The Microscope. 45 



Microscope has revived a controversy I had hoped was settled, 

 regarding the proportion of credit due to himself and Mr. Grif- 

 fith respectively, for the incorporation into the American Soci- 

 ety of Microscopists of the " Working Session " as it is now 

 called. I was present at the Illinois " Congress," and was chair- 

 man of the committee by which the present Society was organ- 

 ized, and I know personally that before the existence of the 

 American Society, Mr. Griffith suggested to myself and others 

 that practical demonstrations of the papers read would be a val- 

 uable feature of the meetings, and this idea he has to my knowl- 

 edge constantly and persistently urged ever since, aud for some 

 time before Prof. McCalla joined the Society. 



The whole truth in a nutshell is just this. Mr. Griffith orig- 

 inated, or at least first expressed, the idea and constantlv urged 

 it upon the members, with increasing elaboration, as was nat- 

 ural, but he had no power to force its adoption by the Society, 

 and seems not to have been able to influence the officers of the 

 Society to adopt his idea. When Prof. McCalla, in his third 

 year of membership, found himself in authority as President, he 

 had sufficient influence to secure the adoption by the 

 Society, through its executive committee, of Mr. Griffith's idea, 

 and it was done ; and by the joint labors of Pres. McCalla and 

 Mr. Griffith (in which respective proportion I don't know) the 

 Working Session of the Chicago Meeting was organized and car- 

 ried out. Then, when the idea had been adopted and set firmly 

 in place as a part of the Society's work, Mr. Griffith was dele- 

 gated to organize and direct that part of the work at the Roch- 

 ester Meeting and did so. But for his positive refusal to con- 

 tinue longer in charge ne would still be in charge of the work, 

 and it seems clear to me that the true division of the credit is 

 this : To Mr. Griffith alone belongs the credit for the origina- 

 tion of the idea of a Working Session, and to Prof. McCalla in 

 chief and in part to Mr. Griffith, is the credit due for securing 

 its adoption by the Society ; for had not Mr. Griffith's long-con- 

 tinued urgency preceded Prof. McCalla's official recommenda- 

 tion it is not likely that his recommendation would have met 

 with such speedy and encouraging recognition. 



[We are in receipt of other letters similar in tone to the 

 above ; but the positive and clear statements of Mr. Brearley 



