12 Life and Matter [chap. i. 



Before everything a philosopher should 

 aim at being all-inclusive ; before everything 

 a man of science should aim at being 

 definite, clear, and accurate. An attempt 

 at combination is an ambitious attempt, 

 which may legitimately be made, but which 

 it appears is hardly as yet given to man 

 to make successfully. Attempts at an all- 

 embracing scheme, which shall be both 

 truly philosophic and truly scientific, must 

 for the present be mistrusted, and the 

 mistrust should extend especially to their 

 negative side. Positive contributions, either 

 to fact or to system, may be real and should 

 be welcome ; but negative or destructive 

 criticism, the eschewing and throwing away 

 of any part of human experience, because it 

 is inconsistent with a premature and ill- 

 considered monistic or any other system, 

 should be regarded with deep suspicion ; 

 and the promulgation of any such negative 

 and destructive scheme, especially in associa- 

 tion with free and easy dogmatism, should 

 automatically excite mistrust and repulsion. 



