Sidelights on the life of Dr. Edgar Fahs Smith - ACS Publications

SIDELIGHTS ON THE LIFE OF DR. EDGAR FAHS SMITH EDITEDBY

HARRISON HALE.UNIVERSITYOP ARKANSAS,FAYETTEVILLE, ARKANSAS

I n a n effort to furnish a definite and clearcut idea of the man himself, some o f those who knew Dr. Smith best were asked to recall some incident in his life, The first of these w s written some years ago by the late Dr. Allen J. Smith, his brother, and was made available by Miss Eva Armstrong. The writer of this sketch first had the honor of introduction t o Edgar Fahs Smith in the early winter of 1 8 6 3 4 , when the vice-provost was a small bov of some nine vears of aze. - . and when the writer himself was of still more tender age, and of practically no experience of men and things of this world. The introduction was perforce a favorable one, and could not well be avoided on either side. . . . It was followed-at least on one ide-with a feeling of regard and respect, verging on worship, developed within the association, that of the urchin for his big brother, in spite of the fact that the youngster's life was often opardized and painful bruises mflicted by accidental upsets from the old baby-coach when the vice-provost ran desperate foot-races with other boys and Cmirirs? .Mrs. Edgar B. Smilh F A ~SYITII S A T A PERIOD SOME-AT other coaches. MY own recolEDGAR EARLIER T X A N 'rr1Al. MENTIONBD I N THE lections are not vivid, but 1 am OPENINGOF THESKETCH informed that in a passive way I took part in some of the early chemical investigations of my brother, as when, one rainy morning long ago, he was "projickin' round" on the high chimney shelf in the old kitchen of our home and managed through fault of technic to upset a box of washing-blue upon my white head, and attempted to wash it out lest visible evidence of his adventures be borne to the central office. It would not wash out, and I remained for weeks a prominent figure in the local landscape from the efforts of the embryo chemist. Memory would not, however, attach much of discredit to the boy a t that or later periods. I n point of fact he escaped most of the discredits and transferred them with his old school books, outgrown coats, and bad habits, an occasional profanity, and the use of tobacco, to his corporal's guard of a brother. To the latter he seemed always quite

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right and hopelessly inimitable in the neat precision (not a t all ladylike, however) with which he invariably carried out his performances. His shoes always shone; and he religiously spread a neat little white handkerchief upon the porch before trusting his immaculate trousers to its possibly dusty surface when he sat before the front door of evenings, as was the custom of those days. His books were well covered and, although in constant use, their pages were spotless; and the urchin brother, who was myself, was permitted to handle them only after a thorough preliminary washing of hands. He rarely urgently required a trouncing, but obtained it without difficulty when actually inneed and always accepted i t with proper resignation in the spirit in which it was administered and without very much distribution of woe. In other words, he was that sort of a good boy that is not so very good that he dies young, but decent., wholesome, and just good enough to be worth while. He would have been successful under any conditions-his natural bent toward reasonable precision and method guaranteed that; but the measure of his success he owes in particular to two persons-his mother and his old teacher, Dr. George W. Ruby, principal of York County Academy for nearly a generation. Night by night, in the light of an old-fashioned fat lamp, his mother had the boy work out and recite to her all his lessons for the following day, and no half acquaintance with the tasks was acknowledged or allowed. The innate aim for thoroughness was formed into a reality a t his mother's side, and what power of analysis and memory nature gave him was educated into a habit of easy practi~e.. . . It was while attending the York Academy that in association with a coterie of kindred spirits Dr. Smith established and for several years was in turn, or all a t one time, editor, contributor, compositor, pressman, and financial agent of a youthful publication known as "Our Effortn-a short-lived effort, dying promptly when the boys who built i t up passed from the old school into college. Dr. Smith in this experience learned sufficiently the trade of printing t o have been repeatedly accepted in holidays to do substitution and special work as compositor or proofreader in the office of one of the important publishing houses of the town; and his claim to be a typothete fits well the man who has sat in Franklin's old chair in the Philosophical Society, and worked as he has for the glorification of the University that Franklin founded.

