doctrine of the immanence of God. One has only to compare the scientific attitude to-day with that of fifty years ago to see how very relative it is. The full Christian teaching declares that God is transcendent as well as immanent; and in so far as He is transcendent He cannot be known except by Revelation. The Christian Revelation is absolute and universal and our only refuge from modern subjectivism.

Mr. W. HOSTE said: Certainly the whirligig of time has its revenges." If there were two laws regarded as unassailable-the pillars of Hercules of modern science they were the law of gravitation and the intransmutability of elemental substances. Now the universal application of gravity is questioned, e.g. the curvature of the path of a comet is apparently explained otherwise, whereas of course it was included in Newton's formula of gravitation, and as for "intransmutability," "Radium is the philosopher's stone." If the Holy Scriptures had taught explicitly the Newtonian theory of gravitation and poured contempt on the transmutation of metals, it would have been up to date till now but would henceforth be a back number. As our regretted colleague, the late Chancellor Lias, so lately deceased, once said, "Science is knowledge, but knowledge must be exact up to its limit." This is why the true scientific man of the first rank is modest. Newton was markedly so, we are told. Is there room to hope that the third-rate scientists of the penny press will become less cocksure in face of the latest discoveries? It is to be feared not, for they do not burden their memories with the inconvenient discoveries we have been speaking of.

Mr. W. E. LESLIE strongly protested against the character of the paper, and added: The extracts from Lord Balfour and Prof. Wildon Carr are of interest. Space forbids detailed criticism, but attention may be called to such outstanding defects as the statement that light is deflected in a gravitational field because it is composed of "particles of matter," and the reference to the length of the day in Mercury and Neptune as an example of the relativity of time!

Turning to the subject, we must ask "What is philosophy?" I suggest that it is the attempt to arrange the totality of our knowledge in one co-ordinated whole. Christian philosophy, in it narrower sense, is a similar co-ordination of those facts in which

K

Christians are peculiarly interested in its wider sense it is any system or systems of philosophy in harmony with the Christian revelation. I think personal idealism most nearly conforms to this condition, and it is profoundly interesting to observe that, starting from purely physical data, physicists and mathematicians are, since the era of modern theories of Relativity, moving steadily in that direction.

Col. Biddulph pointed out that the planetary day has nothing to do with the new theory of relativity.

The Rev. J. E. H. THOMSON, M.A., D.D., writes: "(1) One would desiderate a little clearing up of the meaning of terms. The title of Mr. Coles' paper would be applicable to Dean Mansell's Bampton lecture on The Limits of Religious Thought.' From the relativity of human thought Mansell maintained that all our affirmations or negations concerning Deity could at the best be only approximations to the truth-a view that occasioned keen controversy sixty years ago. The relativity contemplated by Mr. Coles is totally different; it is not subjective but objective relativity.

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(2) In the triad adopted by Mr. Coles-space, time and matterthe last is on a different plane from the former two. Might not force be a more suitable term? All our senses reveal to us force resisting us or resisted by us, and from this the existence of matter is deduced.

"(3) I venture to challenge the accuracy of the implication contained in a statement of Mr. Coles (p. 124). He there says, 'Prof. Einstein has gone a step beyond Newton, and proved that light itself is composed of particles of matter,' implying that Newton did not believe in the corpuscular constitution of light. In the "Encyc. Brit." (11th ed.), vol. xvi, p. 614a, I find it said: The authority of Newton retained for it (the corpuscular theory of light) an almost general acceptance till the beginning of the nineteenth century.' Einstein has thus not gone beyond Newton but has gone back to his view."

Dr. W. WOODS SMYTH writes: "I have sympathy with a leading scientist who has said that it seemed as if the Creator Himself could not understand Relativity'! However, Mr. Coles mentions something in relation to motion which we can accept with interest, when they are stated, and with wonder. That a rod moving swiftly on

end should shorten considerably; that a rotating disk, instead of enlarging, should contract its diameter-are very wonderful. The bearing of Relativity on Christian philosophy seems to point to the fact that increased progress in science only deepens the mystery of all things and their forces, and of men and their ways, and, beyond all, the Universe of God.”

Mr. A. T. SWAINE writes: It is quite evident that the author does not understand relativity.

