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Ceca tatis ams gh 9 enn pape ee eT Bo Gaeta nt Neg tena aber nrmterendone et mptereen ee peermriaeetae saree aeeerbs - See gne |aagewm bres Naha Papirituine tem veins mote tengrysee: ie BA mie Oe al poe fy (A me eet eNCE 2 AN ILLUSTRATED JOURNAL De BITS TE DD ICE RLY VOLUME XxX JULY—DECEMBER 1802 NEW YORK — NE DE, Crit OD Gres 1892 INDEX A Abbott, C. C., palzwolithic man in North America, 270, 344, Adulterants, 61. Agassiz Club, 293. Age of metals in Europe, 260. Aldrich, J. M., sense of direction, 262. Algebraic notation, 359. Alley, R. J., modern synthetic geometry, 297. Alphabet, ancient Libyan, 30, 94, 105, 178, 192, 262, 290. Altakapas country, 372. Amblystoma tigrinam, 366. America, pre-Columbian migrations In, 265;German commemorative volume on, 54. Amery, C. F., instinct, 300. Ames, C. H., electric-light action on plants, 291. Anvatomists, society of, 341. Ancient Egypt in the Light of Modern Discoveries, 41 Animals, popular errors about wild, 155. Antarctic exploration, 202. Anthropology at Chicago Exposition, 31; notes and queries on, 12. Antiquities of Yucatan, vandalism among, 365. Apgar’s Trees of Northern United States, 167. Apteryx, Prof. Parker’s studies on, 66. Arabic geographical dictionary, 173. Archeological delusion, 275. Archeology 1880-1892. 267. Archippus, filght of, 291. Architecture as an ethnic trait, 115. Argyll’s Foundations of Society, 81. Arizona cliff-dwellers, 269. Art-faculty, 90. Aryans, European origin of, 151, 165, 221; question, 340. Ashmead, A. S., rice culture, 57; cremation of chol- era corpses, 132; cows’ milk in Japan, 211; crema- thon of cholera corpses, 213; beri-berl, 281; leprosy, 09. Asia minor, aborigines of, 30. Association agricultural colleges, 178; for the ad- vancement of science, 61, 135; Rochester meeting of, 146; of weather services, 131. Atkinson, G. F., botany at the experiment stations, 328. Auld, R. C., The American horse, 135. Aurora, 65, 66, 178, 374; false, 318, 346. Auroras, versus thunderstorms, 221; photographs of, 236; of 1892, 323. Azoic arch@an iu Northern Michigan, 355. B Bailey, L. H., broader botany, 48. Bailey’s Mental Arithmetic, 334. Baldwin, J. M., volition in childhood, 286. Ball, V., lion breeding, 34. Barbour, E. H., rock swift, 235; Richardson’s owl, 361. Bark-bestle destroyer, 256. Barnes, C. R., modern botany, 62. Barometric oscillations, 5. Barracks, communal, 228. Basques, 60. Basu, K., primitive fashions in India, 357. Bates, H. H., Star 1830, Groombridge, 236. Bauer, L. A., magnetic needle secular motion, 218. Bauxite, Alabama, 3.3. Bayard, A. F. C., English climate, 5. Beauchamp, W. M., natural implements, 305. Becher, F. A., psychology, 10. Beddard’s Animal Coloration, 11; Colors of Animals, 208. Beddoe, J., primitive Russians, 244. Beetle, broods of elm-leaf, 16, 47, 92. Bell, A. G., teaching speech to deaf, 118. Bell, A. M., sounds of k, 216. Bendire’s Life Histories of North!American Birds, 178. Bereman, T. A., aurora, 65. Beri-beri, 281. Bernard’s The Apolida, 81. Bessey, C. E., monstrous poppy, 249; sense of direc- tion, 263. Bevan, D., foot deformity, 99. Bible, receutly found fragment of, 181. Bibliography, linguistic, 7. birch-tree as an ethnic landmark, 206. Birds on nests, 99: near Hanover, N. H., 86; acorn- eating, 133; English sparrow and other, 134, 165; ef- fects of civilization on, 183; diet of, 221; how to mount, 227; that sing in the night, 313, 343; rare, 352. Birth-rate, 7. Black knot, 10; 123. Blackmar, F’. W., Indian education, 147. Bliss, C. B., multiple key, 360. Blood, color of human, 107. Blood-corpuscles, reticular structure of, 330. Boas, F., growth of children, 351. Bogue, E. E., shrinkage of leaves, 163. Bolles, F., hectoring a hawk, 123; humming-birds’ food, 318. Bolley, H. L., potato scat, 355. Bone, aboriginal use of, in Vermont, 202. Bonzey’s Induction Coils, 334. Book-worm in New York, 111. Bossekop, 53. Boston school-boys, 274. Bostwick, A. E., residual personality, 284. Botanical library, 241; explorations in Idaho, 311. Botany, a broader, 48; modern, 62; industrial, 75; medical, 91; at the experiment stations, 328. Bowser’s Trigonometry, 306. Boyle, D. Boys, Boston school, 274. Brain and skull correlations, 230. Brendel, E., coleoptera, 105. Brinton, D. G., ancient Libyan alphabet, 105; Euro- pean origin of Aryans, 165; anclent Libyan alpha- bet, 194; Ethuscan ritual book, 212; Wright’s Man and the Glacial Period, 249; Crania Ethnica Ameri- cana, 278; ancient Libyan alphabet, 290. Broom-corn, 33. Bruner, H. L., humming-bird’s food, 291. Burials, Mentone cave, 60. Burrill, T. J., hybridizing, 15. Cc Caldwell, J. W., molecules and crystals, 88. Calkins, W. W., lichenology, 12 , 205. Call, R. E., sclence in schools, 1; chemistry of soils, 29. Cambridge Natural History, 40. Campbell, J. T., aurora. 66; sense of direction, 318. Canadian archeology, 60. Carib tongue, 115. Carob bean, 41. Catamarca, antiquities of, 172. Caucasia, 19. Cave fauna of Kentucky, 240; dwellers of Arizona, 269. Celts and Kymri, 115. Ceratodus, 4. Ceylon agriculture, 89. Chadwick’s Temperament, Disease and Health, 124. Chambers’s Encyclopedia, 12, 362. Chapin’s Land of the Cliff-Dwellers, 333. Charlton, O. C., electricity on mountain, 177. Chemical spelling, 247; nomenclature, 272, 291; science, 127. Chemistry as basis of agriculture, 191. Chief Mountain Lake, 85. Child, localization in a, 361. Childhood, origin ¢f volition in, 286. Children, growth of, 351. Cholera corpses, cremation of, 132, 2138; prevention of, 170, 193; acid prevention of, 151. Chronology, 213. Church’s Notes and Examples in Mechanics, 138. Civilization as influenced by race, 285. Clark, J. E., gynandrous flower head, 207. Clevenger, 8S. V., trait of Jews, 106; celestial photo- micrography, 135; the brutal dove, 124; acid pre- vention of cholera, 151; brain and skull, 230; sleep, 277. Clocks, ancient Japanese, 365; Turkish, 316. Clute, W. N., humming-bird’s food, 833. Codling-moth in Oregon, 291. Cohesion, 48. Coleoptera, migration of, 105. Colias, 257. Collins, J. V., algebraic notation, 359. Collins’s International Date Line, 321. Comstock, T. B , wild animals, 155. Conclusions, uncertainty of, 20. Congress for experimental psychology, 82; of crim- inal anthropology, 285; of experimental psycho- logy, 288; meteorological, 341. Copvn, H. W., Brooklyn Institute Summer School, 157; isolation of rennet, 253. Connecticut Board of Health Report, 268. Conway’s Works of Thomas Paine, 187. Corn tassels, 97. Cornell University, 18. Coplin, W. M. L., foot deformity, 99. Coptic, Mnguistic affinities of ancient, 285. Cotton-seed meal, 257. Coues, E., nomenclature, 220, Coulter, J. M., botanical nomenclature, 146. Cousins, J.J., weights and measures in England, Coville, F. V., flora of Death Valley, 342. Cowell, I. C., latest glacial epoch, 302. Cows’ milk, absence of, from Japan, 211. Cox, A. O., how tomount birds, 227. Crane, 4., ancient Mexican heraldry, 174, 261. Crayfish attacked by leeches, 220, Cresson, H. T., graphic system of Mayas, 25; Maya day-signs77; Maya graphicsystem, 101; palewolithic man in Delaware valley, 305. Cretacous polyzoa, 327. Criminal anthropology congress, 285. Crinoid Heterocrinas subcrassus, 66. Crocker’s Dynamos and Motors, 363. Crops, fungous and insect enemies of, 82. Cross fertilizing and hybridizing, 18. LO VOW Wey Xe Cummins, D. H., Texas gypsum, 358. Cummins, W. F., sense of direction, 358. Cuneiform tablet at Tel Hesy, 145. Currents, ocean, 19. Cyprus, Ohnefalsch-Richter’s work in, 268. D Dall, W. H., Grand Gulf formation, 164, 819. Davis, W. M., profile of bad-land divides, 245. Dayis’s Algebra, 293. : Deaf, progress in teaching speech to, 118. Death Valley flora, 342. Decimal Association, 47. Deer, flathead, 87. Dennis, W., watching a snake, 338. Derby, O. A., Santa Catharina Meteorite, 254. Diamonds in meteorites, 15. Dictionary of Medicine, 81. Diseases, immunity from, 356; infectious, 225. Dixon, E. T., hypotheses in dynamics, 149. Dixon’s Migration of Birds, 39. Dobbin and Walker’s Chem‘cal Theory, 320, Dog, jealousy of a, 305. Doran, E. W., phylogeny of mole cricket, 214. Dorsey, J. O., Maltunne Tunne measures, 194; Oma- ha arrow measures, 194. Douglass, A. E , rain in Peru, 231. Dove, the brutal, 124. Duck Islands, 184 Dumble, E. T., filght of archippus, 291. Dsche, D. 7. D., Heterocrinus subcrassus, 66. Dyn eee fundamental hypotheses of, 71, 122, 149, 150, 262. E Eames, R., growth of gold, 259. Earle, Charles, variability of specific characters, 7. Educational, standards in professional, 92. Edwards's Coals and Cokes in West Virginia, 376. Eells, M., twins among Indians, 192. Egypt, Flinders-Petries work in, 267. Egyptian and Semitic languages, 131. Higenmann, C. H., Percopide on Pacific slope, 233. El Gran Chaco, 232. Electric phenomena on mountain, 177; light, action elon plants, 291; phenomena on mountains, 318, Ellis, W., temperature at Greenwich, 5. Elrod, M. J., reflex action in turtles, 368. Elton’s Career of Columb 1s, 173. Emery, F. E., soil moisture, 31. Engel, H., infectious diseases, 225. English climate, 5. Ensilage, 47. Entomological types, 244. Eskimos, 340. Ethnic osteology, failure in, 148, Ethnography, meaniug of, 9). Ethnology as philosophy, 60. Etruscan ritual book, 173, 212. Evolution, laws of human, 232. Exhibition, geographical, 19. Eyes of insects, 314. F Face, study of the, 7. Farnsworth, P. J., Great Lake basins, 74, Feeling, introspective study of, 203. Fernald, H. T., crayfish attacked by leeches, 220. Ferree, Barr, architecture as an ethnic trait, 115. Ferree’s Comparative Architecture, 361. Fessenden, R. A., cohesion, 48. Figurines of stone age, 260. Finns, the, 173. Flora of Death Valley, 342. Flower farming, 4. Flower-head, gynandrous, 207. Flower’s The Horse, 237. Fog like lake, 187. Food exhibition, 18, 201; vegetable acids In, 229. Foot deformity from shoes, 99. Forel’s Le Leman, 355. Forest tree Scolytid, 64. Forests of New Hampshire, 340. Formosa, 47. Foster’s Physiology, 68. Freeman’s History of Sicily, 81. French, G. H., nomenclature, 151. Fu-sang, 148. G@ Gage’s Microscope and Histology, 89. Galton, F., Boston school-boys, 274. Galvanometer, ballistic, 361. Gardiner, J., Thomson’s Zoélogy, 222. Garman, H., cave fauna of Kentucky, 240. Garman §., reptilian rattle, 16. Garner’s Speech of Monkeys, 221. Gay Head, 176, 332, 373 Geographical names, 186. a0. | Wot, XO) Geological expedition of University of Nebraska, 47; Society of America, 341; survey of Indiana report, 321; survey of New Jersey, 67; of Missouri, 355. Geometry, modern synthetic, 297; non-Euclidean, 370. Gerland’s Atlas of Ethnography, 206. German association of svience, 1(3. Gibbs, M., acorn-eating birds, 133; bird on nest, 99; birds that sing in the night, 313; effects of civiliza- tion on birds, 183; humming-birds’ food, 239. Gifford, J., Altakapas country, 372 ; introduction of foreign species, 304; yeasts, 249. Gila monster, 319. Glaciation in Montana, 162. ‘ Glacial epoch, date of latest, 302; theories, 360. Glycerine, solid, 263, 278. Gnat-bites, 215. Gold, growth of, 259. Gore’s Geodosy, 375; Visible Universe, 333. Grand Gulf formation, 151, 164, 247, 319. Grape leaves, 39. Great Lake basins, 74. Green Mountains’ anticlinal, 328. Grinnell, G. B., Chief Mountain Lake, 85. Grippe, 152. Griswold’s Whetstones and Novaculites of Arkansas, 107. Gypsum, Texas, 353. H Hainan, 19. Hair, study of, 260. Hall, J. N., sense of direction, 113. Hall, J. P., photographs of auroras, 236. Hamilton, H., prevention of cholera, 170, 193. Hann, J., barometric oscillations, 5. Harding, L. A., forensic microscopy, 242. Hargitt, C. W., Amphiuma means, 159. Harisse’s Discovery of North America, 39. Harvey, case-hardening, 75. Hatch’s Mineralogy, 137. Hatch, P. L., fslse aurora, 31S. Hawk, hectoring a, 123. Hay, O. P., biological papers, 243. Hazen, H. A., Moon and rainfall, 310; electric pheno- mena on mountains, 359. Heath, A., colias, 257 Hemiptera, etc., 52. Hempel’s Gas Analysis, 293. Henderson, C. R., woman’s work for wages, 190. Heraldry, ancient Mexican, 174, 261. Heredity, 19). Hioen’s Metal Coloring, 363. Hirn, monument to, 18. Hitchcock, A. S., botanical library, 241. Hitchcock, C. H., Green Mountains’ anticlinal, 328. Hitchcock, R , photographic laboratory, 160; pre-Aino race in Japan, 163. Hobbs, W. H., hornblende and augite, 354. Hodge, F. Webb, Journal of American Ethnology, 152: Hoffmann’s Sloyd System of Wood-Working, 363. Holbrook, M. L., human blood, 107; la grippe, 152. Holbrook’s Treatment of Consumption, 264. Holder’s Florida Reef, 215. Holmes, W. H., quarry refuse, 295. Hopkins, A. D., forest-tree Scolytid, 64. Hornblende and augite, 354. - Horse, intelligence of a, 133; American 135, 188; feed- ing of,-4. Hoskivs, L. M., hypotheses of dynamics, 122. Houston, E. J., weather in Mars, 86. Howe, J. L., extinction of mulatto, 375. Hudson’s Naturalist in La Plata, 136. Human remains discovered near Mentone, 170. Humming-birds’ food, 239, 291, 318, 333. Hunter-Duvar’s Stone, Bronze, and Iron Ages, 39. Huntington, O. W., diamonds in meteorites, 15. Hussey, W. J., lines on Mars, 235. Hyatt, J., aurora, 374. Hybridism exemplified in the genus colaptes, 325. Ice, impurity of, 141. India, primitive fashions in, 357. Indian numerals, 9; types of beauty, 115. Indians, census of, 31. Influenza, 103. Ink stains, 346. Implements, natural, 305. Instinct, 300. ntelligence of lower orders, 345. Introduction of toreign species, 304. _ Inyentors’ academy of Parts, 186. Irrigation reports, 346. ME. J Jackals, 33. Jackman’s Nature Study, 293. James J. F., geological survey of New Jersey, 67; wheat rust and smut, 93; Merrill’s Geognosy, 94; bird reports, 178; destroying mosquitoes, 217; irri- gation reports, 346; agricultural reports, 361. James’s Alaskana, 292. Jamieson’s Applied Mechanics, 375. Japan, pre-Aino race in, 148, 163. Jealousy in infants, 248; of a dog, 305. Jews, a trait of, 106. Johnson, L. C., Grand Gulf formation, 151, 247. Jones, M. E., gila monster, 319. Jones, R. W., rattlesnake, 277. Jordan, D. S., Hopkins seaside laboratory, 76. Journal of American Ethnology, 152. K Kangaroo in America, 82. Kansas Academy of Science, 250. | Keane, A. H., ancient Libyan alphabet, 178, 262. | ei: INDEX. Keely’s In Arctic Seas, 173. Kempton, C. W., Mars, 152; meteoric shower, 333; snake eats snake, 107. Kent, W., Rochester Meeting, A. A. A. S., 135. Key, a multiple, 360. King, F. H., ensilage, 47. King, T. G., an archeological delusion, 275. SUNY W. F., entomological types, 244; Saturniidz, 46. Kirby’s Entomology, 194. L Laboratory, Hopkins seaside, 77; teaching, 53, 207; of plant diseases, 368. Laing’s Human Origins, 109. Lamentable case, 291. Land, our waste, 327. vane, A. C., optical angle and angular aperture, 54. Langley’s Energy and Vision, 362. Language, universal, 232. Languages, bibliography of American, 340; central American, 172. Larkin, E, L., Mars, 17; aurora, 65; meteoric shower, | 346. Leaves, shrinkage of, 163. Left-handedness, 60. Leland’s Etruscan-Roman Remains in Popular Tra- dition, 334. Lepel, V., oxidation of nitrogen, 33. Leprosy, immunity from, 309. Leverett, Frank, ice-sheet in Ohio, 103. Lewis, R. T., eyes of insects, 314. Lewis and Clarke’s Expedition oyer the Rocky Mountains, 173. Library of Prof. L. Just, 12. Lichenology, 120, 205. Light rays of small wave-length, 216. Ligurians, Iberians, and Siculi, 90. Linebarger, C. E., solutions, 352. Linguistics as a physical science, 206. Lion breeding, 34. Liveing, G. D., liquid oxygen, 169. Lobsters for New Zealand, 341. Lock’s Mechanics for Beginners, 139. Loew, P., immunity from disease, 356. Lupton, A., spontaneous combustion in mines, 299. Luschan, F’. von, aborigines of Asia Minor, 31. Lydekker’s Phases of Animal Life, 95. M Mabery, C. F., laboratory teaching, 207. McCalley, Alabama bauxite, 303. McCallie, S. W., mastodon in Tennessee, 333. McCarthy, G., weeds, 38. MacDonald, A., 32; congress of psychology, 288. MacDougall, D. 1’., botanical explorations in Idaho, 311. McFarland, R. W., chronology, 213. McGee, W. J., man and the glacial period, 317. MacGregor, J. G., dynamics, 71, 150, 262. McLean’s Indians of Canada, 110. MachRitchie, D., a Pict’s house, 43. Magnetic circuit, 258; needle, secular motion of a, 218. Maguus’s Elementary Mechanics, 375. Male and female, anatomical criterion for, 173. Malley, A. C., reticulated protoplasm, 261. Mammoth in Siberia, 201. Man and the glacial period, 275, 317, 360, 270, 295, 304, 344; primitive history of, 90; primitive, in South America, 147. 7 Mars, 152; lines on, 177, 282, 235; opposition of, 17; weather in, 86. Martin, D. S., A. A. A. S. meeting, 146. Mason, W. P., laboratory teaching, 53; weights and measures, 358. Mastodon in Tennessee, 333. Mather, F., sense of direction, 248. Maya chronology, 80; day-signs, 77; graphic system, 25, 101, 121, 197, 41; language, study of, 6. Maxwell, C. P., satellite of Moon, 66. Mechanical Engineering Teachers’ Association, 32. Medical Association, Miss. Valley, 5. Meehan, T., cleistogamy in pansy, 107; black Enot, Mendenhall, T, C., uncertainty of conclusions, 20. Mengel, L. W., Duck Islands, 184. Merrill, G. P., box for microscope slides, 298. Merrill’s Geognosy, 94. Merriman, M., Moon and rainfall, 310. Merriman’s Geodetic Surveying, 375. Merz’s Influenza, 125. Meteor, brilliant, 346. Meteoric shower, 333, 346. Meteorite, is Sao Francisco do Sul iron a, 254. Meyer’s Outlines of Theoretical Chemistry, 108. Mice in Thessaly, 104. Michener, C., botanic trinomial, 245, Michigan Mining School, 145, 234. Microscope slides, box for, 298. Microscopy, forensic, 242. Migrations in America, pre-Columbian, 285. Milk, aeration of 156. Miller, G. A., non-Kuclidean geometry, 370. Milispaugh, C. F., weeds, 61; medical botany, 91. Milne’s Standard Arithmetic, 293. Mines, spontaneous combustion in, 299. Mining statistics, 335. Mississippi River, 314. Mole cricket, phylogeny of, 214. Molecules and crystals, 88. Mollusca, Ward’s collection of, 369. Mont Blanc observatory, 5. Montgomery, H., science in schools, 142. | JuLy.-DEcEMBER, 1892 Montmahon and Beauregard’s Zoblogy, 320. Moon satellite, 66. Moorehead’s Primitive Man in Ohio, 195. Morris’s Physical Education, 265. Morse, E. S., 19; roofing tiles, 115; a pre-Aino race in Japan, 148. Mosquitoes killed by kerosene, 247. Mother and Child, 327. Mound, Serpent, 275. Mounds, builders of southern, 261. Moute, pocket, 357. Mulatto, extinction of, 375. N Nadaillac, Marquis de, discoveries near Mentone, 170. Nadaillac’s Manners and Monuments of Prehistoric Peoples, 291. Nahnatl language, 31 . | Naltunne Tunne measures, 194. National museum publications, 106. Nervous diseases in low races, 339, 373. New York Academy of Sciences, biological section, 257. New Zealand, biological notes from, 323. Niedlinger, C., animal phosphorescence, 207. Nitrogen, oxidation of, 33. Nomenclature, 164, 219, 245, 263; in botany, 146; priori- ty, 116; question, 151. Norton, T. H., chemical nomenclature, 272, 291. Numerals, Indian, 9. Nutting, C. C., Beddard’s Colors of Animals, 208. oO e Oil on troubled waters, 47. Omaha arrow measures, 194. Optical angle and angular aperture, 354. Oriental Review, 377; subjects, need of instruction in, 359. Orientation of primitive structures, 6. Ornithologists’ Union, 243. Osborn, H. L., Amblystoma trigrinum, 366. Osteological notes, 46. Owl, Richardson’s, ia Nebraska, 361. Oxygen, liquid, 169. ip Palenque tablet, 38, 80. Palestine, 75. Palmer, C. B., Florida pitcher plant, 171. Pansy, cleistogamy in, 107. Parker, W. T., misuse of quinine, 155. Parker, H. W., lines of Mars, 282. Parker’s Elementary Biology, 81. Patterson, H. J., vegetable acids in food, 229. Peal, S. E., communal barracks, 228. >» Peddie’s Physics, 376. . Peirce’s Critic of Arguments, 173. Percopide on Pacific slope, 233. Perkins, G. H., aboriginal use of bone in Vermont, 202: Persian-English Dictionary, 82. Personality, residual, 284. Peru, rain in southern, 231. Peruvian languages, 6. Petroleum in Caucasus, 145. Phosphorescence, animal, 207. Photographic laboratory, 160. Photomicrography, celestial, 135. Pickering, E. C., large southern telescope, 193. Picts’ houses, 43. Pictures for projection, 313. Pile-structure, an aboriginal, 91. Pilling, J. C., linguistic bibliographies, 7. Pilling’s bibliographies, 340. Pilsbury, H. A., Ward's collection of moliusca, 369. Plant, Florida pitcher, 171; disease reports, 361. Plants of Michigan, 83. Platt, C., impurity of ice, 14!; solid glycerine, 278. Plumb, C. S., aeration of milk, 156. Political science school, 201. Polynesian society, 32; ethnology, 340. Pope’s Electric Telegraph, 355. Poppy, monstrous, 249. Posse’s School Gymuastica, 209. Post, A. H., ethnology, 60. Potato scab, 355. Prescott, A. B., chemical: 28, 127. Prize, Alvarenga, 313. Profile, convex, of bad-land. ‘des, 245. Prosopology, Protoplasm,1 .. ulated, 161. 261, 374. Psychological asseuciation, 104; congress, 288; labora- tory at Yale, 324. Psychology, plea for study of, 10. Punishment, origin of, 233. Quarry-rejects, 260. Questions and Answers in Electricity, 363. Quinine, popular misuse of, 155. R R, sounds of, 217. Race and culture, 147. Rainfall and Moon, 310. Rattle, reptilian, 16. Rattlesnake, 277; in captivity, 345. Raymond’s Atmospheric Pressure, 321. Redding, T. B., intelligence of a horse, 133. Rennet, isolation of, 253. Respiratory moyements, action of drugs on, 316. Vion, SOM Rhoads, S.,N., hybridism in colaptes, 325. Rice culture from a hygienic point of view, 57. Ridgway, R., birds that sing at night, 343. Ridgway’s Humming Birds, 178. Riley, C. V., broods of elm-leaf beetle, 16. Rivista di Patologia vegetale, 46. Rockwell, A. D., nervous diseases, 373. Romanes’s Darwin and atter Darwin, 109. Roofing tile, 115. Rothrock, J. T., our waste land, 327. Rowlee, W. W., germination of: seeds, 189. Ruffner, W. H., English sparrow, 165. Russell's Electric Light Cables, 333. Russian surveys, 61. Russians, primitive, 244. St. Gervais disaster, 89. Salamander, a, 366. Salt in sea-water, 258. Sampson, F. A., English sparrow, 80. Sanborn, J. W. * feeding horses, 4; spiders’ food, 344. Saturniide. 246. Saville, M. H., vandalism among antiquities, 365. Scents, 233. Schifec’s Essentials of Histology, 39. Schaufuss, C. F., Clerus formicarius L., 256. Schlegel, G. , Fu-Sang, 148. School, Summer, of Brooklyn Institute, 157; science in bigh, 1; proposed changes in studies in, 341, Schumann, V., light of small wave length, 216. Science in high schools, 1; in schools, 142; teachers from Michigan normal school, 185. Scientific Roll, 349. Sclavic skulls, 285. Scott’s Chemical Theory, 321. Scripture, E. W., localization in a child, 361; ballistic galvanometer, 361. ‘Seeds, facilitated germination of, 189. Seeley, F. A., Turkish time-pieces, 316. Seler, E., Palenque tablet, 38; Maya chronology, 80; Maya graphic system, 121. Sense of direction, 113, 207, 248, 262, 291, 318, 358. Sexton’s Deafness and Discharge of the Ear, 109. Shufeldt, R. W., Beddard’s Animal Coloration, 11; apteryx, 66: National Museum publications, 106; In- dian tyyes of beauty, 115; vernacular name of the genus harporhynchus, 333. Shutt, F. T., agricultural chemistry, 191. Skeel, F. D., Japanese clocks, 365. Skulls, shape of Sclavic, 285. Slade, D. D., osteological notes, 46. Slater, J. W.., scents, 233. Slater, W., diet of birds, 221. Slavic archzology, 2/6. Sleep, preliminary note on, 277. Smelling, science of, 215. Smith, C.C., solid glycerine, 263. Smith. J. B., elm-leaf beetle, 92. ‘Smith and Kellar’s Experiments in General Chem- istry, 292. Smith’s Geology of Alabama, 377. Smithsonian Institution Report, 165. pnaren eats snake, 107; Congo, 159; bite, 255; watching a, 9 Snell, M. S., oriental subjects, 359. Soil moisture, 31. Soils, chemistry of, 29. - Solutions, 352. .Southwick, E. B , local hemiptera, 62. LIND EX Sparrow, English, 79. Species, introduction of forelens 304. Spencer, B , ceracodus, 4 Spiders’ food, 344. Spon’s Tables for Evgineers, 362. Stanley, H. M., tornado whirls, 124; feeling, 203; markings of Mars, 235. Star 1830 Groombridge, 236. Starry realms, 11. Stars, real motions of, 192. | Stature from length of long bones, 206. Steinen, K. von den, Carib tongue, 115. Steinmetz, C. P., magnetic circuit, 258. Stephens, F., pocket mouse, 351. Stevenson, A. jealousy in infants, 248. Stevenson, S. Y., archeology, 1880-1892, 267. Stine, W.M, aurora, 178. Stokes, A. C., reticulated protoplasm, 161; blood-cor- puscles, 330; protoplasm, 374. Stone, G. H., electric phenomena on Mountains, 318. Strode, J. B., heredity, 190. Strong, E. A. science teachers, 185. Samero-Akkadian question, 75. Swallow, C. W., rare birds, 352. Swan, R. M., Zimbabwe, 6 Swift, L., aurure of, 1892. 323. Swift, black-throated rock, 235. Syme’s Modication of Organisms, 81. ly Taussig’s Tariff History, 173. Taylor, I., origin of Aryans, 151; European origin of Aryans, 991: letter Y, 3/0. Telephone, long-distance, 229. Telesc pe, large southern, 193. Temperature at Greenwich, 5. Thomas, C., Maya hieroglyphics, tablet, 80. Thompson, A. H., the face, 7. Thomson, G.M., biological notes from New Zea- land, 323. Thomson’s Outlines of Zodlogy, 222. Thorne’s Diphtheria, 68. Thrasher or Thresher, 333. Tillman’s Lessons in Heat, 139. Toads, blood from eyes of, 243. Todas, the, 5. Tompkins’s Woodworker’s Manual, 377. Tooth culture, 55. Topinard, Prof., Celts and Kymri, 115. Tornado-whirls in clouds, 124. Tourney, J. W., cliff-dwellers in Arizona, 269. Townsend, C. H. T., nomenclature, 164. Tree-line in Europe, 19. Trouessart, E. L., American horse, 188. Trowbridge, W. P., 102. Tucker, W. G., purification of water, 34. Tupaia javanensis, 5. Turner, C. H., grape leaves, 9. Turtles, reflex action in, 368. Twins among Indians, 192. 44; Palenque Ui Uhiler, P. R., Gay Head, 176; 373. Underwood, “ibe M., nomenclature, 116. University extension monographs, 39. e [JuLy._DEcEMBER, 1892, Vv Vandalism among antiquities of Yucatan, 365. Van Deman, H. E., sense of direction, 291. Vans, ancient, 232. Variability of specific characters, 7. Vasey’s grasses of the Pacific Slope, 361. Veeder, M. A., auroras and thunder storms, 221, Verity’s Electricity up to Date, 335. Vine, G. R., cretaceous polyzoa, 327. Virchow’'s Crania Ethnica Americana, 278. Vocabularies, comparative, 147. . Volition in childhood, 286. Ww Wadsworth, M. E., azoic archean in northern Mich- igan, 355. Warring, C. B.. Mars, 177. Washburn, F. L., coddling-moth in Oregon, 291. Wasp study, 220. Water, chemical purification of, 34. Weed, C. M., birds at Hanover, 86. Weeds, American, 88; list of, 61. Weed’s Spraying Crops, 69. Weights and measures, confusion in, 358; in Eng- land, 298. Weismann’s Essays on Heredity, 109. Well, breathing, #37. ~ Wheat rust and smut, 93; in Indiana, 159. White. D., Gay Head, 332. Whiteley’s Chemical Calculations, 138. Whiting, H. L., Mississippi River, 314. Whiton, A. M., ink stains, 346. Willard, J. T., a breathing well, 337. Williams, J. B , rattlesnake, 345. Williams, W. M., salt in sea-water, 258. Willlamson, A. W., motions of stars, 192. Williams’s Geological Map of Baltimore, 355. Williams’s History of Modern Education, 125. Williams’s Sys'ems of Ethics, 335. Williston, S. W., nomenclature, 263. Wilson, E. F., Indian numerals, 9. Wilson, Sir D., left-handedness, 60. Wilson’s The Lost Atlantis, 265. Windt’s Siberia as It Is, 81. Woman's work for wages, 190. Wood, De v. ., science of smelling, 215. Wood, H. C., action of drugs on respiratory move- ments, 3 6. Wood, H. R., glaciation in Montana, ee Woodpeckers, American, 325. Wood's Light, 138. Woodworth, C. W., laboratory of plant diseases, 368. Wooster, W. H., snake-bite, 255. Work, H., Sense of direction, 207. Wright, G. F., man and the glacial peeibal 275; gla- cial theories, 360. Wright, J. McN., a wasp study, 220. Wright’s Man and the Glacial Period, 249. Wright’s Nature Readers, 67. ¥ Y, pedigree of letter, 300. Year-book of scientific societies, 54. Yeasts in North American Review, 249. Yellow fever among Negroes, 33. Z Zimbabwe ruins, 6. LETRA AE OS, SCI A WEEKLY NEWSPAPER OF ALL THE ARTS AND SCIENCES. PUBLISHED BY N. D. C. HODGES, 874 BROADWAY, NEW YORK. TrentH YEAR. - Vou. XX. No. 491. JULY 1, 1892. SINGLE Copies, Ten Crnts. $3.50 Per Yuan, IN ADVANCE. CONTENTS. WATURAL SCIENCE IN THE HigH ScHOOL Course. R. Ellsworth Call....... 1 THe FeEpInc oF HORSES................ 4 ENODIENS HPAI D INTE; WIS) 5) Ustepeate- «1 010), ic inueheniercis «6 4 Tue De Laincet FUND FOR THE STUDY OF THE Maya LANGUAGE AND ITS Grapuic System. Wm. M. Augney 6 Current Nores on ANTHROPOLOGY.— IX. Edited by D. G. Brinton.... 6 THe VARIABILITY OF SPECIFIC CHARACTERS : AS EXHIBITED BY THE EXTINCT Genus CoryPHopon. Charles Earle ef) Tyvran NUMERALS. Edward F.Wilson.. 9 BRAG TNO Gas DeBOO Rabo te a eee tie ae 10 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR. A Plea for the Study of Psychology. Franklin A. Becher. Ball-Lightning. M. A. Veeder Boox REVIEWS. Animal Coloration. R.W. Shufeldt. 11 AMONG THE PUBLISHERS..............-. Entered at the Post-Office of New York, N.Y., 4s Second-Class Mail Matter. Speech Reading and Articulation Teaching. By A. MELVILLE BELL. Price, 25 Cents. 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JOHN IRELAND'S Bookstore, 1197 Broadway near 29th St., is convenient to the residence quarter of the city; itis a good mace to drop into on the way uw; or down town to select books or stationery. His stoc’ is well selected and embraces all the new and standard books as soon as issued. Out-of-town purchasers can order by mail with every confidence that their wants will be as well supplied as if buying in person. ACK NUMBERS and complete sets of leading Mag- azines. Rates ow. AM. MAG. EXCHANGE, Schoharie N V EDUCATIONAL. School of Applied Ethics. Plymouth, Mass., July 7-Aug. 17, 1892. Daily lectures in ECONOMICS, HISTORY OF RELIGIONS, and ETHICS. For Program, giving full particulars, apply to the Secretary, S. BURNS WESTON, 118 South 12th St., Philadelphia. Amherst Summer School of Languages, Art, Literature,Chemistry, Mathemat- ics, Library Work, History, and P litical Economy. Sixteenth session opens July 4, 1892. For program address Prof W. L. MONTAGUE, Amherst, Mass. ROSE POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE, Terre Haute, Ind. A College of Engineering. Well- endowed, well-equipped. Courses in Mechanical, Electrical, Civil Engineering and Chemistry. Exten- sive Machine Shops, Laboratories, Drawing Rooms, Library. Expenses low. Address H. T. EDDY, Pres. Minerals, 5 a a Stuffed Animals rocks Ward’sNatural ScienceEstablishment|,......an" casts ot Foxsits, | Mineralogy, Geology, Paleontology, Zoology, Osteology, Anatomy. | anaomece Geological odels RetierMaps.| Send for Circular. ROCHESTER, N. Y. _ |rvertenrane’™ PoE NCE NEW YORK, JULY 1, 1892. NATURAL SCIENCE IN THE HIGH SCHOOL COURSE. BY R. ELLSWORTH CALL. THERE is needed no argument to demonstrate the necessity of training in science. It will be assumed that such training is recognized as essential, and that its attainment can in no manner now be dropped from the curricula of the high schools. Itis proposed, therefore, to briefly discuss the theme under (1) Comparative Educational Value, (2) Practical Character of the Information Gained, (3) The Tendencies of the Culture of the Day, and (4) Relations to University Requirements. Comparative Educational Value. It appears to be a difficult matter to discuss this feature of the proposed theme without the bias that comes either from one’s own training or one’s taste. Something must be con- ceded from either standpoint; but concession is difficult and especially so when demanded on the basis of culture value. Rather, then, than on individual opinion must estimation of comparative value be based on culture results. constitutes culture? Isit ability to master in ordinary array numerous facts, devise and defend delightful theories, dis- play extended and intimate acquaintance with art, history, orsong? Is it held to consist in deep research into lifeless tongues, effete philosophies, degenerate religions? Shall it rest in useful citizenship, productive thought, inventive genius, polished rhetoric, political leadership? These one and all enter into the various conceptions of culture, and these all demand a hearing. Shall they be heard? And how ? I take it that the prime factor in any educational system lies in its power to discipline. The numerous facts which the young person gains during the brief period of four years in the best high schools represent but a very small portion of the sum that marks human attainment. Not the facts, nor their class alone, give the chief feature that is valuable in school life. The collation of facts from observation, their orderly and systematic arrangement, their intelligent dis- cussion, their applicability to the cireumstances of the indi- vidual by way of amelioration, their power to draw out and direct the best side of the mind, thisis discipline. But is not this also applied science? Of such discipline the self is the end. It is not culture for a vocation, for professional train- ing, nor is it culture for an end. It is discipline as a means. It will be conceded, I presume, that all kinds of culture have not an equally important bearing on every line of ac- tivity in life; there is, or should be, occasion for discrimina- tion and choice. Culture, or, if one please, discipline, ought to conform to this natural principle of selection. As a mat- ter of fact and of experience it is found that astudent usually accomplishes but little till a definite and settled purpose presides over his movements, or over his intellectual tenden- cies. The energies of youth are limited, naturally. Tosave from waste time, which has to a young man quite as much But what . value ‘as effort, practical definiteness should be given to scholastic education. To this end, I believe, that selection of those practical or professional activities, which alone have been deemed most effective in conserving, importing, and transmitting the civilization of any age, should be singled out for school work. In this elective sense, and in this sense alone, every age has taught what it knew and taught all it knew. In former days the physical sciences were not taught because they were not known; they are taught now because they are known. A proper interpretation of the historic facts, therefore, assigns to the physical sciences, in their phe- nomenal and empirical aspects, a place in the foreground. Asa means of purely mental training I am disposed to accord the first place to physical science. There is inyolyed more than a suggestion of mathematics, more than mere ability to frame-correct sentences, more than memoriter ex- ercises respecting isolated facts. Physical science means, if it mean aught, extended application of mathematical data and methods, statement of facts in other than sentential re- lations, the discovery — whether for the first time it matters not— of underlying laws. This is culture of the very broad- est nature; this means ability to generalize; this constitutes the first stage in a successful intellectual career. I do not believe that one who is abundantly able to develop Sturm’s Theorem, trace all the wanderings of the heroes of the Odyssey or the Aineid, outline the journeys of Paul in Asia Minor, or discover meanings in the ‘‘ Taming of the Shrew,” of which its greatguthor never dreamed, can compete in in- tellectual vigor with the lad able to determine the constitu- tion of a compound substance, decide correctly the affinities of a noxious, stranger plant, or to read facts older than the pyramid of Cheops in a scratched pebble found at the school- house door. The one reads fictions long bereft of true edu- cational value; the other deals with the facts of our daily lives. The one lives and thinks with an ancient, stranger people; the other breathes an atmosphere of intellectual ac- tivity and intellectual endeavor. The one deals with sym- bols — with words as various in significance as are different the minds that use them; the other with laws, unchanging, necessary, logical. The one taught by povelists, dramatists, and poets whose function it is to create imaginary worlds, dwells in an ideal world constructed to suit himself; the other lives in the midst of things of practical accomplish- ment. It seems to me, therefore, that this difference in the mental aptitudes of students trained side by side, one trained in science, the other in a literature in which even the mas- terpieces of scientific writing find no place, will stand equally well for the probable values of their influence in after years in determining the current of events. I would have, then, a still more extended pursuit of physi- cal science in the high school. By this it is not meant that the additional work be in the line of new subjects, but that the time now devoted to belles lettres and ancient languages be curtailed; that the time thus gained be given, not to new subjects, but to the more extended prosecution of the few. The point sought to be enforced is that two or three subjects in science, involving observation, technic, and reflection, as ~ botany or physics, zoology or chemistry, be prosecuted for 2 SCIENCE. very much longer periods. The business of the high school is to train, to develop, to direct, not to give encyclopedic information nor to render the student an intellectual automa- ton. Its great aim is to awaken thought, not as an end but asameans. Divorce such awakening from the rhetoric of pure philosophy, from the generalities of literature, from the dicta of questionable schemes. Join it to the exact methods involved in scientific research — whether original or in the lines laid down by another matters little; wetl it to demonstration of natural law — whether before known is unimportant; weld it indissolubly to those mental processes which involve the most intelligent ratiocination, and the high school curriculum has attained its maximum educa- tional value. But this assumes increased attention to and prosecution of pure science, and in this, we believe, lies the best and greatest educational power. Practical Character of the Information Gained. Ten years ago, the English physicist, Professor Sylvanus P. Thompson, wrote the following: ‘‘ And ought we, then, to be surprised if, in pursuance of the system we have deliberately marked out for the rising generation, we keep our future artisans, till they are fifteen or sixteen, employed at no other work than sitting at a desk to follow, pen in hand, the liter- ary course of studies of our educational code, we discover that, on arriving at that age, they have lost the taste for manual work, and prefer to starve on a threadbare pittance as clerks or bookkeepers rather than gain a livelihood by the less exacting and more remunerative labor of their hands ?” True it is that this remark was volunteered in defense of a proposed scheme for technical training —a scheme, the ne- cessity of which is self-evident even in this country, as is witnessed by the establishment of numerous manual training schools. But this does not dull its edge nor blunt its point. The ordinary training in the high school is not suited to the demands of practical living. Tt is idle, perhaps, to volunteer the renfark that this is a wouderfully practical age and this great West a model of practical life. The conditions that make the environment here are not met by the ordinary scholasticism of the mother Kast. We can scarce do less, then, than recognize that the high school stands as the expression of the educational needs of acommunity. Those needs are limited or determined by the multitudinous business interests involved, and, though these be legion, sound economic theory and sound educational science alike demand their recognition in the various schemes of study. Such recognition has not always been accorded, and the small percentage of high school graduates stands somewhat in the attitude of menace to their perpetuity. The boy or girl who is skilled in the necessary technic of the physical or chemical laboratory has become a most use- ful member of the community. There are no secrets that ure uusearchable, no mysteries intangible, no hopeless intel- lectual dabbling possible in the laboratory. - Principles, sys- tem, painstaking manipulation rule therein, and they are necessary. To the one versed only in the arts of literature, the relations and significance of coulombs and atomic weights, of farads and valence, of amperes and reagents, are neither attractive nor necessary. But, if disciplinary value alone be sought, who shall say that intellectual training may not come as truly to him who intelligently uses a galvanometer or a burette as to him who traces his motber-tongue to its ancient stock? And if both are to be measured by manual skill, by ability to devise and to execute, to draught and to realize, who shall say that the student inducted into that truer field of investigation and deduction,implied in the proper [Vot. XX. No. gor pursuit of physical science, has not an immeasurable advan- tage? He has, atcommand, a literature limited only by the bounds imposed upon physical research, methods as variant as the students who have trod the paths before him are differ- ent, opportunities for usefulness co-extensive with the physi- cal needs or comforts of the highest civilization. ‘ It seems to us that the time given to physical science in the ordinary high school curriculum is far too short to reach the highest practical advantages Usually such curricula encompass the whole round of scientific endeavor. A few weeks to this, somebody’s ‘‘fourteen weeks” to that, and a term to a third subject — these often without logical sequence —and the boy or girl goes forth trained in science. Did I say trained? Forsooth, the first principles have not been mastered, the technic is entirely unknown. Add to this the positive, and, it will be granted, unfortunate fact that science subjects are taught by persons themselves untaught in either the matter or spirit of science, still less the method, and the cause of comparative failure is at hand. We say comparative failure, and use the term advisedly. We use it, because never less than a year is devoted to algebra, often more, usually an equal period to geometry, and the lion’s share of the time is given to language work. All the disci- plinary power possible is thus given to these subjects, and those who teach them recognize that time, and time alone, is productive of fruitful results. One, who in the face of such educational fadism, would dare suggest two years of botany or of zoology, three or four years of chemistry or of physics, would surely, like Paul, be thought ‘‘ beside him- self.” And yet this is exactly the position we seek to de- fend. It will be conceded, we imagine, that science has disciplinary value, that its prosecution develops a most de- sirable phase of mental life, that in its exacting and pains- taking methods it stands without a peer; it will also be granted that among those who have traversed its inviting fields, thought and written on what they have seen and felt, there are very many who have enriched, immeasurably, the litera- ture of their several lands; in short, it must be granted, it seems to us, that no phase of human thought exists which can be valuable for training in the high school that does not find an equally valuable counterpart in the sphere of science. The multitude of ways in which such knowledge and train- ing may enter into every-day life, in every social condi- tion, renders the argument of practical utility unanswera- ble. The radical feature in science training lies in the assump- tion that even elementary education should ‘‘ supply that exact and solid study of some portion of inductive knowl- edge,” which Dr. Whewell long ago pointed out as a want in educational method. Through it education ‘‘ escapes from the thralldom and illusion which reign in the world of mere words.” The student’s own examination and investi- gation of phenomena, his Own conception of their relations and values, his own inferences concerning the laws he sup- poses to underlie the surface of things, these all constitute the practical side of his education. In this sense, it seems to us, physical science possesses a paramount value, and should be placed accordingly in a wisely adjusted scheme for study. The Tendencies of the Culture of the Day. Educational systems and schemes reflect, it will be con- ceded, the culture tendencies prevalent during their inaugu- ral. It cannot, however, be assumed that their arrange- ment has always been best, or that it has always fallen into the wisest and safest hands. The fault SUE Ter 8o2:)| lies, not in the system, perhaps, which may be good enough considered as an end, but in the personal training of those who have had these systems in charge. I think it true that educational methods and dicta are among the very last, if we except theology, to yield to the demands im- posed by changing environment. To onecultured along the lines fashionable a decade ago, it becomes a difficult task to change methods and opinions that are the outgrowth of such discipline. The maintenance of courses of study that are either largely classical or mathematical means simply a sys- tem based upon methods in vogue long since. A compro- mise is noted, however, in those schools in which a so-called ‘scientific course” is provided; from this concessisn it is easy to pass to those schools whose work is largely along the lines imposed by physical science. This modification — whether it be forced or natural is immaterial — reflects the tendencies of the thought of the day. On all sides, and in all manner of ways, increased at- tention is being given to physical science. The reason is not past finding out —it lies close at hand. Science enters into the home, social and mercantile life of the world toa degree never before known in the history of mind. It has builded upon a foundation broadly and well laid, because laid primarily with a just appreciation of the physical neces- sities of man. Those who now toil, and no longer with un- requited labor, in the laboratories of the world have felt and still feel the impetus due to the appreciation. Not a law of life, not a condition in the physical environment of men, not a pest that may destroy his stores or his comfort, not a prod- uct of land, sea orair, but somewhere some one is busy work- ing out details, deducing laws, formulating results, suggest- ing utilities. The world is en rapport with works of this * sort, and it is by no means uninformed as to their value. A new law of light, a new application of electric force, a new fact in chemistry, a new method of locomotion, these all are heralded as to an expectant community. The world waits for facts such us these, the world expects them. The question turns now on the manner in, and the extent to which this tendency is to be recognized in the high school curriculum. It does not need a prophet’s vision, nor a sage’s wisdom to give the answer. It will be answered on the lines that have reference to the circumstances, duties, and work of life. It were idle to stem the tide even were it desirable. It is not a counter-argument that the term “* practical tendency ” is accepted at its narrowest meaning— that of bare and specific preparation for professional or busi- ness pursuits.- But if even such illogical answers should be made, the fact still remains that the high school is the poor man’s college. It furnishes the highest education which the major portion of the young men and women of a community can obtain. Who, then, shall say that it should not pre- pare, not alone for right living, which is solely a subordi- nate and moral aspect of the question, but for successful business living ? Why should not the studies pursued have discipline as a means and utility as an end? We do not believe a thoughtful, intelligent answer can be negative. We ask, then, a modification of the traditional curriculum and the institution — better perhaps to say substitution — of one which has as a prominent feature the culture of to- day. The time has passed when one ignorant of the laws of health and the gross anatomy of the person, ignorant of the chemistry of cookery and the laws of ventillation, ignorant of the dynamics of physical nature and unlearned as well as unskilled in the manipulations of the laboratory, may pose as a cultured man, thoagh his knowledge of wonderful SCIENCE. ; tongues and skill in rhetorical or literary art be never so great. “‘ What can you do?” not ‘‘ what do you know?” is the question of the hour, and the high school of to-day and of the future will be compelled to answer the question. Will it do it completely ? Not as at present constituted, nor, if like the barrister, it be bound by the law of precedents, will it ever intelligently answer it. Relation to University Requirements. To this phase of the subject attention will be but briefly directed. The high school does not exist for the college or the university; it is an endinitself. Its original institution did not contemplate its relations to these institutions as a gymnasium, but appears to have resulted from the more universal methods of gradation of school work. In cities it was learned that the time required to master the elemen- tary studies could be much shortened by rigid system and rigid enforcement of its necessary provisions. Following this it was discovered that students might complete their school life at too early an age. Additional studies were in- troduced, and finally a system involving a secondary educa- tion, formerly confined to private academies and seminaries, became a part of the public school scheme; the high school became a fact. There can be no question that popular education did not contemplate the establishment of the high school. To many, and to us, its legal right to exist is questionable. However that may be, the high school has come to stay. It has the support and sympathy of the liberally educated classes, and is not unappreciated by the less fortunate grades in society. So that the problem of its curriculum must be worked out in view of the interest these two classes of society evidence in general education. At the end of the scheme of public instruction stands the university. Most, if not all, of the States recognize this relationship, and the curriculum of the secondary or high school is devised to conform to it. We think wisely. Re- cently, in this city, DesMoines, a convention of school- masters discussed this, or a nearly related matter, and the opinion at that time expressed evidenced a condition of be- lief far from unanimity as to the requirements presented by the university authorities. But the university is right in high requirements; right in insisting that secondary instruc- tion be confined to secondary schools; right in assuming that its educational forces are to be exerted along the highest possible lines. Particularly is this true of the requirements in physical science. The proper prosecution of original re- search, which is certainly a university prerogative, the best presentment of modern scientific thought and method, which is the aim of university education, cannot be realized when its instructors are burdened with quasi-elementary work. So, back upon the high school must fall the work of ele- mentary instruction in physical science. This the univer- sity demands, and this the high school must do. Now, in the appointment of the various courses leading to degrees in the universities, it is noticeable, if decade he compared with decade, that more and more are scientific subjects oc- cupying the fore-ground. More time to science, fewer sub- jects; more stringent requirements, greater opportunity for elections, these are the rule in the modern university and these must be understood and appreciated on the part of the high school: There are few good colleges and no universi- ties of standing which do not now demand at least a year in physics and a year of botany. In most others biological subjects are held as essential, and not a few require a fairly 4 SCIENCE: complete course in physical geography — of all high school subjects the most difficult and the one most commonly poorly taught. Certain universities, as Harvard and Michigan, require elementary chemistry; others entirely omit it, be- cause in it students are too often poorly prepared. Said a university professor of chemistry to me, not long ago, ‘‘I prefer my students to come to me with no chemistry. I find they too often come with matter and methods to be un- learned.” Now, this must be remedied in the chemistry work of the highschool; the ‘‘ indictment must be quashed ;” tbe fault must be corrected by proper instructions and skilled methods. Without appliances, that is to say, without labora- tory facilities, radical and valuable revolution is impossible. Physical science in the high school must be experimental. Without multiplying words, then, it may be stated that the high school must give, to those who ask it, preparation for entrance into university work. It must adaptits science curriculum to the requirements of the standard college or university. For long years these higher institutions com- _pelled certain and definite work in language and mathe- matics, they compel that work, with little or no modification to-day. Why cannot they, equally well, compel proper science preparation ? We believe they can; we think they will. There will not be, in the nature of things there cannot be, aset limit to science requirements in the universities. As the tables of the various laboratories, physical, chemical, physiological and biological, become over-taxed, up go the requirements. The standards of entrance are being steadily raised, especially in Indiana University, Michigan Univer- sity, Cornell, Yale, Harvard, and Leland Stanford, Jr., Universities, as fast as the high and other secondary schools will admit cf it. So there is no goal; no end; the high school will ever need to keep close watch on university matters and determine its own work accordingly. Our own State university proposes to the high school to occupy advanced ground in this very matter; togain and hold the confidence of the university, on the one hand, to meet a legitimate de- mand for more complete preparation in science on the other, the high school course must be materially modified. THE FEEDING OF HORSES. BULLETIN No. 13 of the Agricultural Experiment Station of Utah has been received. ‘This bulletin reports the results of a feeding trial of horses by the director, J. W. Sanborn. It reports the result of a trial in a direction that the Ameri- can Experiment Station literature is almost silent upon, viz., feeding horses hay and grain mixed, and feeding cut against whole hay to horses. It isa common belief with horsemen that when grain, especially meal, and more especially such meal as corn meal, is fed to horses alone or mixed with hay, it tends to compact in the stomach and produce indigestion. It is believed that it so far compacts that the gastric juices do not have free access to the mass of it. Furthermore, it is believed to be subject more to the washing influence of heavy drinking. In the latter respect it is known that the horse’s stomach is very small, and that grain is liable to be washed out of it, as the stomach uecessarily overflows with water. As usual, the writer fed two lots of horses for nearly three months, one lot with hay and grain mixed, and the other lot with hay and grain fed separately. At the end of this period the food was reversed, and the horses were fed some two months more. It would be unnecessary to quote the [Vot. XX. No. gor figures of levgthy trial. Suffice it to say that it was found that horses, as in the case of cattle and pigs, showed no dis- advantage by the division of the grain and hay into sepa- rate feeds over feeding hay mixed with grain. Indeed, in this trial he found a disadvantage for the horses on the hay and grain mixed, they not maintaining their weight as well. The author ascribed this result to the fact that the timothy hay when cut fine, with its sharp solid ends, irritated and made sore the mouths of the horses, and possibly induced too rapid eating, as when the hay and grain were moist they would be more likely to eat more rapidly than when fed dry. As this trial isin accord with trials witl ruminants and with the pig, it would seem quite probable that the old and persistent argument in favor of mixing hay and grain is not sound. The second trial reported in this bulletin covered feeding of cut against whole hay to horses. This trial also covered two periods in which the foods were reversed with the sets, in order to determine whether any change of weights found was due to the individualism of the horses, or whether it was due to the system of feeding. The two periods covered from August 10 to December 81. As in the other case, we will not review the tabulated data that accompany the bul- letin. This trial was very decisively in favor of the cut clover for the four months and a half covered by this period. The food fed was clover, and the author points out the fact that clover hay and lucerne, unlike timothy hay, do not present sharp, solid, cutting edges. The results are decisive, and in accordance with those of a trial made by the Indiana Experiment Station with cattle. Director Sanborn points out the fact that these trials, covering nearly a year’s time with four horses, showed that horses consume practically the same amount of food that cattle do when high fed, and make it - somewhat clear that horses make as economical use of hay and grain as do cattle, and he calls attention to the fact that the practice of charging more for pasturage of horses, where grooming is not involved, is not well founded. He also shows that less food was eaten during the hot months than during the cooler months, and particularly that the horses ate less grain during the hot months than during the cooler months. The trial seems to show also that a rather large ration of grain for work-horses is an economical one. NOTES AND NEWS. THE idea of flower-farming for perfumes seems to be exciting a good deal of interest in New South Wales, as many inquiries on the subject have lately been submitted to the Agricultural Department. There are at present in the colony no means of illustrating the practical operations of this industry, but the Agricultural Gazette of New South Wales hopes that this defi- ciency will soon be supplied by the institution of experimental plots on one or more of the experimental farms. The Gazette points out that in scent farms large quantities of waste material from nurseries, gardens, orchards, and ordinary farms might be profitably utilized, while occupation would be found for some who are unfit for hard, manual labor. A Government perfume farm was lately established at Dunolly, in Victoria, and this promises to be remarkably successful. — At the meeting of the Field Naturalists’ Club of Victoria on March 14. as we learn from Nature, Professor Baldwin Spencer, the president, gave an interesting account of a trip he had made to Queensland in search of Ceratodus. Special interest attaches to this form, since it is the Australian representative of a small group of animals (the Dipnoi) which isintermediate between the fishes and the amphibia. Ceratodus has its home in the Mary and Burnett Rivers in Queensland, whilst its ally, Lepidosiren, is found in the Amazon, and another relative, Protopterus, flourishes Juty 1, 1892.] in the waters of tropical Africa. Although unsuccessful in ob- taining the eggs of Ceratodus, owing to the early season, Professor Spencer was able, from a careful study of the surroundings under which the animal lives, to infer that its lung is of as great a ser- vice to it during the wet as during the dry season —a theory in direct opposition to the generally accepted one that the lung functions principally during the dry season, when the animal is inhabiting a mud-cocoon within the dry bed of the river. —A second attempt is to be made to build an observatory at the top of Mont Blanc. As the workmen who tunnelled last year through the snow just below the summit did not come upon rock, M. Janssen has decided that the building shall be erected on the frozen snow. A wooden cabin was put up, as an experiment, at the end of last summer, and in January and early in the spring it was found that no movement had occurred. According to the Lucerne correspondent of the London Times, the observatory is to be a wooden building 8 metres long and 4 metres wide, and consisting of two floors, each with two rooms. The lower floor, which is to be embedded in the snow, will be placed at the dispo- sition of climbers and guides, and the upper floor reserved for the purposes of the observatory. The roof, which is to be almost flat, will be furnished with a balustrade, running round it, to- gether with a cupola for observations. The whole building will rest upon six powerful screw-jacks, so that the equilibrium may be restored if there be any displacement of the snow foundations. The building is now being made in Paris, and will shortly be brought in sections to Chamounix. The transport of the building from Chamounix to the summit of Mont Blanc and its erection there have been intrusted to the charge of two capable guides — Frederick Payot and Jules Bossonay. —Dr. J. Hann laid before the Academy of Sciences at Vienna, on May 5, says Nuture, another of those elaborate investigations for which he is so well known, entitled ‘‘ Further Researches into the Daily Oscillations of the Barometer.” The first section of the work deals with a thorough analysis of the barometric oscillations on mountain summits and in valleys, for different seasons, for which he has calculated the daily harmonic constituents, and given a full description of the phenomena, showing how the am- plitude of the single daily oscillation first decreases with increas- ing altitude, and then increases again with a higher elevation. The epochs of the phases are reversed at about 6,000 feet above sea-level as compared with those on the plains. The minimum on the summits occurs about 6 A.M., and in the valleys between 3 and 4 p.m. The double daily oscillation shows, in relation to its amplitude on the summits, nearly the normal decrease, in proportion to the decreasing pressure, but the epochs of the phases exhibit a retardation on the summits, of as much as one or two hours. In the tropics, however, this retardation is very small. He then endeavors to show that these modifications of the daily barometric range on mountain summits are generally explained by the differences of temperature in the lower strata of air. In connection with this part of the subject, he considers that even the differences in the daily oscillations at Greenwich and Kew are mostly explained by the different altitudes of the two stations and by the fact that Greenwich is on an open hill. In the second section he has computed the harmonic constants for a large num- ber of stations not contained in his former treatise of a similar nature, including some valuable observations supplied by the Bra- zilian Telegraph Administration, and others at various remote parts of the globe. — The last meeting of the Royal Meteorological Society for the present session was held on Wednesday evening, June 15. A paper on “English Climatology, 1881-1890” was read by Mr. F.C. Bayard. This is a discussion of the results of the climato- logical observations made at the society’s stations, and printed in the Meteorological Record for the ten years, 1881-1890. The in- ‘struments at these stations have all been verified, and are ex- posed under similar conditions, the thermometers being mounted in a Stevenson screen, with their bulbs four feet above the ground. The stations are regularly inspected and the instru- ments tested by the assistant secretary. The stations now num- ber about eighty, but there were only fifty-two which had com- SCIENCE. 5 plete results for the ten years in question. Tne author has dis- cussed the results from these stations and given the monthly and yearly means of temperature, humidity, cloud, and rainfall. His general conclusions are: (1) With respect to mean temperature the sea-coast stations are warm in winter and cool in summer, whilst the inland stations are cold in summer and hot in winter. (2) At all stations the maximum temperature occurs in July or August, and the minimum in December or January. (3) Rela- tive humidity is lowest at the sea-coast stations and highest at the inland ones. (4) The south-western district seems the most cloudy in winter, spring, and autumn, and the southern district the least cloudy in the summer months, and the sea-coast stations are, as arule, less cloudy than the inland ones. (5) Rainfall is smallest in April, and, as a rule, greatest in November, and it in- creases from east to west. ‘‘The Mean Temperature of the air on each day of the year at the Royal Observatory, Greenwich, on the average of the fifty years, 1841 to 1890” was presented by Mr. W. Hillis, f.R.A.S The values given in this paper are derived from eye observations from 1841 to 1848, and from the photo- graphic records from 1849 to 1890. The mean annual tempera- ture is 49.5°. The lowest winter temperature, 37.2°, occurs on January 12, and the highest summer temperature, 63.82, on July 15. The average temperature of the year is reached in spring on May 2, and in autumn on October 18. The interval during which the temperature is above the average is 169 days, the interval during which it is below the average being 196 days. — The Todas, inhabiting the Nilgiri plateau, says Nature, are not dying out gradually, as has long been supposed. The last census figures show that they have increased by no less than 10 per cent during the last ten years, there being now nearly eight hundred of them altogether. —In a recent number of the Journal of the Straits Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society there is an interesting note on the little insectivora, Tupaia javanensis. It is very common in Singapore, and especially in the Botanic Gardens, where it may be often seen running about among the trees. Itis easily mistaken for the common little squirrel (Sctwrus hippurus), of which it has much the appearance. When alarmed it quickly darts up the trunk of the nearest tree, but it is a poor climber, and never seems to go high up like the squirrel. Besides these points of resemblance, it appears to be largely frugivorous. It was found that the seeds sown in boxes were constantly being dug up and devoured by some animal, and traps baited with pieces of cocoa-nut or banana were set, and a number of tupaias were caught. These being put into a cage appear to live very comfortably upon bananas, pine-apple, rice, and other such things; refusing meat. The Rey. T. G. Wood, in his ‘‘ Natural History,” states that 7. ferru- ginea is said to feed on beetles, but to vary its diet with certain fruits. The common species at Singapore seems to be almost en- tirely frugivorous, though its teeth are those of a typical insecti- vora. —The Mississippi Valley Medical Association will hold its eighteenth annual session at Cincinnati, Oct. 12-14, 1892. An excellent programme, containing the best names in the valley and covering the entire field of medicine, will be presented. An address on Surgery will be delivered by Dr. Hunter McGuire of Richmond, Va., President of the American Medical Association. An address on Medicine will be made by Dr. Hobart Amory Hare, Professor of Therapeutics and Clinicai Medicine, Jefferson Medical College. Philadelphia. The social as well as the scientific part of the meeting will be of the highest order. The Mississippi Valley Medical Association possesses one great advantage over similar bodies, in that its organic law is such that nothing can be discussed during the sessions save and except science. All ethical matters are referred, together with all extraordinary business, to appropriate committees — their decisions are final and are ac- cepted without discussion. The constitution and by-laws are comprehensive and at the same time simple. Precious time is not allowed the demagegue or the medical legislator. The offi- cers of the Pan-American Medical Congress will hold a confer- ence at the same time and place. E. S. McKee, M.D., Cincin- nati, is the secretary. “6 SCIENCE: SCHMNGT:: A WEESLY NEWSPAPER OF ALL THE ARTS AND SCIENCES. PUBLISHED BY IND CoE OD) Gert: 874 BROADWAY, NEW YorK. SUBSCRIPTIONS.—United States and Canada..... ..,..-..-. $3.50 a year. Great Britain and Europe.........-.....-. 4.50 a year. Communications will be welcomed from any quarter. Abstracts of scientific papers are solicited, and one hundred copies of the issue containing such will be mailed the author on request in advance, Rejected manuscripts will be returned to the authors only when the requisite amount of postage accom- panies the manuscript. Whatever is intended for insertion must be authenti- eated by the name and address of the writer; not necessarily for publication, but as a guaranty of good faith. We do not hold ourselves responsible for any view or opinions expressed in the communications of our correspondents. Attention is called to the ‘‘Wants”’ column. It is invaluable to those who use it in soliciting information or seeking new positions. The name and address of applicants should be given in full. so that answers will go direct to them. The ‘‘Exchange’’ column is likewise open. For Advertising Rates apply to HENRY F’, Taytor, 47 Lafayette Place, New York. THE DE LAINCEL FUND FOR THE STUDY OF THE MAYA LANGUAGE AND ITS GRAPHIC SYSTEM. BY WM. M. AUGNEY. THE de Laincel Fund, so-named, after a relative, by a gen- tleman of Philadelphia, now residing in Mexico, who con- tributes handsomely to its support, has for its object a thorough study of the graphic system of the ancient Mayas, by collecting vocabularies of that language and its dialects, and obtaining reliable artistic reproductions, by means of photographs, of the ancient cities and mural inscriptions of Central America, also photographing and copying ancient manuscripts or other material which will be of service to students in this special field of research. The work will be carried on under the direction of an ad- visory committee, to be chosen from among ethnologists who are authorities upon, and students of, the Maya language, its paleography and art. The exploration of the fund will be carried on under the direction of Dr. Hilborne T. Cresson of Philadelphia, well known as an ethnologist in America and Europe. The re- sult of his researches have at times been published by the Peabody Museum, where for the past five years he has been a special assistant, working under the direction of Professor F. W. Putnam of Harvard University. Dr. Cresson’s artis- tic training at the Ecole des Beaux Arts, in the ateliers of the sculptor Alexander Dumont, and the painter J. Leon Gerome (his works having been exposed in the Sslon of 1877), joined to that of an accomplished French and Spanish scholar, especially capacitates him for this line of research. He has also for some years past been studying the Maya lan- guage under the direction of so distinguished an authority as Professor Daniel G. Brinton, and a good basis has thus been obtained for future research. The de Laincel Fund will act-in conjunction with some of our leading American institutions, yet to be determined upon, or independently, as its patron may deem best. The work will be earried on during the healthy season in the south, adopting the plan already pursued by other exploring [VoLt. XX. No. 491 parties — that of carrying out its investigations during those months which are best suited to the sanitary condition of its workers. Secretary’s office, 519 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, June 27. CURRENT NOTES ON ANTHROPOLOGY. — IX. [Edited by D. G. Brinton, M.D., LL.D.] The Peruvian Languages Now that the great work of Dr. E. W. Middendorf on the Peruvian languages has been brought to a conclusion by the publication of the sixth and last volume, that on the Muchik (or Chimu or Yunea) tongue, the high value of this contri- bution to American ethnology should be urged on the scien- tific world. Dr. Middendorf is a medical man who practised his pro- fession many years ago in various parts of Peru, making a study of the native dialects his favorite recreation. He thus became practically familiar with them as living tongues, and backed up that knowledge by an acquaintance with such literature as they possessed. The results of this long devotion are now before us in six large octavo volumes, published by Brockhaus, Leipzig, and counting up in all to nearly 2,400 pages of handsomely printed material. The languages considered are the Kechua, the Aymara, and the Chimu, with an appendix on the Chibcha. There is an ample supply of grammatical analyses, texts, phrases, and, of the Kechua, a copius Kechua-German-Spanish dictionary. That the Aymara and Chimu vocabularies are not arranged alphabetically must be regarded as a blemish. One of the volumes contains the original text and a German translation of the drama of Ollanta, believed by many to be a genuine specimen of a native, pre-Columbian, dramatic production. There are also many songs and specimens of prose writings in the same tongue. Taking Middendorf’s practical observa- tions along with Tschudi’s ‘‘Organismus der KechuaSprache,” the student will find himself well equipped to master this interesting idiom. The Orientation of Primitive Structures. The study of the relative directions which the walls and angles of ancient structures bear to the cardinal points has scarcely yet received the attention from archeologists which it merits. Several varieties of this ‘‘ orientation,” as it is termed, are to be found, each with its own meaning. The ancient Egyptian mastabas and pyramids have their sides facing the cardinal points. This arose from the desire of having the door in the centre of the eastern side to face the rising sun, and the western door, sta, to face the setting sun, as it was through the latter that the god Anubis conducted the soul to the other world. On the other band, the Babylonians and Assyrians directed the angles, and not the sides, of their temples to the cardinal points, for what occult reason is not clear. Again, Mr. J. Walter Fewkes has found that the kib vas, or sacred chambers, of the Tusayan Indians at the Moqui Pueblo are oriented north-east and south-west. This. he at first thought was owing to the character of the bluff, but there are reasons to believe it of a ceremonial origin. Some curious observations in this connection are reported by Mr. Robert M. Swan, about the Zimbabwe ruins, in the last number of the Journal of the Royal Geographical So- ciety. He found a series of ornaments on the walls of the great temple so disposed that one group would receive di- rectly the sun’s rays at his rising and another at his setting at the period of the winter solstice, when these points in that. JuLy 1, 1892.] latitude were respectively 25° south of east and west; whilea third series of ornaments faced the full midday sun. Others were similarly arranged for the summer solstice; and a great stone over the temple showed, by alignment with the main altar and a carved pattern on the wall, the true north and south. Last year an English archzologist undertook a journey to Greece to make a special study of the orientation of the ancient temples on that classic ground, but his results have not yet appeared. Certainly, as will be seen from the above, the point is one full of significance. On Prosopology. There is little doubt that craniology, as a branch of an- thropology, has been much over-estimated, and affords only very insecure material for ethnic classifications. On the other hand, the study of the features of the face, which may be called Prosopology, from the Greek, prosopon, face, is yielding constantly more valuable results. The width or narrowness of the face, the nasal and orbital indices, the prominence of the jaws, the facial angles, and the devel- opment of the chin, all are points of prime ethnic signifi- cance. One of the leading Kuropean writers on this subject is Professor Kohlman of Basel, whose works are extremely in- structive. In this country a series of papers on ‘‘ The Eth- nology of the Face,” by Dr. A. H. Thompson, have ap- peared in the Dental Cosmos for the current year. They place the details of the subject in a popular light, and em- phasize its value; but they would be more satisfactory had their author not been led astray by some of the books which he quotes. Toclass the Eskimos and the American Indians among the Mongolians is quite out of date; and to call the white race Caucasians, and to divide them into blondes and brunettes as leading subdivisions is scarcely less so. He does, indeed, distinguish an ‘‘ Americanoid” type, from which he excludes the Eskimos and Aleuts as being ‘“‘true Mongols; ” on what grounds he or any one would be puz- zled to say. He describes the hair of this ‘‘ Americanoid ” type as similar to that of the Mongolians, from which, in fact, it differs in nearly every respect. In spite of these drawbacks, Dr. Thompson’s articles form a welcome and praiseworthy addition to recent American contributions to anthropologic literature. Linguistic Bibliography. The study of American languages will in the future be vastly facilitated by the admirable series of bibliographies by Mr. James C. Pilling, which are now being published by the Bureau of Ethnology. Some idea of their thoroughness may be gained from the fact that the latest issued, confined to the Algonquian dialects alone, has 614 double-columned, closely printed, large octavo pages ! Compare this with the 258 pages of Ludewig’s ‘‘ Bibliography of American Aborigi- nal Literature,” which included all the languages of both North and South America ! - Mr. Pilling has put forth similar volumes, less in size but not inferior in completeness, on the Iroquois, Eskimo, Da- kota and Muskokee groups of tongues; and proposes to lay a similar basis for the study of all the North American stocks. It would be most desirable for some similar cata- logue to be made relating to the tongues of South America. The Decrease of the Birth-rate. One of the most portentous problems is the decrease of the birth-rate in certain social conditions. It is asserted on apparently good authority that the Negritos and the Poly- SCI INGE: if nesians are dying out, largely owing to the infertility of their marriages. Certain South American tribes, the Guatos of Paraguay, for instance, will soon disappear from the same cause. But we need not confine our instances to savage peoples. Physicians say that our ‘‘ colonial dames,” scions of Anglo-American families who have lived several generations in this country, have much smaller families than their great-grandmothers. In France this lessening of the birth-rate has assumed serious proportions, and has alarmed patriotic men lest as a nation it should become numerically too weak to hold its own in the conflicts of the future. The distinguished author and statesman, the Marquis de Nadaillac, has published some stirring admonitions to his countrymen on the subject under the titles ‘‘ Le Peril National and la Depopulation de la France.” He finds the birth-rate least in the cities, in the richest communes, and in the most prosperous conditions of society. Turning to its causes, he has convinced himself that this diminution is voluntary and of malice prepense on the part of married couples. They do not want the bother of many children; they do not wish their property to be split up; they prefer pleasure and ease to the labor of parental duties. Young men prefer mistresses to wives, and mistresses are always barren. The competition of modern life and its rabid thirst for enjoyment undermine the family tie. The birth-rate is small, not for physiological but for sociological reasons. How far this applies to the United States has not yet been sufficiently investigated; but it is probably nearly equally true here. THE VARIABILITY OF SPECIFIC CHARACTERS AS EXHIBITED BY THE EXTINCT GENUS CORY- PHODON. BY CHARLES EARLE. Iv is a well-recognized law in biology, that a species or a genus upon the point of extinction undergoes a great amount of variation; and, as an example of this kind, I propose to describe some of the variations which the species of the fossil genus Coryphodon exhibit. The fine collection of Coryphodon material in the Ameri- can Museum of Natural History has enabled me to study this subject; and in a forthcoming paper in the Bulletin of the Museum I shall attempt a revision of the American spe- cies of Coryphodon. i The great amount of variation in this genus is shown from the fact that no less than twenty-one species have been de- scribed, and only in a few cases have any of them been ac- knowledged as synonyms. Taking up the variation of the teeth, I will first describe the structure of a typical upper and lower molar of Cory- phodon. The superior molars are a modification of the primitive tri-tubercular type, in which the anterior crescent, or antero-external lobe, has been lost, or so much modified that only traces of it remain. On the antero-external por- tion of the crown there is a prominent cone, which is in connection with the single internal lobe by a sharp crest (see Fig. a, ¢); this forms the main grinding surface of the tooth. On the second superior molar of a true Coryphodon there is always a well-developed postero-external crescent (see Fig. e, ¢), which is homologous with the postero-exter- nal crescent of other forms. This crescent may undergo a great amount of variation, as will be described later. In the last superior molar the postero-external crescent is repre- sented by only a crest, which runs parallel, or nearly so, 8 SCIENCE: with the anterior crest already described. As in all the early Hocene-Tertiary Mammalia, the pumolars of both the lower and upper series are much simpler than the true mo- lars. The structure of the lower molars of Coryphodon is interesting, as it represents a stage in the modification of a more primitive type, which had the enamel arranged in the form of two symmetrical V’s or crescents. Now in Cory- phodon the anterior limb of each crescent is nearly reduced ; this applies especially to the posterior V. The portion of | the tooth bearing the anterior V is raised high above the posterior or heel part. The variation in size of the teeth of the different species of Coryphodon is very great, and in nota single instance have I been able to find two individuals, of the same species, whose teeth are of the same size. This variation is shown in the form of the canines and incisor teeth; in the former the difference in size is largely due to age and sex. The last upper molar undergoes a great amount of varia- tion, it varying from the nearly quadrate form to that of an elongated oval, the latter form occurring in the more modi- fied species. The modification of the elements of the crown of the second superior molar is interesting, as we can trace in _ this transformation a true phyletic series, from the less spe- cialized to the more modified species. The typical forms of Coryphodon have the external crescent of this tooth well developed. The first step towards reduction of the crescent occurs where the intermediate portion of the posterior limb (see upper Fig. p) disappears, leaving an external isolated cusp (C. testis). This condition is found permanent on the last superior molar of Hctacodon, the latter genus not hay- ing advanced so far in its dental evolution as Coryphodon. The species C. elephantopus represents an intermediate stage in its dental evolution between that of Coryphodon testis and Ectacodon. Professor Cope established the genus Metalophodon upon the character of the crescent of the second superior molar, and in this genus the posterior limb of the crescent is nearly reduced. As all stages exist in which this crescent is well developed down to that where it is wanting, I can not accept Metalophodon as a good genus, and believe it should be con- sidered a synonym of Coryphodon. The most modified con- dition of this crescent is where it is reduced to merely the anterior limb. The latter stage is permanent in the last upper molar of all the known species of Coryphodon; but it is interesting to note that in a genus described by Cope, called Manteodon, the last upper molar has a perfectly formed external crescent. The genus Manteodon differs from all other genera of the Coryphodontide from the fact that the last upper molar has two well-developed internal cones. Now in all other forms of this family the postero-internal cone (hypocone) is wanting, although traces of it occur in C. elephantopus. It is not without considerable difficulty that the homolo- gies of some of the elements of the upper molars of Corypho- don are determined. The form of molar from which the Coryphodon type of tooth has probably arisen, occurs in the genus Pantolambda, which is from the Puerco or lowest Hocene beds of New Mexico. In Pantolambda both the external crescents of the superior molars are well devel- oped, and the internal cone has two crests running out from it. Now what are the homologies of the anterior portion of the Coryphodon molar as compared with that of Pantolambda. The postero-external crescent is equally well developed in both forms, but what has become of tue anterior crescent in Coryphodon, which is so strongly [VoLt. XX. No 4o1 developed in Pantolambda2? The prominent cusp (see Fig. e.m.) on the external face of all the superior molars of Coryphodon probably represents the reduced anterior erescent of Pantolambda. This is the homology advanced by Professor Cope. The anterior crest of Coryphodon has arisen by the development of the crest running outwards from the internal cone of Pantolambda. ‘Thus it is by studying the earlier or more primitive types of many of the Mammalian phyla that we are enabled to interpret those marvellous changes which different parts of the dental and skeletal structures have undergone. The structure of the last lower molar displays considerable variation ; this affects particularly the elements of the heel (see lower Fig. h.). In the more primitive species the two cusps forming the heel are in astraight line, whereas in other vari- eties a small cusp may arise in the posterior valley of the heel, internal to the postero-internal cusps (e, n, a). The growth of this rudimentary cusp causes the pushing outwards of the x A superior and inferior molar of a typical species of Coryphodon (C. radians). a, é. c., antero-external cone; a.c., anterior crest; 7. c., internal cone; e. m., external median cusp; e.c., postero-external crescent; a., anterior limb of crescent; p., posterior limb; h., heel of lower molar; hy.d., external cone of heel; en.d@., internal cone. internal of the two primitive cusps forming the heel; further growth causes the primitive internal cusp to occupy a median position, and it now fulfils the function of a fifth lobe of some of the other Ungulates. This postero-median cusp is merely an analogical structure, and its development, proves that it is not homologous with the fifth lobe of th Lophiodonts. : The skeletal variations are many in this group, they affect principally the length and heaviness of the limb bones, and also the size of their articular extremities may vary a great deal. The variations of the astragalus are particularly interest- ing, as upon them in some cases new genera have been es- tablished. A very primitive structure occurs in the tarsus of Coryphodon, as in all the other genera of the Amblypoda; that is, on the inner side of the astragalus, a separate bone, or rather a facet for this bone to articulate with, is present. The bone articulating with this facet is generally called the tibiale or internal navicular. Baur’ has shown that the 1 American Naturalist, January, 1885, p. 87. JuLy 1, 1892.] tibiale occurs in the tarsus of the recent genera Cercolabes and Hrethizon as it does in that of Coryphodon; therefore the presence of this bone must be considered as one of the primitive characters of the skeleton of this extinct group of Ungulates. The relations of the tibiale facet to the other facets of the astragalus may vary a good deal, and in many cases the tibiale facet appears to be absent, whereas it is really not separated from the navicular facet of the astragalus. In conclusion, I wish to add that I was led to write this abstract in order to show the numerous variations of the species of OCoryphodon, and that in this group it is exceed- ingly difficult to say where one species ends and another ‘begins. In most cases the characters run into each other so insensibly that it is almost impossible to separate the species. However, I believe there are about eight good species of Coryphodon whose characters show a progression from the primitive to the more specialized types; this progression and specialization affecting the teeth more particularly, as already described. American Museum of Natural History, New York. INDIAN NUMERALS. BY EDWARD F. WILSON. In an essay on ‘‘The Origin of Languages,” published several years ago by Mr. Hale, the idea is suggested that, as, for example, among our native Indians a family may, while hunting or in time of warfare, have chanced to become separated entirely from the rest of the tribe, father, mother, and elder members of the family may all have perished, and two or three little children have been left alone. Such chil- dren, Mr. Hale thinks, would gradually invent a new lan- guage of their own, retaining, perhaps, a few words or parts of words of their mother tongue. In this manner, he thinks, may be accounted for the remarkable diversity of tongues among the Indians of the Pacific coast, where among the mountains and forests a family might thus easily become isolated, and the comparative oneness of speech on the great central plains of this continent and in such an open country as Australia. If there is any good foundation for such a theory as the above, we should expect that the old words retained by these young founders of new varieties of speech would be words of the simplest character and those most often in use in the domestic circle. And, indeed, I think we do find that fire, ‘water, I, you, one, two, three, four, five are the words that generally approach the nearest to one another in a compari- son of the different vocabularies. The North American Indians, as a general rule, count by the decimal system, as do most civilized peoples; but it is noticeable that, after giving a distinct name to each figure from one to five, they, in many of the dialects, seem to com- mence anew with the figure six, the first part of that num- eral sometimes being a contraction, or other form, of the numeral one, and the latter part of the word seeming to point on towards ten. Thus, ‘in the Ojebway we have (1) pejig, (2) nij, (3) niswi, (4) niwin, (5) nanin, (6) ningod- waswi, (7) nijwaswi, (8) nishwaswi, (9) shangaswi, (10) midaswi. It will be noticed here that from six to ten inclu- sive the termination is aswi. Ningo, with which six begins, is another form of pejig (1) never used alone, but only in composition, thus: ningo-gijik, one day; ningo-tibaiigan, One measure. In the Cree language (another Algonkin dia- lect) the first ten numerals are as follows: (1) peyik, (2) SCIENCE. 9 niso, (3) nisto, (4) né-o, (5) niya’nin, (6) nikotwasik, (7) tepakap, (8) ayvena’new, (9) keka mita’tat, (10) mita’tat. Here it will be noticed that these Cree numerals resemble those of the Ojebways from one to six, but with seven they branch out into distinct words; then with ten they come together again, mita’tat not being dissimilar to midas’wi, and still more like midatching, the Ojebway equivalent for ‘‘ ten times.” Neither is the Cree numeral for nine so unlike that of the Ojebways as might at first sight appear. Keka mita’tat means ‘‘nearly ten,” and this suggests that the Ojebway word shangaswi may mean the same, chegaiy or chig’ being the Ojebway for near. The reason for the decimal system being so prevalent all over the world, both among civilized and barbarous people, is doubtless the fact that human beings are possessors of ten fingers, five on each hand. The common manner of count- ing among the Indians is to turn down the little finger of the left hand for one, the next finger in order for two, the next for three, the next for four, and the thumb for five; then the thumb of the right hand for six, and so on until the little finger of the right hand is turned down for ten. In indicating numbers to others, the left hand held up with all the fingers turned down except the little finger would mean one; that and the next finger to it held up would mean two and soon. In countiug by tens they will close the fingers of each hand to indicate each ten, or they will hold both hands up with the palms outward and fingers ex- tended for each ten. Some Indian tribes in counting resort to their toes as well as their fingers, and thus follow the vigesimal system. The Indians of Guiana, it is said, call five a hand, ten two hands, and twenty a man. The Dakotas have a peculiar system of theirown. When they have gone over the fingers and thumbs of both hands, one finger is temporarily turned down for one ten. At the end of the next ten another finger is turned, and so on to a hundred. Opawinge, one hundred, is derived from pawinga, to go around in circles, to make gyrations. Indians are not generally good arithmeticians. In their native state they have no idea of making even the simplest mental calculation. To add or subtract they will use sticks, pebbles, or other such objects. To illustrate the manner in which various tribes (some of them of different stocks) count from ten upwards, examples are herewith given from the Ojebway, Blackfoot, Micmac, and Dakota languages: With the Ojebways 10 is midaswi; 11, 12 are midaswi ashi pejig, midaswi ashi nij; 20, 30 are nij tana, nisimidana; 21, nij-tana ashi pejig; 100, ningo- dwak; 101, ningodwak ashi pejig. With the Blackfeet 10 is kepo; 11, 12, kepo nitsiko’poto; 20, 30, natsippo, niippo; 100, kepippo. With the Micmacs 10 is mttln; 11, 12, mtiiln tcel na-ukt, mtiiln tcel tabu; 20, 30 are tabu inskiiik, nasinskiiik; 21, tabu inskiiik tcel na-ukt; 100, ktiskim- ttilnakiin; 101, kuskimtiilnaktin tcel na-ukt. With the Dakotas (or Sioux) 10 is wiktcemna; 11, 12, wiktcemna sanpa wanjidan (10 more one), wiktcemna sanpa nonpa; 20, 30 are wiktcemna nonpa (ten two), wiktcemna yamni; 21, wiktcemna nonpa sanpa wanjidan (ten two more one); 100 is opawinge, meaning a circle. In some of the Indian languages there is more than one set of the cardinal numbers. Animate objects may be counted with one set, inanimate with another. They may have a particular set for counting fish or for counting skins; perhaps a set for counting standing objects, and another set for counting sitting objects, ete. 10 SCIENCE To give a few instances in the Ojebway tongue: nanan, 5; nanominag, 5 globubar, animate objects, as turnips, seeds, etc.; nanonag, 5 boats or canoes; nanoshk, 5 breadths of cloth; and nanoshkin, 5 bags full (nadshkin meaning full) ; nanosag, 5 things of wood; nanwabik, 5 things of metal. Tn the Zimshian language ( Brit. Columbia) guel means one if the object is neuter, gaul, if masculine or feminine, gou- uz-gtin, when the thing is long like a tree or pencil, ga’at, if a fish or animal is spoken of, gtimmet, if applied toa canoe; the other numerals change in the same way. It is interesting to note that in the Ainu, the aboriginal language of Japan, a distinction is made in the numeral according as the object spoken of is animate or inanimate, thus: shinen, one person; shinep, one thing; tun, two per- sons; tup, two things. Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, June 22. BLACK KNOT. BULLETIN No. 40 of the New York State Experiment Sta- tion at Geneva (Peter Collier, director) contains a valuable summary of our present knowledge concerning this pest, from which the following is abstracted : — The ‘‘Black Knot” is a disease of plums and cherries, which causes the formation of a hard, rough, black, wart-like surface on an enlarged or distorted outgrowth of the bark. The following statements, furnished by Mr. P. Groom Bran- dow of Athens, Green County, N.Y., indicate the former ex- tent and value of the plum industry in that region and its total devastation by the Black Kuct. ; He states that, beginning at Cedar Hill, about four miles below Albany, the plum district included a belt about three miles on each side of the river and extended southward about thirty-six miles to Germantown. He began setting plums for a commercial orchard in 1861, and at one time had six thousand trees. Two of his neighbors each had about two thousand trees, and most of the farmers went into the busi- ness to a greater or lessextent. It was no uncommoa thing for a steamer to carry from one hundred to five hundred barrels of plums to New York at one trip. For four days’ picking in one week he received $1,980. In 1884 he netted $8,000 from his plums, and the next year he rooted out over five thousand trees on account of the Black Knot. From twenty-five hundred young trees two to three years old, left at that time, he thinks he has not yet realized over $250. It was formerly believed that Black Knot was produced by some gall insect, and it is not strange that this opinion prevailed on account of the gall-like character of the knots and the fact that they are frequently in‘ested by insects. Some believed it to be the work of the curculio, others thought that it was not the curculio, but some other in- sect or cause that produced the knots. But several years ago Dr. W. G. Farlow published, in the first annual re- port of the Bussey Institute, the results of his investiga- tions, which proved conclusively that the Black Knot is caused solely by a parasitic fungus which grows within the bark, and which is now known to science by the name of Plowrightia morbosa. It is recognized as growing on culti- vated cherries, and also on the wild red or yellow plum, the Chicasaw plum, the choke-cherry, the wild red cherry, and the wild black cherry. It is commonly most destructive to the plum, but also seriously attacks the cherry. The external appearance of the mature form of the Black Knot is generally well known. It appears at this stage asa [VoL. XX. No. 491 rough, wart-like excrescence, or distorted outgrowth, from the bark of twigs and branches, and in severe cases may extend along the trunk for several feet. The first outward sign of the formation of a new knot is seen in a swelling of the tissue within the bark either in the fall or during the grow- ing season of the tree. The swelling increases till the bark © is ruptured, and over the surface thus exposed the fungus sends out numerous threads (hype), which produce a vel- vety appearance and are of an olive-green color. Microscopic examination of the velvety surface reveals multitudes of newly formed and forming spores borne on these upright threads. These spores (conidia) are called summer spores. When full grown they drop off from the supporting threads, and when carried by winds, insects, or other agencies, to another host-plant, under favorable conditions they may start growth and form a new centre of disease, from which in time other trees may also be infested, and thus spread the disease from tree to tree and neighborhood to neighbor- hood. The best way to deal with thoroughly infested trees is to cut them down and burn them at once, thus insuring the destruction of the spores before they spread the disease any further. Trees not badly infested may be treated by cutting off affected branches some distance below the knot. This operation is best performed in the fall immediately after the foliage drops, because the winter spores are not formed at that time and consequently there is less danger of their being disseminated in the operation, and also because the work can be done more thoroughly when there are no leaves to hide the knot. Thesummer spores must also be taken care of in their season. Assoon as there is any indications of the formation of anew knot, in the spring or during the summer, the branch on which it occurs should be cut and burned. The first out- ~ break will probably be noticed about the middle of May. It is important to note that if a branch containing the knot be cut from the tree and thrown on the ground, the spores will ripen in due time just thesame. Therefore the practice of collecting carefully and burning every knot cannot be too strongly urged. The bulletins of the Massachusetts Experiment Station contain some experiments in the application of various sub- stances for the purpose of destroying the knot. Kerosene, turpentine, linseed oil, sulphate of copper, and a mixture of red oxide of iron and linseed oil are mentioned among the substances tried. These seem to be effective in destroying warts to which they are applied to saturation, but care must be used with the turpentine and kerosene or the entire branch will be killed. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR. #*x Correspondents are requested to be as brief as possible. is in all cases required as proof of good faith. The editor will be glad to publish any queries consonant with the character of the journal. On request in advance, one hundred copies of the number containing his communication will be furnished free to any correspondent. The writer's nume A Plea for the Study of Psychology. THE perusal of a report, written by a member of the visiting committee of one of our universities, induced me to write these lines. In the course of the report, the remark is made that the study of psychology is difficult, and therefore few students take the study. The importance and advantage derived from studying a subject are to be considered more than its difficulty. Its use- fulness is determined by its educational value; and surely there is no subject of study more useful and beneficial than psychology; for all persons who deal with people require a knowledge of this subject. > “ball-lightning was seen in this village. JuLy 1, 1892.,] Since psychology has been taken out of the field of metaphysics, and has entered the domain of the natural sciences, it has devel- oped marvellously. The accuracy and stability it has attained are proportionate to its development. Biology has brought about this change. The former position psychology occupied was not so much to determine the relation and connection between mind and organism as to determine the science of pure thought. But now psychologists have studied the brain, anatomists have dissected the cerebral lobes, chemists have analyzed the different substances of the nerves and brain, and its size, weight, shape, and specific gravity have been taken into account for the sole purpose of deter- mining psychical phenomena; also the laws of development have been applied to the phenomena of the human mind. The study of animal instinct, the growth of children, the customs, habits, and beliefs of early tribes and races, the study of defectives, the study of the brain and the senses and the logical connections of ideas, have all received their share of attention. There is no psychical phe- nomenon and no act of human conduct which does not come within the province of psychology. The sciences of ethics, of theology, of law, of jurisprudence, of history, of medicine, of pedagogy, and of politics presume a Inowledge of the workings of the human mind. For who, unless competent to analyze cor- rectly and justly the feelings, desires, and motives that prompt action, would desire to determine the motives that underlie human conduct or pass upon the laws of right and wrong. How much more humane would a person be in his judgment upon the acts and conduct of another if he knew the causes of them. How many mistakes would be avoided in the training and education of the young, if parents and teachers were more conversant with the principles of psychology. How much more accurate could judges be in dispensing justice, if they were less dependent upon their personal experience, and knew more about the principles of psy- cology. What material aid could lawyers give in establishing the truth, if they were well versed in the study of psychology. How many grave blunders could be avoided, if statesmen and legis- lators understood more thoroughly the spirit of the times and the popular mind. That the larger portion of professional men know little, if any- thing, about psychology cannot be denied, and if they do know something about the study, their knowledge is either founded on their persenal experience and on common maxims, or it is de- rived from some book written from some particular standpoint. Most of such knowledge is incorrect and wrong, and it is one of the objects of psychology to correct these false notions. Tn conclusion, I will quote John Stuart Mill, who has given an excellent statement of the reasons why psychology should be studied. He says: ‘‘ Psychology, in truth, is simply the knowl- edge of the laws of human nature. If there is anything that de- serves to be studied by man, it is his own nature and that of his fellow-men; and if it is worth studying at all, it is worth studying scientifically so as to reach the fundamental laws which underlie and govern all the rest. There are certain observed laws of our thoughts and our feelings, which rest upon experimental evidence, and, once seized, are a clue to the interpretation of much that weare conscious of in ourselves, and observe in one another. Such, for example, are the laws of association. Psychology, so far as it consists of such laws, is a3 positive and certain a science as chem- istry, and fit to be taught as such.” FRANKLIN A, BECHER. Milwaukee, Wis. Ball-Lightning. DURING a severe thunderstorm yesterday the phenomenon of An inspection of the lo- eality shows that the ball was located between a telephone wire and a conductor-pipe about three feet distant, and was doubtless of the nature of an electrical brush preceding the disruptive dis- charge. It was of a reddish color, and exploded with a report like a musket; but did no damage, nor was it attended by any smell perceptible to those who saw it, although they were distant not more than five feet. M. A. VEEDER. Lyons, N. Y., June 28. SCIENCE. If BOOK-REVIEWS. Animal Coloration. By FRANK E. BEDDARD. 