640 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



even for less than a year, he can never catch up. Others have been at 

 work while he was idle, and he is left behind. Pecuniarily a natural- 

 ist's work does not pay ; the same amount of energy and ability spent 

 in any other direction would bring in ample recompense, but here it 

 does not. It does, however, have its own reward : every new fact dis- 

 covered gives the student far more pleasure than any money could ; 

 each new advance into the terra incognita of Nature lightens the in- 

 conveniences of poverty. 



And now the question may arise, What is the use of discovering 

 the secrets of Nature if there be no money in it ? Yes, that is it. 

 Everything must be reduced to a basis of dollars and cents ! The 

 utilitarians who propound such questions do not and can not see any 

 value in learning for learning's sake ; it must bring some pecuniary 

 reward. In some instances it is readily seen that such studies have a 

 direct influence in curing or ameliorating some of the ills that human 

 flesh is heir to ; in other instances their exact bearings are not imme- 

 diately apparent. Just one hundred years ago an Italian physician, 

 Galvani by name, discovered some facts which, while interesting, must 

 have seemed at that time wholly without practical bearings. To-day 

 no one can deny that they were fraught with great good to mankind. 

 What would the world be without electricity as a servant ? Yet Gal- 

 vani's experiments contained the germ of all our numerous electrical 

 discoveries. Who can say but that biological studies are to have an 

 equal value in solid gold ? 



CELEBRATED CLOCKS. 



By FREDERIC G. MATHER. 



WHEN the Emperor Charles V of Spain retired to the Monastery 

 of St. Yuste, he took with him Torriano, his clock-maker, in 

 order to while away the time by constructing the movements of 

 clocks. So wonderful were some of the pieces of work which they 

 made, that the monks would not believe any one except the devil 

 had a hand in them, until the machinery -was shown to them by the 

 ex-emperor. It was ordered by Charles that when he should die all 

 of these clocks should cease running — and it is said to be a fact that 

 his orders were obeyed. 



Another king of Spain came to Geneva to see a clock which had 

 been made by Droz, a merchant of that city. Upon the clock were 

 seated a shepherd, a negro, and a dog. As the hour was struck, the 

 shepherd played upon his flute, and the dog played gently at his feet. 

 lint, when the king reached forth to touch an apple that hung from a 

 tree, under which the shepherd rested, the dog flew at him and barked 

 so furiously that a live dog answered him, and the w r hole party left in 



