178 



THE AMERICAN MONTHLY 



[September, 



the Society or of the Association, 

 is sufficient to keep up the interest 

 in both meetings. If this is 

 true, we would desire to have 

 either tlie Society to disorganize, 

 and the members to join with the 

 Association, or else that the Sub- 

 section of the Association should 

 be abolished, so tliat all the mem- 

 bers might join the Society. Which 

 course would be the better one, may 

 well be left for decision next year, 

 when it will doubtless come up for 

 consideration. 



This year the microscopical work 

 of neither of the organizations was 

 quite so good as it should have 

 been ; but if the two had united 

 their efforts, there can be no doubt 

 that a very interesting meeting 

 would have been the result. 



One reason why a large number 

 of microscopists favored the forma- 

 tion of a society independent of the 

 A. A. A. S., was doubtless because 

 they had the impression that the 

 Sub-section of Microscopy had not 

 been well attended, or that it would 

 exclude the reading of very ele- 

 mentary articles about microscopical 

 work. As we have said in a previous 

 article, if the Sub-section has done 

 nothing, it is because microscopists 

 have not given it their support — 

 the fault is not one for which any 

 other persons are responsible. As 

 to the character of the articles that 

 can be read before the Sub-section, 

 we do not hesitate to assert that 

 anything novel and of real worth, 

 no matter how simple or elemen- 

 tary it may be, can always be 

 brought before the meeting; but 

 the careful examination of contribu- 

 tions by competent persons, who 

 may reject them or order them to 

 be read, as they may deem proper, 

 tends to exert a very wholesome 

 effect upon the quality of the 

 articles that are read. 



Once more we desire to say, in 



order that no person may misun- 

 derstand us, either wilfully or other- 

 wise, that in writing this we are 

 not moved by any spirit of opposi- 

 tion to the American Society of 

 Microscopists. . 



We desire the greatest benefit 

 to the greatest number of micros- 

 copists ; and, if it were possible, we 

 would be glad to see botli the or- 

 ganizations of which we have 

 spoken, in a flourishing condition ; 

 but since this cannot be, we desire 

 a combination of the two forces, 

 and we hope for such a consumma- 

 tion next year. 



In closing we desire to congratu- 

 late the American Society of Mi- 

 croscopists upon its choice of Mr. 

 J. D. Hyatt, for President of the 

 next meeting. 



A Criticism. 



It is a disgraceful condition of 

 affairs, when the reading public is 

 obliged to tolerate absurd and wil- 

 fully incorrect reports of a meeting 

 of scientific men, from the local 

 press of the city in which such 

 a meeting is held ; and it is far 

 from creditable to the Editor of a 

 newspaper who will so degrade his 

 journal as to permit of its use for 

 such low purposes. 



These remarks , are called forth 

 by the character of the reports of 

 the recent meeting of the American 

 Society of Microscopists, that have 

 been printed in the Free Press, a 

 leading Democratic daily of Detroit. 

 We will quote some of the strictures 

 that have been made by a well- 

 known gentleman, upon the reports 

 published in that paper. 



" The Free Press treated us dis- 

 gracefully, and, indeed, almost ridi- 

 culed us. Its reports, though short, 

 were full of errors, some wilful 

 ones. It belittled the matter all it 

 could, and published a false locality 



