as the first
to lose his own. But however just and noble the in
dignation of the impetuous Cain, his appeal to force
�24
How to Complete the Reformation.
recoiled upon his own gentler faith, and thenceforth,
under the rule of a ferocious orthodoxy, blood took
the place of fruits and flowers, and terror the place
of affection, in the worship of the Supreme Being.
By its appeal to a force which is not that of Reason,
orthodoxy establishes its continuity with barbaric
antiquity. The invasion of Canaan, whether by
Israelites or Crusaders, was due to the aggressiveness
of an orthodox creed, and no mere struggle for exist
ence. The ground may be shifted from the next
world to this, and the motives be limited to the
secular, but Communism and Trades-Unionism have
shown themselves animated by the identical spirit of
fanaticism, which would subordinate the.individual to
a regime of uniformity, and use force to achieve its
purpose of subjugation. Even when engaged in
murdering priests and burning churches, it is still
Satan casting out Satan. The creed of both is dog
matic, and both use the same weapons. The Church
is the fountain even of the doctrinairism that would
commence with destroying the church. Indeed, they
are not without method in their madness who hold
that it was the Church’s chief apostle himself who
first set the example of massacring non-communists,
and that without regard to sex; and that the sudden
death miraculously inflicted upon two of them by
Peter, was the initiation of the atrocities which long
afterwards accompanied similar notions with the
Lollards and Anabaptists. The violence of Peter
proved as ineffectual to establish Communism within
the Church, as the gunpowder and petroleum of Paris
to establish it without the Church. The shrewd sense
of Paul gave another direction to the Christian move
ment, and saved it from the antagonism of Property.
But the direction in which that movement was turned
by the influence of Paul’s strong native bent towards
theological metaphysics, led to the creation of a
�How to Complete the Reformation.
25
systematised dogmatism, not less fatal to human
intellect and advancement, than ever the Communism
of Peter could have been. Both were alike destruc
tive of individual freedom and development. The
modern spectacle of Sacerdotalism—the Sacerdotalism
that has thriven upon St Bartholomew and a myriad
other massacres—affecting to be based upon primitive
Christianity, and at the same time denouncing and
slaughtering the Communists of Paris, is veritably
the spectacle of Saturn devouring his own children.
The whole principle of Dogma and of its enforce
ment by violence, is derivable from the Semitic
character of the church, which in respect of dogma
had its breeding-ground and nursery in Alexandria.
From Egypt came the Israelites of old with their
cruel Jehovistic alternative of conversion or destruc
tion, and the spirit which animates alike the ultramontanist of Rome, and the fanatic of the Revolution.
The wand that divided the Red Sea was the real
destroyer of Paris. And so long as we retain
in our midst an institution, bound by virtue of
its constitution, to maintain dogma and implant
the seeds of fanaticism, Egyptian darkness may be
truly said to dominate ourselves. The principle that
endows a dogma, enforces a creed, imposes a cate
chism, or pledges an infant in baptism, is identical
with the principle that massacres a tribe in Canaan,
explodes a bomb in the workshop of a non-union
artisan, or desolates a land by a religious war. In
each case alike the fanaticism is the offspring of
a claim to infallibility, and the result is the deter
mination to promote opinion by means other than
those of rational conviction. So that when wouldbe liberals appeal from reason to demonstrations of
physical force, they turn their backs upon liberalism,
and follow the fanatic and the bigot.
It is the Liberalism of the modern age that has
repudiated the ancient doctrine of the absolute pro-
�26
How to Complete the Reformation.
perty of parents in their children. The Church,
following the patriarchs, has ever asserted a similar
right on behalf, not of the parent, but of itself. As
it never occurred to Abraham that he had no right
to kill his son, so it seems never to have occurred
to the Church that no one has a right to dispose of
a child's mind and soul by pledging it to the
profession of any particular set of religious opinions.
VIII.
True Liberalism troubles itself little about forms.
In the State, it is neither monarchical nor re
publican.
In Society, it is neither aristocratic
nor democratic. In the Church, it is neither
established nor dissenting.
Its aim, following
the Reformation, is to bring about a liberty which
consists in the recognition of the right of
every person to develop his own individuality of
character and ability, to form and formulate his
own philosophy and faith, to work as best he likes
without the loss of caste, and earn as much as he
can, to enjoy the free disposal of his property, with
power to leave it to whom he will, to enjoy after
him :—for this is one of the highest incitements
to, and rewards of successful industry :—in short,
to regulate his life and faith in accordance with
his own tastes and his own deductions from the
phenomena of the world, the sole limit being the
equal liberty of others. Whatever forms of govern
ment or society best promote such liberty, these
are the forms approved by Liberalism. As the
genius of peoples and races varies, so also will these
forms vary. The detail must be a matter of experi
ence for each, not of dogma for any. All regimes
which fall short of such aims are, whether secular
or spiritual, political, industrial, or social, essentially
ultramontane in character, and antagonistic to Lib
eralism and the Reformation.
�How to Complete the Reformation.
ip
I have specified these details because there exists
among us a spirit which not unfrequently exhibits
itself in the form of class antagonism, seeking to
excite the animosity of the poor against the rich,
of the ignorant against the cultivated. I have
already designated the demagogue the worst enemy
of democracy. Liberalism is not the exclusive
appanage of those who call themselves by its name.
Sometimes it is not theirs at all. Liberals have no
monopoly of it in practice, whatever they may
pretend in principle. Those who endeavour to set
class against class, on the ground of the inequality
of their respective successes in the battle of life, are
the worst enemies of Liberalism and Liberty. To
have succeeded in that for which all are striving,
namely in winning exemption from a life of constant
hardship, and its degrading accompaniments, ignor
ance and coarseness, they pretend to account a
positive demerit and disqualification. Failing to
see that the chief glory of labour consists in its
capacity to enable men to live without excessive
labour, and to provide leisure for cultivation and
enjoyment, they would inflict penalties for all suc
cess beyond a certain mean standard. “ A man
ought not to be allowed to be so rich.” “ The law
should make him pay in taxes all that he has over
and above a certain income.” Such are the phrases
in which our Apostles of Communism in disguise
express themselves ; as if the success of one involved
the failure of another: not seeing that to lop off all
above a certain height would be, not to raise the lower
stratum,—for the poor are not poor through the
rich being rich,—but to make feebleness, stupidity,
ill-luck, or general incapacity, the universal mono
tonous rule, and to convert the nation into a com
munity of peasants and artisans, without space
for legitimate ambition or any ideal of life. It is
thus that the old dogmatic spirit is ever re-asserting
�28
How to Complete the Reformation.
itself under new forms. So soon as we make an
advance in the direction of greater liberty of indi
vidual development, a corresponding movement is
started to check it. The fanaticism bred by the
Church, takes the shape of doctrinairism in indus
trial, and intolerance of individuality in social, life.
The old orthodoxy, regarding all assertion of indi
viduality as heresy, measured all men by a standard
of religious doctrine ; this new one measures them
by a standard of wealth, or rather of poverty.
Thus the Church and the Commune are at one, for
their spirit is the same ; and “ Peter ” and “ Pet
roleum ” betray a mutual affinity in operation as
well as in name.
IX.
Similarly all existing fanaticism may be shown to
be an ecclesiastical product. Even those of our non
conforming sects which account themselves truest
heirs of the Eeformation, are lineally descended
from Pome, and partake the family features. It has
been shrewdly suggested that if, in their present tem
per, the Nonconformists obtain influence in the Univer
sities, any formal religious tests will be superfluous;
for liberal though they affect to be in their politics,
they make amends by being doubly narrow in their
religion. It is not for those who have acquiesced
in the exclusion of Nonconformists from the advan
tages of those institutions to taunt them on such score.
The fact, however, remains. And so long as we
suffer any of our national institutions to be conducted
on principles so much at variance with the principles
of Liberalism and the Reformation, as our Universities
have been and still are, we cannot boast of our
respect either for real education, for truth, or for
liberty. In Germany, the Universities, freed from
the trammels of dogma, are the homes and producers
�How to Complete the Reformation.
29
of the learning and science of the nation. A glance
at the roll of our great names reveals an almost total
divorce between the Universities and the genius
of the living generation. For a man of real science
and learning, even to retain his, connection with
them, it is needful that he, in part, either suppress
his convictions, or modify his utterances in deference
to their traditions. The vast bulk of the endow
ments, the honours, the emoluments, the prizes,
in our colleges are but means to enable dead bigots
to afflict the generations that come after them with
the perpetual reiteration of their own antiquated
tenets and obsolete arguments, and by no means
to enable men to follow the true, and utter their
own convictions. It was stated in evidence before
the Lords’ Committee on University Tests, that
it is considered necessary by the University Author
ities that parents should feel assured that their sons
will find nothing in the University System to inter
fere with the religious beliefs they bring from home.
It is in utter contradiction to all the principles both
of Liberalism and the Reformation thus to suffer the
understanding of our youth to be emasculated, their
morality to be depraved, and the whole future
of the nation to be held in leading-strings by the
stagnant or the dead.
X.
From the Universities let us glance to the next scene
in the career of those of their students who proceed to
take Orders in the Established Church. Constituted
as the Establishment now is, there can scarcely be, for
one thoroughly imbued with the true spirit of Liber
alism and the Reformation, a sadder spectacle than
that of an Ordination Service. It is not that the par
ticular doctrines, which the high-spirited and highly
cultivated youth have there assembled to pledge
�30
How to Complete the Reformation.
themselves to teach, are false and pernicious in them
selves. Even if they be so, this is not the worst
characteristic of the scene. It is because these youths
are pledging themselves to maintain those doctrines
whether they be true or not. It is because they are
bartering, as for a mess of pottage, their soul’s birth
right ; quenching the spirit of truthfulness within
them; binding themselves not to enquire further, lest
they come to see differently; binding themselves to
teach one thing, even when that thing shall have ceased
to be true for them; even to representing the character
and dealings of the Almighty as they no longer
believe them to have been ; binding themselves to
treat freedom of thought as licentiousness, freedom of
expression as blasphemy. To be true to their pro
fession and pledge there recorded, they must thence
forth treat the Universe as a sealed book ; for, were
they to explore it, they might, perchance, encounter
facts which refuse to square with their doctrines, the
doctrines to which they have vowed a life-long ad
herence, no matter how much in conflict with the
positive testimony of the rocks beneath, of the skies
above, or of the mind and soul within them. Call
such self-immolation what they will, it is essentially
irreligious in character. Religion has reference to
God, and it is not in God that they have undertaken
to place their trust, not in his “ invisible things made
visible ” in his works, and palpable to the developed
consciousness and conscience of man, as an index to
the divine nature; but in certain utterances, which
may or may not have been misreported or misinter
preted, of men who may or may not have been
mistaken or misinformed, utterances handed down
through conflicts of angry, unscrupulous partisans,
through changes of language and associations, through
a hundred troubled, distorting media; and these
utterances are to be, for time and for eternity, their
sole criterion of truth, and sole guide of life !
�How to Complete the Reformation.
31
Far different would be the moral aspect of the
spectacle, were each of these youths come thither to
devote himself, in the spirit of highest chivalry, to go
forth, no slave of a hierarchy, or bondsman of a
creed, but a knight-errant of light and liberty, in
pursuit of the Holy Grail of Truth, heedless whither
it might draw him; acknowledging no other allegi
ance, uttering no other watchword, but in perfect
confidence in his instinctive perception of the har
mony of the physical, moral, and spiritual universe,
the divinest of all bases of consciousness, fearing not
to face even the howling wilderness of absolute
negation: and, thus equipped with truest faith,
seek to lead his fellows on to those higher ranges of
the intellect and the moral sense, which are attain
able only by earnest and true spirits : seek too to
rekindle the flames of real patriotism, which consists
in that sincere and hearty comradeship which our
present fatal sectarianism, like an all-devouring acid,
seems to have eaten out of our national life.
XI.
It is a favourite way of defending certain of our
institutions, to say that, although it may be true that
were we suddenly placed on a desert island, and
forced to construct our system anew from the be
ginning, we should have many things different from
what they are, yet that, as our present institutions
have grown up with us as a part of ourselves, and in
accordance with our circumstances, it is better to
keep them, and patch and mend them as may be
found necessary, than to undergo the wrench and
discomfort of a total change, more particularly when
we know the limits of the disadvantages of the old,
and are not certain of the advantages of the new.
No doubt there are some of our institutions which
it may be better thus to put up with, rather than
�32
How to Complete the Reformation.
start on a quest of doubtful issue, to realise an ideal
of which we have no experience. But it does not
follow that all are of that character, or that we have
nothing that is not defensible for better reasons, or
capable of being, by practical reforms, adapted per
fectly to all our needs.
Let us suppose ourselves newly arrived, in con
siderable numbers, a free community, in some new
territory, in possession of a fair amount of intelli
gence, but compelled to construct our social and
political system without reference to traditions.
After making certain provisions in the interests of
security and order, there can be no doubt that one of
our first cares would be to provide for the education
of the young, and the general diffusion of useful
knowledge and sound principles of conduct among
all classes. To the first of these ends we should
create elementary common schools upon the broadest
possible basis throughout the whole settlement, with
trustworthy supervisors to ensure their efficiency.
Proceeding upon Liberal principles, and having
therefore no ulterior purpose, no traditional interests,
no particular form of society or government, or any
end whatever, to serve apart from its present or pro
spective utility, the main object of the education
given would be to develop the faculties and judg
ments of the scholars. The teachers would of course
be chosen for their special capacity, and as their
influence over the rising generation would necessarily
be great, the parents and the legislature would watch
most jealously over their exercise of it. The bulk of
the people would, of course, be engaged in industrial
pursuits, and have but little time to devote to their
own mental improvement. The second and remaining
division of our educational system, therefore, would
deal more especially with the adult population. In
order to develop and gratify the higher instincts of
our nature, of which the instinct of preservation,
�How to Complete the Reformation.
33
whether of self or of the species, forms only the basis,
we should encourage qualified persons to study for
our benefit, and to set before us, from time to time,
the results of their studies, in history, science, philo
sophy, literature, art, and religion; and, probably,
we should appoint certain periodical occasions, when
the whole population might rest from their physical
labours, and enjoy the mental recreation to be de
rived from listening to intelligent and cultivated
expositors in these various departments of knowledge.
Indeed, I should not be surprised to find certain
whole days, at convenient intervals, set apart for
such admirable purpose; and on the discussion
arising as to what those intervals should be, to find
that portion of the teaching class which more
particularly had devoted itself to the study of
meteorology and astronomy, suggesting that the
period of the moon’s quarters would make the
most convenient division of time, and recommending
that every seventh day be made the day of general
rest and recreation: in short, that something very
like the Sabbath should be instituted. We can
even understand the people becoming greatly at
tached to such an institution, and guarding it from
infringement by severe penalties, simply, of course,
because of .its human value. And we can imagine
with what zest the labourers in the various intellec
tual departments would work during the week to be
able to give of their best when the holiday came
round ; feeling that, on their earnestness and genuine
ness the higher life and happiness of their fellowcountrymen in great measure depended. We can
imagine, too, that the very buildings in which the
people and their instructors met for such purpose,
would become the objects of affection, and be con
structed and decorated in the most beautiful style
that could be devised.
C
�34
How to Complete the Reformation.
We can scarcely imagine, however, that these
various educational and recreational departments
would become jealous of each other; still less can we
imagine any one of them claiming such superiority
over the others as to seek to oust them altogether
from their share in the appointed ministrations, and
obtain a monopoly of the day to themselves. Neither
can we imagine that they would be suffered by the
community to prevail in such a demand were they so
unreasonable and arrogant as to make it. It would
be among the duties of the National Education over
seers,—who might fairly, in token of their function, be
distinguished by the title of Bishops, and would
doubtless comprise in their number the Mills, Hux
leys, and Tyndals of the community,—to see that
provision was made for the due satisfaction of every
side of man’s mental nature, and that neither secular
nor spiritual interests should usurp the place of the
other. It would also be among the duties of those
Bishops, as education controllers, to take care that
none but those who had first approved themselves
qualified by natural gifts and by culture, should fill
the office of teacher, under the recognition and remu
neration of the State : that their teaching did not
degenerate into trite common-place or dogmatic
assertion ; but that the same Liberal principle that
prohibits all pretension to be wise beyond that which
is written in the book of Nature, and can be plainly
read there, should pervade alike both higher and
lower departments of education. Not that opinion
and hypothesis should not be freely stated and can
vassed, but that while all have a hearing, none be
suffered to assume an authority beyond the fair
warrant of evidence and reason : so that there would
be no pretext for forming rival systems without the
general one in order to propound divergent doctrines.
�How to Complete the Reformation.
o>5
XII.
I can imagine, as the picture of such an ideal con
stitution grows and spreads before our minds, long
ings being excited for the realisation of such a happy
condition of things among ourselves to replace our
own distracted state. I can imagine, as we study the
details of such a system in order to compare it with
our own, and take account of the day we have set
apart, each seventh day, for physical, mental, and
spiritual renovation; of our army of preachers so
numerous and admirably organised as to have its
ramifications alike in populous city and remote
hamlet; of its hierarchy of overseers, ennobled as in
recognition of the loftiness of their functions; of the
vast revenues set apart for the higher education of the
whole people; and the vast multitude of edifices noble
and commodious devoted to their uses; I can imagine,
as we detect the many points of coincidence between
the ideal system I have attempted to describe, and
the real one which we already possess, the conviction
growing strong within us that we already have
in our possession not only such an ideal system, but
one far transcending in the perfection of its organisa
tion, the immensity of its appliances, the number and
quality of its agents, all that the most fertile imagin
ation could have devised without centuries of
experience : that we have already in possession and
operation a system of abundant capacity to lift the
dead weight of our most debased classes out of the
depths into which they have sunk, and sustain the
most elevated at their utmost height. And the con
viction would be a true one. For we, in very deed,
have in our possession an instrument, which like an
organ, magnificent in quality and unlimited in
capacity, but impaired with misuse, requires only to
be tuned up to the concert-pitch of our high needs
and aspirations, to produce in abundance the full rich
harmony of a perfect civilisation.
�2,6
How to Complete the Reformation.
It is by means of the Nationalisation of our Church
Establishment that I propose to complete the Reform
ation, and secure the final triumph of Liberalism.
To do this but one thing is needful. We have but
to purge it of its dogmatism to make it all that we have
been so long seeking for; all that the most developed
consciousness of our multiform deficiencies can require,
to minister to our educational needs high or low.
We have but to drive those thieves of the Intellect
and the Moral Sense, Creeds, and Articles and Tests,
out of the Temple of our Humanity, and replace them
by the simple Spirit of Truthfulness. In driving out
these, we shall drive out also from our midst the
malignant spirit of fanaticism which is ever the same
whatever the cause in which it is evoked; whatever
the means by which it works; whether it be to wage
a religious war, or to crush a soul’s freedom over
its whole career from the cradle to the grave.
Disestablish the Church, and we have what ? A
sect, a discord, the more. Perhaps three or four
sects the more. In any case a huge and wealthy
sect; for it could not be turned adrift bare, or with
out much wealth, corporately, of its own : it would
have, too, greater claim on the wealth of its mem
bers, and so be the richer in their zeal. It would
have power and prestige to arrogate superiority
over all other sects; and to develop, unmitigated
by the tempering influences of the State, into full
activity of fanaticism, all the fierce bigotries that
even now are glowing within its volcanic breast.
Let us never forget the utterance wherewith the
late Charles Buller pleaded against the separation
of the Church from the State : “ For heaven’s sake,
don’t meddle with the Church! It is the only
thing that stands between us and religion !” Even
now, while still connected with the State, such is
the power of dogmatism to generate and foster
bigotry that the Church fails to “ stand between us
�How to Complete the Reformation.
37
and religion,” or fanaticism. Numbers of its clergy
have taken the bit between their teeth, and are
boring ahead in all directions at once. Those who
once thought that they found in the State-religion
a harmless non-explosive compound, find it no such
compound now. Disestablished, and left to propa
gate unrestrained the spirit of dogmatism and
fanaticism, it will be impossible to over-estimate
the injury it will do to the State. The State
dares not risk such a danger to itself. It dares not
set up a vast imperium in imperio, endowed with
both will and power to withstand all progress in
the direction of Liberalism and Civilisation. It
dares not renew its immoral contract to recognise
and protect the endowment of dogma, when once
its eyes are open to the nature of that contract.
XIII.
There is but one condition upon which the State
can set the Church free, and allow it to retain a
particle of the property of the National Establish
ment : the condition that it abandons its dogmatic
character, and in place of constituting itself a huge
conspiracy against the intelligence and moral sense of
the nation, becomes co-extensive with the nation.
The retention by the Church of the national property
on any other terms, would be a perpetuation of the
robbery of the State by the Church.
But thus purged of these its defects and limitations,
all pretext for its disestablishment would cease
to exist, for it would then constitute, ready-made
in our hands, and in full operation, precisely the
organisation we require to crown and complete our
new national system of elementary education. Al
ready, by our creation of this system, we have
recognized and acted on two principles : First, that
no member of the State has a right to menace the
�38
How to Complete the Reformation.
safety and comfort of the community, or to sacri
fice his children, by allowing those children to
grow up as barbarians : and Second, that the com
pulsory inculcation of dogma is immoral and per
nicious. It needs but to extend the same principles
to the Establishment. It is true the State cannot
prevent people from being themselves dogmatic,
and fanatical, and otherwise immoral. But this
is no reason why the State should directly pro
mote, by immoral legislation, a temper so injurious
to the community. It has but to make its educa
tional system of a piece throughout, by banishing
dogma from the higher, as it has banished it
from the lower branch, its latest and purest creation.
Whether we keep the Church, or disestablish it, so
long as we suffer it to rest on a dogmatic basis, all
our efforts to educate our young on the principles of
a rational, manly Liberalism, will be vain. I do not
overlook all that its clergy have done for education.
I grant them, individually, fullest credit for their
earnest and self-denying labours in this behalf; but
it is not the less true that the system on which they
have worked is, both in its method and in its pur
pose, a system for producing, not men, but slaves
and cretins; for it is a system that sets the under
standing at nought, by blinding it to the meaning of
Natural law, to the significance of facts, the value
of evidence, and the very meaning even, and use of
the faculty of truthfulness. It is a system of
spiritual trades-unionism, regime at once of Sheffield
and of Rome, making the capacity of the feeblest and
stupidest the rule of all; for the regime is the same
that restricts the strength and genius of the workman
to the standard of the least capable, limiting the
number of bricks the builder shall carry in his hod
at a time, or lay in a day, the number of types the
printer shall set up, the number of hours each man
shall work, the amount of wage he shall earn; and
�How to Complete the Reformation.
39
that restricts his aspirations and advance towards the
universe of divine facts, by keeping him as a caged
squirrel, revolving within a little circle of artificial
beliefs and observances. The spirit is the same, and
the regime is the same. The end also is one. For
the spirit is that of cowardice and selfishness : the
regime, that of tyrannical repression of the human
faculties; the end, the advancement of a caste irre
spective of the cost to mankind.
XIV.
Stifled as the faculty of reason ever has been by
authority based upon dogma, it is no matter for wonder
that the revolts against that authority should ofttimes
fail to be governed by reason. Even the agitation
lately commenced for the disestablishment of the
Church indicates little appreciation of the principles
of Liberalism and of Liberty. The agitators are
divisible into two classes, of which one seeks but to
reduce the Establishment to the level of other sects,
and the other seeks to enable it to indulge its
sacerdotal predilections to the heart’s content of its
most bigoted adherents; while neither seems to care
for the moral character of our legislation, for the
waste of the nation’s resources, or how they are
directed against their proper function of promoting
■civilisation.
And what hinders us from completing the Refor
mation by such Nationalisation of the church estab
lishment as that which I am advocating ? Is it that
which people are pleased to call their Christianity—
their “ common Christianity” ? Admirable audacity,
to prate of a “ common Christianity; ” or even to
adduce what they possess under such name, as a
thing to be cherished and preserved at the cost of
all that is noblest in Humanity! For my part,
though I have been over a goodly proportion of the
�40
How to Complete the Reformation.
earth’s surface, I know not where in the world to look
to find a Christianity fulfilling its proper function, (if
such be its proper function,) of raising and sustaining
the moral, spiritual, and intellectual life of a people
by its hearty acceptance and wise application of the
only means that can tend to such ends. And if such
have as yet no existence anywhere, why may not
Milton’s prognostication turn out true, and “ God, as
His manner is, reveal Himself first to His English
men ?”
What hinders ? Is it the invincible attachment of
the clergy or the laity to their dogmas ? For the
laity, it is but necessary to point to the vast numbers
of men who abstain from the services, and reject the
teaching of the Church altogether, and that other
large proportion of men who attend them merely to
gratify the women of their families. For the clergy,
I need but specify the large and increasing number
who, longing to be delivered from their bondage, are
ever striving to infuse into the ancient forms, signifi
cations which are not altogether repulsive to their
intelligence or their moral sense, and who yet feel
that, jangle their fetters as they will, the music they
make is still but the clanking of fetters.
What hinders ? Is it a fear of being charged with
“confiscation” and “sacrilege?” If names import
anything, we have great names wherewith to confront
these loud sounding terms. We have Milton, the
soundness of whose orthodoxy no one is entitled to
question, for has he not, in his Paradise, Lost, Paradise
Regained, and Hymn of the Nativity, provided us with
a framework of mythology for our theology more
complex and perfect, even than that of the Bible
itself? Well, Milton advocated the application of
revenues “ left,” to use his own words, “ perhaps
anciently to superstitious, but meant undoubtedly to
good and best uses, and therefore applicable by the
present magistrate to such uses as the church, or
�How to Complete the Reformation.
41
solid reason from whomsoever, shall convince him to
think best •>” and enumerates among those legitimate
uses for church property, the 11 erection in greater
numbers all over the land of schools and libraries, so
that all the land would be soon the better civilised.” *
Milton, it is true, was a Nonconformist, but we find
the most eminent of our Bishops, Bishop Butler,
declaring that “every donation to the Christian
Church is a human donation and no more, and there
fore cannot give a divine right, but such right only as
must be subject, in common with all other property,
to the regulation of human laws. . . . The persons
who gave lands to the Church had no right of
perpetuity in them, and consequently could convey no
such rights to the Church.” t
But authorities are not needed to prove to us that
the religious revenues of a people not only may
follow, the religion of that people, but are applicable
to their “ good and best uses,” whatever the changed
sentiment of the people may come to consider those
uses bo be. To regard them otherwise would be to
let the dead, not bury the dead, but govern the living
for evermore, a principle at once fatal to Christianity,
to the Reformation, to Liberalism, to all advance and
improvement whatever in the world.
Neither do we require names or authorities to
convince us that the “ confiscation,” and the
“ sacrilege,” if any, would not be on our part, but is
on theirs already who have diverted the property of the
Establishment from its “ good and best uses,” to the
use of an association for the preservation of sectarian
dogmas and the observance of sectarian rituals. It is
not the “Church” that would suffer injustice : It
is the State that is robbed, under the present system,
and that would be robbed in perpetuity by the
* “The likeliest way to remove Hirelings out of the
Church.”
t “ Letter to a Lady. ”
�42
How to Complete the Reformation.
appropriation of its revenues to the purposes of a
sect.
XV.
It is not for man to live for ever in the nursery.
As in the history of an individual, so in that of a
people, there is a period when larger views must pre
vail and greater freedom of action be accorded ; when
life will have many sides, and hold relations with
a vast range of facts and interests, of which none
can be left out of the account without detriment to
all concerned. Formerly, it may be, men were able,
or content, to recognise their relations with the
infinite on but a single side of their nature. When a
strongly marked line divided the object of their
religious emotions from all other objects, when that
alone was deemed divine, and all else constituted the
profane or secular, there may have been excuse for
their accordance of supremacy to the one class of
emotions, and of inferior respect, or even contempt,
to the other. But we have passed out of that stage,
we know no such distinction in kind between the
various classes of our emotions. They all are human,
and therefore all divine. They all serve to connect
us with the universe of which we are a portion, the
whole of which universe must be equally divine for
us, though we may rank some of its uses above others
in reference to our own nature. Thus, if there is
nothing that is specially sacred for us, it is because
there is nothing that is really profane; but all is sacred,
from the least to the greatest. And this is the lesson
that the Churches have yet to learn. Let us com
plete the Reformation by freeing our own Church from
its ancient limitations, which are of the nursery. Let
us release our teachers from the corner in which they
have so long been cramped, and they will soon learn
to take greater delight in exploring the many
mansions which compose the whole glorious house of
�How to Complete the Reformation.
43
the universe, and unfolding in turn to their hearers
whatever they can best tell, whether of science,
philosophy, religion, art, or morality, not necessarily
neglecting those spiritual metaphysics to which they
have in great measure hitherto been restricted, and
the consequence of which restriction has been but to
distort them and all else from their due proportion.
In the Church thus reformed, all subjects that tend
to edification will be fitting ones for the preacher. But
whatever the subject, the method will have to be but
one, always the scientific, never the dogmatic method.
The appeal will be to the intellects, the hearts, and
the consciences of the living, never to mere authority,
living or dead. There will be no heresy, because no
orthodoxy; or rather, the question of heresy as
against orthodoxy will be a question of method, not
of conclusions. From the pulpits of such a church no
genuine student or thinker will be excluded, but will
find welcome everywhere from congregations composed,
not of the women only and the weaker brethren, but
of men, men with brains and culture ! Who knows
what edifices of knowledge may be reared, what
reaches of spiritual perception may be attained, upon a
basis from which all the rubbish of ages has been cleared
away, and where all that is useful and true in the
past is built into the foundations of the future ! Who
can tell how nearly we may attain to the perfections
of the blessed when, no longer straitened in heart and
mind and spirit by a narrow sectarianism, but with the
scientific and the 'verifiable everywhere substituted for
the dogmatic and the incomprehensible, the veil which
has so long shrouded the universe as with a thick
mist shall be altogether withdrawn, when the All is
revealed without stint to our gaze in such degree as
each is able to bear, and Theology no longer serves
but to paint and darken the windows through which
man gazes out into the infinite !
Thus reformed, amended, and enlarged, the estab-
�44
How to Complete the Reformation.
lished Churches of Great Britain will be no exclusive
corporations, watched with jealous eyes of less
favoured sects. Nonconformity will disappear, for
there will be nothing to nonconform to: Fanaticism,
for there will be no Dogma; Intolerance and Bigotry, for
there will be no Infallibility. Comprehensive, as all
that claims to be national and human ought to be,
no conditions of membership will be imposed to
entitle any to a share of its benefits : but every
variety of opinion will find expression and a home
precisely in the degree to which it may commend
itself to the general intelligence.
The bitterness of sectarian animosity thus extin
guished, and no place found for dogmatic assertion
or theological hatred, it will seem as if the first heaven
and the first earth had passed away, and a new heaven
and new earth had come, in which there was no more
sea of troubles, or aught to set men against each other
and keep them from uniting in aid of their common
welfare. Lit by the clear light of the cultivated
intellect, and watered by the pure river of the
developed moral sense, the State will be free to
grow into a veritable City of God, where there shall
be no more curse of poverty or crime, no night of
intolerant stupidity, but all shall know that which is
good for all, from the least to the greatest.
TURNBULL AND SPEARS, PRINTERS, EDINBURGH.
�
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A collection of digitised nineteenth-century pamphlets from Conway Hall Library & Archives. This includes the Conway Tracts, Moncure Conway's personal pamphlet library; the Morris Tracts, donated to the library by Miss Morris in 1904; the National Secular Society's pamphlet library and others. The Conway Tracts were bound with additional ephemera, such as lecture programmes and handwritten notes.<br /><br />Please note that these digitised pamphlets have been edited to maximise the accuracy of the OCR, ensuring they are text searchable. If you would like to view un-edited, full-colour versions of any of our pamphlets, please email librarian@conwayhall.org.uk.<br /><br /><span><img src="http://www.heritagefund.org.uk/sites/default/files/media/attachments/TNLHLF_Colour_Logo_English_RGB_0_0.jpg" width="238" height="91" alt="TNLHLF_Colour_Logo_English_RGB_0_0.jpg" /></span>
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How to complete the reformation
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Place of publication: Ramsgate
Collation: 44 p. ; 19 cm.
Notes: From the library of Dr Moncure Conway. Printed by Turnbull and Spears, Edinburgh.
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Maitland, Edward
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1871
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Thomas Scott
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Church of England
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English
Church of England-Disestablishment
Conway Tracts
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Text
INAUGURAL DISCOURSE
AT
ST. GEORGE’S HALL,
ON SUNDAY, 1st OCTOBER, 1871.
BY
REV. CHARLES VOYSEY, B.A.,
ST. EDMUND HALL, OXFORD, LATE VICAR OF HEALAUGH.
LONDON:
To be obtained of the Author at
ST. GEORGE’S HALL.
1871.
Price Fourpence.
��SERMON.
c< Let us not be weary in well-doing; for in due season
roe shall reap if we faint not.”
Q&LKTlkKS
vi. 9.
I have chosen this text as a motto on this very
interesting occasion of our assembling here to-day,
rather than as a special subject of our meditation.
It would be unnecessary, and even unprofitable, to
occupy our thoughts with an essay on the duty of
perseverance, or with a string of common-places
about success being the reward of patient and
well-sustained exertion. We are too much men of
the world not to know by experience that if we wish
to succeed in our present undertaking, we must
bring to bear upon it our best and wisest thought—
our undaunted courage under, apparent failure—and
our most patient and self-denying exertions.
It seems more fitting to the circumstances of the
hour that we should begin our work with a brief and
comprehensive review of what we have undertaken
�4
to do, so as to get, if possible, in plain words, a
definite statement of the objects which have drawn,
and are still drawing, together from all parts of the
world so important an organization as that which
we profess to represent.
Our first work—that indeed which has been the
key note of this organization — is to undermine,
assail, and, if possible, to destroy that part of the
prevailing religious belief which we deem to be false.
We make no secret of our antagonism. We
frankly state our denials, and are ready to give our
reasons for the denial of any doctrine which we de
nounce. We are in open warfare against much of
what goes by the name of Christianity. We repu
diate at the outset the tacit or avowed assumptions
which are almost universally accepted as the basis
of religious belief.
To be more explicit, we deny the doctrines of the
fall of man from original righteousness; of the curse
of God against our race, and of his supposed sen
tence of any of his creatures to everlasting woe;
therefore we deny not merely the doctrine of the
atonement, but the necessity for any method what
ever of appeasing the imaginary wrath of God. For
every one of these doctrines involves a flaw in the
moral perfection of God, and violates our instinctive
perception of His goodness. The fall of man, e.g.,
involves an admission that God was either unable or
unwilling to keep His creature as good as He had at
first made him ; and that, contrary to the conclusions
of science, God’s work is not progressive, that the
�5
first man was a paragon of perfection, instead of
being in the lowest rank of savages. The doctrine
of God’s curse against our race in consequence of
the first man’s sin involves a still greater blemish on
the moral perfection of God; it is contrary to all
sense of justice that one man should be an object of
wrath in consequence of another man’s sin, much
more that a whole world of countless millions should
be deemed accursed and sentenced to everlasting
perdition through the sole faults of their first parents.
This doctrine we discard, because it is morally de
grading to God. For the same reason, only with
immeasurably greater indignation, we reject the
doctrine that God withdrew the curse and sentence
from the heads of a few of our race in consequence
of the death of Jesus, by which, orthodoxy tells us,
the Father was reconciled to men. The remedy was
worse than the disease. The compromise more dis
honourable than the injustice which it was intended
to amend. These are only a few, but they are the
most prominent of the doctrines which nearly all socalled Christians deem to be essential; and our first
work, I say, is to hasten their coming downfall—to
rid the world of ideas which, though once were good
and useful in comparison with the ideas which they
supplanted, have now become both poisonous and
loathsome—full of injury to the human heart and
mind, and blasphemous in the ears of the most
High.
Gathering round these abjured doctrines are others
of only less noxious character, such as the belief in
�6
a Devil, the doctrine of the Trinity, the Godhead,
and even the superhuman Divinity of Jesus Christ—
the expectation of His return to earth as the Judge
and King of men—the doctrine of the Church as a
spiritual and authoritative power—the doctrines of
sacraments, of holy orders, of priestly interference
and control in every shape, and of the necessity for
priestly intervention at the burial of the dead. All
these topics are suggestive of many protests, which
it will be our duty to make.
There is one, however, which I have not yet men
tioned, reserving it for a paragraph by itself. We
shall be met at the onset of our attack by the
warning, that we have no right to form about any
of God’s dealings an opinion which may be con
trary to the revealed religion contained in the
Bible, or in the Church, or in both. This is
where the conflict will be hottest. We must bring
all our forces to bear against this insidious and
plausible plea. We shall have not merely to defend
our own right to use the Light of Nature within us,
but to show up the weak points in our enemies’
armour—to challenge them to a defence of those
glaring immoralities and absurdities in the Bible, or
in the £‘ revealed ” religion, which none of them as yet
have had the courage to defend—to exhibit also un
sparingly the numberless fallacies which abound in
their theories of a Church, and to make them show
cause why any claimant for our obedience should be
accepted more than his rivals. We must repeat and
repeat the fact, that so-called revelations abound in
�7
all the earth, each one being believed by its ad
herents to be the only true one; and that Chris
tendom itself is divided piecemeal into separate and
antagonistic Churches, each of which in turn is, of
course, the only true Church.
To the world outside, who may watch the struggle,
we may appeal with confidence, knowing that all the
Churches, all the priests, all the Bibles, and all the
Catechisms, have never yet been able to quench the
spark of Divine justice, and love of truth, which the
Almighty God has kindled in the human breast.
The time will come when, if our orthodox opponents
shall have succeeded in proving that the Bible or
the Church teach authoritatively doctrines against
which the mind and ■ heart and conscience of men
rebel, men will make answer—“ So much the worse
for the Church—so much the worse for the Bible;”
and what is bad in both will be cast away to the
moles and to the bats—to the dust and darkness
appointed for all falsehood.
To pave the way for even this preliminary work of
necessary destruction, we must first of all persuade
the timorous to enter upon the work of religious
enquiry without any dread of being punished for
honest conviction. The Churches hold all their
power at this moment through the superstitious fears
of men and women. From first to last the cry is,
“Flee from the wrath to come,” “Believe this, and
thou shalt be saved and as nothing is so catching
as fear, the multitude run hither and thither, to seek
shelter from impending doom.
�A great part of our work, then, must be to pro
claim the perfect safety of the path of enquiry. To
tell men and women that even if they go wrong in
opinion, even if they miss much precious truth and
embrace much mischievous error, the Lord of all will
not damn them for it for ever. The Father’s love
will not shrivel up or grow cold because, in our
blindness or twilight, we have missed the path of
truth, or made but slow progress therein. We must
teach them that, wrong or right, they are equally safe
from the absurd horrors which have hitherto scared
them; and that all the ill-consequences of error which
Divine goodness has ordained, are only ordained to
teach us to correct our mistakes, and to improve our
method of search after His truth. 1 sometimes fear
that—as regards this country at all events—most of
us will not live to see the false doctrines of Christianity
utterly rooted out, but we may well hope to have set
free our countrymen in a few short years from this
insane and ridiculous fear of damnation as the penalty
for error in opinion. We can do nothing with the
religious masses till we have set them free to think
without trembling at every step. Let us do this with
all our might, and let us not be weary in this piece
of well-doing, for in due season we shall reap if we
faint not.
But our work does not rest here. I believe I am
only echoing the thoughts of every heart which has
sympathised with us, when I say we should be both
distressed and ashamed if all our work were only
destructive, if all our energies were to be exhausted
�9
in pulling down even false belief and only in under
mining erroneous doctrine. So far from that, we
only pull down that we may build up, we only de
sire to eradicate false beliefs that we may be able to
plant true beliefs in their place. Though I am only
an insignificant unit in the great brotherhood of free
thinkers and enemies of orthodoxy, I may point with
an honest pride to those published works for which
I have been expelled from my benefice, and ask, Are
not those writings full of positive beliefs ? Can you
find a sermon amongst them all which does not pro
claim as much my anxiety that we should believe and
teach what is true, as that we should give up and de
nounce what is false ? Had this not been so, I
should certainly not deserve to stand here to-day as
the mouthpiece of so many earnest and devout men.
But we must be prepared for every form of reproach
and every degree of misrepresentation. When
people can deliberately say of a man, “ He is only a
Theist,” assuming that, in their own minds, and in
that of their hearers, contempt need go no further,
it proves that they know nothing whatever of Theism
and that they have never taken the pains even to
ascertain what we really believe, or why we believe
it; still less why we should have willingly suffered
for it.
It will be our chief duty and our highest delight
to proclaim our real convictions — to contrast our
own faith with the faith we have so gladly aban
doned, and to try to teach those who may be halting
between two opinions, and others who may have
�10
no faith at all, to embrace the views which our own
hearts, as God made them, have taught us to ap
prove.
It will delight us to tell how we have learnt to
call God our Father—to trust Him unseen—to look
to Him for guidance in difficulty, and for strength in
duty—to feel that He is about our path and about
our bed, near to us at every moment of our lives,
ready to give all the light and knowledge which our
narrow souls can receive—to console us under every
disappointment and sorrow—and to give us hope
when everything else is gone. It will be our joy to
show that this faith in our Father is the natural
outcome of the possession and exercise of loving
virtues; that—if there be a God at all—He must
for ever be above, and never below, the moral beauty
of the best of His creatures; that as we grow in
friendliness, and brotherliness, and fatherliness to
our fellow-men, we learn more and more of the ex
ceeding and unspeakable love of God ; that we give
to Him the best name we know to-day, ready to ex
change it for a better and truer one on the morrow,
if human life and its relations rise higher still.
Contrasting this with the miserable narrow estimate
of God’s love as given us in Christianity, we gladly
proclaim that all that God is to ourselves, He is also
that to every one of our fellow-men. He has no
favourites, and the best and happiest one amongst us
all, in this world or in the world to come, is only the
type of what every other soul shall be when his turn
come. Meeting with the objection against His love,
�11
drawn from the sufferings and moral degradation of
many of our race, we can either explain it by
thoughtful reference to pains and sins we have our
selves once experienced, and found them to be preg
nant with eternal blessing, or we take refuge in the
thought that our goodness—small as it is—would
not allow us to inflict one grain of pain or shame
without a purpose of lasting good, nor to withhold
any amount of painful discipline that was necessary
to secure the ultimate happiness and virtue of the
individual exposed to it; and then we ask ourselves,
“ Shall mortal man be more just than God ? Shall
the creature be more loving than the Creator ?”
We shall have to confront those who believe too
little as well as those who believe too much. We
know that if an unspoken Atheism be rife in this
land, it must be laid at the door of those who painted
man worse than a worm, and God blacker than a
fiend.
The creed of Christendom is the cradle—nay, the
mother of Atheism ; and the Churches may thank
themselves for degrading not only the name and work
of Jesus—one of the world’s best men—but also the
principles of mankind and the honour of God. If
we would do any successful work amongst those who
are exiles from the regions of faith, we must come to
them to learn, not to teach—to learn every bit of
truth and duty which they have valued, while, per
haps, we have under-valued it. We must come to
them, honouring them for their protest against a foul
caricature of the Most High and His dealings, and
�12
only desiring to impart to them what is so precious
to ourselves by the legitimate process of argument,
and the still more efficient agency of a well-ordered
example. If they make their just boast that they
are all for mankind—to raise their kindred and their
race, to un-loose the heavy burdens, to let the op
pressed go free, and to break every yoke—let us
meet them, at all events, on their own ground as
brothers of humanity, and as setting the highest
possible value on services rendered to man as the
only true service acceptable to God.
Amongst the beliefs which it will be our duty to
proclaim, stands next in order our hope for the life to
come. We do not dogmatise on this or on any other
point, but it will devolve upon us to multiply and
strengthen all the evidences on which our hopes are
based. We all feel that our future life is bound up in
the very existence of God; the two must stand or fall
together; and while we are careful never to allow our
hopes and longings for immortal bliss to clog our foot
steps in the path of duty upon earth; while we are
most scrupulous to avoid turning it into a bribe for
the performance of duties which are their own reward,
we should do all in our power to deepen the roots of
our belief in the world to come, as the only solace
under the bitter pangs of bereavement, and as a
wholesome stimulus to our efforts after holiness,
which can never be adequately satisfied in the world
below.
To all this, which we may call our public work,
we must add the far more important business of
�131
cultivating in our lives the spirit of truth, integrity,
purity, and brotherly love. In our own homes, and
in the pursuit of our daily toil, we must find the
great field of self-culture and discipline, without
which all our public exertions in the service of truth
and liberty will be thrown away. If we find our
honour growing more sensitive, our thoughts more
elevated, our speech more refined and exact, our
tempers more placid and enduring, our consciences
more tender, and our affections more wide and deep,
we shall find, also, that our public and social influence for good will grow at the same time, and men
will learn to love us in spite of our creed, and will
pardon us for spurning their own. And above all,
if, in our desire to know more of God, and to be
convinced of His goodness, where we only doubted
before, we seem only to become more confused, more
bewildered by the strife of tongues, our only chance
of rest, and peace, and joy in believing, will be found
in our own efforts to be good and to do good. There
is no other avenue to the Throne of God’s majesty
on high; no other means of rending the veil which
hides the glory of His love, but what is to be found
in the goodness of each man’s own heart. “ Blessed
are the pure in heart for they only shall see God.”
Time would fail me were I to attempt to enume
rate the many collateral duties which will belong to
us as an association. We must only resolve to meet
them as they arise, in the same sincerity, and with
the same activity, as that in which we desire to
regulate our lives.
�141
Of the service in which we have all united to-day,
it becomes me not to speak but in terms of humility
and hope. It has been prepared in distressing haste.
At best it is only an experiment, and time alone will
enable us to test its value and to correct its faults.
I only ask you—and that with perfect confidence—
for your patient trial of it.
One word more upon my text and I have done.
“Let us not be weary in well-doing, for in due
season we shall reap if we faint not.”
For my own part, I have taken up my share in this
great work without any sanguine expectation of my
own success. But I mean to work at it body and
soul, day and night, if need be, in spite of any
amount of opposition and discouragement. I do not
mean to let it go till I am beaten off it, as it were,
lifeless. As long as I have a voice left me, it shall
be raised to magnify the loving kindness of the Lord,
and to speak good of His name. No terror shall
shut my lips—no bribes shall tamper with the utter
ance of my heart’s thoughts. So help me God ! But
in saying this for myself, I know I am speaking for
the thousands who have hitherto supported me, and
for those who are gathered here to-day. If we fight
shoulder to shoulder, turning neither to the right
hand nor to the left, we shall in time disarm all
opposition, win over to our ranks the wavering and
fashion-fearing multitude, and plant our banner of
truth, and liberty, and love, where no foe can reach
it. Thank God, the cause to which we have pledged
ourselves is not our cause only but His—does not
�15
depend on my life or fidelity, or feeble powers—no,
nor on all of us put together——it must prevail in the
end, conquering every obstacle, and rising over every
wave of seeming failure, because it is devoted, first
to God’s truth, then to God’s honour, and last, but
not least, to the true welfare of man. u Our help
standeth in the name of the Lord who hath made
heaven and earth I ”
��
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Victorian Blogging
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A collection of digitised nineteenth-century pamphlets from Conway Hall Library & Archives. This includes the Conway Tracts, Moncure Conway's personal pamphlet library; the Morris Tracts, donated to the library by Miss Morris in 1904; the National Secular Society's pamphlet library and others. The Conway Tracts were bound with additional ephemera, such as lecture programmes and handwritten notes.<br /><br />Please note that these digitised pamphlets have been edited to maximise the accuracy of the OCR, ensuring they are text searchable. If you would like to view un-edited, full-colour versions of any of our pamphlets, please email librarian@conwayhall.org.uk.<br /><br /><span><img src="http://www.heritagefund.org.uk/sites/default/files/media/attachments/TNLHLF_Colour_Logo_English_RGB_0_0.jpg" width="238" height="91" alt="TNLHLF_Colour_Logo_English_RGB_0_0.jpg" /></span>
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Conway Hall Library & Archives
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2018
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Conway Hall Ethical Society
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Inaugural discourse at St. George's Hall, on Sunday 1st October, 1871
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Voysey, Charles
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Place of publication: London
Collation: 15 p. ; 21 cm.
Notes: From the library of Dr Moncure Conway. Text of sermon from Galatians vi. 9 "Let us not be weary in well-doing; for in due season we shall reap if we faint not".
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Sermons
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Conway Tracts
Sermons
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CT(^
A REPLY
TO THE QUESTION,
“SHALL I SEEK ORDINATION IN THE
CHURCH OF ENGLAND ?•’
BY
SAMUEL HINDS,
D.D.
(Late Lord Bishop of Norwich.)
“ Never take a first step without considering well what may
be the next you will have to take.”
Maxim attributed to the late Dulce of Wellington.
PUBLISHED
BY
THOMAS
MOUNT PLEASANT, RAMSGATE.
1871.
Price Sixpence.
SCOTT,
��A REPLY
TO THE QUESTION,
“SHALL I SEEK ORDINATION IN THE
CHURCH OF ENGLAND?”
WILL do what I can to help you in deliberating
on the question whether you shall seek ordi
nation in the Church of England; but I must remind
you that it is a question which you alone ought to
decide. You cannot properly substitute the judgment
of another for yours in determining on a momentous
step for taking which you, not another, will be
responsible.
On one and the most essential view of the question
it is unnecessary for me to offer you any counsel.
You are fully impressed with the high and holy
interests which may be affected by your becoming a
Christian minister, and are resolved to do your duty
honestly and zealously. But although this is the
most essential view of the subject, it is not the only
one, nor the only important one, The clerical pro
fession is a sacred, but it is also a worldly calling.
Whatever other motive may induce you to select it,
one motive, it may be presumed, is, that it will be a
worldly provision for you.
Directing your attention, 'then, more especially to
this phase of the subject, my advice to you is—do not
decide on becoming a candidate for ordination until
you have well weighed a contingency which I will
state plainly and unreservedly. If, after becoming a
I
�4
Shall I Seek Ordination
clergyman of the Church of England, any such change
should take place in your religious convictions as to
oblige you to abandon the office, your worldly pro
spects will be for ever blighted. It is most difficult
for a clergyman to shift from the peculiar habits of
clerical life to those of any other pursuit. In addition
to his inaptitude for any other occupation, he is stig
matised, by friends and strangers, for a change of
views which he could not help, as acrimoniously as if
he had been guilty of some heinous sin, instead of
being compassionated, as he ought to be, for the sad
condition into which his honest conviction, whether
erroneous or not, has brought him. He has to con
tend, moreover, against a feeling—call it superstitious
or what—that he has broken a holy pledge, and is
amenable to the reproach of having put his hand to
the plough and looked back.* In common prudence,
therefore, you ought thoroughly to acquaint yourself
with the requirements of the clerical profession in the
Church of England, and with the conditions under
which you will have to fulfil them, that you may not
discover something in them, when it will be too late,
to which you cannot honestly conform.
If the contingency has never occurred to you, you
will probably, on the first suggestion of it, be dis
posed to think it most unlikely, if not impossible, that
any so serious a change should take place in you.
Can I believe, you may say, that I shall ever forsake
the faith in which I have been brought up, and the
desire to contend for which is the cause of my pro
posing to myself the clerical profession ? that I shall
ever learn to regard as false, or doubtful, sacred truths
now so clearly revealed to my faith, and attested by
their effects on my heart and life ? Withoat pre
suming on my own strength, I trust that, in the
strength of the Lord whom I shall be serving, I shall
be innocent of this great offence.
* Luke ix. 62.
�5
In the Church of England.
All this is natural; and I am not saying that any
such change will come over you ; but I would, never
theless, strongly urge on you the consideration that it
may. There are some—it may not be too much to
say many—in orders in the Church of England, at
this moment, who are* receding further and further
from agreement with its dogmas, with its Articles
and its Prayer-book, and whose conscience is harassed
with the doubt, whether their dissent is, or is not,
beyond the line which may be drawn as permitting
those within it still to officiate as the Church’s
ministers, and who, when they undertook the clerical
office, had no reason to suspect that they would ever
fall into this slough of perplexity. It may be morally
impossible with some; with those, I should say, whose
minds are so constituted as to renounce investigation
of, and reasoning on, the topics which are embraced
in the Church’s formularies; but not with those—
and such I believe to be the case with you—who can
not but investigate and reason on them. These can
never beforehand be sure of the conclusions to which
their inquiry and reasoning may lead them.
Do I mean to suggest, then, that there is a possi
bility of your bringing Christianity itself to the test
of investigation and reasoning, and of finding that,
tried by that test, it must be rejected ? If this be the
rejoinder you make to me, I must call your attention
to an important fact. Christianity and a Christian
Church are not identical. Christianity is the sacred
deposit; a Church, an institution for preserving, dis
seminating, and giving a social form and character to
it. Your immediate concern, in your present delibe
ration, is not with Christianity, but with those provi
sions of the Church of England for enabling its
members to understand and conform to it, which are
embodied in its' formularies. You must not allow
yourself, in your just veneration for the Church of
England, to claim" for those to whom we are indebted
A
�6
Shall I Seek Ordination
for its Articles and Common Prayer-book infallible
■wisdom, and to take for granted that whatever they
have decided on must be a true and perfect exposition
of Christianity. And yet, unless you do this, you can
not be exempt from the contingency -which I am point
ing out. Do not delude yourself with the notion that
it will be in your power to go on, as clergymen did
formerly, in untroubled security in this respect. The
spirit of the age will not permit you. There is abroad
everywhere a fearless searching into the foundation of
the most time-honoured beliefs, and an unscrupulous
scepticism concerning those of which no satisfactory
account can be given. You cannot escape the impulse
of the movement. However well satisfied you may
now be with the Church of England’s doctrines and
rule, there is no saying that you will be of the
same mind as years roll on, and you read and think
more and more on the many subjects on which the
Church has decided, and on the grounds on which
some of those decisions are now canvassed. No pre
caution can altogether secure you against the risk, but
thus much you may do towards diminishing it—you
■may make yourself acquainted with the scruples which
have driven clergymen from the Church of England,
either by their own act, or by the sentence of lawcourts, and determine whether, with the light you now
have, you would or would not entertain any of those
scruples.
You will expect that I should particularise, and I
will do so. But there is one preliminary about which
it is indispensable that you should inform yourself,
before directing your thoughts to this or that doctrine
of the Church of England which has proved a fatal
stumbling-block in the way of certain of its ministers.
What is the test which the Church provides for
enabling a clergyman to judge, on any occasion of
doubt, how he ought to interpret the wording of the
Articles and Common Prayer-book ? At first sight,
�In the Church of England.
7
this would seem to be clearly defined. A solemn
promise is exacted of a minister, at his ordination as
priest, that he will teach nothing as required of
necessity to eternal salvation, but that which he shall
be persuaded may be concluded and proved by the
Scripture ; and this coincides with that which is laid
down, in the sixth of our Thirty-nine Articles, as the rule
of faith. “ Holy Scripture containeth all things neces
sary to salvation; so that whatsoever is not read therein,
nor may be proved thereby, is not to be required of any
man, that it should be believed as an article of the
faith, or be thought requisite or necessary to salva
tion.” Whenever, therefore, anything in the Church’s
formularies strikes the minister as false or question
able, it would seem that he has only to try it by the
test of Scripture ; and, if it does not abide that test,
to conclude either that it is an instance of the
fallibility of the authors and compilers, or else that
their language was meant to be understood in a sense
not the most obvious and natural; this provision of a
Scriptural test being a pious and humble acknow
ledgment, on the part of those from whom we derive
the authoritative documents, that they were but
human interpreters of the Divine mind, and, as such,
desired that their interpretation throughout should be
subjected to appeal from their authority to an
authority higher than theirs. If they were so minded,
as we are bound to presume, their view of the matter
has been long since ignored, and their test reduced
to a nullity as a test. To all intents and purposes,
ecclesiastical courts, and, as supreme, the Judicial
Committee of the Privy Council, have superseded the
Scriptural authority, in these cases, and their own
authority is substituted for it. This is no exaggeration,
but a matter of fact that must be patent to all whom
it concerns. In the last trial for heterodoxy, that of
Mr Voysey. how was his heterodoxy determined ? He
had satisfied himself that he was justified in holding
�8
Shall I Seek Ordination
certain views of Christ’s Divine nature, of his atone
ment, &c., although they were notin accordance with
the ordinary interpretation of the Church’s formu
laries, because, testing the formularies by Scripture,
that alone was the meaning which he could assign to
their language. Was any attempt made, in either of
the courts before which he appeared, to show that
this alleged discrepancy between Scripture and the
ordinary interpretation of the formularies did not
exist ? any reference to the Church’s rule of faith ?
None. All that was done, even by the court before
which his final appeal was heard, was to examine
carefully the wording of the formularies, and to
determine, on its own authority, what that wording
did, and what it did not mean ; and, as this meaning
differed essentially from Mr Voysey’s doctrine, to
condemn him. Whether he was right or wrong makes
no difference as to the principle on which the decision
was arrived at. As a minister of the Church of Eng
land, he had pledged himself to take the Scriptures as
his guide and test for doctrine; as a subscriber to the
Thirty-nine Articles, he had further pledged himself
to recognise the Scriptures only as his rule of faith,
and when he is prosecuted for having promulgated,
false doctrines, he finds, to his cost, that the Church of
England’s rule of faith is not the Scriptures, but the
Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. It is a
grave stretch of authority for even the highest
tribunal of the land toAliscard the sacred authority,
and to act on its own independently of it. No
doubt it is; but let us not think that in deciding
what is and what is not Church of England
doctrine, the members of that august tribunal act
either sacrilegiously, or arbitrarily, and without any
fixed principle to guide them. They are, and have
been, I believe, without exception, laymen as well as
clerics, men who have exercised the authority with
which circumstances have invested them, not only
�In the Church of England.
9
honestly and uprightly, but with more or less of a
solemn consciousness that they were dealing with the
things that are of God. The principle on which they
appear to decide may not be defensible, but it is in
telligible and plausible. Whether from their personal
habits of religious thought, or from that acquiescence
in the tyranny of popular and prevailing notions
from which few of us are quite exempt, they come to
the inquiry into an alleged heterodoxy, under the
dominion of what is currently established as ortho
doxy, and with a religious abhorrence of what is cur
rently held to be heterodoxy. The law to which they
bow is no statute or documentary authority, but a
sort of common law in matters of faith—this is ruled
to be the orthodox interpretation of the Church’s
standard, that the heterodox. What if, on all
the subjects which have furnished occasion for
these. prosecutions, some in high and the highest
ecclesiastical stations have differed from orthodoxy in
their interpretation of the Church’s formularies?
That is no plea for the accused. The tribunal asserts
the right of discriminating between the amount of
heterodoxy that is permissible, and that which is not.
It is allowable, for example, to question the authen
ticity of a certain portion of Scripture; but it must
not be a very large portion. Would those of the
judges who preside over secular courts of justice
venture to. maintain that theft is to be determined,
not by the stealing, but by the quantity stolen; or
that coiners of false money ought not to be prosecuted
if they limit their coinage to a moderate amount, but
only those who issue the base coin by the bushel ? It
would be easy to furnish a catena of eminent churchmen
who have thought it no unwarranted interpretation of
the Church’s formularies to take what are called hete
rodox views of the Athanasian Creed, of the Trinity,
of the person of Christ, of his atonement, of the
inspiration and authority of the Scriptures, and of
�io
Shall 1 Seek Ordination
other essentials, and who, on the one hand, have
never been prosecuted for those views, and, on
the other hand, are not available when a clergyman
who is prosecuted for doing the like, appeals to their
writings as having been tacitly sanctioned. The
Scriptures, having been deposed from their throne as
the arbiter for the interpretation of the Church’s
formularies, are themselves classed with the Articles
and the Book of CommonPrayer, as all alike documents
concerning which the clergyman must hold orthodox
opinions. He may not appeal to the Scriptures, even to
determine what he ought to believe concerning them ;
whether he may draw a distinction between the autho
rity of this and that portion, or in what sense they may
reasonably be called “ The Word of God.” Hot Scrip
ture itself, but orthodoxy, must instruct him.
I have stated the case plainly and unreservedly.
