816 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. YoL. XXXIX. No. 1014 



for an excellent text-book while a mediocre 

 text-book was being written. Such proced- 

 ures call for the strongest condemnation, 

 especially since those who are being abused 

 in this way are not in position to defend 

 themselves properly. 



Having exhibited a few tendencies towards 

 scholarly graft the question arises whether a 

 study of such matters is likely to promote 

 scientific research. As a matter of fact an 

 affirmative answer to this question is neces- 

 sary to justify the preceding remarks on 

 an occasion of this kind. Scientific re- 

 search is based on a profound conviction 

 that truth is desirable, and such research 

 seems to thrive best in an atmosphere 

 where all truths are welcome and where all 

 honest efforts to arrive at the truth are re- 

 spected. 



This society is based, in part, upon the 

 theory that there are wide differences as re- 

 gards scholarly achievements among the 

 faculty as well as among the students. It 

 calls for observations as regards scientific 

 achievements and for a public expression 

 of conclusions relating to such achieve- 

 ments. These things are intimately con- 

 nected with the questions considered above 

 and hence these questions seemed appro- 

 priate even if they affect only indirectly 

 our main interests. 



In financial circles there seems to be a 

 tendency to welcome the most searching 

 scrutiny on the part of the public. Our 

 scholarly methods should be freely open to 

 the same kind of scrutiny. Practises which 

 suffer thereby would be apt to become 

 worse and to suffer more severely through 

 a later investigation. It seems also very de- 

 sirable that we should institute such investi- 

 gations from within before they are sug- 

 gested by a dissatisfied public. 



There is a general impression that schol- 

 ars are too poorly paid and that we should 

 not interfere with the efforts which some of 



them are making to increase their incomes. 

 On the other hand, the fact that a rule of 

 the University of Paris provides that no 

 professor shall be able to increase his salary 

 beyond twenty thousand francs by accept- 

 ing numerous teaching positions, shows that 

 in a leading intellectual center it has ap- 

 peared desirable to limit the professor 

 whose financial ambitions interfere with 

 what appear to be the highest university 

 interests. 



In view of the fact that there is such a 

 large army of men engaged in scientific in- 

 vestigation it is reasonable to expect to find 

 in our own ranks a great variety of types 

 of mind. Many of us doubtless believe that 

 some subjects which have found a place in 

 respectable society as regards subjects of 

 learning are practically graft-subjects. 

 Subjects where the brilliant advances of 

 one generation dwindle repeatedly into 

 nothing through the scrutiny of the follow- 

 ing generation, must convey a strong odor 

 of graft to a scientific mind. This is true 

 in spite of the fact that these subjects fre- 

 quently relate to things about which we 

 would all sincerely wish to have more light. 



One object of a university course should 

 be to lead the mind of the young towards 

 useful channels of thought and to warn 

 them against those subjects whose main 

 capital is wasting the time of the student by 

 discussing things about which we know 

 nothing; or, what is still worse, by culti- 

 vating the dishonest state of mind which 

 delights in pretentions of knowledge where 

 there is no knowledge. The greatest foe of 

 knowledge is the pretended knowledge 

 which can not now be disproved, and the 

 greatest danger which besets the students 

 who are seekers of truth is the net of glit- 

 tering but baseless generalities which are 

 sometimes spun out before their eyes under 

 the name of undergraduate university in- 

 struction. 



