3. Joseph Henry fund. An agreement with the Pennsylvania Company for insurance on lives and granting annuities, as to the final disposition of the Joseph Henry fund of $40,000. 4. Watson trust fund. Certificate of stock of Michigan Mutual Life Insurance Company for 134 Deed of trust of Mary Anna Palmer Draper, giving $6,000 to the Academy as a special fund. 6. J. Lawrence Smith medal fund. Deed of trust of Mrs. Sarah Julia Smith, giving $8,000 to the Academy as a special fund. In addition to the securities reported by the committee, the following notes are held by Riggs & Co., bankers, for collection for the Academy: Walbridge loan: Three notes for $10,000 each, and one note for $5,000, payable May 20-23, 1892, interest at 5 per cent per annum, payable semiannually -$35,000.00 Dubant loan: One note for $12,000, payable October 28-31, 1892, interest semi-annually, at 5 per cent.. 12,000.00 Redfern loan: Two notes for $6,000 each, payable November 29 and De- 12,000.00 9,000.00 INVITATIONS. Mr. Langley invited the members of the Academy to an excursion down the river, to Marshall Hall, on Thursday afternoon, April 23. As this invitation was accepted by the Academy, no public session was held that afternoon, the home secretary having given the requisite notice to that effect. A letter was received from the secretary of the Cosmos Club, extending the privileges of the club to members of the Academy during the meeting in Washington. Mr. Gould, on behalf of the National Geographic Society, invited the members of the Academy to attend a lecture Friday evening, by H. M. Wilson, on the Geography and People of India. The home secretary read an invitation from the Royal Society of Canada, requesting the Academy to send a delegate to its tenth annual meeting, to be held in Montreal, May 27, 1891. The recommendations from the council, that this invitation be accepted, and that the president be authorized to appoint a delegate, were adopted by the Academy. The president appointed Vice-President F. A. Walker to represent the Academy on this occasion. NEW FOREIGN ASSOCIATES. Messrs. J. S. Stas, of Brussels, and Carl Gegenbaur, of Heidelberg, were elected foreign associates of the Academy. DEATH OF FOREIGN ASSOCIATE. The president announced the death of a foreign associate, Gen. Don Carlos Ibañez, of Madrid, who died January 29, 1891. The Academy then adjourned to meet in scientific session, in New York city, November 10, 1891. SCIENTIFIC SESSION. HELD IN NEW YORK CITY, NOVEMBER 10 TO 12, 1891. A scientific session for the reading of papers only having been called by the council, as announced at the April meeting, the Academy met at Columbia College, New York city, November 10, 1891, and the meetings were continued on the 11th and 12th. At the opening of this session President Low, of Columbia College, made an address of welcome to the Academy, and also announced that his predecessor, the late Dr. Barnard, a member of the Academy, had made provision in his will for a gold medal to be called the Barnard medal, and had requested the Academy to assume the duty of selecting persons worthy of this honor. President Marsh returned thanks for the cordial welcome extended to the Academy by President Low, and for the admirable arrangements made for the meeting. He also said that the request to assume the proposed duties relating to the Barnard medal would be duly submitted to the Academy. The following members were present during the session: Pickering. Watson. Young. Powell. Chandler, C. F. Johnson. The following papers were read and discussed: 1. GOODALE, G. L.: Some Aspects of Australian Vegetation. (Read by Mr. Sendder.) 2. GOODALE, G. L.: The Nomenclature of Vegetable Histology. (Read by Mr. Scudder.) 3. HASTINGS, C. S.: On Certain New Methods and Results in Optics. Discussed by Mr. Young. 4. MENDENHALL, T. C.: An Exhibition of the New Pendulum Apparatus of the U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, with some Results of its Use. Discussed by Messrs. Gould, Abbe, and Brewer. 5. MENDENHALL, T. C.: On the Use of a Free Pendulum as a Time Standard. 6. COPE, E. D.: On Degenerate Types of Scapula and Pelvic Arches in the Lacertilia. Discussed by Messrs. Morse and Brewer. 7. OSBORNE, T. B.; presented by S. W. Johnson: The Proteids or Albuminoids of the Oat Kernel. Second paper. (Read by Mr. Johnson.) Discussed by Mr. W. Gibbs. 8. PEIRCE, C. S.: Astronomical Methods of Determining the Curvature of Space. Discussed by Mr. Pickering. 9. ALLEN, J. A.: On Geographical Variation among North American Birds, considered in relation to the peculiar Intergradation of Colaptes auratus and C. cafer. Discussed by Messrs. Brewer, Morse, and Marsh. 10. CHANDLER, S. C.: On the Variation of Latitude. Discussed by Messrs. A. Hall, Gould, Pickering, and Young. 11. SCUDDER, S. H.: The Tertiary Rhynchitida of the United States. (Read by title.) 12. ROOD, O. N.: On a Color System. Discussed by Mr. Peirce. 13. REES, J. K.; presented by E. C. Pickering: Preliminary notice of the Reduction of Rutherfurd's Photographs. Discussed by Mr. Gould. 14. ROWLAND, H. A.: On the Application of Spectrum Analysis to the Analysis of the Rare Earths, and a New Method for the Preparation of Pure Yttrium. (Read by title.) 15. GILL, THEO.: A Nomenclator of the Families of Fishes. (Read by title.) 16. MICHELSON, A. A.: Measurement of Jupiter's Satellites by Interference. Discussed by Messrs. Chandler, Young, and Hall. 17. BROOKS, W. K.: The Follicle Cells of Salpa. Discussed by Mr. Morse. DEATH OF MEMBERS. At the close of the scientific session the president announced the death of the following members of the Academy who have died since the last meeting: Prof. John LeConte, Prof. Joseph Leidy, Prof. Julius E. Hilgard, and Prof. William Ferrel. The following members were appointed to prepare the biographical memoirs: Of Prof. LeConte, Prof. Joseph LeConte. Of Prof. Ferrel, Prof. Cleveland Abbe. The Academy then adjourned to meet in Washington the third Tuesday in April, 1892. SPECIAL SESSION. HELD IN NEW YORK CITY, NOVEMBER 11, 1891.