THE ENTOMOLOGIST'S 
WEEKLY INTELLIGENCER. 
No. 0.] SATURDAY, MAY 10, 1856. [Peice Id. 
WANTED, A FEW CUVIERS! 
Now that entomologists are so rapidly 
increasing in number it is high time to 
bestir ourselves to eliminate from the 
mass of young students some who may 
hereafter render essential service to the 
onward progress of the Science. The 
first and indispensable requisite for a 
future Cuvier is patience ; but, as we 
don’t expect to find grey heads on young 
shoulders, we are more willing to expect 
that this qualification will be cultivated 
than that it will be found innate. All 
are not over-supplied with patience, but 
all may learn to increase their store. 
The second great requisite is quickness, 
and this, we fear, is more of a natural 
gift, and cannot be increased by cultiva- 
tion to any very great extent, but we do 
not wish, on that account, to discourage 
those who feel that they are not quick : one 
of our greatest living entomologists said of 
himself, “ I am so slow — I am like a snail !” 
yet, with this natural difficulty to con- 
tend with, he has accomplished more 
than many with greater advantages. But 
to those who know that they are quick — 
and what boy doesn’t find this out for 
himself long before his masters make 
the discovery? — we would say, Be not 
inclined to boast of your ‘quickness ; make 
use of it, for it is given you to be used, 
but don’t make it serve for purposes of 
display. 
Now the incipient Cuvier who is 
patient and quick already possesses the 
germs of much future usefulness; but 
he must be cautious, he must not be 
rash, he must not jump to conclusions; 
and, further, he must be careful not to 
contract one-sided views, — he must re- 
member that the criterion of a great 
mind is to be able to grasp the entire of 
any subject, whether the subject be large 
or small, so as to be able to view it on 
all sides. The mass of mischief which is 
caused by people dwelling upon isolated 
points, magnifying them to the exclusion 
of others, is enormous, and the occupa- 
tion of one half of our thinkers and 
writers consists in exposing the fallacies 
of the other half. And every one who 
exalts unduly any point of the subject 
he is considering, compels, as it were in 
their own defence, others to unduly exalt 
the particular points to which they attach 
importance. 
Iu order to keep the mind free from 
prejudice or one-sided views, it is neces- 
sary to examine and judge for one’s self : 
we are very apt to conclude that because 
another says a thing is so, it must be so ; 
it may be so, we grant, but look and 
judge for yourself, perhaps you will find 
it very different from what you expected. 
If these remarks induce some of our 
younger readers to endeavour to grow 
into Cuviers, we will be disposed to 
pardon a little vanity, provided their 
