Fbbbuaey 14, 1902.] 



SCIENCE. 



255 



the American Association representing cer- 

 tain sciences and a certain region. The 

 original objects of the Society— the or- 

 ganization of scientific work, the teaching 

 of science, the conduct of museums and the 

 like— still need an organization. Our dis- 

 cussion, our public lecture and oiir dinner 

 with a presidential address should not 

 lightly be abandoned. Within the Royal 

 Society and the British Association there 

 have been clubs, primarily social, but ex- 

 erting great influence on the policy of the 

 larger organizations. The National Acad- 

 emy performs valuable functions as a 

 select association composed of some of our 

 more eminent scientific men, and the So- 

 ciety of Naturalists, composed of some of 

 our more efficient and public-spirited stu- 

 dents of the natural sciences in the east- 

 ern states can accomplish much, in the 

 future as in the past, for the advancement 

 of science. J. McKeen Cattell. 



Columbia University. 



THE ASTRONOMICAL AND A8TR0PHY8IGAL 

 SOCIETY OF AMERICA. 



I. 



The first winter meeting of this Society 

 was held at the Cosmos Club, Washington, 

 D. C, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of 

 Convocation AVeek. Sessions for the read- 

 ing of papers were held both morning and 

 afternoon, on Monday and Tuesday, and 

 on Wednesday morning. The maximum at- 

 tendance of about fifty was reached on 

 Tuesday. 



Twenty-eight new members were elected, 

 and it was decided to hold the next meet- 

 ing of the Society at Washington during 

 Convocation Week, 1902-3. 



A number of the members lunched to- 

 gether both on Monday and Tuesday atBar- 

 ton's, and on Monday evening attended a 

 dinner at the same place. The president of 

 the Society presided, and among the most 

 delightful features were tlie after-dinner 



speeches of Professor W. W. Campbell, 

 Professor George E. Plale and Professor S. 

 I. Bailey. If a similar function is held at 

 the next meeting it is hoped that the ladies 

 of the Society will more generally follow 

 tte example of the two present at this time. 



On Tuesday evening President and Mrs. 

 Newcomb received the members of the So- 

 ciety and numerous invited guests at a con- 

 versazione held at the Arlington Hotel. 

 During the evening papers illustrated by 

 stereoptieon were read by Mr. Percival 

 Lowell on Mars, by Professor S. P. Langley 

 on personal equation and the infra-red 

 spectrum, by Professor George E. Hale on 

 a comparison of the results obtained by 

 photography from the forty-inch refractor 

 and the two- foot reflector of the Yerkes 

 Observatory, and by Professor W^. W. 

 Campbell on the work of the Lick Observa- 

 toiy eclipse party in Sumatra and the 

 nebula surrounding Nova Persei. 



After the reading of these papers the 

 guests were invited into an adjoining room 

 to partake of still another astronomical 

 treat and refreshments. Here the room 

 was fitted up with numerous transparencies . 

 and photographs from the Harvard College 

 Observatory, from the Yerkes Observatory, 

 from the Lick Observatory and from the 

 United States Naval Observatory. 



On Tiiesday a number of the members 

 visited the Astrophysical Observatory of 

 the Smithsonian Institution upon a special 

 invitation to the Society from Secretary 

 Langley. 



At the adjournment of the Wednesday 

 morning session the members formed in 

 line, marched to the White House and paid 

 their respects to President Roosevelt, spe- 

 cial arrangements having been made for 

 their reception. 



OFFICERS ELECTED. 



For 1902: President, Simon Newcomb; 1st 

 Vice-President, George E. Hale; 2d Vice-Presi- 



