JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY
OF SCIENCES

VOLUME VII, 1917

BOARD OF EDITORS
X. Ernest Dorsey Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock

BUREAU OP STANDARDS GEOLOGICAL 8UBVBY BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY

PUBLISHED SEMI-MONTHLY
EXCEPT IN JULY, AUGUST, AND SEPTEMBER. WHEN MONTHLY

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JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VII JANUARY 4, 1917 No. 1

PHYSICS. — Luminescence measurements.1 N. E. Dorsey, Bu-
reau of Standards.

Although the excitation of phosphorescence by the radia-
tions from radioactive substances was early observed it appears
that no quantitative measurements of the luminosity thus pro-
duced were published until 1910. In that year Marsden2 pub-
lished a series of observations which showed that the lumines-
cence of certain materials (zinc sulphide, willemite, and barium
platinocyanide) hermetically sealed in tubes containing radium
emanation decreased much more rapidly than the emanation
decayed, and that the rate of decrease increased with the amount
of emanation initially present. He reported only relative values.
At the same time Rutherford3 advanced a theory to account
for these phenomena, and showed that it agrees with Mars-
den's observations, within the limits of experimental error.

No later measurements of such luminosities have apparently
been published, although the subject is one of considerable
scientific interest. Latterly the subject has become of much
practical importance, owing to an increasing use of self-lumi-
nous preparations containing radioactive excitants. Besides
being used for the illumination of watch dials, push buttons,
etc., these preparations have a wide field of usefulness in war
appliances.

In the study and testing of these preparations we are con-
fronted with the problem of measuring surface luminosities of

1 A contribution from the Bureau of Standards.

2 Proc. Roy. Soc, 83: 548-561. 1910.

3 Proc. Roy. Soc, 83: 5G1-572. 1910.

1

2 dorsey: luminescence measurements

small areas of various sizes and shapes. Also, it is desirable
that the apparatus employed be simple in construction and use,
and that the results obtained be readily interpretable in terms
of photometric standards.

As the luminosities frequently are low, photometers of the
usual types would be unsuited to the work even if their use
did not necessitate a determination of the effective size of the
preparation under study. With preparations of sufficient bril-
liance the spectrophotometer will give the most detailed infor-
mation; but this instrument is not suitable for the measurement
of the total luminosity or for the comparison of such lumi-
nosities when they differ in color.

Other apparatus or methods that have come to our attention —
such as those employed by Wood,4 Nichols and Merritt,6 Zeller,6
and Andrews7 — all appear to be in some measure ill-adapted to
the present problem. The apparatus described by Andrews is
the simplest, but we believe that the interpretation of its read-
ings in terms of photometric standards will be difficult.

In preparation for the study of self-luminous materials at the
Bureau of Standards, a photometer has been devised which is
exceedingly simple in construction and use, and appears to be
well suited to much of this work. By the use of standardized
lamps and screens the results obtained by its use can be inter-
preted readily in terms of photometric standards.

In its simplest form, this photometer consists of a box 2 or

3 meters long and 25 or 30 cm. square. A light carriage carry-
ing a 1.5 or 2-candle electric lamp runs on ways extending the
entire length of the box, the filament being in the center of
the section of the box. By means of two cords attached to the
carriage, one passing over a pulley at the rear end of the box,
the distance of the carriage from the end of the box can be ad-
justed as desired. The position of the lamp is determined by a
graduated steel tape having one end attached to the carriage.

* Wood, R. W., Phil. Mag. (6) 21: 209-313. 1911.

5 Nichols, E. L., and Merritt. E., Phys. Rev. 23:37-54. 1906; 32:38-53.
1911.

6 Zeller, C. A., Phys. Rev. 31: 367-375. 1910.

7 Andrews, W. S., Gen. Elec. Rev., 19:892-893. 1916.

dorsey: luminescence measurements 3

Both ends of the box are closed, but in the front end is set a
milk-glass window 2 or 3 cm. square, backed by a color filter
so chosen as to make the transmitted light match in color the
luminescent light that is to be measured. In the bottom of the
front end of the box there are suitable openings through which
pass the cords for operating the carriage, the steel tape, and the
leads carrying the current to the lamp. The entire interior of
the box, including the ways and the lamp carriage, is painted a
dead black, and movable black diaphragms and screens must be
so placed as to screen the milk-glass window from all light
scattered from the walls of the box. All joints must be light
tight, and the openings through which the cords, etc., pass must
be suitably screened or provided with black cloth hoods to pre-
vent the passage of light. It is desirable that the top of the
box be hinged, so as to facilitate the adjustment of the dia-
phragms and lamp.

The photometer is used in a darkened room. As the lumi-
nosities with which we are concerned are often quite faint, any
stray light, such as may leak under a door, becomes very annoy-
ing and should be carefully excluded. In the lamp circuit are
placed a suitable ammeter and adjusting rheostats. Unless
there is a second observer whose sole duty it is to keep the
current at the proper value, the current should be supplied by a
storage battery being used at the time by no one else.

In order to make a measurement, the luminous material, ap-
plied to a card or enclosed in a thin walled glass tube8 of small
diameter, may be placed directly against the milk-glass screen
and the position of the lamp is then adjusted by the cords until
the luminosity of the milk-glass appears to be the same as that
of the material. The observer's line of sight should be perpen-
dicular to the milk-glass. If the color match is good the tube
will almost disappear when the adjustment is correct. The
luminosity of the material is inversely proportional to the

1 The tube should be painted black over two-thirds of its circumference, so as
to screen the milk-glass from the light given out by the material. The unpainted
side is turned toward the observer and the tube is rotated so as to reduce
the visible dark line 'on one side to the smallest amount consistent with a screening
of the milk-glass.

4 dorsey: luminescence measurements

square of the distance of the lamp from the milk-glass screen,
the constant of proportionality being determined from a care-
ful photometric standardization of the lamp and of the screen
and color filter as used. For example, the photometer screen
and a certain specimen were found to be of equal brightness
when the lamp was 70.5 cm. from the screen. The lamp was a
tungsten lamp burning at the color of a 4 wpc carbon lamp and
had a candlepower of 1.38 in the direction of the length of the
photometer. For the light from such a source the surface
brightness of the screen used had been found to be 3.96 micro-
lamberts per meter-candle illumination from the rear. Conse-
quently, this specimen had a surface brightness of 3.96 X 1.38
-f- (0.705)2 = 11.0 microlamberts. A micro lambert is the
brightness of a perfectly diffusing and completely reflecting
white surface when illuminated by a source of unit candlepower
placed at a distance of 10 meters.

When greater precision is desired, the top of the milk-glass
window should lie in the central section of the end of the photom-
eter and be so placed that the vessel containing the material
under study can be placed immediately above it and so thatthe
luminescent surface lies in the plane of the window. For the
highest precision it is desirable that the material be contained
in a thin vertical vessel with sides of thin plane glass and bot-
tom of thin material so that the two luminous fields can be
brought as nearly as possible into contact, so as to secure a mini-
mum visibility for the line of separation.

In addition to the well known errors of ordinary photometry,
others of prime importance have to be guarded against. For
low luminosities it is necessary that the eye of the observer be
in a highly sensitive state; this condition is not attained until
after he has been in total darkness for at least 15 or 20 min-
utes. In order to retain this sensitive state the illumination
used for reading the scale, recording the observations, or other
purposes must be as faint as is consistent with the work, and
must be continued only as long as is absolutely necessary.
Furthermore, this light must be of such a nature that it will
not affect the luminosity of the material under study. These

DORSET: LUMINESCENCE MEASUREMENTS 5

conditions may be practically attained by the use of a small
pocket flashlight suitably screened and provided with a ruby
bulb.

In order that the luminosity of the preparation shall be due
solely to the radioactive excitant, it is necessary that the prepa-
ration shall have been excluded from all light except its own
for at least several hours before the measurement is made.
During the measurements the milk-glass -window must in every
case be screened from all light coming from the preparation;
otherwise a false setting will be obtained. The error due to
this cause may easily amount to over 10 per cent in the lumi-
nosity.

Another error that must be carefully guarded against at these
luminosities is that due to the "Purkinje effect." By this is
meant the fact that two adjoining luminous surfaces of differ-
ent colors that appear to be of equal brightness when viewed
from a certain distance will not appear to be of equal brightness
when viewed from a different distance. This means that when
we are dealing with different colors our judgment of equality of
brightness is a function of the intensity of the illumination.
This effect becomes very pronounced at low intensities. A
further difficulty is introduced by the fact that under such
conditions the judgment of equality of brightness depends upon
the peculiarities of the eye of the observer; different observers
judge differently. On account of both of these reasons it is
important that the illuminated milk-glass be a very close color
match to the material being measured. This is true even when
the luminosity is so low that it produces practically no color
sensation, properly so called. Under such conditions the color
match must be determined by spectroscopic examination; indeed
this is the best procedure in all cases.

By the addition of a phosphoroscope and a constant source
of illumination this photometer can be readily adapted to the
study of the intensity of the luminescence excited by light,
especially when the spectrum of the luminescence is a single
broad band. If the luminiscence consists of a number of nar-
row bands scattered throughout the visible spectrum an exact

6 LARSEN AND STEIGER: MINERALOGIC NOTES

color match will in general be impossible, and difficulty may
then arise from the Purkinje effect.

MINERALOGY. — Miner alogic notes.1 Esper S. Larsen and
George Steiger, Geological Survey.

I. APHROSIDERITE FROM BRITISH COLUMBIA

Introduction. A highly fossiliferous Cambrian shale or slate
from the Burgess shale near Field, B. C., examined by the
authors for Dr. Charles D. Walcott, carries numerous veinlets
of pale green chlorite with some associated pyrite and calcite.
A study of this chlorite shows that it is related to aphrosiderite.
The authors are indebted to Dr. Walcott for the material here
described.

The slate2 is very fine-textured, so fine that much of the
materia] shows aggregate polarization. It is made up largely
of muscovite with some kaolinite, a very little quartz, apatite,
and pyrite. Numerous dark brown to black streaks arranged
parallel to the cleavage represent carbonaceous matter. An
analysis of the slate, made by George Steiger, is given in column
1, table 1. It closely resembles the analysis of sericite from
Diirrberg shown in column 2. The chlorite occurs in a system
of rudely parallel veinlets less than a millimeter across, which
are normal to the slaty cleavage; the rock tends to break through
the centers of these veinlets, leaving surfaces lined with small
grains of calcite and blotches of cupriferous pyrite.

Physical properties. The chlorite is light-green in color, it
has a hardness of about 1 or 2, and the powder analyzed had a
specific gravity, as determined by the picnometer method, of 2.959,
which was probably not changed by the admixed muscovite by
more than ±0.01. It fuses with difficulty.

In thin section the chlorite makes up most of the veinlets, but
there is more or less calcite in irregular crystals in the center of
the veins and some pyrite. It is nearly colorless in thin section

1 Published with the permission of the Director of the U. S. Geological Survey.

2 Walcott, C. D., Cambrian Geology and Paleontology — II, Smithsonian Misc.
Coll. 57: 149-51. 1914.

LARSEN AND STEIGERI MINERALOGIC NOTES 7

and is so faintly birefracting that it is easily mistaken for an
isotropic mineral. It is probably very finely crystalline. Its
index of refraction as measured by the immersion method is
1.625 ± 0.003. No further optical data could be determined.
No cleavage was observed. Aphrosiderite from Weilburg,
Prussia,3 is optically positive, and has the following indices of
refraction and pleochroism:

a and /3 = 1 . 612 ± 0. 003; pale olive-green.
y = 1.616 ± 0.003; colorless.

Chemical analysis. The aphrosiderite gelatinizes with hydro-
chloric acid. Material for an analysis was carefully selected,
but the best sample contained a good deal of the mica slate
and a little pyrite and calcite. The calcite was removed by
dilute acetic acid and the analysis was then made on that
portion of the remaining sample which was soluble in HC1.
The results of the analysis by George Steiger are given in column
3 of table 1. Column 3a gives the results for the acid soluble
portion computed to 100 per cent. Column 3b gives the molec-
ular ratios and columns 4 and 5 give the analyses of related
chlorites for comparison. The analysis shows that the chlorite
is near aphrosiderite and that it has the empirical formula
64(Fe,Mg)O.24Al2O3.42SiO2.60H2O, which is near 5(Fe,Mg)0.
2Al2O3.4SiO2.5H2O and between the formulas assigned to aphro-
siderite and delessite.

II. THURINGITE FROM COLORADO

A chlorite, differing from that described above as aphrosiderite
chiefly in the higher content of both ferrous and ferric iron and
in the presence of considerable manganous oxide, occurs in large
amount as a primary mineral in several of the veins near Creede,
Colorado. The veins are of considerable size and occupy great
fault fissures. The filling of the vein on which are the Ridge
and Solomon mines in East Willow Creek consists largely of
this chlorite with a little quartz, fluorite, and the ore minerals,
galena and sphalerite. The great Amethyst vein is made up

3 Unpublished manuscript by Esper S. Larsen.

8

LARSEN AND STEIGER: MINERALOGIC NOTES

largely of amethystine quartz containing galena, sphalerite,
and some streaks and bodies of the chlorite; it carries much
silver and some gold. The veins are in great flows of rhyolite,

TABLE 1

Analyses op Slate

AND CHLORITES

1

2

3

3a

3b

4

5

Si02

54.49
25.60
0.89
2.00
1.18
1.90
0.28
6.67
0.33
3.91
0.72

None
1.54
Not det.
0.08

None
0.24

None

None

None
tr.

55.80

27.72

3.07

0.53
0.14
1.51
5.62

4.03

22.68
21.58

1.41
24.40

9.81

tr.

0.24

0.88

1 9.72
0.10

8.57

24.97
23.76

1.55
26.86
10.81

tr.

0.26

0.97

10.71
0.11

100.00

416

233

10

373

269

4
10

595

26.45
21.25

44.24
1.06

7.74

25.72

AI2O3

20.69

Fe203

4.01

FeO

27.79

MgO

11.70

CaO

Na20

K20

H20-

H20+

10.05

Ti02

Zr02

C02

C

P206

S03

s

MnO

BaO

SrO

CuO

Insoluble

99.83
0.09

98.42

99.39

100.74

99.96

99.74

1. Middle Cambrian slate from British Columbia.

2. Sericite from Diirrberg. Quoted by Dana, System of Mineralogy, 6th
edition, p. 618, analysis 41.

3. Analysis of aphrosiderite from near Field, B. C. George Steiger, analyst.
3a. Analysis of aphrosiderite computed free from gangue. Sp. Gr. = 2.96.
3b. Molecular ratios of 3a.

4. Analysis of aphrosiderite from Weilburg. Sp. Gr. = 2.8. Quoted by Dana,
System of Mineralogy, 6th edition, p. 660, analysis 1.

5. Analysis of aphrosiderite from Bonscheerer. Sp. Gr. = 2.991. Quoted
by Dana, System of Mineralogy, 6th edition, p. 660, analysis 3.

LARSEN AND STEIGER: MINERALOGIC NOTES 9

which are very low in magnesia and iron, and the chlorite and
other minerals are largely vein fillings rather than replacements.

The chlorite is green in color and is soft and friable. It is
fibrous to platy and is finely crystalline.

An optical study of the chlorite from various parts of the
Creede district shows that it varies somewhat in its optical
properties and no doubt also in chemical composition. The
material analyzed from the Last Chance mine on the Amethyst
vein is in very minute interwoven fibers of positive elongation
and optically negative character. The axial angle is moderate.
The mineral is pleochroic: dark green parallel to the fibers
(/3 and 7) and nearly colorless normal thereto (a). The mean
index of refraction is about 1.637 =*= 0.005 and the birefrin-
gence is about 0.01. The fibers are too small for a satisfactory
optical study. A specimen of the mineral from the Park Regent
mine, also on the Amethyst vein, showed essentially the same
optical properties, but the indices of refraction are slightly
higher (n = 1.643). A specimen from the Amethyst mine
gave 0 = 1.638 =*= 0.003.

A specimen from the Ridge mine is considerably paler in color,
is less strongly pleochroic, is a little more coarsely crystalline,
and has lower indices of refraction, but is otherwise similar.
It is optically negative and has a moderate axial angle. X is
normal to the fibers and plates and is very pale green; Z and Y
are a somewhat darker olive-green. The refractive indices are:
a = 1.595 ± 0.005, 7 = 1.605 ± 0.005. Another specimen from
the Ridge mine consists of very minute fibers and has a mean
index of refraction of about 1.585 ± 0.005. A specimen from
the Solomon mine is similar but its mean index of refraction is
1.617 ± 0.005.

These data indicate a moderate range in the composition of
the chlorite. The mineral from the Ridge-Solomon vein with
its lower index of refraction is probably higher in A1203 and
lower in Fe203 and higher in MgOand lower in FeO. It ap-
proaches aphrosiderite or delessite in composition. The analysis
of the gouge from the Solomon mine (analysis 4, table 2), which
was made up largely of chlorite but contained some quartz and

10

LARSEN AND STEIGER! MINERALOGIC NOTES

chalky decomposed rhyolite with here and there a flake of seri-
cite, confirms this conclusion.

The thuringite from the Amethyst vein and the chlorite from
the Ridge-Solomon vein are both fusible at about 4 and become
magnetic on ignition. The thuringite decomposes in acid with
imperfect gelatinization.

A chemical analysis of thuringite from the Last Chance mine
on the Amethyst vein, a few miles above Creede, is given in
column 1 of table 2. The material analyzed contained a little
admixed quartz. Other analyses of thuringite are given in
columns 2 and 3 lor comparison, and in column 4 is given the
analysis of the gouge from the Solomon mine, which, as already

TABLE 2
Analyses of Thuringite and Gouge

1

2

3

4

Si02 ;

24.34
16.46
12.04
28.89

5.41
None

0.37

tr.

0.35

9.19

tr.

tr.

tr.

tr.

2.75

23.58
16.85
14.33
33.20
1.52

0.46
j 10.45

0.09

23.70
16.54
12.13
33.14

1.85

| 0.32
> 10.90

1.16

55.25

A1203

12.10

Fe203.

1.28

FeO

10.71

MgO

9.30

CaO

0.34

Na20

0.28

K20

0.39

H20- .

1.49

H20+

6.70

Ti02

0.15

C02

0.11

P206

tr.

S

0.11

MnO

1.43

Total

99.80

100.48

99.74

99.64

1. Thuringite from the Last Chance mine near Creede, Colorado. J. G. Fair-
child, analyst.

2. Thuringite, Harpers Ferry. J. L. Smith, analyst. From Dana's System
of Mineralogy, 6th edition, p. 657, analysis 5.

3. Thuringite, Arkansas. J. L. Smith, analyst. From Dana's System of
Mineralogy, 6th edition, p. 657, analysis 7.

4. Gouge made up largely of chlorite, from the Solomon mine near Creede,
Colorado. J. G. Fairchild, analyst.

LARSEN AND STEIGER: MINERALOGIC NOTES 11

mentioned, is made up largely of the chlorite of that vein but
contains some quartz, some chalky decomposed rhyolite, and a
few flakes of sericite.

The three analyses of thuringite are very much alike, but the
Creede mineral is lower in ferrous oxide and correspondingly
higher in magnesia and manganous oxide; its somewhat higher
content of silica may be due to admixed quartz.

III. GRIFFITHITE, A NEW MEMBER OF THE CHLORITE GROUP

Introduction. The authors have hesitated before proposing
a new name for a member of the chlorite group, already over-
burdened with names that have little significance and less place
in a systematic scheme of classification. However, a chloritic
mineral filling amygdaloidal cavities in a basalt collected by
Mr. R. T. Hill from Cahuenga Pass, Griffith Park, Los Angeles,
California, differs so greatly, both optically and chemically,
from any of the chlorites previously described as to require a
new name, and the name griffithite, from the locality, is pro-
posed for the mineral. The amygdules of the basalt are up to
an inch in largest dimension and comprise a considerable part
of the rock; they are pure griffithite.

Physical properties. The griffithite is dark-green in color,
it has a hardness of about 1, is sectile, and has a specific gravity,
as measured by the picnometer method, of 2.309. It is in basal
plates and shreds, and some of the plates are a millimeter across.
It has the usual cleavage of the chlorites. It fuses at about 4
with intumescence to a black magnetic slag.

Optical properties. It is optically negative and 2V varies from
0° to 40°; X is normal to the cleavage. It has a strong bire-
fringence and a rather strong pleochroism. The indices of
refraction differ in different grains as much as 0.01; they and
the pleochroism are:

a = 1.485 ± 0.01; pale yellowish,
0 = 1.569 ± 0.005; olive-green,
y = 1.572 ± 0.005; brownish green.

12

LARSEN AND STEIGER: MINERALOGIC NOTES

Chemical properties. Griffithite gelatinizes with HC1. The
material selected for the analyses showed under the microscope
almost no impurities; its optical properties varied as indicated
in the preceding description. The analysis by George Steiger
is given in column 1 of table 3; the molecular ratios are given in
column 2.

TABLE 3.
Analysis and Molecular Ratios of Griffithite

1

2

Si02

39.64
9.05
7.32
7.83

15.80
2.93
0.71

None

12.31
4.90

None

657

89)

46/
109]
392 \

52 J

11

684

272

= 5 X 131

A1203

Fe.03

= 1 X 135

FeO

MeO '

= 4 X 138

CaO

Na20

K20

H20-

= 5 X 137

H20+

= 2 X 136

Ti02

100.49

The ratios lead to the formula 4(Mg,Fe,Ca)0.(Al,Fe)203.
5Si02.7H20 for griffithite. Prof. F. W. Clarke has kindly pro-
posed the formula H4 R"4 R'"* Si50i9 + 5H20, or

////

R

R"';

,Si04 = R" H
-Si04 = R" H
>Si03 + 5H20

-Si04 = R" H
Si04 = R" H

ABSTRACTS

Authors of scientific papers are requested to see that abstracts, preferably
prepared and signed by themselves, are forwarded promptly to the editors.
Each of the scientific bureaus in Washington has a representative authorized to
forward such material to this journal and abstracts of official publications should
be transmitted through the representative of the bureau in which they originate.
The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those appearing in
this issue.

GEOPHYSICS. — Mechanics of the Panama Canal slides. G. F.

Becker. U. S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 98-N. Pp.

253-261, with 3 figures. 1916.
After describing the essential features of the breaks on the Culebra
Cut the author points out that there is a limit to the depth of a vertical
cut in an homogeneous isotropic mass, the upper surface of which is
plane. This limit is that at which the pressure is sufficient to produce
simple shear in the mass, and in a concluding note reasons are given for

believing that 6 \ 2 multiplied by the resistance to such shear is about
equal to the ultimate strength under linear compression. The depth
at which one-sided relief of pressure will produce simple shear is called

yv

It is shown that in such a bank the profile of a surface along which
the mass is strained to the elastic limit must be a form of the elastic
curve, the directrix of which lies at a depth y±.

The lowest or basal slide curve is one which intersects the horizontal
bank at right angles. Examples are worked out for this and other
cases.

A complete analogy exists between the form of these curves and those
which the surface of water assumes when it rises by capillarity between
vertical, parallel glass plates.

In view of these results the author discusses to some extent the for-
mation of ruptures, the bulging of the canal bottom, and the effect
upon pressure of the form of the banks. The paper includes a note
on finite strains. G. F. B.

PHYSICS. — The freezing point of mercury. R. M. Wilhelm. Bureau
of Standards Scientific Paper No. 294. Pp. 6. 1916.
The temperature at which mercury freezes is of importance in ther-
mometry. It marks the lower limit to which mercurial thermometers
may be used, and its location, at about — 39°C, makes it of value as a

13

14 abstracts: geology

fixed point of the temperature scale below 0°C. This paper gives the
result obtained and describes in detail the method used at the Bureau
of Standards in making a redetermination of this constant. The
temperature measurements were made by means of platinum resist-
ance thermometers whose constants had been previously determined
by calibration at 0°, 100°, and 444. 6°C. (the boiling point of sulphur).
All the evidence at present available indicates that, down to — 40°C,
the platinum resistance thermometer, calibrated as above, defines
temperatures that are in agreement with those given by the standard
gas thermometer. The value, —38.87°, obtained at the Bureau is in
very good agreement with that found by Henning in 1913 at the
Reichsanstalt, Germany. He also used platinum resistance ther-
mometers and obtained -38.89°C. C. W. W.

MAGNETISM. — The determination of the degree of uniformity of bars
for magnetic standards. Raymond L. Sanford. Bureau of Stand-
ards Scientific Paper No. 295. Pp. 14. 1916.
Magnetic standard bars are used for the calibration of permeameters
and for the comparison of methods of magnetic testing. One requisite
of such a bar is that it shall be magnetically uniform along its length.
If this condition is not fulfilled, errors may arise which can not be
calculated or eliminated from the measurements, and which may be of
considerable magnitude. In this paper it is shown how the degree of
magnetic uniformity of a bar may be determined from observations of
the distribution of magnetic leakage along the length of the bar when
it is magnetized between the poles of a suitable electromagnet. The
degree of uniformity is indicated by the values of the rate of change of
leakage along the length of the bar. Deviations of these values from
a constant indicate the presence of non-uniformities. An increase in
the value indicates a magnetically hard spot while a decrease indicates
a soft spot. The method may also be applied to the examination of
magnetic materials for mechanical inhomogeneities and for the detec-
tion of flaws. R. L. S.

GEOLOGY. — Lode mining in the Quartzburg and Grimes Pass porphyry
belt, Boise Basin, Idaho. E. L. Jones, Jr. U. S. Geological
Survey Bulletin 640-E. Pp. 83-111, with 1 map. 1916.
The Boise Basin lies near the western edge of the irregular moun-
tainous area between the Salmon and Snake rivers in Idaho. The
basin structure is ascribed to the sinking of a fault block approxi-

abstracts: engineering 15

mately 15 miles long and 12 miles wide. The Basin is underlain domi-
nantly by the granite of the great Idaho batholith, which is believed
to be of late Cretaceous or early Tertiary age. During Tertiary time
most of the Basin was occupied by a lake, and deposits of clay, sand,
and gravel accumulated. Lava flows were erupted during and after
the deposition of the sediments.

Since the discovery of gold in 1862, Boise Basin has produced over
$53,000,000 in precious metals. Of this amount the greater part was
obtained from placers, but since the depletion of the gravels the lode
deposits have been receiving more attention. The placer gold was
derived from the disintegration of veins that occur in a belt of porphyr-
itic dike rocks and in zones of shearing in the granite. The lodes
now being worked are chiefly valuable for their gold and silver content,
but with improved milling methods lead, copper, and zinc will probably
add materially to the output. Monazite occurs abundantly in the
placers but is not utilized. An unidentified radium-bearing mineral
was found in placer gravels at one locality. E. L. J., Jr.

GEOLOGY. — Tin ore in northern Lander County, Nevada. Adolph
Knopf. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin 640-G. Pp. 125-138.
1916.
Tin ore has recently been found in northern Lander County, Ne-
vada. The stanniferous mineral is exclusively wood tin, a form of
stannic oxide concentrically banded like exogenous wood. It occurs
in narrow veinlets traversing a series of rhyolite flows of middle Ter-
tiary age; in places the veinlets are sufficiently closely spaced to form
low grade lodes, but because of the small amount of development
work so far done not much is known of the persistence and tenor of
these lodes. The minerals associated with the wood tin are specular
hematite, lussatite (a fibrous form of silica resembling chalcedony),
chalcedony, tridymite, and opal. The deposits resemble closely those
of the Mexican states of Durango, Zacatecas, and Guanajuato, but the
association of wood tin with abundant tridymite and lussatite appears
to be distinctive of the Nevada occurrence. A. K.

ENGINEERING.— Colorado River and its utilization. E. C. LaRtje.

U. S. Geological Survey Water Supply Paper 395. Pp. 231, with

25 plates and 5 figures. 1916.
The region traversed by the Colorado and its tributaries is one of
great interest in every respect. Various government bureaus have
investigated certain questions pertaining to the water resources of

16 abstracts: technology

the basin, much exploratory work has been done under private aus-
pices, irrigation and power projects have been examined, railroad
routes have been surveyed, and the Grand Canyon has been traversed
by several persons and parties since Major Powell made the pioneer
trips in 1869 and 1872.

The information relating to the water resources that has been col-
lected by many agencies has never been brought together so that a
broad view of the possible utilization of the whole river could be ob-
tained. The present report attempts the pioneer work of assembling
the principal facts relating to the subject, and especially of studying
the possibility of controlling the flow of the whole river by means of
storage reservoirs, in order to avoid further danger of overflow to the
Salton Sink and to render available for profitable use the enormous
quantity of water that now flows unused and largely unusable to the
Gulf of California in the form of floods. B. D. W.

TECHNOLOGY. — Durability of stucco and plaster construction. R. J.
Wig, J. C. Pearson, and W. E. Emley. Bureau of Standards
Technologic Paper No. 70. Pp. 72. 1916.

In 1915 the Bureau of Standards in cooperation with a committee
which includes representatives from the Supervising Architect's Office
of the Treasury Department, the American Concrete Institute, and
three contracting plasterers of wide experience and from as many
large cities, as well as representatives from the industries, undertook a
comprehensive investigation of stucco construction. On the Bureau's
grounds was erected a test structure containing 56 experimental stucco
panels, each approximately 15 feet long and 10 feet high. These
panels, which were completed in November, 1915, represent practi-
cally all of the common types of stucco construction, a variety of mix-
tures being used on metal lath, wood lath, hollow tile, brick, concrete
block, plaster board, gypsum block, and concrete bases.

In April, 1916, a careful inspection of the condition of the panels
was made, and the present progress report and full description of the
test structure was prepared. Only 2 of the 56 panels were entirely
free from cracks six months after the panels were erected, and a num-
ber of them were in very poor condition. On the other hand, about
40 per cent of the panels were rated as satisfactory. It should be
mentioned that the smooth type of finish employed is well adapted
to the bringing out of the small defects, such as cracks, blotches, uneven
texture, etc. Further experimental work is needed before general con-
clusions can be drawn. R. J. W.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

THE PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 777th meeting was held on October 28, 1916, 'at the Cosmos
Club. President Briggs in the chair; 50 persons present. The min-
utes of the 776th meeting were read in abstract and approved. The
Chair informed the meeting of the death on the morning of October
28, 1916, of Mr. Cleveland Abbe, a charter member of the Society.

Mr. A. H. Taylor presented an illustrated paper embodying the
results of an investigation in collaboration with Messrs. E. C. Crit-
tenden and F. K. Richtmyer on A normal eye for the photometry of
lights of different color. Individuals in general differ in their judgment
of the relative brightness of lights which differ in color. Consequently,
in order to assign definite values to such lights it is necessary to es-
tablish some common basis of comparison and to provide means for
reducing to this common basis the results obtained by different- ob-
servers. For measurements of incandescent lamps it has been pro-
posed to test observers by having them determine the relative trans-
missions of a reddish-yellow (potassium bichromate) solution and a
blue-green (copper sulphate) solution. This paper is a report of a
trial of this method. For large color differences a flicker photometer
must be used, and the size and brightness of the photometric field
must be specified, to make the results definite. The conclusion
reached was that the method proposed does give a practical means of
establishing a normal eye and of reducing to the normal value the
results obtained by any group of observers.

The paper was discussed by Mr. Middlekauff, who referred to
the intercomparisons at various laboratories of a series of glasses for
the purpose of establishing a basis for the calibration of other color
screens. The use of the flicker photometer necessitates no change in the
photometric standards already adopted by the Bureau of Standards.

Mr. W. W. Coblentz then spoke on The relative sensibility of the
average eye to lights of different colors, giving the results of an investi-
gation by himself and Mr. W. B. Emerson. The paper was illustrated
by lantern slides. In the present investigation the methods were
practically the same as those used by previous experimenters. In the
visual measurements, the spectral light was compared with a stand-
ard white light by means of a flicker photometer, also by an equality-
of-brightness photometer. The source of white light was a standard-

17

18 proceedings: philosophical society

ized vacuum tungsten lamp. A cylindrical acetylene flame was used
as a source of spectral light. The distribution of energy in the spec-
trum of the acetylene flame was determined with great care, in view
of the fact that the disagreements in previous work seemed to be due,
in part, to uncertainties in radiometrically evaluating the light stimu-
lus. Sensibility curves were obtained for 130 persons, of which num-
ber 5 were color-blind. The visibility curve of the average normal
eye, using 125 observers, was found to be wider than previously ob-
served. These data, obtained by the use of a flicker photometer, were
given. Only a few observers were able to make accurate settings with
the equality-of-brightness photometer.

As was to be expected, the visibility curves of no two persons appear
to be exactly alike. When a visibility curve does not coincide with
the average there is usually a marked departure from the average visi-
bility in a given spectral region. This gives rise to (1) wide visibility
curves with the maximum shifted toward the red, i.e., "red sensitive,"
(2) narrow curves with a sharp maximum in the green, and (3) curves
with the maximum shifted toward the violet. The data available
indicate that among a group of persons having normal color vision
about 20 per cent are (1) red sensitive, (2) blue sensitive, or (3)
average, while in 10 per cent of the cases examined the color sensi-
bility falls below the average (1) in the red or (2) in the blue or (3) falls
below the average in both the red and the blue, thus giving rise to an
apparently high sensitivity in the green. One person in 20 has a very
wide visibility curve, while 4 per cent are color-blind, i.e., they confuse
colors. The point of maximum sensibility was found to be very dif-
ferent for different observers; for the 125 persons the mean maximum
is at \m = 0.5576 /x. The curve of average visibility, when corrected
for the selective transmission of the ocular media, including the yellow
spot, is very symmetrical.

An empirical equation of the visibility curve determined was given.
Using this visibility equation and Planck's equation of black-body ra-
diations, calculations were given of the luminous energy emitted by a
black body at various temperatures; also the luminous efficiency, the
Crova wave-length, and the mechanical equivalent of light. Using
the recent measurements of the brightness of a black body, as deter-
mined by Hyde, Cady, and Forsythe, and the most probable values
of the radiation constants (C2 = 14,350, a = 5.7) the value is 1 lumen
= 0.00161 watt of luminous flux; or 1 watt (of radiation of maximum
visibility) = 621 lumens = 49.5 candles. The direct determination of
613.5 lumens of green mercury radiation, X = 0.5461 /x, (made by
Ives, Coblentz, and Kingsbury, using 61 observers) when corrected
for visibility V (at X = 0.5461 M) = 0.985 Vm gives 622.8 lumens per
watt, in good agreement with the present determination.

Discussion. Mr. Emerson emphasized the importance of taking
the last observations; if only the first 40 had been used the curves would
have been shifted. Mr. White asked whether the two eyes of an ob-

proceedings: philosophical society 19

server could always be considered alike. Mr. Coblentz stated there
was no great reason for testing the possible difference between the
eyes of the observer. Mr. Swann referred to the limit of sensitivity
of the human eye. Mr. Wenner noted that the visibility curve, as
measured, depends on many things. What difference would there be
by using equal-energy spectrum or equal light throughout spectrum?
Mr. Coblentz thought that any difference would depend upon the
stimulus started with. Mr. Taylor stated that it was very interesting
to note the efficiency of ordinary illuminants. Mr. Wells referred
to the practical application to photometry.

Informal communications. Mr. W. F. G. Swann presented an in-
formal communication, On the absorption of energy by an electron. In
order that an electron may absorb an appreciable amount of energy
from a wave falling upon it, it is frequently considered that the energy
of the wave must be concentrated in a filamentary manner, the idea
being that the electron can only take energy from a cross section of
the advancing wave comparable with the cross section of the electron.
That such an assumption is necessary has never appeared very con-
clusive to the author, and the object of this work is to point out that
if the difficulty of an electron's absorbing energy from a cross section of
the wave, large compared with its own cross section, be admitted, we
must confront this same difficulty in problems of much simpler nature
than those which are generally quoted as the problems which give
rise to the difficulty. Thus, suppose an electron to be placed in a uni-
form field X of magnitude 1 volt per cm. The work done on it by
the time it has moved a distance x is Xex. If we calculate the volume
W of the original field which would contain energy equal to this amount,

X2
remembering that the energy density is ^ — -v we readily find W =

-^= — . Thus by the time the electron has moved 0.05 cm. in a field
X J

of 1 volt per cm., it will have absorbed energy equivalent to that con-
tained in a volume of the original field equal to 18 X 10~8 cc, or in
a sphere whose radius is about 3 X 10-3 cm. or 3 X 10'° times the ra-
dius of an electron.

The 778th meeting was held on November 11, 1916, at the Cosmos
Club. President Briggs in the chair; 42 persons present. The min-
utes of the 777th meeting were read in abstract and approved.

Mr. G. K. Burgess presented a communication, illustrated with
lantern slides, on The resistivity and thermoelectric properties of pure
iron. There were described the apparatus and experimental methods
used and results obtained in exact measurements of the resistance and
the true thermoelectric power of pure iron over the temperature range
0° to 1000°C. Both series of measurements were taken in vacuo at
2° intervals using iron 99.968 pure. The characteristics of the trans-
formations A2 at 768° and Az at about 910°C. and the lack of other

20 proceedings: philosophical society

transformations were demonstrated. These experiments are de-
scribed at length in the following: Bureau of Standards Scientific
Paper No. 236 (Burgess and Kellberg on Electrical Resistance) and
No. 296 (Burgess and Scott on Thermoelectric Power) also in abstract
in this Journal (6:650. 1916).

Discussion. Mr. L. J. Briggs asked what method was used to get
the iron pure from the electrode. Mr. Burgess stated that after
prying off the iron from the electrode it was melted in a crucible of
magnesia and then drawn out after melting in vacuo; the stock of pure
iron is kept in a vacuum. Mr. White spoke of the difficulty of ob-
taining homogeneous iron and asked whether the iron used was thermo-
electrically homogeneous. Mr. Wright referred to recent experiments
at the laboratory of the General Electric Company in which the analy-
sis of the structure of iron was made by the use of X-rays, and dis-
cussed the crystalline structure of silicon-iron and electrolytic iron.

By invitation Mr. L. H. Adams then gave an illustrated communi-
cation on The effect of positive and of negative pressures on the resist-
ance of metals. The effect of pressure on the resistance of metals was
first noticed by Chwolson. His work and that of Lussana and others
were briefly reviewed, and a short account was given of the various
attempts that have been made, notably by Koenigsburg and by Griin-
eisen, to place the variation of electrical resistance with pressure
upon a theoretical basis. Pure hydrostatic pressure apparently al-
ways decreases the resistance of pure metals by an amount which
varies from about 1 to 30 parts per million per atmosphere. Many
alloys, however, exhibit a positive pressure coefficient of resistance.
The change in resistance of metals under pressure finds an important
practical application in the measurement of very high pressures.
Pressure gauges may be constructed of a coil of manganin or of "therlo"
wire with an appropriate method for measuring small changes of re-
sistance. Such gauges show no hysteresis and there is apparently no
upper limit of pressure to which they may be used. Changes in re-
sistance are also observed when tensile stresses are applied to metallic
wires. Results were shown for the metals copper, platinum, silver,
and "therlo." Now, since a tensile stress may be resolved into a
negative hydrostatic pressure and two sets of shearing stresses, and
since, moreover, preliminary experiments showed that shearing
stresses produced no changes in the resistance (at least none greater
than 10-8 per kg./cm.2), it would seem reasonable that there should
be a simple relation between the two coefficients of resistance — hy-
drostatic and tensile — provided only that each coefficient be properly
corrected for the known elastic deformation. Results for four metals,
however, failed to confirm this supposition. But it is worthy of men-
tion that the corrected tension coefficients are always less and always
opposite in sign to the corrected hydrostatic coefficients.

Discussion. Mr. Hersey asked whether the change of resistance
on stretching was permanent. Mr. Swtann asked whether any meas-
urements had been made in the plane of torsion. Mr. Dickinson

proceedings: philosophical society 21

spoke of the behavior of platinum resistance-thermometers under
strain. Mr. Burgess referred to the possible change of state of cop-
per under pressure. Mr. White spoke of the theoretical considerations
involved. Messrs. Hersey and Swann considered the application
of the recent theory of electrical conduction to the results. Mr.
Wenner stated that the temperature coefficient of coils wound under
tension at the Bureau of Standards was generally found different from
that of the wire before winding; he noted also that the diagram shown
by Mr. Adams for copper is very similar to that obtained for silver at
the Bureau. The chair expressed to Mr. Adams the thanks of the
Society for the interesting communication.

Mr. F. Wenner then reported on a research made in collaboration
with Mr. C. F. Hanson in a paper entitled The experimental basis for
Ohm's law. Some of the experiments which led to the establishment
of Ohm's law were discussed and also some of those which were made
for the purpose of testing the law. It was pointed out that the ex-
perimental tests are not so conclusive as has generally been supposed
and that consequently a further consideration of the matter is de-
sirable. Using one of the methods devised by Maxwell, results concor-
dant to about 1 part in 106 were obtained — about five times the accu-
racy obtained by Chrystal working under Maxwell's direction. A new
method was devised, making use of a combination of a direct and two
alternating currents, one with a frequency nearly but not exactly twice
that of the other. The maximum value of the resulting, rapidly
pulsating current changes in a slow cycle between definite limits, while
the average and root mean square values may remain constant. The
changing of the maximum value of the current independent of the
average value would give changes in the average value of the poten-
tial drop, unless the potential drop were strictly proportional to the cur-
rent; while keeping the root mean square value of the current con-
stant eliminates the disturbances which would result from a slow
cyclic change in the heating. Only preliminary measurements have
been made, but these give results concordant to about 1 part in 108.
In no case has a definite departure from proportionality between
current and potential drop been observed.

The 779th meeting was held on November 25, 1916, at the Cosmos
Club. President Briggs in the chair; 38 persons present. The min-
utes of the 778th meeting were read in abstract and approved.

Mr. W. P. White gave a paper, illustrated with lantern slides, on
Specific heats at high temperatures. Platinum and certain silicon com-
pounds were investigated. The charges were heated, usually in elec-
tric heaters, and dropped into water in a calorimeter, so that the
heat determination was made at ordinary temperatures under favorable
conditions. The high temperature measurements in the furnace, the
most critical part of the determinations, were made quite satisfactorily,
first, by means of regulators which held the furnace temperature con-
stant; second, by measuring temperature at the center of the charge

1/

22 proceedings: philosophical society

and by keeping the furnace temperature reasonably uniform by means
of platinum-faced partitions and a suitable arrangement of the furnace
winding. Duplicate results seldom differed as much as 0.001. Sys-
tematic errors in calorimetry are usually much larger than the acci-
dental, but numerous and varied intercomparisons seem to indicate that
in this case there were few errors of any sort greater than 0.0015. The
specific heats at high temperatures show in general a curvature con-
cave to the . z-axis, which is merely the upper part of an »S-shaped
curve characteristic of these as of all substances and explainable on the
basis of the quantum hypothesis. Accepting that explanation, these
curves show that the silica and silicon compounds investigated have
atomic vibration periods of high frequencies comparable with those
characteristic of the atoms of the diamond, whose specific heat curve
is similar. These vibration frequencies are due to the oxygen in the
compounds and are characteristic of oxygen compounds generally.
Platinum shows an altogether different curvature at ordinary tem-
peratures. The relation between the specific heats of the various
substances when crystalline and when in the form of glass showed
marked differences. There was also a tendency for the specific heat
of the glass to increase 10 per cent or more at some rather high tem-
perature; this as yet remains unexplained. Two definite kinds of in-
version or transformation in the solid state were demonstrated, char-
acterized by the presence in one case and the absence in the other of
large variations in the specific heat below and at the temperature of
inversion.

Discussion. Mr. Swann noted that the agreement of the specific
heats fitted in well with the quantum theory. Mr. Sosman referred
to the different slopes of the heat curves for polymorphic substances
and cited in particular the three forms of quartz; the question whether
the cause is of atomic or molecular nature is an open one. Mr. L. J.
Briggs spoke of the atomic heat of platinum at the higher tempera-
tures.

Mr. N. S. Osborne then presented an illustrated communication on
A calorimeter for the determination of latent and specific heats of fluids.
The principle of the unstirred or "aneroid" type of calorimeter has
been embodied in an instrument especially designed for determinations
of the specific heat and latent heat of vaporization of several sub-
stances in general use as refrigerating media. Heat developed elec-
trically in a coil located in the central axis of the cylindrical shell com-
prising the calorimeter is distributed by conduction to the calorimeter
and contents whose initial and final temperatures are measured, when
in thermal equilibrium, by a platinum resistance thermometer. Heat
from other sources is excluded by enveloping the calorimeter with
a metal jacket, separated by an air space, and keeping this jacket dur-
ing measurements at the same temperature as the calorimeter surface,
using multiple thermocouples to indicate this equality. The measured
heat added is used either to change the temperature of the contents
or to evaporate a portion of the contents withdrawn as superheated

proceedings: philosophical society 23

vapor; in the first case the specific heat is determined and in the sec-
ond the latent heat of vaporization, when proper corrections are
made. The unique features of this instrument are:

1. Central location of the heater and thermometer.

2. Distribution of metal connections between calorimeter and
jacket to minimize errors from lead conduction.

3. Provision of a device for rapid cooling of the calorimeter. This
consists of a copper ring which can be moved within the jacket so as
to short-circuit thermally the insulating air space and permit the
escape of heat to the cooled jacket.

4. Surface temperature equalizer for rendering the annulment of
thermal leakage independent of thermal irregularities in the interior
of the calorimeter. Measurements were made in the range of tem-
perature from — 40°C. to + 40°C. of (a) the specific heat of liquid
ammonia by two methods, one under saturation conditions, the other at
constant pressure; (b) the latent heat of vaporization of ammonia; and
(c) the latent heat of compression of liquid ammonia.

Discussion. Mr. White thought the aneroid calorimeter a great
advance in calorimetry. He discussed also the relative advantages of
large and small calorimeters; a small instrument is to be preferred,
provided proper care be used in the details of construction. Mr.
Swann spoke of some experiences indicating the advantage of the
aneroid type of instrument over the stirred-liquid type.

Informal communications. Mr. M. D. Hersey presented as an in-
formal communication a list of theorems relative to the errors of phy-
sical measurements, which he has gradually developed during the
past six years as a by-product of other work. There are five theo-
rems relating to apparatus, two to observations, and seven to com-
putations. The manuscript notes, such as they are, are available to
any individual interested. Fragments of this work already published
are to be found in the Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci., 1: 187, 1911; 3:296,
1913; 6:620, 1916; and in the B. A. Rep., Birmingham, 399, 1913.

Mr. White spoke informally on the swelling and splitting, because
of amalgamation by mercury, of the platinum element of a thermostat
that had been stored away for two or three years. Mr. Wenner
remarked that he had many times noted similar effects.

Mr. Humphreys read a humorous poem giving a soldier's opinion
of the climate of the Rio Grande.

The 46th annual meeting (780 th regular meeting) was held on De-
cember 9, 1916 in the assembly hall of the Cosmos Club. President
Briggs and President-elect Buckingham in the chair; 34 persons
present. The minutes of the 45th annual meeting were read.

The report of the Secretaries was read by Mr. Agnew. Three
members, viz., Messrs. Cleveland Abbe, Henry H. Bates, and
F. B. McGuire, died during the year; 14 new members were elected;
8 members were transferred to the absent list; 2 members resigned;
and 1 member was dropped. The present active membership is 149.

24 proceedings: biological society

Sixteen regular meetings have been held. In accordance with the
recommendation made at the 45th annual meeting, the General Com-
mittee amended the By-Laws of the Committee by establishing a
class of life membership to include all members who have maintained
an active membership in the Society for 40 years. Messrs. Cleve-
land Abbe, F. W. Clarke, Wm. H. Dall, and G. K. Gilbert became
life members under this amendment. The report was ordered ac-
cepted and placed on file.

The Treasurer's report through December 6, 1916, was read by
Mr. Sosman. The total receipts for the year, including cash balance
of $109.72, were $3,234.83; the total expenditures for the year were
$2,791.17; cash balance on December 6, 1916, $443.66. The total
par value of the investments now held by the Society is $12,000. The
report of the Auditing Committee consisting of Messrs. Mueller,
Stillman, and Hostetter was read by Mr. Mueller. This Com-
mittee reported the statements in the Treasurer's report had been
found correct. The report was ordered accepted. The Treasurer's
report was then ordered accepted and placed on file.

Messrs. Ferner and Rothermel were appointed tellers. The fol-
lowing officers were duly elected for the ensuing year: President: E.
Buckingham; Vice-Presidents: G. K. Burgess, W. J. Humphreys,
R. B. Sosman, Wm. Bowie; Treasurer: E. F. Mueller; Secretaries:
P. G. Agnew, D. H. Sweet; General Committee: H. L. Curtis, N. E.
Dorsey, R. L. Faris, E. G. Fischer, J. A. Fleming, D. L. Hazard,
W. F. G. Swann, W. P. White, F. E. Wright.

An unanimous vote of thanks was extended to the retiring Treas-
urer and Secretary for their efficient services to the Society. The
rough minutes of the meeting were read and approved.

J. A. Fleming, Secretary.

THE BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 558th meeting of the Biological Society of Washington was
held in the Assembly Hall of the Cosmos Club, Saturday, October 21,
1916; called to order at 8.15 by President Hay with 50 persons in
attendance.

The President announced the death of Prof. F. E. L. Beal, a mem-
ber of the Society distinguished for his work in economic ornithology.

On recommendation of the Council Mrs. Ella M. Enlows was
elected to active membership.

Under the heading Brief Notes and Exhibition of Specimens the
following informal communications were presented.

Mr. A. L. Quaintance called attention to a new peach pest related
to the codling moth, lately found in the District of Columbia and
immediate vicinity. These remarks were illustrated by lantern views
of the insect and its work.

Dr. C. W. Stiles commented on zoological nomenclature and gave
notice that it was the intention to set aside the rules of strict priority

proceedings: biological society 25

with reference to Holothuria and Physalia and to use these terms for
the animals to which they are currently applied in the usual text
books. Dr. Stiles also commented on recent cases in which trichina
had figured in certain lawsuits, and expressed the view that with the
purchase of meat products went the requirement that the product
should be properly cared for and that in the case of pork this care
required cooking before consumption; it was somewhat unfair to hold
the seller of trichinous meat entirely responsible.

Dr. L. O. Howard cited an instance in which a cockroach was fig-
uring in a lawsuit. A man was suing a Texas railroad for damages
on the ground that typhoid fever had been contracted through his
drinking pop which had been contaminated by a cockroach, which had
apparently been in the bottle before the man drank the pop purchased
on the common carrier.

The regular program consisted of an illustrated lecture by Dr. Paul
Bartsch: Mollusk collecting in the Philippines. Dr. Bartsch reviewed
the work of previous collectors and gave an account of his own collect-
ing expedition, describing the methods and apparatus used. He spoke
of mollusks as a source of food for the natives, and of their method of
gathering them, and called attention to the variations cf these ani-
mals as found on different islands. He showed also the necessity of
exact locality determinations on specimens, and discussed the geo-
graphic distribution of the Philippine molluscan fauna, pointing out
its possible origin from other islands or land masses. The lecture
covered not only the land mollusks but the marine forms as well.

The 559th meeting of the Society was held in the Assembly Hall
of the Cosmos Club, Saturday, November 4, 1916; called to order at
8 p. m. by President Hay with sixty persons present.

On recommendation of the Council the following persons were
elected to active membership: William B. Bell, Biological Survey;
Fraxcis Harper, Biological Survey; H. E. Anthony, American Mu-
seum of Natural History; and A. B. Howell, Covina, California.

The President announced the death of Dr. E. A. Mearns, a mem-
ber of the Council of the Society and distinguished for his work on
birds, mammals, and other branches of natural history.

Under the heading Brief Notes and Exhibition of Specimens, Dr.
R. W. Shufeldt exhibited a specimen of the Japanese giant sala-
mander and made some remarks on its habits and habitat.

The regular program consisted of four papers as follows:

R. H. Hutchison: A review of recent work on the house-fly. This
paper was restricted to a discussion of recent studies on the preovi-
position period, the range of flight, and the question of the overwinter-
ing of the house-fly. The remarks on the preoviposition period sum-
marized a recent bulletin of the Department of Agriculture on this
subject (Bulletin 345). In discussing the range of flight, attention
was directed to the fact that up to 1914 the longest recorded flight was
1700 yards. During the season of 1915 experiments were carried out

26 proceedings: biological society

in a suburban locality near Washington by Max Kisliuk, Jr., under
the direction of the writer. In these, several records of from 1800 to
2175 yards were obtained. These were compared with the records
obtained by R. H. Parker during the same season at Miles City, Mon-
tana; his longest record was 3500 yards. The question of how the
house-fly overwinters in this latitude was said to be still undecided.
It was pointed out that flies were not killed by the first heavy frost,
as has often been stated; and that, in fact, a large percentage revived after
several nights' exposure to minimum temperatures of 25° F. They
are killed by temperatures of 15°F. Flies were found emerging up
to the first week in December, and these late forms were found in
heated buildings until the end of January. None were again seen
till April 27. Other observations were cited as indicating that flies
do not overwinter in the adult state; but, on the other hand, a long
series of experiments and observations failed to give any positive
evidence that they overwinter in the larval or pupal state.

W. Dwight Pierce: Recent spread of the cotton boll weevil. A brief
history of the movement of this pest through the United States sug-
gests, from a study of specimens collected in all parts of the infested
regions of North America, that there are three lines of dispersion. It
seems probable that the boll weevil originated in Guatemala or some
other portion of Central America and that the most typical strain
migrated northward through the mountains of Mexico into Arizona,
where it is now found as a native species on the wild cotton-like plant
Thurberia thespesioides. The main migration was along the Gulf
Coast, through the cultivated cotton regions, into the United States.
The third line of dispersion was through Yucatan, across the Gulf,
to Cuba. Specimens collected at the three termini of these dispersions
appear to be very distinct varieties. That variety which is found on
cultivated cotton in the United States is the smallest found and the
most variable. The movement of the weevil is controlled by the
amount of food supply, which regulates the time and distance of nat-
ural movement by winds and floods, and by artificial agencies. The
most interesting development of the present year is the extension of
the weevil to the northern limits of cotton growth in Oklahoma and
Arkansas into central Tennessee, eastward to the Atlantic Ocean south
of Savannah, and the infestation of practically all the cotton region of
Florida. The only Sea Island cotton section now not infected is that
of South Carolina.

E. R. Sasscer: Remarks on entomological inspection and disinfec-
tion of products offered for entry into the United States. A brief review
of the Plant Quarantine Act of 1912 was given, pointing out the
principal features of the Act as relating to the control of stock entering
the States, and what is required of the broker, the nurseryman, or
other party importing plants or plant products. The quarantines re-
lating to insects were referred to, and lantern slides of a number of
these quarantined insects and others collected by inspectors were
shown. Brief mention was made of the method of examining nursery

proceedings: biological society 27

stock in the District of Columbia, and it was shown that such stock
was divided naturally into (1) commercial material, including plants
and plant products received by florists, department stores, and pri-
vate individuals; and (2) Departmental material, including plants and
plant products introduced by the various offices of the Department of
Agriculture, more particularly the Office of Foreign Seed and Plant In-
troduction. Some time was devoted to discussing the new method of
disinfecting cotton, and lantern slides were shown exhibiting the plants
which are now operating in Boston, Mass., Brooklyn, N. Y., Newark,
N. J., and Oakland, Cal.

H. S. Barber: An outline of the glow-worms of the American family
Phongodidae.

The 560th meeting of the Biological Society of Washington was
held in the Assembly Hall of the Cosmos Club, Saturday, November
16, 1916; called to order by President Hay at 8 p.m. with 86 persons
in attendance.

On recommendation of the Council, Irwin Hoffmann was elected
to active membership.

Under the heading, Brief Notes and Exhibition of Specimens, Dr.
O. P. Hay exhibited one of the cervical vertebrae of a deer from a
deposit in Florida. He called attention to the fact that the remains
of Florida deer have usually been referred to the existing species,
Odocoileus osceola. A comparison of this vertebra with the correspond-
ing one from recent deer, other than the Florida deer, showed that
possibly the extinct Florida deer was a different species from the ex-
isting deer. Dr. Hay said that there were no examples of cervical
vertebrae of Florida deer for making comparisons, and that until such
examples were seen the identification of the extinct deer must remain
doubtful.

Under the same heading Dr. Paul Bartsch called attention to a
hybrid duck which he had lately seen exposed for sale in the markets.
It was a cross between the black mallard and the domestic duck.

The regular program consisted of two papers:

H. Pittier: Forests of Panama (Illustrated by lantern slides).
Professor Pittier gave first a condensed review of the results to the
present date of the botanical part of the biological survey of Panama,
undertaken under the auspices of the Smithsonian Institution. Then
he showed how the distribution of the main ecological types of vege-
tation is dependent upon the regime of the winds and of the rainfall.
Mixed dicotylous forests cover at least six-tenths of the area of the
Isthmus, the rest being occupied by savannas and park-like formations.
Rain-forests with evergreen foliage extend over the entire northern
watershed and part of Darien on the south side. Other forests of the
southern slope belong to the type called monsoon-forest and are char-
acterized by the presence of many species with deciduous foliage.
The xerophytic character of the vegetation is more marked in the
broken forests of the savanna belt, without however assuming an

28 proceedings: biological society

extreme degree. The change in the composition of the vegetation
with the increase in altitude has been dwelt upon by several travellers
and botanical explorers of the Isthmus; it is very gradual but never-
theless very radical. Several genera of trees observed at high alti-
tudes are gregarious; there are, for instance, oak-forests, sub-tropical
or even temperate in their general appearance. Lantern slides illus-
trating types of forest, or of individual trees and flowers, were shown
at the conclusion of the lecture.

J. H. Paine : Scientific photography in the study of insects (Illustrated
by lantern slides).

M. W. Lyon, Jr., Recording Secretary.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VII JANUARY 19, 1917 No. 2

MINERALOGY. — M agues ioludwigite, a new mineral.1 B. S.
Butler and W. T. Schaller, Geological Survey.

Introduction. In 1912, while making a reconnaissance examina-
tion of the Big and Little Cottonwood districts, Utah, one of
the writers, B. S. Butler, collected specimens of the rather rare
mineral ludwigite.2 Specimens of this mineral from the Little
Cottonwood district, in an undescribed collection made by J. M.
Boutwell, were later examined.

During the summer of 1916 it was possible to make more
detailed observations of the occurrence of the mineral, and
chemical analysis has shown the presence of an allied mineral,
hitherto undescribed, for which the' name magnesioludwigite is
proposed.

Locality. The largest body of ludwigite observed is at the
Mountain Lake mine at the head of Big Cottonwood Canyon,
about 1| miles south of Brighton. Ludwigite occurs in places
to the southwest of the Mountain Lake mine for more than half
a mile, nearly to Lake Catherine, and also to the east. It was
collected on the south side of Little Cottonwood Canyon, south-
east of the Michigan-Utah boarding house. It was observed

Preliminary papei . Published with the permission of the Director of the
U. S. Geological Survey.

2Butler, B. S., and Loughlin, G. F. A reconnaissance of the Cottonwood-
American Fork mining region, Utah. U. S. Geol. Survey Bui!. 620, p. 201. 1915.

29

30 BUTLER AND SCHALLER: MAGNESIOLUDWIGITE

in rock debris near the Alta-Brighton trail north of Twin Lakes,
and is abundant in the South Columbus tunnel of the South
Hecla mine. It will doubtless be found at other localities in the
district. Magnesioludwigite was found only in the Mountain
Lake mine.

Occurrence. Ludwigite occurs as a replacement of limestone
at or near the contact with intrusive rocks and is associated with
"contact minerals," including magnetite, forsterite, garnet,
diopside, muscovite, and sulphides of iron and copper. In the
Mountain Lake deposit magnetite and forsterite are the most
abundant original minerals associated with the ludwigite.
All of the minerals were probably formed at the same time,
though the presence of veinlets of magnetite in the ludwigite
and in the forsterite indicates that the magnetite continued
to form after the ludwigite and forsterite had ceased to form.
The sulphides also, in part at least, were formed probably later
than the ludwigite and forsterite.

In the Mountain Lake deposit the ludwigite is in finely fibrous
crystals, forming radial and spherulitic groups which make up
large masses of the mineral. These, as seen with the unaided
eye or the hand lens, resemble tourmaline. There are exposed
in the outcrop and on the dump many tons of a mixture of
magnetite and ludwigite. The ludwigite occurs also as isolated
crystals and groups of crystals in metamorphosed limestone,
and from such occurrences well-defined crystals with natural
crystal faces have been isolated and measured. The ludwigite
is dull greenish black (Ridgway's color scale). In the outcrop
of the deposit there is also much material of ivy-green color
(Ridgway's color scale), which is the mineral for which the
name magnesioludwigite is proposed. Its occurrence is like
that of the ludwigite.

Composition. Chemical analysis has shown that only 2.55
per cent of ferrous oxide is present in the ivy-green mineral,
whereas typical ludwigite contains 17.01 per cent ferrous oxide.
The analysis has also determined that the formula of the new
mineral is MgO.Fe2O3.3MgO.B2O3, in which a small amount of
ferrous oxide replaces some of the magnesia. The analysis

swanton: aboriginal terms for brother and sister 31

can be interpreted as representing an isomorphous mixture
of 85 per cent of magnesium borate with 15 per cent of ferrous
borate. In its various properties magnesioludwigite shows the
expected differences from those of the iron-richer ludwigite from
Hungary. The luster is duller, the color lighter, the pleochroism
and absorption weaker, and the translucency of the crushed
material is markedly greater.

These various changes in properties are correlated with the
changes in chemical composition, and the existence of a definite
series from the ferrous-iron borate to the magnesium borate is
well shown by specimens of the mineral from Hungary, Montana,
and Utah. This correlation is being made and will be given
in full in the detailed paper now in preparation.

The increased knowledge of the variation in chemical com-
position and corresponding variations in other properties makes
it necessary to recognize the two end members of the series of
the natural magnesium-iron borates. It is therefore proposed
to use the name ludwigite as a group name, similarly to the usage
of the terms mica and feldspar, and to introduce the two names
magnesioludwigite and ferroludwigite for the end members and
for those parts of the series in which the magnesium or the
ferrous-iron borate, respectively, predominates.

Including the mineral pinakiolite in the group, the ludwigite
group comprises then the following minerals, the term lud-
wigite being usable for any member of the group until its exact
relation has been determined:
Group

Ludwigite
Species

Ferroludwigite, FeO.Fe203.3MgO.B203
Magnesioludwigite, MgO.Fe203.3MgO.B203
Pinakiolite, MnO.Mn203.3MgO.B203.

ANTHROPOLOGY. — Significance of the terms for brother and
sister among primitive peoples. John R. Swanton, Bureau
of American Ethnology.

It is well known that among tribes divided into clans or
gentes the terms for those relations for which we use "brother"

32 swanton: aboriginal terms for brother and sister

and "sister" are extended to a large number of individuals of
the same clan or gens and of approximately the same age as the
speaker, but even experienced investigators are not so vividly
conscious of the fact that they are by no means confined to that
clan or gens. The idea of such a limitation is largely due to the
fact that very many tribes, such for instance as the Iroquois,
Choctaw, Chickasaw, Tlingit, Haida, and several of the Plains
tribes, have only two exogamous groups, and that in such
groups the men called collectively " fathers" are the husbands
of the women called collectively "mothers." It happens,
therefore, that the children of the father's brothers and the
mother's sisters are the very same set of individuals and must
always be of the exogamous division of the speaker and his own
brothers and sisters. Thus it might be thought that the terms
brother and sister were applied because the individuals so called
were of the same clan or gens as self.

In order to discover the true reason for the application of these
terms we must turn to tribes having three or more exogamous
groups. Among peoples of this kind with matrilineal descent
the men of the father's clan will be able to marry into two or
more others and their children will be of the same number of
clans, while if the descent is patrilineal the women of the mother's
clan will have the same variety of choice. Now, if the terms
for brother and sister are primarily clan or gentile terms, they
will not be applied to children of the father's clan or the mother's
gens not of the clan or gens of the speaker. If they are primarily
consanguineal terms they will be so applied.

In the present article I shall not attempt an exhaustive study
of this question but confine myself to an examination of the
lists given by Morgan in his Systems of Consanguinity and
Affinity1 and those recorded by Rivers in The History of Mel-
anesia?! Society. The internal diversity of the two regions,
each of which presents examples of tribes with exogamous di-
visions and tribes without, tribes with matrilineal descent and
tribes with patrilineal descent, tribes with dual divisions and
tribes with multiple divisions, along with their remoteness from

Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge, vol. 17.

SW ANTON: ABORIGINAL TERMS FOR BROTHER AND SISTER 33

each other, and the difference in time and circumstance under
which they were recorded, promises a very fair sample of what
may be looked for in primitive society as a whole.

An inspection of the lists given by Morgan shows that the
terms for brother and sister — elder and younger being also fre-
quently distinguished — are employed by all tribes from which
information is supplied except the Eskimo, who are without
exogamous groups and therefore do not concern us. It is true
that among certain peoples, such as the Chippewa, Ottawa,
Potawatomi, Mohegan, Delaware, Spokane, and Creek, a dis-
tinction is introduced between the own brother and sister and
collateral brothers and sisters, who are often called " step-
brothers," " step-sisters," "other brothers," and so on; but we
find that in most cases these exceptional terms apply to both the
child of the father's brother and the child of the mother's sis-
ter; therefore their significance is mainly consanguineal and
their use strengthens rather than weakens the argument for
consanguinity. In one or two other cases the terms used are
alternatives. Rivers yields precisely the same testimony. In
his explanation of the terms employed in the island of Florida
he specifically states that those for brother and sister were
used "in the usual classificatory sense for all members of the
clan of the same generation" and that they were applied also
"in the same way to the children of the father's brothers, al-
though these may be of different clans." By implication the
same must be assumed in the systems recorded by him from
the Torres Islands, Santa Cruz, the Reef Islands, Guadalcanar,
Ysabel, and Savo, all of those in which there are more than two
exogamous divisions and from which information is vouchsafed.
The same is found, as we should expect, in tribes having two
exogamous groups, and also in tribes without exogamous groups.
In some cases these terms are so widely extended as to apply
to the cross-cousins as well, the children of the father's sister and
the mother's brother. The outstanding fact is, however, that
the application of the terms for brother and sister is evidently
governed by the relation of the parents of the persons so called
to self.

34 swanton: aboriginal terms for brother and sister

Precisely the same thing appears in the succeeding genera-
tion, where the use of the terms son and daughter, and nephew
and niece, is plainly determined by the status of the parents of
those so denominated.

These facts may be illustrated by the accompanying diagram,
in which it is to be understood that each English expression stands
for a single native term. It supposes a tribe with several clans
and matrilineal descent, self male. Other systems would in-
volve a few simple and readily comprehended changes.

DIAGRAM ILLUSTRATING ^BROTHER" AND

father's
brothers'
wives
(clans 1,
3, 4, etc.)

father's
brothers
(clan 2)

RELATIONSHIPS.

father = mother

(clan 2)

(clan 1)

"sister"

mother's
sisters
(clan 1)

mother's
sisters'
husbands
(clans 2,
3,4, etc.)

brothers
(clans 1,
3, 4, etc.)

sisters
(clans 1,
3,4,etc.)

brothers
(clan 1)

self
male
(clan 1)

sisters
(clan 1)

brothers
(clan 1)

sisters
(clan 1)

sons nephews sons sons nephews sons nephews

and and and and and and and

daughters nieces daughters daughters nieces . daughters nieces

(clans 1,2, (clans 1,2, (clans 2, (clans 2, (clan 1) (clans 2, (clan 1)

3, 4, etc.) 3, 4, etc.) 3, 4, etc.) 3, 4, etc.)

3, 4, etc.)

An examination of the remaining terms of relationship shows
that almost the only ones which have a strictly clan or gentile
connotation are those for father, mother, father's sister, and
mother's brother. Those who argue for the priority of exog-
amous divisions to relationship terminology and for their clan
rather than consanguineal significance are therefore reduced
to the assumption that such divisions first determined the four
terms last given and that all of the others were developed from
them on purely consanguineal lines. But even in the case of
these four terms we ordinarily find a distinction between the
own father and mother and the clan or gentile father and
mother, and frequently there are other exceptions to a strictly

swanton: aboriginal terms for brother and sister 35

clan usage of the terms. A theoiy which has to admit so many
exceptions and which must grant the dominance of consan-
guineal considerations in all but a few cases may well be viewed
with suspicion. It is certainly a clumsy device when compared
with the alternative theoiy of a simple extension of terms
founded on the idea of blood relationship to groups of persons
hypothetically, though not actually, related.

ABSTRACTS

Authors of scientific papers are requested to see that abstracts, preferably
prepared and signed by themselves, are forwarded promptly to the editors.
Each of the scientific bureaus in Washington has a representative authorized to
forward such material to this journal and abstracts of official publications should
be transmitted through the representative of the bureau in which they originate.
The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those appearing iD
this issue.

PHYSICS. — A study of electromagnet moving coil galvanometers for
use in alternating current measurements. Ernest Weibel. Bureau
of Standards Scientific Paper No. 297 (Bull. Bur. Stds., 14: 23-58).
1917.
This paper gives the results of a study of the electromagnet moving
coil galvanometer that has led to the construction, of instruments
with sensitivities much greater than those previously obtained and
equal to those of the best direct current moving coil galvanometers.
The theory of the instrument is developed. The equation of motion
is first expressed in terms of the intrinsic constants (the moment of
inertia, the moment of damping, the moment of restoration, and the
moment of displacement) and the deflection, velocity, acceleration, and
current in the moving coil. The current is then known from the
resultant electromotive force in the moving coil circuit and the latter's
constants. It is necessary in computing the resultant electromotive
force to consider not only the impressed but also the induced electro-
motive force. The latter is in part due to the motion of the coil in
the magnetic field, causing electromagnetic damping, and in part due
to the alternation of the flux linking with the coil, causing a current
which results in a control torque in addition to that of the suspensions.
The paper also contains descriptions and gives the performances of
four instruments. The results indicate that the theory as given is
fundamentally correct and therefore serves as a good basis for the
design and use of instruments of this kind. E. W.

GEOLOGY. — The lignite field of northwestern South Dakota. Dean E.

Winchester, C. J. Hares, E. Russell Lloyd, and E. M. Parks.

U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin 627. Pp. 165, with 11 plates. 1916.

The report describes the geology and fuel resources of parts of

Perkins and Harding counties in northwestern South Dakota. The

36

abstracts: geology 37

formations in the area include the Pierre, Fox Hills, Lance, Fort Union,
White River, and Arikaree. The Lance is subdivided into three
members: a lower undifferentiated portion, 425 feet thick; a middle or
Ludlow lignite-bearing portion, 350 feet thick at most; and an upper
marine member, the Cannonball, 225 feet thick.

The marine fauna of the Cannonball member is very similar to but
not identical with the fauna of the Fox Hills, which is of recognized
Cretaceous age, while the flora of the Ludlow lignitic member is so
much like that of the Fort Union, which is of recognized Tertiary age,
that it is impossible to differentiate it from the Fort Union on the
basis of the fossil leaves.

Lignite beds are found in both the Lance and Fort Union formations,
the more important beds occurring in the Lance formation.

D. E. W.

GEOLOGY. — Reconnaissance of the Conconully and Ruby mining
districts, Washington. E. L. Jones, Jr. U. S. Geological Sur-
vey Bulletin 640-B. Pp. i-iv, 11-36, with 1 plate. 1916.

This report describes the geology and ore deposits of a small area
in the central part of Okanogan County, Washington. In general the
rocks comprise an older series of metamorphic rocks and a younger
series of igneous rocks of batholithic origin. The metamorphic rocks
consist of schists, quartzites, and limestones. Some of the schists
are fine-grained and thinly laminated, but others are coarsely banded
micaceous rocks that are evidently altered sandstones. The most
schistose and gneissoid rocks are those which border the batholith.
Closely associated with this sedimentary series are dike rocks and lavas
that have undergone the same metamorphism and are probably of the
same age, which is supposed to be Carboniferous.

The common igneous rock of the area is a gray granite which has
intruded the sedimentary rocks. It occurs over a large area and is
probably a part of the Similkameen batholith. There are other igneous
rocks of considerable areal extent, including a dark granite and an altered
green porphyry. Dikes are abundant, particularly along the contact
of the batholith with the metamorphic rocks; they include granite,
diorite, pegmatite, and aplite, and probably represent the closing stage
of igneous activity.

The ore deposits are principally of two types, quartz veins and
disseminated or replacement deposits. The quartz veins are widely
distributed throughout the area, but those of proved value are grouped

38 abstracts: geology

along the contact of the granite with the schists and gneisses. They
are valuable for their lead-silver content and have yielded the principal
output. The replacement deposits occur principally in a small area
at the northern end of the Conconully district. They contain small
amounts of copper and gold, but no ore has yet been produced com-
mercially from them. R. W. S.

GEOLOGY. — A reconnaissance of the Archean complex of the Granite

Gorge, Grand Canyon, Arizona. L. F. Noble and J. Fred.

Hunter. U. S. Geological Survey Professional Paper No. 98-1.

Pp. 95-102, with 1 plate and 2 figures. 1916.

The Tonto platform on the south side of the Granite Gorge affords

a magnificent but difficultly accessible cross-section through the

Archean complex, 800 feet deep and 40 miles in length. These oldest

rocks of the Grand Canyon were visited in twenty localities, 67 hand

specimens were collected, and eight distinct groups of rocks were

recognized. The exposures within these groups are described and the

petrography of the specimens is given.

Estimated roughly, the gneisses (granite gneiss, hornblende gneiss,
and metabasite) comprise 50 per cent of the rock exposed in the Gran-
ite Gorge; the mica schist, 30 per cent; the basic intrusives, 10 per
cent; and the pink siliceous intrusives, 10 per cent. It is not im-
probable that the mica schists are in large part of sedimentary origin.
It is believed that some of the wrinkled and contorted granite gneisses
represent the original basement on which the schist series of meta-
morphosed sediments was laid down; that both before and after the
deposition of the sediments there were long periods of complex intru-
sion, represented by amphibolites, granitic gneiss, metabasite, and
metadiorite; that during and after the metamorphism of the schists
and gneisses there were further intrusions of quartz diorite, gabbro,
granite, pegmatite, and other rocks. It will probably be advisable,
at some future time, to restrict the name "Vishnu schists," now used
for the entire Archean complex, to the mica-schist series and give
another name or names to the gneisses. J. F. H.

GEOLOGY. — An anticlinal fold near Billings, Noble County, Oklahoma.

A. E. Fath. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin 641-E. Pp. 121-

138, with 1 plate. 1916.
During February, 1916, gas was struck in small quantities at shallow
depths in a well being drilled a few miles southwest of Billings, Noble

abstracts: technology 39

County, Oklahoma. As this discovery was made at a place more than
20 miles distant from any other known oil and gas development, it has
attracted considerable attention, winch is justified by the presence of a
large anticlinal fold, a type of structure that should be favorable for
the accumulation of oil and gas. A description of the anticlinal fold
and a discussion of the possibilities of developing an oil and gas field
here are given. R. \y# S.

PALEONTOLOGY. — North American Upper Cretaceous corals of the
genus Micrabacia. Lloyd William Stephenson. U. S. Geo-
logical Surve3r Professional Paper 98-J. Pp. 115-131, with 4
plates. 1916.
The report describes seven species and two varieties of corals of the
genus Micrabacia from the United States, all but one of which, M.
americana Meek and Hay den, are new. All are from the Atlantic
and Gulf coastal plains, except M. americana and its variety multi-
costata from the Montana group of the Western Interior. Of the
coastal-plain species, M . cribraria is from the upper part of the Exogyra
ponderosa zone (North Carolina — Alabama), and the remainder are
from the Exogyra costata zone of Maryland, Georgia, Mississippi, and
Texas. The American species are compared with the type species of
the genus, M . coronula Goldfuss, a description and figures of which are
included, from Essen, Prussia. Each of the species has a small disc-
shaped corallum, the largest, M. rotatilis, being only 9 mm. in diame-
ter; in order to illustrate the characters it is necessary to magnify them
four to eight times. L. W. S.

TECHNOLOGY. — The recovery of paraffin and paper stock from waste
paraffin paper. W. H. Smith. Bureau of Standards Technologic
Paper No. 87. Pp. 4. 1916.
This paper describes a process for the recovery of the paraffin and
paper stock from waste paraffin paper. The waste is pulped with
exhaust steam in a vertical boiler. The wax rises to the surface and
is drawn off with the hot water through a screen, the stock settling
to the bottom of the boiler. The stock is transferred to a beating
engine and further treated for the removal of the residual paraffin.
Paper prepared from the recovered stock was free from wax and satis-
factory in every respect. Practically all of the paper stock is recovered,
but about ten per cent of the paraffin in the waste is lost during the
process. W. H. S.

M :

REFERENCES

Under this heading it is proposed to include, by author, title, and citation, references to all
scientific papers published in or emanating from Washington. It is requested that authors cooperate
with the editors by submitting titles promptly, following the style used below. These references are
not intended to replace the more extended abstracts published elsewhere in this Journal.

CHEMISTRY

Blum, William. The determination of aluminium as oxide. Bureau of Stand-
ards Scientific Paper No. 286 (Bull. Bur. Stds., 13: 515-534). 1916.

Cain, J. R., Schramm, E., and Cleaves, H. E. The preparation of pure iron and
iron-carbon alloys. Bureau of Standards Scientific Paper No. 266 (Bull.
Bur. Stds., 13: 1-26). 1916.

Clarke, F. W., and Wheeler, W. C. The inorganic constituents of alcyonaria.
Proc. National Acad. Sci., 1: 552-556. 1915.

Gillespie, L. J. The reaction of soil and the measurements of hydrogen-ion con-
centration. Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci., 6: 7-16. 1916.

Hillebrand, W. F., and Scherrer, J. A. Recovery of gallium from spelter in the
United States. Journ. Ind. and Eng. Chem., 8: 225. 1916.

Lubs, Herbert A., and Clark, Mansfield. On some new indicators for the
colorimetric determination of hydrogen-ion concentration. Journ. Wash. Acad.
Sci., 5:609-617. 1915.

Waters, C. E., and Ttjttle, J. B. Some qualitative tests for gum arabic and its
quantitative determination. Bureau of Standards Technologic Paper No. 67.
Pp. 15. 1916.

Weaver, E. R. The colorimetric determination of acetylene and its application
to the determination of water. Bureau of Standards Scientific Paper No. 267
(Bull. Bur. Stds., 13: 27-65). 1916.

MAMMALOGY

Allen, J. A. The genotypes of Echimys and Loncheres. Proceedings of the
Biological Society of Washington, 29:205-206. September 22, 1916. (Ar-
gues that E. spinosus is the type of Echimys and L. chrysurus the type of
Loncheres. — N. H.)

Gabrielson, I. N. A second record of Nyctinomus depressus for Iowa. Pro-
ceedings of the Biological Society of Washington, 29:86. April 4, 1916.
(A specimen of this southwestern species taken at Marshalltown. — N. H.)

Goldman, E. A. Notes on the genera Isothrix Wagner and Phyllomys Lund.
Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington, 29: 125-126. June 6,
1916. (Several species heretofore included in Isothrix are transferred to the
genus Phyllomys. — N. H.)

Goldman, E. A. The status of Sigmodontomys alfari Allen and Oryzomys
ochraceus Allen. Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington, 29:
127. June 6, 1916. (These specific names are synonymous, and the animal
should be called Nectomys alfari. — N. H.)

40

references: mammalogy 41

Goldman, E. A. A new vesper rat from Nicaragua. Proceedings of the Bio-
logical Society of Washington, 29: 155-156. September 6, 1916. (De-
scribes Nyctomys sumichrasti venustulus from Greytown.— N. H.)

Grinnell, J. The California lowland mink a distinct race. Proceedings of the
Biological Society of Washington, 29:213-214. September 22, 1916. (De-
scribes Mustela vison aestuarina from Solano County. — N. H.)

Hollister, N. Descriptions of a new genus and eight new species and subspecies
of African mammals. Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections, 661: 1-8.
February 10, 1916. (Cercoctenus, new genus of Macroscelidae; and new
forms in the genera Surdisorex, Rhinolophus, Eptesicus, Chaerephon, Ge-
netta, Mungos, and Helogale. — N. H.)

Hollister, N. Three new African shrews of the genus Crocidura. Smithsonian
Miscellaneous Collections, 668: 1-3. May, 1916. (C. daphnia described
from Uganda; C. parvipes nisa and C. simiolus described from British East
Africa.— N. H.)

Hollister, N. The generic names Epimys and Rattus. Proceedings of the
Biological Society of Washington, 29: 126. June 6, 1916. (Rattus the
proper generic name for the Norway rat and its allies. — N. H.)

Hollister, N. A systematic account of the prairie-dogs. North American
Fauna No. 40. Pp. 1-37, pis. 1-7. June 20, 1916. (New subgenus, Leuco-
crossuromys, for the white-tailed prairie-dogs; new subspecies Cynomys
gunnisoni zuniensis, from New Mexico. — N. H.)

Hollister, N. The type species of Rattus. Proceedings of the Biological So-
ciety of Washington, 29: 206-207. September 22, 1916. (Mus norvegicus is
the type of Rattus Fischer, 1803— N. H.)

Hollister, N. Shrews collected by the Congo expedition of the American Mu-
seum. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History, 35: 663-680,
pis. 7-11. October 21, 1916. (Six new species of Crocidura and one of
Sylvisorex from Belgian Congo. — N. H.)

Hollister, N. Three new murine rodents from Africa. Smithsonian Miscel-
laneous Collections, 6610: 1-3. October 26, 1916. (Describes new forms of
Arvicanthis, Dasymys, and Mus. — N. H.)

Howell, A. H. Description of a new pine mouse from Florida. Proceedings of
the Biological Society of Washington, 29 : 83-84. April 4, 1916. (Pitymys
parvulus, sp. nov., from Ocala. — N. H.)

Jackson, H. H. T. A new bat from Porto Rico. Proceedings of the Biological
Society of Washington, 29:37-38. February 24, 1916. (Describes Eptesi-
cus wetmorei from Maricao.— N. H.)

Lantz, D. E. Cottontail rabbits in relation to trees and farm crops. U. S. De-
partment of Agriculture Farmers' Bulletin No. 702. Pp. 1-12, figs. 1-5.
January 17, 1916. (Discusses the habits of cottontail rabbits and methods
of controlling their numbers. — N. H.)

Lantz, D. E. Laws relating to fur-bearing animals, 1916. United States De-
partment of Agriculture Farmers' Bulletin No. 783. Pp. 1-28. October 19,
1916. (A summary of laws in the United States and Canada relating to
fur-bearing aDimals. — N. H.)

42 references: technology

Lyon, M. W., Jr. A porcupine skull with a pair of supernumerary well developed
incisors in the upper jaw. Anatomical Record, 10: 459-462. April 20,
1916. (Note on abnormal dentition of Acanthion longicaudum. — N. H.)

Lyon, M. W., Jr. Belgian hare, a misleading misnomer. Science, N. S., 43: 686.
May 12, 1916. (Corrects error in generic identification of the Belgian
"hare" in anatomical paper by C. D. Holliger. — N. H.)

Lyon, M. W., Jr. Two new mammals from Sumatra. Proceedings of the Bio-
logical Society of Washington, 29: 209-211. September 22, 1916. (De-
scribes new forms of Rattus. — N. H.)

Merriam, C. H. East Africa — Game garden of the world. American Museum
Journal, 16: 145-153. March, 1916. (A review of Roosevelt and Heller's
"Life-Histories of African Game Animals," 1914. — N. H.)

Merriam, C. H. Ovis sheldoni, a new mountain sheep from Sierra del Rosario,
Sonora, Mexico. Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington, 29:
129-132. September 6, 1916.

Merriam, C. H. Nineteen apparently new grizzly and brown bears from western
America. Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington, 29: 133-
154. September 6, 1916. (Descriptions of new species and subspecies of
Ursus, with remarks on distribution and relationship of mainland and
island forms. — N. H.)

Miller, G. S., Jr. Note on the indigenous rodent of Santo Domingo. Proceed-
ings of the Biological Society of Washington, 29:47. February 24, 1916.
(Records additional specimens of Plagiodontia aedium Cuvier, hitherto
known only by the type described in 1836. — N. H.)

Miller, G. S., Jr. Remains of two species of Capromys from ancient burial sites
in Jamaica. Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington, 29 : 48.
February 24, 1916. (A species apparently much like the form known from
Little Swan Island is represented by bones; as well as remains of the pre-
viously known Jamaica species, C. broivnii. — N. H.)

Nelson, E. W. The larger North American mammals. National Geographic
Magazine, 30: 385-472. November, 1916. (A popular account, illustrated
by numerous colored pictures by L. A. Fuertes. — N. H.)

Taylor, W. P. Aplodontia humboldtiana, a new mountain beaver from the
Humboldt Bay district, California. Proceedings of the Biological Society
of Washington, 29: 21-23. February 24, 1916.

Thomas, O. Note on the name Corynorhinus megalotis. Proceedings of the
Biological Society of Washington, 29: 127. June 6, 1916. (Preoccupied;
replaced by Corynorhinus rafinesquii. — N. H.)

TECHNOLOGY

Ahlborn, G. H. Data on electric railway track leakage. Bureau of Standards

Technologic Paper No. 75. Pp. 22. 1916.
Botjghton, E. W. The determination of volatile thinner in oil varnish. Bureau

of Standards Technologic Paper No. 76. Pp. 6. 1916.
Briggs, C. A. Relative merits of long and short wheel-base test cars. The Scale

Journ., 1: 5. 1915; Railway Rev., Aug. 14, 1915; Railway Age Gaz., April

21, 1916.
Briggs, C. A. Automatic grain scales. Scale Journ., Jan. and May, 1916.

references: technology 43

Briggs, C. A. Graphical study of railroad track scales and master scale perform*
ances. Scale Journ., June. 1916; Railway Rev., July 15, 1916.

Bureau of Standards. Analyzed irons and steels. Methods of analysis. Bureau
of Standards Circular No. 14, 5th ed. Pp. 17. 1916.

Bureau of Standards. Magnetic testing. Bureau of Standards Circular No.
17, 3d ed. Pp. 50. 1916.

Bureau of Standards. Measurements for the household. Bureau of Standards
Circular No. 55. Pp. 149. 1915.

Burgess, G. K., and Merica, P. D. Some j oreign specifications for railway mate-
rials: Rails, ivheels, axles, tires. Bureau of Standards Technologic Paper
No. 61. Pp. 132. 1916.

Cain, J. R., and Cleaves, H. E. Determination of carbon in steels and irons by
direct combustion in oxygen at high temperatures. Bureau of Standards Tech-
nologic Paper No. 69. Pp. 10. 1916.

Karr, C. P., and Rawdon, Henry S. Standard test specimens of zinc bronze
(Cu 88, Sn 10, Zn 2). Part I. — Preparation of specifications; Part II. — Micro-
structure. Bureau of Standards Technologic Paper No. 59. Pp. 67. 1916.

Lewis, Walter S. Difference in weight between raw and clean wools. Bureau of
Standards Technologic Paper No. 57. Pp. 5. 1915.

McCullom, B., and Ahlborn, G. H. Special studies in electrolysis mitigation.

III. A report on conditions in Springfield, Ohio, loith insulated feeder system
installed. Bureau of Standards Technologic Paper No. 54. Pp. 64. 1916.

McCullom, B., and Logan, K. H. Special studies in electrolysis mitigation.

IV. A preliminary report on electrolysis mitigation in Elyria, Ohio, with
recommendations for mitigation. Bureau of Standards Technologic Paper
No. 55. Pp. 49. 1916.

McCullom, B., and Ahlborn, G. H. Influence of frequency of alternating or in-
frequently reversed currents on electrolytic corrosion. Bureau of Standards
Technologic Paper No. 72. Pp. 31. 1916.

Rosa, E. B., Brooks, H. B., McCullom, B., Canada, W. J., and Glading, F.
W. An investigation of enclosed cartridge fuses. Report of the Bureau of
Standards in the case of Economy Fuse and Manufacturing Co. vs. Under-
writers' Laboratories (Inc.), concerning the fire and accident hazard of the
Economy Refillable Fuse as compared with approved fuses. Bureau of Stand-
ards Technologic Paper No. 74. Pp. 199. 1916.

Tuttle, J. B. Determination of barium carbonate and barium sulphate in vul-
canized goods. Bureau of Standards Technologic Paper No. 64. Pp. 5.
1916; Journ. Ind. and Eng. Chem., 8: 324. 1916; Chem. Eng., 23: 129. 1916;
Chem. Abs., 10: 1289. 1916.

Waters, C. E., and Tuttle, J. B. Some qualitative tests for gum arabic and its
quantitative determination. Bureau of Standards Technologic Paper No.
67. Pp. 15. 1916; Journ. Ind. and Eng. Chem., 8: 413-416. 1916.

Waters, C. E. Data on the oxidation of automobile cylinder oils. Bureau of
Standards Technologic Paper No. 73. Pp. 20. 1916; Journ. Ind. and Eng.
Chem., 8: 587-592. 1916.

Wig, R. J., Williams, G. M., and Gates, E. R. Strength and other properties of
concretes as affected by materials and methods of preparation. Bureau of
Standards Technologic Paper No. 58. Pp. 172. 1916.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

THE BOTANICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The sixteenth annual meeting of the Botanical Society of Washington
was held in Room 32 of the Bureau of Plant Industry building, U. S.
Department of Agriculture, at 1.30 p.m., October 16, 1916, with
W. E. Safford acting chairman and H. L. Shantz acting secretary.

The minutes of the fifteenth annual meeting were read and approved
and the report of the Executive Committee read and approved. The
report of the Treasurer was read and an Auditing Committee, con-
sisting of P. L. Ricker and G. P. Van Eseltine, appointed by the
Chair.

The following officers were elected for the ensuing year: President,
T. H. Kearney; Vice-President, Edgar L. Brown; Recording Secretary,
Charles E. Chambliss; Corresponding Secretary, H. L. Shantz;
Treasurer, F. D. Farrell.

Mr. A. S. Hitchcock was nominated by the society as Vice-President
of the Washington Academy of Sciences.

The 115th regular meeting of the Society was held at the Cosmos
Club Tuesday, November 7, 1916, at 8.00 p.m.

Mr. Michael Shapovalov, Dr. Howard G. MacMillan, Dr.
Joseph Rosenbaum, and Mr. F. E. Miller were elected to membership
in the Society.

Under Brief Notes and Reviews of Literature, Mr. W. T. Swingle
called attention to a recent edition of an ancient Chinese work on bot-
any, The Cheng lei pen ts'ao, originally published in 1108 A.D. Dr.
A. T. Tenaka reviewed briefly a recently issued Hand Book of Plant
Diseases of Japan, by Jinzo Matsumura.

The following papers were presented:

Notes on the life of John Bradbury: R. H. True. Information
concerning the life of this early naturalist and explorer of the Missouri
Valley is very meager. A considerable addition has been gained from
the correspondence carried on between Bradbury and Thomas Jefferson,
who greatly influenced the course of Bradbury's life and work in this
country. Bradbury's life, as gathered from this and other available
sources, was sketched in outline.

44

proceedings: biological society 45

Pathological problems in the distribution of -perishable plant products:
C. L. Shear and W. A. Orton. The enormous losses in recent years
caused by the deterioration and decay of fruits and vegetables between
the field and the consumer have led to a more active interest in this
subject and a desire on the part of those most directly affected to have
the causes and means of prevention determined. In most cases fungi
are the active agents in causing the destruction of such products, and
the problem is primarily pathological. In order to devise means of
avoiding these losses, a thorough knowledge of all the factors and con-
ditions involved must be qbtained. Each fruit and vegetable has its
own peculiarities and its own parasites. In some cases the cause of
loss may be traced to the field, and in others to conditions of transporta-
tion and handling. In any specific case the cause and responsibility
for the loss can be determined only by careful investigation of all the
facts. Specific cases of losses of strawberries, peaches, cranberries,
watermelons, tomatoes, and potatoes were cited to indicate the com-
plexity of the problems and the danger of drawing any general conclu-
sions from insufficient data. It was shown that the means of prevent-
ing such losses will depend upon the nature of the cause or causes, as
determined by a knowledge of all the factors in any particular case.

H. L. Shantz, Corresponding Secretary.

BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 561st meeting of the Society was held at the Cosmos Club,
Saturday, December 2, 1916; called to order by President Hay at
8 p.m. with 50 persons in attendance.

The following program was presented:

W. P. Hay : The discovery of an interesting new tardigrade.

Professor Hay gave a brief description of a tardigrade belonging to
the genus Batillipes, discovered by him some years ago at Beaufort,
N. C. It is closely related to B. mirus Richters but differs from that
species in a number of important characters. The structure and
relationship of the tardigrades were discussed and the conclusion was
reached that Batillipes, in spite of its evident specialization along
certain lines, is probably the most primitive genus of the group. From
Batillipes through Halechiniscus to Oreella and Echiniscus was sug-
gested as one line of development, while from Echiniscoides through
Milnesium to Macrobiotus and Diphascon appears to be another. The
genus Tetrakentron, with its single species T. synaptae, shows a high
degree of specialization due to parasitism, and Microlyda is probably
the larval form of Halechiniscus.

Attention was called to the habitat of the ten animalcules belonging
to these genera. Five of them, Batillipes, Halechiniscus, Microlyda,
Tetrakentron, and Echiniscoides are marine; Echiniscus and Oreella
are strictly terrestrial; Macrobiotus is mostly terrestrial or lacustrine,
but is represented in salt water by at least two species; Diphascon is

46 proceedings: biological society

terrestrial and lacustrine. The fact that the majority of the genera
are marine and that this list includes all the more primitive genera
points strongly to a marine origin for the group. It also supports
the idea advanced by Professor Richters in 1909 that the tardigrades
are probably most closely related to the chaetopod worms and should
be removed from the class Arachnida in or near which the group is
usually placed in our zoological text books. Professor Hay's com-
munication was illustrated by charts and diagrams.

J. N. Rose: Exhibition of Venezuelan plants and fruits.

Dr. Rose had on exhibition a large tableful of fruits, fruit products,
and various articles made of parts of Venezuelan plants. He explained
their use and described the plants from which they were obtained.
The specimens were obtained for the most part in the vicinity of La
Guaira and Caracas. Dr. Rose's communication was discussed by
Messrs. H. Pittier, M. W. Lyon, Jr., and others.

M. W. Lyon, Jr.: Poisonous snakes.

Dr. Lyon -gave an account of the various specific substances that
have been found in snake venoms, and outlined their modes of action
on the various tissues of bitten animals. He spoke of the various
antiserums that have been prepared against these venoms, and their
therapeutic uses. He called attention also to the non-specific treat-
ment of snakebites in the light of modern statistics and experiments.
He then gave a brief outline of the classification of venomous snakes,
and discussed their geographic distribution and the development and
structure of the poison gland and fang. His communication was
illustrated by lantern slide views of skulls, glands, and fangs of poisonous
snakes, of types of poisonous snakes, and of some of the histological
changes caused by snake venom. It was discussed by Messrs. A. A.
Doolittle, H. Pittier, H. M. Smith, H. E. Ames, and T. E. Wilcox.

The 562d regular and the 37th annual meeting Of the Society was
held at the Cosmos Club, Saturday, December 16, 1916; called to order
by President Hay at 8 p.m. with 23 persons present.

Annual reports of officers and committees were submitted. Elec-
tion of officers for the year 1917 resulted as follows: President, W. P.
Hay; Vice-presidents, J. N. Rose, A. D. Hopkins, Hugh M. Smith,
Vernon Bailey; Recording Secretary, M. W. Lyon, Jr.; Corresponding
Secretary, W. L. McAtee; Treasurer, Ned Dearborn; Members of
Council, N. Hollister, J. W. Gidley, William Palmer, Alex.
Wetmore, E. A. Goldman. President Hay was nominated as vice-
president of the Washington Academy of Sciences.

Ex-president B. W. Evermann then gave an illustrated lecture
regarding the present condition of the museum of the California
Academy of Science and its aims and aspirations. This was dis-
cussed by Messrs. E. W. Nelson and Vernon Bailey.

M. W. Lyon, Jr., Recording Secretary.

proceedings: anthropological society 47

THE ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 500th meeting of the Society was held at the New National
Museum, October 17, 1916, at 4.30 p.m. Dr. Walter Hough, of
the National Museum, read a paper on Ancient pit dwellers in New
Mexico.

Dr. Hough said that remains of pit dwellings were indicated on the
site of stone ruins explored in western Socorro County, New Mexico,
several years ago and that a large cluster of such dwellings not con-
nected with stone ruins was observed subsequently near Luna, in
Socorro County. The site was productive of interesting results during
an exploration for the Bureau of American Ethnology last summer.
The field in which the remains occur had been smoothed over by natural
agencies and the positions of the houses were shown only by the stronger
growth of vegetation over circular areas, this defining the pits. Some
of the pits were cleared, and it was found that they were from 12 to
14 feet in diameter and 5| feet deep. Remains of roof clay and charred
posts and beams indicate that the roof was supported on posts placed
around the periphery of the pit. It is thus probable that more than
half of the house was underground, and perhaps the position of the
walls above ground were banked. The floor arrangement shows a
fireplace near the center, a metate and grinding stones near the fire.
In one of the pits a burnt clay wall fireplace was found. Adjoining
the pits was a rectangular house also rooted with clay. Here were
found numerous grinding stones, baking slabs, and remains of pottery,
these being about a foot under the surface loam. This house was an
open air cooking and mealing shed. Near the first pit excavated was a
cemetery of infants; no remains of adults have yet been found on the
site.

A dance amphitheater which was about 100 feet in diameter and
10 feet deep lies on the east side of the site. It has been filled by
natural agencies with about 5 feet of fire-blackened debris and in it large
pine trees have matured. It is on the bank of the former and larger
channel of a living stream which traverses the eastern edge of the site.
The specimens found are crude metates, rubbing stones, hammer
stones, baking slabs, etc.; pottery of Pueblo type, decorated and un-
decorated and of some crudity; a few bone awls and small obsidian
arrowheads. No stone axes were found.

Dr. Hough presented the problem as he found it, and hesitated as
yet to pronounce upon the affiliations of the people who constructed
the pit houses.

The 501st meeting of the Society was held in the Lecture Hall of
the Public Library, on Tuesday evening, November 7, 1916, at 8
o'clock. The speaker was Mr. W. E. Saffoed, of the Bureau of Plant
Industry, U. S. Department of Agriculture. His subject was Magic
plant* of the ancient Americans. The paper was illustrated with lan-
tern slides.

48 proceedings: anthropological society

Mr. Safford said that the practice of magic was widely spread in
both North and South America in pre-Columbian times, and in con-
nection with it certain plants, principally those having narcotic prop-
erties, were used ceremonially, often as incense, or to produce hal-
lucinations, to call up the spirits of the dead, and to expel evil spirits
from the sick and insane. The priest of the Temple of the Sun at
Sagomozo, in the Andes of South America, prophesied and revealed
hidden treasures while in a state of frenzy caused by the seeds of a
tree datura (Brugmansia sanguined). This recalls similar practices of
the priestesses of the oracle at Delphi. Another Peruvian plant with
marvelous properties described by early explorers was Erythroxylon
Coed, from which the valuable alkaloid cocaine is now obtained.
Bags of its leaves accompanied by little gourds containing lime were
found by the author in many graves near the Peruvian coast, hanging
about the necks of the mummified remains of the dead. On the
opposite coast of South America, or rather in Paraguay, grew the highly
esteemed Ilex paraguariensis, or yerba mate. Closely allied to it is the
Ilex vomitorid of the southeastern United States, from which the In-
dians made the famous "black drink," used ceremonially as a magic
physic, which purged them from evil and which was used also in initiat-
ing their youths into manhood. Professional priests, or necromancers,
were encountered by Columbus and his companions on the island of
Hispaniola, who induced intoxication and called up their zemi, or gods,
by means of a narcotic snuff, called cohoba, inhaled through the nostrils
by means of a bifurcated tube. This snuff, hitherto believed to have
been tobacco, has been identified recently by the author as the powdered
seeds of a Mimosa-like tree, Piptadenia peregrina, still used in a similar
way by various South American tribes of Indians, by some of whom an
infusion of the seeds is also used to induce intoxication, administered
as an enema by means of a pear-shaped syringe of caoutchouc. In
Mexico, the early missionaries, who were called upon to stamp out the
practice of witchcraft, found that the Aztecs paid divine honors to
various plants, especially to huauhtli (a white-seeded Amaranthus);
ololiuhqui (a Datura); peyotl (a spineless cactus, Lophophora Wil-
liamsii) also called teonanacatl, or "Sacred Mushroom;" and picietl
(tobacco). Of huauhtli seeds, ground to a paste with the syrup of
maguey, images were made and adored, and afterwards broken into
fragments and served as a kind of communion. This seed was pro-
duced in such quantities that it was used in paying tribute to Monte-
zuma, at the time of the Conquest. The ololiuhqui was regarded as
divine, and it was considered a holy task to sweep the ground where
it grew. Its spirit, addressed as the Green Woman (Xoxouhqui Cihuatl) ,
was invoked to expel certain diseases and to overcome weaker and
inferior spirits in possession of a sick person. It is interesting to note
that the use of the ololiuhqui, or toloatzin, as it was also called (Datura
meteloides) , still prevails among the Zuni Indians of New Mexico, the
Pai-Utes, and several tribes of southern California in certain religious
and ceremonial practices, especially in initiating youths into the status

proceedings: anthropological society 49

of manhood. The peyotl, or teonanacatl, called by Bancroft the "flesh
of the gods," was used by the Aztecs in nocturnal feasts, very much as
it is still used by Indians of the Mexican Sierra Madre and by certain
tribes of the United States, who believe the visions induced by it to
be supernatural. In ancient times a supply of this little narcotic
plant was obtained by runners especially consecrated for the purpose,
and its gathering was attended by a most formal ceremony. At the
present day it is sent from the locality where it grows, along the Rio
Grande, by means of parcel post. Lastly, the ceremonial and religious
use of picietl, or tobacco, goes back to remote antiquity. No other
narcotic plant, perhaps, has become so widely spread or so generally
used and beloved by its votaries. Though of subtropical origin its
cultivation had extended before the Discovery as far north as the St.
Lawrence River. Beautiful pipes of many forms, representing birds,
mammals, human heads, etc. have been discovered in Indian mounds
near the native city of the speaker, Chillicothe, Ross County, Ohio;
and more recently in Scioto county farther to the south.

In addition to the aboye plants may be mentioned a certain small
scarlet bean, the seed of Sophora secuncl /flora, endemic in northern Mexico
and southern Texas. This also has narcotic properties, and was so much
sought after by certain tribes of Indians that they have been known
to exchange a pony for a string of the beans 6 feet in length. In one of
the secret societies of the Iowa Indians this bean is used in the initiating
ceremonial ; the beans are carried as charms or amulets by the members
of the society, just as in western Mexico fragments of the peyotl,
and in southern California parts of the Datura, are carried by their
votaries, who believe them to be efficacious against danger and to bring
good luck in hunting and war. It is interesting to note a similar practice
in the Old World of carrying the root of Mandragora (or a substitute
for it) as an amulet ; but most interesting of all is the similarity between
the beliefs and practices of the inhabitants of the Old World and the
New, in connection with narcotic and other plants held to possess magic
properties. The lantern slides used to illustrate the lecture were
photographs of the various magic plants discussed.

This paper was discussed by Mr. James Mooney, who for a number
of years has given special study to the subject of peyotl. Mr. Mooney
defended those who are devoted to the peyotl ceremony and claimed
that, in most cases, the assertions made against the plant and its users
are based upon ignorance of the facts and are without foundation.

The 502nd meeting of the Society was held at the New National
Museum on Tuesday afternoon, November 21, 1916, at 4.30 o'clock.
Mr. Neil M. Judd, of the U. S. National Museum, presented a paper
on New types of Pueblo ruins found in western Utah, illustrating his
paper with chalk drawings.

Mr. Judd described a recent archeological reconnaissance of western
Utah conducted under the auspices of the Bureau of American Eth-
nology, stating that this resulted in the discovery of two types of pre-

50 proceedings: anthropological society

historic habitations not previously reported from the Southwest. The
first of these was circular in form and was made by leaning logs against
cross-pieces supported by four uprights which surrounded a central
fire-place. Willows, grass, and clay, in succession, covered the logs.
Houses of the second type, occurring usually in groups forming vil-
lages, were rectangular in shape and constructed entirely of adobe.
A small series of unattached cliff-dwellings, exhibiting certain features
common both to structures of this second type and to stone-walled
houses south and east of the Rio Colorado, was also described. A
careful study of the lesser artifacts recovered from both types of
western Utah ruins indicates a close cultural relationship between
their respective builders and the inhabitants of prehistoric structures
in other sections of the Southwest.

In a discussion of the paper Dr. J. W. Fewkes called attention to
the desirability of a more accurate definition of what archeologists
mean by a "pueblo." He pointed out that the term is sometimes used
loosely to include all lands of ruined stone buildings in the Southwest.
Inasmuch as the pueblo culture area owes its name to characteristic
buildings or pueblos, he suggested that the term be limited to terraced,
congested community buildings with ceremonial rooms or kivas. If
this suggestion were accepted by archeologists, many ruins on the
periphery of the so-called Pueblo area would have to be classified as
belonging to a prepuebloan phase, or not regarded as pueblos at all.

The 503rd meeting of the Society was held in the Lecture Hall of
the Public Library on Tuesday evening, December 5, 1916, at 8 o'clock.
At this meeting Prof. W. H. Holmes, of the U. S. National Museum,
delivered an address on Outlines of American aboriginal history, illus-
trated with lantern slides.

Introducing his subject, Professor Holmes said it is agreed that the
human race is a unit, and that it follows, therefore, that there was but
one cradle and that man spread from this over the world. The early
chapters of human history must always remain obscure, although
evidence has been found carrying the story far back into the remote
past. It was the purpose of the speaker to Indicate briefly the prob-
able course taken bjr the human race in spreading from the Asiatic
cradle to the New World, and also to indicate the causes and course of
cultural development in the various centers of American occupancy
and to suggest the causes of decline.

The earliest known traces of man (or man-like being) have been
found on the island of Java. In the nature of things, it was a long-
time before he wandered far from his primeval home. He had to
acquire the arts of the hunter and fisher before he could reach the
far north and it was doubtless by way of Bering Strait that he reached
the New World. Portraits were shown of the various peoples whose
ancestors may have been concerned in these ancient migrations —
natives of Tibet, China, and Siberia, the Eskimo, the Sioux, the Zuni,
and other typical American Indians; and attention was directed to the

proceedings: anthropological society 51

practical identity of these types. Referring to the development of
culture in America it was shown that no culture above the hunter-
fisher stage ever passed through the Bering gateway. All culture of
higher grade is. therefore, American. As the early immigrants reached
the more favorable localities of the continent, they engaged in agricul-
ture and became sedentary. This condition led to the development
of the simple arts, industries, and institutions belonging to this phase
of progress. It was asked, How then do we account for the vast works
in the way of temples, pyramids, and tombs, and the vast body of
products of the sculptor's art, of highly embellished pottery, textiles,
and metallurgy? It was shown that all were due to the dynamic
forces of religion manifested through the all-powerful shamanistic
classes, who sought above all things to honor the gods and to glorify
themselves. But, it was asked, Why are the once splendid cities now
in ruin? The reasons are readily found: The energies of the people
were broken down by the ever increasing load of super-essential activi-
ties. The system which permitted over-growth of these highest mani-
festations of culture had within itself the germs of disaster.

Numerous slides illustrating various wonderful products of sculp-
tural and architectural genius developed under the absolute control
of the Mayan shamanistic priesthood were shown.

The paper was discussed by Dr. E. Hewett, of Santa Fe, N. M.,
Mr. S. G. Morley, of Cambridge, Mass., and Dr. H. J. Spixdex, of
Xew York. Dr. Hewett suggested the influence of environment on
the cultural development of a race, citing the discovery of metal by
the earl}- inhabitants of Europe and its use in making weapons. Air.
Morley spoke of the Maya hieroglyphs, and Dr. Spinden discussed
the culture which preceded that of the Maya in Central America,
traces of the agricultural period remaining in crude figurines, and that
of the religious period in effigies of serpents and of grotesque gods.

The 504th meeting of the Society was held at the New National
Museum, December 19, 1916 at 4.30 p.m. Dr. Truman Michelsox,
of the Bureau of American Ethnology, presented a paper entitled Notes
on the Peoria Indians.

Dr. Michelson said that the Peoria Indians have practically lost
their ethnology, in the strictest sense of the word, although their lan-
guage and folklore still remain. A study of these shows very clearly
that the Peoria Indians have had two associations, the older and more
intimate association being with the Ojibwa group of central Algonkins
and the more recent with the Sauk, Fox, and Kickapoo. The terms of
relationship support this view, as do the historical facts.

The speaker then showed by means of a blackboard chart the system
of consanguinity among the Peoria. In this way it was demonstrated
that two factors were involved, i.e., the gentile organization and blood
consanguinity.

The paper was followed by a general and interesting discussion.
Prof. W. H. Holmes mentioned the old quarries in northeastern Okla-

52 proceedings: anthropological society

homa, near the present location of the Peoria Indians, and Dr. Ales
Hrdlicka noted the importance of definite recording of the geographic
distribution of Indian tribes. In reply to a question by Mr. F. W.
Hodge the speaker expressed the opinion that archeological research
would throw light on the early material culture of the Peoria. Dr.
J. R. S wanton noted that the Indians of the Northwest coast have a
myth similar to one related by the speaker, in which bones thrown
into the water are said to "come to life." In the legend of the coast
Indians the bones are those of a salmon, while among the Peoria the
bones are those of a beaver. In response Dr. Michelson stated that
the form of this legend which mentions the beaver is limited to a small
area.

Frances Densmore, Secretary.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VII FEBRUARY 4, 1917 No. 3

PHYSICS. — Standard substances for the calibration of viscometers.1
Eugene C. Bingham and Richard F. Jackson, Bureau of
Standards. (Communicated by C. W. Waidner.)

For the calibration of viscometers there is a need for one or
more liquids which can be easily obtained in pure condition, and
which have viscosities that are greater than that of water and
that are known with a considerable degree of certainty. The
substances selected are mixtures of ethyl alcohol and water,
and sucrose and water. Previous work upon water and alcohol
being adequate, the present experiments were confined to sucrose
and water. The sucrose was purified by repeated recrystalli-
zation from water solution, and contained residual impurities
of the order of one-thousandth of a per cent. The compositions
of the solutions used in the measurements were determined by
density measurements and by polariscopic tests.

The viscometer used in the investigation consisted essentially
of a U-tube fitted with a capillary limb surmounted by a bulb
with constrictions. The bulb served as a measure of the volume
of liquid forced through the capillary. A bulb of similar size
and shape was sealed on the other limb. The viscometer was
connected to a manometer and an apparatus for the application

1 To appear in detail as Bureau of Standards Scientific Paper No. 298.

53

54 BINGHAM AND JACKSON: VISCOSITY STANDARDS

of pressure. From the observations the viscosity was calculated
by the usual formula:

V = Cpr-C

T

in which rj is the viscosity, p applied pressure, p density of
liquid, t time of flow, C and C constants abbreviated from the
complete viscosity formula. C was found by direct calculation,
C by measuring the time of flow of pure water at 20°C. The
viscosity of water at 20°C. was taken as 0.01005.

The viscosity was measured at a variety of applied pressures.
To obtain the true effective pressure, the height of liquid in the
manometer was corrected for air buoyancy, column of connecting
air, and hydrostatic head of the liquid undergoing measurement.
In order to be certain that the drainage of the solution was
complete, both the time of flow required to empty and that to
fill the bulb were measured. Furthermore, the viscosity was
found to be independent of applied pressure. To test the cal-
culations and corrections the viscosity of water was measured
over a considerable range of pressures. The value was found
to be constant.

In order to avoid the arbitrary scales of commercial viscom-
eters and the inconvenient magnitudes of the absolute units, we
suggest the use of the "centipoise" as a unit of viscosity. This
is the one-hundredth part of the c.g.s. absolute unit. The cen-
tipoise is almost exactly the viscosity of water at 20°C. (0.01005)
and, hence, is at the same time the specific viscosity of any sub-
stance referred to water at very near 20 °C.

The existing data for the viscosity of water have been reviewed
in order to obtain a value as far as possible in accord with our
present knowledge. The mean value expressed as fluidity is
given by the formula :

<t> = 2.1482 {{t - 8.435) + V8078.4 + (t - 8.435)2 } - 120

in which 0 is the fluidity, and t the centigrade temperature.

The fluidities of mixtures of ethyl alcohol and water expressed
as functions of the temperature, and of the weight and volume
percentage of alcohol, will be given in the detailed paper.

sosman: problems of the oxides of iron 55

The viscosity of a 39.99 per cent sucrose solution was meas-
ured at temperatures varying from 0°C. to 95°C. The observed
values correspond to the formula :

t = 0.597 0 + 20) - ]^^ + 38.24

0 + 20

On repeating these measurements practically the same values
were obtained.

Measurements were made with 20.007 per cent and 59.96 per
cent sucrose solutions also. The fluidities at the latter con-
centration correspond to the formula:

t = 1.472 (^ + 5) - ®®2 + 58.62

0 + 5

The values found in the present investigation indicate a
higher viscosity than those of previous investigators.

CHEMISTRY. — Some problems of the oxides of iron.1 Robert
B. Sosman, Geophysical Laboratory.

Starting with the general principle that the soundest prog-
ress in science is made by proceeding from that which is simple
and understandable to that which is more complex and less
understandable, various investigators have sought to unravel
the complexities of natural rocks and minerals by studying
first their simplest constituents. Since it appears that under
most rock-forming conditions silica (Si02), alumina (A1203),
lime (CaO), and magnesia (MgO) always act as units, these
oxides may be taken as the pure components in the fundamental
experiments.

With the oxides of iron the case is different. The equilibrium
between ferrous and ferric iron in a mineral or rock can vary
with every change of temperature and with every change in
the amount or pressure of available oxygen. In order to under-

1 Presidential address, Chemical Society of Washington, January 11, 1917.
Presented before a joint meeting of the Chemical Society and the Washington
Academy of Sciences.

56 sosman: problems of the oxides of iron

stand ferrous silicate and the minerals in which it occurs, there-
fore, we must go back one step further ; and study the system
iron-oxygen.

THE PHASE-RULE DIAGRAM OF THE SYSTEM IRON-OXYGEN

The logical point at which to begin a survey of the pressure-
temperature-concentration relations in the two-component sys-
tem iron-oxygen is with the pure component iron. We have
learned a great deal in recent years about the properties of pure
metallic iron, although the difficulty of preparing the metal
quite free from its usual impurities of carbon, hydrogen, sulphur,
phosphorus, manganese, and silicon, has delayed the determi-
nation of its elementary constants.

But when we add oxygen, the second component, to the sys-
tem we come into a little-known region which extends as far as
the compound Fe304. The solubility of oxygen in solid iron
is certainly not large, but has not been accurately determined.
Austin2 states that the oxygen found by analysis of iron bars
does not exceed 0.29 per cent, and that the most of this seems
to be in the form of oxide films in mechanical admixture. Pick-
ard3 concludes from his analyses that 0.092 per cent of oxygen
is soluble in liquid iron as FeO, although a part of this may sep-
arate out on the solidification of the metal. It is thus evident
that there is no extensive solid solution of oxygen in iron.
But the small quantity that is present has a very large influence,
especially on the magnetic properties of the metal, as appears
from the work of Yensen.4

The next question is, what is the lowest oxide in equilibrium
with metallic iron? Ferrous oxide, FeO, has been generally
assumed to be the oxide lowest in oxygen, but the data concern-
ing it are far from satisfactory. Various methods for preparing
FeO are found in chemical literature. Mr. Hostetter and I
have tried several of these, and our experience has invariably

2 Engineering, 100: 455. 1915.

3 Iron Age- 98: 184-186. 1916.

* Yensen, T. D. Univ. Illinois, Eng. Exp. Station, Bulls. 72, 77, 83. 1914-
1916.

sosman: problems of the oxides of iron 57

been that the product was a mixture of iron (or iron carbide)
with magnetite or with some oxide intermediate in composition
between FeO and Fe304. The best work on FeO has been that
done by Hilpert, and his conclusion, likewise, is that the vari-
ous methods commonly cited do not yield FeO, although the
product sometimes has an average composition nearly equiv-
alent to the composition FeO.

Hilpert and Beyer5 found that by reduction of Fe203 by hydro-
gen saturated with water vapor they could obtain products
which were richer in ferrous iron than Fe304, but which con-
tained no metallic iron. The higher the temperature of reduc-
tion, the higher the percentage of "FeO." A product containing
only 1.5 per cent of Fe203 was obtained by reduction at 1100°;
at 700° the upper limit was 85 per cent of FeO. The reaction
velocity is so slow, as equilibrium is approached, that it is difficult
to say what the final solid phases would be. Hilpert believes
that solid solutions exist between Fe304 and FeO, perhaps with
limited miscibility, or even with intermediate compounds.

We can find a possible explanation of the case of FeO by ref-
erence to the somewhat analogous oxides of two other metals
of the eighth group, namely, platinum and iridium.6 The evi-
dence indicates that the oxide IrO, within a certain range of
temperature, has a higher dissociation pressure than the oxide
Ir02; hence IrO will spontaneously change into a mixture of
Ir02 and metallic iridium, according to the reaction:

2IrO = Ir02 + Ir

Thus, if FeO happens, over some particular range of tempera-
ture, to have a higher dissociation pressure than Fe304, it is
possible for the following reaction to occur:

4FeO = Fe304 + Fe

The existence of such a relation would explain many of the ex-
perimental results already obtained, such as the fact that, in

5 Hilpert, S., and Beyer. J. Ber. deu. chem. Ges., 44: 1608-1619. 1911.

6 Wohler and Witzmann. Zs. Elektrochem., 14: 97-107. 1908. Wohler and
Frey. Ibid.,. 15: 129-142. 1909. A solid solution of Ir02with IrO or Ir forms,
rather than the pure oxide Ir02.

58 sosman: problems of the oxides of iron

our experience, powdered iron heated in oxygen at low pressures
always yields a mixture of a black magnetic oxide (perhaps
a solution of FeO in Fe304) and metallic iron. The facts are
so few, however, that this explanation is not to be considered
as more than a suggestion.

There is one interesting geological application of this relation,
if it should be found to exist. Many basic rocks, such as dia-
base and gabbro, contain metallic iron. The best known occur-
rence is probably that in Greenland, but other examples exist
in all parts of the world. If our supposed oxygen-pressure
relationship still holds when the oxides are dissolved in a silicate
magma, the following reaction would occur:

4FeSi03 (in complex silicate^FesCX + Fe + Si02 (in complex

silicate)

At constant temperature, increasing pressure would drive
this reaction in the direction of diminishing volume. The
formation of FeO from Fe and Fe304 is accompanied by a con-
traction of volume, according to Hilpert's data, and it appears
not unlikely, therefore, that release of pressure in a rising column
of molten diabase might alone account for the occurrence of
metallic iron in the resulting rock, without the need of recourse
to reducing agents such as entrapped organic deposits or dis-
solved reducing gases. This problem calls for the measurement
of dissociation pressures and specific volumes of the oxides and
silicates concerned, in the region 900°-1300?

The same reaction might conceivably be made a basis for a
commercial method of making pure iron, free from the usual
impurities which come from the use of coke as a reducing agent.

Continuing our survey in the direction of increasing content
of oxygen, we come to the compound ferrosoferric oxide, magne-
tite (Fe304). Its melting point is 1580°, and it melts sharply
to a mobile liquid which crystallizes in octahedra on cooling.
Its dissociation pressure is extremely low, being less than 0.04
mm. of mercury at 1200°, and less than 0.005 mm. at 1100?

Further addition of oxygen brings us into the region between
Fe304 and Fe203, a region which we have recently investigated

sosman: problems of the oxides of iron 59

at 1100° and 1200? These two oxides seem to form a continu-
ous series of solid solutions from Fe203 to Fe304, or at least to a
point so near Fe304 that it has not been possible to detect a
break in the dissociation pressure curves.7

The melting temperatures (solidus and liquidus curves) of
the series Fe203-Fe304 have not yet been determined. The
dissociation pressure rises so rapidly with increase of temperature
that at the melting temperature of the solid solution the pres-
sure of oxygen will probably be found to be of the order of several
atmospheres for compositions which depart much from Fe304.

The melting point of Fe203 can be determined only under
sufficient oxygen pressure to prevent its dissociation, and it is
impossible to predict whether the melting point will be higher
or lower than that of magnetite. The form of the liquidus and
solidus curves (continuous, minimum, or maximum) can also
not be predicted. The form of these curves is of particular
interest in connection with the effect of changing oxygen pres-
sure. At a given temperature it is possible that increasing the
oxygen pressure might cause either fusion or solidification of the
oxide, or even fusion followed by solidification, depending upon
the form of the curves.

The type of solid solution represented by these two oxides of
iron deserves a moment's consideration. The special feature
of this case is that the two constituents of the solution differ only
in the proportion of volatile component which is combined with
the non-volatile component. In other words one of the constituent
oxides of the solid solution is produced by direct dissociation of
oxygen from the other oxide. The case of Fe203-Fe304 is
thus exactly analogous to the case of CoCl2.6NH3-CoCl2.2NH3,
in that we may consider Fe as replaced by CoCl2 and O
by NH3. The system just referred to has been studied by
Biltz and Fetkenheuer,8 who find a continuous series of solid
solutions, throughout which the NH3 pressure falls continuously,
following a reversed curve of the same form as that shown by
the iron oxides.

7 Sosman and Hostetter. Jour. Am. Chem. Soc, 38: 807-833. 1916.

8 Biltz and Fetkexhetjer. Zs. anorg. Chem., 89: 106. 1914.

60 sosman: problems of the oxides of ieon

Several interesting problems are raised by the consideration
of this type of solid solution. In the first place how are we to
picture to ourselves its internal structure? The X-ray analysis
of crystal structure is so radically altering our conceptions of the
make-up of solid substances that our ideas of solid solutions have
not yet become adjusted to the new facts. When it was dis-
covered that certain properties of a solute in dilute aqueous
solution made the solute seem quite analogous to a gas, and
when it was discovered that solid solutions existed which seemed
quite analogous to liquid solutions, we felt secure for a time in
this extension of molecular theory from gases over into liquids
and solids. The facts now need re-interpreting, but the greatest
need is for more facts on the crystalline structure of solid
solutions.

Another problem raised by a consideration of the hematite-
magnetite series is that of the continuous transition from one
crystal class into another. According to the original conception
of isomorphism, two compounds could enter into solid solution
only if they crystallized in the same system. Now hematite
is hexagonal* while magnetite is isometric; is a continuous series
from one of these systems to the other possible? To say that
there is a hexagonal form of magnetite, which is the form that
dissolves in hematite, is merely to dodge the issue; such a state-
ment becomes a meaningless form of words if the experimental
consequences remain the same whether the supposed second
form exists or not.

A consideration of the point systems from which the crystal
classes can be made up shows that we can in reality get a con-
tinuous transition from cubic to hexagonal. Suppose a cubical
portion of some cubic lattice to be standing on one of its corners ;
then if it be compressed along the vertical diagonal axis it
changes into a rhombohedron which becomes flatter with increas-
ing compression, and the rhombohedron is a hexagonal form. This
transition requires of course that the lattice of the isometric and
hexagonal forms be thus transformable, and this can be de-
termined for hematite and magnetite only by X-ray studies
of their crystals. If it should then be proved that the struc-

sosman: problems of the oxides of iron 61

tures of the ordinary forms of hematite and magnetite are not
thus transformable, then by geometry alone, without the aid of
chemistry, could we predict that there must be a break in the
solid-solution series between these two oxides?

A third problem of the hematite-magnetite series concerns
the escaping tendency or fugacity of the oxygen which dis-
sociates from the oxide. What determines the equilibrium pres-
sure of this oxygen for a given composition of the solid solution?
It is interesting to note the peculiar form of the oxygen pressure
curve in this series. The middle portion is fairly flat, and the
pressure changes slowly with change of composition. As the
composition of magnetite is approached, however, the pressure
begins to fall rapidly, and, conversely, it rises rapidly as the
composition Fe203 is approached. We have been able to show9
that the dissociation pressure of the first small portion of oxygen
from pure Fe203 at 1200° is of the order of magnitude of an
atmosphere of oxygen, although the pressure rapidly falls to a
few millimeters as dissociation progresses.

From a theoretical standpoint there are two ways of looking
upon this form of dissociation curve. On the one hand, we may
consider that the curve is asymptotic to the axis of ordinates;
in other words, the initial composition of the crystal corresponds
exactly to the formula Fe203, and the dissociation pressure of
the first few atoms of oxygen is very high. These atoms come
from all parts of the crystal, and their removal brings into play
forces which greatly restrain the fugacity of all the remaining
oxygen atoms, causing a rapid fall in the dissociation pressure.

On the other hand, we may consider, as Langmuir10 and others
have shown, that there are free chemical forces at the surface
of the crystal, and that these forces hold atoms of oxygen "ad-
sorbed" on the surface when the crystal is exposed to air. The
initial composition then is Fe203+*; in which x is a very small
number. The fugacity of these surface atoms is high, but not
much higher than that of oxygen atoms just within the surface.
Oxygen will begin dissociating from interior parts of the crystal,

9 Hostetter and Sosman. Jour. Am Chem. Soc, 38: 1188-1198. 1916.
10 Langmuir, I. Jour. Am. Chem. Soc, 38: 2221-2295. 1916.

62 sosman: problems of the oxides of iron

therefore, before all the adsorbed oxygen is removed from the
surface. Mathematically speaking, we may say that the dis-
sociation pressure curve is not asymptotic to the axis of ordinates,
drawn at the composition Fe203, but crosses this axis at a small
angle. This second conception of the case gives, I believe, the
better interpretation of the facts.

MAGNETIC PROPERTIES AND POLYMORPHISM OF THE OXIDES

The problems so far considered are all problems which are
common to nearly all the chemical elements and their compounds.
But there is one field of physics in which iron holds at present the
first place in interest, namely, the field of magnetism. Progress
in the experimental study of magnetic properties has lagged
behind experimental progress in electricity, chiefly because we
possess no magnetic insulator. As has been well stated by Mr.
Sanford at a recent meeting of the Philosophical Society of
Washington, "Measuring magnetic properties is like measuring
electrical resistance with the Wheatstone bridge and all the
connections immersed in a conducting liquid." Nevertheless,
rapid progress is now being made on several lines of magnetic
research.

The oxides of iron have been, from this standpoint, rather
neglected. Measurements will be found here and there in con-
nection with studies of the salts of iron, crystalline or dissolved.
From these it is clear that the oxides are not to be classed mag-
netically with the majority of the iron compounds. Ferric
oxide is abnormally low in susceptibility, in comparison with the
common salts of iron. Ferrosoferric oxide, on the other hand,
belongs, as is well known, among the highly ferromagnetic
substances. Ferrous oxide, again, seems to be in a class with
ferric oxide. Intermediate oxides possessing a variety of com-
binations of magnetic properties also exist.

The inversions in ferric oxide first attract our attention.
Honda11 has found that at liquid air temperatures ferric oxide
has only about two-thirds as great a susceptibility as at room
temperature,1 and that a change occurs rather suddenly in the

11 Honda, K., and Sone, T. Sci. Rep. Tohoku (Sendai), 3: 223-234. 1914.

sosman: problems of the oxides of iron 63

neighborhood of -40? The susceptibility rises to a maxi-
mum at about 600°, and then falls rapidly to about half value
at 690°, where the curve changes direction practically by a
right angle, the susceptibility being nearly constant from 690°
to 1300?

We have confirmed the high temperature inversion, placing
it at 678° by means of thermal curves.12 The inversion is sharp
and reproducible, and appears on both rising and falling tem-
perature curves. The —40° inversion we have not yet investi-
gated thermally.

Curie13 discovered a similar magnetic inversion in magnetite
at about 535? Barton and Williams14 confirmed this inversion,
placing it about 545? Weiss and Foex15 placed the inversion
at 581°, Wologdine16 at 525? The temperature of the magnetic
inversion is undoubtedly influenced by the magnitude of the
induction or of the magnetizing force. No thermal study of
the inversion has yet been made. The principal precaution
to be observed is the avoidance of oxidation of the magnetite
by air. Some of the conclusions of Weiss and Foex seem to
have been vitiated by a slight oxidation of their artificial magnet-
ite, and a faint trace of the 678° point of Fe203 appears on their
magnetite curve.

The magnetic inversion in pure iron occurs at about 770°,
varying somewhat with the magnetizing force to which the
iron is subjected. It is found thermally at 768°, and by electrical
resistance, at 757? This is the thermal inversion known as A2,
whose existence in pure iron free from carbon was seriously
questioned some years ago, but which has been established as
an independent and characteristic inversion by the excellent
work of Burgess and his co-workers at the Bureau of Standards.17

These magnetic inversions, which occur not only in iron, mag-
netite, and hematite, but also in various ferrites, are all very

12 Sosman and Hostetter. Jour. Am. Chem. Soc, 38: 831. 1916.

13 Curie, P. Ann. chim. phys., 5: 322. 1895.

14 Barton, E. H., and Williams, W. British Assoc. Rep., pp. 657-658. 1892.

15 Weiss, P., and Foex, G. Arch. sci. phys. (Geneve), 31 : 5-19, 89-117. 1911.

16 Compt. rend., 148: 776. 1909.

17 Burgess and Crowe. Bull. Bur. Std., 10:315-370. 1914. Burgess and
Kellberg. Ibid., 11:457-470. 1914. '

64 sosman: problems of the oxides of iron

similar in the form of their temperature-magnetism curves.
In each case the effect of rising temperature appears some dis-
tance below the inversion point, and increases more and more
rapidly as the inversion is approached. One cannot avoid the
conclusion that these inversions all have the same fundamental
basis. When that basis is found, we will have considerably
advanced our knowledge both of polymorphism and of magnetism.

So much has been said about polymorphism (including under
this term allotropy, polymerism, and all the other names given
to the phenomena of sudden change of physical and chemical
properties without change of percentage composition), and so
much that has been said is mere quibbling over the meanings
of words and phrases, that I shall not undertake any general
review of the questions that are raised by the inversions of iron
and its oxides. But there is one problem to which considerable
attention has lately been given, namely, the problem of the two
types of polymorphism in crystalline substances.

Polymorphic changes in crystalline solids can be divided
roughly, as is well known, into two groups. On the one hand,
there are those changes which carry with them rather profound
changes in physical and chemical properties and which often
require considerable time to bring about. On the other hand
are those reversible changes which occur without delay at a
given temperature and which involve relatively small changes
in crystal form and in physical properties. An excellent example
of a substance showing both types distinctly is silica. Si02
occurs in three principal forms, quartz, tridymite, and cristob-
alite, which are only slowly transformed one into another,
and which have certain ranges of stability outside of which they
frequently occur in an unstable but very persistent state. Each
of these principal forms, on the other hand, possesses one or two
inversion points, at which reversible crystalline changes occur:
quartz at 575°; tridymite at 117° and 163°; cristobalite at a
temperature varying from 200° to 275°, depending upon the
previous history of the crystal.18

11 Fenner, C. N. Am. Jour. Sci., 36: 331-384. 1913.

sosman: problems of the oxides of iron 65

Two different views have been held concerning the relation of
these two classes of polymorphic inversion, although in our
present ignorance of atomic structure neither can be very pre-
cisely stated. It has been supposed, on the one hand, that the
slow changes were the fundamental ones, involving a rearrange-
ment of the atoms in the molecule or a change in the molecular
weight, the expression "molecular weight" being considered to
have a meaning in the solid as in the gaseous state. The rapid
reversible inversions, then, were held to be merely rearrange-
ments among the molecules, involving slight changes in the
crystalline form or symmetry.

But on the other hand we may consider the rapid reversible
inversions as the fundamental ones, possibly occurring even with-
in the atomic nucleus itself, and thereby necessarily producing
some corresponding change in the spacing of the atoms. The
slow and sometimes irreversible changes would then be the less
fundamental, involving only a re-grouping of atoms or atom
complexes.

The second of these two views seems to me to be supported
by the phenomena of polymorphism of the oxides of iron. It is
obvious that the change can not be one that occurs in the iron
atom independently of its chemical environment, for the mag-
netic inversion occurs at different temperatures in the different
oxides and carbides. Furthermore, corresponding inversions
are yet to be found in various other compounds of iron. But
there is one oxide of iron which I have not yet touched upon,
whose properties shed considerable additional light on the prob-
lem. I refer to the magnetic ferric oxide which was discovered
by Robbins19 in 1859, was almost forgotten until recently studied
by Hilpert, co and on which we are now engaged in further ex-
periments.

19 Robbixs, J. Chem. News, 1: 11-12. 1859. Its discovery has usually
been ascribed to Malaguti, F. Compt. rend., 55: 350-352. 1862.

20 Hilpert, S. Ber. deu. phys. Ges., 11: 293-299. 1909. Hilpert's rather dis-
appointing conclusion from his excellent experiments is that "Fc4).-s functioning
as an acid is the carrier of magnetism." But what is "Fei03 functioning as an
acid" in a compound whose total composition is expressed by the formula Fe203?
Furthermore, as Hilpert himself recognizes, not all "ferrites," in which Fe203
is assumed to be the acidic oxide, are ferromagnetic.

66 sosman: problems of the oxides of iron

If precipitated magnetite is oxidized by ammonium persul-
fate, or even by atmospheric air at a low temperature, the prod-
uct, although it contains almost no ferrous iron and is reddish
brown in color, is practically as magnetic as magnetite itself.
If this magnetic oxide is heated to 750° for a few minutes, its
highly magnetic character is lost, and it becomes like ordinary
ferric oxide. What is still more remarkable is that the magnetic
Fe203 has a Curie inversion just above 500°, similar to that of
magnetite.

Here, then, we have as fundamental a chemical change as it
is possible to get — no mere polymerism, but a change in the
formula weight with a reduction of the ferrous iron content from
33| per cent to zero; yet the magnetic susceptibility and inversion
point remain the same. Except for the color, it is as if we had
merely ground up the magnetite and mixed it with powdered
solid oxygen.

A consideration of the preceding facts concerning the inversions
of iron and its compounds, and especially of the interesting
properties of the magnetic form of Fe203, suggest that the mag-
netic properties and the inversions of iron and its compounds
are bound up with the spacing and arrangement of the iron atoms,
almost without regard to the other atoms present.21

What is this structure of the iron atoms which produces the
high permeability, and what is the nature of the intra-atomic
change at the inversion point?

These problems are on the way to a solution, for Hull has
recently found by means of X-ray spectra that the lattice of
metallic iron is the centered cube.22 He discovered also that
this structure seems to remain unchanged through both the

21 This has been suggested for the Heusler alloys: Take. Faraday Soc.
Trans., 8: 177. 1912. Professor Pupin, speaking in the recent symposium on
the structure of matter, at the American Association meeting in New York,
December 27, 1916, stated that he had come to the conclusion from the magnetic
properties of very pure iron that its magnetism is intimately related to its
crystalline structure. On the other hand, as Hilpert points out, precipitated
oxides that are apparently amorphous and that pass readily into colloidal solu-
tion can be made, which are magnetic and possess magnetic inversions. Have
the particles of these colloids a microcrystalline structure, as yet unrecognized?

22 Paper presented at the Cleveland meeting of the American Physical Society,
November, 1916.

sosman: problems of the oxides of iron 67

A2 and the A3 inversions, further confirming the view expressed
above, that these inversions are intra-atomic. Further light
could be obtained on the problem by a comparison of the struc-
tures of the magnetic and the non-magnetic forms of Fe203.

This apparent dependence of magnetic properties upon the
arrangement of the iron atoms in space opens up interesting
possibilities. If magnetite can be oxidized to ferric oxide without
loss of its magnetism, it may be possible to convert it into other
compounds, or even to convert metallic iron into compounds of
iron, in which the arrangement of iron atoms will remain un-
disturbed. A highly magnetic compound of iron with a high
electrical resistance, for example, might possess industrial as
well as academic interest.

Having barely touched upon some of the problems in chemistry
and physics that are raised or partially solved by the study of the
oxides of iron, I wish to devote the little time that remains at my
disposal to the consideration of a few of the geological problems
connected with these oxides.

THE OXIDES OF IRON AS RELATED TO CERTAIN GEOLOGICAL

PROBLEMS

The oxides of iron rank high among the earth's important
minerals, since metallic iron is manufactured almost exclusively
from oxide ores.23 Questions of genesis of the ores of iron there-
fore furnish topics of perennial interest to the economic geologist.
The widespread occurrence of these ores makes them also of
interest to the student of historical and structural geology.

At the present time the so-called magmatic and pneumatolytic
ores are attracting the most attention from a scientific standpoint,
though economically they are secondary in importance to the
sedimentary and residual ores. The magmatic-pneumatolytic
ores range in composition all the way from magnetite to hematite.
Two different modes of origin account for them. Certain large
magnetite deposits are claimed to have been deposited in the
lower portion of large igneous masses by gravitative settling
of magnetite crystals while the mass was still molten. This

23 Carbonate ore formed only 0.006 per cent of the production in the United
States in 1915. (E. F. Burchard.)

68 sosman: peoblems of the oxides of iron

is the explanation offered for many of the deposits of titaniferous
magnetite, such as the Ramsoy deposits of Norway.24 It has
also been suggested that the magnetite may have separated by
gravity as a liquid or partly liquid layer while the entire magma
was still molten.25 These explanations based on magmatic
differentiation have met with various difficulties, geological as
well as chemical and physical. The separation of a liquid layer
of pure magnetite, for instance, is hardly believable, since the
melting point of magnetite is 1580°, whereas the intruding rock
bodies from which it separated could hardly have been at a
temperature of more than 1000? Whether small quantities of
other substances might greatly lower the melting temperature of
magnetite is one of the problems yet to be solved experimentally.

The other mode of origin assumes that the iron was carried
in the hot solution or vapor given off by an intruding igneous
mass. There are many deposits for which this mode of origin
seems well established. Examples of these are the magnetite
deposits of Cornwall, Pennsylvania,26 and the hematite-magnetite
ores of the Island of Elba.27

An interesting feature of the latter, which we discovered in
the course of some magnetic measurements, is the zonal de-
velopment of certain crystals.28 The hematite crystals from
Elba are well known for their large size and excellent devel-
opment. They are not pure Fe203, however, but contain a
considerable percentage of ferrous iron. By chemical analysis
and by magnetic measurements we have shown that the ferrous
iron is zonally distributed, being higher in the core and base
of the crystal and lower in its outer surface and free-growing tip.
Evidently, the temperature or oxygen concentration, or both,
were changing continuously in one direction while these crystals
were being deposited.

The reactions that will lead to the deposition of hematite,
hematite-magnetite, or pure magnetite from a vapor or a liquid

24 Foslie, S. Norges Geol. Unders., vol. 4, 1914.

25 Daly, R. A. Origin of the iron ores at Kiruna. Vetensk. prakt. Unders.
Lappland. Geology, No. 5. 1915.

26 Spencer, A. C. U. S. Geol. Survey, Bull. 359. 1908.

27 Lotti, B. Mem. descr. carta geol. Italia, II. 1S86.

28 Jour. Wash. Acad. Sci., 6: 309. 1916.

sosman: problems of the oxides of iron 69

solution are yet to be investigated. It is not certain, even, what
compounds of iron were originally present. The natural sus-
spicion is that the iron was present as chlorides or fluorides,
since these compounds are known to be volatile at comparatively
Low temperatures. Many geologists have objected that in
some cases the associated rocks show no trace of alteration by
pneumatolytic action, or contain little or none of the element
supposed to have been combined with the iron. The Kiruna
magnetite ore-body of Sweden, for instance, shows sharp con-
tacts against unaltered normal prophyries. But in the face of a
phenomenon such as that seen at Kilauea, where vast quantities
of sulfur and its compounds are given off from the lava lake,
Leaving hardly a trace of sulfide of any kind in the solidified
lava around the crater, we need not feel discouraged about pro-
ceeding with experiments on the deposition of iron oxides from
those compounds which are readily volatile and on which the
basic data of temperature and concentration, at least, are
obtainable.

One set of facts regarding hematite deposits of the magmatic-
pneumatolytic type is to be noted at this point, namely, their
magnetic properties and their content of ferrous iron. We have
found by some preliminary, as yet unpublished, measurements
that the force exerted upon a solid solution of Fe304 in Fe203
by a non-uniform magnetic field is roughly proportional to the
percentage of FeO. This holds true for both artificial and natural
oxides, including even some martites high in ferrous iron. On
the other hand, oxides containing ferrous iron (perhaps as
carbonate or as other compounds), but in which the FeO is
not in solid solution, such as the limonite from Mt. Ktaadn,
Maine, have a much lower susceptibility than the corresponding
solid solution.

Again, an oxide formed by the oxidation of precipitated mag-
netite, as has been mentioned above, may have a very high
susceptibility, although the percentage of FeO may be very small.
We have examined one such oxide found by Messrs. Graton and
Butler in a gossan deposit. Hilpert reports that examples have
been found in Europe in association with carbonate ores which

^

70 sosman: problems of the oxides of iron

are undergoing oxidation. The usual "magnetic hematite/' how-
ever, owes its magnetic properties to its ferrous iron content.

A simple magnetic test, then, combined with a determination
of the ferrous iron, permits certain preliminary conclusions as to
the origin of many natural oxides of iron. But there are other
magnetic properties which we have not yet touched upon, which
may be expected to vary with the composition and constitution
of the oxide, such as the remanence and the coercive force, and
especially the variation of the magnetic properties with tempera-
ture. This correlation of magnetic, physical, and chemical proper-
ties is not a small task, but it is one for which the apparatus
and methods are now in good working order.

The remanence, or permanent magnetization, offers particular
interest. It is well known that magnetite crystals are frequently
found which are very strong permanent magnets; in fact the
history of magnetism dates from the discovery of these "lode-
stones" by the ancients. Yet most natural magnetite is not
polarized. What causes have produced the polarization and
how are they related to the origin and history of the ore?

There is time to touch only in the briefest way on the prob-
lems connected with other types of iron ores. The study of
replacement ores leads us into the still obscure problem of re-
placement as a geological phenomenon, ably discussed by Lind-
gren in a recent paper29 but still, unfortunately, the subject
of more discussion than experiment. The secondary concen-
tration of oxide ores by circulating waters is another problem in
chemistry at ordinary temperatures which has not yet received
the attention it deserves.

Even the origin of ores which are admittedly almost unaltered
is still somewhat obscure. The genesis of residual ores such
as those of Cuba is not so much a problem of the oxides of
iron, since these play rather a passive role, as of the weathering
of iron-bearing silicates. But the origin of certain sedimentary
deposits is a specific problem in the chemistry of iron, complicated,
however, by a new factor, the biological. It has long been
known that some of the higher bacteria play a part in the prc-

29 Lindgren. W. The nature of replacement. Econ. Geol., 7:521-535. 1912.

sosman: problems of the oxides of iron 71

cipitation of hydrated ferric oxide, and the number of forms which
are known to be associated in some way with the precipitation
is constantly increasing. It is not yet clear in all cases whether
the organism actually brings about the reaction through its
own life processes, whether the precipitation is due to the de-
composition of the dead organism, or whether the organism
acts merely as a nucleus for the collection of agglomerating colloidal
oxide. The origin of the immense and very pure iron ores of
Minas Geraes, Brazil, is ascribed by Harder and Chamberlin30
to bacterial activity, apparently for the indirect reason that
there are objections to any other mode of formation. The
reader is left with the uneasy feeling that perhaps only our lack
of knowledge prevents our objecting to the bacterial explanation
as well.

There is one possibility which deserves attention in this con-
nection. Experiments with closed tubes show that a compara-
tively moderate increase of temperature will hydrolyze various
ferric salt solutions, and precipitate ferric oxide, which does not
redissolve. These ferric solutions seem relatively unstable and
easily hydrolyzed, and the colloidal ferric oxide only needs to
be agglomerated to form a precipitate that will settle. Are there
any possible variations in the composition, concentration, or
temperature of sea water which would cause it to precipitate
the ferric oxide from a hydrolyzed, even very dilute, ferric
solution in much the same way as the Mississippi silt is precipi-
tated by the waters of the Gulf of Mexico? Bacteria, able. and
willing to take advantage of the conditions favorable to the
reaction, need not be excluded, but, as may be the case
with calcium carbonate,31 inorganic causes may be primarily
responsible.

The intimate association of silica with many ores, amounting
even to chemical combination, as in some of the siliceous ores
of the Lake Superior region, may represent a simultaneous
agglomeration of colloidal silica and ferric oxide, or an adsorp-
tion of ferrous and ferric iron by agglomerated silica. It is to be
noted, also, that such precipitated colloids can sometimes be

;,° Jour. Geol., 23:385-404. 1915.
See Johnston and Williamson. Jour. Geol., 24: 729-750. 1910.

72 sosman: problems of the oxides of iron

re-dispersed (peptonized) by pure water, simply through the
leaching out of the salts carried down by them from the strong
precipitating solution. A method of secondary concentration js
thereby suggested. It is evident that from studies in colloid
chemistry we may expect considerable advances in our knowl-
edge of the sedimentary ores.

I have presented a rather varied list of problems, some of
which may seem remote from pure chemistry, but I may possibly
find an excuse in the fact that this meeting has been held as a
joint meeting of the Chemical Society and the Washington
Academy of Sciences. As soon as we begin to consider them in
detail, we find that the problems of the oxides of iron are but
phases of some of the greater problems of chemistry, physics,
biology, and geology. And they can not be solved by taking
thought about them; new facts, to be yielded by new experi-
ments and new observations, are demanded. Nor are the
problems as simple as some of them may have appeared from
my statement of them. The chemist is amazed by the facile
transformations of iron from ferrous to ferric, beholding the two
states of oxidation acting like two absolutely different elements.
The physicist stands appalled before the spectrum of iron,
realizing the many unknown quantities hidden behind its thou-
sands upon thousands of lines. Even the layman can get a
vivid realization of the complexity of the problems involved;
he has but to walk out through the country round about Wash-
ington and note the bewildering play of inorganic colors every-
where about him, ranging from deep brown-black through various
shades of drab, brown, purple, and maroon, and through the
many tints of pink, ocher, and rose, to the most brilliant of reds
and orange-yellows, and then realize that almost every one of
these hundreds of colors is due to an oxide or hydrated oxide
of iron; he will begin to realize then that our chemical knowledge
of these oxides is almost infinitesimal. One thing only is clear
to us, and that is that we are only skirting around the edges of
that vast body of knowledge about iron and its oxides which
is, as the mining geologist says, "in sight," not to mention the
unsuspected problems that lie "in depth," far beyond our farthest
plans for research.

RICHARDSON: DIFFUSION IN OIL-FIELD WATERS

73

GEOLOGY. — Note on the diffusion of sodium chloride in Appa-
lachian oil-field waters.1 G. B. Richardson, Geological
Survey.

During the summer of 1915, while working in the oil fields
of Butler County, Pennsylvania, I became interested in the
common occurrence of brines in oil wells. Samples of salt water
were collected and an analysis (A) of one was made in the Geo-
logical Survey laboratory. This analysis is compared with an-
other analysis (B) of deep-seated water from Washington County,
Pennsylvania, made by Steiger (see table 1). The wells from

TABLE 1

Analyses of Water from Deep Wells in Western Pennsylvania

COMPOSITION OF ]

DISSOLVED SALTS

A

B

CI

62.29

0.10

None

None

27.59
0.10

Trace
8.40
1.47

Trace

Trace
0:05

Trace

61.38

so4

0.02

HC03

C03

None

Br I

0.26

24.50

K

1.97

Li

Ca

9.56

Ms

0.94

Sr

1.31

Ba

Trace

Fe"

0.06

Fe'"

don cent rat ion

parts per million

100.00
131,890

100.00
263,640

A. Water from "hundred-foot sand" at depth of 1359 feet, in well on farm of
Charles Hoffman, 5 miles northeast of Butler, Pennsylvania. Analysis by W.
B. Hicks and R. K. Bailey, U. S. Geological Survey.

B. Water from Oriskany sandstone at depth of "6300" (6260?) feet, in well
of Peoples Natural Gas Company, 5 miles northwest of McDonald, Pennsylvania.
Analysis by George Steiger, U. S. Geological Survey. See U. S. Geol. Survey
Water-Supply Paper 364, p. 9, 1914.

1 Published by permission of the Director, U. S. Geological Survey.

74 RICHARDSON: DIFFUSION IN OIL-FIELD WATERS

which the samples were taken are about 40 miles apart, and
the water-bearing horizons, of Devonian age, are separated
stratigraphically about 4500 feet.

The history of deep-seated waters of this kind is a subject
of debate. In a recent number of Economic Geology I have
suggested, as a working hypothesis, that the Appalachian oil-
field brines are a mixture of waters originally occluded with the
sediments when deposited and of meteoric waters of later origin
which have entered the rocks during periods when the region
was above sea level ; that these waters have leached great masses
of sedimentary beds containing disseminated salt, and that
they have undergone a series of changes in composition, the
saline matter tending to accumulate because of the slow circu-
lation dependent on the synclinal structure of the region.
Among other causes of the sodium chloride content of the
waters and of the increase of concentration with depth, I sug-
gest that diffusion from beds of rock salt may be an impor-
tant factor. Such beds in the Salina formation are known to
underlie at least part of the Appalachian oil-fields. Thick
deposits of rock salt actually occur 600 feet below the horizon
in the well from which the water of sample B was obtained,
and others may occur.

It is worthy of consideration that beds of shale, especially
connecting lenses of sandy shale, separating the more porous
beds of sandstone in the Appalachian oil-field section may be
porous to such an extent that there exists a continuous, though
very irregular, network of minute pore spaces connecting the
beds of rock salt with the overlying beds in which salt water
is found. The deep-seated waters are under great artesian
pressure, as shown by the fact that in the well from which
the sample represented by analysis B was obtained the water
was forced 4000 feet above the horizon where it was encoun-
tered in drilling. Such pressure tends to fill with water the
pores even of very fine-grained strata, and it seems plausible
that in the rocks of the Appalachian oil-fields there are con-
tinuous pore spaces occupied by water. If such conditions
exist, diffusion must act.

RICHARDSON: DIFFUSION IN OIL-FIELD WATERS

75

Table 2, based on a paper by Becker2, was kindly prepared
for me by C. E. Van Orstrand.

TABLE 2
Migration of Sodium Chloride in Pure Water

DISTANCE

TIME

CONCENTRATION

meters

years

000

1,000,000

1.00

500

1,000,000

0.06

1000

1,000,000

0.0002

1500

1,000,000

0.00000003

000

10,000,000

1.00

500

10,000,000

0.56

1000

10,000,000

0.24

1500

10,000,000

0.08

000

20,000,000

1.00

500

20,000,000

0.68

1000

20,000,000

0.41

1500

20,000,000

0.21

The concentrations are expressed in terms of the initial con-
centration at the plane of contact between a bed of salt and the
base of a column of initially pure water. It is assumed that
the initial concentration remains constant.

The computed concentrations are of course only suggestive,
and the figures can not be directly applied to the Appalachian
region because initially pure water was assumed in computing
the table, whereas the water through which diffusion may have
occurred must have been initially saline. Nevertheless, the
table is of interest in an attempt to account for the high con-
centration of the brine represented by analysis B and for the
general increase in concentration of Appalachian oil-field brines
with depth.

2 Becker, G. F. Note on computing diffusion. Am. Jour. Sci., 3: 220-226.
1897.

ABSTRACTS

Authors of scientific papers are requested to see that abstracts, preferably
prepared and signed by themselves, are forwarded promptly to the editors.
Each of the scientific bureaus in Washington has a representative authorized to
forward such material to this journal and abstracts of official publications should
be transmitted through the representative of the bureau in which they originate.
The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those appearing in
this issue.

GEOLOGY. — The Gold Log mine, Talladega County, Alabama. E. S.
Bastin. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin 640-1. Pp. 159-161.
1916.

The geologic features of a gold mine that has been worked inter-
mittently for seventy years near Talladega, Alabama, are described.
The country rock is Talladega slate, probably of Lower Cambrian age.
The ore consists of (1) irregularly interlocking white to light-gray quartz,
white to pale-pink calcite, and very minor amounts of sulphides and
free gold, and (2) schist partly replaced by some or all of these minerals.
Chalcopyrite is the principal sulphide. Free gold occurs locally in
irregular masses in the quartz.

The value of the gold and silver recovered is reported to average
about $4 to the ton of ore treated. R. W. S.

GEOLOGY. — Ozokerite in central Utah. Heath M. Robinson.
U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin 641-A. Pp. 1-16, with 1 plate.
1916.

The American needs for ozokerite (a substance commonly known as
mineral wax) have been largely met in the past by imports from the
Galician mines in Austria, but interest in the domestic supply has
recently been stimulated. The largest district in the United States in
which it has been mined and prospected is an area in central Utah a
little more than 12 miles long and from 1 to 4 miles wide between
Gilluly and Colton.

The rocks of this field have a total thickness of about 4000 feet and
were deposited as nonmarine sediments in early Tertiary (Eocene)
time. The lower 1000 feet of the beds exposed are known to contain
ozokerite, and the remaining 3000 feet contain bituminous or oil shale

76

abstracts: geology 77

interbedded with other rocks. The principal ozokerite mines and
prospects have been opened in the Wasatch formation and are scattered
irregularly through a stratigraphic distance of 600 to 700 feet. The
ozokerite fills cavities that have resulted from fracturing. The com-
position, properties, origin, and uses of ozokerite are discussed, and
the mines and prospects are described. R. W. S.

GEOLOGY. — The oil and gas geology of the Foraker quadrangle, Osage
County, Oklahoma. K. C. Heald. U. S. Geological Survey
Bulletin 641-B. Pp. i-iv, 17-47, with 2 plates and 11 figures.
1916.
This paper describes and portrays those features of the Foraker
quadrangle that may be of interest and assistance in the discovery and
development of accumulations of oil and gas. Under the heading
"Stratigraphy" those strata valuable as key horizons in mapping
structure are described in detail, and the probable positions of oil
sands are given. The geologic structure is portrayed by map and
stereogram, and the anticlines believed to be favorable for the accumula-
tion of oil and gas are described in detail. In conclusion specific
recommendations for prospecting are given, and the writer's belief
concerning the probability of the occurrence of oil and gas accumulations
is set forth. R. W. S.

GEOLOGY. — Possibilities of oil and gas in north-central Montana.
Eugene Stebinger. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin 641-C.
Pp. 49-91, with 4 plates. 1916.

The thick bodies of Upper Cretaceous shale with which most of the
oil and gas in both Wyoming and Alberta are associated are known to
be continuous between these two localities under the plains of Montana,
making it apparent that favorable structural features, especially
anticlines and domes similar to those that are productive in Wyoming
and Alberta, offer a chance of success with the drill in this part of Mon-
tana. The facts observed appear to warrant the conclusions that a
considerable gas territory, comparable in extent to the Alberta fields,
may be found, and that the area shows some probability of yielding oil.

The character and distribution of the sedimentary rocks, particularly
those of importance in the search for oil and gas, are discussed, and the
geologic structure of north-central Montana is described. Particular
attention is paid to the structural features of the area of tilted and
faulted rocks north and south of the Bearpaw Mountains. R. W. S.

78 abstracts: geology

GEOLOGY. — Molybdenite and nickel ore in San Diego County, Cali-
fornia. F. C. Calkins. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin 640-D.
Pp. 73-82. 1916.

Molybdenite has been reported to occur at several places in San
Diego County. The deposit near Ramona, which has attracted most
attention, was visited in December, 1915. The molybdenite at this
locality is unevenly disseminated in an aplite dike which cuts granite,
the principal rock of the region. The deposit has not been shown to
have commercial value, though further development and prospecting
seem to be warranted.

A nickel prospect, the Friday mine, near Julian, was also visited.
The nickeliferous deposit, which has been explored to a depth of 200
or 300 feet, lies at an irregular contact between mica schist and gabbro.
It consists mainly of pyrrhotite, but contains pyrite, chalcopyrite, and
an iron-nickel sulphide, probably polydymite. Both in constitution
and mode of occurrence it resembles the Sudbury deposits and is pre-
sumably similar in origin. The sulphides are high enough in nickel
to constitute ore, provided a fairly large body of them can be uncovered.

F. C. C.

GEOLOGY.- — Gypsum in the southern part of the Bighorn Mountains,

Wyoming. Charles T. Lupton and D. Dale Condit. U. S.

Geological Survey Bulletin 640-H. Pp. 139-157, with 3 plates.

1916.

Gypsum has been known to occur in a belt of rocks surrounding the

Bighorn and Owl Creek mountains, Wyoming, from the early days of

exploration. The amount of this material at several places is great,

but owing to the slight demand for it little attention has been given to

its utilization until the last few years.

The gypsum occurs at two horizons — the upper at or near the top of
the Chugwater formation, or Red Beds, and the other in the upper
part of the Embar formation. Only the upper bed, however, is of
economic importance at Sheep Mountain and in the vicinity of
Thermopolis.

The rocks exposed in the region described in this report range in age
from pre-Cambrian to Quaternary. The Embar and Chugwater
formations, winch contain the gypsum beds, are described in detail.

R. W. S.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

THE PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 781st meeting was held on January 6, 1917, at the Cosmos Club.
Vice-President Sosman in the chair; 37 persons present. The minutes
of the 779th meeting were read in abstract and approved.

Mr. E. Buckingham gave a paper on The effect of elastic strain on the
equilibrium temperature of a solid and its liquid. By methods not in-
volving any reference to the details of the theory of elasticity, a general
formula was deduced for the effect on the equilibrium temperature of
a solid and a liquid under a stress which produces a strain in the solid at
the surface of contact with the liquid. No restrictions Avere imposed
on the nature of the body or on that of the strain, except that the
strain must be non-dissipative.

The general formula was applied to the case of linear compression,
and the result compared with some other formulas which have been
proposed. It agrees with Riecke's formula but does not agree with the
interpretation sometimes given to Poynting's formula. Comparison
with Bridgman's formula did not lead to any definite conclusion.

Mr. E. D. Williamson gave a second paper on the same subject.
The particular case of an isotropic solid under the influence of a one-
sided thrust was treated. Formulas were deduced by methods similar
to those used by Gibbs for the change of the equilibrium temperature
on the face where the thrust was applied, and also at the free surface,
on the hypothesis in each case that a reversible equilibrium is possible.
At the free surface the change of temperature is always negative and
small, i.e. at such a surface the melting point is always lowered by a
small amount by any strain whatever. On the other hand at the sur-
face where the stress is applied the effect is very much greater and is
negative for a push but positive for a tension. The possibility of the
physical realization of this second case is in doubt.

