R. ELLSWORTH CALL AND IOWA GEOLOGY 
39 
productive efforts became less spontaneous and more irregular. Within 
a lenstrum he ceased publishing altogether; and soon passed out of 
sight of his old scientific circle. From that day to the date of his 
demise, twenty-five years later, he remained completely inactive; and 
the newer generation of zoologists knew him not. 
The experience of our own Academy furnishes a curious instance of 
his usual: lack of mental equipoise. The minutes of the early meetings 
which were turned over to him as secretary on about the third or fourth 
session immediately vanished. He had laid them down somewhere while 
the members were chatting after adjournment. In his endeavor several 
years afterward to record the proceedings in a special blank book pur- 
chased for the purpose he lost two entire metings, forgot the titles of 
half of the papers read, and failed to enumerate most of the charter 
members and original promoters of the society. Several years later 
when the State of Iowa assumed the publication of the Academy’s 
Proceedings Secretary Osborn did all he could to rectify these delin- 
quencies by obtaining from each member abstracts of his papers and 
printing them en masse. In this way some members provided notes on 
no less than six to eight papers which they had actually presented and 
read but of which no record had been made in the minutes. 
In the late eighties of the last century a number of Professor Call’s 
friends in Des Moines, realizing fully both his brilliant attainments and 
his difficulty in getting a suitable living, put forth special effort to have 
him appointed to the headship of the science department of the Des 
Moines West High School, then a much sought post. In this they suc- 
ceeded nicely; and he entered upon his duties with great zest and high 
hopes. But it was not long before there was an unfortunate flare-up 
between instructor and school committee in which the versatile and en- 
thusiastic naturalist was soon worsted. The best and most entertaining 
lecturer the school had ever had, the most ardent scientist who had ever 
ventured to the city, and perhaps the best science teacher who ever dark- 
ened the doors of high school was summarily dismissed. But his students, 
with greatest enthusiasm and keen appreciation far beyond their years, 
had entered the fairy demesne of science. Some of these “delinquents” 
from that beginning followed the paths so auspiciously opened up and 
succesfully made science their life’s occupation. Perhaps after all this 
intensive study of a circumscribed field was the best science training 
possible. Quien sabe? 
Professor Call was my first acquaintance with a real live scientist of 
national reputation. It was very early in my career. As a youngster 
of thirteen years, in’ the first half of high school, I had already made 
modest beginning at collecting shells, insects, birds and minerals. My 
teacher was a John W. King, who was also principal. King was noticeably 
eccentric in his manners and methods, but he was an avowed follower of 
Herbert Spencer, and he was especially fond of trying out the Spencerian 
theories of education. So soon as he found out that any one of his 
pupils had become especially interested in any particular subject he at 
once set about to encourage him to greater and more systematic effort. 
Being a neighbor of Call’s he made arrangement to take over one evening 
half a dozen of his kiddies, among them also Uly S. Grant, who has 
