SCIENCE AND PUBLIC AFFAIRS. 



737 



The honored guest of this evening comes among us as another of 

 those men who, in following a very high vocation, have given no 

 thought to money-getting. 



Of course, indirectly, his brilliant discoveries have, in many cases, 

 aided to heap up gold in the world's coffers, but that has not been the 

 direct object of his life-work. As to the money value of most of his 

 discoveries, you might as well try to fix the worth of a fixed star, or a 

 baby. His career has been that of a seeker for new truth and an elo- 

 quent proclaimer of it ; and it is in this apostolate that he has been 

 so warmly welcomed in this great metropolis of money-making. 



The toast, sir, to which you ask me to speak is, " The Relation of 

 Science to Political Progress." 



Now, sir, I maintain that the true spirit of scientific research in- 

 carnate before us in our honored guest embracing as it does zeal in 

 search for truth, devotion to duty which such a search imposes, faith 

 in good as the normal and necessary result of such a search that such 

 a spirit is, at this moment, one of the moet needed elements in the po- 

 litical progress of our country. 



I might go on to show how usefully certain scientific methods 

 might be brought to bear on the formation of political judgments, and 

 in determining courses of political action. I might show how even a 

 very moderate application of scientific principles would save us from 

 what is constantly going on in municipal, State, or national legislation 

 the basing of important statutes to-day, on the supposition that two 

 and two make four, and to-morrow on the theory that two and two 

 make forty ; but the hour is late, and I spare you ; I will confine my- 

 self simply to the value, in our political progress, of the spirit and ex- 

 ample of our honored friend, and of those like him. 



What is the example which reveals that spirit ? It is an example 

 of zeal zeal in search for the truth, sought for truth' 's sake and not 

 for the sake of material advantage ; it is an example of thoroughness 

 of the truth sought in its wholeness, not in dilutions or adaptations, 

 or suppressions, supposed to be healthy for this man's mind, or that 

 man's soul ; it is an example of bravery the fearlessness that leads a 

 ti-uth-seeker to brave all outcry and menace ; it is an example of devo- 

 tion to duty; without which, for a steady force, as Prof. Tyndall just 

 now observed, no worthy scientific work can be accomplished ; and, 

 finally, an example of faith of a high and holy faith that the results 

 of earnest truth-seeking cannot be other than good faith that truth 

 and goodness are inseparable faith that there is a Power in the uni- 

 verse which forbids any honest truth-seeking to lead to lasting evil. 

 A faith, this is, which has had its " noble army of martyrs " from long 

 before Roger Bacon down to this present martyrs not less real than 

 that devoted saint, from whom, as I understand, our guest takes his 

 name, who perished in the flames as a martyr to religious duty. 



What I maintain then, is, that this zeal for truth as truth, this faith., 

 vol. ii. 47 