. The method can be extended to the case of solubility by the introduc-
tion of another variable — namely, the concentration of the solution.
The results are similar to those mentioned above, the solubilit}r being-
very slightly increased over the free surface but increased or decreased on
the stressed surface by a push or a tension, respectively, by a much
greater amount.

Mi-. J. C. Hostetter then gave an illustrated communication on
The influence of non-uniform pressure on solubility. It is possible that
fluctuating temperature and, perhaps, some indirect effects brought

79

80 proceedings: geological society

about by pressure may account for the solidification of crystals com-
pressed in contact with their solution by loosely fitting pistons — as found
by James Thomson, Le Chatelier, and Spring — without the necessity
of postulating large increases in solubility due to pressure.

In preliminary experiments, individual crystals were subjected to
stress at constant temperature by direct loading, and the effect on the
concentration of the surrounding solution studied, by measuring the
conductivity. No change in concentration was found. The test was
sufficiently sensitive to show that the effect of non -uniform pressure is
much less than that produced by the same pressure acting uniformly,
and not many times greater, as had been postulated by Johnston and
Adams.

However, in another series of experiments in which an unloaded
crystal was placed alongside a loaded crystal, the former grew at the
expense of the latter, showing that a very slight increase of solubility
was produced by the stress. The method of loading the crystals has
a large influence on the effects found, thus indicating the importance
of the stress distribution.

In conclusion, the experiments of Becker and Day on the linear force
of growing crystals were cited as indicating the stability of a crystal in
its solution, even when subjected to pressure. In their experiments
loaded crystals were found to lift the load during growth, although
the pressures on the supporting edges of the crystals were finally of the
order of magnitude of the crushing strength of the crystal.

Discussion. The three papers were discussed by Messrs. Briggs,
Buckingham, Hostetter, Sosman, and Williamson. Mr. Hostetter
remarked that the reason for the effect of hydrostatic pressure on melt-
ing and solubility was much more obvious than that for the similar
effect due to strain in the solid only, as hydrostatic pressure directly
aids or opposes the volume changes accompanying such change in state.
Mr. Buckingham referred to the complications introduced by the
change in cross section of a crystal under load as it dissolves.

Correction. In the minutes of the 780th meeting, this Journal,
7 : 24. 1917, for " Messrs. Ferner and Rothermel were appointed tellers,"
read, "Messrs. Fenner and Rothermel were appointed tellers."

D. H. Sweet, Secretary.

THE GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 311th meeting was held in the lecture room of the Cosmos Club
on November 22, 1916.

INFORMAL COMMUNICATION

T. W. Stanton : A Cretaceous volcanic ash bed on the Great Plains in
North Dakota. Near Linton, North Dakota, in the southern part of
the State about 15 miles east of the Missouri River, there are several
conspicuous white outcrops that at a distance suggest chalk or diato-
maceous earth. At one of the best exposures, 1 mile southeast of Lin-

proceedings: geological society 81

ton, the measured thickness of the white bed is 26 feet, and it lies in the
Fox Hills sandstone about 35 feet above the top of the Pierre shale.
The rock is very fine-grained and mostly massive, though it contains
some thin-bedded layers. A sample of it has been examined by Dr.
G. F. Loughlin, who finds that it "consists of 80 per cent of volcanic
glass, 15 per cent of quartz and feldspar, 2 or 3 per cent of biotite (some-
what bleached) and scattered grains of calcite, hornblende, magnetite,
and chlorite."

No fossils were found in the white ash bed itself, but in the sandstone
directly overlying it distinctive Fox Hills invertebrates were collected
at several horizons distributed through a total thickness of about 100
feet. A fossiliferous green band colored by greenalite, which lies 16
feet above the white bed, also contains a considerable amount of vol-
canic glass, thus showing that volcanic material is not restricted to the
white ash bed.

This seems to be the first recorded observation of such a bed of vol-
canic ash in the Cretaceous sediments of the Great Plains. The nature
and location of the deposit are such that its material must have been
carried a long distance in the air and finally deposited in the sea. The
nearest probable source, according to present knowledge of Cretaceous
volcanism in the Rocky Mountains, is in the • Livingston region, Mon-
tana, about 500 miles west. Remnants of this great ash shower should
occur in other parts of the Great Plains and 'Rocky Mountains, and
when recognized and identified they should be of some service in the
definite correlation of local sections.

REGULAR PROGRAM

Henry M. Eakin: The Quaternary history of central Alaska. Cen-
tral Alaska is rather evenly divided between uplands that are formed by
solid rocks, and a number of basins floored with Quaternary sediments
that head far inland and extend, apparently without interruption, to
the sea. These basins seem to be interpreted properly as pre-Quater-
nary erosional depressions. The physical aspects of the region indicate
that in Quaternary time the normal drainage outlets of these basins
were temporarily dammed, large areas were inundated and silted up,
new outlets through low passes in the rims of the old basins were formed,
and the drainage of the whole region was reorganized. Various hypo-
theses as to the nature of the dams have been considered, including
crustal warping, lava flows, gravel deposits, and glacier extension across
the old basins.

The hypothesis that glaciers were the agents meets the requirements
that the dams were formed simultaneously in widely separated locali-
ties and were transient. For two major stream diversions and for many
minor ones ice damming seems clearly indicated, and no item of posi-
tive evidence antagonistic to this hypothesis has been discovered.
However, complete knowledge of certain areas essential to the final
solution of the problem is still lacking.

82 proceedings: geological society

J. S. Diller: Was the new lava from Lassen Peak viscous at the time
of its eruption? That it was viscous is indicated by the following
considerations:

1. The material that rose from the volcanic chimney into the crater
on the summit of Lassen Peak spread in all directions and filled the fun-
nel-shaped crater to its rim, forming a lid to the volcano.

2. Upon reaching the crest of the crater's rim the lava overflowed at
the lowest points, one stream flowing down the western slope of the
peak and another toward Lost Creek on the northeast.

3. The flow down the west slope is about 1000 feet in length and is a
normal stream of siliceous lava with very rough broken surface. That
it was a hot, viscous mass beneath the surface at the time of its eruption
is proved by the written testimony of a number of observers, who from
9.30 to 11.30 on the night of May 19, 1915, watched the glow and
flashes of light from the flowing, breaking lava as, in plain view, it
crossed the crater rim and descended the slope.

4. In the overflow stream at the head of Lost Creek the delicate,
steam-torn lava was bent and folded, as if viscous, while advancing across
the crater rim, and much of it was carried away by the tremendous
blast of hot gas (from beneath the lid) that devastated the Hat Creek
country.

5. When the hot blast escaped from beneath the lava lid a portion of
the lid, apparently where hottest, subsided into the former crater and
exposed a number of fracture surfaces of lava blocks. On some of these
surfaces there are distinct lines of viscous flow, and as the surfaces origi-
nated dining the subsidence following the great eruption in May, 1915,
the lava must have been viscous at that time.

G. W. Stose: Age of certain shales in Cumberland-Lebanon Valley,
Pennsylvania. The shales referred to are in detached areas in the lime-
stone valley. The limestones range in age from Lower Cambrian to
Ordovician and may be divided into seven formations. The shales
were regarded by the Pennsylvania Geological Survey as equivalent
to the shales formerly called Hudson River but now called Martinsburg,
which overlie the limestones and adjoin them on the northwest. In
weathered outcrop the various shales are closely similar and, as east of
Harrisburg they have been brought together like parts of the same for-
mation, this miscorrelation is not surprising.

The real age of the shales in the detached areas was determined only
after tracing the seven formations of the limestone from their known
outcrops in the Carlisle quadrangle, southwest of Harrisburg. The
largest area of the shales south of Harrisburg was proved, by its rela-
tion to the Elbrook limestone, to be the Waynesboro shale of Middle
Cambrian age, and typical purple siliceous shale of the Waynesboro
was later found in it. The irregular relations to other formations on
its north side are due to overthrust faulting, which terminates the area
against the Martinsburg shale east of Harrisburg. The Waynesboro
shale occurs also in prominent hills east of Schaefferstown and in small
hills near Shillington, southwest of Reading. The shale thins abruptly

proceedings: botanical society 83

toward the east and north and is not visible on the north side of North
Mountain, where it is probably present, although thin and covered with
wash. Its greater thickness at Schaefferstown and south of Harrisburg
is probably due to the fact that at these localities it is overthrust from
farther south, where its thickness is greater.

Certain rocks at the Cornwall mines south of Lebanon, Pennsylvania,
which were regarded as Hudson River shales by the Pennsylvania Geo-
logical Survey, were foimd to be metamorphosed siliceous banded lime-
stones of the Conococheague limestone of Upper Cambrian age.

T. Wayland Vaughan: Significance of reef coral fauna at Carrizo
Creek, Imperial County, California. Owing to the lateness of the hour
this paper was postponed to another meeting.

At the 312th meeting, held December 20, 1916, the presidential ad-
dress was delivered by the retiring President, Arthur C. Spencer:
Stream terraces in the Rocky Mountain province (Illustrated). The ad-
dress will be published at a later date.

At the twenty-fourth annual meeting held on the same evening the
following officers were elected for the ensuing year: President, Walter
C. Mendenhall; Vice-Presidents, Frank H. Knowlton and Arthur
L. Day; Secretaries, H. E. Merwin and Esper S. Larsen, Jr.; Treas-
urer, B. L. Johnson; M ember s-at-large-of-the-Council, B. S. Butler, H.
S. Gale, C. W. Gilmore, R. W. Pack, and L. W. Stephenson.

Carroll H. Wegemann, Secretary.

THE BOTANICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 116th regular meeting of The Botanical Society of Washington
was held in the assembly hall of the Cosmos Club at 8.00 p.m., Tuesday,
December 5, 1916, President T. H. Kearney presiding.

The program of the evening consisted of a symposium on the behavior
of hybrids in different groups of plants.

Mr. G. N. Collins discussed the behavior of Indian corn. In about
25 cases out of 50 where the vigor of first-generation hybrids had been
compared with that of the parents, definite evidence of greater vigor
was secured, and in no instance was there clear evidence of decreased
vigor. It was suggested that the differences in the degree of vigor
observed in different varietal combinations appeared to be influenced
by the length of time the parental strains have been isolated. Strains
which are widely separated geographically, and on this accomit proba-
bly have been kept distinct for long periods of time, usually exhibit the
greatest increase in vigor when crossed, while strains from the same or
adjacent regions, although they may show more marked morphologi-
cal differences, generally show a less marked increase in vigor in the
first generation of the cross.

In a cross between two varieties having many sharply contrasting
characters, a comparison of the variability of the first and second gen-

84 proceedings: botanical society

erations showed two characters where the first generation was more
variable than the second, six characters in which the second generation
was more variable than the first, and eleven characters in which there
was no measurable difference. In the same cross, in correlation
studies involving eleven contrasted characters with fifty-five possi-
bilities of correlation, twenty cases of correlation were observed. All
but five of these correlations, however, appear to be physical or physio-
logical in their nature rather than genetic, such as the correlation be-
tween branching space and number of branches.

There are but few alternative or discontinuous characters in maize,
and most of these are color differences or differences in chemical com-
position, as in the endosperm characters.

The discontinuous characters are for the most part Mendelian.
Horny or sweet endosperm is perhaps the best example of a simple
Mendelian character pair thus far encountered in maize. Horny and
waxy endosperm are completely alternative, but there are definite de-
partures from the expected ratios. Aleurone and endosperm color show
all gradation between Mendelian monohybrid ratios and continuous
inheritance.

Mr. 0. F. Cook called attention to differences in behavior of dif-
ferent kinds of plants and animals, as indicating a possibility that the
expectation of finding general laws applicable to the whole organic
world may not be realized. Each case must be treated in a specific
way. Increased vigor in the first generation is one of the more general
phenomena attending hybridization. In cotton, for example, when
distinct types are crossed, there is usually evidence of increased vigor
and hardiness. These are expressed in larger size, better yield, and a
greater ability to withstand adverse conditions. By distinct types of
cotton are meant types which have a range comparable to the more
divergent races of men, or to the Indian zebu as distinguished from our
domestic races of cattle. The cotton types appear much more diver-
gent than the types of corn. •

The discussion was largely confined to examples in hybridization of
cotton. As a rule the conjugate or Fi generation is intermediate be-
tween the parents, while splitting is pronounced in the second and later
generations but with no cases of complete return to either ancestral
type. As a rule there is a great deal of correlation or coherence in the
characters shown in the perjugate (F2 and subsequent) generations.
It has not been possible to secure a cotton combining in stable form the
Upland type of vegetation and the Sea Island or Egyptian type of lint.
Plants which resemble the Upland type have lint with the Upland char-
acters and vice versa, but the plants that most nearly resemble the
parental types in other respects are usually very inferior with respect
to abundance and quality of lint.

Thus, one of the results of hybridization may be described as a total
loss of the increment of selection which had been developed in the parent
stocks previous to crossing. Some characters are more or less dis-
continuous, but others appear to be continuous. The opportunities for

proceedings: botanical society 85

selection in the conjugate generation are not good, on account of the
general uniformity of the plants. Selections have been carried in some
cases as far as 12 generations without securing evidences of stable com-
binations of desirable characters. Hybrids between Sea Island and
Upland varieties were not so good as the better class of long-staple
Upland varieties, when work with the hybrids was discontinued.

Mr. H. V. Harlan discussed the behavior of barley hybrids. He
first called attention to the strikingly different characteristics of the
barley group and the sharply contrasting characters such as naked .
and hulled grain, black, purple, blue, or white colors, two and six-rowed,
awned and hooded heads, smooth and toothed awns, etc. Individuals
of the Fi generation in barley either may be intermediate in character
or may resemble one of the parents, and are quite uniform. In most
of these crosses the characters are inherited in a 3 : 1 ratio. The sub-
stitution of hoods in the place of the awn, which has a very decided
effect upon the physiology of the plant, is dominant to the presence of
awns. The smoothness or roughness of the awns behaves as a Men-
delian character. There is also a correlation between the smoothness
of the awn and the hairiness of the stigma. Crossing between the two-
rowed and six-rowed barley often results in an intermediate variety.
Such characters as the following: hulled and naked, black and white,
hooded and awned, are inherited in the 1 : 3 ratio. Fertility does not
necessarily follow the 1:3 ratio.

Dr. C. E. Leighty discussed hybridization in wheat varieties and
species. Nine groups are available for hybridization : Triticum morio-
coccum, Triticum polonicum, wild wheat of Palestine, and six sub-
species of Triticum sativum. All of these species and subspecies hy-
bridize and fertile hybrids have been obtained, rarely, however, between
Triticum monococcum and any other group. Wheat and rye hybrids
have been secured always by using wheat as the female parent.
Aegilops ovata and triticoides have also been used in hybridization with
wheat. The first generation shows increased vigor, so far as noted, and
great uniformity. Most of the characters, however, are intermediate.
When wild wheat is used in hybridization the spikelets of the hybrid
fall apart as does the wild wheat. In the second generation segrega-
tion of most characters occurs in a 3 : 1 or 1 : 2 : 1 ratio, but in some cases
the ratio may be 15 : 1 or otherwise, as when a club wheat and wheat
with tapering head are crossed. In most cases the behavior can be
explained on the basis of Mendel's law. Wheat hybrids are often fixed
and many of the good commercial strains have originated in this way.
No bud variations or mutations have been noted.

Mr. J. B. Norton discussed the crosses which he and Mr. A. D.
Shamel had made between wheat and rye. Wheat is always used as
the mother parent, as rye refuses to set seed with foreign pollen. The
first generation plants show great vigor, and though they resemble the
mother at first, at blooming time the resemblance to rye increases until
they would normally be mistaken for that plant. The hybrids are
nearly sterile, as out of thousands of first generation flowers only three

86 proceedings: botanical society

produced viable seed, the plants from which were accidentally lost.
In hybrids between tobacco varieties first generation uniformity and
vigor are noticed in a marked degree.

In the case of oat hybrids Mr. Norton noted that the segregation in
the second and later generations was normally Mendelian, though in
one or two cases intermediate forms became fixed. There is a distinct
coherence of characters shown when naked oats are crossed with the
ordinary hulled type. Naked oats have more than three grains to the
spikelet, while in hulled oats the spikelets are limited to two or three.
The first generation gives a peculiar intermediate, while in the second
the parent types reappear with the intermediates in a 1:2:1 ratio,
showing complete coherence of the two pairs of characters. While
this coherence has not been split, two strains of the intermediate type
were fixed.

Of asparagus hybrids a peculiar case was mentioned. Asparagus
davuricus, a Chinese species, when crossed with pollen of Asparagus
officinalis gave a progeny that resembled in most characters the A.
davuricus mother, with the exception of a greater vigor. The first
generation plants dropped their branches in the fall like A. davuricus.
These hybrids were crossed back with A. officinalis, but the second gen-
eration showed none of the abcission phenomena exhibited by their
mother parent, although the expected ratio was 1:1. One of the first
generation plants of this cross shows a vine-like habit, a character not
present in either parent or in any close relative, although vining is
common in other sections of the genus.

Dr. W. A. Orton discussed the behavior of disease resistance in
hybrids, with special reference to the wilt diseases of cotton, okra,
watermelons, and cowpeas, caused by the well-known vascular parasite
belonging to the genus Fusarium.

In cotton, resistance which occurs in rare individuals is separated
out by selection, and the crosses discussed were made between such
resistant strains and other varieties of Upland cotton.

Certain conditions impair the exactness of results with reference to
Mendelian ratios. The strains used were not of pure type and the
most resistant show some disease; uniform exposure to infection is se-
cured with difficulty; the severity of the disease varies with weather
conditions. Susceptible plants are killed and their progeny are not
available for further study.

In the first generation in cotton hybrids wilt-resistance is dominant,
only a small percentage showing disease, usually less than that of the
resistant parent. In the second generation there is a segregation of the
wilt-resistant character and a large percentage of non-resistant plants
are produced. In reciprocal crosses an effect from the female parent
is apparent in the second generation. By selection from the resistant
plants the selected third generation shows a marked increase in
resistance.

In the cowpea wilt-resistance seems to be limited to a distinct variety,
the Iron. In the first generation of crosses with other varieties wilt-

proceedings: botanical society 87

resistance is dominant. In the second generation about one-third of
the plants were sterile, the percentage being as high as 73 in some
hybrids. About 67 per cent of the plants were seed producing.

In the case of the watermelon, the citron or stock melon was used in
breeding for a disease-resistant variety. In the first generation in-
creased vigor was very noticeable, and in the second generation char-
acters were noted Which had not been noted before in either of the
parents, particularly in the colors of the fruits, and also in a bitter
taste not noted in either of the parents.

Mr. W. J. Morse called attention to the behavior of hybrids in the
soy bean, in which group study was made of the following characters:
(1) flowers (white, purple); (2) pubescence (white, tawny); (3) seed
(yellow, green, brown, black, bicolored); (4) cotyledons (yellow, green);
(5) hypocotyl (green, purple); (6) smoothness; and (7) non-shattering.
All of these are found to behave as Mendelian characters and to segre-
gate according to Mendelian ratio. The only interrelation of characters
noted is between the flower and the hypocotyl, the white flower being
associated with the green hypocot}*! and the purple flower with the
purple hypocotyl. The non-shattering character is held to be one of
the most important, and hybrids with this character have been fixed.
Further work on this character with the standard commercial varieties
is in progress. In the course of the hybrid work numerous sterile
plants have been found. Natural hybrids of Fx generation can usually
be told in the field by the plants having a few smooth pods at the tip
of the branches.

With the cowpea a large number of crosses have been made between
the different commercial sorts, seeking to combine desirable characters.
A stud}* of the seed colors shows them to segregate in Mendelian ratio.
Wilt and nematode resistance have been fixed in hybrids.

In the case of alfalfa, when hybrids of tender forms of Medicago
sativa, such as Peruvian alfalfa, are made with Medicago falcata and the
offspring subjected to severe winter conditions, there appears to be no
tendency toward the elimination of the. blue or purple-flowered forms,
indicating that flower color is not particularly correlated with char-
acters resulting in hardiness. There have been several crosses reported
between rather distantly related species of Medicago, but it is believed
that most of them are not true hybrids. It is believed that the Medicago
sativa X prostrata hybrid is the only authentic one in the genus Medi-
cago dutside of the forms which Urban lists in his classification under
Medicago sativa, which include Medicago falcata and M . glandidosa.

Mr. Walter T. Swingle called attention to the great difference in
the behavior of Citrus from other groups mentioned, in that a larger
amount of variability occurred in the first generation of the hybrids.
In Citrus many of these first generation hybrids are of commercial
value and may be propagated without variation from seeds which con-
tain usually only false embryos originating from the nucellar tissue of
the mother plant. For example, hybrids secured between Poncirus
trifoliata and the common orange, Citrus sinensis, are sterile, notwith-

88 proceedings: botanical society

standing which they produce an abundance of seeds. These seeds
originate parthenogenetically and represent a pure strain of the female
parent. But in some few cases there is a true second generation.
The individuals of the first generation vary greatly. The fruit may be
smaller than that of either parent, or larger than the combined fruits of
the two parents; it may be smooth or hairy, lemon-colored or orange-
colored, with a great profusion of oil glands or almost without any; the
shape of the tree may vary; the leaves are often 5-foliolate, although one
parent is unifoliolate and the other always 3-foliolate. There is a very
considerable cohesion of characters in the second generation of Citrus-
Poncirus hybrids. It seems all but impossible, however, to secure hard-
iness and an orange flavored fruit at the same time. In the case of
Citrus-Poncirus hybrids great vigor is observed in the first generation.
If this first generation is crossed with a kumquat, increased vigor also
is shown; but no increase in vigor results from the return cross between
the first generation and the parental species. The kumquat belongs
to a distinct genus, Fortunella, so that in crossing a citrange with a
kumquat a trigeneric hybrid is produced, combining Citrus and Pon-
cirus with Fortunella. Although the kumquat is a dwarf plant, its
diversity from Citrus and Poncirus is so great that when crossed with
a citrange it brings about greatly increased vigor. By crossing Pon-
cirus trifoliata with the ordinary orange, and then crossing this first
generation hybrid with the kumquat, a fruit somewhat resembling the
lime has been produced; it has no direct genetic relationship with the
latter, however.

During the general discussion Mr. L. C. Corbett and Prof. William
Stuart discussed the behavior of carnation hybrids, and the latter
called attention to the desirability of securing as high a percentage of
germination as possible in the second generation, in order that no selec-
tive error be introduced into percentage determinations. Mr. Norton
said that of several thousand cases of carnations grow n from commercial
types, the percentage of singles never was higher than 23 per cent.

H% L. Shantz, Corresponding Secretary.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VII FEBRUARY 19, 1917 No. 4

BIOPHYSICS. — The living plant as a physical system.1 Lyman
J. Briggs, Bureau of Plant Industry.

In early investigations relating to the growth of plants, the
conception of a so-called " vital force" was frequently employed
in the interpretation of the observed phenomena. It was long
held, for example, that the organic substances found in plants
and animals were dependent in their formation upon the exist-
ence of vital forces, and that in consequence such products could
not be produced in the laboratory. The classical discovery of
Wohler that urea could be synthesized in the laboratory revo-
lutionized the conception that all animal and plant products are
dependent upon some vital force for their production. Since
that time many other organic substances found in or derived
from plants have been prepared synthetically. Many other
phenomena associated with plant growth and formerly attrib-
uted to the existence of some peculiar vital force have through
modern methods of investigation been satisfactorily explained
from physico-chemical considerations. Until matter in that
state which we term "living" can be synthesized, the doctrine of
vitalism can scarcely be said to have been disproved; but it is
surely being restricted more and more a's our knowledge of plant
phenomena increases. The situation at present may perhaps be
fairly summarized as follows: The mechanism of plant processes

1 Address of the retiring President of the Philosophical Society of Washing-
ton, presented before the Society January 19, 1917.

89

90 BRIGGS: THE LIVING PLANT AS A PHYSICAL SYSTEM

not at present explainable on a physico-chemical basis would be
termed by the vitalistic school as " vital;" by the physico-
chemical school, "unknown."

The efficiency of plant systems. I shall ask you in what fol-
lows to consider the plant from the point of view of a physical
system, a system which is absorbing energy and performing
useful work. Radiant energy is absorbed by this system from the
sun and sky, and under some conditions heat is absorbed from
the surrounding air as well. This energy is used to do work upon
water and nutrients taken in through the roots and upon car-
bon dioxide absorbed through the leaves. A part of the energy,
through the agency of remarkable catalyzing substances — the
chlorophyll bodies and the protoplasm — is employed in the
transformation of the materials absorbed into plant tissue. The
latter represents the useful work performed by the system,
which may be quantitatively determined by measuring the heat
of combustion of the total plant substance formed. The re-
mainder of the absorbed energy is spent in lifting and vaporizing
water, except in those cases where the temperature of the plant
rises above that of the surrounding air. In such instances heat
energy is also transferred to the air.

Let us for the present assume that the temperature of the
plant does not exceed that of the air, an assumption which leaf
temperature measurements have shown to be amply justified
in the case of actively growing plants in a dry atmosphere. The
total energy used by the system in a given time will then be
represented by the total heat equivalent of the water evaporated,
plus the total heat of combustion of the plant substance devel-
oped during this period. If we represent the former by Qe and
the latter Qc, both expressed in gram-calories, the efficiency (E)
of the system may be represented by the relation

• E = —Q°— (1)

Qe+Qc

Both quantities are capable of direct measurement. The
water evaporated can be determined by means of suitably con-
trolled field experiments designed to prevent all loss of water

BRIGGS: THE LIVING PLANT AS A PHYSICAL SYSTEM 91

except that taking place through the leaves, while the heat of
combustion may be found by finally burning in a bomb calorim-
eter a representative sample of the plant substance produced.

Numerous investigations have been made of the water re-
quirement of plants, i.e., the ratio of the weight of water absorbed
by the plant during its growth period to the weight of dry matter
produced. It will accordingly be convenient to transform our
efficiency equation to include this term. If a mass Mw of water
is transpired in the production of a mass Mp of plant tissue, and
if hv and hc represent the heat of vaporization of water and the
heat of combustion per gram of plant substance respectively,
then

Qe = MJu (2)

Qc = MPhc (3)

Substituting these quantities in equation (1) and remember-
ing that Mw/Mv is by definition the water requirement Rw, we
have

E = -J— (4)

he

Determinations of the heat of combustion of the dry matter of
various plants do not appear to have been made. In the absence
of more specific data, we may assume the heat of combustion
to be represented approximately by that of cellulose, namely,
4200 gram-calories per gram. By substituting this value to-
gether with that of the heat of vaporization of water (536 gram-
calories per gram) in equation (4) we have as a first approxima-
tion to the efficiency of the plant system

E = (5)

0.13 #w + l

The water requirement of field crops in the Great Plains as
measured by Dr. H. L. Shantz and the writer ranges from 200
to 1000, depending upon the species and the evaporation-rate.2

2 Briggs, L. J., and Shantz, H. L. Relative water requirement of plants.
Journ. Agr. Research, 3: 1-63. 1914.

92 BRIGGS: THE LIVING PLANT AS A PHYSICAL SYSTEM

The lowest water requirement so far observed in the case of a
field crop was obtained at Arlington, Virginia, in 1915, where
corn and sorghum gave values of 151 ± 2 and 150 ± 2 respec-
tively. If we substitute these values in equation (5) we find
that the efficiency of the plants with the lowest water require-
ment so far measured is only about 5 per cent, while in the case
of plants with a water requirement of 1000, the efficiency is less
than 1 per cent. In other words, the fuel value of the plant,
i.e., the potential energy stored in the plant substance, repre-
sents only from 1 to 5 per cent of the energy dissipated during
the growth of the plant.

Since the efficiency is approximately inversely proportional
to the water requirement it is of interest to consider briefly how
the latter may be reduced. Two procedures are open, namely,
plant selection and reduction in the evaporation rate. Dif-
ferent species of plants under the same environment show wide
differences in water requirement. For example, Shantz and the
writer have found the water requirement of alfalfa to be ap-
proximately three times that of millet, when the two species are
grown in large pots side by side. It is thus evident that in a
region where the rainfall is the limiting factor in plant production,
the fuel value of the plant material produced will vary widely
according to the water requirement of the plant. It would be
of much interest in this connection to know something of the
efficiency of different forest trees, but no water requirement
measurements of such plants are yet available.

The second means of reducing the water requirement consists
in the selection of habitats where the evaporation-rate is low.
Here again little is known quantitatively as to what extent the
efficiency may be increased in this way, and the subject affords a
wide field for exploration. It is evident that if the absorption
of water from the soil is so far reduced by increasing the hu-
midity that the plant receives an inadequate supply of nutri-
ents from the soil, growth would be retarded from this cause.
Again, if we reduce the energy dissipated in evaporation by
shading the plants, a limit will be set by the minimum quantity
of radiant energy necessary for the photosynthetic processes.

BRIGGS: THE LIVING PLANT AS A PHYSICAL SYSTEM 93

The growth-rate. We pass now to the consideration of our
plant system from the standpoint of the growth-rate. The
plant system is remarkable in that the useful work done is ex-
pended in increasing the size of the system, at least during the
earlier stages of growth. Furthermore, the quantity of cata-
lyzer available for transforming the absorbed substances also
increases with the size of the system. Therefore, while the
efficiency of the system may not change during the growth of the
plant, the quantity of useful work which it is capable of doing may
theoretically increase at a rate proportional to the size of the
system, assuming that an adequate supply of the products used
in synthesis, i.e., carbon-dioxide, water, and nutrients from the
soil, are present. This hypothesis is equivalent to saying that
the rate of change of the weight m of the plant system is pro-
portional to the weight itself, or, put into mathematical form :

dm fa.

— = axm (6)

at

Let us now see how nearly this assumption may be realized in
nature.

Since it is not possible to determine directly the dry weight
m without destroying the plant, we must have recourse to some
indirect means of determining the mass of material present at
any time. We shall, therefore, make a further assumption that
the increase in size of the plant from day to day is accompanied
by a corresponding increase in the quantity of water which it
transpires, a quantity which as we have seen is readily meas-
ured. This latter quantity, however, would obviously depend
upon the weather of each day, so that we must either maintain
the plant under constant conditions from day to day during the
course of the experiment, or we must correct the transpiration
in accordance with the intensity of the weather factors each day.
The latter procedure is the one which we have actually em-
ployed. This correction may be made in a simple manner by
dividing the observed transpiration during a day by the observed
evaporation from a shallow blackened tank for the corresponding
day. This gives us a series of numbers which are proportional

94

BRIGGS: THE LIVING PLANT AS A PHYSICAL SYSTEM

to the transpiration or water loss from the plant during a series
of uniform days, providing transpiration and evaporation are
influenced in the same way by the changes in the weather. Our
problem then is to determine how the transpiration corrected
to the basis of uniform days varies with the time, our assumption
being that the daily transpiration is dependent upon and is a
measure of the size of the plant.

-/. <?

-/. 2

- /.o

-2.8

2.6

■2.4

-2.

-2 0

f° (

<
> O

o

sc

/Da

1/V

i

s

Q/v

rr/£

Of>£

*0

/ (

3

of

7 C

1

° /

<

i /

t i

)

<

)/

-

o

o

/ '

o

P2 24 26 2G 30 2 4

6 8 /O /2 /4 /6

Fig. 1. Graph showing linear relationship between the logarithm of the trans-
piration-evaporation ratio of Sudan grass and the time. After Briggs and Shantz.

If now we return to our original hypothesis, that the rate of

change in the size of the plant is proportional to the size of the

plant itself, we will have by substituting the transpiration-

T
evaporation ratio — = k for the weight m of the plant in our

Mi

original equation (6)

dk

dt

= dik

(6a)

BRIGGS: THE LIVING PLANT AS A PHYSICAL SYSTEM

95

Integrating this equation and transforming to common log-
arithms, we have

logioft = at + c (7)

in which c is the logarithm of k when t = 0, that is at the be-

1

1

1
1

1

I
I

.24
22

20

/<?

/6
,/4

/<?
/O
08

.06

04

02

§1

o /

9/9
^__ ° /

h^^

o ~Z^* o
So

24 26 26 30 2 4 6 &

<JO/VE /S/4 iJULy

/O /2

Fig. 2. Daily change in the ratio of transpiration to evaporation during
early growth of Sudan grass. Circles represent observed ratios. Solid line
computed from relationship in figure 1. After Briggs and Shantz.

ginning of the period under discussion. Expressing (7) expo-
nentially, we have

k = 10at + c = k0-10at (8)

Therefore, if the logarithms of the daily transpiration-evapo-
ration ratio, when plotted against the time, form a straight line,
the condition expressed in equation (6a) is satisfied, and the

96

BRIGGS: THE LIVING PLANT AS A PHYSICAL SYSTEM

plant increases in size in accordance with the compound interest
law.

This method has been employed by Shantz and the writer
in the examination of the daily transpiration of Sudan grass,
corn, sorghum, and alfalfa.3 The results indicate that during
the early stages of the growth of these crops an approximately
linear relationship does exist between the logarithm of the
transpiration ratio and the time, as is shown in the case of
Sudan grass in figure 1. In the case of alfalfa, this relationship
held approximately up to the period of flowering. A comparison
of the computed transpiration ratio (solid line) of Sudan grass
with that actually observed (circles) is given in figure 2.

TABLE 1

Hate of Increase in the Transpiration Coefficient of Different Crops
in 1914, According to Briggs and Shantz

CROP

Corn, Northwestern Dent

Corn, Algeria

Sorghum, Minnesota Amber

Sudan grass (in inclosure)

Sudan grass (in open)

Alfalfa, E23 (first crop in open).
Alfalfa, E23-20-52 (first crop). . .
Alfalfa, E23-20-52 (second crop)

OBSERVATION PERIOD

June 18- July 9
June 18-July 11
June 18-July 9
June 18-July 10
June 24- July 11
June 16- July 10
June 19- July 9
July 18-Aug. 5

(a)

DAILY RATE

OF INCREASE

per cent

0.026

6.2

0.044

10.7

0.041

9.9

0.066

16.4

0.082

20.8

0.033

7.9

0.037

8.9

0.037

8.9

DATS

REQUIRED

FOR k TO

DOUBLE IN

VALUE

11.6
6.8
7.3
4.6
3.7
9.1
8.1
8.1

It is also possible to compute from the slope of the graphs
the value of the exponent a in equation (8) and so to determine
the daily rate of increase in the size of the plant. The results of
such calculations for a number of plants are given in table 1.
It will be seen that in the case of Sudan grass the plant system
was doubling in size every four days, and in the case of alfalfa
about every eight days.

Therefore during the early stages of growth the size of some of

3 Briggs, L. J., and Shantz, H. L. Daily transpiration during the normal
growth period, and its correlation with the weather. Journ. Agr. Research, 7: 155-
212. 1916.

BRIGGS: THE LIVING PLANT AS A PHYSICAL SYSTEM

97

our common plants varies as an exponential function of the time,
in so far at least as such changes in size are reflected by the
change in transpiration through a series of uniform days. In
other words the young plant confronted with the problem of
maturing its seed and completing its life cycle before the ad-
vent of frost, proceeds to develop its system at the maximum
possible rate consistent with the conditions, i.e., in accordance
with the compound interest law. When an adequate leaf system
is secured, the plant apparently turns its attention to the elabora-
tion of material for seed production and the rate of increase in the
size of the leaf system is modified. It is evident that any in-
hibiting factor, such as a limitation in the supply of water or
of nutrient solution also would bring about the same result.

25

s

\

15
10

J

5

100 200 300 400 500

1000 .1500 2000

Age of ti-ees in years

2500

3000

Fig. 3. Change in thickness of annual rings of Sequoia with the time. After
Huntington.

Let us now turn from annual plants, which complete their
life cycle in a few months, to the other extreme, and examine the
rate of growth of the giants of the plant world, the Sequoias or
big trees of California. Huntington4 has recently made extensive
measurements of the thickness of the annular rings of these trees
with a view to determining to what extent the variation in
thickness of these rings is correlated with fluctuations in the
weather conditions during the life of the tree. His measurements
showing the change in thickness of the ring as the tree grows
older, based upon measurements of trees of varying ages up to

4 Huntington, E. The climatic factor as illustrated in arid America. Car-
negie Inst, of Washington, Pub. No. 192. 1914.

98 BRIGGS: THE LIVING PLANT AS A PHYSICAL SYSTEM

3200 years, are summarized graphically in figure 3. The dotted
line in this figure connects the 100 -year means, through which a
smoothed graph has been drawn. If we assume the latter to
represent the relation between the thickness of the rings and the
age of the tree, we see that after the trees have reached an age

dv
of about 1200 years, the ring thickness — is a linear function of

tit

the time, or

<t=-at + b (9)

at

Integrating this equation and evaluating the constants from
figure 3, we have as the relation between the stump radius of the
tree in millimeters and the time in years, starting with trees 1200
years old,

r = - 0.00005*2 + O.S3t + 1670 (10)

From 1200 to 3200 years then the radius does not increase pro-
portionally to the time, but is subject to a negative correction
term varying as the square of the elapsed time.

The straight line portion of Huntington's graph (fig. 3) would
if extrapolated cut the axis of abscissae at about 9000 years.
It is more probable that the graph approaches the axis of ab-
scissae asymptotically, since the straight line relationship would
lead to a shrinkage after 9000 years. The relationship ex-
pressed in equation (10) must therefore be restricted practically
to the period covered by the observations.

It is perhaps of more interest to -consider the rate of growth of
these old trees. In this connection let us determine how the
tree would increase in diameter if a uniform quantity of woody
tissue were laid down each year. We may for this purpose as-
sume the stem of the tree to have the form of a right cone with
a base radius r and height h, and we will also assume that the
height of the cone increases in proportion to the radius. We
may then look upon the growth each year as consisting of a thin
layer or shell of thickness dr wrapped closely about the cone.

The volume V of the trunk of this idealized tree at any time
would be

BRIGGS: THE LIVING PLANT AS A PHYSICAL SYSTEM 99

V = Ur-h (11)
or, since by assumption h = ar

V = i 7r«r3 (12)
The rate of growth would be

dV „dr /10v

= irar2 — (13)

dt dt

hence the necessary condition for a uniform growth rate is that

— = cr~ (14)

dr

where c is a constant.

Let us now examine Huntington's data for the Sequoia by
i±

plotting ~- against r2. If a portion of the resulting graph is a
ar

straight Jine, the growth-rate during the corresponding period
will be constant, subject of course to the assumption made re-
garding the form of the tree. This graph is presented in figure
4. It will be seen that the growth-rate decreases for values of
r- up to 30,000 cm2, corresponding to trees about 1200 years
of age. For values greater than this, however, the relationship
is approximately linear, i.e., the growth-rate is constant within
the errors of the determinations. The oldest trees included in
these measurements were over 3000 years of age. Since the
birth of Christ, therefore, these giant trees have been growing
at a practically uniform rate, save as that rate has been modi-
fied by weather conditions.

Gas exchange between the leaf and the air. We pass now to a
consideration of some of the physical processes within the plant.
We shall first consider the path by which carbon dioxide enters
the leaf. The rate of assimilation of carbon-dioxide by an ac-
tive leaf in bright sunlight is very great. In fact Brown and
Escombe have found that a Catalpa leaf in bright sunshine will
absorb carbon-dioxide at a rate one-half as fast as it would if the
lower surface of the leaf were covered with a film of caustic pot-
ash solution constantly renewed. The stomatal openings in the

100 BRIGGS: THE LIVING PLANT AS A PHYSICAL SYSTEM

BRIGGSI THE LIVING PLANT AS A PHYSICAL SYSTEM 101

leaf are extremely minute and their total area is only about 1
per cent of the leaf area. How does the carbon-dioxide enter
the leaf? Does the interchange of gas and water vapor between
the leaves and the air take place by means of diffusion through
the cuticle of the leaf? Or do the minute stomatal openings
provide the means of entrance and exit?

The early experiments of Boussingault,5 in which the rate of
assimilation of carbon-dioxide by leaves having their stomata
blocked with lard was compared with that of normal leaves, led
to the conclusion that the absorption of carbon-dioxide by the
leaf takes place by means of cuticular diffusion, and that the
stomata play little or no part in the process. The cuticular
diffusion hypothesis found favor also on account of the relatively
large surface available for diffusion compared with the area of
the stomatal openings.

Boussingault's experiments, however, were carried out in an
atmosphere abnormally high in carbon dioxide, and in 1895,
Blackman6 showed that the relative amount of carbon dioxide
assimilated by leaves with stomata blocked and free was depen-
dent upon the carbon dioxide content of the air. When the
carbon dioxide content was reduced to partial pressures corre-
sponding more nearly with atmospheric conditions, an Oleander
leaf with its stomata blocked showed a much lower assimilation
of carbon dioxide than a similar leaf with open stomata. In
other words, the high partial pressure of carbon dioxide in Bous-
singault's experiments resulted in a carbon dioxide poisoning
of the leaf having open stomata, and a corresponding reduction
in assimilation; whereas, in the case of the leaf with its stomata
blocked, sufficient protection was afforded to permit assimilation
to proceed normally. Blackman concluded that for partial
pressures of carbon dioxide approaching that in the atmosphere,
no appreciable diffusion through the cuticle of the leaf takes
place.

6 Boussingault, M. Etude sur les fonctions des feuilles. Agronomie, Chemie
Agricole et Physiologie, 4: 267-401. 1868.

6 Blackman, F. F. On the paths of gaseous exchange between aerial leaves and
the atmosphere. Phil. Trans., 186b: 508-562. 1895.

102 BRIGGSI THE LIVING PLANT AS A PHYSICAL SYSTEM

Living plants in the dark slowly give off carbon dioxide as a
respiration product, similar to animals. Blackmail made use
of this phenomenon in a further investigation of the function of
the stomata. Two constant currents of air free from carbon
dioxide were passed through capsules clamped to the leaf and
made tight with wax seals, and the amount of carbon dioxide
given up by the leaf determined. A summary of some of Black-
man's measurements is presented in table 2. The first three
plants are evergreens with a thick cuticle. The leaves of the
other plants investigated are thin, and those of Polygonum, in
particular, are extremely delicate. In all cases the stomata are

TABLE 2

Respiration of C02 in Cubic Centimeters per Hour from Upper and Lower
Surfaces of Leaves Having Stomata Confined to Lower Surfaces,

According to Blackman

PLANT

Nerium oleander

Prunus laurocerasus

Hedera helix

Platanus occidentalis ....
Ampelopsis hederacea. . . .
Polygonum sacchalinense

DEVELOPING LEAVES

Upper
surface

0.001
0.001
0.001

Lower
surface

0.147
0.085
0.075

Ratio

iotr

_2
1 0(7

10(5"

MATURE LEAVES

Upper
surface

0.002
0.002
0.002
0.001
0.003
0.002

Lower
surface

0.078

0.076

0.054

0.05

0.10

0.03

Ratio

3

io~o"

3

4

2

TO 75"

3

i oxf

6
To~7

confined to the under side of the leaf. Reference to the table will
show that the respiration is confined almost wholly to the
stomatal side of the leaf, the maximum respiration from the
upper side being only 6 per cent of that from the lower and in
most instances far less than this.

This capsule method was also employed by Blackman for in-
vestigating the relative rate of absorption of carbon dioxide by
the two sides of the leaf. Air containing a known amount of
carbon dioxide was passed through capsules provided with glass
faces, the surface of the leaves being brightly illuminated. The
air after traversing the capsules was analyzed for carbon di-
oxide. In this way, Blackman found that in the case of leaves

BRIGGS: THE LIVING PLANT AS A PHYSICAL SYSTEM

103

having their stomata all on the under side no carbon dioxide
was taken up by the upper surface of the leaf even in direct sun-
shine. On the other hand, in the case of leaves with stomata
on both sides, both the upper and the under side of the leaf
were active in assimilation.

We have seen that according to Brown and Escombe, absorp-
tion of carbon dioxide by the under side of the Catalpa leaf
proceeds about one-half as rapidly as it would if the leaf sur-
face were covered with a constantly renewed film of caustic soda.
If, then, the absorption of carbon dioxide takes place only through
the stomata, the total area of which when fully opened is only

TABLE 3

Diffusion of Carbon Dioxide Through Circular Apertures of Different
Diameters, According to Brown and Escombe

NO.

DIAMETER OF
APERTURE

CO2 DIFFUSED
PER HOUR

RATIO OF AREAS
OF APERTURES

RATIO OF

DIAMETERS OF

APERTURES

RATIO OF CO2

DIFFUSED IN

UNIT TIME

mm.

CC.

(1)

22.70

0.23800

1.00

1.00

1.00

(2)

12.06

0.09280

0.28

0.53

0.39

(3)

12.06

0.10180

0.28

0.53

0.42

(4)

5.86

0.05558

0.066

0.25

0.23

(5)

6.03

0.06252

0.07

0.26

0.26

(6)

3.23

0.03988

0.023

0.14

0.16

(7)

3.22

0.03971

0.020

0.14

0.16

(8)

2.00

0.02397

0.007

0.088

0.10

(9)

2.12

0.02608

0.008

0.093

0.10

about 0.9 per cent of the area of the under side of the leaf, the
rate of diffusion per unit area through these openings must be
approximately 50 times the rate at which carbon dioxide is ab-
sorbed per unit area by a caustic soda solution of the same total
area as the leaf.

Diffusion through perforate septa. It will at once be noted
that the two systems just compared differ in one important re-
spect. The absorbing surface presented by caustic soda solu-
tion is in the form of a single continuous surface. The stomatal
system on the other hand is made up of minute elliptical openings
separated by intervals from 5 to 10 times the diameter of the

104 BRIGGS: THE LIVING PLANT AS A PHYSICAL SYSTEM

stomata. Is the diffusion-rate through a multi-perforate sep-
tum of this kind sufficient to account for the rate at which carbon
dioxide is absorbed by the leaf?

This problem was made the subject of an extensive investiga-
tion by Brown and Escombe7 in 1900. The diffusion of carbon
dioxide in cylinders partially filled wih caustic soda solutions
was first studied. When such cylinders were exposed in still air
it was found, as might be expected, that the amount of carbon
dioxide diffusing down the cylinders in a given time varied di-
rectly as the cross-sectional area of the cylinders and inversely
as their length. If, however, the diffusing tubes were par-
tially closed at the top by
septa with single circular
openings of different diam-
eters, the diffusion was
found to be proportional,
not to the areas of the
apertures, but approxi-
mately to their radii. In
other words, the diffusion
through small isolated cir-
cular openings proceeds
much more rapidly than
would be indicated by the
area of the opening. Some
of the results obtained by
Brown and Escombe, from which they developed the so-called
diameter law controlling stomatal diffusion, are given in table 3.
Brown and Escombe call attention to the analogy between the
diffusion system which they investigated and that of an elec-
trified disk. The electrostatic capacity of such a disk may be
shown from theoretical considerations to be proportional, not
to the area of the disk, but to its diameter. The equipotential
surfaces about such a disk (fig. 5) are ellipsoids having the edges

7 Brown, H. T., and Escombe, F. Static diffusion of gases and liquids in re-
lation to the assimilation of carbon and translocation in plants. Phil. Trans.,
193b: 223-291. 1900.

Fig. 5. Diffusion of carbon dioxide into a
stomatal opening of a leaf surrounded by still
air. The surfaces representing uniform par-
tial pressures of CO2 are ellipsoids, which are
cut at right angles by the diffusion stream
lines (hyperbolas). After Brown and Es-
combe.

BRIGGS: THE LIVING PLANT AS A PHYSICAL SYSTEM 105

of the disk as foci; while the lines of force along which an elec-
trified particle would move to the disk lie in the surfaces of
hyperboloids which cut the ellipsoids at right angles and have
their foci in the edges of the disk.

Consider the electrified disk to be replaced by a liquid film
which absorbs carbon-dioxide perfectly and which is surrounded
by still air. The ellipsoidal shells now become surfaces repre-
senting uniform concentrations of carbon-dioxide, and the
hyperboloidal shells represent surfaces along which the carbon-
dioxide molecules are streaming to the disk. It is evident that
the rate of diffusion through the absorbing surface is far greater
than for an equal area in free space; and if the electrostatic
analogy holds, the diffusion in unit time would be proportional
to the diameter of the disk, which is in accord with Brown and
Escombe's results.

We pass now to the consideration of multi-perforate septa.
It is evident that if the small openings through the septum were
sufficiently close together, one aperture would modify the stream
lines through another, and the diameter law would not hold.
This matter was experimentally investigated by Brown and
Escombe, using septa perforated with holes 0.38 nun. in diameter.
They concluded that when the distance between the apertures
is not less than ten times the diameter of an aperture, there is
no interference in the diffusion through neighboring holes.

It remains to be seen how closely the rate of diffusion of car-
bon-dioxide into the leaf of a plant may be calculated from the
diameter law, when the size and number of the stomatal openings
are known. Such calculations as a matter of fact lead to values
very much in excess of the actual quantity of carbon-dioxide
taken in by a leaf, even when it is assimilating most actively.
The maximum assimilation of carbon-dioxide by sunflower so
far recorded amounts to only 5 to 6 per cent of the possible as-
similation according to theory. This lack of agreement is
ascribed by Brown and Escombe to the fact that the cells in the
stomatal cavity are not perfect absorbers of carbon-dioxide ; in
other words that the partial pressure of carbon-dioxide at the
surface of these cells is not reduced to zero as assumed in the

106 BRIGGS: THE LIVING PLANT AS A PHYSICAL SYSTEM

theoretical deductions. This explanation is not altogether sat-
isfying and leads to the query whether the diameter law holds
when extrapolated to the degree necessary to apply to the
stomatal system. The smallest apertures used in the develop-
ment of the diameter relationship was about 2 mm., whereas the
diameter of the stomatal openings is of the order of 0.01 mm.

The rate of diffusion of water vapor outward through the
stomatal opening affords a possible method for checking Brown
and Escombe's deductions, which they do not appear to have
employed. By observing the diffusion-rate of water vapor in-
stead of carbon-dioxide the assumption regarding the imperfect
absorption of carbon-dioxide would be avoided. The determi-
nation of the vapor pressure in the interior of the leaf would be
necessary, but this could be made with a fair degree of accuracy
by measuring the temperature of the leaf and the concentration
of the cell contents.

It is of interest to consider in this connection the work of
Buckingham8 on the diffusion of carbon-dioxide through soils.
He found experimentally that the rate of diffusion varied as the
square of the porosity, the latter term denoting the volume of
the interstitial space between the soil grains unoccupied by
water, expressed in per cent of the total volume. He also
tested this observed relationship by assuming all the soil
grains to be removed, so that the porosity would be 100 per
cent. This should lead to the velocity of free diffusion of car-
bon-dioxide in air, and Buckingham's empirical equation gave
a result well in accord with previous determinations of free
diffusion by other investigators. It will at once appear that this
deduction departs widely from the diameter law of Brown and
Escombe. If we consider a volume of soil of unit thickness, the
porosity will be proportional to the integrated area of the
interstitial spaces in any plane parallel to the surface. If we
assume as a first approximation that the pores are uniform in
cross-section, then the porosity would be equal to the product
of the number of pores n and the cross-section a, or the diffusion

3 Buckingham, E. Contributions to our knowledge of the aeration of soils.
U. S. Dept. Agr., Bur. Soils Bulletin No. 25. 1904.

BRIGGS: THE LIVING PLANT AS A PHYSICAL SYSTEM 107

would be proportional to rfia?. According to Brown and Es-
combe the diffusion would be proportional to n\/a. While it is
evident that in this comparison we are not fulfilling one impor-
tant condition imposed by Brown and Escombe, namely, that
the pores shall be sufficiently far apart to avoid interference in
the diffusion stream lines, the two conclusions are at such great
variance as to invite a further examination of the diameter law.

The ascent of sap. We have to consider finally the means by
which the water is lifted to the tops of the highest trees, amount-
ing in the case of the Sequoia to a distance of 300 feet above the
ground.

Strasburger,9 by poisoning the cells of various plants, has
shown that the living elements of the wood play no essential
part in the elevation of the water. An oak nearly 22 meters
high cut off obliquely at its base and set in a picric acid solu-
tion was found to take up the poisonous solution readily. After
the acid had reached a height of 15 meters and the topmost
leaves had changed markedly in appearance, fuchsin was added
to the picric acid solution. At the end of nine days the highest
branches were found to be impregnated with picric acid, which
had been drawn up to a height of nearly 22 meters. Fuchsin
also was found in these branches, although preceded by the pic-
ric acid by three days. This experiment, then, demonstrated
that water solutions can rise in trees without the assistance of
living cells to heights far above those that can be accounted for
by atmospheric pressure. Strasburger also found that stems of
plants killed by subjecting them to a temperature of 90°C.
were still capable of raising water to a height of 10.5 meters.
We may, therefore, conclude that vital processes are not essen-
tial to the ascent of sap.

Of the numerous theories which have been advanced in ex-
planation of this phenomenon, that of Dixon and Joly10 alone
appears to be physically sound. According to these authors,
sap rises through the trunk of the tree as the result of evapora-

9 Strasburger, E. Ueber das Saftsteigen. Histol. Beitr., 5: 10. 1893.
10 Dixon, H. H., and Joly, J. On the ascent of sap. Phil. Trans., 186b: 563-
576. 1895.

108 BRIGGS: THE LIVING PLANT AS A PHYSICAL SYSTEM

tion from cells communicating with the stomatal cavities of the
leaf. The column is then, so to speak, hung from these leaf cells,
and is supported by the adhesion of the water to the walls of these
cells. We may consider the outer surfaces of these cells to be
saturated with water, which retreats into the wall tissue in such
a way as to form a great number of capillary surfaces of high cur-
vature, this curvature in fact being such as would be necessary
to support a capillary column of the observed height. If
through the evaporation of water from the leaves the curva-
ture tends to increase, the force exerted by these curved surfaces
will increase proportionally, and additional water will be drawn
from the soil, tending to restore the equilibrium.

It will at once be evident that this conception postulates
that water must have great cohesion, sufficient in fact to with-
stand the weight of a column 300 feet or more in height. Since
this is an essential condition of the theory, we may profitably
consider the cohesion of water in more detail.

Berthelot11 in 1850 showed that a column of water under
suitable conditions can withstand a very great tensile stress.
A strong capillary tube sealed at one end and drawn to a fine
point at the other was filled with water at a temperature of 30°.
The water was then cooled to 18° and the tube allowed to draw
in air, after which the tube was sealed. The tube was now heated
to 30° and the contained air was forced into solution, so that the
water occupied the entire volume of the tube. On again cooling
the tube to 18° it was found that the liquid continued to occupy
the entire volume of the tube. To produce a compression equal
to this observed dilatation would require a pressure of about
50 atmospheres, from which Berthelot concluded that a water
column is capable, under suitable conditions, of withstanding a
tensile stress of 50 atmospheres. Dixon, using Berthelot's
method, has concluded that the cohesive force of water per unit
cross-section amounts to at least 150 atmospheres. The water
used in his experiments was saturated with air and also con-
tained pieces of the conducting tracts of plants. The measure-

11 Berthelot, M. Sur quelques phenomenes de dilatation fore ee des liquides.
Ann. Chem. et de Phys., 30: 250. 1850.

BRIGGS: THE LIVING PLANT AS A PHYSICAL SYSTEM

109

ments were made through a series of temperatures ranging from
25° to 80°C.

Renner12 and Ursprung13 working independently, have re-
cently used the annulus cells of the spore cases of fern as a
means of measuring the cohesion of water. Both investigators
find that the cell contents of many of the spore cases may be
brought into equilibrium (through the vapor phase) with solu-
tions having an osmotic pressure of 300 atmospheres before the
limit of cohesion is reached and air bubbles appear in the
cells. All of these experiments appear to support the
conclusion that the cohesion of water is amply
sufficient to withstand the stresses in the stem of
a tree.

The cohesion of water may be easily demon-
strated, as Dixon has shown, by means of a
J-shaped sealed tube (fig. 6). A quantity of
water more than sufficient to fill the lower limb
is introduced into the tube, which is then par-
tially exhausted and sealed off. It is unneces-
sary to reduce the air pressure below 2 cm. of mercury; in
other words, the water may contain very appreciable quan-
tities of air. If the tube is now first inclined so that the
water fills the longer limb completely, which may be
over a meter in length, and is then carefully raised
to the position shown in figure 6, the water column
remains hanging from the top of the tube. On de-
stroying the cohesion of the column at some point
by a sharp blow, or preferably by heating a stout
platinum wire previously sealed through the wall of
the tube for this purpose, the water column sudden-
ly falls to the level determined by the gas pressure in the bulb.

Cohesion may also be readily demonstrated by a Bourdon
spring connected with a bulb through a flexible capillary tube.

Fig. 6. Sealed
tube for illus-
t rating the
cohesion of
water. The
water column
is shown hung
from the top
of the long
tube.

r-

12 Renner, 0. Theoretische und Experimentalles zur Kohasionstheorie der
Wasserbewegung. Jahrb. Wiss. Bot., 56: 617-667. 1915.

13 Ursprung, A. Ueber die Kohasion des Wassers in Farnannulus. Ber.
Deutsch. Bot. Gesells., 33: 153-162. 1915.

110 BRIGGS: THE LIVING PLANT AS A PHYSICAL SYSTEM

The system is completely filled with alcohol at room temperature
and sealed. The spring with its index is placed under a bell-jar,
which is then evacuated. On cooling the bulb, the spring will
close somewhat, due to the internal stress set up by the con-
tracting liquid. This stress may be demonstrated by heating
the capillary locally, thus breaking the liquid column, when the
spring will be observed to fly back suddenly to the unstressed
position. The stress exerted by the liquid at the time may be
found by determining the external pressure necessary to produce
the same distortion of the spring.

The channels in the stem of a tree through which water is
conducted are divided into minute compartments by means of
numerous longitudinal and transverse partitions. This con-
figuration seems ill adapted to the conduction of fluids; for while
the walls are permeable to water, they offer a great resistance to
its flow. But from the standpoint of the cohesion theory of the
ascent of sap this structure becomes, as Dixon14 has shown, a
beautiful adaptation of the plant to confer stability on the ten-
silely stressed transpiration stream. The ascending column of
water, interlaced by these innumerable permeable partitions, is
given great stability even though subjected to great tensile
stress.

Observers agree that air bubbles are of common occurrence
in the water ducts of the stems of plants. It is evident from
Dixon's experiments that dissolved air is not prejudicial to co-
hesion. But if a minute bubble appears in an experimental
tube in which the water is subjected to great stress the bubble
expands rapidly and the column is at once ruptured. How then
can the presence of air in the conducting channels be harmonized
with the cohesion theory of the rise of sap? Here the plant
again shows in the minute subdivisions of its conducting chan-
nels a beautiful provision against the interruption of its water
supply through the development of bubbles in the stem. If an
air bubble appears in one of the minute compartments, it may
expand, as Dixon has pointed out, until it fills the compartment,

14 Dixon, H. H. Transpiration and the ascent of sap. Progressus Rei Botan-
icae, 3 : 1-66. 1909.

BRIGGS: THE LIVING PLANT AS A PHYSICAL SYSTEM 111

but beyond that it can not go. As the air follows the water back
into the imbibing walls minute capillary surfaces of great curva-
ture are developed, which successfully withstand the pressure of
the gas from within, and what is far greater, the stresses from
without. This compartment then simply becomes inoperative.
The transpiration stream flows around it, as the waters of a
river flow around an island in its center.

When the world's supply of coal and oil is exhausted, man
will be reduced to the extremity of dependence upon solar engines,
water power, and wood as sources of energy, unless his ingenuity
has meantime been equal to the task of liberating the energy of
the atom. So far as we can see at present, wood and plant
products will then constitute, as in fact they do now, the only
means of storing in a readily transportable form the energy re-
ceived from the sun. Hence, efficiency in plant production
from the standpoint of both food and fuel promises to be a
problem of rapidly increasing importance as the years progress —
a problem which demands for its complete solution the fullest
possible understanding of the physical and chemical processes
associated with plant growth.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

THE PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 782nd meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, January 20, 1917.
President Buckingham in the chair; 88 persons present. The min-
utes of the 781st meeting were read in abstract and approved.

The evening was devoted to hearing the address of the retiring
President, Mr. Lyman J. Briggs, on The living plant as a physical
system. The address is published in this Journal, 7: 89-111. 1917.

Donald H. Sweet, Secretary.

THE CHEMICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 260th meeting of the society was held at the Cosmos Club,
April 13, 1916. Dr. C. L. Parsons, Secretary of the American Chemi-
cal Society, presented announcements in relation to the Spring Meeting
of the society at Urbana, 111. and the projected work of the Naval
Advisory Board in its attempt to inventory the resources of the coun-
try. Dr. Parsons represents the Chemical Society in this work in the
District of Columbia. The following program was presented:

H. W. Daudt, Bureau of Chemistry: Investigations of the Kjeldahl
method of determining nitrogen.

The proper conditions for the complete decomposition of refrac-
tory compounds of nitrogen with acid ammonium sulphate were dis-
cussed. Mercuric oxide cannot be replaced by other catalysts, or
potassium sulphate by sodium sulphate. The results of analyses of
compounds of various constitutions were discussed.

A new aeration apparatus is devised for this determination.
Folin's method for determining ammonia is adapted to the Kjeldahl
method. All the operation, including the measurement and addition
of the sodium hydroxide, the passing of air through the resulting alka-
line solution, and the absorption of the ammonia in standard acid solu-
tion, are carried on by means of air pressure or suction. The advan-
tages over the more commonly used distillation method were discussed.
(Author's abstract.)

J. M. Johnson, Bureau of Chemistry: A fourth pentacetate of galac-
tose.

In continuation of the work on the preparation of the various iso-
meric acetates of the sugars, carried out in conjunction with Hudson,
a fourth crystalline pentacetate of galactose, having properties quite
distinct from those of the three known isomers, has been isolated.
An account of the method of preparation and properties was presented.

112

proceedings: chemical society 113

E. A. Hill, Patent Office: Van't Hoff's principle of optical super-
position. The lactonic constitution of the aldose sugars and the mela-
saccharins and the constants from which their specific rotatory powers can
be computed.

By a comparison of the experimental values with the values of the
specific rotation computed on the basis of certain assumptions as to
constitution and structure, it is shown:

1. That in carbohydrates and their derivatives having a plurality
of asymmetric carbon atoms, more particularly the aldose sugars
(provided we assume the modern 7-oxidic or lactonic ring theory of
their structure), the specific rotation [a\d is the algebraic sum of certain
constants corresponding to such asymmetric atoms so that, if A, a, /3,
7, 8, etc., be the constants for a given group of active isomers, the
specific rotation will be given by the formula;

[a]d = ±.4±a±/3±7±5 . . .

2. That Van't Hoff's so-called principle of optical superposition is
therefore valid for these cases.

3. That the 7-oxidic or lactonic ring theory of these sugars, which
has been used to explain the phenomenon of mutarotation, is thereby
confirmed.

The agreement between observed and computed values is very sat-
isfactory in each of the five groups presented. Thus, in both the
aldopentose and aldohexose sugars the maximum difference does not
exceed 1 per cent and the average difference is 0.1 per cent of the ob-
served values.

The methods used for computing the constants are: 1st, a strictly
algebraic method; 2nd, a method similar to that used by Dr. Hudson
in computing his quantity A and which is as follows: When the
structural formulas of two active isomers differ only in the configura-
tion of one and the same asymmetric atom, the algebraic difference of
their specific rotations will be twice the value of the constant of such
atom.

The 261st meeting of the Society was held in the Assembly Hall
of the Y. M. C. A. Building, May 11, 1916. Amendments to the con-
stitution were adopted abolishing the office of first and second vice-
presidents, the present incumbents to become members of the Execu-
tive Committee, the membership of which was increased to six elected
members. Mr. F. C. Cook was elected member of the Executive Com-
mittee to succeed H. M. Loomis, retiring from the section. The fol-
lowing resolution presented by a special committee consisting of J. A.
LeClerc, J. T. Keister, and H. S. Bailey was adopted:

In the death of Prof. George E. Patrick the Chemical Society of Washington
has lost one of its oldest members. Professor Patrick was ever a faithful attend-
ant at its meetings and frequently took an active part in the discussions.

114 proceedings: chemical society

He was a man of broad discernment and of high ideals, brave, yet unob-
trusive. One of his most noble deeds was the gift of several thousand dollars
to The University of Kansas, a large part of the yearly proceeds of which is to be
presented to the student preparing the best essay on Applied Christianity.

The Chemical Society of Washington records with sorrow the death of their
fellow member and hereby places this meager testimony of his worth in its
minutes.

The following program consisting of papers from the Hygienic
Laboratory was presented :

C. N. Myers: The preparation of heavy metal salts of certain organic
acids.

An account of the methods of preparation and the properties of some
of the less commonly known heavy metal salts of organic acids was
given. These salts were prepared for use in such pharmacological
investigations as are mentioned in the following abstract.

G. C. Lake: Some observations on the toxicity and chemotherapy of
the heavy metals.

This paper is a brief report on. work done, under the direction of
Prof. Voegtlin, with the lactates and thioglycollates of nearly all the
heavy metals. Toxidty was determined on rats and guinea pigs by
several routes of injection, the dosage being based on actual content
of metal, and given in mgs. per kg. of body weight. The action and
pathology were studied to some extent. It was found that all are rela-
tively toxic provided they enter the circulation. There seems to be no
constant relation between toxicity and atomic -weight of the metal or
its position in the periodic system. The preparations were all studied
in relation to their action on Tr. Brucei in vitro and in vivo, using rats
and guinea pigs. The only preparation giving any marked trypano-
cidal action was an antimonial. The great specificity of drugs in re-
gard to their chemotherapeutic action is again emphasized by this
work. (Author's abstract.)

Elias Elvove: The 'separation and determination of small amounts
of antimony.

Small amounts of antimony (less than 1 mg.) can be estimated by
comparing the color produced by treating the unknown solution with
hydrogen sulphide water, with the colors similarly produced in solu-
tions containing known amounts of antimony. As little as one-
hundredth of a milligram of antimony in 20 cc. can be detected by
means of the hydrogen sulphide test. The antimony sulphide result-
ing from amounts of antimony up to about 0.1 mg. in 25 cc. remains in
colloidal solution for an hour or two and thus admits of its colorimetric
estimation. In the presence of arsenic and tin (up to 5 mg.) the arsenic
is first separated as ammonium magnesium arsenate by the aid of the
simultaneous phosphate precipitation of Smith (Bur. Chem. Cir. No.
102). The filtrate is boiled down to about 10 cc, cooled, made up to
15 cc. with water acidified with 1 cc. concentrated hydrochloric acid
(Sp. gr. 1. 19) and boiled for two minutes. After cooling, it is diluted
again to 15 cc. with water further acidified by adding 5 cc. of

proceedings: botanical society 115

concentrated hydrochloric acid, and then mixed with 5 cc.of a satu-
rated solution of hydrogen sulphide. This concentration of hydro-
chloric acid serves to keep the tin in solution but does not prevent the
antimony from reacting with the hydrogen sulphide. The antimony
standards are prepared simultaneously with the carrying out of the
determination and are subjected to exactly the same treatment as the
unknown. (Author's abstract.)

The 262nd meeting was held at the New National Museum as a
joint meeting with the Washington Society of Engineers, May 24,
1916. The illustrated lecture of the evening was given by Mr. Joseph
Steinmetz, President of tht Aero Club of Pennsylvania, on The ma-
chine shop and the chemical laboratory as related to national preparedness
for defense.

E. C. McKelvy, Secretary.

THE BOTANICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 114th regular meeting of the Society was held in the Assembly
Hall of the Cosmos Club, Tuesday, October 3, 1916. Twenty-four
members and six guests were present. The program consisted of the
following papers:

Dr. C. A. Davis, an appreciation. David White: To be published
elsewhere.

R. M. Meade, an appreciation. F. L. Lewton:

Rowland Montgomery Meade, a most promising young botanist
connected with the United States Department of Agriculture, died at
San Antonio, Texas, June 25, 1916, a few weeks after his twenty-
seventh birthday. He was born at Clyde, New York, May 16, 1889,
graduated at the high school of his home town, and on the recom-
mendation of Mr. O. F. Cook was appointed, March 15, 1905, as an
assistant in experiments with boll-weevil resistant cotton. In 1907,
as field agent, he accompanied Mr. Cook to Guatemala, to aid him in
his studies of tropical species of cotton and his experiments with cot-
ton insects. On July 1, 1908, after passing a civil service examination,
he was appointed a Scientific Assistant in the Bureau of Plant In-
dustry, and he continued his investigations in connection with the
cotton plant in Texas, Arizona, and California. In December, 1908,
he was elected to membership in the Botanical Society of Washington.
On March 1, 1916, he was appointed superintendent of the experi-
mental farm at San Antonio, Texas, under the office of Western Irri-
gation Agriculture. It was while performing his duties under this
assignment that he was stricken with amoebic dysentery and died
after an illness of ten days. He leaves a wife and an infant son. All
those who came in contact with Roland Meade were attracted by his
personal charm and sunny temperament and recognized his mental
alertness, which gave promise for a bright future. His interest in grow-
ing plants was intense. He looked upon them as real living things,

110 proceedings: botanical society

and delighted to watch their morphological responses to changes of
environment. He devised methods of describing and tabulating the
minute differences of individual plants, as may be seen in his published
papers. The following list of United States Department of Agricul-
ture publications indicates the nature of his studies:

Supernumerary Carpels in Cotton Bolls. Bur. PI. Ind. Circ. 111.

Methods of Securing Self-Pollination in Cotton. Bur. PI. Ind.

Circ. 121. ,. . , . . ^ _

A Study of Diversity in Egyptian Cotton (joint author with O. F.
Cook and A. McLachlan). Bur. PI. Ind. Bull. 156.

Arrangement of Parts in the Cotton Plant. Bur. PI. Ind. Bull. 222.

Single-Stalk Cotton Culture at San Antonio. Dept. Bull. 279.

Roland Meade's many friends in this Society and the Department
of Agriculture will always remember him as a clean, lovable young
man of great promise, who was cut off at the beginning of his life's
work.

Experiments in the use of peat in the greenhouse (with lantern) : H. C.

Thompson.

Four years experimental work in growing greenhouse crops on
muck soils shows that there is a greater difference in the productive-
ness of the various types than can be accounted for on the basis of
fertilizing elements present. Three types of muck soil were used in
the experiments. The type showing the smallest percentage of ni-
trogen and potash produced the largest yields of lettuce, cauliflower,
and tomatoes. This was true of the pure muck plats as well as all
plats containing muck and clay mixtures (mixtures 75 per cent muck
and 25 per cent clay, to 12.5 per cent muck and 87.5 per cent clay).
The difference in yields where the various types of mucks were used was
probably due to the physical condition and to the organic life in the
soil. In a field experiment the muck showing, on analysis, the high-
est nitrogen content gave the greatest increase in yield when manure
was used. This increase from manure could not possibly be ac-
counted for on the basis of plant food, as plats treated with large quan-
tities of complete fertilizers showed a still greater increase when manure
was applied. The manure was of special value in inoculating the soil
with beneficial organisms. The muck producing the largest yield in the
greenhouses showed no increase from the use of manure that could
not be accounted for on the basis of plant food. It is interesting to
Qote that the soil producing the largest yield in the greenhouse has
been under cultivation much longer than the one producing the smaller
yield.

The soil giving the best results produced good yields of lettuce,
cauliflower, tomatoes, carnations, and roses. With the first two crops
the pure muck plats produced the largest yields, while with tomatoes,
carnations, and roses the mixture containing 50 per cent muck and 50
per cent clay produced the largest yields. All mixtures containing 50
per cent or more muck produced greater yields of lettuce, cauliflower,

id tomatoes than a mixture containing 3 parts clay, 1 part sand, and

proceedings: botanical society 117

2 parts well rotted manure. In fact, 25 per cent muck practically
equalled 33.5 per cent manure.

The speaker concludes that a good type of cultivated muck soil is
valuable for greenhouse work and might be used to take the place of a
part or all of the manure. However, it is doubtful if it would be prac-
ticable to use muck soil for greenhouse work except where it could be
secured near at hand at a low cost.

The origin and use of upland peat (with lantern) : Frederick V.

COVILLE.

Upland peat, formed in thickets of laurel (Kalmia latifolia), was
used experimentally in growing various species of plants. Among
those successfully grown were a number of rare species seldom seen in
cultivation and very difficult to propagate, including plants belonging
to the Ericaceae, or heath family, which cannot be grown with suc-
cess in ordinary soils. The list includes also several insectivorous
plants and orchids.

Perhaps the most interesting and striking of all is an ornamental
tree, Franklinia alatamaha, discovered in 1765 by Bartram and named
in honor of Benjamin Franklin. It has beautiful white, sweet-scented
flowers resembling those of a magnolia, but with one of the petals
modified to a pouch-like form. This plant, originally from Georgia,
is not now known to exist in the wild state. Closely allied to it but
with evergreen instead of deciduous leaves is the Gordonia lasianthus,
of the Southern States, sometimes known as black laurel or loblolly
bay. Among our native orchids are the royal lady's slipper, Cypri-
pedium reginae, and the pink-flowered C. acaule. A fit companion
to them is an exquisite climbing lily-like plant sometimes called the
empress lily (Lapageria rosea) with pendant flowers. This plant, dis-
covered in the forest region of Chile, takes its generic name from
that of the family of the Empress Josephine. Among insectivorous
plants successfully grown are Drosera rotundifolia and other sundews;
the curious Venus's flytrap {Dionaea muscipula) ; Utricularia subulata
and U. cleistogama of sandy swamps and pine barrens. Other plants
are Cornus canadensis, the dwarf dogwood or bunch berry; the fra-
grant twin-flower (Linnaea borealis) ; Pinckneya pubens, with flowers
having inconspicuous petals but with a remarkable calyx of which one
or two of the lobes are expanded into large conspicuous blades; and
Viola pedata, the pansy violet of our rocky woods and sterile hills,
with palmate leaves and velvety upper petals.

Among the Ericales are Clethra alnifolia, the sweet pepper bush of
the Atlantic coast; Dendrium prostratum, the sand myrtle of the pine
barrens; Azalea vaseyi, a remarkably beautiful pink-flowered species
from the Appalachian region; A. lutea, with orange or yellow flowers;
the common A. nudifiora; A. viscosa, with sweet-scented white flowers;
and the cultivated Indian Azalea (A. indica). The list also includes
Rhododendron maximum, the rose bay laurel; R. carolinianum; and R.
praecoz, an interesting early-blooming hybrid formed from R. dahuri-
cam from the Lake Baikal district of Siberia and R. ciliatum of the

US proceedings: biological society

Himalayas: Kalmia Utifolia, the mountain laurel; and K angusti-
folia commonly known as lamb kill or sheep laurel; Leucothoe cates-
with racemes of white flowers; Eubotrys racemosa, a coastal swamp
plant • Pieris floribunda, an evergreen shrub of the Southern States;
P jdpmica, with long pendant racemes of white flowers; Neopiens
nitida; Epigaea repens, the trailing arbutus or mayflower; Gaultheria
procumbens, the aromatic wintergreen ; and Pernettya mucronata, from
the Magellan region. Among the heaths are Calluna vulgaris, the
heather of Scotland; Daboecia polifolia, Irish heather; various
species of heath from Europe and the Cape of Good Hope; Gaylus-
sacia dumosa, the dwarf huckleberry; G. frondosa, the dangleberry;
G. ursina, the bear huckleberry of the southern mountains; Pohjco-
dium stamineum, the squaw huckleberry or deer berry; Vacnnium
membranaceum; V. parvifolium, the red fruited whortleberry of the
northwest coast; V. reticulatum, the "ohelo" of Hawaii; V. myrsmites,
the evergreen blueberry of Florida; V. vacillans; V. corymbosum, the
high blueberry; V. pallidum; V. hirsutum; V. erythrocarpum, of the
Alleghenv Mountains; V. vitis-idaea, a circumpolar evergreen species;
V. canadense; V. angustifolium; V. nigrum; V. simulatum; V. atro-
coccum; V. ovatum, of the Pacific coast; and V. ciliatum, the Japanese
species. In addition to these species of Vaccinium there are also
hybrids between several species. The list also includes Oxijcoccus
macrocarpus, the large American cranberry; Arbutus unedo, the Medi-
terranean madrono or strawberry tree; A. canariensis, with large edible
fruit, from the Canary Islands; A. arizonica, from Arizona; and A.
menziesii from the Pacific coast of North America.

The Rubiaceae are represented by the partridge berry, Mitchella
repens; the Empetraceae by the circumpolar crowberry, Empetrum
nigrum; and the Galacaceae by the well known evergreen Galax aphylla
of our southern woods.

In addition to these may be mentioned a handsome gentian of the
pine barrens, Gentiana porphyria, with flowers two inches in diameter;
a dwarf fern, Schizaea pusilla; several species of Sphagnum, including
S. cymbifolium; and two exotic plants with exquisitely fragrant flow-
ers, Daphne odora from India, and D. blagayana from the Balkan region.

W. E. Safford, Corresponding Secretary.

THE BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 563rd meeting of the Biological Society of Washington was
held at the Cosmos Club, Saturday, January 13, 1917; called to order
by President Hay at 8 p.m. with 45 persons in attendance.

On recommendation of the council Dr. George W. Field, of the
Biological Survey, was elected to membership.

President Hay announced as Committee on Publications: C. W.
Richmond, J. H. Riley, Ned Dearborn, W. L. McAtee; and as
Committee on Communications: William Palmer, Alex. Wetmore,
R. E. Coker, L. 0. Howard, A. S. Hitchcock.

proceedings: biological society 119

Under the heading of Brief Notes, W. L. McAtee and Alex. Wet-
moke called attention to the presence of white-winged crossbills in the
vicinity of Washington, constituting the second authentic record of
this species in the District fauna. The first specimen was seen by
Mr. McAtee on December 10, 1916, in a flock of American crossbills.
Later, on December 24, 27, and 30, other specimens were seen, as
single birds and also in flocks, Mr. Wetmore having seen as many as
forty birds together. In contrast to this unusual visit of a northern
bird Mr. McAtee mentioned the lingering of summer birds, having
noted a Cape May warbler on December 6, and a bluegray gnat-
catcher about January 1. He mentioned also having found a box
turtle out and active on January 7, 1917.

Mr. E. A. Goldman mentioned the reported occurrence of Hud-
sonian chickadees in the vicinity of New York City and Boston.

Mr. A. S. Hitchcock called attention to the unusual precautions
that were being taken in the cai-e of the Linnaean Herbarium to pro-
tect it from damage by aircraft.

The regular program was as follows:

L. O. Howard: Some European experiences with entomologists.

Under this title Dr. Howard read three short papers, entitled
"Rennes and Rene Oberthiir," "An Entomological Trip to the Cri-
mea," and "The Episode of Theophile Gautier," all illustrated with
lantern slides. In the first he described the personality of Rene Ober-
thiir, one of the great amateur collectors of insects in Europe, and his
beautiful place at Rennes where he has a private museum, an extra-
ordinary arboretum, and one of the largest collections of orchids in
existence. He spoke at some length of the very important volun-
tary assistance which M. Oberthiir had given the Bureau of Ento-
mology in the collection and importation of the parasites of the gipsy
moth and the brown-tailed moth from Europe into the United States,
and gave an account of an automobile journey through Brittany and
Normandy in the summer of 1909, on which he was accompanied by
M. Oberthiir and by Paul Marchal of the Station Entomologique de
Paris.

In the second paper he described a journey from Budapest through
Lemberg to Kiew in 1907; the establishment of an experimental sta-
tion at Kiew under the direction of Prof. Waldemar Pospielow of the
University of Kiew; "the journey thence to Sebastopol, Bachtisserai,
and Simferopol, the reginal museum at the latter place under the charge
of Prof. Sigismond Mokchetsky; and the excellent work in economic
entomology done by Professor Mokchetsky in the Crimea. He men-
tioned also the old palace of the Khan of the Crimea at Bachtisserai
and the marine zoological laboratory at Sebastopol.

In the concluding episode he described his personal experiences in
1910 and 1912 with Theophile Gautier, one of the most successful rose
growers of France, at Angers, a man of the simplest appearance and
habits and of the highest standing in horticultural circles and an
Officier of the order of Merite Agricole.

120 proceedings: biological society

H. C. Oberholser: Recent additions to the list of North American
birds.

Mr. Oberholser said that the period from 1910 to 1916 inclusive
was one of great ornithological activity. During this period fully 125
species and subspecies were added to the list of birds known from
North America. Most of these additions resulted from the descrip-
tion of new subspecies or the revival of hitherto unrecognized forms,
which together amount to over 100, among the most interesting being
five new subspecies from Newfoundland. Two distinct species were
described from North America during this time: Aestrelata cahow
from the Bermuda Islands, and a remarkable new gull, allied to Larus
calif ornicus, called Larus thayeri, from Ellesmere Land. Also a num-
ber of extralimital forms were for the first time detected within our
boundaries, among the most notable of which might be mentioned
Puffinus carneipes taken in California; Totanus totanus from Green-
land; Calliope calliope camtschaikensis and Hypocentor rusticus, both
from Kiska Island, Alaska; Nyroca ferina, Marila fuligula, Clangula
clangula clangula, Cryptoglaux funerea funerea, Coccothaustes cocco-
thaustes japonicus, and Fringilla montifringilla, all from the Pribilof
Islands; Poecilonetta bahamensis from Florida; Petrochelidon fulva
pallida from Texas; and Tyrannus melancholicus satrapa from Maine.

William Palmer: The fossil seacow of Maryland.

Mr. Palmer exhibited the fifth thoracic neural arch of a sirenian
which was shown to be unlike that of the manatee and to agree abso-
lutely, except in size, with a similar bone of Steller's seacow (Hydro-
damalis) from Bering Sea. The specimen was found, freshly fallen,
under a cliff of the Calvert Miocene on the western shore of Maryland.
It was suggested that the species was living during the period follow-
ing the first erosion of the Cretaceous and the deposition of the Eocene,
as all the specimens so far found in the Miocene were clearly redeposits
from an earlier age.

M. W. Lyon, Jr., Recording Secretary.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VII MARCH 4, 1917 No. 5

BOTANY. — The Mascarene cabbage palm as a new genus. O. F.
Cook, Bureau of Plant Industry.

Soon after landing at Payta, in northern Peru, March 24, 1915,
my attention was attracted by a palm growing in the garden of
the plaza. Seen from a distance there was a marked similarity
in habit and general appearance to the coconut palm, but the
proportions were smaller throughout. With a closer view it was
soon apparent that the palm did not belong to any American
group but to the Old World family Arecaceae, natives of the
islands and shores of the Pacific and Indian oceans. Relation-
ship with the genus Loroma, described in a former volume of
this Journal,1 became apparent from an examination of the
flowers and fruits, and notes were made of the following features :

Trunk riniose, about 6 inches in diameter, thickened at the base to
a foot or over, bearing a crown of about 12 leaves, of the general form,
texture, and light yellowish-green color of the leaves of the coconut
palm, but only about half as long (7-8 feet), with 60-62 pinnae on each
side of the rachis. Leaf sheaths grayish, scaly on the back. Lowest
pinnae much reduced, the first measuring 8 mm. wide by about 18 cm.
long, remaining connected with those above by long marginal ribbons.
Second pinnae 9 nun. by 17 cm.; fifth pinnae 1.3 cm. by 28 cm., split
at tip; middle pinnae 5.3 by 87 cm., split at the tip a distance of 10-
12 cm.; penultimate pinnae 2.8 by 35 cm.; uppermost pinnae about
2.7 cm. by 30 cm., but irregular, consisting of 2-3 small united seg-
ments.

Inflorescence attaining a length of 62 cm., the basal joint 4 cm. long,
very broad, encircling the trunk. Second joint 1 cm. long, the branches

1 Jo urn. Wash. Acad. Sci., 5: 117. 1915.

121

122 cook: the mascarene cabbage palm

beginning only 1 cm. or less above the spathe scar. Branches 58, all
simple, attaining a length of 45-53 cm., about 5 mm. thick, at base
1 cm. or more, tapering to the apex. Total length of axis 32 cm.,
26 cm. above lowest branch.

Buds and flowers light green, the petals somewhat yellowish green,
the sepals paler and more whitish. Filaments and pistillode white.
Anthers and pollen rather dull, light yellow or buff. Flowers mostly
in groups of two, in broad impressions or notches; only staminate
(lowers on the branch collected. Pistillate flowers with the calyx
n inch larger, and petals imbricate instead of valvate, as shown on the
fruits. Pistillode narrowly conic, from a somewhat broader base,
slightly iobed at apex, over half as long as the filaments. Mature
fruits purplish, with grayish bloom in the wrinkles, pointed-oval, 1.6
cm. long, 9mm. wide, with a mesocarp of vertical fibers and an endo-
carp of columnar shell tissue, as in Loroma and Archontophoenix.
Seeds 1.1 cm. long by 7 mm. wide, oval, showing an open network of
ruminations, much plainer than in Archontophoenix.

Examined afterward at Washington, the seeds seemed to be
the same as those representing Dictyosperma album (Bory) in the
collections. The species is a native of the Mascarene Islands in
the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar, and is rather well known
liorticulturally.

Nevertheless, the identification appeared unsatisfactory be-
cause the generic description of Dictyosperma was in some repects
distinctly inapplicable, and the availability of the name Dictyo-
sperma was brought into question by Mr. S. C. Stuntz. The
same name had been used twice before being applied to the
palm, first in the form Dyctisperma, proposed by Rafinesque in
1838 for a genus of Rubiaceae, and again as Dictyospermum,
applied by Wight in 1853 to a genus of spiderworts. Its appli-
cation to a genus of palms, in the form Dictyosperma, dates from
1875. Still another version, Dyctosperma, perhaps accidental,
appeared in a list of palms published by Wendland in 1878.2

No detailed description or reference to particular material is
given in connection with the original description of Dictyosperma,
but the distribution, " Insulae Borboniae et Franciae," is stated,
also the u Species typica: Areca alba Bory."3 But in spite of the

Kerchove de Denterghem, O. Les Palmiers, p. 254. 1878.

•Wendland, H., and Drtjde, O. Palmae Auslralasicae, Linnaea, 39: 181.
1875.

cook: the mascarene cabbage palm 123

designation of a generic type the application of the name Dictyo-
sperma appears somewhat uncertain. The possibility has to be
considered that the genus was not in reality based on the true
Areca alba Bory, but upon some other palm or palms whose
characters had been adopted as those of Bory's species. The
original description of the genus includes several characters that
do not appear in the palm studied at Payta. In this the flowers
are crowded irregularly and are often in pairs or solitary, instead
of being arranged in clusters of three, distichous at the base of
the branches and in spirals above. The pistillode is conic and
tapering instead of long and columnar, and the fruit rather nar-
rowly conic-oval, instead of globose-elliptic.

Thus the problem is not merely to find a name that can be
used in place of Dictyosperma, if this be rejected as a homonym,
but to have a generic designation that is more definitely appli-
cable to the palm current in the horticultural world as Areca
alba or Dictyosperma album. Under the circumstances it appears
inadvisable to propose a new name merely as a substitute for
Dictyosperma, since this might carry over to the future the
same uncertainty that now attends the application of this
generic name. These possibilities of further confusion may be
reduced by considering the specimens collected at Payta as type
material of a new genus, for which the name Linoma is proposed.
The specimens have been labeled Linoma alba (Bory), deposited
in the U. S. National Herbarium, and catalogued under numbers
866367; 866368, 866369, and 866370.

Linoma Cook, gen. nov.

Trunk solitary, rather robust, distinctly enlarged at base, with
rather short internodes and deeply impressed leaf-scars. Leaves large,
compound, with very numerous lanceolate pinnae, slender, splitting
at the tip, not praemorse.

Spathes two, both complete, thin and membranous in texture,
promptlv deciduous as soon as released by the fall of the subtending
leaf.

Inflorescence with numerous, simple, tapering branches, the flowers
crowded irregularly on the axis, inserted singly or in pairs in distinct
notches or pits.

Flowers pale green, the staminate with small, triangular sepals,
rather thick and fleshy in the middle, prominent or somewhat carinate

124 cook: the mascarene cabbage palm

on the back; petals oblong-oval, narrowed and somewhat apiculate at
the tip, valvate in the bud; stamens 6, the anthers much longer than
the filaments in the bud, but exserted at anthesis, when the filaments
somewhat exceed the petals. Pistillode tapering gradually from a
rather robust conic base, distinctly but minutely tridentate at apex,
distinctly exceeded by the mature filaments. Pistillate flowers with
sepals Mini pistils similar, broadly suborbicular, subcordate at base, the
petals over twice as long as the sepals, somewhat apiculate at apex,
widely overlapping to form a rather deep cup. Stammodes minute,
broadly triangular, persistent.

Fruit dull purplish at maturity, nearly symmetrical, rather narrowly
conic-oval or subfusiform, tapering abruptly below but much more
gradually above, and with an abruptly shouldered apical stigma-scar;
pericarp fleshy, greenish, very thin, when dry adherent to the thin
mesocarp, and this in turn to the thin, bony endocarp; mesocarp
fibers fine, close-set, frequently branched or anastomosing but the
branches not diverging; endocarp thin and fragile, but consisting of
a distinct laver of bony palisade tissue, as in Archontophoenix.

Seed oval, somewhat flattened at the base and slightly apiculate
above at the chalaza; raphe scarcely impressed, without distinct fibers,
but j>;ivin<i- rise at the chalaza and sparingly elsewhere to an open
aetwork of impressed fibers following the grooves of the deep radial
ruminations. Embrj^o erect, basal.

. As diagnostic characters may be mentioned the simply branched
inflorescence, the small number of stamens, the rather narrowly oval
fruit and seed, the mesocarp of fine compact fibers, and the bony endo-
carp. The last feature is shared with Archontophoenix, but not the
others. The broad coarse mesocarp fibers and adherent endocarp of
Loroma are very different.

In general habit and aspect Linoma is not unlike Loroma, which
shares the attractive resemblance to the coconut palm. A few days
after Leaving Payta a fine display of Loroma was seen in the Plaza
de Armas, at Lima, in front of the Cathedral where tourists goto pay
their respects to the bones of Pizarro.

The generic name alludes to the fine, compact texture of the fibrous
mesocarp layer of the fruit, a feature which distinguishes at once this
genus from Loroma and Archontophoenix.

The mesocarp filters are much more numerous, finer, and closer than
those of Loroma. The individual fibers begin to branch not far above
the base, and the divisions often split again near the middle of the seed,
and then taper gradually, becoming very delicate before the apex is
reached. .\11 of the fibers are very closely united, forming a much
thinner and more compact coal than in Loroma or Archontophoenix.

cook: the mascarene cabbage palm 125

Two of the fibers lying above the raphe are thicker and more prom-
inent than the others and remain unbranched.

The lack of fibers on the raphe is a rather peculiar feature. A verti-
cal band of a paler color is visible on the inside of the endocarp running
from a basal expansion below the embryo to an apical pit at the chalaza.
Five or six of the grooves corresponding to the ruminations radiate
from the chalaza. The seed when sectioned transversely near the
middle also shows grooves, as more or less regular radial divisions
around a solid central core. The number of radiating grooves varies
from 8 to 11.

The shape of the seed may be considered as a resemblance to Sea-
forthia and Ptychosperma, but there are no indications of the broad
longitudinal grooves that characterize the seeds of those genera.

The characters of the pistillodes in this group of palms show an
unusual form of specialization of these rudimentary organs. The
usual tendency in the evolution of unisexual flowers is to reduce the
functionless organs, or to suppress them altogether. The staminodes
of these palms are mere rudiments of stamens, but the pistillodes
show distinct tendencies to share the characters of the filaments, in
size, form, and texture. This tendency is least apparent in Loroma,
is moderately pronounced in Linoma, and is best developed in Sea-
forthia and Archontophoenix, where the pistillodes even exceed the
filaments. Whether the pistillode will be found in any case to be
replaced by a normal functional stamen, remains to be seen. Such
a change, in which one organ assumes characters that belonged origi-
nally to another, is recognized as representing a general class of evolu-
tionary phenomena called translocation or metaphanic variations.4

The spathes when fresh are of a thin, fleshy or membranous texture,
the inner more delicate, becoming chartaceous when dry and splitting
readily into longitudinal shreds. As in Loroma the original function
of the spathes in protecting the young inflorescences has been assumed
by the leaf sheaths. The inflorescence with its spathes remains com-
pletely enclosed by the leaf sheath until the flowering stage is reached,
being unable to emerge until the leaf falls. Very soon after this the
spathes also fall off and the flowers open. The outer and inner spathes
of Linoma are both complete, and of nearly equal length, but the outer
is much broader. The margins are broadly carinate-alate, with the
edges very thin and densely pilose, at least near the apex.

4 Cook, O. F. Br achy sm, a hereditary deformity of cotton and other plants.
Journ. Agr. Research, 4: 397. 1915.

iV>

126 cook: the mascarene cabbage palm

The inner spathes also have a distinct but very narrow carina on
each side, running about halfway up. The tip is distinctly apiculate,
bu1 not produced. The outer surface is even, but dull, and of a rather
light rusty-brown color, while the inner surface appears smooth and
shining, bu1 is marked with distinct slightly prominent longitudinal
brownish lines, with finer lines and wrinkles between, representing
the finer ramifications of the fibro-vascular system.

The number of pinnae and several other features noted at Payta
seem not to have been recorded before. Bory and Martius refer to
p.tioles and other parts of leaves as sometimes tinged with red, which
may have caused confusion with another palm from Reunion, de-
scribed by Bory as Areca rubra, but now placed in the genus Acantho-
phoenix. It is distinguished readily by the presence of spines on the
trunks and leaf-bases. A third species, Areca crinita, also described
by Bory from the same island, has the trunk and leaf-bases clothed
with slender curved spines and hairs. This also is referred by modern
botanists to Acanthophoenix.

It appears from Bory's account that all three species afford edible
"cabbages," but the species now referred to Acanthophoenix are said
to grow in the mountains, while Areca alba is said to prefer the shores
and inhabited parts of the island.

It might be presumed that this is the species that is now put up
in tins and shipped to Europe and America as a salad delicacy,
under the name "hearts of palms" (coeur de palmier). A study of a
specimen of this commercial product shows the presence of minute
slender spines embedded in the loose flocculent coating of the surfaces
of the embryonic leaves, which would indicate that the material repre-
sents Acanthophoenix.

In addition to seeds that have been received on different occasions
from commercial horticulturists the Office of Seed and Plant Intro-
duction, Bureau of Plant Industry, has received seeds closely similar
to those collected at Payta from Mr. G. Regnard, Port Louis, Mauritius,
.■iceompanied by the following note:

A palm that attains a height of 50 feet. Young plants have dark
rod margins on new leaves which diminishes when the tree becomes
older. The true red variety is getting very scarce now as almost all
the trees newly planted are a cross mixture with the white. These
seeds were gathered on true red sort in a wide plantation of them.
The cabbage of this palm is commonly eaten here and has a quite
delicate flavor.

CLARK! CRINOID FAMILY ANTEDONIDAE 127

These seeds have the Inventory number 38,696. Other importa-
tions are numbered 1928, 1929, and 42,365.

ZOOLOGY. — A revision of the crinoid family Antedonidae, with
the diagnoses of nine new genera.1 Austin H. Clark, Na-
tional Museum.

The family Antedonidae is the most universally distributed of
all the families of recent crinoids; its species occur everywhere,
ranging from the tropical littoral in both hemispheres uninter-
ruptedly down to the greatest depths at which crinoids have been
found, and include all of the strictly antarctic and all of the
arctic comatulids.

Owing to the difficulty involved in dealing with the species of
this family, which arises chiefly from the altogether extraordinary
brittleness and fragility of the great majority, and the resultant
lack of some essential feature or other in very many of the
published descriptions, no really satisfactory disposition of the
included types has as yet been proposed ; but it is believed that
the following arrangement more nearly represents the true inter-
relationships of the component species than any of its prede-
cessors.

The species referable to the family Antedonidae fall naturally
into forty genera, which in turn are distributed among seven well
characterized groups, ranking as subfamilies. These subfamilies
with their included genera are the following :

Antedoninae: Antedon, Compsometra, Mastigometra, Euantedon, Toxo-

metra, Dorometra (nov.), Eumetra, Iridometra, Hybometra, Andro-

metra (nov.), and Argyrometra (nov.).
Thysanometrinae : Thysanometra and Coccometra.
Perometrinae : Perometra, Nanometra, Erythrometra, and Hypalo-

metra.
Heliometrinae : Heliometra, Promachocrinus, Anthometra, Solano-

metra, Florometra, and Cyclornetra.
Zexometrinae : Balanometra, Psathyrometra, Leptometra, Adelometra,

Zenometra, Sarametra (nov.), and Eumorphometra.
Isometrinae : Isometra.

1 Published with the permission of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institu-
tion.

12 N CLARK: CRINOID FAMILY ANTEDONIDAE

Bathymetkin \i:: Orthometra (nov.), Tonrometra (nov.), Fariometra
(nov.), Trichometra, Hathrometra, Nepio?netra (nov.), Phrixometra
iiiov.), Thaumatometra, and Bathymetra.

Dorometra, gen. nov.

Genotype. Antedon nana Hartlaub, 1890.

Diagnosis. — P3 is much the longest and stoutest pinnule on the arm;
the cirri arc XX-XLV (rarely over XL), with not over 16 segments;
these have produced distal ends which overlap the proximal ends of
those succeeding, and the outer are much longer than their proximal
width; the size is small, the arms being from 23 mm. to 50 mm. long;
the brachials have smooth, or only very finely spinous, distal edges.

Geographical Range. — Red Sea to Madagascar and Mauritius, east-
ward to northern Australia and the East Indies, and northward to
southern Japan.

Bathy metrical Range. — From the shore line down to 106 meters.

Included Species. — Dorometra nana (Hartlaub), Dorometra mauritiana
(A. II. Clark), Dorometra gracilis (A. H. Clark), Dorometra briseis (A.
H. Clark), Dorometra parvicirra (P. H. Carpenter), Dorometra aegyptica
(A; H. Clark), and Dorometra clymene (A. H. Clark).

Andrometra, gen. nov.

'linotype. — Antedon psyche A. H. Clark, 1908.

Diagnosis. — P2 is much longer than Pi, and longer than P3 though
similar to the latter; the centrodorsal is more or less sharply conical.

Geographical Range. — Andaman Islands to southern Japan.

Bathymetrical Range.— From 54 to 201 (?250) meters.

Included Species. — Andrometra psyche (A. H. Clark) and Andrometra
initial (A. H. Clark).

Argyrometra, gen. nov.

Genotype. — Iridometra crispa A. H. Clark, 1908.

Diagnosis.— Centrodorsal conical, broader than high, almost com-
pletely covered with cirrus sockets which decrease in size toward the
apex; these are from LX to LXXX in number; cirri very fragile, with
12 17 more or less elongated segments; P3 is of the same length and
character as the succeeding pinnules; Pi and P2, which may be longer
or shorter than the following pinnules, have 12-13 segments, and taper
evenly to a point; their component segments become progressively
elongated; the brachial structure resembles that of Antedon petasus;
the size is small, the arms being about 30 mm. in length.

Geographical Range. Hawaiian Islands to northern New Zealand.

Bathymetrical Range. From 108 to 293 meters.

Included Species. Argyrometra crispa (A. H. Clark) and Argyro-
metra mortenst ni, nov.

CLARK: CRINOID FAMILY ANTEDONIDAE 129

Argyrometra mortenseni, sp. nov.

Diagnosis. — This species is easily distinguished from A. crispa by
the much more expanded distal ends of the cirrus segments (in crispa
the dorsal and ventral profiles of the cirrus segments are everywhere
practically parallel), and by the different relationships of the earlier
pinnules.

Pi is 3.3 mm. long, slender and evenly tapering, composed of 12 seg-
ments of which the first is slightly broader than long, the second and
third are very slightly longer than broad, and the following become
progressively elongated, being between four and five times as long as
broad distally; the segments are cylindrical and smooth, with little or
no development of spines on the distal edges. P2 is 4 mm. long, very
slightly stouter, composed of 12 segments of which the distal are more
elongated than those of Pi. P3 is 5 mm. long with about 12 segments,
about as stout basally as P2 but tapering more slowly and hence appear-
ing stouter, with relatively shorter segments which beyond the third
have prominently overlapping and finely spinous distal ends. The
following pinnules resemble P3.

The cirri have 17 segments of which the longest are from four to
six times as long as the terminal diameter. The arms are about 30
mm. long.

Locality. — North Cape, New Zealand.

Depth. — Sixty fathoms.

Sarametra, gen. nov.

Genotype. — Zenometra triserialis A. H. Clark, 1908.

Diagnosis. — The division series and arm bases are very spiny; the
very long rounded conical centrodorsal bears three regular columns of
cirrus sockets in each radial area, the radial areas being delimited by
broad bare lines; the cirri have 50-60 segments of which the proximal
are more or less elongated and the distal are short, never longer than
broad, and bear prominent dorsal spines; all of the pinnules are present;
the size is large, the arms being about 150 mm. long.

Geographical Range. — Known only from the Hawaiian Islands.

Bathymetrical Range. — Between 346 and 633 meters.

Included Species. — Sarametra triserialis (A. H. Clark).

Orthometra, gen. nov.

Genotype. — Trichometra hibernica A. H. Clark, 1913.

Diagnosis. — The cirrus segments, which are 25-33 (usually nearer
the latter) in number, are cylindrical, without expanded distal ends,
and short, the longest (third-fifth) being about one-third again as long-
as broad, and the distal slightly broader than long; the elements of the
IBr series and the lower brachials are without lateral processes, and
are widely free laterally.

130 CLARK : CRINOID FAMILY ANTEDONIDAE

Geographical Range.— Known only from the western coast of Ireland.
Bathymetrical Range.— From 698 to 900 meters.
Included Species.— Orthometr a hibernica (A. H. Clark).

Tonrometra, gen. no v.

Genotype— Antedon remota P. H. Carpenter, 1888.

hiagnosis.—The cirrus, segments, which are not more than 20 in
number, are all short, the longest being not so much as twice as long
as the median diameter, and have much swollen distal ends; the IBr
series and lower brachials are in close lateral contact.

Geographical Range.— Moluccas to Marion Island, southeast of

A TIM / "|

Bathymetrical Range.— From 1089 to 2880 meters.
Included Species.— Tonrometra brevipes (A. H. Clark) and Tonro-
metra remota (P. H. Carpenter).

Fariometra, gen. nov.

Genotype. — Trichometra explicata A. H. Clark, 1908.

Diagnosis. — The centrodorsal is sharply conical with straight sides,
nearly or quite as high as broad at the base; the proximal cirrus seg-
ments are elongated, at least twice as long as the median diameter and
usually much longer.

Geographical Range. — Philippine Islands to Celebes.

Bathymetrical Range. — From 509 to 1314 meters.

Included Species. — Fariometra explicata (A. H. Clark), Fariometra
scutifera A. H. Clark, and Fariometra dione A. H. Clark.

Nepiometra, gen. nov.

Genotype. — Antedon laevis P. H. Carpenter, 1888.

Diagnosis. — The centrodorsal is rounded conical or hemispherical,
not so high as broad at the base; the proximal cirrus segments are
elongated, at least twice as long as the median diameter, and usually
much longer; the brachials do not have strongly produced and very
spinous distal (mils; at most the distal edges of the outer brachials are
bordered with fine spines; the cirri have 20-30 relatively short seg-
ments of which the last 6-13 are only very slightly, if at all, longer than
broad; the pinnules are not especially long, and the distal pinnules are
of the same length as the proximal; P2 resembles P3 and the following
pinnules and is slightly longer and stouter than Pi with somewhat
fewer segments which are proportionately longer; P2 may bear a gonad,
though these usually begin on P3; the arms are between 25 mm. and
<>() mm. in length.

Geographical Range. — Kei and Meangis Islands and southern Celebes;
? ( lalapagos Islands and Panama.

Bathymetrical Range. — From 204 to 1158 (?1760) meters.

Included Species. — Nepiometra obscura (A. H. Clark), Nepiometra
alcyon (A. H. Clark), Nepiometra laevis (P. H. Carpenter), Nepiometra
io (A. H. Clark), and Nepiometra (?) parvula (Hartlaub).

CLARK! CRINOID FAMILY ANTEDONIDAE 131

Phrixometra, gen. nov.

Genotype. — Antedon longipinna P. H. Carpenter, 1888.

Diagnosis. — The centrodorsal is rounded conical or hemispherical,
not so high as broad at the base; the cirri are about XXX, 20-25;
the proximal cirrus segments are elongated, at least twice as long as
the median diameter and usually much longer; the brachials do not
have strongly produced and very spinous distal ends ; at most the distal
edges of the outer brachials are bordered with fine spines; the pinnules
are very long, the proximal longer than the distal; P2 is very slightly
shorter than Px, but similar to it, with about 18 elongated segments;
the following pinnules are similar; the arms are about 20 mm. long.

Geographical Range. — Southeastern South America.

Bathy metrical Range. — Known only from 1080 meters.

Included Species. — Phrixometra longipinna (P. H. Carpenter).

ABSTRACTS

Authors of scientific papers are requested to see that abstracts, preferably
prepared and signed by themselves, are forwarded promptly to the editors.
Each of the scientific bureaus in Washington has a representative authorized to
forward such material to this journal and abstracts of official publications should
be transmitted through the representative of the bureau in which they originate.
The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those appearing in
this issue.

GEOGRAPHY. — The Navajo country, a geographic and hydrographic
reconnaissance of parts of Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. Her-
bert E. Gregory. U. S. Geological Survey Water-Supply Paper
380. Pp. 219, with maps, sections, and illustrations. 1916.
The Navajo country includes 25,000 square miles of arid and semi-
arid lands occupied by about 32,000 Indians and 500 whites. Only a
small pari of it has previously been described. The report, therefore,
includes an unusually full treatment of geography under the heads:
historical sketch, geographic provinces, climate, soil, flora, fauna, min-
eral wealth, population, and industries. Many additions have been
made to existing maps, and the list of geographic terms has been re-
vised. Since the future of the country depends upon the solution of
the problem of water supply, particular attention was given to the oc-
currence of surface and ground waters. The Colorado and the San
Juan rivers are perennial; all others are intermittent or ephemeral, but
their flood waters may be utilized by construction of suitable works.
Manx- springs and seeps may also be developed. The sinking of wells
in deposits of various types is recommended, and the parts of the region
favorable for artesian flows are indicated. Except for structure sec-
tions and maps and the description of water-bearing beds, the report
contains little strictly geological material. Such matter will appear in
Professional Paper 93, now in preparation. H. E. ('.

GEODESY. — Precise leveling from Reno to Las Vegas, Nev., and from

Tonopah J unction, Nev. to Laws, Cat. H. G. Avers and G. D.

Cowie. U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, Special Publication

No. 39. Pp. 49. 1916.

This publication gives the results of a line of levels run in 1915

along the railroads between Reno and Las Vegas, Nevada, and between

132

abstracts: geology 133

Tonopah Junction, Nevada, and Laws, California. The line is 547
miles long and fixes the elevations of 228 permanent bench marks.
The elevation of the top of rail in front of the railroad stations along
the line was also determined. The elevations of the bench marks and
of the top of rail in front of the railway stations are given in meters
and also in feet. As in all precise leveling in the United States the
datum used is mean sea level. The highest point of the line is at
Sunland, Nevada, 2171 meters (7122 feet).

The result of a study of the errors of leveling is also given in this
publication. The practice of the observer, while setting up the instru-
ment, always to face in the same direction with respect to the line of
progress had a tendency to make the line of sight higher for the back
sights than for the fore sights. The effect of this has been eliminated
by the observer facing in opposite directions at alternate set-ups of
the instrument. H. G. A.

GEOLOGY. — Geology of the Hound Creek district of the Great Falls

coal field, Cascade County, Montana. V. H. Barnett. U. S.

Geological Survey Bulletin 641-H. Pp. 215-231, with 1 plate.

1916.

This paper describes the geologic formations, the structure relating to

the occurrence or absence of coal-bearing rocks, and the coal resources

of the Hound Creek district. The rocks that crop out in the district

belong to the Carboniferous, Jurassic, and Cretaceous systems, but

detailed study was confined to the coal-bearing Kootenai formation

(Lower Cretaceous). R. W. S.

GEOLOGY. — Contributions to the geology and paleontology of San Juan
County, New Mexico. I. Stratigraphy of a part of the Chaco River
V alley. Clyde Max Bauer. U. S. Geological Survey Pro-
fessional Paper 98-P. Pp. 271-278, with 8 plates. 1916.
This paper is an attempt to set forth the principal features of the
stratigraphy in a part of the San Juan Basin, to describe the succession
of strata irrespective of possible correlations and thereby to establish a
type section for the formations exposed, and to bring out their relations
to the strata immediately above and below.

The area studied and mapped comprises about 1500 square miles in
northwestern New Mexico extending along Chaco River for about 50
miles from the Great Hogback to Meyers Creek. It includes the out-
crops of strata overlying the Mesaverde formation, which have in the

134 abstracts: geology

past been referred to the Lewis, Laramie, Puerco, Torrejon, and Wasatch
formations.

The stratified rocks of this area consist of a succession of marine,
brackish-water, and fresh-water sediments, which now occur as sand-
stone, slate, coal, and conglomerate, in almost every gradation and
combination possible. The strata throughout the greater part of the
area dip from 1° to 3° toward the center of the basin. The Mesaverde
and Lewis formations and the Pictured Cliffs sandstone are accepted
as described by previous workers in the San Juan Basin. The beds
above the Pictured Cliffs sandstone that have been classed by others
as Laramie are divided into mappable lithologic units and described
as the Fruitland formation, Kirtland shale, and Ojo Alamo sandstone.
A bibliography is included. R. W. S.

GEOLOGY. — -Some manganese mines in Virginia and Maryland.
D. F. Hewett. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin 640-C. Pp.
37-71, with 7 figures. 1916.

Six deposits of manganese ore are described with regard to location,
geology, and occurrence and origin of the ore. Maps show the surface
relations and underground workings of three mines. Replacement
deposits of four types are recognized — deposits (1) in residual clay,
(2) in the clay of a fault zone, (3) along pervious zones in schistose
rocks, and (4) in sediments that fill an ancient channel. Five of the
deposits are on the east side of the Great Valley in western Virginia
and one is near Lynchburg in the Piedmont region.

The conclusion is tentatively reached that all of these deposits, and
probably many more in the belt extending from Maryland to Georgia,
were formed while the early Tertiary peneplain was being established
in this general region. Four of the deposits outcrop on ridges and
spurs that have been so isolated since the peneplain was dissected
that they have received little surface drainage since that time, but
each of the deposits contains much more manganese than could be
derived from the decomposition of a mass of rocks having the volume
of the residual clays in which the deposits occur. The clays and
manganese minerals have been mined from 200 to 260 feet below the
surface and from 170 to 220 feet below water level. In two mines the
zone of residual clay and associated manganese minerals extends 105
mil 130 feet, respectively, below the level of the nearest streams,
which flow in channels cut in bedrock. It therefore appears that the
sedimentary rocks of the region may undergo thorough decomposition

abstracts: engineering 135

to greater depths not only below an extensive erosion surface but also
below the present water level than has previously been considered
possible. D. F. H.

GEOLOGY. — Geology of the Upper Stillwater Basin, Stillwater and
Carbon Counties, Montana. W. R. Calvert. U. S. Geological
Srn-vey Bulletin 641-G. Pp. 199-214, with 2 plates. 1916.

The rocks of this area comprise a great thickness of strata ranging
from the coal measures of lower Montana (Upper Cretaceous) age to
beds more than 8000 feet above the base of the Fort Union formation,
of Eocene age. Older sedimentary formations and crystalline rocks
are exposed in the Beartooth Mountains, along whose north base
there is a profound fault that brings Paleozoic rocks into contact with
Tertiary formations south of Red Lodge and with successively older
strata to the west.

The Cretaceous and younger rocks, both sedimentary and igneous,
are described, together with the geologic structure, which is simple. A
discussion of the coal resources is followed by a statement concerning
oil prospects. R. W. S.

ENGINEERING.— Surface water supply of the United States, 1913,
Part X, the Great Basin. Nathan C. Grover, et al. U. S. Geo-
logical Survey Water-Supply Paper 360, Pp. 293, with 2 plates.
1916.

Surface water supply of the United States, 1914, Part I, North
Atlantic slope basins. Nathan C. Grover, et al. U. S. Geo-
logical Survey Water-Supply Paper 381. Pp. 192 and XXXI,
with 2 plates. 1916.

Surface water supply of the United States, 1914, Part II, South
Atlantic and eastern Gulf of Mexico basins. Nathan C. Grover,
et al. U. S. Geological Survey Water-Supply Paper 382. Pp.
66 and XXX, with 2 plates. 1916.

Surface water supply of the United States, 1914, Part VII, Lower
Mississippi River basin. Nathan C. Grover, et al. U. S. Geo-
logical Survey Water-Supply Paper 387. Pp. 60 and XXXIV,
with 2 plates. 1916.

Surface water supply of the United States, 1914, Part XII, North
Pacific drainage basins, B, Snake River basin. Nathan C. Grover,
et al, U. S. Geological Survey Water-Supply Paper 393. Pp.
248, with 2 plates. 1916.

136 abstracts: engineering

The water-supply papers listed above are parts of a series giving the
results of measurements of flow of streams in the basins indicated in
the titles. Numbers 382 and 387 contain appendixes giving lists of
stream-gaging stations and publications relating to the water resources
of the basins. B. D. W.

ENGINEERING — The measurement of silt-laden streams. R. C.

Pierce. U. S. Geological Survey Water-Supply Paper 400-C.

Pp. 39-51, with diagrams. 1916.
San Juan River, in Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah, carries an un-
usually heavy load of silt, especially during the torrential floods that
often occur. The formation of "sand waves" is an interesting phe-
nomenon connected with the heavy silt burden of this stream. Flood
measurements are very difficult and sometimes impossible because
of the heavy silt load and the accompanying conditions, such as
high velocities, trash and drift, shifting channel, and rapid variations
in stage. By the use of a stay line and a 60-pound torpedo-shaped
weighl to hold the current meter in position, with a windlass built into
one end of the gage car for handling the meter and weight, it was found
possible to obtain measurements during all except the very worst con-
ditions. In spite of the difficulties a good record of the stream flow was
obtained. R- C. P.

ENGINEERING.— Surface waters of Massachusetts. C. H. Pierce
and II. J. Dean. U. S. Geological Survey Water-Supply Paper
415. Pp. 433, with 12 plates. 1916. ' .

This volume contains the results of stream-flow investigations in
Massachusetts, and a compilation of the available records. The data
are arranged on the basis of the climatic year ending September 30,
thai being the division of the year now generally used by the Geologi-
cal Survey fchroughoul its work of water-resources investigations. The
report contains an introduction by N. C. Grover, briefly sketching the
uses and development of the water resources of Massachusetts, which
have at all times played an important part in the industrial and com-
mercial development of the Commonwealth. An article on Topogra-
phy by Arthur Keith outlines the geology of Massachusetts with special
reference to the various drainage basins, and gives in non-technical
language the geologic history of the river systems. The tables of dis-
charge, showing the flow of the rivers as measured at the gaging sta-
tions, are followed by a gazetteer of streams, which lists and describes
all the streams, lakes, and ponds shown on the topographic maps of

abstracts: technology 137

Massachusetts. A contour map on a scale of 1 : 250,000, printed in
colors, shows the principal drainage basins and the location of gaging
stations. C. H. P.

ENGINEERING. — Accuracy of stream-flow data. N. C. Grover and
J. C. Hoyt. U. S. Geological Survey Water-Supply Paper 400-D.
Pp. 53-59. 1916.
Records of stream flow at different gaging stations vary in accuracy
with the permanence of the stage-discharge relation, the precision with
which the discharge rating curve is defined, the refinement of gage read-
ings, the frequency of gage readings, and the methods of applying the
daily gage heights to the rating table to obtain the daily discharge.
The contributing factors are so complex that it is generally not prac-
ticable to determine mathematically the probable error. A knowledge
of the approximate accuracy is needed to apply intelligently the records
to different uses; and a knowledge of the sources of error and their
relative effects on the accuracy of the records is essential to the
proper collection of data for different uses requiring different degrees
of accuracy. A study of the accuracy of the records to be collected
at any station, therefore, should begin with the reconnaissance for the
site and continue through the selection, establishment, maintenance,
and operation of the station, the computation and interpretation of
the data, and the preparation of the records for publication.

N. C. G.

TECHNOLOGY. — The resistance of an oil to emulsification. Winslow
II. Herschel, Bureau of Standards Technologic Paper No. 86.
Pp. 37. 1917.
In this paper is described a new test for the emulsification of oils.
Certain results obtained by such measurements are also discussed.
The test may be briefly described as follows: 20 cc. of the oil to be
tested and twice that volume of distilled water are heated to 55°C.
in a 100 cc. cylinder, 26 mm. inside diameter, and stirred for five
minutes at a speed of 1500 r.p.m. The cylinder and contents are
allowed to stand at the same temperature, and readings are taken at
more or less frequent intervals (according to the type of oil) of the vol-
ume of oil settled out from the water. From these readings, a maxi-
mum rate of settling, called " demulsibUity", is easily taken from a
table. The paddle is simply a plate of metal 8.9 by 20 by 1.5 mm.
Since the test is not sensitive to slight changes of paddle dimensions,
they need not be exact, and no calibration is required.

W. H. H.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

THE CHEMICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 263rd meeting of the society was held at the Cosmos Club,
October 12, 1916. The program of the meeting consisted of reports
from members of the section upon the various activities at the Fall
Meeting of the American Chemical Society at New York City, and on
the Second National Exposition of Chemical Industries. W. D.
Bigelow, director of the society, reviewed particularly the work of the
directors and the reorganization of the management of the Journal of
Industrial and Engineering Chemistry. J. Johnston, councilor of the
section, dealt especially with the majority and minority reports of
the Committee on the Proposed Code of Professional Ethics and the
work of the Division of Inorganic and Physical Chemistry. Others
presenting brief reviews of papers presented at the meetings of the
various sections were I. K. Phelps, L. F. Kebler, R. B. Dole, L. C.
Wells, J. B. Tuttle, and W. Blum. H. D. Gibbs gave an account
of the Exposition and the various symposiums on subjects of present
industrial importance.

The 264th meeting, held at the Cosmos Club, November 9, 1916,
was devoted to the annual election of officers. The following were
elected: President, C. S. Hudson, Bureau of Chemistry; Secretary, E.
( . McKelvy, Bureau of Standards; Treasurer, F. P. Dewey, Bureau
of the Mint; Councilors, R. B. Sosman, Geophysical Laboratory, E.
B. Phelps, Hygienic Laboratory, and R. C. Wells, Geological Sur-
vey; Executive Committee, J. C. Hostetter, Geophysical Laboratory,
F, W. Smither, Bureau of Standards. F. C. Cook, Bureau of Chemis-
try. A. Seidell, Hygienic Laboratory, F. A. Wertz, Bureau of Stand-
ards, P. B. Dunbar, Bureau of Chemistry.

The 265th meeting of the society was held as a joint meeting with
t he Botanical Society of Washington at the Cosmos Club, November
23, 1916.

Dr. Frederick B. Power, of the Bureau of Chemistry, until re-
cently with the Wellcome Burroughs Laboratory, London, gave an
address upon the Aims and developments of phyto-chemical research.
The speaker presented the results and conclusions drawn from a
great amount of work carried out in laboratories abroad and largely
published in detail in British journals. Particular emphasis was
placed upon the enormous opportunity for development in this almost

138

proceedings: anthropological society 139

untouched field of scientific endeavor. Chaulmoogra oil was taken
as an example of a phyto-chemical material upon which a great amount
of work for the purpose of determining its structure and constitution
had been carried out by the speaker and his associates.

The 266th meeting of the society, held at the Cosmos Club,
December 14, 1916, was devoted to the presentation of motion pic-
tures showing the manufacture of steel pipe, sheet tin, and tin plate.
These pictures were furnished by the courtesy of the American Sheet
Tin and Tin Plate Company of Pittsburgh and were presented by D.
M. Buck, Metallurgical Engineer of Pittsburgh.

The 267th meeting of the society, a joint meeting with the Wash-
ington Academy of Sciences, was held at the Cosmos Club, January 11,
1917. R. B. Sosman, retiring president of the Chemical Society, pre-
sented an address on Some problems of the oxides of iron (this Journal,
7:55-73. 1917).

E. C. McKelvy, Secretary.

THE SOCIETY OF AMERICAN FORESTERS

At the annual meeting of the Society, held at the University Club,
January 18, the following officers were elected for the ensuing year:
President, Filbert Roth; Vice-President, William T. Cox; Secretary,
R. Y. Stuart; Treasurer, C. R. Tillotson; Executive Council, W. B.
Greeley, five years, H. S. Graves, four years, R. C. Bryant, three
years, D. T. Mason, two years, Clyde Leavitt, one year.

R. Y. Stuart, Secretary.

THE ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 505th regular meeting of the Society was held January 16. At
this meeting Mr. William H. Babcock presented a paper on Certain
pre-Columbian notices of the inhabitants of the Atlantic islands.

Beginning at the north, the speaker referred to the well known Norse
colonization of Iceland in the latter part of the ninth century and to
the much earlier establishment of Irish monks at some points of its
coast. From numerous Celtic local names Dr. Nansen has argued that
there may have been a much greater inland Irish settlement. But per-
haps these names should be explained by the fact that there were many
Irish and Hebrideans among the early Norse colonists. There are also
mentions of "trolls" in the saga of Grettir — and perhaps elsewhere in
early Norse writings — as inhabiting hidden places of the mountainous
interior. These may possibly preserve the memory of aboriginal sur-
vivals from pre-Norse and pre-Irish times, but more probably they
merely echo old Norse traditions or are freaks of fancy.

Farther south, perhaps the oldest record is Plato's Atlantis derived
from his ancester Solon, who received it, as we are told, from the Egyp-
tian priests of Sais. The speaker related it in slightly condensed form
with special heed to anthropologic items, but expressed the opinion that

140 proceedings: anthropological society

it merely reflects the civilized life of Plato's time on the Mediterranean
shores and 1 hrows no light on mankind in the Atlantic. He recited also
the description of a far western island, which seems to be Madeira,
given in the time of Julius Caesar by Diodorous Siculus, and added the
same esl imate. He held that this applies also to Plutarch's interesting
account of Ogyggia, possibly Ireland or Iceland and the continent be-
yond it; also to the Irish Sea romances, or Imrama, though the home
life which they at times repeated in their tales was very different from
the life of the Mediterranean.

In the Geography of the Arab writer Edrisi (about 1154) we seem
to find, perhaps for the first time, notes of observations of real human
beings on the islands of the eastern Atlantic. A list of these was given
with most of the relevant items, showing great diversity in matters of
culture, perhaps also of race, but in part agreeing very well with four-
teenth and fifteenth century accounts of the Canary Islanders. His
sources were partly mythical, partly recent Arabic, and to some extent
probably also European, both classic and mediaeval. It is impractic-
able to identify each island; but some of them are doubtless to be located
among the Canaries, one is perhaps Madeira, and two or three at least
should be credited to the Azores. We have nothing certain and ex-
plicit concerning the latter after this time until the Portuguese coloni-
zation, which seems to have found no one in possession, but fortu-
nately there is a considerable body of information as to the Canary
Islanders.

The speaker quoted from Major's introduction to the Canarien of
Bontier and Leverrier, a translation of a letter written at the end of
1341 by certain Florentine merchants dwelling in Seville, Spain, narrat-
ing an expedition to the Canary Islands that year, of three Portuguese
ships manned partly by Italian seamen. It constitutes one of the best
reports ever made of the people of the Canary Islands, who at that time
were less affected by European interference than afterward.

Mr. Babcock mentioned a brief settlement of thirteen Spaniards in
Grand Canary in 1382, and also the conquest of the islands, begun by
Bethencourt in 1402 and completed about 1485. From the same source
(Major's introduction) the speaker quoted Azurara's narrative (in
the History of the Conquest of Guinea, published in 1448) of a slave
raid on the island of Palma, participated in by a Portuguese vessel in
1443, the quotation including some account of the inhabitants of the
other islands. Further quotations were given from Cadmosto's report
on the Canary Islands in 1455, about the middle of the conquest, some
of the islands being then still un conquered and pagan. The speaker
then gave, from the body of the Canarien, several selections presenting
similar anthropological matter. A few words as to matters of race and
culture closed the paper.

The presentation of the paper was followed by a general discussion
of the subject in which the speakers were Dr. Ales Hrdlicka, Dr.
John R. Swanton and Dr. Truman Michelson.

Frances Densmore, Secretary.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VII MARCH 19, 1917 No. 6

ELECTROCHEMISTRY.— The electrometric titration of zinc
with ferrocyanide. F. Russell v. Bichowsky, Geophysi-
cal Laboratory. (Communicated by Arthur L. Day.)

The purpose of this note is to point out a set of very interest-
ing polarization phenomena that occur at a platinum electrode
when certain insoluble salts, such as zinc, ferric copper, lead, or
manganous ferrocyanide, are being precipitated. Only the case
of zinc ferrocyanide will be discussed here.

If we place a platinum electrode in a solution of potassium
ferrocyanide and titrate this solution with a solution of some zinc
salt the e.m.f. of the electrode measured against some standard
electrode, such as the normal calomel electrode, follows a per-
fectly normal curve beginning at about — 0.08 volt (the e.m.f. of
the ferrocyanide electrode) and increasing slowly with the addi-
tion of the zinc solution until near the end point; on the addi-
tion of a drop in excess of the amount of zinc solution necessary
to precipitate all the ferrocyanide the e.m.f. increases very sharply
to — 0.40 volts. With further excess the e.m.f. stays approxi-
mately constant, reaching a maximum value of about — 0.45 volts.
The electrometric end point is thus very sharp, and the platinum
electrode is by all means the most accurate and convenient
device for determining the end point of the zinc ferrocyanide
titration.

However, if instead of adding zinc solution to a ferrocyanide
solution we reverse the process and add ferrocyanide to the

141

142 bichowsky: electrometric titration of zinc

zinc solution, the initial e.m.f. of the platinum electrode, instead
of having the invariant value of — 0.45 volts can be made to have
almost any value between 0.0 and - 0.5 volts, depending on the
previous treatment of the electrode. If the electrode has been
allowed to stand in contact with a ferrocyanide solution for some
time the e.m.f. will be between - 0.1 and - 0.25 volts, depending
on the length of time it has been in the solution ; if it is charged
to say — 2.0 volts while in contact with a zinc solution the initial
e.m.f. of the electrode may reach the reversible value of — 0.45
volts, or even higher.

If the electrode has been adjusted to an e.m.f. of — 0.45 volts
and the titration of zinc with ferrocyanide carried through as
before, the exact reverse of the previous curve is obtained, the
e.m.f. begins at — 0.45 volts, drops sharply at the end point to
- 0.10 and continues at nearly that value on further addition of
ferrocyanide. In this case, therefore, our initial curve is rever-
sible. If, however, the platinum electrode has been treated so
that it shows an initial voltage of say — 0.20 volts, on adding
the ferrocyanide solution the numerical value of the e.m.f. in-
creases slowly, instead of decreasing, this increase continuing
until the curve that is obtained by plotting e.m.f. against cc. of
ferrocyanide added intercepts the normal curve. At this point
the e.m.f. is a maximum. From this point on the e.m.f. curve
is entirely normal, the end point being perfectly sharp and un-
changed. This phenomenon is similar to the one noted by
Forbes and Bartlett1 for the titration of ferrous iron with dichro-
mate, but in our case not only is it possible to avoid the phe-
nomenon entirely by the proper treatment of the electrode
already indicated, but it is also possible not only to control the
initial e.m.f. of the electrode, but also the shape and slope of the
ascending (abnormal) part of the curve, thus causing the point
of interception of the abnormal and normal curve to be varied.
In a well stirred solution the abnormal curve starting at - 0.2
volts will almost always intercept the normal curve just before
the end point is reached, however, if the stirring is made very

1 Journ. Amer. Che.m. Soc, 35: 1527. 1913.

.wherry: neodymium, cause of red-violet color 143

poor so that there is any large excess of ferrocyanide in contact
with the electrode before the zinc is all precipitated, the end
point can be suppressed entirely; or, if by various devices the
titration is carried on so that the electrode is always in contact
with small concentrations of both zinc and ferrocyanide ion, the
point of interception of the normal and abnormal curve can be
moved almost to the beginning of the titration, the titration
curve thus having a very flat rather than the usual sharp maxi-
mum. Of course, in all these cases, except in the case of no
stirring, the end point is perfectly sharp and reproducible, and
under any of these varied conditions this method of determining
the end point is much more rapid, convenient, and accurate
than those employing the usual indicators (iron or uranium).

All these phenomena seem to show that in cases of this type
depolarization can be accomplished only by some agent (in this
case ferrocyanide, in Forbes and Bartlett's case, ferrous iron)
whose oxidation and reduction reactions on the platinum electrode
are reversible, and that the persistent irreversibility of the
Forbes and Bartlett curve and of our curve was due simply to
the fact that the only substance in the solution capable of rapid
reversible reaction at the electrode was removed from the possi-
bility of acting — by precipitation in our case, and by the excess
of an irreversible strong oxidizing agent in Forbes and Bartlett's
case. This explanation is independent of any theory of the
cause of polarization

MINERALOGY. — Neodymium as the cause of the red-violet
color in certain minerals.1 Edgar T. Wherry, U. S. Na-
tional Museum.

Impressed by the intense red-violet color shown by the per-
manganates, many chemists are inclined to interpret the similar
colors occasionally shown by normally colorless minerals, such
as calcite and apatite, as due to the presence of manganese.
Of course, permanganates may be at once excluded from con-
sideration, for they can only be produced by a somewhat vio-

1 Published by the permission of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.

144 wherry: neodymium, cause of red-violet color

lenl process fusing with alkalies and then acidifying— in the
course of which the minerals would be destroyed; moreover
they are extremely unstable, and even if formed could hardly
persist long. Finally, permanganates show a highly character-
istic absorption spectrum — observable by placing their solutions
between a source of white light and the slit of a spectroscope —
consisting of six bands in the yellowish green, green, and green-
ish blue; but not a trace of this absorption spectrum is shown
by any mineral thus far studied.

Certain manganic compounds, containing trivalent manganese,
are, however, also red- violet in color, and may develop in min-
erals under mildly oxidizing conditions. Even colorless bottle-
glass, on lying out in the sunlight for a time, becomes red-violet
owing to the oxidation of the manganese to that valency.2 Such
manganic compounds show a single rather hazy absorption band
in the greenish blue, but only indistinct general absorption of the
colors complementary to red-violet.

On the other hand, there is at least one other chemical ele-
ment, the rare-earth metal neodymium, which has red-violet or
violet-red colored compounds; and these yield a highly charac-
teristic absorption spectrum, consisting of an intense band in the
orange-yellow, a fainter one in the green, and, if sufficiently
concentrated, additional ones in other parts of the spectrum.
These bands can readily be seen if a solution of monazite in
sulfuric acid is placed between the source of light and the spec-
troscope slit. They can also be observed in a number of min-
erals, by the use of the microspectroscope.3 Of course if the
mineral occurs in large enough masses, the ordinary spectroscope
may be used, and the mineral be simply placed between the
source of light and the slit; those described in this note give
good results by this method.

It was pointed out by Headden some years ago4 that the

2 See Gortner, R. A. Journ. Amer. Chem. Soc, 39: 157-162, 1908.

3 See the writer's paper, The microspectroscope in mineralogy, Smithsonian
Misc. Coll., 65, No. 5, 1915.

* Am. J. Sci., [4] 21: 301, 1906.

wherry: neodymium, cause of red-violet color 145

red-violet5 calcite from Joplin, Missouri, gives this neodymium
absorption spectrum. This was confirmed by the writer in
the paper referred to, and in addition it was noted that the
red-violet calcite from Rossie, New York, shows, faintly, the
same spectrum. Specimens from Sterlingbush, New York, re-
cently received by the National Museum in exchange from the
New York State Museum, have the same color as the latter oc-
currence, and show the same absorption spectrum.

That manganese is not the cause of the color of these calcites
is shown by the following considerations: The calcites con-
tain ferrous iron, and must accordingly have been formed under
reducing rather than oxidizing conditions, so that any manga-
nese present must be in the manganous state. Now manganous
carbonate, the mineral rhodochrosite, is pure red in color, and
that this color is not essentially changed by association of the
manganese with calcium is evident from the pale red color of the
so-called manganocalcite, such as occurs for instance at Franklin
Furnace, New Jersey. Furthermore, many calcites known to
contain moderate amounts of manganese show no color whatever.
The minute trace of manganese present in these red-violet cal-
cites could therefore not bj^ any possibility produce their color.

There is thus both positive evidence (the absorption spec-
trum) and negative evidence (the inability of manganese to pro-
duce the color) in favor of the view that red-violet calcite in
general owes its color to neodymium.

The mineral apatite is sometimes violet in color, but, as re-
corded in the writer's paper above cited, usually shows no ab-
sorption spectrum. Oddly enough the well known brown apatite
from Ontario, Canada, yields the absorption bands of neodym-
ium, although any red-violet color that this metal produces is
masked; most of the crystals show an underlying green color,
due presumably to ferrous iron, the brown being only a sort of
local mottling which could readily be produced by irregular
distribution of a pale red-violet coloring matter.

6 An effort was made to name the colors of these calcites according to Ridg-
way's "Color standards and nomenclature," but accurate comparisons of colors
seen only in thick layers of a transparent mineral and those painted on sheets of
paper are impracticable. The approximate position of the calcite colors is, how-
ever, 67, violet-red, composed of red 52 per cent, violet, 48 per cent.

146 kempton: endosperm color and albinism in maize

It would naturally be expected that an occurrence of neodym-
ium-bearing apatite free from the green color of ferrous iron
would actually show the red-violet; which expectation has now
been fulfilled. The U. S. Geological Survey has recently trans-
mitted to the National Museum an extensive series of minerals
collected by Dr. W. T. Schaller in the pegmatites of southern
California, among which are two kinds of violet apatite. One,
the color of which is pure violet, from the Mountain Lily Mine,
Oak Grove, agrees with apatites from Maine and Saxony, pre-
viously examined, in color and in absence of absorption spec-
trum; no guess will here be hazarded as to the cause of its color.
But the other, from the San Diego Mine, Mesa Grande, has a
red-violet color similar to that of the Joplin calcite, and shows
an even more intense absorption spectrum, so is to be regarded
as also owing its color to neodymium.

GENETICS. — A correlation between endosperm color and albi-
nism in maize. J. H. Kempton, Bureau of Plant Industry.
(Communicated by G. N. Collins.)

Seedlings in which chlorophyll does not develop occur not in-
frequently in many cultivated species. Such plants are known
as albinos. As photosynthesis is impossible without chloro-
phyll these seedlings soon perish. Some varieties of maize pro-
duce many albino seedlings, and it has been possible to isolate
strains which give regularly a certain proportion of albino seed-
lings. Several investigators have tested the exactness of the
ratio between normal and albino plants and have concluded that
albinism is a simple Mendelian character, recessive to the nor-
mal form.1

1 East, E. M., and Hays, H. K. Inheritance in maize. Conn. Agr. Exp.
Sta. Bull., clxvii, 1911.

Emerson, It. A. The inheritance of certain forms of chlorophyll reduction in
corn leaves. Nebr. Agr. Exp. Sta. Twenty-fifth annual report. 1912.

Gernert, W. B. The analysis of characters in corn and their behaviour in
transmission. Published by author, 1912.

Miles, Frank C. A genetic and cytological study of certain types of albinism
in maize. Journal of Genetics, 4: 193. 1915.

kempton: endosperm color and albinism in maize 147

In studying the effects of temperature and light upon the rate
of elongation of albino seedlings the writer had occasion to grow
seedlings from an ear which had both yellow and white seeds,
and found what appears to be a correlation between the color
of the endosperm in the seed and the development of chloro-
phyll in the seedlings. The ear from which this seed was se-
cured was the result of a self-fertilized first generation plant of a
cross between Zea tunicata and Zea ramosa. This cross has been
recently described in detail by Mr. Collins.2

The ear was non-podded and had approximately three yellow
seeds to one white. The actual figures were 70 yellow and 18
white. These yellow seeds were similar to those reported by
other investigators of yellow endosperm in that they varied
greatly in the intensity of the color, but in this instance little
difficulty was encountered in segregating the white seeds. The
70 yellow seeds were divided into four groups with respect to
the intensity of the color, the two darkest groups having 18
seeds each, and the two lightest groups having 17 seeds each.

table i

ALBINO

Dark yellow . . •.
Yellow, grade 1
Yellow, grade 2
Yellow, grade 3
White

Total

1
2
4
6
12

25

Fortunately every seed germinated and it was immediately
seen that there was a correlation between white or colorless en-
dosperm and albino seedlings. The percentage of albino seed-
lings from the yellow seeds is 18.6, while the white seeds pro-
duced 61.5 per cent albinos. Had we been growing only the
white seeds from this ear a very misleading conception of the
ratio of albino to normal plants would have resulted. It is also

2 Collins, G. N. Hybrids of Zea ramosa and Zea tunicata. Read at the meet-
ing of American Naturalists, New York, December 29, 1916.

148 kempton: endosperm color and albinism in maize

obvious that in a population of yellow and white seeds having
an association between white endosperm and albinism the per-
centage of homozygous yellow plants would be greatly increased
owing to the differential death rate between the yellow and
white.

The five classes of seeds planted with the resulting seedling
classes are shown in Table 1.

Arranged in the form of a fourfold table by combining the
four grades of yellow the classes are as shown in Table 2.

TABLE 2

NORMAL

ALBINO

TOTAL

Yellow

57
6

13

12

70

White

18

Total...*:

63

25

88

The coefficient of association by Yule's method3 is 0.795 ±-
0.072 which is certainly too large to be ascribed to chance.

Using Pearson's formula4 for the mean square contingency,
C2 = 0.395 ± 0.057, which is a deviation above a zero correla-
tion of 6.9 times the error. Although the number of individuals
is small, the fact that the proportion of albino seedlings increased
as the intensity of the endosperm color diminished may be of
some significance. If it is assumed that the differences in shade
between the four classes of yellow endosperm are due to sepa-
rate factors, it would seem that these several factors are corre-
lated with albinism, which on the linkage hypothesis would
necessitate that these associated factors be located on the same
chromosome.

As with many simple characters there are several degrees of
albinism which grade from white to yellow by imperceptible
stages. The present albino seedlings, while they were easily
separated from the normal plants, varied among themselves
from almost pure white to an appreciable amount of yellow.

3 \ule, G. Udny. On the methods of measuring association between two attri-
butes. Journal Royal Statistical Society, 75, Part VI, May, 1912.

4 Pearson and Heron. Biometrika, 9: 167. 1913.

FEWKES: INITIATION AT HANO 149

As the total number of albino seedlings was small no attempt
was made to classify the degrees of albinism in relation to the
degrees of endosperm color.

The inheritance of endosperm color has been studied by sev-
eral investigators who have concluded that this character is
composed of at least two factors. The results are not easily
interpreted even with two factors, the investigations revealing
many complications, and it is possible that these may be due at
least in part to a linkage between the several factors for endo-
sperm color.

The present correlation may be considered in the nature of a
coherence since it is highly probable that the albino character
and white endosperm were brought into this cross from the
tunicate parent. The progeny of a self -pollinated ear from a
sister plant of the male parent of the cross between Zea ramosa
and Zea tunicata was noted in 1916 as having produced many
albino plants. The yellow endosperm undoubtedly came from
the ramosa parent and thus far no albino seedlings have been
found in the strain of Zea ramosa we have been growing.

There is, however, the possibility that this apparent coher-
ence is in reality a physiological correlation between white or
albino endosperm and albino seedlings. As a demonstration of
the truth or fallacy of this statement a strain having yellow endo-
sperm, and producing gametes carrying the albino character
should be crossed with a white strain lacking the albinistic ten-
dency, but the final results of such a cross cannot be obtained
before the fall of 1918.

ETHNOLOGY. — An initiation at Hano in Hopiland, Arizona.
J. Walter Fewkes, Bureau of American Ethnology.

There are three pueblos on the East Mesa of the Hopi In-
dians called Walpi, Sitcomovi, and Hano. These villages, situ-
ated in Northeastern Arizona, are composite in population and
have been affected in different degrees by influx of clans from
different directions the former homes of these clans now indicated
by ruins. The inhabitants of Walpi are homogeneous. Sit-
comovi, originally settled by clans from Zuni, has lost the Zuni

150 FEWKES: INITIATION AT HANO

idiom, but still retains a ritual which is essentially Cibolan (Zu-
nian). The latter pueblo is regarded by the Zufii as one of
their pueblos among the Hopi, its architectural features being
those characteristic of Tewa pueblos on the Rio Grande. Archi-
tecturally Hano is also Tewan, and its inhabitants retain the
Tewa idiom, its mythology and ritual being distinctly Tanoan,
little modified by the neighboring Walpi.

The general character of the rituals in these three villages is
known, but very little has been published on the ritual of the
relatives of the Hano people who now live along the Rio Grande,
especially as to the nature of the initiations of youths into soci-
eties of priests. The Hopi introduce personifications of ances-
tors in their pagan dances, and call the personators by the name,
Katcinas (Cachenas), but apart from that our knowledge is
fragmentary. At Hano this worship formerly survived in its
original form, so that the following pages may give an idea of the
initiation of boys and girls into the Katcina cult as once prac-
tised, possibly still persisting, in villages along the Rio Grande.

The month of February is an active one ceremonially in the
calendar of the Hopi towns. It is the month when lustration
rites are performed to purify the earth from the malign influ-
ences of a power which through sorcery is supposed to rule it
in winter. In that month, the return of the Katcinas, led by
their father, the Sun or Sky-god, is personated. The clans that
came to the Hopi from the south personate the return of their
Sky-god in December, the clans of Sitcomovi in January, but the
Katcinas are supposed to return in February and to remain
about the villages until July, when their departure is celebrated
in an extended farewell festival. The February ceremony is
called, in secular language, the Bean Planting, because beans are
sprouted in the kivas to be symbolically used by the returning
Sun-god to represent the fructifying forces of nature. These
sprouted beans are given at that time to the heads of all the
clans by the personator of the Sky-god, in answer to their prayers,
as a symbolic promise of good crops during the year.

Of the various steps in initiatory rites from birth to maturity,
in the life of pueblo children, none is regarded more important

FEWKES: INITIATION AT HANO 151

than the last, or that in which they are taught the mysteries of
the Katcinas. A child under thirteen or fourteen years of age
is not supposed to understand the nature of these supernatural
beings, but to believe that from time to time family ancestors or
spirits of the dead revisit the pueblos and receive prayers for the
good of the tribe, after which they return to ghostly homes in
the underworld, through the house of the sun far to the west. At
this age they are among other things made acquainted with the fact
that the Katcinas are not real supernatural beings, but persona-
tions by their own parents. But they must obtain this knowl-
edge through initiation, some of the ordeals of which may be
regarded as severe and are certainly calculated to bring out the
moral courage of the novitiates. Many rites occur, one of which
is a ceremonial flogging of children, which takes place in the
presence of chiefs and other persons of the tribe. The rite at
Hano, the subject of this article, has never been described.

To understand the meaning of this event and the place the
Katcina cult occupies in the pueblo mind, it may be well to say
a word on this subject before we pass to the consideration of the
initiatory episode. In all their cults Hopi ceremonies show many
indications of the worship of divinized ancestors, but this is
especially true in those of the Katcina worship. The spirit dead
are supposed to become Katcinas. The breath bodies of men
pass to their future home, the underworld, a realm of the de-
parted, presided over by the supernatural being called the God
of Germs. The population of this underworld includes not only
the spirits of those long ago deceased, but also those who have
lately joined them. This ghostly population is supposed to have
a social organization like that inhabiting the upper world, being
as on earth divided into clans with related priesthoods, in all
the conditions of life duplicating what is found among the liv-
ing. There are male and female Katcinas, brothers, sisters,
uncles, aunts, and various other relatives on the mother's side.
The clans of the underworld, after death, bear names of the liv-
ing, and are symbolically characterized. We have for instance,
the Bear clan, the Badger clan, and others. Prominent among
all members of each underworld clan are the oldest members,

152 FEWKES: INITIATION AT HANO

the ancestral parents of each clan, elevated to the cultus hero
and heroine of the clan. The sun of course is father, and the
earth, mother; they are common parents of all clans.

With this idea of the clan arrangement of the dead in the
underworld let us consider their relation to the living clans, for
this is the foundation of this cultus. Clan relationship not being
severed by death, the deceased members are regarded as still
members of the clan, with the same obligation to the clan as when
alive on earth. What is most important of all is that the powers
of these spirit ancestors are regarded as most efficacious in an-
swering the prayers of the living. In other words, the clansmen
of earth of the Bear clan feel that by addressing prayers to their
relatives in the underworld, they, with their aid, can bring about
what they desire. This can be accomplished by the use of magic
or other supernatural agencies. The personation of ancient
members of the clans are " conjured up" to hear the petitions of
those of their clan, still living.1

The February ceremonial has for its primary purpose a cele-
bration of the advent of these ancestral personages, while that
in July celebrates their return to their homes in the underworld.
The flogging of the young initiates, like other ritualistic episodes,
contain many archaic survivals that have a foundation in an
early myth recounting how the cult hero was initiated by the
Sun father, in like manner.

The flogging ceremony at Hano, here described, took place in
the larger of the two kivas, or sacred rooms, just before sunset
on the 14th of February, 1900. This rite has been witnessed
more than once, but the variations are slight, at most, and have
no great significance.

As with all pueblo ceremonies some time is occupied with
preparation of the paraphernalia used, as it has to be renovated
for the special purpose. The walls of the room were replastered,
and its floor thoroughly swept; all secular objects, as blankets in
progress of weaving, were rolled up and put away, and smaller

1 These returning clan members are represented by living members, who, for
the time being, believe that they really become the members of the spirit branch
of the clan which they represent.

FEWKES: INITIATION AT HANO 153

objects tucked in certain niches made in the wall for that pur-
pose. Boxes containing soil, in which bean seeds2 had been
planted a week before, were concealed by a wagon sheet hung
across the end of the room.

Three personators took the prominent parts in the child flog-
ging, two of whom personated the great Sky-god and the third
represented the earth, or old woman, who they believe makes the
germs of life grow. The personator who flogs the children rep-
resents the father of all living on earth as well as inhabitants of
the underworld.3 An account of his costume may be instructive
as embodying their symbolic conception of these supernaturals.

Each personator of the Sky-god wears on his head a mask-
helmet, painted black, and adorned with clusters of feathers,
long beards made of horsehair with attached feathers hanging
from their chins. The body, upper arms, and thighs are painted,
smut from the bottom of an old cooking pot serving for black
paint. Markings are drawn with gypsum on the upper arms
and thighs, and the legs and forearms are painted with the same
material. Several ears of corn strung together form their belts
from which, reaching to their knees, hangs a fringe of horsehair
stained red, the body being naked. This crude representation
of the Sky-god has the same symbolic marks as a wooden idol
of this god on a Hopi altar, and is called Tunwup Katcina.

The three personators dressed near a shrine outside the kiva
on the trail below the pueblo and entered Hano from the east
in order to preserve the illusion that they came from a distant
place in the east, where the sun, whom they personify, rises.
They entered the kiva where spectators had already assembled,
and shortly after their appearance, the man personating the
Earth-woman entered the room passing through the hatchway

2 These beans were forced to sprout in midwinter in a superheated atmosphere
of the kiva, and were carried later by the Sun-god to represent symbolically
fructification of food plants. Children were formerly taught that these sprout-
ing beans are brought by a supernatural being, not being permitted to know that
they were raised by their parents in the kiva.

3 These men belonged to Hano clans. There are two Sky-gods in their myth-
ology, one representing the sun, and the other the moon.

154 FEWKES: INITIATION AT HANO

down the ladder bearing a flat basket with sacred meal to be
used in the ceremonies.

It was about four o'clock, in the afternoon, when Anote, the
village chief of the pueblo, Hano, entered the kiva, bearing in
one hand two wands made of the leaves of the yucca or century
plant, in the other hand his medicine bowl and a badge, indi-
cating his standing as a chief. He placed this badge on the
floor and deposited his medicine bowl near it. He then poured
into the latter a white liquid, making passes in sequence with
his hand towards the six cardinal points: north, west, south, east,
above and below. He then stripped off the spines from the
margins and points of the yucca leaves, scooped some of the
medicine from the bowl into one hand and drew the leaves
through it. Aided by another man he tied several leaves to-
gether making two whips, which were laid on the placque con-
taining the prayer meal brought by the old woman.

By this time spectators had begun to assemble in the room,
each one taking his seat on the raised floor at one end of the
room. When they were seated, a number of adults, men and
women, each accompanied by a child, who carried an ear of corn
called "mother" in one hand, filed into the kiva and seated them-
selves along the sides of the room. When all were gathered the
chief began to construct a rude altar on the floor of the room.
He first made a low ridge of sand a few inches high into which
he planted, upright, a row of 20 wing feathers. In front of these
feathers he outlined on the floor, with meal, three semicircular
figures, side by side, representing rainclouds, and added parallel
lines of meal symbolic of falling rain. On the middle raincloud
figure he set upright the badge of his office. A few feet in front
of these figures near the firehole, he outlined with a line of meal
a square figure crossed by two diagonals, on the junction of
which, in the middle, he laid two small feathers. Having com-
pleted these preliminaries the chief took his seat back of the line
of feathers and gave the signal that he was ready for the rite
to begin. Shortly after, steps were heard on the kiva roof above
followed by a voice hooting down the opening or hatchway,
demanding permission to enter. The chief mounted the ladder

FEWKES: INITIATION AT HANO 155

and spoke to those above. Immediately there followed him
down the ladder the two personators of the Sky-god, and a man
dressed as an old woman. These three made a circuit around
the fire hole six times, after which the earth woman personator
holding the basket of meal and whips, took position near the
bottom of the ladder, and the two Sky-gOds stood, one on each
side of the rectangular meal figure on the kiva floor. The latter
then began a rapid dance bending and swaying their bodies and
shouting to the assembled spectators. Each was then handed
one of the yucca whips, previously prepared as mentioned above,
after which they resumed their dancing, calling out loudly for
the children to come and be flogged. In a short time a woman
led forward a girl about 11 years old, whose garment had been
semoved from her back, and placed her within the square out-
lined with meal. One of the Sky-gods immediately struck the
bared back with the yucca wand several times, all the while con-
tinuing to dance and shout. He than passed to the other side
exchanging places with his companion and the foster mother
bared her back and was flogged as her child had been before her.
The two Sky-gods again exchanged places, and whips, as yet un-
used, were given to them, after which a man, possibly a father,
led a boy forward, both stepping inside the rectangle of meal.
The boy was first flogged on the back in the same manner as the
little girl, and the father was struck several times also on legs
and arms. As each person entered the space occupied by the
meal figure he took a pinch of meal and, raising it to his lips,
threw it toward the Sky-god, uttering an inaudible prayer. The
flogging continued until four children, and as many foster par-
ents, or the men and women accompanying the children, had
been treated in this way. Generally the punishment was re-
ceived by the children without a flinch, but one of the girls was
frightened. The Sky-god was lenient, simply whirling his whip
over her head, without striking.

At the close of the flogging of initiates, other children, mostly
boys, not initiates, voluntarily came forward and stood with
backs bared for the whips. They were struck, oftentimes rather
severely. Then adults, one after another, including the old

156 FEWKES: INITIATION AT HANO

chiefs, stood up and were flogged, in the same way. As each
person passed to the altar after receiving the blows he took a
little liquid from the medicine bowl or meal from the basket,
rubbed it on his wounds, without a word, and took his seat on
the floor. The personators then left the room, after which the
chief spoke at length, in Tewa idiom, to the assembled people.
The author did not understand Tewa, but was told by an inter-
preter that he spoke to them on the meaning of the rite. He
may have explained that it was a dramatization of an old legend
and that the floggers were their own relatives personating super-
natural beings. Following the speech the spectators then
crowded around the altar, dipped their hands in the medicine,
and took a handful of meal with which they rubbed their bodies,
as both liquid and meal are considered salutary. At the close
r»f the ceremony the children were led out of the room by their
parents to their own homes.

On February 15, the day subsequent to that in which the
flogging above described was performed, there was celebrated
at Walpi one of the most unusual of all rites of the Bean-plant-
ing festival. The main events of this ceremony were prayers
to a supernatural being called Masauu, the god of planting,
also known as the supernatural of the "surface of the earth."
The dramatic reception of Masauu occurred in a Walpi kiva at
8 o'clock in the evening and lasted far into the night. It is
such an unusual event, having been witnessed by the author
but once, that although it has no direct connection with the
child-flogging it is introduced here, for want of a more ap-
propriate place.

On the night when Masauu's visit was personated all fires
throughout the East Mesa were extinguished. No one was
met in the streets. • Women and children were in hiding in
back rooms, and darkened house terraces were deserted, for the
dread being is greatly feared by all the Hopi. Knowing that
he was to be personated that night, the author resorted to the
chief kiva, in Walpi, early in the evening, and found about 20
men engaged in decorating their bodies with white kaoline
paint, drawing lines down their backs and legs and placing

FEWKES: INITIATION AT HANO 157

great daubs of white on their cheeks and hair. None of these
men were masked, but all claimed they personated sisters or
brothers of Masauu. Shortly after the author's entrance they
began to sing their songs, containing strains of fine archaic
Hopi Indian music, closely resembling in their cadences the
song sung by the antelope priests in the well-known snake
dance. While these songs were being sung a priest came down
the kiva hatchway bearing two large hollow gourds, the sur-
faces of which had been painted black, and spattered with a
wash containing glistening hematite. Each gourd was large
enough to fit over the head and both were later worn as helmets
by personators of Masauu. With these gourds the same priest
brought two planting sticks of ancient form and two flat bas-
ket plaques which were laid with great reverence alongside
the masks, near the fire hole. At the advent of this man all
those present ceased their singing and lighted their pipes for a
formal smoke, during which the pipes were passed around, every
man silently puffing clouds of smoke upon the masks. No one
of that gathering spoke a word but each fervently prayed in
sequence, beginning with the chief, at the conclusion of which
they again returned to their usual songs. During these songs
one of the chiefs raised the painted gourd helmet and talked
directly to it praying for success of crops during the coming
season. The songs rose and became so loud that no one could
tell what was said, but the intent throughout were prayers to
fertilize the fields that the corn might germinate and grow.
Shortly after, while the men were still singing and the light of
the fire had been shielded from all eyes by a blanket, in order
to darken the room, a naked man silently and unannounced
came down the ladder, not as is usually the case backwards
holding on the rungs, but as one would descend a pair of t f airs.
Entering the room without making the customary request,
"Am I welcome here?" he slipped around back of the row of
singers, peering anxiously at the masks on the floor. He fi-
nally came to the front from his hiding and squatted by the
fireplace. Cautiously he placed the strange human skull-like
gourd helmet over his head, threw a rough blanket aroui d his

158 FEWKES: INITIATION AT HANO

neck over his shoulders, and taking a planting stick in his
hands assumed the kneeling posture which the Hopi take when
they are planting on their farms, kneeling on one knee with the
stick held vertically in his two hands. A second man who
entered the kiva, in the same way donned the other helmet and
without a word took his position near his predecessor. The
songs of the assembled priests then became more animated and
finally died down to a low murmur and ceased. The two per-
sonators manipulating their planting sticks in rhythm kept time
to the songs. At the conclusion of which the singers filed out
of the kiva, but as each man passed the fireplace he placed in
the flat basket on the floor by the side of the kneeling figures a
feather, symbolic of a prayer, for a successful harvest. As the
last man left the room he halted for a moment at the fireplace,
with one foot on the ladder rung and announced that in the
spring, at planting time, a great ceremony to the planting god
would occur in the fields to the west of Walpi. The prayers
throughout this rite were particularly fervent, but so low they
could not be heard even a few feet away. There was no loud
talking and the faces of all were very serious as befitting the
reverence for the beings addressed; many even went so far as to
turn their faces away from the dread being to whom they
prayed. After the departure of the men the two planting gods
silently gathered up the feathered prayer offerings offered them,
and departed.

The supernatural being called Masauu, also known as Eototo,
was the chief cult being of the Fire people who migrated into
the Hopi country, according to legends, from the East in pre-
historic times. They formerly lived at a pueblo, now in ruins,
three miles east of Walpi, called Sikyatki. A quarrel arose
between Walpi and the inhabitants of Sikyatki, sometime be-
fore 1540, which eventually led to the overthrow of the latter
pueblo, whose people were incorporated in the former. Their
cultus supernatural, Masauu, transferred to the Hopi pantheon,
is still from time to time personated by descendants of the
ill-fated Sikyatki, now fused with other Walpi clans.

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Each of the scientific bureaus in Washington has a representative authorized to
forward such material to this journal and abstracts of official publications should
be transmitted through the representative of the bureau in which they originate.
The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those appearing in
this issue.

GRAVITY. — Investigations of gravity and isostasy. William Bowie.
U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, Special Publication No. 40.
Pp. 196, with 18 illustrations. 1917.

For a number of years the U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey has been
carrying on geodetic investigations of isostasy with special reference
to the effect of isostatic compensation upon the deflection from the
vertical and upon the intensity of gravity. Four reports on these
investigations have appeared previously. The first one was in 1909
and the last one in 1912.

The present report has as its main features: (1) The observed value
of the intensity of gravity at the stations in the United States, Canada,
India, and Europe, and at a few scattered stations. (2) Discussions
of the relations between the gravity anomalies and the topography,
the large areas of erosion and deposition, the geological formation as
indicated by the surface rock, and the elevation of the station. (3)
So-called regional versus the local distribution of the isostatic com-
pensation. (4) The determination of a gravity equation and of the
earth's flattening and the depth of compensation upon each of several
assumptions. (5) Summaries of the results of the field observations
with the pendulums, and descriptions of the gravity stations. (6) Illus-
trations, in the pocket at the back of the volume, showing graphically
much data resulting from the investigation.

The results of the investigation may be summarized briefly as follows :

1. The most probable depth of compensation derived from gravity
observations alone is 95 kilometers. As the author believes that the
best value determined by Hay ford from deflection data is 97 kilometers
and that each of these two values should have equal weight, the re-
sulting best value from all geodetic data is 96 kilometers.

159

160 ABSTEACTS: PHYSICS

2. In the United States there was found a decided relation between
the sign of the gravity anomalies and the coast, but there was not found
any apparent relation between the anomalies and any other class of
topography.

3. In the United States there was found a decided relation between
the gravity anomalies and the Pre-Cambrian geologic formation. In
both the United States and in India there was found a decided rela-
tion between the gravity anomalies and the Cenozoic formation. No
relation between the gravity anomalies and the geologic formations
was found in Canada.

4. It was found from certain computations and investigations that
the local distribution of compensation of the topographic feature is in
general nearer the truth than regional distribution of the compensa-
tion out to a distance from the station of 167 kilometers. It was not
proven whether local distribution is more probable than a regional dis-
tribution out to a distance of 59 kilometers from the station.

