Matter and spirit / read by Mr. Serjeant Cox.

  • Edward William Cox
Date:
1876
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Matter and spirit / read by Mr. Serjeant Cox. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.

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    MATTER AND SPIRIT. {Bead by Mr. Serjeant Cox, the President, January 20th, 1876.) The very interesting discussion on Materialism, and some incidental remarks of tke speakers who have taken part in other debates, have conspicuously shown that the terms “ matter ” and “ spirit ” do not carry with them to most minds definite and distinct conceptions of the things intended to be thereby expressed. It is apparent also that there prevails a very wide divergence of view even upon so much as is conceived of them. The very word “Materialism,” as used in the debated paper by its dis- tinguished author, had been manifestly read in almost as many senses as there were speakers, insomuch that some saw in it a recognition by Professor Tyndall of the existence of Soul, while others could see a recognition of nothing but matter. Hence the assertion that in matter he finds “ the promise and the potency of every form of being” has been construed as merely an assertion that everything that is is matter, therefore that “spirit” is only a form of matter, and therefore that the Professor is no more a Materialist than are we who claim for man a Soul as well as a body. If the terms had been first defined and that definition observed by the speakers, one half at least of the present discussion would have been avoided. [123]