Vol. I. San Diego, California, March, 1885. A ee the Pustke Coase { PUBLISHED MonTHLy By C, R. Orcurr. { for the Pacific Coast. Entered as second-class mat ter at San Diego Post-office BEAUTY. MRS. C. K. SMITH. There’s beauty in the virgin spring, When in the wood she weivis her bowers; There’s beauty where the wild birds sing, And echoes start among the flowers. There’s beauty in the pine-clad mount, Where zephyrs sigh and tempests fall; There’s beauty in the gushing fount, Where Heaven’s arch is over all. There’s beauty in the humble flower, In meadow, grove or green hill side; A beauty of enticing power, Wherever lovely flowers abide. There’s beauty in the silver moon, The twinkling stars that shine by night; That on our world lock mildly down And glad us with their mellow light. There’s a bcauty which never dies, A baauty of the rarest kind; It claims its kindred in the skies, 1t is the beauty of the mind. When this in kindness, truth and love, Beams forth upon mankind, We own its source is from mankind. And feel its power divine. San Dreco, February 138, 1885. —_———-—_-@-————_. THE PERICUE INDIANS. BY L. BELDING. Probably these Indians were never numerous though the Vic- toria mountains would have sup- ported a large population. Fathe: Daegut says there were 4,000 Indians in the sout’ ern part of the peninsula of Lower Califor- nia when the missions of Santiago and San Jose del Cabo were de- stroyed by them in the year 1734, but that they numbered only 400 in 1772 (Chas. Rau, Sm. Rp. 1864 p 084) It was a prime object with my companion Dr. H. Ten Kate, of the society of anthropology of Paris, and myself as well, to find a livy- ing representative of the original Lower Californian, which we probably found on the Rancho San Jacinto, owned by the Valle- rino family. But we could get no positive or definite information concerning this Indian woman, who must have been about seven- ty-five years old, although from La Paz to Cape San Lucas she was universally reputed to be a pure blooded Indian. She differed widely from the Yaquis and other Indians from the east side of the Gulf, being of good stature, ro- bust form and dark complexion, with a cranium which resembled those found in the caves. Dr. H. Ten Kate offered to pho- tograph the hacienda and _ its oc- cupants, hoping by this means to get her photograph, but his dip- lomacy failed, although backed by our distinguished guide, Don Juan Dios Angoula, who had long been a friend of the family. We saw three of her children who were good examples of the 22 better class of Mexicans, their father having been a Mexican or Spaniard. This woman is proba- bly the only living pure blooded native south of 24 degrees 30 min- utes. The Indians of Lower Califor- nia south of 24 degrees 30 minutes buried their dead in caves below shelving rocks, without regard to the points of the compass, usually painting the bones, but how they made the bones clean and ready to be painted is still unknown. At Zorillo we were shown a small cave in a granite rock by our local guide, who said that an Italian collector, several years before, had found bones of a “gentile,” the Mexican name for an Indian or heathen. The sand in the cave was dry, coarse disintegrated granite, about a foot deep. By digging in it I found the well preserved skeleton of an adult male Indian, who was perhaps the last of the Pericues. This skeleton was wrapped in cloth made from the bark of the palm and bound with three ply cord which had been plaited as sailors make sennit, the material being fiber of the agave. Dr. W. H. Dall mentionsin the Smithso- nian contributions to knowledge, number 318, that the mummies of the Aleutian Islands, were bound with cord quite similarly braided in square sennit. The package, which was about twenty inches long, did not appear to have been disturbed since bur- ial, although a femur and some small bones were missing, and nearly all of the bones had been unjointed. The bones of the hand THE WEST-AMERICAN SCIENTIST. were inside of the skull, which was full of small bones and sand. Meanwhile Dr. Ten Kate found the skeleton of a girl about twelve years old. This was also in excel- lent condition, although differing from those found elsewhere, in not ~ having been painted, a rare excep- tion. For the skeletons