135 
PHILOSOPHY. 
adieu to the Mathematics. Their certainty is for ever 
gone, and their proofs are reduced to mere probabilities. 
We mull hot, however, be blinded by thg high authority 
of Mr. Stewart, notwithftanding he declares that the new 
dodtrine of Time and Space is to him entirely^ ineompre- 
henfible. Nor mult we fuffer ourfelves to be milled by the 
illiberal remark, that Kant’s argument in anfwer to the 
Neceffitarians, and by which he eftabMies the poffibility 
of man’s freedom, is merely brought forward to fare appear - 
(tnces. See page 156 of the lad-mentioned work. 
The dread at lofing an External Space is juft as puerile 
as the fear that the inhabitants of the earth might tall off 
by its rotation. Science has quieted the latter apprehen- 
lion; and that we retain the lead alarm from the former, 
only proves the infant ftate of the Philofophy of Mind. 
Our notions of Space cannot alter Space itfelf; and, if we 
hazard a theory refpefting it, that theory is undoubtedly 
the belt which neither injures the fcience of Geometry nor 
deftroys the external world ! Away then with-all childilh 
fears ; let them no longer impede the progrefs of know¬ 
ledge. It is indeed well faid by Mr. Stewart, that the 
Theory of Copernicus is one of the proudeft triumphs ot 
human reafon. He might have added with equal truth, 
had he taken the trouble to make himfelf mafter of the 
Theory of Kant refpe&ing Time and Space, that this 
latter difeovery far exceeds it both in fubliinhy and im¬ 
portance. 
This curious feftion alfo contains fome extracts from 
that celebrated work of Madame de Stael, entitled “ Ger¬ 
many,” accompanied by the following obfervation. “ Of 
fome of the mod important miJlakes into which (lie was 
betrayed by her admiration of the German fchooi, I (hall 
take notice as I proceed, a talk which I feel incumbent 
on me, as it is through the medium of her book that the 
great majority of Englilh readers have acquired all their 
knowledge of the new German philofophy, and as her 
name and talents have given it .t temporary coufequence 
in this country which it could not otherwife have ac¬ 
quired.” (Dilfert. Part II. page 14s-) How Mr. Stew¬ 
art can feel himfelf qualified to correct the miftakes made 
by this captivating authorefs, who collefted her materials 
on the fpot that gave birth to this celebrated lyftem, I 
am at a lofs to underftand, particularly as he fo frequently 
feels it neceflary to apologize for his own want of infor¬ 
mation on the fubjeft. It would have appeared more 
philofophical to have applied himfelf to the ftudy of this 
newfyflem, and endeavoured to underftand it, inftead of 
vainly labouring to prevent others from making the at¬ 
tempt. The extraordinary powers of this fafeinating 
writer, though they have failed cf foftening Mr. Stewart’s 
prejudice, have no-where difplayed themfelves to greater 
advantage than in thofe chapters of her inimitable work, 
“Germany,” entitled “ Influence of the new German Phi¬ 
lofophy on the development of Mind, on Literature and 
the Arts, on the Sciences, on the Charafter of the Ger¬ 
mans, and laftly in that On the Principle of Morals in the 
new German Philofophy," where, with her ufual fublimity 
flie fays: “We cannot grow weary of admiring thofe 
writings of Kant in which the J'upreme law of duty is held 
up asJacred: what genuine warmth, what animated elo¬ 
quence, upon a fubjeft where the only ordinary endeavour 
is reftraint! We feel penetrated with profound refpeft 
for the aufterity of an aged philofopher, conftantly de¬ 
voted to the invifible power of virtue, which has no em¬ 
pire but that of confcience, no arms but thofe of remorfe; 
no treafures to diftribute but the inward enjoyments of 
the foul ; the hope of which cannot he offered as a motive 
for their attainment, becaufe they are incomprehenfible 
until they are experienced. The general direction of 
Kant’s principles is: to free the Joulfrom the influence of 
external objeds; to place the empire of ourfelves within us \ 
and to make duty the law of this empire , and its hope another 
life." 
