178 FRAGMENTS OF SCIENCE 



reasonings their due weight, I can suppose the Bishop 

 to proceed thus: "You will remember that in the 'Anal- 

 ogy of Eeligion,' of which you have so kindly spoken, 

 I did not profess to prove anything absolutely, and that I 

 over and over again acknowledged and insisted on the 

 smallness of our knowledge, or rather the depth of our 

 ignorance, as regards the whole system of the universe. 

 My object was to show my deistical friends, who set forth 

 so eloquently the beauty and beneficence of Nature and 

 the Euler thereof, while they had nothing but scorn for 

 the so-called absurdities of the Christian scheme, that they 

 were in no better condition than we were, and that, for 

 every difficulty found upon our side, quite as great a diffi- 

 culty was to be found upon theirs. I will now, with your 

 permission, adopt a similar line of argument. You are 

 a Lucretian, and from the combination and separation of 

 insensate atoms deduce all terrestrial things, including 

 organic forms and their phenomena. Let me tell you in 

 the first instance how far I am prepared to go with you. 

 I admit that you can build crystalline forms out of this 

 play of molecular force; that the diamond, amethyst, and 

 snow-star are truly wonderful structures which are thus 

 produced. I will go further and acknowledge that even 

 a tree or flower might in this way be organized. Nay, 

 if you can show me an animal without sensation, I will 

 concede to you that it also might be put together by the 

 suitable play of molecular force. 



"Thus far our way is clear, but now comes my dif- 

 ficulty. Your atoms are individually without sensation, 

 much more are they without intelligence. May I ask 

 you, then, to try your hand upon this problem. Take 

 your dead hydrogen atoms, your dead oxygen atoms, 



