240 DAVENPORT ACADEMY OF NATURAL SOIEXCBS. 



reputation largely depends, and which would in time have secured for 

 him more full recognition as an investigator, was the power of concen- 

 trated attention — the same in kind as that to which Newton attrib- 

 uted his greatness. Thus a subject once brought within the range 

 of his mental vision, was at once appropriated, and never lost sight 

 of, till all its details were mastered, all the related facts comprehen- 

 sively grouped in their proper order, and subjected to the closest 

 scrutiny; not till then were the elaborated results clearly brought to 

 view. It is by just such processes that science is really advanced, 

 and any one capable of such work is a true scientist. But to each 

 human life there is a wise limit affixed, and with our subject this 

 limit was early reached. True, he died young, but 



"There are silvered heads 

 Whose race of duty is less nobly run." 



He had in the previous year (1880) s])L*nt some delightful months 

 among his scientitic correspondents at the PJast, delving amid tlic 

 scientific loic accumulated in vast libiaries, laborio\isly extracting 

 from obscure and hidden volumes what had been recorded by others, 

 and almost forgottiMi, in the subjects of his special investigation, 

 now cai-efully noted for future use. Only in the last summer month 

 preceding his decease he was attending a session of the American 

 Association for the Advanceinent of Science, then convened at Cin- 

 cinnati. Full of activity and zeal, laying ])lans for future work, 

 contracting lunv friendships and winning his way to a larger measure 

 of scientific legard, he returned home, not to resume his scientific 

 work, but to see it day by day slipping from his grasp. The 

 halls of the Academy of Sciences now rarely witness his cheerful 

 face, the Presidential chair is vacant at the icgular meetings. Still 

 the interest is kept up, the printing is carefully watched, the daily 

 lecord is carefully filed away, all is brought u|) to date. His last 

 feeble enquiry, " How is the Academy? How is the printing?" is 

 satisfactorily answered, and with a look of unutterable weariness, 

 passing over his pale face, his last earnest look directed to the moth- 

 erly form that had stood by him in all his hours of joy oi- sorrow, he 

 laid down his />^'//, and took up his croint^ December 10th, 1881. 



Our melancholy duty^ is also finished; to others must be devolved 

 the task of giving- definite form to his unfinished scientific work. 

 We have deposited this poor r/irt/sd lis in the bosom of all-nurturing 

 eaith, the imago waits the p'<it of the I.ife-Giver. 



