NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES. 



Jersey at PrincetoD. In 1875 the American Academy of Arts 

 and Sciences at Boston awarded to him the Rumford medals for 

 his reseaches on Radiant Energy. In his speech of presentation 

 the Hon. Charles Francis Adams, then president of the Academy, 

 after recapitulating the reasons given by the committee for recom- 

 mending this award, said to Mr. Quincy, who was deputed in Dr. 

 Draper's absence to receive the medals : " I pray you, in receiving 

 these two medals on his behalf, in accordance with the terms of the 

 original trust, to assure him on the part of the Academy of the high 

 satisfaction taken by all its Fellows in doing honor to those who, 

 like him, take a prominent rank in the advance of science through- 

 out the world." In his letter of reply Dr. Draper says : " Your 

 favorable appreciation of my researches on radiation, expressed to- 

 day by the award of the Rumford medals the highest testimonial 

 of approbation that American science has to bestow on those who 

 have devoted themselves to the enlargement of knowledge is to 

 me a most acceptable return for the attention I have given to that 

 subject through a period of more than forty years. * * * It 

 adds impressively to the honor you have this day day conferred on 

 me that your action is the deliberate determination of competent, 

 severe, impartial judges. I cannot adequately express my feelings 

 of gratitude in such a presence, publicly pronouncing its approval 

 of what I have done." 



Professor Draper was not elected a member of the National 

 Academy of Sciences until 1877. It is not easy to understand at 

 this late day why a man so eminent in science was not included 

 among the original incorporators of the Academy. An attempt, it 

 is believed, was made to remedy this apparent oversight during the 

 meeting which was held in New York in 1863 for organization, but 

 for some unexplained reason the effort failed. So uncalled for an 

 action on the part of the Academy rendered it for some time doubt- 

 ful whether he would accept the membership when it was subse- 

 quently tendered. 



Dr. Draper was married at quite an early age. While a student 

 at the University of London in the year 1830, then nineteen years 

 old, he boarded with a friend of his father's, Mrs. Barker by name, 

 where he met her niece, Miss Antonia Gardner, who was then 

 residing with her and attending a young ladies' school in the 

 neighborhood. This young lady was the daughter of Dr. Gardner, 

 of Rio Janeiro, the attending physician of the Emperor of Brazil, 