5. The best formula, resulting from this investigation, by which
theoretical gravity may be computed for any latitude at sea level was
based upon 348 stations; it is

To = 978.039 (1+ 0.005294 sin2 0 - 0.000007 sin2 2 0) in which y0
is the value of gravity sought and 4> is the latitude of the station.

6. From the constants of the above gravity formula, was derived
the value of 297.4 for the reciprocal of the flattening of the earth.
This value of the flattening is very close to other values recently derived
from gravity data in the United States and elsewhere.

7. The cause of the greater part of the anomalies is believed by the
author to be in general the deviation from normal in the densities in
the outer portion of the earth's material and probably not far below
sea level.

The titles of a number of articles dealing with isostasy or related
subjects are given. W. B.

PHYSICS. — A specific gravity balance for gases. J. D. Edwards.
Bureau of Standards Technologic Paper No. 89. Pp. 20. 1917.
The need of an accurate method for determining gas densities has
been especially urgent in the natural gas industry. To supply this
need the apparatus described in this paper was designed. The balance
is enclosed in a gas tight chamber and consists of a beam which is sup-
ported on 2 needle points, and which carries on one end a relatively
large globe and on the other a small counterweight. The gas to be

abstracts: metallography 161

studied is introduced into the balance case and its pressure is changed
until the beam balances. The density is computed from the initial and
the final pressures. The balance is standardized by similar observa-
tions made with the case filled with air. J. D. H.

CHEMISTRY. — Experiments in the destruction of fly larvae in horse
manure. F. C. Cook, R. H. Hutchison, and F. M. Scales.
U. S. Department of Agriculture Bulletins 118 and 245. 1914 and
1915.

Experiments during 1915 in the destruction of fly larvae in horse
manure. F. C. Cook and R. H. Hutchison. U. S. Department
of Agriculture Bulletin 408. 1916.
These three bulletins cover experiments extending over three jrears
searching for satisfactory lar/icides for fly larvae to be applied to
fresh horse manure (the principal breeding place of the house fly)
which would be without extremely toxic properties and without in-
jurious action on the fertilizing value of the manure. The study
involved entomological, bacteriological, and chemical investigations.

Over 50 substances have been tested of which three have been found
effective and practicable. Some were excluded because of their ex-
treme toxicity, such as potassium cyanide. The three that are recom-
mended are borax, hellebore, and calcium cyanamid mixtures with
acid phosphate.

Borax in large amounts injures plant growth, hence should be ap-
plied only to manure that is not to be used as a fertilizer.

Powdered hellebore {Veratrum album and V. viride) applied as a
solution is an effective larvicide and, because it is decomposed in
the course of the fermentation, does not affect the fertilizing value of
the manure even when excessive quantities are used.

Calcium cyanamid mixed with acid phosphate and kainit are ef-
fective and, if enough acid phosphate has been added to give an acid
reaction, the nitrogen and ammonia of the manure will be retained.
The mixture is an advantage in that it adds to the manure nitrogen,
potash, and phosphoric acid. F. C. C.

METALLOGRAPHY. — The structure of the coating on tinned sheet
copper in relation to a curious case of corrosion of this material.
Paul D. Merica. Bureau of Standards Technologic Paper No.
90. Pp. 18. 1917.
The attention of the author has been directed to a case of local cor-
rosion, or pitting, in tinned sheet copper roofing. The pits occur in

162 abstracts: botany

general along the lines of surface scratches, and are apparently unre-
lated to the service conditions, and to the direction of rolling of the
sheet. They appeared some eight or ten years after the completion of
the roof. The tin coating on copper consists of at least three layers;
viz., a thin layer of CusSn immediately next to the copper, than a layer
of Heycock and Neville's constituent H, containing about 60 per cent
by weight of tin, and finally, a layer of the eutectic of tin and copper,
in which most probably is found any lead that may have been present
in the tinning mixture. The constituents of these intermediate alloy
layers are more electronegative than either the tin or the copper. Con-
sequently, when the copper becomes exposed, as at the bottom of
scratches on the surface, it forms together with the alloy layer a gal-
vanic couple, electrolytic action sets in, and the copper at these points
is corroded, forming the pits mentioned. P. D. M.

GEOLOGY. — Relations of the Embar and Chugwater formations in central
Wyoming. D. Dale Condit. U. S. Geological Survey Profes-
sional Paper 98-0. Pp. 263-270, with 3 plates and 2 figures. 1916.
The Embar formation of central Wyoming, which lies between the
Tensleep sandstone and the Chugwater formation, comprises several
distinct facies, each of which is considered in detail, and some of the
formational boundaries in the Bighorn Mountain region are redefined.
In connection with the description of the gypsum and associated strata
it is suggested that possibly conditions were favorable for accumu-
lation of salt beds also. The chance of finding such deposits down the
dip below the surface is believed to be sufficient to merit further
investigation. R. W. S.

BOTANY. — Maxonia, a new genus of Tropical American ferns. Carl
Christensen. Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections, 669: 1-4.
1916.
The type and sole species of this new genus, M. apiifolia, is a rather
rare polypodiaceous fern of Jamaica and Cuba, described by Swartz
in 1801 under Dicksonia, and since variously referred to Dryopteris
(or Nephrodium) and Polystichum. From Dryopteris, in which it was
last placed as a special subgenus by Maxon in 1909, it differs in the
unique morphology and development of the indusium, as also in its
strongly dimorphic leaves and peculiar rope-like rhizome. The last
two characters recall Polybotrya, between which genus and a small
subgroup of Dryopteris species it is somewhat intermediate. A sub-
species, M. apiifolia dualis, occurs in Guatemala. P. C. S.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

THE PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 783rd meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, February 3, 1917.
Vice President Burgess in the chair; 61 persons present. The min-
utes of the 782nd meeting were read in abstract and approved.

A letter signed by several members of the society, calling attention
to the recently organized American Metric Association, was read.

Mr. Arthur W. Clime, introduced by Mr. Alexander Graham Bell,
presented a communication on Photoelectric radiophonic experiments.

Mr. Bell, in introducing Mr. Clime, spoke of the history of se-
lenium. He referred to the remarkable property possessed by crystal-
line selenium of having its electrical resistance affected by light; and
of the utilization of that property in the construction of the photophone.
He also referred to the discovery made by the late Prof. W. G. Adams,
of King's College, England, that light produced an electromotive force
in crystalline selenium. Mr. Bell had suggested to Mr. Clime that
this opened up a new field for scientific investigation and recommended
him to follow out the experiments of Prof. Adams by applying the
results to radiophonic researches. He had also pointed out to Mr.
Clime that the remarkable properties of carbon in radiophonic work
would well bear exploration.

Mr. Clime then exhibited some of the radiophonic apparatus he
has constructed, and spoke of the results that had been obtained.
He showed a selenium cell which, when exposed to an intermittent
beam of light, caused a telephone connected with it to emit a musical
sound even when there was no battery in the circuit. The result he
claimed was due to an electromotive force produced in the crystal-
line selenium by the action of light. He also showed a cell in which
the selenium had been replaced by lampblack. So long as there was
a voltaic battery in the circuit the telephone responded well when the
lampblack surface was illuminated by an interrupted beam of light,
but he was unable to detect any audible effect when the batterjr was
removed. A cell in which a mixture of selenium and lampblack was
employed was then exhibited. In this case the sonorous responses of
the telephone were very loud even when no battery was used. The
musical tone was clearly perceived when the telephone was held at a
distance of several inches from the ear. On. account of the magnitude
of the sound produced by the selenium-carbon mixture, Mr. Clime
predicted the possibility of producing, by the action of sunlight, an
electromotive force of sufficient power to be of economic value.

163

164 proceedings: philosophical society

Discussion. The paper was discussed by Messrs. Abbot, Bauer,
and Weed. Mr. Sosman inquired as to the nature of the effect of
adding carbon. Mr. Clime stated that the increase in response seemed
out of all proportion to the increase in absorption due to blackening
the surface. Mr. Briggs asked about a lack of symmetry in the il-
luminated system, and Mr. Swann spoke of observing small electro-
motive forces in very thin films of platinum illuminated by a beam of
light not perpendicular to the surface. The chair expressed the thanks
of the society to Mr. Clime for his interesting communication.

Mr. W. W. Coblentz then gave a paper on Characteristics and com-
parative sensitiveness of various types of radiometers.

The various types of radiometers were divided into three groups.

Group I includes radiometers which are nonselective in their re-
sponse to stimuli of radiant energy of all wave lengths. In these instru-
ments the radiant energy is absorbed and converted into heat. They
include the Nichols radiometer, the thermocouple, the Boys radio-
micrometer, and the Langley bolometer. In all these instruments
the response is proportional to the stimulus, and they are well adapted
for quantitative work.

Group II includes substances which have the property of decreasing
in electrical resistance when exposed to radiant energy of short wave-
lengths, especially visible and ultraviolet rays. The phenomenon de-
pends entirely upon the wave-length of the light stimulus. Many
substances are "light-sensitive," e.g., copper oxide, sulphides of an-
timony and silver, and crystalline selenium. The latter has been the
most extensively investigated. Its sensitivity depends upon heat treat-
ment, and varies with the intensity and wave-length of the light stim-
ulus. After exposure to light for a few seconds, it requires a long
time to recover its normal ("dark") resistance. It is not adapted to
quantitative work.

Group III includes the photo-electric cells, substances which, when
charged to a negative potential, lose their charge when exposed to
light; especially violet and ultra-violet rays. This emission of elec-
trons is a surface phenomenon, easily disturbed by oxidation of the
surface. The photo-electric cells investigated consisted of potassium
and rubidium. .It was found that the response (galvanometer deflec-
tion) was not proportional to the intensity of the stimulus, but, dif-
fering from the selenium cell, this lack of proportionality of response
does not appear to depend upon the wave-length of the exciting light.
In 1907 Angstrom described a new method for studying solar radia-
tion. By covering his pyrheliometer with a blue glass he was able
to study atmospheric diffusion of solar radiation independently of the
water vapor present. He obtained some very interesting data on the
temporary variations in the solar constant. In view of the fact that
the potassium, photoelectric cell has its maximum sensitivity in the
violet, the speaker tried it as a pyrheliometer. It was found entirely
too sensitive (on only 2 volts) to be used with an insensitive d'Arson-
nal galvanometer. Using a higher voltage and a milliammeter, the

proceedings: biological society 165

current released when the cell was exposed (through blue glass to
reduce the intensity of the sun-light) was sufficient to overheat the
wires and crack the glass cell. This investigation should be continued,
using a less sensitive photoelectric substance.

In certain spectral regions the sensitivity of the selective-radiometers
is far greater than that of the non-selective instruments. The sen-
sitivity of the selective instruments seems spread in the non-selective
radiometer over the whole spectrum, with a corresponding reduction
to a uniform and much lower value. From published data it appears
that a single crystal of selenium, 1 sq. mm. in area, is 100 times as
sensitive as the best selenium cell. In connection with a 36 inch tele-
scope such a crystal receiver could detect a candle at a distance of
350 miles. The photoelectric cell is probably even more sensitive
than the selenium cell. However, these instruments are very insensi-
tive in comparison with the eye, which responds to light having an in-
tensity of less than 1 X 10-9 ergs.

Discussion. Mr. Abbot spoke of some radiometers of very high sen-
sitivity in which the alignment of small magnetic needles was changed
by the thermal expansion of the parts holding them. Mr. Swann
spoke of obtaining readings by placing a Peltier j unction beside a thermo-
couple and maintaining the thermocouple at a constant temperature
by the Peltier effect. Mr. Abbot spoke of increasing the sensitivity by
cooling the apparatus in liquid air. Mr. Coblentz stated that tem-
perature differences in the surroundings make it very difficult to get
consistent results.

Donald H. Sweet, Secretary.

THE BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 564th meeting of the Society was held in the Assembly Hall
of the Cosmos Club, Saturday, January 27, 1917; called to order at
8 p.m. by President Hay; 45 persons present.

Under the heading of brief notes, Messrs. W. L. McAtee and A.
Wetmore made remarks on certain misconceptions as to the notes of
some common species of birds and as to a theory of the migration of
birds.

Under the heading exhibition of specimens, Dr. 0. P. Hay showed
a metacarpal of a horse with well developed lateral metacarpals, and
three fused metacarpals of a cow each with well developed digits.

Dr. L. 0. Howard commented on an enthusiastic antimosquito
convention which he had lately attended in New Jersey.

The regular program consisted of two communications:

H. M. Smith: Exploitation of neglected aquatic resources. Dr. Smith
called attention to many forms of fishes not used as food by the Amer-
ican public, but which are of pleasing taste and of good food value.
Many of these have long been used for food by Europeans especially
about the North Sea. He gave a brief resume of the discovery, disap-
pearance, and rediscovery of the tilefish and of its successful introduc-

166 proceedings: biological society

tion to the consumer through exploitation by the Bureau of Fisheries.
He then described the dogfish and its habits destructive to other fish
and the losses caused by it to fishermen. He told of the efforts now-
being made by the Bureau of Fisheries to market the dogfish as a
food. Under the name of grayfish it is now being successfully canned
and marketed by some of the New England fisheries and, during the
winter months when salmon are unattainable, by some of the salmon
canneries on the Pacific coast. The canned meat not only consti-
tutes one of the cheapest forms of protein now available, but the livers
of the dog-fish yield a valuable oil; the oviducts, eggs; and the skin a
leather which has many possibilities. Discussion by Messrs. Ames,
Bean, and Doolittle.

W. L. McAtee: Showers of organic matter. Under this heading
Mr. McAtee gave a review of the various apocryphal and authentic
instances in which hay, grain, various insects, encysted animalcules,
worms, frogs, toads, fishes, and birds had fallen from the sky. The
explanation was offered that the objects had been carried aloft by
violent currents of air.

The 565th meeting of the Society was held in the Assembly Hall of
the Cosmos Club, Saturday, February 10, 1917; called to order at 8
p.m. by President Hay; 30 persons present.

Two formal communications were presented:

H. F. Taylor: A mortality of fishes on the ivest coast of Florida.
During the months of October and November, 1916, by some ob-
scure cause, vast numbers of fishes were killed in the region mentioned.
It appears to be a recurrence of the phenomenon observed in 1844, 1854,
1878, 1880, 1882, 1883 and 1908. Of the dead fishes 63 species, repre-
senting 37 families, were identified. The animals killed were confined,
with the exception of king crabs, sea urchins, and sponges, to the class
Pisces. Various suggested causes were examined; foul Everglade water,
diseases, and volcanic eruptions are inadequate explanations. Evidence
at hand seems rather to show that the cause of mortality was the
release of occluded bottom gases by small seismic disturbances, or
possibly by abnormally large numbers of Peridinii. Mr. Taylor's pa-
per was illustrated by lantern slide views of the region involved and
of strips of shore showing the large numbers of stricken fishes. His
paper was discussed by Messrs. Hay, Bartsch, Goldman, Radcliffe,
and others.

Paul Bartsch: Changes in the avifauna about Burlington, Iowa,
1885 to 1917. From 1885 to 1893 Dr. Bartsch was resident of Bur-
lington and an enthusiastic bird collector. In the ideal conditions
found for birds at Burlington he had recorded 275 species. Since
1893 he has been a sporadic visitor to Burlington but has always re-
tained his interest in the local avifauna. Passenger pigeons, Caro-
lina parakeets, whooping and sandhill cranes, and trumpeter swans
were found about Burlington, but are no longer seen. The same is
true of the Mississippi kite, the swallow-tailed kite, wild turkey, and

proceedings: botanical society 167

prairie chickens, the latter in times past having been shot from the
speaker's porch. The prothonotary warbler, once common, appears
to have gone northward. New birds now found at Burlington have
come from the west, such as western meadowlark and red-shafted
flicker. Other newcomers are the tufted tit and Carolina wren. Many
of these changes are due to human agencies, some are unexplainable.
Dr. Bartsch's paper was discussed by Messrs. Hay, McAtee, Wilcox,
Goldman, Jackson, and others.

M. W. Lyon, Jr., Recording Secretary.

THE BOTANICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 117th regular meeting of the Society was held in the Assembly
Hall of the Cosmos Club at 8 p.m., January 2, 1917, President T. H.
Kearney presiding. Mr. C. W. Warburton was elected to member-
ship.

Under Brief Notes and Reviews of Literature, Mr. W. T. Swingle
called attention to a recent trip by Prof. E. D. Merrill of the Phil-
ippine Bureau of Science, to the vicinity of Canton, China, where
3000 botanical specimens were secured.

The regular program was devoted to* the subject of Plant Introduc-
tion under which the following papers were presented:

The need of more foreign agricultural exploration. (Illustrated) :
David Fairchild. Attention was called to the need of more foreign
agricultural exploration and to the fact that only a comparatively
small amount of money had been expended in such work. The
amount had seldom, if ever, exceeded ,$18,000 in any one year,
and for the most part the expense had been much lower. The most
successful type of agricultural exploration has been carried on by men
who are interested in particular lines of agricultural work. Among
those who have been called into the exploration work temporarily are
Messrs. Kearney, Carleton, Hansen, Swingle, Cook, Collins, Oliver,
Aaronsohn, Meyer, Rolfs, Bessey, Knapp, Mason, Scofield, Shamel,
Dorsett, Popenoe, Young, Lake, Bolley, Shear, Tracy, and Fairchild.
Attention was also called to the need of studying the methods of agri-
cultural production in foreign countries, to some of the more important
recent introductions, and to the difficulty in getting people to adopt
new foods.

The wild relatives of our crop plants; their value in breeding; how to
secure them. (Illustrated) : Walter T. Swingle. The importance
of the wild relatives of our cultivated plants in effective breeding for
such desirable qualities as hardiness, earliness or lateness of blooming
or of ripening, disease resistance, extra vigor, etc. was discussed. Fre-
quently these wild relatives were found to be inconspicuous plants
quite unlike the cultivated forms in appearance and were often native
in remote localities. The Australian desert Kumquat, Eremocitrus
glauca, for example, was originally described under the genus Triphasia
and afterwards transferred to the genus Atalantia. In neither of these

168 proceedings: botanical society

genera was it properly placed, since it is closely related to true citrous
fruits and will hybridize with the cultivated forms. Not cursory in-
spection of botanical literature, but protracted critical study of the botan-
ical relationships, was necessary to make plain the desirability of the
introduction of this species for the successful breeding of hardy and
drouth-resistant citrous fruits. Plants not so closely related to the
cultivated forms have been found useful stocks upon which to graft
cultivated varieties. A properly digested taxonomic knowledge of the
wild relatives of our cultivated plants was found to be indispensable
as a foundation for all efficient plant introduction and plant breeding.

The introduction of foreign plant diseases: R. Kent Beattie.
American agriculture has been based largely on introduced plants.
Only twelve of the two hundred and forty-seven species of cultivated
plants studied by De Candolle in his Origin of Cultivated Plants are
clearly indigenous to the United States., Diseases of American eco-
nomic plants may be separated into two groups: (1) Those which have
passed from native plants to the introduced hosts, such as pear blight;
(2) Those which have been introduced, such as citrous canker and
the chestnut bark disease. Plant disease may be introduced in three
ways: (1) The diseased crop plant may be imported for commercial
use; (2) The diseased crop plant may be imported for scientific pur-
poses; (3) The spores of the disease-producing organism may be brought
in on plants not affected by the disease.

Commercial plant introduction, except field crops and florist stock,
has been under a system of permit and inspection. In most states,
however, the inspectors were trained as entomologists rather than
pathologists, and there has been little restriction on the commercial
importation of fungus plant diseases, except in the case of specifically
quarantined crops. Material imported by the U. S. Department of
Agriculture has undergone rigid inspection and plants which show
symptoms of disease or arouse suspicion have been treated or grown
under restraint until danger was passed. During the year 1916 the
Pathological Inpectors of the Federal Horticultural Board while ex-
amining the material imported by the U. S. Department of Agriculture
found one hundred and sixty-three hosts affected with disease and de-
termined one hundred and fifty-seven diseases on these .hosts.

The protection and propagation of plant introductions: B. T. Gal-
loway. The rapid change in public sentiment in the matter of plant
sanitation and plant hygiene and the need for a -constructive policy
in the matter of adequately protecting our crop plants, and at the
same time not closing the doors to the development of new crop in-
dustries through the introduction of plant immigrants, was discussed.

The Office of Foreign Seed and Plant Introduction in the Depart-
ment of Agriculture has received seeds and plants from all over the
world. These seeds and plants were grown, propagated, and tested
at four outlying stations. It has also acted as the agent for handling
seeds and plants from foreign countries for other branches of the De-
partment, for the experiment stations, and for many private and pro-

proceedings: anthropological society 169

fessional experimenters throughout the country. It has recognized the
clangers to our important crop industries and has endeavored to take
such steps as, in the light of our present knowledge, will insure that
nothing but plants free from parasitic enemies and transmissible dis-
eases are distributed.

The practical questions now confronting the office are as follows:
(1) The organization, development, and equipment of a central plant
and seed receiving station where plant introductions and plant mater-
ials of all kinds may be received, inspected, treated, and held if nec-
essary, under conditions that will safeguard the country, and at the
same time not prove to be a bar to a safe and constructive development
of new plant industries; (2) The discovery and application of methods
of treating seeds and plants, cuttings, buds, bulbs, etc., in such fashion
as will free them from parasitic enemies and transmissible diseases,
and at the same time not injure them or completely destroy them; (3)
The discovery and application of improved methods of reproducing
plants by seeds and vegetative parts in such manner that they will be
free from parasitic enemies and transmissible diseases; (4) The con-
ducting of field tests and trials for the purpose of determining the
healthfuhiess of new or promising plant immigrants, and their suit-
ability for general distribution; (5) The great need of further knowledge
of plant propagation and plant and soil sterilization in order to pro-
vide methods which are less empirical than those in use at the present
time.

H. L. Shantz, Corresponding Secretary.

THE ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

■

The 506th meeting of the Society was held in the Lecture Hall of
the Public Library, Tuesday evening, February 6, 1917, at 8 o'clock.

Dr. J. Walter Fewkes, of the Bureau of American Ethnology,
read a paper on Prehistoric rains of the Mesa Verde National Park.
This communication was mainly taken up by an outline of the work
accomplished by him, in the summer of 1916, under direction of the
Bureau of American Ethnology, at the request of the Department of
the Interior. After a brief introduction on the situation and physical
features of the Park and a short account of archeological work already
accomplished, the speaker described in detail the uncovering and re-
pair of one of the large pueblo-like buildings of the Mummy Lake
group, situated on the Government road, 4| miles from the ruin known
as Spruce-tree House.

The mound excavated is one of the largest of the group, and when
the work began gave no indication of the form, size, and architectural
features of the building it covered. After three months' work there
was brought to light a rectangular structure, 113 feet long by 100 feet
wide, three stories high, with an enclosed court on the south side. The
ground plan showed the existence of four circular, ceremonial rooms
compactly embedded in fifty rectangular enclosures which were for-

170 proceedings: anthropological society

merly used for secular purposes. The remarkable feature of this ruin
is the large size of one of the circular rooms, situated in the center of
a compact group of chambers. From the wide .southerly outlook this
ruin has received the name, Far View House. It is a pueblo habitation;
the first of its type ever brought to light on the plateau. The ruin
was repaired, the tops of the kivas being treated with Portland cement
to protect them from the elements.

After describing the various architectural details of the building
Dr. Fewkes passed to a consideration of what he termed the morpholo-
gy of the structure, or the comparison of it with other types, especial-
ly the cliff dwellings of the Mesa Verde. He declared that it is a new
type of ruin for that region, and that there are evidences of many
other examples of the same general character now indicated by mounds;
we may say that formerly there were as many members of this type
on the Park as cliff dwellings in the caves of the canyons. He consid-
ered in detail some of the arguments bearing on the relative age of
buildings like Far View House, and the cliff dwellings, and came to
the conclusion that the former were the more recent, and evolved
from the habitations in cliffs.

Considerable time was devoted to a discussion and comparison of
the so-called kiva or sacred room. He held that this chamber should
be made the basis of classification of pueblo ruins, and that it was
represented by the tower found widely distributed in Utah and ad-
jacent regions of Colorado. He pointed out the wide-spread custom of
dual styles of buildings among primitive races, one type being devoted
to religious purposes, the other to habitations. He claimed that the
former are always better constructed than the latter. He regarded
the tower as a religious building and thought that the people who i^sed
it lived in dugouts or temporary habitations that have disappeared.
In the earliest times these two types were separated, but in later stages
in the evolution of buildings they became united, and habitations
were constructed around the bases of the towers. Later in the course
of development the central original building lost its tower-like form
and became the circular kiva. Several similar architectural units, by
union, formed a pueblo.

Dr. Fewkes pointed out that the great morphological similarity be-
tween Far View House and the pueblos with central kivas and towers,
many miles away, had an important bearing on the distribution or
diffusion of pueblo culture. He regarded the San Juan region as the
nucleus from which the pueblos south and west originated, thus sub-
stantiating by archaeological evidence the legendary traditions of
the inhabited and much modified historic pueblos. He claimed that
there were two nuclei of distribution of house builders in the southwest,
each arising in regions physiographically and climatically distinct,
each possessed of different materials available for architectural ad-
vancement. One arose in the Gila Valley, the other in the San Juan;
the former spread toward the north, the latter to the south. Both
nuclei were extinct before the historic epoch. What remained, or

proceedings: anthropological society 171

that which we now know as the culture of living descendants, is the
product of acculturation, due to cultural contacts in this expansion.
History can afford, therefore, only an imperfect picture. We must
rely on archeology, mainly architectural, and ceramic remains, sup-
plemented by ethnology, to discover the nature of the culture of these
two original nuclei.

In a discussion of their distribution the speaker showed numerous
illustrations of the prehistoric kivas, called towers, situtated in Hill
Canyon, near Ouray, Utah. To these he gave the name, suggested
by their site, Mushroom Rock ruins. Their more striking peculiarity
is their position on the tops of inverted cones, or mushroom-like
formations of rock, produced by the enormous erosion evident in the
region where they occur. He said that this form of ruins was not
morphologically a different type from towers, but their site was so un-
usual that it was convenient to designate them by this name.

While the important question of the antiquity of the cliff dwellings
has not been satisfactorily answered by the observation made at Far
View House, progress is being made in the accumulation of significant
data bearing upon it. As long as this question remains unanswered
the archeologist has plenty of research before him for many more
years of field work in the Southwest.

The communication was illustrated with lantern slides.

The 507th meeting of the Society was held in room 44 of the New
National Museum, February 20 at 4 p.m. The speaker of the after-
noon was Dr. I. M. Casanowicz of the New National Museum, who pre-
sented a paper on The fish in cult, myth, and symbol.

Dr. Casanowicz said, "The fish, as the inhabitant of the mysterious,
indestructible, never-resting water, early impressed man deeply, and
was considered by him as the genius and representative of the life-
producing element. Traces of the veneration of the fish, sometimes
revealed in taboos, are found everywhere in ancient times and still
exist in various parts of the world." An important center of ichthy-
olatry in antiquity, according to the testimony of classical writers,
was Syria where a fish goddess under the name of Derketo-Atargatios
was worshiped as a phase of the great Semitic mother goddess Astarte,
being regarded as a personification of the fructifying power of the
water. Reminiscences of this cult still survive in the cherishing of
sacred inviolate fishes in some places near mosques.

Tales of the fish as a medium of transformation and incarnation of
spirits and ghosts are met with among various nations, and in later
times the fish seems to have been, next to the bird, a symbol of the
departed human soul. The fish as carrier of man across the water
was illustrated by the story of Arion and the dolphin as told by Her-
odotus, and by the Biblical narrative contained in the book of Jonah.
Parallel narratives of a man being swallowed by a sea monster were quot-
ed from Greek, Polynesian, and Cherokee lore.

The belief in the magical and apotropaic properties of the fish was

172 proceedings: anthropological society

also found to be widespread. The fish was generally considered as a
being of good omen, benevolent and beneficient toward man, and by
reason of its own great fertility it was a symbol of increase and abun-
dance. Various regions had their favorite species of fish which were
endowed with supernatural qualities. Thus among the classical na-
tions the dolphin was termed the "saviour fish" (piscis salvator).
In the Far East (China and Japan) the carp was the fish of good omen,
while among the ancient Irish the salmon was the "fish of wisdom,"
the mere sight of which brought healing.

Dr. Swanton introduced the discussion of the paper by calling at-
tention to the fact that migrations of Indians were influenced largely
by the food supply. Thus many tribes of Indians followed the rivers
and streams because of the presence of fish. Dr. Michelson men-
tioned the legend of a miraculous fish among the Delaware Indians,
and also noted a similarity between the ancient beliefs concerning the
fish and those held by the North American Indians. Mr. E. T. Wil-
liams spoke on the use of the fish in Japan and China, the latter country
considering it martial in character because of its fearlessness in pro-
ceeding against the current of a stream, and also because of its scales,
which suggest a coat of mail.

Frances Densmore, Secretary.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VII APRIL 4, 1917 No. 7

MATHEMATICS. — Note on multiple algebra: The reduction of
real dyadics and the classification of real homogeneous strains.
Edwin Bidwell Wilson, Massachusetts Institute of Tech-
nology. (Communicated by Arthur L. Day.)

1. About ten years ago I printed an account of some parts of
Gibbs's course of lectures on multiple algebra.1 In the classifi-
cation, or reduction to a canonical form, which was there estab-
lished for dyadics no attention was paid to distinctions between
real and imaginary. I had in mind at that time to give the ex-
tension of Gibbs's work in Vector Analysis2 needed to obtain the
reduction of real dyadics to type forms, but did not publish
my results. I desire now to show how the algebraic methods
used by Gibbs to find the general classification lend themselves
immediately to the further subdivision relative to reality.

The sort of dyadic under consideration is (p. II):3

$ = a | a0 + (3 | 0° + . . . ,

where the antecedents a, 0, . . . are ordinary vectors and the
consequents a0, 0°, . . . are (n-1) -dimensional vectors in n-
dimensional space. (The vertical bars serve as separators and

1 Wilson*, Edwin* B. On the theory of double products and strains in hyper-
space. Trans. Conn. Acad. Arts Sci., 14: 1-57. 1908.

2 Gibbs-Wilson. Vector Analysis, pp. 356-367.

3 The page numbers in the text refer to the memoir cited in Note 1. I here
use an upper zero instead of a dash over a letter to represent an (n-l)-vector.

173

174 WILSON: REDUCTION OF REAL DYADICS

have no connection with Grassmann's Erganzung.) The only
kind of multiplication used in the work is the (progressive or
regressive, single or multiple) combinatory product. That
means that we work with the affine, not with the metric, group
of linear transformations with one point fixed, i. e., with homo-
geneous strains.

2. The essential steps in the reduction of a dyadic are these:

(a) As there are only n2 independent dyads, any dyadic must

satisfy a polynomial equation, with numerical coefficients, of

degree not exceeding n-. Hence any dyadic satisfies an equation

A O) = $m + ci$w_1 + . . . + cm_x 3> + cm 7=0

of lowest degree, I being the idemfactor. This equation is unique
for if there were two of like lowest degree, their difference would
be of lower degree (pp. 15-16.)

(6) As any dyadic is homologous (commutative in multipli-
cation, p. 14) with its powers and with I, the equation of lowest
degree may be factored in the form:

A ($) = ($ - aiy ($ - biy ($ - ciy . . . = o

identical with that obtained in factoring the ordinary polynomial

A (x) = xm + d xm~l + . . . + Cm_! X + cm

= (x - a)p (x - b)q (x - c)r . . . =0.

(c) If we set (p. 26)

$ - al = ¥, * - bl = ¥ + (a - b) I, <J> - cl = * + (a - c) I, . . .

and if we divide (by the ordinary algorism of long division,
which is applicable here) the expression

(?-bI)q(*-cI)r . . . =AI+B*+ . . . +H*q+r+---

into I, we have the result

^I + B'^ + .-. + G'^-1

+

AI +B* + ... + HVn-p
where P is a polynomial of degree m — p - 1. Next, let (p. 27)

WILSON: REDUCTION OF REAL DYADICS 175

/. ={AI +B*+ . . . +H*"1'13) (±-I+Bf*+ . . . +GV-1)

= l-<t>pp O)

with similar expressions for Ib, Ic . . . . corresponding to
each of the roots b, c, . . . . The dyadics Ia, Ib, . . . are
partial idemfactors, their squares are equal to themselves, they
are independent, the product of two having different subscripts
vanishes (Ia Ib '= 0) , and the sum of all is the idemfactor I.
(d) The dyadic <f> may be written as a sum of terms (p. 28)

$ = $/ = $ {Ia + Ib + . . . )
= $B -f- <S>6- + $c + . . .

where the product of any two vanishes ($a $6 =0). The dy-
adics

^ a ^a **-* a j • • • j

are nilpotent, i. e., Z„ = 0. The series of powers (p. 29)

Za, Z~a, . . . , Za , Za = 0

have increasing nullities, but the change of nullity between two
succeeding powers never increases.

The reduction of $ has thus been simplified to that of nilpo-
tent dyadics Z. Beginning with Zv~l we may work back through
descending powers to Za and hence to 3>a. We thus find the
familiar result that, when expressed in matrical or quadrate
form, $ consists of a set of terms along the main diagonal, with
at most some terms in the next parallel partial diagonal (called
shearing terms, p. 31).

3. What additional information is obtainable if the dyadic is
real? The steps in the proof may be traced one at a time.

(a1) The equation of least degree must be real since it is
unique — a complex equation is equivalent to two.

(&') The complex roots of A (x) = 0 occur in conjugate pairs
of the same multiplicity. Hence if a and b are conjugate imag-
inaries, p and q are equal.

(c') If a and b are conjugate imaginaries, so are 3> — al and
$ — bl, and hence so must be Ia and Ib, for they are obtained by
similar real operations applied to conjugate imaginaries.

176 WILSON: REDUCTION OF REAL DYADICS

(d') If a and b are conjugate, so are $0 and $&, and Za and Zb.
If Zo is reduced to a certain standard form, one form of the con-
jugate imaginary dyadic Zb will be that in which each vector
(antecedent or consequent) and each scalar in Za is replaced by
its conjugate value. Hence the types of Za and Zb or of <£>a and
<£& must be identical relative to the distribution of shearing terms.

The results thus obtained allow us to set up canonical forms
for real dyadics which have imaginary latent roots. As the ante-
cedents a, /3, ... of the dyads occur in conjugate imaginary
pairs, the consequents which form the reciprocal set a , /3', . . .
(p. 8) also occur in conjugate imaginary pairs (since they are ob-
tained by multiplication and division).

If there is a pair of simple roots, the corresponding terms in
the reduced form of the dyadic are a a \ a + b /3 | $' where

a' a = 0' 0 = 1, a /3 = p' a = 0,

owing to the relations between reciprocal sets. We may write

a = a{ + a2i b = ax — a2i

a = «! + a2 i j3 = a{ — a2i

I 0 0 „• al 0 I 0 •

with the reciprocal relations yielding

o i o i o on

«l aj -f- a2 a2 = 1 «i a2 — a2 ax = U

&i «j — a2 oc2 = U «i «2 "T «2 ai = "

when real and imaginary parts are separated. Hence
o o n ooi

If we set a[= 2a°u a2= 2a°2, the sets a, /3, . . . and a', /3', . . .
may be replaced byaba2, . . . and a{, a2, . . .
On multiplying, the terms a a \ a + b p | j3' give

aiai I <*i + %*i | a2 s COS0 ax | a[ + S sin0 ax \ a!2

i or

a2a2 I a i+ «i«2 I «2 — S Sin0 a2 \ a\ + S COS0 a2 | a2

if a = se*. This is precisely of the Gibbs cyclotonic form, as
might have been anticipated. The linear transformation or
strain is a combination of stretching with elliptical rotation.4

4 An elliptical rotation of angle q is a projection of an ordinary rotation of
angle q. See Vector Analysis, p. 349.

WILSON: REDUCTION OF REAL DYADICS 177

The proof here given differs radically, however, from that given
by Gibbs5 for the simple three dimensional case; it applies,
moreover, to any pair of conjugate latent roots, simple or not,
when shearing terms are absent.

In case there is a double complex root with shearing, the
terms in the reduced complex form of the dyadic are

aa | a + ay \ y' + a \ y' + bj3 \ $' + 65 | ti + 0 | ti

Multiplication shows that the corresponding real form is, in
matrical notation, as follows:

s cos 9 s sin 0 1 0

— s sin 6 s cos 6 0 1

0 0 s cos 6 s sin 6

0 0 — s sin 6 s cos d

The extension to the case of multiple roots with various
shearing terms is clear. In the matrix there are two-rowed
determinants strung along the main diagonal all alike; and
parallel to the main diagonal there are strung along with any
distribution (depending on the distribution of the original
shearing terms) two -rowed determinants, all alike, and of the
special form shown above; all other places are filled with zeros.
The transformation in the case of multiply complex roots
with shearing might be called a cyclotonic shear. It consists
of a stretch and of an elliptic rotation in a series of planes Pi,
P2, . . . , Pa-ij Pk} the angles of rotation and the factors of
stretching being the same for all, combined with a shift of the
points in PA+1 parallel to Ph for at least some values of h. The
amount of the shift is typical of the shear. For instance, in
the case of a triple complex root with double shearing the
vector

p = Xay + ya2 + 27i + ^72 + ^«l + ^«2

suffers, in addition to the stretch and elliptical rotation, the shift

+ Zcti + Wa2 + M7i + #72 •
' Gibbs-Wilson. Vector Analysis, p. 360.

178 LARSEN AND WHERRY: HALLOYSITE FROM COLORADO

MINERALOGY. — Halloijsite from Colorado? Esper S. Lar-
sen, Geological Survey, and Edgar T. Wherry, National
Museum.

In the upper workings of the fluorite mine at Wagon Wheel
Gap, Colorado, two amorphous hydrous aluminium silicates
have been recognized which agree more or less closely with halloy-
site as defined by Dana but differ from one another considerably
in water content. One has essentially the composition of kao-
linite, but is for the most part sensibly isotropic and has the
index of refraction 1.557. It occurs in rather large amount as

TABLE 1

Analyses and Theoretical Composition
of Halloysite

1

2

3

4

A1203

35.75

tr.

0.80

tr.

tr.

0.10
39.95

8.55

2.15
12.85

35.41

tr.

0.73

tr.

tr.

0.09
40.22

8.66

2.10
12.91

35.58

tr.

0.77

tr.

tr.

0.10
40.09

jlO.73

12.88

34.66

Fe203

CaO

MeO

K20

Na20

Si02

40 90

H20 below 100°

H20 100°-400°

12.22

H20 above 400°

12.22

Total

100.15

100.12

100.15

100.00

1 and 2. Analyses of halloysite.

3. Average of 1 and 2.

4. Theoretical for A1203 . 2Si02

TABLE 2

Loss of Water by
Halloysite2

TEMP.

°c

PER CENT
LOSS

TOTAL

20

Started

30

6.40]

40

0.90

50

0.75

•

8.60

60

0.50

100

0.05

110

0.00

150

0.10]

200

0.40 I

2.10

300

0.60

400

1.00

Ign.

12.90

12.90

2H20 . 2Aq.

the matrix in which the mineral creedite is imbedded and has
been called "isotropic kaolinite."3 The other contains more

1 Published with the permission of the Director of the U. S. Geological Sur-
vey and of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.

2 Lowenstein (Zeit. Anorg. Chem., 63: 88-101. 1909), found that halloysite
from Laurium, Greece, lost 21.4 per cent H20 at 110°-130° or over 97 per cent
H2SO4, and 6.2 per cent above 130°, but most halloysites cited by Dana behave
like the one here described.

3 Larsen, Esper S., and Wells, Roger C. >Some minerals from the fluorite-
barite vein near Wagon Wheel Gap, Color do. Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci., 2: 360. 1916.

LARSEN AND WHERRY: HALLOYSITE FROM COLORADO

179

water, and is less abundant, forming a matrix for nodules of geark-
sutite. It is white and opaline to dull in appearance, and has a
hardness of about 2. Under the microscope it is isotropic and
has a variable index of refraction, averaging about 1.470 ± 0.010
when first examined, but increasing to 1.542 after standing for
six months in a loosely stoppered bottle in a warm room.4

Analysis (by E. T. W.) yielded the results shown in Table 1.

TABLE 3
Change in Optical Properties of Halloysite with Loss op Water

TOTAL

HISTORY OF MINERAL

H20.

(approx.)

OPTICAL CHARACTER

n.

per cent

As first examined, two

25

Isotropic

1.470±0.010

months after collecting

After standing six months

20

Isotropic

1.542 ±0.005

in a loosely stoppered

bottle

Heated for four hours to

15

Isotropic

1.555±0.003

65°C. This has the

composition and index

of the "isotropic kaolin-

ite," which is evidently

only a halloysite low in

H20

Ignited powder, after

0

Partly isotropic but part-

1.541±0.003

standing one month

ly birefracting due to
strain; clouded

Powder ignited, quickly

0

In large part isotropic but

cooled, and immersed in

some fragments have

1.535±0.005

index medium (organic

birefringence of 0.01,

liquid of known n)

with large axial angle

4 Two halloy sites represented by analyses A and B of U. S. Geol. Survey Bull.
591 : 341, were examined microscopically for comparison. That represented by
analysis A, from Horse Cove, Hart County, Kentucky, is pale pinkish in color
and opaline in appearance. Much of it is weakly birefracting and large areas
extinguish much as a unit but with a wavy effect, probably due to strain. The
index of refraction is about 1.549 =*= 0.003. The halloysite represented by analy-
sis B, from Edwards County, Texas, is chalky in appearance, largely isotropic,
and has an index of refraction of 1.556 ="= 0.003, but contains admixed a consid-
erable amount of birefracting kaolinite. However, to what extent their indexes
have changed since analysis is unknown.

180 oberholser: a new family of passeriformes

The water determinations (Table 2) were made by heating
coarse powder in a covered platinum dish. The powder not used
was kept for three months in a small vial in a balance case in
which the air was dried with sulfuric acid, and was then found to
have lost spontaneously 5 per cent of water. Obviously, the
water in halloysite is in part only mechanically held. This part
is given off very readily, and the resulting partially dehydrated
material has a composition near that of kaolinite. The formula
should therefore probably be written Al2O3.2SiO2.2H2O.Aq.

The effects of the loss of water on the optical properties are
shown in Table 3.

The close approach of this and many other analyses of halloy-
site to the composition Al203.2Si02.2H2O.Aq, combined with the
results of optical examination given above, indicates that the
material called halloysite is the amorphous mineral correspond-
ing to crystalline kaolinite, holding through capillarity or adsorp-
tion more or less excess water.

ORNITHOLOGY. — Diagnosis of a new laniine family of Passeri-
formes. Harry C. Oberholser, Bureau of Biological Sur-
vey.

The peculiar shrike-like Madagascar genus Tylas has commonly
been considered a member of the family Pycnonotidae. This
disposition has probably been due to its nuchal hairs, and to the
character of its external nares, which in general resemble those
of the genus Otocompsa.

As Mr. W. P. Pycraft has recently shown,1 this genus is really
not closely allied to the Pycnonotidae. Neither is it a member
of the Prionopidae, to which family Mr. Pycraft has proposed to
refer it, apparently for want of a more satisfactory place. While
in some osteological respects it resembles the Prionopidae, it has
also resemblances to the Muscicapidae, and, on the whole, pre-
sents a very curious combination of characters, a condition re-
flected in the difficulty authors have had in referring it to the
proper family.

That it does not belong in the Prionopidae is at once evident

1 Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond., 1907, p. 376.

michelson: terms of relationships 181

from the structure of the narial capsule alone, which in the latter
group is fully ossified as in the Laniidae, leaving no external nasal
fossa. Since there is no other family to which the genus Tylas is
properly referable, it becomes necessary to provide one for its
accommodation, as follows:

Tylidae, fam. nov.

Family characters. — Bill relatively slender and thrush-like, the
culmen rather sharply ridged, the gonys rounded and but slightly
and gradually ascending, the culmen straight for its basal half,
gently decurved terminally; mental apex opposite anterior end
of nostril; maxilla conspicuously hooked at tip, the commissural
edge notched subterminally; nostril rather small, oval, non-oper-
culate, exposed, and situated in the anterior end of nasal fossa;
nasal capsule not ossified; feathering of forehead covering only
basal portion of nasal fossae; narial bristles rather weak, but
reaching to middle of bill; rictal bristles well developed; head
entirely feathered; nuchal hairs present but short; tail moder-
ately long, making up somewhat less than half the total length
of the bird, square or slightly emarginate, and composed of mod-
erately broad, stimsh feathers; wings much longer than tail but
much rounded, the first (outermost) primary spurius, but more
than half as long as the next, and neither secondaries nor tertials
lengthened; feet and legs of moderate size and length; tarsi scu-
tellate; femur pneumatic; ectepicondylar process of humerus much
reduced.

The genus Tijlas Hartlaub, comprising the following five species,
constitutes this monotypic family : Tylas eduardi Hartlaub ; Tylas
alfredi Sharpe; Tylas albigularis Hartlaub; Tylas fulviventris
Sharpe; Tylas strophiatus Stejneger.

ANTHROPOLOGY. — Remarks on terms of relationship.1 Tru-
man Michelson, Bureau of American Ethnology.
Some years ago Kroeber2 undertook to show that terms of re-
lationship are linguistic and psychological phenomena. Re-

1 Published with the permission of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institu-
tion.

2 Journ. Roy. Anthrop. Inst. Gr. Brit, and Irel., 39: 77-84. 1909.

182 michelson: terms of relationships

cently Rivers3 has attempted to overthrow this view, holding
that they are sociological phenomena, and consequently that it
is entirely possible to infer marriage customs and social organi-
zation from these terms. Lowie4 to a certain extent followed
Rivers but has not followed the latter's survival-theories, nor is
it likely that many American ethnologists will do so.5 The pres-
ent writer6 developed Kroeber's linguistic thesis from a different
angle, and also made a new point, namely, that terms of rela-
tionship are likewise disseminative phenomena. Specific data from
Algonquian tribes were given to establish these facts. Lowie,7
some months later, but quite independently, arrived also at this
second theoretic position but extended the principle more broadly
than the present writer had done. It is not without interest to
note that we both assume that Iroquoian and Siouan influence
has played a part in Algonquian terms of relationship. Sapir8
briefly touches upon the methodological considerations and con-
cludes that thoroughly satisfactory results can not be secured
without linguistic analysis of kinship terms; that existing no-
menclature may be retained in the face of sociological develop-
ments requiring its modification; that the factors governing kin-
ship nomenclature are very complicated. Goldenweiser,9 in his
review of Rivers' History of Melanesian Society, says, UA set of
terms must always remain a feature of language and as such it is
subject to those influences which control linguistic changes as
well as to the peculiar spirit of a particular language or linguis-
tic stock." The present writer10 has shown what extraordinary
types of marriage we should have to assume existed formerly
among the Piegans, were we to believe that marriage customs

3 Kinship and Social Organization, 1914. The History of Melanesian Society,
1914.

4 Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci., 1: 346-349. 1915. Amer. Anthrop. n. ser., 17: 223-
239, 329-340, 588-591. 1915.

5 Webster (Amer. Anthrop., n. ser., 17: 175-177. 1915) is an isolated
exception.

6 Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci., 2: 297. May, 1916.

7 Holmes Anniversary Volume, 293. December, 1916.

8 Amer. Anthrop., n. ser., 18: 327, footnote 1. 1916.

9 Science, n. ser., 44: 826. 1916.

10 Holmes Anniversary Volume, 333. 1916.

michelson: terms of relationships 183

might safely be inferred from terms of relationship ; whereas such
marriages are fundamentally repugnant to the Piegans, and their
terms of relationship are new, not old. This is, of course, a con-
crete example of one of Sapir's points. Recently Swanton" quite
similarly brings forward data from Creek and Chickasaw which
prove the unsoundness of such inferences.

The above has been cited to show that American ethnologists
generally have taken a united stand against Rivers' one-sided
attitude. I reopen the case because none of us has given abso-
lute proof that kinship terms are borrowed. In another place'2
I have tried to prove that Cree has borrowed certain terms
from Ojibwa; and somewhat similarly that Peoria has been influ-
enced by Sauk, etc. I think the reasoning given there is sound,
and as near absolute proof as we can expect to have in the case
of prehistoric linguistic borrowing ; yet it is not absolute in so far
as we have no Cree nor Ojibwa records transmitted to us his-
torically, extending over several centuries, showing absolutely
that such borrowing took place. The same is true regarding
Peoria. English is a good language to draw on for illustrative
material to prove such a point, for it has been transmitted his-
torically for several centuries. Every Indo-European philolo-
gist knows that sister is Scandinavian in origin, and that cousin,
niece, nephew, aunt, and uncle are Romance. Furthermore all
our terms of -in-law are directly or indirectly due to the latter's
influence; grand-father and grand-mother are Romance in the first
member of their compounds. Similarly Albanian frat " brother"
is Romance in origin and is not a native word, as is shown by
the phonetics. In the same way Hungarian bar at " brother" is
borrowed from Slavic, a case of borrowing across linguistic stocks.
[Ojibwa nimpdpa, nimdrnd (Fort William) are other illustrations
of kinship terms borrowed across linguistic stocks.] These
facts, long known, are brought forward simply because they seem
to have escaped the attention of ethnologists. Delbriick13 was
well aware of the fact that Indo-European terms of relationship

11 Amer. Anthrop. n. ser., 18: 463. 1916 [1917].

12 Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci., 2: 297. 1916.

13 Die Verwandtschaftsnamen. Leipzig. 1889. Also in Abh. phil.-hist.
Klasse sachs. Ges. Wiss., 11: 379. 1889.

184 michelson: terms of relationships

are linguistic phenomena. Several terms that correspond pho-
netically occur in so many Indo-European languages that it is
evident they belonged to the Indo-European parent language.
The social organization of the peoples speaking the historical
languages had nothing to do with it, as is shown by their diverse
social organization. Nor can it be said that such German com-
pounds as Schwieger-mutter, Schwieger-vater, Schwieger-tochter
have replaced the Old High German words by reason of a change
in social organization. Similarly, the fact that the Slavic word
for " father" (Old Bulgarian oibcb) has a different termination
than Greek arra, Gothic atta, is of linguistic significance, not
sociological. These data support my contenion referred to pre-
viously.4

Let us return once more to Rivers' position. On looking
over the tables given at the end of volume 1 of Rivers' History of
Melanesian Society, I am convinced that after all, he may have
just as much a linguistic and disseminative problem as a sociologi-
cal one. For example, the social organization of Mota, Banks
Islands, and Eddystone, Solomon Islands, is entirely different;
nevertheless the terms for father, elder brother, and younger
brother are evidently the same. Furthermore, the distribution
of slightly varying forms of the words tama, Una (father and
mother respectively) even across linguistic stocks, points in the
same direction. As I am not a specialist in Melanesian and
Polynesian linguistics, I regret that I can not thresh this out to
the end, and can only indicate a problem for others to solve.

ABSTRACTS

Authors of scientific papers are requested to see that abstracts, preferably
prepared and signed by themselves, are forwarded promptly to the editors.
Each of the scientific bureaus in Washington has a representative authorized to
forward such material to this journal and abstracts of official publications should
be transmitted through the representative of the bureau in which they originate.
The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those appearing in
this issue.

GEOLOGY. — Contributions to the geology and 'paleontology of San Juan
County, New Mexico. 2. Vertebrate faunas of the Ojo Alamo,
Kirtland, and Fruitland formations. Charles W. Gtlmore. U. S.
Geological Survey Professional Paper 98-Q. Pp. 279-308, with 8
plates and 13 figures. 1916.
The known vertebrate fauna of the dinosaur-bearing beds in the San
Juan basin in northern New Mexico consists of a considerable number
of genera and species. The dinosaur-bearing deposits are subdivided
into three formations — the uppermost, or Ojo Alamo, the Kirtland, .and
the Fruitland. No mammal, bird, or amphibian remains have yet
been recorded from these formations. The dinosaurs were apparently
the predominating vertebrates of these times, and they afford the best
basis for a comparison with forms found elsewhere. The vertebrate
remains from the Ojo Alamo, Kirtland, and Fruitland formations show
beyond all question that they pertain to a fauna or faunas distinctly
older than that of the Lance, and such evidence as there is contributes
to the support of the contention that the Ojo Alamo sandstone is syn-
chronous with the Judith River and Belly River formations as found
in areas to the north. R. W. S.

GEOLOGY. — Contributions to the geology and -paleontology of San Juan
County, New Mexico. 3. Nonmarine cretaceous invertebrates of the
San Juan basin. T. W. Stanton. U. S. Geological Survey Pro-
fessional Paper 98-R. Pp. 309-326, with 5 plates and figures.
1916.
Overlying the Pictured Cliffs sandstone with apparent conformity in
the San Juan basin and underlying the Puerco formation is a group
of nonmarine sediments, coal bearing in the lower part, which in many
previous reports have been referred more or less doubtfully to the Lar-
amie formation. The rocks occupying this interval are fully described

185

186 abstracts: geology

and a considerable area of them is mapped in a stratigraphic paper by
C. M. Bauer, who recognizes in them three formations, the Fruitland
formation containing all the coal beds at the base, the Kirtland shale
in the middle, and the Ojo Alamo sandstone at the top. The inverte-
brates, which form the subject of the present paper, nearly all come
from the Fruitland formation.

The list of species shows that the nonmarine invertebrates of the
Fruitland formation include both a fresh-water fauna and a brackish-
water fauna. The fresh-water fauna is especially notable for the
greatly varied development of the genus Unio and for the abundance
and considerable variety of the gastropods. The invertebrate evidence
as a whole favors the assignment of the Fruitland formation to an
epoch considerably later than Mesaverde and Judith River, and possi-
bly somewhat earlier than Lance. The Fruitland can hardly be older
than Fox Hills, and the sequence from the base of the Fruitland up
to the top of the Ojo Alamo, which is conformable, may include the
equivalents of everything from the Fox Hills to the Lance inclusive.

R. W. S.

GEOLOGY. — Contributions to the geology and paleontology of San Juan
County, New Mexico. 4- Flora of the Fruitland and Kirtland for-
mations. F. H. Knowlton. U. S. Geological Survey Professional
Paper 98-S. Pp. 327-353, with 8 plates and figures. 1916.
The object of the present study is to ascertain the bearing of the
fossil plants on the age of the series of coal-bearing and related rocks
in San Juan basin, New Mexico. A brief historical setting for the
geologic facts is given. The material on which the present report is
based comprises 20 collections, of which 15 are from the Fruitland for-
mation, 3 from the Kirtland shale, and only 1 from the Ojo Alamo
sandstone. The bulk of the material comes from the lower or coal-
bearing portion of the section, and much of this is preserved on a red
baked shale, indicating proximity to coal. Of the 40 forms making up
the known flora of the Fruitland and Kirtland formations, 16 have been
found in other areas, and the list of these forms brings out the fact
that no less than 15 are known to occur in the Montana. A further
analysis of the list shows that 12 of the 15 forms occur in the Vermejo
formation of Colorado and New Mexico, 10 occur in the Mesaverde, or
rocks of about this age, in Wyoming and elsewhere, and 6 species are
common to both these areas. On the basis of this showing the con-
clusion that the Fruitland and Kirtland formations are of Montana age,
seems justified. R. W. S.

abstracts: phytopathology 187

PHYTOPATHOLOGY. — Mechanism of tumor growth in crown gall.
Erwin F. Smith. Journ. Agr. Research, 8: 165-186, plates
4-65. 1917.

This paper, with its wealth of illustrations, records the results of a
series of experiments testing the effects of various fluids and vapors
on plants, undertaken for the purpose of shedding light on the mechan-
ism of tumor growth in crown gall. As a result of these studies the
author has come to look upon excessive cell proliferation as it occurs
in plant neoplasms as due, not to the direct application of stimuli such
as endotoxins and other by-products of the growth of the parasite
within the host cells, but to their indirect action as the removers of
inhibitions. Growth is the normal function of cells but under normal
conditions is alwa3^s inhibited beyond a certain point. In the
case of neoplasms we have an "inhibition remover that acts locally, dis-
turbing tissue equilibriums within limited areas." The author believes,
furthermore, that this removal of growth inhibitions is not (or not
wholty) due to a chemical action but partly at least to a physical one — ■
viz., a locally increased osmotic pressure produced by the diffusion
from the cells of various substances produced within them by the
parasite as a result of its metabolism, together with the resultant coun-
ter movements of water and food supply, basing this belief upon the
researches of Jacques Loeb in artificial parthenogenesis and fertiliza-
tion, and on the results of his own experiments.

The substances produced by Bacterium tumefaciens in culture media
containing dextrose, Witte's peptone, calcium carbonate, and water
are ammonia, alcohol, acetic acid, formic acid, amines, aldehyde, and
acetone. With several of these compounds, the author produced
intumescences (both hypertrophic and hyperplasial) without the in-
tervention of the organism itself. In addition to obtaining small
tumors with crown-gall products (ammonia, dimenthylamine, and acetic
acid) the author obtained overgrowths with a great variety of other
substances; hence his conclusion that the response must be physi-
cal rather than chemical, i.e., due to removal of water from cells, which
then divide.

The plants used were the castor-oil plant (Ricinus communis), to-
mato fruits, and cauliflower. The substances tested were injected
hypodermically (Ricinus and tomato), placed in tiny open tubes in-
serted in the pith cavity (Ricinus, the wound being sealed with col-
lodion or adhesive tape), or vaporized in a tight box containing 10.5
cubic feet air space in which the plants (cauliflower) were placed for a

188 abstracts: phytopathology

few minutes. The substances tested were ammonia water, the various
salts of ammonia, distilled water solutions of the acid component of
these salts, distilled water, 10 per cent tannic acid, 10 per cent ethyl
alcohol, 2 per cent sodium chlorid, 2 per cent sodium carbonate, 5 per
cent sodium bicarbonate, 1/20 normal sodium hydroxid, 5 per cent am-
monium bicarbonate, clear lime water, milk of lime (caustic), 1 to
10,000 mercuric chloride, 0.5 per cent carbolic acid, chloroform water,
1 to 1,000,000 copper sulphate water, 5 per cent grape sugar, 5 per
cent cane sugar, and feeble alkaline vapors arising from dilute solu-
tions of urea, ammonium carbonate, and the two ammonium phos-
phates, the mixed vapors of ethyl alcohol and acetic acid, and the vapor
of secondary methylamine.

With all these substances, even distilled water, proliferations were
obtained, but no killing of cells resulted except in the case of those
coming into direct contact with too strong a solution. In Ricinus when
ammonia was applied, the outgrowths were from the inner surface of
the pith cavity, and occurred not only in the internode containing the
chemical but in several to many others above and below.

Exclusive of the hyperplasia which appeared when vapor of acetic
alcohol was used, one of the most striking effects obtained was the
production of a stele within a stele in the pith of Ricinus by the in-
jection of monobasic ammonium phosphate, and evidences of simi-
lar tendencies when ammonia was used. These facts together with
the author's very successful production of teratoid tumors with Bac-
terium twnefaciens lead him to believe that fasciations and many
similar phenomena are due to feeble infections by micro-organisms.

From these experiments the author concludes "that any soluble
substance whatsoever, except a killing, a plasmolyzing, or an oxygen-
absorbing substance, if continually liberated in excess locally in tis-
sues not adapted to them would be able to induce tumor formation,
and is convinced that had it been possible to apply these stimuli re-
peatedly, or better still, slowly and continually from within the cell —
as does the parasite in crown gall — these striking proliferations would
have developed into large irregular tumors, rupturing to the surface,
i.e., into typical crowngalls. It is believed that this is the first time
that galls have been produced with the chemical products of a gall-
forming organism. The nature of the crown-gall products were de-
termined for Doctor Smith by the Bureau of Chemistry of the United
States Department of Agriculture from flask cultures set and con-
trolled by him. F. H.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

THE PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 784th meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, February 17, 1917,
President Buckingham in the chair; 69 persons present. The minutes
of the 783rd meeting were read in abstract and approved.

By invitation, Mr. H. Bateman presented an illustrated paper on
The nature of chemical forces. Sir Joseph J. Thomson's idea1 of regard-
ing chemical bonds as symbols for Faraday tubes may be developed
successfully by considering solutions of Maxwell's electromagnetic
equations in which the electric and magnetic forces become infinite
on moving singular curves.

We must first of all try to understand the nature of potential energy
and so we shall commence by studying the properties of a type of radiant
field with singular lines starting from the origin and running in both
directions along the axis of z. The electric force E and the magnetic
force H being specified by expressions of type

Hx+iEx=f{a,^^V)

Hy+iEy=f(a,p)

d (y, z)

d (a, 0)

d fo x) (l)

where a = t - -, 0 = log x+iyj r°- = x2 + y2 + z2

it is easy to see that there is a radial flow of energy outward from the
origin. The origin 0 may be regarded as a source or singular point
at which neutral particles are continually breaking up into oppositely
charged fragments which travel along the axis of z in opposite direc-
tions with the velocity of light.

Two neighboring sources 0 and 0' whose singular lines overlap can
produce radiant fields which interfere with one another in such a way
that in the total field the only singularities lie in the interval 00'.
This can be seen very readily by differentiating the expressions (1)

1 The corpuscular theory of matter. Constable, London (1907). Phil. Mag.,
May. 1914.

189

190 proceedings: philosophical society

with respect to z after putting /(a/3) = 1 and writing down the values
of the Jacobians. In particular, if the strengths /(a/3) of the two sources
are constants which are equal in magnitude but different in sign, then
as 0 and 0' approach one another the total electromagnetic field is in
the limit equivalent to the electrostatic field of a point charge, the
magnitude of the charge being the limit of the product 00' and the
strength of one of the sources. The potential energy of an electro-
static field can thus be supposed to arise from the individual and mutual
energies of two interfering radiant fields whose singular lines overlap.

When the strengths of the two consecutive sources 00' are not con-
stant and not equal in magnitude, we obtain a type of electric point
charge with two singular lines attached to it, the charges on the two
lines being generally variable and together equal and opposite to the
variable charge associated with the singular point. The case in which
the charge on each singular line is the same is of chief interest.

Interference, or a cancelling out of singularities, can also be obtained
with two point charges of this general type even when they are at a
finite distance apart, provided their singular lines overlap. There
must also be a simple relation between the magnitudes of the two charges
at associated times; this indicates that it may be possible to give a
mathematical proof that the mean value of the electronic charge is
the same for all electrons. It is thought that this phenomenon may
have some relation to chemical saturation. The present theory may
be extended to the case in which the sources or point charges are mov-
ing and the singular curves are not straight lines pointing in opposite
directions but are moving and changing in shape. The appropriate
solution of Maxwell's equations is again of the type (1) but a and /3
are now defined by the equations.

[X ~ *(«)]' + [y - V («)? + [«-$■ («)]2 = C2 [t - af, a<t,

= , k{a) [x-£(a)]+m1(a)[y-ri(a)] + n1ia)[z-t (a^-cp^a) (t-a)
Zl0(a)[x-Z(a)}+m0(a)[y—o(a)]+n0(a)[z-U<x)]-c(t-a)

where £ (r), rj (r), f (r) are the coordinates of the source at time r and
l0 (a), li (a), ra0 (a), Wi (a). n0 (a), Wi (a), pi (a), are functions of a con-
nected by the equations

l\ + m\ + n\ = p\ lx (a) £ (a) + mx (a) r, (a) + ?ll (a) f (a) - CPl (a) = 0
ll + ml + n\ = 1 Z0 Zj + w0 mx + n0 n1 = 1

This theory may be developed and applied to problems of atomic
and molecular structure. Thomson's Faraday tubes are regarded
as singular curves of generalized point charges and an arrow may be
used to signify the direction of the flow of energy along a Faraday
tube. The result of chief importance is that an even number of sin-
gular curves should be supposed to start from each point charge, the
number being proportional to the mean value of the charge. It is
suggested that the valency electrons in an atom are each doubly con-

proceedings: philosophical society 191

nected by singular curves with the same element of the positive nu-
cleus, while the other electrons in the atom have their singular curves
connected with different elements of the positive nucleus and, like the
electrons in the nucleus, help to keep the elements of the nucleus to-
gether. A change in valency may be associated with a change in the
distribution of the singular curves or Faraday tubes. Thus, if the
carbon atom contains six outer electrons two of which generally serve
to bind together two nuclear elements each carrying three positive
charges, it would be possible for the valency of carbon to change from
four to two but not to any other value. Similarly, if the nucleus of
the oxygen atom contains four a-particles and there are eight external
electrons, the only possible valencies for oxygen will be four and two.
On the other hand, if the nucleus of nitrogen is built up from two
a-particles and an element carrying a triple charge and there are seven
external electrons, then it is possible for such' an atom of nitrogen to
exhibit valencies of one, three, four, or even five. Diagrams were
shown illustrating these changes and suggesting a way in which energy
may be locked up in an atom, and, as energy is generally radiated when
a singular curve changes its shape and direction, it is easy to imagine
how some of this energy is radiated away during a rearrangement of
the singular curves. It should be noticed that when the variation in
shape of a singular curve is caused by an oscillation of an electric charge
at one end the width of the waves which travel along the curve increases
at a rate which is roughly equal to the maximum velocity of the source.
Now if the motion of the source is of type x = a sin cot, the maximum
velocity is aco while the maximum acceleration is aco2, consequently,
if co is very large, i.e., if the waves are of high frequency, the velocity
aco may be negligibly small while the acceleration aco2 is appreciable.
Thus the intense radiation which travels along the singular curve may
be concentrated and act like a quantum of energy.

The analogy with Thomson's model of the benzene ring also suggests
that arrangements of electrons and positive nuclei in which energy
flows in a cycle along the Faraday tubes are generally very stable.
The suggested theories of gravitation and atomic structure are re-
served for later publication.

The chair expressed to Mr. Bateman the thanks of the society for
the interesting paper.

Mr. L. B. Loeb then gave a paper on The electron theory of valence.
The fact that the 87 elements now known can combine to form only a
limited number of the nearly infinite combinations mathematically
possible, is explained through the fact that certain very definite laws
of combination seem to exist. The manifestations of certain regulari-
ties shown in these laws give rise to a property that is defined as valency,
a property which seems to show a periodic variation with the atomic
weight of the element. The forces causing these combinations are
generally accepted as being electrical in nature. The history of this
electrical concept of valency was briefly discussed, giving the con-
tributions of the various discoverers up to 1906. Since 1910 marked

192 proceedings: philosophical society

contributions have been made to the knowledge of the nature of the
atom. The discussion of the bearing of these contributions (i.e., the
existence of the positive nucleus in the atom as indicated by scatter-
ing and deflections of alpha particles by atoms, and the atomic number
with its significant bearing on the nuclear charge, as shown by the
experiments on the X-ray spectra of the elements and the chemistry
of the radio-elements) on the nature of the forces acting between atoms,
furnished the main body of the paper. The experimental results in-
dicate that the atom is entirely electrical in nature with a highly con-
centrated electrically positive nucleus surrounded by neutralising nega-
tive electrons. Of these electrons those in the outer layer are active
in chemical unions. The possibility that the chemical forces are due
to the magnetic fields of electrons revolving in the atoms was shown for
several different reasons to be highly improbable. The mode of action
of the electrons in binding the atoms was discussed. The electrons
were shown to be capable of binding atoms in two ways in the two great
classes of chemical compounds, i.e., the compounds showing strong
electrolytic dissociation, such as NaCl, and the compounds showing no
dissociation, such as the organic compounds and molecules like 02 and
N2. In the former class there seems to be a complete transfer of the
electron from one atom to the other, the atoms being held together by
the opposite charges on them due to the transfer. In the latter class
the electrons probably lie midway between the two atoms, acting then
as actual binding links between them. The two classes of binding
merge into one another in compounds of intermediate type. The type
of binding taking place between two atoms is governed entirely by the
nature of the atoms as given by the periodic system. The bearing of
the atomic number and of the periodic system on valency were then dis-
cussed. It was shown that according to an idea of J. J. Thomson,
which has recently been elaborated by Kosseo, the valency activities
of the elements may be explained by the assumption that the atomic
number represents the nuclear charge, and that every atom, even at
the expense of losing or gaining outer electrons and thus becoming elec-
trically charged, attempts to achieve the outer electronic configuration
of the inert gas which immediately precedes or follows it. Since the inert
gases are assumed to have eight electrons in their outer stable layer,
one can explain many regularities found in the periodic table, e.g. why
it is that the sum of the negative and positive valencies are equal to
eight. To make the facts presented more concrete, the speaker, after
having pointed out its weaknesses, adopted the Rutherford saturnian
atom with revolving electrons as the most satisfactory model. With
this model it was shown by diagrams how, on a theory recently sug-
gested by Kossel, various kinds of molecules might be built up from
such an atom.

Mr. F.*R. Bichowsky then spoke on Valence and color. He pointed
out that the characteristic feature of chemical union is that the valence
electrons are held in equilibrium by forces of attraction and repulsion,
both of which are presumably electrical and both of which are due

proceedings: geological society 193

solely to the atom nucleus. This means that to explain chemical union
one must assume either that Coulomb's law does not hold for the total
(resultant) electrical force acting on an electron in a molecule, or else
that the electron is such that other than purely electrostatic forces can
act on it. At the point of equilibrium there is acting on a valence elec-
tron a restoring force which measures the. stability of the electron ar-
rangement, i.e., the "reactivity" of the compound. The magnitude of
this restoring force, as determined by valence considerations and as
checked by information furnished by the visible and ultra-violet absorp-
tion spectra, shows that an arrangement of eight and not six forms the
most stable grouping of electrons around the positive nucleus. This
can not be explained on any plane model of the atom, as this grouping
requires lack of radial symmetry in the electron or nucleus. Saturnian
atom models are inadmissible. Either they will radiate energy at the
absolute zero (contradicting thermodynamics) or else they can not radi-
ate at all. New physical assumptions are needed to construct a suc-
cessful atom model, as one can not be deduced from the ordinary solu-
tions of Maxwell's equations, these solutions being incompatible with
the properties of the positive nucleus as well as with its very existence.
The static model of the atom is preferable as, although it requires new
and startling assumptions about the nature of the electron and the
positive nucleus, these assumptions need not contradict the classical
theories of phj^sics.

Informal communications. Messrs. W. W. Coblentz and W. B.
Emerson presented to the Society a Preliminary note on the selective
reflection of tungsten. The spectral radiation curves of incandescent
tungsten filaments show peculiarities indicating the possibility of se-
lective emission due to minima of reflection. The reflectivity curves
of various metals, e.g. gold and copper, have in the visible spectrum
indentations which give rise to strong selective emission in the incan-
descent metal. An examination of the spectral reflecting power curve
of tungsten (in the form of plane highly polished mirrors) shows a small
indentation at about 0.85 n, which is greater than can be accounted
for at present as being due to experimental errors. This depression in
the reflectivity seems to be a property of the pure metal.

On account of the lateness of the hour, formal discussion was omitted.

Donald H. Sweet, Secretary.

THE GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 313th meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, January 10, 1917.

INFORMAL COMMUNICATIONS

J. S. Diller: More evidence as to the high temperature of the late erup-
tion of Lassen Peak.

REGULAR PROGRAM

George Otis Smith: Geology and public service. (Published in The
Scientific Monthly, February, 1917.)

194 proceedings: geological society

J. Wayland Vaughan: Significance of reef coral fauna at Carrizo
Creek, Imperial County, California. The paper gave a brief presenta-
tion of the zoogeographic relations of the fossil coral fauna of Carrizo
Creek, showing the fauna to be related to the faunas of Pliocene and
post-Pliocene age in Florida and the West Indies and on the eastern
coast of Central America. The geologic history of the Tertiary coral
faunas of the southeastern United States, the West Indies, and Cen-
tral America was summarized. The conclusion was announced that
subsequent to the uplift which separated the Atlantic and Pacific oceans
at the close of Apalachicolan (upper Oligocene) time, there was during
late Miocene or Pliocene time connection between the Atlantic and
Pacific oceans, perhaps in the vicinity of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec,
and that the Atlantic coral fauna extended up to the head of the Gulf
of California. Factors not clearly understood excluded the Pacific
fauna from this area.

Discussed by Mendenhall, Bartsch, and Macdonald.

The 314th meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, January 24, 1917.

INFORMAL COMMUNICATIONS

A. L. Day: Cooling of a lava surface. On the basis of computations
by C. E. Van Orstrand the bottoms of cracks 3 to 5 feet deep in the sur-
face of an extruded lava should be glowing hot several days after the
extrusion. Observers at Lassen Peak a few days after the recent erup-
tion did not report any glow in the cracks.

Discussion: Sidney Paige described and submitted a large speci-
men as evidence of plasticity of the recent lava at Lassen Peak.

regular program

Arthur J. Collier: Age of the high gravels of the Northern Great
Plains. The area discussed extends along the south side of the inter-
national boundary, from Redstone, 30 miles west of the North Dakota
line, to Boundary Plateau, a distance of 175 miles. From Boundary
Plateau it extends northwest to include the Cypress Hills, where the
Canadian Geological Survey, in the years 1883, 1884, and 1904, collected
fossils from Bone Coulee, which are Oligocene and equivalent to the
White River in age. The formation is composed of more or less cemented
gravel, sand, clay, and marl characterized by water-worn quartzite
pebbles from the Rocky Mountains. It rests on a plateau whose ele-
vation above tide is 4800 feet at its west end and 3700 feet at its east
end, near Bone Coulee.

During the past two field seasons the United States Geological Sur-
vey has made an investigation of the lignite resources of the region, in
the course of which fragments of vertebrate remains were collected from
27 localities. These fragments, which came from wells, railroad cuts,
badger holes, and natural exposures, have been submitted to Dr. J.
W. Gidley, who reports that they can not be older than Miocene nor
younger than Lower Pliocene. The formation called the Flaxville,

proceedings: geological society 195

from which this material was collected, is composed of brownish to ash-
gray silt, sand and gravel, and white marl from a few feet to 100 feet
thick. It is generally noncoherent but locally cemented with calcite
and forms prominent outcrops, often marked by cross-bedding. The
gravel is characterized, like that of the Cypress Hills, by material from
the Rocky Mountains. It is found on four extensive plateaus ranging
in elevation from 2700 feet, south of Redstone, to 3200 feet in the west
side of Boundary Plateau.

Below the Flaxville level there are extensive areas, varying in eleva-
tion from 2500 to 2700 feet, in which the bedrock is generally near the
surface. Several exposures of quartzite gravel interstratified with yel-
lowish silt lie at an elevation of 2500 feet a few miles north of Milk
River. A single fossil tooth collected from the gravel was submitted
to Dr. Gidley, who pronounces it either a recent or Pleistocene horse.
The erosion of these large areas is thought to have been accomplished
in early Pleistocene time. Since early Pleistocene the streams have
eroded their valleys, but this erosion was clearly before the last great
glacial advance, and the valley floors are therefore regarded as having
been formed during late Pleistocene and Recent times.

Discussion: W. C. Alden said the gravels are well rounded, and that
erosion to a depth of at last 1000 feet occurred between the time of an
older glaciation and the Wisconsin. J. W. Gidley suggested that the
fossils in the gravels were derived from older formations.

J. C. Hostetter: The linear force of growing crystals. The literature
on this subject shows that a loaded crystal will grow against a load and
lift it. This was first demonstrated by Becker and Day in 1905 and,
although their conclusions were attacked by Bruhns and Mecklenburg in
1913, the recent papers of Taber and of Becker and Day show definitely
that the linear force exerted by growing crystals may develop large pres-
sures and hence must be considered a factor in vein formation. In
these latter papers the explanation given for Bruhns and Mecklenburg's
failure to observe an elevation of a load placed on a crystal when an
unloaded crystal was growing in the same solution was that the solu-
bility of the loaded crystal was greatly increased by the pressure acting
on it, and therefore the degree of supersaturation sufficient for the
growth of the unloaded crystal was insufficient to cause growth of the
loaded crystal.

We should here distinguish between pressure acting equally on both
phases of a system — uniform pressure — and pressure which acts in ex-
cess on the solid — non-uniform pressure. The effects are quite differ-
ent in the two cases, as has been pointed out by Johnston and Adams.
The change in solubility produced by uniform pressure is very small as
compared to the effect of temperature — 1000 atmospheres so applied
being equivalent to about 14°. Preliminary experiments on the effect of
non-uniform pressure on solubility under carefully controlled condi-
tions indicate that the effect of pressure acting on the solid but not on
the liquid is much smaller than that brought about by the same pressure
acting uniformly on solid and liquid.

19G proceedings: geological society

Experiments with loaded crystals of potassium alum show that these
crystals will lift their loads during growth, even if unloaded crystals are
present, as long as the conditions of growth are controlled. The essen-
tial point to be considered is that the measure of lifting is the depth
of whatever "cavities" may form on the upper or lower surfaces of the
loaded crystal. With large crystals these height increments are ^ery
small compared to the growth on the top surface of an unloaded crystal
and hence were probably overlooked in comparison with the latter.
Other factors entering into the lifting effect produced are the relation
of load to the crystallographic direction, and the habit of the crystal.
The mechanism by which this lifting takes place is not at present
known. Taber's view is that the lifting is caused by the expansion
which takes place when the solid separates from the film of solution
which is assumed to be always under the supporting edge of the crystal.
Unfortunately, the experimental difficulties involved in testing this con-
clusion have not been overcome, so that the matter is unsettled. An-
other possible explanation is that the lifting effect is an expression of
those forces responsible for crystal development. The experimental
results obtained with crystals with painted surfaces indicate this ex-
planation.

Discussion: E. T. Wherry ' described examples of fibrous crystals
produced by crystal interference.

J. W. Gidley: The origin of the mammals. (No abstract.)

Discussed by R. S. Bassler.

The 315th meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, February 14, 1917.

INFORMAL COMMUNICATIONS

H. E. Merwin: Diffusion and crystallization of metallic copper in
crystalline sulphides. After cooling from a molten state in a vacuum
copper-iron sulphides may contain an excess of copper which slowly dif-
fuses and crystallizes at ordinary temperatures. The growing crystals
of copper open cracks in the solid mass in which they form.

REGULAR PROGRAM

D. F. Hewett: The origin of bentonite and the geologic range of re-
lated materials in Bighorn basin, Wyoming. Bentonite is a drab and
cream colored bedded clay which until recently has been recognized
only in the upper part of the Benton formation in Colorado, Wyoming,
and Montana. Work on the west side of Bighorn Basin has shown
that bentonite and clays closely resembling it occur at intervals from
the base of the Benton formation of the Colorado group to the top of
the Meeteetse formation or upper part of the Montana group. The
beds occur, therefore, in a stratigraphic range of about 5500 feet in
Bighorn Basin. A clay that closely resembles bentonite is also inter-
bedded with tuffaceous rocks in an upper Eocene formation near Owl
Creek.

In order to determine the mineral constituents of bentonite, six spec-
imens were sized by the Bureau of Soils, and the proportions of each of

proceedings: geological society 197

the more abundant minerals were determined in each size by immer-
sion in oils of known index of refraction. In order that a comparison
with bentonite might be made, seventeen specimens of sediment from
associated beds were also sized.

Bentonite contains two classes of material. On the one hand, the
sands and silt, which include grains that range from 0.005 to 1.0 mm. in
diameter, are largely plagioclase (andesine), orthoclase, and biotite,
with accessory quartz, glass, apatite, zircon, and agate. The grains of
plagioclase and orthoclase are highly angular and are uniformly fresh.
Most of the grains of quartz are also angular, but a few are well rounded,
whereas the grains of apatite and zircon are fresh terminated crystals.
On the other hand, the clay, which includes all grains less than 0.005
mm., shows by analysis water, silica, and alumina. The molecular ra-
tio of silica to alumina is about 9 to 1, and therefore much higher than
that in any of the common hydrous silicates of alumina. The dried
powder is birefracting (biaxial negative) and the average refringence of
different specimens ranges from 1.52 to 1.59. After the clay has been
immersed in water, however, it is isotropic and therefore amorphous.
This clay forms 73 to 86 per cent of the beds of pure bentonite, whereas
the sands and silts make up the remainder. In the beds of impure
bentonite however, the proportion of clay is lower and ranges from 54
to 61 per cent. One of the peculiar properties of the clay is its tend-
ency to swell to six or eight times the original volume when immersed
in water.

The clays, shales, and sandstones of the adjacent sediments which
have been examined, are common types of quartzose sediments. Sub-
angular grains of quartz and chert make up a large part of the coarsest
sizes of most of the sediments, but a little orthoclase, biotite, plagio-
clase, and chlorite are commonly present. Quartz also forms an ap-
preciable part of the finest silt and clay portions, but the birefracting
clay of bentonite was not noted in any of the clay portions of these sedi-
ments.

In contrast with adjacent sediments, therefore, bentonite contains
little if any quartz, but fresh plagioclase, orthoclase, and biotite pre-
dominate, and glass is locally present. The comparison of the mineral
constituents of bentonite with volcanic ash from several localities, shows
that whereas the variety and proportions of the minerals are strikingly
similar, the proportion of glass grains in volcanic ash is represented in
bentonite by the highly siliceous clay just described. The resemblance
in mineralogy and chemical composition of the two classes of materials
warrants the conclusion that bentonite is volcanic ash in which the
glass has been hydrated and has lost most of its constituents except
silica and alumina. An inquiry into the stratigraphic relations of the
beds of bentonite appears to show that this alteration must have taken
place before the ash was laid down. In the case of the Eocene clays,
which are flood-plain deposits, the decomposition took place after depo-
sition.

1-98 proceedings: geological society

The geologic range of bentonite and the areas within which it is known
to exist show that volcanic products probably make up a larger part of
the Cretaceous sediments of the region than has been recognized here-
tofore. Beds of bentonite are present in the Bighorn Basin section,
3000 feet below the horizon equivalent to the base of the Livingstone
formation in Montana, which is largely made up of volcanic materials.
The source of these volcanic products cannot be determined, but prob-
ably is to be found in the region west of eastern Idaho and Utah.

Discussion: C. J. Hares spoke of the distribution and geologic re-
lationships of bentonite. E. T. Wherry outlined a process by which
bentonite is made into a commercially important product for the soft-
ening of water. The bentonite is heated and treated with an alkali
salt. The resulting material will exchange its alkali for the lime of
hard water. F. J. Katz called attention to the unusual process of al-
teration involved in the explanation of the origin of bentonite as pre-
sented.

Frank J. Katz : Stratigraphy in southwest Maine and southeast New
Hampshire. The following sedimentary formations and groups have
been established for the coastal region between the head of Casco Bay,
Maine, and southern New Hampshire :

The Berwick gneiss, consisting of highly metamorphosed and re-
crystallized graywacke, quartzite, and thin micaceous beds, which are
developed in a belt 1 to 10 or more miles wide extending southwest from
Falmouth and Gorham, Maine, to and beyond Lee, New Hampshire.
The formation is of undetermined but probably pre-Cambrian age.

An Algonkian (?) crystalline complex of quartzite, rhyolite, horn-
blende schist, and graywacke gneisses in Kittery, Maine, and Ports-
mouth, Newcastle, Rye, and North Hampton, New Hampshire.

The Carboniferous (Pennsylvanian?) Kittery quartzite, a thick for-
mation containing thin-bedded quartzites and argillites in a belt about
10 miles wide along the coast from Saco, Maine, to Portsmouth, New
Hampshire, and continuing thence inland in a southwesterly direction
to the Merrimack River, where it forms part of the Merrimack quartzite
of Massachusetts.

The Eliot slate, the rocks of the Casco Bay group, and the rocks of the
Rochester, New Hampshire basin, which are developed in three separate
areas but are approximately equivalent and conformably above the
Kittery quartzite. Of these the Eliot slate, in Eliot, Maine, and Dover,
New Hampshire, and extending thence southwest in two belts, consists
of gray sericitic and silicious slates, argillo-quartzitic schists, calcareous
beds, and carbonaceous phjdlites. The Casco Bay group occupying
an area about 12 miles wide and 30 miles long extending along the
coast from Saco, Maine, to the head of Casco Bay, consists of the Cape
Elizabeth formation of graywacke schists, gray gritty slates, sericite
phyllites, and calcareous carbonaceous laminae; the Spring Point green-
stone; the Diamond Island slate, a graphitic and pyritiferous quartz
slate; the Scarboro phyllite, a carbonaceous sericite phyllite; the Spur-
wink limestone; the Jewell phyllite; and the Mackworth slate. The

proceedings: botanical society 199

rocks of the Rochester. New Hampshire, basin include the Gonic for-
mation, in a belt 2 to 4 miles .wide running from Sanford, Maine, to
Barrington, New Hampshire, made up of gray wacke schists, mica schists,
and garnet -staurolite phyllites; the Rindgemere formation, occupying a
broad area in Rochester, New Hampshire, and Acton and Lebanon,
Maine, and lying northwest of the Gonic formation, is composed of
quartzite, slates, and mica schists, but predominantly of carbonaceous
sericite phyllites which contain chiastolite; and the Towow formation,
in the town of Lebanon, Maine, and surrounded by the Rindgemere
formation, consists of graphitic and pyritiferous quartz slates and car-
bonaceous sericite phyllite.

The igneous rocks are grouped as: (1) pre-Carboniferous granites,
pegmatites, and diorites; (2) late Carboniferous or early post-Carbo-
niferous schistose granodiorites ; (3) post-Carboniferous biotite and
muscovite-biotite granites, pegmatites, and hornblende diorites; and (4)
probably Triassic trap dikes.

The distribution of these rocks was shown on maps on which the
rocks of southwestern Maine and southeastern New Hampshire were
systematically arranged for the first time. Earlier efforts had resulted
only in conflicting petrographic categories without stratigraphic meaning.
It is now known that instead of being pre-Cambrian or early Paleozoic
rocks, as all had been supposed to be, more than half of the rocks,
areally considered, are Carboniferous (Pennsylvanian?) or younger.
The other rocks are in part certainly, and the remainder probably, pre-
Cambrian.

Discussion: Brooks, La Forge, Paige, Loughlin, Ami, and White
called attention to the difficulties in establishing age relations, owing
especially to the lack of fossils and to the disturbed and metamorphosed
conditions of the rocks. The fact that a very definite trend in the struc-
tures had been established was emphasized as establishing relation-
ships with the rocks of eastern Massachusetts.

H. E. Merwin, Secretary.

THE BOTANICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 118th regular meeting of the Society was held in the Assembly
Hall of the Cosmos Club, at 8 p.m., February 6, 1917; forty-four mem-
bers and fourteen guests present.

Dr. B. T. Galloway, Mr. Chas. F. Deering, and Prof. W. D.
Crocker were elected to membership.

The program of the evening was The relation of plant succession to
forestry and grazing.

Mr. C. G. Bates stated that foresters were first to apply in a prac-
tical way the knowledge of plant succession, and were in a sense the
progenitors of this type of ecological science. The natural regenera-
tion of forest stands in each of the climax formations of .the Rocky
Mountain region was shown to involve succession, there being in nearly
all cases temporary control by a sub-climax following the disturb-

200 proceedings: botanical society

ance due to cutting. In practical forest management each formation
was shown to present distinct problems in which the kind or degree
of cutting is the controlling factor. The correct solution of these
problems involves an intimate knowledge of the range of conditions
under which the climax type can succeed. Direct seeding of forest
trees on ground not recently occupied by the climax forest has usually
resulted in failure.

Dr. J. V. Hoffman called attention to the successions in the forests
of Washington and Oregon. Two types of succession were distin-
guished: (1) A type in which the production, distribution, germina-
tion of seed, and the establishment of seedlings are important. This
type is dependent therefore on the presence of seed trees and progresses
into an unoccupied area only 150 to 300 feet during each generation.
The resulting forest is composed of trees of uneven age. (2) A type
dependent primarily on the viability of seed and in no way dependent
on remaining seed trees. The seeds produced by the old stand retain
their viability when the forest is destroyed and germinate to form a
new forest of the same type and of even-aged trees.

Mr. A. W. Sampson discussed succession as a factor in the manage-
ment of the range lands of the Forest Service. Succession, or the
alternation in the vegetative personnel of an area was found to occur
whenever the natural conditions of the environment had been ap-
preciably changed. Where the vegetative cover had been disturbed
more or less seriously on pasture and range lands, and the disturbing
factors subsequently eliminated or their intensity decreased, the vege-
tation, through successive invasions, gradually became more like the
original.

In the administration of the range on National Forests with a view
of maintaining a maximum forage cover, a clear recognition of the
successional stages represented by the more conspicuous species is
important. Certain species occur 'early and others late in the suc-
cession leading to the development of the climax or ultimate type.
The conspicuous appearance of species which occur early and which
are usually of little or no value for grazing, shows clearly that the
pasture is being improperly used and that a change must be made in
the management if the remaining desirable species are to be preserved.
Studies of the growth requirements, the life cycles of the more impor-
tant species, and the successional stages make possible the initiation
of systems of management favorable to the invasion and succession
of the species desired.

Mr. E. O. Wooton discussed the succession due to protection of a
badly overgrazed area on the foothill slopes and adjacent sloping plains
of the northwest side of the Santa Rita Mountains in southern Arizona.
Quadrat collections were made at various stations at intervals during
a period of eleven years. From this data the following successional
stages were recognized: (1) Small weedy annuals in spring and an-
nual grasses in summer and fall. (2) Short-lived perennial grasses.
(3) Long-lived perennial grasses and a few species of perennial herbs

proceedings: biological society 201

and very low undershrubs. Succession was most rapid on the upper
slopes and the annual and perennial grasses gradually moved down the
slopes into drier situations. Fire is the principal factor in preventing
shrubs from replacing the grasses.

In the informal discussion Mr. G. A. Pearson discussed the reseed-
ing of yellow pine areas; Mr. J. T. Jardine, how to maintain a most
productive subclimax type of vegetation for sheep pasturage; Dr.
David Griffiths, the effect of fires on the maintenance of the grass
stage in Arizona; and Dr. H. L. Shantz, the importance of a knowledge
of succession in the interpretation of the results of range management.

H. L. Shantz, Corresponding Secretary.

THE BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 566th meeting of the Society was held in the Assembly Hall
of the Cosmos Club Saturday, February 24, 1917; called to order by
President Hay at 8 p.m.; 50 persons in attendance.

Under the heading book notices, brief notes, exhibition of speci-
mens, etc., M. W. Lyon, Jr., called attention to the latest edition of
the International Rules of Zoological Nomenclature containing a
summary of the opinions that have been rendered by the International
Commission, compiled by Mr. John Smallwood of Washington.

Dr. R. W. Shufeldt communicated a short paper entitled "Notes
on the. Trunk-fishes" and exhibited a specimen of Lactophrys tricornis.

Dr. L. O. Howard commented on the parent tree of an unusually
fine variety of oranges and the extraordinary care taken of it by the
owner during the recent cold weather in Florida.

Mr. Wm. Palmer also commented on the effects of the recent "freeze"
in Florida.

The regular program consisted of three communications as follows:

T. S. Palmer: A pioneer naturalist in southern Florida. — Extracts
from the diary of Titian R. Peale, 1825. Dr. Palmer gave a detailed
account of Peale's collecting trip in Florida in 1825 made for the pur-
pose of securing birds for Prince Louis Bonaparte and mentioned
and exhibited the species of birds discovered by Peale as new to science
or new to the United States. He read extracts from Peale's diary
and called attention to the other scientific expeditions of which Peale
was a member, giving many interesting facts of his long life.

A. L. Quaintance: Some notes on the Aleyrodidae. (No abstract.)

Emerson Stringham (introduced by R. E. Coker) : The shad and its
relatives in the Mississippi river.

Mr. Stringham said that herring-like fishes found in the Mississippi
river possess more economic significance than formerly recognized.
The two mooneyes (Hiodon) have flesh of excellent quality, but they
are not sufficiently abundant to be of great importance. They eat
principally insects, and feed both summer and winter, day and night,
and they deposit their eggs as soon as the water temperature begins
to rise in spring. The gizzard shad (Dorosoma) which serves as food

202 proceedings: anthropological society

for other fishes is less abundant in the Mississippi proper than in slough
and lakes. The river herring (Pomolobus chrysochloris) , known as the
host of a mussel of great value, feeds on insects when they are abun-
dant, and on fishes at other times. It breeds early in summer. Fears
are entertained that the fish and mussel may be excluded from the
upper river by a dam at Keokuk, Iowa. The Ohio shad (Alosa ohiensis)
seems clearly distinct from the Atlantic shad, but is sufficiently simi-
lar to be equally good food, though smaller. On the Mississippi this
valuable resource is not utilized. The habits of the fish are similar
to those of the Atlantic species, but it has not yet been proved to be
anadromous.

M. W. Lyon, Jr., Recording Secretary.

THE ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 508th meeting of the Society was held at the New National
Museum on March 6. This meeting was devoted to a general dis-
cussion, the subject being Problems connected with the distribution of
the aboriginal population of America.

Dr. John R. Swanton introduced the discussion by stating that
the subject divided itself into a consideration of the distribution of
aboriginal population in America quantitatively and qualitatively.
"Populations," said Dr. Swanton, "may be classified qualitatively
according to their physical characteristics, languages, cultural fea-
tures, social organization, and so on. Archeology has a bearing on
all these." He gave as one of the principal problems to be considered
the bearing of the data of each class on the generally admitted Asiatic
origin of the American Indians and their diffusion from the northwest.

Dr. Ales Hrdlicka, speaking from the standpoint of physical
anthropology, stated that the distribution of different physical types
on the American continent has always been in this country one of the
main problems of his branch of science. Morton, the father of Ameri-
can anthropology, classified the American Indians in two types: (1)
The Toltec, or refined type, which included the Toltecs of Mexico, the
Maya, and the mound-builders of the Ohio valley; (2) The Barbarian,
which included all the less civilized, semi-nomadic tribes.

This classification, although imperfect, was shown in the course
of time to have a good foundation. Roughly speaking we recognize
today two great sub-types of the American aborigines which corre-
spond in the main to Morton's groups. The "Toltec" strain shows an
irregular but wide distribution over both Americas. Its main areas
are portions of the northwest coast, a part of the Pueblo region, a large
part of the more southern territory of the "mound-builders," all Yuca-
tan, southern Mexico, Central America, the Antilles, the western re-
gion of northern South America, and the coast of Peru, with as yet unde-
termined areas in Brazil, and traces even farther south. The type
is principally marked by brachycephaly. The second Morton group
corresponds to the American dolichocephalic population which ex-

proceedings: anthropological society 203

tends over vast areas from Labrador and Canada to Tierra del Fuego.
Which of these two types is the older on the Continent has not yet
been determined. The answer will doubtless differ in different lo-
calities. Besides these two, which may be called fundamental physical
types of the American population, we now recognize a third group
which, though closely related to the first or "Toltec," seems of much
more recent introduction and development; this is the Athapascan.
A fourth type, also of fairly recent introduction, is the Eskimo. Out-
side these four strains, all of which are related and proceed probably
from one ancient stratum, we have discovered as yet in America no
trace of any other Pre-Columbian population.

Dr. Truman Michelson, speaking on the linguistics of the Indians,
said, "There is no single type of language, no fundamental structure
that is the same in all linguistic stocks, though we find resemblances
among them." The speaker stated that resemblances occur between
the languages of northeastern Asia and those of certain North Ameri-
can Indians. "An important problem in linguistics," said Dr. Michel-
son, "is to determine whether resemblances between languages are
genetic or borrowed." The distribution of linguistic stocks was in-
dicated on maps.

Prof. William H. Holmes spoke briefly of the probable origin of
the human race in southern Asia and the gradual spread from this
cradle over wide areas through increase in numbers and intelligence.
In passing northward the culture would be gradually modified and on
reaching the Arctic it would be reduced to the hunter-fisher state ex-
clusively known throughout the Arctic. In passing to America by
the Behring Route migrating groups would carry with them only
this single culture stage, but advancing southward changes would take
place according to environment. Culture would take on one phase
in the Great Plains region, another in the Mississippi Valley, still
another in Mexico, and so on; and there would follow interchanges
of culture elements between peoples and areas without end. We
thus explain the complex conditions and great diversity of the Colum-
bian period.

Dr. J. Walter Fewkes stated that the two great forces which have
influenced the distribution of population in North and South America
are (1) geographic, the course of migration being somewhat deter-
mined by the mountain ranges and rivers, and (2) the food supply, which
depended on the climate. Dr. Fewkes called attention to the fact
that language does not represent the cultural distribution of a people.
Languages shrink and change, but archeology often represents culture
in its highest manifestation and affords a permanent basis of study.
Thus archeology indicates that two types of people once lived in the
southwest. There were two foci of distribution, one in the San Juan
valley and the other in the Gila valley. The food quest broadened
the outlines of these groups and at the point of juncture there arose
a mixed type which we now find along the Little Colorado, while in
the original places the culture has entirely disappeared. Dr. Fewkes

204 proceedings: anthropological society

spoke of the large and important cultural groups found in the West
Indies where the Carib stock was preceded by another stock, the Arawak,
both originating in South America. In the West Indes the root of
the yuca bears the same relation to the food problem of the people
that the corn bears in the southwest.

Dr. Walter Hough said that at the Discovery the tribes of America
were identified with the environments in which they had settled and
since that time only migrations of a minor character have taken place.
The causes of extensive migration were thus conjectural but depended
on basic facts of food, transportation, and artificial fire-making.

Mr. Francis La Flesche stated that the ancient rites of the Siouan
stock show that the migrations of the people were influenced by the
search for food. The first animal mentioned in these rites is the elk,
succeeded by the deer, and later by the buffalo, at which period the
mention of corn appears for the first time.

Frances Densmore, Secretary.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VII APRIL 19, 1917 No. 8

PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY.— A convenient form of autoclave.
George W. Morey, Geophysical Laboratory.

The following form of autoclave has been designed after con-
siderable experience with autoclaves and bombs, and is believed
to be superior to commercial forms in ease of construction, in
manipulation, and in certainty of closure.

It consists of three parts: a photograph of these separate
parts is shown in figure 1, and the assembled autoclave, in cross-
section, in figure 2.

The cover, B, of the bomb, D, is held in place by being pressed
against a projecting rim, A', on the outer shell, A, by the bolt,
EE. Following is a detailed description of each part.

The outer shell, A, is made from a p'ece of 4-inch standard
pipe. On the upper end a shoulder, A', § inch thick, is welded
with an oxyacetylene blow-pipe. Near the lower end of the
pipe two opposite holes, If inches in diameter, have been drilled;
their centers are 6f inches from the top. These holes are shown in
section in figure 2, and are more plainly seen in figure 1.

Inside the outer shell is placed the bomb, D. It is made from
a piece of 3|-inch standard pipe, one end of which is closed by
welding on an iron bottom, as shown. The other end is closed by
means of the cover, B, the outer rim of which is pressed against
the rim, A', on the outer shell.

Special attention should be called to the type of closure. The
washer, a ring of 0.8 mm. gold wire, is placed in the space, C,

205

206

morey: a new autoclave

where it is completely surrounded by metal, the sides of the cover
being a close fit. This type of closure is the same as that de-
scribed in a previous paper1 for closing bombs at high pressures
and temperatures. As emphasized therein, it is essential that
the washer be completely enclosed by metal, so that when pressure
is applied it cannot flow away.

Fig. 1. Photograph of the parts of the autoclave

The cover is held in place by being pressed against the pro-
jecting rim of the outer shell by the bolt, EE, which is threaded

1 Morey. Journ. Am. Chem. Soc, 36: 215-30. 1914; Zeits. anorg. Chem.,
86: 305-24. 1914.

morey: a new autoclave

207

0

2

4

INCHES

Fig. 2. Cross-section showing the details of the construction and assembling
of the autoclave.

208 LARSEN AND WHERRY: LEVERRIERITE FROM COLORADO

through the cross-bar, F, in the manner shown. The ends of the
cross-bar are semicircular, the arc of the semicircle being down-
ward and pressing against the bottom of the circular hole in the
outer shell. When the bolt is turned, its rounded end, turning
in the depression in the bottom of the bomb, forces the cover
against the rim on the outer shell, thus compressing the gold wire
in C, and effecting a tight closure. The ends of the cross-bar
are cut away as shown, to enable it to be inserted after the bomb
is in place. ,

The cover shown in the sketch is easily made, and it is con-
venient to have several for different purposes. Thus, one is
provided with an exit tube and valve to permit the escape of the
vapor, and another has both an exit tube and a pressure gage.

The above autoclave has been used for many experiments
with aqueous solutions at temperatures up to 300° and has given
complete satisfaction.

MINERALOGY. — Leverrierite from Colorado. ] Esper S. Lar-
sen, Geological Survey, and Edgar T. Wherry, National
Museum.

Occurrence. During the summer of 1916, in the course of a
geologic study of the San Juan Mountains under the direction
of Whitman Cross, one of the authors (E. S. L.) collected speci-
mens of a platy, foliated mineral, called "clay-gouge" by the
prospectors, in the gold-silver mines of the old mining camp of
Beidell, Saguache County, Colorado. The material was in
considerable abundance in the dumps of the Buckhorn and
Esperanza mines and is reported to occur in irregular bodies
up to several feet across. A study in the office has shown it
to belong to the leverrierite group of minerals. It is associated
with gold and silver-bearing psilomelanite, pyrolusite, and
quartz. The pyrolusite is in well-formed prismatic crystals
with very perfect cleavages and is probably derived from man-
ganite. The quartz is not abundant and is partly in well-
formed crystals, up to an inch or more across, projecting into the

1 Published with the permission of the Director of the United States Geological
Survey and the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.

LARSEN AND WHERRY! LEVERRIERITE FROM COLORADO 209

leverrierite, and partly of cherty character in coatings and reni-
form masses attached to the manganese oxides.

Physical properties. The mineral has many of the properties
of ordinary " clay-gouge," but it differs in possessing a prominent
micaceous cleavage, some of the cleavage pieces being several
inches across and commonly bent. When dry it is rather brittle
and has a hardness of about 1^. If large fragments are immersed
in water they gradually break up, chiefly along the cleavage,
into smaller pieces. After soaking for some time the mineral
becomes smooth and plastic, and rather sticky. Under the
microscope the fragments can be seen, however, to have retained
their optical properties. On kneading the plastic mass the
fragments are broken up, but still retain their properties. The
plasticity can not be accounted for on the basis of the presence
of any colloidal material, but seems rather to be due to the super-
position of innumerable minute, soft, flexible plates, separated
by films of water. The Colorado leverrierite has a vitreous
luster and waxy appearance, and varies in color from nearly
colorless to dark olive-buff (Ridgway 21'") or russet-vinaceous
(Ridgway 9'").

Optica properties. A microscopic examination of a number of
specimens showed them all to be essentially identical. The
pale russet-vinaceous specimen selected for analysis is in bent
plates up to an inch across, and appears to be homogeneous.
The acute bisectrix is normal to the plates, the axial angle is
sensibly 0, and the mineral is optically negative. The indices of
refraction were measured by the immersion method. Fragments
immersed in mixtures of clove oil and petroleum oil and quickly
compared with the oil gave apparent values of a = 1.470 ± 0.005,
/3 and y = 1.515 ± 0.005, but on standing in the oils the indices
of refraction slowly increased. After standing for two days in
mixtures of clove oil and cinnamon oil they reached a maximum
constant value and matched the liquids in which they were im-
bedded with values of <x = 1.558 ± 0.003, 0 and 7 = 1-602 ±
0.003. On removing the fragments from the liquid that had
stood and placing them in a fresh liquid of the same index they
still matched.

210 LARSEN AND WHERRY: LEVERRIERITE FROM COLORADO

A similar change in the apparent indices of refraction, as
measured by the immersion method, has been noticed in a num-
ber of other minerals. In some it is clearly due to the fact that
the mineral has submicroscopic pores and that the apparent index
of refraction is the result of the combined effects of the mineral
and gas or water filling the pores; but if the pores are filled with
a liquid having the same index of refraction as the mineral, the
true index of the mineral can be measured.2 For instance, the
halloysite ("isotropic kaolinite")3 from Wagon-Wheel Gap,
Colorado, is clouded when first immersed, and the liquid can
be seen to penetrate the grains, making them clear and increasing
their index of refraction. The pores in the leverrierite are sub-
microscopic and the mineral appears clear, but the penetration
of the liquid can be followed by the change in index of refraction
in a zone from the border inwards.

Chemical properties. Qualitative examination having shown
the material to be a hydrous aluminium silicate, it was analyzed
quantitatively in the laboratory of the National Museum. The
behavior of the water proved to be rather peculiar, so its relation
to the optical properties of the mineral was studied first.

Behavior of the water. It is customary in mineral analysis
nowadays to determine water of two kinds. That given off by
heating to 105° or 110° is recorded as H20 — , and that given off
above one of these temperatures is recorded as H20 +. This repre-
sents a decided advance over the older plans of determining only
total water, or of drying the sample at 110° before weighing it out
for analysis, and for many purposes may be adequate. But our
knowledge of hydrous colloidal minerals, and even of many
containing water of crystallization, will never be complete unless
the actual temperature ranges over which the water is liberated
both above and below 110° are recorded. While the boiling
point of pure liquid water under a pressure of one atmosphere is
100°, the water held by a solid, even though not chemically
combined in the strictest sense, may vaporize at a far lower

2 Surface tension and similar phenomena may modify this.

3 Larsen, E. S., and Wells, R. C. Some minerals from the fluorite barite vein
near Wagon-Wheel Gap, Colorado. Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci., 2: 364. 1916.

LARSEN AND WHERRY: LEVERRIERITE FROM COLORADO 211

temperature than this, and again may be given off only at a much
higher temperature.

In the case of the mineral here described the temperature of
100° possesses no significance whatever, as is clearly shown by
Table 1, in which the loss at different temperatures is recorded.
The coarsely powdered mineral was heated to each tempetature
in a covered platinum capsule for 2 hours.

TABLE 1
Loss of Water from Leverrierite from Colorado

TEMP.

°c

PER
CENT
H2O
LOST

TEMP.

°c

PER

CENT

HiO

LOST

20

Start

120

0.05'

30

2.05]

130

0.05

40

1.85

140

0.20

50

2.10

150

0.35

60

0.75

160

0.25

70

0.45 [

Total below 110°, 10.75

170

0.25

80

1.15

per cent

180

0.35

Total above

110°, 6.65

90

1.60

190

0.30

'

per cent

100

0.45

200

0.35

110

0.25.

250
300
350 ±

0.45
0.60
3.15

ign.

0.30

Total water,
cent

17.40 per

In interpreting the results it must be borne in mind that the
amount of water lost at a given temperature depends on the
fineness of grinding, the length of heating, the humidity of the
atmosphere in which the heating is done, etc., so that too great
significance should not be attached to such data. It is worth
noting, however, that over one-third of the total water is given
off below 50°, and nearly two-thirds below 110°. Nearly all
the water is lost below 350°. By way of contrast it may be
mentioned that a sample of halloysite recently studied by us4
retained 12.9 per cent of H20 at 400°.

4 Larsen, E. S., and Wherry, E. T. Halloysite from Colorado. Journ. Wash.
Acad. Sci., 7: 178. 1917.

212 LARSEN AND WHERRY: LEVERRIERITE FROM COLORADO

Effect of dehydration on the optical properties. In order to
determine the effect of dehydration on the crystal structure,
samples of coarse powder were examined microscopically after
being heated respectively for 8 hours at 65°, 5 hours at 130°,
2 hours at 290°, and 2\ hours at 360°. The loss of so large an
amount of water would lead one to expect considerable change
in the properties. However, the optical properties remained

TABLE 2

Effect of Dehydration on the Optical Properties of Leverrierite from

Colorado

PER

APPARENT0

TEMP. °C.

CENT

H20

/3 and 7

a

REMARKS

(i and 7

a

20

17.4

1.602

1.558

1.515

1.470

Indices of refraction of grains
immersed in oils appear to in-
crease for several days before
reaching the maximum value

75

10.0

1.600

1 . 555

1.495

1.46

Reaches maximum value in a
short time

130

6.5

1.597

1.553

Quickly increases . to maximum

value

290

3.7

1.600

1.555

Quick' y increases to maximum
value

360

0.2

1.603

1.559

Quickly increases to maximum
value

Red-

ness

0.0

1.54

varies
±0.03

1.50
varies

1.54

Contains clouded areas. Rather
deeply colored and pleochroic

° The apparent value as measured by the immersion method immediately
after imbedding in an oil of that index of refraction.

practically unchanged up to 360°C, and there was only a moderate
decrease in the indices after heating for half an hour at redness.
The results are presented in Table 2. The mineral remains sensi-
bly uniaxial, even after heating to redness, and the optic axis
emerges normal to the plates. On heating, it gradually loses its
waxy luster and becomes somewhat darker in color and more
strongly pleochroic. It increases in hardness slightly and be-
comes rather brittle. The perfect cleavage becomes even more
prominent than before dehydrating.

LARSEN AND WHERRY: LEVERRIERITE FROM COLORADO 213

No satisfactory interpretation of this remarkable constancy of
optical properties with wide difference in H20 content occurs to
the authors. The loss of water of crystallization or of chemically
combined H20 should have a considerable influence on the optical
properties and would be expected to be accompanied with a
complete change in all the crystal properties. Even the loss

TABLE 3
Analyses of Minerals of the Leverrierite Group

Si02....

A1203...

Fe203...

MnO...

CaO....

MgO...

Na»0...

K20....

H20+1

H,0-J

Totals

Al203:Si02.

1

47.28

20.27

8.68

2.75
0.70
0.97
tr.

19.72

100.37

47.84

20.88
8.48
0.24
2.52
0.91
1.58

tr.
6.65

10.95

100.05

47
20
8
0
2
0
1

6
12

.56
.57
.58
.24
.52
.80
.28,

.65
.01

100.21
1 : 2.76

3a

789
256

89

47.95

32.67

0.23

0.41
0.46
2.47
0.24
7.03
8.56

99.36
1 : 2.34

49.90

37.02

3.65

tr.
0.30

1.13

8.65\

? /

100.65
1:2.11

50.55
19.15

4.40
0.63

24.05

98.78
1:3.95

49.4
45.1

5.6
?

100.1
1: 1.86

48.43
41.63

2.13

7.70
?

99.89
1: 1.94

1 and 2. Material from Beidell, Colorado. New analyses by E. T. W.

3. Average of 1 and 2.

3 a. Molecular proportions of 3.

4. Average of 2 analyses of "rectorite," Garland County, Arkansas. Brackett,
R. N., and Williams, J. F., Amer. Journ. Sci., 42: 16. 1891.

5. Leverrierite, Rochelle, France. Termier, P., Bull. Soc. Min., 22: 29.
1899. Analysis made on material dried at 110°-130°. Older analyses show 13.21
and 18.0% of total water.

6. "Montmorillonite, var. delanouite," Millac, France. Quoted from Lacroix,
A., Mineralogie de la France.

7. "Batchelorite," Tasmania. H20 stated as "combined H20." Gregory,
J. W., Trans. Austr. Inst. Min. Eng., 10: 187, 1905.

8. Kryptotile. Quoted from Dana. The original article reports H20 without
a statement as to whether it represents total water or water above 100°.

of 17.4 per cent of "absorbed" H20 would be expected to cause
a considerable change in the values of the indices of refraction.
Composition. Two different samples shown by microscopic
examination to be essentially homogeneous were analyzed by
standard methods and yielded the results shown in columns 1

214 LARSEN AND WHERRY: LEVERRIERITE FROM COLORADO

and 2 of Table 3 ; columns 4 to 8 give analyses of other members
of the same group of minerals for comparison. The "name
leverrierite has been selected for the group because it has priority
over all the others except kryptotile, which is, however, only
known in indefinite mixtures.

All the minerals shown in the table are essentially silicates of
aluminium with some Fe203 and RO. Assuming that the Fe203
and RO replace A1203, the ratio A1203: Si02 varies from 1.86
to 3.95. The H20+ and the total H20 also vary considerably,
but no more than might be expected from determinations made
under widely different conditions. Kryptotile is reported as
having 7.70 per cent of H20. If this represents total water, it
contains considerably less than the others. Batchelorite,
kryptotile, rectorite, and the original leverrierite are near to
A1203.2Si02.2H20 in which about half the H20 is given off below
110°. The Colorado mineral is nearer to Al203.3Si02.4H20
and about two-thirds of the water is given off below 110°; while
delanouite is near Al203.4Si02.6H20. However, there appears
to be an almost continuous variation of the ratio A1203: Si02
from 1.86 to at least 2.76. This can hardly be due to admixed
impurities, as the authors have examined the Colorado mineral
and the type rectorite, and have found them essentially homo-
geneous, and the descriptions of the analyzed leverrierite and
batchelorite also indicate homogeneous material, although the
delanouite examined by the authors contained some mpurity
while the description of the analyzed kryptotile indicates impure
material. This variableness in composition within definite
limits suggests that a mineral group is represented, or at least a
species including several subspecies, as is the case, for instance,
with muscovite. This view is confirmed by a comparison of the
properties of the several minerals in Table 4.

The optical and physical properties of the six minerals, while
not identical, are about as nearly alike as are the corresponding
data for various specimens of muscovite and other complex
minerals; and as in muscovite, the cleavage, optic orientation,
optic character, and birefringence show comparatively little
variation, while the axial angle and indices of refraction vary

LARSEN AND WHERRY: LEVERRIERITE FROM COLORADO 215

within moderate limits. This similarity, together with the con-
tinuous variation in chemical composition, shows with reasonable
certainty that all the minerals are members of a continuous

TABLE 4
Properties of Leverrierite and Related Minerals

Batchelorite
Kryptotile"
Leverrierite6
France

Rectoritec,
Arkansas

Material from
Colorado

Delanouited

RATIO

AI2O3:

SiOu

1: 1.86
1: 1.94
1:2.11

1:2.34

1 : 2.76

1:3.95

OPTICAL
ORIENTATION

X J. cleav.
X j_ cleav.

X X cleav.

X j_ cleav.

X _|_ plates

0-45°
0-50°

38° =

Small

1.558
1.554

1.550

1.558

1.54

0

1.593

1.582

1.588

1.602

1.570

1.594
1.582

1.590

1.602

1.570

REMARKS

Foliated

Fibrous, platy

Vermicular, mica-
ceous
'White, dull,

tough. Resem-
bles mountain
leather. Inter-
woven fibers
and plates.
Rather plastic
when wet

\ Luster vitreous
to waxy, rather

\ brittle. Platy.
Very plastic
when wet

Not entirely homo-
geneous. Feath-
ery plates

a New data on specimen from Waldheim, Saxony, kindly furnished by Colonel
Roebling. The material closely resembles sericite.

6 Published data of Wallerant. Other data gives the birefringence as low as
0.008.

c New data from U. S. Nat. Mus. specimen No. 80607. The indices vary.
When first measured a = 1.500, 0 = 1.541, y = 1.543. The indices appear to
increase on standing in oils. (Cf. the Colorado mineral.)

d New data on "montmorillonite, Millac." Specimen kindly furnished by
Prof. A. Lacroix. A red, clay-like mineral. Under the microscope it is seen to
be made up of rather coarse, feathery plates or fibers. The best interference
figures show that the mineral is optically negative and has a small axial angle.
Some fibers are optically positive and have a large axial angle.

series with varying proportions of Si02 and A1203. This would
not require any greater variation in the chemical composition
than that due to the change in the water content, which, as was

216 LARSEN AND WHERRY: LEVERRIERITE FROM COLORADO

pointed out above, takes place without a break in the crystal
structure, as shown by the optical properties. Muscovite and
other micas (to which leverrierite is probably related), show
almost as wide a range in the ratio between the Si02 and A1203,
as leverrierite ; they also show like the latter but small variations
in their optical properties.

Leverrierite and some of the minerals here united with it have
usually been included in text books on mineralogy as varieties
of kaolinite. However, Termier5 has shown that it is undoubtedly
a distinct mineral. He concluded that it is a muscovite in which
the K20 is replaced by H20, but since this conclusion is based
on an analysis of the mineral dried at 110° it seems hardly justi-
fied; yet the cleavage and optical properties are certainly near
those of the mica group, to which the leverrierite group is be-
lieved to be closely related.

Chemically it differs from kaolinite, chiefly in the fact that
it retains only 7 per cent of its H20 at 110° and very little at 350°,
while kaolinite retains nearly all of its 14 per cent of H20 up to
400 degrees. Optically leverrierite has higher indices of re-
fraction, much stronger birefringence, and much smaller axial
angle than kaolinite, and it is commonly found in larger plates.

The leverrierite group includes then, the micaceous hydrous
silicates of aluminium with small amounts of Fe203, RO, and
R20, in which the ratio A1203: Si02 varies at least from 1.85 to
3.95; the H20 content under normal conditions is from 15 to 24
per cent, of which all but about 7 per cent is given off below 110°.
In physical and optical properties leverrierite resembles musco-
vite, but its cleavage is less prominent, it is rather brittle when
dry and very plastic when wet, and its axial angle is commonly
very small.

Summary. Leverrierite occurs in the veins of quartz and
manganese oxide at Beidell, Saguache County, Colorado, in
cleavage plates up to several inches across. It has a very per-
fect basal cleavage. It becomes plastic when wet. It is opti-
cally negative, practically uniaxial, and the optic axis emerges
sensibly normal to the cleavage. The indices of refraction as

5 Termier, P. Bull. Soc. Min., 22: 27. 1S99.

HOWARD: CARRIAGE OF DISEASE BY INSECTS 217

measured by the immersion method, immediately after imbedding
in a liquid, appear to be a = 1.470, (3 and y = 1.515, but on
standing in an immersion medium the liquid slowly penetrates
the grains, probably displacing air and possibly some water,
and after remaining several days in the liquids 0 and y of the
grains match a liquid with an index of refraction of 1.602, and
a, one with an index of 1.558. These are believed to be the in-
dices of refraction of the mineral. Loss of water, even to the
extent of 17 per cent, causes no appreciable change in the optical
properties, except a deepening of the color.

A chemical analysis of the mineral is given and the loss of H20
at different temperatures. This analysis and analyses of rector-
ite, leverrierite, batchelorite, kryptotile, and delanouite are
compared, and show some variation in the water content and,
more especially, in the Si02: A1203 ratio, which varies from 1.86
in batchelorite to 3.95 in delanouite. However, optical study
of the six minerals indicates that they belong to a single group,
probably related to the micas. Analyses of muscovite show
almost as wide a range in the Si02: A1203 ratio. The formula of
the leverrierite group may be written Al203.2 ± Si02.2| ± H20.

MEDICAL ZOOLOGY. — The carriage of disease by insects.^
L. 0. Howard, Bureau of Entomology.

In his opening remarks the speaker called attention to the
fact that the whole great field of the carriage of disease by in-
sects has been developed within the last twenty years. He
showed that in the standard medical works of twenty years ago,
such as for example the 1895 edition of Osier's Principles and
Practice of Medicine, there occurs absolutely no mention of
insects in connection with tne etiology of disease, e'ther of man
or of the higher animals; yet at the same time he showed that as
early as 1889 Theobald Smith had discovered the causative
organism of the so-called Texas fever of cattle (Babesia bovis)
and that with the experimental aid of F. L. Kilbourne he had

1 Address as retiring President of the Washington Academy of Sciences, de-
livered February 1, 1917. Abridged by the author.

218 HOWARD: CARRIAGE OF DISEASE BY INSECTS

shown that this organism was carried from southern cattle
to non-immune cattle by the so-called southern cattle tick
(Mar gar opus annulatus), the results of this experimental work
having been published in 1893.

Even before this, however, Dr. Patrick Manson, now Sir
Patrick Manson, had demonstrated the carriage of the parasitic
worm, Filaria nocturna, responsible for certain of the diseases
grouped under the name filariasis, from mosquitoes to man.
Manson' s discovery was, however, by no means so significant
as that of Theobald Smith. The announcement of Smith's
discovery, however, coming from a veterinary service and
published in the annual report of the Department of Agricul-
ture, unfortunately received little attention from the scientific
world in general.

The initial discovery which attracted world-wide attention
was that of Ronald Ross in India, who found that malaria is
carried by certain mosquitoes.

The speaker here digressed in order to give his views con-
cerning the recently agitated theory of the transmission of
infantile paralysis by insects. He said:

The whole country was interested and alarmed at the occurrence of
an unusual number of cases of infantile paralysis during the past sum-
mer (23,970 in all, with 2072 deaths out of a total of 7925 cases in New
York City alone), and many theories were advanced concerning its
method of spread. I must confess that when it was announced that
the causative organism had been found in the intestinal passages as
well as elsewhere and that it probably enters the body of the patient
through the mucous membrane of the mouth and nose, I instantly
thought of the house fly and the all too frequent contamination of
exposed food by this insect, frequently fresh from intestinal discharges.
But a second thought showed me that were such a method of convey-
ance of the disease possible the disease itself would be much more
common and there would have been last summer very many thousands
rather than many hundreds of cases. Then too, the not infrequent
winter cases could not very well be fly-borne.

Mosquitoes have been suggested as carriers, and a well reasoned
paper by 'Dr. Mark W. Richardson, of Boston, was published last
September under the title "The Rat and Infantile Paralysis," the rat-
flea of course being the theoretical carrier. But rat-fleas go to human
beings only in the event of epidemic disease among rats, and nothing
of the sort has been noted in connection with any of the larger epidemics
of infantile paralysis.

HOWARD: CARRIAGE OF DISEASE BY INSECTS 219

Moreover in inoculation experiments reported by Flexner and Lewis,
the virus is present in the blood of inoculated monkeys in such high
dilution that the infection in a normal animal is accomplished only
by inoculation of 20 cc. or more of the blood. If this holds under
normal conditions, it becomes absurd to accuse any biting insect of the
carriage of this particular disease, except in the possible event of the
development of the organism in the body of the insect. While this
possibility should be studied, the probabilities are against it. The
impression which all of us in Doctor Flexner's audience at his lecture
given December 28, in New York, gained, was I think that we are still
greatly in the dark in regard to this disease, but that possible insect
carriage must probably be ruled out.

It was then shown that it is necessary to divide the field under
discussion into three categories.

1. Insects as simple carriers of disease, the accidental carriers
as it were; that is, insects frequenting places where disease germs
are likely to occur and conveying these in their stomachs or on
their bodies to food supplies. This is notably illustrated by the
house fly.

2. Insects as direct inoculators of disease. These are biting
insects which feed upon diseased men or animals and carry the
causative organisms on then- beaks and insert them into the
circulation of healthy animals. In this way anthrax is carried
by biting flies; surra is carried in the same way, as is also the
nagana or tsetse-fly disease of cattle. So also is bubonic plague
carried in this manner by rat-fleas, but here there is more than a
passive carriage, as is also the case with the tsetse-fly disease.

3. The third category, and this is perhaps the most important,
includes insects as essential hosts of pathogenic organisms. These
are the cases in which the parasitic organism undergoes its sexual
generation in the body of its insect host and another, non-sexual,
generation or generations in its warm-blooded host. To this
class belong the malarial mosquitoes, the yellow-fever mosquito,
and the rapidly increasing number of species that carry trypano-
miases, leishmanioses, spirochaetoses, and the ticks that carry
relapsing fevers and other fevers of man and animals, and the
lice that carry typhus fever.

Under the first of these three categories the house fly was
considered at some length, and cockroaches, ants (especially

220 HOWARD: CARRIAGE OF DISEASE BY INSECTS

the household ant), the latrine fly (Fannia scalaris), and other
insects were mentioned rather incidentally.

Under the second category the biting flies that carry anthrax
were mentioned, and illustrated (as, in fact, was the entire address)
by lantern slides. Under this head also, carriage of bubonic
plague by rat-fleas was discussed at some length.

Under the third category, insects as essential hosts of patho-
genic organisms, attention was called to certain tapeworms
which have alternate hosts in insects or other arthropods and
domestic' animals, especial mention being made of Hymenolepis
diminuata which lives commonly in the intestines of rats and
mice and has as its alternate hosts certain insects which feed
in meal, so that man may become affected by eating dejecta
of such insects in dirty cereals. The carriage of Filaria nocturna
by Culex fatigans (quinquefasciatus), and Ransom's discovery
of the house fly parasite Habronema muscae as a stomach para-
site of the horse, and the pig parasite (Echinorynchus gigas)
sometimes occurring in man, with its alternate hosts as the larvae
of cockchafers in Europe and the common white grubs (larvae of
Lachnosterna) in the United States, were described.

Then followed a longer consideration of mosquitoes and
malaria, and mosquitoes and yellow fever.

Under the head of trypanomiases, the carriage of the nagana
of African cattle by Glossina morsitans and the sleeping sickness
of Africa carried by Glossina palpalis were mentioned, as well
as the wasting disease of children in Brazil known as opilacao,
caused by Trypanosoma cruzii and possess' ng a definitive host
in the large biting true bug Conorhinus megistus

Then followed a consideration of insects and leishmamoses,
ticks and spirochaetoses, including some detailed account of
ticks and the Rocky Mountain spotted fever. A fuller consider-
ation was given to typhus fever and lice.

Stating that the carriage of typhus fever by the body-louse
was first demonstrated by Ricketts in the City of Mexico, where
this discoverer lost h;s life from this fever in the course of his
investigations, mention was made of the tremendous death
rate from this disease during the last Balkan war in Serbia and

HOWARD: CARRIAGE OF DISEASE BY INSECTS 221

its destructive appearance in many p'aces during the present
great war. It was shown that at first the information put out
by the medical departments of the different armies was insuffi-
cient and in many cases illy based. Especial mention was made
of the publications issued in England, France, and Germany,
the extraordinarily detailed observations by Haase, made in
Germany in the camps of Russian prisoners, receiving special
consideration. He showed that more recently an intense in-
vestigation has been carried on in many places of all of the aspects
of the biology of the body-louse. He showed that in the current
number of the Bulletin of (he Pasteur Institute of Paris (December
15, 1916) reviews had been found of seventeen papers, under the
heading La Lutte Contre les Puces. One of these was written
by a Japanese, four by Englishmen, seven by Germans, one by a
Swiss, two by Frenchmen, one by a Russian, and one by an
Italian. He pointed out especially the very perfect proof ad-
duced in one of these articles of the transportation by wind of the
body-louse, a very important point to be considered in sanitary
measures.

In concluding, the speaker referred to a manuscript table
drawn up by Mr. W. D. Pierce from the recent iterature, which
indicates that discoveries have been recorded of 226 different
disease organisms as carried by insects to man or animals;
that 87 organisms are known to be parasitic in insects but not
known to be transmitted, and that 282 species of insects are
recorded as causers or carriers of diseases of man or animals.

The concluding paragraphs of the address are quoted :

But now we must stop. There are many subjects in the field which
we have not touched. Tick paralysis, for example, is a most interesting
and novel subject. This disease occurs in Australia, Africa, and North
America. In Oregon thirteen cases have been found in the practice
of a single physician. The attachment of a tick brings about pro-
gressive paralysis involving motor but not sensory nerves. It seems a
unique malady. Hadwen and Nuttall, showing that it is not infectious
and that there is apparently an incubating period in the tick, suggest
a specific causative organism, but others hold to the theory of nerve
shock.

Attention should also be called to the fact that, in spite of the host
of discoveries already well established, there is a dangerous tendency

222 michelson: American Indian languages

to exaggerate the importance of insect transmission, and to overlook,
even in cases where insects may occasionally be concerned, the greater
importance of other modes of infection. This is indicated by Sambon's
theory of transmission of pellagra by Simulium — a theory which was
advanced with enthusiasm on the ground that it fitted into the known
facts in the epidemiology of the disease. It took two years of hard
work on the part of members of the force of the Bureau of Entomology,
working in collaboration with the Thompson-McFadden Pellagra
Commission, to upset this theory in a thoroughly scientific manner.
As has been pointed out several times of late, there is always consider-
able danger in' conclusions based on epidemiological findings. Trans-
mission experiments are necessary.

One conclusion must be drawn which can hardly be disputed: There
is an enormous field for the entomologist in the careful study of all
of the aspects of the biology of not only those insects which have
already been shown to be disease carriers but of those which are likely
to be implicated. It is to the trained economic entomologist that we
must look for the methods of destruction of these insect carriers, and
the prevention of this class of diseases lies at his door rather than at
that of the physician. Either that, or sanitarians must be trained in
what is now known as medical entomology.

ETHNOLOGY. — Remarks on American Indian languages, a
study in method? Truman Michelson, Bureau of Ameri-
can Ethnology.

At the very beginning of this subject it should be stated that
there is no single type of speech which holds good for all Ameri-
can Indian languages. The statement that all American Indian
languages are both polysynthetic and incorporative, so con-
fidently affirmed by the older writers, is false. The number of
American Indian languages that are either polysynthetic or
incorporative, is extremely limited indeed. I do not know of a
single feature that may be said to be characteristic of all American
Indian languages. Even so, a combination of certain features
is quite sufficient to determine whether any given language is an
American Indian language or not. It is this which enables us
to say without any hesitation that Chuckchee, Koryak, and
Yukaghir (which are spoken inmortheastern Asia) are American-
oid languages. If they were spoken in America we would call
them American Indian languages. They do not belong geneti-

1 Printed with the permission of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.

michelson: American Indian languages 223

cally (as far as is known) to any American linguistic stocks, but
nevertheless the totality of their features compels us to classify
them with American Indian languages. To account for these
facts we must assume either that these tribes are the descendants
of the forefathers of American Indians who did not follow their
brethren in the migration from Asia to America (for such a
migration is firmly established by the facts of physical anthro-
pology), or that there has been in comparatively recent times a
migration backward from this continent to Asia. In as much
as the bulk of American Indian languages are spoken on this
continent, from a purely linguistic point of view the latter
hypothesis is the most probable. But the essential fact in any
case will remain unchallenged, namely, that we have American-
oid languages spoken in northeastern Asia.

Let us now turn to the almost unparalleled number of lin-
guistic stocks on this continent. We have an apparent anomaly
as compared with most parts of the world. The point at issue is
whether such a multiplicity of stocks is original or not. In the
first place, in the study of American Indian languages we are at
a decided disadvantage as compared with the study, say, of
Indo-European languages. Suppose that modern English and
modern Russian were the sole survivors of the entire stock. It
would be impossible to prove absolutely that they were both
genetically descended from a common ancestor, no matter what
we might surmise. It is only because we have continuous
written records of both covering several centuries, and have the
aid of other related languages which have even earlier records,
that we can absolutely prove this. For this reason it is clear
that there always will be American Indian languages whose
genetic connection we may suspect, but which we can not prove.
It may be urged that we can actually see what has taken place
in the development and differentiation of languages which
have been historically transmitted, such as Indo-European
languages, and that we should apply the principles derived from
such a study to American Indian languages in determining the
stocks. The methodical error in such a procedure lies in this,
namely, that there are less than a half a dozen, different stocks in

224 michelson: American Indian languages

the entire world of which we have records going back continu-
ously for more than a thousand years. The percentage of the
total stocks so transmitted is altogether too small to afford
a firm and sure foundation for such a mode of action. If we
could establish from a minute study of the dialects of some dozens
of stocks that the kind of differentiation, etc., was on the whole
of a similar nature in these stocks, we would be entirely justified
in applying the principles derived from such a study to the
determination of the limits of stocks in American Indian lan-
guages and other stocks as well. Unfortunately such a study
has not been made, nor is there any prospect of it being done in
the immediate future.

We have a similar difficulty in the reconstruction of parent-
languages of American Indian linguistic stocks. In the case of
Indo-European languages we again can take advantage of
principles derived from a study of the historical development
of the separate members of the stock, and apply the results to
the prehistoric period. We can not do this in the case of Ameri-
can Indian languages. The nearest approach to this would be
a very minute study of the dialects of known stocks. In some
cases there is no doubt that this would even largely counter-
balance the difficulty spoken of. For example, most of the
dialects of the Algonquian stock are so closely related that it
can readily be ascertained in at least many cases what is archaic
and what is secondary. Thus it is certain that the Fox e and i
vowels are more primitive than the Ojibwa i vowel, and that the
terminal vowels preserved in Fox, Sauk, Kickapoo, Shawnee,
and Peoria, but not appearing in Ojibwa, Ottawa, Potawatomi,
etc., are archiac.2 Hence these features are to be ascribed to the
Algonquian parent language. However, we can not know that
precise quality of the prehistoric e and i vowels. Similarly the
combination of a sibilant followed by a surd stop in Cree is
more archaic than the correspondents in many of the related
languages, and so is to be likewise ascribed to the parent lan-
guage. (The actual proof that the Cree combination is more

2 Amer. Anthrop. N. S., 15: 470. 1913; this Journal, 4: 403. 1914; Ann. Rep.
Bur. Amer. Ethnol., 28: 247. 1912.

michelson: American Indian languages 225

archaic is too complicated to be given here, as it would of
necessity be altogether disproportionate to the length of this
paper.) Naturally, in some instances, absolute proof would be
wanting. Thus in certain cases Ojibwa nd corresponds to Cree
and Menominee % Fox t. It can be easily shown that the Fox t
in this case is in all probability unoriginal; and most philologists
will assume that Ojibwa nd is more archaic than Cree and Me-
nominee 't. But probability and assumption are not the same
as proof.

A further obstacle to the reconstruction of the parent languages
of American Indian stocks is our frequent inability to formulate
phonetic laws in a manner such as is demanded by all modern
Indo-European philologists. These contend that phonetic laws
in themselves admit of no exceptions ; and that wherever we find
apparent exceptions, there is some extraneous reason, or reasons.
The historical study of the individual Indo-European languages
shows that analogy and the like have been potent factors in
transforming them, and are fully as important as the actions of
phonetic laws. For example late Latin potebam is not a phonetic
transformation of Latin poteram, but is due to the influence
of other imperfects in bam preceded by a long vowel. For this
reason we are justified in extending the principles derived in this
manner to the prehistoric period, to harmonize discrepancies
among the historical languages which cannot be accounted for
by phonetic laws. Thus the Italic languages have an ablative
singular of a stems in ad (retained in Oscan and early Latin;
final d lost in classical Latin by phonetic law). The collective
study of Indo-European languages shows conclusively that the
ablative singular of a stems was the same in form as the genitive.
Since the same study demonstrates that o stems in the Indo-
European parent language had an ablative singular in od (pre-
served in early Latin; d lost phonetically in classical Latin),
and that no other stems in the Indo-European parent language
had a special case form for the ablative singular; and since we
know that in historica' Indo-European languages analogy has
been a potent transforming factor, we have an entirely legitimate
right to assume that the Italic languages deve'oped an ad abla-

226 michelson: American Indian languages

tive singular for a stems by the influence of the od ablative singu-
lar of o stems. In one sense the proof is not absolute, but it is
as absolute as it is possible to give when dealing with prehistoric
phenomena. It must be admitted that at times even Indo-
European philology is at sea, and that pure'y subjective specula-
tion may come into play. Happily these instances are rare.
These remarks are inserted because although the facts are well-
known to Indo-Europeanists, they are largely unknown to
Americanists.

The bearing the above has on the problems of American
linguistics is this: since American Indian languages have not
been transmitted to us in the manner that Indo-European
languages have, we do not know what has disturbed phonetic
laws in many given cases, and for the methodical reasons out-
lined above, we are not justified in assuming that the same
influences have been at work in American Indian languages as
in Indo-European languages. Herein lies our difficulty in formu-
lating phonetic laws that are entirely satisfactory to the Indo-
Europeanist. For example, n becomes c in Fox before i which
is a new morphological element ; it remains if the i is not such an
element. There are some specific grammatical categories in
which the law does not work. A study of several related dialects
shows that this change also takes place in them, and hence must
be very old. At the same time the apparent exceptions have not
been explained. Whether they ever will be, is questionable.
Yet an Americanist does not object to the formulation of the
law as it works in practice. The Indo-Europeanist will object
vigorously to such a formulation as it is contrary to his accepted
canons. If the canons of Indo-European philologists be accepted,
it is quite evident Americanists can not reconstruct the parent
languages of American Indian stocks in an entirely satisfactory
manner. However, most Americanists are far more interested
in observing actual phonetic correspondences and the like be-
tween the different dialects of linguistic stocks as they actually
occur, than in speculations which from the nature of the case
must rest upon rather slim foundations. It may also be noted
in this connection that Indo-Europeanists have begun to interest

michelson: ameeican Indian languages 227

themselves more with the linguistic problems of historical lan-
guages, and less with the remote Indo-European parent language.

Let us return again to the question of the multiplicity of Ameri-
can stocks. As stated above, .this is today almost without parallel.
However it does not follow that this has always been the case.
In Europe we know definitely that Etruscan has been wiped out ;
but we do not know how many distinct stocks were obliterated
by the spread of Indo-European languages. It is entirely pos-
sible that many have been so obliterated. If they have, we have
then a case quite analogous to the situation in America. But
this is merely speculation. The problem may be approached
from a different point of view. There is no reason to suppose
that the migration from Asia was all from a single stock, in other
words, that the differentiation has all been on American soil.
Were that the case, in spite of the enormous lapse of time, surely
we would be able to find at least one striking morphological trait
common to all American Indian languages, for the morphology
of a language is its most permanent feature.

Though, as intimated above, we have an apparent multiplicity
of stocks which can not be reduced, nevertheless a number have
resemblances to each other. An example is Siouan and Musko-
gean. The question resolves itself to this: Are these resem-
blances indicative of a common origin so remote that it is no longer
possible absolutely to prove it, or are such similarities due to
borrowings? To settle the question we must know what may
be borrowed. That sounds may be borrowed across extremely
divergent linguistic stocks is abundantly proved by the languages
of the Northwest coast where we have the condition that lan-
guages whose morphology and vocabulary are distinct have prac-
tically the same phonetic elements. That vocabulary may be
borrowed across linguistic stocks is too well-known to require
illustration. That syntax may be borrowed across linguistic
stocks is shown by the languages of Mexico where Spanish
syntax has patently influenced that of American Indian languages.
At this point we may ask a question, namely, can morphological
features be borrowed? This is one of the most pressing problems
of linguistic science awaiting solution. Unfortunately we have

228 michelson: American Indian languages

little material at hand definitely to prove or disprove it. Such
as we have tends strongly to establish it. For example it is
patent that the post-positions of Wishram (Chinookan stock)
are due to the influence of Sahaptian, a distinct though contigu-
ous stock. Similarly, classifiers are common to the Salishan,
Wakashan, Chimmesyan, Koluschan, and Skittagetan stocks
which are at the same time contiguous. One may suspect,
indeed, that the first pair, and similarly the last pair, have differ-
entiated from a common ancestor. Yet at the very best we
would have a single striking morphological trait spread through-
out three stocks which otherwise have nothing in common in
either morphology or vocabulary, but only have resemblances
in sounds. It is too great a strain on the imagination to believe
that this is wholly the result of chance. If the accepted defini-
tion of stock is to remain, namely, a stock consist of one or more
languages all of whose sounds, morphology, syntax, and vocab-
ulary genetically have descended from a single ancestor, we
must admit at once that this trait which is held in common, is
due to borrowing. For the differences in vocabulary and
morphology are so enormous that it is inconceivable that the
present differences are solely due to later differentiation. The
vocabulary and morphology which cannot be explained at pres-
ent are just as important as the extremely small percentage
that can. There are a few other cases in which morphological
borrowings between stocks is plausible, but they are entirely
too few in number to warrant us at present in applying the prin-
ciple broadcast. So we have t© content ourselves in the mean-
while in pointing out structural resemblances between stocks,
such as between Esquimoan and Algonquian, which resemble
each other strikingly in their pronominal systems, and to a much
less extent in the building up of verbal stems, in the hope that
a careful and minute study of all the dialects of such stocks may
enable us definitely to affirm whether such traits are due to early
differentiation from a common remote ancestor or to compara-
tivoly recent borrowings.

It must be admitted that recently there has been a decided
tendency among Americanists to consolidate such stocks as

MICHELSON AMERICAN INDIAN LANGUAGES 229

show only a moderate amount of common lexical and morpho-
logical resemblances. In some cases, such as Uto-Aztecan, it
must be conceded that the burden of proof is now definitely
on those who maintain that the two "stocks" are true distinct
stocks, and not differentiations from a common ancestor. It is
on the other hand equally certain that the genetic connection
has not been established with absolute nicety. In the same man-
ner Athapascan, Koluschan, and Skittagetan are almost certainly
genetically related. Their morphological resemblances are so nu-
merous and so special that it is incredible that they are due solely
to borrowings, and not to genetic relationship. However, the
amount of lexical material the three have in common is an ex-
ceedingly small percentage of their total vocabulary. The
extremely large percentage of the unexplained lexical material
forces us to admit that this has been derived from outside
sources, and with our present definition of "stock," a purely
genetic relationship between the three breaks down. After all,
our difficulties all hinge on our definition of "stock," and the
proofs necessary to show that one or more languages constitute
such a "stock." Though the definition of "stock" given above,
may be rigorously correct, the actual application of it would
practically obliterate the total number of "stocks" in the world,
and we should be worse off than ever. For in that sense, there
are few, if any, languages which constitute a stock. In the
writer's opinion philologists have taken over biologists' concepts
without inquiring whether they are suitable to their own science.
"Stock" must be redefined in a way that has some real meaning,
and some term or terms invented to cover those larger groups
which apparently are only remotely related, which may be re-
lated in sounds, morphology, syntax, and vocabulary, but not
all combined as a unit. It goes without saying that the
nature of the proofs then demanded will be in accordance
with our definitions.

To revert to a point brought out above. If the morphology
of 'anguages can not be borrowed, with scrupulous nicety we
must assume an enormous number of distinct stocks at the very
dawn of man, which certainly is not plausible. If on the other

230 michelson: American Indian languages

hand, sounds, morphology, syntax, and vocabulary have no
innate connection (vide supra) then we would have a series of
various borrowings instead of "stock" in its present sense. It
may be well however, to state that no matter how "stock"
is defined at present, it certainly is not used in that sense alone,
but in a more loose way, almost according to the whim of the
author.

The most decisive proof that two or more languages belong
to the same stock, used in a somewhat free sense, is numerous
and detailed resemblances in their structures. A large per-
centage of vocabulary held in common is a welcome additional
proof. The most decisive proof that a single language constitutes
a special stock is numerous unique morphological features. No
amount of purely lexical resemblances between languages, no
matter how far apart geographically, would prove that they
belonged to a single stock. For, experience has shown us that
vocabulary is very often borrowed in large amounts, and hence
is not a good criterion. If the tribes were far apart geograph-
ically, that would not preclude the possibility that in prehistoric
times they had been in contact, and at that time extensive
borrowing had taken place. Another reason why vocabulary is
not a good criterion is that the number of words in even distinct
stocks that superficially resemble each other is really consider-
able. An example is Sanskrit (Indo-European stock) dsan-,
Fox (Algonquian stock) asem, both meaning "stone." Compari-
sons of vocabulary are only valuable when we know that the
morphology of the languages compared are the same, or at least
very similar. Otherwise we should not know whether we were
dealing with comparable elements, even if the words in their
totality resembled each other. For example, the comparison
of the pronoun Avestan cist Greek Hs, Latin quis, Oscan pis,
all meaning "who," is entirely justifiable, because the structure
of all four languages is fundamentally the same; and, which is
also important, it has been shown that though these words
apparently resemble each other only slightly, yet as a matter of
fact the correspondence of the various sounds forming these
words is precisely what we should expect from our knowledge

michelson: American Indian languages 231

of comparative Indo-European phonology. Another example
of a case where words of two different stocks superficially re-
semble each other is Sanskrit nasta- "dead," Fox ne'tow"
"he kills." It will be recalled that the combination of a sibilant
followed by t appears as H in Fox. As soon as we note that
Sanskrit nasta- is composed of the elements nas-\-ta- and Fox
ne'tow0, of the elements ne+ 'to-\-wa, the comparison ceases to
interest us. [The Fox word can, as I think, be reduced still
further in analysis, but this only still further emphasizes the
point at issue.] We should exercise the same prudence in com-
paring morphological elements. For example the verbal termina-
tion of Latin in the third person singular is t which superficiary
resembles Tsimshian t, to say nothing of similar terminations in
various Algonquian dialects. Again Greek nev, the verbal
termination of the first person plural, has an entirely fortuitous
resemblance to Ojibwa min in ni — min, ki — min of the inde-
pendent mode.

Turning now to the classification of the languages belonging
to single stocks, — it must be said that very little work has been
done on this important topic in American linguistics. The
three stocks of which we have the best knowledge in this respect
are Salishan, Siouan, and Algonquian. To a certain extent
the classification is arbitrary. We select a number of salient
features and base our classification on it. In most cases we have
overlappings which are indicative of more than one association.
For example, Peoria fundamentally belongs with the Ojibwa
division of Central Algonquian languages ; at the same time there
are certain traits which clearly prove that it has also had an
association with the Sauk, Fox, Kickapoo group, also one with
Cree; and there are some indications of contact with Delaware-
Munsee. Nevertheless in spite of such short comings, we can
make classifications which are entirely satisfactory even to the
Indo-European philologist. The object of our classifications
is to determine the prehistory of the tribes of any given stock.
For example, the Abnaki dialects exhibit so many .special traits
in common with Shawnee, as wel as Sauk, Fox, Kickapoo,
that it is absolutely certain that in prehistoric times the tribes

232 michelson: American Indian languages

speaking these dialects have been in long and intimate contact.
In the same way the Central Algonquian dialects are all so
closely related, that it is evident that the place of diffusion must
have been of limited area. The present geographical distri-
bution of the tribes is insignificant in comparison with the evi-
dence obtained by linguistic procedure. Nevertheless it has its
value. It can not be accident that the most divergent Algon-
quian languages are spoken at the extreme western boundary
of the stock.

This last brings us to the question of whether the differentiation
of a stock into various dialects is due to evolution without ex-
ternal influence or whether it is due to linguistic shock. To
this we reply that every case must be judged on its own merits.
Peoria, though spoken today by only a handful of people, has
been and is, exposed to far greater linguistic shock than Ojibwa
which is spoken by several thousand persons ; and, notwithstand-
ing, is in many essential points a far more archaic language than
Ojibwa. At the same time its diverse affinities indicate a series
of shocks. Similarly, it can hardly be doubted that the diver-
gent character of Aleutian (Esquimauan stock) is due to such
shock. It should be candidly admitted that our studies in
American linguistics have not yet reached a point where these
problems can be answered in a thoroughly satisfactory manner.

It will be remembered that we are not in the position of the Indo-
European philologist who can observe what has happened in the
differentiation of dialects in a space of several centuries, and
thereby draw legitimate inferences as to what happened in the
prehistoric period. We also lack good time-measures; so we
can not tell how long it has taken such and such a dialect to
differentiate itself from its kindred. In this connection it should
be stated that the Indian words cited by early travellers and
missionaries are so badly recorded, that if the language from which
the word is cited, is still extant, ordinarily we can do far better
with the words spoken today. The methodical error of using
the analogy of Indo-European languages in solving the points at
issue, has been shown above. Our guesses from such inferences
might be very happy, but they would remain guesses, not proved

michelson: American Indian languages 233

facts. Our whole endeavor should be to place American lin-
guistics on a rigid scientific basis, not upon a foundation of
guesses. If I have spoken strongly on this point it is because
some of the most eminent Americanists apparently desire to do
the latter. They wish, without sufficient reserve, to consolidate
stocks that apparently resemble each other, and are content to
leave it to the next man to prove or disprove their cases. I do
not deny that very likely they have made some extremely happy
guesses, but I do deny that the evidence thus far produced, has
been of such a nature as to compel acquiescence in all the results
they claim to have obtained.

The opponents of the views here expressed will reply that the
proofs demanded are more suitable to the so-called exact sciences
than they are to philology; that if such a program be adhered to,
we can not possibly hope to accomplish our task, as the languages
are rapidly disappearing; that they are interested only in great
facts, not minutiae; and that Indo-European philologists con-
cern themselves largely with the latter simply because the great
facts of Indo-European philology are known, and hence there is
nothing else left for them to busy themselves with. To all of
which the following rejoinder maybe made: The proofs demanded
may possibly be more rigid than those the Indo-Europeanists
ordinarily demand, but it should be noted that every year the
proofs demanded by the latter are becoming more and more
rigorous, so that the disparity is after all being rapidly reduced,
and in time doubtless the proofs demanded by philology will
be fully comparable to those demanded by the exact sciences;
that there is no advantage in erecting a magnificent edifice
on such a weak foundation that it may topple over any minute;
it is better to do even a little, and that portion well; and lastly,
though it may be granted that Indo-Europeanists today are
primarily concerned with minutiae, the discoveries of Grimm,
Grassmann, Verner, Brugmann, Collitz, Schmidt, Ascoli, de
Saussure — all of which were due to more rigorous methods —
are of capital importance; and lastly it should be observed that
centuries of quasi-scientific study of languages preceded the
discovery of the genetic relationship of Indo-European languages,

234 michelson: American Indian languages

which of course will be counted as the great fact of Indo-European
philology.

To change to a different topic. The study of American Indian
languages will show that there is no such thing as superiority
in language. They all possess the necessary machinery to
express the most complicated ideas. The point is simply that
what is grammar in one language may be vocabulary in another,
and vice versa. For example there are no prepositions in Algon-
quian languages, but what we call prepositions are expressed by
grammatical processes or special features in vocabulary. Thus
"on" will be expressed by the locative case. "To come in" in
Fox is piti, "to go out" is nowi. Nor is the language of primitive
peoples indicative of low mentality. Thus Fox has but two
fractions, one-half and one-quarter. It does not follow at all
that the Fox Indians can not conceive of other fractions. As a
matter of fact they can. The point is that ordinarily their life
is such that there is no necessity for expressing them. I have
tested this again and again by asking interpreters how to say,
"Give me a third of that pie," and the like. In every case they
were able without the slightest hesitation to render the idea,
though not the precise words. I mention this simply because
Gobineau apparently still has a goodly number of followers and
admirers.

In conclusion, the study of American Indian languages is an
extremely attractive field for students of general linguistics;
and one that as yet is almost virgin soil. By their study the
Indo-European specialist will find his scope vastly broadened,
especially in the so-called philosophical bearings of his science.
The American ethnologist who neglects their study, places him-
self wholly at the mercy of interpreters; or at the best must
rely on the ipse dixit of his wiser colleagues. For these reasons
their scientific study should be fostered in every possible way.

ABSTRACTS

Authors of scientific papers are requested to see that abstracts, preferably
prepared and signed by themselves, are forwarded promptly to the editors.
Each of the scientific bureaus in Washington has a representative authorized to
forward such material to this journal and abstracts of official publications should
be transmitted through the representative of the bureau in which they originate.
The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those appearing in
this issue.

GEOLOGY. — Structure of the Vicksburg-Jackson area, Mississippi.
Oltver B. Hopkins. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin 641-D.
Pp. 93-120, with 1 plate. 1916. *

The object of this report is to show which of the areas in west-
central Mississippi that were examined by the Survey are considered
favorable and which unfavorable for the occurrence of oil, to discourage
drilling in the unfavorable localities, and thus to aid those interested
in making conclusive tests to determine the presence or absence of oil
and gas.

All the rocks of the area are sedimentary in origin and are relatively
young, the exposed rocks ranging in age from Claiborne (Eocene) to
Recent. Of these formations the loess and the Jackson underlie by
far the greater part of the area, and the Vicksburg and Catahoula
formations and the terrace sand and gravel underlie smaller areas.

The genera] structure of the Gulf coastal plain is simple. A series
of beds slopes gently southward and passes successively deeper and
deeper beneath more recent deposits toward the coast. This general
dip toward the coast is interrupted by local steepening or flattening
and in a few places by a reversal in direction. These irregularities of
dip, which are of greatest significance in the accumulation of oil and
gas in valuable pools, are well illustrated in the Vicksburg-Jackson
area. The geologic structure is represented on a map by contours on
the Vicksburg limestone. The possibilities of oil and gas occurring in
the area are dicussed and the most promising areas for prospecting
are pointed out. R- W. S.

235

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

THE PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 785th Meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, March 3, 1917.
Vice President Humphreys in the chair; 49 persons present. The
minutes of the 784th meeting were read in abstract and approved.

By invitation, Mr. A. H. Pfund presented an illustrated communica-
tion on, The colors of mother-of-pearl. At the request of the U. S. Bureau
of Fisheries the following work was undertaken to ascertain the cause
of the iridescence of mother-of-pearl. While this subject has been
studied before, the results have been largely of a qualitative nature.
By extending the observations into the infra-red region of the spectrum
where conditions are much simplified, the author has succeeded in
obtaining quantitative measurements which substantiate the explana-
tion of the colors of mother-of-pearl as given by Sir David Brewster.

Under the microscope, a thin section of the shell of a fresh-water
mussel is seen to consist of three layers — the inner one being the true
mother-of-pearl (nacreous matter). This, in turn, consists of innumer-
able thin layers of CaC03 separated by extremely thin layers of organic
matter. As the shell grows, successive layers of nacreous matter are
deposited on the inside of the shell — each layer projecting slightly be-
yond the terminal edge of its predecessor. Hence the outside of the
nacreous layer will present closely spaced steps or ridges running parallel
to the growing edge of the shell. Such a surface structure is identical
with that of a diffraction grating, and hence diffraction colors ought to
exist. By laying bare the outer surface of the nacreous matter and
depositing an opaque layer of silver on it, striking diffraction colors are
seen. This surface structure may be studied most readily by means of
celluloid casts or replicas of the surface. These replicas show brilliant
diffraction colors. Under the microscope the individual lines may be
seen and the spacing may be determined. While this is subject to wide
variations, the range of spacing observed on the outside of the shell
of a fresh-water mussel ranges from 6000 to 25,000 lines per inch. As
might be expected, no trace of such a grating-like structure is obtained
from the inside of the shell.

As a rule, the diffraction colors are rather inconspicuous, being
masked by the blaze of colored light from underlying regions. Since
this light is due to reflections from the numerous laminae and since
these are parallel and sensibly equi-distant, coloration due to inter-
ference might be expected. According to the usual theory, the optical

236

proceedings: philosophical society 237

retardation of two beams reflected from two successive layers is 2/xe cos r
where e is the thickness of the layer, /j. the refractive index and r the
angle of incidence. If this retardation is a whole number of wave-
lengths, constructive interference will take place. thence maxima of
intensity will exist when

2/j.e cos r = Xi, 2X2, 3X3
etc., where X2 = -^ and X3 = -5-

Such maxima were looked for by reflecting white light from the
polished surface of nacreous matter and by measuring the intensities
in the various spectral regions by means of a spectrometer and vacuum
thermo-couple. Since the interference maxima are most widely sepa-
rated and are sharpest in the infra-red, the observations were carried
out in this spectral region. Results obtained from brilliantly colored
specimens were entirely in agreement with the above theory, i.e., the
wave-lengths of the interference maxima were in the ratio 1:|: £.
This quantitative determination proves definitely that the brilliant
iridescence of mother-of-pearl is due to interference.

By determining the refractive index of the nacreous matter, it was
found possible to determine the actual thickness of the laminae. The
results, which differed somewhat for different specimens, showed that
the thickness is of the order 0.4-0. Q/j..

Discussion. The paper was discussed by Messrs. Sosman and
Wright. Mr. Pfund was of the opinion that the number of layers
of material in the shells examined was too great to correspond with the
number of days or with the number of tides occurring during the life
of the shell.

Mr. W. F. Meggers then presented an illustrated paper on Inter-
ference measurements of wave-lengths, and infra-red spectrum photog-
raphy. Interference measurements of wave-lengths in the portion
of the iron arc spectrum in which the International Secondary standards
exist (3233 A to 6750 A) have been made at the Bureau of Standards.
The wave-lengths of about 320 lines were compared with those of the

85 secondary standards by the interferometer method of Fabry and
Perot. The average interval between standards was thus reduced
from 40 A to 8 A, making accurate interpolation easier. Whereas

86 per cent of the secondary standards have intensities 4 to 6 inclusive,
only 47 per cent of the new lines have these intensities, the remainder
being distributed among fainter and stronger lines. This makes it
possible to photograph sufficient standards with a wider latitude of
exposure.

Similar measurements were made in the spectra of the rare gases,
helium, neon, argon, krypton, and xenon. The wave-lengths were
compared with the fundamental spectroscopic standard (wave-length
of red radiation from cadmium = 6438.4696 A). The measurements
in the neon spectrum show differences in the numbers of waves per

238

proceedings: philosophical society

centimeter (frequency differences) to be constant to 1 part in several
millions.

An extensive application of these standardized wave-lengths has
been made to an investigation of spectra in the red and adjacent infra-
red regions. The arc spectra of 20 of the chemical elements have been
photographed from 6000 A to 9000 A and beyond. The photographs
were made in the first order spectrum of a concave grating of 640 cm.
radius. Ordinary photographic plates stained in dicyanin solution
were used and found to be quite sensitive to the long waves. Wave-
length measurements on the international scale have been made in
these spectra and most of the frequency differences in the spectra of
the alkali metals are shown to be constant to 1 part in several hundred
thousand of the wave number.

Mr. F. E. Fowle presented an illustrated paper on Spectroscopic
field light. When a spectrum is formed the energy observed at any
wave-length is not simply what is proper to that wave-length but it
is diminished by a portion scattered into other parts of the spectrum

TABLE 1
Spectroscopic Field Light

1. Wave-length in fx

2. Deviation in minutes.

3. Quartz transmits

4. Ditto corrected

5. Total field light

6. Black-body radiation..

7. Nernst-lamp radiation

1.8

5.7

7.0

8.0

10.0

12.0

14.0

0

10

15

20

30

45

60

85,000

206

117

85

50

27

17

100,000

242

141

100

59

30

20

244

146

107

66

33

22

100,000

5000

1800

1000

400

140

65

100,000

5000

1800

1000

400

140

50

17.5
100

8
10
11
20

2

and increased by portions scattered in from other regions. In measure-
ments in long-wave spectra this scattered radiation or field light may
become very important and troublesome. Rock-salt prismatic energy
curves were made of the radiation from a Nernst lamp with a half-
centimeter thick quartz plate inserted between the energy source and
the silt of the spectroscope. The quartz is nearly transparent for
light waves less than 4/z in length, and opaque for those longer. The
resulting energy curves consisted of two parts of quite different signi-
ficance: 1st, a nearly symmetrical sharp maximum, the energy curve
of the source to 4^; 2nd, beyond this the energy curve of the light
scattered from this region into that for which quartz is opaque. This
central maximum with a wing-like appendage on each side was assumed
to represent closely the energy curve of a monochromatic line with the
radiation scattered to each side in the spectrum. This curve was
used to compute the energy scattered into and away from each region
of the spectrum. A summary of the results is given in Table 1 in
which the captions in the first column have the following significance:
(1) Wave-lengths in millionths of a meter m; (2) Deviation differ-
ences in minutes of arc, 15° rock-salt spectrum, zero deviation at 1.8m;

proceedings: biological society 239

(3) Nernst-lamp spectrum observed through a \ cm. quartz plate;

(4) Ditto corrected to allow for the reflections from the surfaces of the
quartz plate; nearly equivalent to ordinates of the energy curve of a
monochromatic line with the energy scattered to the long-wave side;

(5) Total field light which would be expected in the spectrum of a
Nernst lamp when the intensity of the latter is 100,000 at 1.8m (see
line 7); (6) Computed relative intensities in black-body spectrum of
a body at 2200°K radiating to one at 300°K; (7) Corrected observed
intensities of Nernst-lamp spectrum approximating the conditions of
line 6 but differing for wave-lengths greater than 12/z because of the
increasing absorption of energy in the rock-salt plate closing the vacuum
bolometer case and in the prism, and the decreasing absorption by the
lamp-blacked surface of the bolometer strip. The intensity of the
scattered energy is really very small in any given region although the
total amount lost from any region amounts to about 3 per cent of the
true intensity of the region. At an angle of 10 minutes from the di-
rection in which the beam is normally reflected the intensity of the
scattered energy is only about 0.2 of 1 per cent of that of the main
image. It will be noted in the table that at 17.5/x the field light is
over five times the true-energy in the lamp spectrum. From a badly
tarnished mirror the increase in scattered light is relatively greater
for greater deviations from the main image. (This paper will probably
appear in the Astrophysical Journal.)

