4:6 EXEBCISES. 



EXEECISES. 



THE history of a science affords little opportunity for 

 exercises of a practical nature, while the brevity of our 

 sketch renders recapitulation scarcely necessary. 



The student may, however, transfer to his note-book, and 

 otherwise impress on his memory, a few of the most impor- 

 tant facts. 



1. In perusing the history of the science he will observe, 

 that the most philosophic minds are usually in the right, in 

 opposition to the multitude ; while some gifted observer 

 progresses in advance of his own and succeeding ages. 

 Thus, Aristotle and Strabo had formed far more just ideas 

 of the phenomena of nature than were entertained by 

 their contemporaries ; Pythagoras, or rather the author of 

 the system advocated as his, in the passage which we have 

 cited from Ovid, observed many facts of importance, and 

 rightly understood their nature. The opinions of Boccaccio 

 and Leonardo da Vinci were in advance of their age, as were 

 those of Leibnitz, Linnaeus, Toulmin, and Hutton. 



2. The following may be regarded as the summary of the 

 history of the science in modern times: In the darker 

 ages fossil remains were ascribed to the stars, or to some 

 plastic power of the earth itself, or were regarded as mere 

 lusus naturae; in fact, their origin was referred to every 

 cause but that which was alone capable of producing them. 

 It was only after long and arduous contests that naturalists 

 succeeded in establishing the organic nature of fossils ; and 

 this point could only be gained by conceding the universality 

 of the deluge, and ascribing their occurrence to that event. 

 It soon became evident that such a cause was inadequate 

 to explain all the conditions under which these objects 

 occurred : that though it might have strewn them over the 

 surface, it never could have buried them in the strata of 



