414 SCIENCE OEGANISATION : SOCIETIES, ETC. f I 

 To T. H. Huxleij 



January 4, 1861. 



My only fault with the * Eeview ' is its brevity as I told 

 Currie to-day — I am extremely pleased with it and shall 

 have some mild review for next number I hope if you have 

 space. I still think there will occur a few cases where 

 you must translate the German title — at least the German 

 Botanists do often invent titles that are unintelHgible except 

 the book be read ! It is the most useful Eeview I ever saw. 

 Your article is very exhausting of all you propose, clear as 

 to argument and extremely well put ; the first three pages 

 are also very happy, especially the prop, relative to man's 

 duty. It will be a balsam to many short-witted and honest 

 but timid enquirers. 



Another point in which the organising spirit made itself felt 

 was that of charitable funds for science. For such there was 

 only the Civil List to fall back upon, and the demands made 

 on it were ill regulated. The Treasury would be puzzled by 

 receiving four applications at once for Natural History pensions 

 — all the claimants being described as ' distinguished men.' 

 Under such conditions it was useless to bring forward another 

 who had not claims for Government aid. 



Now a very deserving case occurred in the end of 1858, 

 of a microscopist who had done excellent work, but had not 

 achieved pubHc distinction. To Hooker this hardly seemed 

 a case for a Government pension, if it had been possible to 

 obtain one. It was, however, a case for personal help from 

 scientific men. A strong appeal was made on general grounds 

 for £600 to buy an annuity, with the result that the amount 

 was more than subscribed twice over. Instead then of sinking 

 the whole sum in an annuity much larger than was proposed, 

 a wider scheme was put forward — ^namely, to invest the capital, 

 pay the annuity originally proposed to the beneficiary during 

 his life, and in the end secure the capital as nucleus of a general 

 scientific charitable fund, to be increased by volmitary sub- 

 scriptions. Subscribers were given an option as to the destina- 

 tion of their own gift. With hardly an exception all agreed on 

 the larger plan. 



