522 



NATURE 



{Sept. 27, 1883 



branches of physiology, zoology, anatomy, pathology, and 

 botany — forty in ad lit ion to the fifteen which we rnayieckon 

 (taking one place with another) a< already existing. The 

 average cost of the buildings required would be about 4,000/. 

 for each, giving a total initial expenditure of 160,000/. ; the 

 average cost of stipend* for the director, assistants, and main- 

 tenance we may calculate at 1,500/. annually for each, or 

 60,000/. for the forty — equal to a capital sum of 2,000,000/. 

 These in-titutes should be distributed in groups of five — eight 

 groups in all— throughout the country. One such group would 

 be placed in London (which is, at present, almost totally 

 destitute of such arrangements), one in Bristol, one in Birmingham, 

 one in Nottingham, one in Leeds, one in Newcastle, one in 

 Ipswich, one in Cardiff, one in Plymouth — in fact, one in each 

 of the great towns of the kingdom where there is at present, or 

 where there might be with advantage, a ceatre of professional 

 education and higher study. The first and the most liberally 

 arranged of these biological institutes — embracing its five 

 branches, each with its special laboratory and staff — should be 

 in London. If we can have nothing else, surely we may 

 demand, with soaie hope that our request will eventually obtain 

 compliance, the formation in London of a College of Scientific 

 Research similar to that of Paris (che College de France). It is 

 one of the misfortunes and disgraces of London that — alone 

 amongst the capitals of Europe, with the exception of Constanti- 

 nople — it is destitute of any institution corresponding to the 

 universities and colleges of research which exist elsewhere. 



Either in connection with a properly organised teaching 

 university or as an independent institution, it seems to me a 

 primary need of the day that the Government should establish 

 in London laboratories for scientific research. Two hundred 

 and fifty yeais ago Sir Thomas Gresham founded an institution 

 for scientific research in the City of London. The property 

 which he left for this purpose is now estimated to be worth three 

 millions sterling. This property was deliberately appropriated 

 to other uses by the Corporation of the City of London and the 

 Mercers' Company about a hundred years since, with the consent 

 of both Houses of Parliament. By this .outngeous act of 

 spoliation these Corporations, who were the trustees of Gresham, 

 have incurred the curse which he quaintly inserted in his will in 

 the hope of restraining them from attempts to divert his property 

 from the uses to which he destined it. " Gresham's curse" 

 runs as follows : — "And that I do require and charge the said 

 Corporations and chief governors thereof, with circumspect 

 Diligence and without long Delay, to procure and see to be 

 done and obtained, as they will answer the same before Almighty 

 God ; (for if they or any cf them should neglect the obtaining 

 of such Licenses or Warrants, which I trust can not be difficult, 

 nor so chargeable, but that the overplus of my Rents and Profits 

 of the Premisses hereinbefore to them disposed, will soon 

 recompense the same ; because to soe good Purpose in the 

 Commonwealth, no Prince nor Council in any Age, will deny or 

 defeat the same. And if conveniently by my Will or other 

 Convenience, 1 might assure it, I would not leave it to be done 

 after my death, then the same shall revert to my heirs, whereas 

 I do mean the same to the Commonwealth, and then the 

 Default thereof shall be to the Reproach and Con- 

 demnation OF THE SAID CORPORATIONS AKORE GOD)." I 

 confess that I find it difficult to see how the present repre en- 

 tatives of the Corporati >ns win perverted Gresham's trust are to 

 escape from justly de ervii g the curse pronounced against those 

 Corporations, unless they conscientiously take steps to restore 

 Gresham's money to its proper uses. Let us hope that 

 Gresham's curse may be realised in no more deadly form than 

 that of an Act of Parliament repealing the former one which 

 sanctioned the perversion of Gresham's money. Such a sequel 

 to the Report of the Commission which has recently inquired 

 into the proceedings of the Corporation and Companies of the 

 City of London is not unlikely. 



Whilst we should, I think, especially press upon public atten- 

 tion the need for an institute of scientific research in London, and 

 indicate the source from which its funds may be fitly derived, we 

 must aLo urge the foundation of other institutes in the provinces 

 upon the scale already sketched, because it is only by the exist- 

 ence of numerous posts, and of a series of such posts — some of 

 greater and some of less value, the latter more numerous than the 

 former — that anything like a professional career for scientific 

 workers can be construcied. It is especially necessary to consti- 

 tute what I havetermed " assistantships," that is, junior posts in 

 which younger men assist and are trained by more experienced 

 men. Even in the few institutions which do already exist 



additional provision of this kind is what is wanted more than 

 anything else, so that there may be a progressive career open to 

 the young student, and a sufficient field of trained investigators 

 from which to select in filling up the vacancies in more valuable 

 positions. 



