250 



DISCOVEF^Y 



stated, and it appears to be true, that " amongst the 

 ' mustard gas ' casualties in the war the deaths were 

 less than 2 per cent., and, when death did not ensue, 

 complete ultimate recovery generally resulted. Other 

 materials of chemical warfare in use at the Armistice 

 do not kill at all ; they produce casualties which, after 

 six weeks in hospital, are discharged practically without 

 permanent hurt." Yet after reviewing the matter Sir 

 Edward Thorpe expressed very plainly his opinion 

 not only of the poison-gas matter, but of the broader 

 problem, the opinion it is hoped of cverj' decent-minded 

 man and woman in the country : " An educated public 

 opinion will refuse to give credit to any body of scientific 

 men who emploj' their talents in devising means to 

 develop and perpetuate a mode of warfare which is 

 abhorrent to the higher instincts of humanity . . . 

 and will set its face against the continued degradation 

 of science in augmenting the horrors of war." 

 m * * * * 



The meeting of the British Association this year 

 was further interesting because of the wide appeal 

 that it made to many who have not previously been 

 touched by its meetings. It has not been easy in 

 the past for the organisers to know what line they 

 should take — whether to make the meetings popular, 

 that is, attract the public and impress the nation, or 

 confine them to specialists in order that scientific 

 workers, students, schoolmasters, schoolmistresses, 

 and others, who cannot run up to London during the 

 working year every time something is " on " at one of 

 the learned societies, might learn at first-hand what the 

 research folk have been doing in the past year. But, 

 as the Association has now thirteen sections, and as 

 many of these hold concurrent meetings, it was found 

 possible to arrange that both classes of the public were 

 adequately considered. Subjects like those dealt with 

 in Professor Richardson's address on " Problems of 

 Physics," or in Professor Lloyd Morgan's on " Conscious 

 and the Unconscious," and in the presidential addresses 

 to the sections of Chemistry and Botany, were quite 

 clearly of interest to specialists only ; but Sir Henry 

 Hadow's lecture on " The Place of Music in a Liberal 

 Education," or Mr. Hichens' on " The Principles by 

 which Wages are Determined," or Dr. Hogarth's on the 

 " Application of Geography," and the presidential 

 addresses to the sections of Geology and Agriculture, 

 were, by the nature of their subjects or treatment, of 

 great general interest. 



***** 



A feature this year was the number of joint dis- 

 cussions. A short list of some of these subjects was 

 given in the Editorial Notes last month. It is admit- 

 tedly a good thing to get specialists in mathematics, 

 physics and engineering, or in zoology, botany, and 



physiology, or in geology and anthropology, to discuss 

 together some general question which is studied in 

 common. Science is now so detailed (we tremble for 

 those who will study physics, chemistry or psychology 

 fifty years hence) that no one can be " inside " more 

 than one of its branches. If then a problem is on the 

 border-line, a worker in one science must look for help 

 from one in the sister science. This interchange of 

 views on a subject is, therefore, valuable, and not only, 

 it is found, merely in the acquisition of information, 

 but also in enhancing the subject's interest. 

 ***** 

 The new science of psychology in which the public 

 interest is so great has now a section of its own, (it was 

 formerly a sub-section of physiology), and some of the 

 most interesting papers of the meeting were read in this 

 section. These varied over a wide field, for the psycho- 

 logists do not believe in maintaining a narrow front. 

 Dr. W. Brown opened a discussion on the relation of 

 suggestion to psycho-analysis, a relation important 

 from a theoretical point of view no less than from the 

 practical. Freud himself has admitted that the factor 

 of transference, (of which suggestion is a form), is 

 essential in any course of psycho-analysis that is to 

 lead to a cure or amelioration of the patient's condition, 

 and this position was taken as the starting-point of 

 discussion. Dr. C. W. Kimmins described an investi- 

 gation which he had made into the sense of humour in 

 school children. He has analysed a large number of 

 jokes and funny stories recorded by children of different 

 ages, and found out the elements which produce 

 laughter and amusement at different ages, and the 

 variation in this respect between boys and girls. The 

 greatest changes in these elements he finds are associated 

 with periods of rapid growth. He finds there are 

 certain types of funnj' stories and humorous incidents 

 that have a universal appeal, and he has worked out a 

 reason for their survival even after a long life. It is 

 hoped that this paper will be printed in an accessible 

 place, not only because of its own interest, but also for 

 the use that may be made of it by those who look after 



children. 



***** [■ 



In the Anthropology Section Mr. Miles Burkitt, 

 whose book on Prehistory has been recently published 

 by the Cambridge University Press, read a paper on a 

 recent discovery of importance in Upp)er Palaeolithic 

 Cave Art. It is a good many j'cars now since the dis- 

 covery of the first Paleolithic Cave painting, and 

 archa;ologists feel fairlj' sure that these extremely 

 well-drawn engravings and paintings were made for 

 magical purposes to obtain a good catch of game for 

 these early hunters who, it is thought, knew nothing of 

 metal, of agriculture, or of domesticated animals. j 

 A frieze of engraved animals (comprising horse, bison, 9 



