INTRODUCTORY. 9 



and that only latterly has it established its independent 

 position under the terms " Natural Philosophy " and 

 " Natural Science." This process of emancipation has 

 been carried out mainly through those clear and concise 

 definitions referred to above. They have enabled it to 

 abandon purely verbal discussions for actual description 

 of facts. Now it will be interesting to note that the 

 manner in which these definitions have been gained, the 

 method of this clearing up, are not in general or 

 to a large extent available in that domain of thought 

 which still retains the name of philosophy proper. In 

 order to rise, as science has effectually done, from merely 

 verbal discussions to the consideration of realities — i.e., 

 to emancipate itself from the tyranny of words — philo- 

 sophy proper will have to look out for a different method 

 from that which is peculiar to science. "WTienever the 

 latter method is applicable we may say that science has 

 established itself, and wrenched a new province from the 

 common parent-land of philosophy. 



Moreover, the method by which the different sciences 

 have succeeded in defining the ideas with which they 

 deal must have become abundantly clear in the course of 

 our historical exposition. Scientific thought has always 

 progressed by looking outside for definite things or pro- 

 cesses in and through which the abstract terms it makes 

 use of are exemplified in the external world — i.e., in 

 Nature. Wherever any doubt, vagueness, or ambiguity 

 has shown itself, it has been dispelled by resorting 

 t-o observations of special instances, by multiplying 

 these, and thus attaining to generality, by experiments 

 through which complicated cases have been analysed 



