TEACHERS' SCHOOL OF SCIENCE. 



457 



direction and advice. It was believed tliat such a laboi-atorv would 

 meet the wants of many teachers who had attended practical lessons 

 in The Teachers' School of Science. Twenty-two persons — ten wom- 

 en and twelve men (nearly double the number expected) — availed 

 themselves of the privileges offered. The snmmer work, which was 

 very successful, was due to the ability and energy of Mr. B. K. Van 

 Vleek, who had the whole charge of the instruction and work done 

 in the laboratory. The seaside laboratory continued to be used 

 successfully in the same way during seven consecutive summers, 

 and the w^ork of the lal)oratory materially influenced the future 

 science teaching in several 

 (•olleges and in many public 

 schools of this country. In 

 1886 Professor Hyatt called 

 the attention of the "Wom- 

 an's Education Association 

 and the society to the fact 

 that the laboratory had 

 reached a stage when it 

 could claim the support of 

 patrons of science and learn- 

 ing, and be placed on an in- 

 <lependent and permanent 

 foundation. The two asso- 

 <'iations accordingly called a 

 meeting, made up largely of 

 the representative teachers 

 of biology, who decided to 

 make an effort to establish a 

 permanent biological labora- 

 tory and raise at least hiteen 



hundred dollars to carry it on for five years. The result was the 

 foundation of the Marine Biological Laboratory, at AVoods Holl, 

 which now attracts to its general courses teachers and other students 

 from all over the land, and also maintains a department for special 

 research work. 



In 1882 agents were obtained, by correspondence and through 

 the kindness of the Secretary of the State Board of Education, Mr. 

 Dickinson, in forty-four towais, who distributed tickets and filled 

 out blanks so that the benefits of The Teachers' School of Science 

 were extended beyond the limits of Boston. In this year there were 

 two courses, one of ten lessons, by Professor ISTiles, on physical geog- 

 raphy, and five on physiology, by Dr. II. P. Bowditch. These courses 

 betran in November and continued throughout the whole year, with 



