Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 9.djvu/87

Rh and an almost obliterated almanac, that had been used by her father, were placed with her in her coffin. The same niece, in a letter written at this time to her cousin, Sir John Herschel, says:



T a regular meeting of the Executive Committee of the United States Centennial Commission, held at Philadelphia, October 13, 1875, Mr. Beckwith, Commissioner from New York (United States Commissioner-General at the International Exhibition at Paris, 1867), presented the following report upon the selection and appointment of judges. It was carefully considered and unanimously approved:

Chairman of the Executive Committee.

In compliance with the request of the Executive Committee, I beg leave to present for consideration the following suggestions relating to the selection and appointment of judges, in conformity with the method of awards decreed by the Centennial Commission.

This method, in many respects, differs radically from the systems hitherto tried in International Exhibitions, and, although the subject is familiar to you, I shall be pardoned, I hope, for briefly indicating the broad differences.

Awards have heretofore been generally made by an International Jury of about six hundred members.

The apportionment of jurors to countries has been tried on various bases, but was usually made on the basis of the relative space occupied by the products of each country respectively, in the Exhibition.

The Great Jury was divided into numerous small juries, who examined the products and prepared lists of the names of persons whom they proposed for awards, and the proposals thus made were confirmed or rejected by higher juries.

The awards consisted chiefly of medals of differentsdifferent [sic] values, gold, silver, etc.

This system brought together a numerous and incongruous assembly, including unavoidably many individuals unqualified for the work.

The basis of representation was apparently fair, but its results were delusive.

A few countries nearest the Exhibition, whose products could be collected and exposed at the smallest proportional expense, occupied large spaces; the numerous remote countries filled smaller spaces.

The number of jurors allotted to the smaller spaces, when distributed, left 