JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

^.7

I/' *

VOLUME VIII, 1918

BOARD OF EDITORS
Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock J. Fraxklin Meyer

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY BUREAU OF STANDARDS

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

BY THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION

THE WAVERLT PRESS

BALTIMORE, MD.

N

^i

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VIII JANUARY 4, 1918 No. 1

PHYSICS. — The size and shape of the electron. Arthur H.
CoMPTON, Research Laboratory, Westinghouse Lamp Com-
pany. (Communicated by G. K. Burgess.)

The radius of the electron is usually deduced from the energy
of the electron in motion, assuming its magnetic energy to be
identical with its kinetic energy. If the electron is a sphere, its
radius must be, according to this assumption, about 1 X 10 ~^'
cm. It is thus sufficiently small to act as a point charge of
electricity even with the shortest 7-rays.

Calculating on the basis of such an electron, J. J. Thomson^
has shown that the fraction of the energy of an electromagnetic
wave incident upon an electron which is scattered by it is given
by the expression

Stt e^

This corresponds to a mass absorption coefficient due to a
scattering of the primary beam equal to

where N is the number of electrons which contribute to the
scattering in a gram of the absorbing medium, C is the velocity
of light, and e and m have their usual significance. As Barkla
has pointed out, there may be absorption due to other causes,

1 Thomson, J. J. Conduction of Electricity through Gases, 2d ed., p. 321.

1

2 compton: size and shape of electrons

such as the production of secondary photoelectrons or beta rays,
and for other than waves of short length the rays scattered by
the different electrons in an atom are nearly enough in the
same phase to produce the phenomenon of ''excess scattering,"
so that the absorption coefficient is in most cases considerably
greater than the value given by this expression. If the electron
acts as a point charge there is, however, no possible grouping
of the electrons which can, according to classical theory, produce
a smaller absorption than that calculated according to Thomson's
formula.

Barkla and Dunlop^ have shown that for a considerable range
of wave-lengths of X-rays the mass scattering coefficients of the
lighter elements are given accurately by equation (1) if the
number of electrons in the atom is taken to be approximately
half the atomic weight. For elements of high atomic weight the
phenomenon of excess scattering occurs, except with the very
shortest wave-lengths, and the absorption coefficient due to
scattering becomes much greater than this value. For wave-
lengths less than 2 X 10 ~^ cm., however, the absorption co-
efficient becomes very appreciably less than that theoretically
calculated, falling as low as one-fifth as great for the shortest
7-rays. Soddy and RusselP and Ishino* have shown that for
these shortest rays the amount of energy scattered by the dif-
ferent elements is accurately proportional to their atomic num-
bers, so that all the electrons outside the nucleus are effective
in producing absorption. It is therefore impossible to account
for this very considerable decrease in the absorption coefficient
for very short electromagnetic waves if the electron is considered
to be a point charge of electricity.

If, however, the diameter of the electron is comparable in
magnitude with the wave-length of the incident wave, the ra-
diation scattered by different parts of the electron will be so
different in phase that the energy of the scattered rays will be
materially reduced. If, for example, the charge on an electron

^ Barkla and Dunlop. Phil. Mag., March, 1916.

3 Soddy and Russell. Phil. Mag. 18: 620. 1910; 19: 725. 1910.

^IsHiNO. Phil. Mag. 33: 129. 1917.

compton: size and shape of electrons 3

is supposed to be in the form of rigid spherical shell, incapable
of rotation, a simple calculation shows that the mass absorption
coefficient due to scattering is given by

l = ^^sin^(^i^y, (2)

p 3 m'^C' V X / V X / ^ ^

where a is the radius of the spherical shell and X is the wave-
length of the incident beam. For long waves this becomes iden-
tical with equation (1), but it decreases rapidly as the wave-
length approaches the diameter of the electron, as is shown in
curve I, figure 1. Such an assumption is therefore able to ex-
plain at least qualitatively the decrease in the absorption for
electromagnetic waves of very high frequency.

It would appear more reasonable to imagine the spherical shell
electron to be subject to rotational as well as translational dis-
placements when traversed by a 7-ray. The scattering due to
such an electron is difficult to calculate, but an approximate
expression can be obtained if the electron is considered to be
perfectly flexible, so that each part of it can be moved inde-
pendently of the other parts. On this hypothesis it can be shown
that the intensity of the beam scattered by an electron at an
angle d with an unpolarized beam of 7-rays is given by the
expression

If) = I — ^ < sm^ sm - / sin^ - >• (3)

^ 2rWC* LWJ V X 2// 2j ^ ^

Here / is the intensity of the incident beam, r is the distance at
which the intensity of the scattered beam is measured, and the
other quantities have the same meaning as before. The mass
absorption coefficient due to scattering by such an electron is
therefore

- = 2xAV r^smedd. (4)

p J I

This integral may be evaluated graphically or by expansion
into a series. The values of a/p in the case of aluminium, tak-
ing the numbers of electrons per atom to be 13, are plotted in
curve II, figure 1, for different values of a/X. The values for a

compton: size and shape of electrons

rigid spherical electron which is subject to rotation should lie
between curves I and II for the range of a/X here plotted.

Unfortunately the experimental data are too meager to sub-
mit these formulae to accurate quantitative test. There are,

.12

cr
P

■I'f

.13.

.16

.0?

.06

M

,01

~^~^-\

nJ

\

\

\^

K

^

\^

-^

\

\

•

.05

.10

.15

.20

.Z5 a/A 0.30

Fig. 1. Mass absorption coefficient for electrons (I) in the form of rigid
spherical shells incapable of rotation, and (II) in the form of perfectly flexible
spherical shells. The number of electrons per atom is taken as 13.

however, three points on the curve w^hich are established with
Some accuracy. Barkla^ has found that for relatively long X-rays
the light elements scatter accurately according to equation (1),
so that the part of the curves where a/X is small is verified.

^ Barkla and Dunlop. Phil. Alag.

compton: size and shape of electrons 5

Hull and Rice*^ have shown that for wave-lengths in the neigh-
borhood of 0.17 X 10-« cm. the value of o-/p for aluminium is
about 0.12. From curve I this corresponds to an electronic
radius of 2.2 X lO-^o cm., while curve II gives 2.3 X lO""' cm.
Ishino" finds that the value of ajp, using the hard 7-rays from
radium-C, is about 0.045. Taking the effective wave-length to
be« 0.093 X 10-^ cm., curve I gives a = 2.1 X 10"^" and curve
II gives a = 2.5 X 10^^^^ cm. Using either formula the agree-
ment between the two values of the radius is within the limits
of probable experimental error. The unusually low absorption
coefficient for 7-rays can therefore be quantitatively explained
on the hypothesis that the electron is a spherical shell of elec-
tricity of radius about 2.3 X 10-"^ cm.

Another difficulty that is found in J. J. Thomson's simple
theory is that it predicts that if a beam of X-rays is passed
through a thin plate the intensity of the scattered rays on the
two sides of the plate should be the same. It is well known,
however, that the scattered radiation on the emergent side of
the plate is much more intense than that on the incident side,
both in the case of relatively soft X-rays and in the case of hard
7-rays. Barkla and Ayres^ have shown that for rather hard
X-rays and for those substances of low atomic weight whose
absorption coefficient can be calculated accurately by equation
(1) this prediction of Thomson's, theory is also valid. In the
case of the heavier atoms and the longer waves, however, the
rays scattered at a small angle with the incident beam by the
different electrons in the atom are so nearly in the same phase
that the intensity is considerably increased, while at large angles
the phase difference is much greater, and the intensity is much
smaller. This explanation cannot, however, be applied to the
excess scattering of 7-rays of short wave-length, since experi-
ment shows^" that for longer waves the light elements show no

"Hull and Rice. Phys. Rev. 8:326. 1916.
UsHixo. Phil. Mag. 33: 129. 1917.

« Rutherford and Andrade. Phil. Mag. 28: 263. 1914.
9 Barkla and Ayers. Phil. Mag. 21 : 271. 1911.
10 Barkla and Ayers. Phil. Mag. 21: 271. 1911.

6

compton: size and shape of electrons

excess scattering on the emergent side, indicating that the
electrons act independently, while for hard 7-rays the excess
scattering is the same as for the heavier elements.

The same difficulty is present if instead of considering the
electron as a point charge it is assumed to be a rigid spherical
shell incapable of rotation, as this assumption also makes the
scattered radiation symmetrical on the incident and the emergent
sides. If, however, the electron is a spherical shell of electricity
which can be rotated by a passing electromagnetic wave, it is

Fig. 2. The intensity of the radiation scattered at an angle d with the incident
radiation, the electron being a perfectly flexible spherical shell. I, radius of
electron = 0; II, radius = 37rX/4.

capable of producing excess scattering on the emergent side for
short 7-rays in much the same manner as groups of electrons
in the atom produce excess scattering in the case of the longer
X-rays. For purposes of calculation it is again simpler to con-
sider the nearly equivalent case of the electron which is a flexible
spherical shell. The intensity at any angle is then given by
equation (3). When a = 0, this expression becomes identical
with that calculated on Thomson's theory, and the correspond-
ing values are plotted in curve I of figure 2. In curve II, Ig/1 is
plotted for different values of d, using the value a = 3xX/4.

compton: size and shape of electrons 7

The circles are experimental values determined by D. G. H.
Florance^^ using the 7-rays from radium bromide scattered by a
plate of iron. Inasmuch as these rays are heterogeneous, and
as the softer rays are scattered relatively more strongly at larger
angles, the agreement of the experimental values with curve 1 1
is as good as can be expected.

A better quantitative test of this explanation is afforded by
Ishino's observation^- that the radiation scattered on the inci-
dent side of a plate struck by hard 7-rays from radium-C is
about 15 per cent of that scattered on the emergent side. On
the hypothesis of the electron as a flexible sphere this ratio is
given by the relation

^ = I I^sm edd \ Iq sin d dd

/a Jv/'l i Jo

(5)

The values of this ratio for different values of a/X are plotted in
figure 3. This curve explains beautifully the observation of
Florance that the ''incident" scattered rays are softer than the
''emergent" and the primary rays, since it shows that the rela-
tive amount of the rays scattered backward is much greater
for soft, or long wave-length, 7-rays than for hard rays. Ruth-
erford and Andrade^^ have found the hard 7-rays from radium-C
to consist of a strong line, X = 0.099 X 10~% and a weaker line,
X = 0.071 X 10-^ cm. Taking into account this selective effect,
we may take the effective wave-length to be 0.095 X 10~^ cm.
On this basis, and using a = 2.3 X 10"^" as determined above,
the calculated value of the ratio of the incident to the emergent
scattered radiation is 8 per cent. The agreement is hardly
within the probable experimental error, but the calculated value
is at least of the proper order of magnitude, which is a strong
verification of a flexible or a rotatable electron.

According to electromagnetic theory it is obvious that the
mass of an electron cannot be accounted for on the basis of a
uniform distribution of electricity over the surface of a sphere

"Florance. Phil. Mag. 20: 921. 1910.

i^IsHiNO. Phil. Mag. 33: 129. 1917.

'3 Rutherford and AxDRADE. Phil. Mag. 28: 263. 1914.

8

compton: size and shape of electrons

of the size here assumed. Much the same effect, so far as the
scattering of 7-rays is concerned, results from the conception of
the electron as a ring of electricity of diameter comparable with
the wave-length of the incident beam. It has been shown by

I.U

■1
h

•1

.5

"n

\

\

• \

.3

.a

\

^

0

3 .0

S5

0

5 .2

LO .a

,5 a/X 0.30

Fig. 3. Ratio of the intensity of the radiation scattered on the incident side
to that of the radiation scattered on the emergent side of a plate. The electron
is assumed to be a flexible sphere. •

Davisson^^ and Webster^^^ that this conception is compatible
with the electromagnetic theory of the mass of the electron. I
have not as yet been able to solve completely the problem of the
scattering produced by such ring electrons. Approximate

"Damsson. Phys. Rev. 9 : 570. 1917.
»5 Webster. Phys. Rev. 9 : 484. 1917.

compton: size and shape of electrons 9

methods show, however, that if the electron is a rigid ring whose
plane is invariable, the scattered energy follows equation (2)
rather closely, and is symmetrical on the incident and the emer-
gent sides. If the electron is a flexible ring, or one capable of
rotation about any axis, the scattering is more nearly that given
by equation (4), but should be somewhat greater for large
values of a/\. The ratio of the incident to the emergent scat-
tered radiation should also be appreciably larger than that
given by expression (5). It seems probable, therefore, that the
scattering of 7-rays and X-rays may be completely explained on
the hypothesis that the electron is a ring of electricity of radius
about 2 X lO-'i" cm., if the ring is capable of rotation about any
axis.

This hypothesis makes it possible to explain also the effect
noticed by A. H. Forman'* that the absorption coefficient of
iron for a beam of X-rays is greater when the iron is magnetized
parallel with the transmitted beam than when the iron is un-
magnetized or magnetized perpendicular to the X-ray beam.
Using an effective potential of 27,000 volts the effect was about
0.4 per cent, and with a potential of 81,000 volts it was 0.6 per
cent. From X-ray spectra obtained under similar circumstances
it can be shown that the effective wave-length used in the two
cases was about 1.0 X 10^^ and 0.5 X 10^^ cm. respectively.
If the ring electron acts as a tiny magnet, as suggested by
Parson,^^ it may be turned by the magnetic field until its plane
is perpendicular to the incident beam of X-rays This will
make the rays scattered by the different parts of the electron
more nearly in the same phase, so that the absorption due to
scattered radiation will be increased. Moreover, since the in-
cident rays can get a better hold on the electron in this posi-
tion, its displacement will be greater than when unorientated,
and absorption due to transformation of the X-rays into other
types of energy will be greater. For the relatively long waves
used bj^ Forman the ratio of the absorption coefficient when

16 Forman. Phys. Rev. 7: 119. 1916.

1' Parson, A. L. Smithsonian Misc. Collections, Nov. 191.5. Parson esti-
mates his "magneton," or ring electron, to have a radius of 1.5 X 10""' cm.

10 compton: size and shape of electrons

magnetized to that when unmagnetized should be approxhnately

K'-y -ft)

where a is the radius of the ring electron and k is the fraction
of the electrons which are oriented by the magnetic field. Using
the value a = 2.3 X 10~^" cm., this means that the change in
the absorption due to magnetization for X = 1.0 X 10 ~^ cm. is
0.7 k per cent, and for X = 0.5 X 10^^ cm. is 2.8 k per cent.
From the observed values of this difference we find that the
fraction of the electrons oriented by the magnetic field is 0.6
and 0.26. The experimental basis of the latter value is much
the more certain. Taking the number of electrons in the iron
atom to be 26, this means that in order to explain Forman's
effect in terms of ring electrons a number 0.26 X 26 = 7 of the
electrons must be capable of being oriented by the magnetic
field. This is what would be expected if it is the 8 valence
electrons of iron which are responsible for its ferro-magnetic
properties. Our hypothesis of a ring electron of radius 2.3 X
10~i^ cm. is therefore capable of explaining satisfactorily For-
man's effect.

It should be noted that Forman explains his effect as be-
ing due to an orientation of the molecules in the iron. The
experiments of Rognley and the writer'^ on the effect of mag-
netizing a crystal on the intensity of the beam of X-rays re-
flected by it have shown that any orientation of the molecules,
if it occurs at all, must be extremely small. It was found fur-
ther that unless it is very nearly isotropic the atom also is not
rotated by magnetization. Thu^ Forman's explanation of his
effect is inadequate. The fact that his experiments can be ex-
plained in terms of an orientation of the electrons must be
taken as a confirmation of the conclusion arrived at by Rognley
and the writer that it is not the atom as a whole, but the electron
itself that is the ultimate magnetic particle.

18 Compton and Rognley. Science (N. S.) 46:415. 1917.

HOSTETTER AND SOSMAN: MERCURY STILL 11

•

Summary. Ishino's experiments, showing that the scatter-
ing of hard 7-rays by different materials is strictly proportional
to the number of electrons and is not proportional to the masses,
proves that the electrons are responsible for practically all of the
scattering, and that for these wave-lengths they act independ-
entl}^ of each other. According to the classical electrodynamical
theory, this means that if the electrons are sensibly point charges
of electricity, the absorption coefficient due to scattering for these
rays must be given by equation (1). Since this equation does
not hold for these wave-lengths, we cannot consider the electron
to be a point charge. In order to account for the small absorp-
tion coefficient of 7-rays the electron must have an effective radius
of about 2.3 X 10"^° cm. In order to explain the fact that the
emergent scattered radiation is more intense than the incident
radiation, it is necessary to assume further that the different
parts of the charge of the electron can possess certain motions inde-
pendently of each other. It appears that these phenomena, together
with the electromagnetic mass of the electron, can be quanti-
tatively explained on the hypothesis that the electron consists
of a ring of electricity subject to rotation about any axis and of
radius about 2.3 X 10"^° cm. This hypothesis is confirmed by
the fact that it explains satisfactorily Forman's effect of mag-
netization of iron upon its absorption coefficient, for which
there is no other apparent explanation.

CHEMISTRY. — A silica-glass mercury still. J. C. Hostetter
and R. B. Sosman, Geophysical Laboratory.

Although numerous electrically heated mercury stills have
been described and are doubtless being used with satisfaction,
nevertheless there is one undesirable feature that is common
to all vacuum mercury stills and that is avoided in the one about
to be described: namely, that a still made of ordinary glass
or even of combustion glass will, when slightly overheated, col-
lapse under the pressure of the atmosphere.'

1 The form of failure of such a tube is of some interest in itself. One of our
ordinary glass stills that collapsed one night when the voltage on the power line
became too high yielded symmetrically around its vertical axis, instead of flatten-
ing out, producing a figure with three cusps separated by angles of 120 degrees.

n

r

o

\

■Semi-fransparent silica
S mm inside diameter

Semi-transparent silica
/i mm inside diameter
IS mm outside «

Loose asbestos fiber

E
O
OO

E^

B

ym'/iWf<'4

-Aiundum tube
•Semi-transparent silica

■20 mm inside diameter

34- mm outside
■ Asbestos - macjnesia
pipe coverina

■Asbestos hoard
Wooden shelf

^ Transparent silica
tubes, 5 mm bore.

E
E

o

WlSmm^
Fig. 1. Silica-glass mercury still

12

HOSTETTER AND SOSMANI MERCURY STILL 13

After several such exasperating experiences with glass stills —
the overheating being caused by rising voltage on the power
line — we had our still remade of silica glass (fused quartz, or
"quartz glass"), and it has been in use more or less continuously
for several years. The additional cost of the silica-glass still is
well expended in the insurance thereby secured against inter-
ruption of the distillation. We have been requested to put on
record a brief description of the still, having had a number of
inquiries for information concerning its design.

Design of the still. The construction is shown in detail in
figure 1. An effort has been made to simplify the still as much
as possible in order to minimize the difficulties connected with
the working of silica . glass. No originality is claimed for the
design : an inspection of the diagram will show that the essential
points of any continuously acting still have been embodied,
some having been taken from one still and some from another.

The distillation chamber (D) has an inside diameter of 30 mm.
and a length of 110 mm. The condenser (C) has an inside
diameter of 13 mm. Both of these parts of the apparatus are
made of the semitransparent inexpensive variety of silica glass.
The smaller vertical tubes, A and B, however, are made of the
transparent variety, thus enabling one to observe readily the
rate of condensation and to see whether the vacuum is being
maintained. At V the still is connected to a suction pump
that gives a pressure of 1 cm. of mercury or less. This joint is
made with hard De Khotinsky cement and is located where it
will be air-cooled as thoroughly as possible. The lengths of the
small vertical tubes must be such that at ordinary atmospheric
pressure the distillation chamber is about half filled: the length
of A is 720 mm. to the bottom of the distillation chamber, while
B has a length of 840 mm. The inside diameters of A and B
should not be too small; the tubes on our still have a bore of
3 mm., but 5 mm. might be better.

The fu7'nace. The furnace is wound so as to go directly on
the 110-volt circuit (alternating or direct current) without any
external resistance. The power consumption is about 60 watts.
Since the temperature required is comparatively low, various

14 HOSTETTER AND SOSMANI MERCURY STILL

designs for the furnace might be safely employed; such, for
instance, as winding the resistance wire on an asbestos-covered
metal tube. Having at hand, however, an alundum tube of
suitable size, we found it convenient to wind the wire directly
upon this tube, and to hold the wire in place with alundum
cement. The alundum tube has an inside diameter of 1^ inches
(38 mm.) and is 4| inches (114 mm.) long. The winding con-
sists of 51 turns (12 to the inch) of No. 30 nichrome wire (diam-
eter 0.010 inch, or 0.25 mm.), giving a total of approximately
24 feet (7.3 meters) of wire. Its resistance is about 160 ohms
cold and 200 ohms hot, and the current is about 0.6 ampere.
The furnace rests on a disk of heavy asbestos board and is
jacketed with ordinary asbestos-magnesia pipe covering. The
neck of the still is covered with loose asbestos fiber.

Preliminary treatment of the mercury. As here constructed
this still is intended for the final distillation of mercury that has
been previously treated to remove the gross impurities. This
may be done (a) by the well-known process of Lothar Meyer*
since modified by Hildebrand^ and by Desha,* in which the
mercury is allowed to pass in a fine stream through a long column
of dilute nitric acid ; (b) by making the mercury the anode in n.
nitric acid bath and electrolyzing ;^ (c) by passing air through
the slightly heated mercury;^ (d) most thoroughly of all, by the
method of Hulett and Minchin,^ consisting in subjecting the
mercury to a preliminary distillation during which a stream of air
is bubbled through it. The first three methods have recently
been combined and developed into an automatic process.*

Another very simple but surprisingly effective method of
removing impurities, which is not generally known and which
has been ascribed to Henry Leffman, is to shake up the con-

2 Meyer, Lothar. Z. Anal. Ch. 2: 241. 1863.

3 HiLDEBRAND, J. H. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 31 1 933-935. 1909.

4 Desha, L. J. Am. Chem. J. 41 : 152. 1909.

6 Wolff, F. A., and Waters, C. E. Bull. Bur. Standards 3: 624-625; 4: 9-11.
1907.

« Crafts, J. M. Bull. Soc. Chim. Paris 49: 856. 1888.

^Hulett, G. A., and Minchin, H. D. Phys. Rev. 21:388-398. 1905.

•Patten, H. E., and Mains, G. H. J. Ind. Eng. Chem. 9: 600-603. 1917.

ALLEN: SENSORY FIBERS 15

taminated mercury with cane sugar. After such a treatment
and a filtration through a pin hole the mercury comes out re-
markably clean.

Unless the mercury has been partially purified in some manner
the tube A may become clogged by the accumulation of foreign
metals which concentrate in the tube as the mercury distils.

If a wet process of purification has been employed, it is best
to dry the mercury by bubbling air through it for several hours
before introducing it into the still.

After a distillation from this apparatus the mercury should
be given a filtration tlii'ough a pin hole in a filter paper in order
to remove a slight film of oxide produced by the oxidation of
metal impurities by the small amount of air remaining in the
still. After such a distillation and filtration the mercury may
be safely used in vacuum gages and in thermoregulators, and
for other purposes requiring a reasonably pure product.

The yield of distilled mercury is about 400 cc. per twenty-
four-hour day, when the still is operated with a vacuum of
approximately 1 cm. of mercury.

PHYSIOLOGY. — Sensory fibers in the mesencephalic root of man

and the guinea pig. William F. Allen, Department of

Anatomy, University of Oregon Medical School, Portland,

/Oregon.

As a result of Marchi stained serial sections of the brain stems
of a five year old girl and two guinea pigs, in which the left V-
roots of the guinea pigs were previously severed behind the
semilunar ganglion and the V-sensory root of the girl had been
destroyed by a large glioma in the pons region, the following
preliminary statement can be made: A number of sensory
fibers arising from cells in the semilunar ganglion follow the
ventral surface of the sensory root of the trigeminal nerve into
the brain stem to pass dorsally between the V-motor and the
V-sensory (substantia gelatinosa) nuclei to end in considerable
numbers in the motor nucleus. Other fibers continue dorsad
and cephalad in the V-mesencephalic root to terminate in the

16 bartsch: Philippine land mollusks

locus coeruleus. Degenerated fibers were fairly abundant in
the mesencephalic root as far cephalad as the point of crossing
of the IV-nerve root. A few of these sensory fibers apparently
continue farther cephalad in the mesencephalic root to end in
the V-mesencephalic root nucleus lateral to the central gray
mass above the IV and III nuclei. Additional experiments are
in progress to determine the distribution of the nerve fibers
arising from the V-mesencephalic nucleus and the locus coeruleus.

CONCHOLOGY. — The land mollusks of the genus Ohba from the
islands of Bohol and Panglao, P. I.^ Paul Bartsch, U. S.
National Museum.

The United States National Museum has recently received a
lot of shells belonging to the genus Ohba, collected by Gilbert
S. Perez on the islands of Bohol and Panglao, which made a
revision of the group necessary. This has resulted in the rec-
ognition of a number of new forms, brief critical diagnosis of
which are presented herewith. A fuller account and figures of
these will be published in a monograph on the Philippine mem-
bers of the genus, which is in preparation.

Obba rota Perezi, n. subsp.

The present race differs from Obba rota rota Broderip, which is at
home on the island of Siquijor, in being decidedly more elevated and
in having the peripheral keel less upturned at the edge, and situated
about half way between the base and summit, while in Obba rota rota
it is at the anterior extremity of the upper third.

The type. Cat. No. 216983, U. S. N. M., comes from Bilar, Bohol,
and measures: altitude, 10.2 mm.; greater diameter, 27.6 mm.; lesser
diameter, 22 m.

Obba rota panglaoensis, n. subsp.

This race is much smaller and darker than Obba rota rota Broderip.
It is elevated like Obba rota -perezi B. and has the keel similarly situated,
but the sculpture is rougher in the present race.

The type, Cat. No. 216984, U. S. N. M., comes from 'Panglao
Panglao Island, and measures: altitude, 9.7 mm.; greater diameter,
23.5 mm.; lesser diameter, 18.7 mm.

1 Published by permission of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.

BARTSCH: PHILIPPINE LAND MOLLUSKS 17

Obba moricandi hernandezensis, n. subsp.

The present race is more elevated and narrower than typical Obba
moricandi moricandi Sowerby which comes from Jacna, Bohol. The
pronounced characteristic color bands of the spire in the typical form
are completely absent and only a faint narrow light-brown thread
encircles the base. Our specimens come from Garcia Hernandez, Bohol.

The type, Cat. No. 21G980, U. S. N. M., measures: altitude, 19.3
mm.; greater diameter, 33.2 mm.; lesser diameter, 25.2 mm.

Obba scrobiculata valenciensis, n. subsp.

The rought axial sculpture, characteristic of Obba scrobiculata scrobi-
culata Pfeiffer, is reduced to a minimum, while the color bands on the
upper surface of the typical form are merely indicated by obsolete
lines in the present race. The upper surface is marked by broad,
light and dark oblique axial zones, which lend it a watered-silk effect.
A color band is present on the base.

The type. Cat. No. 216986', U. S. N. M., comes from Valencia,
Bohol, and measures: altitude, 13 mm.; greater diameter, 29.3 mm.;
lesser diameter, 23 mm.

ABSTRACTS

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

GEOLOGY. — Notes on the geology and iron ores of the Cuyuna district,
Minnesota. E. C. Harder and A. W. Johnston. U. S. Geo-
logical Survey Bulletin 660-A. Pp. 26, with maps, sections, and
illustrations. 1917.

The Cuyuna iron-ore district is near the geographic center of Minne-
sota, about 90 miles west of Duluth and 55 miles southwest of the
western part of the Mesabi district. In contrast with some of the
other Lake Superior iron-ore districts, it is without marked topographic
relief. It is mainly a region of low, irregular morainic hills interspersed
with lakes and extensive swamps and marshes.

The productive part of the Cuyuna district is commonly divided
into two ranges — the north range, including the part lying north of
the Northern Pacific Railway, and the south range, including the belt
lying south of the railway. The discovery of iron ore in the Cuyuna
district was entirely due to the existence of abnormal magnetic attrac-
tions in the region.

The bedrock in the district and adjacent region is largely concealed
by a mantle of glacial drift that varies in thickness from 15 feet to
about 400 feet. No rock exposures are known in Crow Wing County,
in which most of the district is situated. The rocks that have been
found up to the present time in the district can all be grouped under
three classes: (1) sedimentary and igneous metamorphosed rocks
interlayered with each other in beds and lenses and usually having
steep dips due to extensive folding, (2) igneous rocks intruded into the
metamorphosed rocks subsequent to their metamorphism and deforma-
tion, and (3) younger rocks which lie horizontally on the eroded sur-
faces of the rocks of the other two classes. The age of the various rocks

is not definitely known.

18

abstracts: parasitology 19

The iron-bearing formation of the Cuyuna district presents a variety
of lithologic types. Among the more common rocks composing it are
hematitic and Hmonitic chert and slate, cherty and slaty iron carbonate,
siliceous magnetitic slate, amphibole-magnetite rock, jaspilite, dark-
blue, red, brown, black, and yellow iron ore, black, red, and brown
manganiferous iron ore, green chloritic schist, and dark-red hematitic
schist.

It is generally supposed that the original rock frorn which the present
hematitic and Hmonitic chert and iron ore have in large part been
formed is a banded cherty iron-carbonate rock.

The ore bodies are as a rule roughly tabular in shape, with the longer
axes parallel to the bedding of the inclosing rocks. As the beds of
rock generally dip steeply, the ore bodies are shown at the surface as
bands that extend for considerable distances along the strike of the
beds. They range in width to several hundred feet and are usually
very long, some of the known ore bodies being more than a mile in
length. The Cuyuna ore shows all stages of hydration from pure
reddish-blue hematite to ocherous yellow limonite, and both argillace-
ous and siliceous phases are common. R. W. Stone.

PARASITOLOGY. — A further note on the life history of Gongylonema
scutatum. B. H. Ransom and M. C. Hall. Journ. Parasit.
3: 177-181. June, 1917.
Seurat in recent publications has questioned certain conclusions
reached by the writers in former papers relative to the life history of
the nematode Gongylonema scutatum. In the present paper these
conclusions are upheld, namely that dung beetles and croton bugs
fed upon the eggs of G. scutatum become infested with an encysted
larval stage of the parasite and that it is quite evident that sheep,
cattle, and other suitable mammalian hosts become in turn infested
as a result of swallowing infested insects (under natural conditions
various species of dung beetles). Certain larval nematodes found by
Seurat (1916) in several species of Blaps in Algeria are not G. scutatum
and it is not improbable that those which he found in various Algerian
beetles and identified as the larvae of G. mucronatum Seurat in reality
belong to the species G. scutatum. B. H. R.

MEETINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

The 113th meetmg of the Academy, the nineteenth annual meeting,
was held at the Cosmos Club at 8.30 p.m., Thursday, January 11,
1917. In the absence of the Recording Secretary, the chair appointed
F. E. Wright acting secretary. The minutes of the last annual
njeeting were read and approved.

The reports of the Corresponding Secretary, the Recording Secre-
tary, the Treasurer, and the Auditing Committee were read and ac-
cepted. William R. Maxon presented the report of the editors, which
was accepted.

The tellers reported that the mail ballot had resulted in the elec-
tion of the following officers for the year 1917:

President: W. H. Holmes.

Non-resident Vice-Presidents: E. W. Morley and W. S. Thayer.

Corresponding Secretary: F. E. Wright.

Recording Secretary: William R. Maxon.

Treasurer: William Bowie.

Managers, Class of 1920: Paul Bartsch, C. S. Scofibld.

Nominations for Vice-presidents from the affiliated societies were
then presented, and the following Vice-Presidents were elected:

Anthropological: Walter Hough.

Archaeological: Mitchell Carroll.

Biological: W. P. Hay. ,

Botanical: A. S. Hitchcock.

Chemical C. S. Hudson.

Electrical Engineers: R. H. Dalgleish.

Engineers: A. L. Baldwin.

Entomological: W. D. Hunter.

Foresters: George B. Sudworth.

Geographic: 0. H. Tittmann.

Geological: A. C. Spencer.

Historical: Allen C. Clark.

Medical: G. Wythe Cook.

Philosophical: E. Buckingham.

The meeting was then adjourned for five minutes, after which the
Academy met in joint meeting with the Chemical Society, with C. L.
Alsberg in the chair. R. B. Sosman presented his address as retiring
president of the Chemical Society, on the subject: Some problems of
the oxides of iron. The address has been published in the Journal of
the Academy (7: 55-72. 1917).

R. B. Sosman, Corresponding Secretary.

20

proceedings: anthropological society 21

The 114th meeting of the Washington Academy of Sciences was
held in the auditorium of the Natm-al History Building of the National
Museum the evening of February 1, 1917. The retiring president of
the Academy, Dr. L. O. Howard, delivered an illus:trated lecture
Entitled The carriage of disease by insects. The address has since been
published in abridged form in the Journal of the Academy (7: 217-222.
April 19, 1917).

The 115th meeting of the Academy was held in the Assembl}^ Hall
of the Cosmos Club the evening of March 15, 1917, the occasion being
the presentation of the first of a series of public lectures on Heredity.
I^of. H. S. Jennings, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, delivered
an address entitled Observed changes in hereditary characters in relation
to evolution. This has since been published in full in the Journal of
the Academy (7: 281-301. May 19, 1917).

The 1 16th meeting of the Academy was held in the Assembly Hall
of the Cosmos Club the evening of March 29, 1917, the speaker being
Dr. Oscar Riddle, of the Department of Experimental Evolution,
Cold Spring Harbor, New York. Doctor Riddle's lecture, entitled
The control of the sex ratio, has been published in full in the Journal of
the Academy (7: 319-356. June 4, 1917).

The 117th meeting of the Academy was held in the Assembly Hall
of the Cosmos Club the evening of April 13, 1917. The speaker. Prof.
W. E. Castle, of Harvard University, delivered an address entitled
The role of selection in heredity. This lecture, which concluded the
series on Heredity, has since been published under a shghtly different
title in the Journal of the Academy (7: 369-387. June 19, 1917).

William R. Maxon, Recording Secretary.

ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 513th meeting of the Society was held at the National Museum,
October 2, 1917, at 4.30 p.m.

Dr. Ales Hrdlicka, Curator of Physical Anthropology, U. S.
National Museum, addressed the Society on Bohemia and the Bohem-
ians, illustrating his address with lantern slides.

"Bohemia," said Dr. Hrdlicka, "is not a large country but one with
a great history; and while among the oldest in Europe and one of the
most battered by fate it is struggling vigorously to regain its freedom
which it lost in the dark period of the seventeenth century. Its people
have been endowed with an unquenchable love of liberty and its free
sons are now fighting in every Allied army."

The speaker then noted the geographic position of Bohemia in the
center of Europe, surrounded by a natural boundary of hills and moun-
tains. Its area is about one-fourth greater than that of Switzerland,

22 proceedings: anthropological society •

with a density of population nearly twice as great as that of France,
and one-seventh greater than that of Germany. Ethnically the Bo-
hemians are Slavs. The names Bohemia and Bavaria are both of
Roman origin, derived from the name of the Keltic ti'ibe of Boii, the
forefathers of the Bavarians who may have extended over, or clanned
a part of, Bohemian territory at one time. The name Czech (applied
to the Bohemians) is, according to old tradition, derived from that of
a leader or chief of the people.

Archaeological excavations have shown that the Slavs were in Bo-
hemia long before the beginning of the Christian era. The earliest
historical mention of them occurs in the second and third centuries.
They were never subject to Rome, and the Germans were their eternal
enemies. At the beginning of the seventh century they were a strong
political unit and in 630 were powerful enough to severely defeat the
Germans. Thus began historically the marvelous life-and-death strug-
gle of the Czech people with the voracious German flood that would
engulf them, a struggle of thirteen centuries, which has lasted until the
present day.

The rich Bohemian literature and archives were repeatedly destroyed
by the enemy, but enough has been saved to show that those early
times were both idyllic and magnificently barbaric. The people were
agriculturists and soldiers. Their organization was patriarchal, their
government constitutional, almost republican. The religion of Bo-
hemia was naturalistic and poetic. The priests worshiped under great
oaks. There was a supreme deity, beside which there are series of
belobozi, or good gods, cernobozi and dasi or demons, vily (fairies),
vodnici (water-spirits), etc. The burials were by cremation.

From the eighth to the fourteenth centuries the Bohemians were
ruled by kings of a strong native dynasty. In 1526 the last of the
Bohemian kings perished in a battle with the Turks, and soon after-
ward Bohemia as well as Hungary joined Austria for mutual protection
against the common peril. This was the beginning of Bohemia's
misfortunes. During the Thirty Years War the life of Bohemia was
nearly extinguished ; not until the nineteenth century came the time of
a revival and restitution. Today the nation stands at the head of all
those comprised in the medieval conglomerate of Austria-Hungary
in education, industry, and practically every other respect. It is still
shackled and persecuted by Austria but hopes and works for an early
victory of the Allied arms and with this its liberation. In 1918 Bo-
hemia will have with the Allies two small armies of its own, one in
France and one in Russia.

The 514th meeting of the society was held in the National Museum,
October 16, 1917 at 4.30 p.m.

Dr. Mitchell Carroll, Secretary of the Archaeological Institute
of America, delivered a lecture on The story of Greece. The lecture was
richly illustrated with lantern slides portraying the principal centers
of Greek life, such as Olympia, Delphi, Sparta, and Athens, with the

proceedings: anthropological. soceity 23

monuments of architecture and sculpture that have been most influ-
ential in the development of art.

Dr. Carroll, in introducing his subject, noted our indebtedness to
Greece as five-fold, comprising (1) democracy, (2) obedience to
reason, (3) love of beauty, (4) letters, and (5) art. The history
of Greece was outlined in seven divisions: (1) The Prehistoric and
Heroic Ages to the Dorian n igration, 2000-1000 B.C.; (2) the Greek
Middle Ages, 1000-500 B.C.; (3) from the Persian Wars to Alexander
the Great, 500-386 B.C.; (4) from Alexander the Great to the Roman
conquest, 336-146 B.C.; (5) the Roman, Byzantine, and Latin
supremacies, 146 B.C.-1453 A.D.; (6) the Ottoman supremacy,
1453-1832; (7) the n-odern Greek kingdom, 1832.

The racial life of Greece was emphasized by Dr. Carroll, who said
"The central fact of all Greek history, from prehistoric times to the
present, is the unbroken life of the Greek race. This racial unity
rests on common blood, common language, and common institutions."

1. Race. From 650 to 850 the Slavs in Greece outnumbered the
Greeks, but the Greeks, being superior in civilization, gradually ab-
sorbed them. The process of Hellenizing the Slavonians went on
steadily until in about 200 years it was practically complete. Thus,
between 850 and 1050 was formed the basis of the modern Greek nation .
It contains a large infusion of Slavonic blood, but the strain of Hellenic
blood has been perpetual and this has determined the type of the
modern nationality.

2. Language. Greek, though for many centuries crude and ungram-
matical, never lost its vitality. In organic matters of structure and
syntax Greek has never made a compromise with any foreign language.
Briefly, its story has been this. About 300 A.D. the spoken Greek
language began to diverge from the literary language, but until 750
Old Greek was generally understood by the people. Then came the
breach of Greek tradition, due to the Slavs, and by 900 A. D. classical
Greek had probably ceased to be generally understood. Between
1100 and 1200 popular Greek began to have a literature of its own, the
popular Greek of the thirteenth century differing little from the popular
Greek of today. The chief difference between Old and Modern Greek
is that one is synthetic and the other analytic.

3. Character. National characteristics of ancient and modern
Greeks are: (1) aptitude for city life; (2) ability in commerce; (3)
love of mental culture; (4) cleverness. The real core of the Greek
nation throughout its history is the agricultural population of Greece
proper. The Greek nationality, like the Jewish, has never been crushed
out nor lost.

The 515th meeting of the Society was held at the National Museum,
November 6, 1917, at 4.30 p.m.

Prof. James H. Gore presented a paper on Belgium and the Belgians,
illustrated by lantern slides.

Starting with the revolution which resulted in the withdrawal of
the part of Holland that afterward became an independent kingdom

24 proceedings: anthropological society

with the name Belgium, the speaker explained the duality of languages
in Belgium and the ethnic differences between the users of the two
tongues.

Immediately prior to the present European war one-tenth of the
entire population of Belgium were housed in dwellings which, on easy
terms, had become or were becoming the property of the occupants.
Thirty-five per cent of the people had accounts in the savings banks
and 49 per cent of the inhabitants, male and female, worked at regular
callings. Statistics were given to show the thrift of the people, the
fertility of the soil, the extent of their foreign trade, and the variety
and magnitude of their industries. On each square mile there were
598 inhabitants, and for each inhabitant the railroads annually carried
merchandise having a value of $145 as compared with Germany's per
capita of S60, and $30 for the United States.

Considerable attention was given to the agricultural commissions
— a sort of university extension — which brings to the farmers of the
country speakers who tell of recent discoveries and improvements in
agriculture that would be of value to the people of each community.
To this wise provision can be ascribed a large part of the productivity
of Belgium.

The profit-sharing dock laborers of Antwerp were described. It
was shown that the prosperity of that port was due to the efficiency
of its charging and discharging instrumentalities.

The unique town of Gheel was fully described. In Gheel practically
every family cares for one or two feeble-minded persons under the
supervision of Government officials. If the family is unable to meet
the expense of this care it is borne by the state.

The 516th meeting of the Society was held at the National Museum
on Tuesday, November 20, 1917, at 4.30 p.m.

Mr. George Julian Zolnay addressed the Society on Roumania
and her -people, illustrating his subject by native music and by lantern
slides.

Mr. Zolnay stated that, with the exception of the Roumanian Jews,
there are few natives of Roumania in the United States at the present
time, and of these a large majority are from Transylvania and the
Bukovina. This accounts for the dearth of accurate knowledge con-
cerning this picturesque country, wedged in between the Carpathian
mountains and the Black Sea.

The history of Roumania began in 106 when Trajan conquered
Dacia, a country comprising the territory now known as Roumania.
At the fall of the Roman Empire in the fifth* century the descendants
of the Roman soldiers and the Dacian women had become a distinct
nationality, speaking a slightly modified Latin which has remained
the language of the Roumanian people to the present day. The
established religion has remained that of the orthodox Greek Church,
although Roumania wds a vassal state of Turkey for more than 300
years. During the Russo-Turkish war Roumania regained her inde-

proceedings: biological society 25

pendence and wa's proclaimed a kingdom in 1881, later taking her
place as a leading country among the Balkan States.

One of the most remarkable traits of the Roumanian is his love of
his national music. This music is so distinct from that of all other
nations that only the native musician can render it with the mysterious
quality that stirs the Roumanian soul.

Although the misfortunes of war have temporarily prostrated
Roumania, it is to be hoped, in the light of her past history, that she
will emerge intact, to prepetuate her Latin civilization in the midst of
her alien neighbors.

Frances Densmore, Secretary.

BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 572d regular meeting of the society was held in the Assembly
Hall of the Cosmos Club, Saturday, October 20, 1917; called to order
by President Hay at 8.15; 42 persons present.

Informal brief notes were presented as follows:

Gen. T. E. Wilcox: Occurrence of California vulture in Idaho. He
said: I have been requested to record, as it has been doubted, the
occurrence of the California vulture in Idaho, then a territory. In the
fall of 1879 I came upon two which were feeding on the carcass of a
sheep. They hissed at me and ran along the ground for some dis-
tance before they were able to rise in flight. They were much larger
than turkey buzzards, with which I was quite familiar, and I was very
close to them so that I could not be mistaken in their identity. The
cattle-men said that the California vulture or buzzard w^as not uncom-
mon there before they began to poison carcasses to kill wolves. Dr.
Coues gives as their habitat ''Rocky Mts. to the Pacific." Boise River
mountains rise to over 7000 feet just back of where the vultures were
feeding. The exact locality was near the Hot Springs above Boise
City. Poison and population have now destroyed that far northern
habitat. The Boise Statesman, if any of Editor Kelly's time are now
living, may be able to confirm the above statement.

Dr. R.W. Shufeldt exhibited a small living specimen of the south-
ern tortoise, or "gopher," Testudo 'polyphemus, and made remarks on
its habits.

Dr. L. O. Howard, referring to the previous note, called attention
to the peculiar insect fauna found in the burrows of the "gopher,"
many of the species having the characteristics of cavern dwelling
insects.

President W. P. Hay in the same connection remarked on the fact
that a species of frog of the genus Rana so far as is known is only found
in the burrows of the "gopher."

Dr. T. S. Palmer remarked on bird roosts that had lately been
observed in the vicinit.y of Washington, calling particular attention
to the martins and starlings in them.

26 proceedings: biological society

Mr. W. L. McAtee exhibited six rare bird papers which ho wished
to dispose of for the benefit of the Society.

Mr. William Palmer made comments on some of the papers re-
ferred to by Mr. McAtee.

Lieutenant Lyon remarked that among the comparatively small
number of stools of patients that he had examined at the Walter Reed
General Hospital he had found seven containing ova of Necator
americanus.

The regular program consisted of three communications:

Dr. T. S. Palmer: A key to ornithological literature. This review of
the literature of birds was discussed by Dr. L. O. Howard and by Dr.
Frank M. Chapman, who mentioned particularly the literature and
the active workers on South American birds.

Mr. A. S. Hitchcock: The alpine flora of the Adirondacks and the
White Mountains. During August Mr. Hitchcock visited the Adiron-
dack Mountains in New York and the White Mountains in New Hamp-
shire for the purpose of studying the alpine grasses. In the former
region collections were made on Mt. Mclntyre and on Whiteface
Mountain, both of which support an alpine flora at the summit above
tree line. Mt. Marcy, the highest peak of the Adirondacks (5344 feet),
was not investigated because it was impracticable to make the trip
in one daj^ from an}^ of the surrounding bases. However Mt. Mc-
lntyre (5112 feet), being nearly as high, presents the same conditions
as those to be found on Mt. Marcy. Four days were spent among the
high peaks of the White Mountains. Entering from the east by way
of Crystal Cascade, the speaker ascended through Tuckerman Ravine
to the summit of Mt. Washington, passing the night at the Lake of
the Clouds Hut (Appalachian Mountain Club). The second day's
trip was to the A. M. C. Madison Huts, passing the peaks of Clay,
Jefferson, and Adams. The third night was spent at Lake of the
Clouds Hut, but the return trail was to the east through the Great
Gulf. On the fourth day the descent was made through Huntington
Ravine over a difficult trail. Nine species of grasses may be classed
as alpine, though a few others extend into the alpine zone from the
lower zones (e.g., Deschampsia flexuo.sa, Calamgrostis canadensis).
The alpine species are Torresia (Hierochloa) alpina, Phleum alpinum,
Agrostis borealis, Calainagrostis langsdorfii, Trisetum spicatimi, Des-
champsia atropurpurea, Poa laxa, P. glauca, Agropyron violaceum.
Most of these are circumpolar species which extend southward in
the mountains. The distribution of each species was discussed.

Dr. R. W. vShufeldt: Notes on some United States hatrachians.
Dr. Shufeldt gave life histories and the peculiar habits of a large num-
ber of North American forms of this interesting group, all the facts
presented having been obtained through personal observations, either
upon captive specimens or on the animals in their native habitats in
the field. Among the forins touched upon were Jefferson's Amby-
stoma, which the speaker has reared in captivity, and which he illus-
trated with lantern slides, showing the eggs in the process of hatching

proceedings: biological society 27

as well as the young when several months old. Other forms taken
from life and thrown upon the screen wei"e examples of the marbled
salamander) Amhyst omaopacum) and the elegant spotted salamander
(.4. punctatuin), shown in its teri-estrial attitudes as well as seen under
water. This form is comparatively rare in the vicinity of AVashington,
less than ten specimens having been collected within the last thirty
years. Some six or eight other species of American salamanders were
thrown upon the screen to illustiate their forms and attitudes in
life.

The peculiar habit the male of the water newt (Diemydylus viri-
descens) has of hugging the female was shown from living specimens
in an aquarium maintained by the speaker at the time these studies
were made. This habit of Dieniydylus is quite independent of any
sexual act during the breeding season, and has been especially referred
to in the published life histories of the animal.

Large colored drawings were exhibited, giving the rare Anderson's
tree toad and several of the Hylidae. Additional presentations by
means of lantern were given of all the frogs, toads, and hylas of the
Atlantic States, as well as some southern species. The remarkable
gopher frog of Florida was fully illustrated and its life history given
in considerable detail.

Dr. Shufeldt's remarks were discussed by Messrs. W. P. Hay,
William Palmer, L. 0. Howard, A. Wetmore, and A. A. Doolittle.

The 573d regular meeting of the Society was held in the Assembly
Hall of the Cosmos Club, Saturday, November 3, 1917; called to order
by President Hay at 8 p.m.; 58 persons in attendance.

Informal brief notes were presented as follows:

Dr. T. S. Palmer called attention to the fact that the first botanical
society in this vicinity had been founded one hundred years ago, and
that members who failed to attend its meetings were subject to fines.
He also exhibited a recently issued Bibliography of British Ornithol-
ogy, which in addition to the usual bibliographic data contains
biographical sketches of the authors of titles listed in the bibliograph3\

Dr. L. O. Howard called attention to the recent centennial celebra-
tion of the Medical Society of the District of Columbia.

Dr. H. M. Smith reported that the recent fur-seal census shows
an increase of about 10 per cent over the previous census, the total
number being 468,000. He also reported that the flesh of whales,
owing to the decreasing supplies of other meats, is being used for
human food in the United States, especially on the Pacific Coast.

Mr. C. Birdseye remarked that large quantities of palatable seal
meat are annually thrown away by sealers along the northeast coast
of North America.

Lieutenant M. W. Lyon, Jr., exhibited a photograph of a human
anatomical anomaly in. which a kidney and its corresponding ovary
and uterine tube were lacking. It was the third case of congenital
absence of a kidney which he had encountered in two years.

28 proceedings: biological society

Mr. William Palmer exhibited a sectioned tympanic bone of a
whale and called attention to its great density and hardness.

The regular program consisted of three communications.

Rear-Admiral G. W. Baird: An unusual human specimen. He
commented on and exhibited a lantern slide of a double monster in a
native Filipino girl of usual intelligence. The external visible parasite
consisted of two lower extremities. She had slight control over these
extremities, much less now than when she was a small child.

This communication was discussed by Drs. C. W. Stiles, M. W.
Lyon, Jr., and R. W. Shufeldt.

Vernon BaiLey: How the pine squirrels help to feed the bears of the
Yellowstone Park. A general account of the bears in the park was
given and it was shown that part of their diet* consists of pine seeds
obtained from cones cut off by squirrels. Cones from which the bears
had extracted seeds were exhibited.

C. Birdseye: The fur industry of Labrador. A detailed account
of this industry, including fur farming, was given and choice skins of
the more important fur-bearing animals exhibited. This communica-
tion was discussed by Mr. A. Wetmore and Dr. L. O. Howard.

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

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VIII JANUARY 19, 1918 No. 2

HISTORY. — The origin and early days of the Philosophical So-
ciety of Washington.^ William H. Dall, National Museum.

The history of the scientific societies in Washington has been
admirably told by Mr. G. Brown Goode in his memoir on the
origin of the U. S. National Museum. There were, before the
formation of the Philosophical Society, two or three societies, all
of which finally died. One that included most of the naturalists
was called the ''Potomac-Side Naturalist's Club;" and it is a
matter of some little interest that I had recently a call from Prof.
John Chickering, the son of Professor Chickering, of Gallaudet
College, who was one of our former members; and he told me
that in going over his father's papers, he found the records of
meetings of the ''Potomac-Side Naturalist's Club."

Then there was the National Institute, which struggled along
for a number of years very bravely against adverse circumstances,
and finally was obliged to give up on account of the expense of
maintaining a museum and other things of that sort which were
beyond the means of the members of such a small society.

When I returned from Alaska in 1868, I found that there ex-
isted in Washington a club of, I presume, about 20 members,
which was, to the best of my recollection, called the "Physical
Club." It may be added that its membership comprised some
of the most distinguished men of science in Washington, and

*An address delivered at the 789th meeting of the Philosophical Society of
Washington, April 28, 1917.

29

30 dall: origin of philosophical society

Professor Henry was chairman. General Sherman, Admiral Jen-
kins, J. E. Hilgard, and a number of other men whose names are
national property were members of this club. The general
method was to have an address or paper by some member of
the club, and afterward a social meeting with refreshments fur-
nished by the host of that evening. They were most enjoyable
evenings. However, in the course of time, it began to be felt
by some of the members that the tax on the less wealthy mem-
bers of the club was too great. The meetings were held fort-
nightly, and in the course of the season they would come around
several times to the same member. There were others who
wished very much to join, but could hardly be accommodated
in the houses of the old members; and after more or less discus-
sion about it Professor Henry suggested to some of the men
who brought the matter to his attention that they should appoint
a committee to organize a society and to have the whole subject
laid before the club, to form an organization that would omit the
refreshment part of the entertainment; that would make for
scientific purposes ; and that would be available for any scientific
man, either visitor or resident of Washington, and would be re-
stricted to men of science.

The result of this was that a committee was formed whose
report you have heard read by the Secretary. The meeting was
held in the Regent's room of the Smithsonian Institution, and
Professor Henry, by unanimous vote, was made chairman.

A skeleton of a constitution and by-laws, which had been pre-
pared by the Committee of the club, was presented at the meet-
ing and adopted with some amendments. Then General Barnes,
who was Surgeon-General, and was one of the members, was
good enough to offer us more commodious quarters in the city.
In those days coming over to the Smithsonian building, es-
pecially at night, was something of a task. The paths were not
paved; if it happened to be rainy it was a very muddy walk indeed.
There was a rather rickety bridge at Tenth Street over a very
bad smelling canal which we all had to cross in order to get into
the Smithsonian grounds. I do not know whether any of the
present members know that that part of Washington was for-

dall: origin of phisosophical society 31

merly known and is still known to old residents as ''The Island"
because it was separated from the city by the James Creek Canal.
It is that broad road just south of the Center Market that'was
formerly the location of this canal, which formed a sort of semi-
circle and came around the museum grounds enclosing the more
elevated land on which the Smithsonian Institution stands, and
then went southward through the wide lowland nearly parallel
with New Jersey Avenue, Southwest, to rejoin the Potomac,
where a small remnant not yet filled in still exists. At that time
nearly all of the members of the Society lived in the city and
therefore found it desirable to have the place of meeting where
they would not have to go through the Smithsonian grounds,
often through a considerable amount of mud.

Probably those names that were read by the Secretary mean
somewhat less to the members of the Society at present than
they meant to us in those days, and I have made an analysis of
the committee of the founders, which will, perhaps, throw a little
light on the subject.

From the Smithsonian Institution there were of course. Prof.
Joseph Henry and William B. Taylor, who was a very erudite
man and had a considerable part in the activities of the Institu-
tion, T. R. Peale, S. F. Baird, Theodore Gill, and myself. From
the Geological Survey (there was at that time no National Sur-
vey) came Dr. F.V. Hayden; the Signal Service was represented
by General A. J. Myer; from the office of the Nautical iVlmanac
came J. H. C. Coffin, whose great w^ork on the Winds of the Globe
is well known to all meteorologists.

From the Army there were General Sherman, General Benet,
General Hmnphreys, General George H. Elliott, General Casey,
General Parke, and General Meigs, who built the Cabin John
Bridge and had a good deal to do with many of our other princi-
pal buildings here in the District ; from the Army Medical Musemn
staff and the Medical Department of the Army there were Dr.
Woodward, a microscopist of high reputation ; Dr. Otis, who was
a distinguished anthropologist; Dr. J. S. Billings, to whom we owe
the Index Medicus; and Dr. J. K. Barnes, who was Surgeon-
General of the Army. Then there were Admiral Foote, Admiral

32 dall: origin of philosophical society

Sands, and Admiral Jenkins, and from the Naval Observatory
Asaph Hall, Simon Newcomb, and William Harkness. These men
were all distinguished. I suppose no Society of such a small
number of persons as this ever had quite so many distinguished
men in proportion to the whole number. I have always felt it
a very great honor to have been permitted to join with them in
calling myself a founder of the Society.

The original number o founders, that is, those whose signa-
tures were on the list for the formation of the Society, was 43,
including Professor Henry who proposed the name. Philosophi-
cal Society of Washington, giving to the adjective its original
meaning implying the inclusion of all branches of science. No
list of members was published in the Bulletin until 1874 when the
number was 128, there having been four deaths of members, but
during that time 85 additional members became connected with
the Society. Professor Henry presided over the Society until
his death in 1878.

The Bulletin, which was issued shortly after the formation of
the Society, when enough material had accmnulated to form a
volume, was reprinted at Professor Henry's suggestion, as a vol-
ume of the Miscellaneous Collections of the Smithsonian Institu-
tion. That procedure was continued during Professor Baird's
lifetime. The publications were made up, edited, and printed
by the Society, the Smithsonian Institution publication being
made by the use of stereotype plates. The reprint was not
issued until 1888.

Meetings were held at the offices of the Surgeon-General in
the old Ford Theater Building, and were extremely interesting.
The Society was made up of men who could say something
interesting on almost every branch of science.

We had some very remarkable work presented to the Society.
We were privileged, I think, to have the first testing of the tele-
phone. Mr. Bell was introduced by one of the members of the
Society. A telephone wire and receiver were strung up in the
room where we had our meeting and the transmitter was taken
off into another room at some distance and each member of the
Society was enabled to hear communications that came from the

dall: origin of philosophical society 33

other room. That was before 1876, when the first public ex-
hibition of the telephone took place at the Centennial Exposi-
tion at Philadelphia.

Among other things, I remember a paper by Dr. A. F. A. King
in which the mosquito theory of the transmission of malaria
was fully set forth. Dr. King was one of those who originated
the theory that the disease is transmitted by these insects. Of
course, the theory required proof, and it was not till a good many
years afterward that proof was furnished by contributors from the
Medical Corps of the Army and others.

Most of the papers in the early days were intended to be pub-
lished elsewhere than in the Bulletin of the Society. They were
read there for the information of the members, and when the
Bulletin was printed, it would give the title of the paper and state
the place in which it was published, and in that way reference
could be had from the Bulletin to the place of publication of
anything that was read before the Society. At first, of course,
the pecuniary resources of the Society were not great and it
could not afford to publish many papers, but owing to the fact
that most of the members were members of the Government
staff under one Bureau or another, and that the publication of
their results would naturally have to be through Government
agencies, the system adopted was fairly satisfactory. The Society
was a great boon to all of us who desired to know something of
what was going on in the departments of science with which we
were not personally acquainted.

I think that there were none of us but derived welcome and
interesting information, and added to our store of knowledge
from the communications that came from other members in
quite different fields of work. I ought perhaps to mention one
of the remarkable things that were done by members of the So-
ciety at that time. This was the work of Dr. Woodward of the
Army Medical Museum in microscopy. He was the first, as far
as I know — at all events in this country, and I think the first
anywhere — to succeed in getting a diatom photograph of a per-
fection and size that would reveal, for instance, all the almost
invisible, complete and beautiful ornamentation with which it is

34 dall: origin of philosophical society

provided. Dr. Woodward brought forth his new slides and ex-
plained the working of the modifications that he made to his
microscope in order to produce this work, and then threw on the
screen the beautiful figures, sometimes of an ahnost invisible
diatom enlarged to six feet high, showing every detail of its
beautiful structure. They were very interesting indeed. In fact
I might go on for a long time with reminiscences of what was
brought before us; but we are to hear from others of what devel-
oped in the Society as it grew larger and larger and the number
of scientific men increased, and how bodies of our members formed
other societies and gave to them independent lives.

ABSTRACTS

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

GEODESY. — Descriptions of triangulation stations in Georgia. C. H.

SwiCK. U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey Special Publication No.

45. Pp. 43, with 1 illustration. 1917.
This volume is supplementary to Triangulation in Georgia, U. S.
Coast and Geodetic Survey Special Publication No. 43, abstracted in a
preceding number of this Journal (7:584. 1917), and contains all
available descriptions of the triangulation stations in Georgia whose
geographic positions are given in the previous volume. Practically all
of the triangulation data in Georgia, the observations for which were
made before 1917, are now in published form and so are readily avail-
able for the use of engineers, geographers, and surveyors.

C. H. S.

GEOLOGY. — The De Soto-Red River oil and gas field, Louisiana.

George Charlton Matson and Oliver Baker Hopkins. U. S.

Geological Survey Bulletin 661-C. Pp. 40, with maps, sections,

and illustrations. 1917.
The De Soto-Red River oil and gas field lies in the northwestern
part of Louisiana. In 1912, gas was discovered in De Soto Parish
near Naborton at a depth of about 800 feet. Deep drilling resulted in
the discovery of small quantities of oil, and on May 10, 1913, the com-
pletion of the Gulf Refining Company's Jenkins well No. 2 proved the
presence of a notable oil pool. The producing oil and gas bearing
sands are in the Gulf series of Upper Cretaceous age.

The shales associated with the sands and in some places the sands
themselves contain considerable organic matter which was apparently
derived chiefly from vegetation, and it is believed that the oil and gas
were formed from this organic matter by slow cKemical changes, which
may have been facilitated by moderately high temperature and the

35

36 abstracts: geology

pressure caused by the load of sediments that overHe them, and by
the thrusts to which they have been subjected.

The gas and oil in the De Soto-Red River field were probably accu-
mulated under hydraulic pressure. This hypothesis is supported by
the relations of these substances to the structure and by the occurrence
of the oil in very productive pools of small area. R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — The Bowdoin dome, Montana, a possible reservoir of oil or
gas. Arthur J. Collier. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin
661-E. Pp. 17, with maps, sections, and illustrations. 1917.
The Bowdoin dome is situated on Milk River, in northeastern Mon-
tana, on the main line of the Great Northern Railway between Malta
on the west and Hinsdale on the east. A well drilled here for water
several years ago has been yielding a small flow of gas ever since, and
it is thought that the region offers a chance of success to the driller of
deeper wells. In 1915 a large gas well was drilled at Havre. Only the
Upper Cretaceous Claggett shale, Judith River formation, and Bear-
paw shale, and some of the more recent surficial deposits are exposed
in the immediate vicinity of the Bowdoin dome. The structure revealed
by the Judith River formation in its outcrop around the valley of Milk
River is that of a very broad, flat dome. The dips of the sandstone
are so low as not to be detected by the unaided eye and are best re-
corded in feet to the mile. There is no place around the dome where a
dip as high as 1 degree has been found.

The Bowdoin dome has a structure which if found in Oklahoma or
Ohio would be regarded as favorable for the accumulation of oil or gas.

R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — The Corsicana oil and gas field, Texas. George Charl-
ton Matson and Oliver Baker Hopkins. U. S. Geological
Survey Bulletin 661-F. Pp. 43, with maps, sections, and
illustrations. 1917.
The Corsicana oil and gas field, in Navarro County, Texas, measures
20 miles from north to south and 10 miles from east to west. Oil was
first discovered here in the city of Corsicana, and the field has been
productive for more than twenty years.

The oil and gas are obtained from the upper part of the Upper
Cretaceous, the light oil and the gas in the Corsicana oil pool and in the
Chatfield and Edens gas pools probably coming from the Taylor marl
and the heavy oil and the gas in the other pools from the Navarro

abstracts: geology 37

formation. This field continue^ to yield almost the entire production
of Texas until 1909, when the gas fields of Clay County were developed.
The Lower Cretaceous formations have not been reached in any of the
wells in the Corsicana field.

The strata in the Corsicana field dip in general to the southeast at
a rate of 50 to 100 feet to the mile. The uniformity in direction and
amount of dip is interrupted at a number of places by folds, but none
of the folds are continuous over large areas. The greatest dips observed
on the folds are at the rate of 560 feet to the mile, and these high dips
are confined to small areas. The irregularities in the normal position
of the strata seems to have been produced by forces acting in two
directions, as two sj^stems of folds are determinable — one approxi-
matelj^ parallel to the dip of the rocks and the other at right angles to
it. So far as observed, there is no evidence of faulting, or breaking of
the rock strata, in this field.

A review of the discussion of the structure or a study of the structure
map of the Corsicana field shows that oil and gas occur in this field
under two different structural conditions. They have accumulated
along the crests of well-defined anticlines, as in the Burke pool, and
also in beds of fairly uniform dip, as in the Corsicana pool. Drilling
has shown, however, that the sands of this field are lenticular and vary
in porosity and thickness from place to place.

In the Corsicana district there are at least two productive sands
which are believed to belong to the Taylor formation — the Corsicana
and Edens sands. The Corsicana sand is the principal producing sand
and yields light oil and a small amount of gas at a number of places,
particularly toward the north end of the district.

The oil of the Corsicana field is believed to have originated from
organic matter in the shales that inclose the sands and to a minor extent
in the sands themselves. R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — Structure of the northern part of the Bristow quadranylp,

Creek County, Oklahoma, with reference to petroleum and natural

gas. A. E. Fath. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin 661-B. Pp.

31, with maps, sections, and illustrations. 1917.

The rocks exposed at the surface in the Bristow quadrangle and

those beneath it to a depth of 2500 feet or more are a part of the Penn-

sylvanian series, the series to which belong the surface rocks throughout

the oil fields of northeastern Oklahoma. The strata dip slightly north

of west about 50 feet to the mile, or a little more than half a degree.

38 abstracts: parasitology

However, the westward slope of the beds is modified by variations in
the rate of dip, by local folds, and by small faults. Accumulations of
oil and gas are generally found in close relation to local irregularities
in the general structure of a region, and it is to such folds and irregu-
larities that attention is principally directed in this paper.

R. W. Stone.

PARASITOLOGY. — Life history of Ascaris lumbricoides and 7'elated
forms. B. H. Ransom and W. D, Foster. Journ. Agr. Research
11: 395-398. November 19, 1917.
The development of A. lumbricoides and closely related forms is
direct, and no intermediate host is required. The eggs, when swal-
lowed, hatch out*in the alimentary tract; the embryos, however, do
not at once settle down in the intestine, but migrate to various other
organs, including the liver, spleen, and lungs. Within a week, in the
case of the pig Ascaris, the riiigrating larvae may be found in the lungs
and have meanwhile undergone considerable development and growth.
From the lungs the larvae migrate up the trachea and into the esopha-
gus by way of the pharynx, and this migration up the trachea may
already become established as early as a week after infection. Upon
reaching the alimentary tract after their passage through the lungs,
the larvae, if in a suitable host, presumably settle down in the intestine
and complete their development to maturity; if in an unsuitable host,
such as rats and mice, they soon pass out of the body in the feces.
Heavy invasions ©f the lungs by the larvae of Ascaris produce a serious
pneumonia which is frequently fatal in rats, mice, and guinea pigs,
and apparently caused the death of a young pig one week after it had
been fed with numerous Ascaris eggs. It is not improbable that
ascarids are frequently responsible for lung troubles in children, pigs,
and other young animals. Age is a highly important factor in deter-
mining susceptibility to infection with Ascaris, and susceptibility to
infection greatly decreases as the host animal becomes older.

B. H. R.

PARASITOLOGY. — Oil of chenopodium and chloroform as anthel-
mintics. M. C. Hall and W. D. Foster. Journ. Amer. Med.
Associat. 68: 1961-1963. June 30, 1917.
Oil of chenopodium as an anthelmintic should be accompanied by
large doses of castor oil, and when so given is a very effective and safe
remedy against ascarids. Chloroform in castor oil was found to be
more effective against hookworms than any other remedy tested.

B. H. R.

abstracts: parasitology 39

PARASITOLOGY. — The occurrence in the United States of certain

nematodes of ruminants transmissible to man. B. H. Ransom.

N. Orl. M. & S. J. 69: 294-298. October, 1916.

Attention is called to the fact that three of the four species of the

nematode genus TricJtostrongylus that have been recorded as parasites

of man are of more or less common occurrence in ruminants in the

United States, indicating the probability that they also occur in human

beings in this country but have been overlooked. B. H. R.

PARASITOLOGY. — The zoological position of the Sarcosporidia.

Howard Crawley. Proc. Acad. Phila. 68: 379-388. August

14, 1916.

The Sarcosporidia are usually assigned to the Neosporidia, one of

the two subclasses recognized as making up the class Sporozoa, but

it is considered by the present writer that they belong in the other

subclass, Telosporidia and should be placed in the order Coccidio-

morpha, which accordingly would include three suborders — Coccidia,

Haemosporidia, and Sarcosporidia. The probability is suggested in

view of certain evidence given that the Sarcosporidia in their normal

life cycle depend upon an alternation of hosts, at least one of which

must be a carnivorous animal. B. H. Ransom.

PARASITOLOGY. — Serum therapy for trichinosis. Benjamin
Schwartz. Journ. Amer. Med. Associat. 69: 884-886. Sep-
tember 15, 1917.
Serum from animals convalescent from trichinosis when injected
into other animals did not produce immunity to trichinosis in the
latter. Trichinous meat mixed with serum from animals during the
active or convalescent stage of the disease proved to be still capa-
ble of producing the disease. Animals once infected and harboring
trichinae in their muscles were not immune to further infection when
fed trichinous meat. Serum from a trichinous animal had no observ-
able ill effects on the larvae freed from their cysts by artificial diges-
tion. None of the results of the experiments appears to be in har-
mony with the assertions made by Salzer (1916, 1917) concerning the
value of serum from convalescent animals as a prophylactic or curative
agent in trichinosis. B. H. Ransom.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 574th regular meeting of the Society was held in the Assembly-
Hall of the Cosmos Club, Saturday, November 17, 1917; called to order
by President Hay at 8 p.m.; 78 persons present.

On recommendation of the Council the following named persons were
elected to membership: Miss Katherine A. Stuart, Alexandria, Va.;
H. C. Fuller, Institute for Industrial Research, Washington, D. C;
Herbert Popenoe, Assistant Editor, Journal of Heredity, Washington,
D. C.

Under the heading brief notes and exhibition of specimens. Dr. R. W.
Shufeldt exhibited two grasshoppers, the black Louisiana form of
Rhomaleum micropterum, and a specimen of the same species from
Florida, the latter being much lighter in color, a sort of tan with a ten-
dency in places to pinkish and greenish.

The regular program was a symposium : Recently introduced pests
and the problem of accidental introductions.

1. C. L. Marlatt: The pink bollworm of cotton, illustrated by lantern
slides. (No abstract.)

2. A. L. Quaintance: Recently introduced fruit insects, illustrated
by lantern slides. (No abstract.)

3. Perley Spaulding: Some biological aspects of the spread of the
white-pine blister rust, illustrated by lantern slides. Mr. Spaulding
said that the white-pine blister rust probably originated in Asia, spread
thence to Europe, and more recently to North America. The factors
concerned in its distribution are: (1) Man aids distribution by exten-
sive long distance shipment of nursery stock of pines and possibly of
Rib3s infected by this disease. He hinders distribution by quarantines
and inspections of nursery stock shipments. (2) Animals and insects
carry the spores about on their bodies thus aiding local spread of dis-
ease. They also hinder the production of spores by eating the fruiting
bodies and the surrounding host tissues. Gypsy moth larvae which are
known to be blown for miles feed freely upon the spores and in infected
areas the spores stick in great numbers to their bodies. (3) Wind blows
the spores freely about, as well as gypsy moth larvae which bear spores
upon their bodies. Rain hinders spread by beating down spores which
are floating about in the air. Sunlight within a short time destroys the
viability of exposed spores.

This disease is but one of many which has spread from one country to
another and in many cases from one country throughout the world.
A list of thirty such diseases caused by bacteria and by representatives

40

proceedings: biological society 41

of all the largo groups of parasitic fungi was given, together with the
country of origin and present distribution. The conclusion was drawn
that it is necessary to control the commercial importation of living plants
in such a way that only healthy plants will be received in this country.

4. L. 0. Howard : tiome points for consideration in a discussion of the
problem of accidental introduction. Dr. Howard discussed briefly the
influence which our knowledge of the broad life zones of the world might
have in regard to restrictive legislation among nations, and the influ-
ence which our knowledge of the life zones of the United States, largely
due to Merriam and the Bureau of Biological Survey of the Department
of Agriculture, might have on sectional quarantines. He pointed out
the greater probability of the establishment of an injurious form com-
ihg from what might be termed a "parallel life zone" — as from the
Nearctic to the Palearctic — than from another zone, but showed that
recent experience has indicated that the country is not free from danger
from certain pests coming from zones of radically different types of life.
He invited discussion of the broader biological aspects of the question.

Prof. H. Maxwell-Lefroy, Imperial College of Science, London,
Prof. W. M. Wheeler, Bussey Institution, Harvard University, E. W.
Nelson, J. B. Gordon, and Vernon Bailey took part in the discussion.

The 575th regular meeting of the Society was held in the Assembly
Hall of the Cosmos Club, Saturday, December 1, 1917; called to order
by President Hay at 8 p.m.; 26 persons present.

On recommendation of the Council, Lee R. Dice, of the University of
Montana, was elected to membership.

The following informal communications were presented:

Dr. Walter P. Taylor: Exhibition and discussion of 'distribution of
marmots from the State of Washington. Dr. Taylor exhibited specimens
of marmots collected in the State of Washington, where both the caligata
and flaviventris groups are represented, citing certain facts in their dis-
tribution which emphasizes the principle that the extent of zonal dis-
tribution of an animal depends, not alone on the temperature and other
requirements of that animal, but also upon the presence or absence, in
particular restricted areas, of closely related types filling the same or a
similar niche in the economy of nature. He also called attention to
the fact that the distribution of these animals is in harmony with
what we know of the antiquity of the Columbia River as a barrier to the
distribution of boreal forms, and suggested that as compared with the
portions of the Cascade Mountains north and south of the Columbia
River, the Olympic Mountains have probably been isolated compara-
tively recently. Discussed by Gen. T. E. Wilcox.

Alex. Wetmore discussed the peculiar molting in ducks by which
the large wing feathers are simultaneously shed, rendering the birds
flightless for a period during which time they take refuge in marshes.

Dr. T. S. Palmer called attention to the recent successful meeting
of the A. O. U^. and the interest now taken in birds of foreign countries.

42 proceedings: botanical society

Di". L. O. Howard made remarks on a recent article in a French sci-
entific journal giving analysis of bread found on a Zeppelin, some of
rye made into sandwiches of suet, and some of rye and rice with cheese,
it being of notably better quality than bread taken from German pris-
oners, some of the latter being made in part of the inner bark of pop-
lar trees.

W. P. Hay exhibited lantern slides of the marine turtles of east-
ern North America with an account of their habits, distinctive
characters, and uses to man. Discussed by Gen. T. E. Wilcox and by
Admiral Baird who described a native method of catching hawkbill
turtles without injuring the skull.

Alex. Wetmore remarked on red bats seen November 17. Dis-
cussed by Vernon Bailey and by M. W. Lyon, Jr., who had seen brown
bats flying in the evening during the Christmas holidays several years
ago at Hyattsville.

The regular program was as follows:

Charles Wardell Stiles: Haak as author of Br-isson's 1762 edition
of Regnum Animate. Dr. Stiles being out of the city on sanitary work
at one of the southern military camps, the paper was presented by Dr.
T. S. Palmer. The work was exhibited and it was shown thatBrisson
was not its author. Dr. Palmer gave some interesting facts about the
life of Brisson and some of his contemporary associates.

Lieut. M. W. Lyon, Jr.: The relative resistance of the red blood cor-
puscles of the sheep, ox, and hog. A resume of the hemolytic action of
human serum, certain fish serum, and hypotonic salt solutions on these
corpuscles was given. The results are being published in the Journal
of Infectious Diseases.

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

BOTANICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 123d regular meeting of the Society was held at the Cosmos
Club, Tuesday, November 6, 1917. Fifty-nine members and 4 guests
were present. Among the guests were Dr. L. P. De Bussy, now on
his way from Sumatra to Amsterdam, Holland, to become' Director of
the Colonial Museum at the latter place, and also Prof. H. H. Whetzel,
in charge of the Plant Pathology Department, Cornell University,
Ithaca, N. Y. The program was devoted to a discussion of some of
the newly-discovered diseases of corn.

G. N. Collins: Maize: Its origi^i and relationships. The reasons
for believing that maize has originated as a hybrid between teosinte,
EuchlaeJia 7nexicana, and some member of the Andropegoneae were
reviewed.^ Maize is dependent on cross fertilization for normal and
vigorous development. It has now been demonstrated that teosinte
does not share with maize this intolerance of self-pollination. Thus
maize appears to be unique among the grasses in possessing this charac-
teristic of hybrids. The inheritances of the characters separating
maize and teosinte have been studied in hybrids and none were found

1 Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci. 2, .520-530. 1912.

proceedings: botanical society 43

to be either alternative or Mendelian. These resuUs were advanced
as evidence against the hypothesis that maize has originated by muta-
tion from teosinte. A summary of the evidence to date was held to
support the view that t(>osinte and the unknown ancestor of maize
had evolved by gradual changes along divergent lines and that the
divergence took place before the separation of the Maydeae and the
Andropogoneae.

Evidence was presented for believing that the Maydeae and Andro-
pogoneae were closely related and should not be considered as separate
tribes. It was urged that a recognition of the close relationship of
these two groups was of practical importance in the study of maize
diseases and as a guide in establishing quarantine regulations.

W. H. Weston: The downy mildews of maize, their origin and distri-
bution. During the past twentj^ years considerable alarm has been
occasioned by several serious downy mildews which have appeared on
maize and its relatives in the eastern tropics. Peronospora Maydis
Rac. has been very destructive to maize in Java, Madoorah, and Atjeh
since 1892; and although Euchlaena has so far proven immune, crosses
of this plant with maize are extremely susceptible. Sclerospora sac-
chari Miy. was reported in 1911 as causing serious injury to maize
and sugar cane, and capable of inoculation onto Euchlaena, in For-
mosa; and was later found also in Queensland and the Fiji Islands.
Sclerospora Maydis (Rac.) But. appeared on maize in India about
1913; and in 1916 a species of Sclerospora, possibly identical with this,
was found to be destroying the maize crop in certain parts of the Philip-
pines. Since these parasites are unknown in the Americas where
maize originated, it is probabl^ they have spread to maize from some
of the several related grasses native to the Orient. To prevent the
tremendous loss that would undoubtedly follow the introduction of
these diseases into the United States, the importation of maize and
its relatives from infected countries has been prohibited.

G. R. Lyman: Plant Disease Survey ivork on the Physoderma disease
of maize. This disease was first found in this country by Barrett at
Urbana, Illinois, in 1912. It was first reported as of economic impor-
tance by Barre in South Carolina in 1914. During the next two years,
the disease was found to be prevalent in North and South Carolina,
Georgia, Florida, Alabama, and Mississippi. In 1917, it was also found
generally distributed in Tennessee.

In September of this year, the Plant Disease Survey put twelve
scouts into the field to act in cooperation with the Office of Cereal
Investigations, Bureau of Plant Industry. In addition to the states
named, the disease was found to be prevalent in eastern Virginia,
Kentucky, southern Illinois, southeastern Missouri, Arkansas, and
Louisiana, and to be sparsely present as far north as New Jersey,
southern Minnesota, and South Dakota, and as far west as central
Nebraska and central Texas. It has evidently spread as far as cli-
matic limitations will permit its development, being inhibited by cold
weather in the North and by lack of moisture in the West.

An intensive study was made of selected regions in the South Atlan-

44 proceedings: botanical society

tic and Gulf States to obtain data on the seriousness of the disease and
on its relation to various environmental factors. High temperature
and moisture are necessary for extensive development, and in favor-
able regions in the South the disease causes a damage of 5 per cent
to 10 per cent. It will not be a serious factor in the North and West
except locally and under exceptional conditions.

The disease was also found on teosinte at two points in South Caro-
lina and at one point in Louisiana.

Heavy infection of fields never before planted to corn may be ex-
plained by the presence of other host plants or by the carriage of infec-
tion on the seed corn.

The 124th regular meeting of the Society was held at the Cosmos
Club, Tuesday, December 4, 1917; 72 members and 8 guests were
present.

C. S. Scofield: Geographical aspects of Haitian agriculture. Haiti
lies adjacent to the steamship route between New York and Panama
and has the most direct access to our markets of any of the American
Tropics. The climate is favorable to crop production, the land is fertile,
and the dense population provides a cheap and abundant supply of labor.
The coastal delta plains are favorably located for irrigation and the
production of sugar cane and cotton, and the hill slopes are well suited
to coffee, which is now the chief commodity of export. The interior
plains and the higher mountain slopes produce an abundance of grass
for stock production.

The present government, with American cooperation, has eliminated
the conditions of internal disturbance that formerly retarded develop-
ment and prosperity. The construction of roads and the protection
of the peacefully inclined inhabitants is resulting in greatly increased
crop production, which is opportune at this time.

C. B. Doyle: Botanical aspects of Haitian agriculture. In Haiti
there is very little left to represent the original forest covering. The
primitive milpa system of agriculture is used and the natives live in
scattered families or small groups. There are only a few large planta-
tions on the island, the bulk of the crops of the three principal exports
(coffee, cacao, and cotton) being produced on the small native farms.

Most of the food plants are of American origin, but as in many
tropical American countries, it is the introduced species that have
become of the greatest importance to the natives. Many different
kinds of fine fruits are abundant, but several species prominent in
other parts of tropical America, such as the papaya, sapote, sapodilla,
and pineapple, are absent or little used. Among the root crops that
are commonly grown are sweet potatoes, yams, yautias, and cassava,
and more recently white potatoes are being successfully produced in
the cool mountain districts southeast of Port au Prince.

In comparison with other tropical countries, conditions appear
favorable for crop production in Haiti, if a more effective organization
of agriculture can be established, together with a better means of
marketing the products.

H. N. Vlstall, Corresponding Secretary.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VIII FEBRUARY 4, 1918 No. 3

CHEMISTRY.— MeMorfs of gas warfare.' S. J. M. Auld,
British Military Mission. (Communicated by L. J. Briggs).

All I can do in the short time available is to give you, if I can,
a general idea of what gas warfare really means on the Western
Front at the present time. Some of you may have gotten the
idea that gas is just an incident, and that there is not as much
attention being paid to it as there was two years ago. That
idea is entirely wrong. Gas is used to a tremendous extent, and
the amount that has been and is being hurled back and forth in
shells and clouds is almost unbelievable. I will try to give you
a general idea of what is occurring and make the lecture rather
a popular than a technical description. I shall also, for obvious
reasons, have to confine myself to describing what the Germans
have been doing, and will say nothing about what we are doing,

Possibl}^ the best plan would be to state more or less chron-
ologically what occurred. I happened to be present at the
first gas attack and saw the whole gas business from the begin-
ning. The first attack was made in April, 1915. A deserter
had come into the Ypres salient a week before the attack was
made, and had told us the whole story. They were preparing
to poison us with gas, and had cyhnders installed in their
trenches. No one believed him at all, and no notice was taken
of it.

' Report of a lecture delivered before the Washington Academy of Sciences
on January 17, 1918.

45

46 auld: methods of gas warfare

Then came the first gas attack, and the whole course of the
war changed. That first attack, of course, was made against
men who were entirely unprepared — absolutely unprotected.
You have read quite as much about the actual attack and the
battle as 1 could tell you, but the accounts are still remarkably
meager. The fellows who could have told most about it didn't
come back. The Germans have claimed that we had 6000
killed and as many taken prisoners. They left a battle field
such as had never been seen before in warfare, ancient or modern,
and one that has had no compeer in the whole war except on the
Russian front.

What the Germans expected to accomplish by it I am not
sure. Presumably they intended to win the war, and they might
conceivably have won it then and there if they had foreseen the
tremendous effect of the attack. It is certain that they expected
no immediate retaliation, as they had provided no protection
for their own men. They made a clear and unobstructed gap
in the lines, which was only closed by the Canadians, who rallied
on the left and advanced, in part through the gas cloud itself.

The method first used by the Germans, and retained ever
since, is fairly simple, but requires great preparation l^eforehand.
A hole is dug in the bottom of the trench close underneath the
parapet, and a gas cylinder is buried in the hole. It is an ordi-
nary cyhnder, like that used for oxygen or hydrogen. It is then
covered first with a ciuilt of moss, containing potassium car-
bonate solution, and then with sand bags. When the attack is
to be made the sand bags and protecting cover are taken off
the cylinder, and each cylinder is connected with a lead pipe
which is bent over the top of the parapet. A sand bag is laid
on the nozzle to prevent the back "kick" of the outrushing
gas from throwing the pipe back into the trench. Our own
methods are practically identical with those first used by the
Germans.

The success of a cloud gas attack depends on thorough prep-
aration beforehand. The attackers must know the country,
the layout of the trenches, and the direction and velocity of
the wind with certainty. Favorable conditions are limited
jjractically to wind velocities between 12 and 4 miles an hour.

auld: methods of gas warfare 47

A wind of more than 12 miles an hour disperses the gas cloud
very rapidl}-. .\n upward current of air is the worst foe of gas.
The weight of the gas is not an important factor in carrying it
along, for it mixes rapidly with air to form the moving ■"cloud."
The time occupied by a gas attack is too short to permit of
much diffusion of the gas out of the original mixture.

The gas attack must be planned very carefull}-. If the trench
line is very irregulai- it is likel}^ that gas will flow into a portion
of one's own trenches. The limits of safety in wind direction
are thus determined by the direction of the lines of the trenches.
The Germans use a 40° angle of safety; that means that on a
given straight portion of the front the wdnd direction must lie
between the two directions which make angles of 40° with the
neighboring sections of the front. The most suitable type of
country is where the ground slopes gently away from where the
gas is being discharged. The Germans made one mistake in
believing that hilly or wooded country would not do. This
was refuted by the French, who made a successful gas attack
in hilly and wooded country in the Vosges, as admitted in a
captured German report. If the country is flat like that about
Ypres, and the wind direction is right, there is very little diffi-
culty about making an attack, especially if the enemy does not
know anything about it. The element of surprise is important.

German gas attacks are made by two Regiments of Pioneers,
with highl}^ technical officers, including engineers, meteorolo-
gists, and chemists. They brought their first cylinders into the
hne without our knowing anything about it, except from the
deserter's report which was not believed. The element of sur-
prise was greatly lessened when we began to know what to look
for and to recognize the sounds incident to the preparation of a
gas attack.

The first attack was made with chlorine. If a gas attack is
to be made with gas clouds, the number of gases available is
limited. The gas must be easily compressible, easily made in
large quantities, and should be considerably heavier than air.
If to this is added the necessity of its being very toxic and of
low chemical reactivity, the choice is practically reduced to
two gases: chlorine and phosgene. Chlorine is to gas warfare

48 auld: methods of gas warfare

what nitric acid is to liigh explosives. Pure chlorine did not
satisfy quite all the requirements, as it is very active chemically
and therefore easily absorbed. Many men in the first attack
who ha^d sufficient presence of mind saved themselves by burying
their faces in the earth, or by stuffing their mufflers in their
mouths and wrapping them around their faces.

There were several gas attacks of almost exactly the same
kind early in 1915. There was no gas between the end of May,
1915, and December, 1915, and by that time adequate protec-
tion had been provided.

The first protection was primitive. It consisted largely of
respirators made by women in England in response to an appeal
by Kitchener. They were pads of cotton wool wrapped in
muslin and soaked in solutions of sodium carbonate and thio-
sulfate; sometimes they were soaked only in water. A new
type appeared almost every week. One simple type consisted
of a pad of cotton waste wrapped up in muslin together with a
separate wad of cotton waste. These were kept in boxes in the
trenches, and on the word ''gas" six or eight men would make
a dive for the box, stuff some waste into their mouths, then
fasten on the pad and stuff the waste into the space around the
nose and mouth. But this got unpopular after a bit, when it
was discovered that the same bits of waste were not always
used by the same men. During the early part of 1915 this was
the only protection used.

Then came the helmet made of a flannel bag soaked in thio-
sulfate and carbonate, with a mica window in it. A modified
form of this device with different chemicals is still used in the
British army as a reserve protection. It is put over the head
and tucked into the jacket, and is fool-proof as long as well
tucked down. This stood up very well against chlorine.

In 1915 we got word from our Intelligence Department of a
striking kind. It consisted of notes of some very secret lectures
given in Germany to a number of the senior officers. These
lectures detailed materials to be used, and one of them was
phosgene, a gas which is very insidious and difficult to protect
against. We had to hurry" up to find protection against it.

auld: methods of gas warfare 49

The outcome was a helmet saturated with sodium phenate. The
concentration of gases when used in a cloud is small, and 1 to
1000 by volume is relatively very strong. The helmet easily
gave protection against phosgene at a normal concentration of
1 part in 10,000. That helmet was used when the next attack
cahie in Flanders, on the 19th of December. This attack was
in many ways an entirely new departure and marked a new
era in gas warfare.

There are three things that really matter in gas warfare, and
these were all emphasized in the attack of December. They
are: (1) increased concentration; (2) surprise in tactics; (3) the
use of unexpected new materials.

Continued efforts have been made on both sides to increase
the concentration. The first gas attack, in April, 1915, lasted
about one and a half hours. The attack in May lasted three
hours. The attack in December was over in thirty minutes.
Thus, assuming the number of cylinders to be the same (one
cylinder for every meter of front in which they were operating),
the last attack realized just three times the concentration of
the first, and six times the concentration obtained in May.
Other cloud gas attacks followed, and the time was steadily
reduced; the last attacks gave only ten to fifteen minutes for
each discharge. We believe that the cylinders are now put in
at the rate of three for every two meters of front, and may even
be double banked.

The element of surprise came in an attack by night. The
meteorological conditions are much better at night than during
the day. The best two hours out of the twenty-four, when
steady and downward currents exist, are the hour between
sunset and dark and the hour between dawn and sunrise. Gas
attacks have therefore been frequently made just in the gloam-
ing or early morning, between lights. This took away one of
the easy methods of spotting gas, that of seeing it, and we had
to depend upon the hissing noises made by the escaping gas, and
upon the sense of smell.

Another element of surprise was the sending out of more
than one cloud in an attack. After the first cloud the men

50 auld: methods of gas warfare

would think it was all over, but ten minutes or half an hour
later there would come another cloud on exactly the same front.
These tactics were very successful in at least one case, namely,
the attack near Hulluch in 1916. Some of the troops discarded
their helmets after the first wave and were caught on the sec-
ond, which was very much stronger than the first.

Efforts were also made to effect surprise by silencing the gas.
But silencers reduced the rate of escape so greatly that the
loss of efficiency from low concentration more than made up for
the gain in suddenness. Another method was to mix the gas
up with smoke, or to alternate gas and smoke, so that it would
be difficult to tell where the gas began and the smoke ended.

The last attack made on the British by this means was in
August, 1916. Since that time the Germans have used gas
three times on the West Front against the French, and have also
used it against the Italians and the Russians. It has been
practically given up against the British, although the method is
by no means dead.

The last attack was a slight set-back in the progress of gas
defense. The casualties had been brought down to a minimum,
and, as shown by the fact that the percentage of deaths was
high, protection was complete in all cases where used, casualties
being due to unpreparedness in some form. The attack in
question was brought on under difficult conditions for the de-
fenders, as it was made on new troops during a relief when twice
as many men were in the trenches as normally. Furthermore,
they had to wear helmets while carrying their complete outfit
for the relief. This was the second time the Germans caught
us in a relief, whether through information or luck we cannot
say.

The protection that had been devised against phosgene proved
effective at the time, but provision was made to meet increased
concentration of phosgene. We never had any actual evidence
during the attack that phosgene was being used, as no samples
were actually taken from the cloud, but cylinders of phosgene
were captured later. Glass vacuum tubes, about 10 by 30 cm.,
with a tip that could be broken off and then closed by a plasti-

atjld: methods of gas warfare 51

cine-lined glass cap, were distributed, but the only one that
came back was an unopened tube found in a hedge, and marked
by the finder "Dangerous; may contain cholera germs." In
a gas attack everybody keeps quiet or else has a job on hand,
and conditions are not conducive to the taking of gas samples.
The original types of vacuum tube were smaller than those now
used.

There was a long search for materials that would absorb
phosgene, as there are few substances that react readily with it.
The successful suggestion came from Russia. The substance
now used very extensively by all is hexamethylenetetramine
(urotropine) (CH2)8N4, which reacts very rapidly with phosgene.
Used in conjunction with sodium phenale, it will protect against
phosgene at a concentration of 1 : 1000 for a considerable period.
An excess of sodium hydroxide is used with the sodium phenate,
and a valve is provided in the helmet for the escape of exhaled
air. The valve was originally devised so that the hydroxide
would not be too rapidly carbonated, but it was found in addi-
tion that there is a great difference in ease of breathing and
comfort if a valve is placed in the mask. The helmet is put
on over the head, grasped with left hand around the neck and
tucked into the jacket. This form is still used in reserve.

By this time gas shells were beginning to be used in large
numbers, and it became evident that protection by a fabric
could not be depended on with certainty. The box type of
respirator was the next development. Respirators have to ful-
fill two requirements which are quite opposed to one another.
In the first place they should be sufficiently large and elaborate
to give full protection against any concentration of any gas,
whereas military exigency requires that they be light and com-
fortable. It is necessary to strike a balance between these two.
Upon a proper balance depends the usefulness of the respirator.
Oxygen apparatus will not do on account of its weight and its
limited life. Two hours' life is excessive for that type. The
side that can first force the other to use oxygen respirators for
protection has probably won the war.

The concentrations of gas usually met with are really very
low. As has been said, a high concentration for a gas cloud is

52 auld: methods of gas warfare

1 part in 1000, whereas concentrations of two or three per cent
can be met by respirators depending on chemical reactivity.
One such respirator is a box of chemicals connected by a flexible
tube with a face-piece fitting around the contours of the face,
and provided with a mouthpiece and nosepiece.

As regards the chemicals used there is no secret, for the Ger-
mans have many of the same things. Active absorbent char-
coal is one of the main reliances, and is another suggestion that
we owe to the Russians. Wood charcoal was used in one of
their devices and was effective, but most of the Russian soldiers
had no protection at all.

We wanted to protect against chlorine, acids and acid-forming
gases, phosgene, etc., arid at one time were fearful of meeting
large quantities of hydrocyanic (prussic) acid (HCN). At one
period every prisoner taken talked about the use of prussic acid,
saying that the Kaiser had decided to end the war and had
given permission to use prussic acid. Protection was evidently
needed against it. The three things that then seemed most
important were: (1) chlorine and phosgene; (2) prussic acid;
(3) lachrymators. Charcoal and alkaline permanganate will
protect against nearly everything used, even up to concen-
trations of ten per cent for short periods.

The German apparatus, developed about the same time, is of
different pattern, and is still employed. It consists of a small
drum, attached directly to the front of the face-piece, and
weighs less than the British respirator but must be changed
more frequently. It has no mouthpiece. The chemicals are
in three layers: first an inside layer of pumice with hexameth-
ylenetetramine, in the middle a layer of charcoal (sometimes
blood charcoal), and outside baked earth soaked in potassium
carbonate solution and coated with fine powdered charcoal.

As regards the future of the gas cloud, it may be looked upon
as almost finished. There are so many conditions that have to
be fulfilled in connection with it that its use is limited. It is
very unlikely that the enemy will be able to spring another
complete surprise with a gas cloud.

The case is different with gas shells. The gas shells are the
most important of all methods of using gas on the Western

auld: methods of gas warfare 53

Front, and are still in course of development. The enemy
started using them soon after the first cloud attack. He began
with the celebrated "tear" shells. A concentration of one part
in a million of some of these lachrymators makes the eyes water
severely. The original tear shells contained almost pure xylyl
bromide or benzjd bromide, made by brominating the higher
fractions of coal-tar distillates.

The German did his bromination rather badly. As you know,
it should be done very carefully or much dibromide is produced,
which is solid and inactive. Some of the shells contained as
much as 20 per cent dibromide, enough to make the liquid pasty
and inactive. The shells used contain a lead lining, and have a
partition across the shoulder, above which comes the T. N. T.
and the fuse. These shells had little effect on the British, but
one attack on the French, accompanied by a very heavy bom-
bardment with tear shells, put them out badly. The eyes of
the men were affected, and many of the men were even anesthe-
tized by the gas, and were taken prisoner.

Our first big experience was an attack at Vermelles. The
Germans put down a heavy barrage of these shells and made
an infantry attack. The concentration was great, the gas
went through the helmets, and the men even vomited inside
their helmets. But it is difficult to put down a gas barrage, and
there is danger that it will not be a technical success. In the
instance cited certain roads were not cut off sufficiently, so that
reinforcements got up. This attack, however, opened our eyes
to the fact that, as in the case of gas clouds, concentration
would be developed so as to make it high enough to produce
the required effect under any circumstances.

\Mien the Germans started using highly poisonous shells,
which was at the Somme in 1916, they did not attend to this
sufficiently, although enormous numbers of shell were used.
The substance used was trichloromethyl-chloroformate, but not
in great strength. It had no decided reaction on the eyes,
hence the men were often caught.

The quantity of gas that can be sent over in shells is small.
The average weight in a shell is not more than six pounds, where-
as the German gas cylinders contain 40 pounds of gas. To put

54 auld: methods of gas ware'are

over the same amount of gas as with gas clouds, say in five
minutes per thousand yards of front, would require a prohibi-
tive number of guns and shells. It becomes necessary to put
the shells on definite targets, and this, fortunately, the Germans
did not realize at the Somme, although they have found it out
since.

The use of gas out of a projectile has a number of advantages
over its use in a gas cloud. First, it is not so dependent on the
wind. Again, the gunners have their ordinary job of shelling,
and there is no such elaborate and unwelcome organization to
put into the front trenches as is necessary for the cloud. Third,
the targets are picked with all the accuracy of artillery fire.
Fourth, the gas shells succeed with targets that are not accessible
to high explosives or to gas clouds. Take, for instance, a field
howitzer, dug into a pit with a certain amount of overhead cover
for the men, who come in from behind the gun. The men are
safe from splinters, and only a direct hit will put the gun out
of action. But the gas will go in where the shell would not.
It is certain to gas some of the men inside the emplacement.
The crew of the gun must go on firing with gas masks on, and
with depleted numbers. Thus it nearly puts the gun out of
commission, reducing the number of shots say from two rounds
a minute to a round in two minutes, and may even silence it
entirely. Another example is a position on a hillside with
dugouts at the back, just over the crest, or with a sunken road
behind the slope. Almost absolute protection is afforded by
the dugouts. The French tried three times to take such a posi-
tion after preparation with high explosives, and each assault
failed. Then they tried gas shells, and succeeded. The gas
flows rapidly into such a dugout, especially if it has two or more
doors.

Among the effective materials used by the Germans for gas
shells were mono- and tri-chloromethyl-chloroformate. Prussic
acid never appeared; the Germans rate it lower than phosgene
in toxicity, and the reports concerning it were obviously meant
merely to produce fear and distract the provisions for protection.

During the last five months the actual materials and the
tactics used by the Germans have undergone a complete change.

auld: methods of gas warfare 55

The lachrymator shells are less depended upon than formerly
for '^ neutralization," but are still a source of annoyance. Mere
annoyance, however, may be an effective method of neutralizing
infantry. For instance, where large amounts of supplies and
ammunition are being brought up there are always cross-roads
where there is confusion and interference of traffic. A few gas
shells placed there make every man put on his mask, and if it is
a dark night and the roads are muddy the resulting confusion
can be only faintly imagined. It may thus be possible to neu-
tralize a part of the infantry by cutting down their supplies and
ammunition.

The use of a gas shell to force a man to put on his mask is
practically neutralization. If at the same time you can hurt
him, so much the better. Hence the change in gas-shell tactics,
which consists in replacing the purely lachrymatory substance
by one that is also poisonous.

One substance used for this method of simultaneously harass-
ing and seriously injuring was dichloro-diethylsulfide (mustard
gas). Its use was begun in July of last year at Ypres, and it
was largely used again at Nieuport and Armentieres. A heavy
bombardment of mustard-gas shells of all calibers was put on
these towns, as many as 50,000 shells being fired in one night.
The effects of mustard gas are those of a ''super-lachrymator."
It has a distinctive smell, rather like garlic than mustard. It
has no immediate effect on the eyes, beyond a slight irritation.
After several hours the eyes begin to swell and inflame and prac-
tically blister, causing intense pain, the nose discharges freely,
and severe coughing and even vomiting ensue. Direct contact
with the spray causes severe blistering of the skin, and the
concentrated vapor penetrates through the clothing. The
respirators of course do not protect against this blistering.
The cases that went to the hospitals, however, were generally
eye or lung cases, and blistering alone took back very few men.
Many casualties were caused by the habit that some of the men
had fallen into of letting the upper part of the mask hang down
so as not to interfere with seeing. The Germans scored heavily
in the use of this gas at first. It was another example of the

56 auld: methods of gas warfare

element of surprise in using a new substance that produces new
and unusual symptoms in the victims.

Up to the present time there has been no material brought
out on either side that can be depended on to go through the
other fellow's respirator. The casualties are due to surprise
or to lack of training in the use of masks. The mask must be
put on and adjusted within six seconds, which requires a con-
siderable amount of preliminary training, if it is to be done
under field conditions.

Among other surprises on the part of the Germans were
phenylcarbylamine chloride, a lachrymator, and diphenyl-
chloroarsine, or ''sneezing gas." The latter is mixed in with
high explosive shells or with other gas shells, or with shrapnel.
It was intended to make a man sneeze so badly that when he
puts on his mask he is not able to keep it on. The sneezing
gas has, however, not been a very great success.

All bombardments now are of this mixed character. The
shells used are marked with differently colored crosses, and defi-
nite programs are laid down for the use of the artillerymen.

As regards the future of gas shells, it should be emphasized
that the "gas shell" is not necessarily a gas shell at all, but a
liquid or solid shell, and it opens up the whole sphere of organic
chemistry to be drawn upon for materials. The material placed
inside the shell is transformed into vapor or fine droplets by
the explosion and a proper adjustment between the bursting
charge and the poisonous substance is necessary. Both sides
are busy trying to find something that the others have not used,
and both are trjdng to find a ''colorless, odorless, and invisible"
gas that is highly poisonous. It is within the realm of possibili-
ties that the war will be finished, literally, in the chemical
laboratory.

The Germans have not altered their type of respirator for
some time, and it is not now equal in efficiency to the British or
American respirator. The German respirator, even in its latest
form, will break down at a concentration of 0.3 per cent of
certain substances. The German design has given more weight
to military exigency, as against perfect protection, than has the

auld: methods of gas warfare 57

British. Another thing that weighs against changes in design
is the fact that the German, already handicapped by the lack
of certain materials, must manufacture 40,000,000 respirators a
year in order to supply his Austrian, Bulgarian, and Turkish
allies, as well as his own army.

In the British and American armies the respirator must
always be carried with the equipment when within 12 miles of
the front. Between 12 and 5 miles a man may remove the
respirator box in order to sleep, but within 5 miles he must wear
it constantly. Within 2 miles it must be worn constantly in
the ''alert" position (slung and tied in front). When the alarm
is given he must get the respirator on within six seconds. The
American respirator is identical with the British. The French
have a fabric mask made in several layers, the inner provided
with a nickel salt to stop HON, then a layer with hexamethy-
lenetetramine ; it has no valve and is hot to wear. The French
also use a box respirator, consisting of a metal box slung on the
back, with a tube connecting to the face mask; the latter is of
good Para rubber and is provided with a valve. One disadvan-
tage of this form is the danger of tearing the single rubber sheet.
The German niask now contains no rubber except one washer;
the elastics consist of springs inside a fabric, and the mask itself
is of leather. It hardens and cracks after being wet, and is too
dependent upon being well fitted to the face when made.

(The lecturer exhibited various types of gas shells, helmets,
masks, and respirators.)

The following compounds have been used by the Germans in
gas clouds or in shells:

1. Allyl-iso-thiocyanate (Allyl mustard oil), C3H5NCS (shell).

2. Benzyl bromide, CeHsCHoBr (shell).

3. Bromo-acetone, CH2Br.CO.CPI3 (hand grenades).

4. Bromated methyl-ethyl-ketone (bromo-ketone), CH2Br-
COC0H5 or CH3.CO.CHBr. CH3 (shell). Dibromo-ketone, CH3-
COCHBr.CHoBr (shell).

5. Bromine, Br2 (hand grenades).

6. Chloro-acetone, CH2CI.COCH3 (hand grenades).

7. Chlorine, CI2 (cloud).

58 standley: blepharidtum

8. Chloromethyl-chloroformate (Palite), CICOOCH2CI (shell).

9. Nitro-trichloro-methane (Chloropicrin or nitrochloroform),
CCI3NO2 (shell).

10. Chlorosulfonic acid, SO3.H.CI (hand grenades and ''smoke

pots").

11. Dichloro-diethylsulfide (mustard gas), (CH2C1CH2)2S

(shell).

12. Dhnethyl sulfate, (0113)2804 (hand grenades).

13. Diphenyl-chloro-arsine, (C6H5)2AsCl (shell).

14. Dichloromethyl ether, (CH2C1)20 (shell).

15. Methyl-chlorosulfonate, CH3CISO3 (hand grenades).

16. Phenyl-carbylamine chloride, C6H5NCCI2 (shell).

17. Phosgene (carbonyl chloride), COCI2 (cloud and shell).

18. Sulfur trioxide, SO3 (hand grenades and shell).

19. Trichloromethyl-chloroformate (Diphosgene, superpalite) ,
CICOOCCI3 (shell).

20. Xylyl bromide (tolyl bromide), CH,C6H4CH2Br. (shell).

BOTANY. — Blepharidnmi, a new genus of Rubiaceae from
Guatemala.^ Paul C. Standley, U. S. National Museum.
In the U. S. National Herbarium there are specimens of a
striking rubiaceous plant, hitherto undescribed, collected in
Guatemala by Mr. Henry Pittier. Some years ago this material
was examined by Captain John Donnell Smith, who concluded
that it probably represents an imdescribed genus. Recently,
while preparing an account of the Rubiaceae for the North
American Flora, the writer has studied the material and has
arrived at the same conclusion. Among North American
representatives of the family the plant is noteworthy because of
its large, long-petiolate leaves and of its large flowers, borne in
peculiar 3-flowered cymes. Its general appearance does not
definitely associate it with any of the known genera, and its
floral details are such as to necessitate its recognition as a new
genus, for which the name Blepharidiiim is here proposed.

'Published by permission of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.

ST AND ley: blepharidium 59

Blepharidium Standley, gen. no v.

Shrubs or trees, with subterete branchlets. Leaves opposite, petio-
late, the blades large, chartaceous. Stipules intrapetiolar, large, thin,
acuminate, entire, caducous. Flowers large, pedicellate, bibracteolate,
in 3-flowered cranes, the cymes axillary, long-pedunculate; calyx-tube
obovoid, the limb large, prolonged beyond the ovary, 4-lobate, the
lobes very broad, imbricate, ciliolate; corolla salverform, coriaceous, the
tube slender, elongate, densely villous within except near the base, the
limb 4-lobate, the lobes broad, spreading, imbricate in bud, one of
them exterior. Stamens 4, inserted in the throat of the corolla; anthers
sessile, dorsifixed below the middle, linear, obtuse, included. Disk
annular. Ovar}' 2-celled; style fihform, included, the stigma bilobate,
the lobes linear, elongate, acute; ovules numerous, imbricate, winged,
the placentae attached to the septum.

Type species, Bhphandium guafemalense Standley.

Blepharidium guatemalense Standley, sp. nov.

Branchlets stout, green, glabrous, sparseh' whitish-lenticellate, the
internodes elongate; stipules ovate-triangular, 2-2.5 cm. long, acumi-
nate or cuspidate-acuminate, brown, glabrous outside, witiiin sericeous-
pilose at the base and bearing numerous glands; petioles stout, 2.5-5
cm. long, glabrous; leaf-blades oval-oblong, 17-30 cm. long, 8-14.5
cm. wide, obtuse or acute at the base, obtuse or acute at the apex,
concolorous, glabrous above, the costa impressed, the other venation
prominulous, sparsely short-pilose beneath along the prominent costa,
the lateral veins prominent, about 8 on each side, arcuate-ascending;
peduncles 3-flowered, slender, 7-21 cm. long, glabrous, the pedicels
stout, 0.3-2 cm. long; bracts foliaceous, oval, about 1 cm. long, the
bractlets broadly ovate, 3-4 mm. long, deciduous; calyx glabrous,
the tube 4-5 mm. long, the limb 4-5 mm. long, 7-8 mm. broad, the
lobes half as long as the tube, broader than long, rounded or truncate,
minutely ciliolate; corolla-tube about 6 cm. long, 4-5 mm. thick,
glabrous outside, the lobes oval, about 1 cm. long; anthers 7 mm. long;
stigma-lobes 6-7 mm. long.

Type in the U. S. National Herbarium, no. 472925, collected in
forest along Saklak River, below Secanquim, Alta Verapaz, Guatemala,
altitude 300 meters, ISIay 7, 1905, by Heniy Pittier (no. 266).

Blepharidium is evidently a member of the Cinchoneae, for
although mature fruit, upon which the classification of the
Rubiaceae is chiefly based, is not available for study, the large,
imbricate, winged ovules are characteristic of this tribe alone.
Within the tribe, however, it is not easy to determine the exact
position of the genus. In most published keys to the subgroup,
it would fall near Exostema, but it does not appear to be very

60 bartsch: subspecies of obba marginata

closely allied to that genus, in which the anthers are borne on
long filaments. By the sessile anthers blepharidium is easily
distinguished from all the genera of the Cinchoneae with imbri-
cate corolla lobes.

ZOOLOGY. — A key to the Philippine subspecies of Obba mar-
ginata with notes on their distribution.^ Paul Bartsch,
U. S. National Museum.

The preparation of a report on the Philippine Island land
shells reveals so many distributional gaps in the material avail-
able for study that it seems wise to publish a series of synopses
in the form of keys to the various groups as the work progresses,
together with a brief account of the zoogeographic facts pre-
sented by the data at hand

It is hoped that these sketches may serve to stimulate collec-
tors to bestow their efforts upon localities from which material
is sadly needed to render the monographic reports complete.

Obba marginata Miiller

In this species the shell varies from broadly conic (066a ■marginata
mearnsi), to almost lenticular {Obba Jiiarginata samarensis) . The
range in size is also great. 066a marginata saranganica attains a
greater diameter of 35 mm., while in 066a marginata mearnsi it does
not exceed 19 mm. All the races have a narrow acute peripheral keel
to which the summit of the succeeding turn is appressed. The ground
color varies from pale buff (066a marginata griseola and 066a marginata
tnearnsi), to pale brownish (Obba marginata marginata). In all the
subspecies known, the peripheral keel and the extreme summit are
edged by a very narrow white or whitish zone, while the rest of the
upper surface of the turns is marked by three bands of brown of which
one adjoins the peripheral white zone while another bounds the white
line at the summit and the third occupies a space almost midway
between them. The width of these brown bands varies in the differ-
ent races. In some they equal the light areas that separate them
(066a marginata balidensis), while in others some of them are repre-
sented by mere hair lines. The intensity of the color may be the same
or may vary in the different bands on the same whorl, the band at
the summit being usually much paler than the rest. Two bands are
present on the basal sides of all the members of this species, one adjoin-

* Published by permission of the Secreta;-y of the Smithsonian Institution.

bartsch:' subspecies of obba marginata 61

ing the light peripheral zone and another situated at about one-third
of the distance between the periphery and the unibihcus anterior to
the periphery. Here, as in the banding of the upper surface, we find
a considerable variation both as to intensity of coloration and width of
the band. In some the zone at the periphery is merely indicated
(Obba marginata lanaona and Obha marginata mearnsi), while in others
they are very dark and broad (Obba marginata marginata and Obba
marginata balutensis). In all the forms the basal lip is toothless.
Under the microscope we find that the first half turn is smooth; the
turn and a half followi.ig this are marked by slender oblique, retrac-
tively curved, axial threads, best seen near the summit and at the
periphery; while the succeeding turns have in addition to these threads,
very fine, closely spaced, impressed lines which cross each other more
or less" at right angles and the lines of growth at an angle of about 45°
and give the surface a fine cloth-like texture.

The various subspecies of Obba marginata can readily be divided into
two groups, one in which the dark coloration predominates over the
light zones and another in which the reverse is true. To the first of
these, the dark group, belong the subspecies saranganica, balutensis,
marginata, ivorcesteri, and boholensis. In the light group we find
characters that readily enable one to further subdivide it. In two
forms (mearnsi and palmasensis) the shell is broadly conic. In the
rest the shell is lenticular. This last complex is again divisible. One
part (subspecies griseola, samarensis, pallescens, and nana) has the
basal peripheral band well developed. In the other (subspecies zam-
boanga, lanaona, and joloensis) the basal peripheral band is obsoletQ.

The distribution, as known to date, extends from the central islands
of Samar, Leyte, Bohol, and Cebu, southward over Mindanao to Jolo
on the west and Sarangani and Palmas islands on the east in the Phil-
ippines, and still farther south beyond our range at least to Celebes.
A plotting of the known distribution points strongly to the fact that
many additional subspecies may be expected when more careful and
extensive collecting shall have been done. The species should occur
on the islands betw:een Samar, Leyte, and Mindanao. In Mindanao
itself we know it only from the northern coastal strip and Zamboanga
and it scarcely stands to reason that there should be a gap in the dis-
tribution between the north coast and the little islands of Sarangani,
Balut, Olanivan, and Palmas off the southeast coast where it is well
represented-

62 bartsch: subspecies of obba marginata

The distribution of the groups outHned above is rather interesting.
The subspecies in which the dark coloration predominates are known
from Bohol, Camiguin, north of Mindanao and the islands of Olanivan,
Sarangani, and Balut off southeastern Mindanao. None of the dark
forms so far are known from the large island of Mindanao itself. The
broadly conic light-colored Obba marginata mearnsi and Obba marginata
■palmasensis come from Sarangani and Palmas, respectively, both off
southeastern Mindanao. The light colored lenticular forms having
the basal peripheral color band well developed are so far known from
Samar, Leyte, Cebu, and northeastern Mindanao, and I strongly sus-
pect that the form recorded from Siquijor and that from Talisayan,
Mindanao, will prove to belong here. The light-colored lenticular
forms in which the basal peripheral band is obsolete are known from
western Mindanao and the island of Jolo.

The following key may be of help in determining the known sub-
species^:

Dark bands predominating over the hght zones.
Greater diameter more than 30 mm.

Lines of growth strongly developed (Sarangani Island).

saranganica Hidalgo.
Lines of growth not strongly developed (Balut Island).

balutensis new.
Greater diameter less than 30 mm.
Basal bands very dark brown.

Greater diameter more than 25 mm. (Camiguin Island).

marginata Miiller.

Greater diameter less than 22 mm. (Olanivan Island).

* worcesteri Bartsch.

Basal bands hght brown (Bohol Island) boholensis new.

Dark bands not predominating over the light zones.
Light zones nmch greater than the dark.
Shell broadly conic.

Peripheral basal color band moderately strong (Palmas

Island) palmasensis new.

Peripheral basal color band obsolete (Sarangani Island).

mearnsi new.
Shell not broadly conic, lenticular.

Peripheral basal brown band obsolete.

Median band above and below reddish (Zamboanga,
Mindanao) zamboanga new.

1 The types of the new subspecies are registered in the U. S. National Museum
under the following numbers: balutensis, no. 256548; boholensis, no. 116914;
palmasensis, no. 256420; mearnsi, no. 2,56423; lanaona, no. 2oM^b\' joloensis, no.
256549; samarensis, no. 256549.

bartsch: subspecies of obba marginata 63

Median band above antl below not reddish, all
bands brown.

Base very strongly convex (Lanao Province,

Mindanao) lanaona new.

Base very slightly convex (Jolo Island).

joloensis new.
Peripheral basal brown band not obsolete.
Greater diameter more than 23 mm.

Band near the summit and at the periphery
more or less interrupted (Cebu Island).

griseola IVIollendorff.
Band at the summit and near the periphery
not interrupted (Samar Island).

samarensis new.
Greater diameter less than 21 mm.

Peripheral basal band strong (Leyte Island).

pallescens Mollendorff.

Peripheral basal band not strong (Northeast

Mindanao) nana Mollendorff.

ABSTRACTS

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

GEOLOGY. — Geology of the Navajo country. A reconnaissance of
parts of Ariftona, New Mexico, and Utah. Herbert E. Gregory.
U. S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 93. Pp. 161, with
maps, sections, and illustrations. 1917.

The region bordering the Colorado canyons between Little Colorado
and San Juan rivers and extending southward to the line of the Atchi-
son, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway is described. The primary object of
the investigations was to "spy out the land," with a view to suggest-
ing ways in which the country could be more fully utilized. The
region is arid, and the geologic field work was therefore designed chiefly
to obtain information concerning the water supply.

The Navajo country is part of the Colorado Plateau province, a
region of folded and faulted sedimentary rocks traversed by innumerable
canyons. The consolidated sedimentary rocks exposed in the Navajo
country are chiefly of Mesozoic age — -Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous.
The predominant rock of the whole Navajo country is sandstone of
medium grain; limestone and conglomerate are much less common, and
typical clay shale is rare.

In the Grand Canyon district the dominating structural features are
represented topographically by flat-topped plateaus, bordered by lines
of displacement trending roughly north. The simplicity of folded
structures in the Grand Canyon district is not, however, duplicated in
the region east of Colorado River. Synclines and anticlines, both
broad and narrow, sharply delineated monoclines, and domical up-
warps follow one another in succession or abut against one another
like waves in a choppy sea. In one feature only — their general trend —
do the flexures displayed in the Navajo country simulate those of the
region farther west. Ten major folds and eight minor folds, in addi-

64

abstracts: geology 65

tion to local flexures of small dimensions, were noted in the region
between the San Juan and the Puerco and Little Colorado.

The physiographic history of the Navajo country is included in that
of the Colorado Plateau. The stratigraphic series of the area is essen-
tially that of the Grand Canyon district; the crustal movements of
.the two areas, though different in kind, were probably contempo-
raneous, and it is reasonable to suppose also that the periods of igneous
activity for the whole Plateau province are closely related in time.

The surface of the Navajo country has been carved rather than
built; features resulting from deposition are I'elatively unimportant.
Talus slopes and alluvial fans are replaced by cliffs; hills and knolls
give way to buttes and towers; and graded slopes are represented by
walls sculptured into rincons, recesses, alcoves, niches, windows, and
arches, of large variety.

Wide, open mouths of niches and caves perched high on the canyon
walls are conspicuous. These cavities, protected from rain, from the
glaring heat of the sun, and from the suffocating sandstorms, were
widel}^ utilized by the ancient inhabitants as building sites — ''rock
shelters" or "cavate dwelhngs."

Perhaps the most striking erosion feature within the Navajo coun-
tr}' is the recently discovered Rainbow Bridge, which spans Bridge
Canyon, on the northwest slope of Navajo Mountain. Its symmetry
and graceful proportions, as well as its size and beauty of color, give
to this arch a commanding position among the natural bridges of the
woi'ld. . R W. Stone.

»

GEOLOGY. — Ground water for irrigation in Lodgepole ]'alley, Wyoming
and Neh'aska. Oscar E. Meinzer. U. S. Geological Survey
Water-Supply Paper 400-B. Pp. 33, with 4 maps. 1917.
This brief report discusses the distribution and water-bearing char-
acter of the Ogalalla and Arikaree formations, the Brule clsiy, the
underlying formations, and the Quaternary stream gravels. Large
yields are obtained in the valley from the stream gravels and from the
underlying jointed portions of the Brule clay. The strongest well
3nelded, in a test of one hour, at the rate of 710 gallons per minute with
a drawdown of less than 4 inches. The report describes the natural
processes of storage of water in the underground reservoir and of dis-
charge therefrom by gravity in the irrigation season. It also gives
data by the author and by Mr. H. C. Diesem, of the Department of
Agriculture, on the cost of pumping for irrigation. 0. E. M.

66 abstracts: parasitology

FFjTROLOGY. —Chemical analyses of igneous rocks published from
1884 to WIS, inclusive. H. S. Washington. U. S. Geological
Survey Professional Paper 99. Pp. 1201, with 3 figures. 1917.

This paper is a revision and expansion of Professional Paper 14,
published in 1903. In the introductory text the characters of rock
anal3^ses are discussed under the heads of representativeness of the.
sample analyzed and the accuracy and completeness of the analysis.
The chief errors, both of commission and omission, to which rock
analyses are hable are described, and the scheme for rating analyses as
to their quahty, adopted in the work, is explained.

It has been the aim to make the present collection as complete and
accurate as possible and, in a sense, definitive. The search through
the Hterature, a list of the pubhcations examined being given, has
been very extensive, and in this the library of the U. S, Geological
Survey has been the main reliance. The number of analyses collected
in the tables amounts to 8602, as against 2881 in the previous collec-
tion, which analyses are included in the present work. A great im-
provement in quality over the earlier work is manifest. The tables,
which occupy 1098 pages, are divided into four parts: superior analyses
of fresh rocks; incomplete but otherwise superior analyses of fresh
rocks; superior analyses of altered rocks and tuffs; and inferior analyses.
The analyses in Part I are arranged according to the Quantitative
Classification and the norm of each, every one of which has been recal-
culated, is given. A discussion of the rules for naming and of some of
the names of this system is to be found in the text.

In appendixes are presented a description of the Quantitative Classi-
fication, with a tabular presentation of its divisions and names, a
description of the method of calculating the norm, as well as the tables
for the calculation of the molecular numbers of the chemical compo-
nents and percentages of mineral molecules. H. S. W.

PARASITOLOGY. — Recent progress in the development of tnethods for
the control and treatment of parasites of live stock. B. H. Ransom.
Proc. Second Pan-Amer. Sci. Congr. 3: 709-718. 1917.
Brief review with list of references. B. H. R.

PARASITOLOGY. — The sheep tick and its eradication bp dipping.

Marion Imes. U. S. Dept. Agr. Farmers' Bulletin 798, 31 pp.,

figs. 1-15. May, 1917.
A popular discussion with details of methods of control and
eradication. B. H. Ransom.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

The 118th meeting of the Academy, the twentieth Annual Meeting,
was held in the Assembly Room of the Cosmos Club the evening of
Tuesday, January 8, 1918, with President W. H. Holmes in the chair.
The minutes of the last Annual Meeting were read and approved.

The Corresponding Secretary, Dr. R. B. Sosman, elected by the
Board of Managers in September, 1917, to fill the unexpired term of Dr.
F. E. Wright, on account of the latter's continued absence from the
city while engaged upon war work, reported that on January 1, 1918,
the membership consisted of 6 honorary members, 4 patrons, and 470
members, one of whom was a life member. The total membership was
480, of whom 283 reside in or near the District of Columbia. During
the year 1917 the Academy has lost b}^ death: William Bullock
Clark, July 27, 1917; Richard Bryant Dole, January 21, 1917;
Arnold Hague, May 13, 1917. Reference was made also to the dis-
tribution of a new edition of the "red book," the Directory of the
Washington Academy of Sciences and affiliated Societies, in Jul3^

The Recording Secretary reported that four public lectures had been
held during the past year, including the three on Heredity, as reported
upon in the Journal of the Academy for January 4, 1918.

In the absence of the Treasurer, Mr. William Bow^ie, his report was
read b}" the Secretary. The report showed a balance of $850.93 on
January 1, 1917, receipts totaling $6442.69 during the year (including
the payment of a note for $2000,) disbursements totaling $4308.81 (in-
cluding the purchase of a Liberty Loan Bond for $500), and a balance
on December 31, 1917, of $2984.81. The Auditing Committee, con-
sisting of Messrs. E. F. Mueller, H. G. Ferguson, and H. D. Gibbs,
reported that the report of the Treasurer agreed in all respects with the
accounts and with the securities on deposit.

Dr. N. E. Dorset read the report of the Board of Editors.

The report of the tellers, Messrs. J. F. Meyer, H. E. jMerwin, and
R. B. SosMAN, was read by the Corresponding Secretary. The tellers
reported that the mail ballot had resulted in the election of the following
officers for 1918: President, L. J. Briggs; Corresponding Secretary,
R. B. Sosman; Recording Secretary, William R. Maxon; Treasurer,
William Bow^ie; Non-resident Vice-Presidents, T. A. Jaggar, Jr., and
B. L. Robinson; Members of Board of Managers, Class of 1921, T. H.
Kearney and A, O. Spencer.

The following resident Vice-Presidents, nominated by the affiliated
societies, were then elected: Anthrojjological Society, John R. Swan-
ton; Archaeological Society, Ales Hrplicka; Biological Society, J. N.
Rose; Botanical Society, T. H. Kearney; Chemical Society, Frede-

67

68 proceedings: Washington academy of sciences

KICK B. Power; Society of Engineers, Edwin F. Wendt; Electrical
Engineers, P. G. Agnew; Society of Foresters, Raphael Zon; Geological
Society, W. C. Mendenhall; Historical Society, Allen C. Clark;
Medical Society, Philip S. Roy; Philosophical Society, George K.
Burgess.

The Entomological Society and the National Geographic Society had
nominated no Vice-Presidents.

The following amendments to the By-Laws of the Academy, de-
signed to avoid the existing conflict of dates between the annual
meeting of the Academy and the regular meeting of the Chemical
Society, were then read and, in accordance with the By-Laws, referred
to the Board of Managers :

(1) In Section 1, Article III, substitute "Tuesday" for "Thursday."
The section will then begin as follows: "The Annual Meeting shall be
held each year on the second Tuesday of January."

(2) In Section 1 of Article V substitute "Tuesday" for "Thursday."

The retiring President, Dr. Holmes, delivered an address entitled
Man's place in the Cosmos as shadoived forth by modern science, the newly
elected President, Dr. L. J. Briggs, presiding.

"The address was designed to give a brief but comprehensive view
of the career of man not in the world simply, but to shadow forth
his place in the cosmos of which he was formerly thought to be the cen-
tral feature. The problems of the immediate past are in part readily
solved, while the remote past fades into the impenetrable shadows of the
infinite. The problems of the present appear large in the foreground,
so that he who runs may read; but the problems of the future find their
solutions shrouded in the mists of the unknown and the unknowable.

"The story of the progress of research from the childish romancings of
the savage mind through quagmires of superstitious interpretations
to the astonishing revelations of modern science is a fascinating chapter
in human history.* The origin of the earth is found in the reassembling
and consolidation of ^e widely disseminated matter of a spiral nebula,
a process believed to be responsible for the evolution of the solar
system as a whole — the sun and its attendant bodies. These nebulae,
of which a thousand have been identified, are thought to be due to the
encounter of heaventy bodies with such force as to distribute their com-
ponent particles widely throughout space, the encounters being due to
the eccentricity of the orbits.

"The earth thus gathered together by the forces of gravity from the
dust of ruined spheres became, after ages of ripening, the seat of life, —
an oasis in the vast desert of the cosmos. The story of the beginnings
and evolution of living things has been preserved in the fossil-bearing
strata of the earth's surface and its outlines are well made out. From
the earliest, exceedingly simple and minute forms -advance was made
throughout several stages of speciahzation to the culmination in man,
each stage requiring millions of years in its accomplislmient. But the
story is not ended. Mobility, uQceasing change is the rule of the uni-
verse. That which grows or develops reaches its meridian and passes

proceedings: anthropological society 69

into other forms. The fate of the human race is wrapped up with the
fate of the minute satclHte which we call the earth, and is subject to the
ever active mobilizing forces of the cosmos. It must be molded and
remolded into other worlds and suns and stars forever.

"But there are other wonders. The atoms which now enter into the
constitution of all things — our bodies, the world, and the universe, — are
indestructible. They have existed always and will continue to eternity.
The milHons of atoms which now form a drop of human blood, for
example, have each a history more marvelous than words can tell or
mind conceive, each having passed through changes without beginning
and must continue to pass through other changes without end.

"At a certain stage in the earth's evolution life was generated and
there is no reason why a million worlds may not have reached a cor-
responding stage — the stage at which the elements and the energies
acting under immutable laws necessarily bring about the particular
phenomenon known as Hfe. But in the transformations of worlds these
phenomena of life can be but negligible incidents, and the human race
which we see so large is with all the other attendant phenomena of life
in the world, and in all worlds for that matter, only as a breath in the
unending cataclysms of the incomprehensible cosmos.

'Tf any part of the story of man's place in the universe thus outlined
should be challenged, and many parts are open to challenge, the chal-
lenger may be assured that, if the present interpretations of science are
wrong in whole or in part, the storj^ which will finally be told, or which
may never be told, must be more marvelous than this or any other that
the human mind has conceived."

The 119th meeting of the Academy was held in the Assembly Room
of the Cosmos Club the evening of Thursday, January 17, 1918, the
occasion being the first of a series of illustrated lectures dealing with
Science in Relation to the War. The speaker, Maj^S*. J. M. Auld, of
the British Military Mission, delivered an address on the subject
Methods of gas warfare. A summary of the lecture will be found else-
where in this number of the Journal (pp. 45-58).

William R. Maxon, Recording Secretary.

ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 517th meeting of the Society was held in the Auditorium of the
U. S. National Museum on Tuesday, December 4, 1917, at 4.30 p.m.
At this meeting Dr. Amandus Johnson, of the University of Pennsyl-
vania, addressed the society on The Scandinavian peoples, illustrating
his address with lantern slides.

The Scandinavian Peninsula has undoubtedly been inhabited by its
present occupants for 10,000 years or more. When the climate of the
country became tolerable after the vast icefields receded, tribes of the
Aryan race found their way into southern Sweden, and established there
the original home of the Germanic peoples. About the year 3000 B.C.,

70 proceedings: anthropological society

at the end of the Stone Age, considerable advancement in culture had
been made, and during the Bronze Age the decorative instinct of the
people found expression in works of art unsurpassed elsewhere in Europe
at that period. Later the Hallstatt and La Tene civilizations made their
influence felt and finally, about the beginning of the Christian Era,
Roman culture became the predominant foreign influence. An exten-
sive trade developed with the western world during the following cen-
turies, and many remains of this intei'course are found in Sweden and
Denmark.

The most important period historically is the so-called Viking Age,
800-1000 A.D. Wonderful progress had been made in shipping and
navigation. Fleets of the Viking ships appeared on almost every
shore. The bold sailors sacked cities on the Mediterranean and Black
Seas, ruled Ireland for generations, and conquered parts of France,
England, and Spain; they founded Russia, and settled colonies in
America and numerous other places. Finally Christianity was introduced
and the Scandinavians settled down to a life of peaceful toil. The
mental and spiritual reaction following the Viking expeditions was in-
tense. A prose literature grew up, especially in L-eland. This was the
most remarkable in Europe at the time and was the only original prose
of the Germanic race. With it was coupled a poetiy no less important.
This art died, however, at about the time when distinct Scandinavian
nationalities began to develop, and from the twelfth century onward we
find long stretches of time nearly void of mental activity.

From this period Sweden began to lead a more separate life, but Den-
mark and Norway were gradually drawn closer together until the latter
country nearly lost its identity. Denmark was the leading power of the
north until the appearance of Gustavus Adolphus. Then Sweden
acquired the supremacy. Through the supreme ability of her leaders she
changed the coui'se of European history and for more than a century
played the I'ole of a great power. In modern times Sweden has pro-
duced leading scientists, created a rich literature, and developed large
industrial establishments.

After 1644 Denmark was weakened from time to time b}' the cur-
tailment of her territory until in 1864 she was reduced to her present
area. In the fields of science, letters, and art, however, she can point
to brilliant achievements. Norwaj^ paid the price of dependency- for
many generations, and not until her separation from Denmark can we
speak of a worthy Norwegian literature. But in the last century the
leadership of the drama belongs to her, and in many lines of achieve-
ment some of her names rank among the fii'st.

The 518th meeting of the Society was held in the Lecture Hall of the
Public Library, on Tuesday, December 18, 1917, at 8 p.m. On this
occasion Dr. Daniel Folkmar, LT. S. Tariff Commission, delivered a
lecture on Japan: people and policies, illustrated by numerous lantern
slides.

Dr. Folkmar opened his address by asking "Who are the Japanese?
Are they as closely related to the Chinese as many Americans think, or

proceedings: anthropological society 71

are they a v(My different race, as the Japanese themselves think? The
whole attitude of the Japanese toward the Chinese and toward the
American people seems to rest on the assumption that they are not
Mongolian, strictly speaking, and that they should be ti'eated as our
equals."

The Japanese frequently compare their empire with Englantl, the
Island Empiie which lules a great part of the world from its favored
position in the Atlantic, a position similar to that of Japan in the Pacific
Ocean. The Japanese are unquestionably a mixed race, like the English
and most of the leading nations of the present da}'. Five distinct ethnic
types are to be found among the Japanese. The most important is the
]\Ianchu-Korean type, taller than the others and seen chiefl}^ among
the upper classes. The second is the well-known Mongolian type, with a
broader face. Perhaps the most important element in the present nation-
ality is the Malay strain, whose representatives are small in stature. The
Ainu preceded both Alongolians and Malays, and it now appears that
they, in turn, were preceded b}- a smaller race of pit-dwellers. Accord-
ing to Keane the Japanese bear a physical resemblance to the Mon-
golians, but linguisticalh' are more closely related to the northern
Asiatic Finno-Tataric stock. From this point of view the Japanese
are more closely related to the Koreans than to the Chinese, since
the Korean language is agglutinative and that of the Chinese is mono-
syllabic. Xumerous authorities were cited on this and similar problems
of the Japanese people. Japan received its profound philosophies from
India and China. Thus the native religion of Japan is Shintoism,
together with Buddhistic beliefs that came from India, and Confucianism
fi'om China.

Concerning Japanese policies Dr. Folkmar said, "There is no doubt
that an exclusive policy, dominated the national policies of Japan until
Perry, the American, broke down the barriers. This act is now regarded
l)y the leaders and educated classes as one of the most fortunate events
in their national history." Dr. Folkmar spoke in high encomium of the
manner in which the Japanese Empire has kept its word in restricting
the emigration of Japanese to the United States, and said that there can
bo no doubt of the wisdom of taking the Japanese at their word in
the recent convention that has been signed regarding the "open door
policy."

- The 519th meeting of the Society was held in the West Study Room
of the Public Libi'ary, January 15, 1918, at 8 p.m. The program con-
sisted of a general discussion of War Anthropology, led by Dr. Ales
Hrdlicka, Curator, Division of Ph3'sical Anthropology, U. S. National

Taking as his subject War and Race, Dr. Hrdlicka first directed atten-
tion to the very general and serious apprehension that the present war
may have an untoward dysgenic effect on the race, saying that there
exists, even among medical men and some men of science, a fear of the
effect of shattered constitutions and the lasting results of shocks, strains,

72 proceedings: anthropological society

exposure, and wounds, together with an acquisition of new diseases.
"These assumptions," said the speaker, "are enough to make the pessi-
mist despair of the future of the race, but happily these assumptions are
not entirely correct. In the first place we have no scientific basis for
the belief that any of the warlike nations of the past have actually
degenerated physically as the result of wars Unques-
tionably there are losses from every great war, and in these I include
the debilitating effects of wounds and disease, but fortunately these
appear to be only temporary."

"There are wonderful laws working on living nature, including human-
ity. One of these is the elimination of the unfit. Another is adapta-
tion, still another is restitution, and finally there are the laws of com-
pensation. These laws have taken care of war-ridden mankind in
the past, and as they work with undiminished vigor they can safely be
expected, with such intelligent assistance as can now be given, to accom-
plish still more in the future." Treating of the action of these laws, Dr.
Hrdlicka noted that many afflictions caused by the war are curable and
others are not transmitted to progeny. The most dangerous diseases
of previous wars have largely been eliminated by preventive means,
while science is already coping with new conditions that have arisen.

The speaker then recounted some of the compensations that will
arise from the war, chief among which he placed the impetus given to the
struggle against alcoholism. Important also among the compensations
will be the great intellectual stimulus, the social and national regen-
eration, and the raising of this nation from an isolated and somewhat
selfish position to that of a world power in the best sense of the term and
for the good of humanity.

In the discussion which followed this communication the office of the
Surgeon General, U. S. A., was represented by Lieut. Sidney Morgan,
Sanitary Corps, U. S. N. A., who spoke on the surprisingly large per-
centage of wounded men who, by expert care, are retui'ned to their homes
fitted to be useful members of society.

Mr. Frank D. Tansley, ex-president of the Patria Club of New York
City, stated that the ratio of casualties in the present war is about the
same as that in the Civil War, from which the nation has been able to
recover. Mr. E. T. Williams, of the State Department, noted that there
may be a deterioration of the race in time of peace, due to industrial
conditions and crowding of factories. Dr. John R. Swanton contrasted
imperialistic and emulative civilizations, to the advantage of the latter;
Mr. James Mooney emphasized the thought that psychology is the
dominant factor in race differentiation; and Dr. Leo J. Frachtenberg
spoke of predominant elements in every race. Rev. John M. Cooper
mentioned an essential vitality which is the outcome of circumstance
and which has been, to some extent, lacking in American youth but
which may be developed by present conditions.

Frances Densmore, Secretary.

proceedings: philosophical society 73

BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 576th regular and the 38th annual meeting of the Society was
held at the Cosmos Club, Saturday, December 15, 1917; called to
order by President Hay at 8 p.m.; 19 persons present.

The annual reports of officers and conmiittees were received, followed
b}" the election of officers for the year 1918. The results of the election
are given herewith : President, J. N. Rose ; Vice-presidents, A. D. Hopkins,
H. M. Smith, Vernon Bailey, Ned Hollister; Recording Secretary,
yi.W. Lyon, Jr.; Corresponding Secretary, W. L. McAtee; Treasurer,
Ned Dearborn; Members of Council, J. W.Cjidliiy, William Palmer,
Alexander Wetmore, E. A. Goldman, A*. S. Hitchcock. President
Rose was nominated by the Society as a vice-president of the Washing-
ton Acadeni}' of Sciences.

President Rose appointed as Committee on Publications for 1918:
C. W. Richmond, N. Dearborn, W. L. McAtee, J. H. Riley; as
Committee on Communications: William Palmer, Alexander Wet-
more, R. E. Coker, L. 0. Howard, A. S. Hitchcock.

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

PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 793d meeting was held at the Cosmos Club October 27, 1917;
President Buckingham in the chair; 27 persons present.

Messrs. J. T. Tate and P. D. Foote gave an illustrated paper on
Critical potentials for electrons in metallic vapors. The subject matter
presented was published in this Journal (7: 517. 1917).

Discussion: The paper was discussed by Messrs. Loeb, Silsbee, and
Becker.

By invitation Mr. S. J. Crooker gave an illustrated paper on Experi-
ments on direct-current corona. Electrical discharges in gases at pressures
near that of the atmosphere may be divided into five classes: dark,
glow, brush, spark, and arc discharges. Corona is a glow or brush dis-
charge which appears on wires at high potentials indicating energy dis-
sipation to the surrounding gas. Engineering experiments on the
alternating-current corona have led to a revolution in the design and
construction of high-potential transmission lines, machines, transformers,
and insulators. Scientific investigations, especially on the direct-current
corona, have led to an explanation of the phenomena observed.

A review was given of investigations made at the University of
Illinois on the direct-current corona under various conditions. The
corona discharge has been found to be a complicated function of
the applied voltage; kind of gas and its pressure; size, shape, spacing,
condition, and material of wires; temperature; humidity; etc.

The characteristic discharge is a uniform layer of glow for the positive
wire and evenly spaced beads or brushes for the negative wire. The
critical voltage increases with the radius of the wire and the gas pressure
and is different for the positive and negative wires. A slight increase in
pressure due to ionization occurs on sudden application of potential to

74 proceedings: philosophical society

the wire and is a linear function of the energy appHed for all gases.
In hydrogen the critical voltages are much lower than in air and its
characteristics are such that almost complete I'ectification of alter-
nating currents is possible. When corona is present the potential dis-
tribution curves are much distorted from the theoretical position and
indicate an accumulation of charges near the electrodes. Roughness or
oxidation of the wire lowers the critical point and shifts the characteristic
I-V curves. Different metj^ls also show different characteristics.

A short series spark destroys the bead formation on the negative wire,
produces divergent pencils, brushes or streamers on the positive wire,
and reverses the position of the characteristic I-V curves. A special
hot-lime-cathode Braun tuloe showed the currents through the spark
and the gas to be unidirectional pulses.

The uniform positive glow is explained as ionization by collision of gas
particles near the wire. The negative beads may be due to a combina-
tion of ionization by collision and electron discharge. The series
spark impulses may cause a disruptive action in the surface of the wire
shooting off high velocity positive ions which give rise to the positive
sti'eamers. The apparent destruction of the negative beads is probably
a superimposed building up and decay of the observed negative dis-
charge forms for each spark impulse.

Discussion: The paper was discussed by Messrs. Agnew and L. J.
Briggs.

The 794th meeting was held at the Cosmos Club November 10, 1917;
President Buckingham in the chair; 38 persons present.

By invitation Mr. L. W. McKeehan gave an illustrated paper on
Diffusion of, and recoil from, actinium emanation. Previous work on
the diffusion of actinium emanation and on the distribution of its
active deposit between charged metal plates was reviewed, and the
causes of some uncertainties in the interpretation of the results were
pointed out. Apparatus was designed to avoid the defects thus dis-
covered, and measurements made under a variety of conditions. The
value of the diffusion coefficient of the emanation into air at the mean
temperature of the experiments, 20.7°C., was found to be 0.109
(plus or minus 2 per cent). The distribution of the active deposit
between positive and negative plates at different pressures agreed with
that to be expected on the basis of radioactive recoil from the dis-
integrating emanation, and gave as the range of recoil in air at atmo-
spheric pressure and at 20.7°C. the value 0.0092 cm. A closer theo-
retical study made it seem probable that the recoil paths are riot straight,
and preliminary work by the author and another, using C. T. R. Wil-
son's photographic method for studying the initial portions of a-ray
trails, is now in progress.

Mr. N. E. Dorset gave an illustrated paper on Radium luminous
materials. No abstract.

Discussion: The paper was discussed by Messrs. Bauer and E. B.
Stevenson.

proceedings: philosophical society 75

The 795th ineetiiij>- was held at the Cosmos Club November 24, 1917;
President Buckingham in the chair; 34 persons present.

Messrs. H. E. Merwin and L. H. Adams gave a paper on Poly-
morphism of the oxides of lead. PbO appears in a red, tetragonal form
stable below about 500°, and in a yellow, orthorhombic form stable at
higher temperatures. Inversion with rising temperature is rapid, but
with falling temperature so sluggish that it is the yellow form that is pro-
duced conunercially from molten lead oxide. From hot solution in con-
centrated alkali both forms can be obtained. The yellow crystals
frequently come out first and definitely orient the subsequent red crys-
tals which are found attached to them. Pressure with a point upon
certain faces of the yellow form causes immediate transformation to
the red form at the point of pressui'e and along planes radiating in
definite crystallographic directions. Pressure upon other faces causes
cleavage, with little or no inversion. Heating causes the yellow crystals
to become red before they begin to glow, owing to a large temperature co-
.efficient of light absorption. In powder the red for n is dull j^ellowish.

Discussion: The paper was discussed by Messrs. Buckingham,
White, Swann, and Burgess.

Messrs. G. W. AIorey and E. D. Williamson gave a paper on Quanti-
tative applications of the phase rule. The subject of heterogeneous equi-
librium is usually developed by the aid of the phase rule, together with
the Le Chateliei' principle of mobile equilibrium. The phase mle is
a qualitative corollary of a perfectly general and widely applicable
equation, equation 97 in Willard Gibb's paper ' 'On the equilibrium of
heterogeneous substances,"

vdp = ■r]dt + midij.i + niodix-i-^- .... Wnrf/in
in which v, p, -q, and t denote volume, pressure, entropy, and tempera-
ture, resp'ectivelv ; n is defined as being {—') , e being the energy,

vii the mass of component 1, and the subscripts denote constanc}^ of
volume, entropy, and the other masses respectively.

The application of this equation to several problems was discussed.
Plrst, the method of derivation of the approximations known as the laws
of dilute solutions was exemplified by the derivation of Raoult's law,
stress being laid on the assumptions that it is necessary to make in order
to derive these appi'oximations fi-om the exact relations. The appH-
cation of equation 97 to some purely phase rule problems was then dis-
cussed. First, theorems were developed enabling the determination of
the sequence of the P-T curves that intersect at an invariant point, then
th? question of th? change in slope of the P-T curve of a univariant
equililjrium with change in composition of phases of variable composition
was discussed.

The subject mattei' of this paper has appeared in amplified form in the
January number of the Journal of the American Chemical Society.

Discussion: The paper was discussed by Mr. Sosman.

Donald H, Sweet, Secretary.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Dr. George E. Hale, Director of the Mount Wilson Solar Observa-
tory of the Carnegie Institution, gave the public lecture at the annual
meeting of the trustees of the Institution in Washington, on December
13, 1917. The subject of the lecture was "The development of the
telescope and our expanding conception of the universe."

Prof. H. C. CowLES, of the University of Chicago, and Mr, E. W.
Shaw, of the Geological Survey, spent two weeks of last October
in Arkansas, continuing an investigation of the apparently fictitious
"lakes" which have been shown on the maps of northeastern Arkansas
for the past seventy-five years. Both the geological and the ecological
evidence show that the lakes have had no real existence within a period
of at least one hundred years. Their origin on the early land survey
maps is still a mystery; later maps simply copied the "lakes" from the
land maps or from one another. Messrs. Cowles and Shaw have
devoted several weeks of each summer since 1913 to this investigation.

Mr. J. E. Spurr, formerly of the Geological Survey and for the past
twelve years a consulting mining geologist in New York and Philadel-
phia, has returned to Washington and is residing at 1755 Park Road.

The Delegate of the Royal Swedish Government in the United States,
Dr. Hjalmar Lundbohm, is well known to Washington geologists as
the Director of the iron mines of Kiruna, Sweden, and author of papers
on the geology of these ores. Dr. Lundbohm gave a talk on the Kiruna
ores at the Petrologists' Club on December 18, 1917.

