and Locke as a philosopher, who was perfectly acquainted with the strong as well as the weak side of the human mind, and who fought with weapons whose temper he knew.  If I might presume to give my opinion on so delicate a subject after Mr. Locke, I would say, that men have long disputed on the nature and the immortality of the soul.  With regard to its immortality, it is impossible to give a demonstration of it, since its nature is still the subject of controversy; which, however, must be thoroughly understood before a person can be able to determine whether it be immortal or not.  Human reason is so little able, merely by its own strength, to demonstrate the immortality of the soul, that it was absolutely necessary religion should reveal it to us.  It is of advantage to society in general, that mankind should believe the soul to be immortal; faith commands us to do this; nothing more is required, and the matter is cleared up at once.  But it is otherwise with respect to its nature; it is of little importance to religion, which only requires the soul to be virtuous, whatever substance it may be made of.  It is a clock which is given us to regulate, but the artist has not told us of what materials the spring of this chock is composed.

I am a body, and, I think, that’s all I know of the matter.  Shall I ascribe to an unknown cause, what I can so easily impute to the only second cause I am acquainted with?  Here all the school philosophers interrupt me with their arguments, and declare that there is only extension and solidity in bodies, and that there they can have nothing but motion and figure.  Now motion, figure, extension and solidity cannot form a thought, and consequently the soul cannot be matter.  All this so often repeated mighty series of reasoning, amounts to no more than this:  I am absolutely ignorant what matter is; I guess, but imperfectly, some properties of it; now I absolutely cannot tell whether these properties may be joined to thought.  As I therefore know nothing, I maintain positively that matter cannot think.  In this manner do the schools reason.

Mr. Locke addressed these gentlemen in the candid, sincere manner following:  At least confess yourselves to be as ignorant as I. Neither your imaginations nor mine are able to comprehend in what manner a body is susceptible of ideas; and do you conceive better in what manner a substance, of what kind soever, is susceptible of them?  As you cannot comprehend either matter or spirit, why will you presume to assert anything?

The superstitious man comes afterwards and declares, that all those must be burnt for the good of their souls, who so much as suspect that it is possible for the body to think without any foreign assistance.  But what would these people say should they themselves be proved irreligious?  And indeed, what man can presume to assert, without being guilty at the same time of the greatest impiety, that it is impossible