xxviii PROCEEDINGS OF THE CENTENARY MEETING. 



master. That sounded pretty well, and I inquired at what place I had been 

 appointed the Postmaster. I wanted to know that, and also what the salary 

 was; and then I learned (I must confess, with a good deal of disappointment) 

 that I was not a Postmaster after all, but only a Toastmaster. Some who agreed 

 to speak have backed out. Still, there is plenty of talent here; and I am glad 

 that we have with us to-night His Honor, Mayor Rudolph Blankenburg, of our 

 goodly city of Philadelphia. 



Mayor Blankenburg: 



Mr. President, Members of The Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, and 

 Guests: I do not know what you have done that I should be inflicted upon you to- 

 night. I came here confident that I would not be called upon to speak on this aus- 

 picious occasion. One of the prerogatives of the office of Mayor of Philadelphia is 

 an invitation to every banquet that takes place; the penalty, almost invariably, 

 that he must earn his "meal ticket" by a speech. If I only had the capacity, 

 I could eat enough during the four years of my term to last me for the rest of 

 my life should I live to be a hundred, but unfortunately, I have not that capacity. 



A feeling of awe overcomes me when I look into the faces of learned and 

 scientific men because they are so far beyond my ken that a sense of profound 

 humility overcomes me in their presence. This sensation of insignificance has 

 been materially dispelled this evening as I look at the magnificent dining room 

 presided over by Dr. Dixon. We have before us beautiful decorations, and the 

 elaborate menu which we have discussed, as well as everything else connected 

 with it, including liquids, has convinced me that scientists are only mortals 

 after all. 



I know that you have enjoyed yourselves thoroughly. You have partaken 

 of the good things set before you and some of you may even have indulged in 

 something besides Schuylkill water; (I should have said, "some of us.") 



I have made a discovery this evening which is of such importance that it 

 must be announced first before this august assembly. It is nothing less than 

 that the forty women who are as much members of the Academy as any of you 

 men, do not seem to be able to eat. This is the most remarkable discovery of 

 recent years. I am sure these ladies would not be excluded from the feast 

 had they learned to eat like men! 6 



I shall be brief, as there are many speakers to follow me. We are proud of 

 The Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. It is known all over 

 the world and is one of the institutions that appeals to every citizen. The 

 Academy has done much to give Philadelphia the name and the fame to which 

 we are justly entitled as a center of learning. I believe the collections in your 

 building are as extensive and as valuable as those in any similar institution in the 

 United States. They have been gathered through the energy and care of the men 

 who have, in one hundred years, from small and humble beginnings, succeeded 

 in giving to Philadelphia its foremost scientific society. How it has flourished in 



6 In allusion to the fact that there were no ladies present. 



