THE MECHANICAL CONCEPTION OV NATURE, 237 



for discussion. The mechanical or physical conception of nature 

 appears to me to have in it this difficult}-, that there being a 

 considerable analogy between the processes of nature and those 

 mechanical acts Avhich man is competent to perform, those who 

 are in favour of the mechanical theory at once jump to the 

 conclusion that there is nothing more in these apparently 

 mechanical arrangements of nature than there is in those truly 

 mechanical actions of which we are capable ; whereas there 

 appears to me to be an infinite difference between the two, inasmuch 

 as, as has already been mentioned, all the processes of nature are of 

 such an infinitely more subtle and beautifully arranged character 

 than those comparatively clumsy processes which man carries out, 

 and which are truly mechanical processes. But I think in all 

 these cases we must remember the great distinction to be made 

 between matter and mind, between the physical and the hyper- 

 physical, the supernatural and the spiritual. 



The President. — The author of this paper being a professor in 

 a distinguished college in America has not been able to be present 

 to-night, but we shall place in his hands the remarks made by the 

 various speakers. From a first brief perusal of the paper, I 

 cannot help thinking that lie has well pointed out that there may 

 be certain laws which we ordinarily observe in the course of 

 things relating to certain natural phenomena ; and that over and 

 above that, there are the facts of consciousness and will which 

 we cannot in any way reduce to mechanical conception. It seems 

 to me that that is allowed all through the paper, and that there 

 will be no difference of opinion on such a point as that between 

 the author and any of those who have spoken to-night. 



I may observe that I think the word energy has a perfect 

 physical signification, and that it has one in ordinary life which 

 is quite different. We may speak of a man of energy ; but that 

 is a totall}^ diffei-ent thing from energy in the physical conception, 

 and if we use the Avord energy in the physical sense it by no means 

 follows that we have any thoughts of something* altogether 

 different to what the term enei-gy means as frequently applied in 

 ordinary conversation. When we speak of energy in a physical 

 sense, that h9,s nothing to do with the exertion of the will when I 

 move my hand to the right or left or use it in more energetic 

 manner than that. 



The meeting was then adjourned. 



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