THE HECTOR MEDAL

Otago Daily Times, Issue 16507, 6 October 1915, Page 3

THE HECTOR MEDAL

PRESENTED TO KBl MARSHALL. ' AN INTERESTING OCCASION. At the meeting of the Otago Institute last evening thefirst business transacted was the presentation of the Hector Medal to Dr Marshall. Mr G.M. Thomson, who.is a former president of the institute, in making the presentation, said that when Sir James Hector died in November, 1907, it was felt that the best way to commemorate his life-long devotion' to scientific work was not to erect to him a monument in stone

"'or marblei bat' to found a lasting memorial in the form of an award and a grant for the prosecution of further scientific research Money was Subscribed for this purpose and waa invested in the New Zealand Institute in 191 L A certain portion was expended in procuring a bronze medal to be known as the Hector Medal, and this, together with a,Hector prize, was to be awarded annually % the Board of Governors. The research for which the award was made must ha.ve a distinct bearing on New Zealand (1) botany, (2) chemistry, (3) ethnology, (4) geology, (5) physics (including mathematics ana astronomy), and (6) zoology (including animal physiology). It was further provided that wherever possible the medal was to be presented in some public manner- The -first' ■ award was made in 1912 to Dr Cockayne < for his researches in botany, the second in 1913 for chemistry to Professor Easterfield, the third in 1914 for ethnology to Mr Elsdon Best, and : the fourth was now to be awarded for geokigy. The governors of the institute early last year asked Professor El W. gkeats, of Melbourne, Professor T. E. David/erf Sydney, and Mr W. Howchin, of Adelaide, to act as an award committee', and select the recipient of the award for the current year. Their unanimous choice fell: on Dr Patrick Marshall,

of Otago; University and School of Mines,' He regretted that a more 'public presentation of the medal'th'an at a meeting of the Otago Institute was not made. earlier in ihe year, say, at the annual capping function. Unfortunately the medal did not, arrive in time,' and so, rather, than postpone the presentation longer, it had Deen decided to m&ke it that night, and the honour of doing so fell upon him as a past president of the ; New Zealand Institute. To the outside world Dr Marshall was ; known , ias . Professor of Geology in Otago, ,and as one of the band of enthusi-' astic teachers who had made the Otago School of . Mines famous throughout the world., They also knew him as a.n ardent worker in philanthropic and, patriotic lab- ' yours, and, as a good citizen of . this city. But it was not for these things that he had been selected by his Australian co-workeri as the- recipient of. the Hector Medal, but as a distinguished geologist who. had done ■' much to advance the knowledge of the

"science. " It was a little difficult for one V who was not a geologist to classify' Dr • Marshall's work, but he (Mr Thomson) thought his special work was the study 'of igneous rocks,- on which he was a recognised authority; but all parts of . geology had received attention. His mineralogical and penological -work had involved much investigation in the structure and analyses •of rocks, ■ and he: had added much to the .knowledge of the minerals which occur in ; New Zfealand. In stratigraphical research he had oovered a^; considerable part both of- the North "and -South Islands, and fiiad investigated aU Tertiaiy rock systems, with important results as to the perennial ; and., much discussed question of the Cre-taceo-Tertiary.systems. Bis palseontological wofk included ' descrrotions of .many Tertiarjr ai}<i other fosses.. In his study of ivolcanic .phenomena his had visited Ngaurohoe many times, and had given important descriptions of change? in the crater.He was also one of "the chief . authorities onitha geological' structure of the islands of the Pacific, many of which lie had visited in the prosecution Of his researches. His woii in this direction had : ahed light oil the relation of some of these islandstoV land masses, while his direct

observations on coral reefa,had served to

support Darwin's views as -to fheir origin. In 1909 he assisted Dr J.rM. Bell, then direbtor of - the geological survey, in the " Geology' of the Whangar'oa Subdivision, Hokianga Division," by describing, analysc ing.'aiid phcttograjiliing sections 'of the rodss met with; and in <1911; in collaboration -•with -Dr J: M. Bell and Mr E. de Courcy White,. he worked out the " Geology of the > Dun Mountain Subdivision, Nelson."' He j ■ had published 27 geological papers in the , Transactions of the New Zealand Institute,, •"fiome of them in collaboration with other His first paper' was published in 1893, when he .was .Lecturer in Natural. Science at Lincoln Agricultural College, iri which he gave an account of a peculiar igneous rock i occurring at , Lyttelto'n. In 1911, as president ;6f- the,; Gieblogial Section of the Australasiari he gave a valuable and illuminating, address on the; / geology/of the Pacific.v He had written a geoeraohv of New Zealand,: a va*y useful • work,' which dealt with the .Historical, vphy- . sical, political, and commercmji . aspects of / the subject: In 1912, when Germany /was ff.ill one of/the civilised natioM.-:of'sth6.:| world, he wTote the article " New Zealand and Adjacent Islands," for the " Hiandbuch, : der Regional Geiologie",; and brought out a more popular'-form of the' book under the title ," Geology^of ..New Zealand." Such; a -record well entitled Dr Marshall to be i the recipient of the Hector Medal for 1915. - In presenting him with this' medal on be- ' half of the governonJ of the New' Zealand, Institute, th 9 speaker expressed the hope \ that Dr Marshall would be enabled to add J

■ much to the.y aluable work he *had already donefor the advancement of science in the „ southern hemisphere, and that his bow might long abide in strength.—(Applause.) Dr Marshall thanked 'those present for the cordiality •with which they had received, the remarks made by Mr Thomson, which ho felt had not been/fulfy- deseryed. It was, of course, ' a very great honour /to recewe presentation of this .medal ; for the; subject of 'geology—a subject' to whiqjh Sir James Hector devoted his attenfor many years. It was a peculiar ' honour to be the first New Zealand gra- . duaje to receive the medal.—(Applause.), • Everybody was, of, course, fully aware that ■ Sir James Hector was not only - president of .the New Zealand Institute for many years, . but he had also been Chancellor of the , Universityfora considerable period. He s. lived the life of _a: scientific man, and also; : used some of Tiis time in research. Dr . Marshall thought that it'was v fitting that , . any man should, in * order to deserve the awai"d of this medal, publish a'-paoer on : somescientific subject,; in facty'he tho'ught .that could .hardly hold his .possession unless his paper was , by. 'some ; well-known iijstitutionj'fbr publication, diftirig the holding .of his. professorial-, chair.. ' He felt that, holding, these feelings so . strongly as he. did, there was little credit due..to him. New Zealand was a country of such a nature that it ample ; opp6r r ' tunities , for research in geology—perhaps ; more, than,in research of: any, other'; scientific subject. - He felt', .therefore, that there would be' many more . recipients of . the geological, medal.—( Applause.') . ' The " President (Mr 1 Gillason)- :congratu- ; lated Dr Marshall upon the horiour done him—an honour which, he considered, reflected upon the institute,, of which Dr Marshall was such a .distinguished and ■energeticmember.—(Applause.). ;