lxxvii 



manipulator of chemical instruments, though a diligent practical ana- 

 lyst. He was rich in chemical knowledge, profound and varied in his 

 acquired views of chemical relations, always prompt and sagacious in fix- 

 ing upon the main argument and the right plan for following up success- 

 ful experiment or retrieving occasional failure. In 1831 appeared his 

 ■ Sketch of the Atomic Theory,' a work which well sustained the repu- 

 tation of the author as a master of language and a conscientious teacher 

 of science. 



So soon as the arrangements were made for the location of Chemistry in 

 its new abode Dr. Daubeny took the occasion of resigning the Chair of 

 Chemistry, and used all his influence to increase the efficiency of the office 

 and secure the services of the present eminent Professor. 



In his position as a teacher of Botany, he took pleasure in drawing at- 

 tention to the historical aspects of his subject, and specially, as a part of 

 his duty, treated of Rural Economy both in its literary and its practical 

 bearings. Hence arose the "Lectures on Roman Husbandry" (1857), 

 written in a style very creditable to the classical training of his early years, 

 and containing a full account of the most important passages of Latin 

 authors bearing on crops and culture, the treatment of domestic animals, 

 and horticulture. To this is added an interesting Catalogue of the Plants 

 noticed by Dioscorides, arranged in the modern natural orders. This was 

 followed, after a few years, by a valuable Essay on the Trees and Shrubs of 

 the Ancients, and a Catalogue of Trees and Shrubs indigenous in Greece 

 and Italy (1865). 



To facilitate his researches in Experimental Botany, Dr. Daubeny had 

 obtained possession of a piece of land lying some half a mile or so from 

 Oxford ; but of late years symptoms of ill-health interfered both with his 

 enjoyment of the recreation of his little farm, and the experiments for 

 which it was destined. 



Daring a few late winters Dr. Daubeny found it desirable to exchange 

 his residence in Oxford for the milder climate of Torquay. Here his 

 activity of mind was equally manifested by public lectures on the tempera- 

 ture and other atmospheric conditions of that salubrious resort, and by ex- 

 periments on ozone and the usual meteorological elements, in comparison 

 with another series in Oxford. By this connexion with Devonshire he 

 was induced to join the Association in that county for the Advancement of 

 Science, Literature, and Art ; and one of his latest public addresses was 

 delivered to that body, as President, in 1865. 



In his whole career Dr. Daubeny was full of that practical public spirit 

 which delights in cooperation, and feeds upon the hope of benefiting 

 humanity by associations of men. When the British x\ssociation came 

 into being at York, in 1831, Daubeny alone stood for the Universities of 

 England. 



In 1856 he was its President, at Cheltenham, in his native county, 



