1825.] 
«cian argues strait-forward ; and his con- 
clusions result in simple progression 
from his premises. His. illustrations 
may encrease the interest of his disqui- 
sition, and render his inductions more 
convincing and satisfactory, by impress- 
ing the imagination and assisting the 
memory ; but they constitute no part of 
his argument—no data for digressive 
inference. To argue in a circle, is not 
to argue at all: it provesnothing. It 
is the sophistry of the hypocrite, or the 
driveller ; and satisfies only the childish 
and the imbecile—those who seek to be 
deluded, or confirmed in their delusion. 
But your correspondent appears to 
entertain a most complacent disregard 
of such logical restrictions—can shift 
his grounds and change his data at dis- 
cretion. “ The diversities of the human 
species, varied and extensive as_ they 
are, (he tells us,) must either have been 
produced by the: slow and gradual 
operation of natural causes ; or different 
species were originally created, endow- 
ed with the characteristic marks” (phy- 
sical and anatomical, as well as intellec- 
tual) “ which they still retain. The 
first. of these causes is most consonant 
to the tenets of our religion; and, there- 
fore, he unhesitatingly adopts it.” This, 
if-he had been arguing theologically, or 
taken his. primary.data from the dogmas 
of authority, would have been consis- 
tent. enough; but in the logic of phy- 
sical analysis his “ therefore” is en- 
tirely out of the question; and he must 
atrive at his position through the pro- 
cess of physical induction:—he must 
shew us how the disproportioned length 
of the arms, the flatness of the feet, and 
their difference in length, breadth and 
shape,—the shape and cavity of the 
skull, the quantity of the brain, the 
form of the jaws and teeth, and all 
those -other circumstances which — he 
tells us .bring the negro and other 
savage races nearer to the ape, in the 
graduated chain of animal existence— 
should be likely to be produced by the 
physical operations of climate, &c.; or. 
shew us the instances in which such 
changes have been gradually produced 
(no matter through how. many genera- 
tions) in any notoriously transplanted 
race. But then, unfortunately, if he so 
had done, his chain of gradation would 
have been broken in its first link. The 
approximation of man and brute would 
be no longer a part of the original 
scheme of creation, but a secondary re- 
sult of accidental causes or. occurren- 
ces; and there must have’ primarily 
Monruzy Mac. No. 415, 
Remarks on Essay on Gradation. 
209 
been a time, when the animal world ex- 
isted and held together without any 
such graduated chain. ee she 
But if I were not afraid, Sir, of tres- 
passing upon your periodical rule (which ; 
your graduating correspondent has, I) 
think, already, in some degree, infring- 
ed,) and provoking to theological con- 
troversy, I would push my objections 
to this mode of mock reasoning still 
further ; and would flatly deny, that 
there is any thing in the hypothesis of 
originally distinet races of the human 
species, that is inconsistent with the 
faith of revelation. With the dogmas 
of what is called orthodox commentary, 
it would, indeed, beinconsistent enough; 
but not with the text of the Old Testa- 
ment. The historical parts of that 
venerable book, including the account of 
the creation, gives us the history of the 
origin only of the chosen people, the 
descendants of the first inhabitants of 
Eden—of that blissful paradise which, 
if it had not been forfeited by disobe- 
dience, those descendants were to have 
inhabited. The Mosaic record says no- 
thing of the primitive population of the 
other parts of the globe—even of that 
land of Nod, in which Cain, after his fra- 
tricide, built a city, and begat sons and 
daughters, But I beg your pardon, and 
that of your readers, My business is 
merely to expose the cobweb sophistry, 
by which the parroted argument of the 
graduated chain of existence is held 
together ; to detect the absurdity of 
mingling theological dogmas with phy- 
sical disquisition ; and to reprobate the 
propensity for mingling the cant of af; 
fected piety with every subject, how- 
ever irrelevant. ‘The practice has, it 
is true, sufficient plea of precedent. 
“ Honest Isaac Walton,” as he is called, 
could not tear his hook out of the gills’ 
or entrails of the fish which he had 
beguiled by the tortures of a writhing 
worm, without mingling religion with his’ 
piscatory instructions ; and more than. 
one of our popular maudling sonnetteers 
might be instanced, who. cannot com-. 
pliment “ a white wench’s black eye,” 
without making the Creator a partner in 
the amorous ditty. But as this is acus- 
tom that would be “ more honoured in, 
thebreach than the observance,’ I cannot 
but recommend to you, Sir, that for the- 
future you should draw your editorialpen, 
through any such irrelevant passages, . 
with which your correspondents may 
happen to intersperse their miscella- 
neous, or pretended philosophical dis- 
quisitions.—A Frignp 10 Consistency. 
2K 
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