OF
E E A S O N .
“ TRUTH BEARS THE TORCH IN THE SEARCH FOR TRUTH.” - Z M C r c t t u « .
VOL. 4.
SILVERTON. OREGON, THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, JL MJMO (1800.)
T ransm utations.
speaker, em phatically, “ I aim >st
know there is a God and a future
existence.” Thus Prof. Swing, while
declaim ing ag ain st Agnosticism ,
v irtu ally adm itted th a t he was one.
f o r to “ alm ost know ” is not to
know. The tru th is, as Frederick
A. H inckey says in a late address
of his: “ W hat we want at this
hour, and we w ant it not less in the
p u lp it th an in th e counting room,
the office and the hall of legislation,
is a square, u p rig h t and dow nright
m anhood and w om anhood, which
will say precisely what it thinks,
regardless of consequences, in la n
guage which will convey one and
the sam e m eaning to all m en.”
NO. 36.
of m utual attractio n and repulsion
which holds them together and
IM E flies and brings its tr a n s m u ta
gives form and shape to the body;
tio n s. We
A dvance from age to age, an d cen
The Im portant M atter.
im agine the m olecular forces of co
tu ries
hesion and affinity removed, w hat,
R ecurring bring us face to face w ith
BY TH. RIBOT, REV. HENRY FRANK,
hopes,
*
then,
would
be
th
e
consequence?
W ith d u tie s, an d w ith rig h ts unknow n
T. B. WAKEMAN.
The m atter m ust in stan tly break
to m en
W ho lived th e ir day before us, an d who
up into a shapeless nothing. We
fought
P sychology of A ttention.
know in the physical world of no
T h eir tig h t of faith . It is for us to tread
T he p a th th a t they have opened, to e m
instance of any p article of m atter
brace
BY TH. RIBOT.
which is not endowed with forces,
T h eir goal, becom e im pressed w ith all
th e sp irit
by m eans of which it plays it a p
T h at urged th em on to h ate the bad and
H E R E are two well-defined
pointed p art in some form or a n
cleave
U n to th e good. As m odern circ u m sta n ce
forms of a tten tio n : The
other, sometimes in connection with
Im pels, let L iberals walk w orthy, too,
one spontaneous, n a tu ra l;
sim ilar or with dissim ilar particles.
Of th e ir g ran d cause, th e cause of all
m a n k in d .
Nor are we in im agination capable the o th er v o lu n tary , artificial.
—[C ourtland P alm er.
of forming a conception of m atter 1 he form er— neglected by m ost
w ithout force. In w hatever way we psychologists—is the true, p rim
H onesty.
And we w ant people so honest m ay think of an original substance, itive and fundam ental form of
th a t when they d o n ’t know a thing there m ust alw ays exist in it a sy s attention. 1 he second— the only
FREETHOUGHT MAGAZINE OF ’83.
they will bravely say, “ I d o n ’t tem of m utual repulsion and at investigated by most psychologists
traction between its m in u test p arts, — is but an im itatio n , a result of
H A T the world needs just know ;” and th a t is Agnosticism .
w ithout which they would dissolve education, of tra in in g an d of im
now more than a n y th in g
pulsion. P recarious and v a c illa t
and
tracelessly
disappear
in
uni
else is a revival of hon
No Creation.
versai space. “ A thiug w ithout ing in n atu re, it derives its whole
esty, or more properly speaking, an
properties is a non-entity, neither being from spontaneous atten tio n ,
advancem ent in th a t direction, es
BY PROF. LUDWIG BUCHNER, M. D.
ratio n ally cogitable nor em p iri and finds only in the latter a point
pecially in the religious world. It
cally existing in n a tu re ” (D ross of support. It is merely an a p p a
is very difficult for the C hristian t “ T he universe, c o n ta in in g all th a t e x
ra tu s formed by cultivation, and a
clergy to be strictly honest in their ists, has been created n e ith e r by a God bach). Force w ithout m atter is product of civilization.
equally au idle notion. I t being a
public utterances. Some tim e since nor by a m an , b u t has alw ays ex iste d
A ttention is a state th a t is fixed.
a.id will ever rem ain a vivifying fire, be law ad m ittin g of no exception th a t
I was riding in the cars in com pany
ing kindled and e x tin g u ish e d acco rd force can only be m anifested in If it is prolouged beyond a reason
with Col. Ingersoll, and I in tro ing to d efinite law s.” —[H e rac litu s of
m atter, it follows th a t force can as able tim e, p articu larly under u n
duced a M ethodist m inister to him E p h esu s.
little possess a sep arate existence favorable conditions, everybody
About the first thing the preacher
knows from individual experience
ORCE is not an im pelling as m atter w ithout torce.
