CHAP. XXII.] CONSTITUTION OF THE INTELLECT. 417 



But the wide prevalence of the particular theories which we have 

 considered, together with their manifest analogy with the ex- 

 pressed laws of thought, may justly be conceived to indicate a 

 connexion between the two systems. As all other mental acts 

 and procedures are beset by their peculiar fallacies, so the opera- 

 tion of that law of thought termed in this work the law of duality 

 may have its own peculiar tendency to error, exalting mere want 

 of agreement into contrariety, and thus form a world which we 

 necessarily view as formed of parts supplemental to each other, 

 framing the conception of a world fundamentally divided by op- 

 posing powers. Such, with some large but hasty inductions from 

 phaenomena, may have been the origin of dualism, indepen- 

 dently of the question whether dualism is in any form a true 

 theory or not. Here, however, it is of more importance to con- 

 sider in detail the bearing of these ancient forms of speculation, 

 as revived in the present day, upon the progress of real know- 

 ledge ; and upon this point I desire, in pursuance of what has 

 been said in the previous section, to add the following remarks : 



1st. All sound philosophy gives its verdict against such spe- 

 culations, if regarded as a means of determining the actual con- 

 stitution of things. It may be that the progress of natural 

 knowledge tends towards the recognition of some central Unity 

 in Nature. Of such unity as consists in the mutual relation of 

 the parts of a system there can be little doubt, and able men 

 have speculated, not without grounds, on a more intimate corre- 

 lation of physical forces than the mere idea of a system would 

 lead us to conjecture. Further, it may be that in the bosom of 

 that supposed unity are involved some general principles of di- 

 vision and re-union, the sources, under the Supreme Will, of much 

 of the related variety of Nature. The instances of sex and po- 

 larity have been adduced in support of such a view. As a sup- 

 position, I will venture to add, that it is not very improbable 

 that, in some such way as this, the constitution of things without 

 may correspond to that of the mind within. But such corres- 

 pondence, if it shall ever be proved to exist, will appear as the 

 last induction from human knowledge, not as the first principle 

 of scientific inquiry. The natural order of discovery is from the 

 particular to the universal, and it may confidently be affirmed 



2 E 



