45- 



NA TURE 



[September lo, 1908 



knowledge, and it may be presumed that these firms will 

 avail themselves to a large extent of British labour. If 

 this be the case, and if they are successful — as they, no 

 doubt, will be — the complaint that the inferior technical 

 education of our artisans is responsible for our lack of 

 success will thereby be proved to be groundless. Even if 

 we admit that at the present time the British workman is 

 an inferior operative in a chemical w-orks, and only capable 

 of undertaking the less-skilled labour, these firms will 

 gradually raise a considerable number of trained men who 

 will be ready to undertake more responsible duties under 

 our own manufacturers when the good time comes ; a 

 school for chemical operatives will be created in our midst, 

 and, as in the past, we shall reap the benefit of know- 

 ledge and experience brought to our shores. It also seems 

 reasonable to expect that, as is the case abroad, these works 

 will be equipped with laboratories and staffed by chemists, 

 although possibly only so far as is necessary for routine 

 work. Many of these chemists may settle permanently in 

 our midst, become members of our Chemical Society and 

 Society of Chemical Industry, and thus infuse us with 

 their patience and perseverance. It is not beyond the 

 bounds of possibility that these great firms may even 

 employ British chemists in their works, if we can supply 

 men sufficiently well trained to be of value. On the other 

 hand, as experience seems to have shown that industrial 

 chemistry cannot succeed with imported scientific labour, 

 it is not very probable that many posts in the laboratory 

 will be filled by our countrymen, who, in this connection, 

 must be regarded as foreigners. 



Xow at the present time most chemical products can 

 be manufactured more cheaply abroad than here, other- 

 wise we should not have any reason to consider our posi- 

 tion. Dr. Duisberg told us that even w'hen an important 

 firm in England had a licence to work all the British 

 patents of two of the largest German colour works, merely 

 paying for the privilege a small percentage of the net 

 profits, it failed to take any advantage of the opportunity. 

 If, then, in this free-trade kingdom production is cheaper 

 than abroad, the foreign firms which have branches here 

 will be in a position superior to that which they now 

 occupy in their own countries. If, on the other hand, 

 owing to inefficient labour, higher wages, freights, and 

 other economic conditions, production is more costly, the 

 superior efficiency and scientific organisation of these foreign 

 firms will nevertheless enable them to command our home 

 market with the goods made here, and to cut us out in 

 the world market, as they do now, with those made 

 abroad. 



The conclusion which thus seems forced upon us is, that, 

 although the new Patent Act will prove to be of great 

 value in many respects, it will do little to foster British 

 chemical trade and the development of British chemistrv ; 

 it places us on an equality with other countries as regards 

 patent rights, and thus remedies an outstanding grievance : 

 but, unless we have something to patent, this equality will 

 be valueless and our chemical industries will continue to 

 decline, possibly inore rapidly than heretofore. 



Let us therefore pass in review the other causes which 

 have been suggested as contributory to our failure ; after 

 eliminating those connected with freights and tariffs, and 

 with the alleged supineness of the Government in assist- 

 ing industry, matters which may be left to the manu- 

 facturers to deal with, there still remain several which 

 are well within the purview of this Section. 



These are : (i) the unsatisfactory condition of secondary 

 education ; (2) the nature of the training which is given 

 to chemists in our universities and other institutions ; 

 (3) the insufficiency of the time and money devoted to 

 research in the manufacturing industries ; (4) the lack of 

 cooperation between manufacturers and men of science. 



There are some who believe that the first of these is 

 the primary, if not the sole, cause of our weakness ; that 

 if our secondary education were placed on a sound basis 

 nil the other evils would disappear of their own accord ; 

 that a steady and broad stream of well-trained boys from 

 the secondary schools would afford ample material from 

 which good chemists could be fashioned in the universities 

 and colleges ; that these trained chemists would be greedily 

 s''i;?ed by the manufacturers, whose minds had been 

 widened by improved educational methods ; and once 



NO. 202S, VOL. 78] 



installed in the works these chemists would have n^ 

 difficulty in persuading their employers to spend time and 

 money on research work in cooperation with the leaders 

 of science. 



Whether such desirable and far-reaching results would 

 in fact follow if our system of secondary education were 

 very much improved it is impossible to predicate ; but there 

 is no doubt that at the present time we are moving in an 

 exactly opposite direction. 



The shadow of the cypress rests upon our chemical trade, 

 and manufacturers do not see their way to employ 

 chemists ; students are not attracted to chemistry as u 

 profession because there are so few openings ; without a-.i 

 ample and increasing supply of such students chemical 

 industrv must continue to decline, and as a necessary con- 

 sequence the development of pure chemistry is cramped 

 and hindei'ed to a f:ir greater e.\tent than is generally 

 realised. 



In a Presidential .Address to the Chemical Society last 

 year Prof. Meldola discussed the position and prospects of 

 chemical research in Great Britain, and in view of the 

 importance of the subject and the able manner in which 

 it had been treated the Council of the Society ordered the ' 

 publication of five thousand copies of his Address for dis- 

 tribution among the members of various public bodies. 

 We were told in this .Address that many of our universities 

 are distinct failures as -centres of chemical research, and 

 that the output of original work from our colleges, poly- 

 technics, and similar institutions is emphatically not re- 

 presentative of the productive power of the teachers there 

 employed. The causes of the failure of our universities 

 were unlv lighti\- touched upon, and I propose to refer to 

 them later ; but in the case of our other institutions they 

 were more fully discussed. May I venture to direct atten- 

 tion to one cause, which I believe is by far the most 

 effective drag on research in the vast majority of such 

 institutions not of university rank? It is simply the lack 

 of those more advanced students who, while gaining 

 \'aluable experience in the methods of research, woidd also 

 render useful assistance to their teacher. The governing 

 body of the institution may not realise the importance of 

 research ; the Principal, as, alas ! is sometimes the case, 

 mav throw cold water on such work ; the teacher may be 

 overburdened with routine duties, and he may be most 

 inadequately remimcrated ; if, however, the research spirit 

 is strong within him, he would overcome all these difficul- 

 ties were there any prospect whatsoever of success ; but 

 what chance has he when he must do everything himself, 

 even to washing out his own test-tubes? Provide him with 

 a few advanced students, and he would doubtless find time 

 to undertake the necessary pioneer research work, which 

 would then be extended and developed with their assist- 

 ance. 



It might be suggested that an efficient and enthusiastic 

 man would soon attract a number of research students. 

 This, no doubt, is true as regards the universities, but it 

 must be remembered that a polytechnic or other institu- 

 tion which does not grant degrees can hardly expect to 

 compete with a university as a centre for research ; all 

 those students who intend to undergo a so-called " com- 

 plete " course of study — that is to say, all who are likely 

 to become capable of undertaking research work — naturally 

 proceed to one of the degree-giving universities. There 

 are not enough students to go round, to satisfy the research 

 requirements of the teachers, and the principal reason is — 

 the limited demand for trained chemists on the part of the 

 manufacturers. 



Even of the small number of those who leave our teach- 

 ing institutions fairly well trained in research, how many 

 have a chance of passing into works and directlv advancing 

 applied science? .A very small proportion indeed. Most of 

 the better ones drift into otlier posts, become demonstrators, 

 emigrate — anything rather than wait on with the prospect 

 of accepting as works-chemist a salary which, meagre 

 though if be, may be stopped altogether if dividends arc 

 low. 



With whom rests the responsibility for this state C. 

 affairs? Is it with the teachers, and, if so, is it.becau.^'- 

 they are incapable of training chemists or because the'r 

 system is at fault? 



To answer this question it is necessary in the first place 



