working on the same principle of combination for mutual advantage, take their origin in the same fact-the natural desire of the human mind for information. Not only does man possess intellectual powers, distinguishing him from the rest of the animal world; but, with the power, it is evident that he has a natural desire to understand the things that present themselves to his mind through the senses or otherwise. For, although he is born not only the most helpless object in the world physically, but mentally without pre-eminence, the de-, scription of Zophar, the Naamathite, 'born like a wild ass's colt' (Job xi. 12), being more true than flattering; and while there are a few unfortunate creatures who remain in the same condition, without the power of thought, going through a mere animal existence, mindless objects of disgust and pity, till death removes them from our sight, these are rare exceptions; young humanity seldom fails very soon to give evidence of mental capabilities, and of a desire to get an understanding of objects that attract the attention-a desire which, if encouraged, enlarges and expands, and which perhaps it is impossible to destroy. The eye of an infant soon becomes a note of interrogation, telling us that it longs to be wise,' and before long the questions of the little one are more easily asked than answered. One evening last summer in Leith a child walking near the sea just before sunset enquired of her father, 'What made the sun red?' The reply, given with admirable sharpness, was that the man in the moon painted it ;' and, no doubt, further enquiries would follow respecting the painter and his picture. The spirit of inquisitiveness, which thus early manifests itself as a part of human nature, is the source of all science. It is the same desire for knowledge that animates the philosopher, who, devoting his life to the study of nature, wearies himself with prolonged and laborious investigations. And the same desire appears on the face of the savage, to whom is presented, for the first time, some pleasing wonder of civilisation. He is anxious to know the cause or

6

meaning of what he sees or hears. But, although the savage possesses the desire for knowledge in much the same sense as every child possesses it, he generally acquires but very little, contenting himself with superstitious guesses, and most of our children grow up and go through life with very limited information. The reason of this is evident. Knowledge, except of a very imperfect character, is not easily acquired; and so, although man has some natural desire for information along with a capacity to receive it, this is not usually strong enough to induce him to take much trouble to gratify it, and not being encouraged, the desire becomes more and more narrowed in its range.,

On the other hand, there are those, and their number is now happily increasing, who cultivate a taste for knowledge, and are willing to take the trouble necessary to inform their minds to a greater or less extent; and the more they learn, the more do they desire to learn, and the more cordially do they agree with Cicero when he asks, 'Quid est enim (per deos!) optabilius sapientia? Quid præstantius? Quid homini melius? Quid homine dignius?' (Cic. de Offic., lib. ii. 5.) 'What is more to be desired than knowledge?' 'What more excellent? What can be better for man? Or, what more worthy of him?'

Let us consider some of the advantages resulting from the possession of knowledge of various kinds—its practical importance and value.

A glance at our own condition as compared with the state of the untutored savage is sufficient to prove to us how greatly knowledge is conducive to physical well-being. Naturally and essentially, he is the same as we. There are about him and in him the same physics and metaphysics, and his wants are mostly the same as ours. The botany of his country is, perhaps, more inviting than ours, his mines are richer, his skies more clear and sublime, while his mind has the same natural powers and susceptibilities. But he has never cultivated his understanding; his knowledge is only such as has come to him almost as instinct or by chance. And thus, allowing his mind to lie dormant, he lives almost without a comfort.' And so should we be living today had not science ministered to our wants. But we have not been content with such knowledge as happened to come in our way. Some of our predecessors have set themselves to gain knowledge, and by reasoning from what was already known, by observation and experiment carried on with skill and perseverance by one person after another down to our own times, and by more persons now than ever before, has the sum of our present knowledge of nature been reached, from which every one of us derives incalculable benefit. • What our empire owes, for example, to mathematics, and is destined yet to owe, no human mind can conceive.' Employed in navigation, in ship-building, every kind of architecture, in the construction of bridges, of railways, of machinery in its endless varieties, what would England have been without mathematics?' To physics our obligations are still greater. This branch of science investigates the nature and laws of the material world, and when these are known to us we can make them subservient to our wants to an ever-increasing extent. The benefits we have derived, for example, from the study and application of the

in

properties of steam and of electricity are too well known to need mentioning, and are increasing every day. The blessings that chemistry has conferred on our country and on the world are also without number. "It has chased midnight from our streets, and houses, and shops, giving us almost the light of day; it has descended our mines and given the labourers there a shield from the deadly fire-damp. In the shape of sanitary science it has done much to check the progress of disease amongst us.' We may mention, too, among its uses, less important but striking, its value in the detection of crime, 'entering even the grave and the coffin, and compelling the dead body to confess whether or not poison occasioned its death. The ancient soothsayers professed to divine from the entrails of animals, but they had no certain data on which to proceed. The modern chemist consults the stomach of the murdered corpse perhaps weeks after it has been buried, and brings forth ocular evidence of the fact which none can gainsay or resist.' The arts and manufactures depending on chemistry are too numerous to mention, and the wealth they bring to this country especially is incalculable. So much, in fact, of the trade and manufacture of the country depends on chemical processes, that it has been truly said that its state of commercial prosperity may be judged of with great accuracy by the amount of sulphuric acid which it consumes, of which there is now made in the South Lancashire district alone more than 3,000 tons per week. It is evident, then, that physical science is the chief source not only of almost all our comforts, but also of our national wealth and greatness; so that to our original proposition-that knowledge is conducive to physical well-being, we may now add the further statement that knowledge is productive of riches and greatness, or, as Solomon puts it,' Length of days is in her right hand, and in her left hand riches and honour,' (Prov. iii. 16); and in another place, 'Through wisdom is a house builded, and by understanding it is established, and by knowledge shall the chambers be filled with all precious and pleasant riches.' (Prov. xxiv. 3, 4.)

