80 NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES 
1898-1902 
The Academy became connected in 1899 with a movement 
having for its purpose the association of the scientific academies 
of Europe and America for the furtherance of enterprises of 
international scope and importance. It first came to the notice 
of the National Academy through a letter addressed to its Presi- 
dent by Lord Lister, President of the Royal Society of London. 
This letter, which was dated April 14, 1899, is as follows: ™ 
“THE Royal SociETY, BURLINGTON HousE, 
“ London, W., April 14, 1899. 
“Sir: The Royal Society has frequently had occasion to take action in respect 
to scientific undertakings calling for the cooperation of several countries, and 
undertakings of this nature show a tendency to increase. “The experience of the 
society has led to the belief that it would be very advantageous to the interests 
of science generally if some machinery could be devised by means of which sug- 
gestions made for international cooperation in scientific inquiries could be thor- 
oughly discussed by the leading men of science, from a purely scientific point of 
view, before definite proposals are made with a view to official action by the 
Governments of the countries concerned. 
“With this view the Royal Society has communicated with the leading 
scientific academies of Europe, whose replies give much encouragement to the idea 
that it may be possible to establish an organization under which formal and regular 
meetings of representatives of all leading scientific academies may be held for the 
purpose of discussing scientific matters calling for international cooperation, and by 
this means preparing the way for international action. The Council of the Royal 
Society regards this question as one of great importance, and I am to request you 
to bring it before your Academy, and to ask whether that body would be prepared 
to join such an organization if established, and to cooperate in arranging the 
details for inaugurating it upon a practical working basis. 
“T have the honor to be, very faithfully, yours, 
“ LISTER, 
“ President Royal Society.” 
The letter was followed in June of the same year by an invita- 
tion from the German academies, transmitted by the Royal 
Prussian Academy of Sciences in Berlin, to send delegates to a 
conference at Wiesbaden on the gth and roth of October for 
the purpose of organizing an international association of learned 
* Rep. Nat. Acad. Sci. for 1899, pp. 14-15. 
