﻿102 
  JOURNAL 
  OF 
  TH:e 
  WASHINGTON 
  ACADEIMY 
  OP 
  SCIENCES 
  VOL. 
  12, 
  NO. 
  4 
  

  

  to 
  fully 
  justify 
  the 
  time 
  and 
  money 
  necessary 
  for 
  the 
  project. 
  On 
  

   the 
  other 
  hand, 
  he 
  may 
  reflect 
  that 
  the 
  attempt 
  to 
  scale 
  the 
  peak 
  has 
  

   no 
  assurance 
  of 
  success 
  until 
  the 
  foothills 
  have 
  been 
  searched 
  out 
  and 
  

   routes 
  of 
  approach 
  discovered. 
  Then, 
  again, 
  he 
  may 
  remember 
  that 
  

   his 
  first 
  object 
  is 
  to 
  discover 
  regions 
  suitable 
  for 
  the 
  abode 
  of 
  men. 
  

   Because 
  of 
  these 
  considerations 
  he 
  must 
  decide 
  to 
  begin 
  his 
  exploration 
  

   in 
  areas 
  of 
  lesser 
  relief 
  and 
  thus 
  make 
  his 
  work 
  of 
  immediate 
  benefit 
  

   to 
  the 
  people. 
  Just 
  so 
  the 
  Federal 
  investigator, 
  in 
  the 
  performance 
  

   of 
  his 
  public 
  duty, 
  must 
  give 
  preference 
  to 
  those 
  fields 
  of 
  research 
  

   that 
  directly 
  benefit 
  the 
  mass 
  of 
  the 
  people 
  he 
  serves. 
  

  

  I 
  have 
  invited 
  your 
  attention 
  to 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  adverse 
  opinions 
  on 
  

   the 
  policies 
  of 
  Federal 
  research. 
  Each 
  of 
  you 
  will 
  accept 
  or 
  reject 
  

   them 
  according 
  to 
  his 
  own 
  lights, 
  yet 
  they 
  deserve 
  earnest 
  considera- 
  

   tion 
  by 
  every 
  American 
  scientist. 
  If 
  those 
  in 
  the 
  Federal 
  service 
  are 
  

   not 
  doing 
  their 
  share 
  to 
  advance 
  science 
  they 
  are 
  not 
  living 
  up 
  to 
  their 
  

   trust. 
  If 
  those 
  out 
  of 
  the 
  service 
  are 
  convinced 
  of 
  this 
  they 
  too 
  have 
  

   a 
  public 
  duty 
  to 
  perform. 
  Be 
  this 
  as 
  it 
  may, 
  there 
  is 
  another 
  and 
  

   very 
  serious 
  aspect 
  of 
  the 
  matter. 
  The 
  whole 
  spirit 
  of 
  American 
  science 
  

   today 
  is 
  one 
  of 
  cooperation. 
  To 
  promote 
  this 
  spirit 
  the 
  time 
  of 
  many 
  

   eminent 
  men 
  and 
  considerable 
  funds 
  are 
  being 
  expended. 
  If 
  the 
  

   large 
  body 
  of 
  investigators 
  in 
  the 
  Federal 
  service 
  are 
  unjustly 
  charged 
  

   with 
  lower 
  ideals 
  than 
  those 
  in 
  private 
  employment 
  a 
  serious 
  schism 
  

   will 
  develop 
  in 
  American 
  science 
  that 
  cannot 
  be 
  healed 
  by 
  the 
  ap- 
  

   pointment 
  of 
  committees. 
  

  

  Though 
  we 
  may 
  agree 
  that 
  the 
  general 
  policy 
  of 
  the 
  scientific 
  

   service 
  is 
  sound, 
  yet 
  we 
  must 
  admit 
  that 
  there 
  are 
  tendencies 
  that 
  

   should 
  be 
  checked. 
  One 
  of 
  these 
  is 
  the 
  drift 
  toward 
  technology. 
  

   Many 
  Federal 
  institutions 
  are 
  charged 
  by 
  law 
  with 
  both 
  scientific 
  

   and 
  technologic 
  investigations, 
  and 
  the 
  two 
  fields 
  cannot 
  always 
  be 
  

   definitely 
  separated. 
  Yet 
  there 
  is 
  danger 
  that 
  researches 
  into 
  the 
  

   fundamental 
  laws 
  of 
  science 
  be 
  neglected, 
  though 
  these 
  laws 
  must 
  

   obviously 
  be 
  learned 
  before 
  they 
  can 
  be 
  applied 
  to 
  industry. 
  Nearly 
  

   all 
  Federal 
  investigators 
  are 
  pressed 
  for 
  results, 
  and 
  consequently 
  

   they 
  have 
  a 
  natural 
  tendency 
  to 
  give 
  preference 
  to 
  the 
  smaller 
  problems 
  

   — 
  those 
  that 
  do 
  not 
  consume 
  too 
  much 
  time. 
  Some 
  of 
  the 
  problems 
  

   thus 
  chosen 
  might 
  well 
  be 
  left 
  to 
  industry, 
  and 
  the 
  funds 
  devoted 
  to 
  

   searching 
  out 
  the 
  more 
  fundamental 
  principles. 
  

  

  Perhaps 
  the 
  most 
  crying 
  evil 
  in 
  the 
  service 
  is 
  the 
  endeavor 
  to 
  ac- 
  

   complish 
  too 
  much. 
  Our 
  vast 
  area 
  and 
  our 
  complex 
  industries 
  lead 
  

   to 
  demands 
  that 
  cannot 
  be 
  met 
  with 
  the 
  resources 
  available. 
  The 
  

  

  