THE MECHANICAL CONCEPTION OP NATURE. 229 



as to the incredibility of miracles. The Bible-testimony for 

 miracles is made to depend on the character of the Bible- 

 revelation, with which they stand or fall. The believer in 

 the mechanical theory of the physical world may be justified 

 in acknowledging on appropriate evidence the existence of an 

 extra-physical world, with hosts of spiritual inhabitants, as 

 well as ill God, the Author and Governor of all : and that 

 there may be, not physical, but equally effective means of 

 communication between that world and our minds. Now if 

 we have sufficient evidence in the pure and holy teaching of 

 scripture, that it is a revelation from God, and that His !Son 

 came down to redeem us from our sin, then the absence of 

 miracles might prove a difficulty, evidence of their occurrence 

 is admissible, and they may be consistent with and confirma- 

 tory of the religion with which they are associated. They 

 are the suitable accompaniments of a unique manifestation of 

 the Divine love; and we do not know whether they were 

 accomplished by reversing, specially diverting, or expediting 

 natural processes, or bj'^supplementing them with other laAvs, 

 or by pre-appointed combinations at the outset of the world. 

 The Bible that records them Avarns us against strange 

 miracles, and honours the laws of nature by designating them 

 as " the ordinances of heaven." These laws and forces are 

 all God's appointed instruments, Avhich He uses according to, 

 and not in violation of their proper character, for the execu- 

 tion of His purposes. 



It still remains ti'ue that tlie more perfectly Ave establish 

 the mechanical mode of viewing- things the less prominence 

 is giA'-en to their Maker. The old arguments of natural 

 theology are said for this I'eason to have lost their vigour, and 

 hence the excellency of the cosmic system becomes a hind- 

 rance to faith. This, howcA^er, is only apparently the case, 

 for the mechanism requires the explanation Avhich Avas once 

 spent upon its products. Once Ave tried our hands on 

 explaining hoAv a watch was made ; now Ave are asked to 

 account for the machine that makes Avatches, and that is 

 ahvays improAang on the quality of its products, which it 

 does according to natural selection by producing them in 

 large numbers and of different qualities, and then securing 

 the destruction of all but the best. In the childhood of 

 science we investigated particular objects ; noAV we consider 

 not the teleology of organs, but of the underlying dynamical 

 principles which produce them and regulate thei;: develop- 

 ment. 