Dr. C h s . L. Parsons, Secretary of the American Chemical Society since 1907, writes: Fortunately I met Dr. Smith shortly after I graduated from Cornell in 1888. Just why he adopted me immediately as a protege I have never known and can only solve by believing i t was his habit. I have never

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known an individual with a more magnetic, friendly personality than he. He had the power of making each of his friends conscious of his special personal interest. He had a real influence on my life as he did on thousands of others. He called me "Charlie" from the day he met me until the day he died. He called other thousands by their first names, too. He put me on his list to receive a little letter he sent out to his boys and I considered myself one of his boys until he died. His interest in me was real. Of that I am confident, but there are thousands of others who have the same feeling as I. He was a great man, a great educator, a great politician, a great author, and a great chemist. I t was his great heas, however, that outshone all. He influenced his country for good, his state for good, his university for good, his profession for good, and every individnal who was so fortunate as to know him as well. His influence still lasts. His portrait, the only adornment of my office walls, smiles on me daily and is an inspiration still.

Dr.+ Owen L. Shinn, Ifead of the Department of Chemistry, University of Pennsylvania, who as student and colZeague was associated ed'th Dr. Smith for nearly forty years, spoke before the joint meeting of the Divisions of Chemical Education and of the History of Chemistrv held in honor of Dr. Smith at BuffaZo, September I , 1931. Using thk subject "Edgar ~ a h sSmithTeacher," Dr. Shinn said: It was my good fortune to be a pupil of Dr. Smith when he was only professor of analytical chemistry, before he was hurdened with the cares of the department and long before he was overburdened by the viceprovostship or provostship. Then there was nothing for him but teaching and research. He had the qualifications of the ideal teacher as defined by Dr. Segerblom a t a recent meeting of this division: a knowledge of and love for chemistry, and a love for the student and an interest in his welfare. He knew each student. Each man was an individual and not just a member of a class.

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DR. CHARLES I,. PARSONS. DR. E. C. FRANKLIN, A N D DR. EDGARFAHS SNITH, New HAVEN.CONNECTICUT, 1923

The laboratory rather than the classroom was where he did his most effective teaching. Well do I remember the afternoons when he would pull a stool up to our desks and ask, "What are you doing?" and then "Why are you doing i t that way?" We very soon found out that "That is the way the book has it" was not the right answer. We must know the reason for each step. His next question would be one such as "How else could you do it?" or "Could you use sodium hydroxide instead of ammonia!" If we did not know, we would be told t o "try it." I think those two words were about as important and frequently used as any. We were enjoined to try it and try it again until we had things fixed firmly in our minds. Drill was the order, and drill it was, long and intensive, hut no student, no matter how much he disliked the persistence and the insistence

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of the drilling, failed to feel the kindly interest of the drillmaster. One of his colleagues said to him, "Smith, if you keep that up you will he the most unpopular man on the campus." His answer was, "I am not here to be popular but to get chemistry into these boys." His critic is now but a name, but he is a cherished memory t o all who studied under him. "Facts remain, theories may change overnight,'' was one of his favorite expressions, consequently theories were not stressed as they afe by most teachers today. He was very fond of theories in a historical way, hut used the history of their downfall by experimental observations to illustrate the fallibility of theories. His classroom quizzes were not systematic. He might start with the quantitative determination of sodium and get t o the history of the discovery of chlorine, not by jumps but in a perfectly orderly and logical way. No course that he gave, except perhaps his freshman lectures, could he confined t o the field limited by the name that i t bore, hut i t always took a general scope. His wide knowledge and his wonderful ability to remember details were rather discouraging to those who strove to follow in his footsteps. His lectures were always clear and full of facts, hut the ones that his former students remember with the most pleasure are those in which

corir,rsy Alien iiagrrs

SENIOR CLASSOF CHEMISTS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF PCNKSILVAKIA, 1904 The members of the instructional staff standing in the rear, reading from right to leFt, are: Dr. Edgar Fahs Smith, Dr. Owen L. Shinn, Dr. Daniel L. Wallace, and Dr. Allen Rogers.

