RELATION TO COMMERCIAL ENTERPRISE. 311 



pyrites, or diamonds from rock crystal, or platina ore from iron sand ? 

 How many of them, if shown a white shining stone, would be aide 

 to say whether it was quartz, limestone, alabaster, cryolite, felspar, ( r 

 apatite ? The first they might afterwards discover was of no pecuniary 

 value ; the second might be wrought as marble ; the third might carve 

 into sculptures, and would at least burn into stucco ; the fourth is the 

 choicest ore of the strange metal aluminium ; the fifth is to the potter, 

 enamel-maker, and other industrialists, of the greatest value ; the 

 sixth, mineral phosphate of lime, is at present the object of universal 

 search among agriculturists. How many of the youths in question 

 could ted whether the exudation from a tree was a gum, a sugar, a 

 manna, a resin, a gum-resin, a camphor, a caoutchouc, or a gutta-percha ? 

 How many could tell whether the white crust or hoar-frost-like effio- 

 resenee on the soil was carbonate of soda, nitrate of potash, borax, or 

 common salt, substances of immensely different money-values 1 How many 

 could say whether the coloured juice or infusion of a particular plant 

 or tree was a fugitive or permanent dye ? Whether a particular seed 

 would yield oil or would not ! Whether the fibres of a plant were 

 suitable or not for textile fabrics, for rop^s, and for paper-making? 

 Whether a particular wood was soft or hard, lasting or destructible? 

 Whether a particular rock would yield a good building stone or not? 

 Whether the district they had travelled over was a limestone, granite, 

 or sandstone formation ? Whether coal was likely to be found in it ? 

 Whether it possessed any metals or metallic ores, or other precious 

 minerals ? Whether water was likely to be plentiful all the year 

 round ? and so on. Now, were it proposed to teach any single youth 

 to distinguish with certainty, wherever he found them on the earth's 

 surface, the various objects which have been referred to, you might ' 

 well pronounce the endeavour madness. It is not necessary, however, 

 that he should attempt this. 



The naturalists who accompany our exploring expeditions, are not 

 trained to identify on the spot every remarkable mineral, vegetable, 

 and animal they encounter. In truth, seeing that it is strange objects 

 which they are specially sent to discover, it is impossible that they 

 should be forewarned of these novelties. It is counted enough that they 

 are amply qualified to detect and preserve all the rare things which 

 come in their way. Of some of these they recognize the full significance 

 at the time, but the majority they send or take home for careful investi- 

 gation by themselves or others. Besides those purely scientific agents, 

 a large class of travellers of all professions aid natural history solely by 

 sending home the objects with which it is concerned. So important 

 are the services of this class of naturalists to the cause of science, that 

 under the auspices of Sir John Herschell, prompted by the Admiralty, 

 a manual was drawn up some years ago by some of the ablest writers of 

 the country, suitable for the guidance of all intelligent voyagers who 

 may feel desirous to gather materials for our natural history museums 



