,,heroes ,,of ,,science4                
,,heroes ,,of ,,science4                
,,botanists1 ,,zoologists1 ,,and        
,,geologists4                           
,,by                 ,,professor ,p4    
,,martin ,,duncan1 ,f4,r4,s41 ,f4,l4,s41
                  ,,vice ,,president    
,,of ,,the ,,geological ,,society2      
,,honorary ,,fellow ,,of ,,king',s      
,,college1 ,,london4                    
,,published ,,under ,,the ,,direction   
,,of ,,the ,,committee             ,,of 
,,general ,,literature ,,and ,,education
 ,,appointed ,,by ,,the                 
,,society ,,for ,,promoting ,,christian 
,,knowledge4                            
,,london3                  ,,society    
,,for ,,promoting ,,christian           
,,knowledge2                            
,,northumberland ,,avenue1 ,,charing    
,,cross2                  #dc1 ,,queen  
,,victoria ,,street2 #dh1 ,,piccadilly2 
,,and #ace1 ,,north ,,street1           
,,brighton4                      ,,new  
,,york3 ,e4  ,j4 ,b4 ,,young ,,and ,,co4

                                        
#ahhb4          ,illustration           
,,preface4    ,illustration      ,there 
is no little difficulty in obtaining    
correct and reliable life  histories of 
most of the greatest naturalists4 ,many 
of the men to whom  natural history     
science owes so much1 lived extremely   
retired and  uneventful lives2 but a    
few1 and as might have been anticipated1
 the  reformers and epoch makers of     
their respective sciences1 have had     
their  most interesting biographies well
 written4 ,abstracts of these           
biographies  form a large portion of    
this book2 and the author desires to    
acknowledge  the very copious extracts  
he has made1 from sources which he has  
recognized in the proper places4        
,illustration          ,,introduction4  
,illustration      ,most of us1 on      
leaving school or college1 are anxious  
about our future  career in the world1  
and concerning how we are to live1 and  
what will be  our occupations4 ,some    

young people who have finished their    
education1  find themselves in          
comfortable circumstances1 and are apt  
to look  forward to an easy life2 but   
the majority have a hard struggle before
  them1 ere they can hope to be free    
from cares and to be successful4  ,yet  
it usually happens1 that those youths   
starting with the very best  prospects1 
do not live so happily1 usefully1 and   
well1 as those who have  to struggle    
with poverty1 and who casting aside     
inglorious ease1 labour  on             
perseveringly4 ,it is hard to believe1  
until the experience of years  brings   
its very practical proofs that knowledge
 is more valuable than  money2 and      
therefore1 how to get rich1 is a        
predominant question with the  majority 
of us4 ,but the history of the struggles
 and successes of some  of the men who  
have led most useful and beautiful      
lives1 generally shows  that industry1  
perseverance and contentment have served
 them better than  pecuniary wealth1 and

 that this has often been a source of   
trouble to  them4 ,there is no better   
incitement to a youth who has tried to  
do his  best at school1 and who is      
thinking about leading a useful1        
successful  life1 than to read the      
history of the lives of the men whose   
names are  household words in the       
branches of knowledge he has learned4   
,at the present time1 much care is taken
 to instruct young people about  the    
nature and uses of plants1 the          
characteristics of animals and the      
ancient history of the earth4 ,museums  
are readily visited1 and little  home   
collections of plants1 insects1 birds1  
and fossils are frequently  easily made4
 ,natural history1 in all its branches1 
is easily studied2 and  as one becomes  
learned in it1 the names of many men1   
constantly1 come  before the student as 
the masters of their respective         
subjects4 ,who has  not heard of        
,linnus1 ,cuvier1 and ,lyell8 ,if any   
young naturalist will  read the history 

of the lives of these great men1 he will
 find much that  is very noble in them2 
he will see that they made their way    
through great  difficulties1 by constant
 and great intellectual labour1 and that
 they  led very good1 and useful1 and   
happy lives4    ,it may happen that any 
one just commencing to study nature1 is 
anxious  to make a great discovery and  
to obtain a great name4 ,the history of 
the  lives of these and other heroes of 
science1 will prove to him1 however1    
that discoveries are not sudden gains of
 knowledge1 but are the result  of very 
slow and gradual accumulation of facts4 
,if he is a real student  of nature1 he 
will strive for truth and not for       
personal distinction2  and the truth1   
brings a better reward than the fleeting
 praise of man4  ,the true lasts4 ,he   
will be able to glean that the special  
gifts of men1  if properly fostered and 
cultivated1 advance knowledge in        
particular  directions1 and that certain
 great changes and advances in the      

method  of learning1 have been due to   
men who have begun poor1 have laboured  
hard1 have been persecuted and vilified1
 and who have nevertheless lived        
happily in their consciences1 and have  
often become great men in every         
respect4    ,the following chapters     
contain the history of the lives of some
 of the  most interesting men of ancient
 and modern times--of men who are the   
heroes of ,botany1 ,zoology1 and        
,geology1 and who have added methods of 
study and many facts to their sciences4 
,illustration          ,,contents4      
,illustration                           
,,page4                                 
,,chapter ,i4             ,,the         
,,infancy ,,of ,,the ,,knowledge ,,of   
,,the ,,science ,,of ,,plants4          
,old fancies and notions about          
plants--,aristoteles1 the first         
botanist--,theophrastus--,plinius--,dios
corides--,their lives1 labours1      and
 troubles                               
#a                                      

,,chapter ,,ii4                         
,,the ,,rise ,,of ,,the ,,science ,,of  
,,plants4        ,john ,ray--,joseph de 
,tournefort--,their lives               
#bg                                     
,,chapter ,,iii4                        
,,the ,,life ,,of ,,linn,,us4           
,the science of plants begins to mature1
 to be reformed1 and to      be made    
more exact                              
#eb                                     
,,chapter ,,iv4                         
,,the ,,life ,,of ,,linn,,us            
7,continued74        ,the publication   
and reception of the artificial system  
of      classifying plants              
#ha                                     
,,chapter ,v4                   ,,the   
,,consolidation ,,of ,,the ,,science    
,,of ,,plants4        ,the life of ,de  
,candolle--,the ,natural ,system        
#ih                                     
,,chapter ,,vi4                         
,,heroes ,,of ,,zoology4        ,the    
nature of the science of zoology--,great

 zoologists usually      botanists      
also--,aristoteles as a                 
zoologist--,plinius--,the long age      
of no progress--,the life of ,conrad    
,gesner--,the zoology of ,ray and       
,willughby--,swammerdam--,raumur--,the  
zoology of ,linnus                #abb  
,,chapter ,,vii4                   ,,the
 ,,lives ,,of ,,buffon1 ,,pennant1 ,,and
 ,,lamarck4        ,the popular writings
 of ,buffon1 and his life--,pennant's   
life--,lamarck and his life--,the rise  
of popular natural history1      and of 
exact descriptions and philosophical    
zoology                #add             
,,chapter ,,viii4                       
,,the ,,life ,,of ,,cuvier4        ,the 
union of zoology and comparative        
anatomy1 and the      examination and   
study of fossil remains                 
#agh                                    
,,chapter ,,ix4                         
,,heroes ,,of ,,geology4        ,the    
rise of the science which treats of the 
ancient history      of the             

earth--,students of the present changes 
which are      the examples by which the
 past may be comprehended--,the         
,greeks--,the life of ,pythagoras2 a    
notice of the geology of                
,aristoteles--,strabo's life--,the      
nature of fossils and the life of       
,steno                                  
#bji                                    
,,chapter ,x4                           
,,the ,,life ,,of ,,hutton4        ,the 
rise of the modern school of            
geology--,the continuity of      the    
operations of nature and their          
sameness--,the necessity of             
studying the existing state of things in
 order to comprehend      the past--,the
 denial of catastrophes--,hutton's      
theory of the      earth the foundation 
of scientific geology                   
#bba                                    
,,chapter ,,xi4                         
,,the ,,life ,,of ,,william ,,smith4    
,the succession of the strata           
recognized--,strata known by their      

fossils1 position1 and mineral          
contents--,england surveyed by          
,smith and made the type of the results 
of the succession of      changes       
studied by geology                      
#bcf                                    
,,chapter ,,xii4                        
,,the ,,life ,,of ,,murchison4          
,the older rocks of the globe studied   
accurately and      surveyed--,the      
general similarity of the succession of 
strata      in many parts of the world  
decided--,the geology of ,wales and     
,scotland described--,the commencement  
of accurate geological      surveys     
#bge                                    
,,chapter ,,xiii4                       
,,the ,,life ,,of ,,lyell4        ,the  
study of existing nature and its changes
 undertaken in      order to comprehend 
the past changes during geological      
ages--,the      uniformity of natural   
operations under law--,catastrophes     
abolished--,the succession of life on   
the globe1 and that of the      tertiary

 ages explained--,the antiquity of man  
and of the great      ice age           
established                             
#cjg          ,illustration             
,,heroes ,,of ,,science4                
,illustration          ,,chapter ,i4    
,,the ,,infancy ,,of ,,the ,,knowledge  
,,of ,,the ,,science ,,of ,,plants4     
,old fancies and notions about          
plants--,aristoteles1 the first         
botanist--,theophrastus--,plinius--,dios
corides--,their lives1 labours1      and
 troubles4      ,everybody likes to     
gather flowers for the sake of their    
beauty and scent1  and most young people
 ask the names and the uses of the      
plants which  grow them4 ,these appear  
to have been the questions that the     
earliest  races of men sought to answer 
for themselves4 ,they gave plants names1
 and  ascribed some truthful and a great
 many very curious and false properties 
to them4 ,many of the first races of men
 lived on fruits1 vegetables1  and      
roots1 and it became important to know  

good and nourishing plants  from those  
which were poisonous4 ,the ablest men of
 the tribes1 probably1  studied the     
names which had been given by custom to 
many plants2 and the  healing power of  
some plants1 and the poisonous nature of
 others began  to be known2 the good and
 ill-disposed amongst men endeavoured to
 learn  all about them4 ,thus the first 
steps in the science of plants were to  
name them1 and to ascribe properties to 
them4 ,it has often been noticed  that  
there is some resemblance between the   
history of the progress of  a science1  
during all the ages of civilization1 and
 that of the rise  and progress of one  
in the child1 youth1 and man4 ,the child
 receives  everything that it is told1  
as a truth1 and loves the wonderful2 the
  youth likes to hear of mysteries1 and 
his emotions and poetic feeling  lead   
him to desire general truths2 and the   
man criticizes what he has  been told1  
tries to learn for himself1 and longs   
for exact knowledge and  the absolute   

truth4 ,so in the early days of         
civilization1 men believed  in          
everything that was told them1 and      
ascribed wonderful properties to  the   
nature around them which they saw was so
 beautiful and yet often so  terrible4  
,as the world got older1 curious legends
 were associated with  truths and       
falsities2 and with the general         
diffusion of learning1 and the  careful 
exercise of the reasoning powers1       
knowledge became more exact and  useful1
 and was followed for truth's sake4     
,all branches of knowledge relating to  
nature passed through many stages1  and 
were influenced by the prevailing habits
 and methods of thought of  the age4    
,the wonderful1 the mysterious1 the     
marvellous1 the union of  poetry with   
true and false religion1 the struggle   
between the desire for  truth and fear  
of the persecution of the ignorant1 and 
the victory of  cultivated observation  
and reason1 all followed1 in order1     
during the  history of the progress of  

every science4 ,a great writer states   
that it  cannot then surprise us that   
the earliest lore concerning plants1    
which  we discover in the records of the
 past1 consists of mythological legends1
  marvellous relations1 and             
extraordinary medicinal qualities4 ,to  
the  lively fancy of the ,greeks1 the   
narcissus1 which bends its head over the
  stream1 was originally a youth who1 in
 such an attitude1 became enamoured  of 
his own beauty4 ,the hyacinth1 on whose 
flower certain markings are to  be      
traced resembling the ,greek expression 
of grief 771 recorded the  sorrow of the
 god ,apollo for the death of his       
favourite ,hyacinthus4 ,the  beautiful  
lotus of ,india1 which floats with its  
splendid flower on the  surface of the  
water1 is the chosen seat of the goddess
 ,lackshmi1 the  daughter of ,ocean4 ,in
 ,egypt1 the god ,osiris swam on a lotus
 leaf1 and the  lotus-eaters of ,homer  
lost their love of home immediately4    
,these legends and odd fancies1 although

 believed in by the populace  of the    
,eastern nations until a late period in 
history1 were of great  antiquity and   
under different names of gods and       
plants1 heroes and  flowers had been    
handed down from the dawn of            
civilization4 ,yet this  was not all the
 knowledge about plants in those early  
years4 ,the more  thoughtful amongst men
 began to recognize plants by name and  
to study  their uses4 ,some men were    
hunters and shepherds1 but with them    
were those  who1 with gentler spirit1   
tilled the ground and stored the fruits 
of the  earth4 ,what these were1 can be 
learned from the pictures in ,egyptian  
paintings4 ,the corn of ,egypt was wheat
 and barley1 and it is interesting  to  
know that the wheat was of a kind that  
must have been produced by  skilled     
cultivation4    ,the vine comes early   
into notice in the ,bible1 and it had   
been studied1  for wine was made of its 
fruit4 ,solomon loved nature1 because it
 brought  him into the presence of truth

 and beauty1 and he 8spoke of trees from
  the cedar tree that is in ,lebanon    
even unto the hyssop that springeth  out
 of the wall40 ,this was part of his    
wisdom4 ,and the great traveller1       
,herodotus1 shows us that a taste for   
natural history had1 in his time1  found
 a place in the mind of the ,greeks--a  
great race who followed after  the first
 child-like nature-studies of the       
,chaldeans1 ,assyrians1 and             
,babylonians had merged into real       
knowledge4 ,in speaking of the luxuriant
  vegetation of the plains of           
,babylon--now dreary wastes--he is so   
far from  desiring to astonish merely1  
that he says 8the blades of wheat and   
barley  are full four fingers wide2 but 
as to the size of the trees which grow  
from millet and sesame1 though ,i could 
mention it ,i will not1 knowing  well   
that those who have not been in that    
country will hardly believe  what ,i    
have said already40 ,it is clear that   
when the ,greeks were in the  child-like

 stage of plant lore1 the older races   
had passed it1 and were  successful     
cultivators of plants that had required 
much study to turn  to use4 ,but the    
,greeks soon made amends1 and the       
teacher of ,alexander  the ,great1      
,aristoteles1 tried to arrange plants1  
and to classify them  according to their
 peculiarities4 ,plants and herbs had   
been long used as  medicine1 and the    
poisonous properties of aconite had been
 employed to  destroy one of the noblest
 men of old1 before this time1 so that  
this  celebrated naturalist had the     
knowledge1 which had been accumulating  
for  centuries1 to put in order and to  
arrange4    ,aristoteles was born at    
,stageira1 in the year #chd ,b4,c41 and 
it is  interesting to note that his     
wonderful love of nature was fostered   
by1  and1 indeed1 probably arose from   
the profession of his father4 ,his      
father was the physician and friend of  
,amyntas1 ,king of ,macedonia1 and  his 
mother was a descendant of the great    

physician sculapius4 ,the young         
,aristoteles lost both his parents at an
 early period of his life1 but the  son 
of ,amyntas1 called ,philip1 was his    
friend1 and kind people brought  the boy
 up4 ,we know nothing of the boy's      
habits or method of life2 but  it can be
 readily understood by those who read   
these lives1 and have had  a love of    
nature1 before the experience of such a 
calamity as the loss  of parents1 that  
many an hour of sorrow was shortened and
 solaced by  studying the graceful and  
blooming plants and the movements and   
habits  of animals4 ,certain it is that 
the boy loved study1 and it soon became 
evident that his loss was compensated1  
as it is very often in such  cases1 by a
 spirit of self-reliance4 ,in his       
eighteenth year he went to  ,athens to  
study the healing art4 ,when            
,aristoteles was about twenty-one  years
 of age1 the philosopher ,plato returned
 from ,sicily1 and the young  man then  
seems to have cared more for the study  

of the sciences which  were requisite   
for a polished physician1 than for the  
art of healing4  ,he made his first     
self-sacrifice1 as many a man has done  
since2 he gave  up the uncertainties of 
the art of curing diseases1 and learned 
natural  history and philosophy4 ,his   
eagerness for knowledge and his         
extraordinary  acuteness and sagacity   
doubtless attracted ,plato's notice1 who
 soon  called him 8the intellect of the 
school10 and said his house was 8the    
house of the reader40 ,as ,aristoteles  
grew up1 his early training and his     
love of the truth seen in nature1 began 
to separate him from the common  run of 
men1 and his self-reliance began to make
 him an antagonist to the  teachings    
even of the great ,plato4 ,but this     
opposition was not that of a  vain and  
conceited young man4 ,plato had noticed 
his ability1 and he was  really a man of
 mark1 whose opinions were valuable4    
,aristoteles studied  facts1 and knew   
many truths about natural history1 but  

his wonderful  master cared more for    
ideas4 ,such men must always clash1 and 
,aristoteles  writes in one of his books
 about his opposition to the philosophy 
of  ,plato1 that it is painful to refute
 the doctrine of ideas1 as it has  been 
introduced by persons who were his      
friends2 8nevertheless it is a  duty to 
disregard such private feelings1 for    
both philosophers and truth  are dear to
 me1 but it is right to give the        
preference to truth40 ,truth6  what is  
truth8 said ,pilate1 and turned from the
 true4 ,the ,creator's  light1 seen with
 our longing eyes1 precious beyond      
conception1 the  sweetest solace of     
intellect2 what is1 what was--yet not to
 be defined by  finite man4 ,the very   
root of science1 it is that which we are
 to hold in  our consciences against all
 opposition4 ,appreciated by the savage1
 dear  to pagan1 the pride of the       
,christian1 the giver of confidence     
amongst all  men4 ,hard to get at1 yet  
it is at the foundation of all those    

branches of  knowledge which relate to  
the study of the ,creation4 ,aristoteles
 studied  natural history1 that is1 the 
plants and animals which came before    
him1  especially4 ,he recorded their    
description1 noted their reproduction1  
and  tried to make out their            
resemblances4 ,he noticed the growth of 
things1  and the decay of the surface of
 the earth1 and having the facts and    
truths before him1 he argued upon them4 
,his master1 ,plato1 was not a          
naturalist1 but accepting the truths    
handed down to him by those who  were   
observers of nature1 he generalized     
about them1 and got ideas by  thinking  
out the bearings of the truths4 ,he     
loved the ideal1 and wrote1  8,behold   
this world6 ,you will find that its     
efficient cause is ,god1 by  whom it was
 brought into being2 its moving cause1  
the goodness of the  ,creator40 ,he     
could no more occupy time by studying   
the structure of the  flowers1 plants1  
and sea-shells1 than ,aristoteles could 

in imagining or  speculating on the     
causes of things4 ,both desired the     
truth1 and tried to  get it in different
 manners2 but as at the present day     
there are moral  philosophers and       
naturalists with totally different kinds
 of mind and  habits of thought1 so in  
those old days the master and pupil     
never worked  together4 ,the master gave
 way to his grand imagination1 and the  
pupil was  strictly a matter-of-fact    
man4    ,aristoteles remained at ,athens
 until he was thirty-seven years of age1
  when the death of ,plato1 in #cdg     
,b4,c41 happened4 ,before that time1    
however1 he had become a man of note1   
and the ,athenians sent him on an       
embassy to his friend and former patron1
 ,philip of ,macedon4 ,it appears  that 
he was able to serve his adopted        
country2 but he made a mistake  which   
all naturalists should avoid--he became 
a politician4 ,his position  at ,athens 
became uncomfortable1 and he left the   
city after the death  of ,plato1 and1   

accompanied by a fellow-disciple of the 
great teacher1  went into ,asia ,minor4 
,they were invited by the ,prince of    
,atarneus1 named  ,hermeias1 who had    
received lessons from ,aristoteles4     
,this man was once  the slave of a      
banker1 and when at ,athens received a  
liberal education4  ,returning to his   
native country1 he fought for ,eubulus1 
the ,king of  ,atarneus1 successfully   
against the ,persians4 ,on the death of 
,eubulus he  was raised to the throne1  
and gladly welcomed one of the men who  
had  given him knowledge1 and1          
therefore1 power4 ,the romance of       
,aristoteles'  life followed quickly1   
for1 unfortunately1 ,hermeias was       
captured by  the ,persians under a      
,greek general1 after ,aristoteles had  
been three  years with him4 ,he was put 
to death1 and ,aristoteles fled to      
,mitylene1  the chief city of the       
neighbouring island of ,lesbos4         
,hermeias had a  sister1 ,pythias1 and  
,aristoteles1 knowing her excellent     

character and  disposition1 and being   
aware of the sad fate which she would   
suffer1  were she to fall into the hands
 of the ,persians1 married her1 and she 
accompanied him in his flight4 ,she made
 him an excellent wife1 and             
,aristoteles had always a fervent and   
sincere affection for the patriotic  and
 philosophical prince his friend4       
,after two years' residence in          
,mitylene1 ,aristoteles was invited by  
,philip to return to ,macedonia1 to     
superintend the education of his son    
,alexander1 the future ,alexander the   
,great1 then fourteen years old4 ,he    
was with this very able prince during   
about four years1 and instructed  him in
 morality1 politics1 and natural        
history4 ,it was a strange position  for
 a student of nature to occupy1 and that
 he did his duty to his pupil  is       
evident4 ,it is the universal opinion   
that much that was admirable  in the    
character of ,alexander the ,great was  
due to the influence of  ,aristoteles4  

,the great conqueror was fond of        
literature1 delighted in  physical and  
even medical pursuits1 sought the       
intimacy of men who  thought1 rather    
than that of men who had no other       
recommendation than  titles and riches1 
and was devoted to the study of nature4 
,these were  the fruits of ,aristoteles'
 instruction1 and it must be remembered 
that  ,alexander differed entirely in   
his conduct from the brutal conquerors  
who  have been1 over and over again1 the
 scourge and curse of mankind4          
,aristoteles lost his wife during this  
time1 and she left him an only          
daughter4 ,then ,philip was             
assassinated1 and his son reigned at    
,macedon  for two years1 and then began 
his great expedition into ,asia4        
,aristoteles  accompanied his pupil to  
,athens1 and parted with him never to   
see him  again1 but still to influence  
him for years4 ,unfortunately1 however1 
,aristoteles recommended a relation1    
named ,callisthenes1 to the young  king1

 and it was the cause of a rupture of   
friendship in years to come4  ,left to  
himself1 our hero resolved to open a    
school for the benefit of  the ,athenian
 youth1 and to teach good learning in   
philosophy and nature4  ,he chose a     
house near a temple of ,apollo ,lyceius1
 which was called  the 8,lyceum10 and   
attached to it was a garden with walks1 
where the  instruction was given4 ,the  
,greek word for the walks was peripatua1
 and  the school was called that of the 
peripatetics4 ,his habit was to give    
one lecture in the early part of the    
day1 on the more difficult parts  of his
 teaching1 to his more advanced         
students2 and this was called the       
morning walk1 and lasted till the hour  
when people dressed and anointed        
themselves4 ,another lecture1 called the
 evening walk1 was on more  popular     
subjects1 and to a larger and less      
select class4 ,it was during  these     
thirteen years of teaching that         
,aristoteles composed and completed  the

 greater part of his works which have   
descended to our days4 ,amongst  them   
are treatises on natural history1 the   
result of his own observations  and of  
the carefully selected works of others4 
,his great pupil never forgot his master
 during his victorious career1  and     
,alexander is said to have sent         
,aristoteles the enormous sum of  eight 
hundred talents to prosecute his studies
 in natural history4 ,he1  moreover1    
ordered several thousands of persons    
over the whole of ,greece  and ,asia1   
who lived by hunting1 bird-catching1 and
 fishing1 or who  had the care of parks1
 herds1 hives1 stews1 and aviaries1 to  
furnish  ,aristoteles with materials for
 a work on animals4 ,two volumes on     
plants  were written by ,aristoteles1   
but they are lost to us2 and he         
influenced  the botanists of his day by 
his great exactitude of description and 
observation4    ,aristoteles' writings  
and teaching embraced a great variety of
 subjects1  and they were so genuine    

that he became the leader of one of the 
principal schools of ,greece2 and his   
method of study and many of his  facts  
and ideas have influenced mankind down  
to the present day4 ,his  works were    
much studied during the ,middle ,ages1  
and although his books on  botany have  
been lost1 still he influenced the study
 of botany through  his pupil1          
,theophrastus1 who became the great     
light of after years4    ,there is one  
point about ,aristoteles' character     
which everybody must  admire1 and it was
 the gratitude he felt for the good     
friends of his  youth and of the days of
 struggling upwards in his career4 ,it  
has been  noticed that he was brought up
 by kind people4 ,they were not         
relations1  but probably were appointed 
his guardians by his father4 ,they were 
,proxenus and his wife1 citizens of     
,atarneus1 who had left that city and   
had been long resident in ,stageira4    
,not only were they the good friends  of
 the boy1 but they evidently brought him

 in contact with ,hermeias1 who         
subsequently became the prince of the   
place and ,aristoteles' fast friend  and
 brother-in-law4 ,aristoteles testified 
his gratitude to his friends by         
directing in his will that statues of   
them1 as well as of his parents1  should
 be set up at his expense4 ,he likewise 
educated their son1 ,nicanor1  to whom  
he gave his daughter in marriage4       
,whilst growing old he wrote a          
beautiful poem1 which is still to be    
read1 praising the virtues of his       
friend and patron1 ,hermeias4    ,but   
success in life is sure to produce envy 
and hostility1 and  ,aristoteles was no 
exception to this rule4 ,a charge was   
made against  him of impiety1 and that  
he had made a god of his friend         
,hermeias4 ,such  charges were not      
uncommon in those days4 ,socrates1 one  
of the greatest  and purest of men1 had 
been accused of impiety a few years     
before1 and  that teacher of the        
immortality of the soul1 and the master 

and friend  of ,plato1 had been         
condemned and poisoned4 ,the charges    
were absurd  enough1 but the judges were
 ignorant1 and sunk in paganism1 and    
almost  invariably took the side of the 
accuser4 ,indeed1 all through the       
history  of the progress of the rise of 
civilization there were men who teaching
  a false religion1 accused the bright  
lights of genius1 science1 and  wit1 of 
irreligion4 ,the false priest and the   
fighting class1 with rare  exceptions1  
have always persecuted the leaders in   
science1 and have  antagonized progress1
 except in their own interests4    ,when
 the charge was made against            
,aristoteles1 ,alexander the ,great was 
dead1 and the great teacher1 knowing    
full well what would be the result  of  
the trial1 quitted ,athens and took     
refuge in ,chalcis1 in ,euba1  saying   
that he wished to prevent the ,athenians
 twice running against  philosophy1     
alluding to the judicial murder of      
,socrates4    ,but ,aristoteles' work   

was nearly ended1 and the slightly made1
 delicate1  and sensitive man sank      
during the first year of his exile1 in  
the  sixty-third year of his age4    ,a 
great writer on moral philosophy1 the   
man whose career has just been  noticed 
will always remain a master in natural  
history subjects also4  ,he was really a
 greater student of animal life than of 
plants2 but it  appears that his method 
of study of botany1 and much of his     
knowledge1  have descended to us1 in    
consequence of his careful teaching1    
through his  pupil ,theophrastus4 ,a    
great writer remarks that 8everywhere   
,aristoteles  observes the facts with   
attention2 he compares them with        
sagacity1  and endeavours to rise to the
 qualities they have in common40 ,he    
found  the study of plants in its very  
infancy and loaded with child-like and  
wonderful stories1 and he rejected the  
nonsense and studied what was  to be    
observed by any one in nature4 ,in fact1
 he took the first step  which a        

well-educated boy of the present century
 does in trying to learn  nature        
unaided4 ,he observed as correctly as   
possible1 took notes of his             
observations1 compared the observations 
made on one plant with those  recorded  
about another1 and tried to explain or  
discover the things which  were common  
to both4 ,it must not be imagined that  
the botanical work  of ,aristoteles     
exists as part of the systems of botany 
of the present  day2 but he clearly gave
 the method of how to study1 by         
insisting on the  superior value of     
observed facts1 over notions and        
preconceived ideas  about things4 ,the  
childhood of the science passed with    
him4    ,the name of ,theophrastus has  
been noticed as that of the pupil of    
,aristoteles1 and it is one which will  
always be mentioned with respect  by    
students of natural history4 ,he was    
born at ,eresus1 on the island of       
,lesbos2 but the date of his birth is   
uncertain2 moreover1 nothing is  known  

of his early youth1 except that his name
 was ,tyrtamus4 ,his early  education   
must have been good1 and he was sent to 
study at ,athens by his  father1 and to 
be a pupil of ,plato4 ,becoming a friend
 of ,aristoteles1  this great man1      
charmed with the abilities1 and         
especially with the  beautiful          
pronunciation and oratory of the youth1 
gave him the name of  ,theophrastus1 or 
one who speaks divinely4 ,theophrastus  
studied with  ,plato1 and on the death  
of his master1 left the academy and     
mixed with  the turbulent politics of   
the day1 but in a truly patriotic       
spirit4 ,he  was absent from ,athens for
 many years1 and the historian ,plutarch
 writes  that ,theophrastus delivered   
his country twice from the oppression of
  tyrants4 ,one of the defeated at the  
battle of ,chrona1 ,theophrastus        
returned to ,athens1 gave up the        
military life1 and became the favourite 
pupil of ,aristoteles in the ,lyceum4   
,theophrastus became an earnest student 

of ,aristoteles' teaching1 and his      
singular grace of expression and        
knowledge of his mother tongue soon made
  him a prominent philosopher4    ,when 
,aristoteles retired1 his pupil became  
his successor2 and as he  combined the  
knowledge of that teacher with the      
eloquence of ,plato1 his  success was   
extraordinary4 ,the number of his       
pupils1 on one occasion1 is  said to    
have amounted to two thousand who       
flocked around him from all  parts of   
,greece4 ,he soon began to feel the     
effects of his well-deserved  and useful
 success upon the envious minds of the  
men who had caused the  retirement of   
,aristoteles4 ,and this envy and malice 
were rendered all the  more intense     
because1 having been a gallant soldier1 
and being a great  teacher of advanced  
knowledge1 ,theophrastus became an      
authority on all  intellectual subjects4
 ,a man was put forward by a party in   
the ,state1  to bring the same charge of
 impiety against ,theophrastus which had

  succeeded in the instances of         
,socrates and ,aristoteles4 ,but        
,theophrastus  pleaded his own cause    
before the ,areopagus with such         
convincing eloquence  that he was       
pronounced innocent4 ,on the other hand1
 his accuser would  have fallen a victim
 to the false charge he had brought1 had
 not his  noble-minded antagonist       
pleaded for his pardon4    ,after this  
event the teacher pursued his course of 
public teaching and  private research   
without any molestation for years4 ,his 
school increased  in reputation1 and the
 most distinguished scholars of the day 
were  members of it4 ,demetrius         
,phalereus1 ruler of the ,state1 was one
 of the  students in his youth1 and he  
protected ,theophrastus and patronized  
him  in every way4 ,botany was not the  
strongest subject of this great man1    
and probably what he knew about it was  
largely derived from the teaching  of   
,aristoteles2 but evidently his work on 
plants was one of the earliest  that was

 written with anything like scientific  
precision4 ,nevertheless1  ,theophrastus
 added much original matter1 for he had 
a botanic garden1 and  he collected     
plants during his travels in ,greece4   
,his military friends  kept him supplied
 with specimens of ,asiatic1 ,egyptian1 
and ,arabian  plants1 and with          
descriptions of their natures and       
peculiarities1 some  of which were true 
and others quite imaginary4 ,what was   
true and what  was not true was         
frequently a puzzle to this philosopher1
 as it is to  modern naturalists4 ,he   
wrote1 8,the drug sellers and root      
cutters tell  us some things which may  
be true1 but other things which are     
merely  solemn quackery4 ,thus they     
direct us to gather some plants1        
standing from  the wind and with our    
bodies anointed2 some by night1 some by 
day1 some  before the sun falls on them4
 ,so far there may be something in their
  rules2 but others are too fantastical 
and far-fetched4 ,it is1 perhaps1  not  

absurd to use a prayer in plucking a    
plant2 but they go further than  this4  
,we are to draw a sword three times     
round the mandragora1 and to  cut it    
looking to the west2 again1 to dance    
round it1 and to use obscene  language1 
as those who sow cumin should utter     
blasphemies4 ,again1 we  are to draw a  
line round the black hellebore1 standing
 to the east1 and  praying2 and to avoid
 an eagle either on the right or on the 
left2 for  they say if an eagle be near1
 the cutter will die in a year40        
,this was the nonsense1 out of which    
,theophrastus had to extricate the  true
 wisdom of plants1 and he tried to put  
aside fancies1 legends1 and  the        
opinions of men1 and to puzzle out the  
meaning of the similarities  and        
differences of plants1 by first of all  
learning and describing their           
construction1 habits1 methods of growth1
 and increase4    ,only a fragment of   
the last of ten books on plants written 
by  ,theophrastus has come down to us4  

,the writings made such an impression   
on the students that their general      
bearing has been transmitted1 and the   
main points are as follows4             
,theophrastus classified plants by the  
manner  in which they were reproduced1  
the localities where they were found1   
their size1 as trees or shrubs or herbs1
 and according to their uses1 as        
furnishing juices1 pot-herbs1 and seeds 
that may be eaten4 ,the first book      
treated of the parts of the plant--the  
root1 stem1 leaves1 flower1 and  seed1  
and the second of the manner in which   
plants seed1 and the proper  times for  
sowing seeds1 and how to sow4 ,in this  
part he mentions that  some plants1     
evidently of the same kind1 have seed   
and others not1 or  that there are      
different sexes in plants1 the female   
bearing the seed4  ,that he was a       
practical observer is proved by his     
writings on the method  of the          
reproduction in the great palm trees1   
which are such striking  features in the

 ,east4 ,moreover1 he studied the way in
 which figs grew and  the seed became   
fertile1 and he compared the            
reproduction of the fig with  that of   
the palm tree4 ,the third1 fourth1 and  
fifth books are devoted  to a           
consideration of trees1 their various   
kinds1 the places they come  from1 and  
the economical uses to which they may be
 applied4 ,the sixth  book treats of    
winter shrubs and spring plants2 the    
seventh of pot-herbs2  the eighth of    
plants yielding seeds used for food2 and
 the ninth of those  plants that yield  
useful juices1 gums1 resins1 and other  
exudations4 ,the  love of the           
marvellous1 however1 creeps in here and 
there1 and amongst  good facts there are
 very considerable 8tough yarns20 but   
these come from  the old soldiers of    
,alexander the ,great4    ,there is one 
thing most interesting in the works of  
this man1 and it  is the desire he had  
to make his knowledge useful to mankind4
 ,this is  especially noticed in another

 work on the causes of plants1 of which 
six parts remain to the present day4 ,it
 is really a work on gardening  and     
farming1 with a good deal of pure and   
applied knowledge on botany4  ,it is not
 everybody1 nowadays1 that can combine  
what is scientific1  that is to say1    
exact knowledge1 with useful and applied
 knowledge4 ,too  frequently the        
scientific botanist does not teach      
gardening or farming2  and certainly1 as
 a rule1 the writers on these last      
subjects are not  scientific botanists1 
and1 indeed1 they are often of a very   
different  kind of mind4 ,it has been   
said of the works of ,theophrastus that 
there is  much valuable matter in them  
that deserves the attention of the      
botanist1  and that a very little       
knowledge of botany will enable the     
reader to  separate the chaff from the  
wheat4    ,so noted was the learning of 
this great man on other subjects1 that  
his  good work on plants remained the   
text-book of centuries2 and1 in fact1   

little or no satisfactory knowledge     
about plants1 beyond that given to us   
by ,aristoteles and ,theophrastus1 was  
discovered for many centuries4    ,the  
fall of ,demetrius from power removed   
the protector of ,theophrastus1  and the
 ignorant anti-educationalist party of  
the day revived their  persecutions4 ,in
 the year #cje ,b4,c4 a political noodle
 managed to frame a  law1 and to get it 
passed by the ruling body of the day1   
which forbade  all philosophers under   
pain of death to give any public        
instruction  without permission of the  
,state4    ,this curious law was passed 
in order to prevent the education of the
  people being advanced1 and the result 
was that ,theophrastus and several      
other teachers left ,athens4 ,good      
sense1 however1 seems to have prevailed 
over ignorance and hostility to         
learning1 and the law was abolished in  
the following year4 ,moreover1 the      
proposer of it was fined the great sum  
of five talents for his folly4 ,then    

,theophrastus returned to ,athens1 and  
taught there until he died4 ,the whole  
population followed his body to the     
grave4    ,it is a remarkable fact that 
the writings of ,aristoteles and        
,theophrastus  on plants1 were not      
improved upon for many hundreds of      
years4 ,they were  both observers of    
nature1 and their works contained all   
the knowledge on  the subject1 of their 
time4 ,when the ,romans obtained the    
supremacy in  ,europe1 and had          
possessions in ,asia and in ,africa1 men
 were not found  amongst them who could 
add to the knowledge of the ,greeks     
about plants2  so the books of the two  
great men who were the fathers of botany
 were  simply copied by their           
successors1 or criticized1 and doubtful 
novelties  were added4    ,there were   
many ,roman writers on agriculture1 but 
few wrote on the nature  and structure  
of plants1 and amongst them the most    
celebrated was ,caius  ,plinius         
,secundus1 commonly called ,pliny the   

,elder4    ,where this great man was    
born is not known1 but possibly it was  
at ,como4  ,he was of noble family1     
entered the army1 and became a          
distinguished  soldier4 ,he was         
appointed ,augur at ,rome1 and          
subsequently had supreme  power in      
,spain4 ,these were not apparently the  
positions which were  likely to         
stimulate a young man of wealth to study
 natural history1 and  certainly1 in    
later days1 the military man and active 
politician have  not proved1 as a rule1 
enthusiastic students of plants and     
animals4 ,want  of time and inclination 
are1 of course1 the usual excuses of    
such men1  and the love of luxury and of
 intellectual idleness might be added   
also4  ,nevertheless there is an        
instance in the case of the elder       
,plinius1 where  a man1 greatly and     
importantly occupied1 spent much time in
 studying  nature1 in compiling the     
observations made by his predecessors1  
and in  writing books which have given  

him a fame which will last with the     
world4  ,in summer he began his work as 
soon as it was light2 in winter1        
generally  at one in the morning--never 
later than two1 and sometimes earlier4  
,no  man1 writes his nephew1 spent less 
time in bed1 and sometimes he would1    
without retiring from his books1 indulge
 in a short sleep1 and then  pursue his 
studies4 ,before daybreak he went to the
 ,emperor ,vespasian1  who chose to     
transact business at that hour1 and when
 the ,emperor had  finished1 ,plinius   
returned to his studies4 ,after a       
slender repast at  noon1 he would in the
 summer recline in the sun1 and during  
the time  some book was read to him1 and
 he made extracts from the author4 ,he  
used  to say that 8no book was so bad   
but something might be learned from     
it40 ,after this he had a cold bath and 
took refreshment and rest4 ,thus        
reinvigorated1 he resumed his studies   
until supper1 when a book was read  to  
him1 and he made remarks on it4 ,this1  

of course1 must have been an  occasional
 method of passing the day1 for no man  
could live without some  hours of       
exercise and sleep4 ,probably he retired
 to sleep at eight under  these         
circumstances1 and had a good sleep in  
the hot hours of the day4  ,when in the 
country all his time was devoted to     
study1 except when he  slept and bathed4
 ,he is said to have used a carriage    
instead of walking1  and1 unfortunately1
 but naturally1 he got weak lungs and   
became corpulent4    ,plinius laboured  
for many years at natural history and   
the other  sciences1 and he was a most  
diligent collector of information4 ,a   
warrior  and a statesman1 yet he        
contrived to write a vast number of     
works1 his  books on natural history    
alone amounting to twenty-seven volumes4
 ,he  appears to have known all that it 
was possible to know at his age of  the 
world1 and yet there was no great amount
 of new work put into his  books4 ,it   
has been very properly said that the    

loftiness of his ideas  and the         
nobleness of his style enhance still    
more his profound learning4  ,naturally1
 as he copied much from other writers1  
and especially1 in  one part of botany  
which relates to medicine1 from an      
author named  ,dioscorides1 he could not
 examine into the truth of every        
statement which  had been made4 ,hence  
,plinius retailed some curious stories  
now and then1  which are more amusing   
than true2 but1 on the whole1 he        
established1 on  solid grounds1 the     
learning of his own and previous ages4  
,this active-minded man1 who lived in   
luxury and had great  responsibilities1 
is an example to many of the same class 
who do not care  to enjoy the study of  
the beautiful nature around them4 ,he   
lost his life  whilst endeavouring to   
sustain the courage of his friends1     
during the  great eruption of ,vesuvius1
 when the cities of ,pompeii and        
,herculaneum  were destroyed4 ,he was on
 shore at the time1 and probably was    

suffocated  by noxious fumes4    ,the   
name of ,dioscorides has been mentioned 
as that of an author known  to ,plinius2
 he was born in ,cilicia1 at ,anazarbus1
 and flourished during  the reign of the
 ,emperor ,nero4 ,nothing is known about
 his early life1  but it appears that he
 was a soldier1 and possibly connected  
with the  surgical and medical art in   
the army4 ,certain it is that he        
travelled  over many countries--,greece1
 ,italy1 ,gaul1 and ,asia               
,minor--gathering plants  and studying1 
not so much their structures and mutual 
resemblances and  differences1 as their 
medical or healing powers4 ,he obtained 
plants from  travellers in ,india1 and  
learned the merits of herbs and drugs   
from many  nations4 ,he wrote on the    
substances used in medicine in a        
,materia ,medica1  and named and briefly
 described between five and six hundred 
medicinal  plants4 ,unfortunately       
,dioscorides wrote in a careless manner1
 and there  is much nonsense mixed up   

with truth in his writings4 ,but he was 
of use2  he was not merely a student of 
the beauties of nature1 but of the value
  of certain plants to man in his pain  
and trouble1 and he founded the  science
 of medical botany4    ,aristoteles1    
,theophrastus1 ,plinius1 and            
,dioscorides are the men of mark  who   
raised botany and plant-learning out of 
their infancy and gave  them a youthful 
vigour4 ,they placed the method of      
learning1 on its  right basis4 ,instead 
of imagining what was true1 and then    
collecting  and studying plants to prove
 the correctness of the imagined notion1
  they began in the opposite direction4 
,they strove to learn and discover      
facts1--truths1 and then reasoned upon  
them4 ,ignorant people1 and those  men  
who have the minds of children1 always  
like their opinions and ideas  better   
than facts1 and especially if the facts 
will not fit in with their  notions4    
,such people do not know how hard it is 
to find out the truth  in nature1 how   

difficult it is for finite man to       
comprehend infinite  wisdom4 ,this was  
as true formerly as it is now1 and hence
 the method of  learning1 taught by the 
earlier of those great men1 was opposed 
to the  understandings of the majority  
of their fellow men4 ,they troubled the 
complacent ignorance of the day1 and    
were therefore persecuted4 ,like  brave 
men1 they did not care for persecution1 
knowing that they did not  deserve the  
wicked charges brought against them2    
they persevered1 and not  only enjoyed  
life much more than their opponents1 but
 led good and useful  lives4    ,the    
works of these men were studied by all  
the learned1 during fifteen  hundred    
years and more2 they were the text-books
 of science during what  are called the 
dark or middle ages1 and although now   
out of date1 they  were the good seeds  
of knowledge1 sown in difficulty1 in    
those early days4    ,aristoteles1      
,theophrastus1 and ,plinius were not    
only botanists1 but  naturalists in     

every sense1 and the first named is     
especially celebrated  as a student of  
and writer upon animals2 he was a great 
zoologist4  ,theophrastus knew much     
about geology1 and so did ,plinius4     
,these men1 then1 brought the science of
 botany out of its childhood1 and  saw  
it partly on its way through its youth2 
they had removed it beyond  the fanciful
 ideas and strange notions of the       
earliest writers on the  subject1 and   
had begun to classify plants1 and to    
study the relations  of plants to       
surrounding nature1 and to the wants of 
man4 ,chemistry and  the use of the     
microscope were unknown1 and therefore  
progress in the  necessary direction    
could not be made at that time of the   
world4    ,it must be remembered that   
botany does not consist in collecting1  
drying1 and drawing plants alone1 but it
 relates to everything about the        
vegetable kingdom of nature4 ,the growth
 of the plant from the seed2 how  it    
lives1 breathes1 and its sap circulates2

 how starch1 and sugar1 and  other      
products are formed--have to be         
considered4 ,the manner of unfolding  of
 the flower1 the anatomy of its fruits1 
and of the leaves and stems  and root1  
and the method by which the kind        
reproduces1 and the decay of  the plant 
have to be studied4 ,then the uses of   
plants1 medicinal and as  food1 have to 
be treated4 ,how they can be best grown1
 and how plants are  distributed over   
the land at different heights1 form     
other subjects2 and  the arrangement of 
plants in a classification founded on   
the similarity  of their most important 
anatomical structures1 and constituting 
what is  termed a natural system1 is one
 of the most necessary studies4         
,illustration          ,illustration    
,,chapter ,,ii4    ,,the ,,rise ,,of    
,,the ,,science ,,of ,,plants4          
,john ,ray--,joseph de                  
,tournefort--,their lives4      ,the    
world went to sleep for many centuries1 
so far as natural history and  many     

other things are concerned1 after the   
time of ,pliny1 and sixteen  hundred    
years elapsed before any advance was    
made in botanical knowledge4  ,this was 
the age when the only light on the earth
 was struggling  ,christianity1 and it  
was shaded by superstition and violence4
 ,at last men  began to learn ,greek    
again1 and to read the ancient authors  
carefully1 so  that nature began to be  
studied4 ,a few foreign botanists began 
to attempt  to add to the knowledge the 
ancients had given them1 and to classify
  plants4    ,but the first man who made
 a real advance1 and whose work has     
influenced  the study of plant life down
 to the present day1 was an ,englishman1
  who was bred in comparative poverty1  
suffered persecution1 and lived a       
beautiful life4    ,the name of this    
distinguished man was ,john ,ray1 and he
 was the son of  ,roger ,ray and        
,elizabeth his wife1 being born in      
#afbh4 ,his father was a  blacksmith1 of
 ,black ,notley1 near ,braintree1 in    

,essex1 and the boy was  sent to school 
at the ,grammar ,school at ,braintree4  
,there he found the  kindness of ,mr4   
,love1 the master1 in teaching him1 a   
set-off against the  general want of    
education in the establishment2 and he  
had reason to  be thankful1 for before  
he was sixteen years of age he was sent1
 from  the school1 to ,cambridge4 ,he   
entered at ,st4 ,catherine's ,hall1     
under the  tutorship of ,mr4 ,duckfield4
 ,but the youth did not like the ,hall2 
he  wished to study1 and the inmates1 he
 said1 chiefly addicted themselves  to  
disputations2 so he went to ,trinity1   
where he found the politer arts  and    
sciences were principally minded and    
cultivated4 ,ray worked hard1  and had  
an excellent tutor1 who was a great     
,greek scholar1 and soon made  up for   
the defective teaching he had had at    
,braintree4 ,he acquired much  ,latin   
and ,greek1 and some ,hebrew1 and it    
soon became evident that the  youth     
could speak well and fluently4 ,his     

leisure was that of a student2  he loved
 to observe nature1 to study the little 
gems of the garden and  country1 and all
 these things brought him speedily      
before the notice of  the authorities of
 the ,college4 ,when he had been there  
three years1 he  was elected a ,minor   
,fellow1 together with his great friend 
,isaac ,barrow1  who had been a         
,charterhouse boy1 and subsequently a   
scholar at ,felsted1  an ,essex school4 
,they were the favourite pupils of their
 master4 ,ray  took his degree of       
,bachelor of ,arts1 and then that of    
,master of ,arts1  becoming then a      
,major ,fellow4 ,in #afea he was chosen 
the ,greek ,lecturer  to the ,college2  
two years afterwards ,mathematical      
,lecturer1 and in #afee  ,humanity      
,reader4 ,then he was made ,junior ,dean
 and ,college ,steward1 and  he became  
the tutor to many men of subsequent     
worth1 especially to ,mr4  ,francis     
,willughby1 of ,middleton ,hall1 in     
,warwickshire4 ,during these  years ,ray

 wandered over the country collecting   
and studying plants4  ,he wrote the     
story of his journeys in and about      
,england1 calling them  8,itineraries40 
,his first journey was in #afeh1 and he 
rode from ,cambridge  to ,northampton2  
he passed by ,higham ,ferrers and saw   
the outside of a  great stone building  
called a college1 and he wrote that     
,northampton was  indifferently         
handsome1 the houses being built of     
timber1 notwithstanding  the plenty of  
stone dug in that county4 ,he saw in a  
,mr4 ,bowker's garden  8divers physical 
plants10 and he noticed the luxuriance  
of the lupinus  there4 ,then he went to 
,warwick by ,daventry1 and saw ,holdenby
 ,house4 ,at  ,shuckborough he did not  
see the star-stones he had heard of4 ,he
 visited  ,warwick1 but cared more for  
,guy's ,cliff than for the rib of the   
dun cow  and ,guy's sword2 and then he  
went into ,derbyshire1 and investigated 
the  ,pool's-hole1 near ,buxton1 and    
noticed the wild flowers of the hills4  

,travelling on to ,north ,wales1 he     
visited the brine-pits of ,northwych1   
and at ,chester he noticed the red stone
 of the cathedral1 which he  considered 
had little beauty within or without4 ,he
 visited ,swindon1 and  got home by     
,shrewsbury and ,gloucester4 ,this was a
 journey done in the  old-fashioned     
manner1 on horseback4 ,it opened ,ray's 
eyes to the immense  amount of nonsense 
that was talked about nature1 and       
especially about  any unusual natural   
phenomenon4 ,he seems especially to have
 visited the  wells and springs1 and he 
expressed his doubts of the wonderful   
cures1  attributing his want of belief  
to his scientific frame of mind4    ,at 
this period1 it was usual for young men 
of ability and learning1  though not in 
orders1 to deliver sermons and          
common-place readings1 as  they were    
called1 not only in the chapels or halls
 of their own colleges1  but even before
 the ,university body at ,st4 ,mary's   
church4 ,in these ,ray  eminently       

distinguished himself4 ,he was among the
 first who ventured  to lead the        
attention of his hearers from the       
unprofitable subtleties  of scholastic  
divinity and the trammels of the old    
,greek philosophy  to an observation of 
nature and a practical investigation of 
truth4  ,the rudiments of many of his   
subsequent writings originated in these 
juvenile essays1 particularly his       
celebrated book on the 8,wisdom of ,god 
manifested in the ,works of the         
,creation10 known all over the world by 
its numerous editions and translations1 
and universally admired for its         
rational piety1 sound philosophy1 and   
solid instruction4 ,this book is  the   
basis of the labours of all those       
divines who have made the book of       
nature a commentary on the book of      
revelation1 a confirmation of truths    
which nature has not authority of       
herself to establish4 ,in it the author 
inculcates the doctrine of a constantly 
superintending ,providence1 as  well as 

the advantage1 and even the duty1 of    
contemplating the works of  ,god4       
8,this10 he says1 8is part of the       
business of a ,sabbath-day1 as it  will 
be1 probably1 of our employment through 
that eternal rest of which  the ,sabbath
 is a type40 ,archbishop ,tenison is    
recorded to have told ,dr4  ,derham that
 8,mr4 ,ray was much celebrated in his  
time at ,cambridge for  preaching solid 
and useful divinity1 instead of that    
enthusiastic stuff  which the sermons of
 that time were generally filled with40 
,it would be  refreshing to hear a ,ray 
in the nineteenth century4 ,two of his  
funeral  discourses are mentioned with  
particular approbation2 one1 on the     
death  of ,dr4 ,arrowsmith1 master of   
his college2 the other1 on that of one  
of his most intimate and beloved        
colleagues1 ,mr4 ,john ,nid1 likewise a 
,senior ,fellow of ,trinity1 who had a  
great share in ,ray's first botanical   
publication1 the 8,catalogus ,plantarum 
circa ,cantabrigiam nascentium10        

printed in #affj 7a catalogue of plants 
growing around ,cambridge74 ,before     
this little volume appeared1 its author 
had visited various parts  of ,england  
and ,wales for the purpose of           
investigating their native  plants1 as  
he did several times afterwards4 ,nor   
were his observations  confined to      
natural history1 but extended to local  
and general history1  antiquities1 the  
arts1 and all kinds of useful knowledge4
 ,ray's first  botanical tour occupied  
nearly six weeks1 from ,august #ith to  
,september  #ahth1 #afeh4 ,on the #bcrd 
of ,december1 #affj1 he was ordained    
both deacon  and priest at the same time
 by ,dr4 ,sanderson1 then ,bishop of    
,lincoln4  ,in #affa he travelled with  
,mr4 ,willughby into ,scotland1         
returning by  ,cumberland and           
,westmoreland2 and the following year1  
with the same  companion1 he            
accomplished a more particular          
investigation of ,wales4 ,how           
critically he studied the botany of the 

countries he visited1 is evident  from  
the different editions of his works     
called 8,a ,catalogue of ,british       
,plants10 and 8,a ,methodical ,synopsis 
of ,british ,wild ,plants40 ,in fact1   
,ray  felt the necessity of being able  
to recognize plants by their accurate   
descriptions1 and saw that              
classification was the alphabet of the  
science4    ,all this time ,mr4 ,ray    
continued to enjoy his fellowship and to
 cultivate  his ,cambridge connections2 
but in ,september1 #affb1 his           
tranquillity  was disturbed by the too  
famous ,bartholomew ,act1 by which two  
thousand  conscientious divines were    
turned out of their livings1 and many   
fellows of colleges deprived of their   
maintenance and means of literary       
improvement4 ,among the latter was the  
subject of our memoir1 with  thirteen   
honest men at ,cambridge besides1 of    
whose names he has left us  a list4 ,one
 of them1 ,dr4 ,dillingham1 was master  
of ,emanuel ,college2 but  ,ray was the 

only person of his own college who      
suffered this deprivation4  ,one of     
,ray's biographers writes3--8,the reader
 must not suppose that he1  or perhaps  
any other person in this illustrious    
catalogue1 was in the  least degree     
deficient in attachment to the doctrine 
or discipline of the  ,church of        
,england1 or that they had taken the    
oath1 called the ,solemn  ,league and   
,covenant1 which ,ray certainly had     
neither taken nor even  approved4 ,they 
were required to swear to the infamous  
proposition that  the said oath was not 
binding to those who had taken it1 and  
on this  ground they conscientiously    
gave up their preferment40 ,it is       
curious to  read the apology made for   
,ray1 to ,dr4 ,derham on this subject1  
by a ,mr4  ,brokesby1 8that he was at   
that time absent from his college1 where
 he  might have met with satisfaction to
 his scruples1 and was among some       
zealous nonconformists who too much     
influenced him by the addition of  new  

scruples4 ,and we may also ascribe      
somewhat to the prejudice of  education 
in unhappy times40 ,by this it appears  
that the 8scruples0 of  nonconformists  
were most favourable to the sanctity of 
an oath1 and that  the 8unhappy times0  
alluded to were more advantageous to    
principle than  the golden days of      
,charles ,,ii41 whose ministers         
doubtless valued the  obedience far more
 than the honesty of any man2 nor was   
this taste by any  means peculiar to    
them or their profligate master4    ,mr4
 ,ray 7or1 as he wrote his name for a   
while about this period1 ,wray71  having
 thus the world before him1 made an     
arrangement with ,mr4 ,willughby  for a 
tour on the ,continent2 and in this plan
 two of his pupils were  included1 ,mr4 
,nathaniel ,bacon and ,mr41 afterwards  
,sir ,philip1 ,skippon4  ,they sailed   
for ,calais in ,april1 #affc1 but being 
prevented by the state  of political    
affairs from prosecuting their journey  
through ,france1  they traversed the    

,low ,countries and ,germany1 proceeding
 by ,venice into  ,italy1 most of whose 
cities they visited1 either by sea or   
land1 as well  as ,malta and ,sicily2   
and returned by ,switzerland1 through   
,france1 into  ,england in the spring of
 #afff4    ,mr4 ,willughby1 indeed1     
separated from the rest of the party at 
,montpellier1 and visited ,spain4 ,an   
ample account of their observations  was
 published by ,ray in #afgc1 making a   
thick octavo volume4 ,the  travellers   
studied politics1 literature1 natural   
history1 mechanics1 and  philosophy1 as 
well as antiquities and other           
curiosities2 but in the  fine arts they 
assume no authority1 nor display any    
considerable taste  or knowledge4 ,mr4  
,willughby's account of ,spain makes a  
part by itself1  and a rich critical    
catalogue of such plants1 not1 for the  
most part1  natives of ,england1 as were
 observed in this tour1 concludes the   
volume4  ,there is no doubt that ,ray   
has the credit of having discovered     

several  species of plants in           
,switzerland not previously known to    
belong to that  country4 ,ray passed the
 summer of #afff partly at ,black       
,notley1 and partly  in ,sussex1        
studying chiefly the works of ,hook1    
,boyle1 ,sydenham1 on  fevers1 and the  
8,philosophical ,transactions10 8making 
few discoveries10  says he1 8save of    
mine own errors40 ,the following winter 
he was employed  at ,mr4 ,willughby's1  
in arranging that gentleman's museum of 
seeds1 dried  plants1 birds1 fishes1    
shells1 and other objects of natural    
history and  coins1 and in forming      
tables of plants and animals for the use
 of ,dr4  ,wilkins4 ,he began to arrange
 a catalogue of the ,english native     
plants  which he had gathered1 rather   
for his own use than with any immediate 
view of publication at present4 ,he     
wrote to ,dr4 ,lister1 8,the world is   
glutted with bungling20 8,i resolve     
never to put out anything which is  not 
as perfect as is possible for me to make

 it4 ,i wish you would take a  little   
pains this summer about grasses1 that so
 we might compare notes40  ,the above   
resolution of our author is no doubt    
highly commendable1 but  the world has  
rather to lament that so many able men  
have formed the  same determination1 at 
least in natural science4 ,if it were   
universally  adhered to1 scarcely any   
work would see the light1 for few can be
 so  sensible of the defects of any     
other person's attempt to illustrate the
  works of nature1 as a man of tolerable
 judgment must be of his own4  ,this is 
especially the case with those who1 like
 ,ray1 direct their  aspiring views     
towards system and philosophical theory4
 ,happily he did  not try this arduous  
path1 till he had trained himself by    
wholesome  practical discipline in      
observation and experience4 ,his first  
botanical  works assumed the humble form
 of alphabetical catalogues4 ,his and   
,mr4  ,willughby's labours in the       
service of ,bishop ,wilkins were1       

indeed1 of a  systematical description1 
and accordingly the authors themselves  
were  probably more dissatisfied than   
any other persons with their            
performance4  ,they relaxed from these  
labours in a tour of practical          
observation  through the west of        
,england1 as far as the ,land's ,end1 in
 the summer  of #affg1 and returning by 
,london1 ,mr4 ,ray was solicited to     
become a  ,fellow of the ,royal         
,society1 into which learned body he was
 admitted  ,november #gth4 ,being now   
requested by his friend ,wilkins to     
translate his  celebrated work1 8,an    
,essay towards a ,real ,character and a 
,philosophical  ,language10 into ,latin1
 he undertook1 and by degrees           
accomplished1 that  arduous performance4
 ,the following summer was agreeably    
spent in visits  to various literary    
friends1 and in a solitary journey to   
the north4 ,his  former companion1      
,willughby1 being just married1 stayed  
at home2 but ,ray  joined him in        

