The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1904-09-09

u
mercial success these students who had
helped to elaborate the process would be
naturally the. first to obtain employment in
time. manufacturers would naturally be
anxious TO obtain the services Of men trained
In 30 good school.
The greater part Of the address had to do
with the training Of the chemist.
Of the society for their hospitable reoep-
ton and expressing admiration of the in
dustrial progress made by the American
people, Sir William spoke In part as fol-
lows:
The education of a chemist land the word
chemist" OF course, includes the qualihca.
ton technical chemist") must be conceived
IN the sense that 1t consists In an effort to pro-
duee an attitude of mind rather than to in
inventive faculty which must be cultivated.
Here am met by the criticism The in
planted u'D Poea u mase ef non eI%n'' deny
Il. There are some ne persons IS" whose dislike
for the investigation Of nature is ingruined.
don the study Of chemistry for that of litera-
ture on learning his disgust for the former
an, ana Partially Tor the LATTER ne became
are few.
My contention is that most of the lads
who enter a chemical laboratory are able TO
receive some, Inspiration. or to have latent
inspiration developed. which will ft them
to become inventive chemists. nj,
answer is perfectly simple: by Offering them
examples, Every teacher In the laboratory
from senior to aaS
important OF ALL they must not be reticent.
but willing to converse freely on their prob
lens. - .u.,o.,,o
this spirit Of research; First. as regards
the regard II
chemistry are vailed OF from those who are
what the other is doing The best instruc-
ton. that student can get he acquires IN
having to explain his operations To- his neigh
sort ones students so that shy boy Is
placed next kindly senior. and cocky
ytonnsster who thinks that he knows ;,, ey Std
soon dispel the inflated ideas Of his own
from his science school Indeed. the lesson
does he. know?" but What has he done'" m.
Above all. not too much teaching. Inc
worn method Of trial and failure. 1t is sim
hsrFSs u IN s91n ins
everything is provided, and where the stu;
dents add one solution to another by word OF
do they learn? To obey' That should have
taught in the nufsery Manpua MSa
! is required. not In using what Is given;
| had rather see youth commit the Eneid TO
soul destroying routine operations. The first
may result in a stronger memory: the second
is fatal to all originality.
point OF view Of the junior stah--the assistants
or whatever they may be called "Pr, rst
never be forgotten that these young men
have their way to make In the world that
1t is unjust to treat them as teaching machine
| to make their mark Is to afford them all pos
| sble encouragement, to further the aims OF
for deng SO bbey
and without publication Of their work they
| will remain unknown. and without reasopaa.
to publish. Hence the duties of the members
Of the staff Of the Laboratory should be 80
arranged that at least half their time is avail
But it may be urged that the number Of aa-
sistants must necessarily be much greater than
therefore follow that many men will grow
hope, deferred. Here the manpfasture5ss
an eRperien n as have sketched Is invaluable,
| II he is not too old. as works chemist; 1t
perence, but that matters little in siI months
AND IT,, h t s .Rstcn With h x sfs
be able e to get the most out Of men-perhaps
the most valuable quality which a works
professors. The frst point would urge Is
that while II is possible to lecture to az many p3
| IL Is not possible to supervise the practical
work of more than say forty or ffty s stH
what every man is doing. The reason why
the, old laboratories Of Liebigl OF Woehier
and Of Bpnseh are reRaTded WIN hs s snoh Ss9 ~
| these great men Is that the. total number Of
| students was small: they formed family
| was known, and where the father lived among
| his children and was able to distribute cor
| rection. reproof and instruction in righteous
| ness.
II the reputation Of the professor is such
that students crowd TO his laboratory, my
but appoint a new professor, with a separate
chair and new laboratory; b but 40 not make
has not given difficulty in America. under
stand, but. which has greatly retarded the
land. / refer to. examinations. 1t may
| well he introduced here. for. it may be asked.
Should only graduate be Ieoognlze,d as
To this would reply: Let the choice be free.
! The older get the less believe In university
awarded in England; the degree follows on
one or at most two anU as o,en sy
and whose idea OF examination often is to
set questions to trip the candidate; and not 81
raises o a the o Question which have mentio ned
earlier in this address: The examination is so
| contrived as to elicit what man knows
| rather than what he can do.
| The pernicious system OF competitive
scholarships and fellowships instead OF
| eleemosynary support given TO the neces-
| sitous and deserving youth, has also con-
tributed much to the debasement OF the
| scientific spirit: for it has early implanted
| in the young mind the idea that to outrun his
| Fellows and to work solely for money re-:
ward are the ends to be aimed at, instead
| of the 10y OF the exercise of divine gift
and the using that gift for the benefit of
man 1t is true that to earn money Is a
| Il ia not the chief aim, and money should
! for success In scholastic competitions
In conclusion, let me make one more re.
| mark. 1t is that the scientific curiosity Of
to-day often becomes the trade necessity OF
Tomorrow The purely scientihc inyes-
tigator who IL free to follow indications OF no
Apparent commercial import has not infre-
ouently made discoveries OF radical ma
tmre which have entirely changed some par
ticuiar industry. l do not recommend the
one to the exclusion of the other both are
hest and both are best attained by an IN
innate assoc citation between the universities
and the chemical works. The investigator
often learns much by the study of industrial
nrocesses The chemical manufacturer who
s keenly alive to his own interests Will not
faii TO keep himself In touch with every
discovery. however little It appears TO be
connected with his own industry.
To quote from the Rules OF Political Con-