Obituary of Prof. Z. Thompson. 



47 



knowledged in one of his books, he was enabled to enjoy a trip to 

 the Old World, " beholding the wonders of the great deep, and 

 seeing and admiring the wonderful things of Nature and Art 

 which lie beyond it." After an absence of three months, spend- 

 ing a few weeks in London and Paris, and after traveling about 

 7500 miles, he came back refreshed in spirit and health to his 

 humble dwelling at Burlington, and after a while yielded to the 

 importunities of his friends, and published a neat volume of 143 

 pages, entitled a ''Journal of a trip to London, Paris, and the 

 Great Exhibition in 1851." Although this "Journal" is com- 

 posed of notes for each day from May till August, jotted down 

 when travelling or sight-seeing, for the private eye of family and 

 friends, and with no expectation that they would ever be printed, 

 yet it contains much that is new and valuable, and although 

 published as a " thank offering to his friends," the reading public 

 have perused it with equal pleasure and profit. 



Since the publication of his History of Vermont in 1842, rail- 

 roads and magnetic telegraphs have been introduced into the 

 State and other changes have taken place; and early in 1853, 

 Prof. Thompson published an Appendix to the history, chiefly in 

 the department of natural history. This Appendix, although 

 containing only 64 pages, is a valuable supplement to his large 

 work. In the preface, he intimates his intention to re-write the 

 whole history. 



We have now come, in chronological order, to the last work, 

 upon which the Professor was engaged. It will be remembered 

 that the labors of Prof. Adams and his assistant had ceased 

 in 1847 on behalf of the State. The cold shoulder of " men most 

 noted for wisdom and virtue" was turned toward them, after it 

 was an established fact "that as much labor was performed 

 and as much investigation effected as were ever accomplished 

 with the same expenditure in any other State." Prof. Adams's 

 final report was never made, and January 19th, 1853, he died 

 on the island of St. Thomas, W. I., cut down in the prime of 

 life and usefulness, when all that remained of the Geological 

 Survey of Yermont was shut up in short hand in the field-books 

 of the State Geologist and his assistants, or locked up in the 

 fifty boxes of unticketed and untrimmed specimens at Burling- 

 ton and Montpelier. Years after the field work was done and 

 when Prof. Adams was slumbering in his grave, the men "most 

 noted for their wisdom and virtue," discovered that they had 

 made a mistake *m arresting the progress of the survey. Then 

 it was that Prof. Zadoc Thompson was appointed by Statute, 

 State Naturalist with the following duties : "to enter upon a 

 thorough prosecution and completion of the geological survey 

 of the State, embracing therein a full and scientific examination 

 and description of its rocks, soils, metals and minerals ; make 



