REPORT OF THE SECRETARY. 93 



and at night a dinner was given in the hall of the university, at which there was 

 a generous expression of good feeling and a striking display of oratory. 



I can see a time, not far distant, when with each conquest of science tbe 

 question will immediately arise in the mind of every American, " How can 

 these results be made of service to the democracies of this continent? " — a time 

 when in every field of endeavor the American republics may call upon one 

 another for counsel in the solution of their problems, and be certain to receive 

 the best expert advice. Then, and not till then, shall we have developed a real 

 continental spirit ; then, and not till then, shall we have fulfilled the obligations 



great assembly is the more significant because of its spontaneous character. 

 For this demonstration of confidence, good will, and fraternal solidarity I want 

 to thank you, not only in the name of the delegation of the United States of 

 America, but also on behalf of that larger body of scientists and investigators 

 who are imbued with the same spirit that has actuated this congress, and who 

 now look forward to the privilege of welcoming to our shores the men upon 

 whose efforts the progress of this continent depends. We can not hope to surpass 

 the hospitality of this great republic, but we can assure you that the welcome 

 will be no less sincere, and the determination to place every possible facility at 

 your disposal, no less effective than has been the case here in Chile. 



Viewed in its proper perspective, this congress has been one of the most 

 extraordinary assemblages of modern times; more extraordinary in many re- 

 spects than either The Hague or the Pan-American conferences. That a large 

 group of men, representatives of every section of a great continent, should be 

 able to get together and, casting aside all petty prejudices, freely and frankly 

 exchange the results of their careful investigations and ripe experience, is not 

 only a tribute to the culture of this continent, but is also an indication of the 

 extent to which our ideas have advanced beyond those which we inherited from 

 our European mother countries. 



The fact that we have met to place the results of the best scientific thought 

 at the disposal of all the countries here represented, and through them at the 

 service of the civilized world, contains a lesson of deep and lasting import 

 which no other assembly of modern times has been able so clearly to impress 

 upon the civilized world. 



The historian of the intellectual development of the American continent, in 

 reviewing the work of these assemblies, will probably give to the Santiago 

 congress the honor of having clearly demonstrated that the republics of the 

 American continent, because of their geographical position; because of the 

 peculiar conditions under which they were settled ; and because of the special 

 racial problems which they present, are confronted by a series of problems 

 distinctively American. The mere fact of the existence of these problems in- 

 volves an obligation not only to ourselves, but to the civilized world to concen- 

 trate our efforts upon their solution. Through their solution we can make that 

 contribution to the progress of mankind which the world has the right to 

 expect of us. 



We can best hope to do this by carrying to our respective countries the 

 spirit that has hovered over this congress — that of service in its broadest and 

 highest sense. This spirit of service must be made the keynote of our national 

 and of our international relations. The republics of the American continent 

 must demonstrate to the civilized world that the willingness and determination 

 to be of service to our fellow-men is the corner stone of a philosophy which the 

 nations of this continent are determined to make the guiding principle of their 

 conduct. 



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