September 30, 191 5] 



NATURE 



125 



seasons of the year. More important than the record 

 of the facts themselves is the consciousness of how 

 much we miss from failing to cultivate methodical 

 habits of observation. 



The manner in which the information is presented 

 and made available adds to the interest attaching to 

 the method of collection. . The author sums up his 

 accumulated records, extending over forty years or 

 more, in diagrams, that appeal to the eye. Wind- 

 roses are a familiar device for exhibiting frequent and 

 lawless changes. Similar contrivances are largely 

 used, and demonstrate clearly that the north and east 

 winds grow in frequency as the year advances towards 

 the summer, to be followed later by the increase in 

 the west winds, through the autumn and early winter. 

 The land and sea breezes are similarly treated, and 

 the diagrams are equally instructive. The dependence 

 of rain on wind is also illustrated diagrammatically, 

 and the resulting figures are deserving ^f close study. 

 The chapter on the prevalence of fog and mist, as 

 determined by the visibility of prominent objects, is 

 of special interest, for it is a kind of observation that 

 cannot be assisted by instruments, but depends solely 

 for its accuracy on the skill and vigilance of the 

 observer, qualities in which Mr. Backhouse excels. 



THE 



BRITISH ASSOCIATION. 

 SECTION G. 



engineering. 



Opening Address ^ by H. S. Hele-Shaw, D.Sc, 



LL.D., F.R.S., M.Inst.C.E., President of the 



Section. 



The preparation and delivery of a presidential 

 address is usually a pleasant and not difficult task, 

 although it seems to be the custom mildly to intimate 

 to the contrary. In ordinary times the president 

 chooses a subject on which he has done some work, 

 and with which he is therefore familiar, and with 

 which, moreover, his name is more or less associated. 

 If this had been an ordinary time, I should have liked 

 to deal with the fascinating subject of mechanical 

 locomotion, and to review what has taken place, let 

 us say, since the meeting of the British Association 

 held in Manchester rather more than half a century 

 ago. But the time is not an ordinary one, for the 

 war which a year ago cast its shadow over the meet- 

 ing of the British Association in Australia has, as the 

 months have passed by, gradually unfolded the most 

 terrible page in the history of the world. 



It is terrible not merely because of the frightful 

 slaughter which has taken place and which will yet 

 take place, owing on one hand to the gigantic armies 

 employed, and on the other to the nature of modem 

 warfare, A predecessor in the chair, one who has left 

 many marks of his genius on the peaceful engineering 

 works of the country, Mr. Hawksley, commented 

 about fifty years ago on "the unhappy necessity of 

 devoting so much of the science and skill of members 

 of the association to the defence of the homes of the 

 people of this great nation." 



This is not the place to dwell at any length on the 

 subject of the war; but I cannot help pointing out 

 that the whole attitude of scientific and professional 

 men in this country at the beginning of the war shows 

 how little they realised the real nature of what was 

 before us ; but we now know that the only way to 

 escape from destruction ourselves is to employ all the 

 resources of science in our own defence. 



It is partly on these grounds that the meeting of the 

 'British Association for the Advancement of Science 



1 AbriKed by the author. 



NO. 2396, VOL. 96] 



has been held this year, because science is proving 

 such an all-important factor in the present war. 



The mere holding of this meeting, however, with a 

 vague sort of idea that science is associated with war, 

 does not seem to most of us to meet the real needs 

 of the case. The decision to hold the meeting was 

 made in March, i.e. six months ago. Since that time 

 the nation has awakened to the fact that matters have 

 become very much more serious, and we scarcely 

 needed the solemn warnings of our responsible states- 

 men to enable us to realise this. We see our foe 

 turning every resource towards the active prosecution 

 of the war, and bringing in the aid of every man 

 towards that end. If the result were a small matter, 

 we might pursue our way, as we did at first, with the 

 fatuous cry, " Business as usual " ; but day by day it is 

 brought home to us that the Hymn of Hate, childish 

 though it may seem, really represents the serious mind 

 and deadly intention of our enemy. It behoves us all 

 then who are members of it to show that the British 

 Association, which has rendered such great services 

 to the country in the past, can bear its share of the 

 burden to-day. 



I assume that we are all agreed upon this point, and 

 it remains to consider the best way in which such a 

 work can be carried out. Understanding from the 

 president that he is dealing with the question from the 

 point of view of the whole association, I need only 

 deal with the matter so far as it concerns our section. 

 After discussing the matter with our secretary and 

 several of my predecessors in the chair, I suggest that 

 we continue the three research committees already in 

 existence, but do not institute a fresh one, forming 

 instead a special committee, the purpose of which I 

 propose to lay before you. Before doing this, I should 

 like to point out that the very fact that engineering 

 constitutes such an important feature of the war has 

 prevented our having, as often in times past, papers 

 on military and naval subjects, such as warships, 

 armour, projectiles, etc. And this for two reasons : 

 first, because nearly every professional or manufac- 

 turing engineer having as a rule sent the best of his 

 staff to the fighting line is overwhelmed by actual 

 work either directly or indirectly connected with muni- 

 tions and war material, and is much better so em- 

 ployed than in talking about the subject, or even in 

 attending the present meeting; secondly, because 

 men who really know all about such work would not 

 be likely to discuss it in public at the present time, 

 and I am sure you will agree with me that we do not 

 want merely popular science on war subjects. 



Hence, the twenty-four papers before the section 

 deal with engineering science generally, but I venture 

 to think they are of a high scientific quality, and quite 

 as important in character as those of former years; 

 and, although I need hardly remark that our report 

 on gaseous explosions does not, as suggested by a 

 daily paper, relate to high explosives, it will be noticed 

 in several cases the papers touch closely on subjects 

 bearing on the war, such as those on wireless tele- 

 graphy and the traction of artillery. 



The object of the proposed committee is twofold. 

 The first of these would be to undertake any work 

 which may be of use in an advisory capacity or by 

 research, or indeed in any other way for direct assist- 

 ance in the war. This would, of course, be a tem- 

 porary object of the committee, but nevertheless a 

 real one. I need not go into all that may be done in 

 this direction by the committee, but one step will be 

 to place ourselves at the service of the Ministry of 

 Munitions for such work. 



With regard to the second purpose, the matter 

 stands on a rather different footing. We were in 

 many respects quite unprepared for the war on which 



