lOO 



NATURE 



[_Nov. 29, 1883 



live gas burner, and regenerative gas and coke stove ; 

 the hypothesis of the conservation of solar energy ; all of 

 which have appeared from time to time in these columns- 

 The last time Sir William Siemens lectured in public in 

 this country was at the Institution of Civil Engineers on 

 March 13 last, on "The Electrical Transmission and 

 Storage of Power," the evening the attempt was made to 

 blow up the offices of the Local Go\ernment Board by 

 dynamite, when, although a portion of the glass was 

 shattered in the theatre of the Institution, the lecturer 

 resumed the thread of the discourse after a moment's 

 pause as though nothing had occurred. 



Sir William was a me.iiber of nearly all the scientific 

 societies of Great Britain ; he was the senior member of 

 council of the Institution of Civil Engineers ; he was 

 elected a member of the Royal Society in 1862, and had 

 twice served on the council of that body. He has been 

 President of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, 

 twice of the Society of Telegraph Engineers, of the Iron 

 and Steel Institute, and last year, at Southampton, of the 

 British Association ; whilst at the time of his death he 

 was Chairman of the Council of the Society of Arts. He 

 was made a D.C.L. of Oxford honoris causa in 1870, an 

 LL.D. of Glasgow in 18S0, of Dublin in 1882, in which 

 year the University of Wiirtzburg also bestowed on him 

 its honorary Ph.U. He was elected with Sir Henry 

 Bessemer, the first honorary members of the Gewerbe- 

 Verein of Berlin, besides being a corresponding or 

 ordinary member of several learned societies in Europe 

 and America. 



He received prize medals at the Exhibitions of 1851 and 

 1862, and a Grand Prix at the French Exhibition of 

 1867 for his regenerative gas furnace and steel processes. 

 In 1874 he was presented with the " Royal Albert Medal," 

 and in 1875 with the " Bessemer Medal "on account of 

 his scientific researches and his inventions relating to 

 heat and metallurgy, whilst only last week the Council of 

 the Institution of Civil Engineers awarded him the 

 Howard Quinquennial Prize for the advances he had 

 made in the manufacture of iron and steel. He has 

 received recognition of his services to pure and applied 

 science from the Emperor of Brazil, the Shah of Persia, 

 and from France both under the Empire and the 

 Republic, whilst in March last Her Majesty was 

 graciously pleased to confer upon him the honour of 

 knighthood. 



It was whilst returning from the monthly meeting of 

 the Managers of the Royal Institution on November 5 

 that he met with the accident that accelerated his death, 

 which took place on Monday, the 19th inst. 



In accordance with the desire of the whole community, 

 the public ceremonial performance of the last sad rites 

 took place in Westminster Abbey on Monday last before 

 the remains were conveyed to their resting-place in the 

 cemetery at Kensal Green. The Prince of Wales placed 

 his name at the head of the requisition submitted to the 

 Dean of Westminster, asking that a public funeral might 

 mark the recognition of Sir William Siemens's claims to 

 be held in remembrance as a public benefactor, while 

 few were more deeply affected at the graveside than 

 the men who came to show their respect to a kindly 

 master. 



At the Abbey, according to the Times report, the 



distinguished public personages and representatives of 

 scientific bodies assembled in the Jerusalem Chamber 

 or in the Abbey, members of societies not attending 

 in official capacities having places assigned them in the 

 sacrarium or transepts, the choir and seats under the 

 tower being reserved for presidents, vice-presidents, 

 members of council, and officers of the societies in- 

 vited to be present. The ancient tapestried chamber 

 which has of late years been the scene of several 

 such sad gatherings was filled — indeed, crowded — with 

 the many warm friends and admirers of the deceased. 

 His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales was represented 

 by one of his grooms-in-waiting, Mr. Andrew Cockerell. 

 The German .Ambassador, Count Miinster; the Chancellor 

 of the Exchequer, Mr. Childers ; the First Commissioner 

 of Works, Mr. Shaw-Lefevre ; Lord Bramwell, and Lord 

 Claud Hamilton were also present ; together with Mr. 

 F. R. Pickersgill, Keeper of the Royal Academy, re- 

 presenting the President, Sir F. Leighton ; Sir Douglas 

 Forsyth, Sir Theodore Martin, Sir J. M'Garel Hogg, 

 M.P., Sir Henry Tyler, M.P., Major-General Sir Andrew 

 Clarke, General Crofton, Major-General Pasley ; Mr. 

 Fung Yee, secretary to the Chinese Legation, and 

 others. 



Taking the scientific Societies and their representatives 

 in the order in which they were marshalled to join the 

 procession, there were as pall-bearcrs— Prof. Huxley, 

 President of the Royal Society ; Sir Frederick Bramwell, 

 predecessor of Sir William Siemens in the office of Chair- 

 man of Council of the So:iety of Arts; Mr. Brunlees, 

 President of the Institution of Civil Engineers ; Mr. 

 Percy Westmacott, President of the Institution of Me- 

 chanical Engineers ; Prof. Sir W. Thomson, for the 

 British Association ; Prof. Tyndall (Royal Institution) ; 

 Mr. Willoughby Smith, President of the Society of Tele- 

 graph Engineers and Electricians (a society of which Sir 

 William was the first president) ; and Sir James Ramsden 

 (in the unavoidable absence of Mr. B. Samuelson, 

 M.P.), representing the Iron and Steel Institute. The 

 Royal Society was further represented by the treasurer, 

 Dr. John Evans, and the secretaries. Prof. G. G. Stokes 

 and Prof. Michael Foster; and among other well known 

 members of this, the oldest of the learned and scientific 

 societies, were Sir Joseph Hooker, Sir Frederick John 

 Evans, K.C.B., Mr. Norman Lockyer, Mr. Warrington 

 Smyth, Dr. Hopkinson, Prof. W. G. Adams, Prof. Bartho- 

 lomew Price, Prof. Chandler Roberts, Prof. R. B. Clifton. 

 Prof. Carey Foster, and Mr. R. W. Mylne. The 

 Society of Arts was represented by the following Mem- 

 bers of Council:— Sir Frederick Abel, C.B., F.R.S., Mr. 

 A. Carpmael, Mr. Andrew Cassels, Lord Alfred S. 

 Churchill, Sir Philip Cunliffe-Owen, Mr. B. F. Cobb, Mr. 

 H. Doulton, Capt. Douglas Galton, C.B., F.R.S., Admiral 

 Sir Edward Inglefield, C.B., F.R.S., IMr. T. V. Lister, Mr. 

 Owen Roberts, Lord Sudeley, and by Mr. II. Trueman 

 Wood, secretary, Mr. H. B. Wheatley, assistant secretary, 

 Mr. Howard Room, and other officers. ( if the Institution 

 of Civil Engineers there were past presidents — Sir John 

 Hawkshaw, F.R.S., Sir Charles Hutton Gregory, K.C.M.G., 

 Mr. Havvksley, Mr. Bateman, Mr. Barlow, Mr. .Abernethy ; 

 vice-presidents — Mr. Edward Woods, Mr. G. B. Bruce ; 

 Mr. Charles Manby, honorary secretary ; Sir John 

 Coode, Mr. Berkley, Dr. Pole, Mr. Hayter, Sir Robert 



