As  already  stated,  the    enlightened  Intuitionalist  does/
not    hold   that    the   consciences    of  all    men    are  equallyX
developed.     He  holds  that,  as  it  is  with  reason,  so  it  is  with
conscience ;   both  lead  to  higher,  truer,  and  better  results
when   employed  by  the   civilised  or  educated   man   than
when  employed  by  the  uncivilised  or  uneducated.
But  this  argument  does  not  account  for  the  enormous
divergence  in  the  consciences  of  men  of  different  times  and
places.  The  sharpening  and  polishing  of  the  faculties  by
civilisation  does  not  provide  a  cure  for  the  undeveloped
conscience  as  it  does  for  the  undeveloped  intellect.  A
demonstration  in  Euclid  was  as  convincing  two  thousand
years  ago  as  it  is  to-day,  yet  practices  were  permitted  in  the
Athens  of  Plato  which  would  be  regarded  with  horror  now.
Instance  might  be  added  to  instance.  In  the  words  of
Locke,  "  He  that  will  carefully  peruse  the  history  of  man
kind,  and  look  abroad  into  the  several  tribes  of  men,  and
with  indifferency  survey  their  actions,  will  be  able  to  satisfy
himself  that  there  is  scarce  that  principle  of  morality  to  be
named,  or  rule  of  virtue  to  be  thought  on  (those  only
excepted  that  are  absolutely  necessary  to  hold  society
together,  which  commonly,  too,  are  neglected  betwixt
distinct  societies),  which  is  not,  somewhere  or  other,  slighted
and  condemned  by  the  general  fashion  of  whole  societies  of
men  governed  by  practical  opinions  and  rules  of  living
quite  opposite  to  others."1

1  Locke,  Essay  >  i.  3,  §  10.
232


CRITICISM


PART  III


§  4-  The
Last  Re
source  of
the  Intui-
tionalist.
