Sir William Ramsay, who delivered the Presidential Address at the
British Asso ciation on " The Sources of Energy," began by a vigorous impeachment of our system of scientific training. The training given was fitted for workmen and foremen rather than captains of industry. We bribed scientific students by scholarships —a form of pauperism practically unknown in every country but our own—to enter universities, where the staffs were mostly overworked and underpaid, and to crown the edifice we tested results by examinations of a kind not adapted to gauge originality and character, instead of trusting the teachers to form an honest estimate and award honours accordingly. He suggested as a remedy that an undertaking should be exacted from all gainers of University Scholarships and Fellowships to repay the sums received if and when circumstances permit. In this way more than £6,000,000, of which the interest is now expended in scholarships, would be available for University purposes.
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