SCIENTIFIC IKVESTIGATIOX AXD PROGRESS. 293 



sources and others made in the laboratory produce effects of various 

 kinds when taken into the system led to the thought that these sub- 

 stances might be useful in the treatment of disease. Then, further, it 

 Avas thought that disease itself is a chemical phenomenon. These 

 thoughts, as is evident, furnish strong motives for the investigation of 

 chemical substances, and the science of chemistry owes much to the 

 work of those who were guided by these motives. 



And so in each j)eriod as a new thought has served as the guide we 

 find that men have been actuated by different motives, and often one 

 and the same worker has been under the influence of mixed motives. 

 Only in a few cases does it appear that the highest motives alone op- 

 erate. We must take men as we find them, and we mav be thankful 

 that on the whole there are so many who are impelled by one motive or 

 another or by a mixture of motives to take up the work of investigating 

 the world in which we live. Great progress is being made in conse- 

 quence and almost daily we are called upon to wonder at some new and 

 marvelous result of scientific investigation. It is quite impossible to 

 make predictions of value in regard to what is likely to be revealed to 

 us by continued work, but it is safe to believe that in our efforts to dis- 

 cover the secrets of the universe only a beginning has been made. No 

 matter in what direction we may look we are aware of great unexplored 

 territories, and even in those regions in which the greatest advances 

 have been made it is evident that the knowledge gained is almost insig- 

 nificant as compared with that which remains to be learned. But this 

 line of thought may lead to a condition bordering on hopelessness and 

 despondenc}', and surely we should avoid this condition, for there is 

 much greater cause for rejoicing than for despair. Our successors will 

 see more and see more clearly than we do, just as we see more and see 

 more clearl}^ than our predecessors. It is our duty to keep the work 

 going without being too anxious to weigh the results on an absolute 

 scale. It must be remembered that the absolute scale is not a very 

 sensitive instrument, and that it requires the results of generations to 

 affect it markedly. 



On an occasion of this kind it seems fair to ask the question: 

 What does the world gain by scientific investigation? This question 

 has often been asked and often answ'ered, but each answer differs in 

 some respects from the others and each may be suggestive and worth 

 giving. The question is a profound one, and no answer that can be 

 given would be satisfactory. In general it may be said that the results 

 of scientific investigation fall under three heads — the material, the 

 intellectual and the ethical. 



The material residts are the most obvious and they naturally receive 



the most attention. The material wants of man are the first to receive 



consideration. They can not be neglected. He must have food and 



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