The first general meeting of the Association was held in the Queen's
Hall at eight o'clock last evening, the hall being crowded to its utmost
capacity, many having to stand, while others were unable to obtain
admission. Sir William Thomson occupied the chair, and beside him on the
platform were His Excellency the Governor General and Lady Lansdowne and
suite, the Right Hon. Sir John Macdonald, and the president-elect, the
Right Hon. Lord Rayleigh.
His EXCELLENCY THE GOVERNOR-GENERAL was first introduced, and delivered
the following address of welcome:--
Lord Rayleigh, ladies and gentlemen,--I am given to understand that it
would be in accordance with the rules under which the business of the
British Association is carried on, that the proceedings of to-day should
commence with the vacation of the president's chair and by the
installation of the president-elect in the place which he will so
honourably fill. The occasion, however, which has brought us together is
so remarkable, and will be so memorable, not only in the annals of the
Association, but in the history of the Dominion, that I believe you will
pardon the slight irregularity of which, as a member of the Association,
I am guilty, in rising to address a few words to this distinguished
audience. The occasion, Lord Rayleigh, is the first upon which the
British Association has held a meeting beyond the narrow limits of the
United Kingdom. Such a departure from the usage which you have hitherto
observed, though an inauguration, is certainly not inconsistent with the
objects of the Association or with the designs of its founders; its
earliest records contain the statement that it was instituted for the
promotion of intercourse between those who cultivated science in
different parts, not merely of the British Islands, but of the British
Empire. I question whether any means of promoting this intercourse could
have been discovered more effectual than the holding of your annual
meeting in one of the great cities of this colony, and my object in now
addressing you is to express at the very outset the satisfaction with
which the people, not only of Montreal, but of the whole Dominion, hail
your arrival here and to welcome you in their name to these shores.
(Loud applause.) Perhaps you will allow me to state my own belief that
if you were to select for your place of meeting a spot within the
colonial empire of England, you could not have selected a colony which
better deserved the distinction, either in respect of the warmth of its
affection for the mother country, or in respect of the desire of its
inhabitants for the diffusion of knowledge and of culture. (Applause) In
a young country such pursuits must be carried on in the face of some
difficulty and of the competition of that material activity which must
to a great extent engross the time and absorb the attention of a rapidly
developing community such as this. We may, however, claim for Canada
that she has done her best, that she has above all spared no pains to
provide for the interest of science in the future, and that amongst
those who have done scientific work within the Dominion are men known
and respected far beyond the bounds of their own nation. In this
connection I cannot deny myself the pleasure of referring to the honours
which have been conferred upon Sir William Dawson within the last few
days. (Loud and long continued applause.) He is, unless I am
misinformed, more responsible than any one person for the visit of the
Association, and I feel sure that I shall command the acquiescence of
all those who have worked in the cause of Canadian culture when I say
that we regard the knighthood which Her Majesty has bestowed upon him as
an appropriate recognition of his distinguished services, and as an
opportune compliment to Canadian science. (Applause.) But the
significance of this meeting is far greater than it would be if its
results were to be measured merely by the addition which it will make to
the scientific wealth of the empire. When we find a society which for
fifty years has never met outside the British Islands transferring its
operations to the Dominion--when we see several hundred of our best
known Englishmen, who have acquired a public reputation, not only in the
scientific, but in the political and the literary world, arriving here
mingling with our citizens, and dispersing in all directions over this
continent; when we see in Montreal the bearers of such names as
Rayleigh, Playfair, Frankland, Burdon, Sanderson, Thomson, Roscoe,
Blanford, Moseley, Lefroy, Temple, Bramwell, Tylor, Galton, Harcourt and
Bonney, we feel that one more step has been taken towards the
establishment of that close intimacy between the mother country and her
offspring, which both here and at home all good citizens of the empire
are determined to promote. (Loud applause.) The desire for such closer
intimacy is one of the most remarkable and one of the best features in
the political life of the present day. Our periodical literature, our
proceedings in parliament, the public discussions which have recently
taken place and in which some of our most prominent Canadians have taken
a part, all indicate a remarkable awakening to the importance of the
noblest colonial empire which the world has ever seen, and a desire to
draw closer the ties of sympathy and allegiance which bind us
reciprocally. (Applause.) And, ladies and gentlemen, whatever difficulty
there may be in the way of a revision of the political relations of the
mother country and her colonies, it is satisfactory to reflect that
there are none in the way of such an alliance as that which you are
establishing to-day between the culture of the old world and that of the
new. (Applause.) In the domain of science there can be no conflict of
local and imperial interests--no constitution to revise--no embarrassing
considerations of foreign and domestic policy. We are all partners and
co-heirs of a great empire, and we may work side by side without
misgiving, and with a certainty that every addition to the common fund
of knowledge and mutual enlightenment is an unmixed advantage to the
whole empire. (Loud applause.) I believe, Lord Rayleigh, that your visit
will be fraught with far reaching advantages both to hosts and guests.
