SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. XXIII. No. 575. 



the true position of scientific men in their 

 relation to those for whom their work is 

 undertaken. That work, using a rough 

 classification, may be considered u.nder 

 three heads: that done in technical and 

 commercial concerns, that done for the 

 government and that done in universities, 

 including under that general term all col- 

 leges, scientific schools and similar institu- 

 tions which have a permanent endowment 

 of some kind. 



In chemical, electrical and mechanical 

 engineering works and other essentially 

 commercial undertakings the scientific man 

 is occupied mainly with routine duties and 

 the number of persons employed in this 

 kind of work is large and will be nuich 

 larger in the future. The ratio of demand 

 and supply in this case must always regu- 

 late the salaries paid and, as scientific ex- 

 perts are a necessity in these lines of busi- 

 ness, the pay ought to be expected to be 

 comparatively as good as in other branches 

 of business. Occasionally, as we have seen 

 recently in the case of electrical engineer- 

 ing, the supply may become suddenly 

 greater than the demand in the lower 

 grades of work, but these things soon regu- 

 late themselves. Hitherto the value of 

 biological work in connection with water- 

 works and other hygienic establishments 

 has not been as fully appreciated as it 

 should be and the openings for specialists 

 in biology have not been very numerous. 

 There has been, however, a change for the 

 better in this particular field. It is not, 

 however, with the case of those whose work 

 is what may be called routine work that 

 we are concerned here, but we must ask 

 why it is that, in those occupations which 

 are primarily money-making, Americans 

 have been so reluctant to employ original 

 investigators for the purpose of developing 

 their business. For a good many years the 

 great value of original research in connec- 

 tion with manufacturing concerns has been 



fully recognized in some European coun- 

 tries. The Carlsberg laboratory at Copen- 

 hagen is a brilliant example of how much 

 scientific work by experts of reputation 

 can aid a practical industry, and we all 

 know how the employment of experts to 

 investigate special questions has helped the 

 Germans to coin money in chemical indus- 

 tries. We shall have to admit that in cer- 

 tain respects we are more stupid than some 

 other nations. I have heard of an impor- 

 tant finn engaged in the manufacture of 

 chemicals who could not be persuaded to 

 employ a competent chemical investigator, 

 not a mere analyst, to develop their busi- 

 ness, because they felt unable to pay the 

 princely salary of $1,500 a year. This is 

 the same kind of stupidity which seeks to 

 secure foreign trade by sending out agents 

 who are unable to speak a word of the 

 language of the country to which they are 

 sent. If our business men are too stupid 

 to take advantage of the help afforded by 

 science, although informed as to what is 

 done by their foreign competitors, we shall 

 not be called on to shed many tears over 

 their ultimate failure in the competition 

 for business. 



The relations of the national govern- 

 ment to science and to scientific men are 

 most important, but unfortunately very 

 perplexing on account of the numerous 

 complicated conditions which have to be 

 considered. Although the government is 

 concerned only incidentally with science, it 

 has in its service more scientific men than 

 any other institution. I have said that the 

 government is only incidentally concerned 

 with science, believing that the object of 

 government is to take charge of the work 

 of administration entrusted to it by the 

 constitution and acts of congress. Varied 

 as this work may be, it does not include 

 everything. For instance, the education 

 of the country is fortunately not entrusted 

 to the national government and the busi- 



