Evening star., 1940-05-09
Scientists Open
Congress Here
Tomorrow
Address of Welcome
To Be Given by
President Roosevelt

With ofncial delegates and unof-
ficial delegations from 81 American
republics attending, the eighth
American Scientific Congress will
open at the Pan-American Union
tomorrow night. with an address Of
welcome from President Roosevelt.
Already more than 500 scientists
from South and Central America
are In Washington and nearly 1000
scientists from the United States
are expected to attend in the most
ambitious program yet attempted to
cement the intellectual friendship
and understanding Of the nations Of
the Western Hemisphere.
In the past both North and South
America have been closer to Europe
in their intellectual relations than
they have to each other. With the
old world shaken by war and much
Of its scientific activity stopped,
promoters Of the congress expect
that from this gathering will develop
a closer cooperation than ever has
existed before.
Foreword Of Welcome.
In foreword Of welcome to the
delegates President Roosevelt de-
clares:
"Our debt to the men and women
Of science defies computation. The
generous contributions which
scholars and technicians have made
to our 20th century civilization have
earned for them a position Of in
f1uence and respect unparalleled in
any other period OF the worlds his
tory. The path Of the scientist and
the scholar is the path to peace
and prosperity which lies open to
all nations and all peoples, but which
unfortunately has recently been
spurned by some who still cling to
the archaic standards of human
conduct prevalent before the very
dawn Of science"
The deliberations of the congress
will take place in eight sections:
Anthropology, headed by DR.. Her
bert J. Spinden of the Brooklyn
Museum; biology, DR.. Edwin G.
Conklin. Princeton University; geol-
ogy, DR.. T. Wayland Vaughan, pres
ident Of the Geological Society OF
America; agriculture, DR.. Hugh H.
Bennett. Department of Agriculture;
public health and medicine, DR..
Thomas Parran, Surgeon General of
the United States; physical and
chemical sciences, DR.. Lyman J.
Briggs, director Of the Bureau Of
Standards: statistics, DR.. Stuart A.
Rice, chairman Of the Central Sta
tistical Board; history and geog.
raphy, DR.. Clarence H. Haring, Co
lumbia University; international
law, public law and Jurisprudence,
DR.. James Brown Scott, Carnegie
Endowment for International Peace;
economics and sociology, DR.. Har-
old G. Moulton. president of the
Brookings Institution: education,
DR.. Nicholas Murray Butler, presi-
dent of Columbia University.
Meetings Start Saturday.
The congress will be formally
opened by the address of President
Roosevelt tomorrow night. The
scientific sections will start their
meetings on Saturday but the day
will be devoted mostly to organiza-
ton. Sunday there has been ar
ranged for the delegates an auto
mobile trip through Virginia, visit
ing some Of the Civil War battle
fields and the Luray Caverns.
The first plenary session of the
congress will be held Monday. An
official luncheon for the govern
mental delegates Of the other re-
publics will follow.
The oficial banquet will be held
Thursday evening. The official dele
gates will be guests Of the United
States Government. Friday after
noon a boat and motor trip for the
delegates to Williamsburg, James,
town and Yorktown has been
arranged.