Representative S. D. Fess of Ohio re-introduced on December 11,
1917, the bill for a national univei'sity. The bill provides $500,000 for
such a university for the fiscal years 1918 and 1919. The institution
would be governed by a board of trustees in cooperation with an
advisory council representing the states. It would confer no academic
degrees and would accept only students of postgraduate standing.

The Patent Office Society of Washington has taken an active interest
in the proposed Institute for the History of Science, i realizing the great
aid obtainable from such an institution in the administration of the
patent laws, as well as its general usefulness in aid of scientific
investigation and the teaching of science. The Board of Managers of
the Washington Academy of Sciences has voted its concurrence with the
Patent Office Society in urging the location of the proposed Institute
in Washington.

1 See Science, N. S. 45: 284, 635. 1917.

JOURNAL .

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VIII FEBRUARY 19, 1918 No. 4

PHYSICS. — An optical ammeter. Paul D. Foote, Bureau of
Standards.

The high precision in the measurement of temperature possi-
ble by use of a property designed Holborn-Kurlbaum optical
pyrometer equipped with a suitable pyrometer lamp is well
recognized. If the lamps are operated below 1300° to 1500°C.
the calibration of the pyrometer will not change appreciably
after years of ordinary use. These two factors, accuracy of
photometric settings and constancy in calibration of the lamps,
permit the adaptation of this method of photometry to the
measurement of current. In the present note two forms of cur-
rent measuring instrument are described, one of which is strictly a
hot-wire ammeter with the hot wire at a temperature between
600° and 1500°C., and the other a device for adjusting a current,
by optical methods alone, to any preassigned value. The first
method should prove especially useful for the accurate measure-
ment of alternating current of high frequency.

In order to show what precision may be expected in measure-
ment of current through the pyrometer lamp when the instrument
is sighted on a source of constant brightness we will make the
assumption that a photometric match of the tip of the lamp fila-
ment against the uniform background can be made with an ac-
curacy of 0.5 per cent. This assumption is reasonable for pre-
cision photometry of this type, but even if the accuracy were
only 5 per cent surprisingly accurate measurement of current
can be obtained, as will appear below. The current tempera-
ture relation for a particular lamp used, G. E. No. 8, has the

77

78 foote: an optical ammeter

following form where i is the current in amperes and the abso-
lute temperature of the filament:

(1) ^• = 0.09258 -0.000010719 (t? -273) +0.00000018074 (^-273)2
whence

bi _ [—0.000010719 + 0.0000003615 {d - 273)^] § 8t}

(2)

i i t^

The brightness-temperature relation for this lamp is obtained
from Wien's law as follows :

J \d ^

where Cg = 14350, and J = intensity corresponding to X the
wave length of the monochromatic light employed. In optical
pyrometry this wave length is usually made about X = 0.65^
by the use of a suitable red glass. Combining equations (2)
and (3) one obtains:

, 6i _ [-0.000010719 + 0.0000003615 (^-273)^]^^ X 8J

Thus for a particular value of such as 1273° absolute we have:

(5) - = 0.06 —

i J

Hence, if the photometric match is made with an accuracy of
0.5 per cent the current % is determined with an accuracy of 0.03
per cent, or to three parts in ten thousand. If the photometric
match is made with an accuracy of only 5 per cent, the current
is determined to three parts in one thousand, which is a pre-
cision scarcely to be obtained by an ammeter, especially for
alternating current.

One means for adapting this method of photometry to the
measurement of current is shown in figure 1, where A' is a red
glass screen, A the pupil diaphragm, B the ocular lens, C the
electric lamp connected to the electrical apparatus, F a second
electric lamp, E a diffusing opal glass screen and D a lens focus-
ing upon E and C. The alternating current flowing through C

foote: an optical ammeter

79

brings the lamp to incandescence. By adjusting the rheostat G
the brightness of the lamp C is matched against the image of the
background E illuminated by F. The current required for the
match is read potentiometrically by use of the resistance stand-
ard K. Hence the value of the alternating current is determined
by an auxiliary measurement of direct current. The relation
between the currents thi'ough F and C is obtained in the pri-
mary standardization of the instrument by using a direct cur-
rent thi'ough C and measuring this potentiometrically. For the
highest precision a commutating switch may be used with C,

To electrical Cu-cuit

D

AA

I — VW\AA/\AAWW\AA

m:^

Potentiometer

standard
Resistance

Fig. 1. An optical ammeter.

SO that the standardization with direct current may be performed
immediately following the observations with alternating current.
The range of currents which can be measured by any one system
of lamps exceeds 1:2, and lamps having filaments of varying
sizes may be used for a large range in value of currents. Thus
one lamp may be employed for alternating currents between 0.25
and 0.50 ampere, another lamp between 0.5 and 1 ampere, etc.
Or with the same lamp, the range may be extended by the use of
shunts, although this latter method is probably objectionable
for very high frequency. If the induction effect becomes seri-
ous for the horseshoe filament, a lamp having a straight wire
filament can be used.

^^ hen a suitable magnification system is employed, the diffus-
ing screen E is unnecessary and a magnified image of F may be

80

foote: an optical ammeter

projected directly on the filament C. Another modification of
the above method is obtained by reversing the positions of the
lamps F and C. The above described principle can be employed
for the measurement of alternating voltage, as well as current.
In this case the lamp filament must be of very small wire in order
that the instrument possess a high resistance. For voltages
from 60 to 110 volts a 7.5-watt lamp, which has a resistance of
1600 ohms, should prove satisfactory.

c ur"rp.nt

Fig. 2. Current-temperature relation for two lamps C and F. If a diffusing
screen is used in front of the lamp F, the above curve F refers to the apparent
temperature of the screen.

The apparatus shown in figure 1 may be employed for the
determining of a fixed current of any preassigned value. A
system similar in principle to this has been used, for determining
a fixed temperature but to the writer's knowledge the method
has never been employed for current measurements. Suppose
that the apparent temperature-current relations of the lamps C
and F are represented by the curves shown in figure 2. The
two curves intersect at the point P. Hence, when the lamps C
and F are connected in series and are caused to glow by either
alternating or direct current the two filaments possess the same

Siemens and Halske French Patent No. 466064.

foote: an optical ammeter

81

temperature and are accordingly matched for the current cor-
responding to P. The condition for a match thus defines a
standard current which can be adjusted to any desired value by
the use of a suitable shunt. The match is effected by use of an
adjustable rheostat in series with the two lamps. The precision
obtainable is much less than that possible with the first method
described and depends upon the slopes of the two curves of
figure 2 at the point of intersection. Near the point P these
curves can be assumed to be straight lines. Whence we have:

(6)
(7)

i = a -\- ht for lamp C
i' = a' + h't' for lamp F

From (6) and (7)

(8)

8 it — t ) = _ — — - = 8i, smce i =i

^ b b' bb'

when the lamps are connected in series. Hence the precision
with which the lamps can be matched (i. e., when t — t' = {))
depends upon the relative slopes of the temperature-current
curves for the two lamps. As seen from equation (8) it is of
advantage to have the slopes of the two curves at P differ con-
siderably. There would be no accuracy whatever if the slopes
were nearly the same. Using apparatus assembled as shown
in figure 1, but without paying special attention to the procuring
of lamps having widely different constants, b, the readings given
in table 1 were made by four different observers, one of whom
was unskilled in photometric matching. The accuracy is only
fairly satisfactory, but undoubtedly could be improved by the
proper selection of lamps.

TABLE 1

C. W. K.

E.F. M.

C. 0. F.

p. D. F.

0.933

0.930

0.933

0.934

0.934

0.923

0.931

0.934

0.935

0.929

0.933

0.933

0.933

0.930

0.933

0.933

0.933

0.930

0.933

0.933

0.932

0.932

0.931

0.933

Means 0.9333

0.929

0.9323

0.9333

82 WATSON AND GOOCH: VIVIANITE from FLORIDA

The final mean is 0.9320 ampere, and the average deviation
is 0.18 per cent. The final mean, neglecting the readings of
one observer, is 0.9330 ampere, and the average deviation is
0.06 per cent. Thus this method can be used to define a
standard current with an accuracy of 0.2 per cent.

It may be pointed out that both of the above methods give
results that are practically independent of the temperature of
the room. Hence, an ammeter designed on these principles has
a zero temperature coefficient. '

*

MINERALOGY. — Vivianite from the land pebble phosphate de-
posits of Florida. Thomas L. Watson and Stapleton D.
GoocH, University of Virginia.

introduction

During recent mining operations by the Coronet Phosphate
Company on its property on the Northwest Quarter of Section
34, Township 29, Range 22, about If miles southeast of Plant
City, Florida, fairly abundant crystals of vivianite were exposed
over an area of moderate dimensions. The occurrence was noted
by the junior writer, who is chemist to the Coronet Phosphate
Company, and who kindly sent the senior writer a liberal supply
of the mineral and matrix for study.

Although not a common mineral, vivianite has been observed
both in this country and abroad in a variety of associations,
more especially in veins with the sulphides pyrite and pyrrho-
tite, in bog iron ore deposits, and in clays and marls. In all its
occurrences the mineral is regarded as secondary in origin.

Previous to the recent mining operations by the Coronet
Phosphate Company near Plant City that resulted in exposing
vivianite, the only reference to the occurrence of the mineral in
Florida phosphate deposits found in the literature accessible to
us is a general statement by Matson,i who remarks that vivian-
ite has been noted at several places but is probably rare. In a

1 Matson, G. C. The phosphate deposits of Florida. U. S. Geol. Survey
Bull. 604, p. 85. 1915.

WATSON AND GOOCH: VIVIANITE FROM FLORIDA 83

recent letter to one of us (Watson), Dr. E. H. Sellards, State
Geologist of Florida, states that a specimen of vivianite was
brought to his office in August, 1916, by a citizen of Avon Park,
Desoto County, Florida. The exact locality was not given,
but Dr. Sellards says the mineral presumably came from south
of Avon Park, which would place the locality some distance to
the southeast of the land pebble phosphate area as defined on
the map by Matson.- The vivianite was associated with bog
iron ore.

Vivianite is apparently a rare mineral in the Florida phos-
phate deposits, and so far as we are aware it has not hitherto
been described, although noted in places in association with
phosphate deposits of the Florida type. Because of these facts
and the general character of the vivianite crystals found near
Plant City, the occurrence is regarded of sufficient interest and
importance to warrant a published record.

GEOLOGIC SECTION

The vivianite occurs in a ferruginous or dark-yellow ocherous
matrix of earthy character about 20 feet below the surface at
the contact of the pebble phosphate bed with the "bedrock"
(clay in this section), and partly in each. The vivianite matrix
covers an area of approximately 1000 square feet, with the viv-
ianite-bearing portion limited to about 20 feet square and 2 or
3 feet deep.

The section follows.

Overburden: Thickness in feet

Black sandy soil containing organic matter 2

Sand with very little admixed clay, partly

indurated and colored red by iron oxide 12

Clay, more or less phosphatic 1

Phosphate :

Pebble phosphate with some sand 4-6

Bedrock:

Dark yellow ocherous earth, locally hardened
and red in color, containing besides vivianite
scattered pebbles of phosphate and small
rounded quartz grains 2+

2 Matson, G. C. Op. cit. Folded map in pocket.

84 WATSON AND GOOCH: VIVIANITE FEOM FLORIDA

The contact between the overburden and the phosphate bed
is sharply defined. The land pebble phosphate belongs to the
Bone Valley gravel formation, which is generally regarded as
Pliocene in age, although Matson^ thinks there is some evidence
of the Miocene age of the phosphate. The formation is be-
lieved to be of marine origin,^ the materials of which were prob-
ably deposited under shallow water conditions.

DESCRIPTION OF THE VIVIANITE

The mineral is distributed irregularly through the ocherous
matrix as single crystals and crystal aggregates. Individual
crystals attain a maximum length of 22 mm., are prismatic in
form, usually much elongated, and not infrequently flattened
parallel to 100, with vertical striations sometimes developed.
End faces were not observed, the crystals terminating usually in
rough and uneven surfaces. In the crystal aggregates, the un-
attached end of the individuals sometimes exhibits acicular
form. Fibrous structure, usually radiate or divergent, is some-
times developed.

Perfect cleavage is developed parallel to 010. The luster is
pearly on cleavage faces, vitreous on other faces. Hardness 2;
specific gravity 2.693. Color varies from light or pale green
through blue-green to deep indigo blue, the pale green being pre-
dominant. Streak colorless to faint bluish white, which rapidly
changes to deep blue on exposure. The finely ground powder
after exposure to sunlight for more than 30 days remained deep
blue without any indication of changing to brown as reported by
some writers. Crystals vary from transparent to translucent,
becoming more or less opaque on prolonged exposure.

The optical properties of the pale-green fragments of the
vivianite similar to those yielding the analysis in table 1, kindly
determined for the writers by Mr. E. S. Larsen, gave the follow-
ing results : Optically ( + ) ; 2V large ; dispersion not strong ;
X is normal to 010; Z makes an angle of 28° 30' ± 1° with c.

3 Matson, G. C. Op. cit., p. 69.

'' At Pembroke aggregates of silicified oyster shells have been observed by Dr.
Sellards and the junior writer (Gooch) in the pebble phosphate deposit.

WATSON AND GOOCH : VIVIANITE FROM FLORIDA 85

The refractive indices are :

a = 1.5S0± 0.003, /3= 1.598± 0.003,7 - 1.627± 0.003.

The grains are colorless and nonpleochroic under the micro-
scope. On fine grinding the powder changes to deep blue,
which has similar properties as the pale-green fragments, but is
strongly pleochroic, with A" = deep cobalt blue, Y and Z, color-
less. Fragments of the deeply colored blue crystals show similar
properties and absorption formula as the deep-blue powder of
the pale-green fragments.

A carefully selected sample of transparent pale-green crystals
of the vivianite was analyzed with the results shown in table 1.

TABLE 1

Chemical Analysis of Vivianite (By S. D. Gooch)

FeO 32.64

FeaO. 9.43

P2O5 29 . 99

H2O - 105°C 11 .86

H2O + 105°C 15.84

SiOo 0. 12

CaO 0 . 02

MnO 0.25

TiOs trace

100.15

Specific Gravity 2.693

Careful chemical tests showed the absence of AI2O3, AlgO,
the alkalies (Na20 and K2O), F, SO3, and CO2. Attention is
directed in the analysis to the seemingly high percentage of
ferric oxide. This constituent is invariably present in blue
vivianite in varying quantity, analyses showing it to range up to
33+ per cent. The presence of ferric oxide in the colored varie-
ties of the mineral has been regarded as due to alteration (oxida-
tion), but microscopic examination of the mineral and the very
rapid change in color of the streak or powder, suggested that
the change might possibly be due to inversion from one form to
another.

jMicroscopic examination of the Florida vivianite indicated
that the blue color was not uniform but was developed in or along
streaks, apparently fractures or cleavage planes or both. The

86 WATSON AND GOOCH: VIVIANITE from FLORIDA

very rapid change in color of the streak of vivianite or of its
powder on fine grinding, from white or faint bluish white to deep
or indigo blue, is a well known property of the mineral.

Further chemical study of the mineral was undertaken to deter-
mine, if possible, whether the change in color was due to oxidation
or to inversion. * For this purpose a lot of uniformly colored pale-
green crystals was selected and divided into two portions. The
first portion was accurately weighed, dissolved' without grinding,
and ferrous iron determined. The second portion was reduced
to powder by fine grinding and exposed to sunlight for five hours,
after which a weighed sample of the exposed powder was dis-
solved and the ferrous iron determined. The results follow:

FeO.

UNG ROUND
VIVIANITE

per cent

42.88

FINELY GROUND
VIVIANITE

per cent

38.43

These figures clearly show that fine grinding of the mineral
resulted in the oxidation of 4.45 per cent FeO to Fe203, equiva-
lent to 4.94 per cent FcoOs. A second lot of pale-green crystals
of the Florida vivianite was submitted to Prof. F. P. Dunning-
ton, of the University of Virginia, who found on analysis 40.58
per cent FeO and no Fe203 on dissolving the crystals without
grinding.

The results show beyond reasonable doubt that the presence
of Fe203 in blue vivianite, which is probably the common variety
of the mineral, is due to oxidation and not to inversion. The
rapidity with which oxidation takes place on fine grinding,
manifested in very rapid change of color .(blue), is noteworthy
and of special interest.

COMPOSITION OF THE MATRIX

The matrix is a dark brownish yellow ocherous earth, locally
hardened and red in color, containing besides vivianite irregu-
larly scattered phosphate pebbles of chalky white color with
surfaces partly smooth but usually more or less pitted, and scant
rounded grains of pellucid quartz. It readily dissolves in hot
dilute hydrochloric acid.

WATSON AND GOOCHI VIVIANITE FROM FLORIDA 87

The composition of the matrix is shown in the analysis given
in table 2, The sample analyzed was representative of the ma-
trix, except that care was taken in selecting the sample to avoid
as far as possible the inclusion of phosphate pebbles.

TABLE 2
Chemical Analysis of Vivianite Matrix (By S. D. Gooch) •

Si02 4.17

AUO, 4.96

FesO, 65.20

FeO 1.41

MgO trace

CaO 1 . 68

N^\ 0.16

H2O - 10o°C 4.14

H2O + 105°C 12.72

MnO 0 . 56

TiO. 0.14

PoOo 5 .02

F trace

SOa none

C02 none

100.16

The analysis clearly indicates that the matrix is not a clay,
but an earth composed of the hydrates of iron and aluminum,
chiefly the former, hydrous phosphates of calcium, iron, and
aluminum, and some free quartz. It is characterized by the
essential absence of hydrous silicate minerals, especially kaolinite,
a fact confirmed by microscopic study. The slight insoluble
residue left on boiling a portion of the matrix in dilute hydro-
chloric acid was found to be composed of quartz and not of
silicate minerals.

RELATIONS OF VIVIANITE TO THE ASSOCIATED MINERALS

The principal associated minerals are hydrous oxide of iron,
probably limonite chiefly, calcium phosphate forming the phos-
phate pebbles, and rounded grains of quartz. The relations of
the vivianite to these minerals clearly indicate its later forma-
tion, for the vivianite frequentl}^ incloses phosphate pebbles and

88 bowen: significance of glass-making processes

occasionally a small rounded quartz grain. More often the
quartz grains are inclosed by the phosphate pebbles, whose sur-
faces are frequently pitted with cavities, suggesting the possible
removal of some mineral. Some cavities in several of the peb-
bles examined were filled with vivianite. In no specimens of
the vivianite examined were there indications of inclusions of the
brownish-yellow ocherous material, but some of the vivianite
crystals showed irregularities of surface similar to embayments
which we believe resulted probably from external interference
of the ocher on crystal growth.

ORIGIN OF THE VIVIANITE

The vivianite from the Florida locality is of secondary origin,
formed we believe by the action of ferrous-iron solutions on the
phosphate. Although rated at the present time as a rare mineral
in the land pebble phosphate deposits, the conditions certainly
appear to be favorable to a more general formation and distri-
bution of the mineral in these deposits.

PETROLOGY. — The significance of glass-7naking processes to
the petrologist. N. L. Bowen, Geophysical Laboratory.
(Communicated by A. L. Day.)

The entry of the United States into the war was the occasion
of an enormously increased demand for optical glass to be used
in all kinds of military instruments. The supply of glass from
abroad was almost completely cut off. In the effort to meet
the demand by domestic production many problems were met
with for whose solution the advice and assistance of scientific
men seemed desirable. Glasses are, for the most part, silicate
'mixtures that have been melted at a comparatively high tem-
perature and then cooled to the glassy state. Since the prin-
cipal activity of the Geophysical Laboratory has been the study
of the behavior of silicates at high temperatures, it was expected
that the experience of that organization might be of material
assistance, and its services were therefore called upon. I was
one of the several sent to the glass plant of the Bausch and Lomb

bowen: sigxificaxce of glass-making processes 89

Optical Company, where we went hoping not merely to be of
assistance in solving these urgent problems but expecting also
to learn something of more general interest concerning the be-
havior of silicate liquids when handled on the comparatively
large scale of the glass plant.

One of the principal requirements of optical glass is homo-
geneity. A fragment of glass to be used for a lens or prism
must have the same refractive index and therefore the same
chemical composition in all its parts, and from every pot of glass
made a considerable proportion is rejected because it fails to
fulfil this requirement. Naturally, the causes of inhomogeneity
are diligently sought for, with the hope of removing them or re-
ducing them to a minimum, and it may be stated that these causes
are now pretty well understood. To those interested in the causes
of inhomogeneity (differentiation) in masses of silicate rocks the
factors that lead to inhomogeneity in these artificial silicate
melts are perhaps of sufficient interest to merit description.

Optical glass is made in a great many varieties with a wide
range of composition. SiOj and B2O3 are the principal acidic oxides,
and the alkalies with CaO, PbO, BaO, and ZnO are the princi-
pal basic oxides, though a number of other oxides enter into the
composition of special glasses. The alkalies, lime, and baryta
usually go into the batch in the form of carbonates; lead and
zinc as oxides; and silica as quartz sand. The carefully mixed
batch is usually fed in several instalments into the pots, which
have already been heated to the melting temperature. Factors
tending to produce inhomogeneity immediately set to work.
Some constituents of the batch are readily fusible, others, es-
pecially the sand, are quite refractory. The more fusible por-
tions quickly form a liquid which tends to filter downward
through the porous structure formed by the grains of the more
refractory material. This action is especially marked in the
heavy glasses rich in lead.

As typically developed the result may give every appearance
of liquid immiscibility and the formation of two liquid layers.
The two layers may be sharply marked off from each other and
may so persist throughout the run. But that we have here no

90 bowen: significance of glass-making processes

true case of liquid immiscibility and that the persistence of two
layers is due entirely to the slowness of diffusion is shown by
the fact that appropriate stirring will completely eliminate this
layering and give a single homogeneous liquid. When real im-
miscibility occurs in the glass pot, as it does under certain cir-
stances, it is quite a different matter. If the alkaline carbonates
used in the batch contain a considerable amount of chloride or
sulfate, these salts form a separate liquid layer which floats on
top of the glass, forming the ''salt water" of the glass-maker.
No amount of stirj-ing, however vigorous, will render such a
mass homogeneous. This immiscibility between silicate, on the
one hand, and sulfate or chloride, on the other, serves but to
emphasize that immiscibility between silicate and silicate is not
encountered in the whole range of glass compositions.

This process of settling down of heavy liquid through the
porous mass of the batch can take place only at a stage when the
mass is mostly solid. A factor tending to produce a closely re-
lated result comes into play at the stage when the mass is mostly
liquid. Of all the ingredients of the batch the sand is usually
the last material to dissolve. The sand grains tend to rise in
the liquid and thus to render the upper parts more siliceous and
of lower density. This action results in a continuous density
gradient rather than in a sharp division into two layers. That
it is not a spontaneous arrangement of the liquid according to
the Gouy-Chaperon phenomenon is shown by the fact that as
time goes on diffusion tends to lessen the gradient rather than
to increase it.

Figure 1 is a photograph of a fragment of glass taken from
such a pot, the straight edge being part of the original upper
surface of the glass. Two parallel plane faces were cut normal
to this surface and the specimen was photographed in a bright
light close to a white screen. Under these conditions heavy
shadows are cast by the globules of low refracting glass sur-
rounding the silica grains and by the tails of similar material
pointing downward from them. It is obvious that silica is
continually being transferred towards the top.

There can be no doubt of the correctness of this explanation
of the density gradient as a result of the floating of sand grains,

bowen: significance of glass-making processes

91

for fortunately the action can be interrupted and observed at an
intermediate stage. When the pot is removed at such a stage
and the glass is chilled, sand grains are found suspended in the
glass. That they were rising slowly in the liquid and dissolving
at the same time is shown by the fact that pointing downward
from each grain there is a tail of glass of lower refractive index
than the surrounding glass.

Fifi. 1. Glass containing rising silica grains. Natural si^e.

In a former paper' I criticized the interpretation that has
been offered of the result of a certain experiment by Morozewicz.
The glass from his experiment showed a density and composi-
tion gradient, with the heavier portion at the bottom of the pot,
and this arrangement had been explained as the result of the
Gouy-Chaperon action. I offered the suggestion that the ar-

' The later stages of the ei'oluiion nf the igneous rocks. Journ. Geol., Suppl.
to Vol. 23, p. .5. 1915.

92 bowen: significance of glass-making processes

rangement was due to differential melting with the sinking of
heavy liquid at an early stage and the rising of silica grains at a
later stage, though I had not at that time seen or studied the
phenomenon. A careful study of the behavior of the ingred-
ients of a glass batch leaves no question as to the correctness of
this interpretation. There is, then, no experimental basis for
the belief in an appreciable result from the Gouy-Chaperon
action in a small pot and, therefore, no present reason for as-
signing to it any greater importance in rock magmas than that
which theory would indicate.

There are two other factors making for inhomogeneity in
glass: the solution of the pot, and the volatilization of certain
ingredients from the surface of the liquid. No doubt the cor-
responding processes, namely, solution of the surrounding rocks
and escape of material into them, have their place in magmatic
differentiation, but if their quantitative effect in the glass-pot is
any criterion they cannot be regarded as approaching in impor-
tance the two processes (sinking of liquid and floating of silica)
that have been described above. However, the conditions are so
different that one should be careful not to push the analogy too far
in these cases. It may be safely stated, however, that, contrary
to certain claims that have been made, glass-making processes
offer no support for the belief in liquid immiscibility among
silicates, nor for the belief in a significant density stratification
in a mass wholly liquid. They do, however, suggest the impor-
tance of gravity acting on a mass partly liquid and partly solid,
and emphasize two stages, (1) that at which there is much
liquid and little solid, and (2) that at which there is little liquid
and much solid. The effects of these processes in magmas, — ■
sinking of crystals at an early stage of crystallization and squeez-
ing out of residual liquid at a late stage, — have been discussed in
some detail elsewhere.^

The association of gabbro with granite or of basalt with rhyo-
lite, and the complete absence of intermediate types that is
often noted, have been held by some to necessitate some sort
of discontinuous differentiation, whereas crystallization-differen-
tiation should, for the most part, be continuous. Evans has
offered the suggestion that in aqueous magmas there may be a

2 Op. cit. *

bowen: significance of glass-making processes 93

separation into two liquid portions, the lighter of which contains
most of the water together with much silica, alumina, and
the alkalies.^ This is, of course, a possibility not altogether to
be excluded, nevertheless all the available evidence is against it.
Such experimental work as has been done hitherto on aqueous
silicate melts gives no indication of a tendency towards a separa-
tion into two liquid layers.^ But the range of this work is limited
as yet and one must fall back largely upon examination of the
geological evidence. Over against the lack of types intermedi-
ate between gabbro and granite (granophyre, micropegmatite)
in some localities should be placed the abundance of intermediate
types elsewhere. Again, if we examine the gabbro of a gabbro-
granophyre occurrence we almost invariably find a certain
amount of the granophyre occurring in the gabbro, frozen in as
Daly puts it.^ And when we examine the manner of occurrence of
this frozen-in material we find nothing to lead us to believe that
it represents an immiscible liquid. It does not form globular
masses, large and small, scattered through the gabbro. It occu-
pies crj^stallization interstices with all the marks of a crystalliza-
tion residuum. Add to this the fact that it corresponds in com-
position with the kind of crystallization-residuum one is led to
expect from experimental studies, and the reasons for appealing to
liquid immiscibility may be regarded as of insignificant weight.
Many petrologists regard liquid immiscibility as the ready solu-
tion of all difficulties. Realizing that present evidence is against
it, some are led to ''hope" that it may yet be experimentally
demonstrated in silicate magmas. Until then one must re-
gard its occurrence in silicate magmas as resting on pure assump-
tion, an assumption that is in most cases not even helpful, and
probably never preferable to the well-supported theory of
crystallization-differentiation.''

' J. W. Evans. Discussion of paper by G. W. Tyrrell on The picrite-tes-
chenite sill of Lugar. Quart. Journ. Geol. Soc. 72: 130. 1917.

■* G. W. MoREY and C. N. Fenner. The ternary system H20-K2SiOi-Si02.
Journ. Am. Chem. Soc. 39: 1173. 1917.

5 Igneous Rocks and Their Origin, p. 241.

^ I would be the last, however, to claim complete miscibility between sul-
fides and silicates. Cf. Tolman a\d Rogers {A study of the magmatic sulfid
ores. Stanford Univ. Publ. 1916, p. 10).

ABSTRACTS

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

GEOLOGY. — Strontianite deposits near Barstow, California. Adolph
Knopf. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin, 660-1. Pp. 14. 1918.

Strontianite in economically important quantity has recently been
found near Barstow, San Bernardino County, California. The for-
mation in which the deposits occur consists of a series of lake and
terrestrial beds of Upper Miocene age. A threefold subdivision of
the beds may easily be recognized. The strontium deposits are re-
stricted to the middle subdivision, which is made up chiefly of grayish-
green clay in thick beds. In places reefs of algal limestone are promi-
nent, and obviously this part of the formation was laid down in a lake.

Strontianite and strontium-bearing rock have been found at a large
number of places in a belt about 2 miles long. They occur as layers
that lie parallel to the bedding of the inclosing clays and are distrib-
uted at intervals through a thickness of several hundred feet. The
strontianite occurs in two forms — as fibrous masses of resinous color
and luster and as dense, exceedingly fine grained gray or drab material,
which in appearance exactly resembles limestone. The two varieties
occur separately as a I'ule, but in some deposits they are intermingled,
spherulites of coarse resinous strontianite being irregularly scattered
through gray aphanitic strontianite rock. Some celestite is present in
the lower-grade material of the district.

The thickest body of pure spherulitic strontianite that had been
found at the time of visit is 14 inches thick, but the gray aphanitic
strontianite rock had been found in layers as much as 3 feet thick.

The strontianite deposits were formed by the replacement of the
lacustral limestone beds that are interstratified in the clays. They
thus differ widely from the only other commercially productive stron-
tianite deposits — those of the Miinster district, Westphalia — which
consist of a series of steeply inclined veins cutting horizontal marine

94

abstracts: geology 95

calcareous shales of Upper Cretaceous age. They resemble them in
one fundamental respect, however, in that they were formed later
than the strata that inclose them.

GEOLOGY. — Geology and water resources of Big Smoky, Clayton, and
Alkali Spring valleys, Nevada. Oscar E. Meinzer. U. S. Geo-
logical Survey Water-Supply Paper 423. Pp. 167, with maps
and other illustrations. 1917.

This paper describes in detail three typical desert basins of the
Basin-and-Range Province, with respect to their physiographic devel-
opment and the absorption, circulation, and discharge of their ground
waters.

Two cycles of erosion are shown in the Toyabe Range by two strongly
contrasting types of topography. After the region had been eroded to
a stage of maturity, probably late in the Tertiary period, it was faulted
and uplifted, and the resulting escarpment was attacked by the streams,
producing a very rugged front. Extensive faulting, continuing until
recent time, is shown not only by precipitous mountain fronts but also
by observed displacements, by poHshed surfaces, and by numerous
escarpments in the valley fill. Evidences of glaciation, previously
reported, are believed not to exist.

Elaborate systems of beach ridges or embankments, the largest
nearly 50 feet high, mark the outKnes of two Pleistocene lakes, desig-
nated by the author as Lake Toyabe and Lake Tonopah. Lake
Toyabe, when at its highest level, was about 40 miles long, 9 miles in
maximum width, and covered an area of approximately 225 square
miles, or 18 per cent of the drainage basin in which it lay. Lake
Tonopah, when at its highest level, was about 22 miles long, 5^ miles
in maximum width, and approximately 85 square miles in area, or
only about two-fifths the area of Lake Toyabe. This area was only
4.2 per cent of the to^al drainage basin tributary to the lake — a per-
centage less than one-fourth as great as that of Lake Toyabe.

The most important contribution of the report is a quantitative
discussion of the origin, absorption, circulation, and discharge of the
ground water, and of the criteria for determining areas of ground-water
discharge. The amount of absorption was estimated chiefly by meas-
uring stream flow at successive points on a part of the 54 small streams
that discharge into Big Smok}^ Valley, and deducting for evaporation
and transpiration from the wetted areas. The total annual supply of
ground water was estimated to be several tens of thousands of acre-
feet. The criteria for determining areas of discharge are (1) the mois-

96 abstracts: paleontology

ture of the soil and the position of the water table, (2) the appearance
of soluble salts at the surface and the distribution of these salts in the
soil, and (3) the distribution of plants of certain species that feed on
ground water. On the map are shown the areas of discharge (aggre-
gating 130,000 acres), and also the depths to the water table predicted
on the basis of these areas.

Alkali Spring Valley illustrates the other type of desert basin in
which there is no ground-water discharge, the facihties for under-
ground leakage apparently being great enough to dispose of all the
water that is absorbed.

Big Smoky Valley contains three distinct types of ground water,
which are genetically related to the geologic formations from which
they are derived. The processes of concentration were different in
the lacustrine epoch than they are at the present time, and they differ
in the clay cores below the playas from those in the surrounding zones
of active discharge. 0. E. M.

PALEONTOLOGY. — Orhitoid foraminifera of the genus OrtJwphrag-
mina jrom Georgia and Florida. Papers by C. Wythe Cooke
and J. A. Cushman. U. S. Geological Survey Professional Paper
108-G. Pp. 16, with 5 plates. 1917.
The first paper, by C. W. Cooke, describes several localities on ,
Chipola River, Florida, Flint River, Georgia, and Suwannee River,
Florida, at which species of Orthophragmina havfe been found in the
Ocala limestone and enumerates the species of other organisms that
are associated with them. The occurrence in the Ocala limestone of
the genus Orthophragmina, which elsewhere appears to be restricted
to the Eocene, is corroborative evidence of the Eocene age of that
formation.

The second paper, by J. A. Cushman, describes and figures 6 new
species and one new variety of Orthophragmina^. C. W. C.

ORNITHOLOGY. — Second annual list of proposed changes in the

A.O.U. check-list of North American birds. Harry C. Ober-

HOLSER. The Auk 34: 198-205, April, 1917.

This is a resume of recent ornithological activities not already treated

in the American Ornithologists' Union Check-List of 1910, its supple-

,ment, and the First Annual List of Changes in the same. It consists

of additions, subtractions, rejections, and the changes in generic,

specific, and subspecific names made for zoological reasons, purely

nomenclatural questions being excluded. In the present list there

abstracts: ornithology* 97

are added 13 genera recently described or raised from subgenera; one
species and 14 subspecies either described as new, revived, or recently
captured within the boundaries of North America. Two species are
eliminated as synonymous, and one proposed subspecies is rejected for
the same reason. Furthermore there are many changes in names due
to the recognition of additional genera, the descriptions as new of the
North American representatives of wide-ranging species, the replacing
of later by earlier names, and similar causes. This brings the subject
down to December 31, 1916, and annual lists of the same character
are to follow hereafter. H. C. O.

ORNITHOLOGY. — A cooperative bird census at Washington, D. C.
Harky C. Oberholser. Wilson Bull. 39: 18-29. March, 1917.
The importance of counting the actual numbers of birds over given
areas, particular!}^ during the breeding season, has already been shown.
Similar censuses during the height of the spring migration are also of
considerable value, both as a basis for comparison of the relative num-
bers of the different species in the same year and of the same species
in different years. Such a count was made by 15 local ornithologists
in the vicinity of Washington, D. C, on May 12, 1913. The country
investigated consisted of the region within 20 miles of the city of Wash-
ington and comprised the valleys of the Potomac and Anacostia rivers,
together with tributary streams and adjacent valleys. The routes of
the 13 parties, each of which covered a distance of from 5 to 55 miles,
traversed the country in all directions from Washington; and the
results were very interesting. One fact of distribution was emphasized
by these trips, which is that almost all the best places for birds about
Washington lie in the moi-e or less immediate valleys of the Potomac
and Anacostia rivers. On this day the total number of species ob-
served by all the parties was 129, of individuals actually counted,
1257. The largest number of species noted by any individual was
91, and the largest number of birds 3049. As the year 1913 was not
particularly good for birds, this record is likely to be much increased
by future observations. Three species, Podilymbus podiceps, Totanus
flavipes, and Dendroica palmarum hypochrysea, noted on this clay, had
not previously been observed so late in the spring. The six most
numerous species, in the order of their abundance, were, rather sur-
prisingly, as follows : Passer domesticus hostilis, Hirundo rustica erythro-
gastris, Iridiprocne hicolor, Melospiza melodia melodia, Chaetura pelagica,
and Lucar carolinensis. H. C. O.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

The Board of Managers, at its meeting on January 21, 1918, adopted
the budget for the year 1918, increasing the allotments to the Journal
and the Committee on Meetings. The appointment of the following
committees was announced:

Executive Membership Meetings

L. J. Briggs Paul Bartsch W. F, G. Swann

R. B. SosMAN C. L. Alsberg C. S. Hudson

WiLLL\M Bowie G. W. Cook K. F. Kellerman

G. K. Burgess W. J. Humphreys E. B. Phelps

A. C. Spencer T. W. Vaughan E. W. Shaw

Prof. Fridtjof Nansen, of the University of Kristiania, Norway,
now in Washington as Minister Plenipotentiary of Norway on special
mission to the United States of America, has been elected an honorary
member of the Academy.

Messrs. 0. H. Tittmann and W. D. Hunter were elected vice-
presidents to represent the National Geographic Society and the En-
tomological Society of Washington, respectively.

Robert B. Sosman, Corresponding Secretary.

GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON
The 320th meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, April 25, 1917.

informal communications

F. E. Matthes read a greeting from Prof. Emmanuel de Margerie.
former president of the Societe Geographique de France, to the men of
science in America, acclaiming with enthusiasm the entrance of the
United States into the war.

REGULAR program

G. P. Merrill: The rarer constituents of meteorites.

G. F. Loughlin: The relation of copper and zinc in the carbonate ore
at Ophir, Utah. (Published in U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 690-A.)
F. E. Matthes: The preglacial history of Yosemite Valley.

The 321st meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, May 9, 1917.

9S

proceedings: geological society 99

INFORMAL COMMUNICATIONS

H. yi. Ami: Notes on the geology of Asia Minor. The general geolo-
gic features were outlined with special reference to large undeveloped
mineral resources.

REGULAR PROGRAM

Willis T. Lee : Geology and scenery of the Rocky Mountain National
Park.

E. 0. Ulrich: The limitations of fossils in correlation.

T. Wayland Vaughan: Summai'y of 7'esults of study of marine
bottom samples from Murray Island, Australia, the Bahamas, and
Florida.

The 322d meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, November 28, 1917.

INFORMAL communications

B. S. Johnson: Chalmersite, CuFciS^, a new ore of copper. This
mineral occurs extensively in greenstone in several localities in Alaska.
It is associated with pyrrhotite and chalcopyrite. A satiny sheen due
to cleavage is one of its distinguishing characteristics.

R. C. Wells: Tungstenite, disulphide of tungsten, a new mineral.
The disulphide of tungsten, WS2, was found in material from the Emma
mine, Little Cottonwood district, Utah, associated with pyrite, tetra-
hedrite, and galena. The mineral resembles graphite and shows slicken-
sided surfaces but has a specific gravity of about 7.4. It is decomposed
by aqua regia or by fusion with niter. It occurs massive, is dull to
brilliant metallic in luster, is gray in color, and its hardness is about 2.5.

R. W. Stone: The developmeyii of valuable magnesite deposits in the
State of Washington. This material is suitable for replacing imported
magnesite for use in paper-making and for refractories. The signifi-
cance of previously reported analyses of this material was not appre-
ciated, and its rediscovery and recognition as a commercially valuable
substance was purely accidental.

REGULAR program

Eugene Wesley Shaw: The "lakes" of northeastern Arkansas, and
some features of the work of the Mississippi River. Northeastern Arkansas
has, according to all maps of the region, numerous large and small
lakes. As a matter of fact most of these lakes are fictitious and many
are not even swamps. The "lakes" are generally believed to" have
been caused by the New Madrid earthquake of 1811-12 and are widely
known as "sunk lands." However, in most of them the surface has
not been depressed ; they do not have a basin form bilt instead are as
high as surrounding country. All are in the heavily forested bottom
lands of the lower Mississippi. In this forest there are natural openings
that are swampy and some of them have shallow temporary or perma-

100 proceedings: geological society

nent lakes. Such openings are found lioth inside and outside the areas
mapped as lakes, and other features, such as low ridges and depressions
and soil varieties, show Httle relation to the ''lakes" or to their "shore
lines."

The "lakes" were first reported and mapped by the original public
land Survey oi about seventy-five years ago. The field work, like
much other public land surveying, was done under contract at a price
perhaps too low for thorough and honest work. The early maps have
been copied unquestioningly by all later ones, though strange to say-
there have been numerous later field examinations by various organi-
zations, some purporting to be fairly detailed surveys of one sort or
another, and few if any maps state that they are based on the land
survey.

Ownership of the lands represented as lakes hangs on the correctness
of the original survey. If it was correct and the lakes have become
filled or drained their fertile beds must now be parceled out among
those owning bordering lands — the riparian claimants. If, however,
the old surveys were erroneous, the lands are now, it is said by lawyers,
the property of the nation and open to homestead. Up to about 1910
no one claimed the lands — perhaps because they were poorly protected
by levees and were more or less infested with malaria but perhaps to a
large extent because of the reputation given Arkansas by songs and
tales that have led homeseekers to pass over this rich State for less pro-
ductive lands farther west. As a matter of fact few if any lands yield
heavier crops of corn and cotton than those of northeast Arkansas, this
area seeming to be too far north for serious difficulty with the boll
weevil. In the past five years or since the question of title to the
"lakes" was first raised, squatters have taken possession so far as al-
lowed and there has been much contention between them and the
riparian claimants.

The Department of Justice has brought suit to quiet the title to the
lands in the government and since there is almost no one living who
can testify as to whether or not the lands were lakes at the time of the
old survey, the waiter has been called upon at various times to deter-
mine if possible by the use of geology and physiography whether or not
one or another of the areas was a lake at the time of the old survey.
Ecologist H. C. Cowles was employed to gather for the same purpose
the testimony of the trees of the immense hardwood forests that cover
the "lakes" and surrounding land.

At first it seemed probable that the geologic and ph^^siographic evi-
dence would be indecisive because the whole region has been subject to
annual overflow up to the time the levees were completed (and occa-
sionally since) and hence to more or less erosion and sedimentation.
It was found, however, that with the exception of the natural levee belts
bordering the Mississippi and the larger bayous and other tributaries,
erosion and sedimentation proceed very slowly and hence the presence
or absence of basins, shore features, lake deposits, etc., could be used.

• proceedings: geological society 101

Although there are probably more low swampy areas inside the
meander or "shore " lines of the lakes than outside and in places a bayou
or other natural feature follows one of the lines for a part of its course,
there is with one or two possible exceptions not only no recognizable
lake basin, shore features, or lake deposits but for the most part no re-
lation between the meander lines and any boundary of any featui'e or
deposits, all manner of natural boundaries crossing the "shore lines" at
all angles and all kinds of the natural features and deposits of the region
being found both inside and outside of the "lakes."

The testimony of the trees, according to Dr. Cowles, has a similar
bearing. The forest consists of oak, ash, elm, hickory, cottonwood,
pecan, various gums, cypress, locust, maple, hackberry, sycamore, etc.,
large proportions of which are over sevent,y-five years old and none of
which, according to the same authority, will germinate and grow in a
lake — not even excepting cypress. The spur roots are with rare excep-
tions at the surface indicating no practically erosion or sedimentation.

Here and there are small tracts in which the timber was shaken down
by the Xew ]\ladrid earthquakes of 1811-12 and the surface being de-
pressed, elevated, covered with the sand of "sand blows" or otherwise
changed, a different society of trees has sprung up — all less than 105
years old and some growing astride, the still remaining fallen trunks.
In such places events of the past century are clearly recorded.

♦Perhaps the most important inferences concerning the work of the
Mississippi River are (1) that it is probably filling and not deepening
this part at least of its valley and (2) that throughout most of the flood
plain the rate of sedimentation is very slow — not more than a few inches
per century.

E. S. Bastin: Genesis of the ores at Tonopah, Nevada.

The 323d meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, December 19, 1917.

INFORMAL COMMUNICATIONS

Lawrence LaForge: The occurrence of "Spri7igs"m place names in
the United States. The word is more common in the Southern States.
The relation of the place names to glaciation, limestone formations,
habits of the people, etc., was referred to.

Discussion: David White called attention to the remedial qualities
of springs and the disposition of the people of the South to resort to
springs. T. W. Vaughan spoke of nameless springs throughout the
Southern States and their association with Limestone formations.
0. E. Meinzer referred to the large springs along fault scarps in Nevada,
and W. B, Heroy spoke of the ratio of area of a state to the number
of place-names containing the word "Springs."

regular trogram

Sidney Paige: Coal and iron in the terms of peace.

H. E, Merwin, Secretary.

102 proceedings: philosophical society

PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 47th annual meeting (796th regular meeting) was held at the
Cosmos Club, December 8, 1917; President Buckingham in the
chair; 29 persons present. The minutes of the 46th annual meeting
were read. The report of the Secretaries was read by Mr, Sweet.
One member, Thomas W. Smillie, died during the year, one member
resigned, and one member was dropped. Two members were trans-
ferred to the absent list, and two members were transferred from the
absent to the active list. Twenty-four new members were elected.
The present active membership is 170. Fifteen regular meetings were
held, at which 37 formal and 7 informal communications were
presented. A complete revision of the by-laws was adopted on No-
vember 24. According to the new by-laws the functions heretofore
performed by the Executive Committee and the General Committee
are concentrated in the General Committee. At the same time the
General Committee is reduced to thirteen members.

The Treasurer's report through December 1, 1917, was read by
Mr. Mueller. The total receipts for the year, including cash balance
of $443.66, were $2,537.29; the total disbursements were $2,353.16;
cash balance on December 1, 1917, $184.13. The total par value of
the investments now held by the society is $12,500: The report of
the Auditing Committee, consisting of Messrs. Mauchly and Bearce,
was read by Mr. Mauchly. This committee reported that the state-
ments in the Treasurer's report had been found correct. The reports
of the Auditing Committees and the Treasurer were ordered accepted
and placed on file.

The report of the Committee of Tellers, consisting of Messrs. Sils-
bee and White, was read by Mr. White. A total of 43 ballots was
received. From among those placed in nomination bj^ the informal
ballot, the following officers were duly elected for the ensuing year:
President, G. K. Burgess; Vice Presidents, W. J. Humphreys, R. B.
Sosman; Corresponding Secretary, E. C. Crittenden; Recording Secre-
tary, H. L. Curtis; Treasurer, E. F. Mueller; General Committee,
J, A. Fleming, W. F. G. Swann (two year term) and R. L. Faris, W. P.
White (one year term).

The rough minutes of the meeting were read and approved.

Donald H. Sweet, Secretary.

The 797th meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, December 22,
1917; President Burgess in the chair; 39 persons present. The min-
utes of the 795th meeting were read in abstract and approved.

The paper of Messrs. E. D. Williamson and L. H. Adams on Meas-
urement of the compressibilities of solids under hydrostatic pressure up to
12,000 megabars was presented by Mr. E. D. Williamson. The paper
was illustrated by lantern slides. Specimens on which measurements
had been made were exhibited and some of the actual apparatus shown.

The compressibilities of the principal earth constituents are of

proceedings: philosophical society 103

interest in a large number of geophysical problems but, owing to the
difficulties that offer themselves in the experimental determination,
practicalh' no reliable data are available. This paper described a
method by means of which the volume-change under hydrostatic
pressure of any solid may be determined with an accuracy of about
one jjart in a hundred million of the original volume of the solid. Re-
sults were presented for the metals gold, copper, silver, aluminum,
zinc, tin, cadmium, lead, and bismuth; for the alloys brass, cast-iron,
and tin-bismuth eutectic; the minerals halite, quartz, orthoclase,
labradorite, oligoclase, pyrite, mica, and enstatite. The pressure
range was from 2000 to 12,000 megabars (1 megabar = 0.987 atmo-
sphere) .

In carrying out the determination the solid, surrounded by a liquid
such as kerosene, was enclosed in a thick-walled steel bomb fitted with
a movable, leak-proof piston and pairs of simultaneous readings were
taken of (1) the displacement of the piston and (2) the pressure.

The P-AV graphs were found to be nearly straight lines, but there
exists a slight though distinct curvature such that the graphs are con-
cave to the pressure axis. For the more compressible substances, the
curvature is suffi<3ient to allow of a rough estimate of the change of
compressibility with pressure. This change amounts to as much as
10 per cent of the value at thg initial pressure for the most compres-
sible substances.

The average compressibility of the earth at the surface was calcu-
lated to be 1.63 parts per million per megabar.

Discussion: The paper was discussed by Messrs. Sw^ann, White,
and Burgess.

A paper by Messrs. N. S. Osborne and M. S. Van Dusen upon
Latent and specific heats of ammonia was presented by Mr. M. S. Van
Dusen. The paper was illustrated by lantern slides.

Using a calorimeter of the aneroid type, specially designed for the
peculiar conditions, the specific heat and latent heat of vaporization
of ammonia have been determined throughout the temperature interval
— 40° to + 40°C. The apparatus used has been previousl}' described
in detail before the Society. It consists essentially of a cylindrical
metal shell suspended within a thermally controlled metal jacket.
The metal shell or calorimeter, containing the ammonia to be investi-
gated, is provided with an electrical heating coil and a platinum resis-
tance thermometer.

In the measurements of specific heat two independent methods
were used, each of which avoids sources of error present in the other.
In the first method, the heat added to a fixed amount confined in the
calorimeter under saturation conditions and the resulting change in
temperature are measured By using data for the specific volumes of
the two phases and the latent heat of vaporization, the corrections for
vapor are applied, giving the specific heat of the saturated liquid.

In the second method the calorimeter is kept full of liquid at a con-
stant pressure. The heat added to the variable amount in the calorim-

fe

104 proceedings: philosophical society

eter and the resulting change in temperature are measured. A cor-
rection for the heat withdrawn in the expelled liquid is determined
by special experiments. By the use of data for the heat of pressure
variation of the liquid obtained from separate measurements, the
corrections for pressure variation are applied, the result being a second
determination of the specific heat of the saturated liquid.

The greatest difference between the mean results of both methods
and the results of either method as represented by empirical equations
is less than 1 part in 1000.

In the measurements of latent heat the jacket temperature was kept
constant while a measured amount of ammonia was evaporated,
slightly superheated, and withdrawn from the calorimeter. The
approximate amount of heat required to effect this change was added
electrically, the small balance being due to thermal leakage and change
in temperature of the system, both of which were kept small and were
measured. Analysis of the process occurring in the calorimeter during
an experiment leads to a method of calculation whereby data from
other sources than the direct observations enter only in the computation
of correction terms, which can be made small by careful manipulation.

The result of each of the determinations agrees with the mean result
as expressed by means of an empirical equation within 1 part in 1000.

Discussion: The paper was discussed by Messrs. White, Burgess,
SosMAN, and Bichowski.

The 798th meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, January 5, 1918;
Vice-President Humphreys in the chair; 54 persons present. The
minutes of the 797th meeting were read in abstract and approved.

Mr. 0. S. Adams presented a paper on Lambert's conformal conic
projection. The paper was illustrated by lantern slides.

Since the spheroidal surface of the earth is nondevelopable, it is
impossible to make a perfect map of a section of any extent upon a
plane surface. The best that can be done then is to choose an approx-
imation that may preserve the features desired in the proposed map'.
A projection is called conformal or orthomorphic when any infinitesimal
element of the map is exactly similar to the element that it represents.
The Lambert conformal conic projection is admirably suited to the
mapping of any region that has no great extent in latitude. The
parallels become concentric circles and the meridians become radii of
this system of circles. The projection is for this reason very easily
constructed and thus fulfils one of the practical requirements for a
projection. With this method of projection, a map could be con-
structed of the United States that would not be in error of scale in
any part by more than 1.2 per cent. The fact that angles are pre-
served and that the error of scale is within the limits of scaling makes
its use in France of great service at the present time. The projection
is of interest historically because it was originated by Johann Heinrich
Lambert in 1772, and afterwards fully discussed by Gauss. Since
the projection is conformal, it is especially interesting to mathemati-

proceedings: philosophical society 105

cians as an example of the application of the theory of functions of a
complex variable. This simple example of the broad subject of con-
formal mapping of one surface upon another deserves careful considera-
tion l)y all who wish to get a thorough grasp of the subject that is so
important in the natural sciences as well as in pure mathematics. x\ll
honor is due the Alsatian Lambert for his perception of the important
features of such a method of projection. However, even he did not
dream of the importance that the conformal relationship was to assume
both in pure and applied mathematics.

Discussion: The paper was discussed by Messrs. Sosman, Harris,
LiTTLEHALEs, and Jones.

]Mr. William Bow^ie presented a paper on Primary triangulation and
precise leveling as done by the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey.
The paper was illustrated by lantern slides and by three reels of moving
pictures which showed the instruments used in the precise leveling and
primary triangulation and the amount of work that has been done in
the United States, and also the methods of carrying on the various
operations.

There have been completed to date about 38,000 miles of precise
leveling and 14,200 linear miles of primary triangulation and primary
traverse. These operations give standard elevations and geographic
positions throughout the country which are used by surveyors and
engineers for the control of their operations, especially in the map
makmg of the country. The work is of particular value in State and
international boundary surveys.

Three reels of motion pictures were shown; one gave an excellent
idea of the methods employed by an up to date precise leveling party.
As now conducted, the precise level is mounted on a small motor veloci-
pede which runs on the railroad track. The instrument is mounted
on the car in the morning and it is not dismounted until the day's
work is completed. It is not even removed when the car is lifted from
the track to allow trains to pass. The recording of the rod readings
ig now done on a listing adding machine which is mounted on a second
motor car.

Improvements recently made in the methods of organizing and
conducting the precise level party made it possible to increase greatly
the rapidity with which this work is done. The maximum progress
made by a precise leveling part}^ in any one month was 159.6 miles of
completed line. Each mile of this was leveled over at least twice.
The total number of single miles of leveling in that month was 324.
As much as 20 miles of single line were leveled in one day of seven
hours of actual observing.

The second reel showed the erection of the towers or signals which
are used in triangulation in a wooded or flat country to elevate the
instrument to sufficient height to make it possible to observe from one
point to another. The length of lines of the triangulation varies from
a minimum of about 4 miles to a maximum of something over 100
miles. The signal is a double structure, consisting of an inner tripod

106 proceedings: philosophical society

on which the instrument rests and an outer four-legged structure called
the scaffold which supports the observer and the lightkeeper. The
two structures are entirely independent of each other and do not touch
at any point. The reel showed the operation of erecting one of these
towers from the time the building party arrived at the station until
the structure was entirely completed. These towers are usually from
40 to 60 feet in height and are built of lumber purchased at the point
most convenient to the field of operation. The legs of the structure
are set well into the ground and are strongly anchored to prevent their
being blown over by the wind.

The third reel showed the method of conducting the observing party.
It showed the automobile trucks used in carrying the party and outfit
from station to station and the various operations connected with the
observing. It also showed the lightkeeper at work with his signal
lamp or heliograph. Practically all of the observations of primary
triangulation are now made on sunlight reflected from a mirror called
a heliograph and on the signal lamps used at night. The modern
signal lamp has a very high candlepower and the light can be sent
over long lines and through atmosphere which would make observing
impossible with the old style of lamp. The new electric lamp is one
having contracted filament with dry cells furnishing the electric cur-
rent. In the older type of lamp the fuel used was acetylene gas.

The primary triangulation is carried on much more rapidly today
than ever before, but there has been no decrease in the accuracy of the
observations. The accuracy of the triangulation is that expressed by
an average closing error of about 1". The probable error of any
one direction in the triangulation is usuall}^ less than Y- This
accuracy is very great, as is shown by the fact that one foot at a dis-
tance of 40 miles from the observer subtends an angle of 1". The
accuracy in the results is obtained by repeating the angles a number
of times and taking the mean. The errors are probably caused by
atmospheric conditions.

H. L. Curtis, Recording Secretary.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Among the members of the Academy who are now with the mihtary
forces of the United States are:

Lieutenant Colonel R. F. Bacon, with the Chemical Service Section
of the National Army, in France.

Brigadier General Wm. H. Bixby, U. S. A., retired. President of
the Mississippi River Commission and Division Engineer, Western
Division River and Harbor Improvements, 'at St. Louis, Mo.

Major W. R. Blair, with the Meteorological Service of the Signal
Corps, in France.

Major Edward H. Bowie, with the Meteorological Service of the
Signal Corps, in France.

Major Alfred H. Brooks, Geologist on the staff of General
Pershing, American Expeditionary Forces, in France.

Major General William Crozier, U. S. A., Chief of Ordnance.

Major L. A. Fischer, Ordnance Officers' Reserve Corps, Bureau of
Engineering.

]\fajor General W. C. Gorgas, U. S. A., Surgeon General, Medical
Corps.

Lieutenant Colonel Henry S. Graves, with the Twentieth Engineers
(Forestry) in France.

Captain Carey V. Hodgson, Engineers' Reserve Corps, at Anniston,
Alabama. •

Major Douglas W. Johnson, National Army.

First Lieutenant Walter D. Lambert, Engineers' Reserve Corps.

First Lieutenant M. W. Lyon, Jr., Medical Reserve Corps, at Walter
Reed General Hospital, Washington.

Colonel John Millis, U. S. A., Corps of Engineers, at the Office of
• the Division Engineer, Southeast Division, Savannah, Georgia.

Biigadier General A. W. Vogdes, U. S. A., Retired, at San Diego,
California.

Major W. H. Wilmer, member Medical Research Board, and As-
sistant to Chief Surgeon, Aviation Section of the Signal Corps.

Captain Fred. E. Wright, Ordnance Officers' Reserve Corps, de-
tailed to the Bausch & Lomb optical glass plant in Rochester, New
York.

Dr. H. AL Ami, iformerly of the Geological Survey of Canada, is
spending the winter in Washington. Dr. Ami is in charge of problems
of war metals and minerals in the Trade Department of the British
Embass}'.

in?

108 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Dr. George E. Hale, Director of the Mount Wilson Solar Observa-
tory at Pasadena, California, has been in Washington since last spring
as Chairman of the National Research Council, which is now acting as
the Department of Science and Research of the Council of National
Defense.

Mr. NICHOLAS H. Heck has been transferred from the Coast and
Geodetic Survey to the Navy Department, as a Lieutenant in the
Naval Reserve Forces.

Dr. George Tully Vaughan has been called to active service in
the Medical Corps of the Navy.

Dr. Otto Klotz, who with the late Dr. W. F. King, his predecessor,
was a founder of the Dominion Astronomical Observatory at Ottawa,
has been appointed Chief Astronomer and Director of the Observatory.
Dr. Klotz has presented his scientific library of some 2000 volumes, a
collection of a lifetime, to the Observatory.

Prof. Charles A. Kofoid, of the Department of Zoology, Univer-
sity of California, has been elected a corresponding member of the
Societe de Pathologic Exotique of Paris.

Prof. J. C. Merriam, of the University of California, has been in
Washington for several months on business connected with the National
Research Council.

Dr. Charles Doolittle Walcott, Secretary of the Smithsonian
Institution, has been elected a corresponding member of the Academic
des Sciences of Paris in the section of geology, in place of Sir Archibald
Geikie, who has been elected a foreign associate.

The following have become members of the Academy since the be-
ginning of the year: Prof. Charles August Kraus, Clark University,
Worcester, Massachusetts; Dr. Philip S. Roy, 1200 Massachusetts
Avenue; Prof. John Warren Smith, Weather Bureau; Dr. Edwin'
Frederick Wendt, Interstate Commerce Commission.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VIII MARCH 4, 1918 No. 5

BOTAXY. — Plant life o)i saline soils.^ Thomas H. Kearxey,
Bureau of Plant Industry.

The topic that I have chosen for consideration this evening
may not, at first thought, seem a very inviting one. Those
of you who are famiUar with salt marsh vegetation along the
sea-coast and with the plant life of so-called ''alkali" soils in
the arid part of the country'- must have been impressed with
their monotonous and rather unprepossessing aspects. Even
the mangroves of tropical and subtropical shores, the most
highly developed tj^pe of salt plants or halophj^tes, while in-
tensely interesting from a biological point of view, are by no
means so attractive to the casual eye as are many other forms
of tropical plant life.

Nevertheless the halophytes have long been a subject of the
greatest interest to botanists. Study of this vegetation in rela-
tion to its environment leads us into some of the most intricate
problems in plant phj^siolog}'.

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF THE SALINE COMPONENTS

Soils containing an excessive quantitj^ of readily soluble salts
are for the most part confined eithei" to the immediate neighbor-
hood of the ocean or to arid interior regions. In the former
case the salinity of the soil is caused b^- periodical inundation

1 Address of the retiring president of the Botanical Society of Washington
delivered February o. 1918.

109

110 Kearney: plant life on saline soils

with normal or dilute sea-water and the salts present are such as
occur in the ocean.

In arid regions away from the coast, the accumulation of salts
is due to local erosion. Owing to the scantiness of the rainfall,
the saline components of the country rocks are not, as in humid
regions, carried away by rivers flowing into the ocean. Instead
they are transported short distances by the surface and under-
ground drainage channels and become accumulated in the bot-
toms of the valleys and of closed basins. In this way are formed
the salt lakes and the alkali flats, covered during the dry season
with a glistening white crust of salts, which are so characteristic
a feature of arid countries the world over.

Sea-water is practically uniform in the nature and proportion
of its different salts and the same is necessarily true of the soil
of coastal marshes. In both cases, sodium chloride strongly
predominates. On the other hand, the saline components of
soils in arid regions vary with the composition of the rocks
from which they were derived. Salts of sodium (chloride, sul-
phate, carbonate, bicarbonate) are usually the most abundant, but
the corresponding salts of potassium, magnesium, and calcium
are commonly also present.

Since each salt, when presented in a pure solution, has its
specific toxicity for plants, it might be thought that correspond-
ing differences would be observed in the vegetation of ''alkali"
soils of different chemical composition. But there is little evi-
dence that such is the case. The reason doubtless is that the
solution in saline soils, like the water of the sea, is a "balanced"
solution, in the sense of Loeb and Osterhout.'- It rarely hap-
pens, in arid regions, that soluble salts occur in large quantity
where the soil is deficient in calcium ; and the presence of calcium
equalizes, in large measure, the different toxicities shown in pure
solutions by salts of the other bases.^ Consequently, it is usu-

2 W. J. V. Osterhout. On the importance of physiologically balanced solution-
for plants. Bot. Gaz. 42:127. 1906; also 44:259. 1907. The same investiga
tor has developed the subject in numerous subsequent papers.

^ T. H. Kearney and F. K. Cameron. Some mutual relations between alkali
soils and vegetation. U. S. Dept. Agr. Rept. 71:7-60. 1902. T. H. Kearney
and L. L. Harter. The comparative tolerance of various plants for the salts com-
mon in alkali soils. U. S. Dept. Agr. Bur. Plant Ind. Bull. 113. 1907.

KEARNEY." PLANT LIFE ON SALINE SOILS 111

ally not so much the chemical composition of the soil solution as
its concentration and the resulting osmotic pressure which affect
vegetation."^

CONCENTRATION OF THE SOIL SOLUTION

Saline soils are extremely diverse in respect to texture, water-
holding capacity, humus content, and fertility. The one thing
that they have in common is a high concentration of the soil
solution. This factor, also, is extremely variable, since not
only the absolute quantity of salts may differ enormously within
very short distances, but the concentration of the solution fluc-
tuates continually, being diluted by rainfall or by inundation
and concentrated by evaporation.

The fluctuations are greatest, of course, in deserts, where rain-
falls of brief duration alternate with long periods of extreme
drought. A salt content amounting to 3 per cent of the dry
weight of the soil, to the depth penetrated by the plant roots,
is not uncommon in arid regions. With this salt content, and
with a water-holding capacity of 50 per cent, the soil, even when
saturated with water, would have a solution concentration of 6
per cent, or twice that of sea-water. If the soil dried out to the
wilting point for plants,^ the concentration would reach 30 per
cent, which is bej^ond the point of saturation for sodium chloride.

Even in humid climates the periodical fluctuations are by no
means negligible. Hi'F reported that in a salt marsh in Brit-
tany, heavy rains lasting two days reduced the concentration
of the soil solution to one-sixth of what was observed immedi-
ately before the rain began. If the original concentration had
been that of sea- water, this would correspond to a fall in osmotic
pressure of from about 22 to about 3.5 atmospheres.^

* This does not hold in the case of sodium carbonate ("-black alkali") which,
because of its strong alkalinity, is much more toxic than other salts of sodium.

* L. J. Briggs and H. L. Shantz. The wilting coefficient for different plants
and its indirect determination. U. S. Dept. Agr. Bur. Plant Ind. Bull. 230. 1912.

« T. G. Hill. The Bouche d'Erquy in 1908. New Phytol. 8: 97. 1909.

' Careful computations of the osmotic pressure of sea water have recently
been published by R. H. True {Osmotic experiments with marine algae. Bot.
Gaz. 65:71. 1918).

112 KEARNEY: PLANT LIFE ON SALINE SOILS

«

AGRICULTURAL IMPORTANCE OF SALINE SOILS

Saline soils are of small agricultural value until the excess
salt has been removed by drainage and by flooding with fresh
water. Extensive and successful reclamation work along these
lines has been accomplished in India and in Egypt. Ganong*
has described the methods by which the salt marshes at the
head of the Bay of Fundy have been converted into hay meadows
worth from $100 to $200 per acre.

Different crop plants differ in their adaptability to saline soils
and a few of them are so resistant to concentrated solutions that
they may be regarded as partial halophytes. First and foremost
is the sugar beet, the supposed ancestor of which is a plant of the
sea strand in Europe and northern Africa. Asparagus is another
example, since the nearest related wild forms are said to inhabit
saline soils and the cultivated form finds itself quite at home
when it strays to the borders of salt marshes. Among fruit
trees the date palm and the pomegranate are notable for their
ability to thrive where the soil solution is highly concentrated.

Frorn an agricultural point of view, however, the resistance
of the plant is of less importance than the quantity and quality
of the product for which it is grown. Cereals will make a
fairly vigorous growth in soils where grain production is prac-
tically inhibited. The value of the beet for sugar making is
much impaired, in saline soils, by the high ash content of the
roots. Date palms, in spite of their vegetative vigor under
such conditions, produce fruit of inferior value. Forage plants
that are grown for the sake of the leaves and stems are usually,
therefore, the most profitable crops for soils of relatively high
salinity.

DISTRIBUTION OF THE VEGETATION

The principal types of halophytic vegetation may be roughly
classified as :

1. Marine formations, consisting of aquatic plants, chiefly
algae, which live in the ocean and in brackish water.

* W. F. Ganong. The vegetation of the Bay of Fundi/ sail and diked marshes.
Bot. Gaz. 36: 161, 280, 349, 429. 1903.

KEARNEY: PLANT LIFE ON SALINE SOILS 113

2. Salt marsh, composed mainly of grasses, rushes, and sedges,
with various other annua and perennial herbs as a secondary
element. Salt marsh vegetation is found chiefly in temperate
regions, where it occurs both on the sea-coast and in very wet
saline areas of the interior.

S. Salt scrub, composed of woody species, in large part Cheno-
podiaceae, ranging in size from half shrubs to almost tree-like
dimensions. This formation is typically developed only where
the climate is arid and the soil is not constantly wet.

4. The .mangroie formation, of small trees belonging to the
Rhizophoraceae and a-few other families. This vegetation occu-
pies muddy shores within reach of the tides, in and near the
tropics.

Time permits only brief reference to the fascinating problem
of the local distribution of halophytes. The vegetation of saline
soils, both along the sea-coast and in the interior, often shows
beautiful examples of zonation, determined, in large part, by
differences in salinity, although the physical properties and the
water content of the soil are likewise important factors.

The correlations betw^een distribution of the plants and salt
content of the soils are often so close as to permit of agricultural
classification of the land on this basis, as has been demonstrated
by Hilgard^ and his colleagues in California and by Briggs,
Shantz and the writer^" in the vicinity of Great Salt Lake. The
different types of halophytic vegetation w^ere found to indicate
with considerable precision the degree of salinity of the soil
and hence w^hether the land is suitable for crop production
or could be rendered suitable by the usual methods of recla-
mation. The indicator plant method is particularly useful
in dry areas where there may be no superficial evidence of
salinity but where large quantities of salt may be present in the
subsoil.

The importance of halophytes as geological agents deserves

' E. W. HiLGARD. Soils, pp. 534-549. ^ew York, 1906.

1" T. H. Kearney, L. J. Briggs, H. L. Shantz, J. W. McLane, and R. L.
PiEMEisEL. Indicator significance of vegetation in Tooele Valley, Utah. Journ.
Agr. Research 1 : 365-417. 1914.

114 KEARNEY: PLANT LIFE ON SALINE SOILS

mention. Oliver^i and other British ecologists have investigated
the manner in which Spartina, Sahcornia, etc., colonize and hold
newlj^-deposited soil on the sea-coast. Vaughan^- gives an in-
teresting account of land-building by the mangrove in southern
Florida.

Halophytic vegetation is characterized by world-wide uni-
formity. Each of the principal types — salt marsh, salt scrub,
and the mangrove formation — has much the same appearance,
wherever it occurs. The comparatively small number of species,
the similarity of the life forms, and the scarcity of showy flow-
ers give a monotonous and even somber appearance to these plant
formations.

In taxononlic composition, likewise, there is comparatively
little variation within each of the major halophytic formations,
in different parts of the world. The genera, and in many cases
even the species, are very widely distributed. The great ma-
jority of extreme halophytes are comprised in comparatively
few families. Probably not less than one-half of the species
belong to the Chenopodiaceae, which comes nearer to being a
purely halophytic group than any other of the larger families of
plants. Smaller families which are predominantly halophytic
are Plumbaginaceae, Frankeniaceae, Tamaricaceae, and Rhizo-
phoraceae. Families which, although not primarily halophytic,
contribute numerous genera and species to this vegetation are
Gramineae, Cnaciferae, and Compositae. Other large groups
are conspicuous for their absence from saline soils. Among
these are the lichens, mosses, ferns, Araceae, Orchidaceae, Fa-
gaceae, and Ericaceae.

STRUCTURE OF HALOPHYTES

As a rule, the leaf surface of haloph3^tes is much reduced as
compared with that of mesophytes. In Salicornia and allied

" F. W. Oliver. The shingle beach as a plant habitat. New Phytol. 11: 73.
1912. Some remarks on Blakeney Point, Norfolk. Journ. Ecol. 1:4. 1913.
Vegetation and mobile ground as illustrated by Suaeda ffuticosa on shingle. Journ.
Ecol. 1:249. 1913.

1- T. W. Vaughan. The geologic work of mangroves in southern Florida.
Smiths. Misc. Coll. 5: 46L 1910. •

KEARNEY: PLANT LIFE OX SALINE SOILS 115

genera of Chonopodiaceae and in the tamarisks, the assimilat-
ing tissue is located mainly in the stems, the leaves being mere
scale-like vestiges. The mangroves are a striking exception,
possessing a heavy crown of broad leaves.

Thickness of the leaves and stems characterizes most halo-
phytes, aside from the grasses and grass-like plants. LeSage^^
compared numerous maritime species with the most nearly re-
lated inland forms and found that in the great majority of cases
the former had the thicker leaves. In some species the thick-
ening results merely from an increase in size of cells or in number
of layers of the chlorophyll tissue, but many halophytes possess
also a specialized water storage tissue of thin-walled cells, con-
taining few or no chloroplasts.

The degree of succulence is closely associated with the salinity
of the medium. Several investigators have reported that non-
halophj'tic species, when watered with salt solutions, show an
increase in the thickness of the leaf. Conversely, halophytes,
when grown in an ordinarj' garden soil with fresh water irri-
gation, often develop thinner leaves and stems than in their
natural habitat. Batalin^^ found that even Salicornia re-
sponded in this manner. Holtermann^^ obtained a marked in-
crease in the thickness of the water storage tissue of man-
groves by watering the plants with a sodium chloride solution
of about twice the concentration of sea-water. On the other
hand, irrigation with fresh water resulted in the development
of much thinner leaves than were observed in the normal habitat.

Casu^^ has pointed out that succulent halophytes occur in
nature only where the soil has a high water content as well as
a high salt content. It is otherwise with the succulent xero-
phytes, such as Cactaceae, which prefer soils that are normally

" P. Lesage. Recherches experimentales sur les ynodifications des feuilles chez
les plantes maritimes. Rev. Gen. Bot. 2: 54, 106, 163. 1890.

" A. Batalin. Die Wirkung des Chlomatriums auf die Entwickelung von
Salicornia herbacea. Bull. Congr. Internat. Bot. Hort., 1884, p. 219. St.
P^tersb. 1885.

15 C. HoLTERMAXx. Der Einfluss .des Klimas auf den Bau der Pflanzengewebe.
Berlin, 1907.

" A. Casu. Contribuzione alio studio della flora delle saline di Cagliari. Ann.

di Bot. 2: 403. 1905.

t

116 keaeney: plant life on saline soils

. dry, as well as non-saline. Since the Caetaceae, as Cavara^^
and Livingston^ ^ have shown, are also characterized by a low
osmotic pressure of the cell sap, while the succulent halophytes
develop very high pressures, it is evident that the relation be-
tween succulence and salinity is bj^ no means a simple problem.
Schimper and other ecologists regarded halophytes as being
xerophj'tes, or drought resistant plants, in that their structure
is modified so as to reduce transpiration. Later investigators
have shown the one-sidedness of this point of view. It origin-
ated largely in the mistaken conception that plants of the sea
beaches and dunes, many of which have a markedly xerophytic
structure, are really halophytes. ^^ It is true that in arid cli-
mates many, but by no means all, salt plants exhibit xeroph\'-
tic peculiarities, such as reduced leaf surface, sunken stomata,
thick cuticle, highly developed palisade tissue, and small inter-
cellular spaces. On the other hand, certain xerophytic charac-
ters, particularly hairiness and the excretion of -resin and of
aromatic volatile oils, are rarely met with in halophytes, even in
those that inhabit deserts.-"^

In cool, humid regions, some of the most characteristic salt
marsh plants exhibit almost no xerophytic peculiarities, having
a thin cuticle, stomata level with the epidermis or even slightly
raised, and large intercellular spaces. Terras-' in Scotland and
Cross^- in New Zealand studied the anatomy of coastal halo-
phytes and concluded that some of them have the structure of
aquatic plants rather than of desert plants.

1^ F. Cavara. Risultali di una serie di ricerche crioscopiche sui vegetali.
Contrib. Biol. Veg. (Palermo) 4: 41. 1905.

1* B. E. Livingston. The relation of desert plants to soil moisture and to evap-
oration. Carnegie Inst. Publ. 50. 1906.

^^ T. H. Kearney. Are plants of beaches and dunes true halophytes? Bot.
Gaz. 37:424. 1904.

-" Detailed descriptions of the anatomy of many European halophytic species
and an extensive bibliography are given by H. Chermezon {Recherches anatomiques
sur les plantes littorales. Ann. Sci. Nat. IX. Bot. 12: 117-313, ^^s. 7-5^. 1910).

-^ .1. A. Terras. Notes on the salinity of the cell sap of halophytes. Proc.
Scottish Micr. Soc. 4: 152. 1906.

-2 B. D. Cross. Some New Zealand halophytes. Trans. New Zealand Inst.
42:545. 1910.

KEARNEY: PLANT LIFE ON SALINE SOILS 117

The gist of the matter is that manj^ halophytes that grow
under chmatic conditions favorable to intense transpiration, or
in soils subject to periodical drought, show xerophytic modifi-
cations; but high concentration of the soil solution does not
necessarily induce this type of structure if the cUmate is humid
and an abundance of soil moisture is normally present.

WATER ECONOMY OF HALOPHYTES

It has been repeatedly demonstrated that absorption of water
by the roots of nonhalophytic species is difficult or impossible
when the soil solution reaches such concentrations as are en-
countered in .the natural habitats of halophytes. When forced
to obtain their water from a relatively concentrated salt solu-
tion, ordinary- mesophj^tes, such as the common crop' plants,
show a marked decrease in transpiration and in photosynthetic
activity, resulting in diminished growth.

Schimper-^ argued from the known behavior of nonhalophytes
when exposed to strong salt solutions, and from the assumed
xerophytic structure of all halophytes, that the latter are sub-
ject to the danger of injury from excessive accumulations of salt
in their assimilating cells,,and that protection against this danger
is secured by reduction of the transpiration. He later^^ modified
this view by attributing the supposed necessity for reduced
transpiration to the difficulty of absorption by the roots from a
strong salt solution. In his view a saline soil is "physiologically
dry," even when saturated with water.

jMore recent investigations have demolished all of the pre-
mises upon which this theory rested. It has already been
pointed out that by no means all salt plants possess a transpira-
tion-reducing structure, so that we are justified in speaking of
halophilous mesophytes and hydrophytes, as well as of halo-
philous xerophytes. Species that inhabit dry saline soils in
arid regions doubtless find advantage in such structural modi-
fications as tend to diminish transpiration; but the researches of

" A. F. W. ScHiMPER. Die indo-malayische Strandflora, p. 26. Jena, 1891.
-* A. F. W. ScHiMPER. Pflanzengeographie auf physiologischer Grundlage,
p. 100. Jena, 1898.

118 KEARNEY: PLANT LIFE ON SALINE SOILS

Rosenberg'-^ and Delf^^ on salt marsh plants in northern Europe
and Von Faber's" investigations of mangroves in the East Indies
have shown that many halophytes transpire freely when growing
in their normal habitats.-^

In conformity with these results as to transpiration, Ganong^^
and HilP° have proven that high osmotic pressures are developed
in the roots of halophytes. Difficult absorption of water can-
not, therefore, be a universal condition of existence for this
type of vegetation.

The salt plants are evidently able to carry on normally the
processes of photosynthesis, metabolism, and growth, notwith-
standi*ng the presence of much salt in their cell _ sap This is
sufficient proof that they are not inconvenienced by the high
osmotic pressures in their cells nor by the specific toxicity of the
salt. It is clearly not permissible to draw conclusions as to the
normal physiology of halophytes from the pathological condi-
tions induced in nonhalophytes by exposure to concentrated
salt solutions.

Our knowledge of the physiology of halophytes is one-sided,
since it has been gained chiefly by the study of salt marsh plants
in northern Europe and of the mangrove formation in the tropics.
Neither of these environments affords such extreme conditions
as must be endured by plants inhabiting saline soils in desert
regions. Here the atmospheric conditions ' are conducive to
excessive transpiration, while enormous fluctuations in the water
content of the soil and in the concentration of the soil solution

2^ O. Rosenberg. Ueber die Transpiration der Halophyten. Kongl. Vetensk.
Akad. Forhandl. 53L 1897.

2^ E. M. Delf. Transpiration and the behavior of stomata in halophytes.
Annals of Botany 25: 485. 191L

2' F. C. VON Faber. Ueber Transpiration und osmotischen Driick bei den
Mangroven. Bee. Deutsch. Bot. Ges. 31: 277. 1913.

2* It has been ascertained by Holtermann and by Ruhland, however, that
in halophytes grown in strongly saline soils and having a high concentration of
the cell sap, the quantity of water transpired is smaller than when the same
species are grown in the absence of an excessive quantitj^ of salt.

29 Bot. Gaz. 36:358-362. 1903.

'" T. G. Hill. Observations on the osmotic pressures of the root hairs of certain
salt marsh plants. New Phytol. 7: 133. 1908.

KEARNEY: PLANT LIFE ON SALINE SOILS 119

require corresponding powers of accommodation in the absorb-
ing organs of the plant. A thorough investigation of the water
economy of desert halophytes is, therefore, much to be desired

OSMOTIC PRESSURE IN ROOTS AND LEAVES

Comparatively few determinations have been made of the
osmotic pressures in the roots of halophytes. The data at
hand indicate that, at least under the comparatively favorable
conditions of coastal salt marshes, the plant is easily able to
cope with the problem of absorption. Thus Hill found that the
root hairs of Salicornia can develop a pressure corresponding to
that of an 8.7 per cent solution of sodium chloride, which is
probably equivalent to about 65 atmospheres.

As regards halophytes that inhabit arid regions, determina-
tions appear to have been made only on the leaves and stems.
In ordinary mesophytic plants of temperate climates the osmotic
pressure of the leaf cells seldom exceeds 30 atmospheres and is
usualh' much lower than this. But pressures up to 100 atmos-
pheres were detected in the leaves and stems of salt plants by
Cavara in Italy and by Fitting^^ in the Sahara Desert. Ruhland
was able to develop, in the leaves of Statice Gmelini, a pressure
which he estimated at 165 atmospheres. ^2

It is not improbable that the absorbing roots of desert halo-
phytes ceage temporarily to function when, as doubtless often
happens, the osmotic pressure of the soil solution greatly ex-
ceeds 100 atmospheres. Miss Halket's^^ observation that when
the salt content of the soil solution reached 17 per cent, plants
of Salicornia remained alive and apparentl}^ uninjured but
ceased to grow, points in this direction.

There is abundant evidence of the ability of halophytes to

^'- H. FiTTiXG. Die W asserversorgung und die osmotischen Druckuerhdltnisse
der Wustenpflanzen. Zeitschr. Bot. 3: 209. 1911.

^- It does not follow that equally high pressures would have been detected in
the roots, since comparative determinations upon different organs of the same
individual plant have shown, in numerous cases, that the osmotic pressures of
the root cells are lower than those of the leaf cells.

^^ A. C. Halkett. The effect of salt on the growth of Salicornia. Annals of
Botanv 29: 143. 1915.

120 KEARNEY: PLANT LIFE ON SALINE SOILS

accommodate their osmotic pressure to fluctuations in that of
the medium. Hill found this to be the case in the root hairs of
Salicornia. Von Faber observed that the pressure in the leaf
cells of mangroves varied with the salinity of the soil solution.
Cavara found that in Italian salt marsh plants the pressures
were from 2 to 3 times as high after a long dry period as during
the rainy season. The enormous power of osmotic accommoda-
tion possessed by many bacteria, fungi, and algae is well known.
Plants that inhabit the waters and shores of estuaries and
tidal creeks, where daily fluctuations of great magnitude in the
salinity of the medium occur, must possess the ability to alter
their osmotic pressure rapidly. ^^

SALT CONTENT OF THE TISSUES

Various means are employed in developing these high pres-
sures. In some cases the salt absorbed from the soil solution
appears to be the principal factor, while in other cases organic
compounds elaborated by the plant itself (carbohydrates, tan-
nins) play the chief part. Fitting found that among species
growing side by side in the Sahara Desert, and manifesting ap-
proximately the same resistance to plasmolysis, some had a
highly saline cell sap, while in others there was no noteworthy ac-
cumulation of salt. He concluded that the maximum amount
of salt that can be accumulated in the tissues is a character
of the species, independent, in large measure, of transpiration
and of the salt content of the soil.

Many halophytes take up sodium and chlorine in greater
proportion than these occur in the soil solution. Such plants,
even when grown on soils containing only traces of these ele-
ments, may accumulate large quantities in their tissues. ^^

Schimper^^ ascertained that certain weeds that are character-

'* An interesting example of such accommodation is described by W. J. V.
OsTERHOUT {The resistance of certain marine algae to changes in osmotic pres-
sure. Univ. Calif. Publ. 2: 227. 1906).

^" G. Paris found that the leaves of a species of Atriplex, when growing on a
soil containing the merest trace of chlorides, had an ash content of 37 per cent
and a chloride content of 10 per cent of the total dry weight {SuV Atriplex hali-
mus L. Staz. Sper. Agrar. Ital. 44: 141. 1911).

^^ A. F. W. ScHiMPER. Die indo-malayische Strandflora, p. 142. 1891.

KEARNEY: PLANT LIFE ON SALINE SOILS 121

istic of soils rich in nitrogen also possess this power of selective
absorption. Individuals of these species were found to give a
strong reaction for nitrates, even when growing on soils of low
nitrogen content.

The quantity of water-soluble salts taken up by halophytes
is often considerable. Cameron" found that in a sample of
greasewood (Sarcobatus) salts of sodium constituted about 20
per cent of the total dry weight of the leaves, x4.ll of the sodium
chloride present was apparently free in the cell-sap and could be
recovered by leaching the dry material with water, as Deherain^^
had previously ascertained to be the case with Salsola Kali.
Paris, on the other hand, states that in Atriplex Halimus, the re-
sults of freezing-point determinations indicated that, of the total
chlorine found in the ash, only about half was free in the cell sap.

In view of the injurious effects of concentrated solutions of
sodium salts upon ordinary plants, the question arises, how are
halophytes able to adjust themselves to such extreme salinity of
their cell-sap? A strong development of water tissue, the cells
of which contain few or no chloroplasts, is, as we have seen,
characteristic of many salt plants. The plausible suggestion
has been made that much of the salt taken up by such plants is
stored in this tissue, rather than in the green assimilating cells,
although apparently no direct evidence of such segregation has
been obtained.

Many halophytic species are able to check the accumulation
of salt in their tissues by excreting it, in solution, upon the sur-
face of their leaves and stems. This phenomenon is not con-
fined to plants that possess specialized excretory organs. In
the case of grasses hke Spartina and DistichUs excretion is sup-
posed to take place through the stomata.*^

The best known cases of salt excretion are found in the
Plumbaginaceae, Frankeniaceae, and Tamaricaceae. The mem-
bers of these famiUes are characterized by the possession of

" F. K. Camerox. U. S. Dept. Agr. Rep. 71: 64-66. 1902.

3* P. Deherain. Sur l' assimilation cles substances minerales par les plantes.
Ann. Sci. Nat. VI. Bot. 6: 366. 1878.

^^ A. B. Klugh. Excretion of sodium chloride by Spartina glabra alterniflora.
Rhodora 11: 2.37. 1909.

122 KEARNEY: PLANT LIFE ON SALINE SOILS

epidermal glands, the cells of which are very rich in proto-
plasm and have a large nucleus. The process of excretion by
these organs is not a passive filtration, but a true glandular
activity, as has been demonstrated by the writer^'' and by
Ruhland.^^ The latter investigator also obtained fairiy conclu-
sive evidence that the salt content of the leaves is materially
reduced when excretion is actively taking place.

It would seem to be significant that as a rule the species which
excrete salt do not possess a highly developed water-storage
tissue. On the other hand, salt excretion is not known to occur
in the Chenopodiaceae, the largest and most important of halo-
phytic families. This family includes numerous genera in which
water-storage tissue is exceptionally well developed.

PHYSIOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF SALT PLANTS *

From what has been said, it is evident that there are man}"
gaps and many apparent contradictions in our knowledge of the
normal physiology of the salt plants. Two characteristics,
however, are general and may be said to be conditioned by the
nature of the environment. These are

1. Ability to develop a high osmotic pressure in the cells of
the absorbing organs, thus allowing water to be taken up from
solutions of a concentration which would inhibit absorption in
nonhalophytic species. Coupled with this, is the power of ac-
commodating the pressure to (often rapid) changes of concen-
tration in the medium.

2. Ability to carry on normally all essential physiological
functions, notwithstanding the presence of salt in the cell sap in
quantities which, in nonhalophytic species, would seriously ham-
per or entirely prevent photosynthesis, metabolism, and growth.

IMPORTANCE OF SODIUM TO HALOPHYTES

The problem of whether halophytes can grow in the absence
of an appreciable quantity of sodium salts has been the subject

^^ T. H. Kearney. On the excretion of hygroscopic salts in Frankenia and
Statice. Science N. S. 19:419. 1904.

*^ W. Rtthlaxd. Die Salzdriiscn dcr Plumbag i naceen. Jahrb. Wiss. Bot.
55:409. 1915.

KEARNEY: PLANT LIFE ON SALINE SOILS 123

of numerous cultural experiments. The results are contra-
dictory even, in some cases, when the same species was used by
different experimenters. Unquestionably, certain species that
in nature are confined to saline soils, will not only thrive but
grow more vigorously in the absence of a noteworthy quantity of
salt, although the appearance and structure of the plants may
be materially altered.

Batalin claimed that even such an extreme halophyte as
Salicornia herhacea can be grown successfully in ordinary gar-
den soil, watered with river water. On the other hand, Peklo^-
found that this plant soon died in a Knop nutrient solution,
which contains no sodium, but flourished in the same solution
plus 2 per cent of sodium chloride. Similar results with other
species of Salicornia were obtained by Miss Halket.

The published data on cultural experiments which indicate
that sodium salts are important to halophytes, do not permit
a conclusion to be drawn as to whether the limiting factor is the
presence of the element sodium or merely a high total concen-
tration in the medium. It would be interesting to know whether
the results with Salicornia in water cultures would have been
equally satisfactory, if the salt added in excess to the nutrient
solution had been potassium chloride, instead of sodium chloride.

In order to determine definitely whether the salt plants can
completely dispense with sodium, it would, of course, be neces-
sary to insure the absence of any trace of the element, in both
plant and culture medium. Since sodium is known to occur
even in the seeds of halophytes, this experimental condition is
probably impossible to realize.

SODIUM IN PLANT NUTRITION

Consideration of the physiology of halophytes brings up the
question, what, if any, is the role of sodium in plant nutrition?
Osterhout^^ states that this element, because of its protective or
antagonistic action, is essential to the maintenance of life in

*'^ J. Peklo. Bemerkungen zur Erndhrungsphysiologie einiger Halophyten.
Oesterr. Bot. Zeitschr. 62: 47, 114, 172. 1912.

" W. J. V. OsTERHOUT. Plants which require sodium. Bot. Gaz. 54: .532.
1912.

124 KEARNEY: PLANT LIFE ON SALINE SOILS

certain marine algae; and results obtained b}^ Benecke" indicate
that some of the Cyanophyceae may grow equally well if potas-
sium is completely replaced by sodium in the nutrient solution.
In regard to the nutrition of vascular plants, however, no fact
seems to be better established than the indispensability of a
minimum of potassium. On the other hand, it has never been
'proven that sodium is indispensable to any of the higher forms of
plant life.

Although sodium is almost always found in the ash of plants,
it does not, as far as we know, enter into organic combination.
This would seem to indicate that plant life is not conditioned by
its presence as by the presence of potassium, phosphorus, and
magnesium. Nevertheless, it by no means follows that under
certain conditions sodium may not be an important factor in
growth.

Different investigators of the fertilizer value of sodium salts
report widely divergent results, but it is impossible to ignore the
numerous instances in which beneficial effects have been observed,
especially where the soil is deficient in potassium in readily
available fomi.^^

Such effects are doubtless, in many cases, due chiefly to the
setting free by chemical reaction in the soil of the potassium of
relatively insoluble compounds. But even when such reaction
was excluded by growing the plants in water cultures or in quartz
sand, without the addition of potassium, sodium has been ob-
served to stimulate growth.

It would seem, therefore, that when potassium is not avail-
able in sufficient quantity, some of the physiological functions
which are normally performed by that element may be assumed
by sodium. In regard to the nature of these functions, the .
following suggestions have been made:

** W. Benecke. Ueber CuUurhedingungen einiger Algen. Bot. Zeitung
66:84-96. 1898.

"•^ This has been the subject of long-continued investigation by the Rhode
Island Agricultural Experiment Station. The results have been published in
the annual reports for 1894 to 1908 and in bulletins 47, 104, 106, and 153. See
especially H. J. Wheeler and B. L. Hartwell {Concerning the functions of
sodium salts. R. I. Agr. Exp. Sta. Ann. Rep. 1906: 186-316. 1907).

KEARNEY: PLANT LIFE ON SALINE SOILS 125

1. Translocation, into and within the plant, of indispensable
anions, such as nitrogen and phosphorus.

2. Maintenance in the cells of a requisite minimum osmotic
pressure, upon which depends the turgor necessary for growth.

3. Antagonistic or protective action, in relation to other ele-
ments, by which a balanced solution is maintained.

4. Neutralization of organic acids formed within the plant.

5. Stimulation of diastatic activity in the cells.

In the present national emergency, current notions in regard
to fertilizers should be subjected to the most rigorous criticism.
A huge superstructure of opinion in regard to our potash re-
quirements has been erected by the commercial fertilizer in-
terests, domestic and foreign, upon an amazingly small basis of
proven fact.

The enemj' boasts that his control of the great potash deposits
makes him the agricultural dictator of the world. Wilhelm
Ostwald is quoted as having said that the United States ''went
into the war like a man with a rope around his neck, a rope which
is in enemy hands." All the resources of an ably-directed propa-
ganda have been employed for years in fostering among us the
behef that we are helplessly dependent upon Germany in this
matter. It would be folly, and worse than folly, to concede
such a claim until we have thoroughly examined its foundations.

For certain soils and certain crops, the addition of potash in
readilj^ available form may well be essential to profitable produc-
tion. But who knows whether the indispensable minimum is
250,000 tons or only one-tenth of that quantity? Cannot the
apparent need be lessened by better tillage, by rotation with
green manure crops, and by the more extensive use of farm
manure? Will not the use of cheaper chemical fertilizers — salts
of sodium, calcium, magnesium — alleviate many of the supposed
cases of ''pot-ash hunger?" Until these questions have been
answered, no one dare say that our absolute requirement of
potash fertilizers cannot be met by the development of domestic
sources of supply.

126 STAND ley: new species of rondeletia

BOTANY. — A new species of Rondeletia from Mexico.^ Paul
C. Standley, National Museum,

I In an interesting collection of plants received recently from

\ Dr. B. P. Reko, of the State of Oaxaca, Mexico, by the U. S.
National Museum, are specimens of a handsome rubiaceous
plant referable to the genus Rondeletia. The plant offers so
many characters not found in other species as to suggest a new-
generic type, but the specie 5 of Rondeletia already known show a
remarkable range of variation for the family Rubiaceae, and the
present plant is perhaps not more abnormal than some of the
Cuban species, such as R. tinifolia Griseb. and R. correifoUa
Griseb.

Rondeletia Rekoi Standley, sp. nov.

Branchlets stout or slender, obtusely tetragonous, densely and per-
sistently white-tomentose, with a close tomentum; stipules linear
oblong, 6 to 9 mm. long, bidentate at the apex, erect, persistent, densely
tomentose outside on the lower half, glabrate and green above; leaves
opposite, the petioles very stout, 0.5 to 1.5 cm. long, white-tomentose,
the blades ovate or elliptic-ovate, 8.5 to 19 cm. long, 3 to 8.5 cm. wide,
rounded and short-decurrent at the base, very acute or subacuminate
at the apex, subchartaceous, bright-green above, lustrous, scabrous
with short slender curved hairs, the intermediate veins very promi-
nent, finely reticulate, beneath densely covered with a close white
tomentum, the costa prominent, the lateral veins slender, about 14 on
each side, subarcuate, the margin plane or subrevolute; inflorescence
terminal (a pair of cymes present at the base of the peduncle), the
peduncles stout, 8 to 9 cm. long, the rachis 6 to 9 cm. long, bearing
numerous short-pedunculate bifid cymes, the branches of these 1.5 to
2.5 cm. long, the flowers sessile, secund, the bractlets oval or oblong,
obtuse, green, glabrate, about equahng the calyx-tube; calyx-tube
densely white-tomentose, the 4 lobes oblong or oval, about 1 mm.
long, rounded at the apex, green, glabrate, spreading; corolla white-
tomentose outside, the tube stout, 5.5 to 7 mm., long, glabrous in the
throat, the 4 lobes rounded, 2 mm. long, undulate; anthers sessile, in-
cluded; capsule 3.5 to 4 mm. broad, didymous-globose, densely white-
tomentose; seeds minute, pale-brown, angulate.

Type in the U. S. National Herbarium, no. 867145, collected at
Cafetal Las Pilas (Cerro Espino), Oaxaca, Mexico, altitude 400 meters,
October 10, 1917, by Dr. B. P. Reko (no. 3490).

^ Published by permission of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.

standley: new species of rondeletia 127

It is difficult to determine the exact relationship of Rondeletia
Rekoi among its Central American allies. The dense tomentum
of the leaves is characteristic of many continental species, but
the plan of the inflorescence is unlike that of any other Rondeletia.
The cymes simulate perfectlj^ those of the genus Antirhea, of the
remotely related tribe Guettardeae, although in that group the
cymes are solitary arid axillary, rather than racemose, as in this
plant. The stipules, too, of R. Rekoi, are different from those of
any other species, and the prominent reticulation of the upper
leaf-surface seems unique. The plant shows a strong color con-
trast between the bright green upper surfaces of the leaves and
the white lower surfaces and stems, and would doubtless prove
attractive in cultivation.

ABSTRACTS

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

GEOLOGY. — Ground water in San Simoji Valley, Arizona and New
Mexico. A. T. Schwennesen. U. S. Geological Survey Water-
Supply Paper 425-A. Pp. 35, with maps. 1917.

This is a preliminary report on an extensive investigation of the
Quaternary geology of the San Simon Valley and adjacent parts of
Gila Valley and its relation to artesian water supphes in the region.
The stream deposits, which resemble the ordinary deposits of other
desert basins, are here separated by beds that were laid down in a
lake or other body of water to a depth of several hundred feet. These
lake beds form a gentle syncline whose axis nearly coincides with the
axis of the valley. They include 300 to 400 feet of dense, homog-
eneous, blue clay, which serves well as a confining bed for the water
in the underlying sand strata and older alluvium. Extrusive basalt
is interbedded with the stream deposits and layers of tuff occur in the
lacustrine formation.

The report gives data on artesian and pump wells, and on the de-
crease in artesian pressure. It includes an excellent discussion of
agricultural possibilities by R. H. Forbes. 0. E. ]\Ieinzer.

GEOLOGY. — Ground water for irrigation in the Morgan Hill area,
California. W. O. Clark. U. S. Geological Survey Water-
Supply Paper 400-E. Pp. 48, with 3 plates. 1917.
The water-bearing formation in the area consists of recent alluvial
deposits which are composed of clay or claylike materials, sand, and
gravel. Most of the deposits were formed by Coyote River, which
has built an alluvial fan entirely across the valley and which has alter-
nately diverted the streams on it into the Bay of Montere}' and into
San Francisco Bay.

128

abstracts: geology . 129

In this report an attempt is made to estimate the quantity of ground
water available for irrigation within the area, based on the annual
fluctuation of the water table and the porosity of the materials as
shown by the logs of wells within the area. The results concerning
porosit}^ are checked against a pumping test made at the Lower Gorge
by the Bsiy Cities Water Company in which records were kept of the
quantity of water pumped, the area over which the water table was
lowered as a result of pumping, and the amount of lowering. A further
check is made by the use of stream-flow data, which show the amount
of water lost by Coyote River through percolation during a four-year
period, 1903 to 1907. W. 0. C.

GEOLOGY. — Titi resources of the Kings Mountain district, North

Carolina and South Carolina. Arthur Keith and D. B. Ster-

RETT. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin 660-D. Pp. 24, with

maps, sections, and illustrations. 1917.

The Kings Mountain district contains both metamorphic and igneous

rocks, and the metamorphic rocks include some of sedimentary and

some of igneous origin. In age the rocks range from Archean to

Triassic. The formations that are associated with the tin deposits are

the Carolina gneiss and a Roan gneiss, of Archean age; the Bessemer

granite, of pre-Cambrian age; the Whiteside granite; and, especially,

tin-bearing pegmatites of late Paleozoic age. •

The pegmatite occurs in sheets, lenses, and irregular masses ranging
in thickness from a few inches to manj' j^ards and attaining half a
mile in length. The tin-bearing deposits occur in pegmatite masses
within Archean rocks, either the Roan gneiss or the Carolina gneiss
along or near its contact with the Roan gneiss. The cassiterite appears
to have been one of the first minerals in the pegmatite to crystallize,
and it seems clear that the cassiterite was an original constituent of
the pegmatite. • R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — Zinc carbonate and related copper carbonate ores at Ophir,
Utah. G. F. LouGHLiN. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin
690-A. Pp. 14, with illustrations. 1917.
This paper calls attention to the marked lamellar structure of the
zinc carbonate, the prevailing absence of calamine, and the intimate asso-
ciation of the zinc carbonate with copper carbonates in the Ophir mining
district. The processes of deposition of the carbonates are described
and the following conclusions of economic importance are reached:
It is to be expected that bodies of lamellar zinc carbonate like those

130 abstracts: ornithology

at Ophir will iJiove to be of high grade, owing to the complete removal
of limestone, but of small dimensions and confined to the immediate
vicinity of fractures and open bedding planes. Such small bodies are
not Hkely to lead to larger bodies of massive ore, unless they lie near
to groundwater level, or to some impervious stratum or fault that
impounded the waters containing the oxidized compounds of zinc.

Where mixed sulphide deposits in limestone contain both copper and
zinc in considerable quantity the resulting carbonate ores of both
metals are to be expected in the oxidized zone, the copper carbonate
immediately below the position of the original sulphide body or its
siliceous casing, and the zinc carbonate below the copper carbonate.

R. W. Stone.

ORNITHOLOGY.— A^o^es on North American birds, IT. Harry C.
Oberholser. The Auk 34: 321-329. July, 1917.
The Arizona subspecies of T7reo bellii, originally characterized by
Mr. Ridgwaj^ and commonly regarded as inseparable from Vireo bellii
pusillus, is shown to be different and is recognized as Vireo bellii ari-
zonae Ridgway. The form of Baeolophus inoryiatus inhabiting the
Pacific Coast region from northern Lower California, north through
southern California to Santa Barbara County, and described by Mr.
Ridgway as Baeolophus inornatus murinus, is also reinstated. Two
race^ of Baeolophus wollweberi are admitted: Baeolophus wollweberi
wollweberi (Bonaparte), from central and southern Mexico, and 7?aeo/o-
phus wollweberi annexus (Cassin), from northwestern Mexico and the
contiguous portion of the southwestern United States. Reasons are
given for the recognition of Geothlijpis trichas brachidactyla (Swainson),
from the northeastern United States and southeastern Canada; Vermi-
vora celata orestera Oberholser, from the western United States, south-
western Canada, central and northern Mexico; Molothrus ater artemisiae
Grinnell, from the western United States and western Canada; and
Loxia curvirostra bendirei Ridgway, from the mountains of the western
United States; all of which have been discredited by recent authors.
The recent attempted elimination of Dendroica caerulescens cairnsi
on the ground of untenability is shown to be wrong, and its characters
as a recognizable race are given. The British form of Passer domesti-
cus, with which the introduced English sparrows of the United States
are found to be identical, recently described as Passer hostilis, is shown
to be but a subspecies of the continental European bird, and should
therefore be called Passer domesticus hostilis. H. C. 0.

abstracts: ornithology 131

ORNITHOLOGY. — Three reniarkable 7iew species of birds from Santo

Domingo. J. H. Riley, Smithsonian Misc. Coll. 66: No. 15. Pp.

1-2. December 1, 1916.

That the possibilities of the avifauna of the island of Santo Domingo

are not yet exhausted is emphasized by the three remarkable new birds

recently discovered there by Dr. W. L. Abbott. The first is an owl,

Asio noctipetens, of a genus hitherto unrepresented on the island.

Another is Brachyspiza anfiUarum, belonging to a genus not before

detected in any of the West Indies. Still more remarkable is a new

white- winged crossbill, Loxia megaplaga, of another genus hitherto

unknown from the West Indies. Strangely enough, this new Loxia

is much more closely allied to Loxia hifasciata of northern Europe than

to Loxia leucoptera of North America. Harry C. Oberholser.

ORNITHOLOGY. — Generic navies applied to birds during the years
1906 to 1915, inclusive, with additions and corrections to Water-
house's ''Index Generum Avium." Charles W. Richmond.
Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus. 53: 565-636. August 16, 1917.
This is, as its title indicates, a summary of the generic names pro-
posed during the decade which has elapsed since the publication of
Dr. Richmond's last similar list, including other names previously
omitted or ovei'looked. A list of the errors in the IndexGenerum Avium
of Waterhouse is first given, together with lists of all the Linnaean
genera and a list of the genera published in Bonaparte's papers in the
Ateneo Italiano, May and August, 1854. The main part of this paper
is an alphabetical list of 607 generic names, together with authority,
original citation, type and manner of determination, and indication of
the family to which it belongs. Many changes in current names and
other nomenclatural notes are added in footnotes. The following
new generic names are introduced: Tychaedon Richmond, for Aedo-
nopsis Sharpe, preoccupied; and Amoromyza Richmond, for M crops
samoensis Hombron and Jacquinot. A catalogue of the 607 generic
names of the alphabetical list, arranged under families, is also added.

Harry C. Oberholser.

ORNITHOLOGY.— r/?e birds of the Afiamba Islands. Harry C.

Oberholser. Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus. 98. Pp. v + 75,pls.l-2. 1917>.

The Anamba Islands lie in the South China Sea between the Natuna

Islands and the Malay Peninsula. They comprise about 20 principal

islands, with possibly 200 more islets and rocks, spread over a geo-

132 abstracts: ornithology

graphical area some 55 by 65 miles in extent. Dr. W. L. Abbott was,
in 1899 and 1900, the first ornithological collector to visit these islands,
and he made a collection of 212 specimens, representing 44 species and
subspecies, of which 21 were new. These, together with other obser-
vations made by Dr. Abbott, Ijring the number of birds known from
these islands up to 66. This number will doubtless be greatly in-
creased by future explorations, though the Anamba group does not
seem to be so rich in bird life as the Natuna Islands, which lie nearer
Borneo. In onl}^ one case, so far as known, are there two subspecies
of the same species on different islands in this group. Of the birds now
known from the Anambas, 11 are migrants from the north, and do
not breed on the islands. Fifteen subspecies are peculiar to the Anamba
Islands, and six other subspecies occur outside of the group only on some
other islands of the South China Sea. The remaining 24 Anamba birds
belong to more or less wide-ranging species. Taken as a whole, the
Anamba Islands are faunally most closely allied to the Malay Peninsula;
less so, but about equally to Sumatra and Borneo; still less to Java;
and only slightty to Indo-China. Among the most interesting of the
new forms discovered by Dr. Abbott in the Anamba Islands might be
mentioned those of the genera Muscadivores, Collocalia, Artamides,
Cyornis, Hi/pothyniis, Kittacincla, Lamprocorax , and Dissemurus.

H. C. 0.

ORNITHOLOGY.— r/ie birds of Bawean Island, Java Sea. Harry C.
• Oberholser. Proc. U.S.Nat. Mus. 52: 183-198. Feb. 8, 1917.

Bawean Island is mountainous, with an area of approximatel}^ 100
square miles, from, which some 18 species of birds had been recorded
prior to Dr. W. L. Abbott's visit from November 19 to 28, 1907. His
collection of 35 specimens of birds is of much interest, since 7 of the 15
species represented prove to belong to undescribed forms, most of them,
so far as known, confined to this island; and since it adds 8 species to the
list, making a total of 26 now known from here. The avifauna of
Bawean Island as a whole is most closely allied to that of Java, but it
has also a marked Bornean infusion. Among the most interesting new
forms discovered by Dr. Abbott are a new hawk of the genus Spilornis,
very different from the Bornean Spilornis pallidus and much nearer the
Sumatran bird, Spilornis bassus; a new species of Strix, very different
in coloration from Strix orientalis and Strix ocellata, the characters of
both of which it somewhat curiously combines; and a new form of
Malacocincla abbotti. A series of Microtarsus baweanus, collected by

abstracts: ornithology 133

Dr. Abbott, proves this bird to be only a subspecies of Microtarsus
chalcocephalus of Java. H. C. 0.

ORNITHOLOGY. — A review of the genus Pedioecetes in Colorado. F.
C. Lincoln. Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 30: 83-86, pi. 1. May 23, 1917.
The sharp-tailed grouse inhabiting the eastern foothills of the Rock}^
Mountains in Colorado is found to differ subspecifically from Pedioe-
cetes phasianellus coliwibianus of Colorado west of the Continental
Divide and also from Pedioecetes phasianellus campestris of the plains
in the northeastern part of this State, and' is named Pedioecetes
phasianellus janiesi. Harry C. Oberholser.

OR XITHOLOG Y. — A dditions to the Haitian avifauna. Paul Bartsch.
Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 30: 131-132. July 27, 1917.
The form of the South American Porzana fiaviventris occurring on the
island of Haiti proves to be a recognizable subspecies, and is named
Porzana fiaviventris hendersoni, after Mr. John B. Henderson. The
Haitian golden warbler is distinguished from Dendroica petechia petechia
of Jamaica and reinstated as a subspecies under the name Dendroica
petechia albicollis (Gmelin). Eleven other species, mostly water-birds
and shore lairds, are listed as additions to the avifauna of the island of
Santo Domingo. This list includes Chaetura pelagica, an entirely un-
expected record for April. Harry C. Oberholser.

•

ORNITHOLOGY. — The Porto Rican grasshopper sparrow. James L.
Peters. Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 30: 95-96. May 23, 1917.
The resident form of the grasshopper sparrow found in Porto Rico
proves to be separable from both the Curagao and Santo Domingo
forms, and is named Ammodramus savannarum borinquensis.

Harry C. Oberholser.

ORNITHOLOGY. — Preliminary diagnoses of apparently new birds from

Colombia and Bolivia. W. E. Clyde Todd. Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash.

30:3-6. January 22, 1917.

Seven new species here described ai'e Phoenicothraupis rubiginosus,

from Colombia; Attila caniceps, from Colombia, and Attila neoxenus,

from Bolivia, two remarkable new birds of this tropical genus; Xipho-

colaptes obsoletus, from Bolivia; Celeus innotatus, from Colombia;

Pyrrhura subandina, from Colombia; and Eupsychortyx decoratus,

from Colombia. Ten subspecies from Colombia and Bolivia are also

described, among the most interesting of them Bubo virginianus elutus,

from Colombia. Harry C. Oberholser.

134 abstracts: ornithology

ORNITHOLOGY. — Neiv genera, species, and subspecies of South

American birds. W. E. Clyde Todd. Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 30:

127-130. July 27, 1917.

Two new genera are Idiospiza, proposed for Linaria inornata Lafres-

naye; andPoecilurus, for Synallaxis candaei Lafresnaye. A new species

is Poecilurus atrigidaris, from Colombia. Nine new subspecies from

Venezuela, Colombia, and Panama are also described.

Harry C. Oberholser.

ORNITHOLOGY. ~Muta7ida ornithologica. I. Harry C. Ober-
holser. Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 30: 75-76. March 31, 1917.
During the past several years the writer has incidentally noted a
number of necessary changes in the current scientific names of birds.
This article is the first of a series designed to set forth these changes.
In the present installment the following changes are made, chiefly on
the ground of preoccupation: Nettion torquatum (Vieillot) becomes
Nettion leucophrys (Vieillot); Chloephaga magellanica (Gmelin) becomes
Chloephaga leucoptera (Gmelin); Cerchneis gracilis (Lesson) is renamed
Cerchneis araea Oberholser; Cerchneis alopex deserticola Reichenow is
renamed Cerchneis alopex eremica. Oberholser; and the fossil Rail us
intermedius Milne-Edwards is called Rallus odelus Obeiliolsei-, nom.
nov. H. C. O.

•

ORNITHOLOGY .—Washington region [winter of 1916-1917]. Harry
C. Oberholser. Bird-Lore 19: 153. 1917.
This paper is the first of a series designed to present current reports
on the birds about Washington, D. C. This installment treats of the
winter birds of 1916-1917 up to the month of March. That winter
proved notable for the presence of several interesting northern visitors,
including Loxia leucoptera, Loxia curvirostra minor, Spi?iuspinus pinus,
and Olor columbianus. An individual of Polioptila caerulea caerulea,
seen, January 1 (erroneously recorded as January 2), and one Corthijlio
calendula calendula, noted, January 20, also are worthj^ of special
mention. During the beginning of the spring migration two species
appeared much earlier than ever previously noted: Seirus motacilla on
March 17, and Nemospiza henslowii henslowii on April 1. H. C. 0.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

The 120th meeting of the Academy was held in the Assembly Room
of the Cosmos Club the evening of January 31, 1918; called to order at
8.30 by President Beiggs. The amendments to the By-Laws pre-
sented at the Annual Meeting, January 8, 1918 (see this Journal of
February 4, 1918), were adopted, on the recommendation of the Board
of Managers.

Professor Fridtjof Nansen, of the University of Kristiania, Nor-
way, at present Minister Plenipotentiary of Norway on a special mis-
sion to the United States, delivered a lecture on Changes in oceanic
ay\d atmospheric temperatures ami their relation to changes in the sun's
activity.

The lecturer gave a very comprehensive review, illustrated with lan-
tern slides, of the subject matter of a book recently published by him
jointl}' with Professor Bjorn Heland Hansen, of the Museum of
Bergen, under the title, Temperatur-Schwankungen des N ordatlantischen
Ozems und in der Atvwsphdre. Einleitende Studien iiher die Ursachen
der klimatologischen Schwankungen}

The primary aim of the research was to find the relations existing
between oceanic and atmospheric temperatures. The surface tem-
perature of the water in various parts of the North Atlantic at the
coldest time of the year foi-med the foundation of the first study. When
the region covered by the data is divided into approximately equal
areas, the temperature curves of these areas are found to be parallel.
It is evident from the form of the curves that these changes of tem-
perature taken as a whole are not due to changes in the water-masses
transported. A relation does appear, however, between these changes
and the prevaihng direction of the wind, as deduced from atmospheric
pressure gradients. Where the wind turns south of (i.e. is directed
south of) its average direction over a period of years, the temperature
of the water is lower than the average for the same period, and vice
versa. A similar parallelism between wind direction and water tem-
perature appears along the coast of Norway; the effect near the coast
is based upon the direction of the wind with respect to the land, as well
as upon the season of the year. The air temperature variations on
land appear earlier than the variations in water temperature.

Certain periodicities appear in all the curves of oceanic and atmos-
pheric temperatures, but they vary in type. At the same time a rela-
tion also appears between these curves and curves of sun-spot activity

1 Videnskapsselskapets Skrifter, I Mat.-Naturv. Klasse, 1916, No. 9. Kris-
tiania, 1917.

135 ^

136 proceedings: Washington academy of sciences

and magnetic elements. The 11-year period is prominent. An oceanic-
type and a continental (Eurasian) type can be distinguished. The lat-
ter follows the sun-spot curve directly, whereas the former type follows
the sun spots inversely. There is also a third and very remarkable
type in which the curve changes more or less suddenly from direct to
inverse. This sudden inversion is brought out in many curves, com-
paring stations in different parts of the earth, and the inversion occurs
in very many cases at about the year 1896.

When the temperature curves for different months of the year are
compared with the sun-spot curves, these three types of agreement
again appear in very puzzling and unexpected combinations.

In addition to oceanic and atmospheric temperatures, other meteoro-
logical elements (air pressure, wind velocity, rainfall, cloudiness, mean
daily temperature-amplitude) show a relation to the sun spots, sun
prominences, and magnetic variations, and show not only the 11-year
period but also shorter periods of two, three, and five and one-half years.

The fluctuations of the temperature at the earth's surface do not
follow directly the variations in the energy received from the sun as
determined by the measurements of Abbot and Fowle. The daily and
yearly temperature-amplitudes are believed to furnish sufficient I'efu-
tation of hypotheses based on supposed variations in the absorbing
and reflecting power of the atmosphere, as well as of Humphreys' hy-
potheses as to formation of ozone or effects of volcanic dust. Bland-
ford's hypothesis of the effect of increased evaporation in loweiing
continental temperatures at sun-spot maxima is also not supported by
the facts of tropical land and ocean stations.

The mistake of most authors when they have discussed the causes of
temperature changes has been that they took for granted that the
average temperature at the earth's surface was directly dependent on
solar radiation, and would give a direct indication of heat received.
They have not considered sufficiently the fact that a ver}^ great pro-
portion of the sun's radiation is absorbed by the higher layers of our
atmosphere and that the distribution of heat in the atmosphere is of the
greatest importance for the temperatures at the earth's surface. They
seem very often to have forgotten that the variations in the sun's activ-
ity, and in the so-called ''solar constant," and also in the sun's electric
radiation, may primarily influence the higher layers of the atmosphere,
thus indirectly guiding the distribution of atmospheric pi*essure and the
circulation not only of these higher layers but also of the lower parts
of the atmosphere. In this manner the temperature of the higher
latitudes may be influenced more than that of the tropics, where the
conditions are so stable.

The variation in pressure gradient seems much more closely related
to the temperatuie of land stations than is the variation in air pressure
itself. For instance, the Colombo-Hj^derabad gradient runs parallel
to the temperature in the Himalayas but opposite to the temperature
at Batavia, while Bombay forms an example of those strange reversals •
occurring about 1896. The Iceland-Azores gradient has exactly oppo-

proceedings: Washington academy of sciences 137

site effects in Norway and in mid-Atlantic. An increase of air circu-
lation may thus have opposite effects in different regions. The sun
spots and magnetic elements sometimes oppose and sometimes agree
with the variations in pressure gradients.

Various periodicities appear in the sun spots as well as in the ter-
restrial phenomena. In the sun spots there is an 8-month period cor-
responding with the conjunction or opposition of the planets Venus
and Jupiter with the sun. This same period occurs in the North
Atlantic gradient, and was found by Krogness in the magnetic decli-
nation at Kristiania. There are also periods of six and twelve months
in the magnetic elements, due to the position of the earth. The com-
bination of these 6, 8, and 12-month periods gives a 2-year period for
the magnetic and meteorological elements on the earth. But in the
fluctuations of the sun spots a similar period of two years is also dis-
covered, and especially noticeable are indications of minima every sec-
ond year. Before 1896 there is an agreement between the 2-year
minima of temperature at certain stations and the corresponding sun-
spot minima, but the agreement is remarkable in that the greatest
depressions in the sun-spot curve coincide with the smallest depres-
sions in the temperature curve; this relation ceased about 1896, hence
the peculiar inversion already referred to.

Other periodicities have been recognized. A 32-33-month period
at Batavia may be a combination of the 2-yea]" period already referred
to and a 3.7-year period suspected by Lockyer. Secular changes of
relatively long period (35 years and over 100 years) also are probable.
The researches of Clayton have recognized correlations in daily tem-
perature and pressure fluctuations at various stations over the earth
and the fluctuations in the dail}^ heat radiation of the sun as meas-
ured by Abbot and Fowle, the same three types appearing in these
meteorological variations as have been noted in the long-time varia-
tions. Krogness recognizes^ H-da}^ and 27-day periods in magnetic
storms, as well as in air-pressure gradients, wind, and temperature, in
northern Norway.

To summarize the results of these investigations : In different groups
of areas on the earth the meteorological elements (temperature, baro-
metric pressure, rainfall, etc.) fluctuate or pulsate, so to speak, in time
with one another, while in other groups of areas the fluctuations or pul-
sations are exactly inverted, and finally, some areas show transition
stages between the two. The result of all this is a very complicated
picture of the meteorological fluctuations. But by means of appro-
priate analyses we see that from this complicated and apparentlj^
chaotic set of fluctuations there arises a clear picture of the very inti-
mate relation between all these variations and the variations in the
sun's activity. We have seen that even changes of very short duration
in the sun's radiation (of heat as well as electricitjO are distinctly re-
peated in our meteorological conditions and in the surface temperature
of the ocean. The effects of the solar variations are probably trans-
ferred by means of variations produced in the distribution of pressure

138 proceedings: biological society

in our atmosphere. Changes in solar radiation probably first affect
the higher layers of our atmosphere, and thus create an unrest which
in turn is transmitted to the lower strata near the earth's surface.

Such dynamic changes will produce different effects in different
regions of the earth. But by thorough and complete analyses of the
great meteorological material now at hand it may be possible to find
the general rules. This will be an important step forward toward
understanding the laws ruling our atmosphere.

For this purpose it will also be of the greatest importance to have
the wonderful researches of Abbot and Fowle continued with the
greatest possible efficiency. These investigations of the sun's radiation
of heat, which they have been carrying on for a long series of years at
Washington, Mount Wilson, Mount Whitney, and in Algeria, have
given us the remarkable revelation that our sun is *a variable star,
the most important discovery that has been made in this field in many
years. {Author's abstract.)

William R. Maxon, Recording Secretary.

BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 577th regular meeting of the Society was held in the Assembly
Hall of the Cosmos Club, Saturday, Januarj^ 12, 1918; called to order
at 8.00 p.m. by President Rose; 38 persons present.

On recommendation of 'the Council the following were elected to
membership: E. A. Chapin, F. P. Metcalf, Charles E. Chambliss.

President Rose announced the death on October 29, 1917, of Miss
Katherine M. Raber, a former member of the Society.

President Rose announced the membership of the Publication Com-
mittee as C. W. Richmond, J. H. Riley, N. Dearborn, and W. L.
McAtee; of the Committee on Communications as William Palmer,
Alex. Wetmore, R. E. Coker, L. 0. Howard, and A. S. Hitchcock.

The Recording Secretary read a letter from the Washington Academ.y
of Sciences in which subscriptions to the Journal of that Society were
solicited on the part of members of the affiliated societies, and in which
the aims and character of the Journal were set forth.

Dr. L. 0. Howard introduced Prof. Stephen A. Forbes, of the Uni-
versity of Illinois, as a visitor to the Society who was invited by the
President to take part in the discussions.

Under the heading brief notes, General T. E. Wilcox presented a
note read by the Secretary on the inability of camels to swim.

A. S. Hitchcock outlined the plans formulated by a gathering of
botanists during the scientific meetings recently held in Pittsburgh
for the establishment of an abstract journal on the subject of botany.

The regular program consisted of three communications as follows:

N. E. McIndoo: The senses of insects, illustrated by charts. Three
types of olfactory organs were discussed. (1) The lyriform organs are
found on all the appendages of spiders. (2) The olfactory pores found
on the appendages of insects were divided into simple and compound

proceedings: biological society 139

organs; the former being a single sense cell whose peripheral end pierces
the integument, and the latter being a group of sense cells whose
peripheral ends pierce a common plate; the compound organs are
found only on the antennae of a certain coleopterous larva. (3) The
antennal organs discussed are the pore plates, pegs, pit pegs, and end
pegs; each of these organs is innervated, but the nerve does not come
in direct contact with the external air as it does in the lyriform organs
and olfactorj^ pores.

Bees recognize one another chiefly by the odors they emit; in a colony
there are a queen odor, drone odor, family odor, individual odor, and a
hive odor. The hive odor is the most miportant one, because without
it a colony of bees could not exist. These odors are produced by a
special scent-producing organ.

The tactile sense of bees is very acute, and these insects can dis-
criminate between certain foods better than people, although they have
no sense of taste; this is accomphshed by means of the highly devel-
oped olfactory sense after the bees have eaten a little of the foods.

The paper was discussed by Dr. L. 0. Howard and Alex. Wetmore.

Eleanor C. Allex: Wax models of fleshy fungi, with an exhibit of
several models. ]Miss Allen said she had been engaged for the past
four years in making models of this sort for the Milwaukee Public
Museum. She illustrated her talk bj' models of four species of mush-
rooms, each being represented bj- a group of several individuals ar-
ranged as in their living condition. She described the processes inci-
dent to the making of the finished groups. Living specimens growing
in woods or fields are found and before picking sketches of the group
and complete notes in regard to color and habitat are made. Then
plaster models of the various individuals are made. In the laboratory,
using these models, wax mushrooms are cast and the details of these
are worked out by careful modeling, coloring, and the addition of
various materials to give a natural appearance of texture. Habitat
material such as grass, moss, stumps, etc., are gathered and chemically
treated. Backgrounds, natural to individual species, are prepared from
these materials and upon these the wax facsimiles are arranged.
Miss Allen showed photographs of the numerous groups which she
has made and which are now installed in the Milwaukee Public Museum.

Miss Allen not being a member of the Society was introduced by
President Rose. Her communication was discussed by the chair, and
by Alessrs. F. V. Colville and A. S. Hitchcock.

C. B. Doyle: Some agricultural and botanical features of Haiti, illus-
trated b}^ lantern slides. In Haiti there is very little left to repre-
sent the original forest covering. The primitive milpa system of
agriculture is used and the natives live in scattered families or small
groups. ^lost of the food plants are of American origin, butit is the
introduced species that have become of the greatest importance to the
natives. There are only a few large plantations on the island, the bulk
of the crops of the three principal exports (coffee, cacao, and cotton)
being produced on the small native farms. Many different kinds of

140 proceedings: botanical society

fine fruits are abundant, but several species prominent in other parts
of tropical America, such as the papaya, sapote, sapodilla, and pine-
apple, are absent or little used. Among the root crops that are com-
monly grown are sweet potatoes, yams, yautias, and cassava, and more
recently white potatoes are being successfuly produced in the cool
mountain districts southeast of Port au Prince. In comparison with
other tropical countries, conditions appear favorable for crop production
in Haiti, if a more effective organization of agriculture can be estab-
lished together with a better means of marketing the products.

The paper was discussed by Major E. A. Goldman, Dr. L. 0.
Howard, 0. F. Cook, A. S. Hitchcock, and the chair.

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

BOTANICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 125th regular meeting of the Society was held at the Cosmos
Club, Thursday, January 3, 1918. There were 65 members and 8
guests present. The following persons were elected to membership:
A. A. Hansen, Leonard W. Kephart, H. E. Allanson, F. P. Met-
CALF, Nathan Menderson, and T. Ralph Robinson. The following
scientific program was given:

C. V. Piper: The botany and economics of the tribe Phaseoleae. The
word bean traces back philologically to Vicia faba known as the horse
bean, broad bean, Windsor bean, etc. In present-day usage the word
bean is most commonly used for the common or kidney bean Phaseolus
vulgaris. Botanists in general restrict the term bean to the botanical
tribe Phaseoleae, but the original bean Vicia faba belongs to the tribe
Viciae. By extension the word bean has also been applied to seeds
in other families, as the castor bean, cacao bean, vanilla bean, etc.
On the other hand some of the Phaseoleae are commonly known as
peas; for example, pigeon pea and cowpea.

For the purpose of this discussion the term bean is restricted to the
botanical tribe Phaseoleae. In this tribe Engler and Prantl recognized
forty-seven genera, and Bentham and Hooker fifty. In recent years one
additional undoubtedl.y distinct genus has been described and many
botanists subdivide some of the older genera. Thus from Phaseolus
have been segregated Dyslobium and Strophostyles and perhaps other
natural genera still remain to be separated from the Phaseolus complex.
Engler and Prantl divide the tribe Phaseoleae into six subtribes, of
which the most important is the Phaseolinae. Of the eight to twelve
genera in this tribe all but one or two are economic and seven are
important as sources of human food.

All of the edible beans are of very ancient agriculture and most of
them have not been found, or at least identified, as wild plants. The
exceptions which are known as wild are the cowpea, the horse bean,
the soy bean, the lima bean, the moth bean, and the Niger bean.

Most of the beans used for human food are prone to create digestive
disturbances, in strong contrast with the seeds of the pea tribe, but

proceedings: biological society 141

very little is known of the substances in beans which cause these
troubles.

The speaker discussed briefly the botanical characters of the more
important genera. Detailed data were given concerning the species
that are of economic impoi'tance in the United States. Particular
attention was called to the tremendous increase and relative importance
of the velvet bean and of the soy bean.

W. J. INIorse: Morpholoykal c/iamc'.er and food value of soy-bean

varieties. The soy bean is native of southeastern Asia and has been

cultivated as a food crop by the Chinese for more than 5000 years.

In extent of uses and value it is the most important legume grown in

^ Asiatic countries. The plant is found growing in its wild form in

' southern China and on the southern islands of Japan.

The number of varieties cultivated in the Orient is very extensive and
during the past ten years the Department of Agriculture has brought
in through the Ofhce of Foreign Seed and Plant Introduction nearly
1000 introductions, nearly all of which were distinct sorts. Very
seldom is the same sort received twice unless from the same locality.
In China and Japan the varieties are distinguished by color, shape, size,
and use of the seed, and, to a slight extent, by the maturity. Certain
sorts are favored for making bean cheese, others for bean sprouts, some
for soy sauce, and still others for the production of oil and meal. In
America, vaieties are classified according to color, size, and shape of
seed, maturity and habit of plant, and color of pubescence and flowers.
Analyses made o" all varieties introduced thus far show a range of
from 12 to 24 per cent oil and from 30 to 46 per cent protein. The
Department of Agriculture is doing considerable work in the selection
of high oil-bearing varieties and also those with a high percentage of
protein for food purposes. Investigations as to starch content indicate
varieties having a total absence of starch to a few having perhaps
about 3 per cent. In most varieties examined, the starch is found
around the hilum, while in one instance a small quantitj^ was found
scattered throughout the cotyledons.

In Oriental countries the so}^ bean is utilized largely for food, being
elaborated into a great variety of productions such as soy sauce, vege-
table cheeses (fresh, dried, fermented, and smoked), vegetable milk,
and bean sprouts. All of these products are rich in protein and fur-
nish, with rice, a well-balanced diet to the people of these countries.
In Europe and America soy-bean flour or meal has been used to a
small extent for many years as a special food for persons requiring a
food of low starch diet. During the last two or three years the dried
beans are assuming a place on the American market and are used the
same as the field or navy bean. The green beans, about three-quarters
to full grown, are finding favor as a green vegetable, being utilized like
the lima or butter bean.

As an oil seed, the soy bean has taken an important place in the
world's commerce and has become an important competitor of other
vegetable oils. Hundreds of thousands of tons of beans are being

142 proceedings: botanical society

crushed for oil and meal in Asia, America, and European countries.
The oil is used quite extensively in the manufacture of food stuffs
such as butter and lard substitutes.

The soy bean, with its products, oil and meal, present great possi-
bilities in supplementing our ordinary food products during the present
emergency, and once introduced on the market will give a highly nutri-
tious food at very low cost. Extensive areas in the United States are
suited to the production of soy beans. Although the acreage of the
crop the past season is about five times that of five years ago, it should,
and no doubt will, assume an important place among the faim crops of
the United States.

Charles Thom : Fermented soy-bean products. Some preliminary ex-
periments have been made to determine the conditions of making and
ripening the Chinese soy cheeses.

The presence of a protein allied to the casein of mammalian milk
makes possible the manufacture of these cheeses. The basis of these
is the so-called Tofu or Dofu; it has various names. This is a soft
curd made by the coagulation of the soy-bean milk with calcium sul-
phate, raw salt, or by acid milk or whey. As it appears in the market,
it contains about 83 to 88 per cent water, 7 to 11 per cent protein,
4 to 5 per cent fat, and perhaps 0.5 per cent ash. In the fresh form
it is comparable to low-grade Neufchatel or cottage cheese which runs
about 10 per cent higher in nutritive constituents. The cakes of curd
are usually about 2 inches square and 1 inch thick. These little cakes
are riponed in cool, very moist rooms, until covered with a deep felt of
mold; then packed in jars with excessive amounts of salt and allowed to
cure slowly. The concentration of brine is such as to reduce the ac-
tivity of microorganisms to a minimum. The final cheeses have high
flavor, rather strong odor, and too much salt to be consumed in bulk
as cheese. They are covered with red sauce and variously combined
with other food products before consumption.

J. A. LeClerc: The composition of the soy bean and its use in bread-
making. The speaker presented the results of the analyses of several
hundred samples representing 45 varieties and grown in six different
localities. From these results it was shown that soy beans contain
on an average 18.6 per cent of fat and about 40 per cent of protein.
It was shown that when all these varieties were grown in the six dif-
ferent localities the influence of environment on the protein and fat
content was marked. The average protein content of some soy beans
grown in one locality was as low as 38 per cent, while those same varie-
ties grown in another locality would contain as much as 42 per cent, in-
dicating definite varietal characteristics. The same conclusions hold
for the fat content. In general, soy beans that are high in fat are
low in protein, and vice versa. It was also shown how soy ])eans
can be used as a flour substitute. Samples of bread made with 20
per cent soy bean and 80 per cent white flour were exhibited.

H. N. ViNALL, Corresponding Secretary.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

The Bureau of Standards has purchased eight acres of land west of
Connecticut Avenue and has let contracts for a new engineering lab-
oratory, 175 by 350 feet and four stories in height. The new building
and its equipment will cost in the neighborhood of $1,000,000, and will
increase the capacity of the Bureau by 50 per cent. The Pittsburgh
laboratory of the Bureau, including the work on glass and ceramics,
will be transferred to Washington. It is expected that the new building
will be occupied during the coming summer.

i\Irs. E. H. Harrimav has turned over to the Carnegie Institution
of Washington the Eugenics Record Office established by her at Cold
Spring Harbor, Long Island, New York, in 1910. Included in the gift
are 80 acres of land, an office building, a large residence and the valu-
able records already compiled. Mi'S. Harriman also has created an
endowment fund jaelding an annual income of $12,000 for maintenance
of the work.

Mr. Frederick Webb Hodge, since 1910 Ethnologist-in-charge of
the Bureau of American Ethnology, Smithsonian Institution, resigned
on February 28, to accept a position with the Museum of the American
Indian, Heye Foundation, in New York City. Dr. Jesse Walter
Fewkes, ethnologist on the Bureau's staff since 1895, has been ap-
pointed chief of the Bureau.

Dr. RoLLiN Arthur Harris, mathematician and physicist, who
had been employed in the Coast and Geodetic Survey for 28 years,
died on January 20, at the age of 55. He was a member of the Philo-
sophical Society, and one of the original members df the Academy.
His work was concerned principally with the theory of functions as
applied to geodesy and cartography, and with problems of tides and
cotidal maps.

Dr. J. W. Turrentine, of the Bureau of Soils, is now in charge of
the experimental kelp-potash plant of the Bureau, at Summerland,
CaUfornia. The plant has been in operation since late August, and
is now marketing daily about $300 worth of materials produced inci-
dentally in experimentation. While primarily experimental, it is
built and equipped to make possible the obtaining of commercial data.
It has a capacity of about 150 tons of raw kelp per day, and its equip-
ment includes a self-propelling harvester; a pier with unloading device
and conveyors; rotary kilns and furnaces for drying; retorts for de-
structive distillation; lixi viator; evaporator and crystalhzer; centrif-
ugal dryers; and the necessary incidental equipment. Dr. Turrentine
has as his assistants Mr. E. B. Smith, formerly of the office of Public

143

144 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Roads, Mr. P. S. Shoaff, formerly Chief Chemist of the Holly Sugar
Corporation, and Dr. G. C. Spencer, formerly of the Bureau of
Chemistry, together with an operating force numbering forty-three.

Prof. C. C. Nutting, a member of the Academy, is organizing a
party of naturalists, composed almost entirely of graduate students
and instructors in zoology at the State University of Iowa, to carry on
investigations regarding marine fauna in the vicinity of the islands of
Barbados and Antigua, British West Indies. The party will sail
about April 27 from New York and expects to return about August 1.
The time will be divided between the islands of Barbados and Antigua,
at both of which places the Colonial Governments have placed ade-
quate quarters for the party. A well-equipped launch with excellent
facilities for dredging down to 200 fathoms has been proffered by a
Washington friend, who himself will be a member of the party.

In his preliminary trip to Barbados last summer Prof. Nutting found
that the natives of these islands are quite expert in diving, and one of
them was capable of bringing up specimens from a depth of 10 fathoms.
It is the intention to make rather extensive use of native divers to
procure specimens down to this depth.

The following persons have become members of the Academy since
the last issue of the Journal: Miss Frances Densmore, Bureau of
American Ethnology, Smithsonian Institution; Major William Mc-
Pherson, War Department, 1800 Virginia Avenue; Dr. Francis
Briggs Silsbee, Bureau of Standards.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VIII MARCPI 13. 1018 No, (i

OCEANOGRAPHY. — A7i eleztrical instrument for recording sea-
water salinity.^ Frnest E. Weibel and Albert L. Thuras,
Bureau of Standards. (Communicated by S. W. Stratton.)

The modern tendency in physical research is to replace indi-
cating instruments by recording instruments wherever possible.
This has been especially true in the science of meteorology,
where the recent advances have been brought about almost
entirely by the remarkable improvements and developments
in recording instruments. In the related science of oceanog-
raphy there are practically no recording instruments now in
general use, except possibly the tide-gage. If meteorology has
been so greatly benefited by such instruments, surely in oceanog-
raphy, where the changes in the physical properties are so much
more regular and therefore more easily interpreted, great ad-
vances should be looked for through the addition or substitution
of recording instruments.

A few years ago a recorder using a platinum resistance ther-
mometer, ^ giving a continuous record of the surface temperature
of the ocean, was designed and constructed at the Bureau of
Standards. This instrument has been used successfully on
board ship and some very interesting records have been obtained
which show the distribution of temperature and thereby indi-
cate the location of ocean currents and also give a knowledge

^Done under the auspices of the Interdepartmental Committee on Oceanog-
raphy, subcommittee on instruments, apparatus, and measurements.

2WAiDNER,DiCKixsox, and Crowe. Bureau of Standards Bull. 10: 267. 1914.

143 ,

146 WEIBEL AND THUUAS: 14ECORDING SALINITY

of their boundary conditions which could hardly be obtained by
repeated single measurements of temperature.

The temperature, however, is not nearly so reliable a clue to
the location of currents and the origin of water masses as is the
salinity. A body of sea water may change considerably in tem-
perature in moving from one place to another, but unless the
evaporation or rainfall is excessive its concentration will change
comparatively little. By salinity is meant the number of grams
of salt or solids in one kilogram of sea water. The composition
of these salts is very nearly constant everywhere in the open
ocean, but the salinity, or concentration of the total salts, varies
from place to place.

From a consideration of the properties of sea water that vary
with the salinity, the electrical conductivity seemed to be the
most susceptible to continuous measurement, if the difficulty
due to the variation of conductivity with temperature can b(^
overcome. This difficulty is avoided by the use of a method
which is compensated for temperature.

This paper describes the method of measurement and the ex-
perimental work done towards the production of an apparatus
to give a continuous record of sea-water salinity to the accuracy
required in the most precise oceanographic research. The work
has not been finished, but from the results obtained we believe
that the method is practical and sufficiently important to war-
rant publication at the present time, even though the apparatus
is not yet built.

DESCRIPTION OF THE METHOD

The method consists in measuring the ratio of the resistance of
sea water in two equal or nearly equal electrolytic cells A and B
(fig. 1); one cell A is sealed and contains sea water of a known
average salinity, the other cell B is open and has flowing through
it the sea water to be measured. This ratio is obtained by a
Wheatstone bridge using alternating current to eliminate polari-
zation effects in the cells. A calibration of the apparatus can
be made at any time by using sea water of known salinity in the

WEIBEL AND THUUAS: RECORDING SALINITY

147

open cell. This can be done either by carrying standard samples
or by determining the salinity of the sea water flowing through
the open cell by some accurate method that can be used on board
ship. Such a method giving salinity by a measurement of den-
sity has been described.'^ A record of the resistance ratio of the
two cells is made by a recorder similar to those now in use for
measuring temperature, but some changes will have to be made
t(^ adapt it for using alternating current.

Fig. 1.

The new and important feature of this method is the use of
two cells containing liquids of nearly the same properties, which
make it possible to compensate almost completely for the large
temperature coefficient of sea water. The two cells are placed
in a uniform temperature bath and the error will bo only that
due to the small differential temperature coefficient of iho two
solutions.

EXPERIMENTAL WORK

Preliminary expoi-iments to test the general feasibility of the
method showed:

1. Good balances can be obtained with a mnplc Wheatstone

■'TiiunAs, A. L., Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci. 7: GO."). 1917.

148 WEIBEL AND THURAS: RECORDING SALINITY

bridge circuit containing the two electrolytic cells, using either
a telephone at 500 cycles per second or an alternating current
galvanometer at 60 cycles per second as a detector.

2. The temperature compensation is sufficient. For the maxi-
mum difference in salinity the lack of compensation did not ex-
ceed 0.03 in salinity (0.03 gram of solids per kilogram of water)
for a change of 10°C.

3. No appreciable change in balance due to the flow of the sea
water through the open cell was obtained.

4. To obtain a continuous record of salinity an alternating-
current galvanometer similar t o the usual direct-current galvan-
ometer is needed to operate tlie recorder. This galvanometer
was constructed of the electromagnet moving coil type,^ and
had a sensitivity and other operating constants as good as those
of the direct-current galvanometers now used. After these
preliminary experiments on some temporary cells had shown the
feasibility of the method a more careful study was made of cer-
tain sources of error in order to obtain data upon which to base
the design of the final cells. These effects are :

1. Heating effect of the current in the cells;

2. Temperature lag of the sealed cell when the sea- water
temperature in the bath suddenly changes;

3. Time necessary for the resistance ratio to reach its true
value if the sea water passing through the open cell changes
in salinity.

In the ordinary conductivity measurements performed in a
laboratory the heating effect of the current can be made negligi-
ble l)y using a sufficiently sensitive galvanometer or telephone
receivei', but with the less sensitive recording galvanometer this
current must be much larger and consequently requires a spe-
cially designed cell to dissipate the heat developed. From ex-
]:)ei-iments on differently shaped cells the heating coefficients,
i.e., temperature rise per watt dissipated in the cells, were found
to l)e approximately inversely proportional to the diameters
and lengths of the cells. Since the length of cell is limited by

*Weibel, E. E., Bureau of Standards Sci. Paper No. 297 p. 23. 1917.

WEIBEL AND THURAS: RECORDING SALINITY 149

practical considerations, it was necessary to increase the diam-
eter in order to reduce this coefficient.

To determine the temperature lag, different cells were placed
in a stirred bath and their time constants were found by chang-
ing their temperatures slightly from the temperature of the bath
and reading the resistance at definite intervals as the cell gradu-
ally assumed the temperature of the bath. By time constant
is here meant the time necessary for the temperature of the cell
to approach the temperature of the bath to 67 per cent of its
initial difference in temperature.

The time constants were found to be very approximately
inversely proportional to the square of the diameter of the cells.
Therefore the condition that is required to reduce the heating
coefficient is opposite to that which will reduce the time constant,
and since both of these values must be small special multiple tube
cells were designed which will fulfill these conditions.

The time lag produced by a change in concentration of the
sea water was determined by passing water of different salinities
through a cell and it was found that if the cell is being swept out
at the rate of three or four volumes a minute the ratio will re-
spond within three or four minutes for probably the maximum
change in salinity which can occur. The following considera-
tions will show the purpose of reducing these factors as much as
possible.

In general the temperature and salinity of the ocean changes
very gradually from place to place so that usually no special
cell would be required to record the salinity, but at some places
as for instance in the vicinity of the Grand Bank of Newfound-
land, where the cold fresh water of the Labrador Current meets
the warm salty water of the Gulf Stream, the temperature and
salinity change comparatively rapidly in moving from one body
of water to the other. At these places such a specially designed
cell is necessary. A few years ago a number of temperature
records of the ocean were taken from a vessel going at moderate
speeds and the most sudden change in temperature was 3.5° in
about one minute. If this change is assumed to be instantane-
ous, the temperature of the sealed cell will in less than two min-

150

WEIBEL AND THURAS : RECORDING SALINITY

utes be so near that of the open cell that the error will be less
than 0.02 in salinity.

Although there. are as yet no observations on the rate of change
of salinity, it is assumed that the maximum change in a short
interval of time is not greater than 2 in salinity. This value is
estimated from the relative changes of temperature which are
discussed above. A response to this change to within 0.02 in
salinity in less than two minutes can be obtained by washing
out the cell at the rate of 3 or 4 volumes a minute. However,
if the temperature and salinity change at the same time, which is

Elect t-olytic Cell

c

End view

Plan view

(m^

Side view

Fig.

¥^

quite probable, the lag of the recorder will be the sum of the
two and if they are both a maximum at the same time, which
is quite improbable, then the total time lag will be 4 minutes.
This is probably the worst possible condition that can occur,
but it is well to point out that as the regain of the true reading
is exponential the recorder Avill at first quickly approach its
correct value and although it takes four minutes to reach within
0.02 in salinity it will take much less than two minutes to obtain
an accuracy of 0.04 in salinity. However, if a more careful
study of the change in salinity between different water masses

WEIBEL AND THUKAS: RECORDING SALINITY 151

is required it is only necessar}- to increase the flow through the
open cell and to make a correction for the error caused by the
rapid change in temperature. Since another recorder will be
used to measure the temperature of the sea water this tempera-
ture correction for the salinitj^ can easily be obtained.

MULTIPLE TUBE CELLS

Each of the 2 cells that have been designed (fig. 2) contains
6 parallel glass tubes 14 cm. long and 1 cm. in diameter. These
tubes are joined at each end to bulbs containing annular-shaped
platinum electrodes. Each electrode has an area of 5.3 sq. cm.
and is held rigidly in place by 4 platinum pins which are welded
to the electrode and sealed into the glass wall of the cell. The
cells are designed so that there are no pockets in which air can
collect, and the sea water is admitted in such a manner as to
sweep off any bubbles that might collect on the electrodes.
The inlet and outlet tubes are sufficiently large to insure a
thorough washing out of the cell in sufficient time to respond
to the maximum changes in salinity that are liable to be met
with on a vessel running at moderate speed.

RECORDER

In order to obtain a continuous record of sea-water salinity
the "NATieatstone bridge and galvanometer must be embodied in
a recorder mechanism such as that developed by the Leeds &
Northrup Company. The most important changes in their
present recorder are due to the use of alternating current. The
electrical connections are as shown in fig. 1. The current may
be obtained from the usual 60-cycle supply, but if only direct
current is available then the small direct-current motor used for
driving the recorder mechanism can be equipped with slip rings
and be operated as a converter. The recorder paper should be
ruled so that salinities can be read directly.

INSTALLATION AND OPERATION ON BOARD SHIP

To obtain a continuous record of surface salinity, the appara-
tus will be set up similarly to the temperature-recording appara-

152

WEIBEL AND THURASI RECORDING SALINITY

tus previously used.^ The recorder will be properly secured in
a convenient place on the vessel and insulated wires will lead
from it to the cells. The cells (see fig. 3) will be mounted close
together in a bath through which water direct from the ocean
will flow continuously. This will insure a uniform temperature
throughout the bath. A flow of water will also be maintained

f leads to the

cell
c/ischatge

Sea wafer
intake

Plan view

bath
Fig. 3.

