LORD BIRKENHEAD'S BOOK.

Press, Volume LXVI, Issue 19972, 5 July 1930, Page 20

LORD BIRKENHEAD'S BOOK.

A PROFESSOR'S COMPLAINT. Craow ov* own cq»mspoms>mt.) LONDON, May 30. Professor J. B. B. Haldane, the famous Cambridge scientist, makes • further attack on Lord Birkenhead's "ignorance" in the "Week-End Review*' to-day. Lord Birkenhead wrote a book, "The World i» 2030." Professor Haldane reviewed it and alleged his lordship had taken passages from the professor's book, "Possible Worlds." .Lord Birkenhead retorted at length in a news* paper article. •'His article, on the face of it, is one of the most comprehensive displays of Ignorance which I have read for some years," the professor now writes. "As Lord Birkenhead is not a particularly ignorant man, I can only assume that in certain cases he concealed his know, lodge and in others he took care.not to avail himself of sources which were available to him. "Had he read the books from which he quotes he would have realised that my contributions to science have not consisted wholly of popularisation* "On the other hand his assertion that I have not even a smattering of his* torical knowledge i- more pardonable. ■'My smattering of ancient history af. forded me a first class in Litterae Humaniores. But as the class list was published on August 4th, 1914, it attracted rather little attention. "Nor, when he remarks I have not been asked to represent my University in Parliament, could he be expected to know that I have twice been requested to stand as a candidate for other universities" Lord Birkenhead, in his book preface, said he was following "in the footsteps of Jules Verne, Bellamy, Wells, and Haldane." "I have no objection to anyone treading in my footsteps," comments Professor Haldane. "i object to them stealing my boots to do so, and I am amused when they do not know how to put the boots on."