somewhat to a too materialistic nature in certain of its articles." The Advertiser is not alone in its objection; other newspapers, both religious and secular, frequently remind us that our pages are "too materialistic." As there seems to be so general an agreement upon this point, it is to be presumed that the subject is perfectly understood, and we have only to regret that our critics are not more explicit, and do not tell us exactly what they mean by materialism, and point out just how far we should go in that direction. If we are "too materialistic," how materialistic is it proper we should be?
By materialism can hardly be meant in this case that speculative doctrine which denies spirit, and affirms that every thing is matter, because we have not gone into that question at all, and it is hardly to be expected that our monitors would tolerate that in any degree. It must, therefore, be meant that we give undue prominence to material subjects and material explanations of things; but the importance they assume is certainly not our fault, for we are responsible neither for the existence of matter nor for the part it plays in the economy of the universe. Matter—"mere gross, brute matter"—may be very undignified and objectionable stuff, and, if some people had been consulted at the creation, perhaps it would have been left out altogether. But it certainly was not left out; it is here, whatever it may be, the foundation of existence, and not to be got rid of. We are all made of it; and each of us has to add several pounds daily to his personal stock, upon penalty of death for non-compliance. The mass of mankind, moreover, are doomed to work in it, shaping and transforming it in a thousand ways all their lives long. The very instruments and conditions of all our feelings, enjoyments, and thoughts, are material, while the Divine Power employs matter as the great medium of working out the laws of being and the harmonies of existence. It was said by Plato that God ever geometrizes; but it is still a profounder truth that God ever materializes. We, therefore, dodge the criticism about being "too materialistic," and leave our newspaper friends to settle their differences with the higher powers. Science is a knowledge of the laws of Nature, and nothing remains for us but to take Nature as we find it; and, as matter is mixed up with every thing, we cannot ignore it. There have been systems of thought in which the consideration of matter was allowed no place, but they have been futile and fruitless; science, on the other hand, is a system of thought which respects the order of things, and includes matter as the first and constant object of inquiry; and it has opened a new realm of truth, and changed the course of human affairs. After the world had been long dominated by philosophies that were full of contempt for matter—philosophies that were espoused by theology and accredited in the great seats of learning—it was not surprising that science, which declared matter to be an excellent thing, and quite fit to be studied, should have been denounced and resisted; but it is surprising that after science has made an intellectual epoch, and created a new and nobler future for humanity by the study of the divine laws as embodied in matter, there should still be those who mumble the exploded prejudices of the past, and make themselves miserable about the "too materialistic" tendencies of modern thought. Read Papillon's article in the present number of the Monthly, and see what "matter" means in the light of recent science.
And, speaking of materialism, here comes the London Spectator, with more talk upon the subject. This journal affects philosophy, and, for years, has been in the habit of branding with opprobrious epithets doctrines it did not