Discussion. Mr. C. G. Abbot commented on the large amount of
work necessary to obtain the results presented.

Informal communications. Mr. C. G. Abbot spoke of difficulties in
producing satisfactory damping in galvanometers, and Mr. W. P.
White mentioned a variation in damping with the magnitude of the
deflection, that would seem to be clue to the damping effect of the air
in the clearance space between the armature and the pole pieces.

Donald H. Sw'eet, Secretary.

THE BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 567th regular meeting of the Society was held in the Assembly
Hall of the Cosmos Club, Saturday March 10, 1917; called to order by
President Hay at 8 p.m.; 45 persons in attendance.

On recommendation of the Council, Mrs. L. O. Howard and Dr.
Martha Brewer Lyon were elected to active membership.

Under the heading book notices, brief notes, etc., Dr. H. M. Smith
exhibited a manuscript and hand-illustrated book dealing with beetles.
It was about 60 years old. Dr. Smith presented it to Dr. L. O. Howard.
Prof. W. P. Hay presented some notes on the flying squirrels of this
vicinity with observations on their habits and behavior as pets. Dr.
H. E. Ames called attention to a newspaper clipping recording the
flight of two tagged ducks a distance of 2000 miles in about 60 hours.
He sought verification of the statement.

240 proceedings: biological society

The regular program consisted of two communications:
M. W. Lyon, Jr.: Precipitins. Dr. Lyon described an antibeef-
serum he had lately prepared, and set up a series of test tubes contain-
ing dilutions of beef, sheep, hog, and human serums. He demonstrated
the action of the antibeef-serum on these, the specific precipitation
when added to the diluted beef serum, the group precipitation with
diluted sheep serum, and the non-precipitation with diluted hog and
human serums. He mentioned briefly the history and theory of pre-
cipitating serums and explained their use in identifying suspected
animal proteins and in showing the blood relations of various animals.
In discussing this communication A. H. Jennings explained how he
had made use of the precipitin reaction in determining the kinds of
animals bitten by biting flies. Dr. George W. Field and H. F.
Taylor also took part in the discussion.

William Palmer: Porpoises and steamers. Mr. Palmer com-
mented on the frequency with which porpoises are found about the
bows of steamers and advanced explanations as to their presence there
and as to their methods of progression. His communication was
illustrated by diagrams and lantern views of porpoises and other
cetaceans. It was discussed by Dr. H. E. Ames.

M. W. Lyon, Jr., Recording Secretary.

JOURNAL

OK THK

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIKNCES

Vol. VII MAY 4, 1917 No. 9

GEOPHYSICS. — Live aa lava at Kilauea. T. A. Jaggar, Jr.,
Hawaiian Volcano Observatory. (Communicated by Arthur
L. Day.)

In a paper yet unpublished1 the writer maintains, from meas-
urement and experiment, that the Kilauea lava column is two-
fold, a main semisolid incandescent body or "bench magma,"
filling the Halemaumau pit shaft from side to side for an un-
known depth, and a minor shallow liquid lava body or "lake
magma," which circulates through several small vertical shafts
10 to 30 metres in diameter. These act as conduits and sink-
holes below a saucer 8 to 15 metres deep in the bench magma
column, this being the well known "lava lake." The lake
magma exhibits a convectional circulation, more rapid than
that of the bench magma. It builds the bench magma by over-
flow and bottom accretion during rising, and uncovers its bottom
partially by more rapid subsidence during sinking. The border
benches and islands are of crusted protuberant bench magma
and are incandescent and mobile within. In the bench magma,
under overflooding a,nd its opposite (unloading by the sinking
away of the lake), a slow circulation is discernible, which re-
sembles isostatic adjustment in its mechanism.

Under an adjustment of this kind, after subsidence prior to
the equinoctial low level of March, 1917, when the lake bottom
had been unloaded by a sinking of the lake magma, some 12

1 Sent to the American Journal of Science.

241

242 jaggar: aa lava at kilauea

metres in excess of the sinking of the bench magma (lake bot-
tom), a towering uptilted bench crag on the east side of the in-
terior of Halemaumau subsided 9 metres in the course of twelve
hours, and opposite to it in the lake a low flat island rose 12
metres, becoming in one night a towering flat-topped, steep-
sided mass. Flow from beneath the crag was compensated by
upfiow beneath the island, the distortion affecting, not the lava
lake, but the lake bottom. At that time the lake near this
island was possibly not more than 5 metres deep, proved by
subsequent uncovering of the bottom locally. Simultaneously
other parts of the bench subsided and island features rose, cor-
roborating by survey the equilibrium relation shown by this
extraordinary east island.

Rising began on March 20, 1917, and on March 24 the writer
crossed the now solid arch of crust which had formed by con-
gelation and overflow between the east shore of the lake and
the island, and examined the base of this monolith. It proved
to be aa or block lava. This is the first identification of actual
aa under formative conditions in Halemaumau pit known to
the writer, though aa exists as rare flows on the floor of the
greater crater of Kilauea. It occurs also as graduation forms
of the dominant pahoehoe, notably on the west lip of over-
flow, or rampart of Halemaumau, last actively overflowing when
the lava in the pit reached its highest and receded in 1894.

This east island has been figured.'2 The depression of the
lake below the rim of the pit at the time of the sudden lift of
the island was about 29 metres. The flat elongate islet from
which it arose had been 66 metres long on February 14, but only
the southern half of this was raised into the new tabular mass,
the remainder forming a tumble of pinnacles which extended it
northward. The tabular elevation was 25 metres across the
top and subcircular. The top was bounded by a vertical cliff
3 metres deep showing horizontal layers of pahoehoe made by
lake flooding dunng fluctuations of the lake level, while the
island was low and at or near the lake level. Below was the

-- Bull. Hawaiian Vole. Obs.. Feb., 1917.

STEPHENSON: TONGUE, A NEW TERM 243

aa pedestal sloping outward steeply, scored vertically in places,
9 metres high above lake level, and showing a rough scaly ap-
pearance of greenish black color. At lake level its diameter
was approximately 45 metres.

The flat islet from which this mass was raised was first noticed
February 8, 1917, after 9 metres of subsidence of the lake from
its highest level of February 1. The island then appeared as
a shoal 60 metres out from the shore in the northern part of
the lake, and was supposed to be the product of collapse of a
shore point of the eastern bench, which had in turn emerged
first as an islet in November, 1916. The locus of the final tab-
ular mass was farther south than either of these.

There is little to be said at this time about the lithology of
the aa. It is a heavy block lava which consists of the usual
complete, scoriaceous, vesicular units in the talus 5 to 30 cm. in
diameter, showing no fracture surfaces, and of reddish or green-
ish brown color. In the wall the rock is in places grooved ver-
tically like scraped wax, a steel-grey rough substance, and over-
hanging drip bodies are hard, scoriaceous and quite like the
block units. The material is nowhere ropy or membranous like
pahoehoe, and has not the slightest resemblance to the crusts
and overflows of the lake. It is very similar to the aa flow which
was ejected from Mauna Loa in 1916. 3

STRATIGRAPHY. — Tongue, a new stratigraphic term, with
illustrations from the Mississippi Cretaceous. ] Lloyd Wil-
liam Stephenson, Geological Survey.

The stratigrapher is at times confronted with the problem of
adequately treating certain tongue-like extensions of one for-
mation into contemporaneous deposits of different lithologic
character and belonging to another formation.

A simple hypothetical case is diagrammatically shown in
figure 1.

3 Amer. Journ. Sci., March, 1917.

1 Published with the permission of the Director of the United States Geologi-
cal Survey, and of the Director of the Mississippi State Geological Survey.

244 STEPHENSON: TONGUE, A NEW TERM

Sedimentation began in this assumed area with the deposition
of sand, formation A ; later clay, the base of formation B, began
to be deposited on the left and as far to the right as a, while
sand was still accumulating on the extreme right; as time
proceeded the sand-forming conditions shifted to the left and
upward as far as b, followed by a shifting of the clay forming
conditions to the right entirely across the area, the latter con-
tinuing until all of formation B had been produced. The shift-
ing of the two types of sedimentation resulted in the formation

.

^ZF^Z=^£3^

b^^

=B^^

r ormation-

~z-^r~—

- — .

:r^^^-=^

— — _

Z^-_^=L

^^^^^r^L^^^^^

^Tdngue'

^x_

==_T~ongue

y

anon

-.a'. ■/•.'.•.

■ ::•'/.•./•'■•' ■■':'':''■■'■ •.'•'.'■''■ '.■.■■;.■'•:••::

Form

Fig. 1. Diagram showing the relation of tongues to formations.

of a body of clay x projecting into the sand formation A, and
a corresponding body of sand y projecting into the clay forma-
tion B.

So long as such features are relatively small, that is, less than
4 or 5 feet thick and less than a mile long, they can, as a rule,
be disregarded in geologic mapping without seriously distorting
the facts. There is also no difficulty in their treatment when the
area to be mapped does not include the places of junction of
the projections with the main formations, for then the features
can be classed as lentils, members, or even formations, without
apparent inconsistency. But when the projections attain 25 to
200 feet or more in thickness and from a few to many miles in
length, and the areas under consideration are large enough to
show the connection of the projections with the main formations,
the usual methods of mapping compel an arbitrary or even
false representation of the facts.

STEPHENSON: TONGUE, A NEW TERM 245

In the hypothetical case represented by figure 1, the boundary
between formations A and B would have to be represented on a
geological map in part by drawing an arbitrary fine from the
outcrop of the point a to some such point as c on the outcrop of
the contact between the main bodies of sand and clay, treating
y as a sand member or lentil in formation B; or by drawing an
arbitrary line from b to d and treating x as a clay member or
lentil in formation A. In either case the true relations would
be inadequately represented.

It is therefore proposed that such features as x and y in figure
1 be designated "tongues" and that, for convenience of treat-
ment they be given geographic names correlative in rank in
geologic nomenclature with such terms as "member" and "len-
til." In geologic mapping it is proposed to extend the color or
pattern representing the main formation to include the area of
outcrop of the tongue.

Especial emphasis should be laid on the fact that a tongue is
not a member nor a lentil, either one of which differs lithologi-
cally from the typical material composing the formation of
which it forms a part, but is lithologically identical with, or
closely similar to, the formation. The term carries with it the
implication of connection at one end with the main formation,
though the tongue is underlain and overlain by materials litho-
logically different, and belonging to another or other formations.
Theoretically the tongue may end distally in a point ; more often
perhaps the terminus presents a series of minor tongues; or the
material composing the tongue may merge more or less gradually
into the kind of material composing the formation into which
the tongue projects.

In the present stage of development of the subject it is not
possible to set definite dimensional limits to serve as a guide in
determining the features to which the term tongue shall be ap-
plied. Large-scale maps admit of representing relatively small
tongues, that is tongues only a few miles long and a few feet thick.
On the other hand a tongue-like projection as large or even
larger than some of the units to which the terms member and
formation are now applied, may be appropriately called a tongue,

246 STEPHENSON: TONGUE, A NEW TERM

provided the main formation of which it forms a part is rela-
tively much larger. It would seem desirable, however, that the
term should be restricted to projections less than half as thick as
the main formation, for any mass that is of greater thickness
could reasonably be regarded as the continuation of the forma-
tion itself, and as such would require no additional name. In
the particular examples in Mississippi, to be described on sub-
sequent pages, each of the two tongues, the Mooreville tongue
of the Selma chalk and the Tupelo tongue of the Coffee sand
member (see pp. 247-8), are about 20 miles long, one is approxi-
mately 200 feet thick and .the other 100 feet thick. The Oktib-
beha tongue of the Selma chalk (p. 249) is between 50 and 60
miles long and only 25 to 50 feet thick; this seems like a rather
extreme length for a subordinate geologic feature, but when
this tongue is compared with the main formation, the Selma
chalk, which is at least 350 miles long, and where most fully
developed nearly a thousand feet thick, the tongue is a relatively
small feature.

The distance to which a tongue maintains its distinguishing
lithologic character down the dip away from the area of out-
crop need scarcely be considered in determining what features
shall be classed as tongues, any more than the same dimension
is considered with reference to lentils, members, or formations ;
for although changes in conditions of sedimentation oceanward
from a shoreline are always interesting in connection with prob-
lems relating to geologic processes and geologic history, such
factors need not as a rule be taken into account in areal map-
ping and geologic nomenclature.

The method here proposed for treating tongue-like projec-
tions of formations has already met the approval of the geol-
ogists with whom the writer has consulted, for those who have
had extensive experience in geologic mapping recognize that
such features exist, and appreciate the difficulties attendant
upon their treatment according to the usual methods of
presentation.

It seems desirable to present several concrete examples of the
features under consideration to serve in a sense as types for

STEPHENSON: TONGUE, A NEW TERM 247

reference. Four tongues have been differentiated by the writer
in the Cretaceous deposits of the eastern Gulf region, three in
Mississippi, and one in Alabama, each large enough for represen-
tation even on a one to one million scale map. The three
tongues in Mississippi and the major formations and members
with which they are closely interrelated are shown in figure 2.

As the mention of these examples is in effect the introduction
of new geologic names, brief definitions are added. More com-
prehensive definitions and descriptions will appear in a forth-
coming report on the stratigraphy of the Cretaceous deposits of
Mississippi.

Mooreville tongue of Selma chalk. The basal part of the Selma
chalk of east-central Mississippi is represented in northern Mis-
sissippi by contemporaneous non-chalky strata, chiefly sands
with subordinate amounts of clay, belonging to the Coffee sand
member of the Eutaw. The passage from chalk to sand takes
place in western Itawamba and eastern Lee Counties, and is
accomplished by the intertongueing of chalk and sand, and by
the merging of the one kind of deposit into the other. Two
conspicuous tongues are developed, one of impure chalk, here
named the Mooreville tongue, which projects from the basal
part of the chalk northward into the Eutaw type of deposits, and
another of sand, the Tupelo tongue, which extends southward
from the Coffee sand member of the Eutaw formation into the
chalk, the Mooreville tongue below interlocking with the Tupelo
tongue above. These relations are diagrammatically shown in
figure 2.

The material composing the Mooreville tongue consists chiefly
of argillaceous chalk and shaly chalky clay or marl. An expos-
ure along the Fulton road, f mile west of Mooreville, Lee County,
may be regarded as typical. Here the top of the hill is capped
with about 8 feet of red weathered sand of the Tupelo tongue of
the Coffee sand, beneath which in the road cut is about 20 feet
of dark shaly clay from which most of the lime has been dis-
solved and removed by percolating waters, followed in a deep
gully south of the road by about 20 feet of greenish-gray shaly
chalky clay, containing small crystals of gypsum in the joint

248

STEPHENSON! TONGUE, A NEW TERM

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cracks. The thickness of the
Mooreville tongue as shown by
the log of a well near Tupelo is
215 feet.

The Mooreville tongue finds
its physiographic expression in a
subdued topography which is in
contrast to the hilly aspect of
both the area to the west under-
lain by the Tupelo tongue of the
Coffee sand, and the area to the
east underlain by the main body
of the Eutaw formation.

Tupelo tongue of Coffee sand
member The Tupelo tongue of
the Coffee sand member of the
Eutaw is a body of dark gray,
chiefly massive, calcareous, glau-
conitic sand extending south-
ward from the Coffee sand of
northern Lee County into the
main body of the Selma chalk,
being underlain by a correspond-
ing tongue of chalk, the Moore-
ville tongue, which extends north-
ward from the basal part of the
Selma. The Mooreville tongue
loses its identity by merging
into — or minor intertonguing
with — the Coffee sand type of
deposit, in central and northern
Lee County, while the Tupelo
tongue loses its identity by merg-
ing into — or minor intertongu-
ing with — the chalk in southern

STEPHENSON: TONGUE, A NEW TERM 249

Lee County. These relations are graphically shown in figure 2.
An exposure in an abandoned portion of the Fulton road, 1|
miles east of Tupelo, is considered the type section (Table 1),
though the town of Tupelo is itself underlain by the sand be-
neath a relatively thin covering of Pleistocene terrace deposits.

TABLE 1

Section in an Abandoned Portion of the Fulton Road, l£ Miles East op

Tupelo

Eutaw formation (Tupelo tongue of Coffee sand member)
Weathered massive reddish ferruginous marine sand, grading
downward into yellowish-green massive slightly glauconitic
sand

Massive gray, more or less calcerous, glauconitic sand, with sev-
eral widely separated ledges of calcerous sandstone. Gry-
phaea vesicularis (Lamarck) var., abundant in a layer 15 to
25 feet below the top, and Exogyra ponderosa Roemer and
Gryphaea vesicularis (Lamarck) var., fairly abundant in a
layer 10 feet below the top

Feet

30

50

The thickness of the Tupelo tongue as shown by the logs of
wells at and near Tupelo is 100 feet. .

The Tupelo tongue is physiographically expressed by the hills
in its area of outcrop, which contrast with the subdued topog-
raphy of both the area to the west underlain by the Selma
chalk, and the area to the east underlain by the Mooreville
tongue of the Selma.

Oktibbeha tongue of Selma chalk. A long thin tongue of chalk
projects from the extreme top of the Selma chalk in northwes-
tern Noxubee County, northward through the counties of Ok-
tibbeha, Clay, and Chickasaw, conformably above the south-
ward extending nonchalky sands and clays of the Ripley forma-
tion (see fig. 2). This chalk forms the uppermost part of the
Upper Cretaceous and is unconformably overlain by strata of
Midway age (Eocene). The chalk is typically exposed in gul-

250 STEPHENSON: TONGUE, A NEW TERM

lies on the campus of the Agricultural and Mechanical College
near Starkville; on the May hew road, If miles east of Stark-
ville ; and along the Osborn road within 3 miles northeast of Stark-
ville, Oktibbeha County. The exact thickness of the tongue has
not been determined but probably nowhere exceeds 50 feet.
In Table 2 is a description of the section exposed in the May-
hew road.

TABLE 2
Section in Mayhew Road, If Miles East of Starkville

Selma chalk (Oktibbeha tongue) :

Moderately sandy and argillaceous,chalky limestone with many
fossils *

Ripley formation:

Gray, finely micaceous, somewhat calcareous sand, with a few
slightly indurated ledges ■

Moderately sandy, very calcerous clay

Feet

26

20
4

Prairie Bluff tongue of Selma chalk. A tongue of chalk in Ala-
bama, similar to and contemporaneous with the Oktibbeha
tongue of Mississippi, extends eastward from the main body of
the Selma chalk in Marengo County nearly through Wilcox
County, south of and parallel to the westward extending ex-
tremity of the Ripley formation of Alabama. This tongue
appears to be separated from the underlying Ripley sand by an
unconformity, probably representing only a relatively short time
interval. The term Prairie Bluff is applied to this tongue, being
a revival of a name first used in a geologic sense by Winchell-
in 1857, for the chalk or "limestone" exposed in Prairie Bluff,
Wilcox County, Alabama.

2 Winchell, A. Proc. Amer. Assoc. Adv. Sci., 102:84, 90. 1857.

HITCHCOCK: STUDY OF THE LOCAL FLORA 251

BOTANY. — Taxonomic botany and the Washington botanist.1
A. S. Hitchcock, Bureau of Plant Industry.

Of the 162 members of this society practically all are pro-
fessional botanists or are professionally interested in some phase
of botany. Furthermore most of the members are in the
Government service. We are all aware that scientists in the
employ of the Government are engaged upon special problems.
They become specialists and all their official time is spent upon
investigations directly connected with their specialty. Some
members, particularly the older ones, have entered the service
from professorships, but a large number have become members
of this society soon after being graduated from College. The
botanist who teaches is compelled by circumstances to keep in
touch with the advance along all lines of botanical research.
The same is true of many botanists connected with experiment
stations, and may be true of a few botanists unconnected with the
two classes of institutions mentioned. But how many members
of this society are so situated that in the discharge of their
official duties they are brought in contact with all the chief
lines of botanical science? The number is indeed small. A
teacher may specialize, but a specialist rarely retains his grasp
upon general botany. Some of us were teachers before enter-
ing the Government service, but I venture to say that few of us
have retained the impetus acquired from previous training in
general botany. The condition then is this: We are a society
of specialists and a large proportion of us are young men who
from choice or necessity have entered upon a specialty soon
after leaving college, often before we have had the time to lay a
foundation in general botany broader than that given by com-
paratively elementary courses.

It is not my purpose to discuss the merits of general versus
special training. We must accept conditions as they are and
better them if we can. I am sure that all of us welcome oppor-
tunities for familiarizing ourselves with the work which is being

1 Address of the retiring president of the Botanical Society of Washington,
delivered March 4, 1917.

252 HITCHCOCK! STUDY of the local flora

done in branches of botany other than our specialties. We
read botanical journals; we attend the meetings of this society
and of the national botanical societies; we exchange ideas with
our botanical neighbors and visitors. In these ways we absorb
fragments of botanical information and in a desultory manner
keep in touch with the progress of botanical research. There
is another opportunity for broadening our outlook, one which
yields enjoyment as well as botanical profit, namely, the study
of systematic botany.

Therefore to-night I wish to present for your consideration a
few remarks on the advantages of taxonomic botany as an avo-
cation. I shall address these remarks particularly to the
younger men, though I hope the older members may be cajoled
into giving an attentive and sympathetic ear. I hope to show,
first, that there is a favorable opportunity here in Washington
for the study of systematic or taxonomic botany and, second,
that such a study may be a distinct advantage to those who
will take the time for its pursuit.

Few of you who are not engaged officially in systematic work
are likely to have the time or the inclination to undertake an
elaborate monograph of a difficult group of plants. We may
therefore dismiss this phase of the subject from consideration.
The field of study to which I wish particularly to call your at-
tention is that of the local flora. Here is an opportunity right
at our door, fully available during the growing season, partly
available even in winter. The student may grasp much or
little, as circumstances permit. Recently the study of the
local flora has received an impetus through the efforts of several
of you who have undertaken to study particular groups and
have devised keys to the genera and species of the flowering
plants found in the vicinity of Washington. The standard
manuals of the flora of the northeastern states include this
region. The flora itself has been studied in a more or less de-
sultory manner by several botanists through several decades.
The student therefore will find the way fairly well cleared for
him. It will be comparatively easy for him to become familiar
with the flora, at least in a general way. Except in complex

HITCHCOCK: STUDY OF THE LOCAL FLORA 253

groups he will be able to coordinate the plants with their bo-
tanical names. The pioneer work has been done, but many
details remain to be elaborated.

So much for the opportunity; now for the benefits. The ad-
vantages may be divided conveniently into two classes, humani-
tarian and technical. I need say little concerning the humani-
tarian side of the subject. Those for whom a walk in the woods
is a pleasure will accept with little argument the statement that
the pleasure is greatly enhanced by a " speaking acquaintance"
with the plants they see. They meet plants as friends, they call
them by name, they glory in their beauty, they sympathize
with their misfortunes and accidents. The stranger in the plant
community is greeted with joy and its presence is chronicled in
the annals of the excursion as an event of importance. A knowl-
edge of plants turns a Sunday afternoon's aimless meandering
into a purposeful quest through Nature's laboratory, resulting
in a broadened outlook, a keener enjoyment, and incidentally
an increased knowledge of plants.

Let us now turn to the other side, the technical training af-
forded by studies in systematic botany. All will readily admit
the desirability of being familiar with the more important fam-
ilies of plants. A knowledge of family characters brings a con-
comitant familiarity with the important genera and species.
It is a distinct advantage to a botanist, be he physiologist,
anatomist, or mycologist, to know the botanical relationships
of the economic plants with which he comes in contact and to
recognize the family to which belong the common weeds, wild
flowers, and cultivated ornamentals. To see a systematist who
does not understand the meaning of a Mendelian ratio or the
significance of 15 chromosomes, is disconcerting; to see a physi-
ologist who can not distinguish an oak from a maple, or knows
not the family relation of cotton and hollyhock, is appalling.

A study of the local flora will afford opportunities for the
self-training we are now about to consider. One should go
further than merely to find the accepted names of plants. He
should do constructive work; he should carry on critical investi-
gations. For this there is abundant opportunity. Every

254 hitchcock: STUDY of the local flora

complex genus in our flora needs further elaboration. Among
such may be mentioned Aster, Carex, Cyperus, Meibomia,
Panicum, Quercus, Rosa, Rubus, and Viola. There are many
others. In fact there is scarcely a genus of the flora that is
satisfactorily known; scarcely a genus but which on critical
investigation presents surprises. Species have been misunder-
stood; strange species from the outside are found in our midst;
even distinct undescribed species are not rarely brought to view.
The genus Panicum has received much attention for many
years, but every fresh investigation brings new and interesting
facts to light. Botanists may turn to good account intermit-
tent field trips by the accumulation of data however isolated
or disconnected. There is a high probability that interesting
facts concerning almost any of our species await discovery.
These facts may have an important taxonomic bearing. Few
of us can recognize in fruit all the species that we know in
flower. More should be brought to light about the winter condi-
tion of our herbaceous perennials. What are their underground
parts and how do they propagate? How many of our annuals
are winter annuals and what is their winter phase? A study
of the trees, shrubs, and woody vines in winter is a prolific
source of enjoyment and botanical profit. Only recently was
it discovered that in Danthonia cleistogamous spikelets are
produced at the base of the foliage leaf-sheaths, these cleisto-
genes being strikingly different from the spikelets on the ordinary
inflorescence. Yet species of Danthonia have been under ob-
servation a hundred years and one species, D. spicata, is very
common throughout this region, its curly tufts to be seen on
every sterile hill. The chickadees showed us that the spikelets
of Panicum clandestinum hidden in the sheaths are fertile and
hence edible, while those of the exserted panicles are sterile and
hence have no attraction for them. A keen observer can scarce-
ly walk for an hour through field or forest without gleaning im-
portant information for his fellow workers. The accumulation
of unrelated data of this kind not only trains the person making
the observations but, when placed upon record, also becomes of
service to botanical science. The willing worker will find

HITCHCOCK: STUDY OF THE LOCAL FLORA 255

abundant material close at hand to which he may devote his
spare time and from which he may derive the training he seeks.
Science will be the gainer by the facts discovered and arranged;
the worker will be the gainer by the training and experience.
How the training and experience may be most advantageously
obtained will now be examined in detail. Let us suppose that
one of us has become interested in the genus Aster as represented
in our flora. Here is an opportunity for a genuine taxonomic
elaboration of a difficult group, but limited in such a way that
all the material may be studied in a fresh as well as in a pre-
served condition. Collections of herbarium material will of
course be secured, because a direct comparison of species is thus
made possible. But the worker has the distinct advantage of
being able at intervals to consult the living plants and thus to
test the conclusions drawn from the herbarium. First he must
become familiar with the plants he wishes to study. He will
attempt to identify the species by one or more of the standard
manuals. Some of the species will fall in place easily; others
will be referred with doubt. At first he will be inclined to
assume that the author he is following knows all about the
genus Aster and has all our species properly placed under the
names given in the manual. He may even attempt to distort
a description in order that it may fit a given plant. All of us
who have used manuals have passed through this stage. But
to do really constructive work an investigator must free himself
from the shackles of tradition, from the repressing weight of
authority. So long as the student accepts without question
statements in manuals, or elsewhere for that matter, which do
not appear to accord with the facts as he sees them, so long will
he be impeded in his efforts, so long will he fail to reach that
freedom of mind necessary for unbiased investigation. Nothing
has so hampered progress as the inertia of authority. This
does not mean that we should not utilize to the fullest extent
the results of the work of others. It does mean that we should
meet problems with an unprejudiced judgment, unbiased by
tradition, unhampered by authority.

256 hitchcock: STUDY of the local flora

Returning to our investigator of asters, his constructive work
begins when he has familiarized himself with the work of others,
knows the species or groups of species in a general way, and
begins to look at things as they are rather than at things as
others say they are. In breaking away from tradition he should
be careful to maintain an attitude of fairness toward those
leaders of thought who have been responsible for the dominance
of the concepts he rejects. We all make mistakes and our
reputation is affected by their number and character. But to
assume that the statements in a manual are free from error in
details, and, on the discovery of small errors, to condemn the
author and reject his authority, is unfair. If a botanist in
whom we have confidence makes a statement concerning Aster
which we know to be based upon carefully weighed evidence,
we are fully justified in assuming the probable truth of the
statement. Nevertheless our worker should not hesitate to
verify the statement if it concerns that upon which he wishes to
form an independent judgment. While authority may through
error turn the channels of thought for a time in the wrong direc-
tion, yet the more common hampering effect of authority is an
unconscious influence of the leader upon the follower. That
is, the follower gives to the casual or ill-considered statements
of the leader, the same weight that he does to those carefully
thought out. Few leaders fully realize with what unquestioning
faith their every statement is received by their loyal followers.
Certain statements botanical authorities can make with confi-
dence. Other statements they make casually or with reserva-
tions, not always being careful to distinguish by the form of
the statement the two mental attitudes.

Having burst the shackles of authority, our friend should
make rapid progress with his asters. The exhilarating freedom
is delightful but not infrequently seductive. He has now be-
come a specialist. He feels, and with good reason, that he
knows more about the District asters than anyone else. He
should, however, keep clearly in mind the danger confronting
every specialist — the danger of substituting the authority of
self for the authority of his predecessors. The tendency to

HITCHCOCK: STUDY OF THE LOCAL FLORA 257

make definite decisions as to the relations of facts discovered
is a natural one but may constitute a real menace in the future.
Having made a public statement as to the validity of a species
he may be reluctant to make a public retraction, even though
the evidence seems to require this. Rather than make a re-
traction he seeks for facts to support the original statement.
He welcomes such facts and magnifies their importance. Facts
tending to controvert the statement are excused or brushed
aside or given a minimum weight. He may enter that category
of scientists who assume the correctness of a theory and subse-
quently spend their time hunting for facts which will support
it. If the investigator can guard against this danger he has
accomplished much. If he can look upon his own work and
his own published statements with the same detached interest
and the same unbiased judgment that he does upon the work
of others, he has assumed the truly scientific attitude. One
does not like to be accused of drawing hasty conclusions. One
does not like to make a statement one day only to deny or
modify it the next. Nevertheless if he preserve an open mind
toward investigation, the worker will, I believe, find it neces-
sary to change his opinion as the facts accumulate. To ac-
complish results of the highest value he must establish an
hypothesis as a basis for the arrangement of his facts, but this
should remain tentative and elastic. The specialist on Aster
examines individuals, but the facts thus obtained must be clas-
sified and arranged if they are to be of taxonomic use. He soon
establishes in his imagination a series of groups which biologists
call species. To these groups he attempts to refer all the in-
dividuals he meets. It is not advisable to defer the establish-
ment of the specific concepts until the end of his investigations.
Theoretically this may be the best procedure, but practically
the worker can scarcely avoid forming preliminary ideas of
specific limitations. These preliminary concepts should form
a temporary hypothesis, to be changed from time to time as
the work progresses. The great majority of investigators are
able to keep their mental attitude in a responsive condition
up to the time they first publish the results of their work. It

258 HITCHCOCK: STUDY of the local flora

is at this point that the danger from crystalization occurs — ■
the danger that the mobile mental attitude will harden. After
publication the worker may feel called upon to defend his state-
ments against the attack of critics. What before was a
detached investigation of facts becomes an effort at personal
vindication. All these troubles might be avoided by deferring
publication. Indefinite delay, however, is not advisable. Actu-
ally to finish an investigation before results are published
would usually mean no publication. The author should be
unhampered but should choose the happy mean between " rush-
ing into print" with half-prepared preliminary notes, and in-
definitely delaying publication till a perfect monograph may be
produced. It is of course desirable to ascertain before publi-
cation all the facts bearing upon a subject but sometimes our
hands are forced in such matters. Publication on a given sub-
ject may call for a statement concerning something which has
not been thoroughly investigated. All of which emphasizes two
points already mentioned, that equal weight should not be
given to all the statements of an author, and that the author
himself should correct his own errors as freely as he corrects
those of others.

Our worker with Aster will have the opportunity for training
in another field, that of taxonomic judgment. It is well that
every scientist should have training in the two methods of
establishing facts, by experiment and by repeated observations.
Most facts in physical science are established by experiment;
most facts in descriptive biology are established by repeated
observations. In practice a taxonomist is called upon to clas-
sify individuals into species, and species into genera. A species
is not a law or a fact that can be proved by experiment. It
is a taxonomic idea which can be established only by a great
repetition of observations. Our classification is based upon the
evolutionary hypothesis that all living organisms are descended
from other somewhat different organisms of the past. Setting
aside the differences of opinion as to the independent origin of
the larger groups, it follows that all organisms, at least of family
groups, are probably genetically connected. Their lines of

HITCHCOCK: STUDY OF THE LOCAL FLORA 259

descent are not known to us. We are able to observe, not the
complete connecting lines as represented by an infinite number
of individuals, but only a cross section of the lines as represented
by the organisms of the present. The task of the taxonomist is
to form an opinion as to the probable relationships of the in-
dividuals. This taxonomic judgment is based upon and is
developed by experience. In many cases the evolution has
proceeded so far that a group of individuals has become dis-
tinctly separated genetically from its allies. The individuals
of this group interbreed freely and form a coherent aggregation
to which biologists have applied the term species. If all organ-
isms had, through the process of evolution and the elimination
of intermediates, become definitely segregated into these dis-
tinct coherent groups, the task of the taxonomist would be
greatly simplified. The species being definite, he would be
obliged only to offer guesses or opinions as to the relations of the
species, and to classify them into groups. However, evolution
is still going on, new species are forming, and old species are
becoming extinct. We see, as it were, a still scene from a series
of moving pictures representing the development of organisms.
In complex group's such as Aster the lines of descent are still
nearly parallel. They are clustered, but only here and there
is the divergence sufficient distinctly to separate the clusters.
More often the clusters are contiguous and can be only arti-
ficially separated where the density of the lines is least.

Thus it is clear that there are two steps in the study of clas-
sification. First the facts must be established as to the relative
position of these lines of descent. In effect one must plot out
in his imagination a cross-section of these genetic lines, the
points representing the individuals examined, and the position
of the points representing the variation of the individuals from
the average of the group in the totality of their morphological
characters. The second step is the interpretation of the results
in terms of species. In the genus Aster, to which we are
constantly returning for an illustrative example, there are
certain pencils of lines that stand out distinctly in the plot.
There is no difficulty in determining the definiteness of these

260 HITCHCOCK: STUDY OF THE LOCAL FLORA

groups and there is no hesitation in pronouncing them distinct
species. But there will be many cases where the groups are
not distinct. There will be a segregation of dots at different
points, a greater density of grouping, but the groups will not
be definitely separated by blank areas. Lying between are
scattered dots representing individuals which cannot be as-
signed definitely to any of the surrounding groups. The in-
vestigator must decide whether these indefinite but denser
aggregations of dots represent species or whether the larger
group which can be definitely separated from its surroundings
shall be called a polymorphous species. Evidently we have to
do here with species in the making and we may expect to find
stages in the process. The decision as to the limitation of
species must in some cases be arbitrary, no matter what stand-
ard for comparison be chosen, and may often be dictated by
convenience or expediency. The sorely perplexed taxonomist
can at least take comfort in the thought that he is not respon-
sible for the vagaries of the plants and that it is not necessary
for him to force the plants to conform to a concept. As some
great philosopher has said, When in doubt tell the truth. We
seek the truth, not the vindication of a theory. As stated above
the taxonomic judgment is based chiefly upon experience. The
worker determines the amount of variation in groups which the
concensus of botanical opinion recognizes as species. One who
is investigating asters should at the same time extend his obser-
vations to other groups of plants if he has not already accumu-
lated a taxonomic experience. An inability to assign individuals
to established species may not mean that the specimens are
intermediates nor that the species are invalid. It may mean
lack of knowledge on the part of the investigator.

After a worker has completed an investigation he should
place the results on record for the benefit of science. The in-
vestigation has trained the worker and developed his judgment,
but the results are lost to science unless they are published.
Publication of results is a training in itself which adds greatly
to a young man's efficiency. The points chiefly to be considered
in preparing manuscript for publication are clearness, concise-

HITCHCOCK: STUDY OF THE LOCAL FLORA 261

ness, and care in technique. The proper interpretation of
results from observed data requires clear thinking. Clear
thinking leads to clear writing. While it is occasionally true
that a clear thinker may through carelessness write in an am-
biguous or indefinite manner, he lays himself open to the sus-
picion that his thinking is no clearer than his writing. For
the sake of himself and of his associates his results should be
given with all the conciseness that is consistent with clearness.
The literature upon all subjects is now so extended that no
inconsiderable part of a scientist's time is devoted to reading the
published results of others. Every man owes it to his associates
to reduce to a minimum the time required to read the record
of his results. Furthermore, a verbose report is often tempo-
rarily set aside with the intention of examining it when there
is more time, an intention that is rarely fulfilled. If the report
actually requires a wealth of detail there should at least be a
succinct summary. We should learn early in our career that
the really new and valuable points brought out in an investi-
gation are usually few, and that these few points should be
laid before our associates with clearness and precision, and not
hidden in verbosity nor diluted by a mass of detail. To be
able to compress statements of results into a small compass
without loss in value to the scientific world is an evidence of
distinction.

I cannot leave this subject without touching upon the ques-
tion of technique, a question considered by some as trivial or
inconsequential. I feel constrained the more to confide in you
at this time because I have the misfortune to be a member of
two editorial boards. The editors find that some writers will
nearly choke to death over a comma, that others think punctua-
tion marks are merely to be distributed over the page for orna-
mental purposes; that some use words to express their thoughts,
that others use the same words but obscure their thoughts;
that some are so burdened with technique that their thoughts
seem imbedded in paraffin, that others look upon technique as
an editor's instrument of torture. But seriously, technique is
as important to the writer as to the painter, the sculptor, or

262 HITCHCOCK! STUDY of the local flora

the engineer. And it should be as important to the writer of
scientific articles as to the writer of novels, essays, or philosoph-
ical papers. A lack of attention to such details as punctuation,
capitalization, and consistency in the abbreviation of biblio-
graphic titles, and still more to careful diction, may with some
justification be considered as indicating a similar lack of atten-
tion to details in carrying on the investigation which the paper
records. The author should examine and correct his own paper
with the same care and detached interest with which he, as an
editor, would go over the manuscript of another. It is an evi-
dence of scientific ability to be able to hold one's self firmly to
every detail of his task, drudgery though it be, from the pre-
liminary laying out of the plan of the work to the proper placing
of the last comma in the finished manuscript.

At the beginning of his scientific career, every worker has
before him an ideal which is a guide and an inspiration, a meas-
ure of accomplishment. This guide is usually the published
paper of a prominent botanist, one in whom he has confidence
and who has fired his zeal. As he advances along his chosen
path he shifts his standard of accomplishment, but it should
be always above or beyond. No man is perfect; no man's
work is perfect. Only an ideal can be perfect. The axiom,
the whole is twice the half, is an abstract truth, a perfect ideal.
But we are never able to reach this ideal in practice. Our
most careful measurements fall a little short of exact mechanical
demonstration. The scientific worker progresses so long as his
ideal is well in advance, be it the work of a teacher or leader,
or be it abstract perfection toward which we all strive but which
we never reach. But so soon as his ideal is his own best work,
his progress ceases.

I have endeavored to outline to you the advantages to be
gained in a study of some branch of taxonomic botany by those
members of the society who are officially engaged in investiga-
tions along other lines. The local flora offers abundant op-
portunity for advancing scientific knowledge and for self-train-
ing in scientific methods. It cannot be claimed that taxonomic
botany affords better opportunity for such training than does

HITCHCOCK: STUDY OF THE LOCAL FLORA 263

any other branch of science. But we are already botanists; in
the main our development will continue in this broad field.
What I would point out is that now and again we can leave
our desks and microscopes and laboratories for prairie and for-
est and stream, and that we have a field close at hand in which
we can train our powers of observation and our taxonomic
judgment, at the same time enhancing our enjoyment and ex-
tending the bounds of botanical knowledge.

ABSTRACTS

Authors of scientific papers are requested to see that abstracts, preferably
prepared and signed by themselves, are forwarded promptly to the editors.
Each of the scientific bureaus in Washington has a representative authorized to
forward such material to this journal and abstracts of official publications should
be transmitted through the representative of the bureau in which they originate.
The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those appearing in
this issue.

PHOTOMETRY. — An "average eye" for heterochromatic photometry,
and a comparison of a flicker and an equality-of -brightness pho-
tometer. E. C. Crittenden and F. K. Richtmyer. Bureau of
Standards Scientific Paper No. 299 (Bull. Bur. Stds., 14: 87-113).
1917.
The comparison of lights of different colors is supposed to be based
on an "average normal eye." This paper records an attempt to ap-
proximate the results of such an eye with typical color differences by
using a large number of observers. In particular, results obtained by
a flicker photometer and by an equality-of-brightness photometer,
with different degress of color difference, are compared. In terms of
the Ives-Kingsbury test solutions, for which the proposed normal
ratio of transmissions (with a 4 wpc. carbon lamp) is 1.00, the average
of 114 observers gives a ratio of 0.99. By using these test solutions
results obtained on the flicker photometer by a small number of obser-
vers can be corrected so as to give normal values with a high degree of
accuracy. On the average, equality-of-brightness measurements also
vary in proportion to the test ratio, but erratic variations often over-
shadow these systematic differences. For sources having relatively
high intensity in the blue, flicker values tend to fall below those ob-
tained on the usual standard photometers, but the difference is com-
parable in magnitude with the uncertainty of the latter values.

E. C. C.

GEOLOGY. — Anticlines in the Blackfeet Indian Reservatioyi, Montana.

Eugene Stebinger. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin 641-J.

Pp. 281-305, with 2 plates and one figure. 1917.

This paper gives a brief account of the geologic formations in the

Blackfeet Reservation and of their geologic structure, and a more de-

264

abstracts: geology 265

tailed description of the anticlines and of the formations that appear
to contain oil or gas in southern Alberta and northern Montana. The
general conditions in this region suggest that drilling in the Blackfeet
Indian Reservation would have about the sime chance of success as in
the adjacent region in southern Alberta, extending from the inter-
national boundary northward to Calgary, a region in which drilling
bjr over 40 companies during the last three years has been slightly
successful. R. W. S.

GEOLOGY. — Anticlines in central Wyoming. C. J. Hares. U. S.
Geological Survey Bulletin 641-1. Pp. 233-279, with map and
19 figures. 1916.
The area herein designated central Wyoming covers nearly 5000
square miles in Natrona and Fremont counties west of Casper and south-
east of Lander, and includes no proved oil fields. This area was in-
vestigated primarily to ascertain the possibilities of oil, and as a result
it was found that the Carboniferous and Cretaceous formations which
produce oil in other Rocky Mountain fields are well developed in cen-
tral Wyoming and in places the oil seeps from them, but in only a few
places are these formations covered by impervious shale and within
reach of the drill in folds favorable for the accumulation of oil and gas.
The favorable folds are pointed out, but even these most favorable
folds may be barren of oil. R. W. S.

GEOLOGY. — Oil shale in northwestern Colorado and adjacent areas.

Dean E. Winchester. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin 641-F.

Pp. 139-198, with bibliography, 10 plates and 2 figures. 1916.
This report contains information showing the quantity and quality
of oil that may be distilled from the richer beds of shale, the number
of such beds at the different localities examined, and the general dis-
tribution of the shale throughout northwestern Colorado and adjacent
parts of Utah and Wyoming. The results show that the shale of the
Green River formation will yield a vast quantity of oil, gas sufficient
to carry on the process of distillation, and fertilizer enough to enrich
most of the farms of the Middle West, and that this reserve is ready
whenever the demand is sufficient to warrant the establishment of a
new industry to supplement the failing supply of petroleum from the
oil fields. R. W. S.

266 abstracts: geology

GEOLOGY. — Placer deposits of the Manhattan district, Nevada. Henry
G. Ferguson. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin 640-J. Pp.
163-193. 1917.
The Manhattan district is in part a region of intensely contorted
Paleozoic sediments and in part covered by Tertiary volcanics. The
lodes from which the placer gold is derived occur principally in the
Cambrian schist, but are of Tertiary age. Manhattan Gulch, drain-
ing the central part of the district, has yielded a large amount of placer
gold. The bed-rock gravels from which the bulk of the placer gold has
been obtained were laid down in Pleistocene time, and the accumu-
lation of gold is the result of successive concentrations. Of particular
interest is the regular increase in purity of the placer gold with the dis-
tance from its source. In a distance of two miles down the gulch the
fineness of the gold changes from 700 to 740 parts per 1000.

H. G. F.

GEOLOGY. — Economic geology of Gilpin County and adjacent parts of
Clear Creek and Boulder Counties, Colorado. Edson S. Bastin and
James M. Hill. U. S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 94.
Pp. 379, with 23 plates and 79 figures. 1917.

Gilpin County and the adjacent portions of Boulder and Clear Creek
Counties, Colorado, lie nearly west of Denver in the heart of the Front
Range of the Rockies. Central City, the seat of Gilpin County, is
the oldest lode-mining camp in Colorado and in total production one
of the most important.

Most of the rocks of the region are pre-Cambrian in age. Some of
them have undergone severe dynamic metamorphism ; others are prac-
tically unmetamorphosed. The pre-Cambrian rocks are intruded by
a great variety of much younger igneous rocks, most of them por-
phyritic in texture. Though they show some diversity in age, all are
believed to have been intruded in Tertiary time. They occur as stocks
and dikes, and are abundant in all parts of the region.

The region forms part of a broad mineralized belt which embraces
most of the economically important mining camps of Colorado. The
' ores of the region may be classed, according to the metals which give
them their predominant value, as (1) gold-silver ores, which constitute
the main economic resource of the region; (2) uranium ores, which
occur in a few places only but are of much interest as a source of ra-
dium; (3) tungsten ores, which form the basis of the tungsten industry
of Boulder County, the most productive center for this metal in the

abstracts: mineralogy 267

United States; (4) ores worked primarily for copper; (5) titaniferous
iron ores. Most of the ores occur as veins, as a rule steeply dipping,
which arc in part fissure fillings and in part replacements of various
rocks along zones of fracturing. All the ores of the region are believed
to be genetically connected with the Tertiary (?) intrusive rocks.

Enrichment in the Central City region has been confined mainly to
the class of gold-silver ores. Enrichment in gold appears to be con-
fined almost exclusively to portions of the ore deposits above or im-
mediately below the ground- water level. Silver enrichment is con-
fined to the ground-water zone. Enrichment in copper is nowhere
conspicuous. R. W. S.

GEOLOGY. — Brachyceratops, a ceratopsian dinosaur from the Two
Medicine formation of Montana, with notes on associated fossil rep-
tiles. Charles W. Gilmore. U. S. Geological Survey Profes-
sional Paper 103. Pp. 44, with 4 plates and 57 figures. 1917.

This paper gives as complete and detailed a description of the skele-
tal anatomy of Brachyceratops montanensis as the material at hand
will permit, and discusses briefly in systematic order other forms rep-
resented by specimens in the collection made in 1913 on the Black-
feet Indian Reservation.

The stratigraphy of the Two Medicine formation is discussed by
Eugene Stebinger. Vertebrate fossils are found throughout the upper
part of the Two Medicine formation and nearly all of them belong to
the class Reptilia. The great number of trachodonts found appears
to indicate that these were the most abundant dinosaurs of the epoch.
Next to the Trachodontidae, the Ceratopsidae were most abundant.

Fragments of turtles are plentiful; a few teeth and single bones of
extinct crocodiles, and isolated scales and plates of ganoid fishes were
found. The vertebrate fauna of the Two Medicine formation, as
represented by this small collection, although too meager to serve as
a basis for close comparisons with related faunas, accords with the
stratigraphic evidence for the correlation of the upper part of the Two
Medicine formation with the dinosaur-bearing beds of the Judith
River and Belly River formations. R. W. S.

MINERALOGY. — Notes on alunite, psilomelanite, and titanite. Edgar
T. Wherry. Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., 51: 81-88. 1916.
Includes descriptions with analyses and discussions of the com-
position of two specimens of alunite, one of psilomelanite, and one of
titanite. E. T. W.

268 abstracts: technology

MINERALOGY. — Glauberite crystal cavities in the Triassic rocks of
eastern Pennsylvania. Edgar T. Wherry. American Mineralo-
gist, 1: 37-43. 1916.
The crystal cavities in the sedimentary rocks, previously mentioned
in connection with announcement of the character of lozenge-shaped
cavities in zeolite deposits (Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci., 6: 181-4. 1916)
are described in detail. They are shown to agree crystallographically
with the mineral glauberite. Pseudomorphs of calcite after glauberite
are also described. It is believed that the glauberite formed as the
result of evaporation of lake waters of Triassic times. E. T. W.

TECHNOLOGY. — Glasses for protecting the eyes from injurious radia-
tions. W. W. Coblentz and W. B. Emerson. Bureau of Stand-
ards Technologic Paper No. 93. Pp. 14. 1917.

The object of the present paper is to give the general characteristics
of certain newly developed glasses sometimes used for protecting the
eye from radiant energy, especially from the infra-red or so called heat
rays. Because of the difficulty in reproducing the same color in dif-
ferent melts, no attempt is made to give specific data on the transmis-
sion for a given thickness of glass. The data given are representative
of an extensive group of glasses available for protecting the eye from
(1) the ultra-violet, (2) the visible, and (3) the infra-red rays.

For protecting the eye from ultra-violet light, black, amber, green,
greenish-yellow, and red glasses are efficient. Spectacles made of
white glass afford some protection from the extreme ultra-violet rays.
For shielding the eye from infra-red rays deep black, yellowish-green,
sage green, gold plated, and bluish-green glasses are efficient. For
working near furnaces of molten iron or glass if considerable light is
needed, a light bluish green or sage green glass is efficient in obstruct-
ing the infra-red rays. For working molten quartz, operating oxy-
acetylene or electric welding apparatus, or other intense sources of
light, it is important to wear the darkest glasses one can use whether
black, green (including gold plated glasses), or yellowish-green, in order
to obstruct not only the infra-red but also the visible and the ultra-
violet rays. Of the infra-red rays emitted by a furnace heated to
1000 to 1100°C about 99 per cent are obstructed by gold plated glasses,
about 95 per cent by sage green or bluish green glasses, about 80 per
cent by very deep black glasses, and about 60 per cent by greenish
yellow glasses. W. W. C.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

THE PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 786th meeting was held March 17, 1917, at the Cosmos Club,
President Buckingham in the chair; 51 persons present. The minutes
of the 785th meeting were read in abstract and approved.

Mr. William Bowie read a paper on Our present knowledge of isos-
tasy, which was illustrated by a number of slides. After reviewing
briefly the conclusions reached by Prof. Hayford, Mr. Bowie discussed
the recent researches in gravity and isostasy.

In these investigations the results obtained at 219 stations in the
United States, 42 stations in Canada, 73 stations in India, and 40
stations in other countries, were used. Isostasy seems to be about
as complete in each of the countries where extensive data were avail-
able as in the United States, although it was not possible to make
certain tests for the other countries, owing to lack of certain detailed
data.

Isostasy in the United States, for the whole area, is practically
perfect. For local areas gravity is, on an average, 0.020 dyne from
normal. This anomaly corresponds to a mass of material of indefinite
horizontal extent and thickness of about 600 feet. Whether this
average deviation from normal in gravity is caused by a lack of
isostatic compensation or whether it is caused by the presence of
extra light or extra heavy material in the outer portion of the earth's
crust close to the station is a problem that cannot be entirely solved
by the use of present data.

It was found, during the investigations of the Coast and Geodetic
Survey, that the gravity anomaly showed some relation to the geo-
logical formation on which a station is located. For instance, on the
pre-Cambrian formation, where the rocks are denser than normal,
gravity is in excess at nearly all stations. For the stations on the
Cenozoic formation, the density of the material of which is somewhat
less than normal the anomaly tends to be negative and all of the larger
anomalies of those stations are negative. There was not found any
relation between the gravity anomaly and the densities of the materials
of the Mesozoic and Paleozoic formations.

Various tests were made for determining the most probable depth
of compensation. The result was a depth of 95 kilometers, but the
speaker emphasized the fact that this depth may be very indefinite

269

270 proceedings: philosophical society

and may not exist as a definite 'surface. It is only in case of a uniform
distribution of the compensation that there could be a definite surface
limiting the distribution of compensation. It was stated that the uni-
form distribution was adopted in the computations to facilitate the
progress of the work. Any one of several distributions, other than
that of uniform distribution, would give practically the same results.
This is somewhat of a surmise, as no elaborate tests were made.

The application of the theory of isostasy to the gravity data made
it possible to derive a formula for giving gravity at sea level at any
latitude. 348 stations in the United States and other countries were
used in the derivation of a number of formulas on various assumptions.
One of them, the best formula probably in the world, is 7 = 978.039
(1 4- 0.005294 sin2 </> - 0.000007 sin2 20) in which 7 is the value of
gravity sought and <£ is the latitude of the station.

Discussion. Mr. G. K. Burgess asked about the possibility of
using the Eotvos torsion balance for determining variations in the
intensity of gravity, and about the complete absence of magnetic
materials in the pendulum used.

Mr. Bauer questioned whether the depth of compensation did not
vary with the topography, and Mr. Bowie called attention to the
fact that the data from stations located on plains did not permit of a
solution for the depth.

Mr. W. F. G. Swann then gave a paper on The origin of the earth's
electric charge. Measurements of the variation of the penetrating
radiation with altitude point to the upper atmosphere as the origin
of a part of this radiation. The whole of the penetrating radiation
is probably of the 7 ray type, but the part which reaches the Earth's
surface from the outer atmosphere is naturally the most penetrating
part. Indeed, it is so penetrating that it passes through a thickness
of air which would be equivalent, in absorptive action, to a column of
mercury 76 cm. high, if absorption coefficients were simply propor-
tional to density and were independent of material. The 7 ray radia-
tion from the outer layers of the atmosphere will consequently be very
"hard," and, in accordance with the known results of laboratory
experiments, we must conclude that the negative corpuscles which it
emits from the air molecules are emitted almost entirely in the direc-
tion of the radiation, and further, that they can have a range in air
at least equal to that of the swiftest /3 rays from radium products.
The emission of corpuscles by these 7 rays will consequently result,
at each point of the atmosphere, in a downward current of nega-
tive electricity, which we shall call the corpuscular current. This
corpuscular current will charge the Earth until the return con-
duction current balances the corpuscular current at each point of
the atmosphere.

Taking, for the purpose of this abstract, a simplified case where
the penetrating radiation considered is all directed vertically down-
wards, if q is the number of corpuscles liberated per cubic centimeter
per second by the penetrating radiation, and h is the average distance

proceedings: biological society 271

which a corpuscle travels from its point of origin, the corpuscular
current density will be

i — qeh

where e is the electric charge.

If account be taken of the fact that the radiation passing through
1 sq. cm. comes from all directions lying within a hemisphere, the
result is to introduce a factor of \, so that

i = h qeh

The average value of the air-earth current density as obtained
from several stations is 6.7 X 10~7 E.S.U., so that if q be taken as
3, which is about equal to the number of pairs of ions produced per
cubic centimeter per second in a closed vessel, as a result of the part
' of the penetrating radiation in question, the value of h necessary to
account for the measured current-density is 9 meters. This value is
quite within the range of posibility, since Eve has observed /3 rays at
a distance of 7 meters from the source.

A few minor difficulties present themselves. Thus, for example,
near the surface of the Earth a considerable portion of the whole
penetrating radiation comes from the soil, and is directed upwards,
but this difficulty disappears when it is remembered that the average
"hardness" of this radiation is very much less than that of the radia-
tion which reaches the Earth from the outer layers of the atmosphere.
Again, it might appear that the corpuscles set free by the penetrating
radiation should, on account of their great energy, produce in the
atmosphere many more ions per second than are actually found to
be produced. This difficulty and others of allied nature become
greatly reduced in magnitude, however, when considered in the light
of our present knowledge of the action of very swift (3 rays when pas-
sing through a gas.

Discussion. Mr. Bauer spoke of the possibility of some of the
penetrating radiation being of solar origin.

Donald H. Sweet, Secretary.

THE BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 568th regular meeting of the Society was held in the Assembly
Hall of the Cosmos Club, Saturday, March 24, 1917; called to order at
8 p.m. by President Hay; 31 persons in attendance.

Under the heading of book notices Dr. L. 0. Howard said he had
carefully examined the work on beetles presented to him at the 567th
meeting of the society by Dr. H. M. Smith, and found that it was a
hand made copy of all the descriptions of the North American beetles
contained in a large French monograph dealing with that group of
insects.

The regular program consisted of three communications:

272 proceedings: biological society

W. P. Taylor: Notes on Aplodojitia. Dr. Taylor said the peculiar
west American rodent Aplodontia, ■ discovered by Lewis and Clark,
is the sole living representative of the family Aplodontiidae. It is
exclusively North American in origin, development, and distribution.
Found in Tertiary times in the Great Basin region and even as far
east as South Dakota, the family is now limited to the Pacific Slope
of North America. Aplodontia is colonial and fossorial, feeding ex-
clusively on the vegetation in the vicinity of its burrows. The aplo-
dontid phylum is noteworthy for its extreme conservation. During
a lapse of time which sufficed to transform the horse from the Miocene
Mnychippus type to the larger Pliocene Pliohippus, there appears
to have been no appreciable change in the tertiary species Aplodontia
alexandrae; and during the time when the Merychippus type of horse
became transformed into the modern Equus with modifications in
every bone in the body and characters generically probably twice'
removed, the aplodontid stock has undergone comparatively little
change, all observed variations, as at present recognized, falling within
the limits of a single genus.

Dr. Taylor's communication was discussed by Messrs. T. E. Wil-
cox, N; Dearborn, A. Wetmore, L. 0. Howard, N. Hollister,
and R. W. Shufeldt.

W. Dwight Pierce: The extaordinary strepsipterous type of par-
asitism. Mr. Pierce spoke of the extraordinary type of parasitism
displayed by the insect order Strepsiptera. He called attention to
the great diversity in form between the male and female Strepsiptera.
All species of this order are parasites in the bodies of bees, ants, wasps,
leafhoppers, and grasshoppers. The only part of the body which can
be seen when in the host is the cephalothorax which protrudes
between the segments of the host abdomen. The females are legless
and blind, and have no appendages except mandibles, which are of no
value after the cephalothorax has been protruded from the body.
They give birth to living young which emerge from the body of the
parent through a canal between her unshed larval skin, and the true
adult, reaching the body of the host through an opening between the
head and thorax of the parent. These young, in order to find their
next host, must be deposited on some flower visited by the species
which they parasitize. They are then carried by the nest-building
hosts to their nests and there find larvae to attack. Shortly after
entering the new hosts they lose their legs and become very degenerate
in appearance. The males have one pair of wings, the front pair being
reduced to tiny balancers. They are very active creatures with slender
legs, immense stalked eyes which look like raspberries, and degenerate
mouth parts. These insects are world wide in their distribution, but
very rare. Mr. Pierce's communication was discussed by Messrs.
L. 0. Howard, E. A. Goldman, and W. P. Hay.

R. W. Shufeldt: Zoological statuary at the National Capital. Dr.
Shufeldt, after relating his experiences with the sculptor, John Rogers,
in 1872, and with others in the studios of New York City forty years

proceedings: anthropological society 273

R. W. Shufeldt: Zoological statuary at the National Capital. Dr,
Shufeldt, after relating his experiences with the sculptor, John Rodgers.
in 1872, and with others in the studios of New York City forty years
thereafter, pointed out how generally it was the case everywhere that
sculptors ignored the teachings of biologists, carrying their idealism
to * such an extreme that many of the elaborate pieces, intended as
ornaments in places of prominence in cities, were untrue to nature,
highly rediculous in conception, as well as in execution. This rule
applied to a large part of the sculptural pieces in the City of Washing-
ton, and to this there were but too few exceptions. Among these
latter were the tigers and buffaloes of Mr. Proctor. Through the use
of his lantern slides Dr. Shufeldt illustrated his remarks and criticisms
of a considerables number of the pieces of animal sculpture about
the city. Exception was taken to the employment of nonindigenous
animals as American models for such purposes, and especial objection
was made to the lion, which, the speaker said, should be supplanted
bp our own native forms, as the elk, moose, cougar, and other types.

Dr. Shufeldt's communication was discussed by Messrs. L. 0. How-
ard, H. E. Ames, W. P. Hay, J. W. Gidley, G. W. Baird, and others.

M. W. Lyon, Jr., Recording Secretary.

THE ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 509th meeting of the Society was held in the Lecture Hall of
the Public Library on March 19, 1917. On this occasion Dr. Fay-
Cooper Cole, of the Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago,
delivered a lecture before the society on The pagan tribes of the
Philippines.

He first took up the peopling of the Islands and the intermingling
of peoples which has resulted in the present population. The pigmy
blacks or Negritos were held to be the aboriginal inhabitants of the
islands. They were driven back from the coasts, and finally to a
few isolated regions by the pressure of invaders, most of whom came
in from the south. Many of the pigmies were enslaved or otherwise
merged with newcomers and, as a result, traces of this intermixture
are now to be seen in every tribe of the Philippines.

The invading peoples are believed to have come in several waves,
not as a part of a great single movement. The earliest of these waves
appears to have been made up of a people who were physically closely
lalied to the Polynesians. They were followed by successive invasions
of primitive Malays — a people with closer affinities to the Mongoloid
people of Southern Indo-China and the earlier inhabitants of Burma.
These early inhabitants appear to have intermarried to a great extent,
and later to have mixed with newcomers so that today the population
is of a veiy complex nature. Dr. Cole showed a number of slides of
members of the Bukidnon tribe of Central Mindanao. In this group
three types continually appear — oftentimes in the same family. The
first type has distinct negroid features showing the admixture of Ne-
grito blood; the second closely approximates the Christianized Visayan
of the Coast; while the third element is made up of people who in
all but color closely resemble Caucasians.

274 proceedings: anthropological society

The effect of movements of alien peoples and beliefs into Malaysia,
in historic times, was also sketched. Traces of the Hindu-Buddist
movement are evident especially in the folk-lore; while the great ef-
fects of the introduction of Mohammedism and Christianty on the
bulk of the population are a part of historic record.

The greater part of the evening was devoted to a description of the
most fundamental facts of the religious, social, and economic life of
three pagan tribes — the Bagobo of Southern Mindanao, the Bontoc
Igorot, and the Tinguian of Northern Luzon.

The Bagobo live on the lower slopes of Mt. Apo, the highest moun-
tain of the Philippines. Near the summit of this mountain is a deep
fissure from which clouds of sulphur fumes and steam are continually
rising, while frequent earthquakes give evidence of latent energy. In
this peak a great host of spirits are supposed to dwell, but the most
powerful are Mandarangan and Darago, a male and a female, who are
the patrons of the warriors and in whose honor human sacrifices are
held each year. Other spirits look after the workers in brass and in
iron, and the weavers, and some dwell in the fields and protect the
crops; while each family has its special protecting spirit. Offerings
of food both cereal and of flesh and blood are made to all of these, as
well as to the low mean spirits which seek to injure mortals; but to
the greatest and most powerful of all the spirits only white offerings
of rice and the like are presented. There is also a belief in a class of
powerful spirits who inhabit the realms above the earth. These be-
ings take no interest in the affairs of men, and no offerings or suppli-
cations are made to them. Each person is thought to have two spirits
or souls — one on the right side and one on the left. The first of these
finally goes to the land of the dead, while the second continues to
roam the earth as a flesh devouring buso, or evil spirit.

The Bagobo are ruled over by dato or petty rulers, who in turn are
subservient to the chief dato. Slavery and polygamy are both found
in the tribe, but the slavery is of a mild type, and it is possible for the
members of this class to become merged into the general population.
Agriculture is of great importance, though conducted in a very primi-
tive fashion, but rice terraces are quite unknown.

Going to Northern Luzon Dr. Cole showed the Igorot and Tinguian
living under similar geographic conditions, their territories joining
along the northwestern, border of Bontoc. The whole belt is exceed-
ingly mountainous, the jungle being absent except in the deep valleys,
and the rivers are small except during the rainy season when they
become rushing torrents. Under these conditions it would be impos-
sible to support a large population either bjr hunting or fishing, and
the people have taken seriously to agriculture. The rugged nature of
the land has caused them to terrace the mountain sides and in con-
nection with these elevated fields, an elaborate system of irrigation has
been worked out. Both tribes have, until recent years, been ardent
head hunters, but the motives for taking the skull as well as the final
disposition of the trophy varies in the two districts. In language

proceedings: anthropological society 275

and physical type the people are much alike, but there most of the
similarity ends.

A Bontoc village is divided into ato Qr political divisions each one
of which is governed by an oligarchy of old men. The leaders of the
various ato meet from time to time to decide matters of importance
to the village. These ato are also exogamic divisions of the settlement
and each has its man's house in which all unmarried men and boys
must sleep. It also serves as a council house and as the storage place
for drums and other ceremonial paraphernalia. Here also are kept
the skulls of enemies. Unmarried girls sleep in the olag or girls' house
from the age of about four years until their marriage. Trial marriage
is common, a final union seldom taking place until the birth of a child
is assured.

Going to the Tinguian a radically different type of house construc-
tion is encountered. The villages are not divided into political or
exogamic groups; the man's house and the girls' dormitory are not
found, nor is trial marriage practiced. The government of the village,
is in the hands of a head man known as lakay, who may if he desires
call in other old men to aid him in the decision of important matters.

Dr. Cole ended his talk with a somewhat detailed description of
the religious beliefs of the Tinguian; the possession of their mediums
by the spirits; and the ceremonies conducted to bring health and pros-
perity to the group.

About one hundred colored lantern slides were used in illustration.

The 510th meeting of the Society was held at the Natural History
Building of the National Museum, April 3. 1917. At this meeting
Leo J. Frachtexberg, of the Bureau of American Ethnology, pre-
sented a paper on The religious ideas of the Northwest Coast Indians.

Dr. Frachtenberg stated that four important features of the re-
ligious ideas noted among the Indians of this region are: (1) An in-
tensive animism; (2) a belief in the powers of supernatural beings as
dwarfs and giants; (3) a belief in the existence of guardian spirits;
(4) a complete absence of the social phase of religion.

According to Dr. Frachtenberg many, religious ideas are common
to all the tribes of the Northwest Coast, yet the northern and southern
portions of this area are found to differ in cosmogony. The tribes in
the extreme southern portion believe that the world was created out
of a watery mist, the Transformer enlarging a small piece of land until
it became large enough for habitation. The tribes of the northern
portion are satisfied with a world whose origin is not explained. They
hold, however, that the Transformer (Creator) first made man and
1 ho members of faunal and floral kingdoms, and at a later time re-
turned and improved this creation. Two visits of the Transformer are
typical of this region. In the south the Transformer (Creator) and
the Trickster are separate individuals, while in the north they are
unified. In the south the Transformer makes all that is good, and
the Trickster is held responsible for all the bad elements; while in the

276 proceedings: anthropological society

north there is no such dissociation. Good- and evil things were alike
created by the Transformer.

The Northwest Coast Indians believe that an individual comprises
a body inhabited by two "souls" and a "ghost." In a slight illness
the "outer soul" becomes separated from the body, in a serious illness
the "inner soul" wanders to the "country of souls" but may be
recalled by the shaman. When death occurs the "ghost" also departs
and the shaman has no further power. The "country of souls" con-
tains two division, one inhabited bjr recently arrived souls, the other
by souls which have been there for a longer time. On their journey
to this land the souls pass a "rest-house," then a "lake" and a "berry-
ground." Their way is barred by a "spring-pole," and they must
cross a "rotten log," the final barrier being a wide river.

No ritual or systematic form of supplication is found among these
Indians, indeed it may be said that guardian spirits take the place of
deities. Every man and woman possesses one or more guardian spirits
each of which has its special sphere of influence. Thus there are
guardian spirits for securing good weather and plenty of seal or whale,
guardian spirits for success in hunting, and for help in making baskets
and canoes. No offerings accompany a request to a guardian spirit.
Crude representations of these spirits are seen on the implements and
on the house-posts of their owners.

The shamans receive their power from a multitude of spirits. Cer-
tain shamans are considered to have power to cure sickness, while it
is believed that others can "steal a man's soul," causing either serious
illness or death. Large gifts are exacted by the shamans, who are
both respected and feared.

In the discussion which followed the reading of the paper Dr. J. R.
Swanton called attention to the nascent dualism and monism in the
religious beliefs of the Indians of the southern and northern areas
considered by the speaker. Dr. I. M. Casanowicz noted the strange
fact that many primitive religious ideas bear a resemblance to the
most advanced religious ideas of the present time. Dr. J. W. Fewkes
said that primitive Indians are so low in the cultural scale that they
develop only the most general religious principles, these being modified
by the several geographic areas inhabited by them. He stated further
that there is no unity in the primitive religions of the American In-
dians, though some parallelisms are found between the beliefs held in
different areas. Dr. Truman Michelson mentioned some differences
between the religious ideas of the Northwest Coast Indians and those
of the Algonquian tribes, one of the chief differences being that the
latter do not believe in a plurality of souls.

Frances Densmore, Secretary.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VII MAY 19, 1917 No. 10

GEOLOGY. — On the terms aphrolith and dermoliih. T. A.
Jaggar, Jr., Hawaiian Volcano Observatory. (Communi-
cated by Arthur L. Day.)

Dutton1 in describing Hawaiian volcanoes made use of the
terms aa and pahoehoe, and these words of Hawaiian origin have
been somewhat adopted by American geologists. Some Eng-
lish geologists object to them strongly and continental usage is
various in the matter. Aa lava of the Hawaiians is charac-
terized by a peculiar mechanism of solidification of olivine
basalt, whereby a magma surcharged with gas so froths or foams
in its surface layer that on solidification this layer shrivels and
separates into discrete scoriaceous units, in some places light
and pumiceous, but elsewhere heavy and slaggy. The extreme
pumiceous type is the limu, or " thread-lace scoria" of Dana.
The lava flow beneath solidifies as a coarsely vesicular body
grading downward into crystalline rock which has no known
petrographical peculiarity different from any other type of
flow. The boundary surface at the top of the continuous sheet
and below the discontinuous layer of scoriae is revealed at many
places on the shoreline of Hawaii, where the ocean has swept
the loose material away. In these places the surface revealed
is rugose and in detail much like the scoriaceous fragments,
but it sometimes exhibits coarse ropy forms and rough festoons

1 Dutton, C. E. Hawaiian Volcanoes. 4th Ann. Rep. U. S. Geol. Surv.,
1882-83.

277

278 jaggar: aphrolith and dermolith

in plan. The distinctive feature of typical aa, however, is the
shrinkage of the surface into units from a few centimetres to
several metres in diameter, each unit being complete in itself
and commonly free from broken surfaces. Such lava is spoken
of in text books which have not adopted the Hawaiian word,
as fragmentary lava, block lava, or scoriaceous lava, and in
the southwestern states the Mexican word "malapai" or "mal-
apis" is used for the vast fields of aa which there occur. In
the Cordilleran belt and elsewhere great bodies of ancient aa
are called pyroclastics, breccias, and agglomerates indis-
criminately, along with explosion products that are of totally
different origin. Aa makes a pyroclastic where igneous ma-
trix is apt to be identical with the contained fragments, and the
fragments are of irregular lumpy outline.

The pahoehoe lava of the Hawaiians, on the other hand, is
distinguished by smooth surfaces which result from the for-
mation of a glassy membrane or skin. The mode of congelation
of olivine basalt magma advancing as a pahoehoe flow is very
strikingly different from that of an aa flow. The surface of the
lava lake of Kilauea in all stages of its crusting is typically
pahoehoe. As the heat is radiated from the surface, solidifica-
tion forms a dermal layer made of filaments of glass remnant
from expanding bubbles filled with gas, and these show no
tendency to burst explosively, but incessantly crowd into the
interstices of the stretching and rending layer of filaments of
previous formation. The result is a skin not usually gas tight
and exhibiting extraordinary diversity of texture. Solidifica-
tion proceeds from without inwards, the skin reaches various
thicknesses and then folds, and the folding distributes itself
somewhat like the moraines of a glacier with festoons drawn
downstream farthest along the middle line and retarded at the
two sides. At the sides there are lengthwise curtains produced
by the longitudinal drag between resistant cooling margins and
the festooned stream in the middle. At the front, toes of the
molten fluid push out from under the skirts of the flow in
I peculiar tuberous bodies, which tend to congeal on all sides
J and may even lift their tips vertically and solidify. They ap-

jaggar: aphrolith and dermolith 279

pear to be blown by expanding gas, for the axis is almost tubular
in its coarser vesicularity. The spasmodic renewed advance of
a pahoehoe flow is frequently characterized by pushing out
from under a skirt of crust, in contrast to the aa flow which
appears to solidify from below upward and to advance by over-
riding its already solidified lobes. Pahoehoe lava is variously
mentioned in the text books as fluent, smooth, ropy, or corded
lava.

Visually the two types of lava, in mobility and temperature,
appear much alike while incandescent and flowing rapidly as
golden streams. With the beginnings of solidification, however,
the difference is pronounced, pahoehoe forming skins and aa
forming knobs and cinders like a bed of hot coals. The cool-
ing front of an aa flow is full of flames through the apertures of
the blocks. The front of a pahoehoe flow shows no flames de-
tectable by eye. The aa flow at its front is in a brittle semi-solid
condition, slabs rifting away and falling forward from a mass
beneath that resembles hot iron. Pahoehoe, on the other hand,
bellies its crust forward, escapes as a viscous pudding and this
in turn skins over, the whole movement resembling the ad-
vance of candy or tar.

The explanation of the physico-chemical difference between
the two types remains to be discovered, as chemical analysis
in the same region has as yet revealed no distinction. It seems
probable that the quantity of confined gas, in solution or in
bubble form, for each unit of volume of melt, controls the mode
of freezing. Possibly the gases are nearer equilibrium in pahoe-
hoe than in aa. The heat equation plays an important role,
and this involves reaction between the gases as well as their
oxidation in air. Gas expansion may be more rapid in aa and
so induce internal solidification. Furthermore, there are enor-
mous differences in the state of oxidation of the iron at the
moment of cooling, and as j^et we know nothing of the progress
of crystallization in the field. With so many variables there is
no cause for wonder that the distinction is as yet unexplained.

Between pahoehoe and aa flows in Hawaii there are unquestion-
ably gradations of many appearances and perhaps of many

280 jaggar: aphrolith and dermolith

kinds, but this the writer doubts. By this is meant that the
gradations may be mixtures of two substances rather than stages
of one substance. This is only a suggestion in the present
condition of our knowledge, based on the discovery, reported in a
previous note, that the lake bottom or bench magma of Kilauea
was found solidified as a a, whereas the lake magma solidifies as
pahoehoe.

In view of the diversity of usage cited above, and of the con-
fusion which results when pahoehoe crusts break up and make a
"fragmentary" or "block" lava not at all of aa character, or
when aa flows are revealed scoured bare and show "ropy" or
"corded" aspect without being in the least of pahoehoe origin,
I believe that volcanology needs a terminology scientifically
descriptive of the two groups of effusive magmatic bodies, and
capable of adaptation as adjectives, adverbs, or nouns in any
modern language.

Accordingly I propose for pahoehoe the term dermolith
(Greek, skin + stone), to cover all those forms of effusive lava
which manifest subaerially a surface skin or crust, capable of
wrinkling or folding, as the chief distinguishing character.

For example, dermolithic basalts are common in Hawaii,
Samoa, Iceland, Reunion, and on the Snake River plains, but
dermolithic flow has not been identified at Lassen's Peak. At
Mauna Loa near the vents of 1916, the lava flowed dermolithi-
cally in a coarse way, but exhibited a much rougher texture than
the characteristic dermolith of Halemaumau. On the floor of
Kilauea crater great fields of dermolith extend far and wide.

I propose for aa the term aphrolith (Greek, foam + stone),
to distinguish those effusive lavas or crater bodies which tend on
solidification to subdivide surficially into complete irregular
lumpy vesicular units, the crust surfaces of the continuous mass
having protuberances of similar rugged character.

For example, aphrolithic lava flow has been dominant on the
southern flank of Mauna Loa since 1868, the flow of that year
being partly dermolithic. It would appear also, from the ob-
servations of 1917, that aphrolith occupies the bottom of the
Kilauea lava lake and that hence the solidification of the interior

JENNINGS: CHANGES IN HEREDITARY CHARACTERS 281

of the bench magma must proceed aphrolithically. Supposing
the cumulo-domes of Bogoslof and Pelee to be essentially aphro-
lith, it is a matter of great interest to determine whether any
dermolithic flow, however small, took place in those magmas.
At Soufriere in St. Vincent, and also on Bandaisan, there are
aphrolithic blocks of fresh rock quite distinct from the angular
fragments, and apparently representative of the subterranean
magmas which produced the explosions.

If these terms are adopted, it is hoped that they will not be
changed in English to the -lite termination, as Harker2 insisted
on doing for "batholite," etc. The -lite syllable is needlessly
confusing, on account of the innumerable rock and mineral
names so ending. Harker's contention is that "-lith" is con-
tinental and not English, but this is disproved by such a word
as monolith, which is accepted English of Greek derivation.

GENETICS. — Observed changes in hereditary characters in re-
lation to evolution^ H. S. Jennings, Johns Hopkins Uni-
versity.

The problem of the method of evolution is one which the bi-
ologist finds it impossible to leave alone, although the longer
he works at it, the farther its solution fades into the distance.
The central point in the problem is the appearance, nature, and
origin of the heritable variations that arise in organisms; the
changes that occur in the hereditary constitution. I have for
a long time been studying the appearance of heritable variations
in certain lower organisms. Having satisfied myself as to the
nature of the variations that arise in the creatures that I have
studied, I have looked about to see what other workers have
found ; and to determine whether any unified picture of the
matter can be made. Can we bring these facts which experi-
mental work has brought out into relation with the method of
evolution? Can we say that they exclude any particular theory?

2 Harker, A. Natural History of the Igneous Rocks.

1 A lecture delivered before the Washington Academy of Sciences, March 15,
1917.

282 JENNINGS: CHANGES IN HEREDITARY CHARACTERS

Can we say that they leave certain views admissible? Can we
go farther and say that they make certain views probable?
I shall hardly be so bold as even to ask whether they establish
any particular views, though even that has been at times affirmed.

These questions have, of course, been raised thousands of
times; it is only because knowledge does advance, because
experimental work has been enormously multiplied of late, that
there is reason to bring them up anew. I am going to try to
put before you the present situation as it appears to me.

What we may call the first phase of the modern experimental
study of variation is that which culminated in the establishment
of the fact that most of the heritable differences observed be-
tween closely related organisms — between the members of a
given species, for example — are not variations in the sense of
alterations; are not active changes in constitution, but are per-
manent diversities ; they are static, not dynamic. This discovery,
like that of Mendelian heredity, was, as you know, made long
ago by the Frenchman Jordan; but, as in the case of Mendelism,
science ignored it and pursued cheerfully its false path till the
facts were rediscovered in recent years. All thorough work
has led directly to this result : that any species or kind of organ-
ism is made up of a very great number of diverse stocks, differing
from each other in minute particulars, but the diversities in-
herited from generation to generation. This result has in recent
years dominated all work on the occurrence of variations; on
the effects of selection; on the method of evolution. The con-
dition is particularly striking in organisms reproducing from a
single parent, so that there is no mixing of stocks; I found it in
a high degree in organisms of this sort which I studied. Thus
the in usorian Paramecium I found to consist of a large number
of such heritably diverse stocks, each stock showing within itself
many variations that are not heritable.2 Difflugia corona,
which I have recently been studying, shows the same condition
in a marked degree.3 As you know, a host of workers have
found similar conditions in all sorts of organisms. It led to the

2 See Jennings, 1908, 1909, 1910, 1911. (See Bibliography.)

3 Jennings, 1916. (See Bibliography.)

JENNINGS: CHANGES IN HEREDITARY CHARACTERS 283

idea of the genotype (Johannsen), as the permanent germinal
constitution of any given individual; it supported powerfully the
conception of Mendelism as merely the working out of recombina-
tions of mosaic-like parts of these permanent genotypes. The
whole conception is in its essential nature static; alteration does
not fit into the scheme.

This discovery seemed to explain fully all the observed effects
of selection within a species; but gave them a significance quite
the reverse of what they had been supposed to have. It seemed
to account for practically all the supposed variations that had
been observed; they were not variations at all, in the sense of
steps in evolution; they were mere instances of the static con-
dition of diversity that everywhere prevails. Jordan, the devout
original discoverer of this condition of affairs, maintained that
it showed that organisms do not really vary; that there is no
such process as evolution; and indeed this seems to be the direct
logical conclusion to be drawn. In these days of plots and spies,
the evolutionists might almost feel that the enemy had crept
into their citadel and was blowing it up from within.

Now, this multiplicity of diverse stocks really represents
the actual condition of affairs, so far as it goes. Persons who
are interested in maintaining that evolution is occurring, that
selection is effective, and the like, make a very great mistake
in denying the existence of the condition of diversity portrayed
by the genotypists. What they must do is to accept that con-
dition as a foundation, then show that it is not final ; that it does
not proceed to the end; that the diverse existing stocks, while
heritably different as the genotypists maintain, may also change
and differentiate, in ways not yet detected by then* discoverers.

But of course most of the adherents of the "orthodox genotype
theory" do not maintain, with their first representative Jordan,
that no changes occur; that all is genetically static in organisms.
Typically, they admit that mutations occur; that the genotype
may at rare intervals transform, as a given chemical compound
may transform into another and diverse compound. We all
know the typical instances: the transforming mutations of
Oenothera; the bud variations that show in a sudden change of

284 JENNINGS! CHANGES IN HEREDITARY CHARACTERS

color or form in plants; the dropping out of definite Mendelian
units in Drosophila and elsewhere ; the transformation of particu-
lar Mendelian units into some other condition.

So much then may serve as an outline of a prevailing theory;
organisms forming a multitude of diverse strains with diverse
genotypes; the genotype a mosaic of parts that are recombined
in Mendelian inheritance; selection a mere process of isolating
and recombining what already exists; large changes occurring
at rare intervals, through the dropping out of bits of the mosaic,
or through their complete chemical transformation; evolution
by saltations.

Certain serious difficulties appear in this view of the matter;
I shall mention merely two of them, for their practical results.
One is the very existence of the minutely differing strains,
which forms one of the main foundations for the genotype theory.
How have these arisen? Not by large steps, not by saltations,
for the differences between the strains go down to the very
limits of detectibility. On the saltation theory, Jordan's view
that these things were created separate at the beginning seems
the only solution.

Secondly, to many minds there appears to be an equally great
difficulty in the orig'n by saltation of complex adaptive structures,
such as the eye. I shall not analyze this difficulty, but merely
point to it and to the first one mentioned, as having had the
practical effect of keeping many investigators persistently at
work looking for something besides saltations as a basis for
evolution; looking for hereditary changes that would permit a
continuity in transformation. Some have been searching in the
complex phenomena of biparental inheritance; here Castle is
to be first named, and in a later lecture you will hear of the views
to which he has been led. Others, like Prof. H. F. Osborn, have
been searching from this point of view the paleontological records.
Others of us have taken up the problem in uniparental repro-
duction; it is here that my own work falls, and of this I will for
a moment speak.

Where reproduction is from a single parent we meet the
problem of inheritance and variation in its simplest form; for

JENNINGS: CHANGES IN HEREDITARY CHARACTERS 285

there is nothing which complicates genetic problems so enor-
mously as does the continual mixing of diverse stocks in biparental
inheritance. In uniparental reproduction we have but one
genotype to deal with; we can be certain that no hereditary
characters are introduced from outside that genotype.

To hope for results on the problem in which we are interested,
we must resolve to carry on a sort of second degree research, as
it were. That is, we must accept as a foundation the facts
before discovered, as to the make-up of the species out of a great
number of diverse stocks ; as to the usual effects of selection being
nothing save the isolation of such preexisting stocks. What
we must do is to take a single such stock — choosing an organism
that is most favorable for such work — then proceed to a most
extensive and intensive study of heredity, of variation, and of
the effects of selection for long periods within such a stock.

Such an organism, most favorable from all points of view, I
found in the rhizopod Difflugia corona. It has numerous dis-
tinctive characters, all congenital; all inherited in a high degree;
yet varying from parent to offspring also; none of these char-
acters changed by growth or environmental action during the
life of the individual.

Long continued work showed that a single strain of this animal,
all derived by fission from a single parent, does differentiate
gradually, with the passage of generations, into many hereditar-
ily diverse strains. The important facts about the hereditary
variations and their appearance are the following:

1. Hereditary variations arose in some few cases by rather
large steps or "saltations."

2. But the immense majority of the hereditary variations
were minute gradations. Variation is as continuous as can be
detected.

3. Hereditary variation occurred in many different ways, in
many diverse characters. There was no single line of variation
followed exclusively, nor in the overwhelming majority of cases.

4. It gave rise to many diverse combinations of characters:
large animals with long spines; small animals with long spines;
large animals with short spines; small animals with short spines;

286 JENNINGS: CHANGES IN HEREDITARY CHARACTERS

and so on, for other sorts of combinations of other characters.
Any set of characters might vary independently of the rest.

5. The hereditary variations which arose were of just such a
nature as to produce from a single strain the hereditarily different
strains that are found in nature.4

I judge that if the intermediate strains were killed, the two
most diverse strains found in nature might well be classed as
different species, although the question of what a - species is
must be left to the judgment or fancy of the individual.

Such then were the results of my own studies as to the nature
of hereditary variations and how they appear. How do these
results compare with those found by other men? If we take a
general survey, we find the following main classes of cases:

1. First, we have the mutations of Oenothera and its relatives:
large transformations occurring suddenly. Here is evidently
one of the most interesting fields of genetics, but I cannot feel,
in view of many extraordinary phenomena in this group, that
the bearing on the main problems of genetics is yet clear.

2. Second, we have a large miscellaneous collection of muta-
tions observed in various classes of organisms: "bud variations,"
dropping out of unit factors, and the like — all definite saltations,
but not genetically fully analyzed.

3. In Drosophila as studied by Morgan and his associates, we
have the largest and most fully analyzed body of facts which
we possess with respect to changes in hereditary character in
any organism. The changes here are pictured as typical salta-
tions ; but of these I shall speak farther.

4. In paleontology, as the results are presented in recent
papers by Osborn,5 the evidence is for evolution by minute,
continuous variations which follow a single definite trend.

5. Finally we have the work in biparental inheritance from
Castle and his associates:6 this, as interpreted by Castle, gives
evidence for continuous variation, not following a single neces-
sary trend, but guided by external selection.

4 The full account of this work is given in Jennings, 1916. (See Bibliography.)

5 See Osborne, 1912, 1915, 1916. (See Bibliography.)

6 See Castle, 1915 a, 1916, 1916 a, 1916 6, 1917; Castle and Phillips, 1914,
etc. (See Bibliography.)

JENNINGS: CHANGES IN HEREDITARY CHARACTERS 287

Furthermore, we discover in our survey that there are at least
two well-marked controversies in flame at the present time:

First, we have the general controversy between, on the one
hand, those who are mutationists and adherents of the strict
genotype view; on the other hand, those who, like Castle, be-
lieve that we observe continuous hereditary variations in the
progress of biparental reproduction. The mutationists attempt
to show that the apparent gradual modification of characters
observed in breeding is in reality a mere working out of Mende-
lian recombinations. Here we have contributions by Morgan
(1916), Pearl (1916, 1917), MacDowell (1916), Hagedoorn (1914),
and others on the one hand; while the full brunt of the attack
is borne on the other side by Castle.

Second, we have a somewhat less lively controversy be-
tween the genotypic mutationists and the paleontological up-
holders of evolution by continuous variation. Echoes of this
we find in recent publications by Osborn and by Morgan.

Now let us look briefly into the points at issue in the contro-
versy between the "genotypic mutationsts" and the upholders
of gradual change during biparental inheritance.

Castle finds that in rats he can, by selection, gradually in-
crease or decrease the amount of color in the coat, passing by
continuous stages from one extreme to the other. As to this,
he holds two main points:

1 . The change is an actual change in the hereditary character-
istics of the stock; not a mere result of the recombination of
Mendelian factors. This is the general and fundamental point
at issue.

2. More specifically, he holds it to be an actual change n a
single unit factor; this single factor changes its grade in a con-
tinuous and quantitative manner.

On the other side, the critics of these views maintain that the
changes shown are not actual alterations in the hereditary con-
stitution at all, but are mere results of the recombinations of
Mendelian factors. And specifically, they find a complete
explanation of such results as those of Castle in the hypothesis
of multiple modifying factors.

288 JENNINGS: CHANGES IN HEREDITARY CHARACTERS

i

The method in which these modifying factors are conceived to
operate is doubtless familiar to you : their application to Castle's
work with selection in rats will serve as an example. There is
conceived to be a single "main factor" which determines whether
the "hooded pattern" shall or shall not be present. In addition
to this there are a considerable number of "modifying factors"
which, when the "hooded pattern" is present, increase or de-
crease the extent of pigmentation. When many of the positive
factors of this sort are present, the rat's coat has much pigment ;
when fewer are present the extent of pigment is less, and so on.
The process of changing the extent of pigmentation by selection
consists, according to this view, merely in making diverse com-
binations of these factors, by proper crosses.

This same explanation is applied to a great variety of cases.
Castle had carried the war into the enemy's country by predict-
ing (or at least suggesting) that the so-called unit characters in
Drosophila would be found to be modifiable through selection.7
Later research by MacDowell (1915), Zeleny and Mattoon (1915),
Reeves (1916), Morgan (1917), and Sturtevant (1917) actually
verified this prediction; it has indeed been found that the Dro-
sophila mutations can be modified by selection. Again the
mutationists counter the blow with their explanation of multiple
modifying factors, which are segregated in the process of selec-
tion; and they give some real evidence that such is actually the
case.

Now, into the merits of that particular question, as to whether
the apparent effects of selection are really due to modifying
factors in the manner set forth, I do not propose to enter. Castle
maintains that they are not, and I doubt not that he will show
you reason for that point of view. At this point my own dis-
cussion will diverge from what I judge that he will be likely to
give. What I am going to do is to abandon the ground that
Castle would defend, proceed directly into the territory of the
enemy, accept the conditions met there, then see where we come
out in relation to the nature of variation, the effects of selection,
and the method of evolution.

7 See Castle, 1915, p. 39. (See Bibliography.)

JENNINGS: CHANGES IN HEREDITARY CHARACTERS 289

In no other organism have heritable variations been studied
so thoroughly as in Drosophila, and no other body of men have
been more thoroughgoing upholders of mutationism and of the
multiple factor explanation of the effects of selection, than the
students of Drosophila — Morgan, Sturtevant, Bridges, Dexter,
Muller, MacDowell, and the others. We may therefore turn to
the evidence from Drosophila with confidence that it will be
presented with fairness to the mutationist point of view. We
shall first ask (1) what we learn from the work on Drosophila
as to the possibility of finding finely graded variations in a
single unit character. Next we shall inquire (2) as to the re-
lation of the assumed modifying factors to changes in hereditary
constitution; to the nature of the effects of selection.

1 . First, then, what are the facts as to numerous finely graded
variations in a single unit factor? Here we have certain remark-
able data as to the eye-color of Drosophila; data that are of
great interest with relation to the nature of evolutionary change.
This fruit fly has normally a red eye. Some years ago a variation
occurred by which the eye lost its color, becoming white, a typical
mutation. Somewhat later, another variation came, by which
the eye color became eosin. By those wonderfully ingenious
methods which the advanced state of knowledge of the genetics
of Drosophila have made possible, it was determined that the
mutations white and eosin are due to changes in a particular
part of a particular chromosome, namely, of the so-called
X-chromosome, or chromosome I. And further, it was discovered
that the two colors are due to different conditions of the same
locus of the chromosome; in other words, they represent two
different variations of the same unit. Moreover, the normal
red color represents a third condition of that same unit.

Somewhat later a fourth condition of this same unit was found,
giving a color which lies nearer the red, between the red and eosin;
this new color was called cherry. So we have four grades or
conditions of this single unit character.

And now, with the minute attention paid to the distinction of
these grades of eye color, new grades begin to come fast. In the
November number of Genetics, Hyde (1916), adds two new grades,

290 JENNINGS! CHANGES IN HEREDITARY CHARACTERS

one called "blood," near the extreme red end of the series, the
other, called "tinged," near the extreme white end; in fact, from
the descriptions it requires careful examination to distinguish
these two from red and white, respectively. Thus we have now
six grades of this unit. And in the same number of the same
journal, Safir (1916) adds another intermediate grade, lying
between "tinged" and esoin; this he calls "buff." All these
seven grades are diverse conditions of the single unit factor,
having its locus in a certain definite spot in the X-chromosome.
Such diverse conditions of a single actor are known as multiple
allelomorphs.

So, up to date we know from the mutationists' own studies of
Drosophila that a single unit factor presents seven gradations of
color between white and red, each gradation heritable in the
usual Mendelian manner. These grades are the following:
(1) Red; (2) blood; (3) cherry; (4) eosin; (5) buff; (6) tinged;
(7) white.

Three of these grades have been discovered in the ast five
months. It would not require a bold prophet to predict that as
the years pass we shall come to know more of these gradations,
till all detectible differences of shade have been distinguished, and
each shown to be inherited as a Mendelian unit. Considering
that the work on Drosophila has been going on only about seven
or eight years, this is remarkable progress toward a demon-
stration that a single unit factor can present as many grades as
can be distinguished; that the grades may give a pragmatically
continuous series. The extreme selectionist asks only a little
more than this.

Besides showing that a unit factor may thus exist in numerous
minutely differing' grades, this case shows that a heritable varia-
tion may occur so small as to be barely detectible. Although the
variations do not usually occur in this way, the case presents the
conditions which would allow of a gradual transition from one
extreme to the other, by means of numerous intermediate con-
ditions. In a population in which were occurring such minute
changes as are here shown to be possible, we could get by selec-
tion such a continuous series of gradations as Castle describes in

JENNINGS: CHANGES IN HEREDITARY CHARACTERS 291

his rats. The difference in the two cases is, that in Drosophila
variations which are large steps occur as well as do the small
ones; and that, according to Castle's conception of the matter,
such minute heritable variations occur more frequently in the
rat than in Drosophila. But on the showing of the students of
Drosophila, there is scarcely any other difference in principle
between what happens in Drosophila and what Castle believes
to happen in the' rat.

2. But as we have seen, the mutationists reject the view that
the changes in the coat color of the rat are due to alterations in
a single unit factor; they explain this and other cases of the
effectiveness of selection on a single character by multiple modify-
ing factors. Accepting again their contention, the question is
shifted to the nature of such factors. What sort of things are
these modifying factors? What is their relation to actual changes
in the heritable constitution of organisms?

Our direct experimental knowledge of these "modifying fac-
tors" is scanty. What we have comes again mainly from the
studies of Drosophila, so that we need not suspect it of being
colored in such a way as to favor the selectionist point of view.
We find data as to certain known modifying factors by one of the
workers on Drosophila, Bridges (1916), in his recent important
paper on non-disjunction of the chromosomes. And here we
are taken back again to the series of eye colors, and indeed to
one particular member of the series, the middle member, called
eosin.8 Bridges tells us that he found a factor whose only
effect was to lighten the eosin color in a fly with eosin eyes; this
factor indeed nearly or quite turns the eosin eye white. This
factor Bridges calls " whiting." Another factor has the effect
of lightening the eosin color a little less, giving a sort of cream
color; this is called "cream 6." A third factor dilutes the eosin
color not so much; it is called "cream a." In addition to these,
Bridges tells us that he has discovered three other diluters of the
eosin color; we will call them the fourth, fifth, and sixth diluters.
And finally Bridges tells us of another factor whose only effect

s Bridges, 1916, p. 148. (See Bibliography.)

Li L

292 JENNINGS! CHANGES IN HEREDITARY CHARACTERS

is to modify eosin in the direction of a darker color: this factor
he calls "dark." None of these factors has any effect save on
eosin-eyed flies.

As you see, these things add tremendously to our gradations
in eye color. We had already been furnished seven grades,
from white to red; now we have seven secondary grades within
a single one of these seven primary grades. Our list of grada-
tions of eye color in Drosophila therefore takes now the following
form:

Heritable grades of eye color, Variations that give modifica-

due to diverse variations of a tions of the intensity of eosin,

single unit located in Chromo- but are located in other chio-

some I. mosomes.

1. White f 1. Whiting

2. Tinged | 2. Cream b

3. Buff I 3. Cream a

4. Eosin '

5. Cherry

6. Blood

7. Red

4. Fourth diluter

5. Fifth diluter

6. Sixth diluter

7. Dark

Let us hasten to add that these seven new grades are not lo-
cated in the same unit factor as are the seven primary ones;
their loci are in other chromosomes (or possibly in other parts of
the same chromosome).

Here again then we have minutely differing conditions of a
single shade of color, brought about by seven modifying factors.
Bridges makes the following remark concerning them:

A remarkably close imitation of such a multiple factor case as that
of Castle's hooded rats could be concocted with the chief gene eosin for
reduced color, and these six cliluters which by themselves produce no
effect, but which carry the color of eosin through every dilution stage
from the dark yellowish pink of the eosin female to a pure white.9

Now this is an extremely interesting statement, one that must
arouse the keen interest of the student of the method of evolu-
tion. In Drosophila we could get the same sort of graded results
that Castle does with his rats, only in Drosophila this is by

9 Bridges, 1916, p. 149. (See Bibliography.)

JENNINGS: CHANGES IN HEREDITARY CHARACTERS 293

means of multiple modifying factors, whereas Castle believes
that in the rat it is by actual alterations of the hereditary con-
stitution!

But what are these modifying factors? And here we come to
the astonishing point. These modifying factors are themselves
alterations in the hereditary constitution. Bridges leaves no doubt
upon this point. He lists and describes them specifically as muta-
tions; as actual changes in the hereditary material.

Where then is the difference in principle between the condi-
tion in Drosophila and that in the rat? In Drosophila there
occur minute changes in the germinal material, such as to give,
so far as our present imperfect knowledge goes, seven diverse
grades of a color which is itself only one grade of another series
of seven known grades. By means of these graded changes
one could obtain, by the mutationist's own statement, the con-
tinuously graded results which selection actually gives. What
more can the selectionist ask?

There are indeed certain differences in detail, in the notions
entertained by the different investigators as to exactly where
the changes occur. Castle believes that in the rat the changes
occur all in one unit — in one chromosomal locus — giving a series
like the primary series for eye color in Drosophila. The sup-
porters of multiple modifying factors believe, on the other
hand — if we are to accept Bridges' account of such factors as
typical (and it is the only account we have) — they believe, I
say, that these minute changes have occurred in some other
part of the germinal material. But this difference is one of mere
detail; it does not touch the fundamental question.

This fundamental question is as to the occurrence of these
minute changes in the hereditary constitution, and as to the
possibility of getting therefrom by selection various grades of a
given external characteristic. In this, so far as I can see, there
is complete agreement.

Now, doubtless, there is a further diversity in the mental proc-
esses of the two sets of men, in that the mutationist thinks of
all these numerous grades as after all essentially discontinuous,
as a series of steps so minute that the difference between one

294 JENNINGS: CHANGES IN HEREDITARY CHARACTERS

and the next one is not detectible. His opponent, on the other
hand, perhaps thinks of the series as actually continuous. But
the difference is not a pragmatical one; when steps become so'
minute as to be beyond detection, the question whether they
exist becomes metaphysical.

To put the case in brief, if the mutationists are to show that
the existence of multiple modifying factors has any bearing on
the general question of the effectiveness of selection, they must
show that such factors are not themselves minute changes in
the hereditary constitution. Not only have they made no
attempt to do this, but in the only well-examined cases they
state squarely that such factors are indeed alterations in the
hereditary constitution.

For the inheritance of such factors as Mendelian units, of course
absolutely nothing is required save that the location of the
change is in a chromosome. No particular degree of magnitude ;
no unity of any other kind is required.

But there remains one point brought out by the mutationists
which is of great importance to the student of the method of
evolution. While they must admit, by their own account, that
all these grades occur, so that a practically if not actually con-
tinuous series can be formed, they of course point out that the
changes do not occur in a continuous series. In the eye of Droso-
phila variation may occur from red to white directly, without
any transit !onal stages; or from any grade to any other; the con-
tinuous scale is obtained only by arranging the steps in order.
Therefore, it is maintained, evolution may have occurred by
such large steps, not by continuous gradations.10 This is of
course a matter deserving of serious consideration. But cer-
tain other points must be considered also. First, the very facts
known for Drosophila show that there is nothing to prevent a
passage from one extreme to the other by minute changes, just
as is held to occur by the paleontologists and selectionists,
although change by large steps occurs also. Secondly, in such
cases as the eye color of Drosophila we are dealing with char-

10 See particularly the discussion of this point in Morgan, 1916, p. 7-27.
(See Bibliography.)

JENNINGS: CHANGES IN HEREDITARY CHARACTERS 295

acters that are already highly developed. We know for example,
that this particular character is formed by the cooperation of
many separate parts of diverse chromosomes; it is a highly
complex product of evolution. Now, we find that one or another
of these parts may suddenly cease to perform its function, so
that the red color is not completely formed ; there is a sudden
change in it; or it may disappear entirely. But is this after all
strong evidence that in the original production of this complex
character with its. numerous underlying functional parts, there
was the same change by sudden large steps? Indeed, is it not
rather true that such destructive changes in a fully formed
character could not be expected to throw light on how that
character was built up?

I am not unmindful of the fact that there are a few — but only
a very few — cases in which there is indication of a positive addi-
tion by a definite step, as when the eosin color is produced in
white-eyed stock. But here again the underlying apparatus has
before had the power to produce eosin and other colors. The
white color was due to the temporary suspension of function in
parts of the chromosomal apparatus, and it may be doubted
whether the restoration of this function throws light on the way
the apparatus was first developed.

To sum up, it appears to me that the work on Drosophila is
supplying a complete foundation for evolution through selection
of minute gradations. The so-called "multiple allelomorphs"
show that a single unit factor may thus exist in a great number of
grades; the "multiple modifying factors" show that a visible
character may be modified in the finest gradations by alterations
in diverse parts of the germinal apparatus. The objections
raised by the mutationists to gradual change through selection
are breaking down as a result of the thoroughness of the muta-
tionists' own studies. We have already gotten completely rid
of the notion that the germinal changes consist only in the drop-
ping out of complete units, or that they are bound to occur in
large steps. If the recent rate of progress is maintained, when
such an organism as Drosophila has been studied for fifty years,
instead of eight or nine, there will be no conceivable gradation

296 JENNINGS: CHANGES IN HEREDITARY CHARACTERS

of any character that will not have been detected. The only
outstanding difficulty is the fact that large changes occur as
well as small ones ; this seems perhaps due to the fact that we are
witnessing the disintegration of highly developed apparatus in
place of its building up.

In all this, except the last point, the work on Drosophila is
in agreement with my own observation of gradual variation in
Difflugia; with Castle's similar results on the rat; and with the
conclusions of paleontologists as to the gradual development of
the characteristics of organisms in past ages.

But there is one point in the paleontological conclusions, as
set forth in the recent papers by Osborn, which is not in agree-
ment with the experimental and observational results on exist-
ing organisms; this I wish to notice briefly. Osborn sets forth
that in following given stocks from earlier to later ages, characters
arise from minutest beginnings, and pass by continuous gradations
to the highly developed condition. This seems in agreement with
experimental results, as I have tried here to set them forth.
Further, according to Osborn, these developing characters do
not show random variations in all directions, but follow a definite
course, which might seem to have been in some way predeter-
mined. And this is emphasized by the fact that the same sorts
of characters (horns, for example) may arise independently, at
different ages, in diverse branches of the same stock, and each
follow in later ages the same definite course of development.

It would appear therefore from this that there must be some
directing tendency, some inner necessity which drives a develop-
ing organ to follow a definite course. Evolution is characterized
by Orthogenesis, as this phenomenon has sometimes been called.

Now it appears to me that we do not observe this in the present
day experimental work; by selection we can move in more than
one direction. I do not mean that the possible variations are
not limited by the constitution of the varying organism; they
certainly are. But there is no indication, so far as I can see,
that the variations push in one determinate direction only.

Now, examining the paleontological summaries further as
regards this (I refer to Osborn's papers), we find certain points

JENNINGS: CHANGES IN HEREDITARY CHARACTERS 297

that appear to modify seriously, if they do not quite nullify,
this conclusion that variations follow a determinate course.

First, we do find that diverse courses are followed by given
characters, in diverse branches of a given group ; this is partic-
ularly true of the characters of shape and proportion, which
Osborn calls allometrons. I take it from the descriptions that
this is likewise true at times for structural and numerical
characters.

A second point which Osborn sets forth is deserving of partic-
ular attention. He states, in agreement with Waagen, that
in any given geologic stratum, we do find, in addition to char-
acteristics that are in the line of determinate descent, other
variations from this line, which are of the sort that constitute
what we call at the present time varieties; things that are like
the diverse races of Difflugia in my own work. But, say Os-
born and Waagen, there is a great difference in principle between
these and the others, for those which are in the determinate line
of progress persist into the next geologic stratum, while the
mere varieties do not. The persistent changes were called by
Waagen, mutations (in a sense somewhat diverse from that in
which the word is used by de Vries).

Osborn expresses the opinion that these "varieties" may be
merely non-heritable modifications." But in our present geo-
logic period we find just such diverging forms, in great number,
and we find that their peculiarities are heritable; this I empha-
sized in the introductory part of the present discussion. There
is then no reason for supposing that these variations were not
heritable in earlier geologic periods; there must have been many
races heritably diverse, just as there are now; and these are what
Waagen called varieties.

Now since this is so, the only difference between Waagen' s
mutations and his varieties, is 'that, on looking backward at
them, we find that the former persisted and the latter did not.
But this tells us nothing whatever about why the latter did not.
It is perfectly possible, so far as these facts go, that it was a

11 Osborn, 1915, p. 225. (See Bibliography.)

298 JENNINGS: CHANGES IN HEREDITARY CHARACTERS

matter of selection by external conditions; many diverse stocks
were present, on an equal footing; some were destroyed, others
were not.

What ground then is there for saying that the development of
given characters followed a definite course, as if predetermined?
The conditions described are exactly what we should require
to find if in past ages there were many varied stocks, some of
which were preserved by the action of natural selection. Looking
back over the series from a later age, we are bound of course to
find it a continuous development. If the same characteristics
were favorable in successive ages — and there is no reason why
they should not be so — then the same sorts of variations would
be preserved in those successive ages; a line of development once
begun would be continued. And if the same sort of characters
are favorable ones in different branches of a family, then similar
characters may well arise and follow a similar course of develop-
ment, in the diverse branches, as Osborn states they do. But
at the same time many other heritable variations arise, that are
not in the line of progress, and hence are not preserved through
selection; these are precisely the "varieties" described by the
paleontologists; the diverse races that I have described in
Difflugia and Paramecium, and that are found to exist in all
organisms. The conditions described by the paleontologists
support strongly the theory of evolution by gradual change, but
I cannot see that they tend to establish the view that variations
show a tendency to follow a definite course, as if predetermined.
The paleontologists appear rather to report precisely the con-
ditions which we are bound to find if evolution occurs through
the guidance of natural selection operating on a great number
of diverse variations, the typical Darwinian scheme.

There is one other point which I wish I had time to take up,
but I have not. I will merely attempt to state in a few words
my impression of it. This is the point made by Bateson (1914)
in his Presidential Address before the British Association, and
farther developed by Davenport (1916) in a recent paper: the
proposition, namely, that since practically all observed variations
are cases of loss and disintegration, we are driven to suppose

JENNINGS: CHANGES IN HEREDITARY CHARACTERS 299

that evolution has occurred by loss and disintegration. Daven-
port combines this idea with the theory that these disintegrating
variations follow a definite course, predetermined in large
measure by the constitution of the disintegrating material.

There are two points worth consideration in dealing with this
theory. The first is one of fact; although it is true that many
of the so-called mutations appear to be cases of loss and disinte-
gration,, yet there is no indication that this is the case in such
effects of selection as have been described by Castle and myself;
variations are not limited to any particular direction. Secondly,
it appears to me that this conclusion — that because the variations
we see are cases of loss and disintegration, therefore evolution
must have occurred by loss and disintegration — it appears to
me, I say, that this conclusion involves an error in logic, which
makes it unworthy of serious consideration. The syllogism which
it involves seems something as follows :

1. Major premise. Evolution has occurred by progress from
the visibly less differentiated in structure to the visibly more
differentiated in structure.

2. Minor premise. By observation we detect only the visibly
less differentiated arising from the visibly more differentiated;
we see only a process of decreasing the visible differentiation.

3. Conclusion. The visibly more differentiated must have
arisen from the visibly less differentiated, by decrease in the
visible differentiation of the latter.

The conclusion is absurd; it cannot be drawn save for the
fact that while in the two premises we are talking of visible
differentiation and disintegration, in the conclusion the ground
is shifted to mean something entirely different — a sort of inner,
invisible, purely theoretical kind of differentiation -and simplicity
and disintegration. By putting in the word visible all the way
through, the absurdity is brought to light. All that we can
legitimately conclude from the two premises is that we have not
seen the process of evolution occurring. If we have seen nothing
but loss and disintegration, this is indeed the conclusion that we
must draw. But I believe that we cannot assert that this is all
that we have seen.

300 JENNINGS: CHANGES IN HEREDITARY CHARACTERS

To summarize then what I have obtained from experimental
work combined with a survey of the work of others, the impression
left is as follows:

1. Experimental and observational study reveals that organ-
isms are composed of great numbers of diverse stocks differing
heritably by minute degrees.

2. Sufficiently thorough study shows that minute heritable
variations — so minute as to represent practically continuous
gradations — occur in many organisms; some reproducing from a
single parent others by biparental reproduction.

3. The same thing is reported from paleontological studies.

4. On careful examination we find even that the same thing
is revealed by such mutationist work as that on Drosophila;
single characters exist in so many grades due to minute altera-
tions in the hereditary constitution as to form a practically
continuous series.

5. It is not established that heritable changes must be sudden
large steps; while these may occur, minute heritable changes
are more frequent.

6. It is not established that heritable variations follow a
definite course as if predetermined; they occur in many directions.

7. It is not established that all heritable changes are by
disintegration; although many such do occur, they cannot be
considered steps in progressive evolution from the visibly less
complex to the visibly more complex.

Evolution according to the typical Darwinian scheme, through
the occurrence of many small variations and their guidance by
natural selection, is perfectly consistent with what experimental
and paleontological studies show us; to me it appears more
consistent with the data than does any other theory.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Bateson, W., 1914. Address of the President of the British Association for
the Advancement of Science. Science, 40: 319-333. Bridges, C. B., 1916. Non-
disjunction as proof of the chromosome theory of heredity. Genetics, 1: 1-52;
107-163. Castle, W. E., 1915. Mr. Muller on the constancy of Mendelian char-
acters. Amer. Nat., 49: 37-42. Castle, W. E., 1915 a. Some experiments in
mass selection. Amer. Nat., 49: 713-726. Castle, W. E., 1916. Can selection
cause genetic change? Amer. Nat., 50: 248-256. Castle, W. E., 1916 a. Fur-
ther studies of piebald rats and selection, with observations on gametic coupling.

bushnell: the chitimacha Indians 301

Carnegie Inst. Wash., Pub. 241, Part 111: 161-192. Castle, W. K., 19166. Genetics
andEugenics. Cambridge. Pp.353. Castle, \Y. E., 1917. Piebald rats and multi-
ple factors. Amer. Nat., 51: 102-114. Castle, W. E., and Phillips, J. C, 1914.
Piebald'rats and selection. An experimental test of the effectiveness of selection

and of the theory of gametic purity in Mendelian crosses. Carnegie Inst. Wash.,
Publ. 195. Pp.56. Davenport, C. B., 1916. The form of evolutionary theory that
modern genetical research seems to favor. Amer. Nat., 50: 4 49-465. Hagedoorn,
A. L. and Mrs. A. C, 1914. Studies on variation and selection. Zeitschr. f. ind.
Abst. u. Vererh., 11: 14,5-183. Hagedoorn, A. L., and Mrs. A. C, 1917. New
light on blending and Mendelian inheritance. Amer. Nat., 51: 189-192. Hyde,
R. R., 1916. Two new members of a sex-linked multiple (sextuple) allelomorph
system. Genetics, 1: 535-580. Jennings, H. S., 1908. Heredity, variation and
evolution in Protozoa. II. Heredity and variation of size and form in Paramecium.
with studies of growth, environmental action and selection. Proc. Amer. Philos.
Soc, 47: 393-546. Jennings, H. S., 1909. Heredity and variation in the simplest
organisms. Amer. Nat., 43: 321-337. Jennings, H. S., 1910. Experimental
evidence on the effectiveness of selection. Amer. Nat., 44: 136-145. Jennings,
H. S., 1911. Pure lines in the study of genetics in lower organisms. Amer. Nat.,
45: 79-89. Jennings, H. S., 1916. Heredity, variation and the results of selection
in the uniparental reproduction of Difflugia corona. Genetics, 1: 407-534. Mac-
Dowell, E. C, 1915. Bristle inheritance in Drosophila. Journ. Exper. Zool., 19:
61-97. 1916. MacDowell, E. C, Piebald rats and multiple factors. Amer.
Nat., 50: 719-742. Morgan, T. H., 1916. A critique of the theory of evolution.
Pp. 197. Princeton Univ. Press. Morgan, T. H., 1917. An examination of the
so-called process of contamination of genes. Anat. Record, 11: 503-504. Osborn,
H. F., 1912. The continuous origin of certain unit characters as observed by a
palaeontologist. Amer. Nat., 46: 185^206, 249-278. Osborne, H. F., 1915.
Origin of single characters as observed in fossil and living animals and plants.
Amer. Nat.. 49: 193-239. Osborn, H. F., 1916. Origin a?id evolution of life upon
the earth. Scientific Monthly, 3: 5-22; 170-190; 289-307; 313-334; 502-513; 601-614.
Pearl. Raymond, 1915. Seventeen years selection of a character showing six-
linked Mendelian inheritance. Amer. Nat., 49: 595-608. Pearl, Raymond, 1916.
Fecundity in the domestic fowl and the selection problem. Amer. Nat., 50: S9-105.
Pearl. Raymond, 1917. The selection problem. Amer. Nat., 51: 65-91. Reeves,
Edna M., 1916. The inheritance of extra bristles in Drosophila melanogaster Meig.
Univ. Calif. Pub. Zool., 13: 495-515. Safir, S. R., 1916. Buff, a new allelomorph
of white eye color in Drosophila. Genetics, 1: 584-590. Sturtevant, A. H., 1917.
An analysis of the effect of selection on bristle number in a mutant race of Droso-
phila. Anat. Record, 11: 504. Zeleny, C. and Mattoon, E. W., 1915. The
effect of selection upon the "bar-eyes" mutant of Drosophila. Journ. Exper.. Zool.,
19: 515-529.

ETHNOLOGY. — The Chitimacha of Bayou La Fourche, Louis-
iana. David I. Bushnell, Jr. Bureau of American
Ethnology.

Early in the eighteenth century, when the Chitimacha first
became clearly known to the European colonists, they occupied
two groups of settlements within their rather small territory
just west of the mouth of the Mississippi. One group was in
the vicinity of Bayou Teche and Grand Lake, on and near the
site of the present town of Charenton, St. Mary parish, Loui-
siana, where some continue to dwell. The second group was

302 bushnell: the chitimacha Indians

eastward, in the country adjacent to Bayou La Fourche, then
known as the river of the Chitimacha. Many, if not all, of the
latter removed from their ancient habitat during the years 1718
and 1719, but it is quite evident that other Indians soon oc-
cupied the old Chitimacha sites, and among the new arrivals
were many Houma, and others from east of the Mississippi.
Likewise, it is highly probable that some of the Chitimacha later
found their way back to their old homes.1

At the present time several families living in Terrebonne and
La Fourche parishes, near Bayou La Fourche, claim to be of
Chitimacha descent, although they know some of their ances-
tors to have been Houma, and many have traces of European
blood as well. On the following pages are given some of the
mannerisms and customs of these people, as related by Abel
Billiot, a man about sixty-five years of age, who is known as a
Chitimacha, from the village of Point-au-chien in the south-
eastern part of Terrebonne parish, Louisiana.

HABITATIONS

The primitive form of habitation was constructed and oc-
cupied during the past ten years and, according to my inform-
ant, the last example was destroyed at the time of the great
storm about eight years ago. The houses were built in the
following manner: A slight excavation was made to corre-
spond with the floor-space of the future structure. The wall was
outlined by a row of posts about three of four inches in diameter
and four feet or more in height, placed about two feet apart.
Smaller flexible branches and saplings were interwoven be-
tween the upright posts. A low conical roof was formed of a
frame covered with thick palmetto thatch. A hole was dug
in which a quantity of clay and Spanish moss was mixed with
water, this serving as plaster for the wall of wattle work. Clam
and oyster shells were burned and the lime thus obtained was
mixed with water and used to whitewash the inside wall of the

1 Swanton has discussed this in Indian tribes of the lower Mississippi Valley,
Bulletin 43, Bureau of American Ethnology, Washington, 1911.

bushnell: the chitimacha Indians 303

house. On the day this work was to be done all the people of
the village gathered, and the walls were completed between
sunrise and sunset.2 The structures were either round or square,
and one, much larger than the others, is remembered to have
served as a meeting place for the men of the village. The fires
were made outside the house. Small shelters are said to have
been made of skins.

FOOD

Much food was smoked and so preserved for future use. The
method of smoking was this : Four poles were set up, extending
between three and four feet above the surface. These were
connected at the top by other poles or cords, and to the latter
were attached the pieces of meat, the fish, the ducks, and all
else that was to be smoked. The fire was made on the ground
between the four stakes and no particular kind of wood was
required. Many ducks were prepared in this manner, being
first skinned, thoroughly cleaned and opened on the back.
Everything was so well smoked as not to require more cooking
before being eaten.

A hole was made in the ground (probably about the size of a
bushel basket) and filled with clams or oysters. These were
covered with a thin layer of sand or earth and a fire kindled
above. After a certain time the covering was scraped away
and the clams and oysters removed and eaten. Neither clams
nor oysters are known to have been smoked, they being always
plentiful and easily obtained.

Corn was grown and was prepared in various ways. Often
it was pounded in a wooden mortar, then passed through a
sieve to separate the fine from the coarse particles. The fine
meal was mixed with water and allowed to remain over night
during which time it would ferment and become sour. The
following morning it would be boiled a little, and dried until
"it would hold together," then it was eaten. This appears to

2 This at once suggests a statement made by Adair in reference to the houses
of the southern Indians: In one day, they build, daub with their tough mortar
mixed with dry grass, and thoroughly finish, a good commodious house.

304 bushnell: the chitimacha Indians

have been a favorite method of preparing the meal, the sour
taste being relished. This was sometimes eaten with a sirup.
Again, corn was allowed to ripen on the cob, and to become
quite dry, before being shelled. Later the grains were parched
by being mixed with hot ashes of a wood fire. The parched
grains were then pounded in a wooden mortar, passed through
a sieve, and eaten mixed with water.

Turtles were relished, and likewise their eggs, but the flesh
was never smoked. Alligator eggs were eaten, but not the
flesh unless other food was scarce. Salt was not used by the
old people, and it is not cared for at the present time.

Berries and wild fruits are eaten when ripe, but are never
dried.

DRESS AND PERSONAL DECORATION

The men, until quite recently, wore their hair long but did
not plait it. The manner of cutting and shaping it is not' re-
membered.

Formerly the hands, neck, and cheeks, were tattooed, the
colors used being red and black. The former was derived from
the juice of the giant rag weed (Ambrosia trifida) ; the latter was
soot produced by burning yellow pine.

Small shells were perforated and strung as necklaces. Other
shells were worked and pieces were fashioned into beads.

ARTS AND INDUSTRIES

Bowls, spoons, and paddles for stirring food were made of
wood. The Chitimacha word for bowl is Gah-maiV . Mor-
tars and pestles were made for use in preparing corn, and so
forth.

A piece of hard stone is used with a steel to " strike fire,"
decayed dry wood, or a bit of old hide, being used to ignite
with the spark.

The ancient, and still practiced, method of dressing skins as
described by Abel Billiot is this : If possible, the skin as soon as
removed, is stretched in a frame, or fastened to a flat surface, and
in this position is allowed to dry. A frame is then constructed

bushnell: the chitimacha Indians 305

of four poles, two being set in the ground, parallel and some
three or four feet apart, the others being arranged in a horizontal
position attached to the former. Within the rectangular space
thus formed the skin is stretched and securily fastened. The
frame holding the skin is not stood in a vertical position, but
at an angle of about thirty degrees. A small fire of palmetto
wood is made on the ground below it so that much smoke is
produced. Some of the brain of the animal is then rubbed over
the upper surface of the skin, which is thoroughly scraped with
a chisel-shaped implement made of a piece of hard wood beveled
at one end. After this surface has been sufficiently scraped the
skin is turned over and the other side is treated with brains and
rubbed and scraped in the same manner. During the entire
process the skin is kept quite warm by the fire beneath it, and
smoke is allowed to rise against it. After the scraping and rub-
bing, which has resulted in the removal of all hair and wool
from one side and all particles of flesh from the other, the skin
is quite soft and white. Sufficient oil, from the brain which has
been rubbed into the skin, remains to keep it pliable. No other
method of dressing skins is known to this man.3

Pottery vessels have been made and used within recent years,
and are remembered by my informant. A blue clay found
near his village was used for the purpose. Mixed with it nat-
urally, was a sufficient quantity of sand, and neither sand nor
pulverized shell was added. The clay having been obtained
was worked in a wooden mortar, water being added to make a
pasty mass. When the clay was of a proper consistency it was
modelled into the desired vessel, which was then put in a shady
place and allowed to remain two or three weeks before being baked.
Tobacco pipes were, and are now, made in this manner. Before
being placed in the fire, and after having become thoroughly
dry, the vessel was smoothed by scraping with a shell or thin

3 This method of preparing skins is more suggestive of the north than of the
south, and differs greatly from the custom of the Choctaw who live just north
of Lake Pontchartrain in St. Tammany parish. Bushnell, The Choctaw of
Bayou Lacotnb, St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana. Bulletin 48, Bureau of Ameri-
can Ethnology, Washington, pp. 11-12, 1909.

306 bushnell: the chitimacha Indians

piece of hard wood, and any incised decorations were added
at this time. Brown clay was not considered good for pottery
making, and grease was never used to darken the ware. Spoons
are made from cow horns.

Baskets are made from both split cane and the stems of pal-
metto, native dyes being used. Three colors are made and
used by these people, yellow, red, and black, these added to
the natural material giving them four shades to combine in
their basket work. The yellow dye is derived from the roots
of l'anze, which is known locally as paciance. This is a dock,
probably Rumex crispus L. The root is crushed and pounded
while fresh and is not allowed to become dry. The crushed
roots are then placed in a kettle of water and allowed to boil.
The split cane is also put in the kettle and soon becomes a
brilliant yellow. If a red is desired the material is first dyed
yellow, as stated, and is then removed from the kettle and al-
lowed to remain over night in a protected spot, away from the
wind. In the morning it is again put in the same liquid
to which is added a small quantity of lime made by burn-
ing clam or oyster shells. It is again boiled and now turns
red, caused by the action of the strong alkali. The shade of
red may be governed by the density of the yellow dye, and by
the length of time it remains in the alkali solution. Black
dye is made by boiling the bark of the maple or live oak in water.

Cords or ropes are still made by twisting back moss. Only
black moss will serve the purpose. A quantity is obtained and
two persons work with it, twisting in opposite directions. After
the cord is some twenty or thirty feet in length it is doubled
and again twisted, this time very tightly.

Dugouts or pirogues are made of a single log of cypress.
Other woods are sometimes used, but cypress is the favorite.
Light canoes were formerly made by covering a frame of wood
with skins or bark.

HUNTING AND FISHING

Blowguns were used in hunting small game and birds.
They were made of pieces of cane from 5 to 7 feet in length.

bushnell: the chitimacha Indians 307

Formerly the cane was split, the joints hollowed out and the
inside smoothed, then the two pieces were bound together.
More recently a piece of wire has been used to burn the joints.
The darts were wrapped for a distance of about two inches with
cotton or frayed cloth. Bows and arrows were used by the
"old people," but not since they have been able to obtain guns
and powder from the whites. Fish are secured by spearing them
from a dugout, usually when the sun is shining brightly. Traps
for catching fish are unknown to my informant, but nets are
known to have been used.

Little could be learned respecting the social culture of these
people, the native names of people and places having been
forgotten. The myths and legends are no longer remembered,
although several very old persons, now living east of the bayou
near the coast, may retain some knowledge of their ancient
tribal organization. All will soon be lost.

ABSTRACTS

Authors of scientific papers are requested to see that abstracts, preferably
prepared and signed by themselves, are forwarded promptly to the editors.
Each of the scientific bureaus in Washington has a representative authorized to
forward such material to this journal and abstracts of official publications should
be transmitted through the representative of the bureau in which they originate.
The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those appearing in
this issue.

GEOLOGY. — The Cleveland Gas Field, Cuyahoga County, Ohio, with
a study of rock pressure. G. Sherburne Rogers. U. S. Geologi-
cal Survey Bulletin 661-A. Pp. 68, with 2 plates and 13 figures.
1917.

Most of the wells in the Cleveland gas field, which, is located in the
westerly suburbs of the City of Cleveland, are from 2500 to 2900 feet
deep and draw their supplies from the so-called Clinton sand. The
structure of the region is, broadly speaking, monoclinal, the formations
outcropping in the western part of Ohio and dipping to the east be-
neath the great Appalachian Coal Basin. The Clinton sand itself
does not outcrop, however, but feathers out in the central part of the
state, and the Cleveland field and other important oil and gas fields to
the south occupy a belt along the upper or thinning edge of the sand.
The accumulation of the gas at Cleveland has been influenced also
by structural considerations, the field being roughly coincident with a
broad gentle bulge or nose on the monoclinal slope, and has been affect-
ed locally by the porosity or texture of the sand.

Owing to the very rapid growth of the field which was started in
1912, and which in 1915 contributed about 40 per cent of the Ohio
production, the records of pressure and production decline are unusu-
ally complete and afford an interesting study. It appears that in any
large group of wells there is a fairly close average relation between
rock pressure and production. Hence by studying the pressure de-
cline in any group it is possible to predict in advance of drilling the
probable flow or volume of a new well in that group. If desired, the
estimate may be evaluated according to the theory of probability and
the number of chances in a hundred that the flow will not exceed a
given figure may be calculated. Although the actual figures cited of
course hold only in the Cleveland field the principles discussed should
be applicable in many areas. G. S. R.

308

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

THE GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 316th meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, February 28, 1917.

INFORMAL COMMUNICATIONS

Frank J. Katz: Age of the Worcester phyllite. (No abstract.)

REGULAR PROGRAM

R. V. A. Mills and R. C. Wells: The evaporation of water at depth
by natural gases. During the production of petroleum and natural
gas in the Appalachian fields the associated waters undergo a definite
order of change in the proportions of their dissolved constituents.
Along with other gases, carbon dioxide escapes from solution while
calcium carbonate and ferrous carbonate are deposited in the wells
and in the interstices of the oil and gas bearing rocks. Concentration
is brought about bj^ the removal of water as moisture in the escaping
gases and at the same time salt is lost from solution. The composition
of the salt deposit is approximately: NaCl 94 to 99.5 per cent, MgCl2
2.5 to 0 per cent, CaCl2 3.0 to 0 per cent, and CaC03 0.5 to 0 per cent.
The composition of this salt was found by analyses of salt deposits
collected from oil and gas wells and gas line pressure regulators; and
this composition agrees closely with the composition of the salt deposit
that can be predicated from the changes in the composition of the
waters during their concentration under known conditions of produc-
tion. Some of the pressure regulators, in which gas pressures are
reduced from line pressures to distributing pressures, are several miles
distant from the wells from which gas is derived. Analyses of salt
deposited in the wells and regulators bear a striking resemblance to
analyses 'of salt from Louisiana salt domes and salt beds in New York,
Michigan, and Kansas.

Comparisons of analyses of Appalachian oil-field waters from dif-
ferent stratigraphic horizons in the same localities indicate that salt
of the same general composition has been lost from solution during
natural concentration. The investigators are convinced that the
evaporative action of natural gas has been an important geologic
factor in the changes which many deep-seated waters have undergone.
During geologic time enormous volumes of natural gas have passed

309

310 proceedings: geological society

through the sediments, so that sea water, which was interstitially
included in marine sediments, has probably undergone a like mode of
concentration.

Judging from experimental results obtained with illuminating gas,
methane should be no exception among gases in its capacity to take
up and transmit moisture. The amount of moisture in a given volume
of gas under any given conditions can be calculated from the vapor
pressure of solutions of salt in water. Conditions favorable for the
transmission of water as vapor in porous rocks may be created by the
chemical production of gases, by the expansion of compressed gases,
by the release of gases held in solution in oil or water by pressure,
and by the vaporization of liquefied gases.

Salt and brines are commonly found near occurrences of gas and
petroleum, so that gases may have been effective in the evaporation
of the solutions which yielded the salt. In fact, salt domes may be
the result of evaporation and crystallization brought about by the
passage of expanding natural gas which has carried off moisture as
vapor and possibly also has cooled the solutions from which salt was
crystallized.

The great changes effected in the waters of the Appalachian fields
during the production of oil and gas were explained in part by the
mode of occurrence of oil-gas-water mixtures in this region of low
dips. The occurrence of gas and oil overlying water was attributed
in part to induced segregation brought about during movements
through the pay sands after production was begun.

M. I. Goldman: Results of the microscopic examination of some rocks
from the oilfields of southeastern Ohio. This is a preliminary study and
the conclusions are therefore only tentative. The primary object of the
investigation was to find any characters of the rocks that might bear on
the distribution of oil in them. As the work progressed it appeared that,
in addition, light might be thrown on some of the early stages of meta-
morphism and their relation to geologic conditions It was found imprac-
ticable to make determinations of pore space because, by the tearing out
of soft minerals, and in other ways, holes are produced in grinding the
thin section. The investigation was therefore limited to the study of
epigenetic minerals. The following were recognized: Quartz as a
secondary growth around the original grains and in continuous crystal-
lographic orientation with them, was found in almost all not too argil-
laceous sandstones. The approach to quartzite was in general greatest
in the deepest beds, though this factor was very variable. Kaolinite
in fine crystalline aggregates filling the pore spaces. This is known as
a common mineral in sandstones. Calcite and other carbonates.
These seemed to be particularly abundant in older fields or fields in
which wells were very numerous, thus indicating a relation to recent
circulation of ground, waters resulting from the drilling. Sulphides
(pyrite or marcasite) were scarce in this field and occurred mainly in
the clays associated with carbonaceous matter, a common syngenetic
relationship. It is significant, however, as illustrating the mineralogic

proceedings: geological society 311

and chemical individuality of different fields that, outside of this field,
in Ohio and Pennsylvania they are sometimes common in large
aggregations in sandstones. Chert and opal growths are scarce and
difficult to recognize, and received no special attention. Micas are
probably the most significant of the secondary minerals. They are
of various species and types and their differentiation from syngenetic
micas is difficult, being based mainly on habit and distribution. These
most require further study, but so far as can at present be stated their
development seems to be, like that of the carbonates, related to cir-
culation resulting from opening up of wells. There were some indica-
tions that the development of secondary quartz and sulphides might
also be related to this feature.

A final interesting metamorphic character is incipient granulation,
apparently by pressure and followed by recementing of sand grains
in a few of the deepest beds, especially in one sample at a depth of
2230 feet.

Of the relation of oil to these factors nothing can as yet be said.
The most porous, which are generally the purest and coarsest sand-
stones, naturally form the best reservoirs, but they are often barren.
A dark brown stain, believed to be due to oil, is also found related to
the occurrence of carbonaceous matter in some of the clays, a relation-
ship well recognized in the oil shales of the west.

The 317th meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, March 14, 1917.

REGULAR PROGRAM

Harry Fielding Reid: The distribution of land and water on the
earth. (No abstract.) Discussed by Eakix, Umpleby, and W. J.
Humphreys.

William Bowie: Some evidences of isostasy. The first exhaustive
test of the theory of isostasy was made by Prof. John F. Hayford,
about ten years ago, while he was in charge of the geodetic work of the
United States Coast and Geodetic Survey. For this purpose he used
the connected triangulation of the United States and the astronomic
observations made at several hundred triangulation stations. His
results were surprisingly convincing that isostasy existed to a remark-
able degree.

The speaker reviewed briefly the evidences of isostasy, as given by
the most recent investigations of the subject by the Coast and
Geodetic Survey. In these investigations there were used 219 gravity
stations in the United States, 42 in Canada, 73 in India, and 40 other
-tations, which were principally in Europe. The conclusion reached
by the speaker was that isostas^y, for areas as large as the United
States, is perfect and that it is practically perfect for areas of a much
smaller size; such, for instance, as the state of Texas, or an area even
smaller.

It is impossible to tell, with our present data, whether the local
deviations from normal gravity, called anomalies, are due to a lack of

312 proceedings: geological society

isostatic compensation locally or whether they are due to abnormally
heavy or light materials near the station but in the region below sea
level. This local deviation from normal in the gravity may be due
in part to an actual deviation from perfect isostasy and in part to the
abnormal densities near the surface.

It is reasonably certain that the anomalies cannot be due entirely
to the use of erroneous densities for the topography, that is, the mate-
rial which is above sea level, nor to the method of distributing the com-
pensation with respect to depth. The largest anomaly, which is
0.093 dyne, is at Seattle and this is the equivalent of 3000 feet of ma-
terial of normal density. As a matter of fact, Seattle is located near
the coast and that station has an elevation of only 74 meters. We
must, therefore, conclude that the anomaly at this station is caused by
conditions which exist below sea level.

It has been found, as a result of the investigations, that a regional
distribution of compensation out to a distance of 58.8 kilometers from
a station is just as probable as the local distribution of the compensa-
tion. It has also been found that a regional distribution out to a
distance of about 167 kilometers from the station is not so probable
as the regional distribution to the smaller distance mentioned above
or as a local distribution. There is no relation between the gravity
anomalies and the character of the topography. There is, however,
a decided relation between the gravity anomalies and certain geological
formations. There is a very strong tendency for gravity to be light
and the anomalies negative for stations located on the Cenozoic for-
mation and the opposite is true for stations on the pre-Cambrian
formations.

If the compensation were assumed to be distributed uniformly with
respect to depth, then the depth of compensation, as derived from
gravity data alone, is 95 kilometers. This agrees fairly well with the
depth obtained from deflections of the vertical, but there is no geodetic
evidence that the compensation is distributed uniformly with respect
to depth. It is possible that some other method of distribution is
the true one but it is difficult or practically impossible ever to discover,
at least from geodetic evidence, what the true method of distribution is.

In the other countries data as detailed as for the United States were
not available, but such tests as could be made indicated that isostasy
in them was about as perfect as in this country. It is hoped that
geodesists in the other countries will reduce their gravity stations for
topography and isostasy by the same method as that used by the United
States Coast and Geodetic Survey or by a similar one in order that more
exhaustive tests may be made of the isostatic condition throughout
the world.

Discussed by White.

David White: Discussion of gravity anomalies from the stratigraphic
standpoint. (No abstract.) Discussed by William Bowie.

H. E. Merwin, Seer dor i).

proceedings: botanical society 313

THE BOTANICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 119th regular meeting of the Society was held in the Crystal
Dining Room of the Ebbitt Hotel, Wednesday evening, March 14,
1917. Seventy -four members and sixty-five guests were present. Mr.
T. H. Kearney, President of the Society, presided. Mr. A. S. Hitch-
cock, the retiring President, delivered an address on Taxonomic bot-
any and the Washington botanist. A full text of this address appears
elsewhere in this Journal.1

The 120th regular meeting of the Society was held in the Assembly
Hall of the Cosmos Club at 8.00 p.m., Tuesday, April 3, 1917; eighteen
members and one guest present.

Under "Brief Notes" Dr. W. H. Evans showed a Lummiere plate
of a pineapple field in Hawaii, part of which had been sprayed with an
8 per cent solution of ferrous sulphate. The sprayed portion of the
field was a deep green color and produced an excellent crop while the
unsprayed portion was yellow or pale green and the crop practically
a failure.

The regular program consisted of the following papers:

The control of the white pine blister rust: Haven Metcalf. (Illus-
trated with lantern slides.) The white pine blister rust apparently
originated in Asia and spread into Europe upon Pinus cembra. When
the white pine (Pinus strobus) was introduced into Europe it proved
to be subject to the disease. The first record of importation of white
pine transplants from Europe to the United States dates back only
to 1899. The disease was first reported in America in 1906. Since
that date enormous quantities of diseased nursery stock have been
imported. The pathologists and foresters of New England and the
Middle Atlantic States discouraged importation of white pine seedlings
after June, 1909, and importations was made illegal in 1912.

The disease has spread more rapidly and posessed greater virulence
in New England than it did in Europe. At first it was hoped the dis-
ease would prove to be only a disease of nursery stock but at several
points in New England it is attacking large trees. Inspection of
nursery stock for blister rust is largely futile since the rust often in-
cubates in pine tissue for many years before becoming apparent by
distorting the growth or by fruiting. According to Ravn this incuba-
tion period may be as long as 20 years. As alternate hosts the black
currants, both wild and cultivated, are particularly subject to the
disease, and in areas of general infection are reliable indicators of its
presence. On Ribes the disease is generally prevalent throughout
New England, which means that the actual infection of pine is much
more general than is shown at present.

1 7:251. 1917.

314 proceedings: botanical society

The control of the disease in America presents three separate prob-
lems: (1) In the territory west of the Mississippi river the disease is
not known to occur. During the coming season an extensive survey
will be made of these states to determine whether the disease is or is
not present. If it has not been carried into this territory on nursery
stock, there is little possibility of its getting in by natural means. If
the disease should once become established under western forest con-
ditions, its control would be hopeless. All 5-needle pines of this area,
including the very valuable sugar pine and western white pine, are
subject to the disease, and many species of wild Ribes are common.
(2) In the states between the Mississippi and the Hudson River, there
is an area about 30 miles square in Minnesota and Wisconsin, northeast
of St. Paul, which is heavily infected. In Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania,
and New Jersey the disease has been found in a few nurseries and plan-
tations, and is now believed to have been eradicated. In New York
it has been found in both nurseries and plantations, and largely eradi-
cated. (3) In New England the infection is so general that the only
hope of successful growing of white pine in the future lies in the elim-
ination of the alternate host of the disease. Whether such elimination
can be made at a sufficiently low cost to be profitable has not been
determined. Probably in localities where Ribes occur sparsely, as in
Connecticut and Rhode Island, a great deal can be accomplished.

Dr. Metcalf called attention to the larger problem of free trade in
plant . diseases and in insect pests. He questioned it as a sound
national policy and doubted if the entire importing nursery business is
worth as much to the country as the damage which it causes. Not a
single plant disease or insect pest that has once become established in
this country has been eradicated or is ever likely to be. No matter
how well controlled, it remains in every case a permanent tax against
our economic resources. To safeguard the country against further
invasions is therefore most important.

Technique for the study of the white pine blister rust: R. H. Colley.
(Illustrated with lantern slides.) The study of the blister rust requires
a knowledge of the anatomy of the hosts and of the life history and
morphology of the fungus itself, since cultural studies are necessarily
confined to the host plants. The best available methods of killing,
embedding, and sectioning are being employed in working out the re-
lation of host and parasite. Flemming's killing solution followed bjr
Haidenhain's iron alum-haematoxylin and a counter stain of lichtgrun
or orange G have proved very satisfactory for both host and parasite
in both the pine and the currant stages. For quick sectioning of
doubtful specimens previous to diagnosis the freezing microtome has
been very satisfactory. Excellent preparations can be cut, stained,
and mounted in two hours. The most satisfactory stains seem to be
safranin and lichtgrun. When correctly handled, the hyphae and
haustoria of the rust are sufficiently characteristic to be of positive
diagnostic value, even before spores are formed.

proceedings: biological society 315

Some natural groups in aspergillus: Charles Tiiom. (Illustrated
with cultures.) A large number of strains obtained in cultures of
Aspergillus fall into a series of natural groups. In these groups certain
general morphological and physiological characters prevail. The
differences between the members of the groups are for the most part
quantitative rather than qualitative. In the Aspergillus niger group,
the amount or intensity of color varies markedly among the individuals,
other characters remaining the same. Individuals with exactly the
same color and morphology, show markedly different physiological
activities. The differences between these latter physiological forms
is certainly as important as the mere difference in the amount of color
secreted in the spore, which difference has been commonly accepted
as a basis for specific description.

Another great group may be made of the forms giving the mor-
phology of Aspergillus flavus. In this series again the same condition
exists as noted in the Aspergillus niger group. Aspergillus fumigatus
and A. nidulans form two closely related series of organisms.

Several similar series may be made but the point clearly brought
out is that there is evidence of mutation among these forms in
which a single morphological or physiological character appears to
separate one strain from the typical strain of the series as at present
described. Within each group differences are easily recognizable,
some of which are determinable only by chemical or physiological
means. The solution of the taxonomic difficulty offered is that each
group shall be designated by the name of one of its well-known species
excepting when particular strains have become important economically
or physiologically, and must therefore receive some further form of
identification and description.

H. L. Shantz, Corresponding Secretary.

THE BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 569th regular meeting of the Society was held in the Assembly
HAll of the Cosmos Club, Saturday, April 7, 1917; called to order at
8 p.m. by President Hay; 45 persons in attendance.

Under the heading "Brief notes and exhibition of specimens" Dr.
R. W. Shufeldt exhibited lantern slides of living California quail,
calling attention to their rapidly diminishing numbers. Dr. L. O.
Howard called attention to a specimen that had lately come to his
notice, the cocoon of a Cecropia moth containing moonstones. He
expressed the opinion that they had been placed there by a thieving
crow or bluejay. Mr. A. W. Wetmore stated in this connection that
he has seen bluejays insert small acorns and kernels of corn into large
cocoons.

The regular program consisted of two communications:

Alexander Wetmore and Francis Harper: A note on the hiber-
nation of the mud-turtle. The authors reported finding a specimen of
Kinosternon pennsylvanicum shortly after it had left its underground

31G PROCEEDINGS: BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY

winter-quarters. The hole from which it had emerged was beneath a
dense growth of green-briar in an old field, and about 50 yards from
the nearest marsh. The burrow was 9| inches deep, and was open
save at the lower end, where the animal had apparently lain encased
in a mass of mud. The actions and condition of the turtle after being
placed in water were described in detail, and an account of a post-
mortem examination of the viscera was given. Messrs. W. P. Hay,
M. W. Lyon, Jr., and Wm. Palmer took part in the duscussion.

A. S. Hitchcock: Botanizing in the Hawaiian Islands. The speaker
visited the Hawaiian Islands during, five months of 1916. He said
the trade winds deposit their moisture upon the eastern and northern
mountains of all the islands, furnishing the conditions for rain forests
in these regions. The lee side of the islands is dry even to aridity.
An interesting feature of the wet areas at or near the summit of the
ridges are the open bogs. These bogs are devoid of trees and large
shrubs, but contain a variety of low shrubs and herbaceous plants.
Many species form tussocks, or hemispherical masses, raised above
the level of the bog. The most conspicuous of the tussocks is made by
a sedge (Oreobolus furcatus, Mann). Three peculiar species of Pani-
cum are tussock-formers (Panicum monticola Hillebr., P. imbricatiim
Hillebr., and P. isachnoides Munro). Owing to the extreme isolation
of the islands, the flora is peculiar and interesting. The family Lobe-
liaceae is represented by about 100 species, belonging to about 6
genera. Many species are arboreous, forming trunks 10 to 20 feet
or in a few cases as much as 40 feet high. The crown of foliage gives
the aspect of a palm. The grasses, disregarding the introduced species,
are not numerous, but several are peculiar. The genus Eragrostis is
represented by numerous species. A rare species of Poa (Poa siphono-
glossa Hack.) produces leafless rushlike stems, as much as 15 feet long.
The talk was illustrated by maps, botanical specimens, and numerous
lantern slide views of various features of the islands.

M. W. Lyon, Jr., Recording Secretary.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VII JUNE 4, 1917 No. 11

PHYSICS. — A visibility equation derived from the Ives and
Kingsbury new luminosity equation. Paul D. Foote, Uni-
versity of Minnesota.

In a recent paper Ives and Kingsbury' have found that the
simple expression L = 24000 exp. - 1/(0.00250 4- 0.00003795 0)
quite closely represents the relation between the luminosity
L of a black body and its absolute temperature §. It is inter-
esting to enquire what function of the wave length X the visi-
bility must be to satisfy this equation of luminosity. We have:

L= \VJd\= Cv (\)cx\-he~~^d\ = ie"«"+^ (1)

Jo Jo

where V (X) represents the visibility, J = intensity as given by
Wien's law, and the expression on the right is the new luminosity
relation.

Equation (1) is a simple integral equation which may be
readily solved for V(\). If one makes successively the sub-
stitutions x = \/§, ax 4- b = at, p = b/a, p' = p/a, and

g(s) = 2 7T i el/a A~ l cxcf 4 V (X) s3 eps, one obtains:

h (t) = epVt = J_. r g (s) e~ ts d s (2)

2 it i Jo

^hys. Rev., 8: 325. 1916.

317

318 foote: visibility equation

Equation (2) may be solved for g (s) by using the reciprocal
integral (3) derived by Pincherle,2

9

(s) = ^eslep'/ldt . (3)

the integral starting at — c° below the axis of reals, encircling
all singularities in the finite complex plane and ending at — » ■
above the axis of reals. On performing this integration and
expressing g (s) in terms of V (X) one obtains:

r"-b — fbc^

fTi \ a2 I \n \n-\

_i
where R = A e " cf1 = constant.

If c2 =14,350 and the values of a and b obtained by Ives and
Kingsbury are substituted in (4) the final visibility equation
takes the form.

yW = R.-^x«£(— ?Y-L_ (5)

^ \ X / \n \n-\

The series in (5) is of the form Xxn / \n \n — 1 where x is over
100,000. The ordinary methods of making such a series more
rapidly convergent, such as Euler's transformation, etc., do not
appear to assist materially in the present instance, and it is
not evident that (5) can be expressed in closed form. Accord-
ingly unless (5) can be put in a rapidly convergent form its main
interest is in the method of its derivation, this being the first
example in which a visibility equation has been derived from a
luminosity equation. The ordinary procedure is the converse
of this.

2 Mem. Accad. Sci. 1st. Bologna, IV, vol. 8.

riddle: control of sex ratio 319

GENETICS. — The control of the sex ratio.1 Oscar Riddle,
Department of Experimental Evolution, Cold Spring Har-
bor, New York.

No better way to introduce a discussion of the present sub-
ject has occurred to me than to avail myself of the words —
written less than three years ago — with which Professor Don-
caster begins his very excellent book on The Determination of

Sex:

The question "Is it a boy or a girl?" is perhaps the first which is
generally asked about the majority of mankind during the earliest
hours of their independent existence; and the query "Will it be a
boy or a girl?" must equally often be in the mind, even if it is less
frequently expressed in words. This second question raises one of
the most widely discussed problems of biology, that of the causes
which determine whether any individual shall be male or female, and
it suggests the still deeper question, "Why should there be male and
female at all?" The problem of the nature and cause of Sex ranks
in interest with that of the nature and origin of Life, and it may be
that neither can be completely solved apart from the other. Not-
withstanding the immense amount of brilliant speculation and re-
search which has been devoted to the fundamental problem of Life,
it must be admitted that hitherto no satisfactory solution has been
found, and in some respects the question of Sex is equally obscure.
Hardly any other problem has aroused so much speculation, and about
few has there been such great divergence of opinion. In one direction,
however, the last few years have seen a considerable advance, and
we now know at least something of the causes which lead to the pro-
duction of one or the other sex, although of the manner in which these
causes act our ignorance is still profound.

It is but a short step from the question "Is it a boy or a girl?" to
the further question "Why is it a girl instead of a boy?" and yet until
recently the answer to this latter question seemed hopelessly beyond
our grasp, and even now, although some indications of an answer
can be given, they do not touch the deeper problems of the real nature
of sex.' It is a remarkable thing that apart from the fundamental
attributes of living matter — irritability, assimilation, growth, and so
forth — no single character is so widely distributed as sex; it occurs in
some form in every large group of animals and plants, from the highest
to the lowest, and yet of its true nature and meaning we have hardly
a suspicion. Other widely distributed characters, have obvious func-
tions; of the real function of sex we know nothing, and in the rare
cases where it seems to have disappeared, the organism thrives to all

1 A lecture delivered before the Washington Academy of Sciences, March 29,
1917.

320 riddle: control of sex ratio

appearance just as well without it Sex, therefore, al-
though it is almost universally found, cannot be said with certaintj'
to be a necessary attribute of living things, and its real nature remains
an apparently impenetrable mystery.

From the statements of this rather long quotation we shall
have occasion, during the present hour, to dissent only from the
impression that the problem of the nature of sex offers difficul-
ties of a magnitude comparable with those touching the origin
of life, and that its mysteries are apparently impenetrable.

Studies on the heredity of sex have indeed made great prog-
ress during the last fifteen years. These studies have been con-
cerned with sex-linkage and with the so-called sex-chromosomes.
Since Doncaster, whom I have quoted, is one of the foremost
workers in both of these fields of study, it is particular^ signifi-
cant that, in his opinion, all of the results thus far obtained from
breeding and cytology have thrown so 'little light on the real
nature and meaning of sex, and that from further advances in
these fields he apparently hopes for so little. For this reason —
and another, namely that the relation of chromosomes to hered-
ity and sex, have probably been extensively treated in other
lectures of this series — you will, I trust, not now require a lengthy
survey of the relations which the chromosomes are known to bear
to sex, but will grant most of the present hour for an examina-
tion of the results obtained from studies of a quite different sort ;
namely, of experimental attempts to control the sex ratio, to
learn the nature of sex, and to control the development of sex.

It is quite necessary, however, that all experimental studies
on the control of the sex ratio should be carried out with the
fullest recognition of the known normal association of the chro-
mosome numbers — particularly of the sex-chromosomes — with
sex, if the results of such studies are to be used toward a decision
of the question whether sex itself has been reversed or controlled.
The all-important question concerning abnormal or unusual sex
ratios is, of course, the question of their meaning — Has a par-
ticular germ cell which had initial tendencies to produce one sex
been experimentally forced to the production of the opposite
sex? Or — a quite different thing — have the conditions of the

riddle: control of sex ratio 321

experiment decreased or suppressed the production, or hindered
the union, or modified the chromosomal constitution, of one of
the types of germ cell and left the other type normal and func-
tional? These possibilities for accounting for abnormal sex-
ratios certainly exist and they must be squarely met by decisive
experiment. The facts from this sphere which we shall most
need to bear in mind while examining our series of ratios are as
follows :

1. Sperm and ovum are two kinds of sex cells in respect of
their origin from the two contrasted sexes; but, beyond this, it
is now clear that in some animals one and the same male pro-
duces spermatozoa of two kinds, and that these two kinds are
not equal in their prospective sex value. Still other animal
forms are known in which the female produces two kinds of
eggs, having opposite prospective sex value. Most groups of in-
sects and several mammals are known to produce two kinds of
sperm, while in moths (Lepidoptera) and birds the dimorphism
of the germs exists in the eggs.

2. In forms which reproduce in part parthenogenetically —
such as the bee, gall fly, plant-louse, etc. — the sex is known to
bear certain relations to chromosome number, or to maturation
phenomena in the egg.2

3. In wide crosses among Echinoderms, Baltzer ('09) and
Tennent ('12) have shown that when the cross is made in one of
the two possible directions, some of the chromosomes proceeding
from the sperms are eliminated and do not take part in embryo-
formation. This type of chromosome behavior has been found,
however, only in crosses of very widely separated forms.

Pure wild species of doves and pigeons have proved to be
almost ideal material for obtaining highly abnormal sex-ratios,
and for the analysis of the meaning or significance of the modi-

2 Even if one fully concedes the "lethal factor" explanation which Morgan
(Science, N. 8. 36: 718. 1912) gives for a particular ratio (1 c? : 2 9 ) in Droso-
phila, a similar basis could not apply to most of the pigeon series, since here
every egg formed in the ovary can be accounted for, and in numerous series every
egg hatched. These same facts, together with the fact that it is the female
pigeon that is heterogametic, exclude the action of "assortative mating" as a
cause of the sex-ratios obtained in the pigeon.

322

riddle: control of sex ratio

fied ratios. And since it has now been shown (we shall here
attempt to demonstrate the point) that a real reversal or con-
trol of sex has been effected in these forms, the large and dimor-
phic ova found generally in doves and pigeons have permitted
new lines of investigation on the nature of sex itself. As a final
result of these studies — a result that we may very briefly indi-
cate in advance of the presentation of the data — we believe that
it is now reasonably clear that the two sexes are in fact the

TABLE 1
On the Relation Between "Width of Cross" and the Sex Ratio

MATINGS

WIDTH OF CROSS

NO. d"

NO. 9

SEX-RATIO

Columba X orientalis

Families

15

K?2)

15.00: 1 (or
7.50: 1)

Alba X orientalis (spring — before

July 1)

Alba X orientalis (average)

Orientalis X alba

Average reciprocal crosses

Genera
Genera
Genera
Genera

28
58
36

10
43
33

2.80: 1
1.35: 1
1.09: 1
1.22: 1

Turtur X orientalis, average recipro-
cal crosses

Species

14

18

0 78: 1

Unrelated orientalis

Same species

36

34

1.06: 1

Inbred orientalis

Same species

(-)

IS

20

0 90: 1

expression of the rate of protoplasmic activity — of metabolism —
pitched at two different heights or levels. For the pigeon world
the data seem quite conclusive, and when we shall have reviewed
a part of these data we will undertake to place before you the
experimentally modified sex ratios obtained elsewhere among
animals, in an attempt to show that this considerable body of
evidence supplies further confirmation, and only confirmation,
for the modifiability of sex, and for our conclusion that the male
sex is an expression of metabolism at a higher level, the female
sex of metabolism at a lower or more conservative level.

riddle: control of sex ratio

323

The work which first showed the remarkable suitability of the
wild pigeons for the analysis of the sex-problem was done by
the late Professor Whitman who devoted many years to the
study of these forms. Whitman obtained indisputably a pro-
found modification of the sex-ratio, and identified in a general
way some factors associated with the modified ratios. Whether

TABLE 2
Sex Ratios and "Width of Cross" as Reported by Various Authors

Buffon0.

Suchetet .

Phillips.

Guyerc

Goat X sheep
Dog X wolf
Gold-finch X canary

Various6

Various6

Tetrao

Lagopus X Tetrao

Ducks

Guinea X chicken
Pheasant X chicken
Peafowl X chicken
Peafowl X peafowl
Pheasant X pheasant
Pheasant X pheasant

= DIFFERENT

Species
Species (?)
Species

Genera
Species
Species
Genera

Races

Sub-fam.

Sub-fam.

Sub-fam.

Genera

Genera

Species

cf:9

7

3

16

74
72
40
13

2
1
3

13
18

8

7

46:24

6: 0

12: 0

2: 0

1: 0

14: 1

12: 3

Totals: s. fam. 20.0:0; gen. 4.9: 1; sp. 4.3: 1; rac. 1.9: 1

° Cited by Suchetet and by Guyer.

6 As summarized by Guyer from Suchutet's studies on museum specimens.
c Guyer's figures refer not to breeding data, but to the specimens available in
various museums (British, Paris, etc.).

the modified ratios signified a real control — a reversal — of sex
could not at that time be definitely decided. But on this ques-
tion he obtained three kinds of evidence, to be mentioned later,
and all of these indicated true sex-reversal.

Whitman showed that "width of cross" in doves and pigeons
is of first importance in determining sex ratios in hybrid pig-

324

riddle: control of sex ratio

TABLE 3
Fertility in "Family" and "Generic" Crosses

FAMILY CROSS

GENERIC CROSS

Common X

ring

Ring X turt

le

Al

6- 9-15

infert.

Dl

4-27-07

infert.

A2

6-11-15

infert.

c?D2

4-29-07

hatch.

c?Bl

6-23-15

hatch.

c?El

6- 2-07

hatch.

c?B2

6-25-15

hatch.

d"E2

6- 4-07

hatch.

CI

7- 1-15

infert.

9F1

7-14-07

hatch.

C2

7- 3-15

infert.

9F2

7-16-07

hatch.

Dl

7-28-15

infert.

cfGl

8-25-07

hatch.

D2

7-30-15
8-13-15

infert.
infert.

9G2

8-27-07

hatch.

El

d"Al

2-12-08

hatch.

E2

8-15-15

infert.

9A2

2-14-08

hatch.

Fl

9-10-15

infert.

d*Bl

3-18-08

hatch.

d*F2

9-12-15

hatch.

c?B2

3-20-08

hatch.

Gl

9-26-15

infert.

9 CI

4-17-08

hatch.

G2

9-28-15

infert.

9C2

4-19-08

hatch.

HI

10-10-15

infert.

9D1

5-23-08

hatch.

H2

10-12-15

infert.

9D2

5-25-08

hatch.

11

10-21-15

infert.

9 El

6-26-08

hatch.

c?I2

10-23-15

hatch.

9E2

6-28-08

hatch.

Jl

11-15-15

infert.

9F1

8- 9-08

hatch.

J2

11-17-15

infert.

9F2

8-11-08

hatch.

Kl

12-13-15

infert.

9G1

9-20-08

hatch.

K2

12-15-15
12-28-15

infert.
infert.

9G2

9-22-08

hatch.

LI

c?Al

3- 2-09

hatch.

L2

12-30-15

infert."

9A2

3- 4-09

hatch.

