POINTS OF AGREEMENT WITH COMTE. 119 



this scientific doctrine in no sense implicates them with M. 

 Comte. In this class stand the great body of men of science. 

 And in this case I stand myself. 



Coming thus to the personal part of the question, let mo 

 first specify those great general principles on which M. 

 Comte is at one with preceding thinkers ; and on which I am 

 at one with M. Comte. 



All knowledge is from experience, holds M. Comte ; and 

 this I also hold hold it, indeed, in a wider sense than M. 

 Comte : since, not only do I believe that all the ideas acquired 

 by individuals, and consequently all the ideas transmitted by 

 past generations, are thus derived ; but I also contend that 

 the very faculties by which they are acquired, are the pro 

 ducts of accumulated and organized experiences received by 

 ancestral races of beings (see Principles of Psychology). But 

 the doctrine that all knowledge is from experience, is not 

 originated by M. Comte ; nor is it claimed by him. He 

 himself says &quot; Tous les bons esprits repetent, depuis Bacon, 

 qu il n y a de connaissances reelle quo celles qui reposent sur 

 des faites observes.&quot; And the elaboration and definite esta 

 blishment of this doctrine, has been the special characteristic 

 of the English school of Psychology. Nor am I aware that 

 M. Comte, accepting this doctrine, has done anything to 

 make it more certain, or give it greater definiteness. Indeed it 

 was impossible for him to do so ; since he repudiates that part 

 of mental science by which alone this doctrine can be proved. . 



It is a further belief of M. Comte, that all knowledge is 

 phenomenal or relative ; and in this belief I entirely agree. 

 But no one alleges that the relativity of all knowledge was 

 first enunciated by M. Comte. Among others who have 

 more or less consistently held this truth, Sir William Hamil 

 ton enumerates, Protagoras, Aristotle, St. Augustin, Boethius, 

 Averroes, Albertus Magnus, Gerson, Leo Hebrocus, Melanc- 

 thon, Scaliger, Francis Piccolomini, Giordano Bruno, Cam- 



