May 21, 1897.] 



SGIENCR 



786 



an answer to any question that we may 

 send through the fathomless abyss. When 

 the spectroscope was in its infancy it 

 was suggested that possibly some dif- 

 ference might be found in the rays re- 

 flected from living matter, especially from 

 vegetation, that might enable us to dis- 

 tinguish them from rays reflected by matter 

 not endowed with life. But this hope has 

 not been realized, nor does it seem possible 

 to realize it. The astronomer cannot afibrd 

 to waste his energies on hopeless specula- 

 tion about matters of which he cannot learn 

 anything, and he therefore leaves this 

 question of the plurality of worlds to others 

 who are as competent to discuss it as he is. 

 All he can tell the world is : 



He who through vast immensity can pierce, 

 See worlds on worlds compose one universe; 

 Observe how system into system runs. 

 What other planets circle other suns, 

 What varied being peoples every star, 

 May tell why Heaven has made us as we are. 



Simon Newcomb. 

 Washington, D. C. 



THE BEOENl VISIT OF SIB ARCHIBALD 

 GEIKIE. 

 American geology has been greatly bene- 

 fited and stimulated by visits from dis- 

 tinguished European scientists, since the 

 early part of the present century. All will 

 recall at once Bakewell's observations on 

 the recession of Niagara ; Lyell's two visits, 

 with the four volumes of ' Travels in 

 America ' that resulted, and that helped so 

 much to establish a good correlation be- 

 tween many of our formations and those of 

 Europe ; von Eichthofen's four years on 

 the Pacific coast, and Credner's four years 

 in the East ; Posepny's travels in our min- 

 ing districts ; vom Eath's visits to mineral 

 localities, and Geikie's excursions across 

 the lava fields of the Snake Kiver country. 

 After an interval of eighteen years, the 

 honor of again entertaining the distin- 

 guished Director of the British Geological 



Survey has fallen to American geologists, 

 and has proved to be an occasion of excep- 

 tional interest and importance. 



Some months ago Sir Archibald was in- 

 vited by the authorities at the Johns Hop- 

 kins University to come to Baltimore and 

 open the course of lectures in geology, made 

 possible by a foundation established by 

 Mrs. George Huntington Williams, in 

 memory of her husband, the late, greatly 

 lamented professor at Johns Hopkins The 

 purpose of the foundation is to support an 

 annual course of lectures in geology which 

 are to be given alternately by European 

 and American geologists of distinction. 

 No more fitting choice for the first series 

 could have been made than that of Sir 

 Archibald Geikie, to whose cosmopolitan 

 sympathies, as shown in his ' textbook,' 

 geologists everywhere owe so great a debt. 



Sir Archibald reached New York April 

 17th, and on April 19th was given a recep- 

 tion by the New York Academy of Sciences, 

 as described in an earlier page of Science 

 (p. 702). Geologists from many institu- 

 tions outside of New York united with the 

 members of the Academy to make the wel- 

 come a cordial and significant one. 



On Wednesday, April 21st, Sir Archibald 

 began, at the Johns Hopkins University, the 

 course of lectures which was the main 

 object of his visit. The subject chosen was 

 ' The Founders of Geology,' and in his 

 treatment of the theme the lecturer sketched 

 the rise of geological conceptions among the 

 ancient cosmogonists, tracing their gradual 

 though slow evolution through the middle 

 ages, and their vigorous development at the 

 opening of the present century. Exhaustive 

 studies have been made by Sir Archibald 

 upon these special subjects, and much new 

 light has been thrown by them upon the 

 true relations of modern systems of thought 

 to the work of the pioneers in this field a 

 hundred years and less ago. The lectures 

 will ultimately be published, and space is 



