Early Journal Content on JSTOR, Free to Anyone in the World This article is one of nearly 500,000 scholarly works digitized and made freely available to everyone in the world by JSTOR. Known as the Early Journal Content, this set of works include research articles, news, letters, and other writings published in more than 200 of the oldest leading academic journals. The works date from the mid-seventeenth to the early twentieth centuries. We encourage people to read and share the Early Journal Content openly and to tell others that this resource exists. People may post this content online or redistribute in any way for non-commercial purposes. Read more about Early Journal Content at http://about.jstor.org/participate-jstor/individuals/early- journal-content. JSTOR is a digital library of academic journals, books, and primary source objects. JSTOR helps people discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content through a powerful research and teaching platform, and preserves this content for future generations. JSTOR is part of ITHAKA, a not-for-profit organization that also includes Ithaka S+R and Portico. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected]. PUBLICATIONS OF THE AstronomicalSociety of the Pacific. Vol. XXXI. San Francisco, California,October, 1919 No. 183 THE INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL AND THE INTERNATIONAL ASTRONOMICAL UNION By W. W. Campbell The searchfor the truth in theleading departments of knowledge, especiallyin the domain of fundamentalscience, and chieflyin astronomy,has made desirableand necessary-many international societiesor committeesfor cooperation in research. These organi- zationsreached considerable numbers late in thenineteenth century and earlyin the twentieth.In astronomy,for example, there were the AstronomischeGesellschaft, the Committeeon the Carte du Ciel,the International Union for Cooperation in SolarResearch, the InternationalGeodetic Association, and many somewhatsimilar but less formallyconstituted bodies or committeesdealing with transitof Venusphenomena, with celestial photography, with the fundamentaldetermination of star positions,with astronomical ephemerides,with the reformof the calendar,etc. In the sciencesother than astronomyand seismology,inter- national organizationsfor cooperationin research have been relativelyfew, but the usefulnessof such bodies of investigators has been abundantlyestablished. The warof 1914-18,brought on by thegovernments of Germany and Austria-Hungary- with the sympathyand supportof their subjects- and the inhumanityand barbaritywith which the war was conducted,destroyed the usefulnessof nearlyall of the inter- nationalorganizations referred to. The scientistsof the allied and associatednations were unable to subscribeto the Prussianview that mightis rightin internationalrelations, and, with very few exceptions,they were of the opinionthat personalrelationships withthe scientists of the central nations should not be resumed1,at ^'Inasmuchas the San FranciscoChronicle of September27th misquoted and exaggerated mystatement on thissubject made to thefaculty and studentsof the Universityof Californiaon September26th, it seemsdesirable to quotefrom the written address what I reallydid say on that occasion: "More thana yearago the scientistsof Franceunanimously declared that they would tabe no partin scientificassociations which should include the Germanscientists, at least until 'the centralnations shall have repudiatedthe internationalpolitical methods which have roused 250 PUBLICATIONS OF THE least until the offendinggovernments and peoples shall have renouncedtheir past, and apparentlypresent, political methods. It shouldnot be overlookedor forgottenthat most investigators in purescience in thecentral nations are officialsof their governments as trulyas are theirdiplomats, their soldiers, and theirsailors. The greatmajority of Germanprofessors, for example, were appointed, promoted,and in case of necessitydisciplined, by theirKultus Ministerium,a definitedepartment of theirgovernment. In orderto study the questionsarising from the unfortunate internationalsituation and to seek a practicablesolution, there met in London in October,1918, under the auspicesof the Royal Society,thirty-six delegates representing the nationalacademies or othersimilar societies of nine allied and associatedgovernments. In brief,it was unanimouslydecided to withdrawfrom the very few internationalsocieties concerned, in accordancewith the statutes or rulespeculiar to each case, and to formnew associations. A formalstatement of the reasonswhich governed this momentous decision,as preparedand unanimouslyadopted by the conference, was reprintedin thesePublications, 30, 332-3, 1918; it is worthy of a secondreading. The conferenceappointed a