In like manner the velocity of the bullet
which issues from the rifle depends upon the transformation of the
energy of the powder; this in turn depends upon the explosion of the
percussion cap; this again upon the fall of the trigger; and lastly this
upon the finger of the man who fires the rifle."[54] Thus even the very
strongest opponents of the idea of second causes never deny that the
latter seem to surround us on every side, and that it would be possible
to trace a continuous line of apparent effects and causes back to the
very beginning.
[Footnote 54: "The Unseen Universe," p. 184.]
This view of the matter, it is evident, readily leads to a deistic view
of the universe,--or to that burlesque of the Christian view spoken of
as the doctrine of an "absentee God," watching His universe run from the
outside, slightly concerned with what it does.
2. On the other hand, a careful study of the correlation of forces shows
us that the great First Cause is still very closely related to the
operation of His universe. We may start, for instance, with the old
argument from the evidences of _design_ in nature, which, though often
sneered at of late, cannot be cavalierly dismissed in this way; for, as
Dugald Stewart has well said, "every combination of means to an end
implies intelligence.
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