0G8 



iiKPoiiT — 1884, 



II 



¥m 



liics ar« HO (liirtjrciil tint it U liy int mnans clciir tlint wti .slmtiM follow tlio sanio 

 line.-*. liidt'eJ Diir iiutioiml cliiiiiiclcrihlic-i liprliid iis to do .••o, and it may bo that 

 till- bent of the (icrmaiiic lies in tlio assiiliioiis collrctioii of facts, wliilst their suli- 

 f(.:[U(!iit elaboration and coMnt'ctloii is tin' natural work of our own racf. 



Ah ropards tlu! jjublication of ^o-callcd ori^rinal work by ntudonts, ami sjieali- 

 itiff now only for niysi'lf as the director of an Mn^'lisli clii'nru'al laboratory, I 

 !'.'.'[ I am doini^- tlu' l)c.sl for llir younjr nn-n wlio, wishiii;; to liccunm eillnT 

 (-cli'ntili(M)r induNlrial cbciniHts, an' [ilacrd nndfi' my cliar^c, in ;.'i\iii).' Ibcia as 

 auiind and cxIcMsivH a foundation in the theory and iiractice of cbi'inical sciuncr us 

 their time and abilitie.s will allow, rather than lorcinj; tiiem prematurely into tlio 

 liveparation of a new series of honiulnnoii-i ('om|inuiids, or the investi^jation of seuie 

 special reliction, or of some ]iii^»il)l(( new colnnrin^' matter, tiionjrli such work 

 mjeht duulitless lead to publication. Aly aim liaa been to prepare a younir man, 

 by a careful said liiiily complele ^.'ene'ral traininjr, to till witii intelligence ami 

 .success a post either as teacher or industrial ciieniist, rather than to turn out mora 

 Mpecialista who, ])laceil under other comlitions than those to which they have been 

 accustomed, are unable to tret out of the nai'row e-roove in which they have biMn 

 trained. And this .seems a reasonable course, for whilst the market for tlie ]iiir« 

 specialidt, as the colour chemist, for example, may easily be overstocked, the niiiu 

 <if all-round iiitellijrence will always lind op)iori unity for tlie exercise of his 

 poweis. I'ar, however, from underrating the educational advantajres of working.' lU 

 Mrii/inal subjects, I consider this sort oflrainine' to l)e of the liiehist and best kind, 

 but only ns('fiil when loinided upon Ji sound and e'eneral basis. 



The (lilliculty wliiih the i;neli<h teacher of chemistry -and in this I may iii- 

 c'liule Canaila and the United Stales— has in contend a<^ainst is. that whil.-t in 

 'Tierm.Miy the value of this hi;^'b and thoroufrh training' is <fenerally admitte(|. in 

 Jluf^land a belief in its eliicacy is as yet not eeii,,i.ally entertained. 'Tim j'iiiirli.-li- 

 nian,' to quote fiom the recent lleport of tbi' lloyal Commisslim on TechnuMl 

 Instruction, ' is accu.stomed to seek for an immediate return, and has yet to leiini 

 that an extended and systematic education, up to and inclndinj? the methods of 

 ori^in'il research, is now a necessary prelimiiairy t(' the fullest development of 

 industry, and it is to the {gradual but sur;; errowth of public opinion in this direc- 

 tion that we must look for the means of securin;? to this country in the future, 

 as in the past, the hiji'iiest ])o,<ition as an industrial nation.' 



If, in the second place, we consirh'r tin; intluence wliich Knfrlishnien hinv 

 ■exerted on the teaching of our science, we shall feel reason for satisfaction ; nuiny 

 of our text-books are translated into every I'^iropean languapro and largely u.-ed 

 abroad ; often to the exclusion of those written by continental chemists. 



Ajrain, science teicbin^'', both practical and theoretical, in our elementary niid 

 many secondary schools is certainly not inferior to that in schools of similar gi'iide 

 abroad, and the interest in and desire ior scientilic training is rapidly spreadin;,' 

 tbrougliout our working ])opulation, and is even now ns great as, if not greater than, 

 abroad. TIk; univei'sities and liigber colleges are also moving to take their share "f 

 the work which has hitherto been far less completely done in our country than ou 

 the continent of l']urope, especially in (lermnny, where the healthful spirit of com- 

 petition, fostered by the numerous State-supported institutions, is much more 

 common than with us, and, being of equal value in educational as in professional or 

 -commercial matters, hfis had its due etlect. 



Turning lastly to the ])rnctical a])plications of or-.r .science, in what department 

 does England not excel i^ and in which has she not nnide the most important new 

 departures? Even in colour chemistry, cou'jerning which we have heard, with 

 truth, much of German supremacy, we niu.-t rememl)er that tlie industry is origin- 

 ally an Engli.sh one, as the names of Perkin and of .Maule. Simp-son and Nicholson 

 testify; and if vre have hitherto been beaten hollow in the development of tlus 

 branch, signs are not wanting that this may not always be the case. IJut take any 

 other branch of applied chemi.Mry, the alkali trade, for instance, what names but 

 English, with the two great exceptions of Lei)lanc and Solvay, do we find in C(ni- 

 nection with real di.scoveries I' In the application of chemLstrv to metallurgical 

 processes, too, the names of Darby, Cort, Neilson, and Eell in iron, of Bessemer 