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he got a bit off the subject a t hand and talked about unusual things he had unearthed in literature, experiences he had had in the laboratory, or intimate facts about some old chemist or chemical discovery. Dr. Smith always insisted that the laboratory he run with but one rule: "Be fair." He never bothered with attendatice records, never called the roll, but always knew when a student wasabsent, andthat was very seldom. A bluffer did not remain in the department very long. There never was a question of discipline. The graduate students do not look back so much on their lecture-room experience with Dr. Smith as to their intimate contact and discussions over their work, when he would adopt the same method that I mentioned before and suggest "try it." I have frequently heard him say, "It may not work, hut just for fun let us try it." I have known others who have tried to imitate his methods of teaching and have failed to get results, which leads us to the conclusion that the success of Edgar F. Smith, the teacher, was due t o Edgar F. Smith, the man.

Dr. Allen Rogers, Head of the Department of Industrial Chemical Engineering, Pratt Institute, wites: Although I can think volumes about Dr. Smith, I find it very difficult to put these thoughts t o the tune of words. My first contact with him was in the fall of 1900 when I entered the University of Pennsylvania to take graduate work in chemistry. I well remember that day when he met

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me in the hall of the Hamson Laboratory and the cordial reception that he gave me. I can see him now in that white linen coat as we sat together in the little office and talked over my program. From that day I loved him as a father, and up to the time of his departure we were the closest of friends. I was very fortunately assigned Room 3 on the second floor just a t the head of the stairs, and on his rounds to visit the students he would drop in to talk over the research problem to which I had been assigned. After a fruitless attempt to gain some added knowledge about the bromides of molybdenum I started, upon a study of complex inorganic acids. It was then that we spent many happy hours together and by following out his many suggestions it was possible to present for publication a series of papers describing some eighty-odd new complex inorganic compounds. As a teacher he had the ability of making the most difficult problems appear as simple and interesting as a fairy tale. As an associate he made one's endeavors to assume the magnitude of a wonderful undertaking. His kindly suggestions and encouragement made life worth living, and we all felt that, if for no other reason, we must make good for Dr. Smith.

Dr. C. A . Browne, Chief, Chemical and Technological Research, Bureau of Chemistry and Soils, U. S. De9artment of Agriculture, says: One of Professor Edgar Smith's most pleasing traits was his habit of writing brid personal messages upou the flJ-leaves of the books which he presented to his numerous friends upon various occasions. If all these association books could be collected together they would no doubt constitute a considerable library and a study of the inscriptions upon their pages would be an interesting revelation of those friendly human qualities which made Dr. Smith so universally loved. The writer treasures a number of such books in his own collection and the reading of each message of presentation brings back a flood of pleasant memories, of which the following is only one example. Upon the fly-leaf of a presentation copy of Professor Smith's "Old Chemistries" is the following message in his handwriting: Dear Dr. Browne: Never forget the day when we met on the shores of Lake Michigan and pledged ourselves to work for the extension of the history of our common science--chemistry. Edgar F. Smith 4/13/27 The day to which Professor Smith alludes in this inscription was September 7, 1920, a t the time of the Chicago meeting of the American Chemical

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Society and the following account of the incident is taken from the pages of my Journal for that date.

September 7, 1920 At Evanston we assembled a t 3 P.M. in the Gymnasium of the Northwestern University. Drs. Parsons, Herty, and many others, whom I chanced to meet, informed me that Professor E. F. Smith, Provost of the University of Pennsylvania, was anxious to see me and I soon found him in the Gymnasium. He had heard of my collection of autograph letters, prints, etc., of famous chemists and desired to discuss things with me, as he was greatly interested in historical chemistry. We sat for a while in the Gymnasium listening to the speakers, but it was so warm, we finally went outside and taking a shady seat under the trees on the lake front, spent over an hour in pleasant conversation.