° All of the succeeding 64 eggs produced by this pair— under continued "over-
work"-— have been tested for fertility. Of these 62 were wholly infertile; the
other two hatched (both are males).

riddle: control of sex ratio 325

eons and that the wider the cross the higher is the proportion of
males. Family crosses produce, in nearly all matings, only
male offspring. Generic crosses produce from their "stronger"
germs — those of spring and early summer — nearly all males. If,
however, the birds of such a generic cross be made to " overwork
at reproduction," that is if their eggs are taken from them as
soon as laid and given to other birds for incubation, then the
same parents which in the spring threw all or nearly all male
offspring may be made to produce all, or nearly all, female off-
spring in late summer and autumn. At the extreme end of the
season eggs capable of little, then of no development, are often
found in such series. As the parent birds grow older the time of
appearance of females, and of eggs incapable of full develop-
ment, is reached earlier and earlier in the summer or spring.

The relation of "width of cross" to the sex ratio in one of the
many species (Turtur orientalis) with which he worked is sum-
marized3 in Table 1 . Practically every gradation from the wid-
est possible (family) cross to inbreeding shows a sex ratio in
accordance with its position in the series.4 The " family cross"
shown in Table 3 has also produced only males.

In Table 2 I have grouped according to width of cross a num-
ber of sex ratios reported by various observers. Here again it
is found that family crosses yield only male offspring (20 c? : 0 9 ) ;
generic crosses a ratio of 4.9 d1 : 1 9 ; specific crosses 4.3 : 1 ;
racial crosses 1.9 : 1. The normal sex ratio, i.e., the ratio for
any of these species mated to its own kind, is probably nearly
1 : 1 or at most not higher than 1.3 d71 : 1 9 . The method of
collecting most of these data renders then objectionable as evi-
dence on some important questions, and the numbers are
small, but they certainly support the generalization that as the
"width of the cross" is increased a relatively higher proportion

3 The matings included in this table were continued by the present writer;
both earlier and later work (to 1914) are included in the summary.

4 The specific cross — T. turtur and T. orientalis — whose ratio (0.78:1) is a
seeming exception is in reality not an exception. One of the females used in
this cross had been previously "overworked" and threw nearly all females as a
consequence. For complete data see C. O. Whitman, Posthumous Works, Vol.
II, chap. 4. The Carnegie Institution of Washington. (In press.)

326

riddle: control of sex ratio

TABLE 4

Breeding Records — 1914

(St. alba d> X) 9 St. risoria 641 (old) ; 1913 = 42 eggs.

Series 1

9A1

1- 1

White 140

9U1

7-28

White 144

9A2

1- 3

White, dead 2-3

9U2

7-30

White 151

1st (4)

= 2.066 g. 2cl (4) == 2.243 g.

9 VI

8-14

White 155

HI

4- 4

Inf. yolk = 1.995 g.

c?V2

8-16

Dark 169

H2

4- 6

Inf. yolk = 2.105 g.

9WI

8-22

White 152

911

4-12

White, killed 4-29

W2

8-24

Soft at pole

912

4-14

White 158 (?2)

9X1

8-30

White 161

o"Jl

4-21

Dark, killed 2-25

9X2

9- 1

White 145

9J2

4-23

White 158

d*Yl

9- 9

Dark 161

9K1

4-29

White 147

9Y2

9-11

White, killed bef . 10-12

9K2

5- 1

White 151

9Z1

9-18

White

LI

5- 9

Broken

9Z2

9-20

White, dead 10-26

?o*L2

5-11

Dark (disap.?)

9AA1

9-26

White 141

c?Ml

5-18

Dark 161 (?1)

9AA2

9-28

White 146

9M2

5-20

White 163

9BB1

10- 7

White 150

9N1

5-30

White 150

9BB2

10- 9

White 144

9N2

6- 1

White, killed with ext.

? 9 CC1

10-17

Dark, dead 11-S

cfOl

6- 7

Dark 150

9CC2

10-19

White, dead 11-10

9 02

6- 9

White 150

9DD1

10-26

White 130 (?1)

cfPl

8-18

Dark 149

9DD2

10-28

White 162 (?2)

P2

8-20

Broken

o^EEl

11- 6

Dark 152

9Q1

6-28

White 143

9 EE2

11- 8

White 143

9Q2

6-30

White 137

9 FF1

11-16

White 166

9R1

7- 4

White 154

FF2

11-1S

Broken

o^R2

7- 6

Dark 162

9GG

11-26

White dead 150

?cfSl

7-12

Dark, dead 7-29

9HH1

12- 7

White

9S2

7-14

White, dead 7-31

c^HH2

12- 9

Dark, dead 1-9-15

9T1

7-20

White 140

9111

12-20

Dark, dead 11-6-15

d*T2

7-22

Dark 164

9 112

12-22

White, 9 da. embr.

1st 47 = 5 d" : 12 9 ; 2nd 17 = 4 d* : 13 9 ; last 17 = 2 <? : 15 9

riddle: control of sex ratio 327

of males is produced. It may be noted in passing that this
generalization touches the question of the nature of sexual differ-
ence; for, studies among the most diverse animals and plants
have afforded evidences of the "increased vigor of hybrids," of
what Darwin called the "good effects of crossing," and of what
has been observed in Mendelian breeding as the "greater vigor
of the heterozygote." The means of "increasing the vigor" of
the offspring are, therefore, the very same means by which
higher and higher proportions of males are obtained; and males,
we have concluded from other studies, are characterized by a
more active metabolism than that found in females.

A glance at Table 3 will assist in making clear some of the
advantages which the pigeons afford in the analysis of sex ratios.
First, examining the details of the "family cross" — it is an excep-
tionally bad history with almost complete infertility — we note
that only males are produced, but that a very great number of
eggs failed completely to develop. It might be contended that
in such a series only the male-producing eggs are fertilized, and
for this reason only males are produced. We may fully grant
the point; though attention should be directed to the fact that
if this were the whole of the story it is rather remarkable that
only 4 eggs of the 18 here shown (6 of 88 in the entire series) were
fertilized, since it can be proved in any similar series that at least
half of the 18 eggs (also half of the 88) were male-producing
eggs. And a further point of interest is that while 4 of the first
18 eggs were fertile only 2 of the last 70 eggs — produced under
overwork, or crowded reproduction — were fertile. But to recur
to the original point — the pigeon in any event affords an oppor-
tunity to study the total production of the animal's ovary; and
this particular animal's ovary contains all of the sexually differ-
entiated germs.

In the second section of Table 3 are given the details of
a generic cross, a cross of less widely departed forms than in the
preceding case. In these crosses practically every egg can be
hatched and the sex of the resulting offspring learned. This was
done in 23 of the 24 eggs here recorded. This particular record
is one of the many made by Professor Whitman from which he

328

riddle: control of sex ratio

TABLE 5

Breeding Records — 1914

(St. alba cT X) 9 St. risoria 647 (young); 1913 = 18 eggs

Series 2

Al

1- 9

Wt. yolk = 1.515 g.

9 PI

7- 1

White 150

A2

1-11

Wt. yolk = 1.595 g.

9P2

7- 3

White 15-da. embr.

Bl

1-28

Wt. yolk = 1.590 g.

9Q1

7- 9

White 148

B2

1-30

Wt. yolk = 1.685 g.

c?Q2

7-11

Dark 164

CI

2- 8

Inf. yolk = 1.445 g.

9R1

7-22

White 152

C2

2-10

Broken

c?R2

7-24

Dark 172

tfDl

3- 5

Dark 8-da. embr.

?9S1

8- 3

White 13-da. embr.

9D2

3- 7

White

S2

8- 5

Broken 3-da. embr.

cfEl

3-19

Dark 167

c?Tl

8-12

Dark 174

c?E2

3-21

Dark 180

9T2

8-14

White 164

9F1

3-29

White 154

U

8-20

Yolk = 1.490 g.

d*F2

3-31

Dark 190

VI

9- 6

"Blood circle"

cfGl

4- 8

Dark, killed 5-6

<^V2

9- 8

Dark 170

9G2

4-10

White, killed 5-3

?c7Wl

9-19

Dark, dead 10-16

9 HI

4-16

White 153

9W2

9-21

White, dead 10-14

9H2

4-18

White 153

cfXl

9-30

Dark, dead 10-19

c?Il

4-25

Dark 169

9X2

10- 2

White 145

912

4^27

White 154

Yl

10-29

Inf. yolk = 1.845 g

Jl

5- 5

3-da. embr. killed

9Y2

10-31

White 15-da. embr.

J2

5- 7

3-da. embr. killed

Zl

12-27

No dev. yolk = 1.870 g.

o'Kl

5-14

Dark 169

Z2

12-29

No dev. yolk = 1.925 g.

9K2

5-16

White 158

9 641

= (170

g.) {& 170 e.)

d"Ll

5-25

Dark 179

d"s

(5) from 1st = 155 g. 9 's (13)

9L2

5-27

White 164

= 149 g.

d"Ml

6- 3

Dark 169

tf"s

(3) from 2nd = 165 g. 9 's

9 M2

6- 5

White 11-da. embr.

(11)

= 150 g.

&m

6-13

Dark 165

9 647

= (166

g.) (of 165 g.)

9N2

6-15

White 150

cf's

(7) from 1st = = 170 g. 9 's (5)
= 151 g.

c^Ol

6-22

Dark, killed 7-13

tf's

(5) from 2nd = 175 g. 9 's

02

6-24

Wt. yolk = 1.968

(6)

= 158 gr.

1st 18 ■ = 9 cf : 9; 9 2nd 18 = 8 & : 10 9 ; (1915 = 11

11 9)

riddle: control of sex ratio 329

learned the following facts: (1) Generic crosses, when not per-
mitted to lay many eggs, produce mostly or only males. (2)
Such pairs, when made to lay many eggs (crowded reproduction)
produce males predominantly from their earlier, stronger eggs,
and predominantly or only females from the later eggs laid
under stress of overwork. (3) From the eggs of pure wild spe-
cies the first egg of the pair or clutch more often hatches a male ;
the second egg of the pair more often produces a female.

These generic crosses, then, show practically full fertility and
exclude the possibility of accounting for the abnormal sex ratio
of either spring or autumn by any "assortative mating" of
germs, since the sperms by hypothesis are all alike,5 and all of
the ova are fertilized and the resulting sex of all is known.

From series of eggs produced by generic crosses, under "over-
work" it is therefore practicable to select a certain number of
eggs from near the first and from near the last of the season, and
have fair assurance that (in this type of mating) most if not all
of the earlier lot are prospectively male-producing, and most or
all of the later lot are female-producing eggs. It was this possi-
bility that enlisted my own first efforts in the study of sex.
And, since a single individual ovum or yolk of the pigeon is
large enough to permit a chemical analysis — our first study was
to determine whether possible chemical differences between the
male and female-producing ova exist and are discoverable.
The first analyses of the pigeon's ova were made in April, 1911,
and the work has been carried on continuously since that time.
Nearly 900 individual yolks have now been analyzed. Among
these are represented the eggs of several pure species, and of
many kinds of hybrids. The records for the chemical composi-
tion of the egg-yolks of a considerable number of individual fe-
males is now complete for five consecutive years. Altogether,
these studies, and the supplementary ones which developed out
of them or along with them, have brought to light a number of
facts which I can here only briefly sketch.

Before considering the results of the analyses it may be well
to make clear the nature of a difference which appeared as soon

5 It is certain that the ova are sexually dimorphic.

330

riddle: control of sex ratio

as my first lots of yolk samples were placed on the balances for
the preliminary weighings. The balances alone and at once
showed that the mass of the yolk of the first egg of nearly all
pairs of eggs (from pure species) was less by from (usually) 9
per cent to 15 per cent than the mass of the yolk of the second

TABLE 6
Weight of Entire Eggs, and op Yolks, 1913-1915 of 9 641 and 9 647

YEAR

TOTAL
EGGS
PRO-
DUCED

EGGS.

YOLKS

sex c? : 9

ord. no. wt. + hr.a

no. wt. + hr.

1913
1914
1915

(42)
(67)
(16)

9 641
1st (19)= 8.532 + 2h\
2nd (19)= 9.221 + 16

1st (30)= 8.627 + 6i
2nd (31)= 9.275 + li

1st ( 7)= 8.584 + 6
2nd ( 7)= 9.290 + 1

9 641 dead 4-17-15

(older)

(5) 1.903 + 15£

(6) 2.153 + 20|

(4) 2.032 + 139

(5) 2.219 + 106

9 d" : 8 9 : 1 & 9
11 c?:40 9
6 (f : S 9 {all

early)

Total

26 cf : 56 9

1913
1914
1915

(18)
(51)
(45)

9 647
1st ( 6)= 7.246 + 6
2nd ( 5)= 8.062 + 2

1st (25)= 7.478 + 9
2nd (24)= 8.403 + 4

1st (22)= 7.624+ 11
2nd (22)= 8.481 + 3

9 647 dead 2-16-16

(younger)

(2) 1.482 + 11
(2) 1.535 + 3h

(5) 1.653 + 70
(4) 1.793 + 59

(1) 1.715 + 166
(1) 1.970 + 171

Total

1 J> : 6 9 {all
late)

17 tf: 19 9

11 cf :21 9 1 (?)

29 d> : 46 9

a The entire egg loses weight on standing; the yolk gains weight on standing.

egg of the pair. There were occasional reversals of this relation
and also occasional pairs with quite nearly equivalent weight.
In the eggs produced by hybrids this relation did not obtain at
all. Illustrations of these differences in weight between the egg-
yolks of first and second egg of the clutch may be seen in any of

riddle: control of sex ratio

331

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332

riddle: control of sex ratio

TABLE 7

Summary of Parallel Breeding and Chemical Studies on the Eggs of 9
T. orientalis No. 500 X St. alba No. 410— for the Year 1912

an'l's or

INC.

WT. OF
YOLK

ALC.
SOLU-
BLE

RESULT

DATE

Phos-
phatide

Pro-
teins

Ext.

Ash

HzO

Energy total

4-13
4-15

5-26
5-28

6- 7

159
160

Inc.

Inc.
Inc.

Inc.
Inc.

186

187

Inc.
Inc.

192
193

Inc.
Inc.

Inc.
Inc.

Inc.
Inc.

Inc.
Inc.

259
260

2.330
2.660

2.026
2.330

2.422
2.720

2.700
2.715

Broken when found
Broken when found

72.65 18.32 25.44
72.45 17.54 25.63

Only one egg laid

5.28
5.25

4.85
2.62

57.01
54.82

7405
8990

Dark d1

6-15

Dark d"

6-17

"Verv laree

egg".

White 9

6-24

No dev.

6-26

Dark d1

7- 3
7- 5

7-15

71.95
72.27

16.49
19.18

26.00
26.55

3.63
3.75

2.43
1.93

56.05
55.22

6714

7881

Dark d"

7-17

Dark d*

7-23
7-25

8- 2

72.42
72.45

17.82
18.88

25.88
25.96

3.82
3.86

1.80
1.81

55.84
55.33

8061
9296

Dark d"

8- 4

Dark c?

8-13

No. dev.

8-15

Dark d"

8-23

No dev.

8-25

White 9

9-15

•

White 9

9-17

White 9

11-29

73.17
73.02

21.40
21.63

"25.23
°25.38

55.52
55.39

9323

12- 1

9383

° Calculated.

riddle: control of sex ratio 333

the appended tables in which yolk weights are given (Tables 4,
5, 6, 7, 8).

Other facts concerning the yolk weights which soon came to
light were, that the yolks from an individual bird become larger
in the autumn, particularly if the bird is made to lay numerous
eggs (i.e., overworked) during the season. A schematic repre-
sentation of the dimorphism of the ova, and of their increase in
size from spring to autumn is shown (under 1) in Chart 1. A
further fact of kindred nature was learned when the study was
extended over a period of years, namely that the egg-yolks of
an individual bird tend to become larger as the bird grows older;
the yolks of the spring, however, are usually smaller than those
of the previous autumn, though larger than those of the previous
spring (Table 6). These facts are now established by accurate
weighings of more than 12,000 yolks, freed and separated from
their surrounding shell and albumen.

The details of the chemical analyses of one series of eggs ob-
tained in 1912 are given in Table 7. These details we need not
here consider, but it will be observed that we find larger amounts
of the various chemical fractions (excepting water) in the fe-
male-producing egg than in the male-producing egg. This
holds true alike for the female-producing egg of the clutch, and
for the late eggs, which under these conditions are predomi-
nantly female-producing, as compared with the group of earlier
eggs which under the conditions of the generic cross are rela-
tively male-producing.6 Not only does the size of the egg in-
crease with its later position in the series, i.e., with lateness of
season, as shown by a mere comparison of the yolk weights of
such a series of eggs, but the percentage of energy-yielding or
stored materials increases as much, or probably more, than is
indicated by the size, or net weight of the yolk. The per cent-
age of water, we shall later see, is greater in the male-producing
eggs.

For our present purpose the importance of the results of these
and other analyses is that they conclusively show: (1) that the

6 In this particular series, 8 of the first 9 eggs incubated produced males; the
egg of this group that hatched a female was "a very large egg." The last three
hatches were females.

LI 0

-

334

riddle: control of sex ratio

male-producing egg of the spring is an egg that stores less ma-
terial than does the female-producing egg of the autumn. (2)

TABLE 8

Stored Energy of Eggs (1914) of Streptopelia risoria ( $ 558) as Determined

by the Bomb Calorimeter

NO.

DATE

WT. OP YOLK

ENERGY

PER CENT DIFF.

665

Al 6- 6

a1.010

a3,358

666

A2 6- 8

0.970

3,175

b- 5.8

674

Bl 6-19

0.855

2,807

675

B2 6-21

1.000

3,245

+ 15.6

699

CI 7-14

1.145

3,815 ?

700

C2 7-16

1.463

5,008

+31.3 ?

728

D 8-30

1.395

4,812

E 9- 9 or

10 soft shell, bro

ken.

Fl 10-17

soft shell, bro

ken

F2 10-19

soft shell, bro

ken

770

Gl 11- 6

1.440 •

4,837 (?)

771

G2 11- 8

1.720

5,797

+ 19.8 ?

774

HI 11-20

1.590 + si. loss

4,906 +

775

H2 11-22

1.780

6,015

+22.6 ?

776

11 12- 1

1.640

5,614

777

12 12- 3

1.820

6,255

+ 11.4

781

Jl 12-12

1.535

5,302

782

J2 12-14

1.690

5,601

+ 5.6

791

Kl 12-23

1.485

5,266 (?)

792

K2 12-25

1.718

5,880

+ 11.7 ?

"This egg was not only the first laid during season, but first during life of
this bird.

6 The percentage differences are based upon a value of 100 per cent for the
smaller egg of the pair.

That the male-producing egg of the clutch stores less material
than does its female-producing mate. (3) That the eggs of old

riddle: control of sex ratio 335

females store more materials, and — as has been noted — yield a
higher percentage of females, than do birds not old.7 There-
fore, it is evident that the egg of female-producing tendency is
one whose storage metabolism is high, as compared with eggs of
male-producing tendency. Moreover, the analyses show that
during the season successive clutches present higher and higher
storage, i.e., the earlier clutches store less — are more male-like;
the later ones all store more — are more female-like— and as al-
ready noted the eggs of the low storage period give rise (in the
generic cross) to males, and those of the high storage period
produce females.

We here obtain a close view of that upon which sex difference
rests. And the facts are now quite beyond question. Un-
mistakably, less storage and high storage pertain respectively to
the male- and female-producing germs. Unmistakably, our pro-
cedures, connected with generic cross, season, and overwork,
delivers males from the smaller storages in the earlier eggs. Un-
mistakably, the procedures raise the storage in all of the later
eggs, and unfailingly we then find that these eggs yield only, or
predominantly females. And if we eliminate the factor of wide
(generic) cross and mate the female with one of her own or a
very closely related species (Table 5), then we see that the pro-
duction of males and females coincides from the first with two
storage values — with two sizes of eggs (yolks) in the clutch —
males from the smaller first, females from the larger second.
Only after overwork and season have raised the storage value
of the eggs is this situation seriously disturbed. And the dis-
turbance— associated with an increase in the storage metabolism
of all the eggs — delivers as before, an excess of female offspring
(Tables 4, 5, 6).

The progressive increase in storage capacity of the eggs during
the season — under overwork — is to be interpreted as a decrease
in the oxidizing capacity of these same eggs. Living cells in
general dispose of ingested food material by storing it or by
burning it. If oxidized the products of the oxidation are re-
movable and do not serve to increase the bulk of the cell. The

7 See Tables 4, 5, 6.

336 riddle: control of sex ratio

low-storage capacity of the male-producing eggs as compared
with the high storage capacity of female producing eggs is there-
fore an index of higher oxidizing capacity or as more usually
stated, a higher metabolism of the male-producing eggs as com-
pared with the female-producing eggs.

We may next examine the percentages of water in the eggs
of spring and autumn, and in the two eggs of the clutch. These
figures for one series of analyses are given along with other
analytical results in Table 7. They show a higher water con-
tent for the eggs of the spring (male-producers). Indeed, each
pair of eggs from the first of the season onward has a slightly
higher moisture value than the pair that follows it. The analyses
further show a higher percentage of water in the first egg of
the clutch, i.e., in the male-producer, than in the second or
female-producer in all cases.

If the results of my nearly 900 analyses all ran as smoothly
as do the 8 of this series there would be no doubt of a perfect
correlation of high moisture values with small eggs, i.e., with
male-producing eggs — both small eggs of season, and small eggs
of individual clutches. The results throughout, however, are
not so uniform and smooth as here; there are some series which
seem seriously to depart from the order noted above. These
cannot be adequately discussed here. We can, however, record
our own belief that the situation represented in the table is, in
the main, indicated by the moisture determinations obtained
in the analyses of eggs produced by pure species. Two ad-
ditional methods of determining the amount of water in the
yolks, give a satisfactory confirmation of the conclusion that
the male-producing ovum contains a higher percentage of water
than does the female-producing ovum.

It may be remarked at once that the two facts — a higher
metabolism, and a higher water value in the same egg (the
male-producing one) — are not to be regarded as a mere coinci-
dence. They are related facts, essentially correlated in that
the more hydrated state of these colloids, which contain only
54 to 59 per cent water, is certainly a more favorable state for
a higher rate of (oxidizing) metabolism than is the less hydrated

riddle: control of sex ratio 337

state which better corresponds to a condition favorable to in-
creased storage.8

The results of these analyses (as well as the calorimetric deter-
minations to be mentioned later) have an important relation
to the question of a modified or differential maturation, by
which the changed ratios might be explained. Bearing on this
point we may here make the following observations: It has
been seen that the sex actually realized corresponds in fact to
levels or grades of metabolism; and we now note that the (stor-
age) metabolism which was measured was complete before the
beginning of maturation, so that if such a differential maturation
should occur it must be looked upon not as a cause but rather
as a result of the establishment of that grade of metabolism which
does here, and under all of the several known conditions, in the
clearest way accompany and correlate with each particular
sex.

But, any assumption of a differential maturation, even as a
result of or response to these impressed levels of metabolism,
brings with it more difficulites than it clears up. Among these
it brings the paradox of a rigid selection in favor of the male-
producing chromosome-complex in the maturations of the
spring, and an equally rigid selection against this same complex
in the autumn. Again, it is easily shown by simple breeding
tests that such differential maturation does not occur in the
spring at least when the female is mated to her own or a closely
related species; so that a further assumption would have to be
made to the effect that it is the prospective fertilization by a
sperm from a wider cross that determines the course of matura-
tion! Furthermore, our data on the sex-behavior of series of
females from such a wide (generic) cross show that if the male-
producing complex was indeed eliminated from the eggs that
gave rise to one-half of these females (produced under overwork)
these same chromosomes cannot be the real or sole cause of

8 For example, Overton found that withdrawal of water from the cells of
Spirogyra was followed by an increased storage or accumulation of starch, etc.
Embryonic tissues generally have high water content and show most rapid di-
vision, differentiation and growth (not storage), etc.

338 riddle: control of sex ratio

masculinity, for as we shall see later a part of these females are
strongly masculine, and indeed they show various grades of
masculinity. The evidence against a differential maturation as
a basis for an interpretation of the controlled sex ratios of
pigeons is so strong as to cause its rejection, even if the essential
constructive facts on the nature and basis of sex had not yet
been learned. "

The storage metabolism of many male- and female-produc-
ing ova, both in reference to egg of clutch and to position in
the season, has been determined by means of the bomb calori-
meter. The method is very accurate and the results are entirely
convincing. The stored energy, or heat of combustion, of
nearly 400 egg-3rolks has been determined. One such series of
determinations, (made in 1914) in which all available eggs of
a particular female were burned is shown on Table 8. It will
there be seen that the first clutch or pair of the season bore a
higher caloric value than the second pair, but is otherwise the
smallest of the year. Beginning with the second clutch laid
in June the succeeding clutches to December 1 bear higher and
higher heat values. In all clutches too, except the very first,9
the second eggs show a higher storage of heat units than do the
first of the clutch. Here we find the conclusions reached from
studies on the wieghts of yolks, and on yolk analyses, fully
confirmed by a method in which the error involved in the de-
termination is wholly negligible. The most accurate method
for the study of the storage metabolism of male and female
producing ova give too the results most consistent with the
breeding data. In other words, we could say, if we wished to
make merry with our colleagues, the cytologists, that we here
get closest to the facts of sex when we burn our chromosomes!

The energy values obtained from the burned yolks, permit
an indirect comparison of the water values of the male- and
female-producing eggs of the clutch. Such a comparison in-
dicates, as in the chemical analyses, a higher percentage of

9 Professor Whitman has observed that the very first egg in life or of the
season is more likely to throw a female than is the first of the clutch of the imme-
diately succeeding clutches.

riddle: control of sex ratio 339

water in the male-producing ovum. In addition to these two
methods of studying the water values of the two kinds of eggs
the value has been obtained direct, by desiccation, on a con-
siderable number of samples. The three methods confirm each
other. A little later we shall make a further application of the
observed facts of higher water values, and of a higher metabo-
lism in the male-producing ova.

Let us now very briefly consider the other kinds of obser-
vations that have been made on the series of eggs, from spring
to autumn, produced under crowded reproduction by generic
crosses, as these are schematically represented in Chart 1.
Curves 2 and 3 on that chart represent facts which were first
observed by Professor Whitman on these series of eggs. The
curve entitled " developmental energy" (No. 2) represents the
observed fact that more of the eggs of spring show the capacity
to develop than do those of autumn; and by the use of a con-
tinuous (not broken) line or curve is indicated the further fact
that the first eggs of the clutch bear throughout the season a
similar relation (of higher fertility) to the second eggs of the
clutch. The curve marked 3 and designated " length of life"
tells again of an advantage possessed by the earlier hatched
birds, and of a more limited life-term affixed to the hatches,
from the later " overworked" eggs. It is probable, moreover,
that within the group of clutches giving rise to females only, a
longer life-term falls to those birds arising from the first egg of
the clutch than from those arising from the second of the clutch.
Here, then, as in the preceding curve (2), the smaller eggs of
both clutch and season are the eggs which give in their develop-
ment the tests of "strength and vigor," while the larger eggs
of clutch and season more often display " weakness."

The data which justify curves 4 and 5 as represented on the
chart have already been considered. Of the observations upon
which curve 6 is based we shall here say only that in general
the weight of the parent bird is greatest at the season when the
weights of the yolks being produced are smallest, and that when
the largest yolks of autumn are being produced the weight of
the parent bird is the smallest of the year. Tables 4 and 5

340 riddle: control of sex ratio

were prepared originally to make clear certain observations on
size of off-spring in relation to their origin from eggs produced
under overwork, after continued overwork, and in relation to
the order of the eggs in the clutch. The tables themselves
tell much of their story and we here forego a further considera-
tion of them (see Riddle, '16, p. 406).

The seventh curve of Chart 1 refers to a long and rather
large series of tests of the sex-behavior of series of birds such
as those whose origin is indicated in Table 3 (series of 1908).
We have here an opportunity to study and compare sex phe-
nomena of particular birds whose sex we have reason to believe
had been reversed from its initial sex-tendency; that is to say,
where successive pairs of females have originated from succes-
ive pairs of eggs in the autumn, under overwork, we have the
reasons already given for believing that some or most of such
females arising from first eggs of the clutch have had their
metabolism depressed to a point sufficient to make them fe-
males; but the second eggs of the same clutches should by the
same means have been carried to a still more "feminine" level;
and though both are females, it seemed possible to differentiate
the one sort from the other, and this has been successfully done
in a series of tests which now extend through a period of nearly
five years. Each female has been given about nine tests, each
of six months duration, with (for the most part) another female.

In this study, then, female is mated with female and male
with male. Such pairs, from a very few selected pairs of par-
ents, are kept mated for a period of six months. Most of the
birds used, for lack of success with the incessantly fighting
males, have been females, and most of the nine or ten successive
tests with each bird have been made with her own sisters. The
members of the pair are kept apart except when under obser-
vation; when put together, as is done twice daily, the records
are taken of those females of the pair which behave as males
in copulating with their mates. Three facts are definitely es-
tablished by the data obtained: (1) The females of the orient-
alis X alba cross (they are dark in color) are more male-like in
their sex behavior than the females of the reciprocal cross (these

riddle: control of sex ratio 341

are white in color). (2) Females hatched from eggs laid earlier
in the season are more masculine in their sex behavior than are
their own full sisters hatched later in the season. And, several
grades of females can be thus seriated according to season of hatch-
ing. (3) The female hatched from the first egg of the clutch is
more masculine than her sister hatched from the second of the
clutch in a great majority of the cases. And in nearly all these
latter matings the more masculine bird is so predominantly
masculine that she takes the part of the male a full 100 per cent
of the time in copulating with her very feminine clutch-mate
sister. (See Riddle, '14a).

I may remark in passing that the effect of testicular and ovar-
ian extracts (suspensions) have been studied in connection with
the work on sex-behavior. The results have clearly shown
that the sex behavior of a pair of females is modified by the
intra-peritoneal injection of testis (pigeon) extract into the one
and ovarian (pigeon) extract into the other. In one case, for
example, the more "feminine" female of a pair was given testis
extract and her more " masculine" mate received ovarian ex-
tract. After the injections the bird formerly more feminine,
16 copulations as a male to 23 by her consort, became very
much the more masculine, 27 copulations as a male to only 2
by her consort.

To one other kind of fact concerning the effects of reproduc-
tive over-work in changing the developmental and sex phen-
omena of the germs of the later part of the season, we ask a
moment's consideration.

It has been found that some females dead at relatively ad-
vanced ages show persistent right ovaries. The right ovary
in pigeons normally begins degeneration at or before hatching
and is usually wholly absent from the week-old squab. In
our study it soon became evident that the persistent right ovar-
ies were found almost exclusively in birds hatched from eggs
of overworked series. Further study has shown in addition
that they arise almost wholly from the eggs of autumn, and
predominantly then from the second eggs of the clutch — that
is from eggs otherwise known to have greatest or strongest

342 riddle: control of sex ratio

female-producing tendency. These ovaries have sometimes
weighed half or more than half as much as the adult left ovary
with which they were associated, and have been found in such
birds dead at all periods from a few days to twenty-four months.
We here attempt no adequate description of this situation, but
one can not have observed the frequency of the persistence of
this ovary in the birds hatched from the eggs otherwise known
to be the most feminine from these overworked series, without
conviction that the same pressure which carries the eggs of
spring from male-producing to female-producing levels, also
carries the earlier female-producing level to another yet more
feminine.

The several kinds of facts just reviewed in connection with
Chart 1 afford clear evidence that sex and characteristics other
than sex such as fertility and developmental energy not only
bear initial relations to the order of the egg in the clutch, but
that sex and these other characteristics are progressively modified
under stress of reproductive overwork , until at the extreme end of
the season certain aspects of femininity are abnormally or un-
usually accentuated. In the light of these facts sex reveals
itself as a quantitative modifiable character. And an associa-
tion of modifiable metabolic levels with the flux and change of
sex, or of sex ratios, has been found and described in precisely
this same connection. ■

Let us now take these facts with us in a rapid survey of some
experimentally induced and puzzling sex-ratios, and also into
a brief consideration of some important facts of sex that have
been learned from embryonic and post-natal stages of organisms.

The evidence that higher water values and higher metabolism
are associated with male-producing eggs, lower water values
with female-producing eggs, is of first importance in connection
with our own generalization as to the germinal basis of sex-
difference; and is further of much interest as being the means
of demonstrating that in the — as I believe — several valid cases
of sex-control now known, one thing in common has really been
effected; this, though the work has been carried out on a con-
siderable variety of animals and though the procedures have

riddle: control of sex ratio

343

themselves been most various. The thing that seems to have
been effected in all cases has been the raising or lowering of the
general metabolism of the treated germs. In probably none of
the cases in which these experimentally induced abnormal sex-
ratios were obtained — in other animals than the pigeon — has the
observer been able definitely to eliminate all the possibilities of
the continued determination of sex by the sex-chromosome ; but
several observers have been able to eliminate one or more of
these possibilities for their material. And all of those experi-

table 9

Time of Fertilization and the Sex Ratio in Cattle

Thury and
Cornaz. .

Diising"

Dusing°

time cf: 9

Early 0:7
Late 22:0

Early 8: 10
Late 4: 1

Early 3: 10
Late 1 : 1

Russell .

Pearl and
Parshley.

Early 31 : 51
Late 42: 34

Early 123
Middle 67
Late 65

125
58
42

f Early

134:

178,

ratio =

75.3 d":

100

9

Total6

{ Middle

67:

58,

ratio =

115.5 o*

100

9

[Late

77:

44,

ratio =

175.0 tf1 :

100

9

° Work cited by Dusing.

6 Omitting the data submitted by Cornaz in the first announcement of the
theory.

ments which strongly suggest a real sex reversal or control can
now be shown to be in alignment with one or more of the basic
facts of sex control now known in the doves and pigeons. When
the conditions of these experiments have been such as to lead
us to expect an increase of the metabolism, males have been pro-
duced in excess, and when the conditions imposed have been
obviously capable of depressing the metabolism of the treated
germs, these have yielded an excess of females. These facts,
therefore, afford much reason for the opinion that sex has been
controlled or reversed in a number of very different animals.

344 riddle: control of sex ratio

The observed relation of the time of fertilization to modified
sex-ratios in cattle is summarized in Table 9. Thury reported
in 1862 that from fertilizations made in the early period of heat
in cattle an excess of females were produced; and that later
(delayed) fertilizations give rise to an excess (all according to
Thury) of males. Similar experiments have been several times
repeated and these repetitions have all shown an excess of one
or the other sex in accordance with such early or late fertiliza-
tion.10 The facts as reported by the several observers, and the
totals, are given in the table. We postpone for a moment a
discussion of the situation presented by these data except to

TABLE 10
Time of Fertilization and Sex Ratio in Sheep

Bell"

Matings in October, 1899 c? 10:9 26 = 72.0 per cent 9

Matings time unknown,

1899 c? 179: 9 166 = 48.0 per cent 9

Matings after Novem-
ber 15, 1899 c? 23: 9 3 = 11.5 per cent 9

° Records of a neighboring flock supplied to Dr. Bell by Mr. Macrae.

draw attention to the probability that in late (delayed) fertiliza-
tion the ovum takes up water before fertilization and gives an
excess of males.

Connected with these facts obtained from cattle are some par-
tially similar data for sheep. From records obtained by Dr.
Alexander Graham Bell ('14), made primarily with the object of
learning whether certain conditions have an influence on "twin-
ning" in sheep, the materials for Table 10 have been taken.
Here, again, as in cattle there is probably some evidence for an
increased male production from delayed fertilizations.

Experiments on the frog and the toad have afforded evidence
for the control of sex. Richard Hertwig ('06, '12), and later
Kuschekewitch ('10), allowed frog's eggs before fertilization to
"overripen," a process during which the eggs take up water —

10 The use of the terms early and late fertilizations assume that some ovula-
tion occurs either immediately before, or shortly after, the beginning of heat.

riddle: control of sex ratio

345

and obtained (the latter author) in some cases a total of 100 per
cent males (Table 11). Dr. King ('12) did the converse of this
experiment with toad's eggs — withdrawing water from them be-
fore fertilization — and obtained nearly or quite 80 per cent of
females in cases where the mortality was less than 7 per cent.
The evidence afforded by these experiments on the frog and
the toad is thought by many to be inconclusive as evidence for
real sex control. Though selective fertilization has been elimi-
nated as a possibility by Kuschekewitch, we do not know which
is the heterogametic sex in amphibia and there also remains the

TABLE n
Experimentally Modified Sex Ratios in Frogs and Toads

AUTHOR

TREATMENT

RESULT

c?

&

9

Hertwig, R

O

u

%-.

O

Delayed fertil. (+ H20)

271

0

per eent

100.00

88.88

Kuschekewitch

Delayed fertil. (+ H20)

299

0

100.00

No delay + H20

62

41

60.20

King, H. D

No delay - H20

106

85

275

289

27.66
22.73

possibility of parthenogenetic development to account for the
excessive male-production in the experiments with the frog.
But this appeal makes it impossible to explain the great excess
of females obtained by Dr. King on the eggs of the toad, where
a selective mortality is definitely excluded, and leaves such
doubters to lean upon the rather discredited staff of selective
fertilization — a proposition wholly disproved for the related frog
and for the pigeon. It may be noted, however, that on the basis
of our present knowledge of the " sex-differentials" (to be con-
sidered later) in the pigeon's eggs both of these experiments

346

riddle: control of sex ratio

might have been predicted to result as these three investigators
have reported.

The modified sex ratios obtained from the four types of ani-
mals just mentioned were all obtained through action upon the
eggs, or the egg-stage of the organisms. Some important ex-
perimental work, and other very significant physiological and
chemical study, has been done on sex in the embryonic and adult

CHART 2

Bonellia; Free-martin; Inachus; Frog; Pigeon; Duck; Fowl; Pheasant; Sheep;

Human; Stag.

[ cf high per cent H20 (?)
Cow i 9 low per cent (H20 (?)

Egg •

Pigeon <{

Frog
Toad

Hydatina

Daphnids
Moths

low fat and P.
{ High Metabolism
high per cent H2O

-> Adult

Human <{

[ (blood) low per cent
" \ fat

High Metabolism

[ (blood) high per cent
9 I fat

[Low Metabolism-

(high fat and P.
9 \ Low Metabolism
[low per cent H2O

o71 high per cent H2O
9 low per cent H2O

1

Fowl

Crab

J cf (blood) low fat and P.
[ 9 (blood) high fat and P.

/ d" (blood) low per cent fat
\ 9 (blood) high per cent fat

d"s from change of food and increased oxygen supply.
9 's from unchanged food and lesser oxygen supply.

sex-intermediates— sexual or asexual reproduction influenced by
conditions.

sex-intermediates- — quantitative germinal basis.

stages of the organism. Something can here be gained by
grouping and treating these several results in a single diagram.
Now that the basic problem of sex has been shown to be essen-
tially a question of metabolism, a department of physiology and
biochemistry, we shall be able to note in connection with Chart
2 (where the principal known facts concerning the relation of
metabolism to sex are diagrammatically arranged) that a num-

riddle: control of sex ratio

347

ber of data bearing on adult sexual differance of the sort we
most require are already at hand.

Turning now to the diagram we note that egg and adult stages
are first distinguished. In the egg of the pigeon we have iden-
tified maleness and femaleness by three differentials. Female-
ness in the egg-stage being accompanied by low metabolism,
lower percentage of water, and higher total fat and phosphorus,
or of phosphatides. Maleness is here accompanied by high
metabolism, higher percentage of water, and lower total fat and
phosphatides. Now there are valid reasons for treating these
three differentials not as separate and disconnected facts, but
rather as aspects or corollaries of the same fact. For example, a

TABLE 12

Sexual Differences of Fat and Phosphorus in the Blood of Adult Fowls

and of Man

Males (roosters) —
Non-laying females
Laying females

Males (man)

Females (women) . .

AVERAGE
TOTAL FAT

15.45

17.87
27.80

141.4
226.0

AVERAGE

TOTAL

PHOSPHORUS

6.43

7.42

13.15

RELATIVE
AMOUNTS OF
PHOSPHORUS

100
115
205

high metabolism in a cell is consonant with less storage of fat and
phosphatides, and with a more highly hydrated state of the cell-
colloids. It follows that where data for either of these three
differentials are at hand, for either the germ or adult of any ani-
mal, we have in such data evidence of the kind we are looking
for, i.e., evidence for the association of a given type of metab-
olism with the germ or adult of a given sex.

For what forms then are such data available? And, what is
now known of the persistence of this definite type of differentia-
tion of the two kinds of sex germs into adult stages of the two
sexes? Recently, in my laboratory in cooperation with Mr.
Lawrence ('16), it has been shown that one of these differentials

348 riddle: control of sex ratio

— or one aspect of the differential which our own work has dem-
onstrated in the egg — is clearly continued in the blood of the adult
male and female. Fowls were substituted for doves in this
case in order to increase the size of the samples and thus increase
the accuracy of the analytical results. The blood of the male
contains less fat and less phosphorus — just as the male-producing
egg contains less of these same elements. The data further
show that the sexually active (or actively functional) females
depart most widely from the male, while sexually inactive females
occupy an intermediate position in respect of the amounts of
these constituents found in the blood (see Table 12).

The results afford fairly clear evidence that in birds the meta-
bolic differences of male and female germs persist in the male and
female adults.

In mammals too these aspects of sexual differences of the
adults have been fully demonstrated. Almost simultaneously
with the above determinations on birds, data were published by
Goettler and Baker ('16) which (as we have pointed out, '16)
show that the blood of the human male contains less fat, that
of the female more. Further, the basal metabolism of the human
male and female has recently been accurately determined by
Benedict and Emmes ('15) ; they find that the metabolism of man
is 5 to 6 per cent higher than that of woman.

Have we any measure of either of our differentials in any
mammalian egg? I think that the experiments on sex-de-
termination in cattle, together with an observation by van der
Stricht, afford some evidence that the water content of the male-
producing egg is high, and that of the female-producing egg is
low. No one definitely knows whether the ovum of the cow
absorbs water in the Fallopian tubes in this interval between
ovulation and fertilization, but we do know that every amphib-
ian, reptilian, and avian egg that has been investigated does
absorb very appreciable amounts of water while being passed
from the ovary to the exterior. And van der Stricht has de-
scribed phenomena of growth or swelling of the yolk-granules of
one mammal — the bat — which, I am sure from my own studies
on yolk, indicate the taking up of water by the egg of this mam-

riddle: control of sex ratio 349

mal. It is highly probable, therefore, that precisely that time
relation which leads to an excess of males in cattle is preceded
or accompanied by an increased hydration of the ovum. In
mammals therefore there is some evidence that a shift of the
metabolic level — as indicated by one partly known differential
— is associated with the observed changes in the sex-ratio of the
germs which are thus modified. Further, in the adult of one
mammal — man — two of the three sex-differentials have been
definitely demonstrated. These results for both the egg and
adult stages of the mammal are at every point in complete agree-
ment with our data for both the egg and adult stages of the
bird.

How now do the controlled sex ratios obtained in the frogs and
toads appear in the light of the sex differentials of our diagram?
Clearly the data given in Table 11 arrange themselves in per-
fect agreement with the metabolic differentials which obtain in
birds and mammals. The data of that table eliminate "de-
layed fertilization" as such as being a factor and show that the
altered sex ratios correspond with increase or decrease of water
as the sole known differential.

We next give a moment's consideration to an adult stage in
which a change in metabolism was observed in connection with
sexual changes. In the spider-crabs Geoffrey Smith ('11)
showed that both the blood and the liver of the adult male crabs
contain less fat than do the blood and liver of the females.
Here once more the facts concerning one of the sex-differentials
is known and is in complete accord with all the preceding cases.
In these spider-crabs, known to be sometimes castrated by para-
sites, Smith and Robson were able to show, moreover, that the
parasitized male crabs, which under these conditions gradually
assume several female morphological characteristics, are also found
to have assumed the type of fat metabolism which characterizes the
normal female crab. How much these facts contribute to, and
how completely they adjust themselves to, our own general
theory, will be realized only after a moment's reflection. Re-
cently Kornhauser ('16) has found some of these conditions also
in Thelia.

350 riddle: control of sex ratio

A glance at the diagram indicates three other groups of ani-
mals which experimental work has thrown into the general ques-
tion of the control of sex. The information at hand for these
forms does not so expressly concern the egg as does that from
the preceding cases, but all of these latter groups are concerned
with early stages — some of them with the generation preceding
the egg whose sex seems influenced by conditions. The results
of studies of the first of these groups — Hydatina — are of such a
kind as to show that they are in general accord with the meta-
bolic differentials of all of the previously mentioned cases of sex-
control. One can scarcely doubt that change of food and in-
creased oxygen supply are consonant with increased metabolism,
just as the studies of Whitney ('14 and later) particularly, and
later of Shull ('16), have shown that these changes lead to the
production of male-producing daughters.

The second of these groups — the Daphnids — have been stud-
ied by three independent investigators who agree upon two
points that are of importance in the question of the control of
sex, and to the general theory of sex as stated here, though the
results throw little light on precisely what is causally involved.
Issakowitch ('05), Woltereck ('11), and Banta ('15) all find
numerous sex-intergrades in a material in which all agree that
the type of reproduction — sexual or asexual — is influenced by
environmental conditions. All further agree that "unfavorable
conditions" (or is it a change from favorable conditions?) tends
toward sexual reproduction, while " favorable conditions" favor
asexual reproduction.

In the third of these groups — the moths — the studies of Gold-
schmidt ('12, '14), Goldschmidt and Poppelbaum ('14), Harri-
son and Doncaster ('14), and the work of Machida, have dem-
strated again sex-intermediates of various grades. Moreover,
it has been shown that from among the various geographical
races of moths certain matings can be arranged which produce
rather definite types of male- or female-intermediates — or sex-
intergrades as Goldschmidt elects to call them. And further, from
pairs involving still other species still other levels or grades of
sex-intermediates may be freely obtained. A more or less fac-

riddle: control of sex ratio 351

torial basis of the phenomena has hitherto been used in the
discussion of these results; but recently Goldschmidt ('16) has
stated that "very important new facts will be published later
which will probably enable us to replace the symbolistic Men-
delian language, used here, by more definite physico-chemical
conceptions." Such newer descriptions — we would say — is
wholly in line with the requirements of present data on sex.
In Whitman's and our own material it has been clear from the
first that the results far overstep the possibility of treating
them in Mendelian terms, for it has been apparent from the
beginning that we have had to do not with three or four points
merely, but with a flowing graduated line. In the work with the
moths, however, sex is clearly described in quantitative terms,
and it seems fairly certain that when the functional basis of sex
shall have been identified it will be found that sex accords
with metabolic grades there, as it does elsewhere.

It is clear then that all of the animal-forms for which there is
reasonable evidence of sex-control show important correspon-
dences with the situation fully elucidated in the pigeons. And
that where the sex-differentials known to exist in the pigeon's
ova have been traced in adults of the two sexes, the parallel
rigorously holds there also. A general classification of male and
female adult animals on the basis of a higher metabolism for the
one and a lower for the other, was indeed made by Geddes and
Thomson ('90) many years ago. It now seems beyond ques-
tion that this conclusion of these authors is a correct and impor-
tant one.

It remains to point out that another very old and much
worked line of investigation supplies further confirmatory evi-
dence for our present point of view. Studies on the effects of
castration, gonad-transplantation, and gonad-extract injection,
constitute a large body of observations which deal with sexual
phenomena associated with the internal secretions of the sex-
glands. These internal secretions, let it be remembered, are
themselves metabolites, which have the capacity to influence the
metabolism of some, many, or of all the tissues with which they

352 riddle: control of sex ratio

come in contact or which they may reach indirectly." A par-
tial list of the animal forms that have been most studied in this
respect is written serially on the top of our diagram — in a
position intermediate to egg and adult. The number of these
animal forms might be much increased, and the names of the
investigators of this aspect of the modification of sex are quite
too numerous12 to be mentioned here. But the present point
of interest is that these results, as a whole, demonstrate that
the extent of sexual modification in the experimental animal is, in
general, in proportion to the immaturity of the treated animal.
That is to say, the earlier the internal secretion of the gonad is
supplied or withdrawn — the earlier the metabolic change is
effected — the more profound is the sexual modification of the in-
dividual. All this is of course clearly in conformity with the
Law of Genetic Restriction — a principle of embryology that is
true alike for all of the known characteristics of the organism.
Of the several animals of the list we may here particularize
concerning only two or three. The stag is a form that has long
been known to show thus a considerable and beautiful series of
greater modification of antlers and other so-called secondary
sexual characters, in correspondence with castration at earlier
and earlier periods in the life of the animal. The free-martin
— another Ungulate — is now known to exemplify a much ear-
lier point at which the foreign internal secretion begins to act;

11 That changes following the removal of gonads, etc., have for many years
been recognized as connected with a changed metabolism may be illustrated
from the following quotation from Marshall ('10). "The effects of castration
indicate that an alteration in the metabolism, even in comparatively late life,
may initiate changes in the direction of the opposite sex", (p. 658).

12 The following partial references are suggested by the particular animals
listed in the diagram: Stag, Darwin (1868); Caton (1881); Fowler (1894);
Rorig (1900). Human, Hegar (1893); Selheim (1898); Hikmet and Renault
(1906); C. Wallace (1907); Tandler and Gross (1909). Sheep, Shattock and
Seligman (1904); Seligman (1906); Marshall and Hammond (1914). Guinea-
pig, Bouin and Ancel (1903-9); Steinach (1910-13). Pheasant, Gurney (1888).
Fowl and Duck, Darwin (1868); Gurney (1888); Foges (1903); Shattock and
Seligman (1906-7); Goodale (1910-16). Pigeon, Riddle (1914 a). Frog, Nuss-
baum (1907); Pfluger (1907); Steinach (1910); G. Smith (1912). Inachus and
Carcinus, Potts (1909); G. Smith (1910-12). Free-martin, Lillie (1916). Bo-
mllia, Baltzer (1914).

riddle: control of sex ratio 353

and here, true to the rule that has been established elsewhere in
all this general line of work, the resulting modification is cor-
respondingly strong and striking. When, by whatever means,
we effect a change in the metabolism (which is the essential
thing) at a still earlier stage — in the egg-stage in our own and
in some other experimental reversals of sex — then we obtain in-
dividuals whose sexual nature is quite thoroughly reversed;13 in
many cases completely so, and in still other cases with varying
degrees of completeness.

Baltzer's ('14) beautiful experiments with the worm Bonellia
best illustrate this fact and show the several stages of modifica-
tion not only in one and the same animal form but in the in-
dividuals hatching from a single brood. Baltzer finds that when
the larvae of this animal are hatched they are capable of becom-
ing either males or females. If they happen to become attached
to the proboscis of an adult female they become males; if they
do not succeed in so attaching themselves they soon settle from
the water into the sand or mud of the sea-bottom and there
undergo, quite slowly, further development into females (almost
exclusively). The plastic, reversible, quantitative nature of sex
in this form was shown by this investigator in the following
way: Some of the free-swimming "indifferent" larvae were
artificially helped to a connection with the proboscis of an adult
female. Some of these were permitted to maintain this attach-
ment for a very short period; others were removed at progres-
sively longer periods, with the very significant result that prac-
tically all stages of hermaphroditism were produced. Those
first removed becoming almost perfect females, others with
longer and longer periods of attachment, becoming more and
more perfect males.

Now the conditions under which the two sexes are here de-
veloped afford, in our own opinion, good reasons for believing
that the larva is stimulated — through its contact with the living

13 The observations of Steche ('12) on the relation of precipitin reactions to
sex, as seen in the blood of insects are of much interest. This author thus finds
that male and female of the same species present differences as great as do the
males of two related species, or as do the females of related species.

354 riddle: control of sex ratio

tissue — to a higher metabolism; supporting this point of view is
the observed fact that "differentiation" is much hastened in this
male individual as compared with the otherwise wholly similar
larva that is destined to become a female.

What it has been our privilege and opportunity to present is
in itself but an outline or summary of result obtained in the
modification and control of sex, and of the conclusions that
seem to follow from these results. In a closing statement, there-
fore, we wish only to direct attention to some consequences of
the new knowledge of sex. As a foreword to this statement,
however, we would note that not only do the widely different
kinds of fact to which we have made reference directly support
the view of the basis of sex here presented, but that nothing
known of the sex-chromosomes is necessarily opposed to this view
although an abundance of the data here presented sharply op-
pose the conception that the sex-chromosomes are a cause of sex,
or that they are even a necessary associated phenomenon. We
may conceive that sexually differentiated organisms, from the
first, have had the problem of producing germs pitched at two
different metabolic levels; and if two sharply opposed sexes are
to result from these two kinds of germs then the two metabolic
levels must be measurably distinct. This task of producing and
maintaining two kinds of cells pitched at two different levels
ultimately falls upon cells, and these have, sometimes at least,
produced two different chromosome complexes in connection with
or in accomodation to the establishment of these two metabolic
levels. Eut, as we have seen, the requisite metabolic level of
the germ may be established in the absence of the appropri-
ate chromosome complex, and the sex of the offspring made to
correspond with the acquired grade or level of metabolism.

With these facts concerning the functional basis of sex in
mind, and reverting to our first quotation from Doncaster,
how little wonder that sex (despite its seeming "lack of func-
tion" is "nearly universally distributed," almost coequal with
"the fundamental attributes of living matter, irritability, as-
similation and growth?" Since some grade of metabolism is of
necessity universally present in living matter the basis for two

riddle: control of sex ratio 355

sexes is of equall}' wide distribution in that sexual differentiation
results from metabolic differentiation, through the establish-
ment of two relatively distinct and relatively stable levels of
metabolism. In the same way is accounted for the hitherto
puzzling fact that the two sexes must have originated many
times, scores, hundreds, or thousands of times, within species
previously unisexual, during the long period involved in the
evolutional history of organisms.

Most important of all, perhaps, is the demonstration that one
hereditary character is modifiable, is of a fluid, quantitative, re-
versible nature. Seemingly this can only mean that other heredi-
tary characters are also modifiable. The methods and results of
most studies in modern genetics have asked us to accept a quite
different view, namely that no such thing as control of heredity
may be hoped for, but that we can only look to a sorting and
elimination of germs, or of so-called hereditary factors — and to
fortuitous origins or recombinations of the latter — to give us
better or more desirable organisms. Surely there is a lot of
fatalistic philosophy in that conception. All other aspects of
function in biology recognize — and some have already attained
—the control of life-processes as their aim and goal. Only in
this field of heredity — involving the overwhelmingly important
processes of continuance and of becoming — has this aim been
accepted by a great and growing body of workers as impossible.
If sex has been in fact controlled, if it has a modifiable metabolic
basis — as now seems assured — then the life processes involved in
heredity like other life-processes, invite the investigator to his
full and complete task; territory hitherto labelled '"impossible"
is open to investigation.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Baltzer, F. Arch. f. Zellforsch., vol. 2, 1909.

Baltzer, F. Mitteil. Zool. Stat. Neapel., vol. 22, 1914.

Baxta, A. M. Year Book, Carnegie Inst. Wash., 1915. (Also Proc. Nat. Acad.

Sci., vol. 2, 1916.)
Bell, A. G. Quoted from Popenoe. Jour. Hered., vol. 5, p. 47, 191 t.
Benedict, F. G., and Emmes, L. E. Jour. Biol. Chem., vol. 20, 1915. These

authors give full references to the earlier literature.

356 riddle: control of sex ratio

Doncaster, L. The Determination of Sex. Cambridge, 1914.

DtlsiNG, C. Jenaische Zeitschr., Bel. 17, p. 593, 1884.

Geddes, P., and Thompson, J. A. The Evolution of Sex. Humboldt Publish-
ing Co., New York, 1890.

Guyer, M. J. Biol. Bull., vol. 16, p. 193, 1909.

Goettler and Baker. Jour. Biol. Chem., vol. 25, 1916.

Goldschmidt, R. Zeitschr. f. indukt. Abstamm., vol. 7, p. 1, 1912.

Goldschmidt, R., and Poppelbaum, H. Zeitschr. f. indukt. Abstamm., vol. 11,
p. 1, 1914.

Goldschmidt, R. Amer. Nat., vol. 50, p. 705, 1916.

Harrison, J. W. H., and Doncaster, L. Jour. Genetics, vol. 3, p. 16, 1914.

Hertwig, R. Verhand. deutsch. Zool. Gesellsch., 1906; see also Biol. Centralb.,
vol. 32, p. 1, 1912.

Issakowitsch, A. Biol. Centralb., vol. 25, 1905.

King, H. D. Jour. Exp. Zool., vol. 12, p. 19, 1912.

Kornhauser, S. I. Abstract. Science, N. S., vol. 43, Feb. 1916.

Kuschekewitch, A. Festschr. f. R. Hertwig, 1910.

Lawrence, J. V., and Riddle, O. Amer. Jour. Physiol., vol. 41, 1916.

Marshall, F. H. A. The Physiology of Reproduction. London, 1910.

Morgan, T. H. Science, N. S., vol. 36, p. 718, 1912.

Pearl, R., and Parshley, H. M. Biol. Bull., vol. 24, p. 205, 1913.

Phillips, J. C. Jour. Exper. Zool., vol. 16, p. 131, 1914.

Riddle, Oscar. Paper before Amer. Soc. Zool., Dec. 1911. Abstract, Science,
N. S., vol. 35, p. 462, March, 1912.

Riddle, Oscar. Year Book, Carnegie Inst. Wash., vol. 12, p. 321, 1913.

Riddle, Oscar. Abstract (paper before Amer. Soc. Zool., Dec. 1913.) Science,
N. S., vol. 39, p. 440, 1914 a.

Riddle, Oscar. Bull. Amer. Acad. Med., vol. 15, p. 265, 1914 b.

Riddle, Oscar. Year Book, Carnegie Inst. Wash., vol. 13, p. 382, 1914 c.

Riddle, Oscar. Amer. Nat., vol. 50, p. 385, 1916.

Riddle, Oscar. Science, N. S., vol. — , 1917 (in press).

Russell, F. L. Ann. Rept. Maine Agr. Expt. Sta., p. 208, 1891.

Shull, A. F. Abstract, Science, N. S., vol. 53, 1916.

Smith, G. Quart. Jour. Micr. Sci., vol. 57, 1911.

Tennent, D. H. Jour. Morph., vol. 23, p. 17, 1912.

Thury, M. Ueber das Gesetz der Erzeugung der Geschlechter, 1862 (trans-
lated into German. Leipsic, 1893).

Suchetet, Andre. Des hybrides a l'etat sauvage; oiseaux, vol. I, Lille, 1896.

Steche, Otto. Zeitschr. f. indukt. Abstamm., vol. 8, p. 284, 1912.

Whitman, C. O. Posthumous Works, Vol. II. The Carnegie Inst. Wash, (in
press).

Whitney, D. D. Science, N. S., vol. 39, p. 832, 1914. (Also, Jour. Exp. Zool.,
vol. 17, 1914, and later papers).

Woltereck, R. Intern. Rev. d. gessammst. Hydrobiol., vol. 4, 1911-12.

ABSTRACTS

Authors of scientific papers are requested to see that abstracts, preferably
prepared and signed by themselves, are forwarded promptly to the editors.
Each of the scientific bureaus in Washington has a representative authorized to
forward such material to this journal and abstracts of official publications should
be transmitted through the representative of the bureau in which they originate.
The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those appearing in
this issue.

GEOLOGY. — Tungsten deposits of northwestern Inyo County, Cali-
fornia. Adolph Knopf. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin
640-L. Pp. 21. 1917.

Tungsten deposits were found in northwestern Inyo County, Cali-
fornia, in 1913 but remained practically unknown until the spring of 1916,
when they began to be energetically developed. By midsummer two
mills, having a total daily capacity of 400 tons, had been completed
and were in active operation.

The ore consists of scheelite associated mainly with garnet, epidote,
and quartz. The country rock is prevailingly granitic, but in it are
isolated masses of limestone which became mineralized shortly after
the granitic rocks were intruded. The limestones were altered to
masses of garnet carrying subordinate scheelite by the metallic vapors
then given off, and these altered rocks are the tungsten deposits now
under exploration. The ore bodies that are being mined are from 20
to 60 feet wide and from 150 to 260 feet long. They carry from 1.5
to 2 per cent of tungsten trioxide (WO3) . The area in which scheelite-
bearing deposits have been found forms roughly a belt 20 miles long,
but it is likely that the prospecting now going on will extend the
dimensions of the field.

These deposits, like those discovered in recent years in Humboldt
County, Nevada, belong to the contact-metamorphic class, a well-known
source of copper and iron but not widely recognized as a possible
source of tungsten. A. K.

357

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

THE BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 570th regular meeting of the Society was held in the Assembly
Hall of the Cosmos Club, Saturday, April 21, 1917; called to order at
8 p.m. by President Hay; thirty-five persons in attendance.

On recommendation of the Council, S. S. Vorhees of the Bureau of
Standards was elected to membership.

Two communications were presented :

A. H. Howell: Notes on American flying squirrels. Mr. Howell
spoke first of the general zoologic position of flying squirrels, then of
their external characters and habits, their mode of "flight," food
requirements, etc. He gave a brief resume of the generic names that
have been applied to the American flying squirrels. The main part
of Mr. Howell's paper dealt with his recent systematic study of the
group, a consideration of the various species and subspecies, their inter-
relationships and geographic distribution. Maps showing the distribu-
tion of all the American forms were exhibited as well as skins of the more
important members of the genus. W. P. Taylor, A. Wetmore,
R. W. Shufeldt, and W. P. Hay took part in the discussion, in which
it was brought out that flying squirrels have apparently no natural
enemies save certain owls, and that extraordinary numbers of individ-
uals of flying squirrels, at least several dozens, may be found inhabit-
ing a single tree.

0. P. Hay: On the finding of supposed Pleistocene human remains at
Vero, Florida.

Having described the geography, topography, and geology of the
region about Vero, the speaker presented his conclusions.1

1 . The problems to be solved at Vero concern primarily the geologists
and paleontologists; only secondarily the anthropologists. For, little
that is certain is yet known about the beginning and the course of
human history on this continent.

2. Because of the small number of bones belonging to each human
skeleton found at Vero and their scattered condition, it is unreasonable
to suppose that they were purposely buried where found.

3. These bones must have reached their recent positions before the
deposition of the muck layer, Sellard's No. 3, unless human bones
possess some unexplained means of underground dispersal.

1 In order to understand the matters involved consult Journ. GeoL, 25: 1-62.
1917.

358

proceedings: biological society 359

4. The Pleistocene fossils in No. 2 are there because the animals
died there. They were not washed in from the region further back,
principally because there were no fossils there to be washed in.

5. The Pleistocene fossils of No. 2 belong to the early Pleistocene,
as shown by the character of the species and the high percentage (74)
of the extinct forms.

6. The Pleistocene fossils in No. 3 represent animals which died
there. They were not washed in from above. They were not washed
up from No. 2, because of (a) frequent association of parts of the same
skeleton, (b) the good state of preservation, (c) the early protection of
No. 2 from erosion by the blanket of muck, No. 3.

7. So far as determined, the extinct species in No. 3 form about
44 per cent of the whole number — almost exactly the same as in the
case of the Conard fissure in Arkansas. The fauna just referred to
probably belongs to the Illinoian stage.

8. Possibly the geological conditions may permit the conclusion that
some parts of No. 2 were reworked about the middle of the Pleistocene
and that then the human bones were included.

9. There are independent evidences that man with a culture much
like that of modern Indians existed in America during approximately
the Sangamon stage. Some of these are:

a. The finding of a human pelvis below the loess at Natchez and
associated with extinct animals.2

b. The discovery of flint arrow-heads at Muscatine, Iowa.3

c. The finding, at Muscatine, of flint chips at a depth of 10 feet in
a gravel bed from which an elephant tooth had been taken.4

(I. The discoverv of a stone axe at Council Bluffs in loess at a depth
of 35 feet,5

e. The finding of a stone axe near St. Louis in loess at a depth of
14 feet,6

/. The finding, of a flint arrow-head under the scapula of an extinct
bison in Kansas by Mr. H. T. Martin.7

We may not be able to rely absolutely on any one of these reputed
finds; but taken together they are cumulative and produce a proba-
bility of man's existence in Pleistocene times.

10. Man had his origin probably in southern Asia. From this
region, and not from Europe, were peopled the other continents and
the islands of the seas. A people as advanced as many modern In-
dians may have reached America long before the Cro-Magnons had
been able to dispossess the fierce Heidelbergers and Neanderthalers
who had preoccupied Europe.

2 Dickeson. Proc. Phila. Acad., 3: 106. 1896.

3 Witter. Proc. Iowa Acad. Sci., 1890-1891: 67.

* Op. cit.

B Udden. Iowa Geol. Surv., 11: 261.
6 Peterson. Record of the Past, 2: 26.

• Amer. Geo!., 30: 313.

360 proceedings: anthropological society

1 1 . There seems to be no good reason why some races of man might
not, very early in the Pleistocene, have reached a physical develop-
ment quite equal to that of today. Such was the case with the horses,
the oxen, the bears, the clogs, and many other forms.

Dr. Hay's remarks were illustrated by lantern slide views of the
deposits.

M. W. Lyon, Jr., Recording Secretary.

THE ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 511th regular and 38th annual meeting of the society was held
at the New National Museum on April 17. After approving the reports
of the secretary, treasurer, and auditing committee the society elected
the following officers for the ensuing year: President, Mr. William
H. Babcock; Vice-President, Mr. Francis LaFlesche; Secretary,
Miss Frances Densmore; Treasurer, Mr. C. N. B. Hewitt; Councillors,
Mr. E. T. Williams, Mr. Neil M. Judd, Dr. Truman Michelson,
Mr. Felix Neumann, and Dr. I. M. Casanowicz.

Memorials to members of the society deceased during the past year
were then presented. A sketch of the life of Gen. Ellis Spear,
an active member of the society, was read by Mr. W. H. Babcock.
The memorial to Mr. S. M. Gronberger, an associate member, was pre-
pared and presented by Mr. James Mooney, and that to Mr. J. D.
McGuire, an honorary member, was prepared and read by Dr. J. W.
Fewkes. Tributes to Prof. Johannes Ranke and Prof. Gustave
Schwalbe of Germany, honorary members, were given by Dr. Ales
Hrdlicka, and a review of the life and work of Sir Edward Burnett
Tylor, a corresponding member of the society, was read by Dr. John
R. Swanton; tributes to Dr. Tylor being also given by Dr. Truman
Michelson and Dr. Leo J. Frachtenberg.

Frances Densmore, Secretary.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VII JUNE 19, 1917 No. 12

MINERALOGY. — Aurichalcite from Big Cottonwood Canyon,
Salt Lake County, Utah. A. Ledoux, University of Brussels.
(Communicated by T. L. Walker.)

The mineral aurichalcite was first given rank as a distinct
species in 1839 by Bottiger. Prior to that time it was recog-
nized as early as 1788 under the name "calamine verdatre" bjr
Patrin, who mentioned that this variety of calamine contained
"une bonne quantite de cuivre."

On account of the character of the mineral, previous inves-
tigators have worked at a decided disadvantage in determining
the crystal system to which this mineral belongs, and the writer
has labored under some of the disadvantages that in the
past prevented the most accurate determination of the crystal
constants.

A brief resume of the crystallographic work that has been
done on the mineral follows:

In 1874 Des Cloizeaux1 described aurichalcite as acicular
crystals of undetermined form.

In 1890 Albin Belar2 considered the mineral as monoclinic
with 0=0 and a : b : c = 1 : x : 0.7208. He states that the
plates of the mineral are parallel to the principal cleavage taken
as 010, the side GH of the triangle (fig. 1) being the combination
of 010 and 100, the hypotenuse GI being the edge between

1 Manuel de Mineralogie, 2: 183. 1874.

2 Ueber Aurichalcite. Zeitschr. fur Krystallographie, No. 17. 1890.

361

362 ledoux: aurichalcite

010 and a dome. Belar observed the following forms: (104),
(101), (201), (301), (401), (501), (601).

In 1896 Prof. G. Cesaro3 described fragmentary crystals
found at Flemalle in Belgium. He considers the mineral as
orthorhombic on account of its optical properties. The prin-
cipal tabular cleavage was by him taken as the front pinacoid
(100). The frequency of wedge-shaped tables is due to a pyram-
idal hemihedrism. In order to obtain simple symbols for the
domes Professor Cesaro started from a unit brachydome much
steeper than that of Belar and corresponding to

c = 8.71263.

In 1897 Prof. G. B. d'Achiardi4 ascribed the wedgelike crys-
tals of aurichalcite to twinning of simpler
monoclinic individuals, the lateral faces
of the wedges being contact faces of the
twins. The following constants were
determined :

a : b : c = x : 1 : 1.6574
13 = 84° 15'.

In 1908 M. L. F. Navarro,5 of Ma-
drid, measured with the microscope five
crystals of aurichalcite from Ondarroa,
FIG. i Vizcaya, Spain. The face-angles of the

three-pinacoid measured on three crys-
tals gave the following measurements:

(a) = 82° 34' ± 11'

(b) = 80° 35' ± 21'

(c) = 77° 55' ± 16'

angles which may be regarded as a, (3, and y or their supple-

3 Description des Mineraux phosphates, sulfates, et carbonates du Sol Beige.
Mem. de l'Acad. Roy. des Sciences, etc., de Belgique, Bruxelles, 53: 1-134. 1897.

4 Aurichalcite de Campiglia Maritima et Valdaspar. Atti Soc. Tosc. di Sci. Nat.
Memori, 16: 1-15. 1897-98.

6 Bol. R. Soc. Esp. Hist. Nat. Madrid, pp. 117-119. February, 1908.

LEDOUXI AURICHALCITE 363

ments. Aurichalcite has thus been considered ortho-rhombic,
monoclinic, and triclinic.

Professor A. Lacroix6 agrees with Prof. Cesaro in regarding
aurichalcite as orthorhombic. He suggests that Professor d'
Achiardi in regarding the mineral as monoclinic on account of
an extinction of 17° may have made his observations on plates
seen obliquely to the cleavage. The aurichalcite from Chessy,
France, occurs as needles without flattening, with parallel ex-
tinction, suggesting orthorhombic symmetry.

Chemical examination of aurichalcite from Utah has been
made by Penfield,7 who deduced the formula 2(Zn, Cu)C03.
3(Zn, Cu) (OH)o. If Zn : Cu = 5:2, the theoretical composition
is as following:

C02 16 . 14

CuO 20 . 79

ZnO 53.17

H20 9.90

100.00

Penfield did not give any information about the geometrical
properties of the material analysed.

The mineral aurichalcite is pale blue to pale green in color,
appearing macroscopically to consist of delicate aggregates of
bluish needles; under the microscope, however, the needles
commonly appear as wedges with a very acute angle a. Some-
times the wedge has the form of a right-angled triangle, but
generally the shortest side, opposite the angle a, is replaced by
an irregular line (fig. 1).

On account of the uncertainty of the symmetry of aurichal-
cite, I thought it of some interest to make further investigation
of its crystals. Some very fine specimens from Big Cotton-
wood Canyon, Salt Lake County, Utah, were placed at my dis-
posal by the Royal Ontario Museum of Mineralogy. The struc-
ture is usually radial or plumose. To study the mineral it is
first of all necessary to get simple individuals; these are most
easily obtained by crushing an aggregate between two glass

6 Mineralogie de la France et de ses colonies, 3: 739. 1909.
» Amer. Journ. Sci., Ill, 41: 106. 1891.

364

LEDOUX: AURICHALCITE

slides. One obtains then a great number of small individuals of
various forms, the most common of which is triangular in out-
line (fig. 1). The angle a is very acute, while the angle GHI is
90°. In several individuals from Big Cottonwood Canyon the
value of a is 19°, a value agreeing with that obtained by Pro-
fessor Cesaro8 on the crystals of Flemalle. Other forms ob-
served on these specimens are shown in figure 2. Most of the

(OOP

(O'O).

(oio)

+

(too)

.(OIO)

(OCT)

d

(OOI)

Fig.

individuals are cleavage plates with a contour of pinacoids and
domes belonging to the zone (001) (010). If (Okl) is the nota-
tion of one of those domes, the angle a = (Okl A 010) may be
deduced from the equation:

I

k

= c. tan

a

As the angle a = (013A010) has the same value of 19° as that
given by Professor Cesaro we may use the same parameter,

c = 8.71263
log c = 0.94015.

Table 1 gives the different a angles observed on the crystals
and the corresponding symbols of the domes; but the results
are only approximate, as the angles were measured with the
microscope.

s Loc. cit.

WHERRY AND LARSEN : RHODOCHROSITE AND SIDERITE 365

TABLE 1
Angles Observed for Aurichalcite and the Corresponding Symbols of

the Domes

a

logT

k

i

k

0 k I

6°

1.96177

0.9157

0 1 1

10°

0.18647

1.356

0 2 3

14°

0.33692

2.173

0 1 2

19°

0.45279

2.837

0 1 3

23°

0.53203

3.404

0 2 7

27°

0.59720

3.955

0 1 4

30°

0.70159

5.030

0 1 5

44°30'

0.93257

8.562

0 2 17

There are probably also rhombic pyramids elongated in the
direction of the vertical axis with very short intercepts on the
a axis. It is generally impossible to focus exactly these faces,
and as a result the a parameter cannot be calculated, nor the
symbols of the pyramidal faces. It sometimes happens that an
individual of aurichalcite is lying on one of these pyramidal
faces; the extinction angles and the observations in convergent
light become then valueless for the determination of the crystal
system.

As to the optical properties of the aurichalcite it may gener-
ally be noticed that the extinction is straight along the (010)
(100) edge. The acute bisectrix is normal to the cleavage plate
(100), which exhibits mean birefringence. The crystal plates
are so small that it was impossible to measure the indices of re-
fraction and the other optical properties.

MINERALOGY. — The indices of refraction of analyzed rhodo-
chrosite and siderite.1 Edgar T. Wherry, National Museum,
and Esper S. Larsen, Geological Survey.

Rhodochrosite. The beautiful, transparent, crystallized rho-
dochrosite from the John Reed Mine, Alicante, Lake County,
Colo., has been described by Dr. G. F. Kunz2 who gave the FeO

1 Published with permission of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution
and the Director of the U. S. Geological Survey.

2 Am. Journ. Sci., (3) 34: 477. 1887.

366 WHERRY AND LARSEN : RHODOCHROSITE AND SIDERITE

content as 3.62 per cent, and the specific gravity 3.69, on the au-
thority of J. B. Mackintosh. Prof. E. S. Dana states3 that the
angle r A r' is 73° 4^'. In the course of the determination oc the
optical constants of minerals one of us (E. S. L.) desired to ob-
tain the indices of refraction of the purest possible rhodochrosite
and in order to confirm the composition of the mineral in this
occurrence, a specimen (No. 86249) in the National Museum
collection was analyzed (by E. T Wherry). The results of the
analysis were: MnC03 95.72, FeC03 1.87, CaC03 0.50, MgC03
0.68, gangue 0.82 per cent, sum 99.59 per cent. This represents
a lower percentage of iron than previously reported, but un-
doubtedly the relative amounts of isomorphous constituents vary
from one specimen to another. That this specimen is actually
somewhat different from the previously described one is shown
by the angle r A r', which, measured on cleavage planes, varies
from 73° 10' to 73° 20', always exceeding the earlier measure-
ment, and the specific gravity, which is 3.71, distinctly higher
than that above quoted.

The indices of refraction were measured by E. S. Larsen by
the immersion method. The index e was measured directly, and
checked by measuring the highest and the lowest indices on the
very perfect cleavage pieces and computing the value of e from
the formula for the indicatrix

x* if-

- + J - = 1

or e

knowing the cleavage angle and, hence, the angle of inclination
of the section with the basal plane. The results were: a> =
1.817 ± 0.003, e = 1.595 ± 0.005, measured directly; e' = 1.699
± 0.003 on the cleavage piece, hence, e = 1.594 ± 0.005.

The indices of refraction of the rhombohedral carbonates
are greatly affected by isomorphous replacements, but as in this
case the total replacement is only about 3 per cent and as the
calcium and magnesium carbonates, which lower the indices,
are in such proportions as to compensate approximately the effect
of the iron carbonate, which increases the indices (see below),

3 Dana, E. S. System of Mineralogy, 6th ed., p. 279, 1892.

WHERRY AND LARSEN : RHODOCHROSITE AND SIDERITE 367

this specimen should yield indices almost identical with those of
pure rhodochrosite, MnC03.

The indices of refraction of the Colorado rhodochrosite agree,
in fact, closely with the values given by Winchell4 and e is slightly
less than the value given by Ortloff5 for a specimen containing
MnCOs 93.08, FeC03 7.12, CaC03 0.27, which would be ex-
pected to yield a somewhat high result because of the FeC03
present. The author (E. S. L.) has measured to on several other
specimens of rhodochrosite, and found the values almost iden-
tical in all of them, as shown in Table 1 .

TABLE 1
Indices of Refraction of Rhodochrosite

LAKE COUNTY,
COLO.

CLIMAX, COLO.

OFERNEST,
GERMANY

QUOTED,
WINCHELL

QUOTED,
ORTLOFF

INFERRED

MnCOs

95.7 per cent

—

—

. —

93.1 per cent

100 per cent

e

1.817

1.594

1.817

1.818

1.82

1.60

1.597

1.818
1.595

Siderite. Two measurements of the indices of refraction of
analyzed specimens of fairly pure siderite are available in the
literature. The nearly pure FeC03 from Camborne was found
by Hutchinson6 to have w = 1.8724, e = 1.6338, while the sider-
ite from Wolfsberg, which is much higher in MnC03 and MgC03,
is reported by Ortloff7 to have co = 1.9341, e = 1.6219. These
data are inconsistent; the purer specimen should have the higher
indices, since the impurities CaC03, MgC03, and MnC03 all
have considerably lower indices than FeC03. The authors have,
therefore, checked the data by measurements on two specimens
of recently analyzed siderite. These measurements agree very
closely with the data of Hutchinson, so that we regard Ortloff 's
value for co as undoubtedly in error, although his value for e is
satisfactory.

4 Winchell,, N. H., and A. N. Optical Mineralogy, p. 149, 1909.

5 Ortloff, W. Beitrag zur Kenntnis eutropischer Reihen. Zeits. phys. Chem.,
19: 215. 1896.

6 Hutchinson, A. The chemical composition and optical characters of chalybite
from Cornwall. Min. Mag., 13: 209. 1903.

7 Ortloff, W. Loc. cit., pp. 215-6.

368 WHERRY AND LARSEN : RHODOCHROSITE AND SIDERITE

The compositions and indices of refraction of four siderites
are given in Table 2 for comparison. The data for the siderite
associated with the cryolite from Ivigtut, Greenland, and those
of the mineral from the Spokane locality are new. The latter

TABLE 2
Indices of Refraction of Analyzed Specimens of Siderite

GREENLANDII

SPOKANE&

CAMBOENEC

WOLFS BERG<2

INFERRED

FeC03

93.49

93.16

98.43

77.32

100.00

MnCOs

5.16

tr.

1.82

17.04

MgC03

0.62

1.83

0.26

5.42

CaC03

0.37

5.13

0.18

0.86

Gangue

1.15

Sp. gr.

3.94

3.84

3.937

3.96

0}

1.871

1.858

1.8724

e1.9341

1.875

€

1.631

1.622

1.6338

1.6219

1.635

"Analysis and sp. gr. by E. T. W., optical data by E. S. L. U. S. Nat. Mus.
Cat. No. 17571.

^Analysis by J. P. Maider, City Chemist of Spokane, made at the instance of
Mr. Henry Fair and kindly furnished by Mr. L. P. Gratacap of the American
Museum of Natural History of New York; the sp. gr. determination is by Mr.
Gratacap, and the optical data by E. S. L.

cHutchinson, loc. cit.

dOrtloff, loc. cit.

eThis value must be in error as pointed out above.

occurrence will be described in a forthcoming number of the
American Mineralogist. The probable error in the indices of
refraction for these two new measurements does not exceed
±0.005.

castle: role of selection in evolution 369

GENETICS. — The role of selection in evolution.1 W. E. Castle,
Bussey Institution.

Up to the year 1900 those who believed in organic evolution
almost without exception believed in selection as its efficient
cause. Then came a period of doubt, inaugurated by DeVries'
Mutation Theory and strongly supported by Johannsen's Pure
Line Theory. In the minds of many biologists at the present
time selection is an obsolete agency in evolution and an
adequate explanation of evolution is to be found only in muta-
tion and pure lines. I believe this to be a mistaken view, not
because mutation and pure lines are false, but because their
applicability is very limited as compared with the broad field of
organic evolution. To universalize them is to hide the world
by holding a small object close to the eye. For even if we con-
cede the strongest possible claim for mutation as an agency in
evolution, viz, that it produces all new and heritable variations,
it is still unable to produce evolution without the aid of selec-
tion. The production of new variations produces no racial
change unless those variations persist, but their persistence
depends wholly upon selection. This is admitted by DeVries,
the author of the mutation theory, but overlooked by many
of those who have adopted the term mutation, as a scientific
shibboleth.

But it is idle to enter upon a discussion of either selection or
mutation without carefully defining these terms, since both
are often used quite ambiguously, the latter in particular being
used in several different senses, and so being a cause of
misunderstanding where no genuine difference of view exists.

Ever since DeVries' original attack in 1900, it has become
increasingly common among biologists to refer with disrespect
to "Darwinian selection." But Darwin understood by selec-
tion any agency which would cause one organism to survive
rather than another, and it is not clear that any theory of evo-
lution can dispense with such an agency. Since more organisms
are born than can survive, some must perish. In a state of

1 A lecture delivered before the Washington Academy of Sciences, April 13,
1917.

370 castle: role of selection in evolution

nature, that is, in a state of affairs not actively controlled by
man, those creatures survive which are best adapted to their
surroundings. This is what Darwin meant by "natural selec-
tion." Among organisms under the immediate control of man,
as the cultivated plants and domesticated animals, where the
determination of what individuals shall become parents rests
with man, Darwin recognized the occurrence of "artificial
selection."

Any legitimate attack on Darwin's views of selection must
deal either with natural selection or with artificial selection.
But when "Darwinian selection" is mentioned as a term of
reproach, the attack is really directed neither against natural
selection nor against artificial selection, nor against any other
conceivable form of selection, but against one of Darwin's views
as to the nature of variability. Darwin recognized two sorts of
heritable variations, (1) those which are purely quantitative,
plus or minus, as compared with the prevailing racial condition,
and (2) those which are wholly different from the prevailing
condition. The former we may call "fluctuations," adopting
the convenient term of DeVries. The latter Darwin often
called "sports." Bateson has called them discontinuous varia-
tions, and DeVries calls them mutations. Darwin believed that
evolution might result either from the systematic and repeated
selection of fluctuations or from the propagation of sports.
DeVries doubts whether the systematic selection of fluctuations
amounts to much in an evolutionary way, and Johannsen has
denied to it any evolutionary effect whatever, on the ground
that fluctuations are not inherited. Darwin assigned to the selec-
tion of fluctuations a major part in evolution, DeVries assigned to
it a minor part, and Johannsen allows it no part in evolution.
As regards sports, Darwin assigned to their selection a minor
part in evolution (chiefly among cultivated plants and domestic
animals) ; DeVries ascribed to a particular kind of sports (his
"mutations") a major part in evolution; and Johannsen ascribes
an exclusive part in evolution to a type of variation which
would include both Darwin's sports and DeVries' mutations
and then some. Johannsen has indeed made a new classification

castle: role of selection in evolution 371

of variations which is both logical and sound, but which has
resulted in some confusion owing to efforts to combine it with
earlier classifications. He classifies variations into those which
are inherited (genotypic) and those which are not inherited
(phenotypic). No objection can be made to this classification
except that it raises new difficulties and solves none. For how
is one to distinguish a phenotypic from a genotypic variation?
Only by trying them out. A variation which is inherited is
genotypic; one wrhich is not inherited is phenotypic. Since
there is no other way then actual experiment by which to dis-
tinguish genotypic from phenotypic variations, we acquire only
a new set of synonyms for inherited and non-inherited, a thing
for which there was no urgent need.

Attempts to combine the classifications of variations made re-
spectively by Darwin, by DeVries, and by Johannsen have re-
sulted in serious confusion which is largely responsible for the
apparently contradictory views held at present concerning selec-
tion. There really is no diversity of view concerning selection
but only concerning the nature of the material that it acts upon
(viz. , variations) .

To complicate the situation still farther we have the discovery
of Mendelian unit-characters which introduces a new un-
certainty. Are these .unit-characters fluctuations or sports?
Do they arise solely by mutation or also by the cumulation of
fluctuations? These are vital but perplexing questions. As
matters stand concerning terminology, we have the term
"sport," introduced by Darwin but now largely discarded,
meaning any discontinuous, striking, suddenly appearing varia-
tion, known to be strongly inherited. Some of the examples
cited by Darwin, such as the Ancon sheep, obviously involve
Mendelian unit-characters.

The term mutant as used by DeVries signifies much the same
as Darwin's term sport but involves a particular conception of
the circumstances and manner of its origin which is not involved
in Darwin's term. Some of DeVries' mutants of the evening
primrose involve Mendelian unit-characters, as for example
his dwarf mutant (nanella), while others such as gigas do not.

372 castle: role of selection in evolution

The latter involves a double representation of every chromo-
some in the cell nucleus; the lata mutant involves the presence
of a single extra chromosome. What chromosome changes, if
any, are involved in other of DeVries' mutants which do not
Mendelize is unknown. Morgan has shown that in Drosophila
a unit-character change almost certainly involves a change in a
definitely localized part of a single chromosome. But he ap-
plies the term mutation to each unit-character variation of
Drosophila, of which he has observed over a hundred. Some
of these are not at all striking, involving only a slight change in
the shape, size, venation, or carriage of the wing, which might
easily be overlooked by the ordinary observer. Many of them
also fluctuate. Hence it is obvious that Morgan's use of the
term mutation is very different from that of DeVries, its origina-
tor. To Morgan, mutation as illustrated in Drosophila is
simply change by a unit-character. With this conception of
mutation, Morgan attempts to combine the genotype concep-
tion of Johannsen. He regards unit-character variations as the
only kind of genotypic variations and these as fluctuating (if
at all) only through the interaction of other unit-characters,
each one by itself being incapable of fluctuation.

It will be observed that as regards the term mutation, we
have a very confused state of terminology which results in
much discussion at cross-purposes, because persons using the
same term have different things in mind.

But in this discussion, however confused its terminology,
there are really involved two contrasted sets of general ideas,
two alternative lines of explanation of evolutionary change,
one favored by Darwin, the other offered as a substitute by
DeVries and accepted by Johannsen and Morgan. We may
briefly outline them as follows:

Darwin DeVries

1. New types are for the most 1. New types are created only

part created gradually. abruptly.

2. New types are for the most 2. New types are fully stable.

part plastic.

3. One evolutionary change fol- 3. One evolutionary change has

lows upon and is made pos- no necessary relation to

sible by another. another.

castle: role of selection in evolution

373

4. Natural selection determines

what classes of variations
shall survive and, in conse-
quence, what shall be the
variable material subjected to
selection in the next genera-
tion.

5. The further evolution of our

domestic animals and culti-
vated plants (and of man
himself) is to some extent
controllable because we can
by selection influence the va-
riability of later generations.

4. Natural selection determines

only what classes of varia-
tions shall survive, and exer-
cises no influence on the
subsequent variability of the
race.

5. Evolution is beyond our con-

trol except as we discover and
isolate variations.

These two sets of contrasted viewrs remind us somewhat of
the theological ideas of free-will and predestination respectively,
which resemblance will account for the preferences of some biol-
ogists but will not prove which is right and which is wrong.
This is wTholly a matter for evidence. But what conclusion one
reaches will depend much upon wrhat sort of evidence he studies.
Paleontology, geographical distribution, classification, and experi-
mental breeding, all present evidence which must be weighed
before a safe verdict can be framed.

Paleontology, the study of the actual historical records of
evolution found in the rocks, indicates in the case of the most
complete series of fossils, as for example of the horse, the camel,
and the rhinoceros, that the evolution of these types was a
gradual process, though of course their appearance in particular
continents may have been abrupt, owing to migration. It
indicates further that these and other types, when they first
appeared, wrere plastic, and generalized and varied in many
different ways, most of the variations later disappearing and
leaving only a favored few lines of specialized survivors. It
shows too that one variation paved the w^ay to another. The
five-toed horse first becomes four-toed, then three-toed, then
one-toed. There is no mutation from five-toed to one-toed,
nor from the size of a fox to that of a draft horse. As to natural
selection, paleontology is silent, because the causes of extinction
are unknowrn. But on the wThole the weighty evidence of pale-

374 castle: role of selection in evolution

ontology supports the view that evolution as an age long process
has been gradual and progressive, not abrupt and unguided.

Geographical distribution and classification favor the same
idea. Related species are most often found in contiguous terri-
tory. Species not closely related are commonly far separated
in space or have been long separated in time. Nothing indicates
that of two related species one has sprung suddenly from the
other. They are not distinguished from each other, as a sport
from its parent form, by some single Mendelian unit-character,
but they differ morphologically by a large number of quantita-
tive differences, and physiologically they differ to such an extent
that frequently they will not interbreed when brought together
even though their morphological differences are small, or they
will produce sterile hybrids, or those of a blended, intermediate
character. In all these particulars they show that they have
not diverged by mutation, either in the sense of De Vries or in
that of Morgan, but by a gradual progressive process.

Finally we come to the evidence from experimental breeding.
Some say that this is the only legitimate evidence as regards the
method of evolution because it alone is experimental. I should
be the last to deny its importance because I have devoted much
time to its pursuit in the firm conviction that it could yield
valuable evidence, but frankness compels one to admit that this
method of study, like all the others, has limitations of its own.
The experimental breeder can study a few successive generations
with an intensiveness that is possible by no other method, but
his glimpses of evolution at work are momentary as compared
with the studies of the paleontologist. He can witness the pro-
duction of new sorts but it is doubtful whether any man has
witnessed the contemporary production of a new species, in the
sense of the paleontologist and the student of geographical
distribution. Evolution is undoubtedly at work all the time,
but the breeder is not always in a position to say just what is
happening. It takes a succession of views in a motion picture
to show what objects are stationary and what are moving, and
the breeder's view of the evolutionary process often fails to
reveal which is which.

castle: kole of selection in evolution 375

On the other hand, the experimental breeder, though he lacks
perspective, is dealing with the actual material concerned in
organic evolution. He can see and handle it and observe it
change under his hands, as no other student of evolution can.
But the changes which he observes taking place must be cor-
rectly interpreted if valid conclusions are to be reached concern-
ing the general process of evolution. At present experimental
breeders are divided in their views. The very same facts are
interpreted by some as indicating an orderly progress toward
definite end results, and by others as nothing but haphazard
unrelated chance occurrences. Just now the latter method of
interpretation, embodied in the mutation theory, is very
popular among experimental breeders, although it has few
adherents among students of paleontology, classification, or
geographical distribution.

The principal tools of the experimental breeder are hybridiza-
tion and selection. All are agreed that hybridization (using
the term in its broadest sense) is, in the hands of the breeder,
a very potent agency in producing variability, upon which selec-
tion may then be brought to bear for the production of new or
modified types. Lotsy even goes so far as to suggest that all
genetic variability is the result of hybridization, but this is
flatly disproved by observations of Johannsen who reports the
occurrence of mutations in genotypically pure lines of beans,
as also by the remarkable series of variations observed by Mor-
gan in an inbred race of Drosophila.

As regards the action of selection, the most widely divergent
views are held by experimental breeders. The mutationists
hold that it can do nothing but isolate variations which may
sporadically put in an appearance or which may by hybridiza-
tion be brought together into new combinations. Those who
differ from them, and whom they call selectionists, maintain
that selection can accomplish more than the mere isolation of
variations because it can, by a series of selections, influence
further variability. I confess myself an adherent of this at
present somewhat unpopular view. I hold it, not because
Darwin held it, nor merely because paleontologists, systematists,

376 castle: role of selection in evolution

and students of geographical distribution in general favor it,
nor because DeVries and Johannsen have attacked it, but be-
cause the facts of experimental breeding, as I understand them,
prove it.

For DeVries may be claimed the merit of having first syste-
matically set about testing the effects of selection by actual experi-
ment. His methodical selections for many years in succession
of maize, buttercups, striped flowers, and four-leaved clover
will long be remembered, but they fall far short of conclusiveness
because they were not continued long enough to show whether
selection had attained all that was attainable under existing
variability or whether further variation in the direction of selec-
tion would occur, and because DeVries' cultures were not suffi-
ciently guarded from hybridization which might conceivably
influence the result. These necessary precautions were fully
met by Johannsen, who in the case of beans, which are self
fertilizing but show fluctuating variation in the size of the seed,
proved that selection generation after generation in a particular
direction may be without result, so far as any change in average
seed size is concerned. Cases of this sort involve "pure lines,"
those which are devoid of genetic variation to any appreciable
extent in the character studied, size of seed. But in other cases,
as where Johannsen made his size selections from a field crop
harvested from many different plants, he found that average size
was influenced by selection, which he reasonably explains on the
ground that the material from which selection was made con-
sisted of a mixture of pure lines genetically distinct. The
correctness of Johannsen's conclusion has been repeatedly veri-
fied in the case of other self-fertilizing plants such as wheat and
oats. Attempts were at once made to generalize Johannsen's
brilliant demonstration of the principle of pure lines in the
following ways :

1. Since a line of beans long self -fertilized is devoid of genetic
variation in seed size, self-fertilization, if long enough continued,
will produce lines genetically pure as regards all characters.
Selection can not bring about modification of such pure lines.
In respect to this generalization it may be said that it remains to

castle: role of selection in evolution 377

be shown that beans are as devoid of genetic variation in other
particulars as they are in seed size, which the argument assumes
to be true. Further, if various pure lines of beans have come
into existence by an evolutionary process (descent from a common
ancestor, with modification) it is evident that differences must
have arisen which did not originally exist. Suppose we grant
Johannsen's (unproved) contention that such differences arise
by mutation only. If they arise in this way (or in any other way
whatsoever), selection can isolate them, and if they are at all
frequent in occurrence, selection can be continuously effective
in producing racial changes. It would all come down then to a
question of how frequent mutations are in a particular case.
Johannsen concedes their occurrence even in beans. It may
well be that in some organisms they are commoner than in others
and that in beans they happen to be particularly infrequent.

2. Johannsen's case has been further generalized to include
all self-fertilizing organisms, which are supposed to fall auto-
matically into pure lines (i.e., those devoid of genetic variation)
as regards all characters. This too requires proof, but has been
found to be a safe working hypothesis in the case of cereals,
tobacco, peas, and other economic crops, in the attempted im-
provement of which selection of fluctuations, unless preceded
by hybridization may be regarded as a waste of time, for the
reason that genetic variation is so rare under continuous self-
fertilization that the breeder will obtain variation much more
quickly by resorting to hybridization.

3. Further, it has been argued that if cross fertilization alone
interferes with the automatic production of pure lines, then any
organism which dispenses with fertilization altogether, reproduc-
ing asexually, must ipso facto constitute a pure line. Jennings
sought to test out this conclusion by experiment. He selected
size variations in Paramecium which reproduces by fission,
with success in the case of mass cultures of unknown origin,
but without success in the case of cultures made from single
individuals. This was regarded as strong confirmation of the
pure line principle until Calkins and Gregory, repeating the
experiment on ex-conjugants, were unable to support it. Then

378 castle: role of selection in evolution

Jennings, selecting a new species of Protozoa, more favorable
for precise quantitative observation, also obtained a different
result. He now found that among the observed fluctuations in
size, those of a genetic character were included, so that by
repeated selection races could be produced which were progres-
sively larger or smaller, rougher or smoother. This is fully in
harmony with the observations of Stout who found .that varia-
tions in Coleus arising in asexual propagation were capable of
further propagation. It also harmonizes with the observation
of Shamel as regards the occurrence in citrous fruits of bud
variations which are important enough to warrant propagation in
economic work; and further, with Winkler's clear demonstration
of the occurrence in the tomato and the night-shade of gigas like
mutations, arising first in single somatic cells, which asexually
propagated produce entire plants of a new type which then are
self-perpetuating by seed. We also have the observations of
East that in the asexual propagation of the potato occasional
bud variations may occur which are similar in nature to unit-
character variations in reproduction by seed. It is accordingly
clear that the pure-line principle does not apply without excep-
tion to asexually reproducing organisms any more than it does
to self-fertilizing ones. It is true, however, that genetic varia-
tions are much less common among such organisms than among
those produced by cross-fertilization. Herein lies the justi-
fication of present agricultural practice in the breeding of self-
fertilized cereals', and of horticultural practice in the propagation
by grafts, runners, layers, etc., of superior individual plants.

4. Attempts to extend the pure line principle to organisms
which are not self-fertilizing (and this includes all the domestic
animals and many cultivated plants) have met with small
success. Morgan indeed assumes that it applies to his races of
Drosophila up to a certain point, the point at which mutation
begins, but the mutations which he recognizes are so numerous,
so minute in many cases, and so fluctuating in others, that it
becomes a question whether his "mutations" are not just ordi-
nary heritable variations. Morgan would undoubtedly admit
this since he claims that all heritable variations arise as mutations,

castle: role of selection in evolution 379

but this is simply juggling with names, giving a new meaning
to the word mutation in order to justify a sweeping generaliza-
tion otherwise untenable.

The test of a pure line is its freedom from any genetic varia-
tion, so that selection cannot modify the racial mean as regards
any character. As soon as any.race of animals or plants changes
in response to selection, it must be forthwith excluded from the
category of pure lines. The consequence is that no case of a
pure line among animals has yet been demonstrated. Never-
theless the "principle of the pure line" is in some way or other
supposed by the followers of Johannsen to confer on even the
higher annuals a limited liability to modification in consequence
of selection.

Thus Pearl having been entrusted in 1908 with a selection
experiment for increase of egg production in Plymouth Rock
fowls, an experiment which had already been in progress for
nine years, decided after a study of the records kept by his
predecessor that no improvement whatever had up to that time
been made and further that none probably could be made since
individual wild birds probably lay, under favorable conditions,
as many eggs as their best tame relatives. This reasoning was
strictly in accordance with the "pure line principle" and was in
fact based on it.

Later by changing somewhat the basis of selection, so as to
rank his animals on the basis of their progenies' performance as
well as their own, Pearl found that he could considerably in-
crease the flock average. Yet he still maintains that he has
only more good birds not better ones, than when the experiment
began, and in loyalty to the pure line principle he has no expecta-
tion of obtaining better ones in the future, since he already has
and has had all along the ne plus ultra sort. One less devoted
than Pearl to a generalization of the pure line doctrine would
continue hopefully the effort to produce a better fowl as well as
to produce more good ones. For the function of egg-production
admittedly depends upon many physiological factors (as well as
several external ones). These physiological factors must many
of them be independently variable and to some extent independ-

380 castle: role of selection in evolution

ently heritable. Variation in one or more of these factors (by
mutation or otherwise) would undoubtedly influence the total
productiveness, and the probability of the occurrence of a muta-
tion would increase with the number of factors involved. So
that even one formally committed to the pure line doctrine, but
admitting as Johannsen does that mutations do occasionally
occur in pure lines, might hopefully continue to look for improve-
ment in the standard of egg-production. No other method of
detecting and utilizing a favorable variation, when it does occur,
can be suggested than the very method of methodical and per-
sistent selection against which the pure line advocates direct
such vigorous attacks.

Morgan is a formal adherent of the pure line doctrine, but
pragmatically a selectionist for he admits the great progress
made in the improvement of domestic animals and plants by
selection, and even that his own mutants of Drosophila fluctuate
and yield modified forms in response to methodical selection,
as for example the bar-eyed mutant, subjected with success to
plus and minus selection by Zeleny. But he attempts to explain
these results in harmony with the pure line principle by assum-
ing that, whenever a modification is observed in any character,
this is due to a mutation, and if a graded series of modifications
is obtained, as in the plus and minus selected bar-eyed Droso-
phila, this is due to a multiplicity of mutating factors whose
action on the chief factor concerned is purely incidental. On
this view, however, the attainment of a completely homozygous
condition on the part of all factors (if all are indeed Mendelian)
would put an end to genetic variability, and selection would
then cease to produce effects. Such a completely stable con-
dition has, however, rarely been demonstrated. One case is
reported by MacDowell, that of a race of Drosophila with an
extra number of thoracic bristles. The average number of
bristles was increased by selection for six generations but then
showed no further increase and could not subsequently be
changed either upward or downward by further selection. The
race had apparently become a "pure line" for bristle number.

castle: role of selection in evolution 381

In the case of certain characters in guinea-pigs I have re-
peatedly attempted modification of a racial character by selec-
tion within an inbred race, without success. Thus a very dark
form of Himalayan albino, after a certain amount of improve-
ment by selection, could not be further darkened to any appreci-
able extent. A race selected simultaneously for large size and
for small size showed so little change that the experiment was
abandoned after a few generations. No indication was forth-
coming that we could thus ever approach in size either the small
wild Cavia Cutleri of Peru, or the large races of guinea-pig kept
in captivity by the natives of the same region. Yet evolution
had in some way evidently produced these divergent conditions
from a single original source. The changes were probably too
slow to be observable in the life time of one observer.

On the other hand, certain characters of guinea-pigs, rabbits,
and rats have been found to respond readily to selection in a
particular direction. This is notably true of color patterns
which involve white spotting. A selection experiment with
hooded rats selected simultaneously in plus and minus directions
has produced one race which is black all over except a white
patch of variable size underneath, and another race which is
white all over except for the top of the head and the back of the
neck, which are black. The races do not overlap at all and have
not done so for many generations, though they still continue to
diverge from each other as a result of continued selection.

In similar experiments with Dutch marked rabbits it has been
found possible by selection to increase or decrease the amount of
white at will. In a series of such rabbits ranging from nearly
all black to nearly all white, stages far enough apart to be cer-
tainly identifiable behave as Mendelian allelomorphs in crosses,
but regularly emerge from such crosses in a slightly modified
form, the whiter stages having been darkened and conversely
the darker stages whitened. The principle of the pure line
manifestly does not apply to these cases. White spotting is
apparently a character which from its nature fluctuates con-
stantly, such fluctuations having, to some extent at least, a
genetic basis, since continuous selection invariably produces a

382 castle: role of selection in evolution

modified race. Even in wild species, such as the skunks, white-
spotting is manifestly a variable character, which no doubt will
respond to the selective efforts of our skunk farmers, who de-
sire an all-black race. Why white-spotting should be a less
stable character genetically than some others, it is impossible
to say, but the fact is beyond question. Morgan has suggested
that in general the genetic' basis of a Mendelian character may
be a single molecule, and gives this as a reason for believing in its
constancy. But white spotting can hardly fall in with this
conception. It seems to me more probably due to a quantitative
deficiency in the germ of some substance which normally finds
its way into all epidermal cells of the body and which is responsible
for the development in them of melanin pigment. Greater and
greater deficiencies of this substance cause more and more
extensive white areas.

Complete or total albinism behaves very differently. It
results from a complete change in some color factor which may
well be a simple molecule since it appears to be incapable either
of contamination in crosses or of modification under selection.
Nevertheless the color factor (molecule or whatever it may be)
evidently is not so simple but that it can assume at least four
mutually allelomorphic forms, as shown for the guinea-pig by
Wright, a like number of allelomorphs, though not their exact
equivalents, being known also in the rabbit.

As regards the agouti factor in mice, rabbits, and guinea-pigs,
this too may assume several different allelomorphic conditions,
though it is not certain that any one of these fluctuates or can
be modified other than by associating with it unrelated genetic
factors.

The divergent conclusions which students of genetics have
reached concerning the stability of Mendelian genes and the
consequent effects of selection for their modification are probably
due in part to the particular choices which they have made of
test cases. A study of albinism alone would lead one to believe
in the fixity and constancy of Mendelian genes and the impossi-
bility of modifying them by selection. A study of white spotting
leaves one with the unshakable conviction that this form of

castle: role of selection in evolution 383

gene is plastic and yields readily to selection. Where only
genes of the former sort are involved, the principle of the pure
line is applicable ; where genes of the latter sort are involved, it
is not applicable. The divergent results obtained by Jennings
when dealing with Paramecium and when dealing with Difflugia
indicate that among asexually reproducing organisms, also, genes
are involved, some of which are stable, some of which are not.
Accordingly, what conclusion we reach as to the applicability of
the pure line theory in the breeding of animals and plants will
depend upon how common we find stable and plastic genes
respectively to be, and in what sorts of variations they are
involved.

My own opinion, based upon a study through many years of a
variety of inherited characters in the smaller mammals, inclines
to the view that in such animals very few characters can safely
be referred to the agency of perfectly stable genes. Even in
color characters, probably the simplest as well as the most
studied of inherited characters, there is much fluctuation which
yields substantial results to selection by the discriminating
breeder. The yellows are not all of one shade, nor the blacks of
equal depth. The golden yellow of the Guernsey cow is very
different from the fawn of the Jersey or the dark red of the Devon.
Yet all are yellows, allelomorphs of black but each is selected for
a different standard to which the breeder must adhere very
carefully in his selections, if he wishes to win prizes or sell breed-
ing stock.

When it comes to size and shape and that consistent inter-
relation of parts which the breeder calls "conformation," stable
genes cannot be detected. Crosses produce blends as regards
size and shape, and conformation is completely dissipated by a
cross. That is why the breeder is so reluctant to resort to an
out cross unless he is engaged merely in meat or wool production
and is not attempting to breed to a type. Aside from color there
are very few valued economic characters in our domestic animals
which are not inherited after the manner of blends.

Weight of carcass, quality of wool, milk production in cattle,
egg production in fowls — all these are blending characters which

384 castle: role of selection in evolution

in later generations show either no segregation or imperfect
segregation (fowls, Pearl2). I do not say that in these cases no
Mendelian inheritance is involved, but merely that no stable
genes are in evidence, nothing that would preclude the probable
effective use of selection in maintaining or raising breed standards.

If we turn from the breeding of animals, in which manifestly
the pure line principle has little applicability, to the breeding
of plants other than those which are self-fertilized, we again
find that this principle has a very limited applicability. Prob-
ably the most valuable open pollinated field crop in cultivation
is maize. But a pure line of maize is not known to exist. An
experiment which should have lead to the production of pure
lines, if such a thing were attainable in maize, has been in prog-
ress at the University of Illinois for the past twenty years.
Selection has been made for increased and for decreased protein
content of the grain, and also for both increased and decreased
oil-content, with the result that steady progress in the direction
of selection has in every case been made. The high protein
strain now contains twice as much protein as the low protein
strain; and the high oil strain contains four times as much oil
as the low oil strain. The divergence of the selected lines from
each other is not now as rapid as at first but it still continues
steadily, with no indication that it is soon to cease, as must be
the case if only stable genes were involved.

Those characters in maize which directly affect the yield,
such as size of plant, or of the grain which it bears, are blending
in inheritance and show imperfect segregation subsequently.
They are probably all of them quite as amenable to selection as
the oil content and protein content of the seed, experimented
upon in Illinois.

2 It is true that Pearl (1912) has described fecundity in fowls as "typically
Mendelian" in heredity but his figures show that in crosses between Barred
Rocks and Cornish Indian Games, the average fecundity of the Fi birds is in
both the reciprocal crosses intermediate between that of the respective parent
races though nearer the racial average of the sire, which supports his contention
that a sex-linked gene is involved, but shows also that this is not the only factor
involved. Back-crosses of Fx of both sexes with the pure races give evidence of
further blending (or imperfect segregation) on the part of the non-sex-linked
factor or factors.

castle: role of selection in evolution 385

Finally, as evidence that even in self-fertilized plants the pure
line principle may be inapplicable because of the existence of
genes which are plastic, let me cite a very extensive and care-
fully executed piece of work on garden peas done by Hoshino.
He studied the behavior of flowering time, and showed that its
inheritance involves a Mendelian gene coupled with flower
color (white or red). The inheritance of flowering time is inter-
mediate, but Fi is closer to the late than to the early parent in
this character. Segregation is imperfect in F2 with a range
practically all the way from the early to the late parent, but not
transgressing this range. F3 and F4 families from self-fertilized
parents are in many cases quite variable but others are no more
variable than the pure parental varieties and so may be treated
as practically "constant." A study of the average flowering
time of each of the 230 "constant" F4 families shows that these
fall into three main groups, some falling into a modified early
group, not quite so early as the early parent, others falling into a
modified late group, not quite so late as the original late parent,
but most of all falling into an intermediate group occupying the
region midway between the parent varieties in flowering time.
Considered all together, the F4 families "constant" for flowering
time form an almost uninterrupted series of conditions con-
necting the respective parental conditions seen in the early
flowering and in the late flowering race.

These observations show the existence of a gene for flowering
time in peas which is decidedly plastic. That a gene actually
exists is shown by its coupling with flower color. That it is
plastic is shown by the fact that it emerges from the cross nearly
always in a modified form. When the possibility of modifica-
tion has been continued as long as the F4 generation, the majority
of the "constant" families are found in the intermediate or middle
group. The plasticity is here shown in a tendency of the con-
trasted genes to blend into one of intermediate character. It
is also shown in data given by Hoshino as to flowering time in
parent individuals and their offspring in the late flowering variety.
Although this variety is treated by Hoshino as a "pure line,"
it is evident that within this line itself the later flowering in-

386 castle: role of selection in evolution

dividuals have later flowering offspring and vice versa. In other
words selection within this supposed "pure line" is evidently
effective. Accordingly either the gene here involved is plastic
or the supposed pure line is not pure.

From the various lines of evidence which have been cited (and
I might have cited many more) it is clear that the pure line prin-
ciple, valid as a working hypothesis for seed size in beans and
for certain morphological characters in self-fertilized cereals,
does not fit in with the observed facts as regards the effects
of selection in the majority of the domesticated animals and
cultivated plants, nor even with the behavior of certain characters
in self-fertilized plants and asexually propagated animals. In
the case of such characters as white spotting in mammals, it is
evident that a change in the mean of the character in a partic-
ular direction in consequence of selection actually displaces in
the direction of selection the center of gravity of variation, so
that in a very true sense selection makes possible further varia-
tion in that same direction. The same is probably true as re-
gards protein content and oil content in the Illinois corn experi-
ment. It is doubtful whether, outside of that particular experi-
ment, maize with as high a protein content as 15 per cent has
ever been observed, or maize with as high an oil content as 8.5
per cent. It is not then a misuse of terms to say that the selec-
tion has in this case been the cause of further variation in the
direction of selection and so an agency in the progressive evolu-
tion of a new type.

If this is true concerning a single character under experimental
study for a period of twenty generations, may it not also be
true of entire organisms and groups of organisms subjected to
keen competition with all other organisms in a struggle for
existence which has continued for millions of generations? If
there are characters which are plastic under artificial selection,
why need we be skeptical about the plasticity of organisms sub-
jected to natural selection? If artificial selection can, in the
brief span of a man's life time, mould a character steadily in a
particular direction, why may not natural selection in unlimited
time also cause progressive evolution in directions useful to the

castle: role of selection in evolution 387

organism? I am not ready to say that natural selection is proved
as the method par excellence of evolution, but I am not ready to
abandon it as the most reasonable explanation of evolution
until something better supported than the mutation theory is
offered as a substitute for it. At the same time the fact should
be emphasized that biology has benefited greatly from the
investigation and the discussion initiated by the mutation
theory. Even though the mutation theory cannot be accepted
as a general theory of evolution it has done us great good in
dispelling or clarifying the hazy notions which formerly existed
as to what natural selection could accomplish. Selection, whether
natural or artificial, is, as the mutation theory rightly holds,
primarily an agency for the elimination of variations, not for
their production. It can only act on variations actually exist-
ing, and while it can, I believe, continue and extend variation
already initiated by shifting in the direction of selection the
center of gravity of variation, it cannot initiate new lines of
variation. It cannot change a vertebrate into something else
nor something else into a vertebrate. It is limited to the modi-
fication of existing types of organisms, and to their modification
in directions in which they show a tendency spontaneously to
vary.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Castle, W. E., 1916. Genetics and Eugenics. Harvard Univ. Press.
Hoshixo, Y., 1915. On the inheritance of the flowering time in peas and

rice. Journ. Col. Agr. Tohoku Imp. LTniv., vol. 6.
Johannsen, W., 1909. Elemente der exakten Erblichkeitslehre. Jena.
MacDowell, E. C, 1915. Bristle inheritance in Drosophila. Journ. Exp.

Zool., Vol., 15.
Morgan, T. H., 1916. A critique of the theory of evolution. Princeton

Univ. Press.
Pearl, R., 1912. The mode of inheritance of fecundity in the domestic fowl.

Journ. Exp. Zool., vol. 13.
Pearl R., 1916. Fecundity in the domestic fowl and the selection problem.

Amer. Ass. Nat.. Vol. 50.
Scott. W. B., 1917. The theory of evolution. New York.
Smith, L. H., 1912. Altering the composition of Indian corn by seed selection.

Journ. Indust. Eng. Chem., vol. 4.
DeVries, H., 1900-1903. Die Mutationstheorie. Leipzig.
Wright, S., 1916. Studies of inheritance in guinea-pigs and rats. Carnegie

Inst. Wash., Pub. 241.

388 clakk: bourgueticrinidae

ZOOLOGY. — A revision of the recent genera of the crinoid fa?nily
Bourgueticrinidae, with the description of a new genus.1
Austin H. Clark, National Museum.

Of all the families of stalked crinoids represented in the re-
cent seas the Bourgueticrinidae is the most universally distrib-
uted, occurring in all the oceans and ranging from 112 meters
(62 fathoms) or less to a depth of 4842 meters (2690 fathoms) ,
the greatest depth at which stalked crinoids have been found.

The genus Metacrinus, now dominant in the East Indies and
ranging from southern Australia and Tasmania to southern
Japan, includes about 25 species; but aside from this genus the
Bourgueticrinidae with its 30 species is more numerously repre-
sented than all the other stalked families together.

Heretofore the recent species of Bourgueticrinidae have been
grouped in two genera, Rhizocrinus and Bathycrinus, though it
has long been evident that such a disposition was far from
satisfactory; especially has this been the case since the discov-
ery of the species of Monachocrinus, which have the general
appearance of the species of one of the genera (Bathycrinus) , but
the detailed structure of those of the other (Rhizocrinus) .

The recent species of the Bourgueticrinidae fall into six nat-
ural groups, which are differentiated as shown in the following
key:

Key to the Recent Genera belonging to the Family Bourgueticrinidae

a1 The third, sixth, and ninth brachials (the fifth, eighth, and eleventh
ossicles from the radials) have a muscular articulation on either
end; basals always fused into a solid ring which is broader than long,
cylindrical or short truncated-conical; ten arms

b1 The distal edges of the brachials are produced, overlapping the
bases of the succeeding brachials, so that the dorsal profile of
the arms is serrate; the IBr2 (axillary) is markedly broader than
long, distinctly shorter than the IBri

Bathycrinus.
b2 The distal edges of the brachials are not produced, so that the
dorsal profile of the arms is smooth; the IBr2 (axillary) is little,
if any, broader than long, and is about as long as the IBri

Ilycrinus.

1 Published with the permission of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institu-
tion.

CLARK! BOURGUETICRINIDAE 389

a2 All the post-radial ossicles are united in pairs by non-muscular ar-
ticulation; the basals are separate, or are fused into a solid ring
which is truncated conical, always longer than broad

bl Ten (or twelve) arms, the second post-radial ossicle being
axillary

M onachocrinus .
b2 Five undivided arms

c1 No sutures visible between the basals; the basals are solidly
welded into a single conical ossicle

Rhizocrinus.
c- Basals, always separated by distinct sutures

d1 Column comparatively slender, the longer columnals be-
ing at least twice as long as broad; calyx distinctly conical

Bythocrinus.
d2 Column very stout, the longer columnals being but little
longer than broad ; calyx nearly or quite cylindrical

Democrinus.

.Bathycrinus Wyville Thomson.

Bathycrinus Wyville Thomson, Proc. Roy. Soc. Edinburgh, 7, 1872,
p. 772 (genotype B. gracilis, sp. nov.).

Geographical Range. — Mid-equatorial Atlantic and northwestward to
the coast of Virginia and Maryland (as far as 38° 20' N. lat.), and north-
ward to the latitude of the northern part of the Bay of Biscay (47° 38'
N. lat.); eastern part of the Bay of Bengal, east of the northern end of
Sumatra; mid-Pacific between Oceania and America (from 0° 3'.4 to
9° 57' N. lat,).

Bathijmetrical Range.— From 1629 to 4842 meters (905 to 2690
fathoms).

Thermal Range.— From 34?3 to 36?8 Fahr. (all but one of the rec-
ords are between 36?5 and 36?8).

Included Species. — Bathycrinus aldrichianus Wyville Thomson, Bathy-
crinus equatorialis A. H. Clark, Bathycrinus gracilis Wyville Thomson,
Bathycrinus pacificus A. H. Clark, Bathycrinus serratus A. H. Clark,
Bathycrinus sibogae A. H. Clark, and Bathycrinus woodmasoni A. H.
Clark.

Ilycrinus Danielssen and Koren.

Ilycrinus Danielssen and Koren, Nyt Magasin for Naturvidens-
kaberne, 23, 1877, 3 die Hefte, p. 45 (genotype /. carpenterii, sp.
nov.)

Pterocrinus (Wyville Thomson, MS.) P. H. Carpenter, "Challenger"
Reports, Zoology, 11, 1884, p. 242, 243 (genotype Bathycrinus aldri-
chianus P. H. Carpenter, 1884 [not of Wyville Thomson, 1878] =
Bathycrinus australis A. H. Clark, 1907).

Geographical Range. — Antarctic regions, from west of the Crozet
Islands to Enderby Land; extreme north Pacific from the Commander

390 CLARK! BOURGUETICRINIDAE

Islands to between Sitka and the Columbia River; the cold deep water
between Norway and Iceland, and northward.

Bathymetrical Range. — From 1337 to 4636 meters (743 to 2575
fathoms) .

Thermal Range— From 30?9 Fahr. and -1?6C. to 36?6. Fahr.

Included Species. — Ilycrinus australis (A. H. Clark), Ilycrinus car-
penterii Danielssen and Koren, and Ilycrinus complanatus (A. H.
Clark).

Monachocrinus, gen. nov.

Monachocrinus A. H. Clark, Eastman's translation of Zittel's Palaeon-
tology, 1913, p. 230. — A. H. Clark, Internationale Revue gesam-
ten Hydrobiologie und Hydrographie, 1914, p. 7. — A. H. Clark,
Die Crinoiden der Antarktis,- 1915, pp. 125, 152, 182. — A. H. Clark,
Amer. Journ. Sci. and Arts, 40, 1915, p. 61. A. H. Clark, Smiths.
Miscell. Coll., 65, 1915, No. 10, p. 11.— A. H. Clark, Amer. Nat-
uralist 49, 1915, pp. 525, 526, 527, 542.

Diagnosis. — A genus of Bourgueticrinidae in which the arms divide
once, on the second post-radial ossicle (being ten or twelve in number) ;
all the post-radial ossicles are united in pairs by nonmuscular articu-
lation; and the basals are separate, or are fused into a solid ring which
is truncated conical, always longer than broad.

Geographical Range. — -Caribbean Sea to the Azores and Morocco, and
northwestward to southwest of Iceland; the Bay of Bengal; the vicinity
of Banda and Celebes.

Bathymetrical Range. — From 1236 to 4255 meters (687 to 2419
fathoms) .

Thermal Range. — The only two records, both in the Atlantic, are
3?0C. and 40?0 Fahr.

Included Species. — Monachocrinus caribbeus (A. H. Clark), Mona-
chocrinus minimus (Doderlein), Monachocrinus paradoxus (A. H. Clark),
Monachocrinus perrieri (Kcehler and Vaney), Monachocrinus pocidum
(Doderlein), Monachocrinus recuperatus (Perrier), and Monachocrinus
sexradiatus, sp. nov.

Genotype. — Monachocrinus sexradiatus, sp. nov.

Monachocrinus sexradiatus, sp. nov.

Description. — The basals are anchylosed into a solid funnel-shaped
ring which is rather more than twice as long as broad basally. In lat-
eral view the sides of this funnel are almost parallel in the proximal
half, but in the distal half they gradually diverge so that their final
direction in relation to each other is the same as that of the two sides of
the radial circlet, with which they merge without any deflection.

The radial funnel is composed of six similar radials of equal size,
and is about twice as high as broad at the base; in profile it is seen to

CLARK: BOURGUETICRINIDAE 391

be very slightly, almost imperceptibly, concave in the proximal half,
becoming slightly convex in the distal; though the proximal end of the
radial funnel is circular in outline, each radial distally gradually be-
comes convex dorsally so that in a dorsal view the distal end appears
in outline as a hexagon, with rounded angles; the distance from the
summit of the column to the distal edge of the radial circlet is 2 mm.

The IBrx are very long, about twice as long as the proximal width,
with straight, slightly and regularly diverging sides.

The IBr2 (axillaries) are little more than half as long as the IBri,
considerably broader than long, with a blunt distal angle.

Both the ossicles of the IBr series have a low obscure broadly rounded
median convexity, carrying forward the convexity of the distal portion
of the radials, and sharp straight sides; the IBr2 has a shallow pit just
within the blunt distal angle.

The twelve arms are slender and narrow, with a smooth dorsal pro-
file, the distal borders of the brachials not being produced, and meas-
ure 28 mm. in length from the distal edge of the radials; the brachials
are all united in pairs by non-muscular articulations ; the first brachial
is slightly trapezoidal, longer outwardly than inwardly, broader basally
than distally, half again as long as broad distally; the second brachial
is not much more than half as large.

The first pinnule occurs on from the tenth to the fourteenth brachial,
usually on the tenth.

The portion of the column attached to the crown is 22 mm. in length
and consists of forty-three segments, of which the first fifteen are short
and discoidal and the six following broader than long; the last five or
six segments of the column as preserved are about four times as long
as broad with very slightly, almost imperceptibly, enlarged ends, and
a similarly almost imperceptible median raised girdle.

Another specimen, with the arms 25 mm. long, differs in having the
five basals, which are of unequal size, separated from each other by
sutures.

Locality.— Southwest of Iceland (61° 44' N. lat., 30° 29' W. long.).

Depth. — 1135 fathoms.

Bottom temperature. — 3?0C.

Rhizocrinus M. Sars.

Rhizocrinus M. Sars, Forhandl. Vidensk. Selsk., 1864, p. 127 (geno-
type Rh. lofotensis, sp. nov.).

Geographical Range. — North Atlantic only; from northern Florida to
Iceland, Ireland, and Norway, reaching to about 68?5 N. lat. on the
Scandinavian coast.

Bathymetrical Range. — From. 140 to 2340 meters (77 to 1300 fathoms).

Thermal Range.— From 0?1C. to 8?4C. and 48?7 Fahr.

Included Species. — Rhizocrinus lofotensis M. Sars, and Rhizocrinus
verrilii A. H. Clark.

392 CLARK: BOURGUETICRINIDAE

Bythocrinus Doderlein.

Bythocrinus Doderlein, Wiss. Ergeb. der deutschen Tiefsee-Expedi-
tion auf dem Dampfer "Valdivia" 1898-1899, 17, 1912, Heft 1,
p. 11 (genotype Rhizocrinus [Bythocrinus] chuni or Rh. [B.\ braueri,
spp. nov.).
Geographical Range. — East Indies, and eastward to the northeastern
coast of Africa; Atlantic coasts of northwestern Africa and southwest-
ern Europe; Gulf of Mexico, and southward at least to Ceara, Brazil.
Bathymetrical Range.— From 158 to 1668 meters (88 to 927 fathoms).
Thermal Range.— -The records are 3?8 and 4?6C., and 40?5 Fahr.
Included Species. — Bythocrinus braueri Doderlein, Bythocrinus brevis
(A. H. Clark), Bythocrinus chuni Doderlein, Bythocrinus conifer (A. H.
Clark), Bythocrinus intermedins A. H. Clark, Bythocrinus nodipes (Dod-
erlein), and Bythocrinus robustus (A. H. Clark).

Democrinus Perrier.

Democrinus Perrier, Comptes rendus, 96, 1883, No. 7, p. 450 (geno-
type D. parfaiti, sp. nov.).

Geological Range. — First found in a breccia containing a human skele-
ton at Guadeloupe, French West Indies; otherwise only known from the
recent seas.

Geographical Range. — From Sulu (Jolo) to Ceram Laut and Timor;
near Krakatoa; coast of Morocco; Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico.

Bathymetrical Range. — From. 112 to 2050 meters (62 to 1139 fathoms).

Thermal Range. — No records.

Included Species. — Democrinus parfaiti Perrier, Democrinus rawsonii
(Pourtales), Democrinus sabae (A. H. Clark), and Democrinus weberi
(Doderlein).

There are in the literature many records referring to species of this
genus which are undeterminable.

ABSTRACTS

Authors of scientific papers are requested to see that abstracts, preferably
prepared and signed by themselves, are forwarded promptly to the editors.
Each of the scientific bureaus in Washington has a representative authorized to
forward such material to this journal and abstracts of official publications should
be transmitted through the representative of the bureau in which they originate".
The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those appearing in
this issue.

SPECTROSCOPY. — Wave-lengths of the stronger lines in the helium
spectrum. Paul W. Merrill. Bureau of Standards Scientific
Paper No. 302 (Bull. Bur. Stds., 14: 159-166). 1917.
Wave-lengths of twenty-one of the stronger helium lines have been
carefully measured photographically by means of the Fabry and Perot
type of interferometer, using several separations. Nine of the lines
were compared directly with the standard cadmium line 6438.4696A,
the remaining lines being referred to these. The accuracy attained
is nearly 0.001 A, so that the lines are now available as convenient
standards for many purposes. It is well known that the separation
of the effective reflecting surfaces of the interferometer usually appears
to be slightly different for different colors ; the possibility of eliminating
this effect is noted. The Kayser and Runge spectral series formula
with constants derived from three consecutive lines will not reproduce
accurately even the next member of any one of the six series.

P. W. M.

MINERALOGY. — An American occurrence of miloschite. Edgar T.

Wherry and Glenn V. Brown. American Mineralogist, 1:

63-67. 1916.

The discovery of this mineral at Ely, Nevada, is announced, and a

full description of its properties and composition given. It is shown to

be a chromium-bearing kaolinite, and is considered a mineral species.

E. T. W.

PALEOBOTANY. — Two new fossil plants from the Triassic of Pennsyl-
vania. Edgar T. Wherry. Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., 51: 327-329.
1916.
Descriptions of a new conifer, Palissya longifolia, and of a plant of
unknown relationships, named Brunswickia dubia, from the Brunswick
formation, in which it occurs. E. T. W.

393

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

THE BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 571st regular meeting of the Biological Society of Washington
was held at the Cosmos Club, May 5, 1917; called to order by Presi-
dent Hay; 25 persons in attendance.

On recommendation of the Council, Donald R. Dickey, Pasadena,
California, and J. Eugene Law, Hollywood, California, were elected
to membership.

Under the heading Brief Notes President Hay exhibited a lantern
slide of some very immature flying squirrels.

The regular program consisted of two communications:

F. V. Coville : The influence of cold in stimulating the growth of plants.
Mr. Coville stated that the spring and summer growing period of plants
in regions having cold winters is followed by a period of dormancy
which persists if the plants are artificially maintained at a relatively
high temperature. A period of exposure to cold is needed to activate
the plants for another period of growth. The mechanism of activa-
tion appears to be the liberation of enzymes acting on the stored
starches, converting them to sugars; it is perhaps a change in the per-
meability of the cell membrane. It is normally brought about by
cold, but mechanical injury or a period of drying may bring about the
necessary changes. The operation is not controlled by the roots but
acts independently in any exposed parts of the plants, so that if of two
branches of a plant one is kept continually warmed and the other sub-
jected to the usual winter chilling the former will not develop on the
advent of summer temperatures, while the latter develops normally.
Mr. Coville's paper was illustrated by numerous lantern slides. His
communication was discussed by Messrs. E. A. Goldman, Wm. Palmer,
L. O. Howard, W. P. Hay, and A. A. Doolittle.

W. P. Hay: The rate of growth in certain lower vertebrates. Professor
Hay gave some of his personal observations of the rate df growth of
the loggerhead turtle, and observations, based on the published records
of others, on the rate of growth of certain snakes and of an alligator.
His communication was illustrated by charts and diagrams.

M. W. Lyon, Jr., Recording Secretary.

394

proceedings: anthropological society 395

THE ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 512th meeting of the society was a special meeting held on May
1 in the Natural History building of the National Museum to hear
the address of the retiring president. Dr. John R. Swanton, whose
subject was Some Anthropological Misconceptions.

Dr. Swanton began by calling attention to the cyclic nature of cultural
movements and stated that like other beliefs the doctrine of evolution
which so dominates the thought of our time is subject to the same law,
and bound to have its rise, decline, and disappearance as an object of
peculiar interest, and further, that the truth embodied in it will in
time become so axiomatic that no particular attention will be paid to
it and the chaff will disappear.

Unfortunately when pioneer anthropologists began to apply evolu-
tionary ideas to their science, then in its infancy, they fell into a serious
error. They assumed, with some justice indeed, that the existing
peoples of the world presented features, some more and some less
primitive, features which might be arranged into series showing the stages
which mankind as a whole had passed through. But in selecting
the "most primitive" features they worked on the false assumption
that that which was most foreign to the ideas of the society in which
they lived, in the cultural center of western Europe, as the most prim-
itive. This resulted in a vast crop of pseudo-scientific evolutionary
theories, each based on its author 's own peculiar understanding of what
was more and what less primitive. An assistant source of error was an
over earnest attempt to find survivals analogous to the "vestigial char-
acters" of biology in all kinds of cultural features, many of which were
not vestigial at all. The speaker referred to several evolutionary
theories of this kind, treating at some length those regarding the evolu-
tion of totemism from a matrilineal clan system, the evolution of
marriage from a primitive promiscuity, and several theories concerning
the origin of religion, such as those of Spencer, Tylor, Frazer, and Lang.

Secondly, the author took exception to the extreme uniformitarian
attitude taken by certain anthropologists. He called attention to the
fact that absolute uniformitarianism is impossible since even the in-
organic world is based on discrete molecules, atoms, electrons, etc.,
while the organic world is based on independent organisms. In the
same way when we turn to the culture history of mankind we find
that ideas, although progressive, do not roll into consciousness with
the even motion of a wheel, but come at certain definite times and
places.

Along with this extreme uniformitarianism he believed too much
stress had been placed on the unconscious or subconscious side of
evolution in human institutions. Important as the latter undoubtedly
is and much as it is neglected by the man of average intelligence, it
acts less toward the development of new institutions than toward the
preservation of institutions already in existence, and is accompanied by
degeneration, or at most imitation, rather than by absolute origination.

396 proceedings: anthropological society

In this connection Dr. Swanton took occasion to criticise a certain
type of student who, because he observes the powerful effect of sub-
conscious imitation, assumes that there is an extra-mental current
which settles all problems, and looks cynically upon conscious efforts
to bring about change. When examined closely this seemingly un-
conscious current would be found to be a resultant of forces, each of
which was the decision of some individual or some group of individuals
at a definite time and place. He- believed that if any of these decisions
had been different the stream itself, the course of history, would in
some measure have been different.

In the discussion which followed the address Dr. Leo J. Frachten-
berg agreed in main with the assertions made by the speaker. He
called attention to the fact that the error of particularization is well
exemplified in Westermarck's "Origin of Primitive Ethics." Dr. Fracht-
enberg expressed the belief that the principles of unconscious evolution
should not be underestimated. Dr. Truman Michelson added as
another misconception the supposition that the languages of primitive
peoples indicate a low mentality, stating that it is possible to express
complicated ideas by means of these languages but that the ordinary
life of the people does not require such expression. Another miscon-
ception, according to Dr. Michelson, is the arranging of languages
in a scale of superiority with inflectional languages as the highest point
of development.

In closing the discussion Dr. Swanton stated that although it is true
that the unconscious element plays a very important part in the evo-
lution of culture, its functions are conservative or, at most, imitative,
with a tendency toward degeneration, whereas the conscious element
is that which creates, that which produces positive advances.

Frances Densmore, Secretary.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VII JULY 19, 1917 No. 13

GEOPHYSICS. — Thermal gradient of Kilauea Lava Lake. T. A.
Jaggar, Jr., Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.

Experimental temperature measurement with Seger cones in
steel pipes thrust into the lava and flaming cones in 1917, when
the lava pool of Halemaumau became accessible, yielded results
of increasing accuracy as the method was improved and the
sources of error or failure were discovered and eliminated.

The temperature of the fountains and grottoes, where gas
effervescence induces ebullient doming, flaming, and spraying
of incandescent melt, is now well known.1 Excessive oxida-
tion of the combustible constituents S, CO, and H on contact
with air makes the confined and continuously flaring grottoes
hotter than the central fountains. The temperatures vary,
but 1130°C. for the fountains and 1180° for the open grottoes
(fig. 1, circles) are recorded measurements approaching the
maximum. Measurements in the past have been made with
Fery2 and Holborn-Kurlbaum optical pyrometers and with the
platinum-rhodium element, and have shown that the surface
temperatures of the Kilauea magma range from 940° to 1185°.
Temperature measurement below the surface, or in the gas-filled
chambers and orifices of flaming blowing-cones on the benches,
has not been attempted before this year.

1 Report Hawn. Volcano Observatory, Boston, January-March, 1912, p. 51,
Bui. Geol. Soc. Amer., 24: 601. 1913. Am. Journ. Sci., 36: 151. 1913,

2 Proc. Am, Acad, Arts and Sci., 47: No. 3. 1911.

397

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398

jaggar: thermal gradient at kilauea 399

The writer determined by sounding on January 23, 1917, that
the liquid lava in the lake was 14 meters deep, and that it rested
on a seemingly pasty resistant bottom. This bottom was par-
tially uncovered and revealed by subsidence of the liquid part
of the lava column in February, 1917, confirming the soundings.
Soundings of the remnant liquid pool on March 24 showed that
the depth had diminished to 9 meters. After rising had been
resumed, on May 2, the depth at the same locality was 13 meters.
The liquid of the lake magma rises through conduit wells in the
bench magma and circulates by convection through the conduits
and sinkholes, the semi-solid bench magma forming the lake
bottom and margins.

The thermal gradient of the liquid lake to its bottom is not
the gradient of the lava column. That could only be deter-
mined by profound soundings along with temperature measure-
ments in the conduits and sinkholes. The liquid lake is a shallow
pool of lava continually engulfing vesicular crusts, which must
be full of air, and which do not melt at once, as the upper tem-
peratures are not those of superfusion. The determination of
the gradient of the pool is of interest to show (1) whether re-
action between gases rising from the bottom produces increased
heat upward, or (2) whether surface radiation and expansion
of the gases in vesicles make a graded cooling effect upward, or
(3) whether a combination of these two processes, and also sur-
face oxidation of the gases, bottom oxidation due to foundered
crusts containing air, or bottom radiation, in some way compli-
cate the curve. That it is a smooth curve seems unquestion-
able. Condition (3) seems nearest the measured gradient.

The measurements of 1917 are divided into three groups:
group 1 (indicated by triangles in the accompanying diagram),
January-March reconnaissance of method and surface temper-
atures ; group 2 (indicated by crosses) in which the upper grad-
ient was accurately determined in April with small steel pipes
as containers of Seger cones; and group 3 (dots, A and B),
lower gradient determined May 2 with special apparatus, the
corrected error being due to air cushion in large pipe. It was
found in the earlier experiments that pipes from 3 to 8 cm. in-

400

jaggar: thermal gradient at kilauea

ternal diameter, containing Seger cones with their tips held free
in air, failed to transmit the full temperature of the melt to the
cones, owing probably to circulation of the air and consequent
heat insulation for the limited time of exposure (five to eleven
minutes). In later tests with 12-mm. pipes the results were
accordant with tests in glowing caverns where the Seger cones are
exposed directly, and with the observed incandescence. Ac-
cordingly where a large pipe is used to contain a removable series
of batteries of cones exposed all at once, the relative tempera-
tures are measured, but the figures are too low N by an error ap-
proximately constant. A and B of the diagram show respec-

TABLE 1

Group 1. Upper Temperature (triangles)

DATE

1917

January

11

January

15

January

18

January

18

January

18

January

22

LOCATION

EX-
POSURE

rain.

1 meter below

6

surface of

lake

1 meter below

11

surface

20 cm. below

1

surface

50 cm. below

3

surface

10 cm. below

3

surface

1.5 meters be-

5

low surface

TEMPERATURE (SE-
GER CONE EFFECT)

Fusibility 990c
unaffected

Fusibility 770°
unaffected

Fusibility 870°
slightly af-
fected

Fusibility 590°
unaffected

Fusibility 1070°
unaffected

1070° fused

CONDITIONS

Special steel container for 6
Seger cones in steel cyl-
inder 7.6 cm. internal
diameter attached to steel
pipe 2.5 cm. internal diam-
eter. Pipe bent sharply
at lava surface, straight
above and beloio

Cylinder 7.6 cm. Compare
April 5

Steel pipe 2.5 cm. internal
diameter, heated first in
air 30 cm. above lake 30
minutes. Seger cones in
spiral of spring steel in
sealed end of pipe. Trou-
ble with moving crusts

2.5-cm. pipe, heated first in
air 27 minutes, much crust
trouble

2.5-cm. pipe, heated first in
air 27 minutes, much crust
trouble

2.5-cm. pipe, heated first in
air over fountaining grotto
lOminutes, then submerged
in boiling grotto-lava

jaggar: thermal gradient at kilauea

401

TABLE 1— Continued

1917
January 26

March 28

LOCATION

3.6 meters
above lava in
blowing cone

cm. within
crevice 5 cm.
across. Bench
magma

EX-
POSURE

TEMPERATURE (SE-
GER CONE EFFECT)

1130° fused

1250° estimat-
ed interior
cone

1350° estimat-
ed flame

920° fused

CONDITIONS

2.5-cm. pipe, inserted in' ori-
fice 25 cm. diameter for a
length of 70 cm. Blast
flame emerging from ori-
fice, pipe bathed in burn-
ing gas within. Pipe fuses
and oxidizes to dripping in-
candescent product, eaten
through for length of 23
cm. at flaming window.
Color of pipe bright orange
inside cone, yellow oppo-
site flame. Temperatures
estimated from relative
glows and effects on steels.
(Pipe, cap, spring steel
container for Seger cones)

Calibration test in glowing
orifice of cone, cherry-red
chamber. Seger cones in-
serted successively one at
a time on open wire. Basis
for weighting other tests
according to glow

tively the actual and the corrected readings of the lower gradient
obtained in this manner, with the correction checked by meas-
urements of group 2, in which small pipes were used inserted to
a depth of 6 meters.

The upper lake gradient (crosses) of April 5-6 shows three
points on a nearly straight line for 1, 2, and 6 meters of depth
with 30°C. increment of temperature per meter downward.
The average increment per meter of the lower, May 2, gradient
(dots) is the same, a line joining the 5-meter point and the 13-
meter point lying parallel to the April 5-6 line. The divergence
of the two above the 6-meter point may be due to instrumental
errors or may be due to a difference in convectional circulation
on the two days. On April 5-6 the southeast pool where the
experiments were made was streaming rapidly eastward on the

402

jaggar: thermal gradient at kilauea

surface and making only thin skins; on May 2 this pool was
partially separated from the larger lake and tended to form thick
stagnant crusts. This surface was therefore much cooler on
May 2, in accordance with the tendency of the B curve. A

table 2

Group 2. Upper Lake Gradient (crosses)

DATE

LOCATION

EX-
POSURE

TEMPERATURE (SE-
GER CONE EFFECT)

CONDITIONS

1917

min.

March 30

15 to 20 cm. be-
low surface

5

1020° fused

12-mm. pipe in streaming
liquid lava of "bright
lines" at margin of torn
crust. Cones loose in
sealed end of pipe. Ac-
curate

April 5

1 meter below
surface

5

920° fused

12-mm. pipe, thin crust, good
conditions. Battery of
Seger cones in iron wire
gauze in sealed end of pipe.
Accurate

April 5

6 meters below
surface

5

1050° fused

12-mm. pipe, thin crust, good
conditions. Gauze con-
tainer. Accurate

April 6

2 meters below
surface

5

950° fused

12-mm. pipe, gauze contain-
er, through thin crust, 1
meter from bright line of
moving channel lava. Ac-
curate

April 6

8 to 13 cm. be-
low surface

5

990° unfused

12-mm. pipe, gauze contain-
er, through crust adjacent
to bright line of moving
lava. Lava tended to
solidify around pipe

April 6

10 cm. below
surface

4

990° fused

12-mm. pipe, gauze contain-
er, under crust 2 to 3 cm.
thick, hence actual immer-
sion in liquid 7 to 8 cm.,
next to bright line of mov-
ing lava, different locality
from previous test same
day

solid-line curve has been drawn in the diagram intermediate be-
tween the two, and this line is not far from a correct expression
of the temperature of the Kilauea pool at its eastern margins,

jaggar: thermal gradient at kilauea

403

on the side of the sinkholes, and relatively remote from the
conduit wells. The conduit gradient, to the writer's thinking,
should be different.

As indicated in the figure, four heat zones are present, from
the hottest flame blast of burning gas in a high " blowing-cone"
on the border benches, downward to the lava lake bottom.

The upper atmospheric zone shows a steep gradient of in-
creasing temperature from 1000°C. at the " bright lines" of

TABLE 3
Group 3. Lower Lake Gradient (dots)

DATE

LOCATION

EX-
POSURE

TEMPERATURE (SE-
GER CONE EFFECT)

CONDITIONS

1917

min.

May 2

4.38 meters to

8

20 tempera-

Steel pipe 3.8 cm. internal

12.93 meters

tures in se-

diameter, 22.70 meters long,

below surface

ries ; 7 4 0°
above to
970° below
fused (A in
figure 1, cor-
rected in B)

20 gauze containers on wire
in pipe all exposed at once.
Immersed at angle 35°,
vertical depths shown in
A. 29 Seger fragments in
each container, fusibili-
ties 590° to 1290°. Cor-
rected for probable con-
stant error due to air in-
sulation of large pipe and
averaged for each half-
meter, as smooth curve,
at B (dots). Correction
based on April 5-6 curve
(crosses). Immersion to
lake bottom, heavy crust
on surface

the lava surface through the fountains, the confined grottoes
on the lake shore, and still more confined cupolas of driblet cones,
to the puffing vents where banners of flame play above these
cones as natural blow-pipes of burning sulphur and hydrogen.
These vents will fuse steel and hence reach a temperature of at
least 1350°.

The zone of surface heating is a somewhat paradoxical region
at the lava surface where hot fountaining and hot "bright lines"

404 jaggar: thermal gradient at kilauea

compete with enormously rapid radiation and crusting, which
latter ordinarily is greatly dominant. The fall in temperature
upward through a surface crust 8 cm. thick is fully 400°; the rise
in temperature from the region a half-meter below the crust to
the " bright lines" amounts to from 100° to 150°, and to the
fountains 250° Heavy crust may form in thirty minutes and
is a porous insulator from the heat of the melt beneath such that
a man could stand on it for an instant without suffering. Thin
crusts form instantly and continuously, the "bright lines"
being wavy bands on the lava surface at the margin of the rending
crust, the up welling melt and gas eroding the air-filled vesicles
of the crust. Thus heat-generation ensues, through completion
of the reaction between rising unstable gas mixtures and through
union with atmospheric oxygen. Foundering of crusts liberates
much heat, carries down air, and induces fountaining.

It will be seen that the hypothetical gradient of cooling effect
carried to the heavy crusts, disregarding the reheating due to
surface reactions, would exhibit no bend upward to the right as
in the diagram at depth 1 meter, but rather a curve to the left
ending on the surface at about 400° (C in diagram). A com-
pletely crusted pool therefore, with gas reactions satisfied else-
where, might reveal very low temperatures just beneath the
surface in accordance with curve C This may account for
some of the anomalous records of group 1 (triangles), and others
not here recorded which the writer has obtained with a thermo-
couple. It is hoped to explore this surface region more com-
pletely.

The zone of cooling from depth 7.5 meters to the surface
crusts registered an average loss of temperature upward on May
2 of 70° per meter for the lower 3 meters. This middle region
would appear to suffer a marked bend in the gradient from a
relatively heated zone beneath. The viscosity should thus in-
crease rapidly from depth 7.5 meters to depth 1 meter, a condi-
tion favorable for confinement of large gas bubbles beneath the
zone of surface heating. The cooling is in the main due to sur-
face radiation, aided doubtless by gas expansion. The surface
heating appears to be localized and sudden, occurring as a result

WRIGHT AND HOSTETTER! CRYSTAL GROWTH 405

oi the accumulation of gas under an impervious crust, the re-
lease being continuous at times of rapid circulation and spas-
modic during stagnant times.

The zone of bottom heat reaches a maximum not greater than
that of the fount aining grottoes, and the gradient must recurve to
lower temperatures in the stiff bench magma below. Continued
measurement will show whether the relatively even temperature
(1120°-1170°) of the lower 5 meters of the lake is that of the
rising conduit lava. The writer surmises that it is hotter than
the conduit lava, because the latter generally crusts over ex-
tensively and shows low incandescence. Geologic evidence
from raised portions of the under-lake marginal slopes indicates
that foundered crusts pile up beneath the lake, and experiment
shows that they would glaze over and confine air. On reaching
the bottom of the lava pool such accumulations, by gradually
releasing air to react with the volcanic gas, would produce
reheating. They would continuously soften and disintegrate,
but during the prolonged reaction, always supplied by new
foundering, the bottom would present what the measurement
appears to reveal, a combination of viscosity and high tempera-
ture. The gaseous products of the reaction would accumulate
in the zone of cooling and would be released explosively as cen-
tral or border fountains where the accumulation became ex-
cessive. As yet it has not been possible to force a pipe down
into the stiffer and lower bottom material which might show
declining temperature. At the best, exploration of the deep
region is difficult and somewhat dangerous, and such experi-
ments as the immersion of May 2 must be carefully prepared;
with expectation of many reverses.

CRYSTALLOGRAPHY. — The thermodynamic reversibility of the
equilibrium relations between a strained solid and its liquid^
F. E. Wright and J. C. Hostetter, Geophysical Laboratory,

In the thermodynamical treatment of the effect of pressure
on the melting temperature or on the solubility of a crystal it
has been customary tacitly to assume that the process is rever-
sible, because only under such conditions do the equilibria rela-

406 WRIGHT AND HOSTETTERI CRYSTAL GROWTH

tions represented by the thermodynamic equations obtain. In
case both the solid and the liquid are under the same pressure
(hydrostatic compression) there is no difficulty in conceiving of
a thermodynamic cycle which is reversible and from which the
ordinary Clapeyron equations for uniform pressure can be de-
rived. But in the case of a crystal under load the crystal phase
is under a state of pressure different from that of the liquid; the
pressure throughout the system is no longer uniform; in the pas-
sage of the material from one state to the other a pressure factor
enters and tends to render uncertain the reversibility of the proc-
ess. Nevertheless, its reversibility has been assumed either
directly as self-evident, or indirectly by postulating conditions
(semipermeable membranes, etc.) which are experimentally not
attainable ; but no direct evidence of the reversibility of the proc-
ess has heretofore been offered, so far as the writers can ascer-
tain, in support of this fundamental assumption.

The relations between a strained solid and its liquid have been
discussed at various times by different authors under the head-
ings of " non-uniform," " one-sided," "differential," or " unequal"
pressure. Each of these titles is suggestive of the fact that in
these discussions pressure was assumed to be unequal on the
various parts of the system being investigated The equations
between the various factors involved in the treatment of such a
system have all been developed from the theoretical side, and
none of them has ever been subjected to a thorough experimental
demonstration. This lack of experimental evidence on the sub-
ject probably accounts for the diversity of effects postulated for
a given pressure acting non-uniformly; — the effects so postu-
lated vary a thousand-fold and should have been submitted to
experimental test long ago.1

Perhaps the first investigator to study the effects of non-
uniform pressure was James Thomson2 who in 1862 made a careful
distinction between stresses applied only to the solid phase of

1 It may be mentioned here that preliminary results on the influence of non-
uniform pressure on solubility indicate that the effect so produced is very small.
Hostetter, J. C. J. Wash. Acad. Sci., 7: 79. 1917.

2 Thomson, J. Phil. Mag., (4) 24: 395. 1862; Proc. Roy. Soc, 11: 473.

WRIGHT AND HOSTETTER: CRYSTAL GROWTH 407

a system, and those stresses applied equally to both a solid and
its liquid. That he regarded the process as completely reversi-
ble is clearly shown in the following quotation from his work:

. . . . The following line of reasoning to show that stresses ap-
plied to a crystal will cause a resistance to the deposition of additions
to it from the liquid, or, in other words, a resistance to its growth, will,
I think, prove to be correct. When a costal grows, the additions, it
seems to me, must lay themselves dowrn in a state of molecular fitting,
or regular interlocking with the parts' on which they apply themselves;
or, in other words, they must lay themselves down so as to form one
continuous crystalline structure with the parts already crystallized. It
thus seems to me that, if a crystal grows when under a stress, the new
crystalline matter must deposit itself in the same state of stress as the
part is on wrhich it lays itself. If, then, we consider a spiculum of ice
growing in water, and if we apply any stress, a pull for instance, to it
wThile it is thin, and then fix it in its distended state, and if then by
the transference to the water beside it of cold taken from any other
ice at the freezing point we cause it to grow, which it may do if there
be no other crystal of ice beside it more free than it to receive acces-
sions, then the additional matter will, I think, lay itself down in the
same state of tensile stress as the original spiculum wyas put into by the
applied pull. The contractile force of the crystal will thus be increased
in proportion to the increase of its cross sectional area. If it now be al-
lowed to contract and relax itself, it will give out, in doing so, more me-
chanical work than was applied to the original spiculum during disten-
tion. Hence there would be a gain of mechanical wTork without any
corresponding expenditure; or, we could theoretically have a means of
perpetually obtaining mechanical work out of nothing, unless it were
the case that greater cold is required to freeze water into ice on the
stressed crystal than on a crystal free from stress. Hence we must sup-
pose that a greater degree of cold will be required to cause the stressed
crystal to grow

In 1878 Gibbs developed in detail the relations defining the
conditions of equilibrium for solids in contact with fluids, having
regard to all possible states of strain of the solids.3 He intro-
duced no direct evidence as to the reversibility of the process
under consideration but from certain of his statements wTe may
infer that he considered the process reversible. He made a dis-
tinction between the effects on equilibrium caused by strain in
"isotropic" and "crystallized" bodies; this is stated specifically

3 Gibbs, J. Willard. The Scientific Papers of, p. 184.

408 WRIGHT and hostetter: crystal growth

in his discussion of " surfaces of discontinuity between solids
and fluids.4

While some of the more recent writers on the subject have not
discussed the reversibility of the fundamental process, it is in-
teresting to note that the reversibility of the process has indeed
been questioned by Tammann5 and by Pockels.6 Nernst,7 on
the other hand, defended the reversibility of the process and con-
sidered that the thermodynamic treatment of such cases may
be; carried out exactly.

Johnston and Adams8 in their treatment of the effects pro-
duced by non-uniform pressure on melting took the position that,
inasmuch as the main process may be considered to be made
up of an aggregate of reversible local meltings, the process itself
may be considered reversible. Niggli,9 following a line of rea-
soning similar to that used by Gibbs, held to the view that, al-
though the actual process is not reversible, a comparison of ther-
modynamic potentials at the boundary solid-liquid for different
states of strain in the solid is permissible. Still another method
of avoiding the issue as to the reversibility of the process is that
employed by Hassellblatt,10 namely to consider the process an
-"indirect equilibrium."

EXPERIMENTAL.

- In the present paper both experimental and geologic field evi-
dence are given which prove the correctness of the assumption
■ that the process, even for nonuniform pressure, is reversible and
that on crystallization the liquid enters into the crystal state

under the same state of strain as that of the crystal on which

-

it is deposited. This statement is proved by three distinct lines
of evidence and is supported by many other facts which have a

4 Loc. cit., p. 316.
' § Tammann, G. Ann. Phys., (4) 7: 198. 1902.

6 Pockels, F. Neues Jahrb. f. Min., Centralblatt 1906, p. 667.

7 Nernst, W. Theoretical Chemistry, 4th ed., p. 667.

8 Johnston, J. and Adams, L. H. Am. Journ. Sci., 35: 212. 1913.
» Niggli, P. Zeit. f. anorg. Chem., 91: 125. 1915.

10 Hasselblatt, M. Zeit. f. anorg. Chem., 93: 75. 1915.

WRIGHT AND HOSTETTERI CRYSTAL GROWTH 409

less direct bearing on the problem. The direct lines of evidence
are:

1. Observations in plane polarized light of the relative states
of strain of an isotropic crystal, growing under load in a super-
saturated solution, and the layers deposited on it.

2. Examination under the petrographic microscope of the rel-
ative states of strain, after removal of the load, of a crystal and
the layers which were deposited on it while it was under load.

3. Examination under the petrographic microscope of the
state of strain of certain minerals in rocks — such as schists,
gneisses, quartzites — which geologic field evidence proves were
in part crystallized under load.

Less direct proof is afforded by experimental evidence on the
relative rate of growth and the increased solubility of crystals
under load; and also by the directive influence of lines of thrust
on the direction of maximal rate of crystallization, as proved
both by geologic field evidence and by experiment. These will
be considered in the order named.

1. The relative state of strain between a loaded crystal and layers
freshly deposited upon it from its supersaturated solution. To the
crystallographer the process of crystallization of a substance con-
sists essentially in the regular orientation, as a result of certain
directive interatomic forces, of all molecules of the liquid which
come within the range of influence of these forces. The crystal
itself consists of regularly oriented series of the component atoms
arranged in interpenetrating space lattices. As a result of the
mutual interaction of these atoms or groups of atoms around
points regularly arranged in space, the properties of the crystal
are different in different directions; certain symmetry relations
hold and find expression not only in the crystal form but also in
the behavior of the crystal toward external forces such as me-
chanical forces (pressure, tension), chemical forces (rate of solu-
tion, crystal habit, etch figures), vibratory movements set up
in the ether (X-rays, light, heat, and electric waves), magnetic
forces, etc. The law of force between the atoms has not yet
been established; it is known, however, that at relatively short
distances (measured in millimicrons) the interatomic attraction

410 WRIGHT AND HOSTETTERI CRYSTAL GROWTH

is slight, but increases rapidly as the distance decreases down to
a certain limit. Beyond this limit forces of repulsion are set up
and, as a result, the atoms are normally separated definite dis-
tances which can be accurately measured by X-ray analysis.

In case a crystal is placed under load the atoms are squeezed
together, a state of strain exists within the crystal, and stress
forces are set up which oppose the load and keep the crystal in
equilibrium. The essential feature to note is that in this case
there has been added to the force-function, valid at a particular
point, a new term resulting from the stresses set up on loading
the crystal. The loaded crystal is thermodynamically a differ-
ent thing from the unloaded crystal; crystallographically the
loaded crystal on growing orients the atoms or groups of atoms
which come within the range of influence of its component atoms
according to the force function which then obtains for the equili-
brium and this is of course the unstressed crystal force function
modified by the stresses set up on the application of the load.
This conception holds whether the distribution of the strain be
uniform or nonuniform within the crystal, but since with each
different state of strain the energy relations in the crystal change,
there can be real equilibrium only when the energy relations
over any given area of the crystal in contact with the solution
are the same as those over any other similar area. This postu-
lates, in general, practical uniformity of distribution of load
throughout the crystal. Incidentally it may be remarked that
the energy contributed by the load to the crystal compared
with the latent heat of the crystal is of a very small order of
magnitude and that therefore we may conclude a priori that the
effect of uniform or nonuniform pressure on the melting tem-
perature or on the solubility of a crystal cannot be great.

If the above crystallographic conception of the problem be
correct, a crystal growing under load should exhibit appreciably
the same state of strain in a layer freshly deposited on the origi-
nal crystal as exists in the part of the crystal which adjoins the
new layer. Differences in strain between different parts of the
original crystal, as a result of unequal distribution of load, should
also be manifested in the freshly deposited layers. In other words

WRIGHT AND HOSTETTER: CRYSTAL GROWTH 411

the atoms and group of atoms on deposition enter into the crystal
state in practically the same condition of strain as that of the
orienting crystal particles to which they become affixed. In view
of the increased size of the crystal there is of course a general
decrease in strain throughout the crystal but this affects the en-
tire crystal (both new and old parts) and is so slight that it is
not appreciable in the phenomena presented by the crystal when
examined in polarized light. The newly deposited layers are not
deposited in a state corresponding to that of the unloaded crys-
tal (isotropic state) and there is no line of demarcation in strain
between the original crystal and the freshly deposited layers.

Experiments. The method of observation employed in these
experiments is essentially that first used by Brewster11 in measure-
ments of the relative strain in glass. Brewster discovered that
a plate of glass under load is birefracting and that the optical
effect is sensibly proportional to the intensity of the strain
(load). The problem was studied later by Fresnel,12 F. E. Neu-
mann,13 Wertheim,14 Mace de Lepinay,15 Kerr,16 Pockels,17 and
recently by F. Coker,18 and F. E. Wright.19 As a result of
Brewster's law that the birefringence, or path difference, is pro-
portional to the strain, the determination reduces to the simple
determination of the path difference between the two waves
transmitted through the stressed crystal in a direction normal
to the direction of the applied load, the faster wave vibrating
parallel to the direction in which the load is applied, the slower
normal to this direction. If white light be used as source of light
the path difference gives rise to interference colors which follow
approximately the Newton color scale. For qualitative obser-
vations uniformity of interference tint over the field near the
edge under observation is a criterion for uniformity of strain in

1 Philosophical Transactions 1814, 1815, 1816.

2 Oeuvres Completes.

3 Pogg. Ann., 54. 1841.

4 Comptes Rendus, 32, 33, 34. 1854.

5 Ann. chim. phys., 19: 1-90. 1880.

6 Phil. Mag., (5) 36: 321. ' 1886.

7 Ann. d. phys., 7: 745-771. 1902; 9: 220-223. 1902.
3 Phil. Mag., 20: 749. 1910.
9 J. Wash. Acad. Sci., 4: 595-598. 1914.

412

WRIGHT AND HOSTETTER: CRYSTAL GROWTH

the crystal, provided of course the thickness of the layer tra-
versed by the light waves remains constant. The path differ-
ence can be measured by a compensator of the Babinet, the grad-
uated quartz, or the biquartz20 type.

Fig. 1. Diagram showing arrangement used in the study of crystal growth un-
der load. The crystal D is placed in its supersaturated solution in the tank C
which has parallel plate glass sides. Load is applied to the crystal through a
block on which the point of the loading apparatus E presses. Increased load is
obtained by adding weights on the scale pan of E. A beam of parallel plane po-
larized light from the light source A is sent through the crystal into a low power
microscope consisting of an objective F, a quartz compensator G, a positive eye-
piece H, and an analyzing prism M.

