Summary:
"Little Masterpieces of Science: Explorers" by George Iles is a collection of essays and extracts that celebrate the spirit of exploration, written in the early 20th century. The work features a range of famous explorers, including Christopher Columbus, Lewis and Clarke, Zebulon M. Pike, and John Wesley Powell, presenting their adventures and the challenges they faced while mapping unknown territories. This anthology likely serves to highlight the significance of these explorers in broadening human knowledge and understanding of the world. The opening of the compilation sets a reflective tone, emphasizing the bravery and resourcefulness required of explorers. It outlines the inherent dangers they faced, from treacherous landscapes to hostile encounters, while noting that the legacy of exploration is far from over, as contemporary explorers continue to push boundaries. The preface highlights the contribution of these explorers not only to geographical knowledge but also to the resilience and curiosity of the human spirit. (This is an automatically generated summary.)