}GESl cm .ompHY OF philosophy Till: EVIOIi SUGGESTIVE ESSAYS ON VARIOUS SUBJECTS CREATION VS. EVOLUTION THE CREATION OF MAN FAITH OF THE AGES THE SOLUTION THE PHILOSOPHY OF EXISTENCE THE NATURE OF MAN THE WEALTH OF A WELL STORED MIND THE PHILOSOPHY OF MIND THE LIFE OF MAN THE PLEASURE OF LIFE THE SUBSTANCE OF THINGS HOPED FOR THE EVIDENCE OF THINGS NOT SEEN THE ART OF CORRECT REASONING BY 'MAYi^ 1894" 1894 \*, r THE BLAKELY PRINTING CO. \^WA8V^^' 184 and 186 Monroe Street • ' "*> 1 l~~ / C* "^ CHICAGO, ILL. *" l> ' -* V > *£-* K ,- N V irHEXl'ilTART Or CONGRESS WASHINGTON Entered According to Act ok Congress in the Year iSof; By THE BLAKELY PRINTING CO. In the office of the Librarian of Congress at Washington. Chicago, Illinois. .INTRODUCTION. The customary plan of having an introduction to every book must not be omitted in the case of this one, but I hope the contents will be regarded as of sufficient importance to warrant their consideration by good thinkers, though the author may be entirely unknown. The suggestive essays here presented are not the result of any predetermined disposition or intention of publication, but have been written at various times, with the idea that perhaps they might be used as magazine articles, but more particularly for the purpose simply of recreation. It has been suggested that the selections here given are of a metaphysical character, and might not meet with as favorable reception as similar articles on other subjects, but my reply has been, that if the reading public are not interested in the most important problems of life, they would not be interested in the several hundred essays which I have written on the current topics of the hour, there- fore, I will first have printed what to my thought is most valuable. The underlying principles of nature, when properly comprehended, are the best foundation from which to consider any other question that may be suggested to us, and it will not be unwise therefore, for any person to adopt such thoughts as are presented which may seem to them as true. While it is to be expected that only a certain class of readers will be interested in the subjects here INTRODUCTION. given, an effort has been made to clothe the thoughts in such simple language or expression as to attract more than the usual number of readers, who give any consideration to metaphysical questions with a view if possible, of stimulating thought on the problems of nature. The world has existed a great many thousand years, and yet there is no solidified and generally accepted opinion on the questions that are here treated, so that the suggestions made will not be re- garded as contravening or contradicting any estab- lished truth in the minds of the people. When it is understood that the perceptive faculties of every individual have the office or function of carrying messages to the mind regarding the objec- tive realities of life, it should, at the same time, be understood that the intuitive faculty of mind can sometimes cognize thoughts of a subjective or hidden character, that have the evidences of being true, though perhaps impossible of demonstration. It would not be proper to claim that the thoughts contained in the essays or suggestions that follow, are any more likely to be true than the thoughts of any other person on these subjects, but they are surely worthy of a careful reading, and the author hopes they will be considered interesting. If it should be found that the reading public de- mand the treatment of other subjects, in the same simple language as appears on every page of this book, such articles are now in manuscript and ready for publication. "Ormond." CREATION VS. EVOLUTION. It is not necessary to offer any excuse for present- ing a paper on this subject, because strange as it may appear, a great many people have failed to see the fallacy of the argument presented by scientists, in favor of the evolution of man from a protoplasm up through the lower orders of animal life. Creation and evolution are both facts of nature, standing separate and alone in their relations to the cause of all being and the designer of all law, that is to say, God is the author of the law of evolution, as well as the Creator of man. It would not be proper to claim that man could be developed or evolved from a protoplasm, unless it be admitted, that the protoplasm from which he came contained all the inherent powers and faculties of man's nature. The ancient philosophers were of the opinion that the original inhabitants of the world must have de- scended from the gods, of which there was supposed to be a great number, but more modern thinkers are confident that there can be but one supreme being omniscient and everlasting in life. We will assume for the purpose of this paper that the modern thought of one God is correct, and pro- ceed at once to claim that this intelligence we call God, is the Creator of the world. ii 12 CREATION VS. EVOLUTION. It may be well at the very outset to define this term creation, because it seems to me that the great difficulty in understanding any metaphysical subject, is the great variety of definitions given to terms, and it is particularly the case with the terms creation and evolution. Creation, as defined by many commentators, is the making of something out of nothing, but the term is capable of meaning the forming of something out of something else, and it is in this sense that it will be used. Whatever may be the root meaning of the term "bara, "which has been translated creation, we have reason to suppose that it was capable of being un- derstood as the making of something out of what already existed, and if it could be shown that it would not admit of such a construction then it would be evident to a great many good thinkers, that the term was not well chosen, because it is unthinkable to suppose that this world was made out of nothing. Creation must be the result of a Divine plan, but what the process was we can only conjecture ; it seems to me that the elements of nature must have always existed, and that the bringing of these elements to- gether in such relations as to form the earth and all material things was the mode of creation. It will be claimed by some that this process of forming a world was the work of evolution, but my thought is, that even if such a thing be true, it is simply equivalent to admitting the creation, because CREATION VS. EVOLUTION. 1 3 the law of evolution is an enactment of the Creator, and must have been in His control while the world was being formed. The law of evolution is not an intelligence, but must be the result of an intelligence, and is un- doubtedly controlled by the same intelligence, there- fore it is not proper to credit this law with accom- plishing what has been accomplished by the intelli- gence back of the law, by designing and controlling the law. If it was remotely possible to find a first cause for the existence of this world, to that first cause should be ascribed the credit instead of to a law void of intelligence in itself. When it became necessary to create a world it was, at the same time, necessary that there should be some way of doing it, and it seems to me that this way or mode was to utilize what was already in ex- istence. It is not of course possible to prove that the ele- ments of nature have always existed, but I believe they have, and hence have claimed that it was sim- ply necessary to bring these elements into proper re- lations with each other in order to form whatever exists of a material nature. If the limit of man's power to reason was confined to his immediate time and surroundings, there would be no way for him to construct any reasonable theory as to the past or future, but having a mind capable of reasoning from cause to effect, he can as readily 14 CREATION VS. EVOLUTION. reason from effect oack to cause, but it is not possi- ble to always reach correct conclusions, because all truth is not capable of being demonstrated. There are objections to every theory of creation which has ever come to my notice, but it seems to me that the theory which I shall now try to present, is worthy of consideration, and I will thank any reader to point out such defects as they may find. The world having been created out of chaos or the elements of nature, for surely " chaos" must have been something, and I assume that it consisted of the elements which were in an unorganized and chaotic mass, it seemed best in due time-to create man. Now man must be regarded as a dual creature and not simply a material being; that is to say, the body of man is material, but the mind, soul or spirit of man, is ethereal or spiritual. It is sometimes the case, that what seems in the nature of things true to one thinker may not be ad- mitted by another, and, therefore, it may be proper to dwell for a moment on the duality of man s na- ture and see if we cannot demonstrate the fact. Any substance that is resolvable into its essence can, without difficulty, be demonstrated as being sim- ply a material substance, but in the case of man we can- not account for him in that way, because we find that though his body returns to dust, his mind, soul or spirit, must, in the nature of things, still exist, be- cause it is not subject to the law of disintegration and decay. CREATION VS. EVOLUTION. 