18 COSMIC PHILOSOPHY. [p T . i. 



audible through certain ears ; while through ears that are, as 

 we may suppose, of somewhat unlike structures, these rapid 

 vibrations are known as an excessively acute sound." l 



And thirdly, let us notice a set of facts which are so 

 familiar to us that we overlook their significance. "A whiff 

 of ammonia, coming in contact with the eyes, produces a 

 smart ; getting into the nostrils, excites the consciousness we 

 describe as an intolerably strong odour ; being condensed 

 on the tongue, generates an aciid taste ; while ammonia, 

 applied in solution to a tender part of the skin, makes it 

 burn, as we say." " A vibrating tuning-fork, touched with 

 the fingers, gives them a sense of jar ; held between the teeth, 

 it gives this same sense to the parts in which they are em- 

 bedded, while by communication through the bones of the 

 skull, its vibrations so affect the auditory apparatus as to 

 awaken a consciousness of sound — a consciousness which 

 alone results, if the tuning-fork does not touch the body." 

 " The sun's rays falling on the hand cause a sensation of heat, 

 but no sensation of light ; and falling on the retina cause a 

 sensation of light, but no sensation of heat." Note that in 

 all these cases the same external cause produces widely- 

 different phenomena according to the different avenues 

 through which it affects our consciousness. The external 

 cause cannot resemble all these phenomena, its effects ; we 

 do not know which it resembles ; what warrant have we, 

 then, for assuming that it resembles any one of them ? 



To these examples, culled from Mr. Spencers " Principles 

 of Psychology," let me add another, which, though less 

 obvious, is equally striking. The compound solar ray, when 

 analysed, is found to consist of three sets of relatively simple 



1 " It is probahle that the antennae of insects respond to stimuli which 

 leave us -i j^csible, while stimuli which affect us leave them undisturbed. 

 . . . "We luiow there are a thousand tremours in the air which heat upon 

 our ears unheard ; ana if more sensitive organs are capable of healing some 

 of these, there must he tremours which no orgauism cau feel." — Lewes, 

 Problcr,is of Life and Mind, vol. i, p. 255. 



