296 EULOGY ON THE LATE GENERAL JOSEPH G. TOTTEN. 



tions then and afterwards made of floating fresh-water ice have shown that the 

 natural effect of the advancing year is gradually to transform ice, solid and 

 apparently homogeneous, into an aggregation of these irregular prismatic crys- 

 tals, standing in vertical juxtaposition, having few surfaces of contact, but 

 touching rather at points and on edges, and kept in place at last merely by 

 want of room to fall asunder. Until this change has somewhat advanced, the 

 cohesive strength of ice of considerable thickness is still adequate to sustain the 

 weight and shock of the travel it had borne during the winter ; but becoming 

 less and less coherent by the growing isolation of the prisms, or more and more 

 'rotten,' as the phrase is, though retaining all its thickness, the ice will at last 

 scarcely support a small weight, though bearing upon a hvrge surface, the foot 

 of man easily breaking through, and very slight resistance being made to the 

 point of a cone." The points of contact of the particles being destroyed, each 

 will drop into the position in the water below required by the place of its own 

 centre of gravity — that is to say, it will be upon its side, exposing large sur- 

 faces to the action of the warm water. With the ice in such condition, a heavy 

 wind will cause the disruption of the particles, and the speedy disappearance 

 would be the consequence. This remark of General Totten as to the crystalli- 

 zation of ice has since been extended to nearly all substances which, in becom- 

 ing solid, assume the crystallized form. The axes of the crystals tend to assume 

 a position at right angles to the surface of cooling. 



As illustrative of the mind of General Totten, it may be stated that he seldom 

 failed to give valuable hints for the improvement of processes or inventions 

 which were brought before him in the course of the discharge of his numerous 

 official duties. Among these was an instrument for ascertaining the daily 

 amount of evaporation from a given surface by means of the descent of water 

 contained in an inverted graduated tube, the open end of which was immersed 

 in the basin from which the evaporation took place. With a slight correction 

 for variation in barometrical pressure, this instrument gives, with more precision 

 than any other with which we are acquainted, the amount of evaporation. 



I have, gentlemen, thus faintly and inadequately sketched the life and ser- 

 vices of our departed friend and associate ; but, faint and inadequate as my 

 sketch may be, I feel confident that every one will recognize in it the lineaments 

 of a great and true man. Labors so protracted, results so important and varied,, 

 it is the destiny of but few to achieve, and lor him who achieves them may 

 justly be claimed a high niche in the temple of fame, and the grateful homage 

 of the patriot and of the seeker after truth. One of the oldest of the corpora- 

 tors of this academy, it was permitted him only to contribute his past labors 

 and his shining example. But these arc indeed a rich legacy. Proud, indeed, 

 may this youthful institution be that it can enrol among its members the name 

 of Joseph Gilbert Totten ; proud, too, may each one whom I now address — 

 each one of its members — be, if he shall achieve but a far less claim to recog- 

 nition among men of science. To the aged among us — to those who were young 

 with him, and like him have crowned a life of toil by honorable achievements — 

 I need nut speak. They require no example, and they may feel in contemplat- 

 ing his history an additional assurance that their own works, too, " shall praise 

 them." To the more youthful or to the middle-aged, who have just commenced,. 

 or but partially accomplished, the steep ascent which leads to honorable fame, 

 his life is precious in its teachings. 



He was a patriot in the broadest and best sense of the term. To his country 

 he had given himself, and every faculty of his being was devoted to her honor and 

 welfare — realizing almost literally the thought of Rousseau, " the child on en- 

 tering life ought to sec his country, and to the hour of his death see but her." 



Like all who have left lasting results for the benefit of their country or of 

 mankind, he was a hard worker. But ill-regulated labor, however arduous* 



