498 EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. 



started. Prof. C. A. Zavitz, the director of this work, says: " Both the financial and 

 the educational influences of this work throughout Ontario are great. The l)enefits 

 are not confined to the experimenters themselves, but are shared by thousands of 

 others who examine the gi'owing crops, who attend the annual meetings, who read 

 the annual reports, or who become familiar with the results through the columns of 

 the public press, in the meetings of the farmers' institutes, and in various other ways." 



Meeting of American Chemical Society. — The winter meeting of this societ)'^, 

 which was its twenty-fifth general meeting, Avas held in Philadelphia December 30 

 and 31. It was one of the largest winter meetings which the society has had, and 

 was attended by chemists prominent in general, theoretical, industrial, and agricul- 

 tural chemistry. The sessions were presided over by Prof. F. W. Clarke, president 

 of the society, who delivered the presidential address on the subject of the develop- 

 ment of chemistry. In this he called attention to the limited opportunities for 

 systematic research on the larger problems which were open to chemists connected 

 with educational institutions, the Government laboratories, and industrial establish- 

 ments, in all of which chemistry was to a large extent a means for the attainment 

 of a desired end. He strongly emphasized, therefore, the great desirability of public 

 or private endowment of research laboratories, whose main object should be system- 

 atic research in the science of chemistry, and through which cooperation in investi- 

 gation might be arranged. 



Dr. Hale, the secretary of the society, briefly reviewed the growth of the society 

 since its meeting in Philadelphia 11 years ago. During the past year 344 new mem- 

 bers have been added to the society, making the total membership at present about 

 2,000, with 13 local sections aside from the one now forming on the Pacific coast. 



F. W. Clarke presented the report on atomic w^eights, noting the more important 

 work in that line during the year. The international committee on atomic weights 

 had not been able to make a report on the standard of values to be used — whether 

 0=16 or H=l. A communication from the newU. S. Bureau of Standards proposed 

 cooperation with the society in fixing methods of testing glassware apparatus and in 

 adapting the work of the Bureau to the needs of chemists. A resolution urging 

 Congress to make the use of the decimal system compulsory in all departments of the 

 Government except the Public- Land Surveys, and to jjrovide for its immediate adop- 

 tion in the Mint and the Post-Otfice, was referred to the council of the society. 



The programme of the meeting contained a list of 37 papers, only 20 of which could 

 be read, aside from the address of the retiring president, on account of lack of time. 

 The papers presented dealt quite largely with analytical and industrial phases of 

 chemistry, although there were several on general and theoretical chemistry. Among 

 those which were not reached on the programme were several on subjects relating to 

 agricultural chemistry. 



A long list of excursions to various industrial establishments was provided for the 

 afternoons. These were quite generally participated in by the chemists, and, with 

 the purely social features, made the meeting one of unusual interest and profit. 



Dr. Ira Kemson, president of Johns Hopkins University, was elected president of 

 the society for the coming year, and Dr. Albert C. Hale was reelected secretary. 

 The editor of the journal of the society, Edward Hart, having resigned, "W. A. Noyes 

 was elected to that office, and the edition of the journal was increased to 3,000 copies. 

 The next meeting of the society will be at Pittsburg in June, in connection with 

 the meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. 



Necrology. — Thomas Meehan, long one of the most prominent horticulturists and 

 botanists in this country, died of heart trouble in Philadelphia November 19, 1901, 

 at the age of 75 years. Mr. jNIeehan was a recognized authorit}- on the broader lines 

 of botany, a prolific writer on botanical and horticultural subjects, and one of the 

 most prominent nurserymen of eastern United States. Of English birth, he inherited 

 a love of plants from his father, who was a skillful gardener. At 19 he entered the 



