July 21, 1904] 



NATURE 



275 



facilities. But I do absolutely deny that there is the smallest 

 sign that in the production of these germinating ideas of 

 science we have shown any inferiority, either to our re- 

 lations across the Atlantic or to Germany, which I may 

 remind the assembly has for many generations pursued 

 this State-endowing process of applying science to industry. 

 That we are behind Germany in that way I do not deny. 

 Germany had a technical university, or gave technical teach- 

 ing, I think, as far back— 1 am refreshing my memory— 

 ai the end of the eighteenth century, if not before. Of 

 course, the general system of thought in Germany, the 

 habits of the people and the Government in this respect 

 places them at a great advantage as compared with us as 

 far as the endowment of universities can help a nation, as 

 I doubt not it can, in the industrial struggle. But my 

 point is that mere endowment of universities will not, 

 I think, add greatly to the output of original work of the 

 first quality. What, then, will it do? It will do, or may 

 help to do, what is, perhaps, now more important. It 

 ■will provide an education which will render fit for industrial 

 work all persons w-ho, without university education, would 

 be very ill equipped indeed. I concur with all the speakers 

 to-day that there is a great need — a great financial need — 

 both in the new and the old universities for help towards 

 this object. But I would beg to point out that there is 

 «ven a greater necessity than a well equipped university 

 — that is, that capitalists should be prepared to realise what 

 Ave realise in this room — the necessity of giving employ- 

 ment to those whom these universities are to turn out. I 

 •was much struck by an observation of Sir William White's. 

 He pointed out that we possess most of the ships of the 

 world — that we are the largest shipbuilders in the world — 

 and yet he said that Germany has an incomparably larger 

 number of students, far better machinery for educating these 

 students, and more men occupied in the shipbuilding yards ; 

 and what Germany has done the United States are doing. 

 One of two things is clear. Either our shipbuilders think 

 this qualified class is necessary or they do not think so; 

 or else thev find British students, even though turned out 

 in smaller quantities, are sufficient for their purpose, or they 

 employ .-Vmerican and German students for their works. 

 Are our manufacturers convinced that they get a better 

 man if they get one who has been to a university? Or do 

 they think that if a young fellow wants to become one of 

 the captains of industry he should begin early in life? I 

 think there is some evidence to show that they prefer the 

 older course ; and I should suggest they are wrong ; and 

 if they are wrong you must convince them they are wrong. 

 otherwise there will be no advantage in turning out qualified 

 students, for they w'ill be content to use the man who 

 acquires his training by actual day-to-day labour on the 

 ship, but is not qualified by these higher scientific attain- 

 ments which are more and more becoming necessary. 



One other thing we want, and that, I think, is the 

 creation of positions which will enable a man who has 

 exceptional gifts of originality in science to devote his life 

 to the subjects of his predilection so as not to be driven to 

 another kind of life in which he will not be able to render 

 the full service of which he is capable to his country. In 

 Germany certainly — I am not sure about the United States 

 — such positions exist to a far greater extent than in this 

 country. In the main they must be attached to the 

 universities. I cannot conceive any more admirable use 

 of any funds which the universities can command than the 

 increase of the number of such positions. 



In the course of his remarks, the Chancellor of the 

 Exchequer said : — 



It would be of some assistance to those w'ho may 

 have to decide in future when money is available if 

 the universities would consider to what extent they are 

 willing to come under control if they receive grants, to 

 what extent the State is to have a voice in fi.xing the 

 fees of the students, to what extent it is to direct or 

 influence the teaching, whether it is to allocate its assist- 

 ance to promote special branches of study, or whether it 

 is desired to make every university complete in itself. 

 Some further exposition of their views would make it 

 easier to deal with this question when the time comes for 

 dealing with it. 



NO. l8l2, VOL. 70] 



THE MEETING-PLACE OF EAST AND WEST.' 



THE publication of Dr. Stein's preliminary report 

 to the Royal Geographical Society and of his 

 own personal narrative of his explorations among the 

 " sand-buried ruins of Khotan " is one of the most 

 important archjeological events of the year 1903.^ For 

 the full scientific publication of the whole of his dis- 

 coveries by the Indian Government we must perforce 

 wait awhile, but we have all that is needed to enable 

 us to form a general idea of them in the interesting 

 and well published volume which lies before us. 



Chinese Turkestan hardly sounds as if it were a 

 land of very great interest, yet, as a matter of fact, it 

 is historically one of the most interesting countries in 

 the world. It is not a comfortable country : merely a 

 string of oases half overwhelmed by a devouring 

 desert of shifting sands, the great Taklamakan, and 

 barred off from the rest of the world by huge and im- 

 passable mountains, scorchingly hot in summer and 

 frozen by Arctic cold in winter. Yet these remote 

 wilds have seen one of the most interesting pheno- 

 mena of historj', the meeting together of the civilisa- 

 tions of China, of India, and of Europe; here the 

 antique culture of China had in the early days of the 

 Roman Empire already been brought into contact with 

 Graeco-Roman civilisation, and we see the result Oi 

 the meeting of the two, or, including India, three 

 streams of civilisation in the mixed culture of 

 Turkestan in the early centuries of the Christian era, 

 which Dr. Stein has brought to light. 



In those days Chinese Turkestan was the bridge 

 between west and east; from west to east journeyed 

 Roman merchants to buy the precious silk of Serica, 

 and Persian ambassadors or fugitive princes passed 

 seeking the assistance of the mighty Emperor of China ; 

 from east to west Chinese armies marched through 

 Turkestan into the basins of the Oxus and Jaxartes, 

 and even reached the Caspian, and Chinese pilgrims, 

 like Fa-hien and Hiuen-Thsang, passed the fanes of 

 Khotan on their way to the holy places of Buddhism 

 in India; traffic to and fro was continuous, and the 

 oases of the Taklamakan could maintain many famous 

 cities, rich temples, and monasteries of renown. 



In those days of her importance, as still in these of 

 her desolation, eastern Turkestan was under the 

 political hegemony of China. Legends, indeed, 

 ascribe a remote date B.C. to the first entry of the 

 Chinese into Kashgaria, but since real history (as apart 

 from annals which have not yet been critically silted) 

 can hardly be said to begin for China before the reign of 

 the great reformer Tsin Chi-Hwangti (b.c. 250), "the 

 burner of the books," we are probably right in assign- 

 ing the first Chinese occupation to the early days of 

 the Han dynast\-, under the emperor Han Wu-ti (b.c. 

 too), and its first real conquest to the famous General 

 Panchao, who is said to have carried the Chinese arms 

 as far west as the Caspian, and to have attempted to 

 open up direct relations with the Romans (about .a.d. 

 100). Henceforward Kashgaria remained nominally 

 tributary to China ; but though individual emperors 

 asserted their authority in the far west from time to 

 time, the country does not seem to have been regularly 

 organised as a Chinese possession until the reign of 

 the great Emperor Tai-tsong, the first monarch of the 

 T'ang (a.d. 634). Under his equally powerful son 

 Kao-tsong we find Chinese viceroys installed in 

 Turkestan, who entered into regular relations with the 

 peoples of the west. The last Sassanian King of 

 Persia, Yazdijird, communicated with them, demand- 

 ing Chinese assistance against the conquering warriors 



1 "Sand-buried Ruins of Khotan ; Personal Narrative of a Journey of 

 Archxological and Geographical Exploration in Chinese Turkestan." By 

 M. Aurel Stein. Pp. .v + 503. (London : Hurst and Blackett Ltd., 1904.) 

 Price ys. dd. net. 