8°. Macmillan & Co. In the opinion of the writer the most concise and useful treatise upon the important subject of animal coloration has very recently appeared from the presses of Macmillan & Co. Its author, Mr. Frank E. Beddard, F.R.S., is especially favorably known in this country, among morphologists, through his numerous and admir- able publications which have appeared in connection with bis duties as prosector to the Zoological Society of London. That position. coupled with the fact that Mr. Beddard has made exten- sive collections of materials to illustrate his ‘‘ Davis Lectures” on the subject of which his present volume treats, is ample evidence that he was peculiarly well fitted to deal with the subject. The work, a small octavo of some 300 pages, is golten up with all that exquisite taste and style which has long ago made the house of the Macmillans so justly famous. Many excellent wood-cuts and several beautiful, colored lithographic plates illustrate its pages, they being especially devoted to giving striking examples of ‘‘ protective coloration” among animals, as well as “‘ protective mimicry,” ‘* sexual coloration,” ‘‘ warning coloration,” ‘‘ colora- tion as affected by environment,’ and numerous kindred topics. Completing the volume, we find a well-digested ‘‘ General In- dex,” and an ‘‘ Index of Authors’ Names.” Among the latter we note those of many laborers in this country, and it is gratifying to see that America’s work along such lines is upon the constant increase, and from year to year meets with enhanced favor. Our author, in his ‘‘ Introductory,” clearly defines the distinction be- tween ‘‘Color” and ‘ Coloration,” the former being the actual tints which are found in animals, the latter simply referring to their arrangement or pattern. Of course, the terms become syn- onymous in uni-tinted animals. *‘ The colours of animals are due either solely to the presence of definite pigments in the skin, or, in the case of transparent animals, to pigment in the tissues lying beneath the skin; or, they are partly caused by optical effects due to the scattering, diffraction, or unequal refraction of the light rays.’ Other matters more or less remotely bearing upon this part of the subject are briefly, though ably, dealt with, nothing of importance having been overlooked. Mr. Beddard has not re- mained satisfied with drawing upon any special class or group of animals for illustration, but has carried his investigations into all nature, touching in the most brilliant manner upon the signifi- cance of the colors and coloration of ‘‘ deep-sea forms,” ‘‘ cave animals,” and indeed plant and animal growths from all parts of the globe. Nor has he omitted to discuss the theories of various other authorities than those advanced by himself; in short, the entire subject covered by this highly inviting field of research seems to be brought felly up to date, and in many instances the book even extends our knowledge. Biologists everywhere will thank Mr. Beddard for this contribution, and its modest price ($3.50) will constitute no real barrier to its soon appearing upon the shelves of every working naturalist in the United States. New York, R. W. SHUFELDT. Takoma, D.C. AMONG THE PUBLISHERS. A NEW work on astronomy, entitled in ‘‘Starry Realms,” has recently come from the press of J. B. Lippincott Company. The object of the work is to give the general reader some sketches of specially interesting matters relatimg to the heavenly bodies. The opening chapters are devoted to the more important relations of the sun to the earth, in which the author illustrates the different functions which the sun performs. The moon’s history, and the phenomena attendant upon the lunar world, the planets, the meteors, the stars, are also ably considered. The work is embel- lished with ten full-page illustrations, and others in the text. — Beginning with the July number. the magazine hitberto known as Babyhood will bear the name of The Mother's Nursery Guide, which expresses its purpose more fully and clearly than did the old appellation. There is no other change discernable in the essential features of the magazine, which looks back upon a 12 prosperous past of nearly eight years. The July number contains a summary, by the medical editor, of the present status of the question of milk sterilization, concerning the value of which the last word has not yet beensaid. ‘‘ Baby’s Flannels” forms the sub- ject of another medical paper. __ The new edition of ‘‘ Chambers’s Encyclopeedia” is rapidly nearing completion, and with the advent of one more volume this standard reference book will be at the command of all who are desirous of procuring a most accurate, convenient, and useful encyclopedia. The ninth volume has just been issued. Among the more important American articles are found San Francisco, St. Louis, St. Paul, Scandinavian Mythology, Sir Walter Scott, Sewage, Sewing Machine, Shakers, Shakespeare, Shelley, Phil. Sheridan, Sherman, Ship-Building, Silk, Silver, Slang, Soda, South Carolina, Spain, Sugar, Spiritualism, etc. These are all copy- righted, as are also the articles by American authors in all the volumes issued. The maps of this number include Russia, Scot- land, South Australia, Spain, and South Carolina, prepared accord- ing to tbe latest geographical surveys. * Chambers’s Encyclo- peedia” is never disappointing, its articles are well up to date, and a large number of entirely new subjects are introduced. The illustrations are incomparably the best ever issued in a work of this character. The volumes contain on an average nearly a thousand pages each. Volume X. will be issued in the fall. J.B. SCIENCE: [VoL. XX. No. 491 — Messrs. Joseph Baer & Co., booksellers, Frankfort, are sell- ing the botanical library of the late Professor L. Just, director of the botanical garden connected with the Polytechnicum at Carls- ruhe. The list includes many important works in various depart- ments of botanical science. —JIn 1874 the British Association published a volume of ‘‘ Notes and Queries on Anthropology,” the object beingyto promote accurate anthropological observation on the part of travellers, and to enable those who were not anthropologists themselves to supply infor- mation wanted for the scientific study of anthropology at home. A second edition has long been wanted and a committee was ap- pointed by the British Association to consider and report on the best means for bringing the volume up to the requirements of the present time. The committee recommended that the work should be transferred to the Anthropological Institute, and this proposal was accepted, the Association making grants amounting to £70 to aid in defraying the cost of publication. The new edi- tion has now been issued, according to Nature, the editors being Dr. J. G. Garson and Mr. C. H. Read; and everyone who may have occasion to use it will find it thorough and most suggestive. The first part —Anthropography — has been entirely recast; the sec- ond part — Ethnography — has been revised, and additional chap- ters have been written. Among the contributors to the volume are Mr. F. Galton, Mr. A. W. Franks, Dr. E. B. Tylor. General Lippincott Company are the American publishers. Pitt-Rivers, and many other well-known authorities. Societas Entomologica. International Entomological Society, Zu- rich-Hottingen, Switzerland. Annual fee, ten francs. The Journal of the Society appears twice a month, and consists entirely of original ar- ticles on entomology, with a department for advertisements. All members may use this department free of cost for advertisements relating to entomology. The Society consists of about 450 members in all countries of the world. The new volume began April 1, 1892. The numbers already issued will be sent to new members. For information address Mr. Fritz Rua, President of the Societas Entomologica, Zurich-Hottingen, Switzerland. NEO-DARWINISM AND NEO-LAMARCKISM. By LESTE F. WARD. Annual address of the President of the Biological Society of Washington delivered Jan. 24, 1891. A historical and critical review of modern scientific thought relative to heredity, and especially to the problem of the transmission of acquired characters, The following are the several heads involved in the discussion Status of the Problem, Lamarckism. Darwinism, Acquired Characters, Theories of He- redity, Views of Mr. Galton, Teachings of Professor Weismann, A Critique of Weismann, Neo-Darwin- ism, Neo-Lamarckism, the American “School,” Ap- plication to the Human Race. Inso far as views are expressed they are in the main jn line with the general current of American thought, and opposed to the extreme doctrine of the non-transmissibility of acquired characters. Price, postpaid, 25 cents. N. D. C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, W. ¥. SCIENCE CLUBBING RATES. 10% DISCOUNT. We will allow the above discount to any subscriber to Science who will send us an order for periodicals exceeding $10, counting each at its full price. N. D, C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. Y. Exchanges. [Freeofcharge to all, if ofsatisfactory character. Address N. D. C. Hodges, 874 Broadway, New York.] Taxidermist going out of business has quantity of finely-mounted specimens of North American birds, mammals and reptiles and skins of birds for sale, including a full local collection of bird skins, show- ing some great variations of species; also quantity of skulls with horns of deer and mountain sheep, and mounted heads of same. Will give good ex- change for Hawk Eye camera with outfit. Apply quickly to J. R. Thurston, 265 Yonge St., Toronto, Canada. For exchange.—A fine thirteen-keyed flute in leather covered case, for a photograph camera suitable for mak- ing lantern slides. Flute cost $27, and is nearly new. U. O. COX, Mankato, Minn. To exchange ; Experiment Station bulletins and reports for bulletins and reports not in my file. will send list of what I have for exchange. P. H. ROLES, Lake City, Florida. Finished specimens of all colors of Vermont marble for fine fossils or crystals. Will be given only for valuable specimens because of the cost of polishing. GEO. W. PERRY, State Geologist, Rutland, Vt. For exchange.—Three copies of ‘‘ American State Papers Bearing on Sunday Legislation,” 1891, $2.50, new and unused, for ‘The Sabbath,” by Harmon Kingsbury, 1840; ‘The Sabbath,” by A. A. Phelps, 1842; ‘* History of the Institution of the Sabbath Day, Its Uses and Abuses,”’ by W. L. Fisher, 1859; *‘ Humorous Phases of the Law,” by Irving Browne; or other works amounting to value of books exchanged, on the question of govern- mental legislation in reference to religion, personal liberty, etc. If preferred, I will sell ‘‘American State Papers,” and buy other books on the subject. WILLIAM AD- DISON BLAKELY, Chicago, IIl. For Sale or Exchange for books a complete private chemical laboratory outfit. Includes large Becker bal- ance (200g. to 1-romg.), platinum dishes and crucibles, agate motors, glass-blowing apparatus, etc. For sale in part or whole. Also complete file of SidZiman’s fournad, 1862-1885 (62-71 bound); Smithsonian Reports, 1854-1883; U.S. Coast Survey. 1854-1869. Full particulars to en- quirers. F. GARDINER, JR., Pomfret, Conn. Wants. Any person seeking a position for which he zs quali- fied by his scientific attainments, or any person seeking some one to fill a position of this character, be it that of a teacher of science, chemist, draughtsman, or what not, may have the ‘Want’ inserted under this head FREE OF Cost, 7/ he satisfies the publisher of the suit- able character of his application. Any person seeking information on any scientific question, the address of auy scientific man,or who can in any way use this column for a purpose consonant with the nature of the paper, is cordially invited to do so. ANTED.—The services of a wide-awake young fp man, as correspondent, in a large manufactur- ing optical business; one preferred who hasa thor- ough knowledge of microscopy and some knowledge of photography. Address by letter, stating age and references. Optical, care of Science, 874 Broadway, New York. \ ANTED.— We want any and #1l of the following, providing we can trade other books and maga- zines or buy them cheap for cash: Academy, Lon- don, vol. 1 to 28, 35, Jan. and Feb., 89; Age of Steel, vol. 1 to 66; American Antiquarian, vol. 1, 2; Ameri- can Architect, vol. 1 to 6,9; American Art Review, vol. 3; American Field, vol. 1 to 21: American Geol- ogist, vol. 1 to 6; American Machinist, vol. 1 to 4; Art Amateur, vol. 1 to 7, Oct., 4; Art Interchange, vol. 1 to 9; Art Union, vol. 1 to 4, Jan.,44, July, °45; Bibliotheca Sacra, vol.1 to 46; Godey’s Lady’s Book, vol.1 to 20; New Englander, vol. 11; Zoologist, Series 1 and 1, Series 3 vol. 1 to 14; Allen Armendale (a novel), Raymer’s ‘‘Old Book” Store, 243 4th Ave. S., Minneapolis, Minn. We ee a@ young man, a Swarthmore Col- lege junior, a position as principal of a public high school in one of the Gulf States, or as instructor in botany, physiology, and geology in an academy or normal school. Address B., care of Librarian, Swarthmore College, Penn. ANTED.—A teacher of Geology who is familiar with the fossils of the Hamilton Group, as instructor of Geology during July next at the Natu- ral Science Camp on Canandaigua lake. Apply to ALBERT L. AREY, Director, 229 Averill Ave., Rochester, N. Y. Wanted, in exchange for the following works, any standard works on Surgery and on Diseases of Children: Wilson’s ‘*American Ornithology,”* 3 vols.; Coues’ ‘Birds of the Northwest’’ and “* Birds of the Colorado Valley,” 2vols.; Minot’s ““ Land and Game Birds of New Eng- land;”’ Samuels’ ‘‘ Our Northern and Eastern Birds;” all the Reports on the Birds of the Pacific R. R. Survey, bound in 2 vols., morocco; and a complete set of the Reports of the Arkansas Geological Survey. Please give editions and dates in corresponding. R. ELLSWORTH CALL, High School, Des Moines, Iowa. To exchange Wright’s ‘‘ Ice Age in North America”’ and Le Conte’s ‘Elements of Geology’’ (Copyright 1882) for ‘‘Darwinism,”’ by A. R. Wallace, “Origin of Species,’”’ by Darwin, ‘‘Descent of Man,’’ by Darwin, ‘‘Man’s Place in Nature,’’ Huxley, ‘‘Mental Evolution in Ani- mals,’’ by Romanes, ‘*Pre-Adamites,’? by Winchell. No books wanted except latest editions, and books in good condition. _C. S. Brown, Jr., Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tenn. ANTED.—To act as correspondent for one or two daily or weekly papers. Have worked on paper for abouttwo years. Wouldlike a position on editorial staff of humorous paper. Address GEO. C. MASON, 14 Elm St., Hartford, Conn. RANSLATOR wanted to read German architec- tural works at sight (no writing). One familiar: with technical terms desired. Address “A.,” Box 149, New York Post Office. ANTED.—A position in a manufacturing estab- lishment by a manufacturing Chemist of in- ventive ability. Address M. W. B, care of Science, 874 Broadway, N. Y. \ ANTED.—Books on Anatomy and Hypnotism. Will pay cash or give similar books in ex- change. Also want medical battery and photo out— fit. DR. ANDERSON, 182 State street, Chicago, Ill. JuLy 1, 1892. ] —The Open Court Publishing Co., Chicago, has just ready a second edition, revised. and enlarged, of Gen. M. Trumbull’s timely book on the tariff question, ‘‘ The Free-Trade Struggle in England.” —Charles L. Webster & Co. announce that they will issue in book form Mr. Poultney Bigelow’s Danube articles describing his canoe voyage down that river, the title of the book being ‘‘ Pad- dles and Politics Down the Danube.” —In Lippincott’s Magazine for July ‘‘ Peary’s North Green- land Expedition and the Relief ” is well and interestingly covered by W. E. Hughes and Benjamin Sharp. Gertrude Atherton con- tributes a short essay on ‘‘ Geographical Fiction.”’ — Charles H. Sergel & Co., Chicago, have just issued in their series of Latin-American Republics ‘‘A History of Peru,” by Clements R. Markham, which gives a complete history of the country from the conquest to the present time. They have in “press for the same series ‘‘ A History of Chile,” by Anson Uriel Hancock; and in active preparation ‘‘A History of Brazil,” by SOME GS. aS William Eleroy Curtis; ‘‘ A History of Argentine,” by Mary Aplin Sprague; and ‘‘A History of Bolivia,” by T. H. Anderson, U. S. Minister to Bolivia. — Macmillan & Co. have just ready ‘‘ The Barren Ground of Northern Canada,” by Warburton Pike, with maps. — Chain & Hardy Co., Denver, Col., have just ready a little pampblet, entitled ‘‘ Review of Ore Deposits in Various Coun- tries,” by Rudolf Keck, of Colorado Springs, Col. —G. P. Putnam’s Sons have just ready an important work on ‘“‘The English Language and English Grammar, being an histori- cal study of the sources, development and analogies of the lan- guage and of the principles governing its usages, illustrated by copious examples from writers of all periods,” by Samuel Ram- sey; the fifth and concluding volume of the ‘‘ Memoirs of Talley- rand;” ‘‘Earth-Burial and Cremation,” a history of earth-burial with its attendant evils, and the advantages offered by cremation, by Augustus G. Cobb, formerly President of the U. S. Cremation Society and Vice-President of the New York Cremation Society. Frstorats Acid Phosphate. A wonderful remedy, of the highest value in mental and nervous exhaustion. Overworked men and women, the nervous, weak and debilitat- ed, will find in the Acid Phos- phate a most agreeable, grate- ful and harmless stimulant, giv- ing renewed strength and vigor to the entire system. Dr. Edwin F. Vose, Portland, Me., says: “‘T have used it in my own case when suffer- ing from neryous exhaustion, with gratifying results. I have prescribed it for many of the various forms of nervous debility, and it has never failed to do good.”’ Descriptive pamphlet free. Rumford Chemical Works, Providence, R, I. Beware of Substitutes and Imitations. CAUTION.—Be sure the word ‘“* Hors- ford’s*®? is on the label. All others are spurious. Never sold in bulk. A TEMPORARY BINDER for Sczence is now ready, and will be mailed postpaid on receipt of 75 cents. This binder is strong, durable and elegant, has gilt side-title, and al- lows the opening of the pages per- fectly flat. Any number can be taken out or replaced without dis- turbing the others, and the papers are not mutilated for subsequent permanent binding. Filed in this binder, Sczezceis always convenient for reference. N. D. C. HODGES, Publisher, 874 Broadway, New York. LITERARY OUTFIT FREE. Anyove sending us $1.00 at once and mentioning “Science,” will receive a copy of ‘‘ Historical Sketches and Events in the Colonization of Ameri- ca,” by G. B. Hall. A square 8vo. book (6x9 inches), 223 pages, illustrated. This is a regular $2.00 book and a bargain at that price... .... $ 2 00 200 Private Library Labels; they should be used by all who own books... ......-.- - - --- “The Library,” a 10U0-page b ok containing a brief list of most important standard and mis- cellaneous books in every department of Jirera- ture. Intended for those who are about form- ingalibrary. Hints about what bo:ks to read and how to buy them. . : 1 year’s subscription to the ‘Literary Light,” a monthly magazine of Ancient, Medieval and Modern Literature............ -.-------+-:+-+:- 50 $4 00 $4.00 actual value for $1.00. Sample copy of ‘* Lit erary Light,” 10 cents (postal card won't do). Address, Literary Light, 243 4th Aye. S. ; Minneapolis, Minn. STERBROOK’S STEEL PENS. OF SUPERIOR AND STANDARD QUALITY. Leading Nos.: 048, 14, 130, 135, 239, 333 For Sale by all Stationers. THE ESTERBROOK STEEL PEN CO., Works: Oamden, N.J. 26 John St., New York. Dilolo ENGRAVING ( ‘fy, G7 PARK PLACE, NEW YORK i EE SP ENGRAVING FOR ALL ILLUSTRATIVE*AND®s "1 @) SaDVERTISING SURFOSES - PATENTS ForINVENTORS. 40-page BOOK FREE. Address W.T. Fitzgerald, Attorney at Law, Washington, D.C GE M 0 PALS Cut ready for setting. Having pur- » chased a large lot at the Mexican lo- cality, we are offering them at about one-fifth jewelers’ prices; F0c., $1, $1.50, $2, $3. This is a rare opportunity to secure a finegem very cheap. 100 pp. Mineral Catalogue ldc., in cloth 25c., Supplement 2c. GEO. L. ENGLISH & Co., Mineralogists, 733 and 725 Broadway, New York City. THE WEEKLY BULLETIN OF NEWSPAPER AND PERIODICAL LITERATURE. Catalogues and Classifies Each Week THE PRINCIPAL CONTENTS OF THE PERIODICAL PRESS. That huge mass of material heretofore inaccessible to the eager student is now rendered available. Special attention is invited to the Bulletin’s INDEX OF TECGHNIGAL LITERATURE Send for a free sample copy and learn how The Bulletin Supplies The Articles Gatalogued. Address THE WEEKLY BULLETIN, 5 Somerset Street, = = Boston, Mass. WORLD-ENGLISH. 25 Cents. HANDBOOK OF WORLD-ENGLISH. 25 Cents. Ex - President Andrew D. : White, of Cornell University, says: ‘‘I believe that the highest interests of Chris- tian civilization and of humanity would be served by its adoption.” ““So set down, our tongue is the best for the world to unite upon.” —Brooklyn Eagle. “ The idea of Mr. Bell has much to recommend it, and the presentation is charmingly clear.”—Ameri- can, Phila. “The result is a language which cannot fail to meet with acceptance.”—Boston Traveller. “*W orld English deserves the careful consideration of all serious scholars.’’—Modern Language Notes. Sent, postpaid, on receipt of price. N. D. C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, New York. FOSSIL RESINS. This book is the result of an attempt to collect the scattered notices of fossil resins, exclusive of those on amber. The work is of interest also on account of descriptions given of the insects found embedded in these long- preserved exudations from early vegetation. By CLARENCE LOWN and HENRY BOOTH 12°. $1. N. D. €. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. Y. POPULAR MANUAL OF VISIBLE SPEECH AND VOCAL PHYSIOLOGY. For use in Colleges and Normal Schools. Sent free by post by N. D. C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. ¥. Price 50 cents 14 SCIBNCE: j; VoL. XX. No. 41 QUERY. Can any reader of Sczence cite a case of lightning stroke in which the dissipation of a small conductor (one-sixteenth of an inch in diameter, say, ) has failed to protect between two horizon- tal planes passing through its upper and lower ends respective- ly? Plenty of cases have been found which show that when the conductor is dissipated the build- ing is not injured to the extent explained (for many of these see volumes of Philosophical Trans- actions at the time when light- ning was attracting the attention of the Royal Society); but not an exception is yet known, al- though this query has been pub- lished far and wide among elec- tricians. First inserted June 19. No resj oase to date. N. D. C. HODGES, 874 BROADWAY, NEW YORK. JUST READY. THE LABRADOR COAST, A Journal of two Summer Cruises to that region; with notes on its early discovery, on the Eskimo, on its physical geography, geology and natural history, together with a bibliography of charts, works and articles relating to the civil and natural history of the Labrador Peninsula. By ALPHEUS SPRING PACKARD, M.D., Ph.D 8°, 513 pp., $8.50. N. D.C, HODGES, 874 Broadway, N.Y. THE RADIOMETER. By DANIEL 8. TROY. This contains a discussion of the reasons for their action and of the phenomena pre- sented in Crookes’ tubes. Price, postpaid, 59 cents. N. D, C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. Y. AUTHORS AND PUBLISHERS. Material arranged and compiled for all kinds of works, excepting fiction. Statistics a specialty. Indexing and cataloguing. Address G. E. BIVER, 835 N. loth Street, Philadelphia. TO" THE READERS OR SCieNGs PUBLISHER'S ANNOUNCEMENT. Titles of Some Articles Published in Science since Jan. 1, 1892. Aboriginal North American Tea. Actinism. Agriculture, Experimental, Status of. Amenhotep, King, the tomb of. Anatomy, The Teaching of, to Advanced Medical Students. Anthropology, Current Notes on. Architectural Exhibition in Brooklyn. Arsenical Poisoning from Domestic Fabrics. Artesian Wells in lowa. Astronomical Notes. Bacteria, Some Uses of. Botanical |_aboratory, A. Brain, A Few Characteristics of the Avian. Bythoscopide and Cereopida. Canada, Royal Society of. Celts, The Question of the. Chalicotherium, The Ancestry of. Chemical Laboratory of the Case School of Applied Science. Children, Growth of. Collection of Objects Used in Worship. Cornell, The Change at. Deaf, Higher Education of the. Diphtheria, Tox-Albumin. Blectrical Engineer, The Technical Education of. Eskimo ‘Vhrowing Sticks. Etymology of two Iroquolan Compound Stems. Eye-Habits. Eyes, Relations of the Motor Muscles of, to Certain Facial Expressions. Family Traits, Persistency of. Fishes, The Distribution of. Fossils, Notice of New Gigantic. Four-fold Space, Possibility of a Realization of. Gems, Artificial, Detection of. Qlacial Phenomena in Northeastern New York. Grasses, Homoptera Injurious to. Great Lakes. Origin of the Basins of. “ Healing, Divine.” Hemipter: us Mouth, Structure of the. Hofmann, August Wilbelm yon. Hypnotism among the Lower Animals. Hypnotism, Traumatic. Indian occupation of New York. Infant’s Movements. Influenza, Latest Details Concerning the Germs of. Insects in Popular Dread in New Mexico. Jnventions in Foreign Countries, How to Protect. Inventors and Manufacturers, the American Associ- ation of. Jowa Acadsmy of Sciences, Jargon, The Chinook. Jassidz; Notes on Local. Keller, Helen. Klamath Nation, Linguistics, Laboratory Training, Aims of. Lewis H. Carvill, Work on the Glacial Phenomena. Lightning, The New Method of Protecting Buildings from. Lissajou’s Curves, Simple Apparatus for the Produc- tion of. Maize Plant, Observations on the Growth and Chemi- cal Composition of. Maya Codices, a Key to the Mystery of. Medicine, Preparation for the Study of. Mineral Discoveries, Some Recent, in the State of Washington. Museums, fhe Support of. Palenque Tablet, a Brief Study of. Patent Office Building, The. Physa Heterostropha Lay, Notes on the Fertility of. Pocket Gopher, Attempted Extermination of. Polariscopes, Direct Reflecting. Psychological Laboratory in the University of To- ronto. Psy chological Training, The Need of. Psylla, the Pear-Tree. Rain-Making. Rivers, Evolution of the Loup, in Nebraska. Scientific Alliance, The. Sistrurus and Crotalophorus. Star Photography, Notes on. Star, The New, in Auriga. Storage of Storm-Waters on the Great Plains. Teaching of Science. Tiger, A New Sabre-Toothed, from Kansas. Timber Trees of West Virginia. Traches of Insects, Structure of. Vein-Formation, Valuable Experiments in. Weeds as Fertilizing Material. Will, a Recent Analysis of. Wind-Storms and Trees. Wines, The Sophisticated French. Zoology in the Public Schools of Washington, D. C. Some of the Contributors to Science Since Jan. I, 1892. Aaron, Eugene M., Philadelphia, Pa. Allen, Harrison, Philadelphia, Pa. Baldwin, J. Mark, University of Toronto, Canada. Barnes, Charles Reid, Madison, Wis. Baur, G., Clark University, Worcester, Mass. Beal, W. J., Agricultural College, Micb. Beals, A. H., Milledgeville, Ga. Beauchamp, W. M., Baldwinsville, N.Y. Boas, Franz, Clark University, Worcester, Mass. Bolley, H. L., Fargo, No. Dak. Bostwich, Arthur £., Montclair, N J. Bradley, Milton, Springfield, Mass. Brinton, D. G., Philadelphia, Pa. Call, E. Ellsworth, Des Moines, Ia. Chandler, H., Buffalo, N.Y. Comstock, Theo. B., Tucson, Arizona. Conn, H. W , Middletown, Conn. Cragin, F. W., Colorado Springs, Col. Davis. W. M., Harvard College, Cambridge, Mass. Dimmock, George, Canobie Lake, N.H. Farrington, E. H., Agricultural Station, Champaign, Til. Ferree, Barr, New York City. Flexner, Simon, Johns Hopkins University, Balti- more, Md. Foshay, P. Max, Rochester, N.Y. Gallaudet, E. M., Kendall Green, Washington, D.C. Cn S., Museum of Comp. Zool., Cambridge, Mass, Golden, Katherine E., Agricultural College, Lafay- ette. Ind. z Hale, Edwin M., Chicago, Ill. Hale, George S., Boston, Mass. Hale, Horatio, Clinton, Ontario, Canada. Hall, T. Proctor, Clark University, Worcester, Mass. Halsted, Byron D., Rutgers College, New Bruns- wick, N.J. Haworth, Erasmus, Osksloosa, Lowa. Hay, O. P., Irvington, Ind. Hayues, Henry W., Boston Mass. Hazen, H. A., Weather Bureau, Washington, D.C. Hows J. N. B., Bureau of Ethnology, Washington, Hicks, L. E., Lincoln, Neb. Hill, H. J., Chicago, 111. Hill, Geo. A., Naval Observatory, Washizgton, D.C. Hitchcock, Romsn, Washington, D.C. Holmes, E. L. Chicago, Tl. Hotchkiss, Jed., Staunton, Va. Howe, Jas. Lewis, Louisville, Ky. Hubbard, Gardiner G , Washington, D.C. Jackson, Dugald C., Madison, Wisconsin gaites Joseph F., Agricultural Dept., Washington, ' Johnson, Roger B , Miami University, Oxford, 0. Kellerman, Mrs. W. A., Columbus, O. Kellicott, D. S., State University, Columbus, O. Kellogg, D. S., Plattsburgh, N. Y. Lintner, J. A., Albany, N. Y. Loeb, Morris, New York City. Mabery, Charles F., Cleveland, Ohio. | Macloskie, G., Princeton, N.J. McCarthy, Gerald, Agricultural Station, Raleigh, N.C. MacDonald, Artbur, Washington, D.C. Marshall, D. T., Metuchen, N.J. Masoo, O. T., Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. Mill-paugh, Charles F., Morgantown, W. Va. Nichols, C. F., Boston, Mass. Nuttall, George H. F., Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Md. 3 Oliver, J. E., Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y. Osborn, Henry F., Columbia College, New York sity. Osborn, Herbert, Agricultural Coliege, Ames, Iowa. Pammel, L. H., Agricultural Station, Ames, Iowa. Pillsbury, J. H., Smith Coileze, Northamproufgiacs, Poteat, W. L., Wake Forest, N. C. Preble, Jr., W. P., New York City. Ruffner, W. H., Lexington, Va. Sanionds Edmund C., Clark University, Worcester, Mass. Schufeldt, R. W., Washington, D.C. Scripture, E. W., Clark University. Worcester, Mass. glade, D. D., Museum Comp. Zool., Cambridge, Mass. Sry John B., Rutgers College, New Bruuswick, N.J. Southwick. Edmund B., New York City. Stevens, George T., New York City. Stevenson, S. Y., Philadelphia, Pa. Stone, G. H., Colorado Springs, Col. Thomas, Cyrus, Washington, D. C. Thurston, R. H., Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y. Todd, J. E., Tabor, lowa. True, Frederick W., National Museum, Washing- ton, D.C. Turner, C. H., University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, oO. Wake, C., Staniland, Chicago, Ill. wise k. DeC., Harvard University, Cambridge, Mass. Ward, Stanley M., Scranton, Pa. Meee eee B., Howard University, Washing- ton, D.C. Welch, Wm. H., Johns Hopkins University, Balti- more, M.D. West, Gerald M., Clark University, Worcester, Mass. Whitman, C. O., Clark University, Worcester, Mass. Williams, Edward H., Lehigh University, Bethle- hem, Pa. \ _SCIENC . . A WEEKLY NEWSPAPER OF ALL THE ARTS AND SCIENCES. PUBLISHED BY N. D. C. HODGES, 874 BROADWAY, N, YORK. INGLE Copies, Ten CEnts. TrenTH YEAR. Vou. XX. No. 492. JULY 8, 1892. YEAR, IN ADVANCE. CoNTENTS. THE New Met Protecting Property from Lightning. rusmmmmnnns wm | AC Del Telephone The Lightning Dispeller. ey LMaae OF BROODS: 08 pe ee fs CO M P AN a Price, $20 to $30.—According to size. . V. Riley.. Eum-LeaF BEETLE. The Patent Lightning Dispeller is a conduc- Tue Repriian Rattte. S.Garman.... 16 95 MILK SI, BOSTON. MASS, tor specially designed to dissipate the energy of a lightning discharge,—to prevent its This Company owns the Letters | doing harm,—placing something in its path Opprosrrion oF Mars. Edgar L. Larkin. 17 Cross-FERTILIZING AND Hysripizinc.... 18 Patent granted to Alexander Gra-| upon which its capacity for causing damage = EE PTS AR: ig|ham Bell, March 7th, 1876, No.| may beexpended. ar 174,465, and January 30, 1877, No recorded case of lightning stroke has ON THE UNCERTAINTY OF ConcLUSIONS. Bar ate aCe Fon ofiSneceh'b yet been cited against the principle of the T. C. Mendenhall...........+.... 20 ‘ail ete ane of SSS Dispeller. So far as known, the dissipation Peon amt Grabare Svsraur OF SPEAKING TELEPHONES in-| 0°! 2 conductor has invariably protected under fringes the right secured to this| the conditions employed. Company by the above patents,and| Correspondence solicited. CREERAD Adoebotcendcbos Gucugooeod 25 | renders each individual user of tel- ephones, not furnished by it or its AGENTS WANTED. licensees, responsible for such un- 3 7 : Z lawful use, and all the conse-| The American Lightning Protection Company - Entered at the Post-Office of New York, N.Y.,as | quences thereof and liable to suit Second-Class Mail Matter. therefor. United Bank Building, Sioux City, lowa. ee | OPULAK 2SCIENCE “MONTHLY: A culture that lacks science is a one-sided culture. THE ANCIENT Mayas. Hilborne T. THe PoPpuLAR ScrENCcE MontTHLy is the one periodical that gives access to the scientific culture of the time, and it will in the future represent scientific thought and achievement even more fully than it has in the past. The valuable series of illustrated articles on THE DEVELOPMENT OF AMERICAN INDUSTRIES SINCE COLUMBUS, now running in the MontHty, will be continued. There have already been published three articles on The Woolen Manufactute, by S. N. D. Nort; four articles on The Making of Iron and two on The Making of Steel, by W. F. Durrer. The first of two articles on American Pottery appears in the December number. All of these are profusely illustrated; and similar papers on The Cotton Manu- facture, by Epwarp ATKINSON and Gen. W. F. Draper; Piano-Making, by DanteL Spittane; Glass-Making, by Prof. C. Hanrorp Henperson; and on The Leather, Silk, Paper, Agricultural Machinery, and Ship-building Industries will appear in course. Hon. Carroit D. Wricut will continue his incisive Lessons from the Census. Dr. ANDREW D. WaiTE will contribute some con- cluding papers on The Warfare of Science, and there will be occasional articles from Hon..Davip A. WELLS and from Dayip STARR JORDAN, President of Stanford University. The other contents of the coming numbers can not be definitely announced at this time, but the character of the contributions may be inferred from SOME OF THE ARTICLES OF THE PAST YEAR. THE STORAGE oF ELECTRIcITY (illustrated), Prof. Samuel Sheldon. THE CoLors oF LETTERS, President David Starr Jordan. THE DECLINE OF RURAL NEw ENGLAND, Prof. A. N. Currier. DRESS AND ADORNMENT (illustrated), Prof. Frederick Starr. Four articles. CULTIVATION OF SISAL IN THE BAHAMAS (illustrated), J. I. Northrop, Ph.D. PrRoFEssOR HUXLEY AND THE SWINE MIRACLE, W. E. Gladstone. Kocu’s MetrHop or TREATING ConsuMPTION, G. A. Heron, M.D. ILLUSTRATIONS OF Mr. GLADSTONE’S CONTROVERSIAL METHOD, Prof. T. H. STREET-CLEANING IN LARGE Cities, Gen. Emmons Clark. Husley. PROFESSOR HUXLEY ON THE WAR-PATH, The Duke of Argyll. THE DocrrRinE oF EvouurTion, John Fiske. SrketcH oF DANIEL G. BRINTON (with Portrait), C. C. Abbott. ' Linwits or State Dutiss, Herbert Spencer. Some GAMES OF THE ZUNI (illustrated), John G. Owens. UNIVERSITY EXTENSION, Prof. C. Hanford Henderson. Our AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATIONS, Prof. C. L. Parsons. SoME OF THE PossIBILITIES OF Economic Botany, Prof. G. L. Goodale. Twenty years ago our first number was issued with the following statement: ‘‘ Taz PopuLaR SciENcE Monraty has been started to help on the work of sound public education, 'by supplying instructive articles on the leading subjects of scientific inquiry. It will contain papers, original and selected, on a wide range of subjects, from the ablest scientific men of different countries, explaining their views to non-scientific people.’’ This task has grown larger and more important with the continual growth of science, and the scope and resources of the Montuty have been correspondingly widened. No pains will be spared for its adequate performance in the future. EDITED BY WILLIAM JAY YOUMANS. $5.00 a year; 50 cents a number. D. APPLETON & CO., Publishers, - 1, 3, and 5 Bond Street, New York. SCIENCE [VoLt. XX. No. 492 PUBLICATIONS. PUBLICATIONS. PUBLICATIONS. THE LABRADOR COAST. A JOURNAL OF TWO SUMMER CRUISES TO THAT REGION. WITH NOTES ON ITS EARLY DISCOV- ERY, ON THE ESKIMO, ON ITS PHY- SICAL GEOGRAPHY, GEOLOGY AND NATURAL HISTORY, TOGETHER WITH A BIBLIOGRAPHY OF WORKS, ARTI- CLES, AND CHARTS RELATING TO THE CIVIL AND NATURAL HISTORY OF THE LABRADOR PENINSULA. By ALPHEUS SPRING PACKARD, M.D., Ph.D. Sportsmen and ornithologists will be interested in the list of Labrador birds by Mr. L. W. Turner, which has been kindly revised and brought down to date by Dr. J. A. Allen. Dr. S. H. Scudder has con- tributed the list of butterflies, and Prof. John Macoun, of Ottawa, Canada, has prepared the list of Labrador plants. Much pains has been taken to render the bibliog- raphy complete, and the author is indebted to Dr. Franz Boas and others for several titles and impor- tant suggestions; and it is hoped that this feature of the book will recommend it to collectors of Ameri- cana. It is hoped that the volume will serve as a guide to the Labrador coast for the use of travellers, yachtsmen, sportsmen, artists, and naturalists, as well as those interested in geographical and histori- cal studies. 518 pp., 8°, $3.50. N. D. C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, New York. INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES. A PRACTICAL MANUAL, Concerning Noxious Insects and the Methods of Preventing their Injuries. By CLARENCE M. WEED, Professor of Entomology and Zoology, New Hampshire State College. WHAT IS SAID ABOUT IT. “7 think that you haye gotten together a very useful and valuable little book.”—Dr. C. V. Riley, U. S. Entomologist, Washington, D. C. “Tt is excellent.”"—James Fletcher, Dominion En- tomologist, Ottawa, Canada. “JT am well pleased with it.’—Dr. F. M. Hexamer, Editor American Agriculturist, New York. “Tt seems to me a good selection of the matter which every farmer and fruit grower ought to have at his immediate command.’—Prof. S. A. Forbes, State Entomologist of Illinois, Champaign, Ill. “A good book, and it is needed.’—Prof. L. H. Bailey, Cornell University. “It is one of the best books of the kind I have ever seen.”—J. Freemont Hickman, Agriculturist, Ohio Experiment Station, Columbus, Ohio. “T shall gladly recommend it.”—Prof. A. J. Cook, Michigan Agricultural College. Price, $1.25. Sent postpaid to any address on receipt of price. N. D.C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, New York. The American Geologist for 1892. Edited by Pror. S. CaLviy, University of lowa; Dr. E. W. CLAYPOLE, Buchtel College; JoHN EYERMAN, Lafayette College ; Dr. PERSIFoR FRAzER, Penn. Hort. Soc.; PRor. T. Hit, U.S. Irrigation Survey; Dk. ANDREW C. Lawson, University of California; R. D. Pror. Rop’r F. W. Craain, Colorado College; SaLtIsBuRY, University of Wisconsin; JosePH B. TYRRELL, Geol. Sur. of Canada; E. O. Utricu, Minnesota Geological Survey: Pror. 1. C. Wurrs, University of West Virginia; Pror. N. H. WINCHELL, University of Minnesota. Now in its [Xth volume. $3.50 per year. Sample copies, 20 cents. Address THE GEOLOGICAL PUBLISHING CO., Minneapolis, Minn. THE BOTANICAL GAZETTE. A monthly illustrated journal of botany in all its departments. 25 cents a number, $2.50 a year, Address PUBLISHERS BOTANICAL GAZETTE, Bloomington, Ind. JOHN IRELAND'S Bookstore, 1197 Broadway near 29th St., is convenient to the residence quarter of the city; it isa good place to drop into on the way wid or down town to select books or stationery. His stoc is well selected and embraces all the new and standard books as soon as issued. Out-of-town purchasers can order by mail with every confidence that their wants will be as well supplied as if buying in person. Perpetual Cslencar.— This DE-RULE novel application of the slide-rule principle shows, in an 1ustant without study or cal- | culation, a complete Calendar for any month from the Year 1 tillthe end of Mi Sample, 25 cts. me. JEROMB-THOMAS CO., 47 LAFAYETTE PLACE, HRW YORK. ACK NUMBERS and complete sets of leading Mag- azines. Rates ow AM. MAG. EXCHANGE, Schoharie N V EDUCATIONAL. School of Applied Ethics. Plymouth, Mass., July 7-Aug. 17, 1892, Daily lectures in ECONOMICS, HISTORY OF RELIGIONS, and ETHICS. For Program, giving full particulars, apply to the Secretary, S. BURNS WESTON, 118 South 12th St,, Philadelphia. Amherst Summer School of Languages, Art, Literature, Chemistry, Mathemat- ies, Library Work, History, and Political Heonomy. Sixteenth session opens July 4, 1892, For program address Prof. W. L. MONTAGUE, Amherst, Mass. ROSE POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE, Terre Haute, Ind. A College of Engineering. Well- endowed, well-equipped. Courses in Mechanical, Electrical, Civil Engineering and Chemistry. Exten- sive Machine Shops, Laboratories, Drawing Rooms, | Library. Expenses low. Address H. T. EDDY, Pres. THE OBSERVER. Published Monthly at Portland, Conn. x A MEDIUM OF INTERCHANGE OF OBSERVATIONS FOR ALL STUDENTS AND LOVERS ©F NATUR E. F. BIGELOW, Editor and Publisher. ASSOCIATE EDITORS: M. A. BOOTH, F.R.M.S., Microscopy, Longmeadow, Mass. INOS HY SAGE? Ornithology, Portland, Conn. A. W. PEARSON, Entomology, Norwich, Conn. C. A. SHEPARD, Botany, New Britain, Conn. C. A. HARGRAVE, Conchology, Danville, Ind. F. P. GORHAM, Geology, 103 Knight St., Providence, R. I. Yearly Subscription, $1. Single Number, 10 Cents. Stuffed Animals Minerals, 5 a. a Rocka Ward sNatural Science Establishment)..." cast of rowits, | Mineralogy, Geology, Paleontology, Zoology, Osteology, Anatomy. peer ey Reticraps.| Send for Circular. ROCHESTER, N.Y. |roverterates meee NEW YORK, JULY 8, 1892. DIAMONDS IN METEORITES. BY OLIVER WHIPPLE HUNTINGTON. THE mineral cabinet of Harvard College received some time ago, through the liberality of Francis Bartlett, Hsq., one of the two large masses of meteoric iron first brought by Dr. A. E. Foote from Arizona, and called by him the Cafion Diablo iron. This mass of iron, weighing 154 pounds, is in many ways unique, and chiefly so for the circumstance that it contains diamonds. This fact was first made known by Professor G. A. Koenig of Philadelphia, who found in cutting one of the fragments that the cutting tool refused to penetrate the wall of a small cavity which it chanced to encounter, and this cavity was found to contain small black diamonds.’ One white dia- mond of microscopic dimensions was said to have been found but subsequently lost, and no further account of this interesting occurrence appears to have been published. In order to determine whether other portions of the Cafion Diablo iron contained diamonds, the author dissolved a mass of about one hundred grams weight in acid, assisted by a battery. The iron was supported on a perforated platinum cone hung in a platinum bow! filled with acid, and the cone was made the positive pole and the dish the negative pole of a Bunsen cell. When the iron had disappeared, there was left on the cone a large amount of a black slime. This was repeatedly washed and the heavier particles collected. This residue examined under a microscope showed black and white particles, the black particles being mainly soft amor- phous carbon, while the composition of the white particles appeared less easy to determine, though when rubbed over a watch-glass certain grains readily scratched the surface. The material was then digested over a steam-bath for many hours with strong hydrofluoric acid, and some of the white particles disappeared, showing them to have been silicious. Most of them, however, resisted the action of the acid. These last were carefully separated by hand, and ap- peared to the eye like a quantity of fine, white, beach sand, and under the microscope they were transparent and of a brilliant lustre. A single particle was then mounted in a point of metallic lead, and when drawn across a watch-erystal it gave out the familiar singing noise so characteristic of a glass-cutter’s tool, and with thesame result, namely, of actually cutting the glass completely through. To verify the phe- nomenon, successive particles were used for the purpose, and with the same result. The experiment was then tried on a topaz, and the same little mineral point was found to scratch topaz almost as readily as it did glass. It was finally ap- plied to a polished sapphire, and readily scratched that also, proving beyond question that this residue of small, white, transparent grains must be diamond, though no well-formed erystals could be recognized. It has long been known that carbon segregates from mete- oric iron in the form of fine-grained graphite; and, when 1 American Journal of Science, Vol, XLII, November, 1891. Haidinger found in the Arya iron a cubic form of graphite, it was suggested by Rose that the erystals might be pseudo- morphs of graphite after diamond. More recently Fletcher described a cubic form of graphite from the Youngdegin meteorite, under the name of Cliftonite.’ Finally, a meteoric stone which was seen to fall at Nowo- Urei, in Russia, in 1886, was discovered two years later to contain one per cent of a carbonaceous material, which not only had the erystalline form of the diamond but also its hardness, so that, instead of being regarded as a pseudomorph after diamond, it was compared with the black diamonds of Brazil, called ‘‘carbonado.”’ And, lastly, in the Cafion Diablo iron we have true diamonds, though of minute dimensions. Thus it would appear that, under certain conditions, metallic iron is the matrix of the diamond. Now, we further know that when cast-iron is slowly cooled a considerable portion of the carbon separates in the condi- tion of graphite. Moreover, the high specific gravity of the earth as a whole, as compared with the materials which compose its crust, give us ground for the theory that the in- terior of our planet may be a mass of molten iron. There- fore it would seem to be not an unreasonable hypothesis, that diamonds may have been separated from this molten . metal during the formation of the earth’s crust; and a sup- port for this hypothesis may be found in the fact that at the Kimberley mines of South Africa diamonds occur in, what appear to be, volcanic vents, filled with the products of the decomposition of intrusive material thrown up from great depths. The late Professor H. Carvill Lewis, in examining the materials from the greatest depths of the South African mines, came to the conclusion that the diamonds were formed by the action of the intrusive material on the carbonaceous shale there found, and on this ground predicted the discovery of diamonds in meteorites;* but it must be remembered that a similar geological phenomenon appears on a grand scale in Greenland, and no diamonds have as yet been found in the Greenland irons, though they have been so carefully studied by the late Professor J. Lawrence Smith and others. It is difficult to conceive of any chemical reaction by whieh diamonds could be formed from the action of melted igneous rock on coal, and all attempts to prepare diamonds artificially by similar means have signally failed. The writer would urge that the segregation of carbon from molten iron is a well-known phenomenon, and the as- sociation of diamonds with amorphous carbon in the meteor- ite from Arizona indicates that under certain conditions such a segregation may take the form of diamond. The chief of these conditions is doubtless the length of time attending the crystallization, though it may also be affected by press- ure; and if the earth, as many believe, is simply a large iron meteorite covered with a crust, it seems perfectly possible that if we could go deep enough below the surface we should find diamonds in great abundance. 2 Min. Mag., 7, 121, 1887. Ss American Journal of Science, xxvi., p. 74. 4 British Association, 1886, p. 667. Ibid, 1887, p. 720. 16 SCIENCE. THE NUMBER OF BROODS OF THE IMPORTED ELM-LEAF BEETLE. BY ©. V. RILEY. Av the meeting of the Entomological Club of the A.A.A.S. in Washington last autumn, Professor John B. Smith, it will be remembered, gave some interesting observations on this beetle, made at New Brunswick, N.J. As the some- what astonishing result of his observations, he stated that there was but one annual generation, and that the beetles actually went into hibernating quarters early in August. Professor Smith’s statements were so emphatic, and evidently ‘based on such careful observations, that they could not very well be gainsaid, but as they conflicted with my observations on the species in the latitude of Washington, for which I have recorded two generations, and exceptionally a third, { was anxious the present season to go over the ground again, still more carefully than in the past, and, by rearing in confinement the first generation of larve from the first eggs hatched, to thus verify, in a manner which could leave no possible doubt, the facts which I had previously recorded. In this brief note, I desire simply to state that at the present time (June 30) I have eggs laid by the second brood of beetles, i.e., the beetles obtained from larvae which were feeding during the month of May and early part of June, thus proving, in the most positive manner, that in the latitude ‘of Washington there are at least two broods, and that the second brood of larvee will be feeding during July. The following from the Appendix to the second edition of Bulletin 6, Division of Entomology, Department of Agricul- ture, October, 1891, will bear repeating in this connection: — ‘One statement in the life-history of the Imported Elm- Leaf Beetle, as given in the preceding pages, may have to be corrected in the light of the observations of the past six years, and that is in reference to the number of annual gen-. erations. Like other leaf-beetles, this insect occupies an extended time in oviposition. The eggs appear to develop slowly in the ovaries, and a single female will deposit a number of the characteristic little yellow batches. This fact, _ taken in connection with the retardation of certain individ- uals of a generation, results in an inextricable confusion of broods. Adult beetles, pup, larvee in all stages, and eggs, will be found upon trees at the same time, in Washington, ‘during the months of June, July, August, and even later. From this fact it is almost impossible to estimate the num- ber of annual generations without the most careful breeding- cage experiments, ‘There is no evidence that the facts upon record are based upon such careful experiments. Glover, in the annual report of this department for 1867, page 62, says: ‘ After becoming pupa, in a few days the skin of the back splits open and the perfect insect crawls forth, furnished with wings, by means of which it is enabled to fly to other trees and deposit its eggs, thus spreading the nuisance to every elm in the neighborhood; or it may ascend some tree and lay the eggs for a second generation, which destroys the second crop of leaves, frequently so enfeebling or ex- hausting the tree that it is unable to recover and eventually perishes.’ Again, in the Annual Report for 1870, page 73, he says: ‘The perfect beetles appear in a few days and im- mediately fly up into the tree to lay their eggs for a second generation, which frequently destroys every leaf on the tree.’ “The Kuropean records seem strangely silent upon this point. In the articles by Leinweber and Frauenfeld, referred to upon page 6, there is no indication of the number of gen- [VoL. XX. No. 492 erations, but it may be inferred that only one, namely, that of June and July, has been under observation. Heeger, however (loc. cit., p. 114), says that ‘under favorable cir- cumstances there are three to four generations during the whole summer. Toward the end of August the insect ceases feeding and retires—partly as larvee and partly as beetles — to winter rest under fallen leaves, in. the cracks of bark, holes in the trunks of the trees, and in the ground itself.’ This observation was made near Vienna. ‘“Our statement upon page 8 was a general one, based upon the observations in August. This state of affairs may proba- bly hold in more northern regions, but in Washington it is safe to say that there are two generations, because, as just stated, newly developed beetles (the progeny of those which hibernate) appear in early June. ‘These lay eggs, and, in fact, egg-laying may continue until the end of September, and larvze have actually been found by Mr. Pergande in October.” THE REPTILIAN RATTLE. BY S. GARMAN. AmonG the specimens secured by Dr. Georg Baur, in his explorations of the Galapagos Islands, there are a number of large lizards of the genera Conolophus and Amblyrhynchus, which exhibit certain peculiarities in the spines of the dorsal crest. Hxternally each of the spines resembles the rattle of a small rattlesnake. The likeness was evidently brought about by causes similar to those through which the rattle was originated. In a measure, these spines confirm my state- ment of the evolution of that organ as published in 1888 (Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., viii., 259). Figures 1-4, herewith, represent a couple of the nuchal spines in a lateral aspect and views, side and front, of one of the dorsal spines of the Galapagos lizard, Conclophus subcristatus. On making a longitudinal section of any of these spines they are seen to be wholly dermal and to contain neither bones nor muscles. Their epiderm is a little thicker than that of the scales on the flanks. It is apparent that for a time, after hatching, growth of the skin was rapid and regular. The spines de- veloped during this period were subpyramidal; they tapered so much, on back as on neck, that the slough came off readily and was lost. A periodic growth was taken on in later stages, and, the spines having become more elongate, a slight constriction was formed around the base, from folding the skin by bending the spine from side to side. Becoming still more elongate, the foldings meanwhile increasing in extent and depth, a stage was finally reached which, may- hap aided by shrinkage, retained the epiderm of the spine in place as a cap’after the general slough was cast. Thus one thickness after another was added to the covering of the spine, each of the older being shoved farther up, by growth, so as to expose below it a band of the newer cuticle. The folded lower edge, the collar, of the cap rested in a basal groove or furrow, and prevented displacement. Hach cap was closely applied to that beneath it, and the spine asa whole was solid. Outwardly the spines resemble rattles; internally the caps rest one upon another too closely to rattle. The tip of the tail of the common snake ends in a spine somewhat like that in the crest of the lizard. It differs in containing a bone, the end of the vertebral column. Slough- ing is Similar in the two cases, a slight variation only being induced on account of the included vertebra. On most snakes the spine tapers greatly, and the cap is carried off in JuLy 8, 1892.] the slough. On a few there are constrictions and ridges around the cap, that recall those on the spines of the lizard. As it happens, those marked in this manner are the nearest living allies of the rattlesnakes. In the paper on the Evo- lution of the Rattle, above cited, the copperhead, Ancis- trodon (Fig. 5), was brought forward as most nearly rep- resenting the ancestor of the smaller rattlesnakes, Sis- trurus; and the bushmaster, Lachesis (Fig. 6), of northern South America, was suggested as the most likely for the large rattlers, Crotalus. These forms were pointed out as so nearly approximating a condition from which the possession of a rattle was a necessary consequence that we might at any time expect to find individuals on which the caps were mechanically retained. My conclusions in regard to the inception of the rattle seem to be indirectly confirmed by what obtains on the lizards. This will be the more apparent if it is borne in mind that the present development of the rattle (Figs. 7-9) embraces much that is a consequence of its 5: | My vy Reon 8 ~~ Figs. 1-2, nuchal spines, and 3-4, a dorsal spine of Conolophus subcristatus ; Fig. 5, tail of Ancistrodon contortrix; Fig. 6, tail of Lachesis mutus; Fig. 7, Sistrurus catenatus, at birth; Figs. 8-9, Crotalus confluentus. possession, much that has been induced by its presence and use. The greater part of the shortening-forward in the ex- tremity of the tail, of the compacting and consolidation of the posterior vertebra, with the enlargement of the cap to include them, and much of the development of the caudal muscles must be eliminated before one can realize the pri- mary condition of the rattle, a condition which was, no doubt, but a little advanced upon that now existing in An- cistrodon and Lachesis, as sketched in Wigs. 5 and 6. Mus. Comp. Zool., Cambridge, Mass. OPPOSITION OF MARS. BY EDGAR L. LARKIN. THE coming opposition of Mars will be of interest to as- tronomers throughout the world; and extensive preparations are being made to observe it. The face of the god of war is sure to be watched, drawn, and photographed with more care than ever before. And the most perfect spectroscopes made will be turned on his ruddy disk. The sun, earth, SCIENCE. | 17 and Mars will be on the same straight line nearly, on Aug. 3 at 13 h. 13 m., or at 1h. 13 m. a.m., Aug. 4, 1892. The time of the opposition will be favorable for observation, since the earth passes its aphelion on July 1, while Mars does not pass his perihelion until Sept, 7. That is, the earth will be 34 days only past the time when at its greatest distance from the sun; and Mars but 35 days from its nearest approach. If these dates could coincide — opposition take place when the earth is at a maximum and Mars at a minimum distance from the sun—then would the earth and Mars be at a minimum distance from each other, or 33,864,000 miles; in which computation a solar parallax of 8.8” and a mean dis- tance of Mars of 141,500,000 miles were employed. However, since the opposition will occur midway between, it is proba- ble that, at the moment of the nearest approach of the two planets, they will be distant about 35,500,000 miles. The last opposition favorable for close observation was on Sept. 5, 1877; at which approach, Prosessor Asaph Hall dis- covered two minute moons in revolution around our neigh- boring world. This important discovery is best given in Professor Hall’s own language: ‘‘The sweep around the planet was repeated several times on the night of Aug. 11, and at half-past two o’clock I found a faint object on the following side and a little north of the planet, which after- wards proved to be the outer satellite. On Aug. 16 the object was found again on the following side of the planet. On Aug. 17, while watching for the outer satellite, I discov- ered the inner one.” Perhaps this optical discovery reveals: the power of modern telescopes in a manner more impressive than any other, thus: ‘‘The outer one was seen with the telescope at a distance from the earth of 7,000,000 times its diameter. The proportion would be that of a ball two inches in diameter viewed at a distance equal to that between the cities of Boston and New York” (Newcomb and Holden, “Astronomy,” p. 338). These moons were seen with the 26-inch glass at Washing- ton; but now a 36-inch telescope is in waiting for Mars, and none can predict what will be discovered. The satellites are: estimated to be 6 and 7 miles in diameter; and they have a most rapid motion. It is well to note some of the facts about these bodies that served a great purpose, in sweeping away that mythology of astronomy, the nebular hypothesis- Distances from centre of Mars: Deimos, 14,600 miles; Phobos, 5,800 miles. Times of revolution: Deimos, 30 h. 18 m.; Phobos, 7h. 39m. But it requires 24 h. 37 m. for Mars to turn on its axis, which divided by 7 h. 39 m. equals 3.22; that is, the inhabitants of Mars have 3.22 months of Phobos every day. This moon rises in the west and passes through a phase ini h.55 m. Deimos is 130 h. 37 m. from rising to rising, or 65 h. 18 m. from rising to setting. Its gain over the rotation of Mars is 3° 24’ per hour, hence it requires 106 hours to gain a whole revolution, which, added to the diurnal rotation of the planet, gives the 130 h. 37m. But 65h. 28 m. equals 2.155 months of Deimos; therefore the other satel- lite passes more than two full sets of phases while above the martial horizon, with plenty of eclipses beside. The main interest in the next opposition rests in the hope that an accurate map of Mars can be made, or that good phote- graphs can be secured, or that the spectroscope may make further revelations concerning the absorption of solar rays by its atmosphere, or that the lines due to the vapor of water may be seen to better advantage, if possible, than at the last. Professor C. A. Young, ‘‘Astronomy,” p. 337, says= ‘‘The probability is that its density is considerably less than that of our own atmosphere. Dr. Huggins has found with 18 SCIENCE. the spectroscope unequivocal evidence of the presence of aqueous vapor.” The idea that water exists on Mars is supported by the fact that white patches are seen on the poies, and that these vary in size with variations of inclination of the axis toward the sun. The white area is now well seen at this observa- tory on one of the poles. So rapid has been the advance in celestial photography, and in spectroscopy, and also in the size of telescopic objectives during the last 15 years, that without doubt much additional knowledge of Mars will be gained in August. Knox College Observatory, Galesburg, Ill., July 1. CROSS-FERTILIZING AND HYBRIDIZING. THE following excellent suggestions are from the emi- nent horticulturist, Professor T. J. Burrill, of the Illinois experiment station. The subject is one calling for the co- operation of farmers and fruit growers everywhere with the experiment stations, for where nature has laid the founda- tion for improvement by giving us such a wild seedling as the Concord grape, that should be made the basis for further work. Cross-fertilizing and hybridizing have been carried on to some extent, both for the effects of crossing and for the pur- pose of producing, if possible, new varieties of value. A number of crosses have been made in the apple, as for in- stance, between Ben Davis and Grimes, Ben Davis and Minkler, or Ben Davis and Duchess, with a view of getting something that will bear like the Ben Davis, but have the better quality of Grimes or Minkler, having the keeping quality of Ben Davis and the hardiness of tree of the Duch- ess. Different varieties of strawberries have been crossed, and plants are growing from the crossed seed. Blackberry varieties have been crossed, seeds planted, and plants are growing. Raspberries have been crossed — black varieties together, red varieties together, black with red, and black- berries with raspberries. We have now ready for planting more than a quart of seed from crossed raspberry and black- berry, or from selected varieties. Results are problematical, but there is certainly great room for improvement in our blackberries and raspberries. There is entirely too much seed for the amount of flesh. When we consider that our apples originated from a crab in no way superior to many of our own native wild crabs, and the excellence that has been developed by cultivation and selection, what may we not expect from our raspberries and blackberries, which are so much better naturally ? We have only begun with the raspberry and blackberry group of plants. Ibelieve none of the blackberries or dewberries now cultivated are the result of growing plants from seed, but that all are the result of propagating natural seedlings, and it is not at all certain that we have yet the best of the wild varieties. Most of our raspberries are the result of chance. During the past three seasons some work has been done in the line of crossing and selecting corn. The results seem to indicate that corn grown from crossing two distinct varie- ties will be larger than the average of the kinds crossed, or where the parents are nearly equal in value. To be sure, nothing has yet been reported in that line, though there would seem to have been abundant time for seedlings to have been grown. If the results of our crosses in corn are to serve as an index, we might expect to find in a second or third generation fruit of the Vinifera type on vines of the ! [Mor EOS None? Labrusca. There is a great difference in the susceptibility of fruits to the influence of man. Our grapes have had more time spent on them, extending over a longer period, than have our strawberries; yet the results from grapes are hardly to be compared with the results from strawberries. A’small start has been made in the growth of nuts. The attempts at improvement heretofore have been confined almost exclusively to the pecan and chestnut. Attempts at improvement by growing seedlings from the best native trees have usually been a disappointment, because the seed- lings have been inferior to the tree from which seed was taken, just as 999 of every 1,000 seedlings grown from the Concord grape have been so inferior to the parent as to be unworthy of general distribution. But it must be remem- bered that while there are comparatively few chances for improvement by growing seedlings there are none from simply budding or grafting. The filbert and walnut of Europe are too tender for our climate. Why may not our hazel-nut and walnut be im- proved so as to take their places, and be made valuable crops for the rough lands along our streams ? NOTES AND NEWS. AN interesting feature has been added to the first United States Food Exhibition, to be held at Madison Square Garden, New York, in October next, in the way of a national exhibit of dairy products. This department will be in charge of Professor James Cheesman, who represented the dairy interests of the United States at the late Paris Exposition. Professor Cheesman has a wide reputation as a dairy expertand as an authority onall matters pertaining to the dairy interests. This part of the expo- sition promises to be one of its most popular features. — The Journal de Colmar of June 19 says: The president of the committee entrusted with the erection of a monument to Hirn has received a letter from the maire of Strasburg, in which he makes the following statement : ‘‘I have the pleasure of an- nouncing that, upon the receipt of your letter of the 23d, relative to the participation of the city of Strasburg in the erection of a monument to M. G. A. Hirn, the municipal council has deter- mined to contribute to this work the sum of 800 marks. I have ordered this amount to be credited to you, and it may be obtained from the municipal collector, who will transfer it to the treasurer of the committee, M. Baer. I trust that the example of Stras- burg will find many imitators.” — Cornell University closed the college year 1891-2 on June 16, ' conferring above 300 degrees, of which about one-balf were in scientific and technical courses, and a large number of which were the higher degrees. The graduating class was the largest in the history of the University, and is said to have been the strongest. The year terminates the connection of a number of the members of the faculty with the university, and this fact and the antici- pated growth for the coming year will render it necessary to ap- point a still larger number of new professors and instructors. The indications, judging from the numbers entering at the June examinations, are said to point to an entering class in September of not far from 500, and of probably fifteen or twenty per cent more in the upper classes and as graduate students, making a probable total of about 1,600 in all departments and classes. Sib- ley College, with its special and graduate schools and depart- ments in mechanical engineering, will prepare for a total of 625 students, a hundred more than in 1891-2. In addition to new appointments already made, it is expected that professorships will be filled in geology, chemistry, and possibly one or two other subjects; also a number of assistant professorships and many instructorships in all departments, including physics, engineering, and mechanic arts. The appointments in scientific departments are usually such as demand familiarity with laboratory instruc- tion, especially in electricity and mechanics. Jury 8, 1892.} — A Geographical Exhibition, we learn from the Proceedings of the Royal Geographical Society, will be opened this summer at Moscow, in connection with the two International Congresses of _ Prehistoric Archeology and Anthropology, which are to be held in the ancient Russian capital. The General Staff will exhibit a collection of all the maps, descriptions, and surveys made by Russian travellers in Central Asia, China, and Korea, which are deposited in the Topographical Department of the General Staff and the Scientific Military Committee. They will show also the recently-published maps, based upon surveys in the Empire and adjacent countries. A catalogue of these works is now in prepa- ration. — The degree of M.A. was conferred, honoris causa, upon Pro- fessor Edward Sylvester Morse at the recent Harvard commence- ment. Professor Morse was born in Portland, Me., in 1888. When but thirteen years of age he began to form a collection of minerals and shells. His first occupation was as a mechanical draughtsman at the Portland locomotive works. Afterward he made drawings on wood for a Boston concern. In 1852 he began a course of study under Agassiz at the Museum of Comparative Zoology in Cambridge. In 1866 he founded the American Natu- ralist, now published in Philadelphia. In 1868 he was made a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. In 1871 Bowdoin College gave him the degree of doctor of philosophy. In 1874 Harvard elected him to a university lectureship, and he was also chosen vice-president of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, of which association he afterward became president. While studying marine zoology in Japan he accepted a professorship in the Imperial University at Tokio. He made several other visits to Japan, and formed a collection which was recently sold to the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. Professor Morse is also the inventor of numerous ingenious appliances for both scientific and domestic uses. \ —The British consul in Hainan, in his last report, says, ac- cording to Nature, that during the past year he has made two journeys in that island, one to certain prominent hills near Hoi- how, known as the ‘‘ Hummocks,” which lie fifteen miles to the west, on the road to Ch’eng-mai, the other a gunboat cruise to Hansui Bay. The people at both these places, and presumably all along the north-west coast, though believing themselves Chinese, speak a language which is not only not Chinese, but has a large percentage of the words exactly similar to Siamese, Shan, Laos, or Muong. The type of the people, too, is decidedly Shan, with- out the typical Chinese almond eye. At one time (1,000 years ago) the Ai-lau or Nan-chau Empire of the Thai race extended from Yun-nan to the sea, and the modern Muongs of Tonquin, like the Shans of the Kwangsi province, the ancestors of both of which tribes belonged to that empire, probably sent colonies over to Hainan; or the Chinese generals may have sent prisoners of war over. It is certain that some, at least, of the unlettered, but by no means uncivilized, tribes in the central parts of Hainan speak a type of language which is totally different from that spo- ken by the Shan-speaking tribes of the north-west coast. Yet the Chinese indiscriminately call all the non-Chinese Hainan dia- lects the Li language. The subject, Mr. Parker says, is one of great interest, well worth the attention of travellers. It was his intention to pursue the inquiry when making a commercial tour of inspection round the island, but his transfer to another post compels him to abandon his scheme. — The latest researches of the Finnish expedition to the Kola ‘Peninsula will modify, as we learn from Nature, the position of the line which now represents on our maps the northern limits of tree-vegetation in that part of Northern Europe. The northern limit of coniferous forests follows a sinuous line which crosses the peninsula from the north-west to the south east. But it now appears that birch penetrates much farther north than the conif- erous trees, and that birch forests or groves may be considered as constituting a separate outer zone which fringes the former. The northern limits of birch groves are represented by a very broken line, as they penetrate most of the valleys, almost down to the 'sea-shore; so that the tundras not only occupy but a narrow space along the sea-coast, but they are also broken by the extensions of SCIEN GE. my) birch forests down the valleys. As to the tundras which have been shown of late in the interior of the peninsula, and have been marked on Drude’s map in Berghaus’s atlas, the Finnish explorers remark that the treeless spaces on the Ponoi are not tundras but extensive marshes, the vegetation of which belongs to the forest region. The Arctic or tundra vegetation is thus limited to a nar- row and irregular zone along the coast, and to a few elevated points in the interior of the peninsula, like the Khibin tundras, or the Luyavrurt (1,120 metres high). The conifer forests, whose northern limit offers much fewer sinuosities than the northern limit of birch growths, consist of fir and Scotch fir; sometimes the former and sometimes the latter extending up to the northern border of the coniferous zone. —A sealed bottle containing a paper requesting the finder to report the place and date of discovery was thrown into the sea at Coatham Pier, Redcar, by Mr. T. M. Follow, on Oct. 8, 1891. On April 12, 1892, according to the Proceedings of the Royal Geo- graphical Society, the bottle was picked up by a fisherman off the island of Hjelmes6, in the extreme north of Norway. The bottle had been immersed for six months, and the shortest distance between the two points is 1,400 miles. This observation con- firms the genera] set of the currents from the east coast of Britain, at first south-easterly and then northerly along the continental coast, as shown in Mohn’s map of surface drift in the North Sea and Norwegian Sea in Petermann’s ‘‘ Ergdnzungsheft,” No. 79, for 1885. —The Russian Official Messenger (April 22) announces that the Ministry of Domains has decided to make, next summer, the following explorations in Caucasia: (1) The exploration of the mineral springs of the Hastern Caucasus having now been com- pleted, to carry out a similar work in Central and West Trans- caucasia; pamely, the mineral waters of Khvedur, Uravel, Tsiku- ban, Platen, and others, in the governments of Tiflis and Kutais, and in the Chernomorsk District; (2) to continue the systematic geological exploration of the government of Tiflis, especially of the valleys of the Yora and the Alazan in Kahetia, and their min- eral resources, in view of the projected construction of a railway in Kahetia; and (8) as the detailed study of the Apsheron naphtha region was terminated last year, and the map of the region is ready, to complete the exploration of the Caspian coast naphtha region, and to explore the nickel ores of Daghestan. The geolo- gist, Simonovich, and the mining officers, Konshin, Barbot-de- Marny, and Gavriloff, are commissioned for this purpose, while M. Rughevich is commissioned to explore the naphtha region along the new Petrovsk branch of the Vladikavkaz Railway, which yielded last year 15,000 tons of naphtha, and promises to become an important centre of naphtha industry. —Professor Elihu Thomson, the inventor of the Thomson- Houston Electric Company, contributes an entertaining, scientific, and thoughtful paper on *‘ Future Electrical Development,” to the July New England Magazine. He explains the possibilities of electricity, in all the public and private conveniences of life, and gives practical examples of its application to manufactures, rapid transit, and domestic offices, such as cooking, ironing, heating, gardening, raising fruit and vegetables, ete. — Macmillan & Co. announce the issue of a new and extensively revised edition of Mr. Bryce’s ‘: American Commonwealth.” It is to be expected that this new edition will take notice of the many important changes which have occurred since the work was first issued. Itisto be copyrighted in America. The same publishers have already issued more than half of Stephen’s ‘* Dictionary of Biography,” one volume of which is published quarterly. Thirty out of a total of fifty volumes have appeared so far, and the enter- prise is so well in hand that there will be no break in the publica- tion of the remaining parts. The work when completed will contain at least thirty thousand articles by writers of acknow!]- edged eminence in their several departments. The memoirs are the result of personal research, and much information has been obtained from sources that have not before been utilized. It has been the aim of the editors to omit nothing of importance and to supply full, accurate, and concise biographies, excluding, of course, those of persons still living. 20 e OUGIN Clie 4 WEEKLY NEWSPAPER OF ALL THE ARTS AND SCIENCES. PUBLISHED BY N. D. C. HODGES, 874 BROADWAY, NEw YorK. SuBSCRIPTIONS.—United States and Canada...........-.... $3.50 a year. Great Britain and Europe................. 4.50 a year. Communications will be welcomed from any quarter. Abstracts of scientific papers are solicited, and one hundred copies of the issue containing such will be mailed the author on request in advance. Rejected manuscripts will be returned to the authors only when the requisite amount of postage accom- panies the manuscript. Whatever is intended for insertion must be authenti- cated by the name and address of the writer; not necessarily for publication, but as a guaranty of good faith. We do not hold ourselves responsible for any view or opinions expressed in the communications of our correspondents. Attention is called to the ‘‘Wants” column. It is invaluable to those who use it in soliciting information or seeking new positions. The name and address of applicants should be given in full, so that answers will go direct to them. The ‘“‘Exchange”’ column is likewise open. For Advertising Rates apply to Henry F. Taytor, 47 Lafayette Place, New York. ON THE UNCERTAINTY OF CONCLUSIONS.* BY T, C. MENDENHALL. ABOUT seven years ago, on the morning: of a cold day in winter, a rough-looking, scantily-dressed man was observed to leave a freight car, which was standing upon a side-track near a small country town, and make his way rapidly into the fields and woods beyond. From his appearance it was evident that he belonged to that vast army of tramps which is never in need of mobiliza- tion and which carries upon its muster-rolls many who possess most of the virtues of the good and none of the vices of the bad, having lost only the power of further re- sistance against continued antagonism and unfriendly en- vironment. The behavior of this man excited no comment, and his existence was remembered a few hours later only because of the discovery of the body of a stranger, who had evidently been murdered, on the floor of the car which he had been seen to leave. Pursuit followed immediately, and capture within a day or two. One or two clever detectives interested themselves in finding evidence of his guilt, and within a few days had prepared a case which lacked little in the detail of its elaboration or in its artistic finish. It was proved that two strangers were seen in the suburbs of the town at a late hour on the previous night, although they were not together. The prisoner was identified beyond doubt as the man who hastily left the car in the morning. The murderer had left no means of identification except a small piece of muslin, evidently torn from the sleeve of his shirt, and which was stained with the blood of his victim. On the arrest of the prisoner one or two blood stains were found upon his clothing, and, what was more convincing than all else, the bit of sleeve found in the car fitted exactly into the place in his own garment, from which it must have been torn in the struggle which preceded the crime. 1 Address as retiring president, delivered Jan. 20, 1892, before the Philoso- phical Society of Washington. SCIENCE [VoL. XX. No. 492 While all of this evidence might be classified as ‘‘ cireum- stantial,” it was so complete and satisfactory that no jury could be expected to entertain serious doubt as to the guilt of the prisoner, and, in spite of his protestations of inno- cence, a sentence to life imprisonment was in accord with the judgment of the general public. Only a few weeks since this man was set free and declared to be innocent of the crime for which he had already served seven years at hard labor, the misleading character of the evidence on which he was convicted having been exposed through the voluntary confession of the real criminal. The facts thus brought out were, briefly, as follows: — There were three men in the case. The first, who was . afterward murdered, slept upon the fioor of the car when the second, the real murderer, entered it. In the dark he stumbled over the sleeping man, who awoke and immediately attacked him. The quarrel did not last long, the original occupant being left dead upon the floor of the ear while the murderer quickly made his escape, leaving the village and neighborhood behind him as far and as fast as possible. An hour or two later the third man, seeking shelter and sleep, finds his way into the car, and dropping on tke floor, is soon in a deep slumber. He awakes at break of day to find that a dead man has been his companion, and to see that his own sleeve is smeared with the blood of the victim. Alarmed by this discovery, and realizing in some degree the perilous position in which he is thus placed, he tears off the stained portion of his garment, and, hastily leaving the car, he flees from the scene as rapidly as possible. Nothing can be more simple or more satisfactory than this . account of the affair, and yet nothing is more natural than that he should be accused of the crime and brought to trial. The evidence against him was convincing, and it was all abso- lutely true. It was not strange, therefore, that his conviction and imprisonment should follow. It will doubtless appear to many that the foregoing is too closely allied to the sensational to serve fitly as an introduc- tion to an address prepared for a society of philosophers, and I am ready to acknowledge the apparent validity of the erit- icism. I am led to its selection, however, because it is an account of an actual occurrence, which illustrates in a man- ner not to be misunderstood a not unrecognized proposition to a brief exposition and partial development of which I ask your attention this evening. This proposition is that, in the treatment of many questions with which we are confronted in this world, our premises may be absolutely true and our logical processes apparently unassailable and yet our conclu- sions very much in error, No department of human knowledge or region of mental activity will fail to yield ample illustration and proof of this proposition. An astonishingly large number of debatable questions present themselves to the human intellect. Many of them are conceded to be of such a nature that differences of opinion concerning them must continue, perhaps, indefi- nitely. But there is a very large and a very important class of problems, the solution of which is apparently not impossible and often seemingly easy, regarding which the most diverse views are most persistently held by persons not differing greatly in intelligence or intellectual training. Men whose business it is to weigh evidence and to reach cor- rect conclusions, in spite of inadequacy of information and perversion of logic, constitute no exception to this statement, but, on the contrary, furnish many of its most notable illus- trations. JuLy 8, 1892, ] Many of the questions which present themselves to our jurists and juries are simply questions of fact, and the testi- mony on which the determination of such questions depends often comes from persons who are neither interested nor dis- honest. In such cases it ought to be easy to reach a true conclusion, but there is often failure, growing out of honest differences of opinion. An eminent attorney not long since referred in conversa- tion to a certain decision of the Supreme Court of the United States concerning which there had been a strong dissenting minority. The question was one which involved neither passion nor politics, and he declared that to him it seemed utterly impossible for a disciplined mind to reach other than one conclusion regarding it. In any review of this subject, such as is here suggested, it is neither necessary nor proper to refer to the numerous in- stances of utter failure in our judicial system, attributable to a lack of integrity on the part of those who administer the laws or to the mischievous results of appeals to passion or prejudice by unprincipled advocates. It is sufficient to recog- nize the fact that failure in the administration of law is not uncommon where witnesses are honest, juries intelligent and well-meaning, and judges incorruptible. The rapidly increasing number of controversies within the church, to say nothing of those in which the disputants are on opposite sides of the wall, show conclusively that the logic of the theologian must sometimes go at a limping gait. In political or social economy there is great diversity of opinion among good and able men. Certain financial legis- lation by Congress is honestly thought by many people to be necessary to prevent widespread disaster and the financial ruin of one of the largest and most important classes of our citizens; by other equally intelligent and equally honest men such action on the part of the National Legislature is con- demned as dishonest in principle and sure to be fatal to the business interests of the country. A large number of able and patriotic men address them- selves to the solution of the problem of the adjustment of duties upon imported merchandise. All have access to the same store of experience; the discussions and investigations of the past are open to allalike. In the end, however, their conclusions, even as to elementary principles, are diamet- rically opposed to each other. But I have neither the time nor the disposition to enter into an exhaustive examination into the miscarriage of logic in the regions of politics, religion, or social science. I must restrict myself to some consideration of the uncertainty of conclusions reached by what may be broadly included under the general term ‘* the exact sciences,” a division of the sub- ject not unlikely, I hope, to be of some interest to members of this society. At the threshold of the investigation we are confronted by the term ‘‘ exact sciences,” and it is of the utmost importance to reach a clear understanding of the meaning of this phrase, in the beginning. By some writers its application is limited to the mathematical sciences or substantially to pure math- ematics. This does not seem, however, to be in accord with _ the general usage among scientific men, and a wider signifi- cance will be here given to it. Pure mathematics may, and possibly must, be regarded as a mode of thought; as symbolic logic; as an abridgment of mental processes by the selection of that which is com- mon to all, and its formal expression by means of signs and symbols. Intellectual operations which, on account of their complexity and length, would be possible only to a few of SCIENCE. 2x the highest capacity are by the aid of mathematics brought within the range of the many. In virtue of the simple and beautiful nomenclature of the science, one can see at a glance, in a formula or equation, the various relations, primary and secondary, direct and implied, which exist among the sey- eral magnitudes involved, which, if expressed or defined in ordinary language, would be beyond the understanding of most intelligent people. The principles and rules governing mathematical opera- tions have been, in the main, so well worked out and so uni versally agreed upon that in mathematics one can hardly go astray, at least not without the certainty of almost imme- diate detection and conviction at the hands of many skilled in the use of this wonderful intellectual device. When deal- ing with quantity in the abstract, or with matter under just such restrictions or possessed of just such properties as are prescribed, mathematics becomes a machine of certain per- formance, the output of which can only be in error through the conscious or unconscious mistakes of the operator. As such it challenges the admiration of all, and it must forever be regarded as among the first, if not, indeed, the very first, of the few really splendid creations of the human intellect. When Plato, in reply to a question as to the occupation of the Deity, answered, ‘‘ He geometrizes continually,” he em- phasized the dignity and the incontrovertibility of mathe matical reasoning. It is no reflection, then, upon the importance and value of the science of mathematics to leave it upon the pedestal which it rightfully occupies, considering it as separate and apart from other sciences. In their development it may and does play a most important part, in which, however, it is identified rather with the investigator than with the suk- ject investigated; for, in studying the elementary principles of abstract dynamics, one may follow the now somewhat antiquated and cumbersome processes of Newton or the more simple and elegant methods of Clifford or Maxwell, but the results will in all cases be the same. Before finally dismissing the pure mathematics, however, especial attention must be invited to one or two principles involved in their application by way of contrast with the condition of things which exists in the domain of the other sciences. It is sometimes declared by way of a criticism of mathematics that ‘‘ what comes out of it is never better than what goes in.” In acertain narrow sense this is true, but in a broader and truer sense it is as false as it would be to say that grain and fruit are no better than the soil from which they spring. The mathematician has the great advantage over the physicist, the chemist, or the geologist that he not oniy can, but almost necessarily must, completely define the elements with which he has to deal. If he deals with matter, before he can put it into his equations he must needs restrict it as to form and dimensions and endow it with definite physical properties, the relations of which are capable of analytical expression. If, after this, his power of analysis is sufficiently great, the conclusions which he reaches can have no element of uncertainty in them, provided always they are considered as referring only to the supposititious material with which the investigation was begun. That the conclusions are not in harmony with known phenomena is evidence only of the fact that the material of nature is not the material which is symbolized in the formula, and that certain properties which are common to both are modified in the former by the pres- ence of others which are not attributed to the latter. When MacCullagh, Neuman, Stokes, Sir William Thomson, or Max- 22 well, each evolves a dynamical or mechanical theory of light, a lack of agreement among them or with known principles of optics can generally be traced to the fact that the medium in which they suppose the action to take piace has not been endowed with the same common properties by all, and that in every case it falls short of an exact representation of the real ether itself. With this important restriction upon mathematical reasoning kept continually in mind, mathe- matics may be safely set aside as the ‘‘one science of pre- cision.” What, now, are the characteristics of the so-called ‘‘ exact sciences” other than pure mathematics? Without attempt- ing a rigorous definition or a precise classification, it is suffi- eient for the purpose at hand to declare that the exact sci- ences are those whose conclusions are capable of being, and for the most part are, established by experiment and verified prediction. Among these exact sciences the most notable, in degree of exactness, is the science of astronomy. Although the con- elusions reached in the study of astronomy may not in gen- eral be established by experiment, the marvellous accuracy with which its predictions are verified has Jong ago placed it ‘far in advance of other sciences. An inquiry into the eause of this excellence will not show that the logic of the astronomer is any more rigorous than that of many others engaged in scientific research, but rather that the premises on which he reasons are simpler, and, what is of greater im- portance, more nearly sufficient. Until a very recent period in its history, astronomy, although dealing with matter, has been concerned almost entirely with only one of its many properties. The one property thus far assumed to be com- mon to all matter is that long-known but still mysterious attraction in virtue of which there exists a stress between every particle and every other particle in the universe, ac- cording to a law the discovery and exposition of which justly entitles Newton to be considered the greatest philosopher of allages. It happens that the hundreds and possibly thous- ands of other properties possessed by, or inherent in, matter have little if any influence on the dynamics of masses widely separated from each other, and therefore a knowledge of the Jaw of gravitation seems to be sufficient to enable the astron- omer, having, of course, obtained the necessary data from observation, to trace the paths of the planets and to foretell the configuration of the heavens many years in advance. Within the past twenty-five years, however, the splendid discovery of spectroscopy, aided by great improvements in photography, has given rise to a new astronomy, known as physical, as distinguished from gravitational astronomy. The new science deals with a matter of many properties, some of which are but little understood While its conclu- sions are of vital importance and of intense interest, they result from deductions in which the premises are insufficient and are proportionately uncertain. The new astronomy must for a long time abound in contradictions and contro- versies, until, and largely through its development, we shall possess a knowledge of the properties of matter when sub- jected to conditions differing enormously from those with which we are now quite familiar. Because one astronomer declares that the temperature of the sun is 20,000° F., and another, equally honest and capable, says it is not less than 20,000,000° F'., it must not be inferred, and it never is, except by the superficial, that the whole science of solar energy isa tissue of falsehoods, and that those engaged in its development are deliberately planning an imposition upon the general public. Even such widely varying results as these may be SCIENCE. [VoL. XX. No. 492 based on observations that are entirely correct and experi- ments that are beyond criticism. The discussion of the re- sults obtained by observation and experiment may follow, in both cases, the very best models, and yet the conclusions may be erroneous and contradictory, owing to the insufficiency of data in the beginning. Unfortunately the omission of one or more important quantities from the equations of condition is not always known or suspected. The older, more exact astronomy is occasionally caught tripping in this way. An interesting example of recent occurrence is to be found in certain ob- servations for stellar parallax made a few years ago by members of our own society. The observations were long continued, the instruments used were of a high character, and the observers were skilful. These conditions unquestionably promise success. It was something of a surprise, therefore, when a reduction of the observations gave for the parallax a negative result. Assuch a result could in no way be pos- sible, except, perhaps, through the assistance and interven- tion of a curvature in space (in virtue of which if a man’s vision was not limited he would, by looking straight for- ward, see the back of his own head), it was assumed that the work was not as well done as it seemed to be, or that some imperfection in the instrumental appliances had been over- looked. It now appears, however, that this record may be reopened, and that the results may prove to be of as great value as originally anticipated. Researches carried on dur- ing the past year or two have with little doubt established the fact that the latitude of a point on the earth’s surface is nota fixed quantity, but that on the contrary it varies through a small range during a period somewhat greater than a year. It is believed that if this hitherto unsuspected variation be applied to the parallax observations, referred to above, the seeming absurdity of the result will vanish. If astronomy, the foremost of the exact sciences, is not free from the fault of basing conclusions upon insufficient premises, it will not be expected that among other sciences the evil will be of less magnitude. When we consider the sciences of heat, light, electricity, magnetism, and other specially investigated properties of matter, all of which are usually included under the general head of ‘‘ Physics,” we meet with a formidable rival of as- tronomy in the extent to which they are entitled to be con- sidered as exact sciences. Physics treats of all the properties of matter, not omitting that which is the special domain of astronomy. As if this were not enough, the demands upon the science are such that it must also deal with that which is not matter, or, at least, is not matter in the ordinarily accepted sense. Although physics deals with all of the properties of matter, no physi- cist knows them, or, possibly, half of them. Perhaps not one of them is entirely and completely known. It would seem, therefore, that this science must of necessity be one of uncertain conclusions. That it is far from deserving so sweeping a criticism is due to the fact that the properties of matter are not so closely interrelated as to make it impossi- ble to isolate one or more of them in experiment, and thus the problem is vastly simplified. It is probably impossible to do this rigorously in any case, so that there must always remain a small residuum of uncertainty due to the interfer- ence of unknuwn or imperfectly understood properties of matter. Thus it is possible to treat a mass of matter as though it possessed mass only, ignoring its electrical, magnetic, or optical properties, its relation to heat, its elasticity, and other Juty 8, 1892. | physical characteristics, and investigate its bebavior under the law of gravitation alone; its optical properties may be found to be nearly independent of its relation to heat, elec- tricity, magnetism, ete., and so, in turn, each characteristic may be studied alone and equations obtained in which the number of constants is comparatively small. It is only after this plan has been pretty thoroughly worked out that it becomes possible to investigate the interrelations of these various properties, which are often obscure and difficult of detection. Their discovery, however, especially one or two great generalizations pertaining to them, such as that of the conservation of energy, must be regarded as the grandest triumph of physical science. The science of physics is that which is most drawn upon in the formation of the so-called applied sciences. Wedded fo mathematics as it is (and no amount of personal abuse on either side can ever furnish good reason for divorce), it be- comes the mother of engineering in all of its various forms. Through and by it, the forces of nature have been directed, the elements have been subdued and some of them over- come, and man has made himself master of the world. Its marvellous progress has, therefore, been observed by the people, and is understood by them perhaps to a greater degree than that of any other science. The most eloquent orators and the ablest writers have employed their genius in sound- ing its praises. It is not too much to say that when intelligent people speak, in a general way, of the wonderful things which sci- ence has accomplished during the past half-century, they ‘have in mind, for the most part, the applications which have been made of discoveries in physical science. I think no one can justly question the assertion that of the several causes which have produced the splendid advances in the material interests of the whole world during the nineteenth century, science has contributed far more liberally than all others. So remarkable have been her achievements that all the people have come to look upon her as being nearly, if not quite, infallible. A reputation of which the votaries of science may be proud has been established, but, at the same time, one difficult to maintain. Here, as elsewhere, it is a good name only that is worth counterfeiting. It is quite worth the while of one devoted to the interests of pure sci- ence alone to occasionally inquire whether an impure article is not being placed upon the market. However indifferent he may be to the welfare of the general public, his own self- ish instincts should incline him to such a course. He can- not clear his own skirts by declaring that the public deserves to be humbugged if it permits itself to be, for in this, as in everything else, the counterfeit when successful is not read- ily detected, and it is often made to appear more attractive than the genuine article. In respect to this matter physical science presents two as- pects. In a large degree it is a science of certain conclu- sions, and any false deduction is readily exposed by means of the many severe tests to which it may be subjected. On the other hand, in some of its branches it has not yet been found possible to isolate the elements which form a rather complex whole, and it therefore remains an observational rather than an experimental science. In the latter aspect it becomes comparatively easy prey for charlatans and well- meaning but ignorant non-professionals. In no department of physical science is this better illus- trated than in meteorology, the oldest and most abused of all sciences. From its early days, when weather forecasts were expressed in simple rhyme, to the present, when they SCIENCE. 