Annual Report of tJie Council. liii 



absolutely unknown, or, like the metals mentioned already, only 

 obtainable as impure and fragmentary specimens. 



There is perhaps no need to consider, at the present time, 

 in how far industry is directly indebted to Moissan's work. He 

 himself had invariably expressed his desire not to be considered 

 in such discussions, and, so far as the merit of his work is 

 concerned, it needs no support of this nature. Indirectly both 

 science and industry have benefited enormously. On the 

 Continent his scientific investigations are directly credited with a 

 renaissance in the study of inorganic chemistry, which, particularly 

 in Germany, had been almost entirely neglected for the more 

 productive field of organic chemical research. Even in England, 

 which has always held a high position in the pursuit of inorganic 

 chemistry, his work has been of great assistance in instilling 

 enthusiasm and encouraging the deeper study of the subject. 



As a teacher, Moissan will be affectionately remembered by 

 all his pupils ; even during the tenure of his professorship of 

 toxicology he maintained a research laboratory for chemistry, 

 and attracted to it a number of students, and from the time of his 

 appointment, in 1900, to the chair of inorganic chemistry at the 

 Sorbonne larger numbers were able to avail themselves of his 

 teaching. 



Henri Moissan was elected an honorary member of this 

 Society on April 26th, 1892, and on more than one occasion he had 

 expressed his appreciation of this early recognition of his work. 

 By his death at the early age of 55, Science has lost one of her 

 most indefatigable workers. 



The publication of a translation, with additions, of his 



experimental researches with the electric furnace* and articles in 



"Nature" vol. 37, p. 179, vol. 44, p. 622, vol, 65, p. 252, 



render much of his work readily available to the English reading 



public. 



R.S.H. 



""The Electric Furnace" by H. Moissan, Transl. by A. T. de 

 Mouilpied, London 1904, Edward Arnold. 



