306 



SCIENTIFIC THOUGHT. 



4. 



Special 



scientific 



ideas. 



5. 

 Philosophy 

 of science. 



I therefore look upon the spirit of exact research as I 



thoroughly domiciled in the leading countries of Europe! 



i 



during the second half of the century, and intend in the; 

 sequel to explain more precisely the different views, the' 

 leading ideas, under which this research is everywhere 

 conducted. These leading ideas have themselves been, 

 more clearly brought out and recognised during this^ 

 period. 



The narrow spirit of the Baconian philosophy which: 

 reigned in England, the vagueness of the philosophy of I 

 nature which reigned in Germany, during the earlier! 

 decades of the century, have disappeared in favour of the! 

 more comprehensive and the stricter methods taught by 

 Lavoisier, by Monge, by Laplace, and by Cuvier in France.. 

 New ideas of extensive bearing have been added, and in: 

 the light of these the powers and the limits of science 

 have been more correctly recognised. 



To some of my readers well-known names will occur 

 which might serve as guides to fix these leading ideas,, 

 under the influence of which the march of science has! 

 proceeded : Sir John Herschel, Auguste Comte, Johni 

 Stuart Mill, and Whewell ^ have indeed done much toi 



1 Of these writings the earliest is 

 Sir John Herschel's " Preliminary 

 Discourse on the Study of Natural 

 Philosophy," which appeared in 

 Lardner's ' Cabinet Cyclopedia ' in 

 1831. Tlie writings" of William 

 Whewell on the ' History ' and ' Phil- 

 osojihy of the Inductive Sciences' 

 were begun about the same time. 

 They were planned to serve three 

 distinct objects to give, Ist, a 

 philosophical history of astronomy, 

 mechanics, physics, chemistry, and 

 botany; 2nd, an analysis of the na- 

 ture of induction and the rules of 



its exercise ; and 3rd, to answer the! 

 question of applying inductive pro- 

 cesses to other than material sci-; 

 ences as philology, art, politics,] 

 and morals (see ' William Whewell,'' 

 by I. Todhunter, vol. i. p. 90).. 

 The 'History' appeared in 1837 in; 

 three volumes, a second edition iu! 

 1847, a third in 1857; tlie ' Philo-' 

 sophy' appeared in 1840 in two' 

 volumes, a second edition in 1847. j 

 In the course of its execution the! 

 original plan was not strictly ad-i 

 hered to the scope of the History! 

 was enlarged considerably, and the. 