1 5 It is often much easier to prove a truth after affirming it, therefore the statement is made, that while the body of man is material, his mind is of entirely a different nature, as must appear to any person who will carefully consider the matter. Mind cannot be a phenomenon of matter as has been claimed by some, but must be the part of man, which we are told, "is in the image of God," that is to say, God is a spirit and man is a spirit, therefore God and man are of the same nature. Do not understand me to say or mean, that man is equal to God in any respect, but simply that their nature is the same, and the difference is in quality rather than in kind. This fact of the duality of man appears in almost every act of his life, and seems to be one of the self evident truths that should be believed without evi- dence of a corroborative character, but as it is nec- essary to demonstrate the material nature of man by returning him to mother earth with which the body cf man unites and forms new earth, so it may be, the mind can be demonstrated as being the real man and destined to another condition of life after the death of the body. If you will consider that the mind is ethereal, you are at the same time considering that it cannot be material, because all material things have substance, and can be weighed and measured. It is true that some material things are capable of being made by evaporation ethereal, but in all such 1 6 CREATION VS. EVOLUTION. cases they resolve themselves back to their original bulk and weight, that is to say, water may be evapo- rated into steam, which is ethereal, but it returns again in showers of rain without any loss of original weight. Mind is not only ethereal, but spiritual, that is to say, mind is spirit, and that being admitted proves the duality of man's nature, because we have before seen that his body has returned to dust. There is no metaphysical subject which can be demonstrated in accordance with the rules of arith- metic or algebra, but the duality of man has been demonstrated by the best thought of the wisest men and most logical reasoners of all past ages, as well as by the process of inductive reasoning, which all good thinkers can practice for themselves. When it is understood that man has the ability to reason, it should, at the same time, be understood that reason cannot proceed from matter and that matter is not mind. The object of remarking that matter is not mind will be apparent as we proceed with this argument, but in the meantime, we will leave this thought and consider another statement which should appear in close proximity to it, namely, that mind is not com- posed of matter, or the elements of nature, but is a gift or endowment from God instead of a creation. It may not be possible to prove that mind is a gift from God, and descends to every human being by the law of inheritance, but this thought is worthy CREATION VS. EVOLUTION. I J of the careful consideration of every good student who is interested in the underlying principles of nature. The human family have the power of perpetuating their kind, but they have not the power of conferring upon their offspring a mind, therefore the law of inheritance works conjointly with the law of per- petuation, and confers both body and mind. It may be proper to add, that the law of perpetua- tion is a power or faculty of man, but the law of in- heritance is controlled entirely by the Divine mind, that is to say, is a law of God. Believers in the Darwinian theory of the descent of man, or in the complex philosophy of Mr. Herbert Spencer would probably claim that the terms " In- heritance and Perpetuation" were from practically the same root, and have a common or like interpre- tation, but they are not so regarded by the best au- thorities on our language. Webster defines these terms differently, and while they are both made to apply to material things, it will not be difficult to see that they may also apply to spiritual forces. Webster says, " Perpetuation, the act of making perpetual, or of preserving from extinction or obliv- ion through an endless existence or for an indefinite period of time." It seems perfectly plain to me, that the present existing human family and all the people who have ever lived, back to, but not including the first in- l8 CREATION VS. EVOLUTION. habitants, have received their material existence through or by the operation of the law of perpetua- tion, not an "endless existence" but for an " indefi- nite period of time" which it may be added is co-equal and co-extensive with man's life on the earth. If man is a dual creature as has been claimed and the law of perpetuation will account for his material nature, what can we say for his mind or spiritual nature. The term inheritance as defined by Webster while not applying directly to spiritual things is perhaps the best term in our language to express the thought under consideration. Webster defines as follows: " Inherit. To take by descent from an ancestor; to take by succession as the representative of the former possessor; to receive as a right or title des- cendable by law from an ancestor at his decease. The heir inherits the lands or real estate of his father ; the eldest son of the nobleman inherits his fathers title and the eldest son of a king inherits the crown. To receive by nature from a progenitor. The son inherits the virtues of the father; the daughter in- herits the temper of the mother and children often inherit the constitutional infirmities of their parents. To enjoy; to take as a possession by gift or divine approbation, as to inherit everlasting life; to inherit the promises." It will be observed that while the term " Inherit- ance" includes or connotes the definition given for the CREATION VS. EVOLUTION. 1 9 term " Perpetuation" it has a much wider meaning and is capable of being used to express the thought suggested, of the transmission of mind to the people of the world by the Creator or intelligent first cause. Law is simply an enactment of God or man and wherever the law of evolution, progression or de- velopment first found man he must have had all the inherent powers and faculties of his nature, simply susceptible to unfoldment. In other words there is nothing in these laws that could add to, or subtract from the nature of man either material or spiritual. Scientific research has demonstrated that there must have been a time in the history of the world, when this earth was not capable of sustaining human life and therefore there must have been a first man and woman, or races of men and women with power of perpetuating their material existence, or we could not have the present population. Everything on the earth, that can be cognized by and through the sense perceptions of man is material in its nature, but these faculties or perceptions are but messengers from the objective or material world, to the subjective or spiritual mind, therefore it is proper to claim that there is no way by which the mind can be considered as the same nature as the body, because it is not an objective reality, but a subjective essence or spirit. It is an axiom of philosophy that every effect must have an adequate cause, and in the whole realm of 20 CREATION VS. EVOLUTION. nature we do not find that any plant or living thing has the power of perpetuating except of its own kind or species, and therefore it seems proper to affirm that man has always been man. The process of developing man, from his generic or first form to his present stature and attainments, has undoubtedly been by the law of evolution or progression, but this thought does no violence to the theory of creation as here stated. Material seed can only bring forth material fruit and as the mind of man is not material in its nature, it cannot be the result of the law of perpetuation, but must be governed by the law of inheritance which (as here used) is in control of God and not the volition of man. It must be remembered that in considering a sub- ject of this character positive proof is out of the question, that is to say, the creation of the world or man cannot be definitely proven, although we may reach such conclusions by the process of logical reasoning, which are perfectly satisfactory and have all the evidences of truth in them. It is thought by some people that while human laws are the enactments of men, nature's laws were never enacted, but must be coexistent with eternity. I cannot believe that this is a world of chance, or that the laws governing the world are self existing, but rather that every law of nature was designed by the Creator, and that is equivalent to believing that God is an intelligence, not simply a principle of good. CREATION VS. EVOLUTION. 