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I gave Professor Smith some photos of Priestley's bookplate, which I had with me and which he was pleased to have. He said he had a book with a Priestley plate but it was only a name plate without any artistic illustration. I told him of the old book, which I had, that contained the plate and of my desire to consult the inventory that was made of Priestley's Library after the Birmingham riots, to see if this hook was listed. I had been unable to trace the history of the book. I mentioned also a letter of Priestley, which I had, written from Reading to Mr. Vaughan in Philadelphia. Professor Smith told me about Vaughan and his relations with Priestley. I told Professor Smith about visiting the old Priestley house in Northumberland, Pennsylvania, sometime in 1897 or 1898 and of my desire to visit the place again before the building was taken down for shipment to State College. Professor Smith said i t was not certain that the building would be moved as Professor Pond had not succeeded in raising the necessary funds for this before his death, and since his death the owners of the property had written him, asking that the American Chemical Society buy the property, Professor Smith said he believed that Professor Pond's travels about the country to raise funds to move the house were in a way the cause of his illness and death. He felt that it would be better, if possible, to preserve the home where it was and that the moving of the house from its old setting and associations would be a loss. I told Professor Smith that the chemistry alumni of Penn. State seemed determined to carry out Professor Pond's original plans and to raise the funds necessary to move the house. I spoke of Priestley's old method of curing lumber in a fire-pit and expressed the opinion that if the old house were taken apart, many of the original boards would be found with the smoke stains. v, Professor Smith mentioned his having obtained the old balance of Priestley from his descendants in Northumberland and that he was uncertain what disposition to make of this. He felt in some ways that it should belong to the University of Pennsylvania and then again that it should belong to the National Museum in Washington. I described many of the old letters of Silliman, Accum, Dalton, Davy, Faraday, Berzelins, Klaproth, Thomson, Ure, and other chemists which I had and Professor Smith mentioned many letters in his collection. He said that to arouse an interest in the early chemists among his students, he would often call one of them into his library and showing him an old letter of Priestley, Davy, or some other famous investigator, ask him to pass his hand over the face of the letter, and then impress upon the student the fact that his hand was now touching the very paper where Priestley's or Davy's hand once rested. Professor Smith asked if I thought there were enough members of the American Chemical Society interested in historical chemistry to establish a section. I told him I thought there were if they could ever be induced to come together and I named a number of members who were interested, but many of them like myself were connected with some other section. I expressed myself, however, as in complete sympathy with the idea of having a section of historical chemistry.

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Professor Smith related many incidents connected with the early history of Benjamin West in Philadelphia and told the story of West's romance with a Philadelphia girl, and of how old Benjamin Franklm by inviting the girl's brother, who disliked West, to a banquet on a certain night enabled West's friends to release the girl from the house where she was imprisoned by her brother and escape on board a vessel which was just sailing for England. The girl met West in Liverpool where they were married. As we returned from our seat to the Gymnasium, Professor Smith told me of his long years of service as professor and provost a t the University of Pennsylvania and of how he had finally resigned his duties in order to devote his few remaining years to historical research. Of the many happy hours which I have spent in the company of Edgar Smith this one upon the shore of Lake Michigan stands out most vividly. My journal record is only a bare outline of the incident and gives but a dim picture of the genial inspiring personality that swayed the hearts of all who belonged to the fortunate circle of Professor Smith's acquaintances.

Miss Eva Armstrong, long Dr. Smith's secretary and now Curator, Edgar Fahs Smith Memorial Collection in the History of Chemistry, University of Pennsylvania, writes: The following incident, illustrating Dr. Smith's affectionate and understanding interest in the student body of the University of Pennsylvania, was related to me recently by a gradu%e of the College and Medical School, now practicing his profession in the West. When he was a student, Dr. Smith was professor of chemistry and vice-provost of the University. He told me what I well knew to be the case, that Dr. Smith's door was always open to students. They came in, bringing their personal as well as their academic problems, waited their turn, and when they saw him were given as much time and attention as the most distinguished visitor received. This young man had availed himself of the privilege many times, and one day, toward the close of his medical course, came to Dr. Smith's office with his brother, who had that day matriculated in the university. The vice-provost greeted him cordially, and said, "So you've brought your brother to Pennsylvania." The younger lad, shy and ill at ease, stood by rather awkwardly. Dr. Smith, a pastmaster a t reading the thoughts and emotions of those about him and in placing them a t ease, turned to him kindly, and removing a tiny red and blue button which he happened to be wearing in the lapel of his coat, himself placed it on the boy's coat, saying, "Now you are a Pennsylvanian. Remember it all through your course, and upon its completion, before you receive your diploma, I want you to