My purpose in doing so is not that you should see in
the Church of England’s rule of faith, as I have
represented it, an insurmountable obstacle to your
becoming one of its ministers ; but to impress on you
the advisableness of recognising the fact, in all its
bearings, before you do so. Numbers who cannot but
be aware of the fact are not disturbed with the prospect
of its ever causing trouble and difficulty to them.
This may or may not be your case ; but, whilst you
are free to choose, you ought to be forewarned of the
existence of a state of things which causes distress, if
not ruin, to some of the most devoted of the Church’s
ministers, not the less devoted that they have laboured
to ascertain what is true or otherwise in its teaching,
undeterred by the consequences.
I may now proceed briefly to particularise the more
prominent topics on which the decision, or presumed
decision, of the Church has been questioned by them1
and by others. These are, the doctrine that the Deity
is, in theological phraseology, a trinity in unity, the
word unity meaning, not union, but oneness numeri
�In the Church of England.
11
cally, and the word Zrmifc/’the being three; the connec
tion of the second of the three, the Son, with “ the
man Christ Jesus
the personality of the one Christ
with two distinct and perfect natures, that of God and
that of man; original or birth sin; the atonement
for sin, both actual and original; the future punish
ment of wicked men and of unbelievers ; the meaning
and purpose of those of the Thirty-nine Articles
which relate to these subjects, more particularly of the
first five; and of the adoption and sanction of the
three Creeds, more particularly the Athanasian; the
authority and the authorship of the Scriptures, speci
ally as now most controverted, of the Pentateuch and
Book of Joshua in the Old Testament, and of the
fourth Gospel in the New ; the question whether cer
tain statements in the Gospel histories which appear
to be irreconcilable admit of being reconciled, and the
veracity of the writers vindicated.
Now, if you really wish to understand the grounds
on which certain clergymen have been prosecuted
and condemned for their views on any of these sub
jects, you should seek your information, not from the
representation of their opponents, but by candidly
examining what they themselves, and those who have
gone along with them, have said. It is very possible
that, owing to your religious studies and thoughts
having always proceeded in a totally different direc
tion, you will find, in these writings, some things to
startle and even shock you. Not that they are
blasphemous or irreverent, far from it, but because
they may run counter to, and jar with, your custo
mary modes of thinking. Supposing this to be the
case, it ought not to deter you from a candid exami
nation of them. Should the result be that you are
convinced by the arguments on the side of orthodoxy,
you will be less likely to be disturbed by doubts when
doubting cannot extricate you from a false position;
* 1 Tim. ii. 5.
�J2
Shall 1 Seek Ordination
if, on the other hand, the heterodoxy shall approve
itself to you, as the truth, you will have had a timely
warning against taking a position which would oblige
you to maintain the contrary.
Many, I know, would advise one in your circum
stances to have nothing to do with the publications
that call in question established views of religious
doctrine, and to fortify yourself against them by
reading what safe guides say on the orthodox side.
Advice more unwise, disingenuous, and dangerous
cannot be given. Thus to treat publications which
discuss the truth or falsehood of religious views as
you would indecent and immoral tracts, savours of a
confusion of thought which can only be accounted
for by the habit we so often observe, of dealing with
religious beliefs as if the ordinary laws of thought
were not applicable to them. We keep the immoral
tracts out of the hands of the pure, because they
appeal to the passions of the reader, and, therefore,
tend to corrupt him morally in the very act of perus
ing them; whereas the heterodox tracts to which I
refer, are addressed to the reasoning faculty of the
reader, which they stimulate him to exercise lawfully
and rightly, and in the exercise of which there is no
corrupting process ; the process being one of clearing
away misty conceptions, and of forming a healthy
judgment, whether for or against the views submitted
to it. To aid the investigator by setting before him
what we may think to be specious and false in the
reasoning of an opponent, that is reasonable and
right; but not to blindfold him and persuade him
that he sees.
And what is the natural impression made by adopt
ing this policy ? Is it not that, make what assertions
you may, of sacred truths not requiring investigation
because they are already irrefragably established,
there must be a lurking suspicion that they will not
bear investigation ?
�In the Church of England.
13
The crisis is a trying one for the Church of England,
and, indeed, for all churches and sects. There is a
strong religious movement in a direction the opposite
to church orthodoxy on some of its leading doctrines,
and, indeed, to Christianity itself as commonly em
braced. The aggressive views are making their way,
with more or less acceptance, among all classes. The
movement is not confined to England. It is agitating
Scotland, and, in a less degree, Ireland. Indications
of it may be found in every country of Europe, in the
United States of America, and in the entire range of
our colonial dependencies. Eor counteracting its in
fluence in England, some efforts have recently been
made. A Christian Evidence Society has been or
ganised, and some of the most eminent of our church
men have been charged with the refutation of this or
that heterodox position. In Norwich a series of
cathedral sermons have been preached and circulated,
with the same object. Now, the misfortune is, that
you will altogether fail of your purpose, if you sup
pose that, by studying these publications, you will be
a scholar armed against the assaults of the heterodox.
What appears to be taking place is, that one section
of our Christian world read the Christian evidence
publications, being beforehand convinced that they
are on the right side; whilst another section read the
heterodox publications, and derive all their light on the
subjects from them. There is thus really no common
ground for the controversy. Indeed it may be ques
tioned, whether the authors of the Christian evidence
publications have made themselves sufficiently acquain
ted with the views and arguments which they have
undertaken to refute; for, whatever merit may be ac
corded to the tracts, as compositions, they do not as
yet meet the views and arguments against which they
are directed. Read what proceeds from the Christian
Evidence Society, by all means; but read the hetero
dox tracts too, if you really wish to master the quesA 2
�14
Shall I Seek Ordination
tions which are mooted, and to enable yonrself to
form a correct judgment on them. I will subjoin a
list of some of the publications on both sides which
may be of use to you. Do not be appalled at the
amount of reading and of serious thought which it
supposes. It is something very different, no doubt,
from getting up the books commonly prescribed for
an examination for orders; but the circumstances
under which your ministry will have to be exercised
differ essentially from those even of a few years ago,
and call for a corresponding difference of preparation
on your part. Those who shrink from it, may find
themselves in the condition of an army which, with
the weapons and tactics of other days, has to encounter
an opposing force provided with all the inventions of
modern warfare, and marshalled according to the
strategical science of a more advanced age. What I
am recommending is incumbent on you, not for your
own satisfaction only, but because, in your ministerial
course, you may have, again and again, to deal with
the scruples of those to whom you will be ministering,
whether derived from such publications, or from the
independent working of their own minds.
I may be thought, perhaps, to have said enough in
setting before you the requirements of the Church of
England, and the conditions under which you will
place yourself in becoming one of its ministers. I
cannot, however, forbear from adding some remarks
on a principle on which all existing ecclesiastical
systems are based, and to which it is owing that, not
in the Church of England only, but in all Christian
communities, there is more or less of the risk which
I have described, to one who undertakes the minis
terial office in any of them. Christianity and a
Christian Church are not identical. I have already
called your attention to the fact; and I will now
more fully explain my purpose in doing so, and urge
on you the importance of bearing it in mind. That
�In the Church of England.
15
there is this distinction would be apparent to all of us
were we not so familiarised to the palpable pheno
mena which evidence it, as to overlook this applica
tion of them. Contemplate, for a moment, the
condition of Christendom. Where is the Spiritual
Temple which, according to the Scriptures, was to
supersede its type, the material Temple of God’s old
people, “ built upon the foundation of the apostles
and prophets,”* its “living stones” cemented to
gether by a holy union, “ Christ himself being the
chief corner stone ?”f That beautiful conception is
nowhere realised. What we have are the scattered
materials of the mystic edifice, living stones in frag
mentary combinations everywhere, but no world-wide
structure ; foundation and chief corner-stone, but not
the Temple. Is this Christianity—the Christianity
of Christ ? The several communities which consti
tute the Christian world are in determined and irre
concilable opposition to one another, exchanging
anathemas; or, if not so, keeping aloof from one
another, as if religious intercommunion would be
pollution. Is this Christianity — the religion of
brotherly love and harmony ? What of any single
church ? What of the Church of England, with its
boasted safeguards for unity and uniformity ? Is it
not notorious that it contains within its pale sections
as bitterly hostile, the one to the other, as any
separate and antagonistic communities ? Is this
Christianity ? With what difficulties and hindrances
our Government and legislature, and not ours alone,
have often to contend, in devising measures of State
policy and civil administration, through the civil
and political aspects of ecclesiasticism. Is that
ecclesiasticism Christianity ? Is it derived from him
whose kingdom was not to be of this world
We
may know it by its fruits. Nor is all this a matter
* Ephesians ii. 20.
t 1 Peter ii. 5.
t John xviii. 36.
�16
Shall I Seek Ordination
of to-day and yesterday. Ecclesiastical history tells
us that, in the worst of these features, such has been
the condition of the Christian world from almost its
earliest date. Indeed the contrast is vastly in favor
of modern and present times. It would almost seem
as if the Christianity of the Church, instead of being
the corrector of the errors and evils of secular life,
has been itself indebted for correction and ameliora
tion to the secular progress of mankind in thinking
and acting. The annals of the past are darkened,
not merely with the existing exhibition of discordant
and hostile religious feeling, but with its develop
ment in bloodshed and atrocious cruelty, in torture,
imprisonment, and the stake, in wars and wholesale
massacres. Is this Christianity ? However callous
we may have become to the spectacle, we cannot
seriously maintain that it is. We cannot but acknow
ledge that there must be something rotten in the
institution to which the name of Christ is affixed,
that unfits it to be the instrument of his all-em
bracing philanthropy, and “ the habitation of God
through the Spirit.”*
Nor is it difficult to perceive in what this fatal
perversion consists. Study the records that have
come down to us of his life and character, of the
kind of influence which they exercised, of the lessons
he taught, of the principles which he inculcated as
the foundation of Christian society. We can hardly
avoid the impression from it all, that the main work
in which he was engaged was, not that of a revealer
of heavenly mysteries, but that of a moral reformer;
that to implant in men purer motives of conduct,
and to provide as a bond of social union for them a
mutual pledge for practising a higher morality than
had been hitherto possible for the world—that this
was his first and dearest aim. Important, no doubt,
were the doctrines which he taught; but, however
* Ephesians ii. 22.
�In the Church of England.
17
important, they were incidental and subordinate to
his moral teaching. The good life stands out first,
the articles of belief second; the moral conduct was
to be the characterising feature ; to doctrinal tenets
was assigned another position.
My reference, I should state, is principally to the
three first Gospels, which alone are strictly biogra
phical. The fourth is not so properly a biography as
an exposition of certain views of our Lord’s nature,
by means of language which he is stated to have used,
and things which he is stated to have done, on
certain occasions; all of which, whether John was
the author or another, appears to have been acknow
ledged as Scripture by the Christians of a very early
period. It is difficult, however, to suppose that the
sanction given to it was given to it as a history of
Jesus, inasmuch as it is historically at variance with
the three genuine biographies. These last do, no
doubt, differ from one another in some of the details
of the history, and this to an extent that has taxed
the ingenuity of commentators to reconcile them;
but the discrepancies of which I speak as between
them and the fourth Gospel affect the main features
of the history, in which they are in perfect agree
ment. To name one or two of these discrepancies.
According to the fourth Gospel Jesus, during the
whole of his ministerial career, was, again and again,
in Judasa and Jerusalem, preaching and performing
miracles; according to the other three his ministry
was confined to Galilee, until quite the close of it,
when the display of it in Judaea and Jerusalem pro
voked the interference of the Jewish authorities, and
was the cause of his death. According to the fourth
Gospel he openly avowed his Messiahship from the
beginning of his ministry; according to the other
three, until nearly the end of it he suppressed the
claim, and strictly forbade its being made • known.
According to the fourth Gospel he partook of his last
�i8
Shall 1 Seek Ordination
supper with his disciples on the day before the
Passover, and was crucified on the day of the
Passover, and before its celebration ; according to
the other three this last supper was the Passover,
which he kept with his disciples on the regular day
for its celebration, and his crucifixion took place on
the day following ; and whilst all mention of the
institution of the Sacrament, at this last supper, is
omitted in the fourth Gospel, a record is substituted
of his washing the feet of his disciples. All this, and
more like this, of historical inaccuracy is explicable
only if we regard the purpose of this Scripture to have
been, as I have said, not that of recording the life of
Jesus, but of establishing certain theological views of
his nature, by recording certain things which he said
or did, without caring to be scrupulously correct as
to the time and place of the occurrences, or as to
the connecting chain of events, that being the pro
vince of the historian or biographer.
Conformity to the view which we derive from the
biographical Gospels of our Lord’s character and
mission does not appear to have been long preserved.
Even in the earliest stage of the Church’s growth,
we perceive the tendency to that which became more
and more prominent in its further progress—the
establishment of a doctrinal, not a moral test, as the
terms of communion for a Christian society. Instead
of moral rules, such, for example, as Pliny represents
the symbolism of the Christian Church in Bithynia
to have been,* creeds became the symbola. The
inevitable result has been, that everywhere there has
been disagreement and disruption—inevitable, I say,
because, as man is constituted, it is impossible that
the members of any community should agree
permanently and throughout successive generations
in their views on religious subjects. They may
acquiesce in the permanent establishment of any
* Plinii Epist., Lib. ix, Epist. 97.
�In the Church of England.
19
amount of doctrine, as, to a certain extent, is the
case with the members of the Romish Church ; but
that is agreement in the acquiescence, not in the
doctrinal decisions, inasmuch as they are not theirs,
but those of an authority to which they have
delegated the right and duty of thinking and
deciding for them. To say that it is, is as gross a
misnomer as if partners in a property about the
management of which they cannot agree, were, by
agreement, to get rid of it, and still call themselves
a partnership in reference to it. Permanent agree
ment amongst those whose religious views are their
own, is, I repeat, impossible. Man’s nature as God
has formed it, makes it impossible. And thus it
happens that that which has been devised throughout
the Christian world, as the means of making the
members of one church of one mind, has been the
prime cause of dissent, and that which was to have
been a bond of brotherly love has been the incentive
to discord, malice, and hatred—hatred so charac
teristic of its origin that an especial term is used to
describe it (o&to theologwuml). We cannot deny
that such has been the effect of our symbola being
doctrinal, not moral. That good moral life is recog
nised as indispensable to the Christian character, in
all churches; that it so far enters into the symbola
of all as to cause the expulsion, in some of a minis
ter, in others of any member, whether minister or
layman, who is scandalously immoral, does not alter
the case. The mischief is done as soon as articles of
belief make any part of the test of communion.
There, is agreement enough among men as to
what is and what is not good conduct, and especially
as to what is a flagrant departure from it, to
secure permanent unanimity so long as the test
is simply and solely the moral one; but as
surely as men agree about this, so surely will they
disagree about what they are to think and believe;
�20
Shall 1 Seek Ordination
and as the disagreement progresses, one effect of the
passions which it excites is to magnify unduly the im
portance of the bone of contention, and to give
greater and greater prominence and weight to the
doctrinal test, so as finally to overlay the moral
element if it co-exists with it. All this would seem
to be undeniable. And yet, so obstinate is the preju
dice in favor of a doctrinal test, gathering strength,
as it has, in its transmission to us through successive
ages, and associated, as it is, with zeal for Christianity
itself, that you will not find many who can conceive
the existence of a church, the terms of union in which
should consist in conformity to moral rules, doctrines
and dogmas being open questions; in which social
worship should not bind those who join' in it to this
or that article of belief; in which inquiry into theo
logical truths should not be impeded by its involving
a question of church membership, and religious dis
cussion should be divested of the arrogance of Church
authority, on the one hand, and, on the other hand,
of the fierce antagonism engendered by that arro
gance ; in which religion should be no longer the one
subject of controversy characterised, beyond all others,
by uncharitable feelings and language. And yet
such would seem to be the Church of Christ, as he
projected it, and such the impress of his life and
lessons which ought to be on it. It is remarkable,
too, that notwithstanding the pre-eminence assigned
to doctrine, doctrine itself is, from time to time, sub
jected to the moral test ; so that, whatever may be the
authority of any dogma, there is a revolt against it, if
it offends our moral sense. We cannot altogether
shake off its supremacy, or abandon its application.
It is not, you will observe, that I seek to detract
from the intrinsic value of true Christian doctrine,
or to assign it an inferior place in the Christian
scheme; but to point out that it has been misapplied
in being made the symbolum of Church union, for
�In the Church of England.
21
which it is unsuited, and has therefore produced
results the reverse of Christian fellowship.
Is there any prospect of the Christian world re
forming the ecclesiastical system in this respect ?
The prospect, if any, is distant. Incapable of con
cord in aught besides, on this perversion of the bond of
ecclesiastical union all Christian churches are at one,
Eastern and Western, Greek, Romish, and Protestant,
Episcopal and Congregational. All I would venture
to assert is, that no church reformation will ever be
of much avail until there is one in this direction ;
and although no church or sect is at present ripe for
it, there are growing symptoms of revolt against the
bondage of creeds and articles, as part and parcel of a
tyrannical rule whose day is gone by, and an aspiration
after a free admission of light and truth, which may
bring about the needful change more rapidly than we
think. The steps taken, in some quarters, to tighten
the bondage are more likely to hasten emancipation
from it, than to prevent or retard it. Whether you
shall or shall not be called on to take an active part
in the struggle, you will, I hope, bestow a serious
attention on the signs of its approach, and be pre
pared for it.
I have counselled you, throughout my letter, to the
best of my ability, but I cannot conclude without
impressing on you that which I myself feel deeply,
that mine are the words of a fallible counsellor, and
directing you to seek surer guidance from Him who
alone is infallible. Do I mean to imply that, if you
do this, by some process, manifest or secret, you may
rely on deciding aright ? Not that,—I am fully alive
to much that may be urged, not only against the
reasonableness of such an expectation, but against all
efficacy in prayer. The Divine Ruler of the universe
exercises His rule, it is said, by general laws. Let us
not imagine that He will, at our request, cause those
laws to be violated. Experience is appealed to in
�22
Shall I Seek Ordination, &c.
proof that He does not. Instances apparently to the
contrary are ascribed to accidental coincidence, or to
the delusions of enthusiasm. Still, I say, pray. He
who has made us has implanted in us an instinctive
desire to do so ; why, if we are not to obey it ? And
as for the argument that the Creator cannot be sup
posed to change the established course of His creation
at the bidding of one of His creatures, the reply
that I would make is this :—How do we know that
praying, for which man is formed, may not, according
to one of the general laws of the universe, act on
other general laws to modify them ? The system of
the universe is maintained by the action of one
general law on another. Man, by the exercise of his
intellect and bodily powers, gives this and that
direction and application to the general laws of the
material world. What is there irrational in suppos
ing that praying may be, analogously, the agency of
spirit on established spiritual laws, bending them to
our purpose ? That this is not the invariable result
is true ; but neither is it the invariable result in the
application of intellectual and bodily agency to the
laws of matter. Besides, how much of praying is
really that energy of spirit which alone can be sup
posed to have efficiency ? Pray, then, for guidance
now, and pray whenever you feel the need of more
than human power and human wisdom. Pray in a
rational faith, but still in faith; and let that faith
animate you to use all the other provisions of your
nature, material, intellectual, and moral, which
God has mercifully bestowed on you, for doing that
which shall be most in accordance with His will for
you.
�Publications advocating certain doctrines of the Church
of - England as commonly held.
It is not necessary that I should name any of the
well-known standard works, as you must be already
acquainted with them, if not otherwise, in your
attendance on your University Divinity Lectures.
In every Diocese, too, there is a selection from these
printed for the use of Ordination Candidates. Among
more recent publications, I may specify—
(Hodges, Smith
BYRNE’S DONNELLAN LECTURES.
and Co., Dublin.)
THE SPEAKER’S
London.)
COMMENTARY
(John
Murray,
REPLY TO BISHOP COLENSO. By the Rev. W.
Kay, D.D., Broomfield, Chelmsford.
CHRISTIAN EVIDENCE LECTURES
Stoughton, Paternoster row).
(Hodder and
BISHOP MAGEE’S SERMONS IN NORWICH
CATHEDRAL (Hamilton and Co., Paternoster row).
LETTER TO THE REV. SAMUEL DAVIDSON, D.D.,
LL.D., in answer to his Essay on the Johannine Author
ship of the Fourth Gospel. By Kentish Bach
(F. Bowyer Kitto, 5 Bishopsgate street Without).
�Publications questioning certain doctrines of the Church
of England as generally held.
THEODORE PARKER’S
(Triibner and Co.)
THEOLOGICAL
WORKS
CREDIBILIA. By the Rev. James Cranbrook (Tiiibner
and Co.)
THE FOUNDERS OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH.
By the Rev. James Cranbrook (Triibner and Co.)
THE SLING AND THE STONE.
Voysey (Triibner and Co.)
By the Rev. C.
DEFENCE BEFORE THE CHANCERY COURT OF
YORK. By the Rev. C. Voysey (Triibner and Co.)
APPEAL TO THE JUDICIAL COMMITTEE OF THE
PRIVY COUNCIL.
and Co.)
By the Rev. C. Voysey (Tiiibner
BISHOP COLENSO ON THE PENTATEUCH AND
BOOK OF JOSHUA (Longmans and Co.)
THE FOURTH GOSPEL. By J. James Tayler (Williams
and Norgate).
CHRISTIANITY IN RELATION TO FREE THOUGHT,
SCEPTICISM, AND FAITH (Austin and Co.)
MR SCOTT OF RAMSGATE’S LIST OF PUBLICA
TIONS contains many more, from which you may make
a selection. I would particularise his Challenge to
the Christian Evidence Society.
�
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Victorian Blogging
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A collection of digitised nineteenth-century pamphlets from Conway Hall Library & Archives. This includes the Conway Tracts, Moncure Conway's personal pamphlet library; the Morris Tracts, donated to the library by Miss Morris in 1904; the National Secular Society's pamphlet library and others. The Conway Tracts were bound with additional ephemera, such as lecture programmes and handwritten notes.<br /><br />Please note that these digitised pamphlets have been edited to maximise the accuracy of the OCR, ensuring they are text searchable. If you would like to view un-edited, full-colour versions of any of our pamphlets, please email librarian@conwayhall.org.uk.<br /><br /><span><img src="http://www.heritagefund.org.uk/sites/default/files/media/attachments/TNLHLF_Colour_Logo_English_RGB_0_0.jpg" width="238" height="91" alt="TNLHLF_Colour_Logo_English_RGB_0_0.jpg" /></span>
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Conway Hall Library & Archives
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2018
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Conway Hall Ethical Society
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A reply to the question, "Shall I seek ordination in the Church of England?"
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Hinds, Samuel [Bishop of Norwich.]
Description
An account of the resource
Place of publication: Ramsgate
Collation: 22, [2] p. ; 18 cm.
Notes: Includes bibliography [p.23-24] : 'Publications advocating certain doctrines of the Church of England as Commonly Held'. From the library of Dr Moncure Conway.
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Thomas Scott
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1871
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CT148
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Church of England
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<img src="http://i.creativecommons.org/p/mark/1.0/88x31.png" alt="Public Domain Mark" /><br /><span>This work (A reply to the question, "Shall I seek ordination in the Church of England?"), identified by </span><a href="https://conwayhallcollections.omeka.net/items/show/www.conwayhall.org.uk"><span>Humanist Library and Archives</span></a><span>, is free of known copyright restrictions.</span>
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English
Church of England
Conway Tracts
-
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f0405a6c3866dc686d801ed14ca17514
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Text
QS^K>3-
IHojal 1‘iiBtHutton of ffir® Britain,
ALBEMARLE STREET, PICCADILLY, W.
.
November, 1871.
i: : Hi ;
SY L L AB U S
>A')
*« ®
<
OF
A COURSE OF FOUR LECTURES
\-.-X.
LtV
V
p•
'Co
-j ; A
DE MON OLO G Y,
•(;:j '&>&.
;O
t: .' .‘3 7 Lrf.r
hIJ ;i, - ?O ■
a.
••
'
W
A ■:
BY
MONCURE D. CONWAY, Esq.
>t< ' io
' '
h
_• ; •
: no .
.
■ i(,‘.
To be delivered on the following days, at Three o’clock:—
‘ "X. '
Lecture I.—Saturday, March 2, 1872.
Relation of Celestial and Elemental Phenomena to the primitive Philo
sophy of Evil.—The Evolution of Deities and Devils.—The transformation
of Agathodemons into Kakodemons.—The evidence that every Demon
was originally the Deity of some race.—Devil-worship.—Why and when
Demons became ugly.
Lecture II.—Saturday, March 9.
Earthly Demons, their origin and variations.—Animal Demons, as the
Serpent, Dragon, Werewolf, Dog, Cat, Raven, Vampyre.—Tree Demons, as
those of the Ash, Hazel, Indian Peepul, Mandrake.—Ethnical distribution
of Demons.—Survivals of mythical Demons in modern superstitions.—Places
named after the Devil.
Lecture III.—Saturday, March 16.
Anthropomorphic Demons.—The Talmudic legend of Lilith, and her
progeny of Demons.—Demoniac possessions.—The natural history of Ahri
man, Siva, Satan, Pluto, Tchornibog, Tenjo, Loki, the Wild Huntsman, and
the horned and cloven-hoofed Devil.—The Eumenides, Satyrs, Elves, and
local Demons comparatively considered.
s
[turn over.
�Lecture IV.—Saturday, March 23.
The Demons of Literature and Art.—Patristic Legends.—The Miracle
Plays.—Mephistopheles.—Milton’s Lucifer.—The Demonology of Dante and
Swedenborg.—The Demons of early religious art and architecture.—The
so-called Devil’s Bible at Stockholm.—The decline of Demons.—Witchcraft.
—Caricatures.—Psychological Science and the problem of Evil.
SUBSCRIBERS TO LECTURES {Not being Members')
For this Course pay Half-a-Guinea:
For all the Courses of Lectures (extending from Christmas to Mid
summer) pay Two Guineas:
For a single Course of Lectures pay One Guinea or Half-a-Guinea,
according to the length of the Course :
For the Christmas Course Children under Sixteen Years of Age pay
Half-a-Guinea.
The Wives of Members, and Sons and Daughters (under the age
of Twenty-one) of Members are admitted, for the Season, to all Courses of
Lectures and to the Museum, on the payment each of One Guinea, and
to any separate Course of Lectures on the payment each of Half-a-Guinea.
It is Requested, That Coachmen may be ordered to set d&wnwith their
Horses' heads towards Piccadilly, and to take up towards Grafton-street.
�
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Title
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Victorian Blogging
Description
An account of the resource
A collection of digitised nineteenth-century pamphlets from Conway Hall Library & Archives. This includes the Conway Tracts, Moncure Conway's personal pamphlet library; the Morris Tracts, donated to the library by Miss Morris in 1904; the National Secular Society's pamphlet library and others. The Conway Tracts were bound with additional ephemera, such as lecture programmes and handwritten notes.<br /><br />Please note that these digitised pamphlets have been edited to maximise the accuracy of the OCR, ensuring they are text searchable. If you would like to view un-edited, full-colour versions of any of our pamphlets, please email librarian@conwayhall.org.uk.<br /><br /><span><img src="http://www.heritagefund.org.uk/sites/default/files/media/attachments/TNLHLF_Colour_Logo_English_RGB_0_0.jpg" width="238" height="91" alt="TNLHLF_Colour_Logo_English_RGB_0_0.jpg" /></span>
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Conway Hall Library & Archives
Date
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2018
Publisher
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Conway Hall Ethical Society
Text
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Original Format
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Pamphlet
Dublin Core
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Title
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Syllabus of a course of four lectures on demonology by Moncure D. Conway
Creator
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Royal Institution of Great Britain
Description
An account of the resource
Place of publication: London
Collation: 2 p. ; 19 cm.
Notes: From the library of Dr Moncure Conway.
Date
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1871
Identifier
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G5707
Subject
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Spiritualism
Lectures
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<img src="http://i.creativecommons.org/p/mark/1.0/88x31.png" alt="Public Domain Mark" /><br /><span>This work (Syllabus of a course of four lectures on demonology by Moncure D. Conway), identified by </span><span><a href="https://conwayhallcollections.omeka.net/items/show/www.conwayhall.org.uk">Humanist Library and Archives</a></span><span>, is free of known copyright restrictions.</span>
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application/pdf
Type
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Text
Language
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English
Conway Tracts
Demonology
Moncure Conway
-
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PDF Text
Text
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Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
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Victorian Blogging
Description
An account of the resource
A collection of digitised nineteenth-century pamphlets from Conway Hall Library & Archives. This includes the Conway Tracts, Moncure Conway's personal pamphlet library; the Morris Tracts, donated to the library by Miss Morris in 1904; the National Secular Society's pamphlet library and others. The Conway Tracts were bound with additional ephemera, such as lecture programmes and handwritten notes.<br /><br />Please note that these digitised pamphlets have been edited to maximise the accuracy of the OCR, ensuring they are text searchable. If you would like to view un-edited, full-colour versions of any of our pamphlets, please email librarian@conwayhall.org.uk.<br /><br /><span><img src="http://www.heritagefund.org.uk/sites/default/files/media/attachments/TNLHLF_Colour_Logo_English_RGB_0_0.jpg" width="238" height="91" alt="TNLHLF_Colour_Logo_English_RGB_0_0.jpg" /></span>
Creator
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Conway Hall Library & Archives
Date
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2018
Publisher
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Conway Hall Ethical Society
Text
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text.
Original Format
The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data
Pamphlet
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
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Notes on the Pilgrim's Way, in West Sussex
Creator
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James, E. Renouard
Description
An account of the resource
Place of publication: London; Guildford
Collation: 23 p. ; 21 cm.
Notes: Inscription inside front cover: With Mr Evelyn's comps. The Pilgrims' Way is the historical route taken by pilgrims from Winchester in Hampshire, England, to the shrine of Thomas Becket at Canterbury in Kent. From the library of Dr Moncure Conway.
Publisher
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Edward Stanford
Asher and Walbrook
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1871
Identifier
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G5167
Subject
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Religious Practice
Pilgrimage
Rights
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<a href="http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/"><img src="http://i.creativecommons.org/p/mark/1.0/88x31.png" alt="Public Domain Mark" /></a><span> </span><br /><span>This work (Notes on the Pilgrim's Way, in West Sussex), identified by </span><a href="https://conwayhallcollections.omeka.net/items/show/www.conwayhall.org.uk"><span>Humanist Library and Archives</span></a><span>, is free of known copyright restrictions.</span>
Format
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application/pdf
Type
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Text
Language
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English
Conway Tracts
Pilgrimage
Pilgrims' Way
-
https://d1y502jg6fpugt.cloudfront.net/25778/archive/files/4b965b6b608142a4515b243239528a07.pdf?Expires=1712793600&Signature=B-62q5zlsOObvJmkkD6Gzhjz8IIwn37o39wZGdDGeGFHOU12t9OJqXVhxaWbDvR4Wk69NatIVH8%7EeYdrahfgkW8AZINJltVUslGae7bH2-0Z72bH31V-W3gnwdb79tguzmGciA94WtLXrVeghBFWoVONDXo3-PjsJ5rrVJ-CRXWp1Nor3dn3MeBhC32SVjud62BjM3fE8vWxdk9Letu6ZNv3PWU1SXGd8IEaWsDPCy2uAqr51TMG1rxJc8iBUjERYyGEOwl5mG12ppvhNT5sityBMxkYRCQ8%7E5b8WMWPiKto-3WQWMvHWdqO2ivUjIqwehFpX6veU%7EpWA9RNTXjXsQ__&Key-Pair-Id=K6UGZS9ZTDSZM
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PDF Text
Text
Io f
W1; ’1; w
SCOTT
EXHIBITION
Under the Special Patronage of Her Majesty the Queen.
■7
■)
CATALOGUE
OF
THE LOAN EXHIBITION
In QUmnunwratwn of Sir cMalter Staff
AT
EDINBURGH
In the Galleries of the Royal Scottish A cademy,
National Gallery,
IN JULY AND AUGUST 1871.
EDINBURGH : THOMAS AND ARCHIBALD CONSTABLE,
PRINTERS TO THE QUEEN AND TO THE UNIVERSITY.
1871.
�THE OBJECTS OF EXHIBITION ARE—
1. Portraits of Sir Walter Scott, whether Paintings, Drawings,
Statues, Busts, Fine Impressions of the Best Prints, or Medals.
2. Specimens of his Autograph Writings, including some of the
Original Manuscripts of the Waverley Novels.
3. Pictures or other Works of Art illustrating his Writings and
Personal History.
�Under
the
Special Patronage of
HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN.
JJHember# erf the Cermmittee.
Sir WM. STIRLING-MAXWELL of Keir
and
Pollok, Bart.,—Convener.,
His Grace the DUKE OF BUCCLEUCH and QUEENSBERRY, K.G.
The Right Hon.
the
EARL OF STAIR, K.T.
.
The Hon. LORD JERVISWOODE.
The .Right Hon. the LORD JUSTICE-GENERAL.
The Right Hon. Sir WILLIAM GIBSON CRAIG of Riccarton, Bart.
Sir HUGH HUME CAMPBELL of Marchmont, Bart.
Sir GEORGE HARVEY, P.R.S.A.
Sir J. NOEL PATON, R.S.A.
JAMES BALLANTINE, Esq.
ADAM BLACK, Esq.,
of
Prior Bank.
JAMES T. GIBSON CRAIG, Esq.
JAMES DRUMMOND, Esq., R.S.A.
DAVID LAING, Esq.
ARCHIBALD CAMPBELL SWINTON, Esq., of Kimmerghame.
H. W. CORNILLON, Secretary.
�CONTENTS.
PAGE
Pictures illustrative of the Writings and Personal History
of Sir Walter Scott; Portraits of Personal Friends;
Sketches and Drawings,
5
.....
Historical Portraits, and Pictures illustrative of the
Writings of Sir Walter Scott,
.
.
.
11
.
Portraits of Sir Walter Scott and his Family, with the
Miniatures of Friends and Historical Personages, .
16
Engravings illustrative of the Writings of Sir Walter
Scott, etc.,
.......
20
Engraved Portraits of Sir Walter Scott, his Family, and
.
.
.
.
.
.
21
Works by Sir Walter Scott,*
.
.
.
.
.
28
other Friends,
.
Manuscripts and Letters written by or having reference
.
.
.
.
.
37
Books edited by Sir Walter Scott,
.
.
.
.
40
to Sir Walter Scott,
.
Additional Manuscripts and Letters written by or having
reference to Sir Walter Scott,
.
.
.
46
Miscellaneous, ........
49
.
Busts, Tapestry, Armour, etc.,
.
.
.
.
.
54
List of Contributors,
.
.
.
.
.
57
.
�PICTURES illustrative of the Writings and Per
sonal History of Sir Walter Scott; Portraits
of Persona! Friends; Sketches and Drawings.
NORTH OCTAGON.
[The Numbers commence with the Oil Painting on the Left hand.]
1. LOCAL SCENERY of, and Scene in, “ The Antiquary.”
By W. F. Vallance.
Lent by David Corsar, Esq.
1*. WILLIAM BLACKWOOD. By Sir William Allan,
P.R.S.A., R.A.
Lent by John Blackwood, Esq.
2. WHITTAKER reading the List of Guests for the Restoration
Feast, “ Peveril of the Peak?’ By J. Oswald Stewart.
Lent by A. B. Spence, Esq.
3. CULLODEN MOOR. By Wm. Simson, R.S.A.
Lent by John White, Esq.
4. GEORGE KEMP. By Wm. Bonnar, R.S.A.
Lent by Thos. Bonnar, Esq.
5. SCENE from “ The Talisman.” By Sir John Watson Gor
don, P.R.S.A., R.A.
Lent by H. G. Watson, Esq.
6. SIR WALTER SCOTT’S Favourite Dog, “Camp.” By Howe.
Lent by Thomas George Stevenson, Esq.
7. SCENE. The Meeting of Mark and the Reformer with
Christie of the Clinthill and Edward Glendinning : “ The
Monastery.” By Macartney.
Lent by Mrs. Finlayson.
8. HARRIET, Duchess of Buccleuch, the Early Patroness of
Sir Walter Scott. By William Bonnar, R.S.A.
Lent by Thomas Bonnar, Esq.
9. FATHER CLEMENT and Catharine Glover, the “Fair
Maid of Perth.” By Thomas Duncan, R.S.A., A.R.A.
Lent by A. Dennistoun, Esq.
�6
NORTH OCTAGON.
10. THE STUDY AT ABBOTSFORD. By Sir Edwin LandJ
seer, R.A., IT.R.S.A.
Lent by W. P. Adam, Esq., M.P.
11. CHARLES MACKAY, as Bailie Nicol Jarvie.
Macnee, R.S.A.
Lent by Mrs. Glover.
By Daniel
12. HENRY MACKENZIE. By Colvin Smith, R.S.A.
Lent by Colvin Smith, Esq.
13. WALTER SCOTT in his Boyhood, and his pretty Nurse.
By Wm. Nicholson, R.S.A.
Lent by J. Rennie, Esq.
14. MONTROSE led Prisoner through Edinburgh, 1650.
James Drummond, R.S.A.
Lent by James Drummond, Esq.
By
15. RICHIE MONIPLIES. By George Hay, A.R.S.A.
Lent by John Williamson, Esq.
16. BEN VENUE from the Silver Strand. By Alex. Fraser,
R.S.A.
Lent by G. B. Simpson, Esq.
17. CHARLES MACKAY, “The Bailie.” By Sir John Watson
Gordon, P.R.S.A., R.A.
Lent by Mrs. Mackay.
18. PROFESSOR JOHN WILSON. By Sir John Watson
Gordon, P.R.S.A., R.A.
Lent by John Blackwood, Esq.
19. JOCK GRAY, the Original of Davie Gellatly.
Smellie Watson, R.S.A.
Lent by W. Smellie Watson, Esq.
By W.
20. PRINCE CHARLES and Flora Macdonald in the Cave.
By Thomas Duncan, R.S.A., A.R.A.
Lent by the Trustees of the late Alex. Hill, Esq.
21. BRUCE AND THE SPIDER.
By William Bonnar
R.S.A.
Lent by R. B. Wardlaw Ramsay, Esq.
22. ROBERT CADELL. By Sir John Watson Gordon,
P.R.S.A., R.A.
Lent by the Rev. R. H. Stevenson.
�NORTH OCTAGON.
7
23. ARCHIBALD CONSTABLE. By Sir Henry Raeburn,
R.A. Has been Engraved by G-. T. Payne.
Lent by Thomas Constable, Esq.
24. ALEXANDER BALLANTYNE. By John Ballantyne,
RS.A.
Lent by Robert M. Ballantyne, Esq.
25. ROLAND GRAEME’S Introduction to the Knight of
Avenel. By Patrick Allan Fraser, H.R.S.A.
Lent by Mrs. P. A. Fraser.
26. JEANTE DEANS on her Way to London. By W. Q.
Orchardson, A.R.A.
v
Lent by Robert Mercer, Esq.
27. LOUIS XI. and Oliver Dain : “ Quentin Durward.” By
W. B. Johnston, R.S.A.
Lent by Patrick Allan Fraser, Esq.
28. LOCH KATRINE. By Horatio MacCulloch, R.S.A.
Lent by Sir Andrew Orr.
29. JOHN GIBSON LOCKHART. By Robert Scott Lauder,
R.S.A.
Lent by John Blackwood, Esq.
30. THE ETTRICK SHEPHERD.
By Sir John Watson
Gordon, P.R.S.A., R.A.
Lent by John Blackwood, Esq.
31. FRANCIS JEFFREY. By Colvin Smith, R.S.A.
Lent by Colvin Smith, Esq.
32. THE GLEE MAIDEN. By R. S. Lauder, R.S.A.
Lent by Patrick Allan Fraser, Esq.
33. THE FUNERAL OF SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. By
Col. Sir James Alexander.
Lent by Col. Sir James E. Alexander.
34. M ATTRTCE DRUMMOND, Abbot of Inchaffray, blessing
the Scottish Army before the Battle of Bannockburn.
By James Drummond, R.S.A.
Lent by James Ballantine, Esq.
35. BOTHWELL CASTLE, on the Clyde. By Alex. Fraser,
R.S.A.
Lent by G. B. Simpson, Esq.
36. THOMAS THOMSON. By R. S. Lauder, R.S.A.
Lent by Lockhart Thomson, Esq.
I
�8
NORTH OCTAGON.
37. AN ANTIQUARY. By W. M. F. Douglas, R.S.A.
Lent by James T. Gibson Craig, Esq.
38. JAMES BALLANTYNE.
Lent by Rev, Raymond Blathwayt.
39. INTERIOR OF ROSLIN CHAPEL. By H. Hansen.
Lent by James Ballantine, Esq.
40. CUDDIE HEADRIGG. By Thomas Duncan, R.S.A., A.R.A.
Lent by John White, Esq.
40*. BAILIE NICOL JARVIE in the Clachan of Aberfoyle.
By Alexander Ritchie.
Lent by Robert Robertson, Esq.
41. TRUDCHEN (Quentin Durward). By William Dyce, R.A.,
ER.SA
Lent by Mrs. Cumine Peat.
42. JOHN BALLANTYNE.
Lent by John Ballantyne, Esq., R.S.A.
42*. LADY FORBES, Williamina Stuart Belshes. By George
Saunders.
Lent by the Right Hon. Lord Clinton.
43. THE CURLERS. By Sir George Harvey, P.R.S.A.
“ There was the finest fun amang the curlers ever was seen.”
Guy Mannering, chap, xxxii.
Lent by Gilbert Stirling, Esq.
44. DAVIE GELLATLY’S Mode of Delivering a Letter. By
Wm. B. Kidd, KR.S.A.
Lent by G. B. Simpson, Esq.
45. THE DAY AFTER PRESTONPANS. By J. Drummond,
R.S,A,
Lent by James Clark, Esq.
45*. VIEW OF ROSLIN, in Water-colour. By H. W. Williams.
Lent by Mrs. M. Sanson.
45**. RETURN OF JEANIE DEANS. By Sir William
Allan, P.R.S.A., R.A;
Lent by Professor Maclagan.
46. QUEEN MARY’S ROOM, Craigmillar Castle. By James
Drummond, R.S.A.
Lent by James Drummond, Esq.
47. STEINIE, the Son of Mucklebackit. By John Ewbank.
Lent by Wm. MacDonald, Esq.
48. PENCIL DRAWING of Castle Campbell. By R. Gibb, R.S.A.
SEPIA DRAWING of Tantallon Castle. By John Ewbank.
Lent by Wm. MacDonald, Esq.
�NORTH OCTAGON.
19? JOHN
9
KNOX’S HOUSE. By James Drummond, R.S.A.
Lent by David Laing, Esq.
50. SCOTT MONUMENT, a Drawing by George Kemp, and
presented by him to John Dick, Esq.
Lent by Mrs. Dick.
51. WEST BOW. By Walter Geikie.
Lent by Wm. MacDonald, Esq.
52. MELROSE ABBEY. By H. W. Williams.
Lent by Wm. MacDonald, Esq.
53. MELROSE ABBEY. By Mrs. Smith.
Lent by Mrs. Smith.
54. CUCHULLIN MOUNTAINS, Isle of Skye.
MacLeay, R.S.A.
Lent by Kenneth MacLeay, Esq.
By Kenneth
55. FRAME—four Drawings of Melrose; two Drawings of
Kelso. By W. H. Lizars.
Lent by Wm. MacDonald, Esq.
56. GOATFELL and the Mountains of Arran, from Brodick
Bay. By Kenneth MacLeay, R.S.A.
Lent by Kenneth MacLeay, Esq.
56*. JOHN DUKE OF ARGYLL. Drawing by J. Ramage.
Lent by Wm. MacDonald, Esq.
57. THE BASS. By Sam. Bough, A.R.S.A.
Lent by William Paterson, Esq.
58. SOUTH GRAY’S CLOSE, Edinburgh, in which stands Dr.
Rutherford’s House. Sketch by James Drummond, R.S.A.
Also
HIGH SCHOOL WYND, Edinburgh. And
DUNBAR’S CLOSE.
Cromwell’s Headquarters while in
Edinburgh—Looking towards the New Town, with the
Scott Monument.
Lent by James Drummond, Esq., R.S.A.
59. PORTRAIT of Professor Wilson. By James Swinton.
Lent by A. Campbell Swinton, Esq.
60. FIVE VIEWS OF EDINBURGH.
By Hamilton and
Ewbank.
Lent by Wm. MacDonald, Esq.
�10
NORTH OCTAGON.
61. DRYBURGH ABBEY. By William Banks.
Lent by Wm. MacDonald, Esq.
62. SIR WALTER SCOTT’S first School, Potterrow. By Mrs.
Smith.
Lent by Mrs. Smith.
63. EIGHT DRAWINGS. Illustrations for “Tales of a Grand
father.” By Lizars and Corbould.
Lent by Wm. MacDonald, Esq.
64. FIVE DRAWINGS, Illustrations of “ Waverley.” By
Heath.
Lent by Wm. MacDonald, Esq.
65. DESIGN for Scott Monument. By David Roberts, R.A.
Lent by W. D. Clark, Esq.
66. ROB ROY. Copy of Original Picture.
By Andrew
Henderson.
Lent by Kenneth MacLeay, Esq.
67. PORTRAIT of John Leycester Adolphus, Author of
“ Letters on the Authorship of the Waverley Novels.”
1821. By W. F. W. [William Frederick Witherington,
R.A.]
Lent by Mrs. Adolphus.
68. DAVID RITCHIE, the Original of the Black Dwarf.
Lent by David B. Anderson, Esq.
69. SMAILHOLM TOWER. Sketch.
Lent by James Drummond, Esq., R.S.A.
70. THIRTEEN DRAWINGS of Edinburgh. By J. Ewbank.
Lent by Wm. MacDonald, Esq.
71. QUEEN MARY at the Place of Execution. By David
Scott, R.S.A.
Lent by Thomas Bonnar, Esq.
72. FIVE DRAWINGS of Border Abbeys. By W. H. Lizars.
Lent by William MacDonald, Esq.
7 3. THE SHAFT of the Old Cross of Edinburgh, as it stood
in the Grounds of Drum. Sketch. Also
CARDINAL BEATON’S PALACE, Edinburgh. Demo
lished in 1870. Sketch.
Lent by James Drummond, Esq., R.S.A.
74. NINE DRAWINGS of Melrose, Abbotsford, etc., by John
Ewbank.
Lent by Wm. MacDonald, Esq.
�GREAT ROOM.
11
75. HEAD OF COLLEGE WYND—Situation of the House
where Sir Walter Scott was Born. By Wm. Smith.
Lent by Mrs. Smith.
76. SEVEN DRAWINGS
1 Dunkeld, by R. Gibb.
5 Views of Edinburgh, by J. Ewbank.
1 Jenny Geddes, by W. H. Lizars.
Lent by Wm. MacDonald, Esq.
77. JAMES I. appointing Sheriffs. By David Scott, R.S.A.
Lent by Thomas Bonnar, Esq.
78. NINE DRAWINGS in Bistre. By Wm. Gibb, R.S.A.
Lent by Wm. MacDonald, Esq.
GREAT ROOM.
HISTORICAL PORTRAITS, and PICTURES illus
trative of the Writings of Sir Walter Scott.
[The Numbers commence on the Left hand on entering.]
79. THE LADY of Avenel leaving Glendearg. By Alexander
Chisholm.
Lent by J. D. Gillespie, Esq., M.D.
80. CHARLES Prince of Wales, afterwards Charles I.
Honthorst.
Lent by James T. Gibson Craig, Esq.
81. BALFOUR OF BURLEY in the Cave.
Lent by Mrs. M. Sanson.
By
By Wm. Carse.
82. THE HEART OF MIDLOTHIAN. By Patrick Nasmyth.
Lent by William D. Clark, Esq.
83. COVENANTERS Preaching. By Sir George Harvey,
P.R.S.A.
Lent by the Glasgow Corporation.
84. KING JAMES VI.
Lent by James T. Gibson Craig, Esq.
85. ROSLIN CHAPEL. By Patrick Gibson, R.S.A.
Lent by David Laing, Esq.
�12
GREAT ROOM.
86. ANNE OF DENMARK, Wife of James VI.
Lent by James T. Gibson Craig, Esq.
87. GLENDINNING and the Monk. By John Pettie, A.R.A.
Lent by Robert Mercer, Esq.
88. THE BLACK DWARF. By Sir William Allan, P.R.S.A.,
R.A.
Lent by Trustees of the National Gallery of Scotland.
89. JEANIE DEANS in the Robbers’ Barn.
By William
Bonnar, R.S.A.
Lent by James Ballantine, Esq.
90. MORTON awaiting his Death at the hands of the Cameronians in the Farm-house of Drumshinnel. By W. F.
Douglas, R.S.A.
Lent by George Armstrong, Esq.
91. HENRY BENEDICT STUART, The Cardinal York.
Domenico Dupra.
Lent by Sir William Stirling-Maxwell, Bart.
By
92. BOTHWELL CASTLE. By Alexander Runciman.
Lent by James T. Gibson Craig, Esq.
93. PRINCE CHARLES'EDWARD STUART. Domenico
Dupra.
Lent by Sir Wm. Stirling-Maxwell, Bart.
94. THE PORTEOUS MOB. By James Drummond, R.S.A.
Lent by Trustees of the National Gallery of Scotland
and Royal Association for Promotion of the Fine
Arts.
95. JEANIE DEANS and the Robbers. By Thomas Duncan,
R.S.A., A.R.A.
Lent by Trustees of the National Gallery of Scotland.
96. PRINCE CHARLES at Holyrood. Original Sketch.
William Simson, R.S.A.
Lent by Robert Mercer, Esq.
By
97. SCENE from the “Talisman.” By Sir John Watson Gordon,
P.R.S.A., R.A.
Lent by H. G. Watson, Esq.
98. JAMES EDWARD STUART, Chevalier de St. George.
Lent by Sir Wm. Stirling-Maxwell, Bart.
99. HOY HEAD. By John Cairns.
Lent by G. B. Simpson, Esq.
�GREAT ROOM.
13
100. GEORGE IV. at Holyrood, 1822. With Sir Walter Scott
introduced as Bard. By Sir David Wilkie, R.A.
Lent by Her Majesty the Queen.
101. PETER PEEBLES in the Parliament Square. By Wm. B.
Kidd, 2LR.S.A.
Lent by J. D. Gillespie, Esq., M.D.
102. JEANIE DEANS begging the Life of her Sister from
Queen Caroline. By J. G. Middleton.
Lent by Alexander Dennistoun, Esq.
103. KING JAMES IV.
Lent by Sir Wm. Stirling-Maxwell, Bart.
104. THE FIERY CROSS. By J. Lamont Brodie.
Lent by The Mayor of Manchester.
105. PRINCE CHARLES coming down the Canongate. By
Thomas Duncan, R.S.A., A.R.A.
Lent by the Trustees of the late Alexander Hill, Esq.
106. THE DOOR of the Old Edinburgh Guard-House.
Wm. B. Kidd, KR.S.A.
Lent by David Bryce, Esq.
By
107. RAVENSWOOD and Lucy Ashton. By R. Scott Lauder,
R.S.A.
Lent by Francis Farquharson, Esq.
108. HENRY BENEDICT STUART, The Cardinal York.
Lent by J. Drummond, Esq.
109. JOHN GRAHAM OF CLAVERHOUSE,
Dundee. Painted by Sir Godfrey Kneller.
Lent by the Earl of Strathmore.
Viscount
110. THE BATTLE of Drumclog. By Sir George Harvey,
P.R.S.A.
Lent by James Muspratt, Esq.
111. WALLACE, the Defender of Scotland.
Painted by David Scott, R.S.A.
Lent by Robert Carfrae, Esq.
An Allegory.
111*. JOHN GRAHAM OF CLAVERHOUSE, Viscount
Dundee.
Lent by Lady Elizabeth-Jane Leslie-Melville Cartwright.
�14
GREAT ROOM.
112. JAMES GRAHAM, Marquis of Montrose.
Lent by the Earl of Dalhousie.
By Honthorst.
113. MARQUIS OF MONTROSE. By George Jamesone.
Lent by Lady Colquhoun.
114. BATTJE MACWHEEBLE at Breakfast. By James E.
Lauder, R.S.A.
Lent by James T. Gibson Craig, Esq.
115. PRINCE CHARLES reading General Cope’s Letter, while
at Holyrood. By William Simson, R.S.A.
Lent by T. A. Hill, Esq.
116. QUEEN MARY at Lochleven. By Thomas Duncan, R.S.A.,
A.R.A.
Lent by J. D. Gillespie, Esq., M.D.
117. THE LADY OF THE LAKE. By J. L. Brodie.
Lent by W. F. Sale, Esq.
117*. HEAD OF LOCHLOMOND. By Miss Jane Nasmyth.
Lent by Mrs. M. Sanson.
118. JAMES EDWARD STUART, Chevalier de St. George.
Lent by the Earl of Breadalbane.
119. FAST CASTLE. By Rev. John Thomson.
Lent by M. N. MacDonald Hume, Esq.
120. ROSE BRADWARDINE visiting her Father in the Cave,
with Food. By Wm. Bonnar, R.S.A.
Lent by John Inglis, Esq.
121. ROSE BRADWARDINE. By Robert Herdman, R.S.A.
Lent by A. B. Shand, Esq.
122. SIR WALTER SCOTT and his Friends. By Thomas
Faed, Esq., R.A., ER.S.A. Engraved.
Lent by Alexander Dennistoun, Esq.
123. EDINBURGH—1765. By W. De La Cour.
Lent by R. B. Wardlaw Ramsay, Esq.
124. PRINCE CHARLES EDWARD STUART.
Lent by the Earl of Breadalbane.
125. FAST CASTLE. By Rev. John Thomson.
Lent by M. N. MacDonald Hume, Esq.
�GREAT ROOM.
“The last scene of all.”
Herdman, R.S.A.
Lent by James Blaikey, Esq.
126. QUEEN MARY.
15
By Robert
127. HEROISM and Humanity. By Sir William Allan, P.R.S. A.,
R.A.
Lent by J. A. Butti, Esq.
128. STROMNESS BAY, Orkney. By John Cairns.
Lent by G. B. Simpson. Esq.
129. RUINS of the Ancient Castle of the Peverils, near Whit
ington. By George Barret.
Lent by Daniel Bruce, Esq.
130. VIEW of Edinburgh from the North. By Robert Norie.
Lent by David Laing, Esq.
131. THE ANTIQUARY. By William F. Douglas, R.S.A.
Lent by Thomas Bonnar, Esq.
132. LINLITHGOW PALACE. By Alexander Nasmyth.
Lent by Thomas S. Aitchison, Esq.
133. SHIPWRECK near the Fitful Head. By Thomas Fen
wick.
Lent by James T. Gibson Craig, Esq.
134. BRIDE OF LAMMERMOOR. By R. S. Lauder, R.S.A.
Lent by Mrs. Melville.
135. GEORGE HERIOT. Painted by Scougal, and Engraved
by J. and C. Esplens, 1743.
Lent by the Governors of George Heriot’s Hospital.
136. MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. Cabinet Portrait.
Lent by James T. Gibson Craig, Esq.
137. QUEEN ELIZABETH.
Cabinet Portrait by Mark
Gerard.
Lent by David Laing, Esq.
�16
SOUTH OCTAGON.
SOUTH OCTAGON.
PORTRAITS OF SIR WALTER SCOTT and his
Family, with the Miniatures of Friends and
Historical Personages.
[Born 15 th August 1771.
Died 21st September 1832.]
138. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart., his Family and Friends.
Painted in 1825 from Miniatures, by W. Stewart Watson.
Lent by Mrs. Stewart Watson.
139. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart., sitting to J. Northcote, R.A.
Lent by Sir William W. Knighton, Bart.
140. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Cabinet Picture, Painted
for Lady Ruthven in 1831, by Sir Francis Grant, P.R.A.,
7LR.S.A. Engraved in 1835 by Thomas Hodgetts.
Lent by Right Hon. The Dowager Lady Ruthven.
141. THE STUDY AT ABBOTSFORD. By Sir Wm. Allan,
P.R.S.A., R.A.
Lent by T. Williams, Esq.
142. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. By Andrew Geddes, A.R.A.
Painted 1818.
Lent by Miss James.
143. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Painted for Mr. Wells
shortly after Sir Walter’s death, by Sir Edwin Landseer,
R.A., KR.S.A.
Lent by William Wells, Esq., M.P.
144. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Painted for Lord Chief
Commissioner Adam in 1828. By Colvin Smith, R.S.A.
Lent by W. P. Adam, Esq., M.P.
145. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. By Sir David Wilkie,
R.A. Painted in 1822.
Lent by Sir William W. Knighton, Bart.
146. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Painted for Lord Montague
by Sir Henry Raeburn in 1822.
Lent by the Right Hon. Earl of Home.
147. SIR WA.LTER SCOTT, Bart. Painted in 1820 for
George IV. by Sir Thomas Lawrence, P.R.A. It hangs in
the Corridor at Windsor Castle. It has been engraved
by Robinson and others.
Lent by Her Majesty the Queen.
148. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart.
Study of his Head.
�WOUTH OCTAGON.
17
Painted by Sir John Watson Gordon, P.R.S.A., R.A., for
his own use.
Lent by H. G. Watson, Esq.
149. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Painted in 1805 for Lady
Scott by James Saxon. The Picture was transferred to
Messrs. Longman and Co., London, and was engraved by
Heath in 1810.
Lent by William E. Green, Esq.
150. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Painted in 1808 by Sir
Henry Raeburn, R.A., for Mr. Constable, from whose
possession it came to the present Proprietor. It has
been engraved by C. Turner, and many others.
Lent by his Grace the Duke of Buccleuch.
151. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. By Gilbert Stewart
Newton, R.A. Painted in 1824.
Lent by John Murray, Esq., London.
152. GALA DAY AT ABBOTSFORD. Sketch in Sepia by
Sir William Allan, P.R.S.A., R.A.
Lent by James T. Gibson Craig, Esq.
153. THE AUTHOR OF WAVERLEY IN HIS STUDY.
Cabinet Portrait painted for R. Nasmyth, Esq., by Sir
William Allan, P.R.S.A., R.A., in 1831. It has been
Engraved by John Burnet.
Lent by the Trustees of the National Portrait Gallery,
London.
154. GALA DAY AT ABBOTSFORD. Unfinished Sketch in
Oil Colour. By Sir William Allan, P.R.S.A., R.A.
Lent by Robert Horn, Esq.
155. THE ABBOTSFORD FAMILY. Painted for Sir Adam
Ferguson by Sir David Wilkie, R.A., in 1817.
Lent by Mrs. Ferguson.
156. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Painted for Mr. Cadell in
1830 by Sir John Watson Gordon, P.R.S.A. This has
been Engraved on a small scale by Horsburgh.
Lent by the Dowager Lady Liston Foulis.
157. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Painted by Colvin Smith,
R.S.A.
Lent by Colvin Smith, Esq.
158. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Painted in 1829 for the
Royal Society of Edinburgh, by John Graham Gilbert,
R.S.A.
Lent by the Council of the Royal Society.
�18
SOUTH OCTAGON.
159. A SCENE AT ABBOTSFORD during the Last Days of
Sir Walter Scott. Painted by G-ourlay Steell, R.S.A.
Lent by W. Logan White, Esq.
160. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Painted by Sir Henry
Raeburn, R.A. This was engraved by Walker in 1826,
and by others.
Lent by J. P. Raeburn, Esq.
161. SIR WALTER SCOTT in his Study in Castle Street,
Edinburgh, writing. Cabinet Portrait. Painted by Sir
John Watson Gordon, P.R.S.A., R.A. Engraved by R. C.
Bell for the Royal Association for the Promotion of the
Fine Arts in Scotland.
Lent by Henry G. Watson, Esq.
162. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart.
Painted by Thomas
Philips, R.A.
Lent by John Murray, Esq., London.
163. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart.—“The Minstrel of the
Border.” Cabinet Portrait. Painted by Sir William
Allan, P.R.S.A., R.A. Engraved on a small scale.
Lent by John Blackwood, Esq.
164. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart.
Painted by Sir John
Watson Gordon, P.R.S.A., R.A.
Lent by Sir Wm. Stirling-Maxwell, Bart.
165. JOHN GIBSON LOCKHART. Painted by Henry William
Pickersgill, R.A.
