Fbbeuaey 11, 1898.] 



SCIENCE. 



183 



' The Three Secretaries,' also by Dr. Goode. 

 Joseph Henry, Spencer FuUerton Baird and 

 Stephen Pierpont Langley are names indeli- 

 bly grafted on American science, each oc- 

 cupying a distinct field. Henry's well-di- 

 gested ' Programme of Organization,' the 

 corner-stone of the edifice on which Baird 

 built, has been often described. These 

 sketches are written in a pleasing, forceful 

 style, and contain biographies of the per- 

 sons as well as their contributions to science 

 and their labors for the Smithsonian Insti- 

 tution. That of the present Secretary con- 

 tains details not easily found elsewhere. 



Professor Langley writes of the ' Bene- 

 factors ' of the Smithsonian, of which the 

 most conspicuous is Thomas George Hodg- 

 kins, whose gift of $200,000 in 1891 created 

 an epoch in the history of the Institution. 

 The Hodgkins medals and prizes, recently 

 awarded, and the capital prize to the dis- 

 coverers of argon are well known. 



The erection of the buildings and the 

 care of the grounds are treated in a chapter 

 by Dr. Goode. The corner-stone of the 

 Norman building was laid May 1, 1847, 

 and it was occupied in 1855, the structure 

 having been paid for out of accumulated 

 interest of the Smithson Fund. This fact 

 is typical of the prudent management that 

 has characterized the financial policy of the 

 Secretaries and the Regents from the begin- 

 ning, so that the present fuud is double 

 that of the original bequest of Smithson. 



' The Smithsonian Library ' and the 'Pub- 

 lications ' are discussed in two distinct 

 chapters by Dr. Cyrus Adler, and closely 

 related to these is a chapter on ' The Inter- 

 national Exchange System ' by Professor 

 William Crawford Winlock. These cover 

 very fully what may be called the literary 

 activity of the Smithsonian. 



The idea of forming a great library was 

 one of the earliest projects, even antedating 

 the Institution itself, and at the outset a 

 large proportion of the income was devoted 



to this feature ; the transfer to the Library 

 of Congress as a ' deposit ' in 1866 was an 

 excellent move, especially in view of the 

 magnificent edifice in which the collection 

 is now housed. 



More than one of the writers pay high 

 tribute to the learning and efiSciency of the 

 first librarian, Professor Charles Cof&n 

 Jewett, who filled the office from 1847 to 

 1855. The Smithsonian Deposit now num- 

 bers 357,000 books, pamphlets, periodicals 

 and maps. The formation of this splendid 

 library has been- accomplished largely 

 through the system of international ex- 

 changes, the magnitude of which is shown 

 by the item that in 1895 107,118 packages 

 weighing about 164 tons passed through 

 the office. 



The invaluable series of publications is- 

 sued by the Smithsonian Institution has 

 done more than anything else to elevate 

 its position in the eyes of foreign savants. 

 Dr. Adler, quoting Dr. Goode, points out 

 that the value of the books distributed 

 since the Institution was opened up to 1895 

 has been nearly one million dollars, being 

 twice the original bequest of the founder. 



Sixty-five pages of the handsome volume 

 are devoted to the ' United States Na- 

 tional Museum,' by Mr. Frederick William 

 True, constituting an interesting record 

 of this important department. Its forma- 

 tion from a nucleus contributed by the 

 Patent Office and by the National Institute, 

 its growth through results of explorations, 

 and especially from the International Ex- 

 hibitions held in 1876 and 1893, are herein 

 described. The educational value of the 

 great collections has been enhanced by the 

 liberality of its Directors in sending dupli- 

 cate specimens to institutions of learning, 

 and especially by making displays of its 

 treasures at the exhibitions held at London 

 in 1883, Louisville in 1884, Minneapolis in 

 1887, Madrid in 1892, Chicago in 1893 and 

 Atlanta in 1895. One of the results of 



