340 
NATURE 

(3) Essays Towards a Theory of Knowledge. By 
A. Philip. Pp. 126. (London: G. Routledge 
and Sons, Ltd., 1915.) Price 2s. 6d. net. 
(1) HE term Kultur is the equivalent of our 
“civilisation”;  Kulturgeschichte is 
“history of civilisation.” In a secondary sense 
the German term is narrowed to mean “the organ- 
isation of a people’s life in which the ideals of 
religion, morality, and science come to realisa- 
tion.” The popular present-day use of the term, 
therefore, actually coincides with our ‘“‘culture,”’ 
“civilisation viewed on its higher side.” It is 
only Chauvinist writers who have reduced it, at a 
very ill-chosen time, to the connotation of 
morality. 
The popularly written essays, which Prof. 
Paterson has brought together, on Germany’s 
contribution to the world’s culture have the merit 
of impartiality. It is a-mistake to suppose, by 
way of a reaction from Germany’s pretensions to 
pre-eminence, that her work is second-rate and 
second-hand, however industrious. 
In philosophy Mr. Lindsay observes that the 
German genius is supreme in the production of 
metaphysical systems. Such work suits the 
German mind, which has produced both “the dry- 
as-dust and the romantic fairy-tale.” ‘‘ The first 
question a German asks about a philosopher is— 
“What is his Weltanschauung?’’’—his “ world- 
vision.” Could we talk about the world-vision of 
Locke or Hume? Mr. Lindsay is probably right 
in regarding German philosophy as ‘the most 
characteristic contribution which Germany has 
made to the common treasure of the human spirit.” 
A typical feature of it is the passion for monism, 
Kant alone being an exception. 
The best and most detailed essay in this book 
is that on science by Prof. J. Arthur Thomson. 
“Tt is probable that the Germans in their normal 
condition have the most orderly minds in Europe,” 
but they have made far-reaching discoveries as | 
well. Prof. Thomson sketches fully the course 
of investigation in biology, physics, and chem- 
istry during the last hundred years, and places the 
German contributions in the order of their ap- 
pearance, so that the reader may estimate their 
importance and compare them with those of other 
peoples. In biology the  cell-theory, which 
“must be placed beside the evolution theory as 
one of the foundation-stones of modern biology,” 
was almost entirely the work of Germans. An 
interesting episode of chemistry is this :— 
“Sixty years ago an obscure German chemist 
obtained an oily liquid from coal-tar oil, which 
gave a beautiful tint with calcium chloride; five 
years later, another separated a similar liquid 
from a derivation of coal-tar oil.” 
NO. 2378, VOL. 95] 


[May 27, 1915 

Hofmann identified these with Zinin’s oil of 
indigo, and called them by his term “Anilin.” 
Perkin made the practical application of this know- 
ledge, and 
“the industry started by Perkin’s discovery passed 
from Britain to Germany, but the honours of 
scientific discovery were shared by both coun- 
Eales 
Prof. Thomson concludes with a useful quali- 
fication :— 
“the probable fallacy of using the history of 
science as an index of national or racial quali- 
ties,’ but he notes that ‘“‘the reading public for 
concrete science is enormously greater in Ger- 
many than in Britain, and that there is a stronger 
faith (which we believe to be warranted) in what 
science can do for the amelioration of human 
life.” 
In Prof. Sadler’s account of education two 
points may be marked :— 
“England hesitated between two opposing 
theories, the theory of State control and the theory 
of group autonomy under the general supervision 
of the State. Germany came to a decisive con- 
clusion on this fundamental question of proce- 
dure. Great Britain (and particularly England) 
remained divided in conviction about it, and there- 
fore irresolute in policy. Germany standardised 
her education upon a system. Britain, distrustful 
of State control, compromised.” 
Not only English, but German observers have 
often remarked that the intellectual apprehension 
of the average educated German is ten times 
quicker than that of the average educated Eng- 
lishman. But the intellectual judgment of the 
average educated German is most uncertain and 
weak, and often most conventional. The German 
will form ten foolish inductions to the English- 
man’s one. This corresponds to a real difference 
in temperament, between the cool, phlegmatic 
Briton and the emotional German. One result of 
this emotionalism seems to be the extraordinary 
solidarity of both German culture and German 
national feeling; yet British solidarity is as real, 
though longer-circuited. 
(2) After the results of understanding, the prin- 
ciples of it, and the principles of the reality which 
we try to understand. Mr. Sturt writes from the 
point of view of personal idealism, and treats 
logic dynamically. His main text is the creative, 
inventional power of understanding. The fore- 
sight of understanding he advances as_ the 
strongest argument against epiphenomenalism, 
such as that of Shadworth Hodgson, according 
to which - 
“all the facts of consciousness are negligible by- 
products of physico-chemical energies in the 



