almost as great a benefit, the clearer perception and livelier impression 

 of truth, produced by its collision with error. No one can be a great 

 thinker who does not recognise that, as a thinker, it is his first duty to 

 to follow his intellect to whatever conclusions it may lead. Truth 

 gains more even by the errors of one who with due study and prepara- 

 tion thinks for himself, than by the true opinions of those who only / 



hold them because they do not suffer themselves to think completes 



liberty of contradicting- and disproving- our opinion is the very con- 

 dition which justifies us in assuming its truth for purposes of action ; 

 and on no other terms can a being- with human faculties have any 

 rational assurance of being rig-ht." 



\ We claim the right to think upon any and every subject, and also to 

 express our thoughts before the world, in spite of the menace held out 

 to us by those whose interests conflict with any honest expression of 

 opinion. There is no tribunal but that of reason to which we possibly 



r 0^'v.tt~* 



can submit any theory or piopusiticm. To talk of faith as opposed to 

 reason is to speak without seriously thinking-. 

 weird phantom that haunts the irresolute a^ 



which really has no existence at all. A man may say that he believes 

 something entirely opposed to reason, but he deceives himself, for it is 

 quite impossible to believe what does not appear to the mind to be in 

 accordance with reason. Such a man accepts, but does not believe. 

 We have faith in th3~exlstenee of the island of Otaheite, although we 

 have never been there ourselves. Geographers tell us that such an 

 island exists on the other side of the world ; and we have full faith in 

 such an existence, because it is in accordance with reason. But if we 

 were -tokl-tlmt the king- of Otaheite had never been born, but had, like 

 T^ppey, ^grow'd,' or that he and his subjects, instead of talking, crowed 

 like cocks, or brayed like donkeys, we should not believe it, because it 

 would be contrary to reason. Sensible and thoughtful people will, 

 therefore, not accept anything as truth that does not accord with 

 reason | and I ask you to night to follow me in my endeavour to sub- 

 mit the two important dogmas of my lecture to the test of reason, in 

 the full belief that you are as anxious as myself to arrive at a reason- 

 able and true conclusion regarding them. 



The doctrines of the creation and fall are, as it were, the foundations 

 upon which the huge superstructure of Christianity has been founded 



