THE FUNCTION AND FIELD OF GEOGRAPHY. 383 



various matters which, in his conception, it is the business of geogra- 

 phy to deal with, and they are varied and important enough to satisfy 

 the demands of the most exacting. "These are," he says, "the studies 

 through which scientific geography will lead you, teaching you to view 

 the earth in its entirety, bringing together the great variety of objects 

 seen upon it, investigating their connection, and exploring their causes; 

 and so combining and harmonizing the lessons of all the sciences which 

 supply the key to the secrets of Nature." ^ 



I think we may briefly define geography as the science of the topo- 

 graphical distribution of the great features of the earth's surface and 

 of all that it sustains — mineral, vegetable, and animal, including man 

 himself. In fact, man is the ultimate term in the geographical problem, 

 the final object of which is to investigate the correlation between 

 humanity and its geographical environment. 



I may be pardoned for dwelling at some length on the function and 

 field of geography. It is a subject that has been occupying the atten- 

 tion of geographers in England for some years, and it may not be 

 without interest to our colleagues on this side of the Atlantic to know 

 the conclusions which we have come to. Moreover, it seems necessary 

 to arrive at some clear conception on the matter, with a view to the 

 researches of the fature. 1 say that the subject has been occupying 

 our attention in England for some time; it has done so, I may say, as 

 a result of the inquiry by myself on the part of the Eoyal Geograph- 

 ical Society to which I have referred. The object of that inquiry was 

 mainly to collect information as to the position of geography in educa- 

 tion at home and abroad. The report which 1 presented to the society 

 attracted some attention, and whether as a result of that or not it is 

 hardly for me to say, but certainly since that inquiry some twelve years 

 ago the position of geography in England has considerably improved 

 both in education and as a field for research. Better methods have 

 been introduced in our schools; a much wider scope has been given to 

 the subject; in many quarters teachers have shown themselves anxious 

 to be guided in the right direction ; and, above all, both Oxford and 

 Cambridge at length consented to the establishment of lectureships 

 in geography. A school of young geographers has grown up, consisting 

 of men who have had a thorough university training in science and 

 letters, and who are devoting themselves to the various branches of 

 geography as a specialty. In this way the arid old text-books and 

 characterless maps are being supplanted by others that will bear com- 

 parison with the best productions of Germany. Photography and 

 lantern slides illustrating special geographical features are coming into 

 use in schools; and in other directions appliances for use in education 

 are being multij^lied and improved. A British geographical literature 

 is growing up, and if, as I hope, the progress be maintained, we shall 

 be able to hold our own in geography with any country. The interest 



iLectureson Geography delivered before the University of Cambridge, London, 1888. 



