April 1, 1921] 



SCIENCE 



301 



every one must feel in reading a French sci- 

 entific book or memoir. 



The profound use of analytical methods 

 and the reduction of scientific truth to rigor- 

 ous yet pleasing mathematical form is char- 

 acteristic of the French. The mechanical 

 view of nature arose among them. They were 

 the first to set out to see how far science and 

 reasoning can go while disregarding the prin- 

 ciple of individuality. Among them science 

 first became " truly conscious of its true meth- 

 ods, its usefulness, its most becoming style, 

 its inherent dignity, its past errors, its present 

 triumphs, the endless career which lies before 

 it, and the limits which it can not transgress." 



Of the three countries which have led in 

 scientific development it seems to be the im- 

 partial verdict of history that we owe to 

 France the largest number of works perfect 

 in form and substance and classical for all 

 time; that the greatest bulk of scientific work, 

 at least in more recent decades, has been pro- 

 duced in Germany; but that the new ideas 

 which have fructified science, in earlier times 

 and also in the nineteenth century, have 

 arisen more frequently in Great Britain than 

 in any other country. 



Science is cosmopolitan and flourishes 

 under many skies. But the spirit of scientific 

 work is national. Each great people manifest 

 their own characteristics. They develop truth 

 by methods influenced by the peculiar bias 

 native to their temperament and institutions. 

 No prime contributions to knowledge have 

 ever been made repeatedly through a long 

 period of time by any people other than those 

 who labored from a center situated at the 

 heart of their life and social organization. 

 The deep-lying unknown things in nature can 

 be found out only by one who looks upon her 

 with eyes of his own. A people who seek 

 guidance outside of themselves will never be 

 led in the paths of high achievement. Only 

 during their minority can they afford to lean 

 upon the strength of others more powerful 

 than they. On coming of age it is indis- 

 pensable that they shall work, from a center 

 of their own. 



American science should now begin to 



render to the science of other countries a 

 measure of support commensurate with that 

 which it receives in turn in the mutual co- 

 operation of all in the discovery of truth. 



Up to the present we in America have not 

 developed either a national spirit or a national 

 tradition in scientific investigation. Research 

 was not native to our soil and was not intro- 

 duced by the first settlers. Along with the 

 other portions of our European civilization 

 our scientific attitude has come to us by in- 

 heritance. But we have now come to the time 

 when American scientists may begin to pro- 

 ceed from an intellectual center of their own 

 and make contributions in a characteristic 

 spirit to the intellectual worth of manliind- 

 R. D. Carjiichael 



UNivERsirY OF Illinois 



SCIENTIFIC EVENTS 



THE PROPOSED NEW CHALLENGER 

 EXPEDITION 



Nature announces that the council of the 

 British Association has reluctantly decided 

 that the organization of a new Challenger ex- 

 pedition, such as was suggested by Professor 

 W. A. Herdman in his presidential address to 

 the association at Cardiff last August, on an 

 adequate scale can not be profitably promoted 

 at the present time. 



In accordance with the resolution passed by 

 the general committee at the Cardiff meeting, 

 the council appointed a special oceanographic 

 committee to inquire into the details of the 

 suggested project and to prepare a reasoned 

 statement as to the need for such an expedi- 

 tion and its probable scale, scope, equipment, 

 and cost. This memorandum has now been 

 completed, and is available for use when the 

 occasion arises r but in view of the present 

 demand for economy in all national expendi- 

 ture, and after consultation with trustworthy 

 authorities, botli scientific and administi-ative, 

 the council at a recent meeting adopted a 

 report by the general ofiicers to the effect that, 

 while retaining the scheme under considera- 

 tion, no further action should be taken until 

 circumstances seem more favorable for public 

 expenditure upon such an undertaking. 