End vievi

through the open cell, this water being tapped off from the main
supply which passes through the bath. This flow must be broken
as it leaves the cell in order to eliminate the resistance error
due to shunting the open cell. The bath and connections to
the sea-water supply will be carefully covered with heat in-
sulating material to insure a uniform temperature throughout.

5 Treasury Dept., U. S. Coast Guard Bull. 5: 27. 1915.

COOK AND cook: THE MAHO OR MAHAGUA 153

SUMMARY

An apparatus to give a continuous record of sea-water salinity
by the measurement of its electrical conductivity is described.
A pair of electrolytic cells has been designed which when used
with a suitable alternating-current galvanometer will give
satisfactory operation in connection with a recorder. The tem-
perature compensation is obtained by placing both cells, which
are in the two arms of a Wheatstone bridge, in a uniform !em-
perature bath.

ETHNOBOTANY. — The maho, or mahagua, as a trans-Pacific
plant. O. F. Cook, Bureau of Plant Industry, and Robert
Carter Cook.

As noted previously in this Journal^ the word cumara or
kumara, a name for sweet potatoes, is found in the Pacific islands
and among tjie Quichua Indians of the interior valleys of southern
Peru, on the eastern slopes of the Andes. Considering the plant
as a native of America, the preservation of an American name
among the Polynesians appears significant. If the sweet potato
and its name were carried into the Pacific in prehistoric times,
other evidences of communication may be discovered.

The underlying question is whether agriculture and civiliza-
tion arose independently in the two hemispheres, or had their
early development in America and reached Asia by way of the
Pacific islands. Did civilization grow from a single primary
root, or were there parallel developments among widely separated
peoples? The agriculture of ancient America undoubtedly was
indigenous, since it was based on native plants. Nevertheless,
several of the American plants, as the coconut palm, the sweet
potato, the bottle-gourd, the yam-bean, and the upland species
of cotton, appear to have been cultivated in the Pacific islands
and the Malay region long before the period of discovery by
Europeans. Civilization being an outgrowth of algriculture,
evidence from the cultivated plants seems pertinent.

The maho, or mahoe, to use the Jamaican or West Indian name

16:339. 1916.

154 COOK AND cook: the maho or mahagua

that has found its way into diction9,ries, is one of the economic
plants that appears to have attained a trans-Pacific distribution
in prehistoric times. It is a handsome woody shrub or small
tree, with large lemon-yellow flowers, a member of the mallow
family, a. relative of the cotton plant, the okra, and the holly-
hock. The leaves are entire and broadly cordate, much like
those of the linden or basswood, a similarity recognized in the
name given by Linnaeus, Hibiscus tiliaceiis, or linden hibiscus.
Some writers have called it lemon hibiscus and others corkwood.
Many botanists have treated the maho as representing a genus
distinct from Hibiscus under the name Paritium, though as
originally proposed the genus was called Pariti, one of the East
Indian vernacular names being adopted by Adanson as the
generic designation.

A source of fiber and fire

Among the early Polynesians the maho must have been a
very important plant, since it affords two indispensable materials
and has many incidental uses. The bark contains a strong,
flexible fiber adapted to many purposes, tying and binding,
building houses and boats, snaring or trapping game, and making
bark cloths, nets, mats, baskets, and other equipment of primi-
tive life. The wood of the maho has the peculiarity of readily
producing fire by friction. The ease with which the natives of
Tahiti were able to produce fire from maho wood is remarked
by Darwin in the Voyage of the Beagle:

A light was procured by rubbing a blunt-pointed stick in a groove
made in another, as if with intention of deepening it, until by the
friction the dust became ignited. A peculiarly white and very light
wood (the Hibiscus tiUaceus) is alone used for this purpose; it is the
same which serves for poles to carrj^ any burden, and for the floating
outriggers to their canoes. The fire was produced in a few seconds;
Init to a person who does not understand the art it requires, as I
found, the greatest exertion; but at last, to my great pride, I suc-
ceeded in igniting the dust.

The heart-wood of the maho is described in Gill's Jottings,
in the Pacific as very tough and durable, fragrant, of a very dark-

COOK AND cook: THE MAHO OR MAHAGUA 155

green color, and well adapted for making paddles and the frame-
work of boats and houses. Gill states that most of the firewood
used in the islands is furnished by this tree, and also claims for
it an important function in agriculture:

Perhaps the greatest blessing conferred upon these islanders by this
tree is its power of renewing the fertility of the soil. Nothing exhausts
the soil so speedily as yams or cotton. In ten or twelve years the
soil is utterly impoverished. The native plan then is to allow it to be
overrun with lemon hibiscus bush. When the timber has become heavy
you may be sure the soil is perfectly renewed. The soil which once
was dry and hard is now light and extremely rich.

Such a possibility of reclaiming abandoned lands might prove
of practical importance in many tropical countries, and would
doubtless facilitate the commercial cultivation of the maho as a
fiber or paper plant, which has been suggested.

A WILD PLANT IN AMERICA

As with the coconut palm and the sweet potato, the maho
figures more prominently among the Polynesians than among
the natives of tropical America, although the American origin
of the plant is even more clearly indicated. While the coconut
and the sweet potato are not known to exist in a truly wild state,
the maho is an abundant or even a dominant species in many
localities, all the way from Porto Rico and southern Florida to
the banks of the Guayaquil River, on the Pacific coast of South
America. Although used in the same ways as in the East Indies,
for bark cloth and cordage, and for kindling fire, as indicated by
Oviedo, Dampier, Sloane, Barrerre, and many later writers,
these uses were shared with many other plants, so that no
special prominence was attained by the maho. Sloane's History
of Jamaica states that the outer layers of the bark were used for
making ropes and the inner for clothing the slaves.

A CULTIVATED PLANT IN THE OLD WORLD

In the Pacific islands and in eastern Asia the status of the
maho was notably different from that in America. Lack of other
materials may have enhanced its importance. The making of

156 COOK AND cook: the maho or mahagua

bark cloth was a much more highly developed art among the
Polynesians than in America. The maho cordage was used
especially for making canoes, its strength and durability not
being affected by exposure to water. The plant was grown
regularly from cuttings, and in some parts of the East Indies a
condition of seedlessness appears to have been reached, as with
other species that have been subject to vegetative propagation
for long periods.

In some of the islands the maho grows spontaneously, and
covers large areas that have been abandoned after previous
cultivation. As a result of extensive studies of plant dispersal
in the Pacific islands, Guppy classes the maho with the candle-
nut as introduced trees which have replaced native forest vege-
tation. Low banks of tidal rivers are the favorite habitat.
Though many botanists have written of the maho as a cosmo-
politan seashore plant, its wide dissemination may be due largely
to human agency, as with the coconut palm. The distribution
in both cases extends over tropical America and the Polynesian
area, including the islands and shores of the Pacific and Indian
oceans.

DISTRIBUTION OF THE NAME IN AMERICA

The name maho, with many variations, is widely distributed in
tropical America, and is applied locally to many other plants.
The form usually employed in Spanish books is majagua or
mahagua, in French mahaut, mahoe, or mahoii. In Ecuador the
maho is said to be called jagua. A reduplicated form, mahou-
mahou, is listed by Martins for the Galibi Indians of Brazil, but
the simple form mahu is also mentioned in relation to Mahu as a
Tupi place name on the Upper Amazon {Ethnographie, 512).
How far the plant extends up the Amazon is not known. No
definitely recognizable equivalent has been recorded in the
Quichua language of Peru, but ahua, meaning '' string" or
"thread," ahuani to weave, ahuac a weaver, and many other
terms of textile implication are of possible interest for comparison
with Hawaiian words of similar sound and meaning.

COOK AND cook: THE MAHO OR MAHAGUA 157

The chief center of popularity for majagua as a plant name
is in the West Indies. Oviedo, who appears to have written the
first account of the plant in Santo Domingo, early in the six-
teenth centur}^, called it demmahagua and it is still called dema-
jagua and emahagua in Porto Rico. In de la Maza's dictionary
of native Cuban plant names the word majagua or its diminu-
tive vmjaguUla, appears in nearly a score of Spanish combina-
tions, viajagna azul, majagua blanca, majagua de casta, majagua
hembra, etc., in application to several genera of Malvaceae and
Tiliaceae, which have fibrous barks, including Hibiscus, Thes-
pesia, Pavonia, Helicteres; and Guazuma. The Porto Rican
name of Thespesia is maga or magar, while. 7naya and maguey
are the native West Indian names of Bromelia and Agave, two
other important groups of fiber plants. Several species of Ficus,
also with fibrous barks, are called gagiley, jagiley, or jagUeicillo.
In Porto Rico yagua is the name of the leathery, fibrous leaf-
bases of the royal palm.

The list of Mexican plant names by Ramirez and Alcocer
includes majagua as the name of Hibiscus tiliaceus and Hampea
integerrima, and also mahahiia, masahua, and majagililla, as
names of the maho or of Helicteres, Heliocarpus, and Thespesia.

Maho names collected by Pittier from seven of the native
languages of Costa Rica apparently have no relation to the
West Indian and South American series of maho words, as may
be seen from the following list: Bribri, stsd; Brunka, kro-kua, or
krok-ua; Terraba, kip-kuo and tro-kro; Dorasque Gualaca, kis;
Dorasque Changuina, i-lak; Cuna, Chagua tiipii; Guaymi, ko
and kud-td. Two more aberrant names, choucoron and guimauve,
are listed in Van Wijk's Dictionary of Plant Names, probably
from Guiana.

OTHER PLANTS CALLED MAHOE IN AMERICA

Among the plants that share the name, or that have been
confused locally with the maho elsewhere in the West Indies are
Thespesia populnea, Hibiscus clypeatus, and Stercidia caribaea.
In French Guiana and Brazil the names mahoe cochon, mahaguo

158 COOK AND cook: the maho or mahagua

de playa and niahaujo are applied respectively to Sterculia
pruriens, Helideres haruensis, and Muntingia calabura. The last
is called majaguilla in Venezuela, according to Ernst, who also
gives mijagua as a name of Anacardium rhinocarpus. Gomez
de la Maza gives macagua as a Cuban name of Pseudolmedia and
majaguin for Pavonia. All these trees have fibrous barks that
can be used for the same purposes as the maho bark. Muntingia
is very widely distributed and may be considered as replacing
the maho in the drier or more elevated regions of tropical Amer-
ica. A Quichua name for tough-barked trees is p-hancho or
pjancho. Muntingia is called ccarapjancho in the lower Uru-
bamba Valley, while a species of Heliocarpus is known as
llaosapjancho.

From Colombia the names mamagua and maragua have been
recorded by Pittier,^ in relation to another fibrous-barked tree
of the mulberry family, Inophloeum armatum. In Costa Rica
and Panama, according to Pittier, the name majagua is not ap-
plied especially to the maho tree or its bark, but to any kind of
tough bark that can be used for tying. Yet majagiiita is given
as the Costa Rican name of Pavonia dasypetala, a plant that
furnishes a very tough fiber used by the Indians.

NAMES OF THE MAHO IN POLYNESIA

The tendency in many of the island languages is to sup-
press the consonants and reduce words to monosyllables, but
when the simplified Polynesian names of the maho (rnao, 7nau,
au, hau,fau, and vau, are brought together, the essential unity
of the series is apparent. For the tree itself the nearest ap-
proach in Polynesia to American forms of the name is moaua,
recorded from Easter Island, or marau, from New Guinea, but
mahu, mahui, mahoe, mahaga, mahini, mahae, maoa, inaharo,
mahore, 7nagoe, mageo, 7nalo, and many similar words, relate to
the operations of peeling, spreading, pounding, or rubbing the
bark, to bark cloth, or to ropes, strings, or strips of bark used
in tying or snaring, or in other ways that connect naturally
with the maho.

2 Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci. 6: 114. 1916.

■ COOK AND cook: THE MAHO OR MAHAGUA 159

Although Httle can be inferred with confidence from single
instances, the Polynesian maho vocabulary includes several
rather prominent groups of words, as the examples will show.
Many other words that may prove to be compounds or deriva-
tives of maho names are to be found in the vocabularies of
Tregear, Andrews, Pratt, and Churchill.

In suggesting that the Polj^nesian hau and fau probably came
from a root meaning to "bind or tie up," Christian is in ac-
cord with a custom of philologists to deduce particular names
from words of more general meaning, but primitive languages,
though usually rich in spedfic names, may lack generic terms,
which are a later development. Thus a language having many
names for different kinds of spiders and different kinds of plants
may still have no terms to include all spiders or all plants, so
that such names as spider-wort or hind-weed are impossible.
Even the Spanish could not have hind-weed, there being no
proper equivalent of weed, as representing a class of plants that
infest cultivated lands and interfere with the growth of crops.

The question whether fau refers primarily to the tree or to
the act of using the bark is raised by Churchill:'

In the utter absence of perspective in which these languages appear
before us it would be idle to engage upon the attempt to discover
whether in sense the tree or the act of using its bast is primordial. In
the records before us the stem carries the tree sense without the verb
in the Paumotu, the Marquesas, Nukuoro, and Aneityum; nowhere the
verb where the noun does not designate a plant which yields a string.

It seems not impossible, however, that orientation in such
matters may be improved by taking account of the origins, dis-
tributions, names, and uses of the agricultural and economic
plants. Churchill has collected hnguistic evidence of Poly-
nesian migrations from west to east. That such migrations
took place may also be inferred from the cultivation of Malayan
and Asiatic plants in all of the islands, but the possession of
American plants by the early Polynesian has also to be recognized
and explained.

' Polynesian Wanderings, 328.

160 COOK AND cook: the maho or mahagua •

POLYNESIAN COGNATES RELATING TO FIBERS

That a root word associated with the idea of ying or binding
may be very proHfic in derived forms and meanings is appar-
ent from such a series as our Enghsh band, bend, bind, bond,
bound, boundary, bundle, etc. A more recently developed
analogy is that of our word wire, now used not only as the name
of fibers or cords made of metal, but also to designate the many
different uses to which such material can be put, from fastening
things together to sending telegrams. Corresponding series of
words appear to have developed in«the Pacific archipelagoes
from such an original as maho or mahagua, in connection with
each of the principal uses and activities connected with this tree.

In Hawaii rnahui means to join, unite, adhere to, or imitate;
hoo-mau is to tie on, or to fit, as sandals or shoes; maunu, any-
thing that affords a hold on a person for purposes of witchcraft ;
haim and kauhau, to strike, to whip, chastise, or apply stripes;
auau, a snare for catching and killing birds; kau, to catch, hang
up, suspend; kauo, to drag or haul; kaula, a rope or strong cord,
a tendon or bowstring. In Easter Island mahetu means twisted,
like bark for rope; mahani, a habit, custom, or practice; and
hakamahani, to tame, or keep tied, haka being a causative pre-
fix; hai is to tie up; hahai, a package or bundle; hahie, firewood;
magoe and hahamageo, to splice or tie together; and hakamaga,
a roof, which primitive builders usually tie on with strips of
bark. In Samoa fau is not only the name for the maho shrub
and of string or bark used in tying, but is also -the verb to tie,
or to build by tying the timbers of a house together; afauto is
the rope along the top of a fishing net ;fa,fau is to lash on, to fasten
with sinnet, as an adz to its handle, or an outrigger to a canoe;
faufau, to fasten on, to tie together; afaga, the bandage put on
the feet when climbing the coconut tree; faufili, a cord used by
women to fasten on their burdens; and many other compounds
given by Pratt.

Easter Island shares with Tonga and New Zealand such words
as mahaga, mehaga, and mahanga, relating to nooses in ropes,
snares, baits, or allurements for taking game or fish. A Samoan

COOK AND cook: THE MAHO OR MAHAGUA 161

rtame for rope is maea, while maa is a sling in Tahiti. In Pau-
motu maka is a sHng, hakamau is to thread, join, or assure;
fakamau, to sustain; 7nau, solid or stsihle ; fakahau, to reconcile,
soothe, or conciliate ; hau, to rule, reign, or surpass, superior, king-
dom, government, order, peace; haunoho, to stay or sojourn;
meamau, sure, safe; mehara, to remember, idea, disposition,
sense; mauri, soul or mind.

POLYNESIAN COGNATES RELATING TO BARK CLOTH

Although the paper-mulberry appears in recent times to
have been more prominent than the maho as a source of bark
cloth, words relating to bark cloth indicate an earlier dominance
of the maho. Three distinct classes of bark-cloth words may be
recognized; the first referring to the peeling and spreading of the
bark, the second to the beating of the bark to separate the woody
material from the fibrous network, and the third class to the
finished bark cloth and its uses.

Words of the first class are represented in Hawaii by mahihi
and mahole, to peel off bark from a tree, and maliola, to spread
out, but mahole also means to open wide, exhibit or display, and
maholo carries such meanings as to inspect or approve, wonder,
admiration, beautiful, glorious, or admirable. In Tahiti mahae
means to tear. Mahore, in the dialect of the New Zealand
Maoris, means peeled, while mahora means to spread out. In
Easter Island maharo means to spread out, and also to flatter,
admire, or glorify. In Paumotu mahu is to deliver; mahoro,
miscarriage or abortion; pahore, to peel off or scale; pahure, to
be skinned; kihoe pahurehure, to flay; papahoro, to slip; pagore,
smooth or without hair on the body; pahere, to lop, to prune;
pakirotu, a piece of w^ood for beating off bark. In Tahiti, ac-
cording'to Tregear, the w^ord pahere means to pare off the rind,
and in Mangareva pahore is to pare, or the peel taken off.

Among the prominent examples of the second class of maho
words, those that relate to the beating, softening, and cleaning
of the bark, is hau, in some islands the name of the tree, in some
meaning to tie or unite, in others, to reconcile or rule. But in
Hawaii, Tonga, and New Zealand hau or hauhau carries the idea

162 COOK AND cook: the maho or mahagua

of smiting, chopping, attacking, or conquering. Wao and yJhu
are to scratch or to scrape. Of words more similar to maho or
mahagua, Hawaii affords maoha, to rub or chafe; mahaha, soft
and tough, also applied to a kind of fish and to a variety of
taro; maholehole, bruised, crushed together; and maua, lame, sore,
stiff, close or stingy. The Samoan word maoa means "to make a
chopping or hammering sound," vau, vavau, and valu, to bruise,
pound, scrape, grate, or rub down, as taro or arrowroot. In
New Zealand, mahoe is a small mallet, said to be used for strik-
ing the tattooing chisel, but bark cloth was also beaten with
mallets. In Paumotu mihara is to regret, rue, or repent; maha,
to sooth; mahaki or maehaki, to slacken, abate, hinder, or soften;
and pahurehure, a bruise or contusion. The Mangarevan tahoa,
''to make papyrus by beating," is evidently connected with the
Easter Islanders' hahoa, to cut, wound, or hurt.

The third class of bark-cloth words relates to the finished
product and its uses. In Easter Island mahututii is ''bast cloth
in the last stages of composition." In Hawaii aha, aha, and ahu
have numerous applications in connection with fibers, cords, and
mats. Ahu in particular is a fine mat, moena a coarse mat,
and kapahau "a fine species of kapa^' made from the bark of
hau. In Samoa auafa are "the fine mats constituting the wealth
of a family;" fauepa is "to prepare the fine mats on which a dead
chief is laid in state." In Paumotu vauvau means mat, rug,
carpet, seat; kaho or kao is cloth or clothing; and malo a strip of
bark cloth girded about the loins. Pahorehore in Paumotu is
defined as to smooth out linen, but is similar to several words
already mentioned in relation to the preparation of bark cloth.

POLYNESIAN COGNATES RELATING TO FIRE

The importance of the maho in relation to fire is reflected in
the fact that the name for the tree in some of the archipelagoes,
including Easter Island, is purau, that is, fire-aw, while tamau
is the word for tinder in Easter Island and Paumotu. A redu-
plicated form purao-purau is recorded from Paumotu; pura
means phosphorescent; purero, to emit, issue, or appear; pwrara,

COOK AND cook: THE MAHO OR MAHAGUA 163

to- diverge or to spread a report, as analogous to the eventual
breaking out of a hidden or smouldering fire.

In Samoa mafu is to burn, and manj^ Polynesian and Malay
words relating to fire might be considered as echoes of the use
of the maho for fire-making. Mahao was a Hawaiian name for
pith, or for soft, rotten wood. In Wallace's list of Malayan
fire-names aow occurs several times, and is accompanied by many
similar words, aousa, hao, ahu, afu, yafu, yap, and apt, the last
also being widely distributed. In Tahiti aahi is a rag, wick, or
lint for use as tinder; while in Hawaii ahu or aahu is a bag in
which fire materials were carried. Kindling fire by friction is
the meaning of hogi and ogi in Paumotu, and the same islands
have vera, viru, and viku as another group of words relating to
fire, possibly connected with veru a name for cloth, thi-ough the
use of rags as tinder.

The two sticks of au wood used in bringing fire by friction
have separate names in Samoa, the stick with the groove aunaki,
that held in the hand aulima, the latter name being applied also
to the handle of a tool of any sort. Siaga, another Samoan name
for "si large stationary stick used in rubbing fire,", is like siapo,
the Samoan name for bark cloth, and sia means 'Ho get fire by
rubbing one stick on another." A fire-stick is kounati in Manga-
reva and kauati in New Zealand, but in Paumotu kauati is to
make fire by friction. The use of fire in clearing land or of
sticks for digging may be reflected in such words as inahi, which
in Hawaii means to dig the ground for the purpose of planting
food. In Paumotu ahu means to transplant, and in New Zea-
land to cultivate. Other uses of the wood for carrying burdens
and for floating outriggers of canoes, as mentioned by Darwin
in Tahiti, are reflected in such words as auamo and aumaka,
names for burden-sticks in Samoa; auala, the bier of a dead
chief; ama, an outrigger in Samoa, Hawaii, and Paumotu; auma-
fute, the Samoan name of the wood of the paper-mulberry after
the bark is stripped off; mafuna, meaning to peel off, also in
Samoa. The buds and young shoots of the maho were eaten in
times of scarcity by the natives of some of the islands, the
living tissues being mucilaginous, like those of okra.

164 COOK AND cook: the maho or mahagua

SYNONYMS OF MAHO WORDS

That other kinds of words, unhke 7naho or mahagua, share
their meanings in some of the islands does not make the parallel
series of maho words appear less significant. , Other words for
bark, skin, or cloth are kiri, here, kero, iri, or ere, which may
connect also with gere, to strip, and goregore, peel or rind, in
Paumotu. Kuku or tutu is a widely distributed word for beat-
ing or preparing the bark, and in Samoa tutu also means to
kindle fire. The principal word for bark cloth is kapa or tapa,
which philologists have considered an imitation of the sound of
beating the bark, and tutu could be derived in the same way.

In Samoa, where there are no k's, siapo is the principal name
of bark cloth, made from the paper-mulberry, but sema is the
name of ''a red siapo," a color which may indicate maho-bark
cloth. Bark cloth and fine mats were valuable property among
the Samoans and had a collective name, toga, and tolo is another
Samoan word for kindling fire by friction. Nets or cords to
make them were called kupenga in New Zealand, kupega in Man-
gareva and Paumotu, and hupena in Hawaii, the last a curious
approximation to the Greek hyphaino, to weave, and hypha, a
thread.

The mallet for beating cloth is called ike, eike, or ie, and simi-
lar words mean to strike, defend, choose, select, or send. In
addition to this ike the Paumotu people have iku, to rub, rasp, or
to file; ika, to make fire by friction of wood; rotika, fire; roroni,
to twist or wring; rori, to strangle with a cord; rorirori, pliant,
flexible, or supple; rore, seductive or deluding. In Maori, rore
is a snare, according to Tregear. The series may belong with the
maho words, to which it runs closely parallel.

DERIVATIVE PLANT NAMES IN POLYNESIA

That the maho was an ancient possession of the island people

is also to be inferred from the borrowing of its name for other

plants, including three prominent cultivated species that un-

. doubtedly were natives of Asia or the Malay region. From the

manner of naming these plants it appears that the islanders

COOK AND cook: THE MAHO OR MAHAGUA 165

must have had previous acquaintance with the maho. In Fiji,
according to Seemann, the maho is called vaudina, meaning the
genuine van, to distinguish it from several other plants called vau.

THE NAME OF THE PAPER-MULBERRY

One of the Polynesian namesakes of the maho is the paper-
mulberry tree, called in many islands maute or aute, in Hawaii
ivaoke, ivauke, or kaivaiike, in ]\Iangareva eute or ute. A practical
reason for considering the paper-mulberry a kind of au (the
suffix te meaning another kind) is that it yields bark cloth, and
of a finer quality than the maho. In many of the early accounts
of the islands the paper-mulberry appears more prominent
than the maho, though now it is seldom cultivated and on the
heavily forested islands is becoming extinct, as noted by Cheese-
man in Rarotonga. It is not a strictly tropical tree, being
hardy in the United States, and often escaping from cultiva-
tion. It is supposed to be a native of Japan or China rather
than of the Malay region. ' There is a sHght resemblance to the
maho in habits of growth and general appearance, adult trees
having simple oval or cordate leaves, but on young plants and
root-sprouts the leaves are deeply notched and divided.

Other names that may belong to the paper-mulberry are roga
in Paumotu and roa in Tahiti, which suggest toga, the Samoan
name for collections of bark cloth and fine mats. These were
valued as property and used as a medium of exchange. The
paper-mulberry was also called tiituga in Samoa, and a second
growth of paper-mulberry tuapipi. Seemann gives ai masi and
malo as the native names of the paper-mulberry in Fiji, but
Ficus scabra is also called ai' masi, with the explanation that
masi is derived from a verb masia, meaning to scour.

THE NAME OF THE ROSE OF CHINA

The Polynesians also applied the name aute to the ''rose of
China," Hibiscus rosa sinensis. In Rarotonga, according to
Cheeseman, the maho is au, the paper-mulberry aute, and Chi-
nese rose kaute. Though not at all similar to the paper-mul-
berry and not used for bark cloth, the rose of China is a close

166 COOK AND cook: the maho or mahagua

relative of the maho, with the same kind of large showy flowers
which render it a favorite garden shrub among the Polynesians.
It was as natural that the rose of China should be called aute
on account of its flowers as the paper-mulberry on account of
its bark, but almost inconceivable that either of the two plants
called aide should have been named directly from the other.
Two Fijian names of the rose of China, senitoa or seniciobia,
show no resemblance to the Polynesian names.

names of the screw-pines

Another prominent plant with a name that may have been
borrowed from the maho is the Pandanus, or screw-pine, called
by the Hawaiians hala or halau and by the Samoans fala, names
that may be understood as hau-lesii or fau-lesii, and that appear
proper enough when we take into account the fact that the long
narrow leaves of the Pandanus are rich in fiber, and were woven
or braided into mats or used in other ways like the bark of the
maho or paper-mulberry. From Fiji Seemann reports voivoi as
a native name of Pandanus caricosus, the species that is culti-
vated for the sake of its fine fiber, and vaku vaku for Freycinetia
milnei, a screw-pine with edible fruit. Another name for Pan-
danus, possibly cognate with maho, is tima, in Paumotu, where
man means thread or to join. Timau may be analogous to
maute, the name of the paper-mulberry in Easter Island, and is
also similar to tamau, the word for tinder in Easter Island.

other POLYNESIAN PLANTS WITH MAHO NAMES

In addition to these prominent species, maho names are ap-
plied in Polynesia to several other trees or shrubs Thus among
the New Zealanders, who did not have the true maho, one of
the indigenous trees (Melicytus ramiflorus) is called 7nahoe, and
the same word is used, according to Tregear, for "a small mallet
used for striking the tattooing chisel." Mahoewai is* another
New Zealand tree name, which also means 'Ho spread out,"
while mahore means ''peeled."

The Samoans give the name faupata to a native plant, Cypho-
lopus macrocephalus, related to ramie, used for weaving fine

COOK AND cook: THE MAHO OR MAHAGUA 167

mats of a sort called je sina, second only to the kind called je
toga, which are made from Pandanus leaves. A Samoan species
of Trama is called fan ui, fau uta is another plant name, Jauata-
galoa is "a species of indigenous cotton," and ma'o is the ''col-
lective name of several trees." One tree is called ma'oid and
another mafoa.

In Hawaii, mau-a and ma'ua are recorded as plant names, the
former as a timber tree and the latter as food in times of scar-
city, as also stated of kemau, which may refer to the same plant.
Mao and hulu hulu are given by Watt as Hawaiian names of a
native wild cotton {Gossypium tomentosum) . Cotton and okra
are called vau van in Fiji, referring no doubt to the fact that
these plants resemble the vau, this being the Fijian name of the
maho. Anotherclose relative of the maho is Thespesia populnea,
called mulo mulo in Fiji, milo or miro in Samoa. It was consid-
ered a sacred tree in Tahiti, and called toromiro. In Manga-
reva koumiro is a name of the cotton plant. Cheeseman records
a species of Grewia as auere in Rarotonga, where au is the maho.
Another possible cognate is mamaki, recorded as the Hawaiian
name of a special kind of bark cloth made from Pipturus albidus,
a bush related to the ramie plant.

Some of the figs or banyan trees of Polynesia also furnished
bark cloth and their names may be modified maho-words. In
Rarotonga, according to Cheeseman, aoa is the name of Ficns
prolixa, a tree planted to mark boundaries, and as the source
of a coarse kind of bark cloth. In Tahiti also aoa refers to one
of the fig trees and to bark cloth made from it. AoOi, aofafine,
and aotane are names of the banyan and other fig trees in Samoa.
Giliau and kiliau are given by Christian as names of the banyan
tree in some of the Caroline Islands, where the maho is called
gili fau. Another species, Ficus tinctoria, is called mati in Raro-
tonga and matti in Tahiti, names possibly equivalent to maute
or aute, and suggestive also of names of some of the large
wild fig trees in Central America, amate in Guatemala, and
chilamate in Costa* Rica. In Rheede's Hortus Malabaricus two
species of figs are called atty alu and itiyalu.

Still another bark-cloth tree is Antiaris bennetti, called mavu
in Fiji and mami in some of the other islands, according to

168 COOK AND cook: the maho or mahagua

Seemann. Even the breadfruit tree has a fibrous bark and is
sometimes used to make bark cloth. One of several names for
breadfruit is mai, which could be considered a variant of mhu,
as fai replaces fau in some of the islands.

]\Iaho words also appear to be used in the general sense of
bush or woods, maho thickets being the only forest on some of
the smaller islands. Thus in Samoa la'au is tree, timber, or
firewood; vao is bush, vai vau, unoccupied land between two
villages, and vaomaoa, the forest. In Hawaii wao is "a wild
place," while inahakea is jungle or uncultivated land. In the
Quichua language of Peru 7nahiska means abandoned and mahini
to go wild.

maho names of the western pacific

In many of the Micronesian islands the names of the maho are
compound words, Hli fau, kini fau, gill fau, gili fai, giri fai,
gini fai, probably meaning bark-/flM, to distinguish from the
-other applications of the word. Christian states that in Ponape
the maho is called kalau, while in another island kalaua means
bark. In Yap the name of the maho is kal. In the Paumotu
also kiri means bark or cloth, equivalent to ere among the
Hawaiians, and to iri, meaning skin.

Christian gives pa and pe from two of the Caroline Islands.
In Siam po is a name for a related fibrous-barked shrub, Hibiscus
macrophyllus. In China ma is an ancient name for hemp, rep-
resented in writing by an independent radical which appears in
many compound names of other plants.

It may be doubted whether names like vahu, halibago, mid pago,
used in Fiji, the Philippine Islands, and Guam, also belong to
the maho series, but relation seems possible in view of intermedi-
ate Polynesian forms like bago, crooked, faga, to bend, and haga,
to form or to build. In addition to the ndore prominent Tagalog
■ name balibdgo, Merrill's Dictionary of the Native Plant Na7nes of
the Philippine Islands gives balabdgo, malabago, malabayo, and
raquindi, with numerous ^^ariants or compounds of bali and bago
as names of other plants. Names reported from Madagascar
and neighboring islands, baro, foulsapate, var, varo, vau, vaur,
appear to connect with the Malay and Polynesian series. Van

COOK AND cook: THE MAHO OR MAHAGUA 169

Wijk also gives evonove as a Gaboon nanio, the maho being re-
ported from a few localities in West Africa. Three distinct
names are recorded by Schumann and Lauterbach in German
New Guinea, daiia, marau, and papalan, and another form in the
Solomon Islands, dakatako.

A wide-spread Asiatic name is belli pata or belli patta, which
has been reported from Singapore, Ceylon, and Bombay. Sev-
eral other oriental names, banid barid, barn, beligobel, bola,
bourao, chelwa, lo, surihagas, suringas, ihengben, and thingban,
are listed in Watt's Dictionary of the Economic Products of India,
or in Van Wijk's Dictionary of Plant Names. Some of these names
probably were borrowed from other fiber-producing species of
Hibiscus, severa^ of which are natives of India. The name
pariti adopted by Adanson from Rheede's Flora Malabarica,
published in 1686, was also used in the native language to form
compound names of several species of Hibiscus and Gossypium.

Alany other maho names exist, no douJDt, in the languages of
Borneo, New Guinea, and other parts of the East Indies, as well
as in Tropical America, but these are not Hkely to alter the gen-
eral contrast between the very wide distribution of the words
that connect with maho or mahagua and the very local
distribution of the others.

SUMMARY

The maho, mahagua, or linden hibiscus {Pariti tiliaceum) is
one of the economic plants to be taken into account in studying
the problem of contacts between the inhabitants oi tropical
America and the Pacific islands, in prehistoric times. Though
considered a native of America, the maho appears to have been
distributed over the islands and shores of the Pacific and Indian
oceans before the arrival of Europeans.

Readiness of propagation and of transportation by cuttings
renders this plant well adapted for culti\'ation and dissemina-
tion by primitive peoples. Although human assistance in trans-
portation does not appear to be so definitely re(iuired with the
maho as with the sweet potato and other plants that are grown
from only cuttings, the names of the maho afford almost as

170 COOK AND cook: the maho or mahagua

definite indications of human contacts as in the case of kumara,
a name for sweet potato already known to have been shared by
the Pacific Islanders with the Indians of Peru.

The name maho or mahagua, with numerous local variants, is
widely distributed in tropical America and is closely approxi-
mated in many of the Pacific islands, in relation either to the
plant itself or to its principal uses for fiber, bark cloth, and fire-
making. While the genetic relationships of particular words or
applications are to be considered as possible rather than as
proved, the general coherence of names and uses would seem to
justify a thorough philological investigation. One gains an im-
pression of the language being formed in situ, as a reflection of
familiar objects and activities in the minds of the islanders.

That the primitive Polynesians were in possession of the maho
before they became acquainted with similar Asiatic plants may
be inferred, in view of the indications that Polynesian names of
other important cultivated plants — the paper-mulberry (Papy-
rius or Broussonetia) , the rose of China (Hibiscus rosa sinensis),
and the screw-pine (Pandanus) — were derived from names of the
maho. The making of fire by friction of wood and of cloth by
beating the bark of trees with grooved mallets are speciahzed
arts which may have been carried with the maho from America
across the tropical regions of the Old World. A plant that
enabled primitive man to kindle fire and tie things together
must be held to have contributed much to the arts of civilization.

ABSTRACTS

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

GEOLOGY. — Mining developmefits and water-power investigations in

southeasterji Alaska. Theodore Chapin, H. M. Eakin and G.

H. Canfield. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin 662-B. Pp. 92,

with maps, sections, and illustrations. 1917.

Contains short papers on the work of 1916, as follows: Mining

developmepts in the Ketchikan and Wrangell mining districts, by Theodore

Chapin; Lode mining in the Juneau gold belt, by H. M. Eakin; Gold

placer mining in the Porcupine district, by H. M. Eakin; Water-power

investigations in Southeastern Alaska, by G. H. Canfield.

I • R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — Mineral springs of Alaska. Gerald A. Waring, with
a chapter on the Quality of some surface waters, by Richard B.
Dole and Alfred A. Chambers. U. S. Geological Survey
Water-Supply Paper 418. Pp. 109, with 9 plates and 16 figures.
1917.
The report contains a preliminar}^ chapter on the ph5^siography
and geology of Alaska by Alfred H. Brooks. The mineral springs are
grouped for description into hot, carbonated, sulphur, iron, and salt
springs, and individual mention is made of most of the 110 springs
whose locations are shown on maps accompanying the report. Anal-
yses of a number of the waters are given, and their characters are
described briefly in relation to the rock formations through which they
issue.

A number of the stream waters of the Territory were also analysed,
and their characters are discussed in a separate chapter, by Richard
B. Dole and Alfred A. Chambers. G. A. W.

171

172 abstracts: geology

«

GEOLOGY. — The Helderherg limestone of central Pennsylvania. John
B. Reeside, Jr. U. S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 108-K.
Pp. 41. 1917.
A study of seven localities in Pennsylvania leads to the following
conclusions :

1. The Tonoloway limestone and the Keyser, Coeymans, and New
Scotland members of the Helderherg limestone may be traced from
Maryland through central Pennsylvania with their respective char-
acteristic lithology and faunas, and the essential equivalents of all are
to be found in New Jersey and eastern New York.

2. The Kej'ser member decreases in thickness northward from
Maryland.

3. The Devonian elements in the fauna apparently decrease from
Maryland to New Jersey and New York.

4. The • suggestion of an unconformity at the top of the Ke3'ser in
Maryland is borne out in Pennsylvania by the variations in thickness
of the member and the presence of arenac'eous material at the base of
the Coeymans. R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — Geologic structure in the Gushing oil and gas field, Okla-
homa, and its relation to the oil, gas, and ivater. Carl H. Beal.
U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin 658. Pp. 64, with maps, sections,
and illustrations. 1917.
The geologic work done in the field has disclosed the following

principal facts:

1. The folding of the formations in the Gushing field usually becomes
greater with increase of depth, and there are many marked differences
in structure among the Layton, Wheeler, and Bartlesville sands and
the surface beds.

2. The interval between the Layton and Bartlesville sands is gen-
erally greater around the edges of the anticlines than on their crests.

3. The distribution of the bodies of oil, gas, and water indicates
that the source of the oil lay west of the Gushing field.

4. In general the oil area in an elongated dome, where folding is
simple, extends farther down on the long axes of the anticline or dome
than on the steeper sides.

5. The water surfaces on which the oil and gas rest in the different
sands are not level but are inclined away from the centers of the anti-
chnal folds. R. W. Stone.

abstracts: geology 173

GEOLOGY. — The Palestine salt dome, Anderson County, Texas; The
Brenham salt dome, Washington and Austin counties, Texas.
Oliver B. Hopkins. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin 661-G.
Pp. 28, with maps, sections, and illustration. 1917.

Viewed as a whole the Palestine dome is a quaquaversal fold on
whose flanks are highly inclined beds that dip in all directions away
from its center but become approximately horizontal within a few
miles; the center of the uplift is extensively faulted, mainly in a north-
easterly direction, producing an irregular distribution of the Cretaceous
beds and a triplication of the outcrop of the Austin chalk.

Such an intensive and highly localized vertical uplift of quaquaversal
form could be produced only by vertical thrust from below. The
results observed are analogous to those produced by driving a punch
into a sheet of cold steel: the effects are entirely local.

The peculiar local nature of salt domes may be due to the effect of
dynamic activity at certain points along lines of deformation, aiding
in the solution and transportation of salt, gypsum, etc., from deep-
lying formations, probably Permian, to the position in which they
are found.

The highly folded, faulted, and eroded condition of the Palestine
dome and the general absence of oil and gas as surface seepages and
in shallow wells in this area detract from its oil prospects.

The results of drilling for oil in the Brenham dome have been dis-
couraging, except that they have demonstrated the presence of a salt
dome. Suggestions are given regarding further drilling at this dome.

R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — Oil and gas possibilities of the Hatchetigbee anticline,
Alabama. Oliver B. Hopkins. U. S, Geological Survey Bul-
letin 661-H. Pp. 33, with maps, sections, and illustrations. 1917.
The geological examination of the area shows that a broad, low anti-
cline, the Hatchetigbee anticUne, 'extends from a point north of Jack-
son, Ala., northwestward across Tombigbee River to the Alabama-
Mississippi state line and beyond; that the disturbance of the earth's
crust which produced this fold also produced a fault, the Jackson
fault; that the Hatchetigbee anticline has in general stronger dips on
its southwestern slope than on its northeastern; that two areas along
the crest of the fold are particularly favorable, structurally, for the
accumulation of oil and gas, and other areas along the crest of the

174 abstracts: ornithology

fold and along the east side of the Jackson fault are also favorable;
that the best chances for accumulations of oil are probably in the
sands above and below the Selma chalk, which lies from 780 to 2700
feet below the surface along the crest of the anticline; and finally that
there are doubtless other areas of favorable structure in the adjoining
region where oil and gas may have accumulated if they are present in
commercial quantities anj'where in the region.

R. W. Stone

ORNITHOLOGY. —Washington region [April and Maij, 1917]. Harry
C. Oberholser. Bird-Lore 19:211-212. 1917.
The months of April and May, 1917, were unusually cold at Wash-
ington, D. C, and the resultant spring migration of birds was peculiar.
Many species of migrants that appeared in April were ahead of their
usual schedule, but many that came in Ma}^ were very much delayed.
A number of birds rare in the District of Columbia, at least during
spring, made their appearance, chieflj^ in May. Conspicuous among
these were Phalacrocorax auritus auritus, Larus atricilla, Chlidonias
nigra surinamensis, Hydroprogne caspia, Phloeotomus pileatus ahieti-
cola, Pisohia fuscicollis, and Protonotaria citrea. H. C. O.

ORNITHOLOGY. — Description of a n.eiv subspecies of Perisoreus ob-
scurus. Harry C. Oberholser. Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington
30:185-188. December 1, 1917.
A new geographic race of the Oregon jay is here described as Periso-
reus ohscurus rathhuni, from Clallam County, Washington. It is
darker than either Perisoreus ohscurus ohscurus or Perisoreus ohscurus
griseus, and much more grayish above than the former, with a usually
broader whitish nuchal collar. Its geographic distribution is appar-
ently limited to that part of the State of Washington about Puget
Sound and the Strait of Juan de Fuca. H. C. O.

■♦
ORNITHOLOGY.— A review of the subspecies of the Leach Petrel

(Oceanodroma leucorhoa iVieiUot). Harry C. Oberholser.

Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus. 54: 165-172. October 19, 1917.
Notwithstanding the considerable attention that has been paid to
the petrels of the Oceanodroma leucorhoa group, there is evidently
something yet to learn concerning these birds. A study of the entire
species, with extensive material, leads to the conclusion that three
forms are recognizable: Oceanodroma leucorhoa leucorhoa (Vieillot),

abstracts: ornithology 175

which Ijieeds in tho North Athuitic and North Pacific Ocean; Oceano-
droma leucorhon beali. Emerson, which breeds from southeastern Alaska
to the coast of northern Cahfornia; and Oceanodroma leucorhoa kaedingi
Anthony, which occurs off the Pacific coast of Lower Cahfornia, south
to the Revillagisedo Islands, western Mexico. Of these three forms
only the first and third aie cun-ently considered valid. Furthermore,
Oceanodroma leucorhoa kaedingi has hitherto been treated as a species,
whereas it is but a subspecies of Oceanodroma leucorhoa. H. C. O.

ORNITHOLOCtY. — .4 neir .•<i(bsj)ccics of (!eothlyi)is behUngi. Harry
C. Oberholser. The Condor 19: 182-184. December 7, 1917.
A very distinct subspecies of the Belding yellow-throat is heie de-
scribed as Geothlypis beldingi goldmani, from San Ignacio, Lower Cali-
fornia. It differs from Geothlypis beldingi beldingi in its nuich duller
and less yellowish upper paits, whitish instead of yellowish area on the
crown behind the black mask, and more restricted yellow of lower sur-
face. Its breeding lange is confined to central Lower California, al-
though a single specimen indicates its winteiing in the Cape San Lucas
region. H. C. O.

ORNITHOLOGY. — .4 remarkable martin roost in the city of Wash-
ington. Harry C. Oberholser. Bird-Lore 19:315-317. De-
cember 1, 1917.
Although late summer roosts of the purple martin are by no means
uncommon in the eastern Ignited States, there is apparently no record
of a martin roost in the District of Columbia prior to 1917. During
the latter pait of the summer of this year great num])ers of the purple
martin (Progne subis subis) gathered nightly in the INIall, along Fourth
Street, where they roosted in the trees along the street-car line. The
birds were first noted here on August 5 and continued nightly to resort
to this roost until September 9. The numljer of birds ranged from
about 2500 to about 12,000, but the usual number was between 7000
and 8000. They assembled daily about 25 or 30 minutes before sun-
set and we;e all at i-est in the trees by from 12 to 30 minutes after
sunset. Their evolutions during this period were of much interest.
During the martin occupation this roost regularly housed also l^etween
100 and 500 European stailings (Sturtius vulgaris vulgaris), from 1000
to 4000 purple grackles (Quiscalus quiscida quiscula); also, on a few
days, a number of bank swallows (Riparia riparia riparia) and rough-
winged swallows (Stelgidopteryx serripemiis serripennis) . H. C. 0.

176 abstracts: ornithology

ORNITHOLOGY.— iVo^es on North American birds. III. Harry
C. Oberholser. The Auk 34:465-470. October, 1917.

This paper contains technical notes on two genera and three species.
The genus Bannermania Mathews and Iredale, recently proposed for
the reception of Oceanodroma hornbyi (Gray), proves on examination of
further material to be invahd, since the characters given in the original
diagnosis are not constant. The name of the species should therefore
remain Oceaiiodroma hornbyi.

The subgenus Cytnochorea Coues, recently raised to generic rank by
Mathews and Iredale, seems not to be worthy of this elevation. A
careful examination of the species of Oceanodroma discloses the fact
that there are no constant structural differences between them, and
that consequently all must be included in the same genus. In view of
this, Cymochorea Coues can be considered of nothing more than sub-
generic rank.

A new subspecies of booby (Sula dactylatra calif ornica) , recently de-
scribed by Dr. Walter Rothschild from San Benedicto Island, in the
Revillagigedo group, western Mexico, although said to be from Cali-
fornia, has apparently never been taken within the confines of that
State, and therefore must be excluded from the list of North American
birds.

The name Fregata aquila Linnaeus, currently applied to the North
American frigate bird, has been shown by Mathews to be applicable
only to the bird of Ascension Island in the South Atlantic Ocean. The
frigate birds of North America now prove to belong to two other
species: that of the West Indies and southeastern United States being
Fregata magnificens rothschildi Mathews, and the Pacific bird, Fregata
minor -palmer stoni (Gmelin).

The name Strix ivapacuthu Gmelin, recently revived for the Arctic
horned owl (the Bubo arcticus of Swainson), is now shown, as con-
tended previously by Mr. Brewster, to be applicable only to Nyctea
nyctea, and thus unavailable for the other species, which should there-
fore still be called Bubo virginianus subarcticus Hoy. H. C. 0.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

The meeting of the Board of Managers on February 18, 1918, was
devoted chiefly to the discussion and amendment of the report of a
special committee on membership poHcy. The Board adopted rules
for the guidance of the Committee on Membership, limiting the resi-
dent membership of the Academy to 20 per cent of the active scientific
population of Washington, as represented by the number of names in
the "Red Book" (the biennial directory of the Academy and its affili-
ated societies). The requirements for admission to membership,
which are stated only in general terms in the By-Laws of the Academy,
were more exactly defined by the Board; the principal qualifications
adopted is that "the nominee shall have attained recognition for
original and meritorious scientific investigation."

Robert B. Sosman, Corresponding Secretary.

BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 578th regular meeting of the Society was held in the Assembly
Hall of the Cosmos Club, Saturday, January 26, 1918; called to order
at 8 p.m. by President Rose; 62 persons present.

On recommendation of the Council, J. B. Norton and S. F. Blake,
both of the Department of Agriculture, were elected to membership.

On recommendation of the Council a proposed amendment to the
constitution was announced by which members of the Society might
become life members upon the payment of fifty dollars in two annual
instalhnents of twenty-five dollars each.

Under the heading brief notes and exhibition of specimens the fol-
lowing informal communications were presented:

A. Wetmore remarked on food habits of grackle with reference to
eating and cracking pin-oak acorns, the peculiar structure of the bill
of the genus Quisqualus being specially adapted for this purpose. This
was discussed by Messrs. Paul Bartsch, Vernon Bailey, and F. V.

COVILLE.

A. S. Hitchcock called attention to a recently issued flora of the
Rocky Mountains by P. A. Rydbsrg, in which 6000 species of plants of
that region are described.

Paul Bartsch referred to a recently received collection of Philip-
pine shells from the island of Luzon, containing an unusually large
number of new forms.

L. O. Howard referred to the utiHzation of acorns for the manufac-
ture of alcohol.

177

178 proceedings: biological society

W. L. McAtee described the behavior of ducks, geese, bitterns,
jacksnipe, and kingfishers in North Carohna during the recent con-
tinued cold weather; the kingfishers' activities being confined to the
vicinity of spring holes.

The regular program of the evening was as follows:

Emerson Stringham : Notes on the speed of fishes, especially thealewife.
Mr. Stringham said the question of the speed with which fish swim
has elements which, it would seem, might make it popular, but there
appear to be few recorded observations. It becomes of economic im-
portance in connection with the effect of water power development on
the fisheries.

Three preliminary points should be mentioned. In the first place
some fish, besides swimming, are able to jump from the water and by
this means pass over a current which it would be wholly impossible for
them to swim through; we are not concerned here with that question.
Secondly, it is assumed that if a fish can maintain itself against a steady
current of so many miles an hour, it can swim the same number of miles
an hour in still water. Thirdly the velocity of a stream is much less
at the bottom or behind obstacles than at surface.

A Belgian engineer (G. Denil), while studying fishways, concluded
that the salmon could swim at a speed of 3.15 meters a second for at
least 14 meters. The author also refers to similar figures given by a
French engineer. In a report on the obstructed condition of the
Frazer River published in the Report of the British Columbia Com-
missioner of Fisheries for 1913, the author (G. P. Napier) expresses
the opinion that the limiting velocity of a steady stream up which a
sockeye salmon is apparently capable of swimming a very short dis-
tance lies between six and seven miles an hour. Mr. H. von Bayer, of
the Bureau of Fisheries, published a paper on fishways in 1910, in which
he said that the current velocity in fishways should not exceed 10 feet
per second. It is remarkable that the three figures, which appear to
be independent of each other, are almost identical. The Belgian esti-
mate is about 6.9 miles an hour, the Canadian's is 6 to 7 miles an hour
and the American's is 6.8 miles an hour.

In the spring of 1917 Mr. Stringham had an opportunity to study
several fishways in Massachusetts, and to make some observations
on the velocities of water up which the fish swam. These fish belonged
to the species Pomolohus pseudoharendus (Wilson), one of the common
alewives. The instrument used to measure the velocity of the water
was a Price current meter lent by the Bureau of Standards. Measure-
ments were made of the rate of flow at 7 points in the fishway where
the current appeared to be greatest, and it was found to vary from 4
to 5 feet per second. At Middleboro the fish were imable to ascend a
little sloping falls where the velocity was about 11 feet per second.
Just below they were swimming through one place where the current
was 5.3 feet per second. At East Warham the head of water, and there-
fore the velocity could be varied. The fish swam up a slope about 3

proceedings: entomological society 179

feet long: where the water was going down at rates of 6.1, 7.8, and even
9.8 feet per second. Tliey were perfectly helpless when it was raised
to 13.5 feet per second.

These figures show that for a few feet at least this species can swim
through water flowing al)out 10 feet per second. That is the same
figure suggested for the salmon by two different investigators and is
the limit suggested for fishways by a third.

The paper was discussed by William Palmer, A. N. Caudell,
Vernox Bailey, Paul Bartsch, H. M. Smith, E. A. Goldman, and
R. W. Shufeldt.

W. E. Safford: Natural history of Paradise Key, Florida.

Mr. Safford's paper was illustrated b\^ numerous lantern slides and
is to be published in the Annual Report of the Smithsonian Institution.

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

EXTOIMOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 309th regular meeting of the Society was held at the Saenger-
bund Hall, January 4, 1918; called to order by President Sasscer;
2(3 members and 10 visitors were present.

A resolution was adopted providing for a permanent entertainment
fund to be administered by an Entertainment Committee appointed
b}^ the Executive Committee.

Articles III (Members) and VII (Fees) of the Constitution were
amended.

The regular program consisted of the address of the retiring Presi-
dent, Prof. C. R. Ely, upon Recent entomological chemistry. This in-
teresting review of literature called forth considerable discussion, par-
ticipated in by Messrs. Middleton, Sasscer, G. G. Ainslie, Woglum,
Baker, Wood, and Bishop.

At the close of this discussion the Society was entertained by some
brief remarks from two of our visitors, Prof. A. L. Lovett, of the
Oregon Agricultural College, and Mr. R. H. Allen, of ]\Iassachusetts.

Mr. Paixe exhibited some interesting photographs made under
artificial light.

The 310th meeting of 'the Society was held at the Cosmos Club,
February 7, 1918; called to order by the President; 29 members and
9 visitors were present.

The annual report of corresponding-secretary-treasurer was ac-
cepted. The corresponding secretary announced the following changes
in the pubhcation of the Proceedings: The Proceedings will appear in
nine numbers per year instead of four, and will carry advertising. The
cover will be printed on the same kind of paper as the text, the seal
omitted, and in the space now occupied by the seal will appear the table
of contents. Each page will carry a running head which will consti-
tute a complete citation, and the printing of the list of members pres-
ent at meetings as well as all business transacted at the meetings will

*

180 proceedings: philosophical society

be discontinued. Other minor changes looking to the improvement
of the piibhcation will also be made.

Dr. Carlos E. Porter, of Santiago, Chile, and Mr. Robert M,
FouTS, of Washington, D. C, were elected to membership.

The regular program was as follows:

C. L. Marlatt: Notes on the work of the Federal Horticultural Board.
Mr. Marlatt gave a very comprehensive account of the organization,
purposes, and scope of the services of the Board.

In discussing Mr. Marlatt's remarks, Dr. L. 0. Howard gave a
very interesting account of the events and causes which led to the
passage of the Plant Quarantine Act.

Carl Heinrick: On the Lepidopterous Genus Apostega and its larval
affinities. The author illustrated his remarks with a number of charts
and drawings. This communication drew forth considerable discus-
sion, participated in by Messrs. McIndoo, Pierce, Rohwer, Baker,
BoviNG, Craighead, and Hyslop.

Under the head of short notes:

Dr. Howard announced the recent death of an early member of
the Society, Mr. Chas. R. Dodge. Mr. Schwarz also gave a few rem-
iniscences of Mr. Dodge.

Mr. Snyder called attention to a recent article entitled Origin of
castes in termites by Dr. C. B. Thompson, of Wellesley College, pubhshed
in the Journal of Morphology. Mr. Snyder spoke very highly of the
paper, as did also Messrs. Baker and Howard.

Mr. Snodgrass expressed his pleasure at the evident interest mani-
fested and progress being made in the study of insect anatomy. Messrs.
Howard, Caudell, and Craighead gave additional remarks along the
same line.

Dr. T. J. Headley, of New Jersey, responded to the president's in-
vitation to address the Society by giving some interesting reminiscences
from his experiences.

Mr. J. G. Sanders, of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, responding to a
similar invitation, gave an interesting account of some of his experiences
since leaving the Bureau of Entomology to go to Wisconsin and later
to Pennsylvania. He gave an especially interesting account of some
recent researches in Pennsylvania on the life history of the Angoumois
grain moth.

A. B. Gahan, Recording Secretary.

PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 799th meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, January 19, 1918,
with President Burgess in the chair. There were 45 persons present.

Mr. E. T. Wherry presented a paper on Certain relations between
optical properties and crystal form, and their hearing on the question of
"crystal molecules" in organic compounds. The refractive indices of
several simple organic compounds have been determined by the im-
mersion method, and their values substituted in the Lorentz formula

proceedings: philosophical society 181

connecting refractive index and density'. The "refraction ratio," or
ratio of the several vahies obtained for each substance, has been com-
pared with the cr3rstallographic axial I'atio in each case. In some
substances, as urea and iodoform, the two sets of values show exact
inverse proportionality, and it is concluded that this indicates that the
luunljer of pinacoidal planes in the two cr^'stallographic directions in
the crystal molecule, or unit cell of the space lattice, is the same.
Others, like oxahc acid, show inverse proportionalitAMU two directions
but not in the third, although in the latter a simple integral relation
exists. It is concluded that in these the crystal molecule contains dif-
ferent numbers of planes in some diiections than in others. In acet-
amide, which is dimorphous, the planes show somewhat greater diver-
gence in the unstable than in the stable form, suggesting that there is a
tcndenc}^ toward equalization of the number of planes. From these
data it is possible to draw conclusions as to the types of space-lattices
represented in these substances, without the necessity of submitting
theni to examination by X-rays.

Discussion: The paper was discussed by Messrs. Merwin, White,
SosMAX, and Bichowski.

A paper by W. F. Meggers and C. G. Peters on The refractive index
and optical dispersion of air, was presented by Air. Peters. This
paper was illustrated by lantern slides. A survey of previous re-
searches on refraction of air shows that most investigators have worked
either with white light or with one monochromatic radiation, and dis-
persion measurements have been limited to a small interval of the
spectrum. No index measurements exist for waves longer than those
corresponding to orange light, and in the ultra-violet the dispersion
formulas disagree by more than 10 per cent of the index of refraction.

Recent work in spectroscopy makes it very desirable to have more
accurate and extensive data on the index of refraction and dispersion of
ail'. The international system of standard wave length measurements
made under other conditions require small corrections because of the
effect of temperature and pressure of the air upon its optical dispersion.
Furthermore, it is often desirable to multiply wave lengths measuied in
air b}' the indices of refraction of air for these wave lengths and thus
convert them to their value in vacuum. An accuracy of one part in
several millions is now striven for in the measurement of wave lengths,
and to maintain their relative accuracy in the reduction to vacuum
values it is necessary to know the indices of refraction to about one unit
in the seventh decimal place.

For several years the Bureau of Standards has been engaged in the
accurate measurement of wave lengths. Interferometer comparison of
wave lengths have been made throughout a large range of spectra antl
the grating spectra of more than fifty of the chemical elements have been
photographed and measured in the red and infra-red spectral regions.
In connection with these accurate measurements of wave lengths, it
was thought advisable to measure the absolute indices of i-efraction of
air for the entire spectra region that is accessible to photography.

X-

182 proceedings: philosophical society

Accuracy and efficiency recommended the use of a interferometer of
the Fabry and Perot type for this work, since this apparatus can be
conveniently enclosed in a chamber in which the temperature and pres-
sure of the air can be regulated as desired, and it also permits simul-
taneous observations for a lai'ge number of different wave lengths.
Sections of the circular fiinges, produced bj^ various radiations from a
source of light illuminating the parallel plates of the interferometer,
were photographed either with a grating or a prism spectrograph, first
when the space between the plates was evacuated and then when dry
air at measured temperature and pressure was present.

The index of refraction of air for a particular wave length was ob-
tained dii'ectly from measurements of the photographed interference
fringes, which allowed the ratio of lengths of this wave in vacuum and
in ail' to be calculated. Observations were made at spectrum intervals
of about 40 A from the extreme ultra-violet at 2200 A, through the
visible spectrum and into the infra-red to 9000 A .

Complete sots of observations were made on dry air at atmospheric
pressure and at temperatures of 0°C., 15°C., and 30°C. These ai-e
quite well lepresented by the following dispersion formulae:

13.412 0.3777

(.-1)0X10^ = 2875.66 + ^^,^^, + ^-^^^^, '

12.288 0.3555

(„ - 1). X 10' = 2720.43 + ^^^^, + ^;r^j^,

12.259 0.2576

(« - I),. X 10' = 2589.72 + ^-^^^ + ^-^^^^,

The coefficient of index variation with temperature was found from
these ol)servations to be a function of the wave length. For long-
waves this optical temperature coefficient is identical with the density

temperatuie coefficient, i.e., ,y^, but as the ultra-violet absorptio?i

band is approached it increases rapidly, l)ecoming ^^y^ at 2500 A.

Discussion: This paper was discussed by Messrs. Burgess, SwAnn,
CRi'rr]«]NDEN, and Meggers.

The third paper, on Barometric ripples, was presented l)y W. J. Hum-
phreys. This paper was illustrated by lantern slides. Small pressure
changes, amplitude usually 0.1 to 0.3 mm. and period of 5 to 10 minutes,
and continuing for hours or even days together, are very common
during cold weather.

As first demonsti'ated by Helmholtz, whenever layers of air that diffei'
in density at their interface flow over each othei-, long billows, anal-
ogous to giavity water waves, aie produced, which conform, af)proxi-
mat(;ly, to the equation

I'JiOCEEUlNGS: PlIILOSOl'HK'AL SOCIETY ISo

f/X (do — dj)

dAii- V)- + dAV -v)- =

• TV

in wliicli V is the velocity of wave propagation, d\ and r/o (ho densities
of the layers whose velocities are u and v lespectivejy, q the gravity
acceleration, antl X the wave length. If, now, the nnder layer is colder
than the upper, as often happens <luring winter, and lather shallow, 100
meters to 500 meters thick, say, the passage of the air billows, like the
passage of waves in shallow water, necessarily prodnces greater oi- less
cori-espomling changes in the pressni'e on the bottom layer changes
that appear as a seiies of rii)ples in the I'ecord of a sensitive barograph.
Furthermore, such shallow air billows, like shallow water waves, doubt-
less are turbulent — a condition that accounts, prcsumabh', for the
surprisingly rough flying the aviator often experiences during winter
at low levels (300 meters and less).

During summer when air billows rarely form near the surface, thougii
frequently at greater altitudes, especially that of the ciri-us clf)ud,
baiometric ripples and shallow turbulences of the kind just mention(>d
seldom occur. This, doubtless, is because wave disturbances in air
as in water do not penetrate far beneath the wave level.

Discussion: Mr. Littlehales called attention to the fact that where
there are two layers of water of different density, waves frequently
occur at the interface that separates the two watGr layers and yet no
waves are visible on the surface. These waves at times are sufficient
to impede the progress of vessels. The paper was further discussed
by Messrs. White, Burgess, Sweet, Buckingham, and Sosmax.

H. L. Curtis, Recording Secretary.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

The Honoraiy Advisory Council for Scientific and Industrial Re-
search of Canada visited Washington on February 25-28. The Coun-
cil is considering plans for the encouragement of scientific research in
Canada, and spent some days in consultation with members of the
National Research Council, and in visiting the scientific bureaus of
the ( Jovernment. The visiting members were: Professor A. B. Macal-
LUM, of the University of Toronto, (chiirman); Professor S. F. Kirk-
PATRicK, of Queen's University, Kingston; Professor R. F. Ruttan and
Professor F. D. Adams, of McGill University, Montreal; President A. S.
Mackp^nzie, of Dalhousie University, Halifax; Mr. Arthur Surveyer,
of Montreal; Mr. J. B. Challies, of the Water Power Branch, Depart-
ment of the Interior, Ottawa, (Honorary Secretary o: the Council).

Professor C. A. Kofoid, of the Department of Zoology, University
o' California, has been commissioned a major in the Sanitary Corps
of the National Army, and is stationed at the Department Laboratory,
Fort Sam Houston, San Antonio, Texas.

Major R. A. Millikan, member of the National Research Council
and Chief of the Science and Research Division of the Signal Corps,
has been commissioned a Lieutenant Colonel in the Signal Corps.

In honor of the appointment of Dr. J. W. Fewkes as Chief of the
Bureau of American Ethnology, a complimentary luncheon was ten-
dered to him and Mrs. Fewkes at the Smithsonian Institution on
Friday, March 1, 1918. Every member of the staff and all the em-
ployees of the Bureau were present. At the close of the luncheon
Dr. Fewkes made a brief address, recalling the high traditions of the
Bureau of Ethnology and outlining plans for its further development.
The primary objects of ethnologic research in this country were de-
fined by Dr. Fewkes as, Man in America, — wher-e did he come from,
hoiv long has he been here, and what has he been doing since he came?
Short sijeeches were made by members of the Bureau, the first
speaker being Mr. James Mooney, who noted that the study of eth-
nology tends to bind the whole human race together by securing a
better understanding of mankind.

The following persons have become members of the Academy since
the last issue of the Journal: Mr. Lon A. Hawkins, Bureau of Plant
Industry, Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C; Dr. Oscar
Riddle, Department of Experimental Evolution of the Carnegie
Institution of Washington, Cold Spring Harbor, Long Island, New
York; Mr. Erskine Douglas Williamson, Geophysical Laboratory
of the Carnegie Institution of Washington, Washington, D. C.

184

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VIII APRIL 4, 1918 No. 7

GEOCHEMISTRY. — Note on the inorganic constituents of two
small crustaceans.^ F. W. Clarke and B. Salkover,
Geological Survey.

It is well known that very small crustaceans, such as the
copepods, form an important part of the marine plankton, and
that they serve as food for larger animals, like the fishes and
cetaceans. The larger crustaceans all have shells or skeletons
which contain much calcium phosphate, and a comparison of the
two classes seemed to be a matter of some interest. Accordingly
two samples, each made up of hundreds of individuals, were ob-
tained from the U. S. National Museum and subjected to partial
analysis. They were as follows:

1. Temora longicornis (O. F. Miiller), from the coast of New
England. Weight of dried sample, 0.6105 gram, A copepod.

2. Thysanoessa inermis (Kroyer), from Balena, Newfoundland.
Weight of dried sample, 1.5973 grams. A small shrimp.

As the amount of material was insufficient for a thorough
analysis, only three determinations were made on each sample.
They were: loss on ignition, mainly organic matter and water;
phosphoric oxide; and residue insoluble in acid. The phosphoric
oxide, P2O5, was recalculated into the form of tricalcic phosphate,
Ca3P208, and with that adjustment the analyses assume the fol-
lowing shape.

• Published by permission of the Director of the U. S. Geological Survey.

185

186

COOKE : JACKSON AND VICKSBURG DEPOSITS

Loss on ignition

Tricalcic phosphate
Ipsoluble

92.08
7.68
0.22

99.98

These analyses show that the inorganic matter of these minute
creatures consists ahnost entirely of calcium phosphate, although
more refined analyses on larger quantities of material would
doubtless show small percentages of other things. So far, how-
ever, it seems that these very small organisms effect what is
perhaps a primary concentration of the traces of phosphorus
that exist in sea water, and so, as food for the larger animals,
they furnish the material from which the skeletons of marine
vertebrates are built. It is a familiar fact that vertebrate
skeletons consist largely, although not exclusively, of calcium
phosphate.

GEOLOGY. — Correlation of the deposits of Jackson and Vicks-
burg ages in Mississippi and Alabama.^ Charles Wythe
Cooke, Geological Survey.

The deposits of Jackson and Vicksburg ages in Alabama are
usually referred to a single formation, the ''St. Stephens lime-
stone," although many writers have pointed out differences
between the upper and the lower parts. Smith and Johnson'^
divided the "St. Stephens limestone" into three members which
correspond roughly to the major divisions adopted in this paper,
and incomplete studies in western Alabama led Vaughan^ to the
opinion that more detailed investigation would differentiate the
Jackson from the Vicksburg.

This paper summarizes the results of field studies on the
stratigraphy and paleontology of the ''St. Stephens limestone"

1 Published by permission of the directors of the U. S. Geological Survey
and the Mississippi Geological Survey.

2 Smith, E. A., and Johnson, L. C., U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 43: 20. 1887.
' Vaughan, T. W., U. S. Geol. Survey Prof. Paper 71: 738, 739. 1912.

COOKE : JACKSON AND VICKSBURG DEPOSITS

187

made in 1913 and 1914 for the U. S. Geological Survey. It
contains also a synopsis of a manuscript report on the Jackson
formation and the Vicksburg group in Mississippi prepared in
partial fulfilment of an agreement between the U. S, Geological
Survey and the Mississippi Geological Survey for a co6perati\'e
investigation of the physiography, stratigraphy, and ground
waters of Mississippi. The correlations and names adopted are
shown in Table 1.

TABLE 1

Correlation of the Jackson and Vicksburg deposits in Mississippi

and Alabama

Age

a

o

a

o
o

a

O

u
bC

b£

M

Mississippi

Alabama

BYRAM CALCAREOUS MARL

Glendon limestone member

Mint Spring ' .. "Chimney Rock"
calcareous marl . facie,*

member

FOREST HILL
SAND

RED BLUFF
CLAY

Yazoo clay member

Moodys calcareous marl member

OCALA LIMESTONE

JACKSON FORMATION

In Mississippi, Lowe" has divided the Jackson deposits into
formations described by him as Yazoo clay marl, Moodys Branch
green marl, and Madison sands. The last of these, which was
doubtfully placed in the Jackson by Lowe, is here referred to the
Vicksburg group and will be discussed later. The other two
intergrade so much that it seems advisable to consider them
members of a single formation rather than as constituting inde-
pendent formations. In the succeeding discussion they are

* Lowe, E. N., Mississippi, its Geology, Geography, Soils, and Mineral Re-
sources. Mississippi Geol. Survey Bull. 12: 78-84. 1915.

188 COOKE : JACKSON AND VICKSBURG DEPOSITS

called the Yazoo clay member and the Moodys calcareous marl
member of the Jackson formation, of which the Yazoo clay is
the upper and the Moodys marl the lower member. Although
the typical exposures of the Yazoo clay are in the bluff of Yazoo
River at Yazoo City, Mississippi, both of these members crop
out in the vicinity of Jackson, Mississippi, where their relative
stratigraphic position is evident. The Moodys calcareous marl
member is named from Moodys Branch, a small tributary of
Pearl River within the city limits of Jackson.

The Jackson formation in Mississippi is composed chiefly of
more or less calcareous clay and less prominent sand and marl
beds. At Jackson and Garland's Creek, the Moodys marl
member contains at the base a bed of shells inclosed in quartz
sand and glauconite and merges below into lignitic clay and
sand supposed to be of upper Claiborne age (Yegua formation) .
Toward the top, the Moodys member is less sandy and much
more calcareous and contains thin beds of indurated marl or
impure limestone. Although these ledges of marlstone are dis-
continuous, the zone in which they are found extends from
Yazoo River to western Alabama, where it has been called the
" Zenglodon bed."^ The Yazoo clay member consists almost
entirely of calcareous, very plastic clay of various colors, but in
most places blue or green when wet but gray when dry.

The thickness of the Jackson formation varies considerably
from place to place. In general, the Moodys marl thins from
east to west and the Yazoo clay thickens rapidly in the same
direction. In central and western Mississippi, its thickness
does not much exceed 35 or 40 feet, but farther east, owing to
the interpolation of beds of sand and clay, it is materially greater.
In Alabama, a few miles east of the Mississippi state line, the
equivalents of the Moodys marl are more than 90 feet thick.
The Yazoo clay member is thickest in the extreme western part
of Mississippi, where well borings south of Vicksburg indicate a
thickness of nearly 600 feet, and thins rapidly toward the east.

5 ScHUCHERT, Charles, U. S. Nat. Mus. Proc. 23: 329. 1900; Cooke, C.
W., U. S. Geol. Survey Prof. Paper 95: 116. 1915.

COOKE : JACKSON AND VICKSBURG DEPOSITS 189

In the vicinity of Jackson the Yazoo clay probably does not
exceed 200 feet in thickness; at Shubuta it is reduced to 70 feet;
and in western Alabama it becomes of negligible thickness and
merges with the underlying member. The aggregate thickness
of the Jackson formation appears to be about 600 feet in western
Mississippi, about 230 feet at Jackson, and about 150 feet at
Shubuta.

In Choctaw and Washington counties, Alabama, and in the
adjacent part of Mississippi, the stratigraphy of the Jackson is
somewhat different. The formation divides naturally into five
lithologic units, as follows:

Subdivisions of the Jackson formation in ivestern Alabama and eastern Mississippi

feet

5. Yazoo clay member: Greenish gray calcareous cla}' with white cal-
careous concretions 8-50

4. '"Zeuglodon bed.": Buff argillaceous marl with hard ledges. Tere-
bratulina lachryma, Aturia alabamensis,'^ Ostrea trigonalis, 0. falco,
Pecten perplanus, Schizaster armiger, Basilosaurtis cetoides 8-15

3. Fine yellow sand with indurated lumps in the upper part. Well ex-
posed at Cocoa, Alabama 11-70

2. Greenish yellow, calcareous, very plastic clay 30-50

1. Hard yellow or brown impure limestone or indurated marl with Peri-

archus lyeUi or P. pileus-sinensis and Pecten perplanus 0-15

Division 1 of this generalized section appears to be largely
identical with the " Scutella bed" which Smith^ doubtfully
referred to the ''St. Stephens limestone." In a section at Willow
Branch^ I drew the Claiborne-Jackson line at the top of an
attenuated remnant of this bed, and Hopkins^ accepted this
correlation. My reasons for referring this bed to the Jackson
are the following: (1) Pecten perplanus and Periarchus pileus-
sinensis, species elsewhere restricted to deposits of Jackson age,

^ I am probably to blame for the slip of the pen which caused Hopkins to list
Belosepia ungiila instead of Aturia alabamensis in the "Zeuglodon bed" (U. S.
Geological Survey Bull. 661-H: 296. 1917). Fortunately, I attached the cor-
rect name to the specimen figured by him on plate 27.

^ Smith, E. A., Johx.sox, L. C., and Laxgdo.n', D. W., Report on the Geology
of the Coastal Plain of Alabama. Alabama Geol. Survey, p. 111. 1894.

* Cooke, C. W., The age of the Ocala limestone. U. S. Geol. Survey Prof.
Paper 95: 115. 1915.

^ Hopkins, O. B., Oil and gas possibilities of the Hatchetigbee anticline, Ala-
bama. U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 661-H: 294, 297. 1917.

190 COOKE : JACKSON AND VICKSBURG DEPOSITS

have been found in it at some places; (2) it is the first calcareous
bed of a series dominantly calcareous and succeeds noncalcareous
sands; (3) at Willow Branch and one or two other places there
is evidence strongly suggestive of unconformity between this
bed and the underlying Gosport sand.

The other four divisions are the same as those described by
Hopkins^'* and need no further comment here. Sections illus-
trating them are given by Hopkins and Cooke in the papers
cited.

The Jackson formation contains a large marine fauna. From
Jackson, Mississippi, I have listed 200 species of mollusks and
Vaughan has identified 12 species of corals; of these, about 49
are survivals from the Claiborne and about 15 are supposed to
have lived also in Vicksburg time. Canu and Bassler^^ list
67 species of Bryozoa from Jackson, of which 15 are known from
the Claiborne group and 9 from the Vicksburg. The commonest
and most significant vertebrate is Basilosaurus cetoides.

OCALA LIMESTONE

East of Tombigbee River a rather abrupt change is noticeable
in the stratigraphy of the deposits of Jackson age. The beds
become progressively more calcareous, lose their individuality,
and assume more and more the lithologic and faunal aspects
of the Ocala limestone of Florida. In some places a dual divi-
sion of these beds may be distinguished, but it is not everywhere
possible to draw a sharp line of demarkation between the upper
and the lower members. The lower part consists chiefly of very
argillaceous and somewhat glauconitic limestone, and on Sepulga
River the approximate position of the yellow sand at Cocoa
(division 3 of the generalized section) is occupied by calcareous
sandstone. The upper part, corresponding to the " Zeiiglodon
bed" and the Yazoo clay, consists of soft, cream-colored, amor-
phous limestone which closely resembles the ''chimney rock" of
the overlying Marianna limestone.

10 Op. cit., 296.

1' Canu, Ferdinand, and Bassler, R. S., Manuscript list of Eocene, and Oli-
gocene Cheilostome Bryozoa.

COOKE : JACKSON AND VICKSBURG DEPOSITS 191

As the upper Eocene limestone of southeastern Alabama is
continuous with the Ocala limestone of Florida and southwestern
Georgia and does not differ materially from it in lithology or in
fossils, the name Ocala limestone is extended to all of the deposits
of Jackson age in that part of the state, but future more detailed
field work may show the propriety of restricting the name
Ocala to the upper part of the formation. Just where the
boundary between the Ocala limestone and the Jackson forma-
tion should be drawn is a matter of expediency, for the transi-
tion area, although narrow, is without definite natural limits.
Either the Tombigbee River or the 88th meridian might con-
veniently be selected.

»

VICKSBURG GROUP

In Mississippi the Vicksburg group falls naturally into three
divisions, the upper, middle, and lower Vicksburg, which differ
from one another in both lithology and fossils. The first of
these, which corresponds to the ''Higher Vicksburgian" of
Meyer'- and to the ''Upper Vicksburgian" of Casey, '^ is herein
named Byram calcareous marl; for the second, which is approxi-
mately equivalent to the "Middle and Lower Vicksburgian" of
jMeyer and to the "Lower Vicksburgian" of Casey, the name
Marianna limestone, already in use in Florida, is available; the
third includes two facies, a shallow-water or nonmarine facies in
western Mississippi, which will be called the Forest Hill sand,
and a marine facies in eastern Mississippi and western Alabama
known as the Red Bluff clay. In the middle division, or Mari-
anna, two subdivisions are recognized, herein named Mint
Spring calcareous marl member and Glendon'^ limestone mem-
ber. East of Clarke County, Alabama, the middle and lower
Vicksburg are similar lithologically and are both included in
the Marianna limestone.

12 ]\Ieyer, Otto, Amer. Journ. Sci., 2cl. ser., 30: 71. 1885.

" Casey, T. L., Philadelphia Acad. Nat. Sci. Proc. 53: 515. 1901.

" The name Glendon limestone has been adopted, with mj- consent, by O. B.
Hopkins (U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 661-H. 1917) who had access to my notes and
manuscripts.

192 COOKE : JACKSON AND VICKSBURG DEPOSITS

FOREST HILL SAND

The name Forest Hill sand (from Forest Hill, 5| miles south-
west of Jackson, Mississippi) replaces the ''Madison sands" of
Lowe,^^ which name is preoccupied. The Forest Hill sand appears
to rest conformably upon the Yazoo clay member of the Jackson
formation. Although the character of the sediments indicates
a change from marine to very shallow water or palustrine con-
ditions at the close of Jackson time, it is probable that the
change was gradual and that deposition was nearly continuous.
The Forest Hill is overlain conformably by the Mint Spring
marl member of the Marianna limestone. The relations of the
Forest Hill to the Red Bluff clay are not definitely known, but
it is believed that the two were formed contemporaneously, the
latter having been deposited under more strictly marine con-
ditions than the Forest Hill sand.

In the type area, the Forest Hill sand consists chiefly of cross-
bedded or laminated, more or less ferruginous, silicious sand
and some clay.^" West of this area, the formation becomes
more argillaceous and contains lenses of lignite and lignitic clay.

In Warren and southern Yazoo counties, the Forest Hill sand
is estimated to be about 60 or 70 feet thick, and at Forest Hill it
is between 50 and 60 feet thick.

Petrified wood, leaves, and other plant remains are common
in the Forest Hill sand, but recognizable forms are not abun-
dant. No animal remains have been found in the formation.

The Forest Hill sand crops out along the bluff from Vicks-
burg northward to within a few miles of Satartia. Exposures
are numerous in eastern Hinds County and in Rankin County
as far east as Rankin. Outliers of the Vicksburg group in
Madison County afford good exposures of the Forest Hill sand.
Southeast of Rankin the country has not been explored in suffi-
cient detail to determine the extent of the formation in that

15 Lowe, E. N., Op. cit., 82.

1^ A section at Forest Hill School has been published by O. B. Hopkins (U. S.
Geol. Survey Bull. 641-D: 100. 1916). I consider the lower 7 beds of his
section as typical Forest Hill sand and refer the upper 6 beds to the Marianna
limestone.

COOKE: JACKSON AND VICKSBURG DEPOSITS 193

direction, but lignitic clays that are tentatively referred to the
Forest Hill have been observed at a number of places in Smith
County.

RED BLUFF CLAY

Fossiliferous deposits on Chickasawhay River at Red Bluff,
1^ miles below Shubuta, were first noted by Harper ^^ in 1857.
Three years later they were called the Red Bluff group by Hil-
gard, who correctly announced that their stratigraphic position
lies between the Jackson and typical Vicksburg strata and that
their fossils are more closely related to those of the Vicksburg
than to those of the Jackson. ^^

Wherever the contact of the Red Bluff clay with the under-
lying Jackson has been observed, the two appear to be conforma-
ble. The upper limits of the formation are less well known,
but there seems to be no break between it and the Marianna
limestone. As the formation has not been traced west of Wayne
County, its relations to the Forest Hill sand are conjectural, but
it is believed that the two were approximately contemporaneous
in origin and that the Red Bluff clay represents the marine
equivalent of the exceedingly shallow water deposits of the
Forest Hill sand in the Mississippi Embayment. The formation
extends eastward into Alabama but rapidly thins, becomes cal-
careous, and merges laterally into the Marianna limestone.

The Red Bluff consists chiefly of stiff blue or greenish gypseous
clay, but contains also discontinuous ledges of indurated marl or
sandstone and a thin bed of shell marl. On Buccatunna Creek
Jhe formation is 70 feet thick.

The Red Bluff fauna includes more than 128 mollusks, 6
corals, and a considerable number of Bryozoa. Of the 134
species listed from Mississippi, about 60 appear to be restricted
to the Red Bluff beds; about 55 are present in the Mint Spring
marl or have varieties there; and about 49 species or varieties
are known in the Byram marl, of these species 10 have not yet

^^ Harper, L., Preliminary Report on the Geology and Agriculture of the
State of Mississippi, p. 142. 1857.

" HiLGARD, E. W., Report on the Geology and Agriculture of the State of
Mississippi, p. 136. 1860.

194 COOKE : JACKSON AND VICKSBURG DEPOSITS

been found in the Mint Spring marl. Twelve mollusks, 3 of
which range through the Vicksburg group, are listed also from
the Jackson formation, but some of these are characterless
species of supposedly very long range.

MARIANNA LIMESTONE

The name Marianna limestone was given by Matson and
Clapp^^ in 1909 to the soft, porous, light-gray to white limestones
at Marianna and other places in w^estern Florida ''which are
characterized by an abundance of Orhitoides mantelli and other
Foraminifera associated with many other fossils, prominent
among which are Pecten poulsoni and P. per planus. '"'^'^ The
last named species has since been found to be restricted to under-
lying Eocene strata^^ and was referred to the Marianna limestone
by mistake.

The Marianna limestone was included in the Vicksburg group
by Matson and Clapp, by whom it was regarded as the strati-
graphic equivalent of the upper part of the bluff at Vicksburg
(Byram marl). It was later found to lie conformably upon the
Ocala limestone, 22 which had been thought to be the highest
formation of the Vicksburg group.

The typical Marianna hmestone is very homogeneous, white
or cream-colored, and when first quarried is so soft that it is
easily sawed into building blocks which harden on exposure.
Because of its extensive use for building chimneys, it is popularly
known as "chimney rock." This facies of the Marianna lime-
stone extends with remarkable uniformity from Marianna,
Florida, nearly to Pearl River, Mississippi. It is characterized*
nearly everywhere by a great profusion of Bryozoa and an
abundance of Lepidocyclina mantelli, Pecten poulsoni, and

"Matson, G. C, and Clapp, F. G., A preliminary report on the geology of
Florida: Second Ann. Rept. Florida Geol. Survey, p. 51. 1909.

20 Idem, 52.

2' Not having seen the type of Pecten perplanus, I am accepting as correct the
species so named in the collection of the U. S. National Museum and described
by Dr. Dall {Tertiary Fauna of Florida, p. 732). Hopkins has figured a specimen
on plate 27, in U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 661-H.

22 Cooke, C. W., The age of the Ocala limestone. U. S. Geol. Survey Prof.
Paper 95: 109. 1915.

COOKE : JACKSON AND VICKSBURG DEPOSITS 195

Clypeaster rogersi. From a thickness of 74 feet at St. Stephens
Bluff, Alabama, the "chimney rock" thins to about 45 or 50
feet on Chickasawhay River, Mississippi, and to about 20 feet
in the neighborhood of Brandon, Mississippi.

Glendon limestorie memher. Overlying the ''chimney rock"
and conformable with it is a series of ledges of hard, partly
crystalhne, yellowish or pinkish limestone interbedded with
softer strata of impure limestone composed largely of Bryozoa,
Foraminifera, and shells of Ostrea vicksburgensis and Pecten
poulsoni. This rock is distinguished from the other parts of the
Marianna limestone mainly by its lithology, but a few species of
organisms are restricted to it. At Glendon, Alabama, it is 18
or 20 feet thick and overlies 20 feet of "chimney rock."

The Glendon limestone extends from McGowans Bridge,
Conecuh River, to Mississippi River at Vicksburg. It forms the
hard ledges at the top of St. Stephens Bluff and the cap rock
of several picturesque waterfalls near Vicksburg. Although it is
in few places thicker than 20 feet, the Glendon limestone, because
of its hardness, is the most conspicuous part of the Vicksburg
group in Mississippi, to which it has given the undeserved
reputation of being composed chiefly of limestone.

Mint Spring calcareous marl member. The "chimney rock"
facies of the Marianna limestone is replaced in western Alis-
sissippi by sands and shell marls for which the name Mint Spring
calcareous marl is here proposed. The name is derived from
Mint Spring Bayou, a small stream entering Centennial Lake
just south of the National Cemetery at Vicksburg. The strata
to which the name is applied are exposed beneath a waterfall
in the lower course of the stream.

Between Vicksburg and Pearl River the Mint Spring marl
occupies the entire interval between the Forest Hill sand and
the Glendon limestone, but east of Pearl River, it is overlain by
a thickening wedge of the Marianna "chimney rock." It has
not been recognized east of Chickasawhay River, on which
it is exposed Ij miles northwest of the mouth of Limestone
Creek. Other important exposures are along Glass Bayou at
Vicksburg, and at Haynes Bluff, 14 miles north of Vicksburg,
where it is 25 feet thick.

19() COOKE : JACKSON AND VICKSBURG DEPOSITS

The list of species collected in the Mint Spring marl includes
160 mollusks and 3 corals. Of these, 81 occur also in the Byram
marl, about 55 are found at Red Bluff or are represented there
by varieties, and about 66 appear to be restricted to the Mint
Spring marl.

BYRAM CALCAREOUS MARL

The type exposure of the Byram marl is in the bank of Pearl
River at Byram, Hinds County, Mississippi. The Byram beds
were supposed by Casey-^ to constitute a "sub-stage" inter-
mediate in age between the Red Bluff clay and the Mint Spring
marl, but more detailed study of the fauna shows that the marl
at Byram is of the same age as the upper shell bed at Vicksburg.
The formation consists chiefly of sandy glauconitic marl, but
contains also thin beds of impure limestone, clay, and sand.
At Vicksburg it is 42| feet thick; on Chickasawhay River incom-
plete exposures indicate a thickness of at least 70 feet, but at
intermediate places the exposed parts are much thinner.

Overlying the Glendon limestone at several localities in Ala-
bama are beds of limestone, marl, and clay that appear to repre-
sent the Byram marl. Among these localities may be noted
Paynes, Salt Mountain, Gainestown,* and Choctaw Bluff (which
last I have not visited), in Clarke County; Castleberry, Conecuh
County, and Yellow River at Watkins-Henderson bridge, Coving-
ton County. It is probable that at least part of the exposure at
Natural Bridge, Walton County, Florida, represents the same
horizon. The upper 60 feet or more of the section at Salt Moun-
tain probably includes the Byram marl, but as the two species
of corals in the limestone at the top are found elsewhere in
deposits of Chattahoochee age^'* part of the section may be
younger than the Byram. The Glendon limestone member and
perhaps also part of the underlying "chimney rock" of the
Marianna limestone are represented in the lower part of the

23 Casey, T. L., Philadelphia Acad. Nat, Sci. Proc. 53: 517-518. 1901.
2^ Vaughan, T. W., Tertiary corals from Central America, Cuba, and Porto
Rico. U. S. Nat. Mus. Bull. 102 (in press).

COOKE : JACKSON AND VICKSBURG DEPOSITS 197

section, all of which was included in the ''CoraUimestone" of
Smith and Johnson." The Salt Mountain section, which has
been considerabl}^ disturbed by folding and faulting, deserves
more critical study than it has yet received.

The Byram marl is the horizon from which Conrad obtained
his typical Vicksburg fossils. The formation contains 6 corals
and 136 species of moUusks, of which 81 occur also in the Mint
Spring marl, 46 persisted from the Red Bluff clay (including 6
which have not been found in the Mint Spring marl), and 55
which appear to be pecuhar to the Byram marl. One of the
most widely distributed and abundant species is the little Sca-
pharca lesueuri Dall, which appears to be restricted to this
horizon. The recent discovery at Vicksburg of a coral which
T. W. Vaughan-'' reports from the fossil coral reef at Bainbridge,
Georgia, Tampa, Florida, and many places in the West Indies,
suggests a closer correlation of the Oligocene chert of Flint River
with the Byram marl than has hitherto been suspected.

OUTLINE OF GEOLOGIC HISTORY

The beginning of Jackson time was marked by a northward
transgression of the sea which carried the marine fauna of the
Moodys marl into areas in which swampy conditions had pre-
vailed during upper Claiborne time. This transgression was
most pronounced in the Mississippi Embayment where the
marine Jackson fauna extended into Arkansas and where the
Jackson flora has been recognized by Berry^^ 135 miles farther
north than the northernmost recognized upper Claiborne of
this area. The effects of this transgression are noticeable as
far east as Alabama River and become prominent again in
central Georgia, where marine deposits of Jackson age overlap
all older Eocene and Cretaceous strata and rest upon the crystal-
line rocks of the Piedmont. ^^

-= Smith, E. A., and Johnson, L. C, Tertiary and Cretaceous Strata of the
Tuscaloosa, Tombigbee, and Alabama Rivers. U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 43
18-21. 1887.

" Op. cit.

2^ Berry, E. W., Erosion intervals in the Eocene of the Mississippi Embayment.
U. S. Geol. Survey Prof. Paper 95: 81-82. 1915.

-8 Cooke, C. W., and Shearer. H. K., Deposits of Claiborne and Jackson age
in Georgia. U. S. Geol. Survey Prof. Paper 120-C (in press).

198 COOKE : JACKSON AND VICKSBURG DEPOSITS

In western Mississippi the close of Jackson time was followed
by shoaling of the sea, attended by a southward recession of
the strand line, in the course of which the lignitic beds and
laminated' and crossbedded sands of the Forest Hill were de-
posited. In eastern Mississippi and Alnbama, however, the
change from Eocene to Oligocene time was not accompanied by
changes in physical conditions affecting materially the character
of the sediments, for the clay of the upper Jackson and the
limestones of the Ocala are succeeded by similar materials in the
Red Bluff clay and the Marianna limestone.

While the lignites and crossbedded sands of the Forest Hill
were forming in the west and the marine clays and marls of the
Red Bluff were being deposited in the intermediate region, the
calcareous sediments of the Marianna limestone were accumu-
lating on the Floridian plateau and adjacent parts of Georgia
and Alabama. As time went on the phase of deposition produc-
ing ''chimney rock" progressed westward, and the Marianna
limestone overlapped first the Red Bluffs beds and then part of
the Mint Spring marl until it had reached the ninetieth meridian.
Subsequently, nearly uniform conditions, attending the deposi-
tion of the Glendon limestone, prevailed across Mississippi and
far into Alabama. Therefore, the Marianna limestone repre-
sents a longer time interval in the east, where it includes both
the middle and the lower Vicksburg, than in the west, where it is
restricted to the middle Vicksburg.

Deposition of the Byram marl appears to have succeeded
without interruption that of the Glendon limestone, but the
change in character of the sediments indicates a more plentiful
supply of mud and sand.

The stratigrapjiic relations of the Byram marl to the overlying
Catahoula sandstone are conjectural. At none of the places
where the contact of the two formations has been seen, has any
indubitable evidence of unconformity been observed, but at
some localities, as near Waynesboro, Mississippi, the change in
lithology is so abrupt as to suggest the probability of an inter-
ruption in deposition. At other places the transition is so
gradual that deposition appears to have been continuous.

maxon: a new anemia from Mexico 199

BOTANY. — A new Anemia from Mexico.^ William R. Maxon,
National Museum,

The following new species is one of a number of interesting
ferns in a collection received by the U. S. National Museum
from Prof. C. Conzatti, of Oaxaca, Mexico, in 1917. At the
suggestion of Professor Conzatti it is named as below in honor
of his friend and fellow-collector, Dr. Emilio Makrinius.

Anemia makrinii Maxon, sp. no v.

Plants about 50 cm. high; rhizome short-creeping,d ensely clothed
with turgid acicular septate dark brown hairs; fronds several, close,
distichous, long-stipitate, the sterile and fertile ones nearly alike in
size and proportion. Fertile fronds erect, 45-50 cm. long; stipe 25 cm.
long, slender, dull strammeous from a dark base, narrowly sulcate later-
ally and ventrally in the upper part, deciduously blackish-fibrillose;
sterile lamina deltoid, 18-25 cm. long, 12-16 cm. broad, acuminate,
once pmnate, the rachis stramineous, deeply sulcate ventrally ancl
laterally, glabrate; sterile pmnae 7 or 8 pairs, distant, oblique, straight
or mostly falcate, the lowermost the largest, petiolate (4-10 mm.),
6-11 cm. long, 1.4-2 cm. broad, narrowly lance-oblong and long-
acuminate or tapering gradually from near the base to a long-attenu-
ate apex, the base subequilateral and broadly cuneate; succeeding
pinnae gradually shorter and more oblique, the upper ones free or
subsessile, much smaller than the conform or basally lobed terminal
segment; costa medial, percurrent, prominent beneath, stramineous,
sparsety fibrillose; veins free, very oblique, repeatedly dichotomous,
close, prommulous (especially beneath), glabrous; margins faintly
cartilagmous, serrate or m the outer part deeply biserrate, the teeth
very obHque, nearly straight, flat, acutish; leaf tissue thin-herbaceous,
dark green and somewhat iridescent above, paler beneath, glabrous;
fertile pinnae ascending, 10-16 cm. long, about half the length of the
sterile lamina, the panicle as long as the slender stalk or longer, flat-
tish, 8-15 mm. broad, the lower and middle segments remote, petio-
late; spores closely and rather sharply cristate-striate. Sterile fronds
similar, but the stipe relatively shorter and the blade more narrowly
triangular.

T^'pe in the U. S. National. Herbarium, no. 867444, collected at the
Cafetal Nueva Esperanza, District of Pochutla, Oaxaca, Mexico, at
an altitude of 800 meters, April 9, 1917, by Prof. C. Conzatti, Dr. B.
P. Reko, and Dr. Emilio Makrinius (no. 3087). A second collection,
received more recently from Dr. Reko, is from the Cafetal Calvario,
Oaxaca. altitude 700 meters, September 30, 1917, Reko 3365.

' Published with the permission of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Insti-
tution.

200 maxon: a new anemia from Mexico

Ane7nia makrinii belongs to the small group of species with distichous
simply pinnate fronds with the basal pinnae fertile, of which A. speciosa
Presl and A. mexicana Klotzsch are the only North American repre-
sentatives. It resembles A. speciosa somewhat in its short fertile
pinnae, but differs widely in its more numerous and narrower sterile
pinnae, its thin-herbaceous (not rigidly coriaceous) leaf tissue, and in its
prominulous veins, the veins of A. speciosa being distinctly impressed
upon the upper surface. In the character of its leaf tissue it is near A.
mexicana, but that species is characterized by having the pinnae sub-
cordate-truncate at the base, or exciso-cuneate below, the veins fibril-
lose-hirtous beneath, and the fertile pinnae erect and invariably sur-
passing the sterile lamina of the fertile frond. Anemia makrinii differs
noticeably from both in the flat, nearly straight teeth and only faintly
cartilaginous margins of the sterile pinnae, the margins in the two re-
lated species being strongly cartilaginous and the teeth stoutish, very
rigid, often concave, and curved or, in A. speciosa, commonly hamate.

The somewhat iridescent appearance of the upper surface of some
of the sterile blades is an interesting character but one probably not of
specific importance, as it is variable and tends to disappear. When
present it gives the frond a singularly attractive aspect.

ABSTRACTS

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

PHYSICS. — Specific heat of liquid ammonia. Nathan S. Osborne
and Milton S. Van Dusen. Bureau of Standards Scientific
Paper No. 313. Pp. 35. 1917.

By use of a calorimeter of the aneroid type specially designed for
the peculiar conditions, the specific heat of saturated liquid ammonia
has been determined throughout the temperature interval —45° to
+ 45°C.

Two distinct and independent methods were used, each of which
avoids sources of error present in the other. The greatest difference
between the mean results of both methods and the results of either
method as represented by empirical equations is less than 1 part in
1000..

As a final result, the specific heat <r in joules per gram per degree
centigrade, of liquid ammonia, kept saturated, at the temperature d,
is given in the range —45° to +45°C. by the equation

16.842

(J - 3.1365 - 0.00057 6 +

V 133 - ^

N. S. 0.

PHYSICS. — The latent heat of pressure variation of liquid ammonia.
Nathan S. Osborne and Milton S. Van Dusen. Bureau of
Standards Scientific Paper No. 314. Pp. 51. 1917.
When a fluid undergoes a change of pressure, there occurs a trans-
formation of energy into heat or vice versa, which results in a change
of temperature of the substance unless a Hke amount of heat is ab-
stracted or added. This change expressed as the heat so transformed
per unit change of pressure will be called "latent heat of pressure varia-
tion." For most liquids under usual conditions of temperature and
pressure this quantity, which depends on the thermal expansivity, is

201

202 abstracts: physics

small compared with the other quantities of heat which are iisuallj^
observed, but for liquid ammonia in the range — 40 to + 40°C. and
corresponding saturated vapor pressures it is sufficiently large to be
taken into account in calorimetric determinations of specific heat; and,
in consequence, the measurements here described were made as a
supplement to a series of such determinations in order to correlate
measurements of specific heat of liquid ammonia made at constant
pressure with others made under saturation conditions.

The latent heat of pressure variation has been determined in two
ways, namely, by direct calorimetric observations and by computation
from the expansivity, using for the latter two independent sources of
experimental data. Thus, three independent determinations were
obtained. N. S. 0.

PHYSICS. — Latent heat of vaporization of ammonia. Nathan S.
Osborne and Milton S. Van Dusen. Bureau of Standards
Scientific Paper No. 315. Pp. 33. 1917.

Using a calorimeter of the aneroid type specially designed for the
peculiar conditions, the latent heat of vaporization of ammonia has
been determined throughout the temperature interval -A2 to -52°C.

A detailed description of the design and construction of the instru-
ment has been given in a separate paper.^ The results of each of 34
determinations agree with the mean result as expressed by means of an
empirical equation within one part in 1000. An empirical equation
was found that in addition to representing closely the results in the
range of temperature covered experimentally also conforms to what is
known about the behavior of substances in general when approaching
the critical point.

As a final result the latent heat of vaporization of ammonia, that is,
the heat required to convert saturated liquid into saturated vapor at
constant temperature, in joules per gram, is expressed in the range

-42 to -52°C. by the equationj

L = 137.91 \/l33 - e - 2.466 (133 - B)

If the latent heat of vaporization is expressed in calorieS2o per gram,
taking 1 calorie2o = 4.183 joules, the equation becomes
L = 32.968 a/133"^0 - 0.5895 (133 - d)

Using the results obtained for the latent heat of vaporization of
ammonia together with the specific heat of the saturated liquid, the
specific heat of the saturated vapor has been computed for various
temperatures and given in a table. N. S. 0.

» Bulletin of the Bureau of Standards 14: 133; Sci. Paper No. 301. 1917.

abstracts: chemistry 203

CHEMISTRY. — The iodometric determination of sulfur dioxide and the
sulfites. John B. Ferguson. Joiirn. Amer. Chem. See. 39: 364-
371. March, 1917.

In this paper are presented and discussed the results of an investi-
gation of the various iodometric methods for the determination of
sulfur dioxide and the sulfites. The object of this investigation was
threefold: (1) To ascertain the limitations of the existing methods and
procedures; (2) to determine the important sources of error; (3) to
develop, if necessary, procedures suitable for general application.

Sulfur dioxide. Of the methods considered, the excess iodine is
suitable for the analysis of mixtures of either high or low sulfur-dioxide
content; the Selby Smelter Commission method is suitable for mixtures
of low sulfur-dioxide content; the Reich method gives only approxi-
mate results unless large samples are available; and the sulfite method
must not be used without a correction factor. Two precautions are
essential: (1) The gas sample must not come in contact with even a
trace of moisture prior to reaching the absorbent; (2) the analj'^zing
apparatus must be free from rubber connectors if mixtures containing
2 per cent or more of sulfur dioxide are to be analyzed; and rubber
connectors would best be eliminated altogether. The excess iodine
method is recommended.

Sulfites. In the Tread well method errors due to the oxidation of
the sulfite solution arise from various sources and to eliminate them
the following procedure is recommended: The solid salt is dissolved
directly in an excess of an iodine solution containing sufficient hydro-
chloric acid, and the excess iodine determined with thiosulfate.

J. B. F.

CHEMISTRY.— T/i£' ternarij system H20-K2SiOz~Si02. George W.

MoREY (Chemical Study) and C. N. Fenner (Microscopic Study).

Journ. Amer. Chem. Soc. 39; 1173-1229. June, 1917.
The ternary system H20-K2Si03-Si02 has been studied over the
temperature range 200° to over 1000°. The work comprises a deter-
mination of the composition and properties of the various stable soli|^
phases which can coexist with solution and vapor within the above
temperature range, of the composition of the solutions in equilibrium
with the solid phases, of the change in composition of these solutions
with temperature, and the approximate determination of the corre-
sponding 3-phase pressures. The chief experimental method used was
an adaptation of the "quenching" method so extensively used in the
Geophysical Laboratory for the investigation of dry melts.

204 abstracts: geology

The following compounds occur: Silica, SiOa; potassium hydrogen
disilicate, KHSi^Os; potassium disilicate, K2Si205; potassium disilicate
monohydrate, K2Si205.H20; potassium metasilicate, K2Si03; potassium
metasilicate hemihydratc, K2Si03.5H20; and potassium metasilicate
monohydrate, K2Si03.H20.

The detailed results of the experiments are summarized in tables
and also presented graphically by means of curves and photographs of
solid models.

A short discussion of some of the theoretical considerations which
govern the equilibrium relations in binary and ternary systems con-
taining a volatile component is given and the proper use of the term
"solubiHty" is discussed. G. W. M.

GEOLOGY. — Geology of Massachusetts and Rhode Island. B. K.

Emerson. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin No. 597. Pp. 289,

with maps and illustrations. 1917.

This treatise, which is accompanied by a large geologic map of

Massachusetts and Rhode Island embodying the latest information,

describes in detail the distribution, character, and relation of the many

varieties of sedimentary and igneous rocks exposed in these two States.

R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — Anticlines in the southern part of the Big Horn Basin,
Wyoming. A 'preliminary report on the occurrence of oil. D. F.
Hewett and C. T. Lupton. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin
No. 656. Pp. 192, with maps, sections, and illustrations. 1917.
This report gives information regarding 50 domes and anticlines in
the south half of the Big Horn Basin, Wyo., and contains many struc-
ture contour maps.

The area described embraces some productive oil territory in Wyo-
ming that is undeveloped but very promising. Besides the Greybull,
Torchlight, and Grass Creek anticHnes, which are already sufficiently
ileveloped to contribute largely to the production of oil in Wyoming,
there are seven or more domes and anticlines in which oil or gas has
been struck, but which are not yet sufficiently drilled to indicate their
value as oil reservoirs. Thus 11 of the anticlines here described have
already proved to be productive.

The probability that the remaining anticlines and domes described
in this resort may contain oil or gas has been carefully considered by

abstracts: petrology 205

•

the authors, who have noted their form and prominence, their
mutual relations, their positions in the basin, the formations exposed
on their axes, and their similarity to like domes and anticlines that
carry or do not carry oil or gas. So far as can now be determined
from the surface indications, about half of these are considered promis-
ing, but the drill, which is the final test, may show that some of them
are barren and that others which are now regarded as less promising
may be productive. It is highly probable that half or more of the
antichnes and domes here described constitute a large part of the most
promising undeveloped oil territor}- in Wyoming. The Big Horn Basin
seems to be destined to furnish a large contribution to the Nation's
supply of high-grade oil.

R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — Louisiana clays, including results of tests made in the
I'ahoratonj of the Bureau of Standards at Pittsburgh. George
Charlton ^Iatson. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin 660-E.
Pp. 12, with maps and sections. 1917.
This paper shows the geographic and geologic distribution of Louis-
iana claj^s and includes 26 tests made by the Bureau of Standards
showing the working and burning behavior.

R. W. Stone.

PETROLOGY.— T/ze problem of the anorthosites. N. L. Bowen.
Journ. Geol. 25: 209-243. April-May, 1917.
Anorthosites are made up almost exclusively of the single mineral
plagioclase and in virtue of this fact they present a very special prob-
lem in petrogenesis. The conception of the mutual solution of minerals
of the magma and the lowering of melting temperature consequent
thereon is no longer appHcable. Yet anorthosites give no evidence of
being abnormal in the matter of the temperature to which they have
been raised; in other words, they give no evidence of having been raised
to the temperature requisite to melt plagioclase. A possible alternative
is that they may never have been molten as such and are formed simply
by the collection of crystals from a complex melt, probably gabbroic
magma. This possibihty is in harmony with the expectations that
grow out of experimental studies and for this reason a consideration of
the hkehhood that anorthosites have originated in the stated manner
becomes imperative.

206 abstracts: petrology

«

A discussion of the method whereby accumulation of plagioclase
crystals might take place leads to the conclusion that the most prom-
ising method is the separation by gravity of the femic constituents
from gabbroic magma while the plagioclase crystals, which are calcic
bytownite, remain practically suspended. Then, at a later stage, when
the liquid has become distinctly lighter, having attained diorite-syenite
composition, the plagioclase crystals, which are now labradorite,
accumulate by sinking and give masses of anorthosite, at the same
time leaving the liquid out of which they settle of a syenitic or granitic
composition.

Some of the consequences of this manner of origin of anorthosite are
discussed.

A consideration of anorthosites with special reference to the Adiron-
dack and Morin areas gives some reason for believing that anorthosites
show the requisite characters. For the Adirondack area especially,
evidence is adduced favoring the possibility that there anorthosite
and syenite may still occupy the relative positions in which they were
generated by the process outlined, the Adirondack complex being
interpreted as a sheetlike mass with syenite above and anorthosite
below.

Other monomineral rocks present essentially the same problem and
are restricted in their occurrence in substantially the same manner if
we consider especially those that approach most closely to the strictly
one-mineral character. All of the monomineral rocks do occur, how-
ever, as dikes and dike-like masses in essentially contemporaneous,
congeneric igneous rocks, a fact which may be interpreted as due to
the intrusion of a heterogeneous, partly crystalline mass.

On the whole the inquiry gives considerable support to the belief
that the monomineral rocks, of which the anorthosites are perhaps the
most important representatives, are generated by the process of col-
lection of crystals under the action of gravity.

N. L. B.

PETROLOGY. — Adirondack intrusives. N. L. Bowen. Journ. Geol.
25: 509-512. Sept.-Oct., 1917.
A reply to criticism by Professor Gushing of certain statements
relative to Adirondack structure occurring in the paper abstracted
above.

N. L. B.

abstracts: ornithology 207

VOLCANOLOGY. — Persistence of vents at Stromholi and its hearing on
volcanic mechanism. Henry S. Washington. Bull. Geol. Soc.
Amer. 28: 249-278. March, 1917.
In August, 1914, six vents were active on the crater terrace of Strom-
boli. Examination of plans and illustrations in the literature (many
of which are reproduced in the paper) shows that at least three of
these vents have persisted in location as far back as 1768. Similarly,
at Kilauea the main vent has persisted in location for about a century;'
and there is evidence of such persistence at some other volcanoes.
This feature of volcanoes seems to have been previously unnoticed.
Another notable feature of the Stromboli vents is that the oldest
three of them open about *1 000 meters above sea-level near the upper
edge of a precipitous scarp of that height. An analogous situation is
true of some of the vents at Etna and also of one or two of those of
Kilauea.

In the discussion of these and other features it is shown that such
vents can not have originated through explosive agencies; but that
their formation, situation, persistence in location, and other features
can best be explained by Daly's so-called "gas-fluxing hypothesis,"
which supposes a "blow-piping" of narrow, vertical vents through the
superjacent rocks by hot gases derived from the magma in its reservoir
below and kept hot by chemical interreactions. • H. S. W.

ORNITHOLOGY.— 7'/!e migration of North American birds. 1. Five
sicallows. Harry C. Oberholser. Bird-Lore 19 : 320-330. De-
cember 1, 1917.
In this article there are given tables of migration dates for both
spring and fall, chiefly from the United States and Canada, of the five
following species of swallows, together with the subspecies of each:
Petrochelidon lunifrons (lege albifrons), Iridoprocne bicolor, Tachy-
cineta thalassina, Riparia riparia, and Stelgidopteryx serripenyiis. The
data given serve as an index to the migratory movements of these
species, and include the average date of spring arrival, the earliest
date of spring arrival, the average date of last one observed, and the
latest date of last one observed, in autumn as well as in spring, together
with a statement of the numbers of years of observation on which the
averages are based. M. C U.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

The meeting of the Board of Managers on March 5, 1918, was de-
voted principally to the consideration of nominations and the elec-
tion of new members. Plans for the development of the Journal were
discussed, and were referred to a committee consisting of Messrs.
Knopf, Hrdlicka, and Maxon, to be reported on at a later meeting.
The dues of members absent from the United States on military or
naval duty were remitted.

Dr. WdODROW WiLSQ]^, The White House, Washington, D. C, was
elected an honorary member of the Academy in recognition of his con-
tributions to economic and political history.

Robert B. Sosman, Corresponding Secretary.

ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 520th meeting of the Society was held in the West Study Room
of the Pubhc Library, January 29, 1918, at 8 p.m. At this meeting
Dr. Leo J. Frachtenberg made an address on Poland and the Polish
question. (No abstract.)

The 521st meeting of the Society was held in the West Study Room
of the Public Library, February 12, 1918, at 8 p.m. Dr. Joseph
Dunn, of the Catholic University of America, was the speaker of the
evening and presented an interesting paper on Scotland.

"The Scotch reached Scotland from Ireland and are not the de-
scendants of Gaelic Celts who had been pushed north by a later (British)
invasion of Britain. The first authentic information on Scotland
dates from the time of the Romans, 79 A.D. Roman rule in Britain
came to an end in 410, and Britain then ceased to be a part of the
Roman Empire. The population of Scotland is made up of Pictish,
Irish, British, Saxon, Danish, and Norman elements, all of them
Indo-Celtic, the three first, Celtic, the three last, Germanic peoples.
The Picts contributed the bulk of the population, but were overcome
by the Scotti (Irish), who had settled in Dalriada, a part of the
present county of Argyle (Airer-Goidel, 'Margo Scottorum'). The
Scotti then became the dominant people. Brythonic Celts dwelt in
Strathclyde; their chief city was Dumbarton (Dun Brettan, 'Fort of
the Britons'). -Towards the close of the eighth century, the Danes ap-
peared and ravaged the coast settlements and the isles. The Saxons
first appeared in 428 in Britain. In the eleventh century Norman
refugees first crossed the border into Scotland.

208

proceedings: anthropological society 209

"The first Irish colonization in Scotland took place toward the end
of the second century, but the kingdom of Dalriada was not effected
until the close of the fifth. It is these Scotti who have given theii-
name to Scotland. The relations between the two countries was very
close and lasted for a thousand years, or at least up to the Uefoima-
tion, and the early literature and civilization of Scotland belong to
Ireland. The Scottish (laelic reached its greatest extent in the eleventh
century, when the Anglian-Celtic linguistic line ran from Tweed to
Solway and to the Pent land Frith. The fine has since been receding.
Of the three parts into which Scotland is naturally divided, the larger
part of the central and all of the northern, with the exception of the
northeast part of Caithness, the Orkneys, and the Shetlands, is Gaelic-
speaking. The 1911 census showed 202,398 Gaelic speakers in Scot-
land, of whom 18,400 were monoglots.

"According to legend, the name Scotch is derived from Scota, a
daughter of one of the Pharaohs. The word is probably related etymo-
logically to the German Schatz, and means 'masters, owners.' Origi-
nally, and therefore in all medieval Latin texts down to the end of the
eleventh century, it meant only Ireland. Since that date it means spe-
cifically Scotland. The Scotch Gael never calls himself Scotch, but
Gael, or, to indicate his country, Albanach. EngUsh-speaking High-
landers, even though Scotchmen, are Saxons in the mind of a Gael.
In the fifteenth century, when English became the predominant speech
in the Lowlands, the English. and non-Celtic Scotch called Gaehc
'Erse.' Since* the sixteenth century the name Scotch has been ap-
plied to the English spoken in the Lowlands. So, by a strange freak
of fortune, Scotch, originally applied to a variety of Celtic, has come
to mean Broad Scotch or Quaint Enghsh, a language of Germanic
origin.

"The distinction made between the Highlands and Lowlands of
Scotland is correct merely so far as the physical configuration of the
country is concerned, but incorrect if a racial significance is read into
it. There is a mistaken notion that Scotland is a country of two races,
Celtic in the north and Teutonic in the south, and that the latter ele-
ment has displaced the former. No doubt the Lowland Scotchman is
a person of very composite blood, but he is above all a Celt.

"When Scotland was in possession of complete autonomy she en-
joyed unrivaled prosperity. She was spoken of on the Continent as 'a
nation of heroes,' and the French proverb 'Fier comme un ecossais' is
still current. Many treaties of alHance were made with France, and
Scottish merchants, traders, and scholars were known all over Europe.
The disaster at Culloden (1746) would appear to have crushed Scot-
tish nationality out of existence. The incorporating Union of 1707,
'which was carried by force and fraud' (Prof. William Smith), reduced
Scotland to the humiliating level of an appendage of England. Lord
Roseberry called Scotland 'the milch cow of the Empire,' and the
Marquis of Bute and others have estimated that the dead loss to the
country as a result of the Union is from twelve to thirteen million pounds

210 proceedings: anthropological society

per annum. As a result of the ' clearances/ the crofters and cotters have
had to move to the towns and their places have been taken by rich
men who have turned the country into 'sanctuaries' for deer and grouse.
The present day Scotch republicans, who represent a party which
came into existence at the time of the French Revolution, are now tak-
ing steps to see to it that the principle of 'self-determination' is applied
to Scotland."

The 522nd meeting of the Society was held in the West Study Room
of the Pubhc Library, February 26, 1918, at 8 p.m. On this occasion
Dr. Peter Alexander Speek, of the Library of Congress, addressed the
Society on The 'problems of race and nationality in Russia.

Pointing out the difficulties of a definition of the term ''nationality,"
the lecturer stated that race is a perpendicular division of mankind, a
group of people separated according to ethnological and anthropologi-
cal differences which have resulted mainly from the natural surround-
ings in prehistoric times, and that nationality is a perpendicular sub-
division of a race or races, a group of people with common ways and
forms of life, but different from other groups because of histological
development under the influence of the different geographical condi-
tions and social forces. Thus nationality may be expressed more or
less in everything which is native to a human being and characteristic
of his existence, in physical form, in mental and spiritual develop-
ment, in economics, politics, science, arts, moral principles, customs,
and habits.

The speaker described Russia as a conglomerate oT a large num-
'ber of highly varied countries, races, and nationalities united by con-
quests into one body politic, ruled up to the time of the revolution by
the same monarch and the same laws and institutions.

In 1914 the population of Russia was nearly 180,000,000, the race
composition of which was as follows: Indo-European, about 80 per
cent; Ural-Altaic, 14 per cent; Semitic, 4 per cent; indefinite, about 2
per cent. The statistics of nationality were as follows: Indo-Euro-
pean race — Great Russian^, about 44 per cent; Little Russians, 18 per
cent; Polish, 6 per cent; White Russians, 5 per cent; German, about 2
per cent; Lithuanians, 1 per cent; Lettonian, 1 per cent; Armenian,
1 per cent — Ural-Altaic race: Turkish-Tartar, 11 per cent; Finnish, 2
per cent; Esthonian, 1 per cent — Semitic race: Jews, 4 per cent — other
minor nationalities of the above races, 2 per cent of the whole popula-
tion. The last Russian census shows that there were 123 different and
distinct nationalities living in Russia. The Great Russians, about 44
per cent of the population, ruled all the other subjugated nationalities,
i.e., 56 per cent of the whole population.

The policy of the Russian monarchy was to Russianize the non-
Great Russian nationalities by violence. This policy is to be explained
in part by the teachings of Pan-Slavism. Pan-Germanism and Pan-
Slavism sprang from the teachings of the German historians and poli-
ticians, who emphasized the fact of the absorption of Slavs by Teutons
in northern Prussia and of Finns by Slavs in the northern part of

proceedings: biological society 211

European Russia centuries ago. Overlooking the fact that this absorp-
tion resulted from peaceful intercourse and unconscious assimilation,
these German writers began to agitate in favor of Germanizing non-
German nationalities by violence. I'nder the influence of this propa-
ganda appeared Pan-Slavism.

It is believed that the desire to denationalize other nationalities
rises from the economic interests of the ruling nationality, oi' rather of
its ruling classes, for the differences in nationalit}^ handicap the expan-
sion of trade and business. The results of the efforts to crush weaker
nationalities have been negative, as bitterness, hostility, and opposing
force have been created. The problem of nationality can not be solved
by violence.

There are three philosophical doctrines dealing with the problem:
cosmopolitanism, emphasizing the unity of mankind and ignoring na-
tionality, or opposing it; nationalism, ignoring the unity of mankind,
believing in the separation of one nationality from another and holding
one's own nationality to be the highest, with a special mission in his-
tory (]\Iessiahs, Kultur, etc.); and internationaHsm, holding that all
nationalities have equal rights for existence. Self-determination of
nationalities is a principle of internationalism. When this principle is
realized, the growth of peaceful intercourse and voluntary assimila-
tion of nationalities will be secure, — a step forward in the progress of
mankind. ' Frances Densmore, Secretary.

BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The o79th regular meeting was held in the Assembly Hall of the
Cosmos Club, Saturday, February 9, 1918; called to order by President
Rose at 8 p.m. ; thirty-six persons present.

LTnder the heading brief notes and exhibition of specimens, A. S.
Hitchcock referred to the feeding of gulls and pelicans at Tobago as
observed by him. The gulls outnumbered the pehcans by 10 to 1
and almost^ as the pelicans brought up fishes, the alert gulls snatched
them away before the pelicans could adjust the fishes for swallowing.
This note was discussed by the Chair, L. 0. Howard, and others.

The regular program was as follows:

S. A. Rohwer: Notes on the nesting habits of the social wasps. After
stating that the term ''social wasps" was restricted to the family
Vespidae, Mr. Rohwer told of the recent advances in knowledge of the
habits of the Neotropical species by the work of A. Ducke and R. von
Ihering. The recent work on the habits suggest that the family may
be divided into two sub-families on the shape of the fovea, through
which the ligament connecting the gaster with the propodemn passes.
These two groups have different habits. In the polygamic forms many
of the species swarm, the nest is begun by a number of females and
lasts no fixed period. The monogamic forms never swarm, the nest is
begun by a single female and is used only a single season. Eighteen
shdes, arranged to show the development in nest making from the

212 proceedings: biological society

simple type of Apoica to the more complex type of Poli/bia, illustrating
nests of the polygamic forms, were shown. Eleven slides showing the
nests of the monogamic forms were exhibited. These slides showed the
differences between the single comb made by species of Po'istes and
the more complex nest made by the Vespae. Attention was called to
the three different types of location used for the nest by the different
species of Vespa.

Mr. Rohwer's communication was discussed by A. S. Hitchcock,
L. 0. Howard, R. W. Shufeldt, and M. W. Lyon. In the discussion
the author called attention to the desirability of collecting the smaller
types of nests of social wasps and pointed out how they may be col-
lected with safety.

R. W. Shufeldt: Biological ahnormalities as exemplified by the col-
lection in the Army Medical Museum. Major Shufeldt illustrated his
communication by lantern slides, presenting various forms of so-called
"monsters" and other teratologic types, selected from the different
branches of the vertebrata including man. All of the specimens shown
were chosen from the collection in the Army Medical Museum.

Attention was invited to the occurrence of such deformities in plants,
moUusks, insects, crustaceans, and other forms. Various theories were
touched upon as to the causes of these departures from the normal
animal or plant. Interesting cases, too, of polydactylism, hermaph-
roditism, diplogenesis, hydrocephalus, Cyclops, spiana bifida, terata
katydidyma, and numerous other teratologic types were introduced
and explained. A somewhat full account was given of the Siamese
■ twins and the lives they led, and other famous united twins were
* described, and the propriety of the surgical operation to separate them
briefly discussed. This interesting field of research was more or less
fully entered upon, and a series of illustrated cases, conditions, and the
medico-legal questions involved were passed in review.

The 580th regular meeting of the Society was held in the Assembly
Hall of the Cosmos Club, Saturday, February 23, 1918; called to order
at 8 p.m. by President Rose; 48 persons present.

Miss M. T. Cooke, Biological Survey, and Edmund D. Gibson,
Bureau of Entomology, were elected to membership.

The following informal communications were presented:

Vernon Bailey exhibited and described some newly born examples
of the common opossum, and commented on the comparative sizes of
newborn and their parents in various mammals.

R. W. Shuffeldt exhibited and described a young box tortoise
with two heads. The individual had lived for a period of nine months
in captivity.

C. D. Marsh called attention to the recently issued Fresh-Water
Biology by Ward and Whipple.

The regular program comprised two communications:

0. W. Barrett: A promising new source of sugar. Mr. Barrett said
that the Kaong, or sugar palm (Arenga saccharifera) of the Far East,
has been used for centuries as a source of syrup and moist sugar, as

proceedings: biological society 213,

well as vinegar, starch, fiber, etc. In 1914 the Bureau of Agriculture
at Manila, P. I., worked out a process by which it is possible to produce
a fairl}^ light-colored sugar, which crystallizes readily. The opening
male inflorescences of the palm are tapped in practically the same
way as the coconut and nipa palms are tapped. The fresh sap contains
about 15 per cent sucrose, and each flower-branch runs for 8 to 12
weeks. By bringing the fresh sap to about 95°C., then rapidly cooling
and treating the liquor above the albuminous predipitate, then treating
with lime water until considerably alkalined, then treating with carbon
dioxide until another heavy precipitate falls, and finally by lioiling the
perfectly clear supernatant liquor, — the process is completed. In the
Province of Cavite on the Island of Luzon, interesting customs attend
the preparation of the inflorescence for tapping, treatment of the raw
surface during the flow period, and treatment of the tree afterward.
Conservatively reckoned, sugar to the value of $600 to $1000 per
acre can be obtained from a moderate stand of Kaong; in other words,
without the expense of cultivation, the sugar palm yields a better crop
year in and year out for at least twenty years than does the much
more popular and better known sugar cane. Vast areas of the sugar
palm occur in Indo-China, the Philippines, and Malaya. The trouble
heretofore in making a high-grade sugar from the Arenga lay in the
large amount of organic impurities in the sap, which with ordinary
treatment turn very dark and then tend to reduce the crystallizing
power of the sucrose.

Mr. Barrett's paper was discussed by Messrs. A. A. Doolittle, A. S.
Hitchcock, and William Palmer.

W. C. Kendall: Some unrecognized anatomical facts and their rela-
tions to fish-cultural practices. The paper pertained to the peritoneal
membranes. Dr. Kendall said that the species of the genera On-
corky nchus, Salmo, and Salvelinus haye a certain extent of ventral
mesentery, extending from its anterior ventral and intestinal insertions,
just back of the base of the ventral fins, to the posterior end of the
abdominal cavity. The ovaries of the same species consist of perito-
neal folds, each of which is boat-hke in form, wi h cross-wise parti-
tions or ovigerous lamellae. In natural position the open or upper
surface is inclined inward against the mesovarium so that the ovary is
completely enfolded in membrane. A short but varying distance from
the posterior end of the abdominal cavity, the dorsal mesentery ter-
minates, leaving a communicating aperture from one side of the ab-
dominal cavifiy to the other above the intestine for the remainder of its
extent. With the termination of the mesenteny, the mesovarium also
ends. From the posterior end of each ovary, the mesovarium and
ovarian membrane continues as a trough-like channel as far as the
communicating aperture. Thence the two ovarian membranes,
united and attached to the median line of the upper surface of the in-
testine, form a common trough-like oviducal channel which a short
distance from the ovipore diverges to each side and becomes attached
to the abdominal lateral walls, thus forming a reduced homologue of the
so-called funnel-like oviduct of the smelt as described by Huxley

214 proceedings: botanical society

(Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond., 1883). Contrary to general anatomical and
icthyological statements concerning the reproductive oigans of Sal-
monidae, the ova cannot naturally "fall into the abdominal cavity,"
and, if they in any way gain access to it, they can not be extruded.
To those familiar with fish-cultural practices as respects Salmonidae
the application of these facts is obvious.

Mr. Kendall's communication was illustrated by lantern slides of the
structures described. The paper was discussed by R. W. Shufeldt.

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

BOTANICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 126th regular meeting of the Society was held in the White
Parlor of the New Ebbitt Hotel at 8.15 p.m., Tuesday, February 5,
1918. Mr. Walter T. Swingle presided. Fifty-one members and
45 guests were present. Mr. T. H. Kearney, the retiring president,
delivered an address on Plant life on saline soils. (See this Journal 8:
109. 1918.) Following the address, there was dancing in the Crystal
Dining Room.

The 127th regular meeting of the Society was held at the Cosmos
Club at 8 p.m., Tuesday, March 5, 1918. There were 50 members
and 4 guests present. L. B. Scott and Sidney F. Blake were elected
to membership. The following scientific program was given:

D. N. Shoemaker: The American species of the genus Phaseolus (with
lantern). The American species of "beans" cultivated are: (1) Phaseo-
lus vulgaris, our common bean; (2) Phaseolus lunatus, the Lima bean;
(3) Phaseolus coccineus, the scarlet runner, and (4) Phaseolus acutifolius,
var. latifolius, the tepary bean.

Phaseolus vulgaris is much richer in varieties than the other species,
the number reaching at least one thousand. These do not fall into well-
defined groups, and their classification is not readily made. The most
obvious division is into true dwarfs, or plants of determinate growth,
and trailers, or plants of indeterminate growth. .

Phaseolus lunatus is rich in varieties, which may be grouped as: (1)
Sieva forms, including the small flat Limas, — a group distinct as to
vegetative characters as well; (2) large Limas, which may be further
divided into large flat and large round or turgid. All three forms of
Lima beans occur with determinate and indeterminate growth.

Phaseolus coccineus, as grown in the United States, does not have a
large range of varieties, and may best be classified on color of ripe seeds.

Phaseolus acutifolius has few varieties, which can best be divided on
seed color.

The varieties of the first species are each confined in their cultural
requirements to definable regions. These regions are roughly as fol-
lows: (1) The eastern and northern region, extending from New England
to Idaho, and south along the Appalachian Mountains to the Georgia
border. White pea, White medium. White Marrow, White Kidney, and
Red Kidney being the main types grown here; (2) the Pacific Coast
region, mainly in CaHfornia, the varieties being small California Whites

proceedings: botanical society 215

and Large California Whites; and (3) the southwestern region from
western Texas to southern Cahfornia, and extending into the moun-
tains through Colorado. The varieties here are old native types of
beans long cultivated by the Indians, the best known being the Pinto
and California Pinks. Besides these there are Bayos, Mexican Reds,
and Mexican Whites. This region is the one where production is on
the most rapid increase at present, and where expansion can be almost
imlimited since beans are grown both as a dry-land crop and under
irrigation.

The Lima bean is grown commercially only in the southern part of
California along the coast. Scarlet Runner beans are grown only in
the northern part of the United States, and then only in gardens.

Tepary beans are better adapted to dry-land farming than are other
species. They are fairly salable. They are found growing wild in
some of the mountain ranges of southern Arizona, and are a recently
discovered part of the aboriginal agriculture of this region.

W. E. Safford: Economic Phaseoli of the ancient AmericauH (with
lantern) . The origin of the. edible species of Phaseolus was for a long
time held to be doubtful. Writers on cultivated plants who relied
upon the testimony of early explorers and colonists were not convinced
that they were all American. The most convincing testimony is that
offered by actual specimens from prehistoric graves, burial mounds,
and cave dwellings. The writer was fortunate during his explorations
in vSouth America in finding excellent specimens of Phaseolus vulgaris
and Phaseolus lutmtus from graves on the coast of Peru. During the
recent Pan-American Scientific Congress he made an exhibition in the
National Museum of the food plants, textiles, aromatic, narcotic, and
other economic plants of this continent, which included several distinct
varieties of beans. Among them were Phaseolus vulgaris, Phaseolus
lunatus, and Phaseolus coccineus. None of the last-named was found in
South America; but on the other hand, a number of smooth globose
beans called tchui, or chuvi, by the Quichua Indians were taken from
graves at Ancon, and it is possible that these may be specifically dis-
tinct from Phaseolus vulgaris. In one net of a peculiar shape, which
may be likened to a three-fingered glove, at least eight varieties of
beans were found, including four kinds of "purutus" (Phaseolus vul-
garis), three kinds of "pallares" (Phaseolus lunatus), and the spheroid
'tchuis" already mentioned. In the same net specimens of cotton
seed were also found.

Padre Cobo mentions the fact that the round beans called tchui,
often beautifully colored, were used by the ancient Quichuas in playing
certam games. In Mexico the variously colored beans of Phaseolus
coccineus were somewhat similarly used by the Aztecs, who called the
beans, ''avacotli," or "ayecotli," and the game of chance played with
them ''patolli." The fleshy root of this bean, called "cimatl," was
used by them medicinally. The white variety of Phaseolus coccineus
"iztacayacotli," now called ayacote bianco or patol bianco, has been
frequently mistaken for Phaseolus lunatus, and it is one form of this
variety which, under the name of "Aztec bean," has been exploited as
a discovery in an ancient cave dwelling of our Southwest. As a matter

216 proceedings: botanical society

of fact, it is far inferior to the common Phaseolus lunatus, and, though
a good snap bean when green, it is scarcely edible when mature.

A few specimens of Phaseolus lunatus from Peru are pure white, like
the common varieties of our markets; some, however, are mottled like
the "pataxte" of Chiapas and the "patani" of the Philippine Islands;
others are blackish or maroon colored or yellow and brown and brown
particolored. The presence of a number of distinct varieties in a single
prehistoric grave indicates that beans had been cultivated in Peru a
long time previous to the discovery.

Phaseolus lunatus, the Lima bean, was unknown in North America
before the Discovery. When first seen by a certain tribe of Indians
they gave it a name signifying, the ''bean-that-resembles-the-ground-
bean." The ground-bean referred to proved to be Falcafa conwsa,
which, in addition to flowers of the ordinary type, yielding small pods
enclosing several small seeds, has apetalous flowers on slender creep-
ing basal branches, which bury themselves in the soil and produce
solitary seeds resembling Lima beans, usually mottled with purple,
but soft and turgid, with an outer skin which never becomes hard, but
shrivels on drying. These ground-beans were a food-staple not only
of the aboriginal inhabitants of Virginia, but also those of the river
valleys of the interior of our country. They are easily gathered and,
if cooked when fresh, have a buttery consistency and a pleasant flavor
not unlike that of an artichoke.

The lantern slides exhibited included illustrations of Phaseolus vul-
garis and Phaseolus lunatus found in graves with Peruvian mummies
and in ancient Indian graves of Argentina and North America; several
varieties of Phaseolus cocci neus ranging from Guatemala to Mexico;
and fine large specimens of Falcata comosa collected near the Potomac
a short distance above Georgetown, together with plants from the
normal seeds and from the "ground-beans" referred to, the latter much
larger and more vigorous than the former.

David Griffiths: Illustrations of the conspicuous groups of Opuntia
(with lantern). Doctor Griffiths gave an illustrated talk on the gen-
eral aspects of the groups of the genus Opuntia, considered in its broad-
est phases. The slides were selected to show the salient features of the
group in the most common representatives both as regards habit and
details, they being thrown on the screen mostly in pairs, one showing
details and the other habit.

A point of special mterest has been revealed m the cultural studies
which have extended over a period of ten years, namely, that the
Clavateae commonly considered to be naked spined are in reality pos-
sessed of spines in scabbards similar to the Cylindropuntia, but the
sheaths are early deciduous and consequently not commonly seen in
dried specimens. This characteristic of spines in scabbards is distinctly
a North American trait and gives a line of cleavage other than a geo-
graphical one, the Clavateae being intermediate in this respect be-
tween the Cylindropuntia of North America and the Tephrocacti and
cylindrical-jointed species of South America.

proceedings: entomological society 217

A few remarks were iiiade upon the food value and the products pre-
pared from the fruits of the genus. Specimens were exhibited of pre-
served prothicts, still well preserved, made in Mexico by crude processes
over ten years ago. Enough of this 10-year-old "ciueso" was on hand
to be sampled by those present. Brief reference was made to "Miel,"
"Melcocha," and "Colonchi," made from the tuna. Various other
economic aspects of the genus were alluded to.

H. !N. Vinall, Corresponding Secretary.

ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 311th meeting of the Society was held at the Cosmos Club,
INIarch 7, 1918; forty members and ten visitors present.

The following names were favorably acted upon for regular
membership; R. E. Snodgrass, Joseph D. Smith, and R. H. Van

ZWALUWENBURG.

The regular program was as follows:

Vernon L. Kellogg: Possibilities of entomology in ^ the war. Dr.
Kellogg forcefully set forth the need for increased food production and
conservation, especially of cereals, and pointed out the great oppor-
tunity for important work along both lines devolving upon ento-
mologists through the control of insects. He stated that the food supply
of the world was in a critical condition and it was extremely important
that all manner of losses from insect infestation be controlled in so
far as possible. The speaker was of the opinion that present condi-
tions offered a splendid opportunity for entomologists to do their part
in winning the war . and at the same time advance the science in
public esteem.

In discussing Dr. Kellogg's remarks, Dr. Pierce gave some inter-
esting observations regarding the effects of the past winter on the
cotton boll weevil. He stated that the- unusually low temperatures
had given the weevil a very severe set-back and he was of the opinion
that the same would be found to be true in the case of other insect
pests.

Mr. W. R. Walton stated that while the early fall frosts and severe
low 'temperatures had perhaps reduced insect infestation, they had at
the same time badly damaged the winter wheat, thus causing injury
as well as benefit.

Mr. C. L. Marlatt stated that Australian stored wheat had been
very badly injured by insects and that the British government had
sent an entomologist there who would attempt to disinfect it and save
the grain for Allied use. This entomologist had stopped in the United
States on his way to Australia for the purpose of studying our methods
of dealing with such conditions. Mr. Marlatt also spoke interestingly
of food conservation by preventing insect damage to other stored
products and growing crops.

N. E. McIndoo: Olfactory organs of Diptera. Illustrated with
charts and wax models. (No abstract).

218 proceedings: society of American foresters

W. S. Fisher: A new species of Agrilus froyn Florida. Read by title.

C. T. Greene: Thr-ee new species of Dipfera. Read by title.

Under the head of notes and exhibition of specimens Mr. S. A.
RoHWER discussed an interesting new genus and species of sawfly
which he had recently received from California, where it infests
Libocedrus decurrens.

A. B. CtAHan, Recording Secretary.

SOCIETY OF AMERICAN FORESTERS

An open meeting of the Society of American Foresters (Washington
Section) was held Thursday evening, February 14, at the home of
Mr. S. T. Dana. Twenty-eight active members and twenty-nine
visiting members and guests were present.

Lieutenant-Colonel Henry S. Graves, the speaker of the evening,
in an informal talk described the work of the forest regiments in France
and outlined his experiences while abroad. The work it seems is
entirely behind the lines and has for its purpose the supplying of the
American Forces with the timbers, ties, and lumber needed at the
front, or in the construction of docks, depots, and permanent camps.

The timber lies, for the most part, in state, communal, or private
forests and is acquired through the French Government. Cutting is
done under regulations laid clown by the Forest Service or private
owner, and in the state and communal forests under the direction of
the local forest officers.

Following Colonel Graves, Major H. L. Bowlby outlined briefly
the kind of work the Road Battalions of the 20th Engineers (Forest),
now nearly recruited, expect to be called on to do.

Following the program, refreshments were served and music was
furnished by Mr. Wm. C. Stump, after which the meeting adjourned.

An open meeting of the Washington Section of the Society was held
Thursday evening, February 28, at the home of Mr. Herbert A.
Smith. Eighteen members and nine visiting members and guests were
present.

Under the head of announcements and communications, Mr. A. 0.
Waha read portions of a letter from Captain A. C. Ringland now in
France with the 10th Engineers (Forest) describing a recent air raid on
Paris.

Mr. A. F. Hawes then introduced the topic for the evening, Forestry
and the fuel problem, outlining the causes of the recent fuel shortage;
what had been done by State Foresters, State Fuel Administrators, and
the Poorest Service to relieve it by encouraging the cutting, marketing,
and consumption of wood in place of coal; and what it was hoped could
be accomplished in the future by the wood fuel campaign both to re-

proceedings: society of American foresters 219

lievo the fuel situation another wintoi', and to stiniulato the practice of
private and municipal forestry. It was pointed out that the laigely
increased demand for wood fuel was both an opportunity for and a
danger to the practice of forestry in that while it created a market for
forest products not otherwise merchantable, it also might lead to over
cutting and to the destruction of potential timber trees.

In the discussion which followed, Messrs. Mattoon, Besley (State
Forester of Maryland), Krousz (recently with the (ireat Southern
Lumber Company of Louisiana), Munns, R. C. Jones (State Forester
of \'irginia), Sparhaw'k, E. H. Jones (United States Fuel Adminis-
tration), Baker, and Harris took part outlining their experiences in
the wood fuel campaign and discussing the subject from various angles.

Following the program refreshments were served and the meeting
adjourned.

An open, meeting of the Societ}^ was held Thursday evening, IVLarch
14, at the home of Mr. E. H. Clapp. Nineteen members and twelve
visiting members and guests were present.

Under the head of announcements Mr. Raphael Zon reported that
at a recent meeting in New York the War Committee was reorganized
and Prof. J. W. Toumey elected chairman. The purpose of this com-
mittee is to keep in touch with the needs of the Government and with
the available technical foresters of the country in order that specially
trained men can be mobilized for war work as needed.

The topic of the evening, Forest products and the war, was intro-
duced by Mr. E. H. Clapp, who outlined briefly the many and varied
uses of wood in the present struggle, and pointed out what an indispen-
sable factor wood is in modern warfare. He also described briefly the
war work at the Forest Products Laboratory of the Forest Service,
mentioning some of the more important investigations now under way
or proposed.

Following Mr. Clapp, Mr. H. S. Betts discussed certain phases of the
work of the Forest Products Laboratory bearing directly on the war,
illustrating his remarks by reference to a number of models and draw^-
ings. In the work of box testing and testing of woods for various pur-
poses the Laboratory has been especially active. As a result existing
specifications have been modified in a number of cases in such a way
as to allow the substitution of more available woods and lower grade
material without lowering the quality of the product. This has made
possible a more complete utilization of available supplies with a con-
sequent saving in cost and reduction in the strain on production. He
also stated that new methods of kiln drying lumber have been per-
fected which make it possible to season material in a few weeks that
would ordinarily take several years. This has made possible the speed-
ing up of construction of all kinds where seasoned wood is requu-ed.
Tests of veneers, glues, and methods of gluing have also been of great
value, particularly in airplane construction, while changes recom-

220 proceedings: society of American foresters

mended in wooden ship specifications have made possible their construc-
tion in the East where the large timbers originall}'' called for are not
available.

Mr. Rolf Thelen then explained the various types of airplanes and
their method of construction. He dwelt particularly^ on the kinds of
wood used and the ways in which wood enters into airplane construc-
tion, mentioning some of the difficulties encountered in securing suit-
able material and how these are being overcome.

During the discussion which followed, Dr. L. F. Hawley, Chemist
for the Forest Products Laboratory, was called on and spoke of the im-
portance of products derived from wood in the war — acetone, acetate
of lime, alcohol, and charcoal being mentioned particularly.

Following the program refreshments were served and the meeting
adjourned.

J. A. Mitchell, Secretary.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

The Chemical Society of Washington, the local section of the Ameri-
can Chemical Society, gave a reception at the Smithsonian Institu-
tion on February 28, 1918, to visiting chemists on war duty. The
guests were received by Dr. F. B. Power, President of the local society;
Dr. George P. Merrill, representing the Secretary and Regents of
the Smithsonian* Institution; Prof. F. W. Clarke, of the Geological
Survey; Prof. Charles L. Parsons, Secretary of the American Chemical
Society; Dr. W. F. Hillebrand, of the Bureau of Standards; and Dr.
C. O. Johns, of the Bureau of Chemistry. Short talks were giv^tn later
in the evening by Messrs. Merrill, Clarke, and Parsons, and by
Major S. J. M. Auld, of the British Mission, Dr. Samuel Avery, of
the National Research Comicil, and Prof. W. D. Bancroft, of the
Bureau of Mines Experiment Station.

About 550 invitations were sent to visiting chemists, while the
membership of the local section is over 400. The number of chemists
now in Washmgton is thus in the neighborhood of 1000.

Over two-thirds of the scientific staff of the Geophysical Laboratory
are absent from Washington on work connected with the m^ufacture
of optical glass. F. E. Wright is in charge of the optical glass plant
of the Bausch & Lomb Optical Co. in Rochester, New York, and is
assisted by J. B. Ferguson and R. H. Lombard. C. N. Fenner is
in charge at the glass plant of the Spencer Lens Co., near Buffalo, New
York, and E. T. Allen, E. G. Zies, and N. L. Bowen have assisted at
different times at this plant. At the request of the Pittsburgh Plate
Glass Co. a party under the direction of J. C. Hostetter and in-
cluding L. H. Adams, G. W. Morey, H. S. Roberts, and E. D. Wil-
liamson, was sent in December to the optical glass plant of that com-
pany at Charleroi, Pennsylvania.

The Geological Society of London has awarded the Wollas.ton medal
to Dr. Charles D. Walcott, Secretary of the Smithsonian Institu-
tion, in recognition of his contributions to geology and Cambrian paleon-
tology. The Wollaston medal was established "to promote researches
concerning the mineral structure of the earth and to enable the coun-
cil of the Geological Society to reward those individuals of any country
by whom such researches may hereafter be made." The list of eighty-
seven men of science who have received this medal since its establish-
ment in 1831 contains the names of five other Americans who have
been so honored — Louis Agassiz, James Hall, James D. Dana, Grove
Karl Gilbert, and W. B. Scott. It is an interesting circumstance to note

221

222 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

in connection with the award of this medal to Dr. Walcott that Wol-
laston, the eminent Enghsh chemist who estabhshed the medal, was an
intimate friend and scientific associate of James Smithson, of London,
through whose beneficence the Smithsonian Institution in Washington
was founded.

The National Research Council has rented additional space and is
now occupying the building at 1015 Sixteenth Street in addition to the
offices at 1023 Sixteenth Street. The following four Divisions will be
housed in the new offices: (1) Agriculture, Botany, Forestry, Fisheries,
and Zoology; (2) Chemistry and Chemical Technology; (3) Geology and
Geography; (4) Medicine and Related Sciences.

Dr. H. M. Ami, formerly of the Geological Survey of Canada and
now stationed in Washington at the British Embassy, has been elected
vice-president of the Societe Geologique de France.

A "second general report" by the Permanent Commission of the
International Committee in charge of the "Tables Annuelles de Con-
stantes et Donnees Numeriques" has been received. The first volume
of these Annual Tables of Constants (covermg the year 1910) had ap-
peared, and the volumes for 1911 and 1912 were m .preparation at
the time of the first report of the commission, which was made to the
Eighth International Congress of Applied Chemistry in New York
in 1912. The publication of Volume IV, covering 1913, was inter-
rupted by the outbreak of war, and no publication has been possible
since that date, although the collection of material has continued under
the direction of Dr. Charles Marie, the general secretary, and the
followmg members of the commission: Carrara (Milan), Cohen
(Utrecht), Dutoit (Lausanne), Lewis (Liverpool), and STiEGLiTi-
(Chicago). French, British, and American grants to the Tables have
been continued and even increased during the war. The Philosophical
Society of Washington and the Chemical Society have been contribut-
ing annually to the project.

The following persons have become members of the Academy since
the last issue of the Journal : Mr. James Percy Ault, Department of
Terrestrial Magnetism of the C'arnegie Institution of Washington,
Washington, D. C; Mr. William H. Babcock, 802 F Street, Wash-
ington, D. C.; Mr. Charles Raymond Duvall, Department of Ter-
restrial Magnetism of the C'arnegie Institution of Washington, Wash-
ington, D. C.; Mr. John Clyde Hostetter, Geophysical Laboratory
of the Carnegie Institution of Washington, Washington, D. C; Prof.
Herbert Spencer Jennings, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore,
Maryland; Dr. Paul D. Merica, Bureau of Standards, Washington,
D. C.; Mr. William John Peters, Department of Terrestrial Mag-
netism of the Carnegie Institution of Washington, Washington, D. C;
Major General Hugh Lenox Scott, Headquarters 78th Division, Camp
Dix, New Jersey; Mr. Bradshaw Hall Swales, Division of Birds,

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS 223

V. S. National Museum, Washington, D. (-.; Prof. JIichard Chace
ToLMAX, Department of Chemistry, University of Illinois, Urbana,
Illinois; Prof. Edwin Bidwell Wilso.v, Department of Physics, Mas-
sachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts; Dr.
WooDROW WiLSOxV. The White House Washington, D. C.

