"Thus there can be little doubt, that the further science advances, the
more extensively and consistently will all the phaenomena of Nature
be represented by materialistic formulae and symbols. But the man of
science, who, forgetting the limits of philosophical inquiry, slides
from these formulae and symbols into what is commonly understood
by materialism, seems to me to place himself on a level with the
mathematician, who should mistake the x's and y's with which he works
his problems, for real entities--and with this further disadvantage, as
compared with the mathematician, that the blunders of the latter are of
no practical consequence, while the errors of systematic materialism may
paralyze the energies and destroy the beauty of a life."]
ON CORAL AND CORAL REEFS (1870)
[Footnote 110: On Coral and Coral Reefs: from Critiques and Addresses.
The essay was published in 1870.]
[Footnote 111: Sic et curalium: Thus also the coral, as soon as it
touches the air turns hard. It was a soft plant under the water.]
[Footnote 112: Boccone (1633-1704): a noted Sicilian naturalist.]
[Footnote 113: Marsigli (1658-1730): an Italian soldier and naturalist.
He wrote A Physical History of the Sea.]
[Footnote 114: "Traite du Corail": "I made the coral bloom in vases full
of sea-water, and I noticed that what we believe to be the flower of
this so-called plant was in reality only an insect similar to a little
nettle or polype.
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