The Inductive Theories. 21 



Had Bacon brought his exposition of method to its completion, 

 his theory might, on more than one point, have come closer to 

 modern ideas. In the Novum Organum (I, XIV), we find a 

 hint of Dr. "Whe well's doctrine of the explication of concep- 

 tions, when Bacon asserts that the only hope of knowledge lies 

 in a true abstraction from facts, in the formation of a correct 

 notion; and in the second division of his method, that of fram- 

 ing new experiments under the guidance of generalizations 

 already reached, we might have found, had it been completely 

 treated, a fuller recognition of the necessity of a proper verifi- 

 cation. 



Turning now to the theories of Scientific Method advanced 

 by Dr. Whewell, we find that according to him " our knowledge 

 consists in applying Ideas to Facts," (Novum Organum Eeno- 

 vatum II, I, 1), and " the conditions of real knowledge are, that 

 the ideas be distinct and appropriate and exactly applied to 

 clear and certain facts." 



The steps by which our knowledge is advanced are those by 

 which one or other of these two processes is rendered more 

 complete, by which conceptions are made more clear in them- 

 selves or by which the conceptions more strictly bind together 

 the facts." The two processes he calls "the Explication of 

 Conceptions" and "the Colligation of Facts." "Man is the 

 Interpreter of Nature, Science its right Interpretation," ( Hist. 

 Sc. Ideas, Book I, Ch. I). "The senses place before us the 

 characters of the Book of Nature," (Ibid Ch. II), but the alpha- 

 bet by which they are to be read " consists of the Ideas exist- 

 ing in our own minds," (Ibid Ch. III). "The antithesis of 

 Sense and Ideas is the foundation of the Philosophy of Sci- 

 ence," (Ibid Ch. IV). These Ideas are "certain comprehen- 

 sive forms of thought, as space, number, cause, composition, 

 resemblance, which we apply to the phenomena which we con- 

 template," (N. O. E. II, II). Facts on the other hand are based 

 upon Sense although beside the pure perception they involve Ideas 

 unconsciously. " The special modifications of Ideas which are 

 exemplified in particular facts " Dr. Whewell terms " Concep- 

 tions; as a circle, a square number, an accelerating force ... a 



