520 
NATURE 
[JuLty 8, 1915 

British Association in 1903, on the necessity for the 
culture of science in all the affairs of life, Sir William 
Mather remarked :—‘‘I venture to believe that we 
could claim for Sir Norman Lockyer the character of 
a prophet, for foreseeing, as he appears to have done, 
the movements of the world which have come to pass 
since, and more especially the great need, in regard 
to English culture and education generally, for more 
thorough scientific training. Had what he then pro- 
posed been carried out the effects at the present time 
would have been very greatly to our advantage as a 
nation.” 
The ninth annual report of the guild was adopted 
on the motion of Sir Boverton Redwood, seconded by 
Col. Sir John Young. The report was summarised by 
Sir Boverton Redwood as follows :—The activities of 
the guild have been well sustained during the past 
year, notwithstanding the war; and, in fact, in 
certain directions the guild has rendered services to 
the country in dealing with difficulties which the war 
has created. As in former years, the report reviews 
the action of the Government in the appointment of 
Royal Commissions, Departmental and other Com- 
mittees that deal with matters in which the guild is 
interested. It is satisfactory to note that some pro- 
gress has thus been made in enlisting the services of 
men of science and technologists, and it is still more 
gratifying to Sir Norman Lockyer and other members 
of the guild who have long advocated such an action, 
that the President of the Board of Education is pro- 
ceeding with the scheme outlined by his predecessor 
for the co-ordination of higher education, and especially 
of higher technical education, with the object of 
developing industries in this country. Under the guid- 
ance of Sir Ronald Ross the medical committee, in 
common with other committees of the guild, has been 
chiefly occupied with matters arising out of the war. 
The action taken by the committee in strongly con- 
demning the unpatriotic attempt to throw discredit on 
the practice of inoculation against typhoid may be 
specially mentioned. The attention of the Executive 
Committee having been directed to questions, in con- 
nection with science and the State and the encourage- 
ment of discovery, raised in Sir Ronald Ross’s address 
to the members of the guild at the annual general 
meeting of the guild at the Mansion House in May, 
1914, it was decided to appoint a special committee to 
consider and report on the matter, and especially to 
consider the desirability of increasing the financial 
support given by the Government for the higher forms 
of intellectual effort, and adequate remuneration of 
scientific workers and learned societies for services 
rendered in connection with Royal Commissions and 
Departmental and other Committees. This inquiry 
has not yet been completed, but considerable progress 
has been made. 
In September last, the attention of the Board of 
Trade was directed to the effect of the war in putting 
a stop to the import from Germany of glass and glass 
apparatus, and to the possibility of taking advantage 
of the opportunity thus afforded of extending the 
manufacture of glass in this country. In this connec- 
tion, Lord Moulton, as chairman of the Technical Sub- 
Committee of the committee appointed by the Board 
of Trade, referred this matter to the guild for con- 
sideration, and the guild deferred it in turn to the 
Technical Optics Committee. A report was presented 
stating that proper provision should be made at the 
National Physical Laboratory for the examination of 
samples of glass as to their physical and optical pro- 
perties, and that the director of the laboratory should 
be approached on the subject. It was also proposed 
that facilities should be provided for carrying out at 
the National Physical Laboratory or elsewhere of the 
NO. 2384, VOL. 95] 


research connected with the manufacture of the optical 
| glass referred to in the report; that steps should be 
| taken as speedily as possible to give effect to the 
previous recommendations of the Technical Optics 
Committee in the direction of providing facilities for 
| the systematic scientific and manual training in tech- 
nical optics; and since this training requires time, the 
committee is strongly of opinion that the question 
is urgent and that organisation shvuld be taken in 
hand at once. 
Since this report was put in print the Executive 
Committee has learned with satisfaction that steps 
have been taken by the Government to give effect to 
the first two of the recommendations. In regard to 
the supply of chemical glass apparatus which, prior to 
the war, had been largely obtained from Germany and 
Austria, the guild, through the joint action 
of its Education Committee and Technical Education 
Committee, has been able to secure from a large 
number of the principal educational institutions assur- 
ances of support to British makers; and has done 
much valuable work in obtaining information as to 
the types and sizes of glass apparatus in greatest 
demand for the guidance of those who are engaged 
in meeting the present deficiencies in supplies. 
Sir Philip Magnus, in moving the election of the 
Executive Committee and of the Right Hon. the Lord 
Mayor as a vice-president, said that at no period in 
our history was it more important than it is now 
that our country should avail itself of the services of 
its scientific men. It is absolutely essential that we 
should avail ourselves of the help which can be given 
by scientific men in this war, and a very important 
duty falls on the Executive Committee of this guild 
to organise or assist in organising these efforts. At 
the present time we are considering in the House of 
Commons a Bill described as the Munitions of War 
Bill. The object of that Bill is to make provision for 
furthering the efficient manufacture, transport, and 
supply of munitions for the present war and other 
purposes incidental thereto. When one looks at the 
contents of that Bill, the consideration and discussion 
of which took place a few nights ago on the first and 
second reading, there is no reference whatever to the 
assistance which science might be enabled to give to 
the very objects with which the Bill has been pro- 
moted. The whole of the Bill and the discussion in 
which it was introduced referred simply to the relation 
of employers to employed, and the condition under 
which the working classes may be willing to give 
their assistance. 
I have been using my endeavours so far as possible 
to discover what steps our Government are at present 
taking to carry out the object to which Sir William 
Ramsay will refer in his address. It seems to me 
very desirable that all our departments of State should 
act in co-operation with each other so as to prevent 
any overlapping of effort in the endeavours to applv 
science to the varied requirements of the war, so I 
asked the Minister of Munitions if he could make a 
statement as to the steps that have been taken, and 
are about to be taken, for co-ordinating, for war pur- 
poses, the services of men of science, and for utilising 
the laboratories and workshops of our universities and 
technical schools for experiments, and for the making 
of munitions of war or parts thereof; and whether it 
is intended to establish, as has been suggested, a 
central committee or bureau for dealing with inven- 
tions and practical scientific questions incidental to the 
operation of the war. The answer I received was 
fairly satisfactory so far as it goes. It was as fol- 
lows :—“T am fully alive to the great importance of 
securing the co-operation of scientific workers through- 

