I should like to suggest the following ways of increasing the interest of the meetings:
The general daily sessions might be made occasions of rare interest by the introduction of prominent men of science who would make at least brief remarks. This would make it possible for those who have limited time to become familiar with the faces of those whom they would like to know, and the little ‘sample’ of scientific thought thrown out would doubtless awaken desire for more.
It will be objected that the meetings of the council immediately preceding the general session prevent holding an official meeting at that hour. The public and the 1,200 would care little whether the session were official or unofficial so it were interesting and instructive.
The officers of the several sections could easily secure distinguished representatives of their respective sciences to give brief addresses followed by discussion, and thus the morning hour would prove an attraction to citizens and others who might be unable to attend the sessions following.
Again, citizens, where the meetings are held, would be pleased to provide excursions to points of local interest and extend social courtesies, if they were given in return the mental food in digestible form, with which the Association is so amply supplied.
It remains with the management to decide whether attendance shall be restricted to the few actively engaged in scientific pursuits, or whether it shall include the 1,200 and more who would be glad to avail themselves of the benefits of a programme suited to average scholarship and intellectual capacity.
There is no better medium for discussion of the above views than through the widely read pages of The Popular Science Monthly.
M. E. D. Trowbridge.
Detroit, Mich.
[The questions brought up by our correspondent have been carefully considered by all those who are interested in the American Association for the Advancement of Science. When the Association was founded fifty years ago there was no division into sections; the papers and discussions were intelligible and interesting to all members. At that time there were but few members, the scientific life of the country was small, and it was a privilege for a city to entertain the Association. But fifty years have brought changes in many directions. Specialization in science has become essential for its further progress, and it has been necessary to divide the Association into numerous sections and to found special societies. Hospitality can now only be provided at great expense, and Eastern cities no longer regard it as a privilege to entertain the numerous societies that gather within their hotels. The newspapers do not regard a meeting of the Association as an important event and will not devote space to it.