Red-blooded Animals.Respiring by lungs, and having a heart furnished with two ventricles, viviparous, and aquatic,Cetacia.Terrestrial,Quadrupeds.Oviparous,Birds.Those having a heart with a single ventricle,Oviparous Quadrupeds, and Serpents.Respiring by gills,Fishes.White-blooded Animals.{Malacia or Mollusca.Of large size,{Malacostraca or Crustacea.{Ostracoderma or Testacea.Of small size,Insects.
Characterizing the different groups by circumstances connected with their organization, he arranges quadrupeds into those which have undivided hoofs, as thehorse; those having cleft hoofs, of which some are ruminant, others not. Of the former, some have permanent concave horns, asoxen,sheep,goats; others have solid deciduous horns, asdeer. The cloven-footed animals which do not ruminate are thehogfamily. The rhinoceros, hippopotamus, tapir, and musk, he classes as anomalous. Of the unguiculate animals, some are ruminant, with two claws only, as thecamel; others are carnivorous, with more numerous claws, ascats,dogs,polecats. Some again are herbivorous, with two long front teeth, ashares; and others are toothless,as theanteater. Other animals of this kind are furnished with wings, and have a short muzzle, as thebats; while some are without wings, as the sloth.Tortoises,lizards, andserpents, bring up the rear.
After this work had been published, he completed a Synopsis of Birds and Fishes, which was sent to Dr Robinson to be printed; but the booksellers who had the copyright neglected it, so that it did not appear until after the author's death, when it was enlarged and edited by Derham in 1713.
Having finished these synopses, Mr Ray considered his labours at an end,—a consummation which gave him the more joy, because he had for several years suffered severely in his health. But soon after, he was induced to add to an English translation of Rauwolf's Travels "three Catalogues of such trees, shrubs, and herbs, as grow in the Levant." His next publication was the Catologus Stirpium in Exteris Regionibus Observatarum, consisting of species not growing spontaneously, or at least very rarely seen, in Britain. Having taken occasion in this work to criticize the method of Rivinus, this circumstance gave rise to some literary altercation, the result of which was a more careful revisal of his system, and a republication of his Methodus Plantarum Nova. At this period he was so tormented by a continual diarrhœa and painful ulcers in his legs, which kept him sleepless for whole nights, that he could not walk into the fields, much less visit the botanic gardens, where he might have found materials for his work.
His booksellers being unwilling to incur the pecuniary hazard attending this work, it was transmittedby Mr Ray to his friend Dr Hotton, professor of botany at Leyden, who got it printed in 1703. The Dutch publishers inserted in the titlepage that it was printed at London for Smith and Walford, the persons who usually took charge of his books; and although the author objected to this proceeding they disregarded his wishes, alleging, that "it was customary among the printers to say what they thought would be for their interest in such cases." This production was very favourably received on the Continent, and Hotton used it as his text-book.
In a letter to Dr Derham, written in May 1702, he thus describes his condition:—"It is not many years since I applied myself to the observation and search of insects, in order to compose an history of them; but now I am wholly taken off from that study, by the afflictive pains I almost constantly labour under, by reason of ulcers upon my legs, I having not been half a mile out of my house these four years; and though I have made use of many means, and have had the advice of some of the most skilful surgeons and physicians, yet without success, growing yearly worse and worse. Besides, I have been very much haunted with a troublesome diarrhœa, frequently recurring; so that you may well think I can have but little heart to mind natural history: But I am yet so far engaged, that I cannot shake it off. I have now just ready to go under the press a third volume of the History of Plants, being a supplement to the two former volumes, which hath engrossed almost my whole time for two whole years. Besides, I have a little book now printing at Leyden, in Holland, entitled Methodus Plantarum emendata et aucta."
We now approach the termination of the career of this truly great man, who was distinguished not less for his fervent piety than for his extensive knowledge and unwearied application. The last letter which he wrote was to Sir Hans Sloane, and is as follows:—
"Dear Sir,—The best of friends. These are to take a final leave of you as to this world. I look upon myself as a dying man. God requite your kindness expressed any ways towards me an hundred-fold,—bless you with a confluence of all good things in this world, and eternal life and happiness hereafter,—grant us an happy meeting in heaven. I am, Sir, eternally yours,John Ray."Black Notley, Jan. 7, 1704."
"Dear Sir,—The best of friends. These are to take a final leave of you as to this world. I look upon myself as a dying man. God requite your kindness expressed any ways towards me an hundred-fold,—bless you with a confluence of all good things in this world, and eternal life and happiness hereafter,—grant us an happy meeting in heaven. I am, Sir, eternally yours,
John Ray."Black Notley, Jan. 7, 1704."