,september1 #affh1 and remained for most
 part of the ensuing  winter and spring4
    ,the seclusion and leisure of the   
country1 with the converse and          
assistance of such a friend1 were       
favourable to the prosecution of a  new 
subject of inquiry1 which now strongly  
attracted the attention of  our great   
naturalist--the theory of vegetation4   
,the first step of the  two philosophers
 in this little-explored path was an    
examination of  the motion of the sap in
 trees2 and the result of their         
inquiries1  communicated to the ,royal  
,society1 appeared soon after in the    
8,philosophical ,transactions40 ,their  
experiments clearly prove the  ascent of
 the sap through the woody part of the  
tree1 which is easily  detected by      
boring the trunks at different depths   
before their leaves  are unfolded2 and  
they observed1 also1 the mucilaginous   
nature of the  flowing sap1             
8precipitating a kind of white coagulum 
or jelly1 which10  says ,ray1 in a note 

preserved by ,derham1 8may be well      
conceived to be  the part1 which every  
year1 between bark and tree turns to    
wood1 and  of which the leaves and      
fruits are made4 ,and it seems to       
precipitate  more when the tree is just 
ready to put out leaves and begins to   
cease  dropping1 than at its first      
bleeding40 ,the accuracy of the leading 
facts  recorded by these ingenious men  
is confirmed by subsequent observers1   
who have further pursued the same       
subject1 which is now sufficiently  well
 understood4 ,the sap originates in the 
liquid matters which are  absorbed by   
the roots of plants2 they enter the     
minute cells of the ends  of the roots  
and permeate the cellular tissue4 ,this 
sap ascends in the  plant1 assisted by  
the evaporation from the leaves4 ,the   
sap ascends with  considerable rapidity 
to the leaves1 where it is subject to   
changes1 the  result of physiological   
action4 ,it descends from the leaves1   
having had  its chemical constitution   

altered1 and is fit for the nutrition of
 the  plant4 ,the sap ascends through   
the cellular and woody tissue1          
especially  in the layers of wood not   
more than two years old4 ,the hard      
heartwood  does not convey sap1 but in  
some trees1 like the poplar1 sap moves  
in the  very centre4    ,the elaborated 
sap returns from the leaves in a slow   
stream1 through the  delicate cellular  
structures of the bark1 right down to   
the root1 giving  rise to the cambium   
layer1 from the inner surface of which  
the annual  layer of young wood is      
formed4    ,at this time ,ray began to  
prepare for the press his 8,collection  
of  ,proverbs10 a curious book in its   
way1 by which he is perhaps better known
  to the generality of his countrymen1  
than by any other of his literary       
labours4    ,the first edition was      
published in #afgb1 but the work was    
subsequently  much enlarged1 and the    
author may almost be said to have       
exhausted his  subject4 ,from its very  

nature1 delicacy and refinement had     
often to be  dispensed with1 but this is
 evidently not the fault or the aim of  
the  writer4 ,his learning and critical 
acuteness diffuse light over the whole1 
and make us overlook the coarse vehicle 
of our instruction4 ,the first  edition 
of the 8,catalogue of ,english ,plants10
 already mentioned1 came  out in #afgj1 
and the second in #afgg4 ,their great   
author gave his work  to the world with 
that diffidence for which he alone1     
perhaps1 could  perceive any just       
foundation4 ,it was a wonderful book1   
considering that  there was no          
recognized authority to help the author1
 who1 seeing that  there must be some   
real method in nature1 strove to arrange
 or classify  plants by the similarity  
or dissimilarity of those structures    
which  were of the greatest importance4 
,about this period the health of ,mr4   
,ray  seems to have been considerably   
impaired4 ,he refused a tempting offer  
to travel again on the ,continent1 as   

tutor to three young noblemen2 nor      
could the powerful attractions of       
,alpine botany1 which was then to be    
studied1 overcome that reluctance to    
leaving home1 which arose from a  feeble
 state of body4 ,indeed1 this very      
reluctance or listlessness is  accounted
 for by the turn which his disorder     
took1 as it terminated in  the jaundice4
 ,after this depressing complaint had   
left him1 ,ray resumed  his botanical   
travels at home with fresh alacrity1    
visiting the rich  stores of the north  
of ,england1 with a companion named     
,thomas ,willisel1  whose name and      
discoveries he subsequently gratefully  
commemorated on  many occasions4        
,nothing forms a more striking feature  
in ,ray's character  than the unreserved
 and abundant commendation which he     
always gave to  his friends and         
fellow-labourers4 ,then unfortunately an
 event occurred  which called forth his 
affectionate feelings4 ,on the #crd of  
,july1 #afgb1  ,mr4 ,willughby was      

unexpectedly carried off by an acute    
disorder1 in the  thirty-seventh year of
 his age4 ,the care of his two infant   
sons was  confided by himself to ,mr4   
,ray1 who was also appointed one of his 
five  executors1 and to whom he left an 
annuity of sixty pounds for life4 ,the  
eldest of these youths was created a    
baronet at the age of ten years1 but    
died before he was twenty4 ,their       
sister1 ,cassandra1 afterwards married  
the ,duke of ,chandos4 ,thomas1 the     
younger son1 was one of the ten peers   
created1 all on the same day1 by ,queen 
,anne1 and received the title of  ,lord 
,middleton4 ,the care of his pupils1 and
 of the literary concerns of  their     
deceased parent1 now interrupted ,mr4   
,ray's botanizing excursions1  and      
caused him also to decline the offer of 
,dr4 ,lister1 then a physician  at      
,york1 to settle under his roof4 ,bishop
 ,wilkins did not long survive  ,mr4    
,willughby1 and his death made another  
chasm in the scientific and  social     

circle of our great natural philosopher1
 who felt these losses  as deeply and   
tenderly as any man4 ,he sought         
consolation in a domestic  attachment1  
fixing his choice on a young woman of   
good parentage1 whose  name was         
,margaret ,oakley1 and who resided in   
the family at ,middleton  ,hall4 ,he was
 married at the parish church1 ,june    
#eth1 #afgc1 being then in  the         
forty-fifth year of his age1 and his    
bride about twenty4 ,this lady  took a  
share in the early education of his     
pupils1 as far as concerned  their      
reading ,english4 ,she is said to have  
been recommended by her  character1 as  
well as by her person1 to the regard of 
her husband4 ,she  bore him three       
daughters who1 with their mother1       
survived him4    ,the first fruit of our
 author's leisure and retirement was a  
book on  a new classification of plants1
 published in #afhb4 ,his principles  of
 arrangement are chiefly derived from   
the fruit4 ,the regularity  and         

irregularity of flowers1 which took the 
lead in the system of  contemporary     
botanists1 made no part of that of ,ray4
 ,it is remarkable  that he adopts the  
ancient primary division of plants into 
trees1 shrubs1  and herbs1 and that he  
blamed ,rivinus1 one of his             
fellow-labourers1  for abolishing it1   
though his own prefatory remarks tend to
 overset  that principle1 as a vulgar   
and casual one1 unworthy of a           
philosopher4  ,that his system was not  
merely a commodious artificial aid to   
practical  botany1 but a philosophical  
clue to a correct natural               
classification1 he  probably1 like his  
fellow-labourers for many years in this 
department1  believed1 yet he was too   
modest and too learned to think he had  
brought the new and arduous design to   
perfection4 ,for whatever he  has       
incidentally or deliberately thrown out 
respecting the value of  his labours1 is
 often marked with more diffidence on   
the subject of  classification than any 

other4 ,the great service that ,ray did 
to botany  was the foreshadowing the    
so-called natural system of             
classification1  which was to supersede 
the artificial system of ,linnus1 which 
will be  described in a future page4 ,he
 first applied his system to practical  
use in a general 8,history of ,plants10 
of which the first volume1 a  thick     
folio1 was published in #afhf1 and the  
second in #afhg4 ,the third  volume of  
the same work1 which is supplementary1  
came out in #agjd4 ,this  vast and      
critical compilation is still in use as 
a book of reference1  being particularly
 valuable as an epitome of the contents 
of various  rare and expensive works1   
which ordinary libraries cannot possess4
 ,the  description of species is        
faithful and instructive1 the remarks   
original1  bounded only by the whole    
circuit of the botanical learning of    
that day2  nor are generic characters   
neglected1 however vaguely they are     
assumed4  ,specific differences do not  

enter regularly into the author's plan1 
nor  has he followed any uniform rules  
of nomenclature4 ,so ample a transcript 
of the practical knowledge of such a    
botanist cannot but be a treasure2  yet 
it is now much neglected1 few persons   
being learned enough to use it  with    
facility for want of figures and a      
popular nomenclature2 and those  who    
are1 seldom requiring its assistance4   
,but if the fame or the utility of      
,ray's botanical work has neither of    
them been commensurate with the         
expectations that might have been       
formed1  a little octavo volume which he
 gave to the world in #afij1 amply      
supplied  all such defects1 and proved  
the great corner-stone of his reputation
 in  this department of science4 ,this  
was 8,a ,methodical ,synopsis of        
,british  ,wild ,plants40 ,the two      
editions of his alphabetical catalogue  
of ,english  plants being sold off1 and 
some pettifogging reasons of his        
booksellers  standing in the way of a   

third1 with any improvements1 he        
remodelled the  work1 throwing it into a
 systematic form1 revising the whole1   
supplying  generic characters1 with     
numerous additions of species and       
various  emendations and remarks4 ,the  
uses and medicinal qualities of the     
plants  are removed to the alphabetical 
index at the end4 ,a second edition of  
this 8,synopsis0 was published in #afic1
 but its author never prepared  another4
 ,the third1 now most in use1 was edited
 twenty-eight years  afterward by       
,dillenius4 ,of all the systematical and
 practical floras of  any country the   
second edition of ,ray's 8,synopsis0 was
 the most perfect  of his time1 and for 
many a long year afterwards4 8,he       
examined every  plant recorded in his   
work1 and even gathered most of them    
himself4 ,he  investigated their        
different names with consummate         
accuracy2 and if the  clearness and     
precision of other authors had equalled 
his1 he would  scarcely have committed  

an error4 ,it is difficult to find him  
in a  mistake or misconception          
respecting nature herself1 though he    
sometimes  misapprehends the bad figures
 or lame descriptions he was obliged to 
consult40 ,above a hundred species are  
added in this second edition1 and  the  
cryptogamic plants in particular are    
more amply elucidated4 ,the  work led to
 much disputing1 but ,ray took no       
delight in controversy2 its  inevitable 
asperities were foreign to his nature4  
,one of the biographers  of ,ray writes3
 8,we must not omit to notice that in   
the preface to  both editions of his    
#8,synopsis' the learned author1        
venerable for his  character1 his       
talents1 and his profession1 as well as 
by his noble  adherence to principle in 
the most corrupt times1 has taken       
occasion  to congratulate his country1  
and to pour out his grateful effusions  
to  ,divine ,providence in a style      
worthy of ,milton for the establishment 
of  religion1 law1 and liberty by the   

revolution which placed ,king ,william  
on the throne4 ,an honest ,englishman1  
however retired in his habits and       
pursuits1 could not have withheld this  
tribute at such a time1 nor was  any    
loyalty ever more personally            
disinterested than that of ,ray40 ,the  
year #afij was the date of the first    
publication of his noble work on 8,the  
,wisdom of ,god in ,creation10 of which 
we have already spoken1 and whose  sale 
through many editions was very          
extensive4 ,in #agjj he printed a book  
more exclusively within the sphere of   
his sacred profession1 called 8,a       
,persuasive to a ,holy ,life10 a rare   
performance of the kind at that day1    
being devoid of enthusiasm1 mysticism1  
or cant1 as well as of religious        
bigotry or party spirit1 8and employing 
the plain and solid arguments  of reason
 for the best of purposes40 ,his three  
8,physico-,theological  ,discourses     
concerning the ,chaos1 ,deluge1 and     
,dissolution of the ,world10  of which  

the original materials had been         
collected and prepared formerly  at     
,cambridge1 came out in #afib1 and were 
reprinted the following year4 ,a  third 
edition1 superintended by ,derham1 was  
published in #agac4 ,this able  editor  
took up the same subject himself1 in a  
similar performance1 the  materials of  
which1 like ,ray's1 were first delivered
 in sermons at ,bow  church1 he having  
been appointed reader of ,mr4 ,boyle's  
lectures4    ,ray studied animals as    
carefully as he did plants1 and his     
influence  on zoology will be noticed   
further on in this book1 and he revised 
a  translation of ,rauwolff's travels1  
and gave a catalogue of ,grecian1       
,syrian1 ,egyptian1 and ,cretan plants4 
,ever wishing for the truth1 he was  led
 during a correspondence with ,rivinus1 
a foreign botanist1 to revise  his      
system of the classification of plants1 
and to include that of his  friend in   
it4 ,ray was impressed with the greater 
importance of the seeds  and fruits of  

plants in classification than of the    
leaves and floral  envelopes2 ,rivinus  
and others believed in the superior     
importance of  the flower as a means of 
distinguishing and grouping plants4     
,after due  consideration1 ,ray included
 part of the plan of his friend1 but it 
is  certain that plants cannot be safely
 grouped1 in every instance1 by the     
similarity of their flowers4    ,all    
this correspondence and alteration of   
systems was extremely useful1  for it   
led to the foundation of what is called 
the natural system of  classification1  
in opposition to the artificial style1  
which was founded  by the great man     
whose life will be noticed in the next  
chapter4    ,ray lived a long1 happy1   
and useful life1 and died at ,black     
,notley1 in  a house of his own         
building1 in #agje1 in the              
seventy-seventh year of  his age4 ,a    
friend wrote of him3 8,in his dealings1 
no man more strictly  just2 in his      
conversation1 no man more humble1       

courteous1 and affable2  towards ,god no
 man more devout2 and towards the poor  
and distressed no  man more             
compassionate and charitable according  
to his abilities40 ,he  was buried1     
according to his own wish1 at ,black    
,notley2 but he would not  have his body
 buried in the chancel of the church1   
choosing rather to  repose with his     
ancestors in the churchyard4 ,ray died  
rich in honours1  but not rich in money1
 as he had to give up his living in the 
,church for  conscience' sake and       
conform as a layman4 ,he was singularly 
charitable in  his opinions to others2  
and as his work has lasted until the    
present day1  and has influenced the    
progress of natural history1 ,england   
may well be  proud of the blacksmith's  
son4    ,joseph ,pitton de ,tournefort  
was born at ,aix1 in ,france1 in #afef4 
,he was  of a noble family1 and was     
educated with care1 and had all the     
comforts  of life4 ,living1 however1 far
 away from the gay scenes of ,paris and 

in a  country town1 ,tournefort soon    
began to wander over the fields by      
himself1  and1 like most boys1 he loved 
to gather flowers4 ,more than this1 he  
began  to study them4 ,but such         
pleasures were not to be his at once1   
for his  parents destined him to be a   
priest1 and he was obliged to enter the 
,catholic seminary at ,aix4 ,there he   
began to learn ,latin1 and in course  of
 time became a great proficient1        
speaking and writing that language      
well1 which at that time was fairly     
known by every educated person4 ,his    
theological studies were rather         
neglected by him1 and whenever he had   
the  opportunity1 he got books on       
natural philosophy1 chemistry1 medicine1
  and1 above all1 on botany4 ,he studied
 them with great assiduity1 and  until  
he was twenty-one years of age4         
,tournefort's father died in #afgg1  and
 the young man then being independent1  
threw off his cap and gown1  said       
good-bye to the seminary and its        

priests1 and devoted himself  forthwith 
and as long as life lasted to the       
science of natural history1  and        
especially to botany4    ,he did not    
rest satisfied with the books of        
,plinius and ,aristoteles1 or  of the   
feeble botanists of his youth1 but he   
intended to study plants  as they grew1 
to discover their uses1 and to endeavour
 to classify and  name them4 ,besides1  
he got a love for the healing art1 for  
one of his  first teachers was a chemist
 of ,aix1 who gave him lessons about the
  common simple plants which were used  
in medicine4 ,so1 after roaming  over   
the country far and wide1 month after   
month1 and collecting  plants in        
,provence1 on the mountains of ,dauphin 
and ,savoy1 he went to  ,montpellier in 
#afgi to study anatomy and medicine4    
,the young student  was there for two   
years1 and then he seems to have set the
 example to  his fellow-students1 for   
botanical excursions became a favourite 
method  of passing away time4 ,in #afha1

 in company with several                
fellow-students1  he went to the        
,pyrenees1 and wandered about those     
difficult mountains1  submitting to much
 fatigue1 cold1 and hunger4 ,very robust
 in health1  and vigorous1 his fatigues 
and hard fare seemed to do him good1 and
 at  last he obtained a very fine       
collection of the plants of that region4
  ,it is always told that the ardent    
young botanist and his friends got  into
 trouble1 being taken prisoners more    
than once by ,miguelites  7smugglers72  
but it is not likely that those people  
got much out of them4    ,on his return 
home he found that his reputation as a  
practical botanist  and as knowing      
useful plants1 had spread about1        
although he had not  written any work at
 that time4 ,m4 ,fagon1 a distinguished 
botanist of  the age1 was physician to  
,louis ,,xiv41 and had had many an      
excursion to  collect plants in         
,provence1 ,languedoc1 and ,auvergne1   
before he became  a great man at court4 

,he got plants from those localities1   
and had  them planted in the botanic    
gardens1 of which the king was fond2    
and1  fortunately for his prospects in  
life1 he discovered the medicinal uses  
of some natural baths at ,barges1 which 
he recommended to the ,duc de  ,maine4  
,on his return to ,paris1 ,m4 ,fagon was
 made professor of botany and  chemistry
 to the ,jardin des ,plantes1 and       
subsequently became physician  to the   
king and princes1 and director of the   
gardens4 ,m4 ,fagon wanted  help1 for   
little was known about the plants of the
 countries beyond  ,europe1 and he      
sought the services of a young and wise 
botanist who had  plenty of energy4 ,he 
destined young ,tournefort for a great  
career1 and  offered him the            
professorship of the ,botanic garden1   
intending that  the young teacher1 after
 a while1 should travel1 and collect for
 the  garden4 ,finding the prospects    
good1 ,tournefort accepted the position1
 and  desirous of adding to the         

collection of plants1 visited ,spain    
again1 and  then ,portugal4             
,subsequently he came over to ,england1 
and then collected  in ,holland4 ,his   
name was well known as that of a        
practical botanist1  and the ,dutch     
offered him a professorship at ,leyden4 
,he was elected  to the highest         
scientific honour in ,france--to the    
membership of the  ,academy of ,science4
 ,two years afterwards ,tournefort      
published his first  and great work1    
8,the ,elements of ,botany1 or a method 
of ,distinguishing  ,plants40 ,this work
 established his reputation all over    
,europe4 ,it was  a very remarkable     
book4 ,tournefort travelled in ,asia    
,minor1 ,circassia1  ,georgia1 ,northern
 ,assyria1 ,candia1 and ,greece1 and was
 the first man  who gave publicity to   
the truth that the same plants are not  
found in  all countries1 and that most  
countries have many plants peculiar to  
them4 ,he may be said to have founded   
the science of the geographical         

distribution of plants4 ,his            
descriptions of plants were #aj1jjj in  
number2  their arrangement in species   
and genera was excellent4 ,less praise  
must  be given about the manner of his  
separating the greater divisions of  the
 plants one from the other4             
,nevertheless1 much of the work of this 
great traveller has lasted until the    
present day as good science4 ,plants    
are arranged in species1 which consist  
of individuals1 having a close          
structural resemblance without any      
constant differences of the form  of the
 stem1 roots1 leaves1 flowers1 and      
seeds4 ,a genus is a group of  species  
with a general resemblance1 some special
 character predominating4  ,an order is 
a number of more or less similar genera1
 and a class contains  orders which have
 greater resemblance than those of      
another class4    ,all this             
classification relates to accurate      
observation and description1  and then  
to comparison1 and the greater the      

knowledge of the botanist  of species   
and genera the more useful it is4 ,there
 is a difficulty in  selecting those    
parts of a plant which should be those  
on which the  classification should     
depend1 and this was the stumbling-block
 with these  early botanists4 ,ray saw  
the value of the seed and of the        
reproductive  organs in classification1 
and ,tournefort1 although he erred in   
classifying his 8classes0 by the        
coloured part of the flower or corolla1 
followed nature accurately in his       
description1 and reasoned upon the      
facts he had discovered4    ,this       
botanist1 who lived in the days of great
 luxury1 and when war  was almost       
constant1 pursued his useful and simple 
career1 and by his  collections alone1  
assisted in laying the foundations of   
botany as a  science4 ,his travels in   
the ,east read like romances1 for the   
habits  of ,eastern nations were then   
but little known2 and1 moreover1 the    
diligent student was a scholar1 and paid

 great attention to the splendid        
antiquities which he constantly saw4    
,tournefort studied the zoology of  the 
countries he passed through1 and was an 
adept in mineralogy4 ,on  his return    
from his long journey in the ,east he   
was made ,professor of  ,medicine to the
 ,college de ,france4 ,for the future   
his life was destined  to be quiet1     
happy it appears always to have been4   
,year after year he  laboured in        
arranging1 cultivating1 and describing  
the treasure of plants  he had brought  
from the ,east and elsewhere4 ,moreover1
 he taught as  professor4 ,his end was  
sudden1 for he met with an accident in  
the street1  and was killed by a passing
 waggon4    ,tournefort's important work
 was the forming a great amount of good 
knowledge about the species of plants1  
and the arranging them in a  systematic 
order4 ,but1 as has been mentioned1 he  
was a founder of the  science of the    
distribution of plants4 ,he appears to  
have laboured  independently of ,ray1   

his ,english fellow-botanist1 whose     
method was the  best of the two4 ,there 
are twenty-two classes in ,tournefort's 
method1  chiefly arranged1 as has been  
stated1 by the form of the corolla1     
comparatively an unimportant structure4 
,he distinguishes herbs and             
under-shrubs on the one hand1 from trees
 and shrubs on the other4 ,his  system  
of classification was much used on the  
,continent1 until it was  found to be   
less easy of application than that of   
,linnus4    ,the life of ,ray1 by ,dr4  
,derham and ,sir ,j4 ,e4 ,smith1 is to  
be found in the  8,memorials of ,john   
,ray10 in the publications of the ,ray  
,society1 #ahdf4    ,illustration       
,illustration          ,,chapter ,,iii4 
,,the ,,life ,,of ,,linn,,us4           
,the science of plants begins to mature1
 to be reformed1 and to      be made    
more exact4      ,carl ,linnus was born 
in the month of ,may1 #agjg1 at         
,rashult1 in the  parish of             
,stenbrohult1 in ,smaland1 a province in

 the ,south of ,sweden4 ,his  father1   
,nils ,linnus1 was assistant minister of
 the parish1 and became1  in process of 
time1 its pastor or rector1 having      
married the daughter of  his            
predecessor4#a    ,our ,carl was the    
firstborn child of this marriage4 ,the  
family of ,linnus  had been peasants1   
and a remarkably lofty linden tree1     
growing near their  native place1 is    
reputed to have given origin to the     
names of ,lindelius1  or ,tiliander     
7linden tree man74 ,this origin of      
surnames taken from  natural objects is 
not uncommon in ,sweden4    ,of his     
father1 ,linnus has given us a few      
glimpses in his diary1 which  prepossess
 us in his favour1 and make us wish that
 we knew more of the  worthy pastor4 ,he
 was brought up by his maternal uncle1  
,sven ,tiliander1  himself a clergyman1 
who educated the lad with his own       
children1 and1  being fond of plants and
 gardening1 inspired in his nephew also 
a love  for horticulture2 so that this  

predilection appears to have been1 in   
some degree1 hereditary4 ,young ,nils   
was sent1 in due time1 to school1  and  
afterwards to the ,university of ,lund1 
where he had to struggle1 for  some     
years1 with poverty1 and to apply very  
diligently to his studies1  in order    
that he might qualify himself for the   
profession of his choice4  ,returning to
 his native place1 he was admitted to   
holy orders1 and was  first curate1 and 
afterwards co-pastor4 ,soon after he    
attained to this  degree1 he was married
 to the eldest daughter of the pastor1  
,christina  ,brodersonia1 of whom her   
son says--8,she possessed all the       
virtues of her  sex1 and was an         
excellent economist40 ,no doubt she     
found ample room for  the exercise of   
this her distinguishing excellence1 for 
her husband's  stipend was small1 and   
she brought him a goodly family of two  
sons and  three daughters4 ,we may well 
believe that thrift and frugality were  
necessary in the mnage of this small    

household4 ,linnus tells us that  the   
young couple welcomed their firstborn   
with joy1 and reared him with  the      
tenderest solicitude1 8devoting the     
utmost attention to impressing on  his  
mind the love of virtue1 both in precept
 and example40 ,he has drawn  a charming
 picture of his birthplace2 it was      
situated in a very pleasant  valley     
adjoining the lake ,mklen1 which formed 
a bay1 in the centre of  which stood the
 parish church of ,stenbrohult4 ,on the 
banks of this fine  lake1 surrounded by 
hills and valleys1 woods and cultivated 
grounds1 the  father of ,linnus dwelt2  
his garden and his fields yielding him1 
at the  same time1 both amusement and   
profit4 ,the young ,carl had no sooner  
left  his cradle than he was constantly 
in the garden1 in which1 to use his  own
 expression1 he almost lived1 delighted 
with the brilliant hues and  fragrance  
of the beauteous shrubs and flowers     
which flourished there4    ,in a letter 
to ,baron ,haller1 written at the time  

of his father's death1  ,linnus says3   
8,he was an uncommon lover of plants1   
and had a select  garden of numerous    
rare species40 ,the favourite taste of  
the father was  quickly imbibed by the  
child1 who was his constant companion   
while he  cultivated the choice         
parterre1 and eagerly tried to yield    
such slight  aid as his childish powers 
permitted4 ,he has recorded the first   
occasion  when this innate passion was  
decidedly displayed1 or rather1 perhaps1
  when it sprung into consciousness4 ,he
 was hardly four years old when  he     
chanced to accompany his father to a    
rural fte at ,mklen1 and in  the        
evening1 it being a pleasant season of  
the year1 the guests seated  themselves 
on the flowery turf and listened to the 
good pastor1 who  entertained them with 
remarks on the names and properties of  
the plants  which grew around them1     
showing them the roots of succisa1      
tormentilla1  orchides1 etc4 ,the little
 ,carl attended with the utmost         

eagerness to all  he saw and heard1 and 
8from that time never ceased harassing  
his father  with questions about the    
name1 qualities1 and nature of every    
plant he  met with40 ,an unlooked-for   
result of the evening lecture1 and which
 seems  to have cost the worthy man no  
small trouble1 for the child 7not unlike
  other children1 for that matter7 very 
often asked more than his father  was   
able to answer2 in addition to which he 
8used immediately to forget  all he had 
learned1 and especially the names of    
plants40 ,to cure him  of this          
mischievous habit of inattention his    
father refused to answer  his questions 
unless he would promise to remember what
 was told him1  which judicious         
management wrought a speedy and         
effectual cure1 insomuch  that he tells 
us he ever afterwards retained with     
ease1 whatever he  heard4 ,besides this 
retentiveness of memory he possessed an 
8astonishing  quickness of sight10 an   
almost necessary qualification for the  

study of  his favourite science4        
,when the boy was eight years old a     
separate plot of ground was assigned    
him by his father1 which was called     
8,carl's garden10 and which he soon     
stored with collections of plants and   
wild flowers1 gathered from the  woods  
and fields around his dwelling4 ,at the 
same time he introduced a  variety of   
weeds1 a treasure which it afterwards   
cost his father no  small pains to      
eradicate from his flower-beds4 ,the    
enterprising youngster  even tried the  
experiment of establishing a swarm of   
wild bees and wasps  in the garden1 the 
result of which was a devastating       
warfare waged  against the domestic     
hives4    ,at length it was thought     
desirable that these flowery pursuits   
should  give way to more serious        
occupations1 and he was committed to the
 charge  of a private tutor1 whom he    
calls 8a passionate and morose man1     
better  calculated for extinguishing a  
youth's talents than for improving      

them40  ,nor did he fare any better in  
his next remove1 which was to the       
grammar  school at ,wexi1 where the     
masters 8pursued the same methods1      
preferring  stripes and punishments to  
encouragements and admonitions40        
,probably the  boy evinced his distaste 
for such coercive measures1 since we    
find him  soon removed from school to   
the care of another private teacher1 of 
whose  mild and gentle disposition he   
speaks in terms of approval4            
,nevertheless1  he too failed to inspire
 in his pupil a love for the studies    
which were  considered necessary as     
preparatory to admission into holy      
orders2 for  ,nils ,linnus1 desirous    
that his eldest son should become his   
assistant  and eventually his successor1
 designed him for the ,church4 ,the boy 
had  to work for three years before he  
was promoted to a higher 8form0 in  the 
school1 called the 8circle20 and the    
principal use he seems to have  made of 
the greater liberty allowed him in this 

new rank1 was to shun  the usual        
exercises and give himself up to the    
study of his favourite  pursuit--the    
knowledge of flowers4 ,he acknowledges  
that his time was  chiefly spent in     
wandering about the outskirts of the    
town1 and making  himself acquainted    
with all the plants he could find4      
,according to the  system then pursued  
in ,sweden1 it was necessary that youths
 should pass  from the schools or       
private tutors to a superior seminary1  
called the  ,gymnasium1 where the higher
 branches of literature were taught2 and
  accordingly1 at the age of seventeen1 
the young ,linnus was removed  thither4 
,but the original predilections of his  
mind were then still more  strikingly   
evinced and matured4 ,he showed the     
strongest distaste for  theological     
studies4 ,in the metaphysics1 ethics1   
,greek and ,hebrew1 and  theology his   
companions far outstripped him2 but in  
mathematics1 and  particularly physics1 
he as much excelled them4 ,his favourite

 science1  botany1 which at that time   
was wholly neglected1 still continued to
  be his most engrossing pursuit1 and he
 soon contrived to form a small  library
 of books in that branch4 ,among others 
he mentions the 8,chloris  ,gothica0 of 
,bromelius1 and ,rudbeck's 8,hortus     
,upsaliensis10 which he  confesses his  
inability then to comprehend clearly4   
,nevertheless he says  he 8continued to 
read them day and night1 and committed  
them to memory40  ,his own copies of    
these books1 8used with the utmost care 
and neatness10  were preserved among his
 library1 and after his death were sold 
with his  collection4 ,the zeal and     
eagerness he evinced in these studies   
procured  him1 both among masters and   
scholars1 the name of 8the ,little      
,botanist40    ,at the end of two years 
his father went to ,wexi1 8hoping to    
hear from  the preceptors the most      
flattering account of his beloved son's 
progress  in his studies and morals40   
,but he was sorely disappointed at      

learning  that1 unexceptionable as the  
general behaviour of the youth had been1
  he was evidently quite unfit for a    
divine2 and1 indeed1 in the opinion  of 
the authorities1 it was a pity to incur 
any further expense towards  giving him 
a learned education1 some manual        
employment being far more  suitable for 
him4 ,the youth1 they thought1 would be 
well placed as  apprentice to some      
tailor or shoemaker6    ,grieved at     
having thus lost his labour1 and        
supported his son at school  for twelve 
years 7an expense he could very ill     
afford7 to no purpose1  the venerable   
clergyman went his way1 pondering what  
course to pursue4  ,it chanced that he  
was suffering from a complaint which    
required  medical advice1 and he betook 
himself to the house of ,dr4 ,rothmann1 
the  provincial physician1 also a       
lecturer in physics1 to whom1 in the    
course  of conversation1 he mentioned   
his perplexity with reference to his son
  ,carl4 ,rothmann suggested that1      

though the opinions of his colleagues   
might be correct as to the boy's        
inaptitude for theological studies1     
there was good reason to believe he     
might distinguish himself in the        
profession of medicine1 and possibly    
that he might accomplish great  things  
in the pursuit of natural history4 ,at  
the same time he liberally  offered1 in 
case the father's circumstances did not 
permit him to  maintain his son in a    
course of studies1 to take him into his 
own house1  and provide for him during  
the year he must remain at the          
gymnasium4    ,this generous proposal   
was gratefully accepted1 and the result 
was most  satisfactory4 ,linnus received
 from his benefactor a course of private
  instructions in physiology with so    
much success1 that the youth was able   
to give a most accurate report of all he
 had been taught4 ,at the same  time1   
this worthy teacher put him into the    
right method of studying  botany1       
showing the necessity of proceeding in a

 scientific manner1  and directing his  
attention to the system of ,tournefort4 
,the very  imperfections he found in    
this work stimulated his desire for     
something  more perfect1 and were1 in   
this way1 of use to the future          
naturalist4    ,the year following      
7#agbg7 ,linnus proceeded to the        
,university at ,lund1  furnished1 as he 
has himself recorded1 with a 8not very  
creditable  certificate40 ,this         
curiosity1 after its kind1 was to the   
effect that  youth at school may be     
compared to plants1 which sometimes     
baffle all  the skill of the gardener1  
but1 being transplanted to a different  
soil1  occasionally turn out well4 ,with
 this view1 and no other1 the bearer was
  sent to the ,university1 which1       
possibly1 might prove propitious to his 
progress6    ,happily1 the young man had
 a friend at the ,university1 in his    
former  preceptor--he of the mild and   
gentle disposition--who kept back the   
doubtful recommendation1 and procured   

his matriculation as one of his  private
 pupils4    ,at ,lund1 ,linnus lodged in
 the house of ,dr4 ,stobus1 professor of
  medicine1 and physician to the king4  
,this eminent man1 perceiving the       
industry of his lodger1 and his         
acquirements in natural science1 allowed
  him free access to his excellent      
museum of minerals1 shells1 and dried   
plants2 and1 highly delighted with the  
idea of a hortus siccus1 ,linnus        
immediately began to collect all the    
plants which grew in the vicinity1  and 
to 8glue them upon paper40 ,still1 he   
was denied the privilege of  access to  
the doctor's library2 but1 as it fell   
out1 he managed to  obtain that also4   
,he formed an acquaintance with a       
fellow-lodger1 a  young ,german student1
 who enjoyed the advantage he coveted1  
and1 in  return for teaching him the    
principles of physiology1 he obtained of
  this youth books from ,stobus's       
library4 ,he passed whole nights in     
reading the volumes thus clandestinely  

procured2 but it happened that the      
mother of ,stobus1 who was infirm and   
ailing1 lay awake several nights  in    
succession1 and seeing a light          
constantly burning in ,linnus's room1   
fearful of fire1 desired her son to     
chide the young ,smalander for his      
carelessness4    ,two nights after1 at  
midnight1 the lad was surprised by a    
visit from his  host1 who found him1 to 
his astonishment1 diligently poring over
 his  books4 ,being asked why he did not
 go to bed1 and whence he had procured  
the books1 he was compelled to confess  
everything4 ,stobus ordered him         
immediately to go to bed2 and the next  
morning1 calling for him1 gave him      
permission to make what use he pleased  
of his library4 ,from that time  this   
excellent man admitted the youth to the 
utmost familiarity1 received  him at his
 own table1 and treated him even as a   
son4    ,while botanizing in the        
country1 in the following spring1       
,linnus was  bitten in the right arm by 

a venomous reptile1 and so serious were 
the  consequences that his life was     
endangered4 ,as soon as he was partially
  recovered1 he returned to his father's
 house1 in order to recruit his  health 
during the summer vacation1 and while   
staying in ,smaland he was  persuaded by
 his kind friend and benefactor1 ,dr4   
,rothmann1 to quit ,lund  for ,upsala1  
as a superior school of medicine1 and   
affording besides1 many  other          
advantages of which he could easily     
avail himself4    ,in this              
,university--the first and most ancient 
seat of ,swedish learning1  and the     
scene1 in after-years1 of his           
greatness--our young student  underwent 
a severe process of training4 ,poor and 
unknown1 he had no means  of adding to  
the scanty pittance his parents were    
able to allow him4  ,scarcely could they
 afford to give the small sum of #bjj   
silver ducats  7about #h7 towards the   
expenses of his education there4 ,in a  
short time  he found his pockets quite  

empty2 and having no chance of obtaining
  private pupils1 he vainly looked for  
any other source of maintenance4 ,in  a 
few words1 he thus touchingly records   
the tale of his suffering1 and  the     
first beam of hope that shone across his
 path4 ,as ,petronius says1  poverty is 
the attendant of a good mind2 and       
,linnus was not without it  in this     
university1 444 he was obliged to trust 
to chance for a meal1 and  in the       
article of dress was reduced to such    
shifts that he was obliged1  when his   
shoes required mending1 to patch them   
with folded paper instead  of sending   
them to the cobbler4    ,years          
afterwards1 the most distinguished      
zoologist ,france ever produced1  ,m4 de
 ,lamarck1 stated to a friend1 8,i was  
poor1 indeed1 but ,i had not1  like     
,linnus1 to gather up my                
fellow-students' old shoes to wear40    
,he repented of his journey to ,upsala1 
and of his departure from the  roof of  
,stobus2 but to return to ,lund was a   

tiresome and expensive  undertaking4    
,stobus1 too1 had taken it very ill1    
that a pupil whom he  loved so sincerely
 had left that ,university without      
consulting him4    ,at this time        
,linnus1 in spite of his great industry 
and simple manner of  living1 naturally 
had considerable anxieties about his    
success in life4    ,it chanced one day1
 in the autumn of the year #agbh1 whilst
 ,linnus was  very intently examining   
some plants in the academical garden1   
there  entered a venerable old          
clergyman1 who asked him what he was    
about1  whether he was acquainted with  
plants1 whence he came1 and how long he 
had been prosecuting his studies8 ,to   
all these questions he returned         
satisfactory answers1 and was then      
invited to accompany his interrogator   
to his house1 which proved to be that of
 ,dr4 ,olaus ,celsius4    ,this         
estimable and learned man1 to whom      
,scandinavia owes so much in  regard to 
natural history1 had just returned from 

,stockholm1 where he had  been engaged  
in preparing his celebrated work upon   
the plants mentioned  in the ,holy      
,scriptures1 which he published in      
#agde1 having travelled to  the ,east on
 purpose to make it more complete4      
,little did ,celsius imagine  that the  
youth1 whom he first met1 by chance1 in 
the academical garden  at ,upsala1 was  
destined1 in after years1 by his genius1
 to immortalize  its fame4 ,he1 however1
 soon discerned the merits of ,linnus1  
took him  under his protection1 offering
 him board and lodging in his own house1
  and allowing him the full use of his  
library1 which was very rich in         
botanical books4 ,among all his patrons1
 ,linnus appears to have dearly         
cherished the memory of this venerable  
man1 never referring to him but in      
terms of reverence and gratitude4 ,the  
friendship and patronage of one so      
distinguished1 did not fail to procure  
for the youth the advantages he so  much
 needed4 ,before long1 the son of       

,professor ,rudbeck1 and other young    
men1 became his private pupils1 and by  
this means his pecuniary wants  were    
supplied4    ,nothing1 however1 seems to
 have given ,linnus so much satisfaction
 in  reviewing the events of this period
 of his early history1 as the intimate  
friendship he now contracted with a     
fellow-student1 named ,artedi1  who     
afterwards distinguished himself by his 
knowledge of fishes and  umbelliferous  
plants4 ,to the picture he has drawn of 
his friend1 ,linnus  has added a slight 
sketch of himself4 ,there was a great   
difference in the  personal appearance1 
as well as in the temperament and       
disposition of  the two youths4 ,artedi 
was of a tall and handsome figure1 more 
serious1  and of a deliberate judgment2 
whereas his friend was short in stature 
and stout1 hasty in temper1 and of a    
sanguine turn4 ,the two companions      
pursued their favourite studies with an 
honourable spirit of emulation4  ,they  
divided the kingdoms and provinces of   

nature between them1 and while  ,linnus 
yielded the palm to ,artedi in          
ichthyology 7the science of fish71  the 
latter acknowledged ,linnus to be his   
superior in entomology1 or that  of     
insects4 ,each kept his discoveries to  
himself1 though for no great  length of 
time1 since not a day passed without one
 surprising the other  by narrating some
 new fact1 so that emulation produced   
mutual industry of  research1 and       
stimulated each to new exertions4       
,linnus was now in his twenty-second    
year1 about which time he met with  a   
review of ,le ,vaillant's treatise1     
8,sur la ,structure des ,fleurs0 78,on  
the ,structure of ,flowers071 by which  
his curiosity was excited to a close    
examination of the stamens and pistils  
7the central and reproductive           
structures71 and1 perceiving the        
essential importance of these parts of  
the plant1 he formed the design of a new
 method of arrangement1 founded  upon   
these organs4 ,this was the first       

dawning idea of that great system  upon 
which his subsequent fame was based4    
,a flower of a complete kind consists of
 the parts of the plant which  reproduce
 or form the seed1 enclosed within two  
particular envelopes4 ,the  envelopes of
 the flower are the beautifully coloured
 parts called petals1  which form the   
corolla1 or inner envelope1 and the     
duller-coloured or  green sepals outside
 the corolla1 and which form the calyx4 
,protected by these coverings1 are the  
central parts or organs4 ,quite  in the 
middle of the flower is the ovary1 made 
up of one or several  portions--the     
pistils1 which contain the future seeds 
or ovules4 ,the top  of the whole1 which
 projects in the middle of the flower1  
is the stigma1  and the prolonged part  
beneath it is the style1 and this       
surmounts the  seed-case or ovary4      
,outside this central part1 and between 
it and the  corolla1 are the stamens1   
each of which--for their number         
varies--may  consist of a stalk or      

filament1 bearing an anther1 which is   
coloured1 and  contains the pollen1 or  
dust1 which fertilizes the ovule1 by    
falling on  to the stigma4    ,these    
central parts are the reproductive      
organs1 and are those which1  above all 
others1 are the most important1 for     
without them a plant cannot  increase   
and multiply1 and would become extinct4 
,the floral envelopes1  beautiful as    
they are1 are not so essential1 and are 
of secondary  importance in             
classification4 ,now1 in some kinds of  
plants the stigma  and the ovary exist  
in one individual and the stamens in    
another4 ,the  plant which bears the    
ovary is called the female1 and that    
which has  the pollen-making part is    
termed the male4 ,hence it is said that 
plants  have sexes4 ,but in a vast      
number of plants these organs are       
combined  in the same individual4       
,linnus considered the stamen to be of  
primary  importance1 and established    
eleven classes of plants distinguished  

by  the numbers of the stamens1 and     
these all relate to plants in which the 
male and female organs are combined in  
the same individual4 ,thus the red      
valerian has one stamen only1 and it was
 classed in monandria1 the  first part  
of the word meaning 8one0 and the last  
8male40 ,the lilac has  two stamens1 and
 was classed in the diandria--8two      
male20 and other  plants were classified
 up to those which have ten stamens1 the
 pink1  for instance1 as decandria4 ,an 
eleventh class included all plants      
which bear flowers containing from      
twelve to nineteen stamens1 such as     
mignonette4 ,then two more classes were 
invented to comprise--#a1 plants  with  
twenty or more stamens placed on the    
calyx1 as the cherry2 #b1 others  with  
twenty or more stamens which are placed 
on stalks rising from below  the ovary1 
as in the buttercup4 ,other classes were
 formed according to  the relative      
length of the stamens1 as in the        
foxglove and wallflower1  and also from 

the grouping of the stamens in bundles4 
,then there were  three very important  
classes in which the sexes are in       
separate flowers4  ,finally1 the        
flowerless plants1 such as the ferns1   
lichens1 and fungi1  were united as     
cryptogamia1 having their organs of     
reproduction more or  less concealed4   
,the next part of the classification    
refers to orders which are  subdivisions
 of classes4 ,the orders of the first   
thirteen classes1  mentioned above1 are 
founded on the number of styles 7or of  
stigmas if  these are absent71 and the  
names given1 relate to the number and   
the term  gynia1 or female4    ,thus the
 order monogynia includes plants of all 
the thirteen classes that  have only one
 style to each flower1 such as the      
primrose2 and so on1  until polygynia1  
or 8many female0--plants of such an     
order1 having more  than twelve styles1 
like the rose and clematis4    ,one     
class has a very important division into
 two orders1 one of which  has naked and

 the other covered seeds2 another has   
orders from the  shape of the fruit or  
pod4 ,linnus divided the cryptogamia    
into six  orders--the ferns1 mosses1    
liverworts1 lichens1 fungi1 and         
seaweeds4 ,there  is no doubt that this 
classification enables the name of a    
plant to be  discovered1 if it has been 
properly described and named1 very      
easily1  and it added to the facilities 
of classificatory botany4 ,but it did   
not  bring plants having many other and 
very important characters together1  and
 it separated many which are closely    
allied by similar structures4  ,it was  
and is called the artificial system4 ,it
 was not a natural  classification like 
that foreshadowed by ,ray4 ,the careful 
distinction  of the sexes of plants was1
 of course1 the foundation of the       
system1 and  to that ,linnus paid great 
attention4 ,writing a little treatise on
 the  subject1 he showed it to ,celsius1
 who communicated it to ,dr4 ,rudbeck4  
,this man1 free from the usual jealousy 

of the age1 took ,linnus as his         
assistant1 and asked him to lecture in  
the botanical garden4 ,thus the  young  
man became a teacher in the very place  
where he had applied the  year before   
for the humble situation of gardener4   
,dr4 ,rudbeck1 moreover1  took him into 
his house as tutor to his children1 and 
thus he had access  to a fine collection
 of books and drawings on natural       
history subjects4  ,his mornings were   
then occupied in giving instruction to  
the students1  and his evenings in      
composing the new system and meditating 
a general  reformation in botanical     
science4 ,he had no time to waste at    
,upsala4  ,it will have been noticed how
 kindly ,linnus was treated by a few    
true  lovers of science1 and it was     
greatly to the honour of the good simple
  people of science-loving ,scandinavia4
    ,people imagine that the progress   
and prosperity of scientific men depend 
upon themselves alone2 but many a       
promising career has been arrested by   

petty jealousy and the expression of ill
 will on the part of those who  are     
second-rate men of science4 ,on the     
other hand1 truly distinguished         
scientific men are mostly only too glad 
to assist earnest1 hard-working1  and   
meritorious students4 ,linnus found that
 he was no exception to the  rule that  
appears to determine that a prosperous  
poor man shall have  enemies4 ,he was   
opposed by a ,dr4 ,rosen on his return  
from foreign travel1  but ,linnus stood 
his ground4 ,but when his father        
suggested a voyage into  ,lapland to    
collect plants1 ,linnus gladly seized   
the opportunity1 and  after arrangements
 had been made1 he went to stay awhile  
at home4    ,early in #agcb ,linnus left
 his father's house1 to set out on his  
arduous  undertaking4 ,on his way to    
,upsala he paid a visit to his former   
friend  and preceptor1 ,stobus1 at      
,lund1 and studied his collection of    
minerals1  the only branch of natural   
history with which 7he tells us7 he was 

unacquainted4 ,he shortly after         
proceeded to ,upsala1 from which place  
he  set out on his journey alone1 ,may  
#abth1 #agcb1 8being at that time within
  half a day of twenty-five years of    
age40    ,during this journey ,linnus   
travelled over the greater part of      
,lapland1  skirting the boundaries of   
,norway1 and returned to ,upsala by the 
eastern  side of the ,bothnian ,gulf1   
having performed a journey of near four 
thousand ,english miles1 mostly on foot1
 in five months4 ,he necessarily        
endured many hardships and vast fatigue1
 and his life was several times         
imperilled4 ,bogs and forests           
intercepted his way1 and food1 even of  
the  coarsest description1 was          
occasionally not easily procured2 yet1  
amid all  difficulties1 his spirit was  
unflagging1 and obstacles only seemed to
  quicken his zeal4 ,the natural        
curiosities of the country1 the manners 
of  the people1 and the general features
 of the various regions he traversed1   

all were observed and written down for  
future use4 ,he collected above a       
hundred plants1 entirely undescribed and
 unknown before1 and upon his  return   
arranged all the flora of ,lapland      
according to his own favourite  system1 
and delivered an account of his journey 
publicly4    ,the result of his         
botanical observations was not published
 for several  years afterwards1 during  
his residence in ,holland4 ,this        
expedition was  the first and most      
difficult of all the six journeys of    
,linnus4 ,he spoke  of it afterwards in 
one of his academical addresses in these
 words3 8,my  journey through ,lapland  
was particularly toilsome1 and ,i own   
that ,i was  obliged to sustain more    
hardships and dangers in that sole      
peregrination  through the frontier of  
our northern world1 than in all the     
other  travels ,i undertook in other    
parts4 ,but having once sustained the   
toils  of travelling1 ,i buried in the  
oblivion of ,lethe all the dangers and  

difficulties ,i endured1 the invaluable 
fruits ,i reaped having compensated  for
 every toil40 ,writing to a friend on   
the same subject1 he says3 8,all  my    
food in these fatiguing excursions      
consisted1 for the most part1 of  fish  
and reindeer's milk4 ,bread1 salt1 and  
what is found everywhere  else1 did but 
seldom recreate my palate4 ,one of the  
greatest nuisances  which ,i met with in
 ,lapland was the immense number of     
flies4 ,i used to  keep them off1 by    
drawing a crape over my face40 ,the     
youthful traveller  started on his      
adventurous journey 8without            
encumbrances of any kind1  and carried  
all his baggage on his back10 by which  
means alone he was  enabled to prosecute
 the objects he had in view4 ,leaving   
,upsala by the  northern gate1 he       
travelled for a considerable distance   
through fertile  corn-fields1 bounded by
 hills1 and the view terminated by      
extensive  forests4 ,with respect to    
situation and variety of prospects1 the 

young  ,swede was of opinion that       
scarcely any city could stand a         
comparison  with this4 ,at a short      
distance from the gates he left1 on the 
right1  ,old ,upsala1 the place renowned
 for the worship of the primeval gods of
  ,sweden1 and for the inauguration and 
residence of her earliest king4  ,here1 
in days of high antiquity1 human        
sacrifices were offered at the  shrines 
of the pagan deities1 and here our      
traveller noticed the three  large      
sepulchral mounds which tradition has   
assigned to the bodies of  ,odin1       
,frigga1 and ,thor4    8,cheered with   
the song of the charming lark10 which   
attended his steps  through the lowland1
 his approach to the forest was welcomed
 by the  redwing1 8whose amorous        
warblings from the tops of the spruce   
firs0  appeared to him to rival the     
nightingale itself4 ,as the summer was  
advancing1 he thought it not desirable  
to lose time by the way1 nor  to stray  
far from the high road in the early part

 of the tour2 but  attentively observing
 what presented itself to him as he     
passed along1 he  noted the various     
plants1 animals1 and insects1 together  
with the general  features of the       
country4    ,arrived in the province of 
,medelpad1 he ascended its highest      
mountain1  leaving his horse 8tied to an
 ancient ,runic monumental stone40 ,he  
found  several uncommon plants here2 and
 from the summit1 gazed on the country  
spread out below1 varied with plains and
 cultivated fields1 villages1  lakes1   
and rivers--a most picturesque and      
romantic region4 ,the descent was  very 
difficult1 and even dangerous4 ,leaving 
this mountain1 he took his  route along 
the sea-shore1 which was spread with the
 wrecks of vessels1  telling to the     
feeling heart of the young traveller a  
sad tale of woe4  8,how many prayers1   
sighs1 tears1 vows1 and                 
lamentations--all1 alas6 in  vain--rose 
to my imagination at this melancholy    
spectacle60 he exclaims4  ,the sight    

reminded him of a student who1 going by 
sea from ,stockholm to  ,abo1           
experienced so severely the terrors of  
the ocean1 that he chose to  walk back  
round the head of the ,bothnian ,gulf1  
rather than adventure  himself again    
upon the deep4 ,this youth1 afterwards a
 ,professor at ,abo1  assumed the       
surname of ,tillands1 expressive of his 
attachment to terra  firma1 and ,linnus 
named in honour of him1 a plant which   
cannot bear wet4    ,in five or six     
days1 ,linnus reached ,hernosand1 the   
principal town of  ,angermania1 on the  
,bothnian ,gulf1 and visited a          
tremendously steep and  lofty mountain  
called ,skula1 where was a cavern1 which
 he desired to  explore4 ,here he was   
within a hair's breadth of a fatal      
accident1 for  one of the peasants who  
accompanied him1 in climbing up1        
loosened a  large stone1 which was      
hurled down the track ,linnus had just  
left1  and fell exactly on the spot he  
had occupied4 8,if ,i had not 7he says7 

providentially changed my route1 nobody 
would ever have heard of me more2  ,i   
was surrounded by fire and smoke1 and   
should certainly1 but for the           
protecting hand of ,providence1 have    
been crushed to pieces40 ,from this     
point of the journey a change came over 
the face of nature4 ,the country  was   
covered over with snow1 in some places  
inches deep2 the pretty spring  flowers 
disappeared1 and in their place nothing 
but wintry plants were  seen peeping    
through the snow4 ,at length1 on the    
#bcrd of ,may1 he reached  ,uma1 in     
,west ,bothnia1 where he turned out of  
the main road to the  left1 designing to
 visit ,lycksele1 ,lapmark2 by which    
means he lost the  advantage of the     
regular post horses1 and found the ways 
so narrow and  intricate1 that at every 
step he stumbled4 8,in this dreary      
wilderness  ,i began to feel very       
solitary1 and to long earnestly for a   
companion  7he says72 the few           
inhabitants ,i met had a foreign accent1

 and always  concluded their sentences  
with an adjective40    ,as the night    
shut in1 the way-worn traveller began   
also to long for  a good meal1 and has  
thus recorded the result of his         
application1 on  arriving at a village  
where he passed the night3--8,on my     
inquiring what  ,i could have for       
supper1 they set before me the breast of
 a cock of the  woods1 which had been   
shot and dressed some time the preceding
 year4 ,its  aspect was not very        
inviting2 but the taste proved          
delicious1 and ,i  found1 with pleasure1
 that these poor ,laplanders know better
 than some of  their more opulent       
neighbours1 how to employ the good      
things which ,god  has bestowed upon    
them40    ,the bird is prepared by a    
process of salting and drying1 and will 
keep  even for three years1 if          
necessary4 ,linnus next proceeded up the
 river  of ,uma as far as ,lycksele1    
where he was hospitably received by the 
worthy pastor of the place2 and the next

 day1 being ,whit-,sunday1 he  stayed   
there1 and would fain have remained     
longer2 but1 for fear of the  floods    
impeding his journey1 he hastened his   
departure on the morrow1  and on the    
#ast of ,june entered the territories of
 the native ,laplanders1  passing       
through wild forests1 with no traces of 
roads4 ,a more desolate  picture of     
wretchedness than this region presented1
 could hardly be  imagined4 ,it was     
flooded by the rivers1 and the bogs were
 utterly  impassable4 ,at every step the
 water was above the knees1 and the feet
  felt the ice at the bottom4 8,we      
pursued our journey 7continues the      
diary7  with considerable labour and    
difficulty all night long1 if that might
 be  called night which was as light as 
the day1 the sun disappearing for half  
an hour only1 and the temperature of the
 air being rather cold40 ,the poor      
inhabitants had themselves1 at this     
season1 nothing to eat but a scanty     
supply of fish2 for they had not begun  

to kill their reindeer1 nor to  milk    
them4 ,in addition to these evils1 the  
villainous bites of the gnats  and other
 insects tortured the unhappy           
travellers1 till at length he           
exclaims--8,i had now my fill of        
travelling60    ,gladly would he have   
returned by the way he came1 but he     
could find no  road back2 and even the  
hardy ,laplanders themselves1 8born to  
labour1  as the birds to fly10 could not
 help complaining1 and declared they had
  never been in such extremity before4  
,it is evident that even the robust     
frame of ,linnus was beginning to yield 
to the combined effects of  fatigue1    
exhaustion1 and hunger4 ,he at length   
obtained some food which he  was able to
 eat1 and after incredible exertions    
succeeded in retracing  his steps to the
 river1 on which he again embarked1 and 
returned to ,uma2  having1 as he        
ingenuously acknowledged1 8with the     
thoughtlessness of  youth1 undertaken   
more than he was able to perform40      

,from ,uma1 ,linnus proceeded to ,pitha1
 which he reached after two  days'      
journey1 8the night being as pleasant   
for travelling as the day40  ,he notices
 the beauty of the fresh shoots of the  
spruce fir1 which  constitute one of the
 greatest ornaments of the forests which
 adorn this  part of ,sweden4    ,being 
anxious to proceed with all haste1 in   
order if possible to reach  the ,alps of
 ,lulean ,lapland1 8in time to see the  
sun above the horizon  at midnight1     
which is beheld then to the best        
advantage10 the traveller  made no      
longer stay at ,lulea than was needful  
for the purposes of  exploring the      
neighbouring coast and islands4 ,he has 
noted the various  entomological and    
other specimens he observed1 and1 after 
admiring the  beauty of some of them1   
exclaims1 in a sort of rapture--8,the   
observer of  nature sees with admiration
 that the whole world is full of the    
glory of  ,god40    ,during this voyage1
 ,swanberg1 who has taken great delight 

in ,linnus's  conversation1 offered to  
instruct him in the art of assaying     
within a  very short time1 if he would  
agree to visit ,calix1 on his way       
homeward4  ,at ,quickjock1 the wife of  
the curate provided our traveller with  
stores  sufficient for eight days1 and  
procured him a ,laplander1 whose        
assistance  as interpreter and servant  
was highly necessary4    8,on my first  
ascending these wild ,alps 7he says71 ,i
 felt as if in a new  world4 ,here were 
no forests to be seen1 but mountains    
upon mountains1  larger and larger1 as  
,i advanced1 all covered with snow2 no  
road1 no  tracks1 nor any sign of       
inhabitants were visible4 ,the declining
 sun never  disappeared sufficiently to 
allow any cooling shade1 and by climbing
  to the more elevated parts of these   
lofty mountains1 ,i could see it at     
midnight1 above the horizon4 ,this      
spectacle ,i considered as not one of   
the least of nature's miracles1 for what
 inhabitant of other countries  would   

not wish to behold it8 ,o ,lord1 how    
wonderful are thy works60    ,in this   
frozen region there were no traces of   
verdure1 save in the deep  valleys      
between the mountains4 ,very few birds  
were visible1 except  some ptarmigans1  
those hardy inhabitants of the bleak    
mountain tops4 ,a  pretty little        
incident1 recorded by ,linnus1 shows so 
kind a heart that  it must not be       
omitted here4 8,the little ,alpine      
variety of the ptarmigan  was now       
accompanied by its young4 ,i caught one 
of these1 upon which the  hen ran so    
close to me that ,i could easily have   
taken her also4 ,she  kept continually  
jumping round and round me1 but ,i      
thought it a pity to  deprive the tender
 brood of their mother2 neither would my
 compassion for  the mother allow me    
long to detain her offspring1 which ,i  
returned to her  in safety40    ,after a
 long and wearisome journey along these 
mountain passes1  the traveller reached 
one of the cottages of the country4     

,here the  inhabitants1 sixteen in      
number1 received him kindly1 and gave   
him two  reindeer skins to sleep        
between4 ,in the morning some hundreds  
of reindeer  came home to be milked1 and
 it amazed the stranger to perceive     
that1  although to his eyes they were   
all perfectly alike1 yet each of the    
herd  had its appropriate name1 and was 
readily distinguished by the owners4    
,steering his course south-west1 ,linnus
 proceeded to the lofty ice  mountains1 
or 8main ridge of the country10 which he
 had no sooner  reached1 than a storm   
overtook him1 accompanied by a shower of
 thin  pieces of ice1 which soon        
encrusted his garments4 ,the cold was   
intense1  and the whole country was one 
dazzling waste4 ,no sooner1 however1 had
  he crossed the summit of the ridge    
than a change was perceptible1 and      
soon1 from the lofty heights1 he beheld 
the ample forests of ,norway lying  far 
beneath4 ,the whole appearance of the   
country was perfectly green1  and1      

notwithstanding its vast extent1 looked 
like a garden in miniature4  ,the       
descent was slow and long protracted1   
but at length he reached the  plains1 of
 which he had enjoyed so glorious a     
prospect4 8,nothing 7he  exclaims7 could
 be more delightful to my feelings than 
this transition  from all the severity  
of winter1 to the warmth and beauty of  
summer4 ,oh6  how most lovely of all is 
summer6 ,the verdant herbage1 the       
sweet-scented  clover1 the tall grass   
reaching up to my arms1 the grateful    
flavour of  the wild fruits1 and the    
fine weather that welcomed me at the    
foot of  these ,alps1 seemed to refresh 
me both in mind and body40    ,here     
,linnus found himself close to the      
sea-coast1 and he went to sea in  a boat
 to search for the natural productions  
of that element4 ,he would  fain have   
approached the celebrated whirlpool1    
called the ,maelstrom1 but  he found no 
one willing to venture it4 ,on the #acth
 of ,july1 he arrived  at the parsonage 

house of ,rorstadt1 from the occupant of
 which1 himself  a traveller and a      
naturalist1 ,linnus received a cordial  
welcome4 ,a  rather significant entry in
 ,linnus' diary tells us that here1 8in 
this  far distant nook of the wide      
peopled earth10 the young enthusiast    
found  an object of surpassing interest4
 8,the pastor 7he says7 has a handsome  
daughter1 named ,sarah ,rask1 eighteen  
years of age2 she seemed to me          
uncommonly beautiful40 ,the next        
morning1 ,linnus took his leave of this 
elysium1 and proceeded on his way4      
,climbing the mountains again1 he found 
a work of 8no small fatigue and         
exhaustion10 and he has given us a most 
painful account of the subsequent route 
he pursued towards the ,alps of         
,tornea4 8,what ,i endured10 he         
concludes1 8is hardly to be described2  
how  many weary steps ,i had to set1 the
 precipices that came in my way1 and  my
 excessive fatigue4 ,water was our only 
drink during the journey1 and  it never 

appeared so refreshing as when we sucked
 it out of the melting  snow40 ,at      
length1 tired of advancing further into 
this inhospitable  country1 he          
determined to return to ,quickjock4 ,in 
the course of his  journey thither his  
life was twice endangered1 but at length
 he reached  the place of his           
destination1 8having been four weeks    
without tasting  bread40 ,after resting 
some days at ,quickjock1 ,linnus        
descended the  river again to ,lulea1   
where he 8learned the art of assaying   
from the  mine-master1 ,swanberg1 at    
,calix1 in two days and a night10 and   
thence  his journey was continued       
through ,tornea4 ,he had intended to    
visit the  mountains1 but before he     
could get thither the winter set in1 and
 he was  obliged to return along the    
coast on the eastern side of the        
,bothnian  ,gulf4 ,the last entry in his
 journal is dated ,october #ajth1 and is
 as  follows3 8,about one o'clock1      
,p4,m41 ,i arrived safe at ,upsala4 ,to 

the ,maker  and ,preserver of all things
 be praise1 honour1 and glory for ever60
    ,at first1 indeed1 he seemed to reap
 but a humble reward for his toils4 ,on 
his arrival at home1 he presented to the
 ,academy of ,sciences an account  of   
his expedition1 which obtained their    
approbation1 and they gave him  #aab    
silver dollars 7not more than #aj7--;his
 travelling expenses4 ,in the  following
 spring1 he began a private course of   
lectures on the art of  assaying 7which 
he had learned so cleverly from his     
chance companion  during the ,lapland   
journey74 ,this art had never been      
taught at ,upsala  before2 and the      
novelty of the subject1 the skilful     
manner in which he  communicated        
instructions1 and the reasonable terms  
he exacted1 secured  ,linnus a          
considerable number of pupils4          
,illustration          ,illustration    
,,chapter ,,iv4    ,,the ,,life ,,of    
,,linn,,us 7,continued74        ,the    
publication and reception of the        

artificial system of      classifying   
plants4      ,linnus had many           
difficulties to contend with1 however4  
,he found his old  rival1 ,rosen1 at    
work2 and ,linnus accuses this man of   
the meanness of  obtaining1 partly by   
entreaty1 partly by threats1 his        
manuscript lectures  on botany1 which he
 valued more than anything he possessed1
 and which  he afterwards detected his  
rival in copying4 ,this formidable enemy
 next  proceeded to prevent ,linnus from
 obtaining the means of subsistence4    
,there was no room for the young        
botanist at ,upsala1 and1 indeed1 botany
  appeared to be a bad profession4 ,so  
he turned again to mineralogy1 and  got 
up a students' expedition to ,fahlun and
 ,dalecarlia4 ,he settled down  at      
,fahlun for a while as a teacher1 and   
found himself as it were in a  new      
world1 where everybody loved and        
assisted him4 ,he earned money by  his  
medical knowledge4 ,the ,bishop of ,abo 
asked ,linnus to give him  some         

instruction in botany and mineralogy1   
and became much attached  to the young  
man4 ,the bishop advised ,linnus to go  
abroad and get his  doctor's degree1 and
 also to marry4 ,the last was as        
difficult as the  first1 but being more 
to his taste at the time1 he wooed the  
daughter  of ,dr4 ,john ,mora1 a man of 
considerable property4 ,the young       
student  made his proposals with        
considerable trepidation1 and had he not
 been  satisfied that the lady was      
willing1 he would have let the matter   
alone4  ,the worthy doctor thought well 
of ,linnus1 but not of his prospects in 
life1 but he decided that after a lapse 
of three years he would give his  reply4
 ,thus1 at the age of twenty-nine1      
,linnus found himself with a  betrothed1
 no occupation1 and a great deal of     
knowledge and perseverance4  ,he had to 
live1 and so he determined to stick to  
physic1 and to get a  doctor's degree4  
,he contrived to scrape together #ae1   
and went on his  way to the ,university 

of ,harderwyk4 ,first1 like a good son1 
he went to  see his father1 and to      
console him on the loss of the mother--a
 loss  greatly felt by the young man at 
this critical period of his life4 ,then 
,linnus journeyed to the south1 and     
arrived at ,hamburg1 where his whole    
time was employed in viewing the fine   
garden1 and everything else worthy  of  
attention4 ,the public library he       
examined1 and also the principal        
cabinets of natural history1 and he read
 there for the first time the  botanical
 works of ,ray1 whom he esteemed as one 
of the most penetrating  observers of   
the natural affinity of plants4         
,amsterdam was the next  place1 and then
 ,harderwyk1 where1 after being         
examined1 and publishing  a paper on the
 cure of intermittent fever1 he was     
dubbed ,m4,d4 ,he left  for ,leyden1 and
 met ,dr4 ,gronovius1 to whom he showed 
his classification4  ,gronovius was so  
delighted with it that he had it        
published at his own  expense in eight  

large sheets4 ,he called on the         
celebrated ,boerhaave1 and  after eight 
days' waiting obtained an audience4     
,boerhaave took a liking  to the young  
man1 and recommended him to ,dr4        
,burmann1 of ,amsterdam1 in  whose house
 he remained for many months4 ,during   
that time ,linnus printed  his          
8,fundamenta ,botanica10 of which a     
great writer has said1 8it contains  the
 very essence of botanical philosophy1  
and has never been superseded  nor      
refuted40 ,he commended his book to his 
friend ,artedi1 who had just  finished a
 work on ,fishes4 ,death put an end to  
this friendship with  ,artedi1 who was  
accidentally drowned4    ,this stay at  
,amsterdam determined the future career 
of ,linnus1 for he  was introduced there
 to an ,english banker1 ,mr4 ,clifford1 
whose garden  at ,hartecoup was one of  
the finest in the world4 ,linnus removed
 to ,mr4  ,clifford's house1 where he   
said he lived like a prince1 had one of 
the  finest gardens in the world under  

his inspection1 permission to procure   
all the plants that were wanted in the  
garden and such books as were not  to be
 found in the library1 and of course    
enjoyed all the advantages he  could    
wish for1 in his botanical studies1 to  
which he devoted himself day  and night4
 ,he got his description of the plants  
of ,lapland printed1 and  everybody     
recognized the charms of the            
descriptions in the book4    ,in the    
year #agcf1 ,linnus paid a visit to     
,england4 ,he did so by the  request1   
and at the expense1 of ,mr4 ,clifford1  
who was desirous to procure  various    
plants for his collection1 and that he  
should communicate  with the most       
celebrated botanists and horticulturists
 of the day4 ,he  carried with him a    
letter from ,boerhaave to ,sir ,hans    
,sloane1 who was  a mere rich collector 
in natural history1 and afterwards      
founder of  the ,british ,museum4 ,this 
letter is still preserved among the     
archives  of that institution1 and it is

 written in the strongest language of   
recommendation4 ,notwithstanding such an
 honourable introduction1 however1  the 
old baronet1 who was a sort of highly   
cultivated curiosity-shop  keeper and   
not a scientific man1 was indisposed to 
do justice to the  merits of a young man
 whose innovations on established       
systems he  viewed with suspicion and   
dislike4 ,he therefore treated the      
stranger  with coldness1 and dismissed  
him without any marks of regard4 ,one of
  the principal objects of interest to  
,linnus1 in this country1 was the       
botanical garden at ,chelsea2 and from  
the keeper of that collection1  ,philip 
,miller1 an excellent botanist1 he      
experienced much attention1  and was    
supplied with many rare plants4 ,the    
garden at ,chelsea was the  first in    
,great ,britain that was subsequently   
arranged according to the  ,linnan      
system4 ,dr4 ,shaw1 the ,oriental       
traveller1 ,professor ,martyn1  ,peter  
,collinson1 and many other men of true  

science1 received ,linnus  consistently 
with his testimonials1 and admiring his 
genius1 forwarded  his objects by all   
the means in their power1 and1 on his   
return to  the ,continent1 continued to 
correspond with him on subjects of      
mutual  interest in science4    ,from   
,london our traveller proceeded to      
,oxford1 where he paid his respects  to 
the celebrated ,dillenius1 justly       
considered one of the first botanists   
of the time4 ,this learned man was not  
by any means disposed to regard  ,linnus
 favourably4 ,he had received from      
,gronovius a sheet of the 8,genera      
,plantarum10 and conceiving it to be    
written in opposition to him1 was       
irate1 and1 pointing to the young       
,swede1 said to a gentleman who chanced 
to be in his company at the moment of   
,linnus's entry1 8,see1 this is the     
young man who confounds all botany60    
,linnus did not understand ,english1    
but the word 8confound10 so similar to  
the ,latin confundere1 let him  into the

 secret of the professor's words4 ,he1  
however1 showed no sign of              
comprehending him4    ,linnus almost    
despaired of gaining the friendship of  
this learned man1  and obtaining from   
him the plants he wanted4 ,at length1 on
 the third  day of his visit to ,oxford1
 he went to take leave of ,dillenius1   
and1 in  parting1 said1 8,i have but one
 request to make of you2 will you tell  
me  why you called me1 the other day1   
the person who confounds all botany80   
,unable to evade so direct a question1  
,dillenius took him to his library1  and
 showed him the sheet of his genera     
which he had obtained4 ,it was  marked  
in sundry places with notes of query4   
8,what signify these marks80  said      
,linnus4 8,they signify all the false   
genera of plants in your book10         
answered the other4 ,this challenge led 
to an explanation1 in which  ,linnus    
proved his accuracy in every instance4  
,the result was an entire  change on the
 part of ,dillenius1 who afterwards     

detained ,linnus with him  a month1 and 
found so much satisfaction in his       
company that he kept him  always in     
close converse1 scarce leaving him an   
hour to himself4 ,at last  he parted    
from him with tears in his eyes1 after  
making him the offer to  stay and share 
his salary1 which would have sufficed   
for them both4    ,linnus never learned 
any language1 not even ,dutch1 although 
he lived  three years in ,holland4      
8,nevertheless10 he says1 8,i found my  
way  everywhere well and happily40      
,despite this great obstacle1 ,linnus   
appears to have counted among his       
friends and correspondents some of  the 
fair sex1 in several countries4 ,lady   
,ann ,monson in ,london1 and  ,mrs4     
,blackburne at ,oxford1 were among this 
number2 and he had a most  enthusiastic 
admirer in ,miss ,jane ,colden1 of      
,america1 who was introduced  to his    
notice by one of his correspondents1 as 
the only lady known to be               
scientifically acquainted with the      