Lent by John Murray, Esq.
166. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Painted by James Hall.
Lent by Sir William Stirling-Maxwell, Bart.
167. DR. JOHN RUTHERFORD, Professor of Physic, Edin
burgh University. The Grandfather of Sir Walter Scott.
(See Nos. 358 and 359*). Painted by Cosmo Alexander.
Lent by Dr. Rutherford Haldane.
167*. SIR WALTER SCOTT in the Character of Peter Pattieson. By Robert Scott Lauder, R.S.A. (Under South
Archway.)
Lent by John Blackwood, Esq.
[From 168 to 178** in Glass Case.]
168. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Drawing in Water-colour
by William Nicholson, R.S.A. Done about 1820.
Lent by Mrs. Nicholson.
�SOUTH OCTAGON.
19
169. SIR WALTER SCOTT as a Boy. Miniature.
Lent by James Young, Esq.
170. SIR WALTER SCOTT’S MOTHER. Miniature.
Lent by W. M'Donald, Esq.
171. MRS. J. G. LOCKHART. By Wm. Nicholson, R.S.A.
Lent by J. R. Hope Scott, Esq., Q.C.
172. FRAME, containing three Miniatures—
1. Sir Walter Scott, Bart.
2. Lord Byron.
3. Thomas Moore.
Enamelled by William Essex.
Lent by H. G. Bohn, Esq.
173. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Drawing in Water-colour
by Wm. Nicholson, R.S.A. Vignette.
Lent by W. C. C. Erskine, Esq.
174. JOHN GIBSON LOCKHART. By Sir Francis Grant,
P.R.A., KR.S.A.
Lent by J. R. Hope Scott, Esq., Q.C.
175. WILLIAM ERSKINE, Lord Kinnedder. By Wm. Nichol
son, R.S.A.
Lent by W. C. C. Erskine, Esq.
176. MINIATURE of Mrs. Alicia Cockburn (Miss Rutherford),
Authoress of “ The Flowers of the Forest.” Drawn by
Miss Anne Forbes.
Lent by A. D. Cockburn, Esq.
177. MINIATURE of Anne Duff, Countess of Dumfries. The
Friend of Mrs. Cockburn (No. 176). Drawn by Miss Anne
Forbes.
Lent by James T. Gibson Craig, Esq.
178. MINIATURE of Prince Charles Edward Stuart, with the
“ Highlander Ribbon.”
Lent by James Drummond, Esq.
178*. JOHN LEYCESTER ADOLPHUS.
Lent by Mrs. Adolphus.
178**. SIX JACOBITE MINIATURES, and One Bronze
Medal.
Lent by Robert Hay, Esq.
178f. THE BREAKFAST ROOM AT ABBOTSFORD (Sep
tember 1832). By Sir Wm. Allan, P.R.S.A., R.A.
Lent by Her Majesty the Queen.
�20
SOUTH ARCHWAY.
UNDER SOUTH ARCHWAY.
ENGRAVINGS illustrative of the Writings of
Sir Walter Scott, etc.
179. SERIES of Six Engravings in Illustration of “ Guy Mannering.”
Lent by the Royal Association for the Promotion of
the Fine Arts in Scotland.
180. SERIES of Six Engravings in Illustration of “ Rob Roy.”
Lent by Do.
181. COPY Portrait of Graham of Claverhouse. By J. Ramage.
Lent by Wm. MacDonald, Esq.
182. PLAY BILL with Cast of Rob Roy, on the occasion of
the Visit of his Majesty George IV. to the TheatreRoyal, Edinburgh.
Lent by James Ballantine, Esq.
183. ENGRAVED Portrait of Mr. Charles Mackay as “Bailie
Nicol Jarvie.”
Lent by James Drummond, Esq.
184. SERIES of Six Engravings in Illustration of “Old Mor
tality.”
This and the following Four Numbers lent by the
Royal Association for the Promotion of the Fine
Arts in Scotland.
185. SERIES of Five Engravings in Illustration of “ The.Pirate,”
and Engraved Portrait of Sir Walter Scott, after Sir John
Watson Gordon’s Painting of Scott in his Study in Castle
Street.
186. SERIES of Six Engravings in Illustration of “The Anti
quary.”
187. SERIES of Six Engravings in Illustration of “ The Lady of
the Lake.”
188. SERIES of Eight Engravings in Illustration of “ Waverley.”
�NORTH ARCHWA Y.
21
UNDER. NORTH ARCHWAY.
ENGRAVED PORTRAITS of Sir Walter Scott, his
Family, and other Friends.
189. SIB WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Full length. Painted by
F. Grant. Engraved by Thomas Hodgetts.
This and the following 19 contributed by Sir William
Stirling Maxwell, Bart.
190. WALTER SCOTT. Half length. Hayez, del. Milano,
litog. Vassalli.
191. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Full length.
Sir H. Raeburn. Engraved by R. Cooper.
192. SIR WALTER SCOTT.
Lawrence, P.R.A., pinxit.
Mezzotint.
Painted by
Half length. Sir Thomas
William Humphrey, sculp.
193. WALTER SCOTT. Half length. Copied from Robinson’s
Print after Sir T. Lawrence, but reversed. Laurens,
pinxit. Belnos, del. Lith. Lemerair. Paris and New
York.
194. SIR WALTER SCOTT. Engraved by W. Holl.
195. SIR WALTER SCOTT.
Medallion.
J. Bate, exect.
From a Medal by Stothard (No. 458), after a Bust by
Chantrey.
196. SIR WALTER SCOTT.
by Thompson.
Bust by Chantrey.
Engraved
197. THE ABBOTSFORD FAMILY. Painted by Sir D.
Wilkie. Engraved by Robert Graves, A.R.A.
198. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Half length. From the
original Picture by Mr. Leslie. London, C. Tilt, Sept.
1833.
199. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Half length. Painted by
J. Graham. Engraved by J. Thompson. Painted in 1829
for the Royal Society, Edinburgh. L. 762.
200. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Engraved with permission
of John Murray, Esq., from a Painting by T. Phillips,
R.A., by W. T. Fry.
201. WALTER SCOTT. Half length. Mr. T. Laurence,pinxit.
�22
NORTH ARCHWAY.
202. SIR WALTER SCOTT.
Bust.
203. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart.
204. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart.
pinxit.
H. Raeburn, 1811.
Half length. C. R. Leslie,
205. WALTER SCOTT, Esq. Bust. Raeburn,pinxit. C. Heath,
sculpt.
206. SIR WALTER SCOTT. Half length. Painted by C. R.
Leslie, R.A. Engraved by M. I. Danforth. London,
1829.
207. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart.
Bust.
R. Cooper, sculpt.
208. SIR WALTER SCOTT. Bust.
209. WALTER SCOTT, Esq. Full length, seated. Engraved
by C. Turner from the original Picture by Raeburn, in the
possession of Archibald Constable. Published 1810.
A Proof impression, having the Harp mark.
Lent by James T. Gibson Craig, Esq.
210. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Head. Engraved by Wm.
Walker from a Picture by Sir Henry Raeburn, R.A.
Dedicated to the King. Published 2d Oct. 1826. Edin.
and London. The original Picture in the possession of
J. P. Raeburn, Esq.
Lent by Dr. J. A. Smith.
211. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Half length. Painted by
Sir David Wilkie, R.A. Engraved by Ed. Smith.
This and Nos. 212 to 256 contributed by
J. Drummond, Esq.
212. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Full length. In his Study
reading Proclamation. Etching by Sir Wm. Allan from
his own Picture, painted in 1831.
213. WALTER SCOTT, Anno 1777. 2Et. 6. Miniature Por
trait. From an original, in a Frame. Engraved by
Horsburgh, 1839.
214. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Full length, seated. En
graved by Horsburgh from Picture by Sir H. Raeburn.
215. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Kit-Kat. T. Phillips, R.A.
Engraved by S. W. Reynolds in Mezzotint.
216. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Three-quarters. Engraved
by John Horsburgh. Painted by Sir John Watson Gor
don. Cadell, 1831.
�NORTH ARCHWAY.
23
217. WALTER SCOTT.
Head. Engraved by F. 0. Lewis.
Drawn by A. Geddes. London, Carpenter & Son. 1824.
218. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart.
John Ballantyne, R.S.A.
Head Size.
Drawn by
219. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Bust. W.H. Weisse, fee.
F. Schenck, lith.
220. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Painted by Sir David
Wilkie in 1826. Engraved by E. Smith.
221. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart.
W. Read.
Kit-Cat.
Engraved by
222. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Half length. Painted
by Sir Thomas Lawrence, P.R.A. Engraved by John H.
Robinson.
223. WALTER SCOTT, surnamed Beardie, Grandfather of Sir
Walter Scott. Engraved by G. B. Shaw from the Ori
ginal at Abbotsford.
224. WALTER SCOTT, Writer to the Signet, Father of Sir
Walter Scott. Engraved by G. B. Shaw, from a Picture
at Abbotsford.
225. ANNE RUTHERFORD, Mother of Sir Walter Scott,
Engraved by G. B. Shaw, from a Picture at Abbotsford.
226. LADY SCOTT.
Saxon, pinxit.
G. B. Shaw, sculp.
227. MRS. J. G. LOCKHART, Eldest Daughter of Sir Walter
Scott. Full length, with Dog. Engraved by G. B. Shaw.
Painted by Nicholson.
228. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Head in Oval, Coat of
Arms and Scotch Thistles.
On same page, view of
Abbotsford in rich frame. The whole surrounded by an
Ornamental border.
229. ANNE SCOTT, Second Daughter of Sir Walter Scott.
Engraved by G. B. Shaw. Painted by W. Nicholson.’
230. J. G. LOCKHART.
W. Allan, R.A.
G. B. Shaw.
231. SCENE AT ABBOTSFORD. Painted by E. Landseer,
A.R.A. Engraved by C. Westwood.
232. CHARLES EDWARD STUART. T. Wageman, Artist.
J. Cook, sculp.
233. COLONEL GARDINER. Engraved by G. B. Shaw.
�24
NORTH ARCHWAY.
234. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart.
Head size. Vignette
(Lithograph). Gatti, pinxit. Napoli R. Litografia Militare, 1829.
235. WALTER SCOTT. Head size. From one of the Raeburn
Pictures. Lith. vignette. Mauraisse, ft. 1826.
236. WALTER SCOTT. Half length. Vignette (Lithograph).
Napoli Lit. a Fergola, e De Falco. 1832. Proto e Marta,
pinxt.
237. THE ABBOTSFORD FAMILY. Engraved by John Smith
from Wilkie’s Picture painted in 1817. (Line.)
238. SIR WALTER SCOTT and his Family. Group of Nine
Figures. This Picture was painted in 1817 for Sir Adam
Ferguson. (Line.) Engraved by W. Greatbach. Painted
by Sir David Wilkie, R.A.
239. SIR WALTER SCOTT. Head size. Engraved by J. B.
Bird. Painted by G. S. Newton, R.A., in 1824.
240. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Head size. Engraved by
W. Finden from Newton’s Picture, painted in 1824.
241. SIR WALTER SCOTT (o&. 1832).
Engraved by H. T.
Ryall. Painted by J. P. Knight, R.A., in 1826.
242. THE AUTHOR OF WAVERLEY. Full length.
Outline. Published in “ Fraser’s Magazine.”
In
243. SIR WALTER SCOTT. Head and Shoulders. Engraved
by Holl. Vignette.
244. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart.
Wright, sculp.
245. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart.
by W. Read.
246. WALTER SCOTT, Esq.
Meyer.
Head.
Branston and
Half length.
Engraved
Head size. Engraved by H. T.
247. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart.
sculp.
Kit-Cat.
J. R. West,
248. SIR WALTER SCOTT. Sitting Posture. From Statue in
Monument at Edinburgh. (Lithograph.) Drawn by J.
Sutcliffe. Statue by John Steell, R.S.A.
249. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Statue by John Green
shields, on Pedestal, “ Sic Sedebat.” Engraved by G. B.
Shaw.
�NORTH ARCHWAY.
25
250. WALTER SCOTT. Medallion. Engraved by machinery
by T. S. Woodcock, Brooklyn, N.Y., from a Medal by
Crawford.
251. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Statuette, being Testimonial
to the Secretary from the Bannatyne Club. (See No. 439.)
252. WALTER SCOTT.
Head.
No Engraver’s name.
253. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Head size. No Engraver’s
name. W. Darton, London, 1822.
254. SIR WALTER SCOTT. Head and Shoulders. From
Raeburn’s Portrait.
255. SIR WALTER SCOTT. Head. From Raeburn’s Portrait.
256. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart., Colossal Marble Statue of.
Full length. Woodcut. John Steell, R.S.A.
257. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart., in his Study at Abbotsford.
Engraved from the original Picture in the possession of
R. Naysmith, Esq., P.R.C.S., and respectfully dedicated to
his Grace the Duke of Buccleuch, by his obliged servant,
William Allan. This is one of a very few impressions
thrown off with Mr. Nasmyth’s name misspelled.
This and Nos. 258 to 267 contributed by D. Laing, Esq.
258. WALTER SCOTT, Esq. Full figure, seated.
by Colin Campbell, Edin., 1817.
Engraved
259. WALTER SCOTT. Head in Oval. Small German Print.
Knigt, del, Riedel, sc.
260. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart., P.R.S.E.
Head and
Shoulders. Engraved by J. Thomson from an original
Picture (W. Nicholson).
261. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Head and Shoulders.
Knight and Lacey. London, 1828.
262. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Head size. No Engraver’s
name.
263. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Three-quarters, sitting.
Engraved by T. Crawford, 1833.
264. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart.
Roffe.
Head size.
265. WALTER SCOTT, Esq., Writing.
by T. Arrowsmith.
Engraved by
From a stolen Sketch
�26
NORTH ARCHWAY
266. SIR. WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Head Size.
W. T. Fry.
Engraved by
267. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Head and Shoulders.
Engraved by W. Holl, from, an Original Drawing.
268. THE AUTHOR OF WAVERLEY in his Study. W.
Allan, A.R.A., pinxt. E. Goodall, sculp.
This and Nos. 269 to 279 contributed by J. Rose, Esq.
269. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart.
Head and Shoulders.
Engraved by J. Thomson from a Drawing by J. Partridge.
London, 1823.
270. SIR WALTER SCOTT.
Head and Shoulders.
271. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Head and Shoulders.
After Sir J. W. Gordon.
272. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Copy from Engraving by
Hodgetts.
273. WALTER SCOTT. Naples, 16th April 1832.
part of body. Vinct. Morani, fee. (Na. 1832.)
graph Vig.
Upper
Litho
274. SIR WALTER SCOTT. Medallion. Engraved by Tacey.
The Ornament by Mitan, after H. Corbould.
275. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. A Composite Picture from
various Portraits of Sir Walter, at different periods, 1777,
1820, 1830, 1831. Designed by H. Corbould. Fngraved by W. Finden.
276. SIR WALTER SCOTT. Head and Shoulders.
by Woolnoth and Hawksworth, 1825.
Engraved
277. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart.
Head in outline.
278. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart.
Head in Small Oval.
279. WALTER SCOTT. Half length. W. N.,//., 1817 (Wm.
Nicholson). Autograph of Sir Walter Scott, and “ I beg
your acceptance of a specimen of Edinburgh Art, which I
hope you will like.”
280. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Half length. Drawn and
engraved by R. M. Hodgetts.
Lent by W. Riddell Carre, Esq.
281. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Head. Engraved by R.
W. Sievier from an original Sketch by Mr. Slater, 1821.
Lent by Daniel Bruce, Esq.
�NORTH ARCHWAY.
27
282. THE GRAVE of Sir Walter Scott in Dryburgh Abbey.
Drawn by J. A. Bell. Engraved by W. Millar.
Lent by J. Drummond, Esq.
283. SIR WALTER SCOTT’S ARMOURY at Abbotsford.
From a Painting by Col. Henry Stisted. Lithograph.
Lent by David Laing, Esq.
284. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Half length.
by R. Hodgetts, jun. Painted by Mr. Henry.
Lent by T. George Stevenson, Esq.
285. WALTER SCOTT, Esq. Half length.
Heath, sculpt.
Lent by W. Riddell Carre, Esq.
Engraved
Saxon, pinxt.
286. WALTER SCOTT, Esq. From a Picture by Raeburn.
Engraved by Picart from a Drawing by Evans.
Lent by A. Campbell Swinton, Esq.
287. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Engraved by E. Mitchell
from a Picture by Sir Henry Raeburn.
Lent by Archibald Hutton, Esq.
288. THE AUTHOR OF WAVERLEY.
Full length.
W. Crombie,/^.
Lent by Dr. John A. Smith.
B.
289. LANDSEER’S STUDIO, with the Bust of Sir Walter
Scott introduced from a picture. By Sir Edwin Landseer.
Lent by Henry Graves, Esq.
290. SIR WALTER SCOTT. Bust, Profile, Woodcut, from
Sketch by Robert Scott Moncrieff, Advocate, made in the
Parliament House between 1816 and 1820. In Leisure
Hour, July 1871.
Lent by Sir William Stirling-Maxwell, Bart.
�28
SOUTH OCTAGON.
SOUTH OCTAGON.
WORKS BY SIR WALTER SCOTT.
EARLY EDITIONS AND ORIGINAL MANUSCRIPTS.
291. THE CHASE, and William and Helen : Two Ballads from
the German of Gottfried Augustus Burger. Edinburgh :
Printed by Mundell and Son, R. Bank Close, for Manners
and Miller, Parliament Square. 1796. 4to.
Lent by Mr. Campbell Swinton.
292. GOETZ of Berlichingen, with the Iron Hand : a Tragedy.
Translated from the German of Goethe, author of the
“ Sorrows of Werther,” etc. By Walter Scott, Esq., Ad
vocate, Edinburgh. London : Printed for J. Bell, No.
148 Oxford Street. 1799. 8vo.
Lent by Mr. Campbell Swinton.
293. MINSTRELSY of the Scottish Border : consisting of His
torical and Romantic Ballads, collected in the Southern
Counties of Scotland; with a few of modern date, founded
upon local Tradition. Kelso : Printed by James Ballan
tyne. 1802. 2 vols. 8vo. (With the view of Hermitage
Castle. Williams, del. Walker, sculpt. And Autograph
of John Clerk, Eldin.) Vol. III., as usual, is called the
Second Edition. Edinburgh : Printed by James Ballan
tyne. 1803. 8vo.
Lent by Mr. Gibson Craig.
294. THE MINSTRELSY of the Scottish Border. In Three
Volumes. Second Edition. Edinburgh : Printed by James
Ballantyne. 1803. 3 vols. 8vo. Thick paper copy.*
Lent by Mr. Laing.
295. THE LAY of the Last Minstrel: a Poem, by Walter
Scott, Esq. London : Printed for Longman, Hurst, Rees,
and Orme, Paternoster Row, and A. Constable and Co.,
Edinburgh. By James Ballantyne, Edinburgh. 1805.
4to. On the fly-leaf is written,
“ Mrs. Scott, from her affectionate son, the Author.”
Lent from the Abbotsford Library.
296. Another Copy of the same Edition, with Manuscript Cor
rections and Additions by the Author. On the fly-leaf Sir
Walter has written, “ This copy was prepared for the
Second Edition, upon the principle of abbreviating the
Notes recommended by the Edinburgh Review in their
notice of the Poem. But my friend Mr. Constable would
�^VUTH OCTAGON.
29
not hear of the proposed Abridgement, and so the anti
quarian matter was retained.—W. S., 15th June 1821.”
Lent by Her Majesty the Queen.
297. The Third Edition. Edinburgh. 1806. 8vo. A Pre
sentation Copy, with a Letter from the Author to George
Home, Esq.
Lent by Mr. Milne Home of Wedderbum.
298. MARMION : a Tale of Flodden Field. By Walter Scott,
Esq. Edinburgh : Printed by J. Ballantyne & Co., for
Archibald Constable & Company, Edinburgh; and Wil
liam Miller and John Murray, London. 1808. 4to.
Lent from the Signet Library.
299. THE ASHESTIEL MANUSCRIPT. A Volume “collected
and bound by me, in December 1848, J. G. L.” (John
G. Lockhart).
The Original MS. of Sir Walter Scott’s Autobio
graphy. 50 leaves. There is added in this Volume:—
1. The Petition of Walter Scott for admission as an
Advocate, 1791. (Exhibited as No. 362.) 2. Certificate
of Sir Walter’s Marriage in the Parish Church of St. Mary,
Carlisle, 23d December 1797. 3. Commission, Walter
Scott, Esq., to Mr. Charles Erskine, Sheriff-substitute of
Selkirkshire, 14th March 1800. 4. Commission by Lord
Napier, Lord-Lieutenant of the County of Selkirk, in favour
of Walter Scott, Esq., appointing him a Deputy-Lieutenant
of said County, 1800. 5. Burgess Ticket for the Burgh
of Kirkwall, 1814. 6. Burgess Ticket for the Burgh of
Dunfermline.
Lent by J. R. Hope Scott, Esq., Abbotsford.
300. THE ARTICLE ROMANCE. The ORIGINAL MANU
SCRIPT. By Sir Walter Scott. From the Supplement
to “ Encyclopaedia Britannica.” Presented by Professor
Napier to James T. Gibson Craig, Esq.
Lent by Mr. Gibson Craig.
300*. ORIGINAL ARTICLE on the “ Tales of My Landlord.”
Contributed to the Quarterly Review, in the handwriting
of Sir Walter Scott. 4to. Pp. 69.
Lent by Mr. Murray, London.
301. THE LADY OF THE LAKE; a Poem. By Walter
Scott, Esq. Edinburgh : Printed for John Ballantyne &
Co., Edinburgh; and Longman, Hurst, Rees, & Orme,
and William Miller, London. By James Ballantyne &
Co., Edinburgh, 1810. 4to. Presented to “William
Erskine from Walter Scott.”
Lent by Mr. Erskine of Kinnedder.
�30
SOUTH OCTAGON.
302. THE LADY OF THE LAKE.
The ORIGINAL
MANUSCRIPT.
Lent by Francis Richardson, Esq., Mickleham, Surrey.
302*. THE VISION OF DON RODERICK; a Poem. By
Walter Scott, Esq.
Edinburgh: Printed by James
Ballantyne & Co. 1811. 4to.
Lent from the Signet Library.
303. ROKEBY; a Poem. By Walter Scott, Esq. Edinburgh :
Printed for John Ballantyne & Co., Edinburgh; and
Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, & Brown, London. By
James Ballantyne & Co. Edinburgh, 1813. 4to. Copy
on Large paper with the inscription, “ William Erskine,
Esq., from his affectionate friend, the Author.”
Lent by Mr. Erskine of Kinnedder.
304. ROKEBY; a Poem in Six Cantos.
The ORIGINAL MANUSCRIPT, on mixed quarto and
folio paper. The chief portion of Cantos I.-III. having been
transmitted in single sheets by the Post-Office, addressed
Mr. James Ballantyne, Printer, Hanover Street, Edinburgh,
have the stamps Melrose, Galashiels; with various notes
and letters of instructions, etc., to Mr. Ballantyne. 1813.
Lent by Mr. Hope Scott, Abbotsford.
305. THE LORD OF THE ISLES; a Poem. By Walter
Scott, Esq. Edinburgh : Printed for Archibald Constable
& Co., Edinburgh; and Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme,
and Brown, London; by James Ballantyne & Co., Edin
burgh. 1815. 4to.
Lent from the Signet Library.
306. THE LORD OF THE ISLES.
The ORIGINAL MANUSCRIPT, with the Printers’
Marks, and some portions written upon a larger-sized
paper, with extracts for the Notes, in a different hand. 1815.
Lent by Mr. Hope Scott, Abbotsford.
307. THE BRIDAL OF TRIERMAIN; or, The Vale of St.
John. Anon. Edinburgh. 1813. 12mo.
This and Nos. 308 to 313 Lent from the Signet Library.
308. THE FIELD OF WATERLOO; a Poem.
Scott, Esq. Edinburgh, 1815. 8vo.
By Walter
309. HAROLD THE DAUNTLESS; a Poem, in Six Cantos.
By the Author of “ The Bridal of Triermain.” Edin
burgh. 1817. 12mo.
�SOUTH OCTAGON.
31
310. THE VISIONARY. Nos. I. II. III. Edinburgh : Printed
for William Blackwood, Edinburgh; and T. Cadell &
W. Davies, Strand, London. 1819. 12mo.
310*.HALIDON HILL : a Dramatic Sketch from Scottish His
tory. By Sir Walter Scott, Bart. Edinburgh. 1822. 8vo.
311. THE DOOM OF DEVORGOIL; a Melo-Drama. Auchindrane, or the Ayrshire Tragedy. By Sir Walter Scott,
Bart. Printed for Cadell and Company, Edinburgh.
1830. 8vo.
312. PAUL’S LETTERS TO HIS KINSFOLK. Edinburgh:
Printed by James Ballantyne & Co. for Archibald Con
stable & Company, Edinburgh. 1816. 8vo.
312*.LETTERS ON DEMONOLOGY AND WITCHCRAFT,
addressed to J. G. Lockhart, Esq. By Sir Walter Scott,
Bart. London : John Murray, Albemarle Street. 1830.
12mo. (Murray’s Family Library).
313. THE LIFE OF NAPOLEON BUONAPARTE, Emperor
of the French; with a Preliminary View of the French
Revolution. By the Author of Waverley, etc. Long
man, Rees, Orme, Brown, & Green, London; and Cadell
& Co., Edinburgh. Printed in 1827. 9 vols. Post 8vo.
314. LETTERS to the Edinburgh Weekly Journal, on the Change
of the Currency, by Malachi Malagrowther. Edinburgh.
1826. 8vo.
This and No. 314* Lent by Mr. Campbell Swinton.
314*.RELIGIOUS DISCOURSES. By a Layman. London:
Henry Colburn, New Burlington Street. 1828. 8vo.
315. THE HISTORY OF SCOTLAND. By Sir Walter Scott,
Bart. In Two Volumes. London: Printed for Long
man, Rees, Orme, Brown, & Green, Paternoster Row; and
John Taylor, Upper Gower Street. 1829, 1830. 2 vols.
12mo. (Gardner’s Cyclopaedia).*
315*. MEMOIRS of the Marchioness De La Rochejaquelein.
Translated from the French. Edinburgh : Printed for
Constable & Co. 1827. 12mo. Constable’s “ Miscellany
of Original and Selected Publications.” *
316. CATALOGUE of the Library at Abbotsford. [Prepared
by J. G. Cochrane.] Edinb. 1838. 4to.*
Copies of this Catalogue presented by Major Sir Walter
Scott, Bart., to the Bannatyne Club. Copies were also
provided for the Maitland Club, as the contribution of
John G. Lockhart, Esq.
�32
SOUTH OCTAGON.
317. THE WAVERLEY NOVELS. Author’s Edition. Eight
Volumes of the Copyright text, selected as specimens,
containing the Manuscript Introductions and Annotations
by Sir Walter Scott, 1829-1832 :—
Vol. I. Waverley.
II. Waverley and Guy Mannering.
III. Guy Mannering continued.
IV. The Antiquary.
V. The Antiquary continued, and Rob Roy.
VI. Rob Roy continued.
VII. The Black Dwarf and Old Mortality.
XVII. The Abbot—Kenilworth.
Lent by Messrs. A. & C. Black.
The Printed Books and MSS. between Nos. 315 and 408,
marked * at the end, Lent by Mr. D. Laing from his own
Collection.
318. WAVERLEY; or, ’Tis Sixty Years Since. In Three
Volumes.
Edinburgh: Printed by James Ballantyne
and Co., for Archibald Constable and Co., Edinburgh;
and Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, and Brown, London.
1814. 3 Vols. 12mo.*
319. GUY MANNERING. By the Author of “Waverley.”
Edinburgh : Printed by James Ballantyne & Co. 1815.
3 Vols. 12mo.
Lent from the Signet Library.
320. THE ANTIQUARY. By the Author of “Waverley”
and “ Guy Mannering.” Edinburgh : Printed by James
Ballantyne. 3 Vols. 1816. 12mo.
This and Nos. 321, 323, 326, 328, 329, and 348 Lent
by Mr. W. Paterson.
321. ROB ROY. By the Author of “Waverley,” “Guy Man
nering,” and “ The Antiquary.” Edinburgh : Printed
by James Ballantyne & Co. 1818. 12mo.
322. ROB ROY. The ORIGINAL MANUSCRIPT.
Lent by J. R. Hope Scott, Esq.
The history of this interesting volume is thus given in
a foot-note by Mr. Cadell:—“ This, the Original Manu
script (prima cura of the Author) of the Novel of Rob
Roy, was one of the volumes of MSS. presented by Sir
Walter Scott to Mr. Constable in 1822 on the death of
LordKinnedder, and was sold by auction by Mr. Constable’s
�SOUTH OCTAGON.
33
Trustees on 19th August 1831 ; and it was purchased by
Mr. Wilks, M.P., and resold by auction on 2'2d March
1847, when it fell into the possession of Mr. R. Cadell of
Edinburgh, by whom it is this day presented, with
kind regards, to J. G-. Lockhart, Esq.
“Ratho, 15th August 1848.”
There is inserted the following note to “ Mr. James
Ballantyne, St. John Street—
“ Dear James,
With great joy
I send you Roy.
’Twas a tough job,
But we’re done wi’ Rob.
I forgot if I mentioned Terry in my list of friends.
Pray send me two or three copies as soon as you can.
And we must not forget Sir William Forbes.—Yours
ever,
W. S.”
323; TALES OF MY LANDLORD, Collected and Arranged
by Jedediah Cleishbotham, Schoolmaster of Gandercleugh; Edinburgh: Printed for William Blackwood,
Princes Street, and John Murray, Albemarle Street, Lon
don. Four Vols. 1816. 12mo. Vols. I. and II. The
Black Dwarf. Vols. III. and IV. Old Mortality.
323*. OLD MORTALITY. The ORIGINAL MANUSCRIPT.
Lent by Francis Richardson, Esq., Mickleham, Surrey.
324. TALES OF MY LANDLORD. Second Series. Collected
. and Arranged by Jedediah Cleishbotham, Schoolmaster and
Parish-Clerk of Gandercleugh. Edinburgh : Printed for
Archibald Constable & Company. 1818. 4 Vols. 12mo.
Containing Heart of Midlothian.
This and Nos. 327 to 330, and 333 Lent from the
Signet Library.
325. THE HEART OF MIDLOTHIAN. The ORIGINAL
MANUSCRIPT. 1818.
Lent by John Cowan, Esq., Beeslack, Penicuik.
326. IVANHOE. A Romance. By the Author of “ Waverley.”
Edinburgh. 1820. 3 Vols. 12mo.
327. THE MONASTERY. A Romance. By the Author of
“Waverley.” Edinburgh. 1820. 3 Vols. 12mo.
328. THE ABBOT.
A Romance.
By the Author
“Waverley.” Edinburgh. 1820. 3 Vols. 12mo.
c
of
�34
SOUTH OCTAGON.
329. KENILWORTH; A Romance.
By the Author of
“Waverley,” “Ivanhoe,” etc. Edinburgh. 1821. 3 Vols.
12mo.
330. THE PIRATE. By the Author of “ Waverley,” “ Kenil
worth,” etc. Edinburgh: Printed for Archibald Con
stable & Co.; and Hurst, Robinson, & Co., London.
1822. 3 Vols. 12mo.
331. THE PIRATE. The concluding leaves of the Original
Manuscript. Volume I. Presented to Mark Napier,
Esq., by Mr. John Alexander Ballantyne. This remnant,
says Mr. N., “is specially valuable, as it comprehends
Sir Walter Scott’s corrected draft of the beautiful verses
with which the First Volume of the Pirate concludes—
the ‘Farewell to Northmaven.’ . . . Mr. Ballantyne took
occasion one day, in his own office, to present me with
this valuable and interesting Autograph, which he told me
was the last fragment he possessed of Sir Walter Scott’s
copy for the printer.”
Lent by Mark Napier, Esq.
332. THE PIRATE.
The principal portion
MANUSCRIPT. In One Volume.
Lent by the Rev. R. H. Stevenson.
ORIGINAL
333. FORTUNES OF NIGEL. By the Author of “Waverley,”
“Kenilworth,” etc. Edinburgh. 1823. Three Vols.
12mo.
334. TALES OF MY LANDLORD. Series Third. The
ORIGINAL MANUSCRIPT, Bride of Lammermoor,
containing the first seven Chapters of Volume I. and
Chapters IV. to Chapter XII. Vol. II.
Lent by Mr. Christopher Douglas.
335. THE BRIDE OF LAMMERMOOR. A large portion
of the ORIGINAL MANUSCRIPT.
Lent by Sir James Hall, Bart., of Dunglass.
336. THE LEGEND OF MONTROSE. A portion of the
ORIGINAL MANUSCRIPT near the commencement.
Chapter III. etc. Presented to Mr. Laing by the late John
Alexander Ballantyne, Esq., Printer (along with the next
Number).*
336*. KENILWORTH. A portion of the Original Manuscript
of the earlier Chapters. (See No. 336.)*
�SOUTH OCTAGON.
35
^TJPEVERIL OF THE PEAK. By the Author of “Waver
ley,” “ Kenilworth,” etc. Edinburgh : Printed for Archi
bald Constable & Co., Edinburgh ; and Hurst, Robinson,
& Co., London. 1822. 4 Vols. 12mo.
This and Nos. 338, 339, 341, 344, 345, 347,'and
348 Lent from the Signet Library.
338. QUENTIN DURWARD.
12mo.
3 Vols.
Edinburgh.
1823.
339. REDGAUNTLET, a Tale of the Eighteenth Century.
By the Author of “ Waverley.” Edinburgh: Printed for
Archibald Constable & Co., Edinburgh; and Hurst,
Robinson, & Co., London. 3 Vols. 1824. 12mo.
340. REDGAUNTLET. The ORIGINAL MANUSCRIPT.
4to. 1824.
Lent by Dowager Lady Liston Foulis.
341. ST. RONAN’S WELL. By the Author of “Waverley,”
“ Quentin Durward,” etc. Edinburgh : Printed for Archi
bald Constable & Co., Edinburgh ; and Hurst, Robinson,
& Co., London. 1824. 3 Vols. 12mo.
342. ST. RONAN’S WELL. The ORIGINAL MANUSCRIPT.
1824.
Lent by A. Skene, Esq., Aberdeen.
343. A PROOF-COPY of the First Sheet of St. Ronan’s Well,
with the Author’s Corrections, sent to Mr. Ballantyne.*
344. TALES OF THE CRUSADERS. By the Author of
“ Waverley,” “ Quentin Durward,” etc. Edinburgh :
Printed for Archibald Constable & Co., Edinburgh; and
Hurst, Robinson, & Co., London. Vols. I. and II. The
Betrothed; Vols. III. and IV. The Talisman. 1825.
4 Vols. Post 8vo.
345. WOODSTOCK; or, The Cavalier. A Tale of the Year
Sixteen Hundred and Fifty-one. By the Author of
“ Waverley,” “ Tales of the Crusaders,” etc. Edinburgh :
Printed for Archibald Constable & Co., Edinburgh; and
Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown, & Green, London. 1826.
3 Vols. 12mo.
346. CHRONICLES OF THE CANONGATE, containing “The
Fair Maid of Perth,” “ The Highland Widow,” and “ The
Surgeon’s Daughter.”
The ORIGINAL MANUSCRIPT.
Lent by Dr. J. D. Gillespie.
�36
SOUTH OCTAGON.
347. CHRONICLES OF THE CANONGATE. By the Author
of “ Waverley,” etc.
Containing “ The Two Drovers,”
“ Highland Widow,” and “ Surgeon’s Daughter.” Edin
burgh : Printed for Cadell and Co., Edinburgh; and
Simpkin and Marshall, London. 1827. 2 Vols. 12mo.
Lent from the Signet Library.
348. CHRONICLES OF THE CANONGATE. Second Series.
Containing “ St. Valentine’s Day, or The Fair Maid of
Perth.” Edinburgh. 1828. 3 Vols. 12mo.
349. ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN : or, The Maiden of the Mist.
By the Author of “ Waverley,” etc. In Three Volumes.
Edinburgh : Printed for Cadell and Co., Edinburgh : and
Simpkin and Marshal, London. 12mo.
This and Nos. 350 to 353, and 355* Lent from the
Signet Library.
349*.TALES OF MY LANDLORD. Fourth Series. Castle
Dangerous. The ORIGINAL MANUSCRIPT, in the
handwriting of William Laidlaw, with Corrections and
Additions by the Author.
Lent by Francis Richardson, Esq.
350. TALES OF MY LANDLORD. Fourth and Last Series.
Collected and Arranged by Jedediah Cleishbotham, School
master and Parish-Clerk of Gandercleugh. Printed for
Robert Cadell, Edinburgh; and Whittaker and Co.,
London. 1832. 4 Vols. 12mo. Containing “Count
Robert of Paris ” and “ Castle Dangerous.”
351. THE WAVERLEY DRAMAS. Vol. I. Containing
George Heriot—Ivanhoe—The Battle of Bothwell Bridge
—The Pirate—and, Peveril of the Peak.
Vol. II. Containing Montrose—Waverley—Redgauntlet
—Mary Queen of Scots, and The Talisman.
John Anderson, jun., Edinburgh, and Simpkin &
Marshall, London. 1823. 2 Vols. 12mo.
352. THE POETRY contained in the Novels, Tales, and
Romances of the Author of “ Waverley.” Edinburgh :
Printed for Archibald Constable and Co., and Hurst,
Robinson, and Co., London. 1822. 12mo.
353. TALES OF A GRANDFATHER, being Stories taken from
Scottish History. Humbly inscribed to Hugh Littlejohn,
Esq. In Three Vols. Printed for Cadell & Co., Edin
burgh; Simpkin & Marshall, London. 1828. 12mo.
Ditto. Second Series. Three Vols. 1829.
Third Series.
Three Vols. 1830.
�SOUTH OCTAGON.
37
354. TALES OF A GRANDFATHER. First Series. The
ORIGINAL MANUSCRIPT. 1828.
Lent by George Hogarth, Esq., Banker, Cupar-Fife.
355. TALES OF A GRANDFATHER. Another portion of
the ORIGINAL MANUSCRIPT. 1828.
Lent by Francis Richardson, Esq.
355*. TALES OF A GRANDFATHER; being Stories taken
from the History of France. 1831. 3 Vols.
356. A SERIES of Sketches of the existing Localities alluded
to in the Waverley Novels. Etched from Original Draw
ings. By James Skene, Esq. Robert Cadell, Edin
burgh. 1831. Royal 8vo.*
357. A COLLECTION of Engravings after celebrated Artists,
to Illustrate the Works of Sir Walter Scott. Proof Im
pressions, bound in Two Volumes. Large folio.
Lent by Robert Horn, Esq., Advocate.
MANUSCRIPTS and LETTERS written by or
hauing reference to Sir Waiter Scott.
358. CONTRACT OF MARRIAGE betwixt “ Mr. Walter Scott,
Writer to the Signet, eldest lawfull son of Mr. Robert
Scott in Sandieknow, and Mrs. Anne Rutherfurd, eldest
daughter of Doctor John Rutherfurd, Professor of Medi
cine in the Colledge of Edinburgh, and the deceast Mrs.
Jean Swinton, his first spouse, daughter of the deceast
Sir John Swinton of that Ilk,” etc.
(Subscribed) Walter Scott, Ann Rutherford.
Robert Scott, Jo. Rutherfoord (witnesses).
Six leaves written on stamped paper.
25th April 1758.
Lent by Dr. Daniel Rutherfurd Haldane, Edinburgh.
359. CONTRACT between James Brown, Architect in Edinburgh, and Walter Scott, Writer to the Signet, to feu and
build a Dwelling-house, with Cellars, Coach-house, etc., on
the West Row of the great Square called George Square,
[No. 25] at the annual feu of £5,14s., the first payment to
commence at Whitsunday 1773.
Six pages, each signed Walter Scott.
This and No. 359* Lent by Mr. D. Laing.
�38
SOUTH OCTAGON.
359*. LETTER of Doctor John Rutherfoord, without any ad
dress, evidently relating to his grandchild’s illness. It
begins, “ D. Sir,—Mr. Scot has been with me just now,
and given me an account of his son’s illness, and what
you had done for them very properly. But as the Disease
seems to be increasing, I think -you should immediately
apply a Blister across the forepart of his neck, etc. . . .
Meantime keep the room quiet tho’ not too closs or warm.
I am, in haste,—D. Sir, yours most sincerely,
“Jo. Rutherfoord.
“ Saturday, past 8 p.m.”
360. LETTER, Mrs. A. Cockburn addressed to the Rev. Dr.
Douglas, Minister of Galashiels, containing the description
of Sir Walter Scott when a youth of about six years of
age. First printed by Mr. Lockhart in his Life of Scott,
as follows :—
“I last night supped, in Mr. Walter Scott’s. He has the most
extraordinary genius of a boy I ever saw. He was reading a
poem to his mother when I went in. I made him read on ; it
was the description of a shipwreck. His passion rose with the
storm. He lifted his eyes and hands. ‘There’s the mast gone,’
says he ; ‘ crash it goes !—they will all perish ! ’ After his agita
tion, he turns to me, ‘ That is too melancholy,’ says he ; ‘I had
better read you something more amusing,’ etc.
“ When taken to bed last night, he told his aunt he liked that
lady. ‘What lady?’ says she. ‘Why, Mrs. Cockburn; for-I
think she is a virtuoso like myself.’ ‘Dear Walter,’ says Aunt
Jenny, ‘what is a virtuoso?’ ‘Don’t ye know? Why, it’s one
who wishes and will know everything.’—Now, sir, you will think
this a very silly story. Pray, what age do you suppose this boy
to be ? Name it now, before I tell you. ‘Why, twelve or four
teen.’ No such thing ; he is not quite six years old. He has a
lame leg, for which he was a year at Bath, and has acquired the
perfect English accent, which he has not lost since he came, and he
reads like a Garrick. You will allow this an uncommon exotic.”
Also a small Photograph Portrait of Mrs. Cockburn.
Lent by Miss Douglas, Cumin Place, Grange.
361. FACSIMILE of a School Exercise addressed to Dr. Adam
in the History of the High School of Edinburgh, by
William Steven, D.D., 1849. 12mo.*
362. THE PETITION of Walter Scott, son of Mr. Walter
Scott, Writer to the Signet, unto the Right Honourable
the Lords of Council and Session, to be taken upon Trials
for passing as Advocate, 13th May 1791. With the
attestation of the several Examinators, from June 1791
to July 1792.
Lent by Mr. Hope Scott.
�SOUTH OCTAGON.
39
363. DISPUTATIO Juridica, ad Tit. xxiv.
Lib. xlviii.
Pand. de Cadaveribus Damnatorum, Gualterus Scott,
Auct. et Resp. Ad diem 10 Julii, hor. loc. sol. Edin
burgh 1792. 4to.*
364. CASE for the Rev. Mr. M‘Naught, Minister of the Gospel
at Girthan, to be heard at the Bar of the Venerable
Assembly, May 1793, signed Walter Scott; and other
Papers. In 1 Vol.
Lent by Mr. Campbell Swinton.
365. THE SPECULATIVE SOCIETY. Volume of Scroll
Minutes of the Speculative Society from 14th November
1786 to 1st April 1795. The portion of the Minutes,
from 26th November 1791 being holograph of Sir
Walter Scott. Folio.
Also
366. CASH-BOOK of the Speculative Society, commencing
28th November 1786, ending 26th November 1839. 4to.
Lent by the Speculative Society, University.
367. DIPLOMA. Latin Diploma of the Speculative Society,
conferring the degree of an Honorary Member on John
Wilde, Advocate, Professor of Civil Law in the University
of Edinburgh. Written and signed “ Gualterus Scott,
a Secretis. Apud Edinburgum, Feb. 1793/’*
368. ORIGINAL MANUSCRIPT: “The Lamentation of the
Faithful Wife of Asan Aga, from the Morlachian lan
guage.” In twenty-seven stanzas, beginning—
“ What yonder glimmers so white on the mountain,
Glimmers so white where yon sycamores grow ?
Is it wild swans around Vaga’s fair fountain ?
Or is it a wreath of the wintry snow ?”
This spirited translation from the German Ballad by
Goethe has probably never been printed. The handwrit
ing is about 1798, and the translation was well known to
some of Sir Walter’s early friends. Goethe’s German
version is entitled “ Klaggesang von der edlen Frau des
Asan-Aga. Morlachisch.
“Was ist Weisses dort am griinen Walde ?
1st es Schnee wohl, oder sind es Schwane ? ” etc.
It was first published by Herder in his well-known collec
tion, “ Volkslieder.” A more literal version by Professor
Aytoun, called “ The Doleful Lay of the Wife of Asa Aga,”
is contained in the Volume of Poems and Ballads of
Goethe. Translated by W. E. Aytoun and T. Martin. 1859.
Lent by Messrs. A- & C. Black.
�40
SOUTH OCTAGON.
BOOKS Edited by SIR WALTER SCOTT.
369. SIR TRISTREM; a Metrical Romance of the Thirteenth
Century. By Thomas of Ercildoune, called The Rhymer.
Edited from the Auchinleck MS. by Walter Scott, Esq.,
Advocate. Edinburgh : Printed by James Ballantyne,
for Archibald Constable & Co., Edinburgh; and Long
man & Rees, London. 1804. Royal 8vo.*
370. ORIGINAL MEMOIRS, written during the Great Civil
War; being the Life of Sir Henry Slingsby, and Memoirs
of Captain Hodgson, with Notes, etc. Edinburgh: Printed
by James Ballantyne & Co. for Archibald Constable &
Co., Edinburgh. 1806. Large paper. 8vo.*
371. MEMOIRS OF ROBERT CARY, Earl of Monmouth,
written by Himself. And Fragmenta Regalia ■, being a
History of Queen Elizabeth’s Favourites. By Sir Robert
Naunton. With Explanatory Annotations. Edinburgh :
Printed by James Ballantyne & Co. for Archibald Con
stable & Co., Edinburgh. 1808. 8vo.
372. THE WORKS OF JOHN DRYDEN, now first Collected.
In Eighteen Volumes. Illustrated, with Notes, Historical,
Critical, and Explanatory; and a Life of the Author.
By Walter Scott, Esq. London : Printed for William
Miller, Albemarle Street, by James Ballantyne & Co.,
Edinburgh. 1808. Large paper. Royal 8vo.
Nos. 371 and 372 Lent from the Signet Library.
373. MEMOIRS of Captain George Carleton, an English Officer;
including Anecdotes of the War in Spain under the
Earl of Peterborough, and many interesting particulars
relating to the Manners of the Spaniards in the beginning
of the last Century. Written by Himself. Edinburgh :
Printed by James Ballantyne & Co. 1808. Large paper.
8 vo.*
374. THE STATE PAPERS AND LETTERS of Sir Ralph
Sadler, Knight-Banneret.
Edited by Arthur Clifford,
Esq. In Two Volumes. To which is added a Memoir of
the Life of Sir Ralph Sadler, with Historical Notes by
Walter Scott, Esq. Edinburgh : Printed for Archibald
Constable & Co., Edinburgh; and for T. Cadell & W.
Davies, William Millar, and John Murray, London.
1809. 2 Vols. 4to. The same Work on Large paper,
divided into three vols. 4to.*
�WOUTH OCTAGON.
41
375. A COLLECTION of Scarce and Valuable Tracts, on the
most Interesting and Entertaining Subjects; but chiefly
such as relate to the History and Constitution of these
Kingdoms. Selected from an infinite number in Print
and Manuscript, in the Royal, Cotton, Lion, and other
Public as well as Private Libraries; particularly that of
the late Lord Somers. The Second Edition, Revised,
Augmented, and Arranged by Walter Scott, Esq. Thirteen
Volumes. London : Printed for T. Cadell and W. Davies,
Strand; W. Miller, Albemarle Street; R. H. Evans,
Pall Mall; J. White and J. Murray, Fleet Street; and
J. Harding, St. James’s Street. 1809-1815. 4to.
376. THE POETICAL WORKS of Anna Seward; with Ex
tracts from her Literary Correspondence. Edited by
Walter Scott, Esq. In Three Volumes. Efl inburgh :
Printed by James Ballantyne & Co., for John Ballantyne
& Co., Edinburgh; and Longman, Hurst, Rees, and
Orme, Paternoster Row, London. Post 8vo.
Nos. 375 and 376 Lent from the Signet Library.
377. SECRET HISTORY of the Court of James the First;
containing—1. Osborne’s Traditional Memoirs. 2. Sir
Anthony Weldon’s Court and Character of King James.
3. Aulicus Coquinarise. 4. Sir Edward Peyton’s Divine
Catastrophe of the House of Stuarts. With Notes and
Introductory Remarks. In Two Volumes. Edinburgh :
Printed by James Ballantyne & Co., for John Ballantyne
& Co., Edinburgh; and Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, &
Brown, London. 2 Vols. Large paper. Royal 8vo.
Lent by Mr. Gibson Craig.
378. MEMOIRS of the Reign of King Charles the First. By
Sir Philip Warwick, Knight. Edinburgh : Printed by
John Ballantyne & Co., Edinburgh; and Longman, Hurst,
Rees, Orme, & Brown, London. 1813. Large paper.
Royal 8vo.*
379. THE BORDER ANTIQUITIES of England and Scotland,
comprising Specimens of Architecture and Sculpture, and
other Vestiges of Former Ages, accompanied by Descrip
tions. . Together with Illustrations of remarkable Inci
dents in Border History and Tradition, and Original
Poetry. By Walter Scott, Esq. London: Printed for
Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, & Brown, Paternoster Row;
J. Murray, Albemarle Street; John Greig, Upper Street"
Islington; and Constable & Co., Edinburgh. 2 Vols’
Large paper. 4to.*
�42
SOUTH OCTAGON.
380. ILLUSTRATIONS of Northern Antiquities, from the
earlier Teutonic and Scandinavian Romances ; being an
Abstract of the Book of Heroes, and Nibelungen Lay;
with Translation of Metrical Tales from the old German,
Danish, Swedish, and Icelandic languages, with Notes and
Dissertations. By Henry Weber, Robert Jamieson, and
Sir Walter Scott. Edinburgh : Printed by James Ballan
tyne and Co. 1814. 4to.
381. THE WORKS OF JONATHAN SWIFT, D.D., Dean of
St. Patrick’s, Dublin; containing Additional Letters,
Tracts, and Poems, not hitherto published, with Notes,
and a Life of the Author, by Walter Scott, Esq. 19
Volumes. Edinburgh : Printed for Archibald Constable
& Co., Edinburgh; White, Cochrane, & Co., and Gale,
Curtis, & Fenner, London ; and John Cumming, Dublin.
1814. Large paper. Royal 8vo.
Nos. 380 and 381 Lent from the Signet Library.
382. MEMORIE OF THE SOMERVILLES; being a History
of the Baronial House of Somerville, by James Eleventh
Lord Somerville. In Two Volumes. Edinburgh : Printed
by James Ballantyne & Co. for Archibald Constable &
Company, Edinburgh; and Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme,
& Brown, London. 1815. 2 Volumes. Large paper.
Royal 8vo.*
383. THE LETTING of Humours Blood in the Head Vaine,
etc., by S. Rowlands. Edinburgh, Reprinted by James
Ballantyne & Co. for William Laing, and William Black
wood. 1815. Square 12mo. (A Collection of Satires by
a voluminous English writer, Reprinted from the edition
Lond. 1611. With a Preface and Notes, by Sir Walter
Scott.)*
384. DESCRIPTION of the Regalia. Edinburgh.
1819.
12mo.* (Reprinted, with Illustrations, in Provincial
Antiquities, etc., No. 395.)
385. THE SALE-ROOM. No. 1. Saturday, January 4, 1817.
A Periodical Paper, published weekly at No. 4 Hanover
Street, Edinburgh. (No Title.) Carried on to Saturday,
July 12, 1817, when it terminated with No. xxviii. 4to,
pp. 228.*
386. TRIVIAL POEMS, and Triolets. Written in obedience
to Mrs. Tomkin’s Commands. By Patrick Carey. 20th
August 1651. London : John Murray, Albemarle Street.
1820. 4to*
�SOUTH OCTAGON.
43
387. MEMORIALS of the Haliburtons. Edinburgh : Printed
by James Ballantyne & Company, at the Border Press.
1820. Ito, pp. iv. 63.*
Thirty copies only printed for Private Circulation.
The Preliminary Notice is dated Abbotsford, March
1820. Engraved etching of the Haliburton Burial Aisle
in Dryburgh Abbey (from a Drawing by James Skene,
Esq.) On the fly-leaf an inscription, “ For Mr. David
Laing, &c.,” signed Walter Scott.
In the note that accompanied it, he says :—“ I have had the
good fortune to recover the last copy, as I believe, of the Haliburton Memorials, which I enclose for your acceptance. Please to
return the imperfect copy with your convenience. I send also a
copy of Carey’s Poems (rather scarce) which came through my
hands. [See No. 386.] I have since detected the Author, a
Catholic priest and younger brother to the celebrated Lucius Lord
Carey.—Yours truly,
W. Scott.
“Castle Street, Wednesday [January 1823.]”
388. A Reprint of the same Volume. Thirty copies printed.
Edinburgh: November 1824. 4to, on paper slightly
larger than the former.*
389. NORTHERN MEMOIRS, Calculated for the Meridian of
Scotland; to which is added the Contemplative and
Practical Angler. Writ in the year 1658. By Richard
Franck, Philanthropus. New Edition, with Preface and
Notes. Edinburgh: Printed for Archibald Constable &
Co., Edinburgh; and Hurst, Robinson, & Co., London,
1821. 8vo.
This and Nos. 390 and 391 Lent from the Signet Library.
390. CHRONOLOGICAL NOTES of Scottish Affairs from 1680
till 1701 ; being chiefly taken from the Diary of Lord
Fountainhall. Edinburgh: Printed for Archibald Con
stable & Co., Edinburgh; and Hurst, Robinson, & Co.,
London. 4to.
391. MILITARY MEMOIRS of the Great Civil War. Being
the Military Memoirs of John Gwynne; and an Account
of the Earl of Glencairn’s Expedition as General of His
Majesty’s Forces in the Highlands of Scotland, in the
years 1653 and 1654. By a Person who was Eye and
Ear Witness to every Transaction. With an Appendix.
Edinburgh : Printed for Hurst, Robinson, & Co., London;
and Archibald Constable & Co., Edinburgh. 1822. 4to?.
�44
SOUTH OCTAGON.
392. LAYS OF THE LINDSAYS; being Poems by the Ladies
of the House of Balcarras. E dinburgh : Printed by James
Ballantyne & Company. 1824. 4to. Pp. 123.
• This volume was originally designed by Sir Walter
Scott as a contribution to the Members of The Bannatyne
Club ; after the printing had been completed, it was sup
pressed. In a letter to the Secretary of the Club, Sir
Walter writes : “ The Lays of the Lindsays have been
recalled and cancelled, Lady Hardwicke having taken fright
at the idea of appearing in a printed though unpublished
shape. We are, however, to have Auld Robin by himself,
and I wish you would speak to Mr. Lizars about engraving
on my account the enclosed frontispiece, drawn by Mr.
Kirkpatrick Sharpe, and let me know the damage when
you write again.—I am always, Dear Mr. David, yours
assuredly,
« Walter Scott.
“Ajbbotsford, 3cZ October [1824.]”
Lent from the Abbotsford Library.
393. AULD ROBIN GRAY; a Ballad. By the Right Hon
ourable Lady Anne Barnard, born Lady Anne Lindsay of
Balcarras. Edinburgh : Printed by James Ballantyne &
Co. 1825. 4to. Pp. 61, with engraved Frontispiece,
“ C. Kirkpatrick Sharpe, delin. W. H. Lizars, sculpt.”
Presented as a Contribution to the Bannatyne Club,
by Sir Walter Scott, Bart., President of the Club. Lady
Anne Barnard was the eldest daughter of Alexander,
sixth Earl of Balcarras; and married, in 1793, Andrew,
son of Thomas Barnard, Bishop of Limerick. She died
at Loudon in 1825.
Lent by Mr. Wardlaw Ramsay.
See Sir Walter's Letter to the Secretary.
394. THE MANUSCRIPT and Continuation of Auld Robin
Gray, in the Autograph of Lady Anne Barnard : Also an
Original Letter to Miss Cummyng, signed with her
maiden name, Anne Lindsay, from Broomhall (about
1770). *
395. THE PROVINCIAL ANTIQUITIES and Picturesque
Scenery of Scotland, with Descriptive Illustrations. By
Sir Walter Scott. 2 Vols. London, 1826. Large paper.
Imperial 4to. With Proof Impressions and Duplicate.
Etchings of the Plates after Turner and others. Engraved
by Cooke, Finden, Le Keux, etc.
Lent from the Signet Library.
�WOUTH OCTAGON.
45
395*. SEPARATE PARTS of the above Work as published.
Large paper.*
396. VOLUME FIRST of the Minutes of the Bannatyne Club,
founded by Sir Walter Scott in February 1823, signed
by him as President. On a separate leaf is the scroll of
the original Scheme, with Sir Walter’s corrections, and
Scroll of a Minute written by Sir Walter (in the Secre
tary’s absence) regarding the extension of the Club, in
1824.
In the short note to the Secretary (received 9th Novem
ber 1830), he says, “I have no prospect of seeing Edin
burgh for some [time], I am too old a Rat to return
willingly into the Rat-trap. I daresay, however, a
Bannatyne Meeting would tempt me.—Believe [me]
always yours, in all fraternitie,
Walter Scott.”*
397. THE BANNATYNE MISCELLANY; containing Ori
ginal Papers and Tracts, chiefly relating to the History
and Literature of Scotland. Volume I. Printed at
Edinburgh. 1827. 4to. Printed under the joint Super
intendence of the President and Secretary.*
397*. MEMORIALS of George Bannatyne.
1545—1608.
Edinburgh. 1829. 4to. (Printed for the Bannatyne
Club.)*
J 9 8. TRIAL OF DUNCAN TERIG alias CLERK, and Alex
ander Bane Macdonald, for the Murder of Arthur Davis,
Sergeant in General Guize’s Regiment of Foot. June,
a.d. 1754. Edinburgh.
1831. 4to.*
“ This copy of a Trial involving a curious point of
evidence,” was presented, as a Second Contribution, by
Sir Walter Scott, Bart., President of the Bannatyne Club.
398*. TWO BANNATYNE GARLANDS from Abbotsford,
1831. 8vo. Also Sir Walter Scott’s Letter to the
Secretary, sending the transcript, chiefly in his own hand,
of “ Captain Ward and the Rainbow.” *
399. PROCEEDINGS in the Court-Martial held upon John,
Master of Sinclair, Captain-Lieutenant in Preston’s Regi
ment, for the Murder of Ensign Schaw of the same
Regiment, and Captain Schaw of the Royals, 17th
October 1708, with Correspondence respecting that
Transaction. Edinburgh. 1828. 4to.
Dedication :—“ To the Members of the Roxburghe
Club, these Documents, containing the account of a
singular and Tragical occurrence during Marlborough’s
�46
SOUTH OCTAGON.
Wars, from an Original and Authentic Manuscript in the
Editor’s possession, are inscribed and presented by their
most obedient and respectful servant, Walter Scott.
“Abbotsford, 1st December 1828.”
Lent by Sir William Stirling Maxwell, Bart.
400. AN APOLOGY for Tales of Terror.
“ A thing of shreds and patches.”
Kelso: Printed at the Mail Office. 1799. 4to. Pp.
76, with the autograph on the title, “Walter Scott,” and
opposite, this note : “ This was the first book printed
by Ballantyne of Kelso—only twelve copies were thrown
off, and none for sale.”
Lent from the Abbotsford Library.
ADDITIONAL MANUSCRIPTS and LETTERS
written by or hauing reference to Sir Walter
Scott.
401. MANUSCRIPT VOLUME, written by Sir Walter Scott,
under the title of Legendary Fragments, with his sig
nature, “ Walter Scott, 1792.” 4to. 64 leaves, contain
ing probably some original pieces.
Lent from the Abbotsford Library.
402. A Similar Volume, with the title “Scottish Songs.”
It might rather be styled a Poetical Commonplace Book,
being probably the foundation of “ The Border Minstrelsy,”
leaves having apparently been cut out for the printer;
various handwritings occur towards the end of the
volume.