There is a passage in The Wisdom of God manifested in the Works of Creation, which exhibits his ideas of a future state, and which it would be instructive to compare with the maniacal effusions of infidela and scoffers: "It is not likely that eternal life shall be a torpid and inactive state, or that it shall consist only in an uninterrupted and endless act of love; the other faculties shall be employed, as well as the will, in actions suitable to, and perfective of, their natures,—especially the understanding, the supreme faculty of the soul, which chiefly differenceth from brute beasts, and makes us capable of virtue and vice, of rewards and punishments, shall be busied and employed in contemplating the works of God, and observing the divine art and wisdom manifested in the structure and composition of them; and reflecting upon their greatArchitect the praise and glory due to him. Then shall we clearly see, to our great satisfaction and admiration, the ends and uses of these things which here were either too subtle for us to penetrate and discover, or too remote and unaccessible for us to come to any distinct view of, viz. the planets and fixed stars, those illustrious bodies, whose contents and inhabitants, whose stores and furniture, we have here so longing a desire to know, as also their mutual subserviency to each other. Now the mind of man being not capable at once to advert to more than one thing, a particular view and examination of such an innumerable number of vast bodies, and the great multitude of species, both of animate and inanimate beings, which each of them contains, will afford matter enough to exercise and employ our minds, I do not say to all eternity, but to many ages, should we do nothing else.
"Let us, then, consider the works of God, and observe the operations of his hands. Let us take notice of, and admire his infinite wisdom and goodness in the formation of them. No creature in this sublunary world is capable of so doing beside man, and yet we are deficient herein. We content ourselves with the knowledge of the tongues, or a little skill in philology, or history perhaps, and antiquity, and neglect that which to me seems more material, I mean natural history and the works of the creation. I do not discommend or derogate from those other studies; I should betray mine own ignorance and weakness should I do so; I only wish they might not altogether justle out and exclude this. I wish that this might be brought in fashion among us. I wish men would be so equal and civil, as notto disparage, deride, and vilifie those studies which themselves skill not of, or are not conversant in; no knowledge can be more pleasant than this,—none that doth so satisfie and feed the soul; in comparison whereto that of words and phrases seems to me insipid and jejune. That learning (saith a wise and observant prelate) which consists only in the form and pedagogy of arts, or the critical notions upon words and phrases, hath in it this intrinsical imperfection, that it is only so far to be esteemed as it conduceth to the knowledge of things, being in itself but a kind of pedantry, apt to infect a man with such odd humours of pride, and affectation, and curiosity, as will render him unfit for any great employment."
We do not find any particular account of his last years, nor of his family relations and circumstances, further than that he had three daughters, and lived contentedly on very humble means; being constantly occupied, when his health permitted, in studying the works of God, and communicating the results of his observations to the world. We are not aware of a single stain on his character, and are proud to point to him as a naturalist of undoubted and acknowledged powers, who "walked humbly with his God," and furnishes the best practical refutation of the lying assertion advanced by certain philosophers of the "grand nation," that men eminent for piety are either fools or knaves. As he had lived, so he desired to die "in the communion of the Catholick Church of Christ, and a true though unworthy son of the church by law established in this kingdom," of which he considered "the doctrine pure, and the worship decent, and agreeableto the Word of God." After making this declaration, he desired the Rev. Mr Pyke, rector of Black Notley, to read to him the prayers of the church appointed to be used in the visitation of the sick; and, in particular, the absolution. He then received the sacrament, "which, as it is men's duty often to receive in the time of health, so, at the hour of death," he said, "it was a necessaryviaticumhe thought for the great journey he was now a-going."
He died in his own house, at Black Notley, on the 17th January 1705, having reached the seventy-seventh year of his age, and was buried, according to his own desire, in the church of that parish. The authors of the Biographia Britannica, however, assert that he declined the offer made by the rector, of a place in the chancel, choosing rather to repose with his ancestors in the churchyard. A monument was erected to him at the expense of some of his friends, with an elegant Latin epitaph, descriptive of his character, composed by the Rev. William Coyte, M. A. In 1737, this monument, having fallen into decay, was restored at the charge of Dr Legge, and removed into the church. Forty-five years after, it was repaired by Sir Thomas Gery Cullum and others, who subjoined an additional inscription.
According to his biographer, Dr Derham, he "was a man of excellent natural parts, and had a singular vivacity in his style, whether he wrote in English or Latin. In a word, in his dealings, no man more strictly just; in his conversation, no man more humble, courteous, and affable. Towards God, no man more devout; and towards the poor and distressed, no man more compassionate and charitable,according to his abilities." His merits have been duly appreciated, both by foreigners and his own countrymen; and although, in the last century, they seemed in danger of falling into oblivion, amid the blaze of the numerous discoveries and improvements then made, they are, at the present day, brought more prominently into view, when men have begun to compare systems, and to shake off the influence of party-spirit. An interesting commemoration of him was made in London on the 29th November 1828. A genus of plants was dedicated to his memory by Plumier, under the name ofJan Raia, which Linnæus changed intoRajania, and Smith intoRaiana.Raiawould have been more appropriate; but unfortunately it was previously occupied by the skate, and therefore could not be allotted to him of whom Sir James Smith says, that he was "the most accurate in observation,—the most philosophical in contemplation,—and the most faithful in description, amongst all the botanists of his own, or perhaps any other time." Several species of fishes, however, are named after him, in consequence of his having been the first who made mention of them.
"Mr Ray," says Dr Pulteney, in his Sketches of the Progress of Botany, "had the singular happiness of devoting fifty years of his life to the cultivation of the sciences he loved. Incited by the most ardent genius, which overcame innumerable difficulties and discouragements, his labours were, in the end, crowned with a success before almost unequalled. He totally reformed the studies of botany and zoology; he raised them to the dignity of a science, and placed them in an advantageous point of view;and, by his own investigations, added more real improvement to them in England than any of his predecessors. The extent of his improvements in science procured him the admiration of his contemporaries, and have justly transmitted his name to posterity, among those who have done honour to their age and country."
