SCIENCE 



FRIDAY, JUNE 8, li 



Science can fairly claim the honor of having placed the 

 ■discussion concerning the New York public-school system on the 

 proper basis. The task of educating public sentiment has now 

 been undertaken by one of the most influential journals of the 

 metropolis, — the Sun; and in the forefront of its discussion, 

 serving almost as the text for what follows, stands our editorial 

 comment of two weeks ago. Educators in all parts of the country 

 are following the discussion in this city with intense interest, and 

 ■while it is not in our province to enter too extensively into detail, 

 yet we purpose to keep our readers apprised of the progress of the 

 battle ; for it is a battle, in every sense of the word, — it is a bat- 

 tle between right and wrong, between educational progress and 

 enlightenment and educational incompetence. The result will be 

 either to free the schools and their hundreds of thousands of pupils 

 from the deadening influence and control of a political ring, or it 

 will fasten that influence and control on them more surely than 

 ■ever. If the thinking citizens of the metropolis can be brought to 

 appreciate the real nature of the alternative, the result cannot be 

 for a moment doubtful. From all parts of the country, protests 

 should be sent to the authorities in New York in order that they 

 may be made to see that the country's intelligence and the country's 

 conscience are fully aroused in this matter. 



In the current issue of the Forum, Ex-President Andrew D. 

 White of Cornell has a suggestive article on ' The Next American 

 University.' It is nothing less than the skeleton of a plan for a 

 national examining university, with sufficient funds to bestow fel- 

 lowships, scholarships, and travelling bachelorships. Its strength 

 lies in its co-operation with existing institutions of collegiate grade. 

 Its weakness, as a plan, is the immense amount of money required 

 to put it in operation. It would furthermore be difficult to select a 

 suitable chancellor, or, at all events, a succession of suitable chan. 

 cellors, for such an institution, without incurring the hostility or 

 jealousy of some sectarian body or some educational faction. The 

 ordinary college has an historic policy of its own, and the president 

 is to execute and develop it. In such an institution as Mr. White 

 has in mind, the chancellor would be university, policy, and every 

 thing else, so long as he held office. But if the money is forth- 

 coming, let the plan be tried, and let Mr. White be the first chan. 

 cellor. 



due prominence, epecially as we have not published the proceedings of 

 scientific societies in other cities. If there are any such, we would 

 remind them that the scientific societies of Washington are unique ; 

 they are composed almost entirely of gentlemen employed in the 

 scientific bureaus of the government, many of them engaged in 

 making original researches that could not be carried on by private 

 enterprise because of their great cost. A large proportion of the 

 papers read before the Washington societies are actual reports of 

 progress or of the results of these investigations, and thus antici- 

 pate the official reports by months, and often by years. 



The Washington Scientific societies have suspended their 

 meetings for the season after seven months of remarkably success- 

 ful work. Every session has been well attended, and there have 

 been more papers than there has been time to listen to. Many of 

 these have reported important progress in original investigation, 

 and many others have described work which, although not pushing 

 out into new fields, has perfected and filled up gaps in the work in old 

 ones. The three leading societies — the Philosophical, Biological, 

 and Anthropological — have, by their co-operation, maintained the 

 annual course of Saturday afternoon free scientific lectures. These 

 have all been of a high order, and have been listened to by intelligent 

 audiences that have filled to its utmost capacity the auditorium of 

 the National Museum. Science has devoted more attention, and given 

 up more of its space, than usual, during the past few months, to pa- 

 pers presented at the meetings of these Washington scientific socie- 

 ties ; and some of our readers may think that we have given them un- 



One of the most interesting features of the very creditable 

 exhibition of the industrial work of the past year in the public 

 schools of Washington, given last week, was what were termed 

 the ' spontaneous ' products of some of the pupils ; that is, work 

 done outside of the schools. Some of this was suggested by the 

 teachers, and some was not, but in each case it was voluntarily per- 

 formed by the pupil. One boy, ten years old, exhibited the head of 

 an Indian, a dog, and a horse, modelled in clay, which showed 

 much latent artistic taste and skill. Another boy, twelve years old, 

 made a vase of clay adorned with blooming roses which he had 

 colored. A third boy, ten years old, had modelled a cluster of 

 roses. One of the boys in a higher grade had made an electric 

 bell, a wire from which stretched around the hall, and was operated 

 by means of a button in a distant part of the room. Two other 

 boys, still in the grammar-school, had made two telephones, which 

 were placed at opposite ends of the hall, and which worked per- 

 fectly. This ' spontaneous ' work, the teachers say, is indirectly the 

 result of the manual training recently introduced into the public 

 schools. 



Very great improvements have been made in the National 

 Museum at Washington during the last six months. Professor 

 Goode conceives that the object of that institution should be to 

 teach facts in regard to the resources, arts, and industries of the 

 United States, and to a more limited extent of the world, instead of 

 to make exhibitions to please the eye or excite the wonder of the 

 visitor. There are many things in the National Museum that never 

 ought to have been placed there. For instance : there is a cat 

 upon a fence, with the query why she doesn't go over. The reason 

 is shown in the companion object, which shows a large turtle on 

 the tail of the cat. Probably the worst object in the museum is a 

 deer covered with nails. It was probably once owned by some 

 tradesman who dealt in nails, and who covered it with samples of 

 his wares, and placed it outside his door to attract customers. 

 How it came in the National Museum we do not know ; but we do 

 know that it ought not to remain there, and shall be surprised if 

 Professor Goode does not soon banish it to the lumber-heap. 



THE WEATHER-PREDICTIONS. 



The meteorological work of the Signal Office began in 1870, 

 when an appropriation of $15,000 was made for it. When the 

 weather-predictions were first published, they were looked upon 

 with curiosity and wonder by the people, who were surprised rather 

 that they were verified at all than that they sometimes failed. 

 After eighteen years the weather-predictions have become a part 

 of the every-day necessities of the people of this country. They 

 consult them almost hourly, and by them shape their plans affect- 

 ing their health, their pleasure, and their business. Instead of 



