1558
JOURNAL OF
CHEMICAL EDUCATION
SEPTEMBER. 1929
spiring examples. Pasteur wrote his father, "I am more than mined by the cost of printing my thesis." Dalton was wretchedly poor. These men reached their goals in spite of poverty, not because of it. They might have left a far greater heritage had not so much of their energy been expended in obtaining their daily bread. Sense of Social Responsibility The fourth essential selected was a sense of social responsibility. The very complexity of modern life is taking scientists and engineers out of their laboratories and into the service of the people. Industry is becoming more and more conscious of its needs for technically trained executives. Demands for technical ability are increasing in all branches of public service. The scientific professions command the respect of the people as never before, simply because on every hand the fruits of technical skill are apparent. With recognition comes responsibility, and successful chemists must realize that they may no longer live in a house by the side of the road: their place is in the procession, helping to guide the onward march in paths of progress. Spirituality Fifth, but quite as essential as any of the first four, we placed spirituality. Wisdom, health, riches, and services to fellow men are transient. They exist only with life. Pew, if any, of us think of death as the end of the rich experience we call life. Even in this rapid and preoccupied age, the beautiful mysteries of spiritual intuftion have a tremendous power to guide the intellect. To consider the intellect the only human guide is boastful, for man's unaided intellect cannot see around the next corner. The deeper one delves into pure science, the more he is impressed with the orderliness of the universe, from the simplest atom to the farthest nebula in the heavens. Nothing in science denies man's instinctive hunger for belief in a Power greater than himself. The well-rounded chemist will not neglect, in his thirst for truth and facts, that corner of his mental life where he may reach beyond the farthest horizon of facts through the media of faith and belief. And because he is a scientist, he occupies an enviable position; through the researches of chemical and physical science he is able to appreciate in a finite way the beauty of infinite creation.
Cleveland Explosion. The explosion and fire which occurred at a Cleveland (U. S.) hospital recently, resulting in more than 120 deaths, were investigated by the Chemical Warfare Service Department of the United States Army. The Department reports that the deaths were caused by carbon monoxide and oxides of nitrogen, given off by burning x-ray films.