The method actually adopted for the observation of the grow-
ing crystals is shown in Fig. 1 in which A is the source of light,
B a condenser lens, N a polarizing prism, C a receptacle with
plane parallel plate glass sides, D the loaded crystal, E the ap-

20 Am. Journ. Sci., (4) 26: 370-371. 1908; Carnegie Institution of Washington,
Publication 158, 134-135. 1911.

WRIGHT AND HOSTETTERI CRYSTAL GROWTH 413

paratus for applying the load, F a weakly magnifying objective
lens, G a quartz compensator, H a positive eyepiece, and M the
analyzing nicol.

Preliminary experiments were carried out on alum crystals,
but for accurate measurements these crystals proved to be un-
satisfactory because of the crystal habit, which is octahedral
and does not allow the direct passage of the light through the
crystal at the edges, since its interfacial angles are not 90°. This
defect was remedied in part by grinding parallel surfaces on the
crystal normal to an octahedral plane and protecting these sur-
faces by cover 'glass slips; this procedure, however, was satis-
factory for quantitative measurements. The observations so
far as carried proved that the octahedral layers deposited on the
crystal under load are in the same state of strain as the original
crystal. In order to obviate the effects of prismatic refraction
the refractive index of the solution was made equal to that of
the alum by the addition of glycerine, but out of this supersat-
urated solution crystals did not grow satisfactorily.

After unsuccessful experiments to grow large sharp unmodi-
fied cubes of sodium chloride, and also of potassium chloride,
satisfactory crystals of sodium chlorate were obtained which
were sharp cubes without truncations and well suited for the
purpose. These crystals were not, however, entirely free from
local strain but showed between crossed nicols faint interference
colors of first order gray. The interference colors moreover do
not change rapidly with change in load, and, to render the
changes in path difference more evident, a sensitive tint plate
was employed in qualitative observations.

Experiment 1. A crystal (2 by 3 by 4 mm.) was subjected to
a load of about 20 kgm. per square centimeter. The load was
not, however, uniformly applied, as was shown by the changes
in interference colors from point to point; the unequal loading re-
sulted chiefly from the bending of the metal disk (D, fig. 1)
which was placed between the crystal and the rod (C, fig. 1) ;
also in part from slight irregularities in the surface of the crystal.
The interference colors ranged in general from first order gray
to white, and were rendered more sensitive to slight changes in

414 WRIGHT AND HOSTETTER-. CRYSTAL GROWTH

path difference by the insertion of a sensitive tint plate. Under
these conditions the parts of the crystal under tension appeared
first order yellow, the neutral portions purple, and the parts un-
der compression second order blue to blue green.

Deposition on each of the vertical crystal faces of the crystal
under load took place at the rate of 0.12 mm. per hour, i.e.,
the crystal increased in thickness every half hour 0.12 mm.
(0.06 mm. on a side). The interference colors in the newly de-
posited layers were identical with the colors in the original crys-
tal and no line of demarcation was visible. At a point where
the edge of the original crystal exhibited a neutral or sensitive
violet color, there the layer in process of deposition on that point
showed the same interference color, and so on for yellow and
blue interference colors. The gradations from the zone of com-
pression to that of tension in so far as they extended to the
outer vertical surface under examination were conformable with
the gradations in the original crystal. In short there could be
no doubt that the material on deposition from the supersatu-
rated solution entered into the crystal state in the state of strain
of the crystal atoms to which it became affixed. So far as meas-
urements could be made, the change in path difference for a load
of 20 kg. per square centimeter is about 200 mm per 1 cm. of
material traversed. This value is not accurate but is only a
rough approximation. On release of the load the crystal re-
turned to its original condition.

After one hour's growth under these conditions the load was
increased to 40 kg. per square centimeter; the path difference
increased to about double the former value and the zones of
compression and tension were more sharply marked, with a nar-
row zone of gradation between the two. As before, the freshly
deposited layers entered into the crystal state in the condition
of strain of the part of the crystal on which they were in contact.
The load was increased to 60 kg. but this exceeded the crushing
strength of the crystal, which broke into fine powder on yielding.

Other experiments with other crystals yielded similar results
and need not be described in detail.

WRIGHT AND HOSTETTERI CRYSTAL GROWTH 415

2. Examination in polarized light of crystals which have grown
under load. In the case of a crystal which has grown under
load, the original crystal on application of the load was put into
a state of strain; on release of the load the crystal resumed its
original state of no strain, or isotropism. In case the layers
which were deposited on the strained crystal were laid down in any
state of strain other than that of the original crystal, then on the
release of the load a difference in the state of strain should ex-
ist between these layers and the original crystal, since the same
load, or release of same, cannot arbitrarily produce different
states of strain in the same material under the same conditions.
On the other hand if examination shows that there is no differ-
ence in strain between the new and the old material after release
of the load the conclusion is valid that the material was de-
posited in the state of strain of the original crystal at the time of
deposition.

Examination under the petrographic microscope of crystals of
alum and of sodium chlorate on which the outer layers had
grown while the crystal was under load, showed no difference in
state between the outer and the inner parts of the crystals. Most
of the crystals were not uniformly isotropic but exhibited areas of
compression and of tension (differences in interference color) and
these areas passed indiscriminately and without break from the
central part to the outer layers of the crystal, thus confirming
the evidence gained by direct observation of crystals growing
under load.

Geologic field evidence. To the student of rocks the presence,
in metamorphic rocks which have been in part recrystallized, of
layers of fresh crystal substance on original crystals which at
the time of deposition were under heavy strain is a fact of common
observation. Thus in quart zites and metamorphic sandstones
the further growth, under load, of the original sand grains by
the deposition of fresh material is clearly shown; similarly the
growth of feldspars. On the other hand the growth of such
metamorphic minerals as garnet, which are commonly isotropic
when examined under the microscope but. which at the time of
formation were under conditions of heavy strain, proves that the

416 WRIGHT AND HOSTETTER: CRYSTAL GROWTH

crystal state as modified by any external mechanical system of
forces is the state into which freshly precipitated material enters
when deposited on the crystal to which it becomes affixed.

Many more examples of a geologic kind of the growth of min-
erals under strain might be cited, but the above suffice to estab-
lish the fact that, whatever is the nature of the orienting polar
crystal forces, when these are modified slightly by external
forces, the resultant of the two systems dominates and orients
groups of atoms in the act of crystallization, as they become
affixed to the strained crystal, in such a way that they conform
to the state of deformation of the original material.

Evidence of growth and solubility rates. In experiments on the
rate of growth and the rate of solution of alum crystals which are
not uniformly strained, it has been repeatedly observed that the
points of greatest strain dissolve more rapidly than areas of the
same crystal which are under less strain; also that on crystal
growth the areas of less strain tend to grow more rapidly than
areas of greater strain. This indicates that the state of strain
of a crystal is a factor to be considered in problems of crystal
growth. If the freshly deposited layers did not enter into the
state of strain of the original crystal but in an isotropic state
there should then be no difference in the rate of growth for dif-
ferently strained parts of the crystal; similarly the fact that the
rate of solubility is affected by mechanical strains proves that
the strained crystal is in a state different from that of the un-
stressed crystal.

Evidence of effect of thrust on direction of crystal growth. That
the direction of mechanical thrust has a direct influence on the
direction and rate of growth of crystals is proved by geologic
field evidence and also by laboratory experiments.21 In the lab-
oratory experiments cubes of wollastonite and other silicate
glasses were held under load at a temperature at which crystalli-
zation took place slowly, but at which the glass was still rela-
tively rigid and able to support a load without much flow.
Longitudinal sections across the cubes crystallized under these
conditions showed that the prismatic directions of the crystals

21 Wright, F. E. Schistosity by crystallization. Am. Journ. Sci., (6) 190.

schaller: tlsemannite 417

in the central portion of the cube were invariably normal to the
direction of the applied load in the direction of least resist-
ance, which is also the direction of flow. Further experiments
along this line with polymorphic crystals of low inversion tem-
peratures and of prismatic forms, are in progress. These prove
that external directive pressure is a factor which enters into the
crystal force system, and are in accord with the results cited
above.

Summary. Experimental proof is offered in the foregoing
pages of the reversibility of the relations between a strained solid
and its liquid. The mechanism of this action has been found to
be exactly that postulated in 1862 by James Thomson from a
purely theoretical basis: namely, that, on crystallization, each
particle (atoms and groups of atoms) enters into the crystal state
in the condition of the crystal at the point to which it becomes
affixed; and that if the crystal be under a state of strain the
freshly deposited particle enters into the same state of strain.
This fact is essential if equilibrium relations are to exist between
a strained crystal and its liquid, because only under these condi-
tions can the relations be strictly reversible, and thermodynamic
reversibility is necessary if the thermodynamic equations are to
be valid.

MINERALOGY. — Ilsemannite, hydrous sulphate of molybdenum.
Waldemar T. Schaller, Geological Survey.

A secondary blue molybdenum mineral was described in 1871
and named ilsemannite; according to Dana,1 it is cryptocrystalline
and blue-black to black, becoming blue on exposure. The min-
eral is readily soluble in cold water to a deep blue solution. It
has never been analyzed quantitatively and its composition
has been assumed to be Mo02.4Mo03. Recent analysis of
material from near Ouray, Utah, has shown that the amount of
molybdenum in a lower state of oxidation is insignificant and
that practically all of the molybdenum is present as Mo03.

1 Dana, E. S. System of Mineralogy, 6th ed., p. 202. 1S92.

418

schaller: ilsemannite

Furthermore, the mineral is a sulphate and is not an oxide nor a
molybdate of molybdenum.

The occurrence of ilsemannite near Ouray, Utah, has been
investigated from the geological side by Frank L. Hess of the
United States Geological Survey, who is preparing a report on
this subject. The present paper, which is of a preliminary
nature, aims to give briefly the mineralogical features of the
blue molybdenum mineral, as the complete study has been un-
avoidably interrupted for a time.

The ilsemannite from Ouray, Utah, is disseminated through
a rock, analysis of which shows that about 10 per cent of the
sample is soluble in cold water. The analytical figures are
given in Table 1.

TABLE 1

Analysis of Rock Containing Disseminated Ilsemannite, from near Ouray,

Utah

ANALYSIS

RATIOS

RATIOS AFTER
DEDUCTING

MELANTERITE

Insoluble in water

90.50
0.99
2.37
trace
2.64
3.50

0.014
0 017

0.033

0.194

Soluble in water <

FeO

Mo03

Mo02

S03

0.017 1
0.019 1

[H20 (by diff.)

0.097 5

100.00

The water-soluble portion contains iron sulphate, and the
consumption of permanganate in titrating this solution exactly
equals the amount of iron (as ferrous iron) determined gravi-
metrically. There is present, therefore, only an undeterminable
amount of molybdenum in a lower state of oxidation. Wells2
found similarly that the deep-blue mine water from the Lucania
tunnel, Idaho Springs, Colo., although containing 7.98 grams
M0O3 per liter, contained only an undeterminable trace of Mo02.
The coloring effect of this trace of Mo02 seems to be very intense.

2 Quoted by Horton, F. W., in Molybdenum: its ores and their concentration.
U. S. Bur. Mines Bull. Ill, p. 15. 1916.

schaller: ilsemannite 419

Tests made on ilsemannite from other localities show that
iron sulphate is present in all specimens examined, and if, there-
fore, the figures for melanterite are deducted from the ratios
given above, the remainder gives the ratio of Mo03 : S03 : H20
as 1:1:5. It is suggested, therefore, that the formula of ilse-
mannite be taken as Mo03.S03.5H20 until further quantitative
analysis, on pure material, shows a difference. The analysis of
the deep-blue mine 'water from Idaho Springs, Colo., approxi-
mates closely, after deducting for other sulphates, to a ratio of
1 : 1 for Mo03 : S03, and this mine water is probably a solution
of ilsemannite. A sulphate of molybdenum, Mo03.S03, has been
prepared artificially.

A specimen from Saxony showed abundant ilsemannite mixed
with iron sulphate, and selected portions of the blue mineral
gave a strong sulphate reaction and showed only a small amount
of iron. Another specimen from Carinthia gave a strong sul-
phate reaction with no ferrous iron and only a trace of ferric iron.
These two specimens were kindly loaned by Col. Washington
A. Roebling, of Trenton, N. J. The ilsemannite from Cripple
Creek, Colo., described by Lindgren and Ransome3 gives like-
wise a strong sulphate reaction. It is suggested that what is
called a new molybdenum mineral by Horton4 is either a yellow
sulphate of iron or yellow molybdite impregnated with a blue
solution of ilsemannite, the combination of the blue and yellow
producing green. Such a green coating was observed on the
specimen from Cripple Creek, Colo.

The origin of ilsemannite should be studied in detail for each
occurrence, but the following suggestions may be offered:

1. Oxidation of molybdenite: MoS2 + 09 + 6H20 = Mo03.
S03.5H20 + H2S04.

2. Oxidation of jordisite,5 the colloidal form of molybdenite,
the powdery character of jordisite allowing of more ready oxida-
tion and alteration.

3 Lindgren, W., and Ransome, F. L. Geology and gold deposits of the Cripple
Creek district, Colorado. U. S. Geol. Survey Prof. Paper 54, p. 124. 1906.

4 Hoktox, F. W. Op. cit., p. 15.

5 Cornu, F. Zeitschr. Chem. Indust. Kolloide, 4: 190. 1909.

420 cook: seedling morphology

3. Decomposition of molybdates, the explanation offered
for the formation of ilsemannite from wulfenite at Bleiberg,
Carinthia.

4. The decomposition of a molybdenum-bearing silicate,
such as molybdosodalite.6

The analysis of ilsemannite from Utah shows a percentage of
2.37 Mo03 for the sample of rock taken. Other samples showed
only about half as much molybdic oxide, but the average per-
centage of water-soluble molybdenum contained in the rock as a
whole is not known.

BOTANY. — Seedling morphology in palms and grasses. O. F.
Cook, Bureau of Plant Industry.

Morphological interpretation of the grass embryo has developed
a voluminous and highly technical literature, a recent contri-
bution being a paper by Worsdell on The Morphology of the
Monocotyledonous Embryo and of that of the Grass in particu-
lar.1

From the standpoint of the palms, the effort to interpret the
first leaf-sheath of grasses, the so-called coleoptile, as a part of
the cotyledon appears artificial and unnecessary. Worsdell
carried this idea to the extreme of identifying the coleoptile with
the ligule of a very highly specialized cotyledonary leaf, the
nursing foot, or scutellum, with the blade, and the epiblasts with
auricles of the blade.

Comparison with the germination of the palms would make
such assumptions unnecessary. It is possible to interpret the
seedling organs of palms in simple terms of general morphology
that writers on grasses leave out of account. The grass em-
bryo has its specialized features, but there can be no advantage
in undue elaboration of the differences.

THE PLANT BODY METAMEROUS

The general fact to be kept in mind is that plant bodies are
metamerous, that is, made up of phylogenetically and mor-

6 Described by Zambonini, F. Mineralogia Vesuviana, p. 254. 1910.
1 Annals of Botany, 30: 509-534. October, 1916, with bibliography.

cook: seedling morphology 421

phologically equivalent units of structure, the phytomers, as
they have been called. A typical, vegetative phytomer is
represented by one of the internodes, or sections of a jointed
plant stem, together with the roots that may grow from the
surface of the internode and the leaf that it bears at the distal
end. A terminal bud, and usually one or more lateral buds, are
formed within the sheathing base of the leaf, so that a succession
of phytomers can be produced.2

Cotyledons are leaves of the first phytomers of young plants,
the internode element of this phytomer being represented by the
so-called hypocotyl, or basal joint of the plant stem, from which
the roots grow down. Other joints of the stem send out roots
from lateral surfaces. In some palms the roots are confined to
the ends of the internodes but in others they grow adventi-
tiously from any part of the surface.

GERMINATION IN PALMS AND GRASSES

Germination commonly begins with the elongation or down-
ward growth of the hypocotyl and the roots. In palms and
grasses, the development of the hypocotyl is relatively slight, a
biological deficiency that has been made good in different ways
in the two groups. The grasses have small seeds which are
easily buried, and germinate quickly in a few days, whereas the
palms have the largest of all seeds and germination is a process
of weeks or months.

The method of germination of some of the large-seeded palms
is most remarkable. The function of the hypocotyl in dicotyle-
donous plants is performed by a petiole or elongated base of the
cotyledon, which grows out of the seed and burrows into the
soil, taking the plumule with it. In some cases the cotyledon
elongates to the extent of several inches. In the germination
of the so-called double-coconut Lodoicea seychellarum, the lar-
gest of all seeds, the cotyledon attains a length of several feet.
After the burrowing cotyledon of a palm has grown to its full
length, the tip, representing the hypocotyl, sends out roots,

2 Cook, O. F. Morphology and evolution of leaves. Journ. Washington Acad.
Sci.. 6: 537. 1916.

422 cook: seedling morphology

and splits open on one side for the emergence of the plumule.
Thus the cotyledon itself, like all of the subsequent leaves of the
palms, has a sheathing base.

After being planted by the elongated burrowing base or
petiole of the cotyledon, the palm embryo encounters the same
problem of pushing its way to the surface of the soil as does the
grass embryo, and has solved it in a similar way, by specializing
the lower joints of the plant axis. Instead of producing com-
plete, bladed leaves, the internodes immediately above the
cotyledons of palms and grasses produce only small, rudimen-
tary leaves, in the form of narrow, cylindrical bladeless sheaths.

The germination of the maize plant shows the extent to which
these specializations have been carried in grasses. Even when
the seeds are buried under several inches of soil the bladeless
first leaf, or coleoptile, may be carried up to the surface by the
growth of a specially elongated root-bearing section of the axis.
The extreme cases are found in some of the varieties of maize
grown by the Hopi, Navajo, and other native Indian tribes of
the dry table-lands of New Mexico and Arizona.3

The more or less elongated section of the stem below the cole-
optile of the maize is called by some writers hypocotyl, by some
epicotyl, and by still others mesocotyl, the name depending upon
whether the organ was supposed to be a part of the cotyledon
or a distinct morphological element above or below the cotyledon.
Some others have looked upon the coleoptile as the cotyledon.
If both the scutellum and the coleoptile are considered as parts
of the cotyledon, the intervening structure has to be reckoned
likewise as a part of the cotyledon. On this basis, mesocotyl
would be the more appropriate term, and it may also be justified
on the ground that the coleoptile has analogy, if not homology,
with the cotyledons of other plants.

A distinct name, mesocotyl or some other, is needed, because
this part of the axis, in producing roots along its entire length
instead of only at the upper end, is unlike the other internodes
and there are differences of internal structure. That the meso-

8 Collins, G. N. A drought-resisting adaptation in the seedlings of Hopi
maize. Journ. Agr. Research, 1: 293-301. 1914.

cook: seedling morphology 423

cotyl is different, is not, however, a sufficient reason for sup-
posing that it is not the morphological equivalent of the other
internodes. To consider that an intern ode may be rhizophorous
along its entire length is only to recognize in the seedlings of
some of the grasses a condition that is common among palms,
and is retained through the entire life-history. To hold that a
root-bearing section of the axis above the scutellum is a part of
the cotyledon, seems a much more violent assumption than to
suppose that the internode of the coleoptile has retained the
primitive root-bearing function. To deny that the mesocotyl
represents the internode of the coleoptile is to assume that this
internode has been suppressed and a new organ intercalated in
its place.

EPIBLASTS AS RUDIMENTARY PHYTOMERS

Reduction or suppression of the leaf or of the axial element
of the phytomer being very common forms of specialization,
the epiblasts may be taken to indicate one or two rudimentary
internodes above the scutellum. Thus the mesocotyl would
belong to the third or fourth phytomer of the seedling, the one
that produces the first leaf sheath, the coleoptile. It is much
easier to believe that epiblasts represent rudiments of suppressed
phytomers than that they hark back to auricles of a formerly
more highly developed cotyledonary leaf. The so-called auricles
of grass leaves are so distinctly a part of the ligular specializa-
tion that their separate survival as epiblasts seems highly
improbable.

A tendency of different organs to become more alike has often
to be recognized, but this idea of morphological convergence
would hardly justify the assignment of parts of a foliage leaf to
represent the scutellum, coleoptile, and epiblast. In order to
consider these organs as parts of the same leaf it has to be as-
sumed that the sheathing base, representing the most primitive
element of leaf structure, has been suppressed, while the blade,
ligule, and auricles have been retained.

424 cook: seedling morphology

prophyllum and coleoptile

The prophyllum of palms appears generally to be a double
organ, formed by the concrescence of bladeless sheaths repre-
senting the reduced leaves of two very short basal phyto-
mers of the inflorescence or the branch, in the few palms that
produce branches. Usually only the basal sheath of the in-
florescence shows the double or bicarinate condition, but in
inflorescences of the small, trunkless palms that constitute the
genus Sabal all of the spathes are compressed and bicarinate like
the first.

Prophylla of grasses resemble those of palms except that they
are not united on the side away from the main axis, but this
condition also occurs in palms, having been observed in 1915 in
a Peruvian species of Ceroxylon. Here the sides not only failed
to meet in the middle but often the insertions were not directly
opposite. In grasses as well as in palms the prophylla are always
bicarinate and bilabiate, or biapiculate. Still more significant
facts have been noted by Mr. G. N. Collins, that when buds or
branches develop inside the prophylla their position is lateral, or
opposite one of the carinae, instead of in the median position that
would represent the axil if the prophyllum were a simple organ.
A few cases were found where two buds developed in the same
prophyllum, one on each side, a still more definite indication that
two metamers are represented.

If it be admitted that the prophyllum is a double organ, indi-
cations of duplicity in the coleoptile do not require such an
interpretation as Worsdell' has proposed in homologizing the
coleoptile with the ligule of the foliage leaf. Metaphanic antici-
pation of a double organ like the prophyllum in the seedling
stage may be considered, or the alternative possibility that a
double organ of the seedling is reproduced in the prophylla of
the branches. A double coleoptile would mean that the leaves
of two primitive phytomers are involved, one probably the leaf
of the internode represented by the mesocotyl, the other a leaf
whose internode element has been suppressed. But whether
single or double, the coleoptile may be supposed to represent
the entire sheath of the foliage leaf, not merely the ligule.

cook: seedling morphology 425

This is in line with the suggestion already made in relation
to the epiblast. If we consider that two reduced leaves are
united in the coleoptile, a similar reduction of leaves immediately
above the cotyledon would not seem improbable. The epi-
blasts would be in the nature of hypophylls like those that occur
on seedlings of the avocada, Persea americana, for several inches
above the cotyledons. Epiblasts may be considered as rudi-
mentary leaves without supposing that they have been in the
past equal partners of the cotyledons, and without adopting the
theory that the monocotyledons plants have been derived
directly from dicotyledons. Too much stress appears to have
been laid upon the number of the cotyledons, in view of the
fact that variations are of rather frequent occurrence, and that
the two series of plant families approximate rather closely when
such groups as the Araceae, Artocarpaceae, and Piperaceae are
considered.

As the metamerous organization of the plant body is espe-
cially noticeable in these more primitive members of the two
series, there is the greater reason to take this feature into account
in attempting to reach a morphological understanding of special
structures and functions. The principle of metamerism yields
a conception of the plant body as made up of equivalent units,
instead of as an axis with leaves and other appendages attached.

ABSTRACTS

Authors of scientific papers are requested to see that abstracts, preferably
prepared and signed by themselves, are forwarded promptly to the editors.
Each of the scientific bureaus in Washington has a representative authorized to
forward such material to this journal and abstracts of official publications should
be transmitted through the representative of the bureau in which they originate.
The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those appearing in
this issue.

RADIATION. — The emissivity of straight and helical filaments of
tungsten. W. W. Coblentz. Bureau of Standards Scientific
Paper No. 300 (Bull. Bur. Stds., 14: 115-131). 1917.
In the present investigation the radiation both from the inside and
from the outside of the turn of a helically wound tungsten filament in
an atmosphere of nitrogen was studied. It was found that the intensity
of the radiation from within the turn of the helix is from 90 to 100 per
cent greater than from a similar area on the outside of the turn. This
is accounted for on the basis of multiple reflection within the helix.
This reflection modifies the quality of the light so that it is redder than
the light from the outside of the turn. The close agreement between
the observed infra-red measurements of the radiation from within
the helix and the computed values (obtained on the basis of multiple
reflection and the reflectivity of tungsten) confirms the belief that the
phenomenon is the result of multiple reflection. Tests made with a
nicol prism, showed that the fight from within the filament is highly
polarized. This and the infra-red energy measurements both indicate
that the quality of the radiation emitted differs from that of a black
body. There is no indication that the temperature within the helix
is higher than on the outside of the turn. A difference in temperature
of 200° would be required to account for the observed difference in
brightness. W. W. C.

CALORIMETRY. — An aneroid calorimeter for specific and latent heats.

Nathan S. Osborne. Bureau of Standards Scientific Paper No.

301 (Bull. Bur. Stds., 14: 133-157). 1917.

The principle of the unstirred or "aneroid" type of calorimeter

has been embodied in an instrument especially designed for deter-

426

abstracts: geology 427

ruinations of the specific heat and latent heat of several substances
in general use as refrigerating media. Heat developed electrically in
a coil located in the central axis of the cylindrical shell comprising the
calorimeter is distributed by conduction to the calorimeter and contents
whose initial and final temperature, when in thermal equilibrium, are
measured by a platinum resistance thermometer. Heat from other
sources is excluded by enveloping the calorimeter with a metal jacket
separated from it by an air space and keeping this jacket during measure-
ments at the same temperature as the calorimeter surface, using multiple
thermocouples to indicate this equality. The calorimeter is adapted for
use between — 50° and +50°C. and for pressures up to 70 atmospheres.
The method of manipulation in making measurements of heat capacity
is described, and the results of an extended series of observations to
determine the heat capacity of the empty calorimeter are given.

N. S. 0.

PHYSIOLOGICAL OPTICS.— The relative sensibility of the average
eye to light of different colors, and some practical applications to
radiation problems. W. W. Coblentz and W. B. Emerson. Bureau
of Standards Scientific Paper No. 303 (Bull. Bur. Stds., 14: 167-250)
1917.
In the present investigation the methods are practically the same as
used by previous experimenters. In the visual measurements, the
spectral light was compared with a standard white light both by means
of a flicker photometer and by means of an equality of brightness pho-
tometer. The source of white light was a standarized vacuum tungsten
lamp. A cylindrical acetylene flame was used as a source of spectral
light. The distribution of energy in the spectrum of the acetylene
flame was determined with great care. Visibility curves were obtained
on 130 persons, of which number 7 were known to be color blind.
The visibility curve of the average eye is wider than previously
observed. A mathematical equation of the average visibility is given
and applications of these data to physical photometry are made. It is
shown that the eye responds to light having an intensity less than
1 X lO"16 watt. W. W. C.

GEOLOGY. — Structure of the Vicksburg- Jackson area, Mississsippi.
Oliver B. Hopkins. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin 641-D.
Pp. 93-120, with 1 plate. 1916.
The object of this report is to show which of the- areas in west-
central Mississippi that were examined by the Survey are considered

428 abstracts: technology

favorable and which unfavorable for the occurrence of oil, to discourage
drilling in the unfavorable localities, and thus to aid those interested
in making conclusive tests to determine the presence or absence of oil
and gas.

All the rocks of the area are sedimentary in origin and are relatively
young, the exposed rocks ranging in age from Claiborne (Eocene) to
Recent. Of these formations the loess and the Jackson underlie by
far the greater part of the area, and the Vicksburg and Catahoula
formations and the terrace sand and gravel underlie smaller areas.

The general structure of the Gulf coastal plain is simple. A series
of beds slopes gently southward and passes successively deeper and
deeper beneath more recent deposits toward the coast. This general
dip toward the coast is interrupted by local steepening or flattening
and in a few places by a reversal in direction. These irregularities of
dip, which are of greatest significance in the accumulation of oil and
gas in valuable pools, are well illustrated in the Vicksburg-Jackson
area. The geologic structure is represented on a map by contours on
the Vicksburg limestone. The possibilities of oil and gas occurring in
the area are discussed and the most promising areas for prospecting
are pointed out. R. W. S.

TECHNOLOGY. — The effusion method of determining gas density.

Junius David Edwards. Bureau of Standards Technologic Paper

No. 94. Pp. 30. 1917.
In cooperation with a number of men employing this method in the
natural gas industry a series of experiments was made using their
apparatus under field conditions. It was found that results in error
by more than 10 per cent were not unusual. The theory of the effusion
process was studied, and the effect of differences in physical properties
upon the relative rates of effusion of air and hydrogen, argon, methane,
and carbon dioxide at different pressures was determined. Also ob-
servations were made on the effect of the effusion pressure, the confining
medium and the shape and size of the orifice. It is very important
that the orifice be of the proper size and shape. It has been shown
that the apparent specific gravity, as determined by this method, can
be varied within rather wide limits by changing the conditions. How-
ever, by the observance of certain precautions in the construction and
use of the apparatus, it is possible to secure results accurate to about 2
per cent. Recommendations have been made as to the most suitable
type and form of apparatus. J. D. E.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

THE GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON
The 318th meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, March 28, 1917.

INFORMAL COMMUNICATIONS

C. J. Hares: Gastroliths in the Cloverly formation. Gastroliths were
found in the summer o 1916 in the Cloverly formation in the northeast
portion of the Bighorn Basin, Wyoming, at about the base of Pryor
Mountains in Montana. These gastroliths occur in the shale portion
of the Cloverly, between the Pryor conglomerate member at the base
and the Greybull sandstone member. The gastroliths occur in such
large quantities and so large individually that I was led to question
the theory that they were polished in the stomachs of dinosaurs and
plesiosaurs, as advocated by Williston and others. The shale, however,
does carry some bones of these animals. A large representative col-
lection was made; some of the specimens are very highly polished, and
others polished scarcely at all. But if the highly polished ones are true
gastroliths, then it is probable that the unpolished ones are likewise
gastroliths. Some of the stones are over 6 inches long. The material
consists mostly of highly siliceous rocks, jasper, chalcedony, quartzite,
etc.

Discussion: C. W. Gilmore spoke of the definite association of
similar stones with single skeletons of plesiosaurs.

REGULAR PROGRAM

C. J. Hares: The southern extension of the Eagle sandstone and its
relation to the Niobrara shale in Wyoming. In the summer of 1916,
while mapping the Elk Basin and Byron oil fields and an area extending
from Bridger, Montana, to Greybull, Wyoming, detailed stratigraphic
information was obtained, showing the correlation of the Upper Cre-
taceous formations of Montana with those of Wyoming. The classic
Cretaceous section of Montana, as worked out by Hayden, Weed,
Stanton, and Hatcher, along the Musselshell River, has been carried
southward by the detailed work of Lloyd, Bowen, and Hancock to the
Yellowstone River. The formations so mapped include the Colorado
shale, the Eagle sandstone, Claggett shale, Judith River formation, and
Bearpaw shale. The upper part of the Eagle and the Judith River
are mostly of fresh water origin, the others in the main are marine.

429

430 proceedings: geological society

On the other hand the more or less classic section of southern and
central Wyoming, as established by King, Hayden, Darton, Stanton,
Knowlton, Veatch, and others, has been carried by detailed mapping
by Bowen, Barnett, Wegemann, Lupton, Hares, and others, northward
to the northern boundary of Wyoming and even beyond to the Yellow-
stone River. The area along the Montana-Wyoming State line may
be likened naturally to the closing point on an engineer's survey, and
it is found that the formations of the two classic sections join up for the
most part, as previous general correlations have been made, but vary
in certain details.

The southern and central Wyoming section includes the following
formations in the Colorado and Montana group, from the bottom up,
the Thermopolis shale, Mowry shale, Frontier formation, Carlile shale,
Niobrara shale, Steele shale, Mesaverde formation, and Lewis shale. In
the detailed work it was found that the Thermopolis, Mowry, Frontier,
and Carlile are recognizable units as far north as the Yellowstone River
and possibly beyond, and that along the Montana-Wyoming State line
the Niobrara, as mapped in central Wyoming by Wegemann, Barnett,
Bowen, and Hares, falls about 1400 feet below the top of the Colorado
group and the base of the Eagle sandstone. The Steele shale along the
same line includes the upper part of the Colorado shale, the Eagle
sandstone, and the lower part of the Claggett formation. The Mesa-
verde corresponds to the upper part, or Parkman sandstone member,
of the Claggett and the Judith River. The Lewis shale has been rec-
ognized as far north as the Wind River basin and Salt Creek, Wyoming.

It has been fairly definitely established that the type Eagle sandstone
includes in its lower part the massive cliff-forming sandstone at Park
City and Billings, but about 100 feet below the massive sandstone is a
thin sand, 10 to 40 feet thick, which contains an Eagle fauna. This
lower sand is rim-forming from Park City to Elk Basin and the Shoshone
River, but from there south it is represented, as is the remainder of the
Eagle formation, by thin-bedded sandstones and arenaceous shales.
This sand has been called the Elk Basin sandstone member of the Eagle.
Further, it seemingly corresponds to the Shannon sandstone as mapped
in the Casper-Salt Creek region, and it may be found still farther south.
The body of shale between this horizon and the Mesaverde as a rule is
light-colored and sandy, whereas the shale below the Elk Basin sand-
stone member of the Eagle and above the Carlile shale is darker colored,
contains thin limy layers, and concretions that weather reddish-brown.
The southern extension of the Eagle sandstone into Wyoming seems to
represent the thinning out to a feather-edge of a recessional sand that
is massive, thick, and resistant in central Montana. It has been found
that the upper part of the Claggett shale grows more and more sandy
as it is followed southward into Wyoming and includes about 540 feet
of massive sandstones and thin-bedded shales of which at least the lower
part is marine; and, further, that this ridge-forming sandstone — called
the Parkman sandstone member of the Claggett— corresponds to the
lower part of the Mesaverde, also called the Parkman sandstone mem-

proceedings: geological society 431

ber of the Mesaverde, as mapped in central Wyoming, and is also
present in the southern part of the Bighorn Basin. The Judith River,
as traced southward, includes the lower part of the Meeteetse formation
and corresponds to the upper part of the Mesaverde of central and
southern Wyoming. The Bearpaw shale can be recognized as a marine
shale as far south as Elk Basin, and marine sandstones are recognized
as far south as the Shoshone River and Grey bull. Further detailed
mapping will probably establish the fact that the Bearpaw corresponds
in whole or in part with the Lewis shale of the southern areas. The
work also shows that the formations as a whole are thinner in the north-
ern and central Wyoming areas. Apparently the source of sediments
was chiefly from the west or southwest direction. This is borne out
in part by the fact that on the west side of the Bighorn Basin no purely
marine beds are present above the base of the Mesaverde.

Discussion: C. F. Bowen spoke of the feathering of the Eagle sand-
stone near the Musselshell River. C. H. Wegemann said that about
30 miles southeast of Billings the Eagle sandstone disappears among
shales. T. W. Stanton called attention to the almost perfect corre-
lation which recent detailed study had made possible.

Willis T. Lee : Relations of the Morrison and Sundance formations.
Sedimentary rocks of variable character and thickness, belonging to the
Sundance formation (marine Jurassic) occur in most places along the
eastern foothills in Colorado as far south as Morrison, where they are
10 to 20 feet thick. They have heretofore been included in the Morri-
son formation but are now known to lie unconformably below the low-
est dinosaur beds. These Jurassic rocks lie unconformably on Per-
mian red beds (Lykins). Farther to the south, beds of gypsum, now
referred to the Lykins, may in fact represent the horizon of the marine
Jurassic. The Morrison formation rests unconformably on the Jur-
assic, or on the Permian where the Jurassic is absent. In the upper
part of the Morrison at the type locality of this formation a small
collection of fossil plants, which F. H. Knowlton has determined to
be highly developed dicotyledons of Cretaceous age, was obtained.
Although the plants were found above the highest known dinosaur
horizon, no question has been raised as to the propriety of including
the plant horizon in the Morrison formation, nor is it probable that
any geologist familiar with the section in the field will raise such a
question unless he discards the accepted definition and redefines the
formation. These rocks, together with the dinosaur beds a few feet
lower, were once classed as Jurassic because of the supposed Jurassic
affinities of the dinosaurs; later as "Jurassic or Cretaceous;" and finally
as "Lower Cretaceous (?)." The plants recently found are of such
character as to place the rocks containing them definitely in the Cre-
taceous and at a horizon considerably above the base of the system.
As the Dakota sandstone, usually classed as basal Upper Cretaceous,
occurs above the rocks containing the plants, it is appropriate to class
those between it and the Jurassic as lower Cretaceous. The Morrison
formation has been regarded as a stratigraphic unit although probably

432 proceedings: geological society

representing a long time. However, as just stated, the Jurassic beds
below the lowest dinosaur horizon were incorrectly included, and there
is a possibility of further restriction of the formation. But, until it is
shown that the plant horizon is not properly included, the plants must
stand in favor of the Cretaceous age of the Morrison.

Discussion: C. H. Wegemann mentioned conglomeratic sandstone
above the Morrison. T. W. Stanton said that typical Dakota forms
occur in eastern Nebraska, and that four of these species are found in
See's Morrison.

Alfeed H. Brooks: Memorial to C. Willard Hayes. (Published in
the Bulletin of the Geological Society of America, 28: 81-123.)

The 319th meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, April 11, 1917.

INFORMAL COMMUNICATIONS

G. W. Stose: Corals growing along the coast of Delaware. The
finding of corals as far north as Delaware raises interesting questions
as to conditions of environment, means of distribution, effects of en-
vironment on size, etc.

REGULAR PROGRAM

Dean E. Winchester: Oil-shale in the United States. Oil-shale is
an argillaceous or shaly deposit from which petroleum may be obtained
by distillation but not by treatment with solvents. It must be mined
like coal and then heated before its oil is made available. In the
United States there are black shales, ranging in age from Devonian to
Eocene, which will yield oil when heated, but so far as yet examined
the oil-shale of the Green River formation (Eocene) of Colorado,
Nevada, Utah, and Wyoming is by far the richest, although shale of
Carboniferous age in southwestern Montana has been found to yield
as much as 24 gallons of oil per short ton, and some shales associated
with coal beds in the coal fields of the eastern part of the United States
yield even more. Cannel coal and cannel shale are also rich. Good
oil-shale is black or brownish black in color, except on weathered
surface, where it is bluish gray to nearly white. The shale is fine-
grained, usually slightly calcareous. It is tough and in thin-bedded
specimens remarkably flexible. When freshly broken oil-shale gives off
a peculiar odor like petroleum, although the rock contains but little oil
that can be extracted with solvents.

Approximately 5500 square miles in northwestern Colorado and
northeastern Utah are underlain by beds of oil-shale (Green River
formation) thick enough to mine and apparently rich enough to warrant
the development of an industry for the manufacture of shale-oil and
other products. Mining conditions in the oil-shale of Colorado and
Utah are much more favorable than in Scotland, where the oil-shale
industry has been best developed. Crude distillation tests indicate

proceedings: geological society 433

that the oil-shale of the Green River formation is capable of yielding
more oil than the shale mined in Scotland, although the yield of am-
monia (principal byproduct) may be less than that derived from the
Scotch shales. Individual beds vary from place to place in thickness
and character, but the apparent persistence of the individual members
of the formation is remarkable.

The beds of oil-shale were laid down in fresh water which had an
enormous expanse and was so deep that wave action had little effect on
the sediments. The richer beds of oil-shale contain an immense quan-
tity of vegetable matter, while the leaner beds contain much less.
Algae, mosses, ferns, pollen of higher plants, fungi, and anomalous
but well marked and characteristic forms of plant life are very common
in the rich shale, as shown in several hundred thin sections prepared by
Dr. C. A. Davis shortly before his death. Fish remains are in some
places present, insect larvae, fresh-water shells, , and even bird bones
have been found.

It is believed that, at least in the Green River oil-shales, the oil is
indigenous to the shale, being formed from the vegetal remains in the
shale partly by the slow processes of nature, partly by the violent
destructive distillation in the laboratory. Dr. Davis in an unpublished
note says "the mineral (not organic) part of the rich bed is physically
so minute that if it were the sole original material into which the bitumi-
nous matter was injected the intrusion would have greatly distorted
the beds overlying the invaded ones, but no such distortion is observ-
able. . . . If, however, the bituminous matter is held in the partly
bitumified matter seen in an incompletely decomposed state in the
shale, heat might decompose the parent fossil material, and petroleum
in quantities proportionate to the percentages of plant remains might be
produced."

Discussion: H. M. Ami spoke of extensive tests made by the Cana-
dian government on Nova Scotian shales. Near intrusives in these
shales some naturally distilled hydrocarbons have been found. The
occurrence of albertite was referred to. David White compared
albertite and gilsonite as to occurrence in fissures, and also compared
the lamination and algal growths in play a deposits with structures in
oil-shales. Winchester added that gilsonite veins seem to have
originated from oil-shales. They are found in the beds above and below
the shales.

E. T. Wherry: Occurrence of calcite in silicified wood. A specimen
of silicified wood obtained from Yellowstone National Park and show-
ing calcite crystals scattered through its mass was described. The
calcites contain near their centers inclusions of well-preserved wood
cells, but outwardly are clear, except for a dark "phantom" line a short
distance from their, surfaces. The wood cell material crowded out by
the growth of the later portions of the crystals is heaped up as a dark
rim around them, no pressure effects being shown by the cells outside
of this rim. It is inferred that after the wood had rotted to the con-
sistency of a wet sponge the calcite started to grow from solutions

434 proceedings: botanical society

impregnating the wood. At first the growth was so rapid that the wood
cells were enclosed, as is the sand in "sand-calcites," but later it went
on more slowly, giving opportunity for the foreign matter to be ex-
cluded. The "phantom" line probably marks a temporary cessation
of growth. The absence of silica within the calcites, as well as other
relations, indicates that the deposition of silica was subsequent to
crystallization of the calcite.

Discussion: D. F. Hewett mentioned the occurrence in certain
clays and residual soils of calcite grains surrounded by little quartz
grains, as though the quartz had been pushed aside by the growing
calcite. David White outlined different plausible explanations of the
structures described by Wherry.

R. S. Bassler : The value of microscopic fossils in stratigraphy. The
speaker based his remarks upon the Early Tertiary Bryozoa of North
America, a monographic study of which has just been completed for
the U. S. Geological Survey. He showed with the aid of specimens
and lantern slides the methods of collecting, the preparation for study,
and the characters employed in the classification of these microscopic
fossils. Until recent years these fossil bryozoa have been considered
more as perforated stones than as well organized creatures in which the
perforation and ornamentation of their surface had definite physio-
logical purposes. The relation between the morphological and skeletal
variations and their physiological purposes was discussed, and finally
the stratigraphic results, particularly in intercontinental correlation,
were described.

Discussion: E. O. Ulrich emphasized the fact that because these
fossils are studied microscopically, specific differences can readily be
established, and only specific characters are of definite time value.

H. E. Merwin, Secretary.

THE BOTANICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 121st regular meeting of the Society was held in Assembly Hall
of the Cosmos Club at 8 p.m., Tuesday, May 1, 1917; 39 members
present. The meeting was called to order by the President. Mr.
Burt A. Rudolph and Mr. Horace W. Truesdell, Scientific As-
sistants in the Office of Fruit Disease Investigations, and Mr. Glenn
C. Hahn, Office of Forest Pathology, were elected to membership in
the Society.

The regular program was devoted to a Symposium on the District
flora. Prof. A. S. Hitchcock gave an outline of the plan of the flora.
The flora of Washington has been studied for nearly 100 years. In
1831 Brereton's Prodromus of the Flora Columbiana, was published.
Ward's Flora, or Guide to the Flora of Washington and Vicinity,
was published in 1881 and several supplements have since been issued.
In 1906 a mimeograph list of the vascular plants of the District of
Columbia and vicinity was prepared by P. L. Ricker, Chairman of the
Botanical Seminar. The Seminar Committee on Spermatophyta con-

proceedings: botanical society 435

sisted of A. S. Hitchcock, Agnes Chase, and J. H. Painter Early in
1915 Frederick V. Coville and A. S. Hitchcock undertook to organize
a study of the District flora on the cooperative basis and the plan was
reported to the Society in 19*15. During 1915 and the early months
of 1916 keys of nearly all the families were prepared. These keys were
mimeographed and distributed to contributors. Mr. Coville has since
withdrawn from active leadership and the flora is now under the direc-
tion of Mr. Hitchcock and Mr. P. C. Standley. A total of twenty-
five contributors are at work on the different groups. A preliminary
manuscript is to be turned in by June 1 and the manuscript completed
by November 1 of this year.

Mr. Edgar T. Wherry, at the invitation of the Society, gave a paper
on Geological areas about Washington. Mr. Wherry not being able to be
present, the paper was read by Mr. Hitchcock. The most prominent
geological feature is the Fall Line, which separates the Piedmont Plateau
on the northwest from the Coastal Plain on the southeast. This line
was named from the fact that the rivers and smaller streams flowing
southwestward toward the sea often have waterfalls or rapids at or
near this line. Above this the valleys are narrow and steep-sided and
the contour lines close together, while below it the valleys are~ broad
and open and the contour lines wide-spaced. The geological forma-
tions of the Piedmont Plateau are chiefly crystalline gneisses of early
periods, among which may be mentioned the Carolina gneiss, granite
gneiss, diorite, biotite granite, and basic igneous rocks, including gabbro,
nieta-gabbro, and serpentine. The Coastal Plain is occupied by uncon-
solidated gravels, sands, and clays deposited during successive ad-
vances of the sea during Cretaceous, Tertiary, and Quaternary periods.
Gravels also occur to some extent as cappings on the hills along the
edge of the Piedmont. Bogs are frequent' in the Coastal Plain and
rare on the Piedmont. Lime is present in the soils of the Piedmont
through concentration by means of accumulations of leaf mold, al-
though there are no highly calcareous rocks in the vicinity. Acid
soils are predominant on the Coastal Plain. The speaker called atten-
tion to the condition of the flora of the two regions which he illustrated
by the distribution of the species of Liliales. Those species limited to
calcareous soils found chiefly on the Piedmont Plateau are Allium tricoc-
cum, Unifolium canadense, and Trillium sessile. Those limited to noncal-
careous or acid soils found chiefly on the Coastal Plain are Aletris
farinosa, T afield ia racemosa, and Stenanthium gramineum. The other
species grow throughout the region and show no marked soil preference.

Mr. George B. Sudworth spoke on the subject Distribution of
trees in the floral area. Mr. Sudworth traced briefly the history of the
study of the trees of the District of Columbia. Lists have been pre-
pared at various times by Ward, Knowlton, Holm, and Steele. There
are about 400 species and varieties of native and exotic trees growing
within the District, many of which are in Government reservations.
Of the 140 species of native trees the broad-leaved trees of the District
number about 122 species and varieties and are therefore greatly in

436 proceedings: botanical society

excess of all others. No arborescent representatives of the monocot-
yledons are found growing naturally within the District. The oaks
are the most prominent among the broad leaved trees of the District
and constitute from one-half to three-fourths of the upland forest
cover. They consist largely of black, red, and white oak. The most
prominent conifer of this region is Pinus virginiana. Two naturalized
trees of the District deserving special mention are the Japanese paper
mulberry and the Ailanthus or Tree of Heaven. Both were introduced
from China and Japan and are the most thoroughly established of the
exotic trees.

Mr. Frederick V. Coville discussed Humus as a factor in plant
distribution. Mr. Coville exhibited two samples of organic matter,
the one, brown, only partially decomposed remains of the leaves and
roots of laurel and oak, which make up a large proportion of the
acid humus of this section; the other a black, fully -reduced, nonstruc-
tural leaf mold, the reduction in this case being favored by the large
amount of calcium contained in the leaves from which the mold is
formed. The lime content of the sample of leaf mold shown was six
per cent, expressed as calcium oxide. Mr. Coville discussed the effect
of these two types of organic matter on the distribution of plants.

Mr. P. L. Ricker discussed Collecting and preparing specimens.
Mr. Ricker called attention briefly to the older methods of collecting
and drying plants and suggested the advisability of using corrugated
driers as well as neat portfolios, especially for field work. Where
corrugated driers are used the plants can be dried without change of
blotters but, in case of rainy weather, the use of artificial heat is recom-
mended.

Following this the various papers were discussed informally by the
members on the program and by Messrs. Safford, Beattie, Norton.
Waite, Lewton, and Shantz.

H. L. Shantz, Corresponding Secretari/.

O 0 •%*-

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VII AUGUST 19, 1917 No. 14

PHYSICS. — Note on the vibration frequencies of elastic systems.
M. D. Heksey, Bureau of Standards. (Communicated by
Louis A. Fischer.)

Introduction. This paper deals with the free vibrations of
perfectly elastic bodies. Damping and forced vibrations are
excluded from consideration. The purpose is to present the
most complete statement, regarding the vibration frequencies of
such bodies, that is possible in advance of any knowledge of the
geometrical shape of the bodies.

The paper is referred to the attention particularly of persons
engaged in acoustics, or in the development of time-keeping
devices, or in problems of engineering construction where res-
onance has to be avoided. Still others, however, may find the
paper suggestive in showing what can be done by combining
dimensional reasoning with ordinary physical reasoning, in
cases where either one alone would be fruitless.

The reasoning is analogous to that of a previous paper entitled
The Theory of the Stiffness of Elastic Systems, Ho which it may
be regarded as a sequel, and to which reference must be made
for the general conceptions and definitions involved. For con-
venience, however, the following statement of notation is given:

6 = temperature

1 dF1
E = Young's modulus ; a = — ——

E do

1 Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci., 6: 569-575. 1916.

437

438 hersey: alterations of elastic systems

M

= shear modulus;

0

1 dp

~~ n dd

L

= length;

y

1 dh

' L dd

m

= mass;

p

= density

a

= Poisson's

ratio

$

= * (<r) ;

$'

d t N
= — $ (<r); etc

F

= F(R,a);
mi

F'

= £-F(R,a)
bcr

Subscripts 1 and 2 refer to the members of a coupled system.
S = stiffness (ratio force to displacement)
St = torsional stiffness (ratio moment to angle)
n = frequency of free vibration
• ldn -ldS

n = ~~r; s = a^; etc-

nde S dd

c, C, Ct, Ci, C2, Ci2 = dimensionless "shape factors," i.e., con-
stants fixed by Poisson's ratio and the generalized shape.

The most important results of this paper are to be found in
the four formulas (1), (4), (11), and (12), giving respectively the
frequency of a single body, the change in frequency with tem-
perature, the frequency of a coupled system, and the change in
this frequency with temperature.

General formulas for frequency of a single body. The vibration
frequency for all bodies of the same generalized shape (it will be
recalled that this implies not only geometrical similarity but
also a similar distribution of density and the other properties
of the material) may be written

Lip Lip y

= JM $ (a) = Jht * M (

* m * m )

hersey: vibrations of elastic systems 439

The first two results come at once from dimensional reasoning on
the assumption that the absolute size L, the density p, together
with any two of the three elastic constants E, n, and <x, form a com-
plete set of independent variables. Those two results, ex cept for
the explicit mention of Poisson's ratio, will be familiar to any one
who has consulted Lord Rayleigh's writings on Sound. The tran-
sition to the last two results is obvious, and these will be more use-
ful for some of the present purposes, because they involve a smaller
number of quantities that are affected by temperature. This hap-
pens because of the physical fact that the mass of a body does not
sensibly alter with temperature, whereas both the length and
density do. The functions <J>0, $, etc., are unknown, but if neces-
sary could be determined by model experiments; thus, for ex-

i — ■

ample, <t>0 would be found by plotting observed values of n L \-^

* E

against known values of a.

General formula for change in frequency of a single body with
temperature. Differentiating the second part of (1) logarith-
mically, treating m as a constant, and simplifying mathematically
without introducing any further physical information, gives

n = -— + *(<* + t)
$ de

(2)
- -J- + H/3 + 7)

^ de

In case the first term vanishes, a simple result is already avail-
able. This will happen for pure bending or stretching, for pure
twisting or shearing, and for materials, if any such exist, in
which Poisson's ratio does not change with temperature. For,
with pure bending etc., <t> is constant, so that n = \ (« + 7);
while, with pure twisting, etc., ^ is constant, so that n = \ (0 + 7) .
In general, however, some physical law must now be made use

of to evaluate — .
dd

The foregoing results, once it is stipulated which one of the

multiple values of the several constants is to be understood by a

given symbol, are perfectly applicable to heterogeneous and

440 hersey: vibrations of elastic systems

anisotropic bodies; nor need the vibrations be small enough to
be isochronous, provided the restriction to the same generalized
shape is taken to include the deformations. But, now, for
homogeneous, isotropic bodies

.-±2-1 (3)

Differentiating (3) , and substituting the result in (2), gives finally

n = i[(c+l)a-cp + y]

in which

r, /-. , . *' /-, , \ d , fmn2\
C = 2(l+a)--= (l + ff)_log (-— J ) (4)

<J> da \LE/ (

= 2(1 + a)- -I.-. (l + ff — logf — J--.1
^ da \ L/jl /

The simplicity of equation (4) is noteworthy; it shows that, for
bodies made of materials for which a, /3, and y are known, the effect
of temperature on frequency can be determined empirically with-
out altering the temperature of the models; and, therefore, with-
out any restrictions on the thermal properties of the materials

the models are made of. Note1 that in plotting — - or

LE L /j.

against a to determine c as a function of a graphically, relative
values are sufficient; for the existence of an unknown con-
stant numerical factor will not alter the slope of a logarithmic
plot. The same remark applies below, wherever similar expres-
sions occur.

From (4) the condition for temperature compensation is that

t-l + l(l+l) (5)

a C \ a/

When 7 is small compared to a (for steel 7 is about 1/25 of a),

- = 1 -| — . The two methods of compensation suggested in
a c

the previous paper — altering the composition of the material,

or altering the geometrical shape of the body — are equally

applicable here.

hersey: vibrations of elastic systems 441

Nothing that has been said prevents $ in (1), and therefore
c in (5), from being a multivalued function, corresponding to the
existence of more than one mode of vibration. From this it
might be imagined that the condition for compensation (5)
would not apply to more than one mode of vibration at a time;
so that, if an alloy were so chosen as to compensate the fundamen-
tal, the pitch of the harmonics would alter with temperature.
Closer examination shows that, for any two frequencies which

stand in a constant ratio - - = k, where k is independent of FOIS-
TS

son's ratio, the values of c will be identical, and compensation
will be possible simultaneously, if possible at all.

The relation of frequency to stiffness. From equation (3) of the
previous paper, S = LE <t> (a) = Lh\I/(<f). Comparing with (1)
above,

V- / M (6)

n

in which the form of / will depend on the generalized shape.

In passing it may be noted that the corresponding expressions
in terms of torsional stiffness are sometimes preferable. It
can be shown that the torsional stiffness or rigidity

St = UE 4n (a) = L-V fc Or) (7)

so that

n = jJStM<r) (8)

L 1 m

From (7), also,

St= (Ct+l)a-Ctl3 + 3y

in which

e, = (i + „)^u + „)£,og(A) v (9)

I

y/ a<r \ &t /

\

The use of (7), for example, as a recipe for model experiments,
would render unnecessary the St. Venant theory of the torsion of

442 hersey: vibrations of elastic systems

prisms, so far as any practical application to the stiffness of
beams or galvanometer suspensions is concerned.

Formulas for frequency of a coupled system. From (6),

J& + & / (a) (10)

' rn., 4- Wo

n =

n mi + m2

because m = mx + m2, and, for forces acting at the coupling,
S = Si + So (equation (11) of previous paper). Since /
depends on the generalized shape, it will be different for different
values of the ratio R, and in any case it is multivalued.

In the particular case of two bodies having the same generalized
shape and a, Si and *S2 of (10) can be replaced by their equivalents
in terms of n\ and n2 by virtue of (6), with the result

n = VRn\+(l-R)nl F (R, a) (1 1)

The function F depends only on the generalized shape; not at
all on the absolute sizes, masses, or elastic moduli of the bodies.
Formulas for change in frequency of coupled system with temper-
ature. Differentiating (10) logarithmically gives, in the case of
two bodies of different generalized shapes but of the same
material,

n=h[{K+l)a-Kp + y]
in which

K =vC1+(l-v)C2 + Cn

C12 = 2(l + ,)^(l+.)ilog(^-2

and in which d and C2 are the appropriate values for the ordi-
nary shape factor C for stiffness, as given in the previous paper ;
viz.,

Y\ aa V-MMi/

with a like expression for C2.

hersey: vibrations of elastic systems 443

For two bodies of the same material and, also, of the same
generalized shape, differentiating (11) gives for K in (12) the
more simple expression.

K = c + 2(1 +*) - (13)

t

which does not require observations of stiffness.

In any event the term Cn vanishes when complex stresses
are absent, for S will then be independent of Poisson's ratio,
and/ therefore a constant. But Ci2 is the only term in (12) which
involves the masses of the bodies in any way. Hence the curious
conclusion that, when complex stresses are absent, n will be
independent of both the absolute mass and the mass distribution.

SOME EXAMPLES

1. Waves in an infinite elastic plate. The most recent work
on this subject2 affords an instance of equation (1); for while the
result as published does not resemble equation (1), it reduces to

it identically on setting $0 (°\) = ^ (2& + 1) \-. r— r^ r

1 (1 + <?) (1 — 2<r)

in which k is any integer, the length L of equation (1) being

taken to be the thickness of the plate.

2. Resonance periods of similar structures. Let quantities
pertaining to the original, full-sized structure be distinguished
by the subscript 0; while those referring to the model are without
subscripts. Then by (1) and (6)

7h = k J#o Jp_ = JSo J>

n L0lElpQ IS 1i

the first form being preferable when stiffness measurements can
not be made; the second when the properties of the material
are not known.

3. Temperature compensation of ordinary tuning fork. For
any case of pure bending or stretching, /3 can not enter (4) ;
hence c = 0, and n = \ {a + 7), which agrees with (2). As-
suming a negative and 7 positive, as is true for steel, compensa-

2 Lamb, H. Proc. Roy. Soc. 93 (A): 114-128, eq. (80). 1917.

V5

444 hersey: vibrations op elastic systems

tion requires that their numerical values be made equal. There
were some persons who took the trouble to construct a certain
tuning fork of invar, in hopes of diminishing its temperature
coefficient ; as would be seen from the above equation, this only
made matters worse.

4. Shrill tuning fork. For any case of pure twisting or shear-
ing, such as the very short stubby forks used for producing in-
audible notes, a cannot enter (4); c = — 1, and h = | (/3 + 7).

5. Telephone diaphragm. For the case of a thin flat circular
disc clamped at the edge, and so approximating a telephone
diaphragm, the expression for c which would be obtained from
model experiments in accordance with (4), if it were not already

available as a result of integration,3 is c = . With o-=0.3,

1—0"

c = about f, so that (4) becomes n = If a — f 13 + i y. Com-
plete compensation would require that 13 be about twice a.

(Steel samples have been found, with - considerably greater

a

and also less than 2.) But note from (4) that the a and (3
terms will enter with opposite signs whenever C is positive.
Since C is positive for the disc shape, it appears that the tempera-
ture coefficient of a disc will always be small compared with that
of a tuning fork of the same material, no matter what that
material is.

6. Spring with distributed mass. If the mass is uniformly dis-
tributed in the direction of the displacement and remains so
during the deformation, it may be shown by integration that

V-f1

lml2Tr

This expression is consistent with

(6); f(a) being a constant depending on the ratio of the mass of
the spring, ra0, to the attached mass, m.

3 Rayleigh in his Theory of Sound, vol. I. § 221 a, gives for the disc a formula

VLEY AM, -1

— 0.8331 —J (1 — o-2) 2

Here L is the diameter and h the thickness. Thus * (<r) = const. (1 — cr2)-*.
Differentiating as directed by (4) gives the expression for c. (In footnote 6 of

32
previous paper replace 32 w by ~7r.)

merwin: dispersion of carborundum 445

7. Balance wheel of a watch. The well-known expression

1 ISt
n = k~ \~j for the case of a weightless spring acting on a rigid

T • 1 IS 1

mass of moment of inertia I, may also be written n = — \— —

r " m 2 ir

in which r is the radius of gyration. This agrees with (8).

Differentiating, n = | St — r. For the hair spring (pure bend-

»

ing), (9) becomes St = a +3 7, hence for the balance wheel
h = f a + 2 7 — t. The condition for compensation is therefore
that the radius of gyration shall be constrained to vary with
temperature at the rate r = \ (a 4- 3 7).

8. Two springs coupled together. Let spring 1, strained purely
by twisting, be coupled to spring 2, which is strained purely by
bending; and let both springs be made of the same material.
Then \pi and 02 are constants, so that Ci = — 1, C2 = 0, Ci2 = 0;
.*. K = — 77, and (12) becomes n = | [ (1 - 77) a 4- r? (3 + 7]. When
the twisted spring is stiffer than the bent spring, the /3 term
predominates, and vice-versa. For springs equally stiff, tj = %,

ol 8 *y
.". n = - + - + -. For two helical springs, Ci = C2 = — 1, so
4 4 2

that n = f (j8 -f- 7) ; for two leaf springs or elliptical springs,

Ci = C2 = 0, so that n ------ § (a 4- 7). These results, including the

above formula for n in ';erms of a, /?, 7, and rj, and subject to the

limitations stated, are true independently of the shapes and

mass distributions of the two bodies, as well as of their absolute

sizes, masses, and elastic moduli.

CRYSTAL OPTICS. — Dispersion and other optical properties
of carborundum. H. E. Merwin, Geophysical Laboratory.

Along the edge of a very pale green carborundum crystal
two areas, each about 0.5 mm. square, were found which were
suitable for measuring the ordinary refractive index. The
angles, measured from the base, were 32° 13' and 34° 15'. The
refractive index for the extraordinary ray was found by measure-
ments on the interference figure1 of a colorless plate 0.675 mm.
thick and about 3 mm. square.

1 See Bauer. M. Neues Jahrb., 2: -49. 1882-83; also Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci.,
4: 533 and 538. 1914.

446

merwin: dispersion of carborundum

The dispersion and birefringence are both much less than those
calculated by L. E. Jewell2 from interference phenomena. The
birefringence corresponds closely to Becke's* measurement, but
the refractive index, coNa, is less than his rough measurements
indicated.

TABLE 1

Indices of Refraction of Carbonrundum

X

CO

6

nn

755

2.616

2.654

745

2.618

2.656

726

2.622

2.660

700

2.627

2.666

671

2.633

2.673

589

2.654

2.697

535

2.675

2.721

486

2.700

2.749

468

2.713

2.763

434

2.741

2.794

422

2.753

2.808

416

2.757

2.812

Microscopical study of several samples of granular carborun-
dum has revealed no definite variations in the refractive index
for red light, even in grains of different color. Coarse material
which is very black may be, when powdered — grains a few
hundredths of a millimeter in diameter — fairly transparent.
Bluish grains are notably pleochroic, some from light blue to
dark blue, some from olive green to greenish blue. The w is the
more strongly absorbed. Coarse black crystals intimately
associated with graphite appear to contain small amounts of
material which give small grains a grayish to bluish color by
transmitted light, but this material, in all the grains so far
observed, has been submicroscopic in size.

The results for w in table 1 were obtained as averages from
the two prisms. The observed values for one prism were 0.003-
0.005 higher than for the other. But inasmuch as one face of

2 Quoted by Tone, in Mineral Industry, 16: 153.

3 Zeitschr. Kryst., 24: 524. 1895.

1907.

wherry: native element minerals 447

each prism showed curvature of 5' the differences should be
regarded as observational. The difference4 e-co is probably not
in error more than ±0.001.

A recent notice of a study of the physical properties of car-
borundum by 0. Weigel has been published,5 but no details are
available.

MINERALOGY. — The nomenclature and classification of the
native element minerals. Edgar T. Wherry,1 National
Museum.

In many respects it would be difficult to improve upon the
nomenclature and classification of native elements worked out
in Dana's System of Mineralogy, yet with the advance of scientific
knowledge new points of view are certain to arise and newly dis-
covered species to demand place in any scheme, so that changes
must be introduced. A few suggestions in this direction are
here put forward, for discussion, criticism, or whatever fate they
may seem to readers to deserve.

nomenclature

The names adopted by Dana are as a rule satisfactory, but
wherever considerations of simplicity, consistency, and clearness
suggest the desirability of changes from his usage, there should
be no hesitation about introducing others.

When an element is known to occur in nature in but one form,
no name different from that used for it in chemistry is needed;
but several elements show polymorphous forms, and these have
heretofore been distinguished by adding either: a suffix, as in
sulfur and sulfun'/e; a prefix, as in palladium and a7fopalladium ;
Greek letters as prefixes, as in a-sulfur and /3-sulfur; or adjectives,
as in yellow phosphorus and monoclinic selenium. The last method,
using crystallographic adjectives, is preferable, because it can be
employed alike in all cases, and its systematic introduction
into mineralogical nomenclature is therefore recommended.

4 The value for the D-line was checked on a thinner plate and, roughly for
lithium light, on grains in immersion liquids.
MVeigel, O. Chem. Abstr., 11: 1066. 1917.
transferred August 16th to the Bureau of Chemistry.

448 wherry: native element minerals

Many minerals consist of isomorphous mixtures of two or
more elements. Two different methods of deriving names for
these have been used in the past : first, by combining the names
of the elements present, as selentellurium for selenium-bearing
tellurium, platiniridium for platinum-bearing iridium, and
nickeliron for nickel-bearing iron; and second, by introducing
arbitrary or special terms, as volcanite for selenium-bearing sul-
fur, sisserskite for iridium-bearing osmium, and porpezite for
palladium-bearing gold. As one element is almost invariably
greatly in excess over the others, these should be regarded as
varieties, rather than elevated to the rank of species. It is,
further, believed to be highly desirable that species and varie-
ties be distinguished by the terminology applied to them. As
arbitrary or special names, including in this case the names of
chemical elements, are generally accepted as appropriate for
species, it is thought that their application to varieties should be
discouraged, and such names as volcanite, sisserskite, and por-
pezite be discarded.

The use of chemical prefixes with species names in general is
also objectionable because of the resulting inconsistencies and
ambiguities, as emphasized by Prof. A. F. Rogers;2 to this the
native elements are no exception. For example, the mineral
termed allemontite by Haidinger in 1845, a variety of arsenic
containing a small amount of isomorphous antimony, has been
called antimonarsenic by some mineralogists, and arsenantimony
by others. When two diametrically opposed terms are thus
applied to a single substance, it is evident that neither can be re-
garded as clearly expressing its nature, or accepted to the exclu-
sion of others. Many other minerals, as amalgam, iridosmine,
awaruite, etc., show similar confusion in their nomenclature.

To simplify matters and to make the terms as unambiguous as
possible, the plan recommended by Professor Rogers in the paper
cited is favored : that all varieties due to isomorphism be named
by means of adjectives, formed by adding the suffix iferous to
the names of the elements present in smaller amounts (the
names being put in the Latin form when necessary for euphony) .

2 Proc. Am. Phil. Soc, 52: 610. 1913.

wherry: native element minerals 449

classification

In Dana's System the native elements are first split up into
three divisions, non-metals, semi-metals, and metals. The first
two divisions, however, show no pronounced differences, and
various inconsistencies arise in apportioning the elements between
them. For instance, graphite, which is classed as a non-metal,
has a more metallic luster and is a better conductor of electricity
than arsenic, which is classed as a semi-metal. Selenium is re-
garded as a non-metal when monoclinic, and as a semi-metal
when rhombohedral ; and the same would have to be done with
sulfur, arsenic, and antimony, were all of their forms included,
for these three crystallize in one or more forms with so-called
non-metallic, and others with so-called semi-metallic properties.
But the illogical character of this arrangement, which assumes
that the element changes its fundamental nature on appearing
in an unusual crystallized condition, is evident. The distinc-
tion between the non- and semi-metals appears, then, to be
rather artificial, and both convenience and accuracy suggest that
it be abandoned.

The major divisions are in turn subdivided into groups.
Throughout the greater part of Dana's System, the groups are
composed of minerals of close chemical and crystallographic re-
lationships. Among the elements, however, this arrangement is
to some extent departed from, resulting in the establishment of
a " carbon group," in which crystallogi-aphic similarity is lacking,
and a "platinum group," which includes two types of crystal-
lization. As no good reason for this departure appears to exist,
it is recommended that these groups be placed on a crystallo-
graphic basis. The carbon group then yields an isometric diamond
group, into which several recently discovered non-metallic ele-
ments fall, and a hexagonal-trigonal graphite group, which may
for simplicity be united with the crystallographically identical
arsenic group; in graphite c = 1.386, which lies between the
value for arsenic, 1.401, and that for antimony, 1.324; all three
elements have basal cleavage.

Similarly, the platinum group may be split into an isometric
and a hexagonal-trigonal group, while tin, which crystallizes in

450 wherry: native element minerals

a still different system, the tetragonal, is assigned to a group by
itself.

In listing groups it is thought best to give those of the highest
crystallographic symmetry first place, and to arrange the others
in the order of decrease in symmetry.

A table of native elements based on the above recommenda-
tions follows. Its criticism by anyone interested in the system-
atic arrangement of mineralogic data will be welcomed.

NOTES ON THE TABLE

The first column includes the names of the species and varie-
ties worked out according to the principles above outlined and
recommended for adoption. The composition of each species
and variety is given in the second column, isomorphous replace-
ment being represented by a comma, and the element present in
largest amount in each case being placed first.

Column 3 contains reasons for the names or arrangements
adopted, synonyms (in quotations), and references for the min-
erals not listed by Dana in either the System of Mineralogy
(1892) or the three Appendixes (1899, 1909, 1915).

NATIVE ELEMENT MINERALS. The chemical elements occurring in nature

in the free state.
NON-METALS (INCLUDING

"SEMI-METALS") Combined for simplicity.

[New; includes all non-metals and semi-
diamond group, isometric. metals with isometric crystallization,

arranged in order of the periodic system.
The retention of the arbitrary name dia-
mond is an exception to the rule for
naming polymorphs, but is justified by
usage.

Massive ..C "Bort."

Black massive C "Carbonado."

Phosphorus, isometric P l"\? ow .Phosphorus," "^phosphorus."

( Meteontic; very doubtful.
"Yellow arsenic." Occurrence in nature

Diamond (isometric carbon) C

Arsenic, isometric As

Tantalum, columbiferous. . . .Ta, Cb

reported by Vernadskii, Opuil Opisa-
tel'noi Mineralogii (Descriptive Miner-
alogy) 1, 1908; Cenlr. Min. Geol., 1912:
762. (Not in Dana.)

wherry: native element minerals

451

fNew; a combination of graphite with

GRAPHITE GROUP. HEXAGONAL- -~ , , ,, . .

< Dana s tellurium-arsenic group, ar-

TRIGOXAL • J- +

[ ranged in order of the periodic system.

[ Name retained for the same reason as that

Graphite (trigonal carbon)... C -j of diamond; "Cliftonite" is ameteoritic

[ paramorph of graphite after diamond.

Arsenic, trigonal As

[ "Allemontite" (Dana No. 9). Classed as
a species by Dana, but there is no evi-
Antimonif erous . . . . As, Sb \ dence that it is anything but a variety

of arsenic containing a variable amount
of isomorphous antimony.

Antimony Sb

Arseniferous Sb, As

Bismuth Bi

Tellurium, trigonal Te

'Selentellurium" (Dana No. 6). Classed
as a species by Dana, but there is no
evidence that it is anything but a va-
riety of tellurium containing a variable

Seleniferous Te, Se \ amount of isomorphous selenium. This

selenium is present in a trigonal form,
which has not yet been discovered to
exist independently in nature, but has
been produced artificially.

ORTHORHOMBIC-SULFUR GROUP.

Sulfur, orthorhombic.

elenif erous.

S, Se

Telluriferous S, Te

MONOLCINIC-SULFUR GROUP.

Sulfur, monoclinic S

The "Sulphur group" of Dana.

The spelling of this name with / instead
of ph is justified by history and usage
and has been adopted by the American
Chemical Society.

Selensulphur" (Dana No. 4), "volcan-
ite." Classed as a species by Dana,
but there is no definite evidence that it
is anything but a variety of sulfur con-
taining a variable amount of isomor-
phous selenium; this selenium is pres-
ent in an orthorhombic form as yet un-
known independently.

"Tellursulphur"

J New; includes all non-metals and semi-
\ metals with monoclinic crystallization.
/3-sulfur," "7-sulfur." /3-sulfur is com-
mon around volcanoes, but is preserva-
ble only as a paramorph of orthorhom-
bic sulfur; 7-sulfur has been reported
"J to occur in nature by Vernadskii, Opuit

452

wherry: native element minerals

Selenium, monoclinic.
Arsenic, monoclinic.

Se
As

COLLOIDAL GROUP. AMORPHOUS

Carbon, amorphous C

Silicon, dispersoidal Si

Phosphorus, amorphous P

Sulfur, amorphous S

Selenium, amorphous Se

Iodine, amorphous.

Opisatel'noi Mineralogii, 1, 1908; Centr.
Min. Geol., 1912: 761; and still another
form in stable crystals has been de-
scribed by Suzuki, Beitr. Min. Japan,
5: 231. 1915. (Not in Dana.)

'a-selenium "

/"Arsenolamprite." Crystallization not

\ certain.

[New; includes all non-metals and semi-
l metals occurring in the amorphous
[ state.
The coloring matter of black sediments.
Suggested to be the cause of the color of
smoky quartz, though without state-
ment of evidence, by Konigsberger and
Muller, Centr. Min. Geol., 1906: 73,
note. (Not in Dana.)
Occurrence in nature reported by Ver-
nadskii, Opuit Opisatel'noi Mineralogii,
1, 1908; Centr. Min. Geol., 1912:762.
(Not in Dana.)

"Sulfurite." A precipitate in sulfur-
spring water; also a volcanic product.
(Not in Dana.)

Occurrence in nature pointed out by
Zambonini, Miner alogia Vesuviana, p.
24, 1910. (Not in Dana.)

Occurrence in nature reported by Skey in
1877; Vernadskii, Centr. Min. Geol.,
1912: 762. (Not in Dana.)

METALS.

COPPER GROUP.

ISOMETIUC.

Copper Cu

Argentiferous.
Mercuriferous.

Cu, Ag
Cu, Hg

Includes the native elements of predomi-
nantly basic character.

When the minerals of Dana's "gold
group" are arranged according to the
periodic system, copper comes first and
the group is here named after it.

Wire copper, a variety, is probably a
paramorph of crystalline copper after
amorphous copper which has been
forced through small openings while
soft, corresponding to wire silver.
(See below.)

[Brush, Am. Journ.Sci., [2], 31: 354. 1861,
| throws doubt on the occurrence of this
[ variety.

wherry: native element minerals

453

Ferriferous Cu, Fe

Silver Ag

Cupriferous Ag, Cu

Auriferous Ag, Au

Mercuriferous Ag, Hg

Gold Au

Cupriferous Au, Cu

Argentiferous Au, Ag

Mercuriferous Au, Hg

Rhodiferous Au, Rh

Palladiferous Au, Pd

Iridiferous. Au, Ir

Platiniferous Au, Pt

Mercury Hg

Argentiferous Hg, Ag

Wire silver, a common variety, is a para-
morph of crystalline silver after amor-
phous silver, which has been forced
through small openings while soft.
Miigge, Neues Jahrb. Min. Geol., 1913
(II): 1.

"Kustelite"

["Amalgam," in part; "arquerite," "bor-
dosite," "kongsbergite;" included, along
with argentiferous mercury, in the spe-

\ cies "amalgam" by Dana, but there is
no definite evidence that it is anything
but a variety of silver containing vari-
able amounts of isomorphous mercury.
Wire gold, a variety, is probably a para-
morph of crystalline gold after amor-
phous gold which has been forced
through small openings while soft, cor-
responding to wire silver. (See above.)

"Electrum." Given a special name by
the ancients, though recognized by
them to be only an argentiferous vari-
ety of gold.

Occurrence in nature reported by Schmitz,
Z. deut. geol. Ges., 4: 137. 1852. (Not
in Dana.)
"Rhodite."
"Porpezite."

Occurrence in nature reported by Wohler,
1834; Vernadskii, Centr. Min. Geol.,
1912, 760; confirmed by Chernik, Trav.
Mus. Acad. Sci. Petrograd, 6: 49. 1912.
(Not in Dana.)

Occurrence in nature discovered by Cher-
nik, Trav. Mus. Acad. Sci. Petro-
grad, 6: 49. 1912. (Not in Dana.)

"Quicksilver." Liquid at ordinary tem-
peratures, but crystallizes at — 39°C.

"Amalgam" in part. Included, along
with mercuriferous silver, in the spe-
cies "amalgam" by Dana, but there is
no definite evidence that it is anything
but a variety of mercury containing
variable amounts of silver, either in
solid, isomorphous form, or dissolved,
liquid form.

454

wherry: native element minerals

Auriferous.

Lead.

IRON GROUP. ISOMETRIC.

Kg, Au
Pb

Iron

Fe

Nickeliferous Fe, Ni

Platiniferous Fe, Pt

Nickel, ferriferous Ni, Fe

Platinum, ferriferous Pt, Fe

Palladium, platiniferous Pd, Pt

Iridium, platiniferous Ir, Pt

["Gold-amalgam" in part. The gold is
<j either in solid, isomorphous form, or dis-
[ solved, liquid form.

When the minerals of Dana's "platinum-
iron group" are arranged according to
the periodic system, iron comes first,
and the group is here named after it.
"Ferrite." Native iron, both meteoritic
and terrestrial, may contain isomor-
phous copper, vanadium, chromium,
manganese, cobalt, nickel, ruthenium,
palladium, iridium, platinum, and per-
haps other metals; but only two of these
occur in sufficient amount to be re-
garded as giving rise to definite varie-
ties.

"Edmonsonite," "kamacite,""lamprite,"
J "plessite," "taenite." Meteoritic; the
varieties are chiefly separated on the
basis of structure.
Occurrence in nature reported by Osann,
Ann. Phys. Chem., 14: 329. 1827. (Not
in Dana.)
"Awaruite," "josephinite," "octibbe-
hite," "souesite." Both meteoritic and
terrestrial; the minerals referred to by
the synonyms have been regarded as
separate species, but there is no defi-
nite evidence that thejr are anything
but varieties of nickel containing small,
variable, amounts of isomorphous iron.
/"Native palladium." May also contain
\ small amounts of isomorphous iridium.
["Native iridium." Named "iridium" by
Dana and others, although analyses
cited show the presence of at least 19%
of isomorphous platinum and smaller
amounts of other metals, especialy cop-
per and palladium; pure iridium is not
known to occur in nature.
Native platinum." Named platinum by
Dana and others, although analyses
show the presence of considerable
amounts of isomorphous copper, gold,
iron, nickel, rhodium, palladium,
osmium, and iridium; only two of

wherry: native element minerals

455

Iridiferous Pt, Ir

TRIGONAL-PALLADIUM GROUP

Zinc.

Zn

Palladium, trigonal Pd

Osmium, iridiferous Os, Ir

TIN GROUP.

Tin

these, iron and iridium, occur in
sufficient amount to be regarded as
giving rise to definite varieties.
/Included by Dana partly under "iridium"
\ and partly under "platinum."

[New; includes zinc, classed by Dana as a

\ semi-metal, and the trigonal minerals
of the platinum-iron group.
Occurrence in nature doubtful.

C "Allopalladium." May contain isomor-
phous silver, gold, and platinum, al-

\ though none of these occur in sufficient
amounts to be regarded as giving rise

[ to definite varieties.

["Dark iridosmine," "sisserskite." In-
cluded, along with the following min-
eral, in the species "iridosmine" by
Dana; but there is no definite evidence
that it is anything but a variety of
trigonal osmium containing variable
amounts of iridium and perhaps other
metals.

[ "Light iridosmine," "nevyanskite." In-
cluded, along with the preceding vari-
iety, in the species "iridosmine" by
Dana; but there is no definite evidence
that it is anything but a variety of tri-
gonal iridium ; may contain isomorphous
copper, iron, ruthenium, rhodium, pal-
ladium, osmium, and platinum; of these
only osmium occurs in sufficient
amount to be regarded as giving rise to
a definite variety.

[New; included by Dana in the gold group
tetragonal \ but here separated on the basis of dif-
ferent crystallization.

[Occurrence in nature never proved be-
yond doubt, although there is a speci-
men in the U. S. National Museum from
placers in California which has every
appearance of being a natural product.

(New; includes all metals occurring in the

\ amorphous state.
Known to early German miners, but its
character was first recognized by
Cornu, Z. Chem. Ind. Kolloide, 4: 187.
1909. (Not in Dana.)

Iridium, osmiferous Ir, Os

Sn

I

COLLOIDAL GROUP. AMORPHOUS

Silver, amorphous Ag

456

walker: crystal form of spencerite

Gold, amorphous Au

Sodium, dispersoidal Na

Potassium, dispersoidal K

Calcium, dispersoidal Ca

[Occurrence in nature reported by Cornu,
Z. Chern. Ind. Kolloide, 4: 187. 1909.
(Not in Dana.)
First suggested by Elster and Geitel to
be the cause of color of blue halite, Ann.
Phys, Chem., 62: 559. 1897; this has been
confirmed by ultramicroscopic study
and by successful synthetic experiments,
as shown especially by Goldstein,
Nature, 94: 494. 1914. (Not in Dana.)

[Suggested to be the cause of color of blue
sylvite, by analogy with the preceding

j substance, by Cornu, Centr. Min.
Geol., 1907, 168; this has been con-
firmed as in the preceding instance.
(Not in Dana.)
Suggested to be the cauce of color of cer-
tain fluorites by Doelter, Sitzungsb.
Akad. Wiss. Wien, 1908, 1312. (Not in
Dana.)

MINERALOGY. — The crystal form of spencerite. T. L. Walker,
Royal Ontario Museum of Mineralogy, Toronto.

The new mineral spencerite — Zn3(P04)2. Zn(OH)2. 3H20 — was
described by the author in 1916.1 The material then available
was obtained from the H. B. mine near Salmo, British Columbia.
It is remarkable for its purity but is wholly in the massive form.
From an optical examination it was found to be monoclinic and
polysynthetically twinned, the twinning plane and composition
face being the orthopinacoid. Plates parallel to the best cleav-
age, accepted as the orthopinacoid, showed an interference figure
with the acute bisectrix nearly normal to this cleavage. Such
plates when etched yielded etch figures symmetrical about only
one plane. From these observations the author concluded that
the mineral is monoclinic.

Spencerite occurs along with other oxidized zinc ores, forming
the cores of stalactitic growths, the outer zone of which is always
calamine. The spencerite being relatively soluble, the periphery
of the spencerite core has as a rule been dissolved, leaving a
space between the more soluble core and the resistant calamine.

1 Mineralog. Mag., 18, p. 76.

walker: crystal form of spencerite

457

Under the circumstances the survival of crystals of the phosphate
was hardly to be expected.

Fig. 1. The crystal is twinned on
(100) and as a result of the twinning
the forms (241) and (221) are each repre-
sented by four faces, thus giving the
crystals a rhombic appearance.

no-

oio

Fig. 2. Crystals of this type exhibit
twinning in the duplication of the termi-
nal faces, (346) being represented by four
faces while the two faces of (T02) occur
as striations on a large plane nearly
coinciding in direction with a rhombic
basal pinacoid.

Some specimens of this mineral recently obtained from the
original locality contain small druses lined with sharp crystals of
spencerite, the preservation of the crystals being apparently due
to the cavities having been completely sealed up by calamine.

458

walker: crystal form of spencerite

The crystals are very small, few exceeding 2 or 3 mm. in
length. They are tabular in habit and in color, luster, and
habit closely resemble small, bright crystals of calamine. The
crystals, though small, are admirably suited for accurate measure-
ments. The conclusions regarding the crystal form contained in
the original contribution are confirmed, since the mineral is

TABLE l

NUMBER

4>

P

FORM

OF MEASURE-
MENTS

Measured

Calculated

Measured

Calculated

120

12

29° 34'

29° 32'

90°

90°

230

2

35° 50'

37° 04'

90°

90°

110

11

48° 32'

48° 34'

90°

90°

520

6

71° 07'

70° 34'

90°

90°

010

6

0

0

90°

90°

100

6

90°

90°

90°

90°

001

4

89° 56'

90°

26° 52'

26° 47'

T04

2

90°

90°

11° 20'

11° 30'

102

3

90°

90°

5° 17'

5° 36'

304

1

89° 57'

90°

21° 07'

21° 47'

101

3

89° 53'

90°

34° 55'

35° 02'

201

1

89° 14'

90°

61° 30'

62° 20'

023

1

35° 40'

35° 26'

40° 57'

41° 03'

021

4

13° 30'

13° 21'

65° 32'

65° 25'

121

5

38° 36'

38° 48'

69° 53'

69° 53'

346

3

56° 58'

57° 22'

53° 05'

52° 46'

Til

2

32° 55'

33° 23'

51° 49'

51° 53'

T21

G '

18° 06'

18° 14'

65° 48'

65° 57'

221

4

41° 52'

41° 52'

70° 41'

70° 43'

241

4

24° 23'

24° 08'

77° 53'

77° 54'

found to be mono clinic, with polysynthetic twinning on the pina-
coid (100).

There are two types of crystals, the first of which is represented
in figure 1. The peculiarity of this type is the prominence of
the pyramid 221 with relatively small terminal faces of the ortho-
diagonal zone. Crystals of the second type are terminated by

FEWKES: A PREHISTORIC STONE MORTAR 459

what appears to be a large face intersecting the prism edges at
90°. A careful examination shows that this large terminal plane
is striated, the faces of the striatums belonging to the form
(T02). (See fig. 2.) All the crystals measured are twinned and
show faces of the two constituent individuals.

The polar elements derived from the measurements are as
follows :

Vo = 1.0512; q0 = 0.9501 ;e = 0.45071 ;M = 63°13'

corresponding to the axial ratios,

a:b:c :: 1.0125: 1: 1.0643; 0 = 63°13'.

In table 1 are indicated the forms observed and the polar
angles <f> and p measured and calculated for the elements indi-
cated above. The number of faces observed for each form on
the four crystals measured is shown in the second column.

ETHNOLOGY. — A prehistoric stone mortar from southern Ari-
zona? J. Walter Fewkes, Bureau of American Ethnology.

Prehistoric buildings in the Gila Valley differ from those of
southern Colorado and New Mexico in materials employed,
form, and details in construction and arrangement of sacred and
other rooms. There are less pronounced differences in ceramics,
implements, and household utensils of the two areas. The ac-
quisition of a fine, characteristic stone mortar from near Casa
Grande has led me to describe it and incidentally to refer to a
feature in this object not shared with mortars from the true
Pueblo area.

A short time ago I obtained from Mr. John Miller, one of my
workmen at the Casa Grande ruin in 1907, a stone mortar of
more than ordinary interest on account of its artistic character.
This object was found 5 miles south of the Picacho reservoir,
Arizona, where there are traces of ancient settlements. It is
made of a light-colored volcanic stone of circular shape and has
a flat base with a cavity or depression on the opposite face. The

1 Published by permission of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.

460

FEWKES: A PREHISTORIC STONE MORTAR

remarkable feature is a rattlesnake sculptured in high relief on
the margin (fig. 1).

The body of this animal almost completely surrounds the
mortar, the anterior end of the body being coiled, and the tail
ending in four rattles and a button. The head projects from
the coiled part of the body and is flat above, indented with
three pits, two of which were intended for eyes. The body is
covered with a cross hatching of incised lines representing scales,
and the mouth is a horizontal slit. From the top of the nose
to the opposite rim the diameter measures 4| inches and the
depth of the cavity three-fourths of an inch.

Fig. 1. Snake mortar. Diameter \\ inches.

The above specimen is now in the Museum of the American
Indian, Heye Foundation, New York City.

Mortars made of stone carved in animal forms are not rare in
the Gila Valley, although outside of this area they are, so far as
known, rarely found in numbers. There are many known ex-
amples of mortars of round, oblong shapes, sometimes with pro-
longations on the larger axes, representing conventionalized
organs, but in others the intended form is so realistic that the
animal can be roughly identified.

One of the best of these was found in Compound B of the Casa
Grande group and figured as an idol in my report2 on that ruin.

- Twenty-eighth Annual Report of the Bureau 0"; American Ethnology, plate
47.

FEWKES: A PREHISTORIC STONE MORTAR 461

Others in form of frogs and turtles may be seen in local collec-
tions or figured in descriptions of Gila Valley antiquities. I
recall two mortars with serpentine bodies cut on their margins,
neither of which is as well made as the specimen above described.
Mortars from this region in the form of other animals are also
known. A mortar from the San Pedro Valley resembling a
horned quadruped is figured in my paper on Prehistoric Ruins of
the Gila Valley,3 and there is in the Museum of the University of
Arizona a specimen similar to the last mentioned. Mr. Warren
K. Moorehead4 figures a mortar resembling a turtle or some rep-
tile. In all these the depression or cavity of the mortar is situ-
ated on the back of the animal, whereas in the snake mortars,
the snake surrounds or embraces the mortar.

It will be noticed that these specimens have a depression or
cavity which has led to their identification as mortars. In this
respect they differ from paint palettes, likewise prehistoric, found
in numbers in the Gila region. The stones upon which paint is
ordinarily ground among the Pueblos are flat, undecorated slabs,
without cavities, or generally only shallow depressions. Similar
palettes from the Gila are made with more care and their mar-
gins are commonly bands decorated with incised geometrical
designs or even, in one or two known instances, with figures of
snakes or other animals. They are ordinarily rectangular in
form, but other shapes also occur, such as circles and ovals. A
figure of one of these tablets or palettes in the shape of a bird
was obtained from Pueblo Vie jo on the Upper Gila, and pub-
lished in my account of Two Summers' Work in Pueblo Ruins.5
A typical hitherto undescribed rectangular paint palette which
wTas plowed up by a farmer on the north side of the Gila, 6 miles
from Florence, Arizona, is showTn herewith (fig. 2). This is a
thin slab of rock with a marginal frame covered with incised
crosshatched lines recalling the conventional way of represent-
ing scales of a snake. This specimen, like the snake mortar, is

3 Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections, Quarterly Review, 5, fig. 75a.

4 The Stone Age in North America, 2, fig. 416.

5 Twenty-second Annual Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology; also
Preliminary Report in Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections, 1896.

462

FEWKES: A PREHISTORIC STONE MORTAR

also in the Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation.
Similar paint palettes with modifications in decorations are
widely distributed; those from the mound-builders sometimes
bear incised figures of serpents in their surfaces. As a paint
palette admits of few variations in form it is not strange that
similar shapes occur likewise among Pueblos and mound-build-
ers,6 and, especially in predynastic times, in Egypt7 (fig. 3).

Fig. 2. Paint palette. Size 2\ by 4£ inches.

Everything used by a primitive people in their ceremonies has,
from that fact, a magic power and the stones upon which pig-
ments are ground by the Pueblos partake in a measure of this
power. The symbolic figures that decorate paint palettes no
doubt increase, in their opinion, the efficacy of the pigment. A
similarity in the way these palettes are regarded in the Old and
the New World is a good instance of thought convergence.

A few objects of stone supposed to be pestles or paint grinders,
possibly used with these pigment palettes, are known from the
Gila. One of these from Casa Grande has the form of a " coiled
serpent,"8 a highly suggestive fact taken in connection with a
snake-decorated mortar.

6 Holmes, W. H., Certain notched or scalloped stone tablets of the mound builders.
Amer. Anthropol., 8, No. 1, fig. 9. Jan.-March, 1906.

7 Bates, Oric. Ancient Egyptian fishing. Harvard African Studies, No. 1.

8 Twenty-eighth Annual Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology, pi.
48, fig. 1.

FEWKES: A PREHISTORIC STONE MORTAR

463

The custom of decorating mortars and paint grinders with
animal figures points to Mexican rather than Pueblo customs and
kinship. The serpent as an element in sculpture is especially
Mexican, although figures of the rattlesnake occur on pipes and
stone or shell objects throughout the mound-builders and Pueblo
areas; while painting of the same on pottery, and as pictographs
ascribed to prehistoric times, are no less frequent. The cult of
the Plumed Snake or, as some prefer to call it, the Horned Snake,
occurs so constantly in Indian mythology and ritual that this

if

■

i ■■

■ ■■/.*•■.'>:.- ■••.

I,'

Fig. 3. Egyptian slate palette. Size 3| by 5^ inches.

being is frequently represented on ceremonial paraphernalia ; but
there are, so far as I know, few if any mortars of prehistoric In-
dians of North America with sculptured figures that artistically
excel the snake mortar above figured. The snake-entwined mor-
tar is another evidence that the prehistoric culture of the Gila
had a close relationship to that of the aborigines of northern
Mexico.

ABSTRACTS

Authors of scientific papers are requested to see that abstracts, preferably
prepared and signed by themselves, are forwarded promptly to the editors.
Each of the scientific bureaus in Washington has a representative authorized ro
forward such material to this journal and abstracts of official publications should
be transmitted through the representative of the bureau in which they originate.
The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those appearing in
this issue.

TECHNOLOGY. — Temperature measurements in Bessemer and open
hearth practice. George K. Burgess. Bureau of Standards
Technologic Paper No. 91. Pp. 29. 1917.

The problem of temperature measurement and pyrometric control
of furnace casting and ingot teeming temperatures is shown, by a se-
ries of observations taken in several steel plants, to present no serious
difficulties or uncertainties.

For this purpose the most satisfactory type of instrument is one of
the optical pyrometers using monochromatic light and permitting ob-
servation of streams of metal from a distance.

It is shown that the necessary corrections to the observed optical
pyrometer readings for emissivity of metal and oxides to give true
temperatures, are sufficiently well known, but there may be uncer-
tainty in the case of liquid slags.

For streams of liquid iron or steel the most probable value of emis-
sivity to take, with a pyrometer using red light of wave length X =
0.65 n, is e = 0.40, corresponding to a correction of 139° for an ob-
served temperature of 1500°C. The value of e for liquid slags is usu-
ally about 0.65 but varies with the composition of the slag. A table
of emissivity corrections is included in the text.

It is believed that a continuous, systematic following of the tem-
perature by the methods outlined in the paper would show the possi-
bility of improvements, and give a greater certainty of the production
of the desired quality of product. G. K. B.

464

REFERENCES

Under this heading it is proposed to include, by author, title, and citation, references to scien-
tific papers published in or emanating from Washington. It is requested that authors cooperate
with the editors by submitting titles promptly, following the style used below. These references
are not intended to replace the more extended abstracts published elsewhere in this Journal.

ASTROPHYSICS

Abbott, C. G., and A-ldrich, L. B. On the use of the pyranometer. Smithsonian

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Michigan, 2: 71-75. 1916.
Merrill, P. W. Discovery of two bright-line stars of class B. Publ. Astron. Obs.

Univ. Michigan, 2: 181. 1916.

GEOPHYSICS

Bauer, L. A., and Swann, W. F. G. Results of atmospheric-electric observations
made aboard the Galilee (1907—1908), and the Carnegie (1909-1916). Carnegie
Institution of Washington, Publication No. 175, 361-447. 1917.

Becker, G. F. Mechanics of the Panama Canal slides. U. S. Geological Survey
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Jaggar, T. A. Live aa lava at Kilauea. Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci., 7: 241-243.
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Littlehales, G. W. In relation to the extent of knowledge concerning the oceanog-
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Marvin, C. F. Marine meteorology and the general circulation of the atmosphere.
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Meunier, S. A theory of terrestrial volcanoes and the -geography of the moon.
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Swann, W. F. G. On the origin of the earth's electric charge. Phys. Rev., (2)
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465

466 references: physics

TERRESTRIAL MAGNETISM

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Magnetism, Carnegie Institution of Washington, 1916. Carnegie Inst. Year

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1917.
Bauer, L. A., Peters, W. J., Ault, J. P., and Fleming, J. A. The magnetic

work of the Carnegie 1909-1916. Carnegie Institution of Washington,

Publication No. 175, 157-358. 1917.
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1917.
Hazard, D. L. Activity of the earth's magnetism. Terr. Mag. Atm. Elec, 22:

84-86. 1917.
Hazard, D. L. Terrestrial Magnetism. Amer. Year Book, 1916: 603-604. 1917.

GEODESY

Avers, H. G., and Cowie, G. D. Precise leveling from Reno to Las Vegas, Nev.,
and from Tonopah Junction to Laws, Cal. U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey,
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Jones, E. L. Use of mean sea level as the datum for elevations. U. S. Coast and
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GRAVITATION

BowiE; W. Investigations of gravity and isostasy. U. S. Coast and Geodetic

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PHYSICS

Agnew, P. G., Stannard, W. H., and Fearing, J. L. A system of remote control
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Bingham, E. C, and Jackson, R. F. Standard substances for the calibration of
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Bauer, L. A., and Swann, W. F. G. Experiments concerning " mag net-photogra-
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Briggs, L. J. The livirig plant as a physical system. Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci.,
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Brooks, H. B., and Weaver, F. C. A variable self and mutual inductor . Bureau
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references: physics 467

Bureau of Standards. Testing of clinical thermometers. Bur. Stds. Circular
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Bureau of Standards. Fees for electric, magnetic, and photometric testing.
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cerning the range and the precision of the usual tests and the conditions
governing the acceptance of material for test.)

Bureau of Standards. Electric units and standards. Bur. Stds. Circular No.
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Burrows, C. W. The correlation of the mechanical and magnetic -properties of
steel. Bureau of Standards Scientific Paper No. 272 (Bull. Bur. Stds., 15:
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Burrows, C. W., and Sanford, R. L. An experimental study of the Fahy per-
meameter. Bureau of Standards Scientific Paper No. 306 (Bull. Bur. Stds.,
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Coblentz, W. W. The exudation of ice from the stems of plants. The Scientific
Monthly, 2: 334-349. 1916.

Coblentz, W. W. Some new designs of radiometers. Journ. Wash-. Acad. Sci.,
6: 473-475. 1916.

Coblentz, W. W. Characteristics and comparative sensitiveness of various types
of radiometers. Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci., 7: 164-165. 1917.

Coblentz, W. W. The emissivity of straight and helical filaments of tungsten. Bu-
reau of Standards Scientific Paper No. 300 (Bull. Bur. Stds., 14: 115-131).
1917; Elec. World, 69: 329. 1917.

Coblentz, W. W., and Emerson, W. B. Determinations of luminous efficiency
and the mechanical equivalent of light. Phys. Rev., (2)9:569-570. 1917.

Coblentz, W. W., and Emerson, W. B. Luminous radiation from a black body
and the mechanical equivalent of light. Bureau of Standards Scientific Paper
No. 305 (Bull. Bur. Stds., 14: 255-256). 1917.

Coblentz, W. W., and Emerson, W. B. The relative sensibility of the average eye
to light of different colors, and some practical applications to radiation problems.
Phys. Rev., (2) 9: 87-88. 1917; Bureau of Standards Scientific Paper No.
303 (Bull. Bur. Stds., 14:. 157-236). 1917.

Coblentz, W. W., and Emerson, W. B. Reflecting power of tungsten and stellite.
Bureau of Standards Scientific Paper No. 308 (Bull. Bur. Stds., 14: 307-316).
1917.

Coblentz, W. W., and Emerson, W. B. Glasses for protecting the eyes from in-
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14. 1917.

Crittenden, E. C, and Richtmyer, F. K. An" 'average eye" for heterochromatic
photometry, and a comparison of a flicker and an equality of brightness photom-
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Dellinger, J. H. Calculation of Planck's constant C2. Bureau of Standards
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468 references: physics

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Engin., 16: 518-524. 1917; Gas Age, 39: 581-587. 1917; Bureau of Standards

Technologic Paper No. 94. Pp. 30. 1917.
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Herschel, W. H. Discussion of paper by H. C. Hayes and G. W. Lewis, The

measurement of viscosity and a new form of viscosimeter. Journ. Amer.

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Hersey, M. D. The theory of the torsion and the rolling ball viscosimeters, and

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38: 1002-1003. 1916.
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620. 1916.
Hersey, M. D. Note on a relation connecting the derivatives of physical quantities.

Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci., 6: 620-629. 1916.
Jackson, R. F. The saccharimetric normal weight and specific rotation of dextrose.

Bureau of Standards Scientific Paper No. 293 (Bull. Bur. Stds., 13: 633-635).

1916.
Merrill, P. W. Wave-lengths of the stronger lines in the helium spectrum. Bu-
reau of Standards Scientific Paper No. 302 (Bull. Bur. Stds., 14: 159-166.)

1917.
Mueller, E. F. Wheatstone bridges and accessory apparatus for resistance ther-
mometry. Bureau of Standards Scientific Paper No. 288 (Bull. Bur. Stds.,

13: 547-561). 1916.
Nutting, P. G. Criteria for gray radiation. Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci., 6:476-

478. 1916.
Osborne, N. S. An aneroid calorimeter for specific and latent heats. Bureau of

Standards Scientific Paper No. 301 (Bull. Bur. Stds., 14: 133-157). 1917.
Priest, I. G. A proposed method for the photometry of lights of different colors. —

//. Phys. Rev., (2) 9: 341-345. 1917.
Priest, I. G., and Peters, C. G. Measurement and specification of the physical

factors which determine the saturation of certain tints of yellow. Bureau of

Standards Technologic Paper No. 92. Pp. 11. 1917.
Richtmyer, F. K., and Crittenden, E. C. The precision of photometric meas-
urements. Phys. Rev., (2) 9: 95-96. 1917.
Roeser, H. M. Calculation of the constants of Planck's radiation equation: An

extension of the theory of least squares. Bureau of Standards Scientific Paper

No. 304 (Bull. Bur. Stds., 14: 237-253). 1917.
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empirical formulas. Phys. Rev., (2) 9: 80-83. 1917.

references: chemistry 469

Rosa, E. B., and Yinal, G. W. The silver voltameter as an international standard
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1917.

Sanpord, R. L. The determination of the degree of uniformity of bars for magnetic
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Silsbee, F. B. A note on electrical conduction in metals at low temperature. Journ.
Wash. Acad. Sci., 6: 597-602. 1916; Bureau of Standards Scientific Paper
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Stillmax, M. H. The damping of waves and other disturbances in mercury. Bu-
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Stratton, S. W. Annual report of the Director of the Bureau of Standards for the
fiscal year ending June 30, 1916. Pp. 165. 1916.

Swann, W. F. G., and Mauchly, S. J. On the conduction of electricity through un-
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Weibel, E. A study of electromagnet moving coil galvanometers for use in alternat-
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Wilhelm, R. M. The freezing point of mercury. Bureau of Standards Scientific
Paper No. 294 (Bull. Bur. Stds., 13: 655-661). 1916.

Woodward, R. W., and Harrison, T. R. Note on the thermocouple nichrome con-
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Wright, F. E. Recent improvements in the petrographic microscope. Journ.
Wash. Acad. Sci., 6: 465-472. 1916.

CHEMISTRY

v. Bichowsky, F. R. The electrometric titration of zinc with f err ocyanide. Journ.

Wash. Acad. Sci., 7: 141-143. 1917.
Clark, W. M., and Lubs, H. A. The colorimetric determination of the hydrogen-
ion concentration of bacteriological culture media. Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci.,

6: 483-489. 1916.
Ferguson, J. B. The equilibrium between carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, sulfur

dioxide, and free sulfur. Proc. National Acad. Sci., 3: 371-374. 1917.
Lubs, H. A., and Clark, W. M. A note on the sulphonephthaleins as indicators

for the colorimetric determination of hydrogen-ion concentration. Journ. Wash.

Acad. Sci., 6: 481-483. 1916.
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electrolytic copper. Amer. Inst. Metals, vol. 10. 1916.
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470 references: technology

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Sosman, R. B., and Hostetter, J. C. Zonal growth in hematite, and its bearing on

the origin of certain iron ores. Trans. Amer. Inst. Mining Eng., 53: 933-943.

1917.

METALLOGRAPHY

Burgess, G. K. Temperature measurements in Bessemer and open hearth practice.
Bureau of Standards Technologic Paper No. 91. Pp.29. 1917.

Burgess, G. K., and Scott, H. Thermoelectric measurement of the critical ranges
of pure iron. Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci., 6: 650-651. 1916; Bureau of Stand-
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Merica, P. D. The failure of brass.- — 2. The effect of corrosion on the ductility
and strength of brass. Bureau of Standards Technologic Paper No. 83. Pp.
7. 1916.

Merica, P. D. The structure of the coating on tinned sheet copper in relation to a
curious case of corrosion of this material. Bureau of Standards Technologic
Paper No. 90. Pp. 18. 1917.

Merica, P. D., and Karr, C. P. The failure of brass: — 3. Initial stress produced
by the burning in of manganese bronze. Bureau of Standards Technologic
Paper No. 84. Pp. 7. 1916.

Merica, P. D., and Woodward, R. W. The failure of brass: — 1. Micro-structure
and initial stresses in wrought brasses of the type 60 per cent copper and Jfi
per cent zinc. Bureau of Standards Technologic Paper No. 82. Pp. 72. 1917.

TECHNOLOGY

Ahlborn, G. H. Data on electric railway track leakage. Bureau of Standards
Technologic Paper No. 75. Pp. 22. 1916.

Bates, P. H., and Klein, A. A. Properties of the calcium silicates and calcium
aluminate occurring in Portlaiid cement. Bureau of Standards Technologic
Paper No. 78. Pp. 34. 1917.

Bearce, H. W., and Peffer, E. L. The density and thermal expansion of Ameri-
can petroleum oils. Bureau of Standards Technologic Paper No. 77. Pp. 26.
1916.

Bleininger, A. V., and Schurecht, H. G. The properties of some European
plastic fire clays. Bureau of Standards Technologic Paper No. 79. Pp. 34.
1916.

Blume, W., Holler, H. D., and Rawdon, H. S. Preliminary studies in the de-
position of copper in electroplating baths. Trans. Amer. Electrochem. Soc,
30: 159-174. 1916.

Boughton, E. W. Effect of certain pigments on linseed oil. Bureau of Standards
Technologic Paper No. 71. Pp. 16. 1916.

Boughton, E. W. Determination of volatile thinner in oil varnish. Bureau of
Standards Technologic Paper No. 76. Pp. 7. 1916.

Bureau of Standards. Report on the tenth annual Conference on Weights and
Measures, May 25-28, 1915. Bur. Stds. Special Publication. Pp. 254. 1916.

references: technology 471

Bureau of Standards. United States Government specification for Portland
cement. Bur. Stds. Circular No. 33, ed. 3. Pp. 43. 1917.

Bureau of Standards. National electrical safety code. Bur. Stds. Circular
No. 54, ed. 2. Pp. 323. 1916.

Bureau of Standards. Standards for electric service. Bur. Stds. Circular No.
56. Pp. 262. 1916.

Bureau of Standards. Specifications and tolerances for weights and measures
and weighing and measuring devices. Bur. Stds. Circular No. 61. Pp. 44.
1916.

Bureau of Standards. Specifications for and methods of testing soaps. Bur.
Stds. Circular No. 62. Pp. 25. 1916.

Bureau of Standards. Specification and tests of the transparency of paper and
tracing cloth. Bur. Stds. Circular No. 63. Pp. 8. 1917.

Bureau of Standards. Rules and regulations for enforcement of lime-barrel act.
Bur. Stds. Circular No. 64. Pp. 70. 1917.

Bureau of Standards. Gas calorimeter tables. Bur. Stds. Circular No. 65.
Pp. 19. 1917.

Bureau of Standards. Standard samples for thermometric fixed points. Bur.
Stds. Circular No. 66. Pp. 13. 1917. (Describes the methods of prepara-
tion and the chemical analyses of the metals, tin, zinc, aluminium, and cop-
per, which have been prepared for distribution.)

Cain, J. R., and Rawdon, H. S. Report on the investigation of ladle-test steel
ingots. Proc. Amer. Soc. Test. Mater., 16: 129-144. 1916.

Emley, W. E. The manufacture and properties of sand-lime brick. Bureau of
Standards Technologic Paper No. 85. Pp. 41. 1917.

Herschel, \Y. H. Discussion of the report of committee D-4 on road materials.
Proc. Amer. Soc. Test. Mater., 16: 316. 1916.

Herschel, W. H. Quantitative test for resistance of lubricating oils to emulsifi-
cation. Proc. Amer. Soc. Test. Mater., 16: 248. 1916.

Herschel, W. H. Testing of lubricating oils; an address delivered before the Inde-
pendent Oil Mens Association, Chicago, Oct. 19, 1916. Oildom, 6: 590. 1916.

Herschel, W. H. Design of a water brake. Power, p. 133. 1916; Engineering
News, p. 378. 1916.

Herschel, W. H. The testing and standardization of lubricating oils. Oil, Paint,
and Drug Reporter, 91: 14. 1917.

Herschel, W. H. Note? on speed indicators for airplanes. The Pitot tube. Aviat.
and Aeronaut. Eng., p. 384. 1917.

Herschel, W. H. Note on speed indicators for airplanes. The Venluri tube.
Aviat. and Aeronaut. Eng., Feb. 15, 1917.

Herschel, \V. H. The resistance of an oil to emulsification. Bureau of Stand-
ards Technologic Paper No. 86. Pp. 37. 1917.

Kleix, A. A. The cojistilution and microstructure of porcelain. Journ. Wash.
Acad. Sci., 6: 658-660. 1916; Bureau of Standards Technologic Paper No. 80.
Pp. 38. 1916.

Lewis, W. S. Comparative tests of stitches and seams. Bureau of Standards Tech-
nologic Paper No. 96. Pp. 19. 1917.

McCullom, B., and Ahlborn, G. H. Influence of frequency of alternating or in-
frequently reversed current on electrolytic corrosion. Bureau of Standards
Technologic Paper No. 72. Pp. 31. 1916.

472 references: technology

Rosa, E. B., Brooks, H. B., McCullom, B., Canada, W. J., and Gladding, F.

W. An investigation of cartridge enclosed fuses. Bureau of Standards Tech-
nologic Paper No. 74. Pp. 199. 1916.
Schlink, F. J. Liquid-measuring pumps. Bureau of Standards Technologic

Paper No. 81. Pp. 27. 1916.
Schlink, F. J. A simple and accurate balance for the shop. Machinery, pp. 413-

414, Jan., 1917.
Smith, W. H. Recovery of paraffin and paper stock from ivaste paraffin paper.

Bureau of Standards Technologic Paper No. 87. Pp. 4. 1916.
Smith, W. H. Studies on paper pulp. Bureau of Standards Technologic Paper

No. 88. Pp. 13. 1917.
Waters, C. E. Further data on the oxidation of automobile cylinder oils . Bureau

of Standards Technologic Paper No. 73. Pp. 20. 1916.
Wig, R. J., Pearson, J. C, and Emley, W. E. Durability of stucco and plaster

construction. Bureau of Standards Technologic Paper No. 70. Pp.74. 1917.
Wig, R. J., Williams, G. M., Finn, A. N., McCrory, S. H., Bebb, E. C., and

Ferguson, L. R. Durability of cement drain tile and concrete in alkali soil.

Bureau of Standards Technologic Paper No. 95. Pp. 94. 1917. (Supersedes

Technologic Paper No. 44.)

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

THE PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 787th meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, March 31, 1917.
President Buckingham in the chair; 36 persons present. The minutes
of the 786th meeting were read in abstract and approved.

The following resolution was unanimously adopted:

Resolved: That the Philosophical Society of Washington endorses the movement
to extend the use of the metric system and commends the efforts of the American
Metric Association to this end.

Mr. Frederick Bates and Mr. F. P. Phelps gave an illustrated
paper on The rotation of the plane of polarization in quartz and iron at
high temperatures.

Curves showing the results of precision measurements for both the
natural and the magnetic rotation of the plane of polarization in quartz
for a temperature range from 20°C. to 1000°( 1. were exhibited. Quartz
recrystallizes at about 575°C. changing from a to j3 quartz. The curve
for the variation of the natural rotation with the temperature makes a
right angle turn at this point and shows evidence of a discontinuity.
In contrast to the natural rotation the magnetic rotation shows no
change at 575° and has no temperature coefficient. For measuring the
rotations a large Weiss, water-cooled electromagnet was used. The
furnace was placed between the poles of the magnet and the temperature
was obtained by means of a standard thermocouple. Monochromatic
light of high intensity was passed through the plate parallel to the
magnetic field. Similar curves for the magnetic rotation in films of
electrolytic iron and iron oxides were also shown. The results indicate
that the optical phenomena disappear at the temperature at which the
metal loses its magnetic properties.

Discussion. The paper was discussed by Messrs. White and Wright.
Mr. G. K. Burgess spoke of the possibility of harmonizing results show-
ing the magnetic rotation of films of iron which had become oxidized,
by disregarding the oxygen and considering only the iron present.

Mr. F. E. Wright gave an illustrated paper on The application of
polarized light to the study of opaque substances.

Mr. P. V. Wells gave an illustrated paper on A standard of turbidity.
The speaker described briefly the physical properties of turbid media,
pointing out that such media are usually in a critical state. Their
most striking characteristic is that of scattering light, the effect vary-

473

474 proceedings: philosophical society

ing rapidly with small changes in the other variables, such as tempera-
ture or pressure. The factors determining the intensity of the scat-
tered light in the simple case of particles small compared with the
wave length of the light were given after the treatment of Rayleigh.

Turbidimetry is chiefly concerned with the measurement of the
mass of suspended matter, but, as this is small and its accurate deter-
mination difficult, optical measures have frequently been adopted for
rapid work. The most definite of these is the intensity of the light
scattered in a fixed direction from a layer of turbid medium of definite
thickness, illuminated by a parallel incident beam. The logical meas-
ure would be the ratio of the scattered and incident intensity. Pro-
visionally, however, the scattered intensity was compared with the
intensity of the light diffusely reflected normally from a magnesia sur-
face with the same parallel beam incident at 45°. The magnesia sur-
face was made by depositing the smoke from burning magnesium rib-
bon upon thin plate glass. The magnesia-glass surface was used
because its direction could be determined. It was accurately reproduci-
ble. A turbidimeter was described, by means of which these measure-
ments could be made. The readings obtained with doubly distilled
water, with turbid liquids, and with air, both pure and vitiated with
smoke, were given.

Discussion. Mr. Wright inquired as to the possibility of using the
scattering of a beam of polarized light, as measured by the amount of
light emerging polarized at right angles to the plane of the entering
beam, as an indication of turbidity. Mr. Wells stated that such ef-
fects would vary with the size of the suspended particles. Mr. Mer-
win inquired as to the distribution of the light scattered from the mag-
nesia reference plate. Mr. Wells stated that it had not been meas-
ured, but that it probably followed Lambert's law closely. Mr. Bates
spoke of the difficulty of producing a perfectly clear fluid, with especial
reference to some attempts to remove all suspended particles from oil.

The 788th meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, April 19, 1917.
President Buckingham in the chair; 85 persons present.

The entire evening was devoted to hearing an address by Dr. Irving
Langmuir on The constitution of liquids. (No abstract.) A paper
dealing with the subject matter presented will be found in the Proc.
National Acad. Sci., 3: 251-257. 1917.

Discussion. The paper was discussed by Messrs. Sparrow, Buck-
ingham, Swann, and Hersey, and by Messrs. T. C. Mendenhall and
R. A. Millikan with especial reference to the questionable but
persistent idea of a spherical atom.

The 789th meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, April 28, 1917.
Vice President Humphreys in the chair; 39 persons present. The
minutes of the 787th and 788th meetings were read in abstract and
approved.

proceedings: philosophical society 475

The Secretary read the call for the first meeting of the Society arid
the list of charter members.

Mr. William H. Dall delivered an address on The origin and early
days of the Philosophical Society of Washington. The address will prob-
ably be published in full in this Journal at a later date.

The Secretary read a letter from Mr. G. K. Gilbert, the second
oldest member of the Society, conveying his best wishes and expressing
regret that it was impossible for him to be present at the meeting.

Mr. F. W. Clarke delivered an address on The development of scien-
tific societies in Washington.

Interesting reminiscences of the early days of the society were offered
by Messrs. Howard, Farquhar, Wead, and Bauer.

The 790th meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, May 12, 1917
President Buckingham in the chair; 28 persons present. The minute^
of the 789th meeting were read in abstract and approved.

Messrs. I. G. Priest and C. G. Peters gave an illustrated paper on
An interferential method for measuring the expansion of very small sam-
ples. This paper describes a method requiring as a sample only one
small pin about 5 mm. in diameter by 10 mm. long, or even of smaller
dimensions. Briefly the outline of the method is as follow:

1. One of a pair of nearly (but not quite) parallel interferometer
mirrors is supported at one point by the sample and at two other
points by a standard substance of known expansivity.

2. Any difference in the expansivity of the sample and the standard
causes the interference fringes to change their widths with changing
temperature. This change in width is measured, and from it the rela-
tive expansion is computed.

Noteworthy advantages of this method over the Fizeau-Pulfrich
method are:

1. Smallness of sample required.

2. Elimination of the difficulty of obtaining the interference fringe
data. It is not necessary to count the passage of fringes during the
temperature change nor to make measurements on fringes of more than
one wave length.

3. The very troublesome correction for change in the refractive index
of air with temperature is eliminated.

It is expected that a fuller description of this method will appear
later as a Scientific Paper of the Bureau of Standards.

Discussion. The paper was discussed by Messrs. Buckingham and
Humphreys.

By invitation Mr. J. D. Edwards gave an illustrated paper on The
rapid determination of gas density.

Because of their importance in connection with orifice meter meas-
urements and other technical and scientific problems, methods for the
rapid determination of gas density have been investigated at the
Bureau of Standards.

476 proceedings: philosophical society

The effusion method which has been widely used for this purpose
has been shown to be unreliable, errors of over 10 per cent not being
unusual in practice. A study of the theory of the effusion process has
revealed the main sources of error in this method. The effusion method
under the most favorable conditions can probably not be relied on to
better than 1 or 2 per cent.

In order to secure precise results a specific gravity balance employ-
ing an indirect weighing method was developed; this enables one to se-
cure results accurate to about 0.2 per cent. This apparatus is con-
venient to use, may be made portable, and requires no preliminary
calibration.

Discussion. The paper was discussed by Messrs. Priest, Hersey,
Sweet, Buckingham, and Humphreys.

Informal communications: Mr. Buckingham outlined a theory ac-
counting for the errors in the effusion method of determining gas
densities.

Mr. C. A. Briggs exhibited two combination time and percussion
caps for shrapnel shells of types now in use on the Russian battle front.

Mr. H. F. Stimson exhibited a 2-stage mercury vapor condensation
pump for operating between about 4 cm. and 0.0004 mm. of mercury.
The low pressure stage is built with a long nozzle of the De Laval type
and the high pressure with a short nozzle. In each nozzle the ratio of
the higher to the lower pressure is maintained above the critical value
of about 2, and the velocity of the vapor in the nozzle is greater than
the velocity of sound.

Donald H. Sweet, Secretary.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VII SEPTEMBER 19, 1917 No. 15

PHYSICS. — A two-stage mercury vapor pump. H. F. Stimson,
Bureau of Standards. (Communicated by E. Buckingham.)

A "Condensation Pump" was described by Dr. Irving Lang-
muir1 which not only produced the highest vacuum yet obtained
with a pump but had a speed of exhaustion (cm.3/sec.) greater
than any previously existing high vacuum pump. The pump is
exceedingly simple. A stream of mercury vapor from a boiler
is sent down from a mouth or nozzle into a water jacketed
chamber, entrains the gas coming past the nozzle, and condenses
when striking the walls of the chamber, thus preventing flow of
mercury vapor back to oppose the oncoming gas. This pump
requires for its operation a primary vacuum of a few tenths of
a millimeter of mercury pressure.

Conditions sometimes make it necessary or desirable to use
as a source of primary vacuum either a water aspirator or some
mechanical pump which fails to reach a pressure low enough to
accommodate a single stage condensation pump. Two pumps
modified by Prof. C. A. Kraus of Clark University to essentially
the same form as Dr. Langmuir's later design were seen by the
author early in September, 1916, working in series against a
primary vacuum of 2 cm. given by a water aspirator. The
expediency of using a water aspirator even at times when the
vapor pressure of water is high has led to the present further
development of the mercury vapor pump.

• l Jour. Franklin Inst., 182: 719. 1916; Gen. Elec. Rev., 19: 1060. 1916.

477

478 stimson: mercury vapor pump

This problem is different from Langmuir's in requiring in the
mercury vapor pump the maintenance of a much larger pressure
difference by means of a continuous supply of momentum in a
manner analogous to the maintenance of a kite in air by the
employment of the momentum of the wind. To sustain this
large pressure difference a second stage is desirable, for could
such a pressure difference be sustained and high vacuum at-
tained with one stage, either a very large current of vapor would
be required or the pump would have to be made so small that
its speed would be very low. A second stage, on the contrary,
in order to pump all the gas discharged from a pump working
on high vacuum, need have only a hundredth the speed of the
high vacuum stage or even less.

From dimensional reasoning it follows that whatever supports
the pressure must have the same physical dimensions. Pres-
sure has the dimensions of force per unit area and force has the
dimensions of mass times velocity divided by time :

p =f/p = mv/tl2.

In order to make p large, I2, the cross sectional area across which
the stream of mercury vapor acts, can be made small. It is well
known that a gas will flow through an orifice with a limiting-
velocity, which is the velocity of sound, if the ratio of final to
initial pressure of the gas on the two sides of the orifice is less
than a certain limiting fraction. This fraction for mercury vapor
is about 0.49 and the velocity of sound referred to is that veloc-
ity determined by the temperature of the vapor in the orifice
where it is adiabatically expanded to this limiting pressure. It
appears then that mercury vapor can be expelled through an
orifice with the velocity of sound by a boiler pressure a little
more than twice the pressure of the supporting vacuum. When
the boiler pressure is sufficient the velocity may be increased
beyond the velocity of sound, as is done in the steam turbine,
by an expanding nozzle, but such an enlargement requires an
increased working cross section over which the pressure must be
supported, thus limiting the advantage of the increased velocity.
The term m/t can be increased by increasing the boiler pressure,

stimson: mercury vapor pump

479

thus increasing the
dimensional reasoninw
the dimensions of the elements of
a second or intermediate stage
which will support a relatively
large pressure. .

If both stages are to be oper-
ated from the same boiler, as is
extremely desirable, some change
has to be made in the design of
the high vacuum unit. On ac-
count of the increased boiler pres-
sure a constriction will be neces-
sary to cut down the flow of
mercury vapor to a sufficiently
low value. This can be most ef-
fectively accomplished by using a
long DeLaval nozzle which will
simultaneously introduce the ad-
vantages of reduction of pressure
and increase of velocity.

These principles have been con-
sidered in the construction of
pumps indicated in figure 1 . Sam-
ple dimensions will be given to
indicate working sizes, although
the size will in most cases depend
on the speed desired. The pump
in question, including its boiler,
was constructed entirely of Pyrex
glass which is well adapted to
this use and can be rapidly manip-
ulated. The boiler was made of
a half liter Erlenmeyer flask with
slightly rounded bottom.

In the intermediate stage is a
short slightly expanding nozzle

density of the discharged vapor. This
; will enable one to proportion properly

Fig. 1. Two-stage pump.

480 stimson: mercury vapor pump

G, 3 mm. long with a throat 1.8 mm. in diameter, which sends the
mercury vapor through a tube 0, 3.5 mm. diameter, across which
is supported the pressure from a water aspirator used as a fore
pump. Care must be taken to leave sufficient clearance around
the end of the nozzle G, and the tube 0 has been slightly tapered
leaving a clearance of 0.7 mm., which seems to be sufficient to
prevent condensed mercury vapor from collecting to make a
seal. It appears that the size of this unit cannot be reduced
below a certain limit determined by the surface tension of mer-
cury. The pressure of the vapor in the boiler and feed tubes, E,
has been raised to as high as 20 to 25 cm. of mercury, as is indi-
cated while the pump is in action by the height of the mercury
columns in tubes K. In the high vacuum stage a DeLaval
nozzle, F, with a throat 0.7 mm. in diameter has been used ex-
panding by about a ten to one taper to a diameter of 5 mm. dis-
charging into a tube nearly a centimeter in diameter.

The operation of the pump is as follows. Cooling water
entering at tube A flows up through the water jacket B above
the lower end of nozzle F, up through the water jacket C above
nozzle G, and out tube D. Mercury vapor from the boiler
entering through tubes E flows through the nozzles F and G,
is liquefied in the condensation chambers H and /, falls into the
tubes K, and returns to the boiler through tube L. Gas from a
vessel to be exhausted enters at M, flows past nozzle F, is com-
pressed by the jet of mercury vapor in the condensation chamber
H, and flows up through tube N to the intermediate pump.
From here it flows past the nozzle G and is compressed through
0 in the chamber / to a pressure measured by the attached
manometer, then out by tube P to the water aspirator.

Tests of the pump described above indicate a speed, when
working against a primary pressure of 4 cm., of about 250 cm.3
per sec. when speed is defined2 as

S = V/t\ogpx/p2

where S is speed, V is volume, t is time, pi and p2 are initial and
final pressures. The pump gives a limit of pressure of non-

2Gaede. Ann. d. Physik, (5) 41: 365. 1913.

stimson: mercury vapor pump 481

condensable gases very much less than a ten-thousandth of a
millimeter of mercury as was shown on a MacLeod gage, which
was the only low pressure measuring device available.

On account of questions that have been raised from time to
time, which threw doubt on the assumption that the vapor flows
through the intermediate pump with a velocity comparable
with the velocity of sound, verificative experiments were made.
A temporary rubber connection with pinch cock on the lower end
of the tube K below the intermediate pump allowed the lique-
fied mercury to be caught and measured, thus giving the term
m/t in the dimensional equation. The pressure difference
supported by the pump was observed in the manometer arms K
and the cross-section of the tube 0 is known. Computations of
velocity from the dimensional equation give a value within a
few per cent of the best available value for the velocity of sound
under these conditions. The vapor density in the boiler is an
independent datum and furnishes another means of computation,
whose result indicates more conclusively that the assumptions
of flow are verified as nearly as could be expected from the pres-
ent incomplete knowledge of the properties of mercury vapor.

Some of the advantages of a pump of this design are apparent,
namely, that it has a single boiler run by a single gas burner, a
single line of cooling water, and is effectively a single unit with a
direct air tight connection between the high vacuum stages. It is
also noted that several paths conveniently open for free exhaus-
tion with a fore pump are closed as soon as the mercury vapor
pump is started. The advantage of not requiring a primary
pressure less than 4 cm. is also apparent.

This type of pump could be employed in nearly all places where
high vacuum is necessary. If mercury is objectionable either on
account of its vapor pressure or its being an undesirable element
in the region to be evacuated, the apparatus can be protected
by a liquid air trap or possibly a gold foil trap. The speed of
the pump when working on high vacuum can be increased by
increasing the dimensions of the high vacuum unit. However,
high speed, as has often been pointed out, is sometimes illusive,
for a connecting tube 1 cm. in diameter and 0.5 meter long is

482 TATE AND FOOTE : ANODE FALL OF POTENTIAL

sufficient to cut the effective speed, of even as small a pump as
the one described above, down to half, while a pump capable of
infinite speed working through such a connection could only do
as well as could the pump described above without such connect-
ing tube.

When the time of initially reaching a sufficiently low pressure
for the high vacuum pump to be effective becomes of importance
the fore pumps can be made faster; however, this element is not
often of so much consequence, for even a small water aspirator,
working properly, in conjunction with the intermediate pump,
will, in about five minutes, pump a volume of one liter down to
a pressure sufficiently low for the high vacuum pump to begin
effective operation and will pump larger volumes in proportion-
ately longer times.

PHYSICS. — Probe-wire measurements of anode fall of potential.
John T. Tate and Paul D. Foote, Bureau of Standards.

In connection with some work which the writers have in
progress it was necessary to observe the amount of energy
dissipated at the anode in a Wehnelt discharge tube. For
this purpose a probe wire, or sound, was inserted in the anode
glow and measurements were made upon the current flowing and
upon the potential drop between the anode and sound.

In discharge tubes of this type it is easily possible to secure
currents of several amperes with an anode fall of twenty volts
or less. If the probe-wire circuit may be considered as obeying
the ordinary laws of metallic circuits, it might at first appear
that the resistance between the probe and the anode is small
enough to permit accurate potential measurements by use of a
high-resistance voltmeter instead of an electrometer. It was
found, however, that the voltmeter readings were quite different
from the electrometer readings.

Two explanations of this fact may be offered. That the
probe wire on open circuit actually takes up the potential of
the space surrounding it has been fairly well established.1 On
closed circuit the probe either takes up the potential of the

Skinner. Phys. Rev., 9: 97. 1917.

TATE AND FOOTE I ANODE FALL OF POTENTIAL

483

surrounding space or it does not. If We first assume that the
probe wire, with a small current flowing through it, does acquire
the potential of the surrounding space, or anode glow, then the
power supplied to the anode by the main discharge current may
be obtained by using the voltmeter reading. The voltmeter

rOi

Wehne>lt~
Qa -ttyde.

Vrobe, 7?P

^rJftnode

'Potentiometer' Me-thod
7?,

'Probe -JP

^-r^Anode

Volt meter Method
Fig. 1. Diagram of connections

readings are much smaller than the electrometer readings.
Hence on the above assumption less power is developed at the
anode while the voltmeter is connected. Since the potentials
of the anode and cathode are fixed in the present experiment,
the potential of the probe wire and anode glow must rise dur-
ing the time the voltmeter is connected. The potential dif-
ference between the probe and cathode increases and, the main
discharge current remaining constant, the difference in power
developed at the anode in the two cases of electrometer and

484

TATE AND FOOTE : ANODE FALL OF POTENTIAL

voltmeter measurements must appear somewhere between the
probe and the cathode.

The second assumption which may be made, and which the
writers believe they have proved to be the correct explanation,
is that the probe wire carrying a current does not take up the

3ooa

Zooo ■

Nickel Probe
Main Current, o.9 Amp
Area of Probe, 0.3 cm3

loco

•5" 10 is

Current from Probe (Amps * Z9Z5~)

Fig. 2. Relation between the surface resistance and the current

potential of the space surrounding it. This would be the case
if the probe were surrounded by a high-resistance film. Such
films are known to exist2 at the cathode, but the writers are not
aware of measurements showing the presence of films at the
anode. Any surface resistance of the probe must be due to its
functioning as a secondary anode since the probe acts as a
cathode through a metallic circuit alone.

In order to show the existence of a surface film at the probe,
the apparatus was arranged as illustrated by figure 1.

The true anode drop was measured by using a potentiometric
method, suggested by Dr. Swann, by adjusting the slide wire c
for zero current in the galvanometer G and observing the read-

2 Skinner. Loc. cit.

TATE AND FOOTE : ANODE FALL OF POTENTIAL 485

ing of the voltmeter V. In the voltmeter method the relation
was obtained between the variable resistance Rs and the volt-
meter reading. If a film of resistance Rv exists at the probe the
relation between the observed voltmeter reading V and the
voltage drop on open circuit, V, is as follows:

ti- T77 -tlr *$>r *l p

Rv

From this equation RP, the film resistance, is readily obtained.

The values observed are plotted in figure 2. It appears
that the film resistance decreases with increasing current
through the probe for the range of currents used. Since the
probe acts as an anode during voltmeter readings evidence has
been obtained for the existence of an anode polarization similar
to the polarization at the cathode in a highly ionized gas, as
observed by Skinner. The present experiment would not
distinguish between a true polarization and a secondary anode
fall at the probe. This latter might be developed by the volt-
meter current and, although the current is very small, might
amount to several volts since, as is well known, the ordinary
anode fall is pronounced even for minute currents. However,
as Skinner has remarked, it is scarcely conceivable that a poten-
tial gradient could exist in a highly ionized space. The con-
ditions relating to the true anode and the secondary anode, or
probe, are not similar, since the ionization in the space surround-
ing the probe must be due almost entirely to the main current.

The proof that the first explanation of the difference in volt-
meter and electrometer or potentiometer readings can not be
correct may be had in the following experiment.

The temperature of the anode is a measure of the power
expended in it. The anode was made in the form of a crucible
and filled with tin — a very nonvolatile metal. The temper-
ature of the molten tin was measured by a minute rare-metal
thermocouple. A series of measurements showed that the tem-
perature of the anode (and hence the power dissipated there)
remained the same whether the voltmeter or potentiometer was
connected to the probe, although the power measurements by

486 TATE AND FOOTE : ANODE FALL OF POTENTIAL

the voltmeter were 20 per cent less than those by the potenti-
ometer. If the voltmeter readings were a correct indication of
the potential of the probe, it would require that 20 per cent of
the total energy be expended between the probe and cathode
and radiated back to the crucible. Even if we make the most
favorable assumption that all of this energy is expended at the
probe, since the crucible subtends a solid angle of 2ir at the
probe while the radiation from the probe must take place
through 4-7T, it is evident that only half of this energy, or 10 per
cent of the total energy, could reach the anode, still leaving
10 per cent to be accounted for. This amount of energy was
several times greater than possible errors of observation.
Furthermore, the bright tin surface possesses such a high re-
flection coefficient that undoubtedly very little energy could be
absorbed were it present in the form of radiation. Still further,
one would have to explain how a probe carrying a thousandth
or less of the main current could produce a potential fall for
the entire current in a space already completely ionized.

Conclusion. A film of high resistance forms at the surface
of a probe placed in the anode glow. If a voltmeter is employed
for the measurement of anode fall, the readings must be cor-
rected to allow for the potential drop through this high-resis-
tance film. Such a correction would be impracticable on ac-
count of the varying nature of the film.

Since the probe functions as an anode during voltmeter read-
ings, evidence has been obtained for the existence of an anode
polarization similar to the polarization at the cathode in a
highly ionized gas, as observed by Skinner. The magnitude of
the anode polarization is very much less than the cathode polar-
ization. This explains the fact observed by Skinner that in
an auxiliary transverse discharge through the cathode glow the
resistance and the current potential curves are characteristic
of the auxiliary cathode employed.

AUSTIN! NOTES ON THE AUDION 487

RADIOTELEGRAPHY.— Notes on the audion. L. W. Austin,
IT. S. Naval Radiotelegraphic Laboratory.

A number of observations on the deForest Hudson filament
audion have been made at the U. S. Naval Radiotelegraphic Labo-
ratory, which may be of general interest.

The gas pressure used in audion detectors is generally below
0.001 mm. of mercury. By substituting nitrogen for air, to
prevent the burning out of the filament, it has been found
possible to construct detectors at all pressures up to that of the
atmosphere. The action at 3 mm. is entirely normal. Local
oscillations are easily produced and the sensitiveness is fully as
great, both for continuous and damped signals, as at the usual
pressure. At 10 mm. the sensitiveness is about normal, but
local oscillations are more difficult to produce. In the neigh-
borhood of atmospheric pressure no local oscillations have been
observed, and the sensitiveness to spark signals is much less
than at the low pressures. The conditions in this case would
undoubtedly be much improved by bringing the electrodes
closer together. Even with the ordinary arrangement of elec-
trodes, the changes in the grid and plate currents due to the
incoming waves are similar to those observed in the usual vacuum.
With 200 volts, the plate current amounts to 20 or 30 micro-
amperes.

Another series of observations has been made on the effect of the
direct current voltage between the grid and filament on grid and
plate signals. By grid and plate signals are meant the changes
in grid and plate current brought about by an impressed alter-
nating e.m.f. In the case of radio frequency signals a tuned
closed circuit is connected in the usual way to the filament and
through a stopping condenser to the grid. In this case the
stopping condenser is shunted by a circuit containing a potenti-
ometer for varying the D. C. grid potential and a galvanometer
for measuring the grid current. In the case of low frequency
excitation no tuned circuit is used but the filament is connected
to the grid through the direct current potentiometer already
mentioned, the galvanometer, and a slide wire alternating cur-
rent potentiometer from which the required alternating voltage

488

Austin: notes on the audion

T'/ate <5/<?no/ +

+H?H+tt^-!-t-H-H-ri-m-|-t'-tHt-t-r+rrT-Hi

Fig. 1

Austin: notes on the audton 489

is applied to the circuit. In both cases the plate circuit contains
the usual dry cell battery of about 25 volts,. the telephones, and
a galvanometer for the measurement of the plate current. In
the observations shown in figure 1 the gas pressure is that
usually found in bulbs of this type.

The figure shows the grid and plate characteristics and also
the grid and plate signals as defined above. The alternating
e.m.f. in this case was 0.92 volt, with a frequency of 60 cycles.
In the neighborhood of zero D. C. grid voltage the usual de-
crease of plate current and increase of grid current are noted,
while with changing grid voltage the signals change both in
magnitude and sign. These changes are apparently to be
explained by the changes in curvature of the two characteristics.

The same curves are obtained if undamped radio frequency
excitation of the same strength is used in place of the 60 cycles.
In this case the grid galvanometer is shunted with a low non-
inductive resistance to allow the oscillations to pass freely.
Here the stopping condenser plays little part. If, however, a
megohm is placed in series with the grid galvanometer so as to
force the oscillations through the stopping condenser, the ap-
pearance of the curves is much changed. The grid signal is
positive and nearly uniform over a wide range of grid D. C.
voltage, while the plate signal is similarly negative except for
strongly negative grid where both signals reverse slightly.
Apparently here some other effects appear in addition to those
due to the changes in grid and plate characteristics.

This work is still in progress and will be described later at
greater length.

REFERENCES

Under this heading it is proposed to include, by author, title, and citation, references to scien-
tific papers published in or emanating from Washington. It is requested that authors cooperate
with the editors by submitting titles promptly, following the style used below. These references
are not intended to replace the more extended abstracts published elsewhere in this Journal.

PALEONTOLOGY

Berry, E. W. The flora oj the Catahoula sandstone. U. S. Geol. Surv. Prof.
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Berry, E. W. The flora oj the Citronella formation. U. S. Geol. Surv. Prof.
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Knowlton, F. H. A lower Jurassic flora from the upper Matanuska Valley,
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Knowlton, F. H. A new fossil Selaginella from the lower Tertiary of Montana.
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Knowlton, F. H. A review of the fossil plants in the United States National
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Wherry, E. T. Two new fossil plants from the Triassic of Pennsylvania. Proc.
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BOTANY

Bartlett, H. H. The botanical work oj Edward Lee Greene. Torreya, 16:

151-175, with portrait. July, 1916.
Bartlett, H. H. Parthenium Lloydii, a new Mexican guayule. Torreya, 16:

45, 46. February 26, 1916.
Briggs, L. J., Jensen, C. A., and McLane, J. W. Mottle-leaf of Citrus trees in

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Carrier, L. The identification of grasses by their vegetative characters. U. S.

Dept. Agr. Bull. 461: 1-30, figs. 1-60. January 19, 1917.
Chase, A. The structure oj the spikelet of Aphanelylrum. Bot. Gaz., 61: 340-343,

fig. 1. April 18, 1916.
Christensen, C. Maxonia, a new genus of tropical American ferns. Smith-
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Cook, O. F. Branching and flowering habits of cacao and patashte. Contr. U. S.

Nat. Herb., 17: 609-625, pis. 44-54. June 28, 1916.
Cook, O. F., and Cook, A. C. Polar bear cacti. Journ. Heredity, 8: 113-120,

figs. 3-8. February 27, 1917.
Cook, O. F., and Doyle, C. B. Germinating coconuts. Journ. Heredity, 7:

148-157, figs. 1-6. April, 1916.

490

references: botany 491

Cron, A. B. Triple-seeded spikelets in sorghum. Journ. Amer. Soc. Agron., 8:

237, 238, pi. 8. August 1, 1916.
Eggleston, W. W. Additions and corrections to the new Vermont flora. Vermont

Bot. Bird Clubs, Joint Bull., 2: 9-13. April, 1916.
Goldman, E. A. Plant records of an expedition to Lower California. Contr.

U. S. Nat. Herb., 16: i-xiii + 309-371, pis. 104-133 + map. February 10,

1916.
Grantham, A. E., and Groff, F. Occurrence of sterile spikelets in wheat. Journ.

Agr. Research, 6: 235-250, pi. 27. May 8, 1916.
McAtee, W. L. Plants collected on Matinicus Island, Maine, in late fall, 1915.

Rhodora, 18: 29-45. March 13, 1916.
McAtee, W. L. Some local names of plants — 2. Torreya, 16: 235-242. De-
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McAtee, W. L. The winter flora of Muskeget Island, Massachusetts. Rhodora,

18: 93-99. May 4, 1916.
Maxon, W. R. Studies of tropical American ferns — No. 6. Contr. U. S. Nat.

Herb., 17: 541-608 + i-viii, pis. 32-43. May 23, 1916.
Oakley, R. A. and Garver, S. Medicago falcata, a yellow-flowered alfalfa.

U. S. Dept. Agr. Bull. 428: 1-70, pis. 1-4, figs. 1-23. January 9, 1917.
Piper, C. V. New plants from Oregon. Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 29: 99-102.

June 6, 1916.
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1916.
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18: 173-223 + i-ix, pis. 81-105. October 30, 1916.
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3: 470-473. October 20, 1916.
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1916.
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1916.
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S afford, W. E. The botanical identity of Lignum nephriticum. Science, II.,

43: 432. March 24, 1916.
Safford, W. E. Desmopsis, a new genus of Annonaceae. Bull. Torrey Club, 43:

183-193, pis. 7-9, fig. 1. May 20, 1916.
Standley, P. C. Additional notes upon New Mexican Hepaticae. Bryologist,

19: 64, 65. July 25, 1916.
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Standley, P. C. The ferns of Greene County, Missouri. Amer. Fern Journ.,
6: 44-51. June, 1916.

Standley, P. C. The genus Choisya. Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 27: 221-224.
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Standley, P. C. Some ferns of Dutchess County, New York. Amer. Fern Journ.,
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Standley, P. C. Studies of tropical American -phanerogams. Contr. U. S. Nat.
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Tidestrom, I. Allium platyphyllum sp. nov. Torreya, 16: 242, 243. De-
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Tidestrom, I. Myosurus aristatus Benth. Torreya, 16: 228-230, fig. 1. No-
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FORESTRY

«

Humphrey, C. J. Laboratory tests on the durability oj American xooods — I.

Flask tests on conifers. Mycologia, 8: 80-92, pi. 183. April 11, 1916.
Spaulding, P. Foresters have a vital interest in the white-pine blister rust. Proc.

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22: 665-669. November, 1916. [Illust.]
Sudworth, G. B. The spruce and balsam fir trees of the Rocky Mountain region.

U. S. Dept. Agr. Bull. 327: 1-43, pis. 1-25 + maps 1-10. February 19, 1916.
Young, R. A., and Popenoe, P. Saving the kokio tree. Journ. Heredity, 7:

24-28, figs. 6, 7. December 29, 1915.

PHYTOPATHOLOGY

Allard, H. A. The mosaic disease of tomatoes and petunias. Phytopathology,
6: 328-335, figs. 1-2. September 12, 1916.

Allard, H. A. A specific mosaic disease in Nicotiana viscosum distinct from
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December 11, 1916.

Bioletti, F. T., and Bonnet, L. Little-leaf of the vine. Journ. Agr. Research,
8: 381-398, pis. 89-92, figs. 1-2. March 6, 1917.

Boyce, J. S. A note on Cronartium pyriforme. Phytopathology, 6: 202, 203.
April 4, 1916.

Boyce, J. S. Pycnia of Cronartium pyriforme. Phytopathology, 6: 446, 447.
December, 1916.

Brown, H. B. Life history and poisonous properties of Claviceps Paspali.
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Byars, L. P. Tylenchus tritica on wheat. Phytopathology, 7: 56, 57. Febru-
ary 7, 1917.

Carpenter, C. W. The Rio Grande lettuce disease. Phytopathology, 6: SOS-
SOS, fig. 1. June 1916.

Colley, R. H. Discovery of internal telia produced by species of Cronartium.
Journ. Agr. Research, 8: 329-332, pi. 88. February 26, 1917.

Cromwell, R. O. Fusarium-blight or wilt disease of the soybean. Journ. Agr.
Research, 8: 421-440, pi. 95, fig. 1. March 12, 1917.

REFERENCES : PHYTOPATHOLOGY 493

Culpepper, C. W., Foster, A. C, and Caldwell, J. S. Some effects of the

blackrot fungus, Sphaeropsis malorum, upon the chemical composition of the

apple. Journ. Agr. Research, 7: 17-40. October 2, 1916.
Edson, H. A. Histological relations of sugar-beet seedlings and Phoma betae.

Journ. Agr. Research, 5: 55-58, pis. 1-2. October 4, 1915.
Faulwetter, R. C. Dissemination of the angular leafspot of cotton. Journ.

Agr. Research, 8: 457-475, figs. 1, 2. March 19, 1917.
Gilbert, W. W. Cucumber mosaic disease. Phytopathology, 6: 143, 144, pi. 5.

April 4, 1916.
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58. January 24, 1916.
Hawkins, L. A. The disease of potatoes known as "leak." Journ. Agr. Research,

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Hawkins, L. A. Effect of certain species of Fusarium on the composition of the

potato tuber. Journ. Agr. Research, 6: 183-196. May 1, 1916.
Hedgcock, G. G. Identity of Peridermium montanum with Peridermium acic-

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Hedgcock, G. G., and Hunt, N. R. Dothichiza populae in the United States.

Mycologia, 8: 300-308, pis. 194, 195. November 3, 1916.
Jackson, H. S. An Asiatic species of Gymno sporangium established in Oregon.

Journ. Agr. Research, 5: 1003-1010, pis. 78, 79. February 28, 1916.
Johnson, J. Host plants of Thielavia vasicola. Journ. Agr. Research, 7:289-

300, pis. 18, 19. November 6, 1916.
Kellerman, K. F. Cooperation in the investigation and control of plant dis-
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Kunkel, L. O. Further studies of the orange rusts of Rubus in the United States.

Bull. Torrey Club, 43: 559-569, figs. 1-5. November 27, 1916.
Long, W. H. The aecial stage o/Coleosporiumribicola. Mycologia, 8: 309-311.

November 3, 1916.
McKee, R. Alfalfa crown wart in the western United States. Journ. Amer.

Soc. Agron., 8: 244-246. August 1, 1916.
Meier, F. C. Watermelon stem-end rot. Journ. Agr. Research, 6: 149-152,

pi. 17. April 24, 1916.
Meinecke, E. P. Peridermium harknessii and Cronartium Quercuum. Phy-
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Melhus, I. E., Rosenbaum, J., and Schultz, E. S. Studies of Spongospora

subterranea and Phoma tuberosa of the Irish potato. Journ. Agr. Research,

7: 213-254, pi. A, 7-14, fig. 1. October 30, 1916.
Metcalf, H. Spread of the chestnut blight in Pennsylvania. Phytopathology,

6: 302. June 1916.
Morse, W. J. Studies upon the blackleg disease of the potato, with special reference

to the relationship of the causal organisms. Journ. Agr. Research, 8: 79-126.

January 15, 1917.

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Patterson, F. W., and Charles, V. K. The occurrence of bamboo smut in Ameri-
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Pierce, R. G., and Hartley, C. Horse-chestnut anthracnose. Phytopathology,

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Journ. Agr. Research, 8: 219-232, pis. 67-70. February 5, 1917.
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Roberts, J. W. Sources of the early infections of apple bitterrot. Journ. Agr.

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July 15, 1916.
Shear, C. L., and Stevens, N. E. The discovery of the chestnut-blight parasite

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43: 173-176. February 4, 1916.
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Journ. Cancer Research, 1: 231-309, pis. 1-25. April, 1916.
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Stevens, N. E. The influence of certain climatic factors on the development of

Endothia parasitica (Murr.) And. Amer. Journ. Bot., 4: 1-32, figs. 1-3.

February 3, 1917.
Stevens, N. E. The influence of temperature on the groivth of Endothia parasitica.

Amer. Journ. Bot., 4: 112-118, fig. 1. February 17, 1917.
Stevens, N. E. Pathological histology of strawberries affected by species of

Botrytis and Rhizopus. Journ. Agr. Research, 6: 361-366, pis. 49, 50. June

5, 1916.
Taubenhaus, J. J. Soil stain, or scurf of the sweet potato. Journ. Agr. Re-
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1916.
Weir, J. R. Keithia thujina, the cause of a serious leaf disease of the western

red cedar. Phytopathology, 6: 360-363, figs. 1, 2. September 12, 1916.
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Phytopathology, 6:414. October, 1916.
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Peridermium filamentosum. Journ. Agr. Research, 5:781-785. January

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Wolf, F. A. Citrus canker. Journ. Agr. Research, 6: 69-100, pis. 8-11, figs. 1-8.

April 10, 1916.
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PLANT PHYSIOLOGY

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Burlison, W. L. Availability of mineral phosphates for plant nutrition. Journ.

Agr. Research, 6: 485-514, pis. 73-80. June 26, 1916.
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Cook, F. C. Boron: its absorption and distribution in plants and its effects on

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Harris, J. A., and Popenoe, W. Freezing-point lowering of the leaf sap of the

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Hawkins, L. A. The influence of calcium, magnesium, and potassium nitrates

upon the toxicity of certain heavy metals toward fungus spores. Physiol.

Researches, 1: 57-92, figs. 1-6. August, 1913.
Headley, F. B., Curtis, E. W., and Scofield, C. S. Effect on plant growth of

sodium salts in the soil. Journ. Agr. Research, 6: 857-869, figs. 1-8. August,

28, 1916.
Lamb, A. R. The relative influence of microorganisms and plant enzymes on the

fermentation of corn silage. Journ. Agr. Research, 8: 361-380, figs. 1-13.

March 6, 1917.
Lathrop, E. C. The generation of aldehydes by Fusarium cubense. Phyto-
pathology, 7: 14-15. February 7, 1917.
Lipman, C. B., Burgess, P. S., and Klein, M. A. Comparison of the nitrifying

powers of some humid and some arid soils. Journ. Agr. Research, 7: 47-82.

October 9, 1916.
Macbride, J. F. Vegetative succession under irrigation. Journ. Agr. Research,

6: 741-760, pis. 98-105. August 7, 1916.

references: ornithology 497

Martin, W. H. Influence of Bordeaux mixture on the rates of transpiration from

abscised leaves and from potted plants. Journ. Agr. Research, 7: 529-548.

December IS, 1916.
Miller, E. C. Comparative study of the root systems and leaf areas of corn and

the sorghums. Journ. Agr. Research, 6: 311-332, pis. 38-44, figs. 1-3. May

29, 1916.
Stevens, N. E. A method for studying the humidity relations of fungi in culture.

Phytopathology, 6; 42S-432. December, 1916.
Stevens, N. E. Recovery of a tree from a lightning stroke. Phytopathology, 6:

204-206. April 4, 1916.
True, R. H., and Bartlett, H. H. The exchange of ions between the roots of

Lupinus albus and culture solutions containing three nutrient salts. Amer.

Journ. Rot., 3: 47-57, figs. 1-3. March 4, 1916.
True, R. H., and Stockberger, W. W. Physiological observations on alkaloids,

latex, and oxidases in Papaver somniferum. Amer. Journ. Bot., 3:1-11.

February 5, 1916.
Wyatt, F. A. Influence of calcium and magnesium compounds on plant growth.

Journ. Agr. Research, 6: 589-620, pis. 84-88. July 17, 1916.

GENETICS

Bartlett, H. H. The status of the mutation theory, with especial reference to

Oenothera. Amer. Nat., 51: 513-529. September, 1916.
Collins, G. N. Correlated characters in maize breeding. Journ. Agr. Research,

6: 435-454, pis. 53-63. June 19, 1916.
Collins, G. N., and Kempton, J. H. Parthenogenesis. Journ. Heredity, 7:

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Kempton, J. H. Lobed leaves in maize. Journ. Heredity, 7:508-510, fig. 11.

November, 1916.
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1916.
La Rue, C. D., and Bartlett, H. H . Matroclinic inlieritance in mutation crosses

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1916.

ORNITHOLOGY

. Opinions rendered by the International Commission on Zoological Nomen-
clature. Opinion 67. Smith. Inst. Publ . 2419: 177-182. April, 1916. (One
hundred and two generic names of birds are added to the official list of
generic names. — C. W. R.)

Bailey, F. M. Characteristic birds of the Dakota prairies. I. In the grassland .
Condor, 17: 173-179. October 10, 1915.

Bailey, F. M. Characteristic birds of the Dakota prairies. II. Along the lake
borders. Condor, 17: 222-226. November 30, 1915.

Bailey, F. M. Characteristic birds of the Dakota prairies. III. Among the
sloughs and marshes. Condor, 18: 14-21. January 15, 1916.

498 references: ornithology

Bailey, F. M. Characteristic birds of the Dakota prairies. IV. On the lakes.
Condor, 18: 54-58. March 30, 1916.

Bailey, F. M. A populous shore. Condor, 18: 100-110. June 8, 1916. (Ac-
count of water birds observed near Venice, California. — C. W. R.)

Bailey, F. M. A Brewer blackbird roost in redlands. Wilson Bull., 28: 51-58.
June. 1916.

Bailey, F. M. A home in the forest. Bird-Lore, 18:229-233. July-August,
1916. (Account of the nesting of the Sierra creeper in Oregon. — C. W. R.)

Bailey, F. M. Meeting spring half way . I. Condor, 18: 151-155. July 20, 1916.

Bailey, F. M. Meeting spring half way. II . Condor, 18: 183-190. September
18, 1916.

Bailey, F. M. Black-headed grosbeaks eating butter. Condor, 18: 201. Sep-
tember 18, 1916.

Bailey, F. M. Screech owlJohnnie. Bird-Lore, 18: 306-310. September-Octo-
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Bailey, F. M. Dick, the sandhill crane. Bird-Lore, 18: 355-356. November-
December, 1916.

Bailey, F. M. Meeting spring half way. III. Condor, 18: 214-219. November
29, 1916. (Observations on the birds of Texas.— C. W. R.)

Bailey, F. M. Birds of the humid coast. Condor, 19:8-13. January 15, 1917;
19: 46-54. March 15, 1917; 19: 95-101, June 1, 1917. (Observations made
in northwestern Oregon. — C. W. R.)

Bailey, F. M. Handbook of birds of the ivestern United States. Seventh edition,
revised. Houghton and Mifflin, Boston and New York, 1917. 8°.

Bangs, O. Three new subspecies of birds from eastern Mexico and Yucatan.
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fasciata deses, Tardus migratoiius phillipsi, and Cyanocompsa parellina
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Bartsch, P. Birds observed on the Florida Keys from April 20 to 30, 1914- Car-
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Bartsch, P. Birds observed on the Florida Keys and along the railroad of the main-
land from Key Largo to Miami, June 17 to Jul]/ 1, 1915. Carnegie Inst. Wash.,
Year Book No. 14, 1916: 197-199.

Bartsch, P. Birds observed in 1916, in the region of Miami and the Florida Keys
from May 15 to June 4 and along the railroad from Key West to Miami on June
24. Carnegie Inst. Wash., Year Book No. 15, 1917: 182-188.

Bartsch, P. Relationship of the Florida herons. Auk, 34: 86. January, 1917.

Bartsch, P. Destruction of passenger pigeons in Arkansas. Auk, 34: 87. Janu-
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by fire, about the ygar 1879.— C. W. R.)

Bartsch, P. Additions to the Haitian avifauna. Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash., 30:
131, 132. July 27, 1917. (Describes Porzaua flaviveniris hendersoni and
revives Dendroica petechia albicollis; eleven other forms are listed as probably
new to Haiti.— C. W. R.)

Beal, F. E. L. Some common birds useful to the farmer. U. S. Dept. Agr.,
Farmers' Bulletin No. 630. Pp. 1-27, figs. 1-23. February 13, 1915.

Beal, F. E. L., McAtee, W. L., and Kalmbach, E. R. Common birds of south-
eastern United States in relation to agriculture. U. S. Dept. Agr., Farmers'
Bulletin No. 755. Pp. 1-39, figs. 1-20. October 26, 1916.

references: ornithology 499

Cooke, W. W. The yellow-billed loon: a problem in migration. Condor, 17:

213, 214. November 30, 1915.
Cooke, W. W. The type locality of Brachyramphus craverii. Auk, 33: 80.

January, 1916. (Isla Raza, in Gulf of California, is shown to be the type

locality of this species. — C. W. R.)
Cooke, W. W. The migration of North American birds. Bird-Lore, 18: 14-16.

January-February, 1910; 18:97, March-April, 1916.
Cooke, W. W. Labrador bird notes. Auk., 33: 162-167. April, 1916. (Notes

on forty-seven species. — C. W. R.)
Cooke, W. W. The type locality of Uria t. troille. Auk, 33: 196. April, 1916.

(Sweden, not Spitsbergen, is the type locality of this species. — C. W. R.)
Cooke, W. W. The scissor-tailed flycatcher in New Mexico. Auk, 33:324, 325.

July, 1916.
Cooke, W. W. Second annual report of bird counts in the United States, with

discussion of results. U. S. Dep. Agr., Bull. No. 396. Pp. 1-20, fig. 1.

October 23, 1916. [Posthumous.]
Gabrielron, I. N. .4 criticism of two recent lists of Iowa birds. Wilson Bull.,

29:97-100. June, 1917.
Grosvenor, G. H. The world's record for density of bird, population. Bird-
Lore, 18: 77-84, 10 figs. 1916. (Fifty-nine pairs, twelve species, nesting on

one acre. — C. W. R.)
Hanna, G. D. Records of birds new to the Pribilof Islands including two new to

North America. Auk, 33:400-403. October, 1916. (Thirteen species are

added to the avifauna of the Pribilofs, of which Clangula c. clangula and

Fringilla monti [ring ilia are also new to America. — C. W. R.)
Hensh.w, H. W. Friends of our forests. Nat. Geog. Mag., 31:297-321, 32 pis.

(A synopsis of the warblers of North America, with colored illustrations of

the species. — C. W. R.)
Hersey, F. S. .4 list of the birds observed in Alaska and northeastern Siberia

during the summer of 1914. Smiths. Misc. Coll., 62= : 1-33. 1916.
Hollister, N. The black vulture in the District of Columbia and Maryland.

Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash., 30: 123. July 7, 1917.
Lincoln, F. C. A review of the genus Pedia?cetes in Colorado. Proc. Biol. Soc.

Wash., 30:83-86. May 23, 1917. (Recognizes three forms in the State, of

which P. phasianellus jamesi is new. — C. W. R.)
McAtee, W. L. [Letter to the editor.} Wilson Bull., 27: 339-344. June, 1915.
McAtee, W. L. An accomplishment of the red-throated loon. Auk, 33:75.

January, 1916. (Describes its ability to spring into the air from still water

and proceed under normal flight. — C. W. R.)
McAtee, W. L. The rose beetle poisonous to young birds. Auk, 33: 205, 206.

April, 1916.
McAtee, W. L. How to attract birds in northwestern United States. U. S. Dept.

