THE PROGRESS OF SCIENCE. 



285 



observatory efficient and in rank with 

 the best institutions of the land. It 

 appears that no other observatory in 

 the world has the expenditure of so 

 much money, but also that its results 

 are not commensurate with those of 

 Bome other observatories the expendi- 

 tures of which are less. Its head 

 should of course be the best astrono- 

 mer, who has proper administrative 

 qualifications, that can be found in the 

 country. It is especially desirable 

 that he should have continuity of 

 tenure, as the observatory has un- 

 doubtedly suffered from frequent 

 changes in its superintendents. 



"While the average term of service 

 of superintendents at Greenwich has 

 been twenty-eight years and at Harvard 

 fifteen, at the Naval Observatory it 

 has been only a little over three. I 

 urgently recommend that the legisla- 

 tion of the last Congress to the effect 

 'that the superintendent of the Naval 

 Observatory shall be, imtil further 

 legislation by Congress, a line officer of 

 the navy of a rank not below that of 

 captain,' be repealed, and that on the 

 contrary it be enacted that there shall 

 be no limitation upon the field from 

 which the superintendent is to be 

 Belected. As well might the above- 

 quoted statute have provided that the 

 commissioner of fish and fisheries 

 should be selected from the line of the 

 marine corps, or the director of the 

 Geological Survey from the line of the 

 army. 



"There is no vital relation between 

 the navy and the observatory. It may 

 happen that some naval officer is pre- 

 eminently qualified for such a place, 

 in which case he would be appointed 

 to it, but the country is entitled to 

 have unlimited range of selection. 

 The present limitation, which shuts out 

 the whole body of civilian astronomers 

 and even any astronomer in the na\'y 

 who does not happen to be in the line, 

 or, if in the line, below the rank of 

 captain, is peculiar. Only a very small 

 proportion of naval officers are not be- 



low the rank of captain, and as most 

 of them are required for naval services 

 — a requirement which is now increas- 

 ing — the list from which selection can 

 be made is a noticeably small one. It 

 is evident, too, from the wording of the 

 above quotation from the statute, that 

 Congress in passing it had in mind 

 further legislation in this respect." 



JVORK OF THE DEPARTMENT OF 

 AGRICULTURE. 



The report of the Secretary of Agri- 

 culture for the past year shows that 

 progress has been made in strengthen- 

 ing the organization of the National 

 Department of Agriculture, and in in- 

 creasing the breadth and efficiency of 

 its scientific work. Four bureaus have 

 been organized for the purpose of 

 bringing together more closely the 

 allied lines of work and providing for 

 the expansion which has been author- 

 ii-ed by Congress in other lines. These 

 are the Bureaus of Plant Industry, of 

 Soils, of Forestry and of Chemistry. The 

 Bureau of Plant Industry, the creation 

 of which has involved the most reor- 

 ganization of any of the new bureaus, 

 combines under one head the work in 

 nine different branches, each presided 

 over by an expert, and with a corps of 

 more than two hundred efficient work- 

 ers. The unification of work and the 

 closer cooperation which have resulted, 

 together with the economy of time in 

 administration, lead the secretary to 

 recommend a further extension of the 

 bureau system in the department. He 

 announces that preliminary plans have 

 been procured for a new agricultural 

 building, providing facilities for bring- 

 ing together all the administrative and 

 laboratory work in the various lines 

 under one roof. 



The report shows that the depart- 

 ment has been alert in its efforts to ex- 

 tend the markets for our agricultural 

 products abroad, and no less so in seek- 

 ing to bring about the production in 

 this country and its new possessions of 

 a large part of the $400,000,000 worth 



