president's address. 139 



of the study of these minute vegetable organisms 'ootli to the 

 biologist and the physician ])ut I am by no means sure that the 

 importance is as yet sufficiently recognised by scientific men and 

 I am unwilling to trust the fate of my bequest to the very 

 uncertain views of the Senate on the sul^ject. I therefore wish 

 my executors to procure very distinct pledges from the Senate 

 upon all the points above mentioned. Should the Senate decline 

 all or any of these conditions I empower my executors to hand 

 over the aforesaid sum of twelve thousand pounds to the Linnean 

 Society to provide a sufficient salary by the year to a competent 

 bacteriologist who shall be called the bacteriologist to the 

 Linnean Society and whose duties shall be to conduct original 

 research in the laboratory of the Society and to give instruction 

 to one or two people at the discretion and under the orders and 

 control of the Council of the Society any surplus to be applied to 

 laboratory requirements." 



The plaintiff prays for a declaration — 



1st. Whether or not the words " science degree'' in the fourth 

 condition mean a degree in science generally or in biological 

 science or other sciences analogous thereto; and 



2ndly. Whether or not the w^ords "a six months' course of 

 bacteriology" in the fourth condition mean any and if so what 

 definite amount of lectures or teaching or whether the words 

 mean such amount of lectures or teaching as shall from time to 

 time be prescribed by the Senate. 



The will and memorandum bear date the 23rd December, 1890. 



In the argument before me it was admitted that the "science 

 degree" must be limited to a degree in biological science or other 

 sciences analogous thereto, as the study of bacteriology would 

 have no place in the curriculum for other science degrees, such as 

 engineering, &c., and as the testator In the memorandum refers to 

 the importance of such study to the biologist and the physician, I 

 have therefore no difficulty in declaring that the "science degree" 

 must be construed with such limitation. 



The question as to the meaning of the words "a six months' 

 course of bacteriology" presents greater difficulties. If those 