2 1 If it should be conceded by evolutionists, that the original protoplasm or germ from which man came, was inherently possessed of all the faculties of man's nature, it is equivalent to admitting that the germ or protoplasm was an undeveloped man. Let us consider this thought for a moment, and find out, if possible, the natural deductions that can be drawn from such an admission. The original "protoplasm or germ" would in such a case be regarded as simply terms to represent " an undeveloped man" holding dormantly all the powers or faculties of man's nature, or if you please a man in embryo. If such a theory be true, then this " germ or proto- plasm" "or undeveloped man," must have been created with his inherent powers so that he could reach the perfection of his life by the law of his be- ing which is progression. It will not be proper to claim that the same proto- plasm or substance which contained all the inherent powers of man could also be capable of being de- veloped into an ape. The effort to account for man and indeed all animal life has resulted in many theories that are far more complex and unsatisfactory, than to believe in the special creation of every distinct species, with a constant progression from their lowest or generic form in regular line of perpetuation up to their present perfection of life. It is of course true that in all species there are 2 2 CREATION VS. EVOLUTION. similarities or resemblances, but this fact by no means proves that they were developed from an original protoplasm, either in kind or quality, nor does it prove, that any of these various species, have ever passed through the form, nature or life of any other species. Evolution is a law by which the highest possibil- ities of every nature may be reached in a regular line of continuous progression, but the differentia- tions of life cannot be accounted for except by the Divine power of creation. Do not understand me to mean that every living thing is necessarily a member of a distinct species, because there may be and probably are several branches to every original species, but these branches retain their relationship to their parent classes, so that in no case do they become a distinct and separate species by themselves. The same law of evolution, which enabled the peo- ple of the world to reach their present civilization, will enable them to reach their highest perfection, but cannot change their form or structure, so that they will ever be anything but men, women, and children of the human family. It is not the purpose of this inquiry or argument to minimize the correct working of the law of evolution or progression, but rather to exalt the intelligent Creator back of the law, by holding to the theory of creation as accounting for the human family and re- garding the law as simply a mode or way by which CREATION VS. EVOLUTION 23 the Creator has enabled man to reach his present civilization. The theory of Mr. Darwin as set forth in his treatise on the "origin of the species" and his work on the "descent of man," does not pretend to dem- onstrate a fact, but simply offers a theory which is interesting to students, but wanting in the essential elements of homogeneous connection between the various species or classes of being. Evolution is a term which does not explain itself and it may be said, that creation is another term of the same character, that is they do not mean the same thing to all men. The technical believers in the creation of the world, out of nothing,have compelled the formulation of numerous modifications of their belief, but there is no reason why a belief in creation should be re- garded as illogical, because a proper definition of this term is sufficiently elastic to accommodate a very wide range of speculative thought as to the mode or process of creation. What can be said of the term evolution except this, that it is a law of nature by which a created being may reach the perfection of its life, and if this be true, the duty and function of this law must be continuous in its operation, because we do not find that any member of the human family has yet reached the perfection of life, therefore it is proper to conclude that this same law must continue to operate in the spiritual world. 24 CREATION VS. EVOLUTION. No wonder that the stupendous realities of animal and vegetable life, with the organized matter of the countless worlds in space should start the pendulum of the human mind swinging back and forth in its endeavor to reach an equilibrium of thought on which it can rest. The consideration of any metaphysical subject affords good mental exercise, but it should always be remembered, that the ultimate of knowledge concerning these questions is beyond the ability of any finite mind to reach. In conclusion it is only necessary to add, that whatever theory may be held as to the process, it is perfectly safe to hold fast to the good old term of creation as the cause of this world and all material things. THE CREATION OF MAN. It may prove profitable to consider some thoughts on the subject heading this article that are not generally believed or taught, but which are entitled to the careful consideration of all interested parties in the mystery of human life. The libraries of the world do not furnish us with the detail of man's first appearance on the earth, in such language as can be accepted by all good think- ers, or that means approximately the same thing to all readers. When this earth was first formed or created, it was not capable of sustaining life, at least scientific re- search seems to have demonstrated this fact, and it will therefore be unnecessary to offer any corrob- orative proof of the statement. It would be impos- sible to say how many years, ages, or aeons of time were necessary to prepare this earth for the habita- tion of man, but in due time it was ready for his appearing. In some respects it would have been a great ca- lamity to the world, if the form or manner of man's creation had been known and transmitted to us through the ages of the past down to the present time, because there is probably no subject that has attracted more attention, or resulted in greater ben- efit from consideration than the speculative thought on this question. 25 26 THE CREATION OF MAN. The Bible says that " God formed man out of the dust of the earth," which is equivalent to saying that man was formed out of the elements of nature, because the earth contains all of these elements. It would not be difficult for a great many people to be perfectly satisfied with above statement, if it was not so simple, as to contain within itself the suggestion of inquiry as to how such a wonderful creation could occur in such a primitive way. When we consider that the real man is the mind, we are at the same time recognizing the fact, that the body of man which was created out of the ele- ments of nature, was simply the material part of man or covering for the mind. If the above statement could be fully demon- strated, it would prove the duality of man's nature, which is positively necessary to believe in order to account for his superiority over all other animals, or to predicate for him anything but extinction on the death of his body. The only way to account for the mind of man is to consider that it is a gift or endowment from the Creator, because it is unthinkable to suppose that mind can be created out of the elements of nature, which are material. When it is understood that the mind is entirely of a different nature from the body, it is also under- stood that it cannot be a phenomenon of matter, because any manifestation of matter must be a ma- terial manifestation and mind is ethereal or spiritual. THE CREATION OF MAX. 27 The effort to construct a theory that will account for man as being entirely a material being has never had many advocates, because it seems very plain to all good thinkers, that the reasoning powers of the human family must be spiritual in nature. What can be said of any one person in this re- spect, may be said of all the inhabitants of earth, because all have the faculty of reasoning from cause to effect, though in many this mental power may be undeveloped. A logical inference which may be drawn from the duality of man's nature is this, that after the death of his body he must continue to live a purely