4 
HOUGHTON : ADDRESS. 
cause a man devotes himself to science he would be any the 
better for not knowing science at all. The condition of that 
man would be that he would be deprived of that one de- 
velopment of his nature, and not that he would be inclined 
to anything else. Therefore do not let anybody be per- 
suaded that it is a disadvantage to young people to show a 
special interest in the observation of the world about them. 
I am sure that there is no better test of the intelligence of 
youth; and if I were to say what boy I would take for a 
man of business in my office of any kind — the boy who 
showed an active intelligence, and a desire for science, or the 
boy who seemed solely inclined to look after figures and 
book-keeping — I would say that the one whose observation 
was attracted to the phenomena of the external world would 
be more likely to rise in life by attention to his business and 
assiduity in his profession, than the other who has not 
shown any disposition of that kind. This being the case, 
I would ask you to pursue the object you have taken up, 
each of you in your own special locality. The science of 
geology is one which will go on advancing in a far greater 
proportion than it has yet done. How rapidly that 
science has already developed will, I think, be evident to 
every one of you who has studied for about twenty or 
thirty years. I do not know exactly the year, and I will 
not mention names, but I remember perfectly well one of 
the greatest lights of the geological world of his time coming 
to see my father at Fryston, and regretting that such was 
the peculiar condition of that district that there was no pos- 
sibility of any coal measures being discovered in that part 
of the county, the discovery of the formation of coal 
measures under limestone being impossible. One word 
more I would recommend to the special attention of this 
society. It is that you would induce all your members 
to pay more attention if possible to their immediate district 
