198 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XXXVI. No. 920 



fore us. Not to arrange so as to utilize to 

 its highest efficiency the vast wealth of 

 material for scientific research at Washing- 

 ton is nothing short of improvident and 

 reckless waste of great opportunities. It is 

 a wrong to a member of the staff to demand 

 that he grind away at his practical problem 

 year in and year out without giving him a 

 chance for a larger view through instruc- 

 tional work. 



If the above conclusions be accepted, the 

 next question to be considered is the ma- 

 chinery required in order to secure these 

 desirable ends. It may be said at the out- 

 set that for the national university here 

 advocated, while some money must be 

 available, no large appropriations are 

 necessary. The institution must have an 

 executive officer. Under him must be a 

 staff, the duty of which shall be to learn all 

 of the scientific possibilities of the various 

 departments and bureaus, to advise stu- 

 dents who come to Washington, and to ar- 

 range for their work. It should be the 

 further duty of the administrative force to 

 prepare announcements of the courses of 

 instniction which are to be given, with 

 descriptions of the material available for 

 such courses, precisely as is done by each 

 in the universities. 



The administrative force of the national 

 university, if desired, might be associated 

 with the bureau of education ; indeed, this 

 would seem to be a very natural associa- 

 tion. If this suggestion be accepted, the 

 administrative staff and bureau of educa- 

 tion could both be housed in a single build- 

 ing and such cooperation established be- 

 tween the two as would be to their mutual 

 benefit. 



For the above work an administration 

 building or a part of a building is neces- 

 sary. Temporary quarters should be 

 rented, and later, when experience shows 

 achieved results warranting the expendi- 



ture, an appropriate permanent building 

 should be constructed. In the administra- 

 tion it would be necessary to provide some 

 lecture rooms, although the halls in the 

 National Museum and in various other 

 public buildings should be utilized for the 

 larger lectures. The men who give special- 

 ized courses to small groups of students 

 probably would prefer to give them in the 

 building in which they work; for there 

 would be the materials and the special 

 libraries. This would require merely that 

 each bureau or institution, illustrated by 

 the Naval Observatory, the Geological 

 Survey, the Bureau of Animal Husbandry, 

 set aside one room of moderate size for 

 lectures. 



One of the obstacles in the way of the 

 highest success of the plan is the insuffi- 

 cient housing of many of the departments; 

 but the obstacle will gradually be removed. 

 This is evidenced by a number of excep- 

 tions. At the Congressional Library there 

 is ample space for all the students who may 

 desire to come. In the magnificent new 

 National Museum, where are associated the 

 wonderful collections in geology, mineral- 

 ogy, biology, anthropology, etc., are the 

 most ample set of workrooms and labora- 

 tories anywhere in the country. Scores of 

 students could there readily be accommo- 

 dated without interfering with the effect- 

 iveness of the staff. The Naval Observa- 

 tory has a splendid new building. The 

 Bureau of Standards has adequate quar- 

 ters. All these new structures have be- 

 come available within a few years, and 

 others will undoubtedly exist within a com- 

 paratively short time. 



EXISTING LAW 



Already the principles above advocated 

 have been recognized to a certain extent 

 by Congress through two enactments, the 

 first in 1892 and the second in 1901. 



