170 ENGLISH MEN OF SCIENCE. [carer.
met with. Later opportunities were entirely made by myself, or perhaps, rather, taken advantage of by myself." (a, e)
(12) "My love of natural history (so common in boys) showed itself in collecting insects, shells, and birds' eggs, and delighting in reading such books as Stanley on Birds, White's Selborne, Waterton, &c., at a very early age (8 years or before), and being rather encouraged than checked, continued to grow till it developed into a fondness for anatomical pursuits generally, which was never abandoned. My taste [for science] was entirely innate ; no [other] member of the family nor early friend or acquaintance had any special taste for any of the natural history sciences. Two brothers, of nearly the same age, and with precisely the same surroundings, though joining occasionally in some of the above-mentioned boyish pursuits, never pursued them with real interest, and soon entirely gave them up." (a, e)
(13) "As a boy, I had no taste for natural history, but a passion for mechanical contri-
