THE ANNALS 
AND 
MAGAZINE OF NATURAL HISTORY. 
[FIFTH SERIES.] 
No. 76. APRIL 1884. 
XXVII.—On the Modern Philosophical Conceptions of Life. 
By J. J. Woopwarp, President of the Philosophical 
Society of Washington *. 
I PROPOSE to invite your attention this evening to some thoughts 
on the Modern Philosophical Conceptions of Life. The theme 
is so large that it would be idle to attempt its systematic 
treatment in the course of a single evening ; nor do [ pretend 
to be in possession of any satisfactory solution of this ancient 
question, of which I might offer you an abstract or outline, 
pending the fuller presentation of my results elsewhere. Yet 
I have ventured to hope that a discussion of some of the con- 
siderations involved, and a brief statement of certain views 
that I have been led to entertain, would not be without in- 
terest, and perhaps might prove of actual service, especially 
to those of you who are engaged in biological pursuits. 
Undoubtedly the conception of life most popular at the 
present time is that which assumes all the phenomena of 
living beings to be the necessary results of the chemical and 
physical forces of the universe, and claims or intimates that 
wherever this has not yet been proven to be the case the evi- 
rence will hereafter be forthcoming. ‘This doctrine, which 
* From the ‘ Bulletin of the Philosophical Society, Washington,’ 1883. 
Ann. & Mag. N. Hist. Ser. 5. Vol. xu. 16 
