24 



ON THE GENERAL DIFFUSION OF KNOWLEDGE. 



modern science, and who yet remains the slave 

 of superstitious notions and vain fears ? Of all 

 ihe philosophers in Europe, is there one who 

 is alarmed at an eclipse, at a comet, at an ignis 

 fatuus, or the notes of a death-watch, or who 

 postpones his experiments on account of what 

 is called an unlucky day ? Did we ever hear 

 of a spectre appearing to such a person, drag 

 ging him from bed at the dead hour of midnight to 

 wander through the forest trembling with fear ? 

 No: such beings appear only to the ignorant 

 and illiterate ; and we never heard of their ap 

 pearing to any one who did not previously be 

 lieve in their existence. But why should phi 

 losophers be freed from such terrific visions, if 

 substantial knowledge had not the power of ba 

 nishing them from the mind ? Why should 

 supernatural beings feel so shy in conversing 

 with men of science 1 They would be the fit 

 test persons to whom they might impart their 

 secrets, and communicate information respect 

 ing the invisible world, but it never falls to their 

 lot to be favoured with such visits. Therefore, 

 it may be concluded, that the diffusion of useful 

 knowledge would infallibly dissipate those 

 groundless fears which have so long disturbed 

 the happiness particularly of the lower orders of 

 mankind.* 



It forms no objection to what has been now 

 stated, that the late Dr. Samuel Johnson be 

 lieved in the existence of ghosts, and in the 

 tecond sight: for, with all his vast acquirements 

 in literature, he was ignorant of natural science, 

 and even attempted to ridicule the study of na 

 tural philosophy and astronomy the principal 

 subjects which have the most powerful tendency 

 to dissipate such notions, as may be seen in 

 No. 24 of his &quot; Rambler ;&quot; where he endea 

 vours to give force to his ridicule by exhibiting 

 the oddities of an imaginary pretender to these 

 sciences. He talks of men of science &quot; lavish 

 ing their hours in calculating the weight of the 

 terraqueous globe, or in adjusting systems of 

 worlds beyond the reach of the telescope ;&quot; and 

 adds, that &quot; it was the greatest praise of So- 



It would be unfair to infer from any expressions 

 here used, that the author denies the possibility of 

 supernatural visions and appearances. We are 

 assured, _froni the records of Sacred History, that 

 beings of an order superior to the human ras, have 

 &quot; at sundry times, and in divers manners,&quot; made 

 their appearance to men. But there is the most 

 marked difference between vulgar apparitions, and 

 *.he celestial messengers to which the records of Re 

 velation refer. They appeared, not to old women 

 and clowns, but to patriarchs, prophets, and apos 

 tles. They appeared, not to frighten the timid, and 

 to create unnecessary alarm, but to declare &quot; tidings 

 of great jny.&quot; They appeared, not to reveal such 

 paltry secrets as the place where a pot of gold or 

 silver is concealed, or where a lost ring may be 

 found, but to communicate intelligence worthy of 

 God to reveal, and of the utmost importance for man 

 to receive, in these, and many other respects, there 

 is the most striking contrast between popular 

 ghosts, and the supernatural communications and 

 njipearances recorded in Scripture. 



crates, that he drew the wits of Greece frutn 

 the vain pursuit of natural philosophy to moral 

 inquiries, and turned their thoughts from stars 

 and tides, and matter and motion, upon the va 

 rious modes of virtue and relations of life.&quot; His 

 opinions and conduct, therefore, can only be 

 considered as an additional proof of the pro 

 priety of the sentiments above expressed. 



Nor should it be considered as a thing im 

 practicable to instruct the great body of mankind 

 in the subjects to which I have alluded. Every 

 man possessed of what is called common sense, 

 is capable of acquiring all the information re 

 quisite for the purpose in view, even without 

 infringing on the time allotted for his daily la 

 bours, provided his attention be once thoroughly 

 directed to its acquisition, and proper means 

 used to promote his instruction. It is not in 

 tended that all men should be made profound 

 mathematicians and philosophers ; nor is it ne 

 cessary, in order to eradicate false opinions, 

 and to enlarge and elevate the mind. A general 

 view of useful knowledge is all that is necessary 

 for the great mass of mankind; and would cer 

 tainly be incomparably preferable to that gross 

 ignorance, and those grovelling dispositions, 

 which so generally prevail among the inferior 

 ranks of society. And, to acquire such a de 

 gree of rational information, requires only that 

 a taste for it, and an eager desire for acquiring 

 it, be excited in the mind. If this wore attained, 

 I am bold to affirm, that the acquisition of such 

 information may be made by any person who is 

 capable of learning a common mechanical em 

 ployment, and will cost him less (rouble and 

 expense than are requisite to a schoolboy for 

 acquiring the elements of the Latin tongue. 



To conclude this branch of the subject : 

 Since it appears that ignorance produces super 

 stition, and superstitious notions engender vain 

 fears and distorted views of the government of 

 the Almighty, since all fear is in itself painful, 

 and, when it conduces not to safety, is painful 

 without use, every consideration and every 

 scheme by which groundless terrors may be re 

 moved, and just conceptions of the moral attri 

 butes of the Deity promoted, must diminish the 

 sum of human misery, and add something to 

 human happiness. If therefore the acquisition 

 of useful knowledge respecting the laws and 

 the economy of the universe would produce this 

 effect, the more extensively such information is 

 propagated, the more happiness will be diffused 

 among mankind. 



SECTION II. 



ON THE UTILITY OF KNOWLEDGE IN PRE 

 VENTING DISEASES AND FATAL ACCI 

 DENTS. 



IT is a conclusion which has been deduced 

 from long experience, &quot; that mankind in thei 



