John Campbell Merriam as Scientist and Philosopher

Abstract

The development of a man's philosophy when seen in the light of his past labor and experience frequently irradiates the process of thought itself and defines more clearly the contribution that is made in a search for the ultimate values of life. When one examines the writings of John Campbell Merriam the conclusion is inevitable that the richness and aesthetic qualities of his later contributions are the products of research and teaching in which human values have ever maintained an important place. To those who believe that a devotion to science and to its rigorous demands in the realm of thought presages a satisfactory approach to philosophy, it is stimulating and enlightening to trace the intellectual development of a great contributor to science.