CH. IV.] MATTER AND SPIRIT. 433 



As regards theologians, a great deal is to be said in behalf 

 of their intolerance of opinions which they honestly believe 

 to be fraught with spiritual and moral evil. But this zeal 

 in the cause of Truth too often betrays them into misrepre- 

 sentations which suggest that the maxim Nulla fides cum 

 hcereticis has not yet been completely expunged from their 

 moral code. Especially in the use of unpopular question- 

 begging epithets they are by no means sufficiently scru- 

 pulous. Such epithets as " materialism " and " atheism," 

 being extremely unpopular, have long been made to dc 

 heavy duty in lieu of argument. In this sort of barbaric 

 warfare the term " materialism " is especially convenient, 

 by reason of a treacherous ambigiiity in its connotations. 

 Certain abstract theorems of metaphysics are correctly 

 described as constituting materialism ; and the persons, who 

 assert them are correctly called materialists. On the other 

 hand, those persons are popularly called materialists who 

 allow their actions to be guided by the desires of the 

 moment, without reference to any such rule of right liviug 

 as is termed a " high ideal of life." Persons who worship 

 nothing but worldly success, who care for nothing but 

 wealth, or fashionable display, or personal celebrity, or 

 sensual gratification, are thus loosely called materialists. 

 The term can therefore easily be made to serve as a poisoned 

 weapon, and there are theologians who do not scruple to 

 employ it as such against the upholders of philosophic 

 opinions which they do not like but are unable to refute. A 

 most flagrant instance was recently afforded by a lecturer 

 on Positivism, who, after insinuating that pretty much the 

 whole body of contemporary scientific philosophers are 

 Positivists, and that Positivists are but very little better 

 than materialists, proceeded to inform his audience that 

 "materialists" are men who lead licentious lives. 



It would be hard to find words strong enough to cha- 

 racterize the villany of such misrepresentations as this 



VOL. n. F F 



