December 8, 192 1] 



NATURE 



471 



proving successful and economical, its output has 

 proved a more than liberal return on the funds at 

 its disposal. 



But essential to its continuance is continuance 

 of adequate financial support from the Govern- 

 ment. A tripod cannot stand upon two legs. The 



ate-contribution in this country is relatively not 

 large, but it is most important. Important as it 

 has been in the past, it has now an importance 

 most especially great. The cost of investigation 

 is now higher, much higher than it has been. 

 Endowment funds carry less far than they did 

 carry. Private benefactions and voluntary gener- 

 osity, although willing, are less able to be found 

 and less capable at this time; already gauged as 

 inadequate of themselves alone before the war, 

 they obviously cannot alone cope with the neces- 

 sary undertakings now. The present is a time 

 when a large-scale withdrawal of the Govern- 

 ment's financial support must prove most formid- 

 ably crippling. Such crippling will be greater 

 than the actual measure of the sum withdrawn 

 would entail in ordinary times. 



To pull down under emergency what has been 

 built up through years of careful experience and 

 is proving efficient can scarcely be ultimate 

 economy. It is to unlearn a useful lesson learnt. 

 Curtailment of the State aid — relatively small in 

 this countrv — given to scientific research must 

 harm the scientific production of the country. 

 Some curtailment, however, at this time seems 

 unavoidable. Though extension of buildings and 

 equipment and personnel is wanted, it may be 

 necessarv to withhold that extension at this time, 

 maintaining broadly the status quo ready for ex- 



pansion when that is once more feasible. But if 

 research be an indispensable factor in the rebuild- 

 ing of the national life, sacrifices should not be 

 required from it disproportionately greater than 

 from other services of a similarly essential kind. 

 Reduction of the State's support on a scale to 

 entail ruin to the existent organisation would be 

 a wastage rather than an economy. Calmly 

 viewed, what more reminiscent of the wastage of 

 the war itself than for machinery actually con- 

 structed, assembled, and producing what is need- 

 ful for a nation's strength as a piUar in the indus- 

 trial and intellectual temple of the world, to be 

 now under temporary change abandoned or broken 

 up ; and at a time when industry as a whole 

 stands convinced of scientific research as a neces- 

 sity for its recovery and well-being. 



My hope would be that scientific research on its 

 present maintenance will be considered part of the 

 intellectual bread of the community, part of the 

 bed-rock on which rests the efficiency, not to 

 speak of the industrial equipment, of the nation ; 

 that it will be treated as such in the measure of 

 State-support continued to it; that the State will 

 remember that that support has to embrace at 

 least both the universities on one hand, and, on 

 the other, the research institutions administered 

 bv the State, for this reason, namely, that the 

 country's organisation for research, complex in 

 origin, \et economical and effective, stands as an 

 integral system to the entire existence of which 

 is essential an adequate State provision for 

 both these constituent elements, indispensable, 

 since they are, to the whole structure of the 

 svstem. 



The Rayleigh Memorial. 

 The Unveiling in Westminster Abbey. 



THE history of the Rayleigh Memorial is soon 

 told. Shortly after Lord Rayleigh 's death 

 in 1919 the desire was expressed by many of his 

 friends to commemorate him in some suitable 

 manner, and a committee was formed, with Sir 

 J. J. Thomson, then president of the Royal 

 Society, as chairman, to give effect to this wish. 

 The committee contained representatives of the 

 University of Cambridge, of which Lord Rayleigh 

 was chancellor, as well as of the Royal Society. 



After consideration it was decided that, subject 

 to the permission of dean and chapter, a memorial 

 tablet should be placed in Westminster Abbey, 

 while his work at Cambridge as Cavendish pro- 

 fessor should be commemorated by the promotion 

 of research in some branch of science in which he 

 was interested. 



The dean and chapter gave a cordial assent to 

 the wishes of the committee, and a position was 

 chosen for the tablet on the north wall of the north 

 transept close to the memorials to Sir Humphry 

 Davy and Dr. Thomas Young. No space could 

 be found near the group of medallions described 

 iii Commander E. C. Smith's interesting article in 

 XO. 2719, VOL. 108] 



Nature of December i which form the memorials 

 to Adams, Stokes, Hooker, Wallace, Darwin, 

 Lister, and Joule, but Lord Rayleigh 's work had 

 close connection with that of both Young and 

 Davy ; much of it was a distinct outcome of the 

 researches of Young, and the position selected is 

 most suitable. 



Lord Rayleigh 's friends are greatly indebted to 

 Prof. Derwent Wood, R.A., for the tablet shown 

 in the accompanying illustration and especially for 

 the very excellent likeness of Lord Rayleigh, their 

 " unerring leader in the advancement of natural 

 knowledge," which he has executed. 



The ceremony on November 30 was a very simple 

 one. A number of Lord Rayleigh 's relatives and 

 friends assembled in the Abbey and were met by 

 the dean and Canon Barnes. After two short 

 prayers the dean invited Sir Joseph Thomson, the 

 chairman of the committee, to unveil the tablet. 

 When this was done the memorial was dedicated 

 by the dean and, as a tribute to Lord Rayleigh *s 

 work and position, an address, which is sub- 

 joined, was delivered by Sir Joseph. The cere- 

 mony was then closed with the Benediction. 



