Text: The doctrine of the conservation of energy amounts to nothing more than that inasmuch as every ultimate atom of matter is perfectly elastic, so is the whole universe of atoms perfectly elastic. Hence it is a doctrine which cannot be legitimately extended beyond the merely material sphere; except on the assumption that matter is the only reality, and that there is no such thing as a spiritual world at all-an assumption which, however often it has been made, serves only to awaken a prevailing voice to the contrary, and the firm vote of a large majority to the effect that mind exists as well as matter.

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