884 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XXVIII. No. 729 



M. Dougmergue, the minister of public in- 

 struction. This reform received the approval 

 of the French Academy as long ago as 1893, 

 but has not heretofore received government 

 sanction. It provides for the suppression of 

 the " h " in the Greek group of words like 

 " rhetorique," " rhinoceros," etc., the substitu- 

 tion of " i " for " y " in " analyse," " style," 

 etc., the substitution of "c" for the sibilant 

 " t " in words like " confidential," etc., and 

 the extension of the " s " as a sign of the 

 plural in words ending in " ou," " eau " and 

 " au." It also provides for the suppression 

 of the " h " in words like " theatre," the sub- 

 stitution of "f" for "ph" in words like 

 " phenomene " and the elimination of the 

 double "n" in words like "paysanne." 



Since 1890 there has existed in Paris a little 

 museum of hygiene, containing among other 

 things, the exhibits which figured in the Paris 

 pavilion of hygiene at the exposition of 1900, 

 and which have to do especially with the sani- 

 tation of dwellings, the emptying of latrines 

 and sewers, etc. According to the Journal of 

 the American Medical Association there is now 

 a plan to complete and to install the collections 

 so as to make of them a real model museum 

 of hygiene and sanitation. It will comprise 

 the twelve following sections: Air and light 

 (composition, meteorology; lighting of the 

 city; lighting, heating and ventilation of the 

 house) ; water (composition and bacteriology ; 

 flowing waters of rivers and springs, ozona- 

 tion; distribution, filters, private baths, etc.); 

 food and clothing (composition of foods, nu- 

 tiitive value, adulteration, sterilization of 

 milk; hygiene of clothing, impermeability, 

 etc.) ; preventive hygiene (disinfection, meas- 

 ures against fire, materials of construction) ; 

 hygiene of infancy (feeding of iniants, gym- 

 nastics) ; establishments such as hospitals, 

 asylums, soup-kitchens; hygiene of special es- 

 tablishments (arrangement, heating, etc., of 

 barracks, prisons, schools, cheap houses) ; 

 residues of life (cemeteries and cremation; 

 household refuse; rain-water and slops, night 

 soil ; sewers ; emptying of used waters) ; public 

 conveyances (omnibuses and fiacres; neat- 



ness, ventilation, disinfection, cleaning, etc.) ; 

 smoke; demography; library. 



UNIVERSITY AND EDUCATIONAL NEWS 



We regret to learn that the will of 

 Frederick Cooper Hewitt, which made large 

 bequests for public purposes, including $500,- 

 000 to Tale University, is being contested by 

 a sister. 



Governor John J. Johnson, of Minnesota, 

 went to Washington on December 12, to in- 

 vite President Roosevelt on behalf of the re- 

 gents to accept the presidency of the Uni- 

 versity of Minnesota, but he declined this invi- 

 tation. 



Dr. Samuel Avery, head professor of chem- 

 istry in the University of Nebraska, was 

 elected acting chancellor at a recent meeting 

 of the regents, on account of the resignation 

 of Chancellor Andrews. Dr. Avery will as- 

 sume the duties of the ofBce on January 1. 



Hon. Timothy Hopkins, of Menlo Park, 

 California, well known as a patron of zoolog- 

 ical research, and for whom the nudibranch 

 genus of Eophinsia has been named, has been 

 elected president of the board of trustees of 

 Stanford University. 



Dr. Hochstetter, professor of anatomy at 

 Innsbruck, has been appointed to the chair of 

 anatomy in the University of Vienna. 



DISCUSSION AND CORRESPONDENCE 



THE five hundredth ANNIVERSARY OF THE 

 UNIVERSITY OF LEIPZIG 



During August, 1909, the University of 

 Leipzig is to celebrate its Five Hundredth 

 Anniversary. It would be eminently fitting 

 for the Americans who have taken their 

 doctor's degrees at Leipzig to send to the uni- 

 versity on that occasion some formal address 

 of congratulation. A list of about one hun- 

 dred Americans who have taken their degrees 

 at Leipzig has been prepared, including all of 

 the names of American scientists mentioned 

 in " American Men of Science " and such 

 others as could be secured from a few former 

 Leipzig students in the vicinity of New York 

 and New Haven. 



A smaU committee has organized itself in 



