EVOLUTION OP SCIENTIFIC SERIALS. 
243 
nor for determining or fixing the share of responsibility 
borne by the society. 
In the Philosophical Society of Washington every paper 
offered for publication is submitted to the general committee 
and by it at once referred to a special committee; this com¬ 
mittee reports to the general committee, and it then decides 
the question of publication. So the general committee as¬ 
sume limited responsibility for matter appearing under the 
imprint of the society, and this responsibility is vaguely 
fixed by the publication of the names and functions of the 
general committee; but it should be pointed out that the 
large responsibility borne by the secretary and virtual 
editor is not fixed in the publications. 
In the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia there 
has long been a committee on publication who not only 
scrutinize the communications as originally presented but 
also revise proofs, etc., and thus incur large responsibility 
for'the matter published by the Academy; and in recent 
years the secretary has come to be editor ex officio, and a 
part of the powers and responsibilities of the more imper¬ 
sonal publication committee have been transferred to him. 
At first the administrative part of the publication of the 
society was impersonal. 
In the Boston Society of Natural History the names and 
functions of the officers responsible for the publications were 
not at first clearly indicated; but there is now a publishing 
committee who examine and superintend the publication of 
communications offered by members, and thus vouch for 
their value though disclaiming responsibility for “ any opin¬ 
ion expressed ” therein; and the names of this committee 
appear on most of the publications. 
In the Geological Society of London there was originally 
an indefinite body known as “the 'Editors” who passed 
upon all matter offered for publication, though disclaiming 
responsibility for it; but as time went on the regulations 
were gradually changed until the communications came to 
be scrutinized by the council; and now they are not only 
so examined but edited by the vice-secretary. 
