414 



8CIENCJEJ. 



[Vol. VIII. , No. 196 



course groundless. As a matter of fact, the present 

 wi-iter read Professor Ely's book with more than 

 usual care, not only because it dealt with a question 

 in which he feels a deep personal interest, but be- 

 cause of its general attractiveness of style. "When, 

 therefore Professor Ely denies that his reviewer read 

 the book, he evidently is writing in a Pickwickian 

 sense — or else he must mean that his reviewer did 

 not read the book with the author's eyes, which is 

 not beyond the bounds of possibility. 



Professor Ely's attention is called to the fact that 

 it is not usually considered candid to eliminate from 

 a quotation any word or clause that distinctly modi- 

 fies its import. When, therefore, his reviewer wrote, 

 that " while not over-clear on this point, yet he [Pro- 

 fessor Ely] seems to uphold the extremists in their 

 contention that all the evils of the present state of 

 society are due to private property and the lack of 

 proper co-operation in production and distribution," 

 he expressed an opinion which the freedom of the 

 press will probably permit him to continue to hold. 

 Professor Ely should have read and quoted it in 

 full. Professor Ely dissents from that opinion, but 

 his reviewer rejieats it just as it was first stated. 

 An honest difference of opinion is often serviceable 

 rather than otherwise. 



As a further instance of what his reviewer intended 

 by the modest statement that Professor Ely seemed 

 to him to have " committed the not uncommon scien- 

 tific error of reading his theory into the facts, 

 instead of deducing it from them," may be cited Pro- 

 fessor Ely's majestic waving away of one or two well- 

 known facts regarding workmen without grievances 

 striking because of the interference of some walking 

 delegate or other, with some rather eloquent refer- 

 ences to a knowledge of human nature. 



In fact, it is altogether to be regretted that Profes- 

 sor Ely should consider one of the most favorable 

 notices of his book, that has ajipeared in any journal 

 of authority, to be ' grossly careless.' Such an atti- 

 tude seems to ascribe, perhaps, more honor than is 

 their due, to the reviewers for the Nation, and for 

 that organ of the socialistic party of which Professor 

 Ely speaks. So we feel doubtful as to just what 

 opinion Professor Ely entertains regarding his book. 

 The general tone of his communication to Science 

 would seem to indicate that all criticism of the book, 

 to be just, must be laudatory : the ' grossly careless ' 

 phrase inclines us to the belief that the reviewers of 

 the Nation and of the organ of the socialistic labor 

 party may have most accurately reflected the judg- 

 ment of the author. In either case, the present 

 writer must crave Professor Ely's permission to dis- 

 agree with him. 



The published expression of the train of ethical 

 thoiTght to which the same notice of Professor Ely's 

 book gave rise in the mind of ' One of the agitators,' 

 at least calls for the recognition of the honor done 

 your reviewer in coupling his humble initials with 

 the great name of Aristotle. N. M. B. 



but, if it be premised that a certain method is to be 

 followed, a criticism of the faults imposed by that 

 method show that the critic failed to familiarize him- 

 self with the necessary facts. Had he acquired such j[ 

 a familiarity, he would have seen that it was designed, 

 not for siaecialists, but for the very classes to whom 

 he says it may be of value ; that a knowledge of 

 mineralogy was presui^posed (see preface), and that 

 the treatment of that science was in the shape of a 

 brief review of a few of the more common minerals ; 

 that the discarding of the microscope swept away all 

 facts dependent upon that instrument for verifica- 

 tion, required the use of old-fashioned terms existing 

 before that instrument changed the nomenclature, 

 and opened the doors for many ' blunders ' as viewed 

 by the microscoi3ist. While it may be debated 

 whether it be worth while to attempt to import so 

 brief an idea of the commoner rocks, it is a fact that 

 such a method has been employed here for a score of 

 years in the regular technical and scientific courses, 

 and that the work is to be covered in twenty exercises. 

 Looking at the criticism from this stand-point, it has 

 overshot its mark, and shows that the writer has 

 mistaken the book for a pretentious claimant for 

 recognition on the score of novelty or advanced 

 method of treatment, while, in fact, it is designed for 

 those who Avould acquire, in the shortest possible 

 time, an idea of the rocks most commonly met with 

 in the field. Edwaed H. Williams, Jr. 



Bethlehem, Penu., Oct. 30. 



A manual of lithology, 



A critic should carefully inform himself con- 

 cerning the contents of a book before he attempts to 

 review it, and should criticise the stand-point taken, 

 or adapt his review to that stand-point. This is my 

 excuse for noticing the prodigious mauling of so 

 small a corpse as my ' Lithology.' It is allowable to 

 object to the plane from which a subject is viewed ; 



The abuse of dispensaries. 



Your editorial on ' The abuse of dispensaries ' 

 {Science, viii. 380) gives occasion to call attention to 

 the charity organization societies and their function. 

 Such societies exist in the cities you mention, at 

 least in London, Boston, New York, and Philadel- 

 phia. These societies are clearing-houses of informa- 

 tion in relation to the people who beg or accept 

 gratuitous relief. They keep registries, both alpha- 

 betic and geographic (at least, this is the case in New 

 York and in Washington), of such persons, and make 

 it their business to ascertain the condition and needs 

 of all persons about whom inquiry is properly made. 

 The principle upon which they work is the following : 

 every church, institution, or person dispensing relief 

 is invited to report to the society the name and resi- 

 dence of and pertinent information about persons 

 aided ; they are advised to dispense no relief before 

 ascertaining from the society what it already knows 

 about these persons. If report is made that relief has 

 been extended to any person who is known by the 

 society to be receiving aid from other sources, all 

 parties giving aid are informed of the duplication. 

 If it is known that any person is not receiving 

 adequate relief, the society directs the attention of 

 some appropriate relief-giving agency to the need, or 

 directs the needy to the appropriate agency. This is 

 the application of scientific methods to the solution 

 of the social problems of pauperism and fraudulent 

 vand unnecessary solicitation of alms, and is destined 

 to succeed. The dispensaries could well afford, as 

 could all other relief- giving agencies, to apply a 

 large percentage of their funds to the support of the 

 charity organization societies, for the sake of the 

 economy which would therefrom result in their other 

 expenditures. B : Pickman Mann. 



Washington, D.C, Oct. 29. 



