900 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XXVII. No. 701 



LONDON FOG AND COUNTRY FOG 



London fogs are often very thick ; very dark, 

 of the " pea-soup " variety ; and very " dry." 

 Fogs in the surrounding country at the same 

 time are clean, white and wet. The differ- 

 ence is largely a question of the impurities, the 

 " dust " of various kinds, in the air of the 

 city. In Symons's Meteorological Magazine 

 for December, 190Y, a recent ease of this kind 

 is noted. On November 11, in the evening, 

 there was a thick, dry fog, " with the pungent 

 fumes of oxide of sulphur very noticeable " 

 in London. Fifteen miles out of the city the 

 fog was white and extremely wet. 



With the present number of Science, the 

 publication of these " Current Notes on 

 Meteorology and Climatology " ceases, so far 

 as the undersigned is concerned. This step 

 has become necessary owing to the increasing 

 pressure of other work whose accomplishment 

 is imperative, and for reasons of health which 

 can not be disregarded. 



Since the first publication of these " Notes " 

 on May 1, 1897, they have appeared in 166 

 numbers of Science, on 721 separate topics. 

 In addition, 19 book reviews and 7 short 

 communications on meteorological subjects 

 have been contributed by the writer during the 

 same period. 



If during the past twelve years the under- 

 signed has been able, in some slight way, 

 through these " Notes " to help his fellow 

 workers in meteorology and climatology, and 

 in science generally, to keep up with the more 

 important advances in the science of the 

 earth's 'atmosphere, he will feel well repaid for 

 his labors. Eobeet DeO. Ward 



Haevaed University, 



Cambridge, Mass., 



April 27, 1908 



LETTERS CONCERNINa THE ADMINISTRA- 

 TION OF SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY 



Gaerison-on-Hudson, N. T., 



May 23, 1908. 

 Chancellor James E. Day, 



Syracuse University, Syracuse, N. Y. 

 Dear Sir.- I have received from Dean Kent 



a statement in regard to his dismissal from 

 Syracuse University. It appears that you are 

 unwilling to give the reasons for this action 

 beyond the statement that he has been a dis- 

 appointment to the administration and is non 

 grata to the chancellor. It is obvious that a 

 dean should work in harmony with the head 

 of a university, and that there should be cour- 

 tesy and consideration on both sides. If, 

 however, a dean or a professor is placed in a 

 position of subservience to the president, so 

 that he has no freedom or initiative in his 

 own department, or if he may not freely pre- 

 sent his views to the president and to his col- 

 leagues, then his position is not tolerable, and 

 no man of ability and independence would 

 willingly accept a position in a university in 

 which such conditions obtained. I do not 

 mean to imply that there is such a deplorable 

 state of affairs at Syracuse, but the dismissal 

 of Dean Kent without a full statement of the 

 grounds seems to confirm the reports that I 

 have received from other sources to the effect 

 that the chancellor regards deans and pro- 

 fessors as subject to his individual will. 



I venture in the interests of higher educa- 

 tion to ask: (1) The grounds leading to the 

 dismissal of Dean Kent; (2) Whether it is 

 true, as alleged, that a professor who should 

 show sympathy with Dean Kent would be 

 liable to dismissal, and (3) whether you re- 

 gard it as proper to dismiss a professor, if 

 such action would not have the approval of 

 his colleagues on the faculty. 



I assume that I may print this letter and 

 your reply in Science. 



Very truly yours, 



J. McK. Cattell 



Garrison-on-Hudson, N. T., 



May 29, 1908. 

 Chancellor James R. Day, 



Syracuse University, Syracuse, N. T. 

 Dear Sir: I regret that your reply to my 

 letter may not be printed, as it is a clear 

 statement of the policy of academic adminis- 

 tration which obtains widely in this country. 

 I myself believe that this policy — according 

 to which the president has autocratic control, 

 subject only to an absentee board of trustees 



