1 78 Philosophy of the Human Mind, [Chap. XII. 



the pliilosophy of mind has received since the time 

 of Mr. Locke. 



At the head of these British philosophers stands 

 Dr. Rcid*j who firsts in \\\s Inquiry into the Human 

 Mind on the Principles of Common Sense, and af- 

 terwards in his Essays on the Intellectual and Active 

 Pozvers of Alan, gave a display, and attempted a 

 refutation of the sceptical philosophy, which no 

 one who suitably estimates the importance of the 

 subject can peruse without profound respect for 

 the author, and the deepest interest in his reason- 

 ings. He totally rejected the ideal system, or 

 theory of perception, as taught by his predecessors, 

 and maintained that the mind perceives not merely 

 the ideas or images of external objects, but the ex- 

 ternal objects themselves ; that when these are 

 presented to our senses they produce certain im- 

 pressions ; that these impressions are followed by 

 correspondent sensations ; and these sensations by 

 a perception of the existence and qualities of the 

 objects about which the mind is employed. He 

 contended that all the steps of this process are 

 equally incomprehensible; that we can assign no 



* Thomas Reld, D.D. was born at Strachan, in Kincardineshire, 

 April 26, ] 7 ' 0. He was educated at the University of Aberdeen, 

 and for a number of years held the pastoral charge of the congre- 

 gation of New Machar, in the neighbourhood of that city. He 

 was chosen professor of moral philosophy in the university of 

 Glasgow in 1763. His hiquin/ into the Human Mind, on the Frin- 

 ciples of Common Sense, was published in 1 764 ; his Essays on the 

 Intellectual Poivcrs of Man, in 1 785 ; and his Essays on the Aetivc 

 Powers, in J 788. He died October 7, I/QO, in the 87th year of 

 Ills age. Few men, since the days of Locke, have discovered 

 talents more eminently fitted to explore the regions of mind than 

 this phibsopher. 