mental life, which is spiritual. Just what a spiritual life is, we are not supposed to know, but we can readily believe that it is in every way suitable for man's condition as a spirit. The philosophers and wise men of all ages have believed that in some way the conscious part of man must continue in some state or condition after the death of the body, but it is not possible to demon- strate such a thought even to the satisfaction of many who believe it, because they do not accept the evidence that can be presented. A great many people have faith in the promise of an everlasting life, and they are perfectly satisfied with their mental position on this question, without seeking for any other proof. "What is, is right," has come to be regarded a truism with a great many, especially when consid- 2 8 THE CREATION OF MAX. ering any question of this character, and such think- ers are likely to be much better satisfied with life, than others who insist on having everything proven. The mind of man is the most wonderful thing we know anything about, capable as it is of reasoning from cause to effect, or reversing the process and bridging the apparent chasm between effect and cause, but there are limits of thought, beyond which even the mind can only reach with the eye of faith. In considering the above statement, it must be understood that the " eye of faith" is not a material eye, whose duty consists in carrying impressions to the mind, but rather a spiritual eye or faculty that "can seethe substance of things hoped for," even though these things may be in another world or condition. Faith is the balance wheel of mind, and in some respects is the most important combination of five letters in the English language, playing as they do such a prominent part in all the business and social affairs of life, as well as being freighted with com- fort regarding the life we hope for. It is not the purpose of this article to enter into any discussion or argument as to what the future condition of the inhabitants of earth will be, because that will necessarily depend on the character of each person, but it may be well to offer a few suggestions as to the nature of that life, which are the result of a careful consideration of the subject. As before stated, mind is the real man, or person, THE CREATION OF MAN. 29 and on the death of the body, the mind, or spirit (which may be regarded as synonymous terms,) at once takes its place in the spiritual world or condi- tion, where so far as we know it continues in a life of progression. The cares and annoyances of this world are left behind, so that it seems proper to believe that every person who enters the future state with a well- rounded character, will have a life of joy and felic- ity beyond the conception of a finite mind. To say that every person to properly enjoy a spir- ual life must have a "well-rounded character," covers and includes all the essentials of a moral or religious life, which statement makes it unnecessary to dogmatize as to what the essentials are. If there was but a single form of religion in the world, the creed necessary to be believed might be plainly stated, but as there are some differences, the above statement is sufficiently elastic to include whatever form of religious belief any person may conscientiously hold. It should be stated that the different denomina- tions nearly all agree as to the essentials of religion, but differ somewhat as to non-essentials and church government. Assuming that what has been said will not be considered as a criticism of any person's religious belief, we are ready to proceed with our sug- gestions. Life in the future world must be of a mental or 30 THE CREATION OF MAN. spiritual character, entirely freed from everything of a material nature, that is to say the material life is all material, while the future life will be the ex- act opposite, or spiritual. The wants of our bodies are so exacting that we find scarcely time or ability sufficient to supply them, but the future condition has no wants or de- mands that are not immediately supplied, because they are all spiritual. When it is understood that our life on the earth is but a few short years, and that these years to many are full of sorrow, it becomes a matter of great interest to know in what way they can best equip themselves for their inevitable future. It has been said, "That as a man thinketh so is he," and it would seem necessary therefore, that a person should learn to think right on all questions, but it would be impossible for any person to formu- late a line of thought which would be obligatory on others to follow, or that would be likely to contain, or include, the whole of any truth, because strange as it may appear, no person can mentally compass all truth. The object of life on the earth should be a prepa- ration for the life to follow, and such preparation is only obtained by thinking as near right as pos- sible on all subjects. If it could be shown, that there was any way of living or thinking, better than some other way, then it would be our duty to follow, but it is not the pur- THE CREATION OF MAN. 31 pose of this article to dogmatize as to what is, or is not, the proper faith. It would be very easy to formulate a faith that would be perfectly agreeable to many, but it would not be acceptable to others, therefore it has been thought best to offer no suggestions on this branch of the subject. This paper is already too long, or many more thoughts of the same general character might be mentioned, which would indicate that the spiritual life must be a great improvement over life on the earth. FAITH OF THE AGES. History and tradition agree with the statement, that the people of the world have always believed that there must be a future state or condition for every human being. This faith antedates in time the settlement of any considerable portion of even the far Eastern world, and indeed, the record of that early day has only been preserved through the traditional accounts that reached the authors of our most ancient histories. Human nature is the same in all countries, and in every age of the world ; therefore it is, that the early inhabitants of earth came to precisely the same con- clusion regarding a future condition for man, that we would have believed under the same circum- stances. They were not supplied with books containing learned disquisitions on this or any other subject, because, indeed, there were no books of any kind in existence, but they were supplied with reasoning powers, which enabled them to realize that they must, in some way, owe their life to an intelligent Creator, and they could not believe that they would have been born at all if they were only to live a few short years. The anthropomorphites of that early day were unable to conceive of a God or Creator without 32 FAITH OF THE AGES. $$ giving to their conception the form of a man, and this does not seem so strange, because they recog- nized man with his intelligence as being so much superior to any other being. It would not be difficult, even in our day, to find thousands of people who, in their thought of God, always have a mental picture of some form of human being, not, perhaps, defined as to size, weight or complexion, but with body and parts like unto man. Our language does not seem capable of describing correctly anything but material things, and there- fore, we are compelled to depend almost entirely on our mental impressions for what we know or think we know, regarding spiritual things. It is not difficult to believe that man has a natural body and a spiritual body, so that he will be known in that future world or condition to which all are traveling, but we cannot in any respect, measure God the Creator, by the standard of man the created. Let our minds conceive of God as being omniscient, omnipresent, everlasting in life, the Creator and Ruler of the universe, and we will then be unable to formulate a conception of his resemblance to the physical body of man. It is true that God is a spirit, and man is a spirit, so that in nature they are the same, but God is not a man, and it is not known that the Creator has form, though our conceptions may always require that some form be perceived at least in thought. 