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On The Present State Of The Royal Society.
a very respectable and a very impartial man ; and thoug h he had but little scientific knowled ge himself ; he was an encourager of those who had ; nor did ' he set up any particular branch of the sciences , with which he was best acquainted , to the prejudice of those which ¦ were deeper and of more importance . The di gnity of the society certainly was on the wane even in his time , but from the period of his decease its declension
has been with the velocity of a comet in its recession from the sun . It is in fact now a philosophical society in name only . The most brilliant ornaments of an institution over which Newton once presided have seceded from it ; and it bids fair in a short time to sink into total insignificance . And where is the wonder of this ?—Can
we suppose that , such men asaHorsley or a Hutton can find any pleasure in attending the meetings of a few . paltry naturalists , or patiently submit to the dictate of a President , who , whatever may be his merits in other respects , or his knowled ge in the world of insects , is evidentl y neither-a man of science himself , or the impartial and liberal encourager of those who are .
It is universally known that the society was ori ginally formed by philosophers and mathematicians . By their labours , and those of their successors , for a long time , the society gained the proud preeminence overall others . Its transactions were translated into all languages of importance . Its discoveries were universally attended to . Its members were held in the hi ghest esteem : and the honour of enrolled
being among its associates was anxiously courted b y the -Jirst men in the world . But how has the fine gold become dim ! and how has its glory departed ! Who seeks for the honour of an admission into this once renowned body?—The S . cieties of America , of Edinburgh , and even of Manchester , -are looked upon , and justly too , with far greater respect , and their Memoirs contain more valuable disquisition , and more interesting papers on scientific subjects , than the Philosophical Transactions have for at least these twenty years past .
Phis is really a matter of serious concern to every mind that is imbued with the love of science and of his country , and who regards the memory ofNEWTO . v with veneration . Why do not those trul y respectable personages who yet belong , nominally , to this society rouse themselves , and rescue it from its consumptive state ? And though they may be incapable of reforming the abuses ' which disthe institution
grace , and to clear it from that mass of corruption in which it is now buried , they may form themselves into another society , and so be reall y in fact , though not in name , The ROYAJ . SOCIETY . What , if hereby they are devoid of that' empty bauble' * the mace , they would be ' surrounded with a glory beyond all external distinction , and far more durable than a Royal Charter , or the unessential trappings of an incorporated body . . I am , Sir , your ' s , London , Nov . io , 1797 . TYCIIO .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
On The Present State Of The Royal Society.
a very respectable and a very impartial man ; and thoug h he had but little scientific knowled ge himself ; he was an encourager of those who had ; nor did ' he set up any particular branch of the sciences , with which he was best acquainted , to the prejudice of those which ¦ were deeper and of more importance . The di gnity of the society certainly was on the wane even in his time , but from the period of his decease its declension
has been with the velocity of a comet in its recession from the sun . It is in fact now a philosophical society in name only . The most brilliant ornaments of an institution over which Newton once presided have seceded from it ; and it bids fair in a short time to sink into total insignificance . And where is the wonder of this ?—Can
we suppose that , such men asaHorsley or a Hutton can find any pleasure in attending the meetings of a few . paltry naturalists , or patiently submit to the dictate of a President , who , whatever may be his merits in other respects , or his knowled ge in the world of insects , is evidentl y neither-a man of science himself , or the impartial and liberal encourager of those who are .
It is universally known that the society was ori ginally formed by philosophers and mathematicians . By their labours , and those of their successors , for a long time , the society gained the proud preeminence overall others . Its transactions were translated into all languages of importance . Its discoveries were universally attended to . Its members were held in the hi ghest esteem : and the honour of enrolled
being among its associates was anxiously courted b y the -Jirst men in the world . But how has the fine gold become dim ! and how has its glory departed ! Who seeks for the honour of an admission into this once renowned body?—The S . cieties of America , of Edinburgh , and even of Manchester , -are looked upon , and justly too , with far greater respect , and their Memoirs contain more valuable disquisition , and more interesting papers on scientific subjects , than the Philosophical Transactions have for at least these twenty years past .
Phis is really a matter of serious concern to every mind that is imbued with the love of science and of his country , and who regards the memory ofNEWTO . v with veneration . Why do not those trul y respectable personages who yet belong , nominally , to this society rouse themselves , and rescue it from its consumptive state ? And though they may be incapable of reforming the abuses ' which disthe institution
grace , and to clear it from that mass of corruption in which it is now buried , they may form themselves into another society , and so be reall y in fact , though not in name , The ROYAJ . SOCIETY . What , if hereby they are devoid of that' empty bauble' * the mace , they would be ' surrounded with a glory beyond all external distinction , and far more durable than a Royal Charter , or the unessential trappings of an incorporated body . . I am , Sir , your ' s , London , Nov . io , 1797 . TYCIIO .