126 SCIENCE PROGRESS 



Fellows of the Royal Society would, I believe, be entirely in favour of the complete 

 deletion of the statute which allows the election of any persons except on the 

 grounds of distinguished scientific work. 



Our learned societies in general should be reformed in several particulars — 

 some of which have been suggested in back numbers of SCIENCE PROGRESS. 

 Few of them really do much for science except provide media for publication for 

 papers, with an occasional, but generally very scanty, discussion. The main fault 

 appears to lie in the method of election of councils, which is not democratic 

 enough. The method of previous nominations by councils generally has the 

 practical effect of enabling the sitting council and the officers to select whoever 

 they please to select, thus tending to make the societies into oligarchies which 

 choose their own friends and often exclude the most vigorous and capable Fellows 

 who criticise their doings. 



Mr. William Heinemann issues an excellent little book with an introduction by 

 Sir E. Ray Lankester called Science and Education, consisting of a number 

 of lectures delivered years ago at the Royal Institution by Faraday, Tindall, 

 Paget, and others. The lectures are still much to the point, but, in fact, few of 

 the reforms advocated by the lecturers have yet been effected. Sir Ray Lankester's 

 Introduction is also much to the point. 



Another book, One Hundred Points in Food Economy (G. Bell & Sons), by 

 Mr. J. Grant Ramsay, F.R.E.S., Principal of the Institute of Hygiene, may be 

 recommended in these times of voluntary rationing. Each of the hundred points 

 is very well put, and may be remembered by housekeepers, though I am not sure 

 that all housekeepers will agree with every point, at least if they are ladies. But 

 the author is an expert on the subject. 



Sir Arthur Newsholme, M.D., F.R.C.P., has recently written a fourth series of 

 Reports (Local Government Board, Cd. 8496) on the very important subject of 

 Child Mortality in England and Wales. It summarises the experience gained 

 during the last four years, in which 575,078 deaths occurred under the age of five, 

 or more than a quarter of all the deaths at all ages. Striking contrasts in the 

 mortality have been found. Thus Shoreditch had 241 deaths per thousand births 

 against 112 in Hampstead, while Burnley, Wigan, and Middlesbrough had over 

 250 deaths per thousand births, as against 96 in Ilford. Sir Arthur Newsholme's 

 final chapter reviews the steps that should be taken for the diminution of this 

 mortality. 



Much concern has been manifested by men of science in the fact that the 

 Kew Bulletin was suspended in consequence of its consumption of paper; and 

 Sir William Beale and Sir William Cowan have asked questions on the matter in 

 the House of Commons. The reply was that the suspension of the Bulletin was 

 acquiesced in by the Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens. The matter lies 

 within the office of the Controller of His Majesty's Stationery Office. 