23 are issued in a prose which in its scope and richness of vocab- ulary sometimes excites our highest admiration, meteorology has been a favorite victim of pretenders, conscious and un- conscious. For years the people, after having first believed in, have patiently borne with, the predictors of disaster in the form of abnormal meteorclogical disturbances. They have suffered great mental distress, and they have lost enor- mous sums of money on account of floods, tidal waves, and earthquakes which never came, rains that never fell, and winds that never blew. They were becoming accustomed to this sort of thing, and were beginning to understand the spirit which guided the real meteorologists as manifested in the efforts of the great weather bureaus of the world, our own among the first, to foretell with a good degree of cer- tainty what might happen within the next twenty or thirty hours. But not many months ago they were again brought to a high pitch of meteorological excitement by the some- what sudden and certainly unexpected appearance of the ‘*Cloud-compelling Jove.” . He came not in the singular, but in the plural, and each of him brought the best and most scientific device for producing a rainfall whenever and wherever a sufficient thirst was found to exist. The history of this new industry cannot yet be written. It is still in its infancy. The fallacy of its methods has already been com- mented upon in a public journal, by a distinguished mem- ber of oar own society, but a few remarks upon its some what meteoric career during the past season will not be out of place in connection with the subject now under consider- ation. The columus of the daily press reflected the general inter- est which was felt in the matter. especially in parts of the country where rainfall was greatly needed. As is always the case under such circumstances, the strong and entirely natural desire that its artificial production might be accom- plished was soon converted into a belief that it had been, and a readiness to accept the flimsiest sort of evidence of relation between the means employed and the end sought. This confidence materialized, or better, perhaps, was taken advantage of in the formation of an ‘‘ Interstate Artificial Rain Company, Limited ” (I am quoting from the daily pa- pers of Noy. 10, 1891), which, after the manner of its kind, was apparently organized not for the purpose of actually producing rain, but for the formation of other joint-stock companies ready to purchase the secret method of doing it. An alleged experiment, on which a business transaction was based, is thus described: — ““The party arrived in the city on Sunday, Nov. 1, and commenced operations on Sunday evening in a small out- house on the edge of town. The conditions were extremely unfavorable for rain. No results could be seen at first, but on Friday the sky became overcast with clouds. On Satur- day a high south wind prevailed, and on Saturday night some rain came from the south-west. On Sunday rain fell all day, and at night a norther arose. Reports from 100 to 150 miles around this town show that rain fell on Sunday in most localities in considerable quantities.” So convincing was this to the buying company that the secret process was purchased by them for the sum of $50,000, ‘‘after which,” the account rather unnecessarily adds, the selling company “left for home.” Buta business so profitable as this was not to be long without competition, and a few weeks later a telegram is sent to the leading newspapers of the country, announcing that a professor in a western State (it is pleasant to note that most of these public benefactors are ‘‘professors”) is prepared to furnish rain more promptly and at less cost 24 SCIENCE. than the genius whose machinery and methods have invited public approval. Proposals to do the county sprinkling at so much per acre are invited and offered, and at one time it seemed as if the whole business would be ruined by over- production. One of the most interesting phases of this subject was the attitude in reference to it assumed by a large part, possibly the greater part, of the intelligent public. It was one of expectancy and limited confidence. ‘‘ Why not?” was com- monly asked. ‘‘ Look at what science has done within the last twenty-five years. Can anything be more astonishing ? and is the artificial production of rainfall more difficult and more wonderful than many things which are now common- place?” To many the logic of the experiments was con- vincing. After many battles rain had fallen, long lists of examples have been prepared, and hence it must be possible to produce rainfall by cannonading. If these views were entertained by a considerable number of intelligent people, and it is believed that they were, the situation is one which ought to be full of interest to men of science, involving, as it does, both a tribute and a warning. It would be good for all if the intelligent public was in the habit of looking a little more below the surface of things. It is too much in the way of assuming that the president of the company engaged in exploiting an important invention or device is the genius who first discovered the principle in virtue of which it operates. It loses sight of — no, it does not lose sight of, because it never knew — the patient toil, the unselfish devotion, and, what is perhaps more impor- tant, the unflinching honesty with which a few men of the highest intellectual capacity have from the earliest times given themselves to the study of the laws of nature. It would surprise the public to know how long ago and by whom many of the most recent and most brilliant appli- cations of science were made possible. Would it not be in the interest of all if men of science were more ready and willing to take the intelligent public into their confidence; and would not the public, if familiar with the history of scientific investigation and accustomed to scientific modes of thought and criticism, be less the prey of charlatans and well-meaning but ill-informed enthusiasts ? A better knowl- edge on both sides would lead to a better appreciation of both sides, and the real worker in science would seldom go without that public recognition which has too often been denied to the ablest men. No better illustration of this can be found than in the life of the distinguished first president of this society, to stand in whose place must always be an honor to any man. With his great work as secretary of the Smithsonian Institution the public is fairly well acquainted, and it bas not been backward in bestowing honors in recog- nition of that work. Unfortunately, comparatively few know of what must be regarded, I think, as his greater work, the original researches in which he was engaged, and in which he was so singularly successful, before he became identified with the institution to which he gave the greater part of his life. Scant justice has yet been done to this important part of a career which must always be an inspiration to members of this society. But I am warned that the brief time during which I can claim your attention to-night is quite insufficient for any- thing like a full exposition of the theme which I have se- lected, and I must, I fear, somewhat abruptly turn about in order that I may leave with you in somewhat more definite language one or two thoughts which I have attempted to develop by illustration and example. [Vot. XX. No. 492 Recurring to the unfortunate victim of circumstantial evi- dence, whose experience was related in the beginning, it will be admitted that the judge who charged, the jury who con- victed, the witnesses who told the truth, and the approving public were all in error, in that they failed to recognize that there was another way of explaining what had happened. It does not necessarily follow that the explanation which ex- plains is the true one. There are many natural phenomena which are in entire accord with more than one hypothesis. Indeed, there are some things which way be perfectly ac- counted for on an infinite number of suppositions, but it does not follow that all or any one of them must be accepted. There is nothing especially novel in this proposition, but I submit that to a failure to keep it in sight must be attributed a large measure of the uncertainty of the exact sciences, as well as much useless and bitter controversy in science, religion, eth- ics, and politics. Asa sort of corollary to this proposition I suggest that many reasoning and reasonable people are indifferent to, if not ignorant of, the fact that the value of evidence is greatly dependent on the way in which it arranges itself. To many this may be made a little clearer if I borrow a phrase from one of the most exact of modern sciences and speak of evi- dence as presenting itself in series or in parallel. Without pushing the analogy further, the superior strength of the latter arrangement will be evident upon reflection. On an- other occasion, I have referred at some length to the nu- merical representation of the value of testimony, and to some conclusions which are easily reached. As bearing upon the subject in hand, a single example of this method of treat- ment may be useful. Let there be two witnesses, A and B. Suppose that A tells the truth 51 times out of 100; that is to say, assume that honesty holds the controlling share in his stock of moral principles. Let B be equally truthful and no more. Then if these two testify independently to the occurrence of a cer- tain phenomenon it is more likely to have occurred than if either one alone bore witness. This is evidence in parallel. If, however, A testifies that B declares that the thing hap- pened, it is less probable than if based on the testimony of either alone. This is evidence in series. Put as boldly as this, no one doubts the higher value of the first arrange- ment; but it is believed that a more careful consideration of _ this distinction will do much to secure a better judgment, not only where human testimony is involved, for here it has long been an established principle, but where conclusions are based on observation and experiment. It is of the utmost importance, therefore, that men of sci- ence, before accepting a theory or a hypothesis as final, should carefully scrutinize the steps by which it has been established to see that they are not only sufficient but neces- sary: The true philosopher will be slow to claim that the theory which he finds sufficient to explain all of a given class of facts is the necessary and true one; he will be con- stantly on the lookout for a new fact which his theory will not quite explain, and he will have much consideration for his friendly competitor who finds a different hypothesis equally satisfactory and efficient. Above all, he will not pride himself on the steadfastness of his views, and will rarely bind himself to be of the same opinion this year as last. If the general public could be made to understand the limitations by which science is circumscribed, the tentative and ever progressive character of scientific investigation, it would be good for the public and good for science. Jury 8, 1892.] The human race is greatly handicapped by the presence of a good number of people who strenuously object to being disturbed. During a decade, generation, or century these good but sometimes unpleasant people plant themselves along certain lines in the domain of science or politics or religion, proclaiming essentially that ‘‘ here and here only is the truth, and here we fix ourselves forever.” After awhile they somewhat unwillingly and with no very good grace move forward into a new position, again honestly affirming and believing that the end has been reached. A _ better knowledge and a broader human sympathy would reveal to them the hitherto unsuspected fact that truth may at the same time be here and there. In the dissemination of this knowledge and the cultivation of this sympathy, science should lead, not follow. No sci- entific organization so young in years has done more along these lines, especially by reason of its extensive membership and the vigor and enthusiasm of its branches, than the so- ciety over whose deliberations during the past year I have been permitted to preside. For the honor thus bestowed I beg now to make my for- mal and grateful acknowledgements. REMARKS UPON THE GRAPHIC SYSTEM OF THE ANCIENT MAYAS. BY HILBORNE T. CRESSON, A.M., M.D. A Maya hieroglyph may bea single character by which a meaning is expressed by the sound of the name of the thing represented, or it may have a number of components that convey by a similar method a series of ideas. The ’elyphs of Kukwitz and of Cauac in the Codex Troano are examples, and another is that over the figure of Kukulcan, or Ikilcab, the so-called Jong-nosed god, of whom representations appear so frequently in the different Maya codices. The figures of gods, with their head-dresses and the objects represented by the Maya scribes in the Codex Troano and other manuscripts, may be composed of a series of hiero- glyphic elements suggesting the names of gods and their attributes or of some of the various characters which they impersonate. An example of this is the head-dress of the long-nosed god of the Codex Troano, which reads Ikilcab, while his girdle expresses by phonetic elements the name Kukuitz, who seems also to have been Kukulcan, Ikilcab or Cauac, and Itzamna. It is not improbable that Kukuitz, Kukulcan, Ikilecab, and Itzamna is the Hunakbu, or one God spoken of in the Codex Troano and referred to on the hieratic tablets, Casa No. 2, Palenque. I notice that in the photographs of the ancient cities of Yucatan and other portions of Central America, that which we have hitherto considered as architectural ornamentation of Maya design is ikonomatic decoration, and a notable in- stance is the name Chi-chen-itza on the palaces of that ancient city, which are repeatedly recalled by Chi and itza, and less frequently by repetitions of the word Chen. I make this assertion subject to further alteration and improvement, as I have not examined the buildings themselves, being obliged to depend upon bad photographs and still worse wood-cuts. ‘The hieroglyphs and ikonomatic ornamentations of Pa- lenque, Chi-chen-itza, Labna, Tikul, Lorillard City, and Copan, judging by photographs taken at these places, seem to be allied to one another, but those of Uxmal are more archaic, with the exception of Copan. SCIENCE, 25 The plan I have adopted in my analysis of the various components of a ’glyph, those standing for the sounds of the names of the things represented, is based upon the idea that the Maya script, both hieratic and demotic, is similar to the higher grade of picture-writing suggested by M. Aubin, in his analysis of the name I¢z-co-atl,— represented by the con- ventional sign for water, obsidian attachments to the shaft of the arrow, and a vase or pot,— which by reference to his work will more fully appear. Proceeding upon this plan, I endeavored to analyze Landa’s Key, and have found that the Maya scribe simply gave *slyphs, whether simple or combined together, that carried out Landa’s pronunciation of the Spanish alphabet, by means of characters which stood for the sounds of the names of these letters. The hieroglyph of a tarantula or centipede, figured in the Troano plates — a claw pinching a rope attached to the foot of a deer-like animal, and also.a hand attached to the same insect-like figure in the act of pinching —suggested the vari- ous curved ‘glyphs of the verb C” (Maya, to bite), which are, I believe, in connection with the parrot ’glyph, Moo, a part of the primitive elements of the Maya alphabet. From this I have obtained Cha, Cha (or Che), Chi, Cho, Chu, and from the Moo (parrot) ‘glyph has been obtained a, e, i, 0, u. This system has been applied successfully to the rendering of the components of the day-signs of the Troano manuscript and those of the Chilan Balaam of K4ua, using Dr. Brinton’s plates for the work—those published in his essay upon the books of ‘‘ Chilan Balaam,” pages 16 and 17. In several cases certain ’glyphs, such as that of Ikilcab, Cauac, and Itzamna, have suggested meanings so clearly expressed that the words were easily found in the yacubu- lary of the Abbe Brasseur de Bourbourg, and had such a strong resemblance to objects and ‘glyphs carried by the figures to which they belonged, that I venture to think the alphabet which I have arranged will eventually work suc- cessfully. It is based upon studies of the hieratic script made while at the Ecole de Beaux Arts in 1875-76-77, and work done on the Troano script in 1880; these researches being thrown aside and recommenced since Jan. 1 1892. Although Dr. Thomas and myself have proceeded in methods totally different from each other, and have never yet met to make comparisons, in quite a number of cases our methods have shown like results. I have mailed Professor D. G. Brinton, and the first-named gentleman, proof of this similarity of interpretation, and may also add that before I received a copy of Professor Thomas's “‘ Key ” I had mailed, and I venture to say both these gentlemen had received, my analysis and arrangement of the Maya signs of orientation, viz., Chikin, West; Lakin, East; Schaman, North; Nohol, South. My arrangement of these signs corresponds to that of de Rosny and Thomas. The first sign of orientation on the list was determined by the C"i ’glyph. I mention the correspondence of my work with that of Professor Thomas to show that this similarity of mterpreta- tion, referred to, cannot be the result of mere guess- work. The aspirates and signs of repetition and the determinatives of the Maya Graphic System are most important, and I give them as Landa expresses it, and also by dotted lines in cir- cles and curves. The phonetic value of the curve in the Maya alphabet is one of its strongest elements. Most of the characters in the key I have arranged are based on it and other natural suggestions of animate and inanimate nature— b) 26 SCIENCE. such as the parrot eye, the biting mouth, and the mole-like teeth, the curved line of the serpent’s body, and the beauti- ful outlines of the antenne of the bee, also its sting, and last, not least, the graceful leaf of the maize, and other nat- ural forms which are symbols of fertility. It may be interesting to remark that the phonetic value of the antenne of the bee was suggested by the third ’glyph, Cauac, on the Kukuitz bas-relief, left-hand side of the Casa No. 3, Palenque. This glyph was traced to more demotic forms on plate 25 of the Troano, also plate 24, where it is upheld by the Goddess Cab. Near the figure of Cab is the same infant-like figure that is to be seen on the so-called tablet of the cross of Palenque. The component characters of the ‘glyphs composing this child’s body refer to his name as Ikilcab, and this same name is expressed on the head- dress and hieroglyphs of the God-with-the-long-nose of the Troano, and other manuscripts, so-called by students to dis- tinguish him. Tkilcab and. Cauac, the Cuch-haab, are in “some way clearly connected, for the components of the Cauac glyph of the day-signs of Landa and those of the Chilan Balaam of Kaua are closely connected with those of [Vor XS) Nox A492 reads Ikileab. The ancient Mayas probably thought of the bee as Ikil, the sting, and Cab, honey. The ‘glyph of the day-sign, Caban, refers to that day-sign and Ikilcab, and is also the honey sign (‘‘ Bee Keeper’s Narrative,” the Codex Troano). The numeral signs of the Troana, both red and black, seem to have been used at timesikonomatically. The serpent symbol on plate 25, division 1, Troano, is C’an, and close to it are numerals giving the suggestion Hunakbu, the one God. On the sun symbol of this plate are numerals, which, in connection with the flute ’glyph (Chul) projecting above the sun-disk and the hand below pinching the ma- chete, suggest the interpretation ‘“‘a name,” Chu kul-ca- can. Alliteration and syncapation for the sake of euphony are especially noticeable in the Maya language, but do not seem to be followed in the arrangement of their graphie charac- ters, and no regularity of procedure, in reading the compo- nent parts of a glyph, seems to exist. As a general thing, however, some object carried in the hand of a figure, or placed near it, serves as a sort of a determination or sugges- tion; this is more frequently the case in the demotic than Caban. The Cauac ’glyph, if my interpretation be correct, hieratic script. Publications Received at Editor’s Office. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF Poxitics. Vol. I. No.1. 35 cents. CHAMBERS’s EncycLopzpt1a. Vol. IX. Philadel- phia, J. B. Lippincott Co. Imp. 8°. CrEsson, HiLBoRNE T. Report upon Pile-Struc- turesin Naaman’s Creek. Cambridge, Peabody Museum. 8°. Paper. 21p. NationaL Poputar Review. Vol. I. No. 1. San Diego, Cal., J. Harrison White. 25 cents. Roya Society oF Vicroria. Transactions. Vol. II. Part II. Melbourne, The Society. 4°. Paper. 51p. Reading Matter Notices. Ripans Tabules cure jaundice. Societas Entomologica. International Entomological Society, Zu- rich-Hottingen, Switzerland. Annual fee, ten francs. The Journal of the Society appears twice a month, and consists entirely of original ar- ticles on entomology, with a department for advertisements. All members may use this department free of cost for advertisements relating to entomology. The Society consists of about 450 members in all countries of the world. The new volume began April 1, 1892. The numbers already issued will be sent to new members. For information address Mr. Fritz Rust, President of the Societas Entomologica, Zurich-Hottingen, Switzerland. NEO-DARWINISM AND NEO-LAMARCKISM. By LESTER F. WARD. Annual address of the President of the Biological Society of Washington delivered Jan. 24, 1891. A historical and critical review of modern scientific thought relative to heredity, and especially to the roblem of the transmission of acquired characters, he following are the several heads involved in the discussion Status of the Problem, Lamarckism. Darwinism, Acquired Characters, Theories of He- redity, Views of Mr. Galton, Teachings of Professor Weismann, A Critique of Weismann, Neo-Darwin- ism, Neo-Lamarckism, the American ‘“‘School,’’ Ap- plication to the Human Race. Imso far as views are expressed they are in the main jn line with the general current of American thought, and opposed to the extreme doctrine of the non-transmissibility of acquired characters. Price, postpaid, 25 cents. N. D. C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. Y. Exchanges. [Freeofcharge to all, if ofsatisfactory character. Address N. D. C. Hodges, 874 Broadway, New York.] Taxidermist going out of business has quantity of finely-mounted specimens of North American birds, mammals and reptiles and skias of birds for sale, including a full local collection of bird skins, show- ing some great variations of species; also quantity of skulls with horns of deer and mountain sheep, and mounted heads of same. °Will give good ex- change for Hawk Eye camera with outfit. Apply quickly to J. R. Thurston, 265 Yonge St., Toronto, Canada. For exchange.—A fine thirteen-keyed flute in leather covered case, for a photograph camera suitable for mak- ing lantern slides. Flute cost $27, and is nearly new. U. O. COX, Mankato, Minn. To exchange ; Experiment Station bulletins and reports for bulletins and reports not in my file. I will send list of what I have for exchange. P. H. ROLES, Lake City, Florida. Finished specimens of all colors of Vermont marble for fine fossils or crystals. Will be given only for valuable specimens because of the cost of polishing. GEO. W. PERRY, State Geologist, Rutland, Vt. For exchange.—Three copies of ‘‘ American State Papers Bearing on Sunday Legislation,” 1891, $2.50, new and unused, for “‘The Sabbath,” by Harmon Kingsbury, 1840; ‘‘The Sabbath,” by A. A. Phelps, 1842; ‘* History of the Institution of the Sabbath Day, Its Uses and Abuses,”’ by W. L. Fisher, 1859; *‘ Humorous Phases of the Law,” by Irving Browne; or other works amounting to value of books exchanged, on the question of govern- mental legislation in reference to religion, personal liberty, etc. If preferred, I will sell ‘‘American State Papers,” and buy other books on the subject. WILLIAM AD- DISON BLAKELY, Chicago, Ill. For Sale or Exchange for books a complete private chemical laboratory outfit. Includes large Becker bal- ance (200g. to 1-10omg.), platinum dishes and crucibles, agate motors, glass-blowing apparatus, etc. For sale in part orwhole. Also complete file of Silliman’s Ffournal, 1862-1885 (62-71 bound); Smithsonian Reports, 1854-1883; U.S. Coast Survey. 1854-1869. Full particulars to en- quirers. F. GARDINER, JR., Pomfret, Conn. Wanted, in exchange for the following works, any standard works on Surgery and on Diseases of Children: Wilson’s ‘American Ornithology,’’ 3 vols.; Coues’ ‘*Birds of the Northwest’’ and ‘* Birds of the Colorado Valley,” 2 vols.; Minot’s ‘‘ Land and Game Birds of New Eng- land;”’ Samuels’ ‘‘ Our Northern and Eastern Birds;” all the Reports on the Birds of the Pacific R. R. Survey, bound in 2 vols., morocco; and a complete set of the Reports of the Arkansas Geological Survey. Please give editions and dates in caicecon ine! R. ELLSWORTH CALL, High School, Des Moines, Iowa. To exchange Wright’s ‘Ice Age in North America” and Le Conte’s ‘Elements of Geology’’ (Copyright 1882) for ‘‘Darwinism,’’ by A. R. Wallace, “Origin of Species,” by Darwin, ‘‘Descent of Man,’’ by Darwin, ‘*Man’s Place in Nature,’’ Huxley, ‘‘Mental Evolution in Ani- mals,” by Romanes, ‘‘Pre-Adamites,’’ by Winchell. No books wanted except latest editions, and books in good condition. C. S. Brown, Jr., Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tenn. Wants. Any person seeking a posttion for which he ts quali- fied by his sctentific attainments, or any person seeking some one to fill a position of this character, be it that of a teacher of science, chemist, draughtsman, or what not, may have the ‘Want’ inserted under this head FREE OF Cost, 7/ he satisfies the publisher of the suit- able character of his application. Any person seeking information on any scientific question, the address of any scientific man, or who can in any way use this column for a purpose consonant with the nature of the paper, is cordially invited to do so. ANTED,.—A collection of postage stamps; one made previous to 1870 preferred. Also old and curious stamps on original letters, and old entire U S. stamped envelopes. Will pay cash or give in exchange first-class fossils, including fine crinoids. WM. F. E. GURLEY, Danville, Il. V ANTED.—To purchase laboratory outfit; bal- aaces, evaporating dishes, burettes, etc., wanted immediately for cash. C. E. SPEIRS, 23 Murray street, New York. P. O. Box 1741. NV eee ee services of a wide-awake young man, as correspondent, in a large manufactur- ing optical business; one preferred who hasa thor- ough knowledge of microscopy and some knowledge of photography. Address by letter, stating age and references. Optical, care of Science, 874 Broadway, New York. Witte want any and all of the following, providing we can trade other books and maga- zines or buy them cheap for cash: Academy, Lon- don, vol. 1 to 28, 35, Jan. and Feb., °89; Age of Steel, vol. 1 to 66; American Antiquarian, vol. 1, 2; Ameri- ean Architect, vol. 1 to 6,9; American Art Review, vol. 3; American Field, vol. 1 to 21; American Geol- ogist, vol. 1 to 6; American Machinist, vol. 1 to 4; Art Amateur, yol.1 to 7, Oct., 4; Art Interchange, vol. 1to 9; Art Union, vol. 1 to 4, Jan., °44, July, °45; Bibliotheca Sacra, vol.1 to 46; Godey’s Lady’s Book, vol. 1 to 20; New Englander, vol. 11; Zoologist, Series 1 and 1, Series 3 vol. 1 to 14; Allen Armendale (a novel). Raymer’s ‘‘Old Book” Store, 243 4th Ave. S., Minneapolis, Minn. ANTED.—By a young man, a Swarthmore Col- lege junior, a position as principal of a publie high school in one of the Gulf States, or as instructor in botany, physiology, and geology in an academy or normal school. Address B., care of Librarian, Swarthmore College, Penn. ANTED.—To act as correspondent for one or two daily or weekly papers. Have workedon paper for abouttwo years Would like a position on editorial staff of humorous paper. Address GEO. C. MASON, 14 Elm St., Hartford, Conn. RANSLATOR wanted to read German architec- | tural works at sight (no writing). One familiar with technical terms desired. Address ‘“‘A.,”? Box 149, New York Post Office. ANTED.—A position in a manufacturing estab- lishment by a manufacturing Chemist of in- ventive ability. Address M. W. B, care of Science, 874 Broadway, N. Y. Jury 8, 1892.] AMONG THE PUBLISHERS. A SECOND revised and enlarged edition of a popular work on the tariff question, entitled ‘‘The Free Trade Struggle in Eng- land,” by Gen. M. M. Trumbull, will shortly be issued by the Open Court Publishing Company. — Charles L. Webster & Co. will soon issue a work by R. L. Garner, entitled ‘‘ The Speech of Monkeys.” This work embodies his researches up tothe present time. It is divided into two parts, the first being a record of experiments with monkeys and other animals, and the second part a treatise on the theory of speech. The work is written so as to bring the subject within reach of the casual reader without impairing its scientific value. —Ginn & Co. will publish at once ‘‘German and English Sounds,” by C. H. Grandgent, director of Modern Language In- struction in the Boston Public Schools. The volume will contain a detailed account of the sounds that occur in German and English - speech, a description of the principal local variations in the pro- SCIEN CE: 27 nunciation of both languages, and a series of diagrams showing the positions of the vocal organs during the formation of the vowels and the more difficult consonants. —G. P. Putnam’s Sons have in press ‘‘ Japan in Art and In- dustry,” by Felix Régamey, translated by EH. L. Sheldon (fully illustrated); ‘‘ The Fairy Tales of India,” collected and edited by Joseph Jacobs, who follows up his ‘‘ Celtic Fairy Tales” of last Christmas and ‘‘ English Fairy Tales” of the preceding Christmas by a selection from the gorgeous fancy of the Hast, illustrated by J. D. Batten; ‘* Hygienic Measures in Relation to Infectious Dis- eases,” comprising in a condensed form information as to the cause and mode of spreading certain diseases, and the preventive measures that should be resorted to — isolation, disinfection, etc., by George H. F. Nuttall, M.D., Ph.D., Associate in Hygiene and bacteriology, Johns Hopkins University and Hospital; ‘‘ Tem- perament, Disease, and Health: an essay,’’ by Com. F. E. Chad- wick, U.S.A. (retired), and ‘‘ Lyrics and Ballads of Heine, Goethe, and Other German Poets,” translated by Frances Hellman. Aorstoras Acid Phosphate, Recommended and prescribed by physicians of all schools FOR DYSPEPSIA, NERVOUSNESS, EXHAUSTION, and all diseases arising from im- perfect digestion and derange- ments of the nervous system. It aids digestion, and is a brain and nerve food. Descriptive pamphlet free. Rumford Chemical Works, Providence, R. I. Beware of Substitutes and Imitations. A TEMPORARY BINDER for Science is now ready, and will be mailed postpaid on receipt of 75 cents. This binder is strong, durable and elegant, has gilt side-title, and al- lows the opening of the pages per- fectly flat. Amy number can be taken out or replaced without dis- turbing the others, and the papers are not mutilated for subsequent permanent binding. Filed in this binder, Sczezceis always convenient for reference. W HANEY N. D. C. HODGES, Publisher, 874 Broadway, New York. : LITERARY OUTFIT FREE. Anyo’ e sending us $1.00 at once and mentioning “Science,” will receive a copy of ‘ Historical Sketches and Events in the Colonization of Ameri- ca,” by G. B. Hall. A square 8yo. book (646x9 inches), 223 pages, illustrated. This is a regular $2.00 book and a bargain at that price... .... $ 2 00 200 Private Library Labels; they should be used by all who own books... . 50 ““The Library,” a 100-page b ok ‘containing a brief list of most important standard and mis- cellaneous books in every department of Ji'era- ture. Intended for those who are about form- ing alibrary. Hints about what bo ks to read and how to buy them... 50 1 year’s subscription to the ‘Literary Li, ht, Me a monthly magazine of Ancient, Medizva and Modern Literature............ .-.0.0ses0e eee 1 00 $4 00 $4.00 actual value for $1.00. Sample copy of ‘“ Lit erary Light,’’ 10 cents (postal card won't do). Address, Literary Light, 243 4th Ave. S. Minneapolis, Minn. STERBROOK’S STEEL PENS: OF SUPERIOR AND STANDARD QUALITY. Leading Nos.: 048, 14, 130, 135, 239, 333 For Sale by all Stationers. THE ESTERBROOK STEEL PEN CO., Works: Oamden, N.J. 26 John St., New York. ENGRAVING. FOR ALL ILLUSTRATIVE~ AND.’ ADVERTISING SURFPOSES PATENTS ForINVENTORS. 40-page BOOK FREE. Address W.T. Fitzgerald, Attorney at Law, Washington, D.C G E M 0 PALS Cut ready for setting. Having pur- » chased a large lot at the Mexican lo- cality, we are offering them at about one-fifth jewelers’ prices; Step $1, $1.50, $2, $3. This is a rare opportunity to peoure a fine gem very ‘cheap. 100 pp. Mineral Catalo; ae .in cloth oSupnlement 26. GEO. L. ENGLISH & MiideralUptEiet 733 and 735 Broadway, New York City.” THE WEEKLY BULLETIN OF NEWSPAPER AND PERIODICAL LITERATURE. Catalogues and Classifies Each Week THE PRINCIPAL CONTENTS OF THE PERIODICAL PRESS. That huge mass of material heretofore inaccessible to the eager student is now rendered available. Special attention is invited to the Bulletin’s INDEX OF TECHNICAL LITERATURE Send for a free sample copy and learn how The Bulletin Supplies The Articles Catalogued. Address THE WEEKLY BULLETIN, 5 Somerset Street, = = Boston, Mass. WORLD-ENGLISH. 25 Cents. HANDBOOK OF WORLD-ENGLISH. 25 Cents. Ex - President Andrew D. White, of Cornell University, says: ‘‘I believe that the highest interests of Chris- tian civilization and of humanity would be served by its adoption.” “So set down, our tongue is the best for the world to unite upon.”—Brooklyn Eagle. ‘The idea of Mr. Bell has much to recommend it, and the presentation is charmingly clear. __Ameri- can, Phila. “The result is a language which cannot ‘fail te meet with acceptance.’’—Boston Traveller. “World. English deserves the careful consideration of all serious scholars.”— Modern Language Notes. Sent, postpaid, on receipt of price. N. D. C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, New York. FOSSIL RESINS. This book is the result of an attempt to collect the scattered notices of fossil resins, exclusive of those on amber. The work is of interest also on account of descriptions given of the insects found embedded in these long- preserved exudations from early vegetation. By CLARENCE LOWN and HENRY BOOTH Leos Sis N. D. C€. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. Y. POPULAR MANUAL OF VISIBLE SPEECH AND VOCAL PHYSIOLOGY. For use in Colleges and Normal Schools. Sent free by post by N. D. C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. ¥. Price 50 cents 28 SCIENCE. , VoL. XX. No. 492 QUERY. Can any reader of Sczence cite a case of lightning stroke in which the dissipation of a small conductor (one-sixteenth of an inch in diameter, say,) has failed to protect between two horizon- tal planes passing through its upper and lower ends respective- ly? Plenty of cases have been found which show that when the conductor is dissipated the build- ing is not injured to the extent explained (for many of these see volumes of Philosophical Trans- actions at the time when light- ning was attracting the attention of the Royal Society), but not an exception is yet known, al- though this query has been pub- lished far and wide among elec- tricians. First inserted June 19. No response to date. N. D. C. HODGES, 874 BROADWAY, NEW YORK. JUST READY. THE LABRADOR COAST. A Journal of two Summer Cruises to that region; with notes on its early discovery, on the Eskimo, on its physical geography, geology and natural history, together with a bibliography of charts, works and articles relating to the civil and natural history of the Labrador Peninsula. By ALPHEUS SPRING PACKARD, M.D., Ph.D 8°, 513 pp., $3.50. H. D. C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. Y. THE RADIOMETER, By DANIEL 8. TROY. This contains a discussion of the reasons for their action and of the phenomena pre- sented in Crookes’ tubes. Price, postpaid, 50 cents. N. D, C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. Y. AUTHORS AND PUBLISHERS. Material arranged and compiled for all kinds of works, excepting fiction. Statistics a specialty. Indexing and cataloguing. Address G. E. BIVER, 8385 N. 16th Street, Philadelphia. TO THE READERS OF SCIENCE. PUBLISHER’S ANNOUNCEMENT. Titles of Some Articles Published in Science since Jan. 1, 1892. Aboriginal North American Tea. Actinism. Agriculture, Experimental, Status of. Amenhotep, King, the tomb of. Anatomy, The Teaching of, to Advanced Medical Students. Anthropology, Current Notes on. Architectural Exhibition in Brooklyn. Arsenical Poisoning from Domestic Fabrics. Artesian Wells in Iowa. Astronomical Notes. Bacteria, Some Uses of. Botanical Laboratory, A. Brain, A Few Characteristics of the Avian. Bythoscopide and Cereopida. Canada, Royal Society of. Celts, The Question of the. Chalicotherium, The Ancestry of. Chemical Laboratory of the Case School of Applied Science. Children, Growth of. Collection of Objects Used in Worship. Cornell, The Change at. Deaf, Higher Education of the. Diphtheria, Tox-Albumin. Electrical Engineer, The Technical Education of. Eskimo Throwing Sticks. Etymology of two Iroquoian Compound Stems. Eye-Habits. Eyes, Relations of the Motor Muscles of, to Certain Facial Expressions. Family Traits, Persistency of. Fishes, The Distribution of. Fossils, Notice of New Gigantic. Four-fold Space, Possibility of a Realization of. Gems, Artificial, Detection of. Glacial Phenomena in Northeastern New York. Grasses, Homoptera Injurious to. Great Lakes, Urigin of the Basins of. “Healing, Divine.” Hemipterc us Mouth, Structure of the. Hofmann, August Wilhelm von. Hypnotism among the Lower Animals. Hypnotism, Traumatic. Indian occupation of New York. Infant’s Movements. Influenza, Latest Details Concerning the Germs of. Insects in Popular Dread in New Mexico. Inventions in Foreign Countries, How to Protect. Inventors and Manufacturers, the American Associ- ation of. Towa Academy of Sciences. Jargon, The Chinook. Jassidea; Notes on Local. Keller, Helen. Klamath Nation, Linguistics. Laboratory Training, Aims of. Lewis H. Carvill, Work on the Glacial Phenomena. Lightning, The New Method of Protecting Buildings from. Issa jOUiS Curves, Simple Apparatus for the Produc- tion of. Maize Plant, Observations on the Growth and Chemi- cal Composition of. Maya Codices, a Key to the Mystery of. Medicine, Preparation for the Study of. Mineral Discoveries, Some Recent, in the State of Washington. Museums, The Support of. Palenque Tablet, a Brief Study of. Patent Office Building, The. Physa Heterostropha Lay, Notes on the Fertility of. Pocket Gopher, Attempted Extermination of. Polariscopes, Direct Reflecting. Psychological Laboratory in the University of To- ronto. Psychological Training, The Need of. Psylla, the Pear-Tree. Rain-Making. Rivers, Evolution of the Loup, in Nebraska. Scientific Alliance, The. . Sistrurus and Crotalophorus. Star Photography, Notes on. Star, The New, in Auriga. Storage of Storm-Waters on the Great Plains. Teaching of Sclence. Tiger, A New Sabre-Toothed, from Kansas. Timber Trees of West Virginia. Trachew of Insects, Structure of. Vein-Formation, Valuable Experiments in. Weeds as Fertilizing Material. Will, a Recent Analysis of. Wind-Storms and Trees. Wines, The Sophisticated French. Zoology in the Public Schools of Washington, D. C. Some of the Contributors to Science Since Jan. I, 1892. Aaron, Eugene M., Philadelphia, Pa. Allen, Harrison, Philadelphia, Pa. Baldwin, J. Mark, University of Toronto, Canada. Barnes, Charles Reid, Madison, Wis. Baur, G., Clark University, Worcester, Mass. Beal, W. J., Agricultural College, Mich. Beals, A. H., Milledgeville, Ga. Beauchamp, W. M., Baldwinsville, N.Y. Boas, Franz, Clark University, Worcester, Mass. Bolley, H. L., Fargo, No. Dak. Bostwich, Arthur E., Montclair, N.J. Bradley, Milton, Springfield, Mass. Brinton, D. G., Philadelphia, Pa. Call, E. Ellsworth, Des Moines, Ia. Chandler, H., Buffalo, N.Y. Comstock, Theo. B., Tucson, Arizona. Conn, H. W., Middletown, Conn. Cragin, F. W., Colorado Springs, Col. Davis, W. M., Harvard College, Cambridge, Mass. Dimmock, George, Canobie Lake, N.H. Farrington, E. H., Agricultural Station, Champaign, Ill. Ferree, Barr, New York City. Flexner, Simon, Johns Hopkins University, Balti- more, Md. Foshay, P. Max, Rochester, N.Y. Gallaudet, E. M., Kendall Green, Washington, D.C. Garman, S., Museum of Comp. Zool., Cambridge, ass. Golden, Katherine E., Agricultural College, Lafay- ette, Ind. Hale, Edwin M., Chicago, Ill. Hale, George S., Boston, Mass. Hale, Horatio, Clinton, Ontario, Canada. Hall, T. Proctor, Clark University, Worcester, Mass. Halsted, Byron D., Rutgers College, New Bruns- wick, N.J. Haworth, Erasmus, Oskaloosa, Iowa. Hay, O. P., Irvington, Ind. Haynes, Henry W., Boston Mass. Hazen, H. A., Weather Bureau, Washington, D.C. Hewitt J. N. B., Bureau of Ethnology, Washington, Hicks, L. E., Lincoln, Neb. Hill, H. J., Chicago, Il. Hill, Geo. A., Naval Observatory, Washington, D.C. Hitchcock, Romyn, Washington, D.C. Holmes, E. L. Chicago, Il. Hotchkiss, Jed., Staunton, Va. Howe, Jas. Lewis, Louisville, Ky. Hubbard, Gardiner G., Washington, D.C. Jackson, Dugald C., Madison, Wisconsin Se Joseph F., Agricultural Dept., Washington, Johnson, Roger B., Miami University, Oxford, O. Kellerman, Mrs. W. A., Columbus, O. Kellicott, D. S., State University, Columbus, O. Kellogg, D. S., Plattsburgh, N. Y. Lintner, J. A., Albany, N. Y. Loeb, Morris, New York City. Mabery, Charles F., Cleveland, Ohio. Macloskie, G., Princeton, N.J. mer artay, Gerald, Agricultural Station, Raleigh, N. MacDonald, Arthur, Washington, D.C. Marshall, D. T., Metuchen, N.J. Masons O. T., Smithsonian Institution, Washington, -C. Millspaugh, Charles F., Morgantown, W. Va. Nichols, C. F., Boston, Mass. Nuttall, George H. F., Johns Hopkins University, Baitimoxre, Md. Oliver, J. E., Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y. Osborn, Henry F., Columbia College, New York City. Osborn, Herbert, Agricultural College, Ames, Iowa. Pammel, L. H., Agricultural Station, Ames, Iowa. Pillsbury, J. H., Smith College, Northampton, Mass, Poteat, W. L., Wake Forest, N. C. Preble, Jr., W. P., New York City. Rufiner, W. H., Lexington, Va. Banton. Edmund C., Clark University, Worcester, ass. Schufeldt, R. W., Washington, D.C. Scripture, E. W., Clark University, Worcester, Mass. siege, D. D., Museum Comp. Zool., Cambridge, Mass. por John B., Rutgers College, New Brunswick, Southwick, Edmund B., New York City. Stevens, George T., New York City. Stevenson, S. Y., Philadelphia, Pa. Stone, G. H., Colorado Springs, Col. Thomas, Cyrus, Washington, D. C. Thurston, R. H., Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y. Todd, J. E., Tabor, Iowa. ses mrad erioe W., Natlonal Museum, Washing- on, D.C. purer, C. H., University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Wake, C., Staniland, Chicago, Ill. ayend, R. DeC., Harvard University, Cambridge, ass. Ward, Stanley M., Scranton, Pa. Mander, Robert B., Howard University, Washing- ‘on, D.C. Welch, Wm. H., Johns Hopkins University, Balti- more, M.D. West, Gerald M., Clark University, Worcester, Mass. Whitman, C. O., Clark University, Worcester, Mass. pa emis, Edward H., Lehigh University, Bethle- em, Pa. % NC A WEEKLY NEWSPAPER ©F ALL THE ARTS AND 'SCFENCES. PUBLISHED BY N. D. C. HODGES, 874 BROADWAY, NEW YORK. Trento YEAR. Vou. XX. No. 493. INGLE Copies, Ten Cents, YEAR, IN ADVANCE. JULY 15, 1892. CONTENTS. Tue CHEMISTRY OF Sorts. R. Ellsworth CuRRENT Notes ON ANTHROPOLOGY.— X. Edited by D. G. Brinton..... Notres anp NEWS........... Lion Brempine. V. Ball.............. THE PURIFICATION OF WaTER BY CHEMI- CAL TREATMENT Willis G. Tucker. LETTERS TO THE Epiror. American Weeds. Gerald McCarthy. 38 Some Remarks on Professor Cyrus Thomas’s Brief Study of the Palenque Tables. Hd. Seler...... 38 A Grape Vine Produces Two Sets of Leaves During the Same Season. (0 1275 CG OPS cardio od oc Epi eaoiciaG Book REVIEWS. The Stone, Bronze and Iron Ages. Journal of Proceedings of the Royal Society of New South Wales...... AMONG THE PUBLISHERS................ Entered at the Pos!-Office of New York, N.Y., as Second-Class Mail Matter. THE LABRADOR COAST. A JOURNAL OF TWO SUMMER CRUISES TO THAT REGION. WITH NOTES ON ITS EARLY DISCOV- ERY, ON THE ESKIMO, ON ITS PHY- SICAL GEOGRAPHY, GHOLOGY AND NATURAL HISTORY, TOGETHER WITH 4 BIBLIOGRAPHY OF WORKS, ARTI- CLES, AND CHARTS RELATING TO THE CIVIL AND NATURAL HISTORY OF THE LABRADOR PENINSULA. By ALPHEUS SPRING PACKARD, M.D., Ph.D. Sportsmen and ornithologists will be interested in the list of Labrador birds by Mr. L. W. Turner, which has been kindly revised and brought down to date by Dr. J. A. Allen. Dr.S H. Scudder has con- tributed the list of butterflies. and Prof. John Macoun, of Ottawa, Canada, has prepared the list of Labrador plants. Much pains has been taken to render the bibliog- raphy complete, and the author is indebted to Dr Sranz Boas and others for several titles and impor- tant suggestions; and it is hoped that this feature of the book will recommend it to collectors of Ameri- cand. It is hoped that the volume will serve as a guide to the Labrador coast for the use of travellers, yachtsmen, sportsmen, artists, and naturalists, as well as those interested in geographical and histori- cal studies. 513 pp., 8°, $3.50. N.D. C. HODGES. 874 BROADWAY, NEW YORK. Che Scientific Amevican FOR 1892. The Most Popular Scientific Paper in the World. WEEKLY, $3.00 A YEAR; $1.50 SIX MONTHS. 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MUNN & CO., PusuIsHERs, 361 Broadway, New York. To NEWSDEALERS.—We furnish all the numbers of the SUPPLEMENT. They are never out of print. If your News Companies give any excuse for not supplying you, send your order to us by mail, and we will see that it is promptly filled. MUNN & CO. PATENTS. Any person who has made an invention, and desires to know whether it is probably new and patentable, can obtain advice concerning the same, free of charge, by writing to Munn & (o., publishers of THe Screntiric American, 361 Broadway, New York. For the past forty years, Messrs. Munn & Co. have carried on, as a branch of their business, the preparation and obtaining of patents. Many of the most reliable inventions have been patented through their Agency. Hand-Book about Patents sent free Address, MUNN & CO., 361 Broapway, New York. SCIENCE, [VoLr. XX. No. 493 PUBLICATIONS. PUBLICATIONS. INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES. A PRACTICAL MANUAL, Concerning Noxious Insects and the Methods of Preventing their Injuries. By CLARENCE M. WEED, Professor of Entomology and Zoology, New Hampshire State College. WHAT IS SAID ABOUT IT. “T think that you have gotten together a very useful and valuable little book.”’—Dr. C. V. Riley, U. S. Entomologist, Washington, D. C. “Tt is excellent.”—James Fletcher, Dominion En- tomologist, Ottawa, Canada. “T am well pleased with it.’—Dr. F. M. Hexamer, Editor American Agriculturist, New York. “Tt seems to me a good selection of the matter which every farmer and fruit grower ought to have at his immediate command.’’—Prof. S. A. Forbes, State Entomologist of Illinois, Champaign, Ill. ‘A good book, and it is needed.’—Prof. L. H. Bailey, Cornell University. “It is ene of the best books of the kind I have ever seen.”—J. Freemont Hickman, Agriculturist, Ohio Experiment Station, Columbus, Ohio. “T shall gladly recommend it.’—Prof. A. J. Cook, Michigan Agricultural College.- Price, $1.25. Sent postpaid to any address on receipt of price. N. D. ¢. HODGES, 874 Broadway, New York. NEO-DARWINISM AND NEO-LAMARCKISM. By LESTE F. WARD. Annual address of the President of the Biological Society of Washington delivered Jan. 24, 1891. historical and critical review of modern scientific thought relative to heredity, and especially to the problem of the transmission of acquired characters, The following are the several heads involved in the discussion Status of the Problem, Lamarckism. Darwinism, Acquired Characters, Theories of He- redity, Views of Mr. Galton, Teachings of Profes ‘or Weismann, A Critique of Weismann, Neo-Darwin- ism, Neo-Lamarckism, the American ‘‘School,” Ap- plication to the Human Race. Inso far as views are expressed they are in the main jn line with the general current of American thought, and opposed to the extreme doctrine of the non-transmissibility of acquired characters. Price, postpaid, 25 cents. N. D. C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. Y. THE BOTANICAL GAZETTE. A monthly illustrated journal of botany in all its departments. 25 cents a number, $2.50 a year. aaaress PUBLISHERS BOTANICAL GAZETTE, Bloomington, ind. JOHN IRELAND'S Bookstore, 1197 Broadway near 29th St., is convenient to the residence quarter of the city; it is a good place to drop into on the way up or down town to select books or stationery. His stock is well selected and embraces all the new and standard books as soon as issued. Out-of-town purchasers can order by mail with every confidence that their wants will be as well supplied as if buying in person. ACK NUMBERS and complete sets of leading Mag- azines. Rates low. AM. MAG. EXCHANGE, Schoharie N V The American Geologist for 1892. Edited by Pror. S. Catvin, University of lowa; Dr. E. W. CLAYPOLE, Buchtel College; JoHN EYERMAN, Lafayette College; Dr. Persiror Frazer, Penn. Hort. Soc.; PRror. F. W. Craain, Colorado College ; Pror. Rop’r T. Art, U.S. Irrigation Survey; Dr. ANDREW C. Lawson, University of California; R. D. SaisBuRy, University of Wisconsin; JosEPpH B. TYRRELL, Geol. Sur. of Canada; E. O. ULricH, Minnesota Geological Survey; Pror. I. C. Waite, University of West Virginia; Pror. N. H. WINCHELL, University of Minnesota. Now in its [Xth volume. $3.50 per year. Sample copies, 20 cents. Address THE GEOLOGICAL PUBLISHING CO., Minneapolis, Minn. | ew Method of Protecting Property from Lightning. The Lightning Dispeller. Price, $20 to $30.—According to size, The Patent Lightning Dispeller is a conduc- tor specially designed to dissipate the energy of a lightning discharge,—to prevent its doing harm,—placing something in its path upon which its capacity for causing damage may be expended. No recorded case of lightning stroke has yet been cited against the principle of the Dispeller. So far as known, the dissipation of a conductor has invariably protected under the conditions employed. Correspondence solicited. AGENTS WANTED. The American Lightning Protection Company. United Bank Building, Sioux City, lowa. EDUCATIONAL. School of Applied Ethics. Plymouth, Mass., July 7-Aug. 17, 1892. Daily lectures in ECONOMICS, HISTORY OF RELIGIONS, and ETHICS. For Program, giving full particulars, apply to the Secretary, S. BURNS WESTON, 118 South 12th St,, Philadelphia. Amherst Summer School of Languages, Art, Literature, Chemistry, Mathemat- ics, Library Work, History, and P litical Eeonomy. Sixteenth session opens July 4, 1892. For program address Prof W. L. MONTAGUE, Amherst, Mass. ROSE POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE, Terre Haute, Ind. A College of Engineering. Well- endowed, well-equipped. Courses in Mechanical, Electrical, Civil Fngineering and Chemistry. Exten- sive Machine Shops, Laboratories, Drawing Rooms, | Library. Expenses low. Address H.T. EDDY, Pres. THE OBSERVER. Published Monthly at Portland, Conn. x A MEDIUM OF INTERCHANGE OF OBSERVATIONS FOR ALL SLUDENTS AND, LOVERS OF NADU E. F. BIGELOW, Editor and Publisher. : ASSOCIATE EDITORS: M. A. BOOTH, F.R.M.S., Microscopy, Longmeadow, Mass. JNO. H. SAGE, Ornithology, Portland, Conn. A. W. PEARSON, Entomology, Norwich, Conn. C. A. SHEPARD, Botany, New Britain, Conn. C. A. HARGRAVE, Conchology, Danville, Ind. F. P. GORHAM, Geology, 103 Knight St., Providence, R. I. Yearly Subscription, $1. Single Number, 10 Cents. Stuffed Animals Minerals, y oy 16 Racks Ward sNatural Science Establishment .......3"°""™ cans ot Foust, | Mineralogy, Geology, Paleontology, Zoology, Osteology, Anatomy. ote Retiermaps.| Send for Circular. ROCHESTER, N.Y. |imverteprates AS NEW YORK, JULY 15, 1892. THE CHEMISTRY OF SOILS.* BY PROFESSOR R. ELLSWORTH CALL. A SOMEWHAT extended experience in the chemical analy- sis of soils with a view to their agricultural value has led to certain conclusions which may not be altogether devoid of value to the readers of Science. Especially may this be true since there is often an entirely erroneous opinion among those most concerned respecting the useful deduc- tions which may be made from a complete chemical analy- sis of a soil. Usually it happens that if only the presence of certain desirable substances be shown, then the value of the soil for the production of this or that crop is assumed to be definitely settled. Nothing could, in general, be farther from the truth. Of course, something definite may be said of such soils as those in which both sand and clays, or either, predominate, but the conclusions in these cases are based on the physical characteristics of the soils rather than on their chemistry. Indeed, it is usual to classify soils in two general categories, the classification being based, on the one hand, on the method of soil-formation, and, on the other hand, on its physical characteristics. The soils of Iowa be- long, in the main, to that class which is based on the method of formation, and are composed chiefly of transported or drift materials. It is, however, true that the Iowa soils, though glacial, owe much to the physical characters of the rocks which they represent as disintegrated and far-travelled débris. The sands and clays are all transported materials, most of them from points many miles to the north of the prairie regions which they now cover. It is, moreover, clear that no degree of coarseness or of fineness, which may result from the methods of origination of any soil, consti- tutes in itself sufficient ground for saying this soil is fertile or that soil is unsuitable for plant growth. Recourse must be bad to the ultimate composition of the sample, and right here enters an element of error against which, popularly, it is difficult to guard. The physical character of a soil or marl must be consid- ered when studied chemically. The finer the condition of the sample, in nature, the more readily are induced those changes in its chemistry which result from atmospheric in- fluences. That is to say, when coarse and fine soils are treated alike mechanically by the plow, the one may become mellow and well mixed, while the other is broken without being well mixed or turned. Now, the chemical processes which occur are most active and most complete in soils that are fine in texture. It follows, therefore, that a stiff, clayey soil may contain all the essential elements of the food of any plant, but be in such condition physically as to render the chemical processes difficult of operation. And, on the other hand, such a soil may be sufficiently fine, but the well-known tendency to ‘‘cake” or harden on drying or exposure would render it valueless agriculturally, no matter how finely com- minuted its materials may be. 1 Extracted from the Monthly Review Iowa Weather and Crop Service, Vol. III., No. 5, May, 1892. Clayey soils, again, do not permit that free, subsoil cir- culation of water so necessary to growing crops. Circula- tion there is, but it is limited at best; open, porous soils ad- mit free, underground water-flows, but such soils soon dry. They lose large quantities of water through evaporation, due to the rather free circulation of airin the upper portions of the cultivated areas. Color, too, has little to do with deciding finally whether a soil will be fertile. Usually all earths which are dark- colored or black—a condition largely due to the amount of carbouaceous material derived from decayed vegetation — are considered fertile. It is true that common consent places all such samples among the fertile soils, but it by no means follows as a necessary deduction. So, too, that light drab or ashy-colored soils lack the elements of fertility is a notion which observation and experiment alike negative. The most fertile of Iowa soils is the loess, a peculiar and very fine marl covering many hundred square miles along the Missis- sippi and Missouri rivers, as well as the higher lands along the Des Moines. It is a soil the color of which would con- demn it for agricultural purposes, but it is one which is of exceptional value for all sorts of cereals, and is peculiarly adapted to the growth of fruit. It is finer in texture than is any other soil in the State. What, then, constitutes its peculiar feature, rendering it so valuable? The auswer to the query lies almost solely in its physical condition, which is of a fineness equalling that of any clay. This fine condi- tion renders it admirably suited to the action of native chemical agents. These are the real soil-makers. Soils that. plants may use must be soluble, and one of the essentials to complete solubility is fineness of the constituent particles. A certain and definite relation to moisture must be estab- lished and maintained, a condition which is practically reached by under-draining soils of a clayey nature. Too much water will compel adhesion of the smaller particles, and the product thus formed be eventually coarse and lumpy. Such a soil may be very fertile, but is not arable. This is the condition of most of the bottom lands of eastern Arkansas, the soils of which region are deficient in lime alone of all the ingredients which plants require. They are ‘“ wet and cold,” and cannot be under-drained. Few soils of this nature occur in Iowa. To make a long story short, chemical analysis of any given soil will determine its probable agricultural value only within very wide limits, and for reasons which appear be- low. It may be said, at this time, that such an analysis may determine one of two things, (a) the presence or ab- sence of constituents which the plant must have, or (6) the presence of some substance which will affect injuriously a growing plant. The chemical laboratory will never sup- plant the province of carefully conducted experimental ag- riculture. But it may become a most valuable adjunct to the operations of the farm. The principles which underlie agricultural chemistry need only to be understood to be ap- preciated by those who have the manual labor of the farm to perform. Aside from these general considerations there remain yet others to which it will be well to advert. 30 One of the great difficulties in the way of an intimate knowledge of the relations of plants to soils lies in our ig- norance of the laws of assimilation in the plant. The con- ditions under which the chemist studies these are of necessity artificial. He cannot be assured that he has even measura- bly reproduced the conditions of nature, and hence cannot be sure that similar results will be attained under such most natural conditions. Those most complex and _ peculiar changes which occur in chemical compounds under what, for want of a better term, are denominated ‘‘ vital forces ” can never, at least under the present limitations of knowl- edge, be fully understood. And right here is the gist of the whole matter. A knowledge of the chemical constitution of a soil must precede a study of its relations to the full or incomplete, as the case may be, development of a plant de- pendent on it for nourishment. In other words, the consti- tution of a soil is a determinable quantity, the life-processes of the plant constitute an indeterminate quantity, and the relation of the two is the thing sought. No amount of chemical experimentation can bring into view the unknown factor. The various experiment stations which are now estab- lished in every State in the Union can do much toward clearing away a great cloud of agricultural superstition rel- ative to these subjects. There should be place for the theo- retical as well as the practical in their work. It should be clearly shown that the constitution of a soil has far more to do with the growth of a crop of corn than the moon, or than any other of the oft-quoted and still entertained notions of strange and hidden forces. Tall oaks do not grow from little acorns except under the most favorable conditions of soil, and these conditions, again, are affected by the innu- merable changes which occur in temperature. moisture or other variables, which render more or less tractable the va- rious compounds on which the plant must feed. The chemist who studies a soil does so by the same meth- ods as those by which he would examine au unknown min- eral, and usually with no greater care. He wishes, simply, to know what elements may occur in it, under what condi- tions, in what abundance, to what degree they may be dis- sociated, and whether there be present any substance which would interfere with their assimilation by the plant. In this way he arrives at a fair knowledge of the sample, but be can tell you little of its value for agricultural purposes. He here depends not on his. knowledge of soil constitution or of its genesis, but on the facts of observation, which are familiar to every farmer, and which he unconsciously con- nects as cause and effect. It does not need a chemist to tell an observant farmer that he will not be likely to reap a strong growth of wheat from asandbar. He has had as an instructor an experience in the relations of crops tothe labor expended on them that led him to definite and valuable con- clusions on this matter. But there are innumerable ques- tions which he may put to the chemist and hope for a profita- ble answer. When once the soil has been exhausted of a necessary constituent he may learn from experience that this or that material judiciously applied will remedy the defect. The farmer, moreover, has yet to learn that, even in Iowa, there cannot be a constant draft on a soil and the same crop be produced with equal value each year for an indetermi- nate number of years. Each crop lessens the productive power of a soil by the amount of material which it removes from the soil each season. Here it is pussible for the chemist to aid the producer by telling him exactly what bas been taken from the soil, and thus indirectly telling him what is . SCIENCE [VoL. XX. No. 493 needed in the compost he may apply. This borders on or- ganic chemistry and does not at present concern us. Among the substances which must be present in a soil to give it av average degree of fertility stands pre-eminent the compound known as phosphoric acid. But this substance does not exist in the soil except in combination with some other substances, known technically as bases. These sub stances are commonly, if not always, iron and alumina, with which they are ‘in such chemical combination as to form salts known as phosphates. It is, however, not sufficient to know that these compounds are present. We must further know whether they are so associated with other compounds as to be readily disintegrated and rendered soluble, for un- less soluble they cannot be used as plaut-food. Now, neither of these compounds of phosphoric acid —7.e., iron and alu- mina phosphates —is available in that form. Experiment has shown that the form in which these substances are avail- able is that of calcium (lime) phosphate. That this has a relation to the amount of calcium silicate in the soil is clearly proven, aud that by a process of double decomposi- tion of the three compounds the available one is obtained is also well known. But this process has not yet been cer- tainly traced in nature. As stated at the beginning, it is right here that the processes of the laboratory and those of nature need to be connected. Whether they ever will be depends upon the support given to the great army of practi- cal chemists whose attention is now directed to the theoreti- cal features of agricultural chemistry. It should bea matter of congratulation to the farmers of Towa that work along these lines is now progressing very favorably at the experiment station at Ames. A vast amount of valuable information may be expected from this source, aud in due course of time it will come. CURRENT NOTES ON ANTHROPOLOGY. — X. [Edited by D. G. Brinton, M.D., LL.D.) The Ancient Libyan Alphabet. In Science, May 8,1 called attention to the new light thrown upon the history of our alphabet in its ancient form by the researches of Dr. Glaser among the ruined cities of Arabia. Another curious study in the same line is that offered by the Libyan alphabet. It appears to have been in common use among the Berber tribes of North Africa long before the foundation of Carthage, and is still employed constantly by the wild Touaregs of the Sahara. It is not the same as the Iberie alpbabet of Spain, and in its forms is almost entirely independent of the Phoenician letters. It is composed of consonants, called tifinar, and vowel-points, known as tiddebakin. The latter are simple dots, the for- mer are the lines of a rectangle, more or less complete. Several of them are found in the oldest Etruscan inscriptions, and on that known as the ‘‘inscription of Lemnos.” Sepul- chral epitaphs in this alphabet have been discovered dating two or perhaps three centuries before the Christian era; while rock-inscriptions of perhaps more ancient date. show- ing extremely archaic forms of the letters, have been copied from localities in the southern Atlas ranges. The writers who have given especial attention to this little- known subject are Faidherbe, Duveyrier, Halevy, Bissuel, and, recently, Dr. Collignon, who has a brief summary of results in a late issue of Les Sciences Biologiques. The Aborigines of Asia Minor. The artistic and linguistic studies into the proto-ethnology of Asia Minor (see Science, May 20) are happily supplemented JuLY 15, 1892, | by the investigations of Dr. F. von Luschan of Berlin, on the Tachtadschy of Lycia, published in the Archiv fir An- thropologie. This nomen gentile is not ethnic, but means merely ‘‘ wood-choppers,” or ‘‘ board-makers.” It is applied to a shy, secluded people. who live in the mountains, and fell and dress trees as their main business. On measuring them, Dr. von Luschan found that they had unusually short and high skulls,— hypsi-brachycephalic, —and were of small stature, with dark hair and eyes. Com- parison with some skulls from very old Lycian graves, and with part of the present population of Armenia and other portions of the region, led him to the conviction that in this type — so markedly distinct from that of the Greeks and Semites— he had before him the original of the most ancient population of the land. He considers it certain that it ex- tended over the whole southern half of Asia Minor; north- east to the Caucasus; east to the upper Euphrates; but its northern and western limits are not yet defined. He even hints that the short, dark, brachycephalic people of central Europe may be the western extension of the type. As to whence it came, he is not without an opinion. Not from Europe, not from Africa, not from northern Asia, not from southern Asia; all are excluded for sufficient reasons; central Asia alone is left; and somewhere in that mysterious matrix gentium he expects will be found the ancestral ‘con- nections of this well-marked type. There, then, we should search for the linguistic analogies of the Cappadocian words quoted from Professor Tomaschek in my previous article. It would be a brilliant corroboration of a purely physical study in anthropology to discover such analogy. Work of the Eleventh Census Among the Indians. It is not generally known — in fact, it is pretty hard to find out—how much excellent anthropologic material is annually collected and in part published by the various de- partmeuts of our central government. The army, the navy, the surgeon-general’s bureau, the Smithsonian, the National Museum, and the specially-created Bureau of Ethnology, all pour forth every year quantities of valuable observa- tions. ; Nor has the Eleventh Census been behind in this good work, as is testified by the ‘‘Extra Census Bulletin,” just out, on the Six Nations of New York. It is but the fore- runner of a series of such Bulletins on the remnants of our aboriginal population, and is an excellent earnest of the merits of its successors. The aim of these bulletins is to supply first-hand and ac- curate statements of the present social, religious, industrial, vital, and political condition of the tribes; in other words, they are ethnographic, in the right sense of the term. The general editor is Mr. Thomas Donaldson, and in this instance his collaborator is General Henry B. Carrington. A large quarto of 89 pages, well indexed, with maps and photographs, gives a most satisfactory account of the present status of the Cayugas, Mohawks, Oneidas, Onondagas, Senecas, and Tus- earoras. The action of the Census Bureau in this direction is the more welcome, as in the rapidly changing condition of the native tribes, not many censuses will have the mate- rial with which to oceupy themselves in this direction. The Extension and Study of the Nahuatl Language If we may judge of the superiority of a language by its vitality, and by the impress it leaves on others with which it comes in contact, we must assign a high place to the Mexican or Nahuatl. It is still spoken in comparative purity SCIENCE: 31 by considerably over a million people, and it has made a deep impression on the Spanish of most of the Mexican and Central American States. For Costa Rica, this has been shown in a work issued in the present year at San José de Costa Rica, by Sefior Juan Fernandez Ferraz, formerly inspector-zeneral of education in that republic. It is entitled, ‘‘ Nahuatlismos de Costa Rica,” and is a neat octavo of about 150 pages, with an intro- duction on Nahuatl grammar of 75 pages. The alphabetical list shows that a large number of terms in the current speech of Costa Rica, which have assumed the form of Spanish words, are derived from the Mexican tongue. A similar work for Nicaragua, written by the late Dr. C. H. Berendt, is now preparing for the press under the effi- cient editorship of Dr. K. Lentzner of Berlin. The Nahuas, or a colony of them, once occupied a considerable tract on Lake Nicaragua, and left the marks of their occupancy not only in interesting ruins, but on the language of their con- querors as well. It was in this Nahuatl-Spanish dialect that the comedy of Gueguence was written (published in Phila- delphia, in 1883). It is agreeable to note in this connection that the study of the Nahuatl finds zealous advocates in Mexico, among whom the names of Pefiafiel, Palma, Hunt y Cortes, Altamirano, Caballero, and Rosa, hold conspicuous places. Anthropology at the Columbian Exposition. Anthropology does not appear by name at the Chicago ‘“World’s Columbian Exposition.” This is to be regretted, as it is a fine opportunity lost to inform the people of the United States what this grand science is, and how its several branches stand related to each other. It is represented, in fact,in ‘‘ Department M,” with a most competent chief, Professor F. W. Putnam of Cambridge. A descriptive pamphlet of this department which has just been issued announces that it includes ‘‘ Ethnology, Archeology, History, Cartography, Latin-American Bureau, Collective and Isolated Exhibits,”— rather a miscellaneous stock. It is further stated that there will be a section on physical an- thropology and an anthropological laboratory, which are classified as a subdivision under the section of ethnology. In spite of these defects in classification, no doubt abundant and excellent material will be provided for the student, which he can work up in his own way. A correspondent in Berlin informs me that Dr. U. Jahn, who has charge of the matter there, has prepared, among other things, a series of specimens of German houses of all varieties, to be erected at Chicago, and in one of them, the rathhaus, he will ar- range a complete exhibition of ancient and modern German costumes, domestic utensils, home manufactures, etc. The sections at Chicago on Folk-Lore, Games, and Primitive Re- ligions will be under the supervision of Stewart Culin Esq., of Philadelphia, who has lately been appoiuted General Di- rector of the Museum of Archeology attached to the Uni- versity of Pennsylvania. NOTES AND NEWS. VERY numerous experiments have been recorded to show that moisture is saved by cultivation. Frank E. Emery of the North Carolina Experiment Station says: ‘‘ During this hot, dry weather every foot of plowed land should be kept well stirred on the sur- face with any tool which tends to keep it from baking. A loose, fine surface will hold down water like a wet blanket. A field kept thus may give an increase in crop over one not cultivated equal to that produced by a heavy application of fertilizers. Pre- servation of the soil-water thus becomes of great importance. A 32 SGIENCE. blanket of fine soil on the surface during a bot, dry week can be of great value to the crop and really become the turning-point for profit if present when loss might result from its absence.” —The North Carolina Experiment Station has just published a 26-page Bulletin (No. 84) dealing with the fungous and insect enemies of garden and truck crops. The trucking interest has become one of the most important in the State. Good home gar- dens are not, however, so plentiful as they would be were it not for the ravages of insects and diseases. This Bulletin gives ten different formulas for compounding insecticides and fungicides, and explains the necessity for garden hygiene. The most approved forms of spraying apparatus are illustrated and described, and some trustworthy dealers in fungicidal chemicals are named. Everyone who has even a small garden is interested in the matters this Bulletin treats of. It is sent free to all residents of North Carolina, and will be sent as long as the supply lasts to residents of other States who send 6 centsin postage stamps. Address N. C. Experiment Station, Raleigh, N.C. —Dr. Arthur MacDonald, specialist in education as related to eriminal and abnormal classes, United States Bureau of Educa- tion, Washington, D.C., has been appointed official representative of the United States to attend the international congress for ex- perimental psychology at London and also the international con- gress upon criminology at Brussels. The congress at Brussels will consider crime in its relation to biology and sociology. The congress is extremely cosmopolitan not only as to nationalities, but in the different departments of knowledge which it includes. The criminal must be studied as a member of the race, and this gives rise to the new science of criminal anthropology, or, in short, criminology. Here such questions will be discussed as to whether there is a criminal type distinguished by shape of cranium and face, anatomy of ears and nose, size of orbits and length of jaws. Another important question under this head is whether the crim- inal is born so or becomes so from his surroundings. In this division of the programme are the names of the celebrated Cesare Lombroso, professor of legal medicine at Turin, and Dr. Broyardel, president of the medical faculty at Paris, and Professor Ferri, senator at Rome. But the criminal must be studied psychologi- eally, that is, as to the nature of his mind ane will, and their re- lation to insanity and moral insanity. Among those who will speak in the congress on this phase of criminality are Dr. Magnan, chief physiciau of the Saint Ann Insane Asylum of Paris; Dr. Benedikt, the celebrated craniologist at the University of Vienna; and the brilliant French writer and legalist, Judge Tarde. Another and very important side of the criminal is included under the head of Criminal Sociology. This takes up crime in history and politics, the influence of profession and trade on criminality and their bearing in the determination of penalty. But there is a practical as well as a scientific point of view in the study of the criminal. This will be considered-in the congress under the title of ‘‘Legal and Administrative Applications of Criminal Anthro- pology.” Thus Dr Alimena of Naples will discuss what measures are applicable to incorrigible criminals. Then there are the gen- eral and fundamental principles of the school of criminal anthro- pology, which will be considered by Dimtri Drill of Moscow. Dr. Manouvrier, professor in the School of Anthropology at Paris, is to read a paper on the *‘Innateness and Heredity of Crime;” Dr. Beuxelles on ‘‘The Functional Causes of Crime;” Dr. Sernal on “‘ Suicide and Insanity in Criminals.” The distinguished Lacas- sagne, professor at the University of Lyons, will speak on ‘‘ The Primordial Sentiments in Criminals,” and Dr. Fioretti of Naples op ‘‘The Applications of Anthropology to Civil Law.” Thus it will be seen that not only specialists in criminology, but those in medicine, insanity, law, psychology, anthropology, and sociology, all will consider the criminal from their respective points of view. The congress for experimental psychology represents the precedent tendency of applying scientific methods to study the relation be- tween mind and body, or mind and brain, subjects which are of as much interest and importance in the case of criminals as of normal men. This is illustrated by the new psycho-pbysical in- strument called the plethysmograph, which indicates the least increase of blood in the arteries of the arm. Thus it has been (Vor. XX. No. 493 found, that when the sentence of the judge is read before the criminal, there is a decrease in the flow of blood in the arm, but the sight of a glass of wine increases the flow; when, for example, it is required to multiply nine times seventy-three an increase in blood-flow is the result. The flow is little affected in a brutal murderer or born criminal, when a pistol is shown to him, whereas in the normal man the plethysmograph indicates a decided effect. The importance of this new instrument lies in this, that involuntary testimony is given as to the nervous and physical nature of the criminal. It is often unknown. to him, and in spite of himself. Dr. MacDonald, after attending these congresses, will visit and study a few of the principal prisons and charitable institutions in England, France, Germany, Belgium, Switzerland, Austria, and Italy. A work of Dr. Macdonald’s, entitled ‘‘ Criminology,” will soon be published by Funk & Wagnalls of New York. It is dedi- cated to Professor Lombroso, who writes the introduction and who himself is the founder of the new science. —A society which may bave opportunities of doing much valu- able work has been formed in Wellington, New Zealand, as we learn from Nature. It is called the Polynesian Society, ‘: Poly- nesia” being intended to include Australia, New Zealand, Mela- nesia, Micronesia, and Malaysia, as well as Polynesia proper. The president is Mr. H. G. Seth-Smith, chief judge of the native land court, while the Queen of Hawaii is patron. There has just ap- peared the first number of the society’s Journal, in which there are papers on the races of the Philippines, by Elsdon Best; Maori deities, by W. L. Gudgeon; the Tahitian ‘‘ Hymn of Creation,” by S. P. Smith; Futuna, or Horne Island, and its people, by 8. P. Smith; Polynesian causatives, by E T.; and the Polynesian bow, by E. Tregear. There is also a paper giving the genealogy of one of the chieftainesses of Rarotonga, by a native of Raro- tonga. The original was written in 1857, and is printed in the Journal, with a translation by Mr. Henry Nicholas, and notes by the editors. The editors are of opinion that the paper ‘‘ appa- rently supports by direct traditional testimony the theory pro- pounded by Hale, and subsequently advocated by Fornander, of the occupation of the Fiji Group by the Polynesian race, and of their later migration eastward to Samoa and the Society Group.” —The second annual meeting of The Mechanical Engineering Teachers’ Association will be beld at Rochester, N.Y., beginning Aug. 18, 1892. This place and time of meeting is chosen as coin- cident with that of the American Association for the Advance- ment of Science in order to accommodate those who will wish to attend both meetings, and who may not be able to do so if at different times and places. The object of this association perhaps is best stated in Art. II. of its Rules, viz.: ‘‘To determine upon, and to secure by co-operation, the best courses of study, and the general adoption of methods of instruction, leading to the highest efficiency of schools of mechanical engineering.” The meeting last year was largely occupied with the organization of the asso- ciation, so that comparatively little time could be devoted to the consideration of courses, methods, or appliances, either by reading of papers or discussion. But it is hoped that the Rochester meet- ing of this year will be productive of great good in crystallizing the views of the now quite large body of professors and teachers into such tangible and acceptable matters of opinion as to form a working basis for all. The following points are suggested as of importance for study by way of preparation for good work at the meeting, either in the presentation of papers, topical or general discussion, viz.: What subjects should be embraced in the course of mechanical engineering leading to graduation? Should any of them be optional? Should there be a post-graduate course, and if so in what should it consist? What should be the degrees for the above, and what the studies? Should there be included one or two modern foreign languages? What engineering studies should be included? What amount of mechanical laboratory should there be included? What subjects should be included in the mechanical laboratory ? How much practice with the object of mechanical and manual training? How much fine mechanical practice such as scraping of surface plates, grinding of standards, etc.? Should the construction of articles of manufacture be at- tempted at the school laboratory? What testing should be at+ JuLy 15, 1892. ] tempted? Should any part of the laboratory practice be classified as shop work, and so named, unless articles are made for sale? Should anything be introduced that should be called ‘‘shop work?” Should that portion of the laboratory embracing the manual ele- ment be classified as ‘‘shop,” ‘‘ school shop,” ‘‘ work shop,” etc., or elementary mechanical laboratory? Should the more advanced portion embracing testing of various kinds be classified in such way as advanced mechanical laboratory, testing laboratory, etc. ? It is further suggested that particular attention be given to the number of hours devoted to a subject, and the ground covered; the method of instruction, i.e., whether by lecture, recitation or practice, separately or combined. The address of the secretary is, A. J. Wiechardt, South Bethlehem, Pa. —The North Carolina Experiment Station has distributed a Jarge quantity of broom-corn seed and instructions as to its culti- vation to alliancemen and. others, with a view to establishing it _camong the profitable crops in places well adapted for its best de- velopment. Close planting on fairly rich land is required for a good crop of brush fitted for making fine brooms. In order to better assist those who desire to learn all they can of this crop, and that all may have the benefit of as much information as pos- sible on the subject of growing broom-corn and making brooms, the Experiment Station will engage to supply as many as wish a copy of ‘‘Broom-Corn and Brooms,” a small book published by Orange Judd Co. of New York, at the wholesale price, with the postage added. The usual price is 50 cents. Send 30 cents in silver or stamps to the Experiment Station at Raleigh, if you wish a copy of this little book. — A paper upon the oxidation of nitrogen by means of electric sparks is contributed, by Dr. V. Lepel, to the current number of the Annalen der Physik und Chemie. Itis well known that small quantities of nitric and nitrous acids and their ammonium salts are produced during the passage of high-tension electrical discharges through moist air. Dr. V. Lepel’s experiments, according to Nature, have been conducted with the view of obtaining more precise information concerning the nature of the chemical reac- tions which occur, and the experimental conditions most favorable for increasing the amount of combination. The first action of the Spark discharge appears to be the production of nitric oxide, which is immediately converted by the oxygen present into nitrogen peroxide. The latter then reacts with the aqueous vapor present, forming nitric acid and liberating nitric oxide in accordance with the well-known equation 3NO, + H,O = 2HNO, + NO. It has ‘been found, however, that the continued passage of sparks through the same quantity of moist air does not result, as might at first ‘sight be expected, in the conversion of more and more of the atmospheric gases into oxidized products. For the passage of ‘sparks through the gaseous oxides of nitrogen first formed results in their decomposition again into their elementary constituents. If, for instance, spark discharges are passing at the rate of one per ‘second, the whole of the nitrogen peroxide molecules have not time to react with the water molecules to form nitric acid, before the passage of the next spark, and hence some of them suffer de- composition; indeed, it is probable that a number of the nitric oxide molecules first formed have not even time to combine with ‘oxygen to form the peroxide before the passage of the next dis- charge, which brings about their dissociation. Hence it is, that, in a closed space, a limit is soon reached beyond which there is no further increase in the amount of nitric acid. For this reason the yield of nitric acid has hitherto been very small. Dr. V. Lepel has made experiments, therefore, with a slowly-moving atmos- ‘phere, and under different conditions of pressure. and with various types of spark discharge, with the result that he has already in- creased the amount of combination to 10 per cent of the total amount of air employed. The air is exposed under increased pressure to a series of parallel spark discharges in the same tube. The change of atmosphere is not made continuously, but inter- mittently, and the gases are expelled from the discharge tube into -a large absorption vessel, in which the products are absorbed in a solution of water, or of a caustic alkali. Detailed accounts are given in the memoir of the efficacy of the various forms of high- tension discharge, and Dr. V. Lepel is now experimenting with SCIEN CE: 33 the discharge from a Toépler influence machine with sixty-six rotating plates. Of particular interest are his remarks concerning the probable effect of the high-voltage discharges of which we have lately heard so much. He considers it not improbable that by their aid a new mode of producing nitric acid from the atmos- pheric gases on the large scale may be introduced, rendering us altogether independent of the natural nitrates as a source of nitric acid. — According to the Pioneer Mail of June 8, the residents of Howrah have been finding lately that jackals are animals of any- thing but an attractive temper. In some cases they have come right up to the bungalows in search of prey. A little girl, aged about five years, was playing in a verandah, when a jackal sud- denly rushed on her, and was dragging her away, when she was rescued. She was severely bitten. Three natives, while walk- ing along the Kooroot Road, were attacked by a jackal, which was only driven off after a stubborn fight; and a tale is told of two women, while standing near a tank, being attacked and bit- ten. So serious has the state of matters become that the public propose to submit a memorial to the district magistrate praying for the adoption of measures for the destruction of these pests. —C. Creighton, in a letter to Nutwre, June 30, on the immu- nity of the African negro from yellow fever, says: ‘‘ This point, interesting to anthropologists, is raised anew by a writer on the history of epidemics (Nature June 16), who asks whether the al- leged protection is supported by all recent authorities. Recent authorities are not so well placed for judging of this matter as the earlier ; for the reason that immunity is not alleged except for the African negro of pure blood or unchanged racial characters, and that these conditions of the problem have been much less frequently satisfied in the yellow fever harbors of the western hemisphere since the African slave trade ceased. However, there was a good opportunity in 1866, during the disastrous yellow fever among the French troops of the Mexican expedition when they lay at Vera Cruz. Among them was a regiment of Nubians, who had been enlisted for the expedition by permission of the Khedive: that regiment had not a single case of yellow fever all through the epidemic. The African negro regiment brought over from the French colonies of Martinique and Guadeloupe had two or three cases, with, I think, one death. The rest of the troops, in- cluding Frenchmen, Arabs from Algeria, native Mexicans and Creoles, had no immunity whatever, but, on the other hand, a most disastrous fatality. The medical officers of the French ser- vice have recorded the facts principally in the Archives de Méde- cine Navale, their conclusion as to racial immunity being the same that has passed current among the earlier authorities as a truth of high general value (admitting, of course, of exceptions in special circumstances), and a truth that has never, so far as I know, been formally controverted by anyone, although other points concerning yellow fever have been the subject of as obsti- nate controversy as those touching small-pox itself. The experi- ences of the French at Gorée, a town with ten times as many ne- groes as whites, exactly confirmed those of Vera Cruz in the same year (Arch. de Méd. nav., ix., 343). The immunity of the African negro from yellow fever has become a paragraph in some anthropological text-books. It is from the anthropologists, and not from medical authorities, that Darwin cites the fact in his ‘¢ Descent of Man,” adding an original theory of the immunity. which he was unable to establish after much inquiry. His theory, T need hardly say, was not that ‘‘negroes in infancy may have passed through some disease too slight to be recognized as yellow fever,” — whatever that may mean — ‘‘but which seems to con- fer immunity.’ The theory, however, is another story, or ‘another volume,” as the writer just cited is pleased to suggest; and as for the historical fact of immunity, no one denies it, unless it be Dr. Pye Smith in his recent Lumleian lectures (Lancet, April 23, 1892, p. 901), who gives no reasons. It is unfortunate that the anthropologists (Darwin among them) should have intro- duced one element of dubiety in placing mulattoes on the same footing, in respect of immunity, as negroes of pure descent, and another in mixing up malarial or climatic fevers with yellow fever.” 34 SCIENCE: A WEEKLY NEWSPAPER OF ALL THE ARTS AND SCIENCES. PUBLISHED BY N. D. C. HODGES, 871 Broapway, New York. SUBSCRIPTIONS.—United States and Canada. .. ..........$3.50 a year, Great Britain and Europe................. 4.50 a year. Communications will be welcomed from any quarter. Abstracts of scientific papers are solicited, and one hundred copies of the issue containing such will be mailed the author on request in adyance. Rejected manuscripts will be returned to the authors only when the requisite amount of postage accom- panies the manuscript. Whatever is intended for insertion must be authenti- cated by the name and address of the writer; not necessarily for publication, but as a guaranty of good faith. We do not hold ourselves responsible for any view or opinions expressed in the communications of our correspondents. Attention is called to the ‘‘Wants” column. It is invaluable to those who use it in soliciting information or seeking new positions. The name and address of applicants should be given in full. so that answers will go direct to them. The ‘“‘Exchange”’ column is likewise open. For Advertising Rates apply to Henry F. Tayior, 13 Astor Place, New York. LION BREEDING. BY DR. V. BALL, C.B., F.R.S , HONORARY SECRETARY ROYAL ZOOLOGI- CAL SOCIETY OF IRELAND. THE breeding of lion cubs commenced in the gardens of the Royal Zoological Society of Ireland in the year 1857, and has been continued through an unbroken descent to the end of 1891, or for thirty-five years; from which, if we sub- tract the five years from 1874 to 1878, inclusive — when there was no breeding lioness in the gardens and no cubs were born — the actual period of breeding lasted only thirty years, during which the average number of births has been 5.3 per annum. Parents of the Cubs. MALES FEMALES. No. of Cubs. No. of Cubs. Natalie (1857-9) ...... 10 Natal (1857-64)....... 42 Anonyma (186J—4).... 20 Old Girl (1862-73)..... 55 Sire unknown (1869).. 3... [ Nellie (GUISE 9) ears enn 3 Old Charley (1866-74). 47 { Biddy (1871).......... 4 | Meese (1879-81) .... 7 ' Zenobia (1879-83) ..... 17 Young Charley (’79-84) 27 } Queen (1884-91)...... 28 Paddy (1883-91). ..... 31 Minnie (1884-6)...... 6 Romeo (1890-91)...... 9 Juliet (1890-91)....... 159 159 Sexes of the Cubs. Malestickch: Wii wei 85 Memialesh (ie ae ae 73 WinlinOwii) 3655460 op bo% 1 Honwardireney se eee 86 159 Percentage of males to females 53.8 to 46.2, or a majority of 7.6 males out of every 100. SCIENCE, [Vot. XX. No. 493 The Number of Cubs in a Litter. Total number of litters, 48; number of cubs, 159; average: number of cubs in each litter, 3.7. Of litters of 6 cubs there were 2 oe ce 5 “eo ce 8 ce 6c 4 66 6 17 ae oe 3 ee “ee 9 6 (73 9 ce 9 5 be 66 1 66 3 2 Thus it will be seen that the average number of cubs in a litter approximates most nearly to 4. Months in which the Cubs were Born. Januanyeneeceeeeee 6 July else Aart Naas 5 Hebruanyeun ener eile ENTRUST 95 6 6415 viollowo 13 Mian chin cise ees September.......... 27 50. eNOS a UN ar ge 22 | 40 Octoberse nena 23 UE a alee arctan ale 0 18 § November.......... 13 Bb ayevapet eerie Nae Hse 9 December......... ao. 72 87 Forward...... 12 159 It is to be remarked that 90 out of the total of 159 were born in the four paired months, namely, April and May (40) and September and October (50). These amount to 56.6 per cent of the whole number, leaving only 43.4 per cent for the: remaining eight months. Disposal of the Cubs. Diedfatworishonthypatiter bint cree eee . 30 *) fatterisome monthslor yeary ye. . lees leat 12 IEUINEC OP SOCKS, so cacasccs cess enunGo00benss000 8 Sold (yielding upwards of £4,000)................... 109° 159" THE PURIFICATION OF WATER BY CHEMICAL. TREATMENT.’ BY WILLIS G, TUCKER, M.D. PURE water does not exist in nature. It is an ideal sub— stance to which the purest water that can be prepared by the chemist only approximates. Hrom a chemical standpoint. every foreign substance which water may contaim is an. impurity, but, hygienically considered, water is called impure- only when it contains excessive amounts of mineral matter in solution or in suspension; when it contains organic matter: of vegetable or animal origin, or the products: of the decom- position of such matter in quantities exceeding certain gen- erally accepted but rather arbitrarily assigned limits, or when) it is shown to contain living organisms believed to be asso- ciated with or productive of diseases which waten may com-- municate. All filth in food or drink is to be abhorred}. but,. none the less, distinction must be made between that which,. containing or accompanying specific disease germs, may give rise to specific diseases, and that which is, while not unobjec- tionable, yet apparently incapable of materially affecting health. The chemist is as yet unable to distinguise disease-. producing from relatively harmless impurities in water. He, can recognize those constituents whieh indicate onganic. pollution; demonstrate the present existence of putrescent, material, or show that such material has previously existed, 1 Read before the Medical Society of the County of Albany at a meeting- held February 23, 1892. Reprinted from the Albany Medical Annals, April, 1892. Jury 15, 1892. ] by the recognition of the products of its decay, but he can by no means assert with certainty that any given water will necessarily give rise to disease or will certainly prove to be wholesome. Waters containing putrescent organic matter of animal origin have been drunk without harmful results. Such cases are on record, and, on the other hand, waters which analysis has shown to be of fair chemical purity have unquestionably given rise to disease. Nevertheless the chemical analysis of drinking waters, despite the limitations and imperfections of our best processes, furnishes most val- uable information, in no other way to be obtained, and I shall spend no time in’a defense of this method of investiga- tion. There are unmistakable signs of pollution which analysis may reveal, and such warnings should not go un- heeded. If it be shown that a well receives the leachings of a privy-vault or cesspool, or that a running stream is con- taminated by sewage, as yet unoxidized and possibly in- fectious, such water should be condemned, and neither chem- ist nor bacteriologist should be required to demonstrate its disease-producing power. Indeed this would be in most cases entirely impossible, such proof being seldom attainable. Impurities in water exist in suspension or solution, and may be either inorganic or organic. Suspended matter may frequently be removed, wholly or partially, by mere sedi- mentation or by some simple process of filtration, but matter which is held in solution must be destroyed or removed in other ways. The boiling of water may produce a deposition of some of its earthy salts, a coagulation and precipitation of some of its organic matter, and a destruction of its micro- organisms including disease germs if present; and while this method of purification is frequently serviceable as a house- hold measure it is not adapted to use upona large scale. By distillation a still further purification may be effected, but this is a still more costly process and can never come into general use. Within a few days I have examined a sample of distilled water prepared and sold in bottles for table use, in which, while the free ammonia was high, the albuminoid ammonia was very low; chlorine, nitrites, and nitrates ab- sent, and total solids almost nil. Such water is as pure as can well be made on a commercial scale, but it is necessarily too expensive to be commonly used. Aeration has likewise been resorted to for the destruction by oxidation of organic matter, and is said to have been employed more than a cen- tury ago by Lind on the west coast of Africa. Considerable improvement has been effected in certain city supplies by pumping air into the mains or reservoirs or by discharging water in jets or fountains into basins so as freely to expose it to the air. Where waters are shown to be deficient in dis- solved oxygen, especially in the case of impounded waters in which pafches of green algze appear upon the surface in warm weather, such treatment is often of the greatest value. It is an imitation of a natural process of purification, and the change effected is not to be regarded as purely chemical, being brought about by bacterial organisms, the nitrifying bacteria, which, under favorable conditions and in presence of free oxygen, convert nitrogenous organic matter into harmless inorganic forms. The purification of polluted water by direct chemical treat- ‘ment has been effeeted with more or less success in many ways, all practical methods involving the separation of pre- cipitated matter either by sedimentaggn or filtration after treatment of the water. in other words, there is no chemical agent which, by simple a@dition to en water, will render such water pure and whalesgaje. By chemical treatment we may precipitate lime and other earthy salts if present in Suit SCIENCE. 35 undue quantity, coagulate and remove organic matter and! bacteria, or promote the oxidation of such matter; and various. processes accomplishing, more or less perfectly, these results, have, during recent years, been employed. Clark’s process, designed particularly for the softening of water owing its hardness to bi-carbonate of lime, consists in the addition of milk of lime, which results in the formation of an insoluble carbonate subsequently separated by sedimen- tation. Colored and turbid waters are clarified and organic matter and living organisms largely reduced by this treat- ment, as has been shown by Dr. Perey F. Frankland (Chem- ical News, Vol. utt., p. 40) and others, but if much organic matter is present the precipitation does not readily occur and filtration must be resorted to as in the Porter-Clark process. Other methods for softening water involve the use of caustic soda in addition to slaked lime, as in Howatson’s process, and the use of tri-sodic phosphate, now a commercial article, by which means the salts producing permanent hardness are largely removed; and in the household carbonate of soda (washing soda) is employed for the same purpose, though its use is impracticable on a large scale on account of the expense. Such methods as these, however, are primarily intended for purifying water for laundry use, manufacturing pur- poses, and making steam. They are more important from a technical than from a sanitary standpoint, and we pass from these to speak of those processes in which the main object is. the removal of constituents believed to be harmful to health. Before doing so, however, a few words concerning filtration: may not be out of place, the more especially as either sed- . imentation or filtration is generally necessarily connected with every process intended for the purification of water. Filtration which is a mere straining, as for example, continu- ous filtration through sand or animal charcoal, may clarify a water without otherwise improving it in any respect, and if, after a time, the filter becomes foul, the water may be- polluted rather than improved. I regard with disfavor most of the old-fashioned filtering appliances, which not only gave a false sense of security, but often served as breeding places for the growth of living organisms. A house filter which is not easily cleansed is an abomination, being gen- erally allowed to take care of itself and in time becoming @ source of real danger. A few years ago a case of no little interest was reported in the Chemical News (Vol. uu, p. 70). Two samples of water were analyzed for a family in which one member was ill with typhoid fever. One of the samples. was from the house supply direct, and the other was the same water filtered through a portable charcoal filter of the common type. This latter sample yielded a much larger amount of albuminoid ammonia than the former, decolor- ized five times as much permanganate of potassium, and was: in every respect objectionable. On inquiry it was learned. that the filter had been in use for more than a year, and that in the place where the owner had formerly resided he had found the water so bad that he had made use of it to filter that which he used for his bath. A few years ago when typhoid fever prevailed in Providence, R.I., and seemed not to be fairly attributable to the city water-supply, Dr. T. M. Prudden examined several of tbe filters used in private houses and found the typhoid bacillus in no less than three of them (New York Medical Journal, Vol. L., p. 14). Fil- ters giving such results, it need scarcely be said, are a con- stant menace to health, but those which allow of easy clean- ing by reversed egrrents of water are free from most of the objections attending the use ‘of the older forms. Five years 36 ago I analyzed some samples of Albany water, filtered through a well-known filter manufactured in this city (the Blessing Duplex Filter), and found that a sample of water obtained by washing the filter after a day’s use, yielded of albuminoid ammonia, 0.1850 parts per 100,000, showing that the filter had retained a large amount of organic matter. Water which had passed through the sand of the filter only, yielded 0.0023, and that which had passed through both the sand and charcoal yielded but 0.0014 parts per 100,000. This latter quantity is about one-tenth that ordinarily found in our city water, and this is certainly a very good showing. Two years since I analyzed water which had been drawn from our upper service, both before and after filtration through the same filtering apparatus, and found the free ammonia reduced to a fifth, the albuminoid ammonia to a fourth, and the oxygen absorbed to two-thirds of the amounts originally present, by filtration; while a sample of water from the lower city service had its free ammonia reduced to a fifth, albuminoid to a tenth, and oxygen absorbed to a twelfth, indicating a vast improvement in a water at that time in singularly bad condition. These results I believe to be largely due to the efficient action of the animal charcoal, which in this device acts, not as a strainer or filtering medium proper, but as an oxidizing agent. provision being made for its constant aeration. In many filtering appliances animal charcoal is a fruitful source of trouble and danger, but if the real filtration is accomplished by other material and the coal is subjected to frequent aeration and renewed when neces- sary, it is a most valuable agent for effecting the oxidation of organic matter. I purpose soon to make some experiments ‘with a view to determining how long animal charcoal retains its activity in such filters, though it is very certain that, with proper treatment, it will continue to operate satisfactorily for a long time. i Of the chemical agents which have been employed in water purification, the most important are metallic iron, solu- tions of iron salts, generally the chloride, permanganate of potassium, and alum. Spongy iron, obtained by the reduc- tion of hematite-ore at a temperature of a little below that of fusion, thereby rendering the metal porous or spongy in form, was first made use of by Bischof, whose process was patented in England in 1871, though Dr. Medlock had se- cured a patent in 1857 for a process of purification based upon the use of metallic iron plates, and Spencer in 1867 in- troduced a material which he called magnetic carbide, in which the active agent was iron. The carbonic acid in the water, acting upon the iron in one or the other of these forms, produces a ferrous carbonate, which, by oxidation, yields hydrated ferric oxide, and this is believed to effect the oxi- dation of organic matter and serve as a coagulant as well, producing a flocculent precipitate, which is subsequently separated by sedimentation or filtration through sand. Such methods have been employed with more or less success in various European cities, but Anderson’s process, which has been successfully used at Antwerp, Ostend, Paris, and Vienna, has generally replaced other methods of purification by iron. In this process the water is forced through revolv- ing purifiers consisting of iron cylinders revolving on hollow trunnions which serve for inlet and outlet pipes. On the inner surface of the cylinders are curved ledges running lengthwise, which scoop up and shower down through the water fine cast-iron borings as it flows through the cylinder, so that every portion of the water is brought into contact with the iron, which is kept constantly bright and clean by attri- tion, The water issuing from the purifiers is exposed to SCIENCE. [VoL. XX. No. 493 the air, by allowing it to flow through a trough, to secure the precipitation of the ferric hydrate, and by filtration through sand this precipitate is subsequently removed. It is claimed for this process that the organic matter is altered in form and largely destroyed, the albuminoid ammonia . being reduced to from one-half to one-fourth, and micro-organ- isms largely destroyed or removed. At Antwerp 2,000,000 gallons daily are thus treated, and Professor Edward Frank- land has shown that this water is completely sterilized and nearly all its organic matter removed. The cost, previous to the introduction of settling reservoirs before filtration, has been $4 per million gallons. In a paper read before the Franklin Institute in 1890 by Easton Devonshire, C.E., it is estimated that the cost of working expenses, with an output of 5,000,000 gallons per diem or over, should not exceed $2 per million. Ferric chloride has been employed in Holland for removing clayey matter and organic impurities from the water of the Maas, which supplies Rotterdam. Carbonate of ironis formed and decomposed with separation of ferric hydrate which coagulates and removes the organic matter, but such treat- ment is attended with many difficulties and is not likely to come into general use. The same may be said of the em- ployment of permanganate of potassium, which oxidizes organic matter and by its decomposition yields manganic hydrate which precipitates much of the suspended matter present in the water. Such processes may be successful, bere and there, on a small scale, but they cannot as yet be practically or economically employed in the purification of large supplies. The only other purifying agent of which we need speak is aium. It is said to have been used for centuries in China and India, but particular attention was first directed to its use by Jennet in 1865. Most waters contain more or less bicarbonate of lime in solution, and the alum acting upon this constituent yields sulphate of lime, carbonic acid gas, and aluminic hydrate, as shown in the following equation: K,Al, (SO,) , +3 H, Ca (CO;), 3 Ca SO, +K, SO, +6 CO, + Al, (HO),.