I am well aware that it will be said that the scheme which 1 

 have proposed to you is gigantic and almost alarming in respect 

 of the amount of money which it demands. One hundred and 

 sixty thousand pounds a year for biology alone must seem, not to 

 my hearers, but to those who regard biology as an amusing 

 speculation — that is to say, who know little or nothing about it 

 —an extravagant suggestion. Unfortunately it is also true that 

 such persons are very numerous — in fact, constitute an over- 

 whelming majority of the community ; but they are becoming 

 less numerous every day. The time will come, it seems possible, 

 when there will be more than one member of the Government 

 who will understand and appreciate the value of scientific 

 research. There are already a few members of the House of 

 Commons who are fully alive to its significance and importance. 



We may have to wait for the expenditure of such a sum as 

 I have named, and possibly it may be derived ultimately from 

 local rather than imperial sources, though I do not see why it 

 should be ; yet I think it is a good thing to realise now 

 that this is what we ought to expend in order to be on a level 

 with Germany. This apparently extravagant and unheard of 

 appropriation of public money is actually made every year in 

 Germany. 



I think it is well to put the matter before you in this defi- 

 nite manner, because I have reason to believe that even those 

 whom we might expect to be well informed in regard to such 

 matters, are not so, and as a consequence there is not that keen 

 sense of the inferiority and inadequacy of English arrangements 

 in these matters which one would gladly see actuating the con- 

 duct of English statesmen. For ins ance, only a few years ago, 

 when speaking at Nottingham, the present Prime Minister, who 

 has taken an active part in rearranging our universities, and has, 

 it is well known, much intere-t in science and learning, stated 

 that 27,000/., the capital sum expended on the Nottingham 

 College of Science, was a very important contribution to the 

 support of learning in this country, amounting, as he said he was 

 able to state, from the perusal of official documents, to as much 

 as one-'hird of what was spent in Germany during the past year 

 upon her numerous universities, which were so often held up to 

 England as an example of a well supported academical system. 

 Now, I do not think that Mr. Gladstone can have ever had the 

 opportunity of considering the actual facts with regard to Ger- 

 man universities, for he was in this instance misled by the official 

 return of expenditure on a single university, namely, that of 

 Strasburg ; the total annual expenditure on the twenty-one Ger- 

 man universities being, in reality, about 8co,ooo/. , by the side 

 of which a capital sum of 27,000/. looks very small indeed. I 

 cannot but believe that if the facts were known to public men, 

 in reference to the expenditure incurred by foreign States in 

 support of scientific inquiry, they would be willing to do some- 

 thing in this country of a sufficient and statesmanlike character. 

 As it is, the concessions which have been made in this direction 

 appear to me to be in some instances nut based uj on a really 

 comprehensive knowledge of the situation. Thus the tentative 

 grant of 4,000/. a year from the Treasury to the Royal Society 

 of London appears to me not to be a well-devised experi- 

 ment in the promotion of scientific research by means of grants 

 of money, because it is on too small a scale to produce any 

 definite effect, and because the money cannot be relied upon 

 from year to year as a permanent source of support to any 

 serious undertaking. 



The Royal Society must laboriously and conscientiously does 

 its best to use this money to the satisfaction of the country, 

 but the task thus assigned to it is one of almost insurmount- 

 able difficulty. In fact, no such miniature experiments art- 

 needed. The experiment has been made on a large scale in 

 Germany, and satisfactory re-ults have been obiained. The 

 reasonable course to pursue is to benefit by the experience, as 

 to details and methods of administration, obtained in the course 

 of the last sixty years in Germany, and to apply that experience 

 to our own case. 



It is quite clear that "the voluntary principle " can do little 

 towards the adequate endowment of scientific research. Ancient 

 endowments belonging to the country must be applied thereto, 

 or else local or imperial taxes must be the source of ihe neces- 

 sary support. Seeing that the results of research are distinctly 

 of imperial, and not of local value — it would seem appropria 



