OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 341 



be satisfied that fifty years of devoted service has not been spent in 

 vain. 



A substantial part of Professor Lovering's work as a teacher, which 

 we must not forget, are the numerous popular essays on scientific sub- 

 jects which he published from time to time in various periodicals. 

 Several of the earlier of these appeared in the " American Almanac," 

 and most of the later in the Proceedings of this Academy, including 

 addresses on the presentation of the Rumford Medal, and biographi- 

 cal notices printed in connection with the Reports of the Council. 

 What is probably a complete list, as it was revised by Professor 

 Lovering himself, may be found in the " Popular Science Monthly " 

 for September, 1889, in connection with a short biographical notice. 

 In these essays, popular only in that they do not assume a specialist's 

 knowledge, are preserved to us the striking characteristics of Pro- 

 fessor Lovering's teaching to which I have referred. They are as 

 fresh to-day as when written, and are not only highly interesting as 

 choice examples of popular scientific exposition, but also of permanent 

 value, as exhibiting in a striking manner the changes in the modes of 

 scientific thought during the last half-century. I am anxious that 

 the most suitable of these essays for the purpose should be collected 

 and reproduced in a handsome volume, and in my judgment this 

 would be the most fitting memorial we could prepare of our late 

 honored President. 



Professor John Trowbridge, the successor of Professor 

 Lovering as Director of the Jefferson Physical Laboratory 

 in Harvard University, nest spoke : — 



In due time Professor Lovering's scientific labors will receive at- 

 tention in a more elaborate way than I can pretend to devote to them 

 to-night. His death is so recent that the time for the critical sum- 

 ming up of the labors of a long life has not been sufficient for a 

 careful presentation to you of the subjects in which he worked, and 

 upon which his reputation as a scientific man will rest. The subjects 

 of Astronomy, Meteorology, Magnetism, and Optics were favorite 

 ones with him. I find in the American Journal of Science a paper 

 on Meteoric Observations made at Cambridge in 1839. This paper 

 marks, I believe, the beginning of his scientific work, and following it 

 were a large number of articles on the subjects I have mentioned. 

 The catalogue of scientific papers published by the Royal Society 

 of England contains between the years 1839 and 1863 the titles of 

 eighteen papers. Among these are the following : — 



