History presents some almost incredible examples of the stupidity and obstinacy of mankind in the explanation of natural phenomena. It seems quite impossible that when the German philosopher Chladni, less than a century ago, asserted that meteorites were extra-terranean bodies, the Academies of Europe laughed at him in scorn. Several meteoric showers falling in Europe shortly after did not convince the bigoted philosophers. And when Pictet in 1802 read a paper before the French Institute in favor of the theory, he was insulted by his learned audience. It was not until a year afterwards, when the great meteoric shower occurred in Normandy, that Biot, deputized by the French Government, succeeded in convincing the most sceptical. Yet only a few years previous De Luc, the first meteorologist of Europe, the founder of geology, declared that he would not believe it even if a stone should fall at his feet from the skies. In 1751, Peysonnel presented to the Academy of Sciences at Naples an elaborate memoir in which he very plainly proved that the coral belonged to the animal and not the vegetable kingdom. But his admirable paper was hooted at by the European naturalists; and even the distinguished philosopher Reaumur declared that the idea which was advanced was really too absurd to be discussed. When we come to review the hypotheses of science during the last century, we shall feel more inclined to be generous and flexible in our views of natural phenomena. “There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, Than are dreamt of in your philosophy.” The nodular or globular forms of the gem present no serious objection to the idea of vegetable or animal origin; and we may refer for argument to the calcareous nodules of the old red sandstone. These concretionary and radiated masses are merely sarcophagi of animal remains; and their arrangement plainly shows the chemical influences of decaying animal matter and also the multiple and varied effect of crystalline attraction and electric force. Can we say that the crystallized diamonds occurring in well-defined placers are any more remarkable than the little globular petrifactions found in the cretaceous formation and known as the _Coscinopora globularis_, and which nature provided with a perforation so that ancient man adopted them as ornaments in place of beads? We are often reminded by the antiquary of the remarkable foresight or acuteness of the ancient poet Lucretius in his explanation of certain natural phenomena which have since been verified by modern science. But of all the heaven-inspired dreamers none have come nearer the truth in terrestrial matters than the Arabian poet Fizee, who wrote:-- “The sun from whom the seven seas obtain pearls, The black stone from his rays obtains the jewel, The mine from the correcting influence of his beams obtains gold.”