914 General Notes. [December, 
precisely the same, and it is only fair to say that in interest and 
importance they were very evenly divided. It is obvious that if 
the strength of the two meetings could have been combined in 
one, the result would have been far more adequate and satisfac- 
tory. This reflection has derived force from the well known fact 
that in the Microscopical Congress at Indianapolis, nearly half the 
voices were in favor of joining with the A, A. A. S., instead of 
forming a separate society, the latter course being adopted in the 
critical vote by a majority of one. From first to Jast, it has been 
great and conceded importance to combine all our strength in 
one enterprise; but the obstacles which originally rendered this 
impossible, still remain, and it is evident that indiscreet contro- 
versy might increase and perpetuate the difficulties it was: de- 
signed to remove. It would be absurd to ask persons accustomed 
to attend the meetings of the great society, and highly valuing its 
opportunities for intercourse with a large number of leading 
minds in various departments of science, to abandon that 
for any narrow organization, however attractive might be its field. 
On the other hand the new society could not profitably be united 
with the old, as has been proposed, without a more cordial and 
general support of such a procedure than could at present be 
hoped for.. The subordination to greater interests, which would 
be encountered in uniting with the great society, would be more 
than counterbalanced, in many minds, by the social and scientific 
advantages gained; and the fact that many of the papers read 
would be excluded from the Proceedings by a necessity whic 
admits only contributicns new to science, would be of little con- 
sequence, since popular papers gain an earlier and a wider distri- 
bution through the popular journals; but a more serious difficulty 
arises from the localities in which the meetings of the A. A. A: S., 
are sometimes held. The large and powerful society can afford 
to appoint meetings, not unfrequently, for the sake of cultivating 
local interest in science, in localities which would be unavailable 
for the microscopical meetings. A joint meeting at Boston would 
have given a large increase of vitality; the same will not be 
equally true of all other localities. j 
If for these or any other reasons, it should be impracticable to 
combine the two societies at present, the greatest advantages 
would doubtless be secured by such a policy as would show, on 
both sides of the question, a reasonable and considerate regard for 
the interests of the other. The very large minority at Indianapo- 
lis acquiesced in the formation of a new society with the under- 
standing that the times and places of meeting were to be so 
chosen as to best accommodate those who might wish to attend 
both. This policy, if fully carried out, would not prevent meeting 
at the same place when expedient, and would not require it when 
some other correlated place would be advisable. It would give 
many of the advantages of union, with entire freedom from its 
