32 



THE AMERICAN MONTHLY 



[February, 



ized treatment of the subject was 

 required to secure a proper and un- 

 prejudiced discussion of the objects 

 of the resokitions. Feeling much 

 responsibility as the presiding offi- 

 cer of this Society and of one of 

 the oldest of the local societies, 

 but having no authority to appoint 

 an evidently necessary committee 

 that should represent not only this 

 Society but also sections of the 

 country not yet named upon our 

 rolls, I brought the subject before 

 our local association, and we in- 

 vited all the societies that could be 

 reached to join with us in the selec- 

 tion of a National Committee for 

 the consideration of this subject. 

 The response from the large and 

 active societies, and from dis- 

 tinguished individuals, was a cor- 

 dial and almost unanimous approval. 

 Many of the societies nominated 

 to the committee members dis- 

 tinguished as specialtists in this 

 branch of microscopy ; both soci- 

 eties and eminent scientists con- 

 tributed valuable opinions upon 

 all the points at issue ; and a large 

 committee was organized which 

 will at a proper time tender a 

 report of progress to this Society. 

 And while speaking of this com- 

 mittee, I will take the liberty of 

 saying that it would be a pleasure 

 to me, and I doubt not to all of us 

 on this side of the Lakes, if our 

 friends from Toronto or Montreal, 

 or any other points in the Domin- 

 ion which may be represented here, 

 would nominate members, and thus 

 make it an American instead of a 

 national body. To prevent confu- 

 sion or misapplication of the prac- 

 tical suggestions which follow, and 

 which naturally belong to this time 

 and place, it is necessary to antici- 

 pate the report of the committee 

 so far as to say that it will recom- 

 mend to this Society to rescind its 

 approval of the 1-100 millimeter 



as the unit for micrometry, and to 

 so modify the form of the other 

 resolutions as to leave the import- 

 ant questions of accurate measure- 

 ments and convenient and scientific 

 nomenclature in a favorable form 

 for the attainment of valuable re- 

 sults. 



" Whether this Society, as such, 

 shall continue to be known as 

 actively interested in this reform, 

 it is for you, not me, to say ; though 

 I sincerely hope that the members 

 will unanimously agree with me in 

 judging that it ought to do all that 

 its influence, without dictation, can 

 do in this direction. But I, for 

 one, do not deem the decisions of 

 societies or other corporate bodies 

 decisive and final. I am not much 

 elated by their approval, or dis- 

 couraged by their opposition. I 

 have an average amount of respect 

 for the motives but not for the 

 efficiency of legislation. In State, 

 in church, in science, it is possible 

 and easy to carry out laws about 

 in proportion as they are unneces- 

 sary. People who do not need 

 fovernment are easily governed. 

 *ersons who appreciate authenti- 

 cated micrometers will use them if 

 they can with or without the ap- 

 proval of societies ; and those who 

 do not desire them will be about as 

 little controlled by official decisions. 

 While the encouragment and sup- 

 port of societies and of officials is 

 welcome and valuable, as far as it 

 extends, I have more faith in 

 the power of individual influence, 

 and to that I look for an example 

 which is able to settle this question 

 beyond appeal. 



" In our micrometry we have the 

 anomaly of a system of work capa- 

 ble of a precision almost if not 

 quite unknown elsewhere to human 

 art, for what other wholly artificial 

 proceedure possesses a demonstrated 

 limit of accuracy inside of the 