said to the Colonel was, “ Mr. Inger
th a t there results a constan tly in
God, not an essence separ
N othing but the changes w hich
soil, do you believe in a future life?
ate from the m aterial su b we perceive iu m atter by m eans of creasing cloudiness of the m ind,
I'h a v e heard some say you do, and
stratu m of things. A force not our senses could ever give us any finally a kind of intellectual vacu
some say you do not.”
united to m atter, but floating freely notion as to the existence o* power ity, frequently accom panied by ver
Col. Ingersoll replied in his pleas
above it, is an idle conception. which we qualify by the nam e of tigo. T hese light, tra n sie n t p er
a n t style, “ I d o n ’t know w hether
N itrogen, carbon, hydrogen, oxy force. Any knowledge of them by tu rb atio n s denote the radical a n
there is a future life or not. Do
tagonism of atten tio n and the n o r
gen, sulphur and phosphorus pos other means is impossible.
y o u ?” The m in ister hesitated a
mal psychical life. The progress
sess their in h ere n t qualities from
W hat are the philosophical con- tow ard unity of consciousness,
m om ent and then said, “ I think
e te rn ity .”— M oleschott.
sequences of this siaiple aud n atu ra l which is the very basis of a tte n
there is a future life.” Ingersoll
...........................
“
M
atter
is
not tru th ?
then said, “ I do not ask you what
tion, m anifests itself still better in
like a carriage, to which the
you th in k , but w hat you know
T h at those who talk of a creative clearly morbid cases, which we
forces, like horses, can be put
about it.” The clergym an again
power, which is said to have pro shall study later under th eir chronic
or again removed from. A particle
h esitated, and Col. Ingersoll went
duced the world out of itself, or out orrn, nam ely, the “ fixed idea,” an d
of iron is, and rem ains, the same,
on to say: “ I will not em b arrass
of nothing, are ig n o ran t of the first n th eir acute form, which is ec-
whether it crosses the horizon in
you, my friend. I see the differ
and most sim ple principle, founded stacy.
the meteoric stone, rushes along in
ence between you aud me is th is: I
, upon experience and the contem -
The norm al condition is p lu ra l
the wheel of the steam engine,
or
.
e
.
..
,,
platiou of n ature. How could a ity of states of consciousness,
do not know w hether there is a
circulates in the blood through the .
j
.
. r
6
. pewer have existed not m anifested or— according
fu tu re life o r not, and I alw ays say
to
the expres
tem ples of the poet. These quail- •
n . . , , .
,
H
\
H
in m aterial substance, but
govern- sion em ployed by certain au th o rs
so. I see th a t you do not know,
ties are eternal, inalienable and un
ing it a rb itra rily according to in d i — polyideism . A ttention is th e
and you do not ap p ear to be honest
transferable.”— Dubois-Reym ond.
vidual views? N either could sep m om entary inhibition, to the e x
enough to say so. W hen the clergy
‘No
force
can
arise
from
nothing.”
arately existing forces he tra n s clusive benefit of a single state, of
become perfectly houest, they and
— Liebig.
ferred io chaotic m a tte r and pro this perpetual progression ; it is a
I will not differ very m uch.”
“ Nothing — in the world justifies duce the world in this m anner, r for ■ —
W hen I was last in Chicago I
monoideisno.
But » »W
it aw
is M
necessary
— — - —
VWOCMiy
went to hear Rev. Dr. Swing preach. us in assum ing the existence p erse we have seen th a t a separate exist- d e a r l y to determ ine in w hat sense
In referring to Aguosticism he said of forces, independent of the bodies ence of either is an im possibility. we use this term . Is atten tio n a
in substance: “ There is a new p arty from which they proceed, and upon The world could not have origin- red u ctio n to a sole and single state
a ted out of nothing. A nothing is of consciousness? No; for inw ard
or sect, know n as Agnostics— p e o which they act.”—Cotta.
No force w ithout m atter— no not m erely a logical, but also an observation teaches us th a t it is
pie who affirm they do not know
w hether there is a God or a future m atter w ithout force! N either can em pirical, non-entity. T he world, only a relative rnonoideism; th a t
life or not; b ut th a t class of per be thought of per se; separated, or m atter with its properties, which is, it supposes the existence of a
sons will never be very num erous, they become em pty abstractions, we term forces, m ust have existed m aster-idea, draw ing to itself all
for but few people will ever give up Im agine m atter w ithout force, and from etern ity , and m ust last for- th a t relates to it, and nothing else,
the belief in God and a future ex the m inute particles of which a ever— in one word, the world can- allow ing associations to produce
istence. As for m yself,”' said the body consists, w ithout th a t system not have been created.
¡them selves only w ithin very nar-
T
W
F
Attention !
T