Lent from the Abbotsford Library.
403. COMMISSION, Walter Scott, Gent., to be Quartermaster
in the Royal Edinburgh Volunteers. Signed Ch. Mait
land, Captain Commandant. 12th April 1797.
Lent by Mr. Hope Scott.
404. LETTER to the Right Honble. the Lord Advocate regard
ing Major Maitland, written “ in our official capacity as
Officers and Committee of the Royal Edinburgh Light
Dragoons.” 9th June 1798. Signed, Wm. Rae, Captain
R.E. V.L.D.; J. Gordon, Lieut.; Geor. Robinson, Lieut.;
William Forbes, Cornet; Colin Mackenzie, Member
of Committee; Walter Scott, Secy.*
�SOUTH OCTAGON.
47
(2.) COPY of the above Letter in Sir Walter Scott’s hand
writing, without the signatures. (3.) Letter, Sir Ralph
Abercromby to the Lord Advocate, in reply :—
“ Edinburgh, June 26 th, 1798.—My Lord,—I have the
honor to return herewith a letter addressed to your Lord
ship by the Officers of the Edinburgh Light Dragoons,
recommending to your notice their Commandant, Major
Maitland, to whose merit your Lordship has, as well as
his brother officers, borne ample testimony. It would, on
these reasons, give me much satisfaction, if I could point
out in what manner Major Maitland could be employed
on the North British Staff, but in his present situation it
is incompatible with the rules of the service to give him
any appointment in that line. I am sorry I cannot give
your Lordship a more favourable answer, and have the
honor to be, my Lord, your Lordship’s most humble and
most obedient servant,
(Signed) Ra. Abercr@»Y.”*
405. COMMISSION appointing Mr. Walter Scott, Advocate,
to be Sheriff-Depute of the Shire or Sheriffdom of Selkirk.
Signed by George the Third. Countersigned by the
Duke of Portland, 16th December 179-9.
406. BURGESS TICKET of the Burgh of Selkirk, in favour of
Walter Scott, Esq., Advocate, Sheriff of Selkirkshire.
26th February 1800.
Nos. 405 and 406 lent by Mr. Hope Scott.
407. A TRUE History of several Honourable Families of the
Right Honourable name of Scot, in the Shires of Rox
burgh and Selkirk, and others adjacent. Gathered out
of Ancient Chronicles, Histories, and Traditions of our
Fathers. By
Capt. WALTER SCOT,
An old Souldier, and no Sch oiler,
And one that can Write nane,
But just the Letters of his Name.
Edinburgh : Printed by the heir of Andrew Anderson,
Printer to his most Sacred Majesty, City and Colledge.
1688. 4to.
Presented “to Walter Scott, Esqre., from his obliged
and faithful servant, Archd. Constable. It is the only
copy of the first Edition I have ever seen,
A. C.
“Park Place, 26th March 1818.”
This Work is by no means common, but not so rare as
this note would imply. It was reprinted at Edinburgh,
1776, 4to, and at Hawick, 1786, 8vo; but the interest of
�48
SOUTH OCTAGON.
the present Copy consists in having on the leaf opposite
the title the following lines, written by Sir Walter Scott:—
“ I, Walter Scott of Abbotsford, a poor scholar, no soldier,
but a soldier’s lover,
Tn the stile of my namesake and kinsman, do hereby discover
That I have written the twenty-four letters twenty-four
million times over,
And to every true-born Scott I do wish as many golden pieces
As ever were hairs in Jason’s and Medea’s golden fleeces.”
From the Abbotsford Library.
408. A SET OF PLAYING CARDS, with the Arms of the
Scottish Nobility. Engraved at Edinburgh by Walter
Scott, Goldsmith. Under the Town of Edinburgh Arms
is the engraved title “ Phylarcharum Scotorum Gentilicia
insigna illustria a Gualtero Scot Aurifice Chartis lusorijs.
Expressa, Sculpsit Edinburgi. Anno Dom. cio.io.xci.”
(1691). (A few defects in this Copy were supplied in
facsimile from the one in the Library at Abbotsford.) *
409. LETTER from Sir Walter Scott to Principal Baird,
February 1818, expressing his high opinion of the
Metrical Version of the Psalms used in Scotland.
This and No. 410 Lent by Isaac Bayley, Esq.
410. THE ORIGINAL SCROLL, containing Instructions,
wholly in the hand of Sir Walter Scott, of his
Trust-Disposition and Settlement, dated “Abbotsford,
7th January 1831.” It was found, after his decease, in
his writing-desk, in the Study at Abbotsford. On the
first page, in Sir Walter’s instructions concerning
his funeral, the following words printed in italics are
deleted :—“ The present assignation, having for object :
1. The payment of my debts and funeral expenses, com
mending my body to be laid in my Aisle before the high
altar of Dryburgh Abbey. The funeral to be conducted in the
plainest, without consistent with"------ Mr. Bayley says,
“Before finishing the sentence, Sir Walter may have
recollected that in Scotland testamentary deeds are never
opened until after the Funeral. These instructions were
enclosed in an envelope, with this address:—‘ To my
Children—Rough Notes of Testamentary Dispositions.
The funeral testament, extended and executed, is deposited
in the iron chest of Robert Cadell, Esq., bookseller, in
January 1831.”’
410*. FUNERAL LETTER signed by Major Sir Walter Scott,
to Mr. Mercer, to attend the Funeral of Sir Walter Scott, his
father, to Dryburgh Abbey, on the 26th September 1832.
Lent by Miss Dunlop.
�SOUTH OCTAGON.
49
MISCELLANEOUS.
411. STUDY AT ABBOTSFORD. Sketch in Water-colour.
By Sir William Allan, P.R.S.A.
Lent by David Simson, Esq.
412. SCENE from “Waverley.” By John Faed, R.S.A.
This and No. 413 Lent by Messrs. A. and C. Black.
413. SCENE from “The Abbot.”
H.R.S.A.
By Thomas Faed, R.A.,
414. VIEW of Abbotsford. By J. F. Williams, R.S.A.
Lent by Mrs. Margaret Sanson.
415. PORTRAIT of Daniel Terry, Comedian.
Nicholson, R.S.A.
Lent by Mr. Adam Black.
By Wm.
416. SCENE from “ Waverley.” By J. Faed, R.S.A.
This and the next three numbers Lent by Messrs. A.
and C. Black.
417. SCENE from “ Rob Roy.”
By R. R. MTan, A.R.S.A.
418. SCENE from “ Guy Mannering.”
By John Faed, R.S.A.
419. SCENE from “The Heart of Midlothian.”
Faed, R.A., TLR.S.A.
By Thomas
420. OLD MORTALITY. The Original Vignette Drawing.
By Sir William Allan, P.R.S.A.
Lent by Mr. D. Laing.
421. DRAWING of the Lennox or Darnley Jewel, in Gold and
Colours. The old description of this interesting Relic is
as follows :—“ A Golden Heart set with Jewels and orna
mented with emblematical figures enamelled, and Scottish
mottoes.” Mr. Fraser Tytler prepared, by her Majesty’s
command, an elaborate description of the various emblems
and mottoes, clearly showing that this curious and ancient
Jewel contains internal evidence that it was made for
Margaret Countess of Lennox in memory of her husband
the Regent, as a present to her Royal Grandson James
VI. of Scotland.
Lent by Mr. Gibson Craig.
D
�50
SOUTH OCTAGON.
422. LETTER, dated 2 2d Nov. 1799, from Sir Walter Scott to
Wm. Riddell, Esq. of Comieston, soliciting his interest
when applying for the Sheriffship of Selkirk.
Lent by Mr. Riddell Carre of Cavers Carre.
423. LETTER from Sir Walter Scott to the late William
Stewart Watson, approving of the Likenesses painted by
him in 1825.
Lent by Mrs. Stewart Watson.
424. LETTER or Notes by Sir Walter Scott in connexion with
the Traditions of Edinburgh by the late Robert Chambers.
Lent by Mr. James Hay, Leith.
425. LETTER from Sir Walter Scott to Mr. Charles Mackay,
describing his Visit to the Theatre-Royal, Edinburgh, to
witness the play of “ Rob Roy,” and the representation of
the character of Bailie Nicol Jarvie by him.
Lent by Mr. C. G. Mackay.
426. LETTER from Sir Walter Scott to John Scott, Esq. of
Scalloway.
Lent by Mr. R. T. C. Scott, J.P.
427. MEMOIRS of his Dog “ Camp,” by Sir Walter Scott, in
his own handwriting.
Lent by Mr. T. G. Stevenson.
428. LETTER of Thanks from Sir Walter Scott to the late
Peter Maclaurin, Esq.
Lent by Mrs. Maclaurin.
429. LETTER, and Sketch of Tankard. By Sir Walter Scott,
to Charles Kirkpatrick Sharpe, Esq.
Lent by the Rev. W. K. R. Bedford.
430. VOLUME of Notes and Letters from Sir Walter Scott,
&e., to Mr. John Stevenson, Bookseller, Edinburgh, with
Printed Papers, in one vol. 4to.
Lent by Mr. T. G. Stevenson.
431. VOLUME of Sixty-five Original Letters, chiefly Private, on
Matters of Business, etc., addressed to Mr. James Ballan
tyne, from 1808 to 1831.
Lent by Mr. Christopher Douglas.
�SOUTH OCTAGON.
51
432. PREFATORY Memoirs to Lives of the Novelists; Sterne,
Goldsmith, Johnson. The Original Manuscript.
Lent by Mr. Christopher Douglas.
432*. PREFATORY Memoir of Moliere. 26 pages. The
ORIGINAL MANUSCRIPT. Also Letter of Sir Walter
Scott, written before 1820, apparently to Mr. Lockhart,
alluding to his purchase of Abbotsford; and other five
Autograph Letters to R. P. Gillies, respecting the “ Foreign
Quarterly Review,” 1826-1828.
Lent by Mr. Henry G. Bohn.
433. THE EVE OF ST. JOHN, the Original Manuscript.
Written by Lady Scott and presented by her to Captain
Scott of Rosebank. 12mo.
Lent by Miss Meik.
434. CALL BOOK at Holyrood Palace (with numerous Original
Signatures), during the Visit of His Majesty George the
Fourth, in August 1822. Folio.
This and the next No. Lent by Mr. Laing.
434*. A DEED, written on Parchment, by the Tutors of Mary
Countess of Buccleuch, with the Signatures of Sir John
Scott of Scotstarvet, dated at Edinburgh, 15th August
1656, and the other Tutors of the chief families of Scott.
The Countess died in 1661, aged 13.
435. VISITORS’ BOOK from Dryburgh for the years 1821-35.
Lent by Mr. John T. Rose.
436. STATUETTE of Sir Walter Scott, from Mr. Steell’s
Statue in the Monument.
Lent by the Royal Association for the Promotion of the
Fine Arts.
437. A SMALL BUST in Parian.
Lent by Mr. John T. Rose.
438. MASK of Sir Walter Scott, after Death. Taken by John
Steell, R.S.A.
Lent by James R. Hope Scott, Esq.
439. THE BANNATYNE CLUB TESTIMONIAL.
The
portion exhibited consists of three emblematical figures
of History, Poetry, and Music, surmounted by a Statuette
�52
SOUTH OCTAGON.
of Sir Walter Scott, the Founder of the Club. [See
No. 396.] Designed and Modelled by Peter Slater,
Sculptor.
Presented to Mr. Laing in 1861, “in grateful acknow
ledgment of his services as Honorary Secretary since the
Institution of the Club in 1823.”
Lent by David Laing, Esq.
440. GEORGE HERIOT’S “Loving Cup.”
Lent by the Governors of George Heriot’s Hospital.
441. LOCKET of Sir Walter Scott’s Hair, presented by Sir
Adam Ferguson to a friend.
Lent by Mr. Thomas Johnston.
442. SIR WALTER SCOTT’S SNUFF-BOX.
Sir Adam Ferguson. 1818.
Lent by Mr. W. Chambers.
Presented to
443. SILVER FRUIT-KNIFE and Ivory Six-inch Rule. Pre
sented by Sir Walter Scott to R. T. C. Scott of Melby,
Shetland, on the 7th August 1814. See Lockhart’s “Life,”
Vol. III. pp. 160, 161.
Lent by Mr. R. T. C. Scott.
444. KEY OF LOCHLEVEN CASTLE. Presented by Sir
Walter Scott to Lord Chief Commissioner Adam. (See
Blair-Adam Tracts, No. I.)
Lent by William Patrick Adam, Esq., M.P.
444*. ANTIQUE KEY OF BRASS, or some Yellow Metal, in
scribed on bowl Marie Rex, and on wards 1565. Found
in Loch Leven ; and supposed to be a Chamberlain’s Key
or Badge of Office.
Lent by Lady Elizabeth-Jane Leslie-Melville Cartwright.
445. BRIDLE-BIT found in a Vault of the Hermitage Castle,
along with some Remnants of Ancient Armour and
several Human Bones. The Vault was that in which Sir
Alexander Ramsay of Dalhousie was starved to death
by order of William Douglas, called the Knight of Liddesdale. “The Bit was presented to me by Mr. Elliot,
Tenant in Millburnhall.—W. S. October 1795.”—Given
by Sir Walter Scott to George, ninth Earl of Dalhousie.
Lent by the Earl of Dalhousie.
�SOUTH OCTAGON.
53
446. (1.) SILVER SNUFF-BOX, in constant use by Sir Walter
Scott; (2.) Gold Watch which belonged to Lady Scott,
presented to Dr. Clarkson by Sir Walter’s Son, in acknow
ledgment of his long services, and the friendship enter
tained for him by the family.
Lent by Dr. Clarkson.
447. MEDAL, Sir Walter Scott.
Lent by Mr. Macdonald, Roseville, Eskbank.
448. MEG DODS’ PUNCH-BOWL.
Lent by Mr. Walker, Peebles.
449. LOCKET, with Photograph and Hair of Sir Walter Scott.
Lent by Miss Campbell Swinton.
450. BOX WITH STEEL AND FLINT.
Lent by Mr. Nicholson.
451. SIR WALTER SCOTT’S PIPE.
Lent by Mr. James Douglas.
452. BABY-CLOTHES BASKET used for Sir Walter Scott
in his Infancy.
Lent by the Misses Aytoun.
45 3. PEDIGREE of the Scott Family. Drawn up and written
by Sir Walter in his own hand.
Lent by the Right Hon. Lord Polwarth.
454. IMPRESSIONS of Medals and Seals of Scott.
Exhibited by Mr. H. Laing, Elder Street.
455. THORN WALKING-STICK cut by Sir Walter Scott at
Abbotsford in 1830 and given by him to John Leycester
Adolphus, Author of Letters on the Authorship of
Waverley.
Lent by Mrs. Adolphus.
456. SIR WALTER SCOTT’S Walking-Stick, given by him
to William Laidlaw, and by Mr. Laidlaw to Dr. Charles
Mackay.
Lent by Dr. Charles Mackay.
457. MEDALLION OF SCOTT. Hennings, fed.
Exhibited by Mr. H. Laing.
458. BRONZE MEDALS, Sir Walter Scott, by Stothard after
Chantrey.
Lent by Sir J. Noel Paton, R.S.A., and A. Campbell
Swinton, Esq.
459. GOLD WATCH and Chain, and Silver Neck Chain, worn
by Sir Walter Scott.
Lent by Mr. Alexander Nicholson.
�54
ENTRANCE HALL.
460. LEAF from an Old Family Bible, written by Sir Walter
Scott at the request of his cousin, Mrs. Meik, formerly
Barbara Scott.
This and No. 461 Lent by Mr. Thomas Meik, C.E.
461. LETTER from Sir Walter Scott to his cousin, Mrs. Meik,
on her eldest Son leaving for India.
463. PENCIL-CASE and Pencil which belonged to Sir Walter
Scott, and presented by him to the late Sir John Watson
Gordon, with Letter from H. G. Watson, Esq., to James
Simson, Esq., M.D.
Lent by Dr. Simson.
464. DRESS in which Sir Walter Scott received His Majesty
George IV.
Lent by Mr. Alexander Nicholson.
ENTRANCE HALL.
BUSTS, TAPESTRY, ARMOUR, etc.
465. BUST IN MARBLE OF SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart.
By Samuel Joseph, R.S.A.
Lent by Mrs. Callander, Prestonhall.
466. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Bust in Plaster, the first
of forty Casts made under the superintendence of the
Sculptor. By Sir Francis Chantrey, R.A.
Lent by Allan A. Maconochie Wellwood, Esq.
467. COPY IN PLASTER of the Statue of Sir Walter Scott
by Green shields. By Leopoldo Arrighi.
468. BUST OF GEORGE KEMP, Architect, modelled from the
life by the late Alex. Handyside Ritchie, A.R.S.A., and
carved in Marble by John Hutchison, R.S.A., and by him
presented to the Trustees of the Scott Monument, to be
placed in the Museum there.
Lent by John Hutchison, Esq.
469. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Bust in Marble. By
Lawrence MacDonald, at Rome, 1831.
Lent by W. Cross, Esq.
470. STATUETTE IN MARBLE, from the Original Statue in
the Scott Monument. By John Steell, R.S.A., Sculptor
to Her Majesty.
Lent by James Hay, Esq.
�ENTRANCE HALL.
55
471. JEANIE DEANS. Original Model by Wm. Brodie,R.S.A.
Lent by Wm. Brodie, Esq.
472. SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Bust in Bronze. Executed for Mr. Cadell by Sir Francis Chantrey, R.A.
Lent by the Rev. R. H. Stevenson.
473. STATUETTE of Diana Vernon.
By George E. Lawson.
474. DOMINIE SAMPSON—“Prodigious!” By George E.
Lawson.
Nos. 473 and 474 Lent by Mr. G. E. Lawson.
475. TAPESTRY. “ Hunting Scene.”
This and Nos. 476, 477, and 478 Lent by the Right
Hon. the Earl of Breadalbane.
476. TAPESTRY.
“ Hunting Scene.”
477. TAPESTRY.
Subject: “Neptune and Amphitrite.”
478. TAPESTRY.
“ The Forge of Vulcan.”
479. TAPESTRY. “Flora and Attendants.”
Lent by Messrs. Bonnar & Carfrae, 77 George Street.
480. TAPESTRY. “ Apollo and the Muses.”
This and the next two Numbers Lent by the Right
Hon. the Earl of Breadalbane.
481. TAPESTRY.
“Hunting Scene.”
482. TAPESTRY.
“ Apollo.”
The above fine Specimens of Tapestry were obtained for the use of
the Committee by Messrs. Bonnar and Carfrae.
483. COPY written by George Kemp of the Advertisement for
Designs for the Scott Monument; and Letter from Sir
Thomas Dick Lauder in reference to his first Design.
Lent by Mrs. Kemp.
484. “ THE FIRST IDEA,” sent by George Kemp, signed
“John Morvo.”
Lent by Mr. James Ballantine.
484*. DRAWING of the Scott Monument, by George Kemp.
(In North Octagon.)
Lent by Dr Paterson.
�56
ENTRANCE HALL.
485. DRAWING of The Scott Monument.
By George Kemp.
*** Mr. Kemp’s Original Competition Drawing for the Monument!
as first proposed to be erected in the centre of Charlotte Square.
This Drawing has been acquired by the Trustees of the Scott
Monument, to form part of “The Scott Museum,” after the
present Exhibition is closed. The room at present is fitting
up at the expense of the “ Trustees of the Monument.”
486. MODEL of Scott Monument. By George Kemp.
Lent by Thomas Archer, Esq., Director of Museum of
Science and Art.
487. SIR WALTER SCOTT’S STUDY CHAIR.
Lent by the Council of the Society of Antiquaries.
488. THREE SUITS of Armour from the Collection of Sir J.
Noel Paton, R.S.A.
489. SUIT OF ARMOUR.
Lent by Mr. H. G. Watson.
490. THE BOURBON SHIELD.
Lent by Mr. William MacDonald.
491. THE STOCK AN’ HORN.
“ He tuned his pipe and reed sae sweet,
The burds stood listening by;
E’en the dull cattle stood and gazed,
Charmed wi’ his melody.”
The Broom o' the Cowderiknowes.
This and Nos. 492 and 493 Lent by Mr. James
Drummond, R.S.A.
492. TROPHY of Target, Basket Hilts, and other Highland
Weapons.
493. TROPHY of Swords, Rapiers, Crossbows, and other
Weapons, with an Iron Mask.
494. PORTRAIT OF SIR WALTER SCOTT, Bart. Painted
for the Speculative Society by Sir John Watson Gordon,
P.R.S.A., R.A.
Lent by the Society.
495. CAPTAIN BASIL HALL, R.N. A Bust in Marble.
Samuel Joseph, Sculptor.
Lent by Sir William Stirling-Maxwell, Bart.
By
496. BAGPIPES, formerly the Property of Sir Walter Scott,
and used by his Piper.
Lent by James Wolfe Murray, Esq. of Cringletie.
�57
ARTICLES omitted in the earlier impressions of the
Catalogue, or receiued for Exhibition subse
quently to their issue.
llO.f SIR WALTER SCOTT. Portrait painted by John
Watson (Gordon) in 1820, for the late Marchioness of
Abercorn, who was the Aunt of Lady Napier, whereby
the present Lord Napier now possesses the picture.
Lent by the Dowager Lady Napier.
The following extracts are from two unpublished letters
addressed by Sir Walter Scott to Lady Abercorn:
“ Edinburgh, 1s£ July 1820.
“ The Portrait is advancing, by the pencil of a clever
Artist, and will, I think, be a likeness, and a tolerably
good picture. I hope to get it sent up before I leave
town, at anyrate I will have it finished so far as sittings
are concerned. If I look a little sleepy your kindness
must excuse it, as I had to make my attendance on the
Man of colours betwixt six and seven in the morning.”
“Abbotsford, 2d August 1820.
“ The dog which I am represented as holding in my
arms is a Highland terrier from Kintail, of a breed very
sensible, very faithful, and very ill-natured. • It some
times tires, or pretends to do so, when I am on horse
back, and whines to be taken up, where it sits before me
like a child without any assistance. I have a very large
wolf-greyhound, I think the finest dog I ever saw, but he
has sate, to so many artists that whenever he sees brushes
and a palette, he gets up and leaves the room, being
sufficiently tired of the constraint.”
167ff. PORTRAIT of Lieut.-Colonel Sir Walter Scott, the
second Baronet of Abbotsford, painted by Colvin Smith,
R.S.A., from a Miniature.
Lent by Lady Scott.
16 8f. WALTER SCOTT, a small Miniature done at Bath,
when he was in the fifth or sixth year of his age. It was
given by his mother to a lady, a relation, in whose family
it remained till lately, for at least seventy years.
A similar Miniature, preserved at Abbotsford, was pre
sented by Sir Walter Scott to his daughter, Mrs. Lockhart;
and has been engraved.
Lent by David Laing, Esq.
�58
290*. ENGRAVED PORTRAIT, from the Picture by Sir
Thomas Lawrence at Windsor. (See No. 147.) Proof
Impression. Published by Virtue & Co., originally in the
“Art Journal.”
From Messrs. Virtue & Co.
307-J-. THE ETTRICKE GARLAND, being two excelled
New Songs on the lifting of the Banner of the House of
Buccleugh, Dec. 4, 1815. Edinburgh, 1815. Royal 8vo.
Four leaves.*
356*. ILLUSTRATIONS of Sir Walter Scott’s Lay of the Last
Minstrel, consisting of Twelve Views on the Rivers
Borthwick, Ettrick, Yarrow, Teviot, and Tweed. Engraved
by J. Heath, R.A., from designs taken on the spot by
John C. Schetky of Oxford. With Anecdotes and De
scriptions. London : Printed for Longman, Hurst, Rees'
& Orme, Paternoster Row. 1810. Royal 8vo.*
35 6f. GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATIONS to Sir Walter Scott’s
Works. Scenes described in the Novels and Tales, from
Drawings by A. Nasmyth, engraved by Lizars. (Waverley
to Rob Roy.) Edinburgh, 1821. 16 Plates. 8vo.*
356**. LANDSCAPE ILLUSTRATIONS of the Waverley
Novels, with Descriptions of the Views. 2 Vols. (Vol. I.
Waverley to Legend of Montrose. Vol. II. Ivanhoe to
Woodstock.) London: Charles Tilt, Fleet Street. 1832.
Royal 8vo.*
35 7f. THE BOOK OF WAVERLEY GEMS : in a Series of
Engraved Illustrations of incidents and scenery in Sir
Walter Scott’s Novels. Engravings by Heath, Finden,
Rolls, etc., after pictures by Leslie, Stothard, Cooper,
Howard, etc., with illustrative letterpress. London, 1862.
8vo.
From Henry G. Bohn, Esq., London.
369*. LETTER of Sir Walter Scott, addressed “Dr. Leyden,
Calcutta.”
It begins:—“Your letter of the 10th January 1810
reached me about ten days since, and was most truly wel
come, as containing an assurance of that which, however, I
never doubted—the continuation of your unabated and
affectionate remembrance. I assure you, Charlotte and I
think and speak of you very often, with all the warmth
due to the recollection of our early days, when life and
hope were young with all of us. You have, I hope, long
ere now, received my third poem, ‘ The Lady of the
Lake,’ which I think you will like for Auld Lang Syne, if
not for its intrinsic merit. It have [has] been more suo
�59
cessful than its predecessors, for no less than 25,000
copies have disappeared in eight months ; and the demand
is so far from being abated, that another edition of
3000 is now at press. I send you a copy of the quarto
by a son of Mr. Pringle of Whytbank; and his third son
William Pringle, being now on the same voyage to your
shores, I beg to introduce him,” etc. ... “I expect
this boy to call every moment, so I must close my letter.
Mrs. Scott joins in sending you all the wishes of affec
tionate friendship. Pray take care of your health, and
come home to us soon. We will find an ingleside and
a corner of our hearts as warm for you as ever. My chil
dren are all well; and now I hear the door-bell, vale et
nos ama,
Walter Scott.”
“Edinburgh, 2Qth February 1811.”
V This letter could not have reached its destination,
Dr. John Leyden having sailed from Calcutta with the
expedition against Java in March 1811, where he died of
fever in August following.
Lent by Mrs. W. A Pringle, Portobello. Also,
369**. NOTE to his “ dear young friend,” the late William A.
Pringle, Esq., of the Civil Service, India, in connexion
with the above letter.
409. LETTER, Sir Walter Scott to the Rev. Dr. Baird, Prin
cipal of the University of Edinburgh, and Convener of
the General Assembly’s Committee on Psalmody, expressing his high opinion of the Metrical Version of the
Psalms still used in the Presbyterian Churches in this
country. (February 1818.)
Lent by Isaac Bayley, Esq.
431f. THE HISTORY OF THE BALLANTYNE PRESS, and
its connection with Sir Walter Scott. Edinburgh : Bal
lantyne & Co. 1871. 4to.
From Messrs. Ballantyne & Co.
438. MASK of Sir Walter Scott, after Death. (A Cast in
Bronze by John Steell, R.S.A, of this Mask, is exhibited
at Abbotsford.)
Lent by James R. Hope Scott, Esq.
434*®. BOND signed by John Scott of Sintoun, William Scott
of Raeburne, and John Scott of Ronaldburn, at Edin
burgh, 4th and 7th December 1686.*
457*. SILVER PRIZE MEDAL, presented by Sheriff Trotter
in 1843 to the Dux of the Dumfries Grammar School.
A head of Sir Walter Scott, in profile, is chased upon it
Lent by John Blacklock, Esq.
�No. 122. KEY TO SIR WALTER SCOTT AND HIS FRIENDS AT ABBOTSFORD.
�LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS.
HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN, 100, 14", 178t, 296.
Antiquaries, The Society of, Royal Institution, 487.
Alexander, Colonel Sir James E., Westerton, Bridge of Allan, 33.
'
Adam, William Patrick, Esq. of Blairadam, M.P., 10, 144, 444.
Adolphus, Mrs., 23a Connaught Square, London, W., 67, 178*, 455.
Atchison, Thos. S., Esq., 74 George Street, 132.
Anderson, David B., Esq., W.S., 8 Regent Terrace, 68.
Archer, Thomas, Esq., Director of the Museum of Science and Art, 486.
Armstrong, George, Esq., Alnwick, 90.
Arrighi, Leopoldo, Yew Tree House, Meadow Place, 467.
Aytoun, The Misses, 28 Inverleith Row, 452.
Buccleuch and Queen sberry, his Grace The Duke of, K.G., Dalkeith
Palace, 150.
Bread at.ranf., The Right Hon. Earl of, Taymouth Castle, 118, 124, 475
to 478 inch, 480, 481, 482.
Ballantine, James, Esq., 42 George Street, 34, 39, 89, 182, 484.
Ballantyne, John, Esq., R.S.A, Totteridge, Herts, 42.
Ballantyne, R. M., Esq., 6 Millerfield Place, 24.
Bayley, Isaac, Esq., S.S.C., 13 Regent Terrace, 409, 410.
Bedford, Rev. W. K. R., Sutton Coldfield, Warwickshire, 429.
Black, Adam, Esq. of Priorbank, 415.
Black, Messrs. A & C., Publishers, Edinburgh, 317, 368, 412, 413, 416
to 419 incL
Blackwood, John, Esq., 45 George Street, I*, 18, 29, 30, 167*.
Blaikey, James, Esq., 135 Buchanan Street, Glasgow, 126.
Blathwayt, Rev. Raymond, Chaplain H.M. Prison, Worthing, Surrey, 38.
Bohn, Henry G., Esq., Northend House, Twickenham, 172, 432*.
Bonnar, Thomas, Esq., 137 Princes Street, 4, 8, 71, 77, 131.
Bonnar & Carfrae, Messrs., 77 George Street, 479.
Brodie, William, Esq., R.S.A, Cambridge Street, 471.
Bruce, Daniel, Esq., 42 George Street, 129, 281.
Bryce, David, Esq., R.S.A, 131 George Street, 106.
Butti, James A, Esq., 7 Queen Street, 127.
Cartwright, Lady Elizabeth-Jane Leslie-Melville, Melville House, Lady
bank, 111*, 444*.
Clinton, the Right Hon. Lord, Trefusis Castle, Ealmouth, Cornwall, 42*.
Colquhoun, Lady, Strathgarry, Pitlochrie, 113.
Callander, Mrs. Burn, of Prestonhall, 465.
Carfrae, Robert, Esq., 77 George Street, 111.
Carre, W. Riddell, Esq. of Cavers Carre, New Club, 280, 285, 422.
Chambers, William, Esq., Glenormiston, 442.
E
�58
LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS.
Clark, James, Esq., Clackmannan, 45.
Clark, W. D., Esq., 67 Princes Street, 65, 82.
Clarkson, Dr., Avenel, Colinton Road, 446.
Cockburn, A. D., Esq., 6 Athol Crescent, 176.
Constable, Thomas, Esq., 11 Thistle Street, 23.
Corsar, David, Esq., Arbroath, 1.
Cowan, John, Esq., Beeslack, Penicuik, 325.
Craig, J. T. Gibson, Esq., 24 York Place, 37, 80, 84, 86, 92, 114, 133,
136, 152, 177, 209, 293, 300, 377, 421.
Cross, W., Esq., 22 Gayfield Square, 469.
Dalhousie, the Right Hon. the Earl of, K.T., Brechin Castle, 112, 445.
Dennistoun, Alexander, Esq., Rosslea, Helensburgh, 9, 102, 122.
Dick, Mrs., 42 George Street, 50.
Douglas, Christopher, Esq., W.S., 13 Athol Crescent, 334, 431, 432.
Douglas, James, Esq., Banker, Kelso, 451.
Douglas, Miss, 4 Cumin Place, 360.
Drummond, James, Esq., R.S.A., 8 Royal Crescent, 14, 46, 58, 69, 73,
108, 178, 183, 211 to 256 incl., 282, 491, 492, 493.
Dunlop, Miss, 27 Brunswick Street, Stockbridge, 410®.
Ebseine, William C. C., Esq., Kinnedder, Fifeshire, 173, 175, 301, 303.
Foulis, The Dowager Lady Liston, 8 Newbattle Terrace, 156, 340.
Farquharson, F., Esq. of Finzean, 5 Eton Terrace, 107.
Ferguson, Mrs., 2 Eton Terrace, 155.
Finlayson, Mrs., 6 Union Place, 7.
Fraser, P. A., Esq., LT.R.S.A., Hospitalfield, Arbroath, 27, 32.
Fraser, Mrs. P. A., Hospitalfield, Arbroath, 25.
Gallery, Trustees of the National, of Scotland, 88, 94, 95.
Glasgow, The Corporation of, 83.
Gillespie, J. D., Esq., M.D., 10 Walker Street, 79, 101, 116, 346.
Glover, Mrs. Edmond, 11 Burnbank Terrace, Glasgow, 11.
Graves, Henry, Pall Mall, London, 289.
Green, William E., Esq., 39 Paternoster Row, London, 149.
Home, The Right Hon. The Earl of, The Hirsel, Coldstream, 146.
Heriot’s Hospital, The Governors of, 135, 440.
Hall, Sir James, of Dunglass, Bart., 335.
Haldane, Dr. Rutherford, 22 Charlotte Square, 167, 358.
Hay, James, Esq., Leith, 424, 470.
Hay, Robert, Esq., Nunraw, by Haddington, 178**.
Hill, The Trustees of the late Alexander, Esq., 12 St. Andrew Square, 20,
105.
Hill, T. A., Esq., 12 St. Andrew Square, 115.
Hogarth, George, Esq., Banker, Cupar Fife, 354.
Home, David Milne, Esq. of Wedderburn, 10 York Place, 297.
Horn, Robert, Esq., Advocate, 7 Randolph Crescent, 154, 357.
Hume, M. N. Macdonald, Esq., 15 Abercromby Place, 119, 125.
Hutchison, John, Esq., R.S.A., 97 George Street, 468.
�LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS.
59
Hutton, Archibald, Esq., 1 East Register Street, 287.
Inglis, John, Esq. of Redhall, 120.
James, Miss, 39 Harewood Square, London, 142.
Johnston, Thomas, 27 St. John’s Hill, 441.
Knighton, SirW. W., Bart., 1 Lowndes Street, London, 139, 145.
Kemp, Mrs., Portobello, 483.
Laing, David, Esq., Signet Library, 49, 85, 130, 137, 257 to 267 incl.,
283, 294, 315, 315*, 316, 318, 336, 336*, 343, 356, 359, 359*, 361,
363, 367, 369, 370, 373, 374, 378, 379, 382 to 388 incl., 394, 395*
to 398* incl., 404, 408, 420, 434, 434*, 439.
Laing, Henry, Elder Street, 454, 457.
Lawson, George A., Esq., Sculptor, Gloucester Road, Regent’s Park,
London, 473, 474.
Maxwell, Sir William Stirling, of Keir and Pollok, Bart., 10 Upper
Grosvenor Street, London, W., 91, 93, 98, 103, 164, 166, 189 to 208
incl., 290, 399, 495.
Manchester, His Honour the Mayor of, 104.
MacDonald, William, Esq., Roseville, Eskbank, Dalkeith, 47, 48, 51, 52,
55, 56*, 60, 61, 63, 64, 70, 72, 74, 76, 78, 170, 181, 447, 490.
Mackay, C. G., Esq., 17 Lutton Place, 425.
Mackay, Dr. Charles, 42 George Street, 456.
Mackay, Mrs., 17 Lutton Place, 17.
Maclagan, Professor, 28 Heriot Row, Edinburgh, 45**.
Maclaurin, Mrs., 9 Randolph Cliff, 428.
MacLeay, Kenneth, Esq., R.S.A., 3 Malta Terrace, 54, 56, 66.
Meik, Miss, 22 Greenhill Gardens, 433.
Meik, Thomas, C.E., 7 Newbattle Terrace, 460, 461.
Melville, Mrs., 8 Newbattle Terrace, 134.
Mercer, Robert, Esq. of Scotsbank, Ramsay Lodge, Portobello, 26, 87, 96.
Murray, James Wolfe, Esq. of Cringletie, 496.
Murray, John, Esq., 50 Albemarle Street, London, W., 151,162, 165, 300*.
Muspratt, James, Esq., Seaforth Hall, Seaforth, Liverpool, 110.
National Portrait Gallery, London, 153.
Napier, Mark, Esq., Advocate, 6 Ainslie Place, 331.
Nicholson, Mr. Alexander, Kelso, 450, 459, 464.
Nicholson, Mrs., 6 Henderson Row, 168.
Orr, Sir Andrew, of Harviestoun and Castle Campbell, Harviestoun Castle
by Dollar, 28.
Polwarth, Right Hon. Lord, Mertoun House, St. Boswells, 453.
Paton, Sir J. Noel, R.S.A., 33 George Square, 458, 488.
Paterson, Dr. A., Bridge of Allan, 484*.
Paterson, Mr. William, 23 Hope Terrace, 57, 320, 321, 323, 326, 328, 329,
348.
Peat, Mrs. Cumine, Welnage, Dunse, 41.
Royal Association for the Promotion of the Fine Arts in Scotland, 94,
179, 180, 184 to 188 incl., 436.
�60
LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS.
Royal Society, The, Edinburgh, 158.
Ruthven, Right Hon. the Dowager Lady, Winton Castle, Tranent, 140.
Raeburn, John P., Esq., Charlesfield, Midcalder, 160.
Ramsay, R. B. Wardlaw, Esq. of Whitehill, etc., Lasswade, 21, 123, 393.
Renny, J., Esq., 22 Picardy Place, 13.
Richardson, Francis, Esq., Mickleham, Surrey, 302, 323*, 349*, 355.
Robertson, Robert, Esq., 5 South Lauder Road, Grange, 40*.
Rose, John T., Esq., 11 Duncan Street, 268 to 279 incl., 435, 437.
Scott, J. R. Hope, Esq. of Abbotsford, Melrose, 171, 174, 295, 299, 304,
306, 322, 362, 392, 400 to 403 incl., 405 to 407 incl., 438.
Strathmore, The Right Hon. The Earl of, 20 Rutland Gate, London,
S.W., 109.
Signet Library, 298, 302*, 305, 307 to 313 incl., 319, 324, 327 to 330
incl., 333, 337, 338, 339, 341, 344, 345, 347, 349, 350 to 353, 355*,
371, 372, 375, 376, 380, 381, 389 to 391, 395.
Speculative Society, The, 365, 366, 494.
Sale, W. F., Esq., Irwell Bank, Kersal, Manchester, 117.
Sanson, Mrs. Margaret, 24 Minto Street, 45*, 81, 117*, 414.
Scott, R. T. C., Esq., J.P., Melby, Shetland, 426, 443.
Shand, A. B., Esq., Advocate, 3 Great Stuart Street, 121.
Simpson, George B., Esq., Seafield, Broughty-Ferry, 16, 35, 44, 99, 128.
Simson, David, Esq., 25 India Street, 411.
Simson, James, M.D., 3 Glenfinlas Street, 463.
Skene, A., Esq., 22 Regent Quay, Aberdeen, 342.
Smith, Colvin, Esq., R.S.A., 32 York Place, 12, 31, 157.
Smith, Dr. John A., 7 West Maitland Street, 210, 288.
Smith, Mrs., Frederick Street, 53, 62, 75.
Spence, A. Blair, Esq., Dundee, 2.
Stevenson, Mr. T. George, 22 Frederick Street, 6, 284, 427, 430.
Stevenson, Rev. Robert H., 9 Oxford Terrace, 22, 332, 472.
Stirling, Gilbert, Esq. of Larbert House, Royal Horse Guards, London, 43.
Swinton, Archibald Campbell, Esq., Kimmerghame, Dunse, 59, 286, 291,
292, 314, 314*, 364, 458.
Swinton, Miss, Kimmerghame, Dunse, 449.
Thomson, Lockhart, Esq., S.S.C., 10 Coates Crescent, 36.
Walker, Mr., Peebles, 448.
Watson, Wm. Smellie, Esq., R.S.A., 10 Forth Street, 19.
Watson, Henry G., Esq., 123 George Street, 5, 97, 148, 161, 489.
Watson, Mrs. Stewart, 56 Queen Street, 138, 423.
Wells, William, Esq., M.P., 22 Bruton Street, London, W., 143.
Wellwood, A. A. Maconochie, Esq.,Meadow Bank House, Kirknewton, 466.
White, John, Esq., Netherurd, Peebles, 3, 40.
White, William Logan, Esq., Kellerstain, Hermiston, 159.
Williams, T., Esq., Elmtree Road, London, 141.
Williamson, John, Esq., The Deans, South Shields, 15.
Young, James, Esq. of Kelly, 169.
�
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Catalogue of the loan exhibition in commemoration of Sir Walter Scott at Edinburgh in the galleries of the Royal Scottish Academy, National Gallery, in July and August 1871
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CT
THE
TACTICS AND DEFEAT
OF THE
CHRISTIAN EVIDENCE SOCIETY.
BY
THOMAS SCOTT.
Great men are not always wise; neither do the aged always under
stand judgment. Therefore I said, Hearken to me ; I also will show my
opinion. Behold, I waited for your words; I gave ear to your reasons,
whilst, ye searched out what to say. And lo! there was no reasoner for
Job, or an answerer of his sayings among you. I, therefore, will answer
also my part, I also will show my opinion.—Book of Job.
PUBLISHED BY THOMAS SCOTT.
MOUNT PLEASANT, RAMSGATE.
1871.
Price Sixpence.
�LONDON :
PRINTED BY 0. W, RETNELL, LITTLE PULTENEY STREET.
HAYMARKET, W.
�THE TACTICS AND DEFEAT
OF THE
CHRISTIAN EVIDENCE SOCIETY.
INCE, my ‘Challenge to the Members of the
Christian Evidence Society ’ was published, the
series of lectures to which the address of Archbishop Thompson was to serve as an introduction
has been given to the world ; and we have now before
us at least an outline of the grounds on which that
which this Society calls the Christian religion is
supposed to stand. The expression may be pardoned
if I say that the attitude assumed by these self-styled
upholders of Christianity is one of the most astonish
ing phenomena in the history of man,—so astonishing
that many have thought, and some have asserted, that
the Christian Evidence Society has never meant any
thing serious by the flourishing of its trumpets, and
that, far from seeking to overthrow its adversaries,
it has sought by its martial music only to cheer and
•encourage its own adherents. This is, of course, an
imputation of conscious dishonesty ; but all that I need
say is that it is for the members of the Society to
repel it, not for me.
But if we look upon these lectures as bond fide
attempts to convince those who are supposed to be
liberals, or sceptics, or infidels (whatever be the name
assigned to them), then, I repeat, the position of these
self-styled Christian advocates is most astounding.
S
�6
The Tactics and Defeat of the
The issue to be met by the Christian Evidence
Society is this. Here is a religion which asserts
that man was created perfectly innocent and good;
that by transgression he fell, and that his fall made
it impossible for the Father to admit man again to
His mercy, except by a redemption of blood; that
all the children of Adam became, further, in conse
quence of their first parent’s sin, children of wrath
and inheritors of a fire in which they should be tor
mented for ever; that, in course of time, after a
revelation supernaturally imparted and supernaturally
attested, the second Person of the triune Godhead
became incarnate in the womb of the Virgin Mary
without the intervention of any earthly father ; that
the child born of Mary was a perfect man, but was
also Almighty God; that the birth of this child was
announced by wise men from the East, and by the
songs of angels in the sky ; that, after escaping the
malice of his enemies, and having repelled the tempta
tions of the evil spirit or devil, he began the work of
his mission, and continued for two or three years
preaching and teaching and doing wonderful works ;
that he calmed the sea, healed the sick, and raised
the dead, announcing at the same time his own
resurrection, which took place about thirty-six hours
after he died on the Cross; that after another interval
of forty days he rose up into heaven from Mount
Olivet, and that a band of angels told his disciples,
as they looked up after his departing form, that as
he had gone, so he would come again, to judge the
quick and the dead.
This outline of the belief of the various bodies of
Christendom may be filled up in various ways, and
be modified by various colours ; but, on the whole, it
will probably be allowed by all to be a correct out
line, and the conclusion at once follows that, although
this belief may contain a philosophy, yet its basis is
asserted to be altogether historical, and to consist of
�Christian Evidence Society,
y
a series of facts or events in the history of the world
as real as the struggle between the Crown and the
Parliament in the reign of Charles the First. It is
obvious that to this scheme of belief the objections
taken may be or rather must be of two kinds. It
may be asserted (1) that the philosophy is false, or
(2) that the facts on which it is stated to rest never
took place. It may be held (1) that the views of the
Divine Nature set forth in this creed are horrifying
and immoral, that they impute the worst injustice to
God, and that the enunciation of them is one of the
greatest calamities that have befallen mankind; or
(2) it may be held that the narratives which are said
to furnish authority for this belief either do not
furnish it, or are untrustworthy as historical docu
ments.
Now, it is perfectly clear that the business of a '
society which professes to treat of Christian Evidences
is to address itself to the establishment of these alleged
historical facts or incidents. It is foolish to raise the
superstructure before the foundation has been safely
laid ; and although the building raised without foun
dations may impose on some, it is plain that the
labour will be thrown away if any reply that their
first concern is to know whether the foundation
exists at all, and that they have no intention of dis
cussing the merits of the philosophy or creed, until
the existence of that foundation has been placed beyond
all doubt. With this issue the introductory address
of Archbishop Thompson had, as I have shown in my
Challenge to the Society,* nothing whatever to do.
His words might have some relevance for those who
have been perplexed or convinced by Positivists, or
Darwinists, or Atheists, whatever these may be ; but
they were utterly wasted for all who say, “ This is
not our present concern: what we want to know is
this, was Jesus conceived without the intervention of
* Challenge, p. 6.
�8
The Tactics and Defeat of the
a human father, or was he not ? Did he actually raise
the widow’s son or Lazarus from the dead, or did he
not ? Had he anything to do with John the Baptist,
or had he not ? Did he keep his Messiahship a secret
from all but two or three, and at the same time did
he preach it publicly, and make it a subject of con
troversy everywhere ? Is the story of his own resur
rection generally credible, and are there good his
torical grounds for the alleged event that at last he
went up in visible tangible form with visible raiment
to a heaven which always stands over the Mount of
Olives ? If these and the thousand other questions of
fact, of mere fact, which we must go on to ask, are
not satisfactorily answered, then the foundation of
which you speak does not exist, and your Christianity
has no authority, and therefore no claim on my accep
tance.”
To speak of a man who puts the matter in this
way and insists that his demands shall be fairly met,
as being necessarily an infidel, is not only mere waste
of breath; it is disingenuous shuffling, and may per
haps deserve a shorter and a harsher name. He may
be an infidel: he may suppose that there is no God, or
that men are descended from monkeys, or that mind
is only a modification of matter, or that men should
worship their grandmothers; but he may also hold
no such views. He may turn round on the self-styled
Christian advocate and say, “ I am a truer Christian
than you are. I have really a Gospel to preach to you
and to all men, the very Gospel which Christ preached.
I believe that all things are the work of an Eternal
Mind or Spirit, to which my mind or spirit stands
in a definite relation. I believe that this Eternal
Mind or Spirit is absolutely just, true, and loving;
and I cling to all the consequences which are involved
in this conviction. I believe that as His Will is to
bring us to our highest good, in other words to bring
our mind into perfect conformity with his Divine
�Christian Evidence Society.
<y
Mind, so also He has the power to do this ; that
this Power and Will are bringing about the perfect
vindication of his justice, and that his justice and
mercy are synonymous terms. I hold that, whatever
be the origin or descent of man, God has never been
absent from any of His creatures; that from the first
dawnings of his sense He has been educating and
training men, by a long process indeed and a painful
one, through the indefinite series of ages until they
have reached their present state, and that He will
continue this work in the long series of ages yet to
come. I believe that because we live in Him now,
we shall continue so to live after we have undergone
the change which we call death ; that the denial of
this cuts at the root of all morality and law, because
it cuts at the root of all love ; for what is the meaning
of growth in the knowledge of God, what is the
meaning of patience, forbearance, truthfulness, un
selfishness, if the wheels of a steam-engine may end
all my concern with them at any moment, or if I may
escape from my duty by throwing myself into the
sea ? I need not go further. I have said enough to
show you that I am not an infidel, and, as I think, to
show you that my faith is vastly higher, and is far
more nearly and really the faith of Christ, than is
yours. If, then, you imply in any part of the dis
cussion which may follow that I am an infidel, or that
I reject your conclusions through moral obliquity,
I shall at once leave you as a person who has placed
himself beyond the courtesies of an impartial judi
cial inquiry. And yet I, who believe what I have
told you that I believe, I who cling far more than
you do to the real teaching of Jesus, have examined
the narratives which profess to relate his life ; and
after the scrutiny of years my deliberate conclusion
is, that, as historical documents, these narratives are
generally untrustworthy, not so much for those por
tions which relate events confessedly extraordinary
�IO
The Tactics and Defeat of the
or supernatural, as for those portions which relate
the most ordinary matters. I need not weary my
self by going afresh through a history which has
been carefully analysed already; I content myself
with saying that I have read all your lectures or
essays, and a hundred other books which say much
what you have said, and that I have found in them
nothing which answers the questions put in the
‘ English Life of Jesus,’ nothing which even tends to
prove that the contrary of the conclusions reached by
the writer or writers of that work are tenable, nothing
which meets the objections to which Dean Alford
was challenged to reply in the pamphlets entitled
‘ Commentators and Hierophants,’ nothing which faces
the issue put forward later in the ‘ Challenge to the
Members of the Christian Evidence Society ; ’ and I
insist now that you shall meet these objections and
answer these questions, or confess your inability to
meet and answer them. If (to use words which you
may already have heard) you refuse to answer or
keep silence, I shall take your refusal or your silence
as an acknowledgment of defeat, and shall be justified
in publishing it as such to the world.”
If the members of the Christian Evidence Society
have any honesty or sense of fairness and truth, it
will be impossible for them to deny that their duty is
to address themselves to men who speak as I have
made my imaginary inquirer speak in the foregoing
sentences. What they have to show is, that the
narrative of the visit of the wise men, for instance,
is consistent with that of the purification of Mary
and the circumcision of Jesus in the temple ; that the
Gospels which say that during his whole ministry
only two or three were made aware of his Messiahship
may be reconciled with the other Gospel, in which his
character is known to the disciples before they receive
their call to be apostles, is declared everywhere, and
made the subject of repeated and vehement contro
�Christian Evidence Society.
11
versy in the most public places o£ Jerusalem; that
the narrative which relates the incidents following
the crucifixion is as free from difficulties, inconsisten
cies, and contradictions as a narrative of great events
must be before it can be accepted by an honest judge
and an impartial jury in a court of justice. In short,
to go through the whole subject, refuting at every
step the conclusions set forth, after examination of the
evidence in each case, in the ‘ English Life of Jesus,’
without the least reference to the truth or the
falsehood of any form of philosophy or belief, includ
ing among these all the forms of Christian faith or
opinion—this, and nothing less than this, is the work
of the Christian Evidence Society, if they really
think that their belief has any historical foundation
at all—if they really allow, as Archbishop Thompson
has allowed, that these alleged facts, which constitute
the foundation of their belief, are not to be taken for
granted, but are to be proved by evidence such as
would satisfy honest men approaching the subject
without prejudice or prepossession, or any secondary
motives whatsoever.
The lectures which have followed Archbishop
Thompson’s introductory essay abundantly show
what, in point of fact, we have to expect from these
so-called defenders of the faith. The writers of these
papers have handled, after their sort, topics of various
kinds. We have essays on materialistic theories,
on science and revelation, on Positivism and Pan
theism ; but all these may at once be swept aside.
Eor the present we have nothing to do with Comte,
or Darwin, or Huxley, or any of their theories, argu
ments, or conclusions. The only question which we
have to ask relates to the facts on which the Chris
tianity of the Christian Evidence Society is supposed
to rest; and that question may be put in four words,
Are these things so ?
Among these lectures, three only seem by their
�12
The Tactics and Defeat of the
titles likely to treat this question. We might have
supposed that Dr Stoughton’s paper on Miracles
wcfuld have gone, seriatim, through all the miracles
related in the New Testament, showing that each
really is an historical incident, just as an English
historian would examine the question whether the
Cowrie conspiracy was really planned by the earl and
his brother, or whether it was or was not a vile plot
on the part of James VI. to kill and take possession,
and murder the memories as well as the bodies of his
victims. Instead of this, as we turn over Dr Stough
ton’s pages, we find ourselves rambling in the old
labyrinth of arguments which are to show that
miracles were to be expected, and that in the ministry
of Jesus they are not to be overvalued or under
valued. All this has been repeated again and again ;
but if we look for any evidence which is to justify
our acceptance of the narrative of the miracle at
Cana, we shall look for it in vain.
The case remains unaltered when we turn to Dr
Harold Browne’s paper on “ Christ’s Teaching and
Influence on the World.” We have here some refer
ences to supposed facts, but they are mere references,
and no more. Bishop Browne has painted what he
supposes to be an historical picture; but as he simply
assumes the general trustworthiness of the Gospel
narratives, his paper, also, must be set aside, as fail
ing to meet the real point at issue. It is obvious
that his remarks have no force for those who will
say that their estimate of the influence of Christ on
the world is not altogether that of Bishop Browne ;
and that, even if it were, this would not help us to
determine whether the Sanhedrim placed a guard of
Boman soldiers at the grave of Jesus, and after
wards bribed them to tell Pilate a lie, or whether
they did not.
There remains only Mr Cook’s paper on “ The Com
pleteness and Adequacy of the Evidences of Chris
�Christian Evidence Society.
13
tianity.” The title certainly seems to show that the
editor of the “ Speaker’s Commentary ” understands
the real work of the Society, and that he is prepared
honestly to do that work. Let us see how he sets
about it.
I am compelled to quote from my “ Challenge to
the Society,” and here as there, I insist that from the
only question to which I have to demand an answer,
“ that which is called external evidence to the truth
of the Gospels is altogether excluded. I have
nothing to do with the testimony of Clement, or
Justin, or Tertullian, or Origen, or Jerome, or Augus
tine, or any other patristic writer whatsoever—with
the truth of the teaching of Jesus, or the high charac
ter of his Apostles. No external evidence can impart
authority or weight to narratives which are, in them
selves, incredible, or self-contradictory, or mutually
destructive; and I have the right to insist that they
who consider themselves my opponents, will make no
attempt to divert the controversy to this utterly
irrelevant issue.” *
The whole series of tracts put forth by the Society
makes it abundantly clear that they mean steadily to
confine themselves to this issue, and to ignore every
other. At starling, Mr Cook takes refuge under
the wing of the great men whose writings are sup
posed to uphold Christianity, in his acceptation of the
word. He refers us to the long series of writers
stretching from the earliest centuries to Grotius and
Leibnitz, to Luthardt, Steinmeyer, and Delitsch;
but even this he cannot do without using expressions
which come with a bad grace from one who is sup
posed to be speaking as an impartial examiner of evi
dence. England, we are told, holds a place among
the foremost champions of the cross. He rejoices to
think that, “ at this present hour, men sound in the
faith, full of the love and light of Christ, are bringing
* Challenge, p. 12.
�14
The Tactics and Defeat of the
the resources of profound learning and vigorous
intellect to bear upon the chaotic turmoil of antiChristian influences. Within this present year several
works have reached me in which infidelity is con
fronted, both in the sphere of general cultivation, and
in the abstrusest fastnesses of philosophy.” * Is this
the language of a man who approaches his task with
out prejudices, prepossessions, or secondary motives ?
What does he mean by the word infidelity, and by
what right does he employ, without definition, an
ambiguous term ? Would not a really truthful and
honest man say, “ I have to show you that Chris
tianity rests on a basis of historical events; and,
until I have shown you that the miracle at Gadara,
or the confusion of the Roman soldiers at the moment
of the resurrection, took place as certainly as the
battle of Hastings, or the discomfiture of the Gun
powder Plotters in the vaults of Westminster, I have
no right to speak of myself as orthodox, or of others
as infidels ; I have no right even to imply that the
teaching of Christ was better than that of all other
men, or even that it is true. I have first to prove
that the Magi came to Jerusalem and Bethlehem, and
that, while Joseph and Mary were carrying the infant
Jesus straight from Bethlehem into Egypt, they also
spent a considerable time at Jerusalem; I have to
show that Peter first learnt the Messiahship of Jesus
by Divine revelation towards the close of his ministry,
and, also, that he was distinctly made aware of the
fact before he received his call to become one of the
Apostles ; I have to show that Judas really was dead,
or had fallen from his apostleship, when St Paul
declares that Jesus was seen of the twelve in the
interval between his resurrection and ascension.
When I have ’proved all this, I may then breathe
freely as having practically got through my task.
Until I have done this, I cannot apply to my own
* See Mr Cook's Essay, p. 3.
�Christian Evidence Society.
15
faith or religion a single epithet which is to imply its
superiority to any other religion whatsoever, unless I
openly abandon my historical position, and compare
these systems of belief on their own merits as such.”
Nevertheless, having spoken of men sound in the
faith as doing battle with infidels (that is, with those
who venture to think that Jesus cannot have been in
Jerusalem and in Egypt, in Cana and in the desert
with the devil, at one and the same time), Mr Cook
goes on to say that his purpose is “ to show that
those evidences of Christianity which are accessible
to every careful inquirer are complete and adequate.”*
We are naturally tempted to stop at these words, and
to say that this is the very thing we want, and that
now we may hope to learn how Jesus could have
been seen after the resurrection and before the
ascension by the twelve Apostles, when, at that
moment, there were only eleven Apostles living. We
are tempted, at least, to suppose that an effort will
be made to meet some one or more of such historical
difficulties. But, as we go on with the rest of the
sentence, we are made aware that Mr Cook’s evidence
is not at all of this sort, and therefore is not intended
to dispel any such perplexities. His evidences are
complete, inasmuch as they meet “ the fair require
ments of our moral and rational naturethey are
adequate “ with reference to their purpose, which is
not to teach the truth, but to bring us into contact
with the central and fundamental truths of our reli
gion, and with the Person of its Bounder.” It is
well to be candid: it is also a good thing to be clear.
If Mr Cook had said that his evidence was not to
teach us the truth of facts, he would have, at the
least, deserved the credit of perspicuity, although he
might by so speaking have put himself in a difficult
position in a discussion with a Mahometan or a
Brahman • for the Brahman might say, “ What force
* Essay, p. 4.
�16
The Tactics and Defeat of the
can your words have for me, when I can use pre
cisely the same words to those who doubt about the
truth of my creed ? If any one imparts to me his
doubts whether Agni has three tongues, or whether
Vishnu was really incarnate seven times, or whether
Indra really killed Ahi, I can tell him quite as easily
as you can, that the evidence which I have to lay
before him is not to teach him the truth, but to bring
him into contact with the central and fundamental
truths of our religion,—these truths being the good
ness, and justice, and long-suffering, and mercy, and
love of the One Being, whose perfections are variously
but feebly set forth under the names of Brahma, or
Vishnu, or Prajapati, or Krishna.”
Having thus declared the nature of Christian evi
dence, Mr Cook goes on to say that persons who meet
to consider the evidences of revealed religion may be
supposed to have “ previously satisfied themselves of
the existence and personality of God,” and that
“ materialism under any form, and Christianity in any
stage, are mutually exclusive.” But what is the use
of saying this when the question is confined simply
to the reality of certain alleged historical facts ?
What object can Mr Cook have in saying “ we can
only argue now with those who admit the possibility
of a revelation,” unless he defines first what he means
by revelation ? What will he say to a man who
replies, “ Certainly I believe not merely in the possi
bility of a revelation, but in the fact of one; but
perhaps I carryback this revelation somewhat further
than you do, for I am disposed to say, with Max
Muller, that ‘ it was an event in the history of man
when the ideas of father, mother, brother, sister, hus
band, wife, were first conceived and first uttered. . .
It was a revelation, the greatest of all revelations,
when the conception of a Creator, a Ruler, a Father
of man, when the name of God was for the first time
uttered in this world.’ ”
�17
Christian Evidence Society.
