8 



GENERAL ZOOLOGY 



excellent works from studies and comparisons of other 

 animals. 



During the Middle Ages there was no progress in zoo- 

 logical thought. All questions were referred to ancient 

 authorities. Matters of learning were almost wholly in 

 the hands of the clergy, who deemed everything unworthy 

 which did not pertain directly to religious life. The ad- 



FIG. 4. Galen. (From Locy, 

 Biology and Its Makers.) 



FIG. 5. Vesalius. (From Locy, 

 Biology and Its Makers.) 



monition to "shun the world " was taken all too seriously 

 by the early Christians. There was stagnation in all 

 fields of learning. 



VESALIUS (1514-1564, Belgian), more than any man, 

 threw off the yoke of tradition and the respect for authority 

 which had characterized the scholars of the Middle Ages 

 and opened the way for the free discovery of new knowledge 

 which we enjoy today. He was a man of great courage 

 and honesty. Despite the superstitious traditions of his 

 time, he dissected the human body. His eminent book, 

 the " Structure of the Human Body, " and his direct methods 



