,,on ,,the ,,study ,,of ,,zoology  by   
,thomas ,h4 ,huxley  #a   ,,natural     
,,history is the name familiarly applied
 to the study of the properties of such 
natural bodies as minerals1 plants1 and 
animals2 the sciences which embody the  
knowledge man has acquired upon these   
subjects are commonly termed ,natural   
,sciences1 in contradistinction to other
 so-called physical sciences2 and those 
who devote themselves especially to the 
pursuit of such sciences have been and  
are commonly termed ,naturalists4       
,linnaeus was a naturalist in this wide 
sense1 and his ',systema ,naturae' was a
 work upon natural history1 in the      
broadest acceptation of the term2 in it1
 that great methodising spirit embodied 
all that was known in his time of the   
distinctive characters of minerals1     
animals1 and plants4 ,but the enormous  
stimulus which ,linnaeus gave to the    
investigation of nature soon rendered it
 impossible that any one man should     
write another ',systema ,naturae1' and  

extremely difficult for any one to      
become even a naturalist such as        
,linnaeus was4  ,great as have been the 
advances made by all the three branches 
of science1 of old included under the   
title of natural history1 there can be  
no doubt that zoology and botany have   
grown in an enormously greater ratio    
than mineralogy2 and hence1 as ,i       
suppose1 the name of natural history has
 gradually become more and more         
definitely attached to these prominent  
divisions of the subject1 and by        
naturalist people have meant more and   
more distinctly to imply a student of   
the structure and function of living    
beings4  ,however this may be1 it is    
certain that the advance of knowledge   
has gradually widened the distance      
between mineralogy and its old          
associates1 while it has drawn zoology  
and botany closer together2 so that of  
late years it has been found convenient 
7and indeed necessary7 to associate the 
sciences which deal with vitality and   

all its phenomena under the common head 
of biology2 and the biologists have come
 to repudiate any blood-relationship    
with their foster-brothers1 the         
mineralogists4  ,certain broad laws have
 a general application throughout both  
the animal and the vegetable worlds1 but
 the ground common to these kingdoms of 
nature is not of very wide extent1 and  
the multiplicity of details is so great1
 that the student of living beings finds
 himself obliged to devote his attention
 exclusively either to the one or the   
other4 ,if he elects to study plants1   
under any aspect1 we know at once what  
to call him4 ,he is a botanist1 and his 
science is botany4 ,but if the          
investigation of animal life be his     
choice1 the name generally applied to   
him will vary according to the kind of  
animals he studies1 or the particular   
phenomena of animal life to which he    
confines his attention4 ,if the study of
 man is his object1 he is called an     
anatomist1 or a physiologist1 or an     

ethnologist2 but if he dissects animals1
 or examines into the mode in which     
their functions are performed1 he is a  
comparative anatomist or comparative    
physiologist4 ,if he turns his attention
 to fossil animals1 he is a             
palaeontologist4 ,if his mind is more   
particularly directed to the specific   
description1 discrimination1            
classification1 and distribution of     
animals1 he is termed a zoologist4  ,for
 the purpose of the present discourse1  
however1 ,i shall recognise none of     
these titles save the last1 which ,i    
shall employ as the equivalent of       
botanist1 and ,i shall use the term     
zoology as denoting the whole doctrine  
of animal life1 in contradistinction to 
botany1 which signifies the whole       
doctrine of vegetable life4  ,employed  
in this sense1 zoology1 like botany1 is 
divisible into three great but          
subordinate sciences1 morphology1       
physiology1 and distribution1 each of   
which may1 to a very great extent1 be   

studied independently of the other4     
,zoological morphology is the doctrine  
of animal form or structure4 ,anatomy is
 one of its branches2 development is    
another2 while classification is the    
expression of the relations which       
different animals bear to one another1  
in respect of their anatomy and their   
development4  ,zoological distribution  
is the study of animals in relation to  
the terrestrial conditions which obtain 
now1 or have obtained at any previous   
epoch of the earth's history4           
,zoological physiology1 lastly1 is the  
doctrine of the functions or actions of 
animals4 ,it regards animal bodies as   
machines impelled by certain forces1 and
 performing an amount of work which can 
be expressed in terms of the ordinary   
forces of nature4 ,the final object of  
physiology is to deduce the facts of    
morphology1 on the one hand1 and those  
of distribution on the other1 from the  
laws of the molecular forces of matter4 
,such is the scope of zoology4 ,but if  

,i were to content myself with the      
enunciation of these dry definitions1 ,i
 should ill exemplify that method of    
teaching this branch of physical        
science1 which it is my chief business  
to-night to recommend4 ,let us turn away
 then from abstract definitions4 ,let us
 take some concrete living thing1 some  
animal1 the commoner the better1 and let
 us see how the application of common   
sense and common logic to the obvious   
facts it presents1 inevitably leads us  
into all these branches of zoological   
science4  ,i have before me a lobster4  
,when ,i examine it1 what appears to be 
the most striking character it presents8
 ,why1 ,i observe that this part which  
we call the tail of the lobster1 is made
 up of six distinct hard rings and a    
seventh terminal piece4 ,if ,i separate 
one of the middle rings1 say the third1 
,i find it carries upon its under       
surface a pair of limbs or appendages1  
each of which consists of a stalk and   
two terminal pieces4 ,so that ,i can    