,linnan system4 ,she had drawn and      
described four hundred plants1 according
 to his method1 using ,english  terms4  
,pleased with the favour and interest   
thus manifested1 ,linnus  acknowledged  
his sense of them1 by preserving the    
names of these ladies  in the vegetable 
kingdom1 and1 among others1 he named two
 genera of  beautiful plants1 ,monsonia 
and ,coldenia4 ,the study of botany was 
so  greatly promoted and facilitated by 
the easy and pleasant method  introduced
 by ,linnus1 that it is no wonder the   
ladies acknowledged1  with gratitude1   
their obligation to the naturalist who  
first originated  a method by which this
 delightful study could be brought      
within the  attainment of all who loved 
it4    ,linnus wished to visit ,paris1  
and travelled by way of ,leyden1 where  
he  enjoyed the society of ,lieberkhn1 a
 professor possessed of 8incomparable   
microscopes40 ,he stopped there until   
the spring of #agch1 and not long       
before his departure1 he had an         

affecting interview with the great      
,boerhaave1 then on his death-bed4 ,this
 illustrious man1 who had proved        
himself so generous a friend to the     
young naturalist1 took a sorrowful  and 
affectionate leave of him4 ,his parting 
words were3 8,i have lived out  my time1
 and done what ,i could2 may ,god       
preserve thee1 from whom the  world     
expects much more4 ,farewell1 dear      
,linnus60 ,linnus fell ill1 and  was    
attended by his fellow-labourer1 ,von   
,swieten1 and on his recovery ,mr4      
,clifford sent him for a tour into      
,brabant4 ,thence he went to ,paris1 saw
  the ,jussieus and ,raumur1 and was    
admitted a corresponding member of the  
,academy of ,science4 ,leaving ,paris1  
he went northwards to see his father1   
and then to his love4 ,the course of    
true love had run very crookedly1 for  a
 mutual friend1 who had been the medium 
of the correspondence of the  lovers1   
fell in love with the lady himself4 ,she
 was true1 however1 and  they were      

finally betrothed4 ,it was strange that 
the greatest botanist  of the day could 
not get a living out of his science1 and
 it is not to  the credit of his native 
country4 ,again ,linnus had to take to  
physic1  and settling at ,stockholm1    
found that the people would not trust   
him with  the cure of their dogs1 much  
less with that of themselves4 ,abroad he
 had  been honoured everywhere1 and in  
his own country he was a nobody4 ,all of
  a sudden things changed1 he cured     
somebody1 and everybody went to him to  
be cured4 ,then his star began to shine1
 the people of ,upsala began to         
remember him4 ,count ,tessin1 who had   
been tutor to the ,king of ,sweden1 and 
who was a lover of natural history1     
procured him a salary of two hundred    
ducats a year1 on condition that he     
would give public lectures on botany    
and mineralogy4 ,linnus wrote of this   
good friend3 8,he received me1 a        
stranger1 on my return2 he obtained me a
 salary from the ,states1 the           

appointment of physician to the         
,admiralty1 the professorship of ,botany
  at ,upsala1 the title of ,dean of the 
,college of ,physicians1 the favour of  
two kings1 and recommended me by a      
medal1 to posterity40 ,having a good    
income at last1 ,linnus entreated that  
his marriage might not longer  be       
delayed4 ,he married ,sara ,elizabeth   
,mora1 at her father's home near        
,fahlun4    ,one of ,linnus's           
biographers says1 8,he was fonder1 on   
the whole1 of  meddling with plants than
 with patients20 and in the true spirit 
of  science1 ,linnus gave up his        
lucrative practice to settle down as    
,professor of ,botany to the ,university
 of ,upsala4 ,it was the summit of his  
wishes1 and in #agda he began to reside 
at ,upsala1 which was to be his  future 
home4    ,his zeal1 talents1 and        
widespread renown soon produced the     
desired  effect1 and in a few years the 
garden at ,upsala ranked equal1 if not  
superior1 to similar institutions in    

,europe4 ,contributions to its  stores  
continually poured in from all quarters1
 and the most celebrated  botanists vied
 with each other in presenting the      
treasures of every  region and climate  
of the globe to its distinguished       
superintendent4  ,six years after the   
establishment of this garden1 the new   
professor  published its description4   
,the numbers of the foreign species of  
plants  in it at that time1 amounted to 
one thousand one hundred4 ,he was filled
  with delight when he beheld these     
fruits of his labours4 ,as a teacher and
  lecturer1 ,linnus distinguished       
himself in a particular manner4 ,his old
  students always spoke well of his     
teaching1 and he trained some of the    
most distinguished botanists in ,europe4
    ,the names of ,kalm1 ,thunberg1     
,sparrman1 ,solander1 and ,fabricius1   
for  instance1 are well known in the    
scientific world2 and there is perhaps  
nothing more truly honourable to the    
memory of their great master1  than the 

fact that he was the founder of such a  
school of able and  enterprising men4   
,linnus impressed upon his students1 and
 took care to remember in his  own      
writings1 that it was absolutely        
necessary to be exact in botanical      
descriptions--that the genus should be  
properly named1 and that it should      
represent an idea into which certain    
species could enter4    ,to the poor1   
and even to the rich1 foreign students  
who resided at ,upsala  entirely on his 
account1 he was most generous1 refusing 
the perquisites  which he should have   
received for his lectures4 ,to the      
former he remitted  the money from      
purely benevolent motives1 while he     
declined it from  the others1 that he   
might convince them how truly proud he  
was of his  science1 so that he would   
fain make it free of cost to those who  
sought  after it4 ,one of them having   
repeatedly urged ,linnus to accept a    
,swedish  bank-note as an acknowledgment
 for the pains he had taken to teach    

him1  he said1 8,tell me candidly1 are  
you rich1 and can you afford it8 ,can   
you  well spare this money on your      
return to ,germany8 ,if you can1 then   
give  the note to my wife2 but1 if you  
be poor1 so help me ,heaven1 ,i will    
take  not a single farthing from you40  
8,you are the only ,swiss that visits   
me1 and ,i feel a pleasure in telling   
you all ,i know1 gratis10 was his       
answer to another1 who importuned him in
 the same manner4 ,it was evident  that 
he was never so much at home1 so        
entirely happy1 as in his garden1  and  
while searching into the secrets and    
hidden properties and workings  of      
nature4 ,hence he reckoned it among the 
choicest favours vouchsafed  him by     
,providence1 that he had been 8inspired 
with an inclination for  science so     
passionate1 as to become the source of  
highest delight to  him40 ,his diligence
 and minute observation were continually
 adding to  his knowledge1 and imparting
 some fresh light in the study he loved4

  ,indeed1 after mentioning with evident
 satisfaction the honours showed  him1  
,linnus somewhat significantly1 and very
 curtly1 adds1 8,thus was  he obliged to
 be a courtier1 contrary to his         
inclination40 ,from his own  account of 
his personal appearance we learn that he
 was a little below  the standard       
height1 and of a strong and compact     
figure4 ,he rather  stooped in walking1 
having contracted this habit from the   
frequent  examination of plants and     
other objects4 ,his head was large1 and 
a good  deal raised behind1 and there   
was a wart on the side of his cheek4    
,his  hair was of a dark brown1 till    
silvered by age1 when his brow became   
much  furrowed and wrinkled4 ,his eyes  
were brown1 bright and piercing1 and    
his sight exceedingly keen4 ,his ear1   
too1 was very acute1 and quick in       
catching every sound1 except that of    
music1 in which he took no delight4     
,his natural temperament1 he tells us1  
was vivacious2 prompt to joy1  sorrow1  

and anger1 but the latter was speedily  
appeased1 and he was  so averse to      
disputes that he never would answer any 
of his numerous  assailants4 ,in his    
early days he was full of energy and    
spirit1 and  through life his movements 
were rapid and agile4 ,in his habits he 
observed the strictest temperance and   
method4 ,he never delayed anything  he  
had to do1 and noted down immediately   
what he wished to remember4 ,he  has    
recorded that he never neglected a      
lecture2 and by rigid economy of  time1 
and a regular and exact distribution of 
the hours1 he completed  those          
extraordinary labours which remain      
lasting proofs of his talents1          
acuteness1 and industry4    ,of his     
wife1 ,linnus makes honourable mention1 
and numbers her as among  the choice    
gifts bestowed on him4 8,she was10 he   
says1 8the wife for  whom he most       
wished1 and who managed his household   
affairs while he was  engaged in        
laborious studies40    ,the year #agfd  

was marked by several events of domestic
 interest in  the life of ,linnus4      
,early in the spring he was attacked by 
a violent  pleurisy1 which threatened to
 cut short his existence4 ,he relates   
how1  with great difficulty1 and through
 the kind assistance and consummate     
skill of ,rosen1 his present friend and 
old enemy1 he was brought  safely       
through the crisis4 ,it is truly        
pleasing to read in his private         
memoranda1 the gratitude he felt to his 
old rival1 and the expressions  of      
intimate regard which thenceforward     
prevailed between them4 ,recovered  from
 this illness1 ,linnus retired to       
,hammarby1 to enjoy the fresh           
invigorating air of the country1 and to 
celebrate his 8,silfer ,brllop10  a     
,swedish custom of commemorating the    
twenty-fifth return of the wedding  day4
 ,one of his most celebrated pupils1    
,professor ,fabricius1 has given  some  
interesting particulars respecting his  
eminent master at this period  of his   

life4    8,for two whole years10 he     
says1 8,i was so fortunate as to enjoy  
his  instruction1 guidance1 and         
confidential friendship4 ,when ,i became
  acquainted with the ,chevalier von    
,linn1 although he had not attained  his
 sixtieth year1 increasing age had      
already furrowed his brow with          
wrinkles4 ,his countenance was open1    
almost constantly serene1 and bore      
great resemblance to his portrait in the
 book called ,species ,plantarum4  ,but 
his eyes1 of all the eyes ,i ever saw1  
were the most beautiful4  ,they         
certainly were but small1 but they shone
 with a brilliancy1 and  had a degree of
 penetration1 such as ,i never observed 
in another man4  ,his mind was noble and
 elevated1 though ,i well know some     
persons have  accused him of several    
faults4 ,but his greatest excellence    
consisted  in the systematic order of   
his thoughts4 ,whatever he did or said  
was  faithful to order1 truth1 and      
regularity4 ,his passions were strong   

and violent1 his heart open to every    
impression of joy1 and he loved         
jocularity1 conviviality1 and good      
living4 ,an excellent companion1 he  was
 pleasant in conversation1 and full of  
entertaining stories2 at the  same time1
 suddenly roused to anger1 he was       
boisterous and violent1 but  immediately
 his displeasure subsided1 and he was   
all good-humour again4  ,his friendship 
was sure and invariable1 science being  
generally its  basis2 and every one who 
knew him must be aware what concern he  
always  manifested for his pupils1 and  
with how much zeal they returned his    
friendship4 ,in summer we followed him  
into the country4 ,our life was then    
much happier4 ,our dwelling was about a 
quarter of a league distant from  his   
house at ,hammarby1 in a farm4 ,he rose 
very early in summer1 mostly  about four
 o'clock4 ,at six he came to us1 because
 his house was then  building1          
breakfasted with us1 and gave lectures  
upon the natural orders  of plants as   

long as he pleased1 and generally till  
about ten o'clock4  ,we then wandered   
about among the neighbouring rocks1 the 
productions  of which afforded us plenty
 of entertainment4 ,in the afternoon we 
went  to his garden1 and in the evening 
mostly played at the ,swedish game of   
trissett1 in company with the ladies4   
,occasionally1 the whole family  came to
 spend the day with us1 and then we sent
 for a peasant1 who  played on an       
instrument resembling a violin1 to which
 we danced in the  barn of our          
farm-house2 and though the company was  
but small1 and the  dances superlatively
 rustic1 we passed the time merrily4    
,while we danced1  ,linnus sat looking  
on1 and smoking his pipe2 sometimes1    
though very  rarely1 he danced a ,polish
 dance1 in which he excelled every one  
of us  young men4 ,he was exceedingly   
delighted when he saw us in high glee1  
nay1 even if we became noisy4 ,his only 
anxiety was1 that we might be  well     
entertained4 ,those days1 those hours1  

will never be erased from my  memory1   
and every remembrance of them is        
grateful to my heart60    ,he seems1    
before sending it1 to have added at the 
close a sort of  summary of his deeds1  
his merits1 his honours1 and his        
obligations4  ,with the scrupulous care1
 and love of truth and justice1 which   
always  characterized him1 he reckoned  
up1 under the latter head1 the various  
aids afforded him by his pupils and     
friends2 and1 conscious of his higher   
obligations1 he enumerated the favours  
he had received from the ,divine  hand  
which he acknowledged had led and       
prospered him4 ,he had permitted  him to
 visit ,his secret council chambers1 and
 to see more of the creation  than any  
mortal before him1 and given him greater
 knowledge of natural  history than any 
one had hitherto acquired4 ,even beneath
 the pressure of  increasing            
infirmities1 the fondness of ,linnus for
 his beloved studies  continued         
undiminished1 and his desire of adding  

to his knowledge was  keen as ever4     
,some of his letters at this period are 
full of vivacity1  and strikingly       
express the ardour of his zeal4 ,an idea
 of their spirit  may be gained from a  
short extract taken from one1 dated     
,august #hth1  #agga4 8,i received an   
hour ago10 he writes1 8yours of the     
#afth ,july1 nor  did ,i ever get a more
 welcome letter1 as it contains the     
happy tidings  of my dear ,solander's   
safe return4 ,thanks and glory to ,god1 
who has  protected him through the      
dangers of such a voyage4 ,if ,i were   
not bound  fast here1 by sixty-four     
years of age and a worn-out body1 ,i    
would this  very day set out for        
,london1 to see this great hero in      
botany4 ,moses was  not permitted to    
enter ,palestine1 but only to view it   
from a distance2 so  ,i conceive an idea
 in my mind of the acquisitions and     
treasures of those  who have visited    
every part of the globe40    ,in the    
spring of #aggd1 while lecturing in the 

,botanic ,garden1 he suffered  an attack
 of apoplexy1 the debilitating effects  
of which obliged him to  relinquish all 
active professional duties1 and to close
 his literary  occupations4 ,in #aggf a 
second seizure supervened1 which        
rendered him  paralytic on the right    
side1 and impaired his mental powers so 
much that  he became a distressing      
spectacle4 ,yet1 even then1 with the    
natural  flow of cheerfulness so        
peculiar to him1 he thus described his  
own  situation3--8,linnus limps1 can    
hardly walk1 speaks unintelligibly1 and 
is scarce able to write40 ,nature       
remained1 to the last1 his sole comfort 
and relief4 ,he used to be carried to   
his museum1 where he gazed on the       
treasures he had collected with so much 
care and labour1 and as long  as        
possible he continued to manifest       
peculiar delight in examining the       
rarities and new productions which had  
been latterly added to them by  some of 
his pupils4    ,it is scarcely possible 

to find a more striking illustration of 
the  8ruling passion strong in death10  
than is afforded in the instance of     
,linnus4 ,lingering and painful were the
 last twelve months of his  existence2  
but at length1 on the #ajth ,january1   
#aggh1 he gently expired  in his sleep1 
in the seventy-first year of his age4   
,the death of ,linnus  was regarded1 in 
,sweden1 as a national calamity4 ,the   
whole ,university  went into mourning1  
and all the professors1 doctors1 and    
students then  at ,upsala1 attended his 
funeral4 ,the king1 in his speech to the
 ,states  in the same year1 publicly    
lamented his death1 and ordered a medal 
to be  struck in his honour2 and in     
#agih a monument was erected to him in  
the  cathedral at ,upsala1 where he was 
interred4    ,such a life needs but     
little comment4 ,it speaks for itself to
 the youth  leaving school and knowing  
not what to do1 to the young man        
struggling  for existence and position1 
to the middle-aged man in his wealth and

  influence1 and to the old man who     
cares to leave a good name behind him4  
,illustration          ,illustration    
,,chapter ,v4    ,,the ,,consolidation  
,,of ,,the ,,science ,,of ,,plants4     
,the life of ,de ,candolle--,the        
,natural ,system4      ,there is a name 
which is very familiar to young and old 
botanists  nowadays1 and which is always
 mentioned with feelings of great       
respect4  ,it is that of ,m4 de         
,candolle1 one of the founders of the   
modern system of  the classification of 
plants which is used by everybody now in
 preference  to the celebrated          
artificial method taught by ,linnus4    
,augustin ,pyramus de ,candolle was born
 at ,geneva1 in ,february1 #aggh1  and  
his father1 ,m4 ,augustine de ,candolle1
 was descended from one of  the oldest  
families of ,provence4 ,one of his      
ancestors1 ,m4 ,pyramus de  ,candolle1  
became a ,protestant1 and left ,france  
for the freer air of  ,switzerland1 and 
settled at ,geneva in #aeia4 ,this      

gentleman became a  citizen of the town1
 a member of the legislature1 and took  
up the  business of a printer4 ,his     
presses gave forth translations of the  
works  of ,tacitus and ,xenophon4       
,they were stirring times1 and this     
energetic man once1 in travelling       
through ,grenoble into ,switzerland1    
learned that the ,duke of ,savoy        
intended to take ,geneva by surprise1   
with his army4 ,when the attempt  was   
made1 ,pyramus de ,candolle fought as a 
citizen of his adopted town4            
,subsequently he went to ,yverdun and   
established manufactories1 but the      
jealousy of the ,bernese ruined him1 and
 he died broken-hearted4 ,the  family   
returned to ,geneva to live on small    
means1 and the father of ,de  ,candolle 
became a banker1 and was much employed  
by the ,state during  troublous         
political times4    ,an industrious1    
simple1 loving1 clever man was the      
father1 and he  married ,mademoiselle   
,brire4 ,de ,candolle wrote of his      

mother3 8,she was  an educated woman1   
good1 fond of fun1 and clever2 she was  
gifted with  all the graces and virtues 
of the mind1 and she contributed by her 
amiable conversations and teachings to  
give me a taste for science and         
literature4 ,she had only one fault1 and
 it strangely enough influenced my      
character4 ,she was proud of her family1
 which she considered was superior  in  
station to that of my father1 because   
her mother was a distant  relation of   
,la ,fort1 the minister of ,peter the   
,great of ,russia4 ,she took  every     
opportunity of making my father feel    
this pretended superiority1 so  that    
when he became forty-eight years of age1
 he thought that he would  make himself 
known to his relatives and take up his  
nobility in ,provence1  and show his    
wife that his descent was better than   
hers4 ,but my father  took every        
opportunity of teaching me that ability 
alone was the real  distinction amongst 
men1 and that nobility by itself was    

nothing1 and was  a matter of accident4 
,so that my mother's exaggerated family 
notions1  and my father's wise precepts1
 coming as they did to me1 during times 
of political change1 developed in me a  
sincere love for freedom1 and a         
contempt for all success except that    
which was deserved40 ,de ,candolle was  
born when his father was in active      
office1 and the earliest recollections  
of the future naturalist were about his 
father's military command1 and  the     
endeavours of this good citizen to      
pacify the populace and the  ruling     
powers1 who were always in opposition4  
,the little fellow was  always ill1 and 
lost much of the outdoor play of his    
companions2 but  there was compensation1
 for he learned to read fairly soon1 and
 at five  years of age he used to read  
and pretend to act plays2 and his heart 
was in his studies1 for when ,m4 de     
,florian1 an author1 came to see the    
family1 the child told him that he was  
going to write comedies1 and had  acted 

them4 ,at seven years of age he was far 
in advance1 and then came               
illness--scarlet fever1 ear-ache1 and   
threatening brain disease4 ,he used  to 
say in after years that he well         
remembered seeing everything looking    
double4 ,his recovery was very slow1 and
 he was taken to the country to a  brisk
 air1 and then he began to be robust1   
and for fifty years after he  never     
spent a day in bed4 ,but his father did 
not send him to the public  school2 he  
employed a tutor1 and the child learned 
nothing during three  years4 ,then came 
a little country life1 and the          
friendship of a man1 a  distinguished   
naturalist1 ,mr4 ,charles ,bonnet4 ,his 
first start in science  was homely      
enough4 ,his mother used to collect the 
herbs and fruit out of  the garden1 and 
the boy used to arrange what she        
gathered1 keeping the  different kinds  
separate with an exactitude that made   
everybody amazed4  ,he said that he     
ought to arrange the fruit according to 

their natures4    ,when eleven years of 
age1 ,de ,candolle was sent to the      
college at ,geneva1  and was placed in  
the fourth class1 under a master of only
 moderate  powers of teaching4 ,no great
 progress was made in study1 and the boy
 was  rarely seen in the upper part of  
the class4 ,one day his father came to  
the college to inquire how the boy was  
getting on1 and being a ,government     
official was1 of course1 well received4 
,a little arrangement by the  master1   
which excited the contempt of the boy1  
placed him at the head  of the class1   
and so unfair did this seem that the    
little fellow told  his father that he  
had no right to be there4 ,however1 he  
was removed  to the third class1 and    
fortunately came under a better master4 
,young  ,de ,candolle played hard and   
got more healthy1 and his studies were  
not  onerous4 ,in fact1 his mother did  
more for him than the school4 ,she      
taught  him his native language1 and    
gave him a love for poetry4 ,but this   

was  almost crushed out by the foolish  
method of teaching in the school4 ,if  a
 boy wanted a holiday he had to write to
 the rector of the college  for it in   
,latin verse1 and of course children of 
twelve years of age  could not compose  
sufficiently well4 ,so they copied1 and 
the result  was that1 year after year1  
the rector received a collection of     
,latin  letters which resembled those of
 the year before1 and this had gone on  
for several generations4 ,however1 the  
boy wrote to the rector in ,french      
verse1 and in original verse4 ,this was 
considered something out of the  common1
 and the boy was praised1 and his       
peculiar gift was fostered4  ,he became 
very intimate with a school-fellow named
 ,gaudy1 who had the  same tastes1 and  
they used to spend much of their time in
 turning ,latin  prose and poetry into  
very bad ,french verse4 ,soon after his 
old fondness  for acting returned1 and  
he was successful in private            
theatricals4 ,the  boy worked hard at   

this amusement1 and learned many of the 
great ,french  tragedies and comedies1  
and although the time was apparently    
wasted1 yet  ,de ,candolle used to say  
that it did his memory good1 gave him a 
good  style1 and took away nervousness4 
,then his father gave him a good private
  tutor1 and the boy entered the first  
class4 ,there he found a master who     
insisted on regular and profitable      
study1 besides ,latin verse1 and the    
result was that ,de ,candolle began to  
distinguish himself and took prizes4    
,one prize which he gained1 made him    
think very deeply afterwards4 ,it was   
an essay relating to the existence of   
,god4 ,de ,candolle wrote his essay in  
four hours1 and it consisted of from    
fifteen to twenty pages2 it included    
all he had learned of his catechism1    
what he remembered of many sermons1  and
 a host of quotations from the ,bible4  
,but although the youth got the  prize1 
and was much applauded1 he felt that he 
was a complete stranger to  the spirit  

of the truths he had written1 and that  
his heart had little to  do with the    
sentences which came from his pen4 ,he  
learned religion just  as he learned    
,greek and ,latin4 ,in #agib ,de        
,candolle left the college and  began to
 study literature1 and1 released from   
the troublesome discipline  of the      
class1 worked as if he were a man4 ,but 
things did not go on  smoothly1 for the 
political troubles of that age soon     
affected ,geneva4  ,a ,french army      
occupied ,savoy and encamped near       
,geneva4 ,the ,government  prepared to  
defend the town1 and the fathers of     
families began to send  their wives and 
children into the interior of           
,switzerland4 ,de ,candolle  was in     
despair when his father told him and his
 brother to accompany  their mother2 he 
longed to fight for his country1 but he 
had to leave1  and they went to         
,champagne1 a small village near        
,grandison1 where the  father1          
foreseeing the trouble1 had bought an   

estate4 ,there the summer  and autumn   
were passed peaceably1 and in           
superintending the vines1 the  gathering
 of the grapes1 and managing the        
property with his mother4  ,montesquieu1
 the ,french general1 did not care about
 crushing the little  town of ,geneva1  
and other matters called him away4 ,so  
the immediate  danger passed and the    
family returned to ,geneva4    ,the     
youth returned to his studies amidst    
popular discontent within  the town4 ,a 
revolution occurred1 and a provisional  
committee occupied  the position of the 
former ,government4 ,strangely enough   
this occurred  whilst ,de ,candolle's   
father was chief magistrate1 and the    
,government  fell whilst he was in      
office4 ,of course the man who had done 
so much for  the town was obliged to go 
into exile1 and he left for his little  
estate  at ,champagne1 leaving his son  
behind to pursue his studies4 ,the youth
  was left under the charge of his      
tutor1 a young married man1 and much    

good work was done1 and in #agic he     
rejoined his father4 ,during the next   
year ,m4 ,vaucher gave some lectures on 
botany in the very modest little        
,botanical ,garden of ,geneva4 ,he was a
 clergyman and ,professor of ,theology1 
but his amusements led him to study     
plants1 and especially those which  live
 in fresh water4 ,his manner of teaching
 and the subject1 attracted  ,de        
,candolle1 and indeed so much so that he
 felt that botany would be his  special 
study through life4 ,what he learned    
from ,m4 ,vaucher was about  the        
principal organs of plants1 and he began
 to get books describing  plants and to 
endeavour to describe for himself4      
,singularly enough1 the  methodical     
courses of study which ,de ,candolle had
 undergone assisted him2  for although  
he obtained some botanical works of a   
very indifferent kind1  which would have
 satisfied most youths1 he began to see 
their errors  of method4 ,knowing       
nothing of the labours of the great     

botanists1 the  youth managed to see his
 way to the most reasonable plan of     
describing  plants1 and he noticed the  
organs1 one after the other1 in the     
proper  manner4 ,teaching himself the   
rudiments of the study of plants1 and   
giving  much time also to literature1   
young ,de ,candolle remained much at    
home1  for ,geneva was in a horrible    
state of political revolution4          
,robespierre  managed to send emissaries
 there1 and most of the better class of 
citizens were imprisoned4 ,de           
,candolle's father was sentenced to     
death1  but being away from the town the
 sentence had no effect4 ,this state  of
 things lasted for some time1 until the 
good sense of the majority  annulled the
 sentence and restored order4 ,many     
,genevese emigrated to  ,america1 and   
when ,de ,candolle returned to his      
studies he found the town  sad1 and     
nearly all his old friends exiled or    
gone in disgust4 ,he had no  amusements 
and therefore his studies were          

prosecuted with vigour1 and he  began a 
course of natural philosophy4 ,in #agif 
he left his studies and  spent the      
summer with his father1 reading good    
botanical works on the  natural         
philosophy of trees1 the uses of leaves2
 and1 what was of more  importance1 he  
wandered far and wide over the ,jura    
,mountains1 collecting  plants to       
describe and study4 ,he got ,linnus's   
,european ,botany1 and soon  began to   
learn many plants by their proper names4
 ,but he used ,linnus's  book as a      
simple dictionary1 for he saw that      
although the names of plants  could be  
easily found out by it1 there were      
plants grouped together in  it that had 
no close resemblance in their most      
important parts4 ,at this  time his     
interest in his study was intensified by
 a terrible instance  which he witnessed
 of the hidden powers of simple-looking 
plants4 ,he saw  three little children  
die who had eaten belladonna berries4   
,when eighteen years of age1 ,de        

,candolle went to ,paris and lived in   
the  same house as ,dolomieu1 a very    
distinguished mineralogist1 a wise and  
moderate man whose simplicity charmed   
the young man4 ,this wise friend did    
not press his special study on ,de      
,candolle1 but advised him to follow his
  fondness for botany1 giving him1      
however1 some little insight into the   
nature of crystals and their laws of    
form4 ,de ,candolle then learned that   
there was a philosophy in stones1 and he
 always stated in after life that  this 
instruction made him think about the    
philosophy which linked plants  together
 in the scheme of creation4 ,he had an  
instructive conversation  with a        
well-known botanist1 about the structure
 of the stems of palms and              
grapes--which differ so much from those 
of the oak1 plane1 willow--and of       
ordinary shrubs2 and this distinction of
 two great groups of plants gave  him an
 insight into some of the grand         
distinctions between plants1 and  which 

enabled hundreds of species or genera to
 be grouped and separated4              
,unfortunately1 at the time of his      
arrival at ,paris1 the botanical courses
  at the college were not being given1  
so he began to attend the lectures  on  
chemistry1 physics1 and mineralogy4 ,he 
often went to hear ,cuvier1 the  great  
comparative anatomist1 whose great      
ability and dignity of manner  impressed
 everybody1 and he made the acquaintance
 of the still greater  ,lamarck in a    
very curious manner4 ,de ,candolle had  
seen ,m4 de ,lamarck at  the ,french    
,academy of ,sciences1 but he did not   
know anybody who could  introduce him to
 the great man4 ,however1 he found out  
that ,lamarck  used to dine at the same 
little restaurant which he patronized4  
,so a  little plan was adopted to draw  
the celebrated zoologist and botanist   
into conversation4 ,de ,candolle asked  
his friend ,pictet1 who afterwards      
became a professor at ,geneva and a     
great man1 to come by chance as it  were

 and sit beside him at the same table as
 ,lamarck1 and they began a             
conversation about botany4 ,de ,candolle
 especially stated how useful he  had   
found a book called the 8,description of
 the ,french ,plants0 in his  studies4  
,this was overheard by ,lamarck1 who was
 the author of it1 and he  joined in the
 conversation4 ,lamarck asked the young 
man to come and see  him1 and a         
friendship commenced2 and although they 
did not have at that  time much to say  
to one another about botany1 still the  
distinguished  ,french naturalist gave  
good advice1 and1 when ,de ,candolle    
left ,paris1  presented him with a      
letter and a book to give to ,m4        
,snebier1 of ,geneva1  whose friendship 
probably decided the future career of   
the rising young  botanist4 ,certainly  
the acquaintance of ,lamarck stimulated 
,de ,candolle  to study the physiology  
of plants--how they grow1 breathe1 how  
the sap  circulates1 how the colours are
 produced1 and how the young seeds  are 

formed4 ,the happy circumstances which  
surrounded the young man at  ,paris     
enabled him to see the great comedies of
 the day and to admire  the splendid    
acting at the theatres4 ,but he was a   
philosopher then1 and  he could not but 
be struck with the furious gaiety of    
society and the  great frivolity of the 
day1 and with that careless method of   
living  and thinking which followed as a
 kind of revulsion on the awful scenes  
of the ,revolution and the ,reign of    
,terror4 ,in the spring of #agig1 ,de   
,candolle returned to ,geneva4 ,there he
 studied the physiology of plants  with 
,m4 ,snebier1 going to his father's     
house in the holidays1 which were  spent
 in botanical excursions4 ,in one of    
these1 on the ,jura ,mountains1  ,de    
,candolle discovered a new fungus of a  
beautiful red colour1 and his  adventure
 in obtaining the specimen was very     
characteristic of the man4  ,on the     
sides of those hills are many very      
precipitous trough-like paths1  down    

which the wood-cutters pass the fir     
trees they cut high up on the           
mountains1 to the valleys4 ,they are    
rugged at the sides1 and have really    
been worn out of the hills by running   
water and the rushing downwards of  the 
trees4 ,active people can slide down    
these 8couloirs0 by sitting on a  stick 
placed between one's legs1 and down went
 young ,de ,candolle in that  fashion4  
,as he rushed along1 he saw a beautiful 
red plant on a branch of  a tree        
overhanging the couloir1 and as he slid 
down he managed to cut the  branch and  
obtain his prize--his first new plant to
 describe4 ,but it was  done at the     
expense of his clothes1 which got torn  
off from him in many  parts1 by the     
rocks1 so that he had to slink home to  
avoid being seen4  ,working hard at     
botany1 the young enthusiast had very   
agreeable hours  of relaxation4 ,he was 
in the midst of a charming homely       
society2 and  there is no doubt that his
 purity of character and thorough       

honesty of  disposition were fostered   
and intensified1 by his having the      
friendship  of several young married and
 single women of good education and     
position4  ,they made him a polished    
gentleman1 and he used to say that that 
was the  happy time of his life2 he had 
no cares or anxieties1 everything smiled
  on him1 yet he was conscious that it  
must end1 and that he must prepare  for 
work and the struggle of life4          
,politics were always the trouble of the
 ,de ,candolle family1 and they  settled
 the future career of the young         
botanist4 ,geneva was about to  become a
 portion of the ,french ,republic1 the  
father of ,de ,candolle lost  one-half  
of his fortune1 and the young man went  
to ,paris to learn how  to earn his     
bread after preliminary study4 ,he had a
 sad parting from  the father who had   
been so good to him1 and who loved him  
so well1 and  arrived at ,paris1 being  
received by an uncle1 in ,march1 #agih4 
,after a  few days of quietude1 which he

 spent in calling on his former friends1
  he determined to go into lodgings near
 the ,jardin des ,plantes1 and to  work1
 leaving pleasure behind him1 and to be 
sought for when he could  afford it4 ,he
 began to study medicine1 and led the   
odd life of a  medical student1 attended
 to by old crones in their second       
childhood1  and witnessing all the sad  
sights of the hospitals4 ,whenever he   
could1  he made his way to the          
,botanical ,garden1 and yet he did not  
attend the  lectures on botany4 ,he     
found them not consistent with what he  
knew4 ,but  he was ever studying1       
describing1 and observing plants1 and1  
knowing  nobody at the gardens1 sought  
out ,lamarck1 who offered him some      
articles  in his ,encyclopdia to write4 
,the articles were written1 and mistakes
  were naturally made1 and in after     
years they were readily acknowledged    
and set right4 ,but the work did not    
advance the young botanist in his       
studies1 although it confirmed him in   

the necessity of examining all the      
parts of a plant in classifying it1 and 
in paying especial attention to  those  
organs which are the most important to  
the life and reproduction  of the kind4 
,leaving his lodgings to board with a   
friend1 ,de ,candolle  was robbed1 as   
was usual in those days1 by his         
housekeepers2 but he got  into a worse  
scrape by being inveigled into a        
gambling-house1 where he  lost nearly   
all the money he had earned4 ,it cured  
him of that folly4 ,at  work he began to
 make experiments on the action of      
different gases on the  roots of plants1
 and obtained some curious results2 and 
,m4 ,desfontaines1  the ,professor of   
,botany1 gave him hints about the       
correct method of  describing plants1 so
 as to enable him to write the          
letterpress to the  plates of a work on 
those succulent plants called           
,crassulace1 of  which the houseleek and
 stonecrops are familiar examples4      
,medicine was  quite given up2 and1 in  

fact1 it was hateful to ,de ,candolle1  
who used  to say1 8,if ,i make a mistake
 in naming a plant1 ,i can set it right1
 but  if ,i had made mistakes as a      
medical man1 who knows how many dear    
little  children ,i might not have      
killed80 ,he became a friend of the     
,delessert  family1 and met at their    
house all those rising naturalists who  
were  forming the great ,french school1 
and this society was of great importance
  to him4 ,botanical excursions to      
,fontainebleau were made by him1 with   
,brongniart1 ,cuvier1 and ,dumeril1 all 
great men in their day1 and then  he    
went botanizing into ,normandy1 and     
nearly got drowned collecting  seaweeds4
 ,returning to ,paris1 he was fortunate 
enough to be again kindly  looked after 
by some good families1 and he became    
attached to ,mdlle4  ,fanny ,torras1 one
 of a bright circle of ladies who liked 
the brilliant  conversation and good    
manners of the rising young man4 ,going 
to ,holland  for a trip1 ,de ,candolle  

was struck with the curious vegetation  
of the  hills or dunes of sand near the 
coast1 and this appears to have         
attracted  his attention to the         
geographical distribution of plants4    
,nevertheless1  and in spite of all     
those attractions1 he studied human     
anatomy and  zoology4 ,in course of time
 he went home to ,champagne1 and his    
future  marriage was agreed upon4 ,on   
his return to ,paris1 he was received as
 the  future husband of ,mdlle4 ,torras4
    ,he studied the 8sleep of plants10  
the classification of the ,vetches1  was
 presented at the ,institute1 and       
elected a member of the ,socit          
,philomathique1 where he met and became 
the associate of his old botanical      
companions at ,fontainebleau4    ,there 
is no doubt that a singular political   
position which was thrust  upon this    
young man of twenty-two years of age1   
decided his future  career1 for it      
brought him under the eye of ,napoleon  
,bonaparte1 the  ,first ,consul of      

,france4 ,geneva nominated him as a     
8notable0 to whom the  consul might     
apply for information about the         
requirements of the town4  ,de ,candolle
 wrote in his memoirs3 8,i was not much 
of a partisan4 ,born  a republican1 a   
friend of peace1 ,i saw with anxiety    
,napoleon's evident  love of war and    
desire for monarchy1 but ,i was obliged 
to look favourably  on him1 for he had  
destroyed anarchy1 and possessed great  
abilities40  ,napoleon and the young man
 had two interviews1 one a peaceable    
one1 which  did good to the town of     
,geneva1 and a second and stormy one1   
during  which the simple student of the 
truth stood up1 like a man1 against the 
angry despot1 and quailed not beneath   
that eye which most men feared4  ,he was
 not forgotten1 however1 and after a    
while he was nominated on a  commission 
to investigate the teaching given in the
 schools of ,paris1  under the charge of
 laymen4 ,this commission was necessary1
 for the ,roman  ,catholic authorities  

were anxious to put down lay teaching4  
,de ,candolle1  a firm ,protestant1 took
 great care in making his report1 and he
 decided  that although there was much  
to be desired1 still the lay schools    
were  doing their duty4    ,pursuing his
 studies1 ,de ,candolle began to form an
 herbarium1 and his  time was divided   
between science and philanthropy--for he
 was a visitor  at the hospitals and    
prisons of ,paris--and his ,fanny1 whom 
he married in  #ahjb4 ,immediately      
afterwards he began to write his        
description of the  plants of ,france1  
and ,cuvier asked him to lecture for him
 during a term4  ,the subject chosen was
 the physiology of plants2 it was well  
managed1 and  it tempted ,de ,candolle  
to head his new book with some chapters 
on it4  ,grief came in due time2 ,de    
,candolle and his wife lost their       
firstborn1  a pretty little girl1 and a 
long absence from ,paris was necessary4 
,on  their return1 ,de ,candolle        
recommenced his work on his book1 and   

after its  completion he began a series 
of excursions in different parts of     
,france1  studying the botany and       
geology4 ,after a while a son was born1 
and ,de  ,candolle was offered the      
professorship of ,botany at             
,montpellier4    ,he visited the city to
 see how he liked it1 and he took this  
opportunity1  also1 to go to the        
,pyrenees for a botanical trip1         
collecting at the time  many interesting
 plants4 ,a difficulty existed about the
 acceptance of  the position1 for there 
was much teaching required1 and there   
would not  be much time for these       
excursions about ,france1 which were    
absolutely  necessary for the knowledge 
of the different local assemblages of   
plants  or floras4 ,de ,candolle had a  
salary of about #afj a year1 which      
enabled  him to start from ,paris and to
 botanize4 ,if he went to ,montpellier1 
all  his original work might cease1 and 
he could not earn this money and teach  
at the same time4 ,so1 loving real work1

 he determined not to accept the        
position4 ,a great endeavour was being  
made1 however1 to restore the  teaching 
of natural history at ,montpellier1 and 
the friends of the young  man called on 
the then ,minister of the ,interior1 ,m4
 ,cretet1 and urged  him to see the     
rising botanist4 ,at the interview ,mr4 
,cretet1 who had no  botanical tastes1  
was wonderfully amused at a man's giving
 up a good  place for the sake of       
running about ,france picking up plants1
 and said1  in a good-humoured manner1  
8,now1 young man1 if you don't take both
 the  situations you shan't have        
either40 ,the professorship at          
,montpellier  was accepted1 and the     
necessary journeys were to be allowed4  
,this ,m4  ,cretet seems to have been a 
man of great sense1 and quite upset ,m4 
de  ,laplace1 the great mathematician1  
about ,de ,candolle4 ,laplace wanted to 
pay a compliment to the minister1 and   
also to bring the young botanist  before
 his notice1 so he said1 8,sir1 you have

 done us a doubtful service  in sending 
,m4 de ,candolle to ,montpellier1 for we
 expected soon to have  him as a member 
of the ,institute40 ,m4 ,cretet turned  
on him with an angry  air and said1     
8,your institute6 ,do you know what ,i  
should like to do with  your institute80
 8,what80 said ,laplace1 rather         
astonished at the tone of  voice4 8,i   
should like to fire a cannon well into  
the middle of it40 ,m4  de ,laplace     
seemed as if he would sink4 8,yes10     
continued the minister1 8,i  would fire 
a cannon at you all1 and disperse you   
all over ,france4 ,it is  frightful to  
concentrate all the lights of the age in
 ,paris1 and to leave  the departments  
in ignorance and idleness6 ,i have sent 
,m4 de ,candolle  to ,montpellier to    
stimulate others to activity40          
,considering that the  members of the   
,institute of ,france have always       
considered themselves the  very cream of
 the cream of science1 this was very    
shocking4    ,the new professor started 

with his wife1 little boy1 his library  
and  herbarium1 and with many a regret  
at leaving such friends as those who    
enlightened ,paris as anatomists and    
botanists4 ,it was a great position  for
 a man of thirty years of age1 however1 
and it gave him sufficient to  live     
upon2 and this was welcome1 for hitherto
 he had been poor4    ,when he was      
settled in his new establishment his    
father1 then seventy-two  years of age1 
came to see him1 and1 after a short     
sojourn1 took his  leave1 accompanied by
 his daughter-in-law and grandson4      
,whilst they all  went to ,geneva1 ,de  
,candolle prepared for and went on an   
excursion into  ,italy4 ,during the     
visit to ,italy1 in #ahjh1 politics came
 in the way of  botany1 and nothing was 
heard of ,de ,candolle for a month1 his 
letters  having gone astray2 but he     
turned up at ,geneva1 well1 and in good 
spirits1 for he heard that he had a     
chance of being made a member of the    
,institute4 ,but he found that even     

great scientific men have their little  
foibles and favourites1 and he did not  
get elected4 ,in fact1 he never  was    
elected a member1 although he was the   
most distinguished botanist  of the age4
 ,years afterwards1 when he was in      
,geneva1 he was made one of  the eight  
foreign members1 and that has always    
been considered a great  honour4        
,nevertheless1 politics1 social         
position1 and agreement with the        
authorities of the day1 on all subjects1
 are of very considerable moment  in    
these elections4    ,the return to      
,montpellier was sad1 but the fine      
sunshine of the south1  and cheerful    
society1 soon made ,de ,candolle forget 
his disappointment4  ,after a botanical 
trip in ,savoy1 ,de ,candolle wrote an  
important volume on  geographical botany
 and agriculture4 ,the first of these   
subjects infers a  thorough knowledge of
 the names and kinds of plants1 and it  
is of great  importance in associating  
certain plants with soils1 rocks1 and   

climates4    ,by ,november1 #ahaa1 ,de  
,candolle had nearly completed his      
botanical  tours1 and he then considered
 that he was settled at ,montpellier for
  a long time1 and that his work would  
be more that of a teacher than          
investigator4 ,he found that travelling 
and collecting had enlarged his  mind1  
and he never regretted the six years of 
wandering about4 ,about  this time the  
young professor commenced a great work  
on the statistics  of ,french           
vegetation4 ,it did not deal with       
descriptions of species1 or  of the     
special localities where they could be  
found2 but1 first1 with  the general    
distribution of wild plants in ,france1 
and then with the  relation of the      
plants of ,france to the different wants
 of mankind4  ,this last part was       
eminently practical1 and it dealt with  
food plants1  medicinal plants1 dye     
plants1 and those which are used for    
clothing4  ,it was a prodigious attempt1
 and it never came to a conclusion2 only

  fragments of it were in his possession
 fourteen years afterwards1 and he      
attributed much of the difficulty thrown
 in his way1 to the alterations  which  
occurred in the boundaries of ,france   
after the fall of ,napoleon4  ,moreover1
 he had to complete his description of  
the plants of ,france1 and  that was not
 done until #ahae4    ,de ,candolle was 
always fond of society1 and1 after his  
labours of the  day1 was glad to go into
 or receive company4 ,being a           
,protestant1 and  a man of mark in his  
native town1 he was well received by    
most of the  families of ,montpellier1  
and his wife also4 ,society consisted of
 good  ,protestant families of old1     
so-called nobles1 and some who thought  
themselves nobles4 ,it was split up like
 the society of most small towns1  into 
cliques1 but ,de ,candolle escaped1 for 
a long time1 any discomforts  or social 
antagonisms4 ,they came at last1        
however4    ,de ,candolle1 like many    
active-minded men1 was not popular with 

the  officials who had 8places0 in their
 gift4 ,he was intrigued against1  and  
lost the rectorship of the ,university1 
but he had the pleasure of  exposing the
 intrigue in #ahac4    ,napoleon had    
fought his last fight1 and had gone to  
,elba1 and the  ,bourbons had been      
restored4 ,disgusted with the military  
spirit of the  ,empire1 ,de ,candolle   
rejoiced at the restoration of the      
,bourbons1 and even  became a volunteer 
to keep the town in order4 ,he began to 
change his mind  soon1 however1 for the 
,count d',artois1 one of the royal      
family1 received  the professor with    
great haughtiness1 and1 by way of making
 amends1 paid  particular attention to a
 rascal of the first water who had      
returned from  the galleys1 where he had
 been sent for stealing1 and not for    
devotion  to the ,bourbons1 as he told  
the duke4 ,going to ,geneva on a visit1 
to  place his eldest son at school1 ,de 
,candolle found the city just being     
received into the ,confederation of the 

,swiss ,republic4 ,he returned to       
,montpellier1 which was full of         
rejoicing at ,napoleon's exile1 but     
shortly  afterwards all was disorder    
during the hundred days in which        
,napoleon  was1 for the last time1 ruler
 of ,france4 ,beyond the reach of direct
  politics1 the professors of           
,montpellier had their little evenings1 
and  even got up private theatricals4   
,in the midst of a scene in one of these
  came the news that ,napoleon had      
landed at ,cannes1 and was on his way to
  ,paris4 ,that was the last quiet hour 
that ,de ,candolle had in the town4  ,an
 unfriendly man1 who was a royalist1    
began to set people against the         
professor1 who resented their           
interference4 ,he began to limit his    
circle  of friends1 left literature     
alone more and more1 and plunged more   
deeply  into science4 ,he determined to 
leave ,montpellier and its littlenesses4
  ,his principal care was to enlarge and
 utilize the botanic garden of the      

place1 and then he devoted much time to 
teaching1 and with great success4       
,civil war was imminent1 and the defeat 
at ,waterloo produced outbreaks  at     
,montpellier4 ,de ,candolle had been    
elected ,rector of the ,university      
during the ,hundred ,days1 and was      
ordered to give up the title4 ,this he  
did1 and prepared to leave the place4   
,he had sent his family to ,geneva1  and
 in travelling himself to join them1 by 
way of ,nimes1 he saw traces  of the    
horrible treatment the ,protestants had 
received4 ,subsequently the  family went
 to ,paris1 passing through the towns   
occupied by the allied  troops4 ,having 
time1 ,de ,candolle visited ,england1   
and became the guest  of ,dr4 ,marcet1  
and was introduced to the best of the   
scientific world4  ,he met and enjoyed  
the reticent ,robert ,brown1 and went to
 a sitting of  the ,royal ,society1     
which he said was dull4 ,he was         
introduced to ,hooker  and ,sir ,james  
,smith1 the proprietor of the ,herbarium

 of ,linnus1 which  he very properly    
said was the basis of botanical         
nomenclature4 ,in #ahaf  ,de ,candolle  
found himself settling down in his      
native town of ,geneva1  where he was   
well received1 and became ,professor of 
,natural ,history1 and  taught students 
of both sexes1 and began to establish a 
botanic garden of  some importance4     
,there he was obliged to go into local  
politics1 and for  years was a          
representative of the town1 doing good  
work for the poor1 for  liberty by      
receiving and protecting political      
fugitives and by insisting  on the      
freedom of the press1 which was         
considerably hated in ,france under  the
 restored ,bourbons4 ,nevertheless1 year
 after year he taught well1  and most of
 the great botanists of later years were
 either his students  or his visitors   
and friends4 ,as age crept on1 ,de      
,candolle continued his  researches1 and
 got through the description and        
classification of a  considerable number

 of known plants4 ,these were published 
in a book which  will always be his     
masterpiece4 ,honours crowded on him1   
the gifts of  learned societies of all  
nations1 and he visited most of the     
great cities  of the ,continent4 ,in    
#ahcb he published the second part of   
his work4 ,he  had great happiness with 
his wife1 and his parents lived to great
 ages1  content with the prosperity of  
their son1 who was ever good and loving 
to them1 and got his reward4 ,he had a  
little estate1 out of ,geneva1 at       
,saint ,seine1 and enjoyed it much2 but1
 as years rolled on1 the death of  a son
 there1 affected his tender heart1 and  
he sold the place and bought  another1  
called ,la ,barrire1 near ,geneva4 ,his 
eldest son1 ,alphonse1  followed well in
 the father's steps4 ,finally1 when old 
age troubled ,de  ,candolle1 he gave up 
his professorship4    ,ill health       
succeeded1 but the man worked on at his 
great book1 and even  entered the       
political arena once again at a time of 

emergency4 ,the winter  of #ahdj-da was 
one of illness1 and he could no longer  
work4 ,his friends  were dying off1     
month after month1 and when death came  
to him1 he was  content4 ,he had been a 
good son1 an excellent father1 a loving 
friend1  a true patriot1 deserving      
everything that elevated mankind2 and it
 is  admitted by all botanists that he  
consolidated the science1 and gave it  a
 definite natural classification4    ,de
 ,candolle early in life grasped the    
truth that plants grow1 reproduce1  and 
arrive at maturity1 not by accident1 but
 according to natural law1  and he soon 
saw that some parts of plants were of   
more importance to  their well-being and
 multiplication than others4 ,he was    
thus a follower  of ,ray1 and he became 
impressed with the belief that in       
arranging plants1  the resemblances of  
the most important parts and organs1    
should be  considered before those of   
the less important4 ,this manner of     
proceeding  he called the natural       

method4 ,it was founded upon the        
knowledge of the  anatomy of the plants 
and upon their physiology1 and the      
method required  care and research4 ,the
 artificial method of ,linnus enabled   
botanists to  distinguish plants        
readily1 by examining the most readily  
examined1 and  often unimportant1 parts 
of the plant's flower4 ,it was not a    
scientific  plan1 but a ready method4   
,it did not bring one plant into        
relation with  another1 showing the     
common method of growth and             
reproduction1 but simply  enabled one   
plant to be separated and distinguished 
from another1 and  this is the least    
part of botany4    ,the works of        
,whewell on the inductive sciences1 the 
article on botany in  the 8,encyclopdia 
,britannica10 ,pulteney's 8,life of     
,linnus10 and that  written by ,miss    
,brightwell1 of ,norwich1 and ,de       
,candolle's 8,mmoires et  souvenirs     
crits par lui mme0 have been freely and 
largely quoted in  these chapters4      

,illustration          ,,chapter ,,vi4  
,,heroes ,,of ,,zoology4        ,the    
nature of the science of zoology--,great
 zoologists usually      botanists      
also--,aristoteles as a                 
zoologist--,plinius--,the long age      
of no progress--,the life of ,conrad    
,gesner--,the zoology of ,ray and       
,willughby--,swammerdam--,raumur--,the  
zoology of ,linnus4      ,zoology does  
for animals what botany does for plants4
 ,it is the science  which treats of the
 resemblances and differences of        
animals1 their  shapes1 and habits1 and 
which explains their position on the    
earth in  different countries1 and      
classifies them4 ,it is inseparably     
linked on to  the study of comparative  
anatomy and to physiology which treats  
of the  internal structures and the     
influence which the outside world has   
upon  the living thing4 ,like botany1   
the science arose in a simple manner1   
and  men first of all learned to        
distinguish one animal from another1    

giving  them names4 ,then their habits  
were noticed1 and some attempt was made 
to  arrange animals by their greater or 
less resemblances of external shape4    
,the age of the wonderful affected      
zoology as it did botany1 and the       
intellectual darkness of the ,middle    
,ages prevented progress4 ,the writings 
of travellers1 the discovery of the     
microscope1 and civil and religious     
liberty1 caused the rise of zoology1 and
 the classifications gradually  began to
 include the past or extinct kinds of   
animals with those which  are now       
existing in a great scheme1 which       
indicates the succession of  living     
things upon the earth4    ,as a great   
branch of natural history1 it was to be 
expected that zoology  would be studied 
with botany2 and in fact1 nearly all the
 great botanists  have been able        
zoologists1 whilst nearly every great   
zoologist began with  botany4           
,aristoteles was as great a hero in     
zoology as he was in botany1 and he  may

 be said to have founded the science4   
,certainly1 some of the principal       
divisions of the animal kingdom were    
taught by him4 ,he was the first  to    
make an attempt to explain the anatomy  
of animals1 the functions or  duties of 
different parts of their bodies1 and to 
compare them with  those of man4 ,he    
discussed their resemblances and        
differences with great  acuteness4 ,he  
was especially distinguished as a       
student of fishes1 making  a vast number
 of observations of his own1 and        
collecting those of other  writers4     
,after much consideration1 ,aristoteles 
wrote upon the distinction  between     
living things and inanimate nature1 and 
we owe him the notion  of the           
distinctions between the genus and the  
species4 ,he wrote with  regard to the  
species3 8,an animal species is an      
assemblage of individual  animals1 in   
which not only the whole form of any one
 resembles the whole  form of any other1
 but each part in any one resembles the 

corresponding  part in any other4 ,thus1
 every horse not only resembles every   
ether horse  generally1 but the eye or  
the hoof of every horse resembles the   
eye or  hoof of every other horse4 ,they
 are1 therefore1 the same in the        
character  of the individual parts40 8,a
 genus is an assemblage of individuals  
in  which any one bears1 upon the whole1
 an obviously perceptible resemblance   
to any other4 ,but the corresponding    
portion in the different species  of the
 same genus1 usually differ in colour1  
form1 numbers1 size1 and  proportion40  
,this is not so clear as the notion of  
the species1 and he  extended the term  
genus to what is now called an          
assemblage of genera1  that is to say1 a
 family1 order1 or class4 ,he clearly   
distinguished  between white-blooded and
 red-blooded animals1 and was aware of  
the  mysterious connection between the  
existence of a spinal column1 made up   
of bones1 or vertebr1 and red blood4 ,he
 makes vertebrated1 or backboned1       

animals to take the first place in his  
scale of classification4  ,classifying  
man1 viviparous and oviparous           
quadrupeds1 birds1 fishes1  cetaceous   
animals 7whales71 and serpents amongst  
the red-blooded1  ,aristoteles put down 
as white1 or no blooded animals1        
insects1 or  creatures divided into     
segments1 cuttlefish1 with soft         
substance1 rather  soft-shelled animals1
 like lobsters1 and hard-shelled        
creatures such as  oysters4 ,he         
examined1 one by one1 all the species he
 could procure1 and  then classed       
together as a subordinate generic group 
all those1 which  resembling each other 
in the more important parts of their    
structure1  differed only in size or    
colour1 or in other points of little    
importance4    ,aristoteles founded the 
natural history of his age1 and no one  
came near  to him4 ,he left nobody      
behind to follow his work4    ,in after 
years1 ,plinius wrote on beasts1 fishes1
 birds1 and insects1  and on human and  

comparative anatomy1 but he made no     
great advance on  ,aristoteles4 ,then   
there occurred as great a gap in the    
study of zoology  as happened in botany1
 and many hundreds of years elapsed     
before progress  was made4    ,conrad   
,gesner1 a ,swiss1 made the first great 
step in zoology after the  ancients1 and
 his life was a most remarkable one4 ,a 
writer says of him1  that he was a      
shining example of the truth of the     
remark1 that those who  have most to do1
 and are willing to work1 find the most 
time4 ,he was  a great scholar1 and a   
profound naturalist4 ,he began life in  
extreme  poverty1 soon became an orphan1
 laboured whilst ill1 and sacrificed    
himself for the sake of others4 ,a son  
of a poor skinner and worker  of hides1 
he was born in #aeaf1 at ,zurich1 and   
had to suffer pinching  poverty1 with   
his numerous brothers and sisters4 ,an  
uncle was kind to  the boy1 and began to
 educate him1 but death stepped in and  
he lost his  kind relation4 ,when only  

thirteen years of age1 ,gesner was cast 
upon the  world1 his father having died 
fighting in the battle of ,zug4 ,the lad
 was  seriously ill and dropsical1 and  
his sole fortune was a little knowledge 
of classics1 which he had picked up4    
,probably one of the professors  at     
,zurich1 ,ammian by name1 and who had   
instructed him1 gave him  introductions1
 for we find the lad at ,strasbourg when
 fifteen years of  age4 ,his thoughts   
were to go into the ,lutheran ,church1  
and it is certain  that the ,lutheran   
,wolfgang ,fabricius ,capito gave him   
some employment1  and enabled him to    
begin the study of ,hebrew4 ,returning  
again to ,zurich1  the university there 
gave him a little pension1 to enable him
 to travel1  and he went into ,france to
 ,bourges4 ,there he taught at a school1
 and  occupied his spare time in        
learning ,greek and ,latin4 ,then he    
went to  ,strasbourg again1 hoping for  
employment1 and finding none1 was asked 
to  return to ,zurich1 and to teach in  

the university4 ,at the age of twenty   
he married1 and1 of course1 much against
 the wishes of his friends1  who do not 
appear to have done anything for him1   
except to have given  gratuitous advice4
 ,although the ,church was to be the    
career of ,gesner1  he took much        
interest in the healing art1 and        
resigning his position at  ,zurich1 he  
went1 having a small pension1 to ,basle 
as a medical student4  ,anxious to know 
the wisdom of the ,greek physicians1 he 
paid unusual  attention to that         
language1 and edited an edition of a    
dictionary of it4  ,this study brought  
strange results1 for he was offered a   
professorship  of ,greek at ,lausanne1  
and he accepted the position4 ,he was   
very young1  and yet learned men found  
his friendship valuable4 ,going1        
subsequently1  to ,montpellier1 he      
became acquainted with a naturalist     
named ,rondelet1  and he gradually began
 to earn enough money to be independent4
 ,so he  returned to ,basle1 and in     

