Iviii Trans. Acad. Sci. of St. Louis. 



has suggested that I talk upon the meaning of an Academy 

 of Science, I cannot perhaps do better than to make the his- 

 tory of western Academies a point of departure, because the 

 meaning of these Academies is expressed in their history. 

 The Academy of St. Louis and the younger western Acad- 

 emies were started under the stimulus of the newness and at- 

 tractiveness of the rich and virgin field in which the early 

 enthusiasts found themselves situated. This field was just 

 beginning to be appreciated and enjoyed at that time. And 

 so it was rather the enthusiasm of those who were inspired by 

 these sciences, than any mastery of the field, or any great 

 attainments in it, that promoted the organization of these 

 Academies. There were a few men like Dr. Engelmann who 

 had already attained noble things in the mastery of certain 

 departments of natural science, but these were rare and con- 

 spicuous exceptions. The great mass of those who assisted in 

 forming these Academies were rather enthusiasts in learning 

 something about the new realm than profound students in it. 

 They were perhaps prompted rather by laudable curiosity and 

 personal wish for knowledge than by a firm and set purpose 

 to develop rigorous science as such. 



But that stage soon passed away, and most of these Acad- 

 emies began to experience the untoward effects of the waning 

 of these first enthusiasms. There followed a necessary shift- 

 ing of effort from enthusiasm to the harder more systematic 

 work of true science. This was accompanied by the evolution 

 of the specialist, and attended by the less popular character- 

 istics of specialism. The Academy in this later aspect 

 necessarily ceased to offer that general attractiveness to the 

 community which it did in the days of its pioneer work, and 

 difficulties of maintenance arose from this. A solution of a part 

 of these difliculties has already been suggested by our Toast- 

 Master. He advises that the less popular studies be com- 

 mitted directly to print without reading in open session where 

 few could appreciate them. In the printed form, they may 

 be studied by the fire-side with care and leisure. As a friend 

 said to me to-day, you can then turn back and review what 



