230 ENGLISH MEN OF SCIENCE. [CHAP. 



turesqueness and grandeur in its streets which 

 sufficed to fill the mind, and there were no petty 

 distractions to fret a weakened eye and brain. 

 When we are in health we take little count of 

 the racket of English life, which may keep apa- 

 thetic minds from stagnation, but which causes 

 needless wear and tear to active ones, suggest- 

 ing nothing useful, and teasing, distracting and 

 wearying. I have heard German professors speak 

 with wonder at our waste of energy in mere 

 fidget, and in so-called amusements, which are 

 mostly very dull, and ascribe the successful labo- 

 riousness of their own countrymen to the greater 

 simplicity of the lives they lead : and they are 

 a happier people than we are. 



Partial Failures. We have seen that energy, 

 health, steady pursuit of purpose, business habits, 

 independence of views, and a strong innate taste 

 for science, are generally combined in the cha- 

 racter of a successful scientific man. Probably 

 one-half of the men on my list possess every one 

 of these qualities in a considerable, and some in 

 a high degree. If one or more of these qualities 