#aeda1 being twenty-five years old1 took
 his  degree in medicine4 ,he settled in
 practice at ,zurich1 and occupied his  
spare time in studying zoology and      
botany1 and soon became wealthy4        
,occasionally he travelled1 and during  
one of these trips he became  acquainted
 with the leading men at ,venice and    
,augsburg1 and at their  instance began 
a great work1 a kind of universal       
catalogue of ,greek1  ,hebrew1 and      
,latin works4 ,all this time he was     
slowly and surely studying  animals and 
plants1 and in #aeea the first part of  
his 8,history of  ,animals0 appeared1 to
 be followed by others in #aeed1 #aeee1 
and #aeef4 ,the  volumes contained      
descriptions of viviparous quadrupeds1  
that is to say1  four-footed beasts1    
whose young are born in active movement2
 of oviparous  quadrupeds1 or those     
which lay eggs2 of birds and of fishes1 
and other  aquatic animals4 ,he wrote   
also upon insects4 ,all agree that this 
book  is a miracle of industry1 having  

for its object no less than a general   
history of animated nature4 ,it contains
 a careful criticism of the works  of   
previous authors1 and1 besides much     
valuable and solid knowledge on         
zoology1 many interesting remarks on the
 habits and medicinal uses of  animals4 
,he followed the method of ,aristoteles1
 and the notion of the  genus was1 of   
course1 not satisfactorily established2 
but the book was  the source of much of 
modern zoology1 from which succeeding   
writers drew  largely4    ,gesner's     
botanical works were as great as those  
relating to animals1  and he designed   
and painted fifteen hundred figures of  
plants1 which  were of great use to his 
successors4 ,as if he had not enough to 
do1 he  translated the ,greek works of  
,aelian1 on animals1 in #aeef4          
,scientific  and industrious1 he had    
much to contend with1 and was           
short-sighted4 ,he  was the first person
 who used concaved glasses to remedy    
this defect in  his sight4 ,as years    

rolled on1 ,gesner was much liked and   
honoured in  his native town2 he was    
very amiable1 a great peacemaker1 and a 
liberal  citizen4 ,he established a     
botanic garden1 and gave employment to  
artists4  ,whilst in the full vigour of 
life1 and in active practice as a       
physician1  the plague attacked ,zurich1
 and ,gesner successfully combated the  
contagious disorder in many cases4 ,he  
exposed himself without fear1 after  the
 fashion of most medical men1 and       
unfortunately caught the disease4  ,when
 the worst symptoms came1 he knew his   
hour was at hand1 and asked to  be      
carried into his library and museum1    
where all the treasures he had          
collected and described1 to the delight 
of his students and friends1 were       
deposited4 ,there he breathed his last1 
in the arms of his affectionate  wife1  
for whose love contagion had no terrors4
 ,he died with the calmness  of a       
,christian philosopher1 on the fifth day
 of his attack1 at the early  age of    

forty-nine4 ,his remains rest1 much     
honoured1 in the cloister of  the ,greek
 church at ,zurich4 ,not only did       
,gesner consolidate the knowledge  of   
the animal and vegetable kingdom of his 
day1 but he also influenced  other      
authors to do good work1 and to avoid   
unkind criticism4 ,his calm1  candid1   
and equable temper enabled him to soothe
 the angry feelings of  others1 under   
their real and imaginary wrongs4 ,he    
laid aside his own  labour to assist    
others1 and he devoted much time to the 
supervision and  publication of a work  
which was left incomplete1 by a deceased
 friend1 so  as to provide for the      
family4    ,gesner's life is a very good
 proof that where there is a will there 
is a way1 and that poverty does not     
impede the path of a thoroughly         
industrious and earnest man4 ,the poor  
skinner's son's name is respected  at   
the present day1 and will be so1 as long
 as science lasts4    ,the interesting  
life of ,ray has already been given     

amongst those of  the heroes of botany2 
he was1 however1 a zoologist of the     
first class1  and his devotion to that  
part of natural history was part of his 
great  friendship for ,mr4 ,willughby4  
,this promising young man studied under 
,ray1  at ,cambridge1 and whilst the    
master took plants under his care and   
study1  the pupil began to work at      
animals4 ,they made a tour together1    
visiting  ,france1 ,spain1 ,italy1      
,germany1 and the ,low ,countries4      
,ichthyology1 or  the study of fishes1  
and ornithology1 or the study of birds1 
occupied  the attention of ,willughby4  
,having collected a vast number of      
specimens  and observations1 they       
returned to ,england1 and ,willughby    
immediately  commenced working with a   
view to the publication of a great work 
on the  animal kingdom4 ,he even        
contemplated a visit to ,america2 but   
health  failed1 and he died in the prime
 of life1 on ,july #crd1 #afgb4 ,the    
education of his two infant sons was    

confided to ,mr4 ,ray1 who was one of   
his executors4 ,willughby thought his   
works too imperfect for publication1    
but ,ray felt otherwise1 and urged it   
upon him for three reasons3 first1  the 
glory of ,god2 secondly1 the assistance 
of others in the same  studies2 thirdly1
 the honour of his native land4 ,upon   
these grounds he  gave his consent1 and 
,ray became their editor4 ,a book on    
birds1 8,the  ,ornithologia10 was the   
result1 and it contains a large amount  
of original  observation1 and is a full 
and exact description of the habits and 
maladies of birds1 and the best means of
 domesticating them4 ,excellent         
anatomical descriptions are added4      
,subsequently1 a book on the fishes of  
the ,mediterranean appeared4    ,the    
merits of ,willughby as a natural       
historian still continue to be          
recognized4 ,he was a most accomplished 
zoologist1 and he gave ,ray  and ,linnus
 the method of classification of animals
 which is usually  associated with their

 names4 ,ray acknowledged this1 and he  
says that  he found among his friend's  
manuscripts the histories of beasts and 
insects1 no less than of birds and      
fishes1 8digested with a method of his  
own40 ,he was not a simple wealthy and  
intelligent amateur1 for he was  master 
to one of the greatest naturalists4     
,ray1 in editing ,willughby's  8,book on
 ,birds10 gives a most touching preface 
to the memory of his  friend4 ,he says1 
8,he was from childhood addicted to     
study1 and ever since  he came to the   
use of reason1 so great a husbander of  
his time1 as not  willingly to lose1 or 
let slip unoccupied1 the least fragment 
of it2  detesting no vice more than     
idleness1 which he looked on as the     
parent  and source of all others4 ,of   
his skill in natural philosophy1 chiefly
 the  history of animals1 ,i shall say  
no more at present1 but that it hath not
  yet been my hap to meet with any man1 
whether in ,england or beyond seas1  of 
so general and comprehensive knowledge  

therein40    ,a very different career1  
but one which has had a greater general 
influence on natural history1 was that  
of ,john ,swammerdam1 who was born  at  
,amsterdam1 in #afcg1 his father being  
an apothecary4 ,his grandfather1  ,jacob
 ,dirkz1 was born in the village of     
,swammerdam1 near ,leyden1 and  his     
father1 a well-to-do apothecary1 lived  
there and took his name from  the       
village4 ,he married ,berendina ,corvera
 and settled at ,amsterdam4 ,the  family
 lived in comfort1 and the little one   
was destined1 like many  other          
naturalists1 to the ,church4 ,his       
education consisted of sound  ,latin and
 ,greek1 and when he became old enough1 
he began to feel that  there were       
responsibilities about his future office
 as a clergyman1  which he did not think
 he could fulfil4 ,holland at that time 
was in a  religious ferment1 and sects  
of all kinds existed1 religion being    
more  talked about than practised4 ,the 
lad1 as he grew up1 desired to follow   

in his father's footsteps1 and to learn 
the healing art2 but his genius  led him
 to the study of nature4 ,before he was 
fifteen years of age1 he  began to make 
collections of natural history objects1 
and whenever he  could get away from    
home1 and spare time from his medical   
studies1 he  pursued his favourite      
employment1 searching the woods and     
fields1 the  sand-hills and muddy       
shores1 the lakes1 rivers1 and canals1  
for insects1  worms1 and molluscs1 until
 he acquired1 even as a youth1 a more   
extensive  knowledge of the lower       
animals than all the naturalists who had
 preceded  him4 ,in #affa he went to    
,leyden and studied surgery and anatomy4
 ,in this  last he excelled1 and became 
celebrated for his methods of preserving
  dissections4 ,then he went to ,saumur1
 in ,france1 and to ,paris1 where he    
gained the friendship of ,thvenot the   
traveller1 who was his patron           
subsequently1 and assisted him when in  
,amsterdam in after years1 by  obtaining

 permission for him to dissect human    
bodies4 ,his fellow-pupil  was ,nicholas
 ,steno1 of whom more will be said under
 the title of 8,heroes  of ,geology40   
,on his return to ,leyden1 ,swammerdam  
discovered the method  of injecting     
arteries with coloured wax1 and of      
keeping the internal  organs in a dry   
condition for purposes of study1 and    
investigated the  nature of the         
lymphatics4 ,he graduated soon after1   
and after receiving  his diploma1       
returned to his old love1 nature1 and   
occupied nearly all  his time in the    
anatomy and physiology of insects4      
,swammerdam worked so incessantly1 that 
he got into bad health1 and was  obliged
 to relinquish the medical profession   
for a time4 ,he followed up  his        
researches into the minute construction 
of insects1 and really never  ceased    
them until death4 ,the ,grand ,duke of  
,tuscany visited ,amsterdam  at this    
time1 and examined ,swammerdam's        
collections4 ,greatly impressed  with   

their value1 and with the splendid      
dissections1 he offered a home  to the  
young naturalist in his palace1 and     
twelve thousand florins for  the        
collection4 ,swammerdam1 however1 did   
not care to wear a collar2 and  loving  
freedom of thought1 which he did not    
think he would have in ,italy1  declined
 the offer4 ,he knew that he would be   
expected to change his  religious       
tenets1 and said that he would not sell 
his soul for money4 ,he  published a    
8,general ,history of ,insects10 in     
#affi1 and soon afterwards  broke down1 
entirely1 in health1 so that he had to  
go into the country  to rest and do     
nothing4 ,but this was impossible2 and  
he began to study  bees1 and their      
natural history4 ,probably it was this  
constant weak  health1 and the solitude 
necessary for the peculiar nature of his
 work  and observations1 that had a very
 remarkable influence on the mind  and  
emotions of this great investigator4    
,always religious1 he longed  more and  

more for communion with his ,maker and  
the author of all the  wonders he was   
constantly studying4 ,when in better    
health he was happy  in his thoughts1   
and considered that it was his duty to  
study nature2  but when ill1 from the   
effects of overwork1 he began to think  
that his  labours were leading him      
astray1 and that to seek the good       
opinion of his  fellow-creatures and to 
become famous1 was a sin4 ,sometimes he 
gave up  science1 to begin again with   
fresh zeal1 and then he would neglect   
it1  giving up his whole time to        
religion4 ,unfortunately he was         
unreasonable  in his method of working4 
,boerhaave1 the great physician1 thus   
wrote of  ,swammerdam3 8,he laboured so 
assiduously at this work as to destroy  
his  constitution1 nor did he ever      
recover a shadow of his former strength4
  ,the labour1 in fact1 was beyond the  
power of ordinary men--all day he was   
employed in examining objects1 and at   
night described and delineated what  he 

had seen by day4 ,at six in the morning1
 in summer1 he began to receive         
sufficient light from the sun to enable 
him to trace the objects of his         
examination4 ,he continued dissecting   
until twelve1 with his hat removed  lest
 it should impede the light1 and in the 
full blaze of the sun1 the  heat of     
which caused his head to be constantly  
covered with profuse  perspiration4 ,his
 eyes being constantly exposed to a     
strong light1 the  effect of which was  
increased by the microscope1 they were  
so affected  by it1 that after midday he
 could no longer trace the minute bodies
 which  he examined1 although he had    
then as bright a light as in the        
forenoon40    ,swammerdam investigated  
the nature of the changes of outside    
form and  internal structure which      
accompany insect life4 ,some of his     
drawings of  the escape of the ephemera 
fly from its sheath of delicate skin on 
the  surface of the water1 and out of   
the wingless or nymph condition1 are    

very beautiful4 ,but his accuracy       
regarding the minute internal changes of
  the tissues and organs in the larva1  
pupa1 and perfect insect is being  more 
and more acknowledged4 ,he taught that  
these changes were not sudden1  but that
 a continuous growth of organs and      
tissues culminated at certain  times of 
the life of the insect4 ,the larva1 or  
caterpillar1 admirably  adapted for its 
course of life1 was a stage of the life 
cycle of a more  perfect form1 the imago
 or flying insect4 ,swammerdam stated   
that all the  organs of the perfect     
insect--a butterfly1 for instance--were 
in a visible  yet only slightly         
developed condition in the caterpillar4 
,and late  researches are leading to    
prove that he was right1 for the wings  
of the  future fly are to be detected in
 the body of the tiny crawling thing    
that  escapes from the egg4    ,happy in
 this toil when he was well1 for it was 
all about what was  entirely new and    
previously unknown1 he often laboured   

on1 when he was  ill1 with 8sighs and   
tears40 ,naturally sensitive1 pious1 and
 very  amiable1 he at one time quite    
gave up his work under the influence of 
a  remarkable woman1 ,antoinette        
,bourignon4 ,she was a wealthy1         
well-educated  person1 extremely plain1 
and who believed that a mission had been
 given  her to preach according to her  
own fancies1 and not in accordance with 
the general doctrines of the age4 ,she  
seems to have stimulated ,swammerdam  to
 lead a purely religious life1 and to   
give up his studies4 ,it was the  age of
 sects and of intolerance2 and possibly 
the disagreeable reception  which this  
certainly very good woman met with1 made
 the man care more  about her peculiar  
tenets4 ,he began1 seriously1 to try and
 sell his  collections1 made catalogues 
of his possessions1 and corresponded    
with  ,antoinette4 ,while various       
negotiations were pending1 ,swammerdam  
published  the results of his ten years'
 labour and the 8,anatomy of the ,day   

,fly10  a great work1 and his best4     
,then he went on a journey into ,denmark
 to  use his influence with the king in 
order to get ,antoinette a home in  that
 kingdom1 the ,lutherans of ,holland    
having ordered her to leave their       
country4 ,he was not successful2 and    
probably this affair made a great       
commotion at home4 ,on ,swammerdam's    
return1 his father1 enraged at him for  
his utter carelessness about earning    
money and his want of application  to   
business1 determined to allow him only a
 small sum of money to live  upon4 ,he  
was in utter despair1 for this prevented
 his following his  wish to lead1 for   
the future1 a life of meditation and    
religion4 ,the  father died soon        
afterwards1 and a lawsuit was commenced 
by the family to  prevent ,swammerdam   
having his share of the property4 ,this 
trouble brought  on illness1 and severe 
ague followed1 and1 although recovery   
took place1  the sensitive1 able man    
sank soon afterwards4 ,swammerdam made  

an epoch  in zoology by showing the     
value of the microscope1 and by his     
extreme  exactitude in descriptions1    
drawings1 and dissections4 ,his         
contributions  to human anatomy alone   
will always render his name illustrious4
    ,although everybody must regret that
 ,swammerdam had not good means1 and    
that his work was so sadly brought to a 
close by poverty and trouble1 yet  it   
must be remembered that wealth is not a 
great incentive to distinction  in      
subjects that require great self-denial1
 and which are not much valued  by what 
is called public opinion4 ,the          
temptations incident to1 and the  real  
duties of wealth1 are as great          
antagonists of successful scientific    
research1 as poverty4 ,and certainly the
 frivolity and vice of the  wealthier   
classes of ,europe1 during the earlier  
part of the eighteenth  century1 were   
not likely to inspire any of their      
members with a desire  for natural      
science4 ,but some very remarkable      

instances occurred1 in  which the genius
 and determination of some great men    
prevailed over the  intolerance and     
habits of the age1 and enabled them to  
become men of  great mark in zoology and
 other subjects4    ,the first to be    
noticed is ,ren ,antoine ,ferchault de  
,raumur1 who was  born at ,rochelle1 in 
western ,france1 in #afhc4 ,well born1  
and having  wealthy parents1 he was well
 educated1 and destined for the law4 ,he
 did  not follow the propensities of the
 age1 but began to study the arts and   
manufactures of ,france with great care1
 and to spend his spare time in  natural
 history researches4 ,from what is known
 of his career1 it is  very evident that
 he had learned chemistry and           
mineralogy1 and that  his education had 
been a most careful and liberal one4    
,his fortune was  considerable1 and it  
not being necessary for him to work for 
his bread1  he determined to follow the 
bent of his inclinations4 ,when twenty  
years  of age1 ,raumur went to ,paris1  

and his first essay was in the form of  
some geometrical work which was read    
before the ,academy of ,sciences4 ,at   
the early age of twenty-four he was     
admitted a member of that learned  and  
somewhat emotional body1 and was a very 
constant contributor to its             
publications for fifty years4 ,at first 
his desire was to improve the arts  and 
manufactures of his native land1 and in 
#agaa he made experiments upon  the     
manufacture of ropes1 and he showed that
 the strength of a cord is  less than   
the sum of the strength of the threads  
of which it consists1  whence it follows
 that the less a rope is twisted after a
 certain point1  the stronger it is4 ,in
 #agae he began to study the process of 
colouring  artificial pearls1 and       
probably it was during these researches 
that  his attention was attracted       
towards natural history4 ,he found out  
the  nature of the substance which gives
 the pearly lustre to fish scales1  and 
then he investigated the growth of      

scales4 ,following up his subject1  he  
examined into the method of growth of   
the shells of molluscs4 ,in one  of his 
journeys in ,languedoc1 he discovered   
some substances resembling  turquoise in
 colour1 and they were used as gems2 but
 he pushed the  matter further1 and     
discovered a very remarkable fact4 ,the 
extinct  animal called mastodon1 from   
the peculiar teat-shaped projections on 
its huge teeth1 roamed over ,europe in  
the last geological age1 and its  teeth1
 covered with a very strong enamel1 have
 been preserved in strata1  or in       
fissures4 ,under the influence of the   
chemical action going on in  rocks1 the 
enamel becomes occasionally coloured1 so
 as to resemble a  turquoise-coloured   
porcelain4 ,this was evident to ,raumur1
 who wrote  upon the fact4 ,other       
studies took him away from natural      
history for a  while1 but they certify  
to the energy and hard work of the man  
and his  great accuracy4 ,raumur's      
experiments in the manufacture of iron  

and  steel were of great importance1 and
 it was an attempt to get the art of    
making steel introduced into ,france1   
that urged him on4 ,he made good  use of
 his knowledge1 for on publishing his   
methods of work1 the ,regent  gave him a
 pension of #ab1jjj livres a year4 ,next
 he discovered the art  of tinning iron1
 and whilst experimenting1 ,raumur first
 noticed that  many metallic substances 
in passing from the heated fluid        
condition  to the cold state1 have a    
tendency to assume particular           
geometrical  or crystalline forms4      
,among his useful discoveries were plans
 for  the manufacture of porcelain1 and 
they were of great use to ,france4 ,a   
thermometer1 with a scale of            
temperature1 still largely used in some 
parts of the world1 was invented by him1
 and he took the freezing and  boiling  
points of water as fixed points1 and    
divided the interval into  eighty       
degrees4 ,the present centigrade        
thermometer used in ,france is  made on 

the same plan1 but the interval is      
divided into one hundred  degrees4      
,labouring as a physicist1 still all    
this time ,raumur was  doing wonderful  
work in zoology4 ,he described the means
 by which many                          
echinodermata--sea-urchins and          
sea-stars--execute their movements1 and 
discovered the curious manner in which  
many crustacea1 such as crabs  and      
lobsters1 throw off their limbs and     
repair them4 ,but his real and  lasting 
work was on insects1 which occupied all 
his best and later years4  ,living in   
perfect quietude1 without any great     
worries1 sometimes at his  estate at    
,saurlonge1 and at other times at       
,bercy1 near ,paris1 he worked  on1     
giving all his energies to his subject4 
,his labours1 he stated1  were published
 with a view to assist future           
investigators1 and most of  them were   
original4 ,he kept up his pretty country
 house and garden1 and  observed the    
insects and their habits1 and especially

 their methods  of changing form4 ,he   
followed ,swammerdam in these           
investigations1 and  although there are 
some differences of opinion between the 
two great  men1 still they both made    
their mark in the investigation of that 
part  of natural history which deals    
with the progressive development of  the
 minute young to the full-grown         
creature4 ,raumur was sufficiently      
wealthy to form a large collection of   
animals1 and a very able man1 ,m4       
,brisson1 was employed by him as its    
curator1 and was allowed to describe    
the quadrupeds and birds4 ,raumur did   
not care so much about classifying      
insects1 as describing their habits and 
anatomy2 but his six great  volumes are 
still most valuable memorials of his    
conscientious care4 ,he  says that the  
number of observations necessary for a  
tolerably complete  history of so many  
minute animals is prodigious4 ,when one 
reflects on all  that an accomplished   
botanist ought to know1 it is enough to 

frighten  him4 ,his memory is loaded    
with the names of twelve or thirteen    
thousand  plants1 and he is expected to 
recall1 on occasion1 the image of any   
one of them4 ,there is perhaps not one  
of those plants but has insects         
peculiar to itself2 and some trees1 such
 as the oak1 give sustenance to  several
 hundred different species4 ,and after  
all1 how many are there that  do not    
live on plants8 ,how many species that  
devour others8 ,how many that  live at  
the expense of other animals8 ,how many 
species are there1 some of  which pass  
the greater part of their time in water1
 while others pass it  entirely there8  
,the immensity of nature's works is     
nowhere more apparent  than in the      
prodigious multitudes of these little   
animals4 ,this being  the case1 he deems
 it impossible for any one man to       
acquire a knowledge  of all the insects 
of even a limited district2 therefore1  
instead of  burthening the memory with  
the characteristic distinctions of these

  creatures1 to the neglect of matters  
of greater importance1 he recommends    
attention to particular genera1 and     
especially to those which are of  most  
frequent occurrence1 that a knowledge of
 their peculiarities1 food1  and        
propagation1 and the different forms    
they assume1 may be accurately          
obtained4    ,in the first two volumes1 
,raumur treats of caterpillars1 their   
changes  of form into the chrysalis1 and
 this into the butterfly2 about their   
different kinds and habits1 and         
concerning the other insects which      
attack  them1 and live within them1 in  
their early stage4    ,the third volume 
includes the description of the habits  
of the clothes  moths1 and the          
plant-lice1 or aphides2 the fourth      
treats of gall insects  and two-winged  
flies2 the fifth contains the history of
 bees1 and the  sixth of wasps and      
hornets4 ,the natural history of the    
grasshoppers1  crickets1 and beetles was
 to have been written in a seventh      

volume1 but  it was never completed4    
,the published volumes contain much very
 valuable  information1 and their great 
merit consists in the wonderful care    
,raumur took1 in investigating facts and
 in recording them carefully and        
systematically4 ,he especially studied  
the instincts of insects1 and thus      
brought their nervous system into       
prominent notice1 and also the evident  
connection between the surrounding      
conditions and the peculiar lives of    
animals4    ,years rolled on and the    
worthy man became old1 but still        
persisted  in his simplicity of life and
 desire for study4 ,he was so superior  
in  intellect to the class to which he  
belonged1 that he lived free from       
jealousy and intrigue4 ,probably few men
 have led a happier life than  ,raumur1 
and certainly his useful works will last
 as long as mankind4 ,at  the age of    
seventy-four he met with an accident    
whilst riding1 and died  ,october #ahth1
 #ageg4 ,he had no personal vanity1 and1

 being influenced by  the true          
scientific spirit1 sought truth and not 
personal distinction and  reward4       
,linnus1 whose life has been given under
 the title of a hero in botanical       
science1 was almost as great a zoologist
 as botanist and mineralogist4  ,his    
classification of animals produced as   
great a change in the direction  and    
possibility of studying zoology1 as that
 of plants did in the case of  botany4  
,it led the way1 through an artificial  
system1 by which animals  could be      
readily known1 to a natural system which
 united animals not only  by their      
common general shape1 but also by the   
nature1 position1 and  use of their     
internal organs4 ,his system of naming  
animals was equal to  that of plants1   
and the reasonable generic and the      
applicable specific  names1 going       
together1 stamped the animal with a kind
 of individuality4  ,classification1    
description1 and proper naming were the 
important parts  of ,linnus's zoology4  

,illustration          ,,chapter ,,vii4 
,,the ,,lives ,,of ,,buffon1 ,,pennant1 
,,and ,,lamarck4        ,the popular    
writings of ,buffon1 and his            
life--,pennant's      life--,lamarck and
 his life--,the rise of popular natural 
history1      and of exact descriptions 
and philosophical zoology4      ,if     
natural history had never been studied  
in an easy manner1 and had  not the     
results of those studies been given to  
educated men desirous  of knowing       
something about animals in popular yet  
correct works1 very  few men would have 
cared to become zoologists4 ,it is the  
good1 easy1  popular1 but not           
necessarily jocular book on natural     
history that1 as a  rule1 excites the   
attention of the young1 and stimulates  
the youth to  obtain further knowledge4 
,such books were written at a very      
interesting  time of the world1 and just
 when they were wanted2 and the writer  
was  a very remarkable man--a man born  
to wealth and station1 but who1 like    

many others1 preferred hard work and the
 study of nature to sloth and  luxurious
 idleness1 and even to the profession of
 arms1 so much in vogue  in the early   
part of the eighteenth century4         
,george ,louis ,leclerc de ,buffon was  
born on ,september #gth1 #agjg1 at      
,montbard1 in ,burgundy4 ,he came of    
good family1 and his father was         
councillor of the ,burgundian           
parliament4 ,his mother1 ,anne          
,christine  ,mazlin1 appears to have    
possessed considerable natural gifts4   
,she was  also of good family1 and was  
remarkable1 in those days1 for the      
elevation  of her mind and strength of  
character4 ,she was a better parent than
 the  father who1 although he was looked
 upon as a wonder in his province1  in  
consequence of his wasteful living and  
devotion to feasts1 balls1  and         
concerts1 was really only a person of   
average merit4 ,the mother was  tenderly
 loved by her son1 but the father gave  
him some trouble in after  years1 on    

account of his follies4 ,nevertheless1  
it adds to the interest  and good       
example of ,buffon's character to learn 
that he did not care to  follow the     
agreeable life of his father1 but that  
he broke away from it  and took to      
wisdom1 although having great property1 
he always lived and  behaved like a     
nobleman of wealth and mental           
distinction4    ,buffon was the oldest  
of five children1 and the rest were     
devoted by the  parents to the          
priesthood1 or to nunneries2 so it would
 appear that the  father not only       
followed the rule of the day1 to keep   
the property in the  hands of the eldest
 son1 but to provide for the others in  
the cheapest  possible manner4 ,the     
young noble was in due course sent to a 
school at  ,dijon kept by ,jesuit       
fathers1 the best instructors in those  
days2 and  report says that the boy was 
fond of arithmetic and had a character  
for decision and perseverance4 ,after a 
while ,buffon was entered at the        

academy of ,angers1 it being decided    
that the boy should follow his  father  
as a magistrate and public man4 ,there  
his love of study became  evident1 and  
his application was considerable4 ,one  
of his associates was  a young ,english 
nobleman1 ,lord ,kingston1 and they     
became great friends1  and probably this
 friendship was caused and fostered by  
his lordship's  ,german tutor1          
,hinckman1 who was a man of considerable
 learning4 ,when he  was nineteen years 
of age the three friends started for a  
tour in ,italy4  ,returning to ,angers  
to resume his studies1 ,buffon became a 
little wild1  and got into a quarrel    
with a young ,englishman at play4       
,buffon wounded  his antagonist and had 
to leave the town4 ,he went to ,paris1  
but not to  waste time2 on the contrary1
 his former love of figures1 and his    
later  studies in mathematics1 inspired 
him to translate ,newton's 8,fluxions0  
into ,french1 and also ,hale's          
8,vegetable ,statics10 which            

subsequently he  presented to the       
,academy of ,sciences4 ,still keeping up
 his friendship  with ,lord ,kingston1  
,buffon visited ,italy again2 and there 
is no doubt  that ,hinckman instilled   
the love of nature into the young man's 
mind4  ,they were all at ,rome in #agcb1
 when ,buffon heard of the death of his 
mother1 who was greatly mourned by him4 
,he was then twenty-five years of  age1 
and became very wealthy1 as he was his  
mother's heir4 ,journeying in           
,switzerland he began to know other     
,english people of distinction4 ,all    
these friendships led him at last to    
,england1 and he went to ,thoresby1  the
 seat of ,lord ,kingston1 and remained  
in the country for some months4         
,buffon had a very fine person1 liked a 
little 8show10 and the rather  solemn   
and stilted manners of the ,british     
nobility pleased him4 ,it was  this stay
 in ,england1 and his friendships1 that 
gave ,buffon some of the  manners of the
 aristocracy of the day1 so that ,hume  

said of him that he  resembled a marshal
 of ,france more than a man of letters4 
,these habits1  amongst which courtesy  
and true gentility--that is to say1     
treating other  people as we would they 
should treat us in society--were        
predominant1  clung to ,buffon2 and even
 when at home1 and at his very hard and 
incessant labour in natural history1 he 
kept up his state1 and was the  great   
,french noble as well as the humble     
student of nature4    ,it is a curious  
fact1 but one very readily explained1   
that ,buffon1 like  nearly all the great
 zoologists1 began his scientific life  
as a botanist4  ,plants are ever at     
hand1 and their classification1 good or 
bad1 is  readily learned4 ,one of his   
first works1 presented after receiving  
the  honour of election to the ,academy 
of ,sciences at ,paris1 was on a        
question  of the influence of barking   
trees2 and others were on agriculture4  
,he  gave a proof that he was acquainted
 with the human frame1 for he wrote on  

the causes of squinting4    ,scientific 
men of nobility were rare in ,france in 
those days1 and ,buffon  was appointed  
keeper to the ,jardin du ,roi and the   
,royal ,museum4 ,anxious  to continue   
his studies about trees1 he prevailed on
 the king to let him  experiment on a   
grand scale in one of the royal forests4
 ,but this was  only a part of his work1
 for he commenced that great book on    
natural  history which was always after 
to be associated with his name4 ,it was 
not to be a simple book on animals1 but 
on the history of the earth as  well2   
and1 in fact1 he intended it to be an   
encyclopdia of all natural  knowledge   
except mathematics and figures4 ,it was 
a great conception and  it was carried  
out year after year during success1     
domestic happiness and  trouble4 ,the   
perseverance and patience of the man    
were wonderful2 and  fortunately he had 
the means of collecting what was        
required1 of buying  books and of having
 secretaries to do the very troublesome 

and mechanical  part of writing4 ,he was
 short-sighted and wrote badly4 ,it was 
not vanity1  nor the desire of being    
great1 that made ,buffon work2 certainly
 it was  not amusement4 ,but he was     
happy in his work1 and he stated that   
genius is  a gift which comes not from  
man2 and the great man is an instrument 
in  the ,divine hand2 he has a mission  
which may be for light or to ruin1 and  
neither the environment of pleasure or  
glory or the troubles of fortune1       
ill-health1 or misery should deter him  
from his ends4 ,genius1 ,buffon also    
termed1 a very great aptitude for       
patience4    ,daubenton assisted ,buffon
 in his first three volumes of natural  
history1  and they came out in #agdi1   
and the other volumes came out year by  
year  until his death4    ,buffon lived 
carefully1 and kept up the curious state
 of the ,french  gentlemen of his day in
 his house4 ,after he was dressed1 he   
dictated  letters and regulated his     
domestic affairs1 and at six o'clock he 

retired  to his studies in a building   
called the tower of ,st4 ,louis4 ,this  
was  in the garden1 and far away from   
the house1 and the only furniture in  it
 was a wooden writing-table1 with its   
cupboards and drawers1 and an  armchair4
 ,neither pictures nor books relieved   
the naked appearance of  the apartment1 
or distracted the thoughts of the       
learned professor4  ,the entrance was by
 green folding doors1 the walls were    
painted green1  and the interior had the
 appearance of a chapel in consequence  
of the  elevation of the roof4 ,within  
this garden was another building1 where 
,buffon resided during the greater part 
of the year1 as it was warmer than  the 
other place1 and here he composed most  
of his works4 ,it was a small  square   
building1 situated on the side of a     
terrace1 and was ornamented  with       
drawings of birds and beasts4 ,at nine  
o'clock ,buffon usually took an  hour's 
rest and his breakfast1 which consisted 
of a piece of bread and  two glasses of 

wine4 ,when he had written for two hours
 after breakfast1  he returned to the   
house4 ,at dinner he spent a            
considerable time in  conversation1 and 
relaxed his mind from work entirely1    
enjoying the wit  and gaiety of his     
friends4 ,he usually slept for an hour  
after dinner in  his room and took a    
solitary walk1 and during the rest of   
the evening  he either conversed with   
his family or his guests1 or sat at his 
desk  examining papers which were       
submitted to his judgment4 ,at nine     
o'clock  he went to bed4 ,in #agfb1 when
 fifty-five years of age1 ,buffon       
married  a lady who was in every way    
suited to him1 and who1 moreover1 took a
  deep interest in his studies4 ,he was 
greatly attached to her1 and her        
companionship made the country life all 
the more pleasant4 ,four years          
afterwards ,louis ,,xiv4 ennobled       
,buffon and invited him to              
,fontainebleau to  offer him the post of
 ,administrator of the ,forests of      

,france1 but ,buffon  declined the      
office4 ,this great man was not above a 
little vanity3 he  liked to read the    
most interesting parts of his works to  
his friends1  and to draw forth their   
admiration4 ,he was1 moreover1 fond of  
dress and  grandeur1 but that was part  
of the society of his day4 ,he had a    
fine  countenance and figure1 and it was
 his delight to display them to the     
best advantage4 ,he dressed in the      
extreme of fashion1 and amidst his      
studies found time to submit his head   
7perhaps it was only his wig7 to  the   
hairdresser1 two or three times a day4  
,on ,sundays the peasantry of  ,montbard
 assembled to gaze at the ,count after  
the service of the church1  when he     
passed through their ranks magnificently
 dressed1 with his son  and his         
retainers4    ,the natural history was  
translated into ,english1 ,german1      
,italian1  ,spanish1 and ,dutch1 and its
 charming pages brought a knowledge of  
nature  to many a home4 ,like most      

naturalists of eminence1 ,buffon        
interested  himself about the ancient   
history of the earth4 ,his writings were
 not  original in that part of his      
subject1 but what he did write contained
  much common sense4 ,nevertheless1 the 
,faculty of ,theology at ,paris found   
fault with the geology1 and informed him
 that no less than fourteen             
propositions in his works were          
reprehensible and contrary to the creed 
of  the ,church4 ,buffon was invited to 
recant1 which he very foolishly did2    
and it must be mentioned that the       
8improper statements0 are now believed  
in1 by every educated man4 ,it has been 
written of the great naturalists  of the
 past1 that ,aristoteles has shown the  
profound combination of the  laws of    
nature1 ,plinius her inexhaustible      
riches1 ,linnus her wonderful  details1 
and ,buffon her majesty and power4      
,certainly his great work  contains such
 pictures of nature as were never given 
before1 and rarely  since1 by any       

naturalist4 ,buffon therefore had the   
happiness of bringing  the cultivation  
of the science more generally into      
fashion than it had  been previously4   
,he was deficient in the orderly method 
of science1  however2 his work1         
supremely interesting and popular1 was  
soon found to  be inconsistent with the 
severely scientific study of nature4    
,this want  of order and classification 
led to the establishment of a new school
 of  zoology4    ,buffon's social       
position was of great value and         
importance to him as a  naturalist and  
to the state also1 for he became the    
object of personal  regard to many      
distinguished foreign princes1 who did  
not hesitate  to make presents of       
specimens to the national museums1      
through him4  ,his wealth also enabled  
him to help the state1 for he often     
purchased  minerals and specimens of    
animals for which no public money had   
been  granted4 ,frederick the ,great of 
,prussia and his son ,henry1 the        

,emperor  ,joseph ,,ii4 of ,austria1    
,catherine of ,russia1 and the kings of 
,norway and  ,sweden1 all knew ,buffon1 
admired his works1 and sent presents in 
order to  complete his museum1 which was
 devoted and given by him to the public4
  ,the ,jardin du ,roi was greatly      
enlarged at ,buffon's expense1 and      
public  opinion spoke well of the       
amiable and benevolent owner of         
,montbard4    ,but1 as with other and   
less happily placed men1 ,buffon had to 
suffer1  and the loss of his child1     
followed by the death of the wife he    
tenderly  loved1 in the prime of her    
life1 were great shocks to him4 ,he     
never was  the same man afterwards1 and 
sought to find forgetfulness in         
increased  work and literary toil4      
,moreover1 the ingratitude of the ruling
 power  affected ,buffon1 who behaved1  
however1 excellently1 and took up the   
position which every man of his social  
condition should have maintained4    ,in
 ,february1 #agga1 ,buffon was          

alarmingly ill1 and1 unknown to him1 the
  king1 ,louis ,,xv41 nominated a ,count
 d',angiviller1 to succeed in the       
administration of the ,museums and      
,jardin de ,roi4 ,buffon recovered1 and 
found out this little job1 and was      
naturally annoyed at the indecent  haste
 of putting a man in his place at such a
 crisis2 but he was most  indignant when
 he knew who the man was--an ignoramus  
and court favourite1  a perfectly       
incompetent man4 ,it is said that ,louis
 ,,xv4 on this occasion1  to compensate 
,buffon for his annoyance1 raised the   
,montbard property to  the holding of a 
count4 ,certainly he ordered the        
sculptor1 ,pajon1 to  erect a full-sized
 statue of ,buffon in the garden during 
his absence1 and  to put the inflated   
inscription on it1 8,his genius equals  
the majesty of  nature40 ,buffon        
resented this1 and he wrote to the      
,president de ,ruffey3  8,i thank you   
for the part you have taken in procuring
 this statue1 which  ,i neither required

 nor solicited1 and which would have    
done me greater  honour if it had been  
erected after my death4 ,i have always  
thought that  a wise man should rather  
fear envy then value glory2 all this has
 been  done without consulting me40     
,some years afterwards an architect1 who
 was employed in embellishing  some of  
the buildings in the ,jardin du ,roi1   
wished to compliment ,buffon1  but this 
simple-minded1 scientific man stated1   
8,i cannot agree to any  expenditure    
which will contribute to my personal    
glory1 and ,i had nothing  to do with   
the statue they erected to me40 ,in     
writing to ,madame ,necker1  he showed  
how exactly he understood the ,french   
court1 and appreciated its  praises3 8,i
 passed the whole of yesterday and the  
day before in making  observations and  
notes on a most important project       
presented to the king1  relating to the 
planting of #ajj1jjj fir trees for the  
masts of the navy4  ,i would not grudge 
the time if my advice were likely to be 

useful and  valued and taken2 but in the
 high circle where you have not cared   
about  remaining1 they do sometimes     
consult competent men1 and end1         
invariably1  by following the advice of 
the ignorant40    ,buffon lived for many
 years after these troubles1 and gained 
fresh  laurels4 ,those which will last  
the longest were the results of his     
charming descriptions of the habits of  
animals4 ,at last1 at the age of        
eighty-one years1 he died1 full of      
honours1 his last words addressed to    
his son being1 8,my son1 never leave the
 path of virtue and honour2 it is  the  
true road to happiness40    ,about a    
year before the death of ,george ,i41 a 
son was born to a family  of good old   
name and renown at ,downing1 in         
,flintshire4 ,the child was  christened 
,thomas1 and his other name was         
,pennant1 and these names are           
constantly coming before naturalists who
 particularly study zoology at  the     
present time4 ,little is known about the

 early years of this ardent  student1   
except that he was educated at ,wrexham 
school4 ,like most boys  he took notice 
of birds and their habits1 and if one   
may judge from the  results1 he must    
have really begun to study the different
 kinds of birds1  carefully1 when he was
 about twelve years of age4 ,he owed his
 opening  career as a zoologist to ,ray 
and ,willughby1 for it was a present    
made to  him of the book of birds of    
this last author1 that drew his         
attention to  the study of nature which 
he never subsequently neglected4        
,after leaving school1 ,pennant was sent
 to ,oxford1 where his studies do  not  
appear to have been of any importance1  
so far as the subjects which  were      
taught were concerned4 ,he did not take 
his degree1 and yet it is  evident that 
he studied the nature of things visible 
to him1 and that he  was well read in   
the science of the day4 ,his mind was   
rather influenced  by the writings of   
,linnus1 and in consequence he took an  

interest in  mineralogy as well as about
 natural history4 ,immediately after    
leaving  ,oxford1 ,pennant began to     
travel about his own country1 and       
visited  ,cornwall4 ,he examined many of
 the mines1 and studied the natural     
history  of the districts1 but he did   
not publish anything1 being apparently  
an  earnest student of what was already 
known4 ,when twenty-four years of  age  
an earthquake occurred at ,downing1 and 
,pennant wrote a description  of it1    
which was read before the ,royal        
,society and published in the           
8,philosophical ,transactions40 ,this   
was a great honour for so young a man4  
,animals1 however1 and their shapes1    
habits1 and similarities were his       
special study1 and he laboured hard1    
year after year1 in describing them4    
,he got much practical knowledge of     
those of our own country1 and finally1  
at the age of thirty-five1 in #agfa1 he 
commenced the publication of his  first 
great work1 the 8,british ,zoology10    

which was printed in large  folio1 and  
when complete contained one hundred and 
thirty-two plates4 ,he  was well known  
before this magnificent work appeared1  
and ,linnus had  urged the ,university  
of ,upsala to elect him a member of     
their ,royal  ,society4 ,his great book 
appeared afterwards in smaller editions1
 and one  in quarto is often used4      
,the 8,british ,zoology0 included the   
description of the species of animals   
at that time known to inhabit ,great    
,britain1 except the insects4 ,so  good 
was the work and so accurate were the   
descriptions1 that it was  translated   
into ,latin and ,german1 and had a large
 circulation abroad4  ,anxious to       
compare his work with those of foreign  
naturalists1 and to  see the specimens  
of similar animals in the great         
continental museums1  ,pennant travelled
 abroad in #agfe1 and made the          
acquaintance of the most  important     
zoologists of the day4 ,he visited      
,buffon at ,montbard1 and their         

friendship led to a correspondence1     
which lasted for years4 ,then he went   
on to ,switzerland1 and met ,haller at  
,berne4 ,coming home by way of ,germany 
and ,holland1 he met a distinguished    
traveller and naturalist1 ,pallas  by   
name4 ,pennant wrote about him3 8,our   
conversation related chiefly to  natural
 history1 and as we were both           
enthusiastic admirers of our great      
,ray1 ,i proposed his undertaking a     
history of quadrupeds on the system  of 
our countryman1 a little reformed4 ,he  
assented to my plan1 and wrote  me a    
long letter in which he sent me an      
outline of his design1 and his          
resolution to pursue it with all the    
expedition consistent with his  other   
engagements40 ,pallas went to ,russia1  
and never accomplished his  object1 but 
,pennant followed out the idea himself1 
and in #agga published  a work with the 
title of 8,a ,synopsis of ,quadrupeds10 
illustrated with  about thirty plates4  
,this was intended as a kind of index to

 the species  of animals described by   
,buffon in his great work on natural    
history4  ,he gradually1 however1       
extended its limits1 and included in it 
the  description of many animals which  
he had observed in collections or which 
had been discovered by travellers1 and  
which had been unknown to ,buffon4      
,years afterwards the great ,cuvier said
 of this work1 8that it is still        
indispensable to those who wish to study
 the history of quadrupeds40    ,struck 
with the interesting nature of the      
animals of ,india1 which were  then     
beginning to be studied1 ,pennant       
commenced a work about them1 and  twelve
 plates were completed4 ,but it was a   
work far beyond the powers  and pocket  
of a naturalist of that date1 and it was
 not completed4 ,a  more congenial work 
was undertaken by him when he rambled   
about ,scotland  noticing the habits of 
the people and the birds4 ,he seems to  
have  observed much that was            
interesting1 and to have published his  

remarks4  ,then he began a work on the  
genera of birds1 on the plan of his     
books  on quadrupeds1 and this was not  
completed4 ,he wrote a book on 8,arctic 
,zoology10 which was of course a        
compilation from the works of travellers
  and foreign zoologists who had visited
 the countries within the arctic        
circle4 ,he also received stuffed       
specimens from different foreign        
museums4 ,it was a capital book1 and it 
acquired a considerable reputation      
amongst naturalists1 from its containing
 figures and descriptions of  animals   
hitherto but little known4 ,it is read  
at the present day1 and is  a proof of  
,pennant's exactitude4 ,ever anxious to 
go on working1 he even  in his          
sixty-seventh year planned an extensive 
work which was to consider  the natural 
history and antiquities of every country
 in the world4 ,he  absolutely did      
produce two great volumes of this work1 
taking ,hindostan  as his subject4      
,the great merit of ,pennant was that he

 observed so much and was a capital     
practical zoologist4 ,moreover1 his     
great knowledge of other things and  his
 general accomplishments enabled him to 
sift the good from the bad  zoology of  
his day4 ,he appears to have lived the  
life of a student and  naturalist when  
the kingdom was always in a whirlwind of
 politics1 and  when foreign troubles   
prevailed4 ,unlike most of his class1   
for he was a  little country squire1    
living on his own estate at ,downing1 he
 devoted  himself to nature1 and for    
many years his books gave great         
enjoyment  to thousands of his          
countrymen4 ,they are most readable     
books1 full of  anecdotes1 and it is    
evident that he was a master of his     
mother tongue1  a great antiquary1      
besides a naturalist of the first order4
 ,he was one  of the few men who        
followed the science of zoology without 
having the  previous education of a     
medical man1 and1 like all good         
zoologists1 he  was an excellent        

botanist4    ,some of ,pennant's tours  
through ,england1 ,wales1 and ,scotland 
are  exceedingly instructive in the     
antiquities of places1 but the most     
interesting remarks are upon natural    
history subjects1 some of which are     
scientific and others not at all so4    
,when in ,lincolnshire he noticed the   
fens near ,revesby ,abbey1 eight miles  
beyond ,horncastle1 which he says  are  
of vast extent1 but serve for little    
other purpose than the rearing  of great
 numbers of geese1 which are the wealth 
of the fenmen4 8,during  the breeding   
season these birds are lodged in the    
same houses with the  inhabitants and   
even in their very bed-chambers4 ,in    
every apartment  there are three rows of
 coarse wicker pens1 placed one above   
another2  each bird has its separate    
lodge divided from the other1 which it  
keeps  possession of during its time of 
setting4 ,a person called a gozzard     
attends the flock1 and twice a day      
drives the whole to water2 then brings  

them back to their habitations1 helping 
those that live in the upper  stories to
 their nests1 without even misplacing a 
single bird4 ,the geese  are plucked    
five times in the year4 ,the first      
plucking is at ,lady ,day1  for feathers
 and quills1 and the same is renewed1   
for feathers only1 four  times between  
this and ,michaelmas4 ,the old geese    
submit very quietly to  the operation1  
but the young ones are very noisy and   
unruly4 ,i once saw  this performed1 and
 observed that the goslings of six weeks
 old were not  spared1 for their tails  
were plucked1 as ,i was told to         
habituate them  early to what they were 
to come to4 ,if the season proves cold1 
numbers of  geese die from this         
barbarous custom4 ,vast numbers are     
driven annually  to ,london to supply   
the markets2 among them all the         
superannuated geese  and ganders 7here  
called cagmags7 which serve to fatigue  
the jaws of the  good citizens who are  
so unfortunate as to meet with them40   

,he proceeds1  8,it is observable that  
once in seven or eight years1 immense   
shoals of  sticklebacks appear in the   
,welland below ,spalding1 and attempt   
coming  up the river in a vast column4  
,they are supposed to be the collected  
multitudes washed out of the fens by the
 floods of several years1 and  carried  
into some deep hole4 ,when1 overcharged 
with numbers1 they are  obliged to      
attempt a change of place1 they move up 
the river in such  quantities as to     
enable a man who was employed in taking 
them1 to earn1  for a considerable time1
 four shillings a day by selling them at
 a  halfpenny per bushel4 ,they were    
used to manure land1 and attempts have  
been made to get oil from them40 8,the  
birds which inhabit the different  fens 
are very numerous2 ,i never met with a  
finer field for the zoologist  to range 
in4 ,besides the common wild duck1 wild 
geese1 gorganies1  pochards1 shovellers1
 and teals breed here4 ,i have seen in  
the east fen  a small flock of the      

tufted ducks2 but they seemed only to   
make it a  baiting place4 ,the pewits1  
gulls1 and black terns abound2 the last 
in  vast flocks almost deafen one with  
their clamour1 and a few of the great   
terns are seen amongst them4 ,i saw     
several of the great crested grebes  on 
the east fen1 called there gaunts1 and  
met with one of their floating  nests   
with eggs in it4 ,the lesser crested    
grebe1 the black and dusky  grebe1 and  
the little grebe are also inhabitants of
 the fens1 together  with the coots1    
water-hens1 spotted water-hens1         
water-rails1 ruffs1  redshanks1 lapwings
 or wipes1 red crested godwits and      
whimbrels40 8,but  the greatest         
curiosity in those parts is the vast    
heronry at ,cressi ,hall1  six miles    
from ,spalding4 ,the herons resort there
 in ,february to repair  their nests1   
settle there in the spring to breed1 and
 quit the place  during the winter4     
,they are as numerous as rooks1 and     
their nests are so  crowded together    

that myself and the company that was    
with me1 counted  not less than eighty  
on one spreading oak4 ,i found that the 
crested heron  was only the male of the 
other1 and it made a most beautiful     
appearance  with its snowy neck and long
 crest streaming with the wind40        
,visiting  ,scarborough1 and giving much
 information about the different kinds  
of  fish caught1 he states3 8,at a      
distance of four or five leagues from   
shore1 during the months of ,july and   
,august1 it is remarked that at the     
depth of six or seven fathoms from the  
surface1 the water appears to be        
saturated like a thick jelly1 filled    
with the ova of fish1 which reaches  ten
 or twelve fathoms deeper2 this is known
 by its adhering to the ropes1  the     
cables1 and anchor when they are        
fishing40 8,landing at a small island   
further north1 we found the female eider
 ducks at that time sitting2 the  lower 
part of their nests was made of sea     
plants1 the upper part was  formed of   

the down which they pulled off their own
 breasts1 in which the  eggs were       
surrounded and warmly bedded4 ,in some  
nests were three and  in others five    
eggs of large size and pale olive       
colour1 as smooth and  glossy as if     
varnished over4 ,the nests are built on 
the beach among the  loose pebbles1 not 
far from the water4 ,the ducks sit very 
close1 nor will  they rise until you    
almost tread upon them4 ,we robbed the  
nests of some  down1 and found that the 
down of one only weighs three quarters  
of an  ounce1 but was so elastic as to  
fill the crown of a hat40    ,pennant   
deserved good health and had it1 for1   
except when old age came  on1 he was a  
singularly healthy man4 ,he died in     
#agih1 at the age of  seventy-two years4
    ,jean ,baptiste ,antoine de ,monet1 
also called the ,chevalier de ,lamarck1 
was born at ,bazantin1 a village of     
,picardy1 on ,april #ast1 #agdd4 ,he was
  the eleventh child of ,pierre de      
,monet1 the principal person of the     

neighbourhood1 whose small estate was   
disproportionate to his huge  family4   
,but the ,church was a resource for such
 families1 and occasionally  its great  
prizes were taken by the younger members
 of noble houses4 ,so  ,m4 de ,monet    
determined to prepare his son1 at an    
early age1 for this  hopeful future1 and
 sent him to the ,jesuit ,college at    
,amiens4 ,however1  the inclinations of 
the child were not those which made it  
probable that  he would succeed in the  
direction which his father had chosen   
for him4  ,everything around the boy1 at
 home1 was quite opposed to a clerical  
career4 ,for centuries his ancestors had
 carried arms1 and his eldest  brother  
was killed at the siege of              
,bergen-op-,zoom4 ,two brothers were in 
the army1 and at that time ,france was  
in dire trouble1 and required every  man
 who could fight1 it was therefore not  
probable that young ,lamarck  would stay
 at home4 ,nevertheless1 his father     
resisted his desire to enter  the army1 

and the young man had to study year     
after year1 until he was  sixteen years 
of age4 ,then in #agfj the father died1 
and the youth was  left to his own      
resources4 ,he set forth for the army1  
mounted on a sorry  horse1 and          
accompanied by a poor boy out of the    
village1 to journey  across ,france into
 ,germany to join the ,french army4 ,he 
had a letter of  introduction from one  
of his neighbours1 ,madame ,lameth1 to  
,m4 de ,larti1  colonel of the regiment 
of ,beaujolais1 who did not receive him 
very  gladly1 for the wretchedness of   
the boy made him look more helpless than
  he really was4 ,nevertheless1 he sent 
,lamarck to his barracks and had him  to
 do duty4 ,it was at a most critical    
moment that the brave1 self-reliant  boy
 joined the army4 ,it was about ,july   
#adth1 #agfa1 and ,m4 de ,broglie had   
just united his force with that of the  
,prince du ,sorbise1 preparatory to     
attacking1 on the next day1 the allied  
army1 commanded by ,frederick of        

,brunswick4 ,at break of day ,m4 de     
,larti inspected his regiment1 and the  
first person he saw was the             
newly-arrived volunteer1 who1 without   
orders1  had placed himself in the first
 rank of the grenadier company4 ,the    
battle1 which was fought at             
,fissingshausen1 between ,ham and       
,leppstadt1  was lost by the ,french1   
and during the fight1 the company1 in   
which was  ,m4 de ,lamarck1 was placed  
in a locality on which the whole of the 
allied  artillery was concentrated1 and 
it was forgotten to be moved during the 
confusion of the retreat4 ,all the      
officers and sub-officers were killed1  
and only sixteen men remained1 when the 
oldest grenadier1 seeing that  they were
 left behind by their army1 proposed to 
the young volunteer  that they should   
retreat4 ,lamarck said1 8,they have     
posted us here1 and  we ought not to    
move until we are relieved10 and        
insisted on remaining4  ,by-and-by the  
colonel1 missing the company1 sent them 

an order to retreat  by safe ways1 and  
under the shelter of what they could    
get4 ,this act of  great courage was    
told to the ,marshal de ,broglie1 and he
 made ,lamarck an  officer on the spot4 
,then he was made lieutenant4 ,but such 
a brilliant  commencement was not to    
have a military termination1 and a      
miserable  accident gave a new direction
 to his life4 ,when ,lamarck1 after the 
war1  was in garrison at ,monaco1 one of
 his fellow-officers lifted him up by   
the head1 and the result was to injure  
his neck4 ,he nearly died from  the     
effects of this folly1 and was saved by 
a distinguished surgeon at  ,paris1 ,m4 
,tenon1 whose operation left ,lamarck   
with life1 and a fearfully  scarred     
neck1 and unable to follow his          
profession4 ,the treatment occupied  a  
whole year1 and he was so poor1 that one
 of his biographers states1  rather     
cruelly1 that his necessary solitude    
gave him plenty of time for  meditation4
 ,it is remarkable that although        

,lamarck cared more for the  army than  
for his studies at college he really    
worked there1 and what  he learned was  
of great use to him in his future       
career4 ,his hours of  weary suffering  
were sometimes employed in studying the 
clouds1 and in  noticing their different
 shapes and appearances4 ,he got by this
 means  some vague ideas of meteorology4
 ,he had already been attracted1 during 
his stay at ,monaco1 by the curious     
vegetation of that rocky country1 and   
lad taken a fancy for botany from       
reading a treatise on common plants1    
which happened to fall in his way4 ,he  
therefore began to see that the         
profession of arms was not the only one 
worth living for1 or in which           
distinction might be earned2 and he took
 the bold resolution of applying        
himself to the study of medicine4 ,this1
 considering the smallness of  his      
resources1 was hardly less hazardous    
than his former determination  to join  
the army4 ,unable to defray the expense 

attending the studies  to which he now  
applied himself1 he was forced to seek  
employment as a  banker's clerk1 and    
thus to work for the means of pursuing  
his purpose4  ,he studied medicine four 
years1 and at the end of that time1 not 
finding  it accord with his taste1 he   
relinquished it1 in order to attach     
himself the more closely to botany4 ,in 
this science he laboured most           
perseveringly1 and after a preparation  
of ten years he suddenly revealed       
himself and his views to the learned    
world in a work as remarkable for  the  
novelty of the plan1 as for the mode of 
execution4 8,for a long time10  says    
,cuvier1 8while collecting plants1 and  
visiting the ,jardin du ,roi1  ,lamarck 
gave way to discussions with other      
botanists on the imperfections  of all  
the systems of classification then      
known1 and on the ease with  which a new
 system might be created1 capable of    
determining plants with  greater        
quickness and certainty4 ,wishing to    

prove what he had so often  affirmed he 
set to work1 and after six months of    
incessant labour he  produced his       
8,flore ,franaise40 ,this work was      
merely an epitome of plants  indigenous 
to ,france1 to which ,lamarck had not   
ventured to add one new  species2 but it
 was a convenient and sure guide to the 
name of every  plant1 and was peculiarly
 acceptable at a time when the writings 
of  ,rousseau had rendered botany       
popular4 ,by ,lamarck's arrangement1 the
 most  easily reconciled portions of the
 systems then in vogue1 namely1 those   
of ,tournefort1 ,linnus1 and ,jussieu1  
were selected to form a new method  of  
classification4 ,this method was admired
 by the ,academy of ,sciences1  and was 
also recommended by ,buffon1 who had    
sufficient interest to get it  published
 at the expense of the government1 for  
the benefit of the author  who much     
needed such aid4 ,lamarck was promoted  
to a vacant place in the  ,acadmie des  
,sciences1 and during #agha-hb he went  

as tutor and botanist  to ,buffon's son 
through ,holland1 ,germany1 and         
,hungary1 visiting public               
establishments and learned men4 ,on his 
return to ,france1 he applied  himself  
zealously to his former studies1 and    
produced the botanical  portion of the  
8,encyclopdie ,methodique40 ,lamarck    
laboured diligently at  his work1 and   
even with too much precipitation1 for   
haste was injurious  to correctness4 ,he
 also drew a series of plates to        
illustrate the  different genera of     
plants4 ,these appeared1 arranged       
according to the  ,linnan system1 though
 contrary to the wish of the author4    
,lamarck went  on with the work until   
the breaking out of the ,revolution     
arrested the  publication of the        
,encyclopdie4    ,in #aghh ,lamarck was 
associated with ,daubenton as botanist  
of the ,cabinet  du ,jardin du ,roi1 and
 charged with the preservation and      
arrangement  of the herbariums4 ,here1  
amidst his peaceful occupations and     

studies1  he remained unmolested amidst 
all the troubles of the ,revolution4    
,but  ,lamarck was miserably poor2 his  
pension for his services in the army1   
was less than one shilling a day1 and he
 wrote for bad pay4 ,buffon  could not  
give him a position worth anything2 and 
it was not until the  successor of that 
great man came in office that ,lamarck  
had a little  salary given to him as one
 of the assistants in the herbarium4    
,even  this miserable appointment was   
not assured to him1 for the ,national   
,assembly was desirous of suppressing   
the establishment1 and finally did  so4 
,lamarck had married1 and had a family1 
and weary indeed must have  been his    
life had he not been devoted to science4
 ,he took no part in the  ,french       
revolution1 and whilst poverty at home  
and danger out of doors  were constant1 
he persisted in studying nature4 ,years 
passed away1 and  the best part of a    
life was spent1 and still ,lamarck was  
not a zoologist4  ,the eternal fame     

which he attained began to be earned    
after the fiftieth  year of his age1    
when circumstances over which he had no 
control gave him  the opportunity of    
distinguishing himself1 and of adding   
materially to  the truths of science as 
well as to its theories4 ,the ,jardin et
 ,cabinet  du ,roi were rearranged in   
their purpose and name in #agic1 and    
were called  the ,museum of ,natural    
,history2 and all the old officials were
 made  professors1 and had to teach the 
subjects best known or chosen by them4  
,lamarck1 as the last comer1 had to take
 what the others left and would  not    
undertake to teach4 ,it was the         
professorship which related to the      
class of animals1 called by ,linnus1    
worms and insects1 and which had        
hitherto been almost overlooked1 on     
account of the supposed unimportance  of
 the subject4    ,until that time       
,lamarck had never studied animals1 and 
of course knew  nothing of the branch of
 zoology which was now entrusted to him4

 ,he  had taken an interest in shells1  
and had made a small collection1 but    
this was all4 ,but he did not shrink    
from the task before him4 ,he set to    
work with inexhaustible courage1        
availing himself of the advice of his   
friends1 and applying to the new study  
all that sagacity and perseverance      
which had already been so invaluable to 
him in his botanical works4 ,by  his    
indefatigable zeal in this new sphere of
 inquiry ,lamarck was soon  enabled to  
discover and to demonstrate that the    
animals whose history  had been left to 
him through contempt1 were quite as     
interesting as  others1 if not more so1 
on account of their vast numbers1 the   
important  part they perform in nature1 
the infinite variety of their forms1 and
  the wonders of their organization4    
,his extraordinary labours in this      
department have contributed much more to
 his fame than his botanical  writings1 
and are certainly more valuable4 ,he    
seems to have exercised his  abilities  

to the utmost in these researches2 and  
if1 since that time1 it  has been       
necessary in some instances to alter1 to
 amend1 or to extend  the limits of his 
work1 yet it remains a lasting memento  
of his talents1  and it will be long ere
 any one will be found sufficiently     
profound in  knowledge to undertake a   
general revision and alteration of his  
works4    ,at the present day1 when any 
student begins to learn the zoology of  
the lower animals1 he will find a very  
great number of genera with the  name of
 ,lamarck placed after them1 indicating 
that he first of all  described and     
published them4 ,as the student becomes 
accomplished he  will appreciate        
,lamarck more and more1 and will come to
 the conclusion  that no one has done   
such good and solid work as that        
distinguished  ,frenchman1 amongst the  
vast assemblage of animals which he     
first of all  called invertebrata1 or   
animals without backbones4 ,this term he
 used  in preference to the old one of  

white or colourless-blooded animals1  as
 he soon saw that some had red blood4   
,lamarck worked very hard in  describing
 and grouping the genera1 and gradually 
modified the zoology  of those lower    
forms of life4 ,first of all he         
classified them by their  anatomy1 and  
then1 after about fifteen years' labour1
 remodelled his  classification1 and    
published a system of invertebrata1     
containing  the classes1 orders1 and    
genera of the animals1 mentioning their 
most  important anatomical characters4  
,in this book he1 for the first time    
amongst zoologists1 began with the most 
simple and least highly organized       
animals1 the converse having been the   
method previously4 ,there was a  reason 
in this that will be noticed further on4
 ,out of the confusion  of old he made  
the great groups appear clear and well  
defined4 ,thus  from amongst the insects
 he separated the crustacea or crab     
tribe1 and  he introduced that of the   
arachnida or spiders4 ,then he described

 and  limited a class of worms called by
 him annelida2 moreover1 he placed the  
microscopic infusoria in a class by     
themselves1 and removed them from the   
jumble of the polypes4 ,his work        
extended into the mollusca1 both bivalve
  and univalve2 he named many genera and
 species of corals1 and in every  group 
showed a master mind4 ,the fossil shells
 found in such abundance at  this time1 
in the neighbourhood of ,paris1         
attracted his attention1 and  he        
laboured on their description and       
explanation4 ,in fact1 the enormous     
labours of ,lamarck consolidated the    
zoology of the lower animals1 and  his  
writings became the text-books of all   
his successors1 and will be  referred   
to1 as long as science lasts4 ,he had a 
most singular capacity  for             
distinguishing animals into kinds or    
species1 and a more important  one of   
observing the alliances or common       
characters of different species4  ,all  
his descriptive work was of a standard  

and solid nature4 ,his great  work      
appeared from #ahae to #ahbb1 and it was
 founded on that just  mentioned2 some  
of it was edited by his daughter1 and   
,m4 ,latreille wrote  the parts on      
insects1 and much of those of the       
mollusca was due to ,m4  ,valenciennes4 
,five volumes were by ,lamarck himself4 
,it is a very unusual occurrence for a  
man to take up a new subject after  he  
is fifty years of age1 and to become a  
master in it4 ,but ,lamarck did  this4  
,it is true that his previous training  
as a botanist had prepared  him1 and it 
is also true that his years of solitude 
and poverty had given  him a singularly 
placid and meditative mind1 and this was
 strengthened  by his natural courage4  
,had ,lamarck been a descriptive        
zoologist only1  he would have been     
great2 but the very method which made   
him great  originated in some remarkable
 speculations which had hardly been     
expressed1 seriously1 by any man before4
 ,not only did he place the animal      

kingdom with the lowest first1 but he   
considered the will1 instinct1 and      
apparent reason of animals1 and         
classified them accordingly with those  
which are apathetic1 sensible1 and      
intelligent4 ,the idea of lowness of    
organization or of structure and lowness
 of nervous power amongst the  simplest 
animals struck him to be of primary     
importance4 ,hitherto1 quite  as many   
people believed that the highest and    
most intelligent animals  were created  
first1 and that the lower ones had      
degenerated from them4  ,lamarck        
conceived that nature1 acting by law1   
commenced with the simplest  things1 and
 that one species formed others1 so that
 the present animals  and plants are the
 outcome of those of the past history of
 the earth4 ,he  believed in incessant  
change in nature1 and that when our     
knowledge is  complete the apparently   
well separated and defined species will 
be found  to be united by intermediate  
forms1 and cease to be species4         

