would create unnecessary difficulties in this respect, he did want this to be resolved in an
orderly fashion.
Having weighed all the pros and cons for about three weeks (Fontein had told him he could
take all the time he wanted), Lorentz then wrote to the trustees.145 As a solution to his worries
he suggested a transitionary phase of three to four years in which he would already place
himself at the Foundation’s disposal, but stay on in Leiden as a full professor until the
question of his succession had been resolved. After that, he would stay on as an honorary
professor or a normal lecturer at the university in order to secure his pension, but move to
Haarlem and consider the Foundation his primary employer. During this transitionary phase,
the salary he received from the Foundation did not have to be a full one.
Lorentz then went on to explain how he would define his tasks at Teylers, should he be taken
on by the Foundation. His first concern was the laboratory, which he wrote “must not be
neglected”, but used for the preparation of lectures and “to no lesser degree, [be] a place
where scientific research is performed.” 14 Interestingly, he then stated that the trustees were
surely aware that, thus far, he had concerned himself more with theoretical rather than
experimental work. Although he wanted to remain in overall charge of the activities at the
laboratory and conduct the occasional experiment himself, he also stated that he could not
oversee the day-to-day running of the laboratory, and therefore proposed that an assistant be
taken on, preferably “a young, promising physicist [...] who has already earned his spurs, and
who has shown that he can work on his own, so that I could, not only during the years I would
still spend in Leiden, but also later, leave the laboratory almost entirely to him.” 147 This
young physicist could receive the title “conservator”, as assistant professors at universities
then did, and also receive a comparative salary.
Together, Lorentz continued, they could then run Teylers like a Dutch equivalent to the Royal
Institution in London. They would take care of the instrument collection (referred to as “the
cabinet”), perform research in the laboratory and assist external researchers who might want
to use the research facilities, give lectures and courses for the general public as well as science
teachers, and edit the Archives.
Finally, Lorentz still pointed out that implementing his ideas could be costly, as the
refurbishment of the laboratory as well as the conservator’s salary would incur extra costs.
But the trustees were unperturbed. They arranged for another meeting with Lorentz on
October 2 7 ', and although no minutes of the meeting were taken or have been preserved, it is
clear from their subsequent correspondence with Lorentz, and Lorentz’ with Bosscha, that the
trustees had gone along with all of Lorentz’ proposals, and Lorentz had tentatively committed
himself to working for the Foundation. All he still wanted to do was personally inform his
145 For Fontein’s offer see: H.A. Lorentz to J. Bosscha, c. 17.08.1909, Haarlem, ATS, vol. 183.
“Het laboratorium van “Teyler”mag niet worden verwaarloosd.” / “vooral niet minder, een plaats zijn, waar
wetenschappelijk onderzoek verricht wordt.”: H.A. Lorentz to trustees o f the Teyler Foundation, 25.08.1909,
Haarlem, ATS, vol. 36.
“een jong, veelbelovend physicus [...] die zijne sporen reeds verdiend heeft, en die getoond heeft, zelfstandig
te kunnen werken, zoodat ik hem, niet alleen in de jaren die ik nog te Leiden zou doorbrengen, maar ook later,
het laboratorium zo goed als geheel zou kunnen overlaten.”
colleagues in Leiden and the board of the faculty of his plans to leave them. He reassured the
trustees that their reaction would, however, have no impact on his decision to come and work
for the Foundation.
One interesting point he still brings up is a suggestion by Herman Haga to turn the laboratory
at Teylers into a Dutch equivalent of the Physikalisch Technische Reichsanstalt in Berlin,
which would have meant it would calibrate all instruments in the Netherlands. Lorentz
himself was only lukewarm about the idea, and it never materialised.1 8 Incidentally, recall
that Haga had himself applied for the post of curator after van der Willigen had died.
A final meeting was scheduled for November 18‘ in Haarlem to agree on contractual details.
Lorentz gave his assessment of the laboratory he was to be made the head of (he had
inspected it some days earlier), and reported that he had come to the conclusion that although
a refurbishment was necessary, a new building was not - at least not for another 20 to 25
years. Once that period of time had passed, the new laboratory space could be created in an
adjacent building. As for his title, “professor”, “consultant” and “advisor” were floated, but
the title “curator” was eventually agreed upon. So Lorentz was to be the “curator” of the
Foundation’s laboratory, and his assistant the “conservator”. Lorentz agreed to draw up a list
of possible assistants as soon as possible.
Lorentz set to work doing so over the course of the following weeks, and on December 9th he
suggested Gerhard Johan Elias, who at that point was working in Berlin with Henri du Bois,
assisting him in his magneto-optical research.1 Lorentz wrote that he was an excellent
candidate both because he had gained a lot of experience in running a laboratory in Berlin,
and because magneto-optical research was what Lorentz intended to focus on in Haarlem. Just
as interesting, however, is the list of candidates that either refused the job or who Lorentz
rejected. His first choice, the director of the Royal Magnetic and Meteorological Observatory
in Batavia, Willem van Bemmelen, refused to leave the Dutch Colonies unless he could get a
significant pay rise. Chemists on the other hand Lorentz did not take into consideration
because he wanted to run a physics laboratory. He did seriously consider choosing an assistant
from a long list of science teachers at polytechnics around Haarlem - most of them were well
educated and had ample experience in running their schools’ laboratories. And finally, he
decided not to take on Wander Johannes de Haas, even though he was a promising candidate,
because he had only just completed his studies and not obtained his PhD yet.
The trustees did not doubt Lorentz’ recommendation, and on December 10th 1909, the
decision was taken to appoint both Lorentz and Elias as curator and conservator of the
laboratory of the Teyler Foundation respectively.150 Their tenure was to begin on January Is'
1910, although it soon transpired that Elias could not leave Berlin so quickly.
148 Lorentz to trustees o f the Teyler Foundation, 04.11.1909, Haarlem ATS, vol. 36. Together with Kamerlingh
Onnes and Bosscha, Haga had earlier suggested that this task was to be performed by HBS-teachers across the
country. See: Frans van Lunteren, ‘“Van meten tot weten’: De opkomst der experiméntele fysica aan de
Nederlandse universiteiten in de negentiende eeuw,” Gewina 18, no. 2 (1995): 102-103.
149 Lorentz to trustees o f the Teyler Foundation, 09.12.1909, Haarlem, ATS, vol. 36.
150 “Directienotulen”, 10.12.1909, Haarlem, ATS, vol. 13.