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SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. XIX. No. 479. 



any considerable reduction of railway rates. 



4. The season has certain objections for 

 some of us who would like a few days of 

 quiet with our families during the Christmas 

 holidays. 



The second and third objections may seem 

 to hold also against the summer meetings of 

 the association. But as the summer meetings 

 fall in the long vacations a trip to the east 

 is generally utilized for other purposes as well 

 as for attending the scientific meetings, while 

 the short Christmas vacation does not leave 

 us time for anything else. 



We of the Pacific slope, however, fully 

 realize that this question should be settled 

 with a view to the interests of the majority 

 of the scientific men of the country, and that 

 the majority lives east of the Rocky Moun- 

 tains. We hope, though, that it will not be 

 forgotten that the association has always tried 

 to do a little missionary work whenever it 

 has been possible. J. C. Branner. 



To THE Editor of Science: Replying to 

 your request for an expression of opinion rela- 

 tive to scientific organization in this country, 

 I would say that the reorganization of the 

 medical profession seems to me to offer an 

 example which we might well follow. 



Let the present American Association for 

 the Advancement of Science be taken as basis, 

 forming the national organization; let the 

 present council be supplanted by a house of 

 delegates, composed of representatives from 

 each state society, the number being in propor- 

 tion to the state membership; let all business 

 affairs, questions of policy, etc., be transacted 

 by this house of delegates; let the national 

 association hold its meetings in convocation 

 week, and be divided into as many sections as 

 seems necessary or desirable for the purpose 

 of presenting papers, but let it be divided 

 into state associations for the purpose of rep- 

 resentation and government. The national 

 association can prepare a model constitution 

 for the use of the state and local associations 

 and have such constitution cast so that only 

 the state or local names need be inserted, thus 

 saving considerable expense, work and worry. 



The state associations should hold inde- 



pendent meetings or two or three adjoining 

 states could unite for joint meetings, prefer- 

 ably in summer. A division into sections 

 could obtain for presentation of papers, but 

 the business affairs could best be conducted by 

 a state house of delegates, composed of dele- 

 gates from the local associations. Such meet- 

 ings would doubtless be attended by many col- 

 lege assistants, college students and especially 

 high school teachers who can not afford to at- 

 tend the national meeting and who might feel 

 lost if they did attend. 



Local associations could be formed in any 

 community in which a given number of scien- 

 tific workers could be organized. It is but 

 natural that the universities and colleges 

 would form the centers of the local societies 

 and by interesting all senior students in the 

 local societies, the national association would 

 eventually practically represent a national 

 alumni organization. At least all scientific 

 students in colleges and universities would, 

 upon graduation, enter the post-graduate na- 

 tional organization. In places like Boston, 

 New York, Washington, Chicago, etc., there 

 would be a differentiation into sections, ac- 

 cording to subjects represented and members 

 enrolled. 



Such an organization would unite all Amer- 

 ican scientists into one strong body, which 

 upon occasion would be an important factor 

 in national or state legislative and other public 

 matters. It would give every member of a 

 local scientific society representation in the 

 national organization. It would decrease ex- 

 penses in local and state societies, and thus 

 decrease the number and amount of annual 

 dues, which are already too large. It might 

 enable us gradually to assume control of and 

 responsibility for technical publications. It 

 might result in the union of several existing 

 publications with the plan of distribution by 

 signatures, so that it would be possible for a 

 zoologist to subscribe for all of the zoological 

 papers issued without his purchasing four 

 times as many papers on other subjects, and 

 the same advantage would accrue to the bot- 

 anist, the chemist, the mathematician, etc. 

 And to the great delight and relief of the 

 bibliographer, such a plan would probably re- 



