Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1924-12-11
JOURNAL FINANCES
NEW BIOGRAPHY
New York Times Presents
$500, 900 for Preparation of
|. National Dictionary.

The New York Times, as d gift to
tho Nation, has agreed to advance
100000 for the preparation of a die
Iionary of American biography under
the auspices and direction of the
American Council Of Learned Socie
tie it was announced here yesterday
Standing upon a unique level of au
thOrity, scholarship and literary quail
Sly, the American work is to be the
equal of the Dictionary of National
Biography of Great Britain and the
"Allegemeine Deutsche Geographic"
published in Germany. While no book
publisher was willing to advance the
necessary money for the biographical
research and pre- aration of such
work, the New York Times will not
-bc either maker or publisher of the
dictionary and will assume no control
over it, the function of the Times be-
Eng simply that of making possible,
Through the, action of its publisher,
Adolph 5. Ochs. such a book of refer
encc.
Committee Selected.
A permanent committee OF manage
1ncnt has been selected. consisting of
!. r. Jameson chairman; John H.
Finley, Frederick L. Paxton. Iphigene
ochs Sulzberger, Carl Van poren and
Charles Warren. The function of the
committee will be to select the edi-
tor-in- chief, who will become the sew
cnth member of the committee. The
actual work of getting up and print
ing the editorial data viii be done in
Washington. whore the Library of
Congress affords exceptional advan-
tages for such labor. 1t is expected
that the first volume will appear in
four years, and when the work is
completed there will be 10 volume 8,
completed at the rate of three vol
umeS a year.
The American Council of Learned
Societies, which initiated the plan in
January 1922, is a federated oTgani-
cation formed in 1919, and is the
member for tho United States of the
Union ACademique Jnternationale.
The societies represented on the coun-
Gil are the American Philosophical
Society of Philadelphia, American
Academy Of Arts and Sciences of
Boston, American Antiquarian So
Ciety, American Oriental Society,
American Pathological Association,
Archaeological Institute of America,
Modern Language Association of
America, American Historical Asso-
citation. American Economic Associa-
tion, American Philosophical Asso
citation, American Political Science
Association and American Sociologi
cal Society.
The plan was worked out by COM
mittee headed by DR.. Jameson and
including Prof John Erskine of Co.
1umbia, DR.. Thomas w. Page OF the
Institute of Economics, Prof. Fred
eric L. Paxton of the University of
Wisconsin. Prof. Frederick j. Turner
of Harvard and the late DR.. Robert S.
Woodward. former president of the
Carnegie Institution.
The British Dictionary of National
Biogra phies is to be taken as the
principal model for the works. About
90, 600 biographies will be included in
the 90 volumes. each of which will con-
tain about $50 pages. Writers spe-
Cially qualified in each case will be
selected 10 do the various biographies,
all of which under the plan. will rep
resent fresh research and the utmost
effort n TO be made for accuracy. i'm
partiality and objective treatment,
None OF the biogra plies will center
about living persons.
Although dictionaries of American
biography have been published in
past years DIR. Jameson said today, it
has not been possible to produce the
ideal dictionary without an ex-
pcuditure for biographical research
and preparation of so great a sum
that no book publisher has felt able
10 advance the necessary funds. The
committee, while preparing the plans
for the work. was somewhat appalled,
by the magnitude of the cost indicat-
ed. he related, but he added that the
action of the New York Times had
made it possible to go forward at
once.