represent a transverse section of the   
ring and its appendages upon the diagram
 board in this way4  ,if ,i now take the
 fourth ring1 ,i find it has the same   
structure1 and so have the fifth and the
 second2 so that1 in each of these      
divisions of the tail1 ,i find parts    
which correspond with one another1 a    
ring and two appendages2 and in each    
appendage a stalk and two end pieces4   
,these corresponding parts are called1  
in the technical language of anatomy1   
homologous parts4 ,the ring of the third
 division is the homologue of the ring  
of the fifth1 the appendage of the      
former is the homologue of the appendage
 of the latter4 ,and1 as each division  
exhibits corresponding parts in         
corresponding places1 we say that all   
the divisions are constructed upon the  
same plan4 ,but now let us consider the 
sixth division4 ,it is similar to1 and  
yet different from1 the others4 ,the    
ring is essentially the same as in the  
other divisions2 but the appendages look

 at first as if they were very          
different2 and yet when we regard them  
closely1 what do we find8 ,a stalk and  
two terminal divisions1 exactly as in   
the others1 but the stalk is very short 
and very thick1 the terminal divisions  
are very broad and flat1 and one of them
 is divided into two pieces4  ,i may    
say1 therefore1 that the sixth segment  
is like the others in plan1 but that it 
is modified in its details4  ,the first 
segment is like the others1 so far as   
its ring is concerned1 and though its   
appendages differ from any of those yet 
examined in the simplicity of their     
structure1 parts corresponding with the 
stem and one of the divisions of the    
appendages of the other segments can be 
readily discerned in them4  ,thus it    
appears that the lobster's tail is      
composed of a series of segments which  
are fundamentally similar1 though each  
presents peculiar modifications of the  
plan common to all4 ,but when ,i turn to
 the forepart of the body ,i see1 at    

first1 nothing but a great shield-like  
shell1 called technically the carapace1 
ending in front in a sharp spine1 on    
either side of which are the curious    
compound eyes1 set upon the ends of     
stout movable stalks4 ,behind these1 on 
the under side of the body1 are two     
pairs of long feelers1 or antennae1     
followed by six pairs of jaws folded    
against one another over the mouth1 and 
five pairs of legs1 the foremost of     
these being the great pinchers1 or      
claws1 of the lobster4  ,it looks1 at   
first1 a little hopeless to attempt to  
find in this complex mass a series of   
rings1 each with its pair of appendages1
 such as ,i have shown you in the       
abdomen1 and yet it is not difficult to 
demonstrate their existence4 ,strip off 
the legs1 and you will find that each   
pair is attached to a very definite     
segment of the under wall of the body2  
but these segments1 instead of being the
 lower parts of free rings1 as in the   
tail1 are such parts of rings which are 

all solidly united and bound together2  
and the like is true of the jaws1 the   
feelers1 and the eye-stalks1 every pair 
of which is borne upon its own special  
segment4 ,thus the conclusion is        
gradually forced upon us1 that the body 
of the lobster is composed of as many   
rings as there are pairs of appendages1 
namely1 twenty in all1 but that the six 
hindmost rings remain free and movable1 
while the fourteen front rings become   
firmly soldered together1 their backs   
forming one continuous shield--the      
carapace4  ,unity of plan1 diversity in 
execution1 is the lesson taught by the  
study of the rings of the body1 and the 
same instruction is given still more    
emphatically by the appendages4 ,if ,i  
examine the outermost jaw ,i find it    
consists of three distinct portions1 an 
inner1 a middle1 and an outer1 mounted  
upon a common stem2 and if ,i compare   
this jaw with the legs behind it1 or the
 jaws in front of it1 ,i find it quite  
easy to see1 that1 in the legs1 it is   

the part of the appendage which         
corresponds with the inner division1    
which becomes modified into what we know
 familiarly as the leg1 while the middle
 division disappears1 and the outer     
division is hidden under the carapace4  
,nor is it more difficult to discern    
that1 in the appendages of the tail1 the
 middle division appears again and the  
outer vanishes2 while1 on the other     
hand1 in the foremost jaw1 the so-called
 mandible1 the inner division only is   
left2 and1 in the same way1 the parts of
 the feelers and of the eye-stalks can  
be identified with those of the legs and
 jaws4  ,but whither does all this tend8
 ,to the very remarkable conclusion that
 a unity of plan1 of the same kind as   
that discoverable in the tail or abdomen
 of the lobster1 pervades the whole     
organization of its skeleton1 so that ,i
 can return to the diagram representing 
any one of the rings of the tail1 which 
,i drew upon the board1 and by adding a 
third division to each appendage1 ,i can

 use it as a sort of scheme or plan of  
any ring of the body4 ,i can give names 
to all the parts of that figure1 and    
then if ,i take any segment of the body 
of the lobster1 ,i can point out to you 
exactly1 what modification the general  
plan has undergone in that particular   
segment2 what part has remained movable1
 and what has become fixed to another2  
what has been excessively developed and 
metamorphosed and what has been         
suppressed4  ,but ,i imagine ,i hear the
 question1 ,how is all this to be       
tested8 ,no doubt it is a pretty and    
ingenious way of looking at the         
structure of any animal2 but is it      
anything more8 ,does ,nature            
acknowledge1 in any deeper way1 this    
unity of plan we seem to trace8  ,the   
objection suggested by these questions  
is a very valid and important one1 and  
morphology was in an unsound state so   
long as it rested upon the mere         
perception of the analogies which obtain
 between fully formed parts4 ,the       

unchecked ingenuity of speculative      
anatomists proved itself fully competent
 to spin any number of contradictory    
hypotheses out of the same facts1 and   
endless morphological dreams threatened 
to supplant scientific theory4          
,happily1 however1 there is a criterion 
of morphological truth1 and a sure test 
of all homologies4 ,our lobster has not 
always been what we see it2 it was once 
an egg1 a semifluid mass of yolk1 not so
 big as a pin's head1 contained in a    
transparent membrane1 and exhibiting not
 the least trace of any one of those    
organs1 whose multiplicity and          
complexity1 in the adult1 are so        
surprising4 ,after a time a delicate    
patch of cellular membrane appeared upon
 one face of this yolk1 and that patch  
was the foundation of the whole         
creature1 the clay out of which it would
 be moulded4 ,gradually investing the   
yolk1 it became subdivided by transverse
 constrictions into segments1 the       
forerunners of the rings of the body4   

