I 
162 
PHILOSOPHY. 
fet fuch bounds to his fpeculations as accord with the ex- 
tent and nature of his faculties, is moil excellent advice ; 
it is extremely common too. But will any lady or gentle¬ 
man have the goodnefs to mark out diftinCtly what thefe 
boundaries are ? Shall we enquire of the untutored and il¬ 
literate ? or will Plato or Ariftotle, or Locke, or Newton, 
or Hume, undertake to teach us thefe limits of Human 
Underftanding, which it is fo very defirable that we fliould 
know ? On this fubjeCl I would recommend the perufal of 
the eloquent and perfpicuous w-ork of Mr. C. Villers, 
which will, I have no doubt, at fotne future period, un¬ 
dergo a more rational fpecies of criticifm than it has hi¬ 
therto been favoured with. The curious reader may alfo 
refer to the article £ Metaphysics reduced to a complete 
and permanent Science,’ in the Encyclopedia Londinenfis 
The preceding extracts muft fatisfaCtorily allure the 
reader that their author has fully folved Mr. Dugald Ste¬ 
warts infurmountable difficulty,and completely unravelled 
the meaning of the “Critic of Pure Reason.” 
For my own part, the momentous revolution effected 
by the incomparable labours of Immanuel Kant has occu¬ 
pied my whole foul for a period of near thirty years, du¬ 
ring which time I have invariably endeavoured to allure 
mylelf of their genuine worth, by trying the principles 
of the Critic upon every mind that was acceflible to me, 
left I fliould adopt fophiftry for truth. The refult of thefe 
efforts has uniformly increafed my admiration, and con¬ 
viction of the truth of that allonilhing mafter-piece of hu¬ 
man reafon. Feeling the importance of this happy revo¬ 
lution, I could not reprefs the defire to impart its bene¬ 
fits to others, and thus endeavour ultimately toeftablilh a 
Monument of Truth in the Britifli dominions. For 
this purpofe I have occafionally communicated my 
thoughts to the world, through the medium of this ex- 
tenfive Work ; and I now prefent to the philofophic pub¬ 
lic my concentrated and matured reflections on this 
weighty matter, that they may either be finally adopted 
or abfolutely refuted. I have endeavoured to comprefs 
in forty-three confecutive Principles the entire efience of 
this falutary Philofopliy. Thefe Principles appear to me 
to carry their own conviction with them, and to defy re¬ 
futation. On this, however, the world muft decide. 
They are as follow. 
Principles of TRANSCENDENTAL PHILOSOPHY. 
THE MIND. 
SENSE. 
1. Every thing in Nature has matter and form: 
2. The matter of the thing is the parts of which it is 
eompofed; 
3. The form of the thing is the arrangement of the parts. 
4. As we do not create the matter, it muft be given. 
5. As the matter is given, we muft have a faculty to re¬ 
ceive it-, a Receptivity. 
6. The given matter is of two hinds: 
7. Parts in Extension. 
8. Parts in Succession. 
9. Parts in Extenfwn are the exaft reprefentation of 
Space. 
10. Parts in Succeffion are the exaCt reprefentation of 
Time. 
11. As the given matter is of two kinds, fo we have 
TWO KINDS OF RECEPTIVITY: 
12. A Receptivity for parts in Extenfion; 
13. A Receptivity for parts in Succeffion. 
14. But Space is a Receptivity for matter in Extenfion, 
15. And Time is a Receptivity for matter in Succeffion: 
16. Therefore, Time and Space are Mental Receptivi¬ 
ties, and conftitute the Sensitive Faculty. 
17. Hence all matter in Time and Space can be no¬ 
thing but Sensation. 
18. Sense, therefore, is a Paffve Faculty, which has 
Two Receptivities, Time and Space. 
UNDERSTANDING. 
19. Though we are paffve in receiving matter, we ftill 
evince an adivity; 
20. But, as this adivity does not create matter, it can 
only unite its parts ; that is, give it a form: 
21. The form of the given matter, therefore, is pro¬ 
duced by the Mind. 
22. But the form of every thing in Nature has the pro¬ 
perties of Quantity, Quality, Relation, and Mo¬ 
dality. 
23. With refpeCt to Quantity, the thing muft be ei¬ 
ther one, many, or all: that is, it muft be determinable 
by Number. 
24. With refpeCt to Quality, the thing muft be a 
Reality furrounded by Negations; which produce Limita¬ 
tion : that is, it muft be determinable by Degree. 
25. With refpeCt to Relation, the thing muft be a 
Subf ance, the Effed of a Subftance, and Part of a Whole: 
thus, it muft be permanent in Space, successive in 
Time, and have its place in Space determined by 
other Substances. 
26. With refpeCt to Modality, the thing may exift in 
any time, in a certain time, or in all time: that is, it is ei¬ 
ther possible, actual, or necessary. 
27. Thus, the given matter is formed into a whole by 
the Understanding, and becomes an intelligible objeCf. 
28. Understanding is therefore an Adive Faculty, or 
Spontaneity, ftriCtly limited to Time and Space; it 
confifts of twelve fpecies of activity: the twelve Cate¬ 
gories. 
Quantity. 
j 
Quality. 
Relation. 
Modality. 
Unity, 
I 
Reality, 
Subftance and Accident 
I 
, Poffibility, 
2 
2 
2 
2 
Multitude, 
Negation, 
Caufe and Effect, 
Exiftence, 
3 
. 3 
3 
3 
Totality. 
Limitation. 
ACtion and Re-Adtion. 
Neceflity. 
29. The form of every objeCt in Nature, 
produced by the Understanding; 
therefore is 
30. And Experience i 
is a collection of Phenomena in 
Time and Space, to which the Understanding has 
given determinate forms: 
31. Hence the Laws of Nature originate in the Mind 
alone. 
REASON. 
32. But, befides our Knowledge of objeCts in Nature, 
we have alfo Ideas of objeCts out of Nature: for inftance, 
of the Soul, of a Firft Caufe, of God, of Moral Laws, &c. 
The faculty which forms Ideas is Reason. 
33. The Ideas formed by Reafon, fuch as the Soul, a 
Firft Caufe, God, Moral Laws, &c. neither occupy any 
part of Space, nor fill up any portion of Time; neither 
can they be ranked under the Categories : for it would 
be abfurd to fay that God, or that the Soul, is either an 
extended Subftance, the Effed of fuch a Subftance, or a 
Part of Nature. 
We can no more diveft ourfelves of the Ideas of Rea¬ 
fon than of the confcioufnefs of our own exiftence ; and 
it is as impoflible to prevent Reafon from forming Ideas 
as to prevent the Sensitive Faculty from receiving 
Impreflions. 
35. Reason forms the Idea of the Soul, or of a Sub¬ 
ftance out of Nature, by connecting Substance and Ac¬ 
cident into infinite or absolute Substance. 
36. Reason forms the Idea of a Firfi Caufe, or of a 
Caufe out of Nature, by connecting Cause and Effect 
into infinite or absolute Cause. 
37. Reason forms the Idea of God, or of a Supreme 
Intelligence out of Nature, by connecting Action and 
Re-action into Infinite or Absolute Concurrence. 
38. The Ideas of the Soul, of a Firft Caufe, and of 
God, muft alfo be ranked under thofe of Absolute To¬ 
tality, 
