136 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. LI. No. 1310 



Through the knowledge and experience which 

 has been gained in the natural gas industry, it is 

 now known how these wastes can be practically 

 eliminated, but the main obstacles now to be over- 

 come before these economies can be put into eSect 

 are economic rather than technical; that is modern 

 engineering can control these wastes, but it is nec- 

 essary that the saving be made worth while. 

 There must be a thorougih consideration of the 

 broad, underlying eeonoonies of the gas business 

 and its relations to the conservation and better 

 utilization of natural gas. There is a necessity 

 that the public more thoroughly understand the 

 economics and technique of the gas business to 

 the end that machinery be devised and put into 

 operation whereby the interests of the public and 

 the gas companies can be brought together in such 

 a manner that the gas now being wasted can be 

 saved and used. 



It is the purpose of this committee to consider 

 these broader questions of the relations between 

 the consuming public and the gas companies, that 

 a program may be drawn up looking forward to 

 the application of those engineering principles 

 which it is known minimize the waste of natural 

 gas now taking place and prolong the supply of 

 gas to the consumer. 



THE STEINHART AQUARIUM 



The erection of an up-to-date aquarium in 

 Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, is an event 

 of some significance in tlie scientific world 

 and tlie fact that it is to be under the direc- 

 tion and management of the California Acad- 

 emy of Sciences and supervised by Dr. Barton 

 Warren Evermann, the ichthyologist, will in- 

 sure it fulfilling its piu'pose of quickening 

 interest in the fauna of the Pacific Ocean and 

 the inland waters of the Pacific coast area. 



Funds for the building of the aquarimn 

 amounting to $250,000 have been provided 

 through the munificence of the late Ignatz 

 Steinhart who stipulated in his will that the 

 management should vest in the California 

 Academy of Sciences. By an amendment to 

 the city charter the city of San Francisco has 

 imdertaken the maintenance of the aquarium. 

 The aquarium will be built adjoining the 

 Academy's Museum building and will be 

 equipped with a full complement of glass ex- 

 hibition tanks. Outdoor pools for the ex- 

 hibition of aquatic mammals form an essen- 

 tial part of the building scheme. 



Dr. Evermann is now in the East and will 

 visit the aquariums of Boston, New York, 

 Detroit, Philadelphia and Washington to 

 study carefully the most approved methods 

 of installation. 



RESIGNATION OF DEAN BAKER OF THE NEW 

 YORK STATE COLLEGE OF FORESTRY 



An appeal for better salaries for educators, 

 particularly those in ISTew York State and in 

 the New York State College of Forestry, at 

 Syracuse marks the letter of resignation filed 

 by Dean Hugh P. Baker, who has resigned 

 after eight years of service, to accept twice the 

 salary he is rated as receiving at the State 

 College of Forestry, by becoming secretary of 

 the American Paper and Pulp Association. 



Although he receives a big increase in pay, 

 Ms letter of retirement specifies that the in- 

 ducement which caused him to leave the Col- 

 lege of Forestry was not the salary, but the 

 opportunity to carry the profession of forestry 

 into a great industry, that of paper manufac- 

 turing. His letter discloses that last year he 

 refused an offer of $7,500 to enter a business 

 career, but that the trustees increased his 

 salary from $5,000 to $6,000 to remain, and 

 he declined the offer. Owing to the rigidity 

 of the New York state budget system, how- 

 ever, even this raise would not take effect 

 until July, 1920, and only then if approved 

 by the legislature. In his letter of resigna- 

 tion, he says this of the salaries of teachers : 

 " The public is apathetic, to say the least, as 

 to the needs of education, with the result 

 that our public schools and colleges and uni- 

 versities throughout the country are suffering 

 for the lack of the right kind of men and 

 women in the teaching profession." 



Dean Baker's last work at the College of 

 Forestry will include an effort to secure ade- 

 quate salaries for the educators in the college, 

 some of whom are paid smaller than men in 

 the same relative positions at other state 

 educational institutions. 



SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS 



Dr. David F. Houston, formerly president 

 of Washington University, secretary of agri- 

 culture, has been nominated by President Wil- 



