1G2 Transactions of the Society. 



will tell us at first hand how, by deliberately poisoning himself 

 with Trinitrotoluene he acquired the primary stages of the too- 

 often fatal Toxic Jaundice, which, in the early days, sorely afflicted 

 our Munition workers, and so discovered not only the method of 

 its acquirement but the means of its prevention and cure. There 

 is consequently to-day no reason why those who handle high 

 explosives should not do so with perfect immunity from any dele- 

 terious results. The work of Professor Plimmer, our penultimate 

 President, upon the prevention and cure of Tetanus is at present 

 (like the origin of Mr. Jeames Yellowplush) wrapped in insoluble 

 mystery, but the day will come when it will prove a landmark in 

 prophylactic medicine. There is other work associated with his 

 name, the value of which is incalculable, but as to the nature of 

 which it is not even permissible to drop a hint. The new depart- 

 ment of Technical Optics which has come into being at the 

 Imperial College of Science under our Fellow, Prof. F, J. Cheshire, 

 as its first Director, is perhaps one of the most important outcomes 

 of the War. It has entered upon its labours with every indication 

 of a robust vitality, and I only regret that the series of Lectures 

 being delivered before that body by our new President on Micro- 

 scopic Technique, as well as those being delivered by our sometime 

 Fellow, Prof. A. E. Conrady, Professor of Optical Design in the 

 Department, on the Theory of the Microscope, are not being 

 delivered from this platform, valuable — indeed essential — though 

 they be in the place that has claimed them. We may hope, how- 

 ever, that the connexion of our new President with the Depart- 

 ment will result in a co-ordination of the work of the Department 

 and of this Society which cannot fail to be of benefit and advantage 

 to both organizations, and to Science in general. It is a matter of 

 common knowledge that our new President, Mr. J. E. Barnard, 

 has practically devoted the whole of his time since 1914 as a 

 member of the Medical Research Committee to the solution of 

 optical problems connected with the War, the practical results of 

 which have contributed in a hitherto unknown degree, because un- 

 publisliable, to the work of the Ministry of Munitions, and so to the 

 efficiency of our fighting force. It must be quite unnecessary to 

 refer to the great stress which War conditions have imposed upon 

 nearly all of us in connexion with, and in addition to, our ordinary 

 pre-War occupations — this alone amounts to a vast volume of 

 essential War- work done by the Society, represented by volunteer 

 work of all kinds : iu organization, relief work, and that somewhat 

 shadowy and misdirected sphere of usefulness vaguely described 

 upon the hoardings as " National Service." These are incidents 

 of the War which, whilst contributing largely to the efficiency of 

 the national machine, have necessarily militated against the pro- 

 gress of the purely scientific work of a large proportion of our 

 most active Fellows. 



