638 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. XVII. No. 433. 



the organizing and equipment of a marine 

 laboratory for the purpose of carrying out 

 investigations and researches. It was hoped 

 that the work of the new organization would 

 assist to develop the fishing industry. He 

 was glad to say that the Department of Agri- 

 culture and Technical Instruction had been 

 approached and had decided to help them. 

 That, he thought, was sufficient to indicate 

 that the new association had useful work be- 

 fore it. Mr. H. H. Smiley, who has sub- 

 scribed £200 towards the funds of the associa- 

 tion, was elected first president. It is pro- 

 posed to start operations at Lame Harbor, 

 where there will be a small marine labora- 

 tory. A naturalist has been appointed, who 

 will furnish reports from time to time in 

 the physical and chemical characteristics of 

 the sea water and make other observations. 

 Recently the President asked the Commis- 

 sioner of Fish and Fisheries to have made a 

 comprehensive and thorough investigation of 

 the salmon fisheries of Alaska, and for this 

 purpose Commissioner Bowers has appointed 

 a special Alaska Salmon Commission consist- 

 ing of the following: President David Starr 

 Jordan, of Stanford University, executive 

 head; Dr. Barton Warren Evermann, ichthy- 

 ologist of the U. S. Fish Commission; Lieu- 

 tenant Franklin Swift, U. S. N., commanding 

 ofiicer of the Albatross; Cloudsley Butter, 

 naturalist of the Albatross; A. B. Alexander, 

 fishery expert of the Albatross; and J. Nelson 

 Wisner, superintendent of fish cultural sta- 

 tions of the U. S. Fish Commission. The 

 steamer Albatross has been detailed to this 

 work and will go north early in June. The 

 Alaska salmon fisheries are of very great im- 

 portance, the output of the canneries last year 

 amounting to 2,631,230 cases (of 48 pounds 

 each) valued at $8,667,673. To secure this 

 pack more than 36,000,000 salmon were util- 

 ized. It is doubtful if the waters of Alaska 

 can long withstand such an enormous drain 

 as this, and it is for the purpose of securing 

 information upon such questions as this tEat 

 the investigations will be made. 



The Baltimore Sun gives details of the ex- 

 pedition to be sent by the Geographical So- 



ciety of Baltimore to the Bahama Islands, 

 according to which the staff will number 

 fifty persons, and will leave Baltimore early 

 in June in a specially chartered vessel, fully 

 equipped to serve as the home and laboratory 

 of the party during its absence on the trip. 

 The scientific staff will be divided into de- 

 partments for the study of insular geology, 

 botany, zoology, medical and hygienic condi- 

 tions, climatology, physics, commercial geog- 

 raphy and history. Dr. George B. Shattuck, 

 who was asked by the directors of the society 

 to organize the expedition, will have charge of 

 the geological work. He will have three 

 assistants. Dr. W. C. Coker, professor of biol- 

 ogy in the University of North Carolina, will 

 direct the work in botany. Dr. Barton Blow, 

 curator of fish in the National Museum, will 

 investigate the fish of the seas around the 

 islands. Mr. O. C. Glaser, of the Hopkins 

 department of biology, will study the mol- 

 lusks and Mr. E. P. Cowles, fellow in biology, 

 the cardita of the island. Dr. O. L. Fassig, of 

 the Baltimore office of the United States 

 Weather Bureau, will superintend the work in 

 climatology. A person not yet named will 

 direct the survey of the commercial possibil- 

 ities of the islands. Mr. J. M. Wright of the 

 Hopkins historical department will have ac- 

 cess to the records of the islands, and will 

 prepare a monographic history of them. Mr. 

 A. H. Baldwin, a Washington artist, will be 

 the ofiicial illustrator. To Dr. C. A. Penrose 

 will be given the position of director of the 

 medical staff. This department will look 

 into the sanitary conditions of the islands 

 and will notice the effect of the climate on 

 Americans. 



The British Medical Journal summarizes 

 the vital statistics for the year 1902 of the 

 seventy-six large towns dealt with in the 

 Eegistrar-General's weekly returns. The 

 452,909 births registered in these towns dur- 

 ing last year were equal to an annual rate of 

 30.0 per 1,000 of their aggregate population, 

 estimated at 14,862,880 persons in the middle 

 of the year. In London the birth-rate was 

 equal to 28.5 per 1,000, while it averaged 31.1 

 per 1,000 in the seventy-five large provincial 

 towns. The lowest birth-rates in these towns 



