SCIENCE AND CULTURE 119 



man, devoid of a knowledge of what physical science has 

 done in the last century, upon a criticism of life. 



When a biologist meets with an anomaly, he instinc- 

 tively turns to the study of development to clear it up. 

 The rationale of contradictory opinions may with equal 

 confidence be sought in history. 



It is, happily, no new thing that Englishmen should 

 employ their wealth in building and endowing insti- 

 tutions for educational purposes. But, five or six hun- 

 dred years ago, deeds of foundation expressed or im- 

 plied conditions as nearly as possible contrary to those 

 which have been thought expedient by Sir Josiah Mason. 

 That is to say, physical science was practically ignored, 

 while a certain literary training was enjoined as a means 

 to the acquirement of knowledge which was essentially 

 theological. 



The reason of this singular contradiction between the 

 actions of men alike animated by a strong and disinter- 

 ested desire to promote the welfare of their fellows, is 

 easily discovered. 



At that time, in fact, if any one desired knowledge 

 beyond such as could be obtained by his own observa- 

 tion, or by common conversation, his first necessity was 

 to learn the Latin language, inasmuch as all the higher 

 knowledge of the western world was contained in works 

 written in that language. Hence, Latin grammar, with 

 logic and rhetoric, studied through Latin, were the funda- 

 mentals of education. With respect to the substance of 

 the knowledge imparted through this channel, the Jewish 

 and Christian Scriptures, as interpreted and supple- 

 mented by the Romish Church, were held to contain a 

 complete and infallibly true body of information. 



Theological dicta were, to the thinkers of those days, 

 that which the axioms and definitions of Euclid are to 



