70 EMINENT NATURALISTS. 



" Thomas Edward takes the liberty of stating that 

 the collection is allowed by eminent naturalists to be 

 one of the greatest curiosities ever offered for public 

 inspection in this quarter, amounting, as it does, to 

 about two thousand objects ; and being the work of one 

 individual, who had to labour under every disadvantage, 

 having none to tell how or where to find the different 

 objects ; none to teach him how to preserve these objects 

 when found ; no sound of promised reward ringing in 

 his ears to urge him on his singular course ; no Mend 

 to accompany him in his nightly wanderings ; help 

 from none, but solely dependent on his own humble 

 abilities and limited resources." 



Such was the appeal made to the Aberdeen public, 

 helped on by kindly notices in the local papers. The 

 prices of admission were low enough for all, being, 

 " Ladies and gentlemen, 6d. ; tradespeople, 3d. ; chil- 

 dren, half-price." 



After all was ready for the crowd, which he fondly 

 thought would gather at the door, he looked around 

 his eight years' collection with a pardonable pride. He 

 thought he had reached the Rubicon and was just on the 

 threshold of better and more prosperous days. The 

 Aberdeen public little thought of how their sixpences 

 would have helped to cheer that worthy soul, but they 

 were very very chary of parting with them. 



Sad to say, there were very few who came to see it. 

 Some of Edward's chief visitors, those who had stuffed 

 birds and animals to sell, or others who mistook him for 

 a dog doctor and wanted cures for pets of the canine 

 tribe. He was told by several professors of the Aber- 



