326 



SCIENCE. 



[Vol. XVI. No. 410 



VASSAR STUDENTS' AID SOCIETY. 



The first annual meeting of the Vassar (Students' Aid Society 

 was held at Sherry's, Fifth Avenue and 3Tth Street, Neve York, 

 on Saturday, Oct. 35. 1390. 



' The meeting was called to order by the president, Mrs. J. R. 

 Kendiick, who emphasized in a brief address the relation between 

 the work of this society and the general movement of the day 

 toward the wider extension of the higher education, and spoke of 

 the enduring nature of its task. 



The secretary reported that^ the society noiv numbers 17 life- 

 members and 374 annual members, includin:^ residents of Mexico, 

 Germany, South America, and India. Many encouraging letters 

 were received from former students, expressing sympathy with 

 the objects of the society, and no little pleasure in being allowed 

 to claim a place among the daughters of Vassar and in the oppor- 

 tunitv for acknowledging their indebtedness for the benefits re- 

 ceived at her hands. The woi-k of securing ne.v addresses has 

 been continued through the generosity of a member who .gave 

 printed lists covering the year-s from 186.5 to l869. A non-gradu- 

 afe who received a copy of one of thtfe wrote forty letters, and 

 obtained information in re°ard to seventeen former students, —an 

 incident which illustrates not only the amount of work invoked 

 in this search, but also the general willingness to help, which has 

 made possible the measure of success the society has acliievd. 



In JIarch the state of the treasury warranted the announcement 

 of a scholaiship, to be awarded in June, 1890 As the society 

 represented widely separated sections of the country, it was 

 deemfd fairest- to all to open as widely the compcti ion for the 

 scholarship. The late announcement prevented the majority of 

 the applicants from adapting their preparation to the college re 

 quirements, and but two passed the examination unconditionally. 

 Botli are now in college, the second as the recipient of aid from 

 the college. 



The treasurer reported a total of .$751 98 received since October, 

 1889,— from 17 life-members $435. from annual membei-s 1336.98; 

 cash paid for scholar.-hiu. .f 2('0; for printing, postage, and sun- 

 dries, $li7 93; and a balance in treasury, including life-member- 

 ship fees, of $434.05. 



The organization of a Minnesota branch at St. Paul, Nov. 83, 

 1889, has been followed by the formation of tranches in Boston. 

 New York, Brooklyn. Poughkeepsie, Orange (N.J.), and Louis- 

 ville (Ky.i, and the appointment of committees in other centres. 

 These branches reported the details of their organization, their 

 plans fdr extending their influence by the admission of associate 

 members and by giving series of lectures, and made announcement 

 of local scholarships as follows: — 



The Boston branch, to residents of localities represented by the 

 branch, a scholarship of $390 for competition in June, 1891. Ap- 

 plication must be made ti Mrs. Frank H. Monks. Monmouth 

 Street, Brookline. Mass. 



Broolilyn branch, to residents of Long Island, a scholarship of 

 $100. tenable four years, to be awarded in June, 1391. Applica- 

 iion should be made to Mrs. Charles O. Gates, 100 Greene Avenue, 

 jBrooklyn. 



Kentucky branch, to residents of the State, a scholarship, prob- 

 -ably of $400, for competition in June, 1891; application to be 

 made to Mrs. Palty B. Semple, 1233 Fourth Avenue, Louisville. 



The New York and Poughkeepsie branches anticipate being 

 -Soon able to announce one each for award in June. 



The parent society also offers two scholarships, of $200 each, 

 for general competition in June. 1891 and 1893 respectively. Ap- 

 iplication must be made to Aliss Jessie F. Smith, South Weymouth, 



:MaS3. 



Application for these scholarships must be made before May 10 



The balloting to fill the vacancies caused by the expiration of 



terms of office resulted in the election of Professor Abby Leach. 



JVTrs. George H. Mackay, Professor Mary W. Whitney, and Miss 



Rachel Jacobs. 



