Essay Review: A Taste for Naturalists: The Naturalist in Britain. A Social History

Raven C. E. , “Living things in the frame of nature”, in Hall A. R. , ed., The making of modern science (Leicester, 1960), 47–54, p. 47. Cf. my own arrogant and ignorant review History of science, i (1962), 117–18. For Raven's important contributions to the natural history of natural history, see Dillistone F. W. , Charles Raven: Naturalist, historian, theologian (London, 1975).

Allen takes this quotation from Emerson as his book's motto. Of course, some social history of natural history has been written, and one of the many uses of Allen's study will be that its bibliography retrieves a number of publications in specialized naturalists' journals that are unknown to most historians of science. Recently D. M. Knight has stressed the importance of natural history in Natural science books in English 1600–1900 (London, 1972), and Sources for the history of science 1660–1914 (London, 1975).

Allen D. E. , British tastes. An enquiry into the likes and dislikes of the regional consumer (London, 1968), 10.

Allen D. E. , The Victorian fern craze (London, 1969).

Kingsley Charles , Glaucus, or the wonders of the shore (London, 1855). Kingsley's publisher, Macmillan, produced later editions in special bindings for birthday and Christmas presents. My current ideal present for junior historians of science is Bush Helen , Mary Anning's treasures (Puffin Books, Harmondsworth, 1976), which first appeared in 1967.

The lack of documentation is only apparent. In practice, the chapter bibliographies are so cleverly done that the professional reader should find little difficulty in tracing the sources of Allen's statements.

Henrey Blanche , British botanical and horticultural literature before 1800 (3 vols, London, 1975), reviewed by Porter Roy , History of science, xiv (1976), 140–1. Chalmers-Hunt J. M. , ed., Natural history auctions, 1700–1972. A register of sales in the British Isles (London, 1976). The gazeteer of natural history ms repositories is to be published by The Bowler Publishing Company under the editorship of G. D. R. Bridson (Linnean Society) and A. P. Harvey (British Museum of Natural History), from whom further details may be had, and to whom information may be sent. Note also, Willson E. J. , “The records of nurserymen”, Archives, xii (1976), 121–6, and Gorer Richard , “Nurseries, hybrids and plant collectors”, ibid., 126–30.

Newsome D. , Godliness and good learning (London, 1961), 68.

Layton D. , Science for the people (London, 1973). Brock W. H. , “Glaucus: Kingsley and the seaside naturalists”, Cahiers (Montpellier), iii (1976). Cf. Hilts Victor L. , “A guide to Francis Galton's English men of science”, Transactions of the American Philosophical Society, lxv (1975), Pt 5, 33.

Morrell J. B. , “The chemist breeders: The research schools of Leibig and Thomas Thomson”, Ambix, xix (1972), 1–46.

For history of the Wardian Case, see Allen , op. cit. (ref. 4). Note the recent commercial revival of Ward's Case as a ‘terrarium’ (Daily Telegraph, 26 October 1976).

Cf. Mary Anning's career as a fossil collector, Bush , op. cit. (ref. 5); or of Bates as a bug hunter ( Moon H. P. , Henry Walter Bates F.R.S. (1825–1892): Explorer, scientist and Darwinian (Leicestershire Museums, Leicester, 1976)).

Almost all aquarium books of the 1850s refer to Lloyd (1815–80). See Gunther A. E. , A century of zoology at the British Museum through the lives of two keepers 1815–1914 (London, 1975), 394. For Lloyd's colleagues, Lord W. K. (1817–72) and Lee H. (1826–88), see the Dictionary of national biography.

Hibberd Shirley , The book of the fresh water and marine aquarium (2 vols, London, 1856); idem, Rustic adornment for homes of taste (London, 1856); idem, Brambles and bay leaves: Essays on the homely and the beautiful (London, 1855).

Gosse E. , The naturalist of the sea shore: The life of Philip Henry Gosse (London, 1890); 2nd ed. (1896), 264, 296. See also Hedgpath Joel W. , “De mirabili maris: Thoughts on the flowering of seashore books”, Proceedings of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, 72B (1971–72), 107–14.

See advertisement in Gosse P. H. , The aquarium (London, 1854) and “plugs” in early editions of Kingsley's Glaucus. For Edmund Gosse's beautiful description of a beach ramble, see op. cit. (ref. 15), 257.

History of the Berwickshire Naturalists' Club (Edinburgh, 1931).

For brief comments on school societies, see Brown E. S. , “Zoology in the schools, 1851–1951”, School science review, xxxv (1953–54), 71–87 (pp. 86–87). Brown used Shaw H. K. Airy , Directory of natural history societies (Amateur Entomologists' Society, London, 1948), Supplement (1949). This was reissued by Lysaght Averil , ed., Directory of natural history and other field study societies (London, 1959). The archival state of some field clubs may be gleaned from MacLeod R. M. Friday J. R. and Gregor C. , The corresponding societies of the British Association for the Advancement of Science 1883–1929 (London, 1975). The changing fortunes of many clubs can be followed in the annual [Official] Year book of the scientific and learned societies of Great Britain and Ireland (London, 1884–1936?).

MacLeod Friday and Gregor , op. cit. (ref. 18).

The divorce was never so complete in geology, though at least by implication Allen suggests it was. See O'Connor Jean and Meadows A. J. , “Specialization and professionalization in British geology”, Social studies of science, vi (1976), 77–89.

E.g., Allen Garland , Life science in the twentieth century (New York, 1975).

Keith W. J. , The rural tradition (Toronto, 1974). Richard and Kearton Cherry , British birds' nests (London, 1895); idem, The adventures of cock robin and his mate (London, 1904); idem, Adventures with animals and men (London, 1935); Kearton Cherry , Cherry Kearton's travels (London, 1941).