Hamilton whom he constantly exalted above Thomas Jefferson. He was in sympathy with the Hamiltonian theory of nationalized governmental powers and checks upon the popular will. His acquaintance with the American revolutionary authors was profound. Their political views were attractive to him as a matter of course but he found a great deal of other matter in them with which to sympathize. Madison's love of religious liberty, for example, found a ready echo in Mr. Scott's heart. No man ever detested theological tyranny more than he while at the same time he deeply revered the fundamental principles of religion. In his writings the distinction between theology and religion is constantly brought forward,
Most of the great books on free thought will be found in his library. Milton's prose works, Richard Hooker's Ecclesiastical Polity, Locke's Essay on the Human Understanding and books of that caliber he had read attentively and made their contents part of his mental possessions. Voltaire was not among his particular favorites. He inclined to Carlyle's judgment of the great French freethinker, that he was somewhat shallow and more disposed to tear down than build up. But upon the whole his views coincided with those of the British liberals in theology and the skeptics of all ages found him a sympathetic reader of their books. Naturally with tastes like these Mr. Scott could not escape the fascination of metaphysics. Among his books the famous philosophers all find a place. As has been intimated already, his personal views were inclined to those of Locke and the "common sense" school in general but his sympathies, included all sorts of speculation. He understood Berkeley's theory and liked to trace its history through its many devious forms until it finally appeared transformed into Christian Science. He was familiar with William James's Psychology and thoroughly understood its religious and political consequences, but Pragmatism appeared a little too late to win his interest. His health began to fail at about the time when James introduced Bergson to American readers.
From what has been said it will appear that Mr. Scott was fond of "solid reading." This is true but not exclusively. A