,hitherto naturalists had considered    
kinds of animals and plants1 or  species
 as they are more properly called1 to   
have been specially created  as they are
 seen by us1 and that they were         
unalterable and invariable4 ,no  one    
with any great knowledge of animals and 
plants had speculated about  the origin 
of species1 and the causes of the       
differences of kinds1 or  had           
endeavoured to place all the great      
classes of the animal kingdom in  a     
series1 maintaining that they were      
related by descent4 ,right or wrong  in 
his speculations1 ,lamarck made an epoch
 in zoology1 by writing on  the         
philosophy of zoology1 and dealing with 
the possible causes of the  different   
kinds of animals4 ,he considered that   
during all the geological  ages1 down to
 the present time1 animals and plants   
had been exposed to  great changes in   
their external conditions2 changes of   
climate1 and of  physical geography had 
happened1 and that whilst some species  

had become  extinct many had been       
changed1 little by little1 into others4 
,lamarck1  and ,m4 ,geoffrey ,st4       
,hilaire declared it to be their opinion
 that there  had been an uninterrupted  
succession in the animal kingdom1       
effected by  means of birth and         
offspring from parents1 from the        
earliest ages of the  world to the      
present day1 and that the ancient       
animals1 whose remains  have been       
preserved in strata1 however different1 
may nevertheless have  been the         
ancestors of those now in being4    ,if 
the reader will turn to the short notice
 of ,aristoteles1 he will  find the     
ordinary idea of what a species means   
given4 ,but ,lamarck added  something3  
8,a species consists of a collection of 
individuals resembling  each other1 and 
reproducing their like by generation1 so
 long as the  surrounding conditions do 
not alter to such an extent as to cause 
their  habits1 characters1 and forms to 
vary40 ,he stated what is only known to 

those naturalists who have had          
experience2 the more we advance in the  
knowledge of the different organized    
bodies which cover the surface of  the  
globe1 the more our embarrassment       
increases to determine what ought  to be
 regarded as a species1 and still more  
how to limit and distinguish  genera4   
,in proportion as our collections are   
enriched1 we see almost  every void     
filled up1 and all our lines of         
separation effaced2 we are  reduced to  
arbitrary determinations1 and are       
sometimes fain to seize upon  the slight
 differences of mere varieties in order 
to form characters  for what we choose  
to call a species1 and sometimes we are 
induced  to pronounce individuals1 but  
slightly differing1 and which others    
regard as true species1 to be varieties4
 ,the greater the abundance of  natural 
objects assembled together1 the more do 
we discover proofs that  everything     
passes by invariable shades into        
something else2 that even the  more     

remarkable differences are evanescent1  
and that nature has1 for the  most part1
 left us nothing at our disposal for    
establishing distinctions  save         
trifling1 and in some instances puerile1
 peculiarities4 ,we find  that many     
genera amongst animals and plants are of
 such an extent1 in  consequence of the 
number of species referred to them1 that
 the study  and determination of these  
last has become almost impracticable4   
,from  a great number of facts we learn1
 wrote ,lamarck1 that in proportion as  
the individuals of one of our known     
species change their situation1         
climate1 and manner of living1 they     
change also little by little1 the       
consistence and proportions of their    
parts1 their form1 their faculties1  and
 even their organization1 in such a     
manner that everything in them  comes at
 last to participate in the mutations to
 which they have been  exposed4 ,even in
 the same climate1 a great difference of
 situation and  exposure causes         

individuals to vary2 but if these       
individuals continue to  live1 and to be
 reproduced under the same difference of
 circumstances1  distinctions are       
brought about in them which become in   
some degree  essential to their         
existence2 and1 in a word1 at the end of
 many  successive generations1 these    
individuals which originally belonged to
  another species are transformed into a
 new and distinct species4    ,all this 
came from the study of a man who had an 
enormous experience1 and  if he had not 
gone on any further it would have been  
better4 ,lamarck's  views already stated
 may be accepted by everybody1 and the  
grand changes  in living forms under law
 are doubtless true4 ,but he introduced 
the  notion that 8wants0 exercised an   
influence and produced new organs1  and 
wrote about effects of internal         
sentiment1 and the influence of  subtle 
fluids4 ,thus he argued that otters1    
beavers1 waterfowl1 turtles1  and frogs1
 were not made web-footed in order that 

they might swim2 but  their wants having
 attracted them to the water in search  
of prey1 they  stretched out the toes of
 their feet to strike the water and move
 more  rapidly along its surface4 ,by   
the repeated stretching of their toes1  
the skin that united them at the base   
acquired the habit of extension1  until1
 in the course of time1 the broad       
membranes which now connect their       
extremities were formed4    ,lamarck    
taught that the first animals and plants
 which appeared on the  globe were the  
simplest1 and that the more complex are 
of comparatively  late date4 ,he        
insisted that nature was an order of    
things constituted by  the ,supreme     
,being1 and subject to laws which are   
the expressions of ,his  will4 ,there is
 no doubt that these views of ,lamarck  
were the result of  many a pleasant hour
 of thought when things were dark enough
 around him4  ,he was always poor1 he   
married four times1 had a large family1 
and a very  small income4 ,his genius   

led him to investigate other branches of
 natural  science for which his         
education had not very well prepared    
him1 and he  got into disgrace with     
,napoleon for paying attention to       
meteorology4  ,his patrimony and savings
 were lost in some wild speculation1 and
 his  thorough independence of thought  
and behaviour did not make him friends  
with the great and wealthy4 ,his sight  
failed1 and age grew apace1 and  he may 
be said to have simply existed for some 
years4 ,strangers and  scientific men   
saw his state and poverty with surprise 
and regret2  and their sympathy with    
,lamarck was redoubled when they        
observed the  fortitude with which the  
illustrious old man supported the       
vicissitudes  of fortune1 and the       
failing of his natural powers4 ,they    
also admired the  devotion with which he
 had been able to inspire those of his  
children  who remained under his roof4  
,his eldest daughter consecrated her    
time to  the duties of filial love for  

many years1 never quitting her father   
for  an instant1 lending herself to     
every study which could in any way      
supply  the defect of his vision1       
writing under his dictation part of his 
last  works1 accompanying him1 and      
supporting him when he was able to take 
any  exercise1 and enduring sacrifices  
greater than could be expressed for his 
sake4 ,when the father could no longer  
leave his chamber1 the daughter  no     
longer quitted the house4 ,so long was  
she deprived of fresh air1  that when   
she again faced the open breeze it was  
more than she could  bear4 ,if such     
conduct as this is rare1 so is the power
 of inspiring such  devoted affection2  
therefore we add to the renown of       
,lamarck1 when it is  told what his     
children endured for his sake4 ,lamarck 
died on the #ahth  ,december1 #ahbi1    
aged eighty-five1 and left two sons and 
two daughters  behind him4 ,full of     
ability and perseverance1 he has left   
such monuments  of industry and solid   

learning behind him1 that his favourite 
theory1  containing indeed the germs of 
truth1 may be well pardoned4 ,people who
  know nothing of his good work1 laugh  
at his memory2 but every true  student  
of nature constantly recognizes his     
obligations to the founder of           
philosophical zoology4    ,illustration 
,illustration          ,,chapter ,,viii4
    ,,the ,,life ,,of ,,cuvier4         
,the union of zoology and comparative   
anatomy1 and the      examination and   
study of fossil remains4      ,george   
,lopold ,chretien ,frderic ,dagobert    
,cuvier was born at ,montbliard1  in the
 ,department du ,doubs1 a town which was
 subsequently united to  ,france1       
although at the time of ,cuvier's birth 
it belonged to the kingdom  of          
,wurtemberg4 ,he was born on ,august    
#bcrd1 #agfi4 ,his family originally    
came from a village in the ,jura        
mountains1 which still bears the name   
of ,cuvier2 but1 becoming the victims of
 religious persecution1 they  were      

obliged to leave and to go to reside at 
,montbliard at the time  of the         
,reformation4 ,cuvier's grandfather had 
two sons1 one celebrated  for his       
learning1 and the other belonging to a  
,swiss regiment in the  ,french service4
 ,the soldier1 after forty years'       
service1 retired on a  small pension to 
,montbliard1 where he was appointed     
commandant of  the artillery of the     
town4 ,he was made ,chevalier de        
l',ordre ,merite  ,militaire1 which1    
among ,protestants1 was equal to the    
,catholic order of  the ,croix de ,st4  
,louis4 ,the old soldier married1 late  
in life1 a young  and highly            
accomplished lady1 by whom he had three 
sons4 ,the eldest  died a short time    
before the birth of the second1 who is  
the subject of  this biography1 and who 
was extremely delicate4 ,the mother1 sad
 at the  death of her firstborn1 took   
the curious fancy of calling her little 
weak second child by the name of        
,george1 which was that of her firstborn

  also4 ,cuvier was not baptized with   
that name1 although he ever used it  in 
deference to his mother2 but in after   
years1 when legal difficulties          
presented themselves1 he took the       
necessary measures to have a right  to  
use the name4 ,feeble in constitution1  
the child required all the  attention of
 his mother1 and he never forgot her    
loving care4 ,she taught  him carefully 
and well during his early years1 and the
 child grew strong  and able4 ,he could 
read fluently at the age of four years1 
and when  the time came for him to be   
placed at school1 the mother went over  
his  exercises at night1 and by her good
 knowledge of ,latin enabled him to be  
better prepared than any other boy in   
the school1 for his daily tasks4  ,she  
taught him drawing1 and this necessary  
art was subsequently taught  ,cuvier by 
an architect in the town4 ,at the age of
 ten years he was placed  at a school of
 a higher description of teaching1      
called the ,gymnase1  where he remained 

until he was fourteen4 ,cuvier made     
rapid progress  at this school1 and he  
was constantly at the head of his       
classes1 and  he became a fair classic4 
,it was at that time that the future    
great  zoologist began to like natural  
history1 and he began by studying       
animals4 ,one of his relations had a    
complete copy of ,buffon's works1  and  
the boy's study of it was constant4 ,he 
copied the plates of animals  and birds1
 and coloured them according to the     
printed descriptions1 and  when he could
 not use water-colours1 employed pieces 
of coloured silk  to denote the tints of
 the wings4 ,when he was able to borrow 
the book1  a volume was his constant    
attendant1 and he read the work over and
  over again4 ,about this time1 ,cuvier1
 being the leading spirit in the        
school1 began to collect his            
schoolfellows and to get them to discuss
  the merits of books on natural        
history1 philosophy1 and travels1 etc41 
taking the chair as president4 ,the     

assembly must have been amusing in the  
extreme1 and these little 8prigs0       
doubtless expressed their opinions very 
decidedly4 ,cuvier managed to teach     
himself to speak in public1 however1    
and was not a bad hand at declamation4  
,so1 on the anniversary fte of the      
,duke of ,wurtemberg1 he composed an    
oration in verse on the prosperous      
state of the principality1 and delivered
 it1 fresh from his pen1 in  a manly    
tone which astonished the audience4     
,nevertheless1 ,cuvier was  snubbed by  
his master1 who put him down to the     
third place1 giving the  palm to two    
other boys4 ,it is said that there was  
some favouritism in  this affair2 but it
 was a blow to the boy1 whose future    
career depended  on the place he might  
take at the school on the occasion4     
,nevertheless1  as things turned out1   
,cuvier had every reason to be very     
thankful4 ,the  fame of the young       
student1 and his disappointment1 reached
 the ears of  ,duke ,charles by means of

 the princess1 his sister-in-law1 and   
when he  visited ,montbliard he saw     
,cuvier1 and asked him questions and    
looked  at his drawings4 ,the duke1     
satisfied that he had a good subject    
before  him1 agreed to send him to      
,stuttgart to the university1 where the 
youth  would be well educated1 free of  
expense1 in the duke's own academy4 ,at 
this academy the pupils were instructed 
in every branch of knowledge that  was  
actually useful to men destined to      
govern and direct the affairs  of       
communities1 and many who were educated 
there1 became members of  the various   
courts of ,germany and ,russia4 ,the    
school had a military  character1 the   
scholars wearing uniforms and being     
under the orders of a  colonel and      
major2 but the education was not        
military1 and such men as  ,schiller    
were taught there4    ,at the age of    
fourteen ,cuvier quitted his home to go 
to this school1 and  under circumstances
 enough to frighten any schoolboy4 ,he  

travelled with  the chamberlain and     
secretary of the duke1 sitting between  
them without  understanding a word they 
said1 as they spoke ,german the whole   
time4  ,he always remembered this       
journey and its miseries4 ,the youth    
quickly  made himself comfortable at the
 academy1 and his really good training  
soon placed him high amongst his        
fellows4 ,for four years he studied all 
that was taught in the higher classes1  
mathematics1 law1 administration1       
tactics1 and commerce1 and obtaining    
various prizes1 was made1 with five  or 
six others out of the four hundred1 to  
belong to a class bearing the  order of 
8,chevalerie40 ,these youths were under 
the immediate patronage  of the duke1   
and had privileges besides that of      
dining at a separate  table4 ,nine      
months after his arrival at ,stuttgart1 
,cuvier gained the  prize in ,german4   
,but all this time ,cuvier led a second 
life4 ,out in the  fields and in the    
museum he was supremely happy4          

,collecting1 observing1  drawing1 and   
describing were his occupations in his  
leisure hours1 and  his drawings of     
birds1 insects1 and plants were very    
excellent and  correct4 ,all the books  
he could get on natural history he read1
 and the  works of ,linnus were         
especially learned with zeal4 ,at the   
end of his  academical career ,cuvier   
was promised a place in the             
administration of  the country1 and if  
he had got it probably he would have    
become a kind  of civil service clerk1  
and have never been heard of4 ,but      
trouble came1  and that of the bitterest
 kind for a rising young man4           
,circumstances  against which he could  
not bear up necessitated his seeking a  
totally  different kind of employment4  
,the unsettled state of money and       
finance  in ,france caused ,cuvier's    
father's pension to be withheld1 and the
 young  man1 very properly desiring to  
be no burthen to his parents1 gave up   
all hopes of political distinction1 and 

accepted the modest position of  tutor  
to a ,french family1 that of ,m4        
d',hericy1 at ,caen1 in ,normandy4 ,he  
was to educate the only son2 and so1    
without bewailing his lot1 which was    
thought a very sad one by his companions
 and admirers1 ,cuvier settled  down to 
work and found that he was in the very  
position for using those  remarkable    
powers as a naturalist1 which determined
 his future career4  ,the sea was close 
by1 and ,cuvier began to study the      
marine animals4 ,after  some time some  
fossils were discovered at ,fcamp1 and  
,cuvier began to  compare them with the 
living things which most resembled them4
 ,then the  accidental discovery of a   
calamary led him to study the higher    
mollusca1  or shell-fish4 ,cuvier also  
began to study the huge class of vermes1
 or  worms1 in which ,linnus had        
included a vast number of lower animals1
 and  which ,lamarck subsequently       
investigated4 ,cuvier examined the      
anatomy  of the groups1 and arranged    

them according to their resemblances in 
structure4 ,this was an excellent piece 
of work1 and it was done for  the       
purposes of self-instruction1 and not   
for fame4 ,nevertheless1 the  manuscript
 was full of good observations and of   
new truths4 ,whilst  ,cuvier was thus   
employed1 and the time was that of the  
reign of  terror1 a society was formed  
at ,valmont1 in his neighbourhood1 for  
the  encouragement of agriculture4      
,l',abb ,teissier had sought at the     
place a  refuge from the persecutions of
 the revolutionists of ,paris1 and under
  the disguise of a surgeon attended the
 meetings4 ,on one occasion ,cuvier  was
 struck with the manner of speaking of  
the worthy old man1 and thought  that it
 resembled the writings of the          
well-known ,abb4 ,inadvertently  ,cuvier
 addressed him as ,l',abb1 and this gave
 at first great alarm4 ,he  found in    
,cuvier1 however1 a great admirer and a 
generous friend1 and was  so pleased    
with his talents and industry1 that he  

afterwards wrote to the  celebrated     
botanist1 ,jussieu1 as follows3 8,at the
 sight of this young  man1 ,i           
experienced the delight of the          
philosopher who was thrown on an        
unknown shore1 and saw traced there the 
figures of geometry4 ,m4 ,cuvier  is a  
violet which was concealed among common 
herbs4 ,he knows much1 and  draws       
figures for your work4 ,i doubt your    
finding a more able person for          
comparative anatomy1 for he demonstrates
 with much method and clearness4  ,it is
 a pearl worthy of being gathered by    
you4 ,i contributed to draw ,m4         
,delarbre from his retreat1 help me to  
draw ,m4 ,cuvier from his2 he is made   
for science and the world40    ,cuvier  
was1 in consequence1 asked to read some 
of his essays to the  ,society of       
,natural ,history at ,paris1 and these  
gave such satisfaction  that he was     
invited to take a position at the       
,jardin des ,plantes4 ,this  occurred in
 #agie1 and ,cuvier was then twenty-six 

years of age4 ,he was  thus settled for 
life in the very position he desired1   
for although  called the garden of      
plants1 a grand museum of the           
comparative anatomy  of animals was to  
rise there under the superintendence of 
the young man4  ,he was soon made       
professor at the central school of the  
,pantheon1 and  began to write capital  
manuals of his subject for the students4
 ,the next  year the ,national          
,institute was formed1 and ,cuvier was  
one of its first  members4 ,at this time
 his knowledge of zoology was very      
great1 and he had  more than the usual  
amount of information about the internal
 anatomy of  the different great groups 
of animals4 ,he published an elementary 
title  or scheme of the natural history 
of animals1 and gradually the collection
  of skeletons began to be great in his 
establishment4 ,cuvier paid great       
attention to the relative shapes1 and   
different developments of the same  kind
 of bones in various animals1 and       

especially to the nature of their       
teeth4 ,so great did his experience and 
correct knowledge become1 that he       
rarely failed in naming an animal from  
part of its skeleton4 ,this power       
impressed ,cuvier with the idea of a    
philosophy in nature1 and with the      
evidence of creative design and purpose1
 of means for ends4 ,but this kind  of  
study led to some very remarkable       
results4 ,had it influenced ,cuvier  as 
it previously had zoologists1 he would  
have still become the most  accomplished
 and important naturalist of this       
century4 ,it would have been  said1 as  
it may well be1 that he established the 
study of animals on a  firm basis1 and  
that his natural classification has     
lasted1 because he  considered not only 
the outsides of animals1 but also the   
importance of  their most peculiar      
organs1 in arranging them into groups1  
or separating  them from others4 ,but   
,cuvier had seen and studied the bones  
and skulls of  animals which had been   

dug out of the earth in a mineralized   
condition4  ,the strata at ,montmartre1 
near ,paris1 had yielded a great number 
of  bones1 which presented some         
resemblances to those of animals still  
living  but which were clearly not the  
bones of any existing genera or species4
  ,comparative anatomy was made to      
connect the past and present animals1   
and to indicate the possibility of all  
the past and present creation  being    
placed in one great classification4 ,as 
,cuvier progressed in this  study1 he   
endeavoured to restore1 and with        
considerable success1 the  extinct      
animal's shape1 to discover its habits  
and method of life1 and to  find out its
 nearest modern ally4 ,palontology1 or  
the study of extinct  animals1 is under 
the greatest obligations to this great  
,frenchman1 and  it may be called the   
zoology of the past ages of the earth4  
,he did not1  however1 forget his one   
great desire1 which was to form a       
perfect book  on comparative anatomy1   

and one in which all animals would find 
a place1  called 8,la ,rgne ,animal40   
7,the animal kingdom47    ,as soon as   
,cuvier found himself well established  
as assistant to ,m4  ,mertrud1 the      
professor of comparative anatomy to the 
,jardin des ,plantes1  he sent for his  
old father1 then eighty years of age1   
and for his  brother1 ,m4 ,f4 ,cuvier1  
to live with him4 ,the first thing he   
did was  to collect all the available   
specimens of bones and preparations of  
animals1 and he found many hidden away  
in vaults and which had been  collected 
by ,daubenton and ,buffon4 ,other       
specimens were obtained1 and  thus the  
great collection was commenced4 ,in     
#agif1 ,cuvier discovered  the curious  
fact that there is naturally red blood  
in leeches1 and in  the following year  
he read a famous paper on the nutrition 
of insects4  ,refusing to go to ,egypt1 
as he had his proper work to do at home1
 for  his pupils ,dumeril and ,duvernoy 
were working hard for and with him1     

dissecting and describing1 the result   
was the publication of the first  volume
 of the lessons on comparative anatomy  
already alluded to4 ,this  led to       
,cuvier being made professor of natural 
history to the ,college  of ,france4 ,of
 the young professor's ability there    
could be no doubt1  and everybody was   
struck with the excellent method of his 
lectures and  books4 ,his mind was      
essentially an orderly and very         
contemplative and  reasoning one1 and   
his fame soon reached the ears of       
,napoleon1 then first  consul4 ,he made 
,cuvier one of the six inspectors       
general of education  who were to found 
public schools in some thirty towns in  
,france and what  are now called ,royal 
,colleges4 ,cuvier founded those of     
,bordeaux1 ,nice1  and ,marseilles4 ,in 
this last-mentioned place he continued  
his work on  marine animals4 ,whilst    
,cuvier was performing these very       
important duties  for the state1 with   
great benefit to the towns and credit to

 himself1  he was chosen to be one of   
the perpetual secretaries to the        
,national  ,institute1 and had a salary 
given to him for it of two hundred      
guineas  a year4 ,although this sum was 
to be well earned1 and the secretary had
  to receive distinguished foreigners at
 table1 a fuss was made about it4       
,cuvier1 however1 knew his own value1   
and insisted on retaining it4 ,the      
labourer is worthy of his hire1 and the 
sum was less than the salary  of a      
first-class clerk4 ,a great ,italian    
politician once said keep the           
professors poor4 ,why8 ,because he knew 
that the diffusion of liberal  knowledge
 would be fatal to civil and military   
tyranny4 ,however1 ,cuvier  gave up his 
school inspectorship and laboured on at 
his favourite  studies4 ,he lost his    
father and his brother's wife died      
leaving a child1  so that ,cuvier and   
his brother were alone4 ,marriage became
 a necessity  for the rising man1 and he
 was attracted by a lady of great merit1

 who  had suffered both poverty and     
misfortune4 ,madame ,duvancel was the   
widow  of an official who perished on   
the scaffold in #agid1 and she had some 
children of her own4 ,cuvier had a great
 affection for her and she made  him    
happy1 was a great companion1 and when  
he rose to his greatness1  she was an   
admirable helpmate4 ,in #ahjh1 as       
secretary to the ,national  ,institute1 
,cuvier had to write a report on the    
progress of the natural  sciences from  
the year #aghi4 ,a mere report was      
required1 but ,cuvier was  too thorough1
 and his essay was an admirable and most
 lucid treatise4  ,napoleon1 then       
emperor1 was greatly struck with it1 and
 presented  the paper to the council of 
state4 ,some of the sentences should be 
written in letters of gold in every     
senate and learned by heart by all      
politicians4 8,the true object of       
science is to lead the mind of man      
towards its noble destination--a        
knowledge of truth--to spread sound and 

useful ideas among the lowest classes of
 the people1 to draw human  beings from 
the effects of prejudices and passions1 
to make reason the  arbitrator and      
supreme guide of public opinion40       
,napoleon1 who nearly  always chose the 
best men for a place1 made ,cuvier a    
counsellor of the  new ,imperial        
,university1 and the two men thus came  
frequently in contact4  ,repeated       
personal interviews preceded ,cuvier's  
appointment to organize  new            
universities in the foreign states more 
or less under the sway of  ,france4 ,he 
undertook the reorganization of the old 
,italian universities  of ,piedmont1    
,genoa1 and ,tuscany4 ,his reports of   
these missions speak of  the            
enlightenment of his mind and his truly 
reasonable and very liberal  spirit4    
,speaking of the universities of        
,tuscany1 he deprecates a too  hasty and
 rash interference with institutions    
which had been founded and  maintained  
by so many distinguished men of old and 

in which he found so  much to praise and
 to retain4 ,he made good use of his    
time in ,tuscany by  taking drawings of 
and collecting fossil bones1 and in     
#ahaa his great  work on the fossil     
remains of animals appeared4 ,he        
examined into the  condition of the     
universities of ,holland1 and finally   
those of lower  ,germany4 ,these        
journeys were doubly useful1 for they   
established his  health and gave him    
plenty of opportunity of visiting       
museums4 ,while at  ,hamburg1 ,napoleon 
gave him the title of chevalier1 which  
was confirmed  to him and his heirs4    
,but such honours were not destined to  
descend1  for ,cuvier lost his son in   
his seventh year4 ,it was a great grief1
 and  it saddened and subdued the man4  
,this trial happened when ,cuvier was at
  ,rome1 trying to arrange the          
universities there4 ,being a            
,protestant1 the  mission was one       
requiring peculiar forbearance and      
firmness4 ,yet the  enlightened         

tolerance of ,cuvier1 and his mild and  
benignant manners1  gained for him the  
esteem and respect of all parties4      
,risen from the  ranks1 having been poor
 and often anxious to know how to learn1
 ,cuvier  was a capital man for his     
position4 ,he paid particular attention 
not only  to the higher branches of     
education1 but also to popular or       
elementary  education4 ,his principle   
was that instruction would lead to      
civilization1  and civilization to      
morality1 and therefore that primary or 
elementary  instruction should give to  
the people every means of fully         
exercising  their industry1 without     
disgusting them with their condition4   
,that  secondary instruction should     
expand the mind1 without rendering it   
false  or presumptuous2 and that special
 or scientific instruction should give  
to ,france magistrates1 advocates1      
generals1 clergy1 professors and other  
men of learning4 ,he taught--8give      
schools before political rights2 make   

citizens comprehend the duties that the 
state of society imposes on  them2 teach
 them what are political rights before  
you offer them for  their enjoyment1 and
 then all amelioration will be made     
without causing  a shock4 ,imitate      
nature1 which in the development of     
beings acts by  gradation1 and gives    
time to every member to arrive at       
perfection40    ,napoleon had great     
confidence in ,cuvier1 and wished to    
make him tutor  to his son1 and ordered 
him to draw up a list of books as a     
preliminary  step4 ,in #ahad he made him
 a councillor of state1 and ,louis      
,,xviii4  confirmed him in the          
appointment subsequently4    ,cuvier    
wrote in early life1 on living and      
fossil elephants1 the different  species
 of rhinoceros1 the structure of        
ascidians1 and the anatomy of  bivalve  
molluscs4 ,later on he described the    
crocodilians of the old and  new world  
and the fossil tapirs of ,france4       
,subsequently to #ahja he read  memoirs 

on the teeth of fish1 on the worms1 the 
anatomy of the mollusca1  the           
comparative anatomy and classification  
of fishes1 the fossil mammals  and      
reptiles1 and the bony structures of    
these last two groups4 ,most of  these  
works were the joint productions of     
other very distinguished men  and       
himself4 ,thus the work on fishes1 which
 contained descriptions of no  less than
 five thousand kinds1 was by ,cuvier and
 ,valenciennes4 ,year after  year       
,cuvier added to the store of knowledge 
he was so anxious to give to  the       
history of the earth1 and his           
descriptions1 monuments of exactitude1  
of the fossil kinds of rhinoceros1 hyn1 
and of some of the great  sloths1 were  
the result of his careful examination of
 the living species  of the genera or   
families which were found fossil4 ,we   
owe to ,cuvier the  truth that ancient  
forms of life1 the bones and teeth of   
which alone  remain1 and which were     
buried by nature formerly1 can be       

8restored40 ,that  is to say1 by taking 
the existing or modern example1 and by  
reasoning  upon the nature of the teeth1
 claws1 hoofs1 and horns present or     
absent1  the nature1 shape and destiny  
of the ancient animal can be given to   
the  world at the present time4         
,after the abdication of ,napoleon and  
the defeat at ,waterloo1 it became      
necessary1 in the ideas of ,louis       
,,xviii41 that the universities should  
be  remodelled1 and a committee of      
public instruction was created to       
exercise  the powers formerly belonging 
to the grand master1 the council1 and   
the  treasurer of the ,university4      
,cuvier was one of the committee1 and   
was  made chancellor of the ,university1
 a position which he retained until  his
 death under most trying circumstances4 
,no man did greater or better  and more 
lasting work for state education than   
,cuvier4 ,his heart was in  the work of 
education2 he had nothing but mental    
progress to desire2 and  it was a much  

more satisfactory thing for ,france to  
have a renowned1  scientific man at the 
head of a great university1 who1        
moreover1 really  controlled the        
education of the country1 than to have  
had such important  offices held by mere
 politicians and soldiers4    ,in #ahag 
,cuvier published a second edition of   
his 8,fossil ,bones10 and the  great    
book1 the 8,rgne ,animal0 7the 8,animal 
,kingdom071 was re-issued4  ,in this    
last work ,cuvier immortalized himself2 
and his classification  has been of the 
greatest possible value to his          
successors4 ,he reduced  the six classes
 of animals which had been suggested by 
the ancients and  ,linnus1 namely1      
quadrupeds1 birds1 reptiles1 fishes1    
insects1 and worms1  to four1 or        
vertebrated animals 7animals with       
backbones71 molluscous  animals 7such as
 snails and oysters71 articulated       
animals 7insects and  crabs71 and       
radiated animals 7such as corals and sea
 anemones74 ,although  this             

classification has become modified1     
still ,cuvier gave the method of  true  
classification in animals4 ,one or two  
points or peculiarities were  not to be 
considered at the expense of others     
which belonged to organs  of great      
importance to the animal4 ,he asserted  
that all the structures  of the animal  
must be studied1 and physiology as well 
as anatomy must be  considered4 ,the    
most important structures must be       
considered first of  all1 and the grand 
divisions of classification must rest   
upon them4 ,in  the 8,rgne ,animal0     
,cuvier commences with man1 whom he     
places in a genus  by himself1 and      
recognizes only one species diversified 
by varieties or  races4 ,in #ahah       
,cuvier visited ,london1 and remained   
there for about six  weeks1 receiving   
every scientific and social honour4 ,he 
mixed freely in  scientific society1 and
 was received by ,george ,,iv4 ,on being
 consulted  by his ,majesty about our   
national collections1 he said that if   

all the  ,british private collections   
could be collected into one1 they would 
form a great national museum which would
 surpass every other4 ,cuvier  was      
greatly interested in the freedom of    
,english politics2 and on the  election 
for ,westminster taking place he went on
 to the hustings4 ,he  was intensely    
amused at the speeches and the violence 
of the mob1 who  pelted their political 
opponents after the fashion of the day  
with bad  eggs1 dead cats1 cabbages1 and
 mud4 ,he went to ,oxford1 and then all 
the  party were invited to ,windsor4    
,sir ,joseph ,banks asked everybody in  
the  scientific world to meet ,cuvier1  
and ,sir ,everard ,home also4 ,the great
  naturalist1 once a half-starved       
student and a tutor1 became the guest   
of the most honoured amongst men1 and   
was very sensible of the kindness  shown
 him4 ,he could not1 however1 reconcile 
himself to the long dinners  and long   
sittings at table1 which were then1 as  
now1 fashionable in  ,england4 ,not only

 did ,cuvier study the national and     
private natural  history collections in 
this country1 but he also paid much     
attention to  the system of education   
and to the nature of our political      
constitution4    ,returning to ,paris1  
,cuvier was elected a member of the     
,acadmie  ,franaise1 and in the         
following year was made president of the
 ,comit  de l',interieur1 and created a 
baron4 ,he resigned his temporary grand 
mastership of the ,university1 so as to 
accept without salary the grand         
mastership of the ,faculties of         
,protestant ,theology1 and              
vice-president of  the ,bible ,society4 
,in #ahbd1 as president of the ,comit1  
or one of the councils of state1        
,cuvier took part in the coronation of  
,charles ,x41 on which occasion he  was 
made grand master of the ,legion of     
,honour4 ,in #ahbg he was appointed     
censor of the press1 an office which his
 love of liberty of thought soon  made  
him resign4 ,sacrificing all his leisure

 to the greater educational  matters1   
and ever labouring at science1 ,cuvier  
also formed a great  library1 which was 
always open to naturalists who desired  
to visit  and use it4 ,cuvier's orderly 
and critical mind enabled him to fulfil 
the office of secretary to the institute
 with great success2 and he  especially 
shone in writing the interesting lives  
of the distinguished  men who died      
during each year4 ,moreover1 he reported
 on each memoir  which was submitted to 
the institute for reading and           
publication4 ,cuvier  was great as a    
public lecturer1 and had a flexible and 
sonorous voice1  which resounded far and
 wide in the room4 ,his audiences were  
always  enthusiastic2 and many a student
 waited long to get a good seat before  
the professor began4 ,he taught1 chalk  
in hand1 and drew well on the black     
board1 his artistic power remaining to  
the last4    ,cuvier came to ,england a 
second time1 and it is tolerably clear  
that it  was to escape the inevitable   

revolution which was caused by the      
tyranny  of ,charles ,x4 and his        
advisers4 ,his carriage passed out of   
,paris1 and  five hours afterwards      
firing began1 which led to the          
dethronement of the  king and the       
restoration of liberty4 ,in ,london     
,cuvier used to enjoy the  political and
 other caricatures in the shops1 and    
loved to go down to  such places as     
,richmond to see the scenery4    ,after 
a six weeks' visit1 ,cuvier returned to 
,paris1 and occupied his  former        
positions and dignities4    ,cuvier was 
slightly built in his young days1 and   
moderately tall2 but  the sedentary     
nature of his work and his carelessness 
about taking  proper exercise1 produced 
corpulence in his later years1 and his  
extreme  near-sightedness brought on a  
slight stoop in his shoulders4 ,his hair
  had been light in colour1 and to the  
last it flowed in fine curls over  one  
of the noblest heads ever seen4 ,he was 
handsome and had regular  features1 with

 an aquiline nose1 a broad forehead1 and
 keen eyes4 ,the  love of order1 which  
was his very peculiarity in his work1   
was seen in  little things1 for ,cuvier 
was almost feminine in his attention to 
dress4  ,he even took in hand the       
costume of the ,university1 and designed
 the  embroidery of his court suits4    
,cuvier's manners were dignified and yet
  not ceremonious2 for accustomed to    
mingle with the highest of all classes  
and countries1 and naturally desirous of
 paying a just tribute of respect  and  
good will to everybody1 he was likely to
 be generally polished  and courteous4  
,he was stately enough sometimes1 and   
his reserve with  strangers who were not
 open with him was mainly--as is usually
 the case  with others--from mere       
shyness and timidity4 ,to the young he  
was always  kind and sympathizing4 ,when
 at the ,institute ,cuvier's manner was 
always  stately1 for he was with his    
peers there1 and perhaps he might have  
occasionally felt it necessary to retain

 an appearance of reserve during  the   
sometimes not very scientific           
discussions of that mixed assemblage4   
,cuvier1 notwithstanding his great      
patience when he was at work1 and his   
singular placidity when on the face of a
 difficult point in natural  history or 
anatomy1 was what is called a 8,turk0 at
 home1 and with others4  ,accustomed to 
most minute exactitude1 and to regulate 
his hands by his  rapidly working brain1
 he was singularly impatient with other 
people who  had to serve under him4 ,he 
used to hasten his workmen1 so that his 
orders  were often performed with       
difficulty4 ,he was hard to bear with1  
and any  waste of time the result of    
carelessness1 put him in a rage4        
,anything  wrong at table in his house1 
to be kept waiting1 or some trifling    
disobedience1 would rouse an absurd     
amount of anger4 ,his irritability was  
excessive1 and he frequently forgot     
himself in his scoldings1 and had  to   
make reparation afterwards4 ,but he was 

always ready to testify that  he had    
been wrong1 and to do his best to make  
amends2 nevertheless1 he  did not       
improve in this particular1 and he never
 had great control over  his feelings4  
,no labour1 however minute and          
prolonged1 irritated him  when he       
believed that it was requisite for the  
attainment of an object2  still he could
 not listen to a few pages of a book    
which taught nothing1  without          
expressing himself very decidedly4 ,from
 what has been written of  ,cuvier's    
domestic life1 it could not have been   
very enjoyable by those  around him1 and
 yet it was the kind of life which has  
to be led by most  prominent men in     
science1 art1 and literature4 ,work1    
everlasting work1  with but little      
relaxation4 ,he certainly wasted no     
time4 ,before and after  breakfast he   
saw anybody who wished to have an       
audience of him4 ,by seven  in the      
morning he was dressed1 and began       
preparing his day's work and  that of   

his assistants1 so that by ten o'clock1 
when he breakfasted1 he  had time to    
look at the newspapers1 to read         
correspondence1 and look over  any      
particular works4 ,after breakfast he   
dressed for the day and began  work4    
,his carriage was punctual to a moment1 
and no one was allowed to  keep him     
waiting4 ,when the ladies were to       
accompany him1 they made a  point of    
being as exact to time as was possible2 
and he seems to have  enjoyed the sight 
of his womankind rushing downstairs with
 their shawls  streaming after them and 
their gloves half on their hands4 ,the  
instant  he had given his orders he     
would thrust himself into a corner of   
the  carriage and set to work reading1  
but suffered the ladies to talk as much 
as they pleased4 ,the family dinner hour
 was half-past six2 and if ,cuvier  had 
a few moments to spare before that time1
 he would occasionally join  his friends
 in ,madame ,cuvier's room1 but more    
frequently he seems to have  given even 

this short time to study4 ,one or two   
intimate friends joined  the circle at  
dinner1 and then ,cuvier's conversation 
was delightful4 ,on  proceeding to the  
drawing-room ,cuvier sometimes gratified
 his friends by  an hour's stay amongst 
them before he retired to his occupation
 or his  visits1 but so untiring was his
 industry1 that he often set the whole  
party to work aiding him in his         
researches4 ,if he had any foreign works
  he would often amuse his friends by   
verifying the figures in them1 one      
after the other4 ,it must be said that  
this everlasting work was trying  to    
people who were with ,cuvier1 for no    
sooner did friends come to stay  with   
him than he began to use them in tracing
 drawings on paper4 ,he  kept them at   
work1 for when he returned from his     
labours he generally  asked for the     
tasks he had thus set4 ,nevertheless1   
many found it a real  pleasure to work  
for him1 for he was very grateful for   
such assistance4  ,cuvier's hours of    

relaxation were few4 ,change of         
employment afforded  him relief1 and    
conversation still greater4 ,at the     
close of the day's  labour1 when he     
found it impossible to work any longer1 
he was accustomed  to throw himself on a
 sofa1 hide his eyes from the light1 and
 listen to  the reading of his wife or  
daughter1 and sometimes of his          
secretary1 ,m4  ,laurillard4 ,these     
nightly readings lasted two hours1 and  
thus ,cuvier  became more or less       
acquainted with the current literature  
and good works  of the day4 ,very likely
 he did not listen1 and went to sleep1  
but that is  not stated of him by those 
who wrote his domestic habits4          
,cuvier was so downright that he did not
 like any one who indulged in  satire1  
or who ridiculed the conduct of others4 
,he never did this sort  of thing1 and  
he carefully discouraged it in those    
about him1 even when  embellished with  
sallies of wit and drollery1 and his    
rebukes to those  who indulged in       

sarcasm were accompanied by a sharpness 
of expression  generally very unusual to
 him4 ,he bore but little malice1 and it
 is said  that the annoyances and       
disappointments of his public career    
left no  trace of bitterness of spirit2 
and he was always willing to lay the    
fault  on the ignorance rather than on  
the bad feeling of the offenders4       
,when in the full swing of his career1  
,cuvier gave very interesting  soires on
 ,saturday evenings1 and it is said that
 they were the most  brilliant and      
interesting meetings of their kind in   
,paris4 ,they were  much frequented by  
the scientific world of the time1 and   
the rooms were  as much open to the     
prince as to the last young student who 
had just  begun to study natural        
history4 ,in this society ,cuvier was an
 amusing  conversationalist1 a great    
asker of questions2 and as he could talk
  well on a variety of subjects1 he made
 his guests at home1 and gave  the      
meetings a character for freedom of     

expression of opinion4 ,a light  repast 
concluded the evening1 and a select few 
remained to partake of  it4 ,the chat   
was amusing1 curiosities were shown     
about1 and the last  anecdotes about    
nature and the newest ideas were shown  
and considered1  and1 reserving himself 
to the last1 ,cuvier would relate       
something that  crowned the whole2 and  
all around were struck by the occasional
 complete  change given to the train of 
thought1 or were forced to join in a    
general  shout of laughter4 ,the period 
of these brilliant soires was that of   
the prime of the lovely daughter who was
 so fondly loved by ,cuvier4 ,a  perfect
 lady1 of great grace and goodness1 was 
,clementine ,cuvier4 ,she was  a        
highly-gifted girl1 and her resemblance 
to her father was remarkable4  ,she had 
a delicate constitution1 and gradually  
faded away1 dying of rapid  consumption 
at last amidst the joyful preparations  
for her marriage4 ,a  great change then 
took place in ,cuvier1 who mourned his  

daughter greatly4  ,society was given up
 for a long time1 and when the evening  
meetings  were resumed1 the life of them
 seemed to be gone1 and the dejection of
  ,madame ,cuvier added to the feeling4 
,after the death of his own daughter1   
,cuvier became more than ever attached  
to his step-daughter1 and his  care and 
anxiety on her account manifested itself
 on all occasions4  ,if she were ill he 
would be up and down stairs over and    
over again1  and worried himself about  
even the most trivial symptoms4         
,although  so greatly occupied and so   
often absorbed in scientific pursuits1  
he  never neglected the opportunity of  
doing good in his way4 ,his private     
charities were large and well bestowed4 
,his purse was ever open to the  needy  
and unfortunate of all countries and    
stations1 and the miserable  inhabitants
 of the dens of ,paris and the modest   
student struggling under  adversity were
 alike the recipients of his bounty4    
,many hotels in the  neighbourhood of   

the colleges and institutions had       
students in them1  living in the top    
stories1 who were so poor that they had 
to subscribe  to get a book or two      
between them4 ,they would occasionally  
be surprised  by a visit from their     
great teacher4 ,he came to offer1 with  
the greatest  courtesy1 the assistance  
he knew they required2 and if they were 
ill he  did not rest satisfied until he 
had obtained advice and nourishment for 
them4 ,himself keenly alive to the      
slightest rudeness or neglect1 and      
grateful for the smallest proof of      
affection1 he knew how to give1 not     
only with a liberal hand1 but with a    
delicacy which never wounded the  most  
sensitive temper4 ,the year #ahcb was a 
melancholy one for ,paris2 for          
political disturbances and cholera      
prevailed4 ,the disease raged around    
,cuvier's neighbourhood1 and he saw many
 cut off from it in the midst of  their 
youth and strength4 ,at this time he    
gave up his evening visits and  the few 

relaxations he permitted himself to     
enjoy4 ,secluding himself  from society1
 except that of his own family1 he had  
no sooner performed  his daily routine  
of public duties than he returned to his
 studies with  a zeal and closeness of  
application that was doubtless injurious
 to  his health1 though he himself said 
that he had never worked with such      
enjoyment4 ,on ,tuesday1 ,may #hth1 he  
opened the third and concluding part  of
 his course of lectures at the ,college 
of ,france on the history of  science1  
and it was his last discourse4          
,strangely enough1 it was as if  it were
 to be his last1 so impressive1 so      
grandly comprehensive1 was  the diction2
 and he treated the subject in a manner 
which proved that he  had been thinking 
much about the mysterious and           
supernatural environment  which most men
 of great experience can recognize in   
nature4 ,cuvier in  this lecture dealt  
with the meaning of the changes which   
had occurred on  the surface of the     

earth in relation to the succession of  
animals and  plants on the globe and the
 present creation4 ,he stated the manner
 in  which he proposed to view the      
present in relation to the past1 a task 
which was to lead his hearers1          
independently of narrow systems1 back to
  that supreme intelligence which rules1
 enlightens1 and vivifies1 and  which   
gives to every creature the especial    
conditions of its existence4  ,he       
noticed how each being contains in      
itself an infinite variety1 an          
admirable arrangement for the purposes  
for which it was intended3 that  each   
being is good1 perfect1 and capable of  
life1 according to its order  and       
species1 and in its individuality4 ,he  
concluded by saying1 8,these  will be   
the objects of our future               
investigations1 if time1 health1 and    
strength are given to me to continue and
 to finish them with you40 ,the  lecture
 hall was slowly left by ,cuvier's      
hearers and students1 and an  undefined 

sadness seemed to weigh upon his late   
hearers1 who seemed to  linger with the 
impression that his days were numbered4 
,on the evening of  the same day1       
,cuvier felt some pain in his right arm1
 which was supposed  to proceed from    
rheumatism4 ,the next morning he        
presided over the  ,committee of the    
,interior with his usual ability and    
activity2 but at  dinner that day he    
felt some difficulty in swallowing1 and 
the numbness  in the arm increased4     
,when he felt himself thus ill1 in order
 to take  away the attention of ,madame 
,cuvier1 he said1 8,i must eat more     
soup10  swallowing bread even being     
impossible4 ,advice was sought1 but     
during  the next day both arms became   
paralyzed1 and the swallowing was worse4
  ,he made his will with perfect        
calmness1 and it evinced the tenderest  
solicitude for those whose cares and    
affections had comforted his life1  and 
for those who had aided him most in his 
scientific labours4 ,he could  not sign 

the will1 but it was attested by four   
witnesses4 ,convinced that  all human   
skill was in vain1 he nevertheless      
submitted to treatment by  his medical  
men4 ,paralysis crept on1 and the legs  
were attacked1 his  speech was affected1
 and he muttered1 8,it is the nerves of 
volition  that are affected40 ,he spoke 
of his last lecture1 and said to a      
friend  who called1 8,behold a very     
different person to the man of ,tuesday2
  nevertheless ,i had great things still
 to do4 ,all was ready in my head1      
after thirty years of labour and        
research2 there remained but to write1  
and now the hands fail and carry with   
them the head40 ,cuvier gradually  sank1
 but kept his intelligence nearly to the
 last4 ,it was his wish to  be buried   
privately1 interred in the cemetery of  
,pre le ,chaise1 under  the tombstone   
which covered his beloved child2 but it 
was not possible to  avoid the public   
demonstration of respect4 ,the funeral  
procession was  followed by the         

representatives of all the great learned
 bodies of ,france4    ,cuvier was too  
generous1 and too desirous for the      
advancement of his  branch of natural   
history knowledge1 to die very rich4 ,he
 had several  important sources of      
income1 and there is no doubt that1 had 
he chosen  so to do1 he could have saved
 much money4 ,he spent largely when it  
was  necessary to procure specimens from
 abroad1 and to dig out fossils at      
home1 and his private charities were    
numerous4 ,he only left about the  sum  
of four thousand pounds sterling1 a     
library worth about the same  sum1 and a
 house for his family4 ,there is no     
doubt that ,cuvier was1 in  his private 
life1 a very estimable man1 and that in 
his public life he  upheld the teachings
 of his conscience to his disadvantage4 
,it was to be  expected that a man whose
 work proved the great antiquity of the 
kinds  of animals now living on the     
surface of the earth1 and the existence 
of  a great philosophy in nature which  

linked the past and present animals  in 
a scheme which showed that life had been
 continuous for ages1 would  be abused  
and called an atheist by some ignorant  
people or other4 ,his  true character   
has been written as follows3--8,he      
promoted the cause of  true religion by 
every means in his power1 both public   
and private2 he  was a warm supporter of
 the ,bible ,society1 and caused the    
,old and ,new  ,testaments to be widely 
disseminated in every part of           
,protestant ,france4  ,in his letters to
 the heads of colleges and masters of   
schools1 he  strongly recommended them  
to teach for the love of ,god1 himself  
pointing  out their duties according to 
that great rule4 ,he adhered            
consistently  and persistently to the   
,protestant faith1 when it was well     
known that  a change to the ,roman      
,catholic would have been the surest    
step to the  attainment of the highest  
honours in the state4 ,he caused a      
number of  chapels to be established1 in

 order to give facility for attending   
divine worship2 and he never would      
receive a salary for attending and      
administering to the interests of the   
,protestant religion4 ,he discharged    
faithfully all the duties of his office1
 with a zeal which showed that  he had a
 much higher motive than that of gain or
 reputation4 ,humility  and forgiveness 
marked his character2 he was thankful   
for the correction  of errors2 he       
gloried as much in the discoveries of   
another as his own2  and in the triumph 
of joint labours1 unhesitatingly gave   
the preference  to his colleague4 ,he   
suffered his servants to expostulate    
with him1  and the very nature of his   
amusements was social and cheerful4 ,he 
felt  ingratitude keenly1 and also      
unkindness and injustice1 but they made 
him sad rather than angry4 ,his         
antagonists openly indulged in the most 
irritating and violent taunts1 or       
secretly intrigued against him2 the     
former never excited him beyond a clear1

 firm1 and dignified reply1 wrung  from 
him only when reply was absolutely      
necessary2 and the latter nothing  but  
candid remonstrances4 ,to these high    
attributes we may add charity4  ,the    
failings of others were never trumpeted 
forth by ,cuvier2 he did not  even      
tolerate playful satire1 however        
disguised by wit2 his earnest  desire   
was to make all happy around him1 even  
by a sacrifice of his  own convenience2 
and his resignation was great1 under    
calamities which  bereaved him of the   
dearest objects of his affection2 all   
these things  appear to establish his   
character as a ,christian40    ,the     
character of ,cuvier was hardly equal to
 this panegyric1 for he held  his own   
boldly enough1 and faced his enemies    
with no feeble humility2  moreover1 the 
details of his everyday life prove that 
he was sufficiently  exacting1 and that 
everything had to give way to his will4 
,nevertheless1  it is true that that    
will was to advance knowledge in the    

right  direction1 and that it was       
stimulated by an earnest desire for     
truth4  ,men like ,cuvier are very apt  
to be misunderstood by their most       
intimate  friends4 ,when studying the   
collections of animals1 and when        
comparing the  forms of ancient and     
modern life1 ,cuvier mentally recognized
 a divine  wisdom and the work of the   
,god he worshipped4 ,that was his       
worship1 and  he probably cared all the 
less for the oratory of the pulpit1     
which he  was expected to listen to4 ,he
 was not a constant attendant at his    
church1  and this seems even to have    
afflicted his daughter when on her      
death-bed1  according to some reports4  
,but in all probability she knew her    
father's  worth and real religion1      
better than outside friends and         
detractors1 and  prayed that he might   
receive that support which alone could  
enable him to  bear the heaviest of     
sorrows with resignation4    ,judging   
the man by his fruit and life1 it must  

be admitted that ,cuvier  was one of the
 greatest students and teachers of      
nature that have lived1  his work1 being
 true1 lasts2 moreover1 there is no     
doubt that he had but  few failings1 and
 a great amount of wisdom and virtue4   
,certainly he was  a staunch friend to  
religious education1 and if one could   
have known  his heart1 it is very       
possible that his apparent ambition and 
desire of  social greatness and position
 may have been influenced by the        
knowledge  that influence and dignity   
would further his work both as an       
anatomist  and zoologist1 and as a      
responsible promoter of education4      
,the lives of these heroes have been    
mainly taken from the life of ,john     
,ray in the ,ray ,society's             
publications1 and from an excellent     
little  book1 by an anonymous author1   
called 8,cuvier and ,zoology10 and from 
the  8,mmoires de ,l',acadmie des       
,sciences40    ,illustration            
,illustration          ,,chapter ,,ix4  

,,heroes ,,of ,,geology4        ,the    
rise of the science which treats of the 
ancient history      of the             
earth--,students of the present changes1
 which are      the examples by which   
the past may be comprehended--,the      
,greeks--,the life of ,pythagoras2 a    
notice of the geology of                
,aristoteles--,strabo's life--,the      
nature of fossils and the life of       
,steno4      ,as was the case in the    
other branches of natural history       
already noticed1  the ,greeks knew much 
more about geology than did the nations 
of the rest  of ,europe1 subsequently1  
for nearly seventeen hundred years4 ,the
 first  recorded teacher of the ancient 
history of the earth was ,pythagoras1   
who  was born on the island of ,samos1  
about the year #egj ,b4,c4 ,by his      
mother's  side he was connected with the
 principal families of the island1 and  
his father appears to have been a       
,phnician or a ,tyrrhenian of ,lemnos4  
,there is nothing known about his       

childhood1 and it is evident that he    
studied under the great philosophers of 
his age in ,greece4 ,but he wanted      
further information1 and therefore      
travelled into ,egypt1 and thence into  
,chalda4 ,polycrates1 the ruler of the  
island in which ,pythagoras was  born1  
appears to have assisted him with the   
,egyptians by introductions4  ,the      
traveller noticed not only the habits   
and customs of the people he  visited1  
but also the aspect of the countries1   
and the method by which  nature wore the
 earth1 and produced changes on the     
surface of the ground4  ,he appears to  
have been much struck with the          
periodical nature of many  natural      
events1 such as the succession of the   
seasons1 the time of rain  and          
inundation1 and of great heat1 and of   
all the common examples with  which     
everyone is familiar at the present day4
 ,returning home he soon  became aware  
that he could not teach1 unreservedly1  
what he had learned  and discovered     

during his travels1 for fear of         
,polycrates1 and he left  the island4   
,finally he settled at ,croton1 in      
southern ,italy1 and he  appears to have
 chosen the locality1 in order to       
propagate his moral and  political1 as  
well as scientific opinions4            
,unfortunately1 this ardent  scholar and
 teacher did not write any books1 but   
left that task to  his pupils and       
successors1 so that much good sense is  
mixed with much  nonsense in the        
so-called doctrines of ,pythagoras which
 came from them4  ,some of his opinions 
are very remarkable and striking1 and he
 introduced  into his own country the   
statements of the ,eastern nations1 that
 there  has been a gradual deterioration
 of the human race from an original     
state  of virtue and happiness4 ,but his
 principal work regarding the earth  has
 descended to us through the poet ,ovid1
 and it is most interesting4            
,pythagoras insisted that there was a   
perpetual and gradual system of  change1

 inherent in the earth4 ,this idea1     
which came into his mind from  the      
results of observation1 he did not apply
 to very remote ages1 or to  what is now
 called the ancient history of the      
globe4 ,he simply insisted  on modern   
changes4 ,really this limiting of his   
thought was in the true  scientific     
spirit1 and he dealt with what was true 
and proveable so far  as he was         
concerned4 ,it might be supposed that   
the present changes cannot  come within 
the studies of the geologist1 but they  
really do so1 because1  as will be      
noticed further on in considering the   
life of ,hutton1 the past  history of   
the earth can only be comprehended by   
studying the present  state of things4  
,pythagoras cleared the way1 and made a 
path for the  geologist4 ,he is said by 
,ovid to have taught as follows3--      
8,nothing perishes in this world1 but   
things simply vary and change  their    
form4 ,to be born means simply that a   
thing begins to be something  different 

from what it was before2 and dying is   
ceasing from being the  same thing4     
,solid land has been converted into sea4
 ,sea has been changed  into land2      
marine shells lie far distant from the  
deep1 and the anchor  has been found on 
the summit of the hills4 ,valleys have  
been excavated by  running water1 and   
floods have washed down hills into the  
sea4 ,marshes  have become dry ground4  
,dry lands have changed into stagnant   
pools4  ,during earthquakes some springs
 have been closed up1 and new ones have 
broken out4 ,rivers have deserted their 
channels1 and have been reborn          
elsewhere2 as the ,erasinus1 in ,greece1
 and ,mysius1 in ,asia4 ,the waters of  
some rivers1 formerly sweet1 have become
 bitter1 as those of ,anigrus1 in       
,greece4 ,islands have become connected 
with the main land1 by the growth  of   
deltas and new deposits4 ,peninsulas    
have been divided from the main  land1  
and have become islands1 as ,leucadia2  
and according to tradition1  ,sicily1   

the sea having carried away the isthmus4
 ,land has been submerged  by           
earthquakes4 ,the ,grecian cities of    
,helice and ,burris1 for example1 are   
to be seen under the sea1 with their    
walls inclined4 ,plains have been       
upheaved into hills by the confined air 
seeking vent1 as at ,trzene1 in  the    
,peloponnesus4 ,there are streams which 
have a petrifying power1 and  convert   
the substances which they touch into    
marble4 ,volcano vents shift  their     
positions4 ,there was a time when ,etna 
was not a burning mountain1  and the    
time will come when it will cease to    
burn2 whether it be that  some caverns  
be closed up by the movements of the    
earth and others  opened1 or whether the
 fuel is finally exhausted40    ,of     
course there are several errors in these
 statements1 and especially  those which
 relate to the causes of volcanic vents 
are absurd4  ,pythagoras also noticed   
the changes in the animal kingdoms1 such
 as the  metamorphoses of insects4      

,besides being a naturalist this great  
man  taught some most extraordinary     
doctrines for his time of the world and 
nation4 ,he stated that virtue was with 
him and his followers1 a harmony1       
unity1 and an endeavour to resemble the 
,deity4 ,the whole life of man  should  
be an attempt to represent1 on earth1   
the beauty and harmony  displayed in the
 order of the universe4 ,the mind should
 have the body  and the passions under  
perfect control2 the gods should be     
worshipped by  simple purifications and 
offerings1 and above all by sincerity   
and purity  of heart4 ,pythagoras1 by   
his good teaching and example1          
established a  great school of          
philosophy1 which influenced the world  
subsequently in  a marked manner4 ,a    
political riot dispersed his followers1 
and he died  about #ejd ,b4,c4    ,a    
notice of the life of ,aristoteles as   
botanist and zoologist has  already been
 given1 and now a few words must be said
 about the opinions  held by this very  

remarkable man regarding changes in the 
earth4 ,he  progressed beyond           
,pythagoras1 for he refers to many      
examples of changes  now constantly     
going on1 and insists1 emphatically1 on 
the great results  which they must      
produce in the lapse of ages4 ,the      
changes of the  earth1 he says1 are so  
slow in comparison to the duration of   
our lives1  that they are overlooked1   
and the migrations of people after great
  catastrophes1 and their removal to    
other regions1 cause the event to be    
forgotten4 ,in one work ,aristoteles    
wrote3 8,the distribution of land and   
sea1 in particular regions1 does not    
endure throughout all time1 but it      
becomes sea in those parts where it was 
land1 and again it becomes land  where  
it was sea2 and there is reason for     
thinking that these changes  take place 
according to a certain system and within
 a certain period4  ,everything changes 
in the course of time40    ,there was a 
great geographer called ,strabo1 about  

whose life little is  known1 except that
 he travelled far and wide in ,europe   
and ,north ,africa1  and wrote largely  
on the earth4 ,he did not content       
himself with simple  geography1 however1
 for he entered into a discussion1 which
 was a very  common one in those days1  
as it has been since1 concerning the    
nature of  the fossil shells which are  
found in strata or layers of the earth  
remote  from the sea4 ,he attributed the
 collecting of the shells where they    
are found to the former subsidence of   
the land1 and not to the rising  of the 
sea4 ,it is not1 he said1 because the   
lands covered by seas were  originally  
at different altitudes1 that the waters 
have risen or subsided  or receded from 
some parts and inundated others1 but the
 reason is1 that  the same land is      
sometimes raised up and sometimes       
depressed1 so that it  either overflows 
or returns to its own place again4 ,we  
must therefore  ascribe the cause to the
 ground1 either to that ground which is 

under  the sea or to that which becomes 
flooded by it1 but rather to that which 
lies beneath the sea1 for this is more  
moveable1 and on account of its         
humidity can be altered with greater    
celerity4 ,this philosopher clearly     
laid down the law that the general level
 of the sea has remained the  same1 but 
that it has been and is the land which  
has been or is upheaved  or subsided4   
,it is a fundamental truth on which much
 of the science of  geology depends4 ,he
 moreover asserted that volcanoes were  
safety-valves1  and were the result of  
subterranean convulsions4    ,these were
 the principal writers which influenced 
geology in the days  before the         
,christian era1 and it is to be noticed 
that they did not treat  of the         
construction of the rocks1 of the       
succession of the layers or  strata1 or 
of much concerning the ancient history  
of the globe4 ,but they  taught1 wisely 
and admirably1 the nature of modern     
changes1 and believed  that these and   

the older ones they could comprehend1   
were part of a  scheme1 and were        
produced by natural causes1 in the      
course of events4    ,aristoteles1      
,strabo1 and ,plinius wrote about the   
changes which were  progressing on the  
surface of the earth1 and compared them1
 in their  reasoning1 with changes they 
presumed had been1 but still no great   
advance was made4    ,in the early part 
of the sixteenth century a remarkable   
discussion sprang  up about the nature  
of shells and bones1 which were found in
 layers of  earth remote from the sea4  
,the celebrated painter ,leonardo da    
,vinci had  seen some of these fossils  
during his youth1 when he planned and   
carried  out some important canals in   
the north of ,italy4 ,he laughed at the 
fancies of the day about the shells1 for
 some people said that they were  made  
by the stars1 and others that they were 
brought forth naturally1 in  the layers 
of earth in which they were found4 ,he  
wanted to know where the  things were   

being made in the hills1 by the stars1  
at the present time1  and stated that1  
like the rounded stones of gravel1 the  
shells had been  in the sea1 and that   
they were of different ages and kinds1  
and were once  alive4 ,but the former   
living condition of fossils1 and the    
possibility of  their being understood1 
by comparing them with recent or living 
things1  was1 perhaps1 most strongly put
 by ,steno1 a ,dane4    ,in #afch1 a    
goldsmith1 ,steno by name1 living at    
,copenhagen1 who was a  tradesman of the
 ,king ,christian ,,iv4 of ,denmark1 had
 a son4 ,the young  ,nicholas was       
brought up carefully1 evidently was well
 educated1 and was  destined for the    
medical profession4 ,a strict ,lutheran1
 he naturally  went to ,holland for a   
part of his education1 and studied at   
,leyden under  the very distinguished   
anatomists there1 after he had taken his
 degree4  ,nothing is known about his   
person or habits1 but the results of his
  constant labour prove him to have been

 a most industrious student1 and  also  
an investigator of the human frame in   
his early days of manhood4  ,at first   
the medical profession was everything to
 him1 and he studied  human anatomy and 
physiology with great success1 making   
some important  and interesting         
discoveries4 ,he discovered the duct or 
channel by which  the saliva runs into  
the mouth from the salivary gland       
beneath the skin  on the cheek1 and in  
#affd he published some researches on   
the manner  in which the chick is       
nourished in the egg4 ,moreover1 he     
examined the  structures of the eye of  
the calf1 the nature of the mucous      
secretion1  and wrote on the heart4     
,while engaged in these researches at   
,amsterdam1  he heard of the death of   
his mother1 and returned to ,copenhagen4
 ,after a  short stay there1 he set out 
for ,italy1 taking ,france on his way2  
and he  began a series of researches on 
the structure of the brain at ,paris in 
#affd4 ,here a great change occurred1   

which influenced his future life in a   
remarkable degree4 ,steno1 well known   
then as a successful investigator1  came
 under the notice of a great ,french    
geographer1 ,thvenot1 and1 what  was    
more important1 became the friend of    
,bossuet1 one of the greatest  preachers
 and teachers the ,roman ,catholic      
,church has ever produced4  ,steno was  
so influenced by ,bossuet1 that he      
became converted to the  ,roman         
,catholic faith1 and left the ,lutheran 
,church4 ,going subsequently  into      
,italy1 ,steno pursued his studies1 and 
settled in ,florence1 in  #affg1 being  
well received by the ,grand ,duke       
,ferdinand ,,ii4 de ,medici4 ,in  spite 
of the somewhat natural jealousy of the 
medical men of the city1  ,steno was    
appointed physician to the ,grand ,duke1
 and prosecuted his  anatomical studies 
under his influence4 ,then he came      
across a subject  which directed his    
attention to geology1 or rather to that 
part of the  science which relates to   

extinct animals4 ,in a letter to        
,thvenot1 ,steno  describes the         
dissection of a shark which had been    
captured off ,leghorn  in #afff1 and    
especially discussed the mode of growth 
of the teeth of the  animal4 ,at this   
time many fossils were picked up and    
gathered out of  layers or strata1 which
 were called by many curious names1 and 
believed  to be anything but what they  
really were4 ,they were distinguished by
  ,steno at once as shark's teeth1 and  
he insisted that sharks lived during    
the former ages of the globe1 and that  
they had become entombed in the         
deposits which were then forming a      
stratum or layer of earth1 the result   
of deposition in water1 being the       
burial-ground of the time of its        
collection or formation4    ,fossils    
were thus shown by ,steno to be         
mineralized or petrified organic        
remains1 and he gave the hint or method 
to future investigators1 that  the      
example of the existing animals must be 

taken1 in order to learn  the nature of 
those creatures whose remains are more  
or less perfectly  preserved in the     
fossil condition4    ,following out this
 subject1 ,steno wrote on the manner in 
which deposits  accumulate1 and         
accumulated in past ages2 and he        
concluded that if we  found a deposit   
containing sea-salt and the remains of  
marine animals1  planks of ships etc41  
we should believe that the sea had once 
been there1  whether the bed was exposed
 in consequence of the sea having       
retired1  or because the land had been  
raised4 ,he showed that although the    
lowest  beds deposited over any area1   
must conform to the shape of the        
underlying  rock1 the tendency of all   
sediment must be to occupy the          
horizontal  position2 and so when we    
find them highly inclined1 as in        
mountains1 for  instance1 we must refer 
this to subsequent movement4 ,he noticed
 that  mountains are made up both of    
horizontal and inclined strata1 as may  

be seen along their flanks4 ,he infers  
that mountains were once not in         
existence1 and that they do not grow1   
but that their regions are raised  and  
depressed and subject to rending and    
fissuring4 ,steno clearly showed  that  
the land had sunk and had been again    
elevated in the geological  ages1 and in
 considering the causes he seems to have
 grasped the idea  that the internal    
heat of the earth becoming less1 the    
mass cools1 and  that the movements on  
the surface have had to do with the     
cooling4 ,his  most important work was  
removing fossils out of the category of 
marvels1  sports of nature1 and as      
things which grew in the earth1 to the  
proper  truth that they are preserved   
parts of animals and plants which were  
formerly alive4 ,in #afhh1 ,steno was   
appointed to the chair of anatomy  at   
,copenhagen2 but he had to suffer from  
jealousy1 and doubtless some  religious 
persecution influenced his desire to    
leave his native country  and to return 

to ,florence again4 ,this he did1 and   
,cosmo ,,iii4 entrusted  him with the   
education of his son4 ,steno then began 
to give up science  and to study        
theology1 and wrote several works on the
 subject by which he  hoped to convert  
his old natural history friends4 ,one of
 these involved  him in a controversy   
with the reformed clergy of ,jena4 ,the 
,pope1 ,innocent  ,,xi41 rewarded ,steno
 in #afgg1 by making him a bishop and   
apostolic vicar  of ,northern ,europe4  
,steno went to reside at ,hanover2 but  
he had to leave1  and returning to      
,schwerin1 he died there4 ,his body was1
 at the request of  the ,grand ,duke    
,cosmo1 carried back to ,tuscany in     
#afhg4    ,illustration                 
,illustration          ,,chapter ,x4    
,,the ,,life ,,of ,,hutton4        ,the 
rise of the modern school of            
geology--,the continuity of      the    
operations of nature and their          
sameness--,the necessity of             
studying the existing state of things in

 order to comprehend      the past--,the
 denial of catastrophes--,hutton's      
theory of the      earth the foundation 
of scientific geology4      ,many facts 
had been recorded regarding the ancient 
history of the earth1  and a host of    
ideas1 more or less absurd1 had been    
given forth on  geology1 during the     
years which preceded and followed the   
reformation4  ,several ,italian         
geologists had examined into the truths 
discovered by  ,pythagoras1 and1 as     
stated in the preceding pages1 the      
nature of fossils  had become understood
 by a few liberal minded men4 ,the age  
of ,newton1  and the years which        
followed his time1 were consumed1       
however1 so far  as the history of the  
earth was concerned1 by vain attempts to
 form  cosmogonies1 to account for the  
origin of the globe and visible         
universe4  ,there was also a fierce     
struggle between two great geological   
factions1  one asserting that all rocks 
were the product of heat1 and the other 

denying this in toto and deciding that  
water was the originator4 ,many1  and   
indeed nearly all1 geologists taught    
that nature had acted during  the past1 
by fits and starts1 and that great      
convulsions had occurred1  bringing the 
earth at last to its present condition4 
,the common sense  of mankind was       
opposed to many of these beliefs1 and   
there was moreover  a very great        
indisposition1 on the part of many      
educated men1 to credit  that the earth 
was more than six thousand years old4   
,not a few believed  that the hills and 
dales1 mountains and plains1 cliffs and 
valleys1 were  first formed as they are 
now4    ,a ,scottish gentleman1 a quiet 
retiring man1 having some means of his  
own1  studied the structure of the rocks
 and taught himself physical geography4 
,he mastered a great number of undoubted
 facts1 and reasoned upon them1  and    
produced a theory which made geology a  
science1 instead of a jumble  of guesses
 flavoured with the love of the         

marvellous4    ,james ,hutton was the   
son of ,william ,hutton1 a merchant     
living in  ,edinburgh1 and was born in  
that city on the #crd of ,june1 #agbf4  
,his  father1 a man highly respected for
 his good sense and integrity1 and who  
had held the important office of city   
treasurer1 died whilst the boy was      
young4 ,the mother was a woman of       
considerable ability1 and she determined
  that her child should have a good     
education4 ,he went1 consequently1 to   
the ,high ,school1 and subsequently was 
entered at the ,university at the  early
 age of fourteen4 ,james was a thorough 
student1 and loved work1 and  his tastes
 were directed rather to natural science
 than to classics and  the higher       
mathematics4 ,he studied mathematics    
under ,maclaurin1 and used  to say in   
after years that although he enjoyed    
,professor ,stevenson's  teaching of    
logic1 still he thought more of him     
because a hint that was  given in a     
lecture led him to take a passionate    

interest in chemistry4  ,the fact that  
gold is dissolved in aqua regia 7a      
mixture of nitric and  hydrochloric     
acids71 and that two acids1 which can   
each of them dissolve  any of the baser 
metals1 must unite their strength before
 they can attack  the most precious1 was
 mentioned by the professor1 in         
illustration of  some general doctrine4 
,hutton was much impressed with this    
fact1 and  was led to study it further1 
and he got all the books on the subject4
  ,this led to his love of chemistry1   
which never forsook him1 and which      
really decided the course of his career4
 ,but ,hutton was destined for a        
profession1 and his mother did not      
intend him to occupy himself solely     
with science4 ,consequently he was      
articled to a writer to the signet1     
with a view of becoming a lawyer4 ,he   
had hard work to do1 and plenty  of it2 
it was mere routine work1 that of a     
clerk1 and there was a  possibility that
 he would forget his scientific         

pleasures4 ,his desire for  knowledge   
persisted1 in spite of his monotonous   
work1 and occasionally  he endeavoured  
to teach his fellow clerks a little1 and
 he was found  amusing himself and them 
with chemical experiments1 when he      
should  have been copying papers or     
studying the forms of legal proceedings4
  ,his master soon saw that the young   
man's mind was not that which would     
suit a lawyer1 so1 with much kindness   
and good sense1 he released his  young  
friend from his obligations4 ,young     
,hutton at once began to study          
medicine1 as that science which was the 
most closely allied to chemistry4  ,he  
attended lectures1 and studied well from
 #agdd to #agdg4 ,then1 as the  teaching
 at ,edinburgh was not sufficient in all
 the parts of medical  studies1 he went1
 as was usual1 to ,paris1 where he      
studied chemistry  and anatomy with     
great ardour4 ,he was there for nearly  
two years1 and  then went to ,leyden1 in
 ,holland1 where he took his degree in  