Agri., Farmers' Bull. No. 760. Pp. 1-11. October 16, 1916.
McAtee, W. L. Some local names of birds. Wilson Bull., 29: 74-95. June, 1917.
McAtee, W. L. Life ami writings of Professor F. E. L. Beal. Auk, 34: 243-264,

pi. 6. July, 1917.
Mearns, E.A. The occurrence of the western house wren on Smith's Island, North-
ampton County, Virginia. Auk, 33: 203. April, 1916.

500 REFEKENCES : ORNITHOLOGY

Mearns, E. A. Description of a new subspecies of the American least tern.

Proc. Biol. Soc; Wash., 29: 71, 72. April 4, 1916. (Describes Sterna antil-

larum brovmi.—C W. R.)
Mearns, E. A. On the geographical forms of the Philippine elegant titmouse,

Pardaliparus elegans (Lesson), with descriptions of three new subspecies.

Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., 51: 57-65. October 16, 1916. (Recognizes seven

forms, of which P. e. panayensis, P. e. guimarasensis, and P. e. suluensis

are described as new. — C. W. R.)
Oberholser, H. C. The birds of Bawean Island, Java Sea. Proc. U. S. Nat.

Mus., 52: 183-198. February 8, 1917. (Records twenty-six species, of

which seven are here described as new. — C.W. R.)
Oberholser, H. C. Description of a new Sialia from Mexico. Proc. Biol.

Soc. Wash., 30: 27, 28. February 21, 1917. (Describes Sialia sialis epis-

copus.—C. W. R.)
Oberholser, H. C. A cooperative bird census at Washington, D. C. Wilson

Bull., 29: 18-29. March, 1917.
Oberholser, H. C. The number of species and subspecies of birds in Texas.

Condor, 19: 68. March 15, 1917. (Six hundred and five forms.— C. W. R.)
Oberholser, H. C. Mutanda ornithologica. I. Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash., 30: 75,

76. March 31, 1917. (Makes five changes of names; Cerchneis araea, C.

alopex eremica, and Rallus adelus are new. — O. W. R.)
Oberholser, H. C. Critical notes on the eastern subspecies of Sitta carolinensis

Latham. Auk, 34: 181-187. April, 1917. (Recognizes two forms from

eastern United States, of which S. c. cookei is new. — C. W. R.)
Oberholser, H. C. Notes on North American birds. I. Auk, 34: 191-196.

April, 1917. (Discusses the status of eight species and subspecies. — C. W. R.)
Oberholser, H. C. Second annual list of proposed changes in the A. 0. U.

Check-List of North American Birds. Auk, 34: 198-205. April, 1917.
Oberholser, H. C. Diagnosis of a new laniine family of passeriformes. Journ.

Wash. Acad. Sci., 7: ISO, 181. April 4, 1917. (Tylidae is a new family,

embracing the genus Tylas. — C. W. R.)
Oberholser, H. C. [Winter birds of the] Washington region. Bird-Lore, 19:

152. May-June, 1917.
Oberholser, H. C. Description of a new genus of Anatidoe. Proc. Biol. Soc.

Wash., 30:119, 120. May 23, 1917. (Horizonetta is proposed for A?ias

laysanensis. — C. W. R.)
Oberholser, H. C. The statusmoj Aphelocoma cyanotis and its allies. Condor,

19:94, 95. June 1, 1917.
Oberholser, H. C. Notes on the fringilline genus Passerherbulus and its

nearest allies. Ohio Journ. Sci., 17: 332-336. June 2, 1917. (The genus is

divided into four, of which Thryospiza and Nemospiza. are new. — C. W. R.)

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VII OCTOBER 4, 1917 No. 16

MINERALOGY. — Minasragrite, a hydrous sulphate of vanadium.
Waldemar T. Schaller, Geological Survey.

The blue efflorescence occurring on patronite at Minasragra,
Peru, was found to be a sulphate of vanadium and was named
after the locality. It occurs abundantly at Minasragra, ac-
cording to Mr. D. F. Hewett,1 and also is forming at the present
time on many of the patronite specimens in museums. A large
specimen of patronite in the United States National Museum
had a considerable amount of the blue efflorescence on it and
furnished the material for the present investigation.

In addition to the matrix minerals, such as patronite, quis-
queite, and the nickelic pyrite, bravoite, the specimen shows as an
efflorescence blue minasragrite, white tufts of prismatic crystals
of morenosite, glassy green equidimensional crystals of melan-
terite, and clear bladed crystals of gypsum. All of the efflores-
cent minerals have clearly been derived from the oxidation and
hydration of those forming, the matrix. •

No measurable crystals of minasragrite were observed, the
mineral forming small mamillary masses and granular aggre-
gates with drusy surfaces, generally distinct from the other sul-
phates but in places penetrated by masses of morenosite needles.
Examined under the microscope, the minasragrite shows irregu-

1 Personal communication. Abundant material, much purer than the origi-
nal sample, has now been obtained and an analysis of this better material will
be undertaken.

501

502

schaller: minasragrite

lar granular masses, indistinct short prisms, and rarely sharply

defined units of a rhombic shape (angle about 78°). Some

pieces break up into similar rhombs by cleavage, so that it

may be that all the observed rhombs are cleavage pieces and

not distinct crystals. From the general inclined extinction of

all straight edges it is concluded that the mineral is monoclinic

or triclinic.

TABLE 1

Analysis of Minasragrite Mixed with Impurities

ANALYSIS

DISTRIBUTION

Minasrag-
rite

Melante-
rite

Moreno-
site

Gypsum

Insoluble

V204

5.29

0.97

1.92

0.46

10.92

66.16

14.28

5.29

7.12
9.06

0*97

1.08
1.68

1.92
2.06
3.24

0.46
0.66

0.30

FeO

NiO

CaO

S03

Insoluble

H20 (by diff.)

66.16

100.00

21.47

3.73

7.22

1.42

66.16

TABLE 2
Recalculated Analysis and Ratios of Minasragrite

ANALYSIS

RATIOS

CALCULATED

v2o4

24.64
33.17
42.19

1.02 or 1 X 1.02

2.86 or 3 X 0.95

16.17 or 16 X 1.01

23 92

so3

H20

34.58
41 50

•

100.00

100.00

The color of minasragrite is blue, the luster vitreous. The
refractive indices are approximately as follows: a =1.515,
/3 = 1.525, 7 = 1.545. The pleochroism is strong: X = deep
blue, Y = blue, Z = colorless. The mineral is optically negative.

Heated in a closed tube, minasragrite readily fuses and gives
off water. It is very soluble in cold water. The sample scraped
off for analysis necessarily contained all the minerals of the
efflorescence, which were separated from the patronite by cold
water. The water of the sample had to be expressed by differ-

schaller: minasragrite 503

ence, and the insoluble matter (mostly patronite) was air dried
and not heated before weighing. The results of the analysis
are given in table 1.

The analysis, with the insoluble matter and associated melan-
terite, morenosite, and gypsum deducted and recalculated to
100 per cent, is shown with the ratios in table 2.

The ratios yield the formula V204 . 3S03.16H20, which is in-
terpreted as (V202)H2(S04)3 • 15H20, minasragrite being a highly
hydrated acid vanadyl sulphate. Quantitative determinations
(by permanganate titrations) show that all of the vanadium in
the mineral is in the tetravalent condition.

Several hydrates of acid vanadyl sulphate are known. The
pentahydrate (V202) H2 (S04)3.5H20 is formed when the acid
solution is evaporated on a water bath at about 90°, and it can
be recrystallized from sulphuric acid at 100°. Lower hydrates
are formed at higher temperatures.2 It is therefore to be ex-
pected that at ordinary temperature a higher hydrate than the
pentahydrate would form, and in minasragrite, formed at ordinary
temperature, 15 molecules of water represent the extent of the
hydration.

It is interesting to note that Gerland3 reported a hydrate
with 14 molecules of water, but later investigators have failed
to find it. Possibly Gerland's 14-hydrate was identical with
minasragrite.

2 Koppel, J., and Behrendt, E. C. Verbindungen des vierwertigen Vanadins.
Zeitschr. anorg. Chem., 35: 154. 1903. Earlier references are cited by these
authors. See also Gain, Gustave. Sur quelques sulfates de vanadium tetravalent.
Comp. rend., 143:1154-1156. 1906.

3 Gerland, B. W. Ueber einige Verbindungen des Vanadins. Ber. d. Chem.
Gesellsch., 9: 869. 1876.

504 CLARK: THE CRINOID FAMILY ANTEDONIDAE

ZOOLOGY. — The interrelationships of the subfamilies and genera
included in the crinoid family Antedonidae.1 Austin H.
Clark, National Museum.

Recently in the pages of this Journal2 I proposed a rear-
rangement of the species of Antedonidae, distributing them
among forty genera, which in turn were grouped in seven
subfamilies.

In the following keys the interrelationships of the subfamilies,
and of the genera within each, are shown.

Family ANTEDONIDAE Norman (emended)
Key to the Subfamilies of the Family Antedonidae

Cirrus sockets arranged in definite columns on a conical or columnar,

usually large, centrodorsal Zenometrinae

Cirrus sockets arranged in transverse alternating rows, or irregularly,
on a hemispherical to discoidal or conical centrodorsal.
The segments of the genital pinnules are much expanded, forming

a roof over the gonads Isometrinae

The segments of the genital pinnules are not expanded.

Pi is composed of numerous (usually more than 50 and never
less than 30) short segments of which at least the first
six or seven, and usually nearly all, are broader than
long, and the distal are rarely more than twice as long
as broad; Pi is about as long as, or longer than, P2.
One or more of the following pinnules resembles Pi.

Heliometrinae

P2 and the following pinnules are composeel of segments

which, beyond the third or fourth, are much

elongated Thysanometrinae

Pi is composed for the most part of much elongated segments,

though a few of the basal segments may be short; the

distal segments are at least twice as long as broad.

The distal cirrus segments are entirely without dorsal

processes on their distal ends; the cirri are usually

(but not always) short, rarely with more than 20,

never with more than 30, segments. . Antedoninae

The distal cirrus segments always have the distal dorsal

edge prominent, with the meelian portion more or

less proeluced in the form of a dorsal spine, and

the mid-dorsal line more or less strongly carinate.

1 Published with the permission of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Insti-
tution.

2 Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci., 7: 127-131. 1917.

CLARK: THE CRINOID FAMILY ANTEDONIDAE 505

P2 resembles Pi, and always differs from, the genital
pinnules; Pa is frequently, and Pi occasion-
ally, absent Perometrinae

P2 resembles P3 and the succeeding pinnules, and
often bears a more or less developed gonad;
all of the lower pinnules are invariably
present Bathymetrinae

Subfamily ANTEDONINAE A. H. Clark
Key to the Genera of the Subfamily Antedoninae

P2 of the same length and character as P3 and the following pinnules,
and much shorter than (usually about half as long as) Px.
Pinnule segments with unmodified, or at the most with very
finely spinous, distal edges; size medium, the arms rarely
under 45 mm. in length (Norway to the Gulf of Guinea,
including the entire Mediterranean basin and the east Atlantic
Islands; Caribbean Sea to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; 0-445

meters) Antedon

Pinnule segments with strongly produced, everted and coarsely
spinous distal edges; size small, the arms never over 70
mm. and rarely over 45 mm. in length (Southern coasts of
Australia northward throughout the East Indian region to

southern Japan; 0-275 meters) Compsometra

P2 not of the same length and character as P3 and the following pin-
nules, and never only half as long as Pi.
P3 of the same length and character as the succeeding pinnules.
Centrodorsal flattened hemispherical or discoidal; size me-
dium, the arms being between 60 mm. and 120 mm. in
length; Pi has 18-40 segments.
Pi longer than the cirri, becoming very slender and
flagellate distally, composed of about 40 segments
(Ceylon to the Society Islands; 0-47 meters)

Mastigometra

Pi shorter than the cirri, less slender and more or less

stiffened, composed of 18-21 segments (Moluccas

to China, and eastward to the Society Islands; 0-397

meters) Euantedon

Centrodorsal conical; size small, the arms being about 30
mm. in length; Pi and P2 have 12-13 segments ('Ha-
waiian Islands and northern New Zealand; 108-293

meters) Argyrometra

P.i not of the same length and character as the following pinnuh s.
P3 much the longest and stoutest pinnule on the arm.

The distal ends of the cirrus segments do not overlap
the bases of those succeeding; the dorsal edge of
the outer four to six cirrus segments is about as
long as the proximal border; the brachials have

506 CLARK: THE CRINOID FAMILY ANTEDONIDAE

strongly produced and coarsely spinous distal
edges (Flores to Borneo and the Philippine Islands;

0-502 meters) Toxometra

The cirrus segments have produced distal ends. which
overlap the proximal ends of those succeeding;
the outer cirrus segments are much longer than
their proximal width; the brachials have smooth,
or only very finely spinous, distal edges.
Smaller, with not over 16 cirrus segments; cirri less
numerous, XX-XLV (rarely over XL); arms
23 mm. to 50 mm: long (From the Red Sea to
Madagascar and Mauritius, eastward to north-
ern Australia and the East Indies, and north-
ward to southern Japan; 0-106 meters)

Dorometra
Larger, with 16-33 cirrus segments; cirri more nu-
merous, XXXV-LX (rarely less than XL);
arms 75 mm. to 80 mm. long (Lesser Sunda
Islands to the Philippines; 69-140 meters)

Eumetra
P3 not much the longest and stoutest pinnule on the arm.
Pi, P2, and P3 similar and of approximately equal length,
with at least 13 segments.
Pi, P2, and P3 longer than the genital pinnules; the
pinnules are not especially stiffened, and their
component segments do not bear prominent
spines on the distal edges; the centrodorsal is
low hemispherical (Philippine Islands to
southern Japan; 23-192 [?250] meters)

Iridometra
Pi, P2, and P3 shorter than the genital pinnules;
all the pinnules slender and stiff, especially
the lower which are thorn-like with long
spines on the distal edges of the segments;
the centrodorsal is large, rounded conical

(Coast of Brazil; 41 meters) Hybometra

P2 much longer than Pi, and longer than P3, though simi-
lar to the latter; centrodorsal more or less sharply
conical (Andaman Islands to southern Japan; 54-
201 [?250] meters) Andrometra

Subfamily THYSANOMETRINAE A. H. Clark
Key to the Genera of the Subfamily Thysanometrinae

P2 with the third segment as long as, or longer than, broad, and the
following segments markedly longer than broad (Southern Japan
and the Admiralty Islands; 126-355 meters) .... Thysanometra

CLARK: THE CRINOID FAMILY ANTEDONIDAE 507

P2 with the third segment broader than long, and the fourth broader
than long, or about as long as broad (Caribbean Sea, and north-
ward to North Carolina; 13-1029 meters) Coccometra

Subfamily PEROMETRINAE A. H. Clark
Key to the Genera of the Subfamily Perometrinae

Pi and Pa absent; size small, the 10 arms being from 25 mm. to 35 mm.
(usually between 25 mm. and 30 mm.) in length; cirri XX-
XXX, 22-25, 10 mm. long (West Indies; 59^33 meters)

Hypalometra
Pi always present, though Pa (on the inner distal end of the first
syzygial pair) is sometimes absent.
Ossicles of the IBr series and first two brachials with smooth and
umrodified depressed borders, laterally in close apposition
with their neighbors and sharply flattened against them;
synarthrial tubercles (on the articulations between the ele-
ments of the IBr series and first two brachials) very promi-
nent, sometimes extravagantly developed; Pi is as long as,
longer than, or shorter than, P2; P0 may be absent; 10-14
(usualfy 10) arms from 35 mm. to 90 mm. long 28-55 cirrus
segments (From Madagascar to the Kei Islands and south-
ern Japan; 70-252 [?273] meters) Perometra

The ossicles of the IBr series and first two brachials may be just
in contact laterally, but their sides are never sharply flat-
tened, and prominent synarthrial tubercles are never de-
veloped; their lateral borders always bear tubercles, one or
many to each ossicle, and their distal and proximal borders
are usually prominently everted and tubercular.
Interbrachial portions of the perisome naked; P0 always pres-
ent (Kei Islands and southern Japan; 204-344 meters)

Nanometra
Interbrachial portions of the perisome with numerous promi-
nent rounded calcareous nodules which are not in lat-
eral contact; P0 usually absent (Moluccas and southern
Japan; 99-270 meters) Erythrometra

Subfamily HELIOMETRINAE A. H. Clark
Key to the Genera of the Subfamily Heliometrinae

10 raclials and 20 arms (coasts of the Antarctic continent, and Kerguelen

Island; 18-400' meters) Piomachocrinus

5 raclials and 10 arms.

Each brachial bears a high median carinate process; Pi much
longer than P2 (Coasts of the Antarctic Continent; 223-400

[?900] meters) Anthometra

No carinate processes on the brachials.

Brachials very short, much broader than long; middle and

508 CLARK! THE CRINOID FAMILY ANTEDONIDAE

distal pinnules with very short segments which are
rarely longer than broad; cirrus segments very short,
only very few, or none at all, longer than broad; Pi
and P2 of approximately the same length (Vicinity of
Heard Island, and the winter quarters of the "Dis-
covery;" 135-270 meters) Solanometra

Brachials longer, about as long as broad or slightly longer
than broad ; segments of the middle and distal pinnules
longer than broad, usually very much so; a number of
the earlier cirrus segments longer than broad.
Pi with 3CM:5 segments of which those beyond the sev-
enth to eleventh are longer than broad, the distal
elongate, though never much more than twice as
long as broad; P2 is similar to Pi, but shorter
(Arabian Sea to southwestern Japan; 192-2160

meters) Cyclometra

Pi with 50-100 segments of which only the terminal are
longer than broad, and those only very slightly so;
P2 is similar to Pi, and usually of about the same
length.
Brachials with smooth distal edges; ossicles of the
division series with smooth borders and a
smooth dorsal surface; no rudimentary ter-
minal comb on the proximal pinnules (Arctic
Ocean, and southward to Norway and Nova
Scotia; western shores of the Okhotsk and Japa-
nese Seas from Cape Terpenia to Korea; 12-

1340 meters) Heliometra

Brachials with spinous distal edges; ossicles of the
division series with usually spinous borders
and commonly with a greater or lesser devel-
opment of spines on the dorsal surface; the
proximal pinnules bear a rudimentary ter-
minal comb suggesting that found in the
species of the Comasteridae (From Cape Horn
northward along the western coast of South and
North America to Alaska, thence westward and
southward to southern Japan; 11-1911 meters).

• Florometra

The genus Heliometra includes only the well known Heliometra
glacialis (Leach) ( = Antedon eschrichti [J. Mtiller] of P. H. Car-
penter and earlier authors generally).

Anthometra, Solanometra, and Florometra are best considered
as subgenera of Promachocrinus. A full account of the first two

CLARK: THE CRINOID FAMILY ANTEDONIDAE 509

and the last will be found in my memoir on Die Crinoiden
der Antarktis.3

Subfamily ZENOMETRINAE A. H. Clark
Key to the Genera of the Subfamily Zenometrinae

Pi and Pa absent (Philippine Islands; 140-148 meters) Balanometra

Pi and Pa present.

Cirri with all the segments elongated, the distal entirely without
dorsal processes; or (very rarely) a few of the outermost
cirrus segments may be but little longer than broad with
slight dorsal tubercles.
Cirrus sockets arranged in closely crowded columns in each
radial area; but the groups of columns in each radial
area are usually (almost invariably) separated from
the groups of columns in the adjacent radial areas by
long triangular bare patches; the distal cirrus seg-
ments are always greatly elongated, never with any
trace of dorsal processes (Fro?n the Galapagos Islands
and Panama northward to the Aleutian Islands, and
southward on the Asiatic coast to Yezo Strait and the
northern part of the Sea of Japan; the Hawaiian Islands;
the Philippine Islands; the Lesser Sunda Islands; the
Bay of Bengal and the coast of Travancore, and. south-
ward to the Antarctic regions; 336-2858 meters)

Psathyrometra
Columns of cirrus sockets somewhat irregular, and evenly
spaced all around the centrodorsal without differentia-
tion into radial groups;. the distal cirrus segments may
be much elongated with no trace of dorsal processes, or
little, if any, longer than broad, with slight dorsal
tubercles {From the western coast of Scotland, and
Ireland, southward to Madeira, including the entire
Mediterranean basin; 45-1292' meters) . . . . Leptometra
Cirri with the proximal segments more or less elongated, but the
distal segments short, never longer than broad, and bearing
prominent dorsal processes.
Division series and arm bases smooth; 10-14 arms (Kei
Islands and northern Cuba; 252-380 meters)

Adelometra
Division series and arm., bases spiny.

Size large; cirri with more than 40 (50-60 segments;

columns of cirrus sockets very regular, separated

interradially by high ridges, or by broad bare areas.

Two columns of cirrus sockets in each radial area,

3 Deutsche Sudpolar-Expedition, 16 (Zoologie, 8), May 16, 1915, pp. 120-143.

510 CLARK: THE CRINOID FAMILY ANTEDONIDAE

the radial areas being separated by high
ridges (From St. Lucia, British West Indies,
northward to Georgia and Pensacola, Florida;

304-792 meters) Zenometra

Three columns of cirrus sockets in each radial area,
the radial areas being separated by broad bare
areas (Hawaiian Isla?ids; 346-633 meters).

Sarametra
Size small; cirri with less than 30 segments; columns of
cirrus sockets on the centrodorsal slightly irregu-
lar; interradial areas on the centrodorsal not es-
pecially differentiated (Marion Island, and the
shores of the Antarctic continent in the vicinity of
Gaussberg; 252-400 meters) Eumorphometra

Subfamily ISOMETRINAE A. H. Clark

•

The only genus in this subfamily islsomelra, of which a complete
account will be found in Die Crinoiden der Antarktis,^. 145-146. 4

Subfamily BATHYMETRINAE A. H. Clark
Key to the Genera of the Subfamily Bathymetrinae

All the cirrus segments short, the longest not so much as twice as long
as the median diameter.
Cirrus segments cylindrical, without expanded distal ends, 25-33
(usually nearer the latter) in number, the longest (third-
fifth) about one-third again as long as broad, those beyond
the eighth about as long as broad, the distal slightly broader
than long; IBr series and arm bases without lateral proc-
esses, and widely free laterally (Western coast of Ireland;

698 meters) Orthometra

Cirrus segments with much swollen distal ends, not more than 20
in number; IBr series and brachials in close lateral contact
(Moluccas to Marion Island, southeast of Africa; 1089-2880

meters) Tonrometra

Proximal cirrus segments elongated, at least twice as long as the me-
dian diameter, and usually much longer.
Centrodorsal sharply conical with straight sides, nearly or quite
as long as broad at the base (Philippine Islands to Celebes;

509-1901 meters) Fariometra

Centrodorsal less sharply conical, with rounded sides, or hemi-
spherical, and lower.
All the brachials have strongly produced and very spinous
edges; Pi very slender and delicate, markedly longer
than P2, with the outer segments very greatly elon-

'Deutsche Siidpolar-Expedition, 16 (Zoologie, 8), May 16, 1915.

CLARK: THE CRINOID FAMILY ANTEDONIDAE 511

gated with overlapping and spinous distal ends {From
southern Japan, the Hawaiian and Philippine Islands
westward to Cape Comorin, thence southwcshvard to
between Marion Island and the Crozets; from the Bay of
Biscay northward to 54° 17' N. lat., and from Brazil
northward to the Newfoundland banks; 248-2926 meters)

Trichometra

The brachials do not have strongly produced and very spinous

distal -ends; at most the distal edges of the outer

brachials are bordered with fine spines.

Px much elongated, between two and three times as long

as P2, composed of 30-40 segments of which a

few of the basal are short, the following becoming

slender and greatly elongated (Arctic Ocean from

icestern Greenland to the Kara Sea, and southward

to Portugal and Chesapeake Bay, and also in the

vicinity of Marion Island, southeast of South

Africa; 18-1800 meters) Hathrometra

Px the same length as, longer than, or shorter than, P2;
but if longer never more than slightly so, and with
not more than 20 segments.
Cirri with 20-30 relatively short segments of which
the last six to thirteen are only very slightly,
if at all, longer than broad.
Pinnules not especially long; distal pinnules the
same length as the proximal pinnules;
P2 resembling P3 and the following pin-
nules, slightly longer and stouter than P3
with somewhat fewer segments which are
proportionately longer; P2 may bear a
gonad, though these usually begin on P3;
arms 25 mm. to 60 mm. long; cirri L-LX,
21-30 (Kei and Meangis Islands, and
southern Celebes; 204-1158 meters)

Nepiometra
Pinnules very long; distal pinnules not so long
as the proximal pinnules; P2 very slightly
shorter than Pi, but similar to it, with
about 18 elongated segments; following
pinnules similar; arms about 20 mm. long;
cirri about XXX, 20-25 (Southeastern
South America; 1080 meters) Phrixometra
Cirri with not more than 20 much elongated segments
all of which are markedly longer than broad,
especially the proximal.
More than XXV cirri, which have 10-20 seg-
ments (Eastern Pacific, including the Seas

512 CLARK! THE CRINOID FAMILY ANTEDONIDAE

of Okhotsk and Japan, from western Ber-
ing Sea to the Kermadec Islands and New
Zealand, and westward to between Marion
Island and the Crozets; southwest of Ice-
land; 144-3178 meters) . . Thaumatometra
Not more than XV cirri, which have not more
than 10 segments (Abysses of the Pacific
from west of Tasmania to west of Japan;
4680-5220 meters) Bathymetra

ABSTRACTS

Authors of scientific papers are requested to see that abstracts, preferably
prepared and signed by themselves, are forwarded promptly to the editors.
Each of the scientific bureaus in Washington has a representative authorized to
forward such material to this Journal and abstracts of official publications should
be transmitted through the representative of the bureau in which they originate.
The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those appearing in
this issue.

GEOLOGY. — The enrichment of ore deposits. W. H. Emmons. U. S.
Geol. Survey Bull. 625. Pp. 530. 1917.

This report is an amplification of an earlier Survey bulletin on the
enrichment of sulphide ores (Bulletin 529). Fifteen elements and
their compounds not considered in the earlier report are discussed
with reference to their reactions in the zone of oxidation. All recent
important advances in the subject have been incorporated and the
general treatment has been considerably broadened.

The geologic 'conditions favorable and unfavorable to the forma-
tion of enriched mineral deposits are described and the criteria by
which such deposits may be recognized are outlined. The natural
chemical processes by which enrichment is produced are fully discussed
and the behavior of each metal is considered separately and is illus-
trated by descriptions of many of its known valuable enriched ore
bodies. A. K.

GEOLOGY. — Notes on the greensand deposits of the eastern United
States. George H. Ashley. U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 660-B.
Pp. 27-58. 1917.

No attempt was made at a detailed survey of the greensands but
samples were collected from the most accessible of the deposits and
analyzed to determine their percentage of potash. The results of the
study show that the richest and largest deposits of greensand occur in
New Jersey, extending down into Delaware. Lower grade greensands
occur abundantly in Maryland and less abundantly in Virginia, North
Carolina, Arkansas, Texas, and doubtless the other Southern States.

The richest deposits show a potash content around 7 per cent,

513

514 abstracts: geology

which is close- to the percentage of potash in glauconite, of which the
best greensands are almost entirely made up. These greensands
occur in the basal part of the Cretaceous formation of New Jersey and
Delaware and in the upper part of the Eocene. Those of New Jersey
are entirely in the Cretaceous, while those of Maryland are in both
Cretaceous and Eocene.

The paper also contains a contribution on Methods of analysis of
greensands by William B. Hicks and Reginald K. Bailey, discuss-
ing the methods used in making these analyses, which differ some-
what from methods previously used. G. H. A.

GEOLOGY. — The Irvine oil field, Estill County, Kentucky. Eugene
W. Shaw. U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 661-D. Pp. 141-191. 1917.

The report outlines the history of the Irvine oil field, which in three
years has developed into the richest oil territory in the state, and de-
scribes the geology, including the nature and lay of the rocks, the char-
acter and occurrence of the oil, and other features of the field. The re-
port contains one map, 20 by 30 inches, showing the structural geology,
farm lines, wells, and other features on a scale of 2 miles to the inch, and
another map showing the general geologic structure of about 1000
square miles surrounding the field on a scale of 4 miles to the inch.

The Irvine oil field is by far the most productive yet developed in
Kentucky. In fact, its output in 1917 will be more than twice as
great as that of the dozens of other oil fields in the State, some of
them long productive; and it will probably produce much more in
1918. The field is in a region where oil showings have long been
known and oil has long been sought, and yet somehow this great pool
10 miles long and 2 miles wide was missed. The west side of the Irvine
field is within a mile of outcrops of the oil-bearing bed, which may be
seen at several places in and around Irvine. Some of the wells are
less than 100 feet deep and yet furnish good yields, even the oldest
showing a relatively low rate of decline. E. W. S.

GEOLOGY. — Geology and ore deposits of the Mackay region, Idaho.
Joseph B. Umpleby. U. S. Geol. Survey Prof. Paper 95. Pp.
129. 1917.

The Mackay region is in southeastern Idaho north of Snake River.
It has yielded about $3,750,000, of which $2,300,000 has come from
copper, and the remainder from silver, lead, and gold.

abstracts: geology 515

The older formations of the region comprise more than 20,000
feet of strata ranging in age from Algonkian to Pennsylvanian. These
rocks were intruded by large masses of granite in late Cretaceous or
early Eocene time. Great volumes of andesite lava flooded a system
of deep valleys in Miocene time, and extensive outpourings of basalt
during the Pliocene have covered parts of the region.

The principal ore bodies are contact-metamorphic copper deposits.
They are of particular scientific interest because they appear to have
been formed by gaseous transfer from a granite magma, during which
large quantities of iron, aluminum, silicon, copper, and sulphur were
supplied to the contact rocks. The geologic relations are unusually
favorable and allow almost rigorous proof that the ore-depositing
solutions were of magmatic origin. The copper deposits are highly
oxidized, and chrysocolla is the main constituent. Many of the fea-
tures of the oxidized ores appear to be of colloidal origin, and the prev-
alent microscopic banding is probably due to rhythmic precipitation
in gelatinous media (the Liesegang effect). A. K.

GEOLOGY. — The Newington moraine, Maine, New Hampshire, and
Massachusetts. Frank J. Katz and Arthur Keith. U. S. Geol.
Survey Prof. Paper 108-B. Pp. 11-29. 1917.

A recessional moraine consisting of several separate segments dis-
posed along a sinuous course lies near the Atlantic coast and has
been traced through 60 miles from Saco, Maine, to Newbury, Massa-
chusetts. It is for the most part about or less than 100 feet above
sea level but rises to 180 feet in Biddeford, Maine, 150 feet in Dover,
New Hampshire, and Newburyport, Massachusetts, and is between
200 and 250 feet above the sea in Wells and South Berwick, Maine.
Although not more than 40 to 100 feet higher than surrounding Pleisto-
cene' formations, nevertheless it is topographically prominent because
it is in a region of slight relief. The moraine rests upon and is sur-
rounded by a floor of ice-smoothed rock and of till. The region was
submerged during the building of the moraine, and the ice front stood
in the sea. The moraine is the result of the accumulation of glacio-
fluvial detritus discharged directly into the sea; consequently in some
places it is built up as broad, flat, delta-like plains of sand and gravel.
Clay ("Leda clay") was continuously deposited in the sea, both while
the moraine was accumulating and after the ice retreated from the
moraine, so that the younger clay beds in some places overlie the

516 abstracts: botany

moraine. This clay is the fine glacial outwash. The moraine and
the marine clay probably belong to a late Wisconsin substage of the
Pleistocene epoch. F. J. K.

BOTANY. — Grasses of the West Indies. A. S. Hitchcock and Agnes
Chase. Contributions from the U. S. National Herbarium, 18:
261-471. 1917.

The paper is a descriptive list of 110 genera and 455 species of the
grasses of the West Indies. For the purposes of the list the West Indies
includes Bermuda, the Bahamas, Trinidad, and Tobago but excludes
the Dutch Islands off the coast of Venezuela. There are keys to the
tribes and genera and keys to the species of each genus. The genera
and species are briefly described and under each species is given full
synonymy, the habitat, geographical range, the common names, and
the locality from which the species and the synonyms were described
(the type localities). An attempt has been made to account for all
the species credited to the West Indies. One genus and 14 species are
described as new. Appended to this list is a catalogue of all the speci-
mens in the U. S. National Herbarium, arranged by collectors' names
and numbers. A. S. H.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VII OCTOBER 19, 1917 No. 17

PHYSICS. — The resonance and ionization 'potentials for electrons
in sodium vapor. John T. Tate and Paul D. Foote,
Bureau of Standards.
When electrons are accelerated through mercury or cadmium
vapor two distinct types of inelastic impact have been observed
to take place. The first of these occurs at the experimentally
observed potentials of 4.90 volts for mercury1 and 3.88 volts
for cadmium2 and is accompanied by the radiation of light of a
single wave length, 2536.72 A for mercury3 and 3260.17 A for
cadmium.4 This radiation is not the result of a recombination
with the atom of an electron removed by the impact but is to be
regarded as due to an agitation of the electrons bound in the
atom.5 The large transfer of energy from the moving electron
to the atom may be explained if we assume that at these critical
velocities the time of interaction between electron and atom
bears a simple relation to the natural period of vibration of one
of the electrons bound in the atom. Under these conditions the
electron may be said to have a resonance velocity characteristic
of the vapor through which it is moving. The resonance velocity
may be calculated theoretically6 from the frequency, v, of the
radiation emitted, by making use of the relation

hv =eV
where h is Planck's element of action (here assumed to be

1 Franck and Hertz. Verh. d. D. Phys. Ges., 16: 457-467. 1914.

2 Tate and Foote. Bull. Bur. Stds. (In press.)

3 Franck and Hertz. Verh. d. D. Phys. Ges., 16: 512-517. 1914.

4 McLennan and Henderson. Proc. Roy. Soc. Lond., 91: 485-491. 1915.

6 Tate. Phys. Rev, 7: 686-687. 1916. Tate and Foote. Idem, 10: 81. 1917.
6 McLennan and Henderson. Loc. cit.

517

518

TATE AND FOOTE : RESONANCE POTENTIALS

6.56 X 10 ~27 erg sec.),7 e the electronic charge, and V the poten-
tial necessary to give the electrons the resonating velocity. The

o

io

<2 4- 6 <3

Accelerating 'Potential ( Volts )

Fig. 1. Variation with accelerating potential of current to outside cylinder.
'Coblentz. Bull. Bur. Stds., 13:470. 1916.

TATE AND FOOTE : RESONANCE POTENTIALS

519

values obtained for V on this basis are 4.88 volts for mercury
and 3.79 volts for cadmium.

The second type of inelastic impact has been observed at
10.3s or 10.4 volts9 for mercury and 8.92 volts10 for cadmium.
Collisions taking place at these potentials are characterized
by the complete removal from the atom of one or more bound
electrons, i.e., by ionization of the atom," and by the emission of
the complete spectrum of the vapor.1- We may, following

fc:

f V

e

'\

%

\

J

by\

my

c y

6 J

ordina
x 10

tes

K

( d

— /

A

a

b

'

/Q\

.

A

/O

6

'\f \

TP

1

a

2 6 8

Accelerating Totential ( Vo/tsJ

i+

Fig. 2. Variation with accelerating potential of current to outside cylinder.

McLennan, calculate the ionizing potential on the basis of
Bohr's theory of atomic structure from the limiting frequency
v = (1.5, S) in the spectra of these metals and obtain for mer-
cury 10.41 volts and for cadmium 8.97 volts. The agreement
between observed and calculated values of both resonance and

8 Tate. Loc. cit.

9 Davis and Gaucher. Phys. Rev., 10: 101. 1917.

10 Tate and Foote. Loc. cit.

11 Tate. Loc. cit.; Tate and Foote. Loc. cit.

12 McLennan and Henderson. Loc. cit.

520

TATE AND FOOTE : RESONANCE POTENTIALS

ionization potentials is well within the limits of experimental
error.

The object of the present investigation is the experimental
determination of the critical potentials for electrons in sodium
vapor. The experimental arrangement was identical with that
used by the writers in the work on cadmium vapor and the
method of measurement that already described for the deter-
mination of critical potentials in mercury vapor.

"

S

i

/

J '

1 J

A

4.3

flOa

0)

1 /-

1

iU

A a

,

v3

^-^

,

<2J\L

4-4

^—y

S-*

/iia

^

^Y

<

a,.

i i
+.~~

5

-

t

r

2.

Z J

>

o

5" <

p «

1 i

X. J

3

r

Fig. 3. Variation with accelerating potential of total current from hot wire.
Upper abscissae values apply to curves 9, 10, 11; middle values to curve 10 a; and
lower values to curves 9 a and 11 a.

The results of the present work are represented graphically
by figures 1, 2, and 3. Curves 1 to 8, figures 1 and 2, show the
variation with the accelerating potential between hot wire and
gauze of that portion of the current which reaches the outside
cylinder against a retarding field of about 0.8 or 0.9 volts. The
sudden falling off in the rate of increase of current which takes
place at the points a, b, c, d, etc., indicates that at the effective
potentials of these points inelastic impact has taken place.

TATE AND FOOTE I RESONANCE POTENTIALS

521

The correct value for the critical potential is obtained by
taking the difference in potential between successive points,
thus eliminating any effect of initial velocity. For reasons to be
discussed later only the points a and b were used. The average
value obtained for the difference in potential between a and b
on curves 3 to 7 was 2.12 volts. Curves 1 and 2 were prelimi-
nary curves and not enough points were observed to permit of
an accurate determination of the critical potentials.

TABLE 1
Summary of Data on Sodium

APPLIED POTENTIALS AT RESONANCE

RESO-
NANCE
POTENTIAL

INITIAL
POTENTIAL

Curve

a

b

c

d

e

f

(T

b-a

1

2.3

4.5

6.3

8.1

2

2.3

4.5

6.5

8.7

3

1.4

3.4

5.5

2.0

0.6

4

1.2

3.3

5.6

2.1

0.9

5

1.4

3.6

5.6

7.8

10.0

2.2

0.8

6

1.3

3.4

5.9

8.0

10.2

12.2

144

2.1

0.8

7

1.3

3.5

6.0

2.2

0.9

8

7.8

Mean

2.12

0.80

±0.06

9a

4.3 Applied potential for ionization.

10a

4.3 Applied potential for ionization.

11a

4.4 Applied potential for ionization.

4.33 Mean applied potential.
0.80 Initial potential.

5.13 Ionization potential.

The initial velocity of the electrons may be obtained from
these curves directly. For example, in curve 6, the first reso-
nance occurs at 1.3 volts and the second at 3.4 volts. The cor-
rect resonance potential is the difference of these two values or
2.1 volts. Hence the first resonance must have occurred at a
true potential of 2.1 volts. The initial potential is the correc-
tion necessary to add to the applied potential of 1.3 volts to give

522

TATE AND FOOTE : RESONANCE POTENTIALS

So

this value, viz. 0.8 volts. The mean value thus obtained for
curves 3 to 7 was 0.80 volts.

Without changing conditions in any way the curves 9, 10, and
11, figure 3, representing the variation in total current from the
hot wire with accelerating potential were obtained. Curves 9 a,
10 a, and 11a are sections of the curves 9, 10, and 11 plotted on
the same scale of coordinates used in figures 2 and 3. It is to be

noted that there is no sudden change in
the total current at points corresponding
to a and b, etc., on the other curves.
This indicates that no ionization results
from the inelastic impact which occurs
at 2.12 volts. There is, however, a
sharp increase in current at an average
applied potential of 4.33 volts. Correcting
for the initial velocity as determined
above gives 5.13 volts for the average
value of the ionizing potential.

Simultaneously with the rapid increase
in current at 4.33 volts there appeared a
bright yellow glow about the hot wire.

It is to be emphasized that the critical
points were chosen by plotting all curves
on the same scale and estimating where the
actual curves deviated by a constant pre-
determined small amount from the curve
extrapolated beyond the critical point.
7 Since we are dealing here with differences
Potent/a/ (Volts) between similarly chosen points the ele-
Fig. 4. Examples of dis- ment of arbitrariness in their choice is
continuous "total current" largely eliminated. The final results are

tabulated in table 1.
With a rather high vapor pressure of sodium the total current
curves showed a discontinuous break (see fig. 4) at some inde-
terminate potential. The current jumped to a very high value
and, as the potential was decreased, remained very large until
the potential was considerably lower than that at which the

4t>

-5

o
<0

20

Id

?

1

1

1
1

1

1
1
L

1

i

^

^s°

\l If

u

TATE AND FOOTE : RESONANCE POTENTIALS 523

sudden increase had taken place. It would then drop back,
again discontinuously, to its original low value. Similar effects
have been observed in mercury vapor. Continuous curves were
obtained by decreasing the vapor pressure of the sodium.

The points of higher order c, d, e of curves 1 to 8 are of
interest in that they are a combination of two overlapping effects.
After ionization has set in at an observed potential of 4.33 volts it
is to be expected that the electrons which start at this point will
collide inelastically at potentials of 6.45, 8.57 volts, etc., whereas
the electrons which had not been involved in an ionization would
collide inelastically at 5.56, 7.68, etc. What is actually ob-
served is a combination of the point 5.56 with 6.45, etc. (see
especially curve 5 which shows distinct double maxima in these
regions). On account of this overlapping no use was made of
these points of higher order in the determination of critical
potentials.

If, on the basis of Bohr's theory, we calculate the minimum
wave length to be expected assuming a critical potential of 2.12
volts, we get X = 5830 A and it seems obvious that we are dealing
here with the potential necessary to bring out the D lines.
Using X = 5893 A we find for the critical potential necessary to
excite the D lines 2.10 volts.

The minimum wave length corresponding to the observed
ionizing potential is 2410 A. The limiting wave length of the
principle series of the sodium spectrum is 2412.63 A.13

Summary. — (1) Electrons having a velocity corresponding to
2.12 ± 0.06 volts collide inelastically, without ionization, with
the atoms of sodium vapor. The energy lost by the colliding
electrons is probably radiated in light of wave lengths corre-
sponding to the D lines. Assuming this to be the case the theo-
retical value of the resonance potential is 2.10 volts.

(2) Electrons having a velocity corresponding to 5.13 ± 0.10
volts are able to ionize sodium vapor and cause it to emit a
brilliant yellow light. The theoretical value of the ionizing
potential using the limiting wave length of the principal series
in the sodium spectrum is 5.13 volts.

13 Wood and Fortrat. Astrophys. Journ., 43: 73. 1916.

524 TATE AND FOOTE : RESONANCE POTENTIALS

(3) The experimental results of the present paper afford an-
other instance of the fundamental correctness of deductions
based upon Bohr's theory of atomic structures.

In a very interesting paper14 which has appeared since this
paper was written, Wood and Okano observe an emission of the
D lines at a potential of 0.5 volts, and the appearance of the
subordinate series (probably indicating ionization of the sodium
vapor) at 2.3 volts. These values are much lower than those
to be expected from the results of the present paper. It will be
remembered that Hebb]5 has observed correspondingly low
values for the potentials necessary to excite the single-lined and
many-lined spectrum of mercury. The writers have observed a
similar phenomenon in connection with a determination, which
has just been completed, of the critical potentials for electrons
in potassium vapor. It was found that the first resonance
collision occurred at an effective applied potential of 0.2 volt
(correcting for the potential drop along the hot wire). In all
cases, however, the second resonance collision took place at a
potential 1.60 volts higher than the first. This value (1.60
volts) is exactly that required, on the basis of Bohr's theory,
to produce an emission of the fundamental lines (X = 7701.92 A

o

and X = 7668.54 A) of the principal series of the potassium
spectrum. Ionization of the potassium vapor was observed to
take place at a potential roughly one volt higher than the second
inelastic collision, i.e., at an effective potential of 3.2 volts + 1
volt, or 4.2 volts approximately. The theoretical value using the
limiting frequency of the principal series of potassium is 4.33
volts.

It appears evident, therefore, that the electrons involved in
producing these effects have initial velocities of about 1.4 volts —
a value much greater than that to be expected. The reason for
these high initial velocities is difficult to find. The presence of
vapor or of a lime coating on the cathode seems necessary for
their production, and it is not impossible that chemical forces

14 Wood and Okano. Phil. Mag., 34: 177. 1917.
16 Hebb. Phys. Rev., 9: .371. 1917.

COBLENTZ AND EMERSON: PHOTOELECTRIC SENSITIVITY 525

are involved. It is suggested that a study of the relationship
between the intensity of light emitted and the applied potential
would prove of value as a spectroscopic determination of critical
potentials.

PHYSICS. — The photoelectric sensitivity of various substances.1
W. W. Coblentz and W. B. Emerson, Bureau of Standards.

Some time ago an examination was made of various substances
to determine their electrical sensitivity to light; and in view of
the fact that some of the results obtained are at variance with
the measurements made by Case,2 it seems desirable to publish
a summary of our observations.

Two of the herein described substances were examined for
change in electrical conductivity caused by the action of light
upon them, and all of them were examined for photoelectrical
activity when they were charged to a negative potential in an
evacuated bulb and exposed to light.

When the substances were examined for an increase in elec-
trical conductivity, a potential of 2 to 6 volts was connected
through a resistance of zero to 100,000 ohms into a circuit con-
taining a d'Arsonval galvanometer and the substance under
investigation. In most cases the substances were slightly con-
ducting when not exposed to light, so that the "dark current"
had to be annulled by joining a counter e.m.f. through a re-
sistance of 10,000 ohms to the terminals of the galvanometer.
This counter e.m.f. was obtained by shunting across a re-
sistance of 100 ohms which was in series with a cell of 2 volts
and a variable resistance of zero to 70,000 ohms.

The source of light, when not otherwise specified, was a
16-c.p. carbon incandescent lamp, placed at a distance of 10
cm. from the substance under investigation. One disappointing
feature of this investigation is that no substance was found
which is comparable in sensitivity with the potassium photo-
electric cell and with the selenium cell.

1 To be published in full in the Bulletin of the Bureau of Standards.

2 Case. Phys. Rev., 9: 305. 1917.

526 COBLENTZ AND EMERSON I PHOTOELECTRIC SENSITIVITY

SUBSTANCES EXAMINED

Gallium. The material examined was the highly purified
metal prepared and supplied by Dr. H. S. Uhler. This metal
was solid, thus differing from the impure material, which is a
liquid. It was melted and solidified over a platinum wire sealed
into a glass bulb, thus forming the negative electrode of a photo-
electric cell from which the air was exhausted. The anode was
a loop of platinum wire, situated at a distance of about 12 mm.
above the gallium electrode.

A potential of 340 volts was applied to the cell which was
connected to a sensitive iron-clad Thomson galvanometer
(i = 5 X 10 ~10 amp.).

The results obtained proved disappointing, this metal being
quite insensitive to light. When the cell was exposed to day-
light the photoelectric current produced a deflection of only 4 to
5 mm., whereas similarly exposing a potassium photoelectric cell
the photoelectric current was sufficient to give a deflection
beyond the range of the scale.

Silver sulphide. The sample examined was a thin flexible
strip, 6 by 10 mm. in area, prepared by Mr. G. W. Vinal.3 In
one test the silver sulphide formed the negative electrode of a
photoelectric cell (evacuated glass bulb about 5 cm. diameter
with a ring of platinum wire for the anode) similar to the gallium
cell just described. It was connected through an iron-clad
Thomson galvanometer to a battery of 340 volts. When ex-
posed to daylight a deflection of perhaps 1 to 2 mm. was observed,
but no deflection resulted from exposure to the standard carbon
lamp.

In the second test, copper wires were melted to the ends of a
strip (3 by 5 by 0.3 mm.) of silver sulphide which was con-
nected in series with a high resistance, a storage cell of 2 volts,
and a d'Arsonval galvanometer. When exposed to the standard
lamp, the galvanometer deflection was 10 mm. In another
sample about 2 cm. long, the ends joining the copper wires were
covered to prevent thermoelectric currents. The exposed area

3 Vinal. Bur. Standards Scientific Paper No. 310.

COBLENTZ AND EMERSON I PHOTOELECTRIC SENSITIVITY 527

was 14 by 4 mm. The radiation from the standard lamp pro-
duced a deflection of 13 to 17 mm. Both samples were quick
acting, and after exposure to light there was no lag such as
obtains in selenium in recovering its dark resistance.

Selenium. A crystal of selenium, prepared by Dr. F. C.
Brown4 and having a receiving surface of less than one sq. mm.,
when exposed to the standard lamp gave a deflection of more
than 50 cm., which shows its great sensitivity as compared with
other substances.

The mounting of the selenium crystal consisted of metal
electrodes between which the crystal was held by compression.
When operated as a photophone, by connecting the selenium
crystal with an audion amplifier as described on a subsequent
page, a loud musical note was obtained.

Tellurium. This metal is said to change in resistance when
exposed to light. The present tests were made upon a mirror of
tellurium deposited upon a glass plate by cathode disintegration.
Suitable terminals were attached to a sample about 4 by 50
mm. No change in conductivity was observed when it was
exposed to light.

Boleite. The sample of boleite [3Pb CI (OH) . Cu CI (OH) +
Ag CI], from Boleo, Mexico, examined was a single rectangular
crystal 3 by 3 by 1.5 mm. It was held by compression between
copper electrodes. No change in conductivity was observed
when the crystal was exposed to daylight or to the standard
incandescent lamp.

Stibnite. Samples of this same specimen of stibnite, Sb2S3,
were supplied to Elliot5 for investigation. The purpose of the
present investigation was to obtain a comparison of its sensi-
tivity with that of other substances containing antimony.

The size of one sample examined was 4 by 7 by 0.5 mm.
Terminals were attached to it by heating a copper wire to in-
candescence in a gas flame and bringing it in contact with the
plate of stibnite.

The standard carbon lamp caused a deflection of 5 cm. Stib-

4 Browx. Phys. Rev., (2) 4:85. 1914.
6 Elliot. Phys. Rev., (2) 5: 53. 1915.

528 COBLENTZ AND EMERSON: PHOTOELECTRIC SENSITIVITY

nite may be considered as sensitive as boulangerite, to be men-
tioned presently, but the deflection drifted, due to the decrease
in resistance with time already noticed by other observers.

Boulangerite. The specimen of boulangerite (3PbS.Sb2S3,
Irkutsk, Siberia) investigated was obtained from the Smithsonian
collection, No. 78395. Several samples were examined. In one
sample, 4 by 7 by 0.8 mm., the electrodes consisted of copper
wires melted into the material as just described. The radiation
from the standard lamp gave a deflection of 10 to 20 cm.

Another sample, 1 by 1.2 by 2 mm., held by compression be-
tween two heavy electrodes of copper, when exposed to the
standard incandescent lamp produced a deflection of 2 to 3 cm.,
which is comparable with the preceding when one considers the
size of the exposed surfaces.

Although this substance seems fairly sensitive, it did not
appear to be sufficiently so to justify an investigation of its spec-
tral sensitivity with a view of using this mineral as a selective
radiometer.

Jamesonite. (2PbS.Sb2S3; Smithsonian collection No. 12,500;
from Cornwall, England.) The sample examined (size 2 by 7 by
1 mm.) had the copper wire terminals attached by fusing the
incandescent wire into the material. The standard lamp gave a
deflection of only 1 to 2 cm., which seems to indicate that this
material is not so light-sensitive as is boulangerite.

Mixtures of galena, PbS, and stibnite, Sb2 S3, in various pro-
portions were melted in a crucible and poured upon a plate of
metal. Several samples, 5 by 10 by 0.5 mm., were examined,
but none of them gave any indication of light-sensitiveness
(change in resistance) when exposed to daylight or to the
standard incandescent lamp.

Bismuihinite. Bismuthinite, Bi2 S3, was obtained from the
Smithsonian collection, No. 85071, from Jefferson 'County,
Montana. This is the most interesting substance examined, in
view of the diverse results obtained and the explanation offered
therefor.

The sample of bismuthinite examined consisted of a non-
homogeneous mass of acicular crystals, which was easily crushed

COBLENTZ AND EMERSON: PHOTOELECTRIC SENSITIVITY 529

into numerous fine needle-like crystals. The first sample ex-
amined was a small mass of crystals (size 1 by 1 by 0.7 mm.)
held by compression between two heavy electrodes of copper.
When the crystal was exposed to the standard carbon lamp no
change in conductivity could be detected with certainty.

A second sample, 3 by 6 by 1 mm., had the copper wire ter-
minals attached by fusion, as already described. The e.m.f's
applied were the same as for the preceding sample. When ex-
posed to the standard lamp no change in conductivity was ob-
served. These results being contradictory to those published
by Case6 who used a three stage audion amplifier to detect
the change in conductivity of the crystals, the foregoing experi-
ments were repeated in the manner described by him. For
this purpose the light from an acetylene flame shining through
a slit 2 by 10 mm. was focused upon the crystal by means
of a triple achromatic lens, 6 cm. in diameter and 18 cm. focal
length. The light was interrupted by means of a sectored disk
having 15 openings and operated by means of an electric motor,
the speed of which could be varied. The usual speed gave 240
interruptions per second. The crystal was connected to a three
stage audion amplifier and telephone receiver. A crystal of sele-
nium or a selenium cell produced a loud note, but the samples
of boulangerite and jamesonite, which by previous tests were
light-sensitive, did not give a musical sound in the telephone.

The sample of bismuthinite with electrodes sealed on produced
no audible note when exposed to light.

At least a dozen samples of bismuthinite held by compression
between heavy copper electrodes were examined in connection
with the amplifier. Of this number only two samples appeared
to be light-sensitive. One sample produced only a faint sound
in the telephone receiver. The second sample produced a loud
note in the telephone. The sound was the loudest when the
crystal was exposed along the line of contact with the copper
electrode. Covering the crystal with red glass did not reduce
the loudness of the note very much, indicating that the effect is
due to heating of the material. Unfortunately, this crystal was

6 Loc. cit.

530 COBLENTZ AND EMERSON! PHOTOELECTRIC SENSITIVITY

crushed while under investigation. Prolonged tests on other sam-
ples gave negative results as regards the production of sound.

In view of the fact that the tests made with a sensitive gal-
vanometer failed to show an increase in conductivity when bis-
muthinite was exposed to light, it appears that the change in
conductivity which was observed when a certain specimen was
exposed to intermittent flashes of light (photophone or, rather,
radiophone) is the result of a thermal change within the crystal,
or perhaps a change in the contact resistance at the electrodes.7
In this connection the following experiments on thin strips of
metals are of interest.

Platinum, and gold. In conclusion it is of interest to record
the results obtained when using thin blackened strips of plati-
num and of gold-leaf as radiophones, by connecting them through
a battery to an amplifier.

These blackened strips were warmed intermittently by expos-
ing them through a rotating sectored disk to the acetylene
flame, as already described.

When a sensitive platinum bolometer receiver was used as a
radiophone, the sound produced in the telephone was not very
audible. This no doubt was due to the great heat capacity of
the material which prevented the rapid alternations in resistance,
and hence in electric current, from being of sufficient magnitude
to affect the telephone receiver.

Using a lightly smoked strip (6 by 2.5 mm.) of gold-leaf, the
ends of which were clamped between thin (0.02 mm.) strips of
tin, the sound produced in the telephone receiver was as loud as
was observed in the photophone made of selenium.

This device was mounted in a glass bulb which could be evacu-
ated. As was to be expected, there was no marked difference in
the intensity of the sound produced when operated in air and
in a vacuum.

In the gold-leaf radiophone as used, the limit of audibility
was attained for a light (radiant power) intensity of 4.8 X 10 ~5

7 It would be interesting to determine whether the effect is dependent upon
the axial direction of exposure. In the present case the needle-crystals were
parallel to the electrodes.

COBLENTZ AND EMERSON: PHOTOELECTRIC SENSITIVITY 531

watts. Using a larger receiver and amplifier and a larger cur-
rent (which was 0.2 amp. in the present tests) through the
receiver, the sensitivity could be greatly increased.

summary »

This paper summarizes the results of an investigation of
various substances (1) for an increase in electrical conduc-
tivity caused by the action of light upon them, and (2) for
electrical discharging activity when they were charged to a
negative potential in an evacuated chamber and exposed to
light.

Pure gallium and silver sulphide were found to have but small
photoelectric discharging action when charged to a negative
potential and exposed to light.

No change on exposure to light was observed in the electrical
conductivity of tellurium, boleite, bismuthinite, and mixtures of
the sulphides of lead and antimony.

An increase in electrical conductivity on exposure to light was
observed in crystals of selenium, stibnite, boulangerite, jameso-
nite, and silver sulphide.

Experiments are described in which crystals of bismuthinite
were joined through a battery to the grid circuit of an audion
amplifier and a telephone. A change in current in this circuit
affected the telephone. The light stimulus was interrupted by
means of a rotating sectored disk, as used in Bell's selenium
photophone. When using a cell or crystal of selenium the
fluctuations in light intensity produced a sufficient change in
conductivity to cause a musical note in the telephone. Simi-
larly, in several samples of a crystal of bismuthinite a change
in conductivity was produced, which caused an audible sound
in the telephone. However, from various tests it is believed
that this is not a true photoelectrical change (increase) in con-
ductivity, but is due to a thermal resistance change within the
crystal or to a change of resistance at the point of contact of the
crystal with the metal electrodes between which the crystal was
held by compression.

532 WRIGHT: CORRELATION IN SUBGROUPS OF POPULATION

Experiments are described in which a thin blackened strip of
platinum or of gold-leaf is joined through a battery to an
audion amplifier. The variation in temperature and hence in
the resistance of and in the current through the strip, caused
by the fluctuation in intensity of the intermittent light, was
sufficient in magnitude to produce an audible sound in the
telephone receiver.

GENETICS. — The average correlation within subgroups of a
population. Sewell Wright, Bureau of Animal Industry.

In studying the relationship of characters it often happens
that the available data consist of a number of more or less dif-
ferentiated groups, each one of which is by itself rather small
for the calculation of a coefficient of correlation. Sufficiently
large numbers can be obtained by combining all into one table,
but if this is done the correlation due to differentiation of the
subgroups among themselves complicates the interpretation.
The coefficients for the whole population and for the means of
the subgroups are easily calculated, but the calculation of co-
efficients within the subgroups may be a very tedious task if
these are numerous.

It seems desirable therefore to have a method by which the
average correlation for the subgroups can be derived directly
from the distribution surfaces of the whole population and that
of the means of the subgroups. The very simple formula dis-
cussed below has been useful to the writer and does not seem
to be well known.

Assume that a population is composed of a number of sub-
groups which may be expected, within the limits of random
sampling, to show the same correlation between two variables
x and y and the same standard deviations. They may, however,
be of varying sizes and be differentiated from each other signifi-
cantly with respect to the mean values of x and y.

Let o-X(g), o-y(g), rxy(g) be the average standard deviations and the
average correlation between x and y for the individuals within
a single subgroup. Let <rx(m), ov(m), rxy(m) be the correspond-
ing values for the means of the subgroups weighting each mean

WRIGHT: CORRELATION IN SUBGROUPS OF POPULATION 533

with the number of individuals involved. Let <rx(t), o-y(t), rxy(t)
be the values for the total population. The average standard
deviations within the subgroups can be calculated at once, as
the variability of the whole population is compounded of the
variability of the means of the subgroups and the independent
variability of the individuals about these means.

Thus, <rx(t) = <rx(m) + ot^y

2 2 i 2

°V(t) = °V(m) + Cy(g)

It is evident that the mean values of x and y for the total
population are identical with those for the weighted means of the
subgroups. Take the intersection of these means as origin and
consider the contribution of a given subgroup to the term
sX(t) F(t) in the formula for the coefficient of correlation for the
total population.

r 2X(t) F(t)

rxy (t)

n (t) °"x (t) Cy (t)

Let X(m), F(m) be the deviations of the means of the sub-
group from the origin. Let X(g), F(g) be the deviations of any
point within the subgroup from the center of the latter.
X(m) + X(g), F(m) + F(g) are the coordinates of the point.
For any such point there is a point of equal frequency at an
equal distance on the opposite side of the center of the sub-
group in the ideal case in which the subgroup is perfectly sym-
metrical about two perpendicular axes. Normal chance dis-
tributions tend to approach this ideal case. The coordinates of
this point are X(m) — X(g1, F(m) — F(g).

The sum of the products of the coordinates of such symmetri-
cally placed points is as below.

X(m) F(m) + X(m) F(g) + X(g) F(m) + X(g) F(g)
X(m) F(m) — X(m) 1(g) ~ X(g) F( m) + X(g) F(g)

2X(m) F(m) + 2X(g) F

(g)

The sum of the products for all points in the subgroup, taken
thus in pairs, is n(g) X(m) F(m) + 2X(g) F(c) where n(g) is the
number in the subgroup.

534 WRIGHT! CORRELATION IN SUBGROUPS OF POPULATION

The correlation within a subgroup is

' xy (g)

n(g) °"x (g) °V (g)

2 -^(g) ^(g) = rxy (g) °"x (g) 0-y (g) W(g)

The correlation and standard deviations within a subgroup
are assumed constant. Hence n(g) is the only variable in the
expression above.

Combining all subgroups:

„ _ S n(g) X(m) F(m) + rxy (g) o-x (g) cry (g) Z n(g)
' xy (t)

°"x (t) °"y (t) ^ "'(g)
_ rxy (m) °"x (m) °~y (m) + rxy (g) Q~x (g) °> (g)
0"x (t) 0"y (t)

Thus the relation between the correlations and standard
deviations of the total population, of the weighted means of sub-
groups, and of the individuals within an average subgroup are
expressed by the following formula:

^xy(t) 0"x(t) 0>(t) = ^xy(m) 0"x(m) 0"y(m) + ^xy(g) 0"x(g) 0"y(g)

The following example deals with correlation between weight
at birth and weight at the age of a year in male guinea-pigs born
in litters of three in an inbreeding experiment carried on by the
Animal Husbandry Division. In this experiment, 24 families
have been developed by exclusively brother-sister matings from
24 original pairs. These 24 families have become strongly
differentiated in various respects which can not be ascribed
merely to variation in vigor. The present data involve records
collected up to a certain date and include animals from the first
to the 15th generation of inbreeding. There were 560 guinea-
pigs in all families combined. This mixed population gives a
correlation of + 0.375 ± 0.024. The correlations of the means
of the 24 families, each weighted by the number of individuals,
gives + 0.630 ± 0.083. In order to discover the average cor-
relation within the families apart from the differentiation be-
tween families, correlations were calculated separately for the 8

dufrenoy: metaphanic variation in grasses

535

largest families, containing 297 guinea-pigs. These contained,
between 32 and 45 guinea-pigs each. Naturally, the coefficients
varied greatly but all but one were positive and the weighted
average came out + 0.256 ± 0.036, showing a substantial cor-
relation. This, however, does not use all the data. A calcula-

table i

Constants Used in Calculations

Total (560 pigs)...
24 family means. . .
Average family (de-
duced)

Average 8 families
with 297 pigs

2

a

r

ab

a

y

a. a

b y

r a. a

by b y

130.53
20.50

110.03

14,852
4,837

10,015

11.425
4.528

10.49

121.87
69.55

100.08

1,392.4
314.9

1,049.8

522.15

198.39
323.76

108.78

8,915

10.43

94.42

by

+ 0.375 ±0.024
+0.630 ±0.083

+0.308 ±0.026
+0.256 ±0.036

tion directly from the correlation and standard deviations of the
total population and the array of means, by the method suggested
in this paper, gives + 0.308 =•= 0.026 as the average within a
family. This agrees reasonably well with the first calculation,
uses all the data and involves very much less labor. Table 1
shows the constants used in calculating the average correlation
within families and the averages derived from the 8 largest
families as a check. o-b and <ry are the standard deviations, in
grams, of birth weight and year weight respectively.

GENETICS. — A new case of metaphanic variation in grasses
and its significance. J. Dufrenoy, Station Biologique
d'Arcachon. (Communicated by K. F. Kellerman.)

In his recent work on the Hybrids of Zea ramosa and Zea
tunicata, G. N. Collins described these two mutants of maize as
being ancestral forms. In crossing them "the hope was enter-
tained that their combination might bring to light still other
ancestral characters." This hope was not fulfilled, but important
data were obtained and the conclusions brought forth seem to
have a wide bearing.

536 dufrenoy: metaphanic variation in grasses

We found them to apply fairly well to the case of Dactylis
glomerata.

Two forms of Dactylis glomerata have been described, the true
D. glomerata with a dense inflorescence, the branches at its base
being less than 5 mm. long, and D. glomerata ramosa with a
divided inflorescence, the basal parts being supported by branches
10 to 60 mm. long. The specialized character of D. glomerata
is the suppression of the basal branches in the inflorescence, the
whole inflorescence being the homologue of the terminal in-
florescence of D. glomerata ramosa. This latter, which is less
differentiated, may be considered an ancestral form.

In a meadow at Bareges (Hautes-Pyrenees, France) careful
examination of hundreds of D. glomerata and D. glomerata ramosa
led to the discovery: (1) of two inflorescences, bearing sterile
spikelets, to be compared with the sterile ear of Zea tunicata;1
(2) of a case of metaphanic variation which is most remarkable
as it actually brings to light ancestral characters.

Green foliage organs, 23 to 25 mm. long, developed between
the glumes, some of which yielded cf and 9 reproductive
organs. Some of the foliage organs enclosed normal, rudimen-
tary, or abnormal stamens and pistils, or rudimentary leaves
developed where pistils should have been. These metaphanic
variations may be compared with those observed by Collins
in the terminal inflorescence of full tunicate plants of maize.
Successive transverse sections displayed all gradations in the
forms of cf reproductive organs from the microsporangia of
thallophytes to the stamens of flowering grasses.

Twelve microsporangia were imbedded in the parenchymatous
tissue at the base of the foliage organ, which was thus a true
homologue of the thallus of nonflowering plants. Some of these
microsporangia were rudimentary and contained cells scarcely
different from the parenchymatous neighboring cells, while
others contained pollen-grains surrounded ■ by nutritive cells.
In the upper sections these microsporangia became more and
more individualized and were freely grouped two by two as
stamens.

1 Collins, G. N. Journ. Agr. Research, 9: pi. 15.

oberholser: pycnonotine family of passeriformes 537

The nondifferentiated foliage organ which bears cf and 9
reproductive organs, and continues to act as an assimilating
organ, being thus at the same time green and fertile, may be
considered to represent one of the possible forms of the ancestral
organs of grasses.

From the data presented the following conclusions may be
drawn, which confirm the theories of Bower, MacDougal, and
Dufrenoy :

Organs of grasses were at first all fertile but most of them
became sterile under the pressure of ecologic factors. The vege-
tative activity overshadowed the reproductive activity and
most organs become assimilating organs, viz., leaves. A few
remained fertile, and responded in diverse ways to their re-
productive specialization, attaining their greatest differentiation
in ordinary maize.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Collins, G. N. Hybrids of Zea ramosa and Zeatunicata. Journ. Agr. Research,

9: 383-395, pi. 13-21.
MacDougal, D. T. Aridity and evolution. Plant World, 12: 221.
Dufrenoy, J. Les donnees actuelles et les problhmes de la phytogeographie.

(Literature cited.) Rev. G6n. Sci., 27: No. 10.

ORNITHOLOGY. — Diagnosis of a new pycnonotine family of
Passeriformes. Harry C. Oberholser, Biological Survey.

It requires but a superficial examination to discover that the
genus Irena is out of place among the Pycnonotidae. Apparently
it has been referred to that family because of its conspicuous
nuchal hairs, which are so characteristic a feature of the bulbuls;
and because of the lack of a better place.

That this disposition has not been considered satisfactory is
evidenced by Dr. R. B. Sharpe's reference of Irena to the Dicru-
ridae,1 which action was, however, soon, and properly, repudiated
by Dr. Sharpe himself.2 As a matter of fact, the fairy bluebirds,
as the members of the genus Irena are called, with their metallic

1 Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., 3: 265. 1877.
! Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., 6: 174. 1881.

538 oberholser: pycnonotine family of passeriformes

plumage and heavily plumed nostrils, do, at first glance, very
much resemble the drongos (family Dicruridae) ; but the posses-
sion of twelve instead of ten rectrices definitely excludes them
from that group. Since, as above indicated, the birds now com-
prised in the genus Irena Horsfield are not properly referable to
the Pycnonotidae or to any other recognized family, it becomes
necessary to create for them a new group, to be called

Irenidae, fam. nov.

Diagnosis. — Readily differentiated from the Pycnonotidae by
the strongly corvine bill and the densely and entirely feathered
nostrils and nasal fossae.

Family characters. — Bill thick and heavy, but somewhat com-
pressed, the culmen rather sharply ridged, the gonys rounded;
terminal portion of maxillar tomia notched; mental apex oppo-
site anterior end of nasal fossae; nostrils small and subrounded,
situated in the anterior end of nasal fossae, and entirely and
thickly covered with closely appressed antrorse feathers and
bristles; head completely feathered; nuchal hairs present and of
moderate length ; tail of twelve stifhsh feathers, slightly rounded,
and making up nearly half the total length of bird; wings rather
long and rounded; tertials short; first (outermost) primary
spurious, but more than one-half the length of second; feet rather
small, the claws moderately developed; tarsi short, scutellate,
but sometimes rather indistinctly so.

Type genus. — Irena Horsfield.

Remarks. — The birds of this new family comprise eight cur-
rent species, two of which are, however, but subspecies, and an
additional new subspecies, hereinafter described. Authors have
hitherto included all these in the single genus Irena, but struc-
tural differences necessitate the division of this into two genera,
as follows:

Irena Horsfield

Irena Horsfield, Trans. Linn. Soc. Lond., ser. 1, XIII, pt. 1,
May, 1821, p. 153 (type by monotypy, Coracias puella Latham).

oberholser: pycnonotine family of passeriformes 539

Generic characters. — Tail rather long, about four-fifths of
wing; lower tail-coverts falling short of end of tail by more than
one and one-half times the length of tarsus; and upper tail-
coverts falling short of end of tail by two or more times the
length of tarsus.

Type. — Coracias puella Latham.

In the original diagnosis of Irena the only species that
Horsfield cites is " Coracias puella, Lath. Ind. Orn. 171," with
which he misidentifies Javan specimens of the species not until
long afterward described as Irena turcosa by Walden. The type
of this genus must, therefore, be the only species mentioned,
Coracias puella Latham; not, as Sharpe3 states, Irena turcosa
Walden; particularly since the latter had no standing whatever
at the time of the institution of the generic name Irena.

Of the forms now allotted to the restricted genus Irena, one,
Irena ellae Steere, is certainly but «a subspecies of Irena melano-
chlamys Sharpe, as individual variations in these two overlap
the differences. With this change, the species of this group will
be as follows:

Irena melanochlamys melanochlamys Sharpe.

Irena melanochlamys ellae Steere.

Irena cyanogastris Vigors.

Irena puella (Latham).

Irena tweeddalii Sharpe.

Glauconympha, gen. nov.

Generic characters. — Similar to Irena Horsfield, but tail
shorter, only three-fourths of the length of wing; lower tail-
coverts much longer, falling short of end of tail by less than
length of tarsus, and sometimes reaching even beyond the end
of tail; and upper tail-coverts much longer, falling short of end
of tail by not more than the length of tarsus.

Type. — Irena cyanea Begbie.

The bird from Borneo and Sumatra, Irena crinigera Sharpe,
is by individual variation subspecifically connected with Irena

3 Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., 6: 174. 1881.

540 oberholser: pycnonotine family of passeriformes

cyanea from the Malay Peninsula, and must therefore stand as
Glauconympha cyanea crinigera. Its name criniger is a Latin
adjective (not a noun, as some authors apparently think) of
which the feminine nominative is crinigera, as above written.
Birds of this species from the Barussan Islands, off the western
coast of Sumatra, are found to differ subspecifically from the
typical race of the mainland, and as they are apparently unde-
scribed, may be called :

Glauconympha cyanea megacyanea, subsp. nov.

Subspeciftc characters. — Similar to Glauconympha cyanea cri-
nigera from Borneo and Sumatra, but larger; female with both
upper and lower parts darker, more bluish (less greenish).

Description. — Type, adult female, No. 179254, U. S. Nat. Mus.,
Pulo Tuanku, Banjak Islands, January 23, 1902; Dr. W. L.
Abbott. Upper surface dusky green blue No. I,4 but the tips
of most of the feathers chessylite blue, and the interscapulum
with a more greenish shade, the upper tail-coverts dark chessy-
lite blue; tail brownish black, the middle pair of rectrices and
outer webs of the three adjoining pairs, dark green blue slate;
wings blackish fuscous, the lesser coverts dusky green blue No.
1, the broad edgings of median and greater coverts and ter-
tials, and narrow margins of primary coverts, secondaries, and
a few of the inner primaries, dark greenish blue like the inter-
scapulum; lores and nasal feathers between neutral gray and
deep neutral gray; sides of head and neck like the interscapu-
lum; throat greenish blue, between dark gobelin blue and terre
verte green; breast dull jouvence blue; abdomen dull, somewhat
greenish capri blue; crissum dark orient blue; lining of wing
fuscous, the outer feathers edged with greenish blue; "iris red;
bill and feet black."

Measurements. — Male:5 wing, 115-124 (average, 119.9) mm.;
tail, 82.5-91 (86.6); exposed culmen, 21-23.5 (22.3); height of

4 The colors here mentioned are based on Mr. Ridgway's "Color Standards
and Color Nomenclature."

5 Eleven specimens, from South Pagi Island, Nias Island, Pulo Mansalar.
the Batu and Banjak Islands, western Sumatra.

oberholser: pycnonotine family of passeriformes 541

bill at base, 9-10 (9.6); tarsus, 16-18.5 (17.5); middle toe
without claw, 14-14.5 (13.7).

Female:6 wing, 118-119 (average, 118.6) mm.; tail, 85-91
(88.1); exposed culmen, 23.5-24.5 (23.8); height of bill at base,
9.5-10.5 (10); tarsus, 17.5-19 (18.1); middle toe without claw,
14-15 (14.5).

Geographic distribution. — Nias, Mansalar, the Pagi, Batu, and
Banjak Islands; with doubtless others of the Barussan chain off
the western coast of Sumatra.

The subjoined measurements of Glauconympha cyanea cri-
nigera, from Bornean and Sumatran specimens, are added here
for convenience of comparison with those of the present new

race:

Male.— Wing, 113.5-119 (average, 116) mm.; tail, 74-84.5
(81.5); exposed culmen, 21-23 (21.8); height of bill at base,
9-10.5 (9.5); tarsus, 15-18 (16.3); middle toe without claw,
13-14 (13.5).

Female.— Wing, 114-118 (average, 115.6) mm.; tail, 82-88
(84); exposed culmen, 22-24 (23.2); height of bill at base,
9-10.5 (9.6); tarsus, 16.5-19 (17.3); middle toe without claw,
14-14.5 (14.3).

The species and subspecies referable to the new genus Glauco-
nympha are as follows:

Glauconympha turcosa (Walden).

Glauconympha cyanea cyanea (Begbie).

Glauconympha cyanea crinigera (Sharpe).

Glauconympha cyanea megacyanea Oberholser.

6 Three specimens, from South Pagi Island, Nias Island, and the Banjak
Islands, western Sumatra.

ABSTRACTS

Authors of scientific papers are requested to see that abstracts, preferably
prepared and signed by themselves, are forwarded promptly to the editors.
Each of the scientific bureaus in Washington has a representative authorized to
forward such material to this Journal and abstracts of official publications should
be transmitted through the representative of the bureau in which they originate.
The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those appearing in
this issue.

RADIATION. — The calculation of the constants of Planck's radiation

equation; an extension of the theory of least squares. Harry M.

Roeser. Bureau of Standards Scientific Paper No. 204 (Bull.

Bur. Stds.; 14: 31-77). 1917.

The problem of computing from experimental data the constants,

ci and c2, of Planck's radiation equation for the distribution of energy

in the spectrum of a black body is attacked by the method of least

squares. The data were furnished by Dr. W. W. Coblentz. The

observation equations were reduced by taking logarithms of both

sides and assigning proper weights to the -equations so transformed.

The method of assigning weights is given in a general form that can

be adapted to any scheme of transformation. TT , r _

H. M. R.

PHYSIOLOGICAL OPTICS.— The luminous radiation from a black
body, and the mechanical equivalent of light. W. W. Coblentz
and W. B. Emerson. Bureau of Standards Scientific Paper No.
305 (Bull. Bur. Stds., 14: 255-268). 1917.
In this paper the visibility of radiation by the average eye is applied
to radiation problems, including the luminous energy emitted by a black
body at various temperatures, the luminous efficiency, the Crova wave-
length, and the mechanical equivalent of light. The visibility curve
of the average eye (125 observers) gives a mechanical equivalent of 1
lumen = 0.00161 watt of radiant energy of maximum visibility.
Various other determinations give values varying from 0.00157 to
0.00160 watt. The most reliable data now available indicate a value
of 1 lumen = 0.0016 watt of radiant energy of maximum visibility, or
1 watt = 625 lumens = 49.8 candles of radiant energy of maximum
luminous efficiency. W. W. C.

542

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

THE PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 791st meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, May 26, 1917.
President Buckingham in the chair; 33 persons present. The minutes
of the 790th meeting were read in abstract and approved.

Mr. C. F. Marvin gave an illustrated paper on Aerology in aid of
aeronautics. (No abstract.)

Discussion: The paper was discussed by Messrs. Buckingham,
Hersey, White, and Sweet. Mr. Littlehales mentioned the sys-
tematic rotation of wind velocity with change in altitude.

Informal communications: Mr. Humphreys gave an explanation of
the formation of the two kinds of sun dogs, or haloes, by reflection.
Mr. Buckingham considered one application of the principle of dimen-
sional homogeneity. In a communication about three years ago, the
speaker had enunciated a certain theorem concerning the forms of
physical equations, as a convenient formulation of the principle of
dimensional homogeneity. The present communication referred to
the further elucidation of the term "complete equation." By means
of Lord Rayleigh's problem of the gravitational oscillations of. a liquid
spheroid, two methods were illustrated for treating universal constants
which might be involved in the phenomenon described by the equa-
tion in question. It was further remarked that a similar choice of
methods was available for dimensional constants which were not
universal, and that one of the methods introduced a considerable
simplification into the algebra of the process.

Donald H. Sweet, Secretary.

543

544 proceedings: anthropological society

ANNOUNCEMENT OF PROGRAM OF
THE ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

During the season from October, 1917 to April, 1918, inclusive, the
Anthropological Society of Washington, D. C., will provide a very
interesting program of papers or lectures chiefly concerned with
divers nations of Europe and the East now at war or likely to be in-
volved before long, including especially some of our less known and
smaller allies. The general plan of most of these monographs will be
a resume of earliest known data, racial origins, shiftings and blendings,
historical development, and present status, aiming to further a more
thorough acquaintance with these peoples, their characteristics and
capabilities, and the causes which have made them what they are.
The appended schedule may be subject to some changes in detail as
the season advances and is now necessarily incomplete as to one or
Two items, but will give a sufficient idea of what is to be expected,
the society meets at 4.30 p.m. in rooms 42-43 of the new building of
the National Museum on alternate Tuesdays, beginning October 2,
1917.

PROGRAM

«

Oct. 2, 1917: Dr. Ales Hrdlicka: Bohemia and the Bohemians.
Oct. 16, 1917: Dr. Mitchell Carroll: The story of Greece.
Nov. -6, 1917: Prof. James H. Gore: Belgium.

Nov. 20, 1917: Mr. George J. Zolnay: Roumania, past and present.
Dec. 4, 1917: Dr. Amandus Johnson: Scandinavia.

Mr. Jtjtjl Dieserud: Certain customs of Norway.

Dec. 18, 1917: France.

Jan. 15, 1918: Dr. Voyslav M. Yovanovitch: Serbia.

Jan. 29, 1918: Italy.

Feb. 12, 1918: Dr. Joseph Dunn: Scotland.

Feb. 26, 1918: Dr. B. Israeli: Russia.

March 12, 1918: Mr. E. T. Williams: The origin of China.

March 26, 1918: Holland.

April 9, 1918: Dr. Paul Haupt: Mesopotamia and Palestine.
April 22, 1918: Annual meeting and election of officers.

Some, perhaps most, of these lectures will be illustrated by lantern
slides or otherwise. The public will be welcome.

Wm. H. Babcock,

President.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VII NOVEMBER 4, 1917 No. 18

PYROMETRY. — The -proper type of absorption glass for an
optical pyrometer. Paul D. Foote, F. L. Mohler, and C.
O. Fairchild, Bureau of Standards.

On account of the deterioration of the filament of the stand-
ard lamp used in the Holborn-Kurlbaum form of optical pyrom-
eter the maximum temperature at which the instrument may
be safely operated is about 1400° or 1500°C. For the measure-
ment of higher temperatures the intensity of the light entering
the pyrometer is decreased by means of an absorption glass or
sectored disk. If strictly monochromatic light were employed,
the following relation resulting from Wien's law would apply
to measurements made with the diminished intensity:

i i_xioger = A

e s a

2

where 6 is the true absolute temperature of the black-body
source, S the measured a'bsolute temperature for the wave
length X, and T' = /(X), the transmission of the absorption
glass or sectored disk for the wave length X. Under such con-
ditions A is a constant with respect to 0. However, as one of
the writers1 has shown, A is by no means in general a constant
when the light is not absolutely monochromatic, this condition
being the one experimentally obtained by the use of red glass
screens, and of chief interest in optical pyrometry. The object

1 Foote. Bur. Stds. Sci. Paper No. 260. 1916.

545

546 FOOTE, MOHLER, AND FAIRCHILD : PYROMETER GLASS

of the present note is to describe an absorption glass for which
the quantity A would be independent of the temperature of
the black-body source.

When the light is not monochromatic, the simple equation
above can not be employed. With heterochromatic conditions,
the setting of the pyrometer is correct when the luminosity of
the black-body source as viewed through the lens and absorp-
tion-glass system exactly equals the luminosity of the standard
lamp as viewed through its lens and absorption-glass system.
The condition for a match is as follows:

C TT'VJ (\,0)d\= f" TVJ(\,S)d\ (1)

Jo Jo

where T =f (X) is the transmission of the red glass screen usual-
ly employed, V =f (X) = visibility, J (X, 0) the intensity rela-
tion as given by Wien's law for the black-body source, J (X, S)
the similar relation for the lamp, and X, S, and T' have the
significance noted above. This assumes that the lamp radiates
as a black body and that the absorption due to the various
lens surfaces is negligible, but the method for deriving the
proper form of T' = /(X) is the same when these factors are
considered.

Let T' have the form T' = e x where a is a negative constant.
Equation (1) may be rewritten thus:

TVC1\-5e~^{e-a)d\= TVC\\-5e~^d\ (2)

o Jo

In order that (2) be true it is necessary that:

(3)

1 1

1 1

— — OL = — ,

or

— — — = (X

e s'

e S

Whence, if the transmission of the absorption glass has the form

st£* 1 1

T' = e x , we have = A = a = a constant independent of

6 S

the temperature.

Thus, using an absorption glass of this type, it is possible
to calibrate the glass at temperatures less than 1500°C, i.e.,

/

FOOTE, MOHLER, AND FAIRCHILD : PYROMETER GLASS 547

below the point where the safe operation of the pyrometer lamp
is in question, and to use this experimentally determined value
of A for extrapolation of the temperature scale without the neces-
sity of applying corrections for change of A with 6.

Such a glass is ideal for other reasons. There will be always
a perfect color match between the black-body furnace and the
pyrometer lamp. This becomes evident upon considering in-
tensities at any monochromatic wave length. We have for a
match at wave length X

J (x, e) T' = J (x, S) (4)

or

H)

Since by the assumed form of T' the quantity X loge T' is con-
stant, - — o is constant, and a match for one wave length holds

0 io

for all other wave lengths. Also this condition of color match
holds for all other temperatures.

As a consequence of the above fact, the settings made with
this type of absorption glass are absolutely independent of the
type of red glass ocular used. The same settings are obtained
for a red glass, a blue glass, or no-colored glass ocular at all.
The settings are independent of the visibility curve of the ob-
server and a color-blind person would obtain the same readings
as the normal observer. With the usual type of absorption
glass or sectored disk we do not have a color match and settings
are therefore difficult to make; different observers obtain differ-
ent values of A on account of differences in their visibility
curves; and the variation of A with 0, which must be accurately
known for accurate temperature measurement, is very difficult
to determine experimentally.

In order to check the constancy of A with 6 luminosity curves
were drawn for each system, viz., lamp + red glass and furnace
+ black glass + red glass, and comparisons made by use of
equation (1). The quantity A was found to be constant within
the errors of the necessary graphical integrations. Another

548 FOOTE, MOHLER, AND FAIRCHILD: PYROMETER GLASS

means of showing this is as follows. Let equation (1) represent
the condition for any system whatever, that is, one in which, in
general, A =f (0). On dividing (1) by its derivative with respect

to 0, and substituting - — „ = A (d) we obtain :

dA __ X QS) - X' (0)

do e2 x' (0)

(6)

Where X (S) is the effective wave length of the system lamp at
temperature S + red glass, and X' (0) is the effective wave
length of the system furnace at temperature 0 + absorption
glass + red glass.2

For the case under consideration X (S) - X' (0) = 0. The
values obtained by graphical integration are given in table 1
together with similar values for the type of absorption glass

dA
ordinarily used. It is seen that jir=0 within the errors of

CLu

computation for the new type of absorption glass, while it is
far from zero for the Jena glass F3815.

TABLE 1

dA

Values of — for Jena Glass and New Absorption Glass, Using Red Glass
de

Ocular Jena 2745

TEMPERATTJBE

dA I0

e

Jena F 3815

New glass; a = 0.000227

degrees abs.

1400

69

±0

2000

29

+2

2400

19

-0.5

3000

11

-0.2

Preliminary work indicates that the absorption glass can be
experimentally obtained, to a sufficient degree of approximation,
by the combination of black and colored glasses.

2 Cf. Foote. Loc. cit.

KNOPF : ANDALUSITE MASS 549

In a further note another absorption glass will be described
for use with a tungsten-filament pyrometer lamp: a glass such
that its transmission requires an invariance of A with 0 for all
practical purposes, taking account of the loss of light at lens sur-
faces and the emissivity of tungsten.

GEOLOGY. — An andalusite mass in the pre-Cambrian of the
Inyo Range, California.1 Adolph Knopf, Geological Sur-
vey.

The andalusite mass here described is in southern Mono
County, California, 4 miles east of Milner station on the Nevada
and California Railroad. It is in the northern part of the Inyo
Range, or as this part of the range is known locally, the White
Mountains, and is at an altitude of 7500 feet, about 3000 above
the floor of Owens Valley.

GENERAL GEOLOGY

The rocks exposed along the trail that leads from the base of
the range to the andalusite mass consist largely of argillite,
more or less slaty, and schistose conglomerate. They form
a belt more than 10,000 feet wide, of which the conglomerate
is roughly estimated to make up one-third. The strata stand
at high angles, generally vertical, so that their thickness is
roughly measured by the width of the belt, but they have prob-
ably been repeated by faulting.

The conglomerates are composed mainly of fragments of
fine-grained quartzite. Many of the pebbles, which range up
to 12 inches long, are well rounded, but the smaller pebbles
are generally angular. Pockets and irregular lenses of con-
glomerate are irregularly intercalated in argillitic strata, and
the pebbles in these intercalated lenses are unsorted and un-
shingled, the longer axes of contiguous pebbles commonly stand-
ing at right angles to one another. These features suggest a
fluvial origin for the great series of strata lying west of the an-
dalusite mass.

1 Published with the permission of the Director of the U. S. Geological Survey.

550 KNOPF : ANDALUSITE MASS

The andalusite mass is bordered on the north and northeast
sides by schistose volcanic porphyry and breccia characterized
by widely scattered phenocrysts of plagioclase. East of the
main andalusite body are outcrops of other considerable masses
of similar andalusite rock, but more mixed with other minerals,
and associated with these in thick beds are some brilliant white
rocks, soft and composed almost wholly of flakes of muscovite.

The age of these rocks is in all probability pre-Cambrian.
This conclusion is based on what is known of the structure and
stratigraphy of the portion of the Inyo Range to the south.2
The sedimentary rocks to the south range from pre-Cambrian
to Triassic, all the intervening systems being represented ex-
cept the Silurian. They aggregate in thickness more than
36,000 feet, but in all this great assemblage there are no rocks
that resemble those associated with the andalusite mass. They
are in general less metamorphosed, except perhaps the oldest
pre-Cambrian rocks recognized; they are not notably conglom-
eratic; and they are of marine origin. In the northern part
of the Bishop quadrangle, which is only 8 miles south of the
andalusite deposit, Cambrian and pre-Cambrian strata, in-
truded by Cretaceous granite, make up the range. The pre-
Cambrian consists of dolomite, sandstones, and dolomitic lime-
stones; of these the massive Reed dolomite, 2000 feet thick,
is the most readily recognizable formation. Rocks of this
kind do not occur near the andalusite mass, and it is probable,
therefore, that the rocks inclosing it are of still older pre-Cam-
brian age than those in the Bishop quadrangle.

THE ANDALUSITE MASS

The andalusite mass is well exposed, owing to the rugged-
ness of the region. It is certainly more than 300 feet wide at
its maximum and is 500 feet long; and, as shown by the deep

2 Knopf, Adolph. A geologic reconnaissance of the Inyo Range and the east
slope oj the southern Sierra Nevada, with a section on The stratigraphy of the Inyo
Range, by Edwin Kirk. U. S. Geol. Survey Prof. Paper 110 (in course of publi-
cation).

KNOPF: ANDALUSITE MASS 551

canyon on the north and by the cliffs on the west, it extends to
a depth of at least 300 feet.

On the east side of the mass is a great body of coarse milk-
white quartz, which in places is as much as 50 feet wide Veins
and stringers of this quartz penetrate the andalusite mass for
long distances. It is notable that the narrower stringers of
quartz carry considerable quantities of the deep-blue mineral
lazulite; muscovite also is common in the quartz but is not
abundant; and specular hematite is locally abundant. The
lazulite, a hydrous phosphate of aluminum, magnesium, and
iron carrying about 45 per cent of P2O5, is of course a striking
constituent, because of its uncommon and intense color, and
in fact it was the presence of this mineral that led to the dis-
covery of the andalusite mass. The prospector who found the
lazulite thought it was bromide of silver, but when an assay
showed that it contains no silver, his interest in it vanished.
Later, others located and staked the andalusite mass, under the
belief that the great body of brown rock traversed by the lazu-
lite-bearing quartz veins is apatite.

Andalusite rock, consisting wholly of coarsely granular an-
dalusite and free from quartz stringers, occurs on the northwest
side of the deposit. The texture of rock of this kind ranges
from coarsely granular or radial columnar to roughly schistose.
The schistose structure is more and more well-defined toward
the east border and is due to the increasing amounts of quartz
and finely flaky muscovite that occur with the andalusite. The
andalusite-bearing rock probably grades into the volcanic
porphyry on the east. Under the microscope the andalusite
is found to have the normal optical properties of that mineral.
In habit it is notably poikilitic and spongiform where much
quartz is present, and in such places the anhedrons of andalusite
inclose large numbers of quartz grains. Dr. W. T. Schaller
has measured the refractive indices of the mineral, finding
them to be: y = 1.642, p = 1.635, and a = 1.631. Moreover
chemical examination by Dr. Schaller shows that the mineral
contains only alumina and silica; and the identity of the min-
eral as andalusite is therefore fully established.

552 shaw: NEW AREA of carboniferous

The occurrence elsewhere of so extensive a mass of andalusite
rock as that in the pre-Cambrian of the Inyo Range appears
to be unknown. It is provisionally suggested that the andalu-
site mass originated from the volcanic porphyry through pneu-
matolytic metamorphism sequent upon the granitic intrusions
that occur in the range. Since examining this andalusite rock
the writer has had occasion to study in detail closely similar
andalusite rock in the Rochester district, Humboldt County,
Nevada, where a pneumatolytic origin is unmistakable. A
series of Triassic rhyolites is cut by a network of dumortierite
veinlets carrying sporadic tourmaline, and the intervening rock
has been altered to an aggregate of quartz and poikilitic
andalusite, in places carrying considerable dumortierite
(Al8HBSi302o), a mineral closely related to andalusite. This
metamorphism closely followed the intrusion of post-Jurassic,
probably Cretaceous, granitic rocks. Andalusitic alteration
of Tertiary lavas, an alteration which evidently took place
under conditions of lower temperature (under "hydro thermal"
conditions) than those indicated for the California and Nevada
occurrences, has been described by Butler.3 who pointed out
that metamorphism of this kind had not previously been
recorded.

GEOLOGY. — A new area of Carboniferous rocks with some coal
in the north end of the Gulf embayment.1 Eugene Wesley
Shaw, Geological Survey.

The geologic maps of the southern end of Illinois and ad-
joining territory show the area of Cretaceous and later deposits
known as the Gulf or Mississippi embayment as extending north-
ward across one row of counties in Illinois and terminating at a
more or less regular line convex to the north, along what was
formerly a portion of the valley of the Ohio. On the north side
of this abandoned valley is the range of hills of Paleozoic rocks
that crosses southern Illinois from the Ozarks at Sainte Gene-

3 Butler, B. S. Geology and ore deposits of the San Francisco and adjacent
districts, Utah. U. S. Geol. Survey Prof. Paper 80: 78-82. 1913.
1 Published by permission of the Director, U. S. Geological Survey.

SHAW: NEW AREA OF CARBONIFEROUS 553

vieve and Commerce, Missouri, to Shawneetown and Golconda,
Illinois. The various formations of the Gulf embayment have
concentric areas of outcrop, the oldest extending farthest north,
and, according to the maps, terminating rather abruptly, as
though the south side of the range of hills were a cliff cut by the
waves of a Cretaceous sea. The general arrangement of out-
crops of the 'Paleozoic formations is also concentric but convex to
the south, so that the outcrops of the older formations are nearest
the Gulf embayment.

The Provisional Geologic Map of Illinois, compiled by Stuart
Weller2 and published in 1906, represents the Gulf embayment
deposits in Illinois as consisting of Tertiary (possibly including
some Cretaceous) shales, fire clays, sands, and gravel, and the
northern border is along the middle of the abandoned Ohio val-
ley, except that at the east end it curves south through Temple
Hill and Rosebud to the present channel of the Ohio at New
Liberty (all villages in southern Pope County) and at the west
it curves south through Tamms to Santa Fe.

In the same year Glenn3 published a map that shows all of
the Gulf embayment area in Illinois as Cretaceous except the
southern part of Alexander and Pulaski Counties just north of
Cairo. The northern boundary is roughly similar to that on
Weller's and other earlier maps but slightly more wavy. A little
south of the middle of Alexander and Pulaski counties is an east-
west belt of Porters Creek (Eocene), about 3 miles wide and
slightly convex to the north; and south of this belt, these coun-
ties are, according to this map, underlain by LaGrange (Eocene).

The geologic map of North America by Willis and Stose4
is similar to that of Glenn except that the two Eocene formations
are grouped together.

2 Weller, Stuart. The geological map of Illinois. Illinois State Geol.
Survey Bull. 1. Pp. 26 and geol. map. 1906.

3 Glenn, L. C. Underground waters of Tennessee and Kentucky west of Ten-
nessee River and of an adjacent area in Illinois. U. S. Geol. Survey Water-Sup-
ply Paper 164: PI. 1. 1906.

4 Willis, Bailey, and Stose, G. W. Geologic map of North America. Scale
1:5,000,000, U. S. Geol. Survey in cooperation with Canada Geol. Survey and
Inst. Geol. de Mexico, 1911. Published also in U. S. Geol. Survey Prof. Paper
71, in 4 sheets and in separate case, 1912.

554 shaw: NEW AREA of carboniferous

»

A later map of Illinois5 represents the Gulf embayment de-
posits in Illinois, except the Quaternary alluvium, by one color, the
heading in the legend being "Cretaceous-Tertiary." The north-
ern boundary is more irregular than on earlier maps and some
Paleozoic rocks ("Lower Mississippian") are shown on the
south side of the abandoned portion of the Ohio Valley.

It may be remarked incidentally that only two of the maps
referred to show the deposits in this old valley and they do not
show them as connected through to the east or east-southeast
with the recent alluvium of the present course of the Ohio,
though in fact the deposits and the abandoned valley run from
the present channel of the Ohio. westward without interruption
to the present channel of the Mississippi.

With the exception of Glenn's map, which does not differ-
entiate the Paleozoic, the various maps show the southern limit
of Pennsylvanian strata as trending in general east and west
through the northern part of the second row of counties north
of the Ohio (Union, Johnson, Pope, and Hardin). The latest
and most detailed map of this region shows a belt of "Upper
Mississippian" rocks occupying the middle and southern portions
of these counties, with some " Lower Mississippian" on the south,
some small areas of Devonian in the eastern part* (west-central
Hardin County), and some Devonian, Silurian, and Ordovician
on the west and southwest extending to the present channel of
the Mississippi opposite Commerce, Missouri.

Earlier descriptions, particularly those of Worthen and Engel-
mann,6 accord with the geologic maps later published. All indi-
cate southward-dipping Mesozoic and Cenozoic rocks in the
southern row of counties and northward-dipping Paleozoic rocks
in the country to the north, the southern limit of the Pennsyl-
vanian, or coal-bearing formations, being some distance north of
the Gulf embayment. The deposits in the embayment thus lap
over a part of the outcropping edges of the Ordovician, Silurian,

0 Illinois State Geol. Survey, Provisional geologic map of Illinois. Scale
1 : 500,000. 1912.

6 Worthen, A. H. Geology. Geol. Survey of Illinois, vol. 1. 1866. Contains
geology of Pulaski and Massac counties by Henry Engelmann, pp. 410-455.

SHAW I NEW AREA OF CARBONIFEROUS 555

Devonian, and Mississippian formations, the oldest deposits of
the embayment extending farthe'st north and lying upon the
youngest Paleozoic beds. Among themselves, the embayment
formations, according to published descriptions, off-lap the young-
est outcropping farthest seaward and along the axis of the em-
bayment, and the oldest around the margins, or landward edge
of the area.

The maps and descriptions indicate that central and southern
Massac County, Illinois, the second county up the Ohio River
from Cairo, is underlain by southward and southwestward dip-
ping Cretaceous and Tertiary beds that rest upon the eroded
edges of formations belonging for the most part far below the
top of the Mississippian series, and that the northern part is
occupied by outcrops of "Lower" and "Upper Mississippian"
formations and Quaternary deposits. The maps show that a
few miles to the east of the county is an area of Mississippian
rocks bordering Ohio River.

It was therefore somewhat of a surprise to find a few years ago,
while the writer was doing some work in the section of Coastal
Plain Investigations, U. S. Geological Survey, outcrops of coal-
bearing rocks in eastern Massac County, and to find also some
of the immediately underlying Mississippian strata. The out-
crops, which occupy several square miles in the vicinity of Oliff,
were unexpected, both because the region is shown on maps as
being underlain with Mesozoic and Cenozoic formations, and
because according to available information the southern limit
of the Pennsylvanian, or coal-bearing rocks, is many miles to
the north, their horizon in Massac County being, to judge from
the maps, far above the present surface. However, it should
be remarked that not many miles to the east in Kentucky are
some small outliers of coal-bearing rocks.

This small coal basin and the outcropping rocks of the Chester
group in the surrounding area are of especial interest, for they
furnish new information on the areal, economic, and structural
geology and on the physiography of the region.

They show that Pennsylvanian and uppermost Mississippian
beds occur a good many miles south of the previously known

556 shaw: NEW AREA of carboniferous

outcrops of such beds in Illinois and also some distance west of
the previously known outcrops of such strata in Kentucky. In
the Paleozoic limestone beds outcropping around the area of
coal five collections of fossils were made and submitted to Dr.
George H. Girty for identification. He reports as follows:

The five collections whose species are listed below contain essentially
the same faunas and are without doubt of Chester age. They remind
me strongly of some of my collections from the Clore limestone and,
taking into consideration all the evidence that you have, I believe
that they are in fact really Clore. Our knowledge of the faunas of
the different subdivisions of the Chestergroup is not, however, sufficient
to justify a positive statement.

Lot 634

10 miles northeast of Brookport, Illinois, Chandler farm.

Batostomella spinulosa? Diaphragmus fasciculatus

Meekopora approximata Spirifer increbescens

Stenopora aff. cestriensis Spiriferina transversa

Polypora aff. spinulifera Spiriferina spinosa?

Fenestella tenax Composita? sp.

Archimedes proutanus var. Cliothyridina sublamellosa

Productus pileiformis Eumetria marcyi

Lot 635

Lower prospect for lead and fluorspar (20 feet stratigraphically be-
low bed containing 635 A) on Chandler farm, 2 miles northeast of
Oliff, Illinois, and 10 miles by road northeast of Brookport, Illinois.

Stenopora aff. cestriensis Spirifer pellensis?

Batostomella? sp. Composita subquadrata

Streblotrypa? sp. Eumetria Marcyi

Fenestella tenax Primitia sp.
Diaphragmus elegans

Lot 635 A

Upper prospect, Chandler farm, 10 miles by road northeast of Brook-
port (7 miles direct), southwest of Chandler house.

Triplophyllum sp. Batostomella sp.

Streblotrypa nicklesi Meekopora approximata

Fenestella tenax Spirifer increbescens

Polypora aff. spinulifera Spiriferina transversa

Archimedes proutanus var. Composita subquadrata

Stenopora aff. cestriensis Eumetria vera

SHAW: NEW AREA OF CARBONIFEROUS 557

Lot 636

Ford of small stream 1 mile northeast of Oliff , Illinois, and 10 miles
by road northeast of Brookport; altitude 370 ±.

Pentremites symmetricus Streblotrypa nicklesi

Pentremites sp. Cystodictya pustulosa

Stenopora sp. Dielasma? sp.

Polypora sp. Cliothyridina sublamellosa

Fenestella tenax Composita sp.

Lot 637

Near house, Chandler farm, 10 miles by road northeast of Brook-
port, side of sink hole.

Meekopora approximata Spirifer pellensis?

Stenopora aff. cestriensis Composita subquadrata

Batostomella sp. Eumetria vera

Productus ovatus Bellerophon sublevis

Diaphragmus elegans Sphaerodoma? sp.

A careful search was made for fossils that might indicate the
exact age of the coal, but although several fragments of plant
remains were found, 'they were not sufficient to identify the bed.
The beds above and below consist mainly of sandstone, commonly
cross-bedded, and the true beds range from a few inches to many
feet in thickness. The peculiar "gnarly" aspect of the clay and
sandy shale associated with the coal, the character of the sand-
stone, particularly the scarcity of mica flakes, and the prox-
imity of limestones belonging in the Chester group, point to a
Pottsville age for the coal. Perhaps it is Mercer, for the coal
and associated beds resemble a coal identified by David White
as belonging in that member at Murphysboro and elsewhere.

The economic significance of the discovery is probably not
great because the coal underlies only a small area, its thickness
is not more than a foot or two, and it is not of a very high grade.
The definite knowledge concerning it has been obtained from
two small outcrops and nearby abandoned prospects located
near the county line in the SW.l, Sec. 16, T. 15 S., R. 6 E. The
coal may have an extent of only a few acres or it may underlie
considerable parts of several sections and possibly a large area
in the Gulf embayment. Its thickness at the exposures and
prospects is 10 to 22 inches; possibly thicker coal may be

558 shaw: NEW AREA of carboniferous

found nearby. Although the quality is fairly good and no other
sources of coal are within 20 or 30 miles, the facts now at hand
would not warrant extensive prospecting. A few tons of coal
have been mined and are reported to have burned very satis-
factorily. Most of it was used in houses, but some is said to
have been tested on a small river steamer. This coal should
not be confused with brownish lignite, such as occurs a few miles
to the south in the Cretaceous and Tertiary formations of the
Gulf embayment and is not at present of much economic value.

Although the coal may not have a great extent or thickness,
it is worth noting that here is an area of Pennsylvanian coal not
described or included in any of the discussions of the coal resources
of the United States. The coal in places is no doubt workable
under present conditions, is almost certain to prove of some value
as the richer supplies of the country are exhausted, and may
lead to the discovery of more extensive concealed deposits. The
outcrop is about 7 miles northeast of Brookport, only 4 miles
from the Ohio River, and far south of the main coal-producing
region of Illinois.

The new data show that the general structure of the Paleozoic
rocks in the southern end of Illinois is not monoclinal and north-
ward dipping, with faults and modifying folds here and there,
as one would infer from the available geologic maps. Instead it
approaches a general anticlinal form. Beds that at McLeans-
boro, near the middle of the great Eastern Interior coal basin, lie
2,000 feet below the surface and several hundred feet below the
formations containing the main coal beds, rise southward and
outcrop north of Massac County, and it has been supposed that
still older formations are concealed beneath the Gulf embayment
deposits. It is now found, however, that not only are the bed-
rocks under these Cretaceous and Tertiary deposits exposed in
eastern Massac County, but that they belong rather high among
Paleozoic rocks, being in part upper Mississippian and in part
basal Pennsylvanian.

The finding of outliers of Paleozoic rocks in the upper end of
the Gulf embayment in Massac County and elsewhere, together
with the fairly definite determination of the slope of the Paleo-

SHAWI NEW AREA OF CARBONIFEROUS 559

zoic floor upon which the deposits of the embayment rest and the
determination of the slope of peneplain in the territory immedi-
ately to the north, show that the upper end of the Gulf embay-
ment is not terminated by an ancient sea cliff, but that the
peneplain buried underneath the Cretaceous rises to the north,
becoming gradually less distinct, and in a few miles is apparently
intersected by a peneplain of later date.

The surface of the Paleozoic rocks where exposed in Massac
County is the hard-rock floor upon which the Cretaceous and
Tertiary deposits of the embayment rest, and is thus a part of
the ancient peneplain that has been buried for several periods
and has only recently been exposed and slightly cut into. The
altitude of this old peneplain is here 370 to 400 feet, as deter-
mined by aneroid measurements, and the slope is about 30 feet
to the mile. These determinations accord with what is known
of the altitude and slope of this surface as determined from
numerous outcrops and well records in the surrounding region.

Gravel and some less enduring material believed to belong
with the embayment deposits are found in numerous places on the
north side of the abandoned valley of the Ohio, and it is evident
that the embayment deposits once extended considerably north
of their present northern limit. There is some indication that
they may once have extended north of the low range crossing
the southern end of the state, 40 miles or more north of the
river. Some hills of peculiar, slightly coherent, poorly sorted
sandstone in the lowlands north of the range, as for example
near West Franklin, near Baldwin, and elsewhere, may possibly
be outliers of Gulf embayment deposits far north of any beds yet
recognized as belonging with them. The sandstone contains
in places angular fragments more than \ inch in diameter, and
in this and other respects does not resemble sandstone of the
same region known to be of Pennsylvanian age. It is, if any-
thing, more like slightly cemented glacial outwash, but differs
from that material in that it seems to contain no pebbles from
Canada, and in other respects it is not similar to the washed
glacial deposits of the region. The fact that the peneplains
in the range of hills seem to slope southward, though at a

560 SHAW: NEW AREA OF CARBONIFEROUS

somewhat less rate than the dip of the rocks, and that there
is good reason for believing that erosion has been acting contin-
uously on southern Illinois, with the exception of those times and
areas when and where deposition was not in progress, seems to
accord with the inference that deposits of the embayment or
Coastal Plain possibly once extended far north of their present
limits. In any case it is evident that the northern border of
these deposits is now being driven southward and that the sur-
face features along the southern side of the range of hills are those
of a peneplain that has been long buried and only recently un-
covered, and which, as shown by outcrops and well records at
Brookport, Metropolis, Cairo, and other places, slopes southward
28 to 32 feet to the mile.

ABSTRACTS

Authors of scientific papers are requested to see that abstracts, preferably
prepared and signed by themselves, are forwarded promptly to the editors.
Each of the scientific bureaus in Washington has a representative authorized to
forward such material to this Journal and abstracts of official publications
should be transmitted through the representative of the bureau in which they
originate. The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those
appearing in this issue.

PHYSICS. — The reflecting power of tungsten and stellite. W. W. Cob-
lentz and W. B. Emerson. Bureau of Standards Scientific Paper
No. 308 (Bull. Bur. Stds., 14:307-316). 1917.

The reflecting power of tungsten and stellite in the region of the
spectrum from 0.5 /z to 6ju was determined by comparison with silver,
and by a new method employing a total reflecting prism. Four
samples of tungsten in the form of plane, highly polished mirrors were
examined. The reflectivity of tungsten rises abruptly from 50 per cent
at 0.5 ix to 90 per cent at 2/j,

All samples of tungsten show sharp indentations at 0.8 n in the
reflectivity curve. A similar indentation occurs at 1.3 ju in the reflec-
tivity curve of the pure metal, but not in an impure sample. The
application of these data to the question of increasing the luminous
efficiency is discussed.

The reflecting power of stellite rises from 65 per cent in the visible
spectrum to 88 per cent at 9/jl. W. W. C.

PHYSICS. — Standard samples for thermometric fixed points. Bureau
of Standards Circular No. 66. Pp. 19. 1917.

This circular describes the methods of preparation and the chemical
analyses of the metals tin, zinc, aluminium, and copper, which have
been prepared by the Bureau of Standards for distribution.

The melting points of these materials were determined with platinum
resistance thermometers, and will serve to define accurately certain
fixed points of the temperature scale so that they may be used for the
calibration of pyrometers, the samples distributed being sufficient in
amount (about 50 cm.3) for this purpose.

561

562 abstracts: geology

The metals are all of American manufacture and are probably of
as high a degree of purity as has been attained in the preparation of
relatively large amounts of such materials. The chemical analyses
show purity as follows: zinc, 99.993 per cent; tin, 99.988 per cent;
copper, 99.987 per cent; aluminium, 99.68 per cent. B. S.

MAGNETISM. — An experimental study of the Fahy permeameter.
Charles W. Burrows and Raymond L. Sanford. Bureau of
Standards Scientific Paper No. 206 (Bull. Bur. Stds., 14: 91-159).
1917.
This permeameter was developed during the course of an investiga-
tion at the Bureau of Standards of the magnetic-mechanical properties
of steel. In order to ascertain the degree of accuracy attained, as well
as its fitness for general laboratory use, a critical experimental study
of the instrument in its present form has been made. The instrument
represents a distinct advance in the measurement of the magnetic
characteristics of steel and other magnetic materials. In accuracy
it far excels the direct-reading permeameters which have been rather
commonly used both in this country and abroad. Normal induction
measurements of solid bars show errors no greater than 5 per cent of
the magnetizing force required for the given induction. The consistency
of its readings taken at different times on the same specimen is so close
that comparative results on similar materials can be obtained to a
high degree of precision. Commercial materials, however, are seldom
uniform enough to warrant better precision than 5 per cent. Hysteresis
measurements are accurate within the limits of commercial requirements
and the uniformity of commercial materials. C. W. B.

GEOLOGY. — The inorganic constituents of marine invertebrates.

Frank Wigglesworth Clarke and Walter Calhoun Wheeler.

U. S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 102. Pp. 56. 1917.
The purpose of this investigation was to determine, more thoroughly
than has been attempted hitherto, the character of the contributions
made by marine invertebrates to the marine sediments, and therefore
to the limestones of oceanic origin, such as shell, coral, crinoidal, etc.
Two hundred and fifty analyses were made of the shells or skeletons of
organisms ranging from the foraminifera up to the crustaceans, and
including, on account of their importance as reef builders, the calcare-
ous algae. Each group of organisms was taken in fairly large series,

abstracts: geology 563

and many data are given relative to localities, depths of water, and
bottom temperatures. The crustaceans, some brachiopods, some
alcyonarians, and a few worm tubes were found to be notably phos-
phatic, and therefore to be considered in discussing the origin of phos-
phate rock. The foraminifera, alcyonarians, echinoderms, crusta-
ceans, and coralline algae, with some sponges and bryozoans are dis-
tinctly magnesian, and therefore contribute to the formation of
magnesian limestone. Mollusks, millepores, and the madreporarian
corals have shells or skeletons of nearly pure carbonate of lime. So
far as present evidence goes, the presence or absence of magnesia
depends upon the nature of the calcium carbonate, whether it is ara-
gonite or calcite. The aragonitic organisms are all, so far as we now
know, non-magnesian; all of the magnesian forms are calcitic. Mag-
nesium carbonate is isomorphous with calcite, and goes with its natural
partner.

In the magnesian organisms, especially in the series of echinoderms
and alcyonarians, a remarkable relation was discovered. In cold
water forms the proportion of magnesium carbonate is low, varying
from 6 to 9 or 10 per cent, while in organisms from warmer waters
it runs much higher, from 10 to 15 per cent. In some algae the per-
centage of magnesium carbonate in the inorganic portion of the speci-
mens analyzed, was as high as 25 per cent.

In the general discussion at the close of the paper the application
of the analyses to the study of coral reefs is considered. F. W. C.

GEOLOGY. — Baked shale and slag formed by the burning of coal beds.

G. Sherburne Rogers. U. S. Geological Survey Professional

Paper 108-A. Pp. 10, 3 plates. 1917.
The baking and reddening of large masses of strata, caused by the
burning of coal beds in place, is a striking feature of the landscape in
most of the great western coal-bearing areas. In places enough heat
is generated to fuse and thoroughly recrystallize the overlying shale
and sandstone so as to form natural slag. Some of the slags thus
formed resemble igneous rocks both in hand specimen and in thin
section but others consist largely of rare and little known minerals.
Thoroughly fused slag seems to occur chiefly in crevices or chimneys
through which the hot gases gen^ated in the burning escaped through
the overlying strata to the surface. It is probable that the ignition
of the coal has been due most commonly to spontaneous combustion,
especially in places where topographic conditions are favorable.

564 abstracts: geology

The report discusses the causes of the burning and its general effects
on the overlying strata, and includes petrologic descriptions and photo-
micrographs of some of the slags formed. An attempt has also been
made by means of chemical analyses to explain the mineralogic com-
position of the slag. As the original rocks are argillaceous rather
than calcareous the minerals formed are unlike those common in ordin-
ary furnace slags, and resemble those investigated by Morozewicz in
his study of the aluminous magma. G. S. R.

GEOLOGY. — A comparison of Paleozoic sections in southern New Mexico.

N. H. Darton. U. S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 108-C.

Pp. 25. 1917.
In studying the geology of southern New Mexico, it has been found
that various formations of Paleozoic age outcrop extensively in sev-
eral ranges not previously examined, and many peculiar features of
stratigraphy and overlap are presented. Representatives of parts of
Cambrian, Ordovician, Silurian, Devonian, and Mississippian time
occur. These rocks thin to the north and disappear near latitude 34°,
beyond which the Pennsylvanian formations lie on pre-Cambrian gran-
ite and schist. The overlap relations of the rocks of the various sys-
tems are somewhat complex, and it has not been possible to ascertain
to what extent the absence of certain formations is due to non-deposi-
tion or to removal by erosion. It was found that the Bliss sandstone,
El Paso, Montoya, and Fusselman limestones, Percha shale, and Mis-
sissippian limestone are well represented in the San Andres Mountains,
most of them extending to its north end. They are also exposed in
the great section on the west slope of the Sacramento Mountains south-
east of Alamogordo. The El Paso, Montoya, and Fusselman limestones
are prominent in the Lake Valley, Caballos, and Cooks Range uplifts,
as well as in some of the ranges in Luna County. The formations are
remarkably constant in their characteristics and yield many distinctive
fossils. N. H. D.

GEOLOGY. — Oil resources of black shales of the eastern United States.

George H. Ashley. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin 641-L.

Pp. 12. 1917.

It has long been recognized in tlyis country that the time would

come when the decline of yield in the oil fields would lead to tests of

the black shales as a possible source of oil.

The black shales of the eastern states are mainly at one general

abstracts: paleontology 565

horizon, in the Upper Devonian or possibly in part lower Carbonif-
erous, which extends from New York to Alabama and westward to
Mississippi River. Other extensive deposits of black shale occur at
one or more horizons in the lower part of the Devonian and at one
horizon in the Ordovician. In addition, black shales overlie some of
the coal beds, especially certain beds in the eastern interior coal field.

Distillation tests were made on 42 samples of black shale from 7
eastern states. According to these tests the Devonian black shale can
be expected to yield not over 10 or 12 gallons of oil, 2,000 cubic feet
of gas (as a by-product), and ^ of a pound of ammonia to the ton.
Shales that are highly folded yield less oil or none at all.

To give some idea of the amount of oil in this shale, a few figures
are given for the body of black shale in southwestern Indiana. It is
a very moderate assumption that the yield of this area in southwestern
Indiana would be 280,000,000 gallons or nearly 7,000,000 barrels of
oil to the square mile, or say 100,000,000,000 barrels for the total
area underlain by the shale in southwest Indiana.

At present, interest in the mining of the eastern black shales as a
source of oil must confine itself to localities where one of three condi-
tions is met. The shale can be utilized, first, where it outcrops in a
position to permit mining on a large scale by steam shovel at a mini-
mum cost; second, where coal that is overlain by bituminous shale is
being stripped; and third, where a coal bed that is being mined has a
black shale roof that comes down and must be removed from the mine
in large amounts. Of these the second condition seems to offer the
best opportunity for a trial plant, as the overlying black shale must
be removed in mining the coal. R. W. S.

PALEONTOLOGY. — Fauna of the Mount Whyte formation. Charles

D. Walcott. Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections 67, No. 3

(Cambrian Geology and Paleontology, Part IV): 61-115. 1917.

This paper discusses the localities of the Mount Whyte formation,

a name proposed by the writer in 1908 for a series of alternating bands

of limestone and siliceous and calcareous shale found in Alberta and

British Columbia, Canada, on Mount Whyte, Mount Bosworth,

Mount Stephen, and Castle Mountain, to which localities are now

added Mount Odaray, Ptarmigan Peak, Mount Shaffer, Yoho Canyon,

and Wonder Pass, explored in 1917 and preceding seasons. The

Albertella fauna, which was previously included, is now found to occur

at an horizon 500 feet above the Mount Whyte formation. The

566 abstracts: botany

included faunas are discussed and compared with those of other local-
ities with a view of establishing the Lower Cambrian age of the forma-
tion, and include 2 new genera, for which Gogia and Shafferia are
proposed, and 29 new species including cystids, brachiopods, trilobites,
and a phyllopod. The paper is illustrated by six plates of figures.
Further explorations of the present season may throw new light on
some of the problems under discussion. G. R. B.

BOTANY. — The Mexican and Central American species of Ficus.

Paul C. Standley. Contributions from the U. S. National

Herbarium 20, part 1. Pp. 1-35. 1917.
The genus Ficus includes the wild figs, as well as the common cul-
tivated fig, Ficus carica. The species are most abundant in the East
Indies and Africa, but many occur in tropical and subtropical America,
about 50 being known from South America and 33 from the West
Indies. In the present paper 41 are recognized from Mexico and Cen-
tral America, only one of which is found also in the West Indies. The
only previous enumerations of the Central American species were pub-
lished by Liebmann in 1851, by Miquel in 1862, and by Hemsley in
1883. The last author recognized 44 species. From a study of the
large amount of herbarium material accumulated in recent years, it
has been found that characters relied upon by earlier authors for the
separation of species were often of little value, consequently many
of the early names have been reduced to synonymy. The genus is
represented in Central America by two subgenera, Pharmacosyce, with
solitary receptacles and 2 stamens, and Urostigma, with geminate
receptacles and one stamen. Eighteen species are described as new,
and one new name is proposed. Two of the previously published
species were so imperfectly described that it has been impossible to
identify them. P. C. S.

BOTANY. — New or noteworthy plants from Colombia and Central
America — 6. Henry Pittier. Contributions from the U. S. Na-
tional Herbarium 18, part 6. Pp. 225-259, pi. 106, figs. 98-104.
1917.
The present paper is a continuation of Mr. Pittier's series of studies
of tropical American plants, based chiefly upon his own collections in
Central America, Colombia, and Venezuela. In the Moraceae (Mul-
berry Family), two new species of Coussapoa and four of Cecropia

abstracts: botany 567

are published. In the Proteaceae, two new species of Roupala are
proposed and an imperfectly known species of Embothrium is rede-
scribed. In an account of the Mexican and Central American species
of Combretum, section Micropetalae, 9 species are recognized, 4 of
them being new. Seven new species of Cordia are described, besides
new species of Schizolobium (2), Platypodium, Andira, Coumarouna,
Terminalia (2), Combretum (3), Miconia, Mimusops, Adenocalymna
(4), Clytostoma, Lundia, and Jacaranda. P. C. S.

BOTANY. — The Middle American species of Lonchocarpus. Henry
Pittier. Contributions from the National Herbarium 20, part 2.
Pp. 37-93, pis. 1-6, figs. 1-43. 1917.
Lonchocarpus belongs to the family Fabaceae (Bean Family), sub-
family Dalbergieae. The species are trees or shrubs, and are chiefly
American, a few being found in Africa and Australia. In the present
paper all the Central American species represented in American her-
baria are described, as well as several from the West Indies, Colombia,
and Venezuela. The Central American species are arranged in 6
groups, Philenopteri, Spongopteri, Punctati, Epunctati, Concavi, and
Carinati. Forty species are recognized, twenty-two of which are new.
Two species published in the genus Derris are transferred to Loncho-
carpus. Notes upon the habit and ecology of the species are included,
as well as a list of the vernacular names asigned to some of them.

P. C. S.

BOTANY. — Preliminary revision of the genus Ingci. Henry Pittier.

Contributions from the U. S. National Herbarium 18, part 5. Pp.

173-223, pis. 81-105. 1916.
The genus Inga is a member of the Mimosaceae or Mimosa Family
and is confined to tropical America. It was monographed by Ben-
tham in 1875, but the large accumulation of recent material has neces-
sitated a revision of the species. The genus is divided into five sec-
tions, Leptinga, with 26 species, Diadema, with 19 species, Bourgonia,
with 14 species, Pseudinga, with 117 species, grouped in 8 series, and
Euinga, with 36 species, in 2 series. Forty-one species and one sub-
species are described as new. P. C. S.

568 ABSTRACTS : ENGINEERING

I

ENGINEERING. — The use of the panoramic camera in topographic sur-
veying, with notes on the application of photogrammetry to aerial
surveys. James W. Bagley. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin
657. Pp. 88, with maps, tables, and illustrations. 1917.
This bulletin treats of the use made of the panoramic camera in con-
nection with the planetable in Alaskan topographic surveys, describes the
supplementary instruments and devices employed for constructing
topographic maps, and contains maps resulting from the method.
Though engineers have for many years recognized the possible value of
the panoramic camera in topographic surveying, there is no other
record of its having been systematically employed in topographic sur-
veying. The conclusions indicate that the method is valuable in rug-
ged mountains, not only because it reduces the final cost of the map,
but because in certain classes of reconnaissance surveys where time for
the field work is limited there is a distinct gain in the quantity of the
results.

The principles governing the use of photographs taken from aircraft
are briefly set forth in the chapter on the application of photogrammetry
to aerial surveys. The increasing importance of this branch of photo-
graphic surveying to certain engineering and surveying practices gives it
place as a subject that needs much immediate investigation. The
chief purpose of the notes is to call attention to this need and to indi-
cate a possible method of procedure. J. W. B.

■&

REFERENCES

Under this heading it is proposed to include, by author, title, and citation, references to all
scientific papers published in or emanating from Washington. It is requested that authors cooperate
with the editors by submitting titles promptly, following the style used below. These references are
not intended to replace the more extended abstracts published elsewhere in this Journal.

ORNITHOLOGY

Oberholser, H. G. The birds of the Anamba Isla?ids. Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus.,
No. 98. Pp. i-v, 1-75, pis. 1, 2. June 30, 1917. (Fifty-six species and sub-
species are treated, including nineteen new forms. Sterna melanauchen
provida, from the Seychelles, and Ceyx tridactylus macrocarus, from the
Nicobars, are also described. — C. W. R.)

Oberholser, H.C. Notes on North American birds. II. Auk, 34: 321-329. July,
1917. (Notes on the status of nine species and subspecies. — C. W. R.)

Oberholser, H. C. A synopsis of the races of Bombycilla garrula (Linnaeus).
Auk, 34: 330-333. July, 1917. (Recognizes three forms of this species. —
C. W. R.)

Oberholser, H. C. Autumn water-bird records at Washington, D. C. Proc.
Biol. Soc. Wash., 31: 121. July 27, 1917. (Adds one species to the local
list, and gives additional records of interest. — C. W. R.)

Oberholser, H. C. Piranga rubra rubra in Colorado. Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash.,
30: 122. July 27, 1917.

Oberholser, H. C. Mutanda ornithologica. II. Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash., 30:
125, 126. July 27, 1917. (Six changes of names, of which Micropsitta chloro-
xantha is new. — C. W. R.)

Oldys, H. Rhythmical singing of veeries. Auk, 33: 17-21. January, 1916.

Oldys, H. Are our birds decreasing or increasing? Amer. Mus. Journ., 16:
199, 200. March, 1916.

Oldys, H. The meaning of bird music. Amer. Mus. Jour., 17: 123-127. Febru-
ary, 1917.

Oldys, H. Starlings nesting near Washington, D. C. Auk, 34: 338. July, 1917.

Oldys, H. Plumage importation in England. Auk, 34: 369. July, 1917. (Im-
portation suspended during period of the war. — C. W. R.)

Palmer, T. S. In memoriam: Theodore Nicholas Gill. Auk, 32: 391-405, pi. 26.
October. 1915.

Palmer, T. S. The type locality of Colaptes cafer. Auk, 33: 322-324. July,
1916. (Nootka Sound should replace Mexico as tvpe locality of this species.
— C. W. R.)

Palmer, T. S. Clarence Henry Morrell — a correction. Auk, 34: 93. January,
1917.

Palmer, T. S. In memoriam: Wells Woodbridge Cooke. Auk, 34: 119-132, pi. 2.
April, 1917.

569

570 references: ornithology

Peters, J. L. The Porto Rican grasshopper sparrow. Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash.,

30: 95, 96. May 23, 1917. (Describes Ammodramus savannarum borinquen-

sis.—C. W. R.)
Richards, T. W. Breeding of Tiaris canora, and other notes from the U. S. Naval

Station, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Condor, 18: 145-151, figs. 40-42. July 20,

1916.
Richmond, C. W. An early record of American scoter for California. Condor,

18: 83. March 30, 1916.
Richmond, C. W. The earliest name for the nighthaivk. Auk, 34: 88, 89. Janu-
ary, 1917. (Caprimnlgus minor Forster, 1771, antedates C. virginianus

Gmelin, 1789.— C, W. R.)
Richmond, C. W. A new name for Onychospiza Prjevalski. Auk, 34: 89. Janu-
ary, 1917. (Onychostruthus is suggested in place of the above preoccupied

name.— C. W. R.)
Richmond, C. W. "One of the rarest birds." Auk, 34:215-217. April, 1917.

(Note on Callaeops periophthalmicus, which is identified with Terpsiphone

nigra.— C. W. R.)
Richmond, C. W. Explorations in Santo Domingo. Smiths. Misc. Coll., 6617:

36-39, figs. 38, 39. April, 1917.
Richmond, C. W. The Cape May warbler at Washington, D. C, in winter. Auk,

34: 343. July, 1917.
Richmond, C. W. Descriptions of two new birds from Haiti. Smiths. Misc.

Coll., 687: 1-3. July 12, 1917. (NyctibiuS' griseus abbotti and Vireo crassi-

rostris tortugoe are diagnosed as new.— C. W. R.)
Ridgway, R. Bird studies in Illinois. Smiths. Misc. Coll., 656: 40. 1915.
Ridgway, R. The birds of North and Middle America. Part VII. Bull. U. S.

Nat. Mus., No. 50, Pt, 7. Pp. i-xii, 1-543, pis. 1-24. May 5, 1916. (Em-
braces the cuckoos, parrots, and pigeons. — C. W. R.)
Riley, J. H. Description of a new hazel grouse from Manchuria. Proc. Biol.

Soc. Wash., 29: 17, 18. January 25, 1916. (Describes Tetrastes bonasia

amurensis. — C. W. R.)
Riley, J. H. Two new ralliformes from tropical America. Proc. Biol. Soc.

Wash., 29: 103, 104. June 6, 1916. {Fulica americana grenadensis and Crecis-

cus murivagans are here described. — C. W. R.)
Riley, J. H. Three remarkable new species of birds from Santo Domingo. Smiths.

Misc. Coll., 6615: 1, 2. December 1, 1916. (Describes Asio noctipetens,

Brachyspiza antillarum, and Loxia megaplaga. — C. W. R.)
Riley, J. H. An unrecorded bird from the Bahamas. Auk, 34: 209. April,

1917. (Tyrannus tyrannus is new to the islands. — C. W. R.)
Riley, J. H. A bird new to the North American fauna. Auk, 34: 210. April,

1917. (Pinicola enucleator kamtschathensis is recorded from the Pribilofs. —

C. W. R.)
Shufeldt, R. W. Science, ornithology, and the war. Wilson Bull., 27: 344-347.

June, 1915.
Shufeldt, R. W. Owls, as regarded by the scientist, the agriculturist, and the

sportsman. Wilson Bull., 27: 393-403, figs. 1-5. September, 1915.
Shufeldt, R. W. Song sparrow, thrush, and owl riotes. Wilson Bull., 27: 415-

417. September, 1915.

references: ornithology 571

Shufeldt, R. W. Comparative osteology of Harris's flightless cormorant (Nan-
nopterum harrisi). Emu, 15:86-114, pis. 15-19. October, 1915.

Shufeldt, R. W. Comparative osteology oj certain rails and cranes, and the
systematic positions oj the super-suborders gruiformes and rallijormes. Anat.
Record, 9: 731-750, figs. 1-9. October, 1915.

Shufeldt, R. W. On a restoration of the base of the cranium of Hesperornis
regalis. Bull. Amer. Paleontology, No. 25. Pp. 75-82. December 15, 1915.

Shufeldt, R. W. On the position oj the Aramidae in the system. Auk, 33:
108-111. January, 1916.

Shufeldt, R. W. Shall we save the quail from extermination? Our Dumb
Friends, 1916: 147, 148. March, 1916.

Shufeldt, R. W. A fossil feather from Taubate. Auk, 33: 206, 207. April, 1916.

Shufeldt, R. W. Eggs of reptiles and birds compared, with some unusual ex-
amples of the latter. Emu, 15:225-234. pis. 37-41. April, 1916.

Shufeldt, R. W. Osteology of Palaeornis, with other notes on the genus. Trans.
Roy. Soc. South Africa, 5: 575-591, pis. 39-41. June, 1916.

Shufeldt, R. W. The significance of the osteological characters of the Chionides.
Auk, 33: 352. 353. July, 1916.

Shufeldt, R. W. New extinct bird from South Carolina. Geol. Mag., Decade
VI, 6: 343-347. August, 1916. (Palaeochenoides mioceanus is described as
a new genus and species. — C. W. R.)

Shufeldt, R. W. Present work of Gerhard Heilmann. Auk, 33: 457, 458. Oc-
tober, 1916.

Shufeldt, R. W. Fossil birds' eggs. Emu, 16: 80-91, pis. 21-25. October, 1916.

Shufeldt, R. W. The bird-caves of the Bermudas and their former inhabitants.
Tbis, ser. X, 4: 623-635, pi. 20. October, 1916. (Puffinus mcgalli, P. parvus,
and Mstrelata vociferans are diagnosed as new, based on their osseous re-
mains.—C. W. R.)

Shufeldt, R. W. Report on fossil birds from Vero, Florida. Journ. Geol., 25:
18, 19. January-February, 1917. (Querquedula floridana, Larus vero, and
Ardea sellardsi are named as new. — C. W. R.)

Shufeldt, R. W. Efforts to save the birds. Amer. Forestry, 23: 103, 104, 2 figs.
February, 1917.

Summers, E. Notation of bird songs and notes. Auk, 33: 78-80. January, 1916.

Todd, W. E. C. Preliminary diagnoses of fifteen apparently new neotropical birds.
Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash., 29: 95-98. June 6, 1916.

Todd, W. E. C. Preliminary diagnoses of apparently new birds from Colombia
and Bolivia. Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash., 30: 3-6. January 22, 1917. (Seven-
teen new species and subspecies are here diagnosed, briefly. — C. W. R.)

Todd, W. E. C. New genera, species, and subspecies of South American birds.
Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash., 30: 127-129. July 27, 1917. (Idiospiza and Poscilu-
rus are new genera; ten new species and subspecies are also diagnosed. —
C. W. R.)

Troxell, E. L. Oligocene fossil eggs. Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci., 6: 422-425,
figs. 1-5. July 19, 1916. (Two birds' eggs are described from the Oligocene
bad-lands near Harrison, Nebraska. — C. W. R.)

Wetmore, A. Birds of Porto Rico. Bull. U. S. Dep. Agr.. No. 326. Pp. 1-140,
pis. 1-10. March 24, 1916.

572 references: ornithology

Wetmore, A. The speed of flight in certain birds. Condor, 18: 112, 113. June

8, 1916. (Seven species, representing seven families, varied from 22 to 28

miles per hour. — C. W. R.)
Wetmore, A. The birds of Vieques Island, Porto Rico. Auk, 33: 403-419.

October, 1916. (Sixty-five species are recorded. — C. W. R.)
Wetmore, A. Canaries: their care and management. U. S. Department of

Agriculture, Farmers' Bulletin, No. 770. Pp. 1-20, figs. 1-5. December,

1916.
Wetmore, A. The birds of Culebra Island, Porto Rico. Auk, 34: 51-62. Janu-
ary, 1917. (Enumerates fifty-four species. — C. W. R.)
Wetmore, A. A new cuckoo from New Zealand. Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash., 30:

1, 2. January 22, 1917. (Describes Urodynamis taitensis pheletes. — C. W. R.)
Wetmore, A. On certain secondary sexual characters in the male ruddy duck,

Erismatura jamaicensis (Gmelin). Proc. U. S.Nat. Museum, 62: 479-482,

fig. 1. February 8, 1917. (Describes the tracheal air-sac and neighboring

structures. — C. W. R.)
Wetmore, A. An abnormal egg of Fulica americana. Condor, 19: 65, 66, fig. 24.

March 15, 1917. (Describes and figures an abnormal egg of the coot. —

C. W. R.)
Wetmore, A. A new honey-eater from the Marianne Islands. Proc. Biol. Soc.

Wash., 31: 117, 118. May 23, 1917. (Describes Myzomela rubratra saffordi.—

C. W. R.)

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VII NOVEMBER 19, 1917 No. 19

PHYSICS. — Criteria for gray radiation. Paul D. Foote,
Bureau of Standards.

If certain materials, such as glowing carbon, are maintained at
a constant temperature and the brightness of these materials
compared spectrophotometrically with that of a black body at
various temperatures, it is well known that the logarithm of the
ratio of intensities for any wave length is a linear function of the
reciprocal of the absolute temperature of the black body and
that frequently the straight lines corresponding to various wave
lengths intersect in a single point. The writer and Mr. Fair-
child1 have pointed out that this condition of the intersection of
the so-called logarithmic isochromatics is no criterion for gray-
ness of the non-black body. Dr. Hyde2 has also established this
point ,

Dr. Nutting3 in a recent paper concludes that the log isochro-
matics for a black body can not intersect in the manner de-
scribed, except over a limited range of wave lengths and that
the condition of approximate intersection and the condition for
grayness may both be satisfied, but either may hold without the
other

We disagree with both of these conclusions as applied to our
work and desire to point out that the trouble is due partly to a

1 Foote and Fairchild. J. Wash. Acad., 6: 194. 1916.

2 Hyde. Ann. d. Phys., (4) 49: 144. 1916.

3 Nutting. J. Wash. Acad., 6:476. 1916.

573

574

foote: gray radiation

confusion of terminology. Lummer and Pringsheim,4 Benedict,6
and Foote and Fairchild6 have been considering always the ratio
of intensities at two temperatures, while Dr. Nutting uses the
intensity at a single temperature. It is unfortunate that the
term "log isochromatics" has been applied to both types of
curves for fifteen years. If one carries through Dr. Nutting's
derivation upon the same basis as that used by the other writers,

Fig. 1. Plot of log isochromatics for a black body-
it is clear that the log isochromatics for black bodies and for a
black body compared with a gray body always satisfy the "stig-
matic condition" over the entire range of wave lengths from
X = 0 to X = °° . Furthermore, the condition of grayness of
one or both of the radiators necessitates the intersection of the
log isochromatics. On the contrary the intersection of the log
isochromatics does not prove that the material compared is
gray. All of these points were brought out in the earlier paper
referred to.7

4 Lummer and Pringsheim. Verh. d. D. Phys. Ges., 3: 36. 1901.
6 Benedict. Ann. d. Phys., 47: 641. 1915.
6 Foote and Fairchild. Loc. cit.
3 Foote and Fairchild. Loc. cit.

foote: gray radiation

575

As a concrete example we have plotted in figure 1 data for a
black body at absolute temperatures 1200°, 1300°, 1500°, and
1600°. The upper four straight lines represent Dr. Nutting's
method of plotting. The lower four straight lines represent
the method originally suggested by Lummer. The lower four
lines converge at # = 1200° absolute, while, as Dr. Nutting
concludes, the upper four do not converge. It may be pointed
out that no one ever contended they did converge to a
common point. Indeed the points of intersection are given in
table 1.

TABLE 1

Temperatures at Which Intersections Occur on the Basis of Dr. Nutting's

Method of Plotting

X

0.5 m

0.6 m

0.7 m

M

degrees

degrees

degrees

0.4

9525

5874

5491

0.5

5238

4869

0.6

4428

When the data for equilibrium radiation are properly plotted
there is no "approximation" to the "stigmatic condition." It
is a definite intersection as clearly shown in the earlier paper
referred to.

In conclusion it is desirable to point out the following facts:
(1) A gray body is by definition one for which at a true tempera-
ture § the ratio of the intensity of its emission to that of a black
body at temperature §, at any given monochromatic wave
length, is independent of the wave length chosen. (2) There
are two types of log isochromatic curves, one referring to ratio
of intensities, the other to the actual values of intensity. The
former type of curve is the one of interest in the present discus-
sion. (3) The intersection of log isochromatics for the radia-
tion from a non-black body spectrophotometrically compared
with that from a black body is not a criterion for grayness of
the non-black body. (4) The temperature at which intersec-
tion occurs is not the true temperature of the non-black body,

576 wherry: clay from volcanic dust

unless the radiation is gray, but is the so-called " color tempera-
ture." (5) In the case of intercomparison of black or gray
bodies perfect intersections of the log isochromatics occur for all
wave lengths, and the temperature at which the intersection
occurs is the true temperature of one of the radiators in ques-
tion. (6) It is theoretically possible to have two radiators at
different temperatures, one gray and the other far from gray,
with each showing identically the same spectral distribution of
energy.

GEOLOGY. Clay derived from volcanic dust in the Pierre in
South Dakota. Edgar T. Wherry, Bureau of Chemistry.1

At several places near the southwestern corner of the state of
South Dakota there is found, interbedded in the Pierre forma-
tion, a peculiar clay. During the early part of May, 1917, the
writer made a field examination of the occurrence of this mate-
rial, and as a result of his observations, combined with micro-
scopic and chemical examination of the samples collected, has
come to the conclusion that this clay represents an altered vol-
canic dust, accumulated in the sea during Pierre time.

Occurrence. The clay occurs at a number of places along a
line, convex toward the south and over 50 miles long, extending
from Buffalo Gap to Provo, around the southern end of the
Black Hills. It forms numerous beds varying from a fraction of
an inch to 4 feet in thickness, interbedded with and sharply
delimited from the black shale characteristic of the Pierre; the
latter here contains fish bones and the shells of various lamelli-
branchs and cephalopods, such as Inoceramus and Baculites,
clearly fixing its horizon.2 The majority of the clay beds can be
traced practically continuously and without marked variation
in thickness throughout the whole of this distance; a very few
of them are lenslike and more limited in extent. Near Pedro,

1 This paper was prepared while the writer was connected with the National
Museum.

2 Specimens of these have been kindly examined and identified as Pierre types
by Messrs. J. W. Gidley, of the National Museum, and T. W. Stanton, of the
Geological Survey.

wherry: clay from volcanic dust 577

50 miles further northwest, a thick bed of similar clay (there
called bentonite) occurs at approximately the same geological
horizon, but the details of the section are so different that the
equivalence of the two deposits can not be regarded as estab-
lished. These stratigraphic relations are shown in the columnar
sections in figure 1.

The continuity of practically every bed of clay and the com-
paratively slight variation in thickness shown by them through-
out the entire distance represented, over 50 miles, are well
brought out by these sections. The most remarkable instance
of this continuity is in one of the f-inch clay beds that lies about
5 feet above the main (3 to 4-foot) bed; it can be recognized in
every exposure.

Character. The clay forms dense, compact masses, breaking
with a conchoidal fracture. When fresh it is deep gray, but on
weathering it becomes yellowish, owing to oxidation of the iron
compounds present. The weathered outcrops are strewn with
innumerable gypsum crystals, resulting from the action of sul-
furic acid (arising from oxidation of pyrite, which is abundant in
the shale and in places occurs in the clay itself) on calcite, which
is distributed through both rocks.

On treatment with water the clay swells up conspicuously,
absorbing somewhat more than its own weight of water and
becoming sticky or plastic; on adding an excess of water it
slumps down to a flocculent slime. This swelling is evidently
due to the absorption of water by porous, spongelike, clay
particles.

Under the microscope the clay shows an extremely fine grain.
When immersed in oil the individual particles, in so far as they
can be made out, exhibit slight, variable, but almost universal
double refraction, brought out more especially by the insertion
of a sensitive-tint selenite plate. Immersion in water, on the
other hand, causes a marked diminution in the double refraction,
many grains becoming quite isotropic. The index of refraction
of the clay, determined by the immersion method, is about 1.50;
but it varies, of course, with the water content, and, because of
the porous character of the particles, tends to increase slightly

578

wherry: clay from volcanic dust

1

8

Fig. 1. White areas represent clay, horizontal-lined ones shale, and dotted ones
alternations of clay and shale, Scale, y inch = 1 foot. The bottom of the main
clay bed is assumed to be at the same horizon in all sections; the 1-inch clay bed
lying about 5 feet above the top of the main bed is connected by broken lines.

1. Pit on "Hat No. 1 Lode," 3 miles south of Buffalo Gap, South Dakota.

2. Hill slopes on "Hat No. 2 Lode," \ mile south of No. 1.

3. Hill slopes on "Hat No. 5 Lode," 1 mile south of No. 2.

4. Cliff at assessment tunnel, f mile south of No. 3.

5. Hill slopes | mile southwest of No. 4.

6. Hill slopes along Hat Creek, 1 mile west of Ardmore, South Dakota, about
40 miles southwest of No. 5.

wherry: clay from volcanic dust 579

7. Hill slopes one mile northeast of Ardmore, 2 miles from No. 6.

8. Hill slopes 1? miles southeast o; Provo, South Dakota, about 10 miles north-
west of No. 6.

9. Ledges k mile southeast of Pedro, Wyoming, about 50 miles northwest of
No. 8.

on their standing several hours in contact with the immersion
oils.

By virtue of its porosity the clay is able also to adsorb dyes,
especially methylene blue. A moderately strong aqueous solu-
tion of this substance is completely decolorized on filtering it
through a thin layer of the clay, which becomes deep blue. This
behavior, in connection with the absorption of water and accom-
panying swelling, points clearly to its amorphous, colloidal
nature. The faint, variable, double refraction which it exhibits
when examined in oils does not oppose this view, not being nec-
essarily indicative of crystallinity.3 There is every reason to
believe, on the contrary, that it is connected with strain in the
amorphous, colloidal mass, incident to partial loss of water.
The practical disappearance of the double refraction when water
is added is the result of the relief of this strain, the normal,
amorphous condition being thereupon restored.

Average samples contain, in addition to the clay particles, a
very few grains of feldspar, biotite, and magnetite. Samples
collected from different parts of the main bed (or, for that mat-
ter, from any of the beds) show, however, a marked downward
increase in the amount of such minerals. When a lump of the
clay from the lowermost 2 inches of this bed is stirred up in
water several times and the cloudy liquid poured off from the
solid matter, a very noticeable residue remains. This is found
on microscopic examination to contain the following minerals,
all in practically fresh, unaltered condition: plagioclase feldspar
— mostly andesine, mica — mostly biotite, magnetite, and cal-
cite (the last representing a precipitate from the sea water).

3 That optical anomalies, and especially double refraction in normally iso-
tropic minerals, can be produced by strain is well known; and since the prepara-
tion of this paper, this point has been emphasised by A. F. Rogers (Journ. Geol.,
35:519. 1917).

580

wherry: clay from volcanic dust

No quartz has thus far been detected in any sample from the
region. Some clumps of clay are not flocculated, but remain
behind with the sandy residue. These probably represent in-
completely disintegrated grains of the original material from the

TABLE 1
Analysis of Clay

1

2

3

SiOo

| 51.1
15.4

4.5

64.0
19.4

5.6

4.8
4.3

1.9

/62.3\
\ 1.6/ 639
16 1

Ti02

AI2O3

Fe203

f 3,6]

\ 2 2 \ 6 0

FeO

MnO

1 0.2l

MgO

3.8
5.2

} "

13.1
4.0

[1.4]

2 0

CaO

4 1

Na20

K20

/ 3-6l a n
\ 2.4/ 6°

H20-

H20+

1 5

C02

P205

0 4

Total

100.0

100.0

100 0

1. Analysis of fresh clay from bottom of main bed, 8 miles south of Buffalo
Gap, South Dakota; partial analyses of other samples show variations of 1 or 2
per cent in the several constituents, but not enough to affect materially the con-
clusions here drawn.

2. .Same, recalculated to 100 per cent after deducting H,0 and CO£ and the
amount of CaO corresponding to the latter.

3. Composition of average mica-andesite, after Osann, in Daly, Igneous rocks
and their origin, Xew York, p. 26, 1914.

decomposition of which the clay has been derived. While no
complete, conclusive proof as to the nature of this substance is
obtainable, the irregular shapes and absence of crystal outline
of these masses, together with their isotropic, amorphous char-
acter, lead to the inference that they originally consisted of
volcanic glass. This, with the minerals above noted, would
constitute a mica-andesite rock.

The chemical composition of the clay is given in table 1.

wherry: clay from volcanic dust 581

Origin. Any theory as to the origin of this clay deposit must
account for the peculiar features above noted, — the remarkable
continuity of beds for many miles along- the strike, the absence
of quartz, the presence of fresh feldspar and mica, and the por-
ous, colloidal character of the clay itself. It is believed that
these facts are adequately explained by the volcanic dust theory,
as here outlined.

That there was considerable volcanic activity in the northern
Rocky Mountain region during late Cretaceous and Tertiary
times has long been recognized; and that volcanic dust ("ash")
was often carried far east over the Great Plains is well known.
The Tertiary dusts have been observed throughout Nebraska
and as far east as Plattsmouth, Iowa;4 and in an informal com-
munication before the Geological Society of Washington, Dr. T.
W. Stanton has described an occurrence of volcanic dust in the
Cretaceous (Fox Hills) in southern North Dakota.5 But erup-
tions yielding volcanic dust also occurred still earlier in the
Cretaceous, notably in Benton time, as recently emphasized by
Hewett.6 On the occasion of the writer's visit to South Dakota
Prof. Freeman Ward, of the University of South Dakota, pointed
out a thin stratum of whitish material, which probably repre-
sents such an occurrence, in the Benton group as exposed in the
Missouri River bluffs in the northeast corner of Nebraska, oppo-
site Vermilion, South Dakota. There is thus no reason to ques-
tion the possibility that dust-producing eruptions occurred dur-
ing Pierre time and that this dust was transported as far as
what is now southwestern South Dakota.

When volcanic dust falls on dry land it is likely to collect on
the lee side of elevations, the deposits being relatively thick in
proportion to their lateral extent and showing little or no strati-
fication. Numerous minute laminations may result, on the
other hand, from its deposition in shallow lakes.7 But when
blown out over a body of deep water, such as the interior sea
tfyat occupied what is now the central part of the North Ameri-

4 Barbour, E. H. Nebraska pumicite. Nebraska Geol. Survey, 4: 361. 1916.

5 Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci., 7: 80. 1917.

6 Ibid., 7: 196. 1917.

7 Barbour. Loc. cit.

582 wherry: clay from volcanic dust

can continent during much of Cretaceous time, the dust would
naturally become spread more or less evenly and widely over the
bottom. In settling it would, furthermore, undergo at least
partial sorting into heavier and lighter, or coarser and finer,
particles, and develop some degree of stratification. Grains of
feldspar, quartz, hornblende, mica, and other crystalline minerals
would settle more rapidly than those of volcanic glass, full of
gas-bubble cavities. The lower part of any stratum would thus
naturally contain the bulk of the crystalline minerals present in
the dust, the upper part most of the glass.

The crystalline minerals, not having been long exposed to
atmospheric weathering before deposition, should appear in the
sediment in essentially fresh condition. The volcanic glass, on
the other hand, being porous and charged with gases, — includ-
ing, no doubt, hydrochloric acid, sulfur dioxide, and other
chemically active gases from the volcanic emanations, — would
be likely to undergo "auto-metamorphism," in the sense in
which this term has recently been used by H. C. Sargent.8 The
product would naturally be expected to have peculiar properties.
When it is considered that rain water containing traces of carbon
dioxide, acting on crystalline feldspars at the earth's surface,
often produces amorphous halloysite ("kaolinite"), the proba-
bility of the development of an amorphous, colloidal clay-ma-
terial from the originally amorphous volcanic glass in this case
is evident. In the former instance most of the alkalies and alka-
line earths and part of the silica are dissolved and carried away
by the rain water; in the latter, water circulation and diffusion
would necessarily be so hampered that little removal of constit-
uents could be expected, except perhaps the most soluble
ones, the alkalies. The clay should therefore differ from the
original glass chiefly by the presence of more water, and less
alkalies. How this is borne out by the composition actually
observed is shown in the analyses given in table 1.

The clay here described is hardly to be regarded as a definite
mineral. It more probably consists of mixed gels of alumina
and silica, with adsorbed alkalies and water. Resemblances in

8 Paper given before the Geological Society of London; abstract in Nature,
99: 59. 1917.

wherry: clay from volcanic dust 583

composition between it and halloysite9 or leverrierite10 might be
traced, but these resemblances are purely accidental. In basic
plagioclase feldspars, and, correspondingly, in andesite glass, the
ratio A1203 : Si02 does not greatly exceed 1 : 2, and this ratio is
preserved in the clay. The same ratio happens to hold in the
two minerals mentioned, but there the resemblance ceases.
Mere numerical similarity does not imply relationship in such
cases, where one substance is a mixture of gels and the
others definite (even though somewhat variable) minerals.

The theory above outlined accounts for the peculiar features of
this occurrence in an entirely satisfactery manner. It appears,
further, that no other mode of formation would explain many
of these features. For instance, all clay brought down by rivers
and deposited in the sea contains a large amount of fine quartz
grains and rarely any feldspar; but the absence of quartz and
the presence of feldspar are two of the most characteristic
features of this deposit. The sediments brought into the sea by
rivers, moreover, tend to be deposited in lenses or wedges, and
their beds rarely extend continuously for more than a few hun-
dreds or thousands of feet. As opposed to this relation, we find
here beds, from 1 inch to 4 feet thick, extending for a distance of
at least 50 miles, without marked variation in their thicknesses.
Finally, the clayey matter in normal sediments has been for so
considerable a period exposed to such varied chemical agents —
rain water containing carbon dioxide, river water containing
small amounts of salts, and sea water containing larger amounts
of these, — that, although it may remain amorphous, it has at-
tained a certain degree of stability and definiteness of composi-
tion and, since it is no longer particularly porous, after drying
out it does not in general take up water again with marked swell-
ing; while the clay here described is highly porous and exhibits
the latter property prominently.

The theory of volcanic-dust origin therefore appears to be the
only one that satisfactorily accounts for the features shown by
this remarkable deposit.

9 Halloysite being apparently a stable, definite mineral, corresponding to
amorphous kaolinite, as shown by E. S. Larsen and the writer (Journ. Wash.
Acad. Sci., 7: 178. 1917.) and by A. F. Rogers (Op. cit. 535).

10 Larsen, E. S., and Wherry, E. T. Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci., 7: 216. 1917.

ABSTRACTS

Authors of scientific papers are requested to see that abstracts, preferably
prepared and signed by themselves, are forwarded promptly to the editors.
Each of the scientific bureaus in Washington has a representative authorized to
forward such material to this Journal and abstracts of official publications
should be transmitted through the representative of the bureau in which they
originate. The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those
appearing in this issue.

GEODESY. — Triangulation in Georgia. C. H. Swick. U. S. Coast
and Geodetic Survey Special Publication No. 43. Pp. 53, with 9
illustrations. 1917.
This is one of a series of volumes published by the U. S. Coast and
Geodetic Survey which give the data for triangulation stations estab-
lished by that bureau. The present volume contains the geographic
positions of approximately 590 triangulation stations in the state of
Georgia, in the interior and on the coast. It is expected that the de-
scriptions of these stations in Georgia will be published by the Coast
and Geodetic Survey in the near, future in a second volume.

In the published form the results of triangulation of the country are
made accessible to geographers, surveyors, and engineers for control
of maps, surveys, and engineering works of various kinds. The results
of this triangulation are also of value to geodesists in the determina-
tion of the figure of the earth and in investigations in the subject of
isostasy.

C. H. S.

ELECTRICITY. — Some electrical properties of silver sulphide.

George W. Vinal. Bureau of Standard Scientific Paper No.

310 (Bull. Bur. Stds. 14: 331-339). 1917.
Silver sulphide may be prepared in the form of short wires or thin
strips like a metal. The wire, which must be drawn hot, was found
to conduct electricity like a metal of high specific resistance and ap-
proximately zero temperature coefficient. A strip of sulphide rolled
at room temperature has a large temperature coefficient and shows
both metallic and electrolytic conduction. It has a volt-ampere

584

abstracts: physics 585

curve characteristic of a pyroelectric conductor. The strips are sen-
sitive to small alternating currents, which increase the resistance
enormously, while small direct currents have the opposite effect. The
specific resistance has been measured and experiments made on the
electrochemical decomposition. G. W. V.

OPTICS. — A?i investigation of the axial aberrations of lenses. E. D.
Tillyer and H. I. Schultz. Bureau of Standards Scientific
Paper No. 311 (Bull. Bur. Stds. 14: 341-369). 1917.
The errors which affect the definition of a lens are discussed, and
methods of graphically representing the central errors described. The
condition for freedom from coma near the axis is arrived at. The
relative importance of the errors in different types of lenses is dis-
cussed. Hartman's method is extended, permitting one set of measure-
ments to give all the important central errors — spherical aberration,
zonal variation of equivalent focal length, and axial and oblique achrom-
atism. The apparatus and procedure are described, and the accuracy of
the adjustments and of the measurements discussed. The method is ap-
plicable to all systems of relatively short focus and large aperture, such as
photographic lenses, projection lenses, and telescope objectives, and also
to complete optical systems. The results of the method as applied
to a complete telescope are discussed, and shown to be independent
of the accommodation of the observer. Seventeen sets of curves are
given for as many different lenses, and an illustrative discussion of
one set of curves, together with a general description of the types of
lenses represented by each group of curves is included. E. D. T.

SPECTROSCOPY. — Wave-length measurements in spectra from 5900 A

to 9600 A. W. F. Meggers. Bureau of Standards Scientific

Paper No. 309 (Bull. Bur. Stds. 14: 317-329). 1917.

Plates stained in a mixture of dicyanin, water, alcohol, and ammonia

were used to photograph the arc spectra of twenty of the chemical

elements, including the alkali metals, the alkaline earths, and elements

commonly found in iron as impurities; a concave grating of 640 cm.

radius, mounted in parallel light was used. This spectrograph gives

o

a dispersion of about 10A per millimeter in the first order. Exposures
of thirty minutes sufficed to record waves longer than 9000 A. In
this paper the wave-lengths in International Angstroms are given for
the arc spectra of the following elements: lithium, sodium, potassium,
rubidium, caesium, copper, calcium, strontium, barium, and magnesium.

586 abstracts: geology

Frequency differences of doublets in the spectra of sodium, potassium,
rubidium, caesium, and copper are shown to be constant in most cases
to one part in 100,000 in the number of waves per centimeter.

W. F. M.

GEOLOGY. — Chemical relations of the oil-field waters in San Joaquin
Valley, California. G. Sherburne Rogers. U. S. Geological
Survey Bulletin 653. Pp. 119. 1917.
The chief conclusions concerning the chemistry of the waters, de-
duced from a study of several hundred analyses of water from different
depths, are as follows:

1. Oil-field water is not necessarily salty, as is generally believed,
and may not be even slightly salty to the taste. The degree of con-
centration of chloride in such water is governed primarily by local
conditions and is not affected by the position of the water in relation
to oil.

2. Sulphate, which predominates in most of the shallow ground
waters on the west side of San Joaquin Valley, diminishes in amount
as the oil zone is approached and finally disappears.

3. The concentration of carbonate increases as the oil zone is
approached but depends largely on the concentration of chloride.

4. The horizon, with respect to the oil zone, at which these altera-
tions take place, is different in each field.

On the basis of these conclusions, which appear to be well grounded,
at least for the area studied, the following practical suggestions may
be made:

In drilling a well in untested territory it may be possible to obtain
an indication of the presence or absence of oil and gas below by ascer-
taining by analysis whether the sulphate is diminishing and the car-
bonate increasing in the waters successively encountered. In some
areas a significant change may be detected as much as 1,000 feet above
the oil; in others the upper limit of alteration may be within a few
hundred feet of the oil.

The source of the water in a well that produces a mixture of water
and oil may be determined, at least in a general way, by studying its
chemical composition. In the Westside Coalinga field, for example,
the source of the water may thus be determined rather definitely; in
the Midway-Sunset field, where the distinctions are less sharp, the
success of this method will depend largely on the number of authentic
analyses that are available for comparison. G. S. R.

abstracts: geology 587

GEOLOGY. — Manganese deposits of the Caddo Gap and De Queen
quadrangles, Arkansas. Hugh D. Miser. U. S. Geological
Survey Bulletin 660-C. Pp. 64. 1917.

The manganese deposits of the Caddo Gap and De Queen quad-
rangles in west-central Arkansas comprise those that are at present
being most extensively exploited. They have been worked on a
small scale only and have yielded but a few hundred tons of marketed
ore. They occur in the Arkansas novaculite of Devonian age and are
mainly confined to two stratigraphic horizons, one being near the top
and the other near the middle of the formation. The novaculite, to-
gether with the other formations, has been closely folded and its out-
cropping edges stand up as parallel, nearly eastward-trending ridges
on which rock ledges or their debris abound. The manganese ores
consist of oxides, — psilomelane, pyrolusite, and manganite being most
abundant. Although these minerals may be found separately, as a
rule two or more are intimately mixed in the same deposit, and in
some places they are associated with iron oxides and manganiferous
iron ores. The manganese ores occur as nodules, pockets, and short
irregular veins from a fraction of an inch to 4 feet thick. Thicknesses
of 4 feet, however, are rare, and those of a foot are not common. The
ores occupy bedding planes or joint cracks or form a cement in nova-
culite breccia.

