第18部分(第6/7 頁)

ntrol　that　animal；　so　much　bigger　and　stronger？〃　And　he　would　show　the　reason；　speaking　of　the　human　soul。　All　this　about　Tillemont　is　new　to　me；　well　as　I　knew　his　name　（from　the　pages　of　Gibbon）；　I　thought　of　him　merely　as　the　laborious　and　accurate　piler　of　historical　materials。　Admirable　as　was　his　work；　the　spirit　in　which　he　performed　it　is　the　thing　to　dwell　upon；　he　studied　for　study's　sake；　and　with　no　aim　but　truth；　to　him　it　was　a　matter　of　indifference　whether　his　learning　ever　became　known　among　men；　and　at　any　moment　he　would　have　given　the　fruits　of　his　labour　to　any　one　capable　of　making　use　of　them。

Think　of　the　world　in　which　the　Jansenists　were　living；　the　world　of　the　Fronde；　of　Richelieu　and　Mazarin；　of　his　refulgent　Majesty　Louis　XIV。　Contrast　Port…Royal　with　Versailles；　and……whatever　one's　judgment　of　their　religious　and　ecclesiastical　aims……one　must　needs　say　that　these　men　lived　with　dignity。　The　Great　Monarch　is；　in　parison；　a　poor；　sordid　creature。　One　thinks　of　Moliere　refused　burial……the　king's　contemptuous　indifference　for　one　who　could　do　no　more　to　amuse　him　being　a　true　measure　of　the　royal　greatness。　Face　to　face　with　even　the　least　of　these　grave　and　pious　men；　how　paltry　and　unclean　are　all　those　courtly　figures；　not　THERE　was　dignity；　in　the　palace　chambers　and　the　stately　gardens；　but　in　the　poor　rooms　where　the　solitaries　of　Port…Royal　prayed　and　studied　and　taught。　Whether　or　not　the　ideal　for　mankind；　their　life　was　worthy　of　man。　And　what　is　rarer　than　a　life　to　which　that　praise　can　be　given？

IX

It　is　amusing　to　note　the　superficial　forms　of　reaction　against　scientific　positivism。　The　triumph　of　Darwin　was　signalized　by　the　invention　of　that　happy　word　Agnostic；　which　had　great　vogue。　But　agnosticism；　as　a