Reconstruction of Elementary Botanical Teaching. 149 
“Of course we know that the best people are not in the best 
posts.” Why is this ? Is it not because there is no honest effort 
to secure for the students lecturers of real inspirational power, 
but rather to appoint those with little or no qualification, but who 
are “ nice people ” and “ easy to get on with ? ” 
Finally, while in general agreement with your article, and 
thanking you for the service you have rendered the Science by its 
publication, and the opportunity thus afforded for discussion, I 
would protest against the idea that the main function of a 
University is to provide teaching “with an outlet on practical life.” 
There will always be a large majority who will look after the 
practical application of knowledge, but let us hope that some may 
always be found to believe with Miss Sargant that “ the great 
inheritance of the Universities is the tradition of learning for 
learning’s sake.” 
Yours truly, 
T. L. PRANKERD 
{Lecturer in Botany, University College, Reading). 
April 16th, 1918. 
“NARROW SPECIALISATION DURING THE 
UNDERGRADUATE YEARS.” 
To the Editor of The New Phytologist. 
Dear Sir, 
May I put forward a few points in connection with the 
question of the reconstruction of elementary botanical teaching ? 
Other students with whom I am acquainted agree with me in 
feeling that there is too much morphology included in the present 
system. Many students at the beginning of their college life do not 
clearly know what their future career is to be. An elementary course 
should present to them all branches of their subject so that they 
may see what possibilities it possesses for future work either of 
the nature of research or of a more immediately practical kind. If 
only one side of their subject is presented to them and they find 
this dull and unpromising, they may never realise that there are 
other interesting sides and so may drop the subject as of no use to 
them. 
Students certainly are bored by an excess of morphological 
detail. I have found that those, especially, who are working for a 
