en credited(1) with many other discoveries. In the
work already referred to he allows his imagination freely to speculate
as to the wonders that might be accomplished by a scientific utilisation
of Nature's forces--marvellous things with lenses, in bringing distant
objects near and so forth, carriages propelled by mechanical means,
flying machines...--but in no case is the word "discovery" in any
sense applicable, for not even in the case of the telescope does BACON
describe means by which his speculations might be realised.

(1) For instance by Mr M. M. P. MUIR. See his contribution, on "Roger
Bacon: His Relations to Alchemy and Chemistry," to _Roger Bacon Essays_.

On the other hand, ROGER BACON has often been maligned for his beliefs
in astrology and alchemy, but, as the late Dr BRIDGES (who was quite
sceptical of the claims of both) pointed out, not to have believed
in them in BACON'S day would have been rather an evidence of mental
weakness than otherwise. What relevant facts were known supported
alchemical and astrological hypotheses. Astrology, Dr BRIDGES writes,
"conformed to the first law of Comte's _philosophia prima_, as being the
best hypothesis of which ascertained phenomena admitted."(1) And in his
alchemical speculations BACON was much in advance of his contemporaries,
and stated problems which are amongst those of modern chemistry.

(1) _Op. cit_., p.84.

ROGER BACON'S greatness does not lie in the fact that he discovered
gunpowder, nor in the further fact that his speculations have been
validated by other men. His greatness lies in his secure grip of
scientific method as a combination of mathematical reasoning and
experiment. Men before him had experimented, but none seemed to have
realised the importance of the experimental method. Nor was he, of
course, by any means the first mathematician--there was a long line of
Greek and Arabian mathematicians behind him, men whose knowledge of the
science was in many cases much greater than his--or the most learned
mathematician of his day; but none realised the importance of
mathematics as an organon of scientific research as he did; and he was
assuredly the priest who joined mathematics to experiment in the bonds
of sacred matrimony. We must not, indeed, look for precise rules of
inductive reasoning in the works of this pioneer writer on scientific
method. Nor do we find really satisfactory rules of induction even in
the works of FRANCIS BACON. Moreove