94 PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS — SECTION D. 



remarks, with emphasis on negative results. Doubtless time will 

 place these writings in their true position, for one positive result 

 is of more value than many negative. Healthy scepticism is 

 necessary, but it must be remembered that while legitimate 

 criticism is always welcome, yet when it degenerates into mere 

 retort and negation, it is subversive of progress. 



The daily Press also is responsible to some extent for the 

 attitude taken up by the public in regard to science. A harmful 

 article was published quite recently in Johannesburg by A. K. 

 Chesterton, termed " The Tyranny of Science," which article,, 

 for concentrated sneers at science — knowledge or truth — and 

 advocacy of sentimental, self-satisfied ignorance, would be hard to 

 beat. Science to him is a " dangerous thing "; the " intolerable 

 despotism of science " is a thing to be bx'oken down; we have " to 

 smash down the cruel superstitions of science and build up again 

 the everlasting truths of poetry." Similar foolish I'emarks such 

 as " science killing the soul " pervade the whole article. Such 

 publications discourage the true scientist with first-hand informa- 

 tion from writing for the Press, as has been well expressed 

 recently in the United States by Dr. W. E. Allen. Also, in this 

 connection, I regret that time and space do not allow of my 

 repeating and amplifying the remarks made by the President of 

 this Section last year, which are to be found on pages 95-98 of 

 Volume XVIII of the Journal, when some attempts were made 

 to show that science, religion and poetry are not in permanent 

 conflict. 



Kindness, pity, sympathy and charity are among the highest 

 human attributes, but, unfortunately, they may be abused and 

 directed into wrong channels, until the giver may imwittingly 

 make the recipient like a parasite, with inevitable and disastrous 

 consequences. Biological principles underlie even sociology. 



The scientist, often unappreciated by the public, must live 

 a life of incessant striving, yet the investigator's life has its ideal 

 aspect in that it adds to the sum of human knowledge. Xn 1908. 

 Kudyard Ki])ling, a great observer of nature, addressed a meeting 

 of medical men in London and gave them this message, which, 

 being applicable to science even more than to medicine, I pass 

 on to you in conclusion. Kipling said: " You have been, and 

 always will be, exposed to the contempt of the gifted amateur — 

 the gentleman who knoM's by intuition everything that it has 

 taken you years to learn. You have been exposed — you will 

 always be exposed — to the attacks of those persons who consider 

 their own imdisciplined emotions more important than the world's 

 most bitter agonies — the people who would limit and cripple and 

 hamper research because they fear research may be accompanied 

 by a little pain and suffering. But you remain perhaps the 

 only class that dares to tell the world that we can get no more 

 out of a machine than we put into it, and your training shows 

 you daily and directly that things are what they are, and that 

 their conseqiiences will be what they will be, and that we 

 deceive no one but ourselves when we pretend otherwise. Realis- 

 ing this, I would wish you, in your future, v/hat all men desire — 

 enough work to do, and strength enough to do your work." 



