Fbbruaey 5, 1897.] 



SCIENCE. 



225 



liberal construction of the law, and the cus- 

 toms officers are notified that the words ' scien- 

 tific books and periodicals devoted to original 

 scientific research ' relate to new discoveries 

 in the field of science, and do not include text- 

 books, compilations, and discussions of scien- 

 tific subjects already understood. It is still 

 uncertain how much original matter will 

 entitle a book to free entry as one ' devoted to 

 original research,' but a case which has come 

 up recently in Philadelphia concerning the 

 importation of a medical work has been ap- 

 pealed to the Circuit Court and may bring about 

 a settlement of the question. 



UNIVERSITY AND EDUCATIONAL NEWS. 

 The annual report of the Provost of the Uni- 

 versity of Pennsylvania, with the appended 

 documents, makes a volume extending to 248 

 pages. It covers, however, a period of more 

 than two years, from June 9, 1894, when Mri 

 Harrison assumed the duties of acting Provost, 

 to September 1, 1896. This will probably al- 

 ways be regarded as one of the most important 

 periods in the history of the University. The 

 preceding Provost, Dr. Pepper, had used his 

 great energy and abilities to expand the Univer- 

 sity in every direction. Mr. Harrison has 

 placed the external and internal affairs of the 

 university on a firm basis. He has supple- 

 mented his own executive ability by a Vice- 

 Provost, Professor Fullerton, whose knowledge 

 of educational matters has greatly aided the re- 

 organization of the University. This work has 

 extended to every school and department, the 

 standards having been raised throughout and the 

 correlations improved. The chief losses to the 

 scientific departments have been the death of 

 Professor J. A. Ryder, and the resignations of 

 Dr. John S. Billings and Dr. Harrison Allen; the 

 chief gains have been the appointments of Pro- 

 fessor C. A.- Doolittle, in astronomy ; Professor 

 E. G. Conklin, in comparative embryology, 

 and Professor A. C. Abbott, in hygiene. Of 

 advances in the University the next noteworthy 

 has been the gift of $500,000 by the Provost for 

 the encouragement of liberal studies and the 

 advancement of knowledge. Of nearly equal 

 importance has been the erection of dormitories, 

 and of Houston Hall, an admirable club house 



for students. In the scientific departments at- 

 tention should be called especially to the work 

 of the Wistar Institute and of the department of 

 arch£eology and paleontology, and to the es- 

 tablishment of the Flower Astronomical Observ- 

 atory and the Botanic Garden. 



General J. Watts de Peyster will erect 

 for Franklin and Marshall College, Lancaster, 

 Pa., a library building with a capacity for 75,- 

 000 volumes. 



President Oilman, of John Hopkins Uni- 

 versity, has accepted the presidency of the Bal- 

 timore School Board. 



Francis E. Lloyd, professor of biology in 

 the Pacific University, Forest Grove, Oregon, 

 has been appointed professor of biological 

 science in the Teachers' College, New York. 



Dr. Alexander P. Anderson has been ap- 

 pointed professor of botany at Clemson College, 

 S. C. 



Dr. James "Ward, fellow and one of the tutors 

 of Trinity College, Cambridge, has been ap- 

 pointed to the newly established chair of men- 

 tal philosophy and logic. The new University 

 statutes passed in 1881 provided that professor- 

 ships should be established in physiology, in 

 pathology and in mental philosophy and logic 

 as soon as sufficient funds could be provided 

 from the common University fund and other 

 sources. Accordingly a professor in ph> siology 

 was appointed in 1883 and a professor in pathol- 

 ogy in 1884. Owing to the decrease in the 

 college revenues, the common University fund 

 was found insufficient to justify the annual 

 charge of £700, the stipend of the professor of 

 mental philosophy and logic. As we have al- 

 ready reported that the chair was at last estab- 

 lished by the Senate on December 10th with 

 the assistance of a subscription from Professor 

 Sidgwick. 



Professor Alfred Hughes has resigned the 

 chair of anatomy in the University College, 

 Cardiff. He has granted to the College the 

 free use of his anatomical collections, on which 

 he has spent large sums of money and many 

 years of labor. In the event of his wishing to 

 remove these at some future period, he has 

 placed at the disposal of the College a sum of 

 money sufficient to replace them. 



