1 88 Mr. Buckle's Fallacies. [ix. 



been hitherto known to no modern reader." ^ He 

 also tells us that the Scotch clergy used " means of 

 intimidation," because, being "perfect masters of their 

 own art," they well knew that " by increasing the ap- 

 prehensions to which the ignorance and timidity of 

 men make them too liable," they would also " increase 

 their eagerness to fly for support to their spiritual 

 advisers." ^ 



All this is very significant. It shows that Mr. 

 Buckle is unable to escape from recognising the 

 enormous influence of feeling in leading to belief 

 and action. After labouring to. show that persecu- 

 tors are actuated only by mistaken benevolence, he 

 here declares that the tyrannical and intolerant acts 

 of the Scotch clergy were dictated by cunning selfish- 

 ness and longsighted craft. We think that he here 

 commits almost as great an error as before, though 

 in the opposite direction, by attributing too much to 

 the selfish desires of these men, and by taking too 

 little account of their good, but mistaken, intentions. 

 There is glaring inconsistency in this: but when a 

 man lays down a " law " so incredibly absurd as the 

 one in question, we must expect to find him incon- 

 sistent in its application. 



» Vol. ii. pp. 344, 347, 348, 357, 365. 

 2 Ibid- pp. 366, 384. 



