Jam-akv. 1>)1. 



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evening until tin pkm of lowcrini; the gas [)ro\ed 

 cftcctual. 



Under tile ciiairmanship of the late Sir Ciiarles 

 Dilke, these classes rapidly secured upwards of a 

 thousand students, and became the largest and most 

 successful in the kingdom ; while, in S|)ite of this 

 heav\- extraneous work, Mr. Bickerton was attaining 

 unicjue success at the Ko\al School of Mines. .-\t 

 the end of his tirst year he won the Senior Royal 

 Scholarship, with l()()"u of marks in four subjects, 

 and an aggregate of 98% in all — this against such 



ties consenting to all tlie conditions formulated by 

 him as requisite before his acceptance. .Accordingly 

 he went there in 1874, and there he worked until 

 1902. teaching chemistry, electricity and physics, 

 acting as Government analyst, and incidentally giving 

 many public lectures, both technical and popular. 

 His researches have resulted in great pecuniary 

 advantages to the Dominion's industries in many 

 directions. 



It was the ap[)earanceof No\a Cygni in 1877 that 

 first strongly directed Professor Bickerton"s atten- 



FlGLKL Jl. riotcasui liickciluii'b lluinc. \\ ainoni ParL. Cliiistcluucli, -New /ual.iiiJ. 



comi)ctitors as Professor Sollas, Principal Garnett 

 and Professor Liversidge. Completing his cour.se at 

 the Roval School of Mines and the Royal College of 

 Chemistry he obtained the highest class in all save 

 one subject. Many good offers followed, and he took 

 charge of the science work at the Hartley Institute, 

 Southampton, and also taught at Winchester College 

 and the Training College, and was appointed anal\st 

 to the Borough of Southampton, and also to the 

 main division of Hampshire. When Cooper's Hill 

 College was established, the Indian students, who 

 were the mainstay of the Hartley Institute, migrated 

 thither, and Mr. Bickerton, becoming dissatisfied with 

 the unsettled state of the Institute, received offers of 

 man\- posts, among them being the Professorship of 

 Chemistry at Christchurch (Canterburv College, 

 University of New Zealand). 



This offering a more unrestricted and broader 

 field, more leisure and opportunities for original 

 research. Mr. Bickerton finally accepted, the authori- 



tion to astrononi)- and particularly to the stupendous 

 nature of temporary stars. From this attention the 

 thcor\- of partial impact and the formation of the 

 third bodv, so lucidly explained by Professor Bicker- 

 ton in his articles in " KxoWLEDGi-:,"' was evolved. 



.Mthough the formulation of the salient features 

 of the theory, or rather induction, took but a short 

 time, it was some years before the magnitude of the 

 discoverv became apparent to its originator, and as 

 its truth was tested in relation to other celestial 

 phenomena than novae it gradually dawned upon 

 him that he had discovered what has been justly 

 called " the master-key to the Cosmos." 



His advocacy, however, of this theory outside the 

 College, gave great offence to a certain section of the 

 Board of Governors, and in 1894 and again in 1899 

 attempts were made to oust him from his position. 

 The first failed lamentably, as at the enquiry it was 

 proved that his students gained more scholarships 

 than all the rest of the colon\- together and the 



