Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1933-11-19
BRAIN TRUST IDEA
ONCE UNPOPULAR
Forming of Scientific Groups
in Early Days Gives Pic
turesque Background.

The idea Of brain trust" in Wash
ington-even if it had no official sane
tion-apparently didn't suit intellectual
America a century ago.
The development of the organization
of scientists in Washington has been
worked out by Mr.. and Mrs. Austin H.
Clark of the National Museum for the
forthcoming American Association meet
ing.
To the Engineer Corps of the Army,
they find. belongs the credit for the
establishment of the first truly national
scientific society in the United States.
AS early as 1902, they found from the
study of old records, a United States
Military Philosophical Society was Or
ganized at West Point under leadership
of Gen Jonathan Williams, chief of En-
gineerS and nephew of Benjamin Frank
lin, and one of the first meetings was
hello in Washington in 1908.
Columbian Institute Charter.
This society was succeeded. so far as
Washington is concerned, by the organ
ization in August 1916, of the Column
ban Institute for Promotion of Arts
| and Sciences, which received a charter
OF incorporation from Congress in 1918.
The foundation of the Institute was
que primarily, Mr.. Clark found, to Drs.
James and Edward Cutbush and Thomas
Law, the latter a celebrated figure in
the early history of the District. DR..
Edward Cutbush was the first president,
followed in order by Josiah Meigs, John
Quincy Adams, John C. Calhoun and
Mahlon Dickerson.
Meetings generally were held twice a
year in room at the Capitol, and an
nual addresses were delivered regularly
Tor several years. In all about IS papers
were read before the institute. It be-
came more or less dormant after 1925.
and in 1910 passed into the National
Institution for the Promotion of Sci
ence. In April, 1874, the National In
stituHion assembled in Washington a
great national congress of scientists to
which were invited all members of all
scrieties concerned in the increase of
knowledge
1t was evidently intended. Mr.. Clark
flnds, that the first congress should be
followed by similar gathering each
year. The organization was short-lived.
however. Many of it's founders and
supporters disappeared from public life
| The Smithsonian fund, which it had as
pired to control, was placed under other
authority. Only one national meeting
was held, although the institution itself
fingered on until 1861, when it went
out of existence by termination of its
charter
For Men in Public Life
The National Institution" says Mr.
Clark, was made up chiefly of men in
public life, and its influence in shaping
| the subsequent development of the SCI
entiflc organizations within or more or
! less connected with the Government
was very great. But the States at that
! time were far more independent of each
other than they are today, and all of
! them regarded the Federal Government
rather in the light Of sort of neces-
Sary evil than as a respected leader.
! This was particularly true in respect to
/ cultural affairs.
! Men of culture and learning in all
/ the States wished for greater oppor-
/ tunities of meeting each other and eX-
changing views, but dictation was abb
| horrent to them and to the States the
Federal Government was more or less
synonymous with dictation."