* A special session of the Academy having been called by the council, in accordance with Article III, section 1, of the constitution, the Academy convened at Columbia College, New York city, November 11, 1891, the president, Prof. O. C. Marsh, presiding. The president submitted his annual report to Congress, as far as com pleted, and the recommendation from the council that he should include in this report the proceedings of the present meeting was adopted by the Academy. TREASURER'S STATEMENT. A statement from the treasurer, Dr. J. S. Billings, dated November 9, 1891, and showing the following available balances, was read by the The home secretary also read letters from the treasurer relating to a portion of the funds of the Watson trust, and the following recommendation from the council was adopted by the Academy: Resolved, That the treasurer, Dr. John S. Billings, is authorized to sell the 134 shares of stock of the Michigan Mutual Life Insurance Co. now held in the name of the Academy, for the price named in the offer of Mr. Dusenbury in his letter of the 9th inst., viz, 160 and accrued interest to date; and to invest the proceeds of this sale as proposed by the treasurer in his letter of the 9th inst. In regard to the memoirs of the Academy, the home secretary reported that one hundred pages of volume v had been printed, but that some delay had been caused by the illustrations. This difficulty was now removed and the printing would soon be resumed. THE BARNARD MEDAL. The following documents from the trustees of Columbia College, concerning the proposed Barnard medal, were then read by the home secretary: THE TRUSTEES OF COLUMBIA COLLEGE IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK, No. 67 WALL STREET, New York, November 7, 1891. GENTLEMEN: The trustees of Columbia College, as residuary legatees and devisees of the late President Barnard, have accepted and undertaken to perform the trusts created by his will and have instructed me to communicate with you for the purpose of ascertaining your willingness to charge yourselves with the duty of declaring to the trustees of Columbia College at the close of every term of five years the name of the person whom you judge worthy to receive the "Barnard Medal for Meritorions Service to Science." I inclose here with a copy of the portion of President Barnard's will relating to the medal referred to, together with a transcript from the minutes of the trustees. THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES. Very respectfully, JOHN B. PINE, Clerk. EXTRACT FROM THE WILL OF F. A. P. BARNARD. 2. All the remainder of my property invested as aforesaid to constitute a fund, under the name of the Barnard Fund for the Increase of the Library; the income from the same to be devoted to the purchase on account of the library of Columbia College S. Mis. 170-2 of such books as from time to time may be most needed, but especially relating to physical or astronomical science; selecting, in preference, those which may be likely to be most useful to persons engaged in scientific investigation. But of the income from this said fund I desire that so much as may be necessary shall be applied in the manner following: The trustees of Columbia College shall cause to be struck with suitable devices, a medal of gold, nine-tenths fine, of the bullion value of not less than two hundred dollars, to be styled "The Barnard Medal for Meritorious Service to Science;" and shall publicly announce that a copy of the same shall be awarded, at the close of every quinquennial period, dating from the probate of this my last will and testament, to such person, whether a citizen of the United States or of any other country, as shall, within the five years next preceding, have made such discovery in physical or astronomical science, or such novel application of science to purposes beneficial to the human race, as, in the judgment of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States, shall be esteemed most worthy of such honor. And I make it my request that the said National Academy of Sciences shall charge itself with the duty of declaring to the trustees of Columbia College, aforesaid, at the close of every term of five years, as above defined, the name of the person whom they judge worthy to receive such medal, with a statement of the reasons on which their judgment is founded; and that, upon such declaration and nomination, the trustees shall proceed to award the said medal, and shall transmit the same to the person entitled to receive it, accompanied by a diploma or certificate attesting the fact and the occasion of the award. But, if the said National Academy of Sciences shall judge that, during the five years preceding the date at which, as above provided, this award shall become due no discovery in physical or astronomical science, or no new application of scientific principles to useful purposes, has been made worthy of the distinction proposed, then it is my wish and request the award shall be for that time omitted. And I would further desire that the medal above described should bear, if it can be accomplished without interfering with the appropriate artistic devices, upon its obverse side the motto, Magna est Veritas, and upon its reverse the motto, Deo optimo Maximo, Gloria in Excelsis. EXTRACT FROM THE MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE TRUSTEES OF COLUMBIA COLLEGE. At a meeting of the trustees of Columbia College in the city of New York, held at the college on Monday, the 2d day of November, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and ninety-one, the following action was taken: Resolved, That the trustees accept with grateful appreciation the gifts of the late President Barnard, and undertake and agree to perform the trusts created by the will. Resolved, That the remainder of the property bequeathed to the college by Dr. Barnard be set apart as a fund to be known as the "Barnard Fund for the Increase of the Library;" that so much of the income of said fund as may be necessary be applied to the manufacture and supply once in every five years of a gold medal of the bullion value of not less than $200, to be known as "The Barnard Medal for Meritorious Service to Science;" and that the remainder of the income of the said fund be applied to the purchase for the library of such books as from time to time may be most needed but especially relating to physical or astronomical science, selecting in preference those which may be likely to be most useful to persons engaged in scientific investigation. Resolved, That it be referred to the committee on the library to cause to be prepared and to submit a suitable design for such medal, the design conforming as nearly as practicable to the suggestions contained in the will. Resolved, That one such medal be awarded at commencement at the close of every quinquennial period, dating from the 17th day of July, 1889, to such person, if any, whether a citizen of the United States or of any other country, as shall, within the |