Dr Alfred Nobel.

Oamaru Mail, Volume XXII, Issue 6871, 22 April 1897, Page 3

Dr Alfred Nobel.

The will of the late Dr Alfred Nobel, inventor of explosives, has just been proved by which he leaves something like two millions for the advancement of science by way of prizes for meritorious discoveries before the Stockholm City Court by Mr It. Strehlenerb and Mr Leonard Hyaas, two of the four witnesses to the signing of the will. They gave evidence on oath that Nobel was in the full possession of his senses, and that he signed the testament of his own free will. A good deal of criticism has been passed on the will in Sweden, especially with regard to the utter absence of any detailed instructions to the Boards of Distributors, but the evidence of one of these witnesses throws a deal of light upon the more obscure and controversial points. Mr Strehlenert was a great deal with Nobel during the latter part of 1896, when they often discussed tne question of inheritance. Nobel, it appears, was a man of strong Radical views, especially on social questions. "As a matter of fact," Nobel used to say. " I am really a Social Democrat. in moderation, of course. My experience of the world has especially taught me that large inherited fortunes never bring happiness, and that they are not properly made use of; they diminish the desire for work, and hamper the faculty for individual development. Large inherited fortunes only promote the degeneration of man. I even disapprove of children inheriting more from their parents than is necessary to educate themselves for the service of mankind." Mr Strehlenert said that Nobel never intended to bind down the executors by any detailed instructions, he rather wished to give them a free hand as much as possible. He believed that Nobel never troubled himself for a moment as to the detail. His wish was, as he continually asserted, not only to assist those who had made a name, but also men of promise who were likely to do so. Men of action always manage to pull through ; it is the men of science and dreamers who should be helped, and this help, he always maintained, should be of such an extent that the recipient should be wholly independent. Mr Strehlenert did not think it would be inconsistent with Nobel's wishes if a prize were divided into two or three parts. At the same time he was sure that Robel never intended a prize to be less than 100,000 crowns (about L 5500).