,upon the ventral surface of each of the
 rings thus sketched out1 a pair of     
bud-like prominences made their         
appearance--the rudiments of the        
appendages of the ring4 ,at first1 all  
the appendages were alike1 but1 as they 
grew1 most of them became distinguished 
into a stem and two terminal divisions1 
to which in the middle part of the body1
 was added a third outer division2 and  
it was only at a later period1 that by  
the modification1 or absorption1 of     
certain of these primitive constituents1
 the limbs acquired their perfect form4 
,thus the study of development proves   
that the doctrine of unity of plan is   
not merely a fancy1 that it is not      
merely one way of looking at the matter1
 but that it is the expression of       
deep-seated natural facts4 ,the legs and
 jaws of the lobster may not merely be  
regarded as modifications of a common   
type1--in fact and in nature they are   
so1--the leg and the jaw of the young   
animal being1 at first1                 

indistinguishable4  ,these are wonderful
 truths1 the more so because the        
zoologist finds them to be of universal 
application4 ,the investigation of a    
polype1 of a snail1 of a fish1 of a     
horse1 or of a man1 would have led us1  
though by a less easy path1 perhaps1 to 
exactly the same point4 ,unity of plan  
everywhere lies hidden under the mask of
 diversity of structure--the complex is 
everywhere evolved out of the simple4   
,every animal has at first the form of  
an egg1 and every animal and every      
organic part1 in reaching its adult     
state1 passes through conditions common 
to other animals and other adult parts2 
and this leads me to another point4 ,i  
have hitherto spoken as if the lobster  
were alone in the world1 but1 as ,i need
 hardly remind you1 there are myriads of
 other animal organisms4 ,of these1     
some1 such as men1 horses1 birds1       
fishes1 snails1 slugs1 oysters1 corals1 
and sponges1 are not in the least like  
the lobster4 ,but other animals1 though 

they may differ a good deal from the    
lobster1 are yet either very like it1 or
 are like something that is like it4    
,the cray fish1 the rock lobster1 and   
the prawn1 and the shrimp1 for example1 
however different1 are yet so like      
lobsters1 that a child would group them 
as of the lobster kind1 in              
contradistinction to snails and slugs2  
and these last again would form a kind  
by themselves1 in contradistinction to  
cows1 horses1 and sheep1 the cattle     
kind4  ,but this spontaneous grouping   
into kinds is the first essay of the    
human mind at classification1 or the    
calling by a common name of those things
 that are alike1 and the arranging them 
in such a manner as best to suggest the 
sum of their likenesses and unlikenesses
 to other things4  ,those kinds which   
include no other subdivisions than the  
sexes1 or various breeds1 are called1 in
 technical language1 species4 ,the      
,english lobster is a species1 our cray 
fish is another1 our prawn is another4  

,in other countries1 however1 there are 
lobsters1 cray fish1 and prawns1 very   
like ours1 and yet presenting sufficient
 differences to deserve distinction4    
,naturalists1 therefore1 express this   
resemblance and this diversity by       
grouping them as distinct species of the
 same genus4 ,but the lobster and the   
cray fish1 though belonging to distinct 
genera1 have many features in common1   
and hence are grouped together in an    
assemblage which is called a family4    
,more distant resemblances connect the  
lobster with the prawn and the crab1    
which are expressed by putting all these
 into the same order4 ,again1 more      
remote1 but still very definite1        
resemblances unite the lobster with the 
woodlouse1 the king crab1 the water     
flea1 and the barnacle1 and separate    
them from all other animals2 whence they
 collectively constitute the larger     
group1 or class1 ',crustacea'4 ,but the 
',crustacea' exhibit many peculiar      
features in common with insects1        

spiders1 and centipedes1 so that these  
are grouped into the still larger       
assemblage or province ',articulata'2   
and1 finally1 the relations which these 
have to worms and other lower animals1  
are expressed by combining the whole    
vast aggregate into the sub-kingdom of  
',annulosa'4  ,if ,i had worked my way  
from a sponge instead of a lobster1 ,i  
should have found it associated1 by like
 ties1 with a great number of other     
animals into the sub-kingdom            
',protozoa'2 if ,i had selected a       
fresh-water polype or a coral1 the      
members of what naturalists term the    
sub-kingdom ',coelenterata'1 would have 
grouped themselves around my type2 had a
 snail been chosen1 the inhabitants of  
all univalve and bivalve1 land and      
water1 shells1 the lamp shells1 the     
squids1 and the sea-mat would have      
gradually linked themselves on to it as 
members of the same sub-kingdom of      
',mollusca'2 and finally1 starting from 
man1 ,i should have been compelled to   

