THE PROGRESS OF SCIENCE. 



91 



as much as the sugar we eat, the 

 beer we drink or the tobacco we smoke. 

 The education of a single man who 

 makes a scientific discovery with indus- 

 trial applications pays back to the com- 

 munity the entire cost of his university 

 since its establishment. And surely 

 the moral and intellectual influence of 

 the university is entirely incommen- 

 surate with its cost. But Professor 

 Ladd believes that our political leaders 

 'are as good as the people who tolerate 

 them deserve,' and that in general we 

 are in a condition of 'degradation, 

 social and moral,' so it is perhaps no 

 wonder that he does not altogether 

 approve of our universities. 



THE AMERICAN PHILOSOPHICAL 

 SOCIETY AND THE AMER- 

 ICAN PHILOSOPHICAL 

 ASSOCIATION. 



It is somewhat interesting to notice 

 that at almost the same time last 

 month, the American Philosophical 

 Society, established in 1743, held a gen- 

 eral meeting in Philadelphia, and a 

 newly established American Philosoph- 

 ical Association held its first meet- 

 ing in New York City. A hundred and 

 fifty years ago all the sciences were 

 parts of philosophy, and it was natural 

 for a society established primarily for 

 the promotion of useful knowledge to 

 call itself a philosophical society. Now 

 we have some twenty sciences, each 

 maintaining a separate national so- 

 ciety. The last of all the groups of 

 special students to organize themselves 

 is that of students of philosophy, and 

 they not unnaturally take the name in 

 which the American Philosophical 

 Society has historic rights. 



As a matter of fact students of phi- 

 losophy have for some years met as a 

 branch of the American Psychological 

 Association, and it is gratifying that 

 nearly a hundred teachers of philosophy 

 in our colleges and universities have 

 found it possible to organize a national 

 society. It is also worthy of note that 

 the Philosophical Association will meet 



next winter at Washington, in conjunc- 

 tion with the American Association for 

 the Advancement of Science and its 

 affiliated societies, thus indicating its 

 intention to be a truly scientific so- 

 ciety. There has certainly been a 

 tendency for a branch of knowledge, 

 when it became reasonably definite, to 

 split off from philosophy, leaving to 

 that discipline those subjects regard- 

 ing which agreement is impossible. 

 But students of philosophy are now 

 finding a definite field that can be culti- 

 vated by scientific methods, whereas 

 students of the special sciences discover 

 the need of examining certain presup- 

 positions that properly belong to 

 philosophy. There is undoubtedly at 

 present a rapprochement between phi- 

 losophy and the sciences, of which the 

 newly established Philosophical Asso- 

 ciation is a sign and to which it will 

 contribute. The first meeting, held at 

 Columbia University, was decidedly 

 successful. Over forty members were 

 present and some twenty papers were 

 presented and discussed. Professor J. 

 E. Creighton, of Cornell University, 

 presided, and is succeeded in the chair 

 by Professor A. T. Ormond, of Prince- 

 ton University. 



In the March issue of this Journal 

 we published an article on the Amer- 

 ican Philosophical Society, established 

 by Franklin and 'held in Philadelphia 

 for the promotion of useful knowledge.' 

 The oldest of American societies, it has 

 for more than a century and a half 

 maintained its activity and usefulness. 

 The general meeting held last month 

 in the old hall of the society brought 

 together members from all parts of the 

 country and a large and interesting 

 program. There may be some question 

 as to whether the Philosophical Society 

 should undertake to retain the national 

 character which it very properly as- 

 sumed when first established, or 

 whether the time has not now gone by 

 when special papers on all the sciences 

 can to advantage be presented on one 

 program, but it is certain that the 