RESEARCH IXFORMATION COMMITTEE

1. By jomt action the Secretaries of War and Naw, with the ap-
proval of the Council of National Defense, have authorizerl and ap-
proved the organization, through the National Research Council, of a
Research Information Committee in Washington with Branch Com-
mittees in Paris and London, which are intended to work in close co-
operation with the officers of the Military and Naval Intelligence,
and whose fimction shall be the securing, classifying, and disseminating
of scientific, technical, and industrial research information, especially
relating to war problems, and the interchange of such information be-
tween the Allies in Europe and the United States.

2. In Washmgton the Committee consists of:

(a) A civilian member, representing the National Research Council,
Dr. S. W. Stratton, Chairman;

(b) The Chief, Military Intelligence Section;

(c) The Director of Naval Intelligence.

3. The initial organization of the Committee in London is:

(a) The Scientific Attache, representmg the Research Information
Coirmiittee, Dr. H. A. Bumstead, Attache;

(b) The Military Attache, or an officer deputed to act for him;

(c) The Naval Attache, or an officer deputed to act for him,

4. The initial organization of the Committee in Paris is:

(a) The Scientific Attache, representmg the Research Information
Committee, Dr. W. F. Durand, Attache;

(b) The Military Attache, or an officer deputed to act for him;
(cj The Naval Attache, or an officer deputed to act for him.

5. The chief functions of the foreign committees thus organized are
mtended to be as follows:

(a) The development of contact with all important research labora-
tories or agencies, governmental or private; the compilation of prob-
lems and subjects under investigation; and the collection and compila-
tion of the results attained;

(b) The classification, organization, and preparation of such infor-
mation for transmission to the Research Information Committee in
Washington;

(c) The maintenance of continuous contact with the work of the
offices of Military and Naval Attaches m order that all duplication of
work or crossing of effort may be avoided, with the consequent waste
of time and energy and the confusion resultmg from crossed or dupli-
cated efifort;

224 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

(d) To serve as an immediate auxiliary to the offices of the Military
and Naval Attaches in the collection, analysis, and compilation of scien-
tific, technical, and industrial research information.

(e) To serve as an 'agency at the immediate service of the Com-
mander-in-Chief of the Military or Naval Forces in Europe for the
collection and analysis of scientific and technical research information,
and as an auxiliary to such direct military and naval agencies as may
be in use for the purpose;

(f ) To serve as centers of distribution to the American expeditionary
forces in France and to the American naval forces in European waters
of scientific and technical research information, originating in the
United States and transmitted through the Research Information
Committee in Washington;

(g) To serve as centers of distribution to our Allies in Europe of
scientific, technical, and industrial research information originating in
the United States and transmitted through the Research Information
Committee in Washington;

(h) The maintenance of the necessary contact between the offices
in Paris and London in order that provision may be made for the
direct and prompt interchange of important scientific and technical
information;

(i) To aid research workers, or collectors of scientific, technical, and
industrial information f^om the United States when properly accredited
from the Research Information Committee in Washington, in best
achieving their several and particailar purposes.

6. The headquarters of the Research Information Conmiittee in
Washington is in the offices of the National Research Council, 1023
Sixteenth Street; the Branch Committees are located at the American
Embassies in London and Paris.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VIII APRIL 19, 1918 No. 8

AVIATION. — Aviation and the war.^ C. F. Lee, Commanding
Officer, British Aviation Mission. (Communicated by
L. J. Briggs.)

I should much prefer to stand here and answer a few direct
questions rather than to try to give you miscellaneous informa-
tion on subjects connected with aviation. But there are repre-
sentatives here of so many different sciences, men who are in the
habit of asking and answering questions on such a variety of
topics, that it is probably better that I do not attempt to answer
any ^ientific questions at all on the theory of aviation, especially
as my scientific knowledge of it is nil.

Not everyone realizes how long a time it takes to make a
service flyer. The average period, from the time that the pupil
is brought to the cadet schools of the Flying Corps to the time
he is ready to go over-seas and fly over the lines, is about seven
months. That is a very considerable length of time, especially
in these days of intensive training and preparation, yet the
actual training in flying is one of the simplest items. The
principal factor to consider in teaching flying in war time is
whether it is worth while to spend the necessary time on a pupil.
If a country is at peace and there are plenty of machines available,
it may pay to stick to a man who will undoubtedly make a flyer
sooner or later, for anyone can fly if sufficient time be given to his
instruction. But in times of war when, as at the present time, we

1 Report of a lecture given before the Washington Academy of Sciences on
Thursday, March 7, 1918.

225

22(i lee: aviation and the war

have neither a surplus of machines available for flying nor the
extra time to spend in training, it is not a practical thing to do.
The hard, specialized training which everybody has to come to
sooner or later is not only important, but absolutely essential.

Much has been said about ''dangerous stunts," frequently
with the implication that these are spectacular performances
which thrill the spectators but- are needlessly risky, and I should
like to devote a few words to this matter.

It is quite true that some lives were lost in the earlier days in
instructing pupils in what we call ''stunting," but it is quite
useless to send a man over-seas if he is unable to "stunt." In
individual fighting, unless the flyer can really do things better
than the German, he is not going to come out alive. For instance,
when one machine meets another, each speeds up and goes
through every kind of maneuver to get into a good position so
as to be able to "get" his opponent. The man who is going to
come out alive is the one who can outdo his opponent in flying.
It is not a question of "getting away from the German." It is
not a matter of getting away at all, but of getting into a good
position so that you can down him. He is going to do the^ame
thing as you are, and unless you are able to outdo him in his
maneuvers you are going to come out beaten ; and unless you are
trained to do real stunts (which are really not at all dangerous),
you are not going to be able to down him. The danger is not
in "stunting;" the danger is in not being able to "stunt."

If a flyer goes over-seas and cannot do these things, then his
life isn't worth a "scrap of paper." If he can do these things,
and if the time comes when he is absolutely match to match with
his opponent, the man who will kill his opponent is the one who
can turn his machine about at will and get out of a difficult
position. Getting out of the difficult position saves his life, but
that is not all; the real problem is to get into a good position so
that he can down the enemy, and the downing of the Boche is
the thing that every flyer is out for. He is there not to get away ;
he is there to kill his opponent.

To succeed, the flyer must be taught properly. It may cost
one or two lives on this side of the water, but if the men are

lee: aviation and the war 227

taught thoroiig hly it will mean the ending of these casualties on
the other side. What is more important, if the flyer does not
know how to "stunt," it will not only mean the death of the pilot
himself, which is relatively not so important in view of the
fact that so many thousands of men have been killed in this war,
but it may result disastrously to a great number of men on the
ground. When the man in the air goes down, there may be
batteries depending on him for spotting our own fire and the
enemy's artillery; there may be infantry regiments waiting to
know where the Germans are; and there may be whole divisions
waiting for certain information. It is thus absolutely criminal to
send a pilot to the front who does not know how to fly, and the
only way to make him capable is to teach him to stunt. It is
now taught at all the flying schools.

The teaching of stunting is not difficult, but we must have
pupils who have a certain amount of knowledge and skill. I
will give you one or two instances which we had in the beginning
of the war. We were very hard pressed for apparatus and very
hard up for machines by the end of 1'915. A lot of pilots were
sent over-seas after they had been given the best training that
the short time would allow, but there were many casualties.
Some of them were due to the fact that some of these fellows
could not really "stunt" their machines. ^The Boche would
get "on their tail" and they would put their nose down. If the
man in the disadvantageous position puts his nose down, the
pilot on his tail can do the same and get him very easily. Now,
the fellow who can stunt will do some fast climbing, turn, and
maneuver himself into a better position from which to attack his
opponent, while the fellow who cannot stunt will put his nose
down and try to get aw^ay and will find himself an easy mark for
the enemy. This was very noticeable with raw German flyers.

I want to make it very plain that there is no danger whatever
in stunting, and I could show you that with proper training a
pupil can be taught to stunt in twenty-five hours. The onlj^
danger is in doing it too near the ground, but at 2000 feet there
is not a single position that the machine cannot be put into with
safety.

228 lee: aviation and the war

The evolution of the machines themselves is very interest-
ing. At the beginning of the war we had only about four small
squadrons, of 12 machines each. They consisted of what we now
call very old machines. There were some Farman machines,
some 2. A and B's, and one or two Bleriots, which at that time
were considered very speedy machines. All those machines are
now considered too slow even for training. In those days they
used to fly under 3000 feet and used to come back with a tre-
mendous lot of bullet holes in their machines, but there were not
many casualties. As the war went on, with time and experience
the machines gradually were improved, until at the present time
we have scout machines that fly 135 miles an hour, machines
that will climb 15,000 feet in less than fifteen minutes.

That is the evolution that has been forced on France and
England. It is a matter of life and death to the Allies to keep just
a little better than the German. But it is very hard to get very
much better than he. In practically every case a machine is
obsolescent from the time that it appears on a production basis
at the front. So it is one huge race to get a machine with a little
more maneuverability, a little more climbing ability, and a little
more speed. Your defense is not the bullet-proof seat you are
sitting in; the only defense you have is the maneuverability of
your machine. ,

To return to the training. When the pupils come to the ground
schools they get a certain amount of ground training. They
are told what the machine can do, and the detailed operations
that are performed by the various parts. They are also given
the ordinary subjects connected with drill and military life.
After six or eight weeks in training, when they have become-
soldiers to a certain extent and have acquired a certain amount
of discipline, they are drafted to a school of flying.

At this school of flying, according to their temperament,
according to how they fly, according to age, and according to
their all around knowledge, they are assigned to one of three
branches: first, the single-seater scout; second, the artillery-
observation squadrons ; or, third, the bombing machines for both
day and night bombing.

lee: aviation and the war 229

All these subjects are highly specialized at the present time.
It is absolutely impossible for a pilot to be an expert in all three
subjects. He may be an excellent flyer in a heavy machine but
he msiy fail as a gunner; another pilot may be extremely good in
the scouts. All these things require special knowledge and
special tactics for teaching them. The pilot in the single seater
must be an expert gunner. He must know his gun absolutely
thoroughly, but if he can't shoot straight he may as well go home.
Some machines have three or four guns. If a gun goes wrong,
the pilot must be able to locate the trouble and correct it. He
must go through various courses of training, including ''stunting"
courses, and until he has completed these he is not allowed to
go over-seas.

Furthermore, before he goes over-seas he has to be absolutely
proficient in what is called formation fljdng. In former days the
machines went out one, two, or three at a time. Nowadays it is
of no use to go over alone or in pairs. The machines now fly
in sixes, eights, twelves, sixteens, and twenty-fours. They fly
together, bunched up and well packed in. If the formation is
well packed in no Boche will attempt to touch it. But if one of
the pilots drops out of the formation, if his engine goes wrong and
his revolutions start dropping and he starts losing height, then
the enemy is after him. They wait their time until he is well put
of his formation and then his only safeguard is to stunt.

A friend of mine (now Colonel), Jack Scott, used to go out
''Hun hunting" by himself. He once was out beyond the lines
looking at his own squadron, when a squadron of Boches came
between him and his own lines. The only thing he could do was
to stunt, and although he got bullets all through his machine,
his gun was hit, he had three holes through the seat, and a lot of
holes through other parts of his machine, he got away all right.
But he said he got so tired of flying around and around that he
was almost ready to give up, when one of the enemy happened
to come in line, and Scott fired when he saw him on his sights.
The Boche went spinning to the ground. That little accident
heartened him so that he revived and got away.

There was another fellow, Bishop, who was of the same sort.
He went out scouting alone and saw five enemy machines just

"230 lee: aviation and the war

getting ready to leave their aerodrome. He flew right down close
on top of them and crashed two machines before- they left the
ground. He then went for the third machine and sent that
crashing to the earth. But things were then getting too hot for
him so he climbed two thousand feet, where he finally got the
fourth one. Then to show his independence he went after the
fifth. He got the Victoria Cross for that.

Artillery machines are quite another matter. They have a
very hard job and a very interesting one, and it is a job that
requires lots of courage because they have to stay in the same
place over the batteries and spot the other batteries' fire. They
have to keep their eyes on the land, and on a cloudy day the
enemy sometimes creeps up on them through the clouds. Gen-
erally speaking these men are a little older and are chosen because
they have the temperament and are a little more suited to staying
over one place and seeing the job out. It is not very pleasant
for the men who are accustomed to scouting to have to fly over
a certain area and see the same place every day. The artillery
nowadays is practically dependent on wireless and aeroplanes
for spotting. The total number of aeroplanes you can get now
in a definite area is dependent on the wireless you can get into
that area without being "jammed," and not on the total number
of machines available.

Coupled with the work with the artillery, these aeroplanes
also have duties to perform with the infantry, such as contact
patrols.

The next class is that of the bombing machines. Bombing
is one of the most difficult things there is. It is extremely hard
to drop a bomb upon a certain object when an aeroplane is travel-
ing at such an enormous speed and at such high altitudes. If
you should go over Washington in an aeroplane, you would be
surprised at the many places where you could drop a bomb and
do no damage. With your wide streets and avenues it would be
very difficult to drop a bomb on any spot where it would do very
much harm. If dropped in the street, it would probably do no
more damage than to break a few shop windows. If you struck
a definite target it would be with a certain amount of luck.

lee: aviation and the war 231

However, it is not all luck. The man who is highly trained will
make more hits than one who is not. There is a special course in
bombing and a special course on the bombing sights which are
attached to the aeroplane.

There was a friend of mine, Harvey Kelly, who went out flying
a great deal alone. He was a happy-go-lucky sort of fellow and
thought that he could come and go as he pleased. There wasn't
anything that he would not try. Once he saw a battery firing
and let off one bomb at it. He saw no result so he came up again
and let off another one. He happened to look out over the other
side of his machine on his third attempt and saw that bomb burst
in a village about a mile away from the battery. So you see it
is none too easy to drop bombs accurately on any place.

Machines are frequently used nowadays for going up and down
the lines, picking off men in the trenches, and generally making
things uncomfgrtable. Nothing is more detrimental to morale
than to have aeroplanes continually flying overhead, and the
same is true of the observation balloons. The men on the ground
think that you can see far more than you can, even when the
aeroplane is 15,000 feet above the ground, when as a matter of
fact you can't really see any details at all. There is always the
possibility of having a battery of guns directed upon them that
keeps the men thinking and worries them. If there is a column
of infantry moving behind the lines, the aeroplane cooperating
with the artillery can always have a battery of guns directed into
it. What with aeroplanes flying overhead all day and bombing
going on all night, the morale of the soldiers in the trenches has
to stand a severe test.

Bombing by night requires a great deal of practice, and night
bombing now is a matter to which serious training is devoted.
Every night the machines go over the lines and keep the enemy
awake as far as possible. After a long spell of trench work,
possibly ten days in the trenches, when the men are at the rear
resting and playing games, to be continually disturbed at night
cannot but have an effect on their efficiency, making them less
likely to be of use when they go back to the trenches. That is
one object of bombing — to prevent the enemy from having a rest.

232 wells: periodic system

I went down to the Texas flying fields about a month ago, and
found the cadets there splendid. They are a keen, real good lot,
with good discipline, and are an excellent selection of healthy
young men. They are all fellows who play games, or ride, or
enjoy some sport, and have been well chosen. But they will
have to be taught, even at the cost of some casualties.

(The lecturer then showed a series of lantern slides giving views
of the front taken from aeroplanes, including the city of Bapaume
in flames, the effect of the bombardment of Guillemont at the
battle of the Somme, and the bombing of an aerodrome; aero-
plane views of England, showing the kind of information that
can be obtained by the aeroplane photographer concerning
country to be crossed by the troops; the first flying schools in
Wiltshire; repairs to planes and engines; the types of aeroplanes
and the older types of guns; and various phases of the training
of the flyers.)

PHYSICS. — Note on the -periodic system of the elements. P. V.
Wells, Bureau of Standards. (Communicated by S. W.
Stratton.)

The electron theory of atomic structure gives to the periodic
system a new significance. This is shown very clearly by the
spiral periodic table of Stoney and others as revised by Harkins
and Hall. The spiral form has the advantage of being in a plane
instead of in space, and thus of naturally representing two co-
ordinates, atomic number and atomic weight.

Chancourtois, the first to discover periodicity in the properties
of the elements, used a helix and a period of sixteen. Newlands
discovered the period eight, and called his relation ''the law of
octaves." Mendeleef recognized both periods but considered
eight the fundamental period, from valence considerations. This
is also in harmony with the electron theory of valence. I have
therefore changed the spiral table given by Harkins and Hall to
a period of eight instead of sixteen, as is shown in figure 1 . The
distance from the center represents atomic weight, the elements
occurring in angular order of atomic number, which increases

wells: periodic system

233

with clockwise rotation. Each group is thus arranged radially,
the subgroups being shghtly displaced.

The table appears to me to have all the advantages of the space
double helix, and is much simpler. It overcomes the artificial-

ThEir..Ra.Ein

Fig. 1. Spiral table illustrating the electron theory

ity of the spiral of period sixteen,, which has two half turns
containing no corresponding elements. It brings the subgroups
and main groups together, as in Mendeleef's table.

The spiral table is particularly adapted to illustrating the
electron theory. Thus each turn represents a ring of eight
valence electrons. The vertical axis represents in a general way
the transition from positive to negative valence. To the right

234 PAIGE AND steiger: sericitization

are the metals of positive valence, to the left the nonmetals of
negative valence, etc. '

The table suggests that the elements in the first two series are
systems too simple to have the more complicated relationships
fully developed. It is interesting, however, to note in this con-
nection the possibility of two forms of neon, perhaps an embry-
onic foreshadowing of the first triplet Fe, Co, Ni. But the main
use of the periodic table is to assist the mind in grasping the host
of experimental facts accumulated by the chemist. Today these
facts are of interest to a wider circle of scientists and the slightest
simplification in their presentation is welcome.

REFERENCES

Chancourtois, B. de, Nature 41: 186. 1889 (by P. J. Hartog).

Harkins, W. D., and Hall, R. E., Journ. Amer. Chem. Soc. 38: 169-221. 1916.

Mendeleef, D., Chem. News. 40, 1879; 41, 1880; Principles of Chemistry, Vol.

2. 1891.
Newlands, J. A. R., Chem. News. 10: 94. 1864; 12: 83, 94. 1865.
Stoney, G. J., Proc. Roy. Soc. 85: 471-473. 1911 (by Lord Rayleigh).

GEOCHEMISTRY. — Fluorine in sericitization.^ Sidney Paige
and George Steiger, Geological Survey.

The intense alteration of granodiorite or quartz monzonite
porphyries in which large deposits of secondary chalcocite occur
(the so-called porphyry coppers) is a matter of common knowl-
edge. This alteration, of two kinds — primary, resulting in the
introduction of sericite, pyrite, and quartz; and secondary,
resulting in the deposition of chalcocite from descending sulphate
solution — leaves the original rock in a scarcely recognizable
condition.

The degree of sericitization is in many places astonishing.
Where fractures are numerous and ascending waters have freely
circulated, the rock mass may be almost wholly replaced by
sericite, quartz, and pyrite, the former two minerals occurring in
about equal amounts.

Changes resulting from the descending, oxidizing waters have
been in places quite as noteworthy; the sericitized rock has been

* Published with the permission of the Director of the U. S. Geological Survey.
Mr. Steiger is responsible for the chemical analyses.

PAIGE AND STEIGER: SERICITIZATION

235

altered to kaolin, and here again where fractures are plentiful
and the descending solutions have been active, considerable parts
of the rock in the aggregate have been altered to this mineral or a
closely allied compound.

The formation of sericite from feldspar is usually assigned to the
action of either heated water alone or to the action of heated
water containing carbonate. As may be observed at many places,

Fig. 1. Illustrating the replacement of breccia by veins of kaolin without
movement along the veins.

sericite forms with ease from oligoclase, orthoclase, andesine,
and labradorite. According to Lindgren,- this fact was first
described by Bischof,^ who also furnished the chemical explana-
tion. The potassium carbonate contained in the water changes
the sodium-bearing silicate into potassium silicate, which unites
with the aluminum silicate to form sericite.

In the copper deposits at Tyrone, New Mexico — deposits that
are typical chalcocite deposits resulting ''from secondary enrich-

- Lindgren, Waldemar, Meiasomatic processes in fissure veins.
Inst. Min. Eng. 30: 31-608. 1901.

= BiscHOF, Chemische Geologie, I, p. 31 et seq; also p. 44.

Trans. Amer.

236

PAIGE AND STEIGER: SERICITIZATION

ment" — the nature of the formation of kaolin below the chal-
cocite ore bodies seemed to require more than the ordinary
■explanation, for the evidence is fairly conclusive that quartz
in considerable amount, together with the other constituents of
the porphyry, has been metasomatically replaced by kaolin.

In figure 1 a .series of veins is illustrated, cutting a very brec-
ciated porphyry. The arrangement of the fragments is such that
it is evident that there could have been no movement anlog the'
veins in any direction. The veins are composed of kaohn. In
figure 2 another kaolin vein is illustrated. Here there is a perfect
gradation from the common sericitized porphyry at one end of
the vein to kaolin at the other end. About midway, quartz
phenocrysts, residual from the porphyry still remain inclosed

Fig. 2. Illustrating the progressive replacement of porphyry by kaolin.
Quartz is the last mineral to disappear.

in the kaolin, whereas the pure masses of kaolin contain none.
This is apparently a clear case of the progressive removal of
quartz by metasomatic replacement.

In discussing with Dr. Adolph Knopf, of the Geological Survey,
this occurrence, which appeared to demand more than the
ordinary explanation, Dr. Knopf suggested that perhaps fluorine
had been active. In the Tyrone district fluorine occurs in fluor-
ite in veins, at one place in a vien several feet thick and at other
places in small veins a few inches thick. It is presumed there-
fore that it also occurs more generally in small veinlets. That
it has not been more generally recognized in small veinlets, how-
ever, is natural, for processes of secondary enrichment by waters
carrying sulphuric acid are precisely those that would readily
attack fluorite and remove it. Nevertheless, it was felt that while
fluorine viight have been present in fluorite in numberless veinlets,

PAIGE AND steiger: sericitization 237

a search for another source was demanded, and sericite was
chosen as the mmeral most likely to contain it.

It is well known that muscovite mica contains fluorine. It is
now recognized that sericite is a form of muscovite, but analyses
proving that sericite contains fluorine are surprisingly few.
Spurr-* has argued that fluorine is necessary for the formation of
sericite, but his tests were not convincing as to the fluorine con-
tent of sericite, though its presence in a specimen (which con-
tained no sericite) to the amount of 0.12 per cent indicated that
the waters that altered the rock contained it.

To throw more light on the matter therefore, a part of a narrow
replacement vein traversing quartz monzonite porphyry was

TABLE I
Analysis of Sericite Vein

SiOs ..68.11 NaaO 0.44

AI2O3 16.84 K2O 4.08

FeiOa 0.80 FeS2 6.68

CaO 0.44 F *0.09

MgO 0.50

97.98

chosen for analysis. The specimen contained about equal
amounts of sericite and quartz and a little pyrite. No fluorite
was visible with the high powers of a microscope, and no other
minerals than those mentioned were noted.

The results of the analysis obtained are given in table 1.

The mineral composition of the vein, as computed from the
analysis, is quartz, 45.30 per cent, sericite, 46.00 per cent, and
pyrite, 6.68 per cent: sum, 97.98 per cent. The analysis was
carried out by standard methods. The fluorine, however, was
indirectl}^ determined by the colorimetric method, depending
on the bleaching effect of fluorine on the color produced by
hydrogen peroxide with titanium solution. A qualitative check
was made by the old Berzelius method, and the presence of
fluorine was proved by its etching effect on glass. All the alkalies
and the alkali-earth metals were computed into the sericite.
Thus a maximum amount of sericite was figured. The percent-

* Spurr, J. E., Geology of the Ton6pah Mining District. U. S. Geol. Survey
Prof. Paper 42: 232-3. 1905.

238 PAIGE AND steiger: sericitization

age of fluorine in the sericite is practically 0.20. Any lesser
amount of sericite would show a higher content of fluorine in the
sericite than that calculated. Equivalent silica was allotted to
the alkalies and the alkaline earths and the remainder computed
as quartz. The failure to sum up to' 100 per cent is due to water
in the sericite, not determined.

When the fact is taken into consideration that sericite is a very
abundant mineral in the rocks of the T^yrone district, the amount
of fluorine indicated to be present in the district becomes very
significant; first in the role it must have played in the primary
mineralizing waters, for it is an element of great potency in
effecting the decomposition of aluminum silicates, and second,
its part in further decomposing the rocks during processes of
secondary enrichment on being set free by the action of sulphate
waters on sericite.

That fluorine is potent to decompose aluminum silicates is
evident not only from the fact that it is used in ordinary analytical
work for this purpose, but its use forms the basis of several pat-
ents involving the decomposition of feldspar or kaolin. The
Doremus process of making potassium sulphate^ involves the
treatment of "finely powdered orthoclase with aqueous hydro-
fluoric acid." A soluble and an insoluble compound are pro-
duced. Both are further treated with sulphuric acid; sulphates
are obtained and the fluorine gas and acid recovered.

The Childs process of deriving alumina from kaolin involves
the passing of hydrofluoric acid gas, or some other volatile com-
pound of fluorine, for example, silicon fluoride, through kaolin.^

It is well known that dilute sulphuric acid solutions will de-
compose sericite and that kaolin or kaolin-like products originate
from this reaction. Fluorine will be set free.

The action of fluorine in descending solutions, whether derived
from fluorite or from sericite, might well be somewhat as follows:
Fluorite is decomposed by sulphuric acid with the formation of
calcium sulphate (CaS04) and hydrogen fluoride (HF) and
hydrogen fluoride unites readily with silica to form water and

5 United States Patent Office, Spec'ficat on of letters patent No. 1,054,518,
patented February 25, 1913.

« Patents Nos. 1,036,453 and 1,036,454, dated August 20, 1912

PAIGE AND steiger: sericitization 239

silicon tetrafluoride (SiF4), a gas soluble in water. Silica would
thus be attacked and carried off. It is known that
SiF4 + 4H2O = Si(0H)4 + (4HF)
2SiF4 + (4HF) = 2HoSiF«

3SiF4 + 4H2O = Si(0H)4 + 2H2SiF6
Thus silicon hydroxide and hydrofluosilicic acid are formed.
This latter compound is stable only in water, and is inert so far
as attacking quartz is concerned. In the rocks under discussion
here, it would probably form alkaline salts. On evaporation
of the water, however, silicon tetrafluoride (SiF4) would again
be formed and the more or less insoluble alkaline salts deposited.
Whether the silicon tetrafluoride set free would, on recombining
with water, again produce the active agent hydrofluoric acid is
not known. More likely the process outlined above would be
repeated, a certain portion of silicon hydroxide, Si (OH) 4, being
deposited, and the inert hydrofluosilicic acid going again into
solution, to again combine with alkaline bases.

But it is to be expected that these salts will yield to decomposi-
tion by acidified waters, as does sericite. And there is reason to
believe that fluorine will be again and again set free, so long as
sulphuric acid waters are present.

summary

The intense sericitization common in regions where large
deposits of secondary chalcocite occur may be in large measure
due to the fact that the primary mineralizing waters contained
appreciable amounts of fluorine. The further decomposition of
the rocks by descending sulphate waters with the attendant
formation of kaolin-like substances may also be accelerated by
the presence of the fluorine in the sericite, which is set free by
reaction with sulphuric acid. The removal of quartz from veins
consisting of kaolin-like matter which apparently has metasomati-
cally replaced porphyry is thus explained.

The presence of fluorine in veins and the determination by
chemical analysis of 0.20 per cent fluorine in the sericite of the
Tyrone district, New Mexico, support this thesis.

240 ADAMS : FUNDAMENTAL POLYHEDRON OF DIAMOND

CRYSTALLOGRAPHY. — Note on the fundamental polyhedron
of the diamond lattice. Elliot Q. Adams, Bureau of Chem-
istry. ^ (Communicated by Edgar T. Wherry.)

The space lattice according to which the carbon atoms in
diamond are arranged has been established by the work of the
Bragg's" and has been found not to correspond to any of the
previously recognized point systems of the cubic type, having
planes of ''gliding reflection" and axes of ''helical symmetry."
To each of the already recognized point systems there corre-
sponds a convex polyhedron capable of filling space, and having
a symmetry correspondent to that of the point system. No
such polyhedron appears to have been described as corresponding
to the diamond lattice. The form of this polyhedron has been
worked out and is given below.

The polyhedron corresponding to the simple cubic lattice is
the cube (100); to the face-centered lattice, the rhombic dodeca-
hedron (110); and to the cube-centered lattice, the cubo-octa-
hedron (111), (100), in which the octahedral faces are truncated
just enough to make them regular hexagons. Since each carbon
atom in diamond is near four others, tetrahedral faces will be
present. As space can not be filled with tetrahedra, some other
face must occur also. This face proves to be that of the rhombic
dodecahedron, truncating the tetrahedral faces sufficiently to
make them regular hexagons. The polyhedron may be called
the dodeca-tetrahedron k (111), (110). (See figures 1-3).

That diamond is crystallographically holohedral, while the
unit polyhedra, as may be seen from the figures, are hemihedral,
results from the fact that the mode of arrangement in space of the
dodeca-tetrahedra constitutes a sort of twinning. Practically
all the elements of the fourth column of the periodic table
crystallize in a form similar to that of diamond. If the alternate
atoms in such a lattice are different, the crystal becomes hemi-
hedral, as in the case of sphalerite (ZnS). In this case the poly-
hedra corresponding to the two elements need not be equal in size,

1 Contribution from the Color Investigation Laboratory of the Bureau of
Chemistry, U. S. Department of Agriculture.

2 Br\gg, W. H., and W. L., X-Rays and Crystal Structure, p. 102. 1915;
Proc. Roy. Soc. (A) 89: 277. 1913.

ADAMS : FUNDAMENTAL POLYHEDRON OF DIAMOND

241

and the dodecahedral faces will be relatively larger on the large
figure and small, or even wanting, on the smaller. At the limit,
one becomes a tetrahedron of infinitesimal size, while the other
reduces to the dodecahedron of the face-centered lattice.

Fig. 1. Orthographic projection. Fig. 2. Clinographic projection. Fig.
3. Development of surface; may be used as net for constructing model.

In chalcopyrite,^ where alternate planes of iron and copper
atoms replace the zinc of sphalerite, the axis perpendicular to
these planes is unique and the crystal is therefore tetragonal.
Replacing alternate iron planes by tin, as in stannite, leaves the
system still tetragonal.

' BuRDicK, C. L., and Ellis, J. H., Journ. Amer. Chem. Soc. 39: 2518. 1917.

242 ricker: synopsis of albizzia

BOTANY." — A synopsis of the Chinese and Formosan species
of Albizzia. P. L. Ricker, Bureau of Plant Industry.

In a study of the specimens of Albizzia collected in China by
Mr. Frank N. Meyer, agricultural explorer of the U. S. Depart-
ment of Agriculture, specimens were found not agreeing with the
descriptions of existing species, and, as a further examination
of the material in the U. S. National Herbarium and a part of
the material in the Arnold Arboretum showed the determinations
of many of the specimens to be in a state of confusion, it became
necessary to make a critical study of the material in order to
determine what names to use. All of the Chinese species thus
far reported belong to the subgenus Eualbizzia.
Sect. I. Macrophyllae. Leaves 1-4-pinnate, leaflets 3-6-
pinnate, mostly broad and large, 2-4.5 cm. broad
and 4-9 cm. long, the costa slightly or not all
excentric.

A. Flowers pedicellate.
Albizzia bracteata Dunn, Journ. Linn. Soc. Bot. 35: 493. 1903.

This species is distinguished from all of the nearest related
species by its pedicellate flowers.

China: Yunnan; Meng-tsze, Szemao, Henry 9997A-E, 4500-
5000 feet altitude.

AA. Flowers sessile.
Albizzia meyeri Ricker, nom nov.

Mi7nosa lucida Roxb. Fl. Ind. (2: 344. 1824?) ed. 2. 2: 544.
1832. Not Vahl, 1807.

Albizzia lucida Benth. Lond. Journ. Bot. 3: 86. 1844.

Name in honor of Frank N. Meyer, agricultural explorer of
the U. S. Department of Agriculture, in recognition of his
valuable botanical explorations in China.

China: Yunnan; Meng-tsze, Henry 9373A.
Sect. II. Obtusilobiae. Leaves 2-6 (rarely 8-9)-pinnate, leaf-
lets 4-25-pinnate, ovate or oblong, obtuse, mostly
less than 4 cm. long, the base broader or scarcely
inequilateral, the costa somewhat excentric.

ricker: synopsis of albizzia 243

A. Flowers in pedicellate heads, the peduncle axillary or short
racemose; corolla often up to 6 mm. long; leaflets 1-3.5
cm. long.
B. Pods noticeably stalked (5 mm. long), gradually tapering
at apex and base.
Albizzia kalkora (Roxb.) Prain, Journ. Asiat. Soc. Beng. 66:
511. 1897.
Mimosa kalkora Roxb. Hort. Beng. 40. 1814, nom. nud.; Fl.
Ind. ed. 2. 2: 547. 1832.

Acacia macrophylla Bunge, Mem. Sav. Etr. Acad. Sci. St.
Petersb. 2: 135. 1833.

The identity of Roxburgh's name was unknown until it was
taken up by Prain who doubtless had opportunity to examine
authentic specimens. Bunge's name (type specimen from
Pang-shan) has been considered by Forbes and Hemsley a

*

synonym of A. lebbek L. The latter species is quite widely
cultivated in the tropics, the type being from Egypt. The
glands on the leaf are variable. In addition to the glands always
found between the middle and base of the petiole, another gland
is usually found either just below the lower or upper pairs of
pinnae, and on some leaves the gland is found below every pair
of pinnae. Some authors have used the position of the gland on
the petiole as a character for separating species of Albizzia,
but its position is entirely too variable to warrant such use.

China: Province of Shantung; Boshan, F. N. Meyer 768a
(S. P. I. 21969), Sept., 1907. Province of Chih; Pang-shan,
F. N. Meyer 865a (S. P. I. 22618), Nov. 23, 1907. Province of
Fokien; Dunn's expedition, May 25, 1905. Province of Hupeh;
Hetiry 1605, 2870A, 6203; Wilson 511, May, 1900. Province
of Kiangsu; near Nanking, F. N. Meyer 1448, June 4, 1915.
Province of Shantung; Tsingtau, Zimmermann 211, 1901;
Laushan, F. N. Meyer 305, Aug., 1907.

BB. Pods sessile, acute or obtuse at apex and base.
C. Flowers glabrous except tips of corolla lobes.
Albizzia henryi Ricker, sp. nov.

A large shrub or small tree 2.5-6 meters tall; leaves and pinnae
1-2-pinnate; leaflets 5-10-pinnate, thin, glabrous, oblong or

244 ricker: synopsis of albizzia

oblong-elliptic, 2-3 cm. long, 1-2 cm. broad, the midvein but
slightly excentric; flowers 1 cm. long, many in heads on axillary
peduncles 4-9 cm. long, the pedicels 5-6 mm. long, glabrous;
calyx 4-4.5 mm. long, glabrous, with shallow teeth; corolla
white, puberulent only at the tips of the lobes; pods nearly
sessile, 13-14 cm. long, 22-28 mm. wide, coriaceous, abruptly
obtuse at both ends, mucronate-pointed; seeds smooth, brown,
elliptic, thin, 8-9 mm. long, 4.5-5.5 mm. wide.

China: Yunnan; j\Ieng-tsze, A. Henry 10683, in flower May
29, in fruit June 30, 1896. (Type in U. S. Nat. Herb.).

CC. Flowers puberulent throughout.
Albizzia lebbeck (L.) Benth. Lond. Journ. Bot. 3: 87. 1844.

Mimosa lehbek L. Sp. PL 516. 1753.

I have not seen Henry's specimen from Ichang reported by
Forbes and Hemsley, but think it probable that it is A. kalkora,
as are most of the specimens from China that have b'een named
as above. It is doubtful if the true A. lehbek is found wild in
China except rarely as an escape from cultivation around some
of the larger cities. The only apparently genuine specimen I
have seen from China was from Hong-kong. A. viacrophylla
Bunge, usually referred here as a synonym, is quite distinct and
is a synonym of A. kalkora.

AA. Flowers in heads, long pedicelled; heads in subcorymbose
racemes; leaflets less than 2.5 cm. long.
Albizzia retusa Benth. Lond. Journ. Bot. 3: 90. 1844.

This species is distinguished from its nearest relative, A.
pedicellata Baker, by having its leaflets only 6-10-pinnate instead
of 15-20-pinnate as in that species.

Formosa: South Cape, Henry 992. It is also found in the
Philippines.

AAA. Flowers axillary, sessile or very shortly pedicelled,
small; corolla 4 or rarely 6 mm. long; peduncles short,
fascicled, often in numerous short leafless panicles.
B. Flowers glabrous.
Albizzia corniculata (Lour.) Ricker, nom. nov.

Mimosa corniculata Lour. Fl. Cochinch. 651. 1790.

Albizzia milletiii Benth. Lond. Journ. Bot. 3: 89. 1844.

ricker: synopsis of albizzia 245

China: Hong-kong, Ford; C. Wright in 1853-56; Sargent,
Nov. 5, 1903. New Territory, Mrs. L. Gibbs, 1909. Lung-
chau; Kwang-si, H. B. Morse 655.

BB. Flowers pubescent or puberulent.
C. Leaflets 6-8-pinnate.
Albizzia procera (Roxb.) Benth. Journ. Bot. 3: 89. 1844.
Mimosa procera Roxb. PL Corom. 2: 12. pi. 121. 1798.
This species lias the costa but slightly excentric and the widest
half of the leaflet turned towards the tip of the leaf instead of the
narrowest half as is usual in most species.
China: Henry li^lS.

CC. Leaflets 8-25-pinnate.
Albizzia odoratissima (Willd.) Benth. Lond. Journ. Bot. 3:
88. 1844.
Mimosa odoratissima Willd. PL Corom. 2: 12. pi. 120. 1798.
China: Yunnan; Meng-tsze, Henry 9910, 10811 A.
Albizzia odoratissima mollis Benth. in Hook. Fl. Brit. Ind.
2: 299. 1878.
China: Yunnan; Tapin-tze, Delavay 658.
Sect. III. Falcifoliae. Leaves many(5-10)-pinnate; leaflets
many (10-40) -pinnate, small (5-10 mm. long), often
falcate; costa close to the upper margin.
A. Stipules linear, caducous; leaflets 10-20-pinnate.
Albizzia julibrissin Scop. Del. Insubr. 18. pi. 8. 1786.
Acacia julibrissin Willd. Sp. PL 4: 1065. 1806,
Forms of this species are occasionally found with the branches,
foliage, and inflorescence densely pubescent or even velutinous
throughout (A. jtdibrissin mollis (Wall.) Benth.). The com-
monest form, however, has these parts but slightly pubescent
or almost glabrous.

China: Hupeh; Henry, without locality, 6185; Wilson 792,
1315, 2032 without locality. Chili; Peking, Sargent, Sept.
18, 1903; Tientsin, Meyer 1001, June 12, 1913.

Core a: Chemulpo, Faurie, Sept. 28, 1901; Quelparte, Faurie
1695, July, 1907; Jaquet 728, without locahty, July, 1908.
AA. Stipules broad, coriaceous, caducous; leaflets 20-40-
pinnate.

246 kicker: synopsis of albizzia

Albizzia chinensis (Osbeck) Merrill, Amer. Journ. Bot. 3: 575.
1916.

Mimosa chinensis Osbeck, Dagbok Ostind Resa 233. 1838.

Mimosa marginata Lam. Encycl. 1: 12. 1783.

Mimosa stipulata Roxb. Hort. Beng. 40. 1814, nom. nud.

Acacia stipulata D. C. Prodr. 2: 469. 1825.

Mimosa stipulacea Roxb. Fl. Ind. ed. 2. 2: 549. 1832.

Acacia marginata Hamilt.; Wall. Cat. No. 5243. 1832, nom.
nud.

Albizzia stipulata Boivin, Encycl. XIX Siecle 2: 33. 1838.

Albizzia marginata Merrill, Philipp. Journ. Sci. Bot. 5: 23.
1910.

There are no specimens of this species in the National Herba-
rium or Arnold Arboretum from China. Osbeck describes it
from an island near Wampoa (not far from Canton), where it
had probably been introduced from Cochin-china, Siam, Java,
or the Philippines, where it is a native.

China: Hong-kong, Hance; Hainan, B. C. Henry.

ABSTRACTS

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

PHYSICS. — The work of the National Bureau of Standards on the
establishment of color standards and methods of color nomenclature.
Irwin G. Priest. Trans. Ilium. Eng. Soc. 13: 38. February
11, 1918.
This paper deals in a descriptive and enumerative way with the
Bureau of Standards "Color Standards Investigation." The present
status of color standards and color specification is considered, special
emphasis being placed on the lack of standards, established nomen-
clature, suitable instruments, etc.

A Committee of the Illuminating Engineering Society to cooperate
with the Bureau in establishing standards and nomenclature is
proposed. I. G. P.

ELECTRICITY. — A method for testing current transformers. F. B.
SiLSBEE. Bureau of Standards Scientific Paper No. 309 (Bull. Bur.
Stds. 14). 1917.

In measuring large amounts of electric power it is usual to employ
current transformers which supply to the measuring instruments a
small current bearing an accurately known relation to the large current
to be measured. Several very accurate methods are available for
determining this relation between the two currents but they involve
the use of rather sensitive and therefore delicate apparatus.

The present method is intended for the use of the smaller central
stations and laboratories which may wish to test current transformers
with moderate accuracy but have not the facilities for the more com-
plicated methods. It consists in connecting the transformer under
test in series with a standard calibrated transformer of the same nom-
inal ratio, the secondary windings also being connected in series. A
measuring circuit is bridged across between the transformers and

247

248 abstracts: geology

serves to cany any difference which there may be in the secondary
currents.

The detector should be sensitive to 0.00005 ampere. The moving
coil of a commercial wattmeter, the current coil of which is separately
excited, is suitable for this purpose.

Two modifications of the general method are described in detail in
the paper. F. B. S.

«

PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY.— (7as interferometer calibration. J. D.
Edwards. Bureau of Standards Scientific Paper No. 316. 1917.
The Rayleigh-Zeiss gas interferometer which finds numerous appli-
cations' in precision and technical gas analysis is usually calibrated by
means of gas mixtures analyzed by chemical methods. The new
method here proposed requires only the use of a pressure gage and a
knowledge of the refractive indices of the gases for which the calibra-
tion is desired. It is based upon the relation between the density and
the refractivity of a gas and the relation between the composition and
refractivity of gas mixtures. J. D. E.

GEOLOGY. — Phosphatic oil shales near Dell and Dillon, Beaverhead

County, Montana. C. F. Bowen. U. S. Geological Survey

Bulletin 661-1. Pp. 6. 1918.

The oil shale that promises to be valuable occurs south of Dillon,

Montana, at about the same horizon as the phosphate deposits of

Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming and, in addition to the oil it yields,

contains considerable phosphate. Laboratory tests have shown that

the phosphate is not driven off by distillation, and the fact that the

shale yields oil on distillation and yet retains a notable quantity of

phosphate in the ash presents to the technologist a problem whose

solution may be of economic value. R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — Gold placers of the Anvik-Andreafski regioyi, Alaska.

George L. Harrington. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin

662-F. Pp. 17, with geologic sketch map. 1917.

Paying placers have been found on both sides of a greenstone ridge

intruded by granitic rocks. Quartz veins related in origin to the

intrusives are the source of the gold. Other mineral resources are

coal and mineral springs. G. L. H.

abstracts: geology " 249

GEOLOGY. — Geologic structure of the northwestern 'part of the Paivhuska
quadrangle, Oklahoma. K. C. He.\ld. U. S. Geoloj^ical Survey
Bulletin G91-C. Pp. 44, with maps and sections. . 1918.
This paper describes those geologic features of a portion of the
Pawhuska quadrangle, Oklahoma, which bear on the occurrence, dis-
covery, and development of commercial quantities of oil or gas. The
rocks that crops out in the area are shown in a generalized stratigraphic
section, but the characteristics and extent of certain beds of value in
mapping the structure of the region are described full}^ The probable
character of the rocks to a depth of 4000 feet below the surface is also
described, and some evidence is given by graphic representation of
well records and stratigraphic sections. ' R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — The Flaxville gravel and its relation to other terrace
gravels of the northern Great Plains. Arthur J. Collier and W.
T. Thom, Jr. V. S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 108-J.
Pp. 5. 1918.
The Flaxville gravel in Montana is from a few feet to 100 feet thick
and is composed of well-rounded quartzite and argillite pebbles from
the Rocky Mountains but it contains also sand, clay, marl, and volcanic
ash. It rests upon a series of plateaus which are cut on the Fort Union,
Lance, and Bearpaw formations and which range in altitude from 2600
feet at the east to 3200 feet at the west. Fragmentary fossils col-
lected at 25 well-distributed localities show that the formation can
not be older than Miocene nor younger than early Pliocene.

R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — The Dunkleberg mining district, Granite County, Montana.

J. T. Pardee. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin 660-G. Pp. 7,

with 1 plate and 1 figure. 1917,
The ore deposits, which have been worked intermittently during
the last 30 years and have produced $200,000 worth of silver and lead,
occur in limestone, sandstone, and shale of Cretaceous age and also in
diorite sills that have invaded these rocks. Except one, which is a
contact-metamorphic body of zinc ore, the deposits are simple quartz
veins in fissures that follow inclined bedding planes or cut across the
sedimentary beds and the sills. Silver-bearing galena and carbonate
derived from it are the most valuable minerals, though zinc blende
is locally abundant. J. T. P.

250 ABSTKACTS: TECHNOLOGY

TECHNOLOGY. — The 'properties of Portland cement having a high
magnesia content. P. H. Bates. Bureau of Standards Technologic
Paper No. 102. Pp. 42. 'January 19, 1918.

The question of the maximum amount of magnesia allowable in
Portland cement is one of the most interesting encountered in the study
of this complex material. There is still much diversity of opinion.
Magnesia in amounts not greater than 8 per cent is believed by many to
be harmless, whereas others consider amounts greater than 4 per cent
injurious.

It was considered very desirable to investigate the subject because
failures of mortars and concrete were attributed to high magnesia
content and especially so since all investigations to date have been
somewhat at fault.

A series of cements have been burned in the experimental rotary
kiln of the Bureau in which the limestone used in the raw material
was replaced in part or in whole by dolomite. Cements were thus
obtained in which the magnesia content varied from 1.77 per cent to
25.53 per cent. The results obtained show that cements when contain-
ing not more than approximately 8 per cent magnesia will produce con-
cretes with satisfactory strength at the end of one and one-half years.
At this amount of magnesia, monticellite and spinel (constitutents not
present in cement of lower magnesia content) appear; and those cements
seem to hydrate with a large increase in volume.

P. H. B.

TECHNOLOGY. — The determination of absolute viscosity by short-
tube viscosimeters. Winslow H. Herschel. Bureau of Standards
Technologic Paper No. 100. Pp. 55. November 9, 1917.
The Engler and the Saybolt Universal viscosimeters, which are the
instruments usually employed in the oil trade, have such short outlet
tubes that the equation for the flow through long capillary tubes is not
applicable without correction factors. The literature has been care-
fully reviewed and further experimental work has been done. The
conclusion is reached that water is not a suitable liquid for use in finding
the relation between viscosity and time of discharge for short-tube
viscosimeters, and that Ubbelohde's equation, and all others based
upon it, are seriously in error.

W. H. H.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

The Board of Managers met on Monday, March 25, 1918. A
majority of the committee appointed at the preceding meeting to
consider the project of pubHshing reviews of articles from foreign
journals on problems connected with the war reported adversely on
the project, principally on account of the lack of editorial facilities for
such purposes. A committee consisting of Messrs. Maxon, Knopf,
Dorset, Sosman, and Scofield was appointed to offer plans for
making the Journal more systematically and equally representative
of the different branches of science, and more useful to the affiliated
societies. A committee consisting of Messrs. Sosman, Kearney,
and Bartsch w^as appointed to confer with the Board of Management
of the Cosmos Club on facilities for the scientific society meetings in the
new assembly hall of the Club.

Robert B. Sosman, Correspondi7ig Secretary.

PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 800th meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, February 2, 1918;
Vice-President Humphreys in the chair; 19 persons present. The
minutes of the 800th meeting were read in abstract and approved.

Mr. W. S. Gorton presented a paper on X-ray 'protective materials.
The importance of the purpose served by X-raj^ protective materials
is generally recognized. A thorough comprehension of the subject
involves knowledge of both the physical and physiological properties
of X-rays.

X-rays are generated by the stoppage of cathode rays by matter.
They may be classified as soft and hard; synonyms for these terms are
"easily absorbed" and "penetrating." It is now known that X-rays
are like light waves but of shorter wave length. The penetrating power
increases with decreasing wave-length. jVIethods of measuring quahty
are as follows: 1, absorption in some substance, generally aluminum;
2, parallel spark gap; 3, wave length; 4, Benoist penetrometer. The
last device has l3een shown (at the Bureau of Standards) to be of
practically, no use with a modern transformer outfit.

The physiological effects of X-rays may be classified as superficial
and deep-seated. The former class comprises X-ray "burns." These
burns are due to the absorption of very soft rays by the skin. They

251

252 proceedings: philosophical society

have frequently led to loss of life. Cancer has also resulted from
X-ray burns. The latter class comprises the destruction of the lympho-
cytes and of the tissue forming them, with consequent deleterious effect
on the bodil}^ economy. The former class of lesion is the more im-
portant practically.

The absorption coefficient of a substance is defined as the quantity
X in the expression :

for the intensity/ of a homogeneous beam of X-rays at a point d centi-
meters below the surface. X increases with increasing wave length. X-ray
absorption is independent of the state of chemical combination of the
absorbing elements. Weight for weight, elements of high atomic weight
are more efficient absorbers than those of low atomic weight.

Of the elements of high atomic weight lead is, for practical reasons,
always used for protection from X-rays. It is used in the metallic
state and also as the oxide in glass and rubber. Silk loaded with a lead
salt has also been used. '

There is no general agreement as to the thickness of lead necessary
to give adequate protection. The amount, of course, would depend
upon the quantity and quality of the rays against which protection is
necessary. For long exposures the German Rontgen Society advocates
one of the following: metallic lead, 2 mm. thick; lead rubber, 8 mm.
thick; lead glass, 10 to 20 mm. thick.

In estimating the protection offered by j^rotective materials it is much
more convenient to ascertain the amount of lead contained in the mate-
rial than to measure the absorption coefficient. This latter varies
with the hardness of the rays used and with the constitution of the beam.
Lead is a standard and easil}^ reproducible substance and a knowledge
of the lead content of a piece of protective material will enable the user
to estimate easily the protection offered at any time when investigations
may have rendered our knowledge of the necessary protection more
exact.

The absorption of a piece of protective material is due principally to
the lead content. The absorption of the remaining constituents is
equivalent, for practical purposes, to that of a certain small additional
thickness of lead. The whole piece, therefore, is equivalent to a certain
thickness of lead. This statement has been verified experimentally.
The simplest method for estimating the protection, and the one used at
the Bureau of Standards, is to place the substance to be measured on an
X-ray plate- beside a series of thicknesses of lead. The density of the
plate under the material is then matched with the density of one of the
thicknesses of lead. This thickness is termed "the equivalent thick-
ness of lead" for the material. It has been shown experimentally that
it is independent of all conditions and is the same if a fluorescent screen
is used instead of an X-ray plate. The ratio of the equivalent thick-
ness of lead to the thickness of the material is termed the "protective
coefficient" of the material.

proceedings: philosophical society

253

The Bureau of Standards purchased in the open market twelve
pieces of lead glass for X-ray protective purposes. No information
could be obtained about them other than that "the protection is
adequate." These pieces averaged about 5 mm. thick. The average
protective coefficient was 10 per cent, i.e., on the average each piece of
glass was equivalent to 0.5 n m. lead. Two pieces (the nost expensive
of the lot) had each a protective coefficient of 0.9 percent and so were
worthless for X-ray protection. They were replaced by the vendor.

Samples of lead rubber ."howed an average protective coefficient of
22 per cent. One piece went as high as 32 per cen .

Correspondence was carried on with several firms relative to the
improvements to be desired in protective materials. The results have
been most gratifying. It is now possible to obtain materials with the
following properties :

SUBSTANCE

Plate glass . .

Rubber

Bowl (tube holder)

PROTECTIVE

COEFFICIENT

per cent

18
48
16

lead content
(by weight)

per cent

50
94

47

equivalent lead
for particular

SAMPLE

1.16
1.17

f minimum)

The density of practically^ every sample of protective material
received at the Bureau of Standards has been determined. It has been
shown that there is a linear (approximately) relation between the density
and the protective coefficient.

Discussion: The paper was discussed by Messrs. Silsbee, Sosman,
Briggs, Humphreys, and Webster.

Mr. P. T. Weeks then presented a paper on The efficiency of production
of X-rays.

The term efficiency of production of X-rays is ordinarily taken to
mean the ratio of the total energy of the X-rays emitted either from
the tube or from the target to the energy supplied to the tube. The
value of this efficiency has been found by actual measurement to be of
the order of one tenth of one per cent. It has been found to be nearly
proportional to the atomic weight of the target. A simple theory of
the method of production of X-rays would indicate that the efficiency
should be proportional to the potential applied to the tube, and experi-
ments have verified this conclusion so far as it is applied to the general
X-radiation. The manner in which the energy of the characteristic
radiation varies with the voltage has been only partly determined.

In general two effects have been used for measuring X-ray energy,
the ionization produced in a gas and the heatjng effect on absorption.
In most of the determinations of the efficiency only a small energ^^ input
could be used and widely varying results were obtained b}^ different
observers. The author used a Coolidge tube with much larger energj-
input and determined the value by a bolometer method. His results

254 proceedings: philosophical society

indicate that the total X-ray energy emitted, including both that of the
characteristics and of the general radiation, is approximately propor-
tional to the third power of the potential, or that the efficiency is pro-
portional to the square of the potential. The actual value found for
the efficiency agrees with that found b.y other observers using the same
method.

A consideration of the results obtained by the ionization and bolom-
eter methods indicates that only a fraction of the X-ray energy absorbed
by a gas is actually used in the production of ions. The fact that the
amount of energy absorbed per ion produced is a variable quantity
brings into question the validity of the ionization method of measuring
X-ray energy. There is need of further detailed investigation of this
particular point.

Discussion: This paper was discussed by Messrs. Sosman and
Webster.

The 801st meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, February 16, 1918;
President BurCxESS in the chair; 41 persons present.

JNIr. H. E. Merwin presented a paper on Comj)lem.entary colors and
the. properties of pigmeyits. The paper was illustrated by samples of
pigments.

Consideration must be given to refractive index, pleochroism, and
shape of grain as well as to the more commonly considered properties
of pigments. Diffusing power is determined primarily by refractive
index and size of grain. The blue of scattered light is a prominent
constituent of some grays and purples. The optimum size of grain of
colored pigments depends upon the manner in which the color is diffused
— whether by the colored grains or by admixed grains or by a subjacent
diffusing surface.

The refractive index of grains of a black pigment should be equal to
the refractive index of the vehicle surrounding the grains. A white
pigment should differ as much as possible from its vehicle in this respect.

Mixing white or black with a colored pigment, causes a shifting of hue
which depends upon several factors, one of the chief of which concerns
the character of the boundary between light that is strongly absorbed
and that which is freely transmitted.

The coloring efficiency of a pigment in mixtures producing tints
may be very different from its efficiency in mixtures producing shades.
A given amount of colored material will "go farther" as a glazing color
than in mixtures.

Discussion: The paper was discussed by Messrs. Sosman, Bancroft,
and Priest.

Mr. I. G. Priest then presented a paper on A precision metJiod for
producing artificial daylight, which was illustrated by lantern slides.

Light having a spectral distribution of energy closely approximating

that of daylight (black body at 5000° abs., sun at the earth V surface or

sun outside the earth's atmosphere), may be produced by passing the

■ light from an artificial source (acetylene flame, vacuum tungsten lamp,

or gas-filled tungsten lamp) through two nicol prisms with a crystalline

proceedings: philosophical society 255

quartz plate between them, the path of the hght being parallel to the
optic axis of the quartz, and the thickness of the quartz as well as the
angle between the principal planes of the nicols being properly chosen.
If three nicols are placed in series in the beam, one quartz plate being
placed between the first and second nicols and another quartz plate
between the second and third nicols, the approximation to a desired
spectral energy distribution may be made still closer.

The rotatory dispersion of quartz has been previously used by others
in "chromoscopes," etc. The novelty of the present communication
consists soleh^ in showing how the method maj^ be used in producing
"artificial daylight," and in presenting precise specifications for pro-
ducing results.

This method, of course, is not adapted to illuminating large surfaces
and so is not a commercial competitor with the blue-glass method
or other "artificial daylight." It is, however, very well adapted to use
with instruments (photometers, microscopes, etc.) where the quartz-
nicol system may be inserted between the eyepiece of the instrument
and the observer's eye.

The chief advantages of this method over the blue-glass method are :

1 . A much more accurate reproduction of the desired spectral energy
distribution. The distributions obtained by the use of blue glass (e.g.,
Luckiesh's "Trutint" or Corning "Dayhght") are always distorted
from the desired distribution by a sharp maximum at X = 570 mm as
well as by a rise in the red for X greater than 660 jjlijl.

2. Certain reproducibility and definiteness of specifications.

3. Adjustabilit}^ By varying the angle between the principal
planes of the nicols, the distribution may be slowly changed by known
amounts.

Discussion: The paper was discussed by Messrs. Sosman, Critten-
den, Burgess, and White.

The third paper, on A simplified form of Robinson's anemometer,
was presented by Mr. B. C. Kadel. This paper was illustrated by
lantern slides.

To begin with, the observer is assumed to have a watch or clock
available with which to measure a suitable time interval. The next
step is to arrange the anemometer to make electric contact at short
intervals, the signal being made audible to the observer by means of a
door bell, buzzer, or telephone receiver. The most convenient interval
is found as follows:

Distance distance D d . , . ,

-y^. = — -. or 7^ = - m which

Time time T t

D = the linear unit chosen as a measure.
d = the travel of the wind between signals.
T = the time unit chosen as a measure.
t = the time the signals are to be counted.

256 proceedings: anthropological society

Whence d = —.

Now selecting the customary unit — miles per hour — and letting t

be one minute for convenience, we have:

1 X 5280
d = — = 88 feet, which must be the travel between contacts

6!)

in order that the number of contacts per minute shall be equal to the

velocity in miles per hour.

dT
We may now write i = -jr-

We have, therefore, the following rule for the use of the instrument,
the same consti'uction answering for any unit of measurement desired:

"The number of signals in 60 seconds equals the velocity of the wind
in statute miles per hour.

The number of signals in 52 seconds equals the velocity of the wind
in knots per hour.

The number of signals in 27 seconds equals the velocity of the wind
in metres per second.

The number of signals in 97 seconds equals the velocity of the wind
in kilometers per hour."

It is evident that the customary dial mechanism may be omitted
from the instrument entirely, thus eliminating tedious and expensive
construction work and lessening the cost. The standard cups, spindle,
and bearings have been retained in order to preserve the present relation
between wind movement and cup movement; but the framework of
the instrument has been made of materials easily available to manu-
facturers, instead of the tapered tul^ing used in the old pattern, which
requires special orders through the mills for its production.

Gustiness of the wind is indicated in a general way by the variation
in the frequency of signal, and the anemometer thus gives information
that is lacking in the ordinary one-mile registration.

A similar device has been manufactured by Richard, Paris, for many
years, but the contacts are made to actuate a pen arm upon a sheet to
produce a continuous record. Mr. Friez, of Baltimore, has marketed
an anemometer that makes contact every 3^ mile, but it required a
table for interpretation of the signals.

The price of the new model is not yet definitely known, but should
not exceed $25 for a complete equipment, as compared with $100
for standard anemometer and register.

Discussion: This paper was discussed by Messrs. Burgess, Schlink,
Herschel, Humphreys, and Briggs.

H. L. Curtis, Recording Secretary.

ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 523rd meeting of the Society was held in the West Study Room
of the Public Library on Tuesday evening, March 12, 1918, at 8 p.m.
The speaker of the evening was Mr. Edward T. Williams, Chief

proceedings: anthropological society 257

of the Di\nsion of Far Eastern Affairs, Department of State, who
presented a paper on The origins of the Chinese. Mr. WilUams out-
lined four theories regarding the origin of the Chinese that deserve
examination.

The first, advocated by Dr. L. Wieger, a missionary of the Society of
Jesus, is that they originated in the Indo-Chinese Peninsula. His
reasons for so beheving are, briefly, that

1. The Chinese ideograms have existed since 3000 B.C. and the
most ancient represent tropical animals and plants, thus pointing to a
tropical country as the place of origin for the race.

But the oldest Chinese ideograms known to the world are not older
than 1200 B.C., when the Chinese were already settled in the valley
of the Yellow River and in constant intercourse with their neighbors
to the south. These ancient ideograms, moreover, represent animals
and plants of the temperate zone rather than of the tropics. Those
for sheep and cattle are found, too, in many root words, indicating
that the early Chinese were shepherds and herdsmen, pursuits not found
in tropical countries.

2. Other reasons given for a tropical origin are that the oldest form
of the Chinese language is found in southern China today.

3. The Chinese language is purest in the south and grows more and
more corrupt as one approaches the north.

4. The Chinese language is tonal, as are the languages of Indo-
China, and is therefore most nearly related to these.

It is not necessary, however, to assume a southern origin for the race
to account for these facts, which are just as easily explained by the
arrival of the Chinese from the north in successive waves of migration,
the later comers crowding the earlier further and further towards the
south, so that the oldest and purest forms of Chinese would be found
just where they are The tonal languages of the Indo-Chinese Peninsula
in that case are to be regarded as the languages of the vanguard of the
migration.

As a . matter of history it is now knovv^n that many tribes of Cambodia,
Siam, and Burma came from the north, the Tibeto-Burmans from a
region as far north as the Tien Shan. Some social or physical change
forced these tribes to migrate. The dominant element in the population
of Burma did not reach that land until about two or three thousand
years ago, while the tribes of Cambodia arrived in their present habitat
about 215 B.C. and the Shans, progenitors of the Siamese, ruled south-
ern China until the thirteenth century of the Christian era. The
movement of races therefore has been from north to south and not vice
versa.

The second theory is that the Chinese originated on the Ame ican
continent. This theory does not require much attention. There
have been movements of population, it is true, from America to Siberia,
even in historical times, and there is cultural and physical similarity
if not identity of the peoples on the opposite shores of the northern
Pacific. But the tribes of which this is true lie to northeast of China

258 proceedings: anthropological society

and differ strikingly from the Chinese in physical appearance, language,
and social institutions.

The third theory is held by a number of distinguished scholars and
declares that the Chinese are autochthonous and their civilization
indigenous. It must be admitted that the oldest existing records of
China seem to know no other region as the home of the Chinese fore-
fathers than the valley of the Yellow River, and it is held accordingly
that they gave up nomadic habits and settled as agriculturists there in
an unknown antiquity and that it was there that they developed
their civilization, including their written language. As to the last-
mentioned the theory is almost certainly wrong. This civihzation,
including the use of the ideograms, appears to have been shared by
surrounding tribes, from among whom in fact some of their most famous
rulers came.

One of these tribes, the Chou, headed a league of nine tribes from the
west which subdued the Shang Dynasty about 1200 B.C. These
tribes were amalgamated with the earlier and much of the culture of
China must be ascribed to the Chou. This fact and the enforced
migration of the Mon-Khmer, Tibeto-Burmans, and Shans to the
south because of some disturbance apparently in central Asia gives
plausibility to the fourth theory.

This theory would place the origin of the race in central or in western
Asia. A number of distinguished scholars have held this view. Pump-
elly's explorations in central Asia have shown that that region was the
seat of an ancient civilization as old as 8250 B.C. Great chmatic
changes have there converted what was once a moist and fertile land
into an arid desert and caused the inhabitants to migrate to other
parts of the world. It was this perhaps that drove the Sumerians into
the Euphrates valley and that forced other peoples down upon the
Tibeto-Burmans and caused the movements of population in China.
The earliest Sumerian monuments show that people to have been
Turanian, not Semitic, and to have had obliquely-set eyes. Dr.
C. J. Ball, of Oxford, has shown that there are striking resemblances
between the earliest Sumerian ideograms and those of the Chinese.
He has also published a vocabulary of more than a thousand words
which show similarities of sound and meaning in Chinese and Sumerian.
This lends weight to the theory that both have a common origin and
that the peoples were probably related. Most of the mounds of central
Asia remain to l)e explored and it is not too much to hope that, in the
not far distant future, evidence may be found establishing conclusively
that the Chinese race originated in that locality.

In the discussion which followed the paper Dr. Ales Hrdlicka
called especial attention to the importance of the whole subject and the
urgent need of archeological and anthropological investigations in these
regions. Others who discussed the paper were Dr. John R. Swanton,
Mr. James Mooney, and Mr. Henry Farquhar.

The 524th meeting of the Society was held in the West Study Room
of the Public Library on Tuesday evening, March 26, 1918, at 8 p.m.

proceedings: anthropological society 259

A paper on TJie origins of the Italian people, especially prepared for the
Anthropological Society of Washington by Dr. V. Giuffrida-Ruggeri,
Professor of Anthropology, University of Naples, was presented by
Dr. Austin H. Clark, U. S. National Museum.

The author leaves aside all that relates to the Paleolithic age, in the
remains of which Italy is less favored than other regions of Western
Europe. A more solid ground is encountered in the Neolithic epoch.
From the Lombard plains to the Ionic shore of Italy archeologists have
repeatedly found circular foundations of huts half buried in the earth,
the remains of dwellings of a Neolithic pastoral people. The huts
were hollowed in the ground on purpose, perhaps to afford shelter from
the wind, and they were entered either by means of steps, or an inclined
plane, or a shaft made close to the hut. In the hollows that remain
are found weapons of polished stone and various remains of domes-
tic handicraft, including pottery of advanced technique, form, and
decoration.

After describing the burials in natural and artificial caves, the author
notes the coming of a new people into Italy from the east. These
people came in canoes, and, having crossed the Mediterranean, landed
on the southern shores of the Italian peninsula as well as in Sicily and
Sardinia. They are called Ligures (Liguri) by historians. The Siculi
belonged to the same race as the Ligures, and both were physically of
tlje Mediterranean type.

In western Sicily are found similarities to the Iberian civilization,
attributable to "that great wave of influence which touched the coast
districts of western Europe, bringing with it the dolmen and the dolmen-
pottery." The evolution of the "domus de janas" in Sardinia reached
its highest development about 2000-1500 B.C. These burials belong to
the "Eneohthic " age in which copper was used a well as stone. Whilst
the civilization of the dolmen and megalithic monuments flourished in
Western Europe and in the Mediterranean region there was a different
civilization in Central Europe. There we find evidences of a people
who lived in the lake-regions on pile-structures (palafitte), a people
whose history is written only in the refuse of their daily Hves, covered
today by water and peat-bogs. This refuse shows us a primitive
pottery, the cultivation of flax and grain, and a pastoral life." ....
"Toward the end of the second millenium B.C. there took place a great
movement of peoples into Italy from the north, and the pine-dwellings
of eastern Lombary, as well as the hut-dwellings of the Ligures, were
deserted by their inhabitants." Later the Umbrians and the Etrus-
cans entered Italy.

The question as to who were the "Italic." seems superfluous to the
author "for there were no special people of that name. Italy is a
historic formation and all the antecedent races who contributed to her
making are equally 'Italian' .... The population of the
'Eternal City' was composita. It probably embraced from early times
the representatives of all the three main races of Europe, — the H.
mediterraneus, H. alpinus, and H. nordicus."

Frances Densmore, Secretary.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Professor Henry Adams, one of the charter members of the Academy,
died at his residence, 1603 H Street, on March 27, 1918, at the age of
eighty years. Mr. Adams was born in Boston, February 16, 1838,
the third son of the late Charles Francis Adams, American minister to
England during the Civil War. He was a professor of history at
Harvard University from 1870 to 1877, and was the author of a number
of historical works. He was a member of the Philosophical and An-
thropological Societies of Washington, and one of the founders of the
Cosiros Club. He had been a resident of Washington since 1877.

Professor Marston T. Bogert, formerly Chairman of the Chem-
istry Committee of the National Research Council, has been com-
missioned a lieutenant colonel in the Chemical Service Section, National
Army. He succeeds Lieutenant Colonel Wm. H. Walker, who has
been commissioned as colonel and has been placed in charge of the new
gas-shell plant of the Ordnance Department, near Baltimore. Dr. John
Johnston, Executive Secretary of the National Research Council, is
acting chairmanof the Chemistry Committee. .«

Mr. Edmund Heller, of the American Museum of Natural History,
has recently returned from an exploring expedition in western China,
near the borders of Burma and Tibet, under the auspices of the Museum.

Dr. E. Lester Jones, Superintendent of the U. S. Coast and Geodetic
Survey, has been commi sioned a lieutenant colonel in the Signal Corps.

Dr. William H. Nichols, of the General Chemical Company, and
Prof. C. K. Leith, chairman of the nuneral imports committee,were
before the House Committee on Mines and Mining on March 27, 1918,
to urge action on the bill giving the President power to guarantee
prices for war minerals and to provide for governmental control of such
minerals. The members of the Committee on Mineral Imports and
Exports, representing the Shipping, War Trade, and War Industries
Boards, are C. K. Leith, Pope Yeatman, and J. E. Spurr.

Representative B. G. Humphreys introduced in the House of
Representatives on March 22, 1918, a bill (H. R. 10954) changing the
name of the U. S. Naval Observatory to the LT. S. National Observatory,
and placing the Observatory under the control of the Secretary and
Regents of the Smithsonian Institution. The bill was referred to the
Committee on Naval Affairs.

An experimental laboratory has been established in which repre-
sentatives of the Food Administration and of the Department of
Agriculture will cooperate in standardizing war-time recipes and putting
them out in the form in which they will be most useful. The work is

260

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS 261

in line with the laboratory work which the Department of Agriculture
has been doing in testing the nutritive value of foods.

The central hall and auditorium of the National Museum have been
turned over to the Bureau of War Risk Insurance, which is also occupy-
ing a part of the main floor of the Museum. It will be necessary,
therefore, to hold the scientific sessions of the National Academy this
year in the hall of the Smithsonian Institution.

The spring meeting of the American Physical Society, which has
been held in Washington each year (excepting 1912) for the past
twelve years, has been transferred to New York this year on account
of the difficulty of obtaining accommodations in Washington. The
meeting will be held at Columbia University on Saturday, April 27,
1918.

The annual conference of State Geologists was held in Washington
at the U. S. Geological Survey on April 3 and 4, 1918, A reception
to the geologists was given by the Geological Society of Washington
at the Interior Department on the night of Thursday, April 4.

Dr. F. L. Ransome, of the Geological Survey, has recently returned
from an extended field investigation of the quicksilver resources of the
nation.

The following persons have become members of the Academy since
the last issue of the Journal: Mr. Andrew Nelson Gaud ell, U. S.
National Museum, Washington, D. C.; Dr. Charles Wythe Cooke,
U. S. Geological Survey, Washington, D. C; Mr, Harlan W. Fisk,
Department of Terrestrial Magnetism of the Carnegie Institution of
Washington, Washington, D. C; Capt. Edward Elway Free, In-
spection Division of the Ordnance Department, War Department,
Washington, D. C; Mr. John B. Henderson, 16th St. and Florida
Ave., Washington, D. C; Dr. Charles Dwight Marsh, Bureau of
Animal Industry, Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C;
Mr. P. L. RicKER, Bureau of Plant Industry, Department of Agricul-
ture, Washington, D. C.

THE PETROLOGISTS' CLUB OF WASHINGTON

The fiftieth meeting of the Petrologists' Club, held on February
19, 1918, at the home of Whitman Cross, seems a fitting occasion to
review briefly the work of the Club during its first eight years of exist-
ence, particularly as no report of its meetings and discussions has
heretofore been published.

The Petrologists' Club of Washington was organized on January
25, 1910, by a small group of representatives from the Geological
Survey and the Geophysical Laboratory. The purpose of the organ-
izers was to provide for the discussion of petrologic problems from all
points of view, including those of the physicist and chemist as well as
those of the geologist and petrologist ; to make the discussion much more
informal than was felt to be possible in the public meetings of the

262 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Geological Society, which are devoted rather to the reading and dis-
cussion of stated papers on geological subjects; and to include in the
discussion problems and hypotheses which were still in an unfinished
or only partly developed state.

Meetings have been held regularly at the homes of members, on which
account the membership has had to be restricted to forty-five. The
following brief list gives some of the subjects selected for discussion,
and will serve not only to show the kind of problems considered but also
to indicate the direction of petrologic thought and research in recent
years :

Eutectics, in the laboratory, in the field, and in their relation to rock
classification.

The role of mineralizers in magmas.

Ore bodies of magmatic origin.

Water as a primary agent in mineral and rock formation.

The relation between igneous activity and movements of the earth's
crust, with especial reference to differentiation, the cause of "petro-
graphic provinces," and the hypothesis of Atlantic and Pacific kindred.

The textures of metamorphic rocks.

The tools and methods of petrography.

The weathering of rocks.

The assimilation of rocks by magmas.

The theory of magmatic stoping.

The forms of silica.

The volume change of rocks on fusion.

The mode of escape of mineralizers from deep-seated bodies of
magma.

The origin of large intrusive rock bodies.

Isostasy in its relations to petrographic provinces.

The description of minerals, and of sedimentary, igneous, and
metamorphic rocks.

The areal distribution of igneous rocks and of their chemical constit-
uents.

The minor constituents of meteorites.

Pegmatitic rocks and minerals.

The secondary enrichment of ores.

Volcanic gases.

The nature and sequence of magmatic emanations, as shown by
pegmatites, volcanic emanations, contact deposits, and mineral veins.

The determination of opaque minerals.
, The origin of the Kiruna ores.

The sampling and chemical analysis of rocks.

Some of the meetings have been devoted to reviews of petrologic
literature, such as Barker's Natural History of Igneous Rocks and
Bowen's Later Stages of the Evolution of the Igneous Rocks. Short
reports of work in progress have also been given, and the discussion
of the results from the field and laboratory points of view has never
failed to bring out aspects of interest and thus to add to the value of

• SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS . 263

field o])scrvations and laboratory experiments. The hopes of the
organizers of the Club have been abundantly justified by the results.

R. B. S.

THE ONE HUNDREDTH ANNIVERSARY OF THE FOUNDING OF THE AMERICAN

JOURNAL OF SCIENCE.

Dr. George F. Becker, of the Geological Survey, has written the
following ]ett{>r to Prof. E. S. Dana on the occasion of the one-hundredth
anniversary of the founding of the American Journal of Science.

March 9, 1918.
Dear Dana:

That a scientific journal should have lasted one hundred years is
much: that for a century it should have been conducted by only the
founder, his son-in-law, and his -grandson is, I believe, unexampled.
To me it is appalling to reflect upon the drudgery your family has
undergone in order that students of science might teach what they
know and learn what their fellows thought. With all possible allow-
ances for pride of achievement and for satisfaction in the respect of
every member of the scientific public, you and your kin must have
been sorely afflicted with the New England conscience.

Up to about the time of our Civil War Silliman's Journal was partly
devoted to reproducing in full important papers which appeared in
European journals, to which few American readers had access. This
was a function on which Louis Agassiz laid stress, considering it how-
ever as a matter of course. The younger men of today would incline to
regard such a policy as provincial; but it was not. In the first half of
the last century the number of scientific workers in the whole world
was very Imiited, and papers recognized as important were reproduced
in extenso in most of the great journals such as the Philosophical Maga-
zine, the Annales de Cheniie et de Physique, Poggendorjf, etc. It was
assumed that the representative reader had access to no other similar
periodicals and was entitled to the news of the day. Neither were
bits of useful information then excluded. In hunting up a translation
by Thomas Young in the Philosophical Magazine of a paper by Laplace
on the construction of curves by their radii of curvature (a method
afterwards reinvented by Kelvin), I came upon a serious discussion of
how best to keep your razors sharp when your- beard becomes wiry!

To me, and I fancy to a large part of the retiring generation, the file
of the American Journal seems a monument to James D. Dana. AVho
but he was industrious enough and nearly enough omniscient to deal
with the w^hole range of scientific thought? Young men in this Survey
'think of him as a mineralogist, or a geologist, and do not know that
he began his career as an instructor in mathematics and in early life
achieved fame as a zoologist. Louis Agassiz in 1847 wrote as follows
to Milne-Edwards :

264 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS •

"Among the zoologists of this country I would place Mr. Dana at
the head. He is still very young, fertile in ideas, rich in facts, equally
able as a geologist and mineralogist. When his work on corals is com-
pleted, you can better judge of him. One of these days you will make
him a correspondent of the Institute, unless he kills himself with work
too early."

This prediction was fulfilled twenty six years later. Dana became
a corresponding member of the Institute in 1873, not as a geologist or
mineralogist, but in the section of anatomy and zoology; and I am told
that for the fnost part the conclusions he drew from his studies of the
Crustacea nearly 80 years ago are still accepted,

Dana's kindness and helpfulness to his old pupils has often been
recorded. This goodness was not confined to them: it was extended to
me whom he never saw and it heartened me when I needed encourage-
ment. His very last letter was spontaneous and without other occasion
than to inform me of a favorable opinion by H. A. Newton on a bit of
my work. He could have saved himself the trouble of writing, but
preferred to give pleasure.

Berzelius is said to have remarked that he was the last chemist
who would know all chemistry, the idea being that no younger man could
catch up. The anecdote is at least "ben trovato," and Berzelius was
the man to realize the fact. Dana in 1879 may be said to have been
a complete master of geology, but he did not realize his loneliness. Just
at the time Clarence King appointed me on this Survey, Dana coun-
seled him to choose no assistant who could not do his own stratigraphy,
paleontology, mineralogy, and lithology! Fortunately, King saw the
impossibility of setting up a standard that would have excluded every-
body but Dana.

The Journal has exerted a potent influence on science in America.
Its banner afforded a rallying point for a few idealists when there was
imminent danger that Philistinism would gain complete control of a
nation struggling with natural resources almost excessive in their
abundance. It has been one of the landmarks of our independent
nationality, for such a journal could not have thriven in a mere colony.
It stimulated the spirit of investigation and helped to guide the devel-
opment of research along sane and sound lines. For a time it constituted
the scientific periodical literature of the country, and if today it is only
one of numerous periodicals devoted to science, many of them may well
be regarded as offshoots from the American Journal of Science.

Salve!

Sincerely yours,

George F. Becker.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VIII MAY 4, 1918 No. 9

CHEAIISTRY. — Crystals of harium disilicate in optical glass.
X. L. BowEN, Geophysical Laboratory. (Communicated by
J. C. Hostetter.)

In optical glass of the variety known as ''barium crown,"
and especially in those types rich in barium, there frequently
form in the melting furnace numerous six-sided crystal plates

-.,4

"■■^-^

P'iG. 1. Fragment of barium crown glass showing crystals of BaSi205 with
"frayed" edges. (Natural size.)

upwards of 3 mm. in diameter. These crystals are colorless and
transparent in their central portions but are surrounded by white
opaque rims that render them verj^ conspicuous (see photograph,
fig. 1). A piece of glass containing these crystals, with their

- 265

266

BOWEN : BARIUM DISILICATE IN GLASS

marked symmetry of outline and their common arrangement with
greater dimensions parallel to flow lines in the glass, constitutes a
specimen of much beauty and perhaps of some interest to the
mineralogist, though nothing could be more ruinous to the glass
for optical purposes than this incipient crystallization. Even
glass which comes from the melting furnace free from this defect .
may devitrify during subsequent heat treatment with formation
of crystals of the same nature, though in this case of much smaller
dimensions. One step in an investigation designed to discover
the best conditions for avoiding the formation of these crystals
involved a determination of their nature.

Under the microscope the larger crystal
plates that form in the melting furnace are
found to be about 0.03 mm. thick in the trans-
parent central portion, which is a single crys-
talline unit of uniform orientation. Ar6und
the edges of the larger crystal, however, in-
numerable tiny crystals, each identical in
nature and in habit with the larger crystal,
have sprouted out in all directions. These
tiny crystals with their interstitial glass,
giving diffusion of light, constitute the white
opaque rims of the larger crystals. The
arrangement recalls the feldspar microlites
with fibrous edges sometimes seen in rocks.'
The crystal plates have the shape of an elongated hexagon as
shown in figure 2, and are about 3 mm. long and 2 mm. wide.
The terminal angles as measured under the microscope are
approximately 100° and the lateral angles 130°. As shown by
their symmetry, taken together with their optical properties, the
crystals are orthorhombic. There is a good cleavage parallel to
the elongation. The elongation is always negative. The plane
of the optic axes is parallel to the platy development and the
optical character negative with 2V = 70° approximately. The
refractive indices are: y = 1.613 and a = 1.595, as measured in
immersion liquids under the microscope.

1 Figured by J. P. Iddings in Rock Minerals, p. 215, 1911.

Fig. 2. BaSi205 show-
ing optical orien-
tation.

bowen: barium disilicate in glass 267

The optical properties correspond with those of no crystals
hitherto described. In casting about for a possible composition
for the crystals the orthorhombic symmetry of K2Si205 was
recalled together with the general tendency towards isomorphism
of potassium and barium compounds and it was thought possible
that the crystals might be BaSi205. Accordingly a mixture of
that composition was made up and melted in a platinum crucible
and this was found to give on cooling a homogeneous crystalline
mass having optical and crystallographic properties identical
with those exhibited by the crystals in the glass. The refractive
indices were determined on this pure material, on which they can
be determined with greater accuracy than on the very thin
crystals embedded in glass. They are as follows: 7 = 1.617,
a = 1.598.

It is probable that the slightly lower values given for the
crystals in the glass represent a real difference and that when
formed from the glass they take a small amount of alkaline disili-
cate into solid solution, but this cannot be definitely decided
without measurements on larger crystals that will permit of
greater accuracy. The very minute crystals formed by devitri-
fication of the glass at low temperatures appear to have indices
that are even somewhat lower still, suggesting that they have a
larger amount of 'alkaline disilicate in solid solution. The
probability of solid solution between barium disilicate and potas-
sium disilicate is very great, for they show a striking degree
of isomorphism, the corresponding angles of potassium disilicate
being, within the limits of error of measurement under the micro-
scope, exactly the same as those here found for barium disilicate.^
In subsequent work a detailed study of solid solution between
these compounds wdll be made.

Barium disilicate appears not to have been prepared and studied
before and this note has been written to place its properties on
record. To make it more complete the melting point has been
determined. It was found to melt congruently at 1426°C.,
as determined with a platinum-rhodium thermo-element and
potentiometer system. The only reference in the literature to

* See crystals figured by Fenner in a paper by G. W. Morey (New crystalline
silicates of potassium and sodium. Journ. Amer. Chem. Soc. 33: 228, fig. 4. 1914.)

268 vaughan: correlation of tertiary formations

BaO. 2Si02 is given in Gmelin-Kraut, where it is stated that a
mixture of that composition melts to a clear glass. ^ This obser-
vation was confirmed and the refractive index of the glass was
measured and found to be 1.606.

J. W. French describes a crystal enclosed in " optical flint glass"
which is hexagonal and beautifully regular and shows ''stream
lines" about its edges. ^ From the general description I would
consider it possible that his crystal was identical with those of
barium disilicate here described were it not for the fact that he
noted no colors in polarized light. This may, however, have been
due to the extreme thinness of his crystals. It is true the glass
is called a flint glass which, in speaking of optical glass, means
a lead glass; but it is also stated that the source of the glass and
its composition are unknown.

I am indebted to Mr. L. H. Adams for the photograph of the
glass specimen, to Mr. Olaf Andersen for a survey of the litera-
ture in search of previous information on barium disilicate, and
to Mr. G. W. Morey for calling to my attention the article by
French.

GEOLOGY. — Correlation of the Tertiary geologic formations of the
southeastern United States, Central America, and the West
Indies.^ Thomas Wayland Vaughan, Geological Survey.

The present paper contains tabular statements of the results
derived from prolonged investigations of the stratigraphic
equivalence of the Tertiary geologic formations in the South
Atlantic and Gulf Coastal' Plain of the United States, Mexico,
Central America, and the West Indies. The tables are excerpted
from two larger papers I now have in course of publication,
referred to in the foot-note below,- but as the two papers men-

^ Gmelin-Kraut, Handbuch der Anorganischen Cheinie, 3^: 237-238.

* Trans. Optical Soc. 16: 224. 1916.

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

^ Vaughan, T. W., The biologic character and geologic correlation of the sedi-
mentary formation of Panama in their relation to the geologic history of Central
America and the West Indies. U. S. Nat. Mus. Bull. 103 (in press); Cenozoic his-
tory of Central America and the West Indies. Geol. Soc. Amer. Bull., vol. 23
(ready for press).

vaughan: correlation of tertiary formations 269

tioned are not likely to be distributed within less than twelve
months and as there is considerable demand among geologists
for the stratigraphic results contained in them, it is desirable at
least to publish promptly the tabular summaries.

Tables such as those here given are necessarily based on the
work of many men, and I wish to express my indebtedness to

E. W. Berry, J. E. Brantly, C. W. Cooke, J. A. Cushman, W. H.
Dall, .\lexander Deussen, E. T. Dumble, E. N. Lowe, W. C.
Mansfield, G. C. Matson, G. S. Rogers, E. H. Sellards, E. W.
Shaw, H. K. Shearer, and L, W. Stephenson, who have con-
tributed to the literature on the Tertiary formations of the
southeastern and southern United States during the past six
years. I have also had the benefit of the unpublished results of

F. Canu and R. S. Bassler on the Tertiary Bryozoa of the Coastal
Plain of the United States and of Miss Julia Gardner on the
Mollusca of the upper Miocene of Virginia and North Carolina
and of the lower Miocene (the Alum Bluff formation and its
members) of Florida. More specific referrences to the con-
tributions of these investigators -will not be made in this place.

Recently the Director of the U. S. Geological Survey, in fulfil-
ment of a cooperative agreement between the Geological Survey,
the Canal Commission, and the Smithsonian Institution, trans-
mitted to the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution the manu-
script and illustrations for a volume entitled Contributions to the
Geology and Paleontology of the Canal Zone, Panama, and Geolog-
ically Related Areas in Central America and the West Indies. Pre-
pared under the direction of T. W. Vaughan. This volume contains
the following papers: Preface, by T. W. Vaughan; On Some
Fossil and Recent Lithonamnicae of the Panama Canal Zone, by
M. A. Howe; The Fossil Higher Plants from the Canal Zone,
by E. W. Berry; The Smaller Fossil Foraminifera of the Panama
Canal Zone, by J. A. Cushman; The Larger Fossil Foraminifera
of the Panama Canal, by J. A. Cushman; Fossil Echini of the
Panama Canal Zone and Costa Rica, by R. T. Jackson; Fossil
Bryozoa from the Canal Zone and Costa Rica, by F. Canu and
R. S. Bassler; Crustacea Decapoda from the Panamanian Re-
gion, by M. J, Rathbun; Cirripedia from the Panama Canal

270 vaughan: coerelation of tertiary formations

Zone, by H. A. Pilsbry; Fossil Corals from Central America,
Cuba, and Porto Rico, with an Account of the American Tertiary,
Pleistocene, and Recent Coral Reefs, by T. W. Vaughan; The
Sedimentary Formations of the Panama Canal Zone with
especial reference to the Stratigraphic Relations of the Fossili-
ferous Beds, by D. F. MacDonald; The Biologic Character and
Geologic Correlation of the Sedimentary Formations of Panama,
in their relation to the Geologic History of Central America and
the West Indies, by T. W. Vaughan. These memoirs are in
press as Bulletin 103 of the U. S. National Museum.

A set of memoirs on the Lesser Antilles and Cuba, similar to
that on the Canal Zone, is almost complete, and will be submitted
to the Carnegie Institution of Washington for publication.
The stratigraphic results procured from the West Indian investi-
gations have been utilized in making geologic correlations.

CORRELATION OF THE TERTIARY FORMATION OF THE SOUTH
ATLANTIC AND EASTERN GULF COASTAL PLAIN

Table 1 indicates the present status of the correlation of these
formations, and although it may have to be modified to accord
with the results of additional investigations, there seems to be
every reason to believe that subsequent changes will be only in
matters of minor refinement. However, I wish to say that in
my opinion four paleontologic zones will be discriminated and
defined in the Chattahoochee formation, and that the collections
on which to base these subdivisions have already been made and
in large part described, but I will not now discuss those details.
I confidently expect the Ocala limestone also to be subdivided
into two or more zones, for the genus Orthophragmina so abun-
dantly represented in the lower part of the formation appears to
be absent in the upper beds.

CORRELATION OF THE TERTIARY SEDIMENTARY FORMATIONS OF

PANAMA AND THE WEST INDIES

Three new stratigraphic terms introduced in table 2 need to be
briefly defined in this place. More comprehensive definitions are

vaughan: correlation ot tertiary formations 271

given in my paper on the fossil corals from Central America,
Cuba, and Porto Rico.

St. Bartholmnew limestone. This formation is of upper Eocene
age and is paleontologically characterized by species of Ortho-
-phragmina, one of which is of stellate form, similar to those
recently described b}" Cushman'' from the Ocala limestone of
Georgia and Florida; by about 30 species of corals, among which
the genera Stylophora, Astrocoenia, Antilloseris, Physoseris, and
Actinacis are conspicuous; by many echinoids, which were
described by Cotteau; and by some Mollusca and Brachipoda
described by C. W. Cooke in a manuscript now awaiting publica-
tion. The formation is typically exposed along the shore of St.
Bartholomew northwest of St. Jean Bay for a distance of about
one and a half miles. The rock is a hard bluish limestone, inter-
bedded at its base with volcanic tuffs and water-worn volcanic
fragments.

Anguilla formation. This formation is uppermost Oligocene,
if the Aquitanian of Europe is correctly referred to the
Oligocene. In the opinion of some paleontologists it would be
classified as earliest Miocene. It is paleontologically char-
acterized by certain Foraminifera, described by J. A. Cushman
in a report not yet published; by numerous species of corals,
among which are the genera Stylophora, Stylocoenia, Antillia,
Orbicella, Siderastrea, and Goniopora; by echinoids described by
Guppy or by Cotteau, among which are Echinolampas semiorhis
Guppy, E. lycopersicus Cotteau, and Agasizzia clevei Cotteau;
and by a number of species of Mollusca, described in manu-
script by C. W. Cooke. The Mollusca include Amusium lyonii
Gabb and Orthaulax pugnax (Heilprin). I obtained no specimens
of Lepidocyclina in Anguilla. The type exposure is along the
southeast and south shore of Crocus Bay. The material con-
sists of calcareous clay, argillaceous limestone, and more or less
pure limestone. The formation unconformably overlies basic
igneous rock.

' Cushman, J. A., Orhitoid foraminifera of the genus Orthophragmina from
Georgia and Florida. U. S. Geol. Survey Prof. Paper 108: 115-124, pis. 40-44.
Dec. 12, 1917.

TABLI
A Pkovisional Correlation Table op the Tertiary Geologic Formations oil

AGE OF
DEPOSITS

NORTH CAROLINA

(South of Hatteras axis)

SOUTH CAROLINA

(San tee drainage)

SOUTH CAROLINA AND
GEORGIA

(Savannah drainage)
(Not recognized)

GEORGIA

(Chattahoochee
drainage)

z

VVaccamaw marl

Waccamaw marl

s.

0.

3

Duplin marl

Unconformity

Duplin marl

Duplin marl

Unconformity

Edisto marl

Z

m

Marks Head marl

o

's

1

(Absent)

Unconformity

Alum Bluff formation

Alum Bluff formation

o
a

ft

3

Chattahoochee forma-
tion

Chattahoochee forma'
tion

Unconformity —
Vicksburg formation

a

.2

z

o

t-l

\

<u
ft

a

3

Castle Hayne limestone
Trent marl

Cooper
marl

Barnwell
formation

Barnwell formation
(with Twiggs clay
member)

Ocala limestone

Ed

z

_2
_-d

s

McBean formation

McBean formation

McBean formation

. O

Congaree shales of Sloan
Williamsburg formation

(Probably overlapped)

Wilcox formation

Black Mingo formation

(Probablj- overlapped)

Midway formation

•

272

1

THE South

Atlantic and

Eastern Gulf Coastal Plain of the United States

FLORIDA

ALABAMA

MISSISSIPPI

LOUISIANA

Caloosahatchee marl,
Nashua marl, Alachua
clay, and Bone Valley
gravel (largely con-
temporaneous)

Citronelle
forma-
tion

Citronelle formation

Citronelle formation

Citronelle forma-
tion

Jacksonville formation

Choctaw-
hatchee
marl

Pascagoula clay

Pascagoula clay

Pascagoula clay

(Absent)

(Absent)

— Le

in 1

coDioriiuiy
Shoal River

marl member

Alum Bluff
formation

Hattiesburg
clay

Hattiesburg clay

— c

Oak Grove sand member

Hattiesburg clay

5 *"
<

Chipola marl member

Tampa forma-
tion

Chattahoochee
formation

Chattahoochee
formation

Catahoula
sandstone

Catahoula sandstone

Catahoula sand-

stone

a

Marianna limestone
(western Florida)

0.

o

M

-a;

o

>

Marianna limestone (with
Glendon limestone mem-
ber).

3
O

M

ST
t-.

3

>

Byram calc. marl

\

3

s

St

u

Marianna limestone (with
Glendon limestone and
Mint Spring calc. marl
members).

Vicksburg \
limestone \

-'

Red Bluff clay

Red Bluff clay

\

Ocala limestone

Ocala
limestone

Jackson
formation

Jackson formation (with Yazoo
clay membei and Moodys
calc. marl member)

Jackson forma-
tion

Q.
3

s

g
O

'5

O

Gosport sand

a,

3

o

WJ
0)

a
o

'3
O

Yegua formation

0
3

S

a
o

•3

O

Yegua
formation

Lisbon formation

Lisbon formation

(Buried)

St. Maurice

Tallahatta buhrstone

Tallahatta buhrstone

formation

(Buried)

i

1

Hatchetigbee formation
Bashi formation
Tuscahoma formation
Nanafalia formation

3

e

bl
X

o
o

Grenada formation
Holly Springs sand
.\ckernian formation

Wilcox formation

C.

o
5

Naheola formation
Sucarnochee clay

n

3
O

61

>.

C3
_^

Tippah sandstone of Lowe
Porters Creek clay

Midway forma-

(.i5l

irieu;

Clayton limestone

1

Clayton limestone absent
or replaced by sand

t

on

•

273

TABLE

A Provisional Correlation Table of the Tertiary

AMERICAN TIME
SUBDIVISIONS

PANAMA

JAMAICA

OTHER ANTILLES

Pliocene

Toro limestone

Manchioneal
formation

Kingston for-
mation

Pliocene of Guantanamo, Cuba

upper

Miocene

middle

Gatun formation

La Cruz marl
(Cuba)

Upper horizon
in Martinique

Upper horizon in
Santo Domingo

lower

Bowden marl

Marl at Bara-
coa, Cuba

Lower horizon
in Martinique

Zones G, H, and
I in Santo Do-
mingo (of Miss
C. J. Maury)

upper

Emperador li

Culebra
formation

mestone

Upper part of
Culebra

Anguilla formation (Anguilla), and beds at many
localities in Cuba

middle

Lower part of Cu-
lebra and lime-
stone at Tonosi

Coral reef at
Guantana-
mo, Cuba

Antigua
formation
(Antigua)

Pepino for-
mation
(Porto Rico)

Lower hori-
zon in San-
to Domingo

Oligocene

lower

Limestone with Or-
thophragmina, on
Haut Chagres" and
limestone at David
(contempora-
neous)*

Bohio
congF

Montpelier
white limestone

upper

Cambridge
formation

Richmond
formation

St. Bartholomew limestone (St. Bartholomew)
Extensively distributed in Cuba

Eocene

middle

Eocene of Tonosi

'

lower

" Reported by H. Douvilld and referred to"Stampieninf6rieur" = Vicksburgian=Lattorfian.
* May be upper Eocene instead of lower Oligocene.

274

2

Marine Sedimentary Formations op Panama

MEXICO AND CENTRAX. AMERICA

Pliocene of Yucatan and Limon,
Costa Rica

St. Marys formation
Choptank formation

Gatun for-
mation
(Costa
Rica)

Pacific
Coast of
Nicaragua

Exposures
on Isthmus
of Tehuan-
tapec

San Rafael formation

Manzanilla*, Costa Rica, and deposits
with Pecten aff: P. poulsoni and
large discoid orbitoids, Mexico

SOXTTHEASTERN UNITED STATES

Waccamaw marl, Nashua marl, and Caloosahatchee marl
(nearly contemporaneous)

Sicilian

Astian

Plaisancian

Yorktown formation, Duplin marl, and Choctawhatchee marl
(nearly contemporaneous)

Pontian
Sarmatian

Calvert formation

Marks Head marl

Shoal River marl member
Alum Bluff formation ■{ Oak Grove Band member
Chipola marl member

Chattahoochee formation

Tampa formation

I Byram calcareous marl
Vicksburg group •] Marianna limestone
[Red Bluff clay

Brito formation of Ni-
caragua (typical Brito)

Frio clay
Fayette ss.

Claiborne group

Wilcox formation

Midway formation

-3

O

J3

Jackson formation

Ocala limestone

I Gosport sand
Claiborne group -j Lisbon formation

[Xallahatta buhrstone

Wilcox group

Hatchetigbee formation
Bashi formation.
Tuscahoma formation
Nanafalia formation

Midway gioup

fNaheola formation
■{ Sucarnochee clay
[Clayton limestone

EUROPEAN

TIME

SUBDIVISIONS

Tortonian

Helvetian

Burdigalian

Aquitanian
Chattian

Rupelian

Lattorfian
(Sannoisian)

Ludian (Pria-

bonian)
Bartonian

Auversian
Lutetian

Ypresian**

Sparnacian''

Thanetian''
Montian'*

" May belong stratigraphically somewhat higher.
"* Correlation proposed by E. W. Berry.

275

276 VAUGHAN : CORRELATION OF TERTIARY FORMATIONS

La Cruz marl. This marl is of midde Miocene age, as it appears
to be slightly higher stratigraphically than the Burdigahan
Bowden marl of Jamaica. The fossils obtained in it are described
in my paper on the fossil corals of Central America, Cuba, and
Porto Rico, and in unpiibHshed manuscripts by J. A. Cushman
and C. W. Cooke. Among the corals are the genera Stylophora,
Orbicella, Solenastrea, Thysanus, Siderastrea, Goniopora, and
Porites. Solenastrea, Siderastrea, and Porites contain species that
I have been unable to distinguish from hving West Indian species;
but the genera Stylophora, Thysanus, and Goniopora are extinct
in the Atlantic Ocean. The type exposure is along the railroad
leading east from La Cruz, which is on the east side of Santiago
Bay. The formation is well exhibited in the bluffs along the east
side of the Bay north of the Morro. The material is a yellowish,
very calcareous marl, or an argillaceous limestone, which is as a
rule well bedded. (

Only one point on the correlation table appears to need special
comment, that is whether the limestone containing Orthophrag-
mina on Haut Chagres and at David, Panama, should be referred
to the uppermost Eocene or to the basal Oligocene. It has been
stated above that the Ocala limestone contains large stellate
species of Orthophragmina, and that I collected a similar species
in St. Bartholomew. Of the Eocene age of these deposits, of the
typical Brito formation in Nicaragua, and of certain limestones
containing Orthophragmina in Cuba there seems to be no reason-
able doubt. But, according to Douville, the small stellate Ortho-
phragmina (subgenus Asterodiscus) ranges upward into the lower
Oligocene. The association of Asterodiscus, and small, even
non-stellate, species of Orthophragmina, with species of Lepido-
cyclina that at some localities are associated with a coral fauna of
middle Oligocene affinities has inclined me to the opinion that
certain peculiar species of Orthophragmina occur in deposits of
early Oligocene age. Dr. Cushman, however, is disposed to
regard the beds in which these species of Orthophragmina were
found as of Eocene age. At present the evidence is not decisive,
and additional studies are needed.

wherry: crystal form and optical properties 277

CRYSTALLOGRAPHY. — Certain relations between crystalline
form, chemical constitution, and optical properties in organic
compounds, — /. Edgar T. Wherry, Bureau of Chemistry.

That definite relations can be traced between the refractive
indices and chemical constitution of substances has long been
recognized. Most work has been done with organic liquids,
and it has been found that each element possesses a characteristic
refractivity, that the sum of the refractivities of the constituents,
modified by their manner of combination, is equal to the molec-
ular refractivity of the compound, and that from this in turn the
refractive index can be derived.^ Data for crystalline inorganic
salts have been collected- and the relations shown to be similar;
in systems other than the cubic (isometric) the mean refractive
indices are usually employed. There is of course every reason
to expect that the mean indices of crystalline organic compounds
could be applied in like manner;^ but it seemed desirable to
inquire into the possibility of correlating the several indices of a
given substance with its crystal structure instead of concealing
in mean indices whatever relations may exist^.

The refractive indices of substances may be connected with

other properties by various formulas, of which the Lorentz-

72.- — 1
Lorenz expression, which may be used in the form , - =

— ^ — ^ is the most satisfactory. For short the left hand term

may be referred to as the ''refraction," and denoted by the
letter R. If the refractive indices in different directions in a
single anisotropic substance be substituted for n, directional
values of R will be obtained; these may be called Ra, R&, and Re,
the first two of course being identical in uniaxial crystals.

1 An excellent summary of this work has been prepared by Eisenlohr (Spektro-
chemie Organischer Verbindungen. Leipzig, 1912).

2 Especially by Pope (Journ. Chem. Soc. 69: 1530. 1896).

3 The refractivities of a few crystalline organic compounds have been calcu-
lated by Taubert (Zeits. Kryst. Min. 44: 313. 1910).

* The theoretical relations between the refractivities shown in the different
directions in anisotropic substances and the electrical interaction of the atoms
have recently been discussed by Silberstein (Phil. Mag. 33: 92. 1917).

278 wherry: crystal form and optical properties

The atomic weight W being always, and the refractivity M usually
the same throughout, the several values of R must be propor-
tional to those of the density p, or factors corresponding to it,
in the several directions. The ratio of the R's, which may be
termed the ''refraction ratio," should therefore give some
information as to the structure of the substance.

Because o^the existence of dispersion of double refraction or
change in double refraction with wave length of light, the refrac-
tion ratio is not constant throughout the spectrum; but the
following list of the approximate dispersions of a few typical
substances, obtained mostly by extrapolation from recorded
data, indicates that the effect of this phenomenon is ordinarily
negligible, the variation in the ratio rarely exceeding the prob-
able error of the data, 3 units in the third decimal place, over
practically the whole visible spectrum. The relation will not
hold, of course, in the ultra-violet, where these substances show
absorption bands; but this does not affect the conclusions reached
in this paper, for the atoms themselves are anisotropic for these
short wave lengths.

TABLE I
Approximate Dispersions op Double Refr\ tion of Selected Organic

Substances

UNIAXIAL

Wave lengths.

i-Erythrite

Guanidine carbonate.
Urea"

Calcium formate

Cane sugar

Oxalic acid (anhj^d.)"

400

1.558
1.514
1.504

700

1.541
1.492
1.480

1.526
1.551
1.465

1.507
1.537
1.440

400

1.535
1 . 505
1.625

700

1.517

1.482
1.597

1.599
1.582
1.650

1.573
1.569
1.620

DOUBLE
REFRACTION

400

0.023

0.009
0.121

700

0.024
0.010
0.117

MAXIMUM

DOUBLE

REFRACTION

0.073
0.031
0.185

0.066
0.032

REFRACTION RATIO

400

1.036:1
1,015:1
0.837:1

700

1.039:1
1.018:1
0.834:1

EXTREME
REFRACTION RATIO

0.899:1
0.956:1

0.180 0.758:1

0.904:1
0.954:1
0.750:1

" Extrapolated from new measurements by the writer, made by the immersion
method.

The studies of crystals by X-rays which have been carried on
in recent years have shown that it is possible to regard the atoms
as lying in definite layers; in simple substances planes pass through

wherry: crystal form and optical properties 279

the centers of gravity of the atoms in these layers, while in more
complex ones, the centers of gravity may be alternately slightly
to one side or the other of planes. ^ The spacings between the
planes prove to be more or less connected with the crystallo-
graphic axial ratios and other properties of the substances. The
less the spacing of the atomic planes in any direction in an aniso-
tropic substance, the greater should be the refraction in that
direction. In fact, if the layers in the different directions are all
close-packed, the difference in spacing may be the only cause of
anisotropism, and the factor p will then be inversely proportional
to the spacing d. It therefore appears probable that an exact
inverse relation may exist in some cases between the refraction
ratio and the crystallographic axial ratio of a substance.

Crystallographic axial ratios (which will be referred to hereafter
simply as ''axial ratios") are usually stated to the fourth decimal
place. A variation of one minute in an angle, however, pro-
duces on the average a change of one unit in the third place, and
crystals are rarely perfect enough for measurements to agree
more closely than ±5'. The fourth decimal is therefore usually
entirely fictitious, and even the third often of doubtful signifi-
cance. Refractive indices also are often stated to the fourth
place, although the results of different observers usually differ
one or two units in the third place. The refraction ratios are,
accordingly, likewise obtainable with a certainty of but two or
three units in the third place. In general, therefore, inverse
agreement between the two ratios to one unit in the second place
may be regarded as complete.

Furthermore it can not be assumed that the standard axial
ratio is a definite thing. Crystallographers are obliged in general
to choose one out of several possible forms as the unit, and to
take the axial ratio as inversely proportional to the intercepts
of that form on the axes. The criteria for selecting unit forms
are limited in number, comprising prominence, presence of
cleavage, and the yielding of simple symbols to the other forms
present by the derived ratio. The Fedorov rule, that substances

'" The latter arrangement appears, for instance, in the Bragg diagram of cal-
cite (X-rays and Crystal Structure, p. 117).

280 WHERRY : CRYSTAL FORM AND OPTICAL PROPERTIES

with tabular habit and basal cleavage are likely to have a positive
axial ratio (c greater than a) and those with prismatic habit and
cleavage a negative one (c less than a) is also useful. All these
features are, however, likely to be connected only with the larger
atoms, and the presence of layers of smaller ones to be shown only
by the appearance of minor forms, or even not to have any
external expression at all. But as all the layers combine in the
production of refractive effects, it is essential, before any com-
parison can be made, that the true axial ratio, based on all the
atomic planes, be ascertained.

In the few anisotropic inorganic substances thus far studied by
means of X-rays the standard axial ratios appear in fact to be
produced only by certain of the larger atoms, smaller ones, such
as oxygen, failing to find expression in them. But it seems
likely that in organic compounds, where the relative sizes of the
atoms do not differ so markedly, all might share in the location
of the prominent forms, and the true axial ratio be identical with
the standard one. This class of substances has therefore been
investigated first, their refraction ratios and axial ratios being
compared in order to ascertain whether inverse relations really
exist; later papers will take up inorganic compounds. And at the
start only those that crystallize in the tetragonal system will be
considered, since its geometrical relations are the simplest, and
will therefore form a good foundation upon which to base future
studies in other systems.

Exact inverse relations can of course not be expected to hold
in all cases. For instance, if the atoms in a layer are alternately
considerably above and below the central plane, yet not far
enough to become close-packed into new layers, the effect of
the spacing on the refraction will be modified. Variations of
several units in the second decimal place might be attributable to
this cause. Further, if any of the constituent atoms are them-
selves anisotropic, which is probably the case with those giving
rise to intense colors, as well as with those present in asymmetrical
combination or position, the value of the refractivity, M, in the
formula will vary with the direction, and even the -first decimal
place of the refraction ratio may be affected. While these

wherry: crystal form and optical properties

281

sources of variation render the method of study here proposed of
little value in connection with the more complex compounds, it
seems likely to be useful for simple ones.

Certain features of the tetragonal system may now be briefly
reviewed. The classes it includes, with their symmetry and typ-
ical representatives, are listed in table 2.

TABLE 2
Tetragonal System

CLASS

SYMMETRY

ORQ.VNIC

t-t

REPRESENTATIVE

Standard name

Common name

Planes

Axes

o

1

1

Ditetragonal-bipyramidal . .

Normal

4 vert.

1-4, 4-2

Mellite

1 hor.

2

Ditetragonal-pyramidal ....

Hemimor-
phic

4 vert.

1-4

0

Penta-
erythrite

3

Tetragonal-bipyramidal. . . .

Pyramidal

Ihor.

1-4

1

i-Erythrite

4

Tetragonal-pyramidal

Pyr.-hemi.

0

1-4

0

Barium-an-
timony
tartrate
monohy-
drate.

5

Scalenohedral

Sphenoidal

2 vert.

1-2,2-2

0

Urea

6

Trapezohedral

Trapezohe-

0

1-4,4-2

n

Guanidine

dral.

carbonate

^7

Bisphenoidal

Tetartohe-

0

1-2

n

(No repre-
sentative

dral.

known).

Classes 4, 6, and probably 7 rotate the plane of polarized light,
indicating the presence of some asymmetrical arrangement of
atoms, and their refraction and axial ratios are therefore likely
to show poor agreement. In class 5 the positions of the hori-
zontal axes are fixed by the symmetry, so good agreement between
the two ratios is possible in the crystals belonging to it. In
classes 1, 2, and 3, however, there is a choice between the two
sets of horizontal axes, and there is no fundamental reason why
the closeness of packing in the layers, which is apparently what
determines the refractive effect exhibited all the way around a
uniaxial crystal, should be greater in one of these directions than

282

wherry: CRYSTAi. FORM AND OPTICAL PROPERTIES

in the other. Though often greatest in the layers perpendicular
to the one selected as a, — calling the most prominent pyramid
(111), — it may be greatest in those along the alternate one, a',
which is obtained by making this pyramid (lOl^ the relation
between the two being: a' = a\/2; or, if the structure is so simple
that the arrangement is about the same in the layers of atoms
traversed in both directions, the refractive effect may even be
the mean of those along the two axes, and a hypothetical value
a + a'

a" =

must be used.

In the course of the preparation of this paper many helpful
suggestions have been received from Dr. H. E. Merwin, of the
Geophysical Laboratory, Dr. E. Q. Adams, of the Bureau of
Chemistry, and others, to. all of whom the writer's warmest
thanks are herewith extended.

REFRACTION RELATIONS OF ORGANIC COMPOUNDS

Urea

CO(NH2)2 Tetragonal-scalenohedral; a : c = 1 : 0.833
The simplest organic compound known to crystaUize tetra-
gonal is urea, or carbamide; it was accordingly selected as the
iirst subject for study. The refractive indices of this substance

TABLE 3

Refraction Relations of Urea

REFRACTIVE INDICES

REFRACTION RATIO

AXIAL RATIO

CO

€

Rw/Re

c/a

1.484
±0.002

1.G02
±0.002

0.834

0.833

Refractivity, based on mean rio = V J^^ = 1.522 andp = 1.33: Md =13.77.
Refractivity, calculated from data obtained from liquids: Md = 13.67.

were determined by the immersion method by using essential
oils, in which it is but slightly soluble. The results are shown in
table 3, which includes (1) the refractive indices for D, and their
probable errors; (2) the ratio of the refractions, R, in the hori-

C02 - 1 /€2 - 1,

zontal and vertical directions a and c, that is,— ~ / r'

WHERRY : CRYSTAL FORM AND OPTICAL PROPERTIES 283

and (3) the axial ratio of the substance. The two ratios are
ahvays used in the opposite order; that is, if the one refers to
a/c, the other is taken as cla.

The agreement of the two ratios is very exact, and indicates
that in urea the standard axial ratio is identical with the true one,
all of the atoms having a part in determining the position of the
unit' sphenoid.

The information at hand now seems sufficient to warrant the
working out of the probable space-lattice of the substance, which
may be accomplished by bearing in mind the following points :

Since no change from one isomer into another is ever caused by
crystallization, molecules must be preserved in crystalhzed
organic compounds better than in most of the inorganic ones that
have been studied with X-rays. The chemical molecule should
therefore be retained as far as possible. It should be spread out

H ^ TT

in one plane, somewhat like this: N C N ^^^^ partial

H H

interpenetration of these groups is likely to occur.

Since urea shows cleavage in three directions at right angles, the
lattice should have a general cubic plan. But since the crystal
class is scalenohedral, there must be some alternation of group-
ings, corresponding to that shown by the sulfur atoms in the
tetrahedral mineral sphalerite. The lattice should possess
a vertical axis of alternating four-fold symmetry, two horizontal
axes of two-fold symmetry, and two symmetry planes. The
atoms must be equally represented in the layers in all three
directions in space, and the average distance between their
planes vertically be 0.833 times that horizontally. Some explan-
ation of this difference in spacing should be seen in the atomic
arrangement.

A space-lattice fulfilling these requirements proves to be very
easy to construct; and a portion of it containing five layers of
atoms in each direction is shown in figure 1. Four chemical
molecules are represented in this cell, as may be seen when it is
remembered that of each atom lying on outer surfaces only half
belongs to it. The oxygen atoms in the top and bottom layers

284 WHERRY : CRYSTAL FORM AND OPTICAL PROPERTIES

may be regarded as belonging alternately to carbon atoms shown,
and to others lying in adjacent cells; interlocking thus occm-s in
these oxygen layers. It also occurs in the nitrogen layers shown,
and in both cases is probably associated with residual affinity or
secondary valence of these elements.

In the writer's opinion the valency-volume hypothesis, accord-
ing to which the volumes of atoms are proportional to their val-
ences, which is much used in the study of molecular structure, is

Fig. 1. Space-lattice of urea.

fallacious. Kopp's data on atomic volumes in the liquid state
yield the diameters: H, 2.20; 0', 2.45; C, 2.75; 0", 2.85; N, 2.95;
or, if the diameter of the H atom is taken as 1.25 X 10"^ cm.,
those of the others are O', 1.40; C, 1.55; O", 1.60; and N, 1.70,
all X 10-^ cm. There is no reason to expect marked changes
from these values in solids.

In the two horizontal directions, front-back and right-left —
which are of course equivalent, as required by the symmetry —

wherry: crystal form and optical properties 285

oxygen or nitrogen atoms are present in all the layers and the
planes of the layers are therefore regarded as approximately
equally spaced. In the vertical direction, however, there are
layers containing hydrogen + carbon atoms, alternating with
others made up of oxygen and of nitrogen alone. In the first
kind the carbon atoms lie over vacant spaces in adjoining layers,
into which they can extend, so that the space occupied by these
layers is determined by the hydrogen atoms, which are distinctly
less in diameter than any of the others. The reason that urea
has a negative axial ratio is thus evidently the presence of layers
containing hydrogen atoms alternating with others made up of
thicker nitrogen and oxygen atoms in the vertical direction, while
all the layers contain the latter atoms in the horizontal one.
The next step is to calculate the spacing of the planes in centi-

^ / x X W X m
meters, which may be done by the formula da = %

^ y X p X c

where da is the distance between the planes in the horizontal
direction, x the number of chemical molecules in the portion of
the space-lattice studied, W the molecular weight referred to
hydrogen, m the mass of an atom of hydrogen, y the number of
unit cells in the larger one, p the density, and c the vertical
crystal axial value. In the case of urea the values are: x = 4,
W = 59.57, m = 1.64 X 10-^^ gram, y = 64, p averages 1.33, and
c = 0.833. Substituting, da = 1.77 X 10-^ cm., which is very
slightly greater than the average diameter of the atoms concerned,
in hquids. Correspondingly, c?c = c X (ia = 1.47 X 10 -^ cm.
In the cell figured there are vertically 1 N layer, 2 H layers, and
2 half O layers; the total d = 4 X 1.47 = 5.88 X 10-« cm. If
the vertical thickness of an O layer is 2 per cent greater than in
liquids, or 1.63, and of N 1.73, total 3.36, the thickness of an H

r CO Q «^g

layer = — '- — = 1.26; this barely exceeds the diameter of

a hydrogen atom adopted above. The structure assigned to
urea thus agrees quantitatively with all available data.

286 swanton: anthropology and provincialism

ANTHROPOLOGY. — Anthropology as a corrective of provin-
cialism. John R. Swanton, Bureau of Ethnology.

Anthropology is distinctly the study of man in society. It is
by its attention to the group or social idea that physical an-
thropology differs from anatomy and physiology, comparative
philology from the mere study of vocal expression, and culture
history from psychology. And it is apparent that the well being
of the individual depends, always and in an ever increasing degree,
upon the well being of the group of which he forms a part and the
harmonious relations between himself and that particular group.
Of course anthropology is not the only science which considers
man primarily as a social being. The same is true of history,
sociology, economics, and various others. But history, at least
that of the older orthodox type, limits itself for the most part to
those peoples and those periods of which there are scriptorial
records, sociology places its emphasis on mankind in the so-called
civilized nations, and economics and similar sciences consider
man with particular reference to his material environment or else
some special phase of his social relations. In particular it is to
be observed that each of these sciences is concerned with the
peoples of that one great culture center, which, beginning in the
immediate neighborhood of the eastern Mediterranean, gradually
spread westward until it came to be represented by the so-called
civilized nations of today. Anthropology, considering ethnology
and ethnography as subordinate branches, is the only science
w^hich, professedly and from the very beginning, has taken cog-
nizance of all human societies whether they be conventionally
called "civilized" or "uncivilized."

The importance of this fact appears when it is known that what
we call civilization has sprung up independently at a number of
distinct points or "culture centers," and that no two of these
culture centers has consisted of the same elements, has undergone
the same institutional or psychical development, has enjoyed, or
suffered from, the same environment. Thus the history which
each center presents, the expression of its life, the social organi-
zations and institutions which have developed within it are
different, and the peculiar outlook on life which an inhabitant of

swanton: anthropology and provincialism 287

any one may happen to have needs correction by a study of the
outlook of individuals belonging to other centers. Thus in
pre-Columbian North America we find that there was a culture
center in the eastern woodlands, one on the North Pacific coast,
one in the semi-arid Southwest, one, or perhaps, two, in Mexico
and Central America, and one in the West Indies. In South
America were two or three scattered along the Andean chain
and one in the region of Guiana. Turning to the Old World,
we are at once arrested by a few well-known culture centers like
those of China, India, and the eastern Mediterranean, while
centers more obscure may be detected in Polynesia and north-
east Africa. On examining some of these we note the further
interesting fact that they were originally complex, having resulted
from the fusion of several originally independent centers. This
is true in a way of the center in the eastern woodlands of North
America and those on the Andean plateau, but the most con-
spicuous example of the kind is to be found in that great east
Mediterranean culture center from which our own civilization is
descended. This is found to have incorporated a center in the
Nile valley, another in the valleys of the Euphrates and Tigris, a
third on the island of Crete, and probably a fourth in eastern
Asia Minor. These facts show that we must not consider culture
centers as so many water-tight — or rather influence-tight — com-
partments having no meaning for one another. On the contrary
it is not likely that a single one could be pointed out which had
been affected in no degree by at least one other, and there is
reason to believe that there has never been a time when thought
vibrations have not been able to reach all parts of the human race,
no people that may be said to have been intellectually sterilized.
Each of these centers is to be regarded as the result of a particular
running-together or complex of thought waves, a systematization
of ideas found in their crude and dissociated condition among all
human beings, or at least among many more than those consti-
tuting the particular center.

At the same time anthropology does not lose sight of or ignore
peoples not included in culture Centers. Viewed in one way they
may be divided up and attached to the several centers as so many

288 swanton: anthropology and provincialism

parts of a ''culture area," since each center influences the more
primitive people bj^ whom it is surrounded, but it would prob-
ably be truer to consider these primitive or "savage" peoples as
comprising the raw material, the people of dissociated ideas and
institutions, out of which the several culture centers have been
built, the lowlands of culture from which the centers of civilization
project like so many mountain peaks. The subsequent reaction
of the culture centers upon them should not obscure the fact
of their originally fundamental position.

And now as to the importance of all this for us. We know
how, even in the comparatively limited horizon of one nation or
one state, individuals tend to assume that to be right and just
to which they themselves and their immediate associates are
accustomed and that to be wrong which is foreign to their ways
of thought. We call such an attitude " provincial," and we laugh
at the man from the back township or the mountain county,
who thus exhibits his narrow prejudices and the limited mental
outlook of the community from which he sprang. But we should
be warned that provinciahsm is relative. One may be ''cosmo-
politan" as regards counties or towns and make fun of the
provincial with only the county or town outlook but be equally
provincial himself with relation to views entertained in the next
state. Again he may be cosmopolitan as between states but
provincial when it comes to another nation, or cosmopolitan as
between nations of approximately the same type of civilization
but provincial when confronted with nations or peoples of a
different cultural or racial type. Even the broadest of us is prone
to consider, or rather assume — for such things are often imbedded
too deeply in our subconscious natures to be made matters of
consideration — that certain ideas, customs, technical processes,
forms of government are best, or rather that they are essential,
as much part and parcel of humanity as hand or foot or eye, yet
we may be absolutely deceiving ourselves. It is the especial
function and peculiar privilege of anthropology systematically
to study and record ideas, technical processes, customs, and so on
wherever found, to the end that mankind may constantly become
less provincial, more cosmopolitan in his outlook, may discern

swanton: anthropology and provincialism 289

more clearly what are the essential accompaniments of human
life and human association, what are its nonessentials, also what
institutions have been worked out by different peoples and found
of benefit, what have been found harmful, what laws seem to be
justified by the experience of mankind in other parts of the world
and in other periods. In this way anthropology paves the way
for a broader outlook on the questions which every culture center,
every people, nay every individual, has to face. It renders
available as guides, not merely the experience of our immediate
ancestors, of related peoples, of our cultural forebears who
happened to be possessed of the art of writing, but the experience
and experiments of all peoples without any limit other than that
set by the boundaries of the globe or the extent to which human
memorials have been preserved.

And in the very processes that this study sets at work there
is involved a most important corollary. As the more intelligent
of all nations seize upon data provided in this manner the cos-
mopolitanization of thought is certain to extend until mutual
toleration and appreciation take the place of mutual repugnance,
dislike, and hostility, and much of the psychology that now
ultimates itself in war passes away. An obsession that the good
of the world requires that its culture shall be all German, or
French, or English, or American is but the display on a wider
field of the provincialism which holds that it should be patterned
on that of Jones county or Smithville. It is an obsession that
the prosecution of anthropological studies and the diffusion of the
results of such studies are certain to destroy, and I presume that
no reasonable human being will, in the light of current history,
consider such destruction of other than practical value.

ABSTRACTS

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

GEOLOGY. — Ore deposits of the northwestern part of the Garnet Range,
Montana. J. T. Pardee. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin
660-F. Pp. 80, with 4 plates and 10 figures. 1918.

The report describes the quartz lodes and placer gravels and the
principal features of the physiography and the geology in an area of
about 400 square miles north of Clark Fork River and east of Missoula.
The lodes are considered by districts, those of the Garnet, Coloma,
and Elk Creek districts, which are valuable chiefly for gold, being classi-
fied as filled fissures and replacement veins in granodiorite and schist.
In the Top o'Deep district there are contact-metamorphic replacements
in limestone valuable for copper, and quartz veins that contain gold.
In the Copper Cliff district mineralized fault breccias, and in the Clin-
ton district composite veins or shear zones in granodiorite, are valuable
for copper. Outlying deposits consist in part of silver-bearing galena
that has replaced limestone.

Under placer deposits is given a brief historical sketch of Bear and
Elk creeks, which produced between $6,000,000 and $10,000,000 in
placer gold in the "early days," and the origin of the gold-bearing
gravels is discussed.

Under geology there are condensed descriptions of the rocks, which
include 5000 feet of Belt strata, chiefly quartzite and shale; 4000 feet
of Paleozoic strata, mostly limestone; early Tertiary or late Cretaceous
intrusive granodiorite; and middle Tertiary extrusive rocks. Folds
and faults involve the strata, one of the chief structural features being
a large overthrust fault that has carried a great mass of Belt rocks
from the west over Paleozoic and younger formations.

Under physiography the elevated remnants of a peneplain are de-
scribed and their correlation with an erosion surface of Eocene age
known in the adjacent regions is indicated.

J. T. P.

290

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

The 121st meeting of the Academy was held in the Assembly Room
of the Cosmos Club the evening of Thursday, February 21, 1918, with
President Briggs presiding, the occasion being the second lecture of the
series on Science in Relation to the War, by Dr. George E. Hale,
Director of the Mi. Wilson Solar Observatory of the Carnegie Institution
of Washington, and Chairman of the National Research Council.
The subject of the address was Astronomy and war — some examples of
the close 'parallelism between the methods and work of the astronomer and
those of the military engineer. The lecture, which was abundantly
illustrated with lantern slides and moving pictures, was aimed to show
that men of science in any field, no matter how remote apparently
from that of military affairs, are prepared by the usual demands of their
scientific investigations to deal with problems pertaining to the war.

The 122d meeting of the Academy was held in the Assembly Room
of the Cosmos Club the evening of Thursday, March 7, 1918, with
President Briggs presiding. The third lecture of the series on Science
in Relation to the War was delivered by Col. C. F. Lee, Commanding
Officer, British Aviation Mission, his subject being Aviation and the
war. The address, which dealt essentially with the more practical
phases of aviation work, has been published in this Journal (8:
225-232. April 19, 1918) . Colonel Lee was followed by Major Gilmore
of the Royal British Flying Corps, who spoke appreciatively of the
work of American flyers and dwelt upon the necessity of expert training
in gunnery, as well as in actual flying, and the personal qualifications
which combine to make a successful and resourceful flyer.

The 123d meeting of the Academy was held in the Assembly Room
of the Cosmos Club on the evening of Wednesday, April 3, 1918, with
President Briggs presiding. The occasion was the fourth lecture of the
series on Science in Relation to the War, by Maj. Gen. John Headlam,
C.B., D.S.O., in charge of the British Artillery Mission, entitled The
development of artillery during the war. A summary of the lecture
will appear in a later number of the Journal.

William R. Maxon, Recording Secretary.

291

292 proceedings: philosophical society

PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 802d meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, March 2, 1918.
Vice-President Humphreys in the chair; 40 persons present. The
minutes of the 801st meeting were read in abstract and approved.

Lieut. D. L. Webster presented a paper on Emission quanta phe-
nomena in X-rays, illustrated by lantern slides. The paper was- a brief
account of the work on this subject that has appeared in the past three
3^ears in the Physical Review and the Proceedings of the National Academy
of Sciences.

In the general radiation spectrum, the frequency whose quantum
is the energy of one cathode electron was found by Duane and Hunt,
and by Hull, to have an upper limit, at which the spectrum ends. It was
shown by Webster that the existence of such a limit to the spectrum is
direct evidence that the rays are trains of periodic waves rather than
pulses; and with further experimental work, that if atoms in the anti-
cathode could be struck only by electrons of a definite velocity, any
atom's chance of emitting rays of a given f requeue}^ jumps from zero
discontinuously to a finite value as the energy of the cathode electron is
raised continuously past the quantum value of that frequency. A
further continuous increase of energy of the cathode electron would
produce a continuous decrease of intensity of rays of that frequency.

For the characteristic rays of the K series, it was found by Webster
that no such rays are produced until the cathode electron's energy
reaches the quantum value of the highest frequency of the series, at
which point all the lines of the series appear together. Their intensities
increase by the same law for all lines, but this law is very different from
that holding for any given frequency in the general radiation. These
phenomena are all consistent with the hypothesis that the primary
characteristic rays produced by cathode rays come from the same
atomic mechanism as the secondary characteristic rays occurring in
fluorescence. This statement holds, whatever that mechanism may be.

For the L series it was found by Webster and Clark that the laws are
similar to those of the K series except that the lines must be considered
as belonging to at least two, and probably three, separate series, each
of which behaves like the K series.

Discussion: This, paper was discussed by Messrs. Swann, White,
and FooTE.

The second paper, on Determination of the constant Co of Plan.k's law,
was presented by Major C. E. Mendenhall. It was illustrated by
lantern slides. No abstract furnished. A paper of the same title was
published in the Physical Review, 15 : 515. November, 1917.

Discussion: This paper was discussed by Messrs. Crittenden,
Abbott, Coblentz, Foote, Sosman, WhiteI^ Swann, and Webster.

H. L. Curtis, Recordiyvj Secretary.

proceedings: philosophical society 293

The 803d meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, March 16, 1918.
President Burgess in the chair; 39 persons present. The minutes
of the 802d meeting were read in abstract and approved.

A paper on Thermal expansion of alpha and of beta brass by P. D.
■jNIerica and L. W. Schad was presented by Mr. Merica. This paper
was illustrated by lantern slides. Within the past four j-ears an investi-
gation has been in progress at the Bureau of Standards of the cracking
or fracturing of cast and wrought brass, particularly^ of the type com-
position, 60 per cent of copper and 40 per cent of zinc. It has been
found that in most failures of such brasses in service the cracking can be
ascribed to the presence of initial stresses in conjunction with surface
corrosion. These initial stresses may be produced either in the mechan-
ical working of the material, such as drawing or rolling or by shrinkage,
as in the case of cast metal. As, however, a number of instances of
cracking in brass of this type have come to the attention of the authors
for which such explanations cannot be applicable, it was their intention
to ascertain whether local internal stresses could not be produced in
brass of this composition by heat treatment such as it might receive
in manufacture.

Brasses of this type are heterogeneous, consisting of the mechanical
mixture of two constituents, called respectively, the alpha and the beta
constituents. Measurements of the linear thermal expansion of these
two constituents have shown that of the beta constitutent to be con-
siderably in excess of that of the alpha. So great is this difference that
rough calculations have shown the possibility of the development of
average stresses due to the sudden cooling by quenching of the brass
containing these constituents equal to approximate!}' 15,000 pounds per
square inch.

Experiments showed that these stresses were probabty responsible
for the lowering of the proportional limit of such brasses amounting to
as much as .25 per cent.

The thermal expansion curves illustrate also very well the nature of
the thermal transformations in the beta constituent varying about
1460°C.

Discussion: This paper was discussed by Messrs. White, Briggs,
and Burgess.

A paper on The principles of electrical measurements at radio fre-
quencies was presented by Mr. J. H. Bellinger. The principles of
radio or high-frequency measurements are coextensive with the prin-
ciples of radio engineering to an extent not true in other fields. This is
typified in the wavemeter, which is a complete radio transmitting and
receiving station, albeit in miniature. The principles of ordinary
alternating current theory apply with little change to the phenomena at
very high frequencies. This was not true a few years ago, when damped
waves were universally used in radio work, but the introduction of
satisfactory sources of undamped currents has largely eliminated the
specialized theory that went with damped waves.

294 proceedings: philosophical society

While precision measurements with direct current are commonly
made by null methods, high-frequency measurements on the other hand
use the opposite critical phenomenon, a maximum rather than minimum
of current. Resonance or tuning is thus the basis of radio measure-
ments as well as of wave transmission and reception. At resonance
the reactances due to capacity and to inductance annul each other and
the current is limited by resistance only. As resistances are small in
comparison with reactances at radio frequencies, the current is rela-
tively very great at resonance, i.e., the resonance is very sharp and is
thus a suitable basis for measurements.

The wavemeter is a resonance instrument, and is used to measure
capacity and inductance as well as wave length. The other most
generally useful radio instrument is the ammeter. With these two,
measiu'ements are made of current, resistance, power, and associated
quantities, in addition to the quantities above mentioned. In general
the best methods are those which are the least complicated. This is
particularly true because of the disturbing effects of small inductances
and capacities in lead wires and accessory apparatus. Small capacities
in and near the measuring circuits are especially troublesome. They
include the capacities of instrument cases, table tops, walls, and the
observer, and they cannot always be determined or eliminated.

While resistance is of distinctly less importance in determining the
flow of currents at high frequencies than at low, nevertheless resistance
is the measure of power consumption. As it varies rapidly with ratio
frequencies, its measurement is very necessary. The same measure-
ment gives resistance and the associated quantities, sharpness of reson-
ance, phase difference, and decrement.

Great advances in the precision of all these measurements have
recently been made possible by the introduction of electron tubes as
sources of current. They have the very great advantage of giving a
steady current, and as the current is undamped the simple sine wave
theory of alternating currents may be used.

Discussion: The paper was discussed by Messrs. White, Bichowsky,
and SwANN.

Mr. G. W. ViNAL then gave a paper on Some electrical properties of
■silver sulphide. Silver sulphide may be prepared in the form of short
wires or thin strips like a metal. The wire, which must be drawn hot,
has been found to conduct electricity hke a metal of high specific re-
sistance and practically zero temperature coefficient. The strip of
sulphide, rolled at room temperature, has a large temperature coeffi-
cient and shows both metallic and electrolytic conduction at the same
time. It has a volt-ampere curve characteristic of a pyroelectric
conductor. The resistance of these strips has been examined with both
alternating and direct curi-ent, with the result that the alternating-
current resistance was nearly always found to be higher than that with
the direct current, and the passage of a small alternating current of a
frequency as low as 60 cycles increased temporarily the resistance of
the sulphide, while a small direct current produced the opposite effect.

proceedings: botanical society . 295

Experiinents were made to find the electrochemical decomposition
due to the electrolytic conduction of the strips of sulphide. A strip in
air (5.5 by 0.3 by 0.01 cm.) with silver-plated ends was soldered to
copper leads and put in a direct-current circuit. The initial current of
25 milliamperes was passed through it for nearly an hour without
visible change. The current was increased by steps of 50 milliamperes
at 10-minute intervals until with 200 milliamperes a discoloration of the
plating at the anode end was noticed. A further increase to 300 milli-
amperes completed the destruction of the silver plating at the anode end
and finally burned off the terminal, but before this happened a myriad
of little shinj' silver crystals appeared on the black surface of the sul-
phide. The appearance of these crystals was carefully studied under
the microscope, and it was found that they occurred even to within a
small fraction of a millimeter of the anode terminal. They appeared
in various forms, some of which suggested that they had been expelled
from the interior of the sulphide by considerable force.

Discussion: The paper was discussed by Messrs. Buckingham, Hon-

AMAN, BiCHOWSKY, SoSMAN, and BuftGESS.

E. C. Crittenden, Corresponding Secretary.

BOTANICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 128th regular meeting of the Society was held at the Cosmos
Club at 8.00 p.m., Tuesday, April 2, 1918. There were 28 members
and 4 guests present. Messrs. L. L. C. Krieger, H. F. Bergman,
G. A. Meckstroth, and Wm.'N. Ankeney were elected to membership.
The following scientific program was given:

Carleton R. Ball: The grain sorghums: a botanical grouping of
varieties cultivated in the United States (with lantern). There are two
chief centers of origin for the sorghums, Africa and India. The prin-
cipal groups cultivated in the United States are kafir, milo (including
feterita), and durra. All of these are of African origin. The kafir
varieties mostly were obtained from the native tribes in Natal, South
Africa. The Guinea kafir, however, probably was derived from the
West Coast of Africa, whence it was brought as food for slaves during
their long voyage to America. It is now cultivated in several islands
of the West Indies. The milo varieties probably are of Egyptian origin.
Very similar forms are grown in Egj^pt today under the names Durra
Beda (white) , Durra Saf ra (yellow) , and Durra Ahmar (brown) . Feter-
ita was derived from the British Egyptian Sudan. The durra varie-
ties, white and brown, probabh' came from North Africa, where they
are still found among the native tribes. These are the varieties known
in California as "White Egyptian corn" and "Brown Egj^ptian corn,"
respectively. The white variet\^ has been grown in the Great Plains
area under the name "Jerusalem corn." The kaoHang varieties are
derived from North China and ^Manchuria. The different groups are
clearly separated by botanical characters. The speaker exhibited
charts showing by means of keys the classification of the sorghums.

296 . proceedings: biological society

The chief groups of the sorghums are Broomcorn, Sorgo, Kaohang,
Kafir, Shalhi, Durra, and Milo. Keys were given showing the relation
of the varieties of the Kafir group and of the Durra-Milo group.

F. V. Rand: The Shaw aquatic gardens (with lantern). The Shaw
Aquatic Gardens, near Washington, were started several years ago as a
matter of curiosity and recreation. Beginning with a half-dozen
roots of the native white waterlily set in a little dug-out pond in the
swamps of the Anacostia River the gardens have increased in size until
there are over five acres under water. In these ponds are grown nearly
all varieties of water plants that will live in our climate. They are sold
all over the United States and even in the Hawaiian Islands. The
business has been an artistic and financial success from the start;
but has not been without its difficulties. Turtles, muskrats, and
various insects offer each their special brand of tribulation. The
biology and successful control of a serious fungus disease of pond lilies
(caused by Helicosporium 7iymphaeariwi n. sp.) have been worked
out by the writer; and a fungous leaf spot of Egyptian lotus (caused
by an Alternaria) is under study.

Following Mr. Rand's paper, Mrs. Fowler, the Manager of the
Shaw Gardens, invited the members of the Society to visit the gardens
and pointed out that June is one of the best times to inspect them.

H. N. ViNALL, Corresponding Secretary.

BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 581st regular meeting of the Society was held in the Assembly
Hall of the Cosmos Club, Saturday, March 9, 1918; called to order at
8 p.m. by President Rose; 30 persons present.

On recommendation of the Council Miss E. E. Stevenson was elected
to membership.

Two informal communications were presented:

T. S. Palmer made remarks on the systematic feeding of quail in the
city of W^ashington during the past winter. A census of these birds
showed 60 coveys with a total of 1235 individuals. Discussed by Gen.
T. E. W^iLcox.'

R. W. Shufeldt showed lantern slide X-raj^ picture of the double-
headed tortoise exhibited at the previous meeting of the Society.
Major Shufeldt also exhibited two living specimens of the whip-tailed
scorpion, Thelyphonus giganteus, collected by Mr. Nelson R. Wood, at
Auburndale, Florida. Reference was made to its geographic distribu-
tion, Florida and West Indies, its habits in capitivity, its structure,
and its systematic position. Its popular names were stated to be vine-
gerone, vinaigner, mulekiller, and vinegar maker.

The regular program consisted of three communications:

John T. Zimmer: An intensive feeding habit i?i young herons. Read
by the Recording Secretary in the author's absence in New Guinea.
This note will appear in full in the Proceedings of the Society. It was
discussed b}- Dr. T. S. Palmer and Alex. Wetmore.

PROCEEDINGS I BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY 297

E. P. Churchill, Jr.: The life history of the blue crab. Various
features of the life history of this form were studied by means of observa-
tions and experiments carried on during the interval from July 1, 1916,
to December 1, 1917, especial attention being given to the crab of
Chesapeake Bay. The eggs of the crab were found to measure about
1 100 of an inch in diameter. As they are laid they become attached
to the endopodites of the four anterior pairs of swimmerets, forming
the "sponge." About 1,750,000 eggs are laid- at one time. They
remain upon the swimmerets until they hatch, which event occurs
within about fifteen days after the,y are laid. Upon hatching the young
leave the female at once and do not cling to her as has often been
supposed. Most of the spawning in Chesapeake Bay is accomplished
from the first of June to the first of August and occurs mostly in the
southern part of the bay.

About one month is required in which to pass the zoeal and the
megalops stages. After the latter stage is passed the crab molts about
fifteen times before the adult condition is reached. Most probably it
does not molt after reaching maturity. The young, which are hatched
in the southern part of the bay, migrate to Maryland waters and reach
maturity and mate there. There is a cessation of growth and molting
during the winter. Maturity is reached during the second summer, at
the age of about twelve to fourteen months. Mating occurs during
July and August. Mating takes place in the female at the time of her
last molting, at which time the abdomen changes from a triangular to
a broad rounded form. Most of the females do not lay the eggs the
same season in which mating occurs but migrate to the southern part
of the bay, he on the bottom in deep water there, and spawn the fol-
lowing season. The males do not migrate southward to as great an
extent as do the females, but remain in more northerly waters. The,
crabs do not bur}' in the substratum during the winter as has been
commonly supposed.

At least two and probably three batches of eggs are laid by the
females. Some lay their first lot late in the summer and another lot
the next season. Some lay two batches during the same summer. At
the time of the only copulation which occurs during the life of the
female, enough spermatozoa are deposited b.y the male in the sperm sacs
of the female to fertilize all the eggs which she lays during her life time.
The females die shortly after the last batch of eggs is laid, death usually
occurring during the late summer or earty fall. The usual length of
life of the crab is about three years.

The paper was illustrated by lantern sHdes. It was discussed by
W. P. Hay and Dr. T. S. Palmer.

R. H. True: Notes on the early history of the pecan in America.
The earliest account of the pecan is probabty that by Cabeza de
Vaca, who saw it in 1533 on the lower course of the Guadaloupe River in
Texas. De Soto found it in use by the Indians in 1540-42 along the
Mississippi River from near the mouth of the Illinois River and south-
ward. The pecan seems to have been first introduced into the English

298 proceedings: entomological society

colonies by Captain Bouquet and John Bartram in September 1761.
Daniel Clark of New Orleans sent nuts to Vice President Jefferson in
1799. The first botanical description is by Jefferson in his Notes
on Virginia, in 1782. The name "pecan" was found in use by De Soto
about 1540 and by Penicault, 1704, among the tribes of the Mississippi
Valley; probably not used by the Texas tribes west of this region. The
pecan was probably cultivated in Spain at an early date, but the first
ascertained record of its introduction into Europe was by John Bartram
who sent pecans to Peter Collinson in England early in 1761. First
introduction into France was probably through Jefferson in 1787. The
earliest cultivation in America probably took place in Mexico about 200
years ago. William Prince succeeded on Long Island with nuts planted
in 1772. Abner Landrum successfully budded the pecan on common
hickory at Edgefield, S. C, in 1822.

The paper was discussed by Gen. T. E. Wilcox and Major R. W.
Shufeldt.

The 582d regular meeting of the Society was held in the Assembly Hall
of the Cosmos Club, Saturday, March 23, 1918; called to order at 8
p.m. by President Rose; 65 persons present.

The regular program consisted of an illustrated lecture by Edmund
Heller entitled The Chinese borderland of Tibet and Burma. Mr.
Heller gave an account of his recent collecting trip made in conjunction
with Mr. Roy Andrews through Japan, China, and northern Burma.
He described the route taken, the geographic and geologic features of
the country passed through, the characteristics and customs of the
people, and the nature of the larger animals encountered. He called
particular attention to the deforested conditions of China and the
intensive system of agriculture in vogue. The absence of animal life in
China was rather conspicuous as contrasted with many of the neighbor-
ing and less densely populated countries. The scarcity of birds in some
places with no apparent increase in insect pests was noteworthy. His
talk was profusely illustrated by lantern shde views of all the features
mentioned by him.

Mr. Heller's paper was discussed by the chair, A. S. Hitchcock, and
Dr. George W. Field.

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

ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 312th regular meeting of the Society was held at the Cosmos Club,
April 4, 1918. There were twenty-nine members and four visitors
present.

In the absence of President E. R. Sasscer, the Honorary President
Mr. E. A. ScHWARZ occupied the chair.

The following names were favorably acted upon for membership:
Dr. J. A. Nelson, Bureau of Entomology; Mr. Oscar H. Basseches,
Bureau of Entomology; Mr. L. P. Rockwood, Forest Grove, Oregon;

proceedings: entomological society 299

Mr. C. W. Collins, Gipsy Moth Laboratory, Mehose Highlands,
Massachusetts; and Mr. Howard L. Clark, North Farm, Bristol,
Rhode Island.

The regular program was as follows:

Harold ^Morrison: Notes on the Virgin Islands. Mv. Morrison dis-
cussed briefly the size, location, past history, and the economic devel-
opment of the islands, giving some notes on the principal agricultural
crops and their chief insect enemies. Among the insects mentioned
were termites, the different varieties of a species of weevil (Diaprepes
sp.) the cotton-leaf blister mite, and the sweet-potato weevil (Euscepes
batata). About thirty species of scale insects were collected, and about
twenty-six hundred specimens representing other orders. No fruit
flies were found, and fruit was very scarce on the islands due to the great
destruction caused by the recent hurricane. Mr. Morrison's communi-
cation was di'scussed by Messrs. Schwarz, Casey, Busck, and Pierce.

R. E. Snodgrass: The value of pictorial charts in extension entomology.
This paper was illustrated by a number of artistically drawn charts
designed to illustrate the life histories of economic insects. The speaker
presented a strong argument in favor of this manner of carrying ento-
mological information to the general public. He stated that the charts
would attract and hold attention, that they were designed to bring out
the most vuhierable points in the life-histories of the insects illustrated ;
and that they were quickly and easily read. He believed that the
essential points in control would be more readily grasped by the reader
than from the written page. In discussing Mr. Snodgrass' remarks
Dr. L. O. Howard pointed out some of the excellencies of the charts
from the artistic standpoint. .

W. D. Pierce: The case of the genera Rhina and Magdalis. Read by
title.

E. A. McGregor: A new host plant for the cotton-boll weevil. Read
by title.

S. A. Rohwer: New sawflies of the subfamily Diprioninae. Read by
title.

A. B. Gahan, Recording Secretary.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Dr. H. Foster Bain has recently returned from China, and has
accepted the position of Assistant Director of the Bureau of Mines.

Dr. Graham Edgar, of Throop College, Pasadena, California, has
been appointed Technical Assistant to the newly established Research
Information Committee, and has entered upon his duties at the office
of the National Research Council. Mr. Walter M. Gilbert, of the
Carnegie Institution of Washington, is secretary of the local office of
the Committee.

Dr. YoGORO Kato, formerly a member of the Research Laboratory
of Physical Chemistry at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology,
and now professor in the Higher Technical School of Toyko and director
of the Nakamura Chemical Research Institute, visited Washington in
March.

