November 22, 1901.] 



SCIENCE 



819 



Those present included representatives from 

 New York City, from the Cornell, Lehigh and 

 Johns Hopkins Universities, from the American 

 Chemical Society, the American Institute of 

 Electrical Engineers, the Franklin Institute, 

 etc. Professor J. W. Richards, vice-president 

 of the American Chemical Society, acted as 

 chairman, and Carl Hering, past president of 

 the American Institute of Electrical Engineers, 

 as secretary. All those present were heartily 

 in favor ; the only doubt expressed was whether 

 a sufficient number of members could be ob- 

 tained to make such a society a success. A 

 committee was appointed, with Dr. Chas. A. 

 Doremus, of the College of the City of New 

 York, as chairman, to canvass for members ; 

 and if seventy-five or over pledge themselves 

 to join, the society will be formed. In that 

 case, certain committees which were appointed 

 will arrange for holding a formal meeting at 

 which the society will be founded and papers 

 read and discussed. Anyone desiring to become 

 a member is asked to communicate with Dr. 

 Doremus at the above address. 



It was furthermore decided to be the ex- 

 pression of those present that the name of the 

 organization should be the American Electro- 

 chemical Society ; that the dues should not ex- 

 ceed $5.00 per year, and that at first only a 

 few meetings of a few days each should be 

 held per year, and that they be held in differ- 

 ent cities, as the society is to be a national one. 



The fact that papers on the subject of elec- 

 tro-chemistry are now scattered over a half 

 dozen or more existing national societies was 

 thought to be in itself a very good reason for 

 bringing them all together into one, where they 

 could then be properly discussed, which is not 

 now the case. Attention was also called to 

 the fact that the annual electro-chemical pro- 

 ducts of this country already amount to nearly 

 $100,000,000, which is far greater than in all 

 the other countries combined. Germany, which 

 comes next with $14,000,000, has a flourishing 

 electro-chemical society with about 40 members 

 in the United States. 



THE UNITED STATES NAVAL OBSERVATORY. 

 The board of visitors of the U. S. Naval Ob- 

 servatory, consisting of Professors C. A. Young, 



C. F. Chandler, Asaph Hall, Jr., E. C. Picker- 

 ing and Ormond Stone and President W. R. 

 Harper, have recently held a meeting and sub- 

 mitted a report to Secretary Long. Extracts 

 from the report published in the Washington 

 Evening Star, are as follows : 



"It is recommended that no astronomical 

 director be appointed at present, as a dual 

 headship has been found to work unsatisfac- 

 torily, and under the existing law the appoint- 

 ment of an astronomer as sole director of the 

 observatory — which the board considers the 

 proper solution of the question — is impractica- 

 ble. Vacancies should not be filled among as- 

 sistant astronomers nor among professors of 

 mathematics in the navy without examination 

 for each vacancy occurring. No distinction 

 should be made between employees of the ob- 

 servatory and other applicants. The responsi- 

 bilities of the positions of assistant astronomer 

 and professor of mathematics are distinctly 

 different from those of computer, although 

 much of the required experience may properly 

 be gained in connection with the latter posi- 

 tion and be credited in the examinations for the 

 higher positions. As far as is consistent with 

 the routine needs of the institution, the duties 

 of the computers should be so arranged as to 

 encourage them to prepare for advancement 

 within the observatory itself. In no case 

 should appointments be made to the observa- 

 tory merely by transfer from other bureaus or 

 offices in the service, nor should appointments 

 ever be made even temporarily without com- 

 petitive examination." 



Applying these principles to practice the 

 board declines to name a person to fill the 

 vacant office of assistant astronomer at the ob- 

 servatory and instead recommends that the 

 appointment be made after a civil service ex- 

 amination under the auspices of the commis- 

 sion. 



Coming to the more important subject of the 

 actual head of the observatory, which involves 

 the issue between the scientists and tlie line 

 officers, the board says : 



"As every other prominent observatory is 

 under the direction of an astronomer, we wish 

 to record our deliberate and unanimous judg- 

 ment that the laws limiting the superintend- 



