To those who meditate Travel.--Qualifications for a Traveller.--If you
have health, a great craving for adventure, at least a moderate fortune,
and can set your heart on a definite object, which old travellers do not
think impracticable, then--travel by all means. If, in addition to these
qualifications, you have scientific taste and knowledge, I believe that
no career, in time of peace, can offer to you more advantages than that
of a traveller. If you have not independent means, you may still turn
travelling to excellent account; for experience shows it often leads to
promotion, nay, some men support themselves by travel. They explore
pasture land in Australia, they hunt for ivory in Africa, they collect
specimens of natural history for sale, or they wander as artists.

Reputed Dangers of Travel.--A young man of good constitution, who is
bound on an enterprise sanctioned by experienced travellers, does not run
very great risks. Let those who doubt, refer to the history of the
various expeditions encouraged by the Royal Geographical Society, and
they will see how few deaths have occurred; and of those deaths how small
a proportion among young travellers. Savages rarely murder new-comers;
they fear their guns, and have a superstitious awe of the white man's
power: they require time to discover that he is not very different to
themselves, and easily to be made away with. Ordinary fever are seldom
fatal to the sound and elastic constitution of youth, which usually has
power to resist the adverse influences of two or three years of wild
life.

Advantages of Travel.--It is no slight advantage to a young man, to have
the opportunity for distinction which travel affords. If he plans his
journey among scenes and places likely to interest the stay-at-home
public, he will probably achieve a reputation that might well be envied
by wiser men who have not had his opportunities.

The scientific advantages of travel are enormous to a man prepared to
profit by them. He sees Nature working by herself, without the
interference of human intelligence; and he sees her from new points of
view; he has also undisturbed leisure for the problems which perpetually
attract his attention by their novelty. The consequence is, that though
scientific travellers are comparatively few, yet out of their ranks a
large proportion of the leaders in all branches of science has been
supplied. It is one of the most grateful results of a journey to the
young