SCIENCE ORGANISATION ' 133 



Science officially, and refuse the inevitables that flow from 

 it, or come with it, and stick to you for the rest of your life. 

 This may be all very selfish, but so it is. I would fain die 

 as I now live. 



By the way, have you seen the lovely compliment that 

 R. Strachey pays us 1 at the end of his paper on the Scope 

 of Scientific Geography, in the last number of Geog. Soc. 

 Proc. p. 450 has he not ' pointed his moral and adorned 

 his tail ' with our names ! I was and am astonished indeed. 

 I hope Owen will see it. 



I sent Gladstone a Wedgwood medallion of my Father, 

 and he writes so nice and characteristic a letter that I must 

 enclose it for your perusal. 



Ever, dear old fellow, Yours, 



J. D. HOOKER. 



The nomination was made on January 16. Hooker's 

 acceptance was marked by a new procedure. 



Sabine had held the Presidency from 1861 to 1872 ; Airy, 

 the astronomer, who was already seventy-one years of age, 

 during 1872-3. Following up some previous discussion of 

 the matter, Hooker made it a condition that his tenure of 

 office should not be of indefinite length, but ' only from year 

 to year,' thus ensuring elasticity to the working of the Society, 

 without the breach of continuity involved in a fixed short 

 term. 



As President, he did much to consolidate the organisation 

 of scientific interests which had so long been his great concern, 

 Since the forties, the Eoyal Society had been steadily becoming 

 a more strictly scientific body. By its original constitution 

 it had found social and financial support in the admission of 

 distinguished persons with presumably a general interest in 

 ' natural philosophy ' naturae curiosi as some learned societies 

 called them. With the advance of professional science, this 

 element of support became less valuable. It crowded out 

 working men of science. In administrative presidential 

 positions it was more ornamental than useful. Now, under 



1 As being the two most modest men of science. 



