LIV PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON. 
but the instinct which gave those creeds their influence is un- 
changed. : 
The religions and philosophies of the Orient seem to have little 
in common with modern science. The sage of the east did not try 
to climb the ladder of knowledge step by step. He sought a 
wisdom which he supposed far superior to all knowledge of 
earthly phenomena obtainable through the senses. The man of 
science of the west seeks knowledge by gradual accumulation, 
striving by comparison and experiment to eliminate the errors 
of individual observations, and doubting the possibility of attain- 
ing wisdom in any other way. The knowledge which he has, or 
seeks, is knowledge which may be acquired partly by individual 
effort and partly by co-operation, which requires material resources 
for its development, the search for which may be organized and 
pursued through the help of others, which is analogous in some 
respects to property which may be used for power or pleasure. The 
theologian and the poet claim that there is a wisdom which is not 
acquired but attained to, which cannot be communicated or received 
at pleasure, which comes in a way vaguely expressed by the words 
intuition or inspiration, which acts through and upon the emotional 
rather than the intellectual faculties, and which, thus acting, is 
sometimes of irresistible power in exciting and ili a the actions 
of individuals and of communities. 
The answer of the modern biologist to the old Hebrew question, 
viz. “ Why are children born with their hands clenched while men 
die with their hands wide open?” would not in the least resemble 
that given by the Rabbis, yet this last it is well that the scientist 
should also remember: ‘“ Because on entering the world men would 
grasp everything, but on leaving it all slips away.” There exist in 
men certain mental phenomena, the study of which is included in 
what is known as ethics, and which are usually assumed to depend 
upon what is called moral law. Whether there is such a law and 
whether, if it exists, it can be logically deduced from observed facts 
in nature or is only known as a special revelation, are questions 
upon which scientific men in their present stage of development are 
not agreed. There is not yet any satisfactory scientific basis for — 
what is recognized as sound ethics and morality throughout the civil- 
ized world; these rest upon another foundation. 
This procession, bearing its lights of all kinds, smoky torches, 
clear-burning lamps, farthing rush-lights, and sputtering brimstone 
