he then went on, in his curious
way, to lament that an unreasonable candor prevented him from here
taking advantage of an ingenious argument adopted by some of the
modern "spiritualists" in reasoning on the probabilities of a
"future life." They contend that it is necessary to insulate the soul
(if it would discover "spiritual truth") from all bias of self-
interest,--from all oblique glances at prospective advantage; in
fact, that only he is fully equipped for discovering "spiritual truth"
who is disinterestedly indifferent as to whether it be discovered or
not. Harrington said he could not pretend that even the sceptic was
so favorably circumstanced as that. "For my part," he said, "I cannot
honestly adopt this view, and always think it prudent to accept as
large an armful of happiness as I can grasp, when truth and duty do
not come in the way."

"And in the name of common sense," I said, "what truth and duty are
to stand in your way? Is not your truth, that there is none?"

"Yes," he replied, smiling; "but is not the truth the truth, as
Falstaff said? though to be sure it was when he was manufacturing his
eleven men in buckram out of two. However, as Mr. Newman, when some
one foretold that he would be some day a Socinian or an infidel, replied,
'Well, if Socinianism or any thing else be the truth, Socinians or
any thing else let us be'; so I must say, if no truth be the truth,
no-truth men let us be."

"Very well," I replied. "Then, it seems, truth stands in the way of
acting prudently; and, instead of remedying our first paradox, we
have started on another, that truth and prudence are here opposed:
for in no other cases (I think) in which you apply your own rule of
the probable to the present life will a mind of your comprehensiveness
say they are opposed; I am sure you will admit the general maxims,
that to lie is inexpedient, and that honesty is the best policy,
and so on."

He granted it.

"But further," said I, "what sort of truth is this, which involves
duty, and yet is opposed to prudence? It is, that there is no truth,
it seems, and this completes the paradox. This strange truth--the
Alpha Omega of the sceptic, his first and his last--is to involve
duty; he is to be a confessor and martyr for it! Nothing less than
happiness and prudence are to be sacrificed to conscience in the matter.
Truly, if the truth that there is no truth involves any duty, it ought
to be the duty of believing that there is no d