We have now only to present a catalogue of his more important works:—
1. Historia Plantarum Generalis, species hactenus editas aliasque insuper multas noviter inventas et descriptas complectens. Two vols folio. The first was published in 1686; the second, in 1687; and the third, in 1704.2. Synopsis Methodica Stirpium Britannicarum. The first edition was published in 1690. The second, considerably enlarged, appeared in 1696. The third, printed in 1724, was edited by the celebrated Dillenius. This edition is the one in general use, and is that referred to by Linnæus, Hudson, Smith, and other botanists. The Synopsis was illustrated by Petiver with a set of seventy-two folio plates, having twelve figures in each.3. Synopsis Methodica Animalium Quadrupedum et Serpentini Generis. 8vo, London, 1693.4. Synopsis Methodica Avium et Piscium. 8vo, London, 1713. A posthumous work, edited by Dr Derham.5. Historia Insectorum. 4to, London. Printed at the expense of the Royal Society in 1710.6. The Wisdom of God manifested in the Works of the Creation, in two parts. London, 1691. There are many editions.7. Three Physico-Theological Discourses concerning the Chaos, Deluge, and Dissolution of the World.8. Observations, Topographical, Moral, and Physiological, made in a Journey through Part of the Low Countries, &c. London, 1673. A second edition in 1738.To these may be added,9. Francisci Willughbeii Ornithologiæ, Libri tres, with plates. Folio, London, 1676. There is also an edition in English, with three discourses, viz. Of the Art of Fowling, Of the Ordering of Singing Birds, and Of Falconry. London, 1678.10. Francisci Willughbeii Historia Piscium, Libri quatuor, with plates. Folio, Oxford, 1686.
1. Historia Plantarum Generalis, species hactenus editas aliasque insuper multas noviter inventas et descriptas complectens. Two vols folio. The first was published in 1686; the second, in 1687; and the third, in 1704.
2. Synopsis Methodica Stirpium Britannicarum. The first edition was published in 1690. The second, considerably enlarged, appeared in 1696. The third, printed in 1724, was edited by the celebrated Dillenius. This edition is the one in general use, and is that referred to by Linnæus, Hudson, Smith, and other botanists. The Synopsis was illustrated by Petiver with a set of seventy-two folio plates, having twelve figures in each.
3. Synopsis Methodica Animalium Quadrupedum et Serpentini Generis. 8vo, London, 1693.
4. Synopsis Methodica Avium et Piscium. 8vo, London, 1713. A posthumous work, edited by Dr Derham.
5. Historia Insectorum. 4to, London. Printed at the expense of the Royal Society in 1710.
6. The Wisdom of God manifested in the Works of the Creation, in two parts. London, 1691. There are many editions.
7. Three Physico-Theological Discourses concerning the Chaos, Deluge, and Dissolution of the World.
8. Observations, Topographical, Moral, and Physiological, made in a Journey through Part of the Low Countries, &c. London, 1673. A second edition in 1738.
To these may be added,
9. Francisci Willughbeii Ornithologiæ, Libri tres, with plates. Folio, London, 1676. There is also an edition in English, with three discourses, viz. Of the Art of Fowling, Of the Ordering of Singing Birds, and Of Falconry. London, 1678.
10. Francisci Willughbeii Historia Piscium, Libri quatuor, with plates. Folio, Oxford, 1686.
When this pious writer died, his papers were intrusted to his friend Dr Derham, who, having arranged and selected such as seemed of most importance, published a part of them in 1718, under the name of Philosophical Letters between the late learned Mr Ray and several of his ingenious Correspondents, natives and foreigners, to which are added those of Francis Willughby, Esq. The same person, as has been already mentioned, also edited the Synopsis of Birds and Fishes, and prepared for publication his posthumous work on Insects. He moreover got ready for the press his Travels in England, Wales, and Scotland, to which he intended to prefix an account of the author; but, although the life was written, the book did not make its appearance until a later period, when, as has been noted above, it came forth under the direction of Mr George Scott, bearing the title of the Select Remains of the learned John Ray.
The principal authorities for his life and writings are, the Select Remains just mentioned; Dr Pulteney's Sketches of the Progress of Botany; the article Ray, in Rees' Cyclopædia, by Sir James Edward Smith; and that by Cuvier and Du Petit-Thouars, in the Biographie Universelle. In the two latter, his botanical and zoological labours are carefully recorded; and from the former we learn, in conclusion, that "his handwriting was peculiarly fair and elegant;" which has been the case with few of the more distinguished naturalists. His portraits are not numerous, but there is one in oil, taken at an advanced period of his life, remaining in the British Museum; a miniature, in the possession of Dr John Sims, having been engraved in the first volume of the Annals of Botany, published in 1805; and two prints, the one by Elder, the other by Vertue, from a picture by Faithorne, being prefixed to the third edition of the Synopsis, and to the Historia Plantarum. We may add that, in the fifteenth number of the Gallery of Portraits, published under the Superintendence of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge, is a beautiful engraving by Meyer of the painting in the British Museum.