In the chapter Madame de Stael has devoted exclufively 
to Kant, it was by no means her intention to teach the 
newSyflem methodically, but only to give a general view 
of it as a whole, for which her talents were admirably 
adapted. In the third vol. of “Germany,” page 93, (he 
fays: “Ido not certainly flatter myfelf that I have been 
able in a few pages to give an account of a fyftem which 
for twenty years has occupied all thinking heads in Ger¬ 
many 5 but I hope to have faid enough tojhow the general 
fpirit of the philofophy of Kant, and to enable me to ex¬ 
plain, in the following chapters, the influence which it has 
had upon literature, fcience, and morality.” This chap¬ 
ter begins with a picture of our philofopher fo pleafmgly 
delineated as to make us long to be more intimately ac¬ 
quainted with the original. “Kant lived,” the tells us, 
“ to a very advanced age, and never quitted Kbnigfberg. 
There, in the mid ft of northern ice, he pafled his whole 
life in meditation upon the laws of human intelligence. 
An indefatigable ardour for ftudy enabled him to acquire 
ftores of knowledge without number. Sciences, langua¬ 
ges, literature, all were familiar to him 5 and, without 
leaking for glory, which he did not enjoy till a very late 
period (not having heard the noife of his renown before 
his old age), he contented himfelf with the filent pleafure 
of reflection. In folitude he contemplated his mind 
with clofe attention ; the examination of his thoughts 
lent him new ftrength to fupport his virtue ; and, although 
he never intermeddled with the ardent paflions of men, 
he knew how to forge arms for thofe who ftiould be fum- 
moned to combat thofe paflions. Except among the 
Greeks, we have hardly any example of a life fo ftridily 
philofophical ; and that life itfelf anfwers for the fincerity 
of the writer. To fuch an unftained fincerity, we mult 
further add an acute and exafl underftanding, which 
ferved for a correftor to his genius, when he fuftered it 
to carry him too far. This is enough, itfeerns to me, to make 
vs judge at leaf impartially of the perfevering labours of fuch 
a man." 
Were it requifire to prove that it was not her intention 
in that work to teach the rudiments of the new' fyftem, I 
might refer to feveral perfonal converfations with this 
highly-gifted lady during her (hort refidence in London. 
In jullice to her ardent zeal for the advancement of know¬ 
ledge and the intereft (lie took in its promulgation, I may 
be permitted to record the faCt of her having traced me 
out with a view of afeertaining what progrefs the Philo-, 
fophy of Kant was making in this commercial country. 
At a period when I had only laid before the public the 
articles Kant and Logic in this Encyclopaedia, as the 
refult of many years reflection, I was favoured with the 
following note. 
“ 2 Janvier , 1814. 
“ Je difire de vovs connaitre, Monfieur, puifljue vous vans 
occnpez de Kant, et que vous cherchez A lefare admirer. 
Voulez-vous puffer chez moi, jeudi matin, entre deux et trois 
heitres? nous cauferons quelques infants. 
Jai Vhonneur d'etre, Monfieur, 
Votrc tres humble et ti es obeiffunte Scrvantc, 
Necker. de Stael Holstein.” 
To Thomas Wirgman, Efq. | 
68, St. James’s Sr. S 
In thefe interviews, this interefting writer'freely ac¬ 
knowledged, that her aim had been to develop the great 
refults of the new fyftem, without minutely inveftigating 
its particular component parts; a tafk that might be per¬ 
formed by a hoft of plodding reafoners, while that of 
giving a comprehenfive view of the refults of a totally-new 
fyftem could only be effected by extraordinary genius 
and talents. This lady, in the midft of the literati of the 
mod enlightened part of Europe, witnefled the happy 
eftefts of Kant’s difeoveries ; and in her ufual admirable 
manner (he fays: “ The new German philofophy is necef- 
farily more favourable than any other to the extenfion of 
mind; for, referring every thing to the focus of the 
foul, and confidering the world itfelf as governed by 
laws rhe type of which is in ourfelves it does not admit 
