LETTER

FROM THE

PRESIDENT OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES,

TRANSMITTING

A REPORT OF THE OPERATIONS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES DURING THE YEAR 1898.

JANUARY 10, 1899.-Ordered to be printed.

NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES,

Washington, D. C., January 1, 1899.

SIR: In conformity with the requirements of the act of incorporation, approved March 3, 1863, I have the honor to submit herewith a report of the operations of the National Academy of Sciences for the past year.

Very respectfully,

WOLCOTT GIBBS,

President of the National Academy of Sciences.

The PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE.

MAR 9 1900

ACT OF INCORPORATION.

AN ACT to incorporate the National Academy of Sciences.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That Louis Agassiz, Massachusetts; J. H. Alexander, Maryland; S. Alexander, New Jersey; A. D. Bache, at large; F. A. P. Barnard, at large; J. G. Barnard, United States Army, Massachusetts; W. H. C. Bartlett, United States Military Academy, Missouri; U. A. Boyden, Massachusetts; Alexis Caswell, Rhode Island; William Chauvenet, Missouri; J. H. C. Coffin, United States Naval Academy, Maine; J. A. Dahlgren, United States Navy, Pennsylvania; J. D. Dana, Connecticut; Charles H. Davis, United States Navy, Massachusetts; George Engelmann, Saint Louis, Mo.; J. F. Frazer, Pennsylvania; Wolcott Gibbs, New York; J. M. Gilliss, United States Navy, District of Columbia; A. A. Gould, Massachusetts; B. A. Gould, Massachusetts; Asa Gray, Massachusetts; A. Guyot, New Jersey; James Hall, New York; Joseph Henry, at large; J. E. Hilgard, at large, Illinois; Edward Hitchcock, Massachusetts; J. S. Hubbard, United States Naval Observatory, Connecticut; A. A. Humphreys, United States Army, Pennsylvania; J. L. Le Conte, United States Army, Pennsylvania; J. Leidy, Pennsylvania; J. P. Lesley, Pennsylvania; M. F. Longstreth, Pennsylvania; D. H. Mahan, United States Military Academy, Virginia; J. S. Newberry, Ohio; H. A. Newton, Connecticut; Benjamin Pierce, Massachusetts; John Rodgers, United States Navy, Indiana; Fairman Rogers, Pennsylvania; R. E. Rogers, Pennsylvania; W. B. Rogers, Massachusetts; L. M. Rutherfurd, New York; Joseph Saxton, at large; Benjamin Silliman, Connecticut; Benjamin Silliman, junior, Connecticut; Theodore Strong, New Jersey; John Torrey, New York; J. G. Totten, United States Army, Connecticut; Joseph Winlock, United States Nautical Almanac, Kentucky; Jeffries Wyman, Massachusetts; J. D. Whitney, California; their associates and successors duly chosen, are hereby incorporated, constituted, and declared to be a body corporate, by the name of the National Academy of Sciences.

SEC. 2. And be it further enacted, That the National Academy of Sciences shall consist of not more than fifty ordinary members, and the said corporation hereby constituted shall have power to make its own organization, including its constitution, by-laws, and rules and regula tions; to fill all vacancies created by death, resignation, or otherwise; to provide for the election of foreign and domestic members, the division

into classes, and all other matters needful or usual in such institution, and to report the same to Congress.

SEC. 3. And be it further enacted, That the National Academy of Sciences shall hold an annual meeting at such place in the United States as may be designated, and the Academy shall, whenever called upon Ly any Department of the Government, investigate, examine, experiment, and report upon any subject of science or art, the actual expense of such investigations, examinations, experiments, and reports to be paid from appropriations which may be made for the purpose, but the Academy shall receive no compensation whatever for any services to the Government of the United States.

Approved, March 3, 1863.

AN ACT to amend the act to incorporate the National Academy of Sciences.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the act to incorporate the National Academy of Sciences, approved March third, eighteen hundred and sixty-three, be, and the same is hereby, so amended as to remove the limitation of the number of ordinary members of said Academy as provided in said act. Approved, July 14, 1870.

DEPARTMENT OF STATE, June 10, 1882.

True copies.

SEVELLON A. BROWN,

Chief Clerk.

AN ACT to authorize the National Academy of Sciences to receive and hold trust funds for the promotion of science, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the National Academy of Sciences, incorporated by the act of Congress approved March third, eighteen hundred and sixty-three, and its several supplements, be, and the same is hereby, authorized and empowered to receive bequests and donations, and hold the same in trust, to be applied by the said Academy in aid of scientific investigations, and according to the will of the donors.

Approved, June 20, 1884.

A true copy.

DEPARTMENT OF STATE, June 24, 1884.

SEVELLON A. BROWN,

Chief Clerk.

REPORT

OF

THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES.

SESSIONS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY.

During the year 1898 the Academy held three sessions. The first was the regular annual session, held at Washington, April 19 to 22, inclusive. The second was a scientific session, held at New Haven, November 15 to 17. The third, a special session, held at New Haven, November 16, for the transaction of business.

ANNUAL MEETING.

Held at Washington, April 19 ₺ › 22, 1898.]

The session was held in the Congressional Library, the President, Mr. Wolcott Gibbs, presiding.

The following-named members were present during the session: Abbe, Agassiz, Barker, Barus, Billings, Brewer, Bell, Brooke, Dall, Elkin, Emmons, Gibbs (W.), Gilbert, Gill, Gooch, Hague, Hall (A.), Hall (J.), Hastings, Hill (G. W.), Hyatt, Langley, Marsh, Mendenhall, Michelson, Newcomb, Putnam, Powell, Remsen, Rowland, Schott, Walcott, Welsh, White, Wright.

The President reported that no new business from Congress or from the departments had required the attention of the Academy since the publication of his last annual report to Congress, and stated that he had, as requested by the council, made suitable acknowledgment to Miss Alice Bache Gould for her munificent gift to the Academy.

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