WYVILLE THOMSON 



57 



inspiration and the energy of Sir Wyville Thomson, advanced 

 the science of the sea ? This may be answered under various 

 heads, and many leading authorities in different branches of 

 oceanography have given their answer during the half- 

 century that has elapsed since the expedition took place. 



To take hydrography first, it must be remembered that 

 every contribution to our knowledge of the ocean currents 

 and their character, the ocean floor, its nature and depth, the 

 prevalent winds and meteorological and magnetical con- 



FiG. 2. — H.M.S. "Challenger" pbepabing to Sound, 1872. 



From Reports of the " CkaUenger ' ' Expedition. {By permission of the Controller of 

 H.M. Stationery Office.) 



ditions is an addition to the safety of the sailor, to the ease 

 and speed with which a voyage may be accomplished, and 

 to the intercourse of nations. " Every Briton is proud of 

 Britannia's navy ; but let us remember that it is something 

 more than our Empire's fighting machine, that it has been in 

 the past, and will be still more in the future, the servant of 

 the world, and a most potent agent in the peaceful union and 

 advance of all its peoples." 