What will Mr Cook say if such a man should add,
“ The history of human speech, seems to show that
language for a long series of ages expressed nothing
but the merest sensuous conceptions ; but the idea of
a Creator, a Ruler, a Father of all men is not a sen
suous conception : hence a long series of ages had
passed before men came to form this idea and to
express it. If the history of language be read truly,
this is a plain historical fact; how am I to reconcile
this with what you tell me, that the very first man
spoke face to face with God, and hid himself from his
sight in the bushes of the garden of Eden ?”
The truth is that Mr Cook is not at ease unless he
is dealing with what he calls “ broad facts,” in other
words, with facts, or supposed facts, of which he can
speak in sufficiently vague terms.
“ Here is one fact,” he tells us, “ that at the central
point of the w'orld’s history, central both in time and
in historical import, equidistant from the end of what
men are agreed to call the pre-historic period, and our
own time, the man Jesus arose and claimed to be, in
a sense altogether apart from other men, the Teacher
and the' Saviour of the world. He claimed a direct
mission from God,—nay, more, to be, in a sense to be
hereafter ascertained, the Son of God. He assumed
that the truth which he had to teach was new, inas
much as it was one which man could not discover
for himself, but, at the same time, one to which man’s
conscience would bear testimony, which could not.
therefore, be rejected without sin. As credentials of
his mission, He appealed to works which those who
accepted him, and those who opposed him, admitted
could not be wrought without supernatural aid. To
one work, as the crowning work of all, he directed
his followers to appeal, as one capable of being at
tested and incapable of being explained away, even
His own resurrection from the dead.”*
* Essay, p. 6.
B
�18
The Tactics and Defeat of the
Before telling us of this very broad fact, Mr Cook
bids us put ourselves, “ if possible, in the position of
an inquirer to whom the facts might be new, and who
had simply to satisfy himself as to their bearings upon
his own convictions and the state of man.”
I will say, in reply to these words, that this has
already been attempted by the writer of ‘ Commenta
tors and Hierophants,’ who cites a sufficiently dispassionate inquirer to judge of certain narratives
written by men whom Dean Alford styled inspired,—
that is, moved by a Divine influence “ specially raising
them to, and enabling them for, their work in a man
ner which distinguishes them from all other writers
in the world, and their work from all other works.”*
Wearisome though it may be to go over the same
ground again and again, the cognate assumptions of
Dean Alford and Canon Cook at once justify and
compel me to quote the words in which the writer of
‘ Commentators and Hierophants ’ represents Thucy
dides as replying to the demands of Dr Alford : “I
really do not know what to say to this. If you ask
me to accept this proposition as a preliminary to the
examination of these books, you ask me to abandon
my judgment as an historian, and, in fact, bind me
beforehand to a particular conclusion. If I accept
this hypothesis before examining these books, I pledge
myself to examine them with a particular view, and
with one special purpose; in other words, I agree to
do a dishonest thing.”
We are as little justified in assuming Mr Cook’s
“ broad fact,” as in assuming, with Dean Alford, the
inspiration of the Evangelists. But when we come
to look into the sentence last quoted from Mr Cook’s
essay, what do we find but a string of assertions,
almost every one of which are at least open to dis
pute on the mere score of facts ? If by pre-historic
period, Mr Cook means a period preceding the rise
* ‘ Commentators and Hierophants,’ Part I., p. 9.
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of contemporary chroniclers or historians, by what
right does Mr Cook extend the series of contemporary
annalists as far back as nearly nineteen hundred
years before the birth of Christ ? By what right
again does he insist that Jesus asserted the novelty
of the truth which he had to teach ? Granting for
a moment that the four Gospels are authentic and
trustworthy, I may ask, where does Jesus assume
this ? where does he say anything like it, except in
the passages of the fourth Gospel in which he speaks
of giving his disciples a commandment, which was both
new and old ? If we may take the hint given in these
passages, we may perhaps go far towards account
ing for the impression which his teaching produced
upon his hearers. It was the return to simple maxims
and truths (long ago known) from the stifling atmo
sphere of rabbinical tradition, which made the multi
tude rejoice that they had found a teacher who taught
them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.
What again was the truth which man was not able to
discover for himself ? If Mr Cook is speaking of the
Sermon on the Mount, it would be hard to say what
portion of it was absolutely new. The whole passage
about the straight and rough way of life, and the
broad road to destruction, appears with scarcely
any change in the Works and Days assigned to
Hesiod. If Jesus speaks of the hairs of men’s heads
as being all numbered, there are Vedic hymns which
tell us that the winkings of men’s eyes are all
numbered by Varuna. If Mr Cook asserts that, as
credentials to his mission, Jesus appealed to his
miracles, the very point which we wish to ascertain is
whether he did so or not. If he did, it would be an
important fact by all means to be noted; but we can
not take the fact for granted on Mr Cook’s authority,
or forget the evidence which seems to point in
another direction.
“ It is noteworthy,” says the writer of the 1 English
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The Tactics and Defeat of the
Life of Jesus,’ “that after witnessing or hearing of
many of his miracles, the Pharisees still demand of
him a sign. How they could refuse this character to
the events just witnessed it is hard to imagine; hence
we seem almost justified in doubting whether they had
witnessed them, and if we say that they asked for a
sign only because they had not seen any of his mighty
works, then it is singular that they should have been
strangers to events which were happening constantly
in the eyes of all the people.” *
I am well aware that in saying even this much I
am giving Mr Cook an advantage which I ought not
to give him. The question turns not on the disposi
tion of the Pharisees, but on the authenticity and
credibility of the Gospel narratives, and with reference
to this point too much stress cannot be laid on the
argument urged in the ‘ English Life of Jesus,’ that
the contradictions in the narratives of the early years
of Jesus, and of his relations with the Baptist, belong
to the commonest matters of fact. “ Either the Bap
tist knew Jesus from his infancy, or he did not.
After the baptism, he either knew Jesus to be the
Eternal Logos, or he did not. Either Peter was
summoned by Andrew distinctly to find in Jesus the
Messiah, or he was not. Either Jesus drove out the
traffickers from the temple at the beginning of his
ministry, or he did not. Either a few days after his
baptism he was at a marriage feast in Galilee, or
he was not. On all these, as on many other points,
the Gospel narratives completely contradict each other
and themselves. The inevitable conclusion is that
the most ordinary matters of fact the Evangelists are not
trustworthy historians, and could not have been eye
witnesses of the events which they relate. But their
accounts are not confined to matters which fall
'within the ordinary range of human experience. They
abound in incidents which are astounding or incon* English Life of Jesus,’ Part IV., p. 41.
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ceivable, and which run counter to all impressions
derived from an observation of natural phenomena.
At once, therefore, and before examining any of these
narratives, we are bound distinctly to affirm that, whether
•as witnesses or as historians of such alleged events, the
Evangelists are utterly unworthy of credit.
are
not called upon to show how these narratives came
into existence, although explanations apparently ade
quate may not be wanting ; we need not to concern
ourselves with theories of absolute or relative miracle.
. . . The fact that the Gospels are unhistorical in
common things, renders an examination of alleged
miraculous narratives a work of supererogation.'” *
Amongst these miraculous narratives so discredited
is that of the resurrection of Jesus; but by what
right does Mr Cook, if he cares to place himself in the
position of a dispassionate historical inquirer, speak
of this resurrection as the crowning work of all, or
assert that Jesus charged his disciples to appeal to
it ? Far from appealing to this as a crowning
miracle, Jesus, it seems more likely, never professed
to be a worker of miracle at all. The argument cuts
both ways. If the resurrection of Jesus was the
crowning miracle, then it would seem that there were
■other miracles of a like kind of which it was the crown.
In the narrative of the Acts, as the writer of the
‘ English Life of Jesus ’ remarks, no reference is made
to any miracles as wrought by Jesus except those of
healing, the arguments being based entirely on the
resurrection as an event beyond all conception un
expected and astonishing. But if they had been
accustomed to frequent raisings of the dead, if they
had sat at meat with one who had been dead in the
grave four days, how could the resurrection of Jesus
be in any way astonishing, even if it had been unex
pected ?
But, again, did Jesus speak to his disciples, before
* ‘ English Life of Jesus,’ Part IV., p. 40.
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The Tactics and Defeat of the
his suffering, either of the mode of his death or of
his resurrection ? The arguments against any such
supposition are given in detail in the fifth part of
the ‘ English Life of Jesus,’ and I content myself with
saying that nothing said by Mr Cook even tends toshake any one of them.
The path of assumption once taken, it is as easy to
walk in it as on the smooth broad road which leads,
to ruin. As professing to work miracles (of which
we have no conclusive evidence), Jesus is represented
as differing from Mahomet, although the story of thenight journey to Jerusalem is found in the Koran ;
and great stress is laid on the supposed fact that he
was expected. We are here going off into the alleged
external evidence, which I have already said that we
are bound to cast aside altogether, if the narratives
said to be thus attested are in themselves inconsistent,
or irreconcilable. We have nothing to do with
drawing pictures like that which graces the opening
pages of ‘ Ecce Homo; ’ but the assumption is not
less enormous when we read that his person, his
offices, his work, were foretold, and that when he did
begin to teach and work, his countrymen were familiar with a long series of texts, beginning with the first,,
and continued to the end, of those sacred books in
which they recognised descriptions of such a teacher.
This is a mere assertion ; the evidence contradicting
it is given in the ‘English Life of Jesus;’ but apart
from this, no more cogent evidence for the non
existence of this description, or at least for their
failure to recognise it, can be found than in the fact
that all the rulers of the people know nothing of such
descriptions. There is, in fact, no evidence whatever
that any such Messiah as Jesus was expected at all.
Nor is it less an ignoratio elenchi, as logicians
say, when Mr Cook goes on to draw a contrast
between the teaching of Jesus and that of any other
man, on the ground that faith in him took root, whiles
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(it would seem to be implied) faith in all others has
died away. In the first place, facts seem scarcely to
bear out the statement. It may be very well for
Englishmen to say that Christianity is co-extensive
with the civilisation of the world, or that “beyond
the pale of Christendom the great mass of humanity,
which in past ages have shown equal capacities for
the highest culture, have at this present time no single
representative nation, Turanian, Semitic, or Aryan, in
which liberty, philosophy, nay even physical science^
with its serene indifference to moral or spiritual truth,
have a settled home or practical development.”* If
we choose to assert this, or to say that through the vast
regions of Islamism, Buddhism, and Confucianism,
elements of civilisation, although present, “ are stunted,
distorted, and, to all human ken, in hopeless and
chaotic ruin,” that is our opinion, an opinion not
shared by the inhabitants of China or Japan. But
whether the opinion be right or not, it does not touch
the point at issue. Long before the Christian era, the
western portion of the Aryan race had begun to show
a capacity for development indefinitely beyond that
of the Eastern Aryans, or of any branch of the Semitic
or Turanian families. Nor can it be denied that in
their law, their institutions, their modes of thought
and habits of life, they exhibit to this day more than
mere traces of a condition far more ancient than the
rise of Christianity. But, in truth, this discussion is
utterly irrelevant. The teaching of Jesus may have
been indefinitely higher than that which it is repre
sented to have been in the Gospels : it might not
only have taken root, nay it might absolutely have
conquered the world: and yet this victory would
impart not a jot more of historical authority to the
Gospel narratives, unless these narratives were
possessed of historical authority already. If the whole
world were Christian, and if there were no divisions
* Essay, p. 10.
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The Tactics and Defeat of the
among Christians, no anathematisation of particular
forms of Christianity, how would this prove that
Jesus kept his Messiahship secret, as he is said to
have done in the Synoptic story, or that he made
it a subject of constant public controversy, as he is
said to have done according to the Johannine narra
tive ? The reference to the subsequent history of
Christianity is altogether out of place, and carries with
it no force whatever, and we are conceding too much
to Mr Cook by noticing the matter at all.
In truth, this indulgence in irrelevant remarks
would be either ludicrous or contemptible, were the
subject less serious and important. But the patience
of unprejudiced thinkers must reach a low ebb, as
they follow Mr Cook through some more of what
he is pleased to term his facts, “ such as the pre
eminence in Christendom, in every age, of nations
which profess at least to acknowledge Him as their
Lord, and as the rapid disintegration and decay of
communities which have corrupted or abjured his
faith.”* This is indeed a dainty dish to set before
honest and unprejudiced men. The first part of the
sentence resolves itself into the proposition that mere
profession of belief in Christ is sufficient to secure pre
eminence for a nation; but it was scarcely necessary
to add that the pre-eminence must be in Christendom,
for a nation professing not to believe in Him would
by its own act shut itself out from that society. On
the other hand, it is perfectly clear that a mere pro
fession of Christianity is equivalent to a corruption
or even an abjuration of it; hence, in the second part
of the sentence, the communities which have been
said by mere profession to have secured pre-eminence
are said to undergo rapid disintegration and decay.
This, of course, cannot be Mr Cook’s meaning ; what
he probably means is that the Church of Rome or the
Greek Church has corrupted Christianity, and that
* Essay, p. 11.
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therefore nations professing the Orthodox or Latin
faith are less flourishing and powerful than nations
which profess Protestantism. Certainly here we
have a plain issue of fact, or rather perhaps a hun
dred issues ; and it may fairly be doubted whether
we shall have done ourselves any good, even if we
should succeed in completely unravelling the tangled
knot. Certainly our success will not have carried us
on much nearer towards determining whether the
stories told about the Sanhedrim after the crucifixion
of Jesus be or be not true. But a few words may not
be wasted in showing the kind of thing which Mr
Cook would pass off as factors in the great aggregate
of “ Christian Evidences.” Whether the nations still
belonging professedly to the Latin Communion are
weak, or weaker than Protestant nations, and whether
if they are weak, their weakness is really due to this
cause and to this cause only, are points on which dis
passionate critics would probably decline to pronounce
any definite opinion : the glibness with which Mr
Cook lays down his proposition is in singular con
trast with the cautious method in which Macaulay, in
his essay on ‘ Ranke’s History of the Popes,’ handles
sundry cognate problems. After all, what are we
that we should make ourselves judges ? If the
power of the Sultan is waning away because he
refuses to subscribe to the Nicene Creed, it is hard
to be rebuked for saying that the men on whom the
tower in Siloam fell were sinners above all others
that dwelt at Jerusalem.
To speak briefly, Mr Cook has manufactured his his
tory, and then proceeded complacently to assert that
“ the broadest and simplest facts thus stated are suffi
cient for the one purpose we have now in view, suffi
cient to induce every one who cares to know the truth,
to go at once to that Man, to ask what he has to
teach, what he has to bestow.” Why an inaccurate
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The Tactics and Defeat of the
or garbled history should be a good or a sufficient
preparation for going to Him, it is not easy to see ;
but what will Mr Cook say if we reply, that this is
precisely what we wish to do, that we do wish to ask
what he has to teach and to bestow ? Did he then
affirm from the first to his Apostles, to the Samaritan
woman and her fellow-inhabitants of Sychar, and to
the assembled multitudes at the great feasts, that he
was the Messiah and the Logos, existing before all
worlds, or did he keep this a secret from all except
two or three during the whole of his ministry ? Did
he speak as he is said to have spoken in the Synoptics,
or as he is said to have spoken in the Johannine
Gospel ? Are these questions to be solved by a refer
ence to the condition of France at the present time
as contrasted with the condition of Germany or of
England ? The fact is that if we wish to know what
Jesus taught or bestowed, and if we are ever to learn
it, we must travel by the road of strict historical
inquiry, and take one by one the whole mass of
questions examined in the ‘ English Life of Jesus,’—
questions which I challenge Mr Cook and all the
members of the Christian Evidence Society to answer.
But Mr Cook’s efforts to divert us from the real
points at issue are not yet ended. He next finds it
convenient to make a thorough confusion between
the genuineness and authenticity of any given docu
ment, and, under cover of this confusion, to insinuate
that it is useless to question the orthodox position
about the several books of the New Testament. We
had supposed that the authenticity of a history de
pended on the truth of the incidents related in the
narrative, and that any honest man would be able and
ought to judge for himself whether the book contains
palpable inconsistencies, contradictions, or falsehoods.
We had thought that, if a record were forthcoming of
the Peloponnesian war which asserted that Pericles
strenuously urged the Athenians to concentrate all
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their efforts on the extension of their dominion,* any
honest man ought to see and to say that this record
was in utter contradiction with the history of Thucy
dides, and that therefore, while both narratives could
not possibly be true, it was yet possible that both
might be false. It is one of the ugliest tricks of
sacerdotalism to throttle the intellect by denying it
liberty of investigating simple matters of fact. Boys
are not told that it is such an awfully serious and difficult matter to decide whether the alleged history of
Romulus or Numa is to be accepted or rejected. But
Mr Cook wishes to frighten us from examining into
the authority of the Johannine Gospel, and. he sets
about it thus :
“ An investigation into the authenticity of any an
cient book demands anamountof knowledgeandcritical
ability, a soundness and keenness of judgment, which
are the very rarest of qualifications. Turn to secular
literature, and you will find critics arguing for ages,
without any approximation to a settlement, touching
the genuineness of works attributed to men whoso
peculiarities of genius and of style would seem to
defy imitation. Who would venture, on his own
judgment, to determine how much of the Homeric
poems really belongs to
“ ‘That lord of loftiest song,
Who above others like an eagle soars ? ’ ”
I deny Mr Cook’s statements, and I say that they
are denied by the vast majority of scholars and critics.
If these are not to accept or reject any given opinion
about the Homeric poems on their own judgment, on
whose judgment are they to do so ? To state the
matter thus is either childish or impertinent. Mr
Cook is perfectly well aware that a vast number of
scholars deny that there ever was one individual
Homer, the author of the ‘ Iliad ’ or the ‘ Odyssey ’ ;
* ‘ Commentators and Hierophants,’ Part I., p. 11.
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The Tactics and Defeat of the
but even if we suppose that it were universally allowed
that one man dictated the ‘ Iliad,’ standing on one
leg, at the rate of two hundred lines per hour, how
wrould this help us to determine whether the history
of the Trojan war (if ever there was any Trojan war)
was after the fashion described in the ‘ Iliad,’ or as
it is represented by Thucydides in the introduction to
his history ? Having thus made the gateway terrible,
Mr Cook is good enough to say that they who will
not go in blindfold at his bidding, refuse because they
hate the idea of accepting documents “ which, if
genuine, supply substantial grounds for belief in super
natural works and a supernatural Person.”
Mr Cook’s facts are again wrong. The opponents
whom he is professing to throw down may believe
far more earnestly than himself in the righteousness
and love of the Being in whom all creatures live and
move; and it is impossible that they can have any
disinclination, a priori, to give credit to books which
tell the truth about Him, or about His works. But
Mr Cook has again dragged us away to wholly irre
levant matters. Let us grant to him the genuine
ness of all the books of the New Testament: let us
admit that the fourth Gospel was written by one who
was a personal friend of Jesus : let us allow it to be,
as Dr Tischendorf asserts, “ transparently clear that
our collective Gospels are to be referred back, at
least, to the beginning of the second century, or the
end of the first.” Let us concede that the small
interval still left of sixty or seventy years from the
time at which the events of the history are said to
have taken place, is of no real importance ; and what
follows? In the words of the writer of the ‘ Eng
lish Life of Jesus,’ simply this :
“ Not a single inconsistency is softened, not a single
contradiction is removed, not one impossible thing
rendered credible. What is done is to show that,
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within some twenty years after the death of Jesus,
men were to be found who had been his followers and
intimate friends, capable of writing down narratives
which profess to give the same history, but which
relate histories as different as the histories of Portugal
and England—men who could represent the teaching
of Jesus as being at the same time parabolic and not
parabolic, simple and confusing, soothing and exas
perating—men who could say that he kept his
Messiahship secret till down almost to the eve of the
crucifixion, and that he proclaimed it aloud from the
first to friends and enemies alike. . . . What it
does is to prove that the Evangelists were wilfully
and consciously dishonest; and that, as writers, they
are deserving of the severest censure for deliberately
deceiving their readers about events of which they
profess themselves eye-witnesses.” *
At this point we may very fairly stop. In the sub
sequent portion of his essay, Mr Cook occupies him
self chiefly with frank declarations of his own
opinions, and with efforts to convince his readers
that, if they will but think as he does about the
Person of Jesus and his character, they will feel
perfectly satisfied about the authority of the Gospels—
in other words, will be quite ready to believe that Jesus
was in Jerusalem and in Egypt at one and the same
time. By the same indirect (some might be tempted
to say almost sneaking) method, Mr Cook seeks to
convince his disciples that the Gospels contain the
whole scheme of the Athanasian doctrine of the rela
tion of Christ to God the Eather and God the Holy
Ghost. .All that I have to say here is that I am not
now concerned with this doctrine. It may be true or
it may be false ; but I must first have an answer to
all those questions which have been put to Dean Alford
in ‘ Commentators and Hierophants,’ and then I
* ‘English Life of Jesus,’ Part VI., p. 68.
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The Tactics and Defeat of the
must have a refutation of the whole ‘ English Life of
Jesus,’ before I can admit that we are justified in even
entering on any examination of Athanasian doctrine.
But, after all, after frightening his readers with the
awful difficulties of Biblical criticism and the fearful
responsibility involved in saying that the fourth
Gospel was not written by the son of Zebedee, Mr
Cook, when the convenient moment comes, turns round
and says to them, “ You have to judge for yourselves.
I do not profess to draw out the evidence, but simply
to show what is its nature and where it is to be
found.” * It is true that he is speaking here of the
evidence for the character of Christ; but this evidence
can exist only in the measure in which the books are
trustworthy, and thus we are brought again within
the circle of historical inquiry. But here, also, we
have the same confusions and contradictions. This
evidence, he says, will have weight with them in
proportion to their “ capacity to discern and appre
ciate moral goodness. If that character does not
attract, subdue, and win you, I freely admit all other
evidence will be useless so far as your innermost con
victions are concerned.” We might ask—useless or
useful for what ? The latent proposition would seem
to be that they who do not regard the Gospels as
trustworthy historical narratives, have no capacity to
discern and appreciate moral goodness. But Mr
Cook goes on immediately to say that, “ numerous as
are the cases of individuals who have remained in, or
relapsed into, a state of scepticism from various
causes, intellectual or moral, few, indeed, are the cases
of men who have not borne with them into that
dreary region an abiding sense of the personal and
supreme goodness of Jesus.” This is only saying, in
other words, that they retain their capacity for dis
cerning and appreciating moral goodness—in short,
* Essay, p. 20.
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that they are none the worse in this respect for hold
ing that Jesus never uttered the discourses put into
his mouth in the fourth Gospel.
Then, having allowed that almost all sceptics retain
an abiding sense of the personal and supreme good
ness of Jesus, (if this were said of the orthodox, Mr
Cook would say that nothing more was needed,) he
goes onto say, “ You will soon find that you have no
alternative but either to give up all that has wrought
itself into your moral nature, and entwined itself
around the fibres of your affections, all your con
victions of the moral excellence of Jesus, or to accept
Him, even as He presents Himself, the God-Man.”*
I need only say that, by Mr Cook’s own admission,
most of those who refuse to do this, still retain an
abiding sense of the personal and supreme goodness
of Jesus, and what would he have more ? The
Christian is told that his duty is to rejoice with them
that are glad, and to weep with them that weep. Mr
Cook’s notion of the extent of Christian sympathy
is wider. He would have us see only what he sees
and when he sees it, and to shut our eyes when he
tells us that an object staring us in the face has no
existence.
It is not worth while to follow further the series of
evasive or inadequate arguments with which Mr Cook
seeks to hoodwink his hearers and himself. He chal
lenges any controversialist to deny that our Lord’s
teaching differed from that of all the Rabbis, not
merely in degree, but in kind, and he adds that “ it
differed in principle, in its processes, in its results, in
its tone, its spirit, in every essential characteristic.” f
Certainly I have no intention of denying this, but I
maintain fearlessly that these words apply with equal
force to the teaching of the two Isaiahs, of Ezekiel,
or of Jeremiah, to the teaching, in short, of all who
proclaimed a religion of the heart, and kicked against
* Essay, p. 22.
t Essay, p. 32.
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The Tactics and Defeat of the
the tyranny of sacerdotalism. The teaching of Jesus
did not differ in kind from the teaching of the Pro
phets, as is set forth, doubtless to Mr Cook’s perfect
satisfaction, more largely in the seventh of the Thirtynine Articles of the Church of England.
Nor is it much more worth while to note that Mr
Cook makes Christianity depend altogether on the
physical resurrection of the body of Jesus after his
death upon the cross. If this were all, I should pass
it by as an opinion or belief which he is perfectly free
to hold. But the case is altered when he asserts that
this event is attested under circumstances which make
it impossible to doubt the sincerity of those who are
said to have witnessed it. “ That the attestation was
given, that it was confirmed by outward effects other
wise psychologically impossible, by an immediate and
complete change in the character of the disciples, and
by the rapid triumph of the religion so attested, these
and kindred points you will find discussed in every
treatise on Christian evidence; they are, in fact, not
open to reasonable doubt.”*
If these words are designedly addressed to those
who have already made up their minds to believe
what Mr Cook believes, and who hate the very thought
of having to look at the other side, I should pass
them by without comment. If they are addressed to
honest and unprejudiced men, who wish only to ascer
tain the truth of facts, they are, (whatever may have
been the author’s intention in writing them,) a string
of lies. Let it be granted for a moment that the
physical resurrection did take place. It none the less
remains a fact that all the narratives of the resurrec
tion are inconsistent, contradictory, or mutually ex
clusive, and therefore that, in the words of the writer
of the 'English Life of Jesus,’ for the historic,al
resurrection we have no evidence whatever.!- Mr
Cook makes a simple assertion, apparently in the
* Essay, p. 39.
t Part VI., p. 39.
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teeth of all the facts : the writer of the ‘ English Life
of Jesus’ goes patiently through all the narratives,
and the reader may satisfy himself at every step
whether the story is fairly or unfairly dealt with.
With greater truth it might be asserted that few
narratives could be found anywhere which convict
themselves more completely than the Gospel narra
tives of the resurrection.*
* Mr Cook deals in assertions and assumptions. I have asserted
that the writer of ‘The English Life of Jesus ’ has examined the whole
narrative in all its incidents. But it may be well that the reader should
again see with his own eyes what these inconsistencies are : “ The nar
ratives of the Resurrection exhibit, if possible, even greater inconsis
tencies and contradictions than those which have preceded them. In
Matthew (xxviii. 1, &c.) we read that Mary Magdalene and the other
Mary (i.e., two women) came to the sepulchre, as the day began to dawn;
that there was an earthquake, and that the angel (one angel) of the
Lord came down, and, rolling away the stone from the door of the
sepulchre, sat upon it, and, bidding the women not to be afraid, told
them that Jesus was risen, and that his disciples should see him in
Galilee, whither he had preceded them; that as they depart on this
errand, Jesus himself appears to them, and tells them just what the
angel had said to them a few minutes before, thus making the appari
tion and message of the angel quite superfluous. In Mark (xvi.) three
women, Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James, and Salome,
come to the sepulchre, for the purpose of anointing the body of Jesus,
after the sun had risen. As in Matthew, they are at a loss to know how
they shall remove the stone from the door ; but when they reach the
spot, instead of seeing an angel sitting on the stone, they simply see it
rolled on one side, and it is only when they enter the sepulchre (which
the women in Matthew do not enter) that they see a young man sitting
on the right side and clothed in a long white garment, who gives them
the same message which the angel gives to the two Marys in the first
Gospel. Then, at verse 9, the story seems to begin afresh by stating
that the risen Jesus appeared first to Mary Magdalene, just as though a
narrative of the resurrection had not been given already. There is no
•mention of any earthquake in this account. In Luke (xxiv.) we are told
that the women (seemingly a great number') who came with Jesus from
Galilee visited the sepulchre very early in the morning, bringing spices
for the i urpose of embalming the body, they, like the women in the
other Gospels, having not the slighest expectation that he would rise
again. These also find the stone rolled away, and, entering the sepul
chre, they see two men in shining garments, who ask them why they
seek the living among the dead, and remind them (of what every one
of them had utterly forgotten) that Jesus had distinctly forewarned
them of his sufferings, death, and resurrection ; but no message is given
that the disciples are to seek Jesus in Galilee, nor does Jesus appear to
them himself as he does in the other Synoptics. The Evangelist then
adds that they went and told all these things to the eleven and all the
rest, and that the Apostles especially received their information from
Mary Magdalene, Joanna, and Mary the mother of James, the names
being for the third time different. Far from believing their report, the
Apostles deride them as babblers of nonsense (Liddell and Scott, s. v.
Kypos, Luke xxiv. 11). Still Peter, incredulous as he is, has curiosity
0
�34
The Tactics and Defeat of the
I have said enough to show that Mr Cook’s Essay
is worse than worthless for all except those who are
ready to think what he thinks, and to say what he
says ; nor are the other lectures included in this series
in any larger degree addressed to honest and unpreju
diced thinkers, who are determined that they will not
enough to go to the tomb, where, stooping down, he beholds the linen
clothes laid by themselves, and, fully convinced by this somewhat slight
evidence, departs, “wondering in himself at that which was come to
pass.” In John (xx. 1, &c.). Mary Magdalene comes alone “ early, when
it was yet dark” (in Mark the sun has risen), and sees the stone taken
away from the sepulchre (where then was the guard, who thus suffered
her to approach near enough to find out in the dark that the sepulchre
was open ?) Instead of entering the tomb, as the women do in the
second and third Gospels, or seeing any angel or man as they do in all
the Synoptics, Mary Magdalene at once hastens back to Peter, James,
and the beloved disciple, and informs them not that Jesus is risen,
but that “ they have taken away the Lord from the sepulchre, and we
know not where they have laid him,” thus implying that, she had not
gone thither alone, as stated apparently in verse 1. Ou hearing this
Peter and the other disciple hasten to the tomb, both running, but the
other disciple outruns him, and stooping down at the sepulchre door,
looks in, and sees the linen clothes lying, but does not go in. Peter
then comes up, and going in, sees further that the napkin which had
been about the head of Jesus was not lying with the linen clothes, but
was wrapped together in a place by itself. The other disciple then goes
in, sees and believes. (This visit is related in words which are almost
verbatim the same with those in which Luke records the visit of Peter,
tne only difference being that the credit of being the first believer in
the resurrection is here transferred to the beloved disciple.) Without
waiting for anything further, the two disciples go home again; but
Mary lingers, ■weeping, not having reached their assurance of convic
tion. (Why did not the twd Apostles, seeing her in this grief, stay to
comfort her, and make her share their belief that Jesus was risen ?)
Stooping as she wept, and, looking into the sepulchre, she sees two
angels in white (who, as they came since Mary and the two disciples
stood at the door, must have entered through the solid rock or earth).
These angels are seated, the one at the head and the other at the feet
where the body of Jesus had lain. (In Mark the “young man” is
seated on the right side.) When they ask Mary the cause of her sorrow,
she replies that it is because she knows not where the body of Jesus
has been taken. Without waiting for any further words from the
angels, of whose real nature she seems to have no notion, Mary turns
herself back and sees Jesus standing, but fails to recognise him. (In
the Synoptics the women know him at once, at the mere sound of his
voice, and as in Matthew xxviii. 9, hold him by the feet and worship
him.) The question of Jesus, “Why weepest thou? whom seekest
thou ? ” sounds to her as coming from no familiar voice, and as
she looks at him she sees apparently nothing especially spiritual
or remarkable about his person, for, supposing him to be the gar
dener, she beseeches him, if he has taken the body away, to tell her
where he has placed it. Jesus answers by simply calling her by her
name ; and the spell which had held her thus far is dissolved. Mary,
turning round, greets him as Rabboni, her Master, and seemingly seeks
to touch him. But whereas in the Synoptics Jesus on his first appear
ance allows the women to embrace his feet, here he says to Mary
�Christian Evidence Society.
35
accept any incidents as facts until they have adequate
historical evidence to justify them in so doing. In
short, the Christian Evidence Society is not working
for those who question or reject any portion of that
evidence. It would be more candid to say this at
starting. It would be more honourable to sail under
genuine colours, and to admit that they write only for
those who agree with what they say. As it is, the policy
by which Christian advocates ignore the real points at
issue, and take refuge in generalities, is becoming
notorious throughout the land, and is branded more
and more as utter cowardice, and as gross dishonesty
and falsehood. From the Archbishop of York, down
wards, the so-called orthodox clergy and laity may,
like the ostrich, hide their heads in a bush, and think
that no one sees them ; but all who are determined that
they will accept no statement except on the evidence
of facts, are tempted to hold up such conduct to the
contempt and derision of mankind. They assail no
office, they asperse no one’s character ; they do but
say that clergy and laity alike are bound to tell the
truth about the events of the New Testament his
tory, as about the events of all other history;
and they say further, that the evasion of this duty is
equivalent to deliberate and gross lying. For the
present I will only add that, as this self-styled Chris
tian Evidence Society has deliberately disregarded
my challenge,—a challenge which, as every honest
man will feel, touches the root of the matter : and,
Magdalene, “Touch me not, for I am not yet ascended to my Father,”
and then he gives her a message for his “ brethren,” which, however, is
not a charge (as in the other Gospels) that they should go to Galilee in
order to meet him, but the announcement, “I ascend unto my Father
and your Father, and to my God and your God.” This story is in almost
every particular a totally different story, which excludes the. Synoptic
narratives; and the latter again differ from each other in most important
particulars. As these, the Synoptic accounts, cannot be dismissed as
less truthworthy than the fourth Gospel, the Johannine story is at once
to be cast aside without foundation, while the contradictions of the
Synoptic narratives are such as to deprive them of all credit. Hence of
the historical resurrection of Jesus we have no evidence whatever.”
�36 Defeat of the Christian Evidence Society.
further, as this challenge was given long ago to the
late Dean Alford, who treated it after a like sort, I
hereby take the refusal of the Society to answer
my questions as being, on their part, an acknowledg
ment of defeat, and I publish it as such to the
world.
Thomas Scott,
Mount Pleasant, .
Pamsgate.
�POSTSCRIPT.
Speaking on behalf of' the Christian Evidence
Society, Mr Cook has asserted, that the evidences of
that which he styles Christianity are complete and
adequate. I appeal fearlessly to the honesty and inde
pendence of my countrymen to determine whether
this be the case or not; I rely on their fairness to
weigh dispassionately all the evidence bearing on the
subject, as it has been preserved to us; and, in this
confidence, I purpose to lay before them all the facts
or alleged facts in the history which is supposed to
furnish a basis for the dogmatic system of traditional
Christianity. These facts, or alleged facts, will be
examined fully, and in complete detail, in a new
edition of the 'English Life of Jesus,’ a work which
will confine itself to the scrutiny of facts, without
propounding any theories (after the method whether
of Strauss or Renan or any other writer) as to the
mode in which the narratives of these alleged facts
came into existence.
The work, in short, will lay before the reader the
thoughts of a writer who wishes only to ascertain the
truth, and who addresses himself to those who,
without prejudice or prepossession, are prepared in
every instance to ask themselves seriously, Are these
THINGS SO ?
�The following Pamphlets and Papers may be had on addressing
a letter enclosing the price in postage stamps to Mr Thomas
Scott, Mount Pleasant, Ramsgate.
Eternal Punishment. An Examination of the Doctrines held by the Clergy of the
Church of England. By “ Presbyter Anglicanus.” Price 6d.
Letter and Spirit. By a Clergyman of the Church of England. Price 6d.
Science and Theology. By Richard Davies Hanson, Esq., Chief Justice of South
Australia. Price 4d.
A Few Words on the Trinity, the Holy Spirit, and the Divinity and Incarnation of
Jesus. Price 6d.
Questions to which the Orthodox are Earnestly Requested to Give Answers.
Thoughts on Religion and the Bible. By a Layman and M. A. of Trin. Coll., Dublin. 6d.
The Opinions of Professor David F. Strauss. Price 6d.
A Few Self-Contradictions of the Bible. Price Is., free by post.
English Life of Jesus, or Historical and Critical Analysis of the Gospels; complete
in Six Parts, containing about 500 pages. Price 7s. 6d., free by post.
Against Hero-Making in Religion By Prof. F. W. Newman. Price 6d.
Ritualism in the Church of England. By “Presbyter Anglicanus.” Price 6d.
The Religious Weakness of Protestantism. By Prof. F. W. Newman. 7d., post free.
The Difficulties and Discouragements which Attend the Study of the Scriptures.
By the Right Rev. Francis Hare, D.D., formerly Lord Bishop of Chichester. 6d.
The Chronological Weakness of Prophetic Interpretation. By a Beneficed
Clergyman of the Church of England. Price is. Id., post free.
On the Defective Morality of the New Testament. By Prof. F. W. Newman.
Price 6d.
The “ Church and its Reform. ” A Reprint. Price Is.
“ The Church of England Catechism Examined.” By Jeremy Bentham, Esq. A Reprint.
Price Is.
Original Sin. Price 6d.
Redemption, Imputation, Substitution, Forgiveness of Sins, and Grace. Price 6d.
Basis of a New Reformation. Price 9d.
Miracles and Prophecies. Price 6d.
Babylon. By the Rev P. S. Desprez, B.D. Price 6d.
The Church : the Pillar and Ground of the Truth. Price 6d.
Modern Orthodoxy and Modern Liberalism. Price 6d.
Errors, Discrepancies, and Contradictions of the Gospel Records; with special
reference to the irreconcilable Contradictions between the Synopticsand the Fourth
Gospel. By Thos. Scott. Price Is.
The Gospel of the Kingdom. By a Bbneficed Clergyman of the Church of England. 6d.
The Meaning of the Age. By the Author of ‘ The Pilgrim and the Shrine.’ Price 6d.
“ James and Paul.” A Tract by Emer. Prof. F. W. Newman. Price 6d.
Law and the Creeds. Price 6d.
Genesis Critically Analysed, and continuously arranged; with Introductory Remarks.
By Ed. Vansittart Neale, M.A. and M.R.I. Price is.
A Confutation of the Diabolarchy, By Rev. John Oxlee. Price 6d.
The Bigot and the Sceptic. By Emer. Professor F. W. N ewman. Price 6d.
Church Cursing and Atheism. By the Rev. Thomas P. Kirkman, M.A., F.R.S., &c.,
Rector of Croft, Warrington. Price Is.
Practical Remarks on “ The Lord’s Prayer.” By a Layman. With Anno
tations by a Dignitary of the Church of England. Price 6d.
The Analogy of Nature and Religion—Good and Evil. By a Clergyman
of the Church of England. Price 6d.
Commentators and Hierophants ; or, The Honesty of Christian Commentators.
In Two Parts. Price 6d. each Part.
Free Discussion of Religious Topics. By Samuel Hinds, D.D., late Lord
Bishop of Norwich. Part I., price Is. Part II., price Is. 6d.
The Evangelist and the Divine. By a Beneficed Clergyman of the Church
of England. Price is.
The Thirty-Nine Articles and the Creeds,—Their Sense and their Non-Sense.
By a Country Parson. Parts ]., II., III. Price 6d. each Part.
�
Dublin Core
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Title
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Victorian Blogging
Description
An account of the resource
A collection of digitised nineteenth-century pamphlets from Conway Hall Library & Archives. This includes the Conway Tracts, Moncure Conway's personal pamphlet library; the Morris Tracts, donated to the library by Miss Morris in 1904; the National Secular Society's pamphlet library and others. The Conway Tracts were bound with additional ephemera, such as lecture programmes and handwritten notes.<br /><br />Please note that these digitised pamphlets have been edited to maximise the accuracy of the OCR, ensuring they are text searchable. If you would like to view un-edited, full-colour versions of any of our pamphlets, please email librarian@conwayhall.org.uk.<br /><br /><span><img src="http://www.heritagefund.org.uk/sites/default/files/media/attachments/TNLHLF_Colour_Logo_English_RGB_0_0.jpg" width="238" height="91" alt="TNLHLF_Colour_Logo_English_RGB_0_0.jpg" /></span>
Creator
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Conway Hall Library & Archives
Date
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2018
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Conway Hall Ethical Society
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Pamphlet
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
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The tactics and defeat of the Christian Evidence Society
Creator
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Scott, Thomas
Description
An account of the resource
Place of publication: Ramsgate
Collation: [3], 6-36, [2] p. ; 18 cm.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references. Publisher's list on unnumbered page at the end. From the library of Dr Moncure Conway. Printed by C.W. Reynell, Little Pulteney Street, London. The Christian Evidence Society is a UK Christian apologetics organisation founded in 1870.
Publisher
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Thomas Scott
Date
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1871
Identifier
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CT152
Subject
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Christianity
Rights
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<img src="http://i.creativecommons.org/p/mark/1.0/88x31.png" alt="Public Domain Mark" /><br /><span>This work (The tactics and defeat of the Christian Evidence Society), identified by </span><a href="https://conwayhallcollections.omeka.net/items/show/www.conwayhall.org.uk"><span>Humanist Library and Archives</span></a><span>, is free of known copyright restrictions.</span>
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application/pdf
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Text
Language
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English
Apologetics
Authority
Bible-Evidences
Christian Evidence Society
Conway Tracts
-
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PDF Text
Text
&
THE
FLUX-MOTOR;
OR,
THE TIDE
EMPLOYED AS A MOTIVE POWER
AT ANY DISTANCE FROM THE SEA.
BY
FERDINANDO TOMMASI.
THE MODEL OF THIS APPARATVS (SCALE
Ith) WORKING
DAILY AT THE
INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITION.
(INVENTION PATENTED IN ENGLAND, FRANCE, ETC., ETC.)
•I
4
JLonfton:
Printed by GILBERT & RIVINGTON,
52, ST. JOHN’S SQUARE, AND 28, WHITEFRTARS STREET, E.C.
1871.
��>n and
water
g two
sea.
; with
be at
g the
bo its
bfore-
f
iced,
?ces;ome
nary
�THE
PRINCIPLE—j
Malbv & Sons loth•
The power of the
rarefaction of the :
of the sea raised
divisions or comps
The compressed
the same degree o
an equal tension ;
exterior air to ex
rarefaction, enablei
said apparatus witl
The flux-motor
1st. Of a reser
which is to the flu:
sories are to steam
2ndly. Of a mo
slight modification
steam-engine.
�THE FLEX-MOTOR:
PRINCIPLE—APPLICATION—DESCRIPTION
UTILITY.
The power of the Flux-motor consists in the tension and
rarefaction of the air produced, by the weight of the water
of the sea raised by the tide, in a recipient having two
divisions or compartments communicating with the sea.
The compressed air acts upon an apparatus motor with
the same degree of power as steam does, provided it be at
an equal tension ; and the rarefied air, by permitting the
exterior air to exercise a pressure proportionate to its
rarefaction, enables it also, in its turn, to act on the afore
said apparatus with an equal degree of power.
The flux-motor is essentially composed :
1st. Of a reservoir, by which the power is produced,
which is to the flux-motors what the boiler and its acces
sories are to steam-engines.
2ndly. Of a motive apparatus, constructed, with some
slight modifications, on the principle of a stationary
steam-engine.
�4
The reservoir is divided into two compartments or
divisions, G and F. Its lower base is below the level of
an average low tide at the syzygies A; its upper base, in
its vertical part, reaches the same level as the average
high tides at the syzygies C, and its horizontal division M
corresponds at the point which serves as a base at the unit
of height B.
In order to produce the various results of which we have
spoken, the reservoir must necessarily be entirely buried
in the sand, and consequently sheltered from the waves
and storms.
This reservoir may be constructed either of masonry,
hydraulic mortar, cast-iron, or iron-plates, and may be of
any form, and at any distance from the sea, provided that
it is placed at the aforesaid levels, and that the communi
cating tube D is proportionally prolonged.
As soon as the sea reaches the point B, the air con
tained in the compartment F, not being able to find an
outlet either by the tube H, whose orifice is submerged,
or by the tube I, whose cock is closed, is compressed to a
degree of tension proportionate to the weight of the sea
water. By putting, then, this compressed air into com
munication with the feeding tube of an apparatus similar
to a steam-engine, and constructed in due proportion,
both as regards the above tension and the amount of work
which it is desired to obtain, the apparatus will be put in
movement, and will continue to work till the fall of the
tide, i. e. during a period of about three hours. During
this time the water which penetrates freely by the tube H
into the compartment G (the tube K being in communi
�cation with the exterior air) fills the said compartment to
a level corresponding with the level of the sea. The cock
of the tube K is then closed, by which means the water
in the compartment G is prevented from escaping. As
soon as the sea descends to the point B, the water, which
remains as it were suspended in the compartment G, rare
fies, by its weight, the air which is found between it and
the motive apparatus; from which it results that, by
putting in communication fae feeding tube of the apparatus
with exterior air and its discharging tube with the tube K,
the weight of the exterior air bearing upon the piston of
the motive apparatus will be more or less considerable,
according to the degree of rarefaction of the air in the
tube K. This rarefaction being proportionate to the
weight represented by the height of the water in the com
partment G, and the height being the same as that of the
water which, a short time before, exercised its pressure
(at the rising tide), the pressure of the exterior air on the
piston, and consequently the degree of work which results
from it, will be the same as that of the compressed air,
and will continue so till the end of the reflux, i. e. for
about three hours.
By the above means it would be possible to obtain, per
petually, about three hours of work and three hours of rest.
For those branches of industry to which this inter
mittent work is not adapted, it would be necessary to
construct a motive apparatus, with two cylinders at right
angles, to which would be added a certain number of
pumps worked directly by its piston motors 0 and P, and
tile tides which occur during the night and on Sundays
�6
would be utilized, and be made to compress, by means
of the said pumps, the largest possible quantity of air,
and force it into the recipient N, which is in reality
nothing but the underground part of the factory, and
which takes the name of the reserve compartment. When
ever it is desired that the motive apparatus should exer
cise its power during the three hours of rest above
mentioned, it will only be necessary to take away from
the apparatus a cylinder and all its pumps, and put it in
communication with the reserve compartment, the com
pressed air of which will furnish the requisite power.
As the tubes K and I may be indefinitely prolonged,
the work to be obtained from the tides may be produced
at any distance from the sea.
Should a company, formed ad hoc, undertake the ex
penses of instalment, and let out to manufacturers the
motive force, at so much the cubic metre, in the same
way as is done with the gas *, the manufacturers would
be saved the enormous expense of boilers, which have to
be renewed every ten years, the insurance premium, both
against fire and explosion, the wages of the mechanics
and stokers, the cost of coal, which will necessarily be
come dearer in proportion as the mines become exhausted,
and they will have to pay only for the motive force of
which they have made effective use.
The cost of this motive force would be very moderate,
1 The company, in this case, would send to the different factories
the compressed air contained in a special reserve compartment, which
would be constantly kept filled by means of pumps worked by the
apparatus and flux-motors of the company.
�as, the flux-motors once established, their maintenance
would be essentially gratuitous.
The motive force of the flux-motor may be applied to
all kinds of industry, even to those where, on account of
the inflammable nature of the substance to be worked, it
is impossible to use steam. It is not affected by atmo
spheric variations, such as arise from decrease of water
in rivers and waterfalls, and, moreover, it can never fail
in its effects.
It is, then, useless to enlarge upon the advantages to
be derived from the use of the flux-motor, and upon the
important part it is destined to play in commerce and
in industrial pursuits.
�8
Explanation of the letters contained in the plate representing
a section of the sea, shore, reservoir, and reserve com
partment.
A. Level of average low tides during the syzygies.
B. Level of the point which serves as a base of the
unit of height.
C. Level of average high tides during the syzygies.
D. Tube of communication between the reservoir and
the sea.
E. Reservoir.
F. Lower compartment.
G. Upper compartment.
H. Tube of communication between the upper com
partment and the sea.
I. Tube of communication between the lower com
partment and the feeding tube of the motor apparatus.
K. Tube of communication between the upper com
partment and the discharge tube of the same apparatus.
L. Factory.
M. Horizontal division.
N. Reserve compartment.
O. Cylinder, with piston of the motor apparatus.
P. Pump for compressing the air.
Q. Valve.
R. Cocks.
S. The shore.
GILBERT AND RIVINGTON, PRINTERS, 52, ST. JOHN’S SQUARE, LONDON.
�
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Victorian Blogging
Description
An account of the resource
A collection of digitised nineteenth-century pamphlets from Conway Hall Library & Archives. This includes the Conway Tracts, Moncure Conway's personal pamphlet library; the Morris Tracts, donated to the library by Miss Morris in 1904; the National Secular Society's pamphlet library and others. The Conway Tracts were bound with additional ephemera, such as lecture programmes and handwritten notes.<br /><br />Please note that these digitised pamphlets have been edited to maximise the accuracy of the OCR, ensuring they are text searchable. If you would like to view un-edited, full-colour versions of any of our pamphlets, please email librarian@conwayhall.org.uk.<br /><br /><span><img src="http://www.heritagefund.org.uk/sites/default/files/media/attachments/TNLHLF_Colour_Logo_English_RGB_0_0.jpg" width="238" height="91" alt="TNLHLF_Colour_Logo_English_RGB_0_0.jpg" /></span>
Creator
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Conway Hall Library & Archives
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2018
Publisher
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Conway Hall Ethical Society
Text
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text.
Original Format
The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data
Pamphlet
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
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The flux-motor; or, the tide employed as a motive power at any distance from the sea
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Tommasi, Ferdinando [1832-1907.]
Description
An account of the resource
Place of publication: London
Collation: 8 p. : ill. (folded plan) ; 22 cm.
Notes: From the library of Dr Moncure Conway. "The model of this apparatus (scale 1/3th working daily at the International Exhibition" [from title page].
Publisher
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Printed by Gilbert & Rivington
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1871
Identifier
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G5284
Subject
The topic of the resource
Engineering
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
<img src="http://i.creativecommons.org/p/mark/1.0/88x31.png" alt="Public Domain Mark" /><br /><span>This work (The flux-motor; or, the tide employed as a motive power at any distance from the sea), identified by </span><span><a href="https://conwayhallcollections.omeka.net/items/show/www.conwayhall.org.uk">Humanist Library and Archives</a></span><span>, is free of known copyright restrictions.</span>
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1
�GS Y-l7?-
BLASPHEMIA,
What time the judges and the servile mob
Of Athens, moved by superstitious hate,
Compelled the wise and virtuous Socrates
To drink the fatal bane, the imputed crime,
For which he thus unjustly suffered death,
Was blasphemy against the Grecian gods;
A crime extinct, or all are criminals,
Since Jupiter, Apollo, and the rest
Of that divine assembly are, in these
Our more enlightened days,” by all blasphemed.
For-many nations, swayed by antique Rome,
And still, in her decadence, following her,
Have changed their deities, and worship, now,
The Jove who haunts the rock of Sinai,
Rejecting him who, on the Olympian mount,
Once reigned supreme o’er all the lesser gods :
The heavenly father and the sovereign lord
Of that heroic race of men which stands
Superlative, in olden history.
And.banished too, or but retained by name,
To mark our weekly days, are Thor, the son
Of Odin, and the other deities
Of Scandinavian birth; but, yet, from them
The Teutons and the Saxons derivate
The Pagan title which, in spite of all
Our borrowed Judaism, still maintains
Its ground against the very Elouhim
Of Moses and of Christ.* In fine, throughout
The land called Christendom, this Hebrew name
Is never uttered, and the terms in vogue,
Profane and heathenish, although they be,
Are Dio, Dios, Dieu, Gott, and God.
In records, said to be divine, and known
To be inscribed in that same tongue, wherein
The Greeks to their almighty Zeus prayed,
We come to Jesus, from whose history
We learn that when he claimed identity
With his celestial parent, named by Jews :
Jehovah, Lord of Hosts,” and “ Man of War,”
The wrathful zealots of the chosen race
Took stones to stone him, as of old they stoned
To death, the impious wretch who gathered sticks
Upon that consecrated day whereon
The Elouhistic godsf of making worlds
Grew tired, and rested from their marvellous work.
Albeit this christ his holy mission proved,
By deeds miraculous, yet still, amidst
The sacred people, there were they who said:
cc He hath a devil,” or “ Beelzebub,
u The prince of devils, lends him aid; ” and, when
*“ In the beginning the Elouhim created the heavens
and the earth.” (Genesis.) “ Eloi, Eloi, why hast thou
forsaken me ?” (Mark.)
t In the common English version of the Bible, the
word Elouhim, (or Elohim,) in spite of its plural ter
mination, is translated by the singular: God; and, in
the same unscrupulous manner, Jehovah is rendered
by the inapposite title: Lord, belonging equally to
English noblemen, the mayors of London and York, and
the bishops of the Established Church; but, as, of
course, neither of these translations are used, where
they do not suit the context, we do occasionally meet
with Gods and Jehovah.
He uttered words, as having power men’s sins
To pardon, “Who is this,” they asked, “that speaks
“ These blasphemies ? For, who can pardon sins,
“ Stive God alone ? ”
But Jesus, though the meek
Aid lowly, sometimes, in an angry mood,
Flung back these bitter taunts, and stigmatized
His enemies in no mellifluent terms:—
“ O race of vipers ! ” he exclaimed, “ ye fools
“ And hypocrites, from hell’s damnation how
“ Can ye escape ? For though indeed ye be
“ The seed of Abraham, your father is
“ The devil, from of old a murderer,
“ And father, too, of lies; his foul behests
“ Ye all obey 1 ”
The perilous result
Of these contentions, with the cunning Scribes
And self-applauding Pharisees, drew near.
The priestly council, or Sanhedrim, of
The Israelites, “ defenders of the faith,”
As taught by Moses and the prophets, soon
Brought Christ before the Roman magistrate,
Who found him guiltless ; but, in mockery
Of justice, priests and people cried aloud,
As with one voice: “ Let him be crucified! ”
And, having reached “ a place called Golgotha,”
They hanged him there, upon the accursed cross,
Between two thieves, a martyr for the truth,
Whereto these spiteful Hierosolymites
Could give no other name than “ blasphemy.”
In after time, confessors of the faith
In Jesus, sumamed Christ, both burned and hanged,
For “blasphemy,” their fellow Christian men:
Giordano Bruno, burnt in Papal Rome,
Girolamo Savonarola, hanged,
Between two “ brethren in the Lord,” and then
Consumed by fire, in Christian Tuscany.
But time would fail to tell of all who fell
Beneath the cruel torture and the sword
Of ruthless persecution, for a crim a
Unreal, whose very name is pilfered from
The Greeks, “ blind worshippers ” of deities
We now call “ false ” and “ mythological.”1
And what is “ blasphemy,” that dubious guilt,
For which the best and noblest of mankind
Have borne these ignominious penalties ?
The Athenian sage and Galilean christ,
Besides philosophers of later days,
Are there, in clearest evidence, to show
That “ blasphemy ” is oftentimes the truth,
Before it penetrates the reflex minds
Of multitudes of men. In sooth, it is
An imputation which is ever by
The many urged against the few; and, hence,
Perchance, to countless flocks of hissing geese,
The nightingale’s melodious canzonet,
In sylvan solitude, is “blasphemy.”
We kndw that all new verities which things
Affect, that long have been esteemed and held
In reverence, are doomed to bear the brunt
Of opposition led by enemies
�Whose strongest argument and loudest cry
Is “ blasphemy! ” But even the simplest truihs,
If they indeed be truths, invincibly
Withstand attacks more terrible than this.
*
For recollect, believers who, by law
Or custom, take the name of “ orthodox,”
That never yet hath blasphemy prevailed
Against the truth that two and two make four;
But, in your desperate attempts to prove
That one is three and eke those three are one,
/ (As in the doctrine of the “ Trinity,”
Invented, probably, by Brahmin priests,)
Ypu\ ■aeh the lowest depths of senselessness,
And lose yourselves in crass absurdity.
Yet, like the stolid saint of olden time,
You rJl are ready to exclaim: “We grant
“ These mysteries to be impossible,
“When scanned by reason and by common-sens s,
“ BLt therefore we believe them to be true.”
And this credulity unlimited
Is founded on dogmatic sophistries
Which gained the day, in theologic strife
Of early times, and these again are based,
Tn part, upon a heterogeneous mass
Of Hebrew, Greek, and Chaldee manuscripts,
Commencing with a strailge cosmogony
And some illusive genealogies,
Which, taken at the utmost, barely give
The lapse of sixty centuries since man
First came on earth, created of its dust;
And, then, the narrative proceeds to say,
The gods (on running short of dust, perhaps,)
Made woman of a solitary rib
Of man, extracted deftly from his side,
The while he lay asleep in Paradise.
Thence follow chronicles which, page by page,
Reveal, in horrible detail, the most
Atrocious and obsceijp iniquities
Whereof humanity is capable,
Committed by a race which claimed to be
The chosen of Jehovah-Elouhim,
A god superior to all other gods!
But touching these old books, ignored, until
Translated freely in more modern days,
The obvious question that presents itself
Is this—Tf they, amongst their manifold
Abominations and absurdities,
w
Contain enunciations from the gods—
Tf there the Lord Omnipotent of all*
The gods, hath deigned to reason with mankind,
How happens it that, in the course of time,
A thousand and eight-hundred years have passed
Away, and still mankind is unconvinced ?
.Or this—Why rests for ever unfulfilled
A certain prophecy, devoid of all
- ---------- s
-----
-
Obscurity, that “knowledge of the Lord,
“ Jehovah, should extend throughout the earth
“ As water fills the sea ? ”*
To search again *
The later portions of these scriptures, there
We read that Jesus to his followers
Declared that every kind of blasphemy
Should be forgiven unto men, by God,
Except that mystery insolvable,
“ The blasphemy against the Holy Ghost.”
Moreover, Paul, or Saul, of Tarsus, placed
On record, in his own behalf, the plea
That notwithstanding all his blasphemies,
Coinmitted prior to the miracle
Of his conversion to the Christian faith,
Yet mercy he obtained, because his deeds
' Were done in ignorance and unbelief.
But, now, in unbelief and ignorance,
Or else in utter heedlessness of what
These great exemplars said, no blasphemy
Will any Christian Scribe or Pharisee
Forgive his fellows, though his Lord commands
That he shall “ love his neighbour as himself,”
And never offer up his prayer to God,
For daily bread, for pardon, and for gracm
Without absolving all his enemies.
In their imperfect image men have made
The weak, revengeful, and repentant gods
Of their idolatries, and supplicate
Them in a thousand forms; but here ensues
An orison sincerely breathed by him
Who pens these humdrum metres, and which brings
Blasphemia to a pious end.
* “ Spirit of Infinity !
“ Father of the Universe!
* “ Called Theos, in Hellenic climes,
“ And God, in countries of the North,
u To thee I pray that if by me,
u Thy hallowed name hath been profaned,
cc In mercy thou wilt condescend
cc To plainly manifest thy wrath ;
CC
And not permit that men, alone,
Ct
With all their fallibility,
“ Should task themselves to vindicate
Thy power eternal and, supreme.
• *
•
“ Thou knowest I cannot choose but think
“ That either knaves or fools are they
“ Who vent on me their feeble rage,
“ Because I will not bend the knee
cc To some wild phantom they conceive
cc Of Thee, the Inconceivable.”
•
OLIVER SHERLOCK
nth. April, 1871. (
.•:ft
—
.
- ' •
♦Since these lines were placed in type, a preacher of Jesuitical chicanery, in one of the numerous clap-traps of
a sermon, has publicly declared that this prediction really has been, or was being, fulfilled, referring, for proof,
to “ the knowledge of Jehovah,” and of atfcw other things, at our^ntipodes ; thus, in the coolness of his effrontery,
setting aside more than 600 million people, or nearly three-fourths of th,e population of t^ globe, including
Buddhists, Brahmins, Mohammedans, and other “ infidels.”
.•
*
/T.*, ,
>
But the odd thing is that, only a few hours afterwards, there appears, in the newspapers, -the inteihgenrewrom
Australia thats at Baramatta, Mr. William Lorando Jones has been sentenced by Judge Simj^on'to be impfisoned
for two years, withnasd labour, and to pay a fine of one hundred pounds, for speaking dlBtespectfufiy of Moses-the*
identical offence-with which the Jews charged Jesus of Nazareth.
.
•. . ,.
This antipodean judge, to compare whom with Pontius Pilate would be a piece of grogs injustice, to thg Roman,
has delivered himself of the*above malicious sentence with a view “tp cheek mfidehty?’unconsciously imitating .
those who once tried, by similar means, ft) check christianity-thft Christianity which moires Dogberry Simpson
with the “ charity” which doth behave itself unseemly, which is puffed Wp, which is easily provoked which thinketh
evil, which beareth nothing, which endurpth nothing, and which, b^pretending to be otherwise, is the greatest sham
in the whole world.
