January 29, 1903] 



NA TURE 



299 



Section of Anthropology, on " New World Contributions 

 to Old World Culture." Prof. Welch before the Section 

 of Physiology and Experimental Medicine. Prof. J. J. 

 Flather before the Section of Mechanical Science and 

 Engineering, on " Modern Tendencies in the Utilisation 

 of Power." Prof. C. C. Nutting before the Section of 

 Zoology, on " Some of the Perplexities of a Systematise" 

 Prof. D. H. Campbell before the Section of Botany, on 

 "The Origin of Terrestrial Plants." Prof. Wright before 

 the Section of Social and Economic Science, on " The 

 Psychology of the Labour Question." 



Many important scientific bodies met in affiliation with 

 the Association. Among these were : — The American 

 Anthropological Association, the American Chemical 

 Society, the American Folk-lore Society, the American 

 Microscopical Society, the American Morphological 

 Society, the American Philosophical Association, the 

 American Physical Society, the American Physiological 

 Society, the American Psychological Association, the 

 American Society of Naturalists, the Association of 

 American Anatomists, the Association of Economic 

 Entomologists, the Astronomical and Astrophysical 

 Society of America, the Botanical Society of America, 

 the Botanists of the Central and Western States, the 

 Geological Society of America, the National Geographic 

 Society, the Naturalists of the Central States, the Society 

 of American Bacteriologists, the Society for Plant 

 Morphology and Physiology, the Society for the Pro- 

 motion of Agricultural Science, the Zoologists of the 

 Central and Western States. 



The approximate register of scientific men and women 

 in attendance at this series of meetings was fifteen 

 hundred, of whom about one thousand registered for the 

 American Association. The week was thus a very 

 crowded one, the days being occupied with the meetings 

 of the sections and the affiliated societies, and the general 

 functions being as follows : — 



On Monday evening, the annual address of the retiring 

 president, Prof. Hall. Monday afternoon, the addresses 

 of the retiring vice-presidents. On Tuesday evening, 

 the address of the retiring president of the American 

 Chemical Society, Dr. Remsen, and the public lecture of 

 the American Society of Naturalists, delivered by Dr. C. 

 Hart Merriam, on the subject " Protective and Directive 

 Coloration of Animals, with especial Reference to Birds 

 and Mammals." On the same evening, the Botanical 

 Society of Washington gave a reception to visiting 

 botanists. On Wednesday afternoon, the annual dis- 

 cussion of the American Society of Naturalists was held ; 

 the subject was " How can Endowments be Used most 

 Effectively for Scientific Research?" On the same 

 afternoon, a public lecture, complimentary to the' citizens 

 of Washington, was given by Prof. I. C. Russell, of the 

 University of Michigan, on "The Volcanoes of the West 

 Indies." On Wednesday evening, the annual dinners of 

 the American Society of Naturalists and the Geological 

 Society of America, and the annual smoker of the 

 American Chemical Society, were held. 



On Thursday evening, the secretary of the Smith- 

 sonian Institution, Prof. Langley, held a reception in the 

 National Museum. 



On Friday afternoon, a lecture, complimentary to the 

 citizens ofWashington, was given by John Hays Ham- 

 mond, on " Rhodesia, the Site of the Mines of King 

 Solomon." Friday evening, the local committee, with the 

 trustees of the Corcoran Art Gallery, gave a reception to 

 the visiting members of the Association and the affiliated 

 societies at the Art Gallery. 



On Saturday morning, President Roosevelt received 

 all visiting members at the White House. 



Several important changes in the constitution of the 

 Association went into effect at this meeting, all tending 

 toward the improvement of the stability of the council 

 and the sectional committees. Hereafter, the sectional 



NO. 1735, VOL. 67] 



committees will hold office for five years ; the secretaries 

 of sections will also hold office for five years, and the 

 council will elect annually three members at large to 

 serve for three years. National scientific societies adopt- 

 ing permanent affiliation with the Association are now 

 represented upon the council of the Association, and this 

 body probably at the present time includes a larger 

 number of the active leading scientific men of America 

 than any other organisation, not excepting the National 

 Academy of Sciences. 



Many notable papers were presented during the session, 

 and the character of the proceedings, as will appear from 

 the published reports in the journal Science, the organ of 

 the Association, will undoubtedly show a very general 

 improvement over the papers of previous meetings. 



The general committee decided upon St. Louis as the 

 next place of meeting, the time to be during Convocation 

 Week of 1903-4, and recommended to the next general 

 committee that Philadelphia be the following place of 

 meeting during the Convocation Week of 1904-5. 



The officers elected for the St. Louis meeting are as 

 follows : — 



President, Carroll D. Wright, Washington. 



Vice-presidents : — Section A, Mathematics and As- 

 tronomy, O. H. Tittmann, Washington ; B, Physics, 

 E. H. Hall, Harvard University ; C, Chemistry, W. D. 

 Bancroft, Cornell University ; D, Mechanical Science 

 and Engineering, C. M. Woodward, Washington Uni- 

 versity ; E, Geology and Geography, I. C. Russell, 

 University of Michigan ; F, Zoology, E. L. Mark, Har- 

 vard University ; G, Botany, T. H. Macbride, University 

 of Iowa ; H, Anthropology, M. H. Saville, American 

 Museum of Natural History ; I, Social and Economic 

 Science, S. E. Baldwin, New Haven ; K, Physiology and 

 Experimental Medicine, H. P. Bowditch, Harvard 

 University. 



General Secretary, C. H. Wardell Stiles, U.S. Revenue 

 Marine Hospital and Public Health Service. 



Secretary of the Council, Charles S. Howe, Case 

 School. 



Secretaries of the Sections : — Section A, Mathematics 

 and Astronomy, L. G. Weld, University of Iowa ; B, 

 Physics, D. C. Miller, Case School ; C, Chemistry, A. H. 

 Gill, Massachusetts Institute of Technology ; D, Mechan- 

 ical Science and Engineering (no election) ; E, Geology, 

 G. B. Shattuck, Baltimore ; F, Zoology, C. Judson 

 Herrick, Denison University ; G, Botany, F. E. Lloyd, 

 Teachers' College, Columbia University ; H, Anthro- 

 pology, R. B. Dixon, Harvard University ; I, Social and 

 Economic Science, J. F. Crowell, Washington ; K, 

 Physiology and Experimental Medicine, F. S. Lee, 

 Columbia University. 



The treasurer, Prof. R. S. Woodward, of Columbia 

 University, and the permanent secretary, Dr. L. O. 

 Howard, of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, remain 

 unchanged. 



BUBONIC PLAGUE AT HOME AND ABROAD. 



A VOLUME of reports and papers on bubonic plague 

 has recently been issued by the Local Government 

 Board, 1 in continuation of the series originally com- 

 menced by the late Mr. Netten Radcliffe and since 

 carried on by Dr. Bruce Low. In the preceding volume, 

 Dr. Bruce Low carried the history of the distribution of 

 plague throughout the world to the middle of 189S, while 

 the present report comprises the period from the middle 

 of 1898 to the middle of 1901. 



Dr. Low follows the occurrence and progress of 

 bubonic plague chronologically and topographically by 



1 " Reports and Papers on Bubonic Plague." By Dr. R. Bruce Low. Willi 

 an Introduction by the Medical Officer of the Local Government Board. 

 Pp. xi + 446. (London : Eyre and Spottiswoode, 1902.) Price 4s. id. 



