A YORKSHIRE NATURALIST 73 



brought into our dissecting-room to be skeletonised 

 for its owner. When this was accomplished, all 

 other " remains " of the animal were put, by some 

 of the mischief-loving students, into one of the 

 vacant coffins, and the coffin sent as usual to church 

 for interment; the mischievous young monkeys 

 attending in order to witness the clergyman perform 

 the solemn service of burial over his " dear departed 

 brother." 



Meanwhile, the really earnest workers had, under 

 such unsatisfactory conditions, no alternative but to 

 make the best use they could of their imperfect 

 helps to study. After a weary and very depressing 

 winter the session came to a close, and I left the 

 town for three months' fresh air in my native 

 Scarborough, previous to continuing my medical 

 education in London. 



Before, however, leaving the Manchester of this 

 period, I should like to give an idea, necessarily a 

 slight one, of the scientific men by whom I was sur- 

 rounded. 



Of course our most distinguished " man of 

 science" was the then veteran John Dalton. He 

 was rarely absent from his seat in a warm corner of 

 the room during the meetings of the Literary and 

 Philosophical Society. Though a sober-minded 

 Quaker, he was not devoid of some sense of fun ; 

 and there was a tradition amongst us, not only that 

 he had once been a poet, but that, although a 

 bachelor, two manuscript copies were still extant of 