found by Dr. Ten Kate on Espiritu Santo Island, at Encenada and Los Mar- tires, which he kindly allowed me to inspect, had all been painted the usual brick red, with the excep- tion of one the Doctor found at Los Martires which hada skull of very inferior, almost idiotie form. The few bones we afterwards found ina cave near Candelario and several skeletons found at San Pedro by Dr. H. Ten Kate had also been painted. All of the skulls were of one general form, namely, the pyramidal—high, long narrow, with wide, prominent cheek bones. The only ornaments, or other objects of aboriginal handiwork found with the skeletons, were two small, neatly worked, pearl oyster shells, which were in the package with the boues of the young gitl found at Zorillo. These shells had been polished on the convex side, the edges finely serrated and pierced at the apex as if to be suspended about the person for ornament. ee Pe Our readers are presented this month with a very valuable table computed from thirteen years observation at the signal service of this place, and for which we are indebted to the kindness of J.C. Sprigg, Jr., Sergt. S. S. THE WEST-AMERICAN SCIENTIST. 23 Meteorological Data compiled from 13 years observations at San Diego, Cal. including the year 1884, RELATIVE TEMPERATURE HUMIDITY RAINFALL SEASONS | AVERAGE | MAXIMUM { MINIMUM | jontHs | AVERAGE Av'rse| Total FOK OF EACH | OF EACH FOR. -lofeach| for M'nths|Seas‘n. Mnths Seas’n. Mnths!Seas’n. M’nths Beas'n.| Month/Seas’n. Dons 99.0 38.0 Marchi... -.< 75.5 oe Spring..... 57.7] 58.1] 87.0)*99.0| 39.0] 38.0/April....... 73.0) 74.0) 0.84! 2.63 61.0 94.0 45.4 CS eee 73.6 0.41 64.4 94.0 51 30 aes ccs - 74.2 0.07 Summer, ...|: 67.1} 66.7) 86.0) 94.0) 54.0) 51.0)July........ 76.6} 76.0) 0.02) 0.37 68.7 91.5 54.0 August ..... Vi ire 0.28 66.8 101.0 49.5 September ..| 76.3) | 0.04 Autumn. 62.9) 62.7) 92.0)101.0) 44.0) 38.0)October..... 72.0) 71.8] 0.49) 1.14 58.3 85.0 38.0 November...| 67.1 0.61 Doel 82.0 32.0 December. ..| 69.2 2.4] Winter ....| 53.7) 54.4) 78.0) 82.6) 32.0) 32.0|January..... 70.6) 71.3) 1.81} 6.83 int 54.3 | $2.6 35.0 February ...| 74.1 2.61 Annual ae, | HIGHEST LOWEST es i. Average. cide loll *101.0 32.0 as sue The Average Relative Humidity between sunrise and sunset is about 9 per cent. lower than recorded in above table. Prevailing direction of wind is West. CASTOR OIL PLANT. The castor oil plant of com- merce is obtained from the nuts of Ricinus communis, a euphor- biaceous plant supposed to bea native of Barbary but now widely naturalized in Africa, the sonth of Europe and America. The oil is a mild purgative, but the entire plant possesses active properties. The ancients administered the seeds entire but their variable ac- tion, producing sometimes fatal effects, led to their disuse. Castor oil is much used in ori- ental countries and the south of Europe for burning, as well asa medicine, and its manufacture is actively carried on at St. Louis the beans being produced in southern Illinois. The method of extracting the oil is simple the product equals about one-third of the seeds em- ployed, and when of a good qual- ity is a thickish fluid of a very pale yellow color. The castor plant is naturalized _to a considerable extent in the vi- einity of San Diego, where it ‘forms a fair sized shrub equal to ,any of the indigenous plants and its cultivation in the future may furnish another profitable indus- try for southern California. ——_@—__—_ *An unusual degree of temper- ature continuing less than two hours, and due, no doubt, to for- est fires, which were raging at the time in the vicinity of San Diego. 24 THE WEST-AMERICAN SCIENTIST. The West-American Scientis AMONTHLY JOURNAL OF NATURAL HISTORY Especially devoted to the Pacific Coast. Subscription 50c¢. per annum in 2xdvance. Foreign Countries 752, PUBLISHED BY Cc. R. ORCUTT, - SAN DIEGO, CAL. RATES OF ADVERTISING: 1lmo. 38mos. 6 mos. ah yr. One Inch, $ .50 $1.25 $2.50 $5 00 Two Inches, - 1.00 2.50 5.00 10.00 One-half column, 1.50 4.00 8.00 15.00 Privilege of refusing any advertisement reserved. Address THE WEST-AMERICAN SCIENTIST, San Diego, Cal.; mobeylorders ¢ and avait pay able to C.R Orcutt. SAN. DIEGO, CAL. , MARCH, 1885. ERITRICHIUM. Dr. Asa Gray, in recent contri- butions to the botany of N. A., reduces Eritrichium to