ENTOMOLOGICAL NEWS. 



PHILADLPHIA, PA., DECEMBER, 1915. 



The Financial Status of Scientific Journals. 



There are over a hundred journals and proceedings devoted to 

 the publication of research work in America, not one of which pays 

 its expenses on a regular business basis. .. .Indirectly they are now 

 subsidized by the work of contributors and editors supported by 

 endowed or tax-supported institutions and by subscriptions to public 

 libraries. Popular Science Monthly, Vol. 87, p. 311. 



ENTOMOLOGICAL NEWS has been conducted for twenty-six 

 years on what we considered a self-supporting basis that is, 

 the expenses of publication have always been covered by the 

 subscriptions and advertisements but under the definition 

 given in the Popular Science Monthly it may not be considered 

 to be conducted on a business basis. 



The only person to receive pay is the printer. To be on a 

 "business basis" the editors, advisory committee and contribu- 

 tors should be paid and the journal should not be sold to any 

 institutions tax-supported or endowed. This appears to be 

 the money age and money is considered necessary for all sci- 

 entific work. As a matter of fact, money, up to date, has 

 been largely a failure as a factor in the advancement of sci- 

 ence, as the great discoveries have been made without its help. 

 On the other hand, an immense amount of poor and useless 

 work has been subsidized by money. 



The true advance will be made in spite of every obstacle 



* 



and it yet remains to be proven that money is not largely a 

 failure as a sine qua non in science and natural history. 



ENTOMOLOGICAL NEWS then is not on a "business basis" and 

 not likely to be in the near future ; yet it manages to do what 

 some of our friends consider excellent work for entomology. 



-H. S. 



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