In the likeness of Ray the phrenologist will look in vain for indications of those intellectual faculties which are displayed in his writings. The forehead is contracted in all its dimensions; so as to form a direct contrast to that of Cuvier, another naturalist of equal industry and zeal, but perhaps of not more comprehensive mind.
FOOTNOTES:[I]Biographic Universelle, art. Ray, tome xxxvii. p. 161.
[I]Biographic Universelle, art. Ray, tome xxxvii. p. 161.
[I]Biographic Universelle, art. Ray, tome xxxvii. p. 161.
Birth and Education of Reaumur—He settles at Paris, where he is introduced to the Scientific World by the President Henault, and becomes a Member of the Academy of Sciences—His Labours for the Improvement of the Arts—His Works on Natural History, of which the Memoirs on Insects are the most important—His Occupations and Mode of Life.
Birth and Education of Reaumur—He settles at Paris, where he is introduced to the Scientific World by the President Henault, and becomes a Member of the Academy of Sciences—His Labours for the Improvement of the Arts—His Works on Natural History, of which the Memoirs on Insects are the most important—His Occupations and Mode of Life.
René Antoine Ferchault de Reaumur, one of the most ingenious naturalists whom France has produced, was born at Rochelle in 1683. He commenced his studies in his native place, continued them at Poitiers under the Jesuits, and finished his professional course at Bourges; but feeling less inclined to the practice of law than to the investigations of natural science, he resolved to devote himself entirely to the latter. In this respect he was the more justified in following his inclination, that he possessed a fortune sufficient to support him without engaging in any occupation merely to procure the means of subsistence. He began to prepare for his new pursuits by studying mathematics, and when he thought his proficiency such as to qualify him to make a respectable figure among the naturalists and philosophers of the capital, he removed thither in the year 1703.
The President Henault, who held a distinguished station among the literati of Paris, and who was his relative, introduced him to the scientific world. In 1708, when only twenty-four years of age, he presented some geometrical memoirs to the Academy of Sciences, who were so much pleased with his performance as to admit him into their society,—an honour which he enjoyed nearly fifty years. His exertions were directed successively to the improvement of the arts, to natural philosophy, and to natural history. From his entrance into the academy he scarcely allowed a year to pass without publishing some work of importance. Soon after his admission he was appointed to assist in drawing up a description of certain arts and trades; but not confining himself to a simple elucidation, he endeavoured also to improve them, by applying the principles of physics and chemistry. On the other hand, by observing the ingenious combinations employed in some of the arts, he had frequent opportunities of adding to his knowledge of the phenomena of nature.
In his inquiries into the business of ropemaking, for example, he proved by conclusive experiments that, contrary to the common opinion, twisting impairs the strength of ropes. Again, while describing the labours of the goldbeater, he took occasion to show the prodigious ductility possessed by certain substances. But, more especially, when examining the processes by which artificial pearls are coloured, he discovered the singular matter which gives lustre to the scales of fishes, and even explained the formation and growth of those scales. The colouring principle in glass pearls is obtained from the bleak (Cyprinus alburnus), aninhabitant of fresh water, and about six inches in length. This silvery ingredient is procured by macerating its scales in water, and is then mixed with a little isinglass. The small globes which are to represent pearls are first furnished with an internal coating of the solution, and then filled with melted wax to give them suitable weight. The pearly matter occurs also in the membrane which envelopes the stomach and intestines, and is supposed by Reaumur to be produced in the latter, from which it is conveyed by the blood-vessels to the scales. He likewise made inquiries into the formation and growth of shells, which he proved to be developed by accessions to their outer edge. He is even said to have examined the structure of pearls, with the view of forcing the shell-fish to produce them. When describing the turquoise-mines of the south of France, and the means adopted to make the mineral assume a blue colour, he discovered that these alleged stones were the teeth of a large animal, which is now known under the name of the mastodon.
His most important labours, however, with reference to the arts, were his researches respecting iron and steel, which he published in 1722, in a separate work under the title of Traité sur l'art de convertir le fer en acier, et d'adoucir le fer fondu. At this period all the steel that was used in France was imported, none having previously been made in that country; and one may imagine how numerous and patient were the trials made by Reaumur before he succeeded in his object. The Duke of Orleans rewarded him for this valuable discovery, by bestowing on him a pension of 12,000 livres. In likemanner, he found out the method of manufacturing tin-plate or whiteiron, which until then had been brought from Germany. In his various experiments, he had frequent occasion to observe that melted metals assume regular forms on cooling, and he accordingly gave an account of the crystallizations which they present. The manufacture of porcelain also engaged his attention, and received considerable improvements from him, although he did not succeed in perfecting it. In 1739, he made known a method which he had discovered of giving a whiteness and opacity to glass, which causes it to assume the appearance of chinaware. He was also the first who tried in France the expedient practised by the Egyptians for hatching eggs,—a subject which, being of a nature suited to popular apprehension, procured for him at least as much estimation as all his other researches.
