NATURE 



[August 14, 1913 



Iiantly by Metchnikoff, and received a new- 

 impetus from the wonderful discovery of antitoxin bv 

 von Behring, through which a wide new field., that 

 of the science of immunity and the investigation of 

 serums, was opened up, on which Pfeiffer, Bordet, 

 Widal, Wassermann, and many others, including my- 

 self, have worked with successful result. Some of 

 the most valuable fruits of these labours from a prac- 

 tical point of view have been the diagnosis of diseases 

 first in the form of the Widal-Griiber reaction, and 

 later the Wassermann syphilis-reaction, the importance 

 of which for diagnosis and therapeutics cannot be 

 estimated. 



All these discoveries, especially in regard to the 

 ways of spreading diseases on the part of the infecting 

 agencies, have, in accordance with the principle that 

 '" Prevention is better than cure," been made good 

 use of in the fight against epidemics and for prophy- 

 lactic measures, and have brought about an improve- 

 ment surpassing expectation. In the second place the 

 struggle with diseases which have already broken out 

 has been able to derive advantages from these dis- 

 coveries, the most wonderful example being the diph- 

 theria serum. 



Now that the liability to, and danger of, disease are 

 to a great extent circumscribed, so far as epidemics 

 and many other diseases are concerned, the efforts of 

 chemio-therapeutics are directed so far as possible to 

 fill up the gaps left in this ring, more especially to 

 bring healing to diseases in which the natural powers 

 of the organism are insufficient. And I believe that 

 now when definite and sure foundations have been laid 

 for the scientific principles and the method of chemio- 

 therapeutics, the way is visible before us ; not always 

 an easy but yet a practicable way. In the diseases 

 involving protozoa and spirilla extraordinarily favour- 

 able results, as I have shown, have already been 

 gained, which can also satisfy far-reaching' tests. 

 There are many valuable indications that in a series of 

 other diseases — smallpox, scarlatina, typhus exanthe- 

 maticus, perhaps also yellow fever, and, above all, 

 infectious diseases caused by invisible germs — the 

 prospects of success are brightening. But" in contra- 

 distinction to these super-parasites the ordinary or 

 common bacterial diseases (diseases due to the strepto- 

 coccus and the staphylococcus, coli. typhoid, and 

 dysentery, but, above all, tuberculosis) "will still re- 

 quire a hard struggle. Nevertheless, I look forward 

 with full confidence to this development also, and 

 might, without being set down as an optimist, put for- 

 ward the view that in the next five years we shall 

 have advances of the highest importance to record in 

 this field of research. There are indeed problems 

 which often prove too great for the powers of indi- 

 viduals, and can only be solved bv a many-sided effort. 

 Considering the enormous number of chemical com- 

 binations which are taken into consideration in a 

 struggle with diseases, it will always be a caprice of 

 chance or fortune or of intuition that decides which 

 investigator gets into his hands the substances which 

 turn out to be the very best materials for fighting the 

 diseases, or the basal substances for the discovery of 

 such. But the chances in favour of finding a real 

 cure, and so of winning the big prize, will naturally 

 rise with the number of those who occupy themselves 

 with the definite problem. It is just at this point, 

 above all, that necessity arises to gather and unite all 

 [lowers, and here special force attaches to that motto, 

 Viribus unitis, which gives guidance in so manv 

 other fields ; which in so exemplary and fine a way 

 is the foundation of this great International Congress, 

 to which thousands have been drawn from all lands, to 

 give their testimony that in the world of science all 

 national barriers have disappeared. 

 NO. 2285, VOL. 91] 



UNIVERSITY AND EDUCATIONAL 

 INTELLIGENCE. 



Leeds. — The council of the University has accepted 

 with deep regret the resignation of Mr. Roberts Beau- 

 mont, professor of textile industries. To mark its 

 sense of the value to the University of his work, 

 extending over a period of thirty-four years, the coun- 

 cil has placed on record its high appreciation of the 

 services which, during his long tenure of the pro- 

 fessorship, Prof. Beaumont has rendered to the cloth- 

 workers' departments of the University, and to tech- 

 nical instruction in the textile industries. 



London. — Dr. YV. C. McC. Lewis, having been 

 appointed to the chair of physical chemistry in the 

 University of Liverpool, has resigned his office in 

 connection with the department of chemistry at Uni- 

 versity College. Dr. R. E. Slade has been elected to 

 succeed him as assistant. Dr. Slade was educated in 

 the University of Manchester. In 1909, he was .in- 

 pointed assistant-lecturer in physical and electro- 

 chemistry at the L'niversity of Liverpool, and was 

 subsequently appointed lecturer-in-charge of the de- 

 partment of physical chemistry. 



Dr. A. J. Clark, assistant in the department of 

 pharmacology at University College, has been ap- 

 pointed lecturer in pharmacology at Guy's Hospital 

 Medical School. His successor at University College 

 will be appointed at the beginning of next session. 



The short Education Bill recently introduced into the 

 House of Commons by the President of the Board of 

 Education, which dealt with grants in aid of building, 

 has been dropped for this session, owing to the great 

 pressure of Parliamentary business. 



By the will of the Rev. L. C. Chamberlain, we 

 learn from Science, 5000I. is bequeathed to the Smith- 

 sonian Institution for its mineralogical collections, and 

 2000L for its collection of molluscs. There was also 

 bequeathed 1000/. to the Academy of Natural Sciences 

 in Philadelphia for increasing and maintaining the 

 Isaac Lea collection of Eocene fossils. These be- 

 quests were made for the benefit of the scientific work 

 in which the late Mr. Isaac Lea was interested, Mrs. 

 Chamberlain, his daughter, having inherited the money 

 from him. Mr. Chamberlain also bequeathed 20,000?. 

 and his residual estate to the Thessalonica Agricul- 

 tural and Industrial Institute. Turkey. 



The programme for the session 1913-14 of the 

 department of technology of the City and Guilds of 

 London Institute has now been published by Mr. 

 John Murray. It contains the regulations for the 

 registration, conduct, and inspection of classes, for 

 the examination of candidates in technological sub- 

 jects, and for the award of teachers' certificates in 

 manual training and domestic subjects. The regula- 

 tions are in the main the same as those of last year, 

 but the rules respecting the award of full technological 

 certificates have been revised. The passing of exam- 

 inations in science, and in some cases in art, held by 

 approved schools will be accepted as a qualification 

 for the full certificate. Under certain conditions, can- 

 didates from approved schools may be exempted from 

 the examination in the first grade in some subjects in 

 which the examinations are held in more than two 

 grades. In a number of technological subjects the 

 syllabuses have been rearranged and redrafted. 



The Illuminating Engineering Society has issued a 

 preliminary report of the joint committee appointed 

 in 191 1 to consider the questions in connection with 

 the artificial lighting of schools. The report appears 

 in The Illuminating Engineer for July. The com- 





