Cassidy, Hopalong (Fictitious character) -- Fiction; Western stories
"What I may or may not believe in is no aid to you, Miss Saunders,"
replied Tex, amazed at his reaction to her distress. It was all he
could do to keep from taking her in his arms. It was a lucky thing for
Henry Williams that he finally abandoned the idea of following them.
"If you have been taught to believe in a Divine Power, then don’t you
turn away from it. To say there is no God is to be as dogmatic as to
say there is; for every reasoning being must admit a First Cause. It is
only when we characterize it, and attempt to give It attributes that
differences of opinions arise. I am not going to enter into any
discussion with you on subjects of this nature, Miss Saunders. Nor am I
going to tell you what my convictions are. They do not concern us. If
you have any religious belief, cling to it: this is when it should begin
paying dividends."
"Have you read Kant?"
"Yes; and Spencer tears him apart."
"You are familiar with Spencer?"
"As I am with my own name. To my way of thinking his is the greatest
mind humanity ever produced--but, with your permission, we will change
the subject."
"Not just yet, please," she said. "You admire his logical reasoning?"
"I refuse to answer," he smiled. "Here, let me give you an example of
logical reasoning, Miss Saunders. Here are two coins," he said, digging
two double eagles out of his pocket, "which, along with thousands of
others, we will say, were struck from one die. You and I would say that
they are identical, especially after the most thorough and minute
examination failed to disclose any differences. I hardly believe that
any man, no matter how much he may be aided by instruments of precision,
can take two freshly minted coins from the same die and find any
difference. But what does pure logic say?"
"Certainly not that there is any difference?" she challenged in frank
surprise.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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