Dr. E. C. Lathrop, formerly of the Laboratory of Soil Fertility In-
vestigations, left Washington on May 1, 1918, to accept a position in
the organic dye research laboratory of E. I. du Pont de Nemours and
Co., at AVilmington, Delaware.

Mr. Joseph U. Monroe, chief of the telegraph division of the
Weather Bureau, died suddenly on April 13, 1918, after a service with
the Bureau of twenty-seven years' duration.

A ''Joint Information Board on Minerals and Derivatives" has been
formed for the purpose of systematizing the handhng of official inquiries
regarding minerals and mineral products. This body is intended to
serve as a clearing house to secure the prompt preparation and trans-
mittal of data from a single authoritative source without duplication of
effort, and is composed of representatives from the various government
bureaus, boards, arid departments ihterested. Mr. Pope Yeatman, of
the War Industries Board, Division of Raw Materials, is chairman, and
Dr. Edson S. Bastin, of the Geological Survey, is secretary of the new
Board.

The following persons have become members of the Academy since
the last issue of the Journal:

Mr. Sidney F. Blake, Bureau of Plant Industry, Department of
Agriculture, Washington, D. C.

Dr. Joseph Augustine Cushivl^n, Sharon, Massachusetts.

Mr. Ernest G. Fischer, U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, Wash-
ington, D. C.

Professor William Suddards Franklin, Massachusetts Institute
of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Mr. Ned Hollister, National Zoological Park, Washington, D. C.

Dr. Raymond Pearl, U. S. Food Administration, Washington, D. C.

.300

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VIII MAY 19, 1918 No. 10

ORDNANCE. — Developments in artillery during the war} John
Head LAM, Major-General, in charge of the British Artillery
Mission. (Communicated by L. J. Briggs.)

It is a trying ordeal for a soldier with no pretension to scien-
tific knowledge to address such an audience as this, particularly
when he has to commence with an apology for ignorance on that
part of his subject which is of most interest at the moment. I
must confess to you, gentlemen, that I have not even a theory to
advance regarding the Paris gun, and I can only throw myself on
the mercy of the court! But I take courage from your well-
known kindness so constantly extended to British officers. And
if I can not claim to be one of those artillerymen who have in-
vaded the domains of science, I have learned, as an artillery
commander in the field, how much we owe to the scientists who
have devoted their talents to the solution of the problems which
confront us. I think therefore that I may be able to tell you
something of the development of artillery during this war, from
the user's point of view, which may be of interest. The subject
is so vast that it would be quite impossible even to touch on,
much less to deal adequately with, all the directions in which
these developments have taken place, even if I were to devote
myself entirely to the science of artillerj^

But this is not everything. To engage the right target from
the right place, with the right guns, this is the artillerj-man's

1 A lecture given before the Washington Academy of Sciences on April 3, 1918.

301

302 headlam: developments in artillery

art, without which his science is half wasted. In artillery, more
than in any arm of the service, tactical and technical considera-
tions are most intimately connected. I shall try to show how
the changes in taotics affect technical matters and how the de-
mands of the soldier may upset the plans of the scientist, and I
hope that I shall be able to make you understand that the entry
of science into war has in no way taken away the glamour of
romance however much it may have increased its horror.

I shall not trouble you wdth any reference to organization.
You must accept it from me that every operation in this war has
confirmed the necessity for a carefully elaborated scheme for
the employment of concentrations of artillery, involving a method-
ical allotment of tasks from the outset, and largely depending for
its successful execution on an effective chain of artillery command.

Field artillery material. It will, I think, be advisable to com-
mence with some brief reference to the various types of artillery
employed in the field, without attempting to go into detail re-
garding any particular nature. Taking field artillery first, we
stand practically where we were. At one time an idea got
abroad that the days of field artillery were numbered, that it
had been supplanted by the ''heavies." This was a very dan-
gerous heresy, but it is dead. The field artillery is as firmly es-
tablished in its position as it ever was, the proportion of guns to
bayonets has altered little, and the material has changed least of
all. The Germans still have their old field gun, made as a breech
loader in 1896 and converted into a quick firer in 1906. Our
own 18-pounder, which was brought into the service at the be-
ginning of this century, immediately after the South African War,
is still in our belief admirably suited for its work. It is no secret
that the American artillery has adopted a field gun designed and
made by those admirable gunners, the French, in the nineties of
the last century.

Shrapnel versus high explosive. But there are two points in
connection with field artillery material on which a real differ-
ence in opinion and practice exists.

The first is the relative values of shrapnel and high explosive
shell, On this the French and ourselves are the great protago-

headlam: developments in artillery 303

nists of the rival schools. Their 75-mm. is primarily designed for
the rapid fire of high explosive shell and its "rafales" did marvels
in throwing back the first great German advance on the Marne.
The English, as befits the country of the inventor, General
Shrapnel of the British Army, have always been great shrapnel
adherents; our 18-pounder was designed as a shrapnel gun, and
has undoubtedly the most pow^erful shrapnel in existence. I ad-
mit that we carried this too far in having no high explosive at all,
and you may possibly recall the great outburst of indignation
caused by some so-called "revelations" in the press regarding the
shortage of high explosive shell in 1915. The question now is not
of there being enough high explosive, but of getting the artillery
to use the proportion that the manufacturers- would like to
produce. We saw the effect of our shrapnel on the German in-
fantry in 1914, and we have not forgotten it.

The second is the advisability of including howitzers in field
artillery. Here again we join issue with our French friends, who
hold that the lowest caliber for the howitzer is the 6-inch. But
we know^ what our howitzers have done for us, and as I see again
in memory the many fields on which our 4.5-inch rendered such
yeoman service, ever since they first came into action among the
slag banks and pitheads at Mons, I can scarcely imagine how we
should have fared without them. And here I know that our in-
fantry would back me up.

Use of heavy artillery in the field. When we turn to heavy ar-
tillery, in which I include all natures other than field, the story is
one of almost miraculous progress. Broadly speaking, it may be
said that heavy artillery formed no part of the equipment of
modern armies at the commencement of the war. This is not
strictly true, for the Germans had a battalion of 6-inch howitzers
in each corps, while we had a battery of 60-pounders in each divi-
sion. But the use of heavy artillery in the field was no new
thing, though the whole world gasped in amazement when the
Germans brought up their big siege pieces on the Aisne. In mod-
ern days, it had been done with success by the Boers, who used
the 6-inch guns taken from the fortifications of Pretoria with suc-
cess against us on many occasions. As soon as Port Arthur fell

304 headlam: developments in artillery

the Japanese brought their 11-inch howitzers to join the field
army in Manchuria, and the mountings of some of your coast de-
fense guns on their way to join the field army in France are mod-
eled on those which our sailors improvised to carry their ship
guns across the South African veldt.

Proportion of howitzers. In field artillery- we have seen that
controversy raged around the inclusion or not of howitzers at all.
In heavy artillery all are agreed that both are necessary, but
opinion is at variance as to the proportion of each. Here again
we find ourselves on the side of the Germans while the French
are, or were, all for the gun. But in this matter as in so many
others, friendly discussion, and the exchange of experience, has
brought us very much to the same point of view. The whole
thing really turns on whether howitzers should be used for counter
battery work or confined to bombardment. We hold that the
howitzer is more accurate against such a target as an enemy's
battery; that it is more mobile for the same weight of shell;
that its fire can be more easily observed, especially from an
aeroplane; that it has a longer life; and that it is easier to place,
not only because it can be tucked away into hollows of the
ground where it would be impossible to use a gun; but also (and
this is a curious development of this war of masses), because it
can be used in crowded areas. I have often seen our big howit-
zers in action in the midst of a mass of. congested traffic around
some depot of supplies, with troops moving in every direction,
wagons loading up with stores, and so forth, under their very
muzzles, where the blast of a gun would have swept everything
away in front of it. But while controversialists are marshalling
such arguments it looks as if the ground would be cut away from
under their feet by the disappearance of the distinction between
gun and howitzer! The length of the- howitzers has gradually
grown from 13 calibers to 17, and now in some of the latest to
over 20, while the use of varying charges either to reduce the
wear, or to allow of the employment of curved fire, is gaining
ground for guns.

Trench mortars. At the other end of the scale we have trench
mortars, again only a revival of a weapon well known a century

headlam: developments in artillery 305

or more ago. They also were used extensively by the Japanese
in Manchuria, but I am afraid that the artillery as a whole was
rather inclined to scoff at them when they first appeared. Those
days, however, soon passed. It was recognized that in the form
of trench mortars, we could increase our strength for bombard-
ment by utilizing material and labor not good enough for guns.
The German trench mortars, for instance, were chiefly made by
a firm famous the world over for its cream separators! What
distinguished officers at one time called 'Hin pot artillery" thus
rose gradually in favor, until in Italy it took the place of horse
artillery as a corps d'elite. But in those days we were shorter of
guns and ammunition than of men. Now the position is re-
versed. Trench mortars are terribly expensive in men, and more
especially in officers, and so just when the material is being per-
fected, the mortars are dropping to some extent out of use. It
is just one of those changes which must be so baffling to the
civilian w^ho tries to help us.

Increase in range. With all natures, guns and howitzers, field,
heavy, and trench mortars, there has been a continual cry for-
range, and still greater range. This has been due to many causes,
chiefly tactical, but principally to the extension of field of fire
given by aeroplane observation. The various expedients which
have been resorted to to meet this demand are interesting. In
the first place there was the simple lengthening of the howitzers,
and the bringing into the field of the long high-velocity naval
and coast-defense guns. Then there came the various alterations
in form of shell, the general feature of all of which is a great
lengthening of the ogive (the pointed nose of the projectile).
The radius of curvature of the ogive has been increased from 2
to 6, and in some cases to 8 calibers, but the most notable form
is the French ''Obus D," so called after General Desailleux, the
officer chiefly responsible for the design, and usually designated
by us as the "stream line" form. Our experience with this form
has not been very encouraging, but it is admitted that the slope
of the base has a very important bearing, and must be determined
for each nature, and I may mention as an instance of the close
cooperation existing between us, that the French have recently

306 headlam: developments in artillery

designed a shell for trial in our guns with which we hope to get
better results. The ''false head," another form of the same
idea, is largely used by French and Germans in the heavier long
range guns, but again it is not so popular with us. It introduces
considerable complication in supply and fitting and is suspected
of being a possible cause of ''prematures." No doubt with the
extension of the use of longer-headed shell, the necessity for
false heads disappears to a great extent. But I am by no means
satisfied that they have not great possibilities when used with
shell designed from the commencement for them.

Long-burning fuses. The most difficult problem in connection
with range is the provision of a time fuse which will be reliable
for long range fire. We should use shrapnel far more than we
do, if we could get a good time fuse, reliable at long ranges.
Here is an opportunity if ever there was one for the scientists.
As you probably know, the fuses in the service now depend on
the burning of a train of composition, which must be liable to
many inaccuracies, especially when you consider the conditions
under which it has to be kept on service. Mechanical fuses have
been known for long, and we did our best to encourage inventors
nearly twenty years ago, but such fuses only came into real use
last year when it was noticed that the Germans were making
uncommonly accurate practice at our balloons, at ranges up to
over 20,000 yards. Early in the. summer we got specimens
of their fuse, which turned out to be a clock-work fuse designed in
1916. The Academy of Sciences will be interested to hear that
they were at once handed over to the Cambridge Physical Labo-
ratory— it would perhaps be indiscreet to proceed further with
my revelations.

Use of guns at close quarters. But if the tendency is always to
increase the range of our guns, do not think it is with the object
of keeping them back. Far from it, for even if guns are as a rule
further apart than they were in the old wars, the men who direct
the guns are closer than they were even in Napoleon's time, and
there is still as much room as ever for the display of personal en-
terprise and gallantry. But as a matter of fact, just as this war
has seen the revival of hand-to-hand fighting with the bayonet and

headlam: developments in artillery 307

the butt, so it has seen guns pushed into closer ranges than has
occurred for a century at least. On many occasions I have known
individual field guns put within 200 yards of the enemy's trenches.
This was of course for some special task, such as breaching a para-
pet or knocking out some particularly obnoxious *'nest" of ma-
chine guns. With time, ingenuity, and courage, a gun can be
got almost anywhere, and the effect of its fire at such ranges is
very marked, while its presence affords immense encouragement
to the infantry. Great care must of course be taken in working
out the preliminary arrangements, and in one case I may men-
tion where a gun had to be brought up over the open, it was
moved at night under a canopy, like a dignitary of the Church in
high festivals, and the gunners who carried the canopy were
trained to drop it on the gun whenever a flare went up. This
gun fired its 100 rounds at a range of 70 yards in nine minutes,
completely destroying its objective, and the detachment then,
strictly against orders, joined in the assault.

Another case I know forms rather a touching story. When I
was on the Italian front beyond Gorizia in 1916 I happened one
day to see a gun very cleverly concealed in the front line, to be
used in much the same way. Curiously enough I met last year
the commander of the corps to which this gun belonged, and
talking one day he asked me if I remembered it. He said he
had been going around after me, and the noncommissioned officer
in charge had told him how an English general had shaken his
hand and congratulated him on being in the place of honor.
Poor fellow, he did his work with complete success next day,
but he and all his men were killed.

Increase of heavy artillery. But, gentlemen, I am not sure that
the real romance of artillery in this war does not lie in the efforts
made to furnish us with the material we so urgently needed. At
the beginning, as I have said, we had one battery of "heavies"
per division, or 24 guns in the whole of our "contemptible little
army." On the Aisne we got our first siege howitzers of 6-inch
caliber, and I had placed under my command there the same bat-
tery which as a young staff officer I had guided tj* its first position
against the Boers at Pardeberg. During the winter of 1914, a

308 headlam: developments in aetillery

few more heavy guns and howitzers began to arrive, but by mid-
summer of 1915, we had only about 70 all told. The summer of
1916, however, saw this number increased just tenfold, while by
last summer it had been more than doubled again. How was this
done? In the first place by utilizing every gun, whether de-
signed for a fort or a ship, that we could lay hands on. The
mounting of such guns, for work in the field, either on railway
trucks or carriages, has given great scope for ingenuity, espe-
cially as the task has become more and more complicated by the
necessity for economy in metals and in skilled labor. But all
along the great consideration has been time, and this of course
has been especially true of new manufacture. It is to that ele-
ment of time that I would like to draw your special attention,
because it is one which, if you will pardon me for saying so, the
scientist is perhaps a little inclined to overlook. It is only nat-
ural that he should be absorbed in the perfecting of his design,
but the poor soldier facing the German can not wait for the fairy
tales of science and the long results of time, but wants something,
anything, and quickly, that will shoot.

National efforts. And then Mr. Lloyd George, like a new Peter
the Hermit, led a crusade to stir up the people at large to the
manufacture of guns and shells. We perpetuated designs which
we knew to be out of date. We adopted, with our eyes open,
new designs which were in many points based on considerations
of facility of manufacture, rather than of perfection, and we
risked the omission of many of the regular stages of trial hitherto
considered essential. It was a gamble, but it was the only way
to get the numbers required, and it was justified by success.
In this connection I may perhaps mention a most remarkable
instance of adherence to antiquated pattern, in order to avoid
any delay to output, afforded by the Germans. The outbreak
of war found Germany, as I have already mentioned, with an
obsolescent field gun, but as I personally discovered in the battle
of the Somme, she directed all her energies, not to remedying its
defects, but to developing production. I happened by accident
to examine th^ two captured guns which were standing side
by side. One, No. 40, had been made twenty years before and

HEAD lam: developments in artillery 309

converted from breech loading to quick firing; the other, No.
6173, had only been made the previous year, but there was not
a rivet's difference between them; only, in the new gun, time
had been saved by omitting engraving the Imperial cipher on
the breech!

Ammunition. As with the guns, so with the ammunition, but
perhaps to a still greater extent, production has been the great
problem, for from early in the first autumn of the war our stocks
of ammunition were practically exhausted, and we gunners had
over and over to turn a deaf ear to the calls for help from our
almost exhausted infantry. Everything possible was done to ex-
pedite output. , National shell factories were set up all over the
country, for the smallest shop could at least make 18-pounder
shrapnel bodies, and delicate women toiled long hours at the
lathes. We adopted designs which were not the best but
which were the easiest to make, and then faced the danger of
''prematures."

Prematures. This bursting of guns by the premature explo-
sion of the shells is almost inevitable when one has to depend on
hurried and unskilled production : it is one of the risks which must
be run when shells have to be rushed out to the front. But the
loss of guns and men may be serious, and it is always a trying ordeal
to the artillery. The French with their large expenditure of
high explosive shell were the first to suffer severely from it. I
remember seeing many of their wrecked 75 's when we were
fighting side by side at Ypres at the time of the first gas attack,
but they bore it with the calm fortitude which has been their
attitude through all these long years of trial, and when our own
time came, their experts placed all their experience at our dis-
posal, and rendered us invaluable assistance in getting through
our trials, and I would like especially to mention here the names
of General Gossot, an artilleryman who has gained more than
a national reputation as a contributor to science, and General
St. Claire Deville, whose name is a household word in France as
"the father of the seventy-five." It will do no harm now, and
may do good, to tell you how serious our position was at one
time. [The ratio of prematures, at first irregular, then rapidly
decreasing, was shown by tabled.]

310 headlam: developments in artillery

There will always be prematures, and loss of life from them,
while high explosive shells are used, but we look to science to
apply its methods to the investigation of every cdse, and to
guard us, as far as human ingenuity can, against them.

But what did we gain by accepting these risks? The average
number of tons of ammunition fired away per week in France will
probably be the simplest way of putting it. [The figures, in tons
per week, showed the immense increase in output attained since
the war began.]

Economy of materials. It was not until our production was
assured that we were able to set ourselves to improving our de-
signs, and then came the necessity of economizing materials, to
dampen the enthusiasm of our designers again. We have had
to reduce the capacity of our favorite 18-pounder shrapnel to al-
low of the use of lower grade steel. We have had to replace our
well tried propellant, cordite, by nitro-cellulose; to reduce the
percentage of T.N.T. in our explosives; to let brass displace
aluminum, and cast iron displace brass, in our fuses; and to
change the form of our driving bands to economize copper. But
everywhere again science has come to our aid once the need has
been fairly put.

Production. Judging from our experience, the guiding rules in
order to insure projiuction would appear to be to develop to the
utmost the production of what can be got easiest — remembering
always that there will certainly be a demand for changes, and to
press on research in the meantime so as to be ready to change
to more efficient patterns as soon as the position allows of it,
watching always the tactical changes so as to be able to antici-
pate demands. Thus the business man and the scientist have
full fields for their activity, but both will have many discour-
agements to face, for in war they must be controlled by the
needs of the soldier.

When the scientist after weeks of intense study has solved the
secret of some wonderful idea for improvement in design, he will
be told that it is not worth the loss of output it w^ll entail; for
to every change — however fascinating or desirable in itself —
must be applied the touchstone "How much will it retard out-

headlam: developments in artillery 311

put?" Just when the manufacturer is priding himself upon the
introduction of improvements in method which will shortly
double his output, he will be told to shut down.

So it is, and so it must be — war is not, and never will be, a
business proposition.

Wear of guns. The output of new guns has not only to provide
the numbers required to bring the army up to the desired strength,
but it has to meet the wastage due to accident, to the enemy's fire,
and to wear, of which the last completely overshadows the other
two.

As long ago as 1916, General Gossot said in my hearing ''Up to
this the guns have eaten up shells; we shall now see the shells
eat the guns." He was absolutely right. At the beginning we
had httle anxiety, for so admirable was the material of which our
guns were made that their lives proved in practice to be far
longer than had ever been anticipated. But as the output of
ammunition increased they began to give out, and it may inter-
est you to have some figures as to what the "lives" of the more
important natures are. [Tables were presented showing the
average life of guns and howitzers].

Needless to say that the search for a cure has been pursued
with vigor, and this is a matter in which there is a great field for
science; a field which has not been overlooked in this country, as
witness the learned paper on the subject by Dr. Howe in the
Transactions of the American Institute of Mining Engineers of
last February. There is no doubt that the intense heat caused
by prolonged rapid fire has brought on' the guns a strain which
was never anticipated, and in France and Russia and Italy I
found that deterioration in the quality of the steel used since
the war began was thought to have been a contributing cause.
With us this latter does not appear to have been the case, except
perhaps in individual instances, nor have we been able to deter-
mine whether carbon, nickel, or nickel-chrome steel gives the
best results.

Reduced charges have now been introduced. Strict rules as to
pauses to cool the guns have been promulgated, and various
substances are now used for greasing the bore. We hope to get

312 headlam: developments in artillery

good results from our latest mixture, the composition of which
has, needless to say, been communicated to your ordnance
authorities.

Repair of guns. But all the above are merely palliatives. We
have to face the fact that our guns have all a very limited life
under modern conditions. One battle may be enough for some,
and so the question of repair has become one of great and grow-
ing importance. Facility for relining must ever be in the mind
of the designer, the provision of sufficient plant for repair must
be included in the outfit for war, and a regular system of with-
drawal in rotation instituted. Just as in a fleet some ships must
always be in dock if the docks are not to be congested by a sud-
den rush, so must a regular system of sending guns for relining
be maintained.

With the ocean between your guns and your arsenals, the
problem is a very difficult one for you.

Wear of carriages. And the same thing applies to the car-
riages. The delicate mechanism which is an essential feature of
a modern carriage, even in field artillery, requires skilled and
careful handling, especially when called upon for such a strain
as is imposed by long continued rapid fire, with its consequent
heating of all the parts, expansion of oil in the buffers, and so
forth. It has always been the boast of artillery officers to know
and care for their equipments, but the entry into action of large
bodies of newly-raised artillery in 1916, synchronizing as it did
with the enormous development in ammunition supply, un-
doubtedly led to a considerable amount of preventable damage.
Where this struck us particularly was in the springs of our field
carriages, and in the air recuperators of some of our heavier
mountings. One divisional artillery commander told me in
August that his guns had fired 7,500 rounds in six weeks, and
that since the beginning of the action he had had on an average
25 per cent of his guns always out of action from this cause.
All the spring-makers in England were called into conclave —
representatives of the design departments of all the great gun
making firms were taken over to France, to see on the spot where
the failures were. But no doubt the chief damage was due to

headlam: developments in artillery 313

the fact that in the heat of battle, inexperienced personnel had
forgotten the constant attention buffers require. Great atten-
tion has since been paid to this part of the training, and after
visiting many of the field workshops a few days after the com-
mencement of the attack in Flanders, I was able to report that
preventable damage was practically dead. But there are still,
alas, some cases of prematures, and with the counter battery work
that goes on now many cases of damage from the enemy's fire, so
that our field workshops are still kept busy. Close up to the front
you will find everywhere installed in ruined farms or under a tar-
paulin shelter these ordnance workshops, containing a hetero-
geneous collection of damaged guns and carriages. From thestore
of ' 'spares" it may be possible to put the damage right with some
adjustment, or from three such ''lame ducks" it may be pos-
sible for one or two to be made complete, and so the work goes on
all night, and by dawn the guns are in their places in the line
again. The work done by the officers and men who man these
workshops is a very material factor in the great artillery struggle,
but nothing can compensate for the daily care of the gunners, and
I always think the mottoes inscribed on the French 155-mm. Fil-
loux guns "should be on every gunner's heart :

"Le Canon bien tendu en vaut deux." "Soyez bons pour les
f reins."

I hope, gentlemen, that you will not think I have devoted too
much of your time to this subject of production and repair, but
it is one of absolutely vital importance to the efficiency of an army
in the field, and it is one in which science has a great part to play.

Accuracy of fire. I had intended to tell you something of the
development of the work of artillery in the field, of counter bat-
tery work, and of the "barrage," a word which seems to have
captured the American imagination almost as much as ' 'camou-
flage." But time does not permit, so I will confine myself as far
as work in the field is concerned to giving you an idea of what has
been done in the way of developing the accuracy of artillery fire
during the war. *

Accuracy of fire is of course the first essential to success in the
artillery, and the first thing therefore that the good gunner does is

314 headlam: developments in artillery

to get as good a platform for his gun as he possibly can, and that
probably means much heavy labor in digging deep, and gathering
material — rubble, bricks, timber — from a distance. This search
for materials sometimes leads to amusing scenes.

Care of ammunition. But however solidly a gun may be sup-
ported it can not be expected to give uniform results unless the
ammunition is in good order. Powder and fuses must be pro-
tected from the weather, and this entails much labor and constant
care. We had, for instance, great trouble when we first adopted
nitro-cellulose powder because we did not realize how sensitive
it was to damp.

Protection from the weather is not, however, all that has to be
done to insure good shooting from the ammunition. Cartridges
and fuses are made in lots, and no ''adjustment" can quite get
over the differences between tliese. Every effort is made to keep
lots together, and the system of doing so is at this moment being
greatly developed, but even with all possible care, lots will in-
evitably get mixed in their passage from the factory to the ship,
from the ship to the depots, from these to the dumps, and so
through the various echelons of supply till they reach the guns.
Cartridges and fuses must therefore be sorted in the batteries,
and the necessary allowances made when using the different lots.
Somewhat the same thing has to be done with the shell, for
when a large output of ammunition is to be obtained from all
sorts of factories it is out of the question to reject all which are
not exactly within the strict limits of weight. They are accepted
but with the weight marked upon them, and these again must
be sorted and the necessary allowances made.

Calibration of guns. The next thing the artilleryman has to
think of is the age of his gun, or rather how hard it has lived ! As
a gun wears, its accuracy and its range fall off. The former can
not be calculated, though it must be allowed for; the latter can,
and the loss of muzzle velocity in each gun must be found and
allowed for. This is what we call ' 'calibration," and it has to be
repeated with each propellant, and, in a howitzer, with each
charge. It is usually carried out on the front, because we prefer,
whenever possible, that every shell should have at any rate a

HEAD lam: developments in artillery 315

chance of killing a German. To enable it to be done the topo-
graphical sections provide batteries with maps, mounted so as to
avoid errors due to shrinkage or warping, and showing accurately
not only the positions of the guns and observing stations, but also
such datum points as may be desired in the enemy's lines.

Error of the day. Having by this means found the errors of the
guns, a battery commander has next to think of the error of the
day, or rather of the moment. He must ascertain and allow for
the height of the barometer, the temperature of the air, the tem-
perature of the charge, and the force and direction of the wind
for a* given time of flight, and here he has to depend on his scien-
tific friend "Meteor" who sends to him every few hours cryptic
telegrams.

Error of the gun. And yet after all this meticulous care, we have
to recognize that a series of rounds fired at the same elevation will
not fall on the same spot, but will cover a rectangle varying in size
with the gun and the range. The size of the ' '50 per cent zone" —
the length and breadth of which are a quarter of those of the 100
per cent zone — is given in the range table of each gun, and this
has to be continually in the mind of the battery commander, for
without a thorough realization of it he can not judge how many
rounds will be required to accomplish such a task as, for instance,
the destruction of an enemy's battery. But its most important
use is perhaps to avoid danger of shelling one's own troops.
Nothing is so distressing to an artillery general as to receive com-
plaints from the infantry that his shells are falling in their trenches,
and yet whatever the skill of his batteries this must happen some-
times, with the lines as close together as they are, unless this in-
herent quality in the gun is recognized and allowed for.

Difficulty of applying calculations in the field. ' I will not pursue
the subject further, but remember that though the calculations
may appear very simple to you, they are not so easy, given the
conditions under which they have to be made — the absence of any
conveniences, the presence of every disturbing element. It is very
easy then to make an error which may have fatal results. One of
my best battery commanders was killed by a shell from his own
battery when himself conducting the fire from a trench from which
he had cleared the infantry.

316 headlam: developments in artilleky

Ohservation of fire. But however confident he may be of the
accuracy of the information furnished to him by his scientific
assistants, and of the correctness of his own calculations, the good
artilleryman will always do everything in his power to insure his
fire being observed. The possibility of sending artillery officers
forward with the advancing infantry had been hotly debated
before the war and in some cases practised as far as this could be
done in peace, so it did not take long to fall into the idea when the
first halt on the Aisne gave the opportunity — and the demands
that the w^ork made on the enterprise and ingenuity of our officers
caused it to be taken up with enthusiasm. The following example
may bring home to you some idea of what this meant.

At one point on the Western Front there was a low ridge be-
tween the opposing front lines of trenches. Beyond the end of
this ridge there was an offset in both lines. There were ammuni-
tion dumps behind the ridge, and beyond the offset stood the
ruins of a farm-house, from which a good view could be had of the
German positions behind the ridge. One of our battery com-
manders discovered that he could get up to that farmhouse at
night. He went up one night and explored it and found that
there was a gable still standing, and that the end of the gable had
been knocked out by a shell, but that there were strips of drying
tobacco hanging in the opening which he thought would give him
shelter. So he got his telephone up there the next day, after
many difficulties; he was only about 150 yards from the German
lines. There he carried out a shoot which is a good instance of
what I said about the importance of accuracy. Here was the
ridge, and our trenches were just short of the crest. He wanted
to shoot at the point beyond the crest. It was extremely
difficult from th6 gunner's point of view to get a shell which
would clear this crest and hit the objectives desired, for there
was danger that the shell would hit the crest or drop into our
own trenches. He succeeded through his control of the fire by
direct observation, although he had to carry all that out in a
place where he could not move and where he was really in full
view of the Germans within almost pistol range. It was one of
the sort of problems that artillery officers are continually
attacking and solving in this war.

headlam: developments in artillery 317

Aeroplane observation. Almost simultaneously the aeroplane
observer entered the field. The story of how the present system of
communication between aeroplanes and artillery has been gradu-
ally developed is in itself a subject for a lecture. Now not only
does the observer in the air observe our fire, he also proves the
correctness of his observation by bringing in a photograph of the
result, which is used also by comparison with the zone of the guns
to check the accuracy of the work of the battery. I need hardly
refer to the science that has been devoted to developing the means
of communication and prefecting the system, but all those who
have had real experience, whether they belong to the Flying Corps
or the Artillery, will I am sure agree that success will never be
attained without the closest possible personal touch and sympathy
between the observer in the air and the gunner below. They must
know each other — without the personal equation, half the benefit
of science is lost.

But practical experience showed the danger of relying too
exclusively on aeroplane observation as liable to be put ouf of
action by bad weather, while in any case the number of machines
which can work on any given front is strictly limited. Great
efforts are now therefore being made to develop all other possible
means of observation. The balloon — the first cousin to the aero-
plane— is of course very restricted in its zone, but it has the great
advantage that the observer in it is in direct telephonic com-
munication with the artillery — indeed it is nothing but an ob-
serving station in the air, which can be occupied by any artillery
officer.

Observing stations. The ordinary observing stations have been
developed in the one direction by camouflage which was first
directed to this end, rather than to the concealment of the guns
themselves; then to their elaboration — instead of the officer
covering behind his precarious screen of tobacco leaves, he would
be in a comfortable splinter-proof tower which had been ingeni-
ously built inside the ruins ; or sitting in the cellar, with his eye
to a giant periscope, or perhaps a camera obscura.

Flash-spotting and sound-ranging. In the elaborately equipped
observatories of the ' 'flash spotters" the burst of every round may

318 headlam: developments in artillery

be accurately recorded by the intersections of three widely
separated observers, and instantaneously transmitted to the
plotting stations. There too will be registered the position of
any gun that is foolish enough to open fire from an insufficiently
masked position when the clouds are dark behind it.

Then the ' 'sound ranger" too plays his part, as with his delicate
instruments he registers the discharge of the enemy's gun, — also,
often enough, the burst of the enemy's shells. Their work must
be done far to the front, and often with little or no protection, and
I would like to bear witness to the gallantry of the distinguished
savants who have let no consideration of personal safety or com-
fort interfere with the accuracy of their observations.

Gentlemen, I commenced by making one confession — that I
had no information to give you about the new German gun, and
I must conclude on the same note, for I am not going to attempt
to say anything about what is by far the most interesting scientific
development of artillery during the war — I mean anti-aircraft
gunnery. The study of the ballistics of shell fired at such angles,
the effect of high altitudes on the burning of the fuses, the inven-
tion of the wonderful instruments in the way of height-finders and
so forth required for the direction of the fire, have opened up
entirely new fields of scientific research. I have just had the
pleasure of handing to your experts the results of a series of very
exhaustive experiments which have been conducted in England.
But it is wise to recognize one's own limitations; I very soon dis-
covered that anti-aircraft gunnery had reached an atmosphere
too rarified for me. You must therefore find younger and more
scientific brains to tell you the wonders of the new science still in
its infancy, but progressing by leaps and bounds. If you think
that the results attained have been small, that with all the ex-
penditure of talent and material devoted to it the proportion of
aeroplanes brought to bag is insignificant, you must remember
the difficulties of the task. An aeroplane covers more than half
a mile while the shell is in the air, and I leave it to the sportsmen
among you to say how many ducks they would pick up under such
conditions.

Gas shell, the other great real novelty in artillery, has already
been ably dealt with by my friend Major Auld, with whom ' *oVer

wherry: crystal form and optical properties 319

there" I have so often discussed their development and effect.
There are indeed some other directions in which science is, I hope,
even now on the threshold of discoveries, which if they will not
"revolutionize warfare" will at least greatly increase the power
of the artillery. A famous speaker is credited with the advice to
a beginner, that if he could not be interesting he could at any rate
always be indiscreet. But in war time one is denied even this
resource. And so I am afraid that my contribution to your series
of lectures on science in relation to the war has been a story of
gradual development rather than of sensational advances. Even
so, I hope that I have been able to show you that we artillerymen
have maintained our traditional interest in science, and that it is,
not in vain that the famous statue of ''Armed Science" has been
for so many years the presiding genius of our mess room at Wook
wich. I have shown you also a little of what men of science have-
done for us not only in the study but in the field. I am sure that,
you will come forward as freely, and that my brother officers of
the American artillery will welcome as we have done all the assist-
ance that science can give them.

CRYSTALLOGRAPHY. — Certain relations between crystalline
form, chemical constitution, and optical properties in organic
compounds, — 11.^ Edgar T. Wherry, Bureau of Chemistry.

Penta-erythrite

C(CH20H)4 Ditetragonal-pyTamidal; a :c = 1 : 1.024.

The optical data given by Groth^ are tabulated here in the same
manner as were those of urea. (See table 4, p. 321.)

The refraction and axial ratios agree within the limits of error of
measurement, so in this substance, as in urea, the standard axial
ratio is also the true one.

The chemical molecule of penta-erythrite can be brought into
agreement with the observed symmetry if spread out around a
central carbon atom with all the OH groups pointing in one direc-

<■' Continued from page 285.

7 Chemische Krystallographie III: 385. 1910.

320 wheirry: crystal form and optical properties

tion, bringing out thereby the lack of a horizontal symmetry
plane. The space-lattice shows cube-centered arrangement
within the smallest cells, as well as in the whole structure. These
features are incorporated into figure 2.

As this substance possesses a rather complicated space-lattice,
certain simplifications are introduced, such as the grouping of the
H atoms and the OH radicals. In addition, the symbols are

HH —

Fig. 2. Partial space-lattice of penta-erythrite.

given only for atoms that occur on the surface, except in the
upper right forward cell, which is labeled completely; it is under-
stood that all the points in any one horizontal plane indicated by
dots or rings are occupied by the same atoms or groups that
occur where the planes reach the front of the diagram. The
space-lattice shown should be. increased one-third in each hori-
zontal direction to attain completeness. It will then contain
11 chemical molecules and 8^ = 512 of the smallest cells, and the

wherry: crystal form and optical properties

321

spacing of the cells can be determined by applying the same
formula as was used for urea. Here x = 11, W = 135.02, m =
1.64 X 10--^ gm., y = 512, p = 1.40, c = 1.024. Solving, da =
1.49 X 10-8 cm., and dc = 1.52 X 10-^ cm. The arrangement
is too complicated for this to be interpreted in terms of the thick-

TABLE 4
Refraction Relations of Penta-erythrite

REFR.^CTIVE INDICES

REFRACTION RATIO

AXIAL RATIO

CO

e

Rco/Re

c/ a

1.559

1.548

1.0 7

1.024

ness of any one kind of atoms, but the values are not far from
those of urea in the direction in which hydrogen layers appear,
indicating that the spaces occupied by the several kinds of atoms
in the two substances are about the same.

Mellite

Al2(C.COO)6.18H20 Ditetragonal-bipyramidal; a : c = 1 : 0.746.
If the alternate axial ratio of this peculiar mineral is used, the
axial and refraction ratios show approximate inverse agreement,
as brought out in table 5.

TABLE 5
Refraction Relations of Mellite

REFRACTIVE INDICES

REFRACTION RATIO

AXIAL RATIO

W

e

Rco/Re

c/ a

1.539

1.511

1.046

1.055

In this substance complete working out of the space-lattice is
impracticable, as the dispositions of the atoms in the organic
radicals are uncertain. But the partial structure shown in figure
3 has several points of interest. In it R stands for (C.COO) and
the heavy dots for H2O. The fact that a compound in which
certain groups appear in threes or multiples of three should
crystallize tetragonal seems at first sight anomalous; but when

322 wherry: crystal form and optical properties

the number of atoms represented in a square occupied at 'both
corners and centers of edges is figured out, it is found to be three;
or if the atoms are moved from the corners part way toward the
center — in the figure they are half way^ — ■, six prove to be present.
The latter arrangement seems to fill the requirements in the pres-
ent case the best.

The R groups are regarded, then, as lying in planes, with the
Al atoms arranged, as required by the symmetry, along the verti-

Fig. 3. Space-lattice of mellite.

cal axis between them. A sort of spool-shaped structure is there-
by produced, and it is only natural that water of crystallization
should, as it were, take the place of the thread. The 18 mole-
cules of this can best be arranged in three layers of six each.

If the atoms of the (C.COO) group are actually spread out in
the same vertical layers, occupying nodes where these intersect

wherry: crystal form and optical properties 323

horizontal ones shown, the spacing of the planes of the layers
may be calculated in the usual way. In mellite x = 1, W =
62.95, ni = 1.64 x IQ-^", y = 64, p = 1.64, and c' = 1.055,
whence da = 2.10 X 10-« and dc = 2.22 X lO-* cm. The some-
what greater values obtained in this case are what would be
anticipated from the presence of the relatively large aluminium
atoms, although the structure is too complicated and too un-
certain for exact valuation of the effects of the several atoms.

The double propionate group.

The crystallographic and optical data in the literature^ upon
the double propionates of calcium with strontium, barium, and

TABLE 6
Refraction Relations of Double Propionates

METALS

REFRACTIVB INDICES

REFRACTION
RATIOS

AXIAL
RATIOS

CO

e

Rco/Re

c/ O

CajSr

CaaPb

1.487
1.526
1.510
1.485
1.457
1.444

1.496
1.540
1.522
1.498
1.457
1.444

0.984
0.978
0.981
0.978
1.000
1.000

0.976
0.979

Ca2(Pb, Ba) \

CajBa

0.981
0.986
1.000
1.000

lead respectively, show fair inverse agreement to exist between
their crystallographic-axial and refraction ratios, as brought
out in table 6. The barium salt is cubic, but this may be looked
upon as a limiting case of the tetragonal system, where axis c =
1, and the refraction ratio is of course also 1.

The refractive indices and axial ratios have been accurately
determined for a large number of isomorphous mixtures of the
lead and barium salts; three of these are here listed as typical.
Toward either end of the series the refraction and axial ratios
show inverse agreement, but they deviate through the middle
portion. Evidently the irregularities in the layers of atoms that

' Groth, op. cit., p. 203.

324 wherry: crystal form and optical properties

result when large numbers of both barium and lead atoms are
present disturb the refraction effects of the layers in which they
lie in one direction, whereas when atoms of one kind are in con-
siderable excess the layers, as it were, smooth out, and their effect
on the refraction is normal.

One of several possible interpretations of the structure of these
salts is shown in figure 4. It is easy enough to arrange two metal

Fig. 4. Space-lattice of Ca-Sr propionate.

atoms of one kind and one of another kind into a group with
tetragonal symmetry — the latter may occupy the corners of a
square, the former the centers of its edges (only | of the first and
J of the second belonging to the square). But the propionic acid
radical CH3.CH2.CO is rather clumsy to handle in a space-
lattice. The mean positions it probably occupies are indicated

wherry: crystal form ^ and optical properties 325

by R in the figure, but speculation as to the arrangement of the
atoms within this group seems profitless.

Exceptions

It now seemed desirable to inquire into the relations in cases
where inverse proportionality of the axes and the refractions fails
to hold, and five illustrations of this were found among the 50
representatives of the tetragonal system listed by Groth,^
namely: calcium-cupric acetate, ammonium-uranyl acetate, i-
erythrite, /3-methyl-glucoside, and guanidine carbonate.

In calcium-cupric acetate the inverse refraction ratio is 1.088
and the standard axial ratio 1.032. These are apparently too
far apart for observational errors to cause their divergence, so
it is concluded that in this substance either the atoms are irreg-
ularly arranged in one direction, or that a marked anisotropism
of the copper atoms is associated with the coloring and pleo-
chroism of the substance.

In ammonium-uranyl acetate the inverse refraction ratio is
0.979, and the standard axial ratio 1.412. If the form usually,
called (102) is made (111), the latter ratio becomes 0.998,
approaching the former one. Probably some layers of atoms have
no effect in fixing the position of the prominent form (111) on
which the standard axial ratio is based, and yet their existence
finds expression in the appearance of the subordinate form known
as (102). The crystallographic measurements of this substance
made by different observers vary nearly one degree, which
may explain the lack of more exact agreement; and moreover
some anisotropism of the uranium atoms is probably present as
well.

In i-erythrite the inverse refraction ratio is 1.037, the standard
axial ratio 0.376; but if the form taken as (111) is really (102) the
latter ratio would be 1.068, which is nearer, yet still not identical
with, the refraction ratio. However, the substance must possess
a rather complicated structure, containing two asymmetric

'Chemische Krystallographie III (also a few in I and II).

326 wherry: crystal form ^nd optical properties

carbon atoms, which are no doubt anisotropic ; a deviation of the
two ratios is thus not unexpected.

In the case of /3-methyl-ghicoside the situation is similar to the
preceding. Here, however, the change needed in the standard
axial ratio is merely the use of the alternate value for c, and the
tabular habit and basal cleavage point to the fundamental cor-
rectness of this value, for in accordance with Fedorov's principle
c should exceed a in such circumstances. The ratios are then:
refraction, 1.035; crystallographic, 1.137. The complication of
the structure, and the presence of several asymmetric carbons,
are probably sufficient explanation of the divergence.

In guanidine carbonate the refraction ratio is 1.020, while
the standard axial is 0.991. The numerical deviation is not
very great, but is remarkable because the two lie on opposite sides
of unity. However, crystals of this substance exhibit rotation
of the plane of polarized light and abnormal dispersion of double
refraction — showing a minimum around 589 and increasing
both directions therefrom — , thus offering evidence of possible
reasons for the above unusual relation.

The exceptions to the inverse relation of refraction and crystal-
lographic axial ratios are thus readily explainable, although no
data are as yet available that would permit the evaluation of the
disturbance caused by each of the several factors which may be
represented.

Preliminary observations have also been made on several other
organic compounds that possess simple formulas and crystallize
in fairly symmetrical systems and classes, comprising oxalic acid,
iodoform, acetamide, both stable and unstable forms, and
aldehyde-ammonia. For various reasons the measurements of
the indices which it has thus far been possible to make are not
particularly accurate, and although simple numerical relations
appear to exist between the crystallographic and refraction ratios
in many instances, the details of the structures are so compli-
cated that no satisfactory space-lattices have yet been worked
out. Further study of these and other compounds is planned,
however, and will be reported from time to time as definite results
are obtained.

I

wherry: crystal form and optical properties 327

SUMMARY

In this paper the study of the "refraction ratios" of crystalHzed
organic compounds is suggested, these ratios being obtained by
substituting in the standard refractivity formula the refractive
indices exhibited in different directions. It is pointed out that
these ratios as well as the crystallographic axial ratios are con-
nected with the spacing of the planes of atoms in the space-
lattices of the substances, and that comparison of the two ratios
may be expected to throw considerable light on the type of space-
lattice represented in each case. Such a comparison is made for
the substances urea, penta-erythrite, mellite, and three double
propionates, and their refraction ratios prove to be the exact
inverse of the crystallographic axial ratios. The relations in
several other substances are also discussed, and deviations from
inverse proportionality are shown to be connected with atomic
anisotropism, asymmetry of carbon atoms, etc. Further work
on other substances is planned. .yi^XrT>

r

ABSTRACTS

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

PHYSICS. — Resonance and ionization potentials for electrons in cad-
mium vapor. P. D. Foote and J. T. Tate. Bur. Stand. Sci.
Paper No. 317. Pp. 17. 1918.
The object of this investigation has been the determination of the
resonance and ionization potentials for electrons in cadmium vapor.
Resonance collision of the electron with the atom was observed at
3.88 volts and inelastic impact resulting in ionization was observed at
8.92 volts. The single hne spectrum of cadmium is X = 3260.17. If
we substitute the frequency corresponding to this wave length in the
relation hv = eV, where h == 6.56. 10~" erg. sec, e the electronic charge,
and V the resonance potential, we obtain V = 3.79 volts, in good agree-
ment with the above. On the basis of Bohr's theory the ionization
potential should be 8.97, in most excellent agreement with the experi-
mentally determined value. P. D. F.

GEOCHEMISTRY. — The ferrous iron content and magnetic suscept-
hility of some artificial and natural oxides of iron. R. B. Sosman and
J. C. HosTETTER. Bull. Amer. Inst. Min. Eng. 907-931. June,
1917.
The percentage of ferrous iron and the relative magnetic suscepti-
bility in powder form have been determined on a number of art fie al
and natural oxides of iron. Artificial oxides made at 1100*^ and 1200°
consist of a solid solution of FesO, in Fe203. Their relative magnetic
susceptibility is approximately proportional to their percentage of
FeO, from Fe203 over to Fe3 04. The deviations may be partly ac-
counted for by the effect of various factors, of which the fineness of
grain of the powdered oxide is the most important, especially in the
case of the more ferromagnetic members of the series. The colors of
the powdered oxides depend both on their chemical composition and
on their physical constitution, especially the fineness of grain.

328

abstracts: geochemistry 329

In addition to the oxides whose siisceptibiht}' depends upon their
content of FeO, there exists also a highly ferromagnetic form of Fe203,
which appeal's to be rare in natural occurrence.

The natural iron-oxide minerals are similar to the artificial in that
many are solid solutions of Fe304 in Fe203. Others are mixtures of
Fe304 and Fe203. If the ferrous iron is not in solid solution or in mag-
netite admixture, the magnetic susceptibility falls below the norma'.

Some natural oxides can be magnetically fractionated; and the less
magnetic portions are found to deviate more widely from normal
than the more magnetic. The cause of this deviation is not yet en-
tirely clear.

Martite is a pseudomorph after magnetite, but its constituent gran-
ules or fibers consist usually of a solid solution of Fe304 in Fe203. The
ferrous iron content and the magnetic susceptibility of the specimens
examined suggest that they have been produced at temperatures con-
siderably higher that atmospheric.

R. B. S.

GEOCHEMISTRY. — Zonal growth in hematite, and its hearing on the
origin of certain iron ores. R. B. Sosman and J. C. Hostetter.
Bull. Amer. Inst. Min. Eng. 933-943. June, 1917.
The powdered oxide from certain crystals of hematite from Elba
contains considerable FeO and can also be fractionated magnetically.
It is therefore not homogeneous, as would be the case if the crystal were
a uniform solid solution throughout. Analyses and magnetic measure-
ments on a cross-section of an Elba crystal showed that the magnetic
susceptibility' and percentage of FeO vary, not irregularly, but con-
tinuously, being highest at the base and lowest at the free-growing
tip of the crystal. The crystal is therefore zoned with respect to its
FeO content. *

Since Fe304 goes into solid solution in Fe203, forming a single solid
phase of var3dng composition and properties, a zonal distribution of
FeO is to be expected in an oxide of iron depositing from a vapor or
solution. The occurrence of such zonal growth indicates continuously
changing conditions of temperature, pressure, and concentration during
the formation of the crystals. Several ore deposits of contact-meta-
morphic origin show a zonal distribution of ferrous iron, probably
arising from the sanie causes as the zoning of the single crystals.

R. B. S.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

The Board of Managers met on April 29, 1918. Upon the recom-
mendation of the special committee on the Journal, it was decided to
discontinue the lists of references which have been published in the
Journal from time to time, and to appoint a group of assistant editors
to supplement the present editorial board of three members. The
Academy's membership in the American Metric Association was con-
tinued for the present year. Ten resident and five nonresident mem-
bers were elected.

Robert B. Sosman, Corresponding Secretary.

BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 583d regular meeting of the Society was held in the Assembly Hall
of the Cosmos Club, Saturday, April 6, 1918; called to order at 8 p.m.
by President Rose; 37 persons present.

On recommendation of the Council, Miss Crystal Thompson and Mr.
Norman A. Wood, both of the Museum of Zoology, Ann Arbor, Mich-
igan, were elected to membership.

The following informal communications were presented;

W. L. McAtee remarked on the contents of birds' stomachs and ex-
hibited the stomach of a merganser containing an embedded fish
hook, which undoubtedly had been in a swallowed fish.

Gen. T. E. Wilcox remarked that he had once found an Indian arrow
head in the stomach of a grouse.

Dr. L. 0. Howard called attention to efforts made to limit the spread
of pink boll-worm by the establishment of cotton -free zone: in Texas.

William Palmer exhibited some fossil teeth and bones lately ob-
tained by him from the Calvert Cliffs, near Chespeake Beach, Mary-
land: tooth of Hexanchus primigenius; fragment of bone of Puffinus;
tooth of Champsodelphis acutidens; tooth of a sirenian; tooth of Del-
phinodon, n.s.; tooth of Thinotherium annulatum. His remarks were
discussed by Dr. L. 0. Howard and Capt. M. W. Lyon, Jr.

The regular program consisted of two communications;

C. D. Marsh: The cause of milk sickness or trembles. The first publi-
cation in regard to milk sickness was in 1810, but it had been known as
far back as the Revolutionary War. The disease was especially common
in the early days in the states of Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, but has
rarely been recognized in pubhcations upon diseases as a disease with a

330

proceedings: anthropological society 331

specific entity. The most noticeable sjonptoms are pronounced nausea,
with vomiting, extreme constipation, and trembhng. The disease was
said to afiect particularly cattle and was transmitted through the milk
to human beings. A good deal of mystery has been attached to the eti-
ology of the disease and among the suggestions as to the cause have been
fungi, insect-borne germs, emanations from the soil, and a number of
supposed poisonous plants. The plant to which suspicion has been par-
ticularly directed has been Eupatorium urticaefolium. commonly known
as white snake root. The work of Jordan and Harris in 1909 seems to
prove that the disease is produced by a distinct bacillus, and the pub-
hcation of Crawford in 1908 seemed to negative the possibility of Eupa-
torium being the cause of the disease. It seemed best, however, on
account of the suspicion which still attached to this plant for the De-
partment of Agriculture to make a series of feeding experiments. These
experiments proved conclusively that Eupatorium urticaefolium is poison-
ous to both cattle and sheep. The knowledge thus acquired in connec-
tion with other pubhshed statements seems to make it certain, not only
that the Eupatorium is poisonous to both cattle and sheep, but that it
is the cause of many, if not almost all of the so-called cases of milk
sickness in cattle and sheep.

Dr. IMarsh's paper was illustrated by lantern shdes showing character-
istic attitudes of poisoned animals.

J. W. Gidley: Segregation an important factor in evolution with its
special bearing on the origin and distribution of mammals. (No abstract.)

Mr. Gidley 's paper was discussed by Prof. Bradley M. Davis, Dr.
T. S. Palmer, Mr. William Palmer, and Capt. M. W. Lyon, Jr.

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

ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 525th meeting of the Society was held in the Lecture Hall of
the Public Library on Tuesday, April 9, at 8 p.m. Dr. PaulHaupt,
W. W. Spence Professor of Semitic Languages and Director of the Ori-
ental Seminary at Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland,
gave an address upon Mesopotafnia and Palestine.

"The early civihzation of Babylonia was Sumerian. The Sumerian
language appears to be related to Georgian in Russian Transcaucasia.
Mesopotamia passed successively under the sway of the Sumerians,
Accadians, Hittites, Cassites, Assyrians, Chaldeans, Persians, IMace-
donians, Parthians, Romans, Sassanians, Arabs, Mongols, Tartars, and
Turks. Since 1638 it has been a part of the Turkish Empire.

"In 1902 the Turkish Government granted to a German syndicate
a charter for the construction of a railway from Constantinople through
Asia Minor to Bagdad, and afterw^ards to Basra. This through line
from Hamburg to the Persian Gulf, which threatened the British do-
minion of India, was one of the most important factors which led to
the world war.

332 proceedings: anthropological society

"In 1886 I recommended colonization of Mesopotamia, construction
of the Euphrates Railway, and restoration of the ancient system of
irrigation. In 1887 I prepared a memorandum concerning a national
expedition to Mesopotamia under the auspices of the Smithsonian In-
stitution. In 1892 I suggested settlement of the Russian Jews in
Mesopotamia. My plan was afterward advocated by Israel Zangwill.i
The restoration of the ancient system of irrigation, which would make
Babylonia again the chief granary of the world, was taken up in 1909 by
Sir William Willcocks.

"The relations between Mesopotamia and Palestine are very close.
The ancestors of the Israelites came from Mesopotamia. The Israel-
ites were settled in Palestine when the Edomite ancestors of the Jews
were in Egypt. Judah was not a tribe but a religious association of
worshippers of Jahveh, including not only Edomites, but also Horites,
Canaanites, Ishmaehtes, Moabites, Hittites, Amorites, Philistines,
Egyptians, and Ethiopians, i.e., a mixture of Asiatic, African, and Euro-
pean elements.

"It will perhaps be possible to solve the complicated ethnological
problems in Palestine with the help of the new sero-diagnostic methods
based on deviation of complement whereby the lytic action of a hemo-
lysing fluid is prevented. Hansemann made some experiments with
Egyptian mmnmies. Friedenthal tested the blood and flesh of a mam-
moth which had been found in 1902, imbedded in the ice of Siberia.
The reaction showed the near relation of the extinct mammoth to
the existing Indian elephant.

"Palestine (both Western and Eastern) is nearly as large (9840 sq.
m.) as Sicily (9860 sq. m.), but it has only about 750,000 inhabitants,
(Mesopotamia about 1,500,000). Like Sicily, which was the bridge
between Europe and Africa, Palestine, the connecting link between
Mesopotamia and Egypt, never was the land of a single nation and
probably never will be. Certainly the Jews can claim only Judea, not
the northern districts, Samaria and Galilee, or the country east of the
Jordan. The majority of the colonists whom the Assyrian kings sent
to Gahlee were Aryans, i.e., Iranians, so that the founders of Chris-
tianity may not have been Jews by race.

"With the passing away of anti-Semitism Jewish nationalism will dis-
appear. The Jews in this country will be Americans, the Jews in
France will be Frenchmen, but they will continue to regard Jerusalem
as their spiritual mother."

The 39th annual meeting (526th regular meeting) of the Society was
held in the West Study Room of the Public Library, April 23, at 8 p.m.;
President Babcock in the chair. The following officers were elected
for the ensuing year: President, Mr. E. T. Williams; Vice-president,
Dr. Truman Michelson; Secretary, Mr. Felix Neumann; Treasurer,
Mr. J. N. B. Hewitt; Councillors, Mr. J. P, Harrington, Mr. Francis

» See The American Hebrew, May 21, 1909.

proceedings: anthropological society 333

LaFlesche, Rev. John M. Cooper, Dr. E. D. Morgan, Miss Frances
Densmore. The society then Hstened to the address of the retiring
president, Mr. W. H. Babcock, on Some anthropological and national
factors in the present war.

The speaker reviewed the series of papers on national subjects which
had been deHvered before the society during the past year.

"The war is a contest of nations, conditions, and racial aspirations;
between the central Teutonic empires, with originally Turanian adher-
ents, and the surrounding republics or liberal monarchies, chiefly Latins,
Slavs, and the English-speaking peoples. But the difference in kinds
of government had less to do with beginning the war than the vehement
hostility of races and national ambitions.

"A 'race' and 'nation' are variable terms. Language does not al-
ways accord with either. No people is homogeneous. What counts for
most is a conviction of national identity and racial affiliation sustained
emotionally by an ideal of patriotism. When this is violently over-
ridden, a sense of outrage and sacrilege is evoked — the most fruitful
source of devastating wars. The best preventive would be such
political redistribution as would end alien oppression and make aggres-
sion very difficult."

The speaker sketched the human movements which have evolved and
defined the peoples of Europe; also the special changes needed. The
same victorious powers of civilization which must effect the latter could
also maintain them. The prospect of a general and lasting peace was
never so good as now; for the world is nearly full and well under control,
excepting as yet the Central Powers and their auxiUaries. There would
be no danger from outside barbarians, such as wrecked the long con-
tinued, but territorially restricted, dominion of Rome.

Frances Densmore, Secretary.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

At the meeting of the National Academy of Sciences, held in Wash-
ington on April 22-24, 1918, the following fifteen persons were elected
to membership : Robert Grant Aitken, astronomer, Lick Observatory,
California; George Francis Atkinson, botanist, Cornell University,
Ithaca, N. Y.; George David Birkhoff, mathematician, Harvard
University, Cambridge, Mass. ; Percy Williams Bridgman, physicist.
Harvard University, Cambridge, Mass.; Stephen Alfred Forbes, zo-
ologist, University of Illinois, Urbana, 111.; John Ripley Freeman,
engineer, Providence, Rhode Island; Ludvig Hektoen, pathologist,
University of Chicago, Chicago, 111. ; Charles Judson Herrick, neu-
rologist, University of Chicago, Chicago, 111.; Frank Baldwin Jew-
ett, engineer. Western Electric Company, New York, N. Y.; Walter
Jones, physiologist, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Md.; Ir-
ving Langmuir, chemist, General Electric Company, Schenectady, N.
Y. ; Charles Elwood Mendenhall, physicist, University of Wiscon-
sin, Madison, Wis.; John Campbell Merriam, paleontologist. Uni-
versity of California, Berkeley, Cal. ; Henry Norris Russell, astrono-
mer, Princeton University, Princeton, N. J. ; David Watson Taylor,
engineer, rear-admiral and chief of the bureau of construction and
repair, United States Navy.

Prizes and medals were awarded as follows: The Comstock prize of
$1500, for discoveries in magnetism and electricity, awarded to Sam-
uel Jackson Barnett, Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio.

The Draper medal, for discoveries in astronomical physics, awarded
to Walter Sydney Adams, Mount Wilson Solar Observatory, Pasadena,
California.

The Daniel Giraud Elliot medal and honorarium for work in paleontol-
ogy and zoology, awarded to Frank M. Chapman, American Museum
of Natural History, New York.

A special train left Washington on Monday evening, April 29, carry-
ing members of the American Electrochemical Society on a six days'
trip through the Appalachian South, to visit some of the more impor-
tant electrochemical, electro-thermal, and power developments in that
part of the country.

Dr. W. L. Argo, of the University of Cahfornia, has been engaged in
researches on gas masks at the Geophysical Laboratory and the Catho-
lic University.

Dr. Louis A. Bauer has been elected Foreign Corresponding Mem-
ber of the Royal Society of Natural Sciences of Netherlands India.

334

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS 335

Mr. Albert Burch, of the Bureau of Mines, and Mr. E. F. Burchard,
of the Geological Survey, have recently returned from Cuba, where
they went to ascertain the possibility of Cuba supplying a portion of
the United States' requirements of manganese ore and chromite. They
found that it is probable that Cuba will be able to furnish a portion
of the manganese ore and chromite formerly imported from other foreign
sources.

Mr. F. S. DuRSTON, of the Bureau of Standards, has been commis-
sioned a Ueutenant in the U. S. Naval Reserve Forces.

Professor L. C. Graton is on leave of absence from Harvard Uni-
versity and is in charge of the work of the Copper Producers' Committee
in New York.

Professor F. R. Moulton, of the University of Chicago, is in Wash-
ington on leave of absence and has been commissioned a major in the
Ordnance Reserve Corps.

Professor Ivanoichiro Suidzu, of the Department of Organic Chem-
istry, Tokyo Higher Technological College, visited Washington in April.

Professor David G. Thompson, of Goucher College, Baltimore, is on
leave of absence and spent the past summer on field work with the party
of 0. E. Meinzer, of the U. S. Geological Survey, locating and marking
watering places in the deserts of the Southwest near the Mexican
border.

Professor Richard C. Tolman, of the University of Uhnois, is on
leave of absence to do war research in Washington. He is temporarily
stationed at the laboratories of the Cathohc University.

News was received on April 18, 1918, that Captain Ernest Weibel
had died of wounds at a hospital in France. Captain Weibel became a
member of the staff of the Bureau of Standards in 1910. He was
commissioned a captain in the Engineers Corps after the declaration of
war by the United States, and was soon afterward sent to France,
where he was engaged in the sound-ranging service. He was a member
of the Philosophical Society of Washington, and author of several
papers in collaboration with F. Wenner and F. B. Silsbee on time-
constants and inductance of low-resistance standards, the use of the
Thomson bridge, and the testing of potentiometers. He also pub-
hshed, in collaboration with A. L. Thuras, a paper in this Journal
of March 19, 1918, on An electrical instrument for recording sea-water
salinity.

Dr. H. O. Wood, formerly of the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, has
been commissioned a captain in the Engineer Officers' Reserve Corps
and is engaged in special research work at the Bureau of Standards.

336 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

The following persons have become members of the Academy since
the last issue of the Journal :

Surgeon General Rupert Blue, U. S. Public Health Service, Wash-
ington, D. C.

Professor Henry Edward Crampton, Barnard College, Columbia
University, New York City.

Dr. Heinrich Hasselbring, Bureau of Plant Industry, Department
of Agriculture, Washington, D. C.

Dr. George Grant Hedgcock, Bureau of Plant Industry, Depart-
ment of Agriculture, Washington, D. C.

Dr. George Samuel Jamieson, Bureau of. Chemistry, Department
of Agriculture, Washington, D. C.

Professor Arthur Becket Lamb, Harvard College, Cambridge, Mass.,
and American University Experiment Station of the Bureau of Mines,
Washington, D. C.

Mr. S. J. Mauchly, Department of Terrestrial Magnetism, Carnegie
Institution of Washington, Washington, D. C.

The Executive Committee of the Entomological Society of Washing-
ton has recently adopted the following rules and suggestions governing
articles published in the Proceedings of the Society:

Rules

Rule 1. No description of a new genus, or subgenus, will be pub-
lished unless there is cited as a genotype a species which is established
in accordance with current practice of zoological nomenclature.

Rule 2. In all cases a new genus, or subgenus, must be character-
ized and if it is based on an undescribed species the two must be char-
acterized separately.

Rule 3. No description of a species, subspecies, variety, or form will
be published unless it is accompanied by a statement which includes
the following information, where known: (1) the type locaHty; (2) of
what the type material consists— with statement of sex, full data on lo-
calities, dates, collectors, etc. ; (3) present location of type material .

Rule 4. No unsigned articles, or articles signed by pseudonyms or
initials will be published.

Rule 5. The ordinal position of the group treated in any paper must
be clearly given in the title or in parentheses following the title.

Suggestions

1. All illustrations, accompanying an article, should be mentioned
in the text and preferably in places where the object illustrated is
discussed.

It is desirable in describing new genera and species that their taxo-
nomic relationship be discussed, and that distinguishing characters be
pointed out.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS 337

3. In discussion of type material modern terms indicating its precise
nature will be found useful. Examples of these terms are type (or holo-
type), allotype, paratype, cotype, lectotype, neotype, etc.

4. In all cases in the serial treatment of genera or species and where
first used in general articles the authority for the species or genus should
be given; and the name of the authority should not be abbreviated.

5. Where the title of any publication referred to is not written in
full, standard abbreviations should be used.

6. When a species discussed has been determined by some one other
than the author it is important that reference be made to the worker
making the identification.

WAR ORGANIZATION OF THE NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL

Because of the urgent necessity of improving means of dealing
promptly' and effectively with all problems bearing on the war, a re-
organization of the National Research Council was effected on April 1,
1918, a summary of which follows.

The Executive Board has established eight divisions, each under the
charge of a chairman who shall give all, or the greater part, of his time
and attention to the affairs of his division, so as to be in a position to
give immediate consideration to any problems which may arise. The
following statement indicates the steps thus far taken.

Each of the eight divisions is to have an Executive Committee, to
include members representing the several committees of the Council
included within the Division. All of the former committees that are
still active are retained under the new organization and additional com-
mittees will be established as the needs of the work may demand. The
final organization of the Coun-cil may differ materially from the one
indicated, both in the grouping of the various subjects into divisions
and in the organization of sections and committees within the divisions.

General Officers

George E. Hale, Chairman

Charles D. Walcott, First Vice-Chairman

Gano Dunn, Second Vice-Chairman

Robert A. Millikan, Third Vice-Chairman

John Johnston, Executive Secretary

Whitman Cross, Treasurer

Walter M. Gilbert, Assistant Secretary

Alfred D. Flinn, Assistant Secretary

Executive Board

(Consists of Officers, Chairmen and Vice-Chairmen of Divisions,

Chairmen of Sections of Administrative Division,

and members at large)

338

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

John
Whitman Cross
Gano Dunn
Walter S. Gifford
George E. Hale
Henry M. Howe
John Johnston
Vernon Kellogg
Van H. Manning
Charles E. Mendenhall
J. C. Merriam

J. Carty, Chairman

Robert A. Millikan
Arthur A. Noyes
Richard M. Pearce
Michael I. Pupin
S. W. Stratton
Charles D. Walcott
William H. Walker
William H. Welch
Robert S. Woodward
Robert M. Yerkes

Interim Committee

(Consists of Officers and Chairmen of Divisons)

Arthur A. Noyes, Chairman

Whitman Cross Vernon L. Kellogg

Gano Dunn J. C. Merriam

George E. Hale Robert A. Millikan

Henry M. Howe ' Richard M. Pearce

John Johnston • Charles D. Walcott

Administrative Division

Arthur A. Noyes, Chairman
Section on Foreign Relations, George E. Hale, Chairman
Section on Relations with Educational Institutions and State Research

Councils, J. C. Merriam, Chairman.
Section on Industrial Relations, John Johnston, Chairman.
Research Information Committee:

Washington Committee.

London Committee .

Paris Committee.

S. W. Stratton, Chairman
Colonel R. H. Van Deman
Captain Roger Welles
[ Graham Edgar, Technical Assistant

' Military Attache, or his representative
Naval Attache, or his representative
Scientific Attache, H. A. Bumstead
S. W. Farnsworth, Technical Assistant

Military Attach^, or his representative
Naval Attach^, or his representative
Scientific Attach^, W. F. Durand
K. T. Compton, Technical Assistant

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS 339

Military Division

Charles D. Walcott, Chairman

S. W. Stratton, Vice-Chairman
Carl L. Alsberg Rear-Admiral Robert S. Griffin

Admiral William S. Benson Brig. Gen. P. D. Lockridge
Major-Gen. W. M. Black Van H. Manning

Howard E. Coffin Charles F. Marvin

Major-Gen. Wm. Crozier George Otis vSmith

Rear-Admiral Ralph Earle Major-Gen. George O. Squier
Walter S. Gifford Rear-Admiral David W. Taylor

Major-Gen. W. C. Gorgas Col. Ralph H. Van Deman

LiEUT.-CoL. Henry S. Graves Capt. Roger Welles

Engineering Division
Henry M. Howe, Chairman

Division of Physics, Mathematics, Astronomy, and Geophysics

Robert A. Millikan, Chairman
Charles E. Mendenhall, Vice-Chairman

Division of Chemistry and Chemical Technology
John Johnston, Chairman

Division of Geology and Geography

J. C. Merriam, Chairman
Whitman Cross, Vice-Chairman

Division of Medicine and Related Sciences

Richard M. Pearce, Chairman
Robert M. Yerkes, Vice-Chairman

Division of Agriculture, Botany, and Zoology
Vernon Kellogg, Chairman

«

research information committee

The chief functions of the Washington office of the Research Infor-
mation Committee have been defined as follows:

(a) To provide means of ready cooperation with the London
and Paris offices of the Committee bj^:

1. Receiving, collating, and disseminating information for-
warded from these offices.

2. Rendering available such evidence and documents as may
be collected by the National Research Council relative to re-

340 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

search in the United States, so as to formulate repHes to in-
quiries sent from abroad.

3. Communicating to foreign offices needs for additional in-
formation relating to problems originating in the United States.

(b) Classification, cataloging, and filing of papers and reports
received from various sources at the request of the National Re-
search Council, and record of researches in progress concerning
which detailed information may be obtained elsewhere.

(c) Issue of lists of available information and preparation of
digests of such information for distribution to properly accredited
persons.

(d) Maintenance of contact with various research agencies in
the United States.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VIII JUNE 4, 1918 No. 11.

BIOLOGY. — Biology and war.^ Raymond Pearl, U. S. Food
Administration.

Science is playing a part in the conduct of the present world
war far beyond anything ever dreamed of as a possibility before
its beginning. The physicist and the chemist have been called
into consultation with regard to practically every sort of mili-
tary activity, both offensive and defensive. They have been
asked on the one hand, to devise new mechanisms of destruction,
and on the other hand to provide effective means of defense
against such measures of annihilation as the enemy has been
able to put into operation. The response to these demands has
been generous, timely, and effective in all of the countries at war.
In view of his contributions in these directions the university
professor of physics or chemistry seems in a fair way to attain,
when the war is over, a position of respectability and esteem in
the world's affairs never before imagined in his wildest dreams.
The submarine, the aeroplane, gas warfare, as indeed practically
all of the new fighting methods which have been put into opera-
tion in the last few years, are highly recondite developments of
physical science, using the term in a broad sense to include
chemistry, mathematics, and even astronomy, as was pointed out
to the Academy in an earlier lecture in this series by Doctor Hale.

One has heard very little about the immediate help rendered
by biology in the conduct of the war, except in relation to the

^ A lecture given before the Washington Academy of Sciences on May 9, 1918.

341

342 pearl: biology and war

medical sciences, where the contribution is directly to the sal-
vaging of the human wreckage with which the pathway of war
is strewn, and only rather indirectly towards its winning. It is
generally taken for granted, and to a considerable extent even
by professional biologists, that in the nature of things the biologi-
cal sciences, other than the medical, can have only rather a remote
and indirect relation to the conduct of war.

One purpose of this paper is to make some examination of the
biological philosophy of war. It has seemed to me that if one
does this, he is likely to come to the conclusion that the ordinarj^
valuation of the relative significance of the physical and chemical
problems connected with war as compared with the biological
problems is substantially the reverse of the true valuation. To
begin with, we should remind ourselves of a distinction which is
often forgotten when one attempts to evaluate in military terms
the potential contributions of the different sciences to war.
Essentially what the physicist and the chemist contribute is
towards the creation, development, or perfection of some de-
structive or protective mechanism — at best an inanimate, im-
personal machine. But the very essence of a fight is that it is
between living things. A 120-kilometer gun, or a submarine, or
a tank, cannot of and by itself make war. All such engines of
destruction are only the secondary implements of war. The
primary implements are biological entities — men. Without
these entities there neither would nor could be any war. So then,
obviously, the primary problems of war are biological problems.
They are such problems as why men fight; what kinds of men
make the best fighters; what conditJbns, both internal and exter-
nal, biological and environmental, conduce to the most effective
fighting; and what are the probable biological consequences
(including physiological, social, and genetic) of the fight, both to
the winner and the loser. This is the sort of problems to which
the biological sciences can alone make any significant contri-
bution and they are clearly much more fundamental than those
entailed in the designing of a new aeroplane or submarine.

Furthennore, it admits of no doubt that the accumulated
knowledge in the field of biology could be utilized in a way to be of

pearl: biology and war 343

large strategic value. The biological analysis of the events of the
war as they pass might be made of direct military importance in
the forecasting of the future course of events. An illustration here
is found in what has happened in Russia. The collapse of Russia
was at bottom not due to any shortage of powder or shot or other
secondary requirements of military activity, but it came esseni-
ally because a Russian is, in certain respects, a totally different
kind of animal from an Englishman, a Frenchman, an Italian,
or an American. Because he is a different kind of animal he has
throughout his past history reacted to certain sorts of stimuli in
a different way than would or did the individual of the other
nations mentioned. Any thoughtful student of the biological
aspects of history — that neglected branch of science which
Frederick Adams Woods has been trying for years to interest
people in, under the somewhat forbidding label "historiometry" —
could have foretold with considerable precision both as to time
and event, or better eventuality, just what Russia's contribution
to the cause of the Allies would be.

What I have so far said will serve as a general indication, I hope,
of the fact that we have signally failed to make effective use of
the contribution to war that biological science, in the broadest
sense, is potentially able to make. The indictment here, if there
be any, falls upon the class to which I professionally belong.
What I wish to do in the remainder of the time at my disposal is
to discuss a few of the more important biological problems of
war, in the hope that such discussion may serve in some si ght
degree at least to arouse interest in these problems on the part of
many biologists much more capable of dealing with them than I
am. If this can in any way be accomplished I feel that biology
will make to the cause in which we are all vitally interested a
contribution second to none.

WHY MEN FIGHT

War constitutes a gigantic experiment in human evolution.
For the experimental study of evolution in lower organisms we
have many laboratories and institutes. In such laboratories one

344 pearl: biology and war

studies the effect on the race of modifications in the environment,
of crossing the different races, and of various other factors which
may be supposed to have a determinative influence in bringing
about evolutionary change or modification. A great war per-
forms all these experiments on a stupendous scale with the. human
organism as material.

In saying this I am not at the moment referring to the relation
of natural selection to war. That is a topic to which I shall come
later. I am here referring to a very much broader aspect of the
question. War is not merely selective (if it be so at all) through
elimination by death of men at the front. Its biological effect
on the human species is much more profound than anything
which could possibly result from any merely selective process.
War makes a most complete and far-reaching change in the whole
biological environment of the human beings of the countries
engaged in it, and if the number of these countries is sufficiently
large it affects the whole world. In this regard, it is most nearly
comparable to what the geologist calls a catastrophic change in
evolutionary history. The reason why war induces so profound
a change in human environment is that it disturbs every -psy-
chological and social relation of men with each other. For
modern civilized man the environment does not mean primarily
the climate, the flora, or the geological structure of the place in
which he lives. To a very considerable extent civilized man con-
trols and modifies the impirgement of the direct physical elements
in his environment. I'he important elements of human environ-
raent are those which grow out of the activities of the human
mind, or as one may broadly say, the psychological and social
elements. These include all the social relations which are built
up during yesLra of peace. But war, in and of itself, brings about
an entirely new revaluation of all existing social, economic,
intellectual, and moral relations. This is true not alone for the
combatants, but for all the non-combatant or neutral nations.
In a war such as the present one men everywhere begin to recon-
sider their thought and action about such things as what con-
stitutes proper education for their children, what is a desirable
mode of activity for the church, what sort of activities in the

pearl: biology and war 345

conduct of business may be tolerated, and a thousand other of
the complex and manifold relations between human beings.

True evolutionary change in a strict philosophical sense means
a definite and permanent alteration in a group of organisms, both
in the group as a whole and in the individuals composing it, as
individuals. When one uses the term "permanent" in this con-
nection it should, of course, be understood always to carry the
qualification, permanent until the conditions which produced
the initial evolutionary change themselves become altered. Now
human social evolutionary change rests upon two broad general
bases instead of the one upon which the organic evolution of lower
forms of life depends. Lack of recognition of this fact has been a
fruitful source of failure to arrive at philosophically sound con-
clusions in many discussions of the social evolution of man, under-
taken from the biological point of view.

The basic element and limiting factor in organic evolution is
the germ plasm. It is at once the race stabilizer and the race
initiator. The germ plasm is the physical basis of inheritance in
general. Borne in the reproductive cells of the organism it is
the one thing which preserves physical continuity between suc-
cessive generations of organisms. If successive generations are to
differ from one another biologically there must be concomitant
and equivalent changes in the germ plasm. Genetic and eugenic
research has abundantly proven that the germ plasm plays the
same role in human inheritance and human evolutionary changes
that it does in lower organisms. Here one needs only to mention
the studies of Galton, Pearson, and Davenport by way of illus-
tration. Many others might be added to the list.

Besides this strictly biological base of the germ plasm there is
also another underlying factor in human social evolution which
is nearly, if not quite, of as great significance. I refer to that com-
plex of ideas and actions which has been rather badly called
"social inheritance." This factor operates in somewhat the
following manner. Starting from a germ-plasmic base the indi-
viduals composing any social group are biologically differentiated
from those forming other social groups. On this account they
develop social relations and social institutions of a sort in some

346 pearl: biology and war

degree unique and peculiar to the group. Once started, these
social relations and institutions acquire a sort of inertia which in
and of itself tends to stabilize them quite without any conscious
activity looking towards stabilization on the part of any of the
component individuals in the group. This inertia extends within
the group in an extraordinary degree to every sort of social rela-
tion, including even the minor conventions. It makes the whole
social fabric, which, as we have seen, constitutes a very important
element of human environment, extremely resistant to change or
alteration of any sort. Ordinary social forces produce but little
effect. It requires years of unremitting effort to bring about
even mild and minor social reforms or changes in the ordinary
normal course of human events. It has taken nearly seventy-
five years to get as far forward as we are with the prohibition
movement in this country. More strongly socially inherited
institutions would be still more difficult to alter. To illustrate
the point, let us consider the social-economic institution of inter-
est. It is entirely possible, not to say easy, to conceive a society
so organized that credit and the interchange of credit would be
effected without the institution of interest. But try to conceive
the concrete possibility of putting into actual operation in the
civilized world today a system which would do away with interest
charges. The mind balks at the thought. The inertia of this
institution, its social inheritance, is so strong that to change it
would be a task of commensurate relative magnitude somewhat
approaching to the task of so changing the germ plasm of the
human race that man would have, for example, no vermiform
appendix. Both are extremely stable things which cannot be
easily or quickly changed by the operation of ordinary forces.
Both changes involve an alteration in stably equilibrated sys-
tems, and it is a general characteristic of such systems that they
do not change either frequently or easily. The inertia of social
relations, which is I think a better term than social inheritance,
is simply a special case of the general phenomenon of the natural
occurrence of systems in stable equilibrium, the manifestations
of which in the inorganic world have been so brilliantly expounded
by Lawrence J. Henderson in his book The Order of Nature. It is

pearl: biology and war 347

precisely homologous to germ-plasmic inheritance in the biologi-
cal realm and not less potent in its influence as a stabilizing factor
in human social evolution.

The one outstanding cause in present-day civilization which
can quickly break the inertia of social institutions and induce
changes, and by so doing perform a function in the scheme of
social inheritance analogous to that of mutation in physical
inheritance, is war. It operates to direct sharp and searching
attention to the real significance of every social institution, from
the standpoint of national efficiency, national economy, and
national well-being. If under such stressed examination change
or reform appears to be necessary it rather quickly follows. The
inertia of the long established is broken by the conditions of
war.

If it would not take us so far afield into philosophy and perhaps
even metaphysics I should like to pursue this point further, but I
think that perhaps enough has been said to make clear the only
thing which is requisite here, which is that if we are profitably to
discuss the biological philosophy of war we must recognize that
besides the influence of the germ plasm in human affairs we have
to deal with another general factor of a social but still essentially
biological character, namely the inertia of social relations and
institutions themselves, which stabilizes them against sudden or
rapid alteratiori by any but the most catastrophic causes such as
great wars.

As a concrete example of the application of what we have been
discussing to present conditions, we may take the case of Eng-
land. Already since the beginning of the war England has passed
and ended a stage in its social evolution to which it can never
return. The institutions and people of that country in all their
outlook on social relations in the widest sense have been essenti-
ally and fundamentally changed, and however the war may end,
will be permanently different from what they were five years ago.
Anyone who will take the trouble to read the recently promul-
gated program of the English labor party will realize how pro-
found the alteration has been. Or, again, consider the whole
history of the Home Rule question. More progress has been

348 pearl: biology and war

made towards its solution since the beginning of the war than in
all the previous struggles with it.

To bring about such changes, which constitute a real and defi-
nite step in social evolution, it is not at all necessary that the
enemy should win a war. It is war itself which accomplishes
these alterations in human relations and human beings. It only
need be sufficiently comprehensive in its magnitude, and suffi-
ently long continued in time, to produce definite and permanent
evolutionary changes through alterations of social relations and
institutions.

There is a further side to the evolutionary aspect of war which
we have not yet considered. If we view the matter in terms of
nations, not of individuals, it is at once apparent that war is a
deliberately planned struggle between biologically unlike groups
of individuals for the purpose of maintaining or bettering their
status in the general hierarchy of group domination or preced-
ence. A modern war is not entered into casually and without
some degree of both spiritual and material preparation. In the
nature of the thing itself it cannot be so entered. To make a
whole nation w^ant to fight, including all the ignorant, because
uninformed, people in it, it is necessary that their emotions be
stirred, either by some act or supposed act of an offending nation
or else by deliberate emotional propaganda. At the outstart of
any war this emotional incentive to belligerency is wholly lacking
in a very considerable portion of the populations of the nations
involved. It has to be worked up, a process in which the enemy
always renders most efficient service, by such things in these
latter days as air raids over inoffensive towns, sinking passenger
vessels without notice, or in other ways too revoltingto mention.
Pending the general distribution of rage in the involved popula-
tions, the business of war has to be planned and executed by the
nation's leaders in as detached and impersonal a manner as' any
other great business enterprise. This fact, which to a resident of
another planet not accustomed to our ways might seem strange,
raises two questions: In the first place, why do national leaders
enter so coolly, and yet under certain conditions so eagerly, upon
such a ghastly business as war; and in the second place, why do

pearl: biology and war 349

the common people not only permit them to do so, but follow
them with all their energies when once the business is well under
way? Some biological facts will help us to understand the
answers to these questions.

The general biological fact of individual variation is, of course,
familiar. No two individual animals of any sort, human or
other, are precisely alike. Individuals vary or differ among
themselves. Of these variations or differences some are super-
ficial and transitory, but, on the other hand, many have a deep-
rooted and ineradicable germinal basis. Perhaps the most
general result of modern genetics is to show the extent to which
variations, often slight in their external manifestations, have a
definite germinal basis, reappearing unaltered again and again in
the successive generations arising from the same germinal stock.
The same fact of variation holds equally true in respect of races
and national groups, provided in the latter case they have existed
as socially isolated entities sufficiently long for a distinct feeling
of nationality to develop. The variation in national groups
involves, as in the individual, all sorts of characters, psycho-
logical, social, and moral, as well as physical. In new nations,
changes in the psychological, social, and moral characters
appear and become fixed by the process of social inheritance
sooner than in the strictly physical characters. The fact is that
the groups of people, which, in political terminology, are called
nations, in the great majority of cases become rather quickly
biologically differentiated if they are not so from the beginning
of their national life. A German is different from a frenchman
or an Englishman or an Italian. These differences are not merely
physical. They involve every mental attitude, appetite, and
responsibility, which are the factors governing action.

To recognize the fact of biological differentiation or variation
is in no sense to assert difference of position in the evolutionary
scale. There is no evidence that among these larger and more
developed national groups it is proper to speak of one as superior
or inferior to another. Philosophically, all such comparisons of
races or national groups are untenable, for the reason that they
all involve by implication comparison or measurement with some

350 pearl: biology and war

absolute and unique base or yardstick. But no such absolute
base of social evolutionary comparison exists. For example,
even at this late date, someone might conceivably contend that
the Germans, were superior to the Hottentots, but it would be a
difficult thing to prove in general or absolute terms. Measured
by common sense standards one would no doubt find that in some
respect — physical, or moral, or even perhaps intellectual — the
Hottentot is a relatively better man in his environment than
the German is in his. Plainly, in order to be just to either the
Hottentot or the Hun each should be measured by a different
yardstick. But this quite prevents saying in any absolute terms
which of the two is the superior race. Like so many other things
"it all depends." But this logical difficulty only makes it all
the clearer that Hottentots are different from Germans.

Not only are the different races and national groups generally
different, but broadly speaking, they all want to stay so, and this
is what causes all that special sort of trouble, which is war. The
resentment against the high-handed imposition of that Prussian
"Kultur" which we are all so strenuously opposing, arises not so
much from any logically proved defects in this particular brand
of Kultur (though parenthetically one may remark that they
appear to be sufficiently numerous), but rather because, being
different, the people of other nations simply do not want it.
They prefer their own particular brand of thought and action.
The one fundamental thing which an Englishman or a Frenchman
will fight against to the last ditch is any attempt to make him
over into a German.

The same feeling is exemplified in every war. We fought
bitterly for it in the Civil War. The people who originally
settled in the southern portion of the United States were biologi-
cally and socially different in several important particulars from
those who settled in the northern part. The Southerner fought
hard and well for four years to keep from being dominated by the
Northerner. He had a strong feeling, which was to a certain
extent justifiable, that domination meant the obliteration, for
all practical purposes, of certain differences which had up to that
time existed between him and his Northern neighbor. The same

pearl: biology and war 351

iCeling was a potent factor in making- the Revolution. There
was a dawning national consciousness in the colonies which was
based upon a beginning of social and biological differentiation.
The mother country very unwisely refused to recognize, or foster,
or even tolerate these differences. In consequence, she lost her
colonies.

In general, why men deliberately plan wars is because they are
different biologically, in structure, habits, mental outlook,
thought, or other waj^s, and wish to preserve intact their differ-
entiations. The more truly conscious they become of these group
differences, the more likely they are to fight as groups. As soon
as they attain the first glimmerings of such consciousness they are
apt to see, or to think they see, something in the behavior of their
neighbors which threatens the maintenance of that which begins
to mark them as a nationality. It is the business of their national
leaders to be on the lookout for such things. They may merely
fancy that they detect some danger to the maintenance of even
their present status in something that a neighboring nation does.
It niay be a very intangible thing, and the interpretation of its
significance may be entirely wrong, but that does not matter.
The fighting promptly follows.

But someone will ask: Why does fighting follow? Why not
arbitration or some- other peaceful means of settling what is in
many cases, at least, merely a trivial difference at the start? The
biological answer is again clear. The human animal, in common
with other higher vertebrates, has come to be endowed wdth
emotions, of w^hich rage is a very important one. In the inter-
course of men and nations such things as insults, real or fancied,
triflings with honor, either individual or national, attempted inter-
ference with natural or vested rights, larceny of territory or other
goods — all these and similar sorts of activity vastly too numerous
to catalog, tend to call forth the emotions of anger or rage. More
particularly are acts of the sort mentioned sure to stir the emo-
tions of a people if they are perpetrated by foreigners, those who
do not belong to the same group. People of one's own kind
may with impunity do things which another kind of people can-
not do without exciting very violent emotions. The significant

352 pearl: biology and war

biological fact is that, however induced, the emotion of rage
automatically and inevitably causes certain definite bodily
changes and activities, as has been demonstrated by the bril-
liant researches of Dr. Walter B. Cannon, described in his re-
markable book entitled Bodily Changes in Pain, Hunger, Fear
and Rage. The bodily changes induced by rage are precisely
those, which make the organism ready for a fight. They are the
visceral preparation for the translation of emotion into action.
The researches of Cannon have shown, as he says, "a number of
unsuspected ways in which muscular action is made more efficient
because of emotional disturbances of the viscera. Every one of
the visceral changes that have been noted — the cessation of proc-
esses in the alimentary canal (thus freeing the energy supply for
other parts); the shifting of blood from the abdominal organs,
whose activities are deferable, to the organs immediately essential
to muscular exertion (the lungs, the heart, the central nervous
system) ; the increased vigor of contraction of the heart ; the
quick abolition of the effects of muscular fatigue; the mobilizing
of energy-giving sugar in the circulation — every one of these vis-
ceral changes is directly serviceable in making the organism more
effective in the violent display of energy which fear or rage or pain
may involve." It is clear that we have here a first class reason
why men fight. It is, in short, because they get mad at each
other. It is fair to say that this has been suspected for some time
past. What the physiologist has shown us that we did not know
before, however, is the reason why rage is more generally followed
by fighting than by judicial arbitration.

No interested person or nation was ever known publicly to
allege any such reasons as those just discussed for participating
in war. That fact, however, may with safety be taken not to
invalidate the point. Most men are human and a liking for the
outward trappings of inner grace is a highly human attribute.
As war begins, and while it continues, even on to the final ending
around the table of the peace conference, everyone involved alleges
a wide variety of highly moral reasons asto why he is participating.
As a matter of fact, he perfectly well knows, if he is at all intelli-
gent, and at all given to facing the actual facts as they are, that the

pearl: biology and war 353

high principles have absolutely nothing to do with the reasons for
his fighting. They serve a wholly different and eiuch more useful
and admirable purpose, in that they justijy instead of explaining
his belligerency. The explanation of why men fight is very
simple. It is, first, because their kind of people is different from
other kinds; second, because they want to make sure that their
kind shall either maintain or improve its status in the world, and
that which is thought to ensure most certainly the maintenance
and extension of group differences in the widest sense is relative
politico-social domination by the group ; and third, because of a
general physiological law that certain emotions tend to lead to
action. So long as men are capable of becoming enraged there is
potential danger of a fight.

THE biological CONSEQUENCES OF WAR

Any discussion of the consequences of war, from a biological
standpoint, demands as a first requisite the consideration of
natural selection in relation to war, or, as it is perhaps more com-
monly put, ''Darwinism and war." German philosophers of all
degrees of attainment have been particularly addicted to specu-
lation in this field. The view commonly held is that in war we
have practically the only existing agency of natural selection
operating with full vigor upon the human species. It is contended
that when two nations engage in warfare with each other the
principle of the survival of the fittest accompanies the operation
with all its traditional crudity and finality. No better exposition
of this viewpoint can be found than that set forth by my friend
and colleague, Vernon Kellogg, in his remarkable book Head-
quarters Nights, from the after-dinner remarks of the distinguished
German biologist who figures in the narrative under the name
"Professor Von Flussen." Kellogg expounds the philosophy of
war after Von Flussen in the following words:

The creed of the AUmacht of a natural selection based on a violent
and fatal competitive struggle is the gospel of the German intellectuals;
all else is illusion and anathema. The mutual-aid principle is recog-
nized only as restricted to its application within limited groups. For
instance, it may and does exist, and to positive biological benefit, within

354 pearl: biology and war

single ant communities, but the different ant kinds fight desperately
with each other, the stronger destroying or enslaving the weaker. Sim-
ilarly, it may exist to advantage within the limits of organized human
gi-oups — as those which are ethnographically, nationally, or otherwise,
variously delimited. But as with the different ant species, struggle —
bitter, ruthless struggle — is the rule among the different human groups.
This struggle not only must go on, for that is the natural law, but it
should go on, so that this natural law may work out in its cruel, in-
evitable way the salvation of the human species. By its salvation is
meant its desirable natural evolution. That human group which is
in the most advanced evolutionary stage as regards internal organiza-
tion and form of social relationship is best, and should, for the sake of
the species, be preserved at the expense of the less advanced, the less
effective. It should win in the struggle for existence and this struggle
should occur precisely that the various types may be tested, and the
best not only preserved, but put in position to impose its kind of social
organization — its Kultur — on the others, or alternatively to destroy
and replace them.

That this is a fair and typical exposition of the views of German
biological philosophers regarding war will be readily granted
without argument by any evolutionist who is familiar with the
literature in this field. The principle of natural selection was
seized upon by no one with greater avidity than the Germans.
The strictly mechanistic features of this doctrine, which Darwin
himself seemingly always felt to be a potential source of weakness,
were the very things which made the strongest appeal to the
Germans. In the hands of Haeckel, and particularly Weismann,
natural selection was developed into a complete philosophical
system of biology, in which any lack of biological evidence re-
garding the actual operation in nature of the basic principle w^as
more than compensated for by the wooden finality of the logic.

As years went on the German statesmen and political philoso-
phers became acquainted with the content and possibilities of
what their biological confreres had by that time come to call with
considerable unction ''Neo-Darwinism." They presently saw
the great possibilities which the principle of natural selection of-
fered in fostering and developing in the minds of the people the
militaristic ideal, the will to conquer. For thirty years every
German school boy and girl has been taught what natural selec-
tion means. This same glorious principle that the fittest alone
shall survive, and its converse that the survivor is the fittest, have

pearl: biology and war 355

been the corner stones on which modern Germany has been built.
Various remote and far removed causes have been assigned as
contributory to the present conflict, but one highly important
cause — perhaps in a philosophical sense the most significant of all
— has been very generally overlooked. I believe it to be literally
true that the one event in the history of Western Europe which
more than any other single one laid the foundation for the situa-
tion in which Western Europe finds itself today, was the
publication in 1859 of a book called The Origin of Species. With
what horror would that gentlest and kindest of souls, whose mind
conceived and executed this work, have been filled could he r ave
foreseen the frightful welter of blood which has resulted from the
gross perversion of his views by German biologists.

Let us examine with some care the meaning of natural selection
in its relation to war. In the first place, it must be remembered
that nowhere in nature does natural selection, as indicated by
modern careful study of the subject, operate with anything like
that mechanistic precision which the German political philosophy
postulates. In a recent paper read before the American Society
of Naturalists, I presented a number of examples from the litera-
ture illustrative of this point, and I need not repeat them here.
Nature often does not operate on the natural selection basis,
though logically— at least in formal logic — it ought to. Much less
does natural selection operate in a rigid and mechanical manner
with reference to human affairs. It is perfectly clear that no war
in this day and age is, in any proper sense of the word, literally a
struggle for existence. The German people have from the be-
ginning tried to make it appear that the present war is, from their
standpoint, exactly this. They have insisted again and again
that their national existence, their continued survival as a nation
was threatened by their neighbors, but such a view has only to be
stated to any fair-minded, unbiased person to prove its utter
absurdity. Could anyone but a German seriously maintain that
the French, or the English, or the Italians, or the Russians, would
have wished for, or would have attempted if they could, the anni-
hilation of the German people? Theoretically, such a feeling or de-
sire is conceivable, but practically everyone knows that it did not
exist. Normal human beings are simply not constituted that way.

356 pearl: biology and war

Furthermore, military results are not, in fact, measured in
terms of biological survival. History shows that defeated nations
survive just as definitely and truly as conquering races or nations.
No better example could be found of the fallacy of the completely
mechanistic natural selection idea with reference to war than our
own Civil War, which was the most severely and bitterly fought
of any war in recent history before the present conflict. No
question of biological survival was involved at any stage ; it was a
struggle to effect the survival or elimination of certain politico-
social ideas held by one group of people and not by the ether.
These ideas were slavery and secession. One of the contending
groups was defeated ; no military decision can ever be more com-
plete and final than was that reached in the Civil War. If mili-
tary conquests or defeats ever mean biological survival or elimi-
nation the principle should have been exemplified in the Civil
War. Yet as a matter of fact and of course the defeated group
was not eliminated in the biological sense, but biologically sur-
vived, and not only survived, but has become as a group more
active, more progressive, and more distinctly differentiated
biologically than it was before the conflict.

Other wars at other times show the same things. Take the
case of peoples subjugated by military conquests; they are not
eliminated, but on the contrary they survive, using the word in
its strict biological signification. The natives participating in
the Indian mutiny suffered a stinging military punishment. Yet
today the natives of India survive, and their institutions survive.
Again, take another example : it was necessary for us some years
ago to conquer in a military sense the Filipinos. The unpleasant
task was accomplished in a thorough-going manner. A complete
military decision was made, but the Filipinos were not bio-
logically eliminated, and today have a significantly stronger
and more real national feeling than probably ever before in their
history.

Nearer events prove the same point. No more ruthless at-
tempt at the biological elimination of a nation was ever made than
that undertaken by the Germans against Belgium in the summer
of 1914 and continued to the present time. Yet, does anyone,
even a German, delude himself into the belief that the Belgian

pearl: biology and war 357

people and the Belgian national feeling do not survive today, and
will not continue to survive?

The plain fact in the matter is that the proudly ruthless phil-
osophy of Treitschke and Bernhardi is not only immorally cruel,
but also immortally stupid. This whole crude and mechanistic
view of war as a process of natural selection is really most unbio-
logical in that it takes no account of the most fundamental of
human biological characteristics — namely, those which dis-
tinctively differentiate man from lower organisms, his mental
and moral qualities. Biologically, nationality rests on the group
spirit of the people, which in turn means differentiant variations
ineradicably ingrained in their germ plasm. Nationality can
onl}^ be eliminated in the biological sense by the complete and
total destruction of the germ plasm of the people of the nation,
because it depends upon things which are to a substantial degree,
at least, unchangeably and permanently determined by that
germ plasm. Killing a percentage of the male population on the
battlefield is as silly as it is a pitifully sad method of attempting
to destroy the germ plasm of a nation. What a defeated nation
loses in war is simply its status in the international political
hierarchy either temporarily or permanently. It suffers, broadly
speaking, no fundamental biological loss. The Chinese today,
after a century of hopeless military defeats which left them an
inert and pacifist nation are just as truly and completely bio-
logically differentiated as they ever were. A Chinaman is a
Chinaman today, and as different from anybody else in the world,
as he ever was. Contrast this with real biological elimination
with which this Darwinian School of militaristic philosophy
draws so false an analogy. ^ATiat comparison exists between a
Chinaman and a dinosaur? Natural selection operated with a
real Allmacht on the dinosaurs to a finish that made literally true
the proverbial statement of the wondering rustic about the
giraffe: "There ain't no such animal." But the Chinaman hope-
lessly defeated and crushed in military affairs is still with us and
quite capable of enjoying life in his peculiar way. He stands in
the aggregate as a gigantic refutation of the much lauded claim
which the Germans have made for the "fundamental biological
basis of war."

358 pearl: biology and war

While we are on this subject of natural selection, it will be well
to examine into another aspect of the subject in its relation to
war. It has been contended by various persons that war has an
unfortunate selective action on the individuals engaged in it.
The operation of war is supposed to be selective within the race
for the elimination of the best and the preservation o!" the worst
germ plasm. This is alleged on the general ground that the
physically, mentally, and morally best of the youth of the nation
are those most likely to take part in war in the first place, and in
the second place, most likely, because of these characteristics, to
be killed in the course of the conflict. Dire pictures have been
drawn of the effect upon the race of engaging in war, through the
supposed operation of this dysgenic selection. The more one
examines the facts, however, the more is it apparent that the case
has been very much exaggerated.

Many considerations lead to this conclusion. In the first
place, the future of the race, in the narrowly biological sense, is
solely dependent upon the continuity of its germ plasm. In the
human species the germ plasm of the race is equally borne by both
the males and the females. But, putting the very worst com-
plexion on the dysgenic argument, the females of the race are not
elimated in war. So that if we were to grant for the moment the
contention that the best males of the race are killed off, it would
still remain the fact that but very slight deleterious racial effect
would result, because there would be left behind in the surviving
females at least half of the total racial germ cells of all qualities.
Mendel's principles of inheritance teach us that even in such an
extremely unlikely circumstance that all the germ plasm borne
in spermatozoa was at the end of the war of an inferior quality, it
would still be possible through the operation of segregation to
have again a preponderant stock of superior individuals aft r a
few generations, provided there were no social restrictions on
assortative mating, which, broadly speaking, there are not.

Furthermore, the hypothesis of racial degeneration by elimi-
nation of the best tacitly assumes that those males eliminated in
battle have not left progeny before their elimination, whereas, as
a matter of statistical fact, a considerable portion of them do

pearl: biology and war 359

leave behind such progeny. Again it must not be forgotten that
the whole of the population, both male and female, under about
twenty years of age is left untouched by war, and available for
the perpetuation of the race as they grow older. This means in
statistical terms, that about 40 per cent of the total male popu-
lation existent at any given moment, and in which all qualities
of germ plasm, good, bad, and indifferent, are normally dis-
tributed, as in a random sample of the whole, are not even in-
volved in war and hence stand no chance to be eliminated by its
operation. *

In the second place, even in the most destructive of modern
wars the proportion of totally eliminated casualties to the whole
population is not very great. Indeed, it is always found to be
surprisingly small when reviewed dispassionately by the vital
statistician after the war is over. To take the case of our own
Civil War, the proportion of casualties to the total population
was only 2 per cent, and even in proportion to the male popu-
lation within the likely breeding period (say fifteen to fifty
years of age) was slightly under 9 per cent. It is, of course, too
early to obtain similar estimates for the present conflict.

In the case of the present war, there are still other considera-
tions which make it clear that any putative, deleterious, selective
effect of war on the races concerned will be insignificantly slight.
In all of the nations involved the fighting men have been taken
practically at random from the whole population so far as germi-
nal variations are concerned. The sound biological principle of
conscription operates to leave the distribution curve of germ-
plasmic qualities essentially the same after the fighting men have
been taken out as it was before. The high development of the
mechanical aspect? of the present war operates to the same end.
Hand to hand conflicts, man against man, in direct physical
struggle, are a relatively small part of the present as compared
with earlier wars. The agents of destruction chiefly relied on in
the present conflict are entirely impersonal and distribute their
effects very largely at random. The whole mode of conduct of
the present war operates to make the chances for elimination of
the man carrying about withiij his soma the best germ plasm of

360 pearl: biology and war

the race, not substantially greater than the chances of the indi-
vidual bearing the poorest germ plasm.

CONCLUSION

Except for lack of time one might go on and consider other
essentially biological problems of war. We have not discussed
at all those fascinatingly interesting and important problems
connected with the individual's part in the actual conduct of war.
A nation which would systematically and thoroughly investi-
gate such matters as what sorts of men, physically, psycho-
logically, and morally, make the best fighters; what biological
conditions, including internal states, environmental conditions
in and behind the lines, conduce to most efficient fighting; how
fighters should be fed to obtain the best results; and other like
problems, would be in an extremely superior position in any con-
flict with a group not possessed of definite scientific information
on • these points. At present our information regarding such
matters is very largely empirical. It should be said, however,
that since America's entrance into this conflict a brilliant begin-
ning has been made in the scientific study of certain of these
problems, initiated and directed in large degree by Major Robert
M. Yerkes. The final results of his work will be eagerly awaited
not alone for their military value, but also for their purely bio-
logical interest and significance.

In conclusion, the thought I most wish to leave with you, and
which I hope I have sufficiently elaborated and illustrated, is that
while war is a biological business, to the problems of which the
trained biologist could contribute much, it is not an absolute bio-
logical necessity. Nations neither lose nor gain biologically by
war. But this does not mean that wars must not and will not
be fought. As a biologist I can come to no other conclusion
than that wars will occur in the future as they have in the
past until such time as civilized man has become a different
kind of animal than he now is. Happily every war advances
him by some degree on the road to that much-to-be-desired
goal.

bartsch: land shells of Palawan passage 361

ZOOLOGY. — The land shells of the genus Amphidromus from the
islands of the Palawan Passage.^ Paul Bartsch, U." S.
National Museum.

JMy paper on The Philippine Land Shells of the Genus Amphi-
dromus- has had the usual effect of stimulating collectors to trans-
mit their shells to the United States National Museum for classi-
fication. In this instance we have been exceptionally fortunate
in receiving a large sending of carefully labeled specimens col-
lected by Mr. C. M, Weber, in the islands of Palawan Passage.
These greatly needed shells throw a flood of light on the systematic
problem of the complex that inhabits these islands and make it
possible to give a positive statement about them. It will be
remembered thatti was forced to say in the paper above referred
to: "I am quite perplexed by the following species [Amphidromus
qiiadrasi] and feel at a loss as to the treatment that should be
accorded to it."

iVIr. Weber's material shows that on some of the islands off
southern Palawan these mollusks present a most remarkable
range of color variation and, what is more, show that similar types
of coloration occur upon several islands. The present collection
establishes beyond a doubt the fact that no matter how interest-
ing they may be from a breeder's standpoint, systematically con-
sidered these color phases have no more significance than the uni-
color, unicincta, bicincta, tricincta, amd quadricincta forms of Heli-
costyla ovoidea which I have found in a single brood of that species.

The group breaks readily into two divisions. In the first
groop the tip is always white and the early whorls are flesh-colored,
turning gradually to yellow which becomes intensified as the shell
increases and is darkest immediately behind the aperture, or the
yellow may be replaced Jby green. A very narrow light line marks
the summit of the turns below which a deep-maroon band en-
circles the whorls ; the base at the columellar border is also edged
with this color, while the lip is always white. This is Amphidro-
mus quadrasi Hidalgo. This species, so far, is known from three
islands, Candaraman, Coxisigan, and Bekin.

^ Published by permission of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.
■' Bull. 100, U. S. Nat. Mus., Vol. 1, pt. 1, pp. 1-47, pi. 1-22, 1917.

362

bartsch: land shells of Palawan passage

Measurements of a large series of specimens from these islands
show that there is a decided difference in the size of the specimens
obtained on the three islands. The difference is probably best
expressed in table 1.

TABLE 1

LOCALITY

Candaraman.

Caxisigan

Bekin

NUMBER
MEASURED

NUMBER OF
WHORLS

ALTITUDE

17

65
73

6.87
6.72
6.42

35.91
33.53
30.50

GREATER
DIAMETER

17.76
17.12
15.95

These differences I consider sufficient to demand a trinomial
designation. The specimens from Candaraman are Amphidro-
mus quadrasi quadrasi Hidalgo, the type locality for this sub-
species. Those from Caxisigan may be known as Amphidromus
quadrasi caxisiganensis Bartsch^ and those from Bekin as Amphi-
dromus quadrasi ledyardi Bartsch.'*

The second group we- may consider typified by Amphidromus
versicolor Fulton. Specimens of this group always have the
extreme tip dark brown ; the rest of the turns may be white, pale
yellow or wax yellow, or variously variegated; in the latter case
the two or two and a half turns succeeding the dark tip are usually
uniformly flesh-colored, while the ground color of those following
may be white, yellow, green, or red, or sometimes several of these
colors, one overlying the other, may be present ; in each instance,
if otherwise than white, the tint gradually becomes intensified
toward the aperture. The whorls between the first two and the
last may be unicolor or they may be marked by axial lines, bands,
or forked flammulations of chestnut brown. The base may be uni-
color or spirally banded with yellow, green, brown, or red. The
columellar area may be white or edged with yellow, green, brown,
or red. The lip may be white, pink, or purple, while the interior
ranges from w^hite through pearl gray, pink, pale purple, to spinel
red. The general impression which one gains by looking at a tray
of mixed specimens is a rainbow effect.

3 Type, Cat. No. 215603, IT. S. National Museum.
* Type, Cat. No. 215606, U. S. National Museum.

bartsch: land shells of Palawan passage

363

Amphidro77ius versicolor Fulton is now known from Balabac,
Mantangule, Bancalan, and southern Palawan, all much larger
islands than those occupied by Amphidromus quadrasi Hidalgo.

In spite of the great general variability of the color pattern,
certain phases of coloration prevail on the separate islands which
would enable one thoroughly familiar with these molusks to name
with a fair degree of accuracy the island from which a specimen
was derived. Measurements of a large series of specimens from
the various islands give the results shown in table 2.

TABLE 2

LOCALITY

Balabac

Bancalan

Mantangule

Palawan Passage

Palawan, Brooks Pt

Palawan, Mt. Landargung.

NUMBER
MEASURED

NUMBER OF
WHORLS

ALTITUDE

199

6.65

37.88

255

6.63

37.44

63

6.51

34.01

3

6.93

39.86

25

6.77

38.26

2

6.80

38.60

1

GREATER
DIAMETER

18.89
18.75
17.33
19.93
19.66
20.60

The shell described by me^ from ' 'Palawan Passage" as Amphi-
drovius quadrasi palawanensis yield measurements that agree
nearest with those of Amphidromus versicolor everetti which comes
from southern Palawan, They also agree with this in haVing a
remarkably uniform color pattern and dark coloration both out-
side and within, but they lack the obsolete peripheral angle char-
acteristic of all the Palawan shells seen. It is unfortunate that
we do not have a definite island locality for them.

The dark-colored race from the low lands of southern Palawan
will have to be known as Amphidromus versicolor everetti Fulton,
and it is more than possible that the shell described as Amphidro-
mus quadrasi solida Fulton from Palawan will prove to be simply
a color phase of this race. I have not seen specimens of it from
Palawan. The forms I called Amphidromus quadrasi solidus in
my paper from Balabac must now be placed with Amphiaromas
versicolor versicolor Fulton. The main coloration of Amphidro-
mus versicolor everetti Fulton is very similar to my Amphidromus

5 Bull. 100, U. S. Nat. Mus., Vol. 1, pt. 1, pp. 39-40, pi. I, fig. 15, pi. 20, figs. 1, 4,
6. 9. 1917.

364 bartsch: land shells of Palawan passage

versicolor palawanensis , but the presence of a peripheral angle
separates it from that subspecies.

From Mt. Landargung, in the interior of southern Palawan, we
have seen two specimens collected at an altitude of 2,500 feet
which, while they agree in general coloration with Amphidromus
versicolor everetti, are nevertheless much lighter in tone than that
form, and the interior, instead of being purplish, is white. The
edge of the lip is dark purple.

This mountain race deserves to be recognized by a trinomial
name, and I will call it Amphidromus versicolor monticolus. The
type« had 6.7 whorls and measures: altitude, 40.3 mm., greater
diameter, 21.2 mm.

The greatest range coloration is presented in the forms from
Vancalan Island, which may be known as Aviphidrovms versi-
color higginsi Bartsch.^ A selected series shows no less than
twenty-eight types of coloring, which I shall describe briefly.

1. Tip dark, the ground color white, with a greenish suffusion which
is most pronounced on the parietal callus.

2. Wax-yellow, a little lighter on the early whorls, with a greenish tint
on the last; tip dark.

3. Midway in coloration between the last two but with an obsolete
angle -at the periphery.

4. Tip dark, the next white with a yellowish suffusion; last whorl
gradually turning green; edge of the lip maroon.

5. Like the last. In addition, however, all but the first two and a
half and the last one and a half turns, are marked by axial flammulations
of chestnut brown.

6. Like no. 4, but with the early whorls wax-yellow, and the lip
white.

7. Like the last, but the first three postnuclear turns show faint,
light brown axial flammulations in addition.

8. Tip dark, the first two and a half turns flesh-colored; the two and
a half succeeding these with flesh-colored ground upon which strong,
axial, branching flammulations of chestnut brown are placed; the rest is
wax-yellow turning greenish on the last turn. The last two and a half
turns are encircled by a narrow zone of carmine at the suture, which
color also surrounds the insertion of the columella.

9. Tip dark; all but the last four-fifths of the turns pale wax-yellow,
the last portion marked by closely spaced dense axial streaks of varying

^ Cat. No. 218795, U. S. National Museum.

' Type, Cat. No. 218420, U. 8. National Museum.

bartsch: land shells of Palawan passage 365

shades of brown overlaid with a suffusion of pale green; lip maroon;
umbilical area wax-3'ellow.

10. Like the above, but the dark coloration extends attenuatedly
back over the last one and a quarter turns. The lip, also, is white.

11. Like no. 9, but with very pale yellow ground color. The space
between the second and the last three-quarters of the last turn is
marked by axial flammulations.

12. Like the above, excepting that the ground color and the lip are
white. Columellar callus pale yellow and the solid color of the last
portion of the shell extending over one and a quarter turns.

13. Tip dark; early whorls flesh-colored, those succeeding pinkish
flesh-colored with obsolete axial flammulations of pale brown; last
turn grenadine pink with a yellowish suffusion. Inside of aperture pale
hermosa pink; edge of peristome dark purplish brown.

14. Tip dark; next two whorls flesh-colored, the two and a half suc-
ceeding flesh-colored with light chestnut brown axial flammulations ; last
turn wax-yellow; periphery angulated; base with two equally wide
chestnut brown spiral bands of which one is immediately anterior to the
periphery while the other is situated a little anterior to the middle of the
base. These bands do not extend over the last half of the base. Peri-
stome and interior white.

15. Like the last, but with the last turn deep wax-yellow gradually
turning to green near the aperture. The two basal bands scarcely extend
beyond the edge of the lip.

16. Like no. 13, but with a broad, wax-yellow spiral band whose pos-
terior edge touches the posterior angle of the aperture. A second wax-
yellow band marks the columellar area.

17. Like the last in coloration of the spire; base wax-j^ellow except
the narrow band of grenadine pink immediately below the angulate
periphery and a second one of the same color, which is situated on the
cente ■ of the base, which evanesces before it reaches the middle of the
last half turn.

18. Tip dark; the next two turns flesh-colored; all the rest except the
last three-quarter turns of the last whorl flesh-colored with many axial,
chestnut brown flammulations and a narrow subsutural wax-yellow zone.
The last turn graduall}^ darkens to olive green near the aperture. Aper-
ture pale grayish blue within ; peristome edged with blackish purple.
A broad yellow band encircles the base at the posterior angle of the
aperture and extends a little beyond its outer lip.

19. Like th' last, but with the peristome white.

20 Similar to the last, but with the last whorl of much lighter color.

21. Similar to the last, but with the last whorl much lighter in color,
greenish, purplish, and yellowish shades prevailing. The base, also, is
wax-yellow and the lip is white with a purplish tint.

22. Tip dark; the next two turns flesh-colored; the rest at first with
flesh-colored ground color which gradually gives way to yellowish,
marked by many chestnut brown axial flamulations. On the last turn
the axial color bands gradually become fused resulting in a dingy brown-

366 bartsch: land shells of Palawan passage

olive patch on the middle of the turn behind the aperture. The area
near the summit of the whorls remains pale wax-yellow. Base with a
narrow spiral chestnut brown band whose posterior border touches the
posterior angle of the aperture; this is succeeded by a broad, yellow
spiral zone, and this in turn by an equally wide spiral brown band,
while the columellar area is a greenish and pinkish yellow. Lip white.

23. Like the last, but with the subperipheral spiral band double.

24. Like no. 22, but with the base dark chestnut-brown and a spiral
mid-basal wax-yellow band, the columella area wax-yellow.

25. Tip dark; the two first turns flesh-colored; the ground color of
the rest pale wax-yellow excepting the last turn, which is wax-yellow.
All except the first two, and the last half of the last turn are marked by
axial chestnut-colored flamulations. The last turn has fine spiral lines
of chestnut brown. Base with a subperipheral and median band of
dark chestnut brown, the lest wax-yellow excepting a pinkish line at the
insertion of the columella. This line is also carried around the inner
lip of the aperture, the inside of which is pale pinkish white.

26. Tip dark; the first two whorls flesh-colored; the ground color of
the succeeding turns flesh-colored, this on the last whorl slowly giving
way to pale yellow. All but the first two whorls marked by chestnut-
brown axial flamulations, which, on the last turn, do not terminate at
the periphery but extend over the base. These axial markings become
condensed immediately behind the lip and render this portion almost
unicolor. The inside of the aperture shows the dark color bands of the
exterior. The peristome is white, but the inner edge of the lip is
marked by purpUsh dark chestnut-brown bands.

27. Similar to the last, but of much more yellowish color, and with
the axial flammulations much broader. These axial broad bands form an
angle as they pass over the periphery. The insertion of the columella
is encircled by a dark chestnut band.

28. Similar to the last but with the base largely dark excepting a
broad pinkish band a little anterior to the periphery. This band
becomes evanescent before it encircles half of the last turn.

The shells from Mantangule Island, which may be called Am-
phidromus versicolor weberi,^ are by far the most brilliantly colored
of all the known races of Amphidromus versicolor. However, we
have here a much more uniform color pattern than in the speci-
mens in the races from Balabac and Bancalan. All the specimens
have a dark tip which is succeeded by two or more flesh-colored
turns. The ground color of the succeeding turns may be flesh-
colored, tinged with yellow or wax-yellow. In the one type
of coloration no axial flammulations of chestnut brown are present
on these whorls, while in the other they are strongly marked.

8 Type, Cat. No. 218422,. U. S. National Museum.

bartsch: land shells of Palawan passage 367

The last turn is usually light near the summit, then girdled with a
broad, dark area which is of the same color as the dark area of the
base but is separated from this by a narrow light zone at the pe-
riphery. The dark coloration of the last turn may be green or light
coral-red or the latter overlaid with green. The base may be uni-
color, i. e., white, yellow, green, red, or brown, or it may have one
or two bands of yellow, brown, or red. The portion of the last
whorl adjoining the columellar callus is usually coral-red. The
interior is white, bluish, or pinkish, the peristome white or edged
with purplish brown.

The table on page 363 gives additional data as to number of
whorls and shell measurements.

The specimens which I have seen from Balabac Island show a
lesser variability in coloration than those from Bancalan, to which
they bear the greatest resemblance. There is here a much greater
tendency to spiral banding of the base than in the shells from any
of the other islands. All of the specimens of Amphidromus versi-
color weberi examined have a white peristome but in Amphidro-
mus versicolor higginsi this is frequently dark. In measurements
they agree best with the shells from Bancalan Island, i.e., Amphi-
dromus versicolor higginsi.

The present sending by no means completes the survey of the
Palawan Passage region, for as yet we know nothing of the Amphi-
dromus inhabitants of the three large islands Bugsuk, Pandanan,
and Ramos, nor do we know anything about the group on the
lesser islands of Apo, Bowne, Canimeran, Patongong, Gabung,
Byan, Canabungan, Secam, Malinsono, Sanz, and Paz. Then,
too, the many islands off the north coast of Borneo should con-
tribute a large amount of information that should tell us some-
thing of the derivation of the forms in our domain which are
undoubtedly of Bornean stock.

ABSTRACTS

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

ELECTRICITY. — Radio instruments and measurements. Bur. Stand.
Circ. 74. Pp. 330. 1918.
The Bureau of Standards has issued a treatise on radio measure-
ments, for use by Government officers, radio engineers, and others con-
cerned. The circular inckides a development of the essential theory of
high-frequency measurements from simple but precise low-frequency
theory, the use of reactance curves in the rapid solution of problems,
descriptions of radio instruments, and formulas and data for radio
work. The full treatment of fundamental principles will make this
circular serve as a foundation for later publications which may be is-
sued by the Bureau on the general subject of radio communication.

J. H. D.

TECHNOLOGY. — Stahilized-'platform weighing scale of novel design.
F. J. ScHLiNK. Bur. Stand. Tech. Paper No. 106. Pp. 28. 1918.

In this new scale the usual stabilizing element consisting of a pin-
and-link connection is replaced by a flexible elastic tape, band, or
wire. This design eliminates practically all the friction inherent in
existing stabilizing mechanisms. In stabilized-platform scales made
after the new design, friction is reduced to a very small amount, and is
unaffected by the position of the load.

In the paper the earlier types of stabilizing elements are illustrated
and the limitations of each set forth. The theoretical considerations
underlying the conditions of equilibrium in weighing scales of the sta-
bilized-platform type are defined and the methods used in carrying out
the adjustment of such a scale are outlined. A discussion of the ef-
fects of static friction on the indications of scales is included and the
effect of the elimination of this friction in enhancing the accuracy of
weighings is shown. The paper includes nearly a score of illustrations
of weighing scales and scale details. F. J. S.

368

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 804th meeting of the Society was held at the Cosmos Club,
March 30, 1918; Vice-President Humphreys in the chair; 53 persons
present. The minutes of the 803d meeting were read in abstract and
approved.

Mr. D. L. Hazard presented the first paper, on The magnetic survey
of the United States. The magnetic survey of the United States may be
said to have had its beginning in 1843, when a plan for the reorgani-
zation of the survey of the coast was adopted wliich provided for making
magnetic observations, but progress was slow up to 1899, because of
lack of funds. Beginning with that year an annual appropriation of
$25,000 has made possible a systematic survey of the whole country.
The plan under which the work has been executed provides for mag-
netic observations at places 30 to 40 miles apart on the average; a sub-
sequent more detailed investigation of areas of local disturbance; the
occupation of a sufficient number of repeat stations to determine the
secular change of the magnetic elements; and the operation of magnetic
observatories.

The work has progressed to the point where observations have been
made at all but about 150 county seats, results being available for about
5,500 stations, and attention is now being directed more especially to
the investigation of areas of local disturbance and the occupation of
repeat stations. Magnetic surveys have been, made of Porto Rico,
Hawaii, and the Philippines and the accessible portions of Alaska.
Observations at sea have been made on some of the vessels of the Survey.
Meridian lines have been established at many stations, and at most of
the others the necessary information has been secured to enable local
•surveyors to test their compasses.

The results of the survey have been published from time to time,
as the work progressed, in the form of magnetic tables and magnetic
charts, the latest publication, just issued, being Magnetic Tables and
Magnetic Charts for 1915, containing the accumulated results to the
end of 1915.

While the survey had its origin in the needs of the navigator and
surveyor, yet the importance of the scientific side has been kept in
view from the outset and due attention has been given to securing the
data needed for a comprehensive study of the earth's magnetism, with
a view to determining its origin and the cause of its fluctuations.

The paper was discussed by Messrs. Bauer and Humphreys.

309

370 proceedings: philosophical society

The second paper was presented by J. P. Ault, on Cruises III and IV
of the yacht "Carnegie" in the Arctic and Suh-Antarctic regions, 1914 to
191 7. Motion pictures were shown of the different operations on board
the vessel, of her passage through the Panama Canal, and of the
rough seas and large icebergs encountered during the Sub-Antarctic
cruise.

A brief summary was given of the origin and development of the
science of terrestial magnetism, of its relation to the other sciences, and
of its use and importance in present day activities. The work of the
Department of Terrestrial Magnetism of the Carnegie Institute was
described and a chart was exhibited which showed the region thus far
surveyed, both on land and at sea. The general magnetic survey of the
globe has been practically completed so that an early publication of
new and accurate magnetic charts is contemplated.

For the ocean survey work a special vessel, the yacht Carnegie, was
designed and built, being constructed wholly of nonmagnetic mate-
rial. The results of observations made on board this vessel do not
require corrections on account of magnetic material in the vessel. The
Carnegie has completed four cruises since her launching in 1909, and
has covered over 240,000 nautical miles. Cruises III and IV were
planned to fill in the unsurveyed regions in the Arctic and Sub-Ant-
arctic oceans, which are accessible to a sailing vessel of her construc-
tion. In 1914 during Cruise III, the vessel reached the high northerly
latitude of 80°, west of Spitsbergen, the ports of call being Hammerf est,
Norway, and Reykjavik, Iceland. Due to the small number of previ-
ous observations made in these regions, the errors in the existing charts
were found to be quite large. A brief account was given of the results
obtained, methods used, and of the peoples and places visited.

Cruise IV began at New York in March, 1915, and ended at Buenos
Aires, Argentina, in March 1917. During this cruise the Carnegie
passed through the Panama Canal, cruised in the Pacific Ocean from
Honolulu to Dutch Harbor, Alaska, and northward into the Bering
Sea to 60° north, and thence southward to Lyttelton, New Zealand.
From Lyttelton a remarkable circumnavigation cruise was made, the
Carnegie sailing eastward for four months, completely circHng the Ant-
arctic Continent in one season, returning again to Lyttelton. During
this time the vessel was in the iceberg region for three and one-half
months and encounterd very stormy weather. Gales of force 7 to 11,
Beaufort scale, were experienced on fifty-five days out of 117, and some
form of precipitation occurred on one hundred days. In spite of the
adverse conditions, observations for magnetic dip and intensity were
made every day, and observations for magnetic declination were
made every day except one. In one region the chart errors increased to
12° for the British and American charts, and 16° for the German chart,
the latter being an older chart than the former two.

The paper was discussed by Messrs. Bauer and Humphreys.

After adjournment at 10 p.m., light refreshments were served.

E. C. Crittenden, Corresponding Secretary.

proceedings: philosophical society 371

The 805th meeting of the Society' was held at the Cosmos Club, April
13, 1918; President Burgess in the chair; 49 persons present. The min-
utes of the 804th meeting were read in abstract and approved.

The first paper was presented by S. J. Mauchly, on A study of pres-
sure and temperature effects in earth-current measurements. (Illustrated
by lantern sUdes). The larger portion of the earth-current data on
record, was obtained from observations made on commercial telegraph
lines. For lines of considerable length, the fluctuations in the observed
current are generally assumed to be very little influenced by local ef-
fects at the earth plates, but for measurertients made between electrodes
not many kilometers apart, this assumption is not valid. Most of the
special lilies installed for the study of earth-current phenomena are
necessarily limited in extent, and the object of the experiments de-
scribed in this paper was to investigate the nature and order of magni-
tude of some of the spurious effects which may function under these
conditions.

In one group of experiments a method similar to that used by Des
Coudres, in his study of the E.M.F. produced by the action of gravity
in salt solutions, was used to investigate the possible presence of an ef-
fect due to difference of pressure at the electrodes. It was found that a
tube filled with soil and provided with an electrode at either end showed
a component of the total E.M.F. which tended, when the tube was ver-
tical, to form a cathode at the lower electrode regardless of which elec-
trode was involved. The order of magnitude of this effect was shown
to be sufficient to account for certain observed phenomena which ap-
pear inconsistent with physical principles, provided the effect exists as
a general phenomenon in nature.

The results of continuous measurements of P.D. and temperature
difference made on actual underground systems of earth plates for
about eight months show that most, if not all, of the diurnal variation
which has by some observers been ascribed to a vertical earth current
was very probably due to the variations in the temperature difference
between the electrodes.

The spurious effects introduced by temperature-difference variations
were found to be greatly increased and reversed in sign when the soil
in contact with the electrodes was frozen.

While the results are strictly applicable only to the actual installation
employed during the experiments, they show that the effects which may
result from temperature difference at the electrodes of an earth-current
line, and from the variations in this difference, may for short lines be of
the same order of magnitude as the quantities to be measured and with
which they are associated. Some of the phenomena which various
observers have ascribed to a true earth current must be largely influ-
enced by such effects. The employment of nonpolarizable electrodes
does not prevent the introduction of temperature-difference effects.

The paper was discussed by Mr. Bauer.

Mr. M. Sasuly then presented the second paper, on A general system
of approximate integration formulae. Several types of quadrature for-

372 proceedings: philosophical society

mulas are known for evaluating definite integrals of functions whose
primitives are unknown. The most familiar formulas are those devel-
oped by Cotes, Lagrange, Euler, and Gauss. In each of these the
problem is reduced to finding a certain area under a curve representing
the function in rectangular coordinates. This area is given in terms
of the interval of integration and several ordinates (values of the func-
tion) within that interval. Thus, to a certain degree of approximation,

f{x)dx = ih-a)^[krf{x,)]. (1)

j=l,2, 3, ... 71.

The numbers /(xi) and /^i are ordinates and corresponding " weighting"
coefficients in the interval (a. . . .6).

In the formulas of Cotes and Euler the ordinates are equidistant.
In those of Lagrange the ordinates may be taken at random. All three
types have equal accuracy of a certain kind, namely, a formula using
n ordinates gives the exact value of definite integrals of a polynomial
function of degree n — 1 (or degree n if n is odd). In the formulas of
Gauss, however, the ordinates must be taken at certain definite points,
and in virtue of this the maximum accuracy is obtained. A formula
of n ordinates is exact for the integral of a function of degree 2 n — 1,

It can be easily shown that the use of any type of ordinate formula
is valid only in the case of analytic functions (i.e., such as can be de-
veloped in a convergent power series) . From the properties common to
all analytic functions, it may be shown that the points Xi and the co-
efficients k of the corresponding ordinates subsist in a unique functional
relation. Thus by a simple transformation, we may put

J»6 p + 1

/ {x) dx= \ if (t) dt. (2)

a J-\

Then, it can be shown that

J^ <p{t)dt=2-^k,[^{-r)-^^{+r)] (3)

^ = 1, 2, 3, . . . n,

O <n<r.<r, . . . 1\<\,

in which the numbers ki and /-j are each arbitrary but related as follows:

1

' ' 2(2r/+l) ^^

-7 = 0. 1,2,3

This relation determines an infinite number of types of approximate
integration formulas, combining maximum accuracy with maximum
flexibility. For k^ and r, may have arbitrary values, consistent with
their fundamental relation, and subject only to the condition that the

proceedings: philosophical society 373

ordinates be selected in pairs sjanmetrically located in the integration
interval. The formulas of Cotes, Euler, and Gauss may be derived as
special cases.

The paper was discussed by Messrs. Sosman, White, and Burgess.

A third paper, by P. D. Foote and F. L. Mohler, on Ionization and
resonance potentials for electrons in vapors of magnesium and thallium,
was presented by ]\Ir. Mohler. (Illustrated by lantern slides). Since
mercury, magnesium, cadmium, and zinc belong to the same family,
one might expect that the behaviour of electrons in vapors of these four
elements should be somewhat similar in character. The single line
spectrum of mercury is known to be excited at the resonance potential
of 4.9 volts. Work of Tate and Foote reported at the Chicago meeting
of the Phj^sical Society, shows that the resonance potentials for cad-
mium and zinc obey the quantum relation hv = Ve, where v is the fre-
quenc}' of tli£ single line spectrum. Hence, one would expect the single
line spectrum of magnesium to follow a similar relation.

The present writers have employed the method of Franck and Hertz
for determining the resonance potential of electrons in magnesium vapor
and Tate's modification for determining the#ionization potential. The
mean of data so far obtained gives 2.65 volts for resonance and 7.75
volts for ionization with an accuracy of possibly 0.1 volt. The theo-
retical values on the basis of X = 4,571 and 1,622 are 2.70 volts and
7.75 volts, respectively, while the single line spectrum at X = 2,852
would require a resonance potential of 4.3 volts.' This experiment
combined with the confirmed results on the other metals in the same
group suggests that the single line spectrum of Mg is X = 4,571 rather
than X = 2,852. Evidence was obtained in the present work for a
series of double points in the current-potential curves similar to those
found by Tate and Foote for zinc, but further work now in progress is
required properly to interpret these subsidiary points.

The resonance and ionization potentials for electrons in thallium
vapor have been measured by the method described in earlier papers,
with the modification of the use of a hot equal potential surface instead
of a hot wire as a cathode. The cathode was similar in principle to
that used by Goucher and consisted of a platinum (or better, a nickel
cylinder) insulated from a helix of tungsten wire inside, which was used
as the heater. Ionization occurred at an applied potential of 6.6 volts,
which when corrected for the initial velocity observed as 0.7 volts
gives the final value for the ionization potential of 7.3 volts. The thal-
lium spectrum is characterized by a set of doublet series. The reso-
nance potential of 1.07 volts is given within experimental errors by the
quantum relation hv — eV when v is the frequency of the stronger
line (X = 11,513) of the first doublet of the principal series. The theo-
retical value of the resonance potential computed on this basis is 1.07
volts. We believe this is good evidence that the single line spectrum
of thallium is X = 11,513.

We were unajDle to detect any sign of ionization accompanying reso-
nance or any resonance due to the line X = 13,014. If thallium acted

374 proceedings: biological society

in a manner similar to sodiuha or potassium one would expect from the
analagous relations in the series of these elements to find ionization
determined by the quantum relation hp = eV when v is the limit of
the principal series v = 22,786. This requires a value of 7 = 2.81
volts, which cannot be considered in the light of the experimental data.
We believe that our work enables the prediction of a new series in
thallium. It is very possibly of the form v = 1.5 S— mP, a single
line series of low intensity converging at 1.5 S lying between 57,000
and 60,000. The highest convergence frequency of any series so far
known for thallium is 49,263. The present work again brings up the
question of the separate excitation of hues constituting a doublet.
Thallium appears to offer a fruitful field for work in this regard.

Although the usual time of adjournment had arrived, it was moved
and carried that the program be completed, and Mr. P. D. Foote pre-
sented a paper on Electronic frequency and atomic number, which was
discussd by Dr. Swann.

The meeting adjourned at 10.15 p.m.

H. L. Curtis, Recording Secretary.

BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 584th regular meeting of the Society was held in the Assembly
Hall of the Cosmos Club, Saturday, April 20, 1918; called to order at
8 p.m. by President Rose; 35 persons present.

General T. E. Wilcox stated that he had received a communication
from Ex-President Roosevelt in which he said he was presenting to the
Society an autograph copy of his book entitled A Booklover's Holiday
in the Open. Dr. Howard in this connection referred to the 277th
meeting of the Society when Theodore Roosevelt, then Assistant Secre-
tary of the Navy, attended for the first and only time a meeting of the
Biological Society of Washington.

The regular program was as follows:

Alex. Wetmore: Lead poisoning in waterfowl. Mr. Wetmore said
that lead poisoning in waterfowl has been known for a number of years
and recently has assumed considerable economic importance. Wild
ducks, whistling swans and a few other birds subject to this disease
pick up and swallow pellets of shot lying in the mud in marshes and
shallow lakes about old shooting bhnds. These shot are held in the
stomach and worn slowly away by grinding against bits of gravel taken
to aid digestion, so that small particles of lead are being steadily passed
out into the intestine, and in part absorbed. This causes a severe
diarrhoea, the feces are stained bright green, the birds are soon unable
to fly, and a slow paralysis sets in so that they become unable to stand.
Cases of long standing become much emaciated though the birds eat
eagerly. By experiment it was found that six number six shot when
swallowed were fatal in every instance, while in one instance one shot
of that size was sufficient to cause death from lead poisoning. It was
also shown that the trouble was due actually to lead and not to arsenic

proceedings: biological society 375

or combinations thereof with lead. In all cases this lead poisoning
seemed to result fatally, and on certain marshes a considerable number of
waterfowl are destroyed in this manner. The speaker described the
symptoms and post-mortem appearances fully and gave details of ex-
periments and observations made in the laboratory and in field work.
He also exhibited specimens of shot removed from the gizzards of
ducks, showing how they had been worn by muscular action, and also shot
dredged from the feeding grounds.

A. S. Hitchcock: Generic types. The speaker reviewed the tenden-
cies in generic nomenclature of plants and referred to the rules concern-
ing generic types in the American Code of Botanical Nomenclature.
He also referred to the rules in the International Code which concern
the use of the generic name although these rules do not recognize type
species. Precision in the application of generic naraes is attained only
when it is recognized that a genus, however limited as to component
species, must include the type species. In other words, the type species
of a genus should determine the apphcation of a generic name. It is
obvious that the type species is the species or one of the species included
in the genus when it was established. It is recommended that the
type species be designated when a new genus is pubhshed. Since the
older authors in most cases did not designate their generic types, it
becomes necessary to select the type species for the genera in which the
types have not been designated. If there is agreement as to type
species there will be agreement as to the apphcation of generic names.
Of course it does not follow that there will be agreement as to the hmi-
tation of genera. One concerns nomenclature, the other concerns
taxonomy. Mr. Hitchcock has investigated 255 generic names of
grasses and indicated their type species. Several examples were given
illustrating the method of selecting the types.

The paper was discussed by Dr. L. 0. Howard, W. L. McAtee, and

S. A. ROHWER.

W. W. Eggleston: Thomas NuttaWs trip to Oregon in 1834, '^iih
notes on the route. Thomas Nuttall was a member of Captain N. J.
Wyeth's Second Oregon Expedition. Nuttall's data on localities is
meager, therefore collections along his route would be useful. Collec-
tions should begin at Scotts Bluff and cover the country to the mouth
of the Columbia. The more important places to visit are Scotts Bluffs,
Nebraska, Laramie Mountains (Black Hills) along Platte River, Granger,
Wyoming, Soda Springs, Idaho, Fort Hall (furtraders' fort), Idaho,
Wildhorse Creek, Idaho, Blue Mountains, Oregon, and the region around
Sauvies Island, Oregon.

In 1916 the Cusick Brothers and the writer studied the route across the
Blue Mountains. This Indian trail led up Burnt River and Alder
Creek to the vicinity of Pleasant Valley, where the party lost the trail.
Proceeding northward the party crossed Powder River about six miles
below Big Creek, passed the head of Cusick Creek, and on through Thief
Valley, relocating the trail at the Powder River, crossing between North
Powder and Telocaset. Thence the trail follows the foothills and along

376 proceedings: entomological society

the southern rim of Grande Ronde Valley to Ladd Canyon, thence drops
into the Valley west of Hot Lake, and along the base of the rim to Le
Grande where it crosses the mountains. The old wagon road from Le
Grande through Meacham to Cayuse now marks this part of the trail.
In 1917, the trail west of Fort Hall was traced. It passed along Big
Butte to Big Lost River, thence up Big Lost to the vicinity of Arco,
Idaho, thence west to Antelope Creek and down the creek to Big Lost
River again, thence up Big Lost, the East Fork, and Wildhorse Creek
into Thornburg's Ravine. No pass being located here the party re-
turned the next morning to the north fork and crossed the Sawtooth
Mountains by the only pass in this vicinity, the pass now used by the
wagon road. M. W. Lyon, Jr., Recording Secretary.

ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 313th meeting of the Society was held at the Cosmos Club,
May 2, 1918. The meeting was called to order by President Sasscer,
with thirty-two members and three visitors present.

The following names were favorably acted upon for membership:
Mr. C. A.Weigel and Mr. Wm. A. Hoffman, both of the Bureau of
Entomology.

The regular program was as follows :

W. D. Pierce: Medical entomology, a vital factor in the prosecution 6f
the war. This paper, which will be published in the Proceedings of the
Society, deals with insects as disseminators of diseases of man and ani-
mals with special reference to the problems of army-camp sanitation.'
Following the reading of Dr. Pierce's paper the matter of the relation of
entomology and entomologists to the health of our army was interest-
ingly discussed by Dr. L. O. Howard and Mr. A. N. Caudell of the
Bureau of Entomology, and Major Alfred M. Lund, Captain Robert
H. Brown, and Lieutenant E. H. Gibson of the army Sanitary Corps.
The remarks of these army officers were especially appreciated, de-
scribing, as they did, actual experience in the practical handling of the
perplexing problems of sanitary engineering in its entomological phases.

J. A. Nelson: A microcephalic drone bee. This interesting descrip-
tion of an extraordinary aberrant drone bee will be published in the
Society Proceedings.

R. A. Cushman: A convenient method of handling large numbers of
individuals in life-history studies. Mr. Cushman described and illus-
trated the decimal system of keeping records of rearing experiments.
His remarks were discussed by Messrs. Hyslop, Pierce, Caudell, and

ROHWER.

H. G. Barber: The genus PlitUhisus Latreille in the United States.
Read by title. A. B. Gahan, Recording Secretary.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

The Maryland-Virginia-District of Columbia section of the Mathe-
matical Association of America held its annual spring meeting on May
4, 1918, at the Catholic University. The following officers were elected
for the ensuing year: President, A. E. Landry, of the Catholic Univer-
sity; Secretary, Ralph Root, of the Naval Xcsidemj ; third member ex-
ecutive committee, L. F. Hulburt, of Johns Hopkins University.

Professor O. Steels, of the School of Civil Engineering, Univer-
sity of Ghent, and Professor Albert Van Hecke, of the Faculty of
Sciences of the University of Louvain, arrived in Washington in May
as members of the Belgian Mission on Industrial Management. Pro-
fessor Steels is President of the Mission.

An "Inventions Section" has been added to the organization of the
General Staff of the army, "in order to secure prompt and thorough
investigation of inventions submitted to the War Department." It is
headed by an advisory board of chemical, electrical, and mechanical
technologists. D. W. Brunton, Chairman of the War Committee of
Technical Societies, is chairman of the Advisory Board of the new Sec-
tion, and Dr. Graham Edgar and Lieut. -Col.. R. A. Millikan, of the
National Research Council, are members.

The offices of the Chemical Service Section of the National Arm}-
have been removed from the building of the Interior Department to
LTnit F, Seventh and B Streets.

By an executive ord«r issued May 11, 1918, the President of the
United States requests the National Academy of Sciences, under its
congressional charter, to perpetuate the National Research Council.
The order defines the duties of the Council, which are, briefly: (1) to
stimulate research; (2) to survey the larger possibilities of science; (3)
to promote cooperation in research; (4) to bring American and foreign
investigators into cooperation with the Government; (5) to aid in the
solution of war problems; (6) to gather and collate information. The
order further provides for the appointment by the President of govern-
ment representatives as members of the Council, upon nomination by
the National Academy, and instructs the heads of government depart-
ments to continue to cooperate with the council.

The Department of Terrestrial Magnetism of the Carnegie Institu-
tion of Washington, in accordance with a request from Captain Roald

377

378 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Amundsen, has supplied for use in his forthcoming arctic expedition a
complete set of magnetic instrimients, as well as the necessary direc-
tions for magnetic measurements and the program of work. Captain
Amundsen plans to leave Norway this summer in a new vessel, the
Maud, built specially for arctic exploration, and has made his arrange-
ments on the expectation that his expedition will require about five years
for completion. He will make scientific observations of various kinds
in the arctic regions. The final details with regard to the contemplated
arctic magnetic observations were arranged at the laboratory of the
Department by Dr. Nansen and Captain Amundsen on April 5.

On account of difficulties with transportation, Professor R. F. Griggs,
of the Ohio State University, has been obliged to abandon his plan
to lead another expedition this summer to Mount Katmai, Alaska,
under the auspices of the National Geographic Society. The work
planned for this summer has not been entirely abandoned, however,
as two members of last year's expedition, Messrs. Sayre and Hagel-
BARGER, left for Alaska on May 2, taking with them pyrometers furnished
by the Geophysical Laboratory, with which it is hoped to obtain data
on the temperatures of the fumaroles in the " Valley of Ten Thousand
Smokes."

Chancellor Samuel Avery, of the University of Nebi;aska, is now
connected with the Division of Chemistry and Chemical Technology
of the National Research Council.

Professor Watson Bain, professor of applied chemistry at the Uni-
versity of Toronto, is in Washington as a member of the Canadian War
Mission.

Mr. H. A. Baker, chief chemist of the American Can Company, is in
charge of problems of tin plate supply at the U.S. Food Administration.

Lieutenant-Colonel Hiram Bingham, formerly Professor of Latin
American History at Yale University, is Chief of the Air Personnel
Division of the Signal Corps.

Professor W. C. Bray, of Ihe department of chemistry. University,
of California, came to Washington in May to engage in research on war
problems with the Bureau of Mines.

Dr. A. D. Brokaw, assistant professor of mineralogy and chemical
geology at the University of Chicago, is on the staff of the U. S.
Fuel Administration, in charge of oil production east of the Rocky
Mountains.

Dr. Joseph A. Cushman, of Sharon, Massachusetts, was in Wash-
ington for a few days in May, after several weeks of geologic field
work in the coastal plain of North Carolina.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS 379

Mr. Francis C. Frary, of the Oldbury Electrochemical C'ompany of
Niag:ara Falls, has been commissioned a captain in the Ordnance Of-
ficers' Reserve Corps, and is engaged in research with the Trench Wai-
fare Section, Engineering Bureau of the Ordnance Department, in
Washington.

Dr. Grove Karl Gilbert, one of the charter members of the Acad-
emy, died at Jackson, Michigan, on May 1, 1918, within a few days of
his seventy-fifth birthday. He had been associated with the scientific
life of Washington for forty-seven years, having been geologist of the
Wheeler and Powell Surveys in 1871 and 1874, and one of the original
staff of the present U. S. Geological Survey at its establishment in
1879. Dr. Gilbert was a member of the Geological Society of Washing-
ton, of which he was president in 1895 and 1909; the Philosophical
Society of Washington, of which he was president in 1892; the National
Academy of Sciences; and many other American and foreign scientific
organizations. His broad-minded interest in the problems of the earth
kept him an active investigator throughout his life, and his published
papers cover ahiiost the entire range of modern geological science.

Dr. Herbert E. Ives, formerly of the United Gas Improvement
Company of Philadelphia, has been commissioned a captain in the
Signal Corps, and is attached to the Science and Research Division of
the Signal Corps at 1023 Sixteenth Street, the headquartevs of the
National Reseafch Council.

Lieutenant-Colonel C. F. Lee, in charge of the British Aviation Mis-
sion in Washington, who lectured before the Academy in March on
Aviation and the ivar, has returned to England for six weeks to inspect
new models of aircraft.

Dr. Victor Lenher, professor of chemistry at the University of
Wisconsin, has been commissioned a major in the Chemical Service
Section, National Ami}-, and is stationed in Washington.

Mr. P. W. Mason, formerly assistant professor of entomology at
Purdue University, was appointed on May 1, 1918, scientific assistant
in deciduous fruit insect investigations, in the Bureau of Entomology,
Department of Agriculture.

Dr. Fridtjof Nansen, special representative of the Norwegian Gov-
ernment, and an honorary member of the Academy, returned to Nor-
way on May 11, after signing the general commercial agreement be-*
tween the L'nited States and Norway which has l^een in negotiation for
several months.

To Professor F. H. Newell, of the University of Illinois, formerly
director of the U. S. Reclamation Service, the American Geographical

380 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Society has awarded the Cullom Geographical Medal. Other recipi-
ents of the medal have been: Rear-Admiral Peary, Fridtjof Nan-
sen, Sir John Murray, the Duke of the Abruzzi, Sven Hedin, Sir
Ernest Shackleton, and General Goethals.

Mr. George A. Rankin, formerly of the Geophysical Laboratory,
is on leave of absence from the Pittsburgh Plate Glass Company and
is engaged in research at the Experiment Station of the Bureau of
Mines, at the American University.

Mr. C. E. Van Orstrand, of the Geological Survey, returned in May
from a field excursion in Texas, during which he made measurements
of the temperatures in a new 4,600-foot well near the Damon salt dome,
Damon, Texas.

Mr. Rudolph J. Wig has resigned from the Bureau of Standards in
order to devote full time to his duties as chief engineer of the concrete-
ship department of the Emergency Fleet Corporation.

Major Robert M. Yerkes, formerly professor of comparative psy-
chology at Harvard University, is attached to the Surgeon General's
Office and is in charge of the psychological testing of drafted men for
the National Army.

The following persons have become members of the Academy since
the last issue of the Journal:

Mr. Carleton Roy Ball, Bureau of Plant Industry, Department of
Agriculture, Washington, D. C.

Dr. Robert Ervin Coker, Bureau of Fisheries, Washington, D. C.

Mr. Bertrand Leroy Johnson, U. S. Geological Survey, Washing-
ton, D. C.

Dr. Leo Loeb, Washington University Medical School, St. Louis,
Missouri.

