Appendix B:
The Remaining Unpublished
Articles and Letters of Herbert Spencer
These are the remaining “unpublished”
articles and letters of Spencer’s of which I have not yet reviewed from David
Duncan’s list in his The Life and Letters
of Herbert Spencer (1908). They are listed here by date. In the leftmost
column I give synopses of each article and letter as I was able to glean from
Spencer’s Autobiography and Duncan’s
Life and Letters. In that same
column, in bold text I give my reasons for rejecting an article as a candidate
for containing the quotation when I have them. The small number of articles
that remain comprise some of Spencer’s most obscure letters and such a tiny
fraction of his entire works, that the probability he ever used the quotation becomes
nearly impossible.
|
Date
|
Title
of article or letter
|
Periodical
|
Assessment
|
|
1836 January
|
Crystallization
|
Bath and West of England Magazine
|
Spencer tells us in his autobiography that this was a
letter "describing the formation of certain curiously-shaped floating
crystals which I had observed during the preceding autumn when crystallizing
common salt."
[1]
It appeared in the first edition of the Bath Magazine of which no surviving
copy exists.
[2]
This article was Spencer's first attempt at professional writing at the age
of 16 years. It is unlikey
that the few local readers of the Bath magazine would have quoted an unknown
16 year old Spencer, or that he would have used the the
quotation in such a context. Furthermore, no copy of this first issue of the
magazine is known to exist.
|
|
1836 March
|
The Poor Laws
|
Bath and West of England Magazine
|
This was a letter to the magazine challenging the author
of an article in the first issue which dealt with the Poor Law Amendment Act
of 1834. In this letter Spencer warned against the social ramifications of
too-easily available public assistance.
[3]
Once again it is unlikely that a 16 year
old unknown Spencer would have been quoted.
|
1841 July
|
A New Form of Viaduct
|
Civil Engineer and Architect's
Journal
|
This was an article which contained Spencer’s design
for an economical bridge.
[4]
Unlikely that he would have found a
place for the quotation in presenting a bridge design.
|
|
1841 September
|
The Transverse Strain of Beams
|
Civil Engineer and Architect's
Journal
|
Another article with some of Spencer’s civil
engineering inventions.
[5]
Another architectural article discussing
engineering physics.
|
|
1842 January
|
Architectural Precedent
|
Civil Engineer and Architect's
Journal
|
In this article, Spencer describes "Veneration
for antiquity," as "one of the greatest obstacles, not only to the
advancement of architecture, but to the progress of every species of
improvement."
[6]
Unlikely that he would have found a
place for the quotation here.
|
|
1842 March
|
Letter on "Architectural
Precedent"
|
Civil Engineer and Architect's
Journal
|
This was evidently a follow-up letter to his January
article on this topic. Again, there is
not a place for the quotation in any of these civil engineering articles.
|
|
1843 August 2
|
Mr. Hume and National Education
|
Nonconformist
|
Duncan tells us that in this article,
Spencer “opposed the doctrine ‘that it is the duty of the State to educate
the people.’"
[7]
|
|
1843 June 28
|
Effervescence - Rebecca and her
Daughters
|
Nonconformist
|
The Rebecca Riots were a major upheaval in Wales in which men wore women’s clothing
while attacking toll gates and the gate keepers. In a letter to Edward Lott,
Spencer tells us something of this article: “If you get hold of the last
week's Nonconformist, you will find a leading article written by me, entitled
'Effervescence -- Rebecca and her Children.' It will amuse you, I fancy, it
being somewhat queer in its ideas. It might be appropriately classified under
the head of 'The Chemistry of Politics.'”
[8]
|
|
1843 October
|
Letter about the Derby flood of 1842
|
Architect, Engineer, and Surveyor
|
In Spencer’s own words: “April, 1842, brought a temporary
return to engineering activities. A tributary of the river Derwent which runs through Derby, called the Markeaton Brook, was raised suddenly to an immense height
by a local deluge of rain, and overflowed to the extent of producing in the
main street a flood of some six feet in depth: the level attained being so
unusual that it was marked by an iron plate let into the wall. It occurred to
me to write a report on this flood; and to make suggestions for the
prevention of any like catastrophe hereafter. This report was presented to
the Town Council, and afterwards printed and distributed by their order.”
[9]
|
|
1843 October 11
|
The Non-Intrusion Riots
|
Nonconformist
|
Duncan tells us that in this article,
Spencer “deals with the disturbances in Scotland, arising from ‘the determined
opposition given by the State party to the erection of edifices for the Free
Church.’"
