OCTOBER 27, 1899. ] 
of the dashes and dots of the Morse alphabet, 
there are rising and falling strokes starting 
from a horizontal line. The receiver consists 
of a telephone fitted with a small concave mir- 
ror, upon which are reflected, in the form of 
streaks of light, the impulses marked on the 
membrane. By an ingenious arrangement, re- 
calling in some respects that of the cinemato- 
graph, the streaks of light reflected upon the 
mirror are reproduced upon a roll of sensitized 
paper, thus giving a narrow oblong picture, 
which in the present stage of the invention is 
developed and fixed like any ordinary photo- 
graph. 
WE learn from the Electrical World that a 
singular decision has been made in the Senate 
of the Supreme Court of the Empire of Ger- 
many. Last December three mechanics at- 
tached a wire to a cable laid in the house where 
they lodged, and stole electricity enough to 
light their rooms. The Provincial Court sen- 
tenced them each to one day’s imprisonment. 
The decision was based on the principle that 
electricity possessed the essential properties of 
a movable object. It has gone from court to 
court, and now the Senate holds that the judg- 
ment of the Provincial Court must be quashed 
on the grounds that the law provides only 
against the theft of movable bodies, and the 
court holds that those properties are wanting 
in electricity which would be necessary to con- 
stitute it a movable object in the sense of the 
law. The sentence states that electricity must 
be regarded as one of the energies of nature, 
like sound, light and elasticity. It was also 
decided that damage to property cannot be 
pleaded, for that requires that the substance 
of the object must be affected. Again, it was 
held that property has been withdrawn from 
the wire, but the Senate denies this, for elec- 
tricity is not one of the properties of copper 
wire, so itis unanimously concluded that the 
law as it is in Germany tapping an electric 
current is not theft. 
UNIVERSITY AND EDUCATIONAL NEWS. 
Dr. ARTHUR: TWINING HADLEY was duly in- 
augurated as president of Yale University on 
October 18th, in the presence of a distinguished 
SCIENCE. 
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audience, representing the chief universities of 
the United States. Dr. Hadley took the oath 
of office and made the inaugural address. Pro- 
fessor George P. Fisher, of the Divinity School, 
made the congratulatory address on. behalf of 
the faculty. 
CoLONEL RUTHERFORD B. TROWBRIDGE has 
given $10,000 to the Art School of Yale Uni- 
versity. 
Funps are being collected for a graduate fel- 
lowship at Mt. Holyoke College in memory of 
Elizabeth Miller Bardwell, formerly director of 
the astronomical observatory. 
THE committee appointed by the National 
Educational Association to consider the plans 
for a National University at Washington will 
meet in that city on November 2d, The com- 
mittee consists of President Wm. R. Harper, 
Chairman, President Alderman of the Univer- 
sity of North Carolina, President Angell of the 
University of Michigan, Professor Butler of 
Columbia University, Dr. Canfield of Columbia 
University, Mr. J. L. M. Curry, Washington 
Agent of the Peabody and Slater Funds ; Super- 
intendent Dougherty of Peoria, President 
Draper of the University of Illinois, President 
Eliot of Harvard University, Professor James 
of the University of Chicago, Superintendent 
Maxwell of New York, Professor Moses of the 
University of California, President Schurman of 
Cornell University, President Wilson of Wash- 
ington and Lee University, and Superintendent 
Soldan of St. Louis. 
COMMERCIAL education was the subject for 
discussion at the sessions of the International 
Commercial Congress on October 28th. Presi- 
dent Low, of Columbia University, presided. 
Addresses were also made by President Eliot, 
of Harvard University, President Schurman, of 
Cornell University and President Harrison, of 
the University of Pennsylvania. 
A SPECIAL committee has presented a report 
to the general meeting of the Convocation of 
the University of London. The following are 
among itsrecommendations: (1) Thereshould 
be only one faculty of science with adequate 
representation on the Senate and the Academic 
Council. (2) Engineering should be a distinct 
branch of the one faculty of science and not a 