Professor Archibald Byron Macallum, University of Toronto,
Toronto, Canada; and Honorary Advisory Council for Scientific and
Industrial Research, Ottawa, Canada.

Mr. Donald Francis Macdonald, Ancon, Panama.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VIII JUNE 19, 1918 No. 12

CHEMISTRY. — The nitrogen problem in relation to the ivarJ
Arthur A. Notes, Massachusetts Institute of Technology;
Chairman of the Committee on Nitrate Investigations,
National Research Council. (Communicated by L. J.
Briggs.)

The subject with which I am to deal is so vast that it is im-
practicable to present more than a brief survey of it. I shall not
attempt to go into technical details, but shall rather attempt
to give you a general view of the situation, and a brief descrip-
tion of the various methods we have for meeting the demand for
nitrogen compounds and of the principles which are involved in
those methods.

You all realize the vital importance of an adequate supply of
nitrogen compounds, particularly of nitric acid and ammonia,
in ensuring our success in this war. From nitric acid are made
all the important explosives such as smokeless powder, picric
acid, ordinary black powder, dynamite, trinitrotoluol, and
ammonium nitrate. This last has recently come into the greatest
prominence as one of the most important and valuable of our
explosives. In fact, it is reported that the Minister of Muni-
tions of England has said that this war must be won with am-
monium nitrate, as no other explosive can be produced in quantity
adequate to meet the enormous demands of the Allied armies in

^ Report of a lecture given before a joint meeting of the Washington Academy
of Sciences and the Chemical Society of Washington on May 15, 1918.

381

382 NO yes: nitrogen problem in relation to war

Europe. This development of the use of ammonium nitrate has
brought about a heavy demand for ammonia. In the early
stages of the war it was anticipated that what we must look out
for was an adequate supply of nitric acid, but at the present time
we are no less interested in a sufficient supply of ammonia.

Let me briefly recall to you what are our sources of these two
nitrogen compounds.

Our first source is Chile saltpeter, or sodium nitrate, which is
found in a natural state in the dry regions of Chile, and which,
until recently, furnished the total supply of nitric acid of the
world. We depend for our own nitric acid supply upon the im-
ports of Chile saltpeter into this country, which is a rather
precarious source. In the first place, we are dependent on ade-
quate shipping, and ships are scarce. In the second place, there
has always been danger that enemy machinations, through
interfering with production, destroying the plants, or blowing up
the oil supply used for fuel, would reduce the production, or that
our supply might be cut off entirely, by the establishment of a
submarine base on the Pacific Coast. All of these possibilities
make it unsafe to rely for our nitric acid supply on Chile salt-
peter alone. But, even if none of these results actually came
about, it would still be impracticable to get the huge amount
of nitric acid that is going to be needed for the American Army
through imports of Chile saltpeter.

Our second source is the ammonia from the by-product gas
and coke ovens — the ovens, that is to say, in which coal is heated
to produce gas or coke. We have, as I shall describe later, a well-
developed process for the conversion of ammonia into nitric acid,
so that if we get,irom any source, an adequate supply of ammonia,
we can convert in into nitric acid. I shall not enter at any
length into the production of ammonia from gas and coke ovens.
I will only recall to you briefly that for a long time, until within
say ten years, this country was producing most of its coke in the
so-called "beehive" oven, which is simply a hemispherical kiln.
The coal is charged into the oven and set on fire, and the products
of the combustion are allowed to pass into the air, so that the
ammonia and valuable hydrocarbons that might have been

NOTES : NITROGEN PROBLEM IN RELATION TO WAR 383

obtained are lost. During the last decade, and especially during
the last few years, there has been a very rapid introduction of the
so-called "by-product" ovens, in which the coal is heated in
closed retorts and the gases are passed through condensers and
scrubbers by which the hydrocarbons and the ammonia are
recovered. It was alleged by some of those representing the by-
product industries that this supply of ammonia would alone
suffice to meet the military needs of the Government; but the
result has proved that it is utterly inadequate. Even if we pro-
duced all of our coke in by-product ovens, the supply would be
far from sufficient. Of course, the Government is interested in
extending the introduction of by-product ovens as rapidly as
possible; but the by-product industry is tied up with the steel
industry. It is mainly in the metallurgy of steel that coke finds
its use, and we can produce ammonia only in proportion as there
is a demand for coke. It is true that in Germany, where in the
early stages of the war the need for hydrocarbons was very
acute, coal was coked extensively just for its ammonia and hydro-
carbons, and great quantities of coke were piled up, to be used
after the war. Our Government has not yet felt that our needs
warrant such extreme action as this, as the value tied up in the
coke is large compared to the value of the by-products, and the
difficulties of securing deliveries are serious.

Our third source of these nitrogen compounds is atmospheric
nitrogen. During the last fifteen years there have been de-
veloped a number of chemical processes by which the nitrogen
of the air is ''fixed," as we say, whereby ammonia, nitric acid, or
sodium cyanide are produced. I wish particularly to speak
of the four most important processes which have been operated
on a commercial scale. These are the cyanamide process, the
cyanide process, the arc process, and the synthetic process.

Let me briefly describe to you the principles involved in these
different chemical processes. I shall endeavor to show you
what materials are needed and how far power enters as a factor.

1. In the cyanamide -process we start with lime and powdered
coke. The first chemical reaction that takes place results in the
formation of calcium carbide, as follows:

CaO + 3C = CaCa + CO.

384 NO yes: nitrogen problem in relation to war

This is the substance which is used so extensively in the manu-
facture of acetylene for oxy-acetylene welding. The carbon
monoxide escapes as a gas. This first step in the cyanamide
process is carried out in huge electric furnaces. The charge of
lime and coke in small lumps is fed down through the furnace in
the center of which stands a large carbon electrode. The walls
of the furnace form the other electrode. The mixture is heated
to a very high temperature, and the melted carbide is tapped off
at the bottom from time to time and allowed to solidify.

The carbide is then crushed and subjected to the nitrifying
process. Namely, it is packed into large basket-shaped con-
tainers 3 to 6 feet high and 2 to 3 feet in diameter, which are
enclosed in an iron vessel supplied with nitrogen. The basket
has holes through the sides, and down the center runs a resistance
wire. The reaction is started electrically by heat produced by
passing a current through the wire. The reaction which takes
place is as follows:

CaCa + N2 = CaCNo + C.

This gives us a product properly called "calcium cyanamide"
which contains some unchanged carbide (about 3 per cent),
and some lime and carbon.

The cyanamide process was the only one of the fixation proc-
esses which was being operated on any considerable scale in this
country when we entered the war, and which is being so operated
now. There is a plant operated by the American Cyanamid
Company at Niagara Falls, Canada, which has been producing
something like 20,000 tons of cyanamide a year. The product
has been used to a limited extent in agriculture, but unfortu-
nately the large amount of lime which it contains prevents it
from being so used in unlimited quantities.

For the production of ammonia the cyanamide has to be treated
with steam, whereby the following reaction takes place:

CaCNa + 3H2O = CaCO.3 + 2NH3.

This process is carried out in huge autoclaves about 20 or 30 feet
high and 4 to 6 feet in diameter. The powdered cyanamide is
fed into an alkaline solution and then steam is blown in; the

NOYES: NITROGEN PROBLEM IN RELATION TO WAR 385

mass is heated, the reaction begins and becomes violent, and the
ammonia is allowed to collect up to a pressure of 12 to 15 at-
mospheres, when it is blown off. Then, after the reaction has
spent itself, the residue is again charged with steam so as to get a
complete removal of ammonia. When carried out properly, it
is practicable to get substantially all of the original nitrogen in
the form of ammonia. This gives ammonia free from organic
matter, except that it contains some acetylene, coming from the
calcium carbide present.

2. I speak next of the cyanide process, in which the reaction
that takes place is, in its net result, as follows :

NaaCOa + 4C + N2 = 2NaCN + SCO.

A mixture of soda-ash with finely powdered coke and iron is
heated at about 1000°C. in nitrogen gas. There is a consider-
able conversion of the sodium carbonate into sodium cyanide,
with evolution of carbon monoxide. The iron acts simply as a
catalytic agent. This operation is carried out in a number of
different ways. In one of the forms of furnace, so-called ''bri-
quets," which are really pencils made by moistening the mixture
and squirting it through a die, are fed down through a long tube
8 or 10 feet high, which is heated on the outside by flue gases
from the combustion of coal. The heating gases pass around the
outside of the tube. The charge feeds slowly down through the
heated zone and is drawn out from time to time by a special
device at the bottom..

As in the case of cyanamide, so in this case also, to get ammonia
we have to treat the product with steam. If we treat it at a low
temperature the cyanide gives ammonia and sodium formate:

NaCN + 2H2O = HCOONa + NH3.

When the formate is heated it breaks up, yielding sodium car-
bonate :

2HC00Na = NaoCOs + CO + H,.

Thus the sodium carbonate used in the process is regenerated.
Really, all that is consumed is the carbon, and the nitrogen taken
from the air.

386

NOYES: NITROGEN PROBLEM IN RELATION TO WAR

The nitrogen used in both of the processes just described is
obtained ordinarily from Uquid air by one of the famihar hque-
faction and distillation processes.

It will be noted that the cyanide process accomplishes in a
^ single operation a result which requires two operations in the
cyanamide process. By using soda instead of lime, we combine
the two steps (conversion of lime to carbide and of carbide to
cyanamide) into one. The final steaming is the same in both
processes.

3. The synthetic process is an extremely simple one chemically,
involving the following reaction:

No + 3H2 = 2NH3.

There is a rather interesting history connected with this. The
proportion of ammonia which forms from the elements (hydrogen
and nitrogen) at atmospheric pressure at any temperature where
the rate is rapid enough so that it will form within a reasonable
time is extremely small. The proportions (by volume) of am-
monia at various temperatures and pressures that are present when
a mixture of three volumes of hydrogen and one of nitrogen
reaches equilibrium are shown in the table:

1 ATM.

100 ATM.

200 ATM.

degrees

per cent

per cent

per cent

500

0.13

10.7

18.1

600

0.05

4.5

8.3

700

0.02

2.1

4.1

Thus at 500° we find, from the laboratory investigations that have
been made on the equilibrium of this reaction, that there is only
0.13 per cent of the nitrogen converted into ammonia when the
mixed gases are at atmospheric pressure, whereas at 200 atmos-
pheres there is 18.1 per cent. As the temperature rises the
result is much less favorable. At 600° we get only 0.05 per cent,
and at 700° 0.02 per cent, at atmospheric pressure. These un-
favorable equilibrium conditions of the reaction, and the known
fact that its rate is very slight until the temperature gets high,
led to the belief that there was no hope of the development of

NO yes: nitrogen problem in relation to war 387

this reaction into a technical process. However, a German
chemist, Haber, demonstrated, by working at high pressures and
at the same time at the low temperatures made possible by the
discovery of a good catalyst, that this reaction can be carried
out on a commercial scale, and this is in fact being done very
extensively in Germany.

4. Finally, we have the arc process, which, like the synthetic
process, involves an extremely simple chemical reaction :

■ N2 + Oo = 2N0.

At a very high temperature nitrogen and oxygen unite to form
nitric oxide. In this case the effect of temperature on the equi-
librium is exactly the opposite of its effect on the ammonia equi-
librium. The higher the temperature, the more nitric oxide is
obtained; but there is very little until the temperature becomes
very high. At 1600°, 0.4 per cent (by volume) of a mixture of
equal parts nitrogen and oxygen is converted into nitric oxide;
at 1900°, 1.0 per cent; and at 2400°, 2.2 per cent. It is clear,
then, that we can get a considerable production of nitric oxide
only by operating at a high temperature. But not only is it
necessary to operate at a high temperature, but the gases must
be cooled so quickly that in the process of cooling the reaction
does not go back again. The gas must be cooled rapidly to such
a temperature that the rate of decomposition of nitric oxide into
oxygen and nitrogen is made very small. The only really
practical way in which this can now be carried out is by using an
electric arc. An arc produces locally an extremely high tem-
perature, and the gas can be drawn rapidly away from the arc
and quickly cooled.

Before describing the ways in which this reaction is carried
out commercially, I shall first call attention to the remaining
reactions which are involved in the production of nitric acid by
the arc process. The nitric oxide, when the gas cools to below
150°, combines with oxygen to form nitrogen peroxide:

2N0 + 02= 2NO2.

This reaction does not take place instantly and time must be
allowed for its completion. The peroxide is then treated with

388 NO yes: nitrogen problem in relation to war

water, three molecules of it forming two molecules of nitric acid
and regenerating one of NO. The first reaction has again to
produce more NO2 before the next step can take place, and the
fact that these reactions must go on successively explains the
great difficulty in absorbing these nitric vapors in the absorption
towers. Towers 60 feet high and 16 feet in diameter, placed six
or eight in a series, are necessary in order to get 88 to 90 per cent
absorption of the nitric vapors. As it does not pay to get the
last 10 per cent in this way, this portion is absorbed either in
caustic alkali, lime, or soda.

Two of the forms of furnace used may be briefly described.
The essence of them all is to form an arc which will have a very
large surface so that the gas will be brought into contact with the
high temperature and will then cool off very rapidly. Various
devices have been used for spreading the arc. The Birkeland-
Eyde process, which is the one most used in Norway, uses an
electro-magnet. If a magnet is placed at right angles to the
arc, the well-known deflection of the electrified particles or
electrons passing from one electrode to the other is produced,
and thus the arc is drawn out into a disk-shaped flame. Another
process for spreading the arc is known as the 'Tauling process,"
an Austrian process, for which a small installation has been
erected in this country at Nitrolee, South Carolina. The elec-
trodes are water-cooled metal pipes. The arc forms between
them and a blast of air spreads out the arc into the wider portion
between the electrodes.

The arc process, when carried out in the manner described,
consumes a very large quantity of electric power, and it is inter-
esting to know where that power goes, because in this direction
lies the main possibility of substantially improving the process.
Of the electric power that is put into the arc only very little
(3 or 4 per cent) is consumed in causing the union of nitrogen and
oxygen to form nitric oxide. The rest of it is used merely for
heating the entering gases from a comparatively low temperature
up to the temperature of the arc. Only by devising an adequate
preheating system, by which the outgoing gases heat to a fairly
high temperature the incoming air, can we hope to increase very
greatly the efficiency of the arc process.

NOTES : NITROGEN PROBLEM IN RELATION TO WAR 389

Before reviewing the economic status of these different proc-
esses and their relation to our needs in the war, I wish to call
your attention to one other chemical process, namely, the con-
version of ammonia into nitric acid. If we are going to fix
nitrogen as ammonia by either of the first three processes, we
must convert it into nitric acid, and this is done by the following
very simple chemical reaction with the aid of platinum gauze
as catalyst:

4NH3 + 5O2 - 4N0 + 6H2O.

Ostwald, some twenty-five years ago, discovered that, when a
mixture of air and ammonia is passed, over platinum and certain
other catalyzers, there is an oxidation of the ammonia in large
measure to nitric oxide, which, when the gases are cooled and
brought into contact with oxygen and water, goes through the
two reactions that have already been described, and nitric acid
is produced. This process has been perfected so that it is now a
very valuable means for getting nitric acid from ammonia.

Let me now review the situation as to the development of
these processes. The cyanamide process uses materials that are
nearly universally available: limestone, coke, and nitrogen from
the air. The limestone must be of good quality and free from
magnesia to work satisfactorily, but there are abundant deposits
all over the world of suitable limestone. It uses a moderate
quantity of power; this is used especially in the first stage of the
process, in the production of the calcium carbide. So, as a
result of these conditions — the small amount of power and the
availability of the materials — this process has been installed all
over the world — in all the countries of Europe, in Japan, and at
Niagara Falls, Canada. It is understood that since the beginning
of the war the Germans have greatly extended their cyanamide
plants, although they have probably been using the product
mainly for fertilizer purposes rather than for the manufacture
of explosives. At the present time, this is the only process on
this continent which has been developed commercially on any
considerable scale.

The synthetic process, which had been pretty well developed
in Germany before the war, and which has undoubtedly been

390 NO yes: nitrogen problem in relation to war

much improved since, had fortunately been worked upon in this
country by the General Chemical Company, and shortly after
this country declared war, the company offered to the Govern-
ment the use of its synthetic process for the production of
ammonia. The company stated that they had so far perfected
the process — well beyond the point which the Germans had
reached before the European war — that they were able to operate
at a temperature of about 500° and at a pressure not exceeding
100 atmospheres. The Germans, before the war, were operating
at nearer 200 atmospheres and at a considerably higher tempera-
ture; and, as we have seen, higher pressures and higher tempera-
tures both add to the difeculties of the process. The Govern-
ment accepted the offer of the General Chemical Company, and
as a result of it a plant is being built to operate this process at
Sheffield, Alabama, which will have an output of about 20,000
tons of ammonium nitrate per year. The ammonia produced
will be put through the oxidation reaction, converting it into
nitric acid, and combined with more ammonia, because
ammonium nitrate is the one thing which is needed in very large
quantities at the present time.

The arc process would seem especially suitable for the produc-
tion of nitric acid, as it is as simple as it can be chemically. The
installation is somewhat expensive, but the really serious objec-
tion to it, particularly under American conditions, is the very
large amount of power that is required. While the cyanamide
process uses 2.2 horsepower-years per ton of nitrogen, the arc
process uses nearer 10 horsepower-years. It can be economical,
therefore, only where very cheap power is available. In Norway,
where power costs about four dollars per horsepower-year, this
arc process is being carried out on a very large scale, and the
nitric acid is being sold partly to Germany, but mainly to the
Allies. 2 In this country not only would the cost be very great

^ The export of nitrates to Germany is now limited to 8,000 tons of calcium
nitrate per year, while it is estimated that 112,000 tons (metric) per year will be
available for export to the United States and Allies. (Agreement signed April
30, 1918, by representatives of the Norwegian Government and the War Trade
Board, in effect May 10, 1918.)

NOYES: NITROGEN PROBLEM IN RELATION TO WAR 391

because of the large power requirement, but power is not avail-
able that we can afford to devote to the process. There is a
great scarcity of power in the eastern sections of the country
even for the very necessary industries, and while there may be
certain cheap powers on the Pacific coast, we have no ammonia
there, as coke is not being produced; and we cannot therefore
carry out the arc process in the Far West because we would not
be able to ship the product in solid form. The arc process in
its present form, therefore, does not look promising for use in
this emergency; but if it could be perfected by a 50 per cent
reduction in the power requirement, it would at once become
an extremely valuable process. The arc process, I may add, is
available in this country, all details being well known, so that if
it were not for this power difficulty it could easily be installed.

There is also developing in this country, as a result of the
investigations of Prof. J. E. Bucher, of Brown University, the
cyanide process, which I have already described. The chemical
reaction involved in it was well known, and the use of iron as a
catalyzer had also been discovered; but the first attempt to put
the process on a commercial basis was made by the Nitrogen
Products Company, which has built a small cyanide plant near
the Mathieson Alkali Works, at Saltville, Virginia, where nitro-
gen is available from the ammonia-soda process. The Govern-
ment is also building a plant to operate this process under the
rights which the Company has given to it. The Bureau of Mines
is constructing this plant, which will produce 15 tons of sodium
cyanide per day. Sodium cyanide itself is important; in fact, it
is so valuable that it will not pay to convert it into ammonia
until the market for cyanide has been satisfied; and it is also of
some use in poison-gas work. Still, the use of cyanide is limited
in gas warfare, and the demand for this purpose is not great.

Another company, the Air Reduction Company, has also
worked out a cyanide process on a similar principle, and is pre-
pared to make cyanide on a commercial scale.

Although this process has been put on a semi-industrial basis
for the production of cyanide, the next step in it — the steaming of
the cyanide for the production of ammonia — is still in the experi-

392 NOYES: NITROGEN PROBLEM IN RELATION TO WAR

mental stage. There is no doubt that ammonia can be Hberated
almost quantitatively by proper steaming, and it is only a ques-
tion of time when it can be worked on a commercial basis. The
Government has no plant for the production of ammonia from
cyanide, but it has installed a small plant in Rhode Island for the
experimental production of ammonia, in cooperation with the
Nitrogen Products Company.

One rather interesting question connected with the cyanide
process is "whether it will be best to convert the sodium formate,
which results from the first reaction of steam on sodium cyanide,
into formic acid in order to meet the serious shortage of acetic
acid for airplane dope and other purposes; or whether it will be
better to regenerate the sodium carbonate and use it over again
in the process.

The Government, as I have said, is building a synthetic process
plant with a capacity of 20,000 tons of ammonium nitrate a year
at Sheffield, Alabama (U. S. Nitrate Plant No. 1). It is also
building a cyanamide process plant with a capacity of 110,000
tons of ammonium nitrate at Muscle Shoals, Alabama (U. S.
Nitrate Plant No. 2). And a third plant has been authorized
for the production of another 1 10,000 tons of ammonium nitrate
per year. It is to be located in Ohio, half of it at Toledo and half'
at Elizabethtown. It is hoped that the synthetic process in the
first mentioned plant will be under way in the course of two or
three months and that it may then be assured of success, so that
the Government will be able to extend the synthetic plants.
It is possible, also, that the cyanide process and the arc process
'may be developed so that they can be utilized.

Regarding the relative economies of the different processes,
it is difficult to say anything very definite. It is clear, however,
that the arc pTocess in its present inefficient form is excluded,
with power at the high cost that it has when it must be produced
from coal. The arc process might be operated in competition
with the other processes if power could be obtained at, say, SIO
or $12 per horsepower-year. The cyanamide process has the
advantage that it can be installed in many places in this country
and that it requires little power. The cyanide process has a

NOTES : NITROGEN PROBLEM IN RELATION TO WAR 393

similar advantage in that it, also, requires materials which are
readily obtainable — soda ash, carbon, and the nitrogen of the
air — and requires no electric power, \\niile we have no very
definite information as yet as to the relative costs of producing
ammonia by the cyanamide and the synthetic processes, the
estimates of those who have developed the latter and the reports
that have come from Germany have indicated that the cost of
production by the synthetic process in normal times will be very
considerably less than that by the cyanamide process. It is
true that the synthetic process involves high pressures requiring
special machinery, but the other elements in it are more favorable.
The hydrogen that is required in the synthetic process is one
of its large elements of cost. It is therefore important to get a
cheap method for the production of hydrogen. The general
method which has been adopted in Germany is to reduce water
with coke, that is, to produce a mixture of hydrogen and carbon
monoxide by the action of steam on coke and then to remove the
carbon monoxide. This may be done by mixing the gas with
steam and passing the mixture through suitable catalyzers, where-
by carbon dioxide and hydrogen are formed :

CO + HoO = CO2 + H2.

The carbon dioxide can then be absorbed out by scrubbing with
water under pressure. This is a promising cheap way of getting
hydrogen for use in the synthetic process.

Finally, I would say that the nitrogen problem is by no means
a simple one, even at present. In order to supply our armies
with the necessary amount of explosives, we shall need to use all
our resources: (1) to continue and expand our imports on Chile
saltpeter; (2) to introduce as rapidly as possible by-product coke-
ovens; and (3) to develop at once new fixation processes. The
last is our most vital chemical problem. The development of
fixation processes is being largely done by the Government
through the Nitrate Division of the Ordnance Department.
The Bureau of Mines has also been carrying on extended investi-
gations in this direction; thus the oxidation process where the
mixed gases are passed over red-hot platinum gauze has been

394 oberholser: new genus of timaliidae

brought to a very high stage of perfection by this Bureau, yields
of from 92 to 95 per cent conversion of the ammonia being at-
tained. The process of absorption of the nitric vapors has been
much simpHfied by the work of the Nitrate Division. And all
along the line we may hope, as a result of the war, that during
the next year or two there will be a very marked development of
our processes of nitrogen fixation.

I hope that this brief outline may have served to give you
a general survey of the situation with reference to our supply of
nitrogen compounds and the means available for meeting the
demand for them in this country.

ORNITHOLOGY. — Diagnosis of a new genus of Timaliidae.
Harry C. Oberholser, Bureau of Biological Survey.
The genus Zosterornis Grant, a group of Timaliidae allied to
Mixornis, at present comprises seven species, all peculiar to the
Philippine Islands. It was originally described^ by Mr. Ogilvie
Grant for the reception of a new bird, Zosterornis whiteheadi Grant,
discovered by Mr. John Whitehead in the island of Luzon.
Since then three more species have been described, and three
others originally referred to the genus Mixornis have been trans-
ferred to the same group. All of these, however, excepting the
type of Zosterornis and possibly Zosterornis striatus Grant,
which latter we have not seen, are not congeneric, and it is there-
fore necessp,ry to provide for them a new generic name.

Sterrhoptilus," gen. nov.

Chars, gen. — Similar to Zosterornis Hodgson, but tarsus relatively,
as well as actually, much shorter, being less than one and one-half
times the length of bill, and only three-tenths or less of the length of
the wing; middle toe without claw decidedly shorter than exposed cul-
men, instead of about equal; tail not almost square, but rounded, even
somewhat graduated; first primary (counting from the outermost)
about half the length of the second, not decidedly more, as in Zosterornis;
feathers of pileum narrowed, stiffened, and somewhat pointed, not
broad and rounded at their ends as in Zosterornis.

Type. — Mixornis capitalis Tweeddale.

1 Zosterornis Grant, Bull. Brit. Ornith. Club 3: No. 19, June 30, 1894, p. 1. [50].
(type by original designation and monotypy, Zos'erornis whiteheadi, sp. nov.).
- "Sreppos, rigidu , tttiKov, penna.

schlink: variance of measuring instruments 395

Remarks. — One of the nearest allies of this genus is Mixornis
Hodgson, of which the type is Motacilla rubricapilla Tickell,
but Sterrhoptilus differs from this group in the very different
shape of the nostrils, which are not rounded as in Mixornis,
but narrow, almost slit-like, and very strongly aperculate; the
rictal bristles are much shorter and weaker; the bill is narrower
and more slender; the first primary narrower and about half the
length of the second; and the middle toe without claw is shorter
than the exposed culmen. All the species here referred to
Sterrhoptilus have the upper surface more or less streaked, not
plain as in Zosterornis whiteheadi; and furthermore there is no
white eye-ring in any of them. This new genus is of interest as
another instance of the wonderful variety of structure among the
babblers; and, furthermore, it adds another endemic genus to the
avifauna of the Philippine Islands. The species referable to
this group are as follows :

Sterrhoptilus capitalis (Tweeddale).

Sterrhoptilus plateni (Blasius).

Sterrhoptilus dennistouni (Grant).

Sterrhoptilus nigrocapitatus (Steere).

Sterrhoptilus pygmaeus (Grant).

TECHNOLOGY. — Variance of measuring instruments and its
relation to accuracy and sensitivity .^ Frederick J. Schlink,
Bureau of Standards.

While the general concepts of accuracy and sensitiveness in
connection with measuring instruments are well known, certain
phases of the meanings of those two terms have not been clearly
differentiated, and the factor of variance which bears an impor-
tant relation to the two just mentioned has not hitherto been
given extended discussion or made susceptible of definite numeri-
cal expression.

Accuracy and inaccuracy defined. An instrument is accurate
when its indications accord with the true values of the quantity
being measured. Perfect instrumental accuracy, then, is only an

^ A brief presentation, based on the complete papernow in press, and to appear
as a Bureau of Standards Scientific Paper.

396 schlink: variance of measuring instruments

ideal, but we may define instrumental accuracy numerically
in terms of the error or correction corresponding to various
values of the quantity to be measured. The error arising from
whatever source, observed in an* indication of the instrument,
divided by the true value of the measured quantity, may be
termed the inaccuracy at a given reading, the negative term
being justifiable on the basis of custom and ease of application.
With this in mind, it is seen that accuracy may be expressed as the
ratio of the value of the quantity being measured to the error of
the instrumental indication at that value (this of course being
the reciprocal of the quantity defined above) . The ratio express-
ing instrumental accuracy, while not of value in the ordinary
use of instruments, will be of service in rating the performance of
an instrument.

Sensitivity defined and distinguished from immediacy of response.
Any instrument showing a change of reading for any change,
however great, in the quantity being measured may be said to
be sensitive. This term again requires expression in numerical
terms in order to be of value in studies of measuring instruments.
Statements of sensitivity of instruments are often erroneously
based upon that change in the value of the measured quantity
producing the smallest perceptible response in the indication of
the instrument. This method of expression is by no means a
satisfactory one, since it disregards the factor of sluggishness or
passiveness in instrument performance, a matter more fully
discussed later — and moreover involves the error of personal
judgment of the observer. The rating of sensitivity on the
basis of the purely incidental dimension of some part, such as
the length of a pointer or an arbitrarily graduated scale over which
the pointer moves, is also unsatisfactory, since the pointer length
or the graduation interval is subject to wide change within the
discretion of the designer, making comparison of the sensitivity
of different instruments unreliable and dependent upon factors
of a purely accidental character. A better basis, in instruments
having a rotating or oscillating indicator, would be the angular
deflection of the indicator per unit change of the measured quan-
tity— for example, in a balance, the angular deflection of the rest

schlink: variance of measuring instruments 397

position of the beam per unit addition of load to the load pan, the
first expressed in radians, and the second in grams. Actual
measurements of sensitivity will, of course, be restricted to small
deflections so that variations in its value over the range of de-
flection are negligible.

The frictional resistance to turning or sliding within an instru-
ment has an important bearing upon the concept of sensitiveness.
The effect of frictional resistances is to retard or delay the motion
of the indicating element for both increasing and decreasing values
of the quantity being measured, and to prevent response of the
instrument reading to certain small changes in the measured
phenomenon. Its existence requires the modification of the
ordinary concept of sensitivity since otherwise the determination
of the sensitivity of an instrument would depend upon the absolute
rather than the relative magnitudes of the quantities entering
into the observation. During the period in which change of the
measured quantity is proceeding without the occurrence of any
motion of the indicator, owing to the effect of static friction, appli-
cation of the ordinary definition of sensitivity would give a zero
value for that quantity. It seems necessary, then, to separate the
sluggishness factor from the insensitiveness factor and define sen-
sitivity thus : Sensitivity in an instrument is the rate of change
in the indication of such instrument with respect to change in
thequantity being measured, it being necessarily assumed for the
purposes of this definition that friction and lost motion in the
mechanism have been eliminated' or are negligible. (A similar
postulate applies to the determination of the scale value in instru-
ments graduated directly in the units of the quantity being
measured.) We have thus distinguished between passiveness (or
sluggishness) and instrumental insensitiveness, a distinction that
so far as known to the writer, has not hitherto been set forth.
The amount of the least alteration in the value of the measured
quantity producing instrumental response, divided by the initial
value of the measured quantity may be called the passivity
of the instrument at that point.

Variance defined and illustrated. Passiveness, defined above,
is a special case of the phenomenon of variance, which is defined

398 schlink: variance of measuring instruments

as the range, at any given value of the measured quantity, of
variation in reading which may be exhibited by the instrument
under repeated application of the same value of the quantity
being measured, after a steady reading has been attained, the
environment remaining unchanged. This quantity represents
the range of uncertainty of the indications of the instrument.
The specific variance may be defined as the ratio of the range,
at any given value of the measured quantity, of variation in
reading which may be exhibited by the instrument under repeated
application of the same value of the quantity being measured,
divided by the measured quantity itself, the same assumptions
applying as above as to the attainment of a steady state of
indication and as to the maintenance of unchanged environment.
This factor has rarely been determined in tests of measuring
instruments; ignoring it in their use, as is commonly done, may
cause appreciable error, and it is therefore important that it be
recognized or expressed.

In the case of the usual direct-reading instrument, the variance
is disclosed in the displacement observed between the upward
and downward branches of the hysteresis loop obtained by plot-
ting instrument readings (or corrections or errors) against actual
values of the measured quantity over a complete cycle of increas-
ing and decreasing values. The amount of the variance will de-
pend upon the previous history of the instrument and upon the
immediately precedent cycles of movement which the instru-
ment has undergone. The hysteresis curve obtained by plotting
in the manner outlined is a valuable index to the operating char-
acteristics of an instrument and leads to the detection of defects
in design and workmanship discoverable with certainty in no
other way. Figures 1 and 2 illustrate the effect described. In
figure 1 it is to be noted particularly that the instrument con-
tains no force-measuring elements of the elastic type, the scale
in question being a pendulum-operated device, so that the loop
shown is not the result of hysteresis of inelasticity. The sources
of the hysteresis exhibited are all expressible as backlash or are
closely analogous to it. The median line of the loop of figure 1
gives the characteristic error of the scale correctable by suitable

schlink: variance of measuring instruments

399

alterations of the weight of the pendulums and of the contour
of the cams about which the load transmitting tapes wrap,
while the width of the hysteresis loop gives a good index to the
workmanship of bearings and connections.

Backlash an important cause of variance. In a measuring
instrument the maintenance of constant or at least determinate

N

-^L^5^

7i

>l

/

Asadjb,

/5«

F'g. 1. Hysteresis loop of automatic weighing scale of the cam-pendulum
type (comprising no elastc force-measuring elements). Note the manner in
which the curve of decreasing readings reflects the aberrations of the curve of
increasing readings, w'th a distinct tendency toward wider separation at the
middle of the oad range, so that the hysteresis loop would have a distinctly lentic-
ular form, if the median line or mean error curve were rectilinear.

intervals between the parts of the mechanism is essential in the
transfer of the forces or motions from the point of their reception
to the point of registration or indication. Slack or backlash in
the mechanism has the same effect as an equivalent advertent
displacement of operating parts, backlash being used to imply
looseness of fit resulting in play of the coacting parts. Actually,
the action of backlash is not the simple one of producing a hystere-

400

schlink: vaeiance of measuring instruments

sis loop of the rhomboidal form of which the two horizontal
sides correspond to the geometrical clearance in the bearing.
This type of hysteresis loop may be eliminated from consideration
since instrument mechanisms almost invariably comprise an
element to provide force-closure of the linkwork, so that the
journals tend to remain in contact with the same general faces
of the bearings.

In point of fact, the hysteresis loop of an instrument is normally
lenticular, this form arising from the progressive relative rolling
and slipping of journal within the bearing, permitting the point
of contact to occur at successive zones of the interior of the
bearing, and permitting at the same time divagation of the

.oco

mZ

M

p

-fl?«

\

0

^

\>

:

^

\

1 "^

•^
•»

\^^

^

^.0005^

\'

->»^

•* — .

■^■»^^

%

N

^.,,,,.-^

-z

%

FJS

Fig. 2. Hysteresis loop of dial indicator of screw-train type, having high
multiplication; an instrument much used for direct reading of small displace-
ments and other linear magnitudes.

center of relative motion from the geometric center of the bear-
ing. This action is suggested in figure 3. The effect of this
action in producing variance arises in the modification of the
instrument magnification or leverage ratio which it permits.
In the case of instruments comprising spring force-resisting ele-
ments, a similar loop arising from inelastic actions of the spring
will be combined in the calibration curve with that due to
backlash.

When the calibration curve fails to form a completely closed
loop due to incomplete reversion of the parts of the mechanism
the residual deflection may be termed the set.

Clearance between engaging teeth of gearing introduces back-
lash effects of the same general nature as those outlined above.

schlink: variance of measuring instruments

401

In gear trains, moreover, there is especial likelihood of the oc-
currence of the rhomboidal type of hysteresis loop since actual
discontinuities in the transference of motion from one part of
the train to another will follow directly from any clearance at the
pitch line.

Evaluation of irregular variance. In some instruments, especi-
ally those characterized by poor workmanship or ill repair,
successive hysteresis loops may be far from concordant in their
shape or. magnitude on account of actual variations in the fric-
tion and journal displacements at any particular indication. In
cases of this kind, the variance may be expressed or defined by

Fig. 3. Illustrating operation of instrumental backlash

plotting frequency curves of the readings or error's obtained for
a given value (or for a series of definite values) of the same meas-
ured quantity repeatedly applied — one series of points being
plotted for increasing readings terminating in the value under
investigation, and another set for decreasing values terminating
at the same point. Such a curve may exhibit, for example,
probability of occurrence of any amount of variation from the
mean instrumental reading. A succession of such frequency
curves taken over various parts of the reading range will deter-
mine a surface enabling one to ascertain the probability of a
given error at any point of the reading scale, but its principal
utihty will be in affording a criterion as to the comparative

402 schlink: variance of measuring instruments

performance with regard to variance, of instruments of diverse
design or workmanship.

Far from being a relatively unimportant source of inaccuracy
in measuring instruments, it can be shown that the hysteresis
or variance type of error demands consideration in practically
every type of instrument, while in some (such as pointer-and-
dial types of displacement-indicators) the variance is a prepon-
derant factor in design and actually sets the limit of sensitivity
and accuracy practicably obtainable, so limiting the application
or utility of the instrument.

The phenomenon of drift, which is a time effect characterized
by more or less gradual movement of the indicating element
asymptotically to a definite reading, after all conditions external
to the instrument have become constant, is one requiring investi-
gation from the point of view of the elastician, and although in
the case of some instruments it is an important cause of vari-
ance, it cannot be adequately treated in the present paper.

Reducing variance in the mechanism. A few effective means of
reducing instrumental variance are readily available. The
conical pivot may advantageously be substituted for the cylin-
drical journal and bearing, thus affording the type of bearing
familiar in the balance wheels of alarm clocks and low priced
watches. Such a bearing has a low frictional moment, and main-
tains a practically invariable relation of bearing to journal but
cannot, of course, support any considerable load. The use of
flexible or ribbon-like connectors secured by simple clamps at
their extremities, between members which are to be conjoined,
instead of the more usual rigid pin-and-link connectors is ofttimes
a very useful device and has the advantage of providing for
correction of motion to obtain a linear scale of graduation, by
the simple expedient of arranging that one or both ends of the
tape shall wind upon a cam of suitable contour. This type of
connector contributes very little indeed to the hysteresis of the
complete mechanism, since practically the only source of irre-
versibility in such a tape is the hysteresis of inelasticity, which in
absolute value is very small. Simplifications of mechanism are
often possible to eliminate the number of links involved and

schlink: variance of measuring instruments 403

hence the number of bearings at which backlash effects can
occur.

The action of vibration in reducing instrumental variance is
found to accord well with the principles previously set down.
Owing to the minimization in the static friction, occasioned by
the vibration, on account of the momentary disengagement or
separation of coacting bearings and journals, a considerable
reduction of instrumental variance arising in mechanistic causes
will normally take place,— thus the energy required to bring the
parts to their theoretical equilibrium point is in a sense supplied
from without the sj^stem.

Variance as a limiting factor in design and adjustment. In
designing and constructing instruments, consideration should
be given to the effect of variance errors in practically limiting the
sensitivity obtainable by adjustment, as well as in determining
the optimum interval between graduations or the smallness of
the units of graduation. It is suggested that the mean interval
of graduation of laboratory instruments should not be less than
five times the mean variance, while for commercial or plant
instruments the ratio of mean scale interva|l to mean variance
may be of the order of two to one.

Inconsistencies between the values of sensitivity, variancy,
and smallness of the units of graduation of instruments are com-
mon; tachometers, for example, are often graduated to a single
mile per hour, while there may be a variation of reading at a
given rotational speed of five miles per hour or more. Similarly
weighing scales and balances often show variations of a full
graduation or more. Likewise the sensitivity may easily be
disadvantageously high, inducing erroneous estimates of the
precision of results and requiring special care in the calibration
and use of the instrument.

In particular cases in fact, a low inherent sensitivity may actu-
ally tend to reduce the absolute amount of the variance as in pre-
cision balances, where the advantages gained by the use of a low
angular sensitivity and high magnification with the resulting
quick period of oscillation, are well known.

The factors of maximum or mean inaccuracy (or accuracy),
sensitivity, variancy, and specific set (the amount by which the

404 schlink: variance of measuring instruments

variance loop may fail of closure, divided by the range of the
deflection cycle) may be referred to the total range of graduation
instead of to particular values of the measured quantity under
observation, as a convenient means of arriving at single signifi-
cant numbers to be composed in,to a "figure of merit" for an
instrument whose characteristics are being determined. It is
most desirable to develop definite numerical means of comparison
between different instruments or different types of instruments
for the same purpose, and the methods just suggested will afford
a satisfactory basis for attaining this end, just as the aeronautic
engineer's choice of structural material for a given purpose may
be based on a single "figure of merit" involving the unit weight,
strength, and stiffness determined by laboratory tests.

ABSTRACTS .

Authors of scientific papers are requested to see that abstracts, preferably
prepared and signed by themselves, are forwarded promptly to the editors.
The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those appearing
in this issue.

GEODESY. — Lambert projection tables for the United States. Oscar S.

Adams. U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey Spec. Pub. No. 52.

Pp. 243, including 33 pp. of text. 1918.
This publication consists of general tables of coordinates for the
United States, computed on the Lambert conformal conic projection,
with two standard parallels. The coordinates are given in both meters
and yards for the intersections of the parallels and meridians at every
half degree in both latitude and longitude. Detail tables for local
maps in both meters and yards are given in coordinates for the inter-
section of the parallels and meridians at intervals of 5 minutes in both
latitude and longitude; and for two degrees out from a central meridian.
The introductory text includes a mathematical development of the
formulas of the projection, followed by a full description of the use
of the tables in the construction of projections. Eleven diagrams serve
to illustrate the manner in which the tables should be used in construct-
ng a map of any section. As a whole, this publication contains the
most complete set of tables of the Lambert projection ever issued for
any region as extensive as that of the United States. For the con-
struction of a general map of the United States the system is about the
best that can be devised, O. S. A.

SPECTROSCOPY. — The application of dicyanin to stellar spectroscopy.
P. W. Merrill. Bur. Stand. Sci. Paper No. 318. Pp. 18. 1918.
This paper describes the use of commercial photographic plates
sensitized with dicyanin in stellar spectroscopy. The first observations
were carried out at the Harvard College Observatory using the 24-inch
reflecting telescope and objective prism. Fraunhofer's A band (wave
length 0.760 fx) and a considerable region of greater wave length were
photographed in numeious stellar spectra. Several new absorption

405

406 abstracts: metallography

flutings were discovered, the most striking beginning at 0.760 /^ nearly-
coincident with A, and running toward the red. Circumstances indi-
cated that this band might be due to titanium oxide, and experiments
since made at the Bureau of Standards have shown a band in this posi-
tion in the spectrum of the titanium arc. The general conclusions ar-
rived at are as follows:

1. Many stellar spectra possess sufficient intensity in the region of
wave length 0.80 ^ to enable this portion of the spectrum to be photo-
graphed on plates sensitized with dicyanin.

2. In favorable instances stellar spectra can be well observed to
wave length 0.85 m-

3. The region of greater wave length than 0.70 /x contains features of
importance, especially in the case of the later spectral types.

P. W. M.

METALLOGRAFBY.—Tijpical cases of the deterioration of Mimtz
metal {GO-Ifi brass) by selective corrosion. H. S. Rawdon. Bur.
Stand. Tech. Paper No. 103. 28 pp. December 15, 1917.

Brass of the type 60-copper and 40-zinc, which is used commercially
in a variety of forms, e.g., wrought bolts, sheathing, condenser tubes,
extruded forms, etc., often shows a kind of deterioration by which the
metal changes its color to copper-red and becomes very weak and
brittle although the shape and size apparently remain unchanged.
This change of properties is due to a selective corrosion of the alloy,
which has a duplex structure, when exposed to the action of some
electrolyte, particularly sea-water. The present study includes bolts,
boat sheathing, condenser tubes, .and parts which were corroded while
under stress.

The examination of the microstructure shows clearly the method of
the attack, the zinc-rich constituent being electrolytically "leached
out" leaving a skeleton of weak pulverulent copper. Later the second
constituent may be attacked so that the whole specimen is converted
into pulverulent "copper" — the sample becoming so weak that it can
be broken into fragments in the fingers.

Conditions that appear to accelerate corrosive attack of this type
are : the microstructural composition of the alloy, contact with strongly
electronegative metals, the effect of certain adhering deposits of basic
zinc chloride resulting from the corrosion, the thoroughness of the
later than common. There was a roost of about 500 Sturnus vulgaris

abstracts: ornithology 407

annealing the sample has previously received, the temperature of the
electrolyte, and the stresses to which the specimens are subjected
during the corrosive attack.

H. S. R.

ORNITHOLOGY.— T'Fmier birds about Washington, D. C, 1916-1917.

W. L. McAtee, E. a. Preble, and Alexander Wetmore.

Wilson Bull. 29:183-187. 1917.
A record winter list of 48 species for one day in the vicinity of Wash-
ington was obtained on December 30, 1916. A hst of the species, to-
gether with the number of individuals of each seen is given in this
paper. A hst of 33 additional species, all observed during the winter
of 1916-1917, is also added. This combined hst of 81 species comprises
about two-thirds of the known winter birds of the region, and represents
the results of unusually favorable conditions, although the hst includes
very few species that are rare in the District of Columbia.

Harry C. Oberholser.

ORNITHOLOGY. — An abnormal egg of FuHca americana. Alexan-
der'Wetmore. Condor 19 : 65-66. 1917.
A female of Fulica americana, caught alive in the delta of Bear River,
Utah, was found on the following morning to have laid an egg of strik-
ingly abnormal coloration, very much darker than the usual eggs of this
species. The cause of this abnormahty is attributed to the continued
excitement and fear of the bird at the time of its capture and the conse-
quent reactions of the nervous system upon the organs of the oviduct.

Harry C. Oberholser.

OR^YTYlOlaOGY .—Washington region [June to September, 1917],
Harry C. Oberholser. Bird-Lore 19 : 277; 339-340. 1917.

The unusually late spring migration of birds about Washington, D.
C, during 1917 extended well into June, and many migrants remained
later than ever known before. Conspicuous among these were Empi-
donax minimus, June 2, Dendroica castanea, June 5, and Oporornis Phila-
delphia, June 7. A few of the summer residents were also more than
ordinarily numerous.

During August and September, 1917, about Washington, D. C, some
migratory birds appeared earlier than usual. Most notable among those
was Marila affinis, seen August 31, of which the earhest previous record
was September 25. A number of other birds, however, remained here

408 abstracts: ornithology

vulgaris in the trees of the Mall, in the city of Washington, whither also
1000 to 5000 individuals of Quiscalus quiscula quiscula and for a few
weeks several thousand purple martins, Progne subis suhis, resorted.

H. C. 0.

ORNITHOLOGY.— Mw^awrfa ornithologica. IT. Harry C. Oberhol-
SER. Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 30: 125-126. 1917.
In this, the second, paper on the nomenclatural status of certain
birds the following changes are indicated : The parrot commonly known
as Loriculus inducus (Gmelin) must hereafter be called Loriculus asiati-
cus) (Latham); Polytelis harrabandii (Swainson) must be known as
Polytelis swainsonii (Desmarest) ; Triclaria cyanogastris (Vieillot) must
hereafter be called Triclaria malachitacea (Spix) ; Pyrrhura bittata (Shaw)
is changed to Pyrrhura frontalis (Vieillot) ; Nasiterna pygniea (Quoi and
Gaimard) is renamed Micropsitta chloroxantha Oberholser; and Mala-
coptila torquata (Wagler) is changed to Malacoptila strata (Spix) .

H. C. O.

ORNITHOLOGY. — Descriptions of two new birds from Haiti. Charles
W.Richmond. Smiths. Misc. Coll. 68: No. 7, 1-3. 1917.
In this paper there are described two more of Dr. W. L. Abbott's re-
markable ornithological discoveries on the island of Santo Domingo.
The first and most interesting is a new Nyctibus, a genus of big goat-
suckers not hitherto recorded from the island of Santo Domingo, and
here described as Nyctibus griseus abbotti, after its discoverer, the well-
known traveller and naturalist. The single specimen was obtained at
Port de Pimente, northwestern Haiti. The other new bird is Vireo
crassirostris tortugae, from Tortuga Island, off the northwestern coast
of Haiti. Harry C. Oberholser.

ORNITHOLOGY. — The relationships of the fossil bird (Palaeochenoides
mioceanus). Alexander Wetmore. Journ. Geol. 25:555-557.
1917.
The bird described by Dr. R. W. Shufeldt as Palaeochenoides mio-
ceanus, from the distal end of a femur found in South Carolina, was con-
sidered by him to be of Anserine affinities. A reexamination of the
specimen, however, now shows that it is unmistakably a member of the
Steganopodes, and is apparently most closely allied to the Pelecanidae,
though it may represent a distinct family. Harry C. Oberholser.

abstracts: ornithology 409

I

ORNITHOLOGY.— On the fauna of Great Salt Lake. Alexander
Wetmore. Amer. Nat. 50: 753-755. 1917.
Contrary to common belief, the Southern Pacific cut-off on Great
Salt Lake has not interfered with the free interchange of water or of
aquatic animal life between the portions north and south of this cause-
way. Brine shrimp (Artemia fertUis) and three species of alkali flies
of the genus Ephydra occur here in great numbers. Several species of
water-birds, chiefly Spagula clypeata, Marila afflnis, Clangula dangula
americana, and Nettion carolinense, together with Steganopus tricolor,
Lobipes lohatus, Recurvirostra americana, Himantopus mexicanus, and
doubtless other allied species were feeding on these small animals and
doubtless destroyed great numbers of both the shrimp and alkali flies.

Harry C. Oberholser.

ORNITHOLOGY. — A new cuckoo from New Zealand. Alexander
Wetmore. Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 30: 1-2. 1917.
Representatives of Urodynamis taitensis (Sparrman) from New
Zealand differ from those of the same species from Polynesia. Since
the type locality of Urodynamis taitensis has been fixed as Tahiti, the
New Zealand bird is here named Urodynamis taitensis pheletes.

Harry C. Oberholser.

ORNITHOLOGY. — A new honey-eater from the Marianne Islands.
Alexander Wermore. Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 30: 117-118.
1917.
The form of Myzomela rubratra (Lesson), from the island of Guam in
the Marianne group, is found to be subspecifically different from Myzo-
mela rubratra rubratra of the Caroline Islands, and is here described as
Mijzoynela rubratra saffordi. Harry C. Oberholser.

ORNITHOLOGY. — On certain secondary sexual characters in the male
ruddy duck, Erismatura jamaicensis (Gmelin). Alexander Wet-
more. Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus. 52: 479-482. 1917.
This paper records the discovery of a tracheal air sac in the male ruddy
duck, Erismatura jamaicensis. This sac and the peculiar internal
structure of the larynx of this species are described. The sac is absent
in the females, and functions in the males evidently as an aid in swell-
ing out the neck in sexual display. The discovery of similar structures
in other species of the subfamily Erismaturinae is forecast.

Harry C. Oberholser,

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 324th meetmg was held in the lecture room of the Cosmos Club
on January 9, 1918.

REGULAR PROGRAM

Frank J. Katz: Pleistocene shore lines in Maine and New Hamp-
shire. Uplifted beaches and deltas in the coastal counties, Cumber-
land and York, Maine, and Strafford and Rockingham, New Hampshire,
lie near the margins and somewhat higher than adjacent deposits of
late Wisconsin marine clays. The shore structures discussed are those
at maximum elevations in the several localities and constitute a cor-
related series rising progressively from 155 feet above sea level in
Stratham, New Hampshire, to 300 feet in Pownal, Maine, and higher
at points farther west and north. They indicate that the postglacially
uplifted surface has been tilted 5 to 6 feet per mile in a direction 40°E.
of S., and that the lines of equal elevation approximately parallel the
shore of the Gulf of Maine.

M, R. Campbell: Subdivisions of the Allegheny Plateaus. No
abstract.

The 325th meeting was held in the lecture room of the Cosmos Club
on February 13, 1918.

INFORMAL COMMUNICATIONS

Mr. J. Newton Baker presented an appeal for the National War
Savings Committee for the purchase of War Savings Stamps by members
of the Society.

REGULAR PROGRAM

Bertram L. Johnson: The Valdez delta. The Valdez delta is the
dominant member of a group of youthful confluent deltas surrounding
the head of Port Valdez, Prince William Sound, Alaska. It is an
advancing; steep-fronted delta formed in a rugged, mountainous coun-
try under glacial or near glacial climatic conditions, the torrential,
heavily debris-laden, aggrading streams from the Valdez Glacier in
summer dropping their load suddenly and within short distances in
deep, quiet, oceanic waters. The subaerial portion of the delta has an

410

proceedings: geological society 411

area of about 10 square miles. This portion slopes to the southwest
from the foot of the Valdez Glacier at an elevation of 250 feet to tide-
water, a distance of 4 miles. At the foot of the glacier the delta is IJ
miles across. The lower edge is 4 miles in length. The submarine
frontal slope of the delta is steep, ranging from 6^ to 21 degrees. It
joins the subaerial portion of the delta at a sharp angle, and before the
construction of the present wharves large ocean vessels could at low
tide moor in deep water along the delta front and safely discharge their
cargo by derrick onto dry land. The junction of this frontal slope with
the gently sloping fiord floor is much less abrupt but in some places seems
to be quite sharp. The thickness of the delta gravels may be estimated
by constructing cross sections of the delta. The delta materials rest
on a basement of metamorphic rocks. Intense glacial erosion has
impressed on this bedrock a characteristic topography markedly differ-
ent from the constructional topography of the delta. By a comparison
of the delta profiles crossing the junction of these two types of topog-
raphy it is possible to locate approximately the base of the delta gravels
and to determine the thickness of the delta deposits as probably a little
over 300 feet.

R. S. Bassler: Paleozoic rocks and fossils on the Piedmont of Mary-
land. The western part of the Piedmont plateau in Maryland and
Virginia contains areas of early Paleozoic limestone infolded in the
pre-Cambrian crystallines and overlain in part by the Triassic (Newark)
series. These limestones outcrop at one point next to the early Cam-
brian Harpers shale, and hitherto it has been believed that they rep-
resented the Shenandoah limestones of the Appalachian Valley,
comprising strata from early Cambrian to Middle Ordovician time.
Detailed mapping of this area and the discovery of fossils have shown that
this Piedmont limestone consists of a lower massive limestone division
containing Lower Beekmantown fossils and an upper thin-bedded
dark blue limestone with a Chazyan fauna, the two separated by a well-
marked disconformity. The Lower Beekmantown division can be cor-
related directly with strata in the Appalachian Valley but the Chazj'an
portion has no representative there.

O. E, Meinzer: The glacial history of Columbia River in the Big Bend
region. In the Glacial epoch a lobe of the ice sheet was pushed down
the valley of Okanogan River, in north-central Washington, and across
Columbia River, diverting the waters of the Columbia over the upland
of central Washington. In its new course the river cut precipitous
gorges several hundred feet deep, developed three cataracts, at least one
of which was larger than Niagara, formed a large lake in Quincy Valley,
and performed an almost incredible amount of work in carrying boul-
ders many miles and gouging out holes as much as 200 feet deep. The
upper part of this abandoned channel of the Columbia has been described
by T. W. Sj^mons, I. C. Russell, and F. C. Calkins. Both Symons and
Russell made vague references to a very large Pleistocene Lake, which
Symons called Lake Lewis. In the fall of 1916, A. T. Schwennesen
made an investigation of the water resources of Quincy Valley (see

412 proceedings: geological society

U. S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply Paper 425), and most of the present
paper is based on an automobile reconnaissance that the writer made
with him in the region through which the abandoned channel passes.

The region is underlain, for the most part, by Yakima basalt. Where
the diverted waters reached the monoclinal fold in the basalt that causes
the descent into Quincy Valley they apparently formed a cataract,
which retreated about 17 miles, cutting through the basalt a gorge
several hundred feet deep. The ancient falls resemble Niagara Falls
in consisting of two parts separated by an island corresponding to Goat
Island. A short distance down stream there is a similar island past
which the falls had retreated a little earlier in their history. The
ancient falls, which may be called ''Grand Falls," as they occur in
Grand Coulee, were somewhat wider and higher than Niagara Falls.
As an agent of erosion, the Pleistocene Columbia had two great ad-
vantages over the present Niagara: (1) It fluctuated much more and
in heavy floods probably carried at least three times as much water as
the maximum of the modern Niagara. (2) It was much better provided
with tools for erosion than the Niagara, as is impressively shown by the
great quantity of large boulders in the glacial outwash below the mouth
of the gorge. Although the basalt through which Grand Falls retreated
was more difficult to excavate than the rocks through which Niagara
Falls are retreating, less time was probably required to make this
retreat of 17 miles than for Niagara Falls to make its retreat of only 7
miles. At the mouth of the gorge the ancient river discharged, in the
early part of its history, into a lake which occupied Quincy Valley, as
is indicated by the topography, by fossiliferous stratified deposits, by
erratic glacial boulders of granite and quartzite which must have been
carried to their present positions by icebergs, and by two ancient water
falls along the present gorge of Columbia River obviously caused by the
overflow of the lake.

An interesting story of postglacial erosion and deformation is told by
the well-developed terraces of the Columbia, which are related in vari-
ous ways to the glacial features.

The 326th meeting was held in the lecture room of the Cosmos Club
on March 13, 1918.

REGUL*AR PROGRAM

Kirk Bryan: Classification of springs. (Illustrated.) No abstract.

Arthur J. Collier: A formation hitherto unaccounted for in North
Dakota. (Illustrated.) In the collection of photographs made by
A. L. Beekly in the Culbertson lignite field, there are several very good
views of filled valleys in which the filling is being eroded by the present
streams which flow through them in narrow canyons or gullies. No
statement of the materials or agents filling these valleys is given, and
one is left to infer that it is alluvium deposited at some old level of
Missouri River.

proceedings: biological society 413

Filled valleys of this character are rather common features along the
Missouri in both eastern Montana and western North Dakota. The
material filling the valleys is uniformly fine-grained like much of the
alluvium of the present flood plain. It is generally unstratified but in
places contains thin layers of debris from the Fort Union formation,
which crops out higher up on the valley sides. Where cut by the streams
it stands out in nearly vertical light-colored cliffs from a few feet to
30 feet in height, having a tendency to break with vertical joints from
top to bottom. That it is not ordinary alluvium is proved by the fact
that its surface consists of long even slopes from the valley sides and
not of level plains. The material is as unstratified as glacial till, but
unlike till it does not contain angular fragments of granite, and in
several places it was found resting on glacial till. That the valley fill-
ings are of comparatively recent age is shown by the fact that from one
of them the head of a mountain sheep that became extinct in this neigh-
borhood only a few years ago was found at an elevation of 150 feet above
the river. While the writer was camped near the Missouri in North
Dakota several severe wind storms occurred. The river was low and
exposed a great many expanses of sun-dried mud, and the winds gathered
up great quantities of dust and carried it high in the air. After a day of
such wind the tent floors showed a very perceptible coating of dust.
Some of this dust undoubtedly had been carried for long distances and
was deposited wherever there was a lodgment free from wind. In the
winds there is an agent of deposition which is not accounted for, and the
writer believes that such winds are responsible for valley fillings of this
character; in other words, that these valleys are filled with loess. If
this conclusion is correct, it is probable that a large part of the rich soil
of North Dakota and Montana was brought in and is constantly
replenished b}^ the wind.

George L. Harrington: Late Tertiary and Quaternary history of
the lower Yukon River region. (Illustrated.) In the lower Yukon
Valley there appears to be no dividing line between the late Tertiary
and the Quaternary. No fossils have been found in the unconsoli-
dated silts, sands, and gravels, and interpretations of the geologic
history are based on the unconsolidated deposits, high terraces along
the river, and horizontal lava flows.

The events of the late Tertiary and Quaternary in this region include
subsidence of the land surface, extrusion of basaltic lavas, further
subsidence, reelevation, adjustments of drainage in the silt-filled valleys,
and erosion by the processes normal to subarctic and arctic regions.

EsPER S. Larsen, Secretary.

BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 585th regular meeting of the Society was held in the Meeting
House of the Friend's School, 1809 I Street N.W., Saturday, May 4,
1918; called to order at 8 p.m. by President Rose; 26 persons present.

414 proceedings: biological society

The President announced that the sixth lecture of the Washington
Academy of Sciences on science in relation to the war would be given
by Dr. Raymond Pearl, on "Biology and War," Thursday, May 9, 1918.

Under the heading of brief notes and exhibition of specimens Dr.
Paul Bartsch called attention to the destruction by fire of one of the
handsomest rhododendron thickets in the District flora and to the
breeding of starlings in a deserted woodpecker's hole in one of the trees
of the Howard University grounds, the hole having been lately occupied
by a redheaded woodpecker. He also called attention to the habit of
a terrestrial spider in covering the opening of its burrow with a leaf
during rains.

Mr. Alex. Wetmore exhibited a fragment of a Puffinus bone ob-
tained from Calvert Cliffs, Chesapeake Beach, Maryland.

The regular program was as follows:

Martha Brewer Lyon; Fauna of the human eye. Dr. Lyon had
made a careful examination of the literature as indexed in the Surgeon
General's Library and the Index Medicus which reveals the following
animals occuring in the human eye and its adnexa, the figures' after the
names indicating the frequency of their occurrence: Treponema pallidum
infinite; Taenia solium, between 300 and 400; Taenia echinococcus,
75 to 100; Opisthorchis felineus, 1; Paragonimus ringeri, 1; Agamodistoma
ophthalm.obiu7n, 1; Monostomulum lentis, 1; Drancunculus medinensis, 3;
Loa loa, 30 to 50; Agamofilaria oculi, 3; Filaria equina, 2; Filaria con-
junctiva, 3 ; Thelazia callipaeda, 2 ; Trichinella spiralis, 2 ; Lepeophtheirus,
pectoralis, 1 ; Demodex folliculorum, 8; Ixodes ricinus, 1 ; Pediculus capitis,
no cases reported though seen by many ophthalmologists; Phthirius
pubis, 30 to 50; among the diptera, all larval form, many unidentified,
those identified or at least named, Hypoderma bovis, 2; Oestrus ovinus, 2;
Gastrophilus haemorrhoidalis, 2; Musca domestica, 2; Wohlfartia magni-
fica, 2; Lucillia macellaria, 1; CalUphora vomitoria, 1; Sarcophagasp., 1;
beetle larvae, Necrobia sp., 1. The fly larvae are mainly represented by
forms which deposit living larvae.

Dr. Lyon touched on the early history, geographic distribution, lo-
cation in the eye, means of diagnosis, description of parasite, symptoms,
and in some cases the probable outcome with treatment. Some
interesting observations were brought out as the prevalence of cysti-
cercus cellulosae in Germany before the inspection of pork by the state
and its practical elimination since; the many reported cases of pubic
lice on the eyelashes of children against very few reported for head lice;
the possibilities of the future study of the cause of chalazia by Demodex
folliculorum. "the paper was illustrated by lantern slides. It was
discussed by Drs. L. 0. Howard and Paul Bartsch, and by the chair.

Maynard M. Metcalf: Opalina and the origin of the Ciliata. This
will appear in a future number of the Journal.

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

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

The Office of Public Roads and Rural Engineering, Department of
Agriculture, began in May the publication of a monthly 48-page illus-
trated periodical entitled Public Roads.

The Biological Society of Washington has just published, as its Bulle-
tin No. 1, A sketch of the natural history of the District of Columbia,
together with an indexed edition of the U. S. Geological Survey's 1917
map of Washington and vicinity} The author and editor is Mr. W. L.
McAtee, Corresponding Secretary of the Society. The book contains
historical sketches, with bibliographies, of the development of various
branches of natural science in the District, including the botany,
insects, other invertebrates, fishes, batrachians and reptiles, birds,
mammals, and records of early man; also three chapters on the dis-
tribution of life in the District of Columbia region. A thorough index
to the 1917 map of Washington and vicinity, together with a quar-
tered and index-ruled copy of the map, is included.

Dr. Charles W. Burrows, associate physicist at the Bureau of
Standards and in charge of the Magnetic Section of the Bureau, has
presented his resignation to be in effect July 1, 1918, and will take up
commercial research and consultation work in New York. He will
have laboratories equipped for research on magnetic materials at Gras-
mere, Borough of Richmond, New York City.

Professor E. C. Franklin, of Stanford University, California, was in
Washington in May in connection with the war work of the Bureau of
Mines.

Mr. Walter M. Gilbert has resigned as assistant secretarj' of the
National Research Council, and is now attached to the office of the
Secretary of War.

Colonel Henry S. Graves, Chief of the Forest Service, has been
elected an honorarj^ member of the Royal Scottish Arboricultural Soci-
ety of Edinburgh, in recognition of his eminent services to forestry.

1 Biological Society of Washington, Biological Survey, Department of Agri-
culture; piic3 $2.00, or $2.15 post-paid.

415

416 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Professor H. R. Moody, of tne College of the City of New York,
Professor Samuel A. Tucker, of Columbia University, and Dr. E. R.
Weidlein, associate director of the Mellon Institute of Pittsburgh,
are members of the consulting staff of the chemicals and explosives
section, War Industries Board, Council of National Defense. Ac-
cording to the Official Bulletin, the consulting staff has jurisdiction over
questions involving inorganic chemicals, electrolysis, electrometallurgy,
ceramics and refractories, organic compounds, and dyestuffs.

Professor Arthur A. Noyes, of the Masschusetts Institute of
Technology, has been in Washington since May as chairman of the com-
mittee on nitrate investigations of the National Research Council,
advisory to the Nitrate Division, Ordnance Department. The other
members of the committee are Lieutenant-Colonel Alfred H. White,
formerly prof essor of chemical engineering at the University of Michigan,
and Dr. John Johnston, executive secretary of the National Research
Council.

Professor Miles S. Sherrill, of the department of physical chem-
istry, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is in Washington for the
summer, and is engaged in work for the Nitrate Division of the Ord-
nance Department of the Army.

Mr. J. B. TuTTLE resigned from the Bureau of Standards on April
15, 1918, and is with the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company of Akron,
Ohio.

Captain F. E. Wright has been detailed as Army representative in
the section of optical glass and instruments of the War Industries Board,
Council of National Defense.

The following persons have become members of the Academy since
the last issue of the Journal:

Mr. Albert Victor Bleininger, Bureau of Standards, 40th and
Butler Streets, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Dr. William Wallace Campbell, Lick Observatory, University of
California, Mt. Hamilton, California.

Dr. Charles Thom, Microbiological Laboratory, Bureau of Chem-
istry, Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C.

JOURNAL .

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VIII JULY 19, 1918 No. 13

GEOLOGY. — New geological formations in western Wyoming.'^
Eliot Blackwelder, Geological Survey.

As a result of the writer's field work in the Owl Creek, Sho-
shone, Wind River, Gros Ventre, and Teton ranges of western
Wyoming, from 1910 to 1913, several new geologic formations
have been recognized and the names proposed for them have
been adopted by the U. S. Geological Survey. As the prepa-
ration of detailed reports on this region awaits the completion
of the field studies, which have themselves been deferred for
more urgent work elsewhere, several years may elapse before
the reports appear in print. It therefore seems advisable to
publish, in advance, definitions of these new formations, so
that the names may be available for general use. In fact, while
this paper was being considered and revised in manuscript, some
of the names have already been used in print by other writers.^

GROS VENTRE FORMATION

In Peale's^ original description of the Threeforks (Montana)
section, the Cambrian was divided into the Flathead quartzite,
Flathead shale, and Gallatin limestone. Later, Hague and his
associates used the same terms, but restricted the Gallatin to

1 Published by permission of the Director of the U. S. Geological Survey.
■^ ToMLixsox, C. W., Journ. Geol. 25: 25.5-257. 1917. Condit, D. D., U. S.
Geol. Survey Prof. Paper 98-0. 1916.

3 Peale, a. C, U. S. Geol. Survey, Bull. 110. 1893.

417

418 blackwelder: new formations in Wyoming

narrower limits. The term Flathead has now been reserved for
the basal sandstone or quartzite. The use of the term Gallatin
has been established in Hague's modified sense; but the present
writer does not concur, because he believes Peale's original usage
should have been pi'eserved. The intervening greenish and gray
calcareous shales, with gray, striped, conglomeratic and oolitic
limestones, is here called the Gros Ventre formation. Its fossils
indicate Middle Cambrian age. A typical section of the forma-
tion, exposed in the west slope of Doubletop Peak in the Gros
Ventre Range, is as follows :

Gallatin limestone (base)

Feet.
Limestone; gray and ocher colored in alternate bands, contains
black oolitic granules; rock massive and forms a promi-
nent cliff in association with overlying members of the
formation. Rests disconformably on underlying beds.. 27-|-

Gros Ventre formation

15. Limestone; very massive, dense and gray, top eroded 4+

14. Limestone; thin-bedded, gray laminated with olive drab. ... 13
13. Shale; green shale and flakes of brown-gray limestone, with
a few beds of flat-pebble conglomerate and oolite. Much

of this part of the section is concealed by talus 350

12. Limestone; thin-bedded, dense, hard blackish-gray rock
mottled with drab and ocher, and containing some shale
partings. Fragments of trilobites are rather common ... 24
11. Shale; largely green shale with thin layers of limestone like

the last ; largely concealed 26

10. Limestone; like " 12." Surfaces of beds are rough, and some
of them rather massive. This forms a distinct cliff in the

slope , 115

9. Shale; greenish clay-shale with thin plates of limestone.

Largely concealed by talus 36

8. Limestone; gray, with irregular laminae and pockets con-
taining siderite (?), and therefore weathering ocher color. . 10
7. Limestone; somewhat pisolitic, dark drab limestone weather-
ing blue gray 2|

6. Shale; gray calcareous shale and shaly limestone; largely con-
cealed 4

5. Limestone; dark drab to bluish limestone, hard but flaggy.. 5
4. Shale; graj' calcareous shale and shaly limestone; largely con-
cealed 6^

3. Limestone; hard but flaggy, dark gray-bluish, mottled with
light ocher. Contains traces of trilobites, and forms a
prominent cliff 52

BLACKWELDER: new formations in WYOMING 419

2. Limestone; buff to gray, weathering tawny brown; thin-
bedded, with uneven stratification 26

1. Shale; gray micaceous shale, largely concealed by talus from

above 95

796
Flathead Sandstone

Sandstone; with several beds of sandy shale in the upper
part about 200

LEIGH DOLOMITE MEMBER OF THE BIGHORN DOLOMITE

From the Teton Range eastward at least to the middle of the
Wind River Mountains and north into the Absaroka Range, the
massive member of the \vell-known Bighorn dolomite is overlain
by a thin but persistent layer which deserves special recognition.
In almost every section it is from 30 to 40 feet thick, and in
most, if not in all, localities it is I imited both above and below
by disconformities. A typical section from the west slope of
Dinwoody canyon, on the north side of the Wind River Range is
as follows:

Darby formation (Devonian)

Feet.
12. Basal laj^er a stratified breccia consisting of small bits of
cream-colored dolomite and pink chert in a gray dolomite
matrix. Base sharp and shghtly uneven 5.0

Leigh dolomite memher of Bighorn dolomite

11. Dolomite; pale gray, finely laminated. Contains ostracods

and a few small moUusks 3.0

10. Dolomite; thin lavender-gray. Surface checkered with

cracks which are stained pinkish 5.6

9. Dolomite; thin, lavender-gray. Rather massive. Contains

a few ostracods 3.5

8. Dolomite; massive and thin. Rather brittle and full of

blind joints 5.1

7. Shale; finely laminated, pink and maroon. Calcareous. ... 0.3

6. Dolomite; pale gray, finely streaked and spotted with lav-
ender. Very brittle and full of cracka 0.9

5. Shale; calcareous, light to dark red 0.2

4. Dolomite; like No. 3, but Streaked and spotted with laven-
der ■ 4.0

3. Dolomite; like No. 2, but beds 2 to 10 inches thick 3.5

420 blackwelder: new formations in Wyoming

2. Dolomite; dense, slabby, pale gray. Beds 1 to 4 inches
thick. Sprinkled with small crinoid stems, and traces of
bryozoans (?) Base not visible 2.0

Massive member of Bighorn dolomite {Ordovician)

1. Extremely massive, cream-colored dolomite, mottled with

gray in alga-like patterns over 100

The Leigh member differs from the rest of the Bighorn in being
characterized by thin, dense and brittle, flaggy strata with smooth
milk-white surfaces. It is stated verbally by Kirk and Tomlin-
son that, to the southwest in the Bear River Range of Utah and to
the northeast in the Bighorn Range of Wyoming, the thin milk-
white dolomites of the Leigh member are interbedded with the
very massive rough weathering strata typical of the Bighorh.
Nevertheless, it seems probable that correlations w4th the Leigh
may be made in some districts outside of western Wyoming,
where it ite typically developed.

Although the dolomite generally appeals to be barren of or-
ganic remains, a characteristic fautia, consisting largely of ostra-
cods with some pelecypods and gastropods, has been found at
several localities. This fauna is assigned by Ulrich and Kirk
to the Richmond horizon of the ate Ordovician. The member
takes its name from Leigh Canyon, on the west slope of the Teton
Range, for on the south side of that valley there are excellent
exposures of the dolomite in its typical condition.

DARBY FORMATION

The introduction of this new term is made necessary because
none in present use fits the stratigraphy of w'estern Wyoming.
In the Threeforks section Peale gave the name Threeforks shale
to the upper division of the Devonian, but included the lower
dolomites, which are also Devonian, in his Jefferson limestone.
Hague, Weed, and others in the Yellow^stone National Park
later misused the term ''Threeforks" to include also the thin-
bedded, dark-colored dolomite of the upper part of Peale's Jef-
ferson, thus limiting the latter term to the very massive beds of
gray dolomite below. The Darby formation is apparently equiv-
alent to Peale's Three Forks shale plus the upper part of his

BLACKWELDER: new formations in WYOMING 421

Jefferson limestone. The formation rests disconformably on the
Leigh dolomite member of the Bighorn, or in some places on the
massive member and is separated from the overlying Madison
limestone locally, if not generally, by another eroded surface.
Lithologically, it consists of a varied sequence of shales and
dolomites in many colors from white to gray, green, lavender,
buff, red, brown, and black. Somber colors predominate. Some
of the beds are massive, others thin and brittle. Fossils are rare,
but have been found in several localities. They indicate Devo-
nian age, but permit no greater refinement in the determination.
The name is derived from the canyon of Darby Creek, on the
west slope of the Teton Range, where the formation is well ex-
posed. It extends over most of northwestern Wyoming and has
been recognized in modified condition as far southwest as the
Wasatch Range. There are strata in the Bighorn Range^ which
resemble parts of the Darby formation, but it is not certain that
they actually represent it.

A typical section of the Darby formation is exposed in the
east slope of Sheep Mountain near the head of Green River.

Madison limestone

Feet.
26. Limestone; very massive, hard, dense to crystalline; discon-
formity at the base indicated by irregular eroded surface
and sharp contact 44^ +

Darhy formation

25. Dolomite; gray, weathering brown, with deeply pitted ^rf ace;

silicified corals and quartz geodes 80

24. Shale and dolomite; interbedded buff-brown dolomite and
black to gray calcareous shale; stained reddish on surfaces,
and covered with Spirophyton markings 22^

23. Dolomite and shale; interbedded dense gray, brown-weather-
ing dolomite, and drab clay-shale, weathering green 41

22. Shale; pale greenish-gray calcareous shale, with thin beds of

shaly dolomite 19

21. Dolomite and shale; Hght brown sandy dolomite with green-
ish-gray calcareous shale ; ripple marks 5^

20. Dolomite; dove-color to russet-oUve, thin-bedded and shaly 19^

19. Shale; sandy and calcareous, greenish to lavender 5

* ToMLiNSON, C. W., Journ. Geol. 25: 47-49. 1917.

422 blackwelder: new formations in Wyoming

18. Dolomite; dense chocolate brown 1|

17. Shale; pale green sandy shale, with laminae of white sand-
stone and buff dolomite 14|

16. Sandstone; strong cross-bedded white sandstone ^

15. Dolomite and shale; pale drab to brownish dolomite, and

calcareous shale 18

14. Dolomite ; massive gray to brown 2

13. Shale and dolomite; gray calcareous shale, and slaty brown

dolomite 6|

12. Dolomite; massive, crystalhne, sepia brown, rich in petroleum

and slightly fossiliferous (Atrypa reticularis, etc.) 11^

11. Shale; olive gray calcareous, weathering green 4

10. Dolomite; thin bedded to massive, drab-brown, and con-
taining geodes of jet 16

9. Shale; sandy to calcareous drab to gray, weathering green,

with thin layers of gray dolomite 15|

8. Dolomite; dense gray argillaceous dolomite, with one layer

of shaly black chert and some geodes like the last 8^

7. Shale ; drab calcareous, and associated with dolomite beds .. . 7

6. Dolomite; slaty, brittle, gray and brown 30

5. Shale; black to gray, calcareous 2

4. Dolomite ; dark smoky brown to yellowish, rich in petroleum . . 30
3. Dolomite; dense, brittle, finely laminated, white and laven-
der 2

2. Dolomite; olive green, becoming gray above. Probably dis-

conf ormable at base 22

428^
Leigh dolomite member of Bighorn dolomite

1. Dolomite; thin-bedded cream-colored, dense and ringing.

DORWIN sandstone MEMBER OF THE AMSDEN FORMATION

. As defined by Darton, the Amsden formation included the
sandstones, shales, and dolomites intervening between the
Madison limestone below and the Tensleep sandstone above.
Throughout western Wyoming the Amsden is divisible into two
very distinct parts — an upper division of shales, sandstones, and
dolomites of weak character, and a lower, massive, resistant
sandstone. On account of their difference in resistance to ero-
sion, the upper member has generally been stripped off, while
the lower remains capping the mountains and ridges of Madison
limestone. It therefore became advisable in practice to map
the two members separately. To the lower sandstone the name

BLACKWELDER: new formations in WYOMING 423

Dorwin sandstone member is given, from Dorwin Peak in the
Gros Ventre Range, which is capped by this sandstone. It is
separated from the underlying jNIadison by a distinct discon-
formity, but graduates into the overlying part of the Amsden.
In spite of the absence of fossils, the stratigraphic position of the
sandstone indicates that its age is early Pennsylvanian or late
Mississippian — probably the former.

The Dorwin sandstone averages about 60 feet thick in the
Gros Ventre Range, but dwindles slowly southeastward to the
vicinity of Lander, where it is about 15 feet thick. Westward
it has been traced in typical condition as far as Teton Pass, but
has not been clearly distinguished farther southwest in Idaho.
It ranges northward into Yellowstone Park, and northeastward
as far as the southern part of the Bighorn Mountains. Else-
where it is generally represented by reddish sandy shales.

PARK CITY FORMATION

BoutwelP gave this name to certain Carboniferous beds in
Utah. Having traced them thence, range by range, from near
Park City, into central western Wyoming, the writer now de-
sires to indicate their relation to other formations in that region
and to show the lithologic variations involved. The rocks are
dolomites, shales, limestones, cherts, and phosphatic beds, con-
stituting the lower part of Darton's Embar formation, which is
typically developed in the Owl Creek Range. It includes the
equivalent of the Phosphoria formation, as defined by Richards
and Mansfield^ in eastern Idaho, but in addition also the upper
part of their Wells formation. From the underlying Tensleep
sandstone it is separated by a disconformity, but it is concordant
with the overlying Dinwoody beds. Its abundant fossils belong
to a somewhat unfamiliar fauna which Dr. G. H. Girty assigns
to the Pennsylvanian and Pennian. Although large collections
have been made from the formation in the Wind River Range,
they have yet received only preliminary notice in printed form,'
and many of the species are undescribed.

5 BouTWELL, J. M., Journ. Geol. 15: 437-458. 1907.

^ Richards, R. W., and Mansfield, G. R., U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 577. 1914.

7 Amer. Journ. Sci. 36: 177-179. 1913.

424 blackwelder: new formations in Wyoming

A typical and centrally located section of this formation, to-
gether with the one next to be described, is exposed in the moun-
tains at the head of the Gros Ventre River and its tributaries,
especially north and east of Dorwin Peak.

Chugivater formation

Feet
23. Shale; brick red with thin gray laminae, resting on an ill-de-
fined and conformable bottom 10+

Diniooody formation

22. Shale; grayish white, with ihin calcareous laminae, ripple-
marks and sun-cracks 80

21. Dolomite and shale; thin-bedded, argillaceous dolomite inter-
bedded with gray shale and very thin quartzose flags. A
few Lingulas and small pelecypods 20

20. Shale; calcareous, olive-gray rock with thin beds of dense gray
argillaceous dolomite. Some beds contain Lingulas, and
others pelecypods, too poorly preserved for identification. 51

19. Flags and shale; alternating thin brittle beds of dolomite-
clay-quartz rocks of pale gray color, but weathering
tawny brown. Full of brownish Lingula shells 4

18. Sandstone etc.; olive-gray calcareous sandstone, weathering
smoky brown and even black, owing to presence of man-
ganese oxides. Contain laminae and lenses of white chert,
occasionally more than a foot thick 20^

Park City formation

17. Dolomite; light gray, siliceous, with fossils appearing as
silicified excrescences: Spiriferina pulchra, Derbya sp.,

Fenestelloid bryozoans 11^

16. Chert; alternating massive and shaly chert. The more mas-
sive beds have a peculiar tubular structure 35

15. Shale and chert; black shale with thin laminae of black chert

increasing toward the top 10

14. Shale; coal black, slightly phosphatic and containing one 2-

inch layer of back oolitic phosphorite 7

13. Dolomite; black, but weathers drab. Saturated with hydro-
carbons 2^

12. Shale; black, slightly phosphatic shale 15

11. Phosphorite; hard, black nodular bed, containing phospha-

tizecl fossils. Has a stronger odor of hydrocarbons:^ 1

Lingulodiscina missouriensis
Productus phosphaticus
Plagioglypta canna
Conularia sp.

« Identified by Dr. G. H. Girty.

BLACKWELDER: new formations in WYOMING 425

10. Limestone; gray, petroliferous, crystalline. Filled with

poorly preserved bryozoans and gastropods 7

9. Dolomite; gray to white, with white chert nodules 14

8. Sandstone; smoky gray, weathering brown. Contains angu-
lar fragments and grains of white chert, and granules of

cellophane 10

7. Chert; thin bedded and lumpy, gray to white, with greenish

shale partings 21^

6. Shale; black, slightly phosphatic 8

5. Phosphorite; soft, crumbling, oolitic; passing upward into

shale 4

4. Breccia; fragments of chert imbedded in a brown phosphatic

matrix, resting on a sharp irregular surface 2

Tensleep sandstone

3. Dolomite; light gray, with nodules and laminae of gray chert 4

2. Sandstone; white, pitted, calcareous 2

1. Sandstone; creamy white, weathering light brown to pink

about 300

DINWOODY FORMATION

The upper part of Barton's Embar formation consists in this
region of greenish-gray shales, with many thin plates of dense,
calcareous sandstone, or argillaceous dolomite, which weathers
bro"\vn, tawny, and even black. This portion — which is to be
distinguished from the lower or Park City portion of the Embar —
is 250 feet thick at Dinw^oody Creek on the north slope of the
Wind River Range, but thins down to less than 50 feet near
Lander. In the Owd Creek Mountains it is 75 to 100 feet thick
near Anchor. Eastward, near Thermopolis, the formation be-
comes gypseous, and more or less reddish in color. Mr. D. Dale
Condit^ has traced it into the Bighorn Range, where it merges
with the lower part of the Chugwater red-beds. Westward it
becomes progressively thicker, more calcareous, and more fossilif-
erous, and changes by imperceptible gradations horizontally into
the Woodside and Thaynes formations of southeastern Idaho.
It is about 210 feet thick on Crystal Creek in the Gros Ventre
Range, 350 feet thick at the north end of the Hoback Range,
and thence into Idaho it rapidl}^ increases in volume.

The Dinw^obdy formation is conformable both above and below.
Although some beds contain abundant Lingulas and poorly pre-

9 CoNDiT, D. Dale, U. S. Geol. Survey Prof. Paper 98-0. 1916.

426 standley: omiltemia

served pelecypods, no fossils of diagnostic value have been found
in it in Wyoming. From its stratigraphic position conformably
between the Park City and Chugwater formations, and from
its relation to the Woodside and Thaynes formations in Idaho,
which are classified as Lower Triassic, it is inferred that the Din-
woody formation is either Permian or Lower Triassic or both.
The name is derived from the canyon of Dinwoody Lakes, in the
Wind River Range, where the formation is completely exposed,
and has been measured in detail.

BOTANY. — Omiltemia, a new genus of Riihiaceae from Mexico.
Paul C Standley, U. S. National Museum. ^

From the large collections of plants obtained in Mexico a few
years ago by Mr. E. W. Nelson, of the Biological Survey, many
new species have already been described. A large and probably
the most interesting portion of the material, however, still re-
mains to be identified. One specimen, in particular, from the
State of Guerrero has come to the writer's attention in the course
of his revision of the Rubiaceae for the North American Flora.
This plant, although not possessing any very unusual charac-
ters, can not be placed satisfactorily in any of the known genera
of the tribe Rondeletieae, the group to which it evidently belongs.
Consequently it is described here as a new genus, Omiltemia.

The tribe Rondeletieae is a large group, chiefly North Ameri-
can in distribution, many of whose genera are based upon rather
slight differences. Omiltemia falls in the subdivision with con-
torted corolla lobes, and is related as closely to Deppea and
Lindenia as to any genera, from both of which, however, it is
distinguished by the long, exserted filaments. Deppea, more-
over, has a short, funnelform or subrotate corolla, and Lindenia
a very long, salverform one. In its general appearance Omiltemia
is very unlike any of the genera of its tribe. The red tubular
corolla is suggestive of Manettia, to which the type specimen
was once referred, but that genus differs widely in its winged
seeds and scandent habit.

1 Published by permission of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.

metcalf: opalina and the ciliate infusoria 427

Omiltemia Standley, gen. nov.

Branched shrubs, more or less pubescent, the branchlets angulate.
Leaves opposite and ternate, petiolate, membranaceous. Stipules
minute, deciduous. Flowers of medium size, red, axillary, solitary,
long-pedicellate, the pedicels bibracteolate at the base; calyx tube
narrowly turbinate, the limb 4-lobate, the lobes linear-subulate, sub-
equal, persistent; corolla tubular, glabrous, the tube elongate, slender
and constricted near the base, ampliate in the upper three-fourths, the
limb 4-lobate, the lobes short, oblong-ovate, subulate-acuminate, erect
or ascending, contorted. Stamens 4, inserted at the base of the ampli-
ate portion of the corolla tube; filaments filiform, exserted; anthers
linear, dorsifixed, mucronate, bifid at the base. Disk depressed.
Ovary 2-celled; style filiform, exserted, glabrous; stigma fusiform; ovules
numerous, imbricate, the placentae oblong, peltately affixed to the
septum. Capsule 2-celled, cylindric, elongate, subcoriaceous, costate,
loculicidally bivalvate at the apex. Seeds numerous, minute, subglo-
bose, obtusely angulate, the testa lustrous, reticulate; endosperm fleshy.

Type species, Omiltemia longipes Standley.

Omiltemia longipes Standley, sp. nov.

Shrub, about 3 meters high, the branches stout, grayish, terete, the
branchlets slender, puberulent when young, densely leafy; stipules
deltoid, about 1 mm. long; leaves mostly ternate, the petioles slender,
2-6 mm. long, puberulent, often marginate to the base, the blades ob-
lanceolate or oblanceolate-oblong, 3-7 cm. long, 0.8-1.7 cm. wide,
acuminate or long-attenuate at the base, acute to long-attenuate at
the apex, often abruptly so, thin, bright-green, concolorous, glabrous
above or puberulent along the costa, the venation plane, villosulous
beneath along the veins or glabrate, inconspicuously striolate, the costa
slender, prominent, the lateral veins prominulous, 4-6 on each side,
arcuate; pedicels 1.7-3.5 cm. long, filiform, sparsely short-pilose,
the bractlets minute, linear, green; calyx very sparsely short-pilose or
glabrate, the tube 6-7 mm. long, the lobes 3^ mm. long; corolla red,
about 4 cm. long, the contracted portion of the tube about 1 cm. long
and 1.2 mm. thick, the upper portion 5-6 mm. thick, the lobes about
5 mm. long; anthers 7 mm. long, the filaments about 2.5 cm. long; style
about 4.5 cm. long; capsule 1.4 cm. long, 2.5-3 mm. thick; seeds brown.

Type ir> the U. S. National Herbarium, no. 399394, collected at
Omilteme, Guerrero, May, 1903, E. W. Nelson 7054.

ZOOLOGY. — Opalina and the origin of the ciliate Infusoria.^
Maynard M. Metcalf, Orchard Laboratory, Oberlin,
Ohio. (Communicated by M. W. Lyon, Jr.)

Study of a large amount of material from th-e United States
National Museum collections of frogs and toads shows several

1 Abridged from a paper read before the Biological Society of Washington,
May 4, 1918.

I

428 metcalf: opalina and the ciliate infusoria

dozen new species of Opalinidae and necessitates revision of the
taxonomy in the family and in the Cihata. The new forms en-
able us to gain a comprehensve knowledge of the plan of speci-
ation among the Opalinidae and the conditions revealed in this
family throw light upon the origin of the Ciliata.

The family Opalinidae comprises properly but two genera —
Protoopalina (new genus) and Opalina. Protoopalina has one
nucleus or in most species two nuclei. Their nuclei contain two
distinct sets of large, flat, superficial chromosomes of constant
and characteristic number in each species, and another more
central set composed of the same number (in the species thus far
studied) of slender chromosomes each consisting of a linear ag-
gregate of granules much as in Paramecium, except that the
granules are much coarser in these large nuclei. In mitosis the
daughter nuclei each receive one-half of each chromosome of
each sort (massive and granular).

Opalina has many nuclei (4 to several thousand). Each nu-
cleus contains some (not many) large, flat, superficial chromatin
masses of varying number in the different nuclei in the body and
also numerous, more central, slender chromosomes, each a linear
aggregate of granules. It is probable that these linear chromo-
somes are of constant number for each species, but they ara too
numerous for easy study. In the genus Opalina the granular
chromosomes seem to be as carefully and regularly divided as
they are in Protoopalina, but the larger masses of chromatin are
irregularly divided in mitosis, and some of them may occasionally
remain undivided, passing bodily without division into one of
the daughter nuclei.

In both Opalina and Protoopalina the massive chromosomes
are trophic, the granular chromosomes reproductive. Each
nucleus contains both kinds of chromatin and there is no special-
ization, as in the higher Ciliata, of whole nuclei as trophic and
other whole nuclei as reproductive.

The most characteristic feature of the higher Ciliata is the
possession by each individual of a large trophic nucleus and
another minute reproductive nucleus. The absence of this char-
acter in the Opalinidae justifies placing them as an archaic group,
Protociliata, and classing the rest of the Ciliata as Euciliata..

metcalf: opalina and the ciliate infusoria 429

The archaic features of the Protocihata are: (1) the transient
character of their pleurinucleate condition, the gametes in the
spring becoming uninucleate; (2) the consequent absence of dif-
ferentiation of whole nuclei for trophic function (macronuclei)
and of other whole nuclei for reproduction (micronuclei) , each
nucleus instead containing chromatin of both sorts; (3) the very
primitive nature of the contractile vacuole — merely a temporary
fusion of some of the axial alveoles to form an irregular and usu-
ally branched tubule opening by a posterior pore; (4) binary fis-
sion both longitudinal and transverse; (5) sexual union, the com-
plete fusion of very dissimilar gametes. A secondary feature
is the complete absence of a buccal groove. Numerous genera
of Euciliata also show this secondary modification — e.g., Hop-
litophrya, Anoplophrya, Discophrya, Chromidina, etc. In both
Protociliata and Euciliata this feature is doubtless due to
parasitism.

The author described mitosis in a species of Protoopalina (Opa-
lina), discovered by Professor J. H. Powers, whose two nuclei are
found resting in a midmitotic condition (anakhase). Awerin-
zew described an African species whose usually single nucleus
rests in a similar midmitotic stage, and because of its uninu-
cleate character named the species Opalina [Protoopalina] pri-
mordialis. In the National Musem material is a still more
archaic species (as yet unnamed) from Bufo regularis whose
single nucleus is in an earlier phase of mitosis than is that of
Protoopalina primordialis. Starting with this unnamed species
we may arrange the Opalinidae according to their nuclear con-
dition : first a species with a single nucleus resting in a mitotic
condition but little past the critical (mitotic) phase; then Pro-
toopalina primordialis with nucleus in an anaphase condition;
then several species with each a single nucleus in a late ana-
phase or a telophase condition ; then numerous species each with
two distinct resting nuclei; then several species each with two
nuclei each of which is just entering upon mitosis; then two or
more species each with two nuclei both being in about the critical
phase of mitosis; then numerous species each with two nuclei
both in an anaphase of mitosis; others with two nuclei each in a

430 metcalf: opalina and the ciliate infusoria

telophase of mitosis. All species thus far mentioned in this
paragraph are Protoopalinae with characteristic protoopalinid
nuclei. Simplest in the genus Opalina is 0. lanceolata (of Bez-
zenberger) with four nuclei; then 0. mimuta (new species from
Bufo melanostictus) with from five to twelve nuclei; then very
many species with from one hundred to several thousand nuclei.

It seems evident that the pleurinucleate condition in the
Opalinidae is due to some disturbance of the mitotic phenomena
and the usual nucleus-cytoplasm relation, nuclear mitosis and
body division being inhibited to a less or greater degree in dif-
ferent species. As this strange tendency develops we get finally
bodies with a great number of nuclei. Among the Opalinids
the culmination of this disturbance of the division phenomena is
seen in the new species, Opalina segmentata, in which species even
the vegetative fissions, which occur from time to time in both
multinucleate and binucleate species, are inhibited after they
have begun. Opalina segmentata is an elongated cylindrical
species (snake-shaped) with thousands of nuclei. Numerous
fissions which have started at different levels in the body are
still incomplete, giving the whole animal a metamerized appear-
ance. Of course this is but pseudo-metamerization for it is not
due to apical budding but rather to interrupted transverse fis-
sions which have started at different points along the elongated
body.

The Opalinidae are an offshoot from the ancestral Ciliata at
a time when mitotic phenomena and the nucleus-cytoplasm rela-
tion were becoming disturbed. They have some of them re-
mained in an early stage of this condition. Others have devel-
oped the tendency further and have become highly multinucleate.
The Euciliata, rising doubtless from such pseudobinucleate
forms as the Protoopalinae, have passed on to a permanently
binucleate condition, even their gametis being binucleate, when
properly analyzed. The permanence of their binuclearity, once
established, allowed the differation of one whole nucleus for nu-
trition (macronucleus) and of the other whole nucleus for repro-
duction (micronucleus) . The Opalinidae as a whole are a group
in which the condition of nucleus and cytoplasm as to mitosis

MILLER AND GIDLEY: SUPERGENERIC GROUPS OF RODENTS 431

are still in flux. The Euciliata, advancing from this condition,
have become stereotyped in a definitely binucleate state with
secondary nuclear specialization.

Classification of Ciliata
Protociliata
Opalinidae

Protoopalina
Opalina
Euciliata

ZOOLOGY. — Synopsis of the supergeneric groups of Rodents.^
Gerrit S. Miller, Jr., and James W. Gidley, U. S.
National Museum.

Work on the taxonomy of the Rodents, living and extinct, has
occupied much of our time during the past four years. This
paper contains a brief synopsis of the results.

The classification which we have adopted is based on the fol-
lowing conception of the evolutionary course followed by the
order during its development. This course has been mainly
conditioned by the mechanical problem of strengthening a chew-
ing apparatus in which the unusually important cutting func-
tion of the incisors is strongly contrasted with the grinding func-
tion of the cheekteeth; the highest degree of efficiency to be
given always to the incisors and in most instances to the cheek-
teeth as well. The problem has been solved by five sequences of
correlated changes in the masseter muscle and the bones to
which this muscle is attached. All of these sequences could
originate from the structures present in a generalized mammal,
but there is no evidence that any rodent during its development
has passed from one to another. The groups characterized by
the various sequences are therefore natural. We have treated
them as superf amilies : the Sciuroidae, Myoidae, Dipodoidae,
Bathyergoidae, and Hystricoidae. Of the secondary problems the
most conspicuous has been the strengthening of the cheekteeth.
These teeth, however unHke their structure in extreme in-
stances may appear, have all been developed from some primi-
tive, low-crowned, tritubercular type not essentially different

1 Published by permission of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.

432 MILLER AND gidley: supergeneric groups of rodents

from that present in the Eocene Paraniyidae and in Hving species
of Sciurus. During the adjustment of the cheekteeth to increas-
ingly heavy fore-and-aft grinding motion, a process which has
taken place in most members of the order, the crown height has
been augmented, while the original tubercles and lophs have been
made more efficient by (a) increase in complexity, and (b) con-
version into transverse ridges and specialized enamel plates, usu-
ally with reduction in the number of elements present. In each
superfamily the characteristic modifications in the muscles and
skull were begun in connection with the development of the in-
cisors. Mechanical improvement of the cheekteeth came later.
All rodent teeth have been developed from an essentially uniform
original type under the influence of practically identical mechani-
cal forces. Parallelism in highly specialized dental structures
between genera and species which are not closely related is
therefore frequent enough to be one of the noticeable peculiari-
ties of the order. The history of development extends so far into
the past that the essential features of structure are modernized
in the oldest known Eocene rodents. No extinct member of
the order has yet been found which can be regarded as ancestral
to any considerable number of subsequent forms.

The order Rodentia may be defined, as follows: Terrestrial and
fossorial (occasionally arboreal or semiaquatic) placental mammals
with both brain and placentation generalized in type ; feet vmguiculate ;
elbow joint always permitting free rotary motion of forearm; fibula
never articulating with calcaneum; niasseter muscle highly specialized,
divided into three or more distinct portions having slightly different
functions; cecum without spiral fold; dental formula not known to
exceed i }, c f pm f, m f = 22 permanent teeth; incisors scalpriform,
growing from persistent pulp, the enamel of the upper tooth not ex-
tending to posterior surface; distance between mandibular and maxil-
lary toothrows approximately equal, both pairs of rows capable of par-
tial or complete opposition at the same time, the primary motion of the
lower jaw in mastication longitudinal or oblique.

Superfamily SCIUROIDAE

Masseter lateralis superficialis with anterior head distinct, this por-
tion of the muscle not attached to any part of the zygoma except occa-
sionally to a point at extreme base of zygomatic plate; zygomatic plate

MILLER AND GIDLEY : SUPERGENERIC GROUPS OF RODENTS 433

tilted upward, usually broad, with its superior border always above
lower margin of infraorbital foramen. Infraorbital foramen inferior,
transmittng nerve only; masseter lateralis passing obliquely upward to
superior border of rostrum, always to exclusion of masseter medialis.

THREE-CUSPED SERIES

Teeth becoming hypsodont on the basis of a tritubercular structure.

Family Sciuridae

Skull never truly fossorial; infraorbital foramen with outer wall
usually though not always forming a distinct canal, its orifice protected
from muscular action by the presence, at or near its lower border, of an
outgrowth for attachment of masseter lateralis superficialis; frontal
with decurved postorbital process; cheekteeth brachydont or uni-
laterally hypsodont, the fundamental tritubercular plan usually (prob-
ably always) evident in functional adult teeth that have not under-
gone considerable wear; external form suited to arboreal or terrestrial
life.

The Sciuridae of authors.

Subfamily Sciurinae. — Orbital region normal, the middle of orbit in
front of middle of skull (except in genera with greatly elongated
rostrum) , the lachrymal bone above or in front of anterior extremity of
toothrow, the zygomatic plate not especially emarginate below, the
postorbital process indicating an evident boundary between orbit and
temporal fossa; no parachute membrane.

The entire family except the members of the two following groups;
Oligocene to Recent; Northern Hemisphere, South America, conti-
nental Africa.

Subfamily Nannosciurinae. — Like the Sciurinae but orbital region
abnormal, the middle of orbit behind middle of skull (rostrum short),
the lachrymal bone above middle of toothrow, the zygomatic plate
conspicuously emarginate below, the postorbital process not indicating
an evident boundary between large orbit and much reduced temporal
fossa.

Nannosciurus of the Malay region, Myosciurus of West Africa, and
Sciurillus of South America (the last not seen) ; Recent.

Subfamily Pteromyinae. — Like the Sciurinae but with a well de-
veloped parachute membrane present.

The Flying-squirrels; Middle Miocene to Recent; Northern Hemis-
phere.

Family Geomyidae

Skull fossorial; zygoma robust; infraorbital foramen always at end of
a long canal, its orifice protected from muscle pressure by counter-

434 MILLER AND gidley: supergeneric groups of rodents

sinking in an oblique sulcus; frontal without postorbital process; cheek-
teeth evenly hypsodont or in their extreme development ever-growing,
the fundamental tritubercular plan lost in functional adult teeth, the
first and second molars of adult consisting of either one or two simple
loops. External form in living members of the group highly modified
for underground life.

Subfamily Entoptychinae. — Angular portion of mandible mostly
below alveolar level; cheekteeth rooted, the enamel pattern of first and
second molars consisting of two simple loops joined at protomere.^

Entoptychus; North American Oligocene.

Subfamily Geomijinae. — Angular portion of mandible mostly above
alveolar level; cheekteeth ever-growing, the first and second adult
molar consisting each of a simple prism, with an enamel plate always
present on anterior surface in upper teeth and on posterior surface of
lower teeth.

North American pocket gophers; Miocene to Recent.

Family Heteromyidae

Essential characters as in the Geomyidae but skull not fossorial;
zygoma slender; orifice of infraorbital canal protected from muscle
pressure by countersinking in a vacuity which extends transversely
through rostrum; external form murine or saltatorial.

North American pocket-mice and kangaroo-rats; Middle Ohgocene
(Heliscomys) to Recent.

FOUR-CUSPED SERIES

Teeth becoming hypsodont on the basis of a quadritubsrcular
structure.

Family Adjidaumidae

Zygomasseteric structure^ and infraorbital canal as in the Sciur-
idae; cheekteeth |-, slightly hypsodont, the enamel pattern unmodified
heptamerous.*

Adjidaumo; North American Middle Oligocene.

2 Protomere = inner side of maxillary cheekteeth and outer side of mandibular
cheekteeth.

Paramere = outer side of maxillary cheekteeth and inner side of mandibular
cheekteeth.

' Zygomasseteric structure = the combined and correlated structures of the
masseter muscle and of the skull in the region at which the muscle takes its origin.

* Heptamerous pattern = the enamel pattern of a flat-crowned cheektooth in
which each of seven original tubercles is represented by a loop (two on the proto-
mere, five on the paramere).

MILLER AND GIDLEY: SUPERGENERIC GROUPS OF RODENTS 435

Family Eutypomyidae

Like the Adjidaumidae but with cheekteeth somewhat more hypso-
dont and the heptamerous enamel pattern complicated by the devel-
opment of a considerable number of secondary closed loops which ap-
pear in partially worn teeth as an aggregation of minute enamel lakes
covering nearly entire surface of crown.

Eutypomys; North American Middle Oligocene.

Family Chalicomyidae

Like the Adjidaumidae but cheekteeth strongly hypsodont and
enamel pattern reduced-heptamerous (sometimes paralleling that of
the Hystricidae) becoming rapidly simplified as the crowns wear away;
skull occasionally fossorial; no postorbital process on frontal; no pit-
like depression in basioccipital region.

ChaUcomys (= Steneofiber) and related genera, European Miocene
and Pliocene; Trogontherium, European Pliocene and Pleistocene;
Palaeocastor, Eucastor and related genera, North American Upper
Oligocene and Lower Pliocene.

Family Castoridae

Skull with rostrum broadened and deepened and braincase narrowed;
basioccipital region with conspicuous pit-like depression ; cheekteeth not
ever-growing but so excessively hypsodont that the slightly reduced-
heptamerous pattern (parallel : Myocastor) changes little with age and
rarely if ever wears out; external form highy modified for aquatic life;
caudal vertebrae flattened.

Castor; Lower Pliocene to Recent; Northern Hemisphere.

Family Castoroididae

Zygomasseteric structure modified by the passage of the shaft of
the incisor below the infraorbital foramen instead of above it, the ridge
formed by the tooth dividing the area of masseteric origin on side of
rostrum into two planes; posterior nares divided horizontally by the
median fusing of palatine bones over roots of cheekteeth; teeth ever-
growing, the enamel pattern a series of 5-7 parallel transverse ridges
(parallel: Dinomyidae).

Castoroides; North American Pleistocene.

Superfamily MUROIDAE

Zygomasseteric structure as in the Sciuroidae except: Lifraorbital
foramen superior in whole or in part, entered or traversed by muscle
as \vell as nerve; masseter lateralis seldom reaching superior border of
rostrum, and never doing this to exclusion of masseter medialis.

THREE-CUSPED SERIES

Modifications of teeth based on an underlying tritubercular structure.

436 MILLER AND GIDLEY : SUPERGENERIC GROUPS OF RODENTS

Family Muscardinidae

Skull with no striking modifications of general form; zygomatic root,
much as in the Sciuridae except that its anterior face is nearly vertical
instead of strongly oblique, and the infraorbital foramen extends above
median level of orbit, receiving or transmitting a strand of muscle as
well as the nerve; no postorbital processes; auditory bullae large, globu-
lar, rounded in front; cheekteeth ^, brachydont (in Leithia subhypso-
dont), the enamel pattern reduced-hexamerous in forms with basin-
shaped crowns, passing to a system of parellel transverse ridges in
those with flat crowns (parallel : Graphiuridae) ; external form showing
a combination of murine and sciurine features.

Eliomys, Dyromys, Glis, Muscardmus, Leithia; Old World Middle
Miocene to Recent.

FOUR-CUSPED SERIES

Modifications of teeth based on an underlying quadritubercular
structure.

Family Ischyromyidae

General characters of the skull as in the Muscardinidae; teeth f,
moderately hypsodont, rooted, the fundamental structure quadri-
tubercular, the enamel pattern in worn teeth reduced-heptamerous.

Ischyromys; North American Middle Oligocene.

Family Cricetidae

Fundamental zygomasseteric structure as in the Muscardinidae and
Ischyromyidae, but infraorbital foramen usually enlarged and special-
ized, consisting of a rounded upper portion for transmission of muscle
and a narrow lower portion for transmission of nerve, the zygomatic
root developed into a broad, oblique plate; skull varying excessively in
form, but always without postorbital process on the frontal; check-
teeth f , the crown structure showing all stages from brachydont to
ever-growing, the fundamental structure quadritubercular, the enamel
pattern varying from simple heptamerism to excessive specialization, the
tubercles in the maxillary teeth always presenting a longitudinally bi-
serial arrangement and never developing a functional third series on
lingual side of crown; external form murine or fossorial.

Subfamily Cricetinae. — Skull without special modification, the zygo-
masseteric structure as usual in the family, the squamosal not devel-
oping a postorbital ridge or process; molars rooted, their crowns vary-
ing gradually from tubercular and brachydont to flat-crowned and
strongly hypsodont, when in the latter condition the prisms not oppo-
site (compare Gerhillinae) and the posterior termination of m^ and m-
not angular (compare Microtinae).

The Cricetinae, Sigmodontinae, Neotominae, and Nesomyinae of authors;
Oligocene to Recent; continental region of the world; Madagascar.

MILLER AND GIDLEYI SUPERGENERIC GROUPS OF RODENTS 437

Subfamily Gerhillinae. — Auditcfry bullae and entire posterior portion
of skull enlarged; teeth subhypsodont or hypsodont, flat-crowned in
adults, with opposite prisms, these tending to form transverse ridges
joined at median line, or, in their extreme development, to separate
into plates; external form saltatorial.

The Gerhillinae of authors; Recent only', unless Trilophomy shorn, the
Pliocene of France is a member of the group; Asia and Africa.

Subfamily Microtinae. — Like the more hypsodont members of the
subfamily Cricetinae but cheekteeth often growing from a persistent
pulp, the enamel pattern always consisting of (at least partially) alter-
nating triangles, the posterior termination of m^ and m^ never rounded;
squamosal with distinct postorbital ridge or process.

The Microtinae of authors; Miocene to Recent; Northern Hemisphere.

Subfamily Lophiomyinae. — Like the Cricetinae with tubercular,
slightly hypsodont teeth, but skull with temporal fossa bridged by a
plate formed of laminae arising from the jugal, frontal, and parietal,
a structure not known to occur elsewhere among rodents.

Lophiomys; Recent; Africa.

Family Platacanthomyidae

Like the Cricetidae but zygomasseteric structure unusual, the infra-
orbital foramen of normal cricetine form, but zygomatic plate much
narrowed, and masseter lateralis profundus extending its line of at-
tachment along upper zygomatic border to side of rostrum above fora-
men; cheekteeth subhypsodont, the enamel pattern a modified hep-
tamerous with tendency to form parallel oblique cross-ridges (parallel:
Muscardinidae) .

Platacanihomys and Typhlomys; Recent; Southern Asia.

Family Rhizomyidae

Like the Cricetidae but zygomasseteric structure unusual, the infra-
orbital foramen with neural portion reduced or obliterated by partial
or entire fusion of zygomatic plate with side of rostrum; skull and
external form fossorial.

Subfamily Tachyoryctinae. — Infraorbital foramen with neural por-
tion reduced to an inconspicuous notch by fusion of the broad zygomatic
plate with side of rostrum (outline of plate below foramen usually vis-
ible) ; skull strongly fossorial ; cheekteeth closed at base but extremely
hypsodont, the enamel pattern not changing in character during adult
life; enamel pattern in adult consisting of 2-3 parallel curved cross-
ridges (the concave surface directed backward and outward in upper
teeth, forward and inward in lower teeth; parallel: Protechimys);
reduced-heptamerism evident in unworn enamel cap; external form
modified, though not excessively, for underground life.

Tachyoryctes; Recent; Africa.

438 MILLER AND gidley: supergeneric groups of rodents

Siibfamil}^ Rhizomyinae. — ^Like the Tachyorydinae but peculiarities of
infraorbital region carried farther, the neural notch being obliterated
and the foramen appearing as a small orifice confined to upper surface
of zygomatic root; teeth moderately hypsodont, the enamel pattern
obviously heptamerous or reduced-heptamerous and changing rapidly
during adult life.

Rhizomys and related genera; Pliocene to Recent; southern Asia.

Subfamily Br aminae.— Like the Rhizomyinae but cheekteeth with
definitely prismatic structure.
Bramus; Pleistocene; northern Africa (not seen).

Family Spalacidae

Like the Cricetidae but zygomasseteric structure unusual, the zygo-
matic plate narrowed and turned downward to a nearly horizontal posi-
tion, thus doing away with the separate neural portion of the opening
by a process the exact opposite to that bringing about a similar result
in some of the Rhizomyidae; skull excessively fossorial, the lambdoid
crest carried forward to level of zygomatic root.

Subfamiy Myospalacinae. — Mandible scarcely movable at symphysis,
a large post-symphyseal buttress early developed; cheekteeth growing
from persistent pulps, the crowns elongated, the enamel pattern con-
sisting of alternating triangles, the posterior termination of m^ and
m^ rounded.

Myospalax; Recent; Asia.

Subfamily Spalacinae. — Mandible movable at symphysis through-
out life; cheekteeth moderately hypsodont, rooted, subterete, the pat-
tern reduced-heptamerous, changing rapidly with wear; skull with the
characters of the family carried to such an extreme as to make it the
most fossorial type known among rodents.

Spalax, Recent, Prospalax, Upper Pliocene, and an undescribed genus
from the upper Oligocene; eastern Mediterranean Region, and southern
Europe.

Family Muridae

Skull as in the typical Cricetidae; cheekteeth f , the upper teeth with
a functional row of tubercles on lingual side of crown internal to the
protocone and hypocone, these tubercles entering conspicuously into the
plan of modification of the crowns.

Subfamily Dendromyinae. — Upper cheekteeth with triserial arrange-
ment not fully developed; manus with only 3 functional digits.
The DenrfroA/iymae of authors; Recent; Africa.

Subfamily Murinae. — Upper cheekteeth with fuU.y developed tri-
serial arrangement of tubercles always evident, though frequently vary-

MILLER AND GIDLEY: SUPERGENERIC GROUPS OF RODENTS 439

ing from the symmetrical plan; crowns brachydont or slightly hyp-
sodont; manus normal.

Tlie Murinae of authors; Upper Miocene to Recent; Old World,
except Madagascar.

Subfamily Phloeomyinae. — Upper cheekteeth with triserial arrange-
ment of elements obscured by flattening out of each trio of tubercles to
form a simple, detached, transverse lamina (parallel: Diplomys);
crowns moderately hypsodont ; braincase relatively small and auditory
bullae reduced; external form heavy, arboreal.

Phloeomys; Recent; Philippine Islands.

Subfamily Otomyinae. — Upper cheekteeth with same modification as
in the Phloeomyinae, but m^ tending to become the dominant tooth in the
series, its size always greater than that of m^, and its elements usually
reduplicated; external form heavy, terrestrial.

Otomys; Recent; Africa.

Subfamily Hydromyinae. — Upper cheekteeth with triserial arrange-
ment obscured by suppres^on of tubercles of outer series; m'' vestigial.
The Hydromyinae oi anthoYs; Recent; Australian Region.

Superfamily DIPODOIDAE

Masseter lateralis superficialis with anterior head not distinct, this
portion of the muscle attaching along a considerable area on anterior
border of zygoma; zygomatic plate nearly horizontal, always narrow
and completely beneath infraorbital foramen. Angular portion of
mandible not distorted outward at base to permit free passage of a
branch of the masseter lateralis, its general direction not parallel with
zygoma.

THREE-CXJSPED SERIES

Modifications of teeth based on an underlying tritubercular structure,
the hypocone when present not entering into the essential mechanical
scheme of the crown.

A. — Skull with no special pecularities except that the auditory bullae
appear to he imperfect or absent (perhaps merely reduced as in Phloeomys) ;
infraorbital foramen not transmitting muscle; cheekteeth brachydont or
subhyposodont, their structure essentially as in the less modified Sciuridae.

Family Paramyidae

Rostrum and braincase approximately equal in width, infraorbital
foramen very small, not visible in lateral view of the skull; cheekteeth
f , the upper molars obviously and simply tritubercular in general plan,
the hypocone, when present, appearing as a supplement to the original
structure of the tooth.

440 MILLER AND GIDLEY: SUPERGENERIC GROUPS OF RODENTS

Paramys, My sops, Prosciurus, and related genera; North American
Lower Eocene to Middle Oligocene.

B. — Skull and teeth as in the Paramyids except that the auditory bullae
are well developed, the infraorbital foramen is enlarged to transmit a small
strand of muscle, and the cheekteeth are flattened.

Family Graphiuridae

Cheekteeth |, brachydont, crowns wider than long, basin-shaped
with small tubercles and low ridges (parallel: M uscardinidae) ; skull
with no special peculiarities, the braincase much wider than rostrum;
auditory bullae globular; external form muscardinine.

Graphiurus; Recent; Africa.

C. — Skull fossorial (except perhaps in the Allomyidae); infraorbital
foramen not transmitting muscle; auditory bullae well-developed; cheek-
teeth brachydont, hypsodont, or ever-growing; modification of crownsbased on
a structure including well developed protoconule and metaconule, and con-
spicuously trenchant outer commissures.

Family Allomyidae

Cheekteeth f , brachydont or moderately hypsodont, the trituber-
cular structure of upper teeth evident in unworn crowns; protoconule
and metaconule large; functional cusps in m^ and m'-; mesostyle appear-
ing in hypsodont forms as a conspicuous median rib on outer surface of
crown (parallel: Pseudosciuridae).

Allomys, Haplomys,^ Meniscomys, Mylagaulodon; North American
Upper Oligocene and Miocene.

Family Aplodontiidae

Like the Allomyidae but the skull greatly widened posteriorly, the
auditory bullae flask-shaped with neck directed horizontally outward;
cheekteeth growing from persistent pulp, the unworn caps showing
evident pattern of the Allomys-i:y]iQ, this soon wearing away and leaving
a simple enamel ring; paramere with conspicuous vertical ridge.

Aplodontia; Pleistocene and Recent; Liodontia,^ Miocene; western
North America.

Family Cylindrodontidae

Skull fossorial with braincase slightly wider than rostrum; cheek-
teeth ^, subterete, excessively hypsodont but not growing from persist-
ent pulp, the enamel pattern in considerably worn upper teeth consist-
ing of an outer ring and a central lake.

■ Cylindrodon; North American Lower Oligocene. Position of group
doubtful.

New genus, type Meniscomys liolophus Cope.
New genus, type Aplodontia alexandrae Furlong.

MILLER AND GIDLEY: SUPERGENERIC GROUPS OF RODENTS 441

■FOUR-CUSPED SERIES

]\Iodifications of teeth based on an underlying quadritubercular
structure, the hypocone always entering into the essential mechanical
scheme of the crown.

A. — Skull not specially modified; upper molars with large proioconule
and mefaconide, and conspicuously trenchant outer commissures, their
structure paralleling that of the Allomyidae in the three-cusped series.

Family Pseudosciuridae

Skull essentially as in the Sciuravidae but with larger infraorbital
foramen which may have transmitted a strand of muscle.
Pseudosciurus; European Oligocene.

B. — Skull excessively fossorial; occipital region obliquely truncate, with
lambdoid crest moved forward nearly to level of zygomatic root; frontal with
short postorbital process; bony horn-cores present on rostrum in two genera,
absent in a third; cheekteeth highly modified from a normal heptamerous
structure, the grinding function of toothrow in adult almost completely
taken over by the greatly enlarged fourth premolar.

Family Mylagaulidae

General structure of skull much as in the Aplodontiidae; cheekteeth
f or f ; a reduced-heptamerous pattern evident in slightly worn crowns,
but this giving place with wear to a system of narrow longitudinal and
oblique lakes; molars relatively small, soon crowded out by the pre-
molar, an excessively hypsodont, laterally compressed tooth, closed at
the base, and rapidly increasing in crown length from the unworn surface
downward. Skeleton highly modified for underground life.

Mylagaulus, Ceratogaulus, and Epigaulus; North American Miocene
and Pliocene.

C. — Skidl without special peculiarities; infraorbital foramen moderate
or very large, transmitting both muscle and nerve; cheekteeth subhypsodont or
brachydont, their modifications based on a heptamerous structure in which
the ridges are narrow and the reentrant spaces wide {parallels: Funisciu-
rus, Erethizontidae); external form glirine or pteromyine; under side of
tail with scaly outgrowths near base.

Family Anomaluridae

Skull with moderate infraorbital foramen; lower zygomatic root at
levol immediately in front of anterior cheektooth; anterior point of
masseteric insertion on mandible beneath hinder part of nii; no dis-
crepancy between size of incisors and molars; cheekteeth subhypso-
dont, their crowns flat, longer than wide; external form pteromyine.

Anomahirus; Recent; Africa.

442 MILLER AND GIDLEY." SUPERGENERIC GROUPS OF RODENTS

Family Idiuridae

Like the Anomaluridae but skull with infraorbital foramen greatly
enlarged, the lower zygomatic root nearer to incisor than to anterior
cheektooth; anterior point of masseteric insertion on mandible in front of
pm''; incisors excessively heavy; cheekteeth weak, extremely brachydont,
their crowns flat, wider than long.

Subfamily Idiurinae. — Flying membrane present; cheekteeth with
two complete m\3dian transverse ridges.
Idiurus; Recent; Africa.

Subfamily Zenkerellinae — Flying-membrane absent; cheekteeth with
one complete median transverse ridge.
Zenker ella; Recent; Africa.

D, — Skull without striking peculiarities other than a tendency to assume
a form characterized by broad braincase, large auditory parts, and weak
rostrum {parallels; Gerbillinae, Octodontinae) ; infraorbital foramen trans-
mitting muscle in all members of the group in which the skull is known
except probably Sciuravus ; cheekteeth varying from brachydont to ever-
growing, their modifications based on a heptamerous structure in which the
ridges are wide and the reentrant spaces narrow.

Family Sciuravidae

Infraorbital foramen small, but visible in lateral view of skull, prob-
ably transmitting nerve only; cheekteeth f, brachydont; the structure
of the upper molars obviously and simply quadritubercular.

Sciuravus; Noi'th American Middle Eocene.

Family Zapodidae

Infraorbital foramen large, transmitting muscle as well as nerve;
cheekteeth varying in number from f in the earlier members of the group
to f in the most advanced; the quadritubercular crown structure usually
though not always much modified; metatarsals not reduced or fused.

Subfamily Theridomyinae. — The earlier, less modified members of the
family: pm* a large, functional tooth; crowns of cheekteeth varying
from brachydont and simply quadritubercular (Sciuroides) to hypsodont
and much reduced heptamerous [Issiodoromys; parallel: Eocardia).

The Theridomyidae of authors; European Lower Eocene to Miocene.

Subfamily Sicistinae. — Cheekteeth brachydont, |, distinctly quadri-
tuberculate, the enamel of moderately worn upper molars with a simple
heptamerous pattern ; external form murine, the hind legs and feet not
lengthened.

Sicista, Recent, Eurasia; f Eomys, European Upper Eocene.

MILLER AND GIDLEY: SUPERGENERIC GROUPS OF RODENTS 443

Subfamily Zapodinae. — Cheekteeth subhypsodont,| or f , flat crowned,
the enamel pattern of the upper molars heptamerous, slightly or con-
siderabh' modified; external form saltatorial, the hind legs and feet
lengthened.

Eozapus, Recent, China; Zapus, Napaeozapus, Pleistocene and
Recent, North America.

Family Dipodidae

Like the Zapodidae but with the inner and outer metatarsals reduced
or absent and the three median fused to form a canon bone; cheekteeth
hj^psodont, the heptamerous enamel pattern undergoing modifications
most of which are parallel to those taking place in the teeth of the
Cricetidae and in the hystricine families.

Subfamily Protoptychinae. — Upper cheekteeth 4, moderately hypso-
dont; pm* a large, functional tooth; skull with relatively broad rostrum
and narrow braincase.

Protoptychus;'' North American Upper Eocene.

Suhfamily Dipodinae. — Cheekteeth f or f, strongly hypsodont; pm<
vestigial; skull with relativelj- narrow rostrum and broad braincase.

The Dipodidae of authors who recognize the Zapodidae as a distinct
famil}^; Pleistocene and Recent; Eurasia and northern Africa.

Family Ctenodactylidae

Cheekteeth growing from a persistent pulp, the adult pattern re-
duced to a simple ring infolded on one or both sides (parallel: Odo-
dontinae) ; external form fossorial.

Ctenodactylus and related genera from the Mediterranean region;
Pliocene to Recent.

Family Pedetidae

Cheekteeth subterete, growing from a persistent pulp; all trace of
the original crown structure lost, the unworn enamel cap transversely
cleft, the adult pattern consisting of a narrow median infold from the
paramere extending nearl}' across to opposite side; external form con-
spicuousl}'^ saltatorial, but median metatarsals showing no tendency to
become reduced or fused.

Pedetes; Recent; Africa.

Superfamily BATHYERGOIDAE

Zygomasseteric structure as in the Dipodoidae except: Angular por-
tion of mandible distorted outward to allow passage of a specialized and

' While Protoptychus is a true dipodid with few primitive characters its exact
position is not clear. It may prove to be a member of the Theridomyinae; but
for the present we prefer to place it in the Dipodidae on account of its resemblance
to the recent genus Euchoreutes.

444 MILLER AND GIDLEYI SUPERGENERIC GROUPS OF RODENTS

enlarged distal anterior limb of the masseter lateralis superficialis, its
general direction parallel with zygoma. Masseter medialis arising from
upper margin of orbit and not passing through small infraorbital
foramen.

Family Bathyergidae

Skull and external form with conspicuous fossorial adaptations.
Cheekteeth extremely hypsodont, though not ever-growing; enamel
pattern in adult a ring with or without a reentrant fold on one or each
side (parallel: Octodontinae) ; number of cheekteeth ranging from | to
f. (In the genus, Heliophohius, with the greatest number of teeth there
are never more than f functional at one time; the apparent addition of
one tooth in the upper jaw and two in the lower jaw to the maximum
rodent formula is probably due to a specialized condition of the milk
dentition.)

The Bathyergidae oi authors; Recent; Africa.

Superfamily HYSTRICOIDAE

Zygomasseteric structure as in the Bathyergoidae except: Masseter
medialis arising from side of rostrum and passing through large infra-
orbital foramen.

LATERALIS SERIES

Masseter lateralis the chief agent in modifying form of outer side of
mandible; an oblique ridge extending forward from lower border of
angular process usually present for attachment of this muscle.

A. — Lachrymal hone small, forming no important part of zygomatic
root, its lower portion confined within orbit; lachyrmal canal closed in front
of orbit.

Family Hystricidae

Skull with no special peculiarities other than a tendency (most pro-
nounced in the genus Hystrix) to inflation of the rostral and frontal
regions; mandibular rami rather freely movable at symphysis; angular
process deep, neither produced backward conspicuously behind articular
level nor folded inward along lower margin; cheekteeth \, their enamel
pattern slightly removed from the simple heptamerous type, the re-
entrant folds narrow and not angular.

Old World porcupines; Upper Miocene to Recent.

Subfamily Hystricinae. — Base of upper zygomatic root over a point
decidedly behind the anterior extremity of toothrow; cheekteeth
strongly hypsodont, closed at base but without definite roots; sacral
vertebrae 4.

Hystrix, Acanthion, Thecurus; Africa, southern Asia, and Malay
region.

MILLER AND GIDLEYI SUPERGENERIC GROUPS OF RODENTS 445

Subfamily Atherurinae. — Base of upper zygomatic root over anterior
extremity of toothrow; cheekteeth subhypsodont, with well developed
roots; sacral vertebrae 3.

Atherurus, Trichijs; Recent; Malay region.

Family ERETHIZOXTIDAE

Like the Hystricidae but: Mandibular rami with conspicuous post-
SJ^nphyseal buttresses which prevent movement at the symphysis;
lower border of angular process folded inward; cheekteeth subhypso-
dont, flat crowned, with reduced-heptamerous enamel pattern char-
acterized by narrow ridges and wide reentrant spaces, the spaces on the
paramere tending to become transformed into pits (parallels: Funis-
ciurus, Anomaluridae) . Upper zygomatic root over anterior part of
toothrow; feet noticeably modified for arboreal life.

New World porcupines except Chaetomys: Oligocene to Recent.
Oligocene of Egypt?^ Extinct South American genera: Asteromys,
Eosteiromys, Parasteiromys, Steiromys.

Family ECHIMYIDAE

Like the Erethizontidae but lower border of angular process usually
with no evident infolding, feet usually not modified for arboreal life, and
adult cheekteeth with narrow reentrant folds; cheekteeth varying from
brachydont to ever-growing, the structure when hypsodont not multi-
laminar.

Subfamily Echimyinae.—Fo^'&oviaX specialization usually absent;
skull and cheekteeth showing great variety of form ; enamel pattern not
simplified to a ring with an infold on one or each side.

Tropical America; Miocene to Recent. Spiny-rats (provisionally
including Chaetomys), Hutias {Capromys, Plagiodontia) , etc.; also many
extinct genera, among them Acaremys, Boromys, Brotomys, Colpostemma,
Eocardia (parallel: Issiodoromys), Eododon, Graphimys, Gyrignophus,
Haplostropha, Heteropsomys, Homopsomys, Isolobodon, Prospaniomys,
Protadelphomys, Protacaremys, Sciamys, Scleromys, Spaniomys, Sticho-
mys, Strophostephanus, Tribodon. It is probable that this group needs
subdividing.

Subfamily Octodontinae. — FoSsorial specialization usually present;
cheekteeth, except in earliest known genera, with enamel pattern com-
pletely simplified to a ring with an infold on one or each side (parallel :
Ctenodactylidae) .

South America; Oligocene to Recent. Recent genera: Ctenomys,
Octodon, Octodontomys, Spalacopus. Among the fossil genera are: Ceph-
alomys, Dicoelophorus, Eucoelophorus, Litodontomys, Neophanomys,
Palaeododon, Phtoramys, Pithanotomys, Plataeomys, Scotomys.

* The genera Phiomys and Metaphiomys, based on lower jaws and teeth, have
no characters by which they can at present be referred to any other family.

446 MILLER AND GIDLEY." SUPERGENERIC GROUPS OF RODENTS

Family Petromyidae

In general resembling the Ododontinae but crown of each cheektooth
margined by two elevations on the protomere, these elevations probably
resulting from the unusual obliquity at which the teeth appear to be set.
The teeth are rooted, strongly hypsodont; the enamel pattern consists
of two transverse lobes united by a median isthmus, the outer edges of
the lobes becoming joined in the upper teeth when worn. No speci-
mens examined.^ Recognized as a family by Tullberg, partly on whose
authority we continue to treat it as distinct. The characters of the teeth
indicate important mechanical peculiarities of the chewing apparatus.
The enamel pattern appears to be of a type which could be directly de-
rived from that present in the relatively low-crowned molars of Erethizon
and the Oligocene African Phiomys.

Petromys, South Africa: Recent.

Family Myocastoridae

In general like the Erethizontidae but upper zygomatic root over
middle of toothrow, and cheekteeth with structure paralleling that pres-
ent in Castor; lateral process of paroccipital large, projecting freely
above base of greatly elongated paroccipital process; in living species
external form modified for aquatic life.

Myocastor and related fossil genera; South America; Miocene to
Recent.

Family Thryonomyidae

Like the Myocastoridae but cheekteeth with structure paralleling
that present in some of the Echimyinae, and lateral process of paroc-
cipital small, closely applied to base of moderately large paroccipital
process; external form not modified for aquatic life.

Thryonomys; Africa; Recent.

Family Dinomyidae

Like the Echimyidae but cheekteeth combining a multilaminar
structure with excessive hyposodontj^ (parallel: Castor aides); so far as
known the external form is robust, terrestrial.

South America and the Greater Antilles; Miocene to Recent. In-
cludes the living Dinomys and the extinct genera Amblyrhiza, Briaromys,
Discolomys, Elasmodontomys, Gyriahrus, Megamys, Neoepihlema, Olen-
opsis, Potamarchus, Tetrastijlus.

Family Cuniculidae

Not essentially different from the Dinomyidae, but the jugal and part
of the maxillary are expanded to form a conspicuous cheekplate, the
surface of this becoming excessively j'ugose in adult ; cheekteeth strongly

' Mr. Oldfield Thomas has kindly sent us photographs of a skull in the British
Museum (No. 4.2.3.98).

MILLER AND GIDLEYI SUPERGENERIC GROUPS OF RODENTS 447

hypsodont, but enamel structure not completely multilaminar; exter-
nal form robust, terrestrial.

Cuniculus { = "Coelogenys"); Tropical America; Pleistocene and
Recent.

Family Heptaxodontidae

First tooth of maxillary series mechanically dominant, cheekteeth
apparently reduced to -|, conditions not known elsewhere in the Hijstri-
coidae, and indicating zygomasseteric development along a line different
from that followed elsewhere in the group; enamel structure multi-
laminar with reduplication in the anterior tooth; diagnostic cranial
characters unknown.

Heptaxodon; Porto Rico; Pleistocene? The genus Morenia from the
South American Miocene may be a second member of the family; it is
at present known from isolated teeth only.

'B.— Lachrymal hone large, usually forming an important part of zygo-
matic root, its lower portion extending forward out of orbit to a level in front
of anterior margin of infraorbital foramen; some part of lachrymal canal
open on side of rostrum in front of orbit.

Famil}' Dasyproctidae

Skull generalized in structure, closely resembling that of the less
specialized Hystricidae; cheekteeth hypsodont but with a nearly unmod-
ified heptamerous structure, paralleling that in the Hystricidae; ex-
ternal form cursorial, the legs lengthened, the digits 5-3.^''

The Dasyproctidae of authors with Cuniculus removed and Neo-
reomys added; South and Middle America; Miocene to Recent.

Family Chinchillidae

Cheekteeth with heptamerous structure excessively modified, the
enamel pattern consisting of parallel transverse laminae (parallel:
Dinomyidae) ; mandible with no sharply defined ridge for attachment of
masseter lateralis; external form saltatorial.

South America; IMiocene to Recent. Living genera: Chinchilla, La-
gostomus, Viscaccia. Extinct genera: Euphilus, Perimys, Pliolagosto-
mus, Prolagostomus, Scotaeumys, Sphaeromys.

Family Abrocomidae

Like the Chinchillidae but cheekteeth with deep reentrant angles on
both sides, and mandible with sharply defined ridge for attachment of
masseter lateralis; external form not saltatorial.

Abrocoma; South America; Pliocene to Recent.

"> The feet of Neoreomys are imperfectly known, but there appears to be noth-
ing in the structure of the parts which have been described that indicates the
presence of more than three digits in the hind foot.

448 MILLER AND gidley: supergeneric groups of rodents

MEDIALIS SERIES

Masseter medialis the chief agent in modifying form of outer side of
mandible; a conspicuous horizontal ridge for the attachment of this
muscle present on side of mandible slightly below alveolar level.

Family Caviidae

Posterior cheektooth both above and below without reduplication of
elements, the general character of the toothrow normal.

The Caviidae of authors with Hydrochoenis and its allies removed;
South America; Miocene to Recent. Extinct genera: Anchimys, Neo-
procavia, Orthomyctera, Palaeocavia, Phugatherium, Procardiotherium.

Family Hydrochoeridae

Posterior cheektooth both above and below with conspicuous redupli-
cation of elements, the general character of the toothrow thus rendered
abnormal.

Hydrochoerus and its extinct allies Plexochoerus, Prohydrochoerus
and Protohydrochoerus; perhaps Cardiomys, Caviodon ( = Diocariherium)
and Cardiotherium also; South America, Miocene to Recent; south-
eastern United States, Pleistocene.

ABSTRACTS

Authors of scientific papers are requested to see that abstracts, preferably
prepared and signed by themselves, are forwarded promptly to the editors.
The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those appearing
in this issue.

GEOGRAPHY. — Geography of the world's agriculture. V. C. Finch
and 0. E. Baker, Office of Farm Management. Pp. 149, includ-
ing 206 text figm-es and 2 inserted colored maps. " 1917" [April,
1918].

This contribution from the Office of Farm Management is an elabora-
tion of an article by the same authors in the 1916 Yearbook of the De-
partment of Agriculture, and a sort of forerunner of the Atlas of Ameri-
can Agriculture now in preparation by the Office of Farm Manage-
ment under the immediate direction of Mr. Baker.

Maps in black and white, with the acreage and production of all
the more important crops of the world indicated by dots, occupy over
half the space, and in addition there are many instructive graphs. The
maps of the United States and Europe are naturally more detailed
than those of other parts of the world, where statistics are not gathered
so systematically^ One of the colored maps shows land relief and the
other mean annual precipitation for the whole world exclusive of the
polar regions ; and by comparing the crop maps with these many more
or less striking correlations of crops with altitude and moisture can be
made out. Our knowledge of soil conditions is as yet far too fragmen-
tary to warrant the preparation of a soil map of the world, but numerous
correlations between crops and soils are pointed out in the text.

It is impracticable to go further into details here, but this atlas, or
album, probably brings out the salient features of the world's agricul-
ture at the beginning of the great world war better than any other pub-
lication, and it will be an indispensable reference book for students of
economic geography and all persons interested in the relation of geo-
graphic conditions to the distribution of crops and live stock through-
out the world.

R. M. Harper.

449

450 ABSTEACTS: GEOLOGY

GEOLOGY. — Possibilities for manganese ore on certain undeveloped

tracts in Shenandoah Valley, Virginia. D. F. Hewett, G. W.

Stose, F. J. Katz, and H. D. Miser. U. S. Geological Survey

Bulletin 660-J. Pp. 26, with maps, and sections. 1918.

Most of the manganese deposits occur in banded clays that are

believed to have been derived by weathering in place from the lower

200 feet of the Shady dolomite which rests on the Erwin quartzite.

In most places the local structure of the adjacent rocks has determined

the form of the deposits and in large measure their areal extent and

their persistence below the surface. The tracts that are considered

favorable for the occurrence of manganese or manganiferous iron ore

are underlain by troughs of the upper beds of the Erwin quartzite,

from the surface of which the products of decay of the overlying Shady

dolomite have not been removed.

The manganese seems to have been originally widely disseminated
as carbonate in the limestone and dolomite in the neighborhood of the
deposits. It was dissolved as bicarbonate and transported along estab-
hshed channels of circulation to the places where the oxides are now
found. The oxides were probably deposited when and where the
solutions containing manganese bicarbonate met oxygen-bearing
waters. According to the hypothesis structural troughs were the most
favorable channels for circulation, and if suitable conditions for oxida-
tion and deposition existed they should be the most favorable places
for accumulation.

Six undeveloped tracts along the west front of the Blue Ridge are
described in which prospecting with a view to the discovery of man-
ganese deposits is recommended.

R. W. Stone.

G'EOLOGY .—Manganese at Butte, Montana. J. T. Pardee. U. S.
Geol. Survey Bull. 690-E. Pp. 20. 1918.

Rhodochrosite, rhodonite, and manganese oxides are abundant at
Butte. Rather curiously, manganese minerals are scarce in the veins
that yield copper ore, but in a peripheral zone commonly known as the
silver area, manganese minerals are plentiful. The width of the zone
in which the veins are strongly manganiferous ranges from 1 to 2 miles
approximately, being greatest toward the west.

About half of the manganiferous zone lies north of the copper area
and east of the rhyolite. Though manganese is widely distributed in
all parts of the zone, it appears to be relatively most abundant in the
southwestern section. It occurs abundantly as deep as the workings

abstracts: geology 451

have gone, though it seems to be less plentiful in the deeper parts of
the veins.

Owing to the absence of silica and to the ease with which the carbo-
nate can be changed to an oxide, simple calcination being sufficient to
drive off the carbon dioxide, and to the comparative difficulty experi-
enced in decomposing the silicate, the rhodochrosite is by far the more
valuable as a source of the metal. Fairly pure rhodochrosite occurs in
several places.

A reserve of not more than 2600 tons, as estimated, contains 40 per
cent or more manganese, and but little more than one-third of this
amount runs less than 10 per cent silica. In addition fairly detailed
estimates show totals of about 132,000 tons of material averaging 24
per cent manganese and 50 per cent silica and 270,000 tons averaging
11.5 per cent manganese and 73 per cent silica. Tests of the richer of
these two grades so far reported by the mining companies, though not
wholl}' satisfactory, by no means discourage the hope that it can be
profitably concentrated.

R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — The coal fields of the United States. The coal fields of
Ohio. J. A. BowNOCKER, State Geologist. With a corn-puiation
of the original coal content of the fields. F. R. Clark. U. S.
Geol. Survey Prof. Paper 100-B. Pp. 62, with maps and sections.
1917.
A description of the occurrence, composition, and uses of Ohio coals,
with a bibliography; includes also an estimate of the original coal con-
tent of the Ohio fields. The principal part of the tonnage is contained
in seven coal beds. It is estimated that the total original tonnage of all
beds in all counties was 87,638,000,000 short tons, and that after deduct-
ing the quantity mined and wasted in mining, there remains available
86,552,000,000 short tons.

R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — Geology and paleontology of the Raton Mesa and other
regions in Colorado and New Mexico. Willis T. Lee and F.
H. Knowlton. U. S. Geol. Survey Prof. Paper 101. Pp. 450.
1917.
The principal conclusions arrived at in this report are as follows :
The coal-bearing rocks of the Raton Mesa region, which have for-
merly been referred to the Laramie, constitute two distinct formations,
separated in time by a period of erosion.

452 abstracts: geology

The lower formation, to which the name Verme jo is here apphed, con-
tains a Montana flora. It is distinct from the Laramie flora of the
Denver Basin, and proves that the Verme jo formation is older than
Laramie, and that it is more closely related to the Mesaverde of west-
ern New Mexico than to any other formation yet examined.

The coal-bearing rocks of the Canon City field are correlated by
lithology, stratigraphic position, and fossil plants with the Vermejo of
the Raton Mesa region and are designated by the same name. The
character of the invertebrates found in the Vermejo of the Canon City
field in the midst of the plant-bearing beds suggests that this formation
is approximately equivalent in age to the Fox Hills of the Denver Basin.

The upper formation of the Raton Mesa region, to which the name
Raton is here applied, is Eocene in age and contains a flora distinct
from that of the Laramie of the Denver Basin but similar to that of
the post-Laramie formations of that basin and to that of the Eocene
Wilcox group of the Gulf Coast.

The unconformity between the Vermejo and Raton formations rep-
resents a time interval comparable to that described as separating the
Laramie from the Arapahoe of the Denver Basin. Separating, as it
does, the youngest Cretaceous of the region from the oldest Eocene,
it represents post-Cretaceous erosion and is correlated with the post-
Laramie unconformity of the Denver Basin.

Lee's discussion of the geology of Raton Mesa is followed by Knowl-
ton's description of the fossil flora of the Vermejo and Raton forma-
tions. The flora is abundantly figured and some of the illustrations
are exceptionally large. That the age of the Vermejo formation is
Cretaceous is established by its stratigraphic position, its invertebrate
fossils, and especially by its plants, which correlate it with the Montana
in the approximate position of the Mesaverde formation. The Vermejo
is terminated by an unconformity, and so far as is at present known
only 4 of the 108 Vermejo species pass over the unconformity and are
fovmd in the Raton formation.

The Raton formation is to be correlated with the Wilcox, and prob-
ably with the Midway formation of the Gulf region. The Tertiary
age of the Midway and Wilcox formations is not questioned. On the
basis of the plants the Raton formation is also correlated with the
Arapahoe and the Denver formations of the Denver Basin; and the
latter is now known to be correlated with, and in fact to be practically
continuous with, the Dawson arkose. The conclusion is reached that
all these formations are Tertiary (Eocene) in age.

R. W. Stone.

abstracts: geology 453

GEOLOGY. — The Lake Clark-Central Kuskokwim region, Alaska.

Philip S. Smith. U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 655. Pp. 162, with

maps and illustrations. 1917.
This report describes the areal geology of the Lake Clark-Central
Kuskokwim region, Alaska. The region is in southwestern Alaska and
extends from the Pacific ]VIountains to the central part of the Yukon
Plateau province. The rocks are dominantly sedimentary strata of
Mesozoic age, but some Paleozoic limestones are also exposed. Igneous
rocks both of intrusive and effusive origin occur at a number of places
and certain of them seem to be closely associated with deposits of com-
mercial value, such as gold and quicksilver. Unconsolidated deposits
are widespread and throughout much of the region mantle the under-
lying bedrock. These deposits are mainly of glacial and glacio-fluvi-
atile origin, though lacustrine, fluviatile, and volcanic ash deposits
occur also.

P. S. S.

GEOLOGY. — The structural and ornamental stones of Minnesota.
Oliver Bowles. U. S Geol. Survey Bull. 663. Pp. 225, with
maps and illustrations. 1918.
In this bulletin the history of the industry is summarized, the rocks
of Minnesota and their constituent minerals are described, and an
outline of the geologic history is given. A brief account of the proper-
ties essential to the usefulness of stones is followed by a general dis-
cussion of the crystalline rocks of Minnesota. Detailed descriptions
of the quarries, of their products, mode of operation, equipment, owner-
ship, and means of transportation, form the main body of the report.
The stones quarried are granite, gabbro, diabase, limestone, marble,
sandstone, and quartzite. As a guide for prospective operators unde-
veloped outcrops as well as quarries are described.

R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — A geologic reconnaissance of the Uinta Mountains, north-
ern Utah, with special reference to phosphate. Alfred R. Schultz.
U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 690-C. Pp. 64, with maps. 1918.
The rocks in the Uinta Mountain region range in age from pre-
Cambrian to Quaternary, inclusive. The Park City formation, in which
the phosphate deposits occur, and the formations immediately under-
lying and overlying it are described so that the phosphate-bearing beds
and the rocks associated with them may be compared with the phos-
phate-bearing beds of other localities in the Rocky Mountain region.

454 abstracts: geology

The structure of the Uinta upUft, considered as a whole, is com-
paratively simple. On closer study, however, the long, narrow, flat-
topped east-west fold which is here called the Uinta anticline is found
to be much more complex and to consist of numerous secondary anti-
clines and synclines, some parallel to the main axis and others at right
angles to it. There are also numerous low cross folds along the flanks
of the major fold, expressed in undulations, local sags, and irregularities
along both sides of the range. The anticlinal fold is further compli-
cated by many normal faults and some thrust faults, both parallel and
transverse to the strike of the beds. The major structural feature of
the Uinta Mountains, however, consists of a huge east- west anticlinal
arch approximately 100 miles long, and from 35 to 50 miles in width.
This huge arch, which consists of rocks ranging in age from pre-Cam-
brian to Tertiary, separates the Green River Basin on the north from
the Uinta Basin on the south.

The distribution of the phosphate beds and the Park City formation,
which contains them and which is equivalent to the Phosphoria forma-
tion and the upper part of the Wells formation of eastern Idaho in the
Bear Lake region, is shown by a map.

The analyses show considerable variation, but they indicate the pres-
ence of some high-grade rock that carries approximately the equivalent
of 70 per cent of tricalcium phosphate.

No detailed work upon which to base a reliable estimate of tonnage
has been done in this field. It is apparent, however, from the recon-
naissance examination that a large amount of phosphate is present.

R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — The gold placers of the Tolovana district, Alaska. J. B.

Mertie, Jr. U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 662-D. Pp. 221-277,

with maps and illustrations. 1917.
The Tolovana district lies in the northwestern part of the Fairbanks
quadrangle, in the headwater region of Tolovana River and Hess
Creek. The report describes the gold placers of Livengood Creek and
near-by streams and the geology and mineral resources of the surrounding
territory, designated the Tolovana district. Much emphasis is placed
on topographic anomalies in the form of extensive changes in drainage,
and on Quaternary deposits and their history, all of which is intimately
related to the distribution of the gold. The origin of the gold in its
bedrock sources in the vicinity of Livengood Creek is related to the
intrusion of siliceous igneous rocks, with the subsequent escape of min-
eralizing solutions therefrom.

abstracts: geology 455

The means and cost of obtaining supplies and the availabihty of wood,
water, and game are mentioned.

R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — The geology and ore deposits of Ely, Nevada. Arthur C.
Spencer. U. S. Geol. Survey Prof. Paper 96. Pp. 189. 1917.

