Bygone Beliefs [76]
theology and Oriental languages, as well as for his justness, uprightness, and humility. He died of consumption in 1652.
NATHANAEL CULVERWEL was probably born about the same year as SMITH. He entered Emmanuel College in 1633, gained his B.A. in 1636, and became M.A. in 1640. Soon afterwards he was elected a fellow of his college. He died about 1651. Beyond these scant details, nothing is known of his life. He was a man of very great erudition, as his posthumous treatise on _The Light of Nature_ makes evident.
HENRY MORE was born at Grantham in 1614. From his earliest days he was interested in theological problems, and his precociousness in this respect appears to have brought down on him the wrath of an uncle. His early education was conducted at Eton. In 1631 he entered Christ's College, Cambridge, graduated B.A. in 1635, and received his M.A. in 1639. In the latter year he was elected a fellow of Christ's and received Holy Orders. He lived a very retired life, refusing all preferment, though many valuable and honourable appointments were offered to him. Indeed, he rarely left Christ's, except to visit his "heroine pupil," Lady CONWAY, whose country seat, Ragley, was in Warwickshire. Lady CONWAY (_ob_. 1679) appears to be remembered only for the fact that, dying whilst her husband was away, her physician, F. M. VAN HELMONT (1618-1699) (son of the famous alchemist, J. B. VAN HELMONT, whom we have met already on these excursions), preserved her body in spirits of wine, so that he could have the pleasure of beholding it on his return. She seems to have been a woman of considerable learning, though not free from fantastic ideas. Her ultimate conversion to Quakerism was a severe blow to MORE, who, whilst admiring the holy lives of the Friends, regarded them as enthusiasts. MORE died in 1687.
MORE'S earliest works were in verse, and exhibit fine feeling. The following lines, quoted from a poem on "Charitie and Humilitie," are full of charm, and well exhibit MORE'S character:--
"Farre have I clambred in my mind But nought so great as love I find: Deep-searching wit, mount-moving might, Are nought compar'd to that great spright. Life of Delight and soul of blisse! Sure source of lasting happinesse! Higher than Heaven! lower than hell! What is thy tent? Where maist thou dwell? My mansion highs humilitie, Heaven's vastest capabilitie The further it cloth downward tend The higher up it cloth ascend; If it go down to utmost nought It shall return with that it sought."[1]
[1] See _The Life of the Learned and Pious Dr Henry More . . . by_ RICHARD WARD, A.M., _to which are annexed Divers Philosophical Poems and Hymns_. Edited by M. F. HOWARD (1911), pp. 250 and 251.
Later he took to prose, and it must be confessed that he wrote too much and frequently descended to polemics (for example, his controversy with the alchemist THOMAS VAUGHAN, in which both combatants freely used abuse).
Although in his main views MORE is thoroughly characteristic of the school to which he belonged, many of his less important opinions are more or less peculiar to himself.
The relation between MORE's and DESCARTES' (1596-1650) theories as to the nature of spirit is interesting. When MORE first read DESCARTES' works he was favourably impressed with his views, though without entirely agreeing with him on all points; but later the difference became accentuated. DESCARTES regarded extension as the chief characteristic of matter, and asserted that spirit was extra-spatial. To MORE this seemed like denying the existence of spirit, which he regarded as extended, and he postulated divisibility and impenetrability as the chief characteristics of matter. In order, however, to get over some of the inherent difficulties of this view, he put forward the suggestion that spirit is extended in four dimensions: thus, its apparent (_i.e_. three-dimensional) extension can change, whilst its true (_i.e_. four-dimensional) extension remains constant; just as the surface of a piece of metal can be increased by hammering it
NATHANAEL CULVERWEL was probably born about the same year as SMITH. He entered Emmanuel College in 1633, gained his B.A. in 1636, and became M.A. in 1640. Soon afterwards he was elected a fellow of his college. He died about 1651. Beyond these scant details, nothing is known of his life. He was a man of very great erudition, as his posthumous treatise on _The Light of Nature_ makes evident.
HENRY MORE was born at Grantham in 1614. From his earliest days he was interested in theological problems, and his precociousness in this respect appears to have brought down on him the wrath of an uncle. His early education was conducted at Eton. In 1631 he entered Christ's College, Cambridge, graduated B.A. in 1635, and received his M.A. in 1639. In the latter year he was elected a fellow of Christ's and received Holy Orders. He lived a very retired life, refusing all preferment, though many valuable and honourable appointments were offered to him. Indeed, he rarely left Christ's, except to visit his "heroine pupil," Lady CONWAY, whose country seat, Ragley, was in Warwickshire. Lady CONWAY (_ob_. 1679) appears to be remembered only for the fact that, dying whilst her husband was away, her physician, F. M. VAN HELMONT (1618-1699) (son of the famous alchemist, J. B. VAN HELMONT, whom we have met already on these excursions), preserved her body in spirits of wine, so that he could have the pleasure of beholding it on his return. She seems to have been a woman of considerable learning, though not free from fantastic ideas. Her ultimate conversion to Quakerism was a severe blow to MORE, who, whilst admiring the holy lives of the Friends, regarded them as enthusiasts. MORE died in 1687.
MORE'S earliest works were in verse, and exhibit fine feeling. The following lines, quoted from a poem on "Charitie and Humilitie," are full of charm, and well exhibit MORE'S character:--
"Farre have I clambred in my mind But nought so great as love I find: Deep-searching wit, mount-moving might, Are nought compar'd to that great spright. Life of Delight and soul of blisse! Sure source of lasting happinesse! Higher than Heaven! lower than hell! What is thy tent? Where maist thou dwell? My mansion highs humilitie, Heaven's vastest capabilitie The further it cloth downward tend The higher up it cloth ascend; If it go down to utmost nought It shall return with that it sought."[1]
[1] See _The Life of the Learned and Pious Dr Henry More . . . by_ RICHARD WARD, A.M., _to which are annexed Divers Philosophical Poems and Hymns_. Edited by M. F. HOWARD (1911), pp. 250 and 251.
Later he took to prose, and it must be confessed that he wrote too much and frequently descended to polemics (for example, his controversy with the alchemist THOMAS VAUGHAN, in which both combatants freely used abuse).
Although in his main views MORE is thoroughly characteristic of the school to which he belonged, many of his less important opinions are more or less peculiar to himself.
The relation between MORE's and DESCARTES' (1596-1650) theories as to the nature of spirit is interesting. When MORE first read DESCARTES' works he was favourably impressed with his views, though without entirely agreeing with him on all points; but later the difference became accentuated. DESCARTES regarded extension as the chief characteristic of matter, and asserted that spirit was extra-spatial. To MORE this seemed like denying the existence of spirit, which he regarded as extended, and he postulated divisibility and impenetrability as the chief characteristics of matter. In order, however, to get over some of the inherent difficulties of this view, he put forward the suggestion that spirit is extended in four dimensions: thus, its apparent (_i.e_. three-dimensional) extension can change, whilst its true (_i.e_. four-dimensional) extension remains constant; just as the surface of a piece of metal can be increased by hammering it