258 THE SCIENCE OF LOGIC 



and of E. In other words, we may infer a universal from a 

 universal, a particular from a particular, but not a particular 

 from a universal. The inferences which remain valid on this 

 supposition are those in which there is no loss of force, and 

 which are therefore &quot;simple&quot; or &quot;reciprocal&quot;. 



Having noticed there various results, let us now see what the 

 ordinary usage of language has to say to the question. 



128. EXISTENTIAL IMPORT AND ORDINARY USAGE OF 

 LANGUAGE. Ordinary usage seems, on the whole, to be distinctly 

 in favour of the view implicitly adopted in the traditional logic : 

 the view, namely, that while the existence of S, P, S, or P, is not 

 to be regarded as part of the import or implications ot any pro 

 position (unless one that predicates existence), still 5 at least is 

 assumed independently to exist ; and usually P, S, and P, also ; 

 and whenever a doubt arises about the existence of any of them, 

 this doubt should be expressed in order to remove ambiguity. 

 People usually assume the existence of the objects of their 

 thought in some actual sphere, but do not usually intend to make 

 this assumption part of the import or implication of their judg 

 ments. Perhaps modern logicians deviate too much from this 

 usage by supposing that existence is ever implied in proposi 

 tions (other than existential propositions). 



Mill taught 1 that all real or synthetic propositions should 

 be held to imply the existence of their subjects : &quot; because in the 

 case of a non-existent subject there is nothing for the proposition 

 to assert&quot;; and it must be admitted that as a rule men intend 

 their statements to be understood of what does exist, rather than 

 of what might exist. We shall find, however, that categorical 

 forms of statement are oftentimes not meant to imply the exist 

 ence of the subjects they refer to, and that, consequently, such 

 forms cannot be interpreted as always and necessarily carrying 

 such an implication with them. 



Universals. If we examine universal affirmatives, we find that 

 concrete or collective universals, which are the result of observation 

 and enumeration of instances, naturally involve, by implication 

 or assumption, the existence of their subjects ; but that the 

 abstract or generic universal which is reached by reasoning, or by 

 an analysis of the notions compared : the universal which expresses 

 a law does not necessarily carry any such implication, and 



1 Logic, i., 6, 2. 



