nt does not necessarily drive us to the admission of an infinite
cause. The argument is, "because there is a man, and man has
intelligence, we must necessarily admit of a Being of infinitely
superior intelligence." Would it not be nearly as well to argue,
"because there is a goose, therefore there must be a man."

What is there more which hinders a series of finite causes to be
carried back _ad infinitum_, than that the reasoner or contemplator of
the course of nature is tired. If this eternal series could not exist,
a Deity might with some propriety be said to follow. Put the argument
into a syslogistic form.

"The universe shews design;"

"It is absurd to suppose an infinite succession of finite causes;"

"Therefore there is an uncaused intelligent cause of this universe."

Deny the second assertion and the problem is destroyed. So far from its
being difficult to suppose an eternity, it is the most difficult thing
in the world to suppose any thing but an eternity. A mind, not afraid
to think, will find it the most easy contemplation in the world to
dwell upon. It is at least a bold assertion, that _nothing can be more
evident_ than that plants and animals could not have proceeded from each
other by succession from all eternity. Surely to this may be answered,
that it is more evident that two and two make four. But Dr. Priestley
goes on to say, "that the primary cause of a man cannot be a man, any
more than the cause of a sound can be a sound." Experience shews us all
sound is an effect of a cause. Does experience shew us more of a man
than that he came from a man and a woman? To allow therefore that all
men must have come from a man and a woman is as far as we can argue
upon the subject, whilst in reasoning we trust to experience. An
argument is well built upon similarity, therefore it is probable if one
horse had a cause all horses had. But will not the argument be more
consonant to itself, in supposing all horses had the same cause, and as
one is seen to be generated from a horse and a mare so all were from
all eternity. It were a better argument in favour of a Deity or some
invisible agent to shew that a new animal came every now and then into
life, without any body's knowing how or where.

It is allowed by Priestley and all other reasoners, that the most
capital argument that can be formed in support of any thesis is to be
built upon experience, or analogy to experience. Yet will many of these
reasoners, Dr.