﻿532 
  PROFESSOR 
  ALISON 
  ON 
  THE 
  BELIEF 
  

  

  retarding 
  the 
  progress 
  of 
  knowledge 
  on 
  the 
  subject, 
  to 
  represent 
  these 
  authors 
  

   as 
  at 
  variance 
  with 
  one 
  another. 
  In 
  fact, 
  it 
  appears 
  to 
  me, 
  that 
  his 
  doctrine 
  

   on 
  this 
  subject, 
  referring 
  to 
  the 
  general 
  Law 
  of 
  Belief 
  in 
  the 
  permanence 
  of 
  the 
  

   order 
  of 
  Nature, 
  is 
  substantially 
  the 
  same 
  as 
  that 
  of 
  Stewart 
  and 
  Turgot, 
  and 
  

   that 
  the 
  only 
  real 
  addition 
  which 
  he 
  made 
  to 
  our 
  knowledge 
  on 
  the 
  subject, 
  con- 
  

   sists 
  in 
  explaining 
  the 
  province 
  of 
  the 
  muscular 
  sensations, 
  as 
  distinguished 
  from 
  

   those 
  sensations 
  that 
  result 
  merely 
  from 
  impressions 
  on 
  the 
  cutaneous 
  nerves, 
  with 
  

   which 
  they 
  had 
  generally 
  been 
  confounded 
  under 
  the 
  name 
  of 
  Sensations 
  of 
  Touch 
  ; 
  

   and 
  in 
  connection 
  with 
  them, 
  the 
  importance 
  of 
  the 
  idea 
  of 
  Time, 
  in 
  communicating 
  

   the 
  information 
  on 
  which 
  our 
  notions 
  of 
  the 
  Primary 
  qualities 
  of 
  Matter 
  are 
  founded. 
  

   This 
  is 
  the 
  same 
  distinction 
  as 
  is 
  expressed 
  by 
  several 
  French 
  physiologists 
  by 
  the 
  

   terms 
  Tact 
  and 
  Toucher 
  ; 
  and 
  it 
  appears 
  from 
  the 
  learned 
  researches 
  of 
  Sir 
  William 
  

   Hamilton, 
  that 
  it 
  had 
  been 
  clearly 
  pointed 
  out 
  by 
  various 
  other 
  authors, 
  ancient 
  

   and 
  modern 
  ; 
  but 
  I 
  have 
  no 
  doubt 
  that 
  it 
  was 
  original 
  on 
  the 
  part 
  of 
  Dr 
  Brown. 
  

  

  In 
  concluding 
  these 
  remarks 
  on 
  this 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  Philosophy 
  of 
  Dr 
  Brown, 
  I 
  

   see 
  no 
  objection 
  to 
  my 
  stating, 
  what 
  I 
  am 
  very 
  certain 
  was 
  the 
  case, 
  that 
  the 
  re- 
  

   pugnance 
  which 
  he 
  felt 
  towards 
  the 
  peculiar 
  doctrines 
  of 
  Dr 
  Reid, 
  was 
  in 
  reality 
  

   not 
  so 
  much 
  on 
  the 
  score 
  of 
  judgment 
  as 
  of 
  taste. 
  His 
  own 
  taste 
  in 
  literature 
  was 
  

   peculiar, 
  — 
  it 
  was 
  founded 
  in 
  a 
  great 
  measure 
  on 
  the 
  classical 
  models, 
  — 
  and 
  he 
  

   was 
  even 
  more 
  ambitious 
  than 
  Mr 
  Stewart, 
  of 
  combining 
  the 
  reputation 
  of 
  a 
  

   scholar 
  and 
  elegant 
  writer 
  with 
  that 
  of 
  an 
  acute 
  metaphysician. 
  The 
  perfect 
  

   simplicity 
  of 
  the 
  language, 
  the 
  total 
  absence 
  of 
  fancy, 
  and 
  the 
  homeliness 
  of 
  

   many 
  of 
  the 
  illustrations, 
  in 
  the 
  writings 
  of 
  Dr 
  Reid, 
  were 
  distasteful 
  to 
  him 
  ; 
  and 
  

   I 
  cannot 
  but 
  consider, 
  therefore, 
  his 
  objections 
  to 
  the 
  doctrines 
  there 
  laid 
  down, 
  as 
  

   an 
  illustration 
  of 
  the 
  truth 
  of 
  the 
  observation 
  on 
  his 
  own 
  scientific 
  character, 
  

   which 
  I 
  have 
  often 
  heard 
  from 
  my 
  Father 
  ; 
  who 
  had 
  the 
  highest 
  admiration, 
  both 
  

   of 
  the 
  acuteness 
  of 
  his 
  intellect, 
  and 
  of 
  the 
  purity 
  and 
  elevation 
  of 
  his 
  moral 
  prin- 
  

   ciples, 
  but 
  used 
  to 
  speak 
  of 
  him 
  as 
  the 
  man 
  of 
  the 
  most 
  fastidious 
  taste 
  that 
  

   he 
  had 
  ever 
  known. 
  

  

  It 
  has 
  been 
  often 
  observed, 
  that 
  the 
  intellectual 
  opinions, 
  even 
  of 
  the 
  men 
  

   who 
  take 
  most 
  pride 
  in 
  the 
  exercise 
  of 
  their 
  understandings, 
  are 
  very 
  often 
  more 
  

   or 
  less 
  guided 
  by 
  their 
  tastes 
  and 
  feelings 
  ; 
  and 
  in 
  regarding 
  the 
  prejudice 
  which 
  

   may 
  be 
  detected 
  in 
  the 
  writings 
  of 
  Dr 
  Brown, 
  against 
  the 
  phraseology 
  and 
  the 
  

   doctrines 
  of 
  Reid, 
  as 
  an 
  instance 
  of 
  the 
  reaction 
  of 
  independent 
  thought 
  against 
  

   mere 
  authority, 
  and 
  of 
  cultivated 
  taste 
  against 
  the 
  imputation 
  of 
  vulgarity, 
  I 
  do 
  

   not 
  think 
  I 
  do 
  injustice 
  to 
  the 
  memory 
  of 
  either 
  of 
  these 
  illustrious 
  men. 
  

  

  Sir 
  William 
  Hamilton, 
  as 
  I 
  already 
  mentioned, 
  expresses 
  himself 
  strongly 
  as 
  

   to 
  the 
  doctrine 
  of 
  Reid 
  regarding 
  the 
  formation 
  of 
  the 
  notion 
  of 
  the 
  primary 
  qua- 
  

   lities 
  of 
  matter, 
  as 
  so 
  far 
  from 
  " 
  being 
  a 
  confutation 
  of 
  Idealism, 
  affording 
  it 
  the 
  

   best 
  of 
  all 
  possible 
  foundations 
  ;" 
  but 
  then 
  he 
  explains 
  this 
  by 
  saying 
  that 
  he 
  

  

  