THE CITY'S WELCOME.

Auckland Star, Volume LVI, Issue 232, 1 October 1925, Page 10

THE CITY'S WELCOME.

TO A GREAT SCIENTIST. ; MEETING AT TOWN HALL. I SIT. E. RUTHERFORD CHEERED. ''This occasion i=-. 1 think, unique among the many welcomes accorded by a Mayor fi Auckland to distinguished visitors in that it is tbe first time we have welcomed 3 New Zealander returned--10 his home filter having made a great name as a scientist." stated the Mayor >Mr. George P.aildonC amidst applause of the representative citizens who crowded out the Council Chamber oi tbe Town Hall to-day on the occasion oi a civic welcome to Sir Ernest Rutherford.

We welcomed limes: Rutherford, stated Mr. Baildon. as a native of New Zealand who bad received bis early education in this country and had so developed his talent? as to risen to a high position in the seientitic world. Auckland was proud t.. have had the opportunity oi welcoming him on his return to bis native land, proud to claim him as a New Zealander. and to he able to claim bavins made, through him. a worthy contribution to tbe world ot science. Through its -oldiers. sailors and athletes this country had been made known, but no other New Zealander had reached so exalted a place in science as. had been attained by bit Ernest Eutherford. (Applause. ) It was gratifying to know that when our scholars had the opportunities and facilities provided in the older countries they could hold their own. and gave us encouragement to think that when we could give our youth tbe greater educational ad-\antages enjoyed it older countries they would respond satisfactorily. It -was natural that our most eminent scholars should embrace the greater opportunities available to them in the larger countries, but we hoped that some means would be devised for keeping the most brilliant of our scholars and thinkers in this country to help us in the many problems arisin* out of our rapid growth and assist iii the building up of tbe Dominion. Our guest, however, was onp who had completely outgrown us, and we were proud, not only in Auckland, l>ut also throughout the Dominion, of the service he had 3ie.cn able to perform in science through his special gifts, and hoped he would be granted long life and health to carry on with his work.

His Worship added that the president of the Returned Soldiers' Association had requested him to mention that many exsoldiers in Auckland had grateful memories of the kindness and consideration extended to them by Lady Rutherford in her capacity as official visitor to the iXew Zealand hospitals in Manchester during the war time. It was a tribute he wa.s glad 1 o mate.

At the call of the Mayor, the company gave three hearty cheers for Sir Ernest Rutherford.

In supporting the Mayor, the Hon. Geo. Fowlds. president of the Auckland University College, stated that we did honour to ourselves in honouring so distinguished a son of our soil as Sir Ernest Rutherford. The significance of such occasions as this was the inspiration they afforded to others wbo desired to travel the same way as the distinguished guest had gone. Despite all the defects of our -university system, xve were proud it could produce such men as Sir Ernest Rutherford. After all, the chief defect of our -university system was its lack of funds. It ill became New Zealanders to criticise people going from our land to perform high service, for from tbe beginning we had drawn on those "rained elsewhere for the advancement of learning here. Any extension of human knowledge could not be confined to any one quarter of the globe, and we were proud to contribute Sir Ernest Rutherford to tbe advancement of science in Great Britain.

Professor Algie extended a welcome on behalf of the Auckland University College, and especially on behalf of the Professorial Board. After humorous reference to local matters, the speaker referred to the international character and importance of the work doEe by the guest of the occasion.

In reply. Sir Ernest stated that he ■was very proud of being a New Zealander. and he felt very greatly the honour they had done him. Referring to the.Mayor's remark about New Zealanders who had achieved academic success and had gone abroad, he stated that this was natural, and it did not matter where they did their work provided they did it well and with honour to their country. Looking back on the system of primary education he had received mi his early days in Xew Zealand, he thought the primary system quite good. Similarly he had found that in Nelson College and Canterbury College one could get quite a sound foundation there. Without any personal reference, he felt that the Xew Zealand system of education had shown a high average standard in the students it produced. In other ways also the country had shown rare distinction in its young men. Incidentally he paid a high tribute to the work of Dr. MacLaurin in America. Referring to the old universities of Cambridge and Oxford, he said they had always been democracies of the purest type. At Cambridge, the college was run by the M.A.'s, and its powerful Press was entirely worked by its own people. In many respects the university was much like the City Council here. its members "were elected councillors, and they were most carefully watched by the voters. In entertaining vein Sir Ernest described some of the workings of the old universities. In conclusion, he mentioned that in the work done by him and those associated with him the methods were simple and direct, and could lie understood by people who had not had a scientific training, though, of course, one would need scientific knowledge to understand the conclusions drawn from the results of their experiments. As to tbe value of the work, the whole history of the modern world had shown that the chances of any important discovery being made by a person who had not had a sound and solid scientific training were about a hundred thousand to one. and were becoming regularly greater. He feared the public •n-as rather credulous about reported important discoveries made outside the laboratories of scientists, and that led to exploitation by the hangers-on of «HHMe, who endeavoured to use the pnbhc interest for their own purposes. ™- «f C °? e conduded the singing 01 the National Anthem.