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rich in paleontological treasures, beautiful for historical arrangement, 

 and worth an investigation by the economic geologist. The drift, and 

 more recent deposits of America, have never yet been worked up. In 

 Natural History, that is, in zoology and botany, our field must not be 

 neglected. In Indian remains, it is very rich ; and, in prehistoric re- 

 mains, the richest in America. Dr. Foster, in his Prehistoric Na- 

 tions, says that Ohio alone contains over 10,000 tumuli, and Mr. Bald- 

 win states that not over 500 of these have been opened. 



Then we have customs and beliefs and methods of talk which are 

 worthy of preservation. A man not long ago gave me his reasons for 

 believing that boulders grow after the manner of vegetation ; the idea 

 is worth preserving as a matter of history. In the matter of provin- 

 cialisms, we can find much profit. Then in woi'king up the early set- 

 tlement of this country by the whites — the manners and customs of 

 the Indians who lived here at that time — the field is comparatively 

 untouched. 



In regard to the third object of our Association, there is pleasure in 

 knowledge, and scientific knowledge is much easier gained than many 

 other kinds. So when men pass the matter carelessly by they deprive 

 themselves of much pleasure. But more. Science itself is a loser 

 thereby. To appreciate a thing we must understand it. Men appre- 

 ciate money, for they know its use. Cortez destroyed the Mexican 

 remains because he did not know their nature. The relies and the 

 specimens of natural history in this country are thrust aside uncared 

 for. Corals of the most common varieties are showered upon the col- 

 lector under various names, such as petrified deers' horns, honeycombs, 

 &c., while a really valuable coral, or a stone ax, or arrow head is 

 passed by. A farmer has in his field a prehistoric mound — he either 

 plows it down without any care, or if he examines it, he does it with 

 so little care that his work is almost worthless. More than this, in an 

 economic sense, science has claims — for a people who appreciate its 

 surroundings are always wealthier than one which does not. 



In regard to the mutual acquaintance of students : Of the many 

 points of interest which our society presents, I esteem no one of more 

 importance than this. Troubles present themselves to one student 

 and keep shy of another. One student can benefit another by ex- 

 changing with him observations and speculations, by pointing out his 

 errors, by discussing scientific views. One potent cause of men's ig- 