The great bulk of the rocks of the Ely quadrangle are limestones,
quartzites, and shales, which range in age from Ordovician to Carbon-
iferous and which have an aggregate thickness of more than 9000 feet.
The sedimentary rocks have been classed under eight formations. They
have been greatly disturbed by folding and especially by faulting, so that
their areal distribution is very irregular. The six uppermost of the
eight formations have been invaded in one place or another by masses of
monzonite porphyry.

The igneous rocks of the district include an older set of monzonite
porphj^-y intrusions and a younger set of tuffs, obsidians, and rhyolites.
The monzonitic rocks are of particular interest because the genesis of the
metallic ores of the district is closely connected with their geologic his-
tory. The conclusion is presented that all the coarse-grained intrusive
rocks are to be refprrcfd to a single epoch of igneous activity, and it is
shown that present differences in composition are due in the main to the
more or less intense metamorphism which in many places the rocks have
suffered.

Two kinds of metamorphism are distinguished. Under igneous meta-
morphism are included all those alterations that attended or followed
the invasion of the sedimentary formations by the magma that eventu-
ally crystallized as monzonite porphyry. These alterations have affected
the invaded limestones and shales and also the igneous rocks themselves.
To this metamorphism is to be attributed the formation of the primary
metalhferous deposits of the district. The second kind — atmospheric
metamorphism — includes weathering, or decomposition and leaching by
oxidizing surface waters, and cementation, or changes involving the
deposition of material taken into solution during the process of
weathering.

The enriched copper ores of the district have been formed as a result
of atmospheric metamorphism. By considering the amoimt of oxygen
that water can absorb by contact with the air under atmospheric pres-
sure at 7000 feet elevation and at the present mean annual tempera-
ture of the region, it is found that, even if precipitation in the past has
been 25 per cent greater than at present, and that as much as 60 per cent
of the rainfall could have penetrated to the ore body, the oxygen re-

456 abstracts: technology

quired to oxidize 500 feet of ore like that now existing would require the
contributions of rainfall during a period longer than physicists and
geologists are willing to allow for the entire age of the earth. It is
thought, therefore, that a large part of the oxygen must have been de-
rived from air that circulated through the oxidized capping.

A theoretical discussion of the chemical reactions involved in the
alterations of the rocks and in the deposition of metallic sulphides in
them is presented. The conclusion is reached that if the solutions were
originally acidic the metallic minerals were probably deposited only
after an alkaline or neutral condition had been attained.

R. W. Stone.

TECW^SiOLOGY. —Materials for the household. Bur. Stand. Circ. No.
70. Pp. 259. Dec. 5, 1917.
This circular describes the more common materials used by the house-
hold, comprising paint materials, cement, clay products, lime, plasters
and stucco, wood, metals, bituminous roofing, inks and dyes, adhesives,
paper, textiles, rubber, leather, cleansers and preservatives, fuels,
illuminants, and lubricants, and concludes with a chapter on quantity
in the purchasing of materials. Each title is treated under the general
heads of composition and definition, sources, properties, uses, tests,
preservation, hints as to selection and use, and references.

TECHNOLOGY. — Gas mantle lighting conditions in ten large cities in
the United States. R. S. McBride and C. E. Reinicker. Bur.
Stand. Tech. Paper No. 99. Pp. 37. October 29, 1917.

From a careful inspection of about 4500 gas mantle lamps in service
in ten cities, a summary of the condition of mantles, glassware, pilot
hght, and other particulars was made in order to determine to what
extent the customer benefited through periodic maintenance service.

By these observations it is found that a lamp not on regular mainte-
nance is hkely to be defective five and one-half times as frequently
as a lamp which is regularly maintained. Also it is shown that on the
average 1 in 3 of the lamps on regular maintenance was not in good
condition whereas the defects noticed in the lamps not so maintained
average more than one for every lamp.

The principal defects in maintenance systems were also investigated
and one satisfactory system of estimating the expenses for maintenance
work together with a set of unit costs is presented, based upon the
analysis of the operation of ten gas companies. A suggested table of
costs for each type of unit is given. C. E. R.

r

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

The Board of Managers met on June 8, 1918. The President was
authorized to appoint Associate Editors for the Journal, on the recom-
mendation of the Board of Editors; the Associate Editors to be selected
so as to represent informally the societies that publish proceedings in
the Journal. The following Associate Editors have been appointed:
J. R. Sw ANTON, Anthropological Society; N. Hollister, Biological
Society; J. B. Norton, Botanical Society; R. B. Sosman, Chemical
Society; Sidney Paige, Geological Society; F. B. Silsbee, Philosophi-
cal Society.

Robert B. Sosman, Corresponding Secretary.

BOTANICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 129th regular meeting of the Society was held at the Cosmos Club
at 8 p.m., Tuesday, May 7, 1918; 31 members and 3 guests present.
Prof. A. S. Hitchcock presided. The following scientific program was
given.

William A. Dayton : Collecting data on National Forest range plants.
For nine years past the Forest Service has conducted a study of the dis-
tribution, natural habits, and economic importance of its range flora.
Approximately 35,000 plant specimens, representing about 4,800 species,
have been collected on National Forests and Purchase Areas. Ecologi-
cal and economic data have been furnished by the collectors of most of
these specimens, and this material has been supplemented by much
detailed data procured by grazing experts of the Service. The speci-
mens have been identified by experts of the Bureau of Plant Industry.
Economic notes are compiled in the Washington office and distributed
among Forest officers. These data have application to many phases of
range-management, e.g., intensive range-utilization especially with a
view to minimum interference with the requirements of the important
forage plants, and the utilization of each type at the time and by the
class of stock to which it is best adapted; detection, eradication, fenc-
ing, etc. of poisonous-plant areas; natural range reseeding; studies in
carrying capacity, plant indicators, plant succession, artificial reseeding,
etc.

W. W. Eggleston: Nathaniel Jarvis Wyeth and his influence on
western botany, with a sketch of his return trip from Oregon in 1833. Capt.
N. J. Wyeth was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 1802. His

457

458 proceedings: botanical society

father was a Harvard graduate. Captain Wyeth received a business
training, was one of the pioneers in the ice business, and an inventor of
ice-cutting tools. Brought up in Cambridge, he seems to have taken
advantage of his environment, as his letters and journals evidence. His
interest in nature was fostered through friendship with Professor Thomas
Nuttall of the Harvard Botanic Garden.

Through propaganda for the American colonization of Oregon,
Wyeth's patriotic enthusiasm became so aroused that he joined the
movement, but disagreeing with the leadership he organized the Pacific
Trading Company, which started for Oregon in 1832 and after many
discouragements reached Fort Vancouver, Washington, and disbanded.

The following spring Captain Wyeth accompanied the Hudson Bay
Brigade to Camas Creek, Idaho, returning home with the Rocky Moun-
tain Fur Company Brigade down the Yellowstone and the Missouri.
On this spring trip Wyeth collected many new plants, from whichThomas
Nuttall described two genera and fifty-four species. Captain Wyeth
acquired such an interest in the country that he immediately planned a
larger expedition. His friend Nuttall was induced to join. A stock
compan}^, the Columbia River Fishing and Trading Company was
organized and an expedition of seventy men set out in the spring of 1834.

Financially this company failed and Wyeth closed the business, re-
turning home in 1836. However, Captain Wyeth's second expedition
took the first permanent American settlers to Oregon and blazed the
trail for the great exodus to Oregon ten years later. As the result of this
expedition J. K. Townsend collected and described many birds and
animals. Nuttall described about eighty genera and seven hundred and
fifty species of American plants.

V. K. Chesnut: Papain from Carica Papaya grown in Florida.
Genuine papain of good quality is so rare a product in commerce that the
trade, and even most chemists, have been unable to learn its eminent
worth as a protein digestant, especially from the manufacturing stand-
point. Inability to control the product was thought to be due to a lack
of knowledge of the ferment as well as to the need of a method of assay
which would exclude pepsin and other enzymes which have been, or may
be, used as adulterants. Forty-eight samples representing the latex from
every variety and condition of fruit available at the Foreign Seed and
Plant Introduction Field Station at Miami were collected by the author
and twenty other genuine samples were secured from Honolulu and else-
where. These were subjected to extended investigation and it was found
that the optimal H- ion concentration and field of activity were identical
in the case of all the specimens. A method of examination was finally
arrived at which enabled the author not only to determine the compara-
tive strength of a commercial sample, but at the same time, to detect the
presence of pepsin or other enzymic adulterants. Much of the value of
the latex depends upon the stage of ripeness of the fruit and especially
the methods used for drying and conservation. Since only 10 mg. are
required for an assay, it is now possible for an investigator to study the
fruit with a view toward the selection of the varieties best suited for the

proceedings: entomological society 459

yield of papain of high qiiahty. The product from Florida was found
equal to that from Honolulu and very greatly superior to any found on

the market.

H. N. ViNALL, Corresponding Secretary.

ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 314th meeting of the Society was held at the Cosmos Club, June
6, 1918, with 24 members and one visitor in attendance. President E. R.
Sasscer presided.

The following were elected to membership: Lieut. L. H. Dunn, of the
Ai-my Medical School; Mr. J.E. Graf, Mr. E. H. Durham, and Mr. G.
F. MozNETTE, of the Bureau of Entomology.

The regular program was as follows :

C. H. PoPENOE : Eradication and control of the sweet potato weevil. This
preliminary statement of the work being done for the eradication of this
imported pest of sweet potatoes was not intended for publication. Mv.
Popenoe gave a very interesting account of the habits, distribution, and
food plants of the insect, and extent of damage caused by the pest {Cijlas
formicarius Fabr.)

C. A. MosiER and T. E. Sn^'der: Notes on gadflies in the Florida
Everglades. Read by title.

J. R. Malloch: Genus Cnemedon Egger in North America (Dipt.).
Read by title.

Lieut. L. H. Dunn: A new mosquito (Aedes whitmorei) from

Colombia.

A. B. Gahan, Recording Secretary.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

The solar eclipse of June 8, 1918, was viewed at Baker, Oregon, by a
party from the Naval Observatory consisting of Astronomer J. C.
Hammond, Assistant Astronomer George H. Peters, Assistant C. C.
Wiley, and Assistant W. A. Conrad, together with the following invited
scientists: Professors S. A. Mitchell and L. G. Hoxton, of the Univer-
sity of Virginia, Dr. P. W. Merrill, of the Bureau of Standards, Dr.
Mary Murray Hopkins and Miss Harriet Bigelow, of Smith Col-
lege, Mr. Edward D. Adams amd Mr. Kempton Adams, of New York
City.

Assistant Astronomer H. R. Morgan and Assistant W. M. Hamil-
ton, of the Observatory, made observations at Denver, Colorado.

Special measurements were made by observers from the Weather
Bureau during the solar ecHpse of June 8, 1918. At Goldendale, Wash-
ington, were installed a Smithsonian pyranometer for measuring the
intensity of both the direct solar radiation and the diffuse sky-radiation,
and a pyrgeometer for measuring the intensity of the outgoing radiation.
A program of meteorological observations, arranged by Professor H. H,
Kimball and Mr. S. P. Fergusson, and including atmospheric pressure,
temperature of the air, direction of the wind, clouds and shadow-bands,
was carried out at about fifty-five stations, nearly all of which were west
of the Mississippi and within the belt where the sun was 90 per cent
eclipsed.

The various parties sent out by the Carnegie Department of
Terrestrial Magnetism and the United States Coast and Geodetic Sur-
vey, have all reported securing successful series of magnetic observa-
tions during the time of the total solar eclipse of June 8. Magnetic
observations were made by the Coast and Geodetic Survey at Green
River, Wyo., Mena, Ark., and Orlando, Fla. In addition data will
be obtained from the various magnetic observatories of the Coast and
Geodetic Survey. The stations at which magnetic observations were
made by the observers of the Department of Terrestrial Magnetism,
were: Goldendale, Wash.; Corono, Colo., at an altitude of 12,000 feet;
Moraine Lake, Colo.; Lakin, Kans.; Brewton, Ala.; and Washington,
D. C. At Lakin, furthermore, and at Washington, D. C, atmospheric-
electric observations were made. Reports on the results obtained
will be published in the September issue of the journal Terrestrial Mag-
netism and Atmospheric Electricity. Data will likewise be furnished
by the Canadian magnetic observatories and by various universities.

460

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS 461

Superintendents of the experiment stations of the Bureau of Mines
met in Washington on May 13-lG, 1918. Those in attendance were:
Van H. Manning, Director; L. H. Duschak, Berkeley, Cal.; E. A.
HoLBRooK, Urbana, 111.; J. O. Lewis, Bartlesville, Okla.; D. A. Lyon,
Washington; R. B. Moore, Golden, Col; F. G. Moses, Salt Lake City,
Utah; Edmund Newton, Minneapolis, Minn.; R. T. Stull, Columbus,
Ohio; C. E. Van Barneveld, Tucson, Ariz.; Thomas Varley, Seattle,
Wash.; A. E. Wells, Salt Lake City, Utah.

A section on medicines and medical supphes has been added to the
War Industries Board, with Lieut. -Col. F. F. Simpson as chief of the
section. It will be closely coordinated with that section of the Chemical
Division which deals with fine chemicals.

The authorized quota for the Chemical Service Section of the National
Army has been increased to a total of over 1300.

The Bureau of Yards and Docks, Nav>' Department, has awarded a
conti'act for the construction of a mine laboratory, to cost $73,000, at
the Washington Navy Yard.

The Magnetic Survey Vessel, Carnegie, arrived safely at her home
port, Washington, D. C, on June 10, where she will be put out of com-
mission probablj^ during the period of the war. During her cruise from
Buenos Aires, Argentina, round the Horn to Valparaiso, Chile, Callao,
Peru, thence through the Panama Canal to Newport News, she was in
command of Dr. N. W^. Edmonds; the other members of the scientific
staff aboard were: Messrs. A. D. Power, Bradley Jones, L. L. Tanguy,
J. M. ]\IcFadden, and Walter E. Scott. On Sunday, June 23, she
was visited by a number of the scientific men of Washington.

Prof. E. C. Franklin, of Stanford University, California, Mr. Wm.
HosKiNS, of Chicago, Dr. Wm. H. Nichols, of the General Chemical
Company, Prof. T. W. Richards, of Harvard University, Prof. H. P.
Talbot, of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Prof. S.
P. Venable, of the U^niversity of North Carolina, were in Wiashington
in ^lay in attendance upon the opening conference between the national
advisory committee of the Experiment Station of the Bureau of Mines,
and the members of the Bureau in charge of the work of the Experiment
Station.

Maj. James W. Bagley, of the Engineers Corps, National Army, for-
merly of the Geological Survey, has been assigned to duty at the office
of the Chief of Engineers in Washington.

Mr. William T. Brigham, director of the Bishop Museum of Hono-
lulu, Hawaii, was in Washington in June, in conference with scientists of
various government bureaus.

462 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Mr. E. J. Casselman, formerly engineer of tests of the Washington
Steel and Ordnance Company, is assistant chemist with the Hygienic
Laboratory for the Public Health Service.

Professor A. D. Cole, professor of physics at Ohio State University,
is in Washington for the summer, engaged in research work at the Bureau
of Standards.

•

Professor M. F. Coolbough, of the department of chemistry, Colo-
rado School of Mines, is in Washington on leave of absence and is en-
gaged in war work at the Bureau of Mines.

Dr. Arthur L. Day, director of the Geophysical Laboratory, re-
ceived the honorary degree of Doctor of Science from Princeton Uni-
versity on June 15, 1918.

Professor Fred Dunlap, of the University of Missouri, formerly with
the forest products section of the U. S. Forest Service, was in Washing-
ton in June arranging to do special work for the Service in the Mis-
sissippi Valley.

Mr. Roy Y. Ferner, associate physicist of the Bureau of Standards,
resigned from the Bureau in June, and is now connected with the instru-
ment purchasing section of the Shipping Board, in Philadelphia.

Professor E. C. Franklin, of the department of chemistry, Leland
Stanford Junior University, and Professor William S. Franklin, of
the department of physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, are
in Washington for the summer, engaged in research work at the Bureau
of Standards.

Mr. Owen B. French, formerly Assistant in the U. S. Coast and
Geodetic Survey, has gone to Peking, China, to take the chair of Geod-
esy and Pi-actical Astronomy in the Government Listitute of Military
Surveying. He sailed fiom San Francisco on March 16 and arrived in
Peking on April 13, 1918, having spent a few days in Japan. He expects
to remain in Peking for somewhat less than two years and will then
return to Washington.

Dr. George Gaumer, botanist and ethnologist, of Yucatan, Mexico,
was in Washington in May in conference with scientists of the National
Museum.

Mr. William J. Hammer, consulting physicist and electrical engineer,
of New York, has been commissioned a major in the National Army, and
is assigned to duty in Washington with the newly organized Inventions
Section of the General Staff.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS 463

Mr. John B. Henderson is at Barbados, British West Indies, with
Prof. C. C. Nutting's zoological expedition from the University of
Iowa.

Mr. Neil M. Judd, assistant curator of anthropology in the National
Museum, has recently returned from explorations of the House Rock
valley and the Pahreah and Wahalla plateaus, on the north rim of the
Grand Canyon in northern Arizona. Several cHff dwellings and ruins
were discovered. Since his return to Washington, Mr. Judd has en-
listed in the aviation section of the Signal Corps.

Prof L. KoMATSU, of the University of Kyoto, and Prof. K. Kita-
WAKi and Dr. Shibusawa, of Tokyo, visited Washington in June.

Mr. E. S. Larsen, Jr., of the Geological Survey, has been examining
the tungsten resources of the Western States.

Dr. H. M. LooMis, formerly of the Bureau of Chemistry, Department
of Agriculture, has been made chief inspector, for the Food Adminis-
tration, of the sardine canneries of Maine and Massachusetts.

Mr. Frank N. Meyer, of the office of foreign seed and plant intro-
duction of the Bureau of Plant Industry, and agricultural explorer for
the Department of Agriculture, met an accidental death in China on or
about June 2, 1918, according to word received in Washington on June
18. He disappeared from a steamer on the Yangtze-Kiang and his body
was discovered a week later. Mr. Meyer had been an explorer in China,
Siberia, and Turkestan for about ten years past. He was a member of
the Botanical Society of Washington, and author of many contribu-
tions to botanical and horticultural science, including the discovery of
the origin of the chestnut-bark disease and the blight-resistant species
of chestnut in China.

Prof. Samuel P. Mulliken, professor of organic chemistry at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, has been commissioned a major
in the Chemical Service Section, National Army.

Dr. James F. Norris, of the Bureau of Mines Experiment Station,
and formerly professor of applied chemistry at the Massachusetts Insti-
tute of Technology, has been commissioned a lieutenant-colonel and is
assigned to the embassy in London.

Dr. William Battle Phillips, consulting mining geologist, of Hous-
ton, Texas, and a nonresident member of the Academy, died on June 7,
1918, at the age of 61. Dr. PhilHps had been connected during his life-
time with a wide variety of scientific and technical interests, having been
on the faculties of the University of North Carolina and the University
of Alabama; chemist of the Tennessee Coal and Iron Company; a mem-

464 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

ber of the staff of several technical journals; director of the University of
Texas Mining Survey; and president of the Colorado School of Mines.
He was the author of nearly three hundred papers.and reports on scien-
tific and technical subjects.

Prof. C. A. Skinner, professor of physics at the University of Ne-
braska, has been on leave of absence since early this year, and is engaged
in research at the Bureau of Standards.

Dr. William S. Thayer of Baltimore, a nonresident member of the
Academy, is in France as Medical Director with the U. S. Expeditionary
Forces. Dr. Thayer returned a few months ago from Russia with the
American Red Cross Mission.

Dr. Harry W. Tyler, professor of mathematics at the Massachu-
setts Institute of Technology, is in Washington for the summer as a
special agent in the federal emplo^anent service.

Dr. Ralph G. Van Name, of the department of chemistry, Yale
University, came to Washington in June for war research at the Ameri-
can University Experiment Station of the Bureau of Mines.

Professor E. W. Washburn, of the department of ceramics. Univer-
sity of Illinois, is in Washington for the summer, engaged in chemical
work for the National Research Council.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VIII AUGUST 19, 1918 No. 14

ARTILLERY. — The problem of anti-aircraft firing.^ X. Reille.
Lieutenant Colonel, Chief of Artillery in the French Ad-
visory Mission. (Communicated by L. J. Briggs.)

At the beginning of the war it was ahnost impossible to fore-
see what would be the development of aviation in the army and
what developments in anti-aircraft artillery would of necessity
follow. The object of artillery against aircraft is above every-
thing else to prevent the enemy machines from fulfilling their
mission of observation. Although there are those who seem to
think that the present and future role of aviation consists mainly
in dropping bombs, it must be said that this is a decided error.
The principal role of aviation is not in the dropping of bombs
but in observation.

The flying machine should be considered not so much one of
the arms of the artillery as one of its eyes — and that eye the
better one.

In fighting the enemy aircraft our guns fight the artillery of
the enemy in its most vital part. The artilleryman who fires,
or orders firing, against aircraft should never forget the impor-
tance of his role, which is to render the artillery of the enemy
practically useless by blinding it.

At the outbreak of the war there were only a few types of
anti-aircraft guns in our army, and as far as we know there was
no special anti-aircraft gun in thfe German army. On both

'A lecture given before the Washington Academy of Sciences on April 18, 1918.

465

466 reille: anti-aircraft firing

sides, the aircraft war was considered as a supplementary duty
for the field materiel and this duty had to be fulfilled by whatever
means could be improvised (burying the trail of the gun, etc.).

In proportion as the war developed, the invention and exten-
sion of a special anti-aircraft materiel have taken on greater
and greater importance in the armies of thte Allies as well as in
the German army, and this in proportion to the importance
taken by the means employed for aerial observation.

The object of this lecture is not to study the improvements
made in anti-aircraft materiel but to follow in its different
stages and up to the point where it is, today, the study of the
general problems which anti-aircraft war has presented to the
minds of artillerymen.

As long as the objectives of artillery were terrestrial targets
the interest in the study of the trajectory seemed to be Umited:

(a) To the initial part of the ascending branch (angle of ele-
vation, angle of jump, angle of projection oj: departure, clearing
angle, etc., etc.). The study of the initial part of the ascending
branch was entirely oriented in the double problem of defilade
and range.

(6) To the terminal part of the descending branch (angle of
fall, angle of impact, angle of protection, angle of ricochet; the
apparent elevation of the burst, etc.). The study of the ter-
minal part of the descending branch was entirely oriented in the
problem of the vulnerability of the target according to its nature
or its location.

When it was a question of firing at aerial targets the tendency
at first was, and this is easily comprehensible, to argue in regard
to these targets as if they were merely terrestrial targets raised
to a very high angle of sight. One of the first results of this
theory was to erroneously apply to these targets: first, the idea
of a normal height of burst (hauteur type) above the target that
would give the maximum effect; second, the hypothesis of the
rigidity of the trajectory.

reille: anti-aircraft firing

mi.

In the same manner there was at first transferred to the
sphere of firing against aerial targets the general principles of
ranging (jump, bracket, etc.), which were in use in firing against
terrestrial targets.

Finally, when it was a question not of firing at balloons, but
at flying machines, not of firing at fixed objects but at objects
in motion, it was first thought that the methods of firing should
be similar to those employed against marching troops, against
a train, etc.

Fig. 1.

From this came the method of ranging called ''de la tenaille"
and others of the same kind. From this came, too, the consid-
erable efforts made to employ the range finder and to make use
of the data obtained through this instrument (that is to say, the
actual distance of the target) in order to determine the fuse
setting.

Gradually, experience having demonstrated that this very
simple method of transposing into the ballistic problems of space
solutions which were only appropriate to the ballistic problems'
of terrain, only led to decided errors and to notorious ing^-
ciency, the following general ideas were reached:

468

reille: anti-aircraft firing

II

(a) A point in space taken as a target for a given gun is de-
fined by:

(1) The azimuth in which it is located.

r

Trajectorial Surface f
IsochronicalSuTrfafrC 0
Azimuthal Surface SI

Fig. 2.

(2) The trajectory on which it is located in this azimuth, this
trajectory being itself defined for the given gun by the angle of
departure.

(3) The setting of the fuse which on the said trajectory wiU
determine the burst at the said point.

reille: anti-aircraft firing 469

If we draw on a vertical plane (fig. 1) the locus of all points
of burst obtained on the various trajectories by a given fuse
setting, we shall then have a curve. This curve will be the
locus of the points which the projectile reaches within a given
time (time of fuse) if the fuse is a clock-fuse. For that reason
it would be proper to call the curve an isochrone curve.

Now let us turn around through all the azimuths a vertical
plane on which has been drawn the diagram showing:

(1) The sheaf of the trajectories from degree to degree of
angle of departure.

(2) The sheaf of the isochrone curves from second to second
of the time of flight (this supposed to be equal to the time of
fuse).

Thus, each trajectory will generate a surface of revolution
determined by its angle of departure 0; we will call this sur-
face "the surface <J>" (see fig., 2).

Each isochrone curve will generate a surface of revolution
determined by its time of flight d; we wHl call it 'Hhe surface 9."

Any point in space will be determined by the intersection of
three surfaces (fig. 2): azimuthal plane, fi; trajectorial surface,
$, isochronic surface, 6; and will have, as an aerial target,
three balUstic coordinates: angle of azimuth, co; angle of de-
parture, 0; and time of flight (or of the fuse), d.

Of these three ballistic coordinates of the point, the azi-
muth only is at the same time a geometric coordinate.

As the geometric coordinates are the only ones that can
be obtained by direct measurement, in particular by sighting,
the balUstic coordinates 0 and 6 have to be obtained indirectly,
by the following means, for instance:

The target will be located in the azimuthal diagram bj^ the
measurements of its altitude and of its angle of sight (apparent
elevation a) and, once it is thus located in the plane of the dia-
gram, a simple reading will tell on which trajectory and on
which isochrone it is.

Ill

In the preceding paragraphs we have taken for granted that
the time at the end of which the shell burst is equal, whatever

470

reille: anti-aircraft firing

may be its trajectory, to the time marked on the time-scale of
the fuse.

But this is true only for clock-fuse. For the ordinary fuse
the time of bursting is determined by the duration of combustion
of a certain length of a communicating tube; this tube carries
from length to length a time-scale which indicates the time which
this combustion will take in the atmosphere near the earth.

A Burst with clock'fuze at time 0
3' " ' ordinary fuze set 0
Fig. 3.

For example, a fuse set at ten seconds burns for ten seconds
before bursting, if the region in which the combustion takes
place is noimal. Transport the fuse to another place in which
for example, the air is more rare, that is to say, less dense, and
instead of lasting ten seconds, the combustion will last eleven
or twelve.

It follows from this, that the locus of the points of burst
for a given fuse setting is not the isochrone curve corresponding
to an equal thne of flight. In the high regions of atmosphere the

reille: anti-aircraft firing 471

combustion of the fuse is delayed by the dilution of the air, and
the burst occurs not on the isochrone curve but further along,
on another curve which deviates from the former in proportion
to the time during which the projectile, before bursting, has been
subjected to a lower barometric pressure. This other curve, de-
pending upon a geometric length of combustible tube and not
upon a chronometric length of flight, is sometimes called the
"isopyre curve" (fig. 3).

Since the beginning of the war the empirical outHning of the
isopyrical curves and of the trajectories for high altitudes has
been the object of very careful work in which thousands and
thousands of projectiles have been used. A standard diagram
has been estabUshed (Puteau-Arnouville, 1915-16), which, used
either in its original form or more or less ingeniously trans-
formed, constitutes the essential instrument of all the methods
of firing against aerial targets.

IV

Anti-aircraft firing does not consist merely in firing at an
aerial target, but in firing at an aerial target in motion. More-
over, this target moves with a speed which cannot be regarded
as negUgible with reference to the speed of the projectile de-
signed to strike it.

With an average wind, an "observation machine" attains a
speed of 35 meters (38.15 yards) per second. At ordinary firing
ranges the time of flight of the projectile amounts to twenty
seconds. It follows that, under normal conditions, the distance
covered by the target, between the moment at which the pro-
jectile designed to strike it is fired and the moment at which it
bursts is about 700 meters.

What will be its course? How can the gunner locate in ad-
vance the position in space where the target anjd the projectile
wiU meet after both have followed their respective trajections
for the same length of time? This is the problem sometimes
caUed, especially by the British, the problem of prediction.

The target being an animated one and having, as one might
say, its own will-power, it is a priori obvious that no absolute
and definite solution can be applied to the problem. During

472 reille: anti-aircraft firing

twenty seconds a flying machine has time to change its course
in various sudden and unexpected ways, both as to altitude and
as to direction. The problem has nevertheless a probable solution
and this solution belongs to the domain of mathematical extra-
polation based on the laws of continuity, to wit:

G gii"^

5 aircro-ft

W horizontoLl plaint

Fig. 4.

A moving body that has covered, with uniform speed, a curve
ab in space during the time t should, at the end of a total time

t + dt, reach a point c, such that ^i = ^ • This is nothing else

but the equation of uniformity of speed.

If the curve in space ab is given in terms of the parameter t
by the equations:

' X =f, (t)

y =h it)

z =fsit)

the coordinates of the extrapolated point c will be given by the
same equations by replacing t by t + dt.

eeille: anti-aircraft firing 473

If the curve ab, in the vicinity of b, has no pronounced curva-
ture, the point c can be considered as located on the tangent to;
that curve drawn from point b in the direction of movement.

The problem of extrapolation with respect to the flying ma-
chine (fig. 4) is, with one dimension added, a problem quite
similar to the ones commonly dealt with in firing at moving
targets at sea, and worked out by the coast artillery by means of
the plotting board:

The positions Si, So, S3 of a ship are, by triangulation, regis-
tered on the plotting board at the times ti to, tz. The point
Si at which it is necessary to aim in order to reach the ship
at the time ^4 is given by a graphical extrapolation of the plotted
track Si, S2, Ss-

The solutions which have been given to the same problem in
space with respect to anti-au-craf t firing are of two general kinds :
. (1) Solution by measurements of the angular velocity of the
target.

(2) Solution by measurement of its Unear velocity.

(1). The angular velocity of a flying machine with reference
to the eye of the observer (or with reference to the position of
the gun if observation is supposed to be made from this position)
may be considered as being the resultant of two angular veloci-
ties, measured, one in the plane of deflection, the other in the
plane of sight. The instruments which have been invented in
order to deal with solution (1) have been mostly based on this
resolution of speed.

At this point it is important to note that the angular velocity
of a flying machine moving with a uniform hnear velocity changes
value every minute, except in very exceptional and very im-
probable cases; for example, the case of a flying machine which
might happen to be revolving around a vertical passing through
the eye of the observer. Consequently, the measurement of
angular velocity taken at a given time can be considered as
available only during a very short while.

Supposing even that the angular velocity measured at the
very moment of the shot could be applied to extrapolate for the
point which the projectile ought to reach, and this is question-

474 keille: anti-aircraft firing

able owing to the relatively long duration of the flight, any
measurement taken at a moment somewhat prior to the firing
of the shot is evidently out of date and has no value whatever
regarding the extrapolation desired.

This is the reason why, after the trials made with instru-
ments capable of giving from time to time discontinuous meas-
urements of angular velocities, it has been felt necessary to sub-
stitute for them instruments for continuous measurements, such
as the galvanometric cinemometer.

This instrument is based on the following principle: A steel
armature which turns inside of a solenoid develops a current of
induction, the intensity of which is a measure of the velocity of
rotation. If the steel armature is secured on the axis of a sighting-
telescope pointed at the flying machine, a galvanometer duly
graduated will enable one to read constantly the angular velocity
of the flying machine.

(2) The solutions of the second kind are based on the meas-
urement of the hnear velocity. A very great majority of these
solutions have assumed as an hypothesis that the measurement
of the horizontal hnear velocity gave sufficient data for firing;
that is to say, that it could generally be considered that the
altitude of a flying machine did not alter much during the time
of the flight of the projectile. It goes without saying that these
solutions also assume as an hypothesis that the speed of the
flying machine in regard to the problem of firing can be con-
sidered as uniform. This admitted, a measurement of linear
velocity, taken at any moment, remains available.

All the instruments based on the solutions of the second kind
have been based on the same principle as that of the plotting-
hoard. Some of these have endeavored to draw automatically
by simple sighting a continuous track of the course of the flying
machine. It seems that it is in fine with this idea that the
most handy and useful, if not the most complete, instruments
will be found.

reille: anti-aircraft firing 475

To sum up, the problem of anti-aircraft firing, after many ex-
periments, is at present, if not solved, at least plainly laid out in
the following way:

To be preliminarily measured: (1) altitude of the flying ma-
chine; (2) its orientation and its velocity (angular or hnear);

(3) extrapolation or prediction of the point to be aimed at;

(4) wherefrom the knowledge of the azimuth of the said point;

(5) wherefrom, too, in the azimuth the reading on a diagram
of the ballistic coordinates of the said point (trajectory and
isopyre) as functions of its geometric coordinates (angle of
sight and altitude).

Fig. 5.

Finally, a word in regard to the methods of measuring:

(1). The altitude (h) is measured by triangulation from a
large observation base.

The flying machine is the summit of a pyramid occupying
the space S. s. A. B. placed on the horizontal plant H (fig. 5).
A. B. is the line of measurement called the horizontal base, at
the two extremities of which are two posts of observation, the
distance between them being known, s isvthe horizontal projec-
tion of the flying machine.

Any triangulation made in order to solve the pyramid will
give the knowledge of the altitude h.

476

REILLE : ANTI-AIRCRAFT ' FIRING

Among these methods the one to be pointed out in particu-
lar is the direct method which consists in the following:

The observer B announces simply by telephonic signal the
successive passages of the flying machine in the azimuths 1, 2.
3 — determined in advance, for example every ten degrees,
starting from the true south.

The observer A moves on a plotting-board a vertical rule
along the azimuth for which the first signal is expected and
this in such a way as to sight the flying machine on the edge
of this rule.

At the moment of the telephonic signal the altitude h of the
machine is given by simply reading the height at which it ap-

Fig. 6.

pears on the rule; and its horizontal projection is given by the
position of the lower end of the rule (fig. 6). The board is sup-
posed to be duly oriented and scaled; the rule to be accordingly
scaled.

Remarks, (a) This direct method permits the continuous
tracing of the flight of the machine, once its altitude is known.
If, in fact, after the signal, the observer A keeps on moving
his vertical rule no longer along the azimuth but in such a way
that the flying machine is maintained sighted at the same alti-
tude h on the edge of the rule, the lower end of the rule will auto-
matically trace on the board the projection of the flight of the
machine (taking for granted, of course, that the machine does
not change its altitude).

reille: anti-aircraff firing

477

(6) This same method permits one to control or rectify periodi-
cally the measurement of the altitude. Thus, suppose the ob-
server A operating as has just been said; the signal of observer
B announcing the passage of the machine in the next azimuth
will be heard: either at the same time as the lower end of the
rule crosses the said azimuth drawn on the plotting-board, in
which case the altitude has not changed; or before the reaching
by the lower end of the rule of the azimuth, in which case the
machine has gone higher; or after the passage of the lower end of
the rule on the azimuth, in which case the machine has come
down.

Fig. 7.

In the last two cases the observer A , as soon as he hears the
signal, will recall or send back his riile along the sighting plane
so as to replace it on the azimuth announced; from this will re-
sult the rectification of the reading of the altitude and also the
rectification of the horizontal projection of the flying machine.

(2) The linear velocity may be measured in the following
way (fig. 7):

A given length of a horizontal wire, for instance, 1 cm. repre-
senting 100 meters and thus corresponding to a scale of 1/10,000,
is stretched across a vertical aperture at such a height above the
plane of the board as to represent the altitude of the flying
machine (for example, 20 cm. representing 2 kilometers).

478

reille: anti-aircraft firing

The observer A, after having trained the aperture in such a
way that the machine aimed at appears as if following the wire,
registers the time taken by the machine to cross the aperture
from one side to another.

This time gives the measure of the horizontal linear velocity
and the bearing of the plane of the aperture indicates the actual
direction of the flying machine.

Fig. 8.

(3) The extrapolation or prediction results from the knowl-
edge both of this actual direction and of the hnear velocity.

As has already been said, this extrapolation gives the azi-
muth of the point to be aimed at; and, in this azimuth, the
angle of sight (fig. 8).

The altitude of the point to be aimed at in the extrapolated
azimuth is supposed to be equal to the last altitude that has been
measured. The angle of sight results from the knowledge of the
altitude and of the abscissa; the latter is given by the intersec-
tion of the azimuth with the extrapolated horizontal direction.

reille: anti-aircraft firing 479

(4) The ballistic coordinates (angle of departure, fuse-set-
ting) are read on the diagram of the trajectorial and isopyrical
curves; a diagram, on which the point to be aimed at has just been
fixed by the knowledge of its angle of sight and of its altitude (or
merely of its abscissa and ordinate).

(5). If one proceeds by measurement of angular velocities
instead of by measurements of Hnear velocities the instruments
used are the continuous electric cinemometers already men-
tioned above, and then the extrapolation is determined as
follows :

(a) Azimuth. — The extrapolated azimuth is obtained by the
extrapolation of the horizontal angular velocity and this in
starting from the last azimuth in which the flying machine has
been observed prior to the firing of the shot.

(b) Angle of Sight. — In the same way, the extrapolated angle
of sight is obtained by the extrapolation of the angular velocity
in the plane of sight where the flying machine has been observed
prior to the firing of the shot.

CONCLUSIONS

In ending this comment, which inevitably is of a very gen-
eral character, it seems necessary to insist upon the great im-
portance that should be attached to the fact that, as far as
possible, the nature of the firing conditions should be such as
not to disturb the continuity of the flight of the flying machine
between the moment at which the measurements that deter-
mine the firing data have been taken arid the moment at which
the shot reaches its destination.

As has been said, a flying machine may cover about 700
meters during the flight of the projectile. During this period
the race is most unequal.

On one hand, the projectile, just carrying away the measure-
ments and the intentions of the battery commander, is merely an
inert instrument of a previous will. It clings helplessly to its
trajectory and will inevitably burst once the combustion of its
fuse has come to an end. On the other hand, the aerial ship
has maintained the full power of her free will, her trajectory is

480 wherry: classes of crystals

not compulsory and may be altered in accordance with her own
desires.

Therefore, if she becomes conscious that a projectile intended
for her is on the way, she is in a position to baffle all the cal-
culations of w^hich this projectile is the unconscious carrier.
■ What, then, is any observation w^orth, e*ven though it be
minutely exact, that the gunner can figure out in regard to the
deviations between his points of burst and the objective? To
what extent do these deviations indicate an error of fii-ing which
is subject to rectification? To what extent are they the effect of
^ modification in the continuity of the flight of the objective,
voluntarily brought about by the pilot during the course of the
projectile?

The first burst that will take place and which the pilot will
see will give him the alarm and from this moment on, what
craftiness, what feat of strength in case of need, will he not
make use of in order to avoid falling into the net of subsequent
trajectories?

Are not these points of interrogation sufficient to make it
clearly understood that the systems of anti-aircraft firing based
solely on ranging must be condemned as being ineffective and
excessively expensive?

Are they not sufficient to show that so long as there shall
not have b'een found a gun of a fantastic muzzle velocity, capa-
ble of pouring into space projectiles of a speed infinitely supe-
rior to that of the flying machine, the gunner must concentrate
all his attention and all his ingenuity in operating sudden and
dense barrages on points of extrapolation silently determined
by measurements as accurate as possible?

CRYSTALLOGRAPHY. — The assignment of crystals to syin-
metry classes. Edgar T. Wherry, Bureau of Chemistry.

The thirty-two classes of crystals are founded on sd firm a
basis that it has become customary to regard the assignment of a
crystallized substance to one or the other of them as one of the
fundamental aims of crystallography. Evidence has been ac-
cumulating for some time, however, that certain substances are
in a sense intermediate between classes, possessing simultaneously

wherry: classes of crystals

481

m

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3
03

§

482 wherry: classes of crystals

some of the attributes of two of them. In table 1 the data in
several instances of this relation are presented, the hemihedrism
being in every case weak, according to the classification of
Professor Goldschmidt.^

Diamond, in the majority of text books of mineralogy, is classed
as tetrahedral, and Fersmann and Goldschmidt^ concluded from
a review of extensive data that it actually possesses weak hemi-
hedrism of this type. Attempts to develop piezo- and pyro-
electricity have, however, been unsuccessful, ^ which points to
holohedrism. In the presence of such conflicting evidence, the
assignment of a substance to one class or another has in the
past been a matter of opinion on the part of the individual
scientist, depending on the relative weights assigned to different
features.

Wlien the study of crystal structure by X-rays became, es-
pecially through the brilliant work of the Braggs,^ capable of
demonstrating the exact positions of the atoms in crystal space-
lattices, there seemed reason to hope that it would be possible to
decide such questions, and classify each substance accurately,
definitely, and finally. But when the structure of diamond was
worked out, it proved, as a whole, to be holohedral, while the
structure-units (unit cells of the space-lattice), are tetrahedral
in symmetry, leaving the decision as to which class it shall be
assigned still in doubt.

If it be admitted that a substance can belong to two classes
at the same time, this difficulty vanishes. There being then no
longer need for any evaluation of the relative importance of dif-
ferent features in determining the classification of the crystal,
the significance of all the physical properties may be considered
on an equal footing. Habit, in so far as it represents a condi-
tion of equilibrium, should be connected with the structure as a
whole; in diamond it should be holohedral, which is actually
observed to be the case in the majority of crystals of this sub-

' GoLDSCHMiDT and NicoL. Neues Jahrb. Min. Geol. 19042; 109; Nies and
GoLDSCHMiDT. Op. cit. 1908^:99.
2 Der Diament, 1911.

^ Van der Veen. Zeitschr. Kryst. Min. 51: 545. 1909.
* X-rays and Crystal Structure, 1915.

wherry: classes of crystals 483

stance. When, on the other hand, external conditions prevent
equiUbrium from bemg attained, the symmetjy of the structure-
unit may conceivably find expression in the development of the
faces, and, as a matter of fact, a tetrahedral or hextetrahedral
habit is too frequently exhibited by diamond to be considered an
accident.^ Etch-figures bring out partial symmetries when they
are produced under conditions where attainment of equilibrium
is delayed, and in diamond they are actually hemihedral at
first, and become holohedral in the later stages of development.
The electric polarity, however, should be determined by the
structure as a whole, which holds in this case. Rotation of the
plane of polarized light, as it could not occur in a tetrahedral
substance in any case, has no bearing on the matter. The
features of diamond thus agree with its assignment to two dif-
ferent classes at the same time, and its crystallization may be
stated in the following manner:

System, cubic; structure, holohedral; structure-unit, tetra-
hedral.

In sylvite the habit and the absence of optical rotatory power
correspond to a holohedral structure, which is found to be pres-
ent by the X-ray examination. In this case electric polarity
could not occur, as no polar axes are present under any interpre-
tation. But on the basis of the gyrohedral symmetry shown by
the etch-figures this substance is commonly assigned to that
class. As pointed out by the Braggs a very slight distortion,
which might have sufficient influence on the growth of the crystal
or development of etch-figures to give rise to the gyrohedral sym-
metry observed, would not affect the X-ray spectra to a recog-
nizable extent ; the structure as a whole might then be essentially
holohedral, while the structure-units are not. Such a relation
was in fact predicted by Barlow and Pope*' some years before
the development of the X-ray methods. They pointed out that
if, in a close-packed cubic assemblage of atoms, alternate ones
are of slightly different sizes, gyrohedral symmetrj'- would neces-

* This word is not to be taken too literally; it is merely a convenient de-
scriptive term for phenomena, the causes of which do not at a given time appear
worthy of extended investigation.

« Trans. Chem. Soc. 91: 1179-1187. 1907.

484 wherry: classes of crystals

sarily result. As all available data indicate that the atomic
volume of potassium is decidedly greater than that of chlorine,
this symmetry would be expected with potassium chloride. It
may be pointed out here that in the case of sodium chloride the
atomic volumes of the two elements are essentially identical, and
no gyrohedrism should be exhibited; and as a matter of fact, the
etch-figures on this substance, as well as all of its other proper-
ties, are completely holohedral. On the other hand, in practi-
cally all the other alkali halides, including those of ammonium,
a difference of , volume must be present, and gyrohedral sym-
metry is to be expected; and this has been thoroughly confirmed
by etching experiments. The crystallization of these halides
may therefore be described as:

System, cubic; structure, holohedral; structure-units, gyrohe-
dral.

The relation in the case of cuprite corresponds to that of the
haUdes, except that here for some obscure reason the gyrohe-
drism is shown by fonns occasionally found upon the natural
crystals rather than by the etch-figures. The explanation of the
symmetry is no doubt the same as with the halides, copper having
a less volume than oxygen. The crystalHzation of this sub-
stance may accordingly be described as:

System, cubic; structure, holohedral; structure-unit, gyro-
hedral.

The pyrite group is a particularly good illustration of the
relation here under consideration. Many crystallographers have
considered all the members of this group to be tetartohedral,
because of occasional tetrahedral development of forms capable
of showing it, accompanied by typical dyakis-dodecahedral or
''pyritohedral" symmetry of other forms. The thermo-electric
behavior is also regarded as tetartohedral in character. The
etch-figures appear, however, not to depart from simple pyi'ito-
hedral relations ; and no information can be obtained from optical
properties, as no method of measuring optical rotatory power on
opaque, metalUc, minerals has as yet been developed. The X-ray
studies made by the Braggs of three members of this group,
pyrite (FeSa), hauerite (MnS2), and cobaltite (Co S As), show the

wherry: classes of crystals 485

space-lattices and crystal molecules (in so far as the structure
of the latter affects X-rays) of the first two to have pyritohedral
symmetry, while the last is tetartohedral. It is to be inferred
that all members of the group in which the two negative atoms
are ahke would show the first type of symmetry, those in which
these atoms are unlike the second. The fact that many speci-
mens of pyrite actually show some tetartohedral features indi-
cates that the two sulfur atoms in these instances at least must
be unhke, not sufficiently to affect the X-ray spectra, yet dis-
tinctly enough to influence the habit and electrical properties.
This could occur if one of the sulfur atoms were tetravalent, the
other divalent, the structural formula of the compound (whenever
such a formula could apply) being Fe = S = S. On the other
hand the tetartohedral properties may be limited to pyrites in
which enough of the sulfur atoms, scattered through the mass,
are replaced by arsenic or some other element to give the struc-
ture the symmetry characteristic of the CoSAs class of com-
pounds. Further work will be necessary to decide between these
two possibihties, but it is evident that the crystallization of at
least some specimens of pyi'ite may be described as:

System, cubic; structure, pyritohedral; structure-unit, tetarto-
hedral.

Barium nitrate and the isomorphous strontium and lead salts
have been studied by X-rays by Nishikawa and Hudinuki,^ and
their space-lattices found to possess pyritohedral symmetry.
The habit and etch-figm-es are often tetartohedral, however,
although neither electric polarity nor optical rotatory power have
been observed in the crystals. The structure-units may there-
fore possess the diminished symmetry, while the structure as a
whole is pyritohedral:

System, cubic; structure, pyritohedral; structure-unit, tetar-
tohedral.

The crystal habit of rutile is usually holohedral, but hemi-
hedrism of an apparent trapezohedral type occasionally ap-
pears.^ The two series of observations which have been made

' Proc. Tokyo Math. Phys. See. II, 9: 197. 1917.
8 ScHRAUF, Zeitschr. Kryst. Min. 9: 433. 1884.

486 wherry: classes of crystals

on this substance with X-rays have yielded contradictory re-
sults; Vegard^ interpreted his data as indicating a sphenoidal
arrangement of the oxygen atoms, while WilUams^" worked out
a trapezohedral configuration of the structure-unit, the structure
as a whole being holohedral. The second view seems on the
whole the most reasonable, so the crystalUzation of rutile, as
well as of cassiterite and zircon, which belong to the same group,
should probably be stated as:

System, tetragonal; structure, holohedral; structure-unit,
trapezohedral.

The structure of sulfur has not been fully worked out by
X-rays, as it shows a peculiar abnormahty in the spacing of the
planes in the direction of the vertical crystal axis. No assign-
ment of the structure-unit to a special symmetry class is pos-
sible, but it may be pointed out that the habit of the crystals of
this substance is sometimes decidedly bisphenoidal, whereas the
remaining properties are holohedral, which indicates a relation
similar to that shown by the other substances here considered.

Manganite has not been studied by X-rays at all, and it pos-
sesses metalhc properties to such an extent that neither electric
polarity nor optical rotatory power can be observed. But a
bisphenoidal distribution of faces has been observed on crystals
of it from many localities, and crystals altered to pyrolusite
from Virginia recently studied by the writer^i show in addition
hemimorphism along the right-left crystal axis b. The hemi-
morphism in this case appears to be merely a result of difference
in rate of growth, since the forms observed at both ends have
essentially the same symbols, and moreover, etching figures on
this mineral exhibit holohedral symmetry. It may therefore
be suggested that in manganite the structure-unit possess some
hemihedral feature not present in the structure as a whole, and
this finds expression in the peculiarities observed in the distri-
bution of faces.

The evidence collected in this paper appears to justify the
conclusion that both the symmetry of the space-lattice as a

9 Phil. Mag. VI, 32:90. 1916.

1° Proc. Royal Soc. A. 93: 418. 1917.

11 To be described shortly in collaboration with Prof. Thomas L. Watson.

RICKER: BOTANipAL ACTIVITY IN DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 487

"whole and that of the crystal-molecules or unit cells of the lattice
may find expression in significant physical features, and there-
fore that both should be taken into account in the assignment
of crystals to symmetry classes, even though it may at times be
necessary to stat€ two different classes for the same crystal.

BOTANY. — A sketch of botanical activity in the District of Colum-
bia and vicinity. — I. P. L. Ricker, Bureau of Plant
Industry.

It would perhaps be difficult if not impossible to say who
started the first botanical work in the present District of Colum-
bia which, as nearly virgin wilderness, much of it swamp land,,
was ceded to the United States Government by the State of
Maryland in 1788. It would be much more difficult if we in-
cluded the part in Virginia ceded to the United States in 1789
and the area in Maryland surrounding the District. The fact
that Georgetown was settled late in the 17th century, although
not formally laid out until 1751, and Alexandria at least as
early as 1749, opens up a wide possibility.

Rev. John Banister was probably the first to do much active
botanizing in Virginia, where he died about 1692. Ray (see
bibliography) makes no definite reference to his collecting near
the Potomac, although it is quite probable that he did some col-
lecting within the range of this flora.

John Clayton came to Virginia in 1705. The list of his plants
published by Gronovius in 1743 shows that he collected Betula
nigra "a cataractis fluminis Potamoc," which might indicate
any one of several points from Little Falls to Great FaUs.

George Washington began making improvements at Mount
Vernon soon after it came into his possession about 1759. It
is possible that a careful examination of his voluminous corre-
spondence and diaries at the Library of Congress, w^hich time
does not permit at present, might give more definite ideas as
to his plantings, many of which were doubtless introduced from
Europe. He did however plan for a Botanical Garden in the
District. Andre Michaux, the French botanist, visited Wash-
ington at Mount Vernon, June 19, 1786, on his way to New

488 ricker: botanical activity in district of Columbia

«

York where he had planned to start a Botanical Garden. ^ There
seems to be no evidence of his collecting specimens in the Poto-
mac region at this time except that as he was on a mission from
the King of France to collect seed for the Royal Botanical Gar-
den at Paris it is not at all improbable that some specimens were
collected here.

It seems likely that the first local American who had any
accurate knowledge of the native plants and their names was
Thomas Jefferson, and this knowledge is abundantly proven in
his correspondence. He entered Washington's cabinet as Sec-
retary of State in 1789, and although the seat of government was
not moved from Philadelphia to the District of Columbia until
June, 1800, he was doubtless here frequently on his way to Mon-
ticello. That his official duties here were no bar to his collect-
ing plants is well sh^wn by the request of one William Hamilton in
1808 for seed of one of the hollies. After three failm-es by local
amateurs to secure the right seed, Jefferson was forced to do
the collecting himself and obtained it at the first attempt.

In view of his well-known interest in plants, Jefferson, on the
removal of the government to Washington, was immediately
besieged by offers from gardeners^ to establish a botanical
garden in the District. At the time he did not consider it the
function of the government to do so. The plan was also opposed
in Congress, where the idea of a botanical garden seemed to be
an institution to furnish the District with cheap vegetables and
flowers.

While none of the early nurser5anen of the District gave any
attention to the scientific aspect of their subject or of botany,
yet, considering them botanists in a broad sense, they have con-
tributed much to the practical side of the science. Thomas
Main, a Scotch gardener, who settled at Georgetown about
1804, was probably the first nurseryman of the District. His
attention was given almost entirely to raising grapes for wine.

1 Washington correspondence, Michaux to Washington, June 20, 1796, and
Washington's diary of June 19, 1796.

2 This garden was eventually estalished at Charleston, S. C, by the son,
Frangois Andre Michaux, who came there in 1805.

3 Jefferson correspondence.

RICKER: botanical activity in district of COLUMBIA 489

Constantine Samuel Rafinesque-Schmaltz* prepared the first
list of District plants in 1804, the forthcoming publication of
which was announced by him in 1805, but for some unknown
reason it never appeared.

The first actually published list of District wild plants was
given by David B. Warden^ in 1816. While there are numerous
notes on introduced cultivated plants in this work by Warden
the nine pages of local wild plant names relating to 130 species
were furnished by Jose Francisco Correa da Serra" Portuguese
minister to Washington, but w^ho resided most of the time at
Philadelphia and succeeded Benjamin S. Barton as lecturer on
botany at the University of Pennsylvania.

In 1817 a sufficient number of residents of the District being
interested in botany, a public notice of the intention of forming
a Botanical Society was given, and on March 13, 1817, a meet-
ing was held for this purpose at Davis's Tavern. Dr. John A.
Brereton, an assistant surgeon in the U. S. Army, was called
to the chair and John Underwood appointed Secretary. A com-
mittee of three, consisting of Rev. Dr. James Laurie, George
Watterson, and Dr. Alexander McWilliams, was appointed to
draw up a constitution for the Society, which was called the Bo-
tanical Society of Washington.^ The Society held meetings

* FiTZPATRiCK, T. J. F. Rafinesque, a sketch of his life and bibliography.
Des Moines, Iowa, 1911.

* Warden, David Baillie. A chorographical and statistical description of the
District of Columbia. Paris, 1816. Dedicated to his friend Mrs. Custis. He
had served as a U. S. consul in France.

« Jose Francisco Correa de Serra, born at Serpa, Portugal, in 1750, assisted in
founding the Portugese Academy of Sciences and was made perpetual secretary.
He left Portugal for France in 1786 on account of political troubles and went to
England in 1797 where he became secretary of the Portugese embassy. He
came to New York in 1813 and received his appointment to Washington in 1816.
He was called home in 1820 and elected to the Cortes. Baldwin's correspond-
ence to Darlington in 1815 says that Philadelphia was much pleased with the
lectures of Chev. Correa da Serra.

^ The records of this society were found by Mr. James Anglin, the predecessor
of the present book firm of W. H. Lowdermilk & Co., among some secondhand
books and presented to Prof. Lester F. Ward about 1881 or 1882. On the death of
Professor Ward in 1913 his library was given to Brown University. The Trustees
of that Institution granted a formal request for these records from the present
Botanical Society of Washington. After a careful study of the records the
writer was authorized by the Society to deposit them for safe keeping in the
Manuscript Division of the Library of Congress.

490 ricker: botanical activity in district of Columbia

for a time every two weeks. The dues were five dollars a year,
and to enforce attendance a fine of one dollar for regular meet-
ings and fifty cents for special meetings was levied against mem-
bers who did not attend and could not give a satisfactory ex-
cuse. The aims were, quoting from the constitution, "to col-
lect, arrange, preserve and describe all the vegetable produc-
tions within the limits of the District .... to publish
quarterly, if deemed necessary, whenever the Society shall have
obtained a full knowledge of all the vegetable productions of

the said District a Flora with colored plates " At

one time every member attending was required to bring a plant.
The thirteen charter members consisted of John Boyle, W. A.
Bradley, Dr. John A. Brereton, Samuel Elliot, Jr., William
Elliot, J. W. Hand, Dr. Henry Huntt, Major James Kearney,
Rev. Dr. James Laurie, Dr. Alexander McWilliams, J. M.
Moore, John Underwood, and George Watterson. During the,
life of the Society six other members were elected and a seventh
name is given on a committee, but there is no record of this per-
son's election. These were, however, mostly expelled for non-
attendance, and on May 6, 1822, Boyle, Brereton, Wm. Elliot,
Kearney, McWilliams, and Underwood were the only remain-
ing members. Jacob Bigelow of Boston, William Darlington of
New Jersey, and William P. C. Barton of Philadelphia, promi-
nent botanists of that time, were elected honorary members.
After 1822 only one meeting a year was held until March 27,
1826, when the books belonging to the Society were ordered
deposited in the Washington Library and Dr. McWilliams was
authorized to take charge of the herbarium, after which the
Society adjourned sine die. There is apparently no record of the
ultimate disposition of the library and herbarium. The library
contained at least 24 volumes listed in the Proceedings of the
Society. We are informed by both the District Public Library
and the Library of Congress that the copies of these works in
their libraries bear no indication of ever having belonged to the
Botanical Society of Washington. The plan of publication by
the Society never materialized, but the Society did pubhsh in
1819 a Florula Columbiensis of 14 pages, and listing 293 species.
What was practically a second edition of this list was published

RICKER: botanical activity in district of COLUMBIA 491

by William Elliot in 1822 in his Washington Guide. The list
was furnished by Dr. Brereton and comprised 458 species, and
the same list was repeated in editions appearing in 1826 and
1830; the 1837 edition had a few additions by William Rich.

One of the members of the Society, Dr. John A. Brereton,
together with William Rich, also published between 1825 and
1830 three parts of the American Botanical Register with 24
colored plates, but these contain no reference to the District.
William Rich was a brother of Obadiah Rich^ of Georgetown,
who published in 1814 a synopsis of the genus of American
plants which at that time Muhlenberg considered to be an
American edition of Persoon's "Genera." It is uncertain
whether this referred to Persoon's Synopsis, 1805-1807, or his
edition of Linnaeusa Systema Vegetabilium, 1797. Neither of
these men belonged to the Botanical Society of Washington, but
both were members of the Columbian Institute^ of George-
town, organized in 1516, which was more directly interested in
agriculture and horticulture. The Botanical Society of Wash-
ington was invited to join the Columbian Institute in Novem-
ber, 1817, and agreed, providing the Institute would so alter its
constitution as to admit the Society to the Committee on Bot-
any and Agriculture, but this request was apparently refused.
Dr. Alexander McWilliams submitted a list of District plants
to the Columbian Institute in 1826, but the list was not published.

Following the dissolution of the Botanical Society of Wash-
ington in March, 1826, another organization known as the
Botanical Club, according to Dr. Brereton's preface, was formed,

* Obadiah Rich, born at Truro, Massachusetts, in 1783, was a member of
the Massachusetts Horticultural Society at least from March 5, 1805, to January
30, 1810. Under date of April 16, 1812, William Bentley, of Salem, Massachu-
setts, wrote a letter introducing him to Thomas Jefferson. In 1815 he was ap-
pointed U. S. consul at Valencia, Spain. From this until 1827 most of his time
was spent there and at Madrid, and in the latter year he tried to sell his valu-
able collection of books to the Library of Congress, but failing in this most of
them went to the New York Public Library. He settled in London in 1828 and
died there January 20, 1850. For this note I am indebted to Dr. J. H. Barn-
hart, of the New York Botanical Garden, and to Dr. R. H. True, of the Depart-
ment of Agriculture.

8 For a history of this Institute see Richard Rathbun in U. S. National Mu-
seum Bulletin 101 : 1-85. 1917.

492 eicker: botanical activity in district of Columbia

consisting of Dr. John A. Brereton, Alexander Mc Williams,
William Mechlin, William Rich, and Dr. James W. Robbins, the
latter removing from the District the next year. In 1830 Dr.
Brereton published under the title Florae Coluinhianae pro-
dromus, a contribution listing 860 species of plants with date of
flowering and root habit indicated. Mr, George Watterson,
who had served as Secretary of the first Botanical Society, evi-
dently felt that its workers had not been given proper credit
for their part of the work, as in his papers at the Library of
Congress there is one which had evidently been prepared for
publication in which he states that Dr. Brereton was lame and
unable to do any of the collecting but' took charge of the speci-
mens as they were brought in and occasionally ascertained their
names. He also states that Brereton's work contained few if
any more plants than were recorded in the journal of the Bo-
tanical Society. According to Prof. L. F. Ward,^" this journal
contained the names of only 370 plants.

The first Botanical Society passed a resolution on September
12, 1817, petitioning Congress to pass a law authorizing a lot-
tery for the purpose of establishing a Botanical Garden in Wash-
ington under the superintendence of the Society, but the peti-
tion was without results. According to Dr. Richard Rathbun,^i
the Columbian Institute had received permission from Congress
on May 8, 1820, to use five acres of land to establish a Botani-
cal Garden, This was finally located between First and Third
streets and Pennsylvania and Maryland' avenues. Mr. W. B.
Bryan states^^ that as the waters of the Tiber probably came
nearly up to that level the ground was somewhat swampy and
first had to be drained. On May 26, 1824, the grounds were
extended and in 1825 they were inclosed. There seems to be
no record of what improvements or plantings were made by the
Columbian Institute, which went out of existence about 1836,

^° See CoviLLE, Frederick V. Early botanical activity in the District of Co-
lumbia. Rec. Columb. Hist. Soc. 5: 193. 1901.

11 Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus. 101: 12. 1917.

1' Bryan, Wilhelmus B. A history of the National Capital 1:314. 1914;
2:29,326. 1916.

EICKER: botanical activity in district of COLUMBIA 493

the Garden then being taken under government care as a part of
the Capitol grounds. The Institute had expended $1500 on
the grounds for walks and plantings and asked Congress to be
reimbursed, but this request was not granted.

The National Institute was formed in the spring of 1841 with
rooms in the Patent Office. The plants of the Wilkes Expedi-
tion of 1838 were at once placed in their care, as were all other
Government scientific collections. Two small frame hot houses
on the northern part of the Patent Office square were used to
store part of the botanical collection. This Institute at one time
had 1600 members, but went out of existence about 1860 or
186P' due to the taking over of the Government collections by the
Smithsonian Institution, the National Institute having failed to
obtain control of the Smithson fund on account of it being a
purely private institute. The Smithsonian Institution was in-
corporated August 10, 1846. The building was not started
until May, 1847, and was completed in 1855. The Government
collections, presumably including plants which had previously
been at the Patent Office under cafe of the National Institute,
were turned over to the Smithsonian Institution in 1858 and the
collections of the National Institute in 1861.^^ The collection
of plants was transferred from the Smithsonian Institution to
the U. S. Department of Agriculture in 1868 and was returned
to the National Museum July 1, 1896. In 1851 the frame build-
ings above referred to were moved to the present site of the
Botanical Garden. This site, which soon came to be recog-
nized officially as the Botanical Garden, was placed in charge
of W. D. Breckenridge, botanist of the Wilkes Expedition.
William R. Smith, the late Superintendent, came to the Garden
from the Kew Gardens in England in 1853 and remained until the
date of his death.

1* Encyclopedia Britannica ed. II. 25: 274. 1911- Bryan (loc. cit.) states
that it went out of existence in 1846 when the Smithsonian Institution was organ-
ized and that its collections were then turned over to the new institution. The
Proceedings of the National Institute were, however, published as late as Jan-
uary, 1857, a set of which is in the library of the U. S. Department of Agriculture.

" Encyclopedia Britannica (loc. cit.). The National Museum was not offi-
cially mentioned by Congress until 1875, in connection with caring for the col-
lections from the Philadelphia Centennial. It was erected in 1881.

494 ricker: botanical activity in district of Columbia

The second nurseryman in the District, John Adlum/^ for
whom the genus Adlumia was named, hke the first, devoted
his attention from 1816 to 1836 mostly to grape culture. He
owned about 140 acres of land, and his house, which was re-
cently torn down, was located at the southeast corner of the
Bureau of Standards, the old well being the only thing left to
mark the site. Part of the northern slope of the valley di-
rectly south of the Bureau of Standards is still covered with a
great tangle of grape vines, some of them being of considerable
size. It is also possible to make out fairly well definite rows in
which these vines were planted.

Joshua Pierce, from 1823 to 1869, was the first to conduct a
general nursery in the District, consisting of about 82 acres lo-
cated in Rock Creek Park, where the old stone house still stands.

The nursery of John Saul, consisting of about 120 acres, was
located on Seventh Street Road from 1854 to 1897. The cata-
logues of this nursery indicate that the variety of stock was
probably far ahead of that of any other nursery in this country
at the time. Saul was a member of the District Parking Com-
mission from the time of its origin until his death. On arriv-
ing in Washington in 1851 he, under the supervision of Andrew
J. Downing, took charge of the improvements of Public Grounds,
including the Mall, Smithsonian Grounds, Lafayette Square,
and, in conjunction with W. D. Brackenridge, the Smithsonian
Grounds. On the death of Downing in 1852 the appropriation
by Congress was not renewed and Saul at once went into
business for himself at Seventh and N Streets, N. W., where he
conducted a seed business for many years.

From 1831 to 1874 the works by Dr. Leonard Gale and by
W. D. Haleyi^ were the only publications relating to the Dis-
trict flora and apparently very little botanical collecting was
done. A small collection made here about 1860 or earlier by
Dr. Arthur Schott,^^ an army surgeon, is now at the Field
Museum of Natural History in Chicago.

^^ For further details of this and other nurseries see Saul, John A. Records
of the Columbian Historical Society, 10: 38-62, pis. 2-7. 1907.

" See Bibliography. He was chief examiner of patents from 1846-1857. For
biography see the Gale Genealogy.

1' See MiLLSPAUGH, C. F. Field Columb. Mus. Pub. Bot. 1; 281, 345. 1896.

RICKER: botanical activity in district of COLUMBIA 495

The next renewal of Botanical activity began with the organi-
zation of the Potomac Side Naturalists Club^^ on January 29,
1858, which originally consisted of T. R. Peale, Dr. E. Foreman,
Dr. G. C. Schaefer, Dr. C. Girard, Dr. F. V. Hayden, Dr. J.
G. Cooper, Robert Kennicott, Prof. W. W. Turner, Dr. Wm.
Stimpson, and W. R. Smith. Major W. Rich and W. Mechlin
were included as the only members of the former Botanical
Society and the following were among those later elected: J. S.
Newberry, B. G. Wilder, T. H. Rothrock, ElHot Coues, Dr.
Arthur Schott, H. Engelmann, M. S. Bebb, E. Bebb, and Thos.
Eggleston, Dr. G. Suckley, F. B. Meek, and R. Ostensacken
were elected as temporary residents. This society adjourned
sine die on March 26, 1856, but was resurrected on May 1, 1873,
at a meeting of the house of Prof. W. H. Seaman, and included
Dr. Arthur Schott, H. Engelmann, M. S. Bebb, E. Bebb, Prof.
S. F. Baird, Dr. Theodore Gill, and W. R. Smith, and reached a
membership of 58. A committee consisting of Dr. George
Vasey, Prof. J. W. Chickering, Dr. E. Foreman, Prof. Wm. H.
Seaman, and Mr. Lester F. Ward was appointed to prepare a
new District Flora with the result that a catalogue of 1083 species
was published in 1876 and 117 additions were made during 1877. ^^
The last meeting was held February 11, 1878, and in 1880 the
Biological Society of Washington was organized with most of
the old members of the Potomac Side Naturalists Club as mem-
bers. Numerous papers on botany have been since published
in their Proceedings.

Previously to 1869 there had been no official government
botanist in Washington, although several botanists had been con-
nected officially with various government exploring expedi-
tions, but Charles C. Parry was now appointed botanist of the
Department of Agriculture and served until 1871. He was fol-
lowed on April 1, 1872, by George Vasey, who retained this
position until his death March 4, 1893, and was succeeded by
the present incumbent, Frederick V. Coville, on March 8, 1893.

18 See Chickering, J. W., in Science, n. ser. 23: 264-265, 1906, for detailed
history.

" See bibliography under Flora Columbiana.

496 ricker: botanical activity in district of Columbia

Prof. Lester F. Ward began collecting plants in the District
of Columbia in the spring of 1872. It was September, 1880,
when he first decided to prepare a catalogue of District plants,
and on January 22, 1881, he presented to the Philosophical
Society of Washington a paper entitled Field and Closet Notes
on the Flora of Washington and Vicinity, in which he outlined
his plan for a new catalogue of District plants, the character of
his work on the subject for the preceding four years, and pre-
sented the manuscript of his catalogue with its introduction for
inspection. On May 6, 1881, the same data but in more detail
were presented before the Biological Society of Washington.
After going over the subject with Prof. S. F. Baird the manu-
script was accepted for publication as a bulletin of the U. S.
National Museum and went to the printer on June 22, 1881.
The check list was added in 1882. Some copies of the completed
Flora were issued without the map on March 14, 1882, and not
accepted, but it was completed April 12, 1882.2"

Six supplements to Ward's Flora were published from 1884 to
1901 by Ward, Knowlton, Holm, and Steele and this period
marks the beginning of a very large increase in the number of
botanists, using the term in a broad sense, in the District of
Columbia. This was due to the increase of the staff of the
Department of Agriculture. The larger proportion were pathol-
ogists engaged primarily in economic work and there did not
result any greatly increased activity in making known the
District flora.

Dr. Ferdinand Blanchard, a well known botanist of Peacham,
Vermont, was employed at the Census Office from 1890 until his
death in 1892 and did considerable local collecting. Many of
his specimens are in the National herbarium.

At the beginning of this period or about November, 1890,
there was organized the Botanical Club of Washington, but for
unknown reasons it was short lived, the last meeting being held
April 7, 1892. No complete list of members exists, but the records
of the bi-monthly meetings^i refer to at least 39 members, in-

20WARD, L. F. Glimpses of the Cosmos, 2:448-462. 1913.
2' The record book is now in the possession of Mr. L. H. Dewey, the last sec-
retary of the Club.

RICKER: botanical activity in district of COLUMBIA 497

eluding; 9 ladies, among whom were Vernon Bailey, J. W. Chick-
ering, F. V. Coville, L. H. Dewey, D. G. Fairchild, B. T. Gallo-
way, J. M. Holzinger, L. 0. Howard, F. H. Knowlton, C. L.
Marlatt, J. N. Rose, W. H. Seaman, E. F. Smith, Theobald
Smith, Effie A. Southworth, C. W. Stiles, }V. F. Swingle, W. A.
Taylor, George Vasey, wife and daughter, M. B. Waite, L. F.
Ward, and T. A. Williams.

The Botanical Seminar, an informal society without regular
officers, was organized early in 1893 by Messrs. Waite and Fair-
child, including as charters members Frederick V. Coville, D. G.
Fairchild, B. T. Galloway, Theodore Holm, E. F. Smith, and
M. B. Waite. This society grew rapidly, meeting at the homes
of the members, until a limit of 25 was reached. Then, as the
members were mostly interested in plant pathology and physi-
ology, those interested in systematic botany met at the home of
C. L. Pollard on November 11, 1898, and formed the Washington
Botanical Club, with Dr. E. L. Greene as President and Mr.
Pollard as Secretary. These meetings also were held at the
members' homes, and the rapid growth in the next three years
again brought the society to the point of necessity of restricting
its membership, if the meetings were to be continued at private
residences. As a result a committee consisting of 0. F. Cook,
M. B. Waite, and H. J. Webber for the Botanical Seminar and
W. R. Maxon, C. L. Pollard, and David White for the Botanical
Club were appointed to consider a combination of the two or-
ganizations and the securing of adequate quarters for caring for
the constantly increasing number of botanists in Washington,
with the result that the present Botanical Society of Washing-
ton was formed in November, 1901, with A. F. Woods, President;
Frederick V. Coville, Vice-president; C. L. Pollard, Recording
Secretary; H. J. Webber, Corresponding Secretary; and W. H.
Evans, Treasurer. At the end of six months the membership
was 57, and has constantly increased since, until at the present
time it has reached 175. The society is probably the largest
local organization composed entirely of professional botanists.

But little known and yet unique was the National Science
Club for Women, although national in character, yet most of

498 AUSTIN: RESONANCE MEASUREMENTS

its activities local. It was incorporated April 8, 1893, and
issued from Washington Annual Proceedings and a Monthly-
Journal, but the club apparently went out of existence the
latter part of 1899. Numerous botanical papers were pubHshed
but none relating specifically to local botany.

FeeUng the need of a flora of the District with notes and keys
that could be used by local amateurs and by the school teachers
and children, Mr. C. L. Pollard issued a prospectus with sample
pages of such a flora about 1896, and while many of the fami-
lies were subsequently written up the project was never com-
pleted. In continuation of this idea a number of the systematists
in the Botanical Society of Washington formed a Seminar for
discussing local flora work early in 1906, and as a basis for such
work the writer prepared and issued (letterpress copy) in June
of that year a compilation of all reported occurrences of plants
in the District together with such additions as members of the
Seminar could supply. The cards upon which the hst was
based were distributed by famihes to various local botanists
who were to prepare these famihes. The work for the next few
years was of a desultory character until 1912 when bi-monthly
Seminar meetings for work on the local flora were begun at the
instigation of Prof. A. S. Hitchcock, and have been held continu-
ously up to the present time. Assignments of families were
made to about thirty botanists, but pressure of official duties has
resulted in the withdrawal of a few before the completion of the
work.

RADIOTELEGRAPHY. — Resonance measurements in radio-
telegraphy with the oscillating audion. L. W. Austin, U. S.
Naval Radiotelegraphic Laboratory.

For purposes of rough tuning, many workers have doubtless
made use of the click heard in the telephones of an oscillating
audion circuit when it is brought into resonance with another
circuit at proper couphng. As the resonance click has appar-
ently not been mentioned in any of the pubhcations on radio-
frequency measurements, it seems probable that it is not gener-
ally known that this chck offers by far the quickest and simplest

AUSTIN: RESONANCE MEASUREMENTS 499

means of making nearly all measurements depending on the de-
tennination of resonance. The accuracy is quite equal to that
obtainable with sensitive thermoelements, and greatly superior
to the accuracy of the detector and telephone method. ^

Since the audion circuit itseK is not suited to exact calibration,
the substitution method is generally used. The following ex-
amples illustrate the procedure:

Capacity of an antenna by substitution. The antenna is loaded
with inductance so as to give a wave length of five to ten times
the fundamental, then the oscillating audion circuit is coupled
to the antenna inductance and the audion tuning condenser
varied until a cHck is heard in the telephones. In general, if
the couphng is close, the click will be heard at different points
with increasing and decreasing condenser capacity. The coup-
hng should then be loosened until both cUcks appear at the same
condenser setting, or, if this is impossible, the mean setting is
taken provided the points are less than a degree apart. Next,
leaving the audion condenser on the resonance point, the ground
and antenna are disconnected from the antenna inductance and
replaced by the calibrated variable substitution condenser. This
last is adjusted to resonance with the audion circuit exactly as
described above, and the capacity of the condenser is then equal
to that of the antenna, subject to a small correction for the
natural antenna inductance.

Wave length of a distant station. The receiving antenna and
secondary oscillating circuit are first tuned exactly to the dis-
tant station, preferably at loose couphng, the audion tuning
condenser being adjusted to give the dead point of the beats
in the case of continuous wave reception. Next, without chang-
ing anything in the antenna or secondary a wave meter is coupled
to the secondary and adjusted to resonance by the chck method.
The reading of the wave meter gives at once the wave length
of the sending station.

In a similar way, wave meters can be compared and condensers
and inductances caUbrated, either by substitution or by making

1 Care must be taken regarding harmonics, in all measurements in which bulbs
are used for excitation.

500 Austin; eesonance MEAsuREME^?TS

use of the well-known relation existing between the product of
inductance and capacity and the wave length.

Besides the simplicity and quickness of this method, it has the
advantage that it does away with the necessity for all auxiliary
apparatus in the wave meter, and enables measurements of the
highest accuracy to be taken on shipboard and in other places
where the use of sensitive galvanometers is impossible.

ABSTRACTS

Authors of scientific papers are requested to see that abstracts, preferably
prepared and signed by themselves, are forwarded promptly to the editors.
The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those appearing
in this issue.

GEOLOGY. — Oil shale of the Uinta Basin, northeastern Utah, and results
of dry distillation of miscellaneous shale samples. Dean E. Win-
chester. U. S. Gcol. Survey Bull. 691-B. Pp. 27-55, with maps,
sections, and illustrations. 1918.
The geography and geology of the oil shale are described, and the results
of many distillations tests are given, which show yields of oil up to 90
gallons per ton of shale. A great many of the samples tested carried
from 20 to 30 gallons of oil per ton of shale. There seems to be ample
proof that the oil distilled from the oil shale of the Green River formation
is largely obtained as a result of the destruction of the partly bituminized
vegetable matter contained in the shale. Invariably the shale showing
the larger percentage of vegetable debris will yield the most oil and vice
versa, but shale beds occurring between beds of rich oil shale may be
full}' as compact and fine grained and yet yield no oil on distillation.
There appears to be no reason why oil migrating into the shales should
not penetrate all alike, and the oil might be expected to follow the beds
of least resistance — that is the coarser beds of sandstone which are
interbedded with the shales. It seems certain that if the oil had mi-
grated into the shale such porous sands would contain at least small
quantities of oil that might be obtained by distillation.

It is probable that the oil shales of the Green River formation may
have been the source of all the vein hydrocarbons of the Uinta Basin
as well as of the asphaltic material that saturates certain sandstones of
the region.

R. W. Stone.

501

502 abstracts: geology

GEOLOGY. — The Cosna-Nowitna region, Alaska. Henry M. Eakin.

U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 667. Pp. 54, with maps and illustrations.

1918.
The Cosna-Nowitna region, which lies between Mt. McKinley and
Yukon River on the north, is stratigraphically and structurally very com-
plex. The geology presents much variety and many of the rock ter-
ranes recognized in this field can not yet be definitely correlated with the
formations in other parts of the Yukon basin. Yet the age of at least
two formations — the Ordovician and Devonian limestones — has been
pretty definitely established, and these determinations will help to solve
some of the stratigraphic problems of central Alaska. The correlation
of the pre-Ordovician metamorphic sediments of the Cosna-Nowitna
region with the Birch Creek schists of the Yukon-Tanana region also
seems justified. There are some large areas of volcanic rocks and
smaller ones of intrusive granite. The dominant trend of the structural
features is northeasterly. The general events of the tectonic history
of thfe region appear to include extensive crustal deformation in pre-
Ordovician, post-Ordovician, post-Devonian, and probably late Meso-
zoic or early Tertiary time. The development of the present topog-
raphy of the region is discussed.

R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — The coalfields of the United States. General introduction.
Marius R. Campbell. U. S. Geol. Survey Prof. Paper 100-A.
Pp. 1-33. 1917.
A general introduction to a series of papers describing the coalfields
of the United States. This paper defines the various kinds of coal,
classifies and defines the coal areas, gives the production and estimates
the tonnage of coal in the United States, and gives analyses of repre-
sentative coals from many States.

R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — Cannel coal in the United States. George H. Ashley.
U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 659. Pp. 126, with maps, sections, and
illustrations. 1918.
This report defines, describes, and classifies cannel coal, and discusses
its mode of occurrence, uses, production, value, and distribution. Can-
nel coal is one of the richest substances in hydrocarbons known, and it
was because of the demand for the lighter hydrocarbons for use in chemi-
cal industry that this report was prepared.

R. W. Stone.

abstracts: zoology 503

GEOLOGY — The structure of parts of the central Great Plains. N. H.

Darton. U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 691-A. Pp. 26, with maps,

sections, and illustrations. 1918.
This report shows the structural features, such as domes and anticlines,
that occur at many places in Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, Colo-
rado, and Wyoming. While there is no evidence that the strata con-
tain oil or gas in commercial pools these folds are more favorable for the
location of tests than the basins or the monoclines. Only the drill can
determine whether or not oil is present. It is believed that a presenta-
tion of all available facts as to structural conditions in this region is
warranted by the prevailing great interest in the possibility of the
occurrence of petroleum and gas.

R. W. Stone.

ZOOLOGY. — The unstalked crinoids of the Siboga expedition. (Mono-
graph XLII6 of: Uitkomsten op zoologisch, botanisch, oceano-
graphisch en geologisch gebied verzameld in Nederlandsch Oost-
Indie 1899-1900 aan boord H. M. Siboga onder commando van
Luitenant ter zee P kl. G. F. Tydeman.) Austin H. Clark, U.
S. National Museum. Leiden, March, 1918. Pages i-ix, 1-300.
17 text figures; plates I-XXVIII (except IV and X, the origi-
nals of which were lost on the ''Laconia"), of which plates I-X
are in colors.
This memoir, which is an extension of and a supplement to the
Crinoids of the Indian Ocean published by the same author (Calcutta,
1912), gives a monographic account of the comatulid fauna of the
East Indies. Keys to all the species, genera, and families are included.
The identity of the urinoid fauna of the Arc Islands with that of
Australia is mentioned, and the close similarity between the Sumbawa-
Moluccas fauna and that of southern Japan is emphasized.

There are known at present 576 species of recent crinoids, distrib-
ured in 142 genera; in the course of her explorations the "Siboga"
collected 163 species, representing 71 genera; of these 73 species and 3
genera were new to science,

A. H. C.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

A special meeting of the Board of Managers was held on Jul}^ 15,
1918. Resolutions were passed urging the War Industries Board and
all other authorities concerned to grant unrestricted supplies of ma-
terials and labor to the publishers of scientific periodicals, in order
that this country shall not fall behind its Allies or the enemy con-
tries in this phase of the encouragement of scientific research.

The following persons have become members of the Academy since
June :

Mr. James Madison Hill, 2nd, U. S. Geological Survey, Washing-
ton, D. C.

Dr. Robert Tracy Jackson, Peterboro, New Hampshire.

Mr. Frank J. Katz, U. S. Geological Survey, Washington, D. C.

Captain Albert Prescott Matthews, University of Chicago, Chi-
cago, 111.; and Quartermaster's Office, Headquarters of Central Depart-
partment, Chicago, 111.

Mr. H. D. Miser, U. S. Geological Survey, Washington, D. C.

Mr. Ralph Walter Stone, U. S. Geological Survey, Washington,
D. C.

Lieut. David L. Wester, National Research Council, 1023 Six-
teenth Street, Washington, D. C.

Robert B. Sosman, Corresponding Secretary.

PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 806th meeting of the Society was held at the Cosmos Club,
April 27, 1918. Vice-President Sosman iri the chair; 49 persons pres-
ent. The minutes of the 805th meeting were read in abstract and
approved.

The first paper on Fog and cloud was presented by W. J. Humphreys.
This paper was illustrated by lantern slides.

The deposition of dew and the sweating of ice pitchers are familiar
examples of the condensation of atmospheric moisture on relatively
cold objects. In exactly the same way condensation takes place on
the innumerable dust motes and other nuclei in the atmosphere when-
ever by expansion or otherwise it is cooled to a temperature below the
dewpoint.

504

proceedings: Washington academy of sciences 505

Condensation on the nuclei of the atmosphere is divided primarily
into fog and cloud, but a sharp distinction between them that would
enable one always to say which is which is not possible. In general, how-
ever, a fog differs from a cloud only in its location. Both are owing, as
explained, to a cooling of the atmosphere to a temperature below its
dew point, but in the case of the cloud this cooling usually results from
vertical convection, and hence the cloud is nearly always separated
from the earth, except on mountain tops. Fog, on the other hand, is
induced by relatively low temperatures at and near the surface, and
commonly itself extends quite to the surface, at least during the stage
of its development. In short, fog consists of water droplets or ice
spicules condensed from and floating in the air near the surface; cloud, of
water droplets or ice spicules condensed from and floating in the air
well above the surface. Fog is a cloud on the earth, cloud a fog in the
sky.

Fog may be divided into two types according to the process by
which the necessary cooling of the air is produced. These are radia-
tion fog and advection fog. The first, or radiation fog, occurs during
still clear nights when the atmosphere is rather humid. On such occa-
sions the surface of the earth and the lower atmosphere are cooled by
radiation to a temperature sufficiently low to induce both surface and
volume condensation. Hence the name "radiation fog." The other
type, to which the name "advection fog" is given, is the result of the
horizontal flow of warm humid air to a colder region or of cold air to a
relatively warm humid region.

Clouds cannot be so simply and logically classified as fogs. Their
exact mode of production, whether by convection, mixing, or radiation,
is not alwaj^s obvious. Hence thej^ generally are classified according
to appearance and position. The fundamental types are : cirrus, stratus,
cumulus, and nimbus. To these are added several alto, fracto, and
combination types, such as "alto-stratus," "fracto-stratus," and
"cirro-stratus." In addition to all these various special and more or
less unusual forms are recognised, such as "billow cloud," "lenticu-
lar cloud," "banner cloud," "scarf cloud," "mammato-cumulus," et
cetera.

Not all altitudes are equally frequented by clouds. There are five
elevations of maximum and five of minimum cloudiness, each of which
may be simply explained.

Discussion: Messrs. Bauer and Ford discussed this paper.

The second paper on Notes on dip-of-horizon measurements made on
the "Galilee" and "Carnegie" was presented by Mr. W. J. Peters,
and was illustrated by lantern sHdes.

This paper states that while rehable observations have shown the
sea-horizon to have been elevated occasionally 10' to 15' above its
normal position by refraction, such large values are probably confined
to the borders of equatorial and polar currents and to small areas of
water swept by breezes blowing directly off heated lands or office fields.

In over 3000 observations taken during ten years work at sea by the
Department of Terrestrial Magnetism, the refraction at the horizon

506 proceedings: Washington academy of sciences

has never been found to exceed 2.4' for a height of eye of 18 to 24
feet.

A short description of the Pulfrich dip -measurer was given with an
account of the difficulties of observing at sea both with this instrument
and all instruments in general.

The paper concluded with an exhibition of the results of an adjust-
ment of all the observations made on the Galilee and those made on the
recent cruise of the Carnegie.

Comparisons with the results of other observers were shown as well
as comparisons with the standard tables.

The latter comparisons showed that the standard tables of dip-bf-
horizon are sufficiently accurate for the navigator and cannot be im-
proved by the introduction of a temperature or a temperature-differ-
ence argument when the result is required for the oceans.

The 807th meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, May 11, 1918.
President Burgess in the chair; 42 persons present. The minutes of
the 806th meeting were read in abstract and approved.

The first paper on The constitution of the gas ion was presented by
A. Q. Tool. This paper was illustrated by lantern slides.

The mobility of the negative ions was determined by three closely
related methods. The first was the usual alternating potential method,
which is a modification of Rutherford's original method. This gave
values which were larger than that for the so-called normal ions, where
the normal ion is defined as the ion whose mobility obeys the law
u = kP. These large values were shown to be due to numerous fast
ions still growing as well as a large number of electrons.

The second method may be considered as the reverse of the one
above, the potential in the positive or accelerating half period being
maintained constant while that in the negative half period was varied
in determining the current curve. A "critical potential" was then
found from the break in this curve which gave mobihty values as low
or lower than that usually obtained for the normal ion. This indicated
the presence of ions larger than the normal ion. Their mobility
obeyed the law cited above.

The third method made use of the relation existing between the
usual saturation current curve and the current curve obtained in
Rutherford's method when the alternating potential is produced by a
rotary commutator. By this third method it was possible to show
something of the mobility distribution of the ions in a gas. Large
numbers of normal ions were found to exist at all pressures in air even
when carefully dried.

Through the use of these three methods it was possible to detect ion
growth, also ion disintegration. This latter was especially marked in
air nearly saturated with water vapor. The results strongly supported
the complex ion theory.

The second paper, on Corresponding changes in the earth'' s magnetic
state and in solar activity, 1888-1916, was presented by Mr. L. A. Bauer
and was illustrated by lantern slides.

proceedings: Washington academy of sciences 507

The prime object of the present investigation is to ascertain to what
extent the earth's magnetic state at any time may be dependent upon
solar conditions, i.e., upon causes exterior to the earth. The purpose
is not to determine anew the relation between fluctuations in the
earth's magnetism about some base line or normal value and fluctua-
tions in the sun's activity, but rather to find out whether the base
line or normal value itself varies with solar activity, and, if so, how.
Thus during periods of intense sun-spot activity, violent fluctuations
in the earth's magnetism are known to occur. These fluctuations may
continue for a few hours or for a few days and then subside. There is
often found to be an after effect, of a quiescent, persistent character,
as the result of which the earth's magnetization remains below par for
several months, or more, after the apparent cessation of the magnetic
storm.

It is a matter of no little interest to know whether the earth's mag-
netic state ever completely returns to a former state after having ex-
perienced such magnetic-storm effects as described. Some previous
investigations bearing on this question had been made and reported
upon, by the author on the basis of data extending over a few years at
the most. Now, however, the investigation apphes to data extending
over a period of about 2| sun-spot cycles.

It is shown that the absolute values of the magnetic elements that
define the earth's magnetic state at any time vary in a definite and
in an appreciable manner with change in the sun's activity, as revealed
to us by sun-spottedness and by values of the solar constant of radia-
tion. The two sets of measures of solar activity serve to supplement
each other in determining the causes for the anomalous changes in the
earth's magnetic state from year to year.

The conclusions indicate that in the selection of a common epoch to
which the magnetic elements resulting from a magnetic survey shall be
reduced, consideration may have to be paid to the position of the epoch
with reference to the years of maximum and minimum solar activity.

The conclusions also confirm those reached by the author in a paper
presented before the Society in October, 1904, viz, that the secular
variation of the earth's magnetism, besides being caused by a sys-
tem of forces below the earth's surface, is also appreciably caused by a
system above the earth's surface, and that the secular variation results
not only from changes in the direction of magnetization, but likewise
from changes in the intensity of magnetization of the earth.

H. L. Curtis, Recording Secretary.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

A Washington Section of the American Institute of Mining Engineers
was organized on June 20, 1918. The officers elected were: Mr. Her-
bert Hoover, of the Food Administration, chairman; Dr. H. Foster
Bain, of the Bureau of Mines, and Dr. David White, of the U. S.
Geological Survey, vice-chairman; Mr. Harvey Mudd, secretary.

The National Research Council, at the request of the Secretary of
War and the Secretary of the Navy, has organized a committee on ex-
plosives investigations. The membership of the committee is as fol-
lows: Dr. Charles E. Munroe, of George Washington University,
chairman; Mr. L. L. Summers, of the War Industries Board; Lieut.-
Col. W. C. Spruance, Jr., of the Ordnance Department of the Army;
and Lieut.-Commander T. S. Wilkinson, of the Ordnance Depart-
ment of the Navy.

The experimental ammonia plant and laboratory of the Bureau of
Soils at Arlington, Virginia, has been transferred to the Nitrate Divi-
sion of the Ordnance Department of the Army. The work is in charge
of Dr. R. 0. E. Davis and Mr. L. H. Greathouse.

All of the "gas warfare" work of the Army has been consolidated
under a new division of the War Department, the "Chemical Warfare
Service," under Major General William L. Sibert. The experimental
work heretofore carried on b}^ the Surgeon General's Office and the
Ordnance Department are included, as well as the American University
Experiment Station of the Bureau of Mines, which, with its entire per-
sonnel, civilian and military, is transferred to the control of the War
Department for operation under the director of gas service, by executive
order of the President dated June 25, 1918. The Chemical Warfare
Service also has the responsibility of providing chemists for all branches
of the government and of assisting in the procurement of chemists for
essential industries. General Pershing has been directed to conform
his organization in France to that adopted here.

The former "chemicals and explosives section" of the War Industries
Board has been reorganized into two divisions: a "chemicals division"
in charge of Mr. Charles N. MacDowell, and an " explosives divi-
sion," in charge of Mr. M. F. Chase. The chemicals division is sub-
divided into the following sections: acids and heavy chemicals, arti-
ficial and vegetable dyes, alkali and chlorine, chemical glass and stone-
ware, coal gas products (benzol, toluol, etc.), rare gases, creosote,
electrodes and abrasives, ethyl alcohol, ferroalloys (chromium, manga-
nese, tungsten), fine chemicals, nitrates, paints and pigments, plati-

508

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS 509

num, refractories, sulfur and pyrites, tanning materials, wood chemi-
cals. The consulting staff, mentioned in this column of June 19,
1918 (p. 416), consists at present of Dr. E. R. Weidlein, chief. Prof.
N. R. Moody, and Dr. Thomes P. McCutcheon, of the University of
Pennsylvania.

The Committee on Mineral Imports and Exports has finished its
work of formulating programs for the minimum importation of ores and
minerals, and the members of the committee have taken up other
work. Prof. C. K. Leith has been appointed mineral adviser to the
War Industries Board from the standpoint of the conservation of
shipping, Mr. J. E. Spurr is in charge of the war minerals investigation
work of the Bureau of Mines, and Mr. Pope Yeatman continues in
charge of the Non-Ferrous Metals Divisions of the War Industries
Board.

The New National Museum has been closed to the public by the
board of regents, as all available space in the building has been occu-
pied by the Bureau of War Risk Insurance. It is expected that the
Museum will be again opened when the new office building of the
Bureau, at Vermont Avenue and H street, is completed.

Dr. Cleveland Abbe, meteorologist of the Weather Bureau and edi-
tor of the Monthly Weather Review, was removed from office by the
Secretary of the Interior on July 3, 1918. The chief of the Bureau,
Prof. C. F. Marvin, in transmitting the order, stated that the dis-
missal resulted from Dr. Abbe's "long-standing and [generally well-
known friendly sympathies for the imperial German government,"
and that investigations leading to dismissal were initiated by sources
outside of the Bureau and carried forWard by the Department of Jus-
tice. Dr. Abbe has denied that he is disloyal and has requested an
opportunity to reply to any charges presented.

Dr. Olaf Andersen, petrologist at the Geophysical Laboratory, has
resigned in order to accept the position of government geologist and
director of an experimental sihcate laboratory for the Norwegian Gov-
ernment, in Kristiania. Dr. Andersen will leave in September or
October.

Dr. S. J. Barnett has resigned as professor of physics at the Ohio
State University and has accepted the post of physicist in change of
experimental work in the Department of Terrestrial Magnetism of
the Carnegie Institution of Washington, beginning his work there on
July 15.

Dr. F. E. Breithut, assistant professor of chemistry at the College
of the City of New York, is on leave of absence and has been com-
missioned a major in the Chemical Warfare Section.

510 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Dr. Edgar Buckingham, of the Bureau of Standards, has been ap-
pointed physical associate to the scientific attache to the American
embassy at Rome.

Mr. George A. Burrell, in charge of the American University
Experiment Station of the Bureau of Mines, has been commissioned a
colonel in the Chemical Warfare Service, National Army.

Major William B. Greeley, formerly of the Forest Service, has
been commissioned a lieutenant colonel. He is at present with the
American Expeditionary Forces in France.

The honorary degree of A.M. has been conferred by Harvard Uni-
versity on Mr. Hennen Jennings, consulting mining engineer.

Prof. Lauder W. Jones, formerly of the University of Cincinnati,
and recently appointed head of the department of chemistry of the
University of Minnesota, is on leave of absence and is engaged iii re-
search at the American University Experiment Station.

Dr. Thomas J. Kelley has been appointed professor of gynecology
in the Medical School of Georgetown University, as the successor of
Dr. Isaac Stone, who resigned in June after twenty-six years of serv-
ice with the Medical School. Dr. James M. Moser and Dr. John A.
FooTB have been appointed associate professors of pediatrics.

Prof. A. E. Kennelly, acting head of the department of electrical
engineering of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is in Wash-
ington for the summer on special work for the Signal Corps.

Dr. John Harper Long, Professor of Chemistry at the North-
western University Medical School, Chicago, IlHnois, and a member
of the Academy since 1899, died at his home in Evanston on June 14,
1918, in his sixty-first year. He had been with Northwestern Uni-
versity for the past thirty-seven years, and had been active in physio-
logical chemical research as well as in the public service, having been
a member of the referee board of the Department of Agriculture, a
member of the revision committee of the Pharmacopoeia, and presi-
dent of the American Chemical Society (in 1903). He was the author
of several text-books of chemistry.

President R. C. Maclauren, of the Massachusetts Institute of Tech-
nology, came to Washington in July to act as educational head of .a
students' army training corps, organized to give military instruction to
student volunteers who are not yet of draft age.

Mr. Edwin H. Pagenhart, hydrographic and geodetic engineer of
the U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, has been transferred to the
Corps of Engineers (Reserve) of the army, with the rank of Captain.

proceedings: botanical society 511

Dr. Richard Rathbun, a charter member of the Academy, died at
his home, 1622 Massachusetts Avenue, on July 16, 1918. Dr. Rath-
bun was born at Buffalo, New York, January 25, 1852. His earlier
years were spent in scientific work for the Boston Society of Natural
History, the Imperial Geological Commission of Brazil, the depart-
ment of zoology of Yale University, and the United States Fish Com-
mission. Since 1897 he had been Assistant Secretary of the Smith-
sonian Institution, and had been in charge of the National Museum
since 1899. His scientific publications were concerned chiefly with
Brazilian paleontology and the marine invertebrates and the fisheries
of the United States. Dr. Rathbun was a member of the Biological
Society of Washington, a past president of the Philosophical Society
of Washington, and a past president of the Cosmos Club.

Dr. J. N. Rose, associate curator of the Division of Plants, National
Museum, left Washington on July 22 for an extended trip of botanical
exploration through Ecuador, under the auspices of the U. S. National
Herbarium, the U. S. Department of Agriculture, the New York
Botanical Garden, and the Gray Herbarium. His headquarters during
the summer will be at Huigra, and his address will be care of American
consul at Guayaquil, Ecuador.

The Reverend George Mary Searle, C.S.P., superior general of the
Paulist Fathers from 1904 to 1909, and formerly professor of mathe-
matics and director of the astronomical observatory at the Catholic
University, died on July 8, 1918, at the age of seventy-nine. He was
born in London, England, June 27, 1839, graduated from Harvard
University in 1857, and was connected at various times with the
Dudley and the Harvard College Observatories, the U. S. Naval Acad-
emy, and the U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey. He was a member
of the Philosophical Society of Washington, and had been for many
years a member of the Academy, from which he had resigned but a few
months ago.

Dr. W. F. G. SwANN left the Bureau of Standards on August 1, 1918,
to take up his new work as professor of physics at the University of
Minnesota.

Dr. Walter T. Taggart, professor of organic chemistry in the Uni-
versity of Pennsylvania, is engaged in war research for the Nitrate
Division in Washington.

Prof. A. Tanakadate, professor of physics in the University of
Tokyo, and member of the Imperial Academy of Science, visited Wash-
ington in July on business connected with certain international scien-
tific commissions whose activity has been interfered with by the war. .

Dr. William S. Thayer, of Baltimore, was elected a foreign member
of the Academie de Medicine of Paris on July 2, 1918.

512 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Prof. S. W. Young, professor of physical chemistry at Leland Stan-
ford Jr. University, is in Washington for the summer, engaged in war
research at the Bureau of Standards.

N. H. Darton, of the Geological Survey, will spend several months
in New Mexico continuing his studies of the Redbeds, with special
reference to the possibiUty of their containing potash deposits.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VIII SEPTEMBER 19, 1918 No. 15

PHYl^ICS. — Low voltage discharge in sodium vapor. Paul D.
FooTE and F. L. Mohler, Bureau of Standards.

The question of separate excitation by electronic impact of
the doublet lines of the principal series of thallium was raised by
the writers at the New York meeting of the American Physical
Society, April 1918. The resonance potential for electrons in
thallium vapor was observed to be 1.07 volts. This corresponds
on the basis of the quantum relation, hv = eV, to a frequency
V = 8683 or to a wave length X = 11513 A, the shorter wave-
length member of the first term of the principal doublet series.
No indication of resonance at 0.95 volts could be detected cor-

o

responding to X = 13014 A, the other member of the doublet.
The question therefore suggests itself as to whether the line X
= 13014 is excited at the resonance potential of 1.07 volts. The
behavior of thallium in this regard may be very likely similar
to that of sodium. Accordingly we might expect the shorter
wave length D2 of the sodium spectrum to appear at the reso-
nance potential 2.10 volts and the wave length Di not to appear
until the ionization potential of 5.13 volts was attained.

Figure 1 represents the apparatus employed. A is a lime-
coated Wehnelt cathode, C the anode, and B a glass tube sealed
at both ends with glass plates through which the arc discharge
was viewed. The object in using such a tube was to permit
observation directly upon the arc \Wthout the presence of the
absorbing unexcited sodium vapor. The tube was electrically

513

514

FOOTE AND MOHLER: LOW VOLTAGE DISCHARGE

heated to about 300°C. and evacuated to a pressure of about
10~^ cm. Hg as registered by a McLeod gauge. For observing
the spectral hnes a diffraction grating having 15,000 Hnes to
the inch was employed and the observations were made with an
eye piece of such magnification that the two D lines showed
distinctly with a rather wide slit opening. This was necessary
on account of the low intensity of the light at small voltages.

/?

JB

3PECTR03C0I

Fig. 1. Diagram of apparatus.

A visible yellow glow could be detected when the accelerating
field across AC was as low as 0.8 volts. Since the resonance
potential is 2.1 volts, the initial velocity of a considerable num-
ber of the electrons emitted by the hot cathode must have been
about 1.3 volts. As the voltage increased the intensity of the
discharge rapidly increased. At an applied potential of 5.2
volts the character of the arc changed entirely, the second sub-
ordinate series of sodium appearing, thus indicating ionization;
and the arc became very brilliant. The applied potential of 5.2

FOOTE AND MOHLERI LOW VOLTAGE DISCHARGE 515

volts is nearly equal to the ionization potential. This fact
shows that the initial velocity of the greater portion of the
electrons emitted from the cathode could not have been as high
as 1.3 volts. At an applied potential of 2 volts, a true potential
certainly not greater than 3.3 volts, the two D lines were dis-
tinctly visible, and as nearly as could be judged, the ratio of
their intensities remained about the same as the applied voltage
was decreased to 0.8 volts, when both lines disappeared. Hence
our work would indicate that the two D hnes appear together at
the resonance potential.

This observation is not, however, conclusive evidence that
the lines were not separately excited by electronic impact.
Wood and Mohler^ have shown that in the excitation of sodium
vapor by incident radiation, although it is possible to excite the
D lines separately, in general both lines appear since the in-
fluence of the surrounding vapor may cause a transfer of energy
from the excited line to the other component of the doublet.
Possibly a similar influence is present in the above observations.

The fact that the higher frequency line of the thallium doublet
determines the value of the energy quantum absorbed, on the
other hand, may be analogous to the emission of characteristic
X-rays under electronic bombardment. D. L. Webster^ con-
cluded that the K group does not appear until the energy of the
impacting electrons is greater than that corresponding to the
highest frequency of the K group, namely, Ky. At this voltage
all of the lines of the K group appear and the ratio of the in-
tensity of the lines remains the same when the voltage is further
increased. Similarly in the case of collision of the atom of
thallium, sodium, etc., with electrons of low velocity, both lines
of the doublet may always appear simultaneously, as observed
directly for sodium, while the line determining the value of the
quantum is the line of higher frequency, as observed directly
for thallium. However, if the K group is to be looked upon as a
series of lines, the above analogy is not justified.

1 Phys. Rev. 11: 70. 1918.

2 Phys. Rev. 7: 599. 1916.

516 ricker: botany in dist. of Columbia — bibliography

BOTANY. — A sketch of botanical activity in the District of Colum-
bia,— //.22 Bibliography . P. L. Ricker, Bureau of Plant
Industry.

Anonymous. Botanical notes. Field <fe For. 1:5-6. 1875.

Notes on Dentaria heterophylla, Corydalis flava, Viola pedata hicolor, and Poa hreviflolia.

Anonymous. Autumnal flowering. Field & For. 1:43-44. 1875.

Asa Gray Bulletin, devoted to plant life in field, forest and garden, vols. 5-6,
1897-1898. Edited by C. H. Hicks, Washington, D. C. Vols 7-8, 1899-
1900, edited by T. A. Williams and C. L. Shear, Takoma Park, D. C.

Ashe, William VVillard. The dichotomovs group of Panicum in the eastern
United States. Journ. Elisha Mitchell Soc. 15: 22-62. 1898.
Describes Panicum annidum from the District of Columbia.

Baker, Frank P. Native trees of the National Zoological Park. \nn. Rep.
Smiths. Inst. 1890:65-66. 1891.
Forty-six species.

Bartlett, Harley Harris. Euphorbia arundelana. an ally of Euphorbia ipecac-
uanhae. Rhodora 13: 163-165, f. 1-2. 1911.

Bartlett, Harley Harris. On gynodioecisrn in Plantago lanceolata. Rho-
dora 13: 199-206, f. 1-3. 1911.

Bartlett, Harley Harris. Twelve elementary species of Onagra. Cybele
Columb. 1:37-56, pi. 1-5. 1914.

Oenothera brevicapsula and O. ruderalis from Montgomery County, Maryland.

Besley, Fred Wilson. The forests of Prince George County. 40 p. 3 pi.
Map. Baltimore, 1913.

Originally published in Maryland Geological Survey report on Prince Georges County, 1911.
Blodgett, Frederick HaHj^ey. A nature studi/ of Man/land plants. Bull. Md.

Agr. Coll. 2: 1-22, illust. 1908.
Brainerd, Ezra. Hybridism in the genus Viola, III. Rhodora 8: 49-61, pi.

66-70. 1906.

Notes 7 hybrids from the vicinity of the District of Columbia.
Brereton, John A. Florae columbianae prodromus, exhibens enumerationem
plantarum quae hactenus explorata sunt; or A prodromus of the Flora Col-
umbiana, exhibiting a list of all the plants which have as yet been collected.
Compiled by John A. Brereton. 86 p. Washington, 1830.
This contains the results of the investigations of the Botanical Club of Washington, 1825-1830.

Britton, Nathaniel Lord, and Brown, Addison. Illustrated flora of the
Northeastern States and Canada. 3 vol. ed. 1, 1896-1898; ed. 2, 1913.

Often gives District of Columbia as locality.

BrittOn, Nathaniel Lord. Manual of the flora of the Northern States and

Canada, ed. 3. 1112 p. 1907.
Burgess, Edward Sanpord. Species and variations of hiotian asters with dis-

cussion of variability in asters. Mem. Torrey Club 13: 1-419. f. 1-108.

1906.

Twenty-four species and 5 varieties recorded from the District of Columbia.

Burroughs, John. Spring in Washington.^ Atl. Monthly, 580-591. 1869.
Chickering, John White, Jr. Erythronium albidum Nutt. Field & For.

1:8. 1875.
Chickering, John White, Jr. A seasoji's botanizing. Field & For. 3: 151-155.

1878.
Chickering, John White, Jr. January flowers. Field & For. 1: 72. 1876.

Notes on Draha nenii, Slellaria media, Capsella barsa-pastoris. Taraxacum dens-leonis, and Jas-
minum nudi/lorum in bloom first weelc in January.
Coville, P^rederick Vernon. Early botanical activity in the District of Col-
umbia. Records of the Columbia Historical Society 5: 176-194. 1901.

"2 Continued from page 498. This bibliography includes all works on the
taxonomy of flowering plants and ferns in which have been found definite refer-
ences to the occurrence of species in or near the District of Columbia. The
author will appreciate references to omitted titles.

kicker: botany in dist. of Columbia — bibliography 517

Dewey, Lyster Hoxie. Weeds in cities and towns. Yearbook. U. S. Dept.
Agr. 1898: 193-200. 1899.
Contains notes on District of Columbia weeds.

DooLiTTLE, AI. H. The American mistletoe (Phoradendron flavescens). Field
& For. 1 : 66-67. 1876.

Elliot, Wii.li.\m. The Washington Guide: Containing an account of the Dis-
trict of Columbia, 1822. Floruhi Columbana by J. A. Brereton, p. 123-
138, ed. 2, 1826, identical. Additions and corrctions, 1830. El. 2, "im-
proved" p. 295-310, 1837, revised by Mr. Rich with but few changes.

Fernow. Bern.\rd Edu.\rd. Trees of Washington, D. C. Compliments of the

Forestrv Division. Geo. B. Sudworth, botanist. IS p. 2 plans, Wash-^

ington.'l891.

Lists and locates on maps trees on the Department of .\gricultureand White House grounds and
in Lafayetle Square. Includes 324 species (exclusive of varieties) of which 90 (one doubtful) are
said to be indigenous to the District of Columbia.

Field and Forest, devoted to general natural history. Bulletin of the Potomac-
Side Naturalists' Club. Charles R. Dodge, editor. Vols. 1-3. 1876-1878.

Flora Columbiana. A catalogue uf the plants growing without cultivation in the
District of Columbia. By Dr. George Vasey, Prof. J. W. Chickering, Dr. E.
Foreman, Prof. Wm. H. Seaman, and Mr. L. F. Ward, committee of Poto-
mac Side Naturalists' Club. Field & For. 1:83-87, 1876, 2: 13-15; 31-33;
45-46: 61-64; 86-88; 103-105, 1876.

Includes 1083 species.

Addenda made during 1877. Field & For. 3: 145, 164. 1878.

Includes 112 species.
Florula Columbiensis: or a list of plants found in the District of Columbia;

arranged according to the Linnaoan system under their respective classes

and orders, etc., and exhibiting their generally received common names and

time of flowering, during the years 1817 and 1818. 14 p. Washington:

printed for the Washington Botanical Society by Jacob Gideon, Jun., 1819.
Foreman, Edw^ard. Botany in the D[istrict] of C[olumbia]. Field & For.

1:29-30. 1875.
Gale, Leonard Dunnell. On the oaks of the District of Columbia. Proc. Nat.

Inst. Wash. n. ser. 1: 67-78, 2 pi. 1855.

Mentions 12 indigenous, 2 introduced species, notes on hybrids, dates of flowering.

Goods, George Brown. Diary at the Capital. For. & Stream 6: 115. 1876.

Notes spring beauty February 19, and trailing arbutus March 7.

Gray, Asa. Chrysogonum virginianum dentatum. Bot. Gaz. 7: 31. 1882.

Described from High Island.

Gray, Asa. Manual of botanv. Ed. 6, by Sereno Watson and John Coulter.

760 p. 25 pi. 1889.

Describ3s Phacelia covillei from Larkspur Island, 5 miles above Washington.
Greene, Edw.ard Lee. Polygouaccous genera. Leaflets 1: 17-50. 1904.

Polygonum coccinea and subsp. asperella.
Greene, Edw^ard Lee. Segregates of Rhus. Leaflets 1: 114-144. 1905.

Toxicodendron compactum.

Greene, Edw.\rd Lee. Mutations in Viola. Leaflets 1: 182-187. 1905.

Viola laetecaerulum and V. aberrana.

Greene, f^DWARD Lee. New species oJ Viola. Leaflets 1: 214-219. 1906.

Viola filicetorum and var. parthenica, V. induta, V. emarginata simulata, V. vespertilionia ,V. orn-
thodes, and V . fonlana described from the District of Columbia.
Greene, Edward Lee. Violets of the District of Columbia. I. Cybele Columb.

1-7-33. 1914.

Ft'oioffrortd;.!.', n. sp., described and several species discussed.

Greene, Edward Lee. Remarlcs on. acaulescent violets. Pittonia 3: 139-145.
1896.

Notes on Viola palmata, and V. congener.

Greene, Edward Lee. New or noteworthy species. Pittonia 3: 154-172; 212-
2.30. 1897.

SoUdago racemosa and Apocynum medium described from the District of Columbia, or vicinity.

Greene, Edward Lee. Studies in the Compositae. Pittonia 3: 172-186. 1897;

264-298. 1898.

Antennaria neglecta and A. decipiens described from the District of Columbia.

518 richer: botany in dist. of Columbia — bibliography

Greene, Edward Lee. Critical notes on Antennaria. Pittonia 3: 318-323.

1898.

Antennaria arnoglossa, A. arnoglossa ambigens, and A. fallax described from the Districtof Col-
umbia.

Greene, Edward Lee. Two new Gerardias. Pittonia 4: 51-52. pi. 9-10.

1899.

GerarJia decemloba and G. holmiana described from the District of Columbia.
Greene, Edward Lee. New species of Antennaria. Pittonia 4: 81-85. 1899.
Notes on A. alsinoidee from the District of Columbia.

Greene, Edward Lee. Notes 07i violets. Pittonia 4: 139-142. pi. 12. 1900.

Viola papilionacea from Analostan Island.

Greene, Edward Lee. Studies in the Compositae, VIII. Pittonia 4: 242-284.
1901.

Bidenslugens and B. leptomeria described from the District of Columbia, or vicinity.
Greene, Edward Lee. New or noteivorthy violets. Pittonia 5: 87-106. 1903.
Describes Viola nepetaefolia and V. macrotis from the District of Columbia.

Gronovius, Joannes Fredericus. Flora Virginica e.xhibens plantas qua,s v. c.

Johannes Clayton in Virginia observavit atque coUegit. 210 p. 1743. Ed.

2, 12, 176, 8 p. map. l762.
Haley, William D. Philip's Washington described, map X, 239p. Rudd &

Carleton, N. Y. 1861. Botanical notes, p. 34-39.
Hicks, Gilbert Henry. Notes on some plants of the District of Columbia. Asa

Gray Bull. 4: 71-72. 1896.

Chamaelinum carolinianum, Passiflora lutea, Chimaphila umbellata, Sidaspinosa, Saxifraga vir-
giniensis.

Hicks, Gilbert Henry. An unusual habitat for sundew. Asa Gray Bull. 5: 109-
110. 1897.

Fifteen associated species mentioned from Kensington, Maryland.
Hitchcock, Albert Spear. Notes on grasses. Rhodora 8: 205-212. 1906.

Panicum gravius, P. lanuginosum siccanum, and P. aculeatum, described from District of Columbia
and vicinity.

Hitchcock, Albert Spear, and Chase, Agnes. The North American species of
Panicum. Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 15: I-XIV, 1-396, f. 1-370. 1910.
Records many species from the District of Columbia.

Holm (Herman), Theodor. Third list of additions tot he floraof Washington, D. C.
Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 7: 105-132. 1892. Fourth list ... Op. cit.
10:29-43. 1898. Fifth list . . . Op. cit. 14: 7-22. 1901.

Holm (Herman), Theodor. Contributions to the flora of the District of Columbia.
Science, n. ser. 3: 24-35. 1896.

House, Homer Doliver. The violets and violet hybrids of the District of Colum-
bia and vicinity. Rhodora 8: 117-122, pi. 71-72. 1906.

Hunter, William. Botany of the Zoological Park. Ann. Rept. Smiths. Inst.
1890; 68-72, 1891. Assisted by L. F. Ward, and F. H. Knowlton.

About 3.50 species listed.
Knowlton, Frank Hall. Additions to the flora of Washington and vicinity from

April 1, 1884. to April 1, 1886. Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 3: 106-132. 1886.

Thirty-five additional species, corrections and new localities; contains revised list of 238 Musci

and Hepaticae and 251 Lichens, by E. Lehneit.
Le Conte, John Eatton. Observatio7is on the North American species of the

genus Viola. Ann Lye. N. Y. 2: 1.35-153. 1828.

Viola obliqua from the District of Columbia.
Long, Bayard. Southerly range cxiensions in Antennaria. Rhodora 15: 117-

122. 1913.

Antennaria parlinii noted from the District of Columbia.

Miller, Gerrit Smith, Jr. The dogbanes of the District of Columbia. Proc.

Biol. Soc. Wash. 13: 79-90, pi. 2, 1898.
Miller, Gerrit Smith, Jr. The large yellow pond lilies of the northeastern

United States. Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 15: 11-13, p. 1, pi. 2, 1902.
Miller, Gerrit Smith, Jr. The species of Geum occurring near Washington.

Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 17: 101. 1904.
Miller, Gerrit Smith, Jr., and Stand ley, PaulC. The North American species

of Nymphaea. Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 16: VIII, 63-108, IX. 40 f. pi. 35-47.

1912.

Nymphaea advena only species from the District of Columbia.

kicker: botany in dist. of Columbia — bibliography 519

Miller, Gerrit Smith, Jr. The technical names of two dogbanes from the Dis-
trict of Columbia. Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 15: 35-36. 1902.

Mitchell, John. Diesertatis bervis de principiis botanicorum et zoologorum
deque novo stabiliendo naturae rerum congruo cum appendice aliquot
generum plantarum recent conditorum. Ad virum celeberrimum Petrum
Collinsonuin ... ex Virginia transmissa et hujus favore cum D. D.
Christ. Jacob Trew communicata. Act. Acad. Caes. Leop. Carol. 8: (apx.):
187-224. 1748.

Morris, Edward Lyman. North American Planfaginaceae. III. Bull. Torres
Club 36: 515-530. 1909.

Morris, Edward Lyman. "Occasional" leaves of Trillium. PI. World 5: 92-93^
pi. 13. 1902.

Norton, John Bitting and Smith Walls, E. P. The wild legumes of Maryland
and their utilization. Md. Agr. Exp. Sta. Bull. 10: 97-124, figs. 1-17. 1905.
Notes on 77 native and introduced species.

Palmer, William. The ferns of Hemlock Bluff. PI. World 2: 143-147. 1899.
Palmer, William. A new locality for Asplenium pinnatifiidum. Fern. Bull.
7: 70-71. 1899.

Abstracted from the Plant World 2: 143-147, 1899.
Palmer. William. .4 rich locality. Fern Bull. 9: IS, 1901.
Notes on ferns growing near Potomac, Maryland.

Palmer, William. The log fern. Fern Bull. 10: 37-41. 1902.
Pennell, Francis W. Some records from the Potomac district. Torreya 11: 130-
131. 1911.

Eleocharis flaccida, Veronica scutellala, Galinsoga caracasana, and G. parviflora noted.

Pennell, Francis W. A'otes on plants of the southern United States. II. Bull.
Torrey Club 43: 401-421. 1916.

Smilax herbacea, S. hugeri, and S. pulverulenta noted from the District of Columbia and vicinity.,
Pieters, Adrian John. Plants growing on waste ground near Washington, D. C .
Asa Gray Bull. 5:24-27. 1897.

Fourteen species of weeds at Washington Heights.

Pollard, Charles Louis. Viola sagittata hicksii. Bot. Gaz. 20: 326. 1895.
Pollard, Charles Louis. Some new or rare plants. Bot. Gaz. 21: 233-235_
1896.

Notes on Phacelia covillei and Perilla frutescens from the District of Columbia.

Pollard, Charles Louis. The purple-floivered, stemless violets of the Atlantic-
Coast. Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 10:85-92. 1896.

Pollard. Charles Louis. Further observations on the eastern acaulescent violets..
Bot. Gaz. 26:325-342. 1898.

Pollard, Charles Louis. The ostrich fernin Virginia. Fern Bull. 7: 71. 1899'.

Pollard, Charles Louis. A new station for the gray polypody. PI. World
5: 133-134. 1902.

A Great Falls station adds several hundred miles to its northeastern range.

Pollard, Charles Louis. The nodding pogonia in the vicinity of Washington.
Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 16: 127. 1903.

Potomac-side Naturalists Club. Flora Columbiana, or catalogue of plants
growing without cultivation, collected by members of the Potomac-side
Naturalists Club, in the District of Columbia and its immediate vicinity.
27 p. Washington, 1876.

Prepared by a committee consisting of Dr. George Vasey, Prof. J. W. Chickering, Dr. E. Foreman,
Prof. W. H. Seaman, and Dr. L. F. Ward. The mosses prepared by Rudolph Oldberg.

Potomac-Side Naturalists Club. Flora Columbiana with additions. 30 p.
Washington. 1876.
Reprinted in Field & For. 3: 145, 164. 1878.

Rafinesque-Schmaltz, Constantine Samuel. Essential generic and specfic
characters of some new genuses and species of plants observed in the United
States of America, in 1803 and 1804, Med. Repos. N. Y. 11: 356-363. 1808.

Describes " Cancthus" [CeanothusJ herbaceus from " near the falls of the Potowmack, between the-
rocks," and Euphorbia uniflora, from "between Baltimore and Washington."

Rafinesque-Schmaltz, Constantine Samuel An essay on the exotic plants,
mostly European, which have been naturalized, and now grow spontane-
ouslv in the Middle States of North America. Med. Repos. N. Y. 14: 330,-
345.' 1811.
Lists several species from Washington.

520 ricker: botany in dist. of Columbia — bibliography

Ray, John. Historia Plantarum. 2: 1928-1928 bis. 1688.

Contains a list of plants observed in Virginia by Rev. John Bannister.
[Rich, Obadiah.] Synopsis of the genera of American plants. 170 p. George-
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The authorship of this work was for a long time in doubt in libraries. William Darlington in his
memorials of John Bartram and Humphrey Marshall 1849 says on p. 25 the above "understood to
be compiled by O. Rich, Esq." Biereton, Florae Columbianae Prodromus 1830, p. 7, also credits
it to O. Rich and on p. 86 copies a paragraph verbatim from p. viii of the "Synopsis" but says
it is from "a learned and expeiienced Botanist, now in London." Obadiah Rich settled in Lon-
don in 1828 and died there in 1850.

Ricker, Percy Leroy A list of the vascular j^lants of the District of Columbia

and vicinity. Prepared for the use of the Botanical Society of Washington.

iv. 1-33 p 1900 (Letter press, .not published.)
RiD(iWAY, Robert Additional notes on the native trees of the lower Wnbash

Valley. Proc U S. Nat. Mus. 17: 409-442 pis 10-1.5. ISSl.

Includes 28 species of trees fiom near Falls Church, Virginia, and 47 species from near Laurel,

Maryland.
Robinson, Benjamin Lincoln. Further notes on the vascular plants of Die north-
eastern United States. Rhodora 10: 64-68 1905.

Panicum huacJiucae silvicola Ilitchc. & Chase described from the District of Columbia.
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of Washington. Annual Report. Commissioners, D. C, 1880.

Sixty-five species listed and located on map.
Saul, John A. Tree culture or a sketch of nurseries in the District of Columbia.

Rec. Columb. Hist. Soc. 10: 38-62. pi. 2-7. 1907.
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Bull. 7. 1896.

The type of Panicum columbianum first described on p. 78 is from Brookland, District of Co-
lumbia.

Seaman, William Henry. Re7narks on the flora of the Potomac. Field & For.

1: 21-25. pi. 1. 1875.
Seaman, William Henry. The Water Chinquapin.. Field & For. 1: 17. 1877.

Notes on Nelmnhiam liUeum, Trapa bicornis, Nympliaea minor, and Calla palustris in lotus pond,
in Department of Agriculture grounds.

Shreve, Forrest. The plant life of Maryland, by Forrest Shreve, M. A.

Chrysler, Frederick H. Blodgett, and F. W. Beekey. Md. Weather Service

Reports, n. ser. 3: 1-533. 1910.
Small, John Kunkel. Flora of the southeastern United States, ed. 1. 1903.

Ed. 2. 1913.

Oenothera parvijlora described from the District of Columbia.

Smith, Charles Piper. Plurality of seeds in acorns of Quercus prinus. Rho-
dora 16: 41-43. f. 1-3. 1914.

Standley, Paul Carpenter. A new species of Iresine from the United States.
Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 28: 171-174. 1915.
Iresine rhizomatosa from Plummers Island.

Steele, Edward Strieby. Sixth list of additions to the flora of Washington, D.

C, and vicinity. Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 14:47-86. 1901.
Steele, Edward Strieby. New plants from eastern United States. Contr. U.

S. Nat. Herb. 13:. 359-374. 1911.

Mentions numerous species from the District of Columbia.

SuDwoRTH, George Bishop. An economic mulberry . Bull. Torrey Club 19:21-

22. 1892.
SuDwoRTH, George Bishop. See Fernow, B. E.
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7 pi. Washington, 1908; ed 2. 64 p. 8 pi. 1907. Pt. 2. Evergreens, p,

67-96. pi. 9-12 1908. Pt. 3. Salicaceae, Ceriferae, Betulaceae, front.

60 p. 14 pi. 1910.
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1910.
Tidestrom, Ivar. Populus virginiana Fouger. Rhodora 13: 195-199. f. 1.

1911.
Tidestrom, Ivar. Notes on the flora of Man/land and Virginia. I. Rhodora

15:103-106. 1913. Notes on conifers. //.Op. cit. 15:201-209. 1914.

Notes on Populus.
Yasey, George. Exotic trees of Washington. Field & For. 1: 17-19. 1875.

Twenty species mentioned.

safford: chenopodium nuttalliae 521

\'asey, Gpxjrge. Rare and ii.otcioorlfnj trees of Washin.</lon. Field & For. 1: 33-

37. 1S75.

Mentions about 252 species of ornamental trees native to the United States and a few foreign

species.
Vasky, George. Oh three hybrid oaks near Washington, D. C. Bull. Torrey

Club 10: 25-26. pis. 28-30. 1883.
Vasey, George. Notes on Cyperus refractus Eng. Bull. Torrey Club 10: 32.

1883.
Vasey, George. Tuheriferous Hydrocotyle americana L. Bull. Torrey Club

13:28-29. 1886.
Ward, Lester Frank. Sweet cicely as a bur. Bull. Torrey Club 11:92-93.

1884.
Ward, Lester Frank. Frost plants. Science 23: 66. 1894.

A note on Cunila.

Ward, Lester Frank. Oaks of the Potomac side . Field & For. 1:39-42. 1875.

Lists 11 species, 3 varieties, and 6 hybrids.

Ward, Lester Fr.\nk. Conifers indigenous to the District. Field & For. 1: 54.
1875.

Notes on Pinus rigida, 7nitis, inops, strobus, and Jimiperus lirginiana.

Ward, Lester Frank. Tipularia discolor. Field & For. 2: 65-67. 1876.
Ward, Lester Frank. Guide to the flora of Washington, D. C, and vicinity.
Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus. 26: 1-264. "1881. (Map.)

Checklist, p. 148-207. (Reprinted as Bull. 22, U. S. Nat. Mus.'! 1211 Phanerogama, 42 Ferns, etc.
98 Musci, 28 Hepaticae, 84 Algae. For six supplements see Ward, Knowlton, Holm, and Steele.
Ward, Lester Frank. Field and closet notes on th-; flora of Washington and
vicinity. Bull. Phil. Soc. Wash. 4:64-119. 1881.

Practically the same as the introduction to his Guide to the Flora of Washington.
Ward, Lester Frank. List of plants added to the flora of Washington from April
1, 1882. to April 1, 1884. Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 2: 84-87. 1884. "

Forty-one additions and a few corrections.

Ward, Lester Frank. Glimpses of the cosmos, 2:448-464. 1913.

Contains a history of his Guide to the Flora of Washington.

Warden, David Baillie. A chorographical and statistical description of the
District of Columbia, vii, 212 p. Washington, 1816. Florula columbiana, p.
191-209.

Woolridge, John. Natural advantages of the City of Washington, D. C. p.
15-55, Dayton, Ohio. 1892. Advance sheets.

Notes on the District of Columbia flora from L. F. Ward; Flora of Washington and vicinity are
included on p. .50-55.

BOTANY. — Chenopodium nuttalliae, a food plant of the Aztecs.
W. E. Safford, Bureau of Plant Industry.

In connection with his study of the economic plants of Mexico
the writer has come upon a Chenopodium eaten in the form of a
vegetable by the ancient Mexicans, but hitherto unknown to
botanists, and incorrectly referred by several Mexican writers
to the European Chenopodium bonus-henricus L., to which it
bears httle resemblance. The material from which this species
is here described was received by the writer from the well-
known archeologist and ethnologist, Mrs. Zelia Nuttall, of
Casa Alvarado, Coyoacan, near the city of Mexico, who col-
lected it in response to a request for the seeds of "huauhth."

Instead of Amaranthus seeds, which he had expected, the
writer received the seeds and inflorescence heads of a Cheno-

Fig. 1. Chenopodium nuttalliae Safford, called Uauhtzontli by the Aztecs.
Natural size. Photograph of specimens collected by Mrs. Zelia Nuttall.

522

safford: chenopodium nuttalliae 523

podium labeled "Hi(autzo7itli,'' which proved to be a species not
represented in the United States National Herbarium, nor
included in Dr. Urbina's Catdlogo de Plantas Mexicanas del Museo
Nacional de Mexico. More remarkable still, the name huau-
zontli is applied in that work to the European plant, Cheno-
podium bonus-henricus, already mentioned; and in Dr. Urbina's
list of food plants, published in Las plantas comestibles de los
antiguos Mexicanos, neither this nor any other species of
Chenopodium is included.^ The writer ventures, therefore, to
describe it as a new species and, in honor of the distinguished
lady who has brought it to his notice, he proposes for it the
name Chenopodium nuttalliae. A more detailed account of this
plant, together with several other allied species, will be given in
his forthcoming paper on the Economic chenopods and amaranths
of America, to be published in the Journal of Heredity.

Chenopodium nuttalliae Safford, sp. nov.

Uauhtzontli, or Huautzontli, of the Aztecs; Huauzontle, or Guau-
soncle, of the modern Mexicans. Chenopodium. bonus-henricus Auct.
Mex. (non C. bonus-henricus L.' Sp. PL 218. 1753.).

An odorless herbaceous annual resembling Chenopodium album,
with upright striate slightly mealy stem and branches and pale green
foliage. Leaves alternate, variable in shape; petioles slender, usually
equal to the blade in length; blades triangular-ovate or rhomboid, the
lower ones sinuate-dentate and somewhat hastate, obtuse and apiculate
at the apex, those of the inflorescence lanceolate or rhomboid ; flowers on
short branches closel}^ crowded and forming dense terminal paniculate
clusters; branches of the inflorescence sparsely mealy or scurfy; sepals
sparsely mealy, green, white-margined, ovate, keeled, when mature
convex and connivent over the fruiting achene; the latter, loosely
covered by the calyx, lenticular or discoid, about 2 mm. in diameter
with the closely adherent pericarp pale yellow, rose-colored, or orange,
or sometimes dark brown and smaller (1.4 mm. in diameter), with a
distinct marginal ring; seed horizontal, shaped somewhat like a minia-
ture nautilus shell, in both the brightly tinted and in the dark-brown
achenes horn-colored.

Type in the United States National Herbarium, cultivated in the
vicinity of Mexico City and purchased in the market at Xochimilco,
November 25, 1917, by Mrs. Zelia Nuttall, the distinguished arche-
ologist and authority on Mexican history and ethnology, in honor of
whom the species is named.

1 See Anales del Museo Nacionul, II, 1: 503-591. 1904.

524 safford: chenopodium nuttalliae

Range: Unknown in a wild state; said by Mrs. Nuttall to be widely
cultivated in the states of Michoacan, Oaxaca, Veracruz, and Tamau-
lipas, "a species that the Mexicans have been using from time
immemorial."

The name Uauhtli, or Huauhtli, was applied by the Aztecs,
not only to their seeds but to the plants themselves. The latter,
when cooked for ''greens" (Aztec, quilitl) were called huauquilitl.
Uauhtzontli, which has been modified to Huausonde or Guau-
soncle, may be rendered "seed-heads," or "huautli-crests." It
has been given to several other plants beside the one here de-
scribed. The late Professor Alfredo Duges of Guanajuato
applied it to an ill-smelling Chenopodium called by the Mej^i-
cans "quelite hediondo" (stinking greens), of which he wrote:
"On en mange les inflorescences cuites, sous le nom de Guau-
soncle, ou Quauhzontli en mexicain. Triste legume!" By Fray
Agustin Vetancurt (1698) the name was given, in the form
Cuauzontli, to Amaranthus leucospernius S. Wats., which he
described as growing upright in the form of miniature trees,
\vith entire leaves like those of lengua de vaca (Rumex) and
with terminal purple or yellow plumes bearing minute white
sesame-like seeds, used for making certain "small tamales
called t2oales."^

Dr. Robelo of "Cuernavaca, following Alcocer and other Mex-
ican writers, referred the plant here discussed, to Chenopodium
bonus-henricus L., with the following note under the names
Guausoncle or Huausonde, the original Aztec form of which,
Huautzontli, he translates as "bledos como cabellos." "A
garden plant producing a terminal cluster of whitish flowerets,
beneath which are developed spikes of edible seeds. They may
be dried and kept for a year. When required for use they are
put into water and soaked for a day, and may be eaten the day
following."^ It is only necessary to look at the acompanying
illustration showing a leaf of the species here described compared
with one of Chenopodmm bonus-henricus L. (fig. 2) to see the
dissimilarity of the two plants, and the difference between the

^ See Safford, W. E., A forgotleii cereal of ancient America published in the
Proceedings of the Nineteenth Congress of Americanists, pp. 286-297. 1917.
' See Robelo, Cecilio A., Diccionario de Aztequismos, p{). 577, 579. 1904.

safford: cheno podium ntjttalliae

525

seeds of the two species is equally great, as shown in figures 3, c
and 3, e.

Accompanying the seeds and inflorescence heads were the
following notes of Mrs. Nuttall. On September 27, 1917, she
writes :

This morning I was at the market of Xochimilco and bought fine
hunches of Uauhtli in bud, which is eaten as a green vegetable. The
spikes are washed and dipped in batter
composed of egg, flour, and grated
cheese, and then fried in lard. The
ends of several spikes are thus held
together, and it is the custom to seize
the stem and draw them through the
teeth, thus detaching the very palatable
green buds [unripe achenes], which form
thick clusters. The immature infloresc-
ence prepared in the above or in other
wavs is called Uauhtzontli.

In a subsequent letter, dated No-
vember 25, 1917, Mrs. Nuttall writes :

Huauhzontli combines the properties
of a cereal and a vegetable and furnishes
a substantial meal. When fresh and
the seeds are "in milk" the food is to
me delicious. I am told that it is
almost as good when prepared from
the dried inflorescence.

The accompanying photographs
of achenes and seeds (enlarged 6
diameters) of Chenopodium nuttal-
liae and those of Chenopodium quinoa
Willd., C. bonus-henricus L., and C.

rdbumh., species with w^hich it has been confused, show at a glance
the characters of each. Figure 3, a, is the common form of the
pale yellow, or rose-colored achenes of C. nuttalliae, figure 3, b,
the small dark-brown, or "black" form, and figure 3, c, the
seeds divested of the pericarp, which in all forms are horn-
colored, not ivory w^hite, as in C. quinoa, nor black, as in C.
album, and they are in the form of a flattened spiral, not ven-

Fig. 2. Leaves of Chenopod-
ium. a, C. nuttalliae Safford; b,
C. bonus-henricus L. ; c, C. quinoa
Willd. X h-

526

safford: chenopodium nuttalliae

Fig. 3. Achenes and seeds of economic species of Chenopodium enlarged 6
diameters, a, b, c, C. nuttalliae Safford; d, C. quinoa Willd. ; e, C. bonus-henricus
L. ; /, C albxim L.

DUFRENOY: false WITCHES'-BROOMS in ERICACEAE 527

tricose, or spheroid, as in C. bomis-henricus. Figure 3, d, is the
white-seeded form of Chenopodium quinoa of Peru and BoUvia;
figure 3, e, the seeds of the European "Good-King-Henry" or
"all-good" (C honus-henricus) ; and figure 3, /, the achenes of
lambs-quarter (C. album) the black seeds of which are used
for food by the Indians of our Southwest, and are grown as a
grain-crop in various parts of India.

BIOLOGY. — The biological significance of false witches^ -brooms
in Ericaceous plants. Jean Dufrenoy, Station Biologique
d'Arcachon. (Communicated by G. N. Collins.)

Peculiar shoots showing infection by Exobasidium unedonis
Maire + Gloeosporium conviva Maire, have been recorded by
Professor Maire on Arbutus unedo in Algeria, and compared by
him to \\'itches'-brooms. Other peculiar shoots showing infec-
tion by Gloeosperium myrtillus sp. no v. have been seen by the
author and similarly compared.

Witches '-brooms, which had long been considered parasitic
infections, are viewed by Vuillemin ('17) as s>anbiotic associa-
tions in which profit is derived by both syinbionts, mutually, or
at least alternately. "Witches '-brooms are to the shoot what
mycon'hizas are to the root."

In view of this new interpretation, the significance of the
"false \\dtches'-brooms" in Ericaceae may be discussed here,
from biological data recorded by the author.

I. Duration of life. Winter dormancy ends sooner in witches'-
brooms than in healthy shoots — as recorded by Schellenberg for
Firs, Betula, etc. Maire ('16) observed that the false witches'-
brooms of Arbutus develop in February in Algeri eh en no
healthy shoots have appeared, and also die much soonr, being
actually wilted before the normal shoots have finished growing.
In Ai'cachon, however, false witches '-brooms were still found
living in November. Since the premature death of the brooms
in Algeria may be due to lack of water, some discussion of trans-
piration conditions is necessary.

II. Transpiration. It has been assumed that mycelia grow-
ing into the vascular strands of witches'-brooms hinder the

528 dufrenoy: false witches'-brooms in Ericaceae

ascent of water, resulting in partial starvation of leaves, a proc-
ess which these in turn may resist by means of xerophilous
adaptations.

In Ericaceous plants it should be noted however that:

(1). The vessels of the xylem are never obstructed by mycelia,
either in brooms of Arbutus infected by Exobasidium unedonis
Maire + Gloeosporium conviva Maire, or in brooms of Vaccinium
myrtillus infected by Gloeosporium vaccimi sp. nov. On the
contrary the author found the vessels of the xylem to be notice-
ably wider in infected leaves of Vaccinium than in sound ones.
A reduction of transpiration of brooms, if recorded, should not
therefore be ascribed to interference with water ascent.

(2). Infected leaves are rolled up, affording less surface to
transpiration.

(3). The infected leaves are often colored red by anthocyan,
and such a coloration might be considered to cause a modifica-
tion of transpiration.

The results from experimental work by ' the author were as
follows :

Leaves of false witches'-brooms of Arbutus show greater
transpiratory activity than neighboring normal leaves. This is
due to the fact that the infected leaves remain ''juvenile" while
sound leaves mature and become thickly cutinized.

Transpiration, as directly measured by the chloride-cobalt
paper, in the sun and in the shade, is shown to be ten times
more active for leaves of Vaccinium myrtillus and Arbutus
unedo infected by Gloeosporium, than it is for sound leaves, and
this quite irrespective of pathological reddening by anthocyan.
Cut-off false witches'-brooms may remain living for a week
when entirely immersed in water. If, however, the base of the
twig only is watered, absorption cannot offset the excessive
transpiration of the leaves, which wither and dry up within an
hour of exposure to the sun. Transpiration then becomes so
restricted that a very small loss of water is indicated by weigh-
ing cut twigs during several days, and xerophytic adaptation
might falsely be concluded to exist.

DUFRENOY: false witches -brooms in ERICACEAE

529

III. Carbohydrates. The early development of false witches'-
brooms is certainly due to the formation of large quantities of
soluble osmotic substances in the infected tissues. That they
contain much sugar, may be deduced from the appearance of
anthocyan in them.

Such a formation of soluble material might be readily ex-
plained by the secretion of hydrolysing enzymes b}" infecting
hyphae. Observation proves, moreover, that insoluble carbo-
hydrates are always scarce in false witches'-brooms (see table 1).
The Anylolencites in infected leaves of V. myrtillus do not color

TABLE 1
BiocHEMY OF Leaves of V. myrtillus

RED LEAVES (FROM FALSE
WICHES'-BROOMS)

GREEN LEA!

ES (sound)

ETIOLATED LEAVES

(SOUND)

Antho-
cyan

Starch
grains

Tannin

Starch
grain:*

Tannin

Starch
grains

Tannin

Coming from

Abun-

Abun-

Present

Present

Present

Present

the sun

dant

dant

After stay-

Disap-

Disap-

Present

Disap-

Present

Disap-

Present

ing five

pear

pear

pear

pear

days in

dark room

After having

Absent

Absent

Persists

Reap-

Persists

Absent

Persists

been re-

pear

placed 1

day in the

sun

blue by I + KI, but browTi-red, and while, in October, sound
leaves of Arbutus are crowded with starch grains (blue with
I + KI), infected leaves never show this reaction. Assimilation
in sound leaves of A. unedo, though feeble, may still be demon-
strated, oxygen bubbles being evolved by immersed leaves when
exposed to full sunlight.

No oxygen is evolved in the shade, where assimilation must be
so attenuated as to be superseded by respiration. Leaves of
false witches'-brooms of Arbutus, contain at least a few chloro-
plasts. They can assimilate in early. spring, at least when the}^
are exposed to full sunlight, but in autumn, they never evolve
oxygen. Moreover leaves of false witches'-brooms of V. myrtil-

530 dufrenoy: false witches'-brooms in Ericaceae

lus do not form any starch grains after they have been severed
from healthy shoots.

IV. Glucosides. Reddening of leaves of false witches'-brooms
is reported in most cases, the intensity increasing with the insola-
tion. Infected leaves of Vaccinium from sunny heaths in the
Pyrenees show a deep red, while infected leaves of Arbutus unedo
from the shaded pignada of Arcachon are scarcely tinged with
rose.

TABLE 2
Effect of Staining with Nitric Acid

ORGANS OF A. INEDO

Infected cells of leaves... .

Young leaves (hairs)

Leaves

Palisade cells

Spongy parenchyma

Stem 1 year old

Cortex external

Internal

Pericyclic fibers

Root 1 year old

Corolla (outer and inner

rows)

Fruit (green or red)

Seed coat

Albumen and embryo

NUMBER OF CELLS STAINING BY HNO3

0
50%

100% (April) 80% (October)
80% (April) 20% (October)

100%,
50%,
50%,

50%
10%

50%
50%

inn 07

30%

0%

The appearance of anthocyan in sound or infected cells has
been found to be concomitant with abundant formation of sugar
or colorless glucosides (Combes, '09, '18), with the disappear-
ance of starch (Dufrenoy), and with the reduction of tannin.
This can scarcely apply however to false witches'-brooms
where brown rather than red pigments prove to be of interest
biochemically.

These brown pigments were studied by Rayner in connection
with the glucosides of the arbutin group. These glucosides are
very widely distributed among the Ericaceous plants, though
they may differ somewhat with the different species. No
arbutin was obtained by Bourquelot ('13) from leaves of Arbutus

DUFRENOY: false WITCHES'-BROOMS in ERICACEAE 531

unedo. We were able, however, to separate from fresh tissues,
ground in water and microsubHmated, volatile glucosides which
crystallized in two separate forms. Some of the crystals stained
yellow after being treated with vapors of ammonia for half an
hour.

The cells containing glucosides stain direct in sections of
tissues treated with nitric acid (Molisch's test I) We could
thus prove the glucoside to be present in all vegetative sound
tissues of A. unedo, while it is lacking from cells infected by Gloeo-
sporium in false witches'-brooms. (See table 2).

In infected cells where the glucoside disappears, the brown
pigment appears, and it may be supposed that the fungus
Gloeosporium secretes an enzyme which brings about the hy-
drolysis of the glucoside to glucose and hydroquinone, the latter
being oxydized to the brown pigment.

The actual production by fungi of an enzyme able to effect
the hydrolysis of arbutin has been determined by Rayner ('15)
for the endophyte of Calluna by transferring pure culture mate-
rial to tubes containing a 0.5 per cent solution of arbutin. In-
fected tubes soon showed a browning of the solution, while con-
trol tubes remained colorless.

CONCLUSIONS

False witches'-brooms of Ericaceae may sometimes show a
reduction of transpiration, a feature which may be viewed as
advantageous. But, as false witches'-brooms possess very low,
if not fully inhibited power of assimilation, and are shorter-
lived than are healthy shoots, they cannot be interpreted as
symbiotic organs.

Morphological variations due to infection are very shght,

but such as are present should be viewed in the light of meta-

phanic (as concluded by Potonie, '12) rather than progressive

variations.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

BoTJRQUELOT, Em. et FicHTENHOLZ, A. Application de la methode hiochimique a

la recherche du saccharose et des glucosides dans quelques Ericacees.

Journ. Pharm. Chim. VII, 8: 158-164. 1913.
Combes, Raoul. Recherches biochimiques experimentales sur le role physi-

ologique des glucoside chez les vegetaux. I. Etude preliminaire. Rev.

Gen. Bot. 30: 70-92. 1918.

532 bartsch: subspecies of leptopoma nitidum

«

DuFRENOY, J. La signification biologique des pigment et des essences. Rev.

G6n. Sci. 28: 575-580. 1917.
DuPRENOY, J. L' utilisation et la degradation pigmenaires de I'energie. Rev.

Gen. Sci. 29: 132-134. 1918.
DuFRENOY, J. Les conditions ecologiques du developpement des champignons

parasites. Bull. Soc. Mycol. France. 1918 (In press).
P0TON16, H. Das Wesen der Organismenmerkmale. Naturw. Wochenschr.

27: 193-200. 1912.
Maire. Ren6. Maladies des vegetaux ligneux de I'Afrique du nord. 1. Les

faux balais de sorciere de I'Arbousier. Bull. Stat. Rech. For. Nord

Afr. 1: 121-128. 1916.
Rayner, Cheveley. Obligate symbiosis in Calluna vulgaris. Annals of Botanv

29: 97-133. 1915.
Schellenberg, H. C. Zur kenntniss der WinterruJie in den Zweigen einiger

Hexen-besen. Ber. Deutsch. Bot. Ges. 33: 118-126. 1915.
VuiLLEMiN, P. Revue de mycologie. Rev. G6n. Sci. 28: 472-476. 1917.

ZOOLOGY. — A key to the subspecies of Leptopoma nitidum
Sowerby of the Philippine Islands. Paul Bartsch/ U. S.
National Museum.

In the preparation of the monograph on the Phihppine oper-
culate land shells, so many interesting and important facts are
presenting themselves that it is deemed wise to publish a syn-
opsis of the various groups and superspecies from time to time,
with the hope that these synopses and keys may stimulate
collectors to look for material in localities which so far have
remained unworked, in order that the final monograph may give
us a more complete resume of the members constituting the
Philippine Island faunas. It is for this purpose that the present
synopsis and key to the Philippine land shells of the Leptopoma
nitidum complex have been prepared.

