Letter to Frederick Orpen Bower from Sir David Prain

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Letter to Frederick Orpen Bower from Sir David Prain stating that he has signed John McLean Thompson's certificate. He is pleased at Thompson's decision to join the Linnean Society, which he (Prain) sees as a duty of a young botanist or zoologist. He poses this as a contrast to the two very accomplished botanists appointed to two South African chairs, neither of whom was a member.

He goes on to discuss membership of the Linnean Society, which is not seen as a sign of achievement or means of advancement (any more than membership of a club). This may be discouraging younger members from joining, not because the society is failing to cultivate the sciences, but because they do not see any personal benefits in membership. Still the society needs an influx of the right sort of younger members to be able to continue in the long term.

His proposal is to make membership less easily obtained, in a similar manner to the Royal Society but not extending so far as keeping out entire classes. The Royal Society of Edinburgh's procedures are a better example.

• Membership
• Societies and Clubs

• Bower | Frederick Orpen | 1855-1948 | regius professor of botany, University of Glasgow
• Prain | Sir | David | 1857-1944 | botanist and director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (England)
• Thompson | John McLean | 1888-: | professor of botany, University of Liverpool

• Linnean Society | 1788-: | scientific society | London (England)
• Royal Society of Edinburgh | 1783-: | scientific society | Edinburgh (Scotland)