a subgen- us of Omphalodes, distributing the species through several gene- ra, the larger number falling to Krynitzkia and Plagiobothrys, two genera formerly suppressed which are now reestablished. The check-list of our plants is changed as follows, the species of Eritrichium becoming ;— Krynitzkia californica, Gray. var. subglochidiata, Gray. oxycarya, Gray. microstachys, Greene, angustifolia, Gray. barbigera, Gray. intermedia, Gray. muriculata, Gray. Jonesii, Gray. micrantha, Gray. var. lepida, Gray circumscissa, Gray, L. Cal. pterocarya, Gr ay. ramosissima, Gray, (E. ra- cemosum. ) Jamesii, (S. Bernardino. ) leucophaea, S. E. Cal. a Kchidiocarya urcina becomes Plagiobothrys ursinus, and E. californica, P. Cooperi. ———_—_oe ———_ ZOOLOGICAL NOTES. W. H. Dall of Washington, D. C., finds upon the examination of the animals of Nacella depicta and N. paleacea that they belong to the genus Acmzea instead of Nacella. J. J. Rivers of the University of California, has collected some small corals ,Balanophyllia elegans (Verrill) on rocks a little below low water mark at Monterey. The animal is of a beautiful red color and might easily be taken for a small actinia. A new work on the land shells of North America, by W. G. Bin- ney, to be published by the Smith- sonian Inst., is now in press. A small ‘slug, perhaps unde- seribed, has been found im _ this county and in Lower California, and is now in the hands of an em- inent foreign scientist for deter- mination. Pearls are sometimes found in the common California mussle. Mr. J. W. Huggins, of this city, discovered in his garden a small bird, evidently fastened in a tree which upon approaching was stimulated to a_ successful ef- fort to escape. It was found that it had left several of its tail feathers which had been securely fastened to the tree by a strong spider’s web. The same observer noticed an- other bird in evident distress which also escaped upon his ap- proach, leaving several feathers in the mouth of a scorpion’s bur- row. THE WEST-AMERICAN SCIENTIST. 25 OUR PENINSULA FLORA. Visiting on the 4th instant, the low mesa of the peninsula in front of the city of San Diego, the shrubs of the southern portion were found to consist mainly of Rhus integrifolia,growing in dense clumps a few feet high. Sim- mondsia Californica of only a foot in height, forming thick mats sev- eral feet in diameter upon the earth, Ephedra Californica, Ar- temisia Californica, and tallest of all Yucea baceata with trunks six feet high, already budded to bloom while the other shrubs were all in full bloom, except the Artemisia. Clematis pauciflora was trailing over them with a profusion of flesh-colored flowers, and an occa- sional vine of Megarrhiza Califor- nica in fruit and flower. Among the bushes were the blue heads of Brodiza capitata,the purple Mirabilis californica, kryn- itzkias, Phacelia tanacetifolia, Ne- ophila racemosa, mosackia glabra, Lupinus truncatus and a few other flowers, while beneath them grow Pterostegia, Tillea minima and other inconspicuous plants. A few cacti grew along the edge of the mesa in company with Ly- cium Californicum, Erogonum fas- ciculatum, Frankenia, Bigelovia, ete., while the space between the clumps of bushes was occupied the year, though most of the plants were earlier than on the mainland. The rhus and simmondsia, which grow to be fair sized trees among the hills in sheltered places, here form only low, rounded clumps. QS CONTEMPORARY JOURNALS. Journal of the New York Mi- croscopical Society. Issued in nine monthly numbers at $1 per year. Benjamin Braman, editor. The American Naturalist, a pop- ular illustrated monthly magazine of natural history and travels, $4 per year. McCally & Stavely pub lishers, 237-9 Dock st., Phil. Tidings from Nature. For young naturalists. An excellent monthly published by H. M. Downes, Rut- land, Vt., at 25e per year, (after April Ist, 40c. ) Canadian Science Monthly. De- voted to Canadian naturalists and popular science. $l per year. A. J. Pine, editor, Wolfville, N. S. Hoosier Mineralogist and Arch- eologist. A 25e monthly. Published by H. F. Thompson, 17 Butler st., Indianapolis. National City Record. A weekly newspaper of Southern California. $2.50 per year. Wm. Burgess, editor, National City, Cal. Ladies Home Journal, Dewey & Co.,San