,september1  #agdi4 ,on his return to   
,london at the end of that year1 he     
began to think  seriously about settling
 in the world4 ,edinburgh afforded no   
flattering  prospect for his            
establishment as a physician4 ,the      
business there was in  the hands of a   
few eminent practitioners1 who had been 
long established2  so that no opening   
was left for a young man whose merit was
 yet unknown1  who had no powerful      
connections to assist him on his first  
outset1 and  very little of that patient
 and circumspect activity by which a    
medical  man pushes himself forward in  
the world4    ,full of anxiety about the
 future1 ,hutton wrote to a friend of   
his own  age on the subject4 ,this was  
,mr4 ,james ,davie1 with whom ,hutton   
had  been on most intimate terms before 
leaving ,scotland4 ,they had both  a    
great love of chemistry1 and had        
experimented together1 especially  on   
the nature and production of ammonia4   
,their experiments had led to  some     

valuable discoveries1 and had been      
pursued by ,mr4 ,davie during  his      
friend's absence4 ,they had afforded a  
reasonable expectation of  establishing 
a profitable manufacture of some salt of
 ammonia from  coal-soot4 ,the project  
of this establishment was communicated  
by ,mr4  ,davie to his friend1 who was  
still in ,london1 and it appears to have
  lessened his anxiety about settling as
 a physician1 and1 probably1  was one of
 the main causes of his laying aside all
 thoughts of that  profession4 ,perhaps1
 too1 on a nearer view1 he did not find 
that the  practice of medicine would    
afford him that leisure for pursuing    
chemical  and other scientific objects  
which he fancied it would do1 when he   
saw  things at a greater distance4 ,in  
fact1 ,hutton found himself in the same 
position as many other men of genius who
 have pursued as successfully  the      
peculiar studies requisite for an       
accomplished medical man4 ,anatomy1     
physiology1 chemistry1 and botany have  

often been much more attractive  to the 
aspirant for medical fame than surgery1 
practical medicine1 and  the study of   
drugs and their uses4 ,many a good      
doctor has been spoiled  by             
over-education1 and science has gained  
an enthusiastic student4 ,it  would     
appear1 however1 that there was another 
cause which was influencing  ,hutton4   
,he had inherited a little property in  
land in ,berwickshire from  his father2 
it was possible to live on it1 and farm 
and work at chemistry  without risk1    
whilst if he sold it1 or used the rent  
in advancing his  position as a medical 
man1 he might fail after all4           
,certain it is that he returned to      
,edinburgh1 and in the summer of #agej  
he abandoned his intention of           
practising1 and resolved to apply       
himself  to agriculture4 ,he had as a   
friend ,sir ,john ,hall1 of ,dunglass1 a
 man  of ingenuity and taste for        
science1 and also an agriculturist4 ,as 
he  was never destined to do anything by

 halves1 ,hutton determined to study    
farming in the school which was then    
reckoned the best1 and the manner  which
 is undoubtedly the most effectual4 ,he 
went into ,norfolk1 and fixed  his      
residence for some time in that county1 
living in the house of a  farmer1 who   
served both for his landlord and his    
instructor4 ,this he did  in #ageb4 ,he 
always spoke well of ,john ,dybold1 who 
made him comfortable1  and whose        
practical lessons in husbandry he much  
valued4 ,he appears1  indeed1 to have   
enjoyed this situation very much3 the   
simple and plain  character of the      
society with which he mingled1 suited   
well with his own1  and the peasants of 
,norfolk could find nothing in the      
stranger to set  them at a distance from
 him1 or to make them treat him with    
reserve4 ,it  was always true of ,dr4   
,hutton that to an ordinary man he      
appeared to be  an ordinary man2        
possessing a little more spirit and     
liveliness1 perhaps1  than it is usual  

to meet with4 ,he enjoyed ,norfolk life 
very much1 and  doubtless it was the    
very different soil of that county which
 made the  young ,scotchman think1 for  
the first time1 about the construction  
of the  surface of the earth which he   
hoped to till and profit by4 ,while his 
head  quarters were thus established in 
,norfolk1 he made journeys1 on foot1    
into different parts of ,england2 and   
though the main object of them was  to  
obtain information in agriculture1 yet  
he never passed a pit1 or a  cliff1 or a
 river-side1 without studying the       
structure of the soil1 so  that in      
#agec1 ,hutton was incontinently making 
himself a geologist1 a  pursuit which   
his knowledge of chemistry and          
mineralogy rendered easy to  him4 ,what 
agriculture he learned in ,norfolk was  
of the greatest use to  him1 and he     
visited ,flanders to learn more4 ,he    
travelled from ,rotterdam  through      
,holland1 ,brabant1 ,flanders1 and      
,picardy1 and was highly delighted  with

 the cultivation of the small holdings  
of those countries4 ,though  his        
principal object in this excursion was  
to acquire information in the  practice 
of husbandry1 he appears to have paid   
much attention to the  mineralogy of the
 countries through which he passed4     
,then he returned  and took up his own  
farm in ,berwickshire1 bringing with him
 a ,norfolk  ploughman4 ,he set to work 
and farmed1 using every known           
improvement1 and  he has the credit of  
being one of those who introduced the   
new husbandry  into a country where it  
has since made more rapid advances than 
in  any other part of ,great ,britain4  
,from #aged to #agfh he resided on his  
farm1 visiting ,edinburgh occasionally4 
,he seems to have led a tranquil        
country life1 succeeding as a farmer2   
and yet there was1 during all this      
time1 a slow yet progressive growth of a
 science in his mind4 ,cautious1        
persevering1 observant1 and truly       
logical in his method of thought1       

,hutton was accumulating facts upon     
which to reason in geology1 whilst  the 
so-called geologists of the day were    
forming theories without facts4  ,he    
took a tour to the north of ,scotland1  
through ,ross and ,caithness1 and       
returned by way of ,aberdeen to         
,edinburgh1 and he studied the          
mineralogy  and geology of the          
districts4 ,returning home1 he still    
went on farming1  and at the same time  
he became a partner with his friend     
,davie in a  manufactory of ammonia4 ,by
 the year #agfh1 being forty-two years  
of age1  ,hutton had matured his plans2 
he let his farm at a very advantageous  
rent1 and1 untroubled about his affairs1
 having his three sisters as his        
companions1 he went to ,edinburgh1 and  
entered the singularly interesting      
scientific society of that time4 ,his   
biographer1 ,playfair1 writes  that     
,hutton1 8employed in maturing his views
 and studying nature with  unwearied    
application1 now passed his time most   

usefully and agreeably  to himself1 but 
in silence and obscurity with respect to
 the world40  8,free from the           
interruption of professional avocations1
 he enjoyed the  entire command of his  
own time1 and had sufficient energy of  
mind to  afford himself continual       
occupation40 ,a good deal of his leisure
 was now  employed in the prosecution of
 chemical experiments4 ,in one of these 
he  made an interesting discovery which 
relates to the changes that go on in    
apparently most unchangeable rocks1 and 
which are due to the action of          
percolating water on them4 ,he noticed  
that in the midst of dense masses  of   
hard1 cold1 volcanic rock1 called       
basalt1 crystals of great beauty are    
found in cavities4 ,they can be fused   
under the blowpipe easily1 and that  is 
not the case with the surrounding rock4 
,on adding hydrochloric acid  to one of 
these zeolites1 as they are called1 a   
gelatinous substance is  formed out of  
the crystal1 and on evaporation1 sea    

salt or chloride of  sodium is found4   
8,this was the first instance10 writes  
his biographer1  ,playfair1 8of an      
alkali being found in a stony body40 ,he
 went to ,cheshire  to see the salt     
mines1 went to ,birmingham1 and then set
 out for ,wales4  ,his desire was to    
trace the hard gravel of granular quartz
 which is found  in such abundance in   
the soil about ,birmingham and          
elsewhere1 to its  origin1 and to find  
out whence it came and how it was       
distributed4 ,he  found none of the rock
 in ,wales2 but on returning he found it
 in places1  in a body of old rocks     
which stand out of the country between  
,bromsgrove  and ,birmingham4    ,then  
,hutton wrote a little book on the      
8,nature1 ,quality1 and ,distinction  of
 ,culm and ,coal40 ,the result was more 
economical than scientific1 for  it led 
to the abolition of a duty on the small 
coal of ,scotland4 ,he read  hard1 and  
every book on travels which referred to 
physical geography  was carefully       

studied1 so that at last no man of the  
age was so fit to  deal with the great  
problem he had been revolving in his    
mind for thirty  years4 ,all his studies
 of nature1 all his examinations of the 
surface  of the earth1 were with a view 
of ascertaining the changes that have   
taken place on its surface1 and of      
discovering the causes by which they    
have been produced4 ,he was impressed   
with the belief that the former  changes
 in the earth's surface have been of the
 same kind as those now  in progress2   
that the ancient history of the earth   
could only be studied  by taking the    
example of modern changes1 and that the 
past could be  studied from the present1
 because there was uniformity and       
constancy and  law in nature4 ,the same 
energies and forces have always been and
 have  acted by law in much the same    
manner as at the present time4 ,with his
  true scientific spirit ,hutton would  
have nothing to do with convulsions  or 
with the origin of the globe2 he did not

 want to guess or speculate1  but to    
argue logically on facts which anybody  
could observe4 ,he took  geology out of 
the age of the marvellous and laid the  
foundations of  the present aspect of   
the science4 ,he was in no hurry to     
publish his  views1 possibly because his
 temperament was cautious1 and possibly 
he  was aware what a furious fuss there 
would be made about it2 how he would  be
 abused1 scolded1 and anathematized4    
,there is no doubt that the lights  of  
the age and public opinion were         
perfectly incompetent to judge the      
merits of such a theory2 they were      
sunken in prejudices1 and resisted any  
change of opinion4 ,he was aware that a 
great outcry would be made by men  whose
 religious opinions were his own1 and   
whom he respected greatly4  ,in fact1   
the world1 just before the appearance of
 ,hutton's 8,theory of  the ,earth10 was
 less prepared for it than ordinary     
opinion was for the  doctrines of       
,charles ,darwin one hundred years      

afterwards4 ,the appearance  of the work
 of this last great naturalist made1 and
 is still making1 a  great stir1 but    
that of ,hutton's work was received1 as 
he anticipated1  with incredible        
opposition1 by the teachers of the day2 
and its slow  acceptation by the        
scientific world was remarkable4 ,no    
abuse could efface  its effects2 it was 
true1 and the true alone lasts2 it was  
reasonable1  and it was to the glory of 
,god4    ,in this book1 geology was1 for
 the first time1 declared to be in no   
way concerned about the origin of       
things4 ,it was the first in which an   
attempt was made to dispense entirely   
with all hypothetical causes1  and to   
explain the former changes of the       
earth's crust by reference  exclusively 
to such natural agents as still exist4  
,hutton laboured to  give fixed         
principles to geology1 as ,newton had   
succeeded in doing to  astronomy4 ,he   
wrote3 8,the ruins of an older world are
 visible in the  present structure of   

our planet1 and the strata which now    
compose our  continents1 have been once 
beneath the sea1 and were formed out of 
the  waste of pre-existing continents4  
,the same forces are still destroying1  
by chemical decomposition or mechanical 
violence1 even the hardest  rocks1      
transporting the materials to the sea1  
where they are spread  out and form     
strata analogous to those of more       
ancient date4 ,although  loosely        
deposited along the bottom of the ocean1
 they become afterwards  altered and    
consolidated by volcanic heat1 and then 
turned up1 fractured1  and contorted40  
,he showed that many hard crystalline   
rocks1 such as  basalt1 were of igneous 
origin1 and that some of them had been  
injected  in a melted state through     
fissures in the older strata4 ,he       
proved1 by  examining ,glen ,tilt1 that 
granite was once in a state of fusion1  
and  had cooled4 ,he wrote3 8,in the    
economy of the world ,i can find no     
traces  of a beginning1 no prospect of  

an end10 a declaration all the more     
startling when coupled with the doctrine
 that all changes on the globe  had been
 brought about by the slow agency of    
existing causes4 ,sir ,charles  ,lyell1 
writing on this1 stated1 8,the          
imagination was first fatigued and      
overpowered by endeavouring to conceive 
the immensity of time required  for the 
annihilation of whole continents by so  
insensible a process2 and  when the     
thoughts had wandered through these     
intermediate periods1 no  resting place 
was assigned in the remotest distance4  
,the oldest rocks  were represented to  
be of a derivative nature1 the last of  
an antecedent  series1 and that1        
perhaps1 of one of many pre-existing    
worlds40    ,most unfairly was ,hutton  
attacked1 and he was thus defended by   
his friend  ,playfair3 8,in the         
planetary motions1 where geometry has   
carried the eye  so far1 both into the  
future and the past1 we discover no mark
 either of  the commencement or         

termination of the present order4 ,it is
 unreasonable1  indeed1 to suppose that 
such marks should anywhere exist4 ,the  
,author of  nature has not given laws to
 the universe1 which1 like the          
constitutions  of men1 carry in         
themselves the elements of their own    
destruction4 ,he has  not permitted in  
his works any symptom of infancy or of  
old age1 or any  sign by which we may   
estimate either their future or their   
past duration4  ,he may put an end1 as  
,he no doubt gave a beginning1 to the   
present system  at some determinate     
period of time2 but we may rest assured 
that this  great catastrophe will not be
 brought about by the laws now existing1
 and  that it will not be indicated by  
anything which we perceive40    ,hutton 
studied meteorology1 and gave to the    
world the first reasonable  theory of   
the cause of rain4 ,he described the    
formation of invisible  vapour by       
evaporation1 the production of visible  
mist and cloud1 and  finally rain4 ,and 

he investigated the reasons of the cause
 of rainfalls  differing in amount in   
the tropics and temperate zones of the  
earth4  ,in #agic serious illness       
attacked ,hutton after he had been      
writing his  speculations regarding     
matter4 ,on his recovery he republished 
his work  on the 8,theory of the        
,earth10 and replied to many of the     
attacks upon  it1 and later on wrote a  
work which was not published in the     
8,elements of  ,agriculture40 ,illness  
again seized him1 and he died in #agig4 
,hutton was such an observer of facts   
that he rarely read any books  of a     
theoretical nature1 and he never would  
concede anything to mere  authority4 ,he
 was indefatigable in study1 and wrote  
largely1 expressing  his thoughts       
constantly with his pen4 ,he rose late1 
and began to study at  once1 and until  
early dinner4 ,he rarely dined from     
home1 and was a most  sparing eater1 and
 he drank no wine4 ,after dinner he     
resumed his studies1  or1 if the weather

 was fine1 walked for two or three      
hours1 when he could  not be said to    
give up study1 though he might1 perhaps1
 change the object  of it4 ,he rarely   
departed from this kind of life1 except 
when he was  travelling4 ,to his friends
 his conversation was inestimable2 as   
great  talents1 the most perfect        
candour1 and the utmost simplicity of   
character  and manners1 all united to   
stamp a value upon it4 ,his slender1    
active  figure1 thin countenance1 high  
forehead1 and somewhat aquiline nose1   
gave  him the appearance of being acute 
and vigorous in body and mind4 ,he was  
full of ardour and enthusiasm1 gay and  
humorous1 and most forcible in          
argument4 ,the man's simplicity1        
determination1 and desire for truth1 his
  carelessness of the opinion of men1   
and his great regard for his fellow     
labourers who were not led away by      
prejudice and authority1 were his  great
 characteristics4 ,hutton founded       
geology as a logical science2 and       

although he was ignorant of the         
succession of the forms of life on the  
globe1 yet his method of studying the   
past from the present has been1  and    
still is used as the way in which the   
extinct animals and plants can  be      
comprehended in the scheme of nature4   
,hutton's works were carefully  studied 
by1 and in after years they were the    
mainspring of the toil of  ,lyell4      
,there is a very interesting notice of  
the life of this great man in  the      
8,encyclopdia ,britannica10 by          
,professor ,geikie1 and in an essay by  
,playfair in the 8,transactions of the  
,royal ,society of ,edinburgh0 to which 
the author of this memoir is indebted4  
,illustration          ,illustration    
,,chapter ,,xi4    ,,the ,,life ,,of    
,,william ,,smith4        ,the          
succession of the strata                
recognized--,strata known by their      
fossils1 position1 and mineral          
contents--,england surveyed by          
,smith and made the type of the results 

of the succession of      changes       
studied by geology4      ,the ancestors 
of ,william ,smith were a race of       
farmers who owned small  tracts of land1
 and had been settled in ,oxfordshire   
and ,gloucestershire  for many          
generations4    ,william ,smith was born
 at ,churchill1 a village in            
,oxfordshire1 on  the #bcrd of ,march1  
#agfi1 the year which gave birth to     
,cuvier4 ,of his  parents he always     
spoke with great regard1 but there is   
little in the  recollections which he   
has preserved of them1 to show in what  
degree  they contributed to form his    
remarkable character4 ,his father he    
described as 8a very ingenious          
mechanic10 and mentions as the cause of 
his death a severe cold caught while    
engaged in the erection of some         
machinery4 ,deprived of this parent     
before he was eight years old1 it was   
fortunate for him that his mother was a 
woman of ability1 of gentle and         
charitable disposition1 and attentive to

 the education of her children4  ,an    
expressive pencil sketch and a          
characteristic description1 both from   
memory1 record his devotion to his      
mother4    ,according to his own        
account1 however1 not only were the     
means of his  instruction at the village
 school very limited1 but they were in  
some  degree interfered with by his own 
wandering and musing habits4 ,the  rural
 games in those 8merrie daies0 of       
,england might sometimes attract  the   
wayward and comparatively unrestrained  
scholar from his books2 but  he was more
 frequently learning of another         
mistress1 and forming1 for  after-life1 
a habit of close and curious            
contemplation of nature4    ,after his  
father's death and his mother's second  
marriage1 the person to  whom he was    
principally to look up to for           
protection1 was his father's  eldest    
brother1 to a portion of whose property 
he was heir4 ,from this  kinsman1 who   
was but little pleased with his nephew's

 love of collecting  the 8pundibs0#b and
 8poundstones10 or 8quoitstones10#c and 
had no  sympathies with his fancies of  
carving sun-dials on the soft brown     
8oven-stone0#d of the neighbourhood1 he 
with great difficulty wrung1 by         
repeated entreaty1 money for the        
purchase of a few books fit to instruct 
a boy in the rudiments of geometry and  
surveying4 ,but the practical  farmer   
was better satisfied when the youth     
manifested an intelligent  interest in  
the processes of draining and improving 
land2 and there is no  doubt that young 
,william profited in after-life by the  
experience1 if it  may be so called1    
which he gathered in his boyhood while  
accompanying his  relative 78old        
,william07 over his lands at ,over      
,norton4    ,whatever he saw1 was       
remembered for ever4 ,to the latest     
hours of life  he retained a clear and  
complete recollection of almost every   
event of  his boyhood and often         
interested young and old by his vivid   

pictures  of what he had seen when a    
child4 ,these notices would be swelled  
to an  unreasonable degree by           
introducing the pleasant stories of 8the
 narrative  old man20 but the following 
recollections1 written in his seventieth
  year1 of events which had passed      
fifty-six years before1 are worth       
preserving as evidence of this peculiar 
circumstantiality of memory4    8,i was 
early a tall and strong-grown boy1 and  
in my way to ,london1  between twelve   
and thirteen years of age1 ,i           
particularly noticed the  great work of 
cutting down the chalk hill at          
,henley-upon-,thames1 and how  the      
loaded carriages on an inclined plane   
were made to bring up the empty  ones4  
8,i was in ,london shortly after the    
riots of ,lord ,george ,gordon2 and at  
the time when news of ,rodney's defeat  
of the ,french fleet arrived4    8,there
 was then a halfpenny toll for          
foot-persons passing over  ,blackfriars 
,bridge2 the ,albion ,mills 7worked by  

steam power7 had just  before been burnt
 down4    8,criminals were hanged at    
,tyburn1 where there were cow-houses    
with wood  seats on top for persons to  
see the executions4    8,from           
,manchester ,square to the ,edgeware    
,road and ,paddington1 there were       
footpaths entirely across open fields4  
,the buildings on the side of the       
square were unfinished2 but1 as more    
connected with what relates to the      
earth1 ,i saw how the ground was made in
 ,manchester ,square1 for a poor        
fellow1 in turning his cartload of      
slush1 had let his horse and cart slip  
down1 so that he was up to his middle in
 mud1 endeavouring to extricate  his    
horse just as ,i passed by4 ,this was on
 the east side of the square40    ,in   
#aghc1 and from this time to #aghg1 the 
young man1 without instruction  or      
sympathy1 prosecuted irregularly1 but   
with ardour and success1 the  studies to
 which his mind was awakened4 ,he began 
to draw1 attempted  to colour1 became   

tolerably versed in the geometry and    
calculations  then thought sufficient   
for engineers and surveyors1 and by     
these  acquirements1 at the age of      
eighteen1 so strongly recommended       
himself  to ,mr4 ,edward ,webb1 of      
,stow-on-the-,wold1 who had been invited
 to make a  complete survey of the      
parish of ,churchill1 for the purpose of
 enclosure1  that he became assistant to
 that most able and excellent man1 and  
was  taken into his family4    ,this was
 the critical moment2 from this event   
flowed all the current  of his useful   
life1 and to the same origin may be     
ascribed many of the  peculiar habits   
and feelings1 the contrasted lights and 
shades1 which  diversified his          
character4    ,edward ,webb was1 like   
his pupil1 self-taught1 and very        
slightly  acquainted with languages and 
general literature1 but possessed of    
great  ingenuity and skill in mechanics1
 mensuration1 logarithms1 algebra and   
fluxions4 ,his practice as a surveyor   

included many things now conceded  to   
the engineer1 such as the determination 
of the forces of water1 and  planning   
machinery4 ,his instruments were        
commonly invented1 often made  and      
divided by himself2 peculiar            
pentagraphs1 theodolites1 scales1 and   
even compasses and field books1 of new  
construction enriched the office  at    
,stow1 and stimulated the young men who 
were fortunate enough to be  placed in  
it1 to thought and exertion4 8,i        
admired10 says the subject of  this     
memoir1 8the talent of my master1 his   
placid and ever unruffled  temper1 and  
his willingness to let me get on1 for ,i
 required no teaching40    ,speedily    
entrusted with the management of all the
 ordinary business of  a surveyor1 ,mr4 
,smith traversed1 in continual activity1
 the oolitic  lands of ,oxfordshire and 
,gloucestershire1 the lias clays and red
 marls  of ,warwickshire2 visited       
7#aghh7 the ,salperton tunnel on the    
,thames  and ,severn ,canal1 and 7#agij7

 examined the soils and circumstances   
connected with a boring for coal in the 
,new ,forest1 opposite the ,shoe        
alehouse at ,plaitford4 ,all the        
varieties of soil1 in so many surveys in
  different districts1 were particularly
 noticed1 and compared with the  general
 aspect and character of the country1   
and the agricultural and  commercial    
appropriations4 ,the arrangement of the 
lias limestone beds in  ,warwickshire   
contrasted with the neighbouring red    
marls at ,inkborough1  the boring for   
coal in some dark lias clays on the road
 to ,warwick1 the  absence of arenaceous
 beds from the limestones of            
,churchill--these were  some of the     
points treasured in a mind capable of   
combining them at a  future time4    ,in
 #agic we find him engaged in executing 
surveys and complete systems  of        
levelling1 for the line of a proposed   
canal4 ,in the course of the  operations
 which he performed in the summer and   
autumn1 a speculation  which had come   

into his mind regarding a general law   
affecting the strata  of the district1  
was submitted to proof and confirmed4   
,he had supposed  that the strata lying 
above the coal were not laid            
horizontally1 but  inclined2 that they  
were all inclined in one direction1     
viz41 the  eastward1 so as to           
successively terminate at the surface1  
and thus to  8resemble1 on a large      
scale1 the ordinary appearance of       
superposed slices  of bread and butter40
 ,this supposition was now proved to be 
correct by  the levelling processes     
executed in two parallel valleys1 for in
 each of  the levelled lines the strata 
of 8red ground10 8lias10 and 8freestone0
  7afterwards called 8oolite071 came    
down in an eastern direction and sunk   
below the level1 and yielded place to   
the next in succession4    ,but at the  
same time it was known to ,mr4 ,smith   
that the position of  the strata of coal
 in ,somersetshire was not generally    
conformed to  that of the 8red earth0   

8lias10 and other beds above2 the same  
thing  was proved to him by an          
inspection of the colliery at           
,bucklechurch1 in  ,gloucestershire2 he 
knew besides that the great faults which
 divide all  the coal strata            
underground1 were in general found not  
to divide any of  the superincumbent    
rocks which formed the surface4         
,geologists who1 at the present time1   
notwithstanding the devoted  attention  
which has been paid to the phenomena of 
local displacement1  find a difficulty  
in understanding the causes1 may imagine
 the perplexity  in the mind of a       
discoverer4 ,mr4 ,smith felt this       
perplexity severely1  but not long4 ,the
 ,canal ,bill1 on which he was engaged1 
received the  sanction of ,parliament in
 #agid2 and one of the first steps taken
 by the  judicious committee of         
management was to depute two members of 
their  body to accompany ,mr4 ,smith1   
8their engineer10 on a tour of inquiry  
and  observation regarding the          

construction1 management1 and trade of  
other  navigations in ,england and      
,wales4    ,the tour extended altogether
 nine hundred miles1 and occupied       
between  one and two months2 by one     
route the party reached ,newcastle1 and 
by  another returned1 through           
,shropshire and ,wales to ,bath4 ,mr4   
,palmer and  ,mr4 ,perkins were         
gentlemen well acquainted with          
coal-working1 and  they willingly stayed
 to inspect every new invention applied 
to canals  and collieries2 but ,mr4     
,smith's treasured object of            
consideration on  the road1 that which  
occupied all his thoughts in the        
intervals of  professional inquiries1   
was the aspect and structure of the     
country  passed through1 in order to    
determine if his preconceived           
generalizations  of a settled order of  
succession1 continuity of range at the  
surface1 and  general declination       
eastward1 were true on a large scale4   
,it is needless now to say that his     

general views were justified2 he  found 
the strata from the vicinity of ,bath   
and ,bristol prolonged into  the north  
of ,england1 in the same general order  
of succession with the  general eastward
 dip4 ,there is1 however1 one part of   
the conclusions  adopted in this rapid  
survey from a postchaise1 which merits  
particular  attention4 ,he passed       
through ,york on the high road to       
,newcastle1 and saw  at a distance of   
from five to fifteen miles to the east  
the hills of  chalk and oolite4 ,he was 
satisfied of their nature by their      
contours  and relative position1 and by 
their position on the surface in        
relation  to the lias and 8red ground0  
occasionally seen on the road4 ,this is1
 in  fact1 the only authority he could  
rely upon for drawing1 in #ahjj1 the    
continuations of the chalk of           
,wiltshire1 and the oolite of           
,somersetshire1  through the eastern    
parts of ,yorkshire1 but he drew them   
with a  considerable approximation to   

accuracy4    ,engaged for six years in  
setting out and superintending the works
 on the  ,somersetshire ,coal ,canal1   
,mr4 ,smith found but few opportunities 
of making  known to scientific persons1 
the peculiar generalizations which had  
taken possession of his mind4 ,but in   
the execution of these works he was     
putting his thoughts into practice1     
informing the contractors what would  be
 the nature of the ground to be cut     
through1 what parts of the canal  would 
require unusual care to be kept         
water-tight1 what was the most          
advantageous system of work4 ,another   
singular advantage attended this        
engagement4 ,the notions which up to    
this time he had obtained regarding  the
 distribution of organic remains were   
comparatively vague4 ,he found  peculiar
 plants in the 8clift0 above the coal1  
particular shells in the  lias and      
oolites1 but none in the red ground1 and
 he had combined these  simple facts so 
far as to see that 8each stratum had    

been successively  the bed of the sea1  
and contained in it the mineralized     
monuments of the  races of organic      
beings then in existence40 ,but it was  
the necessity of  possessing an accurate
 knowledge of the different sorts of    
rock1 sand1  and clay1 which were to be 
cut through on the line of the canal1   
which  led him to examine minutely and  
scrupulously into the distribution of   
the  8fossils0 which he had been in the 
habit of collecting4 ,the result was a  
proposition which he proved to be       
locally true1 and of practical value1   
and which has now a world-wide          
application1 8that each stratum         
contained  organized fossils peculiar to
 itself1 and might1 in cases otherwise  
doubtful1 be recognized and             
discriminated from others like it1 but  
in a  different part of the series1 by  
examination of them40 ,in other words1  
he discovered that strata are to be     
recognized by their fossils4 ,he now    
remarked also the contrast between the  

rounded state and mixed condition  of   
the fossils which lay in gravel deposits
 and the sharply preserved  specimens   
lying in natural associations in the    
strata1 and thus acquired  a notion of  
the distinction between what were       
afterwards named diluvial  and          
stratified deposits4    ,the possessor  
of all these generalizations1 now       
7#agie7 twenty-six years  of age1 was   
still shrouded in the obscure village of
 ,high ,littleton1 but  in this year he 
removed to ,bath1 and took up his abode 
in the central  house of a short range  
of buildings called the ,cottage        
,crescent1 which  occupied a picturesque
 and elevated site south of that city4  
8,from this  point10 says he1 8the eye  
roved anxiously over the interesting    
expanse  which extended before me to the
 ,sugar-loaf mountain in ,monmouthshire1
 and  embraced all in the vicinities of 
,bath and ,bristol4 ,then did a thousand
  thoughts occur to me1 respecting the  
geology of that and adjacent  districts 

continually under my eye1 which have    
never been reduced to  writing40 ,he    
continued to direct all the operations  
on the ,somerset ,coal  ,canal1 and very
 copious note-books attest the constancy
 and exactitude of  his attention to    
that occupation4 ,to this cause1 indeed1
 may be ascribed  the extreme rarity of 
any essays1 or even memoranda1 from     
which the  progress of his geological   
studies can be gathered4    ,that in    
,january1 #agif1 he had begun to commit 
his thoughts to paper1 in  a lucid      
arrangement for publication1 the written
 proofs remain4 ,in #agig  he drew a    
larger general plan for such a work2 but
 not till #agii1 after  his engagement  
ceased with the ,coal ,canal ,company1  
did he make public his  intention to    
compose a general work on the           
stratification of ,britain1 or  enter on
 the prosecution of an actual survey of 
the geological structure  of the whole  
of ,england and ,wales4    ,in the      
execution of the canal1 ,mr4 ,smith had 

found the means of applying  his newly  
acquired knowledge to useful practical  
problems1 such as how  to draw the line 
through a country full of porous rocks1 
so as best to  retain the limited       
supplies of water which frequent mills  
left to the  navigation1 where to place 
bridges on a good foundation1 how to    
intercept  and conduct the springs1 and 
where to open quarries of proper stone4 
,we  find him also engaged1 as early as 
#agif1 in the short intervals which     
could be snatched from the main business
 before him1 in putting to  practical   
proof his theoretical views of the      
earth's structure and the  properties of
 the mixed calcareous and argillaceous  
strata in the hills  near ,bath1 by a   
new and successful process of           
land-draining4    ,the earliest         
connected remarks which have been found1
 bear the date of  ,january1 #agif1 and 
relate to organic remains and their     
distribution in  the different strata4  
,the vicinity of ,bath is rich in       

fossils1 and fine  collections were     
formed there previous to ,mr4 ,smith's  
researches4 ,it  might be after         
inspecting some of these treasures1     
whose full value was  so entirely       
unknown to their owners1 that the       
following reflections1  which strikingly
 illustrate the enlarged state of his   
own views at that  period1 were         
penned3--                               
8,dunkerton1 ,swan1 ,jan4 #e1 #agif4    
8,fossils have been long studied as     
great curiosities1      collected with  
great pains1 treasured with great and at
 a      great expense1 and shown and    
admired with as much pleasure      as a 
child's hobby-horse is shown and admired
 by himself and      his playfellows1   
because it is pretty2 and this has been 
done      by thousands who have never   
paid the least regard to that           
wonderful order and regularity with     
which nature has disposed      of these 
singular productions1 and assigned to   
each class its      peculiar stratum40  

,gifted in a very uncommon degree with  
that philosophical faith in the         
generality and harmony of natural laws  
which is a characteristic of            
discoveries in natural science1 ,mr4    
,smith was at the same time remarkably  
disinclined to indulge in himself1 or   
even to tolerate in others1 mere        
speculations in geology4 ,whatever of   
this nature he found in the circle  of  
his reading1 was severely judged by a   
close collocation of the  hypothesis    
which had been advanced with the        
phenomena of stratification  which he   
had entirely established4 ,these        
judgments might be erroneous  in cases  
which required the knowledge of other   
data1 not then collected1  for a true   
and general solution2 but the very      
unreasonableness of raising  the        
standard of his own discoveries in a    
limited region1 for condemning  a       
speculation perhaps founded on other    
truths occurring elsewhere1 shows  how  
firmly these discoveries1 and the       

influences belonging to them1 were      
established and fortified in his mind4  
,the following passage1 written in      
,january1 #agif1 might have been        
acknowledged by the author to contain   
his  real opinions forty years later3-- 
8,therefore every man of prudence and   
observation who has paid the  strictest 
attention to mineralogy1 the structure  
of the earth1 and the  changes it has   
undergone1 will be very cautious how he 
sets about to  invent a system which    
nature cannot conform to without having 
recourse  to subterraneous fires1       
volcanic eruptions1 or uncommon         
convulsions1 by  which every hill and   
dale must have been formed and every    
rock must have  been rent to form those 
chasms1 which1 in comparison to the     
strata they  are found in1 are no more  
than sun-cracks in a clod of clay2 yet  
such has  been the language of ingenious
 men1 who have set their theoretical    
worlds  a-going without either tooth or 
pinion of nature's mechanism belonging  

to  them40    ,in ,october and ,november
 of this year 7#agif71 we find him      
returning to the  contemplation of      
organic remains2 discussing the         
circumstances which  attend the sparry  
substance occupying the place of the    
shell1 which has  been removed1 in the  
lias1 and the empty cavity1 where the   
shell was1  surrounding a loose stony   
cast of the interior1 in the freestone  
7oolite74    ,that his mind was now     
actively employed in tracing out the    
bearings of  the extensive subject      
before him1 will be evident from the    
following  extract1 dated ,august1      
#agig3--        8,locality of plants1   
insects1 birds1 etc41 arises from the   
nature of the strata4        8,where art
 has not diverted the order of things   
and nature is      left to herself1 a   
considerable locality may be observed in
      many animals and vegetables as    
well as mineral productions1 by         
which they evidently attached to        
particular soils to such a      degree  

that1 if this subject were studied with 
attention1 it      would form one of the
 principal external characteristics of  
the      strata underneath4 ,though it  
may seem mysterious to some1 that       
birds1 beasts1 insects1 etc41 which have
 the liberty of roving      at pleasure1
 should feel any particular attachment  
for this or      that soil1 yet the     
wonder ceases when we consider how the  
chain      of natural things is linked  
together1 and how these creatures       
are taught to cull their food from      
insects that are lodged in1      or     
seeds that are produced from1 particular
 plants that grow      upon particular  
soils40    ,smith had seen layers of    
limestone crowded with shells succeeded 
by  others containing corals4 ,he found 
ammonites and oysters in some1 and      
insect remains in others1 and his       
speculations assumed the curious phase  
of the sentences just noticed4 ,but he  
soon became aware that accident had     
much to do with the presence of certain 

organic remains in strata1 and  that1   
whilst some fossils1 like corals1 once  
lived where they are now  preserved in  
strata1 others were carried there as the
 deposit collected4    ,a manuscript1   
dated ,december #b1 #agif1 ,dunkerton1  
,swan ,inn1 headed 8,strata  in general1
 and their position10 and evidently     
intended for publication1  commences    
thus3--    8,the strata being found as  
regular on one side of a rivulet1 river1
 deep  valley or channel as on the      
other1 over an extent of many miles1    
when  proper allowance is made for the  
inclination1 and for the variation of   
the surface1 is it not reasonable to    
suppose that the same strata may be     
found as regular on one side of the sea 
or ocean as on opposite sides of  a deep
 valley upon land1 and if so1 and the   
continuation of the strata  is general1 
what is their general direction or      
drift8 ,is it in straight  lines from   
pole to pole1 or in curved lines        
surrounding the globe  regularly        

inclined to the east80    ,after hinting
 at a general cause for such an assumed 
regularity1 he adds1  8,but all theories
 are best built on practical rules1     
which will enable  any one to make such 
observations for himself as must carry  
conviction  along with them2 for a work 
so novel as this must expect to find    
some  who will hardly believe what is   
plain to be seen2 for all men do not    
see alike1 nor can patiently trudge     
through the dirt to search for truth    
among the stubborn rocks where nature   
has best displayed her4444 ,shall1      
therefore1 describe a number of         
quarries1 cliffs1 etc41 at a great      
distance1 etc4 ,see ,book----0    ,in   
what seems to be the continuation of    
this paper1 we see the  predominant     
desire of the author to establish the   
certainty and  generality of the        
inclination of strata1 which he had     
proved on a limited  scale near ,bath4  
8,if the strata lay horizontal1 every   
part of the sea-shore would present  the

 same beds at the water edge instead of 
that wonderful variety  which is found  
on the coast and banks of every river   
and rivulet in  the kingdom1 especially 
those that run in an east and west      
direction1  or nearly so4 ,in such      
situations the young mineralogist may   
soon be  convinced of that wonderful    
regularity which nature has adopted1    
especially if the shores are rocky2 he  
will there find that1 independent  of   
partial and local dips which appear in  
different quarries of the same  stone1  
the outlines1 or top and bottom layers  
of each complete stratum or  class of   
stones or earth1 considered as a mass1  
have a general tendency  towards the    
eastern horizon40    ,by the term 8dip0 
is meant the inclination that strata    
make with the  horizon4 ,mr4 ,w4 ,smith 
constantly brought forward his well     
worked out fact  that the strata of     
,england dip from west to east more or  
less4 ,the oldest  strata come to the   
surface in ,wales and the lake          

districts1 and because  they were       
upheaved the newer strata were tilted   
and curved1 and the slope  is to the    
east4    ,in ,february1 #agih1 we find  
as part of the introduction to this     
contemplated work1 an interesting notice
 of some of the steps by which  the     
author was conducted to his general     
conclusions4    8,it will be readily    
admitted by all classes of men1 from the
 most  accurate observers of nature to  
the simplest peasant1 that there is some
  degree of regularity in the strata    
from whence our building materials  are 
generally collected4 ,masons1 miners1   
and quarrymen can identify  particular  
beds of stone dug many miles apart2     
indeed1 every cliff and  quarry presents
 a true section of a great many beds of 
stone1 which may  be found of the same  
quality and in the same position in all 
or most of  the neighbouring cliffs and 
quarries4 ,and this regularity is       
nowhere more  conspicuous than in the   
lias quarries of ,somersetshire1 from   

whence these  observations first took   
their rise1 about seven years since4    
8,for the stratification of stone struck
 me1 who had not been accustomed  to    
such appearances1 as something very     
uncommon1 and till ,i had learned  the  
technical terms of the strata1 and made 
a subterraneous journey or  two1 ,i     
could not conceive a clear idea of what 
seemed so familiar to the  colliers2 but
 when these difficulties were           
surmounted1 and an intelligent  bailiff 
accompanied me1 ,i was much pleased with
 my peregrinations below1  and soon     
learnt enough of the order of the strata
 to describe on a plan  the manner of   
working the coal in the lands ,i was    
then surveying4    8,being engaged soon 
after to survey the lands and take the  
levels of  a canal that was proposed to 
be made from the collieries to ,bath1 ,i
  observed a variation of the strata on 
the same line of level1 and soon  found 
that the lias rock1 which about three   
miles back was full three  hundred feet 

above this line1 was now thirty feet    
below it1 and became  the bed of the    
river1 and in that direction did not    
appear any more at  the surface4 ,this  
induced me to note the inclination of   
the same rock1  which ,i knew was to be 
found at the head of two other valleys  
lying each  about a mile distant from1  
and in a parallel direction to1 the one 
just  described1 and accordingly found  
it to dip the same to the south-east1   
and sink under the rivers in a similar  
manner4    8,from this ,i began to      
consider that other strata might also   
have some  general inclination as well  
as this 7though ,i had been frequently  
told by the colliers that there was no  
regularity in the strata above  ground71
 yet1 by tracing them through the       
country some miles1 ,i found the        
inclination of every bed to be nearly   
the same as that of the lias2  and      
notwithstanding the partial and local   
dips of many quarries which  varied from
 this rule1 ,i was thoroughly satisfied 

by these observations  that everything  
had a general tendency to the           
south-east1 and thence  concluded there 
could be none of these beds to the      
north-west1 the truth  of which         
conjecture was soon verified by a tour  
of observation through  the northern    
parts of this kingdom40    ,in ,march1  
#agih1 ,mr4 ,smith purchased a small but
 beautiful estate1 in  a deep valley1   
within three miles of ,bath1 almost     
overgrown with wild  wood1 hiding in its
 bosom a sheet of water and a small     
mill4 ,through  this retired possession 
the canal was cut1 without greatly      
injuring its  remarkable beauty2 and1   
under ,mr4 ,smith's fond and tasteful   
attention the  scene was partly cleared1
 the pond expanded to a lake1 the       
cottage became  a comfortable home1 in  
which he passed many happy and          
thoughtful hours4  ,he did not1 however1
 at any time reside long in this        
favourite retreat1  but took up his     
station for about a year at the village 

of ,mitford1 near  ,bath1 and engaged in
 the last duties which he performed as  
resident  engineer to the ,coal ,canal4 
,owing to a misunderstanding with the   
,company1 this occupation ceased  in    
,june1 #agii1 and ,mr4 ,smith felt and  
acknowledged that a new era in  his life
 had arrived4 ,he was not only at       
liberty1 but placed under the  necessity
 to consider the best means of making   
known his geological  system1 and of    
founding upon it a professional         
practice1 which might  provide the      
expense of travelling to verify and     
extend his knowledge1 and  fill up the  
outline of a geological map of ,england 
and ,wales4    ,in these objects1 which 
were ever closely associated in his own 
mind1  he was successful2 the most      
valuable portions of his discoveries    
soon  became public property1 and he    
quickly acquired extensive employment in
  the practical applications of these   
discoveries to mineral surveying  and   
draining of land on a large scale4 ,the 

extensive diffusion of  his fame and    
opinions1 which now began1 was owing to 
no actual and  authorized publication1  
but to continual discussions and        
explorations  with several active       
friends1 oral communications and        
exhibitions of maps  at agricultural    
meetings 7then frequent71 and           
circulation of manuscript  copies of    
tabular expositions of the series of    
strata at that time  determined4    ,his
 views at this epoch appear by the      
following notice3--    8,during my five 
years' close confinement to practical   
engineering on the  ,coal ,canal1 my    
much-wished-for opportunity of          
collecting observations  enough from the
 ranges of the different strata to make 
an accurate  delineation of the         
stratification throughout ,england were 
suspended4    8,i had seen enough by my 
tour of ,august1 #agid1 to satisfy      
myself of the  practicability of doing  
it1 and often wasted much time in poring
 over  maps1 in contriving how the      

ranging edges and planes of different   
strata  could best be rendered          
intelligible3 models were thought of1   
and one  small map was cut along the    
edges of some of the strata with a view 
of  defining their extent1 and of       
showing how one stratum was successively
  covered by another4    8,i drew in    
colours1 on a map of the vicinity of    
,bath1 and on #8,day and  ,masters'     
county survey1' all that had been       
observed very accurately to  a certain  
extent1 which embraced an interesting   
but intricate variety of  strata in     
hills around ,bath2 and some small maps 
of ,england were spoiled  by speculating
 on the ranges of stratification without
 sufficient data4  ,the intricacies in  
their marginal edges were such that ,i  
found1 to mark  point by point1 as the  
facts were ascertained1 was the only way
 in which  ,i could safely proceed4     
8,my experience in what ,i had done upon
 the ,somersetshire map was  sufficient 
to convince me that to make a map of the

 strata on a scale  as large as ,cary's 
,england 7five miles to an inch71 with  
sufficient  accuracy1 much of it should 
first be drawn on a larger scale40      
,it was fortunate for ,mr4 ,smith1 and  
for the progress of his views1 that  he 
gained at this time the friendship of a 
man singularly competent to  estimate   
the truth and value of these views1 and 
both able and willing  to advocate the  
merit of their author4 ,the ,rev4       
,benjamin ,richardson was  at this time 
living in ,bath1 and possessed a choice 
collection of local  fossils1 mostly    
gathered by his own diligent hands4     
,extensively versed  in natural history1
 and generally well acquainted with the 
progress of  science1 he was perfectly  
enthusiastic in following out1 and      
liberal in  enabling others to          
prosecute1 new and ingenious researches1
 especially  if they tended to practical
 and public good4 ,he knew accurately   
the  country in which ,mr4 ,smith had   
principally worked1 and was acquainted  

with the views entertained on the       
subject of fossils1 which had been      
recorded in books1 or were adopted by   
the collectors1 who were even then      
celebrated in the vicinity of ,bath4 ,he
 had no knowledge of the laws of        
stratification and the connection       
between the forms of organic life and   
the order of superposition of the       
strata2 while1 on the other hand1 his   
new friend had very little knowledge of 
the true nature of these organic  forms1
 and their exact relation to analogous  
living types4 ,the result of  a meeting 
between two such reciprocally adjusted  
minds was an electric  combination2 the 
fossils which the one possessed were    
marshalled in the  order of strata by   
the other1 until they all found their   
appropriate  places1 and the arrangement
 of the cabinet became a true copy of   
nature4    ,that such fossils had been  
found1 in such rocks1 was immediately   
acknowledged by ,mr4 ,richardson to be  
true1 though the connection had  not    

before presented itself to his mind2 but
 when ,mr4 ,smith added the  assurance1 
that everywhere throughout this         
district1 and to considerable  distances
 around1 it was a general law that the  
8same strata were found  always in the  
same order of superposition and         
contained the same peculiar  fossils10  
his friend was both astonished and      
incredulous4 ,he immediately  acceded to
 ,mr4 ,smith's proposal for undertaking 
some field examinations  to determine   
the truth of these assertions1 and      
having interested in the  object a new  
and learned associate1 the ,rev4 ,joseph
 ,townsend 7author  of 8,travels in     
,spain071 they at once executed the     
project4 ,among other  places visited   
with this view was the detached hill on 
which ,dundry  ,church is conspicuously 
elevated4 ,from its form and position in
 respect  of the lias of ,keynsham1 ,mr4
 ,smith had inferred that this hill was 
capped  by the lowest of the ,bath      
8freestones0 7inferior oolite72 and1    

from his  general views1 he expected to 
find in that rock the fossils which the 
freestones contained near ,bath2 that is
 to say1 on the westward rise1  which he
 believed to affect all the strata near 
,bath above the coal4 ,it  is needless  
now to say1 that examination confirmed  
both the inference of  the character of 
the rock and the conformity of its      
organic contents4  ,the effect of this  
and other illustrations of the reality  
of ,mr4 ,smith's  speculations was      
decisive4 ,in general literature1 and   
especially in  natural history1 ,mr4    
,smith was immeasurably surpassed by his
 friends1  but they acknowledged that1  
from his labours in a different quarter1
 a  new light had begun to manifest     
itself in the previously dark horizon of
  geology1 and they set themselves      
earnestly to make way for its auspicious
  influence4    ,what a step was made   
from the old ideas that fossils were    
sports of  nature to the proof that     
during the long ages of the earth's     

history  every deposit of river mud1    
sea-shore sand1 and marine collection   
contained relics of its age of          
accumulation2 and that there has been a 
succession of animals and plants on the 
earth foreshadowing those that  now     
exist4    ,one day1 after dining        
together at the house of the ,rev4      
,joseph ,townsend1  it was proposed by  
one of this triumvirate1 that a tabular 
view of the  main features of the       
subject1 as it had been expounded by    
,mr4 ,smith1  and verified and enriched 
by their joint labours1 should be drawn 
up  in writing4 ,richardson held the    
pen1 and wrote down1 from ,smith's      
dictation1 the different strata         
according to their order of succession  
in  descending order1 commencing with   
the chalk1 and numbered1 in continuous  
series1 down to the coal1 below which   
the strata were not sufficiently        
determined1 according to the scheme     
already noticed4    ,to this description
 of the strata was added1 in the proper 

places1 a list  of the most remarkable  
fossils which had been gathered in the  
several  layers of rock4 ,the names of  
these fossils were principally supplied 
by ,mr4 ,richardson1 and are such as    
were then1 and for a long time          
afterwards1 familiarly employed in the  
many collections near ,bath4 ,of the    
document thus jointly arranged each     
person present took a copy1 under no    
stipulation as to the use which should  
be made of it1 and accordingly it  was  
extensively distributed1 and remained   
for a long period the type and          
authority for the descriptions and order
 of superposition of the strata  near   
,bath4    ,years rolled on1 and ,smith's
 wanderings over ,england and their     
results  were laid down by him on a map1
 which was to be published4 ,with regard
  to this map of the strata1 it may be  
said that it was very trying work  for  
the publisher as well as the author4    
,the basis of the map1 as  already      
explained1 was in many respects         

peculiar2 the colouring of it  was more 
so4 ,instead of the flat colouring      
ending in narrow defined  edges usually 
employed for maps1 ,mr4 ,smith          
introduced a peculiar style  of full    
tints for the edges of the strata1      
softened into the paler  tint employed  
for the remainder of the area which they
 occupied on the  surface4 ,this new    
style of colouring gave a picturesque   
effect to the  map1 but required more   
than usual skill and patience to be     
correctly  executed1 and occasioned     
great trouble in examining the copies4  
,the  colouring of the map was thus     
rendered more expensive than had been   
anticipated1 and notwithstanding the    
labour was well paid for1 it was not    
always at first properly performed4     
,at length the difficulties inseparable 
from such a task were so far  overcome1 
and this enormous labour was so far     
completed1 that a coloured  map of the  
strata of ,england and ,wales was       
submitted to the consideration  of the  

,society of ,arts1 supported by various 
testimonials of its general  accuracy   
and value1 in ,april and ,may1 #ahae4   
,the result was the award of  the       
premium of #ej1 which had been in vain  
offered for very many years  for a work 
of this description--a reward which ,mr4
 ,smith might have  claimed long ago1   
had not an honest desire to produce his 
work complete  withheld the attempt4    
,the map was published on the #ast of   
,august1 #ahae1  dedicated to ,sir      
,joseph ,banks1 and from that hour the  
fame of its author  as a great original 
discoverer in ,english geology was      
secured4 ,would  that this epoch of his 
revived and enlarged reputation had also
 been the  dawn of more prosperous      
fortunes1 or that1 satisfied with the   
degree  in which he had accomplished his
 gigantic task1 he had left to others   
the completion of his work1 and devoted 
himself for a time to even the  humblest
 of those professional labours by which 
he had been at least  supported through 

oppressive difficulties1 and by which he
 must have  already grown comparatively 
rich but for the incessant drain of     
money in  following up discoveries which
 no living man could reasonably hope to 
complete4    ,science1 indeed1 is a     
mistress whose golden smiles are not    
often lavished  on poor and enthusiastic
 suitors4 ,the time for a strenuous     
exertion was  indeed come4 ,geology had 
kept him poor by consuming all his      
professional  gains2 the neglect of his 
employers too often left these unpaid2  
in  such a condition one unfortunate    
step was ruin1 and that step was  made4 
,on the property which he had purchased 
near ,bath1 and which he  had greatly   
improved1 he was tempted to lay a       
railway for bringing the  freestone of  
,comb down to the ,coal ,canal1 to open 
new quarries of this  stone1 and to     
establish new machinery for cutting and 
shaping it for  buildings4 ,the project1
 which looked well at first1 failed     
utterly by  the unexpected deficiency of

 the stone1 on whose good quality the   
whole  success depended4 ,the           
abandonment of this cherished scheme was
 followed  by the compulsory sale of the
 still more cherished property1 a load  
of  debt remained to be discharged1 and 
the miserable effects fell heavily on   
others besides himself4 ,but there were 
not wanting persons of station1         
knowledge1 and humanity1 who1 esteeming 
,mr4 ,smith and admiring his  solitary  
and ceaseless industry1 exerted         
themselves to save him from the  sad    
fate which seemed to await him4    ,such
 things are common in the lives of men1 
but they are not often  encountered by  
so resolved and patient a spirit as that
 of ,mr4 ,smith4 ,one  who saw the      
struggle may boldly say this1 because   
there can be no other  motive for       
mentioning private and personal griefs  
but to show forth the  character of the 
mind which could firmly bear and        
overcome them4 ,as a  mean of reducing  
his difficulties he proposed to sell    

that geological  collection which had   
been so much prized1 and through the    
assistance of  some friends a           
communication was opened with the       
,treasury4 ,two gentlemen  being deputed
 to examine the collection1 reported    
favourably1 and their  lordships were   
pleased to authorize the purchase1 in   
order that the  specimens might be      
fitted up in the ,british ,museum4      
,there was also some  defined notion of 
engaging ,mr4 ,smith's services at the  
museum to take  charge of and explain   
the geological principles which this    
collection  was intended to illustrate2 
but this project came to nothing4    ,in
 the winter of #ahah-ai1 ,mr4 ,smith    
revisited1 after an absence of ten      
years1 his native village1 re-examined  
the unforgotten localities where  in    
childhood his 8pundibs0 and             
8poundstones0 were gathered1 and        
collected  8marlstone0 fossils from an  
excavation at ,churchill ,mill1 nearly  
at the  same points where he had noticed

 them in #aghg4 ,in one whose life had  
been  one long wandering1 and who had   
earned for himself an immortal name1    
this return to the haunts of his        
childhood and the simplicity of village 
occupations1 must have excited many     
interesting reflections4 ,he had sold   
his patrimony1 and what had been the    
modest dwelling of his ancestors  for   
two hundred years2 he had disbursed in  
travelling for what he deemed  a public 
object all that he had earned2 while one
 of his two brothers1  quietly          
prosecuting trade in his native village1
 had grown a rich and  prosperous man4  
,in the autumn of #ahai ,mr4 ,smith gave
 up his house in ,london1 after  fifteen
 years' occupation1 and was compelled to
 submit to the sale of  his furniture1  
collections1 and books1 preserving in   
fact1 only his  papers1 maps1 sections  
and other drawings1 through the kindness
 of a most  faithful friend4 ,while this
 happened1 he was in ,yorkshire busily  
engaged1  apparently oblivious1 perhaps 

sternly regardless1 of what seemed to   
others an insupportable misfortune4 ,he 
deemed it an inevitable corollary  to   
his irretrievable losses in the unlucky 
speculation already mentioned  near     
,bath1 and armed himself with what      
seemed more than fortitude to meet  it4 
,one more used to monetary arrangements 
would have foreseen and averted  this   
occurrence2 but on the practical        
geologist the blow fell with  stunning  
effect4 ,he surrendered with deep regret
 his interest in the  much-loved and    
really valuable little property near    
,bath1 quitted ,london1  and consented  
to have no home4 ,from this time for    
seven years he became  a wanderer in the
 north of ,england1 rarely visiting     
,london1 except when  drawn thither by  
the professional engagements which      
still1 even in  his loneliest           
retirements1 were pressed upon him1 and 
yielded him an  irregular1 contracted1  
and fluctuating income4    ,in the      
winter of #ahai-bj1 ,mr4 ,smith1 having 

perhaps more than usual  leisure1       
undertook to walk from ,lincolnshire    
into ,oxfordshire4 ,the object  proposed
 was to pass along a particular line    
through the counties of  ,rutland1      
,northampton1 ,bedford1 and ,oxford1 but
 the ultimate destination  was ,swindon1
 in ,wiltshire4    8,leaving the great  
road at ,colsterworth1 with some        
reflections on the  birthplace of       
,newton1#e we crossed in a day's easy   
walk1 the little  county of ,rutland1   
its hills of oolite and sand1 its slopes
 of upper  lias1 and its valleys often  
showing marlstone1 and reached the      
obscure  village of ,gretton1 on the    
edge of ,rockingham ,forest4 ,whatever  
may now  be the accommodations at this  
village1 they were very wretched in     
#ahai  7,december71 but the odd stories 
of supernatural beings and incredible   
frights which were narrated by the      
villagers assembled at the little inn1  
greatly amused ,mr4 ,smith1 and reminded
 him of exactly parallel tales  which   

circulated around ,whichwood ,forest in 
his boyhood4    8,the next morning we   
walked to ,kettering1 noticing on the   
road the  peculiar characters of the    
,northamptonshire oolite4 ,in this walk 
,mr4  ,smith had somehow sprained or    
over-fatigued himself1 and he chose to  
proceed to ,wellingborough in a chaise4 
,from this point1 situated on sand  of  
the oolite series1 we resumed our       
geological proceedings on foot1  and    
passing by ,irchester1 ,woolaston1 and  
,boziate1 traversed in the next  hills  
the oolite1 the forest marble1 the      
cornbrash1 and an outlier of            
,kelloway's rock4 ,the road up ,boziate 
,hill was mantled with fossiliferous    
stone1 some of which1 obtained from the 
hill-top1 was believed to be            
,kelloway's rock1 and was found to      
contain ,ammonites sublvis and other    
fossils4 ,a fine specimen of this       
ammonite was here laid by a particular  
tree on the road side1 as it was large  
and inconvenient for the pocket1        

according to a custom often observed by 
,mr4 ,smith1 whose memory for           
localities was so exact1 that he has    
often1 after many years1 gone direct  to
 some hoard of this nature1 to recover  
his fossils4 ,this road1 however1  over 
,boziate ,hill1 he was not to travel    
again4    8,from ,olney to ,buckingham  
the route was performed in chaise4 ,the 
stone  dug here in clay attracted much  
attention1 and ,mr4 ,smith doubted      
whether  to rank it as forest marble or 
cornbrash4 ,we now crossed the oolitic  
country to ,aynhoe1 celebrated for its  
fossils1 on foot2 next day  continued   
the walk to ,deddington1 ,chapelhouse1  
and ,churchill1 and after  a few days   
walked to ,burford1 and then travelled  
in the ordinary way  to ,swindon1       
,oxford1 and ,london4 ,in passing       
through ,oxford1 ,mr4 ,smith1  for the  
first time in his life1 had the pleasure
 of seeing ,professor  ,buckland1 at the
 house of ,mr4 ,bliss1 the bookseller1  
with whom he walked  over ,shotover     

,hill1 on his way toward ,london40      
,this little tour is thus briefly       
narrated1 because it appears in all     
respects a fair example of the usual way
 in which ,mr4 ,smith explored  the     
country1 walking when the object he had 
in view required this mode  of          
examination1 travelling as fast as      
possible in all other cases1 but  always
 recording in note-books or on maps1 the
 observations he made4    ,up in the    
north of ,england on the east coast     
,smith loved to wander  beneath the     
cliffs1 noting the minutest variations  
in the stratification1  detecting the   
slightest marks of dislocation1 watching
 the peculiarities  of the sea's action 
on materials of unlike qualities1 and   
inferring the  causes which had         
anciently modified the outline of the   
land1 and covered  the low cliffs of the
 oolitic series with fragments of the   
lias from  ,whitby1 of the coal and     
limestone from ,teesdale or ,swaledale1 
and of the  granite and syenite from the

