MISCELLANEOUS 427 



which helped much in diffusing knowledge of the silo in the times when 

 it had to fight for recognition; and Land Drainage. Of his papers, he 

 published in the Popular Science Monthly articles on Scientific Farming 

 at Rothamstead; Ensilage and Fermentation; Lines of Progress in Agri- 

 culture; Progress in Agricultural Science; and How Plants and Animals 

 Grow. To the American Association for the Advancement of Science he 

 contributed papers on Energy as a Factor in Rural Economy ; Heredity of 

 Acquired Characters (also to the American Naturalist); Surface Tension 

 of Water and Evaporation; Energy as a Factor in Nutrition; and Limits 

 of Biological Experiments (also to the American Naturalist). Other 

 articles in the American Naturalist were on Animal Mechanics and the 

 Relative Efficiency of Animals as Machines. In the Proceedings of the 

 American Educational Association is an address by him on Instruction 

 in Manual Arts in Connection with Scientific Studies. The records of th(^ 

 U and I Club, of Lansing, of which he was a valued member for ten 

 years, .contain papers on a variety of scientific subjects which were read 

 before it, and were highly appreciated. This list does not contain all of 

 Professor Miles' contributions to the literature of science, for through- 

 out his life he was a frequent contributor to the agricultural and scientific 

 press, and a frequent speaker before associations and institutes, "where 

 his lectures were able and practical." 



No special record is made of the work of Professor Miles in the Ameri- 

 can Agriculturist, but the corresjjondence of Professor Thurber with 

 him furnishes ample proof that he was one of the most trusted advisers 

 in the editorial conduct of that journal. The familiar tone of Professor 

 Thurber's letters, and the undoubting assurance with which he asked for 

 information and aid on various subjects, well demonstrate how well 

 the editor knew whom he could rely upon in an emergency. 



In all his work the great desire of Professor Miles was to find and pre- 

 sent the truth. His merits were recognized by many scientific societies. 

 He was made a corresponding member of the Buffalo Society of Natural 

 Sciences in 1862; a corresponding member of the Entomological Society 

 of Natural Sciences in 1862; a corresponding member of the Entomologi- 

 cal Society of Philadelphia in January, 1863; a correspondent of the 

 Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia in 1864; a member of the 

 American Association for the Advancement of Science in 1880, and a 

 Fellow of the same body in 1890; and held memberships or other relations 

 with other societies; and he received the degree of D. V. S. from Columbia 

 Veterinary College, New York, in March, 1880. 



His students and friends speak in term of high admiration of the genial 

 qualities of Professor Miles as a companion. The resolutions of the 

 U and I Club of Lansing describe him as an easy and graceful talker, a 

 cheerful dispenser of his learning to others. ''To spend an hour in his 

 'den,' and watch his delicate experiments with 'films,' " says President 

 Clute, "and see the light in his eyes as he talked of them, was a delight." 

 "He was particularly fond of boys," says another, "and never seemed 

 happier than when in the company of boys or young men who were try- 

 ing to study and to inform themselves, and if he could in any way assist 

 them he was only too glad to do so;" and he liked pets and children. Inci- 

 dents are related showing that he had a wonderful accuracy in noting 

 and recollecting the minutes details that came under his observation — a 



