A SERIOUS WANT.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 974, 15 November 1910, Page 5

A SERIOUS WANT.

- COLLEGE LIBBARIES INADE, QUATELT STOCKED. Mr. D. G. Lillie, who is in charge of the marine dredging department of the scientific expedition which is accompanying Captain Scott on his journey south-, ward to the ice, is at present in Welling-' ton looking m>, or, to be quite preoise, en» deavouring to find in our reference Ik brarios some data relating'to the submarine flora and fauna of New Zealand waters. He has not been successful so far, and his surprise at the poverty of the local libraries in that respect is tempered with a.- real oqneern for the condition 'and progress of scientifio research in New Zealand. Discussing the question with a representative of The Dominion, who interviewed him yesterday, Mr. WUie remarked that the paucity of reference literature in . the college libraries . wps a fundamental weakness. With a complete collection of hooka, systematically added 'to from time to time, research students in this country should.have, as it were, the whole of the available data concern--ing their "specinl subject, of investigation at their'command and so cut out much, unnecessary waste of energy in establishing that which has already been , discovered. As things now were, the research student, instead of commencing his ipvesti-. Rations upon a given subject from a de< finite point—a sound appreciation ot what, scientifically, has already been established —approaches his task with an imperfect conception of what is, really material to the scientific \vorlft. It is a coincidence that the very same arguments which were expressed to the interviewer on this point were subsennently expressed, with equal emphasis, by Professor Wellisch (the distinguished Australian whose brillinnt achievements in the study of the electron have placed him high in the scientific world and earned for him tho Chair or Physics at Yale University, U.S.A.), at the conclusion of his lecture on "Phyrics," at Vic, toria College last evening. . He, urged his audience to give serious attention to tho necessity-the first necessity,- ho express, ed it—of providing students with an. ..•ylenuate lift of rei'orenco works and eoicn. tific periodicals. The utmost energy and enthusiasm of their professors and etu, dents and most nmple laboratory equipment were wasted if the'college libraries were not fully stocked and' kept up to date in scientific literature.