admit first1 the ape1 the rat1 the      
horse1 the dog1 into the same class2 and
 then the bird1 the crocodile1 the      
turtle1 the frog1 and the fish1 into the
 same sub-kingdom of ',vertebrata'4     
,and if ,i had followed out all these   
various lines of classification fully1  
,i should discover in the end that there
 was no animal1 either recent or fossil1
 which did not at once fall into one or 
other of these sub-kingdoms4 ,in other  
words1 every animal is organized upon   
one or other of the five1 or more1      
plans1 whose existence renders our      
classification possible4 ,and so        
definitely and precisely marked is the  
structure of each animal1 that1 in the  
present state of our knowledge1 there is
 not the least evidence to prove that a 
form1 in the slightest degree           
transitional between any of the two     
groups ',vertebrata'1 ',annulosa'1      
',mollusca'1 and ',coelenterata'1 either
 exists1 or has existed1 during that    
period of the earth's history which is  

recorded by the geologist4              
,nevertheless1 you must not for a moment
 suppose1 because no such transitional  
forms are known1 that the members of the
 sub-kingdoms are disconnected from1 or 
independent of1 one another4 ,on the    
contrary1 in their earliest condition   
they are all alike1 and the primordial  
germs of a man1 a dog1 a bird1 a fish1 a
 beetle1 a snail1 and a polype are1 in  
no essential structural respects1       
distinguishable4  ,in this broad sense1 
it may with truth be said1 that all     
living animals1 and all those dead      
creations which geology reveals1 are    
bound together by an all-pervading unity
 of organization1 of the same character1
 though not equal in degree1 to that    
which enables us to discern one and the 
same plan amidst the twenty different   
segments of a lobster's body4 ,truly it 
has been said1 that to a clear eye the  
smallest fact is a window through which 
the ,infinite may be seen4  ,turning    
from these purely morphological         

considerations1 let us now examine into 
the manner in which the attentive study 
of the lobster impels us into other     
lines of research4  ,lobsters are found 
in all the ,european seas2 but on the   
opposite shores of the ,atlantic and in 
the seas of the southern hemisphere they
 do not exist4 ,they are1 however1      
represented in these regions by very    
closely allied1 but distinct forms--the 
',homarus ,americanus' and the ',homarus
 ,capensis'3 so that we may say that the
 ,european has one species of           
',homarus'2 the ,american1 another2 the 
,african1 another2 and thus the         
remarkable facts of geographical        
distribution begin to dawn upon us4     
,again1 if we examine the contents of   
the earth's crust1 we shall find in the 
latter of those deposits1 which have    
served as the great burying grounds of  
past ages1 numberless lobster-like      
animals1 but none so similar to our     
living lobster as to make zoologists    
sure that they belonged even to the same

 genus4 ,if we go still further back in 
time1 we discover1 in the oldest rocks  
of all1 the remains of animals1         
constructed on the same general plan as 
the lobster1 and belonging to the same  
great group of ',crustacea'2 but for the
 most part totally different from the   
lobster1 and indeed from any other      
living form of crustacean2 and thus we  
gain a notion of that successive change 
of the animal population of the globe1  
in past ages1 which is the most striking
 fact revealed by geology4  ,consider1  
now1 where our inquiries have led us4   
,we studied our type morphologically1   
when we determined its anatomy and its  
development1 and when comparing it1 in  
these respects1 with other animals1 we  
made out its place in a system of       
classification4 ,if we were to examine  
every animal in a similar manner1 we    
should establish a complete body of     
zoological morphology4  ,again1 we      
investigated the distribution of our    
type in space and in time1 and1 if the  

like had been done with every animal1   
the sciences of geographical and        
geological distribution would have      
attained their limit4  ,but you will    
observe one remarkable circumstance1    
that1 up to this point1 the question of 
the life of these organisms has not come
 under consideration4 ,morphology and   
distribution might be studied almost as 
well1 if animals and plants were a      
peculiar kind of crystals1 and possessed
 none of those functions which          
distinguish living beings so remarkably4
 ,but the facts of morphology and       
distribution have to be accounted for1  
and the science1 whose aim it is to     
account for them1 is ,physiology4  ,let 
us return to our lobster once more4 ,if 
we watched the creature in its native   
element1 we should see it climbing      
actively the submerged rocks1 among     
which it delights to live1 by means of  
its strong legs2 or swimming by powerful
 strokes of its great tail1 the         
appendages of whose sixth joint are     

spread out into a broad fan-like        
propeller3 seize it1 and it will show   
you that its great claws are no mean    
weapons of offence2 suspend a piece of  
carrion among its haunts1 and it will   
greedily devour it1 tearing and crushing
 the flesh by means of its multitudinous
 jaws4  ,suppose that we had known      
nothing of the lobster but as an inert  
mass1 an organic crystal1 if ,i may use 
the phrase1 and that we could suddenly  
see it exerting all these powers1 what  
wonderful new ideas and new questions   
would arise in our minds6 ,the great new
 question would be1 ,how does all this  
take place8 the chief new idea would be1
 the idea of adaptation to purpose1--the
 notion1 that the constituents of animal
 bodies are not mere unconnected parts1 
but organs working together to an end4  
,let us consider the tail of the lobster
 again from this point of view4         
,morphology has taught us that it is a  
series of segments composed of          
homologous parts1 which undergo various 

