of last year, eighty-nine of these being graduates, and eightyone non-graduates.

In June, 1908, two hundred and forty-four students were awarded the degrees of the Institute,-three receiving that of Doctor of Philosophy, twelve that of Master of Science, and two hundred and twenty-nine that of Bachelor of Science. ALLYNE L. MERRILL, Secretary of the Faculty.

REPORT OF THE DEAN.

The work of the Dean's office has been much the same as for last year. Although it has been found that the system of advisers is not of much practical utility after the first few days of the year, when advisers are consulted chiefly in regard to questions of registration, it was decided to continue the system for at least one more year.

The "Conferences" in the English Department and in the Mathematical Department have made it possible to obtain for every first-year student a personal association with some member of the instructing staff, and these instructors are proving to be the best advisers for first-year men. This conference system has been introduced into the course in Physics during the present year, and it is expected that this will be of great benefit to second-year students.

There was some discussion among the members of the Faculty as to the advisability of placing in the hands of the Walker Club the reception which it is desirable to give to students coming to us from other colleges. I think our experience last year showed to us that the reception by the Walker Club had peculiar advantages from its informal character. The men attending it were much more likely to become acquainted with each other than if the reception had taken on the character of a formal presentation to members of the Faculty. I have found, from conversation with many of the men from other colleges

who have attended this reception given by the Walker Club, that it is regarded by them as a very pleasant event, and that to it they were principally indebted for their acquaintance among their fellow students during their first year.

The number of boarding-houses which were included in the list kept in the Dean's office the past year was something like three hundred, and through the kindness of the Secretary of the Student Young Men's Christian Association a better personal inspection of the city houses was made. In the future the room and boarding-house register will be in charge of the President's Assistant.

Great difficulty was experienced last year in securing positions for students during the summer months. This was undoubtedly due to the general inactivity in engineering work and building construction. The usual number of men, however, obtained positions at hotels, and as draftsmen, clerks, chauffeurs, etc. It is intended in the coming year to establish a regular employment office for undergraduates which will also be in the charge of the President's Assistant. It is hoped by this arrangement to actually seek out work for students by means of personal interviews with employers. The number of students applying for summer work was considerably over one hundred.

Many important changes have taken place during the past year in the management of student affairs. The Institute Committee, which has long been intended to represent the student body in treating with the Faculty and Corporation, has been made a much more representative body of men by adding to the members elected directly to the Committee from each class, the presidents of the departmental societies, such as the Civil Engineering and Mechanical Engineering Societies; and the presidents of the musical clubs, the Athletic Association, and the Young Men's Christian Association. The good effect of this change in the personnel of the Institute Committee was manifested at once. An agitation for a better social hall, which was begun by the editors of The Tech, the students' newspaper, was carried on by the Institute Committee; and a very effective

report on the need of a social and dining hall was made by the latter body to the Executive Committee of the Corporation. The result of this movement has been the erection of a new building on Trinity Place. This building for a social and dining hall was erected during the summer months, and its management was placed in the hands of a committee of which the Dean is Chairman, and upon which are the Bursar, the editor of The Technology Review, the President's Assistant, and five members from the undergraduate students elected by the Institute Committee. As soon as the opening of the term allowed students to begin their work upon this Committee, arrangements were made to transfer the real responsibility to the undergraduates; and now the Union is a building open to all Institute students, and is practically under the management of undergraduate committees with a senior as chairman of each.

In accordance with a vote of the Faculty, students in the first year were required to take a physical examination. This examination resulted in the pointing out rather forcibly of the need of systematic physical training for the great majority of our men. As it was the men who most needed physical exercise who would not seek the gymnasium while such training was optional, it was decided by the Faculty that this year some sort of physical training should be made compulsory and the Dean was authorized to arrange for the giving of systematic gymnasium training to all first year students who were not twenty-one years of age. It was also voted by the Faculty that systematic athletic work, under the direction of the athletic trainer appointed by the Advisory Council on Athletics, should be regarded as equivalent to the gymnasium work, and a Committee of the Faculty on Physical Training with the Dean, Medical Adviser and Director of the Gymnasium as ex-officio members, was appointed. Mr. Winfield C. Towne, Instructor in Physical Training, was authorized to prepare the gymnasium for class work, and to divide the first-year class into eight sections, each section to take one hour of work on two days of each week; beginning November 9. The Dean was also authorized to

secure lecturers to speak to the first-year students on the subject of Physical Training, and Professor Sedgwick and Dr. Sargent delivered such lectures, in addition to those usually given by Dr. White.

STATISTICS OF ILLNESS FOR THE SCHOOL YEAR 1907-08. Fourth-year Class.

There were three hundred and twenty-six students in the fourth-year class. Of these, thirty were reported ill during the school year 1907-1908. Classified by illnesses, there were the following cases: appendicitis, 2; cold, 1; fever, 1; injury from fall, 1; internal strain, 1; malaria, 1; measles, 1; mumps, 5; ptomaine poisoning, 1; scarlet fever, 2; tonsillitis, 2; typhoid fever, 1; not specified, 11.

Third-year Class.

In this class there were three hundred and sixty-six students, of whom forty-nine were reported ill during the year. The following cases were reported: appendicitis, 2; cold, 4; diarrhoea, 1; trouble with eyes, 2; grippe, 11; injury to ear, 1; jaundice, 1; measles, 3; mumps, 3; scarlet fever, 2; sore foot, 1; sprained ankle, 1; surgical operation, 1; unspecified, 16. There was one death in this class, that of Mr. H. F. Foster, who died on May 20, 1908, of appendicitis.

Second-year Class.

This class numbered three hundred and seventy-one students, of whom fifty-nine were reported ill during the year. There were the following cases: abscess, 1; bronchitis, 2; cold, 2; concussion of the brain, 1; trouble with eyes, 2; grippe, 10; injury to leg, 1; jaundice, 3; measles, 8; mumps, 2; pleurisy, 1; scarlet fever, 1; surgical operation, 1; tonsillitis, 2; typhoid fever, 1; not specified, 20. The case of typhoid fever was that of Mr. Edward I. Cahill, and resulted in his death on April 23, 1908.

First-year Class.

The first-year class numbered three hundred and twenty-seven students. Of this number fifty-four were reported ill during the year. Classified by illnesses, there were the following cases: bilious attack, 1; broken cheek bone, 1; carbuncle, 1; cold, 3; grippe, 10; injury to knee, 1; jaundice, 1; measles, 3; mumps, 3; pulmonary tuberculosis, 1; surgical operation, 1; tonsillitis, 2; unspecified, 26. There were two deaths in this class; that of Mr. Walter L. Doane, who died of jaundice on April 25, 1908; and

that of Mr. Jesse Mathewson, who died of pulmonary tuberculosis on September 5, 1908.

REPORT OF THE MEDICAL ADVISER.

The medical work at the Institute has been carried on along the same lines as in previous years. Consultation hours were held on two afternoons a week throughout the year, and as usual this time was fully occupied by the students. On the majority of these days the time of consultation had to be extended to accommodate all those who came for advice. The average extra time needed was thirty-one minutes more than the appointed hour.

The following table gives the number of office visits made and the number of students seen. A few figures of previous years are given for comparison:

The work of the medical office remains fairly constant from year to year and under the present arrangement does not seem likely to increase. The large majority of men found it necessary to make only a single visit; only four men made more than five visits; and seven was the greatest number made by any one