The Philosophy of the Conditioned

THE PHILOSOPHY OF THE CONDITIONED
Reprinted, with Additions, from “The Contemporary Review.”
Comprising some Remarks on Sir William Hamilton’s Philosophy
and on Mr. J.S. Mill’s Examination of that Philosophy
BY H.L. MANSEL, B.D.
WAYNFLETE PROFESSOR OF MORAL AND METAPHYSICAL PHILOSOPHY
IN THE UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD
ALEXANDER STRAHAN, PUBLISHER
LONDON AND NEW YORK
1866
MUIR AND PATERSON, PRINTERS, EDINBURGH.
The circumstance that the following remarks were originally published as an anonymous article in a Review, will best explain the style in which they are written. Absence from England prevented me from becoming acquainted with Mr. Mill’s Examination of Sir William Hamilton’s Philosophy till some time after its publication; and when I was requested to undertake the task of reviewing it, I was still ignorant of its contents. On proceeding to fulfil my engagement, I soon discovered, not only that the character of the book was very different from what the author’s reputation had led me to expect, but also that my task would be one, not merely of criticism, but, in some degree, of self-defence. The remarks on myself, coming from a writer of Mr. Mill’s ability and reputation, were such as I could not pass over without notice; while, at the same time, I felt that my principal duty in this instance was the defence of one who was no longer living to defend himself. Under these circumstances, the best course appeared to be, to devote the greater portion of my article to an exposition and vindication of Sir W. Hamilton’s teaching; and, in the additional remarks which it was necessary to make on the more personal part of the controversy, to speak of myself in the third person, as I should have spoken of any other writer. The form thus adopted has been retained in the present republication, though the article now appears with the name of its author.