﻿ATTENDING 
  THE 
  EXERCISE 
  OF 
  THE 
  SENSES. 
  537 
  

  

  are 
  the 
  depositaries 
  or 
  recipients 
  of 
  certain 
  portions 
  of 
  the 
  knowledge, 
  and 
  the 
  

   instruments 
  of 
  certain 
  of 
  the 
  designs, 
  of 
  the 
  superior 
  Mind 
  to 
  which 
  they 
  owe 
  their 
  

   existence. 
  And 
  the 
  " 
  creed 
  of 
  the 
  sceptic," 
  shewing 
  that 
  it 
  is 
  by 
  no 
  exertion 
  of 
  

   our 
  own 
  reason, 
  and 
  indeed 
  by 
  no 
  process 
  of 
  which 
  we 
  can 
  give 
  any 
  account, 
  that 
  

   so 
  many 
  truths 
  are 
  made 
  known 
  to 
  us, 
  and 
  so 
  many 
  useful 
  acts 
  suggested 
  to 
  us, 
  

   becomes 
  an 
  essential 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  short 
  and 
  simple 
  train 
  of 
  reasoning 
  by 
  which 
  

   that 
  connection 
  is 
  inferred, 
  and 
  which 
  may 
  be 
  thus 
  stated. 
  

  

  Much 
  of 
  the 
  knowledge 
  which 
  is 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  constitution 
  of 
  our 
  minds, 
  or 
  

   which 
  is 
  awakened 
  in 
  us 
  by 
  the 
  exercise 
  of 
  our 
  senses, 
  is 
  not 
  our 
  knowledge 
  ; 
  it 
  is 
  

   neither 
  contained 
  in 
  our 
  sensations, 
  nor 
  deducible 
  by 
  any 
  reasoning 
  from 
  them, 
  

   nor 
  subject 
  to 
  our 
  will, 
  nor 
  acquired 
  by 
  our 
  experience 
  or 
  recollection 
  ; 
  yet 
  it 
  is 
  

   found 
  to 
  be 
  accurate, 
  and 
  the 
  possession 
  of 
  it 
  to 
  be 
  useful 
  and 
  necessary 
  to 
  us. 
  

  

  So 
  also, 
  many 
  of 
  the 
  actions 
  which 
  we 
  perform, 
  which 
  are 
  fitted 
  to 
  the 
  attain- 
  

   ment 
  of 
  ends 
  important 
  to 
  us, 
  and 
  obviously 
  performed 
  in 
  anticipation 
  of 
  those 
  

   ends, 
  are 
  not 
  prompted 
  by 
  any 
  such 
  anticipation 
  of 
  ours. 
  The 
  will 
  which 
  per- 
  

   forms 
  them 
  is 
  ours, 
  but 
  the 
  knowledge 
  of 
  their 
  consequences, 
  with 
  a 
  view 
  to 
  which 
  

   they 
  are 
  performed, 
  is 
  not 
  ours. 
  " 
  Man," 
  says 
  Guizot, 
  "is 
  a 
  workman, 
  intelligent 
  

   and 
  free, 
  but 
  the 
  work 
  in 
  which 
  he 
  is 
  employed 
  is 
  not 
  his 
  ; 
  he 
  sees 
  the 
  intention 
  of 
  

   it 
  only 
  when 
  it 
  has 
  been 
  so 
  far 
  accomplished, 
  and 
  even 
  then, 
  sees 
  it 
  only 
  imper- 
  

   fectly." 
  In 
  so 
  far, 
  therefore, 
  as 
  the 
  observation 
  of 
  these 
  phenomena 
  of 
  our 
  minds 
  

   leads 
  to 
  an 
  inference 
  of 
  Intelligence, 
  — 
  and 
  if 
  it 
  does 
  not, 
  we 
  have 
  no 
  grounds 
  for 
  

   ascribing 
  intelligence 
  to 
  any 
  of 
  our 
  friends 
  or 
  fellow-citizens, 
  — 
  it 
  must 
  be 
  intelli- 
  

   gence 
  prior 
  to 
  ours, 
  and 
  superior 
  to 
  ours, 
  and 
  on 
  which 
  ours 
  is 
  dependent. 
  

  

  It 
  seems 
  to 
  me, 
  that 
  it 
  is 
  quite 
  unnecessary 
  to 
  make 
  any 
  additions 
  to 
  the 
  doctrine, 
  

   which 
  we 
  have 
  seen 
  was 
  the 
  common 
  doctrine 
  of 
  Reid, 
  of 
  Stewart, 
  and 
  of 
  Brown, 
  

   as 
  to 
  the 
  existence 
  and 
  authority 
  of 
  the 
  Intuitive 
  Principles 
  of 
  Belief, 
  — 
  and 
  hardly 
  

   necessary 
  to 
  illustrate 
  this 
  farther 
  than 
  the 
  two 
  former 
  authors 
  had 
  done, 
  — 
  to 
  justify 
  

   the 
  whole 
  of 
  this 
  inference. 
  But 
  farther, 
  it 
  is 
  precisely 
  the 
  same 
  inference 
  which 
  

   we 
  find, 
  if 
  not 
  so 
  fully 
  illustrated, 
  at 
  least 
  distinctly 
  expressed 
  as 
  resulting 
  from 
  

   the 
  contemplation 
  of 
  our 
  mental 
  constitution, 
  by 
  much 
  earlier 
  authors. 
  It 
  was 
  the 
  

   same 
  idea 
  that 
  was 
  expressed 
  by 
  the 
  three 
  memorable 
  words 
  of 
  Cicero, 
  " 
  Homo 
  

   Rationis 
  Particeps" 
  (not 
  possessor) 
  ; 
  and 
  by 
  the 
  positive 
  assertion 
  of 
  Plato, 
  — 
  

   that 
  nothing 
  is 
  more 
  certain 
  than 
  that 
  a 
  part 
  of 
  every 
  man's 
  mind 
  existed 
  before 
  

   he 
  did. 
  Nay, 
  in 
  an 
  earlier 
  record 
  than 
  either 
  of 
  these, 
  of 
  the 
  first 
  metaphysical 
  

   reflections 
  of 
  the 
  human 
  race, 
  in 
  those 
  very 
  words 
  from 
  the 
  Book 
  of 
  Job 
  which 
  

   Dr 
  Reid 
  took 
  as 
  the 
  motto 
  of 
  his 
  Work 
  on 
  the 
  Intellectual 
  Powers, 
  there 
  is, 
  as 
  

   we 
  are 
  assured 
  by 
  an 
  eminent 
  Hebrew 
  scholar, 
  a 
  meaning 
  more 
  exactly 
  in 
  accord- 
  

   ance 
  with 
  the 
  leading 
  principle 
  of 
  Dr 
  Reid's 
  Philosophy, 
  than, 
  in 
  selecting 
  that 
  

   motto, 
  he 
  was 
  probably 
  aware. 
  The 
  words 
  are, 
  " 
  Who 
  hath 
  put 
  wisdom 
  in 
  our 
  

   inward 
  parts?" 
  but 
  the 
  more 
  precise 
  expression 
  of 
  the 
  meaning, 
  we 
  are 
  assured, 
  is, 
  

  

  VOL. 
  XX. 
  PART 
  IV. 
  7 
  F 
  

  

  