We shall gain in acquaintance with our visitors, and in the publicity
which their visit will give to the resources and attractions of this
country. We believe that it will be more justly appreciated in
proportion as it becomes more widely known and more thoroughly
understood. (Applause.) Sympathy, as a distinguished Canadian has lately
written, begets knowledge, and knowledge again adds to sympathy. You,
ladies and gentlemen, who have lately left the mother country, will gain
in the opportunity which will be afforded you of studying the life of a
people younger than your own but engaged in the solution of many
problems similar to those which engage our attention at home, and
observing the conduct of your own race amidst the surroundings of
another hemisphere. On every side you will find objects of interest. Our
political system, the working of federation, the arrangements of the
different provinces for the education of our youth, our railways pushed
across this continent with an enterprise which has never been surpassed
by the oldest and largest communities--(loud applause)--our forests,
our geology, our mineral resources, our agriculture in all its different
phases ranging from the quiet homesteads and skilful cultivation of the
older provinces to the newly reclaimed prairies of the North-west, which
we expect to yield us this season a surplus of from six to nine millions
of bushels, the history and characteristics of our native races, and the
manner in which we have dealt with them--all these will afford you
opportunities of study which few other portions of the globe could
present in such variety. (Applause.) Of the facilities which will be
afforded to you and of the pains which have been taken to render your
explorations easy and agreeable, I need not speak. Some of you are aware
that a distinguished member of an assembly to which you and I, Lord
Rayleigh, have both the honour to belong, has lately been cautioning the
English public against the dangers of legislation by picnic. (Loud
applause.) I have heard that in some quarters misgivings have been
expressed. We too should be exposed to similar danger, and lest the
attractions which the British Association is offered here should
conflict with its more strictly scientific objects. These are probably
_rumores senum severiorum_, and I will only say of them, if there
is any ground for such apprehensions, you must remember that hospitality
is an instinct with our people, and that it is their desire that you
should see and learn a great deal, and that you should see and learn it
in the pleasantest manner possible. (Applause.) I have only one word
more to say. I wish to express the pleasure with which I see in this
room representatives, not only of English and Continental and Canadian
science, but also many distinguished representatives of that great
people which, at a time when the relations of the mother country and her
colonies were less wisely regulated than at present, ceased to be
subjects of the British Crown, but did not cease to become our kinsmen.
Many of you will pass from these meetings to the great re-union to be
held a few days hence at Philadelphia, where you will be again reminded
that there are ties which bind together not only the constituent parts
of the British empire, but the whole of the British race--ties of mutual
sympathy and good-will which such intercourse will strengthen and which,
I believe, each succeeding decade will draw more closely and firmly
together. (Applause.) I have now only to apologize for having intervened
in your proceedings. I feel that what I have said would have come better
from the lips of a Canadian. Others will, however, have ample
opportunities for supplementing both by word and deed the shortcomings
of which I may have been guilty. It was my duty--and I have much
pleasure in discharging it--as the representative of the Crown in this
part of the empire to bid you in the name of our people a hearty welcome
to the Dominion. (Loud and long continued applause.)
