Thoughts on Causality. 



247 



of one kind. Now, it is unreasonable to affirm that one 

 identical unintelligent involuntary force or impulse, acting 

 upon one unintelligent, involuntary set of atoms, can give 

 rise to the varied classes of material phenomena. It seems 

 to me a far more rational resort to abandon the hypothesis 

 of blind impulse running on in pursuance of an initial 

 energy, and recognize, as Sir William Thompson has him- 

 self suggested, the immediate presence of first cause in all 

 the passing activities of the material world. 



This, of course, is a restoration of the very power which, 

 according to Tyndall, antiquity invoked science to over- 

 throw. But science herself has brought us to a situation 

 which suggests and commends this alternative. It does 

 not follow, however, that the universe must be again su In- 

 jected to the dominion of capricious will. It is demonstra- 

 ble that the universe is not so ruled ; and, in view of the 

 conclusion reached, it appears that supreme spontaneity 

 wills to act according to fixed methods. It is surely as 

 easy to refer the regularity of phenomena to discerning 

 mind, as to blind mechanism. 



It is a common phraseology of science to speak of heat, 

 light and other forms of energy as "modes of motion." 

 This form of expression is inexact, and opens the way to 

 logical subreptions and other fallacious procedures* A 

 mode of motion is some kind of motion, and, as such, irn- 

 plies a thing moved and a mover. The thing moved is an 

 atom or molecule; the mover is the real energy to which 

 thought is habitually directed when we speak of molecular 

 force. Motion, instead of being an ultimate physical eau-.e, 

 is merely an effect. Now it is true that the real cause may 

 produce — does produce, various modes of motion, one of 

 which may be styled heat; another, light, and so on ; and 

 these motions, in accordance with the law of " continuity 

 of motion " or " persistence of force," may be propagated 

 indefinitely along the linen; which characterize respectively, 

 the several specie* of energy so named. Used in this 



