MEMOIR OF WERNER. 25 



kind of delicate instinct which forntied the peculiar 

 character of his genius. He has the appearance of 

 adopting the identical composition of the molecules 

 as the principle of species, and as the point from 

 which he sets out. Perhaps he really believed him- 

 self to have set out fl'ora thence ; but he never ac- 

 tually applies the principle but when it is in perfect 

 unison with the external properties, and, in all in- 

 stances, it is on these properties that he has founded 

 his distributions, leaving analysis to make itself har- 

 monize with them as it best may. All unctuous 

 stones, for example, are arranged in the magnesian 

 genus, although many of them contain a greater pro- 

 portion of argillaceous or siliceous matter than of 

 magnesia. So rigorously did he act on this prin- 

 ciple, that he always persisted in placing the dia- 

 mond among the siliceous stones, although it had 

 been incontestably proved by experiment tliat this 

 gem is a crystallization of carbon. Still more sin- 

 gular is the fact, that, among all the external pro- 

 perties, he paid least regard to the crystalline form, 

 which is the most fundamental of the whole. 



It is true, that his investigations began ten years 

 before Haiiy had commenced his labours, and, con- 

 sequently, nearly thirty years before the doctrine of 

 that great mineralogist had been developed in the 

 admirable manner it aftei^wards attained ; and Wer- 

 ner, on his part, had caused the science to make 

 such remarkable progress, that he may easily be ex- 

 r.ii«pH for not enterint): fully i'.ito all the views of hi^ 



