RESPONSE IN THE LIVING AND NON-LIVING 105 



discovery ; and Bose accomplished this, within less than a 

 year an exceptionally speedy success, as too often the 

 sad history of science goes. But now the new blow fell 

 alleged evidence that these results were not new that 

 they were known before ! already discovered by some one 

 else ! Results substantially similar to those obtained by 

 Bose had been communicated to a London scientific society 

 in November 1901 by the physiologist who had seen Bose's 

 experiments before the Royal Society (June 1901) and had 

 also taken part in the subsequent discussion. Bose learned 

 of the new turn of affairs from a letter from Professor 

 Howes, as the Secretary of the Linnean Society. A new 

 period of depression followed, far deeper than the preceding 

 one, but he rallied himself to reply, formally asking for an 

 inquiry into the matter. This was at once granted. Vines 

 and Howes, both also Fellows of the Royal Society, had 

 fortunately seen proofs of Bose's paper there ten months 

 before that at the Linnean, and five months before the 

 other claimant's communication. Bose's lecture at the 

 Royal Institution, a few days earlier than the Royal 

 Society function, was also in print and in evidence. With 

 all the facts before them, the committee of inquiry had no 

 hesitation. Bose's right to absolute priority was completely 

 established, and the paper was published accordingly. 



After Professor Howes, as Secretary of the Linnean 

 Society, had fully inquired into the claim to priority which 

 had threatened to prevent the publication of Bose's paper, 

 he wrote to him unofficially : ' I am fully sympathetic and 

 the facts you cite but confirm my original conviction. 

 You have been mercilessly done by. But my advice to 

 you would be that you should head your paper with a 

 plain statement of facts, and beyond this you should leave 

 fools alone.' 



Bose, however, now that he was vindicated, being satis- 

 fied with the result, mindful of the chivalrous traditions 

 of his boyhood's tales, not to pursue a defeated antagonist, 

 and desiring the matter to pass, attenuated this state- 



