BENTHAM.

LETTER II.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE SPECTATOR.

Suit—The next objection brought against BENTHAM in the London arid

Westmin.ster Review, is, that " Ile had a phrase, expressive of the view he took of all moral speculations to which his method had not been applied, or (which he considered as the same thing) not founded on a recognition of utility as the moral standard ; this phrase was 'vague generalities. Whatever presented itself to him in such a shape, he dismissed as unworthy of notice, or dwelt upon only to denounce as absurd. Ile did not heed, or rather the nature of his mind prevented it from occurring to him, that these generalities contained the whole unanalysed experience of the human race."

And if they did, what title to reverence did they thence derive? Hobgoblins and fairies, and Natura abhorret vacuum, all contained the unanalysed experi. core of the human race, till somebody analysed them, and showed them to be abstitd. Why hold out for presenting arms to obsolete absurdities? BENTHAM said, " These phrases, in which, if you like, has been wrapped up the unana- lysed experience of the human race, are nonsense or worse. Some of them lead to no result at all, and others to results that suit the purposes of the enemy of mankind. Have none of them • laugh at them; above all things, do not make mummies of then), and then blaw down before them as your household gods." The writer of the article appears to have some project of the latter kind.

Take an example; for instance, patriotism. Nobody can deny that the " unanalysed experience of the human race" had said or sung a great deal about patriotism. And what was it ? A readiness to run all risks for the prospect of robbing other countries; invariably accompanied with an excessive sacrifice

of private happiness for the advantage of a few knaves at home. BENTHAM squeezed the life out of this peruicions claptrap, at one hug; by showing that nothing can be praiseworthy in one country, which does not add to the general happiness on being applied to all, and pointing to the fact, that no other rule of conduct, taken with all its chances and probabilities before it, is in the long run what wise and prudent mea would desire to adopt for themselves. Take another ; loyalty. All the monarchical world has raved of loyalty, as something that was the basis of man's "portion of the good that Heaven bestows." And what was it after all? An abstract determination, at all hazatils to support the public tyrant; a resolution like that of the Negro, who eliould run after his "adored "driver, and worship, under every varying form of individuality, the "best of all possible" cart- whips. This miserable fallacy then, often in- stilled into men from their birth and carried with them to their grave, Be. TRAM exploded by one touch of his Ithuriel's spear, conveyed in the suggestion that loyalty might possibly be just so much of attachment to a leader as was conduct% e to general happiness, and no more. Tube sure, this was not saying all that could he said ; for then the world should not contain the books that would be written. Something may still be put together upon loyalty and patriotism ; but BENTHANI had said the thing that wanted say ing, lie had con- veyed the hint how to decide the merits of what shall be put forward under these two titles in all tiine, and mankind will not lose the scent under any quantity of matter that may henceforth be piled upon it.

" Unless it can be asserted that mankind did not know anything until logi- cians taught it them; that until the last band has been put to a moral truth by giving it a metaphysically precise expression, all the previous rough-hew- ing which it has undergone by the common intellect at the suggestion of com- mon wants and common experience is to go for nothing ; it must be allowed, that even the originality which can and the courage which dares think for itself, is not a more necessary part of the philosophical character than reverence for previous thinkers, and for the collective mind of the human race."—This is all pleading, not for anything that has been rough.hewn or shaped at all, but for the chips which have been scattered about by artists who made chips and nothing else. No reverence is due to previous thinkers, who thotilht to no purpose. If there is, where is it, and for why ? This is the very hackneyed pace of those whose end in all ages has been to prevent ancient ignorance from falling to the rear and being forgotten.

" The general opinion of mankind is the average of the conclusions of all minds stripped indeed of their choicest and most recondite thoughts, but freed from their twists and partialities; a net result, in which everybody's particular point of view is represented, nobody's predominant. The collective mind does not penetrate below the surface, but it sees all the surface ; which profound thinkers, even by reason of their profundity, seldom do ; their intetiaer view of a thing in some of its aspects diverting their attention from others."—Apply all this to " the average of the conclusions of all minds" on the solar system before COPERNICUS or NEWTON; and light will be cast on all that is here which is wrong, and all that is not here which is right. " BENTIIA3I'S contempt, then, of all other schools of thinkers; his deter- mination to create a philosophy wholly out of the materials furnished by his own mind, and by minds like his own ; was his first disqualification as a phi- losopher. His second, was the incompleteness of his own mind as a repre- sentative of universal human nature."—The charge against the "other schools of thinkers," is that they did not think ; that they put no cogitation into their

diitary, but fed us with the husks and chaff of wotds and resales. But what

is this second disqualification, to which BENTHAM wee given (wet ? 4, With Imagination in the popular sense, command of imaee and meta.

