2 22 UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO STUDIES 



of their class, few in number, which travel onward along the great void. All the 

 others spring far off and rebound far leaving great spaces between: these* furnish us 

 with thin air and bright sunlight. And many more travel along the great void, which 

 have been thrown off from the unions of things or, though admitted, have yet in no 

 case been able likewise to assimilate their motions. Of this truth, which I am 

 telling, we have a representation and picture always going on before our eyes and 

 present to us: observe whenever the rays are let in and pour the sunlight through 

 the dark chambers of houses: you will see many minute bodies in many ways 

 through the apparent void mingle in the midst of the light of the rays, and as in 

 never-ending conflict skirmish and give battle, combating in troops and never halt- 

 ing, driven about in frequent meetings and partings; so that you may guess from 

 this, what it is for first-beginnings of things to be ever tossing about in the great void. 

 So far as it goes, a small thing may give an illustration of great things and put you 

 on the track of knowledge. And for this reason too it is meet that you should give 

 greater heed to these bodies which are seen to tumble in the sun's rays, because such 

 tumblings imply that motions also of matter latent and unseen are at the bottoms. 

 For you will observe many things there impelled by unseen blows to change their 

 course, and driven back, to return the way they came, now this way and now that way 

 in all directions round. All you are to know derive this restlessness from the first- 

 beginnings. For the first-beginnings of things move first of themselves, next those 

 bodies which form a small aggregate and come nearest, so to say, to the powers of 

 the first-beginnings, are impelled and set in movement by the unseen strokes of those 

 first bodies, and they next in turn stir up bodies which are a little larger. Thus 

 motion mounts up from the first-beginnings and step by step issues forth to our 

 senses, so that those bodies also move, which we can discern in the sunlight, though 

 it is not clearly seen by what blows they so act.' 



As to the " Origin of Motion," then, the theory of either scientist is 

 simply a part of his conception of matter, as has doubtless been noticed 

 in reading the preceding paragraphs. Lucretius merely posits motion 

 as a property of his ultimate particles, and Haeckel practically does the 

 same when he insists on the "tendency to condensation or contraction" 

 in Vogt's primitive substance.^ 



In connection with the nature of matter it would seem desirable to 

 discuss briefly one point, the character of the atom as related to the prob- 

 lem of consciousness. Both Haeckel and Lucretius state that conscious- 

 ness has a material, and therefore an atomic, basis ;^ but the former has 



' De R. N., II, 80-141. 



' Cf. WR., 241: "In our opinion this second world-enigma is solved by the recognition that movement 

 is as innate and original a property of substance as is sensation." 

 3 See p. — of this article. 



