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SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. XXV. No. 629 



since the future develops from the present, 

 and it is the future, though inseparable 

 from the present, that holds most of in- 

 terest for us now, I will call my theme 

 'The Present and Future of the American 

 Chemical Society.' 



The desirability of assembling all chem- 

 ists in a single strong organization would 

 seem so manifest as to be beyond the need 

 of argument for its support, and the whole 

 drift of the present address will conform 

 to this postulate. In the words of a corre- 

 spondent, "If the profession of chemistry 

 is to reach and maintain the distinguished 

 position which it ought to have in this 

 country, it must do so by presenting a 

 united front and combining in its member- 

 ship practically all who are engaged in any 

 branch of chemical work." And again, 

 "A person who joins the American Chem- 

 ical Society should not have in view solely 

 his personal interests. He should first 

 have in view the interests of the profession. 

 His membership is a patriotic duty and not 

 a personal perquisite. ' ' 



But without specialization few advances 

 would be made. Specialized societies are, 

 therefore, excellent and to a certain degree 

 necessary— and to this point I will revert 

 later— but it would seem as if they would 

 be most effective as adjuncts of a major 

 organization which should include all 

 chemists. It is a mistake to think, as some 

 apparently do, that the chemist in one line 

 of work has little to learn from those labor- 

 ing in different fields. All owe their suc- 

 cess to the application of the same funda- 

 mental facts and theories, and discovery in 

 one field may have most important bearing 

 at a point seemingly remote. Deep spe- 

 cialization is vital and inevitable; but he 

 who while performing his own particular 

 task at the same time endeavors to keep in 

 touch with the general trend and progress 

 of the important work in his profession 

 will be in advance of the man who reads 



none but his own special journals and 

 waits for the text-books and manuals to 

 bring him the belated knowledge which 

 might have been his much sooner. 



The foregoing lines were written long 

 before the opening of the new Harvard 

 Medical School on September 26 of this 

 year, and it was, therefore, pleasing to read 

 in the address of Dr. Wm. H. Welch, de- 

 livered on that occasion, the following ex- 

 pression of his opinion: "Specialization 

 * * * is demanded by the necessities of 

 the case and has been the great instrument 

 of progress, but the further division is car- 

 ried, the more necessary does it become to 

 emphasize essential unity of purpose and 

 to secure coordination and cordial coopera- 

 tion of allied sciences." This was said 

 with particular reference to the many spe- 

 cialized branches of medical science. 



Again, from the same address: "How 

 disastrous may be to medicine the loss of 

 the sense of unity in all its branches has 

 been clearly and admirably shown by Pro- 

 fessor Allbutt in depicting the effects which 

 for centuries followed the casting off from 

 medicine of surgery as a subject unworthy 

 the attention of the medical faculty. 

 Thereby internal medicine lost touch with 

 reality and the inductive method, and re- 

 mained sterile and fantastic until the day 

 of Harvey, Sydenham and Boerhaave." 



That the application of these statements 

 to our own profession will be self-evident 

 to most of its followers is my hopeful be- 

 lief. 



Such a general organization as that al- 

 luded to, broad in its scope and progressive 

 in its administration, not only maintains 

 and adds to the dignity of the profession 

 at large, but also helps the individual in 

 more ways than one. The opportunities 

 which it affords by its general meetings 

 for seeing, hearing and becoming acquaint- 

 ed with the foremost men in all lines of 

 work appertaining to the profession, are 



