284 ZOOLOGY 



technicalities, a man who, while discussing insects, 

 made noble contributions to the literature of France. 

 Fabre's poetical and romantic instincts, which repelled 

 some of the rigidly scientific, naturally appealed to 

 literary men. The modern student of comparative 

 psychology does not employ the language of the Sou- 

 venirs entomologiqueSy with its strong suffusion of human 

 emotions. The question has naturally arisen, can we 

 accept Fabre as a contributor to technical science ? 

 We can and must, for his observations are the best in 

 his special field, but we may make allowances for the 

 language. The controversy is an old one, with many 

 aspects. To make nature live and move in literature 

 is to see it with human eyes, the only eyes we have ; 

 but we cannot do this and preserve an attitude of cold 

 scientific detachment. In the hope of escaping from the 

 human bias, we describe phenomena in scientific 

 phrases, which possibly often do no more than decently 

 cover the nakedness of our ignorance. 



The festival 6. Thus it came about that on the third of April, 

 atSerignan 1910, there was held a festival in the sleepy village of 

 Serignan. Eminent men, scientific and literary, as- 

 sembled to do homage to Fabre. A banquet was given 

 in the large hall of a cafe, and Edmond Perrier, repre- 

 senting the Institute of France, described in a speech 

 the life and works of the entomologist. "Moved to 

 tears by his memories and by the simple and pious 

 homage at last rendered to his genius, Fabre wept, and 

 many, seeing him weep, wept with him." The Sou- 

 venirs entomologiques began to be translated into Eng- 

 lish, and were widely read on both sides of the Atlantic. 

 They are now to be found in every large library, under 

 various titles given by the translators and publishers. 



