250 THE AMERICAN" BEAVER. 



vidual endowed with a mental or spiritual essence 

 which is distinct from the body, but associated with 

 it iij a mysterious manner. It requires no argument 

 to prove that the mutes possess a principle of intelli- 

 gence which performs for them the same office in 

 governing their conduct that the human mind does 

 for man. When the existence of mind in the mutes 

 is recognized, the qualities it manifests become the 

 subject of investigation. As we know nothing of the 

 ultimate nature of the human mind, so in like man- 

 ner we know nothing of the ultimate nature of the 

 animal mind; but since the former manifests certain 

 faculties, as memory, certain passions, as anger, cer- 

 tain appetites, as hunger, and puts forth a certain 

 power, the will, — the true inquiry is, whether the 

 latter manifests certain faculties, as memory, certain 

 passions, as anger, certain appetites, as hunger, and 

 puts forth a certain power, the will ? If the affirma- 

 tive is found to be true as to each of these proposi- 

 tions, then the next question must be, whether any 

 difference in kind can be discovered between the 

 memory of a man and the memory of a mute; be- 

 tween the anger of the one and the anger of the 

 other; the hunger of the one and the hunger of the 

 other; or the will of the one and the will of the other. 

 Unless some real and determinate difference can be 

 found by which to differentiate the qualities of the 

 animal mind from those of the human mind, it must 

 necessarily follow that the mute and the man are 

 both endowed with a similar mental principle; and 

 that man owes his superior dignity not to the exclu- 

 sive possession of this principle, but rather to its en- 

 joyment in a higher, more ample, and more distin- 

 guishing degree. 



