AS RELATED TO INTELLECT. IT 



Natural History to INTELLECT, TASTE, WEALTH, AND 

 RELIGION. 



Its relations to wealth are most generally consid- 

 ered by the common people, and even by those who 

 are clamorous that it should take the place of other 

 subjects in our courses of study. Its study is not 

 demanded by them because they believe it better 

 fitted than Euclid, or Horace, or Thucydides, as a 

 discipline to the mind, but they see that this may 

 be a road to wealth in a country like ours, abound- 

 ing in mineral riches. That its money value, on 

 short time, is the ground of their estimation, is ap- 

 parent from the fact that they are eager for so 

 much of the study as relates to mines, while it 

 seems as ridiculous to them as ever that men 

 should dissect fishes, catch bugs and butterflies, or 

 worse still, write whole books on turtles' eggs. 

 From the selection they are sure to make from the 

 departments of Natural History, we have a key by 

 which to translate their common question, " What 

 is the use of it?" It is simply this, how much 

 ready-money will it bring? "Will it bring in more 

 money than bank-stock or government five-per- 



