8 HARMON NORTHROP MORSE— REMSEN [MEMOIBS t vot T xit 



Before the work of Professor Morse began, the importance of osmotic pressure had been 

 very generally recognized. Not only in chemistry, where it is of fundamental significance, but 

 also in allied sciences, such as botany and physiology, the importance of osmosis in connection 

 with the motion of the fluids in living tissues was clearly recognized. In fact, its importance in 

 these connections was recognized before its importance to chemistry, and we owe a great deal 

 of the early experimental work on osmotic pressure to investigators working in these fields; 

 but their results were either indirect or covered a very limited range and had little claim to 

 accuracy. So, for years, science had stood before this closed door of knowledge waiting for 

 some one skillful and resourceful enough to gain entrance. This situation left no room to doubt 

 that the one who could succeed in overcoming the experimental difficulties in the way of further 

 progress would perform a valuable service to many branches of science. For this reason one 

 may, at the present time, appraise the scientific contribution of Professor Morse at its true value 

 without any of the uncertainty that so frequently attends the consideration of work so soon 

 after its completion. I shall limit further reference to the importance of this work to chemistry 

 alone, since this was the field of Professor Morse's labors. 



The importance of osmotic pressure to chemistry and physics was first pointed out by 

 Van't Hoff in 1885. Van't Hoff showed the quantitative relation that exists between any of 

 the colligative properties of solutions, and these relations and the closely connected theory 

 of electrolytic dissociation of Arrhenius form our present theory of solutions and to a large 

 extent modern theoretical chemistry as well. The introduction of these theories has so com- 

 pletely changed the character of chemical instruction and has been so fruitful in the field of 

 research that it may be truly said that for a large part of the intervening time chemistry has 

 lived upon these ideas. Although the theory of Van't Hoff is based on thermodynamic reason- 

 ing, the almost complete lack of experimental evidence on the subject of osmotic pressure so 

 weakened his chain connecting these fundamental properties that many chemists of the older 

 school hesitated to trust it. Briefly, the work of Professor Morse on osmotic pressure was to 

 forge the last link of this chain of experimental evidence and by so doing perform a valuable 

 contribution to theoretical chemistry. 



The scientific career of Professor Morse is unusual in that his most important contributions 

 came so late in his life. At the time when others seek to lay aside their burdens and rest, he was 

 striking his most telling blows, and not until his day was far spent and its shadows lengthening 

 did he succeed in completing his chapter of science to his own satisfaction. 



This work on osmotic pressure is a model of experimentation which in American research 

 has in some respects a counterpart in the work of Morley on the densities of oxygen and hydrogen. 

 Both are large pieces of experimental research of a fundamental nature extending over many 

 years, both involved overcoming numerous experimental difficulties, and both resulted in giving 

 to the world data of an unexpected excellence. 



The work of Professor Morse on osmotic pressure must, therefore, remain one of the brilliant 

 contributions to American chemistry, a precious heritage of our university, an inspiration to 

 those who follow, and a perpetual monument to his memory. 



III. DOCTOR HOWELUS ADDRESS 



I had the good fortune to know Doctor Morse with increasing intimacy through many 

 years; from the time that I was a student in his classes in 1880 until his death last summer. My 

 acquaintance with him during this time passed through several stages; the relation of teacher 

 and student, of a friend and colleague, and finally that of a near neighbor for some 20 years 

 during the long pleasant summer vacations — each of these periods gave me a new point of view 

 in regard to his personal qualities; and while I am not qualified to speak as a specialist in refer- 

 ence to his scientific work, it is a pleasure and a privilege to express in a few words my great 

 respect and admiration for him as a man, and my appreciation of the important part that he 

 took in establishing the reputation of this university as a center of scientific research. 



My student impressions of him were quickly formed and gauged accurately, I believe; 

 some of them characteristics which made him so eminently successful in his scientific work. The 



