scientific methods, and the founder of our mathematics, and physics, and astronomy, and biology, I understand knowing her as all this, and not merely knowing certain Greek poems, and histories, and treatises and speeches, so as to the knowledge of modern nations also. By knowing modern nations, I mean not merely knowing their _belles-lettres_, but knowing also what has been done by such men as Copernicus, Galileo, Newton, Darwin." I submit this definition of literature by a great English critic and poet who certainly knew what he was writing about, to the studious consideration of Principal Grant who, in an address to the Royal Society two years ago,[53] appeared to have some doubt that much of its work could be called literature; a doubt that he forgot for the moment actually consigned to a questionable level also his many devious utterances and addresses on political, religious and other questions of the day, and left him entirely out of the ranks of _littérateurs_ and in a sort of limbo which is a world of neither divinity, nor politics, nor letters. Taking this definition of the bright apostle of English culture, I think Canadians can fairly claim to have some position as a literary people even if it be a relatively humble one, on account of the work done in history, _belles-lettres_, political science and the sciences generally Science alone has had in Canada for nearly half a century many votaries who have won for themselves high distinction, as the eminent names on the list of membership of the Royal Society since its foundation can conclusively show. The literature of science, as studied and written by Canadians, is remarkably comprehensive, and finds a place in every well furnished library of the world. The _doyen_ of science in Canada, Sir William Dawson,[54] we are all glad to know, is still at work after a long and severe illness, which was, no doubt, largely due to the arduous devotion of years to education and science. It is not my intention to refer here to other well-known names in scientific literature, but I may pause for an instant to mention the fact that one of the earliest scientific writers of eminence, who was a Canadian by birth and education, was Mr. Elkanah Billings,[55] palæontologist and geologist, who contributed his first papers to the _Citizen_ of Ottawa, then Bytown, afterwards to have greatness thrown upon it and made the political capital of Canada. VII.