PREFACE. THIS Work would not have been presented to the public, had I not believed that it contains views of the constitution, condition, and prospects of Man, which deserve attention. But these, I trust, are not ushered forth with anything approaching to a presumptuous spirit. I lay no claim to originality of conception. My first notions of the natural laws were derived from a manuscript work of Dr Spurzheim, with the perusal of which I was honoured in 1824, and which was afterwards published under the title of "A Sketch of the Natural Laws of Man, by G. Spurzheim, M.D." A comparison of the text of it with that of the following pages, will show to what extent I am indebted to my late excellent and lamented master and friend for my ideas on the subject. All my inquiries and meditations. since have impressed me more and more with a conviction of their importance. The materials employed lie open to all. Taken separately, I would hardly say that a new truth has been presented in the following work. The parts have nearly all been admitted and employed again and again, by writers on morals, from the time of Socrates down to the present day. In this respect, there is nothing new under the sun. The only novelty in this work respects the relations which acknowledged truths hold to each other. Physical laws of nature, affecting our physical condition, as well as regulating the whole material system of the universe, are universally acknowledged to exist, and constitute the elements of natural philosophy and chemical science: Physiologists, medical practitioners, and all who take medical aid, admit the existence of organic laws: And the sciences of government, legislation, and education, indeed our whole train of conduct through life, proceed upon the admission of laws in morals. Accordingly, the laws of nature have formed an interesting subject of inquiry to philosophers of all ages; but, so far as I am aware, no author has hitherto attempted to point out, in a systematic way, the relations between those laws and the constitution of Man; which must, nevertheless, be done, before our knowledge of them can be beneficially applied. Dr Spurzheim, in his "Philosophical Principles of Phrenology," adverted to the independent operation of the several classes of natural laws, and pointed out some of the consequences of this doctrine, but without entering into detailed elucidations. The great object of the following treatise is to exhibit the constitution and modes of action of objects and beings external to Man, the laws which they obey in their action, their relations to the human constitution, and the rules of practical conduct which may be deduced from them; also the constitution of Man himself, its modes of action, the laws which have been imposed on it, and the rules of practical conduct deducible from them. But although my object is practical, a scientific view of the human Mind forms an essential element in the execution of the plan. Without it, no comparison can be instituted between the natural constitution of Man and external objects. Phrenology is simply the physiology of the brain; and as the brain is the organ of the mental faculties, a correct exposition of the uses of its different parts appears to me to lead necessarily to a system of mental philosophy; and as I feel certain that Phrenology is true, I have assumed it as the basis of this work. But the practical value of the views here propounded does not depend entirely on Phrenology. The latter, as the science of Mind, is itself valuable only in so far as it is a just exposition of what exists in human nature. We are physical, organic, and moral beings, subjected to natural laws, whether the connection of different mental qualities with particular portions of the brain, as taught by Phrenology, be admitted or denied. Under the impulse of passion, or by the direction of intellect, men will hope, fear, wonder, perceive, and act, whether the degree in which they habitually do so be ascertainable by the means which it points out or not. In so far, therefore, as this work treats of the known qualities of Man, it may be instructive even to those who reject Phrenology as unfounded; while it can prove useful to none, if the doctrines which it unfolds shall be found not to be in accordance with the principles of human nature, by whatever system these may be expounded. The importance of Phrenology in our present inquiry, however, must not be overlooked. If the brain is the organ of the mind, and if the vigour of its different faculties depends on the size and condition of special cerebral parts, then those who ignore these facts close their understandings against knowledge of the organic conditions which determine the varieties of natural dispositions and talents, and also the means by which God conducts the moral government of the world. This subject is expounded more fully in my work on "The Relation between Science and Religion," to which I beg leave to refer. Some persons object to all Mental Philosophy as useless, and argue, that, as Mathematics, Chemistry, and Botany, have become great sciences without the least reference to the faculties by means of which they are cultivated,-so Morals, Religion, Legislation, and Political Economy, have existed, have been improved, and may continue to advance, with equal success, with out any help from the philosophy of the mind. Such objectors, however, should consider that lines, circles, and triangles,—earths, alkalies, and acids,-corollas, stamens, pistils, and stigmas,-exist independently of the mind, and may be investigated by the application of the mental powers, in ignorance of the constitution of the faculties themselves-just as we may practise archery without studying the anatomy of the hand; whereas the objects of Moral and Political Philosophy are the qualities and actions of the mind itself:-These objects have no existence independently of mind; and they can no more be systematically or scientifically understood without the knowledge of mental philosophy, than Optics can be cultivated as a science in ignorance of the structure and modes of action of the eye. Since the first edition of this work appeared in the year 1828, additional attention has been paid to the study of the laws of nature, and their importance has been more generally recognised. EDINBURGH, April 1858. CONTENTS. Relation of Man to physical nature, Man, uncivilised and civilised, Progress of Man towards happiness, Expected increase of human happiness, Past ignorance of human nature, Relation between Science and Religion, Misery from lack of knowledge, Divine government by Natural Laws, Can it ever be a duty to disregard any Natural Law? |