derived from the tentative operations of nature, so
different from what might be expected from a settled plan; from ugly,
venomous and monstrous things; from the great imperfection of nature's
very highest productions; from the ignorance, misery, and degradation of
such a vast part of mankind; from the utter absence of anything like a
moral government of the universe. Only towards the end of his essay does
Lord Bacon begin business with the Atheists. "They that deny a God,"
he says, "destroy a man's nobility; for certainly man is of kin to the
beasts by his body; and, if he be not of kin to God by his spirit, he
is a base and ignoble creature." This is pointed and vigorous, but after
all it is a matter of sentiment. Some prefer the fallen angel, others
the risen ape.

Lord Bacon, like Earl Beaconsfield, is on the side of the angels. We
are on the other side. A being who has done something, and will do more,
however humble his origin, is preferable to one who can only boast of
his fine descent.

Finally, his lordship takes the illustration of the dog, to whom man is
"instead of a God." What generosity and courage he will put on, in the
"confidence of a better nature than his own." So man gathereth force
and faith from divine protection and favor. Atheism therefore "depriveth
human nature of the means to exalt itself above human frailty." But
this is to forget that there may be more than one means to the same end.
Human nature may be exalted above its frailty without becoming the dog
of a superior intelligence. Science, self-examination, culture, public
opinion, and the growth of humanity, are more than substitutes for
devotion to a deity. They are capable of exalting man continuously and
indefinitely. They do not appeal to the spaniel element in his nature;
they make him free, erect, noble, and self-dependent.

On the whole we are bound to say that Lord Bacon's essay on Atheism is
unworthy of his genius. If it were the only piece of his writing extant,
we should say it was the work of one who had great powers of expression
but no remarkable powers of thought. He writes very finely as a strong
advocate, putting a case in a way that commands attention, and perhaps
admiration for its force and skill. But something more than this is to
be expected when a really great man addresses himself to a question of
such depth and importance. What then are we to conclude? Why this, that
Lord Bacon dared not give the rein to his mind