THE ARGUMENT STATED 11 



our opinion of the unseen and unknown artist's skill, if he be 

 unseen and unknown, but raises no doubt in our minds of 

 the existence and agency of such an artist, at some former 

 time and in some place or other. Nor can I perceive that 

 it varies at all the inference, whether the question arise con- 

 cerning a human agent or concerning an agent of a different 

 species, or an agent possessing in some respects a different 

 nature. 



II. Neither, secondly, would it invalidate our conclusion, 

 that the watch sometimes went wrong, or that it seldom 

 went exactly right. The purpose of the machinery, the 

 design, and the designer might be evident, and in the case 

 supposed, would be evident, in whatever way we accounted 

 for the irregularity of the movement, or whether we could 

 account for it or not- It is not necessary that a machine be 

 perfect, in order to show with what design it was made : still 

 less necessary, where the only question is whether it were 

 made with any design at all. 



III. Nor, thirdly, would it bring any uncertamty into the 

 argument, if there were a few parts of the watch, concern- 

 ipg which we could not discover or had not yet discovered 

 in what manner they conduced to the general effect ; or even 

 some parts, concerning which we could not ascertain whether 

 they conduced to that effect in any manner whatever. For, 

 as to the first branch of the case, if by the loss, or disorder, 

 or decay of the parts in question, the movement of the watch 

 were found in fact to be stopped, or disturbed, or retarded, 

 no doubt would remain in our minds as to the utility or in- 

 tention of these parts, although we should be unable to in- 

 vestigate the manner according to which, or the connection 

 by which, the ultimate effect depended upon their action or 

 assistance ; and the more complex the machine, the more 

 likely is this obscurity to arise. Then, as to the second thing 

 supposed, namely, that there were parts which might be 

 spared without prejudice to the movement of the watch, and 

 that we had proved this by experiment, these superfluous 



