THE OPEN SECRET

Consequently, the doser you yourself lie to Nature, and the more you are carried from the position of an extemal observer to stand within the secret of its inmost heart, the more instinct with truth and beauty will appear such passages (and they abound throughout Carpenter's writing) in which, at first sight perhaps, you found scarce anything to be desired.

We cannot pass from our typical quotation without noting another thing. To Carpenter, Nature is alive, one might ahnost say personally alive.

The old Earth breatfaes deep and rhythmically, night and day, sommer and winter, giving and concealing herself .

It is not that Nature is simply animated, she is spiritually quick. It is a corollary of his theory of Création, abready expounded, that " objects" are not dead matter, but are " other egos, and the egos enter into relation with each other." * Objects are true selves ; and what we call

Knowledge, Perception, Consdousness (in its ordinary form) aie messages or modes of oommmiication between varions selves — words, as it were, by wbich intelligences come to expression, and become known to each other and themselves. Ail Nature we hâve to conceive as the comitless interchange of communication between countless selves.*

Ail objects exist for the utterance of a spiritual Somewhat which is the ground of their manifesta-

* ^. C, p. 43. ■ Ibid., p. 44.

NATURE IS ÂLIVE 7S

tion and beiog. They are '* sayiog " sometfaing to us who corne to know them. Our truest knowledgeof them is not Inological^cheimcal knowledge, but is spiritual— our dearest reading of their message.

Carpenter's theory of Beauty ' is based upon the same feeliug. In effect, it is this. We get the sensé of Beauty whenever the spiritual idea which is struggfing for expression and utterance in us meets with and recognizes itself in objects presented to us. The beauty of an object, externally known, is related to its form to the extent that such form is perceived by us — maybe unconsdously — ^to be expressive of the same spiritual idea that utters itself in us. Beauty is the récognition of soûls. Known intemally, aU objects would be beautiful, since then the récognition of unity would be complète ; and we should thus be brought to the point fr<«n which Nietzsche announced his idéal " to see the necessary in ail things as being beautiful."

Nature, then, is in reality an organism of spiritual selves. Carpenter glows with prophétie fervour in his afiEirmation of this fact.

In tibe woods a spirit walks which is not wholly of tba woods»

But which looks ont over the wide Earth and drawsto itself ail men with deep nnearthly love.*

The poem entitled " Among the Fems" may well be taken as the classical expression of it.

^ A,C., pp. 192 û. * Jbid., p. {86.