he was born in melbourne in australia on 29 june 1897 and attended wesley college in melbourne. he then won a place at melbourne university graduating bsc in chemistry and biology in 1920. he continued as a postgraduate, gaining an msc in 1923 then travelling to scotland to study for a phd at the university of edinburgh under the supervision of james cossar ewart. here he also began work at the animal breeding research department (later renamed the institute of animal genetics). colleagues included the pharmacist john michael robson who joined the institute in 1929.