As already seen, he considers it possible to derive every one of these virtues from the consideration of man’s situation with reference to each:—­Benevolence, or Humanity, from our social relationship; Justice, from the nature of Property; Truth, from, the employment of Language for mutual Understanding; Purity, from considering the lower parts of our nature (the Appetites) as governed by the higher; and Order, from the relation of Governor and Governed.  By a self-evident, intuitive, irresistible consideration of the circumstances of the case, we are led to these several virtues in the detail, and their sum is the Supreme Rule of Life.

Not content with these five express moral principles, he considers that the Supreme Law requires, as adjuncts, two other virtues; to these he gives the names EARNESTNESS, or Zeal, and MORAL PURPOSE, meaning that everything whatsoever should be done for moral ends.

V.—­The relation of Ethics to Politics in Whewell’s system is one of intimacy, and yet of independence.  The Laws of States supply the materials of human action, by defining property, &c., for the time being; to which definitions morality must correspond.  On the other hand, morality supplies the Idea, or ideal, of Justice, to which the Laws of Society should progressively conform themselves.  The Legislator and the Jurist must adapt their legislation to the point of view of the Moralist; and the moralist, while enjoining obedience to their dictates, should endeavour to correct the inequalities produced by laws, and should urge the improvement of Law, to make it conformable to morality.  The Moral is in this way contrasted with the Jural, a useful word of the author’s coining.  He devotes a separate Book, entitled ‘Rights and Obligations,’ to the foundations of Jurisprudence.  He makes a five-fold division of Rights, grounded on his classification of the Springs of Human Action; Rights of Personal Security, Property, Contract, Marriage, Government; and justifies this division as against others proposed by jurists.

VI.—­He introduces the Morality of Religion as a supplement to the Morality of Reason.  The separation of the two, he remarks, ’enables us to trace the results of the moral guidance of human Reason consistently and continuously, while we still retain a due sense of the superior authority of Religion.’  As regards the foundations of Natural and Revealed Religion, he adopts the line of argument most usual with English Theologians.

JAMES FREDERICK FERRIER. [1808-64.]

In his ‘Lectures on Greek Philosophy’ (Remains, Vol.  I.), Ferrier has indicated his views on the leading Ethical controversies.

These will appear, if we select his conclusions, on the three following points:—­The Moral Sense, the nature of Sympathy, and the Summum Bonum.

1.  He considers that the Sophists first distinctly broached the question—­What is man by nature, and what is he by convention or fashion?