The President's Address. By H. G. Plimmer. 135 



day. . . . This I do with design to let it be seen by as many diHer- 

 ent persons as possible." 



In an earlier letter he says : " That 'twas always my resolution 

 that if at any time I should find by further trials that I had been 

 mistaken in some former conceptions, I would not be ashamed" to 

 acknowledge it pubHcly." And he was not. In the last extract I 

 shall give he says : " A certain gentleman, who was with me some 

 months ago, intreated me to go on in making observations, adding 

 that the fruit which ripen'd in autumn was the most lasting. 

 This is now the autumn of my life, 1 being arrived to the age of 

 88i years. ..." 



In less than three years the end came : he died 26 August, 

 1723, aged 91 years. He w^as buried in the Oude Kerk, in the 

 little town where he had passed practically all his life. He lives 

 on in our remembrance of him and in his works : his thought has 

 animated others who came after him, and will again others : this 

 is the true immortality, and is quite distinct from that other, the 

 hope of which is cut on tomb-stones. 



Nietzsche says : " The best and wholesomest thing in Science, as 

 in the mountains, is the air that blows there. It is because of that 

 air that we spiritual weaklings avoid and defame Science " ; and he 

 points out that Science needs truth, infinite patience, and complete 

 self-abnegation ; and that it calls for men of nobler and stronger 

 make than poetry needs. Leeuwenhoek had these qualities of 

 truth, infinite patience and self-abnegation, and he told his tale of 

 Natural History, of Natural Knowlege, so that " everyone who 

 hears it is inspired to health and gladness as the heir and continuer 

 of humanity." 



And now to conclude. One thing that has lately given me 

 great pleasure, is that a movement is being made in our Society to 

 induce the Fellows generally — small as well as great — to take a 

 more active part in our meetings, to communicate here informally 

 what they are doing, or have done, however small. This will con- 

 duce to fellowship, and will bring out work, that otherwise would 

 be hidden, into the light of day, for help and just criticism, and 

 will encourage those who feel they are lagging beliind. Just as no 

 man need be useless in humanity, so need no labourer be useless 

 in the field of Science. So I would encourage the humblest 

 worker amongst us to bring his bit of work here. If that becomes 

 general, as I hope, our meetings will never be cut and dried, but 

 will be living. And here let me remind the younger amongst us, 

 that the great crown of Science is not made up only of large jewels, 

 but also of small and the smallest precious stones, the latter 

 perhaps set one above the other, but the light of the deepest and 

 smallest will always shine through ; the glory of that crown is due 

 to the small stones as well as to the large. Happy he who can set 

 the tiniest stone in that crown ! 