Sir WM. THOMSON, in responding, said:--You will allow me, in the first
place, to offer my warmest thanks to His Excellency the Governor-General
for coming among us this evening, and for the very kind and warm welcome
which he has offered to the British Association, on the part of the
Dominion. Your Excellency, it devolves upon me as representing Professor
Cayley, the president of the British Association, to do what I wish he
were here to do himself, and which it would have been a well-earned
pleasure for him to do--to introduce to you Lord Rayleigh as his
successor in the office of President of the British Association.
Professor Cayley has devoted his life to the advancement of pure
mathematics. It is indeed peculiarly appropriate that he should be
followed in the honourable post of president by one who has done so much
to apply mathematical power in the various branches of physical science
as Lord Rayleigh has done. In the field of the discovery and
demonstration of natural phenomena Lord Rayleigh has, above all others
enriched physical science by the application of mathematical analysis;
and when I speak of mathematics you must not suppose mathematics to be
harsh and crabbed. (Laughter.) The Association learned last year at
Southport what a glorious realm of beauty there was in pure mathematics.
I will not, however, be hard on those who insist that it is harsh and
crabbed. In reading some of the pages of the greatest investigators of
mathematics one is apt to become wearied, and I must confess that some
of the pages of Lord Rayleigh's work have taxed me most severely, but
the strain was well repaid. When we pass from the instrument which is
harsh and crabbed to those who do not give themselves the trouble to
learn it thoroughly, to the application of the instrument, see what a
splendid world of light, beauty and music is opened to us through such
investigations as those of Lord Rayleigh. His book on sound is the
greatest piece of mathematical investigation we know of applied to a
branch of physical science. The branches of music are mere developments
of mathematical formulas, and of every note and wave in music the
equation lies in the pages of Lord Rayleigh's book. (Laughter and
applause.) There are some who have no ear for music, but all who are
blessed with eyes can admire the beauties of nature, and among those one
which is seen in Canada frequently, in England often, in Scotland
rarely, is the blue sky. (Laughter) Lord Rayleigh's brilliant piece of
mathematical work on the dynamics of blue sky is a monument to the
application of mathematics to a subject of supreme difficulty, and on
the subject of refraction of light he has pointed out the way towards
finding all that has to be known, though he has ended his work by
admitting that the explanation of the fundamentals of the reflection and
refraction of light is still wanting and is a subject for the efforts of
the British Association for the Advancement of Science. But there is
still another subject, electricity and the electric light, and here
again Lord Rayleigh's work is fundamental, and one may hope from the
suggestions it contains that electricity may yet be put upon the level
of ordinary mechanics, and that the electrician may be able to weigh out
electric quantities as easily and readily as a merchant could a quantity
of tea or sugar. (Applause.) It remains for me only to fulfil the
commission which Professor Cayley has entrusted to me of expressing his
great regret that his engagements in England prevented his being with
us, and in his name to vacate the chair of president of the Association
and to ask Lord Rayleigh to take his place as President for 1884.
(Applause.)
[_Lord Rayleigh then delivered the Presidential Address, a copy of
which is appended to this work._]
Lord Rayleigh was loudly applauded at the conclusion of his address.
HON. DR. CHAVEAU in an eloquent speech in French proposed a vote of
thanks to Lord Rayleigh for the interesting sketch he had given of
modern science. In this scientific review Lord Rayleigh had also
displayed great literary ability. The reunion to-day of the British
Association was significant in the sense that it extended the operations
of the society to all parts of the British Empire, so that while on the
other side the question of a federation of the British Empire was being
raised, the British Association had taken the lead in its sphere by
casting out the roots of a scientific federation. In this connection he
spoke of the work the Royal Society was doing in Canada. He was glad to
see that Lord Rayleigh did not hold extreme views as to the elimination
of classical studies from our schools, for he believed that in those
stores of antiquity our modern mind found a great deal of its strength,
and were this study abolished our mental grasp and vigour would be
greatly lessened. What Canada required was the greater development of
our universities. In this way would science be most benefited, for we
would have a greater number of men able to devote themselves entirely to
the study of scientific subjects. He expressed the pleasure he felt at
the honour of knighthood conferred on Principal Dawson, an honour in
which the whole Canadian people felt pride, and concluded amidst great
applause.
