Abstract
SIR DONALD MACALISTER, president of the General Medical Council, who has been Principal and Vice-Chancellor of the university of Glasgow since 1907, has submitted his resignation, which will take effect earlyin October, after the opening of the War Memorial Chapel. His successor, who is appointed by the Crown, will be available for the early part of the winter session. There is little doubt that when the General Council of the university proceeds to the election of a Chancellor in succession to the late Lord Rosebery, it will take advantage of the opportunity of retaining Sir Donalds services. The office has been generally held by a Scottish peer. Sir Donald's resignation brings to an end a principalship, the success of which is probably unprecedented in the annals of Scottish universities. During the past twenty-one years, the university of Glasgow has made remarkable progress, due mainly to the Principals genius in administration. He soon introduced great improvements in the business of the university and has unquestionably made it a far more efficient and competent organisation. Before he took office, there had been frequent friction between the university Court and Senate; but his capacity as chairman of the Court and the full confidence of the teaching staff in his judgment, insight, and statesmanship hive allowed the Court without opposition steadily to increase its control of the university. This change was inevitable, as the Court has remained a body of fourteen, of which the Rectors membership is nominal, while the Senate has increased in number from 33 in 1907 to 62.
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News and Views. Nature 124, 274–278 (1929). https://doi.org/10.1038/124274a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/124274a0