To the Editor of the Norru-Cauxa Dany News.
Sin,—Au_ interesting chapter in the History of Aberrations of the Human Intellect" would be one treating of "The Gods of the Poets, Mr. Gladstone points out, with careful elaboration, in his Studies ov Homer how the gods of Olympus were derived, as he thinks they were, partly from " traditional monotheism, and parily from invention or nation strictly human. The pagan says, could buast of its ni traditions; like some forms Christianity, and like the government of France until 1789, But its uninterrupted course was really an uninterrupted abertafrom the line of truth, Tf we in with the true and pure idea of God, itis the ides of a Being infinite in and intelligence... Such was the stand ing point, from which the human mind had torn its earerr of religious belief orspeculation. But the maintenance subjectively the original form of the image in its eh ness depended, of course, upon the condi tion of the observing organ; and that Let me advert to organ, again, depended fur health on belonged. Hence we must look into the nature of man, in order to know what men would think of the nature of God... As he reflects back upon his own image conceptivus of the Deity, the picture that he draws first fails in that wherein he himself is weakest." (Vel. 2, Olympus: the Religion of the Homeric age, sec. 1.)
The facility with which persons of light and leading' lend themselves to palpable illusions on this subject is curiously illustrated in sume passages quoted from Tennyson in a recent leading article in the N.-U-Daily Nevs, Tennyson's sentiment, "There lives more faith in honest doubt, Believe me, thun in half the creeds," is truly illusive; that is to say, the sense is Gifficult to grasp. Tt has all the appearance of a mere play upon words for the sake of the antithesis. If a distinct meaning were intended, and the exigencies of the verse had so permitted, we could live understood the proposition in this form, 'There is more honesty in doubt than in' half the professions of belief which we hear," or in other words, "A man is more honest in doubting what he does not think it rea sonable to believe, than he would be in professing to credit what appears to him, on due investigation, contrary tu reason." In this sense no one can fairly question the truth of the pr posit Bat we are reminded that Tennyson has said "Hold thou the good; define it well for fear divine Philosophy should push beyond her mark." The good," in. this case, cannot be that claimed as such by the dishonest moiety of the "creeds nor can it be that of which there is any honest doubt." And, in order that divine philosophy" may not venture outside her proper sphere, as to the definition of what the good" is, we must Tenyson says, "define it well." But who are we to. whom the tusk of good definition is entrusted, and, in case of difference, who is to be "the man in the gap" as Paddy would say, "to prevent alvins philo-phy " from kicking the ball through Tenyson's religion '© was not one of formulas.". Then what means the require-of the definition of the "good" to ich we are tv hold? If he can define the good to which he is to hold, there can be no rwm for Akbar's broad Church "Look how the living pulse of Allah beats Through all his world,'
There is light in all, And light, with more oF Less of shade, in all Man-modes of worship The rites of all men Make but one music, harmonizing The "Custom" of Dahomey, for example; and Svcrate of a cock to this sort of thing is, of course, permitted toa poet, as it would be to the Princess Scheherazade but' may we not be allowed to look for something more definite from a teacher of our day than is likely to be found in The Thousand and one Nights Victor Hugn's idea of "Prayer," with its mysterious incoherence, apart from the worship of a personal Deity, is, no doubt, at the bottom of Ten"yson's conception of the matter: however English practical serse might be supposed to revolt against the easy liberality of the Gallic Apostle's Prikee pour tons M" fille, ea prier, sings the poet in the Feailles d'Automne, and he proceeds to enumerate in picturesque terms different individuals and classes of persons for whom the child is to pray, without any suggestion ast" what is to be asked for, or of whom; and winding up with a prayer for himself, who, as an earthly pilgrim, wants it:
"Comme une aumone, infant, donne ta A ton pire, a ta mire, aux pres de ton pre; ES
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.