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so he was initiated into practical botany. Tbe brutes Avhicli consti- 

 tuted Iiis enemies being more powerfully armed with teeth and 

 talons than he, to meet them on equal terms he fought his battles 

 Avith them armed with a stone. Experience shewed he got more 

 force into his blows if he lengthened his weapon, and he substi- 

 tuted it with a club. The blows were heavier, yet he found if the 

 heaviestend of the club was I'arthest from his hand, they were more 

 effectual still, the stone he formerly iised now attached to the end of 

 the stick, would be just the very thing ; the gradations by which he 

 reached the stone axe were then easy. Then he discovered that 

 wounds caused by a sharppointed instrument Avere the most deadly 

 — he dtAased the stone dagger or knife. Very often the dying animal 

 inflicted severe wounds as he administered its conj) de grace — if 

 he could give the death-blow at a greater distance, so avoid- 

 ing danger to himself, was the next thought, and a long stick 

 sharpened at one end was the result, and became his spear or 

 lance. Even then the occupation of hunting Avas extremely 

 dangerous, and then he threw his javelin ; next the boAV and 

 arrow wei'e invented. This led, ages afterwards, to the develop- 

 ment of the enormous artillery of the present day, by which 

 man can throw bursting shells into his enemy's habitations 

 twelve miles distant. Such illustrations coiild be enumerated 

 by the dozen, jiroving that all arts and sciences are the outcome 

 of the efforts of early Man to enable him to meet on equal terms 

 with Avarring nature, and that thus he was of A'ery necessity 

 a Naturalist. But as time Avore on, and Avhen Man Avas more 

 able to take care of himself, and became numerous enough to 

 unite against and overcome the unreasoning brutes which 

 formerly endangered every footstep, the study of Natural History 

 from motives of self-preserA'ation Avas neglected, and Men found 

 in the arts and commerce occupations Avhicli have at last led lo 

 Art supplementing Nature. But in every age Men of Letters 

 and Poets have been fond of draAving leaves from the now 

 neglected book of Nature in order to give point to their morals 

 and adorn the pag^ of history. But here contrast the difference 

 betAvecn the first Naturalists and those of later days. The fii'St 

 observed for themselves, the second A'ery often copy from each 

 other, b'lt in order to embellish their observations Avith an 

 appeaiauce of originality, add some little imaginary detail here 

 and there and thus some most surprising stories have come to be 

 regarded as facts by the Avorld. Even in those countries Avhere 

 the animals about which they are told are found, Ave find persons 

 Avho are even accurate observers of Nature in other respects, 

 following in the same old paths of error. As an illustration of 

 this, Ave need go no further than our oAvn island. The pelican 

 is one of our commonest birds, yet in a book, now long since out 



