THE GENIUS OF SCIENCE 395 



of its structure that it was created only by ceaseless labour. What 

 must have been the toil necessary to found geometry, algebra, 

 the calculus, the atomic theory, the theories of gravitation, 

 electricity, and evolution ? — not less than the toils which gave the 

 New World to the Old World and the map of Africa to Europe. 



But in addition to all these qualities which the man of science 

 must possess — the genius to conceive, the sagacity to perceive, 

 the determination to succeed, and the strength to work — he 

 must also be fortunate enough to find an opportunity. There 

 may have been, and probably were, many potential Newtons 

 and Shakespeares, as well as Napoleons in the old, old history 

 of mankind ; but the opportunities, that is the powers given 

 by previous workers, were not there. But to say this is not 

 to depreciate the value of the personal qualities required. We 

 often hear it said scornfully of some discoverer that if he had 

 not lived some one else would have taken his place; but this 

 is generally true only of small workers. There have been 

 revolutions without Napoleons, and many opportunities with- 

 out discoveries. Here again the personal qualities enable the 

 man to seize the opportunity. In fact opportunities are common 

 but genius is rare ; and to a great extent genius makes its own 

 opportunities. 



The conjunction of circumstances leading to the production 

 of scientific genius must therefore be very rare. It is rare, 

 and its rarity explains the slowness of human advance. There 

 is much evidence to show that nations produce genius of all 

 kinds only at certain epochs — that a nation may exist for ages 

 without new science, new art, or indeed advance in any par- 

 ticular. Suddenly, however, there comes a blossoming-forth. 

 Indeed a biological law may be suspected here — that genius 

 is like the flowers on the tree, and that the mass of mankind 

 are but the leaves. The latter serve the ordinary purposes 

 of the plant; the former serve the extraordinary purpose of 

 a greater growth and a more glorious future. The first asset 

 which a nation possesses is its capacity for producing genius — 

 greater than the possession of a fertile soil, or of mineral wealth, 

 or of opportunity for commerce ; as great as the assets of 

 industry and honesty in its people. The history of nations 

 is mostly the history of their men of genius great and small ; 

 and there are nations which, possessing no men of genius, have 

 taken no part in the history of the world for ages. 