- As the aluminic hydrate forms and deposits it not only en- tangles and carries down finely-divided, suspended, mineral matter but coagulates and removes much of the dissolved organic matter as well. By this means peaty and other col- ored waters are decolorized; turbid waters containing finely divided clay are clarified and bacteria removed. Professor A. R. Leeds, in an experiment performed upon the water used at Mt. Holly, N. J., found that alum, added in the proportion of half a grain to the gallon, produced the follow- ing effect: ‘‘On standing the peaty matter was entirely precipitated in reddish-yellow flakes and the water above became perfectly colorless and clear. On pipetting off some of this supernatant fluid I found that instead of containing 8,100 colonies of bacteria per cubic centimeter, as it did before precipitation with alum, it contained only 80 colonies. On filtering some of this supernatant water through a double thickness of sterilized filter paper into a sterilized tube I found no bacteria in the filtered water. In other words the water had been rendered, by the addition of an amount of alum so minute as to be inappreciable to taste and almost to chemical tests, as sterile as if it had been subjected to pro- longed boiling.” (Journal American Chemical Society, ix., p. 154.) Austen and Wilber made a valuable report to the State Geologist of New Jersey in 1885, on the ‘‘ Purification of Drinking Water by Alum.” They found that 1.2 grains per JuLy 15, 1892.] gallon was sufficient for the complete precipitation and clari- fication of the New Brunswick city water, if sufficient time was allowed for settling. Such an amount is imperceptible to the taste and can exert no physiological action. If more alum is used less time is required for sedimentation, and vice versa. More than two grains to the gallon was seldom re- quired. They showed likewise that waters which will not yield clear filtrates on account of their containing finely di- vided clayey matters, even when filtered through the finest filter-paper, were immediately coagulated and precipitated by 1.16 grains of alum to the gallon, so that they could be filtered immediately after adding the alum, yielding bril- tiantly clear filtrates, and. in their opinion, no more than twice this quantity, or about two grains per gallon at most, need ever be employed. r In January, 1889, asample of peaty water from Athol, Mass., having a decided yellowish-brown color, was submitted to me for examination. Difficulty had been experienced in clarifying this water by filtration, and I made some experi- ments to determine the action of alum upon it. Our city supply was at that time yellowish in color and slightly tur- bid, and this was also tested. It was found that, in both eases, the addition of alum in the proportion of 2.3 grains per gallon gave rise at the end of twenty-four hours to a yellowish flocculent deposit, undergoing no further change on standing for four days, the water becoming clear and almost perfectly colorless. The waters were tested again by adding thealum, shaking in a flask, and immediately filtering through paper. The city water became transparent and perfectly colorless, and the peaty water retained but a very faint, almost imper- ceptible yellowish tint. The peaty water yielded originally 0.0225 parts of albuminoid ammonia per 100,000, but after the addition of alum, agitation and filtration, it yielded but 0.0060 parts, or about one-fourth as much, showing how great an improvement had been effected. For household use, on a small seale, water can be easily clarified and purified by placing a layer of clean ectton, two or three inches deep, at the bottom of a glass pereolator, such as is used by druggists, and pouring the water to be filtered, to which solution of alum has been added, into the percolator and allowing it to drip through into a clean vessel placed to receive it. The alum solution is conveniently made by dis- solving half an ounce of alum in a quart of water, and of this solution a scant teaspoonful should be added to each gallon of water to be filtered. Alum is now used in a num- ber of filtering and purifying systems which have of late years been brought prominently before the public by their inventors or the companies controlling them. If now it be asked, do such processes as these which we have described, admit of practical and economical application to the purification of large volumes of polluted water for the supply of our great cities, I fear that an unqualified affirma- tive answer can hardly be given. In American cities the consumption of water is much greater than in European towns. The “ Encyclopedia Brittanica” states that ‘‘ the con- sumption varies greatly in different | Euglish] towns, rang- ing from about twelve to fifty gallons per head per day,” and that ‘‘an ample supply for domestic use and general requirements is from 20 to 25 gallons per head daily.” With us a hundred gallons is frequently supplied. Albany wants 15,000,000 gallons, with a population of less than 100,000. Philadelphia and St. Louis consume 70 gallons; New York, 80; Boston, 90; Chicage, 115; and Detroit, 150; while Glas- gow, Dublin, and Edinburgh consume but 50; London, 40; Birmingham, Leeds, and Liverpool abcut 30: and Manchester SCIENCE. 37 and Sheffield still less. On the continent it is about the same. Paris uses about 50 gallons; Hamburg and Dresden 60, and Leipsic but 23. In American cities the waste of water is enormous and to purify one gallon for drinking and house- hold uses and niue gallons for flushing water-closets, water- ing streets and extinguishing fires must ever be a wasteful process, to say the least. Many towns in this country are now using water purified by artificial means, with apparent satisfaction ; but I do not think that the time hascome when itcan be said that such purification is practicable in all cases. Certain methods, like the Anderson process, give excellent results under favorable conditions, but competent engineers have not recommended them for American cities. Sedimen- tation, coagulation, filtration, aeration, all these have passed the experimental stage and are in a sense practical, but that processes involving so much manipulation can be advan- tageously employed in treating the enormous volumes of water required by large cities, especially where pumping is also necessary, is not as yet demonstrated. As regards fil- tration alone, it may be said that in our climate the filter- beds, which give satisfactory results in many parts of Europe, cannot generally be employed to advantage, and that this method of filtration has been by no means uniformly suc- cessful even in Hurope. In a recent report Dr. Theobald Smith has called attention to the fact that in the Berlin epi- demic of typhoid in 1889, ‘‘the distribution of the disease was identical with that of the filtered river water,” the filter beds being worked with great rapidity to make up for a de- ficiency in the water-supply, and the filtered water containing at times 4,000 bacteria per cubic centimeter. In discussing this case he says: ‘‘ These facts go far to prove that polluted water, when immediately delivered for consumption even after filtration, is not wholly safe. They likewise make prom- inent the fact, that, while filtration largely rids a given water of its bacteria, it is a process requiring the utmost care, the most constant attention, not only on the part of the engi- neer, but also of the chemist and bacteriologist. We are furthermore convinced,” he adds, ‘‘by these experiments that surface water which shows very little, if any, pollution, and which is stored before use, is safer than filtered water which before filtration is being- manifestly contaminated with sewage.” As regards methods of rapid filtration under pressure, combining chemical treatment of the water, gener- ally by alum, as well, various systems are in use in this country, controlled by individuals or companies employing a variety of patented devices. Granting that the results in some cases seem to be excellent, I think the time has not yet come when they can be unhesitatingly recommended for the purification, in all cases, of large city supplies. I know of no city with a population of one hundred thousand that is using such a process to-day. That numerous infectious dis- eases are conveyed by water admits of no dispute. In my opinion it is vastly better to purify our sewage before dis- charging it into the streams which supply us with water, or keep it out of them if practicable altogether, than to attempt to purify the water which it pollutes. Chemical treatment and filtration may be practicable and efficient in certain cases, but I believe that the statement by the Rivers Pollu- tion Commission of England, more than twenty years ago, in their sixth report, is as true now as it was then: ‘‘ Noth- ing short of the abandonment of the inexpressibly nasty habit of mixing human excrement with our drinking water can confer upon us immunity from the propagation of epi- demics through the medium of potable water.” The cities of this country may eventually be driven to methods of arti- 38 ficial purification of their water supplies, but it cannot be said that the conditions necessitating such action generally exist as yet. In most cases the safer and more economical course will be found to be either the securing of an unpol- luted water, if such be available, or the protection from pol- lution of existing sources of supply. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR. a*«x Correspondents are requested to be as brief as possible. is in all cases required as proof of good faith. The writer's nume On request in advance, one hundred copies of the number containing his communication will be furnished free to any correspondent. The editor will be glad to publish any queries consonant with the character of the journal. American Weeds. PROFESSOR ByrON D. HALSTED of the New Jersey Experiment Station has recently presented to the agricultural public a list of ‘* American Weeds,’’— mostly phanerogams, — which contains no less than 751 varieties and species, exclusive of noxious fungi. Well may the long-suffering farmer turn up the whites of his eyes at this formidable list. A closer examination, however, shows us among the ‘‘ weeds ” all our cultivated clovers, medics, vetches, and many of our best agricultural grasses. The criterion used by the New Jersey botanist in deciding what to admit and what to exclude from his catalogue is not apparent, and no word of explanation is vouchsafed. In the vegetable kingdom, if not in the United States Republic, it is true that ‘+ it is self-evident that all plants are born free and equal.” The distinguishing of plants as weeds and not weeds is purely human and artificial. The popular idea of a weed seems to be a repulsive, or hurtful, wild plant. But few persons give exactly the same definition. I have been at some trouble to se- cure the definitions of a number of intelligent persons, and give below a few samples: — “© A plant where you don’t want it.” — Director Eaperiment Station. “* A noxious or useless plant.” — Curator of Museum. ‘“A plant out of place.” — Chemist. ‘© A troublesome plant.” — Chemist. ‘* An obnoxious plant of many species not fit for food or medici- nal purposes.” — Clerk. “A plant not edible, so far as known, nor medicinal. or other- wise serviceable to man, and which always thrives where not wanted.”— Inspector of Fertilizers. ‘© A plant for which we have no use so far as we know.”— Meteorologist. “«(1) Underbrush or bushes; (2)a useless or troublesome plant.” — Webster. My own definition: Any plant which from its situation or in- herent properties is hurtful to human interests; a vegetable mal- efactor. By the usage of the English language the name ‘‘ weed ”’ is connotative and implies in a plant a bad and hurtful quality. Used metaphorically or analogically it is always a term of oppro- brium. If we were dealing with individual plants as courts of justice deal with persons, each particular plant might he properly de- scribed as a weed or not weed according to the circumstances of each case. But here we are dealing not with individuals but with species and varieties, and can take note only of the general char- acter of the groups. If we have planted a bed of pansies, and there springs up among the pansies a red clover piant, this particu- lar plant is hurtful to us, and therefore is treated as a weed, but we are not therefore justified in writing the species Trifolium protense in a listof weeds The general character, — the qualities for which the clover genus generally and this species especially are noted, are good and beneficial to mankind. It was only by chance or the carelessness of some one that this clover plant got into our flower-bed. ‘‘The plant out of place” definition of a weed can refer only toa particular plant. It cannot be applied SCIENCE. [Vot. XX. No 4093 to a species, for a plant of any species.is liable to be occasionally misplaced. We must maintain then that the inclusion in a list of weeds of such plants as the clovers, medics, vetches, and agricultural grasses is unjustifiable and wrong. A large number of Professor Halsted’s ‘‘ weeds” are mere ‘‘ wildlings of nature” for which we have as yet found no im- portant use. But justice requires that in the case of plants as well as persons every one shall be held innocent until proven guilty of wrong. Both from an esthetic and from a practical standpoint it is true that most of these so-called weed plants are more useful than hurtful. They clothe and beautify waste places. Many of these wild plants furnish food and nectar for honey bees, and all aid more or less in conserving the fertility of the soil, preyent wash- ing ete. It isas unjust to stigmatize such plants as ‘‘ weeds” as it would be to call all savage tribes criminals. Professor Halsted omits wholly and without comment noxious fungi from his list of weeds. Yet these are our very worst and most dangerous weeds. In number they far outrun all the phan- erogamic species. To justify its inclusion in a list of ‘‘ American weeds ” a plant must not only possess a positively noxious character, but must also be sufficiently obnoxious or wide spread to give it a national reputation. If we exclude from Professor Halsted’s list all obscure and non-noxious species we shall have left about 150 species of weed- plants worthy to be called ‘* American Weeds.” GERALD McCarRtTHy. N. C. Experiment Station, Jnly 5. Some Remarks oa Professor Cyrus Thomas’s Brief Study of the Palenque Tablet. In Science, No. 488, Professor Cyrus Thomas stated that ‘‘ the particular manner of reckoning the days of the month ”— or more precisely, the exact designation of a date by the sign of the day and the position it holds in the number of twenty days (winal) that people are in the habit of calling a Maya month — as it is found not only ‘‘in some of the series of the Dresden Codex,” but through- out the whole of it, is also found on the Palenque tablet. This statement undoubtedly is a correct one. But Professor Thomas, following Professor Férstemann, asserts that the ‘‘ peculiarity of this method is that the day of the month is counted not from the first of the given month, but from the last of the preceding month; thus the fifteenth day of Pop, beginning the count with the first, will, according to this method, be numbered 16.” If it were really so, this method of reckoning the days of the month would be a very curious one, and hardly to be understood. Professor Forste- mann based this assertion on the supposition that the calendar system of the Dresden Codex is the same as that which prevailed in Yucatan at the time of Bishop Landa’s writing. In vol. xxiii. of the Zeitschrift fiir Ethnologie, published by the Berlin An- thropological Society, in a paper entitled ‘‘Zur mexikanischen Chronologie, mit besonderer Beriicksichtigung des zaposekischen Kalenders,” I have shown that the priests who wrote down the Dresden Codex did not begin their years with the days kan, muluc, ia, cauac, as in Landa’s time, but with the days been, e’tznab, akbal, lamat, exactly corresponding to the acatl, tecpatl, call, tocbtl (cane, flint, house, rabbit), the signs used by the Mexicans to designate their respective years. Beginning the years in this manner, the day 4 ahau 8 cumku is really the eighth day of the month cumku in the been, or ‘‘cane,” years. The day 9 kan 12 kayab is really the twelfth day of the month kayab in the same been, or ‘‘ cane.”’ years; and thus with all the other dates through- out the whole Dresden Codex. The evidence derived from the fact that the same method of numbering the days of the month, that is to say, the same method of beginning the years, is also found in the Palenque tablet, leads —JI agree with Professor Thomas — to the inference ‘‘ that there were intimate relations between the people of this city and those where the Dresden Codex was written, and that there is no very great difference in the ages of the two documents.” On the other Juty 15, 1892. ] side, it is proved by my statements that in this peculiarity both the Dresden Codex and the Palenque tablet differ from the Codéx Troano-Cortez. For in the latter document the beginning of the years is in the days kan, muluc, tx, cauac. This is proved by Codex Troano 23-20, when compared with the Dresden Codex 25-28. From this, and the general character of the Codex Troano- Cortez, we may safely infer that this manuscript is of a later date than the Dresden Codex, and, perhaps, of a somewhat different locality. Alluding to 9 C 9D of the Palenque tablet, Professor Thomas remarks that on plate 48 and twice on plate 50 of the Dresden Codex no number-symbol is attached where the day is the twen- tieth of the month. This is obviously an erroneous statement ; for in all the three cases named, and also in the Palenque tablet, there is a particular element attached to the hieroglyph of the month; and this particular element reveals itself as a graphic representa- tion of the two eyes of the man (winic), the substitute of the head of the slain, which [ have shown is the usual representation of the man (winic) or the number twenty (winal) (see Zeitschrift fiir Ethnologie, X1X., pp. 237-240. With reference to Professor Thomas’s last remarks, I will add that the symbol of the hand, as it is seen in the hieroglypth manik, is to be understood as a sign-language character for ‘‘to eat,” and therefore has the phonetic value chi (compare the hieroglyph chikin, west). The figure of the outstretched hand occurs as a substitute for the hatchet, the probable expression of the sound ch’ac, ‘*to cut.” The proper phonetic and figurative value of the outstretched hand seems to be paw, ‘‘ to beat.” Dr. ED. SELER. Steglitz, Germany, June, 1892. A Grape Vine Produces Two Sets of Leaves During the Same Season. THE scarcity of information upon the production of leaves at abnormal times furnishes an excuse for the following communi- cation. In the yard adjoining me there is a large grape-vine of several years’ growth. A month ago this wasa vigorous plant; the Jeaves were numerous and healthy, and the branches were loaded with grapes. About that time numerous caterpillars attacked the vine, and in less than a week there was nota leaf left upon it. Numer- ous petioles, bearing fragments of the principal veins, were all that remained of the foliage. The grapes began to shrivel, and the smaller twigs to show signs of premature decay. But the end was not yet. About a week after the leaves were destroyed, buds located at the nodes — buds which normally would have remained dormant until next year — began to develop a sec- ond foliage. Although not yet full-grown, these leaves have given a new lease of life to the vine. The few shriveled bunches of grapes that have survived the great draught upon their moisture are rapidly regaining their plumpness. The plant is itself again. One fact is worth noting; although almost four weeks have elapsed since the leaves were destroyed, the petioles remain attached to the stems. These petioles are as green as ever, and in most cases they retain short bits of the principal veins of the leaves Near the petioles these veins are green, but their free ex- tremities are shriveled and brown. C. H. TURNER. University of Cincinnati, July 10. BOOK-REVIEWS. The Stone, Bronze, and Iron Ages. A Popular Treatise on Early Archeology. By JOHN HUNTER-DuvaR. London, Swan Son- nenschein & Co. New York, Macmillan & Co. 285 p. $1.25. As the author claims for this book no other character than that of a popular treatise, it will be sufficient to inquire whether it is a fair representation of the most approved views of the science, as expressed by those who have made it a speciality. This it usually is, although the author, who never quotes his authorities, has inserted opinions here and there which are certainly not those generally accepted. For instance, he understates the artistic SCIENCE. 39 relics of the Paleolithic period; he assumesjthat the weapons of the river drift were more ponderous than those of later date; he asserts that no idols have been recovered from the stations of that epech; and that no human remains have been unearthed from the European kitchen-middens. Our countrymen will also be surprised to learn that Mound City is another name for St. Louis (p. 142). In spite of such slight blemishes, the book can be recommended as a convenient and usually accurate manual of this attractive science. It begins at the beginning, tracing the story of man from early post-tertiary times through the drift and cave periods in Europe, and the neolithic, bronze, and iron ages. There are special chapters on the lake-dwellers, fossil man, myths, pot- tery, sepulture, and art, and one on the mound-builders of the Ohio Valley. Journal and Proceedings of the Royal Society of New South Wales. Vol. XXV. 1891. 348 p. THE creditable publications of this active society have already reached their twenty-fifth volume, and it comes replete with en- tertaining material. Several reports from the Sydney Observatory on celestial photography will have interest for the astronomer; articles on Kaolinite and the microscopic structure of Australian rocks will attract the geologist; the causes of death among sheep and rabbits in Australia will be welcome to the agriculturist; the folk-lorist will turn with pleasure to Mr. Pratt’s translations of songs and myths from Samoa; while the mechanicians and cranks will be glad to read about a ship which can be propelled by the action of the wavesalone, anda flying machine which is to navigate the sky by the motive power of compressed air. This is certainly a varied repast, at which each may find a dish to his liking. AMONG THE PUBLISHERS. A WORK on the ‘‘ Migration of Birds,” by Charles Dixon, will shortly be published by Messrs. Chapman & Hall. — Messrs. Longmans, Green, & Co. have issued a third edi- tion, revised and enlarged, of Professor E. A. Schéafer’s ‘* Essen- tials of Histology.” The intention of the author is to supply students with directions for the microscopical examinaticn of the tissues. —A ‘‘ Dictionnaire de Chimie industrielle” is being issued in parts, under the direction of A. M. Villon, by the ‘ Librairie Tig- nol.” Jt gives an account of the applications of chemistry to metallurgy, agriculture, pharmacy, pyrotechnics, and the various arts and handicrafts. — Henry Stevens & Son, 39 Great Russell Street, London, promise for next month Henry Harisse’s ‘‘ Discovery of North America: a critical, documentary, and historic investigation, with an essay on the early cartography of the New World,” etc. This important work by the foremost investigator in the field will make a quarto volume of 800 pages, with 23 plates and many illustrations in the text, and will be issued to subscribers in three styles, ranging in price from £5 to £12 16s. Only 360 copies are to be printed. — The American Society for the Extension of University Teach- ing, Philadelphia, has just issued five monographs on various phases of the university extension movement, being reprints from the Proceedings of the Society. These are: ‘‘ The Place of Uni- versity Extension in American Education,” by William T. Harris, U. 8S. Commissioner of Education; ‘‘ The Organization and Func- tion of Local Centres,” by Michael E. Sadler, secretary of the Oxford University Extension Delegacy; ‘‘The Church and Uni- versity Extension,” by Rev. John S. Macintosh; ‘‘ The Ideal Sylla- bus,” by Henry W. Rolfe; and ‘‘ The University Extension Class,” by Edward T. Devine. — With the number for July, the ‘‘ Annals” of the American Academy of Political and Social Science begins its third volume. The first article in the current number is entitled ‘‘ Cabinet Gov- ernment in the United States.” It is by Professor Freeman Snow of Harvard, and is an auswer to the many pleas for the adoption 40 in the United States of cabinet government as known abroad. The next article is by Mrs. S. L. Oberholtzer, and relates how much good ‘‘School Savings Banks” have done and are doing. Professor J. B. Clark of Smith College has a paper on ‘‘ Patten’s Dynamic Economics,” in which he explains the latest system of political economy, taking up Professor S. N. Patten’s recent book as a basis for his remarks. Professor Léon Walras of Lausanne contributes an article on the ‘‘ Geometrical Theory of the Distri- bution of Prices,” in which he presents a geometric picture of the causation of the prices of all commodities. Besides these there are articles by Mr. B. F. Hughes on ‘‘ Basis of Interest,” by Leo S. Rowe on the ‘‘Conference of the Central Bureau for the Pro- motion of the Welfare of the Laboring Classes,” by Takekuma Okacla on ‘Taxation in Japan,” and the usual book-reviews and personal notes. — W. H. Lowderwilk & Co., Washington, announce that they have assumed the publication of *‘ Hickcox’s Monthly Catalogue of Government Publications,” which they will complete up to date and issue regularly and promptly in the future. Mr. Hick- cox will edit the catalogue as heretofore, but all rights in the work have been purchased by the publishers. Up to this time the work has been prosecuted under many difficulties, and the pecuniary returns have been very inadequate, by reason of which facts it was not kept up with the regularity which its importance de- SCIENCE. [Mor Oxcn Nor aog bers of 1892, under one cover, succeeding numbers to follow early in each month thereafter. As rapidly as the matter can be pre- pared the back volumes will be completed and sent to subscribers. It is not expected that the undertaking will prove a remunerative one, but it is hoped that there will be a return sufficient to repay the actual outlay of money. The work is of the utmost value to every person who has occasion to handle or consult the current publications of the government, and these publications are now so varied and comprehensive that persons interested in any branch of science or business must appreciate it. — Under the title of ‘‘ The Cambridge Natural History,” Mac- millan & Co. have in active preparation an important series of volumes on the Natural History of Vertebrate and Invertebrate Animals, edited, and for the most part written, by Cambridge men. While intended in the first instance for those who have not had any special scientific training, the volumes will, as far as pos- sible, present the most modern results of scientific research. Thus the anatomical structure of each group, its development, paleeon- tology, and geographical distribution, will be considered in con- junction with its external character. Care will, however, be taken to avoid technical language as far as possible, and to exclude abstruse details which would lead to confusion rather than to in- struction. The series will be under the general editorship of Mr. J. W. Clark, the university registrar, and Mr. S F. Harmer, manded. It is expected to issue early in July the first six num- superintendent of the Museum of Zodlogy. The following writers i ET Publications Received at Editor’s Office. Busy, GrorGe G. History of Higher Education in Massachusetts. Washington, Bureau of Educa- tion. 8°, paper. 455 p. HuntTerR-Duvar, JoHN. The Stone, Bronze and Iron Ages. New York, Macmillan & Co. 12°. 285 p. $1.25. Mayo, A.D. Southern Women in the Recent Hdu- cational Movement in the South. Washington, Bureau of Education. 8°, paper. 330 p. Merz, CuHartes H. Influenza. Sandusky, O. Beecher & Co., Printers, 12°, paper. 96 p. U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. Foods and Food Adulterants. Part 7: Tea, Coffee and Cocoa Preparations. Washington, Government. 8°, paper. —Experiments with Sugar Beets in 1891. Wash- ington, Government. 8°, paper. — Record of Experiments with Sorghum in 1891. Washington, Government. 8°, paper. WEISMANN, AUGUST. Essays upon Heredity. Trans. by E. B. Poulton and A. E. Shioley. Vol. II. Oxford, Clarendon Press. 12°. 286 p. Reading Matter Notices. Ripans Tabules : for torpid liver. Ripans Tabules banish pain. Societas Entomologica. International Entomological Society, Zu- rich-Hottingen, Switzerland. Annual fee, ten francs. The Journal of the Society appears twice a month, and consists entirely of original ar- ticles on entomology, with a department for advertisements. All members may use this department free of cost for advertisements relating to entomology. The Society consists of about 450 members in all countries of the world. The new volume began April 1, 1892. The numbers already issued will be sent to new members. For information address Mr. Fritz Ruut, President of the Societas Entomologica, Zurich-Hottingen, Switzerland. SCIENCE CLUBBING RATES. 10% DISCOUNT. We will allow the above discount to any subscriber to Science who will send us an order for periodicals exceeding $10, counting each at its full price. N. D. C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. Y. .and mounted heads of same. Exchanges. [Freeofcharge to all, if ofsatisfactory character. Address N. D. C. Hodges, 874 Broadway, New York.] Taxidermist going out of business has quantity of finely-mounted specimens of North American birds, mammals and reptiles and skios of birds for sale, including a full local collection of bird skins, show- ing some great variations of species; also quantity of skulls with horns of deer and mountain sheep, Will give good ex- change for Hawk Eye camera with outfit. Apply quickly to J. R. Thurston, 265 Yonge St., Toronto, Canada. For exchange.—A fine thirteen-keyed flute in leather covered case. for a photograph camera suitable for mak- ing lantern slides. Flute cost $27, and is nearly new. U. O. COX, Mankato, Minn. To exchange ; Experiment Station bulletins and reports for bulletins and reports not in my file. I will send list of what I have for exchange. P. H. ROLES, Lake City, Florida. Finished specimens of all colors of Vermont marble for fine fossils or crystals. Will be given only for valuable specimens because of the cost of polishing. GEO. W. PERRY, State Geologist, Rutland, Vt. For exchange.—Three copies of ‘‘ American State Papers Bearing on Sunday Legislation,’’ 1891, $2.50, new and unused, for ‘‘The Sabbath,” by Harmon Kingsbury, 1840; “‘The Sabbath,” by A. A. Phelps, 1842; ‘* History of the Institution of the Sabbath Day, Its Uses and Abuses,”’ by W. L. Fisher, 1859; *‘ Humorous Phases of the Law,’ by Irving Browne; or other works amounting to value of books exchanged, on the question of govern- mental legislation in reference to religion. personal liberty, etc. If preferred, I will sell ‘‘American State Papers,” and buy other books on the subject. WILLIAM AD- DISON BLAKELY, Chicago, Ill. For Sale or Exchange for books a complete private chemical laboratory outfit. Includes large Becker bal- ance (200g to 1-1omg), platinum dishes and crucibles, agate motors, glass-blowing apparatus, etc. Vor sale in part or whole. Also complete file of S2/ézman’s Fournad, 1862-1885 (62-71 bound); Smithsonian Reports, 1854-1883; U.S. Coast Survey, 1854-1869.! Full particulars to en- quirers. F. GARDINER, JR., Pomfret, Conn. Wanted, in exchange for the following works, any standard works on Surgery and on Diseases of Children: Wilson's ‘‘ American Ornithology,” 3 vols.; Coues’ ‘*Birds of the Northwest’’ and ‘** Birds of the Colorado Valley,” 2 vols.; Minot’s ‘‘ Land and Game Birds of New Eng- land;’’ Samuels’ ‘‘ Our Northern and Eastern Birds;”’ all the Reports on the Birds of the Pacific R. R. Survey, bound in 2 vols., morocco; and a complete set of the Reports of the Arkansas Geological Survey. Please give editions and dates in corresponding. R. ELLSWORTH CALL, High School, Des Moines, Iowa. To exchange Wright’s ‘‘ Ice Age in North America’”’ and Le Conte’s ‘'Elements of Geology’’ (Copyright 1882) for “‘Darwinism,”’ by A. R. Wallace, “Origin of Species.”’ by Darwin, ‘‘Descent of Man,’’ by Darwin, ‘ Man’s Place in Nature,’’ Huxley, ‘‘Mental Evolution in Ani- mals,” by Romanes, ‘*Pre-Adamites,’? by Winchell. No books wanted except latest editions, and books in good condition. C. S, Brown, Jr., Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tenn. z Wants Any person seeking a position for which he is guali- hed by his scientific attainments, or any person seeking some one to fill a position of this character, be it that of a teacher of science, chemist, draughtsman, or what not, may have the ‘Want’ inserted under this head FREE OF COST, 7/ he satisfies the publisher of the suit- able character of his application. Any person seeking information on any scientific question, the address of auy scientific man,or who can in any way use this column for a purpose consonant with the nature oj the paper, is cordial y invited to do so. A JOHNS HOPKINS graduate (1892) desires a position as instructor in mathematics and physics. Address A. B. TURNER, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Md. \Wi eee collection of postage stamps; one mzde previous to 1870 preferred. Also oldand curious stamps on original letters, and old entire U S.stamped envelopes. Will pay vash or give in exchange first-class fossils, including fine crinoids. WM. F. E. GURLEY, Danville, Il. \y JANTED.—To purchase laboratory outfit; bal- auaces, evaporating dishes, burettes, etc., wanted immediately for cash. C. E. SPEIRS, 23 Murray street, New York. P.O. Box i741. Nee ae services of a wide-awake young man, as correspondent, in a large manufactur- ing optical business; one preferred who hasa, thor- ough knowledge of microscopy and some knowledge of photography. Address by letter, stating age and references. Optical, care of Science, 874 Broadway, New York. y ANTED.— We want any and +1l of tha following, providing we can t ade other books and maga- zines or buy them cheap for cash: Academy, Lon- don, vol. 1 to 28, 35, Jan. and Feb., 89; Age of Steel, vol. 1 to 66; American Antiquarian, vol. 1, 2; Ameri- ean Architect, vol. 1 to 6,9; American Art Review, yol. 3; American Field, vol. 1 to 21: American Geol- ogist, vol. 1 to 6; American Machinist, vol. 1 to 4; Art Amateur, yol.1 to 7, O:t., 4; Art Interchange, yol 1to9; Art Union, vol. 1 to 4, Jan., 44, July, 45; Bibliotheca Sacra, vol 1 to 46; Godey’s Lady’s Book, vol. 1 to 20; New Englander, vol. 11; Zoologist, Series 1 and 1, Series 8 vol. 1 to 14; Allen Armendale (a novel). Raymer’s ‘‘Old Book” Store, 243 4th Ave. S., Minneapolis, Minn. M ANTED.—By a young man, a Swarthmore Col- lege junior, a position as principal of a public high school in one of the Gulf States, or as instructor in botany, physiology, and geology in an academy or normal school. Address B., care of Librarian, Swarthmore College, Penn. ANTED.—To act us correspondent for one or two daily or weekly papers. Have worked on paper for abouttwo years Wouldlike a position on editorial staff of humorous paper. Address GEO. C. MASON, 14 Elm St., Hartford, Conn. RANSLATOR wanted to read German architec- tural works at sight (no writing). One familiar with technical terms desired. Address ‘ A.,”’ Box 149, New York Post Office. JuLy 15, 1892. ] are engaged upon: the groups which precede their names: Mam- mals, Mr. J. J. Lister; Birds, Mr. A. H. Evans; Reptiles and Ampbibia, Dr. Gadow, F.R.S.; Fish, Mr. W. Bateson; Mollusca, Mr. A. H. Cooke; Polyzoa, Mr. 8. F. Harmer; Brachiopoda, Mr. A. E. Shipley; Insects, Mr. David Sharp, F.R.S.; Myriapoda, Mr. F. G. Sinclair; Arachnoida, Mr. C. Warburton; Crustacea, Pro- fessor W. F. R. Weldon; Coelenterata, Mr. S. J. Hickson; and Sponges, Dr. W. J. Sollas. It is hoped that some of the volumes which are already far advanced may appear in the course of next year. The series will be fully illustrated. — The Biblia Publishing Company of Meriden, Conn., bas just issued its initial monthly number of ‘‘ Ancient Egypt in the Light of Modern Discoveries,” edited by Chas. H. 8. Davis, Ph.D., and Rev. Camden M. Cobern, Ph.D., with an introduction by Rev. W. C. Winslow, LL.D. Over one hundred illustrations will ap- pear in the twenty-four monthly parts; in the June issue are maps of Egypt as a whole, of Upper Egypt, of Lower Egypt, of the Basin of the Nile, of the Canal of Joseph, and of Egypt during the SCIENCE. 4I pluvial period; this opening chapter treats of ‘‘Egypt and Its Original Inhabitants,” and it is largely ethnographical in its cuts and letterpress. —Mr. F. Turner contributes to the April number of the Agri- cultural Gazette of New South Wales a paper on the carob bean tree as one of the commercial plants suitable for cultivation in New South Wales. The Agricultural Department distributed a quantity of seed last year, and some healthy young plants raised from this seed are now growing in several parts of the colony. Mr. Turner expects that when the tree becomes better known to cultivators it will be extensively grown to provide food for stock, more especially during adverse seasons. The carob can not only be trained into a very ornamental shade tree, but may be planted as a wind-break to more tender vegetation. He advises all who cultivate it to keep bees, if only a single hive. It is astonishing, be says, how many flowers these industrious insects will visit in the course of a day, and be the agency whereby they are fertil- ized. 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This book is the result of an attempt to collect the scattered notices of fossil resins, exclusive of those on amber. The work is of interest also on account of descriptions given of the insects found embedded in these long- preserved exudations from early vegetation. By CLARENCE LOWN and HENRY BOOTH HOSES, ile N. D. ¢. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. Y. POPULAR MANUAL OF VISIBLE SPEECH AND VOCAL PHYSIOLOGY. For use in Colleges and Normal Schools. Sent free by post by N. D.C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. ¥. Price 50 cents SCIENCE. @ies BOG INO; vg QUERY. Can any reader of Sczence cite a case of lightning stroke in which the dissipation of a small conductor (one-sixteenth of an inch in diameter, say, ) has failed to protect between two horizon- tal planes passing through its upper and lower ends respective: ly? Plenty of cases have been found which show that when the conductor is dissipated the build- ing is not injured to the extent explained (for many of these see volumes of Philosophical Trans- actions at the time when light ning was attracting the attention of the Royal Society), but not an exception is yet known, al- though this query has been pub- lished far and wide among elec- tricians. First inserted June 19. No response to date. N. D. C. HODGES, 874 BROADWAY, NEW YORK. JUST READY. THE LABRADOR COAST. A Journal of two Summer Cruises to that region; with notes on its early discovery, on the Eskimo, on its physical geography, geology and natural history, together with a bibliography of charts, works and articles relating to the civil and natural history of the Labrador Peninsula. By ALPHEUS SPRING PACKARD, M.D., Ph.D 8°, 513 pp., $3.50. N. D.C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N.Y. THE RADIOMETER. By DANIEL 8. TROY. This contains a discussion of the reasons for their action and of the phenomena pre- sented in Crookes’ tubes. Price, postpaid, 50 cents. N. D, C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. Y. AUTHORS AND PUBLISHERS. Material arranged and compiled for all kinds of works, excepting fiction. Statistics a specialty. Indexing and cataloguing. Address G. E. BIVER, 835 N. 16th Street, Philadelphia. TO oie READERS Ol Se ee PUBLISHER’S ANNOUNCEMENT. Titles of Some Articles Published in Sczence since Jan. 1, 1892. Aboriginal North American Tea. Actinism. Agriculture, Experimental, Status of. Amenhotep, King, the tomb of. Anatomy, The Teaching of, to Advanced Medical Students. Anthropology, Current Notes on. Architectural Exhibition in Brooklyn. Arsenical Poisoning from Domestic Fabrics. Artesian Wells in lowa. Astronomical Notes. Bacteria, Some Uses of. Botanical | aboratory, A. Brain, A Few Characteristics of the Avian. Bythoscopide an 1 Cereopide. Canada, Royal Society of. Celts, The Question of the. 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Insects in Popular Dread in New Mexico. Inventions in Foreign Countries, How to Protect. Inventors and Manufacturers, the American Associ- ation of. Iowa Academy of Sciences. Jargon, The Chinook. Jasside; Notes on Local. Keller, Helen. Klamath Nation, Linguistics. Laboratory Training, Alms of. Lewis H. Carvill, Work on the Glacial Phenomena. Lightning, The New Method of Protecting Buildings from. Lissajou’s Curves, Simple Apparatus for the Produc- tion of. Maize Plant, Observations on the Growth and Chemi- cal Composition of. Maya Codices, a Key to the Mystery of. Medicine, Preparation for the Study of. Mineral Discoveries, Some Recent, in the State of Washington. Museums, The Support of. Palenque Tablet, a Brief Study of. Patent Office Building, The. Physa Heterostropha Lay, Notes on the Fertility of. Pocket Gopher, Attempted Extermination of. Polariscopes, Direct Reflecting. Psychological Laboratory in the University of To- ronto. Psychological Training. The Need of. Psylla, the Pear-Tree, Rain-Making. Rivers, Evolution of the Loup, in Nebraska. Scientific Alliance, The. Sistrurus and Crotalophorus. Star Photography, Notes on. Star, The New, in Auriga. Storage of Storm-Waters on the Great Plains. Teaching of Science. Tiger, A New Sabre-Toothed, from Kansas. Timber Trees of West Virginia. Traches of Insects, Structure of. Vein-Formation, Valuable Experiments in. Weeds as Fertilizing Material. Will, a Recent Analysis of. Wind-Storms and Trees. Wines, he Sophisticated French. Zoology in the Public Schools of Washington, D. C. Some of the Contributors to Science Since Jan. I, 1892. Aaron, Eugene M., Philadelphia, Pa. Allen, Harrison, Philadelphia, Pa. Baldwin, J. Mark, University of Toronto, Canada. Barnes, Lharles Reid, Madison, Wis. Baur, G., Clark University, Worcester, Mass. Beal, W. J., Agricultural College, Micn. Beals, A. H., Milledgeville, Ga. Beauchamp, W. M., Baldwinsville, N.Y. Boas, Franz, Clark University, Worcester, Mass. Bolley, H. L., Fargo, No. Dak. Bostwich, Arthur £., Montclair, N J. Bradley, Milton, Springfield, Mass. Brinton, D. G., Philadelphia, Pa. Call, E. Ellsworth, Des Moines, Ia. Chandler, H., Buffalo, N.Y. Comstock, Theo. B., Tucson, Arizona. Conn, H. W , Middletown, Conn. Cragin, F. W., Colorado Springs, Col. Davis. W. M., Harvard College, Cambridge, Mass. Dimmock, George, Canobie Lake, N.H. ) Farrington, E..H., Agricultural Station, Champaign, I. Ferree, Barr, New York City. Flexner, Simon, Johns Hopkins University, Balti- more, Md. Foshay, P. Max, Rochester, N.Y. Gallaudet, E. M., Kendall Green, Washington, D.C, Garman S., Museum of Comp. Zool., Cambridge, Mass, Golden, Katherine E., Agricultural College, Lafay- ette, Ind. Hale, Edwin M., Chicago, Ill. Hale, George S., Boston, Mass. Hule, Horatio, Clinton, Ontario, Canada. Hall, T. Proctor, Clark University, Worcester, Mass. Halsted, Byron D., Rutgers College, New Bruns- wick, N.J. Haworth, Erasmus, Oskaloosa, Iowa. Hay, O. P., Irvington. Ind. Hayues, Henry W., Boston Mass. Hazen, H. A., Weather Bureau, Washington, D.C. Howitt J. N. B., Bureau of Ethnology, Washington, Hicks, L. E., Lincoln, Neb. Hill, E. J., Chicago, Ll. Hill, Geo. A., Naval Observatory, Washiugton, D.C. Hitchcock, Romvn, Washington, D.C. Holmes, E. L. Chicago, Ill. Hotchkiss, Jed., Staunton, Va. Howe, Jas. Lewis, Louisville, Ky. Hubbard, Gardiner G , Washington, D.C. Jackson, Dugald C., Madison, Wisconsin panes Joseph F., Agricultural Dept., Washington, D. Johuson, Roger B , Miami University, Oxford, O. Kellerman, Mrs. W. A., Columbus, O. Kellicott, D. S., State University, Columbus, O. Kellogg, D. S., Plattsburgh, N. Y. Lintner, J. A., Albany, N. Y. Loeb, Morris, New York City. Mabery, Charles F., Cleveland, Ohio. Macloskie, G., Priuceton, N.J. MeO eb Gerald, Agricultural Station, Raleigh, Cc. MacDonald, Artbur, Washington, D.C. Marshall, D. T., Metuchen, N.J. ear O. T., Smithsonian Institution, Washington, .C. Millspaugh, Charles F., Morgantown, W. Va. Nickols, C. F., Boston, Mass. Nuttall, George H. F., Jonns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Md. Oliver, J. E., Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y. OepOrns Henry F., Columbia College, New York ty. Osborn, Herbert, Agricultural Coliege, Ames, Iowa. Pammel, L. H., Agricultural Station, Ames, Iowa. Pillsbury, J. H., Smith College, Northampton, Mass. Poteat, W. L., Wake Forest, N. C. Preble, Jr., W. P., New York City. Ruffner, W. H., Lexington, Va. Sanford, Edmund C., Clark University, Worcester, Mass. Schufeldt, R. W., Washington, D.C. Scripture, E. W., Clark University. Worcester, Mass. plage, D. D., Museum Comp. Zool., Cambridge, Mass. Smith, John B., Rutgers College, New Brunswick, N.J. Southwick, Edmund B., New York City. | Stevens, George T., New York City. Stevenson, S. Y., Philadelphia, Pa. Stone, G. H., Colorado Springs, Col. Thomas, Cyrus, Washington, D. C. Thurston, R. H., Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y. Todd, J. E., Tabor, Iowa. True, Frederick W., Natlonal Museum, Washing- ton, D.C. Turner, C. H., University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Wake, C., Staniland, Chicago, Tl. Ware, k. DeC., Harvard University,. Cambridge, ass. Ward, Stanley M., Scranton, Pa. We HD B., Howard University, Washing- ton, D.C. Welch, Wm. H., Johns Hopkins University, Baltt- more, M.D. West, Gerald M., Clark University, Worcester, Mass. Whitman, C. O., Clark University, Worcester, Mass. Williams, Edward H., Lehigh University, Bethle- hem, Pa. we SCIENCE LN ee 7 ~ Pa ey NEN Si wank Or ALL THE ARTS AND SCIENGES, PUBLISHED BY N. D. C. HODGES, 874 BROADWAY, NEW YORE. TENTH YEAR. Vou. XX. No. 494. SInGLE Copies, Tren Cents. $3.50 Per YEAR, In ADVANCE. JULY 22, 1892. CONTENTS. A Visit to 4 ‘‘ Pict’s Houss.’’ David EM CLO M TUL CHL C Had step eperstal alevarsenie cite 43 Key To THE Maya HieroctypHs. Cyrus TOMUSHOT ATT eR ae 44 46 47 OstEoLoGicAL Notes. D. D. Slade..... NOMHSEAND INEWS?)-clen cineca Kee ceences 48 THe Laws anpD NATURE OF COHESION. Reginald A, Fessenden........... 48 Notes on Locat Hremiprera-HETERoP- TERA. EH. B. Sowthwick.......... 52 OBSERVATIONS AT BOSSEKOP............. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR. : Laboratory Teaching. William P. PM OSOTUS EN crete isfoc vei ahsteloho Velsiels Sioa ete Entered at the Post-Office of New York, N.Y., as Second-Class Mail Matter. THE LABRADOR COAST. A JOURNAL OF TWO SUMMER CRUISES TO THAT REGION. WITH NOTES ON ITS EARLY DISCOV- ERY, ON THE ESKIMO, ON ITS PHY- SICAL GEOGRAPHY, GEOLOGY AND NATURAL HISTORY, TOGETHER WITH 4 BIBLIOGRAPHY OF WORKS, ARTI- CLES, AND CHARTS RELATING TO THE CIVIL AND NATURAL HISTORY OF THE LABRADOR PENINSULA. By ALPHEUS SPRING PACKARD, M.D., Ph.D. Sportsmen and ornithologists will be interested in the list of Labrador birds by Mr. L. W. Turner, which has been kindly revised and brought down to date by Dr. J. A. Allen. Dr. S. H. Scudder has con- tributed the list of butterflies, and Prof. John Macoun, of Ottawa, Canada, has prepared the list of Labrador plants. - Much pains has been taken to render the bibliog- raphy complete, and the author is indebted to Dr. Franz Boas and others for seyeral titles and impor- tant suggestions; and it is hoped that this feature of the book will recommend it to collectors of Ameri- cana. ‘It is hoped that the yolume will serve as a guide to the Labrador coast for the use of travellers, yachtsmen, sportsmen, artists, and naturalists, as well as those interested in geographical and histori- cal studies. 513 pp., 8°, $3.50. NEEDS CsHONGES: 874 BROADWAY, NEW YORK. Che Scientific Ame FOR 1892. The Most Popular Scientific Paper in the World. WEEKLY, $3.00 A YEAR; $1.50 SIX MONTHS. 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Address, MUNN & CO., 361 Broapway, New Yor. They are never you, send your MUNN & CO. C JUL 97 mo me SCIENCE. (Vor. XX. No. 494 PUBLICATIONS. INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES, Concerning Noxious Insects and the Methods of Preventing their Injuries. By CLARENCE M. WEED, Professor of Entomology and Zoology, New Hampshire State College. WHAT IS SAID ABOUT IT. “J think that you have gotten together a very useful and valuable little book.”’—Dr. C. V. Riley, U.S. Entcmologist, Washington, D. C. “Tt is excellent.”—James Fletcher, Dominion En- tomologist, Ottawa, Canada. “Tam well pleased with it.’—Dr. F. M. Hexamer, Editor American Agriculturist, New York. “Tt seems to me a good selection of the matter which every farmer and fruit grower ought to have at his immediate command.’—Prof. 8. A. Forbes, State Entomologist of Illinois, Champaign, Ill. “A good book, aud it is needed.”—Prof. L. H. Bailey, Cornell University. “It is ene of the best books of the kind I have ever seen.”’—J. 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The American Lightning Protection Company United Bank Building, Sioux City, lowa. THE BOTANICAL GAZETTE. A monthly illustrated journal of botany in all its departments. 25 cents a number, $2.50 a year. Address PUBLISHERS BOTANICAL GAZETTE, Bloomington, ind. JOHN IRELAND'S Bookstore, 1197 Broadway near 29th St.,is convenient to the residence quarter of the city; itis a good place to drop into on the way up or down town to select books or stationery. His stock is well selected and embraces all the new and standard pooks as soon as issued. Out-of-town purchasers can order by mail with every confidence that their wants will be as well supplied as if buying in person. The American Geologist for 1892. Edited by Pror. S. CaLvin, University of Iowa; Dr. E, W. CLAYPOLE, Buchtel College; JoHN EYERMAN, Lafayette College ; Pror. Rop’r T. Arut, U.S. Irrigation Survey; SaLisBuRY, University of Wisconsin; JosEpH B. TYRRELL, Geol. Sur. of Canada; E. Geological Survey: PRor. I. C. 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A VISIT TO A “PICT’S HOUSE.” BY DAVID MAC RITCHIE. As I have to-day visited an admirable specimen of the underground structures so frequently found in Scotland, where they are popularly known as ‘‘ Picts’ Houses,” some ‘description of it will, I think, prove interesting to the readers of Science, although the place itself has long been known to antiquaries. There are very many examples of these struc- tures in the British Isles, notably in Scotland and Ireland, but unfortunately the information regarding them (almost invariably most exact and detailed) is for the most part buried in the various volumes of ‘‘ Transactions” of anti- ‘quarian societies, and is thereby practically useless. If the descriptions already published regarding these buildings, together with reproductions of the diagrams illustrating them, could be focussed into one volume, the result would be of the highest interest to those who have paid attention to the subject, and would be a positive revelation to those who have not yet done so. And one great advantage to be derived from a comparison of the various delineations would be that the student would realize that, although such struc- tures are referred to under many names (such as under- ground caves, souterrains, weems, cloghauns, Picts’ Houses, and — popularly —fairy halls), they all belong to one great class. The specimen visited by me to-day is situated at Pitcur, in Forfarshire, about two miles to the south-east of the small town of Coupar-Angus, and is locally known as “‘ the Picts’ house.” Itis entirely beneath the surface of the ground, and the portion of it which is still covered over stretches for about twenty feet beneath a ploughed field. That is to say, its roof is covered by a foot or two of soil, through which the plough passes without ever striking the flat, stone roof below. In other cases, indeed, the ploughshare has often been the first discoverer of these subterranean galleries. The ground-plan of the Pict’s House at Pitcur may be roughly described as of a horseshoe shape, with a shorter gallery parallel to the exterior curve of one side. The horseshoe itself is about 130 feet in length from end to end, with an average depth of 6 or 7 feet, and an average breadth of about 6 feet. The shorter gallery is about 55 feet long, and its dimensions otherwise resemble those of the horse- shoe, except that it broadens out into a bulbshape at the inner end — a common feature in suchstructures. The line of length, in each ease, is taken along the middle of the gallery, there being, of course, a great difference between ‘the length of the inner and outer curves. Be it understood that both of these galleries are, as it were, great symmetrical ditches or drains, quite underground, and entered by several burrow-like doorways. Their sides have 1[ may mention that, asa small beginning in this direction, I am about to issue a pamphlet (published by David Douglas, Edinburgh) containing several written descriptions and sketches of such structures; extracted from the ‘* Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland.” been carefully-built walls of large, unhewn, unmortared stones, and these are still to a great extent unimpaired. The roof was formed by bringing the upper tiers of the wall slightly together, and then placing huge slabs of stone across from side to side. Two of the largest of these roof- slabs measure as follows: One (the largest of all) is about 74 inches in length, by 58 inches in breadth, and from 11 to 13 inches in thickness, its shape being an irregular oblong. The other is about 60 inches long, by 48 inches broad, and 12 inches thick. These are certainiy very large specimens, but one is always struck by the great size of the flag-stones used in roofing these underground retreats. I have described as unhewn all the stones employed in this building, but (as in similar cases) one is led to conjecture that some rough pro- cess of shaping must have been adopted, although the out- lines are perfectly rude, and no trace whatever is visible of any tool. The selection of these great stones, whether from a quarry or a hillside, their carriage to the scene of action (often from a very great distance), and the method used in placing them in position, are all problems which have greatly puzzled antiquaries. In the Pitcur ‘‘ house” most of the roof-slabs have disap- peared, having obviously shared the fate of so many monu- ments of antiquity, at the hands of proprietors and farmers in need of building*materials and quite devoid of all interest in archeology. But (perhaps because it goes underneath arable land) the northern portion of the great horseshoe gallery still retains its roof; and this part of the building is, therefore, in all probability, in its original condition. It appears to have been of itself a ‘‘house,” apart from the main gallery of which it forms a portion, for it has a care- fully-built doorway leading into the main gallery; and, moreover, an extra ascent to the upper earth leads from the side of the wall just at the outside of this doorway. On going through the doorway of this inner portion, one finds, on the right hand, a small recess in the wall, about 33 inches high, 23 inches broad at the floor, and going into the thick- ness of the wall about 21 inches. Although this cavity is 23 inches broad at the base, the two slabs which form the supports of its little doorway are made to slant towards the top, where the breadth narrows to 14 inches. Within this recess it is possible for a man of 5 feet 10, and of proportionate breadth, to sit in a squatting posture; but it is a very ‘‘ tight fit.’ Iam particular in giving the dimensions of this recess, because the late Captain Thomas, a naval officer who de- voted much time and study to these subterranean structures, and who found this little recess on the right hand of many of their doorways, regarded them as probably identical with the ‘‘ guard-cells ” of the Pictish ‘‘ brochs.”” Captain Thomas quite realized that if these were really ‘* guard-cells ” they were useless for any but men of distinctly small stature — an attribute of the Picts, according to tradition. It is difficult to convey a true idea of such buildings by written description alone, but perhaps these notes will give the readers of Science some impression of an example of a very interesting class of structures. Easter Logie, Perthshire, Scotland, July 1. 44 KEY TO THE MAYA HIEROGLYPHS. BY CYRUS THOMAS, PH.D. I GIVE here in as limited space as possible a list of the Maya letter ’glyphs so far as I have determined them, to- gether with the corresponding phonetic equivalents; and some examples of my attempts at deciphering the written characters of the Codices. It is necessary to explain that the letter-equivalent given to each is to be understood as only the chief phonetic ele- ment of the character represented, for, in most cases, more than this chief or prominent element is included in the one symbol. Theconsonant sounds are those chiefly represented, but the character, as a rule, combines therewith a vowel and sometimes even a subordinate consonant sound. Hence it happens that the same consonant sound is represented by several different characters depending upon the subordinate phonetic elements combined with it. A change, however, in the character does not necessarily follow from a change in the order of the phonetic elements it represents; thus, what denotes ci as a prefix may stand for zc or c at the end. The examples given of the added yowel and subordinate SCIPNGE [VoL. XX. No. 494 k appears to be a combination of Nos. 3and5. The latter sometimes contains the dotted portion seen in 6. No. 6 is frequently found where it must be interpreted che, ‘‘ wood,” yet occurs without the dot-surrounded portion where it has the same signification. Other variants are found in the Dresden Codex. 7. K’.— Found as ke and ek, also as Ce. 8. Ch’.— Sometimes chi, as in the symbol for Chikin, ‘Cwest;” ‘Ch’ as final. Landa’s first # appears to be an attempt to give this character which is the partially closed hand. 9. KU’.—Landa’s symbol. This does not appear to be subject to any variations that affect its phonetic value. 10. X’.—Cross-katching usually indicates a (sh) as the leading phonetic element; however, it is sometimes rendered by ch’, as is evident from its appearance in the symbol for the day Chicchan if we consider it phonetic. However, the day symbols cannot always be relied upon in this respect, as will be seen by what follows. 11. X’.—Landa’s second & is substantially the same as this character. But he has taken two characters for one, as in this the # is represented by the dotted lines alone; the consonant elements, are intended only as asserting that such combinations have been discovered; there may be, and proba- bly are, others. As it would require too much space and too many illustrations to give full explanations of the steps by which I have reached the conclusions given, I must take for granted that those interested in the subject will be able to test these from what is presented. Letter Symbols (Fig. 1). 1 (a, b). B’.—I find no marks or rule by which to deter- mine from the symbol alone the combined phonetic elements. This is Landa’s character for 6 with a dot added. 2. Ca.— As a prefix, sometimes ka in the Cortesian Codex; c hard or kas final. Landa’s character. 3. C’.—This is generally found in place of an eye where it denotes cim, cin, or ci. 4. C’.— Ci as a prefix, ic, ich, or ¢ as a suffix or final. Sem OeoreKe 6. CH’ and often difficult to determine because the complete form intended is not always given. In some instances the little dot-surrounded character at the left of 6 is solid, then a slightly different rendering appears tobe demanded. Landa’s —The characters 5 and 6 are quite variable little loop at the forehead, or.rather the little parallelogram, in it is a; the face character n. The whole character ap- pears to be properly rendered by xan, ‘‘slowly, leisurely, gently.” The chief variation in the combination is found in the loop at the forehead, which may be a vowel or con- sonant. This form of x isseldom found except in combina- tion with n. 12 (a, b, ec). Hand He.—The variations are shown in 12b and 12c. 13 (a, b, ec). L’.—This is Landa’s first 0. are shown in 13b and 138c. different vowels, as le, ol, etc. 14. L’.—If Landa’s second 7 be turned round it will be found to be a rude imitation of this character, which is the symbol for the day Ahau. Li, in the symbol for Likin, East; follows ku, ete. 15. M’,-Me.— Symbol for the day Men. 16 (a, b). M’.— Varies in having the little loops at the top, sometimes solid, as in 16b. The dot-surrounded portion of 16b is used alone in one series of the Cortesian Codex for this letter followed by e. The combinations have not been traced. 17. M’.— This appears to be another form of m, or m The variations Found in combination with . Jury 22, 1892.] doubled, or combined with n. Not satisfactorily tested as yet, though m is certainly the chief phonetic element. 18 (a, b). M’ (?).— Although not thoroughly traced, Iam satisfied that this character, which is the symbol of the day Muluc, has m as its chief phonetic element, generally with ooru. The part representing the ¢ is omitted from the day symbol, but is found in the little ring and loops in18b. The form of the contour of a character is generally of no signifi- cance as it may be round, square, or deeply notched without any change in its meaning. Fig. 2. 19. Por Pp (?).— Although I have not tested this satis- factorily, lam certain from my examinations that its pho- netic equivalent is p usually pp. There are some variations found chiefly in the lower portion. The p and 6 appear to be interchangeable in the Codices even in the same word; for example in the Dresden Codex 48c, we find the 6 char- acter in the symbol for the month Pop, while on 50b it is replaced in the same month symbol by our No. 19. 20, 21, 22.. 7’.—These characters (20, 21 and 22) appear to have ¢ as their chief phonetic element, varied according to the markings in the upper portion. No. 20 is also varied by the marks in the lower or middle circle. 23. Th’.— Is followed by e and 7. 24. Tz.—I am also inclined to believe that the two streamers or lines which extend upward in characters, as in the symbol for the month Tzec, indicate the presence of this sound. 25. Z’, Za.—Varied according to the markings in the wings and circle. 26. Q (dz).— Sometimes z. 27. Y°.—The index to the variations in the signification if there be any, which is doubtful, will probably be found in the length and form of the stem. 28. Bal or bil (?).—This is the symbol for the day Acbal. 29. Ch (?).— Usually followed by o or w when not ter- minal. Is the symbol for the day Chuen. 30. Cab.— The signification of the appendage so often found attached below this symbol has not been ascertained. 31. H’.— Sign of aspiration, the open ends always turned toward the character with which it is connected. 32. Kin.—Sometimes without the wing. The latter ap- pears to be used for n, the circle for ki. 33. Kal,.— If the separate elements are represented, it is probable the section with the dotted line stands for the kand the curved line with the two little teeth for the J. Having submitted samples of my interpretation to Dr. H. SCIENCE. 45 T. Cresson of Philadelphia subsequent to the first notice, in Science, of my discovery, I am much pleased to learn that he has reached a similar determination as to some of these letter symbols by an independent method. As I was not aware until the publication of the article mentioned, that he was at work on the Maya characters, this agreement in our conclusions is highly gratifying, and serves to strengthen both in the conviction that we are making genuine progress in the solution of this difficult problem. I give here a few interpretations of groups of compound characters to illustrate the combinations of the letter sym- bols. Fig. 2 represents a group of fourcompound characters in the upper division of P]. XXII* Codex Troano, to be read in this order: upper left, upper right, lower left, lower right; which we will number in the order given 1, 2, 3, 4. The following is probably a substantially correct transla- tion: (1) U-Zabal, (2) U-le, (3) Cutz, (4) 2-yaxkin: “Set (or literally do the setting of) the snare for the turkey on the second day of Yaxkin.” I can give no explanation of the little crosses above the symbol for Yaxkin. The prefix to No. 1 and to No. 2 is the character for w; the upper character in No. 1 appears to be the symbol for z reversed ; the band across the lower character the 6 (possibly inter- changeable with p). The figure below agrees very well with this interpretation. The group shown in Fig. 3 is found in the lower division of plate 26 Cortesian Codex. The characters are taken and numbered in the same order as in Wig. 2. No. 1 issupposed with good reason to be a deity symbol, the name however undetermined. Assuming this to be correct, I translate the group as follows: (Deity) xan yalcab kal-cab, ‘“‘ As” or ‘in the name of (the deity) slowly gather the swarm of bees and inclose them in a hive.” The figure below shows a priest wearing the mask of the supposed deity hence we say ‘‘as.” Fig. 4isa group from the middle division of plate XX XII* Codex Troano. The characters are numbered in the same order as the preceding and are translated as follows: MWulein ku ci- (god of death) xaan; ‘‘ Collect together for the temple of the holy god of death palm wood.” The picture below represents individuals bearing in their hands what appear to be blocks of wood on each of which is the symbol for che ‘‘ wood.” The little character at the forehead in No. 4 is the symbol 46 for aa which is found in other combinations where it has the same signification. So far I have found no marks indicating the plural; this may be represented by duplications. OSTEOLOGICAL NOTES. BY D. D. SLADE. THE jugal arch is present in all of the order Rodentia, and is generally complete, although it exhibits many modifica- tions in its composition. Three bones form the arch, which is straight or slightly curved horizontally, while it almost invariably presents a curvature downwards. The position of the jugal therein serves as a determining character in - grouping the various families of the order. The temporal fossa is often little developed, showing fee- ble energy in the action of the temporal muscle. On the contrary, the pterygoid plates and fosse are often largely increased in relation to the enlarged development of the muscular insertions. In close connection with these condi- tions, the coronoid process of the mandible is small, and even rudimentary, while the parts about the angle are largely expanded. The condyle is little elevated and pre- sents. with few exceptions, an antero-posterior articulating surface. Post-orbital processes of the frontals exist in a few of the families, but there is in no case a corresponding process from the arch. The orbit is never separated from the temporal fossa. In many of the rodents there is present a more or less ex- tensive dilatation of the infra-orbital foramen, through which passes, in addition to the nerve, that portion of the masseter muscle which has its insertion upon the maxilla. This extends around the back of the jugal process of the maxilla in a pulley-like manner, to an insertion just below the socket of the mandibular premolar, and thus co-operates with the temporal in moving the mandible in a vertical di- rection. This attachment of a head of the masseter is pe- culiar to the order, and explains the use of the vacuity in the maxilla which is oftentimes of vast relative propor- tions. Assuming the present classification, all existing Rodentia may be brought into two groups, the Simplicidentata and the Duplicidentata. The first embraces the Sciuromorpha, Hystricomorpha, Myomorpha, and the second, the Lago- morpha. In the Sciuromorpha, the jugal forms the greater part of the arch, extending forward to the lacrymal, and posteriorly to the glenoid cavity, of which it forms the outer wall, and it is not supported below by a continuation backwards of the process of the maxilla. In the more typical forms there is no enlargement of the infra-orbital opening, while the post-orbital processes of the frontals are characteristic of the family Sciuride. The external pterygoid plate is entirely wauting, and there is no fossa. The jugal arch in the Myomorpha is for the most part slender, and the jugal, which does not extend far forward, is supported by the continuation below of the maxillary process. The zygomatic process of the squamosal is short. No post-orbital process of the frontal exists. The infra- orbital opening varies. In the family Muride, especially in the typical forms, this opening is perpendicular, wide above and narrow below, while the lower root of the zygomatic process of the maxilla is flattened into a thin perpendicular plate. Very much the same condition exists SCIENCE. [Vor. XX. No. 494 in the Myoxide, while in the Dipodide the foramen is as. large as the orbit, rounded, and has a separate canal for the nerve. The malar ascends to the lacrymal in a flattened plate. In close connections with these conditions the coronoid process of the mandible is small and rudimenary, while the parts around the angle of the ramus are much developed. In the Hystricomorpha the arch is stout. The jugal is not supported by the continuation of the maxillary process, and generally does not advance far forward. The infra- orbital vacuity is large, and is either triangular or oval. Thecoronary processand the condyle are but slightly elevated above the dental series. In the Chinchillidz the jugal extends forward to the lac- rymal. In the Dasyproctidz, Celogenys is characterized by the extraordinary development of the jugal arch, which presents an enormous vertical curvature, two-thirds of the anterior portion of which, constituting the maxilla, is hol- lowed out into a cavity which communicates with the mouth. The nerve passes through a separate canal, adjacent to the infra-orbital opening. In the sub-order Duplicidentata, the jugal arch is well de- veloped. In the family Leporide there are large wing-like, post-orbital processes, while the jugal, but feebly supported by the maxillary process, continues posteriorly to aid in the- formation of the outer side of the glenoid articular surface, passing beneath the process of the squamosal. In the Lagomyidz there are no post-orbital processes, and’ the posterier angle of the jugal is carried backward nearly to the auditory meatus. The infra-orbital opening in the Duplicidentata is of the usual size. The angle of the jaw is rounded and the coronoid process much produced up- wards. In considering the significance of the jugal arch in the Rodentia, the peculiar vertical curvature downwards, which has already been noted, and which is a decided manifesta- tion of weakness, must be taken into account. This condi- tion is compensated in some of the families by the unusual arrangement made in the distribution of the muscular inser-- tions of the masseter through the infra-orbital opening, by which increased energy is imparted to the powers of masti- cation, and whereby the action of the mandible is rendered fully equal to the demand wtpon its efforts. In those families where the above condition does not exist. it is evident that the strength of the arch is still sufficient for the antero-posterior movement of the articulation so pe- culiar to the Rodentia and so characteristic of the act of guawing. The relation of the arch to the neighboring parts must. also be remarked. For example, the ascending ramus of the mandible differs according to the food. Elevated in the Leporidee, it is short in the Sciuride, and still shorter in the Muride. In the first the coronoid is broad, projects but slightly, is near the condyle, and far distant from the molar series, while the angle of the jaw is broad and well rounded, as in the Lagomyide. In the other two families, squirrels and rats, the coronoid is feeble, pointed, and placed at equal distances between the condyle and the last molar; thus the masseter does not pos-- sess a leverage as advantageous as in the hare. This mus- cle, however, in the rats has its maxillary attachments much developed, while few fibres spring from the arch — a condi— tion correlative with the feebleness of this last. Cambridge, June 21. JuLy 22, 1802. ] NOTES AND NEWS. THE recent publication is anuounced in Nature of the first number of a new monthly journal under the title Rivista di pato- logia vegetale. It is edited by Sigg. A. N. and A. Berlese, and published at Avellino, in Italy; and is to be devoted to the study of animal and vegetable parasites infesting cultivated plants, to the diseases which they cause, and the remedies employed to com- bat them. — According to Nature, the Port Officer of Mangalore reports that a native craft was overtaken by heavy weather and made for Mangalore, where there is a bad bar with about eight feet of water on it. A tremendous sea was breaking over the bar, so, before crossing it, and while running in, the native skipper opened an oil cask, forming part of the cargo, and scattered it all round in the sea plentifully, with the result that he took his craft across the bar safely, and so saved the vessel and the cargo. The ves- sel’s name was ‘‘Mahadeprasad,” and she was of 95 tons, bound from Cochin to Bombay. This is said to be the first case on record of a native tindal who has successfully used oil in troubled waters. —In Science of July 8, the closing paragraph of the article by Dr. C. V. Riley, on ‘‘ The Number of Broods of the Imported Elm- leaf Beetle,” should have read: *‘ Ourstatement upon page 8 was a general one, based upon the observed shortness of the larval life, and upon the fact that the earliest larvae mature before the end of May, and upon the additional fact that we know that newly developed beetles are found early in June. Prof. John B. Smith, in a paper read before the Entomological Club of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, in August of this year, made the statement that there is but one annual gen- eration in New Jersey. The adult beetles develop from the larve which have fed during the summer, entering winter quar- ters as early as the first week in August. This state of affairs may probably hold in more northern regions, but in Washington it is safe to say that there are two generations, because, as just stated, newly developed beetles (the progeny of those which hibernate) appear in early June. These lay eggs, and, in fact, egg-laying may continue until the end of September, and larvee have actually been found by Mr. Pergande in October.” — Mr. D. J. Macgowan, writing in the Shanghai Mercury, gives an account of some remarkable statements made by a group of Chinese traders who lately undertook a mercantile exploration of the interior of Southern Formosa. They started from Lamalan, which Mr. Macgowan takes to be Chockeday of the charts, and in seven days reached their objective point, Hualin Stream. They lodged in stone caverns, and the chattering of monkeys and the sounds of insects seemed to them ‘‘appalling and indescribable.” The region was so ‘“‘ weird” that it reminded them of ‘‘ legends of the kingdom of hobgoblins.” Among the trees were some of “ prodigious girth, forming a vast forest.”” These trees are said to measure more than ten outstretched arms. A tree said to flourish in the same forest is described as bearing ‘‘ flowers, red and white, which are larger than a sieve, and of extraordinary fragrance.” Mr. Macgowan adds: ‘‘Mr. Taylor, while searching for orchids, heard of these majestic trees and huge flowers, which he inferred, from what natives said, were epiphyte orchids. I am moved to make known this sylvan discovery in the hope that, pending the exploration of this terra incognita by our botanists, Dr. Henry or Mr. Ford, residents in Formosa will take measures to provide those naturalists with specimens of flowers, seeds, leaves, and bark of the trees concerning which the Chinese have excited our curiosity.” —‘‘The New Decimal Association, whose headquarters are at Botolph House, Eastcheap,” says the London Daily Graphic of May 14, ‘‘ has memorialized the Lords of the Committee of Coun- cil on Education on the desirability of taking an important step in connection with the introduction of the metric system in this country. The May examinations of the Science and Art Depart- ment are known through the length and breadth of the land, and much has been done by means of these examinations to popularize and extend technical study. The memorial which has been pre- SCIENCE. | 47 sented recommends that in certain of the science examinations alternative questions be given in future, based on the metric sys- tem of measurement, which may be taken at the option of the candidate in lieu of questions based on feet and inches In this way the large and intelligent class of candidates for certificates of the department will be induced to learn the metric system. ‘he Committee of Council on Education has already ordered that the principles of this system should be taught in the higher standards of all elementary schools; and one of the steps taken by the school boards of London and other towns in consequence of this order has been to furnish the pupil teachers and advanced scholars with boxwood rules having a decimalized inch scale and a metric scale in juxtaposition. In addition to this, colored wall-charts of the metric weights and measures are used, and in this way the rising generation will to a great extent be prepared for the introduction of these weights and measures in future. — The second annual geological expedition of the State Univer- sity of Nebraska, undertaken by a party of six, left Lincoln for the field, June 21, 1892. This is known as the Morrill Geological Expedition, in honor of Charles H. Morrill, regent of the State University, whose liberality makes this work possible. The pri- mary object of the expedition is the collection and preservation of geological specimens in general, but more particularly the palzeon- tological forms for which the State and immediate surroundings are famous. The chief objective points are the Tertiary deposits of the White and Niobrara Rivers, and the Bad Lands of Nebraska, Wyoming, and South Dakota. The expedition is provided with tents, —furnished by Governor Boyd,— with teams and heavy covered wagons of the prairie-schooner type, and with apparatus, camping equipment, and provisions for the summer. The party consists of six members, — exclusive of guide,— Mr. Thomas H. Marsland, Frederick C. Kenyon, Arthur C. Morrill, and Harry H Everett, all of the State University of Nebraska, and James H. Haines of Iowa College, together with Erwin H. Barbour, acting State geologist, as professor in charge. The ‘‘ Fossil Corkscrew, ’” or Daimonelix, beds were visited first, and some tons of these extraordinary new fossils — noticed and figured in Science, Feb- ruary, 1892 — were obtained. Native lumber and hay for packing are carried, and specimens are boxed as found, and delivered at the nearest station or siding. At the close of the expedition these seattered collections will be brought together and delivered at the State University in cars, which the railroad companies have gen- erously offered for that purpose. — The eighth annual report of the Wisconsin Experiment Sta- tion devotes a large share of space to questions relative to ensilage. One chapter is devoted to a careful study, by F. H. King, of the construction and filling of silos. Mr. King, having visited 93 silos in Missouri, Michigan, Ohio, and Illinois, and several farmers while filling their silos, in order to obtain data for this chapter. Mr. King concludes that a stone silo, properly constructed, will keep the silage as well as a wooden one, but that it will be neces- sary to renew the cement lining frequently, or else to whitewash it with fresh cement every year, as the acids of the silage soon soften the cement. He finds that lath and plaster is a failure as a silo lining, both because of the softening of the plaster and the liability to injury with the fork in handling the silage. Of the wooden linings, that made by two thicknesses of boards with tarred paper between, all nailed firmly together, is showing greatest durability ; but all wooden linings rot soon unless well ventilated. Painting the lining tends to hasten decay instead of preserving it. From an experiment in feeding corn silage in comparison with dry corn fodder, the following conclusions are reached: 1. A daily ration of four pounds of hay and seven pounds of grain feed, with corn silage or field-cured fodder corn ad libitum, fed to twenty cows during sixteen weeks, produced a total quantity of 19,813 pounds of milk during the silage period, and 19,801 pounds of milk during the fodder-corn period. 2. When we consider the areas of land from which the silage and fodder corn are obtained, _we find that the silage would have produced 243 pounds more milk per acre than the dry fodder, or the equivalent of 12 pounds of butter. This is a gain of a little more than three per cent in favor of the silage. 48 SCIENCE: A WEEKLY NEWSPAPER OF ALL THE ARTS AND SCIENCES. PUBLISHED BY ING Din Ce ye OLDIGIETS), 874 BRoADWAY, New YorK. SusscriptTions.—United States and Canada..... .,...-..-. $3.50 a year, Great Britain and Europe...............-. 4.50 a year. Communications will be welcomed from any quarter. Abstracts of scientific papers are solicited, and one hundred copies of the issue containing such will be mailed the author on request in advance. Rejected manuscripts will be returned to the authors only when the requisite amount of postage accom- panies the manuscript. Whatever is intended for insertion must be authenti- cated by the name and address of the writer; not necessarily for publication, but as a guaranty of good faith. We do not hold ourselves responsible for any view or opinions expressed in the communications of our correspondents. Attention is called to the ‘‘Wants”’ column. It is invaluable to those who use it in soliciting information or seeking new positions. The name and address of applicants should be given in full, so that answers will go direct to them. The ‘‘Exchange”’ column is likewise open. For Advertising Rates apply to Henry F. Tay.or, 13 Astor Place, New York. A PLEA FOR A BROADER BOTANY. BY L. H. BAILEY. THE science of botany, as ordinarily considered and taught, has not laid hold of the full amount of territory to which it is entitled, and it has not, therefore, reached its full measure of usefulness. Strictly speaking, botany is the science of plants, but by general consent it appears to have dwarfed itself into a science of wild plants; or if it deals with cultivated plants they are such as fall to the care of botanical gardens, or, in other worcs, those which are culti- vated for the sole purpose of maintaining a collection. It is not strange that in the earlier days botanists should have eliminated from their domain the whole realm of cultivated plants, for cultivation then meant little else than the main- tenance and improvement of plants for merely economic purposes, and there was little science of cultivation. But now that the teachings of evolution have thrown a new pur- pose into the study of all natural objects, cultivated plants have acquired a fascinating interest from the abundant light which they throw upon variation and descent. In fact, aside from paleontology, there is no direction in which such abundant material can be found for the study of evolution as in cultivated plants, for in nearly all of them the variation is fullyas great asin domesticated animals, while the species are very many times more numerous; and, by the fostering aid rendered by man, the accumulative effects of modified environment 2nd selection are much more quickly seen — and therefore more intelligible — than in wild plants. My nearest neighbor, who is a paleontologist, and myself, a hor- ticulturist, compare our respective fields of. study to the de- cay and burning of a log. In both decay and burning the same‘ amount of work is finally accomplished and the same amount of heat is evolved, but one process requires years, perhaps a century, for its accomplishment, and the other requires but a few hours. Cultivated plants afford within definite periods of time as much variation and progression’ as their wild prototypes exhibit in ages. So the garden is one of the best places in which to study evolution. It is a com- SCIENCE. [VoL. XX. No 494 mon opinion, to be sure, that the variation of cultivated plants is anomalous and uninstructive because influenced by man, but this is wholly erroneous. I have yet to finda variation in cultivated plants which can not be explained by laws already announced and well known. It is strange that one can ever believe that any variation of natural ob- jects is unnatural ! But wholly aside from the fascinations of pure science, cultivated plants and cultivation itself demand the attention of the botanists, for horticulture is nothing more than an application of the principles of botany. Just now, mycology is making important additions to horticultural practice, but there are greater fields for the applications of an exact sci- ence of plant physiology, whenever that science shall have reached a proportionate development. In short, the possi- bilities in horticulture, both in science and practice, are just as great as they are in the science of botany upon which it rests; and inasmuch as it is absolutely impossible to separate horticulture and botany by any definition or any practical test, the two should go together in an ideal presentation of the science of plants. Horticulture belongs to botany rather than to agriculture. The ideal chair or department of botany, therefore, should comprise, in material equipment, laboratories, botanic garden. green-houses, orchards, vegetable and ornamental gardens, all of which should be maintained for purposes of active in- vestigation rather than as mere collections; and I am sure that no department of botany can accomplish the results of which the science is capable until such breadth of equipment is secured. [Iam aware that there are difficulties in such a comprehensive field, but the only serious one is the lack of men. Botanists, as a rule, care little for gardens and culti- vated plants, and horticulturists are too apt to undervalue the importance of scientific training and investigation; but the time cannot be far distant when men shall appear with sufficient scientific and practical training to appreciate the needs of the whole science and with enough executive ability to manage its many interests. Such men are no doubt teaching in some of our colleges to-day, were the opportunity open to them. One cannot be a specialist in all or even several of the many subjects comprised in this ideal, but he may possess the genius to encourage and direct the work of other specialists. The first need is the opportunity, for there is not yet, so far as I know, &n ideal chair of botany in ex- istence, where the science can be actively studied in its fullest possibilities and then be presented to the student and the world. Cornell University. THE LAWS AND NATURE OF COHESION. BY REGINALD A. FESSENDEN. DestRrous of finding some relation between the conductivity of metals and their other physical properties, the writer, several years ago, began to tabulate all the data he couldfind. Realizing the uselessness of comparing the properties of substances whose natures are essentially different, as wood and iron, it was decided to confine the work to the elementary substances. It was found that the only elements whose properties were at all well known were those of the five chemical groups comprising the following metals: I., iron, nickel, cobalt, platinum, osmium, iridium; IL, sodium, copper, silver, gold; III., magnesium, zinc, cadmium, mercury; [V., aluminium, thallium, indium, gallium; V., sili- con, tin, lead. The data collected were not very concordant, but when they had been compared and the most probable values taken, laying due stress on the purity of the substances examined and the standing Juty 22, 1892.] of the observer, various regularities or laws were at once apparent, and it is for the purpose of pointing out one of these that the fol- lowing paper has been written. This piece of paper, taken as a whole, has certain properties, a certain size, a certain weight, a certain motion, and is the seat of a certain force which attracts other ponderable bodies to it. A single atom of matter has its weight, motion, size, and force. The weights of the atoms form the basis of electrometric chemistry, their motion that of the kinetic theory of heat. To their size less attention has been paid, we have only Mendelejeef’s curve and certain experiments of Roberts-Austen, who has showed that the tensile strength of gold is weakened, not in proportion to the weight of the metal alloyed with it, but to the volume, in the Same way as ten lumps of gravel weaken a casting more than ten grains of sand. Of the force —the force of cohesion — still less is known, in fact absolutely nothing. and the object of this note ds to point out what the nature of this force is and what its laws care. In its early youth science was riotously extravagant of ethers, and any puzzling phenomenon was considered warrant enough for the creation of anew one. Asit has grown older it has grown also more economical, until at the present day the scientist who should ask for an appropriation of a new ether, to help him out of .a difficulty, would be pounced upon. For this reason, if no other, we will confine ourselves to examining the various means by which our present ether has been supposed capable of producing the forces which cause cohesion. 1. Gravitation. There have not been wanting eminent scien- ‘tists who have considered that gravitation could account for co- hhesion,, and there have been many ingenious theories proposed, for instance that of Watts, who supposed that (since the effects of ‘gravity on the moon’s path may be supposed to consist of two parts, one independent of the shape of the earth and varying inversely as the square of the distance, the other dependent on the sha pe and varying inversely as the cube of the distance) if the atoms were of irregular shapes it might account for the ef- fects. But no theory with gravitation as its basis will hold, first, ‘because the effects are much too small; second, because, as we shall see, the cohesive force is totally independent of the weights of the atems and depends on the size only. 2. Condensation and rarifaction of the ether caused by the mo- tion of the atoms. If we hold a pith ball near a tuning fork the pitn bail will be attracted up to a certain distance, and will then be repelled if brought closer. This theory has been a favorite with many, but, as such an attraction would vary with the motion of the atoms in a way that we know the force of cohesion does not, it also must be dismissed. 3. Electricity. That the force of cohesion was due to electricity thas long been vaguely suspected. On the same principle appar- ently that electricity was considered to be the cause of life, 7.e., <‘T.ife is a wonderful thing and unexplainable, electricity is a wonderful thing and unexplainable; therefore electricity is life * — the argument being possibly aided by an instinctive rec- -ollection of the Athenasion creed, which states that ‘‘ there is only one incomprehensible.” The writer is not aware that any evidence in faver of this theory was ever offered, so it was probably merely @ guess. Having rejected theories 1 and 2, we may see how the facts agree with the theory that cohesion is an electrostatic effect. Ié we electrolyse a solution of silver nitrate, we know from Faraday’s work that every atom of silver deposited on the elec- trodes carries over a certain quantity of electricity. This quantity is always the same, no matter how or when or where we perform the electrolysis, and this quantity seems to be related to the atoms in the same way as a pintof water to a pint measure. We "may calculate the quantity on each atom in the following way. ‘One cubic centimeter of silver weighs about 10.5 grammes. One coulomb is carried over by every 1.12 milligrammes of silver de- Posited, therefore the charge on the atoms contained in one cubic 10500 1712 As the sizes of the atoms vary from 10—’ to 107° centimeters in diameter, and silver is a small atom (4 the size of potassium), centimeter of silver is = 104 coulombs. SCIENGE: 49 we may call its size 10—* centimeters. In a cubic centimeter of silver then there would be 1074 atoms, which would give as the charge on each atom 104 + 107 = 10—*° coulomb. The ca- pacity of an atom having a diameter of 10—% centimeter is 10s 18 < 100 — 0.5 x 107° farads. The potential on each silver atom will therefore be about one volt. We may look at the cubic centimeter of silver as being made up of planes, each plane consisting of one layer of atoms. The distance between the centres of any two layers would be 10~* centimeters. The potential on the atoms being one volt, the attraction between any two layers would be 4.5107" & 1? 10— 16 culated tensile strength of silver = 45 kg. per sq. mm. From Wertheim’s results we have observed tensile strength of silver 38 kg. per sq. mm. That the calculated and observed re- sults should be so close is of course only a piece of good fortune. We had no right to expect it, as the data upon which the calcula- tion is based are not known with sufficient accuracy. Still, the result is a remarkable one, and places beyond question the fact that the known electric charges on the atoms can produce effects of the same order as those observed. Having shown this, we may follow up the theory by investi- gating in what way the cohesion of the metals would vary if this were the case. Evidently (since every atom, large or small, has the same quantity of electricity, and the larger the atoms of a metal the farther away the centres of the atoms would be) the cohesive force should be inversely proportional to some power of grammes per cm? = 4500 kg. per cm? = cal- Fie. 1. Fig, 2. the size (or atomic volume, as it is called, and which is got by dividing the atomic weight by the density of the substance). The following table shows this to be the case. In the first column are the names of the metals, in the second their relative sizes, or atomic volumes, in the third their rigidity, as given by Mr. Suther- land in the Philosophical Magazine of August, 1891 :— il, Il. Iii. Ve Vv. Tron Toll 750 x 10° 483 x 10° 550 x 10° Copper Roll 430 483 550 Zine 9.2 350 314 340 Silver 10 2 280 270 270 Gold 10.2 270 270 270 Aluminium 10.4 250 250 260 Magnesium 14, 150 154 145 Tine 16. 136 122 100 Lead 18. 84 100 83 Cadmium 13. 170 As will be seen, the agreement is perfect, with the exception of iron, and those who are familiar how greatly the properties of iron are changed by the least particle of impurity will possibly agree with me in thinking that absolutely pure iron would be less rigid; in fact, some recent experiments show that it is so, being nearer 600 than 750; but I have not inserted this value, because a comparison with a set of observations made by one observer at one time and by one method would have a greater value than comparison with a lot of picked results from different observers. Assuming the electrostatic theory, we can easily calculate the exact function which rigidity should be of the atomic volume in the following way. Suppose Figs. 1 and 2 to represent two cubic centimeters of different elements, of which the atoms of one are twice the diam- eter of the other, or, to put it more accurately, the distance be- tween centres of atoms is twice as great in the one case as in the 50 other. Let 1 contain the smaller atoms. Suppose one face made fast to the plank p, and both sheered slightly till they have the posi- tion shown by the dotted lines. It is evident that the ratio of work done in bringing the atom at G over to H to that done in bring- ing Eto D, or C to A, will be the mean ratio of the force of attrac- tion between K and G to that between Hand F. This latter varies inversely as the square of the distance, according to the well- known electrical law, and, consequently, as the distance G K is twice that of # F, the work done in moving # to D will be four times that done in moving Gto H. Again, in Fig. 1 there will be 2° as many atoms to be displaced as in Fig. 2. so that, on the whole, there will be 2? + 2° as much work done in displacing the cube in Fig. 1 as in Fig. 2. In other words, the rigidity will vary inversely as the fifth power of the distance between the cen- tres of the atoms, or as (atomic volume) ®. Col. IV. gives the results calculated on this theory. As willbe seen, they agree fairly well, as well as could be expected, considering the fact that we have left out one factor. This is the variation of rigidity with temperature, and as it would be obviously unfair to compare lead and silver at 600° C.. it is obvious that our calculated results should only be applied when the metals are at some one point, say, at a temperature which is + the temperature of their melting-point As those metals having the greatest atomic volume, as a rule, melt at lowest temperature (though there are many exceptions to this) we may make a rough sort of formula, which shall give the rigidity at ordinary temperatures by multiplying again by the atomic radius, so we get (atomic volume) ? as the rate at which ———_ | é re Fig. 3. Fig, 4. rigidity varies with size of atoms. Col. V. is calculated in this way from the rough formula : — Rigidity = panacea eae, (atomic volume)2 Equation I. The formula for Col. IV., and the more correct one, if we neglect variation of rigidity with temperature, is __ 12560 x 10° : 5 Equation IT. (atomic volume) ® The other moduli are related to that of rigidity. For if we represent Young’s modulus by Sy then the modulus of rigidity is represented by ——___ dali Sb ; 2(a + b) 3 (a—2b) where 6 represents the lateral shortening accompanying the longi- tudinal lengthening a. So if 6 bears to a any constant ratio, then Young’s modulus and the bulk modulus will each be some fraction of the modulus of rigidity. The continental writers, at least a good many of them, hold that a tf) Kelvin, a 4 On the one hand, it is certain that and the bulk modulus by Tait, and Stokes say there is no relation. vis not constantly equal to+. On the other hand, it does not follow that there is no relation between the two, and the evidence which has been brought to prove this has no value, for we have no right to argue from the facts that in india-rubber ays alt 2 while in cork 10 =, say, ! a 10( ; that 2 does not have any con- a stant ratio in metals. The laws which govern the moduli of com- pounds and non-homogeneous substances like india-rubber and cork are not the same as those which govern homogeneous sub- stances like gold and silver. SGIENGE [VoLt. XX. No. 494 The following is a table of the metals and their Young's moduli. Col. I. contains the observed moduli taken from Sutherland’s paper, and Col. II. contains the calculated values from the equation, 12 Equation III. Young’s modulus = 78 x 10 (corres— (atomic volume)? ponding to Equation I.). Metals. 