• - ■
'
•
* u. /3.
��
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Victorian Blogging
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A collection of digitised nineteenth-century pamphlets from Conway Hall Library & Archives. This includes the Conway Tracts, Moncure Conway's personal pamphlet library; the Morris Tracts, donated to the library by Miss Morris in 1904; the National Secular Society's pamphlet library and others. The Conway Tracts were bound with additional ephemera, such as lecture programmes and handwritten notes.<br /><br />Please note that these digitised pamphlets have been edited to maximise the accuracy of the OCR, ensuring they are text searchable. If you would like to view un-edited, full-colour versions of any of our pamphlets, please email librarian@conwayhall.org.uk.<br /><br /><span><img src="http://www.heritagefund.org.uk/sites/default/files/media/attachments/TNLHLF_Colour_Logo_English_RGB_0_0.jpg" width="238" height="91" alt="TNLHLF_Colour_Logo_English_RGB_0_0.jpg" /></span>
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Conway Hall Library & Archives
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2018
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Conway Hall Ethical Society
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Blasphemia : A metrical essay
Creator
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Sherlock, Oliver
Description
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Place of publication: [s.l.]
Collation: 1 folded leaf ; 25 cm.
Notes: From the library of Dr Moncure Conway. Oliver Sherlock is pseud. for W. B. Colling.
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[s.n.]
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1871
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G5717
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Blasphemy
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<img src="http://i.creativecommons.org/p/mark/1.0/88x31.png" alt="Public Domain Mark" /><br /><span>This work (Blasphemia : A metrical essay), identified by </span><span><a href="https://conwayhallcollections.omeka.net/items/show/www.conwayhall.org.uk">Humanist Library and Archives</a></span><span>, is free of known copyright restrictions.</span>
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Blasphemy
Conway Tracts
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5bb77ea3ff2883669d9ec6faebab3286
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free Religious! association
PROCEEDINGS
AT THE
FOURTH ANNUAL MEETING
OF THE
FREE RELIGIOUS ASSOCIATION,
HELD IN BOSTON,
June 1 and 2, 1871.
BOSTON:
PRESS OF JOHN WILSON AND SON.
1871.
��7
CONTENTS.
Report .....................................................................................................
List of Officers............................................................................
.
Fourth Annual Report of the Executive Committee ....
5
7
8
SESSION'S IN' TREMONT TEMPLE.
iilorning Session.
Address of the President........................................................................ 19
Essay by jJohn Weiss.............................................................................22
Remarks by C. A. Bartol........................................................................ 43
„
,, Henry Ireson........................................................................ 45
„
,, William H. Spencer.................. (.................................... 46
,,
,, T. W. Higginson.............................
47
Afternoon Session.
Essay by William J. Potter................................................................... 51
Remarks by O. B. Frothingham............................................................... 67
,,
,, Lucretia Mott.................................................................... 67
,,
,, D. A. Wasson......................................................................... 69
,,
,, John L. Russell........................
69
,,
,, Dean Clarke......................................................................... 70
,,
,, Rabbi Guinzburg.......................................................................
SEbening Session.
Essay by Ol B. Frothingham.................................................................. 70
Remarks by William Denton................................................................. 83
,,
,, J. Vila Blake....................................................................... 84
,,
,, A. M. Powell....................................................................... 86
Constitution of the Free Religious Association
88
��REPORT.
The Free Religious Association held its Fourth Annual Meet
ing in Boston, on the 1st and 2d of June, 1871.
The opening session, for the transaction of business and for
addresses on the Report of the Executive Committee, was held in
the Parker Fraternity Hall, Thursday, June 1st, 7.30 p.m. ; the
President, Octavius B. Frothingham, in the chair.
The Record of the preceding Annual Meeting was read by the
Secretary, and accepted.
The President announced that the first business in order would
be the proposition, which had been advertised with the notices of
the meeting, to amend the Constitution so as to make five mem
bers of the Executive Committee constitute a quorum, — the
reason for the change being that, since it now requires a majority
of the Committee to make a quorum, and several members reside
in distant parts of the country, it is frequently found difficult to
secure the attendance of a sufficient number for the transaction
of business. The amendment, which appends to the third article
of the Constitution the words, “ Five members of the Executive
Committee shall constitute a quorum,” was put to vote and passed
unanimously.
Richard P. Hallowell, Treasurer of the Association, read his
Report ; by which it appeared that the receipts of the year (by
balance from last account, membership-fees and donations, sale
of publications, and proceeds from lectures) had been $2,355.59 ;
expenditures (for last Annual Meeting, Western Conventions,
Boston Lectures, publications and correspondence), $2,694.53 ;
�6
leaving a deficit, due the Treasurer from the Association, of
$338.94. Mr. Hallowell explained that a considerable portion
of this deficit belonged to the lecture account, and was guaranteed
by persons specially interested in the Lectures, but not yet paid.
The Report was accepted.
The Committee on the nomination of officers reported that they
proposed no change in the present Board, with the exception that
in place of Mr. Tiffany as Director, who wished to be released
on account of ill-health, they had put the name of Thomas W.
Higginson, and in place of Mr. Higginson as Vice-President they
had inserted the name of John T. Sargent, — it being quite
important that one of the Vice-Presidents should be a resident of
Boston. (Rowland Connor, one of the Vice-Presidents elected a
year ago, had already resigned his place on the Committee, having
removed to Milwaukie.)
At a later hour in the session the ballot on officers was taken,
and the Report of the Committee adopted as follows: —
�1
OFFICERS.
OCTAVIUS B. FROTHINGHAM........................ New York City.
ROBERT DALE OWEN.......................................New Harmony, Ind.
MARY C. SHANNON........................................... Newton, Mass.
JOHN T. SARGENT............................................Boston, Mass.
Semtarg.
WILLIAM J. POTTER........................ ....
New Bedford, Mass.
Assistant .Secretarg.
MISS HANNAH E. STEVENSON................... 19 Mt. Vernon Street,
Boston, Mass.
^Treasurer.
RICHARD P. HALLOWELL ............................. 98 Federal Street, Bos
ton, Mass.
^Directors.
ISAAC M. WISE................................................. Cincinnati, Ohio.
CHARLES K. WHIPPLE....................................... Boston, Mass.
MRS. EDNAH D. CHENEY.................................. Jamaica Plain, Mass.
FRANCIS E. ABBOT........................................... Toledo, Ohio.
JOHN WTEISS............................. ....
Watertown, Mass.
THOMAS W. HIGGINSON.................................. Newport, R.I.
The Annual Report of the Executive Committee was then read
by the Secretary.
�FOURTH ANNUAL REPORT OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE.
The Free Religious Association has now been four years in
existence, — a period already longer than was allowed for its career by
the prophecies of some of its enemies. We do not discover yet any signs
of the predicted early decadence. On the contrary, the past year, the opera
tions of which we here report, has been one of increased activity and special
encouragement. One of the Boston daily papers, in noticing the printed
pamphlet containing the proceedings of our last Annual Meeting, said,
“The Report gives evidence of a compact and lasting organization.” We
are confident that our Report of this year’s doings will strengthen this
evidence. Our field of work has been materially enlarged; and the receipts
of our treasury, increasing regularly each preceding year, have this last
year doubled in amount. True, our Treasurer, unfortunately, has to
report a deficit. But this is rather because no very vigorous special
measures were taken to raise the necessary sum, than because it could not
be raised. The Committee were confident that the members of the
Association would sustain them in carrying through successfully the pro
posed plan of operations for the year, and would supply the needed funds
as soon as the deficiency should become known. At the same time we
wish to say that the Committee would be relieved of much anxiety, and
could lay t'heir plans much more confidently and effectively, if their con
stituents would be more prompt and generous in their contributions. It
certainly should require no vigorous begging to secure the small sum of
money that this Association has thus far used each year. And the Com
mittee see how they could use a much larger sum to advantage, if it
should be intrusted to them.
But even if the Committee had been inactive, the Association might
still have reason to congratulate itself on the auspicious signs of the times.
So far from being the result of a transient impulse whicfh is soon to spend
itself, the Free Religious Association represents ideas and principles that
are among the most vital elements of the present age, and that are
every year gaining ascendency among thoughtful and practical people
throughout the civilized world. Unrestricted liberty of thought, the
�9
religious recognition of science, the direct application of religion to prob
lems of social and private life; spiritual fellowship on the basis not of
creed nor of alleged exclusive Revelation, but of common human aspira
tions after truth and virtue,—these surely are principles substantial
enough to give enduring vitality to any organization that shall be faithful
tn them. We might indeed specify one single feature of these general
ideas and principles, which of itself would furnish a sufficiently solid
foundation for an Association like this. We refer to the natural kinship
of the religions of the world, which is being historically and scientifically
established by the laborious research of such scholars as Max Muller, —
an idea which is gaining ground rapidly, and which must in time revolu
tionize the theology of Christendom. With this idea the Free Religious
Association from its origin has been in perfect line. And when to this
you add that it respects historic investigation of all kinds, that it is in
harmony with the progress of science, that it welcomes the largest and
finest culture, that the humane and philanthropic spirit of the age is also
one of its inspirers, that commerce and material enterprise are working
for it in opening the avenues by which nations and religions are to be
brought into a more intimate acquaintance and fellowship, — it is evident
not only that the Association has an ample and worthy field, but that many
instrumentalities are engaged in doing the work to which it is pledged.
What has been done by the Executive Committee the past year may
be summed up as follows : — PUBLICATIONS.
The usual Report of the Addresses and Discussions at our last Annual
Meeting has been published, making a pamphlet of one hundred and
twenty pages. From the nature of the subjects treated at that meeting,
this pamphlet is an excellent representation of the principles and objects
of the Association ; and our friends, who have occasion to answer inquiries
on this point, could hardly do better than to keep a supply of it on hand for
the benefit of inquirers. One address in the pamphlet, that of William
Henry Channing, on the Religions of China, was considered as having a
special interest in view of the present immigration of Chinese to this
country; and a separate edition of it was printed. A large portion of this
edition has been sent gratuitously to persons in public life who are in a
position to influence legislation with regard to the Chinese, — to members
of Congress, Editors, &c. More recently the Committee have had printed
in pamphlet form the article by Thomas Wentworth Higginson, on “ The
Sympathy of Religions;” first printed in “ The Radical.” This pamphlet
also makes a most excellent statement of one of the fundamental ideas of
2
�10
our Association. With these pamphlets added to those of preceding years ,
the Association at present possesses the following publications:—
Four Reports of Annual Meetings.
“Worship of Jesus,” by Samuel Johnson (published by aid of Association).
“ Reason and Revelation,” an Essay by W. J. Potter.
“ The Religions of China,” by W. H. Channing.
“ The Sympathy of Religions,” by T. W. Higginson.
Of the first Report, only a few copies remain; and calls for it can no
longer be supplied. The other three are yet on hand, and are still in
demand. The matter in them is mostly such that it does not grow old,
and many persons who begin their acquaintance- with the Association by
reading its last Report wish then to read those that have preceded it.
Under the head of publications last year, we announced that an arrange
ment had been made with Mr. F. E. Abbot, the Editor of the Toledo
“ Index,” by which a certain portion of that paper was devoted to the
special interests of the Free Religious Association, and edited by its
Secretary. This arrangement was harmoniously continued until the end
of the year 1870, and it is believed with advantage to the Association. It
was then abandoned, and in place of it what was deemed a better plan by
all concerned was substituted. The Association’s department was given
up, but officers and friends of the Association agreed to fill the same space
each week as editorial contributors. This they do in their individual
capacity merely, and not as officers of the Association ; and there were no
reason to note the fact here except to say that the Association has no
longer any official or special department in “ The Index.”
CONVENTIONS.
At our last Annual Meeting a resolution was passed recommending the
Executive Committee to take into consideration the question of holding
conventions, in the interest of free religious ideas, in different parts of the
country outside of Boston; and to arrange for such conventions, if they
should deem them practicable. This resolution received early and care
ful attention, and was finally referred to a Sub-committee with full power
to act in the matter. The result was that a series of three conventions
was arranged, and held in the West in the early part of last November.
For the convenience of speakers, who could not be long absent from their
regular posts of duty, the conventions were necessarily put close together
in time. But this was decided to be also an advantage from a public
point of view, since the meetings from this cause attracted more attention,
and the public impression was deepened. The points selected for the con
ventions were Cincinnati, Indianapolis, and Toledo. And at each of these
�11
places most interesting meetings, continuing two evenings and a day, were
held. The evening sessions were all attended by audiences large and
attentive. And the audiences at the sessions during the busier part of the
day were very respectable in numbers and not lacking in enthusiasm.
The opening session at each place was devoted to setting forth somewhat
specifically the principles and aims of the Free Religious Association.
At each of the other sessions some one practical question was considered,
bearing on the emancipation of religion from irrational dogma and degrad
ing superstition. The conventions were everywhere welcomed with gen
erous and hearty hospitality by local friends. They were all attended
by the President and Secretary of the Association, and by other members
of the Executive Committee ; and the Committee who had them specially
in charge were perfectly satisfied with the success of the experiment.
From what they saw and heard, they came to the conclusion that the West
is particularly open to the reception of the ideas which the Free Religious
Association represents. There are probably a hundred other places where
similar conventions could be held, and with the same success. On the
intervening Sunday between the conventions, two meetings were held by
the Secretary of the Association in Richmond, Ind., where large and
intelligent audiences gathered. If some of our lecturers could be spared
from other fields of labor for an extended tour through the Western States,
we are confident that great interest in our cause would be awakened and
great good achieved.
LECTURES.
Another enterprise, undertaken by the Executive Committee the past
year, was the management of the course of Sunday Afternoon Lectures in
Boston, now known as the “ Horticultural Hall Lectures.” These lect
ures had already been conducted by individual management for two
seasons. They had been widely reported in the newspapers of the country,
and had achieved a national reputation. Their‘agency in the circulation
of rational and liberal ideas seemed too good to be abandoned ; and, since
the individual managers did not wish to continue the responsibility longer,
the Committee had little hesitation in accepting the trust, — especially as
any funds that might be needed above what would be secured by sale of
tickets were guaranteed by private subscription. Ten lectures were given,
making a course equal, it is believed, in ability, variety, and interest to
those of preceding yearsi The audiences were large and more uniform
than at the previous courses ; and, had it not been for the fact of several
very inclement Sundays occurring in the series, it seems probable that the
course would have fully paid all expenses. There is little doubt that these
lectures, if continued, may be made self-supporting. It is a question
�however, whether, if the Association keep the management of them, it
should not be put into a condition to open them free, or nearly so, to the
public. There are many persons to whom these lectures would be daily
mental and spiritual sustenance, a vital element in their education and
life, who cannot afford to pay three or four dollars for the price of a
ticket. If some means could be provided to meet the wants of this class,
the object of these lectures'would certainly be better reached, as well as a
better example set of that equal brotherhood which it is one of the objects
of the Free Religious Association to promote. And if the plan of these
lectures could be enlarged, so as to extend perhaps through eight or nine
months of the year, and to admit of series of lectures on some specific topic
or for some specific class of people, — as lectures on science for working
men, — their usefulness might be still further increased.
RADICAL CLUBS.
One interesting fact of the year has been the formation of local free
religious associations, generally under the name of Radical Clubs, in sev
eral places through the country. These have no direct official connection
with this Association, and are only noted here as one of the signs of the
times. They have come, just as this Association from its origin has
declared they should come, out of local interest and needs ; and they vary
in their form and methods somewhat according to local demands. They
express, as they should, the free spontaneous sentiment of the communi
ties where they exist, and are not dependent for their sustenance on any
missionary subsidizing from abroad. At the same time these local organ
izations may become very efficient channels through which this Association
may communicate with the public, and are valuable aids in forwarding its
work.
CORRESPONDENCE.
The correspondence of the Association is still one of its most interesting
features, and that of this year indicates a growing attention throughout
the country to its principles and aims. Letters asking for our publica
tions, or enclosing a dollar for membership, or a larger donation, or making
some inquiry with regard to our objects and work, have come from all
sections of the Union, — from Alabama, Florida, Arkansas, Minnesota,
California, as well as from New England and New York. Our con
stituency, as shown by our correspondence, already extends through threequarters of the States. Not a few of the letters come from those who
are in connection, at least nominally, with so-called evangelical denomina
tions, but who are. believers in liberty, and are earnestly inquiring for the
�13
light of a more rational faith. And sometimes they reveal a strange
mixture of the elements in these denominations; as when a minister of
a Christian church in West Virginia, having, as he says, just attended a
conference of his sect where it was urged and resolved that the members
should individually devote themselves more zealously to the spread of
gospel truth, sends for a supply of our publications, and for any thoroughly
liberal and rationalistic tracts that we can procure, that he may distribute
them in his neighborhood, — believing, as he adds, that this is the kind of
“ gospel truth ” needed in this age.
Our correspondence abroad, also, discloses an increasing desire for
acquaintance with the Free Religious Association, and an increasing faith
in its capacity for usefulness. In England there are movements looking
toward the organization of similar societies, and a letter has been received
from one who is much interested in these attempts, suggesting co-operation
with us in certain forms of work, — as in the publication, in English, of
certain portions of Oriental religious books for popular distribution. It
may not be practical to do any thing of this kind at present, but this is a
hint of what may be.
It was stated at our last Annual Meeting that there was a prospect that
Keshub Chunder Sen, the native modern prophet of India, would visit
this country, and that your Committee were in correspondence with him,
earnestly urging him to carry this purpose into effect, and offering to
him the cordial hospitality of the members of this Association. Subse
quently he was invited also to give one of the lectures in the course last
winter at Horticultural Hall. But he was compelled to forego his hope
of coming to America. After his return to India, we received from him
the following letter: —
The Brahmo Somaj
of
India ; Calcutta,
26tA October, 1870.
owe you a hundred apologies for leaving your kind message
unanswered so long. In anticipation of your invitation, I had almost made up my
mind to visit America after making a short stay in England. But owing to illness, and
the urgent necessity of prolonging my stay in England, and cultivating a deeper
intercourse with the leading men of the place with a view to insure the success of
my mission, I was unfortunately compelled to abandon the idea. Nothing, I can
assure you, would have gladdened and encouraged me so much as a visit to your
great and glorious country; and I would surely have undertaken a voyage across
the Atlantic but for the above reasons. Should it please God, I may do so at some
future time. In the mean time accept my warmest thanks for your kind invitation,
and my cordial regards for you, the Eree Religious Association, and the whole body
of liberal thinkers in America. I am sure that, in the fulness of time, all the great
nations in the East and the West will unite and form a vast Theistic brotherhood;
and I am sure, too, that America will occupy a prominent place in that grand con
federation. Let us, then, no longer keep ourselves aloof from each otherj but coDear Brother, — I
�14
work with unity of heart, that we may supply each other’s deficiencies, strengthen
each other’s hands, and with mutual aid upbuild the House of God. Please take this
subject into serious consideration, and let me know if you have any suggestions to
make whereby a closer union may be brought about between the Brabmo Somaj
and the Free Religious Association, — between India and America, — and a definite
system of mutual intercourse and co-operation may be established between our
brethren here and those in the New World. Such union is desirable, and daily we
feel the need of it more and more. Let us sincerely pray and earnestly labor, in
order that it may be realized under God’s blessing in due time.
With brotherly love, I am ever yours,
To Wm. J. Potter,
Keshub Chunder Sen.
Secretary F. R. Assoc’n, America.
To this cordial and fraternal letter it was replied that, while the Free
Religious Association was not a church in the sense of the Brahmo Somaj,
and was not organized on any creed, even that of Theism, it was, never
theless, most heartily in sympathy with all efforts for religious emancipa
tion and reform, and most especially with this native effort in India,
which so finely illustrates the truth of one of our principles, that there is
substantial vitality in all religions ; and that, with this understanding of
the difference in our organizations, we could most earnestly reciprocate
the desire for a closer fellowship and co-operation. It was further sug
gested that intercourse by frequent correspondence, and a regular exchange
of publications, with, if it were possible, some arrangement for a larger
distribution of the publications of each organization in the country of the
other, might be the most practicable form of co-operation for the present.
RELATION OF THE ASSOCIATION TO SPECIFIC RELIGIONS.
The natural relationship which we of this Association bear to this native
reform in India leads us to say a word on the relation of the Association
to the specific religions in general ; and with this statement this Report
may fitly be brought to a close. There is considerable misconception in
the community, even among those who are not a little in sympathy with
the Association, as to its actual position on this point. Because the Free
Religious Association aims to do exact justice to àll the religions that
exist, or have ever existed; because it invites them, so far as is practica
ble, to come together upon one common platform, where each may state
its faith for itself, and each and all may be treated with fraternal respect
and courtesy ; because the Association emphasizes the underlying sym
pathies and agreements which, beneath all differences, are found to exist
among the religions ; because it asks whether the natural development of
these common elements will not gradually wear away the differences and
antagonisms, neutralize specific and exclusive claims, and bring mankind
�15
into universal spiritual unity and fellowship on the basis of freedom, —
because of all this, some persons seem to think that the Association has
seriously set itself to the task of striking out the eighteen centuries of
Christian history, and of resuscitating the ancient religions; or that, if
it has not attempted this, it has at least proposed to take the things that
are true and good in all the religions, and, mechanically combining them,
produce a new religion. It may be confidently said, we think, that the
Free Religious Association has more wisdom than either of these repre
sentations of its objects would imply.- It is reported of the quaint English
Platonist, Thomas Taylor, that he excited the alarm of his landlady and
lost his lodgings, because that good Christian housekeeper discovered that
he was making preparations to .sacrifice a bull to Jupiter in her back
parlor. But, with all the variety of faith and freedom of utterance
among the members of the Free Religious Association, we have not
heard that old Thomas Taylor has any disciple among us; and we believe
¿hat the orderly housekeepers of the established religions, of whatever
name, may dismiss all anxiety, in this particular. And as to the criticism
that we propose to select the truths of all the religions, and mechanically
make a new religion of the compound, it is sufficient to say in reply that,
if there is one thing which members and officers of this Association have
declared more emphatically than another, it is that religions are not made,
but grow,— that there is a natural historic order of religious develop
ment, a steady evolution of religious ideas from certain primitive germs,
and that the special religions are so many phases and stages of this
progress, brought about by the different conditions under which develop
ment has taken place. We refer to the old religions, endeavoring to do
exact historical justice to each, in order to set forth the proof of their
natural relationship to each other, and their descent from substantially
the same primitive germs. But this is not to affirm that the order of
development is to be reversed, nor that any of the religions, especially
the latest, can be spared from the historic line. But neither, on the other
hand, do we assume that the order of development has reached its ulti
mate, — that the religious sentiment has historically exhausted itself, and
Spoken the final word of absolute religion. On the contrary, we would
assert rather that the religious consciousness is as vitally organic to-day
as it has ever been; and that, whatever changes are coming in the relig
ious condition of the world, these changes are to be brought about by no
mechanical, eclectic combination of the virtues of past religions, but
are to be the product of regular organic growth and progress. The
Universal Religion, that spiritual unity and fellowship of which we in this
Association sometimes speak, is certainly to grow, just as much as the
special religions have grown. These religions, after having served some
�16
specific purposes in the history of the race, will, as it seems probable,
gradually be absorbed by a process of vital assimilation into the religion
of universal unity. And we have come to that epoch when there appear
very marked signs of progressive movement in several of the world’s
* great religions on converging lines towards a common centre of faith and
fellowship. It is this grand movement of the religious consciousness, to
which the Free Religious Association (in this feature of its work of which
we now speak) would strive in some way to give voice. The Association
does not expect to shape the movement: it does not profess to organize
it. It rather is shaped and organized by the movement. It simply
desires in some way to represent it, to give it utterance, to remove artificial
barriers, dogmatic and ecclesiastic, in order that it may have a freer
opportunity and a more natural progress.
Such, friends, is a statement of our principles so far as, this year, a
statement seems called for in our Report, and such the simple record of
your Committee’s.doings. The record seems brief; yet we are confident
the work has not been without good and lasting effect. Give your Com
mittee the means, and it can show larger performance. And now, as we
come together again in our Annual Meeting, let us renew our vows of
zeal, fidelity, and generosity to the cause which is here committed to our
hands.
Voted, That the Report be accepted, and its subject-matter be
open for remarks.
The President spoke of some of the practical difficulties in the
way of such an Association as this, so large and free in its scope ;
but explained how they were gradually being overcome. He also
alluded to some of the misinterpretations and criticisms of its
objects and principles. Some persons objected that it was not
called the “ Free Christian Association; ” but the term “ free
Christian ” would be as much out of place as “ free Mohammedan ”
or “ free Buddhist: ” religion was the larger word. And this
Association wished to emphasize the fact that there is common
ground under all the religions, and did not propose to set up the
special exclusive authority of any; therefore it did not, as an
organization, call itself after any of the specific religious names.
Neither was the Association, as some seemed to think, a Boston
' or New England clique. It was American and democratic. Its
ideas were adapted to the masses of the people. Its officers were
selected from different parts of the country ; and he suggested
�17
that it would be well to increase the number of Vice-Presidents
so as to give room for a larger number of ^representative names
from different localities.
Mrs. E. D. Cheney made some remarks on the enlarging,
liberalizing influence of one of the ideas of the Association, —
that of the “ Sympathy of Religions,” — and hoped- that the
means* might before long be provided for putting such ideas into
a popular form for the benefit of the class who had not the time
or culture for reading the original books. She spoke also of the
great importance of educating the so-called working-classes into
rational views of religion, as a preventive against violent revolu
tion. The late outrages in Paris, in one Of their features, showed
a tremendous reaction against the ecclesiastical system, and the
latent power of revolt that exists in the human mind against the
priestly authority. If this Association could open a free passage
for this rebellious feeling, so that it should find utterance in love
and joy and a rational reverence for truth, instead of violence and
bloodshed, it would accomplish one of its highest objects.
Rabbi Guinzburg, of the Boston Hebrew Synagogue, spoke
of the freedom, both actual and ideal, that belonged to Judaism,
maintaining that the Free Religious Association was the natural
result of principles which Judaism had taught. God had made
man in the image of Himself, — not the Jew only, but man, —
and so the Divine likeness was found in all humanity, the same
elements of reason and intelligence in all races and religions. In
like manner the moral law, as embodied in the Mosaic command
ments, was not for the Jew alone : it was a law for man; in other
words, conscience was another of the universal elements of human
consciousness. And in these common elements of intelligence
and conscience he found the grounds of human fellowship and
brotherhood ; hence he rejoiced in the Free Religious Association,
and could join it and work with it.
Mr. Oliver, of Boston, spoke of the great value of the name,
“ Free Religious Association,” and hoped it would never be
changed.
Mr. T. W. Higginson followed in a few remarks on the impor
tance of continuing the kind of work that had been undertaken
the past year in holding the Western Conventions, and urged
upon the Committee the advantages of having one convention,
3
�18
before the next Annual Meeting, in New York City. Mr. Hig
ginson’s remarks w6re indorsed by Mr. A. M. Powell, of New
York. Mr. Frothingham spoke of the difficulties of holding a
meeting in New York, but thought they might be successfully
overcome the present year.
Mrs. Cheney hoped that the suggestion made by. Mr.t Froth
ingham as to increasing the number of Vice-Presidents would be
adopted ; and, on her motion, it was voted that the Executive
’ Committee prepare such an amendment to the Constitution, to be
acted upon next year.
,
Voted, That the Chair appoint a Committee on the nomination
of officers for next year, and an Auditing Committee. Aaron M.
Powell, Mrs. Maria E. McKaye, and Abram W. Stevens were
appointed as a Nominating Committee; and Cornelius Welling
ton and Henry Damon, as Auditing Committee.
Adjourned to meet in Tremont Temple, Friday, 10 a.m.
�SESSIONS IN TREMONT TEMPLE.
MORNING SESSION.
The Convention assembled according to adjournment in Tre
mont Temple, Friday morning, at ten o’clock. The officers were
on hand at the hour ; bût, owing to the noise in the Hall from the
people continuing to come in, the meeting was not called to order
till 10.25. (At eleven o’clock the large hall was well filled, and
even larger audiences were present at the later sessions.)
The exercises were introduced by a brief preliminary address
from Mr. Frothingham, the President. Speaking first of the
gradual development of the ideas and work of the Association
and of the changes which had been made from year to year in the
programme of the Annual Meeting, exhibiting the large breadth
and variety of phase covered by the principles of the Association,
he proceeded substantially as follows : —
ADDRESS OF THE PRESIDENT.
The purposes and principles of the Free Religious Association by this
time are, or ought to be, well understood by all who care to under-,
stand them : that we hold to religion ; that we believe in the sympathy of
religions ; that we are cordial to all forms of religion and hostile to none ;
that we are opposed to all sectarianism in religion, to all ecclesiasticism,
to the very spirit and form of dogmatism ; that we aim at getting at the
secret of religions, at the kernel and heart of the great faiths that have
ruled the world ; that we wish to build now into the foundations of human
nature ; that we wish to reconcile religion with all the other great interests
of life, and to show that they are one ; that we wish to prove and to make
perfectly clear to all men the identity of religion and science, religion
and philosophy, religion and literature, religion and art, religion and
music,—nay, the perfect compatibility — may I not also say the identity?
— of religious life and principle with all the great stirring activities that
impel men to build themselves up into grander and nobler forms of civiliza
tion. To touch all these questions ; to touch them firmly ; to touch them
�20
reverently ; to speak of them positively ; and to use them all, not in any
degree or in any sense for the destruction of any thing that is good or of
any thing that is true, but for the culture and ripening of all that is true
and good, — this, it is perfectly understood by all who care to understand
us at all, is our deliberate aim and purpose and resolution.
And so to-day we adopt still another form of address. We are trying
to get closer and closer to our central fact. We are seeking to bring our
guns to bear more directly upon those great obstacles, which in our view
stand in the way of the reconciliation of religion with all these great
interests and supreme facts of life. Therefore this morning we propose
to throw down this problem, — a problem not of speculative interest
mainly or largely, but of public interest, of intellectual interest, of literary
interest, of practical interest, — the question of the relation between
Religion and Science, which are coming face to face with each other in
broad and long lines that cover acres and acres of territory, setting front
to front the thinkers and the feelers, the thinkers and the believers ; and we
wish to make those two great classes shake hands. In the afternoon we
throw down this problem, — that religion does not rest on the authority
of any single person. We throw down the problem of Jesus, for rev
erent and frank and generous discussion. In the evening we come face
to face with those two great influences of our time, as of all time, Dogma
tism and Superstition ; and we shall try to get our thought uttered on
that matter. The opening essays, you will understand and will allow,
are carefully prepared by gentlemen selected for the purpose. They are
meant to be thoughtful, intellectual, and as thorough discussions of the
questions as the time will admit. The discussions that follow are in
tended to develop the same subjects under more popular forms of appli
cation and address, with a view of interesting a larger number of people.
We must have an intellectual principle: we wish it to be understood
of all men that we stand upon ideas, that we believe in culture, that we
are ready to justify ourselves with thinkers, and have beneath us a
rational basis of thought and philosophy. But we do not wish to end
there. We are not simply a body of littérateurs ;■ we’are not simply a
company of clergymen in the pulpit or out of the pulpit ; we are not a
little clique of writers, of speculators, of closet philosophers ; we are not
a dainty, finespun set of men who amuse ourselves and hope to entertain
society with a few lucubrations about the tremendous realities of faith.
We mean business. The Free Religious Association means to address
itself to the common mind and to the common heart and the common will
and the common interest of the world. I believe, our constituency
generally believes, that our movement is intended to be, and will event
ually become, a great popular movement. We expect to get the sym
�21
pathies of the working classes of people. If it were not that we felt that
the times demand the emancipation of the working mind of this country
from all sorts of dogmatism, ecclesiasticism, formalism, ritualism, super
stition, we should hardly have undertaken a movement like this,.formid
able as it is in its burdens, formidable as it is in its toil. No : we wish to
put this thing home to the people; and we confidently expect, when our
methods are perfected and we can work according to our minds, such a
rally from the earnest mind and the resolute purpose of the -common
people of America as no existing sect commands. And we shall not be
set aside from this expectation: we shall say we are disappointed and
defeated if we do not in time hear a popular echo to our words. We
mean humanity : we are interested in the laboring man, the laboring
woman; and we are interested in developing every spark of intellect, of
will, of purpose, that exists in the body of our American communities,
so that there will begin to blaze before long a great burning fire of popu
lar enthusiasm for a faith that is free, rational, and humane.
I tell you, friends, there is a feeling — I know it living in New
York; people in the West, and here in the East, know the same thing
— there is a feeling of deep dissatisfaction with the present state of the
religious world in America. People are beginning to apply to their
religion the same liberty that builds up their politics and their literature.
There is a deep-seated discontent. It breaks out in words. It breaks
out in resolutions. It shows itself in the desertion of the churches. It
shows itself in the abandonment of the sacraments. It shows itself in
the neglect of the old sanctities. It shows itself, too, in distant, unintelli
gent murmurings and mutterings, that threaten something like a revolu
tion. And to anticipate this, to discharge the threatening clouds of their
most formidable shocks of lightning, we come forward to bridge over the
chasm between the old and the new; to offer a larger sympathy, a grander
hope, a more generous basis of faith, to the thinkers, doubters, disbelievers, sceptics, and deniers of our age. This is but a beginning.- We
are feeling our way gradually. I ask your allowance: judge us not by
what we have done in the past, judge us by what we purpose and hope
to do in the future. What we have done I could stand here and tell you
of, if I had the time and this were the place now. It has been a great deal
more than it seems, and the excess of result over the visible means em
ployed convinces me, and convinces us all, that we have struck a key
note, that we have awakened a response; that we are on a trail over
which thousands and thousands of men and women are moving, and that the
intelligent word alone is needed to crystallize and bring together in vigor
ous, organic fornl the chaotic elements that now seem distributed and
scattered over society.
*
�22
The President closed his remarks by introducing John Weiss
as the Essayist to open thé morning subject. Mr. Weiss pre
faced his reading by saying that he had written altogether too
much for the occasion, but would make selections from his manu
script, and ask that the address might not be judged as a whole
until printed entire in the Report.
ESSAY BY JOHN WEISS.
Religion and Science.
I am to speak upon the attitude of Science towards Religion. But
this subject opens into so many quarters of thought, some of which
presume a technical knowledge not possessed by me, that I can only
hope, by selecting my topics, to furnish some suggestions towards any dis
cussion that may follow. A thorough treatment of this interesting subject,
which is beginning to attract the attention of all minds that are more or
less competent to deal with it, involves more time and more respect for
details, more personal and experimental observation, than- any morning
platform can furnish. I lately heard of a saying of Professor Agassiz,
that the amateur reader of scientific discoveries never actually possessed
the facts that are described : they belong only to the observer, who
felt them developing and dawning into his knowledge with a rapture of
possession that seems to share the process of creation. To that just
remark I add my conviction that the practised observer does not always
thoroughly apprehend and calculate the drift of the facts which he pro
cures. Still, a mere reader of science, however receptive his intellect
may be, or inclined to scientific methods, is not in a position to speak
with authority upon various points which emerge from the controversy
that now prevails between the two parties of Natural Evolution of Forces
and Natural Development of Divine Ideas ; for thus I propose to state
the matter in hand.
One party may be said to derive all the physical and mental phenomena
of the world from germs of matter that collect forces, combine to build
structures and increase their complexity, establish each different order of
creatures by their own instinctive impulse, and climb at length through
the animal kingdom into the human brain, where they deposit thought,
expression, and emotion. At no point of this process of immense duration
need there be a divine co-operation, because the process is supposed to
have been originally delegated to a great ocean of germs : they went into
action furnished for every possible contingency, gifted in advance 'with
the whole sequence from the amoeba, or the merest speck of germinal
matter, to a Shakspearian moment of Hamlet, or a Christian moment of
�23
the Golden Rule. Consequently, ideas are only the impacts of accumulating sensations upon developing brains; an intellectual method is only
the coherence of natural phenomena, and the moral sense is nothing but a
carefully hoarded human experience of actions that are best to be repeated
, for the comfort of the whole. The imagination itself is but the success
of the most sensitive brains in bringing the totality of their ideas into a
balanced harmony that corresponds to the Nature that furnished them.
The poet’s eye glancing from earth to heaven is only the earth and sky
condensing themselves into the analogies of all their facts, in native inter
play and combination, wearing the terrestrial hues of midnight, morn,
and eve. The epithet divine, applied to a possible Creator, can bear no
other meaning than unknown; and the word spiritual is equivalent to
cerebral. Spirit is the germinal matter arranged at length, after a deal
of trouble, into chains of nerve-cells that conspire to deposit all they have
picked up on their long journey from chaos to man. So that when their
living matter becomes dead matter, their deposit drops through into non
entity ; and the word Immortality remains only to denote facts of terrestrial
duration, such as the life of nations and the fame of men with the heaviest
and finest brains. If a brain-cell discontinues its function, existence can
not continue.
The other party, which inclines to a theory that creation is a development
of divine ideas, is very distinctly divided into those who believe that this
development took a gradual method and used natural forces that are every
where upon the spot, and those who prefer to claim a supernatural incom
ing of fresh ideas at the beginnings of genera and epochs. The former
believe that the Divine Mind accompanies the whole development, and
secures its gradualism; or, that the universe is a single, unbroken expres
sion of an ever-present Unity. The latter believe that the expression
can be enhanced, broken in upon by special acts that do not flow from
previous acts, but are only involved in the ideas which the previous acts
contained; so that there is a sequence of idea, but not of actual creative
evolution out of one form into another. The former think that they find
in the marks of slow gradation from simple to complex forms, both of
physical and mental life, the proof that a Creator elaborates all forms out
of their predecessors, by using immense duration of time, but never for a
moment deserting any one of them, as if it were competent to do it alone;
so that the difference of species, men, and historical epochs, is only one of
accumulation of ideas, and not of their interpolation. The latter think
that the missing links of the geological record, the marked peculiarities
of races and periods, the transcendent traits of leading men, are proofs
that the Creator does not work by natural evolution, but by deliberate
insertion of fresh ideas to start fresh creatures. One party recognizes
the supernatural in the whole of Nature, because the whole embodies a
*
�24
divine ideal. The other party is not reluctant to affirm the same, but
thinks it essential to the existence of Nature to import special efforts of
the ideal, which are equivalent to special creations : so that the naturalist
gets on with nothing but unity and gradàtion ; the supernaturalist cannot
take a step without plurality and interference.
What are the opinions entertained by Naturalism upon the origin of
ideas, the moral sense, the spiritual nature ?
Naturalism itself here splits. One side borrows the method of natural
evolution of forces so far as to derive all the contents of the mind from the
experiences of mankind as they accumulated and systematized themselves
in brains ; and when further questions are put as to whether there be an
independent origin for a soul, and a permanent continuance for it, —
whether there be an original moral sense that appropriates social experi
ences, and gives a stamp of its own latent method to them,— the answers
are deferred, because it is alleged that Science has not yet put enough
facts into the case to support a judicial decision.
But another camp is forming upon the field of Naturalism. Its follow
ers incline to believe that all human and social experience started from a
latent finite mind, distinct from the structure that surrounded it ; and that
the movement of evolution was twofold, one side of it being structural
and the other mental, both strictly parallel, moving simultaneously in
consequence of a divine impulse that resides at the same moment in the
physical’and mental nature, — an impulse that accumulated into a latent
finite mind as soon as a structure appropriate to express it accumulated ;
that the history of mankind has been a mutual interplay of improving
circumstances and developing intelligence, but that the first step was
taken by the latent mind, just as the first step in creating any thing must
have been taken by a divine mind ; and that the last steps of perfected
intelligence reproduce the original method and purposes of a Creator who
imparted to man this tendency to reproduce them. In this latent tendency
all mental phenomena lay packed, or nebulous, if you please ; or it was
germinal mentality, if you prefer the term ; or inchoate soul-substance.
The term is of little consequence, provided we notice the possibility of
something tb begin human life with beside the structure that was elabo
rated out of previous creatures.
We know that the human brain repeats, during the period of its fœtal
existence, some of the forms of the vertebrata that preceded it. We also
know that when any organ of man’s body is diseased, a degeneration takes
place that repeats the state of the same organ in the lower animals. The
secretion is no longer normal, but recurs to a less perfect kind. So we
4 notice that in degeneration of the brain some idiotic conditions occur that
repeat with great exactness the habits and temper of monkeys and other
animals. The descending scale of degeneration, no less than the ascend
�25
ing effort of development, touches at animal stages, and incorporates
them in the human structure. It would require a uniformity of degen
erating conditions sustained through an immense duration of time to
degrade a human structure into any actual animal form, if, indeed, such a
retrogradation be not forbidden by the mental and moral superiority which
any human structure must have attained. Still, the physical and mental
diseases of mankind are significant allusions : they mimic, as it were, some
stages of structural development.
When Dr. Howe visited the isolated cottages for the insane at Gheel
in Belgium, he noticed that the noisy .ones (les crieurs, the howlers) could
be heard in the dusk crying like animals, but-clearly human animals;
and he says, “ Is it only fancy, or were men once mere animals, shouting
and crying aloud to each other; and is this habit of shattered maniacs
another proof that all organized beings tend to revert to the original type,
like that reversion of neglected fruit tpwards the wild crab ? ”
The popular language notices this tendency to deterioration in the
tricks of over-sensual men: we^say a man is a hog, a goat, a monkey.
Some cunning facial traits remind us irresistibly of the fox, others of the
rat. These resemblances were the unconscious elements in the Egyptian
theory of metempsychosis, or the retrogression of evil men into the
animals whose special tricks were like their own.
We cannot help seeing that Nature slowly felt her way towards us,
built her clay models, reframed her secret thought, committed it to brains
of increasing complexity, till man closed the composing period, and began
to blab of his origin.
But how did he begin to do that ? Was his social life a physical result
of the sympathies of gregarious animals, who defend and feed each other,
protect and rear their young, dig burrows, spread lairs, and weave a nest ?
That, it is replied, was only the structural and physical side of something
that had been preparing to step farther. It could not have furnished the
germinal conditions of speech, thought, and conscience. Was it be
cause the fox was cunning, that man learned to circumvent his enemies;
because the elephant was sagacious, that he undertook to ponder; because
the monkey was curious, that he began to pry into cause and effect;
because the bee built her compact cell, that he grew geometrical ? The
answer made is, that these structural felicities lay on the road between a
Creator who geometrized, and a creature who learned to see that it was
so, and called it Geometry. At the end of that road is a mind that under
takes to interpret whence the road started, and how it was laid out. If
you prefer to derive that latent mind from these previous states of animal
intelligence, it does not damage the presumption in favor of independent
mind. Estimate the animals to be as sagacious as you please, until they
4
�26
barely escape stepping over into the domain which our reflective words
have appropriated, — such as memory, perception, adaptation, causality,
also a rudiment of conscience. Even be surprised»by traces of selfdevotion, like that in the “ heroic little monkey, who braved his dreaded
enemy in order to save the life of his keeper; or in the old baboon, who,
descending from the mountains, carried away in triumph his young com
rade from a crowd of astonished dogs.” Say, if you will, as Rama
said in the Ramayana, when a vulture died in defending his mistress: “ Of
a certainty there are amongst the animals many good and generous
beings, and even many heroes. For my part, I do not doubt that this
compassionate bird, who gave his life for my sake, will be admitted into
Paradise.” Believe, if you are a dog-fancier, that in “ that equal sky ”
your faithful dog will bear you company. It would infringe upon my
sense of personality no more than to have him trotting by my side in this
world. Here he is altogether unconscious how my moral sense sets store
by and idealizes his instinctive service, and how I flatter him with imputa
tions of my own self. He licks the hand^that extends to him a mood of
the Creator’s appreciation of fidelity.
But grant that the Creator derived the latent human mind by gradual- ‘
ism out of all kinds of animal anticipations. The mind thus derived
reaches to a distinction from physical structure, and to a subordination^
it to ideal purposes, at that point of development where the man can say,
1 am; that phrase is an echo against the walls of creation of the first
creative fiat of Him who is I Am. When man finds language to express
his sense of personal consciousness, God overhears the secret of his own
condition told into all the ears he has created by all the tongues of his
own spiritual essence. The mouse cannot squeak it, nor the elephant
trumpet it; the sparrow cannot cheep and twitter it, nor can the ape
chatter his anticipation that hqjf is 'about to be liberated into speech and
personal identity. All the herds of the animals furnish the physical
structure of man with the devices of their strength and instinct, but they
have no personal freedom to contribute. A school of whales will yield
so many barrels of oil to feed the midnight lamps of thinkers who chase
the absent sun with surmises concerning a light that never sets.
Certainly it must be true that the physical and chemical forces which
are involved in acts of creation cannot suggest to any parts of creation
the previous laws of the Creator. We say thele forces reach the felicity
of making a man: if this be so, they have made something that is differ
ent from their own nature. Man himself betrays this difference as soon
as he begins to establish science upon universal laws: it is a proof that
he is not only a part of creation, in the natural order, but also the member
of a spiritual order, by virtue of which he attains slowly to conceptions
*
�27
*
of the laws that made him, including the chemical functions of his
various organs. Which of all our secretions could explain themselves ?
After they have discharged all their duty of nutriment and defecation,
. they have reached the end of their tether. Could the pancreatic juice,
by going into partnership with the liver, kidneys, and stomach, succeed in
explaining the manner of its secretion, and how it pours into the duode
num? Can the blood, which is the expression to which these lower
functions reach, lift to the brain a report of the way it grew to be red,
Mid of the use of the white corpuscles ? Do the countless nerve-cells
that weave their telegraphic circuits through the brain — to which every
organ sends its message, and receives thence its reply — convert these sen
sations into something that is not nerve-cell, that is not gray or fibrous
matter; do they lose their identity and become deduction, wit, imagina
tion, and synthetic thought ? When you can prove that germinal matter
made itself, you will be in a condition to show that matter interprets itself.
Dor that is what man does: he interprets not only the matter of his own
private structure, but of all organic and inorganic forms. Does matter
arm the eyes it makes with the telescope and microscope to overcome its
own extension and density ?' What is it that calculates the weights of
the planets, and records the relative ratios of their movements, and an
nounces new planets before they have been seen? Something kindred
with the intellect that preconceived the existence of that universe of
germs which becomes function, substance, form, and force. “ When we
See daily how all created things hasten to fall in with the logic of the
best thinkers, and to crystallize along the lines which they draw, we know
that such lines are drawn parallel with divine ideas, and that science is
made in the image of a Creator.”
This position of theistic Naturalism entitles it not to be afraid of all
the scientific facts that can be produced. «If Mr. Darwin could prove to
morrow that we have descended from an anthropoid ape that tenanted the
boundless waste of forest branches, we should as cheerfully accept our
structure created out of dust in that form as in any other. There is
dignity in dust that reaches any form, because it eventually betrays a
farming power, and ceases to be dust by sharing it. I am willing to
have it shown that I travel with a whole menagerie in my cerebellum: *
your act of showing it to me shows that neither you nor I are members
0>f that menagerie. We are its feeders, trainers, and interpreters. We
act God’s part towards it, as he does upon the scale of zones and conti4 nents. In us, in fact, he improves upon his natural action by bringing
all his dumb creatures under one roof, where he enjoys the benefit of
knowing that his motive in creating them is understood and delighted in;
so that though saurians are out of date, and he no longer has the joy of
�28
making the mammoth and aurochs, we rehearse the ancient raptures for
him, and preserve them in our structures.
“ Thus He dwells in all,
From life’s minute beginnings, up at last
To man, — the consummation of this scheme
Of being, the completion of this sphere
Of life; whose attributes had here and there
Been scattered o’er the visible world before,
Asking to be combiiied — dim fragments meant
To be united in some wondrous whole —
Imperfect qualities throughout creation,
Suggesting some one creature yet to make —
Some point where all those scattered rays should meet
Convergent in the faculties of man.”
“ Man, once descried, imprints for ever
His presence on all lifeless things : the winds
Are henceforth voices, in a wail or shout,
A querulous mutter, or a quick, gay laugh —
Never a senseless gust now man is born.”
“ So in man’s self arise
August anticipations, symbols, types
Of a dim splendor ever on before,
In that eternal circle run by life.”
I submit to you the doubt whether germinal matter, even if it be called
Protoplasm, and then re-baptized as the individual, Robert Browning,
could have composed those lines which contain prevision of the whole drift
of modern science. Could nerve-cells, nourished by roast meat, revel in
those “ august anticipations ” of a state and attainment that depend upon
a continuance of our life ?
We need be afraid of nothing in- heaven or earth, whether dreamt of
or not in our philosophy. It is a wonder to me that 'scholars and clergy
men are so skittish about scientific facts. I delight, for instance, in the
modern argument which reproduces and systematizes the ancient fireworship of the Persian, by showing that the sun’s atmosphere contains
* all the stuffs of the solar system, and is its God whose vibrating emanations
wake all things to a morning of living. The more possibilities you
attribute to the sun, the more exhaustive you allege its creative power to
be, to the extent, if you please, of sending the fine ether which courses
through the brain-cells, the more correspondent to the solar nature you
show that all life-action may be, — the more you help me to my belief in a
latent mind as the first term of human existence. You have made that
'fluent and wallowing sun a solid stepping-stone in the great river of
�29
phenomena, and it takes me across dry-shod, with not the smell of its
fire upon my garments, — takes me directly to a Cause for something so
glorious, for such a mobile and flaming minister to all things. On the
way toward that Cause, if I choose, I can step to suns more distant, each
of which is the life-centre of its system and the distributor of germs;
but though this pathway may stretch to the crack of doom expected by
the theologian, I shall find at the end of it something that sands the floor
of heaven thick with suns. Something; not another sun, but suns’ Father.
I started with an idea of Cause, and now I find the reason why I did,
because nothing is uncaused. I get justification for using the term; for
it appears to be the language used at length by One who can no longer be
content that his heavens should have no sound, and that their voice
should not be heard. Latent mind first betrayed its presence on the earth
by beginning to grope from effects to causes, to account for things. Thus
the mind, like a weak party of soldiers separated from its base by for
midable streams, has slowly pontooned its way back to the main Cause by
successive discoveries of causes. It is recognized afar off, it is welcomed,
and rushes with the hunger of long absence into the arms of comradeship.
It does not disturb me to be told that the mind has no innate ideas;
that, in fact, the entity called mind is a result of the impressions which
the senses gather from Nature, a body of sifted perceptions ; that all our
emotions started in the vague sympathy that the first men had for each
other when they found themselves in company; that a sense of justice is
not native to the mind, but only a consequence of the efforts of men to
get along comfortably in crowds, with the least amount of jostling; that
the feeling of chastity has no spiritual derivation, but was slowly formed
in remote ages by observation of the pernicious effects of promiscuous
living; that, in short, all the mental states which we call intuitions should
be called digestions from experience. For, supposing this theory to be
the one that will eventually account for all mental phenomena, why need
one care how he grew into a being who throbs with the instantaneous
purpose of salutary ideas, with the devotion of his thought and conscience
to the service of mankind, with a ravishing sense of harmony, and pro
portion that breaks into his symphony and song ? When a man reaches
the point of being all alive, thrilling to his finger-tips with all the nerves
a world can contribute, shall he distress himself because, upon examining
his genealogy, he discovers no aristocrat, but a plebeian, for his ancestor ?
If, in fact, he should discover something that had fallen to the convention
ality of being an aristocrat, it would, as the world goes, breed a’suspicion
that something previous had maintained the dignity of being a plebeian.
Manhood ennobles all ancestors, and they enjoy princely revenues in its
vitality. Must I make myself miserable because I am told that for nine
4
�30
months of my existence I was successively a fish, a frog, a bird, a rabbit,
a monkey, and that my infancy presented strong Mongolian characteristics ?
This, then, was the path to the human mind, that outswims all fishes in a
sea where no fish can live, that leaps with wit and analogy more agile
than frogs or kangaroos, that travels by aerial routes to spaces where no
bird’s wing could winnow. So be it, if it be so. I do not care for the path
when I come in sight of the mansion of love and beauty that has been
prepared for me. Its windows are all aglow with “ an awful rose of
dawn.” What delicacy of sentiment dr imagination can be desecrated
because barbarian ancestors felt like brutes or fancied like lunatics ? Can
the find’s majestic conception of a divine plan of orderly and intelligent
development be unsphered and brutalized because the first men felt the
cravings of causality more faintly than the pangs of hunger? Causality
has reached its coronation-day: its garment of a universe is powdered
with galaxies and nebulae, suns glitter on its brow, the earth is its footstool,
its sceptre God’s right hand. You cannot mortify or attaint this king by
reminding it of days spent in hovels and squalor, hiding from the treason
of circumstances, sheltered and fed precariously by savages. Would you
unseat him ? Then annihilate a universe.
• This latent tendency to discover cause rescues the first beginnings of
the human soul from any materialism that would deny its independent
existence. It provides the human structure with a tenant, who improves
it as his circumstances become more flattering, until both together frame
one complete convenience. We do not require a theory of innate ideas
to establish this soul upon earth and set it going. All we require is
the theory of innate tendency, of latent directions, of inchoate ideas, that
pervade this germinal soul-substance just as the divine ideas pervaded
primitive matter. I conceive that our mental method and our moral sense
were possibilities of soul-germs, but that experience stimulated them into
improving action and expression, till at length our idea of sequence and
origin, and our sense of right and wrong, have become normal conditions
of intelligence. Why not say, then, that they are at last intuitive ? But
it is chiefly important to accept them as essential elements of a human
person, without regard to the method of their derivation. For derivation
is not in itself fatal to the independence of the thing derived. It is not
among genera and species : why should it be among personal ideas ?
People do not like to have their conscience derived from gradual discov
eries of acts that turned out to be the most useful or the most sympathetic,
nor to feel that they have no inner guide but this inherited succession of
selfish experiences. And, indeed, the theory does not account for all the
facts. It is unable to give any satisfactory explanation of the moral con
dition of such men as Woolman and John Brown; of any brakeman or
*
�engineer who coolly puts himself to death to save a train ; of Arnold of
Winkelried who “ gathered in his breast a sheaf of Austrian spears,”
and felt Swiss liberty trample over him and through the gap.
This theory, that the moral sense was slowly deposited by innumerable
successions of selfish experiences, could make nothing of the story lately
told of the way a little girl was rescued, who had “ wandered on to the
track of the Delaware Railroad as a freight train of nineteen cars was
approaching. As it turned the sharp top of the grade, opposite St. Geor
ges, the engineer saw the child for the first time, blew ‘ Down brakes,’
and reversed the engine. But it was too late to slacken its speed in time;
and the poor baby got up, and, laughing, ran to meet it. 11 told the con
ductor,’ says the engineer, ‘ if he could jump off the engine, and, running
ahead, pick the child up before the engine reached her, he might save her
life, though it would risk his own ; which he did. The engine was within
one foot of the child when he secured it, and they were both saved. I
would not run the same risk of saving a child again by way of experiment
for all Newcastle County, for nine out of ten might not escape. He took
the child to the lane, and she walked to the house, and a little girl was
coming after it when we left.’ The honest engineer, having finished his
day’s run, sits down the next morning and writes this homely letter to the
father of the child, ‘ in order that it may be more carefully watched in
future,’ and thanking God ‘ that himself and the baby’s mother slept tran
quilly^ last night, and were spared the life-long pangs of remorse.’ It
does not occur to him to even mention the conductor’s name, who, he
seems to think, did no uncommon thing in risking his own life, unseen
and unnoticed on the solitary road, for a child whom he would never prob
ably see again.”
The feeling of utility would confine men strictly within the limits of
the average utility of any age. Each generation would come to a mutual
understanding of the things that would be safe to perform. The instinct
of self-preservation would be a continual check to the heroism that dies
framing its indictment against tyrannies and wrongs. The great men who
fling themselves against the scorn and menace of their age could never be
born out of general considerations of utility or sympathy; for each man
would say that a wrong, though not salutary to its victim, would not be
salutary to one who should try to redress it. Sympathy that was spawned
by the physical circumstances of remote ages could never reach the temper
of consideration for the few against the custom of the many. You could
no more extract heroism from such a beginning of the moral sense than
sunbeams from cucumbers.' We owe a debt to the scientific man who can
show how many moral customs result from local and ethnic experiences,
and how the conscience is everywhere capable of inheritance and education.
�32
He cannot bring us too many facts of this description, because we have
one fact too much for him; namely, a latent tendency of conscience to
repudiate inheritance and every experience of utility, to fly in its face
with a forecast of a transcendental utility that supplies the world with its
redeemers, and continually drags it out of the snug and accurate adjust
ment of selfishness to which it arrives. The first act of such devoted
self-surrender might have been imitated, no doubt; and a few men in every
age, having learned by this means that a higher utility resulted from doing
an apparently useless thing, might be developed by a mixture of reason
and sympathy into resisting their fellows. But how are you going to
account for the first act ? How for a sentiment of violated justice, if justice
be only the precipitate of average utility? How for a tender love for
remote and invisible suffering, for wrongs that are a nuisance at too great
a distance to be felt or observed, if sympathy is nothing but an under
standing among people who are forced to live together ? I should as soon
pretend that my nostrils were afflicted by a bad smell that was transpiring
in Siam.
This reminds me to ask how any particular odor was first discovered to
be nauseous. If the reply be offered, that olfactory discrimination must
have resulted from experiences of the effect of odors, gradually acquired,
and slowly modifying the organ, I say that the process must have begun in a
capacity to perceive, no matter how imperfectly, that a scent is disagree
able. What is that previous, capacity ? It must have been something
that was not created by the scent. It is no objection to this that people
differ in sensibility for odors, so that a flower may be disagreeable to one
and pleasant to another. If odors create the organ that corresponds
to and discriminates them, they ought to appear the same to everybody.
But there is a latent perception that varies among individuals, and decides
their favorite perfumes ; and it is curious to notice how they correspond
to mental characters and seem to have a faint analogy with the condi
tion of the-moral sense. Discrimination in smelling could not have been
originated by the things that were smelt, any more than a man’s trail or
blood-drip must have preceded and created the blood-hound’s tracking. »
The moral sense to which we have attained by stages must have started
from an original tendency to become sensitive to moral acts. We cannot
say that the results have established the tendency, any more than we can
say that marks of design have originated a designer; that an eye, for
instance, developed light, or that light created a light-maker.
The phrases, I ought, 1 ought not, are not merely functional, as when
a blood-hound tracks, a pointer points, a watch-dog listens through the
house. We detect even in the animals a sense of duty in carrying out
their instincts, and a deferring to man, as if to a source of the instincts,
�33
or at least to a power that holds them responsible for good behavior. So
W® instinctively refer our moral attitude to a source of moral law.
It is possible we have reached a moral sense from the anticipatory
types of conscience in some animals, by drifting along with them through
Mr. Spencer’s experiences of utility and Mr. Darwin’s social instincts.
But a latent mental tendency must have fallen in with that structural
drift at some point, else man would never agonize to say, 1 ought, 1 ought
not. Is it any the less divine because it has consorted with animals and
savages, and found their company no hinderance to this elaborating of a
sense of right and wrong? It is all the more divine, because it betrays
conformity with the great order of development, at the same time that it
has been forereaching through it to perfect moral actions.
What was the nature of John Woolman’s secret satisfaction when he
insisted upon non-compliance with the habits and allowances of his time ?
If conscience be the result of discovering what turns out badly for a per
son who is living on the scale of other persons, why should he, a tailor,
have discouraged the making and wearing of fine clothes; have refused to
touch, to his own serious privatior^ one of the products of slave-labor;
have protested, to the loss of sympathy and gain of contempt, against
ownership in men? Was he an abnormal variety, a deteriorated speci
men, a man whom advantage hurt ? Where do Mr. Darwin’s social
instincts come in? Woolman withstood all these for distant and abstract
incentives, and originated, without social and intellectual material, a fresh
epoch of moral feeling. The latent tendency attained to liberation from
all its previous experiences.
One of the bases of conscience is said to be the intellectual capacity to
recall past impressions, to compare them with present temptations, and to
decide upon the most advantageous action. Possibly; but it cannot be a
sine qua non, as we see in the cases of those uncultivated souls who have
a new scruple or a sudden heroism. And some of the best intelligences
are dull and uncertain in the moral sense. Is it because they are at the
same time weak in the social instincts ? Some very acute and long
headed pirates of society are fond family-men, love to gather children
around their knees, have sympathetic impulses; and, when they are not
on a plundering excursion among widows and orphans, as directors of
mills and railroads, would be selected to found a society of correct men
in consequence of immaculate dicky and domesticity.