modifications--beneath and through which
 a common plan of formation is          
discernible4 ,but if ,i look at the same
 part physiologically1 ,i see that it is
 a most beautifully constructed organ of
 locomotion1 by means of which the      
animal can swiftly propel itself either 
backwards or forwards4  ,but how is this
 remarkable propulsive machine made to  
perform its functions8 ,if ,i were      
suddenly to kill one of these animals   
and to take out all the soft parts1 ,i  
should find the shell to be perfectly   
inert1 to have no more power of moving  
itself than is possessed by the         
machinery of a mill when disconnected   
from its steam-engine or water-wheel4   
,but if ,i were to open it1 and take out
 the viscera only1 leaving the white    
flesh1 ,i should perceive that the      
lobster could bend and extend its tail  
as well as before4 ,if ,i were to cut   
off the tail1 ,i should cease to find   
any spontaneous motion in it2 but on    
pinching any portion of the flesh1 ,i   

should observe that it underwent a very 
curious change--each fibre becoming     
shorter and thicker4 ,by this act of    
contraction1 as it is termed1 the parts 
to which the ends of the fibre are      
attached are1 of course1 approximated2  
and according to the relations of their 
points of attachment to the centres of  
motions of the different rings1 the     
bending or the extension of the tail    
results4 ,close observation of the      
newly-opened lobster would soon show    
that all its movements are due to the   
same cause--the shortening and          
thickening of these fleshy fibres1 which
 are technically called muscles4  ,here1
 then1 is a capital fact4 ,the movements
 of the lobster are due to muscular     
contractility4 ,but why does a muscle   
contract at one time and not at another8
 ,why does one whole group of muscles   
contract when the lobster wishes to     
extend his tail1 and another group when 
he desires to bend it8 ,what is it      
originates1 directs1 and controls the   

motive power8  ,experiment1 the great   
instrument for the ascertainment of     
truth in physical science1 answers this 
question for us4 ,in the head of the    
lobster there lies a small mass of that 
peculiar tissue which is known as       
nervous substance4 ,cords of similar    
matter connect this brain of the        
lobster1 directly or indirectly1 with   
the muscles4 ,now1 if these             
communicating cords are cut1 the brain  
remaining entire1 the power of exerting 
what we call voluntary motion in the    
parts below the section is destroyed2   
and on the other hand1 if1 the cords    
remaining entire1 the brain mass be     
destroyed1 the same voluntary mobility  
is equally lost4 ,whence the inevitable 
conclusion is1 that the power of        
originating these motions resides in the
 brain1 and is propagated along the     
nervous cords4  ,in the higher animals  
the phenomena which attend this         
transmission have been investigated1 and
 the exertion of the peculiar energy    

which resides in the nerves has been    
found to be accompanied by a disturbance
 of the electrical state of their       
molecules4  ,if we could exactly        
estimate the signification of this      
disturbance2 if we could obtain the     
value of a given exertion of nerve force
 by determining the quantity of         
electricity1 or of heat1 of which it is 
the equivalent2 if we could ascertain   
upon what arrangement1 or other         
condition of the molecules of matter1   
the manifestation of the nervous and    
muscular energies depends 7and doubtless
 science will some day or other         
ascertain these points71 physiologists  
would have attained their ultimate goal 
in this direction2 they would have      
determined the relation of the motive   
force of animals to the other forms of  
force found in nature2 and if the same  
process had been successfully performed 
for all the operations which are carried
 on in1 and by1 the animal frame1       
physiology would be perfect1 and the    

facts of morphology and distribution    
would be deducible from the laws which  
physiologists had established1 combined 
with those determining the condition of 
the surrounding universe4  ,there is not
 a fragment of the organism of this     
humble animal whose study would not lead
 us into regions of thought as large as 
those which ,i have briefly opened up to
 you2 but what ,i have been saying1 ,i  
trust1 has not only enabled you to form 
a conception of the scope and purport of
 zoology1 but has given you an imperfect
 example of the manner in which1 in my  
opinion1 that science1 or indeed any    
physical science1 may be best taught4   
,the great matter is1 to make teaching  
real and practical1 by fixing the       
attention of the student on particular  
facts2 but at the same time it should be
 rendered broad and comprehensive1 by   
constant reference to the               
generalizations of which all particular 
facts are illustrations4 ,the lobster   
has served as a type of the whole animal

 kingdom1 and its anatomy and physiology
 have illustrated for us some of the    
greatest truths of biology4 ,the student
 who has once seen for himself the facts
 which ,i have described1 has had their 
relations explained to him1 and has     
clearly comprehended them1 has1 so far1 
a knowledge of zoology1 which is real   
and genuine1 however limited it may be1 
and which is worth more than all the    
mere reading knowledge of the science he
 could ever acquire4 ,his zoological    
information is1 so far1 knowledge and   
not mere hear-say4  ,and if it were my  
business to fit you for the certificate 
in zoological science granted by this   
department1 ,i should pursue a course   
precisely similar in principle to that  
which ,i have taken to-night4 ,i should 
select a fresh-water sponge1 a          
fresh-water polype or a ',cyanaea'1 a   
fresh-water mussel1 a lobster1 a fowl1  
as types of the five primary divisions  
of the animal kingdom4 ,i should explain
 their structure very fully1 and show   

how each illustrated the great          
principles of zoology4 ,having gone very
 carefully and fully over this ground1  
,i should feel that you had a safe      
foundation1 and ,i should then take you 
in the same way1 but less minutely1 over
 similarly selected illustrative types  
of the classes2 and then ,i should      
direct your attention to the special    
forms enumerated under the head of      
types1 in this syllabus1 and to the     
other facts there mentioned4  ,that     
would1 speaking generally1 be my plan4  
,but ,i have undertaken to explain to   
you the best mode of acquiring and      
communicating a knowledge of zoology1   
and you may therefore fairly ask me for 
a more detailed and precise account of  
the manner in which ,i should propose to
 furnish you with the information ,i    
refer to4  ,my own impression is1 that  
the best model for all kinds of training
 in physical science is that afforded by
 the method of teaching anatomy1 in use 
in the medical schools4 ,this method    