In Great Britain his fame seems to rest almost entirely on his peculiar scheme of graduating the thermometer. He chose the extreme points of the freezing and boiling of water, which, under similar circumstances, are always fixed and unvarying. The interval between these points he divided into eighty degrees, upon the principle that spirit of wine, in a certain state of rectification, expands 80,000 parts. In his experiments on this subject he arrived at some valuable conclusions, in regard to the varieties in their volume and temperature which are exhibited by particular fluids when combined, as well as on frigorific mixtures. He also carefully collected the observations on heat made in different places by means of his thermometer.
The importance and utility of these researchesare unquestionable, and yet there is even more of novelty and interest in those which he made in natural history. For instance, he explained the means by which many shells, sea-stars, and other mollusca or zoophytes, execute their progressive motion. He likewise illustrated the curious manner in which the claws of crabs and lobsters are reproduced. He also threw a new light on the singular action of the torpedo, and the organ by means of which it is exercised, although the phenomena of electricity were not then sufficiently understood to enable him to perceive all the relations of his subject. In 1718, he published a memoir on the rivers of France, which contain grains of gold in their sands, and soon after described the immense beds of fossil shells known in Touraine under the name offalun. In 1723, he made observations on the lustre emitted by several kinds of shell-fish, especially the pholades, which perforate wood and stones.
Physiology is indebted to him for the ingenious and decisive experiments which, in 1752, made known the difference that exists, with respect to digestion, between birds of prey, whose stomach acts on their food only by means of a solvent fluid, and granivorous birds, in which a very powerful muscular gizzard exercises a pressure sufficient to break down the hardest bodies and reduce them to powder.
These labours might well have sufficed for a single life; but the most remarkable undertaking of Reaumur has not yet been mentioned. It is entitled Memoires pour servir à l'Histoire des Insectes, and extends to six quarto volumes, whichwere published between 1734 and 1742. This work occupied many years, and was the result of numerous observations made principally in his own garden, where he kept insects of all kinds, for the purpose of examining their habits, changes, and generation. It is, however, incomplete,—the locusts and grashoppers, as well as the whole tribe of coleoptera, having been intended for subsequent volumes, which never appeared.
In regard to these Memoires, he remarks, that although he has endeavoured to give them some degree of connexion, they might for the most part be considered as independent of each other; and that his object was not to present a systematic description of insects, but to furnish materials for the use of future naturalists. It is therefore improper to say, that he wrote his work with an entire contempt of method; and certainly the notices which he collected must have required more time and talent than the mere arrangement of insects according to characters derived from their external form. "The number of observations necessary for a tolerably complete history of so many minute animals," he says, "is prodigious. When one reflects on all that an accomplished botanist ought to know, it is enough to frighten him. His memory is loaded with the names of twelve or thirteen thousand plants, and he is expected to be able to recall on occasion the image of any one of them. There is perhaps none of these plants that has not insects peculiar to itself; and some trees, such as the oak, give sustenance to several hundreds of different species. And, after all, how many are there that do not liveon plants! How many species that devour others! How many that live at the expense of larger animals, on which they feed continually! How many species are there, some of which pass the greater part of their time in water, while others pass it entirely there! The immensity of Nature's works is nowhere more apparent than in the prodigious multiplicity of these species of little animals." He then proceeds to remark, that, as it is impossible for one man to acquire a knowledge of all the insects of even a limited district, and as thousands of minute insects must for ever remain unknown to us, instead of burdening our memory with the characteristic distinctions of these creatures, and thus preventing ourselves from attending to matters of more importance, it would be sufficient for us to know the principal genera, and especially those that are of most frequent occurrence, and to make ourselves acquainted with their peculiarities, their food, their propagation, the different forms which they assume in the course of their life, and such like circumstances. He avows that he had no great regard for a precise enumeration of the species of each genus; holding it enough to distinguish the more remarkable.
"Although," he continues, "we would greatly restrict the limits of the study, there are persons who will think them still too wide; there are even some who consider all knowledge of this part of natural history as useless, and who unhesitatingly pronounce it a frivolous amusement. We are equally willing that these pursuits should be regarded as amusements, that is, as studies which, so far from being troublesome,afford pleasure to the person who engages in them. They do more,—they necessarily raise the mind to admire the Author of so many wonders. Ought we to be ashamed of ranking among our occupations observations and researches, of which the object is an acquaintance with the works on which the Supreme Being has displayed a boundless wisdom, and varied to such a degree? Natural history is the history of his works; nor is there any demonstration of his existence more intelligible to all men than that which it furnishes."
The two first volumes treat of caterpillars, their forms and habits, their metamorphoses into butterflies, and the insects which attack them, or which live within their bodies. The third speaks of the small creatures named moths, which exist in the interior of the substances which they devour, or form of them coverings for their protection. It also contains the history of the aphides, a very numerous race of small insects, which suck the juices of trees and plants, live in society, and are often productive of great damage. These animalcules are especially remarkable for their mode of generation; it having been proved by M. Bonnet, that a single impregnation is sufficient for the production of many successive generations, and that they are viviparous in summer and oviparous in autumn. The flies which produce the excrescences named gall-nuts, and the worms from which come the dipterous insects, so diversified in their forms, manners, and places of abode, occupy the fourth volume. The fifth contains, among other genera, the bees, of which the history is so singular and interesting.Certain varieties of these as well as wasps are described in the last volume. Similar researches were made by Bonnet and De Geer, of whom we shall have occasion to speak in another part of our series.
