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SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XXXII. No. 



INTERNATIONAL CONGRESSES ' 

 The pursuit of science has from early 

 times developed friendships among men of 

 the most varied nationalities. These 

 friendships have persisted even in times of 

 war between their nations. Intercourse 

 has been promoted by private correspond- 

 ence and by means of periodicals. With 

 improved methods of transportation the 

 desire of more personal intimacy was grati- 

 fied, and the value of harmony and coopera- 

 tion recognized. 



The necessity of international congresses 

 appears to have been first appreciated by 

 chemists. A purely international congress 

 of chemists was planned in 1859 for the 

 spring of 1860, but later it was decided to 

 fix the meeting at Carlsruhe on the third 

 of September in the same year. Letters of 

 invitation were addressed to eminent chem- 

 ists, and the response was encouraging. 

 The meeting was attended by one hundred 

 and forty chemists from all parts of Eu- 

 rope and lasted for three days. Most of 

 the time was devoted to a discussion having 

 reference to the best method of expressing 

 the composition of chemical substances in 

 the symbolic notation, and the debate on 

 this point was very animated. (Appendix 

 I.) The hope was generally expressed that 

 this meeting would not be the last. How- 

 ever, no more congresses of chemistry of an 

 international character were held until 

 1889. Nevertheless, the value of these was 

 recognized and certain efforts were made to 

 revive the movement of 1859 at frequent 

 intervals; but the international conven- 

 tions of chemists were limited to a discus- 

 sion of the exhibits showing the develop- 

 ment of chemical productions at the inter- 

 national expositions of Paris (1867, 1878, 

 1889), Moscow (1872), Vienna (1873), 

 Wilna (1873), Philadelphia (1876), Diis- 



' Read before the New York Section of the 

 American Chemical Society, October 7, 1910. 



seldorf (1880) and Milan (1881). Quite 

 a number of chemists usually attended 

 these exhibitions as members of juries of 

 awards as well as through personal inter- 

 est, and it appears that they served to in- 

 duce informal assemblage and exchange of 

 opinion. However, with the rapid devel- 

 opment of our science and its applications, 

 it soon became apparent that the discus- 

 sion of problems could be advantageously 

 transacted in convention as well as in jour- 

 nals, especially since the personal exchange 

 of views in informal and social manner had 

 been found by local and national (chemical 

 societies) conventions to be particularly 

 beneficial. 



On July 30, 1889, the International Con- 

 gress of Chemistry was opened in Paris by 

 Berthelot, who exposed the objects of the 

 congress as follows: 



Theories are not to be considered, but only 

 practical questions, such as relate to analytical 

 methods and nomenclature. The last urgently 

 needs revision and improvement. The system 

 hitherto followed has become insufficient. So 

 many new compounds have been discovered that 

 they are bursting through the frames formerly 

 intended, and thought wide enough, to contain 

 them. . . . We can not keep on adding syllables 

 and forming endless names for new combinations. 

 A new and clearer system is absolutely necessary, 

 with lines broad enough to last for some time at 

 least. 



In object, then, this congress was similar 

 to the one at Carlsruhe. More important 

 matters were discussed, however, and views 

 of an influential nature were expressed on 

 the testing and analysis of chemical prod- 

 ucts, particularly organic bodies, alimen- 

 tary substances and pharmaceutical prepa- 

 rations. 



The necessity of international congresses 

 of science having become appreciated, prin- 

 cipally owing to the recognition of the 

 value of international associations among 

 men of science, since such assemblages were 

 found to serve as a medium for the fruitful 



