Othniel Charles Marsh. 



405 



As a collector, Marsh was seen at his best, and the collec- 

 tions he amassed during his forty-five years and more of 

 activity in this direction form a lasting monument to his per- 

 severance and foresight. A person with means and inclina- 

 tion may be supposed to have the necessary qualities for 

 accomplishing his aims, whether they are first editions, auto- 

 graphs, or fossils, but had Marsh possessed no further qualifi- 

 cations than these, the results of his collecting would fall far 

 short of what he really attained. He not only had the means 

 and the inclination, but entered every field of acquisition 

 with the dominating ambition to obtain everything there was 

 in it, and leave not a single scrap behind. Every avenue of 

 approach was made use of, and cost was often a secondary con- 

 sideration. The nine-tenths, when attained, were only an 

 additional stimulus for securing the remaining one-tenth. Of 

 course, this ideal of completeness was often impossible of 

 accomplishment, and yet it served to bring to the Yale Uni- 

 versity Museum collections which are unique from their rich- 

 ness and extent. 



In making an estimate of his character, it must not be 

 forgotten that he developed wholly without the influence of 

 family and home ties, which in most men profoundly mark 

 their mature life. Self-reliance is probably the strongest trait 

 fostered by the absence of immediate family connections. 

 This, Marsh possessed to an extraordinary degree, and it natu- 

 rally led to a self-centering of his life and ambitions. Out of 

 it came, also, an absence of the complete exchange of confi- 

 dence which normally exists between intimate friends. Even 

 where perfect confidence existed, he seldom revealed more 

 about any particular matter than seemed to him necessary or 

 than the circumstances really demanded. As a friend, he was 

 kind, loyal, and generous. As a patron of science, he has 

 seldom been equaled. Honest work in any department 

 appealed to him strongly, and he was ever ready with aid and 

 counsel, even at the expense of a personal sacrifice. His dis- 

 position was a most happy one, and he was always keenly 

 appreciative of the humorous and ludicrous and fond of relat- 

 ing amusing experiences and anecdotes. The sunny side of his 



