54 MEMOIRS OF 



made for some express purpose ; he believed 

 that all was due to one Supreme Intelligence, 

 which had provided organs for fulfilling the 

 ends for which all things were created. His 

 method resembled that of Aristotle, Bacon, and 

 Newton, for it was that of observation and ex- 

 perience, and, like them, he felt that no general 

 formula could be founded, no general principle 

 could be established, without a vast assemblage 

 of facts. He not only rejected all theories which 

 were not thus founded, from a conviction that 

 they led the mind astray from real observation, 

 but he carefully abstained from encouraging 

 any system which resulted from the discovery 

 of only a small number of facts ; believing that 

 systems so based led their followers solely to 

 study those facts which were favourable to tlieir 

 own peculiar views. 



These were the broad principles which M. 

 Cuvier applied to every brancli of human know- 

 ledge ; for, like the Greek philosopher, he was 

 not ignorant of any thing, not even excepting 

 the mathematical sciences, of which he under- 

 stood the foundation and machinery as if he 

 had studied them in the character of a profes- 

 sor. Tliat same intelligence, also, which com- 

 prehended the form and organisation of the 



