tion in the indictment and a change of venue is the signal for more volleys of the same blank logic.
We wonder how people can take themselves seriously, who think they are prepared for social science, while they prefer to evolve their knowledge from prejudice and hearsay, rather than to await the demonstration of fact. This Journal asks no favor, and it expects no mercy. It proposes, however, to deserve respect. We believe that it will commend itself to the large number of Americans who wish to study society candidly and are capable of judging scientific work upon its merits.
SOCIAL VS. SOCIOLOGICAL.
In an article entitled What is Sociology? Dr. Samuel W. Dike speaks with his usual wisdom upon two topics of interest to our readers. We quote his words upon the first subject the more readily because we appropriated, without criticism, in our first issue, a part of the symposium to which Dr. Dike quite justly refers. He says:[1]
"Another point is the service which popular writers and speakers may render by a careful use of the words sociological and social, as well as of the word sociology itself. Suppose we all follow the lead of the scientific men and of the best writers, and make the proper distinction between the words social and sociological that we are all accustomed to make between the terms religious and theological. No intelligent clergyman would think of speaking of a religious problem as a theological problem, unless he wished to call attention directly to its theological, in the sense of scientific aspects rather than to its practical character. A mistake of this sort would betray ignorance or gross heedlessness in writing and speaking. Now, if writers, and especially editors, professors of social ethics in our theological seminaries, and preachers, will say simply 'social' when that is all they mean, and talk of social rather than of sociological problems when all they have in mind is the practical or generally intelligent treatment of social topics, and not be constantly confusing their readers and themselves by an indiscriminate use of the word 'sociological' in both senses, they will do the science and the people a great service. The practice would clear up a good deal of fog.
"An aggravating case of the need of this discrimination is now
- ↑ The Homiletic Review, August, 1895, p. 175.
