Page:History of Modern Philosophy (Falckenberg).djvu/190

l68 LOCKE. perception and those from memory, the possibility of pro- ducing and predicting new sensations of an entirely definite nature in ourselves and in others, by means of changes which we effect in the external world {e. g., by writing down a word) — these give further justification for the trust which we put in the senses. No one will be so skeptical as to doubt in earnest the existence of the things which he sees and touches, and to declare his whole life to be a deceptive dream. The certitude which perception affords concerning the existence of external objects is indeed not an absolute one, but it is sufficient for the needs of life and the government of our actions; it is " as certain as our happiness or misery, beyond which we have no concernment, either of knowing or being." In regard to the past the testimony of the senses is supplemented by memory, in which certainty [in regard to the continued existence of things previously perceived] is transformed into high prob- ability ; while in regard to the existence of other finite spirits, numberless kinds of which may be conjectured to exist, though their existence is quite beyond our powers of perception, certitude sinks into mere (though well- grounded) faith. More certain than our sensitive knowledge of the exist- ence of external objects, are our immediate or intuitive knowledge of ourowi; existence and our mediate or demon- strative knowledge of the existence of God. Every idea that we have, every pain, every thought assures us of our own existence. The existence of God, however, as the infinite cause of all reality, endowed with intelligence, will, and supreme power, is inferred from the existence and con- stitution of the world and of ourselves. Reality exists ; the real world is composed of matter in motion and thinking beings, and is harmoniously ordered. Since it is impossible for any real being to be produced by nothing, and since we obtain no satisfactory answer to the question of origin until we rise to something existent from all eternity, we must assume as the cause of that which exists an Eternal Being, which possesses in a higher degree all the perfec- tions which it has bestowed upon the creatures. As tht cause of matter and motion, and as the source of all power,