1 Il. Tron 2,000 x 10° 1,560 « 10° Copper 1,220 1,560 Zine 930 920 Silver 740 750: Gold 760 750 Aljuminium 680 690 Cadmium 48() 465 Magnesium 390 395 Tin 420 295 Lead 190 235 There is only one metal which does not agree with theory, and that is tin (iron, of course, on account of its impurities does not. but we know that, as we obtain iron more pure, we find its rigidity less, so there is very little doubt but that if it were absolutely pure the agreement would be closer). But it is easy to show that the observed results of tin are wrong. © For the rigidity is given as 136 x 10° and the Young's modulus as 420 x 10°. There- 1 yOGasw) Therefore the bulk modulus: fore, if we represent Young’s modulus by £. then 136 oe 1 3 (a — 2b) it swells, a result which is absurd. This will emphasize the: fact that the agreement between theory and experiment is as close’ as that between the experiments themselves. It will be noticed that the ratio-rigiditv, Young’s modulus, is. about ad} dea eae a 78 BG sp 0) By these metals is, on the average, 0.35. Therefore the bulk modu- lus = 1.1 times Young’s modulus, which agrees with the only datum I find in Everett, i.e., Wertheims’s figures for brass, which gives the ratio 9 48: 10.2 = 1.08, very closely. All these modulv must contain the atomic volume to the same power, but this is not the case with the tensile strength; for, according to this elec- trostatic theory of cohesion, we may look at a wire as made up of thin discs, each disc consisting of a layer of atoms. The attrac- tive force between any two such layers would vary inversely as the square of the distance between them and directly as the num- ber of atoms in a layer. Combining these we find that it would: vary as the fourth power of the atomic radius, or as (atomic vol- Solving this we get b= .55 a. is negative, and the more tin is compressed the larger Therefore, as Poisson’s ratio for ume)?, making no allowance for the effect of temperature on the tensile strength. The following table gives in Col. I. the ob- served tensile strengths, taken from Wertheim for wires 1 milli- meter in diameter; in Col. II. the atomic volumes of the ele- ments, raised to the #-power; and in Col. III. the calculated tensile strengths, as found by the formula. 688 iil (atomic volume) 8 grams for wires 1 millimeter in diameter. Equation IV. ‘Tensile strength = Metal. I. Il. Til. IV. Tron 65 13.7 48 2,000 (2) Copper 41 13.7 48 1,327 Platinum 35 17.8 36 1,800 (?p Zinc 15.77 19.3 33 690 Silver 29.6 22.2 29 1,223 Gold 28.46 22.2 29 1,313 Aluminium 18 23.2 27 898 Tin 3.40 41 15 504 Lead 2.36 47.8 13 600 Col. 1V. contains the melting-points in degrees Centigrade from absolute zero. Here we have to deal with a much more JuLy 22, 1892,] complicated phenomenon than that of rigidity. Rigidity is sim- ply a function of the cohesive force. The tensile strength of a substance depends not only on the cohesive force of the metal, but also on its ability toresist flow. Ifametal did not flow before being pulled apart, there is no doubt but that its tensile strength would be proportional to the 4-power of the atomic volume. As, however, it does flow, and the amount of flow is not simply pro- portional to the diminishing of the cohesive force, we have to make a fresh allowance for it. In all the metals the melting-point is reached when the linear expansion has amounted to about 2 per cent. So when the cohesion has diminished about 4 per cent the atoms no longer hold the same relative positions, but one can slip in and take the place of another. Soat equal distances from their melting-points only can the tensile strength be proportional to the 4-power of the atomic volume. Consequently this ratio can only hold good with substances which have approximately the same melting-point. On examining the table, it will be seen that as copper, gold, and silver have approximately the same melting- point, the ratio does hold good with them. The same with tin and lead. Aluminium and zinc, which should he, the one slightly weaker, the other slightly stronger, than silver, have a melting-point about one-half that of gold and silver, and they have about half the strength at the temperature of comparison which they should have. The melting-point of iron and platinum is higher than that of gold or silver, and consequently their tensile strength is greater. The flow of a metal depends on two things, the cohesive force and the kinetic energy of the atoms. What function the flow is of the temperature, as reckoned in fractions of the temperature at which the substance melts, it is hardly worth while to go into now. If we suppose it directly propor- tional (though we may feel fairly certain it is not as simple a function) so that, at the same temperature, a metal melting at half the temperature that another does flows twice as easily, we get the following table, where Col. I. contains the observed tensile strengths, and Col. II. the calculated ones: — Metal. I, Il. Tron 65 74 Copper 41 48 Platinum 35 48 Silver 29.6 29 Gold 28.5 29 Aluminium 18 18 Zine 15.7 16 Tin 3.4 5 Lead 2.36 4 I have not been able to find any data on the tensile strength of magnesium. Theory gives about 9 kilograms for a wire 1 milli- meter in diameter. It would be interesting to find if experiment confirms this. If, when we have met with a new phenomenon in a substance, and are able to show that a certain property already known to exist in the substance is capable of producing effects of the mag- nitude observed, and that the phenomenon obeys the same laws as it would if it were caused by the already known physical prop- erty, we are toa certain extent justified in supposing that this property is really the cause of the phenomenon in question, and in applying our knowledge still further, we have seen that the charges which we know the atoms have on them are able to give effects of the same size as those observed in experiments on ten- sile strength, and that the various moduli follow the same laws as they would if cohesion were an electrostatic effect, and we may now apply our formula to other and less-known phenomena. The velocity of sound in a wire is given by the formula : — Velocity = ae q Density Elasticity here means Young’s modulus, the formula for which, as we have seen, was constant + (atomic volume)*, and atomic volume is atomic weight + density, so we have velocity of sound constant atomic weight X atomic volume ing 78 x 102°. in wire = ( ) the constant be- The following table gives in Col. I. the veloci- SOlaIN Gi. 51 ties of sound in wires.of a number of metals which have been tested, and in Col. II. the calculated velocities for these and for other metals which have not yet been tested. I. IL. III. Silver 2.61 x 105 2.7 x 105 100 Copper 3.56 4.1 110 Gold 1.74 He) 136 Alumin. 5.1 200 Magnes. 4.8 275 Zine 3.6 374 Cadmium 2.3 450 Tin 2.0 878 Lead 1.23 1.4 1300 Col. III. gives the electrical resistance, silver being taken as 100, and it may be noticed that in any one group of metals the conductivity varies directly as the velocity of sound, and in pass- ing from one group to another, by multiplying the conductivity by the valency we get proportionate values for all the metals. The same holds good for the heat conductivity. No close agree- ment can be expected here, for there dre too many things to be taken into account. It is merely mentioned here because the: fact of there being a relation between the velocity of sound and the conductivity for heat and electricity throws a light on the nature of these phenomena. This will form the subject of a sepa- rate paper. It may be asked how an electrostatic force can pro- duce such effects. If the atoms are all similarly charged either + or — they would repel each other and notattract. The expla- nation is probably this: The atoms, if we may call them so, of electricity are not infinitely smaller than the atoms of matter. When an atom is neutral it does not mean that it has no charge but that it has equal quantities of both kinds of electricity. The resultant effect of these charges on a body at a distance is zero, it behaves as if it had no charge, as shown below, in A. \ A If the atoms be brought close together there is a state of un- stable equilibrium, and the effect is that either the charges move on the surface of the atoms or the atoms themselves move so that: the atoms attract each other, asin B. Consequently all atoms neutrally charged attract each other. If nothing further happens: the attraction is simply cohesion. If, however, any third sub- stance connects the two outside parts of the atoms and so enables these parts to neutralize each other we have chemical combination, and the two atoms when separated show opposite charges, as in C. ee Whether we accept the electrostatic theory of cohesion or not, from the above tables of moduli, the following laws are evident. I. In any two metals the force of cohesion varies inversely as the square of the distance between the centres of their atoms. 52 SCIENCE: II. In any one metal the force of cohesion varies inversely as the square of the distance between the centres of its atoms. We may expect these facts to be of great use in the study of the properties of matter. For, knowing the size and weight of the atoms and the velocity with which they move, all that was wanting to enable us to calculate the behavior of the atoms of matter, in the same way as we do the motions of the planets, was a knowledge of the laws of the force which holds them together ; and, from the evidence given above, I have no doubt that you will agree with me in saying that we have at least made a begin- ning in that direction. A few words might be said about Poisson’s ratio. It is, as I said, not fair to argue from the behavior of cork or india rubber that there is no relation between longitudinal extension and lateral contraction, or between a and 6. When we compress a cork we are not compressing the substance which forms the cork any more than we are compressing a piece of paper when we crumple it up in our hanJj. A cork is like a dry sponge, and when we squeeze a sponge up in our hand we are simply doubling up the cell-walls, not compressing the substance of the sponge. The only way in which we can determine the compressibility of cork is to soak it in ether or some substance which fills all its pores and then subject it to hydrostatic pressure. In the same way when we stretch india rubber, or ivory or jelly, the longitudi- nal extens‘on of the piece of rubber is not in the least a measure of the longitudinal extension of the substance of the rubber. All such substances are made up of two parts; rubber, for instance, of a hard elastic skeleton, insoluble in most solvents, and of a soft plastic substance, soluble in many solvents, by use of which the two parts may easily be separated, similarly ivory and jelly. Let us take a square cell as in Fig. 3, the walls of which are of elastic material and the contents an incompressible plastic substance. Suppose it to be extended till its length is 4 centimeters and its breadth and thickness each 2 centimeters, as in Fig. 4. The total area of cell-wall is 40 square centimeters, and the total volume of incompressible contents is 16 cubic centimeters. Imagine the cell to be released, it will regain its position as in Fig. 3, and form a cube of side 2.52 centimeters. In this case, the volume being the same, the cell area will be 38.1 square centimeters. So we find that by stretching the cell till its length was 60 per cent greater than before, we have only had to stretch the cell-walls 5 per cent. This gives us the explanation of the well-known fact that stretched rubber contracts when heated. For if we heat the cell shown in Fig. 4 the incompressible contents will expand and tend to make the cell-walls take that shape in which they can hold the most. This is obviously that of the original cube, therefore the result will be a contraction. Of course the formule, derived from this theory of cohesion, give us the means of calculating the physical properties of metals which have never been examined, or even discovered. For ex- ample, it shows us that we have at our disposal a metal far superior to any metal yet known, one which is stronger than iron, - lighter than aluminium, and a better electrical conductor than silver. Aluminium, in spite of its lightness, is too weak mechani- cally and too poor a conductor to be used in many cases. But this new metal is four times as strong as aluminium, and is twice as good a conductor of electricity. The metal referred to is glucinum or beryllium. All that is known about it is that it has an atomic weight of 9.1 and a density of 1.7 to 2, the exact figures not being Known. But from these scanty data we can deduce the following figures: Metal Rigidity Tensile st’gth Conductivity Sp. gr. Alumin. 250 ~« 109 18 Kems 50 2.75 Silver 280 27 100 10.5 Tron 750 42-65 14 8 Calculated for sf Gime 1300 65 105 2 We also see why diamond is so hard, and that there is only one other thing that might possibly scratch it, and that is a crystal of manganese. With the exception of glucinum, none of the other metals, either discovered or to be discovered, are likely to be any better than those we have now. [VoL. XX. No. 494 NOTES ON LOCAL HEMIPTERA-HETEROPTERA. BY E. B. SOUTHWICK, PH.D. In the CORISID Ai Corisa Harristi Uhl. is very common in our park lakes, and the drag-net brings many of them to land at every haul. Another species as yet undetermined is about one-third the size of Harrisii, and equally abundant. In NOTONECTIDA! Notonecta undulata Say. is very common. This was at one time known as variabilis Fieb., a name quite appropriate, for they are variable to a marked degree, some of them being nearly white, while others are very dark. Notonecta irrorata Uhl. is also common, and is a very beautiful insect, and more uniform in coloration. In NEPID# Ranatra fusca Pal. Beauv. is our only representative, as far as my observation goes; this was at one time known as R. nigra H. Schf. In BELOSTOMATIDA we have two species. Benacus griseus Say., that giant among Hemiptera. This much-named creature has been known as B. haldemanus Leidy, B. har- pax Stal., B. ruficeps var. Duf., B. distinctum Duf., and B. augustatum Guer.; but at last has settled down to B. griseus, which name, I hope, gives credit where it belongs. Zaitha fluminea Say. is very common in our lakes, and the females are often taken with their backs completely covered with eggs, deposited in regular rows upon the elytra; at the same time the young of all sizes will be brought up with the drag-net. In the family HYDRODROMICA and sub-family Sat- DID I have but one representative species, Salda orbiculata Uhbl., and it is exceedingly rare. In the sub-family HyDROBATID I have taken three species, viz., Limnoporus rufoscutellus Lat., Limnotrechus mar- ginatus Say., and Hygrotrechus remigis Say; they are all about equally common on the waters of our lakes and in ditches and pools. In the family REDUVIDZ® the sub-family PrIRATINA is represented by Melanolestes picipes H. Schf., which is quite common under stones along with Carabide. Tn the sub-family REDUVIINA we have three species. Diplo- dus luridus Stal. is very common with us, but in Professor Ubler’s list it is only given as from Mexico. Acholla mul- tispinosa is also common; this has been known as A. sex- spinosus Wolff., and A. subarmatus H. Schf. Sinea diadema Fabr. is not rare with us; this insect has had a number of names, and has been studied as S. multi- spinosus De G., S. hispidus Thunb., and S. raptatorius Say. Ihave a pair of insects from this State labelled Har- pactor cinctus Fabr., which are probably what is now known as Milyas cinctus Fab. They are of a beautiful pinkish- white color, and have the limbs banded with black. In the sub-family Corisina three species of Coriscus are represented. Coriscus subcoleoptratus Kirby, a very com- mon and curious insect, and formerly known as C. canaden- sis Prov., C. annulatus Reut, which is very rare, and C. ferus Linn, rather common. In the family PHYMATID® the sub-family PHymaTINAa is represented by that very common and curious insect Phy- mata Wolffit Stal. mon throughout the State of New Jersey, I have never found here. In the family TINGITID4: and sub-family Trverrma I have Corythuca arquata Say. as one of the most common. This species of Tingis is found on the butternut, and was at one time known as Tingis juglandis Fitch, and Dr. Riley found it on the white oak. Phymata erosa, which is quoted as com-. es Uw 22F TS 920] Corythuca ciliata Say, formerly known as Tingis hyalina H. Schf., is, I believe, the one so common on the button- wood, Platanus. I have a species taken from the paper mulberry Broussonetia and another species from Stophylea, both new to me. In the family ACANTHID/® and sub-family Crmicina we have Acanthia lectularia Linn., which is very abundant and well distributed all over our city. In the family CAP- SID/H we are quite well represented. Plagiognathus ob- scurus Uhl. is very common. Hpiscopus ornatus Reut is quite rare; I have only taken about a dozen specimens. Garganus fusiformis Say is rather common, and Hyaliodes vitripennis Say is exceeding rare. Capsus ater Liun. is also rare, but is conspicuous on ac- count of its shining black color. Orthops scutellatus Uhl. is very rare indeed; I have only taken about half a dozen specimens. Comptobrochis grandis Uhl. is also very rare. Poecilocapsus goniphorus Say. is very common; this has been known as P. dislocatus Say. and P. melaxanthus H. Schf. P. lineatus Fabr. is more common than goniphorus, and destroys a great variety of plants. Poeciloscytus basalis Reut., formerly known as P. sericeus Uhl., is also common. Lygus pratensis Linn., which much resembles the last, is exceedingly common; this was formerly known as L. lineo- laris Pol. Beauv, and L. oblineatus fay. Calocoris rapidus Say. is common, and was formerly known as C. multicolor H. Sehf. Neurocolpus nubilis Say. is very rare with us; I have but three specimens representing it. Phytocoris ex- imius Reut. is also very rare, and a species of Phytocoris, not determined, more common. Lopidea media Say. is very rare, as is Resthenia insignis Say. Collaria meilleurii Prov., which Uhler gives as Trachelomiris meilleurii Prov., is quite rare. Leptopterna dolobrata Linn. is common everywhere where there are grass and weeds. Miris offinis Reut., formerly known as M. instabilis UbI., is not common. Trigonotylus ruficornis Fall. is rare with us, making about twenty species of CAPSID® taken here, which is probably only about one-third of the species that occur with us. OBSERVATIONS AT BOSSEKOP.* THE close connection between the Aurora and magnetism in- duced Herr O. Baschin to accompany Dr. Brendel to Bossekop for the purpose of observing this phenomenon. On January first of this year they entered the Alten Fiord, at the end of which lies Bossekop. It is built on the slope of one of the raised beaches so common on the shores of the fiord and in the adjacent valleys. An elevation of the shore amounting to 43 inches is said to have taken place during the last fifty years, but the calculations are not beyond suspicion. Dr. Brendel succeeded in obtaining pho- tographs of different forms of the Aurora, the only ones at present in existence. Violent magnetic disturbances have often been ob- served during displays of the Northern Lights, and the close rela- tion of these phenomena is further demonstrated by the fact that the centres of the arcs of light lie on the magnetic meridian, and that the corona, the most splendid form of Aurora, lies in the magnetic zenith. The most remarkable disturbances took place on February 14, accompanied by an unusually gorgeous display of the Aurora, when the magnetic declination was observed to ‘vary more than 12°—the greatest deviation ever noticed — within eight minutes. At the same time the disturbances in Europe and North America were so great that most of the self- registering instruments were unable to record them. It is not possible at present to determine with certainty the cause of these striking phenomena, but it seems probable that the great sun-spot, seventeen times as large as the surface of the earth, which wasat 1 From the Scottish Geographical Magazine. SCIENCE 53 the time visible even to the naked eye, was connected with the disturbances mentioned. The meteorological observations also presented much that was interesting. The temperature on the west coast of Norway does not fall nearly so low as might be expected in such high lati- tudes. Even at the North Cape the mean of the coldest month is only 23° F., whereas in West Greenland on the same latitude the temperature sinks every winter to — 40°, As, however, the dis- tance from the coast increases, the temperature falls rapidly. The minimum observed at Gjesvar, near the North Cape, is — 2° F.; at Bossekop, 33 miles from the open sea, — 22°; and at Karasjok, further south but 120 miles from the coast, — 60°. Thus the in- fluence of the Gulf Stream, which prevents the fiords from freez- ing over, does not penetrate inland. The fall of snow in winter is not very large at Bossekop, but also increases towards the in- terior. In very cold weather the snow does not come down in flakes, but takes the form of crystals of ice, which, having no cohesion, are blown about by every puff of wind. The Lapps may be divided into two classes, —the very poor fishermen of the coast and the nomadic Lapps of the mountains, who often possess considerable property. Of late years a third class has sprung up, which has settled in two inland places, Karasjok and Kautokeino. Atthe beginning of March the Lapps gather to a great fair at Bossekop, where many thousand ptarmi- gan, several tons of reindeer flesh, besides butter and tongues, change hands. Herr Baschin drove to Karasjok in a reindeer sledge, a vehicle that requires a deal of management, in order to inspect the dwellings of the Lapps settled there. The village is situated on a stream of the same name, one of the headwaters of the Tana, the second largest river of Norway, and contains about 200 inhabitants — all, with few exceptions, Lapps. Their dwell- ings are conical tents, 13 to 16 feet in diameter, with openings at the top to let out the smoke from the fire in the centre. Many Lapps own 2,000 to 3,000 head of reindeer. These people are not so powerful, intelligent, and honest as the Eskimo, and give the Norwegian Government much trouble through their propensity to steal reindeer. In Karasjok Herr Baschin found Balto and Rayna, the two Lapps who accompanied Dr. Nansen on his journey across Greenland, and on his voyage home he inspected that explorer’s new vessel, which is being built at Laurvig. It has a nearly semi-circulaz cross-section, and is rigged as a three-masted schooner. It is of 250 tons register, and is constructed almost entirely of German oak. A small engine will enable it to make six knots an hour during calms. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR. a*x Correspondents are requested to be as brief as possible. is in all cases required as proof of good faith. The writer's name On request in advance, one hundred copies of the number containing his communication will be furnished free to any correspondent. The editor willbe glad to publish any queries consonant with the character of the journal. Laboratory Teaching. AN a recent number of Science there appeared an excellent arti- cle by Professor Chas. F. Mabery upon ‘‘ Aims of Laboratory Teaching,” in which occurred the following sentence: ‘‘ Probably the earliest attempt in this country to give systematic laboratory instruction, to classes of any magnitude, was made in 1865 at the . Massachusetts Institute of Technology.” Professor Mabery is surely in error upon this point, as such in- struction had been given the students of the Rensselaer Polytechnic Instituie for many years previous to the date quoted. Our present laboratory, whichis very complete and accommodates seventy-six students at a time in analytical chemistry, was built in 1862, to replace the one destroyed by fire inthat year. Permit me to quote from a letter just received from Professor James Hall, geologist of the State of New York, who graduated from this institution many years ago: ‘‘In regard to systematic laboratory instruction in chemistry, I can only say that when I entered the Rensselaer School in 1831 there were already laboratories fitted up for giving systematic instruction in chemistry, and each student of the class 54 was required to do laboratory work, and to prepare himself his material and apparatus, to give each day during the course an extemporaneous lecture, illustrated by experiments, and full ex- planation of the phenomena and the laws governing them. Every student was well grounded in the principles and elements of the science, and by a method of teaching never surpassed, if ever equalled, by any other.”’ WituiamM P. Mason. Troy, N.Y., July 29. AMONG THE: PUBLISHERS. THE ninth annual issue of ‘The Year-Book of the Scientific and Learned Societies of Great Britain and Ireland” has recently peen issued by Charles Griffin & Co., Exeter Street, Strand, Lon- don. The present issue gives a well-edited chronicle of the work done during the past year by the learned societies of Great Britain and Ireland, together with lists of the officers and a brief state- ment of the history and purposes of the organizations. The lists of the papers are quite complete, most of the society secretaries having given the needed information, and make a showing of scientific and literary activity with which we have as yet but little to compare in America. The hand-book is well made for its pur- pose, and would prove an excellent book of reference in American SCIENCE. — [VoL. XX. No. 494 — A vigorous statement of the scientific principles upon which the treatment of criminals should be based will open The Popular Science Monthly for August. It is by Professor Hdward S. Morse, who takes as his title ‘‘ Natural Selection and Crime.” The War- fare of Science papers, by Dr. Andrew D. White, will be continued with a chapter on ‘‘ Geography,” in which are given the various mythological and theological ideas concerning the form of the earth and the proper mode of representing it that have prevailed in ancient and medieval times. ‘‘ The Manufacture of Boots and Shoes” will be described by George A. Rich. This is one of the illustrated series of Articles on American Industries, and, in both the text and the pictures, tells a story of wonderful progress. An ethical study on ‘‘ Veracity,” by Herbert Spencer, will be among the contents. — The Geographical Society of Germany will shortly publish a volume commemorative of the four-hundredth anniversary of the discovery of America by Columbus, which will, it is said, be one of the most elaborate publications ever issued by the society. Dr. Konrad Kretschmer, the editor of the forthcoming work, has visited all the principal libraries of Italy in search of material, and lias had access to many rare manuscripts hitherto unused. The memorial volume will contain forty five maps relating to the dis- covery of America, thirty-one of which are said to have never libraries. been published. Emperor William has contributed 15,000 marks Reading Matter Notices. Ripans Tabules cure hives. Ripans Tabules cure dyspepsia. Societas Entomologica. International Entomological Society, Zu- rich-Hottingen, Switzerland. Annual fee, ten francs. The Journal of the Society appears twice a month, and consists entirely of original ar- ticles on entomology, with a department for advertisements. All members may use this department free of cost for advertisements relating to entomology. The Society consists of about 450 members in all countries of the world. The new volume began April 1, 1892. The numbers already issued will be sent to new members. For information address Mr. Fritz Rusu, President of the Societas Entomologica, Zurich-Hottingen, Switzerland. NEO-DARWINISM AND NEO-LAMARCKISM. By LESTE F. WARD. Annual address of the President of the Biological Society of Washington delivered Jan. 24, 1891. A historical and critical review of modern scientific thought relative to heredity, and especially to the problem of the transmission of acquired characters, The following are the several heads involved in the _discussion Status of the Problem, Lamarckism. Darwinism, Acquired Characters, Theories of He- redity, Views of Mr. Galton, Teachings of Professor Weismann, A Critique of Weismann, Neo-Darwin- ism, Neo-Lamarckism, the American ‘‘School,” Ap- plication to the Human Race. Imso far as views _are expressed they are in the main jn line with the general current of American thought, and opposed to the extreme doctrine of the non-transmissibility of acquired characters. Price, postpaid, 25 cents. N. D. C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. Y. SCIENCE CLUBBING RATES. 10% DISCOUNT. We will allow the above discount to any subscriber to Science who will send us an order for periodicals exceeding $10, counting ~each at its full price. N. D. C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. Y. Exchanges. [Freeofcharge to all, if ofsatisfactory character. Address N. D. C. Hodges, 874 Broadway, New York.] Taxidermist going out of business has quantity of finely-mounted specimens of North American birds, mammals and reptiles and skivs of birds for sale, including a full local collection of bird skins, show- ing some great variations of species; also quantity of skulls with horns of deer and mountain sheep, and mounted heads of same. Will give good ex- change for Hawk Eye camera with outfit. Apply quickly to J. R. Thurston, 265 Yonge St., Toronto, Canada. For exchange.—A fine thirteen-keyed flute in leather covered case, for a photograph camera suitable for mak- ing lantern slides. Flute cost $27, and is nearly new. U. O. COX, Mankato, Minn. To exchange ; Experiment Station bulletins and reports for bulletins and reports not in my file. I will send list of what I have for exchange. P. H. ROLES, Lake City, Florida. Finished specimens of all colors of Vermont marble for fine fossils or crystals. Will be given only for valuable specimens because of the cost of polishing. GEO. W. PERRY, State Geologist, Rutland, Vt. For exchange.—Three copies of ‘‘ American State Papers Bearing on Sunday Legislation,” 1891, $2.50, new and unused, for *‘The Sabbath,”’ by Harmon Kingsbury, 1840; ‘The Sabbath,”’ by A. A. Phelps, 1842; ‘‘ History of the Institution of the Sabbath Day, Its Uses and Abuses,’’ by W. L. Fisher, 1859; ‘‘ Humorous Phases of the Law,” by Irving Browne; or other works amounting to value of books exchanged, on the question of govern- mental legislation in reference to religion, personal liberty, etc. If preferred, I will sell ‘‘American State Papers,” and buy other books on the subject. WILLIAM AD- DISON BLAKELY, Chicago, IIl. For Sale or Exchange for books a complete private chemical laboratory outfit. Includes large Becker bal- ance (200g. to 1-10mg.), platinum dishes and crucibles, agate motors, glass-blowing apparatus, etc. For sale in part orwhole. Also complete file of Si/2iman’s Fournad, 1862-1885 (62-71 bound); Smithsonian Reports, 1854-1833; U. S. Coast Survey, 1854-1869. Full particulars to en- quirers. F. GARDINER, JR., Pomfret, Conn. Wanted, in exchange for the following works, any standard works on Surgery and on Diseases of Children: Wilson's ‘‘ American Ornithology,”’ 3 vols.; Coues’ ‘*Birds of the Northwest”’ and ‘ Birds of the Colorado Valley,” 2vols.; Minot’s ‘Land and Game Birds of New Eng- land;”’ Samuels’ ‘t Our Northern and Eastern Birds;”’ all the Reports on the Birds of the Pacific R. R. Survey, bound in 2 vols., morocco; and a complete set of the Reports of the Arkansas Geological Survey. Please give editions and dates in corresponding. R. ELLSWORTH CALL, High School, Des Moines, Iowa. To exchange Wright’s ‘Ice Age in North America”’ and Le Conte’s ‘Elements of Geology’’ (Copyright 1882) for ‘‘Darwinism,”’ by A. R. Wallace, “Origin of Sueciesty by Darwin, ‘‘Descent of Man,’’ by Darwin, ‘*Man’s Place in Nature,’’ Huxley, ‘‘Mental Evolution in Ani- mals,’”’ by Romanes, ‘*Pre-Adamites,’” by Winchell. No books wanted except latest editions, and books in good condition. C. S. Brown, Jr., Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tenn. Wants. Any person seeking a position for which he ts qualz- ed by his scientific attainments, or any person seeking some one to fill a position of this character, be rt that of a teacher of science, chemist, draughtsman, or what not, may have the ‘Want’ inserted under this head FREE OF Cost, 2/7 he satisfies the publisher of the suit- able character of his application. Any person seeking information on any scientific question, the address of auy scientific man,or who can in any way use this column for a purpose consonant with the nature oy the paper, ts cordially invited to do so. A JOHNS HOPKINS graduate (1892) desires a position as instructor in mathematics and physies. Address A. B. TURNER, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Md. ANTED.—A collection of postage stamps; one made previous to 1870 preferred. Also old and curious stamps on original letters, and old entire U S. stamped envelopes. Will pay cash or give in exchange first-class fossils, including fine crinoids. WM. F. E. GURLEY, Danville, Il. W ANTED.—To purchase laboratory outfit; bal- aaces, evaporating dishes, burettes, etc., wanted immediately for cash. C. E. SPEIRS, 23 Murray street, New York. P. O. Box 1741. V ANTED.—The services of a wide-awake young man, as correspondent, in a large manufactur- ing optical business; one preferred who hasa thor- ough knowledge of microscopy and some knowledge of photography. Address by letter, stating age and references. Optical, care of Science, 874 Broadway, New York. \Wignecname want any and sll of the following, providing we can t:ade other books and maga- zines or buy them cheap for cash: Academy, Lon- don, vol. 1 to 28, 35, Jan. and Feb., °89; Age of Steel, vol. 1 to 66; American Antiquarian, vol. 1, 2; Ameri- ean Architect, vol. 1 to 6,9; American Art Review, vol. 3; American Field, vol. 1 to 21; American Geol- ogist, vol. 1 te 6; American Machinist, vol. 1 to 4; Art Amateur, vol.1 to 7, O:t., 4; Art Interchange, yol 1to9; Art Union, vol. 1 to 4, Jan., 44, July, *45; Bibliotheca Sacra, vol.1 to 46; Godey’s Lady’s Book, vol. 1 to 20; New Englander, vol. 11; Zoologist, Series 1 and 1, Series 3 vol. 1 to 14; Allen Armeudale (a novel). Raymer’s ‘‘Old Book’ Store, 243 4th Ave. S., Minneapolis, Minn. Neri cearemien a young man, a Swarthmore Col- lege junior, a position as principal of a public high school in one of the Gulf States, or as instructor in botany, physiology, and geology in an academy or normal school. Address B., care of Librarian, Swarthmore College, Penn. ANTED.—To act as correspondent for one or two daily or weekly papers. Have worked on paper for abouttwo years Wouldlikea position on editorial staff of humorous paper. Address GEO. C. MASON, 14 Elm St., Hartford, Conn. RANSLATOR wanted to read German architec- tural works at sight (no writing). One familiar with technical terms desired. Address ‘‘A.,”’ Box 149, New York Post Office. JuLy 22, 1892. | towards the expenses of publication, etc., and the work will un- doubtedly be a most valuable contribution to the early history of America. It is expected that it will leave the government print- ang office early in August. —In a capital address on ‘‘ tooth culture,” delivered at the an- nual meeting of the Eastern Counties Branch of the British Dental Association, and printed in Lancet, Sir James Crichton-Browne referred to a change which has taken place in bread, as one of the ‘causes of the increase of dental caries. So far as England is con- cerned, this is essentially an age of white bread and fine flour, and it is an age therefore in which we are no longer partaking, to anything like the same amount that our ancestors did, of the bran or husky parts of wheat, and so are deprived to a large degree of a chemical element which they contain— namely, fluorine. The date Dr. George Wilson showed thet fluorine is more widely dis- tributed in nature than was before his time supposed, but still, as the pointed out, itis but sparingly present where it does occur, and S\CIUIN 1s, 55 the only channels by which it can apparently find its way into the animal economy are through the siliceous stems of grasses and the outer husks of grain, in which it exists in comparative abun- dance. Analysis has proved that the enamel of the teeth contains more fluorine, in the form of fluoride of calcium, than any other part of the body, and fluorine might, indeed, be regarded as the characteristic chemical constituent of this structure, the hardest of all animal tissue, and containing 95 5 per cent of salts, against 72 per cent in the dentine. As this is s0, it is clear that a supply of fluorine, while the development of the teeth is proceeding, is essential to the proper formation of the enamel, and that any de- ficiency in this respect must result in thin and inferior enamel. Sir James Crichton-Browne thinks it well worthy of consideration whether the reintroduction into our diet of a supply of fluorine in some suitable natural form—and what form, he asks, can be more suitable than that in which it exists in the pellicles of our grain stuffs ?— might not do something to fortify the teeth of the next generation. “Science,” will ca,” by G. B. Hall. inches), “The Library,” ture. ing a library. and how to buy them. Hors yas Acid Phosphate, Recommended and _ prescribed by physicians of all schools Modern Literature 243 dth Ave. S. LITERARY OUTFIT FREE. Anyo e sending us $1.00 at once and mentioning receive a copy of Sketches and Events in the Colonization of Ameri- A square 8yo. book (614x9 223 pages, illustrated. This is a regular $2.00 book and a bargain at that price. 200 Private Library Labels; they should be used by all who own books... . a 10U-page b ok) containing a brief list of most important standard and mis- cellaneous books in every department of Ji: era- Intended for those who are about form- Hints about what bo ks to read lyear’s subscription to the “Literary Light, ee a monthly magazine of Ancient, Medizval and $4.00 actual value for $1.00. erary Light,” 10 cents (postal card won't do). Address, Literary Light, THE WEEKLY BULLETIN OF NEWSPAPER AND PERIODICAL LITERATURE. Catalogues and Classifies Each Week THE PRINCIPAL CONTENTS OF 50 THE PERIODICAL PRESS. That huge mass of material heretofore inaccessible to the eager student is now rendered available. Special attention is invited to the Bulletin’s | INDEX OF TECHNIGAL LITERATURE Send for a free sample copy and learn how The Bulletin Supplies The Articles Catalogued. ‘* Historical $ 2 v0 1 00 $4 00 Sample copy of “ Lit Minneapolis, Minn. Address THE WEEKLY BULLETIN, FOR DYSPEPSIA, NERVOUSNESS, EXHAUSTION, and all diseases arising from im- perfect digestion and derange- ments of the nervous system. STERBROOK’S STEEL PENS. OF SUPERIOR AND STANDARD QUALITY. Leading Nos.: 048, 14, 130, 135, 239, 333 For Sale by all Stationers. THE ESTERBROOK STEEL PEN CO., Works: Oamden, N.J. 26 Joho St., 5 Somerset Street, = = Boston, Mass, WORLD-ENGLISH. 25 Cents. HANDBOOK OF WORLD-ENGLISH. 25 Cents. Ex - President Andrew D. New York. It aids digestion, and is a ‘brain and nerve food. Descriptive pamphlet free. Rumford Chemical Works, Providence, R. I. ‘Beware of Substitutes and Imitations. INGANDESGCE NT 3 LrCURRE NT. Tae Ste Lees Ci — Fa MEORS CIRCULAR T.0 * ‘PHILAs White, of Cornell University, says: ‘‘I believe tha tthe highest interests of Chris- tian civilization and of humanity would be served by its adoption.” “So set down, our tongue is the best for the world to unite upon. »__Br ooklyn Eagle. “ The idea of Mr. Bell has much to recommend it, and the presentation is charmingly clear.”—Ameri- can, Phila. “The result is a language which cannot fail ta meet with acceptance.’’—Boston Traveller. “World English deserves the careful consideration of all serious scholars.”— Modern Language Notes. Sent, postpaid, on receipt of price. N. D. C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, New York. DY es ADDY Ory PA. A TEMPORARY BINDER for Science is now ready, and will be mailed postpaid on receipt of 75 cents. This binder is strong, durable and elegant, has gilt side-title, and al- BRAVING FO R®ALLUILLUSTRATIVE S VAOVERTISING BUR POSES = - FOSSIL RESINS. This book is the result of an attempt to collect the scattered notices of fossil resins, exclusive of those on amber. The work is of interest also on account of descriptions given of the insects found embedded in these long- preserved exudations from early vegetation. lows the opening of the pages per- fectly flat. Any number can be taken out or replaced without dis- turbing the others, and the papers are not mutilated for subsequent permanent binding. Filed in this binder, Sczezceis always convenient For INVENTORS. PATENTS 40-page BOOK FREE. Address W. T. Fitzgerald, Attorney at Law, Washington, J).C By CLARENCE LOWN and HENRY BOOTH L228 STs N. D. C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. Y. POPULAR MANUAL OF VISIBLE SPEECH AND for reference. prices; S0c., $1, $1.50, $2, .N. D. C. HODGES, Publisher, 874 Broadway, New York. G E M 0 PALS Cut ready for setting. Having pur- » chased a large lotat the Mexican lo- cakity, we are offering Enema out one-fifth jewelers’ secure a fine gem very cheap. 100 pp. Mineral yatalorn 15c.. in cloth 25c., Supplement 2c. GEO. L. ENGLISH & Mineralogists, 733 and 735 Broadw ay, New York City. VOCAL PHYSIOLOGY. For use in Colleges and Normal Schools. Sent free by post by N. D.C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. Y. is a rare opportunity ie Price 50 cents SCIENG@E ,Vot. XX. No. 494 QUERY. Can any reader of Sczence cite a case of lightning stroke in which the dissipation of a small conductor (one-sixteenth of an inch in diameter, say, ) has failed to protect between two horizon- tal planes passing through its upper and lower ends respective- ly? Plenty of cases have been found which show that when the conductor is dissipated the build- ing is not injured to the extent explained (for many of these see volumes of Philosophical Trans- actions at the time when light- ning was attracting the attention of the Royal Society), but not an exception is yet known, al- though this query has been pub- lished far and wide among elec- tricians. First inserted June 19. No response to date. N. D. C. HODGES, 874 BROADWAY, NEW YORK. JUST READY. THE LABRADOR COAST. A Journal of two Summer Cruises to that region; with notes on its early discovery, on the Eskimo, on its physical geography, geology and natural history, together with a bibliography of charts, works and articles relating to the civil and natural history of the Labrador Peninsula. By ALPHEUS SPRING PACKARD, M.D., Ph.D 8°, 513 pp., $3.50. N. D. €. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. Y. THE RADIOMETER. By DANIEL 8. TROY. This contains a discussion of the reasons for their action and of the phenomena pre- sented in Crookes’ tubes. Price, postpaid, 50 cents. N. D, C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. Y. AUTHORS AND PUBLISHERS. Material arranged and compiled for all kinds of works, excepting fiction. Statistics a_ specialty. Indexing and cataloguing. Address G, E. BIVER, 835 N. 16th Street, Philadelphia. TO THE MESDERS OG SOU kei: PUBLISHER’S ANNOUNCEMENT. Titles of Some Articles Published in Science since Jan. 1, 1892. Aboriginal North American Tea. Actinism.» Agriculture, Experimental, Status of. Amenhotep, King, the tomb of. Anatomy, The Teaching of, to Advanced Medical Students. .Anthropology, Current Notes on. Architectural Exhibition in Brooklyn. Arsenical Poisoning from Domestic Fabrics. Artesian Wells in Iowa. Astronomical Notes. Bacteria, Some Uses of. Botanical Laboratory, A. Brain, A Few Characteristics of the Avian. Bythoscopide and Cereopide. Canada, Royal Society of. Celts, The Question of the. Chalicotherium, The Ancestry of. Chemical Laboratory of the Case School of Applied Science. Children, Growth of. Collection of Objects Used in Worship. Cornell, The Change at. Deaf, Higher Education of the. Diphtheria, Tox-Albumin. Electrical Engineer, The Technical Education of. Eskimo Throwing Sticks. Etymology of two Iroquolan Compound Stems. Eye-Habits. Eyes, Relations of the Motor Muscles of, to Certain Facial Expressions. Family Traits, Persistency of. Fishes, The Distribution of. Fossils, Notice of New Gigantic. Four-fold Space, Possibility of a Realization of. Gems, Artificial, Detection of. Glacial Phenomena in Northeastern New York. Grasses, Homoptera Injurious to. Great Lakes, Origin of the Basins of. “Healing, Divine.” Hemipterc us Mouth, Structure of the. Hofmann, August Wilhelm von. Hypnotism among the Lower Animals. Hypnotism, Traumatic. Indian occupation of New York. Infant’s Movements, Influenza, Latest Details Concerning the Germs of. Insects in Popular Dread in New Mexico. Inventions in Foreign Countries, How to Protect. Inventors and Manufacturers, the American Associ- ation of. Iowa Academy of Sciences. Jargon, The Chinook. Jasside; Notes on Local. Keller, Helen. Klamath Nation, Linguistics. Laboratory Training, Aims of. Lewis H. Carvill, Work on the Glacial Phenomena. Lightning, The New Method of Protecting Buildings from. Wisseiouls Curves, Simple Apparatus for the Produc- tion of. Maize Plant, Observations on the Growth and Chemi- cal Composition of. Maya Codices, a Key to the Mystery of. Medicine, Preparation for the Study of. Mineral Discoveries, Some Recent, in the State of Washington. Museums, The Support of. Palenque Tablet, a Brief Study of. Patent Office Building, The. Physa Heterostropha Lay, Notes on the Fertility of. Pocket Gopher, Attempted Extermination of. Polariscopes, Direct Reflecting. Psychological Laboratory in the University of To- ronto. Psychological Training, The Need of. Psylla, the Pear-Tree. Rain-Making. Rivers, Evolution of the Loup, in Nebraska. Scientific Alliance, The. Sistrurus and Crotalophorus. Star Photography, Notes on. Star, The New, in Auriga. Storage of Storm-Waters on the Great Plains. Teaching of Science. Tiger, A New Sabre-Toothed, from Kansas. Timber Trees of West Virginia. Traches of Insects, Structure of. Vein-Formation, Valuable Experiments in. Weeds as Fertilizing Material. Will, a Recent Analysis of. Wind-Storms and Trees. Wines, The Sophisticated French. Zoology in the Public Schools of Washington, D. C. Some of the Contributors to Science Since Jan. I, 1892. Aaron, Eugene M., Philadelphia, Pa. Allen, Harrison, Philadelphia, Pa. Baldwin, J. Mark, University of Toronto, Canada. Barnes, Charles Reid, Madison, Wis. Baur, G., Clark University, Worcester, Mass- Beal, W. J., Agricultural College, Mich. Beals, A. H., Milledgeville, Ga. Beauchamp, W. M., Baldwinsville, N.Y. Boas, Franz, Clark University, Worcester, Mass Bolley, H. L., Fargo, No. Dak. Bostwich, Arthur E., Montclair, N.J. Bradley, Milton, Springfield, Mass. Brinton, D. G., Philadelphia, Pa. Call, E. Ellsworth, Des Moines, Ia. Chandler, H., Buffalo, N.Y. Comstock, Theo. B., Tucson, Arizona. Conn, H. W., Middletown, Conn. Cragin, F. W., Colorado Springs, Col. Davis, W. M., Harvard College, Cambridge, Mass- Dimmock, George, Canobie Lake, N.H. Farrington, E. H., Agricultural Station, Champaign , Ill. Ferree, Barr, New York City. Flexner, Simon, Johns Hopkins University, Balti— more, Md. Foshay, P. Max, Rochester, N.Y. Gallaudet, E. M., Kendall Green, Washington, D.C. Garman, S., Museum of Comp. Zool., Cambridge, ass. Golden, Katherine E., Agricultural College, Lafay— ette, Ind. Hale, Edwin M., Chicago, Ill. Hale, George S., Boston, Mass. Hale, Horatio, Clinton, Ontario, Canada. Hall, T. Proctor, Clark University, Worcester, Mass. Halsted, Byron D., Rutgers College, New Bruns-- wick, N.J. Haworth, Erasmus, Oskaloosa, Iowa. Hay, O. P., Irvington, Ind. Haynes, Henry W., Boston Mass. Hazen, H. A., Weather Bureau, Washington, D.C. Hew J. N. B., Bureau of Ethnology, Washington, D.C. Hicks, L. E., Lincoln, Neb. Hill, E. J., Chicago, Ill. Hill, Geo. A., Naval Observatory, Washiugton, D.C. Hitchcock, Romyn, Washington, D.C. Holmes, E. L. Chicago, Ill. ~ Hotchkiss, Jed., Staunton, Va. Howe, Jas. Lewis, Louisville, Ky. Hubbard, Gardiner G., Washington, D.C. Jackson, Dugald C., Madison, Wisconsin J eh Joseph F., Agricultural Dept., Washington. Johnson, Roger B., Miami University, Oxford, O. Kellerman, Mr~ “7. .. Columbus, O Kellicott, D. © .te University, Columbus, O. Kellogg, D.S., Fiattsburgh, N. Y. Lintner, J. A., Albany, N. Y. Loeb, Morris, New York City. Mabery, Charles F., Cleveland, Ohio. Macloskie, G., Princeton, N.J. HAS RUE) Gerald, Agricultural Station, Raleigh, MacDonald, Arthur, Washington, D.C. Marshall, D. T., Metuchen, N.J. nea O. T., Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. Millspaugh, Charles F., Morgantown, W. Va. Nichols, C. F., Boston, Mass. Nuttall, George H. F., Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Md. Oliver, J. E., Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y. Osborn, Henry F., Columbia College, New YorE City. Osborn, Herbert, Agricultural College, Ames, Iowa. Pammel, L. H., Agricultural Station, Ames, Iowa. Pillsbury, J. H., Smith College, Northampton, Mass, Poteat, W. L., Wake Forest, N. C. Preble, Jr., W. P., New York City. Rufiner, Ww. H., Lexington, Va. Seutorg, Edmund C., Clark University, Worcester,. ass. Schufeldt, R. W., Washington, D.C. Scripture, E. W., Clark University. Worcester, Mass. Slade, D. D., Museum Comp. Zool., Cambridge, Mass. rh Spat, John B., Rutgers College, New Brunswick , Southwick, Edmund B., New York City. Stevens, George T., New York City. Stevenson, S. Y., Philadelphia, Pa. Stone, G. H., Colorado Springs, Col. Thomas, Cyrus, Washington, D. C. Thurston, R. H., Cornell University, Ithaca, N.¥. Todd, J. E., Tabor, Iowa. True, ueregerick W., Natlonal Museum, Washing— ton, D.C. auener C. H., University of Cincinnat!, Cincinnati, Wake, C., Staniland, Chicago, Ill. wend R. DeC., Harvard University, Cambridge, ass. Ward, Stanley M., Scranton, Pa. Warder tRobert B., Howard University, Washing- ton, D.C. Welch, Wm. H., Johns Hopkins University, Baiti- more. M.D. West, Gerald M., Clark University, Worcester, Mass- Whitman, C. O., Clark University, Worcester, Mass. Williams, Edward H., Lehigh University, Bethie— hem, Pa. ‘ _SCIE ~ Sy LET I UN C AUG N PR 3 iBy2> ) AVIS DU ONES APER OF ALL DHE ARTS AND SCIENGES. PUBLISHED BY N. D. C. HODGES, 874 BROADWAY, NEW YORK. TentH YEAR. Vou. XX. No. 495. JULY 29, 1892. SineLe Copims, Ten Cents. $3.50 Per Year, In ADVANCE. CoNTENTS. RICE CULTURE IN JAPAN, MEXICO, AND THE Untirep States From tHE Hycien- ic Porint or VIEW. Albert S. Ash- mead Current Notes on ANTHROPOLOGY.— XI. Edited by D. G. Brinton.... INOTESPAN DH INIEWSs eyersercticicieie ne sicle si cisievere Charles R. Barnes.... Nores on A Destructive Forrest TREE ScoLytip, Andrew D. Hopkins... LETTERS TO THE EDITOR. Auroral Display. T. A. Bereman.. Magnetic Storm. Aurora and Sun- Spots. Edgar L. Larkin......... The Crinoid Heterocrinus Suberas- SUS) MeeE ED we) U Chee cvelyeiierevey evans Professor Parker’s Further Studies on the Apteryx. R. W. Shufeldt. A Satellite of the Moon. C. P. Max- Mopern Botany. _ 68, Entered at the Post-Office of New York, N.Y., as Second-Class Mail Matter. THE LABRADOR COAST. A JOURNAL OF TWO SUMMER CRUISES TO THAT REGION. WITH NOTES ON ITS EARLY DISCOV- ERY, ON THE ESKIMO, ON ITS PHY- SICAL GEOGRAPHY, GEOLOGY AND NATURAL HISTORY, TOGETHER WITH A BIBLIOGRAPHY OF WORKS, ARTI- CLES, AND CHARTS RELATING TO THE CIVIL AND NATURAL HISTORY OF THE LABRADOR PENINSULA. By ALPHEUS SPRING PACKARD, M.D., Ph.D. | Sportsmen and ornithologists will be interested in the list of Labrador birds by Mr. L. W. 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A. SHEPARD, Botany, New Britain, Conn. C. A. HARGRAVE, Conchology, Danville, Ind. F. P. GORHAM, Geology, 103 Knight St., Providence, R. I. Yearly Subscription, $1. Single Number, 10 Cents. Stuffed Animals Minerals, 4 a a Rocks Ward's Natural Science Establishment jeumet™™"" Casts of Fossils, Mineralogy, Geology, Paleontology, Zoology, Osteology, Anatomy. |anatomiear * RetierMaps.| Send for Circular. ROCHESTER, N.Y. |imverteprates | Bel INCE NEW YORK, JULY 29, 1892. RICK CULTUREINJAPAN, MEXICO, AND THE UNITED STATES FROM THE HYGIENIC POINT OF VIEW.’ BY ALBERT S. ASHMEAD, M.D. ONE of the most important problems to be solved by the Japanese medical profession is the application of a rational and efficient hygiene to the culture of rice. This culture lies, so to speak, at the very foundation of Japanese life. When the rice crop is abundant Japan is well fed, healthy, and content; when it fails, Japan droopsand starves. Japan almost lives on rice, and, consequently, a considerable part of its population in employed in the culture of rice. This large fraction of the people, at least, is exposed to all the dangers which arise from a careless, imprudent, or slovenly system of cultivation, and the dangers, as every one knows, are very great, and, asevery one knows, also, little is done in Japan to obviate them. Rice culture is a watery business. Almost the whole population of Japan forms around its island a fringe, fifteen miles deep, leaving the interior a comparative desert. This fringe is exceedingly populous. From one town to the other you find scattered along the roads innumerable houses, so that it is impossible for a stranger to say where one village begins and the otherends; they dovetail into one another, as it were. In the interior the rare population is concerned with silk, lacquer, pottery, elc.; but in this fringe there is scarcely anything but rice culture. The sea washes, pene- trates, at times partly covers by its tides, the coast-land, and furnishes the constant dampness necessary for the growth of rice. The sea takes away multitudinous parcels of the rice coast by forming swamps; and sometimes seems to be intent on compensation by giving something of itsown; thus, for instance, a portion of the city of Tokio, now inhabited by 120,000 people, and which 200 years ago was under water, may be considered as a gift of the ocean. The traveller in Japan is forcibly reminded of the cities of Hgypt, perched upon their elevated seats during the overflow of their grand river. Here the inundation is an artificial one; the waters of the innumerable swamps formed, either by the sea or by the rivers, have been directed into the rice fields all around the villages, and the latter appear like islands, Even when the time of the flooding is. ended, shallow marshes remain everywhere, for the drainage is im- perfect, tosay theleast. The stork, the king of the swamps, is the national bird of Japan, semi-sacred, and, in olden times, Mikados and Tycoons alone were allowed to eat of it. We must also, in an article on rice culture in Japan, take into account the exuberant canal system of that country. The traffic of the country is almost.all on the canals, which join one river to the other, and form a network of filthy water over the whole extent of the densely populated zone. I said of filthy water, for it contains all the surface drainage of the large cities. Garbage’* is continually, or rather sys- tematically, thrown into the deep, elaborately built, stone gut- 1 Communicated to the Sei-[-Kwai, or Society for the Advancement of Medi- cal Science in Japan. 2 However it must not be forgotten that garbage in Japan is of amore simple and less lurid kind than ours; it consists chiefly of the refuse of fish and vege- table diet; no meat bones, no stale bread or other characteristics of our own garbage. ters in which there is a perpetual flow of water, so that even a regular eel fishery goes on in them. These gutters do the work of our scavengers, without any cost to the city; they earry the city filth into the canals, and from the canals not only to the sea but also into the rice fields. A river is no- where allowed to pass without paying toll in the form of public service; it enters into the sea only after it has washed the cities which it met initscourse. On its surface it carries still more filth, if possible, than in its waters, for the con- tents of all the public closets, in the streets and in the houses, are daily carted to some boats and brought to the rice fields, to serve as manure. There, at the rice field, the liquid ma- nure is preserved in tanks until the proper time has come for using it, after the drainage of the plantation, when the far- mer feeds the growing plant by pouring over its roots with a dipper. The solid part is applied to the soil before the planting. From all this it appears that the culture of rice in Japan is naturaily a thorn in the side of the medical profession. The first evil resulting from this occupation in Japan is impaludism, which is exceedingly frequent in all the rice plains until the monsoons of the spring and the autumn sweep away most of the paludic emanations. Typboid fever and its complications, together with other pernicious types, and the diseases caused by the distoma are due to the infection of drinking water by their deleterious system of manuring and draining. It has occurred to several leprologists that there may be a connection between lepra and impaludism. It is a fact that the more malarious the situation of a sea-coast the greater is the number of lepers there. Moreover, it may be consid- ered as a significant fact, that the first outbreak of leprosy is, in a large number of cases, in China as well as in Japan, preceded by one or several attacks of paludic fevers. It has even been suggested that the origin of leprosy might be in the malarious mud through which the rice laborers are con- tinually wading. So much for Japan. The situation in Mexico, acountry allied with Japan in many ways, in climate, in constitution of inhabitants, irri- gation system, etc., isaptly described by Dr. Nazario Lomas, member of the Board of Health of the State of Morelos, Director of the General Hospital, Cuernavaca (Morelos), Mexico. His paper on the subject was read in Kansas City (United States) before the American Public Health Associa- tion, Oct., 1891. I give here the essential part of it: ‘‘ Dur- ing the last five years the cultivation of rice by irrigation has become one of the chief elements of the prosperity of this State (Morelos, Mexico). In course of these five years we have seen the plantations increasing rapidly, while a corresponding deterioration was observed in the salubrity of neighboring towns. And how could it be otherwise, seeing that the rice swamps are exposed to a mean temperature of 33 degrees centigrade in summer and 28 degrees in winter ? “T think LI need not here enter into any details about the cultivation of rice; in a general way, quite sufficient for my purpose, every one is acquainted with this subject. Let me only remind the reader that there are two systems of eculti- vation: dry (on hills), and by irrigation. The latter has two sub-divisions, irrigation by current and irrigation by flooding. 58 SCIENCE. “The sytem of irrigation by flood, which, happily, we do not know as yet in the State of Morelos, but which is likely enough to be introduced by and by, as the rice culture pro- gresses, is the worst of all. It is this system especially that is meant when competent authorities denounce the cultiva- tion of rice as homicidal, declare its history to be one of blood, and contend that every sixteen hectolitres of rice are bought at the price of one man’s life. Thjs form of irriga- tion is said by experienced men to combine in the most ef- fective manner all the evils of the very worst of sweet-water swamps. “The rice cultivated under the current system, now gener- ally adopted in this State, isirrigated from February to Sep- tember by means of currents, renewed according to the necessities of the plant, but generally continuous. Now as perfect slopes are rare, the drainage is rarely, if ever, com- plete, so that every field of any considerable extent presents hollows ready toreceive swamps. Moreover, the want of canals and drains, or their imperfection, is cause that at the points of entrance and exit the irrigation water diffuses itself in lagoons. But supposing even this system to be carried out in the most perfect manner, without any flaw, there re- mains still the evaporation, on an immense surface, from a soil exceedingly rich in organic matter. The harvest begins in September. It leaves on the ground, more or iess damp and swampy, a large quantity of vegetable detritus, whose decomposition fills the air with most pernicious, because ever renewed, poison. **As to the dry system, which is used on hill-sides, I am mot practically acquainted with it. Of course it is not as unhealthy as the two others, but then it is less productive. “‘Now, if once we have created in our midst this class of artificial morasses, with a large superficial extension, we find safely established among us the paludic fevers and all classes of gastro-intestinal affections. These are always ‘endemic in the districts where rice is cultivated. ‘“‘Hach progress of the rice culture is followed by a corres- pondent advantage gained by the fever. More than fifty per cent of the field-hands are attacked by it. It appears under allits forms, but mostly under those of daily intermit- tent, tertiary, and continuous fever; in the first two cases it is accompanied almost at the onset with swelling and hard- mess of the spleen, and very frequently of the liver. Itisto be observed that the continuous or remittent fevers do not ‘at once appear as such, they are usually preceded by two or three attacks of daily intermittent fever, whose duration gradually increases until the disease becomes continuous or remittent. Notwithstanding its paludic nature, this fever is not amenable to any form of quinine. Neuralgia, espe- cially in the form of trigeminus, urticaria, and purple spots, is very frequent. Pneumonia becomes here an epidemic, and is cured, or very favorably influenced, by the use of salts of quinine: this observation is continually made in the battalions which come from the south. The day-laborers who come down from the central table-land and the Valley of Mexico are almost invariably affected with cachexia on their arrival. “‘T think this is the place to give a few details concerning the physical geography of the State of Morelos. It forms an inclined plane from north to south. Its highest parts are 2,000 metres, and the lowest 500 to 650 metres above the level of the sea. The prevailing winds by day are from south to north, by night from north to south. “There is an abundance of water, both from springs and rivers; the former is sweet, the latter sweet and salt. [VoLr. XX. No 495 “The course of the waters is naturally opposed to the forma- tion of lagoons or swamps, and the climate must have been very healthy in former times. “Tt is in the lower part of the State that the riceis cultivated. It grows there in company with the sugar-cane, another cause of paludism. “The hygienic measures which the State Board of Health submitted to the approbation of the government, through my initiative, are as follows: — “1. The cultivation of rice by the flooding system is, in no case, to be allowed, even as a trial. “2. No new rice plantation shall be established, without a license from the government, for the granting of which, the Board of Health is to be consulted, the State engineer to be a member of such Board. The Board will appoint a com- mittee to study the subject, composed of one of its members residing in Cuernavaca, a physician from the rice districts, who may be a corresponding member of the Board, and of the State engineer. ‘¢3. If the ground, in which it is proposed to cultivate rice, is situated to the south or north of any village or town, and distant therefrom less than 3,000 metres, the petition shall be at once rejected, unless, in the opinion of the health ex- perts, not less than three in number, the three being unani-. mous, an intervening hill, or forest, or other such natural feature, removes the danger. ““4. Any rice-planter who shall commence his harvest with the ground in a soaked condition, if such condition is due to bad management or carelessness, the waters not having been removed in due season, shall be liable to a fine of not less than $50, the amount to be fixed in consultation with the governor, and to be deposited with the funds of the State. ‘*5. The cultivation shall be suspended on any plantation, in which, in the opinion of the engineer of the Board, the irrigation waters form swamps or lagoons, either at the en- trance or at the outlet. Once these defects removed, the permission to cultivate may be renewed. ““6. Any person may denounce before the Board, or its cor- respondents in the district, any defects in the irrigation or cultivation, which may cause the formation of swamps. ‘“7, Whenever the rice is beaten down by strong winds, hail-storms, etc., it must at once be cut, and especially if it is in the water. . ‘8. The laborers employed in the rice culture will begin work after sunrise, and will leave the fields before sunset. “*9, The overseers will, under no circumstances, allow the wives of the laborers to bring them their meals or visit them in the fields. This prohibition applies with still better reason to children. ‘©10. The owners and administrators of rice plantations, who have the well-being of their laborers at heart, may apply to the State Board of Health and obtain from it a pamphlet setting forth the rules to be observed for the prevention and cure of paludic fever.” There is a large rice culture in the United States also. How large is shown by the following numbers, which I have obtained from the U. 8. Department of Agriculture. In 1879 the census data for the crop were as follows: — Pounds. South Carolina 52,077,515 Georgia 25,369,687 Louisiana 23,188,311 All other States 9,495,860 Total 110,131,373 JULY 29, 1892.] Kstimates by State Commissioners of Agriculture are avail- able for recent years for South Carolina and Louisiana. The figures of production for the last three years at hand are: — South Carolina. Louisiana. 1888 67,752,374 51,414,909 1889 98,143,508 63,330,897 1890 68,091,944 The production for Louisiana for 1890 is given at about 1,000,000 barrels of rough rice. The largest cultivator of rice in the United States is proba- bly Col. John Screven of Savannah, Ga. It is to the kind ness of this gentleman that I am indebted for the following information, relating to the rice culture in Georgia and the Carolinas (I leave Louisiana entirely out because the situation there is complicated by the presence of the sugar- cane culture). ““There are only two systems: tide-water, and inland or back-water culture. In the latter system, the water is de- rived from swamp or still-water reservoirs, formed by bank- ing in the water of swamps and so retaining it convenient for the irrigation of adjacent fields. The culture of such fields is practically the same as in tide-water culture, the water being applied and removed at pleasure, provided the reservoirs or back-waters are sufficiently supplied, as may not be the case in seasons of drought. In the former, or tide-water system, a want of water-supply can scarcely occur, certainly not at the periods of spring tides, on which the system of irrigation is commonly based. ‘The tidal lands lie in the deltas of the rivers and in their natural state are subject to overflow, certainly in the spring-tides, and being extremely level may be covered by “great tides’’ to a depth to hide summits. As these lands contract and settle under drainage and cultivation, this ad- vantage is increased after they are taken in. ““They are embanked sufficiently to keep out the highest tides, and water gates, called ‘‘trunks,” are laid, so as to admit or discharge the water, as the tides rise or fall. At these gates the drainage fall is from four to five feet in the Savannah River, where the mean tide-fall is about six and a half feet. The average drainage of the fields, however, will not exceed three and a half feet. To make the drainage as complete as possible, main ditches, say six feet wide by four feet deep, are dug around the fields, which are again subdivided by minor ditches, 2 feet wide by three feet deep, called quarter drains, cut parallel about seventy-five feet apart. This ditch system is not all-important for irrigation. It combines greater value in the rapid and thorough drain- age it affords; for rice is an amphibious plant, and while irri- gation is very necessary to its successful growth, good drain- age, the more rapid the better, is equally necessary, for rea- sons which need not be stated here, as we have to consider only its hygienic value.” I had addressed to Col. Screven a number of questions relating to this subject. I give them here with the answers I received. 1. Which is the least dangerous of the different systems - of irrigation? Answer. The tide-water system, because the water is not taken from stagnant reservoirs, and may be oftener changed. 3 2. What is the system of manuring generally adopted, are human excrements used? Answer. Commercial fertil- izers are more commonly used —human excrements never. 1 This is the almanac term for the high spring tides raised by the union of new or full and perigee moon — not storm-tides. SCIENCE: 59 3. What means are used to prevent the contamination of drinking water? Answer. Water from wells, sometimes artesian, is used, very commonly water drawn directly from the river, which, by the more careful, is cleared by settling, or is filtered. 4. Whatseasons are most unwholesome for the cultivators ? Answer. The summer and ante-frost autumnal months, commencing with July and the harvest flow, and especially after that flow is removed, say, from August 15, when it is cast off for the harvest, and the water-growth, animal, and vegetal exposed to the sun and Cecay. 5. Do the hands live in the immediate neighborhood of the plantations or, perhaps, on higher ground? Answer. Hither, as convenience dictates, or on the plantation itself. Very often higher grounds are more unwholesome than the level of the rice-fields. Settlements close to the river-shore, where the tides move the atmosphere, and the winds are least im- peded, are often the most healthy. High grounds overlook- ing rice-fields, and not well-shielded from them by vegeta- tion, are considered most unwholesome. It should be stated that the cultivators (laborers) in the rice-fields are negroes, who are constitutionally less liable to fevers than whites. Ordinarily, the white residents of rice-fields abandon them from May 1 until frost the following autumn. 6. What system is used to dry the ground? Answer. The drainage method already described. The rice-fields are never pondy or muddy when properly drained. During the dry stages, they admit the plow, harrow, toothed roller, drill,, or any other appropriate agricultural implement, and are: sometimes even dusty, when stirred. 7. What is done to prevent the formation of swamps or lagoons? Answer. Effective drainage. 8. Is anything done to prevent infection from the rotting crops which have been beaten down by storms? Answer. When drainage is effective, serious infection is not likely to occur from crops beaten down by storms. 9. Are laborers permitted to work in the rice-fields before sunrise and after sunset? Answer. The most dangerous time to laborers is in the harvest, when the hot suns raise noxious effluvia in the fields from decaying water vegeta- tion and animalcule. At such times the laborers (negroes) seek their work in the early morning before sunrise, so as to complete their tasks before afternoon, when the sun is most oppressive. They fear the sun more than malaria. 10. What means are taken to obviate malarial and typhoid fevers? Answer. None specially; incidentally such drain- age as is necessary to successful rice culture Drainage and good health are as interdependent as drainage and good hus- bandry. As for typhoid fever, it is unknown in the rice- fields, even among whites. Filth diseases are rare. If by “malarial fevers” is meant fevers other than those from paludal (marsh) causes, I venture to assert that in the rice- fields, and on the southern Atlantic coast generally, there is marked absence of them, and where fevers prevail from paludal (marsh) causes (bilious fevers ?) typhoid fever will not originate. It is a notable fact, that typhoid fever was unknown in the city of Savannah before 1861. In conclusion, I will in a few words give such advice to Japanese sanitarians as is clearly suggested by the preceding facts. 1. First of all, there is one thing that must be done if the culture is not to remain what itis now, a public calamity ; the immundite must be kept out of the water. I should ad- vocate the use of artificial manures, — bone phosphates and American fertilizers. Thus the general infection of drinking water with typhoid, cholera, and other germs, would cease. 60 2. It would be worth while, perhaps, if a trial was made to obtain negro labor for the rice plantations. The negro is proof against malarious influences in a considerable measure. Might not colored laborers be imported from Georgia and the Carolinas ? CURRENT NOTES ON ANTHROPOLOGY. — XI. [Edited by D. G. Brinton, M.D., LL.D.] Canadian Archeology. UNDER the efficient superintendence of Mr. David Boyle, curator, the archeological collection of the Canadian Insti- tute, Toronto, has grown to be the largest in existence, illus- trating the prehistoric condition of man in the province of Ontario. His excellent reports, which have appeared an- nually since 1887, describe with great accuracy and sufficient fullness the yearly accessions to the collection of antiquities. Objects which can properly be called paleolithic have not yet been found in Canada. This is the opinion of Mr. Boyle as expressed in his last report. Of course, forms simulating those of the old stone age occur, but this is not conclusive. Stone is the principal material, and in its shap- ing and dressing the Canadian Indians were not behind their neighbors to the south. The collection also contains many specimens of their pottery. It is well burned, ornamented with designs in scroll and line, and some of the vases are “almost classic in outline.” The pipes, both stone and clay, are a prominent feature in the reports, and evidently were the objects of solicitous workmanship. Copper speci- mens are by no means unusual, some being knives, others spear-heads, with planges and sockets, others ornaments, as beads, bracelets, etc. Hxamplesin bone, shell, and horn are also figured. About a hundred of the crania unearthed have been examined. They indicate a people with moderately dolichocephalic skulls, averaging a cranial index of 74.5. It is to be hoped that the government of the Dominion will continue to lend assistance to this creditable effort to illustrate the archeology of Ontario. The Question of the Basques. As some readers of Science have manifested an interest in the Basques, they will doubtless be pleased to learn that at the next meeting of the French Association for the Advance- ment of Science, to be held at Pau, from the 15th to the 22d of September next, the Anthropological Section intends to devote most of its energies to settling ‘‘La Question Basque.” According to an announcement of the President of the Sec- tion, Dr. Magitot, the question is to be attacked on all four ’ sides: first, the history and origin of the Euskarian people; next, their anthropological characters: third, their language; and finally, their traditions and folk-lore. From such an onset as this we may hope for some positive results. Not much can be expected from a study of the language. There is probably no other living idiom which has had its vocabulary so completely foreignized as the Basque. At the Congrés Scientifique International des Catholiques last year, the Comte de Charency, who is a good authority on the tongue, stated that at least nine-tenths of its words were borrowed from the Latin and Romance languages, and then proceeded to point out that a considerable percentage of the remainder were Celtic, Greek, or Germanic in origin. There is almost nothing left of the original Euskarian but its grammar; and this, it may be added in passing, shows no relationship to that of either Ural-Altaic or American tongues, in spite of various statements to the contrary. SCraNGE [VoL. XX. No. 495 : On Left-Handedness. Why are most people right-handed ? Why are a few left-handed? These are questions which have puzzled all physiologists who have attempted their solution. The vari- ous theories put forward are compactly presented by Sir Daniel Wilson in his recent work, ‘‘ The Right Hand: Left- Handedness ” (London, 1891). His final conclusion is that left-handedness is due to ‘‘an exceptional development of the right hemisphere of the brain.” But it must be acknowl- edged that his evidence, consisting of a single autopsy, is far from sufficient. Sir Daniel calls attention to the fact that the forms of some ancient stone implements prove that paleolithic man was sometimes left-handed, and distinctly was not ambidex- trous, as some have maintained. He does not refer to De Mortillet’s tables in the Bull. Soc. D’Anthopologie, 1890, which show that at that time in France the men averaged more than twice as many left-handed individuals as at present; and at certain localities, as at Chassey, on the upper Rhone, the left-handed were in the large majority. In Sir Daniel’s generally very thorough volume there are but few references to this phenomenon in the lower animals, and no mention of its occurrence in snails. It may, indeed, sound like a ‘‘ bull,” to talk of animals as left-handed who have no hands, but the physiological phenomenon is plainly present. It is shown in the direction in which they con- struct the spiral of their shell. With the ordinary vine snail this is from left to right; but once in about 3,000 times it is from right to left. They are then known as sinistrorsa. In the genus Partula far more frequent examples occur, and indeed species have been named from this peculiarity. What- ever its cause, in mollusk and in man thesame law is operative. The Mentone Cave-Burials. Near Mentone, but on the Italian side of the frontier, there are several caves in the cretaceous sea-cliffs, whose contents have long attracted the lively attention of archeologists. Unluckily, they have been worked over so much that the original stratification is no longer apparent; but throughout the mass, flint chips and rude bone implements have been abundantly found, of such a character that they have been unanimously referred to paleolithic man, to that period of his existence in western Hurope which De Mortillet has called Solutreen. ‘i Thus far, all is harmony; but in this deposit, at various depths, skeletons have been unearthed, and a lively discus- sion ensued as to whether these should be considered also of palzeolithic time, or of later date. This debate has been re- newed by fresh discoveries of such remains in February last, a good description of which, by Mr. A Vaughan Jennings, appears in Natural Science for June. They are said to be of uuusual size, relics of men from six and a half to seven feet tall; but it is well known how easily one is deceived in measuring skeletons. With them were worked ornaments of bone and shell, necklaces, and finely-chipped arrowheads. These indications point conclusively to the fact of deliberate interment at a period when mortuary ceremonies were definite and solemn rites, and unquestionably, therefore, to neolithic times. In spite of the depth at which they were found, per- haps twenty-five feet below the modern level of the cave floor, they must be accepted as endorsing De Mortillet’s re- jection of the human remains as paleolithic. Ethnology as Philosophy. Among the most thoughtful writers on the meaning and mission of ethnology must be named Dr. A. H. Post of Jou 20)1892%)| Bremen. He is the author of several important works, and an essay of his, on ‘‘Ethnological Jurisprudence,” was translated and published last year in the Monist, at Chicago. In a recent number of the Globus he publishes some “Ethnological Reflections,” which are intended to set forth the true position of ethnology with reference to other sci- ences. He defines ethnology as ‘‘ the natural history of so- cial life,” and he believes that the time will come when all the so-called ‘‘ social sciences ” will be taught as its branches. He points out with force that this will bring about a revolu- tion in all traditional methods of education, for there is a fundamental and irreconcilable antagonism between the two methods. Natural science denies absolutely the free will of man, the validity of a priori reasoning on any sub- ject, the possibility of a ‘‘ categorical imperative ” in ethics, the abstract truth of any doctrine of religion or morals, the supremacy of any individual. All is an endless and un- avoidable chain of cause and effect. It appears to me that such a view of ethnology is true so far asit relates to the growth of societies under natural sur- roundings. ‘The social unit is cribbed and confined by iron laws, and its development is in a measure subject to these; but in a measure only. It is even less true of the individual. Yor to deny free-will to man not only leads at once into logical contradictions of the grossest kind, but is contrary to the soundest maxims of inductive philosophy. As John Stuart Mill, whom no one will accuse of prejudice, pointed out, we are certain of nothing so surely as of our own feel- ings, and of these the strongest is that of our own individu- ality, and of it as a free agent. Dr. Post has here committed the same error as another distinguished ethnologist, lately mentioned in these columns (Science, June 3), that of seeking to- make ethnology syn- thetic, when its study should be objective and analytic. Where it leads him, his article curiously shows. On one page he says that to the ethnologist no social condition is good or bad, but merely present asa subject for study; and on the very next page he falls to bewailing the egotistic strife in modern society as threatening the ruin of the social edi- fice! NOTES AND NEWS. THE next meeting the American Association for the Advance- ment of Science, to be held in Rochester, N.Y., Aug. 17-24, will be of unusual interest and importance, especially to the members of the Section of Biology. At this meeting will be considered the place of meeting for 1893, and consequently the attitude of the association toward the Columbian Exposition. But even of greater importance to biologists will be the consideration and probably the decision of the question of the division of the section into two, — one for the botanists, and one for the zoologists. It is hoped, also, that there will come up for discussion the report of the American Branch of the International Committee on Biological Nomen- clature. This report has nothing to do with the naming of Species, but will consider the terminology to be employed in an- atomy, embryology, etc. In view of the matters of general in- terest to the whole association, and those of vital interest to Section F, it is expected that there will be a large attendance of botanists and zoologists and a long list of papers to be presented before the present section of biology. — Bulletin No. 23 of the West Virginia Agricultural Experi- ment Station, entitled ‘‘ Illustrated Descriptive List of Weeds,” contains a considerable amount of information in a condensed form. It is written by Dr. C. F. Millspaugh, botanist of the sta- tion. Illustrations of all the important families, as well as ofa number of species, enable one unfamiliar with the weeds to recog- nize them. Short descriptions are given of each, with mention of SCIENCE. 61 any special medicinal value they may possess as household reme- dies. Some two hundred species are mentioned. One might reasonably question the justice of considering the locust (Robinia pseudacacia), the honey locust (Gleditschia triacanthos), or the wild hydrangea (Hydrangea arborescens) as weeds. The list would naturally not be the same for all States, but it is a little surprising not to find Potentilla norvegica mentioned. In south- western Ohio, and doubtless other localities, whole fields have been overrun by this plant, and it is much worse in this respect than P. canadensis, which is mentioned in the Bulletin. A num- ber of typographical errors show carelessness in proof-reading. — Ata meeting of the Paris Geographical Society on May 20, according to The Scottish Geographical Magazine, M. Venukoft gave a sketch of the surveys executed in Russia during the year 1891. After referring to the exploration of the Black Sea con- tinued by MM. Spindler, Andrussof, and Wrangell, of which an account was given on page 154 of this volume, he turned to the geodetic and topographical work executed in the Crimea, which has been the means of ascertaining that the Roman Kosh (5,601 feet high) is the culminating point of the mountains of the penin- sula, and not the Tchatyr Dagh (5,002 feet), as has hitherto been supposed. The phenomena of terrestrial magnetism and the local attractions of the mountains of the Crimea have also received at- tention. Among the geodetic works produced is a large map of the triangulation between Kishineff and Astrakhan, along the parallel of 47° 30’ N. This arc extends over nineteen degrees of longitude. It is remarkable that this triangulation, though quite independent, agrees exactly with that of the 52d parallel in regard to the anomalies observea@ in the length of different degrees of longitude (see vol. vii., p. 494). Between the same meridians the differences of the lengths of degrees of longitude, as measured geodetically and calculated astronomically, have always the same sign. — For several years the chemical division of the U. 8. Depart- ment of Agriculture, under H. W. Wiley, has been giving consid- erable attention to the subject of adulterants, and in part seventh of bulletin No. 13 is reported a series of investigations made on the adulterations of tea, coffee, and cocoa preparations. The conclu- sion reached is that teas are not now adulterated to so great an extent as formerly, and that the adulterants used are, as a rule, not such as may be considered prejudicial to health. In the case of coffee the use of adulterants seems to be on the increase. Of the samples of ground coffee examined, 90 per cent were found to be adulterated in some way, some of them containing no coffee whatever. Chicory is largely used as an adulterant of coffee, as well as wheat, rye, corn, peas, acorns, molasses, etc. Not only is ground coffee adulterated, but numerous imitations of unground coffee are on the market, a few imitating green coffee, but the larger number intended to be mixed with roasted coffees. The following description of some of them is taken from the bulletin: ‘©8951. Coffee pellets, molded, but not in the form of coffee beans. When mixed with ground coffee would escape the notice of the purchaser, also probably in mixture with whole coffee. Compo- sition; wheat flour and bran, rye also probably present. Manu- factured by the Clark Coffee Company, office 156 State Street, Boston; factory, Roxbury, Mass. Price, 6 cents per pound, or 54 cents in 10-barrel lots. The manufacturers claim that an addi- tion of 33 per cent of these ‘pellets’ to genuine coffee will make ‘an equal drink to the straight goods.’ The manufacturers, after making extravagant claims for their product, state, with evident intention to further a fraud, that ‘it is uniform in color, and can be furnished with any desired color of roast.’ 8,955. Imitation coffee beans. Composed of wheat flour, light roast. Manufactured by the Swedish Coffee Company, New York. 8,956. Similar to 8,955, and of the same manufacture. Composition; wheat flour and probably saw-dust. Dark roast; two kinds of berries. 8,957. Imitation coffee beans. Composition; wheat flour. Manufactured by L. H. Hall, 1,017 Chestnut Street, Phila- delphia, Pa.”’ Another method of sophisticating coffee is to treat it for the manufacture of coffee extract, after which the grains are roasted a second time, with the addition of a little sugar to cover the berries with a deceptive glazing. 62 SCIENCE. SCIENCE: A WEEKLY NEWSPAPER OF ALL THE ARTS AND SCIENCES. PUBLISHED BY N. D. €. HODGES, 874 BrRoADWAy, New York. SUBSCRIPTIONS.—United States and Canada..... .......-.. $3.50 a year. ° Great Britain and Europe................. 4.50 a year. Communications will be welcomed from any quarter. Abstracts of scientific papers are solicited, and one hundred copies of the issue containing such will be mailed the author on request in advance. Rejected manuscripts will be returned to the authors only when the requisite amount of postage accom- panies the manuscript. Whatever is intended for insertion must be authenti- cated by the name and address of the writer; not necessarily for publication, but as a guaranty of good faith. We do not hold ourselves responsible for any view or opinions expressed in the communications of our correspondents. Attention is called to the ‘‘ Wants” column. It is invaluable to those who use it in soliciting information or seeking new positions. The name and address of applicants should be given in full, so that answers will go direct to them. The “Exchange” column is likewise open. For Advertising Rates apply to Henry F. Taytor, 13 Astor Place, New York. MODERN BOTANY.’ BY CHARLES R. BARNES, PROFESSOR OF BOTANY IN THE UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN. I VENTURE to say that the ideas conjured up by the words “botany” and ‘‘botanists” in the minds of those of you whose school days ceased anywhere from fifteen to twenty years ago, or perhaps even at a later date, will be one which is very widely different from the ideas that those words ought to bring up. To most people the word ‘‘ botany” re- calls something which chiefly means the collecting of flow- ering plants in the spring; pulling flowers to pieces in an endeavor, too often a vain endeavor, to find out a long, hard name for the plant; an endeavor which is often vain unless they have acquired the very useful trick of looking in the index for the common name. The word ‘ botanist” brings to mind a sort of harmless crank who spends most of his time in wandering about fields and woods and poking into swamps and bringing home arms full or boxes full of plants; perchance drying them and preserving them. Yet these two ideas are so extremely foreign to the subject of botany as it is thought of to-day, that I venture to present to you some hints of what modern botany is, and particularly what mod- ern botany is on its economic side. The study that I have indicated as being the common one is the study of a part only of botany ; one to be sure which is not without its value; but it is only the most elementary part of the subject. It was very natural that when people began, in the revival of learning, and at the close of the middle ages, to study plants, they should first turn their attention to the plants which were nearest at hand, and to those plants which attracted their attention most readily on account of their size. So we find that the early studies of plants are almost exclusively an attempt to describe and classify; at first simply to de- scribe the plants which one found about him; later to ascer- tain what the relations of these plants to each other were. 1 An address delivered before the State Agricultural Society of Wisconsin, Feb. 1, 1892; stenographically reported and published by permission of the secretary in advance of the volume of Proceedings for the year. [Vor. XX. No. 495 From that day until the present this study and classification of the higher plants has been almost the only subject to which any very great attention has been given. In ourown country the people who came to it, if they had had any train- ing at all in botany, had been impressed with the importance of the same ideas. They had come to a new country. It was their first duty to make known to those abroad who were studying plants, what the flora of this country was; and, from the year 1750 on, collections of great number and often of considerable value went across the water. From 1750 to late in the present century little attention was given to any other department of botany; and it is only within the last ten or fifteen years that descriptive botany has had any competitors for favor. In Germany, however, the matter is widely different; it has been a much longer time since systematic botany, the study of plants as far as their classification is concerned, was the only topic which attracted attention. The reason of this is perfectly evident. People exhausted the subject to a certain degree in that coun- try, and they then naturally turned their attention to some other phase of plant study. Germany and France stand far in advance of this country to-day in the investigations which their botanists have pursued, solely because of the longer time during which they have been at work, and the greater amount of time which each investigator is able to give to his own special] subject. But students nowadays are not expected to collect flowers and find out their names and then congratulate themselves that they have studied botany. They are put to work with the microscope to see the very minutest arrangement of the complicated machinery of plants. They are set to work with the pencil to delineate these arrangements; to record their observation in a way which appeals at once to the eye, with- out the intervention of words; and, in spite of the repeated assertion that they cannot draw, they are told to do the very thing which they cannot do until they have learned how to do it. They are asked to equip themselves with chemical and physical knowledge, in order that they may be able to study this machinery in action; and when they have attained a sufficient knowledge of other sciences, then, and then only, can they expect to unravel some of the mysteries of plant life, in many ways the least mysterious of organic things. Now, what is the object and purpose of such training as this? First, it is to develop skill of eye, hand, and brain. It is to bring to them something of those qualities to which the essayist of the evening alluded. It is to enable them to see in the material things around them something more than bits of matter. It is to enable them to gain that breadth of comprehension and grasp of intellect which it is desirable that every educated man should attain. I hope, therefore, that the members of this society will use their utmost en- deavor to have this sort of vital and vitalizing study com- menced in the schools below the college and university; in what we may call the primary schools as contrasted with the secondary ones. Most of the high schools in the State to-day, I am sorry to say, are studying this subject in the same way in which it was studied twenty-five years ago, and they are doing this work partly because they have had no pull from higher schools to lift them to a higher level, and partly be- cause they know no better way. On its economic side this sort of training has its chief value, and it is that, I take it, in which the members of this society are mainly interested. Let me select a few topics from the very great number at my disposal in order to illus- trate to you, if I can, just what the economic bearing of this JuLY 29, 1892. | science is; just what we may expect from it; just what we have a right to demand from it. Take the single topic of the culture of plants. In how far has that been exhausted? How much do we really know about the reasonableness of our modes of cultivation ? How much do we know about the effect of other modes of culti- vation than those which have been in vogue for fifty, or one hundred, or hundreds of years? One suggestion in this direc- ‘tion may suffice as an illustration. If any man should sow Indian corn in the same way that he sows wheat, with the expectation of obtaining any crop of grain from it, we should almost consider him an idiot. And yet I wonder whether it is very much less idiotic to sow wheat in the way that we do, with the expectation of attaining the best results possible from this as a grain crop. I do not say that we do not get a crop, often a good crop. A magnificent one, as compared with what we have ever had, has been raised in the past year; but who knows whether the cultivation of wheat in some- thing the same way in which Indian corn is cultivated, that is, by giving it a much greater range for obtaining its nour- ishment, and better advantages of light and air, would not increase the yield by a very large percentage? Indeed, there have been some experiments, on not a very small scale, which would seem to indicate that there are possibilities . in this direction which we have not yet even attempted to ascertain. You hear a great deal from our own university experi- ment station about the food of animals; and Professor Henry is constantly experimenting to ascertain just what are the best foods to produce a given result with a given animal. He has endeavored to ascertain sométhing of the effect of different rations upon the bones, upon the muscles, upon the fat of various animals. Why should we not have some ex- periments carried on in regard to the food of plants? Does anybody know what the effect of a given ration of food for a plant will be? So far as I can recollect, experiments on what we may designate as feeding plants, have been carried on to a very limited extent. We have endeavored to ascer- tain particularly where plants obtain their nitrogen; and for the last twenty-five years, almost, this question has been one under experiment and under discussion. I suppose that many of you know something of the prolonged experiment which has been carried on at Rothamstead; and perhaps some of you know of the recent experiments of Hellriegel and Wilfarth, and Frank, men who are endeavoring to find out whether plants, when kept in very vigorous condition, can obtain nitrogen from the air, or whether it is absolutely necessary to get it from compounds in the soil. Here isa problem which has been attacked in the way these other questions ought to be attacked, and in the very way in which we may expect a solution of these thousands of other problems in regard to feeding plants. The most recent experiments in regard to this source of nitrogen for plants make it quite possible that when plants are in a very vigorous and thrifty condition they are then able to fix the free nitrogen of the air; and that when they are not at their highest notch of vigor, they are then able to get their supply of nitrogen only from nitrogenous compounds in the soil. On this very point we have some recent experiments that perhaps would interest you; and, bear in mind, I am only mentioning these as illustrative. Jam trying to show the necessity for sucha preparation in botanical study as will enable the men who are most deeply and profoundly interested in this very study to carry on some of those experiments that it seems so highly desirable to carry on. SCIENCE. 63 Only a few months ago a paper was published by two of the men who have been experimenting longest on this matter of nitrogen assimilation; and they give some hints in regard to the harvesting of those plants which produce large quan- tities of nitrogenous material that may turn out to be of very great money value. It has been found that the contents of leaves of clover, so far as nitrogen was concerned, was very much greater at the close of the day, or near the close of the day, than it was in the morning or during the forenoon. That is, during the day, especially on bright and sunny days, the plants were able to manufacture large quantities of these materials. Now one of the main things for which our clover crop is grown is the large amount of nitrogenous materials which it contains as compared with other fodders. It is quite plain that if these results are correct, the harvesting of such a crop as this near the close of the day is going to give us a fodder whose money value is decidedly greater than that of one harvested early in the day, before the plant has been able to manufacture these substances; for in the course of the night the large majority of them are utilized for the plant's own growth, and are converted into other forms of material which are less valuable as animal food. But I cannot dwell upon that topic. Let me give you a hint from another field. Perhapsif I should ask any of you what is the purpose of the shade-trees along the streets of our cities and villages the answer would be quite unanimous that these trees were for shade and beauty; and yet these trees are not used for that purpose. At least nobody, I think, would imagine that that was their use, if he passed along the streets of our own city. He would think that the main purpose of the best elms was to furnish adequate stays for some electric pole or to support the telephone wires which pass through them. He would suppose, if he saw the city force making a street, that the chief purpose of the roots of the trees was to be grubbed out of the way for the first curbstone or sidewalk that the city wished to put along that way. If one saw people trimming their shade-trees, he would think that the main advantage of these was to afford an object les- son as to how badly work could be done, and how much injury could be inflicted upon an unoffending plant, appar- ently with the intention of affording it early relief from its sufferings by death. Our treatment of shade-trees in the streets of cities and villages is one of the crying shames of this day. Watch the ‘‘trimming” of street trees. Ignorant laborers half chop and half break off the limb of a tree, and leave the rough end exposed to wind and weather instead of caring for the wound properly. Weseem to think we have no more duties towards that particular tree except to ged rid of a branch that may be a little bit in our way. We do the very thing which will subject that tree to the greatest danger. We offer the very best chance for the attack of parasitic ani- mals and plants on that tree; as though our main purpose was to destroy it, instead of our alleged intent, to trim it in order to maintain and augment its beauty. This naturally suggests the management of forests. Man- agement of forests? We hardly know of such a thing in this country. We do not manage our forests. We simply cut them down, and then are glad that the cutters can move on to some other acre and cut it down in the same way. We have made almost no provision in this country for maintain- ing our supply of timber. People may say what they please about the inexhaustibility of our forest resources. Those of you who have given the subject any attention know that it is utter folly to say that our forest resources are inexhausti- ble, or that they are not being exhausted at a most extrava- 64 SCIENCE. gant rate. Now men trained in the knowledge of how plants live and grow and behave have some basis on which they can suggest ways of managing forests which will not only yield all the timber that is needed at the present time, but which will enable these forests to continue to yield such sup- plies for an indefinite period of years. Forest management is not unknown in other countries. Wesimply have trained no men in this country to have any idea what forest man- agement means. And then we have the immense subject of diseases of plants, and that is a study which seems to have attracted the greatest attention at the present day. The division of vege- table pathology at the Department of Agriculture at Wash- ington is receiving a vast deal more attention than the divi- sion of forestry, and yet I doubt very much whether its money value to the people is any greater. The money value of the study of both these subjects to the American people, and particularly to the farmers of the country, is almost beyond calculation. We hardly realize what this money value is. We are so used to losing a certain percentage of our farm crops by diseases that we really pay no attention to it. If our animals, our flocks and herds, should be deci- mated as often as the crops are, we should hear such a hue and cry as would bring immediate attention on all hands to it. I suppose there is no one of you, who has given the subject a moment’s thought, but will agree with me that the Joss from rust on the wheat crop for the present year, stated in the very lowest possible terms, could not fall below one per cent. How much money does that mean on six hundred odd million bushels of wheat? It means several million more than has been laid out in the study of plants in all the centuries. It means a great many hundreds of thousands of dollars more than we shall lay out the next century for the study of plants; and yet we are learning and can learn how not only to check but how absolutely to pre- vent such diseases as this. I do not say that this particular one can be absolutely checked at the present time, but we know ways in which it can be reduced to a minimum, even at present. The same thing might be said in regard to such diseases as those of the smut in corn and oats. Very careful estimates of certain years have shown us that as much as ten per cent sometimes of an oat crop is damaged by that one disease alone. That might mean a good many millions of dollars on that one crop. So that a study of these plant dis- eases is by no means either fruitless or valueless. But you say, ‘‘Why not let anybody who is concerned with these matters study them?” Chiefly because it is not possible for any man who does not know something of the life history of the parasite which causes a disease to go about checking or curing it. He may guess at some remedy, and he may, bya lucky guess, hitupon the right remedy. He may think of some process that possibly will turn out the right one, but he is not nearly so apt to think about the right pro- cess or to hit upon the right experiment as the man who has been properly trained for this kind of work. That sort of training means time to study, and time to work, and money support while the work is being carried on. I might dwell at very much greater length on these vari- ous topics; but enough has been said, I hope, to give you some idea of what modern botany is and what the modern botanist is, It will at least give you a truer idea than you would have if you considered him merely as the man who goes out and gathers some plants, useful as this may be, or the man who tears apart some flowers to find out what the names of the flowers are. Rather, I would haye you think of the [VoLt. XX. No. 495 botanists of the country as those men who are studying means of discovering, checking, and curing the plant dis- eases; men who are studying how plants grow, and how they may be helped in their growth and not harmed. They are men who are studying what is the rational basis for our modes of culture; and it is to these men the agriculturist must turn, with the hope that their experiments will lead him in the future, as they have in the past, to more rational modes of cultivation, and to better knowledge of the organ- isms, the very intricate organisms in spite of their simplicity, with which he has constantly to deal. NOTES ON A DESTRUCTIVE FOREST TREE SCOLYTID. BY ANDREW D. HOPKINS. THE family of beetles known as Scolytide contains in this country, so far as known, something over 160 species. They are small, cylindrical, brown or black beetles. The largest one of the family, Dendroctonus terebrans, is thirty-two hun- dredths of an inch long, while the smallest, Cripturgus atomus, is but four hundredths of an inch long. Witha few exceptions, beetles belonging to this family breed in the bark of wood of different forest and fruit trees. Hach species usually has a preference for certain kinds of trees. Those feeding on the bark are called bark beetles, while those entering the wood are termed. timber beetles. The bark beetles breed in and feed upon the inner bark of trees or logs, and when fully developed emerge through the bark, leaving it pierced with small round holes. The timber beetles enter directly through the bark, making their ‘‘ pin-hole” tunnels in all directions through the wood; their eggs are deposited in these tunnels, and when the young are fully developed they emerge from the original entrance made by the parent beetle. It has been claimed that Scolytids never attack healthy, living trees. We acknowledge that as arule the different species of this family have a preference for unhealthy trees or those which have been broken by storm or felled by the axe, but in this Dendroctonus frontalis we certainly have an exception to the rule. From.the abundant evidence I have obtained during extended and careful investigation, I am convinced that the death of large and small, vigorous trees of five species of pine and of the black spruce was caused primarily by the attack of this insect; in fact, this species seems to have a preference for the green bark on the living pine and spruce which they invade. As Entomologist of this Station, I have conducted some investigations regarding the ravages of this beetle, and, since May 2 of this year, have travelled about 340 miles through some of the principal regions of the State, where the pine and spruce are most common. The species of pine observed were the White Pine (Pinus alba), the Yellow Pine (P. echinata), the Pitch Pine (P. rigida), the Table Mountain Pine (P. pungens), and the common Scrub Pine (P. inops). The Black Spruce (Picea Mariana) is also a common and valuable tree on some 500,000 acres of the higher mountains and table-lands of this State. Trees varying from five inches in diameter to the largest, finest specimens of the five species of pine mentioned, and of the Black Spruce, were found dying in different sections from a cause which it was my duty to investigate. 