Reaumur was the first naturalist who formed an extensive collection of animals in France. The celebrated Brisson, who was the keeper of his museum, derived from it the principal materials for his works on quadrupeds and birds. These last afterwards constituted the basis of the Royal Museum at Paris.
When the first volumes of Buffon made their appearance, the elegance of their style had a prejudicial effect on the popularity of Reaumur's writings; and as naturalists, like poets and artists, generally belong to theirritabile genus,—the sensitive class of mankind,—our author seems to have experienced considerable chagrin. In other respects, however, he lived a very quiet life; residing sometimes on his estate in Saintonge, and sometimes at his country-house of Bercy, in the neighbourhood of Paris. He had no public employment, except that of intendant of the order of St Louis, of which he performed the duties for the benefit of a relative whom circumstances prevented from discharging them, and to whom he resigned the emoluments. He died on the 18th October 1757, at the age of 74; his death being accelerated by a fall which he had received at the castle of Bermondière, whither he had gone to pass the vacations. He seems to have been in all respects an amiable man, of correct habits and great mildness of disposition. His life, therefore, presents none of those bickerings and other manifestationsof rivalry which have produced so much disquietude to some other naturalists; and, as his fortune was sufficient for his comfortable subsistence, he was freed from those cares which distract the attention, and enabled to pursue his favourite studies with advantage.[J]
FOOTNOTES:[J]Biographie Universelle, art. Reaumur, tome xxxvii. p. 198.
[J]Biographie Universelle, art. Reaumur, tome xxxvii. p. 198.
[J]Biographie Universelle, art. Reaumur, tome xxxvii. p. 198.
Birth and Parentage of Linnæus—He is destined for the Clerical Profession—His early Fondness for Plants—He is sent to School, where his Progress is so slow that his Father resolves to make him a Shoemaker—Is rescued from this Fate by Dr Rothmann, who receives him into his Family—He becomes decidedly attached to the Study of Nature, enters the University of Lund, and is patronised by Professor Stobæus—When on an Excursion is attacked by a dangerous Malady—Stobæus surprises him in his nocturnal Studies—He goes to Upsal—Is reduced to extreme Poverty, from which he is relieved by Professor Celsius, whom he assists—Is next patronised by Rudbeck, and delegated to read his Lectures—Forms a Friendship with Artedi.
Birth and Parentage of Linnæus—He is destined for the Clerical Profession—His early Fondness for Plants—He is sent to School, where his Progress is so slow that his Father resolves to make him a Shoemaker—Is rescued from this Fate by Dr Rothmann, who receives him into his Family—He becomes decidedly attached to the Study of Nature, enters the University of Lund, and is patronised by Professor Stobæus—When on an Excursion is attacked by a dangerous Malady—Stobæus surprises him in his nocturnal Studies—He goes to Upsal—Is reduced to extreme Poverty, from which he is relieved by Professor Celsius, whom he assists—Is next patronised by Rudbeck, and delegated to read his Lectures—Forms a Friendship with Artedi.
Charles Linnæus was born on the 23d May 1707, at Rashult, in the province of Smaland. His father, Nils, whose ancestors were peasants, was pastor of the village, and being the first learned man of his house, had, agreeably to a custom prevalent in Sweden, changed his family-name with his profession, and borrowed that of Linné from a large linden-tree, which stood in the vicinity of his native place, between Tomsboda and Linnhult. His mother, Christina Broderson, was the daughter of his father's predecessor in office.
The pious parents had intended him likewise for the service of the church, either because they considered the clerical profession the best adapted totheir son, or as calculated to ensure the means of a comfortable subsistence, and to render him the stay of their old age. But, whatever were their motives, the design, fortunately for the progress of natural science, was frustrated by the propensities which he soon displayed; for, inheriting a strong passion for flowers, he devoted a great part of his earlier years to the cultivation of a corner of the family-garden, which he profusely stocked with wild plants collected in the woods and fields. The excursions which he was thus induced to make, gradually led him to an acquaintance with the productions of the vegetable and animal kingdoms, and were at first rather encouraged than discountenanced by his parents, as affording innocent amusement, and being beneficial to health.
Charles was happy also in the affectionate care of his father, who taught him the elements of the Latin language, geography, and other departments of knowledge suited to his capacity. At the age of seven, however, he was committed to the care of a teacher ill qualified for the task; and three years after he was sent to a grammar-school in the neighbouring town of Wexio, where he continued several years. During this period he made little proficiency in the studies connected with his intended profession; for the love of nature prevailed in his mind to such a degree as to induce him to consider every other occupation as compulsory. He found much more pleasure in gathering plants and insects than in performing the tasks imposed by his teachers. Every hour of respite from his lessons was devoted to his favourite occupation, and all his holidays were spent in rambling over the country. His school-fellowsconsidered him as an idle vagabond; but his master, whose name was Lanaerius, formed a proper judgment of his genius, which he was the better enabled to do, as he himself was fond of botany.