[10]
|
|
1844 Sept-Dec
|
Various Articles
|
Birmingham Pilot
|
From September to December of 1844, Spencer was
sub-editor of the Pilot, an organ of the Complete Suffrage Union. He wrote a
number of leading articles, all of them political, but not specifically
concerned with suffrage. He gives us the following titles: “Railway Administration”;
“A Political Paradox”; “Magisterial Delinquencies”; “A Political Parable and
its Moral”; “Honesty is the Best Policy”; “The Impolicy
of Dishonesty”; and “The Great Social Law.” In his autobiography, Spencer
quotes from one of these articles to describe a belief that he saw developing
in his own mind from that period which ran through all of the articles he
wrote for the Pilot: “The life and health of a society are the life and
health of one creature. The same vitality exists throughout the whole mass.
One part cannot suffer without the rest being ultimately injured.”
[11]
|
|
1848 June or July
|
Article on "Political Smashers"
|
Standard of Freedom
|
Spencer was in the process of negotiating a position with
the Standard where he would contribute weekly leading articles. The
negotiations did not pan out, but he did contribute one article.
[12]
|
|
1852 October 11
|
A Theory of Tears and Laughter
|
Leader
|
Spencer’s regular articles to the Leader came under the
heading “The Haythorne Papers.” They were printed
anonymously as he did not want his name associated with the socialistic
leanings of the paper. Some of his Haythorne Papers
were later republished in his Essays
as they represent some of his earliest ideas on evolution.
[13]
Because these articles were published
anonymously, they can be absolutely ruled out.
|
|
1853 February
|
The Value of Physiology
|
National Temperance Chronicle
|
Spencer’ uncle was editor of the Chronicle and delayed publication of this article due to a perceived
reference to himself to which he took offense.
[14]
|
|
1859 January
|
The Laws of Organic Form
|
British and Foreign
Medico-Chirurgical Review
|
Spencer tells us of this article in his Autobiography, “The
thesis was that organic forms in general, vegetal and animal, are determined
by the relations of the parts to incident forces. Radial symmetry, bilateral
symmetry, and asymmetry, alike in stationary and moving organisms, were
shown, one or other of them, to become established, according as the parts
are similarly disposed towards the environment all round an axis, or
similarly disposed on two sides of an axis, or not similarly disposed on any
side. The explanation given was that here the necessities entailed by
position and there the necessities entailed by locomotion, entailed
likenesses between parts which were conditioned in like ways. This general
interpretation of external forms was congruous with the more special
interpretation of internal forms in the case of the vertebrate skeleton -- an
interpretation appended to the critique on Prof. Owen's
theory.
“A systematized and elaborated statement of the hypothesis
set forth in this essay, was in later years incorporated in Part IV. of the
Principles of Biology.”
[15]
Spencer’s description of the article
is characteristic of most of the man’s scientific and biological writings.
Note the lack of rhetoric or emotion. Biological tracts such as this article
can be ruled out.
|
|
1878 May 30
|
Letter on the toast of "The
Fraternity of the two Nations" proposed at a dinner in Paris
|
Standard
|
On 25 January 1878, Spencer, dined in Paris with “a party of 16 professors,
journalists and deputies, invited by Baillière [the
publisher] to meet [him]. Replying to the toast of his health he proposed ‘The
Fraternity of the two nations,’ commenting on the great importance of cordial
relations between France and England.”
[16]
It’s hard to imagine why Spencer would
want to use a quotation that insinuated anyone’s “everlasting ignorance” in
such a context. On these grounds I rule this one out.
|
|
1879 July
|
Letter to M. Algave
about the "Lois Ferry"
|
Reveu Scientifique
|
In France, a reactionary member of the
Chamber of Duties had been using quotations from one of Spencer’s books to
support their opposition to the Lois Ferry bills which were related to
public education. Spencer wrote the letter to Algave,
editor of Reveu Scientifique
to correct the impression that this member of the Chamber was giving of
Spencer’s own opinion.