3 BECAUSE -‘‘It is the best medium ¢ through which a busy man can keep abreast.’’—Chauncey M. Depew. @ BECAUSE—“ The ‘ keview of Reviews’ is always interesting.’’—W. ¥. Sun. m BECAUSE—‘‘ The usual bright and tren- chant analysis of literary novelties furnishes ideas for people who have none of their own.”—Wew York Com- mercial Advertiser. BECAUSE—It makes a Summer Price of 9 FIVE MONTHS FOR ONE DOLLAR. 26 CTS. ANUMBER. THE REVIEW OF REVIEWS, @ $2.50 A YEAR. AGENTS WANTED. 13 ASTOR PLACE, N. Y- HE Busy Mans MAGAZINE. EDUCATIONAL. Walker Prizes in Natural History. ‘The Boston Society of Natural History offers a first prize of from $60 to $100 and asecond prize of a sum not exceeding $5), for the best memoirs, in English, on the following subject: CONTRIBUTIONS TO OUR KNOWLEDGE OF eee LIFE-HISTORY OF ANY PLANT OR ANI- AL. Each memoir must be accompanied by a sealed envelope, enclosing the author’s name and super- scribed by a motte corresponding to one borne by the manuscript, and must be handed to the Secre- tary on or before April 1, 1893. Prizes will not be awarded unless the memoirs are deemed of adequate merit. For further particulars apply to SAMUEL HENSHAW, Secretary. Boston, July 26, 1892. THE OBSERVER. Published Monthly at Portland, Conn. A MEDIUM OF INTERCHANGE OF OBSERVATIONS FOR ALL SLUDENTS AND. LOVEKS, OF NATURE. E. F. BIGELOW, Editor and Publisher. ASSOCIATE EDITORS: M. A. BOOTH, F.R.M.S., Microscopy, Longmeadow, Mass. JNO. H. SAGE, Ornithology, Portland, Conn. A. W. PEARSON, Entomology, Norwich, Conn. C. A. SHEPARD, Botany, New Britain, Conn. C. A. HARGRAVE, Conchology, Danville, ind. F. P. GORHAM, Geology, 103 Knight St., Providence, R. I. Yearly Subscription, $1. Single Number, 10 Cents. Minerals, VA 5 Z ine Stuffed Animals Rock, Ward’sNatural Science Establishment)..." castsot rows, Mineralogy, Geology, Paleontology, Zoology, Osteology, Anatomy. |anatomicat Retiermaps.| Send for Circular. ROCHIESTER, N. Y. |amverteprave ENC NEW YORK, AUGUST 12, 1892. THE CHIEF MOUNTAIN LAKES. BY GEORGE BIRD GRINNELL. In Volume I., Pacific Railroad Reports, pp. 548-549, Mr. James Doty speaks of visiting the Chief Mountain Lake, and describes it and its companion sheet of water. The maps of ' that survey and other more recent ones show lakes to which this name is given, and references in some recent literature apply to the lakes shown on those maps. The lakes so named are, however, not the ones mentioned by Mr. Doty, but lie about 25 or 30 miles to the north and west of those which he visited, and it would appear that since Mr. Doty’s time no geographer has recognized the lakes which he saw and which he speaks of as “‘the well-known Chief Mountain Lake.” Those called by this name on goy- ernment maps and referred to in reports of the international boundary survey, published in 1876, are locally known as Kutenai Lakes, but, of course, are not to be confounded with the true Kutenai lakes lying on the Pacific slope and in the bend of the Columbia River. The so-called Kutenai, or Little Kutenai, lakes are crossed by the international boundary line and form the sources of the Little Kutenai or Waterton River, and it is probable should be known as the Waterton Lakes. Chief Mountain is a well-known land- mark of north-western Montana, but the Chief Mountain Lakes are unknown in that country, and the lakes mentioned by Mr. Doty are locally known as the St. Mary’s Lakes, while the large river flowing from them is called St. Mary’s River. It is the most important stream meeting Belly River from the south. The town of Lethbridge, in Alberta, N. W. T., stands at the junction of these two rivers. Mr. Doty’s description of his route, of the country, and of Chief Mountain Lake is very clear, and anyone who is familiar with the region traversed will at once recognize that the lakes on St. Mary’s River are Chief Mountain Lakes. For a number of years I have been in the habit of visiting the region in question, which has been practically unknown even to hunters and trappers, and have explored a section embracing perhaps 900 square miles. I quote from Mr. Doty’s narrative of his journey from Two Medicine Lodge Creek to the Chief Mountain Lakes. Under date of May 27 he says: ‘‘ The country is considerably broken by high hills and narrow valleys of spring brooks, filled with thickets of poplar and willow and flooded by beaver dams. In twelve miles came to a fine stream [now known as Willow Creek] which is a branch of Cut Bank River; and in sixteen miles reached the Cut Bank itself, the most northerly forkof Marias River. It is a rapid stream, fifty feet wide, and flows through arich valley. . . . A broad lodge-trail leads up the valley indicating that the pass is considerably used — probably by the Pend d’ Oreilles and Kootenaies who come through to hynt buffalo. Crossed at a good ford; pushed on over a range of high hills and en- camped on a small stream eight miles from Cut Bank River, which is no doubt one of the sources of Milk River. .. . ‘“May 28. Morning cold, and the bills are white with snow. The country is quite flat and full of springs and spring brooks, which are the sources of Milk River. Onour left is a heavy forest of pine timber fifteen miles in length and extending into the plain eight miles from the base of the mountains. Immediately after passing the point we obtained a view of the chief (sic) of King Mountain, which is a bare rocky peak of a square form, standing at a distance of five or six miles from the main chain, and connected with it by a high ridge wooded with pine. In seventeen miles came to a broad valley, the sides of which are wooded with pine and poplar; and in the bottom, five hundred feet below us, wesaw the blue water of a mountain lake. This is the well-known Chief Mountain Lake. It takes its name from Chief Mountain. . . . Descending into the valley, in four mniles, we reached the lake and encamped in a beautiful prairie bordering it. ‘“May 29. Moved up the lake three miles to its inlet and encamped. In this camp we remained until June 5th... . ‘‘Chief Mountain Lake is seven miles long by one broad. Its banks are low and shore gravelly; the water clear and very deep. The valley of the lake is six miles in breadth, and is rolling prairie interspersed with groves of cottonwood and poplar, and in the low places the birch and willow. The soil is a reddish loam and is. fertile, as is indicated by the luxurious vegetation. Pine of a fairsizeand thrifty growth is abundant and can easily be obtained, and there are inex- haustible quarries of good limestone. ““Connected with Chief Mountain Lake is another three- fourths of a mile wide and extending some nine miles into the mountains in the form of a bow, and I therefore called it ‘Bow Lake.’ It is shut in by mountains coming close down to the water, and has no valley susceptible of cultiva- tion. ‘““The mean of observations for latitude gives as the lati- tude of this, the south end, of Chief Mountain Lake 48° 43’ 09”, or 17 miles south of the boundary line. . . . Numerous little streams emptying into these lakes are filled with beaver dams and beaver, this industrious ani- mal having been left in quiet possession of this country since the low price of its fur has rendered it unprofitable to trap them. Hlk, moose, and deer are abundant, and salmon trout of large size are taken in the lakes. “June 5. Started due north along the lake-shore, and in seven miles came to the outlet at the extreme northern end. The outlet is called in the Blackfoot language Mo-ko un or Belly River. It is a swift, deep stream where it comes from the lake and about 80 feet wide, and its course for some miles is due north. Thisis the most southerly of the head-waters of the Saskatchewan River.” This excellent description of the country makes it clear to my mind that the name Chief Mountain Lakes belongs fo those lakes, in north-western Montana, which are locally known as the St. Mary’s Lakes. This name was given them nearly fifty years ago by Hugh Munroe, an old Hudson’s Bay man, and Mr. Doty’s companion on the oecasion of his visit to the lakes. It would seem from Mr. Doty’s description that the stream 86 | SCIENCE. which we know as St. Mary’s River is the true Belly River. This seems natural and proper, for at the point where they meet, the St. Mary’s is a larger stream than Belly River. As stated by Mr. Doty these lakes are two in number, the lower about seven miles long by a mile wide, the upper per- haps eleven miles long and nowhere more than a mile in width. The lower lake lies north and south, and the upper, Mr. Doty’s Bow Lake, is bent about half-way up its length, its upper or south-western half lying nearly east and west, and its lower or northern half nearly north and south. Beyond the head of this upper lake is the narrow river-val- ley running back in two principal branches for a dozen miles and heading on the Continental Divide. The southernmost of the two branches is much the larger of the two, and is fed by extensive glaciers, which I have visited. The lower end of the lower lake is not more than seven or eight miles from the Chief Mountain, the most striking landmark in this region. The waters flowing into the St. Mary’s River are divided from those which flow into Cut Bank and Milk Rivers, tributaries of the Missouri, by a high ridge running out from the Rocky Mountains, and known as Milk River Ridge. BIRDS BREEDING AT HANOVER, NEW HAMP-— SHIRE. BY CLARENCE M. WEED. THE village of Hanover, N.H., is in the region dividing the Canadian and Alleghanian faunas, and possesses many animal forms from both. To assist in determining more definitely the precise limits cf these faunas, the Ornithologi- eal Club of the New Hampshire College undertook last spring to record the birds breeding within five miles of Han- over. The following list includes the species observed this season by the members of the club. Hspecial mention should be made of the assistance rendered by Messrs. P. L. Barker, R. A. Campbell, and C. E. Hewitt. Green Heron, Ardea virescens. One nest observed. American Woodcock, Philohela minor. Three nests ob- served. Ruffled Grouse, Bonasa wmbellus. Cooper’s Hawk, Accipiter cooperi One nest observed. Acadian Owl, Nyctala acadica. One nest observed. Black-billed Cuckoo, Coccyzus erythrophalmus. One nest observed. Belted Kingfisher, Ceryle alcyon. Two nests observed. Downy Woodpecker, Picus pubescens. One nest ob- served. Golden-winged Woodpecker, Colaptes auratus. Two nests observed. Night Hawk, Chordeiles virginianus. One nest found fifteen miles south-east of Hanover; and others reported by outsiders within three miles of the village. Chimney Swallow, Chetura pelagica. Many nests. Ruby-throated Humming-Bird, Trochilus colubris. nest. Kingbird, Tyrannus tyrannus. One nest. Pewee, Sayornis phoebe. Many nests. Traills’ Flycatcher, Empidonax pusillus, var. trailli. One nest. Least Flycatcher, Empidonax minimus. One nest seen at Grafton Centre, N.H., fifteen miles south-east. Blue Jay, Cyanocitta cristata. One nest at Fairlee, Vt., eighteen miles north. Three nests observed. One [Vot. XX. No. 497 Crow, Corvus americanus. Two nests. Bobolink, Dolichonyx oryzivorus. One nest. Cowbird, Molothrus ater. Three eggs found in a bobo- link’s nest. Red-winged Blackbird, Agelaius phoeniceus. Baltimore Oriole, Icterus galbula. Several nests. Red Crossbill, Laxia curvirostra. In 1891 a very young specimen was brought me that apparently must have been raised in this vicinity. Yellowbird, Spinus tristis. Two nests. Purple Finch, Carpodacus purpureus. One nest. Bay-winged Bunting, Poocetes gramineus. Several nests. English Sparrow, Passer domesticus. Several nests. Savanna Sparrow, Ammodramus sandwichensis, var. sa- vanna. One nest. Chipping Sparrow, Spizella socialis. Song Sparrow, Melospiza fasciata. Swamp Sparrow, M. georgiana. One nest. Snow Bird, Junco hyemalis. One nest observed at Graf- ton Centre, N.H., fifteen miles south-east. Indigo Bird. Passerina cyanea. Two nests seen in Two nests. Several nests. Several nests. 1891. Barn Swallow, Chelidon erythrozaster. One nest ob- served. Purple Martin, Progne subis. One nest. Bank Swallow, Clivicola riparia. Two nests. Cedar Bird, Ampelis cedrorum. Two nests. Great Northern Shrike, Lanius borealis. Two nests. Red-eyed Vireo, Vireo olivaceus. One nest. Yellow Warbler, Dendroica estiva. One nest. Chestnut-sided Warbler, Dendroica Pennsylvanica. One nest. American Redstart, Setophaga ruticilla. Oven-bird, Sevurus aurocapillus. One nest. Catbird, Galeoscoptes carolinensis. Two nests. Brown Thrush, Harporhynchus rufus One nest. House Wren, Troglodytes edor. One nest. Short-billed Marsh Wren, Cistothorus stellaris. supposed to be of this species is reported. Chickadee, Parus atricapillus. Two nests. Tawny Thrush, Turdus fuscescens. Three nests. Hermit Thrush, T. pallasi. Two nests. Robin, Merula migratoria. Several nests. Blue Bird, Sialia sialis. Several nests. Of course this list includes only a portion of the birds breeding here, but it may serve as a basis for future obser- vations. One nest. A nest New Hampshire College. HOT WEATHER IN MARS. BY PROFESSOR EDWIN J. HOUSTON. THE recent severe, protracted, hot weather, that existed in the central and eastern portions of the United States during the latter part of July, formed, in all probability, but part of various general phenomena produced by profound solar disturbances. So many of the earth’s natural phenomena find their origin in the solar radiation, that it is impossible to vary either the amount or the distribution of the solar energy without markedly modifying terrestrial phenomena. Such influences, however, are not limited to terrestrial phe- nomena; they must extend beyond the earth and be shared by all the members of the solar system. AUGUST 12, 1892. | Natural phenomena form but links in endless chains of cause and effect. An evolution or expenditure of energy, such, for example, as that following a sun spot, produces a number of allied phenomena which are themselves the causes of subsequent phenomena, and these in turn the causes of still other phenomena, the chain extending in most instances far beyond our ken. There has been unusual solar activity during 1892, as has been evidenced by an unusual number of sun spots. The great spot observed in Philadelphia and elsewhere in the early part of the year was one of the largest ever studied, and since that time numerous other abnormally large spots have appeared. It would seem that these rather unusual outbursts of solar energy have produced the following terrestrial phenomena, viz. :— (J.) The recent brilliant auroral displays. (2.) Magnetic storms, or marked disturbances in the values of the magnetic intensity, in inclination and declination. (3.) Unusually severe electric storms, as evidenced by the existence of abnormal earth currents. These electric storms are in reality connected with the magnetic storms. (4.) Marked disturbances in the earth’s meteorological phenomena. These have been evidenced by the long spells of unseasonable weather that have occurred so frequently in the United States during 1892, one of which was the recent unusally hot weather before alluded to, the unusual severity of which accords well with the unusual solar activity. So, too, does the severity of the allied phenomena. Take, for example, the auroral displays, which have seldom been equalled in these latitudes for brilliancy. So also the electric- storms and magnetic-storms, which have been unusually se- vere during 1892. According to the observations of Mr. Finn and others, as many as eleven such storms were recorded during this time. Their dates were as follows: February 13, March 6, March 12, April 24, April 25, April 26, May 16, May 17, May 18, July 12, and July 16. The storm of July 16 was unusually severe, and caused great disturbances on the various telegraph lines. The earth- currents were so strong that the lines could be operated en- tirely by means of earth-currents. This was done, for exam- ple, in the case of one of the lines between New York and Boston. On the same day, July 16, an enormous spot appeared on the sun. And now for possible extra-terrestrial influences and phe- nomena, The recent opposition of Mars has brought that planet nearer the earth than she has been at any time since 1877, and nearer than she will ever be again until 1909. The opportunity has therefore been particularly good for studying those peculiarities of the surface that have always been of such interest to astronomers. Some observations recently made on Mount Hamilton ap- pear to show a marked decrease in the mass of snow within the polar caps, as is inferred from certain characteristic markings at these points of the planet. This disappearance is unusual, and would seem to indicate unusually hot weather in our sister planet. The Martian thermometer bas probably _ been way up, and the weather has, to form a phrase from the fiery color of the planet, been at a red-heat. We may add, therefore, another effect produced by the unusual sun-spot, viz., 5. The extra-terrestrial effects. Of course the influence may be mutual. It may be that the unusual proximity of Mars may be the cause of the great number of spots, in which case we may thank Mars for the recent terrific heat. SCIEN CI: 87 ““WLATHEAD” DEER. In the American Naturalist for August, 1887, were given some instances of the occurrence among deer of hornless specimens. Here we shall summarize these, preparatory to giving in full some original particulars furnished us by a German correspondent. Lord Lovat is quoted as haying seen hwmle (hornless) stags. They are able to thrash stags of their own or greater than their own weight. Several of them were undisputed masters of large herds. Mr. Horatio Ross has also shot them. frequent than generally supposed. ferior to their horned brethren. A full-grown humle is very formidable in fight. During the rutting season Mr. Ross has seen one in possession of a large herd of hinds, who drove off all rivals. Both these gentlemen’s experience refers toScotland. The following mentioned special cases refer to Germany, H. von Nathusius of Altaldensleben, Saxony, and Ludwig Beckman have supplied very interesting information which is well worth reading to those interested in venery. These hornless deer occur wild, they write, and are very fertile and impressive. In the Jllustrirte Zeitung, published in Leipzig (Oct. 2, 1886), there is a picture of a fight between a horned and a hornless stag, in which the hornless stag dis- plays the mastery. Hornless stags have been mentioned in German sporting literature since the seventeenth century. These are cases of what is regarded as variation, but which really appear tobe referable to atavism, as will be immedi- ately seen. There are two species of deer that are normally destitute of horns as a characteristic. The first of these is the musk- deer; these have peculiarly long canine teeth. These (Mos- chus moschiferous) are natives of Thibet and Nepaul. The second is the water-deer, Hydropetes inermis. It is found in the marshes of the Yangtze, above Chin-kiang, China. The Chinese are strongly averse to the flesh, which Euro- peans, for want of better, pronounce tolerable. Passing from living to extinct forms of deer, we find that, tracing them backwards, they become more and more simple as to horns, till reaching the lower miocene no member of the family is possessed of antlers. It will thus be admitted that the claim that instances of hornless deer of the present time are only cases of atavism, or reversion to the early condition of the head of the species, is simply the truth. Further, the above facts prove that horns are of the nature of acquired characters— a rather interesting fact just now to bring out in connection with the Wiesmannia that is raging. The following is a translation of the communication we received from our German correspondent : — ‘‘The hunter of the deer species has for long designated the deer which are destitute of antlers by the name of ‘ flat- heads,’ or mceenche. On the skull of such deer appears a so-called hornbase, usually the real bearers of the antlers, remarkably stunted and entirely overgrown with the elon- gated hair of the forehead. The cause of such striking ap- pearance is often held to be the long-continued inbreeding occurring in certain districts, or the lack of new blood ob- tained by bringing in deer not related. “Tf we notice how the deer and roebueks which have been confined for domestication and freely fed with oats, rye, peas, corn, acorns, chestnuts, and beechnuts, often develop uncommonly large and branching antlers, it seems just to conclude that a lack of these and other means of nourish- ment hinders the growing of horns. In fact the so-called They are more They are no whit in- ‘ 88 ‘flatheads’ are more particularly found in the pine-wood regions, where game is obliged to subsist solely upon heather forage (sweet broom), and where food is to be found only in occasional places. ‘* As transitory forms, there are also in such districts, in addition to the few flatheads found at all times, deer having one ‘scurr’ or stunted horn, while the other horn is well developed, bearing perhaps ten to twelve branches, and the majority of the rest of the deer have only small, smooth antlers-of light color, some curiously bent or spirally twisted. Deer which instead of antlers beara long, straight, spear-like horn on one side were formerly called ‘ provincial murderers,’ as they were considered a very dangerous enemy of other deer during the rutting season, and on which ac- count their destruction was sought. ‘‘In the main, these so-called deformities, and even the total absence of antlers on the flatheads, can in no way be considered an indication of the lack of procreative power, nor can they be classed with the abnormal forms or the total loss of antlers, which results from injuries, and which reappear in their young. The flathead deer are seldom unequal in strength or weight to the others of the same age and the same district, but occasionally excel the latter in these re- spects. They also early enter the rutting season, and show themselves equally ready for the conflict. Their art and manner of fighting are singular enough; like the female, they rise up high on their hind feet, and with their fore-feet they, from above, mercilessly strike their antagonist. It is remarkable how the antler-bearing antagonist intuitively enters such conflict by rising on his hind feet, making no use of his terrible weapons. On such occasions the flathead, having developed superior skill in his movements, almost always puts to flight in a few rounds much larger deer with immense forked horns. Also at other seasons the contests may be observed in regions where the flatheads are found, and where at times a troop of such game is run together into a narrow space, as is the case occasionally during the prepa- rations of a suspended hunt; yet those encounters are less fierce and soon ended, as they are brought on by the momen- tary invitations and accidental meeting of the deer in the press.” Have there been any cases of deer, bisons, ete., with ‘flat’ or hornless heads noticed in America ? A. SOME ANALOGIES BETWEEN MOLECULES AND CRYSTALS. - BY JOHN W. CALDWELL. CHEMISTRY and crystallography are closely related branches; they are, indeed, but parts of one great whole. The special design of chemical laws is to present the methods and conditions of the re-arrangement of atoms, which re-ar- rangements we generally denominate chemical reactions. The laws of crystallography, on the other hand, primarily relate to the element of form. While the first series of laws concerns the arrangements of atoms, the second takes cog- nizance of the arrangements of molecules: while the one considers the influence of the chemical force of affinity, the other is concerned with the physical force of crystalliza- tion. A consideration and comparison of the most important laws of the two series will develop, I think, a most interesting parallelism and correspondence. Thus, the first great law of chemistry is that of definite proportions, in which is stated the principle of the fixed and unchanging composition of SCIENCE: [Vot. XX. No. 497 every compound. It finds its satisfactory analogue in the crystallographic law of the constancy of the interfacial angles, first propounded by Steno in 1669, and re-enunciated by Romé de V'isle in 1783. It affirms that for a certain crystal species, under conditions of absolute identity of chem- ical constitution and equality of temperature, the correspond- ing interfacial angles in different individuals will be found always to be equal and constant; and this holds in imperfect as well as perfect crystals. It is evident then, that what the law of definite proportions is, in regard to chemical con- stitution, the law of constancy of the interfacial angles is, in respect to crystalline form. Another equally perfect and beautiful correspondency obtains between the law of multiple proportions and that of the rationality of the indices. The former emphasizes the simple multiple ratio of one element as it unites with some other element to form two or more compounds; whereas the latter, an important crystallographic law, attributed to Haiiy, articulates the remarkabie fact that the modifications of specific crystalline form always take place by a multipli- cation of one or more of the index values (or the reciprocals of these, the parameter values), by small and simple numbers or fractions, by rational and not by irrational quantities. The analogy here existing is easily appreciated: in the one case we have presented the method (namely, by simple mul- tiple ratio) of the formation by weight of chemical com- pounds containing the same elements; in the other, the method, also by simple multiple ratio, by which is deter- mined the modification of fundamental form of a crystalline species. 2 A third analogy is found in the comparison of the law of valency or equivalence in the chemical domain, and the law of replacement or substitution in the crystallographic. The first of these, of course, refers to the relation by weight in which the various elements react; potassium being ex- changed for sodium in the proportion of 39 of the former to 23 of the latter; and, in like manner, chlorine (35.5) for bromine (80). The chemical type or idea is continued in such reactions, although one of the original constituents may have been substituted by anotherelement. Correspondingly, the law of replacement allows the crystallographic type or idea to be continued, though by altered agents. Thus, the recognized substitution-power of magnesium and calcium allows, in compounds of the latter, a greater or less substitu- tion of the former, without change of crystalline form; cal- cite and dolomite are both rhombohedral in crystallization, the angles of the two differing slightly. A fourth analogy is expressed in the allotropisms and isomerisms of chemistry, and the dimorphisms and poly- morphisms of crystallography. The allotropism of elements is probably to be explained upon the basis of different atomicities of the elemental molecule; but, however ex- plained, like atoms are able in many cases to build up struc- tures sometimes as variant in physical characters as are the diamond and ordinary charcoal, having chemical dispositions as different as common phosphorus and red phosphorus. Similar suggestions apply to the subject of isomerism. Now, to this, crystallography presents an analogue in the di- morphism so often to be seen in minerals; one and the same substance showing itself in nature in two (sometimes more) crystalline forms, i.e., belonging to distinct crystalline sys- tems; take, as illustration, calcite (rhombohedral) and arra- gonite (orthorhombic). Here again diversity of form is set over against diversity of physical and chemical characters. A fifth analogy (the last that I shall venture) bases upon AUGUST 12, 1892, ] the hypothecation of actual molecular structural form — con- figuration, according to Wunderlich’s proposed term to ex- press stereo-chemical relations. The subject of molecular configuration is comparatively new; still we are becoming familiarized with diagrams and models intended to represent such relations. Many of us may have been at first indis- posed to accept these views as anything more than visionary and fantastic; but the more we have pondered them, the more have we been impressed with their significance and beauty. Shape, form, and volume must be attributed to molecule as well as to mass; the only trouble has been in regard to the former, the apparent audacity and hopelessness of any attempt to penetrate matter to such depths. The new and most refined sense furnished to us by the use of polar- ized light, makes us aware of isomers identical in every re- spect, save their response to this delicate physical agent. Optical isomers have given rise, under the crucial investiga- tions of such men as van t’Hoff, LeBel, Wunderlich, and V. Meyer, to the hypotheses of the asymmetric carbon atom, and the tetrahedral arrangement of the valence-bond, and the saturating atoms or radicals. The simple and symmetri- eal tetrahedron of methane must be accepted as the perfect analogue of a crystal of the same geometric form; and the optical isomers resulting from the different arrangements of the same atoms or residues around an asymmetric carbon atom, may, in like manner, be taken as the analogues of enantiomorphous crystals, as of quartz, right-handed and left-handed ; the pairs in each case being perfectly equivalent, but not superposable. Chemical Laboratory, Tulane University, New Orleans, La. NOTES AND NEWS. THE cause of the terrible disaster at St. Gervais is now being investigated by several men of science. There can be no doubt that it originated in the small glacier called the Téte Rousse, which is nearly 10,000 feet above sea-level. According to a cor- respondent of the London 7imes, who writes from Lucerne, Pro- fessor Duparc is of opinion that the habitual drainage of this glacier had for some reason or other became either totally blocked or obstructed; the water gradually accumulated in its natural concavity or bed; and the ever-increasing volume had exercised such an enormous pressure as to force a passage and carry away a portion of the face of the glacier with it. The mass of ice and water rushed down the rocks which dominate the glacier of Bion- nassay, not in a single stream but in several, and then reunited into one enormous torrent at the foot of the Bionnassay glacier. A different theory is held by Professor Forel, of which the corres- pondent of the Times gives the following account: Professor Forel does not see how a quantity of water sufficient to force away so large a portion of the glacier could possibly accumulate in so small a body as the Téte Rousse, which has a total superficies of less than one hundred acres. It slopes freely on three sides; it is, in fact, one of the most abrupt of the whole chain of Mont Blanc; and, in a glacier of this description, with an altitude of nearly 10,000 feet, there are none of the conditions of a great accumula- tion of water. In his opinion, therefore, we must look for the main cause of the disaster in the natural movement and breaking up of the glacier. He estimates the volume of ice which fell at ‘between one and two million cubic metres. The mass, first in ‘falling and then rushing down the rapid slope, became transformed, for the most part, into what he calls a lava of ice and water. The ravine, he says, through which this avalanche rushed shows no traces of any great evacuation of water; in the upper portions of its transit there is no mud and no accumulation of sand, but, on the other hand, there are great blocks of glacier ice strewn everywhere, and at several points he found portions of pow- dered ice mixed with earth. Then, again, if this had been sim- ply a torrent of water falling, it would have found its way SCIENCE: 39 down the more violent inclines, instead of, as in this case, passing straight over the frontal moraine at the foot of the glacier. In this higher region, therefore, all the evidence points to an avalanche of ice, which, starting at an altitude of nearly 10,000 feet, and descending at an incline of 70 per cent for 5,000 feet, was pulverized by its fall, a large portion of it being melted by the heat generated in its rapid passage and con- tact with matters relatively warm. It rushed into the ravine by the side of the glacier of Bionnassy and joined the waters of the torrent which issues therefrom, and, further aided by the stream of Bon Nant, it became sufficiently liquid to travel down the lower portions of the valley at the slighter incline of 10 per cent, and yet retained sufficient consistency to destroy everything in its passage. That this torrent was not composed merely of mud and water is proved, he says, by the fact that it did not always maintain the same height when confined to the narrower ravine, and that the remains on the sides of the rock show it to have been a viscous substance rather than fluid. — At a meeting of the London Chamber of Commerce on July 25, as we learn from Nature, Mr. J. Ferguson read a paper on ‘‘The Production and Consumption of Tea, Coffee, Cacao (Cocoa), Cinchona, Cocoa-Nuts and Oil, and Cinnamon, with reference to Tropical Agriculture in Ceylon.” He referred to the position of Ceylon, its forcing climate, its command of free cheap labor, and its immunity from the hurricanes which periodically devastated Mauritius, from the cyclones of the Bay of Bengal, and from the volcanic disturbances affecting Java and the Eastern Archipelago. The plantations of Ceylon afforded, he said, the best training in the world for young men in the cultivation and preperation of tropical products, and in the management of free colored labor. The cultivation of cane-sugar, although tried at considerable out- lay on several plantations forty and fifty years ago, proved a fail- ure. More recently experiments by Huropean planters with tobacco had not been a success, notwithstanding that the natives grew a good deal of a coarse quality for theirown use. Although cotton growing had not been successful, the island had proved a most congenial home for many useful palms, more particularly the coconut (spelt without the a to distinguish it and its products from cocoa —the beans of the shrub Theobroma cacao) and pal- myra, as also the areca and kitul or jaggery palms. Within the past few years Ceylon had come to the front as one of the great tea-producing countries in the world, India and China being the other two, with Java at a respectable distance. Mr. Ferguson said one of the chief objects of his paper was to demonstrate which of the products of the island it was safe to recommend for extended cultivation in new lands, and which were already in danger of being over-produced, and he had arrived at the conclusion that coffee, cacao, and rubber-yielding trees were the products to plant, while tea, cinnamon, cardamoms, cinchona bark, pepper, and even palms (for their oil) did not offer encouragement to extended cul- tivation. Statistics relating to the total production and consump- tion were given in an appendix. —A third edition, largely rewritten, of ‘‘ The Microscope and Histology,” by Simon Henry Gage, associate professor of physi- ology in Cornell University, has been issued by Andrews & Church, Ithaca, N. Y. This volume contains much useful information, systematically arranged, and will. no doubt, be appreciated by those who are learning to use the microscope and desire to famil- iarize themselves with the most approved microscopical methods. Chapter I. relates to ‘‘The Microscope and its Parts;” Chapter II. to ‘‘The Interpretation of Appearances,” which will be of special value to beginners; Chapter III. gives detailed informa- tion with reference to ‘“‘ Magnification, Micrometry, and Draw- ing;” Chapter IV. treats of ‘‘ The Micro-Spectroscope and Micro- Polariscope;” Chapter V. of ‘‘Slides, Cover-glasses, Mounting, Labelling,” etc. —B. Westermann & Co. will publish in September the third volume of Conway and Crouse’s translation of Karl Brugmann’s “«Comparative Grammar of the Indo-Germanic Languages.” The fourth and concluding volume, with a full index, will be issued next year. go SCIENCE SGQIEN GI: A WEEKLY NEWSPAPER OF ALL THE ARTS AND SCIENCES. PUBLISHED BY Wo Won (Ga ysUO) 1D) E13 Sp 874 BROADWAY, New York. SUBSCRIPTIONS.—United States and Canada..... .......... $3.50 a year. Great Britain and Europe...............-. 4.50 a year. Communications will be welcomed from any quarter. Abstracts of scientific papers are solicited, and one hundred copies of the issue containing such will be mailed the author on request in advance. Rejected manuscripts will be returned to the authors only when the requisite amount of postage accom- panies the manuscript. Whatever is intended for insertion must be authenti- cated by the name and address of the writer; not necessarily for publication, but as a guaranty of good faith. We do not hold ourselves responsible for any view or opinions expressed in the communications of our correspondents. Attention is called to the ‘‘Wants”’ column. It is invaluable to those who use it in soliciting information or seeking new positions. The name and address of applicants should be given in full, so that answers will go direct to them. The “Exchange”’ column is likewise open. For Advertising Rates apply to Henry F. Tayior, 13 Astor Place, New York. CURRENT NOTES ON ANTHROPOLOGY. — XII. [Edited by D. G. Brinton, M.D., LL.D.) Ligurians, Iberians, and Siculi. PROFESSOR G. SERGI occupies the chair of anthropology in the University at Rome, and Professor G. Niccolucci that in the University of Naples; but these two scientists of eminence are far from agreeing as to the ethnic position of the Ligurians, or as to the shape of their skulls. Professor Niccolueci described some alleged Ligurian crania, which seemed to show them to have been a round-headed people, and hence, the Professor inferred, of ‘‘Turanian” origin. But Professor Sergi insists that the said skulls were only those of modern Modenese, and neither ancient nor Ligurian. His own authentic series of Ligurian skulls proves them, on the contrary, to have been long-headed, with narrow noses, orthognathic, and with no similarity to Turanians; but with a very close likeness to the ancient Iberian type, such as the brothers Siret exhumed from the neolithic deposits of south- ern Spain. What is more, in two series of neolithic skulls from southern Sicily he proves that identically the same peculiarities recur; so that the ancient Siculi and Secani who held that region before the Greeks came, he believes to be branches of one stock, and both of them out-posts of that same Ligurian people who in proto-historic times occupied most of the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, from the Straits of Gibraltar to the tip-end of the Italian peninsula. For him, Siculi, Sicani, Ligures, Iberi, as ancient ethnic names, all refer to branches of the same stock; and the cave men of Mentone and the Arene Candide in Italy, and of Cro Magnon in France, alike furnish us with specimens of the Ligurian cranial form. His interesting essay is in the Bulletino di Paletnologia Italiana, December, 1891. a. The Meaning of Ethnography. In the first number of a new journal, Bibliothéque de UV Alliance Scientifique, Tome I., Fase. I., appears what we should call a ‘‘symposium” on the meaning and the objects of Ethnography. The writers are Jules Oppert, Claude Ber- [VoLt. XX. No. 497 nard, Jomard, A. Castaing, Leon de Rosny, Jules Simon, D. Marceron, and other well-known names. One perceives in most of their contributions that confusion of terms which is so prevalent in France, and which is so severely and justly criticised by Topinard in his last work, ‘“L,Homme dans la Nature,” pp. 7, 8, 28, 24, ete. By its derivation and according to its early and correct usage, ethnography means a description of the actual condition of a people or peoples. So it was employed by Niebuhr and Campe early in the century, and so it is used to-day by Gerland, Ratzel, and the other leading ethnographers outside of France; and so it should be in France. A word common to science should connote the same ideas everywhere. Jomard defines it as ‘‘the science whose final purpose is to explain the progress of humanity.” C. A. Pret gives us the terse sentence, ‘‘Hthnography is the social history of humanity.” Another contributor puts it, ‘‘ Ethnography seeks to define the laws of the moral and intellectual evolu- tion of man.” Carnot studies it, ‘‘to discover a solid foundation for my political faith;” de Rosny, ‘‘for the new lights it casts on the grand and enigmatical problem of destiny.” These are brave words, and they tell us a great deal about the meaning and purpose of ethnology, but are wholly mis- applied with regard to the term ethnography in its correct sense, eitherin French or English. They illustrate the need of a correct nomenclature in this science. The Primitive History of Mankind, A volume on this subject which is at once scientific and popular is a decided benefit to the study of anthropology; and such a one we haye in Dr. Moritz Hoernes’s ‘‘ Die Urgeschichte des Menschen nach dem heutigen Stande der Wissenschaft” (Vienna, H. Hartleben, 1892). It is clearly printed and abundantly illustrated, and its scope may be guessed from its size — 672 large octayo pages. It takes in the whole of what is now called the ‘‘ pre-history ” of Europe, beginning with the alleged remains of tertiary man and ex- tending down to the time when history proper takes up the thread of the development of the human race in that conti- nent. Several chapters of an introductory character ex- plain the nature and objects of pre-history, and examine into what we may understand by the earliest conditions of culture in the human race. Dr. Hoernes is not a mere book-maker, as is so often the case with authors of popular scientific works, but is a promi- nent member of the Anthropological Society of Vienna, and a practical laborer in the vineyard of archeology. He has a right, therefore, to press some of its wine wherewith to treat the general public. May they quaff deeply and become intoxicated with the attractions of this new science, full of promises and full of mysteries! Early Development of the Art-Faculty. The development of the art-faculty is as much an ethnic as it is a personal trait. As we find among our own ac- quaintances some singularly gifted in this respect, and others, of equal or greater general ability, quite devoid of it, so it has been with nations and tribes in ail periods of cul- ture. In lower stages of development it is more ethnic than personal, the individual then being less free. For these reasons the scepticism which has met the dis- covery of free-hand drawings on horns and bones dating from paleeolithic times is not well founded. Those from the caves of La Madeleine in France representing the mammoth AUGUST 12, 1892. | and reindeer are well known; still more remarkable are those from the Kessler hole, near Schaffhausen, in Switzerland. A sketch of a reindeer feeding, now in the Rosgarten Museum, Constance, and one of a horse, in the Schaffhausen Museum, both from this locality, are so true to nature that one is surprised that they could have been drawn by a per- son not regularly instructed. Yet the draughtsman lived at atime when the Linth glacier covered the site of the present city of Zurich, and the musk-ox and reindeer pas- tured where now grow the vineyards of the Rhine. Several curiously inscribed stones and shells have within the last few years been found in the eastern United States, regarded by theirowners as the work of aboriginal artists. Two of them represent the mammoth; others, scenes from life, as battles. While not to be rejected at once, grave sus- picion attaches to all such for obvious reasons, the first of which is the constant recurrence of frauds in American an- tiques. There is now no doubt that Professor Wright was deceived in the small terra-cotta image from a great depth in Montana which he described; and it is very easy for an en- thusiast to fall into such snares. An Aboriginal Pile-Structure. A late issue of the Peabody Museum of Archeology is a report upon pile-structures in Naaman’s Creek, near Clay- mont, Delaware, by Dr. Hilborne T. Cresson. It will be remembered that in Science, Vol. XV., p. 116, etc., there was a correspondence on the character of the structure which these pile-remains indicated. The facts as set forth in the pamphlet now published show that at the mouth of Naaman’s Creek three groups of pile-buts were discovered, in a line running from north to south across the creek. In the im- mediate vicinity, at various depths in the mud and gravel, about 700 stone implements were found, some quite rude, of argillite, others highly finished, of jasper, slate, quartz, ete. As the mouth of the creek where it falls into the river was evidently a favorable camping and fishing ground for the natives, these implements might reasonably have been ex- pected in such a locality. Was their presence in any way related to that of the piles? Dr. Cresson conjectures that the piles originally formed native fish-weirs. It may be so, but a careful study of the plans which he furnishes, and an inspection of the piles themselves at Cambridge, lead me to think they were intended as supports for some structure which rested upon them. Were they the rude piers of some early Swedish bridge across the creek ? Were they the abutmentsof anancient wharf? Were they the foundations of dwellings? The average size of the groups, about 12 by 6 feet, would answer the requirements of the latter theory; and palefittes were by no means unknown among the Ameri- can aborigines. MEDICAL BOTANY. BY CHARLES FREDERICK MILLSPAUGH, M.D. In looking over the prospectuses of the various medical colleges of the United States, one fails to find in a great ma- jority of them anything to indicate that the important sub- ject of medical botany is taught One wonders at the apathy of medical institutions in this respect when pausing to con- sider the fact that seven-tenths of the drugs in general use havea vegetable origin, and an action upon the animal economy analogous to their botanical relationship. I fully agree with Professor Barnes’ in his statement that, to the general public (and I am sorry to add, to the average 1 Science, Vol. XX., page 62. SCIENCE. 91 Board of Instruction as well), the first thought arising to the mind when botany or botanist is mentioned, is a vague picture of ‘‘a sort of barmless crank,” wandering about fields, woods, and bogs, picking insignificant weeds and car- rying them home, principally to tear them in pieces when he gets there. I urge, with the professor, the necessity of mod- ernizing botanical instruction in colleges and normals, and would add to the list pharmaceutical and medical institu- tions. Hxamine the text-books on materia medica used in these latter institutions, and what do you find? Simply an alphabetical arrangement of drugs. This does not meet the needs of the subject treated, fora student should be trained to study drugs in accordance with their analogy to other drugs, and not according to their indexial position in a lan- guage. In order to do this he must have, not a rudimentary knowledge of botany and vegetable chemistry, but a thor- ough and systematic attainment of the subject, not only as represented by the flora of the campus and surrounding woods and fields, but of the world at large. Upon opening these actual text-books we shall find atropine, an inflamatory poison, preceded by aspidium, an anthelmintic, and followed by aurantia, a simple carminative, none of these bearing the least rational relation to the others. An index would have found these drugs readily, while their disposal in this man- ner will teach the student nothing, nor will it in the least assist his memory to retain the uses of them. Drugs of botanical origin are as closely allied to each other medically as the plants from which they are derived are botanically; therefore in the above illustration atropine should have been preceded by stramonium and followed by hyoscyamus. Again genera and families of plants have true and constant familial and generic drug action, and the individual species of these have idiosyncracies of action pe- culiar to themselves. To continue the same illustration, belladonna and atropa, with their atropa-atropine; stra- monium, with its datura-atropine; and hyoscyamus, with its hyoscyamine; together with other Solanacez — to which botanical family they belong —all cause delirium, but its character differs in each drug; they all dilate the pupil, but the expression of the face under the dilation is dissimilar; they all cause spasmodic action, but the spasms are varied; and among other symptoms they all cause an eruption of the skin, butin each case the eruptions may be readily distin- guished. This study may be carried through the whole range of the drug action, not only in the family here pre- sented, but through the whole natural plant system as well. This being true, should not the medical student’s first train- ing in materia medica be a thorough course in systematic botany ? Pure science in the collegiate study of drugs has of late been set aside for the greater study of the less useful ques- tions of etiology and diagnosis. Of what immediate care to the patient are hours of scientific and exhaustive guesswork as to what caused him to be ill, when he knows that this is followed by but a moment’s thought expended upon the more vital question of what drug should be employed to make him well again? ‘Take up the first medical magazine at your hand; in it you will doubtless find a long disserta- tion upon some case in practice. Column after column will be found to be devoted to the elucidation of points of diagnosis and etiology, and suppositions, perhaps, of bac- terial invasion and cell disintegration, then a line or two to therapy, then the post mortem. Careful, comprehensive, differential, and comparative study of botany and vegetable chemistry in their relation to 92 materia medica must be followed in order to educate a good therapist, and the sooner our medical institutions make a requisite of this branch, the better it will be for patients treated by their graduates. ON THE PRESENT TENDENCY TOWARDS HIGHER STANDARDS OF PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION. ONE cannot but observe with pleasure, in the present general advance and spread of higher education, that this advance is affecting not only tbe institutions of higher learning themselves and the general population, but also the strictly professional or technical schools. And whilst I wish in this short paper to refer more especially to law and medicine, my remarks will apply also to other — per- haps to all other— professions. The medical education of this country has, deservedly enough, for many years been looked upon with little favor, and has ill stood the test of competition with the methods of other countries; but now we are observing a great change in this respect, and there is ‘no doubt that before many years the degree of M.D. from an American university will be as valuable a certificate on its face as can anywhere be ob- tained. Medical courses of four years’ duration are now being adopted, or have already been adopted, by the leading medical schools in the country. The requirements in pre- liminary education have also greatly increased, and one way hope that before long such subjects as botany and zoology may be added to the requirements of a good English and general education from the intending student of medicine. State legislation itself has not been idle, and we find in the State of New York, for example, that no person can practise medicine without undergoing an examination conducted by the State Board of Examiners. A requirement of prelimi- nary education has also been added, and though as yet no more than an elementary education is required, we may hope for better things in future. As regards the profession of law, the advance is perhaps even more marked; more marked, that is, as regards legal education, for we no not find that the advance in the require- ments for admission to the bar has been so considerable as might be desired, though they have been by no means neglected. Three-year law-school courses, which not so long since were unheard of, have now become the rule rather than the exception; and even in those schools which still see fit to maintain a two-years’ course for the degree of bache- lor of laws, a graduate course has been commonly added. Towards the general extension of the study of law so as to include the Roman or Civil Law, the tendency is by no means general, caused no doubt by the non-requirement of this branch for admission to the legal profession. Some universities, indeed, in their college courses, offer instruc- tion in this subject; but it must be remembered that the majority of law-students are not college graduates, and so the breadth of their legal knowledge will be measured by the instruction given in the iaw school, however the depth and extent of what subjects they do touch upon may be increased afterwards. Yale is, I believe, alone among the universities in this country which gives extended courses in the civil law, and encourages their study by the bestowal of a degree (that of D.C.L.); but even then the course is one taken by but few students, and, as the catalogue says, is intended for those who intend to be something more than practising law- yers. This is not as it should be, and we must look to the future for more general study of this subject, for without it SCIENCE. [VoLr. XX. No 497 law can hardly be taught as a science, for law is—-and should be known as—a science. Education preliminary to the study of law has also risen greatly. Latin is now a usual requirement, and we may doubtless soon see it a universal one. The day is not far distant then, let us hope, when the title Doctor or Lawyer will in itself mean an educated man. INSEE LETTERS TO THE EDITOR. «*x Correspondents are requested to be as brief as possible. ts in all cases required as proof of good faith. On request in advance, one hundred copies of the number containing his communication will be furnished free to any correspondent. The editor will be glad to publish any queries consonant with the character of the journal. The writer's nume The Elm-Leaf Beetle, Galeruca xanthomelena Schr. In Science, No. 492, for July 8, 1892, Dr. C. V. Riley records the facts, that at Washington, D.C., the imagos from the first brood of larvee of the above insect had already appeared, and that eggs from beetles of this summer brood had been obtained June 28. Ina letter dated July 27, Dr. Riley informs me that from these eggs larvae had been obtained and that these larve were then pupating. Dr. Riley’s observations are positive, and prove that there are two broods at least of this insect at Washington, D.C. They prove also that the beetles will mate and oviposit readily in confinement, and that there is only a brief interval be- tween the appearance of the beetles and oviposition for the second brood of larve. This means that the beetles of both sexes are sexually mature when they emerge from the pup, or that they mature very rapidly and copulate within a very brief period after assuming the imaginal form. The accuracy of these observations Ido not question; but neither do I admit that Iam in error in claiming that in New Jersey, north of New Brunswick, there is only a single brood of this insect. My acquaintance with the beetle at New Brunswick began in 1889, in which year I protected the large number of elms in and near the college campus and about the Experiment Station by spraying with a London purple mixture. In the Report of the College Experiment Station for 1888, Dr. George D. Hulst, my predecessor in office, had stated that there were two broods of the insect annually; and on the appearance of the summer brood of beetles, I made ready to spray again as soon as the second brood of larve should begin to appear on the protected trees. They never did make their appearance, and I was unable to find a second brood on any other trees in the city. Dr. Hulst, in re- sponse to questions, informed me that he had noticed only one brood of larve in 1888; but there had been a cyclonic storm about the time they became mature, which freed the trees and covered the ground beneath them with thousands of the slugs, only a few of which ever found their way baek to their food. AUGUST 12, 1892. | To this destruction he attributed the absence of the second brood which published accounts led him to expect. I recorded these facts in my Report for 1889, claiming positively that there was a single brood only at New Brunswick. My observations, carefully repeated in 1890 and 1891, simply confirmed this conclusion. These observations were presented at a meeting of the Entomo- logical Club of the A. A. A. S., and, though he could not gainsay my facts, Dr. Riley yet doubted the correctness of my conclusion, as his payer in Science also shows. I therefore resolved to repeat my work yet more carefully in 1892 and to make it conclusive if Fig. 2. possible. The first signs of the beetles were noticed on May 17, in the form of small round holes eaten in a few leaves; on the 19th a few of the beetles were seen, and after that date they increased rapidly in numbers for some time. The weather for a few days was cold and wet, the insects were sluggish, and no eggs were observed until May 29. For special observation I selected a small tree between my home and the laboratory, which I passed several times daily, could see all parts of easily, and which was a prime favorite with the insects. Eggs began hatching June 6, while yet. oviposition continued. After the middle of the month the hibernating beetles diminished in number, and on the 30th not a beetle could be found. June 29 the first pupze were formed and larvee matured daily thereafter Fie. 3. in greater abundance. At this date a very few unhatched egg- clusters were yet to be found, but of those collected, only one mass gave larve July 1. Since that date and up to date of writ- ing (Aug. 1), there has not been a cluster of eggs on any tree that T have examined, and I have closely scanned many dozens, large and small. Early in July I gathered in over 200 pup and mature larvee under the observed tree, and placed them in breeding-cages and jars Adults began to appear July 8, and very rapidly there- after in the open air as well as in my cages. It is interesting to note that on June 29, when I secured the first pupa, Dr. Riley SCIENCE. 93 already had eggs of a second brood. The beetles bred by me fed readily and abundantly for nearly three weeks, and then more slowly, until at this time they refuse to feed entirely. During all this time there has not been a copulation nor an egg-mass in any jar, nor have I observed a copulation or an egg-mass in the open air. On July 30 I observed a disposition on the part of my insects to refuse food and to hide among the dry leaves. I therefore selected a considerable number of them of both sexes for examina- tion. Inall, the sexual structures were immature or undeveloped. In the male it was difficult to get the testes, because they were mere empty thread-like tubes. In the females the ovaries were mere bundles of tubes without even partially-developed eggs. I gathered rather more than forty specimens from the trees, and found the same state of affairs, except that in one specimen the ova had begun to develop. This morning I selected a few fresh and fat specimens— all females, as it proved —and though the abdomen was much distended, the distension was caused by the fully-dilated crop and stomach, and the ovaries were yet less de- veloped than in any previously examined. Soon after the beetles appeared in May, I examined a number of them and found that in all the sexual structures were fully matured. In the males the testes were quite rigid coils, which were easily removed entire, while in the females the ovaries so completely filled the abdominal cavity that it was impossible to open it without detaching or crushing some of the eggs. The beetles earliest matured are now seeking winter quarters. IT consider my observations, now carried on for four years in succession, as conclusive of the fact that at New Brunswick, N.J., there is only a single brood of this species annually. I present herewith figures of part of one ovary (Fig. 1) of a beetle taken May 25, in which the oviduct and part of the developed eggs are removed; of the ovaries of a beetle taken July 30 on the trees, in which they were best developed of all those examined (Fig. 2); and of the ovaries of a specimen three weeks old (Fig. 3), with which all the others that were examined agreed in that they were at least no more developed. A11 the figures were made by the use of a camera with a Zentmayer binocular stand, 2-inch objective, @ eye-piece, and drawing-board six inches from camera. The vagina is not shown in Fig. 3, but is as large as that shown at the base of Fig 2, and this is the only structure that has the full size. I have not considered it necessary to figure the male organs, though the difference between spring and summer beetles is equally striking. In none that I examined did I find anything like a de- veloped testicle. JOHN B. SmitTH, Sc.D. Rutgers College, Aug. 1. Wheat Rust and Smut. AS a general rule the Bulletins issued from the various State Agricultural Experiment Stations, while not notable for the amount of original matter they contain, are fairly accurate in their statements, and their recommendations are to be relied upon. Occasionally errors creep in, some of them the result of haste in compilation, others the result of not being conversant with the latest information on the subjects discussed. In the former cate- gory must be placed the statement made in Bulletin No. 83 of the Michigan Agricultural Experiment Station that wheat rust can be successfully treated by what is known as the Jensen hot-water method; that is, immersing the seed in water having a tempera- ture between 132° and 135° F. Wheat rust has been long under investigation. It has caused a loss of about £2,000,000 sterling annually in Australia, and it is safe to say that there is not a country or a State where wheat is grown that has not suffered from its ravages. The fact is that while wheat rust is described and illustrated in the Bulletin in question, the treatment for pre- vention of wheat smut is given. It is needless to say that what s applicable to one is not to the other. Farmers who expect to prevent wheat rust by the hot-water treatment will be sorely dis- appointed. Perhaps their disappointment will result in making them question, without cause, however, the benefits to be de- rived from treating for smut. Between the two diseases there is a vast difference; one (rust) attacks the leaves, the other (smut) attacks the grain. In the latter case treatment of seed will be 94 SCIENCE: beneficial. In the former it will do no good whatever. This is mainly because in the former infection takes place probably by means of spores disseminated by the wind, so that whole fields soon become infected. It cannot be denied that an effectual remedy for wheat rust is still a great desideratum. JOSEPH F. JAMES. Washington, D. C., Aug. 5. The Ancient Libyan Alphabet. In Science, July 15, Dr. Brinton has some remarks on this sub- ject, which I have read with surprise. The old Libyan alphabet, he says, ‘‘ appears to have been in common use among the Berber tribes of north Africa long before the foundation of Carthage (1), . . . and in its forms is almost entirely independent of the Phee- nician letters(2). It is composed of consonants called tifinar (3), and vowel-points, known as tiddebakin. The latter are simple dots (4), the former are the lines of a rectangle, more or less complete (5). Several of them are found in the oldest Etruscan inscriptions (6). . . . The writers who have given especial attention to this little- known subject are Faidherbe, Duveyrier, Halévy, Bissuel, and, recently, Dr. Collignon (7).” To avoid repetition, and facilitate reference, I have numbered the points in this passage on which I should like to offer a few observations. 1 and 2. What authority has Dr. Brinton for referring this alphabet to pre-Carthagenian times, and for stating that its forms are almost entirely non-Phcenician? I have hitherto regarded the Punic origin of the Libyan letters as an established fact accepted by all epigraphists of weight, and notably by Mommsen, who un- hesitatingly recognizes their Semitic descent: ‘‘The Libyan or Numidian alphabet now as formerly in use amongst the Berbers in writing their non-Semitic language is one of the innumerable offshoots of the primitive Aramean type. In some of its details it seems even to approach that type more closely than does the Pheenician itself. We are not, however, therefore to conclude that the Libyans received it from immigrants older than the Pheenicians. It is here as in Italy, where certain obviously more archaic forms do not prevent the local alphabet from being re- ferred to Greek types. All that can be inferred is that the Libyan alphabet belongs to the Phoenician writing older than the epoch when were composed the Phoenician inscriptions that have sur- vived to our time” (History of Rome, iii., 1). It follows that the Numidian ancestors of the Berbers received their writing system from the Carthaginians, earliest Phoenician settlers on the north African sea-board, and, consequently, that the Libyan alphabet had no currency ‘long before the foundation of Carthage.” The archaic forms referred to by Mommsen were the forms in use in Tyre and Sidon in pre-historic times, whereas the extant Phoenician inscriptions date from historic times; hence the discrepancies between the latter and those preserved by the Berbers, most conservative of all peoples. 3. Not the consonants alone, but the whole system (mainly, of course, consonantal as being Semitic) is called ‘‘tifinar,” or rather ‘‘tifinagh.” The sounds gh and rh interchange in the Libyan dialects (Ghet and Rhet; Melghigh and Melrhirh, etc.), so that it is not always easy to decide which is the original sound. But here there is no doubt that gh is organic; and Barth, for instance, always writes Tefinagh, plural Tefinaghen: ‘‘ There was in par- ticular a man of the name of Sama, who was very friendly with me. On reading with him some writing in Yefinaghen, or the native Berber character, I became aware that this word signifies nothing more than tokens or alphabet. For as soon as the people beheld my books, and observed that they all consisted of letters, they ex- claimed repeatedly, ‘ Tefinaghen — ay — Tefinaghen !’” (Travels, V., p. 116). There is, however, more in this word than Barth was aware of. When stripped of the common Berber prefix fe, it reveals the ‘‘ Finagh,” i.e., ‘‘ Phoenician,” or ‘‘ Punic” origin of the letters in their very name. Note the stress still falling on the root fin, as in Peeni. 4. F.W. Newman explains Tidebdkka (pl. Tidebakken) to mean ‘“a dot on or under the letter” (Vocab.), in fact any diacritical mark of the kind, and not merely vowel signs. Some, however, [VoLt. XX. No. 497 are doubtless used to voice the consonanis, as in Hebrew. Like other Semitic alphabets, Tefinagh had originally no vowels, but only three breathings, transformed in some systems (Greek, Italic) to pure vowels, in others (Cufic, Arabic) to semi-vowels and vocalic bases. But all this merely tends to strengthen the view that the Libyan is a Semitic alphabet. 5. This statement is to me unintelligible. In the published Libyan alphabets (Fr. Ballhorn, ‘‘ Alphabete orientalischer und occidentalischer Sprachen,” p. 8; Hanoteau, ‘‘ Essai de grammaire de la langue tamachek,” and others) curves occur quite as fre- quently as straight lines, while acute decidedly prevail over right- angles. Of the eight letters copied by Barth (1., p. 274) two only can be described as ‘‘more or less complete rectangles,” forms which are certainly less common than, for instance, in Hebrew and Estranghelo. 6. It would be strange if resemblances did not occur between the Libyan and the characters of ‘‘the oldest Etruscan inscrip- tions,’ seeing that both have a common Semitic origin, the former directly through the Phoenician, the latter indirectly through the archaic Greek. But such resemblances obviously lend no color to Dr. Brinton’s peculiar views regarding Libyco-Etruscan linguistic” affinities. 7. Of the writers here referred to, Faidherbe and Halévy alone can be regarded as specialists. On the other hand, there are serious omissions, such as Dr. Oudney, who in 1822 first discovered the existence of the Berber alphabet;.F. W. Newman, ‘‘Patriarch of Berber philology ;’”’ Mommsen and Hanoteau, as above; lastly, A. Judas, who was the first to clearly establish the Phoenician origin of these characters in a paper entitled ‘‘ De l’Ecriture libyco- berber,” contributed to the Revue Archéologique for September 1862. A. H. KEANE. Broadhurst Gardens, London, N.W. BOOK-REVIEWS. Handbook for the Department of Geology in the U. S. National Museum. Part I. Geognosy.— The Materials of the Harth’s Crust. By GEORGE P. MERRILL. Washington, Government Printing Office, 1892. 89p. 12 pl. THE U.S. National Museum is probably the greatest institution of its kind in this country. The museums located in New York, Cambridge, Boston, Philadelphia, and other large cities present to the residents of those places and to students many facilities for study. This is particularly the case with the American Museum of Natural History in New York and the Museum of Comparative Zoology in Cambridge. But neither one of these has been planned upon so extensive a scale, or is destined to attain such mammoth proportions, as the National Museum at Washington. The coun- try at large is familiar with some things to be found at the museum from the numerous expositions at which displays of its treasures have been made; but no one who has not visited and lingered long in its great but crowded quarters at the National Capital can adequately realize the broad foundation upon which it is based, or the immense variety and scope of its collections. There are gathered together here materials which cover all human arts and all the natural sciences—anthropology in its widest sense, from the rude, chipped-flint implement of palzeolithic man to the delicate Sevres china of civilized man; rocks and fossils from the most ancient formations to the most recent; animal forms from the minutest insect that flies to the hugest creature of land or sea. Scarcely an object, indeed, in which man has had aught to do, or to find interest in, but is to be found here. The collections are not, either, lying idle. A large corps of curators is constantly at work, either arranging the old collec- tions or studying and comparing the new. The results of these studies appear from time to time in the Proceedings of the Museum —a publication scarcely known to the public at large even by title, on account of its limited circulation — or else in the Annual Reports of the Museum, which are more widely known from being distributed as/congressional documents. Unfortunately, these last usually appear from two to three years after the date they are stated to be reports for. In the early days, when the Smithsonian Institution was the AuGuSsT 12, 1892. | repository for the national collections, these reports touched but lightly upon the vast amount of material stored away. Within the past five years, however, and since the National Museum has become recognized as the place where all government expeditions shall deposit the material collected by them, a large volume has been annually devoted to this branch alone. Those which have been issued are filled with information upon a great variety of subjects, although special attention seems to have been devoted to ethnology. Naturally, other matters are treated of, and it is likely that, in the future, place will be given to all departments as fast as the several curators find time or see fit to devote their at- tention to making the collections under their charge known to the outside world. The article under review, for it is merely an excerpt issued un- der a separate cover from the Report of the Museum for 1890, and covering pages 503-591 of that report, is one which, while designed to be a handbook for the collections, is in reality a condensed ac- ‘count of the rocks forming the earth’s crust. In it one will find concise descriptions of the sixteen principal elements that go to make up rock masses; alist of the original and secondary minerals of these rocks; an account of the macroscopic and microscopic structure of rocks; the chemical composition (in brief) and the color. The most extensive portion of the handbook, however, is that which deals with the kinds of rocks. Under this head we have described the four varieties of (1) aqueous, those formed through the agency of water either as chemical precipitates or as sediments; (2) colian, those formed from wind-drifted meterials; (8) metamorphic, those changed by dynamical or chemical agents from an original aqueous or igneous origin; and (4) igneous (erup- tive), those brought up from beneath the surface in a molten con- dition. It is not necessary to go into details as to all these classes, or to mention the various divisions made of them; an extract or two will serve to show the character of the remarks. For exam- ple, under Chlorides we read : — ‘Sodium chloride, or common salt, is one of the most common constituents of the earth’s crust. From an economic standpoint it is also a most important constituent. It occurs in greater or less abundance in all natural waters, and, as a product of evaporation of ancient seas and lakes, it occurs in beds of varying extent and thickness among rocks of all ages wherever suitable circumstances have existed for their formation and preservation. Salt-beds from upwards of a few inches to thirty feet in thickness occur in New York State and Canada, while others abound in Pennsylvania, Virginia, Ohio, Michigan, and Louisiana. There are also numer- ous surface deposits, of great extent, in the arid regions of the West” (p. 583). Under the head of Siliceous group, infusorial or diatomaceous earth, we find the following : — ‘‘This is a fine white or pulverulent rock composed mainly of the minute shells, or teats, of diatoms, and often so soft and friable as to crumble readily between the thumb and finger. It occurs in beds which, when compared with other rocks of the earth’s crust, are of comparatively insignificant proportions, but which are nevertheless of considerable geological importance. Though deposits of this material are still forming, e.g., in the marshes of Yellowstone Park, and have been formed in times past at various periods of the earth’s history, they appear most abundantly asso- ciated with rocks belonging to the Tertiary formations. ““The celebrated Bohemian deposit is some fourteen feet in thickness, and is estimated by Ehrenberg to contain 40,000,000 shells to every cubic inch. The Australian specimen exhibited is from a deposit four feet in thickness. In the United States, beds are known at Lake Umbagog, New Hampshire; Morris County, New Jersey; near Richmond, Virginia; Calvert and Charles Coun- ties, Maryland; in New Mexico; Graham County, Arizona; Nevada; California; and Oregon. The New Jersey deposit covers about three acres, and varies from one to three feet in thickness; the Richmond bed extends from Herring Bay, on the Chesapeake, to Petersburg, Virginia, and is in some places 30 feet in thickness; the New Mexico deposit is some six feet in thickness and has been traced some 1,500 feet; Professor LeConte states that near Monte- rey, in California, is a bed some 50 feet in thickness; while the geologists of the fortieth-parallel survey report beds not less than SCIENCE. | 95 300 feet in thickness of a pure white, palebuff, or canary-yellow color as occurring near Hunter’s Station, west of Reno, Nevada. “‘The earth is used mainly as a polishing powder, and is some- times designated as tripolite. It has also been used to some ex- tent to mix with nitro-glycerine in the manufacture of dynamite. Chemically the rock is impure opal” (p. 540). It is in such books as these that the young student finds his best helps. The information given is accurate; the paths are made pleasant; the rough places are smoothed. It is greatly to be de- sired that the other departments of the Museum may have as useful descriptions of their contents. JOSEPH F., JAMES. Washington, D.C., Aug. 8. Phases of Animal Life, Past and Present. London. Longmans, Green & Co. 89. By R. LYDEKKER, - $1.50. THIs admirable series of essays, which was originally published in Knowledge, has been reprinted in an attractive form both as re- gards typography and illustrations. The essays are concisely written, and reveal a wealth of knowledge on the part of the au- thor. The explanations of scientific discoveries and conclusions are neither too elementary nor too technical, and the essays will be read with pleasure as well as profit by anyone interested in zoological lore. The earlier and the closing chapters of the book are devoted to the consideration of various morphological adaptations, such as protective armor, the modifications of limbs for flying and swim- ming, and the forms of teeth and horns. The author then takes up the fossil reptiles, describing the characteristics of the ichthyo- saurs, plesiosaurs, and dinosaurs, and explaining the differences between them. Other chapters relate to the tortoises, the extinct gigantic birds, the egg-laying and marsupial mammals, and other animals whose structure and history are of special interest. There is for the most part no close connection between the various topics, but they are all important and worthy of attention. In the treatment of morphological subjects Mr. Lydekker makes use of certain metaphorical expressions which may possibly mis- lead the unwary reader. Various modifications are spoken of as if they resulted from the conscious, intelligent action of the ani- mals concerned. Itis stated, for example, that the ancient mail- clad fishes ‘‘ appear to have come to the same conclusion as the more advanced divisions of the human race, that a massive armor for the protection of the body is anencumbrance” (p. 7). Again, the reptiles ‘‘ held divided opinions as to whether a bony coat of mail was or was not a thing to be retained as a permanency.” Such expressions are calculated to induce a wrong way of looking at things unless, indeed, the Lamarckian idea that modifications result directly from the efforts of organisms is to be accepted. One is surprised to find in the writings of so good a naturalist as Mr. Lydekker the statement, or insinuation, that the separation of the amphibians from the reptiles is due to ‘‘ that tendency to multiply terms for which they (the naturalists) are so celebrated” (p. 8). Mr. Lydekker, of course, well knows and, indeed, takes pains to explain, that the separation was made on account of the fact that the typical representatives, at least, of these two groups are very different both in structure and mode of development. There have undoubtedly been many instances in which naturalists have coined new names unnecessarily, but this is certainly not a case in point. These are small defects, however, and are entirely overbal- anced by the excellencies of the book. It deserves and will re- pay perusal. AMONG THE PUBLISHERS. ‘*THE Delaware Indian as an Artist” is the subject of a fully illustrated paper by Dr. Charles C. Abbott, to appear in The Popu- lar Science Monthly for September. The objects of art which are represented include carved-stone gorgets, a wooden spoon-handle, wooden masks, and other carvings, many of them showing much skill. Professor J. S. Kingsley will describe ‘‘The Marine Bio- logical Laboratory at Wood's Holl,” giving pictures of its build- ing and interior arrangements. Something is told also of its neighbor, the laboratory of the United States Fish Commission. Surgeon George M. Sternberg, U.S.A., will have a paper on ‘‘ In- 96 fectious Diseases: Causation and Immunity,” giving the facts that have been established in this field up to date; and ‘A Further Study of Involuntary Movements,” by Professor Joseph Jastrow, supplementing a previous paper on this subject, will appear. — Charles Scribner’s Sons issued on Aug. 8 Stevenson’s long- expected book on Samoa, entitled ‘‘A Footnote to History,” being a narrative of the varied history of that island for the past eight years. —J.B. Lippincott Company's August Bulletin of New Publica- tions contains, among other announcements, the following: ‘‘ Pho- tography: Its History, Processes, Apparatus, and Materials. Com- prising Working Details of all the more Important Methods,” by A. Brothers. In the preparation of this work, the author’s aim has been to producea Handbook for the Use of Students of Photog- raphy, which should give the results of practical experience, and include —as far as possible within a moderate compass — infor- mation gathered from many sources, and not readily accessible. The newer methods have been dealt with in sufficient detail, and special attention given to the processes in use prior to the intro- duction of the gelatino-bromide method. Some of these processes are in danger of being neglected through the facilities which the newer methods have introduced. But, as Professor Brothers demonstrates, the new processes do not give results equal to the old, and are totally unsuitable for some purposes — such as making egatives for photo-lithography, and in various other ways. There practicable, the plates illustrate the processes described, SCIENCE: [| VoL. XX. No. 497 thus making the work distinctly more serviceable to students. “In Starry Realms: a New Work on Astronomy,” by Robert S. Ball; ‘‘Regional Anatomy in its Relation to Medicine and Sur- gery,” by George McClellan, M.D.; ‘‘Steam Boilers: their De- fects, Management, and Construction,’ by R. D. Monro. Of books in press, ‘‘ A Short Course on Zoology Designed for High Schools and Academies,” by C. De Montmahon and H. Beaure- gard; translated and adapted for American schools by Wm. H. Greene, M.D. ‘‘Recent Rambles, or in Touch with Nature,” by Charles C. Abbott, M.D. —Ginn & Co. have nearly ready ‘‘German Orthography and Phonology,” by George Hempl, Assistant Professor of English in Michigan University. They will publish in the fall ‘ Fourier’s Series, and Spherical, Cylindrical, and Ellipsoidal Harmonics,” with applications to problems in mathematical physics, by W. E. Byerly. — Outing for August opens with the first instalment of Wheel- man Frank G. Lenz’s description of a cycling tour around the world. The rider is at present somewhere on the broad western plains, en route for the Pacific coast, and during his two-year jaunt he will traverse Japan, China, India, Persia, Turkey, Aus- tria, Germany, Holland, France, England, Scotland, and Ireland. Mr. Lenz will communicate his experiences to Outing from con- venient points of his journey, illustrating his articles by photo- graphs taken by himself. The opening chapter describes the trip Publications Received at Editor’s Office. Apgar, AusTIN C. Trees of the Northern United States. New York, American Book Co. 12°. 224p. $1. Reading Matter Notices. Ripans Tabules: best liver tonic. Ripans Tabules cure jaundice. Wants. Any person seeking a position for which he is quali- hed by his scientific attainments, or any person seeking some one to fill a position of this character, be it that ARKANSAS GEOL. SURVEY. Annual Report for 1890. Little Rock, Press Print. 8°. 474p BEAN, TARLETON H. Notes on Fishes Collected in Exchanges. of a teacher of science, chemist, draughtsman, or what not, may have the ‘Want’ inserted under this head FREE OF COST, 7/ he satisfies the publisher of the suit- Mexico. Washington, Government. 8°. Paper. Il. BENEDICT, JAMES E. Corystoid Crabs of the Genera Telmessus and Erimacrus. Washington, Govy- ernment. 8°. Paper. Ill. Bouss, T. Drx. Chinese Relics in Alaska. Wash- ington, Government. 8°. Paper. Ill. EIGENMANN, CARL H. The Fishes of San Diego. Washington, Government. 8°. Paper. HOFFMAN, The Sloyd System of Wood Working. New York, American Book Co. 12°. 242 p. $1. JEFFERSON, SAMUEL. Columbus, An Epic Poem. Chicago, S. C. Griggs & Co. 12°. 2389p. Linton, Epwin. Notes on Avian Entozoa. Wash- ington, Government. 8°. Paper. IIl. Mason, Otis T. The Ulu, or Woman’s Knife of the Eskimo. Washington, Government. 8°. Paper. Ml. RaTHBURN, Mary J. Catalogue of Crabs of the Family Pericerida Washington, Government. 8°. Paper. Rickorr, Resecca D. A Supplementary First Reader. New York, American Book Co. 12°. 122 p. 25 cts. SHUFELDT, R. W. The Evolution of House Building among the Navajo Indians. Washington, Gov- ernment. 8°. Paper. Ill. SHUFELDT, R. W. A Maid of Wolpai. Washington, Government. 8°. Paper. SmitH, JoHN B. Revision of the Genus Cuculla, etc. Washington, Government. 8°. Paper. 86 p. StyneGER, LEoNHARD. Preliminary Description of a new Genus and Species of Blind Cave Salamander. Washington, Government. 8°. Paper. Ill. STYNEGER, LEONHARD. Birds made in Japan. ment. 8°. Paper. Wituiamson, Mrs. M. Burton. An Annotated List of the Shells of San Pedro Bay. Washington, Government. 8°. Paper. Ill. Notes on a Collection of Washington, Govern- [Freeofcharge to all, if ofsatisfactory character, Address N. D.C. Hodges, 874 Broadway, New York.] Taxidermist going out of business has quantity of finely-mounted specimens of North American birds, mammals and reptiles and skios of birds for sale, including a full local collection of bird skins, show- ing some great variations of species; also quantity of skulls with horns of deer and mountain sheep, and mounted heads of same. Will give good ex- change for Hawk Eye camera with outfit. Apply nicely to J. R. Thurston, 265 Yonge St., Toronto, anada. To exchange ; Experiment Station bulletins and reports for bulletins and reports not in my file. I will send list of what I have for exchange. P. H. ROLES, Lake City, Florida. able character of hisapplication. Any person seeking information on any scientific question, the address of auy scientific man,or who can in any way use this column for a purpose consonant with the nature oy the paper, ts cordially invited to do so. (Ces AND ENGINEER, graduate German Polytechnic, Organic and Analytical, desires a position in laboratory or chemical works. Address. 21316 E. 7th Street, New York, care Levy. NEES 36 years old, of extensive experience, hav- ing the degrees of A.M. and Ph.D., desires a first-class opening as a teacher of Zodlogy and kindred studies in a college or university. Can furnish numerous testimonials or refereaces as to success and skill in most modern laboratory methods. Address E. W. D., Md. Agr. College, College Park, Md. For exchange.—A fine thirteen-keyed flute in leather covered case, for a photograph camera suitable for mak- ing lantern slides. Flute cost $27, and is nearly new. U. ©. COX, Mankato, Minn. Finished specimens of all colors of Vermont marble for fine fossils or crystals. Will be given only for valuable specimens because of the cost of polishing. GEO. W. PERRY, State Geologist, Rutland, Vt. For exchange.—Three copies of ‘‘ American State Papers Bearing on Sunday Legislation,” 1891, $2.50, new and unused, for “The Sabbath,” by Harmon Kingsbury, 1840; ‘‘The Sabbath,” by A. A. Phelps, 1842; ‘* History of the Institution of the Sabbath Day, Its Uses and Abuses,”’ by W. L. Fisher, 1859; *‘ Humorous Phases of the Law,” ioe Irving Browne; or other works amounting to value of books exchanged, on the question of govern- mental legislation in reference to religion, personal liberty, etc. If preferred, I will sell ‘‘American State Papers,” and buy other books on the subject. WILLIAM AD- DISON BLAKELY, Chicago, III. UN IDie es Volumes XVII. and XVIII. OF SClTL NGG are in preparation, and will be issued at an early date. For Sale or Exchange for books a complete private chemical laboratory outfit. Includes large Becker bal- ance (200g. to 1-1omg.), platinum dishes and crucibles, agate motors, glass-blowing apparatus, etc. For sale in part or whole. Also complete file of S7/dz#an’s Fournal, 1862-1885 (62-71 bound); Smithsonian Reports, 1854-1883; U.S. Coast Survey. 1854-1869. Full particulars to en- quirers. F. GARDINER, JR., Pomfret, Conn. Wanted, in exchange for the following works, any standard works on Surgery and on Diseases of Children: Wilson's ‘‘ American Ornithology,’” 3 vols.; Coues’ ‘*Birds of the Northwest’’ and ‘* Birds of the Colorado Valley,” 2 vols.; Minot’s ‘‘ Land and Game Birds of New Eng- land;”’ Samuels’ ‘* Our Northern and Eastern Birds;” all the Reports on the Birds of the Pacific R. R. Survey, bound in 2 vols,, morocco; and a complete set of the Reports of the Arkansas Geological Survey. Please give editions and dates in corresponding. R. ELLSWORTH CALL, High School, Des Moines, Iowa. YOUNG MAN, with a thorough training in Ana- lytical Chemistry (including analysis of miner- als, food, water, etc.), and holding a diploma of the School of Practical Science, of Toronto, and good tes- timonials, desires a position as Analytical Chemist or as assistant to such. Address to WM. LAWSON, 16 Washington Ave., Toronto, Ontario. JOHNS HOPKINS graduate (1892) desires a. position as instructor in mathematics and physics. Address A. B. TURNER, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Md. ANTED.—A collection of postage stamps; one made previous to 1870 preferred. Also oldand curious stamps on original letters, and old entire U S. stamped envelopes. Will pay sash or give in exchange first-class fossils, including fine crinoids. WM. F. E. GURLEY, Danville, Ill. ANTED.—To purchase laboratory outfit; bal- aaces, evaporating dishes, burettes, etc., wanted immediately for cash. C. E. SPEIRS, 23 Murray street, New York. P.O. Box 1741. AES ne services of a wide-awake young man, as correspondent, in alarge manufactur ing optical business; one preferred who has a thor- ough knowledge of microscopy and some knowledge of photography. Address by letter, stating age and references. Optical, care of Science, 874 Broadway, New York. Wes ieeermerae a young man, a Swarthmore Col- lege junior, a position as principal of a public high school in one of the Gulf States, or as instructor in botany, physiology, and geology in an academy or normal school. Address B., care of Librarian, Swarthmore College, Penn. ANTED.—To act as correspondent for one or two daily or weekly papers. Have worked on paper for abouttwo years Wouldlike a position on editorial staff of humorous paper. Address GEO. C. MASON, 14 Elm St., Hartford, Conn. AUGUST 12, 1892. | across the Alleghanies from Pittsburgh via Washington to New York, and is profusely illustrated. —The experiment station of Cornell University conducted an experiment in 1890, showing very decided beneficial results from removing the tassels from a part of the growing corn; their calcu- lations showing about fifty per cent gain from the rows from which the tassels were removed over the alternate rows on which the tassels were allowed to remain. This remarkable showing caused a similar experiment to be undertaken at the Ohio station in 1891. Thirty-two rows of corn, running over quite uniform land, were selected upon which to make this trial. On Aug. 1, the tassels were pulled from eachalternate row. At cutting-time four rows, having the tassels removed, were cut and shocked to- gether, then four rows from which the tassels were not removed were shocked together. Continuing this throughout the thirty- two rows, they had when done four shock rows of each. When husked these shock rows were weighed separately. They also SCLENGE. 97 separated the merchantable from the unmerchantable corn, and calculated the yield of each separately per acre. They find that the unmerchantable corn from the four plots from which the tassels were removed averages 26 per cent, while the averages from the otber four rows is 21 per cent unmerchantable, The calcula- tions also show that the average yield per acre is about one bushel less than where the corn was left undisturbed. It is probable that the tassels were not removed in this experiment early enough. To insure or even make possible beneficial results from removing tas- sels, the pulling should be done as soon as they appear, and before the stalk has weakened itself in an attempt to perfect the tassel. The theory upon which this experiment is based is that the strength that would otherwise go to the maturing of the tassel and produc- tion of pollen is diverted to the use of grains, and from their more complete development more corn is produced. The fodder in this experiment was not weighed, because back-water from a high river damaged it to such an extent as to make the weight unre- liable. LITERARY OUTFIT FREE.| THE WEEKLY BULLETIN Horstiras Acid Phosphate, Recommended and _ prescribed by physicians of all schools FOR DYSPEPSIA, NERVOUSNESS, EXHAUSTION, and all diseases arising from im- perfect digestion and derange- ments of the nervous system. It aids digestion, and is a _ brain and nerve food. Descriptive pamphlet free. - Rumford Chemical Works, Providence R. I. Beware of Substitutes and Imitations. SCIENCE CLUBBING RATES. 10% DISCOUNT. We will allow the above discount to any subscriber to Science who will send us an order for periodicals exceeding $10, counting each at its full price. N. D. C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. Y. PATENTS ForINVENTORS. 40-page BOOK FREE. Address W. T. Fitzgerald, Attorney at Law, Washington, J).C. Anyo esending us $1.00 at once and mentioning “Science,” will :eceive a copy of ‘ Historical Sketches and Events in the Colonization of Ameri- ca,” by G. B. Hall. A square 8vo. book (644x9 inches), 223 pages, illustrated. This is a regular $2.00 book and a bargain at that price... .... $ 2 wv 200 Private Library Labels; they should be used by all who own books... ........... - ..- “The Library,’ a 10U-~age b ok containing a brief list of most important standa:d and mis- cellaneous books in every department of Ji: era- ture. Intended for those who are about form- ing alibrary. Hints about what bo_ks to read and how to buy them... ....... ..........- 5U 1 year’s subscription to the “Literary Light,”’ a monthly magazine of Ancient, Medieval and Modern Literature............ .....-..00+-.-00- 1 00 $4 00 $4.00 actual value for $1.00. Sample copy of ‘ Lit erary Light,” 10 cents (postal card won't do). Address, Literary Light, 243 4th Ave. S. Minneapolis, Minn. STERBROOK’S STEEL PENS. OF SUPERIOR AND STANDARD QUALITY. Leading Nos.: 048, 14, 130, 135, 239, 333 For Sale by all Stationers. THE ESTERBROOK STEEL PEN 6CO., Works: Oamden, N.J. 26 John St., New York. ADDRESS ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE To introduce a series of valuable educational works the above be sent to all applicants Room vVAMES P. DOWNS, PUBLISHER, 327. Re St j H ‘ND :FOR.CIR CULAR TO Cabinet Specimens, Collections, und s material by the pound, for miner- alogists. collectors, colleges, schools, and chemists. Send for 100-page catalogue, paper bound, 15 cents; cloth bound, 25 cents; supplement, 2 cents. Guzo. L. EnGuisH & Co., Mineralogists, 733 & 735 B’way, N.Y. OF NEWSPAPER AND PERIODICAL LITERATURE. Catalogues and Classifies Each Week : THE PRINCIPAL CONTENTS OF THE PERIODICAL PRESS. That huge mass of material heretofore inaccessible to the eager student is now rendered available. Special attention is invited to the Bulletin’s INDEX OF TECHNIGAL LITERATURE Send for a free sample copy and learn how The Bulletin Supplies The Articles Catalogued. Address THE WEEKLY BULLETIN, 5 Somerset Street, = = Boston, Mass. Societas Entomologica. International Entomological Society, Zu- rich-Hottingen, Switzerland. Annual fee, ten francs. The Journal of the Society appears twice a month, and consists entirely of original ar- ticles on entomology, with a department for advertisements. All members may use this department free of cost for advertisements relating to entomology. The Society consists of about 450 members in all countries of the world. The new volume began April 1, 1892. The numbers already issued will be sent to new members. For information address Mr. Fritz Rust, President of the Societas Entomologica, Zurich-Hottingen, Switzerland. WORLD-ENGLISH. 25 Cents. HANDBOOK OF WORLD-ENGLISH. 25 Cents. Ex- President Andrew D. White, of Cornell University, says: ‘‘I believe thatthe highest interests of Chris- tian civilization and of humanity would be served by its adoption.” ““So set down, our tongue is the best forthe world to unite upon.”—Brooklyn Eagle. “ The idea of Mr. Bell has much to recommend it, and the presentation is charmingly clear.”"—Ameri- can, Phila. “The result is a language which cannot fail to meet with acceptance.’’—Boston Traveller. “World English deserves the careful consideration of all serious scholars.