112 DOC.
97
JULY
1915
The
filling
of Kleiner’s
professorship
in
experimental
physics
is
posing
great
difficulties
for
us,
after the
attempt
to win
over
Prof.
Debye at Göttingen
for it
unfortunately
failed.[2]
Calling a
competent
employee
from
a
German
university
is out
of
the
question
at
the
moment,
as
the
gentlemen
conc[erned] are
themselves
at
the
front
or
cannot
leave
their
present positions
for
understandable
reasons.
The
next
generation
of
young
Swiss
physicists
seems
to
be
very
small in
num-
ber;
at
least
the
faculty
claims
not to
find
among
their
own
any
suitable
individual
who
might come
under consideration for selection.
The choice of Dr.
Greinacher,
who has
admittedly
acted
as
substitute
for
2
semesters
now,
is probably
ruled
out.[3]
On
a
visit
to Lausanne
we
also
gained
the
impression
that
Prof.
Perrier
would not be
suitable
for
us.[4]
The
faculty has, furthermore,
also excluded Dr.
Piccard,[5] assistant
at
the
Fed.
Polytechnic’s phys.
institute,
above all because he
reportedly
has not
yet
provided enough
evidence of his scientific
qualifications.
Now,
however,
Piccard
is
being
recommended
to
me
from
other
quarters
all
the
more
highly
as
very intelligent, original,
and enthusiastic
about
his
subject;
and
I
am
being
told that
he
has done
some very competent
work
besides,
which
has been
judged
favorably by you
as
well.
Since
I
do
not
deem it
appropriate for
the
interim
arrangement
to
persist
until
German
physicists
can once
again
enter
the
contest,
and
I
would
prefer
to fill
the
chair
soon so
long
as
there
is
enough
guarantee
that the
man
to be
appointed
is
equal
to
the
task,
I
take
the
liberty
of
turning
to
you
with the
polite request
that
you kindly
inform
us
how
you assess
Piccard’s scientific achievements.
He is
still
a
young
man,
of
course,
whose best work
is
still ahead
of
him in
the
future.
Thus it
seems
worthwhile to learn from
most
knowledgeable
quarters
whether
his
existing
work reveals
an
independent
scientific
approach
from which
one
may
expect
fruitful
development.
I
have been assured
that Piccard
can
experiment
ably,
and
his
lecturing capabilities
could be
judged
from
a
lecture
course
he holds
for Prof.
Weiss.[6]
You would do
us a
great
service with
a
short
appraisal
of
Piccard’s scientific
achievements,
for which
we
would be
obliged
to
you
with
our
sincere
thanks.
As
the
handling
of this business has
unfortunately
been
dragging
on
considerably
and
the date
for
completion
of
our
deliberations is
close, may
I
presume
to
request
additionally
the favor of
a
quick response.
Allow
me,
highly
esteemed
Sir,
to
assure
you
of
my deep respect,
Mousson
Off[icial]
Adviser.