The lower senses, by repeated experiment and observation, acquire an
unconscious, automatic movement. When the higher senses have passed
out of their experimental stages, they acquire a spontaneous movement.
In the region of intellectual and moral ideas this becomes intuitive; that
is, they attain to a power of looking into themselves, of comparing and
5
�34
deducing, and also of anticipating other ideas, or at least evolutions from
existing ideas, which sometimes lead to the forefeeling of a law of Nature
in advance of its confirmation by experiment, — as when Lucretius antici
pated moderns vyith a theory of evolution, of the magnet, and of the
constitution of the sun; and Swedenborg divined fresh planets before
Leverrier was furnished with the calculus which might have led him
experimentally to the fact; or when Kepler saw dimly in his mental
firmament the law to which at length the sky responded. This was
latent correspondence with the law: it was stimulated by all his scientific
knowledge; but when it stepped upon planetary ratios into a new secret
of creation, it announced its independence of experience, and betrayed
a similarity in essence with the Creator.
Let us now consider if this latent mentality, which reaches thus to
independent action, has any chance of surviving the dissolution of the
cerebral structure by means of some force, called Vitality, distinct in kind
from all the physical and chemical forces that build our frame. Natural
ism denies a special vitality, because it is so engrossed with showing how
functions develop by the instrumentality of human forces: it affirms that
the whole drift of experimental analogy sets against the conception of
another force, unless it be one that shall differ only in degree, and not in
kind, not in essential independence, not in permanent continuance, from
the rest. Observation has lifted these forces to the level of so many
functions, till at length it has detected them conspiring in the action of
the brain, that scientific men are cautious about predicating the existence
of a finer force that comes to use the deposits of the brain-cells, or that
is exhaled from them into an independent essence. This modesty is not
mistimed, for its singleness of purpose supplies marvellous facts and
hints about the human organization which no religion can afford to do
without. It is childish to be afraid of their tendency, and weak to
declare that they yet decide the question.
What is Vitality ? I notice, in the first place, that our common contrast
of animate and inanimate — which means, when we make it, that we
believe that the former could not have been developed from the latter —
is really only a contrast derived from a general optical impression. We
think we see that one object is alive and that another is not, and our
sight applies the tests which experience has preconceived as being cor
respondent to life and to death. But it does not follow that the origins
of life — which are removed from us by immense duration, and thus far,
if they are still going on, by inadequate means of observation — must he
distinct acts of germs that exist in a plane apart from the inanimate.
They may have been, and may still be, evolutions through forces out of
inanimate matter. Inanimate may be only latent animate.
�35
But I think we ought to discard this old-fashioned contrast, and substi
tute the terms organic and inorganic; for a bit of wood or stone will
. show, beneath the most powerful microscope, a gathering and shifting of
granules, a confused intermingling, that is enough to betray motion at
least, and to put us on the track of the suggestion that a primitive ocean
of germs was set on its creative way by motion. Nothing then can be
called inanimate that contains the first quality or essential towards vitality.
But it may be called inorganic if its structure admits of passing to no
Other function. An organism is something that announces vital force or
function; that gathers the universal cells, granules, cytods—or whatever
you may please to call protoplastic stuff — into some definite gesture,
however faint, and begins to use the inorganic to nourish and sustain its
organs.
Mr. Beale, an eminent advocate for a special and indestructible vitality
in man, says: “ If a particle of living matter, not more than joo^o' th
of an inch in diameter, were made in the laboratory out of non-living
matter, — if it lived and moved, and grew and multiplied, — I confess my
belief in the spiritual nature of my faculties would be severely shaken.”
Why should it be shaken any more than if it should turn out to be true
that living matter originated the spiritual nature ? It is certain that living
matter is instrumental in expressing our faculties, whatever their origin
may have been. Then of what consequence is it whence the living matter
is derived? We are not appalled at the possibility that organic matter may
be made out of non-living—or, more properly, inorganic — matter. We
are nerved for such a result, whether it occur in the laboratory or in Nature,
by the conviction that the spiritual functions are no more imperilled by
using matter originated in any way, than the Creator hazarded his existence
by originating matter in some way to be used by himself and by us. His
vitality resides in the whole of matter; so that even if the inorganic be
convertible into the organic, or the organic into the inorganic, he has to
no extent fallen dead. Then there can be no danger to our mind that
may result from either process, or that may receive its material instru
ment from either.
There is nothing really inanimate in all creation ; for the Infinite Life
has gone into representation by each of its epochs, from the primordial
germinal matter through all its evolutions: no form or result of it can
fee dead. There is no such thing as death, but an incessant shifting into
and out of all forms. The stone arrests for the present the shifting, but
it must have a certain kind of life in itself in order to do that, — some
thing that tends to be not long or constantly arrested, that is all the
time vaguely tumultuous with its imprisoned particles. If any thing
could be really dead, God would, to that thing’s extent, cease to be alive.
*
�36
•
I have sometimes indulged the speculation that the molecular activity
observable in inorganic substances is a degeneration of the germinal
activity which is observable in the amoeba and other vital stuff. That is,
I suppose that the germinal has preceded the molecular activity ; and that
all stones, minerals and gems, were held positively vital in the original
nebulosity, in that ocean of creative germs, which was not inorganic, though
it was undetermined. What we call dead matter is the excrement of a
germinal universe; but it may still go into fertilizing, and is doing it,
perhaps, all the time. It once shared the life of all germs, though it now
seems to have become inert and solid merely to build continents for the
support of vital forms. The word inert cannot represent an absolute fact
of death, but only a relative condition of vitality.
But what is vitality in a human structure? It may be only (a part of
the universal vitality, raised to very high conditions, or it may be a spe
cial mode of it; but in either case I do not see why it does not share the
universal advantage of being indestructible. “Yes,” says the scientific
man ; “ but it also must share the universal tendency of forces to shift into
force again when the structure that contains them is destroyed. The
man’s vitality may still exist, but only in some mode of impersonal force,
as motion shifts into heat. When all the known forces are discovered
constantly at this interplay, we cannot assume that another force yet
undiscovered will be differently endowed.” What have we got to say to
that ?
The only attempt which I have noticed, of purely scientific pretension,
at an answer is contained in a paper on Vitality, read by the Rev. H. H.
Higgins, M. A., before the Literary and Philosophical Society of Liver
pool. He says : “ The most delicate tests for indicating minute changes in
electrical, thermal, and other conditions, have been applied at the moment
of death, and have shown no sign. Now it is certain of the forces of heat
light, motion, &c., that they are absolutely indestructible: they may be
converted one into the other, but they cannot cease to exist. If the
vital principle was analogous to these agencies, it might escape in any one
of them ; but of this no well-ascertained trace has been observed in any
investigation of the phenomena of death.”
But this statement proves too much. If the tests applied at the moment
of death discover no force at all in the act of escaping, it only shows that
no force at all is discoverable under the conditions of a dying moment.
But we know that thermal and electrical conditions exist in the functions
of a living body: they ought, then, to be intercepted as they pass away.
Where, for instance, does the thermal condition go, and why should it
not be seen in going? For it certainly existed just before the moment
of dying, and for some time after. This, then, is not a decisive test of the
undetectable presence of a special vitality.
�This is the question. If there be specific vitality, does it escape from
death with the mental, contents of the person whose body died, to prolong
his identity, or is it only another physical force, though a specific one,
with character distinct from heat, light, &c., but still a force that joins
after death the unconscious equilibrium out of which it first allied itself
to a human organization ?
To call vitality specific, and to claim that it is prior to organization,
does not answer the above question.
All the steps of modern investigation seem to disprove the theory of
personal continuance. Functions of the body which were long supposed
to depend upon a specific vitality are now referred to known chemical
forces, and are repeated in the laboratory. The theory is pushed from
post to post, till it seems to have only a base of moral probability to fall
back upon.
Far from undervaluing that,.— finding, on the contrary, in the manifesta
tions of personal character a hint of immortality that is superior to, at
least, the resurrection of any dead body, — I still claim that Science is
not so neutral on this question as it thinks to be. I am quite content to
wait for some special investigation of the point, while the co-ordination of
all phenomena by mental laws that explain creative acts, and refer us back
to a pre-existing mind, show me, with the emphasis of a universe, that the
minds which can interpret and spiritually reconstruct the plan of creation
must share the nature of the Creator. It is his nature to have pre
existed distinct from his germinal material. It must be the nature of
corresponding mind to be distinct from its germinal material, to have been
allied to human structures in a state of latent mentality.
I own I find it difficult to conceive how this latent mind was gradually
developed out of the structures that passed through animal into human
conditions. It seems at first as if the mental quality must have been
homogeneous through all its gradations. In what manner could it have
begun to be different in kind from itself as it was in its previous animal
expressions ? At first, in trying to meet that question, we appear to be
driven to put up with one of two alternatives: either that the animals
have shared independent vitality, if we have; or that we started from
germinal soul-monads that were outside of, and previous to, physical
structure, but were in some way attracted to all the points of human
development.
But I suggest whether there can be any germinal soul-substance except
the mysterious force which we call Vitality wherever we see it in the human
state. It went into creation allied with all the germs which have subse
quently taken form. It carried everywhere a latent sensibility for the
creative law out of which it came. It swept along with a dim drift of
�38
the Personality that first conceived it and then put it on the way to self
expression. It mounted thus by the ascending scale of animals, and its
improvements in structure were preparations to reach and repeat Per
sonality, to report the original sense of the Creator that he was independent
of structure. At length it became detached from the walls of the womb
of creation, held only for nourishment by the cord of structure, till it
could have a birth into individualism. Then the interplay of mind and
organism began, with an inherited advantage in favor of Vitality. Now
Vitality, thus developed and crystallized into personality, tends constantly
back towards its origin. The centrifugal movement through all the animals
is rectified by the centripetal movement in man. The whole series of
effects recurs to an effecting Cause.
At any rate, it is quite as difficult to conceive that there were pre
existent soul-germs which could be attracted from without to human
embryos, to become their vital and characteristic forces, as it is to frame a
clear statement of the way in which independent minds became developed
out of all the previous animal and semi-human conditions. How or when
could a soul-monad become buried in a foetal form ? If such an act could
take place, it would break up the inherited transmission of characters ; for
it is not credible that every door of descent is waylaid and watched by
just the style of soul-germs that can straightway be at home and carry on
the business at the old stand. It is plain that the whole process of evolu
tion of vitality into personal consciousness must take place within the
limits of human structure, and that the child is father of the man.
Could the unconscious form of the embryo select its appropriate soul
germ, and detach it from the world-cluster to absorb and incorporate it
through the mother ? By what nicety of instinct or affinity could the
moment of fertilization, or a subsequent moment of the foetal throb,
pick out of some great ether of vital monads just the proper soul-germ, so
that each human family might propagate its traits and accumulate its
ancestors ? It is impossible to conceive of any descent or amplification of
vitality except in the direct line of fructification, conception, and birth.
It is not absurd, then, to suppose that each human being started
from a finite beginning. He pre-existed only in the impulse of vitality.
It is objected that, if he was not an actual essence or monad that
pre-existed before his finite structure was brought up to the felicity of
receiving it, he could not continue after the physical structure had dis
appeared. Why not ? Personal continuance need not be supposed to
depend upon any special moment of eternal creativeness from which the
person may have started. It might be early or late : in Judæa, Greece, or
California. When a person starts, he need not be imagined to stop until
the infinite Personality out of which he started declines to project the
�39
vitality that propagates persons. If there be such a fact as personal
WOtinuance, it must depend only upon the impulse of vitality.
It does not trouble me that I cannot put my finger on the period of
human development when man began to have independent personality.
Who can tell when a child begins to have a consciousness of self, and to
say I, with a distinct feeling of what his speech involves ? Yet at length
he is found to be saying it, and to be converting the identity of conscious
ness into personal character. Ages of semi-human conditions may have
preceded, as years of characterless infancy precede, the assertion of per
sonal identity. The men of those developing ages may have perished
like ants that swarm in the pathway of feet. What of that, if a day
comes that speaks an imperishable word ?
That word is, I know Unity — I share Unity — I pass into consciousness
of Creative Laws — I touch the Mind from whom my mental method started,
and I thus become that circle’s infrangibility. My law of perceiving is *
so complete an expression of the law of creating, that I perceive, as the
Creator once perceived, that matter alone could not start with it nor end
in it. I know the laws which matter did not make. Then matter did not
make my knowledge.
Science does me this inestimable benefit of providing a universe to sup
port my personal identity, my moral sense, and my feeling that these two
functions of mind cannot be killed. Its denials, no less than its affirma
tions, set free all the facts I need to make my body an expression of
mental independence. Hand in hand with Science I go, by the steps of
development, back to the dawn of creation ; and, when there, we review all
the forces and their combinations which have helped us to arrive, and
both of us together break into a confession of a Force of forces.
Science has performed a mighty work against Theology, in freeing
us from its superstitions. We have picked ourselves up from Adam’s fall,
and are busy shaking that dust from our garments; geological cemeteries,
full of dead creatures, speak to exonerate us from the unhandsome trick of
having brought death and sin into the world; we shake the tree of knowl
edge, and woman helps us to shake it and devour the invigorating fruit;
there’s nothing edible which we do not perceive to be a divine invitation to
eat, with a conviction that the great Landlord is not plotting murder to
pillage our persons. We feel perfectly safe in every part of the house,
and are learning how to promote the interests of the Builder, by clearing
out corners that grow infectious, and correcting our own carelessness ; so
■that there is not a slur left to cast upon God. Death is discovered to be a
process of correlation and recombination of force; and we detect Heaven’s
wonderful footprint, that can never be mistaken, in the paths of evil.
Only let us know enough, re-enforce every gift with the beneficial facts,
�40
irrigate the whole surface of the mind with law, that our structures may
more happily repeat the health that mantles on the face of a universe.
Scientific men find themselves in opposition to almost every form of
theology, because the world is: they have no personal motive, and indulge
in pique no more than the great system whose movements and causes they
express. But Theology has so systematically libelled the Creator and
misled the creature ; so deliberately substituted trains of arbitrary thinking
for the law of Evolution; so depraved God by pretending the depravity
of man, to make a jailer of one and a felon of the other ; so placarded the
spotless plan with whimsical schemes of redemption; and so represented
the universal Love, as if it were confectionery to stop the whimper of re
turning sinners, — that Science might well transfix it with the contempt
of a gaze that is level with the horizon, and as brimful hot with the noon
day sun.
When the great observers are accused of disrespect towards Religion, it
would be well to remember how long, and to a period how late, men have
understood Religion to be something that is brought down by modified
systems of Theology, and to be dependent upon an act of faith in them.
Science takes men at their word; they point to a number of articles that
embody mental propositions ; they extol emotional and mystic states, and
exclaim, Behold, here is something better than good behavior, better than
health, superior to scientific interpretation,—- behold Religion I Science,
armed with all its glasses, curiously investigates this portent that as
sumes to be divinely accredited, and cannot discover a single germinal
dot, not a bit of plasma that might make one honest animalcule of a
spiritual man.
In the mean time, real Religion is busy with moral sense, right mental
method, true social feeling, ecstatic vision of the divine order, to appropriate
every genuine fact and put it to service in its scheme of humanity. How
ever violently Science may pretend to be hostile to Religion, there is nothing
in the world so religious as its method and industry. For Religion, in
stead of being, according to the old definitions, a restoration of rebellious
human nature to divine favor — attained by theological beliefs and emo
tional practices, by prayer and praise, by pietistic exaltations and homiletic
absorption — is simply the recurrence of human nature to the facts of the
universe.
At first, this definition seems to be a dry, pragmatic one, fit only to
express the old function of Theology, imperfectly exercised by it in meta
physical notions about the divine plan and nature. Theology always»
presumed that its statements represented facts. But Religion, recovering
of late from mediatorial emotions, enlists intelligence, arms itself with a
mental method that is the counterpart of the divine plan, and casts loose
�41
for ever from the speculations of Theology. Then it assumes the function
of indicating realities ; and every fact it gathers is a proclamation of God’s
love, or will, or wisdom, and an invitation to man to be on healthy terms
with these attributes. In recurring to the facts of a universe, man recurs
most sensibly to God. But this gesture can be made only with the help
of intelligence. Facts must be taught and known, not metaphysical con
trivances or scriptural formulas. The brain must learn to act upon its
own facts, in order to present the world with a body in normal condition
to perform a normal work. The relation between the finite and infinite
must be found upon lines of forces and stepping-stones of laws, not upon ,v
phrases and ceremonies. These weave no features of the infinite into
our life. As well might a woman expect by knitting to embroider the
zodiacal light upon her stocking. If she croons a favorite hymn of Watts
or Toplady over her work, the sky is still too cunning to descend, being
content to overlook her patient labor and to light the daily steps of the
little feet she covers. Her automatic action is superior, for religion, to all
her darling sentiment.
I close by noticing that Science benefits Religion with hints at a more
practical treament for the objects of moral and spiritual culture. The
technical results of scientific observation now begin to enrich every
department of life, as they flow into the kitchen and workshop, and down
all the streets; so that a man may draw at his door health and mental
nourishment, and find an alarm-box in every ward that will report what
ever threatens sanity and comfort. All the kingdoms of Nature contribute
their economical facts, which slowly find their way into social science,
into the methods of domestic life, into education and amusement. Man
was never so sumptuously served before with things to depend upon. He
learns what to eat, drink, and wear, how to ventilate his dwellings and to
build his fire. The most inventive minds teach him labor-saving pro
cesses, which aspire even to regulate and economize religion. This prompt
and convenient way of life begets a desire for facts: we want nothing
encumbering the house that we cannot use; theories go into the waste
basket, with a good many superfine emotions that were once thought to be
essential to a spiritual life. Sometimes, by picking over the basket, we
discover that gifts very dear to the household, legacies of eternity, have
been hastily thrown there, in the greed for clearing out all the corners
and ambushes for rubbish, to have nothing around that is not portable and
ready for immediate use.
This tendency to bring the art of living down to its practical mini
mum has gone so far that some sources of spiritual culture have fallen
into discredit. The newspaper, the lecture-room, the scientific cabinet,
the technological school, the special platform, is commended : men crave
6
�42
exactness and the current intelligence. They long to live creditably in
the present, because they have discovered it is the master of the future.
And American pulpits have certainly earned the distrust, if not contempt,
of the more robust portion of the people, by approaching all the critical
moments of the private or public life with their pill, their plaster, or
buchu, as they sound the trumpet of the quack before them in the market
place, to call their livelihood together.
There is something which may be called the vestry-sentiment, that acts
like choke-damp upon all natural ideas: it will breathe an artiiicial
compound, or prefer to be asphyxiated. A badly ventilated Scripture is
responsible for these moods, which cower over their little pile of smoul
dering texts, and shudder and protest at leaving all the doors ajar. It is
nourished upon phrases in books of mediatorial piety, and drops theatre
tears over its futile feeling of dependence, its consciousness of sin, or
faded appreciation of good behavior. Its disciples are the victims of fatty
degeneration, when it is their boast that they are nothing but heart. To
some of the churches of this want of faith, intelligence has penetrated far
enough to excite suspicions that the old phraseology has been outgrown;
they are almost ready to espouse the new Bibles of human information
and enthusiasm, not quite ready to cast off the damaged phraseology of
the clerical believers in miracles and grace : so that they remind one of the
garret of the eminent but rather penurious lawyer, which was found,
after his decease, filled with suits of clothes, each labelled, “ Too old to
wear, but too good to give away.”
Verbal statements of imaginary relations between man and God, set
off with appeals to a kind of average religiosity, compose the sanitary
method of such churches. It lets more blood than it makes: precious
life-drops of the common people, squandered in artificial excitements, in
political compromises, and in the awful campaigns that restore natural
religion to mankind.
A better method will set in whenever the pulpit prefers confirmed real
ities, and looks for them in every province that the wit of man visits, —
when the only question it asks relative to any subject is, What are the
facts ? Let us know the conclusion of the best minds and the most de
voted hearts, let us preach the salvation that intelligence reveals. Open
wide the door of the meeting-house, so that the six days can wheel up to
it, and deposit what the earth and sky manufacture, all the certainties of
all the arts, and every emotion that bears the stamp of sincerity.
Nothing can come amiss, if it comes from a quarter where honest hand
work or head-work has been engaged. The whole universe is let down to
the level of the preacher’s desk, creeping tilings as well as winged. The
voice says: “ Slay and eat them, for there is nothing common or unclean
�43
that God has made.” Nature has sometimes furnished the pulpit with
illustrations: she is ready now to provide the texts and substance also,
and to occupy the whole discourse.
But the treatment must be ideal. All the facts, after passing through
the technical treatment of the platform, the lecture-room, and scientific
session, to receive their diplomas of utility, must come into the pulpit
bringing mankind with them, as into a place where separate localities can
be seen to melt into one broad horizon, stretching so far that eternity is
overtaken and included, and the souls of the spectators are greatly ennobled
to perceive that all their little functions build the endless view.
What is ideal treatment ? A kind that is neither metaphysical nor emo
tional. It is not the investiture of subjects with a poetical form, nor the
speculative infirmity that broods upon an empty nest. There must be a
real egg beneath, for warmth and devoted patience to quicken. The ideal
treatment is that deference to the natural law of every thing which puts
into it the divine breath. To the pulpit is consigned the task of showing
that the earth, the air, the water, swarm with vital germs; that no sub
stance is too solid to resist their penetration, none too thin to support
them ; that man himself is a compendium of them, and in his soul they find
a tongue to express how religious they are, how implicated with the life
and love of the Creator. Ideal treatment sets forth the ideas that corre
spond to every fact and circumstance. It is bent upon proving that they
arise in the soul, and are not transitory views, or impressions depending
upon the position of the spectator, or digested from his food; that they
have a continuity in the laws of Nature and in the persons of men and
women, and are thus connected with the moral order, are self-sustaining,
and derive no authority from any source save Nature herself; and that the
only religious certitude we can enjoy is provided by the harmony between
things, necessities, organizations, and the laws of things.
After the Essay, the President appealed to the audience to
contribute money for the maintenance of the Association, and
said the Finance Committee would pass through the hall and
collect the contributions. He then introduced Rev. Cyrus A.
Bartol, D.D., as one of the oldest and most honored friends of
the Association.
Dr. Bartol said that the essay was like the kaleidoscope, which as they
looked straightway was enlarged and lengthened out; and they saw it was
not only the kaleidoscope of beauty, but the telescope of truth. For him
self, he was not anxious to run a line of demarcation between the lower
�44
creatures and man. lie did not see that it could be drawn clearly. If there
were a place to get into any part of God’s kingdom of life and nature a
distinction of the finest knife, the universe were chaos, and not a universe.
His inability to distinguish between animal nature and human nature was
the sign and proof to him that they could not cut off, on the other side,
between human nature and angelic nature. The old motto, “ The whirli
gig of time brings around strange revenges,” came back to him. They
were told, during the long anti-slavery discussion, “ Why concern yourselves
about these negroes ? They are not men, they are apes.” And lo ! Mr.
Darwin, the cold scientific man, came in and showed them that the white
man was just as much the kin of the monkey. So they were all in the same
boat. He did not want therefore to cut himself off from his lower fel
low-creatures, his “poor relations.” The man who cut himself off from kind
ness to them, from acknowledging some common nature with them, was the
man who ran the most risk of not being admitted to his rich relations by
and by. As he was walking about in the fields, he heard a song that
filled the sky. He hunted a long time before he could find whence it came;
and it was a little brown bird about two inches long, singing, singing, sing
ing, not tired at all, minute after minute, till he was amazed to understand
how the bird could keep it up so. What immense vitality, or what draught
from an infinite fountain of life it must have had ! It continued that song
till he felt God was behind the bird just as much as behind him. Indeed,
he thought birds were the best prophets. Isaiah, Jeremiah, Amos, inspired
as they were, yet mixed some human will and human calculation with
their prophecy ; but the birds prophesy, saying, “ God is ; ” “ All is well; ”
“ There is joy in the universe; ” “ Somebody is having a good time all
through this creation.” The bird was a very unsuspicious prophet; and he
would believe him sooner than he would Jeremiah, who didn’t sing, “ God
is cheerful.” He was willing to trust God for the hereafter. If he was
going to let him go among angels, very well; he did not ask of God any
note of hand — he believed in him. But meantime let them treat kindly
the relations they saw, those they were acquainted with. He really
thought the new feeling that would come through science, and through the
religious sentiment, that the lower animals — the horse, the oxen, and the
rest — were fellow-creatures (as Burns said the mouse was), when it once
impregnated the human mind, would do more for humanity to those animals
than a thousand of Mr. Bergh’s societies. So he was not ashamed of the
long animal train — who should say where it began ? — that men dragged
after them.
He wanted to say a word in regard to what is called Radicalism and Con
servatism. People did not like the word radical; but could they help it ?
They did not make it. It was born of the hour. It was a thunder-bolt
�45
that came down out of the cloud, and they could not get rid of it. It was
objected by the conservative that the radical was a denier; but it seemed
to him that the radical did not say “ no ” half so often as he said “ yes.”
He said yes to Nature. The old conservative theology had not got over
»tying no to Nature. The first shape it took was that God was too high
to dirty his hand in making this world. He did it by proxy. Then there
was the idea that he left it to run itself; only, being a little ashamed of
his work, he stretched out his hand to mend his ways with a miracle ;
Nature was a sort of hell he made to hide away in. The radical believed
that God, like man, was not concealed, but revealed by his works ; and, if
understood at all, it must be through his works. Nature was not an eclipse
of him; it was, if any thing, a crystal transparency, the crystal-palace of
God. The world was God’s robe, his living garment. The radical be
lieved what it was reported he said, that what he had made “ was good.”
The radical also said yes to human nature. The old conservative, when
he found that he could not clean God out of Nature, tried to put him out
of human nature. The radical said, “ No : human nature was Nature with
an addition; and it was blasphemy against God to decry human nature.”
He had rather not be, than to be what the old Calvinistic theology had
said men were. The man who preached the doctrine.of evil as an essence
or an eternal thing did not believe in God. Even the Commune of Paris,
which had just gone down elbow-deep in blood, was not totally depraved.
The radical said yes also to progress. People told them they must
respect the past. He would say, Certainly respect the obligations to the
past; but as in legislation, so in religion, the question was, not what had
been done before, but what was next in order. A friend of his had a pair of
horses so large that they had to be fed out of doors, because there was no
Stable in the town large enough to admit them; and so there were men
who would have to receive their spiritual food out of. doors till the churches
were enlarged: he did not mean enlargement of the pews to make room
for a human body to sit down, but such an enlargement as would make room
for a human soul to stand up. The congregations were too much bound
by old phrases, and by continually worked-over forms of words a thousand
or two thousand years old, as if they could make religion out of them.
In closing, Dr. Bartol gave several interesting illustrations of the law of
human sympathy and kindness, which is able to bind all classes and per
sons together in the bonds of a true church and a natural communion.
Rev. Henry Ierson, of England, was then introduced. He said that
in his experience he had found that whenever men set themselves off under
particular names and sects, and divided themselves from other people, they
did mischief both to themselves and others. After a man was ticketed as
belonging to a denomination, if he said any thing not in accordance with
�46
the usual language of that denomination, he was looked upon with suspi
cion. When there was no ticket, men could meet each other as simply fel
low-creatures of God; and he presumed that was the spirit of the meeting
that day. There were certain old notions that stood in the way, and the ques
tion was, What to do with them ? It was idle to say that men must live past
them; for it was impossible to disregard what had had a history in human
thought for centuries, and also had a present living power. It was idle to
bow in respect before them, simply because they were old ; but what had
been at any time a vital power in the world had a title to his respect which
he was prepared to acknowledge. He would not quarrel with his childhood
nor the methods of his early life ; neither would he quarrel with the child
ish beliefs of the early world. But he could not help trying to find out
about their origin, for he had such an interest in humanity that he felt
obliged to apologize to civilization for the stupid things people had believed
in past ages. In regard to the scientific men of England, he said that
their position with reference to these old questions was not perfectly un
derstood there. Huxley and Tyndall, and the other leaders of science, were
a long, long way from being atheists, and they would be greatly grieved if
any thing they had said had justly and properly brought on them this re
proach. But they did not believe in the first chapters of Genesis, and could
not help saying so. But they did not generally trouble themselves to give
their creeds, because such matters were between the human soul and God.
Mr. Ierson was sure that scientific observation was not the root of religion,
and therefore it could never teach religion as popularly understood.
And the men of science, he said, distinguished between the basis of
religion and the basis of scientific fact and law. He counselled those
who heard him not to be too anxious and over-eager to define their posi
tion, if they were asked to do so. They must make the world feel that
they were really impressing some principle upon it, and then the question
would be answered for them. They must show the world that they doubted
in the first place in order to believe afterwards, and in the second place from
the ground of a temperate belief that compelled them to doubt.
Rev. William H. Spencer was the next speaker. He took a general
survey of the relation between Religion and Science as it had been in the
past, as it was at present, and as he thought it ought to be. They all
knew how Religion looked upon Science first as a bastard boy, entitled to
none of the rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness which she
enjoyed. Religion hated Science because she feared it. While yet in its
infancy, Science came to the conclusion that the earth was not flat, but
round like a marble; and then, when a little older, that the sun did not
revolve around the earth, but the earth around the sun; and then it grew
bold to say that the world was not made in six days. At each of these
�47
declarations, Religion was greatly alarmed for her safety, and declared that
Science would slay her, if he was not stopped in his career. She tried to
stop him herself by the old appliances of persecution, — the rack, the fire,
the dungeon; but each time Science managed to escape and live. The
attitude of Religion to Science had been not that of a brother, but that of
a cruel master to a slave. The attitude of Science for a long time was that
of a cringing slave begging its life of its master But Science to-day was
free. It had emancipated itself from thraldom to Religion. Sometimes,
perhaps, it was a little boisterous and arrogant; and some persons seemed
to fear that Science would now have its revenge on Religion for her past
persecutions. But there was no cause for alarm. Science regarded Religion
with cool indifference and was peaceably disposed; but Religion had not
yet buried the tomahawk. But since the Church in the past had always
been found fighting against truth when fighting against hypothetical science,
it would behoove her to keep hands off now. We must be ready to accept
every thing that Science can positively prove. Mr. Spencer said that he
wanted truth, and he wanted immortality: truth with immortality, if he
could have it; but without it, if he must. He believed that Religion
needed in this age nothing so much as the scientific spirit that looks facts
right in the face ; and Science needed something that Religion might give,
— a spirit of filial trust in the truth. Science was the knowledge of law,
and Religion was trust in the law. They should live peaceably together.
He believed that in the future they would be reconciled and harmonized ;
that each would discover that the other was not its enemy, but friend, and
would help each other to nobler development. Disciplined by the experi
ences of life, they would be joined at last in a true marriage, to the great
gain of both.
The President then asked Colonel T. W. Higginson to add his
word : —
He said : —Mr. Chairman, I should hardly venture to say even a clos
ing word at this late hour of the morning only that, much as has been
said to-day, there are one or two things that ought, it seems to me, still
to be said. I think we all felt, during those two noble statements that
came from Mr. Weiss and Mr. Bartol, that we had attained what Mr.
Emerson pointed out in his first speech here as his desideratum for this
society, — “ the luxury of a religion that does not degrade men.” And, in
the possession of that luxury, I only wish to dwell on one special point
which may not have been enough emphasized even yet, — how large a
part of that luxury consists in the absence of fear. I know of no religious
platform in Christendom except this where men can consistently stand and
�48
say that in their secret souls, whatever happens as the result of investi
gation, they are not afraid, but ready to trust the truth. Go where you
please, you find a creed or a basis of thought which implies the possibility
of an alternative, which has an “if” somewhere; and that “ if” a terrific
one. No matter how sure the theologian may be of his position, it always
seems based upon a certain line of historic probabilities; and a discovered
variation in the testimony of one human being, the change of a single
text, the error of one version, however unwelcome he may think it, how
ever he may shrink from accepting, if he is once compelled to accept it,
may overturn his faith. There is always some alternative he cannot bear
to contemplate, some fact he cannot look in the face. No man is strong, so
long as there is an “ if.” While the case is open and pending for any
man still unsettled, so that some future Darwin or Tyndall may yet dis
turb it, that man is not strong and he is not free. But when a man
comes on this platform, he usually accepts the universe as it is, fearless
of results. Let the path of science be followed to its ultimates and being
back any answer, still he is ready to face it. That man, and that type of
religion, is strong.
I remember in college days they put before us a book to be studied,
called “ The Evidences of Religion.” It startled me as I have hardly
been startled since. What! the evidences of religion ? the case is still
open then ; the matter is in court, is it ? I, too, am on the jury to decide ;
I thought that was settled long ago. My mother never told me when
she first sung her cradle songs over me in childhood, — she never told me
that her religion was founded on “evidences,” implying the possibility of
an “if” at the other side of them. I never dreamed in childhood that
religion was among the doubtful things in the universe. But in college
they didn’t give us “ evidences ” of mathematics; they didn’t offer us a
book treating of the evidences of chemistry. Those were treated as exact
sciences, based on axioms or on recognized facts. It was when we came
to the “ evidences” of religion that the college professors hinted doubts to
us of which our mothers never had given the prediction.
I was not quite satisfied with the tone of some of the statements made
this morning in regard to some of those great scientific men of Europe.
It seemed to be thought essential to show that, whatever their doubts may
be, they never doubted God. That is not what I wanted to know. Our
friend Ierson thought Darwin and Huxley would feel themselves affronted
at being called atheists. Why should they feel affronted if science leads
them out so ? There is a second question with me, — suppose they are
atheists, what then ? If atheism is true, who would not be an atheist ?
If immortality is a dream, who would not know it is a dream? I have no
share in such doubts of God or immortality myself. What of that ? I
�49
am not starving to-day; but I want to know that there is manhood
enough in me, if put in a dungeon to starve to death, to bear it as my
brothers bore it in Andersonville. It is not because I am starving now,
but if starvation is my sentence, I want to meet it as becomes a man. If
I were to be starved of my God by the conclusions of science, I should
wish to stand that also as a man ; and I believe it can be done. Personally,
I do not believe that result is coming ; I have no fear of it. But it is not
so important to know what is or is not coming from science as to know
that, whatever comes, truth is truth and man is man. I would say to the
atheist, if the worst come to the worst, — if God be a dream, man is not.
If I am nevei- to see the face of Deity, thank Heaven I see all of yours. If
I were to have no heaven beyond the grave, it is much to possess to
day ; and if man has health and life and love and a June day, is not that
enough for infinite hymns of gratitude, even if he knew he was to lie
down that night, and sleep to wake no more ? O my friends ! we deceive
ourselves ; we wrong our little children, by narrowing in their basis of
belief and making them think that unless they can convince themselves
thus or so they are hopeless and miserable. Don’t shudder if your child
reads a scientific book and temporarily doubts God. If you have been to
Mm what you should be, he wont doubt man; or, if he doubts man, he
wont doubt woman. Do not frown if he honestly doubts immortality.
Teach him to live the life here nobly, if the universe never granted him
another day. That is the way to meet science ; not by simply asking of
it the boon to live, but by so living and so thinking that science is but a
part of our basis of supply, and science may come or go and leave us still
the same. I have never doubted immortality; but if you have once made
up your mind that even if immortality were a dream your life shall not
be one, I don’t believe that any result of science can be formidable. The
only thing that seems to me dangerous in any way in science is that
very likely it is going for the time being to substitute a new hierarchy
for the old one: a race of conceited professors instead of a race of con
ceited clergymen; men who teach you to depend too much on magnets
and microscopes, as the other side taught you to depend too much on
Bibles and prophets. But then this new aristocracy of intellect among
our great scientific teachers has the advantage over the old one that the
new aristocracy of wealth has over the old aristocracy of power: it may
lose good manners, it may lose good taste, but at any rate it has the
advantage that it means the man himself, and not the man’s grandfather.
It is based on something done to-day, and not something done day before
yesterday. I say of theology, when it yields place to science, “ Ze roi est
mort; vive le roi,” — “ The king is dead; long live the new king,” — not but
I believe that there is a time coming when all the kings shall be no more ;
7
�50
and all the forces of our nature — science and life, heart and intellect —
shall come together in a great democracy, with God alone for President.
Science will never, can never, take its highest place in this world unless it
recognizes its own limitations, unless it owns that the emotions of the
heart, and the aspirations of the religious sentiment, the resolves of duty,
— nay, even the great pictures of imagination, twin principles with itself, —
are yet greater than itself. Science, the best of servants to man, may yet
be the worst of masters. But we may be sure that the same development
of the race that trained science will train at last all the other faculties;
and that the great scientific era of the future, of which we dream, will
show also purer sanctities of life and higher reverence for religion than
any superstition of the past could conceive.
The meeting was then adjourned until half-past three o’clock.
AFTERNOON SESSION.
On reassembling at
p.m., it was announced by the President,
in behalf of the Committee of Arrangements, that, besides the
speakers in the programme for the day, a number of persons,
scientific men and others, had been invited to take part in the
discussions, who for one reason or another were unable to accept
the invitations. The Committee had desired that the discussion
should be as many-sided as possible, and it was not their fault if
it was not so. He then introduced the Secretary of the Associa
tion, Mr. W. J. Potter, who had consented to read an Essay in
-place of that expected from Rabbi Wise. Mr. Potter first read a
brief note from Dr. Wise explaining why he could not meet the
appointment, but adding that he was “ nevertheless heart and
soul with the Association, — with truth, progress, and enlighten
ment.” Mr. Potter also read short letters, expressive of interest
and good-will, from Gerrit Smith and William Lloyd Garrison,
who had been among those invited, but who were unable to be
present. Then saying a few words of the difficulty of filling such
a gap in the arrangements as that caused by the regretted
absence of Dr. Wise, he proceeded to the subject of his Essay.
♦
�51
ESSAY BY WILLIAM J. POTTER.
Natural Genesis of Christianity, and its Relation to Preceding
Religions.
The patriot Kossuth used to strike the key-note of his wonderful
political addresses with the phrase, “The Solidarity of Nations.” So
would I, in humbler fashion, declare as the watch-word for this hour in
religious history the solidarity of religions. There are certain elementary
principles common alike to all religions and native to the human con
sciousness, which make the soil out of which spring all specific religious
systems, all forms of worship, all theologies and faiths. These principles
In their rudimentary form are not ideas, but the germs of ideas. We can
give no other account of them than that they are the in-coming of a
power that was before humanity into humanity. And just as we find in
every phase and condition of humanity certain rudimentary principles of
intelligence, which furnish the basis of all subsequent thinking, reasoning,
knowing, and impart those universal elements that make science, logic,
truth, to be recognized as essentially the same thing among all races of
men and all round the globe, so the different religions rest at bottom on
a common basis, and may recognize each other by certain universal ele
ments that may be traced back to the natural common outfit with which
the human race started on its career.
And these rudimentary religious faculties are subject to the same con
ditions of development to which the human mind in general is subject;
that is, to the natural conditions which attach to all human existence.
They do not therefore always develop in the same shape nor to the same
degree. As the conditions vary according to locality, climate, period,
outward circumstance of every kind, so the phase of development varies.
As we find different races and nations standing at different heights of in
telligence, of art, of science, of general civilization and enlightenment, so
do we find them, and just as naturally, at different stages in religious
development. And as we find among every people individuals who stand
higher than the mass as statesmen, or poets, or philosophers, or inventors,
— the Homers, Newtons, Shakspeares, Washingtons, — so do we find,
and just as naturally, those in whom the religious faculties predominate,
and who in consequence have a clearer insight into religious truth and
can make a better expression of it than the average mind of the people
around them; and just in proportion to the force and clearness with
which these persons express what the common heart of the people has
had hints of, aspired after, struggled after, just in proportion as they
realize in word and in life the ideal held in the heart of their nation or
�52
neighborhood, will they be listened to as speaking with authority — very
likely with supernatural authority — and be followed as divinely appointed
religious guides; For the human mind instinctively believes that Heaven
will indorse and commission its best thought and hope.
Hence the belief in supernaturalism, common to all religions, rests upon
a perfectly natural basis. The popular mind in an early stage of culture
cannot conceive truth abstractly. It catches a glimpse of it and sights by
that, but cannot bring the truth home to full comprehension until it has
put it in some concrete form. From this fact come the vulgar ideas of
creation, of inspiration, of God communicating outwardly and mechani
cally with man, which have prevailed in all religious systems. There
must be, according to the popular interpretation, definiteness of locality
and persons, visible appearances, real voices, some mysterious kind of
mechanical instrumentality between heaven and earth, in order that these
wise men and prophets should have such knowledge and power. And so
the primary religious sentiment, as it has developed into form and ex
pression through the popular understanding, has everywhere gathered
about its career legendary stories, myths, miracles. These are, as it
were, the crystallization into which religious ideas have been precipitated
in the solution of the common understanding. But go behind these
stories, break through the crust of fable and myth, get at the kernel of
reported miracle, and, however various, grotesque, and unbelievable the
narratives may be, we shall find a thread by which we may trace them
back to a common source, and to some germ of vital spiritual truth.
So, too, when we fathom the different religious systems in respect to
their higher declarations to their depths, we find, amidst all their variety
of creed and ritual, that a unity pervades them all, and that they all ex
press, with greater or less completeness according to the intelligence and
culture of the people, the same fundamental religious sentiments which
inhere naturally in the consciousness of humanity. “ There are diversi
ties of gifts, but the same spirit; differences of operations, but it is the
same God which worketh all in all.” We may say that the stream of
religious history, having its source in the primitive religious sentiment
common to mankind, and swollen from time to time by an influx from the
natural inspiration of great souls, and constantly increased and freshened
from every little spring and rill along its path which are fed to-day in
the same way as the original spring of all, comes down through the cen
turies, taking color and conformation, and even more interior qualities, as
of purity and salubrity, from the soil of the national mind through which
it flows. It takes also in its course different names according to national
or local, external or internal, characteristics, — as here Buddhism, there
Judaism, and so on; sometimes it is named for persons who have specially
�53
Utilfeed the flowing current, and turned it into new channels for human
advantage. But analyze the waters of this stream, and, though there be
great difference in volume and power, the constituent elements will be
found everywhere nearly the same, — the same vital parts that were
combined in the first conscious aspiration after truth and virtue that was
ever breathed upward from a human soul. We may apply the modern
scientific doctrine of the conservation and correlation of forces to the
history of religious evolution. Everywhere is one Primal Force, one
spiritual energy, one revealing power, one revelation, coming up from
the beginning, now and for ever, through the deep wells of human con
sciousness, wherein are the springs of Divinity; and these different names,
as Hindu, Jewish, Greek, Christian, only mark the altitude to which the
revelation has risen or the conformation it has assumed in the Hindu,
Hebrew, Greek, and Christian intelligence. Religion is one, and all its
revelations natural; religious systems are but higher or lower phases in
the natural development of the religious sentiment.
From these general remarks on the unity that pervades all varieties
of religion and binds all together by one chain of natural historic se
quence, let us proceed to consider the more specific question: How
stands Christianity in this order of religious development? How is it
related to the religions that preceded it ? And, more generally, how is it
related to universal or absolute religion ?
There has been no more difficult problem in Christian theology for
those who make a distinction between “ natural ” and “ revealed ” religion
than to draw the line between them; that is, to say just how much re
ligious truth the human mind might have been able to discover through
its natural faculties, and at what point it was necessary that a supernatural
revelation should come to the aid of the natural faculties. The difficulty
of the problem is twofold. First, there is a philosophical difficulty. It
is evident, and is admitted, that the human mind by its natural faculties
must be capable to some extent of forming religious conceptions; other
wise it could not possibly receive a revelation. It must at least have
Some idea of a Divine Being, and conceive of him also as a being of
veracity, before, it can possibly receive and rely upon any communication
as coming from him. Again, sufficient dignity and ability must be al
lowed to the human mind to make it not only worthy of receiving a
revelation, but capable of appreciating and using the revelation when
received. And so it becomes a very nice problem to draw the line at
just the proper point between the natural ability of the human mind
which makes a special revelation available, and the natural disability of
the human mind which makes a special revelation necessary. Theologians
have a good deal of skill in metaphysical tight-rope performances ; but in
�54
this case the rope is so very slender that they have never managed to
keep their balance on it with much success. The danger is that if the
natural ability of the human mind be 'strongly stated, an opponent may
retort, “ A mind thus endowed is capable of reaching through its natural
powers all the truth you claim for a special revelation,” — which is the
actual objection that has been brought against two of the greatest English
writers on this subject — Dr. Cudworth and Bishop Butler — who placed
the powers of the human mind so high, in order to show how it was nat
urally adapted to and harmonized with Christianity, that they were
charged with endangering the argument for the necessity of a miraculously
revealed religion. On the V)ther hand, if the natural disability of the hu
man mind be strongly stated so as to set forth the necessity of a specific
revelation, there is peril of undermining the argument on the other side;
of which theological crime, a more recent English writer, also of the
'Evangelical party, has been accused—Mr. Mansel—who has argued that
the human mind is utterly incapable of forming any conception of infinite
and absolute truth, and so has proved, it is alleged, not so much the
necessity of a miraculous revelation as the impossibility of any revelation
of the Supreme Being!
Secondly, there is a historical difficulty in the way of those who attempt
to draw a line of separation between Christianity and the so-called natu
ral religions, as if there were no natural relationship between them.
Historically, whether we regard the contents of the religions or the man
ner of their origin, there is no such separation, — no gap or chasm across
which we cannot trace the lines of natural genealogy and kinship. It
would be difficult to find in Christianity any fundamental truth of religion
or morality, nay, any theological dogma or opinion, or narrative of won
ders, that did not have a parallel expression in some anterior religion.
The ideas may be differently illustrated and emphasized in the different
religions, and so may make a very different impression; but those that are
most fundamental and central cannot be claimed as the exclusive property
of any specific faith. The immortality of the soul, the unity and pure
spirituality of Deity, the communion of the human soul with the Divine,
the superiority of the spirit to the letter, the inner light, — these ideas
have found as clear expression in other religions as they have in
Judaism and Christianity. The fatherhood of God, the brotherhood of
man; the obligations of justice, of purity, of probity, of love to the neigh
bor ; the principle of the Golden Rule, the overcoming of evil with good,
the intention of the heart rather than the outward act the test of virtue, —
these central truths of practical religion found distinct and abundant
utterance in various religions before Christianity. (I will not take the
room to cite the passages I have collected on this point, but will refer
�55
those who wish for information, and yet cannot go to the original sources,
to Mr. Samuel Johnson’s essay on the “ Natural Sympathy of Religions ”
read at our last Annual Meeting, and printed in the Report of the pro
ceedings ; and to Mr. T. W. Higginson’s article on the same subject pub
lished in the “ Radical ” for February, 1871, and since printed by the Free
Religious Association in a separate pamphlet; and also to another excellent
paper in the “ Radical” for March, 1868, by Mr. Samuel Longfellow, on
“ The Unity and Universality of Religious Ideas.” ) If we look more par
ticularly at theological beliefs, the resemblance between Christianity and
Some of the older religions is also very remark^le. Centuries before Jesus
We find the ideas of Incarnation, Mediatorship, the Fall of Man, Sacrificial
Atonement, Redemption, Pre-existence, Resurrection of the Body, a fu
ture Judgment-day, of God as “ one substance and three images,” — in
short, all the paraphernalia of a Calvinistic “ Body of Divinity.” This
resemblance penetrates into parts purporting to be historical narrative.
Krishna, in the Hindoo theology, is the Redeemer. He was born, it is
believed, to save the world from the oppression of a tyrant. His parents,
at the time of his birth, were in a humble prison. In the presence of the
heavenly babe the fetters that bound the prisoners were broken asunder,
and the cell dazzled with supernatural light; joy and sorrow over
whelmed the unhappy parents. A heavenly voice whispered to the
father to flee with the young child across the River Jomuna, in order to
save its life. Then the tyrant who had sought to destroy the child, en
raged with disappointment, sent messengers and put to death all the
infants in the neighborhood. (J. Gangooly’s Life and Religion of the
Hindoos.) I need not repeat the similar story, as found in the New Tes
tament, in the early history of Jesus. There is a striking similarity also
between what Christian writers are accustomed to call the legends con
cerning the birth and post-mortem judicial offices of Osiris and Buddha,
and what they are accustomed to recite as facts in the corresponding parts
of the.career of Jesus. Similar miracles, with attesting heavenly voices,
are alleged as attending the birth of all three; and after death it is claimed
for them all that they descended into hell, and thence ascended to heaven
to sit as judge of the dead and dispenser of the rewards of immortal life.
Now, the question comes, how are these wonderful resemblances to be
accounted for, on the supposition that Christianity has no historical con
nection with these various religions that came before it? It may be
asserted, to be sure, in spite of these resemblances that Christianity has
no natural relationship to other religions; that these great declarations
of moral and spiritual truth (leaving aside the legendary narratives),
though found in previous religions, were yet given by original and special
revelation to Christianity. But then the further question would come,
�56
Why was a special and miraculous revelation necessary to reveal these
truths in Judaea which were open to all the rest of mankind through their
natural faculties ? Indeed, the more cautious defenders of a miraculous
revelation have yielded this point, and given up all the fundamental
truths both of morality and practical religion as within the scope of the
natural human faculties, retaining only as revealed truth the peculiar
Christian scheme of Atonement and Redemption. Bishop Butler, for in
stance, says that Christianity has two offices. First, it is a republication
of natural religion. He does not claim that it adds any thing new in re
gard to our duties towards God. Natural religion, he expressly admits,
teaches that God is our Father, and what we owe to him as such. But,
secondly, he says, Christianity contains an account of a particular dis
pensation of God not discoverable by reason; viz., the redemption of
mankind (who, as he thinks, are represented in Scripture to be in a state
of ruin) through the atoning offices of the Son and the Holy Spirit.
And this theological dogma, with the duties of observance growing out of
it, is the only thing which Bishop Butler, one of the ablest and most
scholarly exponents that Christian faith has ever had, claims as strictly
original to Christianity. He would be met, of course, by the whole array
of Unitarian and other Liberal Christian writers, with the assertion that
this dogma, at least as he understood it, is not to be found in primitive
Christianity. But, even if it were, it would be difficult to prove that it is
peculiar to Christianity. The substance of the Christian dogma of the
Atonement, and something very like the form of it, appear in other re
ligions. Yet it may be true, as Bishop Butler says, that it is “ not dis
coverable by reason,” — probably because there is no reason in it. There
are certainly a good many doctrines in all religions that did not come
from reason, and which reason will never indorse.
Another claim for a special revelation in Christianity, akin to this of
Bishop Butler, but freed, it is thought, from its theological vitiation, is
sometimes made, — made especially by theologians of the Liberal Chris
tian school. The one peculiar word of God in Christianity, not found in
Nature, not known through the intuitions of reason, is, it is said, his love
for the sinner. A recent learned and popular writer expresses it thus:
“ Christianity is a revelation of pardon to the conscience, of peace to re
morse, of hope to despair. No other revelation says any thing plainly of
this; none offers forgiveness of sin. The laws of Nature never pardon.
Law, as such, cannot forgive: it can only reward obedience and punish
disobedience. No intuition of reason, nothing in the absolute religion
of the soul, says more. But, in Christ, God makes a special revelation of
his forgiving and saving love. As the mother is more proud of her
strong, manly son, but loves more tenderly the sick, deformed, or crippled
�57
child; as the father rejoices in the virtues of his good, faithful, upright
children, has them ever with him, and considers all that he has to be
theirs, but yet yearns with a peculiar tenderness toward the poor, half
dead prodigal; so God in Christ manifests an infinite tenderness of pity
towards the discouraged, the forlorn, the outcasts, and the reprobates.”
Now that this passage accurately and beautifully represents what was a
distinguishing trait in the spirit and teachings of Jesus may be readily
admitted ; but is it quite just to human nature, is it just to historical facts
and to the Supreme Being himself, to say that the idea of divine pity and
forgiveness, however much it was elevated and newly illustrated and
exemplified by Jesus, came then for the first time into human conscious
ness ? Where is it that it is written, the Lord “ forgiveth all thine
iniquities; crowneth thee with loving-kindness and tender mercies ; he
hath not dealt with us after our sins ” ? No intimations of divine for
giveness in Nature, nor in the intuitions of the human heart ? Whence
then this very comparison with which the writer illustrated his argument ?
“ As the mother is more proud of her strong, manly son, but loves more
tenderly the sick, deformed, or crippled child ” — ah 1 here it is, in the
natural intuitive tenderness of a true human mother’s heart by which she
folds more closely to her bosom an unfortunate child, — here it is, in nat
ural human love, that the Infinite Parent has been proclaiming from the
beginning of our race his own pardoning, saving, pitying tenderness. No
intuition of forgiveness, of love for the outcast and despairing, in human
reason? How was it Jesus himself taught this doctrine of divine for
giveness, but by appealing, as in the parable of the Prodigal Son, to the
natural love and forgiveness of an earthly father ? So far from claiming
to teach a new doctrine on this point, he hastened to show his hearers
that it was the old revelation of their own hearts.
^Nor is it quite true to facts even to claim, as is sometimes done, that
Christianity Is the first and only religion in which charity and philan
thropy have been organized into public institutions. It is true that in
the limits of modern Christendom there has been a remarkable develop
ment of instituted benevolence. And it is easy to show that all this is in
harmony with the life and teachings of Jesus; but not so easy to prove
that it is all the direct historical result of his career, nor the exclusive
fruit of Christian training. Philanthropy is better organized under
modern civilization, just as all social forces are better organized; yet
that kind of organized benevolence which gives to the word philanthropy
its modern significance in Christendom hardly dates back a single century.
To no small extent, indeed, the distinctive Christian Church has put itself
in antagonism to Philanthropy and Social Reform; and, even in the
limits of Christendom itself, the practical humanities of the age are quite
�58
as much in the hands of heretics as of Orthodox believers. But a fact
more to the present point is that charity was socially organized to a con
siderable degree before the time of Jesus, and that Christianity for a num
ber of centuries introduced no great change in this respect. Sakia Mouni
and Zoroaster both laid great stress on regular and daily acts of benevolence
as an essential part of religion. The Chinese have all those public insti
tutions of philanthropy and mercy which are commonly supposed to be
specially characteristic of modern Christendom, — such as Orphan Asy
lums, Institutions for the Relief of Widows, and for the Aged and In
firm of both sexes, Public Hospitals, Free Dispensaries of Medicine ; and,
what Christendom, I believe, has not yet had, Asylums of Mercy for the
dumb animals. All these institutions, together with Free Schools, date
back their origin in China to a time long anterior to the contact of the
people with Christianity. The Jews instituted benevolence in their laws,
— as, for instance, in the commands not to deliver to his master an
escaped bondman, and to extend hospitality and justice to strangers;
and, in the still more beautiful laws, that the widow’s raiment should not
be taken in pledge for debt, and that the gleanings of the harvests should
be left in the fields and vineyards for the poor. The Essenes were a
brotherhood of charity as well as of religion; taking care of the poor,
the sick, and the old, with true fraternal interest and love. The remark
able resemblance, indeed, between this Jewish sect, which flourished just
before the Christian era and disappeared so soon after, has led some
writers to identify it with the early Christians. It does seem quite prob
able that the sect was absorbed into the Christian brotherhood, and that
the striking resemblance between the two fraternities in respect to moral
and social habits was more than accidental. This little sect, departing in
some important particulars from the Hebrew faith and traditions, and
introducing features that belonged more to other religions, may be, in
deed, the historical connecting link through which Christianity was
directly joined with the great religious systems and faiths anterior to it.
And this brings me to the point which I have had specially in view in
making this comparison in respect to theological and ethical features be
tween Christianity and previous religions. The point is not that Chris
tianity is not superior to those previous religions, nor that it has not done
greater service than they in the development of humanity, but that it
came into the world by a process entirely natural, and has a perfectly
natural relationship to those antecedent forms of faith. As coming later
in the line of history and combining a larger number of vital historic
elements, it should be by natural law a richer and more effective faith.
But the point to which I wish to direct attention now is simply this, —
that Christianity, instead of being in any sense a supernatural, or
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extraordinary interpolation into the course of religious history, had its
natural genesis in the previous historic development of the nations and
countries where it appeared ; that, instead of originating in a sudden and
marvellous interruption of the natural chain of historical sequence, it
was the legitimate result of natural social forces which the unbroken
chain of that sequence logically involved. Christianity was separated
from previous religious systems in no other way than the babe when the
hour of birth has arrived is separated from the mother that has borne it.
But it may be asked, Is there any evidence, other than these resem
blances in sentiment and doctrine, that Christianity had an actual histori
cal relationship with older forms of faith, — at least with any other but
the Hebrew, w'hich it abrogated? And may. not‘these resemblances,
after all, be purely accidental? To show that natural causes wrere
Sufficient to produce Christianity, it is enough to point out that its
fundamental truths and doctrines have been developed in religions called
“ natural.” But, to prove that there actually was historical connection,
some other evidence is needed. Let us look, then, at some of the facts
that bear on this proposition.
And, first of all, we must consider the very important part which the
Roman Empire played in that great era of history. Christianity origi
nated in the age when the Roman Empire was at the height of its power
and splendor. The armies of the Cresars had penetrated to the Atlantic
on the West and to the verge of India on the East; Gaul and mountainous
Rhoetia had submitted to their power in the North, and the whole coast
line of Africa, from the Straits of Gibraltar to the Isthmus of Suez, in the
South. Before the irresistible might of these conquering legions, through
all this vast extent of territory, the partition-walls between races and nations
had disappeared: Jew and Greek, Asiatic and European, the swarthy
princes of Numidia and the rough barbarians of Gaul, all acknowledged
the law of Augustus Cmsar and of Rome. Now this vast political trans
formation could not have taken place without effecting to a greater or less
extent an intermixture of various peoples, and bringing into contact and
mutual acquaintance various philosophies and faiths. Not only were the
boundaries removed that separated these races and nations outwardly, but
the barriers that kept them apart in the inward relations of faith and
Sentiment were also thrown down; national pride and exclusiveness were
broken over; people of various religious opinions and modes of worship
came to be neighbors, learned to know each other better, and found that
they had common wants and aspirations: and so the way was laid over
which they should pass to a broader faith and a more comprehensive
religious fellowship. Jew and Greek, Persian barbarian and Alexan
drian philosopher, were brought together, ready to unite in a more
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universal spiritual kingdom. As described by the writer of the Book of
Acts, who shows the various elements of the primitive Christian Church,
“ Parthians, and Medes, and Elamites, and the dwellers in Mesopotamia,
and in Judæa, and Cappadocia, in Pontus, and Asia, Phrygia, and Pampliylia, in Egypt, and in the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and strangers
of Rome, Jews and proselytes. Cretes and Arabians,” — all these, when
introduced to each other, discovered that under their various religious
“tongues” they were articulating substantially the same faith, and that
each, whatever the utterance, could detect his mother tongue. What was
more natural than that the different “ tongues ” should help mould each
other into the language of a new religion ? This is but a hint of the
religious transformation that must have been effected by the aid of the
Roman Empire. Through commerce and travel and emigration, and
union under one system of government, there thus came into contact with
each other the culture and philosophy of the Greeks, the theological and
spiritual mysticism of the Oriental nations, the theocratic and ethical ideas
of the Jews, and the practical organizing power of the Romans ; and it was
by the conjunction and interaction of these different ideas, principles, and
forces, that the conditions for the origin of Christianity were naturally
established.
