, 1873-03-09
NATURAL SCIENCE.
Its Recent Progress.

On the occasion Of tho celebration at Bresla1
: OF the twenty-ffth anniversary Of Prof. Gocp
perts Presidency Of the 6ilesian Society fo
National Culture, Prot. Ferdinand Cohn tleliv
cred an address, Characterized by eloquenco o.
the highest kind, on the above subject. As tht
wanderer, he said, who is climbing toward higl
mountain-peak, feels from time to time the de-
sire to stand still little, and look back on the
way over which ho has passed, to enjoy the
wider, outlook which he gnins from his highe,
standpoint, so, ho thinks, there a1e moments in
the uninterrupted progress of science, when We
long IN some measure to strike balance, and
See how much acquired property the present puts
aside as useless, how much it rses only for tenn
porary purposes, and how many enduring acqui-
sltions have been made.
DR.. Cohn refers, no doubt with justice and
some pa.donable pride, to the foremos. place
hold BY Germany, during ths last quarter Of a
century, in tho march of science. At the came
time he awards due praiso to other European
stateH, and, above all, to England, which, dur
ing TINT time, md more particularly at present,
ho thinks, abounds in men OF tho highest emf
uence, whose scientific achievements stand
prominently out on account OF thoir astonishing
energy, clearness. depth, and independence Of
thought. Still, we cannot but admit that DR..
Cohn is right IN asserting that Germany is free
from tho dilcttauteism which abounds in this
country, and that, as rule, ecienco in Ger
many is both far more widespread and far
more thorough than it is among ourselves,
aud that the opportunities furnished there to s11
classes for scientific study at the ordinary edu-
cational establishments havo, until recently, left
uB almost nowhere. But, happily, signs Of the
l har ~ In of p+ofo ~
among us arc becoming rife.
| After briefly referring to the intellectual
awakening Of Germany along with tho rcst Of
| Europe at the time Of the Reformation, and
| showing how this start forward Was, especially
in the case Of Germany, in great measure frus-
| trated by tho Thirty Years War, DR.. Cohn pays
| especially to Paris, on account Of the supreme
place she took during the frs. thirty or forty
years OF the present century in nearly all the
sciences. The glory of France in this
direction has, however, ho thinks, de-
parted, and Germany is becoming daily
more and more the intellectual centre
OF the world. Had Dr.. Cohn written his lecture
now, he might have somewhat modified his Ian
gunge; for, within the last few months, the
signs have been many, that in the direction Of
science the French are determined to try to hold
their OWL with the foremost in Europe. Their
professors arc prosecuting an amount Of re-
search which puts our own to shame, while they
are at the same time forming q school OF inyes-
Hgators. Wo do not grudgo to Germany all the
praise she we'll deserves. and the influence which
the results Of German research exercise on other
nations is likely to urge them to such vigorous
and determined efforts, that, sooner or le.er,
science and every other progressive Influence
shall be :" great gniners." Meantime, however,
Germany is doubtless in the ascendant.
In the year 1915 appeared tho first volume,
and In 1876 the second, OF Humboidt's Cos
mos" As comprising q view OF the whole cre-
ated universe depicted with the most wonderful
sympathy, the book is as it were q canon form
ing q key to everything that was known OF Ma
turo at the time. No man was then more suited
for such work than in the highest degree 4.
gon Humboldt. A "Divina Commcdia' OF
SCIENCE the " Cosmos embraced the whole uni
verse in its two spheres, heaven and earth.
Under the leadership Of the great searchors Of
climb from the depths Of the universe, with its !
farthest nobnlm aud double etars, down through |
the star depths to which belongs our solar sys-
ten,, to the cir and enyeloped earth, |
where form form' m temperature, p,5 and md mag 4,e
wealth Of organic life, which, stimulated by the
light, unfolds itsolf on its surface. It is IN
overwhelming picture OF Nature, Of surprising |
beauty OF outline, abounding in grand perspec-
tive, with the most careful execution of The
Cmallcst detail.
But We cannot conceal from ourselves that the
"Cosmos," published twenty-five years ago, is
in many Of its parts now antiquated, not merely
because it is wanting IL many facts which have
since been discovered but most particularly be-
cause Humboldt was ignorant Of some highly
important questions which have since taken
their place in the foreground Of scientific discus-
sion while our scheme of the universe during
4. l.. jrr~ h~u An~n /
fed by the introduction OF new and int1u-
ential ideas. Any one, who to-day would
like the Ita'ian architect who took the pillars
and blocks of the broken temples Of antiquity,
added new ones, and rebuilt the whole after q
new plan.
There are three discoveries which, after a
quarter Of century, haVo entirely changed tho
position Of natural science: the mechanical
equivalent OF heat, spectrum analysis, and the
Darwinian theories.
Since, in the year 1872 AL unknown physician
in Swaban country town, Dr.. Mayer, Of He'll
brohn, pointed out TINT hammer 424 ki1o-
grammes in weight, which falls from the height
after by dogree centigrade; and that BY this
PROCESS Of bringing falling motion to q
stand-stiu it is converted into q fixed guam
:ity OF heat, since then has science gained
natter and of the powers Of Nature.
This new doctrine appears in the mechani-
III theory OF hoat announced by Joule. kronig,
Maxwell, and Clausius, in the doctrine OF tho | I
son, and, BY means Of the brilliant writings Of
CyndalI, it has become the common property OF |
he educated world. Electricity and magnetism,
,eat and Light, muscular energy and chemical
orces in the uniyarae are only different forms {
II one and the same power, which dwelt from
be first in matter in invariable quantity, neither
ucreased nor diminished; not the loast tride Of (