1889. J 'SEW YORK ACADEilT OF SCIENCES. 5 



left of City Hall Piirk. He spoke of the meeting of citizens at the 

 Ma^'or's office, two weeks ago, when he hud attended and read a 

 protest, in the name of the scientific men of the city, against any 

 such closing-np of that all too limited breathing-spot in the most 

 crowded part of New York, He trusted that the strong and 

 united opposition developed at that meeting, on the part of very 

 various classes of citizens, had served its purpose of staying the 

 proposed movement to occupy that ground. Scarcely is this 

 danger perhaps averted, when the plan is brought forward of 

 occupying the northern end of Central Park in connection with 

 the Exposition. This portion of the Park is peculiarly interest- 

 ing and attractive because of its comparative wildness and natu- 

 ralness ; it has had less interference by artificial " improve- 

 ment, '' so-called, and should therefore be especially guarded 

 from intrusion and injury. He hoped that the Academy would 

 take strong ground in regard to this whole matter. 



The President said that while he sympathized entirely with 

 the views just expressed, he did not think that there was really 

 any danger of the Park's being injured or occupied at all, and 

 that the issue, therefore, was not what the papers had repre- 

 sented it to be. He spoke from personal intercourse with gen- 

 tlemen active in the World^s Fair project, and was satisfied that 

 not a tree in the Park would be felled, or anything allowed to 

 do damage therein. He was much impressed with the difficul- 

 ties of the work undertaken by the Committee on Sites, and 

 with their conscientious and laborious endeavors to deal with 

 them. Leaving out the question of Central Park, which he did 

 not believe would be touched, the site named by the Committee, 

 — Riverside and Morningside Parks, and the intervening low- 

 lands, — would furnish a location unequalled for beauty of scen- 

 ery, as compared with any former World's Fair anywhere, and 

 having the great advantage of immediate nearness to the city. 



Prof. J. K. Rees made some remarks in regard to the eclipse 

 of the sun in December, which will be total on the west coast of 

 Africa, and described the government expedition, now preparing 

 to start in the Pensacola, for its observation. He mentioned as 

 of interest to the Academy, that one of its own members, Mr. 

 L. H. Jacoby, assistant in the Columbia College Observatory, 



