April 17, 1903. J 



SCIENCE. 



633 



in entomology, by masters who had known 

 and loved young Putnam. Mrs. Putnam, 

 convinced of future development, insisted on 

 securing for the academy additional land and 

 a church property, which, rechristened as 

 Science Hall, now houses part of the museum 

 collections and supplies an audience room for 

 public gatherings and scientific lectures. 

 Through her urgency a year ago, a curator 

 was called that more and aggressive work 

 might be undertaken. To-day the Davenport 

 Academy of Sciences has its valuable land, two 

 buildings, important collections, eight vol- 

 umes of published Proceedings, endowed publi- 

 cation fund, small but growing general en- 

 dowment, an active and competent curator, 

 because she has rallied the little band of work- 

 ers through dark days and has encouraged 

 them when they might falter. 



Within the last two years the academy has 

 undertaken much new work. Its desire is 

 to come into a close and helpful relation with 

 the general work of education of the city. 

 Before the new curator, Mr. Paarmann, was 

 called. Miss Sheldon, the corresponding secre- 

 tary, reestablished the long discontinued lec- 

 tures to school children at the academy's 

 museum. Since the arrival of the curator, 

 Mr. Paarmann and Miss Sheldon have con- 

 tinued this important work, with gratifying 

 success. In this work Mrs. Putnam was 

 greatly interested and heartily sympathetic. 

 She was enthusiastic also in establishing 

 courses of scientific lectures. The first of 

 these was given in the winter of 1901-02 ; 

 the second was presented during the season 

 just closing. They were well received and 

 proved more than self-supporting. With 

 delight, Mrs. Putnam, as president of the 

 academy, watched the development of work, 

 the growth of plans, the increasing interest of 

 the community. In February, after the lec- 

 ture course was closed, she turned her atten- 

 tion to an exhibition of Indian basketry, to 

 be arranged at the academy, for its benefit. 

 All preparations were completed, and on 

 February 19 the doors were opened. The 

 exhibition was to continue through three days 

 and its success was ardently desired. Unex- 



pected numbers came the first and second 

 days and went away delighted. On the night 

 of the 20th, after a busy and happy day at the 

 exhibition, pleased and satisfied at the result 

 and looking forward to an even better mor- 

 row, Mrs. Putnam went to her home. A little 

 wearied, she lay down to rest; without a word, 

 and probably without suffering, she passed 



Mrs. Putnam made no pretensions to be 

 a scientist. But she knew almost every 

 prominent scientific worker in our country 

 and many of the foreign students. She loved 

 to attend the gatherings of the American As- 

 sociation and other organizations, that the 

 academy might keep in touch with the world 

 of science. In October last she was in attend- 

 ance at the Congress of Americanists in New 

 York. Though she was not present, the 

 American Association for the Advancement 

 of Science, in its December meeting at Wash- 

 ington, elected her a fellow. This unsolicited 

 mark of esteem greatly pleased her, though 

 she felt herself undeserving of it. To whom, 

 however, could it have been more worthily 

 given than to her who had striven so loyally 

 for the advancement of science? 



In her death, the object of so much love 

 and labor was not forgotten. The whole of 

 her estate is left for the academy's benefit. 

 Through the provisions of her will $24,000 

 are available for the continuance of publica- 

 tion of its volumes of Proceedings. The 

 academy will continue to touch the outside 

 world of science. Thus, though dead, they 

 speak — the mother and the son, once more 

 united. Frederick Starr. 



TBE ROYAL GEOaRAPHIGAL SOCIETY. 

 We learn from the London Times that the 

 society will this year make its awards as fol- 

 lows : The Founder's medal has been awarded 

 to Mr. Douglas W. Freshfield for his explora- 

 tions in the Caucasus and the Himalaya, and 

 for his persistent efforts to further the spread 

 and raise the standard of geographical educa- 

 tion. In 1868 he made a journey to the cen- 

 tral Caucasus which included the first ascents 

 of Kasbek and the eastern summit of Elbruz 

 and the discovery of new snow passes across 



