Evening star., 1901-09-21
AMERICAN ASTRONOMERS
PROGRESS OF THE STUDY OF THE
STARS IN THE UNITED STATES.
Scientists OF the Great Republic Who
Have Earned Distinction
for Research.
Er.,ni The N,w York sun

From the New York Sun
There has been a good deal of discussion
in the last few months as to the value or
what has been done in this country In lit
erature. science or art as compared Win
European achievement in the same lines.
Incidentally, the present standards OF
American scholarship have been attacked
and defended Some of those who have
taken the American side Of the argument
have cited the science of astronomy as
field in which, all things considered, COM
parlson between Europe and America
would not result in any disadvantage to the
latter 1t has not yet been pointed out.
however, that in this special science 1t Is
possible TO learn very exactly how Ameri-
cans are regarded abroad by the very
simple means of recording the list Of hon
ors which they have received from the
best-knowu astronomical body in the
world the Royal Astronomical Society OF
London.
beginning in 1923 the society has award
ed an annual gold medal for conspicuous
originality and research. in whatever coun-
try they might be shown. In the science
which IT had been formed to encourage
the honor being only heightened by the fact
that occasionally IL has been voted to give
no medal at all. For fOrty-two years no
award made outside of England and
the continent of Europe, and 1t was only In
1865 that the medal first came to this coun-
try-about twenty years, that is. after the
establishment of the first important Ameri-
can observatory. The recipient was Prof
George =. Bond, director of the Harvard
observatory, who was the son, 1t may be
noted. of Prof. W. e. Bond the director and
practically the founder of the same OBJ
servatory. The award was made TO Prof
Bend for his general astronomical re-
searches and especially for his work on the
mECh-ObServed comet of Donati OF lSoS, IN
Guiding not only a great number OF valu-
able personal observations, but also the
most painstaking collection, comparison
and reduction of all available data, from
whatever source.
Honor for NewcOmb.
Nine years later in 1874, the same honor
was again conferred on an American as
tronomer. the medalist in this second In
stance being Prof Simon Newcomb of
Washington. whose work at the United
States naval observatory in the compilation
of the Nautical Almanac is widely re-
membered. The declared reason of his Sc
lection by the Royal Astronomical Society.
however. was his tables of Neptune and
Uranus and contributions to mathematical
astronomy.
In more than fifty years. then, only two
Americans received the society medal The
contrast between this record and the record
- of the next twenty-five years is sufficiently
emphasized in the mere statement that out
of the twenty-one medals given during the
even quarter of a century ending with the
present year no less than eight-more than
a third-have come to the United States,
not including a special award. called the
Hannah Swift gift, given in 1897. When 1t
is remembered that the other thirteen were
distributed in England, Germany, France
Were the quota, that is of all the rest of
the world put together-the comparative
accomplishment of this country in the
science which Is generally considered TO be
p nf Wi no
the more readily realized. The brief sum-
mary of these awards, both here and
abroad. during this period tells it's own
story:
Astronomical Medalists.
1877. No medal given.
1873. Gold medal 70 Baron Dembowski
for researches in double stars.
1879. Gold medal to Prof. Asaph Hall
Omitted states). for the discovery and OBJ
servation of the satellites of Mars and for
his determination of their orbits.
1850. No medal given.
1881. Gold medal to Prof. Axel Moller
for Investigations of the motion of Faye,s
comet.
1sS2. Gold medal to David Gill, for hell
ometer observations of Mars at ascension.
1883. Gold medal to DIR. Benjamin APP
thorp Gould Omitted states), for his "Uran-
Ometria Argentina"
1884. Gold medal to A. A. Common, for
photographs of celestial bodies.
1sSI. Gold medal to DIR. W. Higgins for
researches on the motions of stars in the
line OF light, and on Photographic spectra
OF stars.
1856. Two medals given: To Prof E. c.
Pickering Omitted States), and to Prof
Charles Pritchard. both for photometric re-
searches.
1887. Gold medal to c. W. Hill Omitted
Statesl. for researches on the Luna theory
1883. Gold medal to Prof Arthur An
wers. for re-reductions of Bradley's obser-
yations.
1889. Gold medal to NJ Maurice Loewy,
for his Equatorial Coude and other astro-
nomical work
1890. No medal given.
1891. No medal given.
1892. Cod medal to Prof. G. H. Darwin.
for work on tides.
1893. Gold medal to Prof H. c. VogeI
for spectrOscopic and other observations
1894. Gold medal 10 Prof. s. w. Burn
ham Omitted States), for discoveries in
measurements of double stars.
lS93 Gold medal to DIR. Isaac Roberts.
for photographs of star clusters and
nebulae.
1896 Gold medal to s. c. Chandler
Omitted States). for discussion on variation
ef latitude. variable stars and other work
1897. Gold medal to Prof. E. Z. Barnard
United Statesp. for the discovery of the
hfth satellite of Jupiter and other astro-
nomical work.
Special award the Hannah Swift gift. to
Lewis Swift Omitted States), for cometary
discoveries
lsys. No medal given.
1889. Gold medal TO Frank Mclean for
Photographic spectra of stars.
lSo- Gold medal to Henri Polncare for
his dy1amical theory OF tides and figures
on the equilibrium OF rotating masses of
liquids.
1901. Gold medal to Prof. E. c. Picker
Ing United States). for researches on vari-
able stars and work in astronomical pho
Biography.
Americans Of Distinction.
As Will be seen by this list, the Ameri-
cans distinguished by the Royal Society
include Prof. Hall of the naval observatory;
DR. Gould of Cambridge, whose chief as
Economical work. however. was done in
Argentina; Mr.. Hill. whose work was con-
nected with the annual publication of the
Nautical Almanac: Prof Burnham who
has been connected with both the Lick and
the ferkes observatories. Mr.. Chandler, a
non-professional Cambridge astronomer:
MIR. Swift. also private observer; Prof.
Barnard OF the Yerkes observatory and
Prot T.. e. Pickering. the present director
of the Harvard observatory, whose name
with tnat of Prof. Axel MoIler OF Ger
many. appears twice in this quarter-cen-
tury record. Prof. Pickerings second medal
ed n the animal