210 BOTANICAL GAZETTE | SEPTEMBER 
fore it is to the countless lesser opportunities, repeated with 
almost every day that dawns for us, that I turn, in the hope that 
something helpful may be said of them, and in the firm belief 
that in them lies the making of any intelligent and indefatigable 
young man. 
To the investigator breadth of foundation is even more 
necessary than to the institution founded for his use, for while 
the latter should endure for centuries, and may be remodeled 
and improved at any time, he is limited to a single lifetime and 
can rarely in mid life or later repair the deficiencies of ill advised 
or defective training. Not only should his powers of observa- 
tion be well developed, but he should be given: more discipline 
in reasoning than is now customary, though the botanists of a 
generation ago counted among their number several men who 
are even more widely known as philosophers. ee 
Equipped for the work, and enabled to use the material facil- 
ities that have been brought together against the day of his need, 
much depends on the early and wise formulation of the invest 
gator’s plans. Except for the tasks set by a teacher and really 
long contemplated by him and carried out by his intelligence 
through the eyes and hands of pupils, few pieces of valuable 
research are taken up on the spur of the moment, without te 
vious thought on the part of the investigator. They ee: i a 
the outgrowth of another, and turning and returning until ge 
mately shapes into a definite plan. Simple as it may ns : : 
theory, few things are more difficult in practice than the seas 
tion and inception in early life, inexperienced, and often W"” 
certainty of the power of continuance for any great iS ‘ . - 
time, of a plan for a single piece of research work worthy pe . 
devotion of a lifetime ; and few and fortunate are the Meh” 
among those who have outlined and entered upon such on 
who are not forced from the path by side issues, 
are not unduly short. More commonly one must b 
choose several smaller subjects, for their own sakes seks oo 
closely related to one another, if possible, and to follow : a, 
in succession. It is surprising how blind even the sharpe* 
