Kansas is an undulating plain, gently sloping from west to east, at an average of nearly 7 feet per mile. There is also an inclination from north to south, as indicated by the course of the rivers, which flow southerly as well as easterly, but never northerly or westerly, except for short distances from local causes. The mouth of the Kansas river, at the east line of the State, is 750 feet above the sea-level; the average altitude of the western boundary is about 3500 feet. The broad prairie surface is diversified by an endless succession of valleys and woodlands. The great central valley is traversed by the Kansas or Kaw river, which, inclusive of the Smokyhill branch, extends the entire length of the State. Lateral valleys on the north are formed by the Saline, Solomon, Republican, and Blue rivers, and other smaller streams. Another broad valley is formed in the southern half of the State by the Arkansas river, with lateral valleys on the north, traversed by the Walnut, Little Arkansas, Pawnee Fork, and other streams. The southeastern portion contains the important Neosho valley, and the smaller valleys of the Osage and Verdigris. In the extreme south-west and along the southern boundary are the valley of the Cimarron, and a network of the southern tributaries of the Arkansas. Numerous small affluents of the Missouri enrich and diversify the north-eastern quarter of the State. The streams of Kansas are usually fed by perennial springs, and, as a rule, the eastern and middle portions of the State are well watered. The western part is more elevated, and water is less abundant.

Geology and Minerals.— τ Pav surface presents three distinct geological sections. The eastern portion of the State belongs to the Carboniferous system, in which are found inexhaustible beds of valuable bituminous coal, often at shallow depths or cropping out on the surface. The central portion belongs to the Triassic formation, witl magnesian limestone, ferruginous sandstone, and gypsum as the representative rocks. Magnesian limestone, knowr as dolomite, is especially plentiful along the Blue. Republican, and Neosho rivers and their tributaries. This beautiful stone, resembling white, grey, and cream-coloured marble, is exceedingly useful for building purposes. Il crops out in the bluffs in endless quantities, and is easily worked. The wèstern portion of the State belongs to the Cretaceous formation, in which chalks and a species ol native quicklime are very prominent in the river bluffs. The white and cream-coloured chalks are much used foi building purposes, but the blue is usually too soft foi exposure to the weather. The quicklime as quarried from the bluffs slakes perfectly, and with sand makes a fairly good mortar, without calcination or other previous prépara tions, Lead-mines are extensively worked in the south eastern portion of the State, and prosperous towns and cities are growing up in connexion with these mines. Ir the central region, salt is produced from wells, and appears in occasional marshes. Salt industries are carried on al Solomon City, near the mouth of the Solomon river, and an excellent brine is obtained at Junction City. The sail of the south-west is found in beds and dry incrustations, varying in thickness from a few inches to 2 feet. The salts of Kansas are remarkably free from lime and other im∙

purities. Gypsum is found in beautiful crystalline form in extensive quarries, but it has not been much utilized. The lignite found near the Colorado line makes a valuable domestic fuel.

Climate.— The climate of Kansas is exceptionally salubrious. Extremes of heat and cold occur, as in all open prairie countries, but as a rule the winters are dry and mild, while the summer heats are tempered by the perpetual prairie breezes. The summer nights are invariably cool and refreshing. The mean annual temperature at Fort Riley for twenty-three years ending December 1874 has been 53°. The highest temperature there during the same period was 98° and the lowest 12° below zero. The average annual rainfall at the city of Lawrence for six years (1875-1880) was 32 ’ 68 inches, the heaviest rainfalls occurring in May, June, July, and August, the lightest in November, December, January, and February.

Soil.— The soil of the upland prairies is generally a deep rich clay loam, of a dark colour. The bottom lands near the streams are a black sandy loam; and the intermediate lands, or “second bottoms,” show a rich and deep black* loam, containing very little sand. These soils are all easily cultivated, free from stones, and exceedingly productive. There are exceptional spots on the upland prairies composed of stiff clay, not as easily cultivated, but very productive when properly managed and enriched. In the early history of the country the prairies were covered with the short “buffalo grass,” very nutritious for pasturage, on which immense herds of buffalo and other animals subsisted, but utterly unfit for hay. With the disappearance of the buffalo, and as the country is settled and cultivated, the short buffalo grass gives place to the tall blue stem and other bladed grasses valuable alike for pasture and for hay. Timber is abundant along the streams in the eastern section of the State, but is less plentiful in the central portion, and very scarce in some parts of the west. The varieties of timber embrace oak, elm, black walnut, cottonwood, mulberry, box, elder, willow, hickory, sycamore, white ash, and other hard and soft woods.

