234 



NA TURE 



[July 6, 1905 



iron and steel, and certain branches of manufacturing 

 chemistry, would probably be better dealt with in institu- 

 tions which are, or may be, established in the provinces. 

 Even, however, if the scheme be restricted by the exclusion 

 of such subjects, its realisation would require at least the 

 whole of the site still available at South Kensington, and 

 great advantage would be obtained by grouping the first 

 extensions immediately round the nucleus provided by the 

 Royal College of Science and Central Technical College. 



We believe, however, that if the various London institu- 

 tions concerned were willing to cooperate fully in the 

 matter, and proper arrangements were made for coordin- 

 ation of the considerable resources already existing, the 

 necessary special departments might be established early. 



It is quite compatible with an effective realisation of 

 the scheme that separate departments might be conducted 

 in detached colleges. 



In view of the terms of reference, we have given special 

 consideration to the provision required for higher education 

 in mining and metallurgy, and we are satisfied that the 

 maintenance of a fully equipped Central School of Mines 

 is desirable. While facilities for advanced instruction in 

 coal mining and in the mining and metallurgy of iron are 

 now available in some of the larger centres of those 

 industries, it is important that there should be a central 

 school affording a full course of instruction in the mining 

 and metallurgy of metals produced in India and the 

 Colonies, but not found, or not found in large quantity, 

 within the United Kingdom. As London is the financial 

 centre of many great engineering, mining, and metal- 

 lurgical industries in the Colonies, it is in the opinion of 

 several witnesses the best site for a more highly developed 

 School of Mines which shall provide for the needs of the 

 Empire. It has been proved to us that the number of 

 Englishmen who rise to important posts in connection with 

 the mining industries of India, Australia, and South Africa 

 is less than is desirable. 



We have, for the present, deferred consideration of the 

 biological department of the Royal College of Science. 



(3) We consider that the advantages of the higher 

 technical courses, which we contemplate at South 

 Kensington, should only be available for students who can 

 pass a satisfactory test for admission thereto. The pre- 

 liminary science and such rudiments of engineering as 

 may be prescribed for candidates before entering on these 

 higher courses might be obtained either in the laboratories 

 of the Royal College of Science and Central Technical 

 College, or elsewhere in London or the provinces. 

 Admission to these higher courses should be restricted to 

 duly qualified students who, it is hoped, would be attracted 

 from all parts of the Empire. 



(4) We think it is important that the interests both of 

 pure and applied science should be adequately represented 

 on the body which administers the new institution. It is 

 of the first importance that there should be no divorce 

 between teaching and research in technology on the one 

 hand and in pure science on the other, and we therefore 

 regard it as an advantage that ample provision has already 

 been made by the Government for the teaching of certain 

 sciences on a site which we hope may be connected even 

 more closely than at present with the highest and most 

 specialised branches of technology. With regard to both 

 subjects, we believe that it may be necessary hereafter 

 to limit the instruction to the higher branches of both 

 pure and applied science. 



(5) We do not contemplate that either the educational 

 or financial administration of the Central College should 

 be vested entirely in His Majesty's Government. Indeed, 

 in the present case there is a special consideration which 

 makes such an arrangement practically impossible. Our 

 scheme, if carried into effect, will entail the hearty union 

 and cooperation of several independent bodies in a common 

 enterprise, and it would be an advantage to be able to 

 accord to each cooperating institution an adequate share 

 in the general control. 



These considerations point to the creation of a council 

 representing all the large interests concerned, including, 

 of course. His Majesty's Government, who must always 

 remain by far the chief supporters of the institution. We 

 do not now enter into the details of an arrangement of 

 the constitution of the council, as such details will largely 

 NO. 1862, VOL. 72] 



depend on the success of negotiations which must await 

 the decision of His Majesty's Government on the outlines 

 of our proposals as now submitted. 



Should the above proposals be accepted, it will follow 

 that the State contribution to the institution will take 

 the form of an annual grant in aid, the governing body 

 retaining the power to carry over any balance remaining 

 unexpended at the end of a year. 



V. We feel that we should not be justified in inquiring 

 whether the Board of Education would be willing to give 

 their support to the foregoing scheme, depending as it 

 does on the fulfilment of all or most of the conditions 

 previously mentioned, unless we had taken steps to ascer- 

 tain what prospect there is of their being fulfilled. We 

 have good reason to believe that private munificence is 

 prepared to provide a capital sum in excess of the mini- 

 mum which we consider necessary to a successful issue, 

 and that the Commissioners of the 1S51 Exhibition are 

 prepared, with their accustomed liberality where the 

 advancement of higher education is concerned, to make 

 available for a scheme, such as we have sketched, the 

 additional site which will be required. We also confidently 

 look for the cooperation of the University of London. 

 Further, although public bodies or local authorities which 

 contribute largely to the funds of the proposed institution 

 may fairly ask for the reservation of some accommodation 

 there for scholarship holders sent to it by themselves, yet 

 it would appear that a considerably increased income 

 would be available for the support of such an institution 

 from the fees of fee-paying students. With this nucleus 

 of additional resources thus provisionally secured, we feel 

 justified in approaching the Board of Education. We 

 accordingly desire to ask whether the Board are in a 

 position to inform us (i) that, if it is found possible to 

 establish a scheme such as we have sketched in outline, 

 they will be willing to allow the Royal College of Science 

 (including the Royal School of Mines) to be brought into 

 it under a common government and administration ; and 

 (2) that the existing Government contribution to the sup 

 port of these institutions will be continued under the new 

 conditions on the scale already made necessary by the 

 provision of the new laboratories of the Royal College of 

 Science. 



With such an assurance, and with such new resources as 

 we have mentioned above, we feel that we could approach, 

 with good prospect of success, other bodies whose cooper- 

 ation we believe to be desirable, if not necessary, for 

 the complete success of our proposals. 



In conclusion, we desire to observe that absence of 

 detail where it might have been looked for in certain 

 portions of our proposals is not to be taken as meaning 

 that we have not considered in some detail the ends 

 which we wish to see attained. Our proposals at the 

 present stage indicate onlv in outline what we have in 

 view : how near an approach can be made to its attain- 

 ment must depend on the resources which prove to be 

 available, and cannot, therefore, from the nature of the 

 case, be estimated with precision at the present time. 

 Without, however, attempting now to exhaust the subject, 

 we have submitted proposals framed in such a way as 

 to suggest the establishment of an institution which will 

 be pre-eminent in its combination of advanced teaching 

 in certain branches of applied science, with instruction in 

 pure science also developed to a very high standard. 



We have the honour to be, My Lord Marquess, Your 

 Lordship's obedient servants, R. B. Haldane, chairman, 

 W. de W. Abney, E. H. Carbutt, W. S. Church, A. H. 

 Leech, Philip Magnus, Walter McDermott, Francis 

 Mowatt, F. G. Ogilvie, Reav, Arthur W. Riicker, Sidney 

 Webb, J. Wernher, W. H. White, J. C. G. Sykes, 

 secretary, F. E. Douglas, assistant secretary. 



Letter from the Board of Education to the Secretary of the 

 Departmental Committee on the Royal College of 

 Science, (^c. 

 Bo.\RD OF Education, Whitehall, S.W., April 3, 1905. 



Sir, 



I am directed by the Board of Education to state that 



careful consideration has been given to the very valuable 



Preliminary Report of your Committee, dated February 20, 



