7 

 Almost every tide there was something rare or new to South Africa, 

 or even new to science. I made contact with the Albany Museum 

 in Grahamstown, and was encouraged by John Hewitt, the 

 Director, in my first timid entry into the scientific field of ichthy- 

 ology. In 1 93 1 I published my first short paper in the annals of 

 that museum, with my own illustrations that seemed satisfactory. 

 But an acquaintance of Cambridge days, a zoologist, wrote to 

 say that he was surprised to see a chemist publishing a paper on 

 fishes; the text was reasonable but the illustrations were terrible. 

 That was my first step towards appreciation of the importance of 

 good illustration in biology, which has become a feature of my 

 work, in more recent times thanks largely to the skill of my 

 wife. 



My long and thorough training in the mathematical sciences, 

 not generally part of the equipment of systematists, assisted me 

 at every turn. My progress was indeed so rapid that it was not 

 long before anglers and others came to me for information, and an 

 increasing number of fishes were brought and sent for my opinion 

 and identification. Correspondence on this matter steadily in- 

 creased, and all phases of this work grew so rapidly that there were 

 times when I was almost overwhelmed. Everywhere I turned 

 there were new and fascinating things all round, my time was so 

 fully occupied that one by one the ordinary pastimes of life fell 

 away. 



Chemistry covers a vast field, and is the basis of an enormous 

 part of general life and of industry. The subject is continually 

 changing, almost like a moving picture, and to keep abreast of 

 developments is more than a full-time job. 



With two such different and full fields to occupy my time, I 

 was in a diflScult situation. During working hours in term time I 

 conscientiously did nothing else but chemistry, even when I was 

 bursting to get on with a new fish. My free time and vacations 

 were devoted to fish. I had papers on fishes and on chemistry 

 published at the same time, and even managed to produce three 

 text-books in chemistry. 



In South Africa the character of the Universities has been 

 influenced by the Scottish educational system, in which the 

 emphasis is on a high standard of teaching. Their development 

 has also been moulded by having to train young men and women 