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come to this office and show me that button." The boy beamed, and left the office with his head up, feeling that he was indeed a part of the institution. The older brother concluded the story by gazing around the room in which we stood-the same room to which he had brought his brother years a g e a n d exclaimed, "It is just the same, evetything is the same, except the presence of the man who was the greatest inspiration which ever came into my life." He stood in silence for a moment, and it was home in upon me that the familiar room in which we stood, with the simple and rather shabby furniture, enlivened only by books and pictures, was, t o this man, saaed ground. This student of more than twenty years ago had already told me that he had been an interne in the University Hospital when Dr. Smith had nearly lost his sight through a severe attack of shingles. "It was I," he said, and he spoke in the tone of one describing a decoration of the highest honor, "who, when the Doctor was convalescing and couldn't see very well, took him for a short walk every evening." It was a life full of such chapters as this which prompted President Thwing of Western Reserve University to state publicly, on one CATION OF THE CHEMISTRY BU~LD~NO A T THE UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND. occasion, what many of us already COLLEGE PARK, NOVEMBER. 1927 knew, that Edgar Fahs Smith was the best beloved college president of his generation.

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In an address before the American Chemical Society, Sefitember 11, 1928, a few months after Dr. Smith's death, Dr. Joel H. Hildebrand, professor of chemistry, University of Cal$ornia, said of him:

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It was inevitable that one who combined such an extraordinary knowledge of his subject, such a preeminent gift for exposition, such intense enthusiasm for chemistry, with such a commanding personality and such power to influence men should have become a great teacher. No one ever went t o sleep in his classes; he invested even the simplest lecture demonstrations with a sense of profound significance. To him the chemical elements declared the glory of God, and the test tube revealed His handiwork. Theories are made by men, and he regarded them with some distrust, but the materials with which he dealt were not man-made, and were t o be wondered at. A new revelation of their nature was a source of delight. No student of his, whether freshman or graduate, and he continued to lecture t o freshmen as long as he was able, failed t o be impressed with the interest and importance of chemistry. Another secret of his success as a teacher and as a leader lay in his phenomenal memory for names and faces, which impressed students with his personal regard for and interest in them. We used t o feel sure that he knew the names, both first and last, of every senior in the University. His kindness was illustrated by a rebuke that he once administered to me. I dropped upon the floor a piece of scrap paper. Dr. Smith, standing nearby, stooped and picked it up. The gentleness of the rebuke made it perfect. During his long teaching career, eighty-eight persons received their doctorates in chemistry from the University of Pennsylvania, all of them working under the personal supervision,of Dr. Smith. As evidence of the later careers of these men, it may be mentioned that forty-two of them are listed in "American Men of Science," and nine of these are starred. We have noted, further, that the list includes sixteen professors of chemistry, seven industrial managers, superintendents, and directors of research, and five consulting chemists. Since Dr. Smith was thejirst chairman of the Section of Chemical Education, American Chemical Society, the statement by Dr. N d E. Gordon, now EDUCATION, who succeeded editorin-chief of the JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL Dr. Smith as section chairman, i s of unusual interest. During the three years of my close association with Dr. Smith while serving as secretary of the Section of Chemical Education, of which he was chairman, there were many incidents which demonstrated his magnanimous spirit, but of all these occasions two stand out especially in my memory. He was kindly disposed toward the organization of the Section of Chemical Education and he lent i t the support of his prestige and the charm of his personality, first as its chairman and later as a faithful attendant a t its