consists of three elements--lectures1   
demonstrations1 and examinations4  ,the 
object of lectures is1 in the first     
place1 to awaken the attention and      
excite the enthusiasm of the student2   
and this1 ,i am sure1 may be effected to
 a far greater extent by the oral       
discourse and by the personal influence 
of a respected teacher than in any other
 way4 ,secondly1 lectures have the      
double use of guiding the student to the
 salient points of a subject1 and at the
 same time forcing him to attend to the 
whole of it1 and not merely to that part
 which takes his fancy4 ,and lastly1    
lectures afford the student the         
opportunity of seeking explanations of  
those difficulties which will1 and      
indeed ought to1 arise in the course of 
his studies4  ,but for a student to     
derive the utmost possible value from   
lectures1 several precautions are       
needful4  ,i have a strong impression   
that the better a discourse is1 as an   
oration1 the worse it is as a lecture4  

,the flow of the discourse carries you  
on without proper attention to its      
sense2 you drop a word or a phrase1 you 
lose the exact meaning for a moment1 and
 while you strive to recover yourself1  
the speaker has passed on to something  
else4  ,the practice ,i have adopted of 
late years1 in lecturing to students1 is
 to condense the substance of the hour's
 discourse into a few dry propositions1 
which are read slowly and taken down    
from dictation2 the reading of each     
being followed by a free commentary     
expanding and illustrating the          
proposition1 explaining terms1 and      
removing any difficulties that may be   
attackable in that way1 by diagrams made
 roughly1 and seen to grow under the    
lecturer's hand4 ,in this manner you1 at
 any rate1 insure the co-operation of   
the student to a certain extent4 ,he    
cannot leave the lecture-room entirely  
empty if the taking of notes is         
enforced2 and a student must be         
preternaturally dull and mechanical1 if 

he can take notes and hear them properly
 explained1 and yet learn nothing4      
,what books shall ,i read8 is a question
 constantly put by the student to the   
teacher4 ,my reply usually is1 ,none3   
write your notes out carefully and      
fully2 strive to understand them        
thoroughly2 come to me for the          
explanation of anything you cannot      
understand2 and ,i would rather you did 
not distract your mind by reading4 ,a   
properly composed course of lectures    
ought to contain fully as much matter as
 a student can assimilate in the time   
occupied by its delivery2 and the       
teacher should always recollect that his
 business is to feed1 and not to cram   
the intellect4 ,indeed1 ,i believe that 
a student who gains from a course of    
lectures the simple habit of            
concentrating his attention upon a      
definitely limited series of facts1     
until they are thoroughly mastered1 has 
made a step of immeasurable importance4 
,but1 however good lectures may be1 and 

however extensive the course of reading 
by which they are followed up1 they are 
but accessories to the great instrument 
of scientific teaching--demonstration4  
,if ,i insist unweariedly1 nay          
fanatically1 upon the importance of     
physical science as an educational      
agent1 it is because the study of any   
branch of science1 if properly          
conducted1 appears to me to fill up a   
void left by all other means of         
education4 ,i have the greatest respect 
and love for literature2 nothing would  
grieve me more than to see literary     
training other than a very prominent    
branch of education3 indeed1 ,i wish    
that real literary discipline were far  
more attended to than it is2 but ,i     
cannot shut my eyes to the fact1 that   
there is a vast difference between men  
who have had a purely literary1 and     
those who have had a sound scientific1  
training4  ,seeking for the cause of    
this difference1 ,i imagine ,i can find 
it in the fact that1 in the world of    

letters1 learning and knowledge are one1
 and books are the source of both2      
whereas in science1 as in life1 learning
 and knowledge are distinct1 and the    
study of things1 and not of books1 is   
the source of the latter4  ,all that    
literature has to bestow may be obtained
 by reading and by practical exercise in
 writing and in speaking2 but ,i do not 
exaggerate when ,i say1 that none of the
 best gifts of science are to be won by 
these means4 ,on the contrary1 the great
 benefit which a scientific education   
bestows1 whether as training or as      
knowledge1 is dependent upon the extent 
to which the mind of the student is     
brought into immediate contact with     
facts--upon the degree to which he      
learns the habit of appealing directly  
to ,nature1 and of acquiring through his
 senses concrete images of those        
properties of things1 which are1 and    
always will be1 but approximatively     
expressed in human language4 ,our way of
 looking at ,nature1 and of speaking    

about her1 varies from year to year2 but
 a fact once seen1 a relation of cause  
and effect1 once demonstratively        
apprehended1 are possessions which      
neither change nor pass away1 but1 on   
the contrary1 form fixed centres1 about 
which other truths aggregate by natural 
affinity4  ,therefore1 the great        
business of the scientific teacher is1  
to imprint the fundamental1 irrefragable
 facts of his science1 not only by words
 upon the mind1 but by sensible         
impressions upon the eye1 and ear1 and  
touch of the student1 in so complete a  
manner1 that every term used1 or law    
enunciated1 should afterwards call up   
vivid images of the particular          
structural1 or other1 facts which       
furnished the demonstration of the law1 
or the illustration of the term4  ,now  
this important operation can only be    
achieved by constant demonstration1     
which may take place to a certain       
imperfect extent during a lecture1 but  
which ought also to be carried on       

