INTRODUCTION. 



39 



ideal aims, a generous spirit of self-sacrifice, and a feeling 

 of one common duty pervaded the German nation, and 

 foremost in it the teachers and students of the German 

 universities. 1 This spirit, as it produced co-operation 

 and unity of action, also favoured unity of thought, and 

 contributed much to the popularity of several philosoph- 

 ical systems which promised more than they could give. 

 Encyclopaedic surveys were then supposed to be more 

 than the empty shell, the mere skeleton of learning 

 which they have since proved to be ; they were looked 

 upon as being able to grasp and convey the living spirit 

 of knowledge. This phase of thought, which in the 

 sequel will largely command our attention, has dis- 



18. 



Encyclo- 

 paedias did 

 not fulfil 

 what they 

 appeared 

 to promise. 



second volume of Ersch and Gruber's 

 ' Encyclopadie,' gives a definition 

 and history of encyclopaedic study, 

 which, according to him, was intro- 

 duced into the modern (German) 

 universities together with the philo- 

 sophical faculty. In the beginning 

 this was subservient to the three 

 higher faculties (theology, law, and 

 medicine), but gradually took the 

 lead. He argues that only since 

 university studies have become en- 

 cyclopaedic can they be considered 

 as furthering true humanity. He 

 refers to the great crisis through 

 which in the beginning of the cen- 

 tury literature, science, and arts 

 were passing (p. li), and mentions 

 the conflicting principles in the 

 treatment of mathematics, physics, 

 history, philosophy, and philology. 

 See also the ' Vorbericht,' vol. i. 

 p. vii. 



1 Among the mass of literature 

 dealing with this subject, the 

 ' Memoirs of Frederick Perthes, ' 

 by his son (English translation, 

 vol. i. chap. xi. iqq.), and Steftens's 

 ' Autobiography ' (' Was ich erlebte,' 



Breslau, 1840-44, 10 vols.), give the 

 most vivid and exhaustive accounts. 

 Neither Stein, the great statesman, 

 nor Goethe, the great poet and 

 thinker of the age, took part in this 

 alliance of the patriotic and intellec- 

 tual interests of the German nation. 

 Stein's attitude to the idealism of 

 the age is defined by Seeley, ' Life 

 of Stein ' (vol. i. p. 30, " It is desir- 

 able to mark that between him 

 and the literature and philosophy 

 of his time and country there was 

 no connection at all "), and is ex- 

 pressed in a remarkable conversa- 

 tion which he had with Steffens, 

 March 1813, at Breslau (quoted by 

 Seeley, vol. iii. p. 119 ; Steffens, vol. 

 vii. p. 120 sqq. ) Goethe's position is 

 defined by his reply to the invitation 

 to contribute to the 'Deutsches 

 Museum,' a periodical planned by 

 the bookseller Perthes. It was to 

 be a scientific alliance of all the in- 

 tellect of Germany, and was in time 

 " to be transformed into a polit- 

 ical one possessing the strength and 

 union necessary for vigorous action" 

 (Perthes' Memoirs, vol. i. p. 167). 