[17]
The character of Spencer’s letters to
editors when correcting errors like this was generally short and to the
point. He was not flamboyant, and would give examples of places in his
writing that prove that he held a contrary opinion to the one he was being
represented as holding.
|
|
1880 December 26
|
Letter disclaiming having had to
do with "George Eliot's education"
|
Standard
|
Spencer left this entire letter in his Autobiography: “SIR,
-- Though, as one among those intimate friends most shocked by her sudden
death, I would willingly keep silence, I feel that I cannot allow to pass a
serious error contained in your biographical notice of George Eliot. A
positive form is there given to the belief which has been long current, that
I had much to do with her education. There is not the slightest foundation
for this belief. Our friendship did not commence until 1851 -- a date several
years later than the publication of her translation of Strauss, and when she
was already distinguished by that breadth of culture and universality of
power which have since made her known to all the world. -- HERBERT SPENCER.”
[18]
The length and tone of this letter is
a good example of many of his letters to the editor. Obviously, the “Paley” quotation does not appear in this letter.
|
|
1882 March 27
|
Pecuniary liberality of Mr. J.S.
Mill
|
Daily News
|
When writing his System
of Synthetic Philosophy was proving to be an overwhelming financial
burden, he announced to his subscribers that he could not afford to follow
through on the project. John Stuart Mill generously offered to finance the
project until it was accomplished. Spencer declined Mill’s generosity, and
eventually accepted the efforts of other friends.
[19]
Mill died in 1873, nine years before this article appeared. Spencer probably
wrote this letter to contest some public impression that Mill was miserly or
ungenerous.
|
|
1883 February 14
|
Letter on the Edinburgh Review and on the Land Question
|
St. James' Gazette
|
An ongoing controversy for Spencer was his views on the
nationalization of land. He was strongly opposed to all forms of socialism
and from the appearance of his Social Statics (1851), a strong protest against socialism,
his views came under scrutiny. Though neither his Autobiography or Duncan’s Life and Letters give a summary of this letter to the St. James
Gazette, it is definitely related to his opinions on rightful land ownership.
|
|
1884 August 8
|
Letter repudiating opinion
attributed to him that we should be all the better in the absence of
education
|
Standard
|
Spencer’s essays on Education
were highly influential in the development of progressive education in the United States. Put simply, Spencer opposed
common methods of teaching, especially rote memorization of facts. Though
neither his Autobiography or Duncan’s Life and Letters give a summary of this letter, it is likely a
clarification of his views that rote memorization is useless if our hope is
to develop creative thinking minds.
|
|
1885 June 10 and 13
|
Letters on the Spencer-Harrison
Book
|
Standard
|
These letters came at the end of a well-known controversy
between Spencer and Frederic Harrison which began in January of 1884. Spencer
was publishing chapters of his upcoming Principles
of Sociology in the Nineteenth
Century in England and in The Popular Science Monthly in America. A chapter that appeared in
January 1884 was titled Religion
Retrospect and Prospect in which he gave one of his most extensive
agnostic treatises. Harrison challenged some of Spencer’s assumptions in a later issue
of both of these periodicals. The result was an ongoing public dispute in the
pages of these journals. In the end, Spencer’s American publisher, D.
Appleton & Co., had arrange to publish these articles as a book. This was
done without Harrison’s knowledge who accused Spencer of copyright fraud. Spencer’s
response to the accusation was to telegram D. Appleton and order them to suppress the
book and destroy the stereo plates so it could never be mass produced, to
which D. Appleton acquiesced. The Standard published an article telling
the story in which they concluded that D. Appleton had actually refused to
suppress the book, but that they would arrange for another publisher to print
it. Spencer’s letters to the Standard
in June of 1885 were written to correct this false report.
[20]
Again, these letters would have been
short and to the point, the second of which probably thanked the Standard for correcting their story in
the end.
|
|
1888 February 24
|
Letter with Reference to his
Opinions on Painting
|
Architect
|
Though neither his Autobiography
or Duncan’s Life and Letters
give a summary of this letter, Spencer says of painting, “a great divergence
from naturalness in any part, so distracts my attention from the meaning or
intention of the whole, as almost to cancel gratification.”
[21]
It would not be surprising to find a similar opinion expressed in this letter
to Architect, as it fits with his earlier views of architecture and the
intimacy of all of his ideas with what he regarded as natural.
|
|
1890 February 7
|
Reasoned Savagery so-called
|
Daily Telegraph
|
Spencer’s close friend Thomas H. Huxley used the phrase
“reasoned savagery” publicly to describe Spencer’s political views. This
deeply hurt Spencer and he wrote a letter to the Daily Telegraph to challenge
the notion that his political views deserved that characterization. Duncan
explains: “To realise the bitterness of Spencer's
feelings it is necessary to be reminded of the sense of injustice that rankled
in his breast on reflecting that, notwithstanding the precept and example of
a lifetime in denouncing every form of oppression and injustice, he should be
charged with upholding brutal individualism and his views should be branded
as ‘reasoned savagery.’"
