620 TRANSACTIONS OF SECTION L. 
inclined to think that the ‘mere man of letters’ will continue to ignore and 
despise Science—he will lack the peculiar mental capacity to assimilate scientific 
teaching. Only the few will rise to a proper understanding of the mysteries 
and be masters of their subjects, though many may be trained to be skilful 
mechanics. 
The extent to which the multitude can receive instruction is a matter of 
primary importance. If, as Huxley has said, the greatest intellectual revolu- 
tion mankind has yet seen is now slowly taking place by the agency of Science— 
if she be teaching the world that the ultimate court of appeal is observation 
and experiment, not authority; teaching it the value of evidence : then must 
we strive to teach all, in some measure, what constitutes evidence, what observa- 
tion and experiment are. 
I believe much can be done in this direction, having made the attempt 
with hundreds of unwilling students in my time, students of Engineering who 
had not only made up their minds that they were not going to learn 
Chemistry as it was not their subject but were incapable of ever entering 
into the spirit of the work—one of my sons was amongst them. At an early 
period, having realised that it was useless to waste my time and theirs in 
the struggle and that it would not help them, in the long run, to give 
them Chemical tips which they lacked the sense to appreciate and to apply, 
I made up my mind that it was desirable instead, if possible, to develop any 
detective or inventive spirit that might be in them, so advised them to 
read detective stories instead of a text-book and ask themselves what the stories 
taught them : how the detectives set to work. Their attention was secured by 
urging them also to think what would be their position, later in life, when they 
were called upon to act for themselves and to get new knowledge for themselves, 
if they had not learnt to think for themselves. We have then set them to work 
to solve a series of problems in the laboratory. The course, in fact, was a 
combined laboratory-lecture course, the lectures being on and always subsequent 
to the laboratory work. In not a few cases, in after years, when I have met 
old students, they have told me spontaneously that, much as they had objected 
to the pressure put upon them, our insistence on their learning to do something 
themselves had proved to be of extreme value. Long experience has con- 
vinced me that anyone who has once learnt to make simple measurements and 
observations and to ask and answer a definite question experimentally is on a 
different mental and moral plane from that occupied by those who have had no 
such training. 
Such teaching is possible even in elementary schools—given competent 
teachers; but a new race of teachers will be required to carry the work into 
effect, should it be decided to make the attempt at all generally. 
The great mistake that has been made hitherto is that of attempting to teach 
the elements of this or that special branch of Science: what we should seek 
to do is to impart the elements of scientific method and inculcate wisdom, so 
choosing the material studied as to develop an intelligent appreciation of what 
is going on in the world. It must be made clear, in every possible way, that 
Science is not a mere body of doctrine but a method: that its one aim is the 
pursuit of truth. 
If we are to progress in these matters, a system must soon be developed which 
is broader and better than that under which we now muddle along—at present 
the real problems of education are all but neglected; even if the official mind 
were capable and desirous of promoting progress, the work of administering 
rules and regulations—of keeping the machine going—is so great that no time 
is left for thought. 
To accomplish our purpose we need to introduce higher ideals into our 
University life—the ideals that have long governed the German Universities. 
In place of the worship of mere knowledge, we must put those of understanding 
and application and seek to teach all, as far as possible, to appreciate the art 
of discovery—to value and promote inquiry and discussion: to exercise a 
reasonable logic, in fact. 
We have seen the error of our ways sufficiently to give up payment by results 
and are all but ashamed that we were ever misled by Robert Lowe to adopt such 
a soul-killing policy. But none the less our entire educational system is still in 
