PEEFACE. V 



In short, the famous Hegelian dialectic is in truth 

 nothing less or else than the speculative aspect of the 

 doctrine of the Conservation of Energy, which consti- 

 tutes the vital element of all that is known as " Modern 

 Science." The former presents the principle of Evolu- 

 tion in its most abstract, but also in its most rigidly 

 consistent form. The latter unfolds the "dialectic" 

 under the form of the necessary relations or laws that 

 "govern," or rather constitute, natural (in the sense 

 of physical) phenomena. 



Thus, instead of being contradictory the one of the 

 other, these two great movements are in reality but 

 complementary and increasingly adequate phases of the 

 ceaseless struggle on the part of the human mind to 

 bring itself into harmony with the actual world in its 

 essential, and therefore ultimate, significance. 



It is true that on his part Hegel treated slightingly 

 the work of the empirical school, which had already 

 developed admirable results in his time. And the 

 members of this school have ample revenge when they 

 point to the astounding absurdities to be found in 

 Hegel's " Naturphilosopliie;" a work which, it cannot be 

 reasonably denied, consists in great part of a series of 

 perverse assumptions defying all observed facts. But, 

 on the other hand, empiricists who scoff at that method 

 which they (wrongly) assume to be fairly illustrated in 

 this work, have on their part only too often attempted 

 to interpret "Nature" without the guidance of any 

 clearly defined speculative principle; and precisely for 



