THE ROYAL SOCIETY AND THE STATE 



witnesses and visiting Germany, reported strongly and 

 unanimously in favour of such a national Institution. 

 In 1898 a communication was received from the Treasury 

 expressing " the hope that the Royal Society will be 

 willing to add to the already great services rendered by 

 them to the Government and public of the United Kingdom, 

 by consenting to undertake the new responsibilities now 

 sought to be imposed upon them " in connection with 

 the new Institution. The Council accepted the important 

 trust, under which the " ultimate control of the Institution 

 is vested in the President and Council of the Royal Society, 

 who in the exercise thereof may issue from time to time 

 such directions as they may think fit to the General Board 

 and Executive Committee." The income and all other 

 property is vested in the Royal Society for the purposes 

 of the Institution. The Laboratory, which was formally 

 opened by H.R.H. the Prince of Wales in March 1902, 

 has already made remarkable progress under its energetic 

 Director. During the present year the attention of the 

 Prime Minister has been called to the very great importance 

 to the national industries of an immediate grant for new 

 buildings and a more adequate instrumental equipment, 

 and of a larger annual endowment. 



It is not too much to say that men of science of all 

 countries are under no small obligation to the Royal 

 Society for their Catalogue of Scientific Papers which 

 have appeared in all parts of the world since the beginning 

 of the last century. This great work, to which immense 



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