XX OBITUARY NOTICES OF MEMBERS DECEASED. 



a simple light production is to be expected of this marvellous agent. It must 

 not only light our houses, but it must warm them and must furnish mechanical 

 power to them for a thousand petty operations now either done not at all, or 

 done by manual labor. It must pump the water, raise the elevator, run the 

 sewing machine, turn the spit, perform its part of the laundry service, and 

 perhaps even assist in the cooking. 



As before indicated, it was natural that the early work of Edison 

 on the carbon filament lamp should greatly interest Dr. Barker. 

 This lamp was not brought out until 1880. but we find that it was in 

 that year tested as a light source by him, acting in collaboration with 

 Professor Henry A. Rowland. The results were published in the 

 American Journal of Science, and in the Chemical Nezvs. This 

 account of early tests was followed in 1881 by papers dealing with 

 the general subject of electric light photometry and by results of 

 tests. Dr. Barker was chairman of the Sub-commission on Incan- 

 descent Lamps at the Paris Electrical Exposition in 1881, the other 

 members being Wm. Crookes, E. Hagenbach, A. Kundt and E. 

 Mascart. There is no need to make any comment on the standing 

 of these men. Their work was in fact pioneer work done at the 

 start of an industry which today has become one of enormous im- 

 portance. As the Paris Exposition of 1881 was the first to be 

 devoted entirely to electricity and its applications, it possessed a pecu- 

 liar interest. The International Congress of Electricians held at the 

 same time has been before referred to. Dr. Barker prepared a 

 report on the proceedings of this congress. 



As an example of painstaking and exhaustive work in another 

 field, by a committee of which he was the head, may be mentioned 

 the Report of the Committee of the National Academy of Sciences, 

 on Glucose. The investigation was undertaken at the request of 

 the Commissioner of Internal Revenue, as the information was 

 needed as a guide to Congress in legislation concerning the manu- 

 facture and sale of glucose sugar. The other members of this 

 committee were W. H. Brewer of Yale, C. F. Chandler of Columbia, 

 Wolcott Gibbs of Harvard, and Ira Remsen of Johns Hopkins. The 

 report covers more than 100 pages and must have represented a 

 great amount of work. The subject is most thoroughly dealt with, 

 and to the report is appended a complete bibliography. 



A dance at the list of writings of Dr. Barker will show at once 