Agriculture.— The farm products of 1880 were as follows :— Indian com, 101,420,718 bushels; winter wheat, 23,507,223; spring wheat, 1,772,661; rye, 676,507; oats, 11,483,796; barley, 287,057; buckwheat, 43,455; Irish potatoes, 4,919,227; sweet potatoes, 391,196; castor beans, 558,974; flax seed, 1,245,279; sorghum syrup, 3,787,585 gallons; cotton, 142,517 tt>; hemp, 635,8721b; millet and Hungarian hay, 629,084 tons; Timothy hay, 79,634 tons; hay from wild or native grasses, 798,707 tons; clover pasture, 5927 acres; blue grass pasture, 38,259 acres; native grass pasture, 901,125 acres; produce of market gardens to the value of $449,797.

The bright climate and pure atmosphere are admirably adapted to the growth of the apple, pear, peach, plum, grape, and cherry. The smaller fruits also, with scarce an exception, flourish finely. Trees never suffer from sodden or water-soaked roots, and very seldom from the winter’s cold, when reasonable judgment and care have been exercised in selecting and managing the grounds. At a national exhibition in Philadelphia in 1869 the great gold medal of the National Pomological Society was awarded to Kansas “for a collection of fruits unsurpassed for size, perfection, and flavour;” and similar awards have been made to Kansas fruits at later exhibitions. In November 1872 the American Institute, at its great show, awarded a diploma for 190 varieties of apples grown in Kansas, as the largest and handsomest exhibited. At the International Exhibition at Philadelphia in 1876, Kansas exhibited ninety-six varieties of apples, and received the diploma of the centennial commission. Estimates based on the tables of 1877 indicate that the number of bearing trees now in the State (1881) is about as follows :—2,500,000 apple, 100,000 pear, 8,000,000 peach, 200,000 plum, and 1,000,000 cherry trees. The planting of trees is still on the increase, and the older orchards are very profitable. The same is true of vineyards and plantations of small fruits.

Live Stock.— The wide prairies, with their nutritious grasses for hay and grazing and their never-failing springs of pure water, make the State a very paradise to the herdsman and stock-raiser. The following are the statistics for 1880 :—horses, 367,589; mules and asses, 58,303; milch cows, 366,640; other homed cattle,748,672; sheep, 426,492; swine, 1,281,630; value of animals slaughtered and sold for slaughter, $12,700,045; value of poultry and eggs sold, $531,550; wool (clip of 1878), 289,644 lb; wool (1879), 1,194,453 lb; honey (produce of 1879), 370,398 lb; wax (1879), 10,949 tt>. The great herds of buffalo which formerly overran the plains have disappeared, the elk is gone, and deer and other game are less plentiful than formerly. There remain, however, the rabbit, hare, turkey, prairie hen, quail, and the usual variety of migratory water-fowl, to gratify the sportsman. The numerous streams are well supplied with fish of choice varieties and of unusually large size, Manufactures.— There is perhaps no tract of country of equal extent better supplied with available water power than Kansas. The streams are fed by living springs, and the inclination of the country insures uniformly rapid currents. Most of the streams maintain a good flow of water in the driest seasons, and in case of heavy rains many of them “underflow” the adjacent bottom lands, saturating the permeable substratum of the country with the surplus water, which in time drains out and feeds the subsiding streams. This feature is particularly true of the Saline, Solomon, and Smokyhill rivers. The Smokyhill river has not risen above the banks of its deep channel at Junction City since 1869, while at the lowest stages it is capable of driving large flouring-mills, having half a dozen sets of burrs. A dam on the Kansas river at Lawrence supplies a water-power capable of developing a great manufacturing centre. In 1870 there were one hundred and ten improvements of water-power in the state. Estimates based on the latest statistics now place the number of utilized mill sites at about three hundred, where flouring-mills, saw-mills, planing-mills, and woollen-mills run the entire year, with very little hindrance from either high or low water. In the eastern section of the State, where coal is plentiful, steam-power is much used, especially in the manufacture of iron. At Leavenworth there are manufactories of iron bridges, engines, boilers, stoves, railroad iron; and miners’ tools. There are also manufactories of waggons, carriages, carpets, soaps, paints, and cement, at Leavenworth, Fort Scott, Lawrence, Columbus, Ottawa, and other places. At Topeka, Parsons, Armstrong, and Argentine there are rolling mills and railroad repair shops, while planing-mills, tanneries, cheese factories, and pork-packing establishments are found in various localities.