Let us now, narrowing our survey, pass to two or three facts somewhat
more specific. Of these historical forces that were thus brought to
gether, the three that were the most positive in their religious character
were the Hebrew, the Greek, and the Persian. And of these three, of
course the Hebrew, with réference to Christianity, both geographically
and historically, was the central ancestral power. But it is to be noted
that before the Christian epoch Judaism had received tributaries of religious
thought both from the East and the West. As far back as the Babylonish
captivity, five centuries b.c., the Hebrew religion had been carried forci
bly into contact with the religion of Persia, and brought away from the
union some important modifications of thought and practice that remained
even after national independence was again secured. And in the century
just preceding the Christian era, through the migrations occasioned by the
spread of the Roman power, carrying Romans and Greeks eastward and
bringing the Asiatic nations westward, and especially by the gradual exile
and settlement of Jews in the cosmopolitan city of Alexandria, Judaism
was again brought into general contact with the Persian religion on the
one hand and with the Greek religion, particularly as represented in the
Platonic philosophy, on the other. F rom the East many religious specu
lations were imbibed by the Jews from the Cabalistic writings ; and on
the other hand there were learned Jews, like Aristobulus and Philo,
versed in Grecian lore, who were attempting by allegorical interpretations
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of the Old Testament to prove that Moses taught the Platonic philosophybefore Plato himself. Nor must it be forgotten that even in Jerusalem,
after it came under Roman power, this transformation of faith was going
on ; and at the period just before the advent of Jesus it was aided by no
less a character than king Herod the Great. We must not think of
Herod as merely the cruel, brutal tyrant that he is represented to have
been in the Sunday-school literature of Christendom, founded on a leoendary story of the New Testament. Whatever his crimes may have been,
he was yet a man of liberal tastes and culture for his time, and had the
laudable ambition to make Jerusalem another Alexandria, — a city hos
pitable to all learning and all faiths. He especially affected Grecian
culture, and made the Jewish capital free to Pagan forms of worship. So
that, though the story were true of his killing all the infants of Bethlehem
in order to destroy Christiarfity in its cradle, he was nevertheless, in spite
of himself, helping prepare the way for the successful advent of the new
faith.
We find, therefore, that just before the Christian era, and even in the
limits of Judaism itself, three distinct and representative forms of religious
faith had been brought into outward neighborhood, and were acting upon
and moulding each other in their inner character. And it is not difficult
to trace the contributions that came from each of these sources into the
Wly development of Christianity. Judaism contributed its ethical doc
trines somewhat enlarged and spiritualized from the law of Moses; also
it® monotheistic conception of the Divine Being, which, from the severe
Mosaic idea of Almighty Sovereignty, had been gradually assuming more
of.the character of paternal tenderness. We may find almost all the pre
cepts of the Sermon on the Mount and the petitions of the Lord’s Prayer
in Hillel and other Jewish rabbis before the time of Jesus. Judaism con
tributed, too, the Messianic idea, — a transformation of its old conception
of a theocratic government; and this was a very important contribution,
since this idea became the central mental instrumentality through which
Christianity was organized. Persia brought the doctrine of the resurrec
tion of the body ; of a day of judgment; of future rewards and retributions ;
of an irrepressible conflict in the universe between two essentially hostile
principles, good and evil, light and darkness ; of a Satanic power; and of
angels as messengers between heaven and earth. It contributed therefore
the scenic conditions of that primitive Christian faith, — that the world with
its evil was to come to an end by a grand catastrophe, and the Messianic
kingdom through the supervision of heavenly powers was to be miracu
lously established on a regenerated earth. From the spiritual philosophy
of Greece came the conception of the Divine Logos, or Eternal Word,
emerging from the Infinite to create the finite world and to incarnate itself
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in humanity; a conception from which sprang the dogma of the Trinity
and kindred metaphysical phases of Christian doctrine. It was a concep
tion too, which played a very important part in the early development of
Christianity, inasmuch as it transformed through a process of spiritual
idealization the Jewish idea of the Messiah, and so enabled that idea to
keep its historic course even after the primitive Christian form of it —
the expectation of the outward reappearance of Jesus—had necessarily
been disappointed. It seems clear that it was this transformation of the
Messianic conception through the influence of Greek philosophy (which
even began to show itself in Paul’s view of the Messiahship) that com
mended Christianity to the western Gentile mind, and furnished the
medium for its rapid development in the countries around the Mediter
ranean Sea.
Not to go into further details, we may say, -then, on this point, that we
find very important and central doctrines of three of the most prominent
faiths that were anterior to the Christian era — the three faiths that had
come outwardly into contact—reappearing in Christianity, fused into
one religious system.
And when we consider that these previous religions had severally
gathered into themselves the thought and culture of other religions, —■
that even ancient Egypt and India had probably poured their contribu
tions to the religious wealth of humanity into these streams, — the point
of their fusion seems a very central point in the past religious history of
mankind, and the Christian era by natural causes is invested with im
mense importance, and marks a most pregnant crisis in the development
of the human race. The spiritual blood of Moses, Zoroaster, and Plato,
had met by natural genealogy, and Christianity was the natural product.
Now what was the relation in which Jesus stood to this great era?
That he made the era can hardly be asserted in face of the historical
facts we have here noted. That he had nothing to do with shaping the
elements of the era into the new form of faith that took the name of
Christianity would seem to be equally violative of the record of history.
The elements were there, brought together by natural causes ; but a
fusing touch was needed for successfully combining them into a symmet
rical whole: a representative person was needed who should actually
exhibit the combination in his own doctrine and character, and so become
its exponent to the popular mind. This need was supplied by Jesus.
The requisite fusing touch was found in his spiritual genius, which happily
combined in itself the various elements that were seeking combination in
society. He came, therefore, as the natural prophet and spokesman of
the era, — came just as naturally as the era itself, and through the same
causes that produced the era; and was related to it in the same way as
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Luther was related to the Protestant Reformation, as Washington to the
American Political Revolution, as Charlemagne to the new departure
of government, learning, and civilization in Western Europe 'n the eighth
century: not that Jesus did the same kind of organizing work belonging
to a new era that was done by these personages. That was impossible
in the limit of the few months he was in person on the stage of
history. Paul was rather the representative organizer of Christianity;
yet Jesus had supplied the personal magnetic touch that set the elements
into the attitude of crystallization. His power was the power of a strong
personality, which put existing ideas and sentiments into motion, and fur
nished them a vital centre of organic attraction. And this he did by
presenting in his own thought and character so harmonious a union of the
various, if not indeed conflicting, religious elements that were floating in
chaotic mass around him. We may say, indeed, that he was himself the
product of Moses, Zoroaster, and Plato, — that they and the religious
faith their names represent were in a sense freshly incarnated in him;
not meaning, however, to imply that he came to his religious ideas merely
through a study of the records of their systems. Probably he did not
know that such persons as Zoroaster and Plato had ever lived. Had he
only reached his idea through books, he would have been simply a phi
losopher or scholar — not a prophet, not the reputed founder of a new
religion. The results of these systems of religious thought entered un
consciously as elements into the groundwork of his being. They were in
the very air which he breathed, in the very blood which mingled in his
veins. Very likely he had himself been educated as an Essene, and had
early imbibed the wisdom of that remarkable sect. So far he was a
product of the intellectual and religious forces which produced the age
in which he lived. But these forces were thoroughly assimilated to his
own mental and spiritual life. He did not regard them as something
apart from himself to be studied, — they were in him and of him, appear
ing in as fresh and original inspiration in him as ever in Plato or Zoroas
ter or Moses ; his personality certainly as much as theirs manifesting the
continued vitality of a fountain of life that was older and greater than
they, and that was still able to shape itself into new forms of conscious
ness, and to collect itself in new personal organisms, for ever increasing
demonstrations of its power. Thus Jesus exhibited, taking his teachings
and life together, a character that combined in fine symmetry the varied
elements of this new era of faith ; and he became its natural representative
and interpreter to the popular mind. The shortness of his actual career
and its tragic ending, added to his saintliness of character and to a quality
of mind and speech that was at the same time theologically radical and
spiritually mystical, rendered it all the more easy to idealize him, and left
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the elements of the new faith, after they had once found in him a fusing
centre of attraction, free to shape themselves according to their own or
ganic law. Christianity accordingly came into the world, not by a merely
outward junction of previous religious systems under the pressure of some
strong external force, but as a vital organic process of historical growth,
being in this respect like all other natural historic processes that have a
real vitality and power.
Now this union of so many vital elements of religious development,
drawn from such a wide variety of nation, culture, and belief, and left so
comparatively free from external pressure to crystallize into a new relig
ious system (the spread of which was indirectly aided from the first by
the Roman Empire), amply accounts for the large degree of catholicity
and universality which Christianity has possessed, and for its power of
adapting itself in its historical career to a great variety of national life
and of human condition. An especially important point in its favor was
the exceptional fact that it organically united two race-faiths which had
long lived apart, the Semitic and the Aryan, deriving from the union of
these two independent stocks of religious sentiment a strength greater
than either had shown alone. Christianity has had a capacity for self
development and has attained a power beyond that of any other religion,
because it absorbed into itself the vital force of the religious thought of
two great races as well as of three prominent and powerful faiths of the
ancient world.
But, does it therefore follow that Christianity is absolutely universal
and catholic? Is it unlike the religions before it in having no limita
tions ? Will it have power to adapt itself to all times, and to all kinds
and classes of men, and so finally absorb all other religions, and all na
tions and civilizations, into itself, and become the universal, perpetual
religion of mankind ? I would answer these questions with all reverence,
yet with all plainness, anxious only to seek and serve the truth. It seems
to me, then, clear that Christianity, both in its origin and in its history, has
limitations; and these limitations were just as natural to it, and just as
necessary in order to meet the conditions of the age, as were its elements
of liberality and comprehensiveness. Not to speak of certain sentiments
and dogmas which were attached to it in its earliest phases, — such as
belief in demonic possession, in the second coming of Jesus, in the
speedy end of the world, and in eternal punishment, which reason can
hardly accept now, but which it may be claimed were not absolutely es
sential to the religion then; not to speak of some moral imperfections
which it might not be difficult to point out even in the pure and lofty
character of Jesus, but which yet might not have made it impossible for
him to have taught the principles of absolute religion, — there was at least
�ou6 feature of limitation which was actually essential to the very birth
0'f Christianity as a historical religion, and which has always remained as
Ott® of the most central principles of its existence. This is the claim of
Jesus to be the Messiah, and the recognition of him as such. Jesus
began his mission from a Jewish stand-point and with Jewish views ; and,
whatever may have been his own conception of his mission, the Messianic
idea certainly furnished the instrumentality, and, it would seem, the only
one possible at the time, for his obtaining any foothold in his nation. The
Messianic hope presented the immediate motive which concentrated and
organized the various religious elements of the time into a church. It
was necessary in that age that the new faith should appear in this con
crete shape. Yet so far did this Messianic claim limit Jesus’ work that
it seems extremely probable that Christianity would have been only a
reformed Jewish sect, had not Paul come, bringing a larger element from
the Hellenistic thought and culture, and opened the door of the Messianic
Kingdom to the Gentile world. Paul with his broad mission to the Gen
tiles, — a “ mystery ” of the new faith which the more primitive disciples
could scarcely comprehend, — and with his vigorous genius for religious
propagandism, which well matched and followed the genius of Rome for
^political propagandism, saved Christianity from one of the narrow effects
of the limitation inherent in the Jewish Messianic idea.
Still, the essential feature of that idea remained, — was in some respects
even aggravated by this early adaptation of Christianity to the Gentile
nations. For the essential feature of that idea was, that Jesus, by right
of his office, could claim allegiance as a specially commissioned represen
tative of God. He was King and Lord of the Messianic realm. And
the effect of enlarging and spiritualizing the realm was not to remove
Jesus from this position, but rather to magnify and elevate his office still
more, until he was idealized into a God. Through the influence of the
Greek philosophy, the Messianic idea, as we have seen, was very
thoroughly transformed, taking the shape of the Divine Incarnation; yet
in some shape it remained as the vitalizing principle of the Christian
Church; and, upon the confession that Jesus was the Christ, Christianity
was organized and has held its career to this day as a specific religion.
Now this is a limitation in its central organizing principle which pre
vents Christianity from being the universal and absolute religion, and
incapacitates it from adapting itself to all times and all men. Science,
scholarship, historical investigation, and a rational interpretation of history
are all undermining the idea that Jesus, however much he has been ele
vated and worshipped by the Christian Church, was more than a man, or
that he had any other authority than that which belongs to all sincere and
impressive utterance of great truths, or any other office than that of the
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propbet and reformer. The very conception of Messiahship, as it has
been held by both Jew and Christian, modern rational thought condemns.
And there are signs that Christianity has now reached, because of the very
limitation of this conception, the limit of its longitudinal development, so
to speak, in human history. It may continue to spread somewhat further
sidewise, gaining adherents from people who are on a relatively lower
level of thought than are its most enlightened devotees; though the pros
pect is not very encouraging for it even in that direction. But it seems
impossible that it should adapt itself any further to human progress, and
still remain Christianity. In the most liberal sects already the “ Chris
tian confession ” has been rationalized to the utmost it will bear, and the
authority of Jesus reduced to the minimum quantity that is consistent
with any conception of his official or supernatural position. One step fur
ther in the same direction, and he is seen to stand in the line of natural
humanity, with no other authority than that spiritual wisdom “ which
in all ages, entering into holy souls, maketh them friends of God and
prophets.” We have come to the age when it is beginning to be seen that
there must be democracy in religion. Free, rational, thinking men cannot
much longer accept any other authority than that which has its seat in
their own souls, and cannot give sincere allegiance to any sovereignty less
than that which expresses itself in the totality of Nature’s laws and the
human consciousness.
And it does not help the matter for Christianity to declare that Jesus is
not King and Lord in any such sense as having absolute authority, but
that he is only a great moral and religious leader, who by natural ways
has come into the position of providential spiritual headship to the
human race, — an example and ideal for all future time. For as soon as
we place him in the line of humanity, and affirm the natural origin and
development of Christianity, we make it irrational and preposterous to
suppose that he, a simple man, has the place of headship to the whole
human race, or has furnished a religious system to man which is absolutely
perfect and unchangeable. No more irrational would it be to say of
Beethoven or Homer or Shakspeare, because of their great superiority
to others in their respective arts, that they have therefore sounded the
ultimate depths of music or poetry or the drama, and given not only speci
mens, but entire systems of their arts, which must for ever stand as the
goal of all human attainment. There is no a priori impossibility, nor
very great improbability, that a man should at some time have appeared,
or should now appear, who, with reference to his own time, should rise to
such relative perfection in knowledge and character as to manifest no
defect, compared with the very highest »contemporary standard. But to
say that any finite human mind existing in Judeea two thousand years ago,
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or existing in the most favorable spot on the earth in this nineteenth cen
tury, could come by entirely natural processes to the possession of absolute
perfection in spiritual wisdom and character, so as to set a standard for
humanity never to be surpassed in all the ages, is certainly a very wild
belief. If Jesus had been God, then he might have established the uni
versal and absolute religion. Being man, he takes his place among the
workers for God; and his work, however great and enduring in its power,
cannot have anticipated and supplied the wants of all mankind for all after
time.
Christianity has rendered, and is still rendering, inestimable service to
®an. So all the specific religions have been useful in their time and
place. They all have preserved some truth, and have satisfied some
human want. But humanity is now beginning to cry out for the sub
stance of religion, and to care little for the system. The special systems
have had their day, and mainly done their work. They have all been
useful, but “received not the promise; God having provided some better
thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect.” In other
words, in the natural development of religious ideas the specific religions
must shed their antagonistic claims to supernatural authority, and put off
their mutually excluding special features of dogma and ceremony, in
order that Religion itself may mature its finer elements of thought and
character, and that men from all countries and faiths may be drawn to
gether in a free, broad fellowship, on the basis of the common allegiance
of the human faculties to the law of truth and right.
And the signs are not few that the era for this new order of spiritual
fellowship is now opening. And — may I not add? — at the dawn of this
era stands the Free Religious Association, ready to voice its spirit, confi
dent with the expectancy of great hopes ; its white banner modestly raised,
yet high enough to catch the light of the new morning that is breaking
over the world, with fresh promise of peace and good-will to men.
After Mr. Potter had finished his Essay, Mr. Frothingham
Baid that in the absence of Dr. Wise it might not be out of place
to give a brief report of what his lecture would have been if they
could have listened to it.
It was his fortune to have heard it when it was delivered by Dr. Wise
in New York ; and Dr. Wise had said to him that he gave the study of
twenty years to this question of the origin of Christianity, a book upon
which subject he published two or three years ago. The sources of his
information were largely exclusive of the New Testament. His position
was in substance this : He did not speak as if he represented the view of the
Jewish Church, but his own view as a historical student, and as a Hebrew.
�68
In the first place, he, of course, discarded all the Christian theology in
regard to Jesus, or what is commonly called Christianity. He dismissed
altogether the account of the Immaculate Conception, and assumed that
Jesus was a mere man, and all the stories of miracle as unproven. But he
contended for the historical being of Jesus as a person who actually ex
isted, insisting upon it that there was as much reason to believe in his
existence as there was to believe in the existence of any other historical
person who lived so long ago. In regard to his position, he paid the very
highest tribute to the moral grandeur of the character of Jesus. There
was a deep and solemn earnestness in Dr. Wise’s tone as he spoke upon
the life and purposes of Jesus. He believed that Jesus was tried and
condemned as an insurrectionist against the Roman power, the Jews who
believed in him being too weak to take his side, and the Jews who did
not believe in him rather favoring his execution because it secured their
position. Dr. Wise went on to say that the story of the resurrection of
Jesus had its source in the imagination of the Apostles. He denied that
Jesus predicted his own resurrection, or that he ever did rise. His dis
ciples, in their own simple-hearted enthusiasm, gathering about themselves
such legend and tradition, proceeded to found their own religion. But the
power that founded Christianity, as we call it, was in the soul of St. Paul;
and it was St. Paul who was the creator of the Christian Church. With
that Jesus had nothing to do. He was a breath ; he was an inspired
heart; he was as warm, devoted a soul as ever lived; but with the sub
sequent errors, traditions, and legends that gathered about his name, he
had nothing to do, and his noble soul would have been distressed could he
have known that such things should have been said about him, and have
been built upon his work.
Lucretia Mott then took up the subject in an address of considerable
length. She had no doubt that great good was resulting from the free dis
cussion of the character of Jesus, and other religious topics. What was
called natural religion was revealed religion, and inspired, as she thought,
in the same way as were the great utterances of Christianity. Men were
so superstitious, so prone to believe what was presented to them by their
church or creed, that they ought to follow Jesus more in his non-conform
ity. Those who most delighted to honor the name of Jesus had yet to
learn the nobleness of his character, which led him to live up to and act
out his highest convictions, though so opposed to the traditions of his time.
She alluded to the observance of the Sabbath as springing more from a
superstitious than a rational motive, and as certainly not resting on the
command or example of Jesus. Jesus claimed very little for himself, but
was ever ready to bring in the name of the truth, saying that it was the
truth that made men free. She held that scepticism was a religious duty,
*
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awl that men should question their theology, and doubt more, in order that
they might believe more. She would ask those who were so satisfied to
regt in the name of Jesus, why they put so much faith in the name with
out following him in his works, and even in the “ greater works ” which
he predicted ? Paul, she admitted, was too much of a theologian for her;
tat she knew of no warrant that required her to take St. Paul as an
authority. She thought, however, there had been of late great advance
in liberality even among the strictest sects, and gave some interesting
reminiscences of this kind of progress. Her remarks were closed by an
earnest appeal for more of practical simplicity and sincerity in the daily
Conduct of life. She protested especially against the prevailing extrava
gances in dress and housekeeping, and said that she mourned for the
future of the marriage institution and of society, unless plainer and less
COStly habits of living could be adopted.
Mr. D. A. Wasson wanted to say a few words with reference to the
position taken by his esteemed friend Colonel Higginson, who, if he un
derstood him rightly, was ready, if need be, to dispense with a God, say
ing that if we lost God we still had ourselves. He doubted that. If God
be, then he is the life of ourselves, and we ourselves not men unless this
universe is divine. If it be bigotry to desire to know that this universe
is penetrated with the light of a creative mind, and warmed with the
divine blood of a central heart; if it be bigotry to feel a concern for the
troth that there is a reality above us which we may climb to, as well as a
reality below us on which we may tread, then he wished to be put down
a bigot. No man had the life of a man but in the truth of ideas. As
to the subject of the afternoon, he so fully accepted the statement that
Christianity was founded on the human soul that he had put the question
behind him, and thought they should make haste to arrive at another
point. He did not want an extract from all the religions of the world as
a sort of universal religion. He tried to get at the root of every religion,
and he came to Christianity in the same spirit, because he was no longer
'jealous of other religions. He thought that Christianity should be judged
O a whole, and not simply as it was left by Jesus. It was not the slight
est objection to Christianity that it got something from Chrysostom and
St Augustine, and is getting something to this day. He had no doubt
that Jesus started a new chemistry ; that he launched ideas that crystal
lized anew, and were built up into fresh organic life, and that Christianity
is the result of that building. He had no desire to make dogma, but he
wanted the spirit of appreciation that was ready to take up the ideas of
the human soul as they have got their expression in that great constructive
fact of human history that was called Christianity.
Mr. John L. Russell, of Salem, understood Mr. Higginson’s argu*
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ment to be, that the life that now is is so magnificent and so replete with
every thing that is glorious, every thing that thé human intellect and
human affections can possibly conceive of, that, if it was proved there was
nothing but this life, it ought to suffice. He wanted to insist also upon
the point that the nineteenth century is not indebted to Christianity for
its improvements. What is called the Christian civilization of this era
rested, in his opinion, upon the modern awakening of science ; and yet
almost every day in pulpit and press it was claimed that we were in
debted to the Christian religion for the benefits of modern civilization.
It seemed to him rather that Christianity was being moulded and trans
formed by science.
Mr. Wasson said a few words more in regard to his position, and read
a sentence or two, to which his attention had been called, from the Report
of the Executive Committee, showing that his criticism with regard to
forming a new religion by mechanical combination of extracts of old reli
gions could not fairly apply to any opinions that had been expressed by
this Association.
Mr. Dean Clarke followed, speaking not so much on the specific
topic of the Essay, as on the position and work of the Association in gen
eral, in the meetings of which, he said, he felt very much at home. He
was in conviction a Spiritualist, and for that reason he liked this broad,
free platform, representing religious reform and progress.
Rabbi Guinzbitrg spoke a few words in the same strain from his
stand-point of the Jewish Church, — said l.e had been greatly interested
in the Essays and discussions of the day, and wanted it understood that
he was a member of the Association.
Adjourned till 7.30 p.m.
EVENING
SESSION.
The Convention reassembled according to adjournment. The
Chair was taken by John T. Sargent, one of the Vice-Presidents ;
and the President, Mr. Frothingham, delivered the following
essay.
ESSAY BY 0. B. FROTHINGHAM.
Superstition and Dogmatism.
The Committee appointed to arrange the topics for discussion at this
Convention set apart this evening for talk on the existing power of Dog
matism and Superstition, and requested me to introduce it by an Essay
�that should bring the matter fairly before the audience. In performing
this duty, I shall aim to be simple and direct. It is, however, impossi
ble to speak of the existing power of superstition without speaking of
Superstition itself. It has a long lineage, and is always the same thing.
Its power is dynamic : its malignity is in its quality, not in its mass. But its
mass is fearful ; for it is bounded only by the realm of ignorance,
stupidity, and credulity.
Is it proper, some will ask, to speak of an existing power of supersti
tion ? Is not superstition a thing that existed once, or exists elsewhere?
It is a popular delusion that superstition has disappeared ; or, if not, that
it has become harmless. This is the superstition of the superstitions.
The insane think all insane but themselves. Everybody hates superstition,
and everybody hugs it. It is the universal horror and the universal pet, —
the confessed foe of religion, and the as cordially clutched guardian of it.
It is cursed and caressed by the same devotees. The disease is a mild form
of rheumatism in our case, but gout in our neighbors. It is the “ fire water ”
which is ruining the man over the way, but which we take in very small
quantities for the stomach’s sake,—our meat, his poison. Our super
stition should not be called superstition. Would you find the genuine
article, you must go to the “ little church round the corner.” You call
at the “ little church round the corner,” and the well-bred rector refers
you to the big cathedral on the square. You hasten thither, and are
told with lofty disdain that you have come to the wrong place. The
horror you look for is in a synagogue, on the side street. Your search
is like the search for the bosom sin. The Romanist enlarges on the
superstitions of the Pagans. The Protestant waxes hot, as he d \ cribes
the superstitions of the Romanists. The Unitarian pours scorn on the
superstition of the Protestant. The Theist fastens the charge on the
Unitarian. The Positivist delares that the Theist’s belief in a personal
God holds the very soul of superstition. By general consent, it is admit
ted that the Positivist has cleared himself from the aspersion ; and, by
general consent, it is agreed that the Positivist is an unhappy creature,
who has got rid of his devils indeed, but at the expense of getting rid of
his angels.
The inference would be, then, that Superstition is commensurate with
Supernaturalism. Not quite. Supernaturalism thinks of a Being who
comprehends, overawes, presides over the natural universe, or a principle
that is not exhausted by an organic universe. Superstition describes this
Being as directly interfering as ruler and director. The finest minds may
point to the Supernatural ; only the coarser are infested with Supersti
tion. It is a familiar saying, that Ignorance is the mother of Superstition.
It would be hard to say that Ignorance was the mother of Supernaturalism.
�72
No one by searching, perhaps, can find out God. But very little search
ing suffices to reveal that God is not whimsical or capricious like ourselve*.
at is the whole history of the intellectual progress of the
world but one long struggle of the intellect of man to emancipate itself
from the deceptions of Nature ? Millions of prayers have been vainly
breathed to what we now know were inexorable laws. Only after ages
of toil did the mind of man emancipate itself from those deadly errors, the
deceptive appearances of Nature, to which the long infancy of Humanity
is universally doomed.” (Lecky’s Morals, i. 56.) It used to be thought
that Africa was a land of monsters, serpents large enough to stop ar
mies, and men without heads; that golden apples grew in Spain ; that
giants and enchantresses lived in Sicily; that a cave on the shore of the
Black Sea was the mouth of hell. The Roman legions and the travelling
merchants made these phantoms vanish. The Australians have an evil
demon named Koin, who tries to strangle them in their sleep. He never
comes, except when they have been gorging themselves with food. He is
the nightmare of an overloaded stomach. If you want to reach the heart
of this subject without pains, open the first volume of Mr. Buckle’s
“History of Civilization” at the 269th page, and you will find matter
for profound reflection. There is the whole case in a nutshell. There is
the clear statement, fortified by hosts of references and illustrated by
facts in every field, that Superstition is simply the child of Ignorance.
There you will read that so simple a process as the draining of marshy
land cleared the brains of Englishmen of their notions of a special provi
dence in chills and fever, while the same Englishmen pray for wet or dry
weather because they have not discovered the laws that control the fall of
rain. The discovery of those laws will still further limit the domain of
the Supernatural.
A vast area of mind was purged of superstition by the science
which discovered the law of the eclipse. An Athenian general, Nikias,
fearing to risk a battle at the time of a lunar eclipse, allowed him
self and his army of forty thousand men to be either slain or taken pris
oners. In the tenth century an entire army suddenly became demoralized,
and was dissipated, by an eclipse of the sun. I am acquainted with
persons who will on no account see the new moon over the left shoulder;
and a very elegant woman calmly told me, the other day, that her mis
fortunes were due to her having been born under an evil star. She knew
some things better than she knew Astronomy.
Religion is the last hiding-place of Superstition, for it is the last region
that Science invades. Into the world of imagination, sentiment, feeling,
into the world of pure speculation, of awe, wonder, and mystery, knowl
edge penetrates slowly. There the chemist, the naturalist, the astron
�73
omer, the meteorologist, the physicist, are at fault. The physiologist is
just beginning to probe the secrets of the nervous organization, and to dis
turb the bats we thought were spirits. How Draper and Maudesley make
them fly! What simple and sufficient answers to the questions of the
superstitious are elicited by the medical cross-questioning of the brain!
How sweetly the Divine Order comes in and occupies the wild territory
which fancy had peopled with spirits ! How magnificent the avenues of Law,
that stretch away into the invisible regions that had once been the dwelling
places and play-grounds of the wilful gods ! Special providences become
general, and general providences move with shut eyelids. Gods merge
in God, and God loses individuality and fades away into spacelessness
until conscious Law is King of kings. We must of course discriminate.
Supernaturalism implies reliance on supernatural powers, not belief in
supernatural things. Believe as you will about heaven and hell, imps and
angels, so long as you expect from them neither help nor harm you may
be irrational, but you are not superstitious. Religion finds it hard to dis
card the word supernatural, but the rational Theist has no difficulty in
clearing his mind of every vestige of superstition. The God he worships
rules, but never interferes; presides, but never intrudes ; enacts laws, but
never breaks them. Theodore Parker was an immense believer in God
and immortality; but the charge of superstition could no more be fixed on
him than on Humboldt.
To most people, the spiritual world is still the abode of spectres.' If
you want
pies of pure superstition, you must go to Religion. There
are people
will not start an enterprise on Friday, but we laugh at
them. There are people who will give up a journey if a black cat crosses
their path, but they laugh grimly at themselves. Thousands of people
rejoice in their fear to travel on Sunday. Thousands think their journey
will be more prosperous, if before starting they utter a prayer.
Six hundred years ago, St. Francis d’Assisi, kneeling in his little
chapel, had a vision. The Virgin and her Son appeared to him, thanked
him for his great services to the church, and begged him to mention any
small favor they could render him as a token of their gratitude. Francis,
bowed down by the condescension and oppressed with humbleness, merely
asked that all who, from that time forward, should confess and partake of
the Mass in that particular chapel, might have all their sins forgiven.
The request, though too insignificant to be spoken of, was granted. But
to make it more worthy of such a petitioner and such a giver, the trifling
privilege was extended to the churches of the Franciscan order through
out the world. On a day in last August the Church of St. Francis, in
New York, was crowded from morning till night with pious souls who
were anxious to get a few centuries of their allotted purgatory wiped off.
10
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Archbishop Manning, who is spoken of as a promising candidate for
the papacy, if the present incumbent ever leaves it, gravely justifies the
practice of trading in celestial real estate, which so shocked Wycliffe and
Huss, and at length outraged Europe into Protestantism.
The rite of Baptism shows a pure case of superstition. The Indian
“ medicine man ” muttered a formula over a gourd filled with water from
a neighboring fountain, and sprinkled it on his sick patient. The Peru
vian, after confessing his sin, bathed in the nearest running stream, and
said: “ O thou river! receive the sins I have this day confessed unto
the sun; carry them down to the sea, and let them never more appear.”
The Aztecs began their order of baptism thus: “ O child! receive the
water of the Lord of the world, which is our life; it is to wash and to
purify; may these drops remove the sin which was given to thee before
the creation of the world,” — and in conclusion the priest said: “ Now
he is born anew and liveth anew, now is he purified and cleansed, now
our mother the water again bringeth him into the world.” When the
Romish priests saw the ceremony, they thought the old Enemy had been
at work, and crossed themselves with holy water more devoutly than
ever.
The Episcopal priest, before applying the water, prays that God will
“ grant to the child that thing which by nature he cannot have,” will
“ wash him and sanctify him with the Holy Ghost; ” and, after applying
the water, declares the child to be regenerate. Was ever Pagan suckled
in a more fantastical creed than this ? When the superstition vanishes
from the rite, and it becomes a simple observance of sentiment, nobody
cares about it.
The Communion is another instance of unmitigated superstition. See
that morsel of bread. It was ripened in the field, harvested, ground,
kneaded, baked in an oven, — touch it, taste it, it is bread, and nothing
more. Consider this wine in the goblet. It was grown in a vineyard,
imported in a vessel, bought at a grocer’s shop. It differs from ordinary
wine only in not being so good. But, on the utterance of certain words
in a religious service, the substance is transformed. What seems bread
becomes God’s body. What seems wine becomes God’s blood. The
mouthful and the sip pass the Lord of the world into the soul through the
gateway of the lips. The Divine Intervention is pledged to come in at
every utterance of the charmed words, and pack the living Godhead into
a thin wafer that would not stay the hunger of a child. The natural
mind calls this blasphemous nonsense. The supernatural mind calls it
divine mystery.
The English Book of Common Prayer affirms that “ the body and
blood of Christ are verily and indeed taken and received by the faithful
�75
in the Lord’s Supper.” “ Grant us,” the priest implores,—“grant us
so to eat the flesh of thy dear Son, and to drink his blood, that our
sinful bodies may be made clean by his body, and our souls washed
through his most precious blood.” When Zwingli took out the poison by
declaring that the Supper was simply a memorial observance, it dropped
into disuse. Without the superstition, it was nothing. Take away the
miracle, and you take away the meaning. Yet a leading Unitarian divine
declares that instituted Christianity cannot survive the neglect of the
Communion !
Protestants can boast of superstitions every whit as pure as those of
Romanism. “ Zion’s Herald ” stands by the statement that the earth will
explode sooner than the truth that earthquakes and other natural con
vulsions are caused by human sin. The Presbyterians in Philadelphia
lately put on record their conviction that the hideous woes that afflict
France are a doom passed on the nation by the Protestant God to pay
for the Massacre of St. Bartholomew. Such nonsense is the despair of
history and the confusion of reason. The vulgar idea of prayer is satu
rated with superstition. “Prayer,” says an “Orthodox” divine, “is the
rope up in the belfry: we pull it, and it rings the bell in heaven.” Says
another: “ Jesus, the high treasurer in heaven, knows every letter of his
Father’s handwriting, and can never be imposed upon by any forged note.
He will always honor his Father’s bills.” Said another dealer in pious
imagery: “ When a pump is frequently used, the water pours out at the
first stroke, because it is high. But if the pump has not been used for
a long time, the water gets low, and you must pump a long while to get
it. So with prayer.” Here is natural superstition for you 1 Bell-ropes,
pump-handles, and promises to pay on demand! The ropes rattle, the
pumps suck, the promises to pay wait for indorsement. To the spiritually
minded this rusty machinery is disgusting. But finer machinery will still
be machinery. Substitute for the bell-rope the sigh or the tear, for the
pump-handle meditation, for the promissory note the temper of trust, —
the difficulty still remains. Mechanism is mechanism, whether it be the
turning of a mill, or the tapping of a telegraph wire. It is as rational to
pray for rain as for righteousness; for a favoring gale to speed your ship
as for a breath of the Holy Spirit to revive your soul. It is equally
superstitious to pray for life, and to pray for a willingness to lay life
down. The superstition lasts so long as the notion lasts that we can
have any gift for the asking; that we can obtain any single good thing
without conforming to the vital conditions ; that wishing, however earnest,
can dispense with willing; that the rule, “ If a man will not work, neither
shall he eat,” may, under any circumstances, be suspended ; that any part
of creation, any realm of being, is uncontrolled by law. Superstition
�76
disappears when the conviction comes in that we must earn what we
would have. • Jeremy Taylor assigns so many conditions of acceptable
prayer, that the ceremony of praying may be omitted. The work is done
before the supplication begins. If to be successful, prayer must be intelli
gent, sincere, earnest, humble ; if all good desires must precede it, and all
sweet tempers and noble dispositions must accompany it, and the grand
est resolutions must fortify it, — in other words, if every thing you pray
for must be presupposed before you pray, why pray ? The time is coming
when men will not pray for natural or spiritual gifts ; when it will be
seen that all such prayers have been breathed in vain to inexorable laws.
Read John Weiss’s chapter on “ False and True Praying,” in his new
book on “ American Religion ; ” shame yourselves by the reading out of
the superstition of praying for things which, if you really desire, you will
earn; and, by studying that and other chapters, educate yourselves into
the clearest ideas about rational religion that have ever been printed.
While present views of Providence last, Christians cannot look down on
Pagans. The augurs and soothsayers are their brothers. While the
present idolatry of the Bible lasts, Christians cannot look intelligent
heathens in the face. “ See that Christian missionary,” said a Hindu to
his companion, — “ see that Christian missionary carrying his god under
his arm.” There is a pure fetich: a book of charms ; a miracle-working
product of the printing-press. The Bible Society turns it out by the
hundred thousand copies,—always in one volume; always broken up in
chapters and verses; no spurious parts omitted; no apocryphal part put
in; no mistranslating corrected; no dark texts explained; no intelligent
classification of books allowed ; no vowel points changed. That the
volume should be understood is not essential. It is not necessary even
that it should be read. It must be distributed and possessed. It is
scattered among the heathen by shiploads; it is left at the doors of people
who cannot read ; there is a copy in every room of your hotel; the saloon
of every steamboat has one or more ; the traveller puts it in his trunk as
a talisman; the soldier puts it in his breast-pocket to ward off the bullet,
or stay the bayonet thrust (which it sometimes does), the undisturbed
presence of the book in the pocket being thought sufficient to insure its
virtue. To read a chapter every morning, without asking what it means,
will keep off the devils for the day. Devout people open it at random,
and find a divine oracle in the text that first meets the eye. If a child
flings the book down and kicks it, the resources of parental discipline are
inadequate to the emergency, and the minister must be called in to pre
scribe for th6 offence. The proposition to translate the volume into plain
English is repelled; and the idea of reading the volume as one reads
other books is scouted with horror. “ Have you any request to make,
�77
Tommy ? ” said a pastor to a little boy who was sick. “ Yes : when I
am buried, please put my little Testament in the coffin with me. I am
a very little boy, and I am afraid Jesus will forget me. But I will reach
up my New Testament to him, and then he will receive me.”
Who shall do justice to the superstitions that infest the Sabbatarian
mind ? Here is one day in seven that is not to be reckoned in the ordi
nary calendar: it is an intruder in the astronomical universe. It has no
place in the schedule of time; history has to jump over it. The solar
system has orders to pass it by. It takes no celestial observations.
Another sun shines for it; other winds blow for it; other elements work
for it ; the laws of hydrostatics and pneumatics and gravitation are sus
pended on that day. They are the ministers of God, and tradition says
that on this day God was asleep. On that sacred day the obedient sea,
converted from its secular habits, swallows up not the unskilful sailor, but
the worldly absentee from church. The orthodox winds upset not the
inexpert who know not how to manage their sail, but the irreverent
who do not love the Sunday school. If the sportsman is killed on Sunday
by his own gun, it is not because he is a careless sportsman, but because
he was not reading his Bible. If a carriage breaks down on Sunday, it
h not the fault of the roads or of the axle; the laws of mechanics are
of no account on Sunday: that the word of Scripture might not be
broken, the wheel gave way. The natural forces are all orthodox on
one day in the week. The sea becomes “evangelical.” The sun dis
penses the gospel, and is literally a sun of righteousness. The winds
obey the behest of the Holy Ghost. The beasts prophesy. The trees
rf the field are strict Sabbatarians. Nature studies the Bible, and
goes by the letter of it; she guards the slumbers of God. The “ New
Cyclopedia of Illustrations,” a work introduced to the public by no
less a person than Dr. Stephen H. Tyng, of New York, quotes approv
ingly an Eastern legend to the effect that, while Solomon was on his way
to visit the Queen of Sheba, he came to a valley in which dwelt a peculiar
tribe of monkeys ; on inquiring into their history, he learned that they
were the posterity of a colony of Jews, who by habitual profanation of
the Sabbath had degenerated into apes.
Dogmatism is superstition of opinion. A dogma is an opinion with a
magical attachment. It is a medicated bullet. The dogma is a fetich. The
less you understand it, the diviner it is. Its mysteriousness is its merit.
The credo quia absurdam is the motto of the dogmatist. The formula
is a charm, a philactery to be worn about the neck, or on the arm, or upon
the forehead. Emblazon it on the church, and Christ will dwell there.
Set it over the gates of your college, and God will bless the institution.
Let the Lyceum Committee write it upon the wall of their council room,
�80
This great ignorance, illusion of evil, the Free Religious Association
primarily aims to dethrone. Its motto is not faith, but knowledge. It
seeks to know. It believes in knowing. The definition of truth it does
*
not attempt. The love of truth it would fain promote. It would eman
cipate the mind from the tyranny of the supernatural, from the bonds of
dogmatism, from the despotism of idolatry and superstition. In doing this,
it is actuated by the sincerest of aims. It is animated by a pure human
regard.
I. In the first place, we charge Superstition with ruinous waste of
means. The Egyptians could not eat their onions because they had made
gods of them. The Jews could not improve their Sabbath because they
had consecrated it. The Christians are unable to make rational use of
their Bible because they deem it the “ word of God,” too holy to read
intelligently. It is sacred to stupidity. The antiquarian, the archae
ologist, the historian, the philosopher, the moralist, look at it with long
ing eyes, but their touch would profane it. It is a buried treasure
which is defended by magical charms. Literature has no claim upon it.
It is too hallowed to be the property of the human mind. It is forbidden
to the vulgar to know its genuine thoughts. A seventh part of all the
time there is having been given to the Lord, men may not avail themselves
of it for their human purposes. It must be devoted to doing nothing. To
open libraries on that day or lecture-rooms to give instruction in science,
history, mechanics, literature, art, to entertain the tired people with music,
to facilitate easy journeys into the country, to make galleries and gym
nasiums and gardens accessible to the famishing multitude, would be an
affront to the majesty of Heaven, would disturb the slumbers of the god.
The Communion Supper feeds nobody either with, food or sympathy,
because it is a “ holy ordinance.” In order that the sacrament may be
observed, the occasion is lost. The human qualities of Jesus cannot be
appropriated, — cannot even be appreciated, — the virtue in him being im
puted to his mythological character. In Naples, one sees hanging upon
the walls of shrine and chapel implements and weapons, fishing lines and
nets, through which poor people have been saved from danger, or have
met signal good fortune. The grateful owners devoted them to the Virgin,
and had to buy new ones. Being once consecrated, they could not be
used. This tool-worship is very expensive to poor people, though the tools
be nothing but rusty knives, a skein of twine, or an old oar. Who shall
compute the cost of it, when the sanctified and wasted tools are books that
hold the literature of a nation ; rare persons, the like of whom are not
born more than once in a thousand years ; and fifty-two golden days
in every twelvemonth, each composed of precious and irrecoverable
hours ?
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II. The second charge we make against Superstition is, that it demoral
izes and degrades mankind. Old Burton says; “The part affected by
superstition is the brain, heart, will,^understanding, soul itself, and all the
faculties of it; all is mad and dotes.” “Death takes away life,” says
Pliny, “ but not superstition. No torture is like it, none so continuous,
so general, so violent, so destructive.” “ The visionary,” says Plutarch,
“ hath ne’er a world at all; for he can neither use his reason when awake,
nor be free from his fears when asleep. His reason is always asleep, and
his fears are always awake.” “ When the atheist falls sick, he reckons
up his surfeits and debauches, .his 'excessive labors or unaccustomed
changes of airs or climates. But the fanciful superstitionist accounts
every little distemper in his body or decay in his estate, the death of his
children, crosses, and disappointments, as the immediate strokes of God.
If he be sick, he thrusts away the physician; if he be in grief, he shuts
out the philosopher.” The soul of superstition is fear of the unseen
powers, dread of the unknown. It infects with cowardice. Why are
men afraid of inquiry? Why do they cower under creeds they dis
believe ? Why do they sit dumb in presence of calamity ? Why do
they submit to strokes of fortune they might parry, and accept situations
they might escape from ? Why the backwardness to explore Nature ?
Why the horror of new opinions ? Men snuggle under their prejudices
as children under their blankets, peopling the dark with phantoms. We
ar® not half the men we ought to be. We will not do our own work,
from the superstitious hope that God will do it for us. We will- not
push our own way, from the superstitious fear that we may cross God’s
path. Superstition, instead of supplementing man, oppresses him ; instead
of supplying more strength when his natural strength is exhausted, it
drains him of his natural strength.
Superstition in the Roman Empire must have been a bitter thing, when
poets loathed it as the destruction of all beauty; when moralists de
nounced it as the subverter of all goodness; when philosophers deplored
its malignant influence on the rational nature; when a man like Plutarch
branded it as the worst calumny against the Deity, as more pernicious
than atheism, as being, in a word, essential atheism with cowardice super
added ; when thinking people hailed with rapture the materialism of
Epicurus, which at least gave them promise of quiet and unbroken sleep
in their graves. It took away their gods, and that was the greatest boon
that could be conferred.
Superstition must have been a frightful curse in Italy, when the monk
Savonarola dared to assail it in the person of the Pope of Rome. It must
have been a ruinous woe in Bohemia, when John Huss poured out his
torrents of eloquent indignation upon it; when his scholar, Jerome Faul11
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fish, burned the papal bull under the gallows ;* when the people rose,
insulted the priests, stormed the town-house, and defied the authority of
the Church. It must have been a oorroding disease in Germany, when
Martin Luther bore his witness against the doctrine of indulgences, and
at the risk of his life confronted the ancient system under which he
was educated with the pure text of the Word.
The flashes of lightning that Theodore Parker drew from the cloudy
masses of faith, and that have not ceased to blaze yet, reveal the temper
of superstition in America, — a temper as bitter, though not as powerful,
as in Greece and Rome. These great souls were struggling to emancipate
men from their bondage to the supernatural, to get breathing room for the
mind, to secure freeholds for thought and will, to gain the right of eminent
domain for the human faculties in every sphere of natural activity, to
make them, so far as the light of the generation permitted, kings and
priests to themselves. They could not execute their work perfectly,
because they could not see it perfectly. We see it better than they did.
Our successors will see it better than we do. The time will come when
Nature will assert her claim to the whole dominion of the supernatural;
and then, when the half-gods go, the gods will arrive.
That Superstition calumniates the Deity need not be argued: that is its
grand offence. “ For my own part,” said the philosopher, “I had much
rather people should say of me that there neither is nor ever was such a
man as Plutarch, than they should say, Plutarch is an unsteady, fickle,
froward, vindictive, and touchy fellow.”
Mr. Lecky, in the sentimental mood that sometimes comes over him,
writes : “ No error can be more grave than to imagine that, when a
critical spirit is abroad, the pleasant beliefs will all remain, and the pain
ful' ones alone will perish. Superstitions appeal to our hopes as well as
to our fears. They often meet and gratify the inmost longings of the heart.
They offer certainties when reason can only afford possibilities or proba
bilities. They sometimes even impart new sanctions to moral truths.
Often they become essential elements of happiness, and their consoling
efficacy is most felt in the languid and troubled hours when it is most
needed. We owe more to our illusions than to our knowledge. ‘ Why is
it,’ said Luther’s wife, looking sadly back upon the sensuous creed which
she had left, ‘ that in our old faith we prayed so often and so warmly,
and that our prayers are now so few and so cold ? ’ ”
But the argument conveyed in this mournful passage proves too much.
Let comfort be the master, and who would leave the fireside ? Was Luther
wrong in leaving the Church of Rome ? Not in this pensive mood
did Mr. Lecky write his “ History of Rationalism in Europe.” That we
owe more to our illusions than to our knowledge, he has taught thousands
�83
to question: that proposition we take leave, in his own name, to deny.
We are quite willing that the pleasant superstitions should go with the
painful ones; that the prayers should become fewer and colder till, as
ceremonies, they cease’; that the dreams should be dispelled by the
dawn ; and’ that the good angels along with the evil should fade away in
the brightening daylight of science. Instead of consoling ourselves in
“ languid and troubled hours ” with illusions, let us make such hours fewer
by knowledge. .
Heat and light are not the same thing, but they have one cause. Light
undergoes no change of manifestation that does not in the same manner
and degree affect heat. The same agent that falling on the nerves of
seeing produces vision, falling on the nerves of feeling produces heat.
So, if knowledge strike the understanding alone, it merely illuminates;
but if it touch the chords of moral enthusiasm, a glow is excited, that,
better than any striking of flints or crackling of fagots will take away
the chill of the human heart.
The subject of the Essay was then opened for discussion. The
following report is an abstract of the addresses that were
made : —
Prof. William Denton was the first speaker. He began with the
remark that, while listening to Mr. Frothingham’s essay, he had come to
the conclusion that Free Religion might be correctly defined as the appli
cation of science and common sense to matters of religion, just as we have
applied them to other matters; and, when that should be done, the rod of
dogmatism and superstition would be broken. Enumerating several
instances where the advance of science had abolished superstitious beliefs
and fears, he proceeded to the special point to which his remarks were
directed, — Bible-worship. The Bible, with the popular beliefs concern
ing it, seemed to him, in this country, the grand fountain of superstition;
and we should never be free from the terrible curse until the Bible should
take its place with other books that belonged to the record of man on
religious subjects. People should be left at liberty to take just as much
of it for truth as would harmonize with reason and common sense, and
reject all the rest. At present the Bible was the great idol of Christen
dom. People talked about the heathen idolaters in far-away countries.
But Boston, said he, is full of idolaters, — full of heathen temples and hea
then priests officiating in them. In the chiefest place in the temple is this
god, the Bible, gilded like a god in a Chinese Joss-house;1 and the priest
every Sunday bows down and worships it, and calls upon the assembled
people to do the same. They may not offer up their sheep and oxen in
�84
sacrifice ; but, what is worse, they sacrifice their reason and conscience and
manliness. If it should be said that no Christian believes the Bible to be
very God, he would answer that no heathen believes his image to be his
God. But in both cases the God is believed to be imaged in the idol.
The Bible is taken as God’s infallible representative. He then proceeded
to show some of the evils of this view of the Bible. It stood in the way
of the advance of science among the people, and it made cowards also of
scientific men. There were scientific men in America to-day who did not
tell all they think and believe, because it would come into conflict with
the popular notion of the Bible. So this Bible-idolatry imprisons thought
and delays the wheels of progress. There are thousands of people who
are drawn to Darwin’s view of creation and would accept it, but fear it
because it is going to overturn the Bible and Orthodoxy. Another evil
of this Bible-idolatry was that it put over mankind, in Jesus, a “ Lord and
Master,” before whose authority the great mass of people bow down as
slaves. The speaker would spurn all such yokes of authority in religion.
He was here on this planet for himself, and the only master he could
recognize was the God who spoke through his own consciousness ; and he
knew of no better way to end superstition than to set men on their two
feet, let them look at the matter with their own eyes, and accept nothing
that does not commend itself to their own best judgment and conscience.
In conclusion, Mr. Denton referred to Mr. Frothingham’s remarks on the
possibilities of superstition in Spiritualism. He said he did not share in
the fear. He did not know of a single man or woman (who had any great
influence among Spiritualists) who taught that spirits are to be regarded
as authority not to be questioned, or that what comes from them is to have
any more authority than would be claimed for a living man or woman.
Just as he would put the Bible alongside of other so-called sacred books,
and read it and study it with them, claiming the same kind of authority
for all, so he would put the revelations of Spiritualists alongside of ideas
from any other source, and have men and women read for themselves and
judge them all alike, submitting them to the test of their own reason. A
spirit is nothing more than a man with his jacket off. As he would
not make any living man his master, so he would not make the spirit
of a dead man his master. And while Spiritualism should hold to that, he
had no fear of its superstition. It had done more, in his opinion, than all
other means together to break down the power of superstition and the
dogmatism of the sects. In the place of superstitious notions about the’
future world, Spiritualism had brought the demonstration of facts ; and it
invited for the facts the tests of reason and science.
Mr. J. Vila Blake, minister of the Twenty-eighth Congregational So
ciety, Boston, followed Mr. Denton. He announced that, after hearing such
�85
radical utterances, he should have to appear as a conservative; and he re
joiced that the platform was so broad that he could speak in that character.
He then criticised Mr. Frothingham’s remarks on the subject of prayer,
thinking them too extreme, and inconsistent with Mr. Frothingham’s own
practice in his pulpit services. He also thought rather more of the Bible
and of the kind of authority which, as it seemed to him, Jesus meant to
assume, than Mr. Denton appeared to think. By calling himself a con
servative, he meant that he had a great regard for the past. His rever
ence for the past was so great that he wanted all the facts of the past just
as they were, and all the past. That seemed to him a shallow radicalism
which only went back eighteen hundred years. He would go back for
his facts a great deal farther than that. As to miracles, he was too con
servative to believe them; for he could not find, after weighing the evi
dence, that any such things were ever facts. And as to the Bible, that
did not cover the whole of human history. He must have all human
experience for his basis. He then passed to discuss the special point of
the superstitious observance of Sunday, and quoted many sayings from
those who are commonly regarded as authorities in the Christian Church,
in opposition to the modern Orthodox view of Sunday. The example
and teaching of Jesus himself were directly against the Pharisaical use of
the Sabbath day in his time; and that Pharisaical use of the Sabbath
among the Jews corresponds very nearly to the present “evangelical”
doctrine of Sunday. So Paul said it was a piece of Jewish superstition
to reckon one day above another. Luther said, “ If they tell you to be
solemn on the Lord’s day, I will bid you sing and dance and play upon it.”
Calvin and others of the leading reformers said substantially the same
thing. It was not till Puritanism came that that kind of Sunday observ
ance which is now contended for by Orthodoxy was known in Christendom.
This Orthodox doctrine of Sunday must be pronounced therefore a mod
ern innovation. True conservatism cannot defend it, for it has compar
atively a very brief past behind it. The lesson of the real past of
Christendom is that Sunday is free, — that we are free to use the day in
neighborly kindness for whatever we may think conducive to human
welfare. But even if the New Testament enjoined this observance of
Sunday, — which, in his opinion, it did not do, — and even if Christians from
the Apostolic age were unanimous in enjoining it, he would still say that
experience, reason, and common sense teach a better use of the day, and
4 that we are free to change the usage. He would make it a day of rest,
of recreation, of refreshment to body and mind, — a day of familiar
. assembling and enjoyment .for all, especially for the young. A simple
freedom from selfishness would solve the problem. What we should do
is so to order the day that the .utmost possible freedom and refreshment
*
�86
should be gained at the expense of the minimum of labor. He believed
in the necessity of the day, but more as a holiday than as a day for
formal worship. He would do any thing that only for one more hour in
a year would relieve this American people of their terrific industry. And
if the day were kept as it might be, and hallowed by natural uses as it
ought to be, it would come to us once a week distilling heavenly bene
dictions.
• Mr. Frothingham, alluding to Mr. Blake’s criticism of his statement
concerning Prayer, said he had .spoken of Prayer in the sense of im
ploring favors from the Supreme Being which men must earn for them
selves. It was this kind of praying that he hoped would cease. It had
ceased with him long ago. The expression of aspiration, the mingling of
our thoughts with the Highest and Best, — that was something very dif
ferent ; and that in his humble way he tried still to do.
Mr. A. M. Powell, editor of the “National Standard,” New York,
was the last speaker. The movement represented by the Free Religious
Association, he said, as he understood it, had two functions, — one of in
terpretation, the other of application. The first had been largely exhibited
during the day: he wanted now to bring forward more specially the
second. He desired to show the practical side of the Free Religious move
ment, — to set forth its connection with philanthropy and social reform,—
and at the same time to expose the power of dogmatism and superstition,
as organized in the Christian churches, in resisting philanthropic and
reformatory efforts. But as the hour was late, he would only hint at the
topic. He felt a strong interest in the intellectual interpretation of Radi
calism, but his interest was stronger in the practical outcome of it. He
saw around him the most distressing suffering, the bitterest injustices and
wrongs, human energies wasted and corrupted by dissipating vices, and
our pretences to civilization mocked on all sides by the actual condition of
society. You appeal to the Christian churches to take hold of these
practical evils and rectify them, but for the most part they pass by on the
other side. They are so devoted to inculcating their dogmas and keeping
up their ceremonies that they cannot take up the works of justice and
humanity. Therefore he looked with hope to this movement for the
emancipation of the human mind from the thraldom of ecclesiastical
authority and from the chains of dogmatism and superstition. From
mental emancipation, moral emancipation must logically follow. But, said
he, when we go from this platform to apply the lessons here learned, im- i
mediately, as soon as we reach yonder side-walk, in our very first effort to
reform these evils, ■— to check intemperance, t® eradicate the spirit of caste,
to establish the equal rights of woman, to remedy “ the social evil,” to abolish
the gallows, — we shall meet the Church as an organized power against us
�'87
and the greatest obstacle in our path. Just as the old anti-slavery battle was
fought and won in spite of the American Church and clergy, so it seems as
if all social and civil reforms had got to be carried against the same oppo
sition. The Church is bent on saving its ordinances and its theology, no
matter what becomes of these great problems of humanity. It is afraid of
the agitation which they cause, and turns a deaf ear. Clergymen quote
St. Paul as infallible authority, and because he said, “ Let women keep
silence in the churches,” think that that settles the woman question. Be
cause of the superstitious observance of the Communion, wine is used even
by those who do not believe in its use elsewhere; and so a great obstacle
to the cause of Temperance is continued by the authority of the Church.
Temperance reformers have yet to learn that they must make war upon
the use of wine at the Communion-table as well as at the Parker House.
In all these questions of reform the same ecclesiastical opposition will be
met. Hence the usefulness of such conventions as this, to help break this
bondage of the Church, in order that men and women may stand up in their
emancipated manhood and womanhood, ready and free for every good
work.
The hour of ten having arrived, the exercises of the day were
closed, and the Convention adjourned.
4
�CONSTITUTION
OF THE
\
FREE RELIGIOUS ASSOCI AT I O N.
I. This Association shall be called the Free Religious Associa
tion, — its objects being to promote the interests of pure religion,
to encourage the scientific study of theology, and to increase fel
lowship in the spirit ; and to this end, all persons interested in
these objects are cordially invited to its membership.
II. Membership in this Association shall leave each individual
responsible for his own opinions alone, and affect in no degree his
relations to other associations. Any person desiring to co-operate
with this Association shall be considered a member, with full right
to speak in its meetings ; but an annual contribution of one dollar
shall be necessary to give a title to vote, — provided, also, that
those thus entitled may at any time confer the privilege of voting
upon the whole assembly, on questions not pertaining to the man
agement of business.
III. The officers of the Association shall be a President, three
Vice-Presidents, a Secretary and Assistant Secretary, a Treasurer,
and six Directors ; who together shall constitute an Executive
Committee, intrusted with all the business and interests of the
Association in the interim of its meetings. These officers shall be
chosen by ballot, at the Annual Meeting of the Association, and
shall hold their offices for one year, or until others be chosen in
their place ; and they shall have power to fill any vacancies that
may occur in their number between the annual meetings. Five
members of the Executive Committee shall constitute a quorum.
IV. The Annual Meeting of the Association shall be held in the
city of Boston, on Thursday, of what is known as “ Anniversary
Week,” at such place, and with such sessions, as the Executive
Committee may appoint ; of which, at least one month’s previous
notice shall be publicly given. Other meetings and conventions
may be called by the Committee, according to their judgment, at
such times and places as may seem to them desirable.
V. These Articles may be amended at any Annual Meeting of
the Association, by a majority vote of the members present, pro
vided public notice of the amendment has been given with the call
for the meeting.
*
�
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Victorian Blogging
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A collection of digitised nineteenth-century pamphlets from Conway Hall Library & Archives. This includes the Conway Tracts, Moncure Conway's personal pamphlet library; the Morris Tracts, donated to the library by Miss Morris in 1904; the National Secular Society's pamphlet library and others. The Conway Tracts were bound with additional ephemera, such as lecture programmes and handwritten notes.<br /><br />Please note that these digitised pamphlets have been edited to maximise the accuracy of the OCR, ensuring they are text searchable. If you would like to view un-edited, full-colour versions of any of our pamphlets, please email librarian@conwayhall.org.uk.<br /><br /><span><img src="http://www.heritagefund.org.uk/sites/default/files/media/attachments/TNLHLF_Colour_Logo_English_RGB_0_0.jpg" width="238" height="91" alt="TNLHLF_Colour_Logo_English_RGB_0_0.jpg" /></span>
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Conway Hall Library & Archives
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2018
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Conway Hall Ethical Society
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Pamphlet
Dublin Core
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Title
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Proceedings of the fourth annual meeting of the Free Religious Association, held in Boston, June 1 and 2, 1871
Creator
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Free Religious Association
Description
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Place of publication: Boston
Collation: 87, [1] p. ; 24 cm.
Notes: From the library of Dr Moncure Conway.
Publisher
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John Wilson and Son
Date
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1871
Identifier
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G5291
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Free thought
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<a href="http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/"><img src="http://i.creativecommons.org/p/mark/1.0/88x31.png" alt="Public Domain Mark" /></a><span> </span><br /><span>This work (Proceedings of the fourth annual meeting of the Free Religious Association, held in Boston, June 1 and 2, 1871), identified by </span><a href="https://conwayhallcollections.omeka.net/items/show/www.conwayhall.org.uk"><span>Humanist Library and Archives</span></a><span>, is free of known copyright restrictions.</span>
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application/pdf
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Text
Language
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English
Conway Tracts
Free Religious Association
Free Thought
Freedom of Religion