DARWIN'S WANDER-YEARS 55 



for the future reconstructed of biological science ! He 

 had now all his problems cut and dried, ready to his 

 hand, and he had nothing important left to do except 

 to sit down quietly in his study, and proceed to solve 

 them. Observation and collection had given him one 

 half the subject-matter of the ' Origin of Species ; ' 

 reflection and Malthus were to give him the other half. 

 Never had great mind a nobler chance ; never, again, 

 had noble chance a great mind better adapted by nature 

 and heredity to make the most of it. The man was 

 not wanting to the opportunity, nor was the opportunity 

 wanting to the man. Organism and environment fell 

 together into perfect harmony ; and so, by a lucky com- 

 bination of circumstances, the secret of the ages was 

 finally wrung from not unwilling nature by the far- 

 seeing and industrious volunteer naturalist of the 

 * Beagle ' expedition. 



It would be giving a very false idea of the interests 

 which stirred Charles Darwin's mind during his long 

 five years' voyage, however, if we were to dwell ex- 

 clusively upon the biological side of his numerous 

 observations on that memorable cruise. Ethnology, 

 geology, oceanic phenomena, the height of the snow- 

 line, the climate of the Antarctic islands, the formation 

 of icebergs, the transport of boulders, the habits and 

 manners engendered by slavery, all almost equally 

 aroused in their own way the young naturalist's vivid 

 interest. Nowhere do we get the faintest trace of 

 narrow specialism ; nowhere are we cramped within 

 the restricted horizon of the mere vulgar beetle-hunter 

 and butterfly-catcher. The biologist of the ' Beagle ' 

 had taken the whole world of science for his special 



