October 22, 1920] 



SCIENCE 



379 



always when the stars were visible early or 

 late. By day he had classes to meet in class 

 rooms five miles away. For one evening each 

 week the telescope was devoted to visitors. 

 During cloudy weather, between classes and 

 at other odd times he was busy in applying 

 the new method developed by G. W. Hill, for 

 the computation of the secular perturbations 

 of the planets. No constitution could stand 

 this terrific pace. His premature death was 

 the result. 



Professor Doolittle's fame rests chiefly upon 

 his observations and discussions of double 

 stars. The publications of the Flower Ob- 

 servatory contain measures of 3,920 double 

 and multiple stars made by him together with 

 the remeasurement of 648 double stars dis- 

 covered by Hough. Another series of obser- 

 vations is ready for publication. Many dis- 

 cussions of double stars and other subjects 

 are found in the astronomical journals. 



In 1913 S. W. Burnham, who had long 

 been recognized as the world's authority upon 

 double stars, feeling that his age no longer 

 permitted him to attend properly to the 

 duties he formerly performed turned over his 

 manuscripts and his library on double stars, 

 a practically complete and priceless collection, 

 to Professor Doolittle, thus placing the mantle 

 of the world's foremost double star astronomer 

 upon him. Burnham's great work " General 

 Catalogue of Double Stars " appeared in 1906. 

 Professor Doolittle has been most faithful to 

 his trust, for in the safe at the Flower Ob- 

 servatory there is a large card catalogue known 

 as the extension of Burnham's General Cata- 

 logue. On these cards are found the observa- 

 tions, discoveries and other information re- 

 lating to double stars which has accumulated 

 since the publication of the General Cata- 

 logue. This information is available to those 

 interested. The work will of course go on 

 and be published at some future time. 



The results of his computations of secular 

 perturbations were published as the parts 

 were completed in The Astronomical Journal. 

 When all the work was done the results were 

 combined and discussed in " The Secular Per- 

 turbations of the four Inner Planets" pub- 



lished by the A m erican Philosophical Society, 

 of which he was a member, in 1912. These 

 results were obtained with most painstaking 

 care and are not likely to be superseded for a 

 long time. 



He helped to popularize astronomy by edit- 

 ing and himself writing a large part of Yol. 

 IV. of the " Foundation Library " entitled 

 " The Wonderful Universe " and another work 

 which has not yet appeared. He was widely 

 known as the author of a series of popular 

 monthly articles on current astronomical 

 events which have appeared in various maga- 

 zines and newspapers throughout the country 

 continuously from 1904 until August, 1920. 



He was extremely modest, loving simplicity 

 and hating ostentation. His great ability 

 and worth would no doubt have been more 

 widely known and appreciated had he been 

 more of a selfseeker. He was greatly admired 

 and loved by his students, particularly by 

 graduate students. Those who knew him best 

 loved him most. 



Samuel G. Barton 



SCIENTIFIC EVENTS 



AGRICULTURAL WORK OF THE NATIONAL 

 RESEARCH COUNCIL 



With the advice and assistance of the Na- 

 tional Eesearch Council a cooperating group 

 of scientific investigators of insect pests and 

 plant diseases together with representatives 

 of leading industrial concerns engaged in the 

 manufacture of chemicals and appliances used 

 in fighting these enemies of crops has been 

 organized imder the name of the Crop Pro- 

 tection Institute. This institute will imder- 

 take and support a series of thorough scientific 

 studies of the crop pests themselves and of 

 the means of improving and standardizing the 

 materials and appliances used in fighting them. 

 The Board of Trustees of the institute is 

 composed of nine scientific men representing 

 leading scientific organizations interested in 

 crop protection and four representatives of 

 the manufacturing and commercial interests. 

 The temporary secretary is Mr. Harrison E. 

 Howe, chairman of the Division of Research 

 Extension of the National Eesearch Council. 