 ,shap ,fells and ,carrock ,pike4 ,in   
numerous  papers dedicated to the local 
geology of ,scarborough1 his reflections
  on these subjects are recorded2 his   
exertions in examining one curious  case
 of dislocation on the north side of the
 ,castle ,hill1 brought on  rheumatic1  
or rather a paralytic affection of the  
muscles of the lower  extremities1 which
 bound him a prisoner in bed in the     
early part of #ahbe4    ,previous to    
this accident1 he had taken part in a   
course of lectures to  the ,literary and
 ,philosophical ,society of ,hull2 after
 it had occurred1  and before its       
effects were removed1 while yet he was  
incapable of  walking1 and was actually 
lifted into the carriage which took him 
away1  he accepted and executed a       
similar engagement proposed by the      
,literary  and ,philosophical ,society  
of ,sheffield4 ,it was a singular       
spectacle1  to witness the delivery of  
lectures which required continual       
reference  to large maps and numerous   

diagrams1 by a man who could not stand1 
but  was forced to read his address from
 a chair1 to an audience of several     
hundred persons in a room not very well 
adapted for the voice4 ,but it  was far 
more extraordinary to witness during all
 the severity of the  disorder1 the     
unpretending patience and fortitude of  
the sufferer1 who1  had he then         
permitted his mind to dwell too         
curiously on the state of  his health   
and the state of his finances1 might    
have added the bitter  foretaste of want
 and privation to the actual difficulty 
of the moment4  ,such reflections and   
such anticipations might sadden the     
hearts of those  who surrounded him1 but
 ,mr4 ,smith would have thought it      
unworthy of his  resolved mind and firm 
trust in ,providence1 to have abated one
 jot of his  accustomed cheerfulness1   
shortened one of the innumerable playful
 stories  which were always springing to
 his lips from the rich treasure-house  
of  his memory1 or turned his           

meditations from his favourite subjects4
    ,at ,sheffield1 while slowly        
recovering the use of his limbs1 he     
busied  himself in arranging a body of  
information which he had gathered       
concerning the neighbouring coal        
districts2 and on removing soon         
afterwards to his old quarters at       
,doncaster1 he worked much on the large 
8,old ,survey of ,yorkshire10 thinking  
to complete the colouring of it4 ,by    
degrees he recovered entirely from his  
painful disorder1 and from this  year   
7#ahbe7 to #ahci1 nothing of the kind   
ever affected him again4    ,but these  
years were fruitful of events           
interesting to the friends of  ,william 
,smith4 ,in ,february1 #ahca1 the       
,council of the ,geological ,society  of
 ,london honoured him by awarding to him
 the first ,wollaston medal2 and  the   
terms with which the gift was           
accompanied render this act on the part 
of the society and the president        
extremely memorable4 ,dr4 ,wollaston's  

services to physical science were well  
known and duly honoured in his          
lifetime2 geology has felt1 and will    
long feel the benefit of his dying      
bequest4 ,he invested one thousand      
pounds in the three per cent4 ,reduced  
,bank ,annuities1 in the joint names of 
himself and the ,geological ,society1   
and directed that after his decease1    
8the society should apply the  dividends
 in promoting researches concerning the 
mineral structure of the  earth1 or in  
rewarding those by whom such researches 
should hereafter  be made2 or in such   
manner as should appear to the ,council 
of the said  society for the time being1
 conducive to the interests of the      
society  in particular1 or the science  
of geology in general40 ,he afterwards  
enjoined the society 8not to hoard the  
dividends parsimoniously1 but to  expend
 them liberally1 and1 as far as might   
be1 annually1 in furthering  the objects
 of the trust40 ,the first year's income
 from this fund was  appropriated to the

 acquisition of a die for a medal       
bearing the head of  ,dr4 ,wollaston1   
and this having been undertaken by ,mr4 
,wyon1 the society  was prepared in     
#ahca to fulfil the trust with which    
they were charged4  ,the council        
accordingly passed unanimously the      
following resolutions1  ,jan4 #aa1      
#ahca3--    8#a4 ,that a medal of fine  
gold1 bearing the impress of the head of
 ,dr4  ,wollaston1 and not exceeding the
 value of ten guineas1 be procured with 
the least possible delay4    8#b4 ,that 
the first ,wollaston medal be given to  
,mr4 ,william ,smith1 in  consideration 
of his being a great original discoverer
 in ,english  geology2 and especially   
for his having been the first1 in this  
country1  to discover and to teach the  
identification of strata1 and to        
determine  their succession by means of 
their imbedded fossils40    ,the        
announcement of this award was made by a
 congenial spirit4 ,the chair  of the   
,geological ,society was then filled by 

one of its most honoured  members1 an   
original thinker and faithful observer1 
well qualified  to appreciate the       
originality of ,mr4 ,smith's            
discoveries1 and well  acquainted by    
actual research with their extent and   
their value4 ,in his  address on this   
occasion1 ,professor ,sedgwick1 speaking
 in the name of  the ,geological        
,society1 sketched a brief but          
satisfactory history of  ,mr4 ,smith's  
career1 demonstrated the entire justice 
of the award of the  ,council of the    
,geological ,society1 and added his     
personal testimony in  favour of ,mr4   
,smith's claims in terms of no ordinary 
value4    8,i for one can speak with    
gratitude of the practical lessons ,i   
have  received from ,mr4 ,smith4 ,it was
 by tracking his footsteps1 with his    
maps  in my hand1 through ,wiltshire and
 the neighbouring counties1 where he had
  trodden nearly thirty years before1   
that ,i first learned the subdivisions  
of our oolitic series1 and apprehended  

the meaning of those arbitrary and      
somewhat uncouth terms1 which we derive 
from him as our master1 which  have long
 become engrafted into the conventional 
language of ,english  geologists1 and   
through their influence have been1 in   
part1 also adopted  by the naturalists  
of the continent4    8,after such a     
statement1 gentlemen1 ,i have a right to
 speak boldly1 and  to demand your      
approbation of the council's award4 ,i  
could almost dare  to wish that stern   
lover of truth1 to whose bounty we owe  
the 8,donation  ,fund10 that dark eye1  
before the glance of which all false    
pretensions  withered1 were once more   
amongst us4 ,and if it be denied us to  
hope that  a spirit like that of        
,wollaston should often be embodied on  
the earth1 ,i  would appeal to those    
intelligent men who form the strength   
and ornament  of this society1 whether  
there was any place for doubt or        
hesitation8  whether we were not        
compelled1 by every motive which the    

judgment can  approve and the heart can 
sanction1 to perform this act of filial 
duty1  before we thought of the claims  
of any other man1 and to place our first
  honour on the brow of the father of   
,english geology8    8,if1 in the pride 
of our present strength1 we were        
disposed to forget  our origin1 our very
 speech bewrays us3 for we use the      
language which he  taught us in the     
infancy of our science4 ,if we1 by our  
united efforts1  are chiselling the     
ornaments and slowly raising up the     
pinnacles of one  of the temples of     
nature1 it was he who gave the plan1 and
 laid the  foundations1 and erected a   
portion of the solid walls by the       
unassisted  labour of his hands4        
8,the men who have led the way in useful
 discoveries1 have ever held the  first 
place of honour in the estimation of all
 who in after times have  understood    
their works or trodden in their steps4  
,it is upon this abiding  principle that
 we have acted2 and in awarding our     

first prize to ,mr4  ,smith1 we believe 
that we have done honour to our own     
body1 and are  sanctioned by the highest
 feelings which bind societies together4
    8,i think it a high privilege to    
fill this chair on an occasion when we  
met1 not coldly to deliberate on the    
balance of conflicting claims1 in       
which1 after all1 we might go wrong1 and
 give the prize to one man by  injustice
 to another2 but to perform a sacred    
duty1 where there is no  room for doubt 
or error1 and to perform an act of      
public gratitude1 in  which the judgment
 and the feelings are united40#f    ,on 
this occasion ,mr4 ,smith presented to  
the society the original ,table of      
,stratification drawn in #agii1 and a   
circle-map of the vicinity of ,bath1    
which had been geologically coloured    
about the same period4    ,the ,british 
,association1 founded at ,york in #ahca1
 held its second meeting  at ,oxford in 
,june1 #ahcb2 and on this occasion the  
,wollaston ,medal1  awarded in the      

previous year1 was put in ,mr4 ,smith's 
possession2 and he  was further         
gratified by the announcement that a    
pension of one hundred  pounds1         
solicited by the united voice of        
,english geologists1 had been  assigned 
him by the ,government of ,his ,majesty 
,william the ,fourth4    ,the meeting of
 the ,british ,association was this year
 7#ahci7 appointed to  be held at       
,birmingham1 on the #bfth of ,august1   
and ,mr4 ,smith received  from ,mr4     
,joseph ,hodgson 7one of the secretaries
 of the meeting7 a special  and very    
cordial invitation to be present4 ,he   
stopped on his journey to  ,birmingham1 
at the house of friends at ,northampton4
 ,here the kindest  welcome awaited him2
 and in addition to the pleasure of     
contemplating the  beautiful series of  
,northamptonshire fossils which had been
 collected1 he  was gratified by several
 excursions into the neighbouring       
country1 which  had always been         
interesting to him since1 in earlier    

days1 he had opened  the curious volume 
of ,morton's 8,northamptonshire40 ,while
 thus tracing the  boundaries of the    
minor divisions of the oolitic rocks    
which he had been  the first to         
distinguish1 a slight cold by which he  
was affected seemed  to the eyes of his 
friends1 to deserve more attention than 
he bestowed on  it2 medical assistance  
became immediately advisable4 ,william  
,smith had  for many years been         
successful in guarding his own usually  
robust health1  and he was slow and     
reluctant to admit of advice better     
suited to the  disorder which now       
attacked him1 and which on a former     
occasion had so  prostrated his strength
 that he recovered with difficulty4 ,he 
began to  feel the attack serious1 and  
to perceive the alarm in the faces of   
his  friends4    ,it was difficult to   
believe1 that under that calm1          
thoughtful1 and  pleased expression of  
countenance1 those animated descriptions
 of the  country which he had visited a 

few days previously1 those plans of     
further and strenuous exertion1 which   
asked years of active life for          
completion1 lurked pain and fatal       
disease4 ,at first it seemed as if the  
remedies applied were producing         
beneficial effects1 but this hope       
failed2  the uncomplaining sufferer sank
 continually in each succeeding hour1   
till  his eyes lost their bright and    
kindly light and the ever-varying       
features  became fixed in serene and    
awful tranquility 7,aug4 #bh1 #ahci74   
,his life1 written by his distinguished 
relation the late ,professor ,john      
,phillips1 ,f4,r4,s4 of ,oxford1 has    
been the source of these pages4 ,william
  ,smith's portrait hangs in the most   
distinguished position1 over the        
president's chair at the ,geological    
,society of ,london4 ,he was a great    
genius1 and suffered much toil and      
poverty1 in order to produce the  truth2
 but he led a very happy life on the    
whole for his thoughts about  nature    

were his great and good riches4 ,he     
proved that there is a regular          
succession of strata which are          
characterized by their fossils1 each    
stratum being the burial ground of its  
time of collection4                     
,illustration          ,,chapter ,,xii4 
,,the ,,life ,,of ,,murchison4          
,the older rocks of the globe studied   
accurately and      surveyed--,the      
general similarity of the succession of 
strata      in many parts of the world  
decided--,the geology of ,wales and     
,scotland described--,the commencement  
of accurate geological      surveys4    
,roderick ,impey ,murchison was the     
descendant of a very old ,rossshire     
family1 who were great supporters of the
 ,stuarts in the wild western  country  
of the north of ,scotland4 ,his         
great-grandfather fell at  ,sheriffmuir1
 and his grandfather1 a tenant farmer1  
had to struggle with  slender means     
during a long life4 ,but long before    
this fine old man died1  at the age of  

ninety-nine1 he saw the fortunes of his 
family retrieved by  his eldest son1    
whom he outlived4    ,this son1         
,roderick ,impey ,murchison's father1   
was born in #agea1 and1  thanks to the  
cheap and good education which was to be
 got at ,edinburgh  and ,glasgow1 he    
became a surgeon4 ,passing the          
examination at the ,royal  ,college of  
,surgeons in ,england1 the young man was
 sent out to ,india1 and  living at     
,lucknow for seventeen years1 made a    
fortune4 ,he came home to  the old      
country1 and bought the estate of       
,tarradale1 in the eastern part  of     
,ross1 kept up the old ,highland        
customs1 and made himself useful as  a  
medical man when aid was required4 ,he  
married1 in #agia1 the daughter  of     
,mackenzie1 of ,fairburn1 lineal        
representative of the ,rory ,more1 or   
,big ,roderick ,mackenzie1 to whom the  
estates had been granted by ,james  ,v4 
,their younger son1 ,roderick ,impey was
 born in ,february1 #agib1 and  was     

reared by the 8sonsie0 miller's wife of 
,tarradale1 who hushed him  to sleep    
with gaelic lullabies1 and gave him an  
occasional taste of  the famous whiskey 
distilled on the adjacent lands of      
,ferrintosh4 ,but  the father got       
delicate and moved to the south1        
carrying with him his  household4 ,on   
the way an end nearly came to the future
 geologist1 for  his father1 wishing to 
make the boy 8stand fire10 presented    
what was  thought an empty pistol at    
him4 ,the mother snatched the child     
away1 and  instantly a charge of shot   
rattled through the window4 ,the father 
died  when ,murchison was only four     
years of age1 and the boy wrote in after
  years his sad memory of the last of   
his father3 8,the opening of the red    
damask curtains of the lofty            
old-fashioned bed1 the last kiss of my  
dying  parent1 and the form of the      
old-fashioned edifice to which the      
invalid  had been removed1 have been    
stereotyped in my mind40 ,the father was

  an accomplished gentleman1 and the    
mother a young and attractive lady4  ,a 
second marriage gave ,murchison a good  
step-father in ,colonel ,robert         
,macgregor ,murray1 a friend of the     
deceased2 but home life was broken up   
when the colonel was ordered off to     
,ireland during the rebellion4 ,so      
,murchison was sent to the ,durham      
,grammar ,school in #agii4 ,he had a    
bitter  parting from his mother and from
 ,sally1 the ,devonshire lass1 who gave 
him  his ,english accent1 which he      
retained through life4 ,six years were  
passed  at school1 and he was as full of
 mischief as most boys2 picking up at   
the  same time some of the so-called    
rudiments of learning4    ,he was       
ringleader in most of the exploits of   
the school1 and during the  holidays led
 a very active life with the assistance 
of his pony and  terrier4 ,one day his  
uncle told him that in due time he would
 make a good  soldier1 and from that day
 ,murchison read of nothing but military

 heroes4    ,at the early age of        
thirteen he was sent to the military    
college at ,great  ,marlow1 and1 after  
one pluck1 was admitted as cadet4 ,there
 he became  conspicuous as a daring     
leader of fun and frolic1 and as a      
moderate  student2 nevertheless he was  
great at drill4 ,a gift which decided in
  after years much of his success was   
fostered at ,great ,marlow4 ,his        
exercises in military drawing led to the
 future rapidity and correctness  of his
 8eye0 for 8country0 in geological      
surveying4    ,at fifteen years of age  
,murchison was gazetted as an ensign in 
the #cfth  regiment1 and at ,edinburgh  
he took lessons in ,french1 ,italian1   
,german1  and mathematics4 ,he learned  
to ride and fence1 and went in for      
debating4  ,so having1 as he said1 done 
so much in the way of having a good     
opinion  of himself1 he was ordered to  
join his regiment at ,cork in the winter
  of #ahjg-h4 ,he was wonderfully       
surprised to find the officers anything 

but dandies1 and1 in fact1 true old     
soldiers1 quiet1 well disciplined  and  
associated with a first-rate fighting   
regiment4 ,his chief1 ,colonel  ,burne1 
was a cool and gallant officer1 and a   
favourite of ,sir ,arthur  ,wellesley's4
 ,in #ahjh the regiment was prepared for
 service in ,south  ,america1 and was   
suddenly ordered to ,portugal1 and on   
,august #ast he  landed1 and saw the    
future ,wellington put his foot on      
,portuguese soil1  followed by his      
aide-de-camp1 the future ,lord ,raglan4 
,a battle was soon to be fought1 and at 
,vimiera4    ,professor ,geikie's       
charming 8,life of ,murchison10 from    
which this  little history is compiled1 
gives the following graphic description 
of  ,murchison's first fight1 at        
,vimiera3--    8,to return to our own   
part of the battle1 i4e41 to our left   
wing1  the fire of the enemy soon became
 very hot1 and even though the #cfth    
were lying on their breasts under the   
brow1 our men were getting pretty  much 

hit1 whilst the regiment in our rear1   
the #hbnd1 which at that time  could not
 fire a shot1 suffered more than we did4
 ,general ,spencer1 who  commanded the  
division1 when moving about to regulate 
the general  movements1 was hit by a    
ball in the hand1 and ,i saw him wrap   
his  handkerchief round it1 and heard   
him say1 #8,it is only a scratch6' ,soon
  after the light infantry in our front 
closed files and fell in2 our guns  we  
pulled back1 and then came the struggle4
 ,general ,ferguson waving his  hat1 up 
we rose1 old ,burne 7our colonel7 crying
 out1 as he shook his  yellow cane1 that
 he would knock down any man who fired a
 shot4    8,this made some merriment    
among the men1 as tumbling over was the 
fashion  without the application of     
their colonel's cane4 8,charge10 was the
 word1  and at once we went over the    
brow with a steady line of glittering   
steel1  and with a hearty hurrah1       
against six regiments in close column1  
with six  pieces of artillery1 just in  

front of the #cfth4 ,but not an instant 
did  the enemy stand against this most  
unexpected sally within pistol shot4    
,off they went1 and all their guns were 
instantly taken1 horses and all1  and   
then left in our rear1 whilst we went on
 chasing the runaways for  a mile and a 
half1 as hard as we could go1 over the  
moor of ,tourinho4  ,they rallied1 it is
 true1 once or twice1 particularly      
behind some thick  prickly-pear hedges  
and a hut or two on the flat table-land2
 but although  their brave ,general     
,solignac was always cantering to their 
front1 and  animating them against us1  
they at last fled precipitately1 until  
they  reached a small hamlet1 where1    
however1 they did make a tolerable      
stand4    8,here it was that ,sir       
,arthur ,wellesley overtook us after a  
smart gallop4  ,he had witnessed from a 
distance our steady and successful      
charge1 and  our capture of the guns1   
and he now saw how we were thrusting the
 ,french  out of this hamlet4 ,through  

the sound of the musketry1 and in the   
midst  of much confusion1 ,i heard a    
shrill voice calling out1 #8,where are  
the  colours of the #cfth8' and ,i      
turned round 7my brother ensign1 poor   
,peter  ,bone1 having just been knocked 
down71 and looking up into ,sir         
,arthur's  bright and confident face    
said1 #8,here they are1 sir4' ,then he  
shouted1  #8,very well done1 my boys6   
,halt1 halt--quite enough4'    8,the    
,french were now at their last run1 in  
spite of every effort of  ,solignac to  
rally them4 ,several of our             
bloody-minded old soldiers said in      
levelling1 #8they would bring down the  
---- on the white horse1' and sure      
enough the gallant fellow fell1 just as 
the #gast ,highlanders1 who were  on our
 left1 being moved round en potence1    
charged down the hill1 with  their      
wounded piper playing1 sitting on the   
ground1 and completed the  rout of the  
enemy1 taking ,general ,solignac of     
course prisoner40    ,subsequently      

,murchison's regiment joined the        
expedition of ,sir ,john  ,moore1 and   
participated in the disastrous retreat  
upon ,corunna4  8,murchison 7writes     
,professor ,geikie7 suffered much1      
although he was  strong and in good     
health1 from the excessive fatigue4 ,on 
one occasion1  after a fruitless        
midnight march against the enemy1 who   
was supposed to  be advancing to the    
attack1 ,murchison1 commanding that     
night an outlying  picquet1 threw       
himself into a corner of a farmer's     
yard1 and soon fell  asleep4 ,day had   
scarcely broken when the cry of         
#8,picquet1 turn out6'  roused him from 
his rest1 but not in time to escape the 
notice of the  vigilant ,colonel ,packe1
 who1 however1 allowed him to escape    
with a severe  reprimand4 ,but after the
 halt at ,tugo1 when having vainly      
offered battle  to the ,french1 the     
,british army retreated by a forced     
march to ,corunna1  the young lieutenant
 fairly broke down4 ,the mule1 which had

 hitherto  carried himself or his kit1  
was lost2 his old soldier servant had   
gone  back to seek among the snow for   
his wife and child40 ,of this sad time  
he has preserved the following          
recollections3--8,never shall ,i forget 
the  night which followed the abandoning
 of our position in front of ,tugo4  ,we
 marched through that city at dusk1 and 
then blew up the bridge1  which was to  
check for awhile our foe4 ,in darkness1 
with no food1 and  after sleepless      
nights1 with worn-out shoes1 and        
thoroughly disgusted  with always       
running off and not fighting1 this army 
now fell into utter  disorder4 ,starved 
as they were1 the men soon became       
reckless1 and all the  regiments got    
mixed together2 in short1 the soldiers  
were desperate1 in  spite of the        
exertions of the few mounted officers4  
,for my own part1 ,i  walked on1 usually
 in my sleep1 with the grumbling and    
tumultuous mass1  until awakened by the 
loss of my boots in one of the numerous 

deep cuts  across the roads1 which were 
like quagmires1 so that with my bare    
feet ,i  had some twenty miles still to 
march4 ,many of the soldiers got away   
from  the road to right and left4       
,marching all that dreadful night my    
young  frame at last gave way1 the more 
so as ,i was barefoot1 cold1 and        
starved1  and already the great body of 
troops had got ahead of me4 ,in short1  
,i  was now one of a huge arrear of     
stragglers when day broke and the little
  hamlet was in sight4    8,seated on a 
bank on the side of the road1 and       
munching a raw turnip  which ,i had     
gathered from the adjacent field1 and   
just as ,i was feeling  that ,i never   
could regain my regiment and must be    
taken a prisoner1 a  black-eyed drummer 
of the #ifth came from the village1     
whither the young  fellow had been to   
cater4 ,seeing ,i was exhausted1 and    
almost as young as  myself1 and not yet 
a hardened old soldier1 he slipped round
 his canteen1  which he had contrived to

 fill with red wine1 and gave me a      
hearty drink4  ,he thus saved me from   
being taken prisoner by the ,french1 who
 were  rapidly advancing1 and who1 if   
they had had a regiment of cavalry in   
pursuit1 might at that moment have taken
 prisoners1 or driven into the          
mountains1 a good third of the ,british 
forces4    8,with the draught of wine ,i
 trudged on again1 and came in1 at      
eleven  o'clock of the #ajth1 into the  
town of ,betanzos1 and rejoined my      
regiment1  which had marched in about   
fifty men only1 with the colours1 though
 ere  night it was made up to its       
strength of six hundred and odd men4    
,this  fact alone shows better than a   
world of other evidence1 what forced    
night-marches with a starving and       
retreating army must infallibly         
produce4 ,at ,tugo the #cfth regiment   
was fit to fight anything2 in two days  
it was a rabble4    8,happily for me ,i 
tumbled into a shoemaker's house4 ,his  
handsome young  wife washed my feet with

 warm water1 and furnished me with      
stockings1  while her husband came to my
 further aid with shoes4 ,but my swollen
 feet  had no time to recover4 ,on the  
following day the whole army1 such as it
  was1 passed over the river1 blowing up
 the bridge and taking up its last      
position4    8,there1 remnant as it was1
 the army formed a respectable          
line--,corunna  within two miles of us1 
and our fleet ready to back us4         
,provisions and  shoes were served out  
to us1 and with such luxuries the       
bivouac1 even  in the month of ,january1
 was well borne4 ,in truth1 the army got
 into  comparative good spirits1 and on 
the #aeth the ,french crossed the last  
bridge we had blown up1 and were        
defiling at a respectable distance      
along our front4 ,we were quite         
refreshed1 and ready to repel them4 ,the
  picquets1 indeed1 of our 7,hope's7    
division had a sharp encounter in that  
evening1 and when looking through the   
colonel's glass1 ,i saw ,colonel        

,mackenzie1 of the #eth regiment1 fall  
dead from his grey horse whilst  leading
 an attack on two of the enemy's guns4  
8,on the #afth1 just after our frugal   
repast1 and whilst leaning over one  of 
the walls where we lay1 my old colonel1 
after looking some time with  his glass1
 suddenly exclaimed to me1 #8,now1 my   
boy1 they're coming on2'  and when ,i   
took a peep to the hills beyond on the  
right and south-west1 ,i  perceived the 
glitter of columns coming out of a wood4
 ,scarcely had the  colonel given the   
word to fall in1 when a tremendous fire 
opened from a  battery of seventeen to  
twenty pieces1 under cover of which the 
enemy  was rolling down in dense columns
 from the wooded hills upon our poor    
fellows1 who were in a hollow with their
 arms piled1 like our own1 until  they  
were assaulted4    8,for our cavalry was
 extinct1 as the horses and men1 as well
 as most  of our artillery1 were        
embarked on the #acth and #adth2 yet    
never since  ,englishmen fought was     

there a more gallant fight than was made
 by the  #dth1 #dbnd1 and #ejth         
regiments 7,lord ,w4 ,bentinck's        
brigade71 who rushed  on with the       
bayonet1 and1 supported by guards1 held 
their own against a  terrific           
superiority1 until ,general ,paget was  
ordered to move his brigade  towards the
 enemy's flank1 and compelled them to   
withdraw2 not1 however1  before poor    
,moore1 galloping out from the town1    
fell while encouraging  the troops1 and 
,baird1 who marched his division out of 
the town1 had lost  his arm4 ,my own    
brigade had much less to do1 our front  
line and picquets  being alone engaged4 
8,as night fell1 and after the firing   
had ceased1 the enemy having  returned  
to his own ground1 we received the order
 to march into ,corunna  and embark4    
,our fires were left burning to deceive 
the enemy1 and make  him believe that he
 must fight us again next morning if he 
hoped to beat  us4    8,silently and    
regularly we moved on this our last     

short night-march in  the dark1 tranquil
 night of the #afth1 and1 passing       
through the gates1  reached the quay4   
,the names of our respective transports 
had previously  been explained to us1 my
 own being the brig ,reward1 which ,i   
found to  be from ,sunderland4 ,i was on
 deck as light dawned1 and then at once 
saw  the danger of the position of this 
miserable little transport1 as well  as 
of a dozen or more of the same craft4   
,they had been foolishly allowed  to    
anchor immediately under the tongue of  
high land which forms the  eastern side 
of the harbour1 and on which there were 
no land defences4  ,knowing that this   
ground was only a continuation of the   
hilly track on  which my division had   
marched a few hours before1 and being   
certain that  the ,french would with the
 peep of day pass over our old bivouac  
to this  promontory1 ,i at once urged   
our skipper to get up his anchor        
betimes4 ,but  the grog had1 ,i suppose1
 been strong that night4 ,he exclaimed1 

#8,why1 ,i  tell you1 the brave         
,highlanders are there2 they have not   
come away like  you folks4' ,scarcely   
had he spoken when a battery of         
field-pieces opened  their fire and sent
 some balls through our rigging4        
,turning pale as death  under the fire  
of these mere field-pieces1 and seeing  
that his crew were  ready to run below1 
he applied the axe to the cable1 and in 
a few minutes  we were drifting away as 
we best could4 ,the wind being from the 
east1 we  were fast approaching the     
rocks on which the ,castle of ,antonio  
stands1  and on which at least five     
transports similarly circumstanced to my
 own  were wrecked1 the men being saved 
with difficulty1 after losing their     
arms1 colours1 and baggage4    8,i have 
often reflected on the extraordinary    
want of all due arrangement  on the part
 of our admiral1 in command of a        
splendid fleet1 who allowed  those      
miserable transports to anchor in such a
 position without placing  a frigate or 

two near them to silence the puny       
battery and prevent the  dismay which   
seized the skippers4    8,not missing   
stays1 the ,reward floated away1 and was
 soon going fast  before a strong       
nor'-easter1 with the rest of the fleet 
helter-skelter  for the ,channel40      
,in #ahae ,murchison met ,charlotte     
,hugouin1 the daughter of ,general      
,hugouin1  and as she was attractive1   
piquante1 clever1 and highly educated1  
she  made a conquest of the gallant     
soldier4 ,they were soon married1 at    
,buriton1 in ,hampshire4    ,hitherto he
 had lived at his own free will4 ,from  
this time he came under  the influence  
of a thoughtful1 cultivated1 and        
affectionate woman4  ,quietly and       
imperceptibly that influence grew1 and  
she led him1 with  true womanly tact1   
into a sphere of exertion where his     
uncommon powers  might find full scope4 
,to his wife he owed his fame1 as he    
never failed  gratefully to record2 but 
years had to pass before her guidance   

had  accomplished what she had set      
before her as her aim4    ,tired of the 
army1 and possessing a great amount of  
energy and physical  power1 ,murchison  
longed for a profession1 and at one time
 seriously  contemplated entering the   
,church4 ,but money was scarce1 and he  
went  with his wife to live economically
 in ,italy4 ,this was an epoch in his   
life1 and he went by way of ,paris1 and 
there he heard ,cuvier lecture4  ,at    
,geneva he met ,de ,candolle1 and as his
 wife had relatives at ,vevay1  they    
spent some time there1 and ,murchison   
began taking walking tours4  ,on one    
occasion he walked four hundred and     
thirty-two miles over  mountain ground1 
in fourteen days1 finishing with a last 
day's walk of  thirty-seven miles4 ,in  
another excursion to ,mont ,blanc he    
walked one  hundred and twenty miles in 
three days4 ,this was characteristic of 
the  man4 ,but it was not simple        
exercise that he took1 for his retentive
  memory and eye for landscape were     

occupied2 and such walks always         
produced good results in after years4   
,arrived at ,rome they went into        
lodgings1 and ,murchison became a       
confirmed  visitor of galleries1        
museums1 and churches4 ,then ,mrs4      
,murchison fell  ill1 and they went1 on 
her recovery1 to ,naples1 where1 of     
course1  ,vesuvius was seen1 but oddly  
enough1 his written impressions of the  
scene  do not tell of any geological    
tastes4 ,two years glided away1 and they
  founded his intellectual life1 and    
impressed him that it was better than   
gaiety4 ,when returned to ,england1     
,murchison sold his ,scotch estate and  
went to live in a most out of the way   
old mansion at ,barnard ,castle1  in    
,durham4 ,then there was no art1 and    
therefore ,murchison became a           
sportsman1 and for five years rode as   
hard and as well to the front as  any of
 his fox-hunting friends4 ,every now and
 then some intellectual  society was    
enjoyed at some of the great houses of  

the neighbourhood1 and  ,murchison made 
the acquaintance of ,sir ,humphrey      
,davy4 ,mrs4 ,murchison did  not care   
about the everlasting hunting1 and      
tried1 in her wise manner1  to wean him 
from the purposeless life he was        
leading4 ,she knew botany1  and tried to
 interest her husband in it1 but he did 
not care for it2  then she tried to     
learn mineralogy to get him to help her4
 ,but ,murchison  got deeper and deeper 
into the love of field sports1 and took 
a house  at ,melton ,mowbray and hunted 
six days in the week4 ,murchison got    
tired  at last1 and having met ,sir     
,humphrey ,davy again1 was advised by   
him to  interest himself about          
chemistry4 ,so ,murchison sold his      
horses and gave  up his establishment1  
really intending to settle in ,london4  
,but probably  want of means prevented  
his having an establishment in the ,west
 ,end at  first1 so he led a less active
 but still sporting life in the south of
  ,scotland for some time4    ,murchison

 was now to change his method of life   
completely1 and the summer  of #ahbd saw
 the last of his rambles1 wherever the  
rocks around him  made no direct and    
urgent appeal to him4 ,bringing his wife
 to ,london1  they rented a house in    
,montague ,place1 and ,murchison began  
to attend  scientific lectures1 and     
especially those on geology1 which was  
at that  time much talked about4        
,hutton's admirable views of the causes 
of the  changes on the surface of the   
earth1 and their possible comparison    
with  those of the present day1 was     
making progress1 but was still          
antagonized  by the notions of sudden   
convulsions and great underground       
movements4 ,he  went to the ,geological 
,society1 a young and ardent one1 which 
had sprung  into active work in spite of
 the opposition of the nursing mother of
  science1 the ,royal ,society4    ,with
 hearing lectures on science1 scientific
 papers and discussions1  attending     
evening soires1 and the opportunity of  

hearing and talking to  men who had     
already made themselves famous1         
,murchison found enough fully  to fill  
up his time1 and to make ,london life a 
very different thing to  him from what  
it had been in the old days1 when he    
used to escape to town  from the        
monotony of a country barrack4 ,with his
 characteristic ardour1  he had not     
completed his first winter's studies in 
geology before he  longed to be off into
 the field to observe for himself4      
8,my first real field work10 he says1   
8began under ,professor ,buckland1  who 
having taken a fancy to me as one of his
 apt scholars1 invited me to  visit him 
at ,corpus ,christi ,college1 ,oxford1  
and attend one or two of his  lectures4 
,this was my true launch4 ,travelling   
down with him in the ,oxford  coach1 ,i 
learned a world of things before we     
reached the ,isis1 and1  amongst other  
things1 ,i enjoyed a lecture on         
crustacea1 given whilst he  pulled to   
pieces on his knees1 a cold crab1 bought

 at a fishmonger's shop  at ,maidenhead1
 where he usually lunched as the coach  
stopped4    8,on repairing from the     
,star inn to ,buckland's domicile1 ,i   
never can  forget the scene which       
awaited me4 ,having1 by direction of the
 janitor1  climbed up a narrow          
staircase1 ,i entered a long            
corridor-like room 7now  all destroyed71
 which was filled with rocks1 shells1   
and bones in dire  confusion1 and1 in a 
sort of sanctum at the end was my       
friend1 in his  black gown1 looking like
 a necromancer1 sitting on the sole     
rickety chair  not covered with some    
fossils1 and cleaning out a fossil bone 
from the  matrix40    ,the few days     
spent at ,oxford were memorably         
pleasant4 ,buckland's wit  and          
enthusiasm glowed all his scientific    
sayings and doings1 and he had  a rare  
power of description1 by which he could 
make even a dry enough  subject         
fascinatingly interesting4 ,murchison   
heard one or two brilliant  lectures    

from him1 but what was of still more    
importance1 he accompanied  the merry   
professor and his students1 mounted on  
,oxford hacks1 to  ,shotover ,hill1 and 
for the first time in his life had a    
landscape  geologically dissected before
 him4 ,from that eminence his eye was   
taught  to recognize the broader        
features of the succession of the       
oolitic rocks  of ,england up to the far
 range of the ,chalk ,hills1 and this   
not in a  dull1 text-book fashion1 for  
,buckland1 in luminous language1 brought
 the  several elements of the landscape 
into connection with each other1 and    
with a few fundamental principles which 
have determined the sculpturing  of the 
earth's surface4 ,his audience came to  
see merely a rich vale in  the midst of 
fertile ,england1 but before they       
quitted the ground1 the  landscape had  
been made to yield up to them1 clear    
notions of the origin  of springs and   
the principles of drainage4 ,this was   
the very kind of  instruction needed to 

fan the growing flame of ,murchison's   
zeal for  science4 ,he returned to town 
burning with desire to put his knowledge
 to  some use by trying to imitate1 no  
matter how feebly1 the admirable way in 
which the ,oxford professor had applied 
the lessons of the lecture-room to  the 
elucidation of the history of hills and 
valleys4    ,murchison started with his 
wife in the middle of ,august1 on a tour
 of  nine weeks along the south coast1  
from the ,isle of ,wight into ,devon    
and ,cornwall4 ,taking a light carriage 
and a pair of horses1 he made  the      
journey in short stages1 lingering for  
days at some of the more  interesting or
 important geological localities4       
,driving1 boating1  walking1 or         
scrambling1 the enthusiastic pair       
signalized their first  geological tour 
by a formidable amount of bodily toil4  
,mrs4 ,murchison specially devoted      
herself to the collection of fossils1   
and to sketching the more striking      
geological features of the coast-line1  

while her husband would push on to make 
some long and laborious detour4  ,in    
this way1 while she remained quietly    
working at ,lyme ,regis1 he struck      
westward for a fortnight into ,devon and
 ,cornwall1 to make his first           
acquaintance with the rocks to which1 in
 after years1 ,sedgwick and he  were to 
give the name by which they are now     
recognized all over the  world4 ,it was 
in the course of this tour that he met  
with a man1 whom  he has the merit of   
having brought into notice1 and who     
certainly amply  requited him by the    
services rendered in later years4       
,william ,lonsdale  had served in the   
,peninsular war1 and retired on half-pay
 to ,bath4 ,with  the most simple and   
abstemious habits1 his slender income   
sufficed  not only for his wants1 but   
for the purchase of any book or fossil  
he  coveted1 and so he spent his time in
 studying the organic remains1 and      
especially the fossil corals1 to be     
found in his neighbourhood4 ,murchison  

met him accidentally in some quarries1  
8a tall1 grave man1 with a huge  hammer 
on his shoulder10 and found him so full 
of information1 that he  stayed some    
days at ,bath under ,lonsdale's         
guidance4    ,with the enlargement of   
view which so instructive a ramble had  
given  him1 ,murchison prepared and read
 to the ,geological ,society1 on #afth  
,december1 #ahbe1 his first scientific  
paper--8,a ,geological ,sketch of the   
,north-western ,extremity of ,sussex1   
and the adjoining parts of ,hants and   
,surrey40 ,this little essay bore       
manifest evidence of being the result   
of careful observation of the order of  
succession of the rocks in the  field1  
followed by as ample examination of     
their fossils as he could  secure1 from 
those best qualified to give an opinion 
upon them4 ,in these  respects it was   
typical of all his later work4 ,having  
shown by this first  publication his    
capacity as observer and describer1 and 
being further  recommended by the       

leisure which his position of           
independence enabled him  to command1 he
 was soon after elected one of the two  
honorary secretaries  of the ,geological
 ,society4 8,lyell being then a         
law-student1 with chambers  in the      
,temple1 could only devote a portion of 
his time to our science1  and was glad  
to make way as secretary to one who1    
like myself1 had  nothing else to do    
than think and dream of geology1 and    
work hard to get  on in my new          
vocation40    ,in the spring of #ahbf he
 was elected into the ,royal            
,society--an honour  more easily won    
then than now1 and for which1 as the    
,president1 his old  friend ,sir        
,humphry ,davy told him1 he was         
indebted1 not to the amount or  value of
 his scientific work1 but to the fact   
that he was an independent  gentleman1  
having a taste for science1 with plenty 
of time1 and enough of  money to gratify
 it4    ,murchison next investigated1 at
 the instance of ,dr4 ,buckland1 the    

geological age of the ,brora coalfield1 
in ,sutherlandshire4 ,some  geologists  
maintained that the rocks of that       
district were merely a part  of the     
ordinary coal1 or carboniferous system2 
others held them to be  greatly younger1
 to be1 indeed1 of the same general age 
with the lower  oolitic strata of       
,yorkshire4 ,a good observer might      
readily settle this  question2          
,murchison resolved to try4    ,again he
 prepared himself by reading and study  
of fossils to understand  the evidence  
he was to collect and interpret1 and in 
order to do full  justice to the        
,scottish tract1 he went first to the   
,yorkshire coast1 and  made himself     
master of the succession1 and leading   
characters of the  rocks so admirably   
displayed along that picturesque line of
 cliffs4 ,the  summer had hardly begun  
before he and his wife broke up their   
camp in  ,london and were on the move   
northwards4 ,at ,york he made the       
acquaintance  of two men1 with whom he  

was destined in after life to have much 
close  intercourse and co-operation--the
 ,rev4 ,william ,vernon 7afterwards     
,vernon  ,harcourt7 and ,mr4            
7subsequently ,professor7 ,john         
,phillips4    ,murchison's own record of
 the meeting is as follows3--8,phillips1
 then a  youth1 was engaged in arranging
 a small museum at ,york4 ,he           
recommended  ,murchison strongly to his 
uncle1 ,william ,smith1 who was then    
living at  ,scarborough1 and had little 
intercourse with the ,geological        
,society4 ,from  the moment ,i had my   
first walk with ,william ,smith 7then   
about sixty years  old71 ,i felt that he
 was just the man after my own heart2   
and he1 on his  part1 seeing that ,i    
had1 as he said1 #8an eye for a         
country1' took to me1  and gave me most 
valuable lessons4 ,thus he made me      
thoroughly acquainted  with all the     
strata north and south of ,scarborough4 
,he afterwards  accompanied me in a boat
 all along the coast1 stopping and      

sleeping at  ,robin ,hood's ,bay4 ,not  
only did ,i then learn the exact        
position of the  beds of poor coal which
 crop out in that tract of the eastern  
moorlands1  but collecting with him the 
characteristic fossils from the         
calcareous  grit down to the lias1 ,i   
saw how clearly strata must alone be    
identified  by their fossils1 inasmuch  
as here1 instead of oolite limestone    
like  those of the south we had         
sandstones1 grits1 and shales which1    
though  closely resembling the beds of  
the old coal1 were precise equivalents  
of  the oolitic series of the south4    
,smith walked about stoutly with me all 
under the cliffs from ,robin ,hood's    
,bay to ,whitby1 making me well note the
  characteristic fossils of each        
formation40    ,though the main object  
of this summer tour was to work out the 
geological  problem which had been      
assigned to him in ,sutherlandshire1 he 
sketched  a most circuitous route1      
partly for the sake of showing ,mrs4    

,murchison  something more of the       
,highlands than she had yet seen1 and   
partly with  the view of putting to use 
his new acquirements in geology2 so that
 after  reaching ,edinburgh1 and having 
its geology expounded to him by         
,jameson1  instead of striking north at 
once1 he turned westwards to the island 
of  ,arran1 and spent many weeks among  
the western islands from the ,firth  of 
,clyde to the north of ,skye4 ,the hills
 of his native country had now  acquired
 an interest for him which they never   
possessed even in the days  when they   
drew him off in eager pursuit of grouse 
and black cock4 ,at  every halt his     
first anxiety was to know what the rocks
 of the place  might be1 and how far he 
could identify their geological         
position4 ,in  ,arran he filled his     
notebook with observations and queries  
about granite1  red sandstone1          
limestone1 and other puzzling matters1  
on which his  previous experience in    
fieldwork in the south of ,england and  

in ,yorkshire  could throw no light1 and
 for the elucidation of which he wisely 
resolved  to secure1 at some future     
time1 the guidance and co-operation of  
an older  geologist than himself4 ,it   
was in the fulfilment of this resolution
 that  ,sedgwick and he first became    
fellow-workers in the field4    ,in the 
wildest of the western islands he and   
his wife did excellent work  in         
collecting fossils1 and thereby         
obtaining materials for making more     
detailed comparison between the         
secondary rocks of the west of ,scotland
  and those of ,england than had been   
attempted by ,dr4 ,macculloch4 ,the     
actual fossil-hunting was mainly done by
 ,mrs4 ,murchison1 after whom one  of   
the shells 7,ammonites ,murchisoni7 was 
named by ,sowerby1 while her  husband   
climbed the cliffs and trudged over the 
moors and crags1 to make  out the order 
of succession among the secondary       
strata4 ,but the tour was  not merely   
geological2 many a halt and detour were 

made to get a good  view of some fine   
scenery1 or to make yet another sketch4 
,friends and  highland cousins1 too1    
were plentifully scattered along the    
route1 so  that the travellers had ample
 experience of the hearty hospitality of
  those regions4 ,an occasional shot at 
grouse or deer1 varied the monotony  of 
the hammering2 but even when stalking1  
,murchison could not keep his  eyes from
 the rocks4 ,amid the jottings of his   
sport he had facts to  chronicle about  
the gneiss or porphyry or sandstone     
through which the  sport had led him4   
,this characteristic1 traceable even at 
this early  period of his life1 remained
 prominent up to the last autumn of his 
life  in which he was able to wield a   
gun or hammer4    ,the summer had in    
great part passed before he reached that
 part of the  eastern coast of          
,sutherlandshire where the scene of his 
special task  lay2 but that task proved 
to be eminently easy4 ,from ,dunrobin1  
where he  was hospitably entertained1 he

 could follow northwards and southwards 
a  regular succession of strata1 and he 
recognized in them the equivalents  of  
parts of the oolite series of           
,yorkshire4 ,the ,brora coal1 therefore1
  instead of forming part of the true   
carboniferous system1 was simply a      
local peculiarity in the oolitic series4
 ,he made a collection of the  fossils1 
which offered a means of satisfactory   
comparison with the  oolitic rocks of   
,england4    ,the rapidity with which   
this piece of work could be done left   
time for a  prolongation of the tour    
northwards through ,caithness1 even up  
into the  ,orkney ,islands1 but at      
length the tourists had to prepare for a
 southward  migration again4 ,reaching  
,inverness1 they turned eastward to     
,aberdeen1  and thence down the eastern 
coast by ,peterhead1 by ,buller's of    
,buchan1  ,arbroath1 and ,st4 ,andrews4 
,the immediate result of this summer's  
work was  seen in the preparation of a  
paper for the ,geological ,society4     

,professor ,sedgwick had already        
distinguished himself in the difficult  
labour of unravelling the structure of  
some of the older rocks1 and  ,murchison
 suggested that they should visit       
,scotland and examine and  describe part
 of the country together4 ,they desired 
to ascertain if  possible the position  
and general relations of the ,old ,red  
sandstone4  ,this journey1 intensely    
amusing in its anecdotes1 led to much   
united work  and good fellowship4       
,having learned the principles of the   
science1 ,murchison went to study       
geology in the field on the continent4  
,accompanied by ,mrs4 ,murchison1 he    
visited the extinct volcanoes of        
,auvergne1 the ,south of ,france and    
,italy1  and finally ,germany4 ,next    
year the ,alps were explored1 and       
subsequently  ,austria4 ,at ,vienna1    
,murchison indulged a little in what he 
always liked1  and which did good to    
science1 good society1 and then started 
for ,styria1  and got much puzzled about

 the rocks and fossils at ,gosau4 ,on   
his return  to ,england ,murchison      
became secretary to the ,geological     
,society1 and  held the position for    
five years1 and then he became the      
president of  the society4 ,subsequently
 he began seriously to attempt the      
description  of the geology of ,wales   
which ended in the establishment of the 
,silurian  system of rocks4 ,then the   
,devonian and old red sandstones were   
considered1 and the merits of the       
paleontologist1 ,lonsdale1 who really   
established the great geological        
division of the ,devonian1 were fully   
conceded4 ,about this time ,murchison   
and his wife settled in the well  known 
mansion in ,belgrave ,square1 which was 
such a home for scientific  men1        
,british and foreign1 for many a long   
year to come4    ,russia was the next   
country to be explored1 and ,murchison  
spent a long  and very pleasant time    
there2 and his description of the ,ural 
,mountains  was of great importance4 ,he

 was the first to sketch out broadly the
  geological construction of that very  
monotonous country1 and to point  out   
the existence there of a formation which
 covers the coal-bearing  rocks of      
,england1 and which he called the       
,permian4 ,returning to ,england1  after
 receiving the thanks of the ,emperor   
,nicholas1 ,murchison again  became     
,president of the ,geological ,society1 
and with increased experience           
endeavoured to work out more fully than 
before1 the old rocks of ,wales1  which 
he and ,sedgwick had laboured over in   
common4 ,murchison and  ,sedgwick1      
however1 began at this time to          
misunderstand one another1 and  those   
admirable men1 the one having recognized
 the higher strata1 and  the other the  
lower1 began to differ regarding the    
line of separation  of their work4 ,it  
is an unsettled point even at the       
present day1  notwithstanding all the   
knowledge that these great men have left
 to us1  and all that has come to       

science since their time4 ,ever         
enthusiastic in  the cause of science as
 he had been in war and in the field1   
,murchison  allowed himself no rest1 but
 started for ,germany via ,france to    
examine the red sands and clays in those
 countries which1 overlying the         
carboniferous formation1 resemble in    
position the ,permian of ,russia4 ,the  
geologist was treated like a prince by  
kings1 emperors1 and a host of  titled  
people who were glad to welcome the     
perfect gentleman so full of  good      
genial temper and amiability4    ,at the
 same time ,murchison did not forget the
 ,british ,association for the          
,advancement of ,science1 with which he 
was officially connected4 ,in #ahdc  he 
began to interest himself in the then   
little ,geographical ,society1  which   
had been founded in #ahcj1 chiefly by   
members of the ,rayleigh  ,travellers'  
club4 ,murchison was chosen its         
president1 and he read an  address to   
the fellows in #ahdd4 ,this society1 now

 of great utility to  science and       
civilization1 was fostered mainly by    
,murchison1 and passed  through years of
 steady progress under his management4  
,in the same year1  our geologist       
visited ,scandinavia1 where he found    
science more honoured  than anywhere    
else on earth1 and went on to ,st4      
,petersburg4 ,returning  to ,england1   
,murchison and his fellow labourers1    
,von ,keyserling and ,de  ,verneuil1    
published the great work on 8,russia1   
and the ,ural ,mountains10  and our hero
 became a recognized pillar in          
geological science4    ,knowing the     
geology of the ,ural ,mountains         
thoroughly1 and having paid  much       
attention to those parts of them where  
gold is found1 ,murchison was           
impressed1 when he read of the nature of
 the ,australian ,alps1 that they  ought
 to be auriferous4 ,in #ahde1 and #ahdf1
 ,murchison spoke and wrote on  this    
subject1 and kept on directing the      
attention of the colonists to  the      

necessity of searching for the precious 
mineral4 ,in #ahdf ,murchison  advised  
the unemployed tin miners of ,cornwall  
to emigrate and dig for  gold in        
,australia4 ,in #ahdg a ,mr4 ,w4 ,t4    
,smith1 of ,sydney1 acquainted          
,murchison that he had discovered gold1 
and a ,mr4 ,phillips1 of ,adelaide1     
wrote announcing the same fact4         
,finally1 in #ahdh1 ,murchison impressed
  on ,her ,majesty's ,secretary of      
,state for the colonies the necessity of
  having ,australia surveyed1 for the   
purpose of gold finding4 ,three years   
afterwards a ,mr4 ,hargraves came       
forward as the real ,simon pure1 and    
was acknowledged by the ignorant        
legislature of ,new ,south ,wales as the
  discoverer of gold in ,australia4     
,count ,strzelecki1 a geologist1 sent   
,murchison specimens of rocks from      
,australia1 and positively found gold1  
not by inference1 as in ,murchison's    
case1 but in reality4 ,but at the       
request of the colonial authorities it  

was kept a secret666 ,the ,rev4 ,w4  ,b4
 ,clarke1 ,f4,r4,s41 a capital          
geologist1 found gold in places1 and    
settled  what rocks it was in4 ,this was
 in #ahda4 ,so that ,murchison1 although
 not  the first discoverer1 or the first
 who inferred the existence of gold in  
the ,australian rocks1 must have great  
credit given to him4    ,twenty years   
had passed away since ,murchison sold   
his horses and gave  up fox hunting1 and
 he had done more than any man to       
establish the  grand features of the    
outside structure of the earth1 and to  
prove the  succession everywhere of the 
same great formations4 ,he was knighted 
in  #ahdf1 an honour which was          
appreciated in those days1 but which is 
not  compatible with the proper         
simplicity and nobility of science at   
the  present time4 ,everybody was glad  
of the honour being given1 and received 
by ,murchison1 and 8,sir ,roderick10 for
 the future came as aptly to the        
thoughts of his friends as 8,mr4        

,murchison0 had done of old4 ,there is  
no doubt that at this time this         
experienced geologist believed that     
great lapses of time had occurred1      
involving great distinctions and  new   
creations between the successive        
geological formations1 that great       
changes had happened1 universally1 in   
the physical geography of the land  and 
sea before a new formation was produced1
 and that the vast majority  of fossils 
found in one were not recognized in a   
succeeding formation4  ,he believed much
 in grand and sudden catastrophic       
changes in nature4 ,the  presidency of  
the ,british ,association was given to  
the new scientific  knight1 and he      
worthily occupied the chair at the      
meeting at ,southampton  in #ahdf4      
,in #ahdh1 the year of revolution in    
,europe1 ,murchison enjoyed foreign     
politics and ,alpine geology1 and made  
the acquaintance of most of the  young  
,swiss geologists1 whose names are now  
so celebrated4 ,an essay on  the geology

 of the ,alps was written1 and our hero 
received the ,copley  ,medal of the     
,royal ,society4 ,but the many years of 
close and hard work  had told even on   
,murchison's iron frame2 and his wife   
was an invalid4  ,so they spent the     
summer of #ahdi at ,buxton1 much to the 
disgust of the  geologist1 however4 ,he 
attended the meeting of the ,british    
,association  at ,birmingham1 however1  
and relapsed into a state of perpetual  
8liver10  suppressed gout and 8stomach  
attacks40 ,after awhile the invalid went
  abroad and enjoyed rambling over the  
extinct volcanoes of ,auvergne1  and had
 his trip over the same ground          
twenty-two years before1 brought  before
 his mind4 ,but he did not accept the   
theories of ,lyell about the  formation 
of the valleys and the denudation of the
 district4 ,he stuck1  unfortunately1 to
 the violent in nature1 and dismissed   
the truth of  the former uniform and    
slow action of the same forces as now   
prevail1  from his mind4 ,in the next   

year ,murchison was happy again with his
 old  friend ,sedgwick1 and they        
geologized in the highlands1 and enjoyed
 the  hospitality of the young ,duke and
 ,duchess of ,argyll4 ,then the southern
  uplands of ,scotland were examined2   
and ,murchison1 stimulated by the great 
progress of the writings of ,lyell1 came
 out in strong opposition to the        
,huttonian philosophy4 ,murchison       
contended in favour of great            
oscillations  and ruptures of the       
earth's crust leading to the sudden     
breaking up and  submergence of tracts  
of land2 but he did not explain how all 
this took  place or could take place4   
,he believed in many superficial        
deposits1 such  as drift1 being the     
product of violent convulsions and      
floods4 ,his frame  of mind was not     
difficult to account for4 ,he had found1
 in investigating  the ,alps1 that      
movements amongst the strata had        
occurred on a vast scale1  and that     
whole series of them1 hundreds of feet  

thick1 had not only  been bent1 but     
positively turned upside down4 ,in #ahea
 ,murchison visited  ,ireland1 and      
geologized there1 and gradually began to
 complete his great  work1 entitled     
8,siluria2 or a ,description of the     
,geology of the ,silurian  ,rocks of the
 ,world and of their ,fossils40 ,this   
was published in #ahed4 ,the  next great
 act of ,murchison's was the assisting  
and promoting the success  of the       
geological survey of the ,united        
,kingdom1 and the establishment of  the 
museum in ,jermyn ,street4 ,this led to 
the establishment of the ,royal  ,school
 of ,mines4 ,murchison became the       
director of the survey1 and went  into  
the subject with heart and soul1 and    
found himself surrounded by the  most   
distinguished teachers in ,england4     
,murchison worked personally at the     
,scottish rocks from #ahee to #aheh1 and
  it is a matter of interest that at the
 present day his admirable work         
relating to the order of the older rocks

 is a vexed question4 ,in #ahfj1        
,murchison went to the highlands for the
 fourth time1 and came to the same      
conclusions as before4    ,year after   
year the grand old man laboured on for  
the benefit of the  sciences of geology 
and geography1 and kept the geological  
survey in  capital order4 ,he obtained  
the sanction of the ,government for     
colonial  surveys1 and was1 in fact1 the
 main stay of science in relation to the
  state4 ,for ten years he did all this1
 and occasionally indulged in a  trip to
 the north and west1 and also into      
,bohemia4 ,in #ahfb1 ,murchison  was    
terribly troubled by the sudden         
ill-health of his wife1 to whom he  owed
 so much4 ,she became more and more of  
an invalid1 and died in #ahfi4  ,it was 
the greatest blow possible1 and it      
brought the kindest letter  from his old
 friend ,sedgwick1 eighty-four years of 
age4 ,in ,september1  #ahgj1            
,murchison's time was coming to an end4 
,a slight attack of paralysis  warned   

him to retire from active life4 ,in the 
spring of #ahga he prepared  his last   
address as president of the ,royal      
,geographical ,society1 and  resigned   
the chair he had so ably filled for     
fifteen years4 ,he lingered  on1 and    
passed quietly away on ,october #bbnd1  
#ahga1 full of years and  well merited  
honours4 ,murchison's name will live for
 ever as a clear1  keen-eyed1 careful   
observer of nature1 and as a master of  
the facts  relating to much of the      
ancient history of the earth4 ,he was a 
great  stimulator of men of science1    
assisted the weak1 and helped the good  
worker4 ,he had a great personal        
character1 religious1 honest1 truthful1 
open and generous2 he was a gentleman   
indeed4 ,his biographer1 ,professor  ,a4
 ,geikie1 ,f4,r4,s41 whose most charming
 book has been so freely quoted  by me1 
writes about his good old friend as     
follows3 8,a man's face and  figure     
afford usually a good indication of the 
general calibre of the  spirit which    

lodges beneath them4 ,the picture which 
rises to the mind  when one thinks of   
,murchison1 is that of a tall1 wiry1    
muscular frame1  which still kept its   
erectness even under the burden of      
almost fourscore  years4 ,it seemed the 
type of body for an active geologist1   
who had to win  his reputation by dint  
of hard climbing and walking1 almost as 
much as by  mental power4 ,it was1      
moreover1 united in his case with a     
certain pomp  and dignity of manner1    
which at one time recalled the military 
training  of the ,peninsula days1 at    
another the formal courtesy of the      
well-bred  gentleman of a bygone        
generation40    ,illustration           
,illustration          ,,chapter ,,xiii4
    ,,the ,,life ,,of ,,lyell4          
,the study of existing nature and its   
changes undertaken in      order to     
comprehend the past changes during      
geological ages--,the      uniformity of
 natural operations under               
law--,catastrophes      abolished--,the 

succession of life on the globe1 and    
that of the      tertiary ages          
explained--,the antiquity of man and of 
the great      ice age considered4      
,charles ,lyell was born in             
,forfarshire1 at ,kinnordy1 on ,november
 #adth1  #agig4 ,his father was an able1
 wealthy1 well-educated gentleman2 and  
his  mother1 a ,yorkshire lady1 had the 
usual good sound sense of the women of  
that county4 ,he was the eldest of ten  
children1 the whole of whom grew  up2   
and he1 as is commonly the case in large
 families1 was a good son and  brother1 
and a most independent man in mind and  
action4    ,charles ,lyell's family     
resided1 for years1 in the south of     
,england after  his birth1 and the boy  
was sent to school early2 and in his    
amusing  history of his schoolboy days1 
which is given in the 8,life of ,sir    
,charles  ,lyell10 edited by his        
sister-in-law1 ,mrs4 ,lyell1 he went    
through all  the fun and trouble1 the   
games by day and the bolsterings by     

night1 the  keeping of pets1 and the    
petty warfares of the ,english          
schoolboy4 ,when  eleven years of age1  
,lyell got into indifferent health at   
school after  measles1 and this         
necessitated his being less pressed at  
his lessons4 ,he  was fond of study1    
however1 and this enforced idleness made
 him take to  some of his father's      
amusements1 that of entomology4         
,young ,lyell studied butterflies1 and  
chased them in the fields and  woodlands
 of the ,new ,forest in ,hampshire4 ,he 
soon began to study the  changes of form
 which insects undergo in their short   
lives1 and to  watch1 hour after hour1  
the habits of the water-beetles and     
other  aquatic insects4 ,after spoiling 
a considerable number of hats in chasing
  butterflies1 ,lyell was supplied with 
a net and a cabinet in which to  place  
his stores of insect wealth4 ,oddly     
enough1 some of the varieties of  the   
butterflies which young ,lyell collected
 were of use in after years to  ,curtis 

the entomologist4 ,the boy had no       
companions in these 8un-,english0       
amusements1 and was very grateful for   
the assistance of his father's head     
servant1 who knew a few plants by sight1
 and helped his young master4  8,instead
 of sympathy10 wrote ,lyell1 8,i        
received from almost every one  beyond  
my home1 either ridicule1 or hints that 
the pursuits of other boys  were more   
manly4 ,whether did ,i fancy that       
insects had no feeling8 ,what  could be 
the use of them8 ,the contemptuous      
appellation of #8butterfly  hunting'    
applied to my favourite employment      
always nettled me40 ,however1  ,lyell   
persisted1 and when he got back to      
school he used to work at his  favourite
 subject out of school hours4           
,finding a number of expensive books in 
his father's library on  entomology1    
with beautiful plates in them1 the boy's
 common sense  told him that somebody   
prized all this knowledge1 and that it  
must be  valuable4 ,oddly enough1 he    

took to reading ,linnus for descriptions
 of  insects1 and hunted up pictures of 
his captured butterflies in the plates  
of the more modern authors4 ,recovered  
in health1 and fairly strong1 ,lyell    
was sent at thirteen years of age to    
school at ,dr4 ,bayley's1 preparatory   
to being sent to the great school at    
,winchester4 ,the new school was at     
,midhurst1 in ,sussex1 and it had all   
the demerits of the schools of the  day1
 fighting1 fagging1 and bullying being  
rampant4 ,lyell came off well1  although
 a weak and short-sighted boy4          
,nevertheless1 he stated that the       
method of teaching got rid of 8most of  
my natural antipathy to work and        
extreme absence of mind1 and ,i acquired
 habits of attention1 which were1       
however1 painful to me1 and only        
sustained when ,i had an object in      
view40    ,it is evident that at this   
time1 #ahaa-ahac1 ,lyell's heart was not
  altogether in his classics and        
mathematics1 and that he was reading    

other  subjects which were more pleasing
 to him4 ,at the early age of seventeen1
  ,lyell entered ,exeter ,college1      
,oxford1 and whilst working fairly well 
at his studies1 cultivated music1 and   
entered thoroughly into all the         
politics and literary fellowships of the
 undergraduates4 ,his love of  nature   
persisted1 and he began to direct his   
thoughts to the past1 and to  learn     
something about fossils4 ,thus he found 
out the house of ,sowerby1  the         
conchologist1 by finding at the door an 
ammonite1 well known to  ,oxford        
geologists4 ,subsequently1 when on a    
visit to ,mr4 ,dawson ,turner1  of      
,norwich1 he met a ,javanese traveller1 
,dr4 ,arnold4 ,mr4 ,dawson ,turner  had 
a fine collection of ,norwich and       
,suffolk fossils4 ,lyell writes to his  
father to say1 8,i have copied for      
,buckland1 part of his paper1 being a   
list of those which are described1 and  
shall copy the rest40 ,it appears  that 
the seed was sown by attending a course 

of lectures on geology1  at ,oxford1    
given by the celebrated ,dr4 ,buckland1 
and it is no little  thing for that     
great university to be able to assert   
that its teaching  developed the        
greatest system of geology ever brought 
forward4 ,lyell  geologized over        
,norfolk1 and in his conversations with 
his host and ,dr4  ,arnold1 it appeared 
that he had got hold of the idea1 the   
elaboration of  which is at the very    
bottom of his future great work4 ,lyell 
studied what  is now in progress in     
nature so as to comprehend what occurred
 in the  past times of the earth4       
,modern changes are the examples by     
which ancient  changes can alone be     
studied4 ,he quotes in a letter to his  
father1 the  following saying of        
,buckland and of ,white3 8,local        
information1 from  actual observation1  
tends more to promote natural history   
science1 than  all that is done by the  
speculations and compilations of        
voluminous  authors40 ,dr4 ,arnold made 

collections of ,norfolk fossils1 and    
catalogued  them1 whilst his young      
friend endeavoured to make a geological 
map of the  county4 ,in the vacation    
,lyell and two friends went to ,staffa1 
and his  description of the grand       
columns of the old volcanic stone shows 
how he  enjoyed and comprehended the    
scene4    ,in #ahah the family of the   
,lyells made a tour in ,france1         
,switzerland1 and  ,italy1 and the      
notes1 letters1 and diaries of the      
eldest son have been  preserved1 and    
they show how gradually1 yet surely1 he 
was educating  himself for that path    
which he1 subsequently1 never deserted4 
,france  was not very lively1 but he    
noticed the country more than the       
people1  and observed the country       
changed with the soil4 ,he spent his    
first  ,sunday at ,paris1 and went to   
the ,jardin des ,plantes the first thing
 on  ,monday morning1 but was           
disappointed by not hearing ,cuvier     
lecture4 ,in  the evening he went to see

 the great fountains at ,versailles1    
where  ,wellington was dining with some 
,french marshals4 ,day after day the    
wonderful sights of ,paris were visited2
 but ,lyell1 whenever he had the        
opportunity1 slipped off to the ,jardin 
des ,plantes4 ,he was much struck  with 
the collection of comparative anatomy1  
which he said might tempt  anyone who   
had the opportunity of staying in       
,paris1 to take up ardently  the study  
of anatomy4 ,he studied ,cuvier's work  
on fossil remains1 and  on the geology  
of the country round ,paris4 ,one of his
 visits was to  ,cuvier's lecture room1 
which he described as filled with fossil
 remains1  among which are those        
glorious relics of a former world4      
,leaving ,paris1  ,lyell travelled by   
post1 and noticed the geology and rocks 
of the  monotonous country to the ,jura 
,mountains4 ,he was mightily puzzled    
about  the rocks of the ,jura1 and      
enjoyed that magnificent scene of the   
,alps  from the top of the hills over   

which he was travelling4 ,he wrote1 8,in
  descending the ,jura from ,lavatey to 
,gex1 we had a most magnificent view  of
 a vast extent of country4 ,below us the
 ,lake of ,geneva and the ,canton  de   
,vaud2 before us the ,savoy ,alps       
towering up to the clouds1 and in spite 
of their great distance and the height  
on which we stood1 extended in a  long  
line before us like an army of giants1  
,mont ,blanc rising high above  all in  
the middle as their chief4 ,we saw the  
,dent du ,midi to our left1  shooting up
 his two remarkable peaks1 with many    
more of extraordinary  and picturesque  
forms40 ,on visiting the ,valley of     
,chamouni1 we find  ,lyell naming the   
rocks of the different well known       
scenes1 according  to the accepted terms
 of the mineralogists of the day1 and   
this is a  satisfactory proof that he   
had been studying geology very          
effectually1  by himself1 before he left
 ,england4 ,he saw his first glacier1 of
 any  importance1 and was immensely     

struck with the changes it was producing
 in  the valley4    ,many books have    
been written about ,mont ,blanc1 its    
botany and its  glaciers1 but none have 
ever equalled1 in truthfulness and      
freshness  of description1 the diary of 
,lyell4 ,he seized upon all the         
remarkable  points to be noticed1 and   
shone both as a botanist and geologist4 
,he1  moreover1 did not forget his old  
entomological tastes1 for he chased     
butterflies in the valley of the ,arve1 
and was delighted with the ,alpine      
rhododendrons1 and the little ranunculus
 glacialis4 ,on the ,grimsel  ,lyell saw
 8some extraordinary large bare pieces  
of granite-rock1 which  ,i could not    
account for10 and was puzzled by the    
redness of the snow in  some places4    
,afterwards on the ,wengern ,alp1 he saw
 a fine avalanche fall  over a precipice
 on to a ledge below4 ,he went to the   
,valais to see the  result of the great 
flood the previous ,june1 and witnessed 
the results of  the enormous force of   

running water1 carrying with it sand and
 stone1 on  everything against which it 
came in contact4    ,lyell then crossed 
the ,alps and visited the ,italian lakes
 and the  principal towns of ,italy1 but
 more as an antiquarian than a          
geologist4    ,the long journey bore    
fruit1 for the constant proofs of       
changes ever  progressing in nature1    
which were brought before ,lyell's      
notice1  influenced his mind in a very  
decided manner4 ,he became opposed to   
the  convulsionist doctrines of sudden  
and violent changes having occurred1    
and furthered the ideas taught by       
,hutton1 that the alterations on the    
surface of the earth are slow and       
constant1 and have been uniform for     
ages4 ,in #ahai ,lyell took his ,b4,a4  
degree at ,oxford1 obtaining a second   
class in classical honours1 and in the  
same year he became a fellow of  the    
,geological ,society of ,london1 and of 
the ,linnan ,society4 ,on leaving       
,oxford he was entered at ,lincoln's    

