372 LEISURE-TIME STUDIES. 



begins its work," may and does express itself in poetry ; but 

 of the development of that " larger, deeper, more instructed 

 wonder," which succeeds the early " poetic glow," he is by- 

 no means sanguine, as an element in the scientific mind. 



In all of these opinions, it seems to me there is a mis- 

 apprehension of the exact attitude of the scientific mind 

 to the sense of beauty and poetry which may be presumed 

 to exist in mankind at large. The question in which the 

 gist of the matter lies may be shortly stated as that which 

 inquires Whether an exact knowledge of the laws and 

 constitution of nature necessarily unfits the mind for the 

 appreciation or exercise of the poetic faculty and instinct ? 

 Let me try to frame a brief reply to this important query. 



I will not do more at the outset than point out that to 

 fully realise the effect of a scientific training on the poetic 

 instinct, individual peculiarities of mind must necessarily 

 count for much. Once again we must face the problem of 

 relativity. In one case, Dr. Shairp's remarks regarding the 

 effect of science on the " small-souled " amongst the phy- 

 sicists will hold good ; in another case, the scientific habits 

 might leave unaffected the whole poetic bent of the man's 

 nature, admitting always that the scientific and poetic 

 faculties are capable of simultaneous cultivation. But deal- 

 ing with generalities as the only quantities of value in the 

 case before us, can it be rationally maintained that a 

 knowledge of causation necessarily destroys the faculty of 

 appreciating the beauty and harmony of the universe as 

 revealed by the imagery and diction of the poet? To 

 such a question I would fain return a very strong and nega- 

 tive reply. Nay, I will go further, and maintain that a 

 knowledge of science, so far from serving to chill and blight 

 the aspirations of the poetic mind, may, on the contrary, 

 serve not only to foster but to extend and enlarge the range 

 of poetic sympathy and vision. 



Does the knowledge of the fact that oxygen has been 

 discovered in the sun tend to diminish by one iota the 

 feeling of joy, the inexpressible sense of delight and wonder, 



