20 Sheppard: Yorkshire's Contribution to Science. 
beetle, or bird, in a situation hitherto unknown, though such 
record only occupies a couple of lines, is of far more scientific 
value than a whole volume of abstracts of talky-talky addresses. 
such as are prepared wholesale wherever the Young Men’s and 
Young Women’s Mutual Improvement and Literary and Debating 
Societies connected with the pseudo-religious institutes which 
abound in our towns and villages do congregate. 
I believe the title of this address is ‘ Yorkshire’s Contribution 
to Science.’ To deal with the subject as a whole would occupy 
several addresses—in fact several volumes. The title might be 
taken in so very many different ways. For instance it would be 
quite permissible to refer to the excellent work of the Leeds 
University, for its ‘ contribution to science’ is more far-reaching 
than any of us imagine. 
Wherever there is a gathering of scientific men in any numbers, 
you will find that the Yorkshireman takes a similar position to 
that of the Scot in the commercial world. He is there. 
A hundred years before Linnaeus, Dr. Martin Lister, a York- 
shireman, was largely instrumental in preparing the alphabet, as 
it were, of our present study of natural science. Most of his work 
was done in Yorkshire. As pointed out by Mr. Denison Roebuck 
in his address to you in 1903 :— His “ Historia Animalium 
Angliz”’ contained the first systematic accounts of the spiders, 
the beetles, the molluscs and the fossils of England, and he was 
also the first man to suggest the construction of geological maps.’ 
and it must be remembered that this was in the days of Charles IT. 
The British Association, which has probably done more for 
the advancement of science than any other society in the whole 
world, and has recently held its annual meeting in Australia, 
was founded at York, by Yorkshiremen. Were the county’s 
record of scientific attainments limited to that one fact alone, it 
could have no cause to complain. And it was John Philips, a mere 
museum curator, who was the pilot (not the figure-head) when 
that good ship was first launched. 
It would be interesting to refer to the great work of William 
Smith, Sedgwick, Buckland, Strickland and a host of others ; yet I 
must refrain. The Yorkshire roll of honour in the scientific world 
is an extraordinary long one, but I will mention only the names of 
the Presidents of our Union since it was reorganised in 1877 (all 
of whom were connected with Yorkshire either by birth or by 
their work), and it will be seen that a great proportion of them 
are of world-wide renown :—Rev. W. Fowler, Dr. Clifton 
Sorby, Professor W. C. Williamson, J. Gilbert Baker, Lord 
Walsingham, Rev. W. H. Dallinger, Sir Ralph Payne Gallwey, 
W. H. Hudleston, H. E. Dresser, Dr. Walsham How, Professor 
A. H. Green, C. P. Hobkirk, Henry Seebohm, R. H. Tiddeman, 
Dr. Robert Braithwaite, John Cordeaux, Professor W. Boyd 
Dawkins, Sir Michael Foster, W. West, G. T. Porritt, Professor 
Naturalist, 