34 FAITH OF THE AGES. The mind of man is so constituted that it seems impossible to think of anything, unless we can in some way picture a form to correspond with our con- ception, and hence, it is not strange, that the people of the world have regarded the Creator as being of almost every form that could be conceived of. When it is understood that "God made man in His image," it should not be concluded that this refers to the material man, but rather to the mind or spiritual man, which continues to live after the death of the body. Considering man as a dual creature, we have no difficulty in believing that his mind must live after the death of his material body, but what the nature of his future condition, is largely a matter of conjecture, though we have no doubt it will be in every way satisfactory. It is not essential to our happiness that we should know exactly the condition of our future life, but it is proper for us to believe it will be in every par- ticular, suitable for our own changed condition. The only real change which we can conceive of, is the leaving behind of our material bodies, which are not necessary to us in our new life, which is spiritual. It has been the faith of the ages, that in the nature of things the mind, which is the real man or person, could not die with the body, but must have an endless existence, because the very nature of mind precludes the possibility of death. THE SOLUTION. There are a great many of the problems of life that do not seem easy of solution, but it is always interesting to reason about them, and the mind needs the very exercise which such efforts furnish. A gentleman once' traveling in Europe found a queer illustration of the thought suggested in the above paragraph. It was in London, that immense city, which, in some respects, maybe considered the pivotal city of the world. Early one morning he was walking across London bridge, when he met a friend from America who had just arrived from Paris, and was about to take steamer for New York. The following conversation will include the thought suggested: Judge. — Well, Doctor, I am glad to see you again in London, and hope you have enjoyed your journey to France and Switzerland. Doctor. — Thank you, Judge. I have had a very pleasant time, but have met some very queer people, such as we do not often meet on the streets of New York. Judge. — I suppose you have also seen some moun- tains such as are not common in America, but tell me about the queer people, and I will hear your descrip- tion of the towering, snow-capped Alps another time. 35 $6 THE SOLUTION. Doctor. — I visited Switzerland with a large com- pany of tourists, and we had a delightful time, but what amused me more than anything else, was a conversation with one of the natives where we stopped. I asked him how long he had lived there, and if he would not like to go to America, where there was not so much snow? Through an interpreter he read me a lecture which I shall never forget. It was about like this: " I have lived here always, and I don't want to go to America. Everybody who comes here asks me that question, and they must think I am a funny man to want to leave my dear old home and go where they cannot stay. If they think America is such a nice place for me to go, why do they come here? The great mountains covered with snow, beautiful valleys, sparkling brooks and silver cas- cades, have been my friends through life, and will chant my requiem when life ends. No, no, I can never leave them for a country across the sea, where the people do not know enough to stay at home. " Judge. — Well, Doctor, that is a very good story, but what particular lesson do you learn from it? Doctor. — Only this, Judge; that if I ever get home again, I will let some one else do the travel- ing, while I stay at home where I am better ac- quainted. It seems to me that traveling is a good deal like studying philosophy. One is always look- ing for what they can't find. Judge. — You are in a sense right, Doctor, but if THE SOLUTION. 37 you had remained at home you would not have had the philosophy contained in that lecture, and almost every day you can hear or see something that will give you a new conception of life. Doctor. — Yes, Judge, you are no doubt right, but there is such a thing as staying at home and at the same time enjoying the sights, scenes and sayings that one can have by traveling. Judge. — It is true we may enjoy traveling and remain at home, by depending on the sense percep- tions of others, but accounts of travel which are found in the literature of the day, might not give what you would have seen if personally present. Doctor. — Very true, Judge, but if I don't realize that, there can be no loss in depending on the eyes and descriptive writing of others. Judge. — I am not sure that you are right in mak- ing such a statement as that, because it seems to me that a person loses the benefit of what they might secure in any line of study whether they realize it or not. Doctor. — It is true tnat I would lose the benefit of what I should see that cannot be found in good books, but have at the same time gained the benefit of what I have seen by remaining at home, and the solution of the whole matter leaves a margin of credit for the party who can travel and stay at home at the same time. THE PHILOSOPHY OF EXISTENCE. When Babylon was in the glory of her splendor it was not difficult to find many of her citizens who could have solved any ordinary problem of philoso- phy, but none of them pretended to account for the creation of the world, or explain their own existence. The various schools of thought in the world have considered this same question from that day to this, and yet it can hardly be said that any of them have been able to formulate a theory that is fully satis- factory. Naturalists have attracted some attention to their science by showing and arguing at great length as to the similarity of structure that shows itself in the different species of animal life. The inferences they have drawn from these similarities of structure is that perhaps all animals up to and including man might have come from an original protoplasm. This theory met with considerable favor at one time, because it seemed in some respects more rea- sonable than to believe in the technical theory of the creation of all things out of nothing, which had been previously taught. A great many professed to believe in the evolu- tion of man from a protoplasm as a demonstrated truth, but good thinkers were simply inclined to ex- amine the evidences in support of such a stupendous 38 THE PHILOSOPHY OF EXISTENCE. 39 statement, and the more they rea^ the more con- vinced they became that the author or originator of the theory did not claim his ability to demonstrate. If Mr. Darwin succeeded in proving anything by his researches and writings it was this, that not- withstanding the similarity of structure between the different species of animal life, the difference was still so great that only the divine power of creation could bridge it. The services of Mr. Darwin and his colaborers have been of incalculable benefit to the world in this, that the people have a far greater knowledge of natural history than they otherwise would have secured. With the cares of life pressing heavily upon the great majority of people, they are not usually in- clined to seriously take up the study of the various species of animals that now exist, or have existed, but when it was intimated that by making such a search they might find their own progenitors, the study began, thousands of books were sold, author and publisher made happy, while the people held fast to the good old theory of creation to account for the world and all organized matter. Creation does not necessarily mean the making of something out of nothing, but may mean the forming of something out of something else, and while this explanation of the term might admit of the creation of man as a protoplasm or germ, with all his inherent powers capable of development by 40 THE PHILOSOPHY OF EXISTENCE. trie law of evolution, it could hardly admit of this undeveloped man passing through the lower orders of animal life. The mind is an essence and is conferred upon man by the Creator, but the body of man is a material substance, that may, have passed through any num- ber of changes without changing its nature. It is not possible when considering mind as an endowment from the Creator, to imagine that it has passed through the lower orders of animal life and such a thing is impossible of demonstration. THE NATURE OF MAN. It was for many centuries believed that man was created out of the dust of the earth, and hence must be entirely material in his nature, but the Bible tells us that ''God made man- in his own image," which precludes the possibility of his being entirely a material being, because God is a spirit. The only way to account for some things is first to find out, if possible, the nature of the thing under consideration; for instance, in the case of man we find that he has both a mental and material nature, that is to say, there is no single term that will con- vey an idea of his nature, and therefore we are com- pelled to regard him as a dual creature. If it was possible to regard man as being en- tirely material, there would be but