commissionto preparea generalplan forthe proposed international organizations. This commissionmade progressat its meetingin Paris in Nov- ember,191 8. The Americandelegates to the London conferencehad pro- posed thatall theaffected organizations relating internationally to one and the same subject,to astronomy,for example, should be succeededby a singlesociety, so formulatedas to servethe purposes of all the associationsfrom which they . should withdraw. This policywas adopted. It was laterdecided that representatives of the varioussciences should meet in Brussels in July, 1919, to create international unionsrepresenting many differentsciences, and to completethe organizationof the International Research Council, whose principal functionsrelate to the promotionof researchin any and all of its the indignationof the civilizedworld.' This sentimentwas widespreadthruout the allied and associatednations. (See Declarationof InteralliedLondon Conference,C. R. Académiedes Sciencesfor October 21, 1018,and Pubi. A. S. P., XXX, 332-3,1018.) Areany ofus inclinedto criticizethe Frenchdecision? Let himwhose war sufferingshave equalledthose of the French throwthe firststone! I knowof a fewAmerican and Britishscientists who say we shouldrenew personalrelationships with the scientistsof the centralnations as soon as peace shall have been concluded;just as if theterrible war had notoccurred, just as ifthe central nations had inflicted a merefootball game upon the allied nations. I have beenunable to avoidnoticing that, of these veryfew scientists wh.o would immediately renew personal relations with the Germans,not one had a son whowas in a Germanpoison-gas attack!" ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF THE PACIFIC 251 aspectsin anymembership country, and especiallyto thecoordinat- ingof the proposed unions representing the several sciences. Altho the Councilwould in formbe the parentand higherorganization, its realoffice would be to serveand not to rule. The NationalAcademy of Sciences in each country,or its nearest equivalent,was requestedto arrangefor the sendingof delegates to the Brusselsmeeting. The Americandelegation was organized underthe auspices of the National Research Council, acting for the Academy. The Council'sprocedure to thisend was mostinterest- ing,and worthyof carefulnotice and appreciation.It was vitally concernedthat the Americandelegations should be trulyrepre- sentativeof theirrespective sciences in thiscountry; in astronomy, forexample, no investigatorand no institution,if up to standard, shouldfind the avenue to appropriaterepresentation closed. The astronomicaldelegation would be chosenby a subsidiaryorgani- zation knownas the AmericanSection of the (proposed)Astro- nomicalUnion, and theAmerican Section, at least forthe present occasion,would be constitutedas follows: 5 membersfrom the National Academy of Sciences, 18 membersfrom the American Astronomical Society, 3 membersfrom the American Mathematical Society, 3 membersfrom the American Physical Society, i memberfrom the U. S. Naval Observatory, i memberfrom the U. S. CoastSurvey. The AmericanSection thus constitutedheld its firstmeeting in theoffice of theNational Research Council, Washington, D. C, on March8, 1919. Abouttwenty of thethirty-one members of the Sectionwere present. Mr. W. W. Campbellwas appointedper- manentchairman of the Section,with Messrs. C. G. Abbot,E. W. Brown,Frank Schlesinger, and JoelStebbins as theother members of theexecutive committee. The Sectiongave assentto theactions of the London Conferenceand formallyapproved the proposal thatthose nations which had been neutralthruout the war should be admittedinto the InternationalXstronomical Union on the conclusionof peace. The Section did not considerseriously or extensivelythe formof organizationwhich would promisethe greatestusefulness for the proposed Astronomical Union, but con- cerneditself largely with the technicalwork of theUnion in which theAmerican astronomers would be chieflyinterested. The Execu- tive Committeewas instructedto appointsub-committees of the AmericanSection which should prepare reportsupon nineteen 252 PUBLICATIONS OF THE prominentdivisions of astronomicalresearch, for presentation at a latermeeting of the Section. The Brusselsdelegation was selected inpart, and theExecutive Committee was authorizedto completeit. The delegationwas eventuallycomposed as. follows: W. W. Campbell,Lick Observatory,Chairman; W. S. Adams, MountWilson Observatory; Benjamin Boss, Dudley Observatory, Albany; Major Philip Fox, DearbornObservatory, Eyanston, at thattime with the American Expeditionary Forces in France;S. A. Mitchell,McCormick Observatory, Virginia; Frank Schlesinger, AlleghenyObservatory, Pittsburgh; C. E. St. John,Mount Wilson Observatory;F. H. Seares, Mount Wilson Observatory;Joel