*"—Modern Language Notes. Sent, postpaid, on receipt of price. N. D. C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, New York. SCIENCE: {| VoL. XX. No. 497 QUERY. Can any reader of Sczence cite a case of lightning stroke in which the dissipation of a small conductor (one-sixteenth of an inch in diameter, say,) has failed to protect between two horizon- tal planes passing through its upper and lower ends respective- ly? Plenty of cases have been found which show that when the conductor is dissipated the build- ing is not injured to the extent explained (for many of these see volumes of Philosophical Trans- actions at the time when light. ning was attracting the attention of the Royal Society), but not an exception is yet known, al- though this query has been pub- lished far and wide among elec- tricians. First inserted June 19. to date. N. D. C. HODGES, 874 BROADWAY, NEW YORK. No response A TEMPORARY BINDER for Science is now ready, and will be mailed postpaid on receipt of 75 cents. This binder is strong, durable and elegant, has gilt side-title, and al- lows the opening of the pages per- fectly flat. Any number can be taken out or replaced without dis- turbing the others, and the papers are not mutilated for subsequent permanent binding. Filed in this binder, Sczezceis always convenient for reference. N. D. C. HODGES, Publisher, 874 Broadway, New York. THE RADIOMETER. By DANIEL 8S. TROY. This contains a discussion of the reasons for their action and of the phenomena pre- sented in Crookes’ tubes. Price, postpaid, 50 cents. N. D, C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. Y. AUTHORS AND PUBLISHERS. Material arranged and compiled for all kinds of works, excepting fiction. Statistics a specialty. Indexing and cataloguing. Address G. E. BIVER, 835 N. 16th Street, Philadelphia. TO THE READERS OF SOMsiNti: PUBLISHER'S ANNOUNCEMENT. Titles of Some Articles Published in Science since Jan. 1, 1892. Aboriginal North American Tea. Actinism. Agriculture, Experimental, Status of. Amenhotep, King, the tomb of. Anatomy, The Teaching of, to Advanced Medical Students. Anthropology, Current Notes on. Architectural Exhibition in Brooklyn. Arsenical Poisoning from Domestic Fabrics. Artesian Wells in Iowa. Astronomical Notes. Bacteria, Some Uses of. Botanical Laboratory, A. Brain, A Few Characteristics of the Avian. Bythoscopidaw and Cereopide. Canada, Royal Society of. Celts, The Question of the. Chalicotherlum, The Ancestry of. Chemical Laboratory of the Case School of Applied Science. Children, Growth of. Collection of Objects Used in Worship. Cornell, The Change at. Deaf, Higher Education of the. Diphtheria, Tox-Albumin. Electrical Engineer, The Technical Education of. Eskimo Throwing Sticks. Etymology of two Iroquoian Compound Stems. Eye-Habits. Eyes, Relations of the Motor Muscles of, to Certain Facial Expressions. Family Traits, Persistency of. Fishes, The Distribution of. Fossils, Notice of New Gigantic. Four-fold Space, Possibility of a Realization of. Gems, Artificial, Detection of. Glacial Phenomena in Northeastern New York. Grasses, Homoptera Injurious to. Great Lakes, Origin of the Basins of. Healing, Divine.” Hemiptercus Mouth, Structure of the. Hofmann, August Wilhelm von. Hypnotism among the Lower Animals. Hypnotism, Traumatic. Indian occupation of New York. Infant’s Movements. Influenza, Latest Details Concerning the Germs of. Insects in Popular Dread in New Mexico. Inventions in Foreign Countries, How to Protect. Inventors and Manutacturers, the American Associ- ation of. Iowa Academy of Sciences. Jargon, The Chinook. Jassides; Notes on Local. Keller, Helen. Klamath Nation, Linguistics, Laboratory Training, Aims of. Lewis H. Carvill, Work on the Glacial Phenomena. Lightning, The New Method of Protecting Buildings from. Lissalouis Curves, Simple Apparatus for the Produc- tion of. e Maize Plant, Observations on the Growth and Chemi- cal Composition of. Maya Codices, a Key to the Mystery of. Medicine, Preparation for the Study of. Mineral Discoveries, Some Recent, in the State of Washington. Museums, The Support of. Palenque Tablet, a Brief Study of. Patent Office Building, The. Physa Heterostropha Lay, Notes on the Fertility of. Pocket Gopher, Attempted Extermination of. Polariscopes, Direct Reflecting. Psychological Laboratory in the University of To- ronto. Psychological Training, The Need of. Psylla, the Pear-Tree. Rain-Making. Rivers, Evolution of the Loup, in Nebraska. Scientific Alliance, The. Sistrurus and Crotalophorus. Star Photography, Notes on. Star, The New, in Auriga. Storage of Storm-Waters on the Great Plains. Teaching of Science. Tiger, A New Sabre-Toothed, from Kansas. Timber Trees of West Virginia. Trachesw of Insects, Structure of. Vein-Formation, Valuable Experiments in. Weeds as Fertilizing Material. Will, a Recent Analysis of. Wind-Storms and Trees. Wines, The Sophisticated French. Zoology in the Public Schools of Washington, D. C. Some of the Contributors to Science Since Jan. I, 1892. Aaron, Eugene M., Philadelphia, Pa. Allen, Harrison, Philadelphia, Pa. Baldwin, J. Mark, University of Toronto, Canada. Barnes, Charles Reid, Madison, Wis. Baur, G., Clark University, Worcester, Mass. Beal, W. J., Agricultural College, Mich. Beals, A. H., Milledgeville, Ga. Beauchamp, W. M., Baldwinsville, N.Y. Boas, Franz, Clark University, Worcester, Mass. Bolley, H. L., Fargo, No. Dak. Bostwich, Arthur E., Montclair, N.J. Bradley, Milton, Springfield, Mass. Brinton, D. G., Philadelphia, Pa. Call, E. Ellsworth, Des Moines, Ia. Chandler, H., Buffalo, N.Y. Comstock, Theo. B., Tucson, Arizona. Conn, H. W., Middletown, Conn. Cragin, F. W., Colorado Springs, Col. Davis, W. M., Harvard College, Cambridge, Mass. Dimmock, George, Canobie Lake, N.H. Farrington, E. H., Agricultural Station, Champaign, Ill. Ferree, Barr, New York City. Flexner, Simon, Johns Hopkins University, Balti- more, Md. Foshay, P. Max, Rochester, N.Y. Gallaudet, E. M., Kendall Green, Washington, D.C. Garman S., Museum of Comp. Zool., Cambridge, ass. Golden, Katherine E., Agricultural College, Lafay- ette, Ind. Hale, Edwin M., Chicago, Ill. Hale, George S., Boston, Mass. Hale, Horatio, Clinton, Ontario, Canada. Hall, T. Proctor, Clark University, Worcester, Mass. Halsted, Byron D., Rutgers College, New Bruns- wick, N.J. Haworth, Erasmus, Oskaloosa, Iowa. Hay, O. P., Irvington, Ind. Haynes, Henry W., Boston Mass. Hazen, H. A., Weather Bureau, Washington, D.C. Hews J. N. B., Bureau of Ethnology, Washington, Hicks, L. E., Lincoln, Neb. Hill, EK. J., Chicago, Il. Hill, Geo. A., Naval Observatory, Washizgton, D.C. Hitchcock, Romyn, Washington, D.C. Holmes, E. L. Chicago, Il. Hotchkiss, Jed., Staunton, Va. Howe, Jas. Lewis, Louisville, Ky. Hubbard, Gardiner G., Washington, D.C. Jackson, Dugald C., Madison, Wisconsin GaInee, Joseph F., Agricultural Dept., Washington, Johnson, Roger B., Miami University, Oxford, O. Kellerman, Mrs. W. A., Columbus, O. Kellicott, D. S., State University, Columbus, O. Kellogg, D. S., Plattsburgh, N. Y. Lintner, J. A., Albany, N. Y. Loeb, Morris, New York City. Mabery, Charles F., Cleveland, Ohio. Macloskie, G., Princeton, N.J. pA ND Gerald, Agricultural Station, Raleigh, MacDonald, Arthur, Washington, D.C. Marshal), D. T., Metuchen, N.J. Mason: O. 'T., Smithsonian Institution, Washington, Millspaugh, Charles F., Morgantown, W. Va. Nichols, C. F., Boston, Mass. Nuttall, George H. F., Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Md. Oliver, J. E., Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y. OS bOEy, Henry F., Columbia College, New York ity. Osborn, Herbert, Agricultural College, Ames, Iowa. Pammel, L. H., Agricultural Station, Ames, Iowa. Pillsbury, J. H., Smith College, Northampton, Mass. Poteat, W. L., Wake Forest, N. C. Preble, Jr., W. P., New York City. Ruffner, W. H., Lexington, Va. Saniords Edmund C., Clark University, Worcester, ass. Schufeldt, R. W., Washington, D.C. Scripture, E. W., Clark University. Worcester, Mass. SES D. D., Museum Comp. Zool., Cambridge, Mass. omit John B., Rutgers College, New Brunswick, N.J. Southwick, Edmund B., New York City. Stevens, George T., New York City. Stevenson, S. Y., Philadelphia, Pa. Stone, G. H., Colorado Springs, Col. Thomas, Cyrus, Washington, D. C. Thurston, R. H., Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y. Todd, J. E., Tabor, Iowa. True, Frederick W., Natlonal Museum, Washing- ton, D.C. urer, C. H., University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Wake, C., Staniland, Chicago, Il. parc, k. DeC., Harvard University, Cambridge, ass, Ward, Stanley M., Scranton, Pa, Warder) Hepert B., Howard Untiversity, Washing- ton, D.C. Welch, Wm. H., Johns Hopkins University, Balti- more, M.D. West, Gerald M., Clark University, Worcester, Mass. Whitman, C. O., Clark University, Worcester, Mass. ame Edward H., Lehigh University, Bethle- em, Pa. A WEEKLY NEWSPAPER OF ALL THE PUBLISHED BY N. D. C. HODGES, 874 BROADWAY, N. f TentH YEAR. Vou. XX. No. 498. AUGUST 19, 1892. / f TS AND SCIENCES Sineie Copies, Ten Cents, $3.50 Per YEAR, IN ADVANCE. CONTENTS. Morris Gibbs... 99 Foor DrrorMIty AS THE REesuLtT or Un- SCIENTIFIC SHOES. W. M. L. Cop- Tue Birp on its Nrsv. (0 CHOC) IDs I2200T ines) gaosousee ao 99 PHONETIC VALUE OF THE CH’I GLYPH IN THE Maya Grapuic System. AHil- (OGIO Ih, CREB Goaaoedecaouseso 101 DEATH OF PRoressoR W. P. TROWBRIDGE. 102 INOMES WAND) NEWS ess cc esls) clseiocesssil: 103 THE AMERICAN PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSOCIA TID GIGH ORME HO CR OER Teas OaG 104 THe Pest oF Frevp-Micr in THESSALY AND LOEFFLER’S SUCCESSFUL METH- oD oF ComBaTING IT. Meade Bol- HOW as Se ALEPH C0 ERG EPR eee hic dee 104 LETTERS TO THE EpiTorR. .. ............ 105 IBOOKGHEVIBWS6 Sec cic ce ee econ cle 107 AMONG THE PUBLISHERS................ 110 Entered at the Post-Office of New York, N.Y., as Second-Class Mail Matter. THE’ American Dell Telephone COMPANY. 95 MILK ST., BOSTON, MASS. This Company owns the Letters Patent granted to Alexander Gra- ;bam Bell, March 7th, 1876, No. 174,465, and January 30, 1877, No. 186,787. The Transmission of Speech by all known forms of ELECTRIC SPEAKING TELEPHONES in- fringes the right secured to this Company by the above patents, and renders each individual user of tel- ephones, not furnished by it or its licensees, responsible for such un- lawful use, and all the conse- quences thereof and liable to suit therefor. New Method of Protecting Property from Lightning. The Lightning Dispeller. Price, $20 to $30.—According to size, The Patent Lightning Dispeller is a conduc- tor specially designed to dissipate the energy of a lightning discharge,—to prevent its doing harm,—placing something in its path upon which its capacity for causing damage may be expended. No recorded case of lightning stroke has yet been cited against the principle of the Dispeller. So far as known, the dissipation of a conductor has invariably protected under the conditions employed. Correspondence solicited. AGENTS WANTED. The American Lightning Protection Company, United Bank Building, Sioux City, lowa. THE LABRADOR COAST. A JOURNAL OF TWO SUMMER CRUISES TO THAT REGION. WITH NOTES ON ITS EARLY DISCOV- ERY, ON THE ESKIMO, ON ITS PHY- SICAL GEOGRAPHY, GEOLOGY AND NATURAL HISTORY, TOGETHER WITH A BIBLIOGRAPHY OF WORKS, ARTI- CLES, AND CHARTS RELATING TO THE CIVIL AND NATURAL HISTORY OF THE LABRADOR PENINSULA. By ALPHEUS SPRING PACKARD, M.D., Ph.D. Sportsmen and ornithologists will be interested in the list of Labrador birds by Mr. L. W. Turner, which has been kindly revised and brought down to date by Dr. J. A. Allen. Dr. S. H. Scudder has con- tributed the list of butterflies, and Prof. John Macoun, of Ottawa, Canada, has prepared the list of Labrador plants. Much pains has been taken to render the bibliog- raphy complete, and the author is indebted to Dr. Franz Boas and others for several titles and impor- tant suggestions; and it is hoped that this feature of the book will recommend it to collectors of Ameri- . CaRa. It is hoped that the volume will serve as a guide to the Labrador coast for the use of travellers, yachtsmen, sportsmen, artists, and naturalists, as well as those interested in geographical and histori- cal studies. 513 pp., 8°, $3.50. N. D. €. HODGES. SCLENCE The Illustrated Popular Science Weekly. 2 ENE YEAR: More than Five hundred of the lead- ing scientific men and women of Amer- ica have agreed to contribute to the paper during the coming year; and, as others are constantly joining in this move, to make the paper more valuable than ever, it cannot be long before there will be a body of over one thou- sand competent users of this weekly medium of scientific discussion. See last page of this number. Send 50 cents (in postage stamps, if most con- venient) for 2 months’ trial subscription. Nealoni@ HODGES, 874 BROADWAY, NEW YorRK. |874 Broadway, - - NEW YORK. [Vot. XX. No. 498 | PERIODICALS. i , SCIENCE. O0E FSG 4889S 4060969900890 46 90689800 me THE SHORT CUTsum To a Complete Knowledge of what is being said onall..... eeeee THE GREAT TOPICS OF THE DAY ‘“* The Magazine for Hot Weather.’’ eotsrtwseseae —IS TO TAKE— PUBLIC OPINION, the only journal which gives one an opportunity to read the ablest arti- cles on the uppermost topics of the hour, impartially selected from the representative press of 4,000 PAPERS IN 7. mR EVIEWoREVIEWS Is ‘‘A Summer Magazine ’’ BECAUSE—“‘ If one has only ten minutes every day to read, he can keep thor- oughly posted on the events of the whole world by reading this valuable oe publication.’’—Seattle Press-Times. ) BECAUSE —‘‘ It is illustrated lavishly and well and is indispensable.’'—Congrega- tionalist. 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THURBER says: “I consider PUBLIC OPINION a necessity to busy men.” IF YouR NEWSDEALER DON’T KEEP IT, SEND FOR SAMPLE Copy. $1.00 for the entire Campaign. CONTRIBUTIONS TO OUR KNOWLEDGE OF newt ro THE PUBLIC OPINION CO., Washington, D. C. THE LIFE-HISTORY OF ANY PLANT OR ANI- B06 9868984690466 0 060980898689 8680008 ea Each memoir must be accompanied by a sealed envelope, enclosing the author’s name and super- The American Geologist for 1 892. |xehbiss nite coreoodor ison pouty tary on or before April 1, 1893. Prizes will not ba awarded unless the memoirs are deemed of adequate merit. EDUCATIONAL. Walker Prizes in Natural History. The Boston Society of Natural History offers a first prize of from $60 to $100 and a second prize of a sum not exceeding $5), for the best memoirs, in English, on the following subject: : : : rn ; : Edited by Pror. S. CaLvin, University of lowa; Dr. E. W. CLAYPOLE, Buchtel College; JoHN EYERMAN, Lafayette College ; Dr. PeRsiror Frazer, Penn. Hort. Soc.; Pror. F. W. Cracin, Colorado College ; Pror. Ros’r T. HILL, U.S. Irrigation Survey; Dr. ANDREW CG. Lawson. University of California; R. D. SALIsBuRY, University of Wisconsin; JosepH B. TYRRELL, Geol. Sur, of Canada; ae O. UtricH, Minnesota Geological’ Survey: Pror. I. C. WHITE, University of West Virginia; Pror. N. H. WINCHELL, University of Minnesota, NowinitsIXth volume. $3.50 per year. Sample copies, 20 cents. Address THE GEOLOGICAL PUBLISHING ey Minneapolis, ‘Minn. For further particulars apply to SAMUEL HENSHAW, Secretary. Boston, July 26, 1892. THE OBSERVER. Published Monthly at Portland, Conn. A MEDIUM OF INTERCHANGE OF OBSERVATIONS FOR ALL SLUDENTS: AND LOVERS (OR NATU Kis E. F. BIGELOW, Editor and Publisher. ASSOCIATE EDITORS: M. A. BOOTH, F.R.M.S., Microscopy, Longmeadow, Mass. ‘ (NOR he SA GIs: Ornithology, Portland, Conn. A. W. PEARSON, Entomology, Norwich, Conn. Ce SHEPARD, Botany, New Britain, Conn. Gi A. HARGRAVE, Conchology, Danville, Ind. F. P. GORHAM, Geology, 103 Knight St., Providence, R. I. ELT EOE Subscription, $1. Single Number, EOE OAM re” |Ward’sNatural Science Establishment 7 === cans ot Fouts, —/ Mineralogy, Geology, Paleontology, Zoology, Osteology, Anatomy. |anutomieat Keliermaps.| Send for Circular. ROCHESTER, N. Y. _ lnvertepren’’™ . es Sis NEW YORK, AUGUST 19, 1892. THE BIRD ON ITS NEST. BY MORRIS GIBBS. ALTHOUGH many interesting points in relation to the nest- ing habits of our friends, the birds, have appeared, I have yet to see anything concerning the position which the pro- spective parent assumes while incubating. The subject has been of much interest to me, and in the past years many observations have been made, which plainly indicate that the proprietors of nearly all nests ‘‘have their exits and their entrances.” Many there are, as the kingfishers, wood- peckers, and other species, which reach their eggs by a single opening or burrow, and these of necessity must emerge from the same source; but all seem to have a well- defined position in sitting, as we shall see. All can remember the attitude of the domestic hen, turkey, or goose, and how rarely this position is changed; and with the wild bird the tendency to a shift is even less, for with barn-yard fowls we can alter their posture by placing a board in a variety of positions about the nest, but with the inhabitants of the wood any interference generally results in desertion. The robin when building her nest often tries how her brooding breast is to fit the growing structure, and this, too, when a bare, flat platform gives no indication of the elevated sides to follow. Later, the male sits in the forming cup, and speculates, probably, on the outcome of his efforts, and views the outlook from the crotch. During the four days of egg-laying the female is not on, or rather in, the structure to any extent, unless the weather is cold or wet, and she assumes almost any position. It is only after the duties of incubation begin, a period which lasts fourteen days to a dot, that the robins adopt a standard, shared in by each of the pair. The male, who shares in the duties of sitting, when going to take his trick, almost invariably flies towards his mate in the same path, and arriving at the back door, just as his feet are about to touch the edge, the female is seen to dart forward between the branches which comprise the front door. This front door, as I prefer to call it, is then really the exit, and toward it the incubating bird always points her bill. It never directs toward the tree-trunk, and generally points towards an open space in the foliage when in a thick-leaved tree or bush. With all birds, so far as Tam able to learn, the exit is a point of observation for the sitter, from which it can get a view of friends and foes. The owls and hawks from an ele- vated position can command a fine view of the surroundings. . With all aquatic birds the sitter almost invariably occupies a position presenting toward the water. Shore birds, as the sandpipers, rest on their nests in a position to best view the stream or pond. Rails and gallinules face the water, the latter usually building so that they can plunge from their homes directly into their favorite channels. The loon, who builds, or rather forms, its nest away out from shore in a mass of vegetable matter, usually the foundation of an old muskrat’s house, invariably faces the open, deep water. From that position it can slide into the lake at a second’s notice. Anyone can prove this position of the loon by examining the premises when the owner is away. The nest proper is merely a trough-like depression, evidently formed by the bird’s efforts at hollowing, rather than in building up the sides. This oblong depression is a foot and a half long and over ten inches wide, and the eggs are always placed from three-fifths to two-thirds of the distance from the front end. In a large number of nests of the brown pelican, which I examined on an island in Indian River, Florida, all gave evidence that the old birds sat in one position, usually with the front to the water, It was interesting to note, that, although the very young birds, which occupied many of the nests, assumed no regular position, the larger young nearly all presented towards the shore. In the case of ruffed grouse and quail, the position occu- pied while on the nest is invariably that which gives the best view of the surroundings from the more or less concealed retreat. Who ever heard of a grouse’s nest where the old bird faced into the brush pile or toward the stump or log? The arboreal sparrows, vireos, and many other smaller birds usually sit upon nests built on horizontal limbs, with the head from the trunk, and when the nest is much elevated the position is usually chosen so that the sitter will face the prevailing wind. Birds will nearly always, when on or off the nest, face the wind; and, if observations are taken, nearly all birds on the nest will be found in one position if a strong wind is blowing. FOOT DEFORMITY AS THE RESULT OF UNSCIEN- TIFIC SHOKS. BY W. M. L. COPLIN, MD., AND D. BEVAN, M.D. In approaching the subject of scientific foot-dress, one of necessity combats the traditions, experiences, and fashions of centuries. If we are tojudge of the foot coverings handed down to us as relics from the courts of France, Spain, Eng- land, and Germany, we can but conclude that for an ex- tremely long period of time, probably eight or ten cen- turies, the dressing of the human foot has been, even in the so-called civilized countries, but slightly different, and only in degree, from the customs of the followers of Confucius for thousands of years. Fortunately for art, unfortunately for the history of civilization, so called, the artist of olden as well as modern times has not copied, except in portraiture, the cramped foot, the narrow toe, the elevated heel, and the pinched instep, which have long accompanied the human foot. It seems reasonable to suppose, however, that the Roman artist and critic, and the Grecian as well, fully at- tempted to give us the perfect foot as found in the well-devel- oped Grecian woman of the day. The sandals worn at the time when Rome was in her splendor were undoubtedly so constructed as to afford ample opportunity for the develop- ment of the foot, and exhibit the beauty of its conformation. The gladiators, if we are to judge of their physique by the rude representations which are handed down to us from their times, trained in extremely loose-fitting sandals, and 1 Tojo) fought their battles in ‘‘shin buskins,” rarely wearing any foot covering at all. The first criminal step taken was that of lacing the entire shoe; this error led rapidly to the pinching of the foot, and in order to retain the foot well forward in the shoe the high heel became a necessity. This is not the histological reason why the high heel was first put on the shoe, but it is evident to the thinker that, with the narrow toe worn during the reign of Queen Elizabeth, it would have been practically impossible to have prevented excoriation and severe rubbing of the heel had the shoe remained fiat; hence to prevent this the heel was elevated, and the foot shot forward to the toe of the shoe, and its return toward the heel prevented by the elevation of its posterior extremity. Fic. 1.—Infant’s foot, never worn ashoe. Scale, three-elghths of an inch to one inch. This can be but a brief résumé of the history of the im- proper foot-wear; it is sufficient to say, that, as fact, the wooden shoe or the cast shoe is more conducive to maintain- ing the normal contour of the foot than the pinchy leather shoe. To return to the consideration of our subject proper, aside from the influence of evolution upon the human foot, we are to remember that the foot of a child as nearly represents the ideal of a perfect foot as anything of which we can con- ceive; so, taking that for a basis of our observation, let us glance for a moment at the essential features in maintaining the beauty of this small piece of God’s handiwork. As briefly outlining the course which the deformity of the foot pursues as the result of improper shoeing,the accompany- ing diagrams are presented.. They are in no sense pictures, and are made by placing the foot upon paper and carefully tracing a continuous line around it; the same is true of the oss scence, o lew, = aE eee Cte! Fir. 2.—Five year-old child's foot, sh-wing beginning deformity. Scale, two- eighths of an inch to one inch. shoe except that it is drawn in broken lines. It will be ob- served that the broadest part of Fig. 1 is at the tip of the toes, that the toes are separated, that the pencil line can be readily made between the toes without displacing or pushing them aside. The foot is almost triangular in shape; from the tip of the little toe, a line projected backward will touch almost the entire length of the foot, and the inner margin of the big toe being continuous with the line at the side of the foot. The toes are straight, and when turned up, that is, fully extended, they will be separated from each othee and evince perfect freedom of motion, both flexion and extention in all the phalanges. The instep is well arched, both on the plantar and dorsal surfaces; the foot is pliable; and, when extreme flexion is made, it will be manifest in the arch as well as in the toe; the heel is not found extending backward, it is round from above downward posteriorly and from side to side; there is no sharp angle, and the thicken- SCIENCE. [VoLt. XX. No. 408 ing of the plantar skin begins gradually. This foot has never worn a shoe, and therefore does not show any of the evidences of the slowly developing deformity. Next we will consider the foot of a child five years old (Fig. 2). It will be observed that the great toe is beginning to deflect towards its fellows; the little toe deflects slightly towards the inner side of the foot; the greatest width of the foot is no longer at the tip of the toes but at the metatarso-phalangeal articulation; the toes can be but slightly separated by voluntary effort on the part of the individual. The toes are beginning to show slight stumping, and the overriding of the little toe and of its neighbor is beginning to manifest itself. The foot, although fat and plump, has not the smoothness, softness, and roundness which the infantile foot possesses. A line drawn from the heel along the outer or inner margin of the foot but slightly touches the great toe or the little toe at its base, and neither of them at their first phalangeal articula- tion. The tracing of the shoe shows exactly how the foot must be compressed in order to adapt itself to the shoe; and it is to be remembered that these drawings were made upon the outside of the shoe, and the foot must go on the inside of the covering of which this is an outside tracing. The nar- rowing of the toes must inevitably follow this pinching. Passing on to the next degree, we have that of an adult foot (Fig. 3). The deformity here is sufficiently well marked to speak for itself; a step further it becomes more marked, and reaches its climax in Figs. 4 and 5, where we have a later stage thoroughly represented. Here the great toe is overriden by Fie. 3.—Adult’s foot, showing increased deformity. Scale, one-eigth of an inch to one inch. thesecond toe, which lies parallel with the third toe; they are stumped, with nails and sides flattened. The fourth toe bends under the third toe. The bend at the first and second phalangeal articulation is angular, and both angles are sur- mounted by corns. The little toe bends far under the fourth toe, and at the metatarso-phalangeal junctions of the small toe and of the great toe articular enlargements are well ad- vanced. Lines drawn along the outer and inner margin of the foot no longer touch either the great or little toe. The heel now projects backward as a result of the lacing to which the ankle has been subjected. The foot is flattened in the sole, and in some cases enlargement will be observed in the tarso-metatarsal articulation of the great or, more com- monly, the little toe. These changes, as represented by the above succession of figures, are but the history of one foot, if it could be followed from infancy to adult life or later. The skin of the sole of the foot will be thick, and in no small number of cases corns will be situated either upon the heel or internal or external ball of the foot. During the develop- ment of these deformities the gait of the patient — for by this time the sufferer is a patient either of the doctor or the chiropodist — will have materially changed. Instead of the free, swinging gait of childhood and youth, easily and comfortably maintained, we have now the mincing, narrow gait with evident unsteadiness in the ankles, a tendency to prevent pushing forward of the foot and a manifest effort required in ascending or descending stairs or steps. There is a poorly developed calf as a result of the heel being highly elevated. The leg is narrow and flat; the calf is deficient and the tendo-achilles prominent. Climbing stairs, or go- AucusT 19, 1892. ] ing up hills, or working bicycles or pedals, or standing on tip-toe, or dancing, tires out the calf, produces pain in the hamstring muscle and a weakness in the back. These conditions are not rarely ascribed to ingrowing toe- nails, corns, or a tender foot, while in fact they are the legitimate outgrowths of slowly developing anatomical de- formities. Added to the improper shape of the shoe and its Fias. 4 and 5.—Adults’ feet, showing the advanced stages of deformity. Scale, one-eigth of an inch to one inch. poor construction, we have the element of bad leather with stiff inflexible joining, all going as important factors of the development of the deformity. The question of the arrest of these changes, the prevention of deformity, lies, of course, entirely in properly made shoes. The shoe should certainly he the same width from the metatarso-phalangeal articula- tioa to the tip of the toe. Crowding should be prevented. The soles should be flat, no heels to jab the foot forward upon the toes. The weight should be transmitted directly to the plantar arch, and not to the ball of the foot. Stock- ings should be wide and not taper at the toes, having a uni- form width as in the shoe from the ball to the tip of the toe; they should be seamless in the area coming in contact with the toes and soles, The texture of both the stocking and the shoe should be pliable, and neither should be worn long enough to become saturated with moisture. PHONETIC VALUE OF THE CHI GLYPH IN THE MAYA GRAPHIC SYSTEM. BY HILBORNE T. CRESSON, A.M., M.D. THE Ch glyph, which figures so extensively both in the hieratic and demotic script of the Mayas, seems to have been used in the most archaic forms of their graphic system, as it appears in their altar tablets of Copan (see Fig. 3 of the illustration accompanying this article), and it is also to be remarked among the ikonomatic decorations of various ancient Maya cities, Chi, in Maya, means ‘‘to seize” or ‘‘ hold” with pins, thorns, or claws, or other sharp-pointed objects; this would be clearly ikonomatic for Chic or Ch’. In 1876, while in Paris, it was my good fortune to examine, at the library of the Ecole des Beaux Arts, an excellent photograph of the tablet to the left-hand side of the doorway of Casa, No. 3, Palenque, which, in a previous article published in Science, I have suggesied is probably a bas-relief of Kukuitz. The design and technique of this masterpiece of the Maya scribe- sculptor’s art is especially fine, particularly the ikonomatic decorations which ornament the figure of the god. The head-dress of the figure represents feathers, maize leaves, the quetzal head, and other decorations, notably that of a _ heron (Baac-h@) in the act of pinching a fish (cay) in its powerful bill. The suggestion of Baac-hd in the act of pinch- ing cay in its bill (Fig. 6), although it recalled by means of the various phonetic components of the crane’s head, neck, and eye, that the scribe intended to suggest to one’s mind ha- ca-ba, or hach kabah, or it may be ah kaba, also sug- gested that ch’z, “‘ to pinch,” “‘ bite,” was implied by the ac- tion of the heron’s bill. It would make the sentence more complete, for the fish, cay, is, in fact, but a determinative, SCIENCE. 10! showing that ch’¢ is intended rather than ch’?, thus giving us ‘‘ Ba-haa-cha” or ‘“‘ha&-ch4-ba,” an excellent rebus-like suggestion of ah kaba, which in Maya = ‘‘he who has a name.” I notice that in the Casa, No. 2, tablet, Palenque, that the main clouée of Brasseur calls attention to ‘‘ah kaba,” and a sculptured vase recently discovered in Yuca- tan, now in the Peabody Museum, has this same hieroglyph incised upon it in connection with other components which suggest «ma-kaba-kin = ‘‘ days without names.” The so- called ‘‘nail-head”’ component of this glyph seems to have the phonetic value of d. It is absent, however, on the vase just referred to. In order to find out whether the ch’z glyph was used in other localities, a reference to Catherwood’s drawing of the glyphs on the top of an altar at Copan, and various other sculptured tablets, indicates that it was used repeatedly by the Mayascribes. In one instance, at Copan, it recalls Chikin, the ‘ west” or ‘‘sun-bitten.” (Fig. 13). The ch’t glyph has numerous variants, and seems to be accompanied by determinatives so as to indicate the vowel combinations, such as chad, cha, cht, cho, chu. We have called attention to a supposed determinative in a previous article published in Science, and one has already been re- ferred to in this article. Where the glyph has no determina- tive whatever, as in Fig. 1, I accept it as ch’. If accom- panied by the small circle, as in Fig. 2, I use it as ch’. The sign of May orientation (Fig. 13), Chikin, the “‘ west” or ‘‘sun-bitten,” is an instance where this phonetic value has worked successfully. Where the ch’? glyph accom- panied by two small circles (Fig. 15) placed on either of the tooth-like attachments (Fig. 16) which generally accompanies it, the phonetic value ch’w is suggested (see Figs. 4 and 5). Fig. 19 gives an admirable example of where two of the count-numerals are attached to the glyph; and, accepting it as a determinative, we obtain the phonetic value ch’d. The ch’i glyph sometimes appears as shown in Fig. 18, and the resemblance of it to that of the day-sign, manik (Fig. 10), is striking. Manik has the same components, only the outer line of the glyph encloses it completely, while in the ch’i glyyh the two ends of the pinching claw, or hand, are left open. Where it is closed we havea glyph formed, as in Fig. 20, which is not unlike the draughtsman’s T-square, and seems to have the phonetic value ma. The T-square glyph (Fig. 20) is used at Palenque, small ventila- tors in the walls of one of the houses being shaped like it. At Ch’ Ch’een-Itza it appears as an ikonomatic decora- tion on the walls of a temple, and the small component (Fig. 11), so often used in the Maya glyphs, also appears as an ikonomatic decoration at Ch’t, Ch’een, Itza. Its phonetic 102 value seems to be ich, as an affix, and chi as a suffix. In Fig. 18 itis a prefix and reads ich, suggesting that ch’2 is the proper phonetic value to be used. The determinatives that we have referred to in this and other articles seem to be phonetic. Fig. 3 is the U of Landa, and there is reason to think that it is correct, for the o or w attached to it is divided in half by a line which I believe, from results obtained in other directions, is the vowel o with the cut-line through it. In the various Ch’u (or Ch’o) glyphs (Figs. 4 and 5) that we have given this component of the glyph is square (Fig. 16). It has the cut-sign in the middle, or is divided by it, and gives a fair representation of teeth. Co=tooth in Maya (pronounced Coo), and, as in Figs. 38, 4, 5, the cut-sign runs to the perpendicular line (Fig. 17), whose phonetic value in my alphabet = H, either end of the h glyph touching the ch glyph, which envelops it externally, as in Figs. 3, 4, I accept it as a suggestion of h’ or ch’u What we have designated as the cut-line, or sign, appears in other places. A good example is shown in Fig. 8. It is the well-known honey-sign, but in this case is combined with other glyphs. I act on a principle of analysis which so far has given good results, that the glyphs and Maya decora- tions are composed of ikonomatic components, and that the Maya scribe-sculptor and his more demotic brethren do not seem to have used any meaningless decorations, either in their hieroglyphs or the ornamentation of their palaces, all these being in keeping with the words which they in- tended to convey to the reader’s mind by the sound of the name of the thing represented. Fig. 8 is a glyph in the second row of the outer page of the Codex Troano. It is placed in front of Plate 35 of Brasseur’s work. We will begin our analysis as follows: (a) The upper, left-hand glyph and the determinative sign below it on the lower, left-hand side; (6) the upper, right-hand glyph and the honey-sign below it at the lower, right-hand side. The o or u glyph is composed of the eye glyph, ich, or wich, placed on either side below the tooth-like appendage, Co. Just above it, in the elongated,oval glyph, is the hé or h glyph, a line running through o or u, these two glyphs giving us an admirable suggestion of ch’w or ch’o. By taking half of this upper glyph it can easily be seen that the w of Landa (Fig. 3) is but a variant of this glyph (Fig. 21). The upper right- hand glyph (Fig. 8) has the dotted sh aspirate, together with the z loop and 7 curve. Descending from the 7 loop is the twisted glyph (or line), whose phonetic value I have so far used with success as ba (from ba, twisted, tortuous, bent). By trying every combination that can be obtained from this glyph and the preceding glyphs, I find that the fol- lowing word was probably that intended by the Maya seribe, viz., ‘‘ch’u-h-oo-sh-il,” or ‘‘ch’hucil.” Turning to the vocabulary of Brasseur, which seems to suit this kind of work better than the dictionary of Perez, I find that the word in Maya means ‘‘sweets.” This placed over the honey- sign, at the lower right-hand corner, indicates that we are not far astray in our analysis. The honey-sign has the two small, square, black, count glyphs attached to its left upper and lower corners—ca, or ‘‘two;” next comes our dotted aspirate line, which has the phonetic value sh or 2; beyond this aspirate, to the left, is the hd or h, a perpendicular line, giving us in connection with the other components and the aspirate ‘‘ca-ha” (b is understood) =cab, or ‘‘ honey.” ‘“Sweets-honey” is, I think, a fair interpretation of this glyph, which anyone who has studied the ‘‘Bee-Keeper’s Narrative” of the Troano will recall as intimately associated SCIENCE. [VoLt. XX. No 408 with honey and the honey-comb. Its component, i, is the antenne of the bee, with the 7 loop attached. This antennz glyph I have shown in a previous article to be intimately associated with the honey-sign Cab. The seconc wu of Landa’s alphabet (Fig. 14) is expressed by the o and uw and the J curve to which the ‘twisted glyph, ba, is attached. This gives us ‘‘Ho-ba;” and the aspirate of Landa, marked by the indented curve between the 2 and ba components of this sign, changes the bd into hd or yd, giving us ‘‘Ho-ya”=‘‘to water,” ‘‘sprinkle.” The w of Landa is often seen placed below the hieroglyph of the firma- ment, and is intimately connected with hd, or ‘‘ water which refreshes the earth with rain,” ‘“dew and moisture.” Ca, hd, 0, w have an interesting relation with the ch’i glyph, and, from what we have related, seem to be determinatives. The chi glyph is represented in many different parts of the Troano either as the claw-like appendage of the shell-fish, as in Plate 24 (b), Codex Troano, the centipede or tarantula claw, as in Plate 13 ,Troano (6.c.), Plate 18 (6), Plate 9 (c), or as the “‘ pinching hand,” with its crustacean-like thumb on Plate 25 (6), Troano. DEATH OF PROFESSOR W. P. TROWBRIDGE. PROFESSOR WILLIAM P. TROWBRIDGE, the head of the en- gineering department of the Columbia College School of Mines, died of heart-failure at his home in New Haven last Friday. He was born in Troy, Oakland County, Mich., May 25, 1828, and entered the West Point Military Academy in 1844, where he graduated four years later, receiving an appointment as second-lieutenant in the corps of engineers. He had served as Assistant Professor of Chemistry during the last year of his course at the academy, and after his graduation he was occupied for some time with astronomical work at the West Point Observatory. In 1851 he was ap- pointed to a position on the Coast Survey under Superin- tendent Bache, which he held till 1856, and at a later time he took part in the survey of the James and Appomattox Rivers and in a series of surveys on the Pacific coast. In 1854 he had received a commission as first-lieutenant in the U. 8S. Army, which he resigned two years later to ac- eept the professorship of mathematics in the University of Michigan; but after a year of service, he resigned his pro- fessorship also, and was appointed scientific secretary to the superintendent of the Coast Survey. During the Civil War he again served in the army, and rose to the rank of brig- adier-general; his work in the army being largely in con- nection with fortifications in New York harbor and else- where. After the war was over he resigned his commission again, - and entered the Sheffield Scientific School of Yale College as Professor of Dynamic Engineering, but resigned in 1877 to take the professorship of engineering at Columbia, which, as we have stated, he held up to the time of his death. Professor Trowbridge was the author of a treatise on ““ Heat as a Source of Power” and several other works on engineering subjects. He was the chief agent of the tenth census for collecting statistics relating to power and ma- chinery employed in manufactures. He was for four years Adjutant-General of Connecticut, was Vice-President of the New York Academy of Sciences and of the American Asso- ciation for the Advancement of Science, and was a fellow of the National Academy of Sciences. For several years Professor Trowbridge was a director of the Science Com- pany. AuGuUST 19, 1892. ] NOTES AND NEWS. THE question whether an attack of influenza confers protec- tion from subsequent infection is one which must have often arisen during the experiences of the last three years, but the data for its solution are not yet fully available. The amount of infor- mation which must have been gleaned by the family practitioner in all parts of the country upon this and many other points con- cerning the malady would, if collated, go far to settle the matter. It is of course notorious that certain individuals have suffered from more than one attack; but the conviction is pretty general that such cases really form but a small minority of the large num- bers who have suffered. Then, again, it must be deemed possible that the degree and duration of the protection may depend on the severity which the primary attack exhibited, for one can hardly invoke the doctrine of attenuation of virus in the case of this dis- ease, which shows so much variation from the ordinary course of infective disorders in general. In a highly interesting con- tribution upon the features of the present epidemic in Berlin, ac- cording to Lancet, Dr. Ruhemann directs especial attention to this question of protection and affords valuable evidence of it. He aptly remarks that the more gradual evolution and persistent character of the present epidemic, as compared with the rapid and stormy course of the pandemic of 1889 to 1890, have afforded opportunity for more closely studying the character of the malady, and that it has especially enabled us to recognize more clearly its contagious nature. According to him, influenza has prevailed in Berlin ever since the beginning of last September, and he notes how on this occasion the stress of the outbreak had fallen to a far greater extent upon women and children and less upon men than was the case two years ago. His own practice affords proof of this, especially in the fact of the greater frequency of uncom- plicated cases among women than among men. As to the ques- tion of protection, he has observed that members of families who were severely attacked two years ago have either escaped entirely at present or been only slightly affected; whilst, conversely, the most serious cases of the present time have arisen in households which the influenza spared during its earlier visitation. He notes the statement of Dr. Edward Gray, to the effect that ‘‘ many per- sons who escaped the epidemic of 1775 were affected by that of 1782, and many who escaped the latter were affected by the for- mer,” as showing that a century ago this question of immunity had not passed unnoticed. Dr. Ruhemann gives his experience of 55 families, numbering 193 individuals. In 1889-90 there were 64 cases of influenza among this group, whilst in the present out- break only 40 have been attacked, and, what is of special interest, only 5 out of this number were affected (and that but slightly) two years ago, whilst of the 64 then attacked only 4 have again become victims. Should this prove to be anything like the gen- eral experience it would go far to substantiate a fact that has hith- erto been much disputed, even to the extent of declaring that one attack predisposes to another. That one individual may have several recurrences during the prevalence of a single epidemic does not, in Dr. Ruhemann’s opinion, mitigate against the general doctrine of protection, since he thinks many such recurrences may be explained by lack of caution on the part of the patients against exposing themselves to fresh infection before they are re- stored to full health. That influenza does protect from a sec- ond infection should reassure many persons who, having once suffered severely from it, dread a repetition of so depressing a malady, and it may be further comfort to them to learn that the more they have to suffer at first, the less likely are they to suffer at all again. If, then, influenza shares this common property of all infective diseases, it is not so remarkable that it should not apparently select the young in preference to the adult and aged, seeing that the whole community is more or less ‘‘ unprotected ” when it first reappears after an absence (in pandemic form) of years. — At the meeting of the Gesellschaft Deutscher Naturforscher und Aerzte held last year in Halle, it was arranged that the sixty-fifth meeting should be held this year at Nurnberg, from the 12th to the 16th of September. This society, similar to the English and American associations for the advancement of science, SCIENCE. 103 together with a medical association, is divided into thirty-two sec- tions, about two-thirds of which belong to the medical side, and the remaining are scientific, if it be allowed to use the word in the narrow sense. The three general sittings are to be opened by addresses from Professors His of Leipzig, von Helmholtz of Berlin, and Giinther of Munich respectively; and in the meetings of the sections —for example, in chemistry — papers will be read, among others, by Ostwald and EK. v. Meyer; in physics by Wiede- mann and Boltzmann; in mathematics by G. Cantor, F. Klein and Konigsberger. On one of the days of the meeting excursions are to be made by certain of the sections. Those of physics and zoology and some of the medicinal sections go to Erlangen, where the apparatus of the University laboratories will be used in demon- stration of papers. On the same day the sections of botany, mineralogy, and geology, ethnology, and anthropology make a scientific excursion to Neuhaus or Pommelsbrunn. As before, the German Mathematical Society meets with the general Science So- ciety, and thus the number of papers in the section of mathematics is probably larger than in any other section. There is to be a technical industrial exhibition in charge of the general society and the Bavarian government, and the Mathematical Society has undertaken an exhibition of ‘‘mathematical models, drawings, apparatus, and instruments, serving both for teaching and research in pure and applied mathematics.” This latter exhibition is to include only those instruments having an interest primarily mathe- matical, while the instruments having to do with the experi- mental sciences, and of more practical use, are to be placed in the general exhibition, which will be especially rich historically, as the collections of the Nurnberg Industrial Museum are to be utilized. The mathematical exhibition is to include historical surface and curve models, such as those constructed by Pliicker and Klein, and later those of the Brill collection; and certain unique models which have been in university collections, and which have become dilapidated, are to be as much as possible re-set. In connection with these models explanitory lectures are to be delivered, those thus far announced being as follows: Dyck, introductory lecture on the mathematical exhibition; Bjerknes, hydrodynamic phe- nomena analogous to electric and magnetic; Finsterwalder, sur- face curvature; Mehmke, reckoning machines. Other lectures are to be given on function-theory surfaces, etc. In this connec- tion it is of interest to note that Professor Klein, who probably exerts the most influence in the German Mathematical Society, and who is a member of the mathematical advisory committee of the Chicago exhibition, suggests that such an exhibition of models with demonstrations be introduced there. — For some eight years the theory has been before the scientific world that the great ice-sheet bridged the Ohio River near Cin- cinnati, Ohio, sufficiently to block its channel and raise the waters above the place of bridging to a height of 500 to 600 feet above the present river-bed. Silt deposits east of Cincinnati near the ice margin have been cited as evidence of this dam since they stand about 600 feet above the Ohio. These silts have been found by Frank Leverett, U. S. Geological Survey, Madison, Wis., to be too widespread to admit of this explanation, since they extend west past Cincinnati, covering much of southern Indiana as well as portions of States farther west. They are also of later date, since they rest upon the drift deposited by the ice when it bridged the Ohio, and are separated from it by a considerable time-interval, shown by humus stain, leaching of till, and erosion of surface of the underlying drift. The apparent absence of strice south of the Ohio River and the meagre amount of drift there indicate a thin ice-sheet with feeble movement. These facts and a comparison with other districts where conditions for damming appear to have been more favorable than on the Ohio, lead to the conclu- sion that the river would not be blocked except for very brief periods. — Neptunia, May, 1892, reports a singular phenomenon from the Balearic Isles. On March 4, about 9 o’clock in the morning, a violent wind from the north blew over Soller in Majorca. As the wind died away, the rain by which it was accompanied in- creased, and at ‘the same time the ground was covered by a yel- lowish coating, which proved to be sulphur. : 104 SCIPNGE. A WEEKLY NEWSPAPER OF ALL THK ARTS AND SCIENCES. PUBLISHED BY N. D. C. HODGES, 874 BRoADWAy, New York. SuBscRIPTIoNS.—United States and Canada..... .....-..... $3.50 a year. Great Britain and Europe................. 4.50 a year. Communications will be welcomed from any quarter. Abstracts of scientific papers are solicited, and one hundred copies of the issue containing such will be mailed the author on request in advance. Rejected manuscripts will be returned to the authors only when the requisite amount of postage accom- panies the manuscript. Whatever is intended for insertion must be authenti- cated by the name and address of the writer; not necessarily for publication, but as a guaranty of good faith. We do not hold ourselves responsible for any view or opinions expressed in the communications of our correspondents. Attention is called to the ‘‘Wants” column. It is invaluable to those who use it in soliciting information or seeking new positions. The name and address of applicants should be given in full, so that answers will go direct to them. The ‘‘Exchange” column is likewise open. For Advertising Rates apply to Henry F. Taytor, 13 Astor Place, New York. THE AMERICAN PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION. In response to an invitation issued by President G. Stan- ley Hall of Clark University, a preliminary meeting of psy- chologists from various institutions was held at that univer- sity, Worcester, Mass., on July 8. The meeting was presided over by Professor G. S. Fuller- ton of the University of Pennsylvania. After a general expression of opinion as to the form of organization, it was determined to refer the entire matter to a committee consist- ing of President Hall of Clark University, Professor Fuller- ton of the University of Pennsylvania, Professor Jastrow of the University of Wisconsin, Professor James of Harvard University, Professor Ladd of Yale University, Professor Cattell of Columbia College, Professor Baldwin of the Uni- versity of Toronto. This committee was authorized to determine the place, time, and programme for the next meeting and then to report a plan of organization. It was the sense of those present that these gentlemen should constitute a council to be renewed by frequent elec- tions and should choose from their own number an executive committee to direct the more urgent affairs of the association, and that the first three gentlemen named should act tempo- rarily as such committee. Sessions were held in the afternoon and evening, at which papers were read by Professors Jastrow, Sanford, and Bryan, and Doctors Nichols, Krohn, and Gilman. It was decided in response to an invitation from Professor Fullerton to hold the next meeting of the association in Philadelphia, at the University of Pennsylvania, on Tuesday, Dec. 27, at 10 A.M. Professor Jastrow was appointed secretary to provide a programme for that meeting. He invites all members to submit to him at Madison, Wisconsin, titles of papers with brief abstracts and estimates of time required for presenta- tion. The original members who were either present at this meeting or sent letters of approval and accepted member- SCIENCE. [VoL. XX. No. 408 ship, are as follows: Frank Angell, Leland Stanford, Jr., University; J. Mark Baldwin, Toronto University; W. L. Bryan, Indiana University; W. H. Burnham, Clark Univer- sity; J. McK. Cattell, Columbia College; Edward Cowles, McLean Asylum; EK. B. Delabarre, Brown University; John Dewey, University of Michigan; G. S. Fullerton, University of Pennsylvania; K. H. Griffin, Clark University; G. Stanley Hall, Clark University; J. G. Hume, Toronto University; J. H. Hyslop, Columbia College; William James, Harvard University; Joseph Jastrow, University of Wisconsin; W. O. Krohn, Clark University; G. T. Ladd, Yale University; Herbert Nichols, Harvard University; William Noyes, Me- Lean Asylum; G. T. W. Patrick, University of Iowa; Josiah Royce, Harvard University; E. C. Sanford, Clark Univer- sity; E. W. Scripture, Yale University; Lightmer Witmer, University of Pennsylvania; H. K. Wolfe, University of Nebraska. The following additional members were elected: Dr. T. Wesley Mills, McGill College, Montreal; Hugo Miinsterberg, Harvard University; A. T. Ormond, Princeton College; Kd- ward Pace, Catholic University, Washington; KE. B. Titch- ener, Cornell University. Professor Jastrow asked the co-operation of all members for the section of psychology at the World’s Fair, and invites correspondence upon the matter. > THE PEST OF FIFLD-MICE IN THESSALY AND LOEFFLER’S SUCCESSFUL METHOD OF COM- BATING IT.’ BY MEADE BOLTON, THE valley of Thessaly was recently threatened with en- tire destruction of its growing crops by swarms of field-mice, which had suddenly appeared in such alarming numbers that the farmers and the government were at their wits’ ends to discover efficient means to combat the pest. Several dif- ferent poisons were tried at public expense, and it was also attempted to drown the mice out in some places; but owing to the difficulties of application and the inefficiency of these methods, it was found greatly desirable to look for other means. Pasteur was applied to by one of the large land- owners: for cultures of some microbe which could be used to destroy the mice, and Pasteur promptly referred his corres- pondent to Loeffler in Greifswald, who had discovered a bacillus which would answer the purpose. Pasteur’s answer was sent to the government at Athens, and as the attention of the government had already been called to Loeffler’s work by the Grecian ambassador at Berlin, Loeffler was re- quested to send cultures to be used in the infested districts. Fearing that the tests would not be made in such a manner as to securesuccess, Loeffler informed the Grecian ambassa- dor, that, although he was willing to give the cultures, he would prefer to make the experiment himself, provided his expenses were paid. On April 1 Loeffler received notice that if he would come the Grecian government was willing to pay his expenses and those of an assistant. So, after being informed that the mice were of the kind” that he had found susceptible to infection with his bacillus, Loeffler and his assistant, Dr. Abel, set out with a supply of cultures on April 5 from Ber- lin, and arrived in Athens April 9. On going to the patho- logical laboratory he was shown some of the mice from Thessaly, and to his chagrin he found they differed from the 1 Centralblatt fiir Bacteriologie und Parasitenkunde Bd. XII., No. 1. 2 Arvicola arvalis. AUGUST 19, 1892. ]} kind hehad worked on athome. Fortunately, however, it was found that the mice at Athens were even more susceptible to inoculation and also to infection through the alimentary canal than those in Germany. ‘This fact was established in a few days by inoculating and feeding the mice in the laboratory with cultures of the organism. Preparations for experiment on a large scale were at once made, and Loeffler, Dr. Abel, and Dr. Pampoukis, director of the bacteriological laboratory in Athens, set sailon April 16 for Volo, and went by rail from thence to Larissa, the capital of Thessaly, Loeffler had found that the micro-organism, Bacillus typhi murium,’ grows very well in a decoction of oat and barley straw to which 1 per cent of peptone and $ per centof grape sugar have been added. So a large amount of this liquid was prepared and inoculated. Pieces of bread about the size of a finger were soaked in these cultures after abundant growth was secured, and the bread was then distributed in the openings of the burrows of the mice. A number of mice were also inoculated and turned loose; this was done because the mice eat the bodies of those that die, and spread contagion in this way. It had been amply proved by ex- periment thatthe bread soaked in the culture could be eaten by man and various domestic animals with perfect im- punity. In a few days after the holes had been baited, news came from all sides that the infected bread had disappeared from the holes. This news was very satisfactory, as it could by no means be certainly counted upon beforehand that the mice would eat the bread, surrounded as they were with abundance of fresh food. A visit to Bakrena, about nine days after the experiment had been started at that place, showed that the mice had ceased their activity entirely. In two other places, Nochali and Amarlar, a similar result was obtained. Several burrows at these places were opened and found to be empty or to contain sick, dead, or half-eaten mice. There were sick and dying mice sticking in many of the openings. A number of sick and dead mice were car- ried to Larissa, and examined. They were found to present all the characteristic lesions of the typhoid fever of mice, and to contain the organism in their internal organs. Reports from other places which Loeffler subsequently re- ceived, were all satisfactory. So Loeffler is justified in closing his very interesting account of his expedition with the fol- lowing words: ‘‘ The science of bacteriology has thus again proved its great practical significance, and hence also its right to be specially cultivated and advanced.” LETTERS TO THE EDITOR. a*« Correspondents are requested to be as brief as possible. ts in all cases required as proof of good faith. On request in advance, one hundred copies of the number containing his communication will be furnished free to any correspondent. The editor will be glad to publish any queries consonant with the character of the journal. The writer's nume The Ancient Libyan Alphabet. In Science, Aug. 12, Professor Keane offers some inquiries and statements relating to a note of mine on the Libyan alphabet. The note referred to was partly based on an article by Dr. Collig- - non, as was indicated. Dr. Collignon is one of the highest author- ities living on north African ethnography and archeology, as Pro- fessor Keane doubtless knows. He would not make the following statement unless he had good grounds for it: ‘‘ Quant a la forme méme des caractéres libyques, on ne peut nier qu’elle ne remonte & une haute antiquiteé; elle est, en tout cas, antérieure ad Carthage.” Of course, Dr. Collignon is aware of the common theory that the letters were of Punic origin; but considers it time to discard it. 1 Centralblatt f. Bacteriologie und Parasitenkunde Bd. [X., No. 5. SCLENCE: 105 As to Professor Keane’s suggession of the origin of the name tifinar, from Finagh = Phoenician, it is purely fanciful, and his assertion that the stress ‘‘still falls on the root fin,” is utterly in- correct, as it falls on the last syllable, and not on the penult (see Hanoteau, ‘Grammaire Tamachek,” p. 5). It is true that in loose language the whole alphabet, or any alphabet, is called tifinar; and it is not quite correct to say that all the tiddebakin are vowels. The proper distinction is thus given: ‘‘ Les signes exclusivement tracés en traits sont nommés tifinar ; ceux tracés avec des points sont nommés tiddebakin.” How Professor Keane, quoting Hanoteau’s ‘‘ Grammaire Tama- chek,” can deliberately write that in the Libyan alphabet ‘‘ curves occur quite as frequently as straight lines,” can only be explained by the supposition that he never saw the book he quotes. It is before me now, and out of the thirty-five simple and compound letters only three are curvilinear, and all of these are recognized as mere variants, and placed after the true rectilinear forms. I refuse to think that this is a fair example of the accuracy of Pro- fessor Keane’s quotations. Whether they were derived from a rectangle or not, has some- thing more than theoretical importance in relation to their possible derivation from Egyptian forms; but it need not be in- sisted on. That all the original forms were composed of right lines is a point of considerable interest, which has not been dis- proved. As to what writers may be considered specialists in the study, there is room for legitimate difference of opinion. When Pro- fessor Keane rejects Duveyrier, he rejects the author who beyond all others has a practical acquaintance with the written speech of the Touaregs— the only tribe who still use the tifinar. Professor Newman’s works have been laid aside as substantially useless, on account of their phonetic system, by the best French scholars — notably René Basset; and Dr. Oudney never claimed to be an adept in the tongue. D. G. BRINTON. Media, Pa., Aug. 15. Remarks on the Migration of Coleopters. ONE might suppose, on simply Jooking at the map of the earth, that the animals of the northern hemisphere would exhibit a greater structural uniformity than those south of the equator. In the north the continents on one side are separated only by the narrow Behring’s Strait, on the other the Gulf Stream, and the prevailing west-east storms connect both continents, making migration of insects a possibility. The similarity of climates of the northern half of the continents is less favorable to the production of generic varieties than are the southern lands, isolated by wide troughs of the ocean, with a variety of climes and altitudes; and, indeed, as we go northwards the varieties decrease in number. If we abstract from the coleopterous groups genera which are most likely to migrate from one continent to the other by commerce, such as the Staphilinide, the Silphida, or the phyto- phagous insects, transportable in their food-plants, the rest of the forms will represent the aboriginal masses of 400 years ago. In the far north above latitude 50°, and where Asia approaches so near to the American shores, the indigenous genera of both continents differ comparatively little; the genera are common, and some species are identical in both continents. Commerce in these regions was slight, even up to our days, and an uninter- rupted natural development manifests itself everywhere. True northern genera, such as the Carabus, Calosoma, and Cy- chrus, have species of strict similarity, such as Calosoma syco- phanta, indagator, etc., extending from the Atlantic to the Pacific in the eastern continent, and Cal. scrutator, calidum, and wilcoxii in America; Carabus cancellatus, clathratus, and monilis on one side, Car. serratus, limbatus, and vinctus on the other, and Car. truncaticollis on both sides of Behring Sea. If we assume that the land holding the greater number of species of one genus constitutes a centre of development, that is the birth- place of that genus. Accordingly, the genera Cychrus and Calosoma are to be taken as of American origin; the first being represented in Europe and Asia by four and in America by,thirty species, the 106 latter in Europe by about half a dozen and in America by twenty- five species; while Carabus is represented in Kurope and Asia by the respectable number of 100, and in America by a short dozen species. My favorite family of Poelaphide, unlike their relatives, the Staphilinide, seem not very apt to migrate on the lines of com- merce, but extend over a space of 60° latitude north and south. In the colder xegions of the north the species of one genus in- habiting both continents are very similar, while the tropical and southern genera, with a comparatively small number of species, differ in form so much that they can hardly be retained under one name. Their habits, which suffer an involuntary modification by transportation through atmospheric forces into localities of differ- ent nature, produced in the fittest to survive changes of the most grotesque forms, and by repeated dislocations confined them in circumscribed localities. This holds good for the tropical forms of this family in the large continents; but there are examples of genera occurring in places far apart. Tmesiphorus, Tyrus, and Hamotus are of that nature. To the latter belong Upulona raffray and Cercocerus leconte, which differ, according to M. Raffray, by the more elongated form of the last joint of the maxillary palpi in Cercocerus, and the former occurs in the Friendly Islands, and the latter, together with the rest of Hamotus, is found in the western regions and on the Pacific coast of America, north and south. The streams of the Pacific Ocean are directed from west to east, and therefore would not allow a migration against the stream; consequently the original abode of those species must have been situated in the west of America, and their migration, considering the multiplication of forms in America, must date back to the re- motest ages. The Tenebrionide present a typical family of non-migrating beetles. The large majority of tenebrionide genera are wingless. They are slow in motion, and live on dead animal and vegetable matter. The generic forms of most of those in America are but distantly related to those of the eastern continent. The genera common to both continents are few, and the few immigrant species are winged, with one exception recently found — Blaps mortiraga — and such genera, which are at present assumed to be common to both lands (as Asida), owe their name to the now ac- cepted basis of analytical marks. The existence of these analogical forms can be explained only by the different geological and geographical conditions of the sur- face of the earth in remote ages. But there is always to be con- sidered the axiom that similar conditions produce similar forms. EMIL BRENDEL, Cause of a National Trait. It is a matter of common observation that Hebrews, as a rule, are more than ordinarily devoted to their families, and their home- life is beautiful in many ways. As everything has a cause, the most plausible one in this regard appears to me to be the severe persecutions to which that race has been subjected for centuries, compelling clannishness and affording them their greatest happi- hess at home. Persistent influences acting through numberless generations would surely institute a racial peculiarity such as this. S. V. CLEVENGER. Chicago, Aug. 15. Review of some Recent Publications of the U. S. National Museum, For some time past the National Museum has been following the very desirable plan of issuing, in separate pamphlet form, the contributions of those authors who publish in the Proceedings or other reports of that institution. These pamphlets are uniformly contained in neat paper-covers, tasteful in color, and bear upon the outside page the title and author of the article and its num- ber, from what standard publication of the Museum extracted, and, finally, the volume, pages, and plates (if any) of the latter. It would be well, indeed, if other institutions and societies always SCIENCE. [Vot. XX. No. 408 followed suit in these last two features, for if one thing be more annoying than another to a worker in science with a working library, it is to receive reprints of papers that bear nowhere upon them this very important information; especially when an author desires to quote from reprints that have been submitted to him. At this date the Museum has issued a number of pamphlets of the character to which the attention of the reader has just been drawn, and it is believed that brief remarks upon these may prove to be of interest. Iu No. 898 Mrs. M. Burton Williamson gives “An Annotated List of the Shells of San Pedro Bay and Vicinity,” in which two new species are described by W.H. Dall. This list is brought quite up to date, carefully describes a great many species, is sys- tematically arranged, and is illustrated by 38 excellent figures on plates. It will, no doubt, prove of use and value to the con- chologists of the Pacific coast and elsewhere. Dr. Edwin Linton, in No. 893, gives some very full and valuable ‘* Notes on Avian Entozoa,” illustrated by nearly 100 figures of structural details. Entozoa found in specimens of Larus californicus, Fuligula val- lisneria, Oedemia americana, and Pelecanus erythrorhynchus are described, in addition to parasites found in other birds collected by Mr. P. L. Jouy at Guaymas, Mexico. ‘‘One new genus was mct with among the parasites of the duck, Oedemia americana. This genus, which I have named Epision, is characterized by a singular modification of the anterior part of the body into an or- gan for absorption and adhesion.” In a brief paper, entitled ‘‘ A Maid of Wolpai,” with one plate, Dr. R. W. Shufeldt gives an ac- count of the customs and dress of the young women of that Puehlo (No. 889); and the same writer, in another paper (No. 902) entitled ‘The Evolution of House Building among the Navajo Indians,” describes the gradual improvement observed by him in the building of their houses by those Indians in New Mexico, since their contact with the whites. The paper is accompanied by three plates illustrating the subject. Lieut. T. Dix Bolles of the navy comments briefly on ‘‘Chinese Relics in Alaska” (No. 899, one plate), and from his studies of them he is forced to be- lieve that at least two centuries ago a Chinese junk must have been driven upon the Alaskan coast. A very useful paper is that by Mary J. Rathbun, giving a ‘Catalogue of the Crabs of the Family Periceridz in the U.S. National Museum ’’ (No. 901), and it is illustrated by numerous figures of various species of that group Papers of this class are especially desirable, and at the time of its appearance there were to be found in the collections of the Museum 48 species of Periceridcee, for which a valuable synonomy is given, with a “Key” to genera and species. Akin to this Jast is still another beautifully illustrated paper by Mr. James E. Benedict, on ‘‘ Corystoid Crabs of the genera Telmessus and Erimacrus.” Very little is known of these forms, and the writer's article is based on specimens collected in Alaska by Dall, and on the Albatross collections (No. 900). No less interesting are two admirable papers by Dr. Leonhard Stejneger, both of which are illustrated (Nos. 894, 904). The first gives a ‘‘ Prelimi- nary description of a new Genus and Species of Blind Cave Sala- mander fromm North America,’’—a remarkable form from the Rock House Cave, Missouri. ‘‘A new genus and species of sala- mander may not be such a startling novelty even at this late date, but the interest is considerably heightened when we have to do with the first and only blind form among the true salamanders.” It has been named by the author Typhlotriton speleus. Dr. Stejneger’s second paper is of considerable length, presenting, as it does, extensive ‘‘ Notes on a Collection of Birds made by Harry V. Henson in the Island of Yeso, Japan.” It contains many ex- cellent embryological plates. Professor Carl H. Eigenmann, in No. 897, makes a contribution to the study of ‘‘ The Fishes of San Diego,” in which ‘“ especial attention has been paid to the spawning habits and seasons, the embryology, and migration of the fishes of Southern California.” The paper is of great eco- nomic value, and lacks not in interest to the anatomist. Finally, we have three very thorough entomological articles from the pen of Dr. John B. Smith (Nos. 890-892). They deal with a ‘‘ Revision of the Genus Cucullia; Revision of the Dicopi- ne; Revision of Xylomiges and Morrisonia” (plates IL., III.). These contributions will be welcomed by the entomologist, fully AUGUST Ig, 1892. | setting forth, as they do, characterizations of the several genera and species to which the author has given his attention. R. W. SHUFELDT. Takoma, D. C., Aug. 15. The Color of the Blood in Man. HAvIinG recently examined a large number of specimens of hu- man blood from persons of different ages ranging from four to seventy-six years, some being those in robust health, others being tuberculous, I was struck with the great difference in the shade of color presented, some being of a very rich tint, others very pale. The richest color was in the blood of a girl twenty- six years of age, a graduate of Vassar College, who had the highest anthropometric measurement for respiratory capacity in a class of about 500 girls. Her health was excellent, and she con- sumed rather more flesh-food than is usual. The next highest tint was found in the blood of a woman about seventy years old, with a somewhat unusual chest measurement, having also excel- lent respiratory capacity and being in fine health. This woman, on the contrary, does not eat flesh at all. I expected in her case to find a more than ordinary number of white blood corpuscles; but there were far less than usual, it being difficult to find them, they were so few. The palest blood was from a chlorotic Irish servant-girl of twenty-five years, and in a tuberculous boy of four. There was not much perceptible difference in their cases. The girl had naturally good respiratory power, but she had les- sened it by tight clothing and an almost constant in-door life for a long time. After spending a month at the seaside, I examined her blood again, and found the tint somewhat deeper than before. As we know, the color of the blood is caused by the hemoglobin in the red blood corpuscles, and if thisis greater when the respira- tory capacity is greatest, may not the color of the blood be height- ened by enlarging the chest and increasing the lung-power? From some observations I have made I believe it can. M. L. HOLBROOK. New York, Aug. 16. Snake Eats Snake. WHILE walking over a dry mesa, yesterday, I noticed a small snake slowly crawling to the shelter of a mesquit bush. On capturing it, I found it to be of a very dark olive-green color, in large, square pattern, the lines between the plaids being of lighter green; underneath, white, with very dark-green blotches. Its head was very dark green, and rather small; it had small fangs. The length of the snake was nineteen inches. Noticing that the body seemed much distended, I opened it, and found, nicely packed away inside, the body of an ordinary, brown, striped ‘‘ grass snake,” as we call them here, twenty-two inches long. This green snake may be a new species of snake-eating serpent. The grass snake is very swift, and I am puzzled to know how the green snake caught it; it was swallowed head-first. C. W. KEmMPTON, Oro Blanco, Arizona, Aug. 8. Cleistogamy in the Pansy. Mr. DARW1, in ‘“‘ Forms of Flowers,” notes that, though cleis- togamy is the rule in the genus Viola, the pansy, Viola tricolor, has not been known to exhibit it, though it does sometimes pro- duce very small and closed self-fertilizing flowers, which would critically be termed cleistogamic if some portions of the floral organs were to abort. In our country this condition may more readily occur than in the Old World. In many localities the pansy has become partially wild and cleistogamy may be looked for. Mr. Chalkley Palmer has sent me some specimens in fruit, found wild in some place in New Jersey, which are certainly in one or ‘the other condition noted by Mr. Darwin. They appear to be truly cleistogamic, but were too far advanced to determine with accuracy. THOMAS MEEHAN. Germantown, Pa. SCIENCE: 107 BOOK-REVIEWS. Annual Report of the Geological Survey of Arkansas for 1890. Vol. III. Whetstones and the Novaculites of Arkansas. By L. 8S. GRISWOLD. Little Rock, Arkansas. THE history of the rise and progress of geology in the United States remains to be written. It dates back to early in the cen- tury; for in 1807 McClure published a paper containing geologi- cal observations. Mitchell, Eaton, Dewey, Silliman, and hosts of others followed one another in rapid succession. Nor were the observations of private individuals all that appeared in the early decades, for in 1823 Olmsted published a report on the geology of North Carolina, as one result of a regularly organized State survey, while Hitchcock in 1831 reported upon the geology of Massachusetts. Between that date and 1840 State surveys had been organized and reports had been published in Maine, Connec- ticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Mary- land, Virginia, Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, and Michigan. The general government, too, had sent expedi- tions to the north-west, Schoolcraft reporting upon the Michigan region as early as: 1820. It is true that many of the State surveys ceased after the issuance of a few documents, but their existence even for a brief period was evidence of the belief in their value. Some of the States organized second surveys at a later date and, é published numerous volumes, among which New Jersey, Penn- sylvania, Ohio, and Kentucky are especially to be noted. The survey of New York has been continued from 1837 until the present time. In those olden times the State survey reports were general; ob- servations were made over an extended area; profuse details were given of township or county geology; but no one subject was treated in an exhaustive manner. The result was that, when ten or a dozen or more volumes had been published, it still re- mained tocollate and epitomize the information. For the States of New York, Pennsylvania,! Kentucky, Ohio, Illinois and others this has never been done, and the numerous volumes of these sur- veys are masses of details with full and comprehensive accounts of scarcely a single subject. Dr. Branner, as the State Geologist of Arkansas, has seen fit to change this ancient order of things, and as a result in his annual reports we have volumes describing the Mesozoic geology, the gold and silver fields, and the coal of the State, as well as exhaustive volumes on Manganese and the Nov- aculites. The first geological survey of Arkansas published two reports, in 1859 and 1860. The beginning of the war put a stop to the work, however, and it was not until 1888 that any further work in the State was published. The report for that year, and those for 1889 and 1890, of which the volume under review is the third, contain much information valuable alike to the State and to the world at large. Whetting, or sharpening, is one of the ancient arts. That it was practised by early civilized man is evidenced by the existence in the Sanscrit of the word ga, meaning to sharpen or whet. From this comes the Latin cos, a whetstone, hone or flint-stone, and hence cotaria, a whetstone quarry. Coticula, meaning a small touch-stone, is also a derivative, and from this comes the French coticule, meaning a whetstone of a fine quality. Novacu- lite comes from novacula, a sharp knife or razor, and this in turn is derived from the Latin novare, to renew or to make fresh. Many writers from Pliny down discuss whetstones or hones for sharpening tools. Linnzeus used the word novacula in his time, and it was seemingly anglicized by Richard Kirwan into novacu- lite in 1784. Mr. Griswold believes, although all mineralogists do not agree with him,? that it is practicable ‘to revive the word as a scientific term, in its original sense, to denote a fine-grained, gritty, homogeneous, and highly siliceous rock, translucent on thin edges, and having a conchoidal or sub-conchoidal fracture. If this definition is strictly adhered to, no confusion will arise from the use of the word in commerce” (p. 18). The knowledge of whetstones in America dates from 1818, when they were mentioned by Bringier as occurring in Arkansas. 1 Professor J. L. Lesley is now engaged on this work, and Vol. I. of his final report has appeared. 2 For example, G. P. Merrill in Annual Report U.S. Nat. Mus. for 1890, 1892. p. 525. 108 Since then they have been found in many parts of the country, no less than 106 localities being now known whence they have been obtained. All of these localities are naturally not equally good, and many of them are not now worked at all. Some useful hints are given by Mr. Griswold in Chapter iv. on the purchase and care of whetstones, and especially that little- understood matter, the use of lubricants; and in Chapter v. the subject of manufacture of stones is discussed. This dates back to the beginning of the Christian era at least, for definitely-shaped hones are found at Pompeii. At present, in America, the stones mostly come from Indiana, Arkansas, New Hampshire, and Ver- mont; although there are other States producing them. The to- tal out-put is small, and $75,000 would represent the value of the manufactured product in 1880. Of the Arkansas stone proper, considered a typical novaculite, only about 60,000 pounds are quarried annually. The most of this goes to New York to be manufactured, whence it is largely shipped back to Arkansas. The blocks are laid in plaster of Paris in the bed of the gang-saw, and the saws are so arranged as to waste as little as possible. The sawing is slow, ‘‘saws going at the rate of 80 swings per minute will only penetrate the stone in the gang-bed at the rate of 14 inches in 10 hours. Marble is sometimes sawed at a rate of nearly 8 inches per hour, though for dense marble 2 inches per hour is a closer estimate.” After the first cutting the slabs are sorted, and the useless pieces thrown away, this being done again and again as the pieces are reduced in size until only 25 per cent of the original amount remains as a* marketable product. Of the Ouachita stone, a coarser variety of whetstone, a much larger amount is produced, this being in 1889 1,040,000 pounds. The method of cutting is about the same as for the Arkansas stone, while the waste is about 50 per cent. Mr. Griswold deals extensively with the petrography of the novaculites, giving descriptions of numerous microscopic sections from various localities. The conclusions may be summed up as follows: Novaculite rocks were deposited in deep water as sedi- ments, the carbonate of lime crystallizing as rhombohedrons. Consolidation of the siliceous portions produced a hard, brittle rock, which, being subsequently folded and elevated above the sea-level, was subjected to erosion. During this process the cal- cite crystals were removed, and subsequently a secondary deposit of silica took place. In regard to the sedimentary origin of the rocks, Mr. Griswold says: — “It may be somewhat difficult to conceive of a constant supply of very fine fragmental silica, almost totally without other mate- rials, in sufficient quantity to form beds several feet in thickness with very thin layers of slate between, and making a formation from 500 to 600 feet in thickness, yet this seems to have been the manner in which these rocks were formed. After all, the con- ception is not so difficult when one considers that the fragmental silica of many of the slates and shales is as fine as that of novacu- lite, and as the percentage of silica in the sediments forming these rocks is increased, the resulting rock approaches more and more closely the novaculite. Thus with the novaculites are asso- ciated very argillaceous shales, grading into siliceous shales and then into transparent novaculites. ‘Che almost absolute purity of the novaculites still causes doubt as to the possibility of this mode of origin; but many coarse sandstones are nearly as pure, and if the novaculites can be considered as extensions of the sandstones toward the deep sea, where the finer fragments would settle, then we have at least a close approximation to the sediments forming the novaculites. That the same action which produces the angu- lar fragments of quartz in sandstones must also afford a very large amount of exceedingly fine quartz is evident” (p. 192). Many pages of the report are devoted to details of the geology of the novaculite area, but it is obviously impossible to enter into any of these here. A brief epitome only can be given of the geo- logical history of the area, which in Mr. Griswold’s words is as follows :— “The sequence of events in this history seems to have been as follows: A deposition of very fine fragmental material on the deep-sea floor to form the Silurian strata, included in the upper part of which are two groups where graptolites abound. ; At the SCIENCE. [Vot. XX. No. 408 end of the Lower Silurian deposition, through the periods known as Upper Silurian and Devonian, there was an almost total cessa- tion of the deposition of sediments. There seem to be two possi- ble explanations for this fact: First, there may have been a de- pression of the sea-bottom which left this area so far from shore that no thick sediments were accumulated over it, and this was followed by an elevation in Lower Carboniferous times renewing sedimentation in perfectly conformable beds; the second explana- tion is that while upper Silurian and Devonian beds were being deposited elsewhere, the same period was occupied by a deposition in the Arkansas area characterized by Lower Silurian organisms. This continued until a decided change of conditions in Lower Carboniferous times renders necessary a change in the nomen- clature of the beds in consequence of the change in the character of the fossils. ‘‘True Coal-Measure strata covered the novaculite area also, for they are found in Texas in a latitude considerably south of 34° 30’, while the trend of the formation is nearly east and west through this part of Arkansas and through the Indian Territory. The south members of the coal strata of northern Arkansas have been worn completely away, and are now buried beneath the Cre- taceous and Tertiary deposits which cover southern Arkansas. ‘Following the formation of the Coal Measures, and probably synchronous with the Appalachian uplift, came the elevation of Arkansas above sea-level. The time following this post-Carbon- iferous elevation of Arkansas has been one of erosion, though we have evidence of some periods of accumulation as well as denu- dation. The three periods of accumulation were the Cretaceous, Tertiary, and Pleistocene, during which there were partial and perhaps complete submergences of the area” (pp. 206-207). The final chapter of the volume deals with the fossils of the area. These, it is true, are few in number, but seem to be suffi- cient to justify the assertion of the Lower Silurian age of the de- posit. Dr. R. R. Gurley contributes some remarks upon the graptolites found in shales both underlying and overlying the novaculites. His conclusion is that two horizons are represented, one of Calciferous, the other of Trenton age. Comparisons are drawn between the Arkansas beds and those of Point Levis in Canada, Calciferous in age, and those of Norman’s Kill in New York, of Trenton age. A number of new species or varieties are described by Dr. Gurley. JOSEPH F, JAMES. Washington, Aug. 11. Outlines of Theoretical Chemistry. By LOTHAR MEYER. New York, Longmans, Green, & Co. THE author of this volume is well known by the successive edi- tions of his ‘‘ Modern Theories of Chemistry” and by the share that he took in developing the periodic law of the elements. The larger work was translated some years ago by Professors Bedson and Williams; and the same translators have put this volume into good, readable English. The author says (in view of the various works already published on theoretical chemistry): ‘‘I have not considered the require- ments of students alone, but have been desirous of offering some- thing to those friends of scientific investigation who have neither the intention nor the time to concern themselves with the details of chemical investigation, but wish to become acquainted with the general conclusions arrived at. With this object in view, I have abstained from too large a use of the numerical results of observations and measurements, and have avoided giving detailed descriptions of experimental methods. . . . The general—I may say the philosophical —review of the subject has been my chief aim, to which the details should be subordinated.” The author’s purpose, as thus expressed, has been in good mea- sure carried out. Chemists will prefer his ‘‘ Modern Theories of Chemistry,” if they would become really proficient in this aspect of the science; and to such this work may seem superfluous. But many, who are chiefly interested for practical reasons in chemical analysis or manufactures, may be glad to find so good an ‘“ Out- line,” compressed into 216 clearly-printed pages. The work is not made up of distinct chapters, but the sections seem to succeed each other in natural order, giving some prominence to the fol- lowing topics: Atomic theory, the several methods of determining AUGUST I9, 1892. | molecular and atomic weights, the periodic law, valency, the con- stitution of chemical compounds, physical isomerism, density, fusion, refraction, solution, crystallization, diffusion, evaporation, constitution of gases, relations of heat to chemical change, disso- ciation, electrolysis, migration of ions, speed of chemical change, action of mass and avidity. The following sentences are from the concluding paragraph: ‘‘ We have gradually receded from the idea of a static state of equilibrium of the atoms, brought about by their powers of affinity, and we now consider the atoms and the molecules, which are built up of atoms, as particles in an ac- tive state of movement. Their relations to each other are essen- tially determined by the magnitude and form of their movements. Chemical theories grow more and more kinetic.” Some Americans, at least, will dissent from the judgment of the author in still making the atomic ratio H:O equal to 1:15.96; but it may well be hoped that this well-balanced compend of leading theories, in its English dress, will widen the interest already shown in the philosophical aspects of this science. R. B. W. Deafness and Discharge from the Ear. By SAMUEL SEXTON, M.D. Assisted by Alexander Duane, M.D. New York, J. H. Vail & Co. 89p. THE object of the writers of this small volume is to bring before the profession the merits of the operation of excision of the drum membrane and ossicles in cases of chronic deafness from catarrh. The theory of the operation is stated at length, and a number of cases in which it has proved successful are reported. It would have been more satisfactory if a complete tabulation of all cases had been offered, so that a more accurate estimate could have been formed as to results. From what is stated, however, the procedure is clearly one of much service in some instances. Human Origins. By SAMUEL LAInG. Illustrated. London, Chap- man & Hall, 1892. THIS is an exceedingly well-written and interesting summary of all the theories, facts, and mysterious questions connected with the origin of mankind on earth, by a somewhat remarkable man, whose previous works, ‘‘ Problems of the Future” and ‘‘ Modern Science and Modern Thought,” met with a wide circulation in England. The author, Mr. Samuel Laing, the son of the translator of the Norse Sagas, comes of a good old Scottish family and was second wrangler of his year. Well-known in the House of Com- mons as ‘‘the member for the Orkneys,” Mr. Laing twice served in Mr. Gladstone’s administrations, as finance minister to India and financial secretary to the treasury, and is now the president of a prosperous English railroad. This veteran of finance and affairs has always found solace and delight in the study of abstruse scientific problems of the day. His various publications present the results of wide and discriminating reading and research, in a logical, concise, yet comprehensible style for the benefit of those who have not the time to look into such matters for themselves. Tn the present volume Mr. Laing deals first with the abundant evidences of the existence of civilized man upon earth at least a thousand years before the date of the creation of the world as given by theological chronologists. A clear outline is presented of the condition of religion, art, science, and agriculture of ‘‘ Old Time,” as revealed by the earliest monumental records and in- scriptions of ancient Egypt, Assyria, and Chaldea. These alone afford convincing proof of the great antiquity of civilized man and of the existence of a high grade of culture at the earliest dawn of the historical period, which was preceded by legendary ages of less duration and by the long-forgotten antecedent neo- lithic era and remoter epoch of paleeolithic man. The evidences of science are then considered as revealed in geological and palzeontological records of the past. The effects of the glacial period, Croll’s theory of its cause, and Quaternary, Tertiary, post-glacial, and inter-glacial and pre-glacial man are discussed in turn. The geological data from the Old and New Worlds, favorable and opposed to the antiquity of man, are stated with clear impartiality. The author seems well acquainted with the works of American scientists such as Abbott, Morton, Brinton, Wright, Whitney, and Shaler. He shares, however, in the preva- lent confusion with regard to the Toltecs. His main argument is SCIENCE, 109 governed by the force of the logical postulate of continuous evo- lution. ‘‘No one now believes,” he writes, ‘‘in a multiplicity of miracles to account for the existence of animal species. Is man alone an exception to this universal law, or is he, like the rest of creation, a product of what Darwinians call evolution, and en- lightened theologians ‘the original impress?’” He is therefore led to the conviction of the great antiquity of the human race. He would seek for human origins at least as far back as the Mio- cene period, and search in the earliest Eocene strata for the col- lateral ancestors both of the existing races of mankind and surviy- ing species of anthropoid apes. ‘‘ With this extension of time,” he concludes, ‘‘ the existence of man, instead of being an anomaly and a discord, falls in with the sublime harmony of the universe, of which it is the dominant note.” The volume is well illustrated from varied and modern sources. There are a few obvious misprints, such as Tyler for Tylor, tri- lateral for triliteral, Mortillot for Mortillet; which will doubtless be corrected in the forthcoming second edition. ‘The first is already exhausted. AGNES CRANE. Brighton, England, Aug. 1, Essays upon Heredity and Kindred Biological Problems. By Dr. AUGUST WEISMANN. Authorized translation by Messrs. Poul- ton, Schonland, and Shipley. New York, Macmillan & Co. 2vols. 89. THOSE who have followed the active discussion of the remarka- ble investigations ‘and stimulating hypotheses of the author of these volumes will not expect in this place a review of the works which have made his name famous even among those who have not been willing to accept all his conclusions. Such a review would be inadequately accommodated in a volume as large as either of those which are mentioned here. It would amount to a sum- mary of existing biologic theory, which is being added to daily, almost hourly, and from which the teaching effect of time daily dissolves away some misconception or superfluity. In common with the great body of American naturalists we believe that the most talked-about strand in Weismann’s woof of hypothesis — the assertion of the non-transmission of acquired characters — is not only an erroneous but an entirely unnecessary assumption, an assumption which, carried vigorously to its necessary conclusions, may well be termed the key-note of a genuine ‘‘ gospel of despair.” This assumption at present is upheld chiefly by a sort of circular argument which explains the ‘‘ acquired character” to be one ac- quired by the body solely, exclusive of the reproductive plasma, while any character which is shown to be transmitted is put out of court as having been acquired by the ‘‘ whole organism.” But whatever be the fate of any of these special views, either of Weis- mann or his opponents, there can be no question as to the great importance of the questions involved, or of the scientific, honora- ble, and impartial spirit in which the great German naturalist has . discussed them. While many of the problems concerned are strictly scientific and to be adequately discussed by trained naturalists alone, some of the questions, and the conclusions which result from all, are of the utmost importance to every philosopher, theologian, and soci- ologist. It is therefore a matter for general congratulation that the essays in question have been put into English in a form which excludes all doubt as to the adequacy of the translation or the faithfulness with which his ideas have been presented. The work appears with the well-known elegance of the Oxford Press, and should find a place in every working library. Darwin, and after Darwin, an Exposition of the Darwinian Theory, and a Discussion of Post-Darwinian Questions. By GEORGE JOHN Romanes. I. The Darwinian Theory. Chi- cago, Open Court Publishing Co. xvi., 460 p. 8°. This treatise, the first of two contemplated volumes, has grown out of a series of lectures delivered before the University of Edin- burgh, and is devoted to the general theory of organic evolution as Darwin left it. As these lectures were delivered to learners, and in their present form are intended for the general reader, the author states that he has been *‘everywhere careful to avoid as- suming even the most elementary knowledge of natural science ” IIo on the part of his readers. The natural consequence of this is that, for the intelligent American reader, who has learned his scientific alphabet long since, the book is liable to appear some- what prosy and verbose. Having said this, our criticism is con- cluded, for it is certain that Mr. Romanes is fully conversant with his subject in all its branches, and a careful examination of the book has shown his treatment of the subject to be judicious, accurate, and fair. For all persons who desire a straightforward statement of what is implied by the term Darwinism when strictly construed, the book is to be recommended. Since public speakers, bothin favor of and opposed to the doctrines of evolution and natural selection, are only too frequently given to singular mis- conceptions on this subject, it is fortunate that a work has at last appeared which presents a satisfactory summary of the theory for general reference, and we hope it may be widely circulated and carefully read by the numerous class for whom it is intended. Besides numerous diagrams of fairly good quality, the volume is embellished with Jeens's well-known portrait of Darwin, from the “Nature” series, which will be welcome to all admirers of the great philosopher. The Indians of Canada ; their manners and customs. By JOHN McLean. Third Edition. London, Charles H. Kelly. 351 p. Mr. McLean speaks from the experience of nine years spent among the Indians of the North-west, and is therefore excellent SCIENCE. [VoLt. XX. No. 498 authority for what came within the scope of his studies. These embraced the languages, literature, native religions, folk-lore, and later Christian life of the wild tribes. He talks in an inter- esting manner about their heroes, traditions, mode of living, and customs, and describes the land in which the tribes he visited pass their lives. The impression the book gives, however, is that it has been written down to a popular style, and that the author could have prepared a much more valuable production, had he not felt it necessary to consult what he considered the taste of the average reader. AMONG THE PUBLISHERS. THERE is now in press a work specially written for the Jewish Publication Society by Israel Zangwill, of London. It is entitled “‘ Children of the Ghetto, being pen-pictures of a peculiar people.” It will be forwarded to members in the forthcoming autumn. Arrangements have also been made for the publication, this year, of the second volume of Graetz’s ‘‘ History of the Jews.” — Close upon the recent invasion of Manhattan Island by thou- sands of enthusiasts in the cause of the elevation of the human race, comes the dread news, says The Publishers’ Weekly, of the stealthy entry of two enemies that has struck terror into the heart of every man who owns a book worth having. So wily has been their insinuation into our midst that it would be difficult to Reading Matter Notices. Ripans Tabules : for torpid liver. Ripans Tabules banish pain. Societas Entomologica. International Entomological Society, Zu- rich-Hottingen, Switzerland. Annual fee, ten francs. The Journal of the Society appears twice a month, and consists entirely of original ar- ticles on entomology, with a department for advertisements. All members may use this department free of cost for advertisements relating to entomology. The Society consists of about 450 members in all countries of the world. The new volume began April 1, 1892. The numbers already issued will be sent to new members. For information address Mr. Frirz Rus1, President of the Societas Entomologica, Zurich-Hottingen, Switzerland. NDEXES Volumes XVII. and XVIII OF SO INGE are in preparation, and will be issued at an early date. “SCIENCE CLUBBING RATES. 10% DISCOUNT. We will allow the above discount to any subscriber to Science who will send us an order for periodicals exceeding $10, counting each at its full price. N. D. C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. Y. Exchanges. [Freeofcharge to all, if ofsatisfactory character. Address N. D. C. Hodges, 874 Broadway, New York.] Taxidermist going out of business has quantity of finely-mounted specimens of North American birds, mammals and reptiles and skios of birds for sale, including a full local collection of bird skins, show- ing some great variations of species; also quantity of skulls with horns of deer and mountain sheep, and mounted heads of same. Will give good ex change for Hawk Eye camera with outfit. Apply quick to J. R. Thurston, 265 Yonge St., Toronto, Canada. Two exchange ; Experiment Station bulletins and reports for bulletins and reports not in my file. I will send list of what I have for exchange. P. H. ROLES, Lake City, Florida. For exchange.—A fine thirteen-keyed flute in leather covered case, for a photograph camera suitable for mak- ing lantern slides. Flute cost $27, and is nearly new. U. ©. COX, Mankato, Minn. Finished specimens of all colors of Vermont marble for fine fossils or crystals. Will be given only for valuable specimens because of the cost of polishing. GEO. W. PERRY, State Geologist, Rutland, Vt. For exchange.—Three copies of *‘ American State Papers Bearing on Sunday Legislation,” 1891, $2.50, new and unused, for ‘The Sabbath,”’ by Harmon Kingsbury, 1840; “‘The Sabbath,” by A. A. Phelps, 1842; ‘* History of the Institution of the Sabbath Day, Its Uses and Abuses,’’ by W. L. Fisher, 1859; *‘ Humorous Phases of the Law,” iS Irving Browne; or other works amounting to value of books exchanged, on the question of govern- mental legislation in reference to religion, personal liberty, etc. If preferred, I will sell ‘‘American State Papers,” and buy other books on the subject. WILLIAM AD- DISON BLAKELY, Chicago, Ill. For Sale or Exchange for books a complete private chemical laboratory outfit. Includes large Becker bal- ance (200g. to 1-romg.), platinum dishes and _ crucibles, agate motors, glass-blowing apparatus, etc. For sale in part or whole. Also complete file of Siddiman’s Journad, 1862-1885 (62-71 bound); Smithsonian Reports, 1854-1883; U. S. Coast Survey. 1854-1869. Full particulars to en- quirers. F. GARDINER, JR,, Pomfret, Conn. Wanted, in exchange for the following works, any standard works on Surgery and on Diseases of Children: Wilson's ‘* American Ornithology,” 3 vols.; Coues’ ‘“*Birds of the Northwest”’ and ‘* Birds of the Colorado Valley,” 2 vols.; Minot’s ‘‘ Land and Game Birds of New Eng- land; Samuels’ “‘ Our Northern and Eastern Birds;” all the Reports on the Birds of the Pacific R. R. Survey, bound in 2 vols,, morocco; and a complete set of the Reports of the Arkansas Geological Survey. Please give editions and dates in ceecanaaae R. ELLSWORTH CALL, High School, Des Moines, Iowa. To exchange Wright’s ‘‘ Ice Age in North America ’’ and Le Conte’s ‘Elements of Geology’’ (Copyright 1882) for ‘‘Darwinism,” by A. R.Wallace, “Origin of Species.”’ by Darwin, ‘‘Descent of Man,’’ by Darwin, ‘*Man’s Place in Nature,’ Huxley, ‘‘Mental Evolution in Ani- mals,” by Romanes, ‘*Pre-Adamites,’” by Winchell. No books wanted except latest editions, and books in good condition. C. S. Brown, Jr., Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tenn. Wants. Any person seeking a position for which he ts quali- hed by his scientific attainments, or any person seeking some one to fill a position of this character, be it that of a teacher of science, chemist, draughtsman, or what ~ not, may have the ‘Want’ inserted under this head FREE OF COST, 2/ he satisfies the publisher of the suit- able character of hisapplication. Any person seeking information on any scientific question, the address of auy scientific man,or who can in any way use this column for a purpose consonant with the nature op the paper, is cordial y invited to do so. ANTED.—A position as zoological artist in con- rection with a scientific expedition, institution or individual investigations. Experienced in micro- scopic and all scientific work. References given if desired. Address J. HENRY BLAKE, 7 Prentiss Place, N. Cambridge. Mass. OUNG MEN destined for a medical career may receive instruction in branches introductory thereto, at the same time, if desired, pursuing the so-called elementary medical studies. Advanced students can have clinical instruction, use of modern text books, ete. Will take one or two students into my family and office. Such must furnish unexceptionable references. uizzing by mail. Address Dr. J. H. M., in care of 417 Adams Avenue, Scranton, Pa. HEMIST AND ENGINEER, graduate German Polytechnic, Organic and Analytical, desires a position in laboratory or chemical works. Address 21316 E. 7th Street, New York, care Levy. Nees 36 years old, of extensive experience, hav- ing the degrees of A.M. and Ph.D., desires a first-class opening as a teacher of Zodlogy and kindred studies in a college or university. Can furnish numerous testimonials or references as to success and_ skill in most modern laboratory methods. Address E. W. D., Md. Agr. College, College Park, Md. ACERS MAN, with a thorough training in Ana- lytical Chemistry (including analysis of miner- als, food, water, etc ), and holding a diploma of the School of Practical Science, of Toronto, and good tes. timonials, desires a position as Analytical Chemist or as assistant to such. Address to WM. LAWSON, 16 Washington Ave., Toronto, Ontario. A JOHNS HOPKINS graduate (1892) desires a position as instructor in mathematics and physics. Address A. B. TURNER, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Md. ANTED.