Transport and Trade.— There ar’e numerous railroads in the State, with an aggregate length of completed track of 3104 miles. The central branch in the north and the Union Pacific (Kansas division) near the centre traverse the northern half of the State from east to west, in nearly parallel lines,—the latter extending by its connexions to San Francisco. The Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe line passes from the north-east to the south-west, extending through to the Pacific coast; and the Missouri Pacific (Kansas division), by uniting with the Texas Central, connects the richest portion of Kansas with the Gulf of Mexico at Galveston. Other lines in connexion with these facilitate the internal commerce of the State. Kansas has an eastern front of 150 miles on the Missouri river, which is navigable for steamboats of all sizes. The internal rivers of the State are not utilized for commercial purposes, though the Kansas was formerly considered navigable to Fort Kiley, near the mouth of the Republican river, and steamboats have ascended the Smokyhill to the mouth of the Saline, about 50 miles farther west. By means of these railroads and the Missouri river immense quantities of wheat, corn, cattle, and swine are sent from Kansas to the eastern markets; flour is sent south, south-west, and west, and butter, poultry, and eggs, with large quantities of vegetables, hay, and garden produce, to the western mining regions.

Education.— The public schools are liberally endowed and supported. Two sections of land (1280 acres) are set apart in each congressional district for school fund purposes. There are in the State 5242 public school buildings, and the value of public school property is $4,633,044. The teachers employed number 6707. The pupils of school age are estimated from statistics of 1875 at 230,000, about half of whom are in actual attendance. The annual expenditure for ⅛chool purposes, estimated from statistics of 1875, is 1,500,000. The State supports a university at Lawrence, and. a normal school at Emporia; and the agricultural college at Manhattan is endowed by the general Government. There are also State institutions for the education of the blind, and the deaf and dumb, and for the care of the insane. A reform school for juvenile offenders is being built at the State capital.

Religion.— All the usual religious denominations are represented, owning church property to the amount of $2,511,520.

Administration.— In Kansas, as in all the States of the American Union, the government is vested in three departments, legislative, executive, and judicial. The governor is elected for a term of two years. The legislature consists of a senate and house of representatives. The members of the house are elected for two years, and members of the senate for four. The judiciary consists of a State supreme court and subordinate district courts. The judges are all elected by a direct vote of the people.

Population.— The following table gives the population at the last three census enumerations, with the number of inhabitants pef square mile at each period :—

[table]

The State is divided into 104 counties. The following are the largest towns, with population in 1880 Leavenworth, 16,550; Topeka, 15,451; Atchison, 15,106; Lawrence, 8511; Wyandotte, 6149; Fort Scott, 5372; Wichita, 4911; Emporia, 4632; Parsons, 4196; Ottawa, 4032. Topeka, the State capital, is advantageously situated, and is one of the most flourishing towns in the State.

