May 30, 1902.] 



SCIENCE. 



843 



broadened and enlarged to represent the general 

 ideals of highest scholarship in the minds and 

 before the ambitions of every earnest student in 

 any branch of science. It proposed to recognize 

 and elect to its membership those men in our 

 institutions of learning who should exhibit in a 

 marked degree the qualifications of natural en- 

 dowment and training required for successfully 

 conducting original research in various branches 

 of science. 



Then among the conditions which must 

 be met in order to qualify an institution 

 for the establishment of a Chapter we find 

 this: 



That the nvimber of distinct branches of sci- 

 ence represented by full professors in the insti- 

 tution shall be at least five; and these branches 

 should include mathematics, physics, chemistry, 

 biology (some department of it) and engineering 

 (some department of it). 



This Society then has for its object the 

 encouragement of original investigation in 

 science. But what constitutes original in- 

 vestigation, and how is it to be carried on? 

 Probably all of us have known earnest stu- 

 dents of science in some of its forms, men 

 or women it may be who by reading and 

 study have acquired a great fund of infor- 

 mation, but who have no more idea of any 

 way in which they can add anything to the 

 existing store than has a new-born babe. 



Some have regretted their misfortune in 

 being born too late. If they could have 

 appeared on the scene before Shakespeare 

 had exhausted the field of dramatic litera- 

 ture, or Newton and Laplace that of uni- 

 versal gravitation, or Columbus that of 

 geographical discovery, they could have 

 done these tilings, and thereby have 

 achieved immortal fame. 



On the other hand as an illustration of 

 the true scientific investigator let us con- 

 sider the example of Mr. S. W. Burnham, 

 of Chicago. Mr. Burnham is the leading 

 authority of the world in the astronomy 

 of double and multiple stars. His profes- 

 sion is that of a stenographer, astronomy 

 or physics occupying no prominent place 



in his early training. Forty years ago, as 

 many other men have done before and 

 since, Mr. Burnham purchased for his enter- 

 tainment and instruction a cheap telescope 

 of five inches aperture. This was soon after- 

 wards replaced by a slightly larger one, 

 which in turn gave way in 1869 or there- 

 abouts to a six-inch glass by the celebrated 

 Alvan Clarke. This modest instrument 

 Mr. Burnham pronounces simply perfect in 

 performance. 



The thousands of double stars which are 

 scattered in every part of the heavens had 

 an especial fascination for this amateur 

 astronomer. To quote his own words : 



My attention for some reason or other which 

 I am unable to explain, had been almost exclu- 

 sively directed to double stars previous to this 

 while using the smaller telescope referred to. 

 This preference was not in any sense a matter of 

 judgment as to the most desirable or profitable 

 department of astronomical work, or the result of 

 any special deliberation upon the subject. It 

 came about naturally without any effort or direc- 

 tion on my part. 



A little building in the rear of Mr. Burn- 

 ham's residence sheltered his telescope 

 from the elements, and here he found his 

 pleasure after the work of the day was 

 over in scanning the heavens, identifying 

 and measuring the systems which had been 

 found by the Herschels and the Struves, 

 and in gathering up hundreds of pairs 

 which had been overlooked by his pre- 

 decessors. During all the early years of 

 his activity in this field, he was actuated 

 only by the satisfaction which he was de- 

 riving and probably never suspected that 

 it involved anything remarkable. It is 

 hardly an exaggeration to say that he awoke 

 one morning to find himself famous. 



Contrast this brief account with the 

 history of another aspirant for glory in 

 this same field. Sir James South, of Eng- 

 land. 



In 1842 the late Professor 0. M. Mitchel visited 

 Europe for the purpose of inspecting foreign ob- 

 servatories, and purchasing a telescope for the 