independently1 and which should be      
addressed to each individual student1   
the teacher endeavouring1 not so much to
 show a thing to the learner1 as to make
 him see it for himself4  ,i am well    
aware that there are great practical    
difficulties in the way of effectual    
zoological demonstrations4 ,the         
dissection of animals is not altogether 
pleasant1 and requires much time2 nor is
 it easy to secure an adequate supply of
 the needful specimens4 ,the botanist   
has here a great advantage2 his         
specimens are easily obtained1 are clean
 and wholesome1 and can be dissected in 
a private house as well as anywhere     
else2 and hence1 ,i believe1 the fact1  
that botany is so much more readily and 
better taught than its sister science4  
,but1 be it difficult or be it easy1 if 
zoological science is to be properly    
studied1 demonstration1 and1            
consequently1 dissection1 must be had4  
,without it1 no man can have a really   
sound knowledge of animal organization4 

,a good deal may be done1 however1      
without actual dissection on the        
student's part1 by demonstration upon   
specimens and preparations2 and in all  
probability it would not be very        
difficult1 were the demand sufficient1  
to organize collections of such objects1
 sufficient for all the purposes of     
elementary teaching1 at a comparatively 
cheap rate4 ,even without these1 much   
might be effected1 if the zoological    
collections1 which are open to the      
public1 were arranged according to what 
has been termed the typical principle2  
that is to say1 if the specimens exposed
 to public view were so selected that   
the public could learn something from   
them1 instead of being1 as at present1  
merely confused by their multiplicity4  
,for example1 the grand ornithological  
gallery at the ,british ,museum contains
 between two and three thousand species 
of birds1 and sometimes five or six     
specimens of a species4 ,they are very  
pretty to look at1 and some of the cases

 are1 indeed1 splendid2 but ,i will     
undertake to say1 that no man but a     
professed ornithologist has ever        
gathered much information from the      
collection4 ,certainly1 no one of the   
tens of thousands of the general public 
who have walked through that gallery    
ever knew more about the essential      
peculiarities of birds when he left the 
gallery than when he entered it4 ,but   
if1 somewhere in that vast hall1 there  
were a few preparations1 exemplifying   
the leading structural peculiarities and
 the mode of development of a common    
fowl2 if the types of the genera1 the   
leading modifications in the skeleton1  
in the plumage at various ages1 in the  
mode of nidification1 and the like1     
among birds1 were displayed2 and if the 
other specimens were put away in a place
 where the men of science1 to whom they 
are alone useful1 could have free access
 to them1 ,i can conceive that this     
collection might become a great         
instrument of scientific education4     

,the last implement of the teacher to   
which ,i have adverted is examination--a
 means of education now so thoroughly   
understood that ,i need hardly enlarge  
upon it4 ,i hold that both written and  
oral examinations are indispensable1    
and1 by requiring the description of    
specimens1 they may be made to          
supplement demonstration4  ,such is the 
fullest reply the time at my disposal   
will allow me to give to the            
question--how may a knowledge of zoology
 be best acquired and communicated8     
,but there is a previous question which 
may be moved1 and which1 in fact1 ,i    
know many are inclined to move4 ,it is  
the question1 why should training       
masters be encouraged to acquire a      
knowledge of this1 or any other branch  
of physical science8 ,what is the use1  
it is said1 of attempting to make       
physical science a branch of primary    
education8 ,is it not probable that     
teachers1 in pursuing such studies1 will
 be led astray from the acquirement of  

more important but less attractive      
knowledge8 ,and1 even if they can learn 
something of science without prejudice  
to their usefulness1 what is the good of
 their attempting to instil that        
knowledge into boys whose real business 
is the acquisition of reading1 writing1 
and arithmetic8  ,these questions are1  
and will be1 very commonly asked1 for   
they arise from that profound ignorance 
of the value and true position of       
physical science1 which infests the     
minds of the most highly educated and   
intelligent classes of the community4   
,but if ,i did not feel well assured    
that they are capable of being easily   
and satisfactorily answered2 that they  
have been answered over and over again2 
and that the time will come when men of 
liberal education will blush to raise   
such questions1--,i should be ashamed of
 my position here to-night4 ,without    
doubt1 it is your great and very        
important function to carry out         
elementary education2 without question1 

anything that should interfere with the 
faithful fulfilment of that duty on your
 part would be a great evil2 and if ,i  
thought that your acquirement of the    
elements of physical science1 and your  
communication of those elements to your 
pupils1 involved any sort of            
interference with your proper duties1 ,i
 should be the first person to protest  
against your being encouraged to do     
anything of the kind4  ,but is it true  
that the acquisition of such a knowledge
 of science as is proposed1 and the     
communication of that knowledge1 are    
calculated to weaken your usefulness8   
,or may ,i not rather ask1 is it        
possible for you to discharge your      
functions properly without these aids8  
,what is the purpose of primary         
intellectual education8 ,i apprehend    
that its first object is to train the   
young in the use of those tools         
wherewith men extract knowledge from the
 ever-shifting succession of phenomena  
which pass before their eyes2 and that  

its second object is to inform them of  
the fundamental laws which have been    
found by experience to govern the course
 of things1 so that they may not be     
turned out into the world naked1        
defenceless1 and a prey to the events   
they might control4  ,a boy is taught to
 read his own and other languages1 in   
order that he may have access to        
infinitely wider stores of knowledge    
than could ever be opened to him by oral
 intercourse with his fellow men2 he    
learns to write1 that his means of      
communication with the rest of mankind  
may be indefinitely enlarged1 and that  
he may record and store up the knowledge
 he acquires4 ,he is taught elementary  
mathematics1 that he may understand all 
those relations of number and form1 upon
 which the transactions of men1         
associated in complicated societies1 are
 built1 and that he may have some       
practice in deductive reasoning4  ,all  
these operations of reading1 writing1   
and ciphering1 are intellectual tools1  