History.— Kansas belongs to that immense tract of country, purchased by the American Government from France in 1803, known as the Louisiana purchase. Prior to 1854 it was in the hands of various Indian tribes, some native, and others which had been removed from the older States. It was organized and opened for settlement as a territory by Act of Congress in May 1854, in the midst of a heated contest on the slavery question. . The slaveholders and the friends of freedom at once began a vigorous contest for the occupancy and control of the new territory, and thus it was that Kansas became the vanguard in the great struggle which resulted in the overthrow of slavery in the United States. Before the formal beginning of the war, societies were organized by the rival settlers and their friends in the States on both sides of the slavery question, and even rival legislatures were elected and convened. The discussions frequently resulted in personal violence, and the greatest excitement prevailed till the breaking out of the civil war. Kansas was admitted into the Union as a State in January 1861, and took an active part in furnishing troops for the suppression of the rebellion. The State was frequently invaded, and the city of Lawrence was sacked and burned in August 1863. Since the overthrow of slavery, Kansas has shared fully in the general progress of the country. (J. D.+)

The family of Kant was of Scotch extraction, the grandfather of the philosopher having been an emigrant from Scotland who had settled, first at Memel, and afterwards at Tilsit. The name Cant, as it was originally spelled, is not uncommon in the north of Scotland, whence the family is said to have come, and it is not perhaps mere fancy to trace in some of the ethical doctrines of the critical philosophy and in the personal character of its author some of the prominent features of Scottish nationality. The father of the philosopher carried on the business of a saddler in Königsberg, and in that town, on the 22d April 1724, was born Immanuel, the fourth of a large family, most of whom died at an early age. Königsberg was then somewhat noted as a stronghold of what is known as Pietism, a phase of religious thought and life which had in Germany, as elsewhere, too much that was unpleasing, but which nevertheless was capable of exercising a powerful influence for good on the development of a really strong and ample character. “Say what you will of Pietism,” writes Kant to his friend Rink, “no one can deny the real worth of the characters which it formed; they possessed the highest that man can possess —a peace, a cheerfulness, an inner harmony with self, which was disturbed by no passion.” To influences of this kind Kant was subjected in his early years, partly from his mother, for whose memory he ever cherished the warmest affection and regard, partly from his excellent friend and patron, Schulz, the director of the Collegium Fredericianum in Königsberg, and afterwards professor of theology in the university. At the Collegium Fredericianum Kant was entered in his tenth year, with the definite view of proceeding to the theological courses of the university. His inclination at this time, determined probably by the high character of his teachers, was towards classics, and he was recognized, with his schoolfellow, the afterwards celebrated David Ruhnken, as among the most competent and promising classical scholars of the college. His taste for the greater Latin authors, particularly Lucretius, was never lost, and he acquired through his school training an unusual facility in Latin composition. With Greek authors he does not appear to have been equally familiar.

During his university course, which began in 1740, Kant was principally attracted towards mathematics and physics, doubtless through the influence of Knutzen, who then, as extraordinary professor, lectured on most branches of mathematics and also on philosophy. The lectures on classics do not seem to have satisfied Kant, and, though he attended Schulz’s courses on theology, and even preached on one or two occasions, he appears finally to have given up the intention of entering the church. The last years of his university studies were much disturbed by the straitened means of his family, and he was compelled to have recourse to private teaching of the humblest kind. The death of his father, in 1746, destroyed his hopes of remaining at the university until he should have obtained some subordinate academic post. Much against his inclination he undertook the office of private tutor, and for nine years acted in this capacity in various families in the immediate neighbourhood of Königsberg. Although the life was not one which Kant would have chosen, and one for which he was not specially qualified—as he used to say regarding the excellent precepts of his Pedagogics, he was never able to apply them—yet it gave him an extended knowledge of the world, and added to his other accomplishments the grace and polish of refined society, which he displayed ever afterwards to a degree somewhat unusual in a philosopher by profession.

In 1755 Kant returned to Königsberg as tutor in the family of Count Kayserling. By the kindness of a friend named Richter, he was enabled again to take up his university career, and in autumn of that year he graduated as doctor and qualified as “Privatdocent.” Two of the theses publicly defended on the occasion are printed in his works; an address, on the easier and harder styles of philosophical exposition, has not been publishe'd. For fifteen years he continued to labour in this subordinate position, his fame as writer and lecturer steadily increasing. On two occasions he was disappointed in the hope of obtaining a professorship in his own university, but during this time, as in later years, he refused all offers that would have withdrawn him from Königsberg. The only academic preferment received by him during the lengthy probation was the post of underlibrarian, to which he was appointed in 1766. His lectures, at first mainly upon physics, gradually expanded until nearly all descriptions of philosophy were included under them. A most interesting programme of his courses on metaphysics, logic, ethics, and physical geography for the session 1765-66 has been printed in his works (i. 289- 299). The history of his literary activity during this period will be given in connexion with the notice of his writings.

