82 



POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



the jurist, von Klein, the statesman, director Borgstede, friends of 

 Goethe and influenced to some extent by his spirit, as well as men 

 like Thaer, Tralles and Johannes von Miiller could not fail to be dis- 

 satisfied with the empiricism of the day, and to demand a fair hearing 

 for any system of thought which aimed at replacing it. 



The scientific regeneration of Germany followed its moral regenera- 

 tion. As Harnack points out, two great streams of thought were united 

 in nearly the same men, Fichte, Schleiermacher, F. A. Wulff, Niebuhr, 

 von Stein and William von Humboldt. Foremost among them all 



Alexander von Humboldt. 



was Schleiermacher, preacher, professor, philosopher. The spiritual 

 life of the eighteenth century had been determined by its study of 

 history and its devotion to reason. It had demanded clearness, immense 

 learning, elegance in expression, the classicism of Cicero rather than 

 that of Greece. French influence was everywhere felt. German authors 

 were weakened by subserviency to forms of expression and methods of 

 thinking suggestive of the narrowness of the schools in which they had 

 been trained. Although Hume had little influence in Germany, the 

 writings of Kousseau were very effective in shattering the old faith. If 

 we also take into account the writings of Winckelmann on Grecian art, 