,inn1 and resided in ,london1 and       
studied law in a special pleader's      
office4 ,his eyes became weak1 and he   
was advised to give up reading for a    
time1 and to join his father in a  visit
 to ,rome in #ahbj4 ,in #ahbb ,lyell was
 in full correspondence with the  most  
prominent geologists of the day1 and he 
was doing original work1 for  his       
letters show that he was interesting    
himself about the fresh water  strata of
 the ,isle of ,wight1 and about the     
bones found in ,kirkdale cave1  of hyna1
 elephant1 rhinoceros1 etc4 ,his        
enthusiasm and ability to work  were    
recognized in the very remarkable       
selection the ,geological ,society  made
 in #ahbc4 ,for he was then elected one 
of the secretaries1 and his  friends    
were ,mantell and ,buckland4 ,the same  
year he went to ,paris to see  the      
,french geologists and ,cuvier4 ,cuvier 
was very polite1 and introduced  ,lyell 
to ,madlle4 ,duvancel1 his              
step-daughter1 and ,lyell spoke very    

well  of her ability and engaging       
manners4 ,he met ,humboldt and ,laplace 
and  ,arago1 the mathematicians and     
astronomers of the day4    ,in #ahbd    
,lyell was interesting himself about    
,dean ,coneabeare's discovery  of a     
plesiosaurus at ,lyme ,regis1 and the   
fossil was brought in triumph  to the   
rooms of the ,geological ,society1 then 
established at #bj1 ,bedford  ,street4  
,then he started on a geological        
excursion in the west of ,england  with 
,m4 ,prvost1 and subsequently went to   
his birthplace and geologized  in       
,scotland4    ,lyell was called to the  
bar in #ahbe1 and went the western      
circuit for two  years1 and in #ahbf he 
became a fellow of the ,royal ,society1 
and in #ahbg  he wrote an article in the
 ,quarterly ,review1 showing how        
thoroughly he  identified himself with  
the school of geology that taught the   
necessity  of studying the past from the
 modern example of slow and gradual     
changes  on the earth by forces which   

have always been in existence4 ,in #ahbh
  appeared his papers on the excavation 
of valleys by ordinary agencies1  such  
as the sun's heat1 frost1 rain1 running 
water and the atmosphere4    ,a very    
remarkable book on the ,geology of      
,central ,france1 with especial         
reference to the extinct volcanoes and  
lava flows of the ,auvergne1 was        
written by ,mr4 ,scrope1 and its        
criticism was the foundation of the     
article in the ,quarterly ,review just  
noticed4 ,lyell was so impressed  with  
the grand descriptions in the book1 that
 he determined to persuade  ,mr4 and    
,mrs4 ,murchison to accompany him on a  
tour into the region4 ,two of  ,lyell's 
letters to his father are so            
characteristic that they may well  find 
a place here4                           
,clermont-,ferrand4                     
,may #bfth1 #ahbh4        ,,my ,,dear   
,,father1        ,i have just returned  
again to ,clermont1 from an expedition  
of five days1 and we have discovered    

that there is no end      to the work to
 be done in this country1 and that it is
 of      the most interesting           
description4 ,the first day was spent in
      ascending some of the lofty       
volcanic ,puys near here4 ,mrs4         
,murchison accompanied us1 and then     
returned to ,clermont1 where      she   
employed herself1 during our absence1 in
 making panoramic      sketches1        
receiving several of the gentry and     
professors1 to      whom he had letters1
 in the neighbourhood1 and collecting   
plants and shells1 etc41 while          
,murchison and ,i1 with my man1         
went on in a patache1 a one-horse       
machine on springs4 ,we first           
visited ,pontgibaud and the ,sioule1 to 
see the excavations made      by that   
river in the grand lava-current of the  
,come1 which      descended from the    
central range1 and dispossessed the     
river      of its bed4 ,the scenery was 
beautiful4 ,just as we were leaving     
the place1 the peasants offered to take 

us to a volcano farther      down the   
river4 ,as no ,puy was mentioned in     
,desmarest's accurate      map1 nor by  
,scrope1 we thought their account a mere
 fable2 but      their description of   
the cinders1 etc4 was so curious1 that  
we      had the courage to relinquish   
our day's scheme1 and proceed      again
 down the river4        ,you may imagine
 our surprise when we found1 within a   
ride of      ,clermont1 a set of        
volcanic phenomena entirely unknown to  
,buckland1 ,scrope1 or the natives here4
 ,a volcanic cone1 with a      stream of
 basaltic lava issuing out on both      
sides1 and flowing      down to the     
gorge of the ,sioule4 ,this defile was  
flanked on      both sides by           
precipitous cliffs of gneiss1 and the   
river's      passage must have been     
entirely choked up for a long time4 ,a  
lake was formed1 and the river wore a   
passage between the lava      and the   
granitic schist1 but the former was so  
excessively      compact1 that the      

schist evidently suffered most4 ,in the 
progress of ages1 the igneous rock1 one 
hundred and fifty      feet deep1 was   
cut through1 and the river went on and  
ate its      way1 thirty-five1          
forty-five1 and in one place eighty-five
      feet into the subjacent granitic  
beds1 leaving on one bank a             
perpendicular wall of basaltic lava     
towering over the gneiss4      ,in the  
,vivarrais1 where similar phenomena had 
been observed1      ,herschel had       
remarked a bed of pebbles between the   
lava and the      gneiss1 marking the   
ancient river-bed1 but ,buckland        
endeavoured      to get over this       
difficulty by saying that these pebbles 
might      have covered a sloping bank  
when the river filled the valley1       
and that this bank may have always been 
high above the river      bed2 for if   
the sloping sides of a valley1 said the 
,professor1      be covered with        
pebbles1 as they often are1 and the     
valley is      filled with lava1 and    

then the lava cut through and partially 
removed1 there will of course be a line 
of pebbles at the      junction of the  
lava and the rock beneath1 but these    
pebbles      will not mark an ancient   
river bed4 ,now1 unluckily for the      
doctor in this case1 he has no loophole2
 an old lead mine1 said      to have    
been worked by the ,romans1 happens to  
have exactly laid      open the line of 
contact1 and the pebble bed of the old  
river      is seen going in under the   
lava1 horizontally1 for nearly fifty    
feet4 ,this is an astonishing proof of  
what a river can do      in some        
thousands or hundred thousand years by  
its continual      wearing4 ,no deluge  
could have descended the valley without 
carrying away the crater and ashes      
above4        ,six hundred or seven     
hundred feet higher1 is an old plateau  
of      basalt1 and if this flowed at   
the bottom of the then valley1      the 
last work of the ,sioule is but a unit  
in proportion to the      other4 ,there 

are several of the ,clermont savans who1
 since they      discovered how much we 
were interested with this1 have given   
us to understand they intended to       
publish on it1 but no doubt      they   
will take a year before they launch out 
in the expense of      a patache to     
,pontgibaud4 ,murchison certainly keeps 
it up with      more energy than anyone 
,i ever travelled with1 for ,buckland1  
though he worked as hard1 always flew   
about too fast to make      sure of     
anything4 ,mons4 ,le ,coq1 the botanist1
 a clever young      man1 assures me    
that the geology of the soils does not  
affect      the botany of ,auvergne4 ,i 
shall get some specimens from him       
for ,dr4 ,hooker1 ,i expect4 ,none to be
 bought1 at least this      year1 for it
 seems there may be hereafter4 ,it is a 
wonderful      fact that ,glaux maritima
 grows round some saline springs        
here4 ,busset1 an engineer1 who is      
mapping ,auvergne1 has forced      us to
 dine with him to-morrow4 ,as we know   

his object to be to      get geology out
 of us1 of which he knows nothing1 ,m4  
fears it      will be a bore1 but the   
man is evidently clever4 ,we shall get  
barometric heights from him1 and a map  
of our little volcanic      district1   
and if he pumps unreasonably1 ,i shall  
find a      difficulty in expressing    
myself in ,french4 ,we are to meet      
,count      ,le ,serres there1 a        
gentlemanlike and well-informed         
naturalist1      who has a property on  
,mont ,dore1 and knows more geology than
      anyone we have met here1          
professors not excepted4 ,he organized  
a geological society here1 and they     
chose ,count ,montlosier      as        
president2 but the ,jesuits took alarm1 
and1 declaring      that ,montlosier had
 written a book against ,genesis1 got   
the      ,prefect and ,mayor and        
,government to oppose1 and at last put  
the thing down2 at least it merged in   
the regular scientific                  
,etablissement de la ,ville1 and        

,montlosier is just coming out      with
 a book against the ,jesuits1 a more    
popular subject in      ,france at      
present than geology4 ,we are to visit  
him at his      chteau near ,mont ,dore4
 ,we like the people and the country4   
,believe me1 your affectionate son1     
,,charles ,,lyell4                      
,,to ,,his ,,father4                    
,bains de ,mont ,dore1 ,auvergne4       
,june #fth1 #ahhb4        ,,my ,,dear   
,,father1        ,i am at this moment   
arrived here1 after passing three       
delightful days at ,count de            
,montlosier's1 an old man of            
seventy-four1 in full possession of     
faculties of no mean order1      and of 
an imagination as lively as a poet's of 
twenty-five4 ,i      stayed a day longer
 than the ,murchisons1 as ,i was        
determined to      have one more trial  
to find a junction between the granite  
of      the ,puy chain and the fresh    
water formations of the ,limagne1       
and ,i actually found it2 and my day's  

work alone will throw a      new light  
on the history of this remarkable       
country4 ,i believe      most of the    
granite to have made its appearance at  
the surface      at a later period than 
even the fresh water tertiary beds have1
      though they contain the remains of
 quadrupeds4 ,the scenery      of ,mont 
,dore is that of an ,alpine valley1     
deep1 with tall      fir woods1 high    
aiguilles above1 half covered with snow1
 and      cataracts and waterfalls4 ,a  
watering-place with good views at       
the bottom of the valley4 ,i shall send 
,hall back from here1 as1      although 
he has been useful1 ,i do not think the 
advantage will      overbalance the     
additional expense4 ,le ,coq has        
promised some      plants for certain1  
and ,hall has done pretty well in       
insects4                       ,believe 
me1 your affectionate son1              
,,charles ,,lyell4    ,lyell was not    
sparing of criticism so far as his      
friend ,murchison's  habits were        

concerned1 as may be gleaned in the     
following letter3--                     
,,to ,,his ,,mother4                    
,bains de ,mont ,dore1 ,auvergne4       
,june #aath1 #ahbh4        ,,my ,,dear  
,,mother1        ,we have been so       
actively employed1 ,i may really say so 
laboriously1 that ,i assure you ,i can  
with great difficulty      find a moment
 to write a letter4 ,this morning we got
 off1      after breakfast at five      
o'clock1 on horseback1 to return from   
,st4 ,amand to this3 arrived at seven   
o'clock4 ,but one day we      rode      
fifty-five miles1 which ,i shall take   
care shall be the      last experiment  
of that kind1 as even the old           
,leicestershire      fox-hunter was     
nearly done up with it4 ,but ,i have    
really gained      strength so much1    
that ,i believe ,i and my eyes were     
never in      such condition before2 and
 ,i am sure that six hours in bed1      
which is all we allow1 and exercise all 
day long for the body1      and geology 

for the mind1 with plenty of the vin du 
pays1 which      is good here1 is the   
best thing that can be invented in this 
world for my health and happiness4      
,murchison must have been      intended 
for a very strong man1 if the sellers of
 drugs had not      enlisted him into   
their service1 so that he depends on    
them      for his existence to a        
frightful extent1 yet withal he can     
get through what would knock up most men
 who never need the      doctor4 ,he has
 only given in one day and a half yet4  
,on one      occasion we were on an     
expedition together1 and as a stronger  
dose was necessary than he had with him1
 ,i was not a little      alarmed at    
finding there was no pharmacy in the    
place1 but at      last we went to a    
nunnery1 where ,mdlle4 la ,suprieuse    
sold all      medicines without         
profit--positively a young1 clever1 and 
rather      good-looking lady1 who hoped
 my friend would think better of        
it1 as the quantity would kill six      

,frenchmen4 ,m4 was cured1 and      off 
the next morning1 as usual4 ,the        
mischief is1 that he has      naturally 
a weak though a sound stomach1 and if he
 possessed a      more than ordinary    
share of self-denial1 and was very      
prudent1      and after much exercise   
did not eat a good dinner when set      
before him--if1 in short1 he would take 
the advice which many      find it easy 
to give him1 he would be well4 ,he has  
much talent      for original           
observation in geology1 and is          
indefatigable1 so      that we make much
 way1 and are thrown so much in the way 
of the      people1 high and low1 by    
means of our letters of introduction1   
and our pursuits1 that ,i am getting    
large materials1 which ,i      hope ,i  
shall find means of applying4 ,indeed1  
,i really think ,i      am most         
profitably employed on this tour1 and as
 long as things      go on as well as   
they do now1 ,i should be very sorry to 
leave      off2 particularly as1 from   

our plan of operation1 which is         
that of comparison of the structure of  
different parts of the      country1 we 
work on with a continually increasing   
power1 and in      the last week have   
with the same exertion done at least    
twice      as much in the way of        
discovery1 and in enlarging our         
knowledge      of what others had done1 
as in any preceding4 ,i expect it will  
be at least three weeks before we can   
have done with ,central      ,france1   
and then we hope to work south towards  
,nice1 down the      ,rhone1 keeping    
always in analogous formations1 and then
 to the      ,vicentin1 if possible1    
though this is very uncertain1 as we can
      never see far before us1 either as
 to time or place1 directing      our   
course according to the new lights we   
are gaining4        ,we shall leave this
 place in a day or two4 ,i like it well 
enough1 but it is certainly too early in
 the season to enjoy      it2 and ,mrs4 
,murchison suffers from the cold and    

damp1 though      she has not often     
complained in this tone4        ,mont   
,dore is partially covered with snow1   
and almost always      with clouds1 and 
the transition in coming up here from   
the      low country is violent4        
,yesterday we rode up from the climate  
of ,italy to that of ,scotland4 ,it is  
the most varied and      picturesque    
country imaginable4 ,there are          
innumerable old      ruins for sketches1
 with lakes1 cascades1 and different    
kinds      of wood1 so that we wonder   
more and more that the ,english         
have not found it out4 ,the peasantry   
are very obliging1      industrious1    
well-fed1 and clothed1 and to all       
appearance are      the very happiest ,i
 ever saw4 ,we have crossed the chain of
      ,puys1 the ,limagne1 and the      
valleys leading from ,mont ,dore1       
in all directions4 ,the people in the   
higher regions begin to      talk       
,french--at least there are generally   
some who have served      in the armies1

 and their children catch some from     
them4 ,their      own language has a    
good deal of the old ,provenal in it1   
and a      great many of the            
terminations are ,italian4 ,in short1 we
 often      find a demand in ,italian   
succeed when ,french misses fire2 but   
all our ammunition often fails to       
produce any impression4 ,the            
population is dense1 and bears no other 
resemblance to other      parts of      
,france that ever ,i saw4 ,in the       
mountains a large      portion do not   
believe that ,napoleon is dead1         
especially the      old soldiers4 ,there
 is an almost entire want of gentry     
here1      but as it does not arise from
 absenteeism1 but from the great        
sub-division of property1 it evidently  
produces no ill effects      on the     
character and well-being of the people4 
,give my love to all at ,kinnordy1 and  
believe me                              
,your affectionate son1                 
,,charles ,,lyell4    ,after visiting   

the south of ,france with ,murchison1   
,lyell prepared to  cross the ,alps and 
to see ,vesuvius1 he being impressed    
with the necessity  of studying that    
grand modern example in order to        
understand1 perfectly1  the extinct     
volcanoes they had been studying in the 
,auvergne4 ,he wrote  his father--8,i   
scarcely despair now1 so much do these  
evidences of modern  action increase    
upon us as we go south 7towards the more
 recent volcanic  seat of action7 of    
proving the positive identity of the    
causes now  operating with those of     
former times40 ,this was always his     
point1 and it  certainly was not        
,murchison's4    ,when at ,vesuvius1    
,lyell recognized the similarity of some
 very old  volcanic dykes of ,scotland  
with those recently exposed in the old  
crater4  ,etna was visited1 and he was  
delighted at finding sea-shells1        
resembling  those now living on the     
floor of the ,mediterranean close by1   
some three  hundred feet above sea      

level4 ,whilst at ,naples1 and in the   
midst of the  highly suggestive scenery 
of the beautiful neighbourhood1 ,lyell  
wrote to  ,murchison a very             
characteristic letter1 which should be  
well pondered  over even by wealthy men 
who enter into the studies of nature1   
and which  might be read with benefit by
 those people who on this not over      
civilized  earth1 hold the purse-strings
 of the world and treat scientific      
teachers  with gross meanness4 ,with all
 his advantages ,lyell could not        
undertake  the research which made him  
famous1 which has tended to elevate our 
conception of the laws of nature1 and   
which has done so much to lead          
geologists along the right path1 without
 caring much for pecuniary  matters4    
,he wrote1 8,i will tell you fairly that
 it is at present of no small           
consequence to me to get a respectable  
sum for my volume1 not only to  cover   
expenses for present and future         
projected campaigns1 but because  my    

making my hobby pay the additional costs
 which it entails1 will  alone justify  
my pursuing it with a mind sufficiently 
satisfied with  itself1 and so to feel  
independent and free to indulge in the  
enthusiasm  necessary for success4 ,i   
shall never hope to make money by       
geology1  but not to lose1 and tax      
others for my amusement2 and unless ,i  
can  secure this1 it would1 in my       
circumstances1 be selfish in me to      
devote  myself as much as ,i hope to do 
to it40 ,these sentiments did ,lyell    
great  honour4 8,my work is in part     
written1 and all planned4 ,it will not  
pretend  to give even an abstract of all
 that is known in geology1 but it will  
endeavour to establish the principle of 
reasoning on the science4 ,all my       
geology will come in as illustrative of 
my views of those principles1  and as   
evidence strengthening the system       
necessarily arising out of  the         
admission of such principles1 which as  
you know1 are neither more  nor less    

than1 that no causes whatever have1 from
 the earliest time  to which we can look
 back to the present1 ever acted1 but   
those now  acting2 and that they never  
acted with different degrees of energy  
from  that which they now exert4 ,if ,i 
can but earn the wherewith to carry on  
the war1 or rather1 its extraordinary   
costs1 depend upon it ,i will  waste no 
time in book-making for lucre's sake40  
,lyell's long-expected book on the      
8,principles of ,geology0 was published 
in #ahcj1 and it made a very            
considerable sensation1 and was warmly  
combated and abused4 ,now it is admitted
 as the most conclusive and  useful of  
introductory books1 fit for a youth1 and
 eminently good in  its tone4 ,then the 
man1 ever on the move1 left for the     
,pyrenees1 and  studied the formations  
there1 and especially devoted himself to
 the  explanation of ripple-marks in the
 hundreds of feet of rock1 and noticed  
the effects of water-borne and          
air-carried sand in accumulating flats  

of ripples one over the other4 ,in #ahca
 ,lyell accepted the position of        
,professor of ,geology in ,king's       
,college1 ,london1 and he gave courses  
of  lectures there in #ahcb and #ahcc2  
and he became engaged to ,mary1 the     
eldest daughter of ,mr4 ,leonard        
,horner1 a geologist of considerable    
reputation1 and a thoroughly            
liberal-minded man4 ,mr4 ,horner was a  
great  friend of ,lyell's before the    
engagement1 and was a most painstaking  
man  and a great manager at the         
,geological ,society4 ,lyell's letters  
to ,miss  ,horner are most interesting1 
and show how admirable a woman she was  
and how she stimulated him to follow out
 his great destiny4 ,his work  on the   
8,principles0 became a great pecuniary  
success1 and he laboured  hard at       
,king's ,college1 and was much annoyed  
at the decision of the  council at the  
,college1 not to allow women to attend  
his lectures1 which  were a great       
success4 ,married1 ,lyell started for   

,germany1 the ,rhine1  and ,switzerland4
 ,coming home to ,london1 he set to work
 at his lectures  at the ,royal         
,institution1 where ladies were         
admitted1 and at ,king's  ,college1     
where they were not4 ,he had two hundred
 and fifty people to  hear his          
introductory lecture at ,king's         
,college1 and it dwindled down  to      
fifteen in a few days1 not from any want
 of care or excellence in  ,lyell1 who  
was ever bitter against the             
establishment for their refusal  to     
advance female education4 ,he retired   
from the professorship as soon  as he   
found that it interfered with his       
researches1 and never again took  any   
part in academical teaching4 ,the       
trouble he took about his lectures  was 
great1 and he went to great expense in  
having diagrams well drawn4  ,his       
retirement was a great loss to the      
,college1 which now admits ladies  to   
certain lectures4 ,in #ahcd1 ,lyell     
travelled in ,sweden and examined  into 

the rise of the land in ,scandinavia1   
and whilst enjoying his hard  geological
 work--for he was well received by      
everybody1 and taken to see             
everything--his letters show how he     
missed his gentle and sympathizing      
wife4 ,on his return home ,lyell        
received one of the ,royal ,society     
medals  for his work on the 8,principles
 of ,geology10 and in #ahch became      
,president  of the ,geological ,society4
 ,about this time his attention was     
strongly  drawn to the relative numbers 
of living species found in the strata   
which  had been formed during the last  
geological or tertiary age4 ,in working 
at ,sicily he had found that in the     
latest beds in which the shells were    
hardly fossilised1 all the species were 
still living4 ,that is to say1  he      
collected shells which were of course   
dead1 but they were similar to  others  
which were alive on the floor of the sea
 close by4 ,the individual  had died1   
but the kind or species was still alive4

 ,he examined the latest  strata in     
,england1 the crag of ,norfolk1         
,suffolk1 and ,essex1 and found  that   
the proportion of recent shells--that is
 to say1 of dead individuals  belonging 
to living species--is great4 ,some of   
the shells belonged to  kinds which are 
not now living1 and are extinct4 ,he    
wrote1 8,i think we  may lay it down as 
a rule1 that if any given tertiary      
deposit in which  we have found a few   
species of shells only1 of which one    
half1 or a  third1 or even less1 are    
recent1 and those recent ones inhabit   
the seas  immediately adjoining1 the    
formation will be pliocene40 ,this word 
was one  of three invented by ,dr4      
,whewell1 of ,cambridge1 at ,lyell's    
suggestion  to explain the gradual      
development of the recent animals and   
plants  during the past history of the  
globe4 ,the other terms were 8miocene0  
and 8eocene40 ,the most ancient deposit 
which was supposed by ,lyell to  contain
 evidences of existing genera was at the

 dawn of the last great  geological     
period1 the tertiary4 ,it was called    
eocene from 1 dawn1  1 recent4 ,the next
 deposits overlying these older ones    
contained1  according to his estimate1  
seventeen per cent4 of living species1  
all  the rest being extinct2 and they   
were called miocene1 from 1 less1  and 1
 recent2 expressing a minor proportion  
of recent species to  that found in the 
topmost and most recent tertiary        
deposits4 ,these last  contain a large  
proportion of recent species1 and are   
called pliocene1  1 more1 and 1 recent4 
,it was a grand theory1 which has       
remained almost unaltered1 and it       
influenced the progress of geology1  for
 it plainly inferred that the living    
things of the present have been  linked 
with those of the past time by direct   
descent2 that many forms of  life have  
become extinct1 and that there is some  
wonderful law relating  to this4        
,about this time many were the          
geological heresies1 and the lovers of  

the  notion of the violent actions of   
nature evolved theories about volcanoes 
and the occurrence of vast waves to     
account for the presence of the great   
masses of rock which are found strewn   
far and wide and away from their        
sources4 ,these ,lyell successfully     
antagonized4 ,he then published the     
8,elements of ,geology10 and his time   
was fully occupied in the meetings  of  
the ,geological ,society1 in criticising
 work1 and in genial scientific         
society4    ,in the autumn of #ahda     
,lyell crossed the ,atlantic1 and spent 
thirteen  months in the ,united ,states1
 ,canada1 and ,nova ,scotia4 ,he worked 
hard as  an observer and recorder1 and  
his comparisons between the strata in   
the  ,new and ,old ,world are full of   
interest4 ,writing from ,philadelphia to
 his  father-in-law1 ,mr4 ,horner1 he   
says1 8,here ,i am working away in      
quarries  of greensand and picking up   
belemnites and other cretaceous         
fossils20  and then to ,dr4 ,mantell1   

8,after staying two days we went by ,new
 ,york  and the ,hudson to ,albany1     
where ,i began my explorings in the     
silurian  strata1 and from whence ,i    
examined the valley of the ,mohawk4 ,the
 ,falls  of ,niagara were as beautiful  
as ,i expected1 perhaps scarcely so     
grand1  but in geological interest far  
beyond my most sanguine hopes4 ,so ,i   
shall  send a paper on the proofs of    
their recession to the ,geological      
,society4  ,i will not dwell on them    
now4 ,after spending some time there1 ,i
 examined  seriatim1 all the silurian   
groups and the old red and coal on the  
borders  of ,pennsylvania4 ,returning to
 ,albany1 ,i went south to              
,philadelphia1  and spent four days in  
collecting in the different divisions of
 the  greensand1 and in ,new ,jersey4   
,the analogy of the genera1 and even of 
the  species of the ,european chalk1 is 
most striking40    ,one of his duties in
 the ,united ,states1 was to give a     
course of lectures  at the ,lowell      

,institute1 at which his audiences      
amounted to two thousand4  ,he also went
 north1 and made some most important    
investigations with  ,dr4 ,dawson1 then 
a comparatively unknown school          
missionary struggling  to learn         
something about nature1 and now one of  
the most distinguished  geologists in   
the world4 ,they dug out roots called by
 fossilists  stigmari1 which once       
supported huge trees called sigillari in
 the days  of the coal formation1 and   
they measured foot by foot many hundreds
 of  yards of the cliffs of the now     
celebrated place called ,toggins1 in    
,nova  ,scotia4 ,there they found rows  
of trees1 one over the other1 erect1 and
  indicating that1 when the part of the 
earth now cut into by the sea and       
exposed as a cliff was formed1 there was
 a series of ages1 each having  its     
forest1 each of which was overwhelmed1  
and thus forest after forest            
accumulated4 ,amongst the trees were    
some hollow ones1 and they contained    

little fossils1 such as shells and      
scales4 ,they were objects of interest1 
but it was not until later on that      
,lyell and ,dawson saw their importance4
  ,this subterranean forest exceeds in  
extent and quantity of timber all  that 
have been found in ,europe put together4
 ,the new deposit of red sand  of the   
numerous estuaries there afforded them  
endless instruction4 8,at  this place1  
,truro1 the tide is said to rise        
seventy-five feet1 and we see  the      
bottom of a deep salt-water sea1 its    
rippled sands1 shells and holes  of ,mya
 and ,tellina and their tracks1         
footmarks of birds and worms1  the      
manner in which the clays crack and are 
marked with the rain1 and  sometimes    
shells included recently in solid models
 of claystone4 ,i have  also learned    
more about the geological effects of    
drifting ice in the  last ten days than 
in all the ,canadian tour40    ,lyell   
returned to ,england1 and1 after a short
 rest1 started for the  north of        

,ireland4 ,he wrote to his sister3 8,we 
have just returned from a  walk over the
 grand pavement 7,giant's ,causeway71   
the effect of which was  as picturesque 
as the evening sun and some white       
breakers rolling and  foaming over the  
black rocks could make it4 ,much as ,i  
have been pleased  with the sight1 it   
strikes me that there are parts of      
,staffa away from  ,fingal's ,cave1 and 
which travellers have seldom leisure to 
visit1 which  are even finer in         
precisely the same style4 ,the geology  
of ,antrim is very  interesting--so many
 formations1 such as chalk1 green sand1 
lias1 new  red--and the coal being      
represented by such distinctly          
characterized and  yet such thin sets of
 strata1 compared to the same groups    
elsewhere2 and  then the grand trap or  
basaltic mass covering and cutting      
through them  all40    ,often slightly  
political in his ideas1 ,lyell wrote    
much about the ,irish  peasantry1 and   
spoke of them as the quick1 obliging1   

and fine-looking  natives of the ,green 
,island4 ,he remarked1 in #ahdc1 8,one  
cannot help  fearing that the           
anti-,english spirit has sunk deep into 
the hearts of  the millions here1 for   
they read nothing but ,o',connell's     
newspapers1  from which he artfully     
excludes1 without appearing to them to  
do so1  every other foreign or domestic 
topic of interest except repeal and     
,irish  grievances--a great proportion  
of them now bygone40    ,he kept        
steadily at work preparing his ,american
 travels for publication1  and in a note
 to a friend regarding the nature of    
coal1 he instanced the  swamps of       
,virginia4 8,the ,virginian morasses    
allow1 under a hot sun1 great           
accumulations of black vegetable matter1
 nearly like peat1 and which  might make
 coal4 ,the shade of ,cupressus         
distichi1 ,thuya1 and water oaks  shut  
out the sun1 and ferns and mosses draw  
in the damp air beneath1  while the heat
 causes evaporation1 and evaporation    

cold4 ,one swamp which  ,i saw is forty 
miles long by twenty broad4 ,thousands  
of prostrate trees  are in the peat40   
,some investigators held that the       
atmosphere must have  contained a large 
amount of carbonic acid gas during the  
ages in which  coal was being formed out
 of decaying vegetation1 but ,lyell1    
adhering  to his strictly uniformitarian
 views1 denied this1 and considered the 
,virginian swamps to be explanatory of  
the formation of coal4    ,lyell went to
 see the skeleton1 brought by a ,german 
named ,koch from  the ,missouri1 of a   
very large mastodon1 and was wonderfully
 amused to  notice how this savant had  
made it up out of fragments4 8,he has   
turned  the huge tusks the wrong        
way--horizontally1 has made the first   
pair of  ribs into collar-bones1 and has
 intercalated several spurious dorsal   
and tail vertebr1 and has placed the    
toe-bones wrong to prove1 what  he      
really believes1 that it was web-footed4
 ,i think he is a mixture of  an        

enthusiast and an impostor1 but more of 
the former1 and amusingly  ignorant4    
,his mode of advertising is a thousand  
dollars reward for  anyone who will     
prove that the bones of his ,missourium 
are made of wood4  ,he is soon to take  
them to ,london1 when you will have a   
treat1 and see a  larger femur          
7thigh-bone7 than that of ,iguanodon40  
,he was delighted with  the ,americans4 
,lyell revisited ,america in #ahde1 and 
on returning across the ,atlantic  in   
#ahdf1 narrowly escaped shipwreck on an 
iceberg2 but he made an  interesting    
observation about one great berg4 8,it  
had a large rock1  twelve feet square1  
on the top1 and much gravel and sand on 
its side4  ,the bergs were from fifty to
 four hundred feet in height1 pyramidal1
  pinnacled1 dome-shaped1 single-peaked1
 double-peaked1 flat-topped1 and of     
every form and most picturesque1 and    
only a quarter of a mile off us40       
,the lesson was not lost1 for ,lyell had
 thus ocular proof concerning  how      

stones of huge size and gravity1 can    
travel far from their proper  location4 
,and as these icebergs capsize or melt  
he was confirmed in  his views that many
 deposits of huge stones and gravels in 
the form of  8drift0 have been produced 
in this manner4    ,having now attained 
great eminence1 ,lyell began to write   
and agitate  about the scientific       
teaching of the ,universities1 and his  
opinion of  the decidedly unprogressive 
character of them was proved to be      
correct  when only four heads of houses 
out of twenty-four were at ,oxford to   
receive the ,british ,association for   
the ,advancement of ,science4 ,he urged 
strongly the necessity of placing the   
lay teacher on the same pecuniary  level
 as the clergy4 ,moreover1 he made a    
vigorous attempt to have truly          
scientific presidents of the ,royal     
,society1 and not only noblemen of high 
and royal standing4 ,the ,queen honoured
 ,lyell with her regard1 and ,prince    
,albert used to get him to talk about   

,america and the ,americans1 listening  
always with great interest4 ,he was     
knighted for his distinguished  services
 to science1 and the conferring of this 
dignity pleased the whole  scientific   
world4    ,in #ahdi ,sir ,charles ,lyell
 was re-elected president of the        
,geological  ,society1 and the          
,archbishop of ,canterbury1 ,dr4        
,sumner1 attended at  the annual dinner 
given on the occasion4 ,after the       
expiration of his  presidency1 ,lyell   
again went to the ,united ,states1 and1 
returning1  visited ,teneriffe1 the     
,grand ,canary1 and ,palma1 arriving in 
,england in  #ahed4    ,in #ahee and the
 two following years ,sir ,charles and  
,lady ,lyell travelled  much on the     
continent1 and always with a view of    
studying existing nature  so as to      
comprehend the past4 ,he was gratified  
by finding that most of  the rising     
teachers in ,germany were using his     
books as text books for  their lectures1
 and that the doctrines of ,hutton he   

had elaborated were  so much            
appreciated4 ,in ,switzerland1 ,lyell   
interested himself more than  ever about
 the great remains of former ice action 
on the rocks4 ,he was  at one time      
disposed to believe that certain masses 
of mud containing  angular stones1      
derived from a distance1 could have been
 produced by the  sea1 but not finding  
any remains of marine animals1 or       
evidence of such  action as the ice     
would produce in rounding and           
waterwearing stone1 he  began to examine
 the influence of glaciers in wearing   
rocks and carrying  the rubbish down    
with them4 ,he was of course aware that 
there had been an  age of cold in       
,switzerland1 corresponding to the      
glacial epoch of ,europe  to the north1 
and he was therefore prepared to find   
some proofs of the  former great        
extension of glaciers beyond their      
present limits4 ,he was  disposed to    
believe that the ,alps were higher than 
they now are in that  age of cold4 ,in  

order to account for the former action  
of ice and the  production of huge      
moraines1 in comparison with which those
 now found  at the glacier foot are     
pigmies1 ,lyell wrote3 8,in the glacial 
period1  when the weight of ice was     
enormously greater1 when in the region  
of the  ,alps there was so little       
melting1 when glaciers at present only  
ten1  fifteen1 and twenty miles long1   
and from three hundred to one thousand  
feet deep1 were fifty to one hundred1   
and even one hundred and fifty  miles   
long1 and four thousand feet deep 7and  
if there is any truth at  all in the    
generally received theory of the old    
,swiss glaciers1 such  must have been   
their gigantic dimensions71 one may     
readily grant that  the pressure and    
friction were so much in excess of what 
we now see as  to explain the contrast  
between the ice work done in the olden  
times1  and that accomplished in our own
 days1 to say nothing of the probably   
disproportionate length of the periods  

compared40 ,he noticed an old  terminal 
moraine1 in advance of the new one of   
the ,rhone glacier1 covered  with wild  
plants1 some in full flower1 and cut    
through in two places by  the river2 its
 height was only fifteen feet1 and its  
width ninety feet4  ,he went underneath 
the ,viesch glacier in the ,upper       
,vallais1 and beyond  it2 in consequence
 of its having melted much1 he saw a    
rounded and domed  surface of granite1  
smooth1 and with straight furrows a     
quarter of an  inch deep exactly in the 
direction of the onward movement of the 
glacier4  ,on the ,ruffelhorn1 on the   
right lateral moraine1 that is on the   
surface  of the ice close to the rocks1 
he saw a splendid mass of granite1      
angular  in shape1 and measuring        
fifty-nine feet long1 forty-nine feet   
wide1 and  forty-two feet high4 ,its    
sides were polished and furrowed4 ,this 
huge mass  was being carried slowly     
down1 by the glacier1 and will be       
deposited at  its foot some day or      

other4 ,once it formed a part of the    
valley side1 and  it fell on to the     
glacier1 whose flanks had scrubbed it   
for many a long  day4 ,he particularly  
noticed how the glaciers had been       
advancing of late  years 7just as they  
are now receding74    ,lyell followed   
out these researches on the south of the
 ,alps1 and he  first of all made many  
excursions1 accompanied by ,gastaldi1   
one of the  best of the scientific men  
of ,turin1 and by ,michelotti1 in order 
to  compare the shells which are found  
fossil in the middle tertiary strata  on
 the south of the ,alps1 with those of  
the molasse of ,switzerland to  the     
north4 ,he found that these strata1     
separated by the great mass of  the     
mountains1 resembled each other somewhat
 mineralogically as well as  in their   
fossils1 but he was not able to make out
 that they were exactly  of the same    
geological age1 although it was highly  
probable4 ,he wrote on  the glaciers    
ancient and modern of the southern      

slopes of the ,alps1 and  in relation to
 the former--8,a comparison also of the 
extinct glaciers of  the ,italian and   
,swiss sides of the ,alps can better be 
made from ,turin  than from any other   
place4 ,before my arrival ,i had seen1  
on the banks of  the ,lago ,maggiore1   
some good examples of erratics and of   
moraines which  had come from the       
,simplon1 but these1 as you might       
suppose1 a priori  are far inferior to  
those which have descended from the ,val
 d',aosta1 or  which belong to the      
mighty glacier derived from the combined
 snows of  the ,mont ,blanc and the     
,mont ,rosa group of ,alpine heights4   
,this glacier1  although perhaps of less
 gigantic dimensions than that of the   
,rhone1 has  certainly left1 as         
,gastaldi first pointed out in a memoir 
on the subject1  a far more imposing    
monument of itself on the plains of the 
,po1 than have  the extinct glaciers of 
the ,rhone or the ,rhine1 in the lower  
country of  ,switzerland40 ,he noticed  

that 8,j4 ,d4 ,forbes has well shown in 
his book  on the ,alps1 that a glacier  
is a peculiarly sensitive instrument for
  measuring the average of heat and     
cold1 and that every slight difference  
of temperature causes it to increase or 
lessen in height and length40  ,and     
pursuing the argument1 remarks that as  
geologists had shown from  the nature of
 the fossil remains in lately formed    
gravels1 that arctic  animals lived far 
south in ,europe1 shortly before the    
existing state of  things1 we ought to  
find evidences of the cold climate which
 allowed  those animals to live so far  
south4 ,these evidences are at hand in  
the  remains of the glaciers1 which in  
those days extended far lower than they 
do now1 and were grander in extent4     
,thus a lofty mound or ridge1 two       
thousand feet high1 called the ,serra1  
running into the great alluvial  flat of
 the ,river ,po1 where maize and        
mulberries grow1 is a huge terminal     
moraine of an ancient glacier4 ,ice     

reigned supreme there in the glacial    
period1 and brought down the stone from 
the distant hills1 and deposited  it on 
the ,serra4 ,in ,forfarshire1 ,lyell had
 noticed the peculiar contorted         
appearance of the beds of clay1 gravel  
and sand of glacial formation1  and also
 in the mud cliffs of ,norfolk4 ,he was 
anxious to know whether  any of the     
ancient glacial heaps or moraines of the
 country south of the  ,alps1 showed    
similar indications of pressure and     
forcing along by ice4  8,it happened    
that a railway was making from ,turin to
 ,ivrea1 and although  they cut through 
the lowest part of the terminal moraines
 near ,mazzi they  have thought it worth
 while to make a tunnel1 through which  
we walked40  ,near the entrance1 8,i was
 delighted10 wrote ,lyell1 8to see that 
curious  folding of the strata1 which   
will cause the same beds to be here     
pierced  by a perpendicular shaft1 yet  
without the beds having participated in 
the movement40 ,full of this important  

subject he wrote fully on it4    8,in   
order to appreciate the distinctive     
character of this colossal  moraine1 you
 must reflect on the uniformity and     
evenness of the vast  plain of the ,po  
all round it1 for1 although really      
inclined from the  ,alps1 it looks as   
level as the sea2 then fancy the great  
mounds sloping  up at angles of #bj and 
#cj to heights of #ejj1 #ajjj1 #aejj and
 #bjjj  feet2 then consider that at the 
very extremity1 as near ,caluso1 there  
are blocks of protogine which have come 
one hundred miles from ,mont  ,blanc2   
also that the whole assemblage of stones
 is not like that which  has issued from
 the ,susa1 or from any other valley1   
but confined to  rocks such as now      
strictly belong to the basin of the     
,dora ,baltea2 also  that the pebbles   
and fragments of stone1 if of serpentine
 or any easily  striable rock1 are all  
striated1 at least nineteen-twentieths  
of the  whole1 whereas in a recent      
glacier which has only travelled ten    

miles1  you might only find one in      
twenty of the same stone striated2 and  
lastly1  think of the narrow vomitory   
which has disgorged this enormous       
quantity  of material1 the ravine above 
,ivrea being as obviously the source of 
the  whole1 as is the crater of         
,vesuvius the point from which its lavas
 have  issued4 ,when ,gastaldi read his 
paper to the ,geological ,society at    
,paris1  written jointly by him and     
,martens1 ,elie de ,beaumont1 who had   
many years  before visited the ground1  
objected entirely to their conclusion   
that it  was a moraine1 but ,i never saw
 a stronger or more satisfactory case4  
,but in the same paper the authors      
hazarded an opinion that although the   
old ,alpine moraines stopped short after
 going a few leagues from the  ,alps1   
yet at some former time erratics had    
been conveyed to the summit  of the     
,collina1 just as 8,pierre  ,bot0 and   
other blocks had been carried  by the   
old ,rhone glacier to the flanks of the 

,jura4 ,now when ,i read this  at       
,zurich1 ,i immediately recollected that
 in the valley of the ,bormida1  when ,i
 passed from ,savona to ,alessandria in 
#ahbh1 ,i had been astonished  at some  
very huge erratics of serpentine in the 
,miocene4 ,having never  seen blocks of 
such enormous dimensions in any tertiary
 formation1 ,i was  relieved in #ahbh at
 finding1 in some spots on the ,bormida1
 projecting  fragments of serpentine in 
places which the erosion of the valleys 
had  exposed to view4 ,i concluded that 
they may not have travelled far1 and    
when ,i saw some large blocks on the    
,superga 7in #ahbh71 ,i immediately     
suspected that as that hill consisted of
 beds of the same formation1  the blocks
 might have been washed out of the      
,miocene not far off4 ,i  therefore now 
suggested this view to ,gastaldi1 and   
found that he was  by no means tenacious
 of his printed theory1 although he said
 that the  blocks were many of them     
angular1 of very great size1 and        

accompanied  by ,alpine loam4 ,we then  
examined the beds of the ,superga1 both 
those  dipping to the north-west1 and   
those to the south-east1 and on both    
sides of this anticlinal are strata     
containing fragments of stone of        
various kinds1 some not known in the    
neighbouring ,alps or ,apennines1  from 
two to eight feet in diameter4 ,on our  
ascent to the ,superga ,i saw  a        
thickness of sixty feet regularly       
stratified of this conglomerate1  in    
which were fragments consisting chiefly 
of serpentine1 but some of  limestone1  
others of protogine granite1 and one of 
the latter angular  and eight feet in   
diameter4 ,in less than half an hour's  
search1 ,i found  two of the serpentine 
and one of the limestone pebbles with   
scratches1  which would be called       
glacial if they were found in a modern  
moraine1  though not such as you would  
select for examples for a museum4 ,still
 ,i  searched this year in some recent  
moraines quite as long without finding  

better4 ,as to the age of the beds1     
there is no doubt of their belonging  to
 the ,lower ,miocene1 the marine fossils
 of which we collected in strata  both  
below and above them4 ,these enormous   
blocks1 therefore1 were brought  into   
their present position by causes which  
acted in the ,miocene age4 ,i  know of  
no agency but that of ice which could   
have quietly let them down  upon        
subjacent beds of undisturbed fine marl 
and sand4 ,hence ,i conclude  that there
 was floating ice in the ,lower ,miocene
 period1 and if the  few scratches ,i   
saw really imply glacial striation1 the 
ice-rafts were  probably derived from   
glaciers which came down from mountains 
bordering  the glacial sea2 perhaps from
 the ,alps1 for that chain must have    
existed  before the origin of a large   
part of the ,lower ,miocene4 ,i have    
kept the  specimens ,i found of these   
,miocene striated stones to show        
,ramsay1 who  will be interested in     
hearing1 that in spite of some          

,brazilian genera of  trees and insects1
 and not a few palms1 and some reptiles 
of good size1  and many other fossil    
genera found on both sides of the ,alps 
and supposed  to imply a subtropical    
climate1 ,i am not afraid to appeal to  
ice as the  only known cause capable of 
stratifying these great masses in the   
manner  in which they occur40    ,the   
evidence of former changes in climate   
was thus strongly impressed on  ,lyell's
 mind1 and the astonishing truth began  
to be strongly impressed  upon          
geologists by him1 that not only has the
 area of ,europe witnessed  ages of     
tropical heat1 but also ages of         
considerable winter's cold1 and  that   
there has been more than one glacial    
period4    ,lyell visited ,vesuvius and 
,etna in #aheh1 and how carefully he    
noticed  every detail of the mountain   
structure1 and how little he cared about
  8roughing it0 may be gleaned from     
extracts from his diary sent to his     
wife3--    8,etna1 ,casa ,inglese1      

,sept4 #ba1 #aheh4--;,got off with two  
guides and two  muleteers and four      
mules1 at half past seven1 in bright    
sunshine1 from  ,nicolosi1 and after a  
beautiful sunny ride of three hours     
through wooded  craters1 protected from 
the heat by my umbrella1 was gradually  
enveloped  in clouds4 ,i saw a lava     
stream where the oaks had been          
surrounded by  lava1 which had taken the
 form both of upright and prostrate     
trunks1  surrounding them with tuff1 and
 the wood being burned up they are now  
cylinders of scoriaceous lava4 ,after a 
couple of hours we got above the        
clouds1 when about eight thousand feet  
high1 but not till my hands were        
numbed1 for ,i could not believe for a  
long time in the necessity of my        
putting on a cloak4 ,after reaching this
 place1 ,i set out with ,angelo for  the
 top of ,etna1 leaving ,guiseppe to     
cook4 ,we had now and then a drifting   
cloud1 but on the whole splendid        
sunshine4 ,i saw the spot at the foot of

  the great line where the ,catanians   
quarried ice from under a current of    
lava4 ,my guide saw the same thing some 
six years ago1 while the eruption  of   
#aheb was in progress1 in ,august and   
,september3 the sand and lava ten  feet 
thick1 and four feet of ice below1 and  
bottom not seen4 ,not far  above the ice
 ,i warmed my hands at a fumarole where 
the steam and some  sulphuretted        
hydrogen were given off at such a heat  
that ,i was obliged  to be careful how  
,i put my fingers in4 ,this welcome heat
 enabled me to  write4 ,when we reached 
the edge of the crater the whole of     
,sicily was  hidden except the higher   
part of ,etna1 between us and           
,montagunoli4 ,but  ,lipari and         
,stromboli stood out in the sea very    
conspicuously4 ,i made a  rough sketch  
of the two craters2 the smaller one has 
lately1 ,i believe1  fallen1 and shows a
 section of some of the horizontal beds 
of lava1  with which it had been filled 
nearly to the top4 ,it was a            

considerable  exertion climbing and     
going half round it after a seven hours'
 ride1  and this makes the ,casa        
,inglese1 which is the roughest place ,i
 was ever  in1 seem a hospitable        
mansion1 as it saves our returning4 ,the
 wind is  whistling round and somewhat  
through it1 but ,dr4 ,guiseppe1 ,i hear1
 has  made it weather tight4 ,there is  
no chimney and we have charcoal burners1
  but if the wind always blows like this
 ,i am not1 at any rate1 guaranteed     
from asphyxia40    ,he got a list of one
 hundred and fifty shells of the newer  
pliocene  clay on which ,etna rests4    
,nine-tenths of them he found were of   
species  belonging to the present floor 
of the ,mediterranean ,sea1 and this1 to
 his  delight1 confirmed what he wrote1 
and what has already been alluded to1   
regarding this deposit on a former      
occasion4 ,at ,bronte1 ,lyell saw the   
place where a crowd assembled in #ahdb1 
to see the lava flow into a great       
artificial reservoir of water4 ,the     

torrent of melted stone came forward    
with a front of more than thirty feet   
high1 and falling suddenly into the     
water1 produced for a while no effect   
whatever1 as if1 as in the white  hot   
metal in ,butigny's experiment1 it      
required to cool down before it  could  
cause explosion4 ,at length it went off 
suddenly1 and everybody but  one or two 
out of fifty or more in number was      
killed4    ,during the years of his     
journeys in ,america and ,europe1 ,lyell
 had paid  special attention to the     
changes which were occurring on the     
surface of  the earth amongst the rocks 
and hills1 valleys1 rivers1 and         
sea-shores4  ,he had dealt with         
inanimate nature largely4 ,about the    
year #ahei he began  to consider the    
changes which have occurred in the      
living things of the  past1 and to      
direct his attention to the subject of  
the antiquity of man  and to the        
possible origin of species4 ,he wrote to
 a friend in his usual  half-jesting    

manner3 8,i have been much occupied with
 another geological  subject besides    
that which your niece1 ,ellen           
,twisleton1 irreverently  calls the     
proving her to be first cousin to a     
turnip 7a violet she  should have said72
 ,i mean the antiquity of man as implied
 by the flint  hatchets of ,amiens1     
undoubtedly contemporaneous with the    
mammoth1 and  also the human skeletons  
of certain caves near ,lige1 which ,i   
believe to  be of corresponding age4 ,i 
regard the pyramids as things of        
yesterday in  comparison of those       
relics40 ,lyell struggled long in his   
mind against the  theory of the great   
age of man on the earth1 and converted  
himself to  the belief in it1 and in    
#ahfa he wrote1 after examining the     
associated  remains of human art and    
extinct animals1 such as the mammoth and
 hairy  rhinoceros in ,england1 that    
8the late discoveries at ,herne ,bay and
  ,reculver convince me that man        
inhabited ,england when the ,thames was 

a  tributary of the ,rhine40 ,he        
published a work on the antiquity of    
man1  and then began to interest himself
 about the great age when ice reigned   
supreme over much of the northern       
hemisphere4 ,writing to his nephew he   
states3 8,on a hill called ,moel        
,tryfaen 7in ,north ,wales71 at a height
 of  thirteen hundred feet above the    
sea1 ,i found twenty species of fossil  
shells1 all of living species1 in sand  
and gravel fifty feet thick4 ,you  would
 have known most of them familiarly40   
,some of these shells were  of kinds now
 living close by in the sea1 but others 
of kinds now living  within the arctic  
circle4 8,the shells show that ,snowdon 
and all the  highest hills which are in 
the neighbourhood of ,moel ,tryfaen were
 mere  islands in the sea at a          
comparatively late period1 or when these
 living  molluscs were flourishing40    
,the researches of ,lyell and ,dawson in
 ,nova ,scotia have been noticed1 and   
it is interesting to know that they were

 rewarded by the discovery of an        
air-breathing mollusc1 and of several   
small amphibians of the age of the  coal
 period1 in the hollow of a stump of a  
tree1 which dated back to that  very    
ancient time4 ,after the death of his   
friend ,murchison1 although the  effects
 of age and a life of hard study were   
not unfelt1 ,lyell followed  with great 
care the researches of ,dr4 ,hicks      
relating to the oldest rocks  of        
,england4 ,lyell was intensely          
interested at the discovery of highly   
organized invertebrate animals in       
sandstones and shales1 which hitherto   
had only yielded some doubtful worm     
tracks and impressions of plants1  and  
he recognized the truth that no         
evidences of the beginning of living    
things were presented to the geologist4 
,the researches of ,carpenter1          
,thomson1 and ,agassiz concerning the   
natural philosophy and natural  history 
of the deep sea were gratefully         
acknowledged by ,lyell1 as most         

important contributions to science1 and 
the author of this memoir has a  lively 
remembrance of ,sir ,charles's intense  
excitement when the news  first came    
that the sea was very cold at great     
depths4    ,years passed on1 and honours
 came to the hard-working1 truth-loving 
man4 ,he was elected president of the   
,british ,association1 and was made  a  
baronet4 ,his sight began to fail1 and  
it was a constant anxiety to  many who  
saw him about ,london1 to witness his   
constant exposure to  danger4 ,availing 
himself of an excellent secretary1 he   
still corresponded  largely1 and        
attended scientific meetings4 ,but the  
end was at hand1 and  he lost his       
well-loved wife and then his brother4   
,dying from the results  of a fall1     
,lyell was buried in ,westminster       
,abbey1 as a representative man  of     
science4 ,he was a brilliant example of 
a man who sought out truth1 and  braved 
public opinion for its sake1 and who    
enlightened the world1 caring  little   

for ease and luxury1 and assisting every
 fellow-labourer in the  great science  
of geology4    ,illustration            
,,footnotes      #a ,the greater part of
 this memoir is taken from ,miss        
,brightwell's 8,life  of ,linnus40 ,van 
,voorst4    #b ,terebratul4    #c ,a    
large ,echinite 7,clypeus sinuatus of   
,leske71 not unfrequently  employed as a
 8pound-weight0 by the dairywomen4    #d
 ,named from its frequent use in the    
construction of ovens4    #e ,written by
 his biographer4    #f ,address to the  
,geological ,society1 at the            
,anniversary ,meeting1 ,feb4  #ah1      
#ahca1 by the ,president1 the ,rev4     
,adam ,sedgwick1 ,m4,a41 ,f4,r4,s41 etc4
    ,,printed ,,by ,,william ,,clowes   
,,and ,,sons1 ,,limited1 ,,london ,,and 
,,beccles4          ,illustration       
,,publications    ,,of ,,the    ,society
 for ,promoting ,christian ,knowledge4  
,most of these ,works may be had in     
,ornamental ,bindings1 with ,gilt       
,edges1  at a small extra charge4       

s4 d4        ,,against ,,the ,,stream2  
,,the ,,story ,,of ,,an ,,heroic ,,age  
,,in ,,england4 ,by      the author of  
8,the ,chronicles of the                
,schnberg-,cotta ,family10      c4 ,with
 ,eight full-page ,illustrations on     
toned paper4 ,crown      #hvo4          
,cloth boards #d    #j        ,a 8,,leal
 ,,light ,,heart40 ,by ,,annette        
,,lyster1 author of 8,northwind      and
 ,sunshine10 c4 ,with ,four full-page   
,illustrations on toned      paper4     
,crown #hvo4                            
,cloth boards #c    #f        ,,ambrose 
,,oran2 ,,or1 ,,with ,,the ,,buccaneers4
 ,by ,f4 ,,scarlett ,,potter4      ,with
 ,three full-page ,illustrations on     
toned paper4 ,crown #hvo4               
,cloth boards #b    #j        ,,aunt    
,,kezia',s ,,will4 ,by ,s4 ,m4          
,,sitwell1 author of 8,the ,andrews     
,family10 c4 ,with ,three full-page     
,illustrations on toned paper4          
,crown #hvo4                            
,cloth boards #a    #f        ,,belfry  

,,of ,,st4 ,,jude 7,,the74 ,a ,story4   
,by ,,esm ,,stuart1 author of           
8,mimi40 ,with ,three full-page         
,illustrations on toned paper4          
,crown #hvo4                            
,cloth boards #b    #f        ,,bernard 
,,hamilton3 ,,curate ,,of ,,stowe4 ,by  
,,mary ,e4 ,,shipley1 author      of    
8,janetta10 c4 ,with ,four full-page    
,illustrations on toned      paper4     
,crown #hvo4                            
,cloth boards #c    #f        ,,brave   
,,men ,,of ,,eyam 7,,the72 ,,or1 ,a     
,,tale ,,of ,,the ,,great ,,plague      
,,year4      ,by the ,rev4 ,e4 ,n4      
,,hoare1 ,m4,a41 author of 8,two        
,voyages10 8,mike10      c4 ,with ,three
 full-page ,illustrations on toned      
paper4 ,crown      #hvo4                
,cloth boards #b    #f        ,,captain 
,,eva2 ,,the ,,story ,,of ,a ,,naughty  
,,girl4 ,by ,,kathleen ,,knox4          
,with ,three full-page ,illustrations on
 toned paper4 ,crown #hvo4              
,cloth boards #a    #f                  

,,chryssie',s ,,hero4 ,by ,,annette     
,,lyster1 author of 8,fan's ,silken     
,string10 c4 ,with ,three full-page     
,illustrations on toned paper4          
,crown #hvo4                            
,cloth boards #b    #f                  
,,christabel3 ,,the ,,flower ,,girl ,,of
 ,,covent ,,garden4 ,by the author      
of 8,our ,valley10 8,rosebuds10 c4 ,with
 ,three full-page      ,illustrations on
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boards #a    #f        ,,conquering     
,,and ,,to ,,conquer2 ,a ,,story ,,of   
,,rome ,,in ,,the ,,days ,,of ,,st4     
,,jerome4 ,by the author of 8,the       
,schnberg-,cotta ,family10 c4 ,with     
,four full-page ,illustrations on toned 
paper4 ,crown #hvo4                     
,cloth boards #b    #f        ,,cruise  
,,of ,,the 8,,dainty0 7,,the72 ,,or1    
,,rovings ,,in ,,the ,,pacific4 ,by     
the late ,w4 ,h4 ,g4 ,,kingston4 ,with  
,three full-page ,illustrations      on 
toned paper4 ,crown #hvo4               
,cloth boards #b    #j        ,,dick    

,,darlington1 ,,at ,,home ,,and         
,,abroad4 ,by ,a4 ,h4 ,,engelbach1      
author      of 8,juanita10 c4 ,with     
,three full-page ,illustrations on toned
      paper4 ,crown #hvo4               
,cloth boards #b    #j        ,,fortunes
 ,,of ,,hassan 7,,the74 ,being the      
strange story of a ,turkish             
,refugee1 as told by himself4 ,by the   
author of 8,our ,valley10 c4      ,with 
,three full-page ,illustrations on toned
 paper4 ,crown #hvo4                    
,cloth boards #b    #f        ,,great   
,,captain 7,,the73 ,,an ,,eventful      
,,chapter ,,in ,,spanish ,,history4 ,by 
,,ulick ,r4 ,,burke1 ,m4,a4 ,with ,two  
full-page ,illustrations on toned       
paper4 ,crown #hvo4                     
,cloth boards #b    #j        ,,harry',s
 ,,discipline4 ,by ,,laura ,m4 ,,lane1  
author of 8,a ,character10      c4 ,with
 ,three full-page ,illustrations on     
toned paper4 ,crown      #hvo4          
,cloth boards #a    #f        ,,harvey  
,,compton',s ,,holiday4 ,by the author  

of 8,percy ,trevor's      ,training10   
8,two ,voyages10 c4 ,with ,three        
full-page      ,illustrations on toned  
paper4 ,crown #hvo4      ,cloth boards  
#a    #f        ,,hasselaers 7,,the72 ,a
 ,,tale ,,of ,,courage ,,and            
,,endurance4 ,by ,,mrs4      ,,frank    
,,cooper4 ,with ,three full-page        
,illustrations on toned      paper4     
,crown #hvo4                            
,cloth boards #a    #f        ,,her     
,,father',s ,,inheritance4 ,by ,,crona  
,,temple1 author of 8,through      the  
,rough ,wind10 c4 ,with ,four full-page 
,illustrations on toned      paper4     
,crown #hvo4                            
,cloth boards #c    #f        ,,hidden  
,,workings4 ,by ,miss ,h4 ,r4 ,,russell1
 author of 8,muriel10 c4      ,with     
,three full-page ,illustrations on toned
 paper4 ,crown #hvo4                    
,cloth boards #b    #j        ,,hide    
,,and ,,seek2 ,a ,,story ,,of ,,the     
,,new ,,forest ,,in #afdg4 ,by ,mrs4    
,,frank      ,,cooper4 ,with ,three     

full-page ,illustrations on toned paper4
      ,crown #hvo4                      
,cloth boards #b    #j        ,,how     
,,willie ,,became ,a ,,hero4 ,by the    
author of 8,clary's      ,confirmation10
 c4 ,with ,three full-page              
,illustrations on toned      paper4     
,crown #hvo4                            
,cloth boards #b    #j        ,,invasion
 ,,of ,,ivylands 7,,the74 ,by ,,annette 
,,lyster1 author of 8,fan's      ,silken
 ,string10 c4 ,with ,three full-page    
,illustrations on toned      paper4     
,crown #hvo4                            
,cloth boards #a    #f        ,,john    
,,holbrook',s ,,lessons4 ,by ,m4 ,e4    
,,palgrave1 author of 8,marcel's        
,duty40 ,with ,three full-page          
,illustrations on toned paper4 ,crown   
#hvo4                                   
,cloth boards #a    #f        ,,king',s 
,,marden4 ,by the author of 8,our       
,valley10 c4 ,with ,four      full-page 
,illustrations on toned paper4 ,crown   
#hvo4                                   

,cloth boards #c    #f        ,,kitty   
,,bligh',s ,,birthday4 ,by ,,alfred ,h4 
,,engelbach1 author of      8,lionel's  
,revenge10 c4 ,with ,three full-page    
,illustrations on      toned paper4     
,crown #hvo4                            
,cloth boards #a    #f        ,,lapsed1 
,,not ,,lost2 ,a ,,story ,,of ,,roman   
,,carthage4 ,by the author of      8,the
 ,chronicles of the ,schnberg-,cotta    
,family10 c4 ,crown #hvo4               
,cloth boards #b    #f                  
,,marcel',s ,,duty3 ,a ,,story ,,of     
,,war-,,time4 ,by ,,mary ,e4 ,,palgrave1
 author      of 8,john ,holbrook's      
,lesson40 ,with ,three full-page        
,illustrations      on toned paper4     
,crown #hvo4                    ,cloth  
boards #b    #j        ,,mate ,,of ,,the
 8,,lily0 7,,the72 ,,or1 ,,notes ,,from 
,,harry ,,musgrave',s      ,,log-,,book4
 ,by the late ,,william ,h4 ,g4         
,,kingston1 author of 8,owen            
,hartley10 c4 ,with ,three full-page    
,illustrations on toned      paper4     

,crown #hvo4                            
,cloth boards #a    #f        ,,mike2 ,a
 ,,tale ,,of ,,the ,,great ,,irish      
,,famine4 ,by the ,,rev4 ,e4 ,n4        
,,hoare1 author of 8,between the        
,locks10 c4 ,with ,three full-page      
,illustrations on toned paper4 ,crown   
#hvo4      ,cloth boards #a    #f       
,,mimi3 ,a ,,story ,,of ,,peasant ,,life
 ,,in ,,normandy4 ,by ,,esm ,,stuart1   
author of 8,the ,little ,brown ,girl10  
c4 ,with ,three full-page               
,illustrations on toned paper4 ,crown   
#hvo4      ,cloth boards #b    #f       
,,miscellanies ,,of ,,animal ,,life4 ,by
 ,,elizabeth ,,spooner1 author of       
8,daily ,readings for a ,year10 c4 ,with
 ,illustrations4 ,post #hvo4            
,cloth boards #b    #j        ,,missy   
,,and ,,master4 ,by ,m4 ,,bramston1     
author of 8,the ,snowball               
,society10 c4 ,with ,three full-page    
,illustrations on toned      paper4     
,crown #hvo4                            
,cloth boards #b    #j        ,,my      

,,lonely ,,lassie4 ,by ,,annette        
,,lyster1 author of 8,mrs4 ,dobbs'      
,dull ,boy10 c4 ,with ,three full-page  
,illustrations on toned      paper4     
,crown #hvo4                            
,cloth boards #b    #f        ,,round   
,,my ,,table4 ,by ,h4 ,l4               
,,childe-,,pemberton1 author of 8,under 
the      ,trees10 c4 ,with ,three       
full-page ,illustrations on toned paper4
      ,crown #hvo4                      
,cloth boards #a    #f        ,,slavers 
,,and ,,cruisers4 ,by ,s4 ,w4 ,,sadler1 
,esq41 ,r4,n41 author of      8,marshall
 ,vavassour10 c4 ,with ,four full-page  
,illustrations on      toned paper4     
,crown #hvo4                            
,cloth boards #c    #f                  
,,steffan',s ,,angel1 ,,and ,,other     
,,stories4 ,by ,m4 ,e4 ,,townsend4 ,with
      ,three page ,illustrations on     
toned paper4 ,crown #hvo4               
,cloth boards #b    #f        ,,sweet   
,,william4 ,by ,mrs4 ,,thomas ,,erskine4
 ,with ,three full-page                 

,illustrations on toned paper4 ,crown   
#hvo4      ,cloth boards #a    #f       
,,through ,,the ,,rough ,,wind2 ,a      
,,story ,,of ,,the ,,collieries4 ,by    
,,crona      ,,temple1 author of        
8,etta's ,fairies10 c4 ,with ,three     
full-page      ,illustrations on toned  
paper4 ,crown #hvo4      ,cloth boards  
#a    #f        ,,two ,,shipmates       
7,,the74 ,by the late ,w4 ,h4 ,g4       
,,kingston1 author of      8,ned        
,garth10 c41 c4 ,with ,three full-page  
,illustrations on      toned paper4     
,crown #hvo4                            
,cloth boards #a    #f        ,,under   
,,the ,,trees4 ,by ,h4 ,l4              
,,childe-,,pemberton1 author of 8,round 
my      ,table10 c4 ,with ,three        
full-page ,illustrations on toned paper4
      ,crown #hvo4                      
,cloth boards #a    #f        ,,unto    
,,his ,,life',s ,,end4 ,a book for      
choir-boys4 ,by ,,ursula1 author      of
 8,little ,things10 c4 ,with ,three     
full-page ,illustrations on      toned  

paper4 ,crown #hvo4                     
,cloth boards #a    #f        ,,vanda4  
,by ,,esm ,,stuart1 author of 8,the     
,little ,brown ,girl10 c4      ,with    
,three full-page ,illustrations on toned
 paper4 ,crown #hvo4                    
,cloth boards #b    #j        ,,white   
,,chapel 7,,the72 ,a ,,story4 ,by ,,esm 
,,stuart1 author of 8,mimi10      c4    
,with ,three full-page ,illustrations on
 toned paper4 ,crown      #hvo4         
,cloth boards #b    #j        ,,white   
,,gipsy 7,,the74 ,by ,,annette ,,lyster4
 ,with ,four full-page                  
,illustrations on toned paper4 ,crown   
#hvo4      ,cloth boards #c    #j       
,illustration                           
,,london3                               
,,northumberland ,,avenue1 ,,charing    
,,cross1 ,w4,c42             #dc1       
,,queen ,,victoria ,,street1 ,e4,c42    
#dh1 ,,piccadilly1 ,w42                 
,,and #ace1 ,,north ,,street1           
,,brighton4    ,wyman and ,sons1        
,printers1 ,great ,queen ,street1       

,lincoln's-,inn ,fields1 ,w4,c4