IX.]- Mr. Buckle's Fallacies. 151 



men and Englishmen have given it positive know- 

 ledge ; Americans have, by inventive genius, furnished 

 material comforts ; Italians have added the glorious 

 embodiments of beauty, grace, and charm ; and the 

 consensus of the whole is civilisation. Retrogression 

 nowhere meets us ; progress meets us everywhere ; 

 and, from the considerations above adduced, we are 

 obliged to conclude that this advance has been one as 

 well of "internal power" as of "external advantage." 

 Mr. Buckle's assertion is, therefore, seen to be not 

 only inconsistent, but also unfounded. 



II. Having now proved, as he thinks, that we must 

 look for progress in "external advantage" only, 

 and not in "internal power," our author goes on to 

 show the " superiority of intellectual acquisitions over 

 moral feelings ; " and first he asserts that all our ac- 

 quisitions are either "moral truths" or "intellectual 

 truths," and that the former are " stationary," while 

 the latter are continually advancing. It is noticeable 

 that he here deplores the difficulties which arise " from 

 the loose and careless manner in which ordinary lan- 

 guage is employed on subjects that require the greatest 

 nicety and precision. " ^ After giving us this caution, 

 one would naturally expect to find our author very 

 clear and accurate in the choice of terms, and in the 



1 Vol. i. p. 159. 