In the next verse Solomon mentions another advantage of knowledge-A wise man is strong; yea, a man of knowledge increaseth strength' (Prov. xxiv. 5), with which agrees the aphorism of our own philosopher, Bacon, Knowledge is power.' Wisdom strengtheneth the wise more than ten mighty men which are in the city' (Eccl. vii. 19). A wise man scaleth the city of the mighty and casteth down the strength of the confidence thereof' (Prov. xxi. 22). There was a little city, and few men within it; and there came a great king against it, and besieged it, and built great bulwarks against it. Now,

there was found in it a poor wise man, and he, by his wisdom, delivered the city. Then said I, Wisdom is better than strength. Wisdom is better than weapons of war' (Eccl. ix. 14-18). In illustration of these passages, Dr. A. Clarke quotes a well-known case from ancient history.

Syracuse, the capital of ancient Sicily, having fallen under the dominion of the Carthaginians, who were then at war with Rome, was invested both by sea and land by two great Roman armies. Upwards of a hundred sail of ships were brought by the Consul, Marcellus, under its walls, while Appius Claudius, with an immense force, attacked it everywhere by land. At this time that prodigy of mathematical skill, Archimedes, the favourite and friend of its late King, Hiero, was the bulwark of the city. Though. its walls were said to be twenty-two miles in circumference, he contrived machines in every part which galled the Roman armies; and by projecting great beams, pointed with iron, clouds of darts and vast stones, some of which, according to Plutarch, were 1,200lbs. in weight, he disconcerted and baffled every attempt of these two powerful armies for the space of three whole years. By the skilful use of levers with chains and grappling-hooks, he lifted the galleys out of the water, and, whirling them about, dashed them to pieces against the rocks; others he destroyed and sunk with such missiles as have been mentioned, and some he set on fire by concentrating upon them the sun's rays transmitted through glasses constructed for the purpose, until he had burnt, sunk, and destroyed a great part of the Roman fleet, and obliged the Generals to retire from the walls. Here the wisdom of a single man long prevailed against the most powerful exertions of a mighty nation. Archimedes commanded no company of men, made no sorties, but, by his machines, confounded every attempt made by the Romans both by sea and land. The city was finally betrayed by one of its own governors, who admitted the hostile army; the place was given up to pillage, and Archimedes himself was stabbed by a Roman soldier while sitting in his room deeply engaged in demonstrating a new problem in order to his further operations against his country's enemies.

Here, indeed, wisdom was better than strength; and modern civilised warfare abounds in illustrations of the same principle. Scientific knowledge and skill have given us weapons of such power as in a few months to bring to a close contests which would formerly have occupied many years. But in peace, as well as in war, knowledge is the source of power. Which are the most powerful parts of our country? Not the agricultural districts, where the people are still in ignorance and the dupes and slaves of those above them, but the manufacturing districts and large towns, where the people are more enlightened, and think and act for themselves. Between these two populations there is in some places the distance of a century in education and intelligence, and corresponding is the difference in their power. The agricultural classes exert almost no in

fluence in the country, while the sceptre of the nation is to a great extent in the hands of the manufacturing population. The chief. manufacturing towns have always been the terror of tyrants, and have originated and carried out many a great reform. When these clothe themselves in their power, premiers of every political creed succumb and yield to their wishes.' So says a writer whose work on the sources of our national greatness has been previously quoted. What Lancashire thinks to-day, England will think to-morrow is the boast of the inhabitants of that great manufacturing county. And in a country like ours, where the people rule in a constitutional manner, the power is sure to reside with the intelligent populations.

Let us note, lastly in this connection, the power that one particular kind of knowledge-a knowledge of human nature-gives to an individual when skilfully applied. It is a difficult and dangerous thing to rule men by force-an impossible thing to rule their minds by force.. But let a man study men, either individuals or a nation, and get to know their susceptibilities and their weaknesses, and artfully act on these by such means, apart from merit, have many attained to influence and power. The foundation of their success was knowledge of character, obtained by the usual method of observation. These instances will suffice to illustrate and prove the statement that knowledge is power.

And while knowledge is the source of riches, and honour, and power to individuals and nations, its acquisition tends also to give us wisdom to employ them rightly. It is evident that wealth and power may be unwisely employed, and so prove useless, or worse. But knowledge tends to improve the judgment, and so leads a man wisely to use the advantages he enjoys. Cases sometimes occur when wealth and power come into the hands of the ignorant and uncultured, and generally, perhaps, to such they prove most hurtful, and by such are most abused. History shows that the greatest tyrants have frequently been those who have risen from obscurity, without culture, into power, and not those born to power; while, in modern society, it is not the cultured aristocracy, but those who, without education, have become possessed of money, who are frequently the most haughty and imperious, and the least benevolent. The disposal of money and the exercise of power are generally safest in the hands of those whose education has suited them to fill a high position. And generally the carrying out of important objects should not be entrusted to the ignorant; rarely, if ever, has anything great been conducted by an uncultured person; for although knowledge does not necessarily or always give judgment