THE ROMANES LECTURE

Evening Post, Volume CVII, Issue 22, 26 January 1924, Page 16

THE ROMANES LECTURE

TO BE DELIVERED BY JOHN

, MASEFIELD,

Mr. John Masefield, whose appointment by the Vice-Chancellor of Oxford to deliver the Romanes Lecture this yeaif has just, been announced, is the first poet on whom the lectureship has been conferred, states a correspondent of the ' Manchester Guardian.". Romanes, in founding the lecture and endowing it with an annual fee of £25, merely Stipulated that the subject should relate to science, art, or literature, and should be approved by the Vice-Chancellor. Hitherto, however, the great majority of the Romanes lecturers have been statesmen, historians, scientists, and theologians. President Roosevelt lectured on "Biological Analogies in History, Lord Gurzon on " Frontiers," Lord Balfour on " Criticism and Beauty, ' Mr. Asquith on " Some Aspects of the Victorian Age," Canon Scott Holland on "The Optimism of Butler s Analogy,' " and Sir Oliver Lodge on ' Some Modern Views on Matter." Mr. Masefield's subject is to ml 'Shakespeare and Spiritual Life " The Oxford University Press has long made it its practice to issue the Romanes Lecture to the public not later than the day following its delivery. The lecture is, of course, usually euppiled to the University Press beforehand by the lecturer - but when the time came for Lord (then Mr.) Balfour t 0 deliver' his lecture on " Criticism and Beauty " it was found that no MSS. was. available. J.ne lecturer spoke to a densely packed theatre from notes confined to a halfsheet of notepaper. The University Press had, however, been equal to the occasion, for they had hurriedly engaged a corps of reporters, who took a verbatim note of the lecture, which was duly published nest morning. It bore, however, many signs of hasty composition, and it is not surprising that Lord Balfour thought it well to issue a second edition shortly afterwards in which there had been considerable polish and revision. - *