112 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XLVII. No. 1205 



to prescribe, have resulted in very greatly dimin- 

 ishing these enormous financial losses. 



I might also mention wilt-resistant cotton and 

 cow-peas, wilt-resistant tobacco and flax, mat-re- 

 sistant asparagus and durum wheat, grape vines re- 

 sistant to Phylloxera, cantaloupe resistant to leaf- 

 spot disease, and many others, all showing that 

 the matter of plant diseases is quite apart from 

 the methods of cultivation. 



Since many diseases are known to be transmitted 

 from crop to crop by being carried by seeds, it 

 would seem as though such information would be 

 considered as of fundamental importance to all 

 seedsmen and nurserymen, and that is why it was 

 a matter of such genuine surprise to me that such 

 houses do not feel any interest to cooperate in 

 the advancement of our knowledge by rendering 

 even moderate financial assistance. 



I then expressed my firm conviction that 

 every large seedsman could materially in- 

 crease his business and his profits by the 

 appointment of a plant pathologist, and a 

 plant breeder, and that the appointment of 

 a pathologist by seedsmen and nurserymen 

 would, some day, be as much a matter of 

 course as the appointment of a chemist now 

 is for a dye-works. 



The courteous reply to this read, in part, 

 as follows: 



Tour very interesting letter was duly received, 

 and we have carefully noted contents. . . . We 

 desire to say that we think it is not the province 

 of the individual to take up the burden of such 

 effort as is mentioned in your letter. 



The moral of this is, ladies and gentle- 

 men, that you can lead a horse to water, but 

 you can not make him drink. You can 

 never get a man to put his money into any- 

 thing he doesn't understand or that doesn't 

 interest him, no matter how important or 

 worthy the cause may be; and in this in- 

 cident I find one of the most cogent argu- 

 ments why scientific men should make it a 

 part of their main business to interest and 

 enlighten the general public concerning the 

 nature and value of scientific work. How 

 can we expect men to endow scholarships 

 and fellowships for botanical research when 



their conception of the science, if they have 

 any at all, may be adequately stated by the 

 expression, "How to know the wild flow- 

 ers"? Botanic gardens and the popular 

 magazine referred to a moment ago, will 

 contribute to the end desired, but we need 

 more books, and lectures, and magazine ar- 

 ticles of literary as well as scientific value, 

 written for the people by the leaders in 

 botanical science. 



6. Botanical Organization. — Closely con- 

 nected with the problem of securing an en- 

 lightened and interested constituency is the 

 character of scientific associations. On 

 first thought it might appear desirable that 

 scientific specialization should be reflected 

 in the organization of small groups of 

 workers on the basis of their special inter- 

 ests. But here, again, there is danger that 

 one of the most important advantages of 

 organization may be lost sight of. I refer 

 to the opportunity of making science rec- 

 ognized outside of scientific circles as a 

 force and a necessity in the larger affairs 

 of life. It is a mistake to imagine that our 

 botanical clubs and societies are solely for 

 individual convenience and advantage ; they 

 also exist, or should exist, for the larger 

 purpose just stated. There frequently arise 

 occasions when science, as such, needs to 

 make itself felt, to assert itself by taking 

 group action. Organized effort is often 

 necessai'y to secure desirable legislation or 

 to thwart undesirable or vicious legislation. 

 A memorial to the Congress urging an ap- 

 propriation for botanical exploration in 

 South America, backed by an association of 

 50 or 100 members of a botanical society 

 would, in all probability, have little effect 

 in securing the desired legislation, but 

 something might be accomplished by sev- 

 eral thousand botanists in one large vigor- 

 ous association. It requires eternal vigi- 

 lance now to combat the pernicious anti- 