In 1724, young Linnæus entered the upper college or gymnasium at Wexio, where his deficiencies in classical attainments were looked upon with less indulgence. The admonitions of his teachers were contemned; the passion inspired by nature still prevailed; and complaints were made to his father, who, finding him averse to the study of divinity, and perhaps believing him incapable of acquiring literary knowledge, resolved to bind him apprentice to a shoemaker. Considering the circumstances of his parents, and the little prospect of their son's obtaining a comfortable livelihood by his botanical pursuits, we need not ascribe this determination to a less estimable motive than prudent affection. Fortunately, however, the design was not carried into effect.
A physician at Wexio, who was also professor of medicine in the college of that city, had taken notice of the genius and peculiar pursuits of the boy, and, hearing of his father's intentions, ventured to offer his assistance and advice. The encomiums of this benevolent person, Dr John Rothmann, inspired the parents with unexpected pleasure. The entreaties of their son himself were joined to the kind intercession of his protector, who had promised to take him into his own family for a year, and provide him with every thing necessary. Natural history was not then in Sweden, any more than it is now in our own country, a study which of itself could lead towealth, or even to a moderate independence. It was therefore resolved that he should qualify himself for the practice of medicine; and to this proposal the pastor and his wife at length reluctantly assented.
Baffled in their views with respect to Charles, they resolved to transfer their cares to their second son, Samuel, whom they hoped to prevent from addicting himself to similar pursuits by prohibiting his entrance into the garden, and even the gathering of flowers in the fields. This restriction, however, had not the full effect; for Samuel also was a lover of botany, although his parents had the gratification of seeing him at length become a preacher.
In the house of Rothmann, the elder brother, who had hitherto studied botany without any regular method, found Tournefort's Institutiones Rei Herbariæ,—a work which opened new prospects to his view, and tended to increase his zeal. The more he became acquainted with nature, the more did his love of knowledge increase, and his frequent excursions into the country soon rendered his acquirements conspicuous. Having remained three years at the College of Wexio, he was prepared to become a pupil in a higher seminary of learning, and in 1727 set out for the University of Lund.
At an early stage of his progress he had studied several botanical works which are now little known, such as those of Manson, Tilland, Palmberg, Bromellius, and Rudbeck. But the benevolent Rothmann showed him that the guides whom he had followed were unworthy of confidence, and advised him to begin by examining the flower, as recommended by Tournefort, giving him at the same time Valentini's figures of plants. He accordinglycopied these engravings, and commenced a rigorous examination of flowers and fruits. Towards the end of his twentieth year, he attempted to arrange in systematic order the various species growing in the neighbourhood of Wexio and Stenbrohult, many of which he found it difficult to determine, owing to the imperfect manner in which they had been described. Down to this period he had not distinguished himself in any other way than as a young man who was supposed to be foolishly addicted to the study of natural objects, while he ought to have been engaged in more important pursuits; although he says he had always been among the first in mathematics and natural philosophy.
On leaving the gymnasium at Wexio, the rector, Nicolas Krok, gave him a certificate expressed in the following terms:—"Students may be compared to the trees of a nursery. Often among the young plants are found some which, notwithstanding the care that has been bestowed upon them, resemble wild shoots; but, if transplanted at a later period, they change their nature, and sometimes bear delicious fruit. With this hope only I send this young man to the university, where another climate may perhaps prove favourable to his progress." This testimonial, however, he did not find it necessary to show; for he was introduced to the rector by one of his old teachers, Gabriel Hoek, whom he fortunately met at Lund.
Professor Humærus, who was his relative, had promised to support him at this university; but, on arriving, Linnæus was informed that the last duty had just been paid to his remains. He became a pupil of Kilian Stobæus, professor of medicineand botany, whose notice he soon attracted by his diligence and attention, and who, learning his indigent condition, received him into his family. Here he found a small collection of natural objects, which he studied with great delight. At the same time he began to form an herbarium for himself; to add to which he made excursions into the neighbouring districts.
On one of these expeditions he was, or imagined himself to have been, stung by a venomous worm, said to be not uncommon in some parts of Sweden. However this may be, he was seized with a violent disorder, which threatened the extinction of life, more especially as he had removed far into the country, where medical assistance could not be readily procured. This accident, instead of diminishing his zeal, tended to increase his desire of becoming more acquainted with the lower orders of animals. In a work which he subsequently published, this singular worm, the existence of which, however, is still doubtful, is thus described by him:—"It occurs in the extensive turfy marshes of Bothnia, in the northern parts of Sweden. Falling from the atmosphere, frequently upon the bodies of men and animals, it instantly penetrates them with the most intense pain, so as to produce death from agony within a quarter of an hour. I myself was smitten by it at Lund, in 1728. I have not seen the animal unless in a dried state. It seems in its properties to be allied to the chaotic animals. By what means it rises into the air, whence it falls during the interval between the summer and winter solstice, no one has explained."
Stobæus's library was well stored with works onbotany, which Linnæus procured secretly from a young man who also lodged in the house, and in perusing which he often spent a great part of the night. His patron was informed of his vigils, and as he was of a merry, convivial disposition, suspected him of sitting up for the purpose of amusing himself with the servants. He resolved, therefore, to watch his proceedings, and, if his suspicions proved just, to reprimand him for his unbecoming conduct. But on entering Linnæus's room unexpectedly, what was his surprise to find him intrenched among the tomes of Cæsalpinus, Bauhin, Tournefort, and other eminent botanists! The result of this visit, as might have been expected, was free permission to make use of the library, and an increased attachment to the student. The same benevolent person embraced every opportunity of aiding him in his pursuits; gave him lessons on petrifactions and molluscous animals; taught him various branches of medicine; admitted him to his table; sent him occasionally to visit his patients; and went so far as to talk of making him his heir.
