ESSAY ON PERSONALITY AS A PHILOSOPHICAL PRINCIPLE BY THE REV. WILFRID RICHMOND, M.A. LONDON EDWARD ARNOLD 37 BEDFORD STREET 1900 PREFACE THE following essay is intended to illustrate a philosophical principle, not to establish a philosophical conclusion. The only legitimate principle of philosophy is experience, of which philosophy professes to be the interpretation. But it is rash to assume that we know what we mean by experience without explicit statement and discussion. Some particular aspect of experience we are each of us sure to emphasize. It is well to describe clearly the aspect under which we are disposed to assert that experience should prima facie be viewed. This will be the philosophical principle. If the principle or the aspect of experience which we wish to present happens to involve differences from the views commonly assumed in philosophical literature, this full and free description of the point of view at starting is the more necessary. In any case an hypothesis must be enterta ned before it can be proved, and it must be stated before it can be entertained. And a philosophical principle is such an hypothesis. This, then, is the object, to present a certain aspect of experience in such a way as to secure that it may be entertained as a |