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it be not an insult to nature to pass unnoticed her various productions, which are far 

 superior to the nicest workmanship, it will sometime be an insult to the understand- 

 ing to be considered totally ignorant of these things." In his day such speculation 

 was legitimate, but is the comment now justifiable which Prof. Cole makes on the 

 passage of which this is the conclusion ? — 



" There are thousands of British citizens and country gentlemen and hundreds 

 of members of Parliament for that matter, trained in our public schools and 

 universities, who look upon the study of the earth as something that in no way 

 concerns them and who often would regard it as ' an insult to their understanding ' 

 if they were supposed to know anything about it. They leave scientific studies, 

 which they call 'stinks' at school, to those who are going to invent something for 

 our material comfort, such as a new electric railway or a patent sanitary soap." 



Is not an ever-increasing -weight of evidence tending to show that scientific 

 studies after all are a kind of mental caviare— that the vast majority will attend 

 only to things of human interest? The late birth of science would seem to be a 

 matter of more significance than is commonly supposed. It is a favourite educa- 

 tional doctrine that the development of the individual is more or less a copy of that 

 of the race. 



One remark in conclusion. The common practice is sufficiently objectionable 

 which allows the signature of the photographer to be attached to each indifferent 

 reproduction of an indifferent picture : an author should refrain from this practice. 

 Prof. Cole might as well have attached his name to each page of his letterpress as 

 to each of his pictures. 







