316 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. XX. No. 505. 



the execution of the mission of the empire, 

 to the two warring camps of the capitalist 

 class on the one hand and the social democ- 

 racy on the other. The growth of industrial 

 as against rural population means progress of 

 these two powers. Hence higher duties on 

 agricultural imports are required to maintain 

 the balance of class power, capitalist, wage- 

 class and agrarian. One may read here the 

 effort of the privileged classes of German so- 

 ciety to equalize more nearly these three eco- 

 nomic classes as the three points which must 

 determine the plane of well being of the 

 privileged interests. The truth seems to be 

 that Wagner's alarms are ill-founded. The 

 landed gentry's estates, those of the ' gentle- 

 man farmer ' who spends much of his time 

 and substance away from his estates entrusted 

 to second hands, comprise the weak spot in 

 German agriculture. It is not protection so 

 much as a deeper sense of economic responsi- 

 bility, on the part of this class, that German 

 agriculture needs. " The demonstration that 

 the German peasantry can not exist with prices 

 as they are is extremely specious. In some 

 districts they may groan under hardships, but 

 in others they do pretty well. Growing towns 

 and increasing industrial districts furnish 

 splendid markets for them ; it is in the mainly 

 agricultural and not in the mainly industrial 

 districts that the agricultural population de- 

 creases. The tide of immigration is strongest 

 where the big estates for the landed gentry and 

 semi-feudal nobility prevail." 



John Franklin Crowell. 



COOPERATION IN SOLAR RESEARCH. 

 At its last annual meeting, the National 

 Academy of Sciences appointed a committee 

 on solar research, consisting of George E. 

 Hale, chairman, W. W. Campbell, S. P. Lang- 

 ley, A. A. Michelson and C. A. Young. At 

 the invitation of this committee, various so- 

 cieties in Europe and the United States have 

 appointed similar committees as follows : 



England — Committee of the Royal Society: The 

 president of the Royal Society (Sir William Hug- 

 gins), the Astronomer Royal (Mr. W. H. M. 

 Christie), Sir Norman Loekyer, Professor A. 

 Schuster, Mr. H. F. Newall. Committee of the 



Royal Astronomical Society: The president of 

 the Royal Astronomical Society (Professor H. H. 

 Turner), with others to be appointed. Professor 

 Turner, with others not yet named, will represent 

 tlie two societies at the conference of delegates. 



France — Committee of the Society Frangaise de 

 Physique: M. Henri Poincare^ M. Charles Fabry, 

 M. A. Perots and others not yet named. Tlie 

 views of the French speetroscopists on the ques- 

 tion of standard wave-lengths are being ascer- 

 tained by the committee, and MM. Fabry and 

 Perot have been requested to prepare a memoir 

 on the subject for presentation to the conference 

 of delegates, where the society will be represented 

 by M. Poinearg and others. 



Germany — Committee of the Deutsche Physi- 

 Icalische Cesellschaft : Professor Ebert, ICayser, 

 Kreusler, Lummer, Pringsheim, Eunge, Straubel, 

 U'ilsing. The names of delegates have not yet 

 been announced. Professor Kayser is preparing a 

 memoir for the conference on the subject of stand- 

 ard wave-lengths. 



Holland — Committee of the Royal Academy of 

 Sciences, Amsterdam: Professors Kapteyn and 

 Julius. Professor Kapteyn will represent the 

 academy at the conference of delegates. 



Italy — Committee of the Societa degli Spettro- 

 scopisti Italiani: Professor Tacchini, Professor 

 Ricco, and others to be appointed. Professor 

 Ricco will represent the society at the conference. 



Russia — Director Backlund will probably attend 

 the conference as the representative of Russia. 

 Committees of the Russian societies will be ap- 

 pointed later. 



United States — Committee of the National Acad- 

 emy of Sciences: Professor W. W. Campbell, 

 George E. Hale, A. A. Michelson^ S. P. Langley, 

 C. A. Young. Committee of the American Phys- 

 ical Society: Professors J. S. Ames, Henry Crew, 

 Percival Lewis, C. E. Mendenhall, E. P. Nichols. 

 Committee of the Astronomical and Astrophysical 

 Society of America: Professors E. B. Frost, C. G. 

 Abbott, L. A. Bauer, C. D. Perrine, F. L. 0. 

 Wadsworth. 



Other societies which were invited to ap- 

 point committees have not yet been heard 

 from. 



Conference of Delegates. — The conference 

 of delegates will meet in St. Louis on Thurs- 

 day, September 22, in conjunction with the 

 International Congress of Arts and Science. 

 Members of the committees who expect to 

 attend the conference are requested to notify 

 the undersigned. 