In 1770 he obtained the chair of logic and metaphysics at Königsberg, and delivered as his inaugural address the dissertation De Mundi Sensibilis et Iηtelligibilis Forma et Principiis. Eleven years later appeared the Kritik of Pure Reason, the work towards which he had been steadily advancing, and of which all his later writings are developments.

In 1783 he published the Prologomena, intended as an introduction to the Kritik, which had been found to stand in need of some explanatory comment. A second edition of the Kritik, with some modifications, appeared in 1787, after which it remained unaltered.

In spite of its frequent obscurity, its novel terminology, and its declared opposition to prevailing systems, the Kantian philosophy made rapid progress in Germany. In the course of ten or twelve years from the publication of the Kritik of Pure Reason, it was expounded in all the leading universities, and it even penetrated into the schools of the Church of Rome. Such men as Schulze in Königsberg, Kiesewetter in Berlin, Jakob in Halle, Born and Heydenreich in Leipsic, Reinhold and Schmid in Jena, Buhle in Göttingen, Tennemann in Marburg, and Snell in Giessen, with many others, made it the basis of their philosophical teaching, while theologians like Tieftrunk, Stäudlin, and Ammon -eagerly applied it to Christian doctrine and morality. Young men flocked to Königsberg as to a shrine of philosophy. The Prussian Government even undertook the expense of their support. Kant was hailed by some as a second Messiah. He was consulted as an oracle on all questions of casuistry,—as, for example j on the lawfulness of inoculation for the small-pox. This universal homage for a long time left Kant unaffected; it was only in his later years that he spoke of his system as the limit of philosophy, and resented all further progress. He still pursued his quiet round of lecturing and authorship, and contributed from time to time papers to the literary journals. Of these, among the most remarkable was his review of Herder’s Philosophy of History, which greatly exasperated that author, and led to a violent act of retaliation some years after in his Metakritik of Pure Reason. Schiller at this period in vain sought to engage Kant upon his Horen. He remained true to the Berlin Journal, in which most of his criticisms appeared.

In 1792 Kant, in the full height of his reputation, was involved in a painful collision with the Government on the question of his religious doctrines. Wöllner had replaced Von Zedlitz as minister of spiritual affairs, and, in an age peculiarly lax and heterodox, an unwise attempt was made to apply a rigid censorship to works of philosophical theology. It was not wonderful that the philosophy of Kant had excited the declared opposition of all adherents of historical Christianity, since its plain tendency was towards a moral rationalism, and it-could not by any process of interpretation be reconciled to the literal doctrines of the Lutheran Church. It would have been much better to permit his exposition of the philosophy of religion to enjoy the same literary rights as his earlier works, since Kant could not be interdicted without first silencing a multitude of theologians who were at least equally separated from positive Christianity. The Government, however, judged otherwise; and after the first part of his book, On Religion within the Limits of Reason alone, had appeared in the Berlin Journal, the publication of the remainder, which treats in a more rationalizing style of the peculiarities of Christianity, was forbidden. Kant, thus shut out from Berlin, availed himself of his local* privilege, and, with the. sanction of the theological faculty of his own university, published the full work in Königsberg. The Government, who were probably as much influenced by hatred and fear of the French Revolution, of which Kant was supposed to be a partisan, as by love of orthodoxy, resented the act; and a secret cabinet order was received by him intimating the displeasure of the king, Frederick William II., and exacting from him a pledge not to lecture or write at all on religious subjects in future. With this mandate Kant, after a struggle, complied, and kept his engagement till 1797, when the death of the king, according to his construction of his promise, set him free. This incident, however, produced a very unfavourable effect on his spirits. He withdrew in 1794 from society; next year he gave up all his classes but one public lecture on logic or metaphysics; and in 1797, before the removal of the interdict on his theological teaching, he ceased altogether his public labours, after an academic course of forty-two years. He previously, in the same year, finished his treatises on the Metaphysics of Ethics, which, with his Anthropology, completed in 1798, were the last considerable works that he revised with his own hand. His Lectures on Logic, on Physical Geography, on Paedagogics, were edited during his lifetime by his friends and pupils. By way of asserting his right to resume theological disquisition, he also issued in 1798 his Strife of the Faculties, in which all the strongest points of his work on religion were urged afresh, and the correspondence that had passed between himself and his censors was given to the world.

