PRESIDENT S ADDRESS. 3 



W c may range inditferently in any of the sciences that our 

 Association undertakes to advance, and the same evidence will be 

 manifest. In Astronomy — we have had as our first president a 

 man of world-wide reputation, one whose name and fame will 

 last with the, stars he knew so intimately and loved so sincerely: 

 in Alathematics — again looking back a few years, we can remem- 

 ber this chair filled by one wlio takes high rank amid his fellows 

 of any age : in Chemistry — and here also we have had as our 

 president a worker who has summed up in his own career a 

 wealth of achievement and endeavour : in the domain of Biology 

 — and it is but yesterday that one of the most eminent of living 

 Bacteriologists occupied the place where I now stand : in Engi- 

 neering — it is to this department of science, to its commanding 

 position in this land, to the distinction of many of its members 

 that our Association owes much of its force and prestige: in 

 Geology — one has only to think of the honoured place held by 

 our medallist this year to be assured of the progress made in 

 South African Geology: in Botany, in Anthropology, in ]\Ieteor- 

 ology and in its sister science Seismology, we have a record of 

 things accomplislied of which any Association may be proud. 



Now all this breadth and scope of outlook, this intensity of 

 endeavour, this harvest of achievement makes it necessary for 

 one addressing himself to the scientific progress of his day to 

 confine himself to an area of inquiry in the which he shall wander 

 less as a stranger than he would in other fields. 



This is my reason for taking as a type of what is being done 

 in other regions of scientific research (su:-h fields as I have 

 already indicated) the progress made in Astronomy by South 

 African workers during the past century. 



Even thus limiting the scope of this address to one special 

 science, it will be necessary to leave out much that not a few 

 may think worthy of report. For such omissions those whose 

 knowledge of the history of Astronomy in this land is both imme- 

 diate and intimate will pardon me. 



Astronomical science, especially of late years, circles round 

 three great problems : The distance of the stars, the movements 

 of the stars, the structure and evolution of the stars. These 

 three lines of advance all converge in one great question. 



The constitution, history and cosmography of the Universe 

 as a whole. Perhaps it lies in the Ithurial touch of this haunt- 

 ing land of far distances, but somehow, on these southern shores, 

 astronomers have never lost sight of the final goal of all their en- 

 deavour. Indeed, again and again, and yet again, they can claim 

 priority in each epoch-making departure in astronomical progress. 

 These leaders in scientific thought have seldom lost sight of the 

 wood because of the tree<. 



While busy, necessarily busy, for days and weeks and months 

 measuring errors in the runs of screws, or recording star discs 



A 