comparatively little difficulty in accounting for his existence in the world, and less difficulty to account for the end of his being, because we find that there is only a few years between his appearance on the earth and the return of his body to dust. It may not be possible to fully explain all that is comprehended or included in the nature of any- thing, but when we speak of one's nature we mean that indefinable something which cannot be ex- plained, but which seems to be inherent in their life. 41 42 THE NATURE OF MAN. Aan has a material body, but we cannot conceive of anything material in its nature having the power or ability to think, and hence we are compelled to conclude that his mind is of a different nature. Material things are susceptible of analysis and can be demonstrated as being composed of matter, that is, their constituent parts are of the same nature as the earth,', but the mind can be neither weighed, measured or analyzed, and therefore we call mind ethereal or spiritual in nature, because it is evi- dently the direct opposite in nature from the body. When science can determine the nature of any- thing, there is then room for philosophizing about it, but there can be no theory postulated about the simplest thing in the universe until we first find what it is in nature. This fact of the duality of man being conceded by every good thinker, it will not be necessary to offer the usual arguments that are used to prove it, and indeed it cannot perhaps be definitely proven, be- cause it seems to be one of the great number of facts that cannot be demonstrated. When we consider that the reasoning powers of man have their limits, it does not seem strange that this limit should be reached before being able to fully solve the mysterious problem of his own nature and life. It has often been said that a sophomore from any college is able to explain any of the subtle enigmas that have bothered the wisest philosophers THE NATURE OF MAN. 43 of all past ages, but sophomores grow in experience as they grow in age, so that they finally come to re- gard some problems as beyond the ability of any finite mind to solve. In the nature of things we have no way of demon- strating anything that is the result of creation, be- cause we do not, and cannot, know all that may be included in this term. The life of anything may be determined, that is, the length of life may be approximated, but the nature of life is beyond the power of any person to comprehend or understand. THE WEALTH OF A WELL STORED MIND. With a great many people the principal object of life seems to be the accumulation of property, but the design of this short paper will be to show that houses or lands, stocks or bonds, are not the most valuable things in the world, and to suggest a way by which any person may secure riches far more valuable than any bank account. It is not true that the philosophers of olden times knew everything, but they uttered some thoughts that should be remembered as long as time lasts. One of this class of thoughts is this: "Asa man thinketh in his heart so is he." This statement is not only philosophical but scriptural, and in effect means that when a person's heart is interested in anything they are sure to attain it. It would not be right to claim that every person could reach the highest culture by simply desiring it, because improvement of the mind only comes as the result of careful study, and every person is not so situated as to devote all their time to even such important work. The ideal life would be spent in our libraries, surrounded by the very best books and magazines, but it is rather the practical everyday life of the ordinary citizen that we wish now to consider. If 44 THE WEALTH OF A WELL STORED MIND. 45 it was possible for Plato to have reached such emi- nence in his day that his sayings have been freely quoted in every age of the world since, how much more readily can we secure a great fund of infor- mation every year of our lives, surrounded as we are by so many sources of supply. It was the year after the discovery of America that the first printing press was set up in Copenha- gen, and several years were spent in perfecting the art that now supplies the world with books full of information of every kind. The first printing press in the United States was introduced in the year 1629, but it was over one hundred years later before we had a daily newspa- per, if the reference book before me is accurate as to date; it is probably true that antedating the printing press the Chinese, and perhaps other nations, used some forms of character printing. It is certainly a fact for congratulation that. a large number of printing presses are now kept busy in every city and village of the land, so that we can obtain books in great variety at a very small cost. The only way we can know what any person thinks is to hear them talk or read what they write, and the only way to improve in our own thinking is to know what our best writers think, so that the most profitable work we can find is to cultivate a love for good books. The disposition to read is an acquired habit, and when indulged in for a short time becomes a neces- 46 THE WEALTH OF A WELL STORED MIND. sity. If every person would devote a half hour daily to reading in some good book, they would find themselves growing in every way, and it would not be long before they could write a readable book for others to read. It is a mistaken idea to suppose that the libraries of the world have been filled with books by writers who gained their knowledge without making an effort, and it is a greater mistake to believe that what they have attained may not also be reached by the equal effort of any other person. The average busy man of the world does not take as much time as he should for the improvement of his mind, and if he only thought so he could find a few minutes every day, which if devoted to reading would be of great benefit to himself and every per- son with whom he comes in contact. The newspapers of the day are very complete in giving the daily doings all over the world, but their reading should be supplemented by good books, on such subjects as are specially interesting to each individual. Some people like to delve into the mysteries of foreign languages, but the average person can only enjoy the thoughts of foreign thinkers when their sayings have been properly translated into our English expression. Let the desire for good reading keep pace with the general progress of the world in every depart- ment of a progressive civilization, and the future THE WEALTH OF A WELL STORED MIND. 47 will prove a wonderful advance in the general hap- piness of the people. The only way to develop a strong mentality is to feed the mind with good thoughts, and, to have a wide field of observation a person must not depend on themselves entirely to do the thinking, but rather should they assimilate all the good thoughts they can obtain from others. A variety of reading is always better than to con- fine one'self to anyone author or subject, because it is better to have a symmetrical development of all our mental faculties than to be proficient in certain lines of study or requirement, and very deficient in others. The work of an artist would never be pro- nounced good if but a little corner of the canvas was exquisitely painted, and no more would a person be called bright if they should spend all their time reading one book or thinking on one line. From every person living we may learn something, therefore it should be the object and aim of every one to constantly improve in their capacity to think better thoughts for themselves. The wealth of a well stored mind is better than all the other riches within our grasp, and it is attainable by every one who desires the pleasure of securing it, and the greater enjoyment of its possession. It is an old saying that "A wise man should know himself," but it seems to me that to know one'self would be expecting too much of any person, 48 THE WEALTH OF A WELL STORED MIND. because the wisest man who ever lived could tell but very little about his own powers. The mind of man is so elastic, that it will contain all the good thoughts one can obtain from the libra- ries of the world and it is proper to say that any mind filled with good thoughts, may still find room for more and more and more; so that there is no danger of having too much wealth of this kind. If it was the general habit of all people to devote some time every day to agreeable reading, the infor- mation thus obtained would enable them to know a great deal more than they now do, but the full capacity of their own minds for retaining knowledge they would not be able to fathom. THE PHILOSOPHY OF MIND. It has been a good many hundreds if not thou sands of years since the attention of scientific think> ers was first directed to this interesting subject, but so far as I know there never has been a tangible theory advanced regarding it. We know something about the mind's action, because we see the results of mental action in the thoughts that are expressed to us verbally, or are found in our libraries and the literature of the day. The brain is sometimes said to be the seat of the mind, but no scientific person would claim that the material brain of man was the originator of thought, and indeed it would not be easy to find a physician who would stake his reputation on the assertion that the brain could play any part in generating thought. It has been claimed that the mind of a person was in form like their body, but being of an ethe- real character it could not be seen, and therefore it would be impossible to prove such a theory true or false. When scientists disagree about anything, or, more properly speaking, when they are unable to express any definite opinion about such an important matter as the mind, it might be considered presumptuous for a layman to attempt an explanation of the great mystery. 