58 Anniversary Address, 



appears on the face of almost every address which has been de- 

 hvered to the Berwickshire Naturalists' Club. 



On this anniversary, the twenty-first meeting of your happy 

 and flourishing and harmonious Association, and with the pre- 

 cedent of twenty printed reports before mc, it would ill become 

 me if I did not follow the example which has been so well esta- 

 blished, and offer a grateful homage to the Fountain of Wisdom 

 from which all knowledge flows. 



In speaking of the origin of the study of Natural History, it is 

 not my intention to detain you with anything like a recondite 

 disquisition, but to recall some striking facts to your recollection, 

 and to add to the interest of this gathering by the mention of a 

 few traits and anecdotes which may serve to quicken your zeal 

 in investigations which are always accompanied with pleasure 

 and improvement. 



The philosopher who has very properly been called the Prince 

 of Philosophers, " Princeps Philosophorum,'' and the first who 

 made an accurate division of the several sciences, and showed how 

 they should be systematically treated, was He, whose school ob- 

 tained the name of Peripatetic, because his disciples collected 

 and interchanged much of their knowledge, as you do, while they 

 were walking about. They had their morning stroll as you have, 

 and they had their afternoon lecture as you have. 



Cuvier, the eminent modern Professor of Natural History, as- 

 signed to Aristotle the honour of leading the way, and of doing 

 more for science than any other who had gone before him, espe- 

 cially for that department of science which is called the Natural 

 History of Animals. Buffon thought Aristotle's system of clas- 

 sification to be so original, and so worthy of notice, that he 

 explained it at considerable length in the first volume of his 

 ' Histoire Naturelle' ; and Kidd in his Bridgewatcr Treatise, com- 

 paring Aristotle's account of Animals with the discoveries of 

 modern science, does not hesitate to say, that the ancient philo- 

 sopher's division of the Animal Kingdom has deservedly been the 

 model for succeeding naturalists. His method has indeed some- 

 times been abandoned, but for the most part it has been adopted. 

 With such attestations to the merit of the great master, with 

 whom originated the systematic study of nature, and the best 

 mode of classifying objects of natural history, I think you will 

 take an interest in tracking some of the steps of your famous 



