i9o6] CHANCE— BIOGRAPHICAL NOTICE OF J. P. LESLEY. V 



Intensely interested in abstract science, loving it for itself alone, 

 always alert to the discovery of every new fact, to the evolution of 

 a new law or theory, speculating as a poet and artist upon the 

 possibilities opened up to human advancement by such discoveries, 

 dreamily looking back through the ages, reconstructing mentally 

 the conditions and forces at work, which have given us the earth 

 as we now have it, and perhaps looking forward striving to foretell 

 the future, — yet withal he was eminently practical, a man of affairs, 

 an engineer. 



In a moment, divorcing these poetic dreams, he became a utili- 

 tarian, a conservative mining engineer, accepting and weighing only 

 those facts and agencies having direct bearing upon the extent, 

 quality and value of the minerals with which as a master of the 

 art he continually had to deal. 



As his abilities became known and recognized by men of affairs 

 as fitting to render them valuable advisory services, he was retained 

 to investigate and report upon mineral lands in many localities. 

 Some of these private reports are classic productions, now used as 

 models by professional geologists and engineers. 



This society was indirectly interested in this phase of his life's 

 work, for it was mainly through income derived from his private 

 practice, that he was enabled year after year to give the time neces- 

 sary to its service. It is practically impossible to enumerate in de- 

 tail the work w^hich stands to his credit here in our books. The 

 files of the society's publications contain hundreds of communica- 

 tions from his pen, and many articles which he assisted the authors 

 to prepare but to which his name is not appended. As librarian and 

 secretary to this society he was its '' editor-in-chief," revising, proof- 

 reading and editing most of its publications during the twenty-six 

 years he held this position. 



During this period he was rarely absent from the meetings of 

 the society, frequently joining in the discussion of papers read at 

 the meetings, and when the attendance was small or interest flagged, 

 he would often supply something from his apparently inexhaustible 

 fund of knowledge to entertain and benefit those present, invariably 

 captivating their attention and making his discourse both delightful 