49 50 THE PHILOSOPHY OF MIND. Mind is not material in its nature, and therefore it cannot be explained by material textbooks; but it may be claimed that mind is ethereal or spiritual in nature, and should be capable of explanation on that line. It may be said that everything in the universe is either mind or matter, but such a statement would not meet with universal acceptance, because it would be impossible for any person to at once grasp the thought as true. If you will consider that man is the highest order of created intelligence, you should be willing to concede that he certainly should be able to philoso- phize about himself until he reaches some degree of knowledge regarding his greatest power. The ancient philosophers were wise men, and suc- ceeded in solving a great many mysteries regarding material things, but the moment they attempted to explain the working of their own minds they were suddenly compelled to admit that the philosophy of mind was beyond their ability to comprehend or explain. If it is not possible to explain the functions of mind by any material law, perhaps it may be well to inquire in some other direction and see if we cannot find a law that will explain or at least give us some new thought regarding it. The mind has been thought by some to be the real man or person, and if such a theory be true, then it must be that the real person is all mind, that is to THE PHILOSOPHY OF MIND. 5 1 say, that the material body is not in fact a part of the real person. In considering any metaphysical question it must always be remembered that a statement such as the above, must be taken literally as stated, because otherwise the argument to follow would not be re- garded as correct. If then, the real or subjective person is all mind, what becomes of the theory that man is a spirit and has a soul ? It would not of course be right to leave a person without a soul or spirit, and therefore I shall claim that the terms are synonymous; that mind, soul and spirit, mean the same thing. If above statement can be accepted, it will not be difficult to believe that the mind is simply the part of man's material being which God gave to him, and that it was in no sense a part of his creation. To be more specific, " God created man out of the dust of the earth," or the elements of nature, but after the creation " He breathed into man the breath of life," and to my concept this is simply equiv- alent to saying that God gave to man a mind, capa- ble of reasoning from cause to effect, and planning for his own comfort and happiness. Mind then, is the real man, and is not subject to the material law of disintegration and decay, there- fore the real person must continue to exist in some other state or condition after the death of the ma- terial body. 52 THE PHILOSOPHY OF MIX!). The function of the mind is to think, weigh and measure the problems of life, and the process or mode of thought is simply an inherent faculty of the mind, that can no more be explained than could the principle of life. THE LIFE OF MAN. When it is understood that every person living on the earth will soon be called upon to give up their material life, it becomes a matter of great interest, to know whether they are in reality to lose their life, or simply pass through a change, which is equiva- lent only to the laying aside of their earthly bodies. The philosophy of the ages has failed to explain the problem of man's existence, but good students are substantially agreed in this, that the body of man is not in reality the real man, and that the death of the body does not affect the mind, which is the real personality. Whatever may have been the opinion of the first inhabitants of the world, it is now a matter of belief, that when man was created, he was endowed with the faculty of reason, which enables him to predicate a result from every well defined cause, and he has no difficulty in concluding that the very nature of man demands that there shall be, and is, a future state, or condition, in which the mind or real man may reach a higher perfection than appears to be possible on this earth. The reason for this belief is not by any means suggested to man because of any predisposition to live in a condition of which, or about which, he is entirely ignorant, but rather a belief which has 53 54 THE LIFE OF MAN. forced itscl. upon him, as the result of a careful consideration of the philosophy of life. Science teaches that there is no way a particle of matter can be destroyed, and reason concludes that what is true of matter in this regard, must be equally true of mind, therefore reason affirms the continued existence of the entire human family as the natural result of their present life in the world. The indestructibility of matter is believed by everybody who has passed through the common schools of any country, because it is one of the first lessons taught in natural philosophy, and is capable of demonstration, but the problems of mental or soul philosophy, are not so easily explained, for the reason that these problems lead for their solution into the subjective life of man, and into another world or condition which cannot be as easily reached as the objective world around us. It would be comparatively easy to introduce any number of facts in nature that would seem to show the absolute indestructibility of everything that ex- ists, but it would not be possible to clearly prove such a theory, and therefore it is not what might be called a scientific fact. The continued existence of man,. after the death of his body, is not a scientifically demonstrated, or demonstrable fact, but it is the belief of thousands of people, who have reached the conclusion, by a system of logical reasoning that has to them as much significance as could be given to the edicts of any scientific school of thought. THE PLEASURE OF LIFE. When this earth was first evolved or formed out of the elements of nature, it was not in a condition to sustain the life of man, and if it had been, there would not have existed the conditions necessary to make life a pleasure. It was many ages before the people were suffi- ciently advanced in mental culture, to be much com- fort to themselves, or very good company for any- body else. The philosophers of the world above all others have found the true source of pleasure in living, be- cause they have concluded that the mind is the real man or person, and that the emotions must be regu- lated by the mind. It will not seem strange that such a statement should be made, when you consider that almost every person looks for pleasure outside of them- selves, while in reality all the joy and comfort of life comes from within. It is true that objective things may suggest trains of thought which interest us, but the real pleasure to be derived from what we hear, read or see, are the deductions we make from such things. To illustrate: A gentleman was once traveling in Europe, and on reaching Paris, he called on the then Emperor, Napoleon Third. A guard met him 55 56 THE PLEASURE 01 LIFE, at the door, took his card and soon returned saying, "that his majesty was busy for a few moments, but wished him to be seated in the parlor." Very soon the Emperor entered the parlor, and greeting the gentlemen they seated themselves, when the following conversation occurred: Emperor. — Well, Doctor, I am very glad to see you, and hope you have been well since you were in Paris last. Doctor. — Yes, I am always well, thank you, and I hope you have been well also, because your duties are so exacting that you need the best of health in order to attend to them with any degree of comfort to