From the date of his retirement from the chair Kant declined in strength, and gave tokens of intellectual decay. His memory began to fail, and a large work at which he wrought night and day, on the connexion between physics and metaphysics, was found to be only a repetition of his already published doctrines. After 1802, finding himself attacked with a weakness in the limbs, attended with frequent fits of falling, he mitigated a little the Spartan severity of his life, and also consented to receive medical advice. A constant restlessness oppressed him; his sight gave way; his conversation became an extraordinary mixture of metaphors; and it was only at intervals that gleams of his former power broke out, especially when some old chord of association was struck in natural science or physical geography. A few days before his decease, with a great effort he thanked his medical attendant for his visits in the words, “I have not yet lost my feeling for humanity.” On the 12th of February 1804, he breathed his last, having almost completed the eightieth year of his age.

It is superfluous to characterize the genius of Kant; but a few words may be added as to his personal appearance and habits of life, study, and teaching. His stature was small, and his appearance feeble. He was little more than 5 feet high; his breast was almost concave, and, like Schleiermacher, he was deformed in the right shoulder. His hair was light, his complexion fresh, his forehead high and square, while his eye of light blue showed an expression of unusual depth and power. His senses were quick and delicate; and, though of weak constitution, he escaped, by strict regimen, all serious illness till the close of life.

His life was arranged with mechanical regularity; and, as he never married, he kept the habits of his studious youth to old age. His man-servant awoke him summer and winter at five o’clock; and, on being appealed to on one occasion, testified that Kant had not once failed in thirty years to respond to the call. After rising he studied for two hours, then lectured other two, and spent the rest of the forenoon, till one, at his desk. He then dined at a restaurant, which* he frequently changed, to avoid the influx of strangers, who crowded to see and hear him— till in later years his growing means enabled him to invite a friend or two daily to his own home. This was his only regular meal; and, as he loved the ducere caenam of the Romans, he often prolonged the conversation till late in the afternoon. He then walked out for at least an hour in all weathers, and spent the evening in lighter reading, except an hour or two devoted to the preparation of his next day’s lectures, after which he retired between nine and ten to rest. The furniture of his house was of the simplest character; and, though he left a considerable sum, the produce of his writings, to his relatives, he indulged in no luxury, and was a pattern of that superiority to fashion and appearance so often met within the literary life of Germany. In his earlier years he often spent his evenings in general society, where his overflowing knowledge and conversational talents made him the life of every party. He was especially intimate with the families of two English merchants of the name of Green and Motherby, where he found many opportunities of meeting ship-captains, and other travelled persons, and thus gratifying his passion for physical geography. This social circle included also the celebrated Hamann—the Magus or Wizard of the North—the friend of Herder and Jacobi, who was thus a mediator between Kant and these philosophical adversaries.

Kant’s reading was of the most extensive and miscellaneous kind. He cared comparatively little for the history of speculation, being in this department more a discoverer than a scholar. But his acquaintance with books of science, general history, travels, and belles lettres was boundless. He was well versed in English literature, chiefly of the age of Queen Anne, and had read English philosophy from Locke to Hume, and the Scottish school. He was at home in Voltaire and Rousseau, but had little or no acquaintance with the French sensational philosophy. He was familiar with all German literature up to the date of his Kritik, but ceased to follow it in its great development by Goethe and Schiller. It was his habit to obtain books in sheets from his publishers Kanter and Nicolovius; and he read over for many years all the new works in their catalogue, in order to keep abreast of universal knowledge. He was excessively fond of newspapers and works on politics; aiìd this was the only kind of reading that could interrupt his studies in philosophy.

