Science an immense source of wealth. 61 



the aid of the very limited means of private persons, 

 that had research in those subjects been sufficiently 

 supported, the manufactures, arts, commerce, wealth, 

 and civilization of this country would have been 

 much greater than they are ; emigration also of the 

 industrious classes, disease, pauperism, crime, the 

 evil effects of famine, etc., would have been much 

 less. The amount of knowledge and riches obtain- 

 able by means of research and invention is practically 

 unlimited, and it is astonishing that this immense 

 source of industry and wealth in a nation should 

 have been so neglected by our Governments. The 

 practical value of new scientific knowledge is vastly 

 greater than that of all our goldfields or even of our 

 coal supply, because it would not only enable us to 

 obtain from coal several times the amount of avail- 

 able heat and mechanical power we now secure, but 

 also to apply to our wants the numerous other 

 materials composing the crust of our globe and the 

 contents of our oceans ; also all terrestial forces, the 

 internal heat, the tidal energy and atmospheric 

 currents, and the immense amount of power this 

 Earth is continually receiving from the Sun. Whilst 

 at present vast amounts of materials and energy 

 remain unutilized, nearly all those terrestrial sub- 

 stances and forces might probably be rendered of 

 service to us if we possessed sufficient knowledge. 



That scientific research is a far greater source of 

 wealth and wellbeing than our stores of coal is easily 

 proved. At present we obtain in our best steam- 