—A collection of postage stamps; one made previous to 1870 preferred. Also old and curious stamps on original letters, and old entire U S. stamped envelopes. Will pay sash or give in exchange first-class fossils, including fine crinoids. WM. F. E. GURLEY, Danville, Ill. ANTED.—To purchase laboratory outfit; bal- auces, evaporating dishes, burettes, etc., wanted immediately for cash. C. E. SPEIRS, 23 Murray street, New York. P. O. Box 1741. AucusT 19, 1892. | fix the exact date of their immigration. Their history really begins with the fine morning. last week, on which Mr, W. E. Benjamin of 751 Broadway, New York City, took from his shelf a worn leather-bound copy of Seneca, published in London in 1675, and found two healthy specimens of the genus Aglossa pin- guinalis ensconced in a burrow through the bottom of the precious book. — Harper & Brothers have in preparation an illustrated edition of Green’s ‘‘Short History of the English People,” a work which has probably been more widely read and enjoyed than any other of its kind. The illustrations have been selected with the purpose of carrying out the favorite wish of the author, to interpret and illustrate English history by pictures which should show how men and things appeared to lookers-on of their own day, and how con- temporary observers aimed at representing them Besides a large number of elegant wood-engtavings, the work will contain several colored plates, including reproductions from manuscripts, illumi- nated missals, etc., executed in the highest style of chromo- a SCIENCE: Dalit lithography. An exhaustive series of portraits of eminent persons will also be a prominent feature. The first volume may be ex- pected shortly. — Prof. Bernard Bosanquet of London, whose ‘‘ History of Aisthetics” has recently been published by Macmillan & Co., has just completed a course of fifteen lectures at the School of Applied Ethics, Plymouth, Mass. His theme was an historical survey of Greek ethics, tracing to the present day the influence of Plato and Aristotle. In clearness, precision, and in power to in- terest and stir his hearers Mr. Bosanquet proved as effective a teacher as England has ever sent across the sea. His ability as a thinker has been familiar to American students through his work on logic, which takes high rank as an authority. A recently published volume in the Contemporary Science Series presents his “«Wssays and Reviews,” showing him to be one of the most incisive and sympathetic writers of the time in the fields of ethical and philosophical inquiry. Mr. Bosanquet intends to visit Colorado and the Yellowstone region before returning to England next month. Horst yas Acid Phosphate, Recommended and _ prescribed by physicians of all schools FOR DYSPEPSIA, NERVOUSNESS, EXHAUSTION, and all diseases arising from im- perfect digestion and derange- ments of the nervous system. It aids digestion, and is a brain and nerve food. Descriptive pamphlet free. Rumford Chemical Works, Providence R. I. Beware of Substitutes and Imitations. eS, WORLD-ENGLISH, 25 Cents. HANDBOOK OF WORLD-ENGLISH. 25 Cents, Ex- President Andrew D. White, of Cornell University, says: ‘‘I believe thatthe highest interests of Chris- tian civilization and of humanity would be served by its adoption.” “So set down, our tongue is the best for the world to unite upon. »_Brooklyn Eagle. “ The idea of Mr. Bell has much to recommend it, and the presentation is charmingly clear.” —Ameri- can, Phila. “The result is a language which cannot fail to meet with acceptance.”—Boston Traveller. “World English deserves the careful consideration of all serious scholars.”.— Modern Language Notes. Sent, postpaid, on receipt of price. N. D. C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, New York, LITERARY OUTFIT FREE. Anyo esending us $1.00 at once and mentioning “Science,” will 1eceive a copy of ‘‘ Historical Sketches and Events in the Colonization of Ameri- ca,” by G@. B. Hall. A square 8vo. book (616x9 inches), 223 pages, illustrated. This is a regular $2.00 book and a bargain at that price... .... $ 2 OU 200 Private Library Labels; they should be used by all who own books... .. 50 “The Library,” a 100-page b ok containing a | brief list of most important standard and mis- | cellaneous books in every department of Ji era- ture. Intended for those who are about form- ing alibrary. Hints about what bo ks to read and how to buy them... ....... ........... 50 1 year’s subscription to the “Literary Light,” a monthly magazine of Ancient, Medieval and Modern) biteraturey ee sau oeseeeeeeieee . 100 $4 00 $4.00 actual value for $1.09. Sample copy of ‘ Lit erary Light,’ 10 cents (postal card won't do). Address, Literary Light, 243 4th Ave. S. Minneapolis, Minn. STERGROOK’S STEEL PENS. OF SUPERIOR AND STANDARD QUALITY. Leading Nos.: 048, 14, 130, 135, 239, 333 For Sale by all Stationers. THE ESTERBROOK STEEL PEN CO., Works: Oamden, N.J. 26 John St., New York. 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Fitzgerald, Attorney at Law, Washington, )).C. be obtained, by bookseller, or post-free 112 SCIENCE; VoL. XX. No. 498 QUERY. Can any reader of Sczence cite a case of lightning stroke in which the dissipation of a small conductor (one-sixteenth of an inch in diameter, say, ) has failed to protect between two horizon- tal planes passing through its upper and lower ends respective. ly? Plenty of cases have been found which show that when the conductor is dissipated the build- ing is not injured to the extent explained (for many of these see volumes of Philosophical Trans- actions at the time when l.ght- ning was attracting the attention of the Royal Society), but not an exception is yet known, al- though this query has been pub. lished far and wide among elec- tricians. First inserted June 19, 1891. No re- sponse to date. N. D. C. HODGES, 874 BROADWAY, NEW YORK. THE RADIOMETER. By DANIEL 8. TROY. This contains a discussion of the reasons for their action and of the phenomena pre- sented in Crookes’ tubes. Price, postpaid, 50 cents. N. D, C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. Y. THE BOTANICAL GAZETTE. A monthly illustrated journal of botany in all its departments. 25 cents a number, $2.50 a year. Address PUBLISHERS BOTANICAL GAZETTE, Bloomington, Ind. JOHN IRELAND'S Bookstore, 1197 Broadway near 29th St.,is convenient to the residence quarter of the city; itisa pood place to drop into on the way up or down town to select books or stationery. His stock is well selected and embraces all the new and standard books as soon as issued. Out-of-town purchasers can order by mail with every confidence that their wants will be as well supplied as if buying in person. AUTHORS AND PUBLISHERS. Material arranged and compiled for all kinds of works, excepting fiction. Statistics a specialty. Indexing and cataloguing. Address G. E. BIVER, 835 N. 16th Street, Philadelphia. ACK NUMBERS and complete sets of leading Mag- azines. Rates low. AM, MAG. EXCHANGE, Schoharie N.Y TO THE READERS OF SCIENCE. PUBLISHER'S ANNOUNCEMENT. Titles of Some Articles Published in Science since Jan. 1, 1892. Aboriginal North American Tea. Actinism. Agriculture, Experimental, Status of. Amenhotep, King, the tomb of. Anatomy, The Teaching of, to Advanced Medical Students. Anthropology, Current Notes on. Architectural Exhibition in Brooklyn. Arsenical Poisoning from Domestic Fabrics. Artesian Wells in Iowa. Astronomical Notes. Bacteria, Some Uses of. Botanical Laboratory, A. Brain, A Few Characteristics of the Avian. Bythoscopids and Cereopida. Canada, Royal Society of. Celts, The Question of the. Chalicother1um, The Ancestry of. Chemical Laboratory of the Case School of Applied Science. Children, Growth of. Collection of Objects Used in Worship. Cornell, The Change at. Deaf, Higher Education of the. Diphtheria, Tox-Albumin. Electrical Engineer, The Technical Education of. Eskimo Throwing Sticks. Etymology of two Iroquoian Compound Stems. Eye-Habits. Eyes, Relations of the Motor Muscles of, to Certain Facial Expressions. Family Traits, Persistency of. Fishes, The Distribution of. Fossils, Notice of New Gigantic. Four-fold Space, Possibility of a Realization of. Gems, Artificial, Detection of. Glacial Phenomena in Northeastern New York. Grasses, Homoptera Injurious to. Great Lakes, Origin of the Basins of. “* Healing, Divine.” Hemipter us Mouth, Structure of the. Hofmann, August Wilhelm yon. Hypnotism among the Lower Animals. Hypnotism, Traumatic. Indian occupation of New York. Infant’s Movements. Influenza, Latest Details Concerning the Germs of. Insects in Popular Dread in New Mexico. Inventions in Foreign Countries, How to Protect. Inventors and Manufacturers, the American Associ- ation of. Iowa Academy of Sciences. Jargon, The Chinook. Jassidx; Notes on Local. Keller, Helen. Klamath Nation, Linguistics. Laboratory Training, Aims of. Lewis H. Carvill, Work on the Glacial Phenomena. Lightning, The New Method of Protecting Buildings trom. Tse Oues Curves, Simple Apparatus for the-Produc- tion of. Maize Plant, Observations on the Growth and Chemi- cal Composition of. Maya Codices, a Key to the Mystery of. Medicine, Preparation for the Study of. Mineral Discoveries, Some Recent, in the State of Washington. Museums, The Support of. Palenque Tablet, a Brief Study of. Patent Office Building, The. Physa Heterostropha Lay, Notes on the Fertility of. Pocket Gopher, Attempted Extermination of. Polariscopes, Direct Reflecting. Psychological Laboratory in the University of To- ronto. Psychological Training. The Need of. Psylla, the Pear-Tree. Rain-Making. Rivers, Evolution of the Loup, in Nebraska. Scientific Alliance, The. Sistrurus and Crotalophorus. Star Photography, Notes on. Star, The New, in Auriga. Storage of Storm-Waters on the Great Plains. Teaching of Science. Tiger, A New Sabre-Toothed, from Kansas. Timber Trees of West Virginia. Trache® of Insects, Structure of. Vein- Formation, Valuable Experiments in. Weeds as Fertilizing Material. Will, a Recent Analysis of. Wind-Storms and Trees. Wines, The Sophisticated French. Zoology in the Public Schools of Washington, D. C. Some of the Contributors to Science Since Jan. I, 1892. Aaron, Eugene M., Philadelphia, Pa. Allen, Harrison, Philadelphia, Pa. Baldwin, J. Mark, University of Toronto, Canada, Barnes, Charles Reid, Madison, Wis. Baur, G., Clark University, Worcester, Mass. Beal, W. J., Agricultural College, Mich. Beals, A. H., Milledgeville, Ga. Beauchamp, W. M., Baldwinsville, N.Y. Boas, Franz, Clark University, Worcester, Mass. Bolley, H. L., Fargo, No. Dak. Bostwich, Arthur #., Montclair, N.J. Bradley, Milton, Springfield, Mass. Brinton, D. G., Philadelphia, Pa. Call, E. Ellsworth, Des Moines, Ia. Chandler, H., Buffalo, N.Y. Comstock, Theo. B., Tucson, Arizona. Conn, H. W., Middletown, Conn. Cragin, F. W., Colorado Springs. Col. Davis, W. M., Harvard College, Cambridge, Mass. Dimmock, George, Canobie Lake, N.H. Farrington, E. H., Agricultural Station, Champaign, Il. Ferree, Barr, New York City. Flexner, Simon, Johns Hopkins University, Balti- more, Md. Foshay, P. Max, Rochester, N.Y. Gallaudet, E. M., Kendall Green, Washington, D.C. carmen: S., Museum of Comp. Zool., Cambridge, ass. Golden, Katherine E., Agricultural College, Lafay- ette, Ind. Hale, Edwin M., Chicago, Ill. Hale, George S., Boston, Mass. Hale, Horatio, Clinton, Ontario, Canada. Hall, T. Proctor, Clark University, Worcester, Mass. Halsted, Byron D., Rutgers College, New Bruns- wick, N.J. Haworth, Erasmus, Oskaloosa, Iowa. Hay, O. P., Irvington, Ind. Haynes, Henry W., Boston Mass. Hazen, H. A., Weather Bureau, Washington, D.C. Hewitt, J. N. B., Bureau of Ethnology, Washington, D.C. Hicks, L. E., Lincoln, Neb. Hill, E. J., Chicago, Il. Hill, Geo. A., Naval Observatory, Washiugton, D.C. Hitchcock, Romyn, Washington, D.C. Holmes, E. L. Chicago, Il. Hotchkiss, Jed., Staunton, Va. Howe, Jas. Lewis, Louisville, Ky. Hubbard, Gardiner G., Washington, D.C. Jackson, Dugald C., Madison, Wisconsin gE es, Joseph F., Agricultural Dept., Washington, Johnson, Roger B., Miami University, Oxford, O. Kellerman, Mrs. W. A., Columbus, O. Kelitcott, D. S., State University, Columbus, O. Kellogg, D. S., Plattsburgh, N. Y. Lintner, J. A., Albany, N. Y. Loeb, Morris, New York City. Mabery, Charles F., Cleveland, Ohio. Macloskie, G., Princeton, N.J. Mec any Gerald, Agricultural Station, Raleigh, MacDonald, Arthur, Washington, D.C. Marshall, D. T., Metuchen, N.J. pe O. T., Smithsonian Institution, Washington, Millspaugh, Charles F., Morgantown, W. Va. Nichols, C. F., Boston, Mass. Nuttall, George H. F., Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Md. Oliver, J. E., Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y. Ceporny, Henry F., Columbia College, New York ty. Osborn, Herbert, Agricultural College, Ames, Iowa. Pammel, L. H., Agricultural Station, Ames, Iowa. Pillsbury, J. H., Smith College, Northampton, Mass. Poteat, W. L., Wake Forest, N. C. Preble, Jr., W. P., New York City. Ruffner, Ww. H., Lexington, Va. senor Edmund C., Clark University, Worcester, ass. Schufeldt, R. W., Washington, D.C. Scripture, E. W., Clark University. Worcester, Mass. Slades D. D., Museum Comp. Zool., Cambridge, Mass. Sat John B., Rutgers College, New Brunswick, Southwick, Edmund B., New York City. Stevens, George T., New York City. Stevenson, S. Y., Philadelphia, Pa. stone, G. H., Colorado Springs, Col. Thomas, Cyrus, Washington, D. C. Thurston, R. H., Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y. Todd, J. E., Tabor, Iowa. pees inn W., National Museum, Washing- on, D.C. Rutwer, C. H., University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Wake, C., Staniland, Chicago, Ill. Ward, Rk. DeC., Harvard University, Cambridge, Mass. Ward, Stanley M., Scranton, Pa. Ayer r Oper B., Howard University, Washing- ton, D.C. Welch, Wm. H., Johns Hopkins University, Balti- more, M.D. West, Gerald M., Clark University, Worcester, Mass. Whitman, C. O., Clark University, Worcester, Mass, WAnams, Edward H., Lehigh University, Bethie- em, Pa. AUWEEBKLY NEWSPAPER OF ALL T PUBLISHED BY N. D. C. HODGES, 874 BROADWAY, KTS AND SCIENCES LE Copizs, Ten CrEnts, PER YEAR, IN ADVANCE. CONTENTS. INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES, |%" Method of Protecting Property A PRACTICAL MANUAL, from Lightning. Concerning Noxious Insects and the Methods Th Li ll a a Is THERE A SENSE OF Direction? J. N. A pate { D ll 113 of Preventing their Injuries. é lg ning ISpe ey’. By CLARENCE M. WEED, Current Notes on ANTHROPOLOGY.— XIII. Hdited by D. G. Brinton... 115| Professor of Entomology and Zoology, New Hampshire State College. ioe Se, AUGUST 26, 1892. Price, $20 to $30.—According to size. The Patent Lightning Dispeller is a conduc- Some Points 1n tHE NOMENCLATURE- ‘ tor specially designed to dissipate the energy PRIORITY QuESTION. Lucien M. WHAT IS SAID ABOUT IT. si : 5 Underwood ena eee 116 | “I think that you have gotten together a very of a lightning discharge,—to prevent its peor ex pene HOH poet ane C. V. Riley, | doing harm,—placing something in its path Tse Progress Mave 1n Tracuinc Dear “Tt is excellent.”—James Weteber, Dominion En- | upon which its capacity for causing damage CHILDREN TO Reap Lips anp TALK, ; tomologist, Ottawa, Canada. may be expended “‘T am well pleased with it.”—Dr. F. M. Hexamer, P ‘ IN THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA. Editor American AGREE New oo No recorded case of lightning stroke has : ‘ft seems to me a good selection o: e@ matter 3 5 emai Alexander Graham Bell.......... 118 which every farmer and fruit Erowen ng U HOG yet been cited against the principle of the at his immediate command.”—Pro orbes, A pee : Remarks on Norta AMERICAN LICHEN- State Entomologist of Illinois, Champaign, Ill, Dispeller. So far as known, the dissipation oLogy. — PRELIMINARY W. Ww. Ne e BaoH Bones and it is needed.”—Prof. L. H. | of a conductor has invariably protected under 4 = . ei ail ey, Corne niversity. sys (ITEC Ga Co ae eee | Se 120] “It is one of the best books of the kind I have | the conditions employed. ever seen.”—J. Freemont Hickman, Agriculturist, 121 Ohio Experiment Station, Columbus, Ohio. a “T shall gladly recommend it.”—Prof. A. J. Cook, Correspondence solicited. IBOOKOREVIEWS: <<\cc-ce-: csssuecceunes 124 ie Serene ae 5. AGENTS WANTED. Sent postpaid to any address on receipt of price. The American Lightning Protection Company, Entered at the Post-Office of New York, N.Y., as Second-Class Mail Matter. N. D.C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, New York. United Bank Building, Sioux City, lowa. Howl AIN d= GO.S, NEW. BOOKS: ANIMAL COLORATION. An account of the principal facts and theories relative to the Colours and Marking of Animals. By Frank KE. Bepparp, M.A.,, F.R.S.E. Colored plates and wood cuts. 8vo, $3.50. THE ATLANTIC FERRY. 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SAGE, Ornithology, Portland, Conn. A. W. PEARSON, Entomology, Norwich, Conn. C. A. SHEPARD, Botany, New Britain, Conn. C. A. HARGRAVE, Conchology, Danville, Ind. & F. P. GORHAM, Geology, 103 Knight St., Providence, R. I. Yearly Subscription, $1. Single Number, 10 Cents. Minerals, Stuffed Animals _ Hocks, Ward’sNatural ScienceEstablishment|,... "=" Fossils, Mountea Casts ot Fossits, | Mineralogy, Geology, Paleontology, Zoology, Osteology, Anatomy. |,natoment ical Geological Models Relief Maps. Send for Circular. ROCHESTER, NEY Invertebrates Sere NC NEW YORK, AUGUST 26, 1892. IS THERE A SENSE OF DIRECTION ? BY J. N. HALL, M.D. ALTHOUGH it seems to me beyond dispute that among the lower animals there is an instinct which teaches them to find their way to a given point regardless of darkness or of previous knowledge of the locality, I do not believe, as I formerly did, that man possesses a similar sense, if we may so term it. I believe that man’s ability to find his way toa given point is dependent solely upon a habit of observation, almost unconscious, to be sure, in many cases, but neces- sary to the end in view. I shall not discuss the truth or falsity of the ingenious theory advanced a few years ago, that the pineal gland in the brain is the seat of such a sense in animals, and that they find their way by means of some perception by this portion of the brain of the direction of terrestrial electric currents. All reasonable men, I believe, are satisfied that animals have this ability to find their way. Thus, most of us are familiar with instances in which a cat, for example, has been taken in a box or satchel for ten, twenty, or even fifty miles from home, and has returned in such an incredibly short time that we may be certain she has travelled by the most direct route. Carrier pigeons transported in closed cars or in ships have no difficulty in determining their direction of flight, even when liberated out of sight of land. I have repeatedly, when in doubt as to my direction upon a prairie without roads or paths, given my pony his reins, as riders commonly do in such circum- stances, and never yet knew one to come out at the wrong place. The cowboys of this region make it a rule to pick for night-herding well-broken horses that are known to be anxious to reach camp when given the reins. Such ponies, even if obliged to follow the herd away from camp for sev- eral miles, will find their way back in safety in spite of the darkness. This selection of certain horses for night-work does not in the least vitiate our conclusion. They are not chosen for their power of finding their way back, but for their known inclination to do so. Even these horses some- times fail, as, for instance, in the face of a severe storm, for they drift with the wind at such times rather than face it. Thus I once started for home at midnight from a ranch four miles away. For the first mile my road led westward to a road that ran in a northerly direction to town. Upon this first portion, with nothing to guide him, for it was dark and the ground was covered with new fallen snow, the horse found his way easily. As I struck the road and turned his face fairly to the storm, he would hardly face it. As the thermometer fell to 27 below zero that night, and the ‘wind was strong, it was not strange. In this case the pain in his eyes from the cold and the driving snow more than counterbalanced his desire to get to his stable, and so he preferred to drift with the storm rather than face it. AsI cannot conceive that a horse or pigeon should guide himself by the position of the sun or of the north star, even if we eliminate from the problem the well-known fact that darkness seems to make no difference in the exercise of this homing instinct, I think that we may take it for granted that animals and birds have this sense of direction, for ex- amples similar to those given above might be given by the score. It might be supposed that this instinct had formerly existed in man, but had been lost during his progress toward his present state of civilization. Writers speak of the ‘* un- erring instinct ’ which guides the red man through the vast stretches of pathless forest in which he resides. But we are also told of the accuracy of observation of the individuals of this same race. The Indian is familar with the path of the sun and the position of the heavenly bodies. He observes every thing within his horizon, the mountain ranges, promi- nent peaks, and passes; he notes every stream, its size, character, and general course; he sees all the prominent ob- jects along his trail. If the sun is obscured, and he is tem- porarily lost, he accomplishes his orientation by observing the rougher bark on the north side of some varieties of for- est trees; or he finds the wild morning-glory facing eastward at day-break, for the faithful Moslem is not more certain to look toward the rising sun. He no doubt observes, also. that the warping action of the sun’s rays detaches the bark sooner from the south side of the standing dead timber than from the other sides. These and a hundred similar signs are to be read by the student of nature. Such a student, most emphatically, is the Indian. I have had occasion to note his wonderful powers of observation, and those more familiar with his habits than lam, inform me that only after years of experience, if at all, does the white man ac- quire his proficiency in this direction. We are told by trav- ellers that it is much the same with other primitive races, the necessary qualities being intensified by inheritance through long generations of nomadic ancestors. But as we have advanced in civilization, and sign-posts have taken the place of the signs which the Indian reads, we have retro- graded in these matters until the civilized man, despite his knowledge, is lost more easily than his barbaric ancestors, unless he takes especial precautions to note those things which they observed without effort. It seems to me that our proposition, viz., that we keep our direction by observation, conscious or unconscious, of sur- rounding objects, will be established if we are able to prove these three things :— First, that those lacking in the power of observation are most easily lost. Second, that those in whom this faculty is well developed are rarely lost. Third, that the latter are easily lost when they lose sight of all external objects, as in fog or darkness, or when their attention is concentrated upon something else to such an ex- tent that they do not observe their surroundings. T trust that my term ‘‘ power of observation” is plain to all. In this connection I mean that faculty which enables one to note surrounding objects, and to bear in mind their relations to each other and to himself. I take it that the power which enables one to look at a landseape and say that it is familiar is the same as that which permits some of us to look at a wordand determine whether or not it is spelled correctly; for I have long believed that notoriously poor spellers were such, not from poor memories necessarily, but 114 from lack of the faculty in question. Thus I have a friend with whom I have hunted on several vacation trips to the Rocky Mountains. He has an excellent education and a memory far better than the average, but is utterly unable to spell. He is the only man with whom I ever hunted who was afraid to hunt alonein a strange country for fear of get- ting lost. I have often been struck, in other matters, with his same deficiency in this direction. Thus, when we hunt together, he scarcely ever sees the game first, although when discovered at a distance, he is immeasurably my superior in determining what class of game it is, if so far off as to ren- der this a matter of doubt. This example I may count as the first point in establishing our first proposition. Next to observers poor by nature, we might place those who lack experience, as those who have always dwelt in cities. Of course the great majority of these acquire proficiency by practice. Short-sighted persons who do not correct their myopia by the use of glasses come under the same head, for, being unable to observe their sur- roundings, they are very prone to become lost. Fortunately this disease is comparatively rare in primitive races, natural salection, no doubt, contributing to render it so, for it is vastly more common in civilization. Among the female inhabitants cf towns and cities the faculty in question has had no opportunity for development for many generations, perhaps. They ordinarily have a very poor ‘‘sense of direction.” I have yet to see a woman from civilized life who could be trusted to point out the way across a pathless region of any considerable extent. Second, good observers do not readily lose their way. My experience in this regard has been largely with two classes of men, huntersand cowboys. Men of either of these classes, to be even moderately successful, must be the closest of ob- servers. The appearance of a man or an animal anywhere within the circle of vision is ordinarily noted at once. The habit of seeing what lies before one, a thing not given tous all, is formed. With men who travel much alone, the ex- ercise of this faculty fills the gap left by the lack of oppor- tunity for conversation. It gives the mind a certain amount of exercise. The Mexican sheep-herder who is alone on his range will tell you, a week after, who has passed by, what kind of a horse he rode, whether a colt followed a certain wagon the trail of which he has seen, and other details that surprise one not accustomed to such matters. The cowboy who rides a hundred miles across country will tell you the brand of every stray steer he has seen. These men, realiz- ing that they are dependént upon their own exertions for safety, unconsciously develop those faculties of service to them. Other men, placed in similar positions, develop in the same manner, as trappers, explorers, and scouts. Think, for instance, what chance there would be of a trapper’s get- ting lost when he is able to place fifty traps in a new region and find them all without effort. Here his memory is, of course, of as much importance to him as his close attention to his surroundings. Our third proposition is, that even those who are ordi- narily entirely competent to find their way get lost easily in darkness, fog, or snowstorms, and especially if interested in something which thoroughly occupies the mind. This I believe to be utterly inconsistent with the theory of a proper “sense of direction.” Examples are, no doubt, familiar to all, but I will quote one from my own experience, which to me is conclusive. I have for years been in the habit of hunting alone in my vacation trips, upon the plains as well as in the mountains, and have travelled much in unsettled SCIENCE. [VoLt. XX. No. 499 districts, both night and day. Realizing the possibility of getting caught in a snowstorm, I have made it a rule to carry a pocket compass as well as a waterproof match-safe at all times. For eight years I never had occasion to use the compass to learn my position, and I almost believed I was infallible so far as the question of getting lost, in day- light at least, was concerned. But the undeceiving came, and it was that which led me to this study of the subject. One fine September day I started out from camp on a deer- hunt. We were in the part of Wyoming between the head- waters of Savory and Jack Creeks, about two miles from that portion of the Continental Divide which lies between them. Within halfa mile of camp I struck a deer trail and fol- lowed it. I pursued it for two or three miles, mostly through heavy timber, without seeing any signs of game, although momentarily expecting to do so. When I finally stopped for a moment, it had begun to rain, and the dense clouds shut in every hilltop. I could see nothing to indi- cate the position of the sun, and there was not a breath of wind. The rain increasing, I decided to start for home, and, turning farther to the right, followed, as I supposed, a tributary of Jack Creek down into the valley. What was my consternation to find that the creek into which it led flowed to the right instead of to the left as Jack Creek should do! Every thing was unfamiliar. I had crossed no ridge, to my knowledge, high enough for the Divide; I was dumbfounded. I knew, however, that I was upon the wes- terly side of Jack Creek, for I had crossed no stream of any description. In two hours I could not possibly have walked far enough up or down to cause me to miss it if I adopted an easterly course. The difficulty was in the fact that I had supposed that I had been following such a course in arriving at my present position. As the mist and rain now shut in every thing, I had nothing to do but to complete my humilia- tion by a forced resort to the compass, for I had to admit for the first time that I was lost. At first sight I was tempted to believe that the needle was wrong, as I am told all men in similar position are. I carried the compass to some dis- tance from my rifle, fearing that the needle was deflected by the metallic barrel. The result was the same. Fearing that I had found a body of iron ore by accident, I tried va- rious localities, but the needle still persisted in pointing, as it seemed to me, south. After a few moments’ considera- tion I started over a ridge a little to the right of the way I had come, and due east by compass. I still felt that I was going west, and could not get over the idea. A tramp of half an hour brought me within sight of the valley I sought, and north seemed to come around where it should have been all the time. I had unconsciously crossed the Divide at its lowest point, far lower than theoneat which I now crossed, evidently having made an entire turn when starting home- ward instead of a half one as I had intended. I now made a bee-line for camp, but I carried home with me less faith in my ‘‘sense of direction” than I had upon starting out. I might quote from the experience of others a dozen simi- lar examples of losing one’s way. Some seven or eight men have been more or less severely frozen in this very county, by losing their correct route. I believe that further exam- ples are unnecessary. It is sufficient for me to say, in con- clusion, that, whatever instincts man may have had in a former state, he has at present no means of finding his way at all resembling that possessed by birds and animals. Sterling, Col. Aucust 26, 1892. ] CURRENT NOTES ON ANTHROPOLOGY. — XIII. (Edited by D. G. Brinton, M.D., LL.D.) The Primitive Carib Tongue. THE expedition led by Dr. Karl von den Steinen, which explored the head-waters of the Schingu River in Brazil, made some remarkable discoveries. Tribes were found who had never heard of a white man, and were utterly ignorant of his inventions. They were still wholly in the stone age, uncontaminated —the word is not misapplied —by any breath of civilization. In ethnography, the most interesting find was the identification of the Bacahiris with the Carib stem, and apparently its recognition as perhaps the nearest of any of the Carib tribes to the original stock. Dr. von den Steinen has just issued his linguistic material obtained from this tribe in a neat octavo of 403 pages, ‘‘ Die Bakairi-Sprache ” (K. F. Koehler, Leipzig, 1892). It contains abundant sources for the study of the group, vocabularies, texts, narratives, grammatical observations, and, what is peculiarly valuable, a close study of the phonetic variations of the various Carib dialects as far as they have been ascer- tained. He shows that in all the associated idioms the same laws of verbal modification hold good, although each has developed under its own peculiar influences. The thorough- ness which marks throughout this excellent study places it in the front rank of contributions to the growing science of American linguistics. The Ethnic Distribution of Roofing Tiles. As a floating leaf will indicate the current and eddies of a stream better than a floating log, so oftentimes a humble art will be a more accurate indication of the drift of civilization than the more ostentatious products of human ingenuity. This has been happily illustrated by Professor Edward 8. Morse in a paper ‘‘On the Older Forms of Terra-Cotta Roof- ing Tiles,” published in the Essex Institute Bulletin for March of this year. He finds that the older roofing tiles of the world group themselves into three distinct types, the normal or Asiatic tile, the pan or Belgic tile, which is an outgrowth of the normal tile, and the flat or Germanic tile, which is an inde- pendent form. The geographic areas in which these various tiles are found and the history of their distribution are re- liable indications of the conquest or peaceable advance of certain forms of civilization. Professor Morse’s paper is abundantly illustrated, and an interesting map is added, showing the present distribution of the three types of tiles over Kurope, northern Africa, and western Asia. That his study may not remain one of archzology only, the author adds a number of practical hints on the use and value of terra-cotta tiles as roofing material, and suggests their wider introduction in the United States. They offer the best of all roofing material, durable, fire-proof, cheap, decorative, warm in winter, and cool in summer. Celts and Kymri. Professor Topinard is not satisfied with the result of the discussion of the Celts in Science, March 11, 25, ete. He takes it up in L’ Anthropologie for June, and draws a dis- tinction between the Celts of the ‘‘men of letters,” among whom he classes the editor of these ‘‘ Notes,” and the anthro- pologists, represented — by himself. “For the former,” he says, ‘‘the Celts are blonds, they constructed the megalithic monuments, and spoke a language now unknown. For the latter they are the brachycephalic people of western Europe, who appeared at the neolithic SCIENCE. 115 epoch, and lived during the age of bronze side by side with those who later bore the name of Gauls. . . . For Broca, the term Celt designated the brachycephalic group of western Europe, and the term Kymri the blond group, with long and narrow face, etc. We retain the meaning he gives to Celtic, but to meet certain objections substitute for the word Kymri that of Gall or Gaulois.” As the opinion of Broca to this effect was quoted with ap- proval in the discussion (see Science, April 22), it is diffi- cult to perceive the grounds on which the learned Parisian professor makes his objections. But it is desirable that his own views, which are always worthy attentive consideration, should be presented. Architecture as an Ethnic Trait. The significance of architecture as an ethnic trait has been fully recognized — too fully at times —in reference to the domestic architecture of the American Indians. The views of Mr. Lewis A. Morgan, who could see nowhere on the continent other than ‘‘long houses” and ‘‘ communal dwellings,” contained a genuine discovery which has been pushed at times beyond its reasonable limits. Some excellent articles on this subject have appeared from time to time from the pen of Mr. Barr Ferree, in the Ameri- can Naturalist and the American Anthropologist. He treats such subjects as ‘‘The Sociological Influences of Primitive Architecture,” and the climatic influences which have given rise to this or that peculiarity or style. His es- says are thoughtful and well reasoned. In the first fascicule of the Bibliothéque Internationale de VAlliance Scientifique, M. César Daly pursues this train of thought to the point of announcing — “‘ given a social condi- tion, it will have such a religion and such an architecture.” In regard to ‘‘ styles,” he discriminates between that of the architect, which is transient, and that demanded by the tastes and requirements of the community, which depends on it alone and will lastas long as these remain. ‘‘ A style in architecture is therefore something national, social, and re- ligious, and not royal, as that of Louis XIV., nor that of an artist, had he all the genius in the world.” Types of Beauty among American Indians. In a note published in this series (Science, June 3), atten- tion was directed to the power of beauty in developing the race toward a certain standard of physical perfection. Some interesting facts bearing directly on this topic are presented by Dr. R. W. Shufeldt in a recent pamphlet on “Indian Types of Beauty.” He begins with the suggestive remark that men of the lower type of development cannot perceive the beauty in the women of the higher type nearly so readily as the men of the higher type can recognize the comeliness in the women of the lower. This is as we might expect, the edu- cation in the elements of the beautiful being principally a result of development. Dr. Shufeldt inserts a number of photographs of Indian beauties, an inspection of which will satisfy any one that the opinion which in their own tribe awards them the palm for good-looks is justified by all standards. The same fact is borne out by Mr. Power in his work on the Indians of California. He calls attention to the attractive appearance of the maidens of several tribes reputed among their own people as beauties. While in all stages of civilization there are false and ab- normal standards of the beautiful — notably so among our- selves — there is also a gradual and certain tendency toward 116 that ideal of physical form which the keen artistic sense of the ancient Greeks recognized as the perfection of corporeal symmetry. Wherever it is present in any degree, it is sure to be recognized. As Novalis says iu one of his apothegms, ‘* Beauty alone is visible.” SOME POINTS IN THE NOMENCLATURE-PRIORITY QUESTION. BY LUCIEN M. UNDERWOOD. THERE are some of our younger botanists who see no pos- sible merit in the nomenclature-priority discussion. That this is the case is naturally due to the fact that neither their age nor training have been sufficient to enable them to ob- tain a general view of botany as a science in which the re- lations of plants to each other and to other living things form the crowning summit of achievement. When we say relations, we mean the word in its deepest and widest sense — morphologic, embryologic, physiologic, geographic, and chronologic. To those whose work involves the weighing, sifting, and correlating of all the truth concerning some group of plants that has been found out by patient workers in times past and present, as well as that brought to light in their own comparative research, the necessity of some uniform, au- thoritative, and permanent system of nomenclature needs no argument. If some have acute inflammation of the mor- phologic nerve so that their attention is largely drawn away from the general wants of the system to the nursing of their peculiar member, they are worthy of our sympathy, but they must reduce their hypertropy before they can expect the botanical world to regard their judgment as normal out- side their special sphere. While we thoroughly believe in Goethe’s assertion that “* species are the creation of text-books while Nature knows only individuals,” we have not yet advanced sufficiently far to be able to discontinue the present method of grouping in- dividuals into species and recognizing them by certain fixed names. This is a matter of convenience, and it is a present logical necessity. We believe, therefore, that the matter of nomenclature ought to be settled at once and permanently, and this we believe to be the opinion of all who look at sys- tematic botany, not asa mere ‘‘ battle of synonyms,” but in its true position, representing as it does the ultimatum toward which every fact in the science tends, and into which the whole science will be ultimately crystallized. So far is this desirable that if a system can be agreed upon, it must and ought to be by the yielding of personal opinions to the will of the best and maturest judgment of the botanical world. One phase of the question has not yet been sufficiently dwelt upon, and that is the one which involves the element of personal justice. There are some who say that there is no ethical side to the question, that it isa mere matter of expediency. If justice pertains to ethics then there 7s an ethical element in the problem. It has always been main- tained that a man has the right to the product of his brain. If he invents a new mechanical contrivance he is awarded a patent. If he writes a book he is given a copyright. If he discovers a new principle or process in the natural world his name is inseparably connected with that principle. Otherwise why do we speak of the Bell telephone, of Marsh’s test for arsenic, or of Newton’s law of gravitation? The same is true of discoveries in botanical science, for we in- separably connect certain names with the earliest recogni- SCIENCE: [VoL. XX. No. 499 tion of protoplasm, the announcement of its identity with sarcode, the discovery of fertilization by antherozoids, the continuity of protoplasm, and every other important addi- tion to a knowledge of the plant world. In the same way the recognition of a natural group of plants, an order, a genus, or even a Species is now regarded as of sufficient im- portance to be’credited to the one who makes the discovery, not by any means on the ground of expediency (though it is doubtless in the highest degree expedient), but because of an innate feeling of justice due him who thus publishes the result of his work. It is true that favored students or organizations may, for a time, regard themselves as the only rightly-appointed medium of description of species, but the multiplication of botanical centres, the specialization of workers, and the growing urbanity and cordiality in extending to specialists the privileges of public and private collections will all tend to prevent the growth of monopolies in a field which is not likely to become narrow enough for any to jostle offen- sively. ; Asa worker in one group of plants we present some ques- tions that have suggested themselves in our work, drawing illustrations largely from the genera and species with which we are most interested, seeking not so much to offer dog- matic principles as to call to mind the feature of personal justice. 1. Shall there be an initial date in nomenclature ? What justice on the one hand, or advantage on the other, is there in accepting those of Micheli’s genera that were adopted by Linnzeus, and rejecting others equally valid that were not? What virtue did the great compiler add to an adopted name that should render it either sacred or immor- tal? We have Anthoceros and Sphaerocarpus, Blasia, Riccia, and Lunularia, all established by Micheli in 1729, and all accepted to-day without question, forsooth, because they have received the stamp of the immortal Linnzus, who could scarcely distinguish a hepatic from other Bryophytes. And yet Micheli, the founder of genericdistinctions among Crypto- gams, who knew and studied plants, adopted other generic names at the same time; these the great Linnzus did not accept because he could not get down to the study of plants and learn to distinguish genera amoug hepatics and other Cryptogams. Are we of this age so blinded that we must fall down and worship this popularizer of botany and accept his dictum as against that of a man whose shrewdness en- abled him thus early to discriminate genera among Crypto- gams ? But we must have a starting-point, some say. Why not then commence genera with the men who first originated them? Let us not award merit where merit is not due. Let us not assume for Linneus a virtue that he did not possess. Micheli, Ruppius, and Dillenius were the origina- tors of genera among hepatics. Why not recognize their genera that represent natural groups? If others are the progenitors of genera in other groups of plants, there is no reason why their work should not also stand, provided their names were not already preoccupied. 2. Shall names long used be laid aside when claimed for other plants on grounds of strict priority ? Shall we recog- nize the principle of outlaw in nomenclature ? For example, Marsilea (Micheli, 1729) is a hepatic which since Raddi’s time (1818) has been known as Pellia. Mar- silea Linn. has since its establishment been used for a genus of quadrifoliate Pteridophytes. Shall the latter stand in the face of evident priority? Whilea compromise of this kind, Aucust 26, 1892. | sacrificing an individual for the general good, if it could be agreed upon by an authoritative body, would be in the in- terests of both science and peace, it could not be accom- plished without personal injustice. Another case more complicated is that of Asterella. This genus was established by Palisotde Beauvaisin 1810. Raddi independently established Reboullia in 1818. After many years European hepaticologists, with Lindberg at the head, discovered that the two genera were identical; so Reboullia yielded to Asterella. Meanwhile Nees von Hsenbeck had established the genus Mimbriaria (1820). Latterly Lind- berg took a second thought and regarded Beauvais’s three- line description as more nearly representing Fumbriaria Nees. Sothis generic name, known for over half a cen- tury, is laid on tbe shelf and Asterella, which we have been using for a totally different plant, is put in its place. On this basis Reboullia Raddi was restored. 3. Shall. ‘“‘the first name under a genus” hold against a previous specific name ? Riccia reticulata (Gmelin, 1796) was erected into Cor- sinia by Raddi, in 1818, under the name of Corsinia mar- chantioides. Shall this name hold, or shall we write Cor- sinia reticulata (Gmelin) Dumort. (1874)? We believe the latter more justly covers the case, although on the ground that Raddi’s name had been long in use this might be a proper time to sacrifice an individual for the pub- lie good! 4. Shall varietal names have priority over established specific names ? Madame Libert described Lejeunea calcarea in 1822. It proved to be the same as had been described by Hooker in 1816, as Jungermannia hamatifolia f echinata. Taylor in 1846 wrote Lejeunea echinata Tayl., perhaps more for dis- ' playing the caudal appendage than for principle, but he has not been generally followed until latterly, when there is a tendency to revert to hisname. Since varieties, especially among Cryptogams, are too often established on mere sports, forms, or other slight variations, and species are the units of classification, we believe that description as a species ought to be the ultimatum in matters of priority. If Madame Libert bad recognized the identity with Hooker’s variety, and had named it Lejewnea echinata in the first place no one would have quarrelled with her, for it would have been advantageous to preserve Hooker’s name. Since she named it LZ. calcarea we believe this name should stand. 5. Can inappropriate names be cancelled on that ground alone ? In 1867 Alphonso Wood established a new lileaceous genus from California under the name of Brevoortia. Out of compliment to the little daughter of the stage-driver who first showed him the plant, he calledit Brevoortia Ida Maia. When Dr. Gray reviewed Wood’s species a year later, we deem that he did a double injustice: (1) In hastily cancelling a genus which had not originated at Cambridge, and (2) in substituting a specific name on the ground that the one chosen was acompound. He thus obliterated all trace of Wood’s discovery by writing Brodiaea coccinea Gray! The ‘first injustice was partly atoned for by Dr. Watson who recognized Wood's genus as valid in his ‘‘ Revision of the Liliaceae,” but instead of writing Wood’s name in accord with the principle of ‘“‘the first name under a genus” he wrote Brevoortia coccinea Watson! It might be well to ask why Jda-Maia is any more objectionable than Hart- Wrightii, Asagrayana, Donnell-Smithti, or any other of the many compounds of our system, SOME NICE: 117 To take another example, Berkeley established the genus Cronisia, closely related to Corsinia. Lindberg, not recog- nizing Dr. Gray’s aphorism that ‘‘a neat anagram is not bad,” cancelled Cronisia and substituted Carringtonia Lindberg. We maintain that a name once established cannot be can- celled on the ground of offended personal taste even though it have the euphonious melody and the suspicious flavor of Mariae-Wilsoni ! 6. How far has a later writer a right to correct names previously established ? We cite three instances :— (1). In 1821S. F. Gray established a large number of genera of British Hepaticae. To these he gave personal names Kantius, Herbertus, Pallavicinius, etc. These have been changed by Carrington to a feminine ending Kantia, Herberta, Pallavicinia, etc. \ (2). Lindberg has adopted the plan of changing all per- sonal names ending in ianus, a, wm to wi; for instance, he writes Jungermania Helleri for J. Helleriana as originally written by Nees. (8). Tricholea Dumort. was corrected by Nees to Tricho- colae to bring it into harmony with its derivation. Du- mortier originally wrote it Thricolea. Except in manifest errors of orthography, names should be let alone. 7. What credit should be given for generic and specific names ? (a) Shall we write the name of the author of the specific name in case there has been a transfer to a new genus, and if so in parentheses or not? (6b) Shall we write the double com- bination of the first describer of the species in parentheses followed by the name of the author of the generic combina- tion ?. (c) Shall we write the name of the one who made the transfer ? While we shall hail with joy the time when the bare binary shall be all that is necessary to identify a plant, we believe the following to represent in a specific instance the order in which the demands of personal justice as well as scientific convenience are most fully met:— (1). Metzgeria pubescens (Schrank) Raddi. (2). Metzgeria pubescens (Schrank). (3). Metzgeria pubescens Schrank. (4). Metzgeria pubescens Raddi. _ To write M. pubescens Schrank, makes that writer say what he never thought of saying. To say M. pubescens Raddi, in accordance with the system long familiar to us by the use of Gray’s Manual, is to unjustly transfer the credit of the species where it never rightly belonged, and appears to us the most faulty system of all. The above questions should be settled by a commission after the example, if not the manner, of the American Ornt- thologists’ Union, if individuals of strong personality can lay aside their peculiar idiosyncracies and unite in a system that will both meet the demands of justice and at the same time serve the highest interests of the science. To this commission could be referred minor questions like that of ‘‘once a synonym always a synonym;” how close may generic names agree in orthography’; what form of nomenclature is best for varieties, sub-species and “* forms; ” and the punctuation and capitalization of specific names. In nomenclature individuality ought to disappear and uni- formity universally obtain. DePauw University, Aug. 15. 1 For example, should Richardia preclude Riccardia, or Caesia, Cesta? 118 SCIENCE: A WEEKLY NEWSPAPER OF ALL THE ARTS AND SCIENCES. PUBLISHED BY Who 1De9 Co 10) 10) (C13; Sp 874 BROADWAY, NEw York. 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The ‘‘Exchange” column is likewise open. For Advertising Rates apply to HENry F. Taytor, 13 Astor Place, New York. THE PROGRESS MADE IN TEACHING DEAF CHIL- DREN TO READ LIPS AND TALK, IN THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA.’ BY ALEXANDER GRAHAM BELL. THE total number of teachers of the deaf employed in the United States in 1890 was 641, and in 1891, 686. This is an increase of 45. When we come to analyze the details we find that this is an increase exclusively of articulation teachers. This is shown by the following facts. In 1890, there were 213 articulation teachers employed, whereas, in 1891, there were 260,— an increase of 47 articulation teachers. The first statistics upon this subject were collected by the Annals in 1886. In that year we find articulation teachers constituted 32.8 per cent of the hearing teachers in our schools for the deaf. In 1887 they constituted 40.5 per cent; in 1888, 44 per cent; in 1889, 45.7 per cent; in 1890, 45.2 per cent; in 1891, the latest returns, 50 per cent. Indeed, they con- stituted one more than 50 per cent. There were 260 articu- lation teachers to 259 hearing teachers who were not engaged in articulation work. In regard to the proportion of deaf pupils taught speech, the increase during the past year has been very marked. In 1890, there were 3,682 deaf children in the United States taught speech; in 1891, 4,245, an increase of 563. In 1890, 41.3 per cent of our pupils were taught speech; in 1891, 46 per cent. I am sure that this increase is due very greatly to the stimulus of the first summer meeting of the American Association to Promote the Teaching of Speech to the Deaf. Of course, the statistics in the Annals include the whole of our pupils, old as well as young, and it has occurred to me, therefore, that they may not give us a true indication of the extent to which the California resolution is being carried out in the country at large; and that a better indication would be obtained by statistics concerning younger pupils alone. I therefore sent out a circular letter of inquiry to 1 Address delivered at the conference of the superintendents and princi- pals of the schools for the deaf of North America, held at Colorado Springs, Aug. 8-11. SCIEN CE: [VoLt. XX. No. 499 the superintendents and principals of American schools for the deaf, requesting : — 1. The total number of new pupils admitted during the school year just closed. 2. The number of new pupils taught speech; and 3. The number of these taught by speech. Replies have been received from schools containing 7,987 pupils, or 80 per cent of the whole number under instruction in the United States and Canada. The following table shows the results of the inquiry: — Speech-Teaching in American Schools for the Deaf, 1891. Number of Pupils in/New Pupils Admitted in School Year Year 1891 [Annals Ending June, 1892 [Replies to Cir- of January, 1891]. cular of A. G. Bell]. pene Seen ae PIE as oe Schools for 2 | ib | Percentage. | a : the Deaf. | 3 | 3 Ber | o. | oS | i, el ry eg EB. aa so | oe Ere! os ox 3 83) b 3 ao wo BW ce) Sit 2 a sore ge =m 3. oS =e] parc = aa Q i} p=a7) ab as =) 3 so Aa om 5 9.2 Do 2 6 i>) is) & al a ae = % a & Saat Be | Sa 4 | E iene a (A...| 5,614 | 2,960 53 836 580 363 69 43 United | | , B...| 1,619 759 va 266 189 71 States. | LC...] 1,999 536 27 | Total.......| 9,282 | 4,255 46 1,102 769 7 = | | A. 445 | 92° 21 59 20 5 35 8 Canada.{B..| 309 | 132 | 43 63 41 65 chs 39 5 13 Total....... 793 229 29 122 61 50 A. Complete returns were received from these schools. B. The returns received from these schools did not state definitely the number of new pupils taught by speech. The Canadian schools marked B refer to the two Roman Cath- olie schools in Montreal. They return 126 pupils, or 41 per cent of the whole, as taught by speech; but do not state how many of the new pupils were so taught. C. These schools did not reply to the circular letter of in- quiry. It is encouraging to note that while 46 per cent of the whole number in our schools last year were taught articula- tion, 70 per cent of the younger pupils were afforded an opportunity of learning to speak. The statistics published in the Annals are somewhat defective because, while they give us the total number of pupils taught speech, they do not give us the number taught by speech; so that we have no statistics by which we can measure the progress of the oral method of teaching in America. Professor Joseph C. Gordon of the National Deaf-Mute College, in some editorial remarks prefacing a volume enti- tled ‘‘ The Education of the Deaf,” about to be issued by the Volta Bureau, says: ‘‘ The returns of pupils taught by speeeh are incomplete. The number reported for 1891 is 963, or 10.4 per cent of the school population.” The above table indi- cates that the percentage, in the case of the younger pupils, must be very much larger. Out of 836 new pupils admitted during the past school year, 336, or 43 per cent, were taught by speech. i This percentage, however, is probably excessive, because the table shows that those schools which have done the most Aucust 26, 1892. | work in articulation teaching have been the most ready to respond to inquiries relating to the subject. We cannot, therefore, assume that the percentage holds for the schools that have not replied to my circular letter. Still, even if we as ume that these 363 deaf children were all who were taught by the oral method, the percentage must be very much higher than that given by Professor Gordon. This will be obvious from the following considerations : — The schools containing these cases had a total attendance of 5,614 pupils, of whom 8386, or 15 per cent, were new pupils admitted during the past school year. If this proportion held good for the whole country, then there must have been a total of 1,385 new pupils — or 15 per cent of 9,282 — admitted during the year just closed. Now 363 of these, at least,—or 26 per cent,— we know were taught by speech. Hence, for the younger pupils, the true proportion taught by speech lies somewhere between 26 and 43 per cent of the whole. The lowest estimate very much exceeds the figures of Professor Gordon. We have no means of ascertaining whether the proportion of our pupils taught by speech is increasing or diminishing; and I think it would be well to direct the attention of the editor of the Annals to the importance of collecting and publishing statistics upon this subject. I have glanced over the most recent reports of American schools for the deaf, and there are a few points contained in them to which If shall direct your attention. ; In the twelfth biennial report of the American Asylum at Hartford, the principal, Dr. Job Williams, gives his views upon what constitutes success in articulation work. He says: — ‘“We hold that direct and earnest effort should be made, by expert teachers of those branches, to teach speech and speech-reading to every pupil, and in no case should that effort be abandoned, until those teachers are convinced that the pupil will never acquire enough of speech to be of any practical use. In some very uupromising cases the possi- bility of acquiring speech is not given up for two or three years. Here let me say that the criterion of success in speech should not be perfect naturalness of tone and inflection. It would be unreasonable to expect that, where the sense of hearing is wanting. Intelligibility is the prime requisite of good speech. Tone and inflection are secondary considera- tions. . Any pupil who has mastered speech and lip-reading so far as to be able to carry on conversation in regard to the ordinary affairs of life in speech so plain as to be readily understood by the members of his own family, even though others fail to understand him, should be counted as a suc- cessful articulator and lip-reader. It is worth while to con- tinue the instruction in these branches in many cases where the degree of success falls considerably short of the ability to carry on an extended conversation, provided that what of speech is acquired is easily understood. We must recognize the fact that intelligible speech is the readiest and most ac- ceptable means of communication with people in general, but it must be intelligible. It is worth while for a child to gain even a limited amount of speech and lip-reading (the latter is as important as the former) in all cases where it can be done without serious sacrifice in mental development and acquisition of language.” Weall must agree with Mr. Williams in these remarks. We should, of course, aim to have our pupils speak so clearly and distinctly that anyone can understand them; but Iam sure Mr. Williams is right in saying that a much lower de- gree of proficiency might constitute a pupil a successful SCIENCE. 119 articulator and speech-reader. Mr. Williams rightly claims that oral instruction is successful if the speech of pupils is intelligible to their friends in their own homes, and among their own people, even though others have difficulty in un- derstanding what they say. It is a very difficult thing fora teacher, and especially for an articulation teacher, to realize this. I have been myself a teacher of articulation, and I know how they feel. Their ears are sensitive to mispronun- ciations, as mine were. It is difficult for them to realize that voices, which to them may be disagreeable in tone, may be very sweet and pleasant to those at home. It is difficult for them to realize that imperfect speech may be better than none at all; and that speech so defective as to be unintelligi- ble to strangers, may be of the greatest value to the pupils in their own homes, and among their own people, as a means of communication. This fact has been specially impressed upon my attention by the report of the Mississippi Institu- tion, which, in many respects, is a very remarkable docu- ment. That institution has had a class of twelve pupils taught altogether by speech and speech-reading. While all of them have made great progress in speech-reading, some have gained but little power of speech. Mr. Dobyns, the principal, says: — ‘“ While I have been more than satisfied that the institu- tion was justifiable in the small outlay in this department of instruction, yet, for fear my zeal to keep pace with the times may have gotten the better of my judgment, I submitted the following questions to the parents of the pupils in this class, knowing that they desired the very best thing for their chil- dren.” T will not take up your time by reading the questions and replies, but will merely say that the answers demonstrate, that speech, which may be thought very little of by the sen- sitive ear of the teacher, is considered a blessing at home. None of these parents desire their children to be removed from the oral department of the school; but, on the contrary, they all earnestly request that their chiidren be continued in this department. Where there is any difficulty in decid- ing upon the value and success of the articulation taught to our pupils, with whom should the decision rest? Surely with those who are nearest and dearest to our pupils, — with those who have their interest most at heart. Mr. Dobyns, I am sure, is right in referring the question to the parents and friends at home. In this report, Mr. Dobyns incidentally remarks that now, whenever a new pupil enters the institution, the request comes from the parents: ‘‘ Please see if you can’t teach my child to speak.” He has, therefore, asked from the Missis- sippi Legislature an increase of appropriation to enable him to employ another articulation teacher; and lam sure we all hope he may get it. There is another point in the report of the Mississippi In- stitution to which I would direct your attention. Mr. Dobyns has collected and published statistics concerning the earnings of former pupils, and he goes to his State Legislature with the proof that the graduates of his school, so far from being dependent upon the public for support, are actually wealth producers, earning annually a larger amount than the State appropriates for the support of the school. He proves that it is nota matter of charity to educate the deaf; and demon- strates that the money appropriated for this purpose is in the nature of an investment, yielding profitable returns to the State. I would urge all schools for the deaf to carry out this plan of Mr. Dobyns, and collect statistics concerning the earnings 120 of former pupils. I would suggest that these statistics should be so tabulated as to distinguish the earnings of the pupils who could articulate and read speech from the mouth, from those who could not. I have no doubt that pupils who speak, have an advantage in life over those who do not; and that statistics will demonstrate that their average earnings exceed the average earnings of those who are unable to articulate. If this should turn out to be the case, what an argument it would be to present to legislatures in favor of appropriations for articulation teaching ? I venture to predict, we shall find that our former pupils who speak, even though they may be unable to read speech, earn more per annum than those who are forced to resort exclusively to manual means of communication; and those of them who can read speech, as well as speak, are still bet- ter off in life. Mr. Davidson of the Pennsylvania Institution has sug- gested another valuable line of inquiry. From a comparison of numerous letters in his possession, he makes the assertion that orally-taugbt pupils improve in their knowledge and use of language after leaving school. I would suggest the importance of preserving uncorrected letters of your pupils during the whole period of their school life, and of keeping up correspondence with them after they leave school. A comparison of letters written by the same pupil at different periods of time would be invaluable as a means of determin- ing his progress; and the correspondence in adult life might be utilized, for the purpose of collecting statistics concerning the earnings and general success in life of our pupils. REMARKS ON NORTH AMERICAN LICHENOLOGY.— PRELIMINARY. BY W. W. CALKINS. In introducing the above title for my subject, I owe to myself and to the promoters and patrons of a journal em- bracing the scope, influence, and popularity of Science an explanation of my purpose in bringing into public notice that department of botany which it appears to me as an humble worker in this field has heretofore received too little attention from botanists and institutions of learning in North America. My object is, then, to contribute in some measure towards the upbuilding of a more general interest among students in what seems to have been considered an uninteresting and obscure field of research. In other departments there are workers by the hundreds. In American lichenology only one name and one life stands out pre-eminent as the founder, promoter, and able exponent of the science, Edward Tuckerman. He has gone to his rest, but his works remain. As a systematist, he brought order out of chaos. He formulated and developed a classifi- cation more nearly approaching Nature in her arrangements and divisions of the Lichens than any previous authors, — unless it be Elias Fries and Dr. Nylander,— both illustrious names. This system, thus established by Tuckerman, is the basis of the science in this country, and his published writings the sole text-book and guide of the American student. Tucker- man’s style of writing is certainly unique,— sui generis, — but when once comprehended, impressive and convincing, as well as clear. TI confess to long vigils before I could un- derstand him. Having had the benefit of collecting and comparing the greater part of the species described by him in their native habitats, my admiration for his profound knowledge, apprehension, and far-seeing into the secrets of SCIENCE [VoLt. XX. No. 499 nature, as evinced by what he calls ‘‘ habit,” ineredses with each review of his works. This was made plainer to me from recent investigations in Tennessee, Alabama, and Georgia, by the fortunate finding of several rare saxicolous species which Tuckerman described, and which had not been seen since Judge T. M. Peters dis- covered and sent them to him. There were doubts in my mind which were now dissipated by an actual review in situ day after day, as I wandered over the calcareous rocks of the mountain region where found. I will now only specify one species, Pannaria stenophylla, which grows intermixed and cunningly hidden with another but more common form, Pannaria Petersii. The thallus and reddish-brown fruit are scarcely distinguishable at first. I am indebted to the keen discrimination of my friend 8. Higginson for the complete settlement of this rare species. Since Tuckerman’s death no one has appeared to fill his place; the nearest approach being Henry Willey, who, how- ever, has retired from active work, but not without leaving two publications of great value. Ina recent letter to me from Dr. Nylander, he laments these losses to American science. But what has been can be. We must wait for some one of pre-eminent ability and adaptation to grow into the vacancy. Meantime, I doubt if anyone in the United States is making a special study of Lichens. Two or three have considerable knowledge of them, however. This is to be regretted. An inviting field, vast and rich, is open and offers great rewards. Who would exchange a fame like Tuckerman’s for any amount of worldly wealth! I appre- hend that he himself did not realize the extent or value of his own labors to which his entire life was devoted; neither the gratitude of his followers and successors, who without the works he left would be without a guide, and like an army without a general. Iam sure that my co-laborers will agree with me in this. We may then be considered as entering upon a new era in the prospects and progress of the study in this country, which is coincident with the tremendous strides shown in phznogamic botany and in the increasing number of students in cryptogamia —as the fungi. Having myself for many years worked in those fields and witnessed the growth and increasing number of students, I have watched for corresponding interest as to Lichens. From the evidence received by me, the future is promising. While specialists in Europe have explored every corner, and the great Nylander has given a lifetime of labor to this subject, the species of only detached portions of America have been investigated. The extreme south of our coasts and the far west are almost a terra incognita. The sub- tropical portions are prolific in new species and rare forms. It was my fortune to find and submit a large number of these to Willey and Nylander, yet I merely skimmed over the surface. The southern Appalachian Mountain region is almost as interesting in its rock forms, which are the most difficult perhaps to study (vide Nylander on my new Ten- nessee species). Their interest is, however, exceedingly great. While it is true that hundreds of new forms remain to be discovered, and are a great incentive to the explorer, yet it is clear that the resolution of those now known will afford active and valuable work to whoever undertakes it. It being admitted that the study of Lichens is difficult, still with such aids as I have mentioned, and ready access to the increasing herbariums and literature of the subject, the ob- stacles and objections disappear rapidly,—it being supposed that one pursues the subject con amore. 147 California Ave., Chicago, Ill. Aucust 26, 1892. | LETTERS TO THE EDITOR. Does There Really Exist a Phonetic Key to the Maya Hiero- glyphic Writing ? In No. 494 of this journal Professor Cyrus Thomas attempts to give a key for the interpretation of the Maya hieroglyphic writing, taking as a guide and starting-point Bishop Landa’s well-known alphabet. It is not for the first time that in this way an interpre- tation of the Maya Codes has been attempted; but as yet most 1. 2. 3. 4 ce. BIB © EQ zevie : Gl ieee! scientists were of the opinion that these attempts failed to give a satisfactory result. The hieroglyphs given as letter symbols by Bishop Landa with- out doubt possessed a certain phonetic value, For instance, Landa’s first a (Fig. 1) is the head of the turtle, aac, represented by a quite similar hieroglyph (Fig. 2) in Codex Cortez, 17 ®. Landa’s cu (Fig. 3) is the same hieroglyph as that of the day cawac, and conveys the ideas of the cloud and of heavy things, as, for in- stance, a stone. It is an essential element of the hieroglyph (Fig. 4) which expresses the idea of carrying a load on the back, cuch. Landa’s ku (Fig. 5) is the hieroglyph of the bird named ‘‘quetzal” by the Aztecs and kukul by the Mayas. The sign of this bird SCIENCE. [21 (Fig. 6) is seen in Dresden 16¢ and Troano 17*», Landa’s o (Fig. 7) seems to exhibit the characteristic elements of the hieroglyph of the great red macaw, mo, as seen in Dresden 16¢ (Fig. 8). Landa’s first w (Fig. 9) is a well-known hieroglyphic element, ex- hibiting on the Copan steles the forms shown in Fig. 10, and un- doubtedly conveying the idea of a face, wich, perhaps of a bird. The same hieroglyphic element frequently occurs on the neck of the food dishes and drinking cups (Fig. 11), probably on account of the face with which the Indians used to ornament that part. Edi ae Landa’s second w (Fig. 12) and hieroglyphic element, which is also seen in the sign of the day cib, occurs on the jars filled with spirit-liquor (Fig. 13).- It appears to be a modification of a similar design on the Aztee drinking cups (Fig. 14). The latter refers to the ome toch symboi, that is, the semi-lunar curved and hook-nosed ornament of the Totochtin, the wine gods (Fig. 10). This element therefore, seems to convey the idea of drinking, uuk. At last, the sign of aspiration given by Professor Thomas (Fig. 16)is certainly not a ‘‘ Spanish fabrication,” but it is Brasseur de Bourbourg’s fabrication, since it is not seen in Landa’s text. It has been added to the text by Brasseur de Bourbourg’s wholly arbitrary decision. See the photographic reproduction of the 122 page in question in the publication of Landa’s text procured by D. Juan de Dios de la Rada y Delgado. In the hieroglyphic writing the element Fig. 16 occurs as a substitute for the element Fig. 17. The latter, probably, is intended to render the head and the wing of a bird. It is quite probable that in Landa’s time the Mayas used to write in the manner indicated by Landa; we observe the same in the Mexican area. At a certain time after the conquest the Indian writers were inclined to restrict the phonetic value of their old hieroglyphs, in order to write with them in the same mannert as the Spaniards did with their respective hieroglyphs. Compare the so-called Codex Vergara of the Aubin-Goupil collection. But this was not so in ancient times. Certainly there existed in the Maya writing compound hieroglyphs giving the name of a deity, a per- son, or a locality, whose elements united on the phonetic principle. But as yet it is not proved that they wrote texts. And, without doubt, great part of the Maya hieroglyphs were conventional symbols, built up on the ideographic principle. In order to illustrate the combination of his letter symbols, Pro- fessor Thomas gives a few interpretations of groups of compound characters. This first group (see above, p. 45, Fig. 2) contains in the second hieroglyph (reproduced in my Fig. 24) the elements given by Landa (Fig. 25) as expressing the sounds J, e, i.e., le, the lasso, the sling; and, indeed, in the figure below a turkey is seen hanging in the sling. I do not venture to settle the question by giving an explanation of this hieroglyph. I will only remark that the sec- ond element of this sign, that given by Landa as expressing the sound @, occurs in various compound hieroglyphs (see Figs. 26-28). In all these cases the action represented refers to handling arope or to working up thread. Fig. 26 (taken from Codex Troano 31*b) refers to bandling the rope trimmed with thorns that the penitent used to draw through the pierced tongue (see the Relief of Lorillard City, published by Charnay). Figs. 27, 28 (taken from Codex Troano, 11*) refer to weaving and embroidery. It would be a curious coincidence that the words expressing these different actions should all contain an e, while considering the idea ex- pressed, the coincidence is a given one. Considering the third hieroglyph of this group — which is in- deed that of the turkey, cutz (see Fig. 19), one is in like manner induced at the first glance to think of a phonetic constitution, For the first element is that of the day cauac, given by Landa (Fig. 3) as expressing the sound cu. And the second element — wanting in Landa’s as well as in Professor Thomas’s list of letter glyphs — would seem to record the sound ?tz, because it renders the conventional design of a headless carcass or skeleton, tzictzac, seen from behind, or in front, with its ribs and the anal opening. Compare the Fig. 28, the design of a skeleton (the death god) seen ‘‘in profile.” Nevertheless, it would be a hasty conclusion to proclaim as established and beyond doubt the phonetic consti- tution of this hieroglyph. For the same element of the skeleton occurs in other hieroglyphs, expressing things the names of which do not contain a trace of the sound tz. Fig. 20 is the hieroglyph of the dog, pek; Fig. 21, that of the dog of the heaven that carries the lightning; Fig. 22 is the hieroglyph of the month kan-kin, ‘the yellow (or ripe) sun.” But it is principally the first hieroglyph of the group in question that rouses the gravest doubts about the rightness of Professor Thomas’s interpretation. The whole group forms part of a series of representations, filling the upmost division of Plates 24 *-20 * of the Codex Troano, and recording, undoubtedly, the capturing of animals. The series begins with the prey-gods of the five regions. These are followed by various representations showing the hunt- ing god — with acaptured turkey under the arm, or holding a bag, or armed with spears and throwing-stick (Fig. 33); the black god (Fig. 31 = Ekchuah ?), and different captured animals, an arma- dillo (?) in the trap loaded by heavy stones, a turkey seized by the snare, a deer seized by the snare, a deer impaled on the pointed flint erected in the bottom of the pit, a pizote seized by the snare, and a turkey entangled in the hunter’s net. Each figure is ac- companied by a group of four hieroglyphs (asarule). The first hieroglyph is the same in all the groups (see Fig. 2, page 45, and my Figs. 31-33), and undoubtedly refers to the action of capturing. SCIENCE. [VoLt. XX. No 499 This action is clearly indicated by the form of the hieroglyph that exhibits the head of the victim with the bloody, empty eye-hole, the conventional symbol of sacrifice. This head is held within a sling, the knot of which is seen on the summit. Compare the more accurate design of this hieroglyph in Fig. 18, taken from the Dresden Codex 608. In this hieroglyph all is figurative and ideographic; no trace of phonetic constitution can be observed. The fourth hieroglyph of the group (Fig. 29) is interpreted by Professor Thomas as the second day of the month yax-kin. But this is obviously erroneous. There does not exist a numeral designation with crosses between the dots. Fig. 29 seems a variant of the hieroglyph seen in Fig. 30 placed on a bowl. In the latter hieroglyph, the second element signifies kan, the yellow color. It is replaced in Fig. 29 by the element kin, the sun. The hiero- glyph Fig. 80 — which in a former communication was interpreted by Professor Thomas as signifying ‘“‘ moisture ’’— occurs on differ- ent pages of the Dresden Codex among the figured representations of offerings (turkey, lizard, fish, deer). Undoubtedly it means an eatable thing, perhaps honey. I do not enter into a discussion of the second sample given by Professor Thomas (Fig. 3, p. 45), because I find nothing in it that might impel me to accept the translation given by him. As to Professor Thomas’s third sample (Fig. 4, p. 45), I agree with him that the boards covered with the hieroglyphic design of the day cauac may be intended for ‘‘ wood” or ‘‘ wooden.”’ The same board is seen in Troano 12*¢, but fitted with a twisted handle on its surface. Here the first and fourth hieroglyph of the group are also seen; the second one is wanting. Variants of the first hieroglyph occur in Troano 354, 35>, 34>, and Cortes 214, where the figure below shows the god beating a drum. Professor Thomas’s explanation, mul-cin, ‘‘collect together,” is merely hypothetical. The same applies to the fourth hieroglyph. It is the same as that given by Landa as expressing the sound a. It is materially identical with that of a well-known deity ex- hibiting in his face the same characteristic design as the face that forms the essential part of this hieroglyph. In Troano 11 * this hieroglyph accompanies the elements which seem to express the action of weaving. And on the two contiguous plates, Codex Troano 35* and Cortes 22, it is connected with red numerals and forms a row alternating with rows of various offerings. It is scarcely probable that in all these cases the reading xaan should correspond to the matter expressed. The problem of the Maya writing is a difficult one. I cannot convince myself that the list given by Professor Thomas as letter glyphs acts as a key to its interpretation. For the,samples of translation he adduces are not forcible, and include misunder- standings. In my opinion, in the present state of things it would be far more appropriate to point out the real meaning, as to the matter expressed, of each hieroglyph. The determination of their phonetic value will then follow, and consequently will then be done with much more accuracy. Dr. SELER. Steglitz, Germany, Aug. 7. The Fundamental Hypotheses of Abstract Dynamics. In Professor MacGregor’s interesting paper ‘‘ On the Fundamen- tal Hypotheses of Abstract Dynamics,” the suggestion is made that a fourth law of motion should be added to the three laws of New- ton. The proposed law is, in effect, that the magnitude of the stress between any two particles depends solely upon the distance between those particles. Combined with Newton’s third law, the new law is thus stated : — ‘« Natural forces may be considered to be attractions or repul- sions whose magnitudes vary solely with the distances of the par- ticles between which they act.” The reason assigned for introducing this law is that ‘‘ the funda- mental hypotheses of dynamics should either include” the law of the conservation of energy ‘‘or give it by deduction.” This reason seems hardly sufficient. In order that the law of the con- servation of energy may be true it is not necessary that the stress between two particles shall depend solely upon the distance be- tween them. It is necessary only that ‘‘the work done during any change of configuration of a system of particles acted upon AucusT 26, 1892.] by natural forces” shall depend ‘‘only upon the changes in the positions of the particles, and not upon the paths by which, or the velocities with which, they have moved from the old positions to the new.” Now let P denote the magnitude of the stress between any two particles of a system and r the distance between those parti- cles; then Pdr is the work done by this stress during an infinitesi- mal displacement of the system. The work done by the stresses between all particles of the system during a finite displacement is =f Par, in which the summation is extended to all pairs of particles and the integration covers the whole displacement of the system. Now if & Par is the differential of a function of the quantities 7, the value of the integral will depend only upon the initial and final relative positions of the particles. But the assumption that each P is a function of the corresponding r only (in accordance with the proposed fourth law) is only one of many possible assumptions, any one of which would make = Pdr the differential of a function of the quantities r. The mathematical statement of the condition that S Pdr shall bea perfect differential is given in treatises on ‘‘ Differential Equations.” It thus appears that the principle of the conservation of energy does not require the truth of the proposed fourth law. The law may be true nevertheless; but it may well be questioned whether its truth is established with any such degree of probability as would entitle it to rank with the laws of Newton asa fundamental hypothesis of dynamics. L. M. HOSKINS. Madison, Wis., Aug. 16. The Black-Knot. On p. 10, Vol. XX.. of Science appears an instructive chapter on ‘‘Black-knot,” a fungous disease of the plum and cherry, of much trouble to cultivators. A point of additional scientific in- terest is that this fungus illustrates a principle long since pre- sented by the writer of this, that nature does not place species where it is for the best interests of the individuals of the species, but generally has some ulterior purpose not always apparent to us who are eager to uncover her intentions. For instance, there ' are numberless trees and shrubs that struggle along in swamps, and are rarely found elsewhere, and these have come to be known as ‘‘swamp-lovers,” but close observation has shown that the same tree or shrub will thrive immeasurably better when removed to dry ground. On the writer’s grounds is a specimen of Clethra ulnifolia, fif- teen feet high and as much wide on an especially dry spot, and growing with a luxuriance rarely seen in theswampy spots where nature has located the plants. Some reason has been found for the appearance of these plants in swamps and not in dry ground naturally in the fact that the seeds will not sprout in dry, but only in wet ones. It looks like a fiat of nature. ‘‘ Though you would like to grow in dry places you shall not. Something must grow for my purposes, in swamps, and you have to doit.” They can only be found where the seed will sprout. It has always seemed to the writer that it wasone of the weak- nesses of many discussions in the study of development, that it was generally from the individual standpoint. Nature cares only for the individual, therefore questions of nutrition, fertilization, and others are all viewed in their relation to the plant’s ‘‘strug- gle for life.” It seems rather that nature cares but little for the individual, and stands ever ready to sacrifice the whole stock when it interferes with some purpose, which we have seldom been able to fathom. Coming to the black-knot on the plum and cherry, we have here a destructive American species Spheria (Plowrightia) mor- bosa, of little injury in its native state, thriving amazingly when it can get as a host-plant the European domestic plum or Euro- pean morello cherry. It thrives in these cases with a vigor it never shows at home. I have seen it in many parts of the east on the wild dwarf choke-cherry, Cerasus Virginiana; in Colorado on its close ally Cerasus denvissa; in North Carolina sparingly on Prunus chicasa; and in the White Mountains on the red cherry, Cerasus Pennsylvanica. Recently in driving through various lo- calities on Mt. Desert Island, it was seen on the latter much SCIENCE. 123 more abundantly than in any of the former cases noted; but never anywhere with the amazing destructiveness it presents in these garden representatives of foreignspecies. In Pennsylvania, and probably other States, the cultivated cherry has been wild for over a hundred years. It is abundant, and in some cases so numerous as to be the chief element ina piece of woodland. But though it is evidently the foster-child of the cherry and not the plum, it prefers the plum and the sour cherry. The knot is rarely found on the wild cherry trees of the sweet cherry species. For all its long hereditary cherry taste, it rushes to the plum and the morello with as much avidity as if long-continued ‘‘en- vironment ” had induced the love. It seems to be forgotten in many discussions of the black-knot that it is an American parasite, and that it may be found in quantities everywhere that the botanists look for it. When, therefore, the State of New York tries to ‘‘ stamp it out” by leg- islating against garden trees affected with the fungus, it seems like bailing out the ocean with a bucket. Of course, cutting down and burning destroy many spores, but the wild nests send forth myriads of young to take the places of the domesticated foes destroyed. THOMAS MEEHAN. Germantown, Pa. Hectoring a Hawk. EARLY one morning in August, while concealed in the grass and bushes of a White Mountain meadow, I saw an interesting en- counter between a sharp-shinned hawk and a number of blue-jays and pigeon woodpeckers. Four of the woodpeckers were quietly preaning themselves in a dead pine by the lake shore, when sud- denly a small and beautifully proportioned hawk dashed into their midst. They scattered shrieking, and found shelter in a fringe of woods near by. Their cries brought a kingbird to the spot, and the hawk was promptly attacked by the pugnacious fly-catcher and compelled to follow the flickers intoconcealment. The king- bird, satisfied with routing the hawk, hovered away over the meadow out of sight, and not long after the hawk reappeared and perched in the dead tree. From time to time one or more of the woodpeckers came back to the tree and were at once charged by the hawk. In each in- stance they showed superior speed and escaped by their rapid flight. Their noise attracted the attention of a flock of about twenty blue-jays, and presently the blue-winged pirates came sailing qver the meadow by twos and threes. As they neared the dead pine the hawk darted downward after their leader. The jay plunged quickly into the bushes, uttering wild cries and squawks, which were re-echoed by his companions. The hawk returned to the pine squealing pettishly, and the jays closed in upon him. They scaled the lower branches of the dead tree; they capped the neighboring maple saplings and alders; they watched for chances to brush past the hawk on his perch, and they assailed him with all the invective of their ample vocabulary. They threw them- selves into the sport, as they seemed to regard it, with all the energy of boys playing ‘‘short fox.” The hawk took the matter much more in earnest; for he was hungry, and striving for a breakfast. Again and again he shot from the lofty branches of the pine, aiming first at one jay, then at another. By and by all the flickers returned, and added to the confusion by their cries and rapid excursions around the tree. The hawk in several instances seemed to lack but a single wing- beat of success, but the hour drew on without his making a capture. He grew weary. His plumage showed the chafing of the bushes. He chose lower and lower branches for his rests, and finally his sallies seemed directed more towards clearing the tree of noisy birds than to the capture of any one of them. At last he abandoned the dead pine and perched in trees having foliage. The jays followed him jeering, and he shifted his ground slowly until he gained the woods and disappeared. Then the jays crowded into the lower branches of the pine, hopped up from limb to limb until one after another gained the summit, and proved to the whole meadow that they had won the battle and fairly worried the hawk away. The drama seemed to me to be significant in two ways; first, as 124 proving the daring of the jay in dealing with the most audacious of the bird-destroying hawks; second, in showing the assistance which an expert hawk, or a pair of hawks hunting together, must gain from the inclination of the jays and woodpeckers to hector them instead of seeking safety in retreat. The advantage which the owl enjoys in drawing other birds around him is well known, but it is not often that so good an illustration is given in the case of the hawk. FRANK BOLLES. Chocorua, N H., Aug. 20. Tornado-Whirls in the Upper Clouds. THIS morning I witnessed what seemed to me a very interest- ing and unusual phenomenon, which may be worthy of record, J noticed that a number of light flock clouds, moving north-east in the upper atmosphere, became, on reaching a certain small well-defined area, very ragged, and assumed the characteristic tornado forms. Many looked like jagged craters, reminding me strongly of the photographs of sun-spot whirls; some were honey- combed, and all were greatly torn. In the course of some ten minutes’ observation, I saw at least a dozen such tornado-centres in cirro-cumulus, detached clouds floating almost directly above me. Such appearances in the lower clouds J have often observed, but this is the first time I remember seeing the upper clouds dis- turbed in this manner. The wind at the time on the surface of the earth was a forty-mile gale from the south-west, and there were frequent dust- whirls. Hiram M. STANLEY. Marquette, Mich., Aug. 18. The Brutal Dove. TWENTY-ONE years ago (Aug. 14, 1871), a mature, male dove flew into the house of Mr. Paul Closius of Chicago, and soon be- came quite domesticated. ‘‘Old Tom,” as he is called, was rescued from the great fire of the following October, and later was given a female mate, which he pecked to death. Thinking that it might be an instance of incompatibility, he was given another, which he tormented, neglected, and abused, until she also perished. SCIENCE. [Vot. XX. No. 499 Naturalists are aware of the sentimental error which typifies gentleness in the dove, and have often remarked its ferocity. This instance also confirms the belief that doves are long-lived. ‘ S. V. CLEVENGER. Chicago, Aug. 17. BOOK-REVIEWS. By FRENCH ENSOR CHAD- 85 p. A REAL service is rendered science by those who emphasize the individual as well as environmental side of pathology. The tre- mendous development along certain lines of modern pathology should not be allowed to obscure the fact that predisposition of the organism is as potent a ‘‘ cause ” of disease as virulence of the germ. The author of this book avows himself a special pleader on the very first page: ‘‘ This little book is written primarily to put for- ward two ideas: First, that there is associated with temperament a specific rate of change; second, that the failure to keep up that rate, or, in other words, a failure to have elimination keep pace with accession of material, is the primal cause of organic disease,” This thesis is maintained quite consistently throughout the book. “‘T thus venture to define what is known as ‘ organic disease’ as a failure in rate of change. And, further, that, however asso- ciated, bacteria are the resultant rather that the causes of such diseases” (p. 16). Tt will not be perfectly obvious to everyone that the phrase “failure in rate of change” brings us much nearer the real problem. The vexatious question will still be asked, Why should there be this failure to obtain adequate elimination of broken-down mate- rial? The final solution of this question of temperament must wait for a much deeper knowledge of the individual cell as well as of the cell-complex. Every attempt, however, at an explana- tion, although necessarily tentative and imperfect in character, serves its purpose in keeping the subject open and in stimulating research, Errors of statement do not seem to be numerous. One strongly suspects, however, that the Mitchell mentioned on page 33 is no Temperament, Disease, and Health. WIck. New York, G. P. Putnam’s Sons. Reading Matter Notices. Ripans T'abules cure hives. Ripans Tabules cure dyspepsia. Societas Entomologica. International Entomological Society, Zu- rich-Hottingen, Wants. Any person seeking a position for which he is gquali- hed by his scientific attainments, or any person seeking sonte one to fill a position of this character, be 7t that of a teacher of science, chemist, draughtsman, or what Switzerland. INDEXES TO Volumes XVII. and XVIII. OF are in preparation, and will be issued at an early date. ; FOR SALE. The Paleontological Collection of the late U. P. James, of Cincinnati, Ohio. Many type specimens and thousands of duplicates. For further information address JOSEPH F. JAMES, U. S. Department of Agriculture, Wasaineron, D. C. POPULAR MANUAL OF VISIBLE SPEECH AND VOCAL PHYSIOLOGY. For use in Colleges and Normal Schools. Sent free by post by N. D.C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. Y. Price 50 cents Annual fee, ten francs. The Journal of the Society appears twice a month, and consists entirely of original ar- ticles on entomology, with a department for advertisements. All members may use this department free of cost for advertisements relating to entomology. The Society consists of about 450 members in all countries of the world. The new volume began April 1, 1892. The numbers already issued will be sent to new members. ; For information address Mr. Frirz Rua, President of the Societas Hntomologica, Zurich-Hottingen, Switzerland. SCIENCE CLUBBING RATES. 10% DISCOUNT. We will allow the above discount to any subscriber to Science who will send us an order for periodicals exceeding $10, counting each at its full price. n N. D. C HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. Y. PATENTS ForINVENTORS. 40-page BOOK FREE. Address W. T. Fitzgerald, Attorney at Law, Washington, J).C. not, may have the ‘Want’ inserted under this head FREE OF COST, 2/ he satisfies the publisher of the suit- able character of his application. Any person seeking information on any scientific question, the address of auy scientific man, or who can in any way use this column for a purpose consonant with the nature op the paper, tscordially invited to do so. ANTED.—A position as zoological artist in con- rection with a scientific expedition, institution or individual investigations, Experienced in micro- scopie and all scientific work. References given if desired. Address J. HENRY BLAKE, 7 Prentiss Place, N. Cambridge, Mass. ‘\OUNG MEN destined for a medical career may receive instruction in branches introductory thereto, at the same time, if desired, pursuing the so-called elementary medical studies. Advanced students can have clinical itstruction, use of modern text books, etc. Will take one or two students into my family and office. Such must furnish unexceptionable references. Quizzing by mail. Address Dr. J. H. M., in care of 417 Adams Avenue, Scranton, Pa. HEMIST AND ENGINEER, graduate German Polytechnic, Organic and Analytical, desires a position in laboratory or chemical works, Address 21346 E. 7th Street, New York, care Levy. ANG 36 years old, of extensive experience, hav- ing the degrees of A.M. and Ph.D.. desires a first-class opening as a teacher of Zoédlogy and kindred studies in a college or university. Can furnish numerous testimonials or references as to success and_ skill in most modern laboratory methods. Address E. W. D., Md. Agr. College, College Park, Md. YOUNG MAN, with a thorough training in Ana- lytical Chemistry (includirg analysis of miner- als, food, water, etc.), and holding a diploma of the School of Practical Science, of Toronto, and good tes- timonials, desires a position as Analytical Chemist or as assistant to such. Address to WM. LAWSON, 16 Washington Ave., Toronto, Ontario. Aucusr 26, 1892.] other than the Prudden a few lines below. On this same page ‘‘Micro-coccus pyogenes ameus” is spoken of as ‘‘a bacillus.” Sometimes a curiously involved sentence is met with, as the following: ‘‘ We are thus not fixed entities, as most of us are apt to consider ourselves; nor have we the gratification of even think- ing ourselves here for the formerly supposed seven years at least ” (p. 20). An over-critical reader, too, might take exception to the introduction of the personal element in the following: ‘‘ Fol- lowing the logic of these views, Dr. Koch’s theory as to the possi- bility of the cure of consumption by an injection of a prepa- ration of what may be called the dejecta of the bacillus of con- sumption must of necessity be an error, and I would say that I have held this view from the time of first publication of his sup- posed cnre” (p. 68). The History of Modern Education. Syracuse, C. W. Bardeen. 12°. By SAMUEL G. WILLIAMS, 403p. $1.50. THIS work consists of a series of lectures which the author has been delivering for some years past as professor of the science and art of teaching in Cornell University. The entire course comprised also an account of ancient and medizval education; but the part relating to modern times is the only part now pub- lished as being more generally interesting than the rest. Mr. Williams begins his narrative with the Renaissance, of which in its bearings on education he gives a brief but excellent account. In dealing with the religious Reformation and its results, he is not so happy; and throughout the book the subject of religious education receives less attention than it deserves. Mr. Williams treats the history of educational progress by centuries, showing what in his view were the leading characteristics of each century and its principal contributions to educational thought and prac- tice; and this account of the general characteristics of the cen- tury is followed in each case by a sketch of the most prominent educators that the century produced. Throughout the book the author showsgreat impartiality and much good sense in his judg- ment of men and methods; and, what is no small merit in the SCIENCE. 125 present age, he is entirely free from hobbies. Some of our edu- cators talk as if real education came into the world with Pesta- lozzi and Froebel, and that in the theory and practice of certain ‘advanced thinkers’ of the present day it has reached perfec- tion. Mr. Williamsis under no such hallucination. He reminds his readers that time is the only sure test of historic events, and intimates that some of the ideas of the present day may be found hereafter to have no such importance as is now attached to them, | Nevertheless, he devotes one of his longest and most elaborate chapters to the leading educational ideas of the nineteenth cen- tury, thus bringing his work down to the very decade in which we now live. He takes pains to show, however, that many things that are thought to be specially characteristic of the pres- ent age were anticipated by the thinkers and teachers of the six- teenth and seventeenth centuries. Mr. Williams’s style is not always so clear as might be wished, and has no great literary merit; but it is generally intelligible, and its moral tone is good. On the whole, these lectures will serve a useful purpose as an in- troduction to the educational history of modern times. Influenza. By CHARLES H. MERZ, M.D. Sandusky, O. 96 p. It would be manifestly unfair to expect too much of a ‘‘little treatise” that attempts to discuss a very special topic in a very general manner. The book was evidently written to meet the popular interest in its subject, and this fact alone explains per- haps the infelicities, not to say inaccuracies, of expression that are far too frequent on its pages. The history, etiology, symp- toms, pathology, diagnosis, and prognosis, complications, and treatment of influenza are discussed with more or less success, the whole leaving a decided impression of hasty construction. One is somewhat amazed, for example, when one reads, apropos of the phagocyte theory, of the odds arrayed against the Dar- winian principle: *‘It is a fight between two forces and the sur- vival of the fittest’ (p. 23). On the same page the name of the eminent author of the doctrine of phagocytosis is hardly recogniz- able under the mask of ‘‘ Metschini-Koft.” 3 Horst yds ACID PHOSPHATE, Recommended and_ prescribed by physicians of all schools FOR DYSPEPSIA, NERVOUSNESS, EXHAUSTION, and all diseases arising from imperfect digestion and de- rangements of the nervous system. It aids digestion, and is a brain and nerve food. e Descriptive pamphlet free. Rumford Chemical Works, Providence, R. I. Beware of Substitutes and Imitations, LITERARY OUTFIT FREE. Anyo: e sending us $1.00 at once and mentioning “Science,” will receive a copy of ‘‘ Historical Sketches and Events in the Colonization of Ameri- ca,” by G. B. Hall. A square 8vo. book (6 = inches), 223 pages, illustrated. This is a regu $2.00 book and a bargain at that price......... $ 2 00 200 Private Library Labels; they should be used by all who own books... ........... . «.- 50 “‘The Library,” a 10U-page b ok containing a brief list of most important standard and mis- cellaneous books in every department of litera- ture. Intended for those who are about form- ing alibrary. Hints about what bo