6 
An Appreciation : 
he did not bring it to the convincing and triumphant conclusion I 
had hoped, and though the enormous amount of energy he devoted 
to the study of Bacteria led to many important discoveries, I doubt 
if the results were altogether adequate to the labour. 
His scientific position, was however, already assured. He had 
by general consent put a new face on the study of Mycology in 
this country. In 1890 he was selected, by the Council of the Royal 
Society, to deliver the Croonian Lecture, and in 1893 he received 
the Royal Medal. 
For some years Marshall Ward was engaged at the instance of 
the Royal Society in an investigation of the bacterial contents of 
Thames water. He carried it through with almost excessive 
conscientiousness. But I always regretted his undertaking the task. 
He was at his best in attacking a definite problem: he was 
somewhat deficient in the power of correlating masses of detail, 
and seeing them in their relative proportion. This, I think, shows 
itself in his Presidential Address to Section K of the British 
Association at Toronto, where long strings of authorities are quoted 
as if they were all of equal significance and value. He was so 
enthusiastic that he could not believe that everyone’s work was 
not as good as his own. 
His reports to the Royal Society on the Thames Water 
business were voluminous, and in the aggregate make a stout 
volume. But the detailed work which he also sent in for 
publication formed a stack of drawings and manuscript about a 
yard high. It was estimated that it would cost £400 to publish. 
It was my unfortunate duty to report upon it, and I was obliged 
reluctantly to arrive at the conclusion that the expenditure would 
not be justified. It contained, however, results of great beauty 
and importance, and these I persuaded Marshall Ward to publish 
separately from time to time. An incidental research on the 
bactericidal effect of light of high refrangibility has become 
classical. In 1895 he was appointed successor to Professor 
Babington at Cambridge, Mr. Francis Darwin with singular 
generosity waiving his own claims in Marshall Ward’s favour. In 
the same year he was elected to the Council of the Royal Society. 
Vines, Darwin, and Gardiner had laid the solid foundations 
of the most distinguished School of Botany in the country. 
Marshall Ward’s successful teaching raised it to even greater 
importance, and the University was at last induced to provide it 
with adequate accomodation. It was Marshall Ward’s good 
