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world more convincingly than thousands of Annual Com- 

 mencement and Independence Day orations, that republican 

 institutions are * ot necessarily unfavorable to the'progress of 

 science ; that science which though still affected to be held 

 in contempt by not a few who call themselves "practical men," 

 has but so recently achieved one of the proudest triumphs of 

 the age the Atlantic Telegraph ! 



As yet, the example of New York stands unrivalled on 

 either side of the Atlantic. Six years ago, Mississippi gave 

 promise of following in the footsteps of her senior sister ; 

 but she failed to redeem that promise in practice. Taking 

 as a basis the above estimate of $200,000, and considering 

 that like effects invariably require like forces to produce 

 them, the annual appropriation of $3,000 made by Missis- 

 sippi, would require to run for 66, say sixty-six years, in order 

 to complete the survey in accordance with the act creat- 

 ing it! 



But although the letter of the law of 1852 still remains 

 unchanged, it has been practically assumed for some time 

 past, (as before observed,) that the more immediate objects 

 of a geological and agricultural survey are the first to be 

 attained. Let us compare notes, then, with some of the 

 States in which surveys of this [kind have been ordered. 

 Alabama, Kentucky and Missouri have adopted the New 

 York plan of appropriating from time to time such sums as 

 might be found requisite for the successful prosecution of the 

 work. Missouri began, a few years since, by making an ap- 

 propriation of $20,000 ; since then has had no less than 

 three parties in the field at any time, besides a chemist con. 

 stantly employed in the laboratory work. Being in skillful 

 and efficient hands, the results of the work have, under this 

 system, been such as to insure the requisite appropriations, 

 whenever needed. The same has been the case in Kentucky; 

 her survey began in 1854, and now almost completed, was 

 carried on by three corps simultaneously, appropriations suf- 

 ficient to sustain them being made as required. The Alaba- 

 ma survey, at first advancing slowly, with limited means 