phorical expression, Besartiaat was, to a certain degree, endowed.—Tlic /ma. le vitiation which he had not, was that to which the name is generally appro. priated by the best writers of the present day ; that which enables us, by a it were real, and to clothe it in the feelinge which, if it were indeed real, it would bring along with it."—Alas ! the world has bad only too much of con- ceiving the absent as if it were present. the imaginary as if real ; like the

priest's slave in craft, lay or clerical, will not make t otherwise. HORACE, it was ready to run all risks to get away from this

from the Greek when the Saxon brU w h would have done as well, lie supplied the homely article, free from the lickorish adulteration the gorge revolted at. But imagination is a glotious thing ; small chance for the philosopher who sets This power constitutes the poet, in so far as he d m does anything but elodiously the old pietists feelings in " a Poem on Government ; " nor leave a folio entitled " History of the R P ise and rogtess of the Greatest.11appiness Principle." Nor is it recorded generalisations as be may have been enabled to make firm his observations of bounded. It is wholly 'r olly einpitical ;"—another class of opponents would say it weightier matters of the law.

whom never was awakened either self.consciousness or the colic ! " How much of human nature slumbered in him he knew not, neither can we know." Some very painful poi tions manifestly, and essential to philo- sophy. " He had never been made alive to the unseen influences which were acting on himself, nor consequently on his fellovr-creatutes." If he was alive to o fire, a great outlet to the production of agreement. He would say, the seen, many will forgive him his omission of the unseen, as they will " Look at the constitution of things, in respect of children. Does not the fact

NEWTON. " Other ages and other na w f

nations were a blank to him for purposes o facts,"—ought t lie to have measured by their knowledge of what were riot facts ?—" and their capability to take correct views of utility, and merge all d d greatness and minuteness not previously exemplified : aud this is the character

love, nor love nor hatred towatds other beings,—in short, these motivera which In another letter shall be noticed the reviewer's remarks on "the Benthamie a man feels in thia feeling-place he has, which is not in himself? theory of government." Your obedient servant, T. " Man is never recognized by him as a being capable of agirsuing spiritual which in the language of theologians is called resistance to temptation?

tion for God or man, and from self-interest in tide world or in the next. The is a studied abstinence from any of the phrases which, in the mouths of others,

import the acknowledgment or such a fact." And why was the mar. to walk

abroad in his doubt and hose, and lay aside his wits? Show us a conscience,

Or ever so little a bit of one, which is " a thing distinct from philanthropar

from affection for God or man, and from selainterest in this world or in the his own actions. If a man has any opinion at all upon this sabject, it must he because he has some reason or interest in forming a judgment. Conscience, therefore, involves a consciousness of self interest ; and all the efforts of priest- i conscience—that he overlooks: he lint faintly recognizes, as a fact in human nature, the pursuit of any other ideal end for its own sake." What is paasuing an ideal end for its own sake, as contradistinguished from pursuing it from a man's

take pleasure in one thing, displeasure in another, appeared to him as much an I

act of despotism in the moralist, as in the political ruler." Be a good little boy, is a blank in BENTHAM n 'S system." Astroomy consists of two parts ; one of doubts whether this may not be of them. A third says, his moral sense tells

him not to separate from his wife. A fourth sees a fitness of things in getting rid of her when he is tired. Everybody is at sea, till BENTHAM points to the

principle, which though it cannot force men to agree, is like a dour in a house n that children require a score years of care and traiuing front their parents, greatest happiness in the main, that human connexions should not resemble those of cock au hen sparrows? Adultery strikes at the root of the purposes " If BENTH d h d AM'S theory of life can o so little for te individual, what can "Mau is conceived by BENTHAM as a being susceptible of pleasures and rinciple) for the spiritual interests of society ; nor does it suffice of itself even

or occasionally antipathies, towards other beings. And here B.ENTlt a M'S national character : that it is, which causes one nation to succeed in all its conception of human nature stops." And here the critic's desire to intro- attempts, another to fail; one nation to understand and aspire to elevated duce something that is not human nattne begins. It is the old struggle, to things, another to grovel in mean ones; which makes the greatness of one make out that a man feels something which is not felt by himself; a quibble, nation lasting, and dooms another to early awl rapid decay. The true teacher in the main, on the meanings of self and selfish. " He (loes not, indeed, ex- of the fitting social arrangements for England, France, or America, is the elude religion ; the prospect of divine rewards and punishments he includes one who can point out how the English, French, or American character can under the head of "selfregarding.interest,' and the devotional feeling under be improved, and how it has been made what it is."—The real dogma to that of sympathy towards God. But the whole of the impelling or restrain, which all this tends, is that those nations are prosperous, that pay to the jag principles, whether of this world or the next, which he recognizes, are true church. Being thoroughly squeezed, ther i e s nothing else in the spore. either self-love, or love or hatred towards other beings." What else should they Surely there were enough to take this side, without the London and West- be ? What are they, where ate they, these motives which are neither self-

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