whose use should1 before all things1 be 
learned1 and learned thoroughly2 so that
 the youth may be enabled to make his   
life that which it ought to be1 a       
continual progress in learning and in   
wisdom4  ,but1 in addition1 primary     
education endeavours to fit a boy out   
with a certain equipment of positive    
knowledge4 ,he is taught the great laws 
of morality2 the religion of his sect2  
so much history and geography as will   
tell him where the great countries of   
the world are1 what they are1 and how   
they have become what they are4         
,without doubt all these are most       
fitting and excellent things to teach a 
boy2 ,i should be very sorry to omit any
 of them from any scheme of primary     
intellectual education4 ,the system is  
excellent1 so far as it goes4  ,but if  
,i regard it closely1 a curious         
reflection arises4 ,i suppose that1     
fifteen hundred years ago1 the child of 
any well-to-do ,roman citizen was taught
 just these same things2 reading and    

writing in his own1 and1 perhaps1 the   
,greek tongue2 the elements of          
mathematics2 and the religion1 morality1
 history1 and geography current in his  
time4 ,furthermore1 ,i do not think ,i  
err in affirming1 that1 if such a       
,christian ,roman boy1 who had finished 
his education1 could be transplanted    
into one of our public schools1 and pass
 through its course of instruction1 he  
would not meet with a single unfamiliar 
line of thought2 amidst all the new     
facts he would have to learn1 not one   
would suggest a different mode of       
regarding the universe from that current
 in his own time4  ,and yet surely there
 is some great difference between the   
civilization of the fourth century and  
that of the nineteenth1 and still more  
between the intellectual habits and tone
 of thought of that day and this8  ,and 
what has made this difference8 ,i answer
 fearlessly--,the prodigious development
 of physical science within the last two
 centuries4  ,modern civilization rests 

upon physical science2 take away her    
gifts to our own country1 and our       
position among the leading nations of   
the world is gone to-morrow2 for it is  
physical science only1 that makes       
intelligence and moral energy stronger  
than brute force4  ,the whole of modern 
thought is steeped in science2 it has   
made its way into the works of our best 
poets1 and even the mere man of letters1
 who affects to ignore and despise      
science1 is unconsciously impregnated   
with her spirit1 and indebted for his   
best products to her methods4 ,i believe
 that the greatest intellectual         
revolution mankind has yet seen is now  
slowly taking place by her agency4 ,she 
is teaching the world that the ultimate 
court of appeal is observation and      
experiment1 and not authority2 she is   
teaching it to estimate the value of    
evidence2 she is creating a firm and    
living faith in the existence of        
immutable moral and physical laws1      
perfect obedience to which is the       

highest possible aim of an intelligent  
being4  ,but of all this your old       
stereotyped system of education takes no
 note4 ,physical science1 its methods1  
its problems1 and its difficulties1 will
 meet the poorest boy at every turn1 and
 yet we educate him in such a manner    
that he shall enter the world as        
ignorant of the existence of the methods
 and facts of science as the day he was 
born4 ,the modern world is full of      
artillery2 and we turn out our children 
to do battle in it1 equipped with the   
shield and sword of an ancient          
gladiator4  ,posterity will cry shame on
 us if we do not remedy this deplorable 
state of things4 ,nay1 if we live twenty
 years longer1 our own consciences will 
cry shame on us4  ,it is my firm        
conviction that the only way to remedy  
it is1 to make the elements of physical 
science an integral part of primary     
education4 ,i have endeavoured to show  
you how that may be done for that branch
 of science which it is my business to  

pursue2 and ,i can but add1 that ,i     
should look upon the day when every     
schoolmaster throughout this land was a 
centre of genuine1 however rudimentary1 
scientific knowledge1 as an epoch in the
 history of the country4  ,but let me   
entreat you to remember my last words4  
,addressing myself to you1 as teachers1 
,i would say1 mere book learning in     
physical science is a sham and a        
delusion--what you teach1 unless you    
wish to be impostors1 that you must     
first know2 and real knowledge in       
science means personal acquaintance with
 the facts1 be they few or many4 #b     
,footnote #a3 ,a ,lecture delivered at  
the ,south ,kensington ,museum in #ahfa4
  ,footnote #b3 ,it has been suggested  
to me that these words may be taken to  
imply a discouragement on my part of any
 sort of scientific instruction which   
does not give an acquaintance with the  
facts at first hand4 ,but this is not my
 meaning4 ,the ideal of scientific      
teaching is1 no doubt1 a system by which

 the scholar sees every fact for        
himself1 and the teacher supplies only  
the explanations4 ,circumstances1       
however1 do not often allow of the      
attainment of that ideal1 and we must   
put up with the next best system--one in
 which the scholar takes a good deal on 
trust from a teacher1 who1 knowing the  
facts by his own knowledge1 can describe
 them with so much vividness as to      
enable his audience to form competent   
ideas concerning them4 ,the system which
 ,i repudiate is that which allows      
teachers who have not come into direct  
contact with the leading facts of a     
science to pass their second-hand       
information on4 ,the scientific virus1  
like vaccine lymph1 if passed through   
too long a succession of organisms1 will
 lose all its effect in protecting the  
young against the intellectual epidemics
 to which they are exposed4