Francisco, Cal. A$l1 by GEnotheras, Euphorbia polyear- ; monthly devoted to literature, art, pa, Senecio, alfillaria, Draba cunei- | fashion. ete. folia, interspersed with small clus- ters of astragalus or crazy weed, cotyledons, ice plants and stones ornamented with bright colored lichens. The peculiarities of the flora are still undeveloped at this season of The Collectors’ Companion. A ‘new 50c monthly devoted to stamp collectors. Published by J. H. Raymond, 162 Center st., Chicago. Pacific Science Monthly. A new 50¢ journal edited by 8. Bowers, San Buenaventura, Cal. 26 PUBLICATIONS RECEIVED. Memorial of George Bentham, by AsaGray. From the American Journal of Science, February 1885. American association for the advancement of science. Constitu- tion, list of meetings, officers and members for the thirty-third meet- ing, in Philadelphia, September, 1884. The Methods of Statistics. Dr. Franklin B. Hough. Proce. Am. A. A. Sei., 1884. Botanical Contributions. By Asa Gray. Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts and Sci., XX. Contains a revision of some Borragineous genera, and descriptions of thirty- nine new species of gamopetale, with remarks on others. Contributions to American Bot- any, XII By Sereno Watson. Proc. Am. Acad. Arts and Sci. XX. Containsa history and re- vision of the roses of North Amer- ica and deseriptions of some new species of plants, chiefly from our western territories. adobe lex chy -% GENERAL NOTES. Only about 24,000 periodicals published in the world. Subserip- tions taken at this office for any or all. Dr. Parry is now in England, and intends visiting Paris and Geneva in May, returning to America in August. L. Belding, Superintendent of the Pacific District of the Ornith- ologists Union, is intending to vis- ?t the mountains of Lower Cali- fornia again this spring. Prof. Asa Gray, ‘in company with his wife and Prof. W. G. Far- By’ THE WEST-AMERICAN SCIENTIST. low, visited the city of Mexico on their way to Southern California, reaching San Diego on the 19th inst. The third lecture under the aus- pices of the Society of Natural History wus delivered by Mr. Stu- art Stanley onthe evening of Feb- ruary 26. He gave an instructive account of the Soudan and of the present condition of affairs in that country. BOTANICAL NOTES. Isoetes of the check-list of Southern California plants is con- sidered a new species. Abutilon Streetsui, Watson, ined. of the same list proves identical with an Arizona species which Prof. Watson now publishes as A. Lemmoni. California Erythraz are want- ed for which a liberal exchange will be given. Thirty-five speci- mens of every species except E. ve- nusta and E. Douglasii are desired Deschampsia gracilis and Bro- mus Orcuttianus are described as new species from San Diego, by Dr. Geo. Vasey in the February number of the Botanical Gazette. Many aquatic plants are mak- ing no appearance this spring, owing to the lack of rain, and 1885 is now likely to prove a botanical failure as regards the coast region of California. Many of the species that do make an ap- pearance are stunted or rare and later than usual in blooming. i tgs ee There are more than 250 bo- tanical names in the Old Testa- ment.—Littell’s Living Age. THE WEST-AMERICAN SCIENTIST. 27 There are propably a million} THE SAN stamp collectors in the U.S. All the way from $5,000 to $200,000 have been spent by wealthy gen- tlemen in perfecting collections.— Canadian Science Monthly. The American Association for the Advancement of Science has a total membership of over 2,000. Birds’ Eggs and Botanical Specimens Collested to order by We Wie 2S LOW, P. O. Box 38, Baxter, Ia. Will spend the season in Northern Minnesota. Send stamps for Price List July Ist. COLNS, STAMPS, CURIOSITIES, 24 page Catalogue and two medals, 10ce. BIRDS, EGG and SKIN LISTS for STAMP Wire Et (Ge ASIN Ss, $27 Branuan St. san Francisco, Cal. CUMMINGS & JONES, DEALERS IN FINE CABINET MATERIALS FOSSLLS, SHELLS. Indian Relics and General Curiosities, ST. JOHNSBURY, VERMONT, Amateurs, Advanced Students, Colleges and Muse- ums supplied with fine specimens at low rates. We make a specialty of Minerals; list for stamp. Publishers of ‘‘The Naturalist’s Bulletin” a_bi- monthly magazine; 20 cents per year. Sample copy with our complete lists for stamp. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF SAN DIEGO. Meets First Thursday of Each Month. Those desiring information relative to the city and county of San Diego will please address Secretary of the Chamber of Commerce, San Diego, Cal. SEED UNNY SAN DIEGO SHELLS. $5.00 per 10 specimens, excepting the larger or rarer spe- C. R, ORCUTT. San Diego, Cal. { Collected to Galery Cc. R. ORCUTT Imported to Orders San Diego. Cal. cies. DIEGO UNION. DAILY AND WEEKLY. DOUGLAS GUNN, - - - PROPRIETOR. [THE UNION was established in 1868. Until 187] it was published only once a week, when the daily edition was begun. THE DatLy UNION is published every morning except Monday. THE WEEKLY UNION is published every Thursday. HE SAN DIEGO UNION is the oldest of the 41 news- papers published in Southern California. Of the 389 papers published in the State, 297 have been started since it began publication. It is more than five years older than 245 of the journals of California, and more than ten years the senior of 168 of them. {It has a larger"bona fide circulation than any other newspaper published in Southern California. THE WEEKLY UNION A large, eight-page paper of fifty-six columns, circu- ates very largely abroad, as well as at home. Tt goes to nearly every family in the county, and its subscri- bers “stay with it,” It is conceded to be the best Cal- ifornia weekly published out of San Francisco. Both daily and weekly editions circulate largely through Southern California, Arizona, New Mexico, and con- tiguous territory. It has subscribers in thirty-five of the thirty-eight States, and in six of the eight Terri- tories. in British Columbia, Canada, England, Scot- land, Ireland, France, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Spain, the Sandwich Islands, China, Japan, and the Australian Colonies. The wide circulation, influen- tial position and representative character of the paper are undisputed. Persons wishing accurate informa- tion respecting the Southern part of California should subscribe for THE UNION. Sample copies sent on ap- plication. TERMS : THE WEEKLY UNION. THE DAILY UNION. One Year, - - - - $300) One Year, = = ($10'00 Six Months, - - - - 160|Six Months, - - - 500 Three Months, - - 75| Three Months, - - 2 50 One Month, - - - 25!One Month, - - - 10 Address THE UNION, SAn DIEGO, CAL. Ce. COROU ®. DEALER IN Native Seeds, Bulbs & Plants FERINS, ETC. DIEGO, CALIFORNIA. SAN Museums supplied with specimens representative of the fauna and flora of Southern and Lower Cali- fornia, and scientists supplied with material for study. Amateurs’ desiderata and Herbarium specimens, shells and curios a specialty. Publisher of THE WEsT-AMERICAN SCIENTIST, con- taining practical information upon various subjects, issued monthly, at 50 cents per annum. Books and shells wanted in exchange; terms, one- half cash, except where rare books are offered. ARROWHEADS! Pecfect, 25c. Slightly Imperfect, 10c. & 15&c. Assorted Lots, $1 to $5 per hundred. 25 Broken Points, 10c. MOSS AGATES 15 CENTS PER DOZEN. Price List of Bird Skins sent for stamp. CHARLES H. MARSH, Territorial Taxidermist, SILVER CITY, N. M. 28 THE WEST-AMERICAN SCIENTIST. THE WEST-AMERICAN SCIENTIST A MONTHLY JOURNAL OF NATURAL HISTORY Especially devoted to the Pacific Coast. The only Periodical of the kind on the shores of the Pacific, and the official organ of the San Diego Society of Natural History. ‘ Subseription, 50 ets per annum in Advange, Foreign Countries, 75 cts, Single Copies, 5 cents. IT IS INTENDED THAT THIS PAPER SHALL CONTAIN Practical articles on Horticulture, Agriculture and applied Science; Popular articles on the leading Scientific subjects of the day; General, Zoological and Botanical Notes and News; Notices of Books and Periodicals; Faunal and Floral Lists; Descriptions of New Species; Proceedings of the San Diego Society of Natural History, and im- portant papers read before the same; ac- counts of the Agassiz Association, etc. TH: JOURNAL WILL NOT BE LIMITED IN ITS SCOPE IN ANY PARTICULAR. Respectfully asking such encouragement, financial and otherwise, as we may seem Sot eps |) Meee eae San Diego, California, U.S. A. to deserye, the publisher remains, sincerely, EUROPE Established 1850. AMERICA E as E : PH. 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