Invitations to the public meeting had been sent to about five 

 himdred friends of education and of Vassar. Dr Mary Taylor 

 Bissell presided. In a stimulating address, Dr. Taylor dwelt upon 

 .the advantages of the principle of co operation in the besto%val of 



aid to j-tudents and pointed out the importance of extending as- 

 sistance to those who were willing to prove their capacity by en 

 tering a competitive examination, and who showed Ibeir defire to 

 be self-reliant in their willingness to accept these scholarships in 

 the form of a loan. 



THE PRESERVATION OF TIMBER 



In countries where timber is cheap, labor expensive, and money 

 scarce, it does not pay to apply preservative substances to wood 

 to delay or pre\enl its natural decay. A very rapid calculation 

 will show that wages, cost of chemicals, and compound interest 

 together, represent a sum greater than the cost of frequent re- 

 newals. However, the wastefulness of settlers in new countries, 

 and the steady accamulntion of capital in the old ones, are rapidly 

 doing av?ay with this condition of affair.*. Timber is growing 

 both scarce and dear, while increased means of communication 

 have reduced wages in places formerly on the outskirts of civili- 

 zation. Even in this country, where timber was once so plentiful 

 that care was not even exercised to cut it at a period of the year 

 when it was at least filled with sap, and when "seasoning" was 

 never thought of in the hurry of railway construction, considera- 

 ble attention is now being given to preservative processes. Un- 

 fortunately the desire to carry them out cheaply has often brought 

 them into discredit. Homoeopathic quantities of antiseptics have 

 been not unfiequently usi'd, the action being confine! to the out- 

 side of the timber, and being quickly dissi.! ated by the action of 

 air and moisture. 



Engineering of Nov 21 gives a history- of attempts at prolong- 

 ing the life of timber, from which we take the following: — 



In 1836, Dr. Bouchotie a French chemist, tried to impregnate 

 timber by vital suction; that is he. tapped the tree, and allowed 

 the ascending sap to carry up a preserving solution. This, 

 howeier, did not give satisfactory results, and iu place of it a cap 

 was supplied to the end of a newl.v cut log. and the solution forced 

 along the sap ducts by hydraulic pressure Sulphate of copper 

 was the chemical used; and, when it was applied to newly felled 

 timber, it gave .good results. Lime water has been tried, and also 

 salt, but the effects have not repaid the trouble. There is a strip 

 of road in the Union Pacific Railroad, in Wyoming Territory, 

 where the sleepers do not decay at all. The analysis of the soil 

 shows that it contains sodium, potassium chloride, calcium, and 

 iron, which act as preserving agents. An inventor named Fore- 

 man brought out a process by which dry arsenic and corrosive 

 sublimate were inserted in holes in sleepers, and covered with 

 plugs. The materials became dissolved, and eiHoresced on the 

 surface, when the cattle licked them and died by scores. The 

 farmers rose in arms and forced the railroad company to burn all 

 the sleepers. Many other attempts might be narrated: indeed, 

 the entire list of antiseptic substances appear to have been ran- 

 sacked to find something both cheap snd effective. 



The chief processes that have been employed for the preserva- 

 tion of timber are kyanizing, burnetiizing, and creosoting; that is, 

 impregnation with bichloride of mercury, with sulphate of zinc, 

 and with creosote. Many others have been proposed and tried, 

 bnt only these three have survived. The first seems to be well 

 adapted for bridges, or for timber exposed to weather alone, 

 and not to constant moisture. Examples have been found 

 in this country which were in a good state of preservation after 

 twenty eight years' exposure; but, when kyanized timber has 

 been used for railway sleepers and pavements, it has had only a 

 doubtful success, probably in consequence of Ihe washing-out of 

 the corrosive sublimate. The wood is allowed to steep one day 

 for each inch in thickness of its least dimension, and one or two 

 days in addition. The solution contains 1 per cent by weight of 

 corrosive sublimate and from four to five pounds of this are ab 

 sorbed per thousand feet, board measure. Burnettizing may be 

 performed in the same way, sulphate of zinc being the chemical 

 employed ; but it is usual to steam the timber first to open the 

 pores, and then to subject it to a vacuum lo withdraw the sap. If 

 this be not done, the timber must be stored for a considerable 

 time to allow it to dry naturally. When treiited. the wood should 

 not be placed in exposed situations, such as bridges, or else the 

 zinc will be washed out and leave it unprotected. This is partic- 



