6' s
OPENING OF NE-. ' JI SCIENCE BLOC~ i: K AT ST. STANISLAUS
CO THRST 27TH Kk-RCHI. 126
Spe ech by the P rixwe j. nistr 1 Aet, L. rf lR9oo bLe $ ze
Reverend Father ? rincipal, My Lord Bishops and Ladies and
Gentlemen and fellow workers
I have been very pleased here today to hear
these kind things spoken about the policies that we have been
trying to pursue, Personally, as one of the authors of this
scheme, I have never understood why anybody should object to
it. ( Applause) And I am perfectly certain that 90 per cent.
of the people of Australia warmly approve of it. ( Applause)
My Lord Bishop and the Principal have both
mentioned a stum of money. 51e11, the last word that was given
to me on this matter yesterday was that the total completed
cost of the science block and equipment had not yet been
ascertained and that when they were, no doubt there would be
a further sum to be handed over. ( Applause)
Now I dontt need to discuss with you the
reasons, ladies and gentlemen, for these measures to encourage
scientific study; Ild rather prefer today to say something
to the boys. You grown-up people and parents, you can listen
in but most of you are really beyond being helped on these
matters. ( Laughter) I'd like to talk to the boys, if they
don't mind. I want to tell them that when I was a schoolboy
I used to regard all well-known politicians who came to the
speech nights as the most intolerable bores ( Laughter) and
threItore they are at complete liberty to count me out. I
assure them that I am an expert at receiving such compliments.
( Laughter) I just want to say two things to you. The
first is that this story, this piece of history about Father
Slattery and the work he did here, deserves to be known by
everybody in this country. It is part of a marvellous tradition
in your school and a great school is not merely created by
bricks and mortar or by having a lot of money or even by getting
a lot of boys to attend.
The greatness of a school depends on its quality
and its quality depends, to a very large degree, on the men
who have fashioned it. Some of them today are boys, but
tomorrow they will be adults and taking their place in the
iw. orld and helping to fashion the world and perhaps helping
once more to fashion the school.
It is a wonderful thing to have a-tradition.
But we must never be bound by tradition. WIe must never become
so traditional that we are unavailable to fresh ideas, Not
at all, But a tradition that serves to inspire you for the
future by reminding you of the efforts and achievements of the
past, this is of the very essence of a great school and you
have it here, and particularly on the science side In this new
building with its new equipment there will be every reason to
remember that one of the great scientists? scientific workers
or his time was here in this school and did this memorable
work. Therefore be proud of it and make up your minds that
you, yourselves, will contribute to it in due course, $ 69/ 2
2
The second thing I want to say to you is this.
Several times already today, I have had occasion to mention
the fact that the explorers came over the lip of the mountains
and discovered these -plains and that from this very place, there
went out at least five of the greatest explorers we have known
in Australia. These are very stimulating memories. Much to be
learned from them, Much to be retained by thinking of them.
But they were concerned at that time, and properly concerned,
with extending the bounds of settlement. They were extending
physical boundaries in a sense, they were opening up country
that was a mere dream before and enabling people to live in it
and to grow in it and to have families in it and to enjoy the
fruits of the earth and to add to them. This was a great piece
of pioneering in that sense, extending the frontiers of the
eye, extending the frontiers of settlement,
But in this new wing those of you who are students
of science will be put on your way to extend the frontiers of
knowledge, the frontiers of scientific knowledge, and therefore
I don't want you to become pompous like an old politician but
please remember that in that sense every one of you who tackles
it seriously and does his best will be just as much a pioneer
in his own fashion as these old men with beards who came over
here so long ago and began to extend the frontiers of ci ,-lised
settlement. To extend the frontiers of knowledge is not only
our privilege, but it is our duty. None of us must ever be
content merely by learning what somebody else has discovered.
14e must do our best to think about it, to discover something
ourselves. You won't all be able to think of some new and
brilliant conception in the scientific world but you may very
well be able to think of some way of applying a piece of
scientific knowledge in a new way for the service of mankind
and in that way you wiil have e. xtended the frontiers of knowledge.
Now ladies and gentlemen, turning to you I must
say that I hope we will all encourage these ideas. ' le have, in
Australia, with al~ l our privileges because we are a privileged
people, a prosperous people a great obligation not just to
ourselves but to other people not so privileged, not so prosperous
around the world and if we are to honour that obligation, v* re
can't just be satisfied to think we will do it by providing some
money, We will do it to the best extent by providing them with
the results of our work and our knowledge of our achievement.
There is hardly a problem you can think of today, looking around
the world, problems of population, problems of hungry millions,
problems of all kinds, that does not involve the more and more
scientific use of resources to bring to them such skill such
scientific knowledge as we have in the fields of arriculture and
in dealing with cattle, in dealing with the whole problem of
food, in dealing with production for their own needs, It is in
these fields that we, the happy and the privileged, have a great
opportunity of making a powerful contribution, and the contribution
will start here. Itwill be encouraged, it will grow more
and more rapidly if all of us who are older and who profess to
have scientific knowledge constantly encourage these ideas and
determine to make some sacrifices ourselves to bring them into
fruition* to . S/ 3
-3-
Now I hope, boys, that hasn't been too heavy.
After all, if you can stand a man lecturing to you on
logarithms, you can put up with me with the greatest ease
in the world. ( Laughter) At least I think so, looking back
over my own life.
Now, Sir, I dontt want to say any more than that.
It is a very great privilege to be here. I regret deeply that
my wife couldn't be with me but I am happy to report she is
doing very well, making a good recovery, ( Applause)
I therefore give myself the pleasure, and the
honour, of declaring this block open. Now I think I remember
that I have to unveil a plaque. Is that right? , Tell I will
do it.
C