1895.] MICROSCOPICAL JOURNAL. 57 



Gage, James, Kellicott, Claypole, Doubledajs Moore, Milnor, 

 Mellor, Shanks, Ward and Whelpley, who might come to the 

 front determined to redeem the society from the odors that have 

 pervaded it of late; and when they do so, a considerable num- 

 ber of men ought to feel interested to attend. We strongly 

 urge upon them this duty to the organization. Apart from the 

 personel, a radical blunder has been in progress now for years. 

 We refer to the illogical attitude occupied by the society. For- 

 mally there was a good microscopical section of the American 

 Association for the Advancement of Science. Certain people 

 who thought it grander to be officers of a national society than 

 of a section of one, withdrew and formed the A. S. M. They 

 chose to cut loose from the parent society and yet they go fol- 

 lowing the parent around all over the country and parasite upon 

 it. As fast as the personal ambitions of such men have been 

 gratified, they loose interest in the society and neglect to attend. 

 Some who attend do so in pursuit of office and selfish power. 

 The society is cursed by their presence and afterward is sup- 

 posed to suffer from their absence. 



As a section of the American Association it offered less glory 

 for office-seekers, but sufficient opportunity for scholars to read 

 and hear papers. No dues or fees were required except the As- 

 sociation fees. Now, those who belong to both pay double fees 

 and get no more for it. 



In order to prevent the prompt publication of papers, a rule 

 is adopted forbidding those who read papers from giving them 

 out to periodicals. Then those papers slumber for months in 

 the Secretary's coat pocket, only to be issued when stale to 

 about 200 people who never read them ; and the unoccupied 

 space in the " Proceedings" is eked out with matter utterly 

 foreign to such a publication. 



At the present writing, we have, in this Journal, given the 

 public, including almost every country on the globe, a full ac- 

 count of everything of any value connected with the 1894 meet- 

 ing and have put before 2,000 readers, all that the various 

 authors (whose papers were filed but not read) cared to com- 

 municate. In the course of three or four months, that aforesaid 

 coat pocket will be searched and perhaps a mouse will come 

 forth. 



The American Society of Microscopists has been sadly in de- 



