during  so  many  ages,  diverted  the  The  early  part  of  the  centutj  was
minds  of  men  to  a  labour  fruitless  as  all  violent  change. All  Europe  felt
that  of  the  Danaids. In  France,  the  shock  of  the  earthquake. Va-
eapecially,  roetapbyeica  were  super-  rious  and  manifold  doctrines  sprang
■eded  by  natural  philosophy. The  up  on  every  side. There  were  ^rciit
generation  next  to  that  wliich  hod  wars,  and  rumours  of  war. Scieme
seen  the  speculations  of  Malebraiiche,  was  preparing  in  silence  for  the  neacc-
Bossuet,  and  FeneJuii,  saw  Voltaire  fulrevolutiun  sbcbasaccomplisiied  iii
introducing  the  Frencli  to  Newtun'a  our  own  days. While  Napoleon  was
philosophy,  and  the  experiments  of  over-running  Europe,  Kant  and
Coulomb,  Frestiel,  ana  Lavoisier. Fichte  were  building  up  their  ideal-
Even  in  the  most  metaphysical  couu-  iam. Cuvier  was  revealing  tlie  evu-
tries,  Scotland  and  Germany,  the  iu-  lutions  of  the  globe. Tiicre  was
flueuce  of  the  eighteenth  century  be-  everywhere  fermentation  and  febrile
came  apparent. The  Scotch  school,  change — a  disorder  from  which  we
abandoning  metaphysical  hypotheses,  have  scarcely  emerged. Sphinx-like,
declared  that  psychological  observa-  all  the  great  "questions"  of  humanity
tion  only  can  be  profitably  cidtivated. were  proposing  their  enigmas,  and
In  Oennany,  Kant,  after  much  the  answers  were  of  the  most  oppo-
wading  through  schematisms,  con-  site  kinds. There  were  idealist
ceptiona  a  priori,  objectivea  and  sub-  philosophies,  and  positive  philoso-
jectives,  came  to  the  conclusion,  that  pbies. There  were  Childo  Harold
metaphysics  were  not  entitled  to  schools,  and  lake  schoola  Europe
rai^  as  a  science,  being  incapable  of  was  teeming  with  a  tropical  luxa-
reoeiving  certitude. In  vain  did  the  rionce  of  tlionght  and  fancy. Goethe
followers  of  Kant,  Fichte,  Scbclling,  was  inconteetably  the  king  of  that
Hfoel,  erect  the  most  airy  fabrics,  epoch. It  is  strange  tliat  this  great
andbuild  a  wallof«70sandnon-e£io«  man  should  have  enriched  literature
between  the  world  and  themselves,  with  so  many  numerous  and  brilliant
All  the  endeavours  of  those  great  works  without  painting  the  type  of
thinkers  have  not  been  able  to  per-  his  age. Neither  Faust  nor  Werther,
made  the  nineteenth  century  that  his  two  most  characteristic  and
philosophy  is  a  branch  of  knowledge  powerful  creations,  are  entitled  to  the
to  be  cultivated  for  its  own  sake,  and  name  of  literary  types. The  one  be-
apart  from  other  sciences. 