Mr. HUGH MCLENNAN in seconding the resolution said the very interesting
address which Lord Rayleigh had given them was not only a source of
pleasure to the audience, but gave them an adequate idea of the wide
field of knowledge and research opened by those who devoted themselves
to different scientific pursuits. The presence of so many men devoted to
scientific pursuits in our midst could not fail to give an impetus to
the study of science in this country. We had not many scientific men,
owing principally to the fact that the people who settled here had given
their attention to material pursuits, but a new era was now opening. The
worthy chief of the government must be gratified at the success of his
wise policy in encouraging this movement, which could not fail to be of
great profit to Canadians, and he felt sure that no vote would be more
heartily given than the vote of thanks to Lord Rayleigh, which he had
much pleasure in seconding.
Sir Wm Thomson put the motion, which was adopted unanimously amidst loud
applause.
Lord Rayleigh returned thanks for the honour done him, and the meeting
adjourned until Friday next, when Professor Ball will deliver a lecture.
* * * * *
It was not very surprising that after all this excitement I had a very
bad night and awoke quite ill Thursday morning, remained all day in bed
nursing and starving, and could not, therefore, go to two afternoon
parties for which we had invitations, nor to the grand evening reception
at the college. This morning I am feeling quite well, and it is pouring
with rain.
_Friday Evening_.--After luncheon Dr. P. Smith called and went
with me to Section A, but we were too late to hear John's paper--He told
me that he and E--- start for Quebec to-night after a lecture on "Dust,"
and stay at the Lansdownes for the festivities there (we three have
settled not to go), and return Sunday evening. We went then to Section B
to hear something of Chemistry, and to the Vicars Boyle's at the Windsor
Hotel, and found her at home. I have had a letter asking us all to go to
the Macpherson's at Toronto. Hedley and I called on the McClennan's
(Dick's hosts) and found her to be a nice clever woman, with seven sons
and two daughters. Mrs. Stephen had called in my absence and waited some
time to see me, and left a message for us to drink tea there Sunday, but
I shall probably be occupied elsewhere. Dick went to see the Victoria
Bridge to-day and dines here. Mr. Angus has been telling us delightful
accounts of some of the new routes through the Rocky Mountains down to
British Columbia, which the Canadian Pacific Railway will take, and
which will be finished by the spring of next year. Their surveyor, Mr.
Van Horn, has just returned from an exploration, and gave very curious
details in answer to Professor G. Ramsay's questions (brother of Sir
James Ramsay). Mr. Van Horn says the mountains sheer up eight to eleven
thousand feet; glaciers are eighteen to twenty miles long; trees two
hundred and fifty feet high and thirty in circumference. They have only
to cut one down and it makes a capital bridge at once. He told us a
curious story of a Mr. Rogers, who started with a young engineer to find
a pass for the railroad over the Rocky mountains which would, on its
discovery, make him famous. After their six days' provisions were all
exhausted, Mr. Carroll, the young engineer, said: "It is all very well
for you, but what shall _I_ gain by risking my life and going on?"
"Well," said Mr. Rogers, "let us go to that high plateau and think."
While there, he decided to go on, upon which Mr. Carroll again
expostulated. Mr. Rogers then exclaimed: "You see all these magnificent
peaks, which probably no human eye has seen before--now the grandest of
these shall be named after you if I succeed." Just then a caribou went
past. They gave chase and he took them nine miles into a valley where
they did not find _him_ but _did_ find a _cache_ of
food--and then the _pass_! And the highest mountain is called Mount
Carroll at this day. Mr. Angus does not encourage me much to go to the
Rocky Mountains, on the ground of fatigue and hardships.
