247 
vescence of our zeal, we degrade the wisdom we 
pretend to exalt, and pervert the designs of the good- 
uess we profess to revere. 
532. With respect, also, to the charge of calum- 
niating nature, he, surely, who, by assiduous observa- 
tion of the facts which she offers to his contempla- 
tion, seeks to discover the laws of their connection, 
and proposes his opinion of those laws as the simple 
result of his inquiries, may be regarded less as a ca- 
lumniator, than he who supplies the imperfection 
and deficiency in his facts, by the suggestions of 
imagination, and confidently imposes upon nature 
laws and conditions, which she utterly disowns and 
disclaims. For ourselves, indeed, accustomed always 
to regard facts more than opinions, and to yield less 
deference to names than to things, we are little in- 
fluenced by those speculations, which, in the lan- 
guage of Bacon, may be pronounced anticipations, 
rather than interpretations, of nature. Still less are 
we moved by considerations of the supposed conse- 
quences which others may attach to our opinions, 
but embrace the sublime admonition of an eminent 
and philosophical Professor, " To follow TRUTH 
wheresoever she may lead us, and, in all our re- 
searches, to be afraid of nothing but ERROR." 
