Decembeb 16, 1921] 



SCIENCE 



599 



general conversazione in Hart House, to 

 which all members of the association and as- 

 sociated societies are invited. Many of the 

 athletic activities of Hart House may be 

 seen, such as boxing, diving, water polo and 

 indoor base-ball. There will be band music 

 and bag-pipe music, and a concert in the 

 music room. A program will be staged in 

 the Hart House theater. Refreshments will 

 be served in the Great Dining Hall of Hart 

 House. Hart House will be open to visitors 

 also on the evenings of Tuesday, Wednesday 

 and Friday. 



An exhibit of artistic skating by the Tor- 

 onto Skating Club, followed by an ice-hockey 

 match, will be given, under cover, on Friday 

 afternoon. All in attendance at the meeting 

 are invited. 



The general program of the Toronto meet- 

 ing, including programs for the sections and 

 for the twenty-one associated societies meet- 

 ing witli the association at Toronto, will be 

 ready for distribution on Tuesday, Decem- 

 ber 2Y, at the registration room. 



Burton E. Livingston, 

 Permanent Secretary 



SCIENTIFIC EVENTS 



FOREST EXPERIMENT STATIONS 



A RECENT circular by the Forest Service of 

 the Department of Agriculture, entitled 

 " Forest Experiment Stations," outlines what 

 forest experiment stations have done, what 

 they need to do, why they are needed, where 

 they are needed, and what they would cost. 



Six stations were established in the West 

 between 1908 and 1913, with a small techni- 

 cal staff at each. In spite of limitations in 

 funds and personnel valuable results have 

 been secured in showing how to plant the 

 Nebraska sand hills, in planting on the west- 

 ern National Forests, in the development of 

 methods of cutting Douglas fir forests, in a 

 study of the relation between forests and 

 streamflow, and many other questions. 



The field of forest experiment stations in- 

 cludes forest botany; forest distribution; 

 forestation, from the production, collection, 

 extraction, cleaning, testing and storage of 



seed, to nursery practise, direct seeding and 

 field planting; silviculture; forest protection; 

 utilization of products, such as naval stores 

 and forage; forest management, or the regu- 

 lation of the cut with its basis of data on 

 volume, growth, and yield; the effect of 

 forests on streamflow, erosion, and climate; 

 and, underlying these, studies of the funda- 

 mental natural laws governing tree growth 

 and the life histories of the individual spe- 

 cies and types. 



To meet present forestry needs, a program 

 is outlined which includes ten forest experi- 

 ment stations, each with a technical staff of 

 from 6 to 12 men, and disti-ibuted, 5 in the 

 East, 3 in the Rocky Mountains, and 2 on 

 the Pacific Coast. Specifically, they would 

 cover the Southern Pine belt in the Atlantic 

 and Gulf States, the Lake States, the North- 

 east, including New England and New York, 

 the Allegheny region, the Southern Appa- 

 lachian Mountain region, the northern, cen- 

 tral, and southern parts of the Rocky Moun- 

 tain system, and the northern and southern 

 parts of the Pacific Coast region. 



THE U. S. PATENT OFFICE 



When Commissioner Newton was in charge 

 of the Patent Office in July, 1919, he testi- 

 fied before a committee of Congi'ess to the 

 effect that the situation in his bureau was 

 deplorable and that it was in a worse condi- 

 tion at that time than at any other time 

 since he had been in service. His service 

 began in 1891. The present commissioner 

 of patents in his report to the Congress 

 points out that the degeneration has con- 

 tinued steadily since the testimony of Com- 

 missioner Nev;ton was given. Between July, 

 1919, and June 30, 1921, the Patent Office 

 lost 163 of its examiners. The report states 

 that 



These men were scientifically trained and also 

 members of the bar. They have been replaced by 

 inexperienced men, fresh from college, without any 

 knowledge of patent law and without legal train- 

 ing. 



During the time the Patent Ofiace has been los- 

 ing the 163 meu aforesaid, the number of applica- 