yourself. Emperor. — I have found the "elixir of life" in not allowing myself to be worried with my duties, and it seems to me that any person can enjoy life if they only come to understand that their thoughts are their life. Doctor. — Well, that may be, but supposing their thoughts are not like your thoughts, how can they enjoy life? Emperor. — It is not necessary that their thoughts should be like mine in order to be enjoyable; the fact is, that my thoughts are the result of sugges- tions that come to me, and you could not well have my thoughts unless you were influenced by the same surroundings. Doctor. — I suppose that is true, but my surround- ings always suggest some thoughts that I try to THE PLEASURE OF LIFE. 57 formulate in such a way as to secure some benefit from them, and though they may be different from yours, they serve to impress me substantially as you have expressed. Emperor. — Well, Doctor, you have found the secret of a pleasurable life, in so formulating every suggested thought as to make it your own, and in accordance with your desire, which is for the pleasure of living. It seems to me that the Emperor was fortunate in having found the true secret of all the happiness there is in living, and the same pleasure may be en- joyed by every person, who will lcok for suggestions outside of themselves, but for real happiness within. THE SUBSTANCE OF THINGS HOPED FOR. It is much easier for some people to exercise faith than it is for others, and why this is we cannot defi- nitely say but we can theorize as to the difference between the mental conceptions of the human fam- ily, with perhaps some benefit from the contem- plation. Let us consider, if you please, a few thoughts on this subject, with a view if possible of reaching some explanation of the different conclusions arrived at by different people when considering the same subject. Mind is a subtle or spiritual essence, that is only capable of being investigated by its results, that is to say, we cannot weigh, measure or cognize the mind itself, and therefore we must confine our in- quiry entirely to the product or result of mind, which is thought. When Plato wrote his treatise on the creation of man, he indulged in some very queer conceptions of man's constitution, and it is not strange, when we consider his thought of man's creation, that we should at the same time recognize the possibility of the degeneracy of man to the lowest form of animal life. Equally strange is it to consider the conception of Mr. Darwin and recognize the consistency of his 53 THE SUBSTANCE OF THINGS HOPED FOR. 59 conclusions that man must have been evolved from the lowest form of animal life. In these two instances, we have diametrically op- posite conclusions from the investigation of the same subject, by noted scientists or philosophers of world wide reputation. The consistency of their conclusions may be granted, but the fallacy of their premises must be conceded, because in neither case have they been able to construct a theory that is in accord with the apparent facts. It is manifestly impossible to con- struct any thought as to the creation of man, or to account for his present high order of civilization, without first recognizing the absence of man in the world and then considering his dual nature, which in the very " nature of things" required the action and planning of a greater mind than man's to perfect. Having such a premise to start from, there should be no difficulty in recognizing man as the result of a special creation, and the working plans or process of this creation is entirely unimportant, as well as beyond the power of a finite mind to outline or solve. It is not essential to our happiness that we should know exactly by what process the Creator formed this world and all material things, but it is necessary for our comfort that we should believe in the wis- dom, power and ability of a Creator to perform functions that are not within the scope of man's mental horizon. Theories or speculations as to the process of ere- 60 THE SUBSTANCE OE THINGS HOPED FOR. ation are interesting, but should in no case lead us away from the fact itself, because it is necessary that we should be grounded in our premise, in order to consider intelligently any thought that may grow out of what is an apparent fact, that man must have come as the result of a Divine plan and creation. If man was infinite in his powers of reasoning, it might require his greatest ability to formulate a plan for creating a being like unto himself, and at the same time, having a material body suitable for the earth on which we live, but being finite in his powers of thought, it becomes impossible for him to conceive of such an adequate plan or process of execution. The established fact of man's existence, needs no theorizing to explain it, and just so is it with the established fact of man's creation, there should be no proof demanded to prove such a theory, because it is in the very nature of things true. Take, if you please, a very homely illustration: On the plains of Egypt not far from Cairo, stand those immense pyramids that have astonished and bewildered tourists for centuries, but while it is im- possible to say what man or set of men built them, or by what process they were built, it is a self-evi- dent fact that some man or men did build them. Now, recognizing this central fact that they were built by man, we are in a mental condition to intel- ligently consider the way that must have been adopted, to move and place those huge blocks of THE SUBSTANCE OF THINGS HOPED FOR. OI stone in position. Suppose, if you please, that the fact of these monuments having been constructed by man is not conceded, we are at once lost in a jungle of wild speculation regarding them, and many think- ers would claim that they must have been created by the gods, because they would argue that there was no possible way that men could have procured the material or adjusted it in such relations as it appears. Losing sight of a correct premise is to fail in the proper consideration of any question, and just as certainly as it can be held that some man or men constructed the pyramids, so by the same process of reasoning may it be believed that God created this world and all material things. It must not be understood that the term creation is not sufficiently elastic to admit of such an *ex- planation as will serve the purpose of including whatever process may have been adopted by the Creator, and which is to us unknown. The process of creation and development of man must have been a reasonable process, and it would so seem to us if we knew what this process was; so that we may safely reject any theory which does not seem reasonable. My thought of the evolution theory as defined by Mr. Darwin and his followers is, that it is unreason- able, therefore I have no difficulty in rejecting it. It is not possible to prove that man has ever been anything but man, and there never can be any evi- Gz THE SUBSTANCE OF THINGS HOPED FOR. dence submitted that would prove that man came from the lowest orders of animal life, and has at different epochs of his life passed through the life and organization of the various lower species. There are similarities between the different species of animals and plants, but there are also distinct differences that in the very nature of things must have always existed, or rather must have existed since their creation. It may be that precisely the same difference may not have existed as now, but it is reasonable to be- lieve that the relative difference has been the same. The law of evolution must be continuous in its working, so that if man came from the lowest form of animal life up through the different species, he must in the very nature of things continue to change his structure, until he ceases to be a man and com- mences to be something else. It will be claimed that the law of evolution ceases to operate when the perfection of man was reached, but as a matter of fact perfection has not been reached, and therefore this law must be still in operation. If the law is still in operation, would we not have a practical demonstration of its working, by seeing the change that was taking place in accordance with the theory in the different species of animal life. There would not of course be any decided changes during the lifetime of a generation, but there would be indications going to show that such changes were gradually taking place. THE SUBSTANCE OF THINGS HOPED FOR. 6$ When philosophers disagree about the process of evolution, it is perfectly safe for ordinary people to hold fast to the theory of a special creation, and in doing so, they may have the substance of things hoped for in their belief that they were created for an everlasting life. S23&&S3