'Space, time and matter are not different ideas for different observers; they are the same for all observers so far as they are ideas or concepts. It is their dimensions which vary with every observer. Quite contrary to the frequent assertions in these pages, the relativist has little concern with 'space, time and matter.' He is deeply concerned with the measure of space and time and of motion. The idea of matter is rarely, if ever, discussed. The author drifts on to a discussion of the 'ether' which has no place in relativist thought. Following this he gives us the two discoveries of Einstein (1) He has proved that light is composed of matter.' This is neither a discovery of Einstein nor is it consistent with recent physical science. It is true that, arising out of his theory, Einstein suggested that light rays would be deflected in passing the sun, and that this was corroborated by the astronomical tests. But that light rays are material does not follow. As the author himself quotes, Electrical energy is the Universe itself.' If, then, he were philosophically consistent, he could not contradict himself and say that light is material. The fact is that, according to the most modern view, matter is energy, and therefore light is a form of matter.' (2) The other discovery of Einstein is Relativity.' This again is not true. Relativity was known and discussed long before we heard his name. He proved its application to all the laws of space, time and motion and co-ordinated them in the spacetime continuum.

"In the deeper problems' he again quotes,' Space has properties contingent upon the nearness to the sun.' This is by no means true. Space may have properties contingent upon its nearness to every material' body contained within it, but this way of putting it jumbles the old materialism with the newer view. It is more correct now to say that the sun, the stars, the earth-in fact every

material particle or body-is a property of space; space cannot be spoken of as real or apart from things.' One cannot exist without the other in a space-time continuum.

"Throughout the paper we discover no mention of the salient and fundamental facts of Relativity or of the philosophy which arises therefrom."*

Dr. A. T. SCHOFIELD writes with reference to Relativity and Christian philosophy: "What one really craves for is the 'relativity' of the two. We want a clear idea in what ways modern discoveries tend to endorse or question the truths of Christian philosophy. We have no difficulty in believing that Divine Revelation transcends human research. What we want to know is the real bearing of the one on the other; and the very invasion by science of philosophic fields makes this inquiry all the more urgent. We therefore thank the author for what he has given us, but we want more, much more."

AUTHOR'S REPLY.

Dr. Schofield will agree that modern discoveries support the exalted language of Holy Scripture as to the glories of the created Universe.

Mr. Swaine seems to forget how difficult it is to arouse general interest in these questions. My quotations from popular writings were not meant to be taken as my own judgment in every instance.

Mr. Woods Smyth's comment, "that the bearing of Relativity on Christian philosophy seems to point to the fact that increased progress in science only deepens the mystery of all things and their forces, and of men and their ways, and beyond all, the Universe of God," will commend itself to most of us.

Rev. J. E. H. Thomson: "Einstein has not gone beyond Newton, but has gone back to his view as to the corpuscular theory of light " is what I myself intended to convey.

The Chairman, of course, was right in pointing out that idealists in all ages have held the relativity of time and space. I did not intend to convey anything to the contrary.

*The above extract represents only half of Mr. Swaine's criticism of the paper.

HELD IN COMMITTEE ROOM B, THE CENTRAL HALL, WESTMINSTER, ON MONDAY, APRIL 9тн, 1923, at 4.30 P.M.

MAJOR-GENERAL SIR GEORGE K. SCOTT-MONCRIEFF, K.C.B., IN THE CHAIR.

The Minutes of the last meeting were read, confirmed and signed.

The CHAIRMAN announced that the author of the Paper was not able to be present to read it, and called upon Lieut.-Colonel Hope Biddulph, D.S.O., the Papers Secretary, to read the paper on 'The Irrigation of Palestine in Ancient and Modern Times." This was illustrated by lantern slides.

CONCERNING IRRIGATION IN ANCIENT AND MODERN TIMES, THE CULTIVATION AND ELECTRIFICATION OF PALESTINE WITH THE MEDITERRANEAN AS THE SOURCE OF POWER. By ALBERT HIORTH, Esq., C.E.

(With Lantern Illustrations.)

S far back as in the days of King Menes of Egypt perhaps more than 3,000 years B.C.)-canals were built along the Nile for artificial watering or irrigation.*

In Babylonia and Assyria we also read in the inscriptions of Tiglath Pileser, of gardens with irrigation works. Fig. 1 shows a garden with irrigation reconstructed by Layard after the excavations in Mesopotamia.†

The extensive plants of this character converted the whole country into a fruitful and wonderfully fertile “ garden of Eden." When later on the country was conquered by Barbarians, her high civilization deteriorated, the irrigation plants went to ruin, and the hot, dry climate changed the once so fertile land into a desert.

Egypt possessed similar extensive irrigation works from the earliest times. In our own days a number of modern irrigation plants-sometimes on an enormous scale, have been constructed by the English in the said countries. Thus, in Fig. 2, we have a bird's-eye view and a sketch map of the irrigation works on the Nile from the Assuan dam northwards. The sluices should be

* Engineering Wonders of the World, II, 385.

† Encyclopedia Biblica, II, 1647.