In 1728, after he had recovered from the effects of the severe malady with which he had been attacked, he visited his parents. His mother was extremely grieved at seeing him occupy his whole time in collecting plants and glueing them upon paper, as she plainly perceived that there was now no hope of his ever becoming a preacher. Dr Rothmann, who frequently saw him, pointed out the superior advantages which students possessed at Upsal, where there were "the learned Roberg, the great Rudbeck," a splendid library, and a fine botanic garden. He also named many poor studentswho had received assistance from the government, and had become able practitioners. The young naturalist readily believed the representations of one who had taken so much interest in him, and resolved to follow his advice. At setting out, his father gave him a sum of money equivalent to about £8 sterling; informing him at the same time that he could do no more for him.
With this slender provision Charles proceeded to the University of Upsal, where, although he had no reason to expect a kind reception, he hoped at least to obtain more ample means of scientific research. The professors, however, were not such as they had been represented, nor did any of them show the smallest attention to the poor student. Before he had been a year there his pecuniary resources failed; so that he was in a manner cast upon the charity of his companions, among whom he was glad to accept an occasional meal, and even a worn-out article of clothing. The old shoes which they gave him, he was often obliged to mend with pasteboard and birch-bark before he could render them tolerably efficient. He now found reason to sigh for the comfortable home which he had left at Lund; but to it he could not return, for as he had quitted his benefactor Stobæus abruptly, and without so much as apprizing him of his intentions, he justly dreaded his displeasure. Aware that he could not obtain aid from his father, destitute of friends, and even of the hope of procuring a livelihood by the exertion of his talents, he was reduced to the extremity of indigence: yet he despaired not; nature had at all times charms to support his spirits; he struggled with his fate and conquered. On an importantoccasion which occurred many years after, he publicly returned thanks to Providence for having supported him amid these privations:—"I thank thee, Almighty God," said he, "that in the course of my life, amidst the heavy pressure of poverty, and in all my other trials, thou hast been always present to me with thine omnipotent aid."
At this period, Olaus Celsius, first professor of divinity, whom Linnæus afterwards, in a letter to Haller, describes as the only botanist in Sweden, returned from Stockholm, where he had been on official business, and happening to visit the college-garden, met a young man, who attracted his notice by the accurate knowledge of plants which he displayed. On inquiring after him, and receiving a satisfactory account of his character and conduct, he gave him an apartment in his house, and supplied him with every thing of which he stood in need. Thus was he on many occasions obliged, if not to solicit, at least to accept pecuniary assistance. He, however, repaid in some measure the kindness of the venerable Celsius, by assisting him in preparing hisHierobotanicon, in which the vegetable productions mentioned in Scripture are described. To enable him to perform his task, he was allowed the free use of a library rich in botanical works.
Hitherto Tournefort was the only author to whose works Linnæus was indebted for the more solid parts of his knowledge; but a small book of Vaillant on the structure of flowers now coming into his hands, he perceived many defects in the system he had embraced; and from the ingenious observations made by the latter writer on the sexes of plants, he conceived the idea of founding a system of botany onthe stamens and pistils. With this object in view, he recommenced his studies on a new plan; the sexual distinction continually occupied his thoughts, and the knowledge which he acquired in this path became the basis of his future eminence. A small treatise which he composed on the subject of an academical disputation attracted the notice of Rudbeck, the second of the name, then professor of botany, who, being advanced in years, was looking out for an assistant. He received the ardent student into his house, and delegated to him the office of reading his lectures, and demonstrating the plants in the botanic garden. Rudbeck was also a zoologist, and had made a collection of all the Swedish birds; the examination of which failed not to add to Linnæus's knowledge in this department of natural history. Botany, however, continued to be his favourite study; and about this period he wrote several treatises, which were afterwards published in Holland.
During his residence at Upsal, he had the happiness to enjoy the friendship of a young man, not less fervently devoted than himself to the study of nature. This was Peter Artedi, so well known for his work on fishes. The name of Linnæus is usually mentioned as that of a distinguished botanist; but it ought to be observed, however great his merits were in that capacity, they were scarcely less in the department of zoology, and that from the commencement of his career he manifested nearly as strong a liking to the one as to the other. Speaking of his friendship for Artedi, he says, "He excelled me in chemistry, and I outdid him in the knowledge of birds and insects, and in botany."
At this period, a new prospect opened to his ambition.A society had been instituted at Upsal, chiefly for the purpose of examining the natural productions of the kingdom. The remote and desert regions of Lapland were less known than any other of the Swedish provinces, although Rudbeck the elder had been sent by Charles XI. to explore them. The curiosities which he brought home had been destroyed by the great fire in 1702; and it was now proposed to repair the loss by sending out another scientific traveller. The choice fell on Linnæus, who was recommended by Celsius and the younger Rudbeck.