[22]
|
|
1892 December 3
|
Letter on the sales of his books
|
Daily Chronicle
|
In 1892 there was a movement to restore a fixed price
system on retail books. This would overturn a free trade system of book sales
which had benefited consumers as well as authors since 1852.
[23]
This letter was likely a response to this movement concerning his own book
sales.
|
|
1894 Aug-Sept
|
Letters relating to the Land
Question Controversy
|
Daily Chronicle
|
Duncan tells us: “When examining
Spencer's various utterances on the Land Question in A Perplexed Philosopher, Mr. Henry George went out of his way to
ascribe the changes of view to unworthy motives, alleging that [Spencer’s]
recantation of early opinions had been made with a view to curry favour with the upper classes. This attack upon his
character Spencer felt very keenly.”
[24]
These letters were among others that Spencer wrote to other newspapers at
this time to describe his actual change of viewpoint and to refute the
motives Henry George ascribed to him.
|
|
1902 March 1
|
Ethical Lectureships
|
Ethics
|
This was a letter to the editor of Ethics requesting that his name not be listed as a subscriber to
the Ethical Lectures Fund. Spencer had previously written privately to the
editor requesting that his name no longer be considered for title of a lectureship.
He did this because many of the views on ethics expressed in Ethics were not in accordance with his
own.
[25]
|
[1]
Spencer, Herbert. An Autobiography.In two volumes. D. Appleton & Co., New York. 1904. Vol. I, page 127.
[2]
Carneiro, Robert, and Perrin, Robert. Herbert Spencer’s Principles of Sociology: A Centennial Retrospective and Appraisal. Annals of Science, 59 (2002), 221-261. Taylor and Francis Ltd. Page 227, footnote 26.
[4]
Duncan, David. Life and Letters of Herbert Spencer. In two volumes. D. Appleton & Co. New York, 1908. Vol.I, page 43.
[8]
Spencer, Herbert. An Autobiography.In two volumes. D. Appleton & Co., New York. 1904. Vol. I, page 259.
[10]
Duncan, David. Life and Letters of Herbert Spencer. In two volumes. D. Appleton & Co. New York, 1908. Vol.I, page 52.
[11]
Spencer, Herbert. An Autobiography.In two volumes. D. Appleton & Co., New York. 1904. Vol. I, page 291.
[12]
Duncan, David. Life and Letters of Herbert Spencer. In two volumes. D. Appleton & Co. New York, 1908. Vol.I, pages 72 and 73.
[13]
Spencer, Herbert. An Autobiography.In two volumes. D. Appleton & Co., New York. 1904. Vol. I, page 447.
[14]
Duncan, David. Life and Letters of Herbert Spencer. In two volumes. D. Appleton & Co. New York, 1908. Vol.I, page 89.
[15]
Spencer, Herbert. An Autobiography.In two volumes. D. Appleton & Co., New York. 1904. Vol. II, pages 33 and 34.
[16]
Duncan, David. Life and Letters of Herbert Spencer. In two volumes. D. Appleton & Co. New York, 1908. Vol.I, page 257.
[18]
Spencer, Herbert. An Autobiography.In two volumes. D. Appleton & Co., New York. 1904. Vol. II, page 449.
[19]
Duncan, David. Life and Letters of Herbert Spencer. In two volumes. D. Appleton & Co. New York, 1908. Vol.II, page 599.
[20]
Duncan, David. Life and Letters of Herbert Spencer. In two volumes. D. Appleton & Co. New York, 1908. Vol.I, pages 335-359.
[21]
Spencer, Herbert. An Autobiography.In two volumes. D. Appleton & Co., New York. 1904. Vol. I, page 315.
[22]
Duncan, David. Life and Letters of Herbert Spencer. In two volumes. D. Appleton & Co. New York, 1908. Vol.II, page 34.
[23]
Spencer, Herbert. Various Fragments. “The Net-Price System of Bookselling.” D. Appleton & Co. New York, 1898. Page 171.
[24]
Duncan, David. Life and Letters of Herbert Spencer. In two volumes. D. Appleton & Co. New York, 1908. Vol.II, page 38.
[25]
Ibid., pages 197 and 198.
The Survival of a Fitting Quotation
© Michael StGeorge
|