Most of the manganese was probably deposited originally as finely
disseminated particles with the silica that formed the novaculite, a
rock that is regarded as belonging to the class of charts; the rest of
the manganese may have been deposited in disseminated form in the
overlying and underlying shales. Its concentration has been effected
by ground water, which has carried it down from the vast mass of
rock that has been eroded from the region; and its localized concen-
tration into deposits large enough to be of value appears to have been
dependent upon the amount of open space in the novaculite, which is
hard and compact and usually has no visible openings between the
layers or along the joints. Faults and the ends of plunging anticlines,
as is attested by a number of deposits occurring in such places, were
favorable places for the accumulation of ore.

Most of the ores contain too much phosphorus for the manufacture
of ferromanganese. They usually contain too much iron for use in
chemical industries and electric batteries, and, where the quality is
suitable for these purposes, the quantity is generally too small for
profitable mining. The quantity of ore that can be mined at a profit
from any one deposit is small. H. D. M.

588 abstracts: ornithology

ORNITHOLOGY. — Notes on the fringilline genus Passerherbulus and
its nearest allies. Harry C. Oberholser. Ohio Journ. Sci.
17: 332-336. June 2, 1917.
A careful examination and comparison of the species of Passerher-
bulus at once discloses the fact that this genus as at present constituted
is a composite group. It is, therefore, here separated into four genera.
The seaside sparrows, six in number, are given the name Thryospiza
gen. nov., with Fringilla maritima Wilson as the type. For Passer-
herbulus caudacutus and its two subspecies the generic name Ammospiea
Oberholser is used. The Nelson sparrow (Ammodramus caudacutus
nelsoni Allen) and the Acadian sharp-tailed sparrow (Ammodramus
caudacutus subvirgatus D wight) prove now by examination of more
material to be both subspecies of Ammospiza caudacuta (Gmelin).
The genus Passerherbulus is here restricted to Passerherbulus leconteii
(Audubon) ; and for Emberiza henslowii Audubon and its western sub-
species the new genus Nemospiza is proposed. H. C. 0.

ORNITHOLOGY. — The status of Aphelocoma cyanotis and its allies.
Harry C. Oberholser. The Condor 19: 94-95. May, 1917.
The blue-eared jay, Aphelocoma cyanotis Ridgway, was originally
described from Mexico and has since been reported from Texas. The
Texas birds, however, prove to belong to Aphelocoma texana; and
Aphelocoma cyanotis is therefore restricted to Mexico. Although here-
tofore regarded as distinct species, Aphelocoma cyanotis, Aphelocoma
texana, Aphelocoma sumichrasti, and Aphelocoma looodhouseii are
all now discovered to be geographic races of Aphelocoma calif ornica.
Incidentally the bird described by Dr. Joseph Grinn^H as Aphelocoma
calif ornica immanis from southern Oregon is reinstated. H. C. 0.

ORNITHOLOGY.— The birds of Culebra Island, Porto Rico. Alex-
ander Wetmore. The Auk 24: 51-62. January, 1917.
This is the first published list of the birds of the Island of Culebra,
and is based largely on observations made and the specimens collected
by the author from April 4 to 22, 1912. The number of species here
recorded from the island is 54, including one of doubtful status, a
good proportion of which are considered resident species. None are,
however, peculiar to Culebra Island. Notes on habits are added
under many of the species. H. C. O.

abstracts: ornithology 589

ORNITHOLOGY. — Description of a new genus of Anatidae. Harry

C. Oberholser. Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington 30: 119-120.

May 23, 1917.

The rare Laysan teal, Anas laysanensis of authors, interesting on

account of its limited island distribution, is found to differ decidedly

in structural characters from any genus of ducks hitherto recognized,

and is here made the type of a new genus, Horizonetta. H. C. 0.

ORNITHOLOGY.— Notes on North American birds. I. Harry C.
Oberholser. The Auk 34: 191-196. April, 1917.
This is the first of a series of articles on the status, relationships,
and nomenclature of various North American birds. The present
installment treats of seven species and subspecies. The specimen of
Cepphus snowi Stejneger, said to have been taken on the Kenai River,
Alaska, proves to be, owing to the possibility of transposition of labels,
very doubtfully North American. A specimen of the South American
Dendrocygna viduata killed in New Jersey, and recorded as an addition
to the North American fauna, seems undoubtedly to be a bird that has
escaped from captivity, and as such not entitled to a place in our fauna.
The status of the forms of Anas rubripes is discussed and the conclusion
reached that both Anas rubripes rubripes and Anas rubripes tristis
are recognizable subspecies, the former breeding from northern Ungava
to Hudson Bay, and the latter from Maryland and Newfoundland
west to Wisconsin. The form of California partridge inhabiting Santa
Catalina Island, California, originally described as Lophortyx catalinensis
Grinnell, is reinstated as a subspecies of Lophortyx californica. The
Florida race of Myiarchus crinitus and the American robin breeding
on the Pacific Coast from the northwestern United States to southern
Alaska are both considered tenable subspecies and revived to stand as
Myiarchus crinitus residuus Howe and Planesticus migratorius caurinus
Grinnell, respectively. H. C. 0.

ORNITHOLOGY. — Description of a new Sialia from Mexico. Harry
C. Oberholser. Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington 30: 27-28. Febru-
ary 21, 1917.
A new and unexpected form of the eastern bluebird is here described
as Sialia sialis episcopus, from specimens taken at Santa Engracia,
Tamaulipas, northeastern Mexico. It presents a combination of the
characters of Sialia sialis sialis and Sialia sialis fulva. It proves to
be also the breeding bluebird of the lower Rio Grande region in Texas.

H. C. 0.

590 abstracts: ornithology

ORNITHOLOGY. — Critical notes on the eastern subspecies of Sitta
carolinensis Latham. Harry C. Oberholser. The Auk 24:
181-187. April, 1917.
Although the white-breasted nuthatch of the eastern United States
has been recently divided into three forms, careful investigation now
shows that only two, a northern and southern, are recognizable. The
race from Florida, hitherto called Sitta carolinensis atkinsi, must now
be known as Sitta carolinensis carolinensis Linnaeus, since birds from
the type locality of the latter, South Carolina, are referable to the
Florida form. The recently described Sitta atkinsi litorea of Maynard,
from the coast region of southern North Carolina, consequently becomes
a synonym. True Sitta carolinensis carolinensis therefore ranges from
Florida and Louisiana north to southern North Carolina and southern
Illinois. The bird of the northeastern United States, from northern
Illinois and northern North Carolina northward into southern Canada,
heretofore called Sitta carolinensis carolinensis, becomes therefore
nameless and is here christened Sitta carolinensis cookei. H. C. 0.

ORNITHOLOGY. — A synopsis of the races of Bombycilla garrula

(Linnaeus). Harry C. Oberholser. The Auk 24: 330-333.

July, 1917.

The Bohemian waxwing, which occurs in northern North America,

northern Asia, and northern Europe, although heretofore supposed to

be undifferentiated into geographic races, is found to be made up of

three recognizable subspecies. These are Bombycilla garrula garrula

(Linnaeus), from Europe; Bombycilla garrula centralasiae Poljakov, from

central and northern Asia; and Bombycilla garrula pallidiceps Reichenow,

from North America. The North American representative proves to

be a well-marked form. H. C. 0.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

'BOTANICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 122d regular meeting of the Botanical Society of Washington
was held at the Cosmos Club, Tuesday, October 2, 1917, at 8 p.m.
Thirty-one members were present. The following scientific program
was given:

Need for textile plant fibers (Illustrated with lantern slides) : Lyster
H. Dewey. The speaker presented for the inspection of the audi-
ence samples of the fiber produced from different plants, such as flax,
hemp, jute, and henequen, and showed slides illustrating the culture
of these crops and the operations necessary for separating the fiber
therefrom. The following conclusions were announced by the speaker:
The reduced production of flax and hemp in Russia, and jute in India,
combined with difficulties of transportation and increased consumption
of certain fibers, has resulted in demands greatly in excess of supplies.

Flax is not now regarded as absolutely necessary for tablecloths
and napkins, and it has long since given place to cotton in most of the
so-called linen collars and shirts, but it is demanded in the wings of
airplanes, and must be used largely in shoe thread. Ireland's 107,000
acres of flax, double the area devoted to this crop in pre-war years, and
the marked increase up to 39,000 acres in Japan are helping out the
supplies, while hemp and cotton are used more than ever before as
substitutes.

Hemp is in demand as indicated by the increase in the price from
about 6 cents per pound before the war to 16 cents per pound now.
The usual supplies of Russian hemp and Italian hemp have been cut
down, while the prices for these imported hemps have gone up 300 per
cent. Hemp is used for commercial twines, fishing lines, nets, pack-
ing, and oakum, and it is now being dressed like flax and made into
shoe thread. The reduced supply of imported hemp is more than
counterbalanced by the increased supply of hemp grown in this coun-
try, the acreage increasing from 4000 in 1914 to more than 41,000 in
1917.

Jute is normally used in greater quantit}r than any other fiber except
cotton, and in addition to its use for covering cotton, wool, grain, sugar,
coffee, cement, and many other articles in transit it is now in denland
for sand bags in the trenches. Practically all of the jute of the world's
supply comes from India. The crops of the last two years have been
below the normal consumption, and this, added to the very serious
difficulties of transportation, has resulted in shortage of supply and

591

592 proceedings: philosophical society

advanced prices. The most promising substitute for jute is low-grade
hemp and flax.

More publicity has been given to the shortage of henequen (Yuca-
tan sisal) for binder twine than to most other fibers. Reports from
Yucatan, where most of this fiber is produced, and also from other
regions where sisal, Manila maguey, and other substitutes suitable for
binder twine are produced, indicate that with reasonable economy
there will be twine enough for- the grain crop next season. The present
high prices are inducing the establishment of sisal and henequen plan-
tations in many parts of the Tropics, but it will take -five years or more
for most of- these plantations to reach the stage of production. Until
that stage is reached hemp grown in the United States offers the most
promising solution of the binder-twine problem. Fibers from various
kinds of yuccas, dasylirions, and sansevierias have been suggested,
but, besides being poorly adapted for the purpose, no satisfactory
method has been developed for preparing them, and with present
demands on all well-equipped machine shops this is no time for the
development of experimental machinery.

This shortage of supplies of fiber has one bright side. It has per-
suaded American spinners to appreciate the possibilities of American-
grown fiber as they have never done before.

The 17th annual business meeting of the Society was held in connec-
tion with the 122d regular meeting as announced above. The report
of the Executive Committee showed the following facts concerning the
activities of the Society for the preceding year: Average attendance,
forty-nine members and fourteen guests. Fifteen new members were
elected, making a total membership of one hundred and sixty-three.
The customary reports were presented and approved, and the follow-
ing officers elected for the ensuing year: President, Walter T. Swingle;
Vice President, J. W. T. Duvel; Recording Secretary, Chas. E. Cham-
bliss; Corresponding Secretary, H. N. Vinall; Treasurer, F. D. Farrell.
The retiring president, T. H. Kearney, was nominated as the repre-
sentative of the Society upon the Board of the Washington Academy
of Sciences.

H. N. Vinall, Corresponding Secretary.

THE PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 792d meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, October 13, 1917.
Vice President Humphreys in the chair, 127 persons present.

By invitation Mr. R. A. Millikan delivered a paper on The organi-
zation of scientific effort in relation to the war.

Mr. G. K. Burgess gave a paper on The application of science, to
warfare in France.

Discussion: The papers were discussed by Messrs. Littlehales, L.
J. Briggs, and Killian.

Donald H. Sweet, Secretary.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VII DECEMBER 4, 1917 No. 20

PHYSICS. — Anode resistance films. John T. Tate and Paul
D. Foote, Bureau of Standards.

In a previous paper1 it was concluded that a polarization
film of high resistance forms at the surface of a probe placed in
the anode glow of a Wehnelt discharge tube. In the measure-
ments referred to, the probe wire acted as an anode. It is of
interest to compare the film resistance when the probe acts as
an anode with that obtained when the probe acts as a cathode.

The experimental arrangement was that illustrated in the
paper already referred to. For the probe as anode the same
electrical connections were employed. For the probe as cathode
the potentiometer and voltmeter readings were taken between
the probe and the Wehnelt cathode. Resistances were com-
puted in the manner previously described. The results of one
series of measurements are represented by figure 1. For the
same current flowing through the probe the film resistance is 4
to 6 times greater when the probe acts as a cathode than when it
acts as an anode. The ratio of resistances R cathode : R anode
increases with increasing current through the probe. It has
been generally assumed that the anode resistance film is negligi-
ble in magnitude as compared with the cathode resistance film.
The small values of the ratio RdR* observed are therefore of
interest. It is also of interest to note that the ratio of the resist-
ances of the cathode and anode films is of the same order of

1 This Journal 7 : 482. 1917.

593

594

TATE AND FOOTE I ANODE FILMS

magnitude as the ratio of the cathode and anode falls of poten-
tial. The anode fall is usually about 20 volts and the cathode
fall around 150 to 200 volts.

Further measurements were made upon anode resistance films
in order to determine whether the resistance is inversely propor-

50 anode
j.l cathode

Fig. 1. Relation between surface resistance and current for probe acting
as anode and as cathode.

tional to the area, a relation which would follow if the films
acted as ordinary resistances. Two probe wires of the same
diameter and having exposed areas in the ratio 1 : 2.28 were used
in the place of Rp (fig. 1, p. 483). These could be operated as
secondary anodes, either separately or shunted together. The
resistances, Ri of probe 1, Ro of probe 2, and jBi + 2 of probes
1 and 2 connected, were measured in the manner previously
described. The results of these measurements made with vari-
ous current densities are given in table 1.

TATE AND FOOTE : ANODE FILMS

595

By the ordinary law of shunt resistances, if Ri/R2 =2.3
then R\/R\-\- 2 should equal 3.3, in agreement with the experi-
mentally determined value. The ratio of areas of probes 1 and
2 was 1:2.28 while the observed ratio of resistances Ri/R2 was
2.3:1. Hence the resistance of the polarization film varies
inversely as its area.

TABLE 1
Anode Film Resistance

Ri

Ri

Ri+i

R1/R2

R1/R1+2

ohms

ohms

■ ohms

21,980

9,980

7,780

2.2

2.8

25,900

11,650

8,380

2.2

3.1

29,200

9,260

8,200

3.1

3.6

29,800

13,300

8,950

2.2

3.3

26,200

16,500

12,500

1.5

2.1

32,500

13,500

13,500

2.4

2.4

40,000

16,700

8,800

2.4

4.5

35,800

12,800

12,000

2.8

3.0

33,500

19,000

7,300

1.8

4.6

41,500

15,200

12,000

2.7

3.5

26,900

11,250

7,720

2.4

3.5

26,750

14,200

9,900

1.9

2.7

Mean

2.3

3.3

Conclusions. Further experimental work has confirmed the
existence of an anode polarization film. The resistance of the
anode film is less than that of the cathode film, and the two types
of polarization resistance appear to be in a ratio of about the
same order of magnitude as the ratio of anode to cathode fall
of potential. The resistance of the anode film varies inversely
with its area, but it should be emphasized that this relation was
tested for wires of the same diameter. On account of changes
which would be produced in the character of the field it is prob-
able that the relation would not hold for wires of different
diameters. Skinner has found entirely different values of re-
sistance per square centimeter for wires of different diameters.

596 WELLS AND BUTLER: TUNGSTENITE, A NEW MINERAL

MINERALOGY. — Tungstenite, a new minerals By R. C.
Wells and B. S. Butler, Geological Survey.

Although two sulphides of tungsten are described in text-
books of chemistry, none has hitherto been found as a mineral.
It is therefore a pleasure to announce the discovery of tungsten
sulphide as a prominent mineral in certain specimens of ore
from the Little Cottonwood district, Utah. The analysis of
the complex mixture in which tungsten sulphide occurs has
proved unexpectedly difficult, so that it is not yet possible to
state definitely the formula of the sulphide, although it is be-
lieved to be WS2. As it will require considerable time to com-
plete the necessary analytical determinations it seems advisable,
in view of the unusual character of the material, to publish our
preliminary results at this time. On account of the apparent
resemblance to molybdenite in formula and some of its prop-
erties the new mineral has been named tungstenite.

The material in which tungstenite was found was given to Mr.
V. C. Heikes, of the Salt Lake City office of the United States
Geological Survey, by Mr. J. J. Beeson, geologist for the Emma
Consolidated Copper Company, of Little Cottonwood district,
Salt Lake County, Utah, with the suggestion that it be tested
for selenium. Mr. Heikes forwarded the material to one of
the writers (B. S. B.), who has been engaged in geological work
in the district and who later, with F. C. Calkins, examined the
deposit from which it came, though this was before the character
of the mineral had been determined. The chemical examina-
tion and recognition of the tungsten sulphide was by the other
writer (R. C. W.). No selenium could be determined, but on
treating some of the material with aqua regia a yellow insoluble
powder was noted and identified as tungstic oxide. Further
study indicated that the tungsten is present as sulphide very
intimately associated with a number of other minerals.

The Emma mine, from which the material was obtained, is
located in the Little Cottonwood district, Salt Lake County,
Utah, about 25 miles southeast of Salt Lake City. The mine was

1 Published with the permission of the Director of the United States Geologi-
cal Survey.

WELLS AND BUTLER: TUNGSTENITE, A NEW MINERAL 597

an important producer of lead-silver ores in the seventies. The
ore shoot was followed until it was cut off by a fault. Attempts
at the time to locate the continuation beyond the fault were
unsuccessful and the mine was idle for many years. In 1916
Mr. Beeson by a detailed geologic study procured data that in
1917 led to the finding of the extension of the ore shoot. It was
from this extension below the oxidized zone that the material
here described was obtained.

TABLE 1
Chemical Analysis of Tungstentte (By R. C. W.)

W

S . ...

Fe

Zn

Mn

Xi

Pb

As

Sb

Cu

Ag

Si02

H20

Undetermined

FOB TEN-

PER CENT

NANTITE

AND TETRA-

HEDRITE

FOR PYRITE

FOR
GALENA

FOR TUNGS-
TENITE

44.7

44.7

29.1

2.5

9.2

0.6

16.8

8.8

0.8

8.1

0.4

0.4

0.6

0.6

0.3

0.3

4.1

4.1

1.0

1.0

0.8

0.8

1.3

1.3

0.4

0.4

0.3

0.7

7.5

100.0

8.1

17.3

4.7

61.5

ATOMIC
RATIO

1.00

2.18

Two specimens of the material were examined chemically.
The first specimen contained a much slickensided substance
resembling graphite intimately associated with quartz, calcite,
pyrite, gelena, and various accessory minerals. Tungstenite
was identified in the slickensided material but it was not the
only mineral present. The second specimen appeared to be
much purer than the first and an average sample of it was analyzed
with the results shown in table 1. This specimen was of a uni-
form gray color where it had been broken from a larger piece,
but two sides were somewhat slickensided. On close examination

598 WELLS AND BUTLER: TUNGSTENITE, A NEW MINERAL

abundant small somewhat rounded grains of pyrite could be
detected in it. A polished section revealed a little galena also.
The analysis indicates tennantite and tetrahedrite, which were
not distinguished in the single polished section of the material
examined. A portion of the polished section which had a slight-
ly bluish tinge was identified by microscopic reaction as tung-
stenite. The tungstenite is so soft that it wears away much
faster than pyrite during polishing. The hardness appears to be
about 2.5. Particles which are very easily cut from the massive
piece with a knifeblade appear under the microscope to consist
of feathery leaves or flakes resembling graphite. The mineral
is opaque. It marks paper, soils the fingers slightly, and rubs
up between a mortar and pestle like graphite. The cleavage
and fracture could not be determined. The luster varies from
dull to brilliant metallic; the color is dark lead gray; and the
streak is dark gray. The actual specific gravity of the second
specimen mentioned was 6.43. Allowing as well as possible for
the impurities and undetermined material, the specific gravity
of the tungstenite is calculated to be about 7.4. This may be
compared with the following specific gravities, MoS2 4.7, FeS2
4.9, Mo03 4.5, W03 6.3.

Tungstenite appears to be unattacked by hydrochloric acid
or nitric acid. It is decomposed by aqua regia or by fusion with
sodium nitrate. Its behavior in a bulb tube and on charcoal
can not be stated definitely because of the impurities, though it
appears to be a rather stable compound, not even being oxidized,
by roasting in air. It burns with incandescence in oxygen.

Tungsten was determined by decomposing the ore with aqua
regia. The solution was evaporated to dryness and the insolu-
ble material taken up in dilute hydrochloric acid and filtered off.
After extracting it with ammonium acetate to remove any lead
sulphate present it was heated with ammonium hydroxide. A few
per cent of residue remained insoluble in ammonia and con-
tained some tungstic oxide, a little silica, some iron, and other ma-
terial not yet determined. The filtered ammoniacal solution was
evaporated to dryness and the residue was ignited and weighed
as tungstic oxide. The other constituents were determined
as in the analysis of tetrahedrite, after decomposing a portion of

WELLS AND BUTLER: TUNGSTENITE, A NEW MINERAL 599

the ore with chlorine in a hot tube. As the analysis stands the
sample analyzed consists of 8.1 per cent of tennantite and tetra-
hedrite, 17.3 per cent of pyrite, 4.7 per cent of galena, and 61.5
per cent of tungstenite.

The geology of the district in which tungstenite has been found
may be briefly summarized as follows: A series of Paleozoic
limestones, shales, and quartzites, and pre-Paleozoic quartzites
and shales, has been much broken by thrust faulting and subse-
quently intruded by quartz monzonite and quartz diorite which
occur as stocks. Following the intrusion and accompanying
mineralization there was much normal faulting and some reverse
faulting.

The Emma ore body occurs as a replacement of a brecciated zone
in Paleozoic limestone where it is crossed by a mineralizing fissure.
The ore shoot follows the intersection of the breccia zone and
fissure, pitching rather steeply to the northeast. About 450
feet below the outcrop the ore shoot is cut off by a strong fault,
the continuation on the opposite side of the fault being about
250 feet lower. There is very little oxidized material in the
portion of the shoot below the fault from which the tungstenite
was taken.

The important vein minerals are quartz, galena, pyrite, tetra-
hedrite, argentite, and possibly some other silver minerals not
yet determined. The detailed study of the ores will probably
reveal other minerals. For a part of the shoot at least, the
central portion consists mainly of rather fine-grained quartz
that has almost completely replaced the limestone and that con-
tains but relatively small amounts of metallic minerals. Sur-
rounding this is a zone in which the limestone is less completely
replaced and metallic minerals are more abundant.

Pyrite was the earliest metallic mineral to form in the deposit
and this was followed by the galena, tetrahedrite, silver minerals,
and tungstenite. The tungstenite is apparently in part con-
temporaneous with the galena and in part later than the galena.
The fact that the specimens containing the most of this mineral
have been found near a minor faulted zone suggests that there
may have been an enrichment in tungsten along that zone,
though that is not certain.

ABSTRACTS

Authors of scientific papers are requested to see that abstracts, preferably
prepared and signed by themselves, are forwarded promptly to the editors.
Each of the scientific bureaus in Washington has a representative authorized to
forward such material to this Journal and abstracts of official publications
should be transmitted through the representative of the bureau in which they
originate. The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those
appearing in this issue.

GEOLOGY. — Hydraulic-mining debris in the Sierra Nevada. Grove
Karl Gilbert. U. S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 105.
Pp. 154, with maps, sections, and illustrations. 1917.

Historical outline is given of the development of hydraulic mining
in the Sierra Nevada, the encroachment of its tailings on valley lands,
its subsequent restriction and regulation, and the circumstances lead-
ing to a study of the subject by the Geological Survey.

The tailings from hydraulic mines were in part deposited on neigh-
boring slopes and in neighboring stream valleys and canyons and in
part delivered to rivers that carried them forward. At the base of the
range were large deposits on the piedmont slopes and other deposits in
the beds of valley rivers. As a consequence of the piedmont and river-
bed deposits rivers rose higher in time of flood and lands previously
immune were inundated. The reclamation of basin lands and delta
lands for agriculture by surrounding them with levees also aggravated
flood conditions, and the results of the two causes were inseparable.

Comparison of maps of early and late dates shows that large deposits
have shoaled the bays of the San Francisco system, and reduced their
areas. These deposits, ascribed to hydraulic mining and to the in-
crease of soil waste by agriculture and other industries, since the dis-
covery of gold have amounted to more than 1100 million cubic yards.

The sand brought to the head of Suisun Bay by Sacramento and San
Joaquin rivers is swept onward in the bays by tidal currents but is not
believed to reach the Golden Gate bar in any appreciable quantity.

The stress that caused the restriction of hydraulic mining no longer
exists. Under conditions to be created by works for the control of
floods the capacity of valley rivers for transportation of debris will be
increased, so that the mining might be partly resumed without preju-

600

abstracts: geology 601

dice to any valley interest except navigation. The important interest
which now dictates that debris should be controlled is that of the com-
merce which traverses the Golden Gate. Possibilities for resumption
of mining on a large scale, with storage of debris, lie in cooperation with
irrigation and electric-power development for the control of Sierra
streams. R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — Geologic history indicated by the fossiliferous deposits of
the Wilcox group (Eocene) at Meridian, Mississippi. Edward
Wilber Berry. U. S. Geological Survey Professional Paper
108-E. Pp. 12, with 2 plates and 2 figures. 1917.
This paper discusses briefly new and important additions to the
flora of the Wilcox group and new evidence of the unconformity be-
tween the Wilcox and the Claiborne groups.

The conclusion seems justified that the upper Wilcox was a time
during which the open sea became gradually smaller as the strand line
moved southward, and that there was an interval of emergence be-
tween the deposition of the Wilcox and that of the Claiborne group,
an interval whose considerable length is indicated by the great con-
trasts between the terrestrial floras and the marine faunas of the Wilcox
and the Claiborne.

The two new species described are of especial interest in that the
Nelumbo adds an entirely new type to the Wilcox flora, and the second
adds a new cycad (Zamia), represented by fronds, the only known cycad
from the American Tertiary except a single piece of a pinnule of another
species of Zamia from the Wilcox. R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — A fossil flora from the Frontier formation of southwestern
Wyoming. F. H. Knowlton. U. S. Geological Survey Pro-
fessional Paper 108-F. Pp. 35, with 13 plates. 1917.

This paper deals with a small but important fossil flora, now known
to be of Colorado age, from the vicinity of Cumberland, Lincoln County,
Wyoming. Although small in number of species, this flora offers in-
formation bearing on the physical and climatic conditions that pre-
vailed in this region during early Upper Cretaceous time. It has also
a possibly important biologic bearing, for it shows the presence of
certain plant types that are now living in Polynesia. The plants de-
scribed occur in what is now known as the Frontier formation.

The known flora from the Frontier formation near Cumberland em-
braces 25 forms, of which 7 are ferns, 1 an Equisetum, 1 a monocotyle-

602 abstracts: geology

don (Smilax), and the remaining 16 dicotyledons. They are entirely
unlike anything now living in the New World and appear to find their
closest relatives among species now living in Polynesia.

From the facts now available it appears unquestionable that at
least the major portion of the Frontier formation was laid down in
fresh water. The climate during Frontier time appears to have been
tropical or subtropical. R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — The Bull Mountain coal field, Musselshell and Yellow-
stone counties, Montana. L. H. Woolsey, R. W. Richards, and
C. T. Lupton. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin 647. Pp. 218,
with maps, sections, and illustrations. 1917.

The Bull Mountain coal field came into prominence about 1906,
when the westward extension of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul
Railway was constructed through this part of Montana. This field
is the chief source of fuel for this new transcontinental road and in
consequence has been developed very rapidly, especially in the vicinity
of Roundup.

The important coal-bearing formation is the Fort Union, which
belongs to the lower part (Eocene series) of the Tertiary system. The
rocks of this formation consist principally of massive, buff to yellow-
ish-gray sandstone and light-colored clay shale. The lower 200 to
300 feet of the formation contains little coal.

The lowest formation outcropping in the Bull Mountain field is the
marine Bearpaw shale, which is recognized in this part of Montana as
the upper formation of the Montana group. The Lance formation
overlies the Bearpaw shale and appears to be in conformable sequence
with it. The Lance formation consists of alternating beds of yellow-
ish-gray sandstone, drab, yellow, and gray clays, clay shale, and grayish
sandy shale. Sandy material predominates. The lower part of the
formation is noticeably micaceous; the up" per part contains thin beds of
coal.

The strata 200 to 300 feet thick immediately overlying the Lance
and apparently conformable both with the Lance below and the upper
part of the Fort Union above are known as the Lebo shale member.
The member is conspicuous on account of its dark or olive-green color
and the absence of the resistant sandstone which characterizes the over-
lying beds of the upper part of the Fort Union and the underlying Lance
formation.

abstracts: geology . 603

The upper part of the Fort Union formation occupies all of the center
of the Bull Mountain region and contains the principal coal beds. It
is composed of sandstone in beds ranging from a fraction of a foot to
50 feet or more in thickness, interbedded with a somewhat larger pro-
portion of clay shale, shale, and numerous beds of coal.

Within the upper part of the formation there are 26 coal beds, ranging
in thickness from 1 foot 2 inches to 15 feet. From the abundance of
fossil leaves and fresh-water shells and the numerous beds of coal it is
evident that the formation was deposited in fresh or nearly fresh waters,
probably inland lakes or ancient estuaries on whose shores grew luxuri-
ant vegetation.

All coal in this field may be classed as high-grade black lignite or
subbituminous. Most of the coal beds are lenticular, showing a wide
variation in thickness at different points on the outcrop. The coal
beds are described and analyses given. The greater part of the volume
is detailed description of the geology by townships. R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — Mineral resources of the Kantishna region, Alaska.
S. R. Capps. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin 662-E. Pp.
53, with maps, sections, and illustrations. 1917.

The region discussed lies on the north side of the Alaska Range and
includes portions of the basins of Nenana and Kantishna rivers.

The rocks of the Kantishna region range from highly metamorphic
mica schists and gneisses, through less altered but deformed sediments
of Paleozoic age, to the slightly indurated Tertiary coal-bearing beds
and to the unconsolidated terrace gravels and the deposits of present
streams.

The prevailing structural trend of the region is east-northeast,
parallel to the axis of the Alaska Range, and has been determined by
movements similar to those which brought the present range into
existence.

The productive gold placer deposits of the Kantishna district all
occur in the basins of the streams that head in the Kantishna Hills
and radiate in all directions from the higher peaks. Paying deposits of
gold placer gravel were found in 1905 and 1906 on all the streams that
are now productive except Little Moose Creek.

The entire Kantishna mining district lies in an area in which the
underlying rock is the Birch Creek schist, cut by relatively small
bodies of intrusive rocks. Among these intrusives are some dikes and

604 abstracts: geology

stocks of granite prophyry and quartz porphyry that may be geneti-
cally related to the mineralized quartz veins. The largest and most
continuous gold-bearing quartz veins that have been found are in the
basins of those streams whose placers have yielded the most gold.
This seems to be conclusive proof that the gold of the placer gravels
was derived, at least in large part, by the erosion of the larger quartz
veins that cut the schists. The local origin of the placer gold is also
confirmed by the appearance of the gold itself.

In those portions of the region that were glaciated the erosion by
the ice was sufficiently severe to disturb or remove the greater part of
the preexisting gold placer deposits, so that any concentrated deposits
of gold that are now present are due to the erosion by streams since
the ice retreated.

A fact that has notably influenced the gold placer deposits in many
valleys is the large volume of detrital material that has moved from the
valley walls down the slopes and out upon the stream gravel deposits
and the rapidity with which this movement takes place.

R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — Tungsten minerals and deposits. Frank L. Hess.
U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin 652. Pp. 85, with maps, sections,
and illustrations. 1917.

An attempt is made to gather into this bulletin the general facts
about tungsten, the minerals in which it is found, the kinds of deposits
from which these minerals are obtained, and other information, and to
show by illustrations, colored and uncolored, the appearance of typical
specimens of the various tungsten minerals.

Tungsten deposits seem to be invariably in or associated with grani-
toid rocks, though they may be associated with their prophyritic facies,
and, so far as is known, only with the varieties that contain consider-
able quantities of free quartz, and usually if not always with the lighter-
colored members.

Most of the tungsten deposits of the country are in the states that
lie in and west of the Rocky Mountains — South Dakota, Montana,
Colorado, New Mexico, Idaho, Utah, Arizona, Nevada, California,
Oregon, and Washington — all of which contain at least small deposits.
Wyoming is the only state in this whole great western area in which no
tungsten is known to have been found. R. W. Stone.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VII DECEMBER 19, 1917 No. 21

OCEANOGRAPHY. — An instrument for accurate and rapid den-
sity measurements on board ship.1 A. L. Thuras, Bureau of
Standards. (Communicated by S. W. Stratton.)

The ordinary hydrometer has long been discarded for accurate
oceanographic work because of the irregularities and variations
in its indications. Almost all of these errors are to be found at
the surface of the liquid measured, as for instance, changes in
surface tension, impurities on the surface influencing the shape
of the meniscus on the stem of the hydrometer, and irregularities
in the wetting of the stem. These errors are all eliminated in the
float, or bobbin, of total immersion. Therefore this method has
been investigated and studied with the hope of possibly improving
and simplifying it, so that rapid and accurate density measure-
ments can be made on board ship.

The method was probably first suggested by Pisati and de-
scribed in 1890 by Reggianni, who used hydrometers of total
immersion on board the Washington of the Royal Italian Navy in
the Mediterranean in 1883. He used two modifications, one con-
sisting of a hydrometer of constant specific gravity and the other
consisting of a hydrometer of variable specific gravity. In the
first modification, equilibrium in weight of the hydrometer and
solution was effected by adding measured quantities of distilled
water to the solution; in the second modification equilibrium was

1 Done under the auspices of the Interdepartmental Committee on Ocean-
ography, subcommittee on instruments, apparatus, and measurements.

60.5

606 THURAS: DENSITY MEASUREMENTS

attained by adding weights to the hydrometer. Reggianni did
not determine the specific gravity of the sea water beyond the
fourth place of decimals.

Dr. Nansen in 1896, while studying the salinity of the North
Polar Basin, developed a method similar to the second modifica-
tion of that of Pisati and Reggianni. A hydrometer of total
immersion, 3.5 cm. in diameter and 15 cm. long, of normal Jena
glass No. 16m was used. The observations were made in a
Dewar cylinder, and equilibrium was attained by adding plati-
num weights to the float, the final adjustments being made by
slightly varying the temperature of the sample until the density
of the liquid was exactly equal to the density of the float. The
temperature of the sample was carefully measured by three
thermometers, the bulbs of which were placed in the upper,
middle, and lower strata of the sample. An accuracy of one in
the fifth decimal place was attained. Dr. Nansen makes the
following remarks in regard to this method:

It is most astonishing that so little attention has hitherto been

paid by oceanographers to this valuable method After a

little practice I think that the method of those observations might be
so arranged that they should not take much more time than ordinary
determinations with the hydrometer, if the latter were to be made
fairly accurate. In my opinion, the method promises to become im-
portant for future oceanographic work, as it should enable us to de-
termine the density and salinity of the ocean with a considerably
higher degree of accuracy than has hitherto been reached. And it
excludes, even in the case of less skillful investigators, the chief source
of error, vitiating, under ordinary circumstances, all observations made
with the common hydrometer.

T. W. Richards has also made a careful study of this method
and has obtained a much higher degree of accuracy. The so-
lution to be investigated is placed in a liter Erlenmeyer flask im-
mersed in an adequately stirred bath in which the temperature
can be kept constant to 0?001 C. He was able to measure
densities to a few units in the seventh decimal place.

A. B. Lamb and R. E. Lee have also attained very high accu-
racies by using an electromagnetic attraction to obtain the
equilibrium condition. A piece of soft iron is enclosed in the
bulb of the sinker and by means of an electric current sent

THURAS: DENSITY MEASUREMENTS 607

through a properly placed external circuit, an electromagnetic
attraction is exerted in a vertical direction on the bulb. The
utmost precautions had to be taken to maintain a constant
accurately known temperature, to avoid any jarring of the
apparatus, and to avoid errors due to eddy currents in the
liquid.

In all of these modifications of the total immersion method of
measuring the density of liquids, the outstanding difficulty is the
production of small and accurately known variations in the
bouyancy of the sinker. Some easily variable, easily measur-
able force that will produce vertical displacements of the bobbin
is wanted.

Such a force can most conveniently and easily be obtained
indirectly by varying the temperature of the liquid. This method
is employed in the apparatus that is described below. Numerous
analyses having showb that the composition of sea-water salts is
very nearly the same in all parts of the ocean and at all depths,
the concentration alone changing, the temperature coefficient of
expansion of all samples will be the same and the constant of the
apparatus will need be determined but once for all.

The maximum variation in the density of the sea water in the
open ocean is less than one per cent, so that the density of the
most saline water can be made equal to the density of the least
saline water by raising its temperature 20°C. Also, the coeffi-
cient of expansion of sea water is so low that a sufficient degree of
accuracy in the density can be obtained without an excessively
close reading of the temperatures. This method also elimi-
nates measurements other than that of temperature, which is
always needed in accurate density determinations.

The apparatus (fig. 1) consists essentially of a test tube con-
taining the float, or bobbin, and the liquid to be measured, a
stirred variable temperature bath, and an accurately calibrated
thermometer.

The bobbins are made of Jena glass No. 16m about 5 cm. long
and 12 mm. in diameter. They were carefully annealed about
eight months ago and have probably settled down to a definite
volume. The glass test tube to contain the liquid to be meas-

608

THURASI DENSITY MEASUREMENTS

ured is 18 mm. in diameter and 15 cm. long, and requires from
15 to 30 cc. of the liquid to be tested.

glass tubes

Berth

Terminal -for
heat i no coil

Stirrer

Inlet for cooling water

Sea water to
be tested

Bobbin at equilibrium
temperature

volts

Variable resistance

Thin copper upon which
the heating coil, of 7£-
ohms resistance, is
wound

Mercury pack/no

Bath overflow

Fig. 1. Apparatus for density determinations.

The temperature bath is of copper and glass and is made as
small as possible; it holds only 270 cc. of water. The lower
part of the bath is made of 0.3 mm. copper, on the outside of

THURAS: DENSITY MEASUREMENTS 609

which is wound 75 ohms of "advance" resistance ribbon, whereby
the bath can be rapidly heated electrically. The base contains
a stirrer and inlet and outlet tubes for cooling water. The upper
part of the bath is made of ordinary glass tubing and contains a
copper cover through which a thermometer and the test tube
containing the liquid can be inserted.

A standard stem type thermometer graduated in 0?1 is se-
cured in the cover of the bath with its bulb immersed in the
liquid of the bath. The temperatures can easily be read to 0.1
of a division.

The method of making a determination depends on noting the
precise temperature at which the liquid to be tested is exactly
of the same density as the bobbin. It is apparent that this
point, where the bobbin neither sinks nor rises, must occur in a
particular liquid at a perfectly definite temperature. In an
actual test this equilibrium temperature is not obtained, but
pairs of readings approaching it from a higher and from a
lower temperature are successively made until a pair is ob-
tained covering such a small range of temperature that their
mean may be regarded as sufficiently close to the equilibrium
temperature to give the required accuracy in density. The
temperature coefficient of sea water is such that a sufficient
degree of accuracy can be obtained by determining this equi-
librium temperature to 0?05 C. The rapidity in reaching these
points depends on the viscosity of the water and, consequently,
increases with the temperature. This in some measure com-
pensates for the decreased sensitivity caused by the increased
temperature coefficient at higher temperatures. Therefore a
high degree of accuracy in a limited time is not necessarily ob-
tained by cooling the sea water to such a temperature that the
coefficient of expansion is small. Consequently that part of the
temperature-density curve of sea water which is most conven-
ient to work with has been selected in the present work, and
the bobbins have been made of such a density that all of the
equilibrium temperatures come between room temperature and
about 40°C.

In building this density apparatus the requirements for use
at sea have been constantly kept in mind. The essential

610 THURAS: DENSITY MEASUREMENTS

requirements are simplicity and convenience of operation, free-
dom from disturbances due to the motion of the ship, rapidity,
accuracy, and limitation in the quantity of test water used.

The apparatus is simple and rugged. All of the glass parts
except the thermometer and bobbin are stock articles, and the
bath is so constructed that it can easily be replaced if broken.
The heating and cooling elements and the stirrer are contained
in the copper base and are protected so that they can not easily
be injured. The operation of the bath is simple and convenient.
The test tube containing the liquid and bobbin is placed in the
bath and, by means of the heating coil and cooling tubes the
temperature is varied until the equilibrium point is reached.
The only readings necessary are the temperatures of the bath
for the final two movements of the bobbin.

An instrument that is to be used on board ship should
operate rapidly. The bath and test tube containing the sample
were therefore made as small as possible, the heating coil was
placed close to the liquid of the bath and the cooling water was
passed directly into the liquid. With full voltage on the heat-
ing coil the bath can be heated 10° in less than two minutes,
and can be regulated by an external resistance to 0?01. The
test tube containing the sample is 18 mm. in diameter and has
such a small temperature lag that under ordinary circumstances
a single test can be made in less than ten minutes.

The accuracy in density determinations demanded in oceano-
graphic work is 1 or 2 units in the fifth decimal place; this re-
quires that the equilibrium temperature be read to 0?05 C. In
figure 2 are shown for each of four bobbins the curve connect-
ing the equilibrium temperature and the salinity and density
of the sea water in which it is immersed. Repeated tests on
the same sample over several days gave consistent results, and
no two tests of the equilibrium temperature had as large a dif-
ference as 0?05.

From some subsurface samples only a limited quantity of the
water can be used, as most of the sample is required for bio-
logical purposes. With this apparatus 30 cc. is sufficient for
a test, and with a little more difficulty a test can be made with
only 15 cc.

THURAS: DENSITY MEASUREMENTS

611

The only constant error is that due to a permanent change
in the volume of the bobbin. To reduce this error the bobbins
were constructed with great care. They are made of normal
Jena glass No. 16111 and were carefully annealed about eight
months ago. There has not been sufficient time to determine
their change in volume due to aging, but it is believed that they
have now attained a volume that is constant enough not to affect
appreciably the measurements of density. T. W. Richards has

J2Q.

J1QCL.

CALIBRATION CURVES

m

18

20

Equilibrium temperature in degrees ceirtifrode
22 24 2C 28 30 32 34 Si 38 40

42

Fig. 2. Relation between equilibrium temperature and density and salinity.

examined carefully the effect of aging, using various kinds of
glass, and finds that after three or four months the change in
volume of the glass is exceedingly small.

To determine the error due to sudden heating and cooling,
the bobbin and liquid were placed in a sealed glass tube and the
following results were obtained, using a Beckman thermometer to
measure temperatures:

Equil. temp.

From room temperature 20 . 74

After being in a bath of 56°C. for 10 minutes 20.75

After being in an ice bath for 10 minutes 20.755

After being in a bath of 80° for 20 minutes 20.75

612 THURAS: DENSITY MEASUREMENTS

The changes in density corresponding to these changes in tem-
perature are negligible.

To determine the rapidity and reliability of the method, a
series of tests were made on the same sample of water, no single
test taking longer than ten minutes. The following results
were obtained using a new sample in the test tube for each
measurement :

Sample No. Equil. temp.

1 28.40

2 28.38

3 28.39

4 28.38

5 28.40

6 28.39

Mean 28.39

This maximum variation of 0?01 C. corresponds to less than
three in the sixth decimal place of density.

The formation of bubbles on the bobbin is troublesome when
a high degree of accuracy is required. It is fortunate, however,
that when bubbles are forming on the bobbin it is impossible to
obtain an equilibrium temperature. This difficulty may be
overcome either by lifting the bobbin out of the liquid just
before a reading is taken, or by driving off the air in the liquid
by heating the sample to 50° or 60° before making a measurement.
The latter method was found the more satisfactory. It elimi-
nated the difficulty completely, but, of course, care must be taken
to avoid evaporation.

Conclusion. A simple apparatus is described by which the
density of sea water can be measured on board ship with speed
and precision. With carefully calibrated bobbins a density
measurement of a liquid of known temperature coefficient can
be made in less than ten minutes to an accuracy of more than
two in the fifth decimal place. The particular advantage of the
method lies in the facts that (1) by changing the temperature of
the liquid its density can easily and quickly be brought exactly
to the density of the bobbin, and (2) at equilibrium temperature
the sensitivity of the method is unaffected by the .motion of the
vessel, the liquid and bobbin having the same density.

INDEX TO VOLUME VII

An * denotes an abstract of a published paper. A t denotes an abstract of a paper presented be-
fore the Academy or an affiliated Society.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED SOCIETIES

Anthropological Society of Washing-
ton. Proceedings: 47, 139, 169,
202, 273, 360, 395, 544.

Biological Society of Washington.
Proceedings: 24, 45, 118, 165, 201,
239, 271, 315, 358, 394.

Botanical Society of Washington.
Proceedings: 44, 83, 115, 167, 199,
313, 434, 591.

Chemical Society of Washington .
Proceedings: 112, 138.

Geological Society of Washington.
Proceedings: 193, 309, 429.

Philosophical Society 'of Washington.
Proceedings: 17, 79, 112, 163, 189,
236, 269, 473, 543, 592.

Society of American Foresters. Pro-
ceedings: 139.

AUTHOR INDEX

Adams, L. H. fThe effect of positive
and of negative pressures on the
resistance of metals. 20.

Ashley, G. H. *Notes on the green-
sand deposits of the eastern United
States. 513!

*Oil resources of black shales of

the eastern United States. 564.

Austin, L. W. Notes on the audion.
487.

Avers, H. G. *Precise leveling from
Reno to Las Vegas, Nevada, and
from Tonopah Junction, Nevada,
to Laws, California. 132.

Babcock, M. H. fCertain pre-Colum-
bian notices of the inhabitants of
the Atlantic islands. 139.

Bagley, J. W. *The use of the pano-
ramic camera in topographic sur-
veying, with notes on the appli-
cation of photogrammetry to aerial
surveys. 568.

Barber, H. S. fAn outline of the
glow-worms of the American fam-
ily Phongodidae. 27.

Barnett, V. H. *Geology of the
Hound Creek district of the Great
Falls coal field, Montana. 133.

Bartsch, Paul. fChanges in the avi-
fauna about Burlington, Iowa,
1885 to 1917. 166.

fMollusk collecting in the Philip-
pines. 25.

Bassler, R. S. fThe value of micro-
scopic fossils in stratigraphy. 434.

Bastin, E. S. *Economic geology of
Gilpin County and adjacent parts
of Clear Creek and Boulder Coun-
ties, Colorado. 266.

*The Gold Log mine, Talladega

County, Alabama. 76.

Bateman, H. fThe nature of chem-
ical forces. 189.

Bates, C. G. fRelation of plant suc-
cession to forestry and grazing.
199.

Bates, Frederick. fThe rotation of
the plane of polarization in quartz
and iron at high temperatures. 473.

613

<Z

i l*~ 7

614

INDEX

Baiter, C. M. ""Contributions to the
geology and paleontology of San
Juan County, New Mexico. I.
Stratigraphy of a part of the Chaco
River Valley. 133.

Beattie, R. K. fThe introduction of
foreign plant diseases. 168.

Becker, G. F. *Mechanics of the
Panama Canal slides. 13.

Berry, E. W. *Geologic history in-
dicated by the fossiliferous depos-
its of the Wilcox group (Eocene)
at Meridian, Mississippi. 601.

Bichowsky, F. R., von. The elec-
trometric titration of zinc with
ferrocyanide. 141.

fValence and color. 192.

Bingham, E. C. Standard substances
for the calibration of viscometers.
53.

Bowie, William, investigations of
gravity and isostasy. 159.

fOur present knowledge of isos-
tasy. 269.

fSome evidences of isostasy. 311.

Briggs, L. J. The living plant as a
physical system. 89.

Brooks, A. H. fMemorial to C. Wil-
lard Hayes. 432.

Brown, G. V. *American occurrence
of miloschite. 393.

Buckingham, E. fThe effect of elas-
tic strain on the equilibrium tem-
perature of a solid and its liquid.
79.

Bureau Standards Circular No. 66.
^Standard samples for thermomet-
ric fixed points. 561.

Burgess, G. K. fThe application of
science to warfare in France. 592.

Temperature measurements in

Bessemer and open hearth practice.
464.

fThe resistivity and thermoelec-
tric properties of pure iron. 19.

Burrows, C. W. *An experimental
study of the Fahy permeameter.
562.

Bushnell, D. I., Jr. The Chitimacha
of Bayou La Fourche, Louisiana.
301.

Butler, B. S. Magnesioludwigite, a
new mineral. 29.

Tungstenite, a new mineral. 596.

Calkins, F. C. *Molybdenite and
nickel ore in San Diego County,
California. 78.

Calvert, W. R. *Geology of the
Upper Stillwater Basin, Stillwater
and Carbon Counties, Montana.
135.

Capps, S. R. *Mineral resources of
the Kantishna region, Alaska.
603.

Casanowicz, I. M. fThe fish in cult,
myth, and symbol. 171.

Castle, W. E. The role of selection in
evolution. 369.

Chase, Agnes. *Grasses of the West
Indies. 516.

Christensen, Carl. *Maxonia, a
new genus of tropical American
ferns. 162.

Clark, A. H. A revision of the cri-
noid family Antedonidae, with the
diagnosis of nine new genera. 127.

A revision of the recent genera of

the crinoid family Bourgueticri-
nidae, with the description of a
new genus. 388.

The interrelationships of the sub-
families and genera included in
the crinoid family Antedonidae.
504.

Clarke, F. W. fThe development of
scientific societies in Washington.
475.

*The inorganic constituents of

marine invertebrates. 562.

Cline, A. W. fPhotoelectric radio-
phonic experiments. 163.

Coblentz, W. W. fCharacteristics
and comparative sensitiveness of
various types of radiometers. 164.

*Glasses for protecting the eyes

from injurious radiations. 268.

INDEX

615

*The emissivity of straight and

helical filaments of tungsten. 426.

*The luminous radiation from a

black body, and the mechanical
equivalent of light. 542.

The photoelectric sensitivity of

various substances. 525.

*The reflecting power of tungsten

and stellite. 561.

fThe relative sensibility of the

average eye to lights of different
colors. 17.

*The relative sensibility of the

average eye to light of different
colors, and some practical appli-
cations to radiation problems.
427.

Cole, F. C. fThe pagan tribes of the
Philippines. 273.

Colley, R. H. -(Technique for the
study of the white pine blister
rust. 314.

Collier, A. J. fAge of the high
gravels of the Northern Great
Plains. 194.

Collins, G. N. fBehavior of maize
hybrids. 83.

Condit, D. D. *Gypsum in the
southern part of the Bighorn
Mountains, Wyoming. 78.

*Relations of the Embar and

Chugwater formations in central
Wyoming. 162.

Cook, F. C. *Experiments during
1915 in the destruction of fly
larvae in horse manure. 161.

*Experiments in the destruction

of fly larvae in horse manure. 161.

Cook, O. F. fBehavior of cotton
hybrids. 84.

Seedling morphology in palms and

grasses. 420.

The Mascarene cabbage palm as a

new genus. 121.

Coville, F. V. fHumus as a factor
in plant distribution. 436.

fThe influence of cold in stimu-
lating the growth of plants. 394.

fThe origin and use of upland

peat. 117.

Cowie, G. D. *Precise leveling from
Reno to Las Vegas, Nevada, and
from Tonopah Junction, Nevada,
to Laws, California. 132.

Crittenden, E. C. *An average eye for
heterochromatic photometry. 264.

Dall, W. H. fThe origin and early
days of the Philosophical Society
of Washington. 475.

Darton, N. H. *A comparison of
Paleozoic sections in southern
New Mexico. 564.

Daudt, H. W. flnvestigations of the
Kjeldahl method of determining
nitrogen. 112.

Day, A. L. fCooling of a lava surface.
194.

Dean H. J. *Surface waters of Mas-
sachusetts. 136.

Dewey, L. H. fNeed for textile plant
fibers. 591.

Diller, J. S. fMore evidence as to
the high temperature of the late
eruption at Lassen Peak. 193.

fWas the new lava from Lassen

Peak viscous at the time of its
eruption? 82.

Dorsey, N. E. Luminescence meas-
urements. 1.

Dufrenoy, J. A new case of meta-
phanic variation in grasses and its
significance. 535.

Eakin, H. M. fThe Quaternary his-
tory of central Alaska. 81.

Edwards, J. D. *A specific gravity
balance for gases. 160.

*The effusion method of determin-
ing gas density. 428.

fThe rapid determination of gas

density. 475.

Elvove, Elias. fThe separation and
determination of small amounts of
antimony. 114.

Emerson, W. B. *Glasses for pro-
tecting the eyes from injurious
radiations. 268.

616

INDEX

*The luminous radiation from a

black body, and the mechanical

equivalent of light. 542.
The photoelectric sensitivity of

various substances. 525.
*The reflecting power of tungsten

and stellite. 561.
*The relative sensibility of the

average eye to light of different

colors, and some practical appli-
cations to radiation problems.

427.
Emley, W. E. *Durability of stucco

and plaster construction. 16.
Emmons, W. H. *The enrichment of

ore deposits. 513.
Fairchild, C. O. The proper type of

absorption glass for an optical

pyrometer. 545.
Fairchild, David. fThe need of more

foreign agricultural exploration.

167.
Fath, A. E. *An anticlinal fold near

Billings, Noble County, Oklahoma.

38.
Ferguson, H. G. *Placer deposits of

the Manhattan district, Nevada.

266.
Fewkes, J. W. A prehistoric stone

mortar from southern Arizona.

459.
An initiation at Hano in Hopiland,

Arizona. 149.
fPrehistoric ruins of the Mesa

Verde National Park. 169.
Foote, P. D. Anode resistance films.

593.
A visibility equation derived from

the Ives and Kingsbury new

luminosity equation. 317.
Probe-wire measurements of anode

fall of potential. 482.
The proper type of absorption

glass for an optical pyrometer.

545.

Criteria for gray radiation. 573.

The resonance and ionization po-
tentials for electrons in sodium

vapor. 517.

Fowle, F. E. fSpectroscopic field
light. 238.

Frachtenberg, L. J. fThe religious
ideas of the Northwest Coast In-
dians. 275.

Galloway, B. T. fThe protection
and propagation of plant intro-
ductions. 168.

Gidley, J. W. fThe origin of the
mammals. 196.

Gilbert, G. K. *Hydraulic-mining
debris in the Sierra Nevada.- 600.

Gilmore, C. W. *Brachyceratops, a
ceratopsian dinosaur from the
Two Medicine formation of Mon-
tana, with notes on associated fos-
sil reptiles. 267.

*Contributions to the geology and

paleontology of San Juan County,
New Mexico. 2. Vertebrate fau-
nas of the Ojo Alamo, Kirtland,
and Fruitland formations. 185.

Goldman, M. I. fResults of the
microscopic examination of some
rocks from the oil fields of south-
eastern Ohio. 310.

Gregory, H. E. *The Navajo coun-
try, a geographic and hydro-
graphic reconnaisance of parts of
Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah.
132.

Grover, N. C. *Accuracy of stream-
flow data. 137.

*Surface water supply of the

United States, 1914, Parts I, II,
VII, XII. 135.

et al. *Surface water supply of

the United States, 1913, Part X,
the Great Basin. 135.

Hares, C. J. *Anticline in central
Wyoming. 265.

fGastroliths in the Cloverly for-
mation. 429.

*The lignite field of northwestern

South Dakota. 36.

fThe southern extension of the

Eagle sandstone and its relation
to the Niobrara shale in Wyoming.
429.

INDEX

617

Harlan, H. V. jBehavior of barley
hybrids. So.

Harper, Francis. fNote on hiber-
nation of the mud-turtle. 315.

Hay, 0. P. fOn the finding of sup-
posed Pleistocene human remains
at Vero, Florida. 358.

Hay, W. P. fDiscovery of an inter-
esting new tardigrade. 45.

fThe rate of growth in certain

lower vertebrates. 394.

Heald, K. C. *The oil and gas geol-
ogy of the Foraker quadrangle,
Osage County, Oklahoma. 77.

Herschel, W. H. *The resistance of
an oil to emulsification. 137.

Hersey, M. D. Note on the vibra-
tion frequencies of elastic systems.
437.

Hess, F. L. *Tungsten minerals and
deposits. 604.

Hewett, D. F. *Some manganese
mines in Virginia and Maryland.
134.

fThe origin of bentonite and the

geologic range of related ma-
terials in Bighorn Basin, Wyo-
ming. 196.

Hill, E. A. fVan't Hoff's principle
of optical superposition. The lac-
tonic constitution of the aldose
sugars and the melasaccharins and
the constants from which their
specific rotary powers can be
computed. 113.

Hill, J. M. *EcQnomi£ geology of
Gilpin County and adjacent parts
of Clear Creek and Boulder coun-
ties, Colorado. 266.

Hitchcock, A. S. fBotanizing in the
Hawaiian Islands. 316.

*Grasses of the West Indies. 516.

Taxonomic botany and the Wash-
ington botanist. 251.

fThe "District Flora." 434.

Hoffman, J. V. jRelation of plant
succession to forestry and grazing.
200.

Holmes, W. H. -(Outlines of Ameri-
can aboriginal history. 50.

Hopkins, O. B. *Structure of the
Vicksburg-Jackson area, Missis-
sippi. 235.

Hostetter, J. C. fThe influence of
non-uniform pressure on solu-
bility. 79.

fThe linear force of growing crys-
tals. 195.

— — The thermodynamic reversibility
of the equilibrium relations be-
tween a strained solid and its
liquid. 405.

Hough, Walter. fAncient pit dwell-
ers in New Mexico. 47.

Howard, L. O. fSome European ex-
periences with entomologists. 119.

■ The carriage of disease by insects.

217.

Howell, A. H. fNotes on American
flying squirrels. 358.

Hoyt, J. C. *Accuracy of stream-
flow data. 137.

Hunter, J. F. *A reconnaisance of
the Archean complex of the Gran-
ite Gorge, Grand Canyon, Ari-
zona. 38.

Hutchison, R. H. fA review of
recent work on the house-fly. 25.

*Experiments during 1915 in the

destruction of fly larvae in horse
manure. 161.

*Experiments in the destruction

of fly larvae in horse manure.
161.

Jackson, R. F. Standard substances
for the calibration of viscometers.
53.

Jaggar, T. A., Jr. Live aa lava at
Kilauea. 241.

On the terms aphrolith and der-

molith. 277.

Thermal gradient of Kilauea Lava

Lake. 397.

Jennings, H. S. Observed changes in
hereditary characters in relation
to evolution. 281.

618

INDEX

Johnson, J. M. fA fourth pentace-
tate of galactose. 1*12.

Jones, E. L., Jr. *Lode mining in the
Quartzburg and Grimes Pass por-
phyry belt, Boise Basin, Idaho.
14.

*Reconnaisance of the Conconully

and Ruby mining districts, Wash-
ington. 37.

Judd, N. M. fNew types of Pueblo
ruins found in western Utah. 49.

Katz, F. J. fAge of the Worcester
phyllite. 309.

■ fStratigraphy in southwest Maine

and southeast New Hampshire.
198.

*The Newington moraine, Maine,

New Hampshire, and Massachu-
setts. 515.

Keith, Arthur. *The Newington mo-
raine, Maine, New Hampshire, and
Mas?achusetts. 515.

KemptOn, J. H. A correlation be-
tween endosperm color and albi-
nism in maize. 146.

Knopf, Adolph. An andalusite mass
in the pre-Cambrian of the Inyo
Range, California. 549.

*Tin ore in northern Lander

County, Nevada. 15.

*Tungsten deposits of northwest-
ern Inyo County, California, 357.

Knowlton, F. H. *A fossil flora from
the Frontier formation of south-
western Wyoming. 601.

■ *Contributions to the geology and

paleontology of San Juan County,
New Mexico. 4. Flora of the
Fruitland and Kirtland forma-
tions. 186.

Lake, G. C. fSome observations on
the toxicity and chemotherapy of
the heavy metals. 114.

Langmuir, Irving. fThe constitu-
tion of liquids. 474.

Larsen, E. S. Halloysite from Colo-
rado. 178.

Leverrierite from Colorado. 208.

Mineralogic notes. 6.

The indices of refraction of ana-
lyzed rhodochrosite and siderite.
365.

La Rue, E. C. *Colorado River and
its utilization. 15.

Ledoux, A. Aurichalcite from Big
Cottonwood Canyon, Salt Lake
County, Utah. 361.

Lee, W. T. fRelations of the Morri-
son and Sundance formations.
431.

Leighty, C. E. fBehavior of wheat
hybrids. 85.

Lewton, F. L. fR- M. Meade, an
appreciation. 115.

Lloyd, E. R. *The lignite field of
northwestern South Dakota. 36.

Loeb, L. B. fThe electron theory of
valence. 191.

Lupton, C. T. *Gypsum in the south-
ern part of the Bighorn Mountains,
Wyoming. 78.

*The Bull Mountain coal field,

Musselshell and Yellowstone
counties, Montana. 602.

Lyon, M. W., Jr. fPoisonous snakes.
46.

fPrecipitins. 240.

McAtee, W. L. fShowers of organic
matter. 166.

Marvin, C. F. fAerology in aid of
aeronautics. 543.

Meggers, W. F. flnterference meas-
urements of wave-lengths, and
infra-red spectrum photography.
237.

*Wave-length measurements in

spectra from 5900 A to 9600 A.

585.

Merica, P. D. *The structure of the
coating on tinned sheet copper in
relation to a curious case of cor-
rosion of this material. 161.

Merrill, P. W. *Wave-lengths of the
stronger lines in the helium spec-
trum. 393.

INDEX

619

Merwin, H. E. fDiffusion and crys-
tallization of metallic copper in
crystalline sulphides. 196.

Dispersion and other optical prop-
erties of carborundum. 445.

Metcalf, Haven. fControl of the
white-pine blister rust. 313.

Michelson, Truman. fNotes on the
Peoria Indians. 51.

Remarks on American Indian

languages, a study in method.
222.

Remarks on terms of relationship.

181.

Millikan, R. A. fThe organization
of scientific effort in relation to
the war. 592.

Mills, R. V. A. fEvaporation of
water at depth by natural gases.
309.

Miser, H. D. *Manganese deposits
of the Caddo Gap and De Queen
quadrangles, Arkansas. 587.

Mohler, F. L. The ' proper type of
absorption glass for an optical
pyrometer. 545.

Morey, G. W. A convenient form of
autoclave. 205.

Morse, \V. J. fBehavior of soy bean
hybrids. 87.

Myers, C. N. fThe preparation of
heavy-metal salts of certain or-
ganic acids. 114.

Norton, J. B. fBehavior of crosses
between wheat and rye. 85.

Noble, L. F. *A reconnaisance of the
Archean complex of the Granite
Gorge, Grand Canyon, Arizona.
38.

Oberholser, H. C. *Critical notes on
the eastern subspecies of Sitta
carolinensis Latham. 590.

*Description of a new genus of

Anatidae. 589.

*Description of a new Sialia from

Mexico. 589.

Diagnosis of a new laniine family

of Passeriformes. 180.

Diagnosis of a new pycnonotine

family of Passeriformes. 537.

fRecent additions to the list of

North American birds. 120.

*Notes on the fringilline genus

Passerherbulus and its nearest
allies. 588.

*Notes on North American birds.

I. 589.

*A synopsis of the races of Bom-

bycilla garrula (Linnaeus). 590.

*The status of Aphelocoma cyano-

■tis and its allies. 588.

Orton, W. A. fDisease resistance in
plant hybrids. 86.

fPathological problems in the

distribution of perishable plant
products. 45.

Osborne, N. S. fA calorimeter for
the determination of latent and
specific heats of fluids. 22.

*An aneroid calorimeter for spe-
cific and latent heats. 426.

Paine, J. H. tScientific photography
in the study of insects. 28.

Palmer, T. S. fA pioneer naturalist
in southern Florida. — Extracts
from the diary of Titian R. Peale,
1825. 201.

Palmer, William. 'f Porpoises and
steamers. 240.

fThe fossil sea cow of Maryland.

120.

Parks, E. M. *The lignite field of
northwestern South Dakota. 36.

Pearson, J. C. *Durability of stucco
and plaster construction. 16.

Peters, C. G. fAn interferential
method for measuring the expan-
sion of very small samples. 475.

Pfund, A. H. fThe colors of mother-
of-pearl. 236.

Phelps, F. P. fThe rotation of the
plane of polarization in quartz
and iron at high temperatures.
473.

Pierce, C. H. *Surface waters of
Massachusetts. 136.

620

INDEX

Pierce, R. C. *The measurement of
silt-laden streams. 136.

Pierce, W. D. fExtraordinary strep-
sipterous type of parasitism. 272.

fRecent spread of the cotton boll

weevil. 26.

Pittier, Henry. fForests of Panama.
27.

*New or noteworthy plants from

Colombia and Central America — 6.
566.

*Preliminary revision of the genus

Inga. 567.

*The Middle American species of

Lonchocarpus. 567.

Power, F. B. fAims and develop-
ments of phytochemical research.
138.

Priest, I. G. fAn interferential
method for measuring the expan-
sion of very small samples. 475.

Qtjaintance, A. L. fSome notes on
the Aleyrodidae. 201.

Reid, H. F. tThe distribution of
land and water on the earth. 311.

Richards, R. W. *The Bull Moun-
tain coal field, Musselshell and
Yellowstone counties, Montana.
602.

Richardson, Q. B. Note on the
diffusion of sodium chloride in
Appalachian oil-field waters. 73.

Richtmyer, F. K. *An average eye
for heterochromatic photometry.
264.

Ricker, P. L. fCollecting and pre-
paring specimens. 436.

Riddle, Oscar. The control of the
sex ratio. 319.

Robinson, H. M. *Ozokerite in cen-
tral Utah. 76.

Roeser, H. M. *The calculation of
the constants of Planck's radia-
tion equation; an extension of the
theory of least squares. 542.

Rogers, G. S. *Baked shale and slag
formed by the burning of coal
beds. 563.

*Chemical relations of the oil-
field waters in San Joaquin Val-
ley, California. 586.

*The Cleveland gas field, Cuya-
hoga County, Ohio. 308.

Rose, J. N. fExhibition of Vene-
zuelan plants and fruits. 46.

Safford, W. E. fMagic plants of the
ancient Americans. 47.

Sampson, A. W. fRelation of plant
succession to forestry and grazing.
200.

Sanford, R. L. *An experimental
study of the Fahy permeameter.
562.

*Determination of the degree of

uniformity of bars for magnetic
standards. 14.

Sasscer, E. R. tRemarks on ento-
mological inspection and disin-
fection of products offered for
entry into the United States. 26.

Scales, F. M. *Experiments in the
destruction' of fly larvae in horse
manure. 161.

Schaller, W. T. Ilsemannite, hy-
drous sulphate of molybdenum.
417.

-Magnesioludwigite, a new min-
eral. 29.

Minasragrite, a hydrous sulphate

of vanadium. 501.

Schultz, H. I. *An investigation of
the axial aberrations o'f lenses.
585.

Shaw, E. W. A new area of Car-
boniferous rocks with some coal
in the north end of the Gulf em-
bayment. 552.

*The Irvine oil field, Estill County,

Kentucky. 514.

Shear, C. L. fPathological problems
in the distribution of perishable
plant products. 45.

Shufeldt, R. W. fNotes on the
trunk-fishes. 201.

fZoological statuary at the Na-
tional Capitol. 273.

INDEX

621

Smith, E. F. *Mechanism of tumor
growth in crown gall. 187.

Smith, G. O. fGeology and public
service. 193.

Smith, H. M. fExploitation of ne-
glected aquatic resources. 165.

Smith, W. H. *Recovery of paraffin
and paper stock from waste paraffin
paper. 39.

Sosman, R. B. Some problems of the
oxides of iron. 55.

Standley, P. C. *The Mexican and
Central American species of Ficus.
566.

Stanton, T. W. fA Cretaceous vol-
canic ash bed on the Great Plains
in North Dakota. 80.

Contribution to the geology and

paleontology of San Juan County,
New Mexico. 3. Nonmarine Cre-
taceous invertebrates of the San
Juan basin. 185.

Stebinger, Eugene. *Anticlines in
the Blackfeet Indian Reservation,
Montana. 264.

*Possibilities of oil and gas in

north-central Montana. 77.

Steiger, George. Mineralogic notes.
6.

Stephenson, L. W. *North Ameri-
can Upper Cretaceous corals of
the genus Micrabacia. 39.

Tongue, a new stratigraphic term,

with illustrations from the Missis-
sippi Cretaceous. 243.

Stimson, H. F. A two-stage mercury
vapor pump. 477.

Stose, G. W. fAge of certain shales
in Cumberland-Lebanon Valley,
Pennsylvania. 82.

tCorals growing along the coast of

Delaware. 432.

Stringham, Emerson. fThe shad and
its relatives in the Mississippi
River. 201.

Sudworth, G. B. fDistribution of
trees in the District Flora area.
435.

Swann, W. F. G. fOn the absorption
of energy by an electron. 19.

fOrigin of the earth's electric

charge. 270.

Sw anton, J. R. Significance of the
terms for brother and sister among
primitive peoples. 31.

fSome anthropological misconcep-
tions. 395.

and others. fProblems connected

with the distribution of the aborig-
inal population of America. 202.

Swick, C. H. *Triangulation in Geor-
gia. 584. '

Swingle, W. T. jJiehavior of Citrus
hybrids. 87.

fThe wild relatives of our crop

plants; their value in breeding;
how to secure them. 167.

Tate, J. T. Anode resistance films.
593.

Probe-wire measurements of anode

fall of potential. 482.

The resonance and ionization po-
tentials for electrons in sodium
vapor. 517.

Taylor, A. H. jA normal eye for the
photometry of lights of different
color. 17.

Taylor, H. F. fA mortality of fishes
on the west coast of Florida.
166.

Taylor, W. P. fNotes on Aplodontia.
272.

Thom, Charles. fSome natural groups
in Aspergillus. 315.

Thompson, H. C. fExperiments in
the use of peat in the greenhouse.
116.

Thuras, A. L. An instrument for ac-
curate and rapid density measure-
ments on board ship. 605.

Tillyer, E. D. *An investigation of
the axial aberrations of lenses.
585.

True, R. H. JNotea on the life of
John Bradbury. 44.

622

INDEX

Umpleby, J. B. *Geology and ore
deposits of the Mackay region,
Idaho. 514.

Vaughan, T. W. fSignificance of
reef coral fauna at Carrizo Creek,
Imperial County, California. 83,
194.

Vinal, G. W. *Some electrical prop-
erties of silver sulphide. 584.

Walcott, C. D. *Fauna of the Mount
Whyte formation. 565.

Walker, T. L. The crystal form of
spencerite. 456.

Weibel, Ernest. *A study of elec-
tromagnet moving coil galvanom-
eters for use in alternating cur-
rent measurements. 36.

Wells, P. V. fA standard of tur-
bidity. 473.

Wells, R. C. fEvapo ration of water

at depth by natural gases. 309.
Tungstenite, a new mineral. 596.

Wenner, F. fThe experimental basis
for Ohm's law. 21.

Wetmore, Alexander. fNote on hi-
bernation of the mud-turtle. 315.

*The birds of Culebra Island,

Porto Rico. 588.

Wheeler, W. C. *The inorganic con-
stituents of marine invertebrates.
562.

Wherry, E. T. *American occur-
rence of miloschite. 393.

Clay derived from volcanic dust in

the Pierre in South Dakota. 576.

*Glauberite crystal cavities in the

Triassic rocks of eastern Pennsyl-
vania. 268.

theological areas about Wash-
ington. 435.

Halloysite from Colorado. 178.

Leverrierite from Colorado. 208.

Neodymium as the cause of the

red-violet color in certain min-
erals. 143.

*Notes on alunite, psilomelanite,

and titanite. 267.*

"("Occurrence of calcite in silicified

wood. 433.

The indices of refraction of ana-
lyzed rhodochrosite and siderite.
365.

The nomenclature and classifica-
tion of the native element min-
erals. 447.

*Two new fossil plants from the

Triassic of Pennsylvania. 393.

White, David. fDiscussion of gravity
anomalies from the stratigraphic
standpoint. 312.

fDr. C. A. Davis, an appreciation.

115.

White, W. P. fSpecific heats at high
temperatures. 21.

Wig, R. J. *Durability of stucco and
plaster construction. 16.

Wilhelm, R. M. *The freezing point
of mercury. 13.

Williamson, E. D. fThe effect of
elastic strain on the equilibrium
temperature of a solid and its
liquid. 79.

Wilson, E. B. Note on multiple
algebra: The reduction of real
dyadics and the classification of
real homogeneous strains. 173.

Winchester, D. E. fOil shale in the
United States. 432.

*The lignite field of northwestern

South Dakota. 36.

*Oil shale in northwestern Colo-
rado and adjacent areas. 265.

Woolsey, L. H. *The Bull Moun-
tain coal field, Musselshell and
Yellowstone counties, Montana.
602.

Wooton, E. O. "("Relation of plant
succession to forestry and grazing.
200.

Wright, F. E. fThe application of
polarized light to the study of
opaque substances. 473.

The thermodynamic reversibility

of the equilibrium relations be-
tween a strained solid and its
liquid. 405.

Wright, Sewell. The average cor-
relation within subgroups of a
population. 532.

INDEX

623

SUBJECT INDEX

Agriculture. fForeign agricultural ex-
ploration. David Fairchild.
167.

fPlant introductions, protection and
propagation of. B. T. Galloway.
168.

fCrop plants, wild relatives of;
their value in breeding; how to
secure them. W. T. Swingle.
167.
Anthropology. fAboriginal population
of America, distribution of. J. R.
Swanton, Ales Hrdlicka, Tru-
man Michelson, W. H. Holmes,
J. W. Fewkes, Walter Hough,
Francis La Flesche. 202.

Aboriginal terms for brother and
sister. J. R. Swanton. 31.

t American aboriginal history, out-
lines of. W. H. Holmes. 50.

fAnthropological misconceptions. J.
R. Swanton. 395.

fThe fish in cult, myth, and symbol.
I. M. Casanowicz. 171.

t.Magic plants of the ancient Ameri-
cans. W. E. Safford. 47.

fPeoria Indians, notes on. Truman
Michelson. 51.

Terms of relationship. Truman
Michelson. 181.

See also: Archeology; Ethnology.
Archeology. fAncient pit dwellers in
New Mexico. Walter • "Hough.
47.

fMesa Verde National Park, pre-
historic ruins of. J. W. Fewkes.
169.

fPueblo ruins in western Utah, new
types of. X. M. Judd. 49.
Astrophysics. References. 465.
Biology. Organic matter, showers of.

W. L. McAtee. 166.
Biophysics. The living plant as a
physical system. L. J. Briggs.

Botany. fAspergillus, natural groups
in. Charles Thom. 315.

fBarley hybrids, behavior of. H.
V. Harlan. 85.

fBradbury, John, life of. R. H.
True. 44.

fCitrus hybrids, behavior of. W. T.
Swingle. 87.

fColle cting and preparing specimens.
P. L. Richer. 436.

*Colombia and Central America,
new or noteworthy plants from.
Henry Pittier. 566.

fCotton hybrids, behavior of. O.
F. Cook. 84.

fDavis, Dr. C. A.; an appreciation.
David White. 115.

fDistrict Flora area, distribution of
trees in. G. B. Sudworth. 435.

fDistrict Flora." A. S. Hitch-
cock. 434.

*Ficus, Mexican and Central Ameri-
can species of. P. C. Standley.
566.

fForests of Panama. Henry Pittier.
27.

*Grasses of the West Indies. A. S.
Hitchcock and Agnes Chase.
516.

fGreenhouse use of peat. H. C.
Thompson. 116.

fHawaiian Islands, botanizing in.
A. S. Hitchcock. 316.

fHumus as a factor in plant dis-
tribution. F. V. Coville. 436.

*Inga, revision of. Henry Pittier.
567.

Local flora, study of. A. S. Hitch-
cock. 251.

*Lonchocarpus, Middle American
species of. Henry Pittier. 567.

fMaize hybrids, behavior of. G. N.
Collins. 83.

Mascarene cabbage palm, a new
genus. O. F. Cook. 121.

524

INDEX

*Maxonia, a new genus of tropical

American ferns. Carl Christen-

sen. 162.
fMeade, R. M.; an appreciation.

F. L. Lewton. 115.
fPathological problems in distribu-
tion of perishable plant products.

C. L. Shear and W. A. Orton.

45.
fPeat, upland, its origin and use.

F. V. Coville. 117.
fPlant hybrids, disease resistance of.

W. A. Orton. 86.
Seedling morphology in palms and

grasses. O. F. Cook. 420.
fSoy bean hybrids, behavior of. W.

J. Morse. 87.
fTextile plant fibers, need for. L.

H.Dewey. 591.
•("Venezuelan plants and fruits. J.

N. Rose. 46.
fWheat and rye, crosses between.

J. B. Norton. 85.
fWheat hybrids, behavior of. C. E.

Leighty. 85.
References. 490.
See also: Agriculture; Biophysics;

Ecology; Forestry; Genetics;

Paleontology; Phytopathology;

Plant Physiology.
Chemistry. fAntimony, separation

and determination of. Eli as

Elvove. 114.
fChemical forces, nature of. H.

Bate man. 189.
fGalactose, a fourth pentacetate of.

J. M. Johnson. 112.
Iron oxides, some problems of.

R. B. Sosman. 55.
fKjeldahl method of determining

nitrogen. H. W. Daudt. 112.
fPhytochemical research, its aims

and developments. F. B. Power.

138.
fPrecipitins. M. W. Lyon, Jr. 240.
fPreparation of heavy-metal salts

of certain organic acids. C. N.

Myers. 114.

f Toxicity and chemotherapy of the
heavy metals. G. C. Lake. 114.

fValence, electron theory of. L. B.
Loeb. 191.

fValence and color. F. R. v. Bi-
chowsky. 192.

fVan't Hoff's principle of optical
superposition. E. A. Hill. 113.

References. 40, 469.

See also: Crystallography; Electro-
chemistry; Geology; Geophysics;
Mineralogy; Physical Chemistry;
Technology.
Crystallography. The thermodynamic
reversibility of the equilibrium re-
lations between a strained solid
and its liquid. F. E. Wright and
J. C. Hostetter. 405.

Ecology. fPlant succession and for-
estry and grazing, relation of.
C. G. Bates, J. V. Hoffman, A.
W. Sampson, and E. O. Wooton.
199, 200.

Economics. fNeglected aquatic re-
sources. H. M. Smith. 165.
f Geology and public service. G. O.
Smith. 193.

Electricity. Anode fall of potential,
probe-wire measurements of. J.
T. Tate and P. D. Foote. 482.

Anode resistance films. J. T. Tate
and P. D. Foote. 593.

fElectron, absorption of energy by.
W. F. G. Swann. 19.

Electrons in sodium vapor, reso-
nance and ionization potentials.
J. T. Tate and P. D. Foote. 517.

*Galvanometer for use in alternat-
ing current measurements. Er-
nest Weibel. 36.

flron, pure, resistivity and thermo-
electric properties of. G. K. Bur-
gess. 19.

fOhm's law, experimental basis for.
F. Wenner. 21.

f Photoelectric radiophonic experi-
ments. A. W. Clime. 163.

INDEX

625

Photoelectric sensitivity of various
substances. W. W. Coblentz and
W. B. Emerson. 523.

fResistance of metals, effect of posi-
tive and of negative pressure. L.
H. Adams. 20.

*Silver sulphide, some electrical
properties of. G. W. Vinal. 584.
Electrochemistry. The electrometric
titration of zinc with ferro cyanide.
F. R. v. Bichowsky. 141.
Engineering. *Colorado River and its
utilization. E. C. La Rue. 15.

*Measurement o' silt-laden streams.
R. C. Pierce. 136.

*Panoramic camera, its use in topo-
graphic surveying. J. W. Bagley.
568.

*Stream-flo\v data, accuracy of. N.
C. Grover and J. C. Hoyt. 137.

*Surface waters of Massachusetts.

C. H. Pierce. 136.

*Surface water supply of the United
States. X. C. Grover, et al. 135.
See also: Geology.
Entomology. tAleyrodidae, notes on.

A. L. QuAINTANCE. 201.

fBoll weevil, recent spread of. W.

D. Pierce. 26.
tEntomological inspection of im-
ports. E. R. Sasscer. 26.

fEuropean entomologists. 119.

*Fly larvae in hors^ manure, de-
struction of. F. C. Cook, R. H.
Hutchison, and F. M. Scales.
161.

fGlow-worms of family Phongodidae.
H. S. Barber. 27.

fHouse-fly, recent work on. R. H.
Hutchison. 25.

"flnsect photography. J. H. Paine.
28.

fStrepsipterous type of parasitism.
W. D. Pierce. 272.
Ethnology. American Indian lan-
guages. Trumax Michelson. 222.

The Chitimacha of . Bayou La
Fourche, Louisiana. D. I. Bush-
xell, Jr. 301.

Initiation in Hopiland, Arizona. J.
W. Fewkes. 149.

fPagan tribes of the Philippines.
F. C. Cole. 273.

fPre-Columbian notices of inhabit-
ants of the Atlantic islands. W.
H. Babcock. 139.

Prehistoric stone mortar from Ari-
zona. J. W. Fewkes. 459.

fReligious ideas of the Northwest
Coast Indians. L. J. Frachten-
berg. 275.
Forestry. References. 492.
Genetics. Endosperm color and albi-
nism in maize, correlation be-
tween. J. H. Kempton. 146.

Hereditary characters in relation to
evolution, observed changes in.
H. S. Jennings. 281.

Metaphanic variation in grasses.
J. Dufrenoy. 535.

Population, average correlation with-
in subgroups of. Sewell Wright.
532.

Selection in evolution, role of. W.
E. Castle. 369.

Sex ratio, the control of. Oscar
Riddle. 319.

References. 497.
Geodesy. Precise leveling from Reno
to Las Vegas, Nevada, and from
Tonopah Junction, Nevada, to
Laws, California. H. G. Avers
and G. D. Cowie. 132.

*Triangulation in Georgia. C. H.
Swick. 584.

References. 466.

See also: Gravitation.
Geography. *Navajo country, a geo-
graphic and hydrographic recon-
naisance. H. E. Gregory. 132.
Geology. fAge of certain shales in
Cumberland-Lebanon Valley,
Pennsylvania. G. W. Stose. 82.

fAge of the Worcester phyllite. F.
J. Katz. 309.

Andalusite mass in the pre-Cam-
brian of the Inyo Range, Cali-
fornia. Adolph Knopf. 549.

626

INDEX

*Anticlinal fold near Billings, Okla-
homa. A. E. Fath. 38.

*Anticlines in the Blackfeet Indian
Reservation. Eugene Stebin-
ger. 264.

*Anticlines in central Wyoming.
C. J. Hares, 265.

Aphrolith and dermolith. T. A.
Jaggar, Jr. 277.

*Archean complex of Granite Gorge,
Grand Canyon, Arizona, recon-
naisance of. L. F. Noble and J.
F. Hunter. 38.

*Baked shale and slag formed by
the burning of coal beds. G. S.
Rogers. 563.

fBentonite, origin of; geologic range
of related material. D. F. Hew-
ett. 196.

*Bull Mountain coal field, Montana.
L. H. Woolsey, R. W. Richards,
and C. T. Lupton. 602.

Carboniferous rocks with some coal,
new area of, in the north end of
the Gulf embayment. E. W.
Shaw. 552.

Clay derived from volcanic dust in
South Dakota. E. T. Wherry.
576.

*Cleveland gas field, Ohio. G. S.
Rogers. 308.

Conconully and Ruby mining dis-
tricts, Washington, reconnaisance
of. E. L. Jones, Jr. 37.

*Cretaceous invertebrates, nonma-
rine, of the San Juan basin, New
Mexico. T. W. Stanton. 185.

fCretaceous volcanic ash bed on the
Great Plains in North Dakota.
T. W. Stanton. 80.

fDiffusion and crystallization of
metallic copper in crystalline sul-
phides. H. E. Merwin. 196.

fDistribution of land and water on
the earth. H. F. Reid. 311.

fEagle sandstone, relation of to
Niobrara shale in Wyoming. C.
J. Hares. 429.

*Economic geology of Gilpin County
and adjacent territory, Colorado.
J. M. Hill. 266.

*Embar and Chugwater formations
in central Wyoming, relations of.
D. D. Condit. 162.

*Enrichment of ore deposits. W. H.
Emmons. 513.

fEvaporation of water at depth by
natural gases. R. V. A. Mills
and R. C. Wells. 309.

*Flora of the Fruitland and Kirt-
land formations, New Mexico.
F. H. Knowlton. 186.

*Fossil flora from the Frontier for-
mation of Wyoming. F. H. Knowl-
ton. 601.

*Gold Log mine, Alabama. E. S.
Bastin. 76.

fGravels, high, of northern Great
Plains, age of. A. J. Collier.
194.

fGravity anomalies from the strati-
graphic standpoint. David White.
312.

*Greensand deposits of the eastern
United States. G. H. Ashley.
513.

*Gypsum in Bighorn Mountains,
Wyoming. C. T. Lupton and D.
D. Condit. 78.

*Hound Creek coal district, Mon-
tana, geology of. V. H. Barnett.
133.

fHuman remains at Vero, Florida,
finding of supposed Pleistocene.
O. P. Hay. 358.

*Hydraulic -mining debris in the
Sierra Nevada. G. K. Gilbert.
600.

*Irvine oil field, Kentucky. E. W.
Shaw. 514.

flsostasy, our present knowledge of.
William Bowie. 269.

flsostasy, some evidences of. Wil-
liam Bowie. 311.

f Lassen Peak eruption, high tem-
perature of. J. S. Diller. 193.

INDEX

627

fLassen Peak lava; was it viscous at

time of eruption? J. S. Diller.

82.
*Lignite field of northwestern South

Dakota. D. E. Winchester, C.

J. Hares, E. R. Lloyd, and E. M.

Parks. 36.
*Lode mining in Boise Basin, Idaho.

E. L. Jones, Jr. 14.

*Mackay region, Idaho, geology and

ore deposits of. J. B. Umpleby.

514.
*Manganese deposits of the Caddo

Gap and De Queen quadrangles,

Arkansas. H. D. Miser. 587.
*Manganese mines in Virginia and

Maryland. D. F. Hewett. 134.
*Marine invertebrates, inorganic

constituents of. F. W. Clarke

and W. C. Wheeler. 562.
*Mechanics of Panama Canal slides.

G. F. Becker. 13.
fMemorial to C. Willard Hayes.

A. H. Brooks. 432. '
*Mineral resources of the Kantishna

region, Alaska. S. R. Capps. 603.
*Molybdenite and nickel ore in San

Diego County, California. F. C.

Calkins. 78.
f Morrison and Sundance formations,

relations of. W. T. Lee. 431.
*Newington moraine, Maine, New

Hampshire, and Massachusetts.

F. J. Katz and Arthur Keith.
515.

*Oil and gas geology of the Foraker
quadrangle, Oklahoma. K. C.
Heald. 77.

*Oil.and gas in north-central Mon-
tana, possibilities of. Eugene
Stebinger. 77.

Oil-field waters, Appalachian, so-
dium chloride in. G.' B. Rich-
ardson. 73.

*Oil-field waters in San Joaquin
Valley, California, chemical rela-
tions of. G. S. Rogers. 586.

fOil-shale in the United States. D.

E. Winchester. 432.
*Oil-shale in northwestern Colo-
rado and adjacent areas. D. E.
Winchester. 265.

*Oil resources of black shales of the

eastern United States. G. H.

Ashley. 564.
*Ozokerite in central Utah. H. M.

Robinson. 76.
*Paleozoic sections in southern New

Mexico, comparison of. N. H.

Darton. 564.
*Placer deposits of the Manhattan

district, Nevada. H. G. Fergu-
son. 266.
tQuaternary history of central

Alaska. H. M. Eakin. 81.
fReef coral fauna at Carrizo Creek,

California, significance of. T. W.

Vaughan. 83, 194.
fStratigraphy, value of microscopic

fossils in. R. S. Bassler. 434.
fStratigraphy in southwest Maine

and southeast New Hampshire.
. F. J. Katz. 198.
Stratigraphy of the Chaco River

Valley, New Mexico. C. M.

Bauer. 133.
*Tin ore in Lander County, Nevada.

Adolph Knopf. 15.
Tongue, a new stratigraphic term.

L. W. 'Stephenson. 243.
*Tungsten deposits of northwestern

Inyo County, California. Adolph

Knopf. 357.
*Tungsten minerals and deposits.

F. L. Hess. 604.

*Upper Stillwater Basin, Montana,
geology of. W. R. Calvert. 135.

*Vertebrate faunas of the Ojo Alamo,
Kirtland, and Fruitland forma-
tions, New Mexico. C. W. Gil-
more. 185.

*Vicksburg-Jackson area, ^'Missis-
sippi, structure of. O. B. Hop-
kins. 235, 427.

628

INDEX

t Washington, D. C, Geological
areas. E. T. Wherry. 435.

* Wilcox group (Eocene), geologic
history of. E. W. Berry. 601.

See also: Economics; Engineering;
Geography; Gravitation; Miner-
alogy; Paleontology; Petrology.
Geophysics. fCooling of a lava sur-
face. A. L. Day. 194.

fCrystals, growing, linear force of,

J. C. HOSTETTER. 195.

Live aa lava at Kilauea. T. A.

Jaggar, Jr. 241.
jOrigin of the earth's electric charge.

W. F. G. Swann. 270.
Thermal gradient of Kilauea Lava

Lake. T. A. Jaggar, Jr. 397.
References. 465.
Gravitation. *Investigations of grav-
ity and isostasy. William Bowie.

159.
References. 466.
History. Philosophical Society of

Washington, origin and early days

of. W. H. Dall. 475.
tScientific societies in Washington,

development of. F. W. Clarke.

475.
Magnetism. *Fahy permeameter. C.
W. Burrows and R. L. Sanford.
562.
♦Uniformity of bars for magnetic
standards. R. L. Sanford. 14.
Mammalogy. fAmerican flying squir-
rels, notes on. A. H. Howell.
358.
]Aplodontia, notes on. W. P. Tay-
lor. 272.
References. 40.
Mathematics. Multiple algebra: The
reduction of real dyadics and the
classification of real homogeneous
strains. E. B. Wilson. 173.
Medical Zoology. Carriage of disease
by insects. L. O. Howard. 217.
Metallography. *Coating on tinned
copper, corrosion of. P. D. Me-
rica. 161.

References. 470.

Meteorology. fAerology in aid of

aeronautics. C. F. Marvin. 543.

Mineralogy. Alunite, psilomelanite,

andtitanite. E. T. Wherry. 267.

Aurichalcite from Big Cottonwood

Canyon, Utah. A. Ledoux. 361.

fCalcite in silicified wood. E. T.

Wherry. 433.
*Glauberite crystal cavities in the
Triassic rocks of eastern Pennsyl-
vania. E. T. Wherry. 268.
Halloysite from Colorado. E. S.
Larsen and E. T. Wherry. 178.
Ilsemannite, hydrous sulphate of
molybdenum. W. T. Schaller.

417.
Leverrierite from Colorado. E. S.

Larsen and E. T. Wherry. 208.
Magnesioludwigite, a new mineral.

B. S. Butler and W. T. Schaller.

29.
*Miloschite, American occurrence of.

E. T. Wherry and G. V. Brown.

393.
Minasragrite, a hydrous sulphate

of vanadium. W. T. Schaller.

501.
Mineralogic notes. E. S. Larsen

and G. Steiger. 6.
Neodymium as cause of red-violet

color in certain minerals. E. T.

Wherry. 143.
Native element minerals, nomen-
clature and classification of. E.

T. Wherry. 447.
Rhodochrosite and siderite, indices

of refraction of. E. T. Wherry

and E. S. Larsen. 365.
Spencerite, crystal form of. T. L.

Walker. 456.
Tungstenite, a new mineral. R. C.

Wells and B. S. Butler. 596.
See also: Crystallography.
Oceanography. Instrument for density

measurements on board ship. A.

L. Thuras. 605.

INDEX

629

Optics. *Axial aberrations of lenses.

E. D. Tillyer and H. I. Schultz.

585.
Dispersion and other optical prop-
erties of carborundum. H. E.

Merwin. 445.
fMother-of-pearl, colors of. A. H.

Pfund. 236.
*Reflecting power of tungsten and

stellite. W. W. Coblentz and

W. B. Emerson. 561.
"("Rotation of the plane of polariza-
tion in quartz and iron at high

temperatures. Frederick Bates

and F. P. Phelps. 473.
fTurbidity, a standard of. P. V.

Wells. 473.
Ornithology. fAdditions to list of

North American birds. H. C.

Oberholser. 120.
*Anatidae, a new genus of. H. C.

Oberholser. 589.
*Aphelocoma cyanotis and its allies,

status of. H. C. Oberholser.

588.
fChanges in avifauna about Bur-
lington, Iowa. Paul Bartsch.

166.
*Bombycilla garrula, synopsis of

races of. H. C. Oberholser.

590.
*Culebra Island, Porto Rico, birds

of. Alexander Wetmore. 588.
*Fringilline genus Passerherbulus

and its nearest a'lies. H. C.

Oberholser. 588.
New laniine family of Passeri-

formes. H. C. Oberholser. 180.
*Notes on North American birds.

I. H. C. Oberholser. 589.
New pycnonotine family of Passeri-

formes. H. C. Oberholser. 537.
*Sialia from Mexico, new. H. C.

Oberholser. 589.
*Sitta carolinensis, the eastern sub-
species of. H. C. Oberholser.

590.
References. 497, 569.

Paleontology. *Brachyceratops, a ce-
ratopsian dinosaur from the Two
Medicine formation of Montana.

C. W. Gilmore. 267.

*Fauna of the Mount White for-
mation. C. D. Walcott. 565.

fGastroliths in the Cloverly forma-
tion. C. J. Hares. 429.

*North American Upper Cretaceous
corals of the genus Micrabacia.
L. W. Stephenson. 39.

*Plants from the Triassic of Penn-
sylvania. E. T. Wherry. 393.

fSeacow of Maryland, fossil. Wil-
liam Palmer. 120.

References. 490.
Petrology. "("Results of microscopic
examination of rocks from oil
fields of southeastern Ohio. M. I.
Goldman. 310.

Photometry. *"Average eye" for het-
erochromatic photometry. E. C.
Crittenden and F. K. Richt-

MYER. 264.

fNormal eye for photometry of
lights of different color. A. H.
Taylor. 17.
Physics. "(Calorimeter for determi-
nation of latent and specific heats
of fluids. N. S. Osborne. 22.

fElastic strain, effect of, on equilib-
rium temperature of a solid and
its liquid. E. Buckingham; E.

D. Williamson. 79.

Elastic systems, the vibration fre-
quencies of. M. D. Hersey. 437.

"("Liquids, constitution of. Irving
Langmuir. 474.

Luminescence measurements. N.

E. Dorsey. 1.

*Mercury, freezing point of. R. M.

WlLHELM. 13.

*Mercury vapor pump, two-stage.

H. F. Stimson. 477.
"("Polarized light, application to the

study of opaque substances. F.

E. Wright. 473.

630

INDEX

Radiation, gray, criteria for. P. D.
Foote. 573.

fRelative sensibility of the average
eye to lights of different colors.
W. W. Coblentz. 17.

*Sensibility of average eye to light
of different colors. W. W. Cob-
lentz and W. B. Emerson. 427.

fSolubility, influence of non-uni-
form ? pressure on. J. C. Hos-
tetter. 79.

*Specific gravity balance for gases.
J. D. Edwards. 160.

fSpecific heats at high temperatures.
W.' P. White. 21.

"Thermometric fixed points, stand-
ard samples for. 561.

Viscometers, "calibration of. E. C.
Bingham and R. F. Jackson. 53.

Visibility equation derived from the
Ives and Kingsbury new lumi-
nosity equation. P. D. Foote.
317.

References. 466.

See also: Astrophysics; Biophysics;
Crystallography; Electricity; Elec-
trochemistry ; Geophysics ; Magnet-
ism; Metallography; Optics; Pho-
tometry; Physical Chemistry;
Pyrometry; Radiation; Radiote-
legraphy; Spectroscopy; Technol-
ogy; Terrestrial Magnetism.

Physical Chemistry. Autoclave, a con-
venient form of. G. W. Morey.
205.

Plant Physiology, [Influence of cold
in stimulating growth of plants.
TF. V. Coville. 394.
References. 496.

Pyrometry. The proper type of ab-
sorption glass for an optical
pyrometer. P. D. Foote, F. L.
Mohler, and C. O. Fairchild.
545.

Phytopathology . fBlister rust of white
pine, control of. Haven Met-
calf. 313.

fBlister rust of white pine, techni-
que for study of. R. H. Collet.
314.

*Crown gall, mechanism of tumor
growth in. E. F. Smith. 187.

•[Introduction of foreign plant dis-
eases. R. K. Beattie. 168.

References. 492.

Radiation. *Emissivity of tungsten

filaments. W. W. Coblentz. 426.

*Luminous radiation from a black

body. W. W. Coblentz and W.

B. Emerson. 542.

*Planck's radiation equation, calcu-
lation of the constants of. H. M.
Roeser. 542.

[Radiometers, characteristics and
sensitiveness of. W. W. Cob-
lentz. 164.
Radiotelegraphy. Notes on the au-
dion. L. W. Austin. 487.

Spectroscopy. *Helium spectrum,
wave-length of the stronger lines.
P. W. Merrill. 393.

[Interference measurements of wave-
lengths, and infra-red spectrum
photography. W. F. Meggers.
237.

[Spectroscopic field light. F. E.
Fowle. 238.

*Wave-length measurements in spec-
tra from 5900 A to 9600 A. W. F.
Meggers. 585.

Technology. *Aneroid calorimeter for
specific and latent heats. N. S.
Osborne. 426.

*Durability of stucco and plaster
construction. R. J. Wig, J. C.
Pearson, and W. E. Emley. 16.

*Emulsification, resistance of an
oil to. W. H. Herschel. 137.

[■Expansion, interferential method
for measuring. I. G. Priest and

C. G. Peters. 475.

*Gas density, effusion method of
determining. J. D. Edwards. 428.

INDEX

631

|Gas density, rapid determination
of. J. D. Edwards. 475.

*Glasses for protecting the eyes
from injurious radiations. W. W.
Coblentz and W. B. Emerson.
268.

*Recoven^ of paraffin and paper
stock from waste paraffin paper.
W. H. Smith. 39.

*Temperature measurements in Bes-
semer and open hearth practice.
464.

References. 42, 470.
Terrestrial Magnetism. References.

466.
Zoology. fCorals growing along the
coast of Delaware. G. W. Stose.
432.

Crinoid family Antedonidae, inter-
relationships of the constituent
subfamilies and genera. A. H.
Clark. 504.

Crinoid family Antedonidae, revis-
ion of. A. H. Clark. 127.

Crinoid family Bourgueticrinidae,
revision of the recent genera. A.
H. Clark. 388.

jF.ishes, a mortality of, on the west
coast of Florida. H. F. Taylor.
166.

fLower vertebrates, rate of growth.
W. P. Hay. 394.

fMammals, origin of. J. W. Gid-
ley. 196.

fMollusk collecting in the Philip-
pines. Paul Bartsch. 25. » '\

fMud-turtle, hibernation of. Alex-
ander Wetmore and Francis
Harper. 315.

fPioneer naturalist of southern
Florida— Titian R. Peale. T. S.
Palmer. 201.

fPoisonous snakes. M. W. Lyon,
Jr. 46.

tPorpoises and steamers. William
Palmer. 240.

fShad and its relations in the Mis-
sissippi River. Emerson String-
ham. 201. .

"(Tardigrade, new species of. W. P.
Hay. 45.

fTrunk-fishes, notes on. R. W.
Shufeldt. 201.

jZoological statuary at the Na-
tional Capital. R. W. Shufeldt.
273.

See also: Economics; Entomology;
Genetics; Mammalogy; Medical
Zoology; Ornithology.

Vol. VII No. 1

Januaky 4, 1917

JOUKNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS
William R. Maxgn N. Ernest Dorset Apolph Knopf

NATIONAL MUSEUM BUREAU OP STANDARDS GEOLOGICAL SURVEY

PUBLISHED SEMI-MONTHLY
EXCEPT IN JULY, AUGUST, AND SEPTEMBER, WHEN MONTHLY

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION

WILLIAMS & WILKINS COMPANY

BALTIMORE, MD.

Entered as second-class matter July 14, at the post office at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of

July 16,1894

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington; (3) short abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
affiliated Societies; (5) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash-
ington. The Journal is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each month, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
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Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined to text
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Copies of the brochure, substantially bound in flexible cloth covers,
may be purchased of the Treasurer, Mr. William Bowie, Coast and
Geodetic Survey, Washington, D. C, at fifty cents each (postage
included) .

Lyman J. Briggs,
Chairman, Committee on Meetings.

ANNOUNCEMENT OF MEETINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND

AFFILIATED SOCIETIES1

Saturday, January 6 : The Philosophical Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8.15 p.m. Program:

E. Buckingham and E. D. Williamson: The effect of elastic strain on the equi-
librium temperature of a solid and its liquid. 20 minutes each.

J. C. Hostetter: The influence of non-uniform pressure on solubility.

Thursday, January 11: The Washington Academy of Sciences, at the
Cosmos Club, at 8 p. m.

Annual meeting for the reports of officers, etc.

This will be followed at 9 p. m. by a joint meeting with the Chemical
Society of Washington. Program:

R. B. Sosman: Address of the retiring President of the Chemical Society — Some
problems of the oxides of iron.

Tuesday, January 16: The Anthropological Society, at the New
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William H. Babcock: Certain pre-Columbian notices of the inhabitants of
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'The-programs of the meetings of the affiliated societies will appear on this page if sent to the
editors by the first and fifteenth days of each month.

CONTENTS

Original Papers

Page

Physics. — Luminescence measurements. N. E. Dorset 1

Mineralogy. — Mineralogic notes. Esper S. Larsen and George Steiger. . 6

Abstracts

Geophysics 13

Physics 13

Magnetism 14

Geology 14

Engineering 15

Technology 16

Proceedings

The Philosophical Society 17

The Biological Society 24

Vol. VII No. 2

January 19, 1917

JOUKNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS
William R. Maxon N. Ernest Dorset Adolph Knopf

NATIONAL MUSEUM BUREAU OF STANDARDS GEOLOGICAL SURVEY

PUBLISHED SEMI-MONTHLY
EXCEPT IN JULY, AUGUST, AND SEPTEMBER, WHEN MONTHLY

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION

WILLIAMS & WILKINS COMPANY

BALTIMORE, M0.

Entered as second-class matter July 11, at the post office at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of

July 16.1894

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington; (3) short abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
affiliated Societies; (5) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash-
ington. The Journal is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
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Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
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month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the
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Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
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The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
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authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in final
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THE WAVERLY PRESS
BALTIMORE, U. S. A.

ANNOUNCEMENT OF MEETINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND

AFFILIATED SOCIETIES1

Saturday, January 20 : The Philosophical Society, at the Cosmos Club,

at 8.30 p.m. Program:
L. J. Briggs: Presidential address. — The living 'plant as a physical system.

Wednesday, January 24 : The Medical Society, at the Medical Depart-
ment of the George Washington University, 1325 H Street N. W.,
at 8 p.m.

Wednesday, January 24 : The Geological Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8 p.m. Program:

D. F. Hewett: The nature of bertonite, and the geologic range of related material

in the Big Horn Basin, Wyoming. 20 minutes.
J. C. Hostetter: The linear force of growing crystals. 20 minutes. Illustrated.
J. W. Gidley: Origin of the mammals . 20 minutes. Illustrated.

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'The programs of the meetings of the affiliated societies will appear on this page if sent to the
editors by the thirteenth and twenty-seventh days of each month.

CONTENTS

Original Papers

Page

Mineralogy. — Magnesioludwigite, a new mineral. B. S. Butler and W. T.

Schaller 29

Anthropology. — Significance of the terms for brother and sister among

primitive peoples. John R. Swanton 31

Abstracts

Physics 36

Geology 36

Paleontology 39

Technology 39

References

Chemistry 40

Mammalogy , 40

Technology 42

Proceedings

The Botanical Society 44

The Biological Society 45

The Anthropological Society 47

Vol. VII No. 3

February 4, 1917

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS
N. Ernest Dorset Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock

BUREAU OF STANDARDS GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY

PUBLISHED SEMI-MONTHLY
EXCEPT IN JULY, AUGUST, AND SEPTEMBER, WHEN MONTHLY

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION

WILLIAMS <fe WILKINS COMPANY

BALTIMORE, MD.

Entered as second-class matter July 14, at the post office at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of

July 10,1894

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington; (3) short abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
affiliated Societies; (5) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash-
ington. The Journal is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each month, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
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month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the
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be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be^ submitted in final
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Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agents: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and Miiller, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchanges. — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

* Volume T, however, from July 19, 1911 to December 19, 1911, will be sent for $3.00. Speoia! rates
*ro given to members of scientific societies affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERLY PRESS
BALTIMORE. U. S. A.

ANNOUNCEMENT OF MEETINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND

AFFILIATED SOCIETIES1

Tuesday, February 6: The Botanical Society, at the Cosmos Club, at
8 p.m. The program will consist of a symposium: The relation of
plant succession to forestry and grazing. Speakers: J. V. Hoffman,
G. G. Bates, Arthur W. Sampson, and E. O. Wooton.

Tuesday, February 6: The Anthropological Society, at the Public
Library, at 8 p.m. Program:

J. Walter Fewkes : Prehistoric ruins in the Mesa Verde National Park.

Tuesday, February 6 : 'The Society of Engineers, at Rauscher's, 1034
Connecticut Ave. N. W., at 8 p.m.

Wednesday, February 7 : The Medical Society, at the Medical Depart-
ment of George Washington University, 1325 H Street N. W., at 8 p.m.

Thursday, February 8: The Chemical Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8 p.m.

Saturday, February 10 : The Biological Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8 p.m.

Wednesday, February 14: The Geological Society, at the Cosmos
Club, at 8 p.m.

Wednesday, February 14: The Medical Society, at the Medical De-
partment of George Washington University, 1325 H Street N. W.,
at 8 p.m.

Saturday, February 17 : The Philosophical Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8.15 p.m. Program:

H. Bateman (by invitation): The nature of chemical forces. 30 minutes.
L. B. Loeb: The electron theory of valence. 30 minutes.

•The programs of the meetings of the affiliated societies will appear on this page if sent to theedito
by the thirteenth and twenty -seventh day of each month.

CONTENTS

Original Papers

Page
Physics. — Standard substances for the calibration of viscometers. Eugene

C. Bingham and Richard F. Jackson 63

Chemistry.— Some problems of the oxides of iron. Robert B. Sosman. ... 55
Geology. — Note on the diffusion of sodium chloride in Appalachian oil-field
waters. G. B. Richardson 73

Abstracts
Geology 76

Proceedings

The Philosophical Society 79

The Geological Society 80

The Botanical Society 83

Vol. VII No. 4

February 19, 1917

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS

N. Ernest Dorset Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock

^bureau of standards geological subvey bitreaoJofjflantJindustby

\

PUBLISHED SEMI-MONTHLY
EXCEPT IN JULY, AUGUST, AND SEPTEMBER, WHEN MONTHLY

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION
WILLIAMS & WILKIN8 COMPANY
, BALTIMORE, MD.

Entered as second-class matter July 14, at the post office at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of

July 16, ISM

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington; (3) short abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
affiliated Societies; (5) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash-
ington. The Journal is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each month, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
feature; a manuscript reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the
month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the
Journal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors ; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be^ submitted in final
form; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

Authors' Copies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may desire at five cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices:

4 pp. 8 pp. 12 pp. 16 pp.

50 copies $1.08 $1.95 $2.93 $3.80

100 copies 1.30 2.40 3.60 4.70

Additional copies, per 100 45 90 1.35. 1.70

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
$1.00 per 100.

As an author may not see proof, his request for extra copies or reprints should
invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume is $6.00*

Semi-monthly numbers . -25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenmount
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agents: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and Muller, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchanges. — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

• Volume I, however, from July 19. 1911 to December 19. 1911, will be sent for $3.00. Speoial rates
w* given to members of scientific societies affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERLY PRESS
BALTIMORE, U. S. A.

ANNOUNCEMENT OF MEETINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND

AFFILIATED SOCIETIES1

Tuesday, February 20: The Anthropological Society, at the U. S.
National Museum, new building, Room 44, at 4.30 p.m. Program:

1. M. Casanowicz: The fish in cult, myth, and symbol.

Tuesday, February 20: The Historical Society, at the Shoreham, 15th
and H Streets, N. W., at 8 p.m.

Tuesday, February 20: The Society of Engineers, at Rauscher's, 1034
Connecticut Ave., N. W., at 8 p.m.

Wednesday, February 21: The Medical Society, at the Medical De-
partment of George Washington University, 1325 H Street, N. W.,
at 8 p.m.

Saturday, February 24 : The Biological Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8 p.m.

Wednesday, February 28: The Geological Society, at the Cosmos
Club, at 8 p.m.

Wednesday, February 28: The Medical Society, at the Medical De-
partment of George Washington University, 1325 H Street, N. W.,
at 8 p.m.

Saturday, March 3: The Philosophical Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8.15 p.m. Program:

A. H. Pfcjxd (by invitation): The colors of mother-of-pearl. Illustrated. 25
minutes.

W. F. Magqeks: Interference measurements of wave-lengths, and infra-red spec-
trum photography. Illustrated. 25 minutes.

F. E. Fowle: Spectroscopic field light. Illustrated. 15 minutes.

1 The programs of the meetings of the affiliated societies will appear on this page if sent to the editor
by the thirteenth and twenty-seventh day of each month.

CONTENTS
Original Papers

Pagt

Biophysics. — The living plant as a physical system. Lyman J. Briggs 89

Proceedings

The Philosophical Society 112

The Chemical Society 112

The Botanical Society 115

The Biological Society 118

Vol. VII No. 5

March 4, 1917

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES '

BOARD OF EDITORS
N. Ernest Dorset Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock

BUREAU OF STANDARDS GEOLOGICAL SURVET BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY

PUBLISHED SEMI-MONTHLY
EXCEPT IN JULY, AUGUST, AND SEPTEMBER, WHEN MONTHLY

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION

WILLIAMS St WILKINS COMPANY

BALTIMORE, MD.

Entered as second-class matter July 14, 1911, at the post office at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of

July 16, 1894

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief recordof current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington; (3) short abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
affiliated Societies; (5) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash-
ington. The Journal is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each month, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
feature; a manuscript reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the
month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the
Journal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors ; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in final
form; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

< Authors' Copies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may desire at five cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices:

4 pp. 8 pp. 12 pp. 16 ppx.

50 copies $1.08 $1.95 $2.93 $3.80

100 copies 1.30 2.40 3.60 4.70

Additional copies, per 100 45 90 1.35 1.70

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
$1.00 per 100.

As an author may not see proof, his request for extra copies or reprints should
invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rale of Subscription per volume is . $6 . 00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenmount
Ave.. Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agents: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and Muller, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchanges. — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

* Volume I, however, from July 19, 1911 to December 19, 1911, will be sent for $3.00. Special rate*
txn Riven to members of soieatifio Booioties affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERLY PRESS
BALTIMORE, U. S. A.

ANNOUNCEMENT OF MEETINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND

AFFILIATED SOCIETIES1

Tuesday, March 6: The Anthropological Society, at the Public Library,
at 8 p.m.

Tuesday, March 6: The Society of Engineers, at Rauscher's, 1034
Connecticut Ave. N.W., at 8 p.m. William A. Mitchell, Major in
Corps of Engineers, U. S. Army, will give a lecture on Aeronautics,
illustrated by lantern slides.

Saturday, March 10: The Biological Society, at the Cosmos Club, at
8 p.m.

Wednesday, March 14: The Geological Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8 p.m. Program:

Harry Fieldixg Reid: Distribution of land and water on the earth.
William Bowie : Some results of recent gravity observations by the Coast and Geo-
detic Survey.
David White : Discussion of gravity anomalies from the stratigraphic standpoint.

Wednesday, March 14: The Botanical Society, at the. Ebbitt House.
The annual dinner, followed by the address of the retiring President,
A. S. Hitchcock.

Saturday, March 17: The Philosophical Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8.15 p.m. Program:

W. Bowie: Our present knowledge of isostasy (illustrated) . 30 minutes.
W. F. G. Swann: The origin and maintenance of the earth's electric charge (illus-
trated). 30 minutes.

1 The programs of the meetings of the affiliated societies will appear on this page if sent to the editor
by the thirteenth and twenty-seventh day of each month.

CONTENTS

Original Papers

Page

Botany. — The Mascarene cabbage palm as a new genus. O. F. Cook 121

Zoology.' — A revision of the crinoid family Antedonidae, with the diagnoses

of nine new genera. Austin H. Clark 127

Abstracts

Geography 132

Geodesy 132

Geology 133

Engineering ■ 135

Technology 137

Proceedings

The Chemical Society of Washington 138

The Society of American Foresters 139

The Anthropological Society of Washington 139

Vol. VII No. 6

March 19, 1917

JOUENAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS
N.r Ernest Dorsby Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock

BT/BXAU 07 STANDARDS GEOLOGICAL SURVEY . BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY

PUBLISHED SEMI-MONTHLY
EXCEPT IN JULY, AUGUST, AND SEPTEMBER, WHEN MONTHLY

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION

WILLIAMS & WILKINS COMPANY

BALTIMORE, MD.

Entered as second-class matter July 14, 1911, at the post office at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of

July 16, 1894

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
•nd it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington ; (3) short abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
affiliated Societies; (5) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash-
ington. The Journal is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each month, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
feature; a manuscript reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the
month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the
Journal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be^ submitted in final
form ; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

Authors' Copies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may desire at five cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices:

4 pp. 8 pp. 12 pp. 18 pp.

50 copies $1.08 $1.95 $2.93 $3.80

100 copies 1.30 2.40 3.60 4.70

Additional copies, per 100 45 90 1.35 1.70

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
$1.00 per 100.

As an author may not see proof, his request for extra copies or reprints should
invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rale of Subscription per volume is $6.00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittance's should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenmount
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agents: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and M tiller, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchanges. — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

• Volume I. however, from July 19, 1911 to December 19, 1911, will be sent for $3.90. Special rates
are given to members of scientific societies affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERLY PRESS

BALTIMORE, U. S. A.

ANNOUNCEMENT OF MEETINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND

AFFILIATED SOCIETIES1

LECTURES ON HEREDITY

A series of lectures on Heredity will be presented before the Wash-
ington Academy cf Sciences during March and April, 1917. The first
of these addresses entitled Observed changes in hereditary characters in
relation to evolution, by Prof. H. S. Jennings, Johns Hopkins University,
Baltimore, will be presented on Thursday evening, March 15th, at
8.15 o'clock, in the Assembly Room of the Cosmos Club, H Street and
Madison Place.

Other addresses in the series will be given on the following tentative
dates :

March 29: Dr. Oscar Riddle: The control of the sex ratio.
April 13: Prof. W. E. Castle: The role of selection in heredity.

April 26: Dr. Alexander Graham Bell: The bearing of heredity on human
affairs.

Notices will be sent out before each meeting

Monday, March 19: The Anthropological Society, at the Public
Library, at 8 p.m. Program :

Fay-Cooper Cole, Assistant Curator in the department of anthropology at the
Field Museum of Natural History: The pagan tribes of the Philippines.
(Illustrated.)

Saturday, March 24: The Biological Society, at the Cosmos Club, at
8 p.m.

Wednesday, March 28 : The Geological Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8 p.m.

Saturday, March 31 : The Philosophical Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8.15 p.m. Program:

J. Bates and F. P. Phelps : Rotation of the plane of polarization by quartz and
iron at high temperatures . 30 minutes.

F. E. Wright: Application of polar ludy of <

20 minu

P. V . Wells: A standard of turbidity, lo minutes.

Tu April 3: The Botanical Society, Cosmos Club, at

8 p.m.

1 The programs of the meetings of the affiliated societies will appear on this page if sent to the editors
by the thirteenth and twenty-seventh day of each month.

CONTENTS

Original Papers

Page
Electrochemistry. — The electrometric titration of zinc with ferrocyanide.
F. Russell v. Bichowsky 141

Mineralogy. — Neodymium as the cause of the red-violet color in certain
minerals. Edgar T. Wherry 143

Genetics. — A correlation between endosperm color and albinism in maize.
J. H. Kempton 146

Ethnology. — An initiation at Hano in Hopiland, Arizona. J. Walter
Fewkes 149

Abstracts

Gravity 159

Physics 160

Chemistry 161

Metallography 161

Geology 162

Botany 162

Proceedings

The Philosophical Society of Washington 163

The Biological Society of Washington 165

The Botanical Society of Washington 167

The Anthropological Society of Washington 169

Vol. VII No. 7

April 4, 1917

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS
N. Ebnest Dobsey Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock

BUREAU OF 8TANDABDS GEOLOGICAL 8UKVHT BUBEAUOF PLANT INDUSTRY

PUBLISHED SEMI-MONTHLY
EXCEPT IN JULY, AUGUST, AND SEPTEMBER, WHEN MONTHLY

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION

WILLIAMS & WILKINI3 COMPANY

BALTIMORE, MD.

Entered as Beoond-clas/matter July 14, 1911, at the poet office at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act at

July 16, 1894

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief recordof current scientific work in Washington. To this
•nd it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington; (3) short abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
affiliated Societies; (5) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash-
ington. The Journal is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each month, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
feature; a manuscript reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the
month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the
Journal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in final
form; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

Authors' Copies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may desire at five cents each. Reprints will bo
furnished at the following schedule of prices:

4 pp.

50 copies $1.08

100 copies 1.30

Additional copies, per 100 45

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
$1.00 per 100.

As an author may not see proof, his request for extra copies or reprints should
invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume is j $6.00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenmount
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agents: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and Miiller, Prims Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchanges. — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

• Volume I. however, from July 19, 1911 to December 19, 1911, will be sent for $3.00. Speoial r»tei
•*• siren to members of scientific societies affiliated with the Academy.

8 pp.

12 pp.

16 pp.

$1.95....

,.. $2.93...,

.. $3.80

2.40....

,,-. 3.60....

.. 4.70

90....

.. 1.35....

... 1.70

THE WAVERLY PRESS
BALTIMORE, U. S. A.

ANNOUNCEMENT OF MEETINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND

AFFILIATED SOCIETIES1

LECTURES ON HEREDITY

The two remaining lectures of the series on Heredity previously an-
nounced by the Washington Academy of Sciences will be given at 8.15
p. m. o'clock, in the Assembly Room of the Cosmos Club, H Street
and Madison Place, as follows :

April 13: Prof. W. E. Castle: The rdle of selection in heredity.

April 26: Dr. Alexander Graham Bell: The bearing of heredity on human
affairs.

Notices will be sent out before each meeting

Tuesday, April 3: The Anthropological Society, at the New National
Museum, room 44, at 4.30 p.m. Program:

Leo J. Frachtenberg : The religious ideas of the northwest coast Indians.

Tuesday, April 3: The Botanical Society, at the Cosmos Club, at 8
p.m. Program:

Haven Metcalf: The control of white pine blister rust (illustrated). 30 minutes.

R. H. Collet: Technique for the study of the white pine blister rust (illustrated).
15 minutes.

Charles Thom: Some natural groups in Aspergillus. 20 minutes.

Saturday, April 7: The Biological Society, at the Cosmos Club, at 8
p.m. Program:

A. S. Hitchcock: Botanizing in the Hawaiian Islands.

Wednesday, April 11: The Geological Society, at the Cosmos Club, at
8 p.m.

Thursday, April 12: The Chemical Society, at the Cosmos Club, at
8 p.m.

Saturday, April 14: The Philosophical Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8.15 p.m.

1 The programs of the meetings of the affiliated societies will appear on this page if sent to the editors
by the thirteenth and twenty-seventh day of each month.

CONTENTS

Original Papers

Page

Mathematics.— Note on multiple algebra: The reduction of real dyadics
and the classification of real homogeneous strains. Edwin Bidwell
Wilson -. . 173

Mineralogy,— Halloysite from Colorado. Esper S. Larsen and Edgar T.
Wherry . 178

Ornithology. — Diagnosis of a new laniine family of Passeriformes. Harry
C. Oberholser 180

Anthropology, — Remarks on terms of relationship. Truman Michelson.. 181

Abstbacts

Geology. . , • 185

Phytopathology 187

Pboceedinqs

The Philosophical Society of Washington 189

The Geological Society of Washington 193

The Botanical Society of Washington 199

The Biological Society of Washington 201

The Anthropological Society of Washington. 202

Vol. VII No. 8

April 19, 1917

JOUKNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS

N. Ernest Dorset Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock

[ BTJBEAC OP STANDARDS GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BUREAU OF FLANT INDTJ8TBY

PUBLISHED SEMI-MONTHLY
EXCEPT IN JULY, AUGUST, AND SEPTEMBER, WHEN MONTHLY

BY THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

office of publication

williams & wilkins company

baltimore, md.

Entered as second-class matter July 14, 1911, at the post office at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of

July 16, 1894

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aimi to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
•nd it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy ; (2) a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington; (3) short abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
affiliated Societies; (5) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash-
ington. The Journal is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each month, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
feature; a manuscript reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the
month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the
Journal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
eall upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be# submitted in final
form; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

Authors' Copies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may desire at five cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices:

4 pp. 8 pp. 12 pp. 18 pp.

50 copies SI. 08 $1.95 $2.93 $3.80

lOOcopies 1.30...... 2.40 3.60 4.70

Additional copies, per 100 45 90 1.35 1.70

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
$1.00 per 100.

As an author may not see proof, his request for extra copies or reprints should
Invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume is $6.00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenmount
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agents: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and Mil Tier, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchanges. — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

* Volume I. howerer, from July 10, 1911 to December 19, 1911, will be Mat for $8.00. Special ratea
am siren to member* of aoientifio societies affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERLY PRESS

BALTIMORE. U. S. A.

ANNOUNCEMENT OF MEETINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND

AFFILIATED SOCIETIES1

Thursday, April 19 : The Philosophical Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8.15 p.m. Program:

1. Langmtjir: The constitution of liquids (illustrated).

Saturday, April 21: The Biological Society, at the Cosmos Club, at
8 p.m.

Wednesday, April 25 : The Geological Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8 p.m.

Tuesday, May 1: The Botanical Society, at the Cosmos Club, at
8 p.m.

1 The programs of the meetings of the affiliated societies will appear on this page if sent to the editors
by ths thirteenth and twenty-seventh day of each month.

CONTENTS

Original Papers

Page
Physical Chemistry. — A convenient form of autoclave. George W. Morey. 205

Mineralogy. — Leverrierite from Colorado. Esper S. Larsen and Edgar T.

Wherry 208

Medical Zoology. — The carriage of disease by insects. L. O. Howard 217

Ethnology. — Remarks on American Indian languages, a study in method.
Truman Michelson 222

Abstracts
Geology 235

Proceedings

The Philosophical Society of Washington 236

The Biological Society of Washington 239

Vol. VII No. 9

Mat 4, 1917

JOURNAL

OP THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS

N. Ernest Dorset Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock

BUREAU OF BTANDABDfi GEOLOGICAL 8URYEY EUBEAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY

\

PUBLISHED SEMI-MONTHLY
EXCEPT IN JULY, AUGUST, AND SEPTEMBER, WHEN MONTHLY

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION
WILLIAMS & WILKINS COMPANY

BALTIMORE, MD. I

Entered cs second-clans matter July 14, 1911, at the post office at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of

July 16, ,1884

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

Thii Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington; (3) short abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
affiliated Societies; (6) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash-
ington. The Journal is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each month, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
feature; a manuscript reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the
month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of ths
Journal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do mote than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in final
form; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

Authors' Copies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may desire at five cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices:

4 pp. 8 pp. 13 pp. 16 pp.

50 copies $1.08 81.95 12.93 $3.80

lOOcopiee 1.30 2.40 3.60 4.70

Additional copies, per 100 45 90 1.35 1.70

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
§1.00 per 100.

As an author may not see proof, his request for extra copies or reprints should
invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

Ths rate of Subscription per volume is $6.00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthly numbers. 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Qreenmount
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agents: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and Muller, Prina Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchanges. — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim Is
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

• Volurat I. however, from July 10, 1911 to December 19. 1911, will bt Mnt for $5.00. 8peda! r»t*»
am itir*n to member* of eciantifio aometies affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERLY PRESS

BALTIMORE. U. S. A.

ANNOUNCEMENT OF MEETINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND

AFFILIATED SOCIETIES1

Saturday, May 5: The Biological Society, at the Cosmos Club, at
8 p.m.

Thursday, May 10: The Chemical Society, at the Cosmos Club, at
8 p.m.

Saturday, May 12: The Philosophical Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8.15 p.m. Program:

1. G. Priest and C. G. Peters: An interferential method for measuring the
expansion of very small samples (Illustrated.) 30 minutes.

J. D. Edwards (by invitation): Rapid determination of gas density. (Illus-
trated) 30 minutes.

1 The programs of the meetings of the affiliated societies will appear on this page if sent to the editors
by the thirteenth and twenty-seventh day of each month.

CONTENTS

Original Papers

Pace

Geophysics.— Live aa lava at Kilauea. T. A. Jaggar 241

Stratigraphy. — Tongue, a new stratigraphic term, with illustrations from
the Mississippi Cretaceous. Lloyd William Stephenson 243

Botany. — Taxonomic botany and the Washington botanist. A. S. Hitch-
cock 251

Abstracts

Photometry 264

Geology 264

Mineralogy 267

Technology 268

Proceedings

The Philosophical Society of Washington 269

The Biological Society of Washington 271

The Anthropological Society of Washington 273

Vol. VII No. 10

May 19, 1917

JOURNAL

OP THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS

N. Ernest Dorset Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock

BUREAU Or STANDARDS GEOLOGICAL 6UBVET BUREAU OF PLANT LNDUBTBT

PUBLISHED SEMI-MONTHLY
EXCEPT IN JULY, AUGUST, AND SEPTEMBER, WHEN MONTHLY

BT THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

0 OFFICE OF PUBLICATION

WILLIAMS & WILKINS COMPANY
BALTIMORE, MD.

Entered as second-claes matter July 14, 1911, at the post office at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of

July 16, 1894

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
•nd it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington; (3) short abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
affiliated Societies; (5) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash*
ington. The Journal is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each month, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
feature; a manuscript reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the
month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the
Journal.

Manuscript* may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be 'used only when necessary and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in final
form; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

Authors' Copies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may desire at five cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of pricer:

4 pp. 8 pp. 12 pp. 10 pp.

50 copies $1.08 $1.95 $2.93 $3.80

lOOcopies 1.30 2.40 3.60 4.70

Additional copies, per 100 45 90 1.35 1.70

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
$1.00 per 100.

As an author may not see proof, his request for extra copies or reprints should
invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume is $6.00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthly numbers. . , , 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Oreenmouni
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents. %

European Agents: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and Muller, Prina Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchanges. — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that elaim is
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

' Volume I, bowerer, from July 19, 1911 to December 19. 1911, will b« tent for $3.00. Spatial rata*

am rfren to membare of aoientlfic aooietios affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERLY PRESS

BALTIMORE. U. S. A.

ANNOUNCEMENT OF MEETINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND

AFFILIATED SOCIETIES1

Saturday, May 19 : The Biological Society, at the Cosmos Club, at
8 p.m.

Wednesday, May 23 : The Geological Society, at the Cosmos Club, at
8 p.m.

Saturday, May 26: The Philosophical Society, at the Cosmos Club, at
8.15 p.m. Program:

L. W. B. Rees, Royal Flying Corps; Some difficulties encountered by the military
aviator. 30 minutes.

W. R.-Blair: Aerology in aid of aeronautics. (Illustrated.) 20 minutes.

> The programs of the meetings of the affiliated societies will appea r on this page if sent to the editor*
by the thirteenth and twenty-seventh day of each month.

CONTENTS

Original Papers

Pace

Geology. — On the terms aphrolith and dennolith, T. A. Jaggar 277

Genetics. — Observed changes in hereditary characters in relation to evolu-
tion. H. S. Jennings 281

Ethnology. — The Chitimacha of Bayou La Fourche, Louisiana. David I.

Bushnell, Jr 302

Abstracts
Geology 308

Proceedings

The Geological Society of Washington 309

The Botanical Society of Washington 313

The Biological Society of Washington 315

Vol. VII No. 11

June 4, 1917

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS
N. Ernest Dorset Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock

BCBEAU Or STANDARDS GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BUREAU O* PLANT IWDUSTBY

PUBLISHED SEMI-MONTHLY
EXCEPT IN JULY, AUGUST, AND SEPTEMBER, WHEN MONTHLY

BY THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION

WILLIAMS & WILKINS COMPANY

BALTIMORE, MD.

Entered as second-class matter July 14, 1911, at the post office at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of

July 16, 1894

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official ^rt^jfi^^fiS^^ffi
aims to present 5 brief record o current • ^^^J J^nicSted by mem-
and it publishes: (1) short OT,8^£^'J^
b»rs of the Academy; (2) a complete lut of referen^ abBtract8 of certain of

published in or emanating from Waahington, W 8™[n { th Academy and
fhese articles; (4) P/oceeJngs and Programs of meeting fio {

affiliated Societies; (5) notes of ®^^B^hlv on the fourth and nineteenth of
Ington. The Journal is issued ^mi-monthly, on xne nineteenth only,

each month, ^^^^^e^f^%;he^^A^i«i i" an essential
Volumes correspond to calendar Yeare- ^ Jgesecond or the seventeenth of the

'"Srf*. may be .ent to »*^*%£$&%S2^<£22.
be clearly typewritten and ImmJitab '^"'^n "™?ect Avion, minor error..

Ke^abeX^

,«u.(ra«oa. will be uaed only when nectary and J^^fttov"
figures or diagram. °' "PP'VtWortof hi. illuStiona. although no charge
wffl rmaTer^UTom'a^ai^nt .applied witi, the mannacnp,

W''pw/.-In order facilitate P^^-' °°rip? ff&StB fnln'al
er^Sr.eS8tetrcie. S»°SS in .eeing that copy 1. foUow£

A.W Cop,-« a»d i^^-^^^MSS^MESS nndt
mMS«^^ Reprint.wd.be
&'cd at the roUng .cbedn, ^cer.

Mcopie. *}-g 'IJo'.::: S.M 4.70

loocopie....... ••-• ■■«::::;: w i.s» i-70

Th« rate of Subscription per volume is ' " 25

Semi-monthly numbers 60

Mayer and Muller. Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin. ....._

Tzcaanaes -The Journal does not exchange with other ^Wicationt..

THE WAVERLY PRESS

BALTIMORE, U. S. A.

CONTENTS

Original Papers Page

derived from the Ives and Kingsbury new ^
[JlD"F°OTE " I ... 319

Physics-A visibility equation <*«™£
luminosity equation. Paul D. Foote
Genetics.-The control of the sex ratio. Oscar Riddle

Abstracts

357

Geology

Proceedings

358

The Biological Society of Washington . . \\ .'.WW. 360

Thl Anthropological Society of Washington

Vol. VII No. 12

June 19, 1917

JOUKNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

V

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS
N. Ernest Dorsey Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock

BUREAU OF STANDARP8 GEOLOGICAL SURVET BUREAU Or PLANT rUDUBTBT

PUBLISHED SEMI-MONTHLY
EXCEPT IN JULY, AUGUST, AND SEPTEMBER, WHEN MONTHLY

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION
WILLIAMS & WILKINS COMPANY

Kntered as second-class matter July 14, 1911, at the post office at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of

July 10, 1894

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington; (3) short-abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
affiliated Societies; (5) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash-
ington. The Journal is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each month, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
feature; a manuscript reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the
month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the
Journal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof.' — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in final
form ; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

Authors' Copies and Reprints.' — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may desire at five cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices :

4 pp. 8 pp. 12 pp. 16 pp.

50 copies $1.08 $1.95 $2.93 $3.80

lOOcopies 1.30...... 2.40 3.60 4.70

Additional copies, per 100 45 90 1.35 1.70

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
$1.00 per 100.

As an author may not see proof, his request for extra copies or reprints should
invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume is $6.00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenmount
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

—European Agents: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and Muller, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchanges.— The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

* Volume I, however, from July 19, 1911, to December 19, 1911, will be sent for $3.00. Special rates
are given to members of scientific societies affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERLY PRESS
BALTIMORE. U. S. A.

CONTENTS

Original Papers

Page
Mineralogy. — Aurichalcite from Big Cottonwood Canyon, Salt Lake County,
Utah. A. Ledoux 361

Mineralogy. — The indices of refraction of analyzed rhodochrosite and siderite.
Edgar T. Wherry and Esper S. Larsen '. 365

Genetics. — The role of selection in evolution. W. E. Castle 369

Zoology. — A revision of the recent genera of the crinoid family Bourgueti-
crinidae, with the description of a new genus. Austin H. Clark 388

Abstracts

Spectroscopy 393

Mineralogy 393

Paleobotany 393

Proceedings

The Biological Society of Washington 394

The Anthropological Society of Washington 395

Vol. VII No. 13

July 19, 1917

JOUENAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS
N. Ernest Dorset Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock

BUBEAU Or 8TANDAr.ES GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BUREAU 07 PLANT ENDUSTBT

' PUBLISHED SEMI-MONTHLY
EXCEPT IN JULY, AUGUST, AND SEPTEMBER, WHEN MONTHLY

BT THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION

WILLIAMS & WILKINS COMPANY

BALTIMORE, MD.

Entered as second-class matter July 14, 1911, at the post office at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of

July 16, 1S94

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington; (3) short abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
affiliated Societies; (5) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash-
ington. The Journal is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each month, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
feature ; a manuscript reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the
month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the
Journal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in final
form; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

Authors' Copies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may desire at five cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices :

4 pp. 8 pp. 12 pp. 16 pp.

50 copies... $1.08 $1.95 $2.93 $3.80

100 copies 1.30 2.40 3.60 4.70

Additional copies, per 100 45 90 1.35 1.70

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
$1.00 per 100.

As an author may not see proof, his request for extra copies or reprints should
invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume is $6.00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenmount
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agents: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and MiAller, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchanges.' — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

* Volume I, however, from July 19, 1911, to December 19, 1911, will be sent for $3.00. Special rates
are given to members of scientific societies affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERLY PRESS

BALTIMORE, U. S. ».

CONTENTS

Original Papers

Page

Geophysics. — Thermal gradient of Kilauea Lava Lake. T. A. Jaggar, Jr.. . 397

Crystallography. — The thermodynamic reversibility of the equilibrium rela-
tions between a strained solid and its liquid. F. E. Wright and J. C.

HOSTETTER 405

Mineralogy.— Ilsemannite, hydrous sulphate of molybdenum. Waldemar
T. Schaller 417

Botany. — Seedling morphology in palms and grasses. 0. F. Cook 420

Abstracts

N

Radiation 426

Calorimetry 426

Physiological Optics 427

Geology 427

Technology 428

Proceedings

The Geological Society of Washington 429

The Botanical Society of Washington 434

Vol. VII No. 14

August 19, 1917

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS
N. Ernest Dorset Adolph Knop* » A. S. Hitchcock

BUBEAU Or STANDARDS GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BUREAU OT PLANT IKDUBTBT

PUBLISHED SEMI-MONTHLY
EXCEPT IN JULY, AUGUST, AND SEPTEMBER, WHEN MONTHLY

BT THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION

WILLIAMS & WILKINS COMPANY

BALTIMORE, MD.

Entered as second-ekes matter July 14, 1011, at the post office at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of

July 16, 1804

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington; (3) short abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
affiliated Societies; (5) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash-
ington. The Journal is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each month, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
feature ; a manuscript reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the
month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the
Journal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in final
form; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

_ Authors1 Copies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may desire at five cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices:

4 pp. 8 pp. 12 pp. 16 pp.

50 copies $1.08 $1.95 $2.93 $3.80

100 copies 1.30 2.40 3.60 4.70

Additional copies, per 100 45 90 1.35 1.70

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
$1.00 per 100.

As an author may not see proof, his request for extra copies or reprints should
invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume is $6.00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,.
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenmount
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agents: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and Miiller, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchanges. — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

♦Volume I, however, from July 19, 1911, to December 19, 1911, will be sent for $3.00. Special rates
are given to members of scientific societies affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERLY PRESS

BALTIMORE, U. S. A.

REPRINT OF HEREDITY LECTURES

A series of three public lectures by Prof. H. S. Jennings, Dr. Oscar
Riddle, and Prof. W. E. Castle, dealing with the subject of heredity,
was given under the auspices of the Washington Academy of Sciences
during March and April, 1917. In view of the wide-spread interest
in the lectures, and in response to numerous requests, the Academy has
reprinted in collected form a limited edition of the lectures as published
in the Journal.

Copies of the brochure, substantially bound in flexible cloth covers,
may be purchased of the Treasurer, Mr. William Bowie, Coast and
Geodetic Survey, Washington, D. C, at fifty cents each (postage in-
cluded).

CONTENTS

Original Papers

Page
Physics. — Note on the vibration frequencies of elastic systems. M. D.
Hersey 437

Crystal Optics. — Dispersion and other optical properties of carborundum.
H. E. Merwin 445

Mineralogy. — The nomenclature and classification of the native element
minerals. Edgar T. Wherry 447

Mineralogy. — The crystal form of spencerite. T. L. Walker 456

Ethnology. — A prehistoric stone mortar from southern Arizona. J.Walter
Fewkes 459

Abstracts
Technology 464

References

Astrophysics 465

Geophysics 465

Terrestrial Magnetism 466

Geodesy 466

Gravitation 466

Physics 466

Chemistry .' . ._ 469

Metallography '. 470

Technology 470

Proceedings
The Philosophical Society of Washington 473

Vol. VII No. 15

September 19, 1917

JOUKNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOAitD OF EDITORS
N. Ernest Dorset Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock

BOBBAU Or 8TANDABD9 GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BPfcKAC Or PLANT INDCSTB1

PUBLISHED SEMI-MONTHLY
EXCEPT IN JULY, AUGUST, AND SEPTEMBER, WHEN MONTHLY

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION

WILLIAMS & WILKINS COMPANY

BALTIMORE, MO.

Entered as eecond-class matter July 14, 1911, at the poet office at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of

July 16, 1891

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

Thia Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington; (3) short abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
affiliated Societies; (5) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash-
ington. The Journal is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each month, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
feature : a manuscript reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the
month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the
Journal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in final
form; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

Authors' Copies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten i opies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may desire at five cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices:

4 pp

50 copies $1 OS.

100 copies 1.30.

Additional copies, per 100 45.

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
$1.00 per 100.

As an author may not see proof, his request for extra copies or reprints should
invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume is $6.00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,
Washington, D. C. to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Grcenmount
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agents: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and Midler, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchanges — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

•Volume I, however, from July 19. 1011, to December 19. 1911, will be sent for $3.00. Special rates
are given to members of scientific societies affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERLY PRESS

BALTIMORE, U. 8. A.

8 pp.

12 pp.

16 pp.

$1.95....

.. $2.93....

.. $3 SO

2.40....

.. 3.60....

.. 4.70

90....

... 1.35....

.. 1.70

ANNOUNCEMENT OF MEETINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND

AFFILIATED SOCIETIES1

Tuesday, October 2: The Anthropological Society, at the Public
Library, at 8 p.m.

Tuesday, October 2 : The Botanical Society, at the Cosmos Club, at
8 p.m.

Tuesday, October 2: The Society of Engineers, at Rauscher's, 1034
Connecticut Ave., N. W., at 8 p.m.

Wednesday, October 3 : The Medical Society, at the Medical Depart-
ment of the George Washington University, 1325 H Street, N. W.}
at 8 p.m.

Thursday, October 4: The Entomological Society,

* The programs of the meetings of the affiliated societies will appear on this page if sent to the editor
by the thirteenth and the twenty-seventh day of each month.

CONTENTS ,

Original Papers

Page

Physics. — A two-stage mercury vapor pump. H. F. Stimson 477

Physics. — Probe-wire measurements of anode fall of potential. John T.
Tate and Paul D. Foote 482

Radiotelegraphy. — Notes on the audion. L. W. Austin 487

References

Paleontology 490

Bot any 490

Forestry 492

Phytopathology 492

Plant Physiology 496

Genetics 497

Ornithology : 497

Vol. VII No. 16

October 4, 1917

JOUENAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS
N. Ernest Dorset Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock

BOREAO OF STANDARDS GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BTJBEAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY

PUBLISHED SEMI-MONTHLY
EXCEPT IN JULY. AUGUST, AND SEPTEMBER, WHEN MONTHLY

BY THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION

WILLIAMS & WILKINS COMPANY

BALTIMORE, MD.

Entered as second-class matter July 14. 1911, at at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of

July 16, 1S94

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington; (3) short abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
affiliated Societies; (5) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash-
ington. The Journal is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each month, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
feature; a manuscript reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the
month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the
Journal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in final
form ; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

Authors' Copies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may desire at five cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices: _,

4 pp. 8 pp. 12 pp. 16 pp.

50 copies $1.08 $1.95 $2.93 $3.80

100 copies 1.30...... 2.40 3.60 4.70

Additional copies, per 100 45 90 1.35 1.70

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
$1.00 per 100.

As an author may not see proof, his request for extra copies or reprints should
invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume is $6.00*

Semi-monthly numbers .25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenmount
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agents: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and Muller, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchanges.— The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

•Volume I, however, from July 19. 1911, to December 19, 1911, will be sent for $3.00. Special rates
are given to members of scientific societies affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERLY PRESS

BALTIMORE, U. S. ft.

ANNOUNCEMENT OF MEETINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND

AFFILIATED SOCIETIES1

Saturday, October 6: The Biological Society, at the Cosmos Club, at
8 p.m.

Wednesday, October 10 : The Medical Society, at the Medical Depart-
ment of George Washington University, 1325 H Street, N. W., at
8 p.m.

Thursday, October 11: The Chemical Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8 p.m.

Saturday, October 13 : The Philosophical Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8:15 p.m. Program:

R. A. Millikan (by invitation) : The organization of scientific effort in relation
to the war. 30 minutes.

G. K. Burgess: The application of science to icarfare in France. 30 minutes.

Tuesday, October 16 : The Anthropological Society, at the National
Museum, rooms 42-43, at 4:30 p.m. Program:

Mitchell Carroll: The story of Greece.

Tuesday, October 16 : The Society of Engineers, at Rauscher's, 1034
Connecticut Avenue, at 8 p.m.

Wednesday, October 17: The Medical Society, at the Medical Depart-
ment of George Washington University, 1325 H Street, N. W., at
8 p.m.

lThe programs of the meetings of the affilated societies will appear on tliis page if sent to the edito?
by the thirteenth and the twenty-seventh day of each month.

CONTENTS

Original Papers

Page

Mineralogy. — Minasragrite> a hydrous sulphate of vanadium. Waldemar
T. Schaller 501

Zoology. — The interrelationships of the subfamilies and genera included

in the crinoid family Antedonidae. Austin H. Clark 504

Abstracts

Geology 513

Botany 516

Vol. VII No. 17

October 19, 1917

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS
N. Ernest Dorset Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock

BUREAU OF STANDARD* nr"! OC-TOAI SURVEY • BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY

PUBLISHED SEMI-MONTHLY
EXCEPT IN JULY. AUGUST. AND EEPTEMBER. WHEN MONTHLY

BY THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION
WILLIAMS & WILKINS COMPANY
"BALTIMORE, MD.

Entered as second-class matter Jtdy 14. 1911, at the post office at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act i

July 16. 1894

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington; (3) short abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
affiliated Societies; (5) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash-
ington. The Journal is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each month, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
feature: a manuscript reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the
month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the
Journal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be used only when neeessarv and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, -although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — Tn order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in final
form; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

Authors' Copies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten < opies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may deoire at five cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices:

4 pp 8 pp. 12 pp. 16 pp.

50 copies $1 08 $1.95 $2.03 $3 80

100 copies 1.30 2.40 3.60 4.70

Additional copies, per 100 45 90 1 .35 1 .70

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
$1.00 per 100.

As an author may not see proof, his request for extra copies or reprints should
invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Kuhscription per volume is $0.00*

Semi-monthly numbers : 25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survev,
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenmount
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agents: William Wesley & Son, 28 Fssex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and Muller, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchanges. — The Journal docs not exchange with other publications.

Missing Nnmhers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

•Volume I, howevor. fnm July 19. 1911, to Doeomb^r 19. 1911. will be sent for $3.00. Special rates
are given to members of scientific societies affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERLY PRESS
BALTIMORE, U. S. A.

ANNOUNCEMENT OF MEETINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND

AFFILIATED SOCIETIES1

Saturday, October 20: The Biological Society, at the Cosmos Club, at
8 p.m.

Wednesday, October 24 : The Medical Society, at the Medical Depart-
ment of George Washington University, 1325 H Street, NW., at
8 p.m.

Saturday, October 27 : The Philosophical Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8:15 p.m. Program:

J. T. Tate and P. D. Foote: Critical potentials for electrons in metallic vapors.

(Illustrated.) 30 minutes.
S . J. Croo keu (by invitation) : Experiments on direct current corona. (Illustrated.)

30 minutes.

Wednesday, October 31 : The Medical Society, at the Medical Depart-
ment of George Washington University, 1325 H Street, NW., at
8 p.m.

•The programs of the meetings of the affiliated societies will appear on this page if sent to the edi-
tors by the thirteenth and twenty-seventh day of each month.

CONTENTS
Original Papers

Pago
Physics. — The resonance and ionization potentials for electrons in sodium
vapor. John T. Tate and Paul D. Foote 517

Physics. — The photoelectric sensitivity of various substances. W. W.
Coblentz and W. B. Emerson 525

Genetics. — The average correlation within subgroups of a population.
Sewell Wright 532

Genetics. — A new case of metaphanic variation in grasses and its signifi-
cance. J. Dufrenoy 535

Ornithology. — Diagnosis of a new pycnonotine family of Passeriformes.

Harry C. Oberhoi.ser 537

- Abstracts

Radiation 542

Physiological Optics 542

Proceedings

The Philosophical Society 543

Announcement of program of the Anthropological Society 544

Vol. VII No. 18

November 4, 1917

JOUKNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS
N. Ernest Dorset Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock

BUREAU OF STANDARDS GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY

PUBLISHED SEMI-MONTHLY
EXCEPT IN JULY, AUGUST, AND SEPTEMBER, WHEN MONTHLY

BY THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE of publication

WILLIAMS it. WILKINS COMPANY
BALTIMORE, MD.

Entered as second-class matter July 14. 1911, at the post office at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of

July 16, 1894

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2)a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington; (3) short abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
affiliated Societies; (5) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash-
ington. The Journal is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each month, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
feature ; a manuscript reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the
month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the
Journal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in final
form ; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

i Authors' Copies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may desire at five cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices:

4 pp. 8 pp. 12 pp. 16 pp.

50 copies $1.08 $1.95 $2.93 $3.80

100 copies 1.30 2.40 3.60 4.70

Additional copies, per 100 45 90 1.35 1.70

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be-$2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
$1.00 per 100.

Ab an author may not see proof, his request for extra copies or reprints should
invariably be attacned to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume is $6 .00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenmount
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agents: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and Muller, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchanges. — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

•Volume I, however, from July 19, 1911, to December 19, 1911, will be Bent for $3.00. Special rates
are given to members of scientific societies affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAYERLY PRESS

BALTIMORE, U. •. A.

REPRINT OF HEREDITY LECTURES

A series of three public lectures by Prof. H. S. Jennings, Dr. Oscar
Riddle, and Prof. W. E. Castle, dealing with the subject of heredity,
was given under the auspices of the Washington Academy of Sciences
during March and April, 1917. In view of the wide-spread interest
in the lectures, and in response to numerous requests, the Academy has
reprinted in collected form a limited edition of the lectures as published
in the Journal.

Copies of the brochure, substantially bound in flexible cloth covers,
may be purchased of the Treasurer, Mr. William Bowie, Coast and
Geodetic Survey, Washington, D. C, at fifty cents each (postage in-
cluded).

ANNOUNCEMENT OF MEETINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND

AFFILIATED SOCIETIES1

Tuesday, November 6 : The Anthropological Society, at the National
Museum, at 4.30 p.m. Program:

James H. Gore: Belgium.

Tuesday, November 6: The Botanical Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8 p.m.

Tuesday, November 6 : The Society of Engineers, at Rauscher's, 1034
Connecticut Ave., NW., at 8 p.m.

Thursday, November 8 : The Chemical Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8 p.m. Program:

Annual meeting for the election of officers.

Saturday, November 10: The Philosophical Society, at the Cosmos
Club, at 8 p.m. Program:

L. W. McKeehan (by invitation): Diffusion of and recoil from actinium emana-
tion. (Illustrated.) 30 minutes.
X. E. Dorsey: Radium luminous materials. (Illustrated.) 30minutes.

Wednesday, November 14: The Geological Society, at the Cosmos
Club, at 8 p.m.

■

lThe programs of the meetings of the affiliated societies will appear on this page if sent to the edi-
tors by the thirteenth and the twenty-seventh day of each month.

CONTENTS

Original Papers

Page
Pyrornetry. — The proper type of absorption glass for an optical pyrometer.
Paul D. Foote, F. L. Mohler, and C. 0. Fairchild 545

Geology. — An andalusite mass in the pre-Cambrian of the Inyo Range,
California. Adolph Knopf 549

Geology. — A new area of Carboniferous rocks with some coal in the north
end of the Gulf embayment. Eugene Wesley Shaw 552

Abstracts

Physics 561

Magnetism 562

Geology 562

Paleontology 565

Botany 566

Engineering 568

References
Ornithology 569

Vol. VII No. 19

November 19, 1917

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS
N. Ernest Dorset Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock

BUREAU OF STANDARDS GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY

PUBLISHED SEMI-MONTHLY
EXCEPT IN JULY, AUGUST, AND SEPTEMBER. WHEN MONTHLY

BY THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION
WILLIAMS & WILKINS COMPANY

Entered as second-class matter July 14. 1011, at the post office at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of

July 18, 1894

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington; (3) short abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
affiliated Societies; (5) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash-
ington. The Journal is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each mouth, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
feature; a manuscript reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the
month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the
Journal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor^ errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined tc text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in final
form; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

Authors' Copies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may desire at five cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices:

50 copies $1.0

100 copies 1 .30.

Additional copies, per 100 45.

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
$1.00 per 100.

As an author may not see proof, his request for extra copies or reprints should
invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume is $6 .00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenmount
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agents: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and Milller, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str.f Berlin. -

Exchanges. — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

•Volume I, however, from July 19, 1911, to December 19, 1911, will be seat for $3.00. Special rate*
are given to members of scientific societies affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERLY PRESS

BALTIMORE, U. S. *.

8 pp.

12 pp.

18 pp.

$1.95....

... $2.93....

. . $3.80

2.40....

.. 3.60....

.. 4.70

90....

.. 1.35....

... 1.70

REPRINT OF HEREDITY LECTURES

A series of three public lectures by Prof. H. S. Jennings, Dr. Oscar
Riddle, and Prof. W. E. Castle, dealing with the subject of heredity,
was given under the auspices of the Washington Academy of Sciences
during March and April, 1917. In view of the wide-spread interest
in the lectures, and in response to numerous requests, the Academy has
reprinted in collected form a limited edition of the lectures as published
in the Journal.

Copies of the brochure, substantially bound in flexible cloth covers,
may be purchased of the Treasurer, Mr. William Bowie, Coast and
Geodetic Survey, Washington, D. C, at fifty cents each (postage in-
cluded).

ANNOUNCEMENT OF MEETINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND

AFFILIATED SOCIETIES1

Tuesday, November 20 : The Anthropological Society, at the National
Museum, at 4.30 p.m. Program:

George J. Zolnat: Roumania, past^md present,

Tuesday, November 20 : The Society of Engineers, at Rauscher's, 1034
Connecticut Ave., NW., at 8 p.m.

Saturday, November 24: The Philosophical Society, at the Cosmos
Club, at 8 p.m. Program:

H. E. Merwin and L. H. Adams: Polymorphism of the oxides of lead. 20 minutes.

G. W. Moret and E. D. Williamson: Quantitative applications of the phase
rule. 30 minutes.

Wednesday, November 28: The Geological Society, at the Cosmos
Club, at 8 p.m.

'The programs of the meetings of the affiliated societies will appear on this page if sent to the edi-
tors by the thirteenth and the twenty-aeventh day of eaoh month.

CONTENTS

Original Papers

Page
Physics. — Criteria for gray radiation. Paul D. Foote 573

Geology. — Clay derived from volcanic dust in the Pierre in South Dakota.
Edgar T. Wherry 576

Abstracts

Geodesy 584

Physics 584

Geology 586

Ornithology 586

Proceedings

Botanical Society 591

Philosophical Society 592

Vol. VII No. 20

December 4, 1917

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS
N. Ernest Doeset Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock

BUREAU Or STANDARDS GEOLOGICAL SURVET BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTBY

PUBLISHED SEMI-MONTHLY
EXCEPT IN JULY, AUGUST, AND SEPTEMBER, WHEN MONTHLY

BT THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION

WILLIAMS & WILKINS COMPANY

BALTIMORE, MD.

Entered a* eecond-clase matter July 14. 1911, at the poet office at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of

July 10, 1894

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington; (3) short abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
affiliated Societies; (5) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash-
ington. The Journal is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each month, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond fo calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
feature ; a manuscript reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the
month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the
Journal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined tc text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in final
form; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

^ Authors' Copies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may desire at five cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices:

4 pp.

50 copies $1.08.

100 copies 1.30.

Additional copies, per 100 45.

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
$1.00 per 100.

As an author may not see proof, his request for extra copies or reprints should
invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rale of Subscription per volume is $6 .00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,''
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenmount
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agents: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and Muller, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchanges. — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim i»
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

•Volume I, however, from July 19, 1911, to December 19, 1911, will be sent for $3.00. Special rates
are given to members of scientific societies affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERLY PRESS

BALTIMORE, U. 8. A.

8 pp.

12 pp.

.. $3.lo

$1.95....

.. $2.93....

2.40....

.. 3.60....

.. 4.70

90....

.. 1.35....

.. 1.70

REPRINT OF HEREDITY LECTURES

A series of three public lectures by Prof. H, S. Jennings, Dr. Oscar
Riddle, and Prof. W. E. Castle, dealing with the subject of heredity,
was given under the auspices of the Washington Academy of Sciences
during March and April, 1917. In view of the wide-spread interest
in the lectures, and in response to numerous requests, the Academy has
reprinted in collected form a limited edition of the lectures as published
in the Journal.

Copies of the brochure, substantially bound in flexible cloth covers,
may be purchased of the Treasurer, Mr. William Bowie, Coast and
Geodetic Survey, Washington, D. C, at fifty cents each (postage in-
cluded).

ANNOUNCEMENT OF MEETINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND

AFFILIATED SOCIETIES1

Saturday, December 8: The Philosophical Society, at the Cosmos
Club, at 8 p.m. Program:
Annual meeting and election of officers.

Wednesday, December 12: The Geological Society, at the Cosmos
Club, at 8 p.m. Program:
Presidential address, followed by the annual meeting.

Tuesday, December 18: The Anthropological Society, at the National
Museum, at 4.30 p.m.

Tuesday, December 18 : The Society of Engineers, at Rauscher's, 1034
Connecticut Ave., NW., at 8 p.m.

1 The programs of the meetings of the affiliated sooietiea will appear on this page if sent to the
editors by the thirteenth and the twenty-seventh day of each month.

CONTENTS

Original Papers

Page

Physics.— Anode resistance films. John T. Tate and Paul D. Foote 593

Mineralogy. — Tungstenite, a new mineral. R. C. Wells and B. S. Btjtler 596

Abstracts

Geology 600

Or

r^~~f

Vol. VII No. 21

December 19, 1917

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS
N. Ernest Dorset Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock

BUREAU OF BTANDARD3 GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY

PUBLISHED SEMI-MONTHLY
EXCEPT IN JULY, AUGUST. AND SEPTEMBER. WHEN MONTHLY

BV THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION

WILLIAMS & WILKINS COMPANY

BALTIMORE, MD.

Entered as second-clasa matter July 14. 1911, at tho post office at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act oi

July IS, 1894

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington; (3) short abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
affiliated Societies; (5) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash-
ington. The Journal is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each month, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
feature ; a manuscript reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the
month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the
Journal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined tc text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in final
form ; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

^ Authors' Copies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may deaire at five cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices:

* pp. 8 pp. 12 pp. 16 pp.

50 copies $1.0S $1.95 $2.93 $3.80

100 copies 1.30 2.40 3.60 4.70

Additional copies, per 100 45 90 1.35 1.70

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
$1.00 per 100.

As an author may not see proof, his request for extra copies or reprints should
invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume is $6 .00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,'*
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenrnount
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agents: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and Muller, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchange*. — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim ia
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

•Volume I, however, from July 19, 1911, to December 19, 1911, will be sent for $3.00. Special rates
are given to members of scientific societies affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERLY PRESS

BALTIMORE, U. 6. A.

ANNOUNCEMENT OF MEETINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND

AFFILIATED SOCIETIES1

Saturday, December 22: The Philosophical Society, at the Cosmos
Club, at 8.15 p.m. Program:

E. D. Williamson and L. H. Adams : Measurement of the compressibilities of
solids under hydrostatic pressure up to 12000 megabars. (Illustrated.) 30
minutes.

N. S. Osborne and M. S. Van Dusen: Latent and specific heats of ammonia.
(Illustrated.) 30 minutes.

Saturday, December 29: The Biological Society, at the Cosmos
Club, at 8 p.m.

Friday, January 4 : The Botanical Society, at the Cosmos Club, at
8 p.m.

1 The programs of the meetings of the affiliated societies will appear on this page if sent to the
editors by the thirteenth and the twenty-seventh day of each month.

CONTENTS

Original Paper

Page

Oceanography. — An instrument for accurate and rapid density measure-
ments on board ship. A. L. Thuras 605

Index

Author index 613

Subject index 623

*»8Ji(ZH01 l-IHRARY

WH IflXR hi