_Wednesday, September 2nd_--I must bring up my journal to this
date. On Saturday there were no sections. John and E--- Lansdownes and
many others went to Quebec. Owing to showers of rain the festivities
there were rather a failure. Miss Angus drove H--- and me to Mount
Royal, where we had a splendid view; Dick walked up. We then went to the
market, and saw there all sorts of new vegetables, fruits, and fish. The
melons here are delicious, and we have had buckwheat cakes, and rice
cakes, and sweet potatoes, and blueberries. The living here is very
good, and nothing can be more comfortable than we are; but the flies are
sometimes an annoyance, and the darkness of the rooms--which are kept
dark to prevent their getting in. Saturday afternoon Dick, H--- and I
went to see La Chine by rail to the steamer, and then down the rapids,
which were less dangerous looking than we expected. A violent
thunder-storm came on, and in the middle of it we got into the whirlpool
of the rapids, and then a fiery red sun broke out among a mass of dense
black clouds; a great fire appeared also near the banks of the river,
and all this combined, produced very striking effects. We met on the
steamer Mr. George Darwin and his Bride--a charming looking American
girl--he looks already much better and happier.
_Sunday_.--Miss A---, H---, and I went to the cathedral, a full
simple service and good sermon from Mr. Champion. In the afternoon I
went with Dick to a musical service at St. James' Church--such a sermon!
from a man who nearly wriggled himself out of the pulpit; he came from
Norwood, I heard. _Monday_.--We went in the afternoon to a party at
Mrs. Redpath's; her son, "now gone to his home above," she said, had
known one of mine at Cambridge. It is a pretty place, on a hill near
this, and a good many people there; it got very damp after sunset. We
none of us went to an evening party going on at Mrs. Gault's, being too
tired. Mr. C--- called early and went with me to sections; John joined
me, and we saw and heard Captains Ray and Greely of Arctic fame. They
say he (Greely) and his living companions saved themselves from
starvation by eating their dead ones--a dreadful alternative, but I
don't think they were to blame; it didn't agree with him, for he looks
horribly ill, poor man! In the afternoon we all went to see the Indian
game of La Crosse played between twelve Montrealists and twelve Indians.
It is pretty and exciting, something between lawn tennis and football--I
could have watched it for hours! we were all comfortably seated in
places of honour on a covered stand, which partly accounts for my
enjoyment. After this we went to tea with Mr. and Mrs. G. Stephens, and
there with John and E--- we finally settled with Mr. Stephens to go by
Canadian Pacific Railway to the north-west; Mr. Stephens offered us a
private car, provisioned, &c.; we take _his_ to Toronto, and stay
there with Sir David and Lady Macpherson. This invitation is the result
of an introduction I had from a friend in England. Several invites have
come from Philadelphia and New York. I sent a telegram to you yesterday,
but according to the rules of the Company (who allow us to send free,
subject to these conditions), it must first go to 90, O--- G---; you
will write next to New York, and I will give directions there respecting
all letters. Please tell Edward at T. P. and Mary.
_Wednesday_.--I went to Sections for last time; in afternoon to
the closing meeting of British Association, when they all butter one
another; the buttering of John was, of course, very nice and justifiable
Sir William Dawson said among other things that John was to be loved and
admired as a man as well as a scientist. He certainly looks
gentlemanlike and sweet, and though nervous, he always expresses himself
well; he and others received the honour of D.C.L. from the McGill
University here. I forgot to say that on Tuesday evening there was a
grand reception by the civic authorities at the skating rink, a very
large hall, where we paraded up and down, and the young ones danced
(Hedley with Miss Angus), and then I sat in a state gallery with E---
and other grandees. I cannot say I was struck with the beauty of the
company. I made acquaintance with Captain Greely--he does not look any
better, poor man, but has a nice expression. Wednesday evening we went
to a pretty party at Mr. Donald Smith's, the richest man in Canada, and
so kind and simple; he had a ball-room built at a day or two's notice,
and tent for supper, and Chinese lanterns lighted up the garden, &c. It
was a lovely night with full moon, and I was very glad to walk outside,
for the heat was very great. Mr. D. Smith asked me to "Silver Heights,"
his place at Winnipeg. H--- and Dick are both rather unwell to-day, and
I hear poor Mr. Walter Brown is dying. I am well enough now. It is
extremely hot, but there is always air. John has shirked the Toronto
function, and also the American Association at Philadelphia--some of the
B. A. are starting there soon. We go alone to Toronto, and also to
Winnipeg and the Rocky Mountains. Miss Becker and Mrs. Hallett called to
see me, and I signed a memorial of thanks to Sir John Macdonald (the
Premier of Canada), for proposing Women's Suffrage here.