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sessions, although it was clear that the cause that lay nearest his heart was that of his life-long avocation-the history of chemistry. Before presenting my paper a t the Milwaukee meeting, in which a JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL EDUCATION was suggested, I talked the matter over with Dr. Smith, and I remember well, as he sat there in the hotel with his head bowed, listening to my suggestions, and pausing after I had finished, he finally said, "Well, Neil, I shall say nothing against it, but you know that I have always had in mind a journal for historical chemistry. I have plans partially formulated for it and for this reason I do not wish to take EDUCATION." any active part in promoting a JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL Although a lesser man might very naturally have openly opposed, or a t least passively discouraged, a project which threatened to compete for support with, or to delay the realization of, one of his own cherished plans, Dr. Smith maintained the kindliest of attitudes throughout the early stages of the JOURNAL'S development. When asked to act as its editor, he declined on the ground already stated, but expressed the heartiest good wishes for its every success. That these were sincere was evident when the JOURNAL was launched, for a check for $10 was received from Dr. Smith with a note stating that he desired a subscription to the JOURNAL for himself and requesting that the remaining $8 be applied to subscriptions for four other teachers in the United States less fortunate than himself. His earnest desire for the establishment of a journal of history also led Dr. Smith to hesitate a t first about encouraging the inclusion of historical EDUCATI~N. In the second year of material in the JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL the JOURNAL'S existence, however, Dr. Smith, in his magnanimous way, in spite of his great desire for a journal of history, consented to contribute EDUCATION material on historical chemistry to the JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL and to encourage others to do likewise, and he suggested that Dr. Newell be named the departmental editor in that field. To my mind these experiences strikingly exemplify one of the most characteristic qualities of our beloved Dr. Smith-his unselfish disposition to promote projects that could be shown to be valuable to the teaching profession, even though those projects might in some measure rnn counter to others in which he had a keener personal interest.

Dr. Lyman C. Newell, Head of De$artment of Chemistry, Boston University, mentioned in Dr. Gordon's article, has been departmental editor i n historical chemistry for the JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL EDUCATION since its founding. H e writes: Many books in my library have personal associations. Two chief treasures came from Dr. Edgar F. Smith. The copy of "Priestley in America" has this inscription on the title page.

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To Dr. Newell-my

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brother crank-with deepest affection. Edgar F. Smith 9-8-26

This hook was given to me by Dr. Smith immediately after he had read his paper on Priestley a t the semicentennial of the American Chemical Society in Philadelphia. In fact it was the first of many copies given to chemists on that occasion. The copy of "Old Chemistries" has these words written on the fly-leaf by Dr. Smith: To my companion, Dr. L. C . Newell, in the study of the old things of the greatest of sciences-Chemistry. The Author. This particular book is one of the earliest copies presented by Dr. Smith to his friends. Possibly it is the iirst copy he gave away, because I remember he invited me to his room before a council meeting, opened his suitcase, selected this book from a large number of copies, wrote the inscription, and handed the inscribed book to me with a gracious, benevolent look which I shall always remember. The generosity and &ection shown in giving these inscribed books were typical of Dr. Smith. We often speak of Dr. Smith's "wonderful collection." But, paradoxical as it may seem a t first thought, he was not a collector; he was a lover of men and their deeds. Instinctively he gathered books and letters in which the thoughts of men in his special field-the chemistswere recorded, pictures through which their persgnal traits were revealed, medals by which their discoveries were commemorated and anniversaries recalled, and apparatus with which they performed their notable experiments. He himself was so intensely human that these relics appealed to him not as thiigs to accumulate but rather as precious personal memorabilia having permanent value, sources of reliable historical information, unfailing fountains of inspiration, fruitful fields of research, and deep wells of culture. Throughout his own life, Dr. Smith happily lived again the life of many a famous chemist. And he gave us the results of this happiness through his own books, pamphlets, and papers.

Sidelights on the life of Dr. Edgar Fahs Smith - ACS Publications

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