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]