196 BIOGRAPHIES OF SCIENTIFIC MEN 



body lay in state in the Jerusalem Chamber, and dis- 

 tinguished men from all parts of Europe came to pay 

 their last respects to the memory of the great British 

 philosopher. Among these was no less a person than 

 Voltaire (1694-1778). He had the greatest admiration 

 for Sir Isaac Newton, and of this great occasion, he wrote 

 that " if all the geniuses of the universe should assemble, 

 Newton would lead the band." 1 



In the nave of the Abbey, where Kelvin lies buried, 2 

 there are the graves of Newton, Darwin, Lyell, Herschel, 

 Hunter, Livingstone, and others a veritable " Science 

 Corner." With the death of Lord Kelvin disappears one 

 of the grandest figures in the history of science. His 

 country honoured itself in recognizing his merits, and 

 England has every reason to bewail her loss, for how- 

 ever rich she may be in distinguished men, she cannot 

 fail to recognize that the loss of Lord Kelvin is an 

 irreparable one. 



Although Lord Kelvin did not care for the present- 

 day work on electrons or fractional atoms and the crum- 

 bling of the elements, his mind was free from bias ; and 

 he viewed the brilliant researches of J. J. Thomson, 

 Ramsay, and others with the keen eye of the philosopher. 



1 Voltaire's Elements de la Philosophie de Newton (1738). 



2 The inscription on the stone is " William Thomson, Lord Kelvin, 

 1824-1907." 



