514 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. XXIII. No. 587. 



terest in natural science, especially physics 

 and chemistry. From 1843 to 1850 he was 

 assistant to Dr. John W. Draper, the dis- 

 tinguished English chemist who made his 

 home in New York, and he had charge of the 

 chemical laboratory of the medical department 

 of the university. He spent some time in 

 Paris pursuing the study of electrometallurgy. 

 In 1849 he was elected professor of chemistry 

 in the ~New York College of Pharmacy, and 

 in 1850 he was one of the founders of the New 

 York Medical College, where he equipped a 

 chemical laboratory for medical students. 

 Later he was instrumental in founding both 

 the Long Island Hospital and Medical College 

 and the Bellevue Medical College and oc- 

 cupied the chair of chemistry and toxicology 

 in both institutions. He was for many years 

 professor of natural history in the College of 

 the City of New York, and about 1882 was 

 made professor of chemistry and physics, a 

 position which he retained until he gave up 

 teaching in 1903. At the College of the City 

 of New York he established a large chemical 

 laboratory in which hosts of students received 

 practical instruction. Upon his retirement 

 from the duties of instructor he had com- 

 pleted sixty years of continuous work as a 

 teacher of chemistry and physics and it is 

 doubtful if any other instructor in this 

 country has ever lectured to so many pupils. 



Professor Doremus paid special attention to 

 toxicology and distinguished himself by the 

 thoroughness of his work in medico-legal in- 

 vestigations and the improvements which he 

 made in some of the most important tests for 

 poisons. 



He made some important improvements in 

 the preparation of cartridges of compressed 

 gunpowder for army use, which attracted es- 

 pecial attention in France where he was in- 

 vited to make experiments before the Emperor 

 Napoleon III. and his generals. Dj. Doremus 

 was especially interested in the application of 

 chemistry and physics to the practical affairs 

 of life and was often consulted by manufac- 

 turers and by sanitary authorities. 



Dr. Doremus was especially successful as a 

 public lecturer, he was a man of commanding 



presence, most agreeable voice, and eloquent 

 and clear in his presentation of the facts and 

 principles of science. He spared no trouble 

 or expense in the preparation of his experi- 

 ments, and many old New Yorkers will re- 

 member with pleasure the brilliant and 

 dazzling experiments which he made in the 

 Academy of Music in demonstrating the 

 phenomena of light and heat as developed by 

 various forms of combustion and by elec- 

 tricity. Dr. Doremus was very musical in his 

 tastes, a skillful performer on the cornet, and 

 was several times president of the Philhar- 

 monic Society. He was warm, cordial and 

 friendly in his relations with others and en- 

 deared himself to the hearts of all who knew 

 lii™- Chables F. Chandler. 



A STANDARD AGRICULTURAL COURSE. 



At the recent meeting of the Association 

 of American Agricultural Colleges and Ex- 

 periment Stations held in Washington, D. C, 

 the subject of courses in agriculture and hor- 

 ticulture and allied subjects was discussed by 

 Professor F. W. Rane, of the New Hampshire 

 College, before the section on college work and 

 administration. 



The speaker recommended that the funda- 

 mental sciences of the course should be placed 

 in the first two years and that the require- 

 ments be uniform for all the various institu- 

 tions teaching agriculture. He showed that 

 at present from an extensive study of com- 

 parative courses in the various institutions, 

 there exists no uniformity, subjects being 

 given in some institutions in the freshman 

 year, while in others the same subject is offered 

 in the senior year. After emphasizing the 

 importance of having the basal or funda- 

 mental work the same, he would then require 

 sufficient of the applied or economic subjects 

 to give the agricultural student a general 

 broad grasp of agriculture, as shown in the 

 accompanying table, the student then being 

 allowed a free and unrestrained will to elect 

 in the junior and senior years the subject that 

 most appeals to his tastes and likings. 



The cultural subjects recommended by the 

 speaker are practically those recommended by 