As a lecturer, Kant avoided altogether that rigid style in which his books were written, and which was only meant for thinkers by profession. He sat behind a low desk, with a few jottings on slips of paper, or text-books marked on the margin, before him, and delivered an extemporaneous address, opening up the subject by partial glimpses, and with many digressions and interspersed anecdotes or familiar illustrations, till a complete idea of it was presented. His voice was extremely weak, but sometimes rose into eloquence, and always commanded perfect silence. Like Adam Smith, he fixed his eye on one student, and marked by his countenance whether the lecture was understood. The least irregularity in the appearance or dress of this selected hearer disconcerted him; and the story is well known of the missing button, which defeated a lecture. Though kind to his students, he refused on principle to remit their fees, as this, he thought, would discourage independence. It was another principle that his chief exertions should be bestowed on the intermediate class of talent, as the geniuses would help themselves, and the dunces were beyond remedy. Hence he never delivered his deeper doctrines, such as are found in his Kritik, from the chair. His other avocations allowed him little personal intercourse with his numerous hearers, and he often complained of the want of lively sympathy and ascertained progress inseparable from such a system.

Simple, honourable, truthful, kind-hearted, and high-minded as Kant was in all moral respects, he was somewhat deficient in the region of sentiment. He had little enthusiasm for the beauties of nature, and indeed never sailed out into the Baltic, or travelled more than 40 miles from Königsberg. Music he disregarded, and all poetry that w as more than sententious prose. His ethics have been reproached with some justice as setting up too low an ideal for the female sex. Though faithful in a high degree to the duties of friendship, he could not bear to visit his friends in sickness, and after their death he repressed all allusion to their memory. His engrossing intellectual labours no doubt tended somewhat to harden his character; and in his zeal for rectitude of purpose he forgot the part which affection and sentiment must ever play in the human constitution. Those who count these defects most grave will yet find much to admire in the lofty tone of his character, and in the benevolence which could thus express itself: “Whoever will suggest to me a good action left undone, him will I thank, though he suggest it even in my last hour !”

This brief notice of his life may appropriately close with Herder’s beautiful sketch of Kant’s character, all the more interesting that it was written in 1795, after their quarrel: —“I have had the good fortune to know a philosopher who was my teacher. In the vigour of life he had the same youthful gaiety of heart that now follows him I believe into old age. His open forehead, built for thought, was the seat of imperturbable cheerfulness and joy; the most pregnant discourse flowed from his lips; wit, humour, and raillery came to him at will, and his instructions had all the charm of an entertainment. With the same easy mastery with which he tested the doctrines of Leibnitz, Wolf, Baumgarten, Crusius, and Hume, or pursued the discoveries of Newton, Kepler, and other lights of science, he also took up the current writings of Rousseau, such as the Émile or Héloise, or any new phenomenon of the natural world, and from the criticism of each came back to the impartial study of nature, and to the enforcement of the dignity of man. History in all its branches, natural science, physics, mathematics, and experience were the materials that gave interest to his lectures and his conversation; nothing worthy of study was to him indifferent; no faction or sect, no selfishness or vanity, had for him the least attraction, compared with the extension and elucidation of truth. He excited and pleasantly impelled us to mental independence; despotism was foreign to his nature. This man, whom I name with the deepest gratitude and respect, is Immanuel Kant; his image rises before me surrounded with pleasing recollections !”

The Writings of Kant.

From the preceding sketch of Kant’s academic activity it must be evident that he combined in a quite unusual degree knowledge of physical science with speculative acuteness and devotion to the special work of philosophy. No other thinker of modern times has been throughout his work so penetrated with the fundamental conceptions of physical science; no other has been able to hold with such firmness the balance between empirical and speculative ideas. Beyond all question much of the influence which the critical philosophy has exercised and continues to exercise must be ascribed to this characteristic feature in the training of its great author.

The early writings of Kant are almost without exception on questions of physical science. It was only by degrees that philosophical problems began to engage his attention, and that...