Leptopoma nitidum

Shell polished, shining, white, excepting the tip, which, in some of
the subspecies, is dark. The earliest part of the nepionic turns are
smooth, while the succeeding portion is marked by slender, equal and
equally or sub-equally spaced spiral threads which vary in number
from five to eight in the different subspecies. These spiral lirations
terminate with the nepionic whorls in some of the subspecies, while in
others the}' extend for almost two turns beyond it. The nepionic
whorls are also marked by strong incremental lines which frequently
give the summit of the turns a slightly crenulated appearance. Post-
nepionic whorls strongly inflated, rounded, marked by incremental
lines and spiral striations which vary in strength and closeness of spac-
ing in the different subspecies. Suture strongly constricted. Periph-

1 Published by permission of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.

bartsch: subspecies of leptopoma nitidum 533

ery vaiying from well rounded to feebly, obsoletely angled in the
various subspecies. Base umbilicated, well rounded, usually sculp-
tured like the upper portion of the last whorl. Aperture subcircular;
outer lip reflected and expanded; inner lip strongh^ curved and decidedly
excavated; parietal wall narrow, covered with a thin callus. Oper-
culum membranaceous.

The size of the shell varies from the huge Leptopoma nitidum guima-
rasensis from Guimaras Island, to the small Leptopoma nitidum
ancilis from Cebu.

The character of the incised spiral sculpture, particularly that of the
last whorl, enables one to separate this complex into three distinct
groups. In the first of these, the incised lines are deep and rather
distantl}^ spaced. This group embraces, L. n. siquijorensis from
Siquijor Island, L. n. guimarasensis from Guimaras Island, and L. n.
darajuayensis from Darajuay Island.

The second group has the incised spiral sculpture of the same strength
as in the first group, but the striations are more closely placed and
these, in connection with the lines of growth, are so arranged as to
give the surface of the last whorl the appearance of a cloth-like texture.
There are seven subspecies belonging to this group, L. n. atropos from
Polillo Island, L. n. cebuensis, from Cebu Island, L. w. hutauananensis
from Butauanan Island, L. n. bnsiaoensis from Basiao Island, L. n.
macidahoensis from ]\Iaculabo Island, L. n. leytensis, from Leyte, and
L. n. nitidum from northern Luzon. Of these, the first three have an
obsolete spiral thread at the periphery while the last four have this
portion of the shell evenly rounded. It is interesting to note that in
some of these forms the spiral lirations characteristic of the nepiojiic
whorls of all the members of the nitidum group, extend beyond the
nepionic portion of the shell.

In the third and last group, the spiral sculpture is feeble and consists
of feebly incised, wavy lines. This group embraces five subspecies,
L. n. romblonensis from Romblon Island, L. n. panayensis from Panay
Island, L. n. anaitis from Cebu, L. n. unionensis from Luzon, and
L. n. artemisia from the small island of Panay, of the Catanduanes
Group, off Eastern Luzon.

Key to the subspecies of Leptopoma nitidum Sowerby

Spiral sculpture consisting of strong, deeply incised lines.
Spiral striations distantly spaced on the last whorl.

Nepionic whorls brown 1. siqxiijorensis

Nepionic whorls white.

534 bartsch: subspecies of leptopoma nitidum

Shell more than 20 mm. in diameter. . . 2. guimarasensis
Shell less than 18 mm. in diameter.

Umbilicus more than half covered. . 3. darajuayensis

Umbilicus less than half covered 4. samarensis

Spiral striations closely spaced on the last whorl.
Obsolete peripheral thread present.

Spiral lirations confined to the nepionic whorls

5. atropos
Spiral lirations not confined to the nepionic whorls.

Umbilicus more than half covered 6. cebnensis

Umbilicus less than half covered. . 7. butauananensis
Obsolete peripheral thread absent.

Spiral lirations confined to the nepionic whorls.

8. basiaoensis
Spiral lirations not confined to the nepionic whorls.
Shell more than 16.5 mm. in diameter.
Umbilicus less than half covered.

9. vtaculaboensis
Umbilicus more than half covered . . 10. leytensis

Shell less than 15 mm. in diameter 11. nitidum

Spiral sculpture consisting of weak, feebly incised lines.

Nepionic whorls brown 12. romblonensis

Nepionic whorls white.

Spiral lirations confined to the nepionic whorls.

Shell more than 19 mm. in diameter 13. panayensis

Shell less than 14 mm. in diameter 14. anaitis

Spiral lirations not confined to the nepionic whorls.

Shell more than 18 mm. in diameter 15. unionensis

Shell less than 16 mm. in diameter 16. artemisia

The type locality, measurements, and disposition of the types
are shown in table 1. All of the above subspecies excepting
number 11, L. n. nitidum Sowerby, are new.

bartsch: subspecies of leptopoma nitidum

535

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ABSTRACTS

Authors of scientific papers are requested to see that abstracts, preferably
prepared and signed by themselves, are forwarded promptly to the editors.
The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those appearing
in this issue.

RADIOMETRY. — The photo-electric cell and other selective radiometers.
W. W. CoBLENTz. Bur. stand. Sci. Paper., No. 319. Pp. 29.
1918.

This paper deals with the apphcation of special physical and chemi-
cal properties of matter, as a means of quantitatively measuring radi-
ant energy.

Certain substances have the property of decreasing in electrical
resistance when exposed to radiant energy of short wave-lengths,
especially the visible and ultra-violet rays. Crystalline selenium
belongs to this class of substances. The sensitivity of the selenium
cell varies not only .with the wave-length but also with the intensity
of the light stimulus; and it recovers but slowly from the effects of
the light stimulus. It therefore fails to meet the requirements of a
radiometer, except that of high sensitivity.

The application of the photo-chemical action upon a photographic
plate, as a means of making quantitative radiometric measurements is
considered. While this method of radiometry has been used success-
fully, its applications seem to be rather limited.

The alkali metals, and especially their hydrides, are very sensitive
to light stimuli. Photo-electric cells made of these substances can be
constructed and operated so that the response (photo-electric current
released) is proportional to the intensity of the stimulus. This meets
one of the principal requirements of a satisfactory radiometer. Details
of constructions, operation, and characteristics of the photo-electric
cell are given, and a satisfactory, high-resistance, iron-clad Thomson
galvanometer is described, which may be used successfully with the
photo-electric cell.

The advantages of the photo-electric cell over the thermopile are
considered and the application of the former is advocated for measure-
ments of radiant energy (especially ratios of intensities) in the violet
and ultra-violet parts of the spectrum, where the photo-electric cell
greatly exceeds the thermopile and the bolometer in sensitivity

w. w. c.

536

abstracts: geology 537

METALLURGY.— rop/>^r. Bur. Stand, Ciic. No. 73. Pp. 103.
1918.

A compilation is given of the most accurate published infoi-mation
concerning the physical and mechanical properties of the metal copper,
together with data and discussion on the effect of higher and lower
temperatures upon the physical properties as well as that of impurities
in the metal. The circular is concluded with a comprehensive bibliog-
raphy of the subject, and some typical standard specifications for the
metal in different forms.

This circular is one of a series dealing with properties of metals and
alloys.

GEOLOGY. — The Quaternary geology of southeastern Wisconsin, with
a chapter on the older rock formations. William C. Alden. U. S.
Geol. Survey Prof. Paper 106. Pp. 356, with 39 plates and 21
figures. 1918.

This report treats of the southeastern quarter of the State of Wis-
consin, an area of more than ten thousand square miles. The main
interest of this paper may be said to center in the phenomena devel-
oped by the Green , Bay glacier and their relations to surrounding
areas. The topographic control of glacial flow is illustrated by many
interesting features. On the east this glacier, after surmounting the
Niagara escarpment, met the lateral flow of Lake Michigan glacier
head-on and the great interlobate Kettle Moraine was formed. At
the south the Green Bay ice spread with typical radial flow over the
eroded surface of an older drift sheet. It developed a remarkable
system of radiating drumlins, with eskers, outwash plains, and reces-
sional moraines. On the west the glacier encroached on the Driftless
Area and the relations of the ice to a well-marked erosion topography
may be studied in detail.

The Paleozoic rock formations are mapped and described, physio-
graphic development and preglacial topography are discussed, and the
configuration of the bed rock and its relations to the many beautiful
lakes and the present drainage system are shown on a map.

The glacial phenomena are illustrated by one of the finest maps of
glacial deposits ever published. This map, on a scale of about 4 miles
per inch, shows in colors the relations of the various drift features to
the drainage and roads of each township. The report and accompany-
ing maps should be of interest to general and scientific readers and be
of great value to the schools and colleges of Wisconsin and other
states. W. C. A.

538 abstracts: geology

GEOLOGY. — The Salt Creek oil field, Wyoming. Carroll H. Wege-
MANN. U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 670. Pp. 52, with maps and
illustrations. 1918.
This report describes the rock formations from Jurassic to Tertiary
in age that are exposed in the field, and depicts the structure in detail.
The oil is found in Upper Cretaceous sandstones and was probably
derived from the remains of small sea plants or animals which were
buried in the thick beds of Cretaceous mud that formed the shales
lying below the sandstones in which the oil now is stored. The distri-
bution of oil in the Salt Creek, Shannon, and Teapot pools are given,
and the future output is estimated.

R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — Gravel deposits of the Caddo Gap and De Queen quad-
rangles, Arkansas. Hugh D. Miser and A. H. Purdue. U. S.
Geol. Survey Bull. 690-B. Pp. 15, with maps and illustrations.
1918.
The gravels are of Lower Cretaceous, Upper Cretaceous, and Quater-
nary age, and are composed mainly of pebbles of novaculite (a variety
of chert) derived from the Arkansas novaculite exposed in the Ouachita
Mountain region, which is north of the Gulf Coastal Plain. The main
reasons for the preparation of this report are to present a description
of the gravels and to indicate the possibility of their use in tube mills.

R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — Quicksilver deposits of the Phoenix Mountains, Arizona.
Frank C. Schrader. U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 690-D. Pp. 15,
with maps. 1918.
The quicksilver deposits here described are 10 miles northeast of
Phoenix and about the same distance east of Glendale, the nearest
railway stations, in the southwest slope of the range. They occur in
schist belts, in zones of shearing or fracture that parallel the lamination
in the inclosing schist. The deposits consist mainly of portions of the
country rock which have been more than normally crushed and madje
schistose and later mineralized. They contain numerous specks,
veinlets, films, small bodies, and crystals of cinnabar and metacinna-
barite. A few globules of native quicksilver associated with the cinna-
bar ore have been reported. The gangue minerals, the chief constit-
uents of certain stringers and veinlets, are quartz, calcite, hematite,
and limonite. Kyanite and tourmaline are locally abundant in the ore.

R. W. Stone.

abstracts: geology 539

GEOLOGY. — Geology and oil prospects of the Salinas Valley-Park-
field area, California. Walter A. English. U. S. Geol. Survey
Bull. 691-H. Pp. 32, with maps. 1918.

The rocks of this part of the Coast Ranges are divisible on the basis
of their lithologic character and structural reactions into four major
units, the pre-Franciscan rocks, largely granitic rocks and schists; the
Franciscan formation, with associated basic igneous rocks; Cretaceous
dark-colored marine shale and sandstone; and the Tertiary beds, con-
sisting of buff to brown weathering marine shale, sandstone, con-
glomerate, and fresh-water and subaerial deposits, of variable lithology
and thickness.

The pre-Franciscan, Franciscan, and Cretaceous are older than any
rocks known to be oil-bearing in this region, and any area over which
they crop out may at once be condemned as not oil bearing. The
Tertiary is divided into the diatomaceous shale group (Salinas shale
and shale of the Santa Margarita formation) and the underlying and
overlying beds. The diatomaceous shales are the probable sources
of an}' oil which may be found in this region, and the oil is to be looked
for in beds close to the shales, especially those overlying them.

Long anticlinal ridges and synclinal valleys modified by erosion
constitute the larger ridges and valleys as they now exist. The San
Andreas fault, which produced the San Francisco earthquake, is the
dominating structural feature of this region.

R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — New determinations of carbon dioxide in ivater of the
Gulf of Mexico. Roger C. Wells. V. S. Geol. Survey Prof.
Paper 120-A. Pp. 16. 1918.
The determinations of carbon dioxide in water of the Gulf of Mexico
recorded in this paper show that the total carbon dioxide increases
with depth, that is, with decreasing temperature, and the amounts
found are very near though slightly below those required for equilib-
rium with atmospheric carbon dioxide, as calculated by Fox's equa-
tion. Determinations of the total concentration of base held in bal-
ance with the carbonate and bicarbonate radicles were also made; this
quantity apparently increases slightly with decreasing temperature.
The data presented do not permit an exact evaluation of the "free"
carbon dioxide in the water, but a consideration of the uncertain fac-
tors upon which computation of the free carbon dioxide rests indicates
that the amount is probably so small in the Gulf water that no appre-

540 abstracts: ornithology

ciable error is made by expressing the total carbon dioxide found as a
mixture of carbonate and bicarbonate.

R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — Deposits of Claiborne and Jackson age in Georgia. C.
W. Cooke and H. K. Shearer. U. S. Geol. Survey Prof. Paper
120-C. Pp. 41, with geologic map and figures. 1918.

Intensive field work, supplemented by critical study of the fossils,
has resulted in the following changes in the interpretation of the strati-
graphy of the Eocene of the Coastal Plain of Georgia:

The deposits of Claiborne age, which had been thought to extend
uninterruptedly across the entire width of the State, are restricted to
two areas, an eastern area, along Savannah River and McBean Creek,
and a western area, between Flint and Chattahoochee Rivers. For
the deposits in the eastern area, the name McBean formation is re-
tained ; the deposits in the western area are designated Undifferentiated
Claiborne. In the intermediate region, the Claiborne beds are over-
lapped by deposits of Jackson age.

The deposits of Jackson age include the Barnwell formation, which
is not of upper Claiborne age as Vaughan was led to believe by a pre-
liminary study of the fossils, and the Ocala limestone, which earlier
writers referred to the Vicksburg group. These two formations appear
to have been formed at least in part contemporaneously, but differ in
lithologic and faunal characters. The Twiggs clay member of the
Barnwell formation includes the so-called "Congaree clay member of
the McBean formation" and certain clays that were considered a part
of the Jackson formation by previous writers. The name Tivola
tongue is proposed for a wedge of bryozoan-bearing limestone that
projects from the lower part of the Ocala limestone into the Barnwell
formation.

An interesting by-product of this investigation is the discovery in
the Barnwell formation of a moUuscan fauna not previously known to
occur east of Arkansas.

C. W. C.

ORNITHOLOGY. — A Criticisrn of two recent lists of I'owa birds. Ira

N. Gabrielson. Wilson Bull. 29 : 97-100. 1917.

Some recent Iowa records of 16 species of birds are here shown to be

certainly or probably erroneous. Among these are three species,

Branta nigricans, Hierofalco mexicanus, and Cnjptoglaux funerea rich-

abstracts: ornithology 541

ardsoni, of which there is no authentic record for the State of Iowa.
All the others treated in this connection are birds of casual or at least
verj' rare and irregular occurience in the State, and i-ecords of any of
these to be accepted as valid should be most carefully authenticated.

H. C. 0.

ORNITHOLOGY.— 6'owe notes on Connecticut birds. Ira N. Gab-
RiELSON. Auk 34:461-465. 1917.
Various notes on 42 species of rare or otherwise interesting occurrence
in the State of Connecticut are herewith presented. Some of these
data relate to breeding and summer occurrence, others to migration or
accidental records. Most interesting among these are the Wilson
Petrel {Oceanites oceanicus) , which is recorded for the first time from
the State; the Black Tern {Chlidonias nigra suriiiamensis) , which is
reported for the first time in spring; and the Upland Plover (Bartramia
longicauda), which was found summering near South Windsor, Con-
necticut. Harry C. Oberholser..

ORNITHOLOGY. — Further notes on Alabamahirds. Lew^sS. Golsan
and Ernest G. Holt. Auk 34: 456-457. 1917.
Notes are here given on ten species of birds, seven of which are addi-
tions to the list of Autauga and Montgomery County (Alabama)
birds previously published by the same authors. Of these, NuttaUornis
borealis and Spinus pinus pinus are the second published State records;
and Thryo77ianes bewickii bewickii probably indicates the southern
breeding limit for the species within the State.

Harry C. Oberholser.

ORNITHOLOGY.— .Some local names of birds. W. L. McAtee. Wil-
son Bull. 29 : 74-95. 1917.
Local names of birds are of interest, both from a scientific and philo-
logical point of view. The present list is a continuation of one previ-
ously published by the writer to supplement Gurdon Trumbull's com-
pilation of vernacular names of game birds. Local names of 165 species,
about half of them water-birds and shore-birds, are here given, in many
cases several names for each bird. A partial bibliography of local bird
nomenclature is included, together with an alphabetical index to all the
local names mentioned in this paper. Harry C. Oberholser.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 586th regular meeting of the Society was held in the Meeting
House of the Friends' School, 1809 I St. N. W. Saturday, May 18,
1918; called to order at 8.40 p.m. by President Rose; 50 persons present.

On recommendation of the Council the following named persons
were elected to membership in the Society: Rudolph Martin Ander-
son, Zoologist, Geological Survey, Ottawa, Canada; W. C. Henderson,
Biological Survey, Washington, D. C; Ralph V. Chamberlin, Mu-
seum Comparative Zoology, Cambridge, Mass. ; J. R. de la Torre
BuENO, White Plains, N. Y.; Amos W. Butler, Room 93, State House,
Indianapolis, Indiana.

President Rose announced that he had received the copy of Ex-
President Roosevelt's book A Booklover's Holiday in the Open referred
to at the 584th meeting. The copy was passed among the members of
the Society. President Rose said he would make suitable acknowl-
edgment.

Mr. W. L. McAtee called attention to the appearance of Bulletin
1 , A Sketch of the Natural History of the District of Columbia together
with an indexed edition of the U. S. Geological Survey's 1917 Map of
Washington and Vicinity. The cost is S2.00 per copy or S2.15 sent by
mail. Copies of the bulletin were on hand for distribution. Already
40 copies had been disposed of and it was hoped the work would have
a ready sale in order that the Society might recover its investment.

The regular program was an illustrated lecture by Dr. J. C. Mer-
RL\M, Cave hunting in California. Dr. Merriam gave a very interest-
ing account of his explorations of certain caves of California. He
discussed the bearing of his discoveries in these caves on anthropology
and paleontology. There was no evidence of Pleistocene man in his
findings.

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

542

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

A wireless message from Libbeyville, Alaska, on August 18, 1918,
announces that the National Geographic Society's party in the Valley
of Ten Thousand Smokes, in charge of Mr. Jasper Sayre, has made
continuous records of the temperature of more than one hundred vents
and has extended the map of the area to Bristol Bay.

Dr. W. L. Argo, formerly of the University of California, has been
commissioned a lieutenant in the Chemical Warfare Service and has
been sent to France.

Dr. Samuel Avery of the University of Nebraska, who has been for
the past several months with the National Research Council, has been
commissioned a major in the Chemical Warfare Service and placed
in charge of the University Relations Section.

Mr. William Bowie, hydrographic and geodetic engineer, and chief
of the division of geoclesy of the U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey,
has been commissioned a major in the Engineer Corps, U. S. A., and
has been assigned to duty in the department of map making.

Major Charles B. Davenport, Sanitary Corps, N. A., formerly
director of the Department of Experimental Evolution of the Car-
negie Institution, has been placed in charge of thr Section of Anthro-
pology of the Division of Medical Records. This new section, which
is organized under the Surgeon General's Office of the Army, was
created on July 23, 1918.

Mr. Henry M. Eakin, formerl}^ with the Alaska Division of the
U. S. Geological Survey, resigned in April to enter the employment
of a large lumber company in Alger, Washington, as topographer and
forester.

Prof. Moses Gomberg, professor of organic chemistry at the Uni-
versity of Michigan, has been commissioned a major in the Ordnance
Department and is stationed in Washington.

Prof. A. S. Hitchcock, Bureau of Plant Industry, spent the month
of August studying and collecting grasses in Arkansas, Oklahoma,
Texas, and Colorado.

Prof. Edw^\rd V. Huntington is on leave of absence from Harvard
University and has been commissioned a major, with assignment to
statistical study under the General Staff in Washington.

c43

544 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Capt. John Duer Irving, professor of economic geology at the
Sheffield Scientific School of Yale University, died of pneumonia in
France in the early part of August, 1918. He was at one time a mem-
ber of the U. S. Geological Survey, and was actively associated with
the work of the Academy and the Geological Society of Washington at
that period. He had been at Yale since 1907. A memorial service
for Captain Irving was held on Sunday, August 4, by local members
of the geological and mining engineering organizations of which he
was a member.

Prof. Arthur B. Lamb, of the chemical department of Harvard
College, and lately on the staff of the Bureau of Mines at the Ameri-
can University Experiment Station, has been commissioned a Lieuten-
ant-Colonel in the Chemical Warfare Service.

Mr. Robert Christian McKinney, for many years a member of
the topographic branch of the U. S. Geological Survey, died on July
27, 1918, at the age of sixty-two.

Dr. Albert Mann, of the Bureau of Plant Industry, has been de-
tailed by the Secretary of Agriculture, at the request of the Secretary
of Commerce, for special work on the diatom flora of the W^oods Hole
region, at the Bureau of Fisheries laboratory at Woods Hole, Massa-
chusetts.

Dr. Alfred R. Schultz has presented his resignation from the
U. S. Geological Survey, effective October 1, 1918, and has gone to
Hudson, Wisconsin, as manager of a hydro-electric power and milling
company .

Prof. Aaron Nichols Skinner, formerly professor of mathematics
at the U. S. Naval Academy and assistant astronomer of the Naval
Observatory, died on August 14, 1918, in his seventy-fourth year. He
had been with the Naval Observatory since 1870, devoting his atten-
tion principally to meridian-circle observations. He became pro-
fessor of mathematics at the Naval Academy in 1898, and retired in
1907. He was the last of the corps who were contemporaries at the
Observatory with Newcomb, Hall, Eastman, and Harkness.

Prof. R. C. ToLMAN, formerly of the University of Illinois, who has
been on leave of absence for work at the Amei'ican University Experi-
ment Station, has been commissioned a major in the Chemical War-
fare Service.

Dr. H. S. Washington, of the Geophysical Laboratory, has been
appointed chemical associate to the scientific attaches at the American
embassies in Paris and Rome.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VIII OCTOBER 4, 1918 No. 16

PHYSICS. — Some peculiar thermoelectric effects. Paul D. Foote
and T. R. Harrison, Bureau of Standards.

Benedicks^ has recently published a description of experimental
work from which the conclusion was drawn that a nonsym-
metrical temperature gradient in a homogeneous wire gives rise
to a galvanometrically measurable thermoelectric emf; Dr.
Benedicks claims priority for this discovery and proposes the
following table as a summary of the discoveries in thermo-
electricit}^

TABLE 1

Discoveries in Thermoelectricity

CIHCUIT

Heterogeneous

Homogeneous

A difference of temperatures (asymmetrical)
produces an electric current

An electric current produces a difference of
temperatures

Seebeck, 1823
Peltier, 1834

Benedicks, 1916
Thomson, 1856

Effects of the kind described by Benedicks have been long
observed at the Geophysical Laboratory of this city, and at the
Bureau of Standards especially in connection with the routine
homogeneity testing of thermocouples. We have found that
thermoelectric emfs may be developed by touching a hot wire
to a cold wire of the same material, by crossing two wires and

1 Compt. Rend. 163: 751-3.
Metallurgie 15:329-32. 1918.

1916. Compt. Rend. 165:391-4. 1917. Rev. d.

545

546 FOOTE AND HARRISON: THERMOELECTRIC EFFECTS

heating one of the wires near the junction, by drawing rapidly a
hot wire over a cold wire, by joining two wires of different di-
ameters and heating either wire near the junction, by filing a
groove or a v-shaped depression in a metal rod and heating this
portion of the rod, by passing a flame over a wire, and by numer-
ous other methods. The avoiding of these parasitic emfs has
made homogeneity testing a matter of some difficulty.

All of these effects are well known and were discovered from half
a century to a century ago. Many of them are treated in Wiede-
mann's Lehre von der Elektriciidt, vol. 2. They are still of interest,
however, because conclusive evidence has not been given for the
causes of the various effects observed. Many reasons have been
suggested and have been supported by theory and experiment,
and no doubt among these many possible explanations one or
more are correct, but the absolute proof of their correctness
remains to be demonstrated. Thus, for example. Benedicks pre-
sents an experimental proof in which he makes use of a mag-
netic field. The conditions were such that very likely he
observed the well-known Nernst and von Ettingshausen effect
instead of the pure thermoelectric effect supposed.

The priority for the discovery of these thermoelectric effects
probably belongs to Benjamin Franklin and Cavendish,- in
1769, or 147 years prior to Benedick's work. These investiga-
tors found that when a hot and a cold bar of the same metal
were placed in contact, the cold bar became positively charged,
as shown by measurements with an electroscope.

The first evidence of the existence of a current in such a cir-
cuit was obtained by Rittei'^ in 1798. In the absence of am-
meters a pair of frogs was employed. The twitching of the legs
showed that positive current flowed in the circuit, frog leg — cold
Zn — (hot Zn-cold Zn) — frog leg.

Since 1800 numerous observers have investigated the subject.
Indeed about 1850 these effects were thought by some, possibly
rightly, to be more fundamental than the Seebeck effect, and it
was believed that their study would lead to an interpretation

2 Franklin and Cavendish. Experimental Observations on Electricity, p.
403. 1769.

3RITTER. Gilb. Ann. 9:292. 1801.

FOOTE AND HARRISON: THERMOELECTRIC EFFECTS 547

of the latter phenomenon. Some interesting names appear in
the hst of early investigators, for example, Becquerel, 1823;
Nobili, 1834; Peltier, 1838; Matteuci, 1838; de Heer, 1840;
Gaugain, 1862; Coulomb; Righi, 1875; Knott, 1879; Tomlinson,
1888; Stroud, 1889; etc.

Seebeck, 1826, suggested that the emf developed in a single
wire on heating asynmietrically was due to a hardening and soft-
ening of different portions of the metal. He found that an emf
is developed by heating the junction of two similar wires of dif-
ferent diameters. Magnus, 1851, after a most thorough inves-
tigation, believed the emf developed by touching a hot and a
cold wire to be due to a change in hardness produced by heat-
ing. Jenkin,"* 1862-3, performed a series of very elaborate ex-
periments identical with those described by Benedicks in 1917.
Jenkin concluded that the emf obtained by heating crossed
wires was due to an oxide film acting w^ith the metal under-
neath as an ordinary thermocouple, and that a sufficient tem-
perature gradient existed through the film to account for the
very large emfs observed. The magnitude of these was em-
phasized by the statement "to my surprise it was not until I
had added resistance equal to that of 2000 miles of the Red
Sea cable, that I reduced the deflections within range of m}^
galvanometer." Jenkin proved that the effect was not chemical
or electrolytic. The emf developed by touching hot and cold
metal was also explained by x film of oxide. He proved that
this latter effect could not be due to static electricity. He
recognized that it is questionable to attribute the emfs devel-
oped with silver, gold and platinum to surface oxidations and
raised the point as to whether the physical property of a metal
depends not only upon its temperature but upon the time du'"ing
which it has been at this temperature. Jenkin further advo-
cated the theory of change in hardening of the two metals
placed in contact.

Durham, 1872, observed that the magnitude of the emf de-
veloped on placing hot and cold metal in contact was propor-
tional to the original temperature difference of the two metals.

< Jenkin. British Ass. Rep. 31: 39-41. 1862. Idem. 32: 173-8. 1863.

548 FOOTE AND HARRISON: THERMOELECTRIC EFFECTS

Trouton, 1886, considered the emf developed by moving a
flame along a homogeneous wire. From an interesting experi-
ment he concluded that the emf is a function of 8W/8x8t i.e.,
of the rate of change of the temperature gradient along the wire,
and that an emf galvanometrically measurable could not be de-
veloped by a temperature gradient alone however asymmetrical.
He suggests that the effect is due to either a permanent altera-
tion in the wire, or, with some metals, to a temporary altera-
tion which lags behind the temperature change. In this he con-
firms the opinion of Jenkin.

Steel, ^ 1893, under the title ''A new thermoelectric phenome-
non" describes several of the above mentioned effects, while
Turnbull,'' 1894, calls attention to the fact that these effects
have been known for years. Turnbull suggests that the emfs
are due to strain, an explanation given by LeRoux, 1867, and
others.

Backhmetieff and Stambolieff,^ 1895, heated a homogeneous
wire by an electric current. The heating current was then cut
off and the two ends of the wire were connected to a galvan-
ometer w^hile the wire cooled. "The direction of the current
was almost without exception opposite to the direction of the
original heating current. "(!)

An interesting discussion appeared in the German technical
journal Elektro Teknische Zeitschrift 1900-4. Egg-Sieberg ''dis-
covered" that emfs were developed on heating an iron wire by a
moving flame, on touching hot to cold iron, and on heating an
iron" wire dipping into water — thus causing an asymmetrical
temperature gradient. He concluded that since the Thomson
effect was established it was quite reasonable to assume that
this depended upon the steepness of the temperature gradient.
Hence in a homogeneous circuit having an asymmetrical tem-
perature gradient, a measurable emf is developed on account of
the gradient coefficient of the Thomson effect.

5 Steel. Science, 22: 256. 1893.

« Turnbull. Science, 23: 91-2. 1894.

' Journ. Russ. Phys. Chem. Soc. 27: 1-25. 1895.

FOOTE AND HARRISON: THERMOELECTRIC EFFECTS 549

Schneider, 1904, repeated the above experiments and con-
chided that the effect was due to oxide. This conclusion was
undoubtedly correct, especially in connection with his own work,
as the resistance of the wires used increased during heating from
2 ohms to 100,000 ohms, and emfs amounting to a half volt
were observed.

Hirschson, 1904, suggested that the above effect was due
both to the thermoelectric action of the oxide and metal and to
the fact that the oxide acted as a shunt on the iron to which it
adhered. He showed that the measured potential difference
may be in either direction depending upon the extent of the
oxidation.

Rosing^ investigated the emfs developed by touching hot
and cold metals. He observed no emf for lead. For gold, silver,
copper, u'on, tin and platinum the current flows in one direction,
in the reversed direction for palladium and German silver, and in
either direction for aluminum depending upon the temperature.
He relates the effects for these metals to the thermoelectric
power relative to lead. The metals of the first group have a
positive thermoelectric power, while those of the second group
have a negative thermoelectric power. The thermoelectric power
of aluminum is either positive or negative depending upon the
temperature.

The only new suggestion which the writers are able to add to
the confusion already existing is that the sign of the emfs de-
veloped upon touching hot and cold m.etal appears to have some
relation to the sign of the Thomson effect.

The object of the present note has been two-fold. First, to
call attention to the fact that the existence of many of these
curious thermoelectric forces, ''rediscovered" every decade, has
been well recognized for over a century, and secondly, to point
out that no conclusive evidence for their cause has been ad-
vanced although nearly all conceivable causes have at times
been suggested.

8 Rosing. Journ. Russ. Phys. Chem. Soc. 30: 151. 1898.

550 WATSON AND WHERRY: PYROLUSITE FROM VIRGINIA

GEOLOGY AND MmEUALOGY .—Pyrolusite from Virginia.
Thomas L. Watson, University of Virginia, and Edgar T.
Wherry, Bureau of Chemistry.

PART I. GEOLOGY

Much of the manganese ore mined at Powells Fort on north-
east Massanutten Mountain 6 miles north of east of Woodstock,
Shenandoah County, Virginia, is crystalline in structure and
of a high degree of purity. Prior to mining operations by the
present company, the Stockwood Realty Corporation, the mine
had been worked at different times for a long period of years,
and the ore shipped was described as being remarkably clean and
a high grade of soft crystallized pyrolusite. Crystals of the man-
ganese mineral ranging up to more than a millimeter across are
plentiful and are more abundant than at any other manganese
mine known to the writer.

During the course of recent field investigations of Virginia
manganese deposits for the State Geological Survey, collections of
both the crystals and crystalline mineral were made by the writer
for laboratory study. Specimens of the crystals were submitted
to Doctor Edgar T. Wherry, of the Bureau of Chemistry, United
States Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C, for
crystallographic study, the results of which form Part II of this
paper.

In the known deposits of manganese-oxide ores of the southeast
Atlantic states, the important ore minerals are usually given as
psilomelane, pyrolusite, manganite, and wad. Braunite, which
is reported to be a characteristic mineral in association with
psilomelane in the Arkansas deposits, has not, so far as the writer
is aware, been definitely identified, in the manganese deposits
of the southeastern Atlantic states. In their principal occur-
rences two or more of these minerals are usually intimately asso-
ciated, the most common being probably psilomelane and pyrolu-
site. The manganese-oxide mineral occurring in crystal form in
these deposits has been regarded by some as pyrolusite, and by
others as manganite. Both may be present, but their identifica-
tion has been based almost without exception on a few physical

WATSON AND WHERRY: PYROLUSITE FROM VIRGINIA 551

tests, rather than estabHshed by accurate chemical analysis, or
a combination of the two.

The chief object of the present study is definitely to establish
the mineral identity both of the crystals and crystalline mineral
from the Virginia locality, and to direct attention by way of
suggestion to the possible bearing on other occurrences.

Little Fort Valley in which the manganese deposits occur is
structurally a synclinal valley composed of Silurian and Devonian
sediments. At the Stockwood Realty Corporation's mine where
the specimens forming the basis of this study were collected, the
manganese oxide ore is associated with Oriskany conglomerate,
the quartz pebbles of which range up to half an inch in diameter,
and with a fine- to medium-grained sandstone just below, which
probably is Salina but may prove upon detailed study to be
Oriskany. These are brittle siliceous rocks that have been frac-
tured and brecciated in the trough of the syncline where the
manganese ore is concentrated. Most of the ore is apparently in
the underlying light-colored sandstone, which is brecciated and
replaced by manganese oxide. Where impregnation and re-
placement of the sandstone by manganese oxide have not reached
an advanced stage, the ore is low grade and siliceous.

The sandstone is nearly white when fresh and not mineralized,
composed almost entirely of quartz, and weathers to a light
rusty brown. Microscopic examination of the mineralized rock
shows, besides quartz and manganese oxide, an occasional zircon,
and rather frequent hair-like inclusions of rutile. Much of the
quartz exhibits pronounced optical disturbance and often granu-
lation. Enlargement of the quartz grains was not observed.

Wad occurs, but most of the ore observed at the time of my
visit was crystalline pyrolusite developed largely by replace-
ment of quartz from circulating ground waters, but partly also
as a breccia-filling or cement and partly as crusts coating joint
surfaces and other spacings in the rocks.

Replacement of the rock by black manganese oxide (pyrolusite)
is plainly shown in hand specimens. All stages of replacement
are readily traced in thin sections under the microscope, from the
incipient stage in which the quartz grains show only slight

552 WATSON AND WHERRY: PYROLUSITE FROM VIRGINIA

attack, through advanced stages in which only a few or many
scattered small fragments of residuary quartz remain, to the com-
pleted stage composed of all pyrolusite without visible quartz.
The partly replaced, fine-grained rock of blue-black color is
referred to locally as bluestone.

In this connection it is of interest to note that similar replace-
ment of Cambrian quartzite by manganese oxide in the Virginia
part of the Piedmont Plateau province is well shown in hand
specimens and thin sections from the Myers manganese mine,
east of Lynchburg in Campbell County. Also the formation of
pyrolusite by replacement of quartzite in the Jubalpur district.
Central Provinces, India, has been described in detail by Fermor.^

Pyrolusite crystals measuring more than a millimeter across
are abundant at the Virginia locality in cavities and spacings in
both the ore and the rock. They vary in habit from tabular to
wedge-shaped, and frequently form closely interlocking aggre-
gates on the surfaces of joint planes, coatings on crusts of crystal-
line fibrous or columnar pyrolusite, and linings of small irregular
spacings in the blue-black ore; the latter appears amorphous to
the unaided eye, but much of it is seen to be minutely crystalline
granular under the magnifying lens.

Of the large number of specimens tested, of both the crystals
and the crystalline mineral, all exhibited the physical and chemi-
cal properties of pyrolusite and none exhibited those of manganite.
Although careful search was made and numerous tests applied,
not a single specimen indicated the presence of manganite.
Without exception the crystals tested were soft, not exceeding
2.5 in hardness, and readily soiled the fingers. Color, steel
gray on fresh surfaces, black on other surfaces; luster, metallic;
and streak, black to slightly bluish black. Careful determi-
nations of the specific gravity gave 4.748 (crystals) and 4.885-
(crystalline) , values that correspond to those for pyrolusite and
are much higher than that for manganite.

1 Fermor, L. Leigh. Memoirs Geo). Survey India 37: Ft. IV, pp. 811-814.
1909.

2 Average of three determinations.

WATSON AND WHERRY: PYROLUSITE FROM VIRGINIA

553

Chemically also the crystals and crystalline mineral correspond
to pyrolusite, as shown in analyses of carefully selected samples
of each given in columns I and II of table 1. There are given
for comparison in columns III and IV analyses of pyrolusite
crystals, and in column V "pseudomanganite"^ from India/

TABLE 1
Analyses of Pyrolusite Crystals and Pseudomanganite

I

II

III

IV

v

MnOa

94.30
2.25
0.22
0.14
0.33
0.08

0.64
0.52
0.22
1.53

95.22
1.31
0.17
0.18
0.40
0.11

0.63
0.58
0.16
1.46

96.73
0.57
0.23
0.18

0.66
0.76
0.42

0.45"

97.04
0.43
0.03
0.17
0.07
0.90
0.47
0.41

0.35

92.90

MnO

1.47

FeoOs

1.885

AI.O3

BaO

CaO

0.86

MgO

0.52

SiO..

0.47

PoOo

H,0-

HoO-r

1.94

100.23

100.22

100.0

99.87

100.04

Specific gravity

4.748

4.885^

4.94

4.470

I. Pj^Tolusite crystals from Stockwood Realty Corporation's mine, 6
miles east of Woodstock, Shenandoah County, Virginia. S. D.
Gooch, analyst.
II. Crystalline fibrous pyrolusite from Stockwood Realty Corpora-
tion's mine, 6 miles east of Woodstock, Shenandoah County,
Virginia. S. D. Gooch, analyst.

^ The name pseudomanganite was proposed by Termor (Memoirs Geol. Survey,
India 37: Pt. I, p. 85. 1909) for pyrolusite pseudomorphous after manganite,
that occupies both chemically and physically the interval between manganite
and pyrolusite. The important physical properties of the three minerals are
tabulated by Fermor on p. 86.

■* For a description of the minerals and a discussion of the analyses, see Fer-
mor (Memoirs Geol. Survey India 37: Pt. I, pp. 78-86. 1909).

5 Mostly AI2O3.

^ By difference.

" Average of three determinations.

554 WATSON AND WHERRY: PYROLUSITE FROM VIRGINIA

III. Pyrolusite crystals from Bikonhalli, Shimoga district, Mysore.

C. S. Fawcitt, analj^st. (Memoirs Geol. Survey India, Pt. I,
p. 82. 1909.)

IV. Pyrolusite crystals (longish, dull, prismatic crystals of nearly

square form) from Ghatia in Banswd,ra State, Rijputdna. C.
S. Fawcitt, analyst. (Memoirs Geol. Survey India, Pt. I, p.
82. 1909.)
V. Pseudomanganite, bronzy luster, from Sandur Hills, India. C. S.
Fawcitt, analyst. (Memoirs Geol. Survey India, Pt. I, p. 84.
1909.)

From the analyses it will be seen that the resemblance in com-
position of the crystals and crystalline mineral from Virginia is
remarkably close, and the correspondence of each to the Indian
pyrolusite is evident. The physical characters of each are alike
and, as shown above, are those of pyrolusite. Each shows the
presence of a small quantity of manganous oxide and about 1.5
per cent of combined water, which would usually be interpreted
as the remnants left in the change of the mineral from manganite
to pyrolusite, on the basis that the pyrolusite is pseudomorphous
after manganite. The water, on the other hand, might be ac-
counted for on the basis of hydration. Such alteration from man-
ganite to pyrolusite has been generally regarded as easily ac-
complished and involves, chemically, dehydration and oxidation,
accompanied by a change of physical characters, the more im-
portant of which are increased specific gravity, decreased hard-
ness,* and darker (black) streak.

Judged from the few detailed chemical analyses of pyrolusite
which the writer has examined, such small percentages of MnO
and combined H2O, when taken alone, are of little value as
diagnostic features of the pseudomorphism of pyrolusite after
manganite. (See statement on Indian pyrolusite below.) Allien
combined, however, with accurate tests of physical properties,
including crystal form, the evidence should be conclusive.

Attention is directed in the table to analyses III and IV of
picked specimens of pyrolusite crystals described by Fermor

8 Alteration to polianite, which has the same composition as pyrolusite and is
sometimes pseudomorphous after manganite, would involve not only increased
specific gravity but also increased hardness.

WATSON AND WHERRY: PYROLUSITE FROM VIRGINIA 555

from India. No reference is made in the description by Fermor
that the pyrohisite crystals represented by the two analyses are
of pseudomorphous origin, but are tabulated by him as "Analyses
of Indian pyrolusites," the present writer assuming that they are
not pseudomorphous after manganite. Both analyses contain
around 0.5 per cent each of manganous oxide and combined
water, which are less than for pseudomanganite (analysis V) and
for the Virginia pyrolusite (analyses I and II). In the same
table Fermor gives a detailed analysis of "a piece of the radiate-
concentric pyrolusite of Pali in the Nagpur district," which
shows 0.41 per cent and 1.46 per cent respectively of MnO and
combined H2O, and specific gravity 4.88. Again the writer as-
sumes this analysis to represent pyrolusite of nonpseudomor-
phous origin.

On comparing the analyses (I and II) of Virginia pyrolusite
with the analysis (V) of pseudomanganite from India, it will be
noted that the percentages of manganous oxide and combined
water are in fairly close agreement. The same is true for the
minor constituents, except that MgO present in pseudomanganite
is absent from, the Virginia pyrolusite; this, however, has no
significance. Fermor^ states that the pseudomanganite presents
considerable differences in physical characters from pyrolusite
but shows considerable resemblances to manganite, though
chemically close to pyrolusite. The name pseudomanganite as
proposed by Fermor is therefore not applicable to the Virginia
mineral (pyrolusite crystals, analysis I, and crystalline pyrolusite,
analysis II), since, as shown above, it resembles pyrolusite and
not manganite both chemically and physically.

It seems entirely clear, on the basis of chemical composition
and physical characters, that if the crystals of manganese oxide
from Virginia (analysis I) are of pseudomorphous origin after
manganite, the associated crystalline fibrous mineral (analysis
II) must also be of the same origin. Certain of the facts devel-
oped in this study, especially the crystallography (abnormal
axial ratio and habit for manganite) are, however, not in har-

' Fermor, L. Leigh. O-p. cil., p. 84.

556 WATSON AND WHERRY: PYROLUSITE FROM VIRGINIA

mony with the view that the crystals and crystalline pyrolusite
from Virginia are of pseudomorphous origin; these features may
pertain to original pyrolusite. The writer is fully aware of the
prevailing view that pyrolusite crystals are pseudomorphous in
origin, and that many pyrolusite crystals have the form of man-
ganite. The present study, however, of the material from the
Virginia locality suggests the probability that the pyrolusite
may be original; that is, it has a distinct crystalline form of its
own, and is not secondary in the sense of being derived from
manganite by dehydration and oxidation. More extended in-
vestigation of the manganese oxide minerals, especially pyrolu-
site and manganite, is under way by the writer, with the hope
that more definite conclusions may be reached as to their genetic
relations.

PART II. CRYSTALLOGRAPHY

The specimens examined contain irregular cavities a centi-
meter or two in diameter, lined with brilliant crystals corre-
sponding in form to manganite,^" averaging about a millimeter
across. The habit varies from tabular, owing to the predomi-
nance of the front pinacoid or of prisms vicinal to it, to wedge-
shaped, from the combination of prisms and side-domes. Sub-
parallel intergrowth is frequent, causing variations of half a degree
or so in the angles, so that comparatively few of the crystals
can be used for measurement. The crystals are attached to the
m.atrix in the general direction of the side pinacoid, and are
doubly terminated as far as the vertical axis is concerned. The
termination is of a type very unusual in manganite, being pro-
duced chiefly by side-dome faces, of which five prove to be new.
Single faces of two possibly new pyramids, and of one previously
ncted pyramid, are also present, one on each of three crystals.

The development toward the attached end of axis b is very

^^ For the sake of simplicity the crystals will be called manganite, even though
their physical and chemical properties are those of pyrolusite.

WATSON AND WHERRY: PYROLUSITE FROM VIRGINIA 557

different from that at the free end," although practically the same
forms are present at both ends, the difference being in their rela-
tive sizes. The mineral is therefore probably not to be regarded
as belonging to a hemihedral class, but to be pseudo-hemimorphic
along the 6-axis; the rate of accretion of material was of course
greater at the free ends, and less where the crystals are crowded
together, and this may account for the different development
at the two ends. It may be noted that hemihedral (in part
sphenoidal) arrangement of faces has been observed in manga-
nite from many localities, so it is evidently a subtance that is
especially sensitive to differences in rate of growth. This is prob-
ably to be explained by the presence in its space-lattice of some
hemihedral features, which in the structure as a whole compensate
each other and make the class holohedral, just as in diamond,
which possesses a balanced tetrahedral arrangement of atoms and
accordingly often simulates tetrahedral habit, although thought
to be fundamentally holohedral.

Twelve crystals were measured on a Goldschmidt two-circle
goniometer. Most of the faces present are more or less curved
and striated, so that perfect reflections of the signal are rarely
obtained. The unit prism sometimes yields, excellent images,
however, and one of the side domes fairly good ones. Variations
in angle of half a degree or more occur from one crystal to an-
other, even with the faces giving the best reflections, because
of the subparallel intergrowth. In particular the wedge-shaped
crystals tend to show a somewhat greater value for axis a than
do the tabular ones. The measurements here accepted as char-
acteristic of the occurrence are those obtained from small and
apparently single tabular crystals with two or more faces yield-
ing sharp images of the signal. The prism and dome zones gen-
erally show long trains of reflections, in which bright nodes in-
dicate the positions of faces, and as these nodes reappear from
one crystal to the next with considerable regularity, they un-
doubtedly represent actual forms.

" This habit has apparently not been noted in normal manganite heretofore,
but appears in a diagram of pyrolusite given by Dana (System of Mineralogy,
6th ed., fig. 3, p. 244.)

558

WATSON AND WHERRY: PYROLUSITE FROM VIRGINIA

The axial ratio derived from the measurements is clearly dif-
ferent from that usually accepted for manganite, but agrees almost
exactly with that obtained by Flink on crystals from the Bolets
Mine, Undenas district, Sweden, a:b: c = 0.8612:1:0.5629.12
From three closely agreeing measurements of the unit prism, its
0 = 49° 15' ± 5' whence a = 0.8616 ± 0.0025; and from two of

:^/9

Fig. 1.

dome 032 its p = 40° 10' ± 5', whence c = 0.5628 ± 0.0020.
As Flink's crystals were probably better than the present ones,
his values are used in calculating the angle-table. The differ-
ence between this axial ratio and that usually accepted for man-
ganite, 0.8441 : 1 : 0.5448, is perhaps connected with the loss of
hydrogen, corresponding to the change into pyrolusite, taking

12 Arkiv Kemi Min. Geol. 3: (35), 101.
erties of the mineral are given.

1910. No analyses or physical prop-

WATSON AND WHERRY: PYROLUSITE FROM VIRGINIA

559

place chiefly in the direction of the 6-axis, so that the greatest
shrinkage occurs along this axis.^*

Figure 1 presents the average development of crystals of this
occurrence. Some crystals are even thinner than this, but on

TABLE 2
Angles op Pyrolusite after Manganite from Powells Fort, Virginia

a:b:c = 0.8612: 1:0.5629

FORMS,
STUBOLS

c

001

b

010

a

100

h

410

X

310

TT

520

d

210

m

110

k

230

*A

018

*B

014

*C

013

*D

012

e

Oil

*F

032

f

021

*Z

566

*x

654

p

HI

Q 493

DEVELOPMENT

Poor, irregular

Narrow, dull

Part of curve

Part of curve

Part of curve

Flattest part of curve

Part of curve

Narrow but bright

Narrow but bright

Part of curve

Part of curve

Flat part of curve

Part of curve

Part of curve

Flattest part of curve

Part of curve

One curved face, doubtful .
One curved face, doubtful.
May be represented by X

and Z

One curved face, obs. bj'

Flink

NOTED

ANGLES

Measured

Calculated

TIMES

0

p

<f>

p

S
Q

0

d

i

o

Q
0

i

g

£

Q
0

00

m

so

Q

0

5

00

8; cleav. 12

0

90

0

00

90

00

14

90

78

90
90

90

77

00
51

90
90

Plus

Minus

2

2

00

12

4 '

74

90

73

59

90

18

1

71

90

71

00

90

10

1

67

90

66

42

90

12

2

49

15

90

49

16

90

2

0

37

40

90

37

45

90

2

1

0

4

0

00

4

02

2

1

0

8

0

8

01

20

1

0

10

30

0

10

38

4

0

0

10

0

15

43

8

3

0

29

0

29

23

18

2

0

40

10

0

40

11

8

2

0

48

0

48

23

1

0

44

38

44

03

38

04

0

1

54

50

54

20

50

21

0

0

—

—

49

16

40

47

0

1

27

62

27

18

62

15

'^ It is also possible that this axial ratio belongs to pyrolusite itself, and that
the crystals are not pseudomorphs at all, as noted in Part I.

560 WATSON AND WHERRY: PYROLUSITE FROM VIRGINIA

the other hand the wedge-shaped ones are thicker because of
greater development of prism d or others near it. The height
also varies somewhat, the thinner crystals tending to be longer
in the c direction. The curvature of the faces which is almost
universally present is indicated; it is actually the more promi-
nent on the thicker, wedge-shaped crystals. Forms h, m, and
k are narrow or lacking on some crystals, and each of the three
pyramids has been observed but once, but the other forms, es-
pecially those at the right or positive end, are practically constant.
The domes fall excellently into harmonic series Ns, although
the two vicinal to the base, 018 and 014, are extra.

Form 001 018 014 013 012 — Oil 032 021 — 010

^ 0 i i i I - 1 f 2 - inf.

Ns 0 — — I h f 1 t 2 3 inf.

A list of the forms and their angles is presented in table 2,
new ones being marked by an asterisk. The formulas used for
calculating <f> and p are as follows:

k k

Prisms: cot (/)=-•«; domes: tan p =-• c;

h I

Pyramids: cot </> = -•«; tan p = — •

k I cos 4>

ABSTRACTS

Authors of scientific papers are requested to see that abstracts, preferably
prepared and signed by themselves, are forwarded promptly to the editors.
The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those appearing in
this issue.

BOTANY. — Axillary deistogenes in some American grasses. Agxes
Chase. Amer. Journ. Bot. 5:254-258, figs. 1-5. 1918.
All the species native in the United States of three genera of grasses,
Triplasis, Danthonia, and Cottea, and two species from other genera,
Muhlenbergia microsperma and Pappophorum, Wrightii, are found to
produce cleistogamous spikelets in the axils of the lower sheaths. These
spikelets are enlarged, greatly simplified, usually 1-flowered, and with-
out glumes, and often so strikingly different from the chasmogamous
spikelets (that is those borne on the terminal panicle) of the same
plant, that if their source were unknown they would not be placed in
the same tribe. The grain of the cleistogene is usually more than
twice as large as that of the chasmogene. Specimens bearing these
deistogenes usually disjoint at the nodes, the spikelet remaining per-
manenth' enclosed in the sheath and the grain germinating within it.
In Muhlenbergia microsperma the deistogenes are inclosed in indurate,
greatly reduced leaf-sheaths, in shape like tiny inverted cornucopias.
These are produced in abundance and readily fall from the expanded
sheaths. Four South American and one New Zealand species of
Danthonia and one Siberian and one Algerian species of Pappophorum
are found to produce these deistogenes. All species so far found pro-
ducing them are plants of open ground, most of them are of arid re-
gions or in dry places in humid regions. Since with relatively little
investigation so many species have been found with deistogenes it
seems probable that this is not a rare habit in grasses. Any grass
with swollen sheath-bases and disjointing culms may repay examina-
tion, after the maturity of the terminal panicles. A. C.

5G1

562 abstracts: phytopathology

BOTANY. — Generic types with special reference to the grasses of the
United States. A. S. Hitchcock. Amer. Joiirn. Bot. 5: 248-253.
1918.
Stability in nomenclature has been aided by the adoption of the
idea of types, a genus being based upon a type species and a species
upon a type specimen. In the present paper the author summarizes
a study that he has made in applying the principle of types to 255
genei'ic names of grasses. In 8 genera the type species has been desig-
nated. Of those in which no type was designated at the time of publi-
cation, 150 were based upon single species. In the remaining cases
types have been selected on the principle that the type must be one of
the species included in the genus as originally published and should
be the species or one of the species that the author had chiefly in
mind at that time. The difficulties are greatest in the Linnaean genera.
Several examples are given illustrating the methods used in the selection
of the type species. A. S. H.

PHYTOPATHOLOGY.— T'Ae groivth of the potato-scab organism at
various hydrogen-ion concentrations as related to the comparative
freedom of acid soils from the potato scab. L. J. Gillespie. Phy-
topathology 8 : 257-269. 1918.
A study was made of the viability of a number of strains of the
common potato-scab organism m culture media adjusted to various
hydrogen-ion exponents. Two synthetic media and a medium pre-
pared fr im potato extract were used, and especial attention was paid
to the buffer action of the culture media. In media at the initial ex-
ponent 5.2 the growth was slower and generally less vigorous than at
less acid exponents. Under some conditions individual strains were
somewhat more sensitive to acidity, but the differences did not lead to
any consistent distinctions among the strains. Sometimes the organ-
isms succeeded in growing well in a medium which had initially an ex-
ponent of 5.2 or even 4.8, but the growth was accompanied by a marked
decrease of acidity, and the manner of growth gave reason to doubt
whether even in these cases more than a pooi growth can occur at such
exponents

It would appear that the acidity of the Caribou loam, which is
known to be generally immune from the common (corky) potato scab,
is often of sufficient intensity to exert in the soil an injurious action
on the causal organism. The acidity of the Washburn loam, on the

abstracts: phytopathology 563

other hand, is generally not of sufficient intensity to be injurious to the
causal organism, and potatoes grown on the Washburn loam are very
often infected with the common scab. L. J. G.

PHYTOPATHOLOGY. — Irrigation experiments on apple-spot diseases.
Charles Brooks and D. F. Fisher. Journ. Agr. Res. 12: 109-
138, pis. 2-5, figs. 1-10, tables 1-11. January 21, 1918.
The writers point out the distinguishing characteristics of a number
of different spot diseases of the apple, including bitter pit, Jonathan
spot, and drouth spots of various kinds, but the paper is devoted mainly
to experimental data on the relation cf the soil-water supply to the
occurrence of these various troubles. In the experimental work the
amount of soil water was controlled by the duration and frequency of
irrigation and was determined from soil samples taken at various depths.
Bitter pit was found to be greatly increased by heavy irrigation, par-
ticularly when applied late in the season. It was decreased by heavy
irrigation followed by light. It was in general worse on large apples
than on small ones, but heavy irrigation caused practically as great
increase of the disease on small and medium sized fruit as on the large.
Drouth spot were found to be produced by sudden shortage of water.
Certain kinds of drouth and cork were apparently correlated with
particular soil types. C. B,

PHYTOPATHOLOGY.—^ lea/blight of Kalmia latifolia. Ella M.
A. ExLOWS. Journ. Agr. Res. 13:3. April 15, 1918.

The disease was found on mountain laurel in the vicinity of Wash-
ington. It is characterized by a blight or dry rot involving large
areas of the leaf blade or the entire leaf. Later it extends through the
petioles into the stems and may eventually kill the entire plant. The
causal fungus is a new species: Phomopsis kalmiae, its parasitism hav-
ing been demonstrated by successful inoculations into healthy plants.

Pycnidia are readily produced on diseased leaves placed in damp
chambers. Sclerotia-like bodies and pycnidia are produced in large
numbers in most of the ordinary culture media. The sterile bodies
are undoubtedly potential pycnidia as shown by the production of
pycnospores after transplanting portions to fresh culture media.

E. M. A. E.

564 abstracts: phytopathology

PHYTOPATHOLOGY.— i7os^ relationships of the North American
rusts, other than Gymnosporangiwns, which attack conifers. Arthur
S. Rhoads, George G. Hedgcock, Ellsworth Bethel, and
Carl Hartley. Phytopathology 8 : 309-352. July, 1918.
This paper, which is of special interest to forest pathologists and
mycologists, treats of fifty-two species of rusts attacking species of
Abies, Ephedra, Larix, Picea, Pinus, Pseudotsuga, and Tsuga. With
each species of rust is an abbreviated synonomy; citations of publica-
tions containing treatment of the species; a liiBt of the coniferous host
species; the names of genera bearing alternating stages, when present,
of each rust; the distribution; remarks relative to important char-
acters; and data of inoculating proof of the connection between the
aecial and telial stages.

At the close of the paper is a host index in two parts, one of aecial
hosts, the other of uredinial and telial hosts; and 148 citations of
literature bearing upon the subject. , G. G. H.

PH YTOPATHOLOG Y.— .So/??e bacterial diseases of lettuce. Nellie A .
Brown. Journ. Agr. Res. 13: 367-388, pis. 29-41. May 13,
1918.

The paper describes two new bacterial diseases of lettuce, one occur-
ring in South Carolina and Virginia on lettuce grown out of doors, the
other on greenhouse plants in Kansas. The organism producing the
disease in South Carolina and Virginia has been named Bacterium
vitians. In South Carolina, Bacterium vitians causes the lettuce stems
to turn ])lue, then brown when seen in cross or longitudinal sections.
Leaves are spotted occasionally but the stem affection is the prevalent
condition. The organism isolated from diseased stems of South Caro-
lina plants produces spots on leaves as well as brown stems when inocu-
lated into healthy lettuce plants.

In Virginia the leaf spotting only was noted, but the isolated organ-
ism from these leaf spots will produce stem-rot readily when inoculated
into the stem of healthy lettuce plants, as well as spots on leaves when
it is sprayed on the leaves of healthy lettuce. The diseased Virginia
lettuce had a second organism present producing spots on it, and this
organism was isolated along with Bacterium vitians. It is one already
known and described {Bacterium viridiliviclum) and the colonies isolated
proved to be infectious.

It appears that Bacterium vitians and Bacterium viridilividum may
be present and active in soil which is heavily fertilized with green

abstracts: phytopathology 565

manure or stable manure not thoroughly decomposed, and in which
the organisms of decomposition are still active. If conditions are
such that the plants are kept growing vigorously, these organisms will
have no effect upon them, but if bad weather conditions obtain and the
lettuce plants get weakened or growth is retarded, these organisms
make their way into the roots or leaves and cause disease. The treat-
ment recommended is the use of thoroughly decomposed green manure
and well-seasoned stable manure in which tissue-disintegrating bacteria
are inactive.

The Kansas disease is caused by a soil organism, to which the name
Bacterium marginale has been given. It produces either a marginal
wilting, or a spotting and speckling of the leaves. Care in watering
plants so that soil does not get washed on the leaves and proper ven-
tilation of greenhouses will prevent the disease.

Isolations, inoculations, cultural characteristics, and descriptions of
the two organisms are discussed. N. A. B.

PHYTOPATHOLOGY. — Influence of te?nperature and precipitation on
the blackleg of the potato. J. Rosenbaum and G. B. Ramsey.
Journ. Agr. Res. 13: 507-513, fig. 1, tab. 3. June 3, 1918.

Experiments were performed which showed that the organism
(Bacillus phytophthorus Appel) producing the blackleg disease of the
potato, under the winter conditions that existed during 1915-1916
and 1916-1917 in Aroostook County, Me., cannot live over in the soil
or in diseased tubers that may remain there.

Comparison of weather records show that the winter of 1915-1916.
was not an unusual one for Aroostook County.

The severity of the disease during the growing season is closely corre-
lated with temperature and precipitation. A high temperature and
low precipitation tend to diminish the disease, while a low temperature
and high precipitation produce conditions favorable for it. J. R.

PHYTOPATHOLOGY.— yl hitherto unreported disease of okra. L. L.

Harter. Journ. Agr. Res. 14: 207-211, pi. 23, figs. 3. July

29, 1918.

The author investigated a disease of the pods and stems of okra

which occurred in Maryland in 1916. Infection experiments showed

that several different varieties of okra were susceptible. The causal

fungus was described as a new species of Ascochyta, A. abelmoschi.

L. L. H.

566 abstracts: technology

TECHNOLOGY. — Combined table of sizes in the principal wire gages.
Bur. Stand. Cir. No. 67. Pp. 5. Jan. 17, 1918.
This table combines in one series the sizes in the American (B. & S.)
Steel, Birmingham (Stubs'), British Standard, and Metric Wire Gages,
arranged in order of sizes (diameters) of wires. It gives the diameter of
all the gage numbers in these five systems in mils, millimeters, and
inches, also the cross-sections in square mils, circular mils, square milli-
meters, and square inches. The table is especially useful to manufac-
turers who wish to determine the nearest equivalent in American or
British gage sizes of wires specified in millimeters or square millimeters,
or vice versa. R. Y. F.

TECHNOLOGY. — Determination of permeability of balloon fabrics.

Junius David Edwards. Bur. Stand. Tech. Paper No. 113.

Pp. 31. 1918.
This paper describes the various methods which may be employed
for determining the permeability of balloon fabrics to hydrogen. The
precise and rapid method used at the Bureau of Standards measures
the hydrogen penetrating a given area of fabric by means of a gas
interferometer. Data are given to show the effect upon the apparent
permeability of different experimental conditions such as temperature,
pressure, humidity of the gas, etc. A knowledge of the effect of these
factors enables one to compare results of tests made under different
conditions. The test adopted as standard by the Bureau is described.

J. D. E.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

The Board of Managers met on September 2, 1918. Mr. William
Bowie resigned as treasurer, on account of having been commissioned a
major in the Engineering Corps, U. S. A., and Mr. R. L. Faris, of the
Coast and Geodetic Survey, was elected treasurer for the remainder of
the year. A committee consisting of C. N. Fenner, C. N. Collins,
and J. A. Fleming was appointed to audit the accounts of the retiring
treasurer. Mr. E. W. Shaw was appointed chairman of the Commit-
tee on Meetings, succeeding Dr. Swann, who has left the city, and Dr.
C. W. Kanolt was made an additional member of the Committee.

The following persons have become members of the Academy since
the last issue of the Journal: Dr. William Clinton Alden, U. S.
Geological Survey, Washington, D. C; Mr. Samuel Sanford, Bureau
of Mines, Washington, D. C.

Robert B. Sosman,

Corresponding Secretary.

567

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

A party of scientists has been sent by the Bureau of Plant Industry,
at the request of the French High Commission, to Algeria, Tunis, and
Morocco to study and advise upon agricultural conditions there. The
party includes E. C. Chilcott, C. S. Scofield, and T. H. Kearney.

Dr. Arthur L. Day has presented his resignation as director of the
Geophysical Laboratory, Carnegie Institution of Washington, to be in
effect October 1, 1918, and will take up research on glass and allied
materials for the Corning Glass Works in Corning, New York. Dr.
Day has been director of the Laboratory since its establishment in
1906, having been previously engaged in silicate researches at the
U. S. Geological Survey in 1904 and 1905.

Mr. F. A. McDermott, formerly research chemist with the Corby
Company, is at the experiment station of E. I. du Pont de Nemours
and Company, at Henry Clay, Delaware.

Dr. H. C. McNeil, of the chemical department of the Bureau of
Standards, has been appointed professor of chemistry at George Wash-
ington University, as successor to Prof. C. E. Munroe, who is giving
all his time to the work of the Committee on Explosives Investigations
of the National Research Council.

Prof. F. A. Saunders, professor of physics at Vassar College,
Poughkeepsie,'N. Y., is in Washington on leave of absence, engaged in
war work at the National Research Council.

Dr. E. C. Shorey, in charge of the division of chemical investigations
of the Bureau of Soils, Department of Agriculture, has resigned to
accept a position with the National Aniline and Chemical Company,
at Marcus Hook, Pennsylvania.

Prof. W. J. Spillman, chief of the Office of Farm Management of
the Department of Agriculture, resigned on August 31, 1918, to become
editor of the Farm Journal. He will continue to reside in Washington
for the present.

568

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VIII OCTOBER 19, 1918 No. 17

RADIOTELEGRAPHY. — New method of using contact detectors
in radio measurements. L. W. Austin, U. S. Naval Radio
Laboratory.

For many measurements in radiotelegraphy it is necessary
to use a radio frequency-current indicator of known resistance.
If the current to be measured is small it is generally customary to
use a thermoelement and galvanometer. The most sensitive
thermoelements are either of the vacuum type or the welded
tellurium type. The vacuum thermoelements can be obtained of
any desired resistance and are very sensitive but are slow in
action and frequently show a bad zero drift. In addition, the
deflection usually shows considerable divergence from the cur-
rent-square law. The tellurium platinum elements are quick act-
ing and follow the current-square deflection law with sufficient
accuracy for all practical purposes. They are however so fragile
and difficult to manufacture and transport that no manufacturer
has yet undertaken to supply them commercially. It is also
impossible to make the contact resistance much less than 10
ohms. It is to be noted that the resistance in both the vacuum
and tellurium types changes considerably with the amount of
current flowing.

On account of the difficulties mentioned, the sensitive thermoele-
ments in our laboratory have been replaced, for the most part,
by a shunted contact detector circuit arranged as shown in fig-
ure 1. Here LC is anj^ oscillating circuit having inductance and

569

570

AUSTIN: RADIO MEASUREMENTS

capacity, D is a contact detector, G a high resistance galvanometer,
K a paper condenser of one microfarad capacity, and R a resistance
which may have any value from 0.1 to 100 ohms. The greater
part of the radio-frequency current passes through R, while a
small portion is shunted through the condenser X and the detector.
The direct current from the detector after passing through the
galvanometer returns through R. On account of the high re-

c.

#

^}-

R=0.1-IO0-n.
K = 1 Mf .

vvwww

R
Fig. 1. Shunted contact detector

sistance of the detector, the total resistance of the detecting sys-
tem is practically identical with R, as has been experimentally
tested between 0.1 and 100 ohms.

The sensibility of this arrangement is much greater than that
of the best vacuum thermoelements of equivalent resistance.

In the case of most of the well-known detectors the proportion-
ality between deflection and current-square is excellent. Galena,
while the most sensitive of any of the detectors tried, shows a
slight deviation from the square law. For absolute current
' measurements the system must of course be calibrated by com-
parison with a known thermoelement at the time of experiment.

oberholser: new genus of anatidae 571

ORNITHOLOGY. — Diagnosis of a neiv genus of Anatidae from
South America. Harry C. Oberholser, Bureau of Bio-
logical Survey.

The genus Alopochen Stejneger, as at present constituted, con-
tains two recent and three fossil species. The former are Alo-
pochen aegyptiaca, from Africa, and Alopochen. jubata, from South
America. Such widely separated ranges naturally raise a ques-
tion regarding the generic identity of these two living species,
which doubt has already found expression in the statement of
the most recent authority on the family Anatidae.^ Examina-
tion now shows that these two species are really generically dif-
ferent; and since Anas aegyptiaca Linnaeus is the type of Alo-
pochen, a new generic name is necessary ior Anser jiihatiis ^^\x.

Neochen,^ gen. nov.

Chars, gen. — Similar and nearest to Alopochen Stejneger, but bill
smaller, relatively shorter, and more conical, little more than one-half
the length of head (instead of nearly as long), its height at base more
than one-half the length of the exposed culmen (instead of much less) ;
exposed culmen about one-half the length of the tarsus (instead of much
more) ; vertical outline of culmen more concave ; angle of feathers on
the base of the culmen sharper and more prominent (less rounded),
the reentrant angle of the bare area on each side of the culmen deeper
and more pronounced; tertials and scapulars very much narrower and
more pointed; nostrils apparently more elongated.

Type. — Anser jubatus Spix.

Remarks. — Concerning the proper applicability of the name Alo-
pochen Stejneger, a few remarks may not be out of place in this connec-
tion. This generic term was originally proposed by Dr. L. Stejneger^
in the text of a popular account. The name there appears simply in
the combinations Alopochen aegyptiaca and Alopochen juhata, without
mention of a type species or of any reason for the change. The type of
Alopochen must, therefore, be determined by subsequent designation.
Count Salvadori, in the work to which reference has already been made,^
quotes Alopochen as equivalent to Chenalopex Stephens,^ but gives no

1 Salvador!, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus. 27: 166. 1895.

'^ Neos, novus;Xi7»', anser.

3 Stand. Nat. Hist. 4: 14C-141. 1885.

* Cat. Birds Brit. Mus. 27: 166. 1895.

^ Gen. Zool. 12^: 41; 1824. (Type by monotypy, Anas aegyptiaca Linnae).

572 oberholser: new genus of anatidae

other indication of type. Lest a question should arise regarding this
as a fixation of type we here definitely designate Anas aegyptiaca
Linnaeus as the type of Alopochen Stejneger. Salvadori uses the name
Chenalopex Stephens^ for the group, evidently overlooking the fact that
it is preoccupied by Chenalopex Dumont,^ and by Chenalopex Vieillot;^
which preoccupation is doubtless the occasion for the original introduc-
tion of the generic name Alopochen by Dr. Stejneger.

The type and only species of Neochen will now stand as Neochen
juhata (Spix). ■'

The taxonomy of the genus Alopochen has apparently given authors
more or less trouble. Dr. Stejneger^ associates it with the spur-winged
geese (subfamily Plectropterinae) , while Count Salvadori^ includes it
among the Anatinae. It seems to be, however, excepting, of course,
the above separated Neochen, most closely allied to Rhodonessa Reich-
enbach and Asarconiis Salvadori. In fact, these four genera, together
with Sarkidiornis Eyton, and probably also the fossil Centrornis An-
drews, form a rather homogeneous group, which differs externally from
the Plectropterinae in lacking the spur on the wing, as well as in having
the head fully feathered, and which may be distinguished by the sub-
family name of Sarkidiorni'hmae.

8 Diet. Sci. Nat. 8: 393. 1817. (Type by original designation, Alca impennis
Linnaeus).

' Nouv. Diet. Hist. Nat. 24: 132. 1818. (Type by implication, Alca im-pennis
Linnaeus).

' Loc. cit.

^ Loc. cit.

ABSTRACTS

Authors of scientific papers are requested to see that abstracts, preferably
prepared and signed by themselves, are forwarded promptly to the editors.
The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those appearing in
this issue.

PHYSICS. — Thermal expansion of alpha and of beta brass between
O-eOO^C. P. D. Merica and L. W. Schad. Bur. Stands. Sci.
Paper No. 321. Pp. 20. 1918.

In connection with the investigation of the failure of brass by crack-
ing, a comparison has been made of the thermal expansions between
ordinary temperature and GOO^'C. of the two constituents, alpha and
beta, of which 60 : 40 brass is composed. The results show that whereas
at ordinary temperature the unit expansions of beta brass (55 per cent
copper) and of alpha brass (65 per cent copper) are very nearly equal, —
about 18 X 10~^ per degree C. — that of the beta brass becomes about 50
per cent greater than that of the alpha between 400* and 450°C., just
below the beta transformation temperature.

This difference in expansion must result in the existence of differential
local or ''grain" stresses in a heterogeneous brass containing both
alpha and beta when quenched from temperatures higher than from
400 to 500°C. at such a rate of cooling that geometrical adjustment
cannot take place between these elements of the mass. The stress
distribution in such a quenched brass is very complex; an approximate
calculation on certain very arbitrary assumptions would indicate the
possibihty of the development by quenching of average tensional
stresses of 15,000 pounds per square inch and more in the beta
constituent.

The possible effect of such stresses on the mechanical properties and
service behavior of brass and other materials is discussed. Experi-
ments showed that these stresses caused in all probability a decrease
of the proportional limit over that in the quenched and annealed state.
They have failed to show, however, that such quenched brass will
"corrosion-crack" in the mercurous nitrate test.

Attention is called to the desirabiHty of studying this feature of
heterogeneous alloy structure more fully. P. D, M.

573

574 abstracts: spectroscopy

PHYSICS. — Spectro-radiometric investigation of the transmission of

various substances. W. W. Coblentz, W. B. Emerson, and M.

B. Long. Bur. Stands. Sci. Paper No. 325. Pp. 24. 1918.

This paper gives the spectral transmission of various substances,

especially colored fluorite and colored glasses. Some of the substances

described in this paper provide a simple means of obtaining narrow

spectral bands of energy of high intensity and large area without

employing a spectroscope. By properly combining these substances

one can obtain a screen having a narrow band of high transmission

at 0.38/x, O.S/i, O.SSm, 0.7m, O.Sai, In, and 2.2^. The data on glasses

are also useful in connection with the question of protecting the eyes

from injurious radiations. W. W. C.

PHYSICS. — The photoelectric sensitivity of bismuthinite and various
other substances. W. W. Coblentz. Bur. Stands. Sci. Paper No.
322. Pp. 14. 191H
This paper summarizes the results of an investigation of various
substances (1) for an increase in electrical conductivity caused by the
action of light upon them, and (2) for photoelectric activity when they
were charged to a negative potential, in an evacuated chamber, and
exposed to light. Pure gallium and silver sulphide were found to have
but small photoelectric activity when charged to a negative potential
and exposed to light. No change was observed in the electrical con-
ductivity of tellurium, boleite, pyrite, silicon, and mixtures of the
sulphides of lead and antimony, when e^cposed to light. An increase in
conductivity was observed in crystals of bismuthinite, cylindrite, mo-
lybdenite, selenium, stibnite, boulangerite, jamesonite, and silver
sulphide when exposed to light.

Experiments are described in which some of these substances were
joined through a battery to the grid circuit of an audion amplifier and a
telephone. The light stimulus was interrupted by means of a rotating
sectored disk, as used in Bell's selenium photophone. When using a
cell or crystal of selenium the fluctuations in light intensity produced
a sufficient change on conductivity to cause a musical note in the
telephone. Similarly, in some samples of bismuthinite and of molyb-
denite, a change in conductivity was produced, whiclr»caused an audible
sound in the telephone receiver. Further experiments are in progress
to determine to what extent and for what wave-lengths this is a true
photoelectric change (increase) in conductivity, and to what extent
it is caused by fluctuations in temperature with a resultant change in
resistance within the crystal. W. W. C.

abstracts: spectroscopy 575

MAGNETISM. — Terrestrial magnetism, United States magnetic tables
and charts for 1915. Daniel L. Hazard. U. S. Coast and Geo-
detic Survey. Spec. Publ. No. 44. 1918.
This publication contains the results of observations made in the
prosecution of the magnetic survey of the United States to the end of
1915, with corresponding values for January 1, 1915; the collected
results of observations at repeat stations used in determining the change
of the magnetic elements with lapse of time; the secular change tables
used in reducing the observed values to the common epoch January 1 ,
1915; and five magnetic charts showing graphically the distribution of
the magnetic, declination, dip, horizontal intensity, vertical intensity
and total intensity in the United States on January 1, 1915. On the
declination, dip, and horizontal intensity charts there are also lines
showing the annual change of those elements in 1915. In addition to
the results obtained by the Coast and Geodetic Survey the collection
includes all available results of high grade from observations made by
others in the United States and adjacent land and water areas, includ-
ing those at stations in Mexico, Central and South America used in the
construction of the isogenic chart of the West Indies published in 1914.

D. L. H.

SPECTROSCOPY. — Wave lengths in the red and infra-red spectra of iron,
cobalt, and nickel arcs. W. F. Meggers and C. C. Kiess. Bur.
Stands. Sci. Paper No. 324. Pp. 15. 1918.
It has long been known that the sensitiveness of photographic plates
to yellow, red, and infra-red light may be increased by staining the
plates with certain dyes, but the use of such stained plates in spectrum
photography has not been very common. The long wave regions of
the arc spectra of ferrous metals were recorded on plates stained with
pinacyanol and with dicyanin. The photographs were made in the
first order spectrum of a concave grating with 645 cm. radius of curva-
ture. Exposures of ten minutes duration sufficed to register the spec-
trum up to 7000 A; between 7000 A and 9000 A, twenty to thirty min-
utes'exposure was sufficient; while five to ten hours of exposure recorded

o ,

many lines whose wave-lengths exceed 10,000 A, or one micron. In the
arc spectrum of iron, 298 lines were measured between the wave-length

o o o

limits 6750 A and 10,689 A; 606 Imes w'ere measured between 5503 A
and 11,623 A in the arc spectrum of cobalt; and 290 lines between 5504

o o

A and 10,843 A in the arc spectrum of nickel.

W. F. M.

576 abstracts: engineering

MYCOLOGY. — Aspergillus fumigatus, A. nidulans, A. terreus n. sp.

and their allies. Charles Thom and Margaret B. Church.

Amer. Journ. Bot. 5: 84-104, figs. 3. February, 1918.
After comparison of a large number of strains in culture, the authors
have grouped three series of them under two old and one new specific
name. Cultural reactions for A. fumigatus and A. nidulans are given.
An ascosporic form with the conidial morphology of A. fumigatus is
described together with three ascosporic strains with the conidial mor-
phology of A. nidulans and slight differences in size and markings of
ascospores. Aspergillus terreus, a cinnamon or avellaneous form
widely occurring in soil, is described. The constant occujTence of these
three groups of strains in soil cultures led t6 experiments which showed
these forms, together with five strains of A. flavus, A. clavalus, A. ory-
zae, Penicillium luteum, P. pinophilum, and three strains of the Citro-
myces section of Penicillium, to grow and fruit readily upon and in three
types of soil used in laboratory culture. Full citation of the original
literature of these species and types either confused with them or
presumptively related to them are given.

C. T.

ENGINEERING. — Ground connections for electrical systems. 0. S.
Peters. Bur. Stands. Tech. Paper No. 108. Pp. 224. 1918.
This paper contains the results of an investigation of methods of
grounding electrical systems for protective purposes, made with special
reference to the National Electrical Safety Code. The subject is taken
up under the following main topics: (1) Resistance of ground connec-
tion; (2) their uses and service conditions; (3) different forms of ground
connections and the electrical characteristics of each; (4) mechanical
construction; (5) inspection and testing; (6) fire hazard and interference
with service; (7) costs; (8) bases for specifications; and (9) field meas-
urements of the resistance of ground connections. The section on field
measurements is perhaps of greatest interest to practicing engineers,
and contains results of resistance measurements on types of ground con-
nections now in use in thirty-seven cities in different parts of the United
States. In comparatively few places is it possible to obtain adequate
protection from electrical dangers by means of grounds made with
electrodes of small extent, such as driven pipes, plates, and other de-
vices. To obtain protection which is continuous and reliable, it is nec-
essary to make use of water pipes or common ground wires which
connect plate grounds in parallel. O. S. P.

abstracts: soil physics 577

CHEMISTRY. — The possibilities and limitations of the Duclaux method
for the estimation of volatile acids. L. J. Gillespie and E. H.
Walters. Journ. Amer. Chem. Soc. 39:2027-2055. 1917.
Direct methods were found for the calculation of the results of
analyses by the Duclaux method, and a study was made of the method
by means of these methods of calculation. If a mixture can first be
shown to contain not more than three volatile acids (of the fatty series)
in significant quantities, then a single distillation will serve for the quan-
titative analysis (and to a certain extent the qualitative analysis)
without too great error. The errors for four acids are too great. If
four or more acids are present in significant quantities the mixture
must be fractionated before applying the calculations into mixtures
containing only three acids in significant quantity. The methods of
calculations are applicable to distillations made in other ways, for iij-
stance to steam distillations at constant volume. In the addendum,
an especially simple and rapid graphic method is given for the calcu-
lation for the case of three acids. This method has the advantage over
the lea^t square method, as any desired weight can be given readily to
any observation. L. J. G.

SOIL PHYSICS. — The action of neutral salts on humus, and other ex-
periments on soil acidity. Louis J. Gillespie and Louis E.
Wise. Journ. Amer. Chem. Soc. 40: 796-813. 1918.
The action of humus on solutions of sodium, potassium, and barium
chlorides of different strengths was studied by means of the hydrogen
electrode. The measurements showed a large increase of hydrogen-ion
concentration as a result of the action. The effect was greatest in the
case of barium chloride. Similar effects of smaller magnitude were
seen in the action of potassium chloride on true solutions in the ab-
sence of humus or undissolved substances ; these effects made it unsafe
to draw conclusions as to the detailed mechanism of the process in the
case of humus.

Some experiments with litmus paper served to make clear the difficul-
ties and limitations of the litmus-paper test as applied to soils and soil
extracts. These experiments make it plain that there is no ground
for a recent classification of soils which respond in the moist state to
blue litmus paper into two types: "truly acid" and otherwise, according
to the behavior of the litmus paper toward the aqueous soil extract.
Litmus paper cannot be used, without suitable precautions, to arrange
soils in the order of their intensities of acidity. There seems to be no
reason to assume a mysterious element in soil acidity. L. J. G.

578 abstracts: technology

SOIL PHYSICS. — Hydrogen-ion concentration measurements of soils
of two types: Caribou loam and Washburn loam. Louis J. Gillespie
and Lewis A. Hurst. Soil Sci. 4: 313-319. 1917.

The Caribou loam and the Washburn loam from Aroostook County,
Maine, possess before cultivation broadly different biological character-
istics. Both types are largely devoted to potato culture, the Caribou
loam being better adapted to this than the Washburn loam.

Cultivated soils of the Caribou-loam type exhibit, when examined by
the colorimetric method, considerably greater hydrogen-ion concen-
trations than do soils of the Washburn-loam type. The average hy-
drogen-ion exponent for the Caribou soils was found to be 5.2; that of
the Washburn loam, 5.9.

The possibility is indicated that the relative freedom of the Caribou
loam from potato scab may be due to its greater hydrogen-ion con-
centration. L. J. G.

TECHNOLOGY. — Comparative tests of chemical glassware. Percy H
Walker and F. W. Smither. Bur. Stands. Tech. Paper No. 107
Pp. 23. 1918.

Beakers of Kavalier glass, and beakers and flasks of Macbeth Evans,
Pyrex, Jena, Nonsol, Fry, and Libbey glasses were tested for chemical
composition, coefficient of expansion, refractive index, strain, behavior
on repeated evaporation, resistance to heat and mechanical shock, and
to solution in a variety of chemical reagents.

No conclusions as to the relative values of the different wares can be
drawn from the chemical analyses, though these analyses may be useful
by enabling the chemist to choose a glass which will yield no objectional
ingredient to the solutions used in any particular piece of work. The
coefficient of expansion of all the glasses is low and is unusually so in
the Pyrex ware. All the ware shows more or less strain, but it was disap-
pointing to find that no information as to liability to break under sudden
changes in temperature or mechanical shock could be obtained by an ex-
amination for strain. All the ware tested showed good resistance to
repeated evaporation of a salt solution. The Kavalier ware is unsatis-
factory as regards solubility in water; all the other wares appear satis-
factory in this respect. All the ware is resistant to acids. Kavalier
is least resistant to carbonated alkalies, Pyrex more resistant than Kav-
alier but less resistant than the others. All the glasses are much attacked
by evaporating caustic alkalies. The authors are of the opinion that
considering all the tests each of the American wares is superior to the
Kavalier and equal or superior to the Jena ware. F. W. S.

SCIENTIFIC NEWS AND NOTES

Dr. Frank Baker, former superintendent of the Zoological Park and
a charter member of the Academy, died at his home, 1901 Biltmore
Street, on September 30, 1918, in his seventy-eighth year. Dr. Baker
was born at Pulaski, New York, August 22, 1841. He became profes-
sor of anatomy at Georgetown University in 1883, and superintendent
of the National Zoological Park in 1890, retiring from the superintend-
ency in 1916. He took an active part in the work of the scientific soci-
eties, having been secretary of the Academy for thirteen years (1899-
1911), and a member of the Anthropological, Biological, and Medical
Societies of Washington. He was president of the Association of Amer-
ican Anatomists in 1897, and editor of the American A7ithropologist
from 1891 to 1898.

Prof. John T. Bates, formerly professor of Chemical Engineering
at Iowa State College, has come to the Bureau of Standards to work
on the capacity rating of track scales.

Dr. Heber D. Curtis, of Lick Observatory, is engaged in military
work relating to optical instruments at the Bureau of Standards.

Col. Bradley Dewey, of the Chemical Warfare Service, has been
transferred to the New York headquarters of the Service and is in
charge of its gas defense division.

Prof. E. C. Franklin, of Stanford University, California, is on leave
of absence and is engaged in research work for the Nitrate Division,
Ordnance Department of the Army.

Prof. W. S. Franklin, who has been engaged in investigation work
on aeronautical instruments at the Bureau of Standards during the sum-
mer, has returned to continue his teaching work at the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology.

Prof. R. S. Johnston, formerly in charge of the Structural Materials
Laboratory at Lafayette College, has recently joined the staff of the
Bureau of Standards.

Miss McDowell, Professor of Physics at Wellesley College, has
returned to continue her academic work. She has been engaged in
the investigation of crystal detectors for use in radiotelegraphy at the
Bureau of Standards during the sumitier.

579

580 SCIENTIFIC NEWS AND NOTES

Prof. H. F. Moore, the Director of the University of IlHnois Experi-
ment Station, has been in Washington for the past few weeks to assist
in the cahbration of the large testing machine at the Bureau of
Standards.

Mr.W.H. Sligh, of the Bureau of Standards, has been commissioned
a captain in the Engineer Corps, U. S. A., and is stationed at Camp
Humphreys:

Prof. James R. Withrow, of the department of chemistry, Ohio
State University, is on leave of absence and engaged in war research at
the American University Experiment Station of the Chemical Warfare
Service.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VIII NOVEMBER 4, 1918 No. 18

BOTANY. — .4 phytogeographical sketch of, southern Maryland.
Roland ]M. Hakper, Office of Farm Management. (Com-
municated by A. S. Hitchcock.)

Southern Maryland, according to local usage, is that part of
the state between Chesapeake Bay and the fall line, including
the counties of Anne Arundel, Prince Georges, Calvert, Charles,
and St. Marys, and small parts of a few others. The few bot-
anists who have written about this area^ have generally treated
it as a geographical unit; but its vegetation is really very diver-
sified. Geologists have subdivided this part of the coastal
plain in two different ways: first according to the outcroppings
of the various Cretaceous and Tertiary strata, and second
according to the superficial formations, which are supposed to
represent four Pleistocene terraces.^

For phytogeographical purposes southern IVIaryland can be
divided into five more or less distinct regions, the soil, topog-
raphy, and vegetation of each of which vary only within certain
limits. Two of them correspond pretty closel}'' with the areas
in which certain Cretaceous and Eocene formations are exposed,
and another with the oldest and highest Pleistocene (or perhaps
Pliocene) terrace. One cannot be correlated very well with any

1 The most compi-ehensive account is that b}' Chrysler in the Plant Life of
Maryland, pp. 149-197 (Baltimore, 1910).

- These terraces have been discussed at length, with numerous maps, by G.
B. Shattuck in his report on the Pliocene and Pleistocene, a separate volume of
291 pages and 75 plates published by the Maryland Geological Survey in 1906.

581

582 harpee: phytogeography of southern Maryland

existing maps of geology or soil, and the last includes the re-
mainder not otherwise disposed of, which may possibly be sub-
divided hereafter.

Within the last two years the writer has utilized many Sun-
days and holidays and a few other days in making pedestrian
excursions through all the counties named for the purpose of
studying the vegetation and other geographical features. Copi-
ous notes have been taken en route, which are now sufficiently
complete to form the basis of a fairly accurate quantitative
analysis of the existing plant covering, at least as far as the more
common and conspicuous native species, especially trees, are
concerned.'^ These quantitative studies bring out many dif-
ferences that the ordinary fioristic or qualitative lists fail to
show; for it happens that the vast majority of the native plants
of Maryland belong to common and widely distributed species*
(especially is this true of the trees), so that the number confined
to any one region would be exceedingly small.

In this preliminary paper each region will be described very
briefly, and then its commonest trees listed as nearly as possible
in order of abundance. The wooded area of each region, and
the percentage of evergreens in the forests, have been estimated
with the aid of Besley's recent report on the forests of the state.^
No attempt is made to assign percentages to the different species
at this time, but it happens that the first one in each list con-
stitutes not far from 20 per cent of the total, and the numbers
for the others would form something like a descending geomet-
rical progression (like the population figures for cities arranged
in order of size, and numerous other kinds of statistics) . Where
it is reasonably certain that a given species is more abundant
in one of the regions than in any of the others its name in that
list is starred, which will enable the reader to pick out the char-
acteristic species of each region at a glance. *= Evergreens are

3 For an outline of the methods used see 6th Ann. Rep. Fla. Geol. Surv. 177-
180. 1914; Torreya 17: 1-2, 5-7. 1917.

* See Torreya 11: 36. Feb. 1911.,

5 Baltimore, 1917. Reviewed in Torreya 18: 120-122. 1918.

^ For an application of a method similar to this to the trees of Illinois see
Torreya 18: 168-170. 1918. This plan should be useful also to any one desiring
a supply of a particular kind of timber, e.g., black walnut.

harper: PHYTOGEOGRAPHY of southern MARYLAND 583

indicated by the letter E, and the percentage of them for each
region has been estimated, for that seems to be a good index of
soil fertility. Common names are added for the benefi of
nonbotanical readers who may have occasion to explore some of
the same territory.

The plant lists include only native forest trees large enough to
be sawn for hmiber, those being the most conspicuous and
important components of the vegetation. If smaller trees, such
as the dogwood, were included it would be difficult to compare
them with the larger ones with respect to abundance, and very
little additional contrast would be gained thereby, for it happens
that the dogwood is the commonest small tree in all five regions
(as well as in many other parts of the eastern United States).
A few notes on shrubs and herbs are added, but to attemptto
list those would require entirely too much space for the limits
of this paper. The names of trees seen only a few times in a
given region are omitted, because of the possibility of their
having been wrongly identified, or not properly belonging to the
region.

1. THE FALL-LINE CLAY HILLS

This corresponds approximately with the region of the non-
marine Lower Cretaceous formations (Potomac group), which
form a belt averaging seven or eight miles wide adjacent to the
fall line all the way across Maryland and the District of Co-
lumbia and a little way into adjoining states. It is analogous
in many ways to the fall-line sand hills of the Carolinas and
Georgia, and some of its features, particularly the mottled clays
and ferruginous sandstones, are matched very closely in a belt
just below the fall line in Alabama. It is most typically devel-
oped between Washington and Baltimore, where it occupies all
the country between the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad and the
Washington, Baltbnore & Annapolis electric line, and a little
more on either side.

The underlying strata, exposed in innumerable cuts, consist
of pinkish or mottled stiff clay, more or less mixed with sand
and gravel, and the soils are mainly sandy and gravelly loams,
all distinctly acid or noncalcareous. The surface is strewn in

584 harper: phytogeography of southern Maryland

many places with fragments of ferruginous sandstone. The
topography varies from flat terraces near sea level to steep hills
rising some 350 feet higher. Streams are numerous, but the
smaller ones on the more clayey soils are intermittent. The
gravelly bogs recently described by McAtee in his Natural
History of the District of Columbia^ are almost confined to this
region.

About 40 per cent of the area is still wooded, in spite of its
proximity to two large cities, and there was a movement about
five years ago looking toward the establishment of a national
forest between Baltimore and Washington.

The commonest trees seem to be:

E *Pinus virginiana. Scrub pine. Quercus falcata. Red oak (southern).

Qitei'cus alba. White oak. Nyssa sylvatica. Sour gum.

Acer rubrvm. Red maple. Quercus marylandica. Bhxck-jack oak.

E *Pinus rigida. Pitch pine. Quercus palustris. Pin oak.

'^'Quercus velutina. Black oak. Platanus occidentalis. Sycamore.

Castanea dentata. Chestnut. Quercus coccinea. Scarlet oak.

Liriodendron hilipifera. Poplar. Quercus stellata. Post oak.

*Quercus montana. Chestnut oak. E Pinus echinata. Short-leaf pine.

Betula nigra. Birch. Hicoria alba. Hickory.

Liqvidambar styraciflua. Sweet gum. Quercus phellos. Willow oak.

Fagus grandifolia. Beech. Hicoria glabral Hickory.

Evergreens make up about 35 per cent of the forest, and oaks
a little less. The undergrowth consists very largely of shrubs
belonging to the Ericales, of which Gaylussacia haccata (huckle-
berry) is probably the commonest. Epigaea (arbutus) is very
common, and apparently in no immediate danger of extermina-
tion.

2, THE GREENSAND BELT

This is determined by the outcrop of several Upper Cretaceous
and Eocene formations which consist largely of greensand marl.
It lies immediately southeast of the belt just described and is of
about the saine width. The boundary between them is pretty
sharply defined in some places, e.g., near Brightseat. It is
mostly north of the Chesapeake Beach Railway, and is best

' Bull. Biol. Soc. Wash. 1: 74-90. :\Iay, 1918.

harper: PHYTOGEOGRAPHY of southern MARYLAND 585

de\'eloped between that and the Patuxent Ri\-er. The same or
similar geological formations extend northeastward nearly to
New York, making fairly fertile soils all the way, but east of
Chesapeake Bay the topography and vegetation are somewhat
different.

The soils are largely, if not mostly, derived from Pleistocene
material, and are loamy sands, fine sandy loams, etc. In some
places, particularly near Upper Marlboro, the greensand comes
to the surface and gives the soil a decided greenish yellow tinge,
which is a very rare color for soils. On the whole the soils are
rather above the average in fertility.

The topograph}' is a little less hilly than that of the fall-line
hills, and there are more flat areas, but small rounded knolls or
knobs averaging perhaps 500 feet in diameter and 15 or 20 feet
high are very characteristic, even in some of the valleys sepa-
rated from the main body of the greensand.

The region has been extensively farmed for over 200 years,
and the forests reduced to a little less than a third of the area.
Xisarly all are second growth, but a few magnificent original
stands of yellow poplar, white oak, etc., have been preserved.^
Evergreens constitute not more than 10 per cent of the total,
and as the prevailing evergreen is the scrub pine, which is partial
to worn-out fields, etc., we may infer that the original forests
were almost wholly deciduous.

The commonest trees at present seem to be as follows:

Liriodendron hdipifera. Poplar. v Quercus velutina. Black oak.

E Pinus virginiana. Scrub pine. Nyssa sylvatica. Sour gum.

Quercus alba. White oak. *Fraxinus americana. Ash.

Acer rubrum. Red maple. *Quercus borealis ^naxima^ Red oak

*Fagus grandifolia. Beech. (northern).

*Betula nigra. Birch. Quercus palustris. Pine oak.

Castanea dentata. Chestnut. Hicoria alba. Hickory.

Liquidambar styracifiua. .Sweet gum. Quercus f ale al a. Red oak (southern).

*Ulmus americana. Elm. Mor^lS rubra. Mulberry.
*Platanus occidenialis. Sycamore.

Any one familiar with the habitats of these trees will notice a
great contrast between the starred ones in this list and the pre-

« For the location of some of these see map of Prince Georges County in Bes-
ley's forest report previously mentioned.

^ Formerly referred to Q. rubra. See Torreya 17: 135. 1917.

586 harper: phytogeography of southern Maryland

ceding in the matter of soil preferences. The huckleberries and
other low shrubs are rather scarce in this region. The common-
est herb in undisturbed forests is probably Meibomia nudiflora.
Oaks seem to make up less than one-fifth of the standing timber.

3. THE BAY SHORE HILLS

This name may be applied to a north-south strip about five
miles wide and 25 miles long, bordering Chesapeake Bay in
Anne Arundel and Calvert counties. Chesapeake Beach is
near the middle of this strip, and its western edge is about on the
divide between the bay and the Patuxent River. The under-
lying strata are Miocene of the Chesapeake group (well exposed
in the high cliffs just south of Chesapeake Beach), but they are
by no means peculiar to the region under consideration.

The soils are rather loamy, approachmg clay loam or silt
loam in some places, generally of a light brown color, and
evidently quite fertile. The topography is probably the most
broken of any region in the Atlantic coastal plain. Some of
the bluffs facing the bay are over 100 feet high, and two or three
miles farther back elevations of 150 feet or so are reached. And
yet hillsides with a slope of 30° or more have been cultivated
for years with very little trouble from soil erosion.

About 40 per cent of the area is wooded now, and evergreens
make up about 16 per cent of the forest. The commonest trees
seem to be: .

*Castanea dentata. Chestnut. Quercus falcata. Red oak (southern).

*Liriodendron tulipifera. Poplar. Querctis velutina. Black oak.

E Pinus virginiana. Scrub pine. Hicoria alba. Hickory.

*Liqmdambar styrarifliia. Sweet gum. Hicoria sp.^" Hickory.

E Pinus taeda. Loblolly pine. Platanus occidentalis. Sycamore.

Quercus alba. White oak. Nyssa sylvatica. Sour gum.

Fagus grandifolia. Beech. Quercus borealis maxima. Red oak

*Juglans nigra. Black walnut. (northern).

*Morvs rubra. Mulberry. *Prunus serotina. Wild cherry.

Ulmus americana. Elm.

i" Not yet identified. Perhaps more than one species.

harper: PHYTOGEOGRAPHY of southern MARYLAND 587

A comparison of the starred species in this and the preceding
list, in connection with chemical analyses of representative soils
of the two regions, should throw valuable light on the soil pref-
erences of the trees involved. In the abundance of chestnut
and poplar, and in a few other particulars, this region differs
from all other parts of the coastal plain and resembles the Pied-
mont region, particularly that part immediately north of the
District of Columbia. The chestnut is now badly blighted,
and this is said to have happened only in the last three or four
years. The undergrowth comprises a remarkable number of
herbs with compound leaves (such as Cimicifuga, Phegopteris
hexagonoptera, and Botrychium virginianum) or barbed fruits
(Cytioglossum, Circaea, Washingtonia, Meibomia), and others
that are more characteristic of hilly or even mountainous regions
(e.g., Oxalis violacea, Obolaria, Arabis canadensis, Hepatica).
Asimina triloba (pawpaw) is one of the commonest shrubs or
small trees. The Ericales are almost wanting. The various oaks
constitute only about 1 1 per cent of the forest : a very small figure
for this part of the world.

4. THE BRANDYWINE PLATEAU

This corresponds pretty closely with the area mapped by
Maryland geologists as occupied by the Lafayette or Brandy-
wine terrace (the latter name taken from the village of Brandy-
wine in Prince Georges County). Its northern extremity is
near the eastern corner of the District of Columbia, nearly 300
feet above sea-level, and it extends southward with gradually
decreasing altitude to the vicinity of LaPlata and Charlotte
Hall. It is perhaps the best example of a plateau in the whole
coastal plain.

The general surface of the uplands is rather flat, but is deeply
dissected by several creeks, some of which cut do^\Ti into the
greensand and make fertile valleys a mile or more wide. These
valleys have proved a well-nigh insuperable obstacle to build-
ing railroads from Washington in the direction of Leonardtown,

588 harper: phytogeography of southern Maryland

and St. Marys County is now without railroad connections.
The plateau is something hke a miniature of the Highlands of
New Jersey or the Cumberland Plateau of Tennessee and Ala-
bama, which have broad well-wooded uplands with poor soil,
interrupted by occasional cultivated limestone valleys. The
soil is mostly loam of a pale buff color (''Leonardtown loam"),
varying toward sand in some places. One of the gravelly bogs
mentioned above is known in this region, and possibly others
may be hidden away among the forests.

About 55 per cent of the area is 'still wooded, and perhaps half
of that is virgin forest, or at least occupies land that has never
been cultivated. Evergreens constitute about 25 per cent of
the timber. The commonest trees are about as follows:

E Pinus virginiana. Scrub pine.
*QvercMs alba. White oak.
Liquidambar styraciflua. Sweet gum.
*Quercusmarylandica. Black-jack oak.
Quercus stellaia. Post oak.
Quercus falcaia. Red oak (southern).
*Nyssa sylvatica. Sour gum.
*Quercus phellos. Willow oak.
*Quercus coccinea. Scarlet oak.
Acer rubrum. Red maple.

Castanea dentata. Chestnut.

Liriodendron tulipifera. Poplar.
E *Jumperus virginiana. Cedar.

Quercus velutina. Black oak.

Fagus grandifolia. Beech.

Quercus montana. Chestnut oak.

Hicoria alba. Hickory.

*Hicoria glabra. Hickory.

Quercus palustria. Pin oak.
E Pinus rigida. Pitch pine.

The various oaks here make up nearly half the forest, or more
than in any of the other four regions. The shrubby and her-
baceous undergrowth is very similar to that of the fall-line clay
hills.

5. THE ST. MARYS REGION

Under this head is lumped for the present the remainder of
southern Maryland, namely, all south of latitude 38° 30', to-
gether with the Patuxent Valley as far up as a line connecting
Annapolis and Upper Marlboro. It is all underlain by Miocene
strata, except the southwest corner, in the great bend of the
Potomac River, where there is an Eocene greensand area around
Nanjemoy that is comparatively inaccessible and little known.

The soil is mainly loam and sandy loam of medium fertility,
and the topcgraphy is pretty thoroughly dissected into low hills

wherry: reactions of soils 589

which flatten out toward tidewater. But on some of the divides
in St. ]VIarys County there are a few small shallow ponds, hardly
large enough to show on topographic maps. The highest alti-
tude is about 180 feet.

About half the area is in forest, but probably not more than
one-fourth is original forest. About 40 per cent of the trees are
evergreen. The prevailing species seem to be as follows:

E Pinus virginiana. Scrub pine. Fagus grandifolia. Beech.

*Qrtercusfalcata. Red oak (southern). Qiiercus marylandica. Black-jack oak.

Quercus alba. White oak. E Juniperus virginiana. Cedar.

Liquidamhar styraciflua. Sweet gum. Quercus phellos. Willow oak.

Castanea dentata. Chestnut. Quercus montana. Chestnut oak.

Quercus stellata. Post oak. Pinus echinata. Short-leaf pine.

E *Pinus taeda. Loblolly pine. Quercus coccinea. Scarlet oak.

lAriodendron tulipifera. Poplar. Platanus occidentalis. Sycamore.

Quercus velutina. Black oak. Betula nigra. Birch.

Acer rubrum. Red maple. Hicoria glabra. Hickory.

Nyssa sylvatica. Sour gum. Ulmus americana. Elm.

*Hicoria alba. Hickory.

Oaks here make up a little more than one-thi^d of the forest.
The few species starred may prefer this region to the other four
simply because it is the southernmost and wannest, fcr they all
range much farther southward than northward. Among the
small trees or large shrubs Ilex opaca, Aralia spinosa, and Myrica
cerifera are much commoner here than in the other regions,
probably for the same reason. The smaller shrubbery dees not
differ much from that in regions 1 and 4.

PLANT PHYSIOLOGY.— r/ie reactions of the soils supporting
the growth of certain native orchids. Edgar T. Wherry,
Washington, D. C.

That soil reaction is an important factor in connection with
the growth of certain plants is now thoroughly established —
most legumes require an alkaline soil, most heaths an acid one,
and so on. It has seemed to the writer a matter of interest to
ascertain the relations in the case of some of the less widespread
native plants, and during vacation trips for several years past
tests have been made with this end in view. The results ob-
tained with the Orchidaceae are here presented.

590 wherry: reactions of soils

*

The majority of the native orchids grow either in bog-peat
or in upland peat, both of which are usually acid in reaction.
Several species of the genera Cypripedium, Habenaria,^ Spi-
rant hes, etc., are, however, known to grow in limestone regions,
where the soil may possess a distinctly alkaline (basic) ^ reaction.
It seemed desirable to confirm these inferences as to the reac-
tions of the soils in all cases, for, as the following examples will
show, incorrect deductions may readily be drawn from superficial
examinations.

In some limestone vallej^s in northern Pennsylvania and New
Jersey choked by glacial drift, swamps and bogs have developed
in which the standing water and underlying soil are alkaline,
owing to the presence of calcium bicarbonate in solution. The
orchids growing there, which include several C^pripediums,
Spiranthes lucida, Arethusa hulbosa, etc., might all be presumed
to be calciphilous and to require an alkaline soil. Actual tests
have shown, however, that while the tall Cypripediums do
indeed grow in the calcareous water, C. acaule and the other
two plants no'feed grow upon hummocks of sphagnum or other
mosses, where the soil proves to be decidedly acid in reaction.

In other instances Cypripedium acaule, usually an acid soil
species, has been found in dry woods in limestone valleys, and
might have been classed as tolerant of alkaline conditions.
But in every case chemical tests have shown normal acidity,
and its roots have proved to be imbedded in sandstone drift so
thick as to exclude any possible effect of the underlying rock.

1 The nomenclature of Gray's Manual, 7th edition, 19G8, is used here; for the
benefit of those who prefer other names, important synonyms are added in the
table containing the summary of results. In a study like the present it would
appear to make no difference what code of nomenclature is followed, so long as
the plants are correctly identified, and in this direction the utmost care has been
taken.

- The term alkaline is here used in the physical-chemical sense, and has noth-
ing to do with the so-called "alkali" soils, in which there may be a neutral salt
of an alkali metal, so that the reaction is not necessary alkaline at all. Accord-
ing to the usage adopted, alkaline is essentially synonymous with basic, and
refers to the presence of free hydroxyl ions, and ability to neutralize acids, irre-
spective of the actual base present.

wherry: reactions of soils 591

It seems evident thtit conclusions as to the requirement of
alkaline or acid conditions by a given species can be depended,
upon only when based on actual investigation of the soils in
which they grow.

There are two methods in use for determining the reactions of
soils: titration, which shows the quantity of acid or alkali pres-
ent, and measurement of hydrogen-ion concentration, which
furnishes information as to the strength of the acid or alkali.
The latter feature being the more significant from the biochem-
ical point of view, 3 attention has been confined to it.

The following procedure has been adopted for making the
observations : A sample of soil a gram or two in weight is shaken
up thoroughly in a thick- walled test-tube 1.5 cm. in diameter
with about 5 cc. of the purest water available and allowed to
stand at an angle of 45 degrees until the bulk of the suspended
matter has settled. One cc. of this liquid is pipetted off and
placed in a 1 cm. wide test-tube, and to it a like volume of an
indicator solution is added. In another 1 cm. tube 1 cc. of the
same indicator is diluted with 1 cc. of water. In order to over-
come the effect of the remaining turbidity, an additional portion
of the soil extract is diluted somewhat in a 1.5 cm. tube of the
same length as the narrower one containing the indicator, and
the latter tube is plunged into the cloudy liquid. The effect of
the turbidity on the color of the indicator is thereby rendered
the same in both tubes, but in the one case the indicator and
soil extract are mixed, in the other they are separate, and the
slightest change of color produced by Sbiij acid or alkali in the
soil extract may be readily seen on comparison of the two tubes.

The indicators covering the extreme range likely to be met
with in ordinary soils, their color changes, and the intensities of
acidity or alkalinity corresponding to each color, are listed in
table 1. Instead of describing the reactions by the rather
difficultly comprehensible exponential method, as is ordinarily
done by physical chemists, direct numerical intensities are here
emploj^d. According to this plan the more intense the acidity,

^ See Gillespie, Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci. 6: 7. 1916; Sharp and Hoagland,
Jo^lrn. Agr. Res. 7: 123. 1916; Clark and Lubs, .Town. Bact. 2: 109. 1917; etc.

592

wherry: reactions of soils

the larger the number used to describe it; thus, a hquid with an
intensity of 1000 is 10 times as acid as one with an intensity
of 100, and so on.'*

TABLE 1
Indicators* for Soil Acidity and Alkalinity Determination

INTENSITY OF ACIDITY

3000

1000

300

100

30

10

3

1

Bromphenol
blue

Methyl red.

Bromcresol.
purple. . . .

Phenol red..

yellow

green

vio.-blue
vio.-red

br.-red

orange
yellow

yellow
br.-red

red-vio.
yellow

orange

INTENSITY OF ALKALINITY

1

3

10

30

100

Phenol red

oranffft

br.-rfid

vio.-red

Phenol phthalein

white

pink

red

* Samples of several of these were kindly supplied to the writer by Dr. H. A.
Lubs.

The indicators are used in extremely dilute solutions, mostly
about 0.0001 per cent, although it is most convenient to trans-
port them into the field in more concentrated form, and to dilute
them as needed. For the first examination of each soil phenol
red is employed, as its color changes occur around the true
neutral point, at which, according to the plan here adopted,
acidity = alkalinity = 1. When the effect produced is that of
either its most acid or most alkaline color, the procedure is re-
peated with indicators showing changes over adjoining ranges

* This plan was used by the writer in a previous paper on a similar subject,
Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci. 6: 675-676. 1916. Its simplicity has led to its employ-
ment throughout the present one, but for the benefit of those accumstomed to
the Ph values, they are added to the table containing the summary of results.
To transform numerical intensities into Ph exponents : if acid, subtract the power
of 10 represented by the number from 7; if alkaline, add 7 to it. The ''two
points of interest on the scale of hydrogen-ion exponents for soils" recently
discussed by Gillespie (Science 48: 393-394. 1918), namely 6.0, the acid limit
for Azotobacter, and 5.2, that for the potato-scab organism, would be repre-
sented in the scale here used by acid 10 and acid 63 respective!}'.

wherry: reactions of soils 593

of acidity or alkalinity, and this is continued until either an
intermediate color of one indicator, or opposing extremes of two
overlapping ones, are obtained.

The soils supporting the growth of all of the commoner species
of orchids native to the east-central states have been studied
by this method, about 200 soil samples, collected as close to the
roots of the plants as possible, having been examined. The
results can best be expressed by describing first the relations
found to exist in the different types of habitat, taken up in the
order of increasing acidity.

In swamps in limestone regions the reaction of the standing
water and of the underlying soil may be distinctly alkaline,
because of accmnulation of calcium bicarbonate. This sub-
stance in saturated solution may show an alkahnity of 100 or
more, but in bogs supporting the growth of orchids it appears
never to be sufficiently concentrated to exceed the alkaline
intensity of 10. The only orchids which have been noted as
growing in a soil with such a reaction are the tall Cypripediums,
C. candidum, C. hirsutum, C. parviflorum, and the variety pubes-
cens. The writer has not had opportunity to carry his stu-
dies north of Pennsylvania, but several more northern species
are reported to grow frequently or exclusively in calcareous,
(or ''marly") bogs in which the reaction is no doubt similar
to that here noted; these include Calypso hulbosa, Habenaria
dilatata, H. hyperborea, Microstylis monophyllos, and Spiranthes
romanzoffiana.^

Calcareous (alkaline) soils may also develop in woods above
limestone rocks, so it seemed interesting to inquire if the same or
related species of orchids might grow in such situations. Two
instances have been brought to the writer's attention, Cypri-
pedium parviflorum and Orchis spectabilis, growing in black soil
full of limestone chips a mile southwest of Allentown, Pennsyl-
vania.^ Tests of these soils showed them to be in fact slightly

° This list has been compiled from articles by Prof. M. L. Fernald and others
scattered through the journal Rhodora for several years past, supplemented by
a private communication concerning occurrences in New York kindly sent by
Prof. K. M. Wiegand.

^ These were located bj' Mr. Harold W. Pretz of Allentown.

594 wherry: reactions of soils

alkaline, so that this habitat is comparable with the preceding
one. On the other hand, the same two species have been found
elsewhere growing in brown woods soil over noncalcareous rocks,
exhibiting a distinctly acid reaction, although in no case where
the plants appeared to be in a flourishing condition was the
intensity greater than 100. In so far as the data admit of
generalization, then, it may be stated that the showy orchid and
the 3^ellow lady's slipper prefer habitats in which the reactions
do not extend far to either side of the neutral point.

Acid intensities ranging from 1 (neutrality) to 100 are shown
by the brown soil of open woods, in which thrive so many orchids,
such as Apledrum, Corallowhiza, Epipactis, some Habenarias,
Liparis, some Pogonias, Tipularia, etc., and by the clayey soil
in damp to dry meadows, supporting other Habenarias and many
species of Spiranthes.

Bogs and swamps in noncalcareous regions show as a rule an
acid reaction throughout. The spring water supplying them
may be neutral or weakly acid, carbon dioxide producing for
instance an intensity of 3 ; in other cases the water may have an
intensity of as much as 300 just as it emerges from the earth,
perhaps owing to the presence of traces of sulfuric acid formed
by the oxidation of pyrite contained in the strata. But what-
ever the intensity of the water originally, the organic acids
formed by the decomposition of the accumulated vegetable
matter frequently attain an intensity of about 300, which, it
ma}^ be noted by way of comparison, approximates that of
acetic acid, M^hen half neutralized by a strong alkali. Calo-
pogon pulchellus, Habenaria flava, Pogonia ophioglossoides, Spi-
ranthes cernua, S. odorata, and rarely other species, have been
observed growing directly in the water of such swamps.

The case of Cypripedium acaule is rather peculiar, in that it
show^s a different soil preference from the other species of this
genus. It has been found in sandy open woods, where the
intensity of acidity proves to be 100 to 300. An associate in
these surroundings is Spiranthes beckii. In pure rotted pine
needles, in which the reaction covers the same range, it grows

wherry: reactions of soils 595

alongside of Microstylis uni folia and Spiranthes cernua. It
occurs also on sphagnum hummocks, the relations of which
will next be described.

The hummocks of sphagnum and other mosses which develop
in many swamps or bogs support a number of characteristic
orchids especially Arethusa, Calopogon, Pogonia ophioglossoides,
and the above mentioned Cypripedium acaule. Tests of the
partially rotted vegetable matter which surrounds their roots
have shown that the acidity is often greater than that of the
water in the hollows between the mounds. Even in calcareous
swamps, where the water is alkaline, a definite and rapid increase
in acidity is found on ascending through the moss, and an in-
tensity of 300 is often present at the top. The more acid the
water in the first place, the less rapid is this increase, but the
same upper limit is almost ahvays reached. The orchids rooted
in this moss may therefore be livingi in highly acid conditions,
even though others growing between the hummocks may have
their roots bathed in alkaline waters.

The habitat in which the most acid conditions of all may
develop appears to be the peat overlying clay which usually
occurs around the margins of bogs. In it grow^ Habenaria
blephariglottis, H. ciliaris, H. clavellata, H. cristata, and Liparis
loeselii. The intensity of acidity of such material has been
found to vary in general from 100 to 1000. In one case, how-
ever, a soil supporting Habenaria blephariglottis, near Hyatts-
ville, Maryland, the extreme value of 3000 has been observed.
It may be noted here that the peat used for growing tropical
orchids also shows an intensity of acidity of 100 to 1000.

The results obtained with all the species studied are collected
in table 2.^

^It is not claimed that some of these plants may not occasionally grow in soils
with reactions outside of the ranges here given, but these ranges are based on
measurements in sufficient number to justify regarding them at least as normal.
Points of special significance in the tabulated series of reactions appear to be:
alkaline 10 (PhS.O), the greatest alkalinity observed; acid 100 (PhS.O), the
upper acid limit for many species, and the lower limit for a few; acid 300
(Ph 4.5>, the acid limit for a further large number; and acid 3000 (Ph 3.5) the
greatest acidity observed.

596

wherry: reactions of soils

TABLE 2
Soil Reactions of Native Orchids

SPECIES

Cypripedium candidum

parviflorum

var. pubescens (hirsutum)
hirsutum(spectabile, reginae). . .

Cypripedium (Fissipes) acaule

Orchis (Galearis, Galeorchis) spectabilis

Habenaria (Blephariglottis) blephariglottis. . .

ciliaris

cristata

fimbriata (grandiflora) . . .

lacera

peramoena

psycodes

Habenaria (Coeloglossum) bracteat^

Habenaria (Gymnadeniopsis) clavellata (tri-

d^tata)

nivea

Habenaria (Lysias) orbiculata

Habenaria (Perularia) flava (virescens)

Calopogon pulchellus (Limodorum tuberosum)

Arethusa bulbosa

Pogonia ophioglossoides

Pogonia (Triphora) trianthophora (pendula) . . .

Pogonia (Isotria) verticillata

Spiranthes (Gyrostachys, Ibidium) beckii

(simplex)

cernua

gracilis

lucida (latifolia)

odorata

REACTION AND RANGE OF
INTENSITY

praecox

vernalis

Epipactis (Goodyera, Peramium) pubescens...

repens

Serapias (Epipactis) helleborine (viridiflora). ..
Microstylis (Acroanthes, Malaxis) unif olia —

Liparis (Leptorchis) liliifolia

loeselii

Aplectrum hyemale (shortii, spicatum)

Tipularia discolor (unif olia)

Corallorrhiza maculata (multiflora)

odontorhiza

wisteriana (maculata)

alkaline

alkaline

alkaliiie

alkaline

acid

alkaline

acid

acid

acid

acid

acid

acid

acid

acid

acid

acid

acid

acid

acid

acid

acid

neutral

acid

10 to

10 to

10 to

10 to

100 to

10 to

100 to

100 to

100 to

10 to

10 to

10 to

10 to

10 to

neutral

acid 100

acid 100

neutral

300

acid 10

3000

1000

1000

100

100

100

100

100

100 to 300
10 to 100
30 to 100

100 to 300
30 to 300

100 to 300
30 to 300

to acid 30
10 to 100

8.0-7.0
8.0-5.0
8.0-5.0
8.0-7.0
5.0-4.5
8.0-6.0
5.0-3.5
5.0-4.0
5.0-4.0
6.0-5.0
6.0-5.0
6.0-5.0
6.0-5.0
6.0-5.0

5.0-4.5
6.0-5.0
6.5-5.0
5.0-4.5
5.5-4.5
5.0-4.5
5.5-4.5
7.0-5.5
6.0-5.0

acid 100 to 300

5.0-4.5

acid 3 to 300

6.5-4.5

acid 10 to 100

6.0-5.0

acid 10 to 100

6.0-5.0

acid 10 to 100

6.0-5.0

acid 10 to 100

6.0-5.0

acid 10 to 100

6.0-5.0

acid 10 to 100

6.0-5.0

acid 30 to 100

5.5-5.0

acid 10 to 30

6.0-5.5

acid 30 to 300

5.5-4.5

neutral to acid 100

7.0-5.0

acid 3 to 300

6.5-4.5

acid 3 to 100

6.5-5.0

acid 10 to 100

6.0-5.0

acid 10 to 100

6.0-5.0

acid 3 to 100

6.5-5.0

acid 3 to 30

6.5-5.5

wherry: reactions of soils 597

In conclusion, a brief discussion of some of the relations
brought out by the above table may be added. The separation
of Cypripedium acaule from the other species, and its assignment
to a separate genus, Fissipes, first proposed on purely botanical
grounds, may perhaps be regarded as having a chemical basis,
in that its soil reaction is markedly different from that of the
others. A similar case, although hardly sufficiently marked to
deserve taxonomic recognition, is that the Habenarias with a
simple fringed lip grow in distinctly more acid soils than do
those with a three-parted lip.

In some instances the reaction of the soil appears to be more
important than its moisture content in determining where a
given species will grow; for a single species may be found in
habitats varying widely in wetness. Thus Cypripedium acaule
grows in wet sphagnum in various swamps, and in dry sandy
woods on the Coastal Plain; Spiranthes cernua in running water
in brooks, and in dry pine needles on some District of Columbia
and Pennsylvania hills; Liparis loeselii in oozy muck in the
swamps of northern New Jersey and Pennsylvania, and in
barren soapstone gravel on a steep slope along the Potomac
near Washington. Yet in every case the acidity of the soils
supporting each of these species varies within comparatively
narrow limits. This undoubtedly signifies that the fungus
living symbiotically on the roots of each species is less tolerant
of changes in acidity than in moisture.

Finally, it may be worth while to consider the bearing of the
above data on the cultivation of the native orchids. It seems
obvious that the growth of the tall Cypripediums would be
favored by the addition of a little powdered limestone to the
soil; and the wTiter has been able to grow the northern C.
hirsutum successfully in the District of Columbia in this way.
On the other hand most species require the soil to be made dis-
tinctly or even strongly acid. This may be accomplished by
adding partly decomposed peat, by mixing in pure quartz sand,
and even by watering with highly dilute phosphoric acid or
acid phosphate solutions. It seems probable that if more

598 FEWKES: UNIQUE PREHISTORIC POTTERY

attention should be given to the reactions of the soils into which
it is proposed to transplant wild flowers in general, their culti-
vation would be attended with a greater degree of success.

ETHNOLOGY — A unique form of prehistoric pottery.^ J. Wal-
ter Fewkes, Bureau of American Ethnology.

The specimen of pottery here described was found by a farmer
in cultivating his field near Dolores, in the southwestern corner
of Colorado. The antiquities of this region show that it was
inhabited in prehistoric times by a people who had made great
advancement in architecture, on which account some of the
best known examples of their buildings have been set aside by
the Government for the permanent preservation of these remains.
Some of the best known of these buildings are the cliff dwellings
of the Mesa Verde National Park, but there are many others in
form of castles and towers equally instructive situated in can-
yons and valleys west of this plateau as far as Utah. These
skillful builders have left evidence of their superior craft far into
New Mexico, at Aztec, and the large buildings along the Chaco
Canyon. They characterize what is called the San Juan culture
area, the horizon of which has not yet been determined.

This so-called San Juan culture area can be distinguished by
ceramic as well as architectural features. Similar varieties of
pottery are found over this whole area. In other words pottery
and its decoration support architectural evidences of the extent
of this culture area. We find the same technique, color, and
design throughout. Foremost among the distinctive forms of
pottery found in this area are the corrugated and black and
white ware, types no longer manufactured and most abundant
in early prehistoric times. We rarely find in this area imitations
of human and animal figures in relief, a style of ceramic art
quite common in northern Mexico and southern Arizona.

Several effigy vases have been collected from this area in the
last few years, and it is probable that their numbers will increase
year by year. The specimen here considered cannot be called

1 Published by permission of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.

FEWKES: UNIQUE PREHISTORIC POTTERY

599

an effigy base, but rather a rare double vase with handle deco-
rated with rude representations of animals. It was plowed
up bj' a fanner, Mr. Littrell, while working on his land near the
Yellow Jacket Canyon about o miles south of Sandstone post
office, 20 miles west of Dolores, Colorado. The exceptional
features of this object are shown in the accompanying illustra-
tions (figs. 1, 2). The vessel consists of two vases of equal size
united by a handle, modeled in the fonn of a bird and another
animal. The end of this handle to the left of the observer is

Fig. 1. Double vase from side

a rude representation of the head and body of a bird. The
orifice of the vase is on the back of this bird. The representa-
tion of the bird is very crude, but triangles sunilar to those
generally painted on the sides of the body of birds are some-
times used in pueblo pictures to designate wings. Smiilar black
figures of triangular shape also occur over the whole handle.
The head is abnost globular with dots representing eyes en-

600

FEWKES: UNIQUE PREHISTORIC POTTERY

closed in a circle. The breast is spotted with black dots char-
acteristic of bird and butterfly designs among the pueblos.
An effigy vase with these symbols, undoubtedly representing a
bird, was excavated last summer in a cemetery eight miles w^est
of Sandstone Canyon.

The posterior extremity of the animal represented on the
handle of the two bowls could hardly represent the tail feathers
of a bird, but might be intended for the tail of another group of
anmials, as quadrupeds. The handle can be interpreted as
portions of the animals united; one of which is a bird and the
other nondescript, both with one common body, a condition

Fig. 2. Double vase from above

like that which characterizes some of the figures painted on the
interior of mortuary bowls from prehistoric graves in the Mim-
bres Valley, New Mexico. In these are found figures of well-
drawn fishes combined with an antelope or some nondescript
animal combinations. Collections of pottery from Colorado
and New Mexico show no designs where double animals are
painted or molded.

The orifice of this double vase is situated in almost the middle
of the handle, nearer that of the supposed head. It communi-

FEWKES: UNIQUE PREHISTORIC POTTERY 601

cates with the cavities of both vases through the hollow handle
and suggests that the object was used as a receptacle for sacred
water. It is not unusual for the Hopi priests to-day to make
long pilgrimages to distant springs to procure water to use in
their rites. The medicine vessels of Hopi priests are, however,
smaller and simpler than that here considered, although some
of these sacred vessels are furnished with handles. The size
of the two members of the prehistoric vessels are about the
same; both are ahnost spherical, slightly flattened on their
upper side where they are decorated with parallel lines dis-
tributed in four blocks. Both have an unusual feature in pre-
historic pottery — a concave basal depression. This unique form
of pottery belongs to the black-and-white ware which is regarded
as archaic and characteristic of the most ancient pueblo ruins.

ABSTRACTS

Authors of scientific papers are requested to see that abstracts, preferably
prepared and signed by themselves, are forwarded 'promptly to the editors.
The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those appearing
in this issue.

ORNITHOLOGY. — Autumn water-bird records at Washington, D. C.
Harry C. Oberholser. Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 30: 122, 1917.
The autumn of 1916 at Washington, D. C, was ornithologically in-
teresting on account of the large number of shore-bird visitors. During
this period, two species, Pisohia fuscicolh's and Squatorola squatarola
cynosurae, were first recorded from the District of Columbia. A second
record for Micropalama himantopus, and the fourth, fifth, and sixth
records for Spatula clypeata were also obtained. Attracted by unusual
conditions, several species stayed far beyond their previous latest dates,
notable among these being Totanus melanoleucus, which was noted on
October 26 ; Totanus flavipes, November 1 (erroneously given as Novem-
ber 2) ; Pisohia minutilla, November 1 (erroneously given as November
2); and Pisohia maculata, November 1 (erroneously given as No-
vember 2). H. C. 0.

ORNITHOLOGY. — Costa's hurnminghird — its type locality, early his-
tory, and name. T. S. Palmer. The Condor 20: 114-116. 1918.
Costa's hummingbird (Calypte costae) has an interesting but some-'
what obscure history. It was originally described as from California,
but its type locality proves to be ]Magdalena Bay, Lower California,
the type specimen having been collected in 1837 by Dr. Adolphe Simon
Neboux during the course of a voyage of the French frigate Venus.
It was named for Louis Marie Pantaleon de Costa, Marquis de Beau-
Regard. Not until twenty years later was the species found in Cali-
fornia, and not until 1876 were its eggs discovered.

Harry C. Oberholser.

m2

abstracts: ornithology 603

ORNITHOLOGY.— A list of the birds observed in Clay and O'Brien
counties, Iowa. Ira N. Gabrielson. Proc. Iowa Acad. Sci. 24:
259-272. 1918.
Clay and O'Brien counties lie in northwestern Iowa in the prairie
region near the Great Plains. The country is nearly all rolling prairie
now largely under cultivation, and the only timber consists of the
fringes along the streams and about some of the lakes, together with
the trees planted about buildings. The artificial groves have exerted
an important influence in attracting numbers of birds that favor the
vicinity of hmnan habitations, and have decidedly increased their
numbers. Another important result of the settling up of this part of
Iowa is the draining of innumerable ponds and marshes that formerh'-
existed in the prairie regions. This has brought about a great change
in the breeding water-fowl population, for these birds have practically
disappeared from the area. The present list comprises 136 species, of
which forty-seven are water birds and shore birds. The latter are
particularly interesting as showing what species of water-fowl lived in
this region before the elimination of their favorite breeding places.

Harry C. Oberholser.

ORNITHOLOGY.— .4 second bird survey at Washington, D. C. Harry
C. Oberholser. Wilson Bulletin 30: 34-48. 1918.
The scientific results of our first comprehensive bird census ilear
Washington, D. C, were so important that we decided to repeat it in
the spring of 1917. On this second occasion twenty-two naturalists
took part, and the seventeen parties covered the various kinds of
country within twenty miles of the city. The date chosen was May 11,
1917, one day earlier in the month than in 1913. An extraordinarj-
combination of circumstances made this time exceptionally favorable
for birds; and the results were as remarkable as they were interesting.
The total number of species observed by all the parties collectively
was 166, which is, so far as we are aware, the largest number ever
reported in a single day at any locality in the United States. The
total number of individual birds noted was 17,074. The reasons for
this rather astonishing result are not far to seek. The very cool
weather of April and early yiay induced the winter residents to remain
late, and at the same time retarded the movements of the later mi-
grants; so that while a large number of species was present, there were
only a few individuals of many of the more tardy migrants on this
May 11, on which date the spring migration about Washington is

604 abstracts: ornithology

ordinarily at its height. In 1917, however, the high tide of the migra-
tion was not reached until May 17 to 23, nearly ten days later than
usual. On the other hand, in 1917 some of the early migrants were
very numerous for so late in the season, as, for instance, Sitta cana-
densis canadensis, Lanivireo solitarius solitarius, and Carpodacus pur-
pureus purpureus. The occurrence of an exceptional number of rare
and of occasional visitors at the time our census was taken aided mate-
rially in swelling the total number of species observed. This peculiar
combination of circumstances which made possible such a great record
is not likely to recur for many years. The most noteworthy of these
rarities are probably Phalacrocorax auritus auritus, Bonasa umbellus
umbellus, Bartramia loJigicauda, Pelidria alpina pacifica, Pisohia fusci-
collis, Lotus atricilla megalopterus, Chlidonias nigra surinamensis,
Hydroprogne caspia imperator, and Sterna hirundo.

The following fourteen species were present on this date (May 11,
1917), later in spring than ever previously observed in the vicinity of
Washington: Anas platyrhyncha, Anas ruhripes tristis, Lophodytes
cucullatus, Tringa solitaria solitaria, Bartramia longicauda, Pelidna
alpina pacifica, Pisohia fuscicollis, Larus argentatus, Larus delawarensis,
Larus atricilla megalopterus, Hydroprogne caspia imperator, Sterna
hirundo, Euphagus carolinus, Spizella monticola monticola.

H. C. 0.

ORNITHOLOGY. — Notes on the subspecies of Numenius americanus
Bechstein. Harry C. Oberholser. The Auk 35: 188-195. 1918.
There are two geographic races of Numenius americanus. The
typical form, Numenius americanus americanus Bechstein, breeds in
the western United States, excepting the northernmost part, and
migrates east to the eastern United States and Newfoundland, and
south to Mexico and Guatemala. The smaller northern race described
as Numenius americanus parvus Bishop, but which has an earlier name
in Numenius americanus occidentalis Woodhouse, breeds in southwest-
ern Canada and the northern part of the western United States, and
migrates south to Mexico, east to Iowa, casually to Rhode Island,
South Carolina, and even to Jamaica. H. C. 0.

ORNITHOLOGY.— Mw^anda ornithologica. III. Harry C. Ober-
holser. Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 31: 47-50. May 16, 1918.
Messrs. Brabourne and Chubb have recently renamed Haematopus
ater Sharpe from the Falkland Islands Haematopus quoyi, but there

abstracts: ornithology 605

already is an earlier name in Haemafopus townsendi Audubon. The
spotted redshank of Europe is now called Totanus fuscus (Linnaeus),
but this is preoccupied, and (by inadvertence) the use of Totanus
7naculatus (Tunstall) for this species is here advocated. [The correct,
because earliest, designation is Totanus erythropus (Pallas).] The
lory commonly called Eos riciniata (Bechstein) should properly be
called Eos guenhyensis (Scopoli), a name of many years' priority. The
specific name of the fruit pigeon now known as Leucotreron gularis
(Quoy and Gaimard) is preoccupied, and it is here rechristened Leuco-
treron epia. The current specific name of the South American dove
known as Gymnopelia erythrothorax (Meyen) is preoccupied, and the
bird must, therefore, be known as Gymnopelia cecilioe (Lesson).

H. C. 0.

ORNITHOLOGY. — The great plains waterfowl breeding grounds and
their protection. Harry C. Oberholser. Yearbook, U. S. Dept.
Agr. 1917: 191-204, pis. 30-31. 1918.
For obvious reasons the breeding grounds of our waterfowl are of
prime importance. Although there are valuable isolated breeding
places in the west at many of the large lakes of the arid interior,
the Great Plains contain the most extensive breeding grounds for wa-
terfowl in the L^nited States, and the best of these lie in the states
of Nebraska, South Dakota and North Dakota. In the latter areas
large numbers of ducks and other waterfowl breed about the lakes
and sloughs, and the maintenance of their breeding ground is essential
to the continuation of the game supply. In addition to hunting
restrictions, an exceedingly desirable additional measure of protection
is the establishment of further game preserves, both public and private.

H. C. 0.

ORNITHOLOGY.— Birds collected by Dr. W. L. Abbott on various
islajids in the Java Sea. Harry C. Oberholser. Proc. U. S.
Nat. Mus. 54: 177-200. November 2, 1917.
This paper contains the ornithological results of Dr. W. L. Abbott's
visits to four islands in the Java Sea. These islands, which appar-
ently had never been previously visited by an ornithologist, are Solombo
Besar, Arends, ]\Iata Siri, and Kalambau.

On Solombo Besar Island, from December 3 to 6, 1907, Dr. Abbott
collected 33 specimens representing 10 species, 8 of which proved to be

606 abstracts: ornithology

undescribed forms. The most interesting of these new birds are
Kakatoe parvulus abbotti, which marks a new western limit for the
genus; Perissolalage chalepa, a new genus and species of Campephag-
idae, related to Lalage Boie; a drongo, Dicruropsis pectoralis solom-
bensis; and an apparently distinct species of white-eye, Zoster ops
solombensis, allied to Zosterops flava of Java.

Only three species were obtained on Arends Island, November 23
to 24, 1908, but one of these, Megapodius dupemjii gouldii, is worthy
of particular note as extending the western limit of the known range
of this species.

On the island of Mata Siri Dr. Abbott collected from November 7
to 12, 1907, and from November 25 to December 1, 1908, gathering on
these occasions altogether 13 specimens of birds of eight species, five
of these representing new subspecies. The most important of the new
birds are a bulbul, Pycnonotus brunneus zaphaeus, apparently most
closely allied to Pycnotiotus brunneus brunneus from the Malay Penin--
sula; Malacocinda abbotti sirensis, allied to Malacocincla abbotti olivacea
from the Malay Peninsula; and a drongo, Dicruropsis pectoralis sirensis,
apparently nearest Dicruropsis pectoralis solombensis Oberholser from
Solombo Besar Island.

On Pulo Kalambau, which is one of the three largest islands of the
Laurot group. Dr. Abbott landed for a day on December 7, 1907.
Here he collected two birds, one of them a new subspecies of white-eye
(Zosterops solombensis zachlora).

From these incomplete collections the faunal relations of Solombo
Besar Island seem to be with Java and Timor; and of Mata Siri with
Borneo. H. C. O.

ORNITHOLOGY. — The shedding of the stomach lining by birds, par-
ticularly as exemplified by the Anatidae. W. L. McAtee. The
Auk 34: 415-421, pis. 16-17. 1917.
The shedding of the stomach lining and its disposal by regurgitation,
in hornbills and a number of other birds, is well known. It is now
shown that this operation takes place commonly in many species of
birds, but that the process is usually one of gradual disintegration and
mixing with the food contents of the stomach. In this way the dis-
carded lining is ground up with the other food by the rotary move-
ment of the gizzard contents, and passed out of the body through the
intestines. This process has been observed in 24 species of ducks and.

abstracts: ornithology 607

geese and in the following other birds: Thalasseus maximus, Himan-
topus mexicanus, Limnodromus griseus scolopaceus, CoUniis virginianus
texaniis, Cerchneis sparvcria sparveria, Coccyzus americanus americanus,
Coccyziis erythropthalmus, Pica pica hudsonia, Corvus ossifragus, Stur-
nella magna argutula, Toxostoma redivivum sonomae, Mimus polyglottos
polyglottos, and Hylocichla guttata subsp.

Harry C. Oberholser.

ORNITHOLOGY.— A'o^es on North American birds. IV. Harry C.
Oberholser. The Auk 35: 62-65. 1918.
Recent investigations show that Pelacanus californicus Ridgwaj'- is
a subspecies of Pelecanus occidentalis Linnaeus, and should, therefore,
stand as Pelecanus occidentalis californicus Ridgway. Similarly, Cre-
dscus coturniculus (Ridgway) is undoubtedly a subspecies of Crecis-
cus jamaicensis aod should be called Creciscus jamaicensis coturnicu-
lus (Ridgway). Tringa maculata (Vieillot), has been said to be pre-
occupied by Tringa maculata Linnaeus, and for the species called
Pisobia maculata the name Tringa pectoralis Say has been resurrected.
There is, however, no Tringa maculata Linnaeus, as this is a misquota-
tion for Tringa macularia. Our pectoral sandpiper must, therefore,
retain its present designation of Pisobia maculata (Vieillot). The form
of Agelaius phoeniceus breeding in the central northern United States
and middle Canada was some time ago described as Agelaius phoeniceus
arctolegus Oberholser, but has not been considered separable fi'om
Agelaius phoeniceus fortis. Additional material shows it, however, to
be a recognizable race. H, C. O.

ORNITHOLOGY.— T/te birds of Desecheo Island, Porto Rico. Alex-
ander Wetmore. The Auk 35: 333-340. 1918.
Desecheo Island lies in Mona Passage west of Porto Rico, and is
about one and one-fourth miles long by three-quarters broad. It is a
rocky island rising to a peak six hundred feet high, and is covered by
jungle or brush. The avifauna is limited to eleven species, only three
of which are land birds. Only one passerine bird, Margarops fuscatus
fuscatus, has been found on the island,

Harry C. Oberholser,

608 abstracts: ornithology

ORNITHOLOGY. — Third annual list of proposed changes in the A. 0.
U. Check-List of North American birds. Harry C. Oberholser.
The Auk 35: 200-217. 1918.
This is the third annual resume of recent ornithological work in so
far as it affects North American birds. Like the first and second lists
it comprises only ornithological cases, — i.e., such as require specimens
or the identification of descriptions for their determination, and con-
sists of additions, eliminations, rejections, and changes of names due
to various causes. However, only changes known to be based on
revisionary work are included ; therefore no mention is made of changes
involved in names used without sufficient explanation in local lists or
elsewhere. It is intended to include here everything pertinent up to
December 31, 1917, not previously chronicled. Some of these changes
date back as far as 1910, but were previously overlooked. The present
list summarizes the addition of twenty-three genera either new or
raised from subgenera; four subgenera; six species detected for the first
time in North America, three of these from Greenland; and forty-nine
subspecies either newly described or for the first time found in North
America. Besides these there are six new subfamilies. H. C. 0.

ORNITHOLOGY.— A'eit' light on the status of Empidonax traillii
(Audubon). Harry C. Oberholser. Ohio Joui'n. Sci. 18: 85-98,
February, 1918.
Few birds are as puzzling as the flycatchers of the American genus
Empidonax. None of these are more difficult to understand than
Empidonax traillii and its closely related forms, the status of which has
long been in dispute. At present the name Empidonax traillii traillii
is applied to the subspecies from the western United States, and that
from Manitoba and the eastern United States is called Empidonax
traillii alnorum. A reexamination of the type of Empidonax traillii
now shows that it belongs to the eastern race; and this should, there-
fore, henceforth stand as Etnpidonax traillii traillii. This race breeds
in most of the wooded parts of Canada and Alaska, in the northeastern
United States, west to Montana, and south to Maryland, while it
winters southward to Ecuador. The subspecies inhabiting the western
United States south to Mexico is renamed Empidonax traillii brewsteri.
An interesting development of the present study is the discovery of
the existence of six more or less well-marked color phases in both of
the subspecies. H. C. 0.

abstracts: engineering 009

ENGINEERING.— T'es/s of large bridge columns. J. H. Griffith
and J. G. Bragg. Bur. Stand. Tech. Paper No. 101. Pp. 139.
1918.

Tests were made upon eighteen large bridge cohunns which were
half-size models of chord sections of raih'oad bridges recently erected
at St. Louis, Mo., Metropolis, 111., and Memphis, Tenn. The speci-
mens were constructed of nickel, Mayari, chrome, silicon, and high
carbon steels. They varied in length from 15| feet to 24| feet, and
in cross-sectional areas from 42 to 119 square inches. The slenderness
ratios varied from 15 to 44. The columns were of modern design
and were constructed in accordance with approved methods of shop
practice and were tested in the 10,000,000 Olsen compression machine
of the Bureau at Pittsburgh.

The strengths of the columns varied from a minimum of 31,200
pounds per square inch for the carbon steel to a maximum of 657,000
pounds per squafe inch for the Mayari steel members, the intermediate
values corresponding to the grades of steel used in the construction of
the columns. The strengths for twelve columns failing as units were
approximately defined by the yield points of the individual steels used
in the construction, being confined within a zone determined b^- the
upper and lower limits obtained by independent tests of the com-
ponent steels. The mean deviation was found to be 0.5 per cent from
the mean-yield points determined for the columns at failure, the range
of variation being from four to twelve per cent. Of the remaining six
columns four failed by local bending at the ends and two by body
failures due apparentl}^ to the unsymmetrical action of lattice bars.

A full discussion is given of the effects of initial eccentricity, the laws
of stress distribution from bending of columns, and the laws of distribu-
tions in pin plates and lattice. The analj^ses were conducted from the
point of view of the column formula used in design and the more
rational formula based on initial eccentricity in a column.

J. H. G.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND 'AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 315th meeting of the Society was held on Wednesday, October
2, 1918, in the hall of the Perpetual Building Association at 1101 E
Street N. W. There were present 18 members and 4 visitors.

The editor announced the appearance of the long delayed volume
19, of the Society's Proceedings.

Dr. G. F. White and Mr. R. A. St. George, both of the U. S.
Bureau of Entomology, were elected to membership in the Society.

The program was as follows:

W. M. Mann: Collecting in Fiji. Owing to the illness of Dr. Mann
this paper was read by title.

R. A. CusHMAN : Cocoon spinning habit of two species of Braconids.
This paper, which dealt with the author's observations of the cocoon
spinning of two common species, was discussed by Messrs. Schwarz,
RoHWER, and Abbott,

A. B. Gahan: A synopsis of the species belonging to the chalcidoid
genus Riley a Ashmead. In the absence of the author this paper was
presented by the secretary. It dealt almost entirely with a system-
atic treatment of the genus Rileya, including all of the known spe-
cies of the world. The paper was discussed by Messrs. Schwarz and

ROHWER.

C. N. Ainslie: Notes on the economic importance of Samia Cecropia.
This paper was read by Mr. Rohwer and discussed by Messrs. Abbott
and CusHMAN.

A. B. Gahan, Recording Secretary.

610

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

In accordance with the suggestions of the health authorities, several
meetings of the scientific societies, regularly scheduled to be held in
October, were postponed, on account of the rapid spread of influenza
in the city. Among the meetings for which programs had been ar-
ranged were those of the Philosophical Society on October 12 and of
the Chemical Society on October 10.

]Members of the British Educational Mission visited Washington
on October 14-18, 1918. The visiting members were: Sir Arthur
Everett Shipley, of Christ's College, University of Cambridge; Sir
Henry ]\Iiers, of the University of Manchester; Rev. Edtv. Mewburn
Walker; Sir Henry Jones, of the University of Glasgow; Dr. John
JoLY, of Trinity College, DubHn; Miss Caroline Spurgeon, of the
University of London; and Miss Rose Sidgwick, of the University of
Birmingham.

During the past summer a number of professors of physics have
been cooperating with the Bureau of Standards in writing a text book
on radio communication. This book is to be used at the various train-
ing schools estabhshed by the Signal Corps for training radio elec-
tricians. Among those who were engaged in this work, and who have
recentlv retm-ned to their respective colleges to resume teaching, are:
Prof. F. W. Grover, of Colby College; Prof. H. M. Royal, of Clarkson
College of Technology; Prof. G. M. Smith, of Purdue; and Prof. L. B.
Wheeler, of Yale.

Prof. E. C. Bingham, of Lafayette College, has returned to take up
his work as Professor of Chemistry there. During the past summer
he has been in Washington engaged in an investigation of the lubri-
cating oils used in aviation engines.

Prof. A. D. Cole has returned to Ohio State University after spend-
ing the summer at the Bureau of Standards, where he has been engaged
in research on vacuum tubes.

Prof. G. F. Wittig, formerly of the University of Pennsylvania?
and Mr. G. C. Southworth, of the Bureau of Standards, have resigned
to take up the teaching of intensive courses in radio now being given
by the Signal Corps at Yale University.

. 611

612 • SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Mr. Roy 0. Fitch, of the Bureau of Standards, died on October 13,
1918, of complications resulting from an attack of influenza. Mr.
Fitch was born in Oregon in 1891, grachiated from the University of
Oregon in 1912, and entered the government service in 1913 as junior
chemist. His work was chiefly on bituminous materials of construc-
tion, and he had been engaged recently on war problems connected
with the manufacture of prepared roofings for the cantonments and
the treatment of the hulls of concrete ships. He was a member of the
Chemical Society.

Mr. Thomas Bartlett Ford, associate physicist at the Bvneau of
Standards, died on October 1, 1918, of pneumonia resuUing from
influenza. Mr. Ford was born October 4, 1882, graduated from the
Universit}" of Kansas in 1904, and entered the government service in
1907. He had been for several years in charge of the low-temperature
laboratory of the Bureau, including the Hquid air and hquid hydrogen
apparatus, and had devoted considerable attention to the separation
of the rare gases. He was a memljer of the Chemical and Philosophical
Societies of Washington.

Prof. David Ernest Lantz, assistant biologist in the Biological
Surve}', U. S. Department of Agriculture, died on October 7, 1918,
of pneumonia following influenza, at the age of (53. Prof. Lantz was
Ijorn in Pennsylvania, March 1, 1855. He was associated with the
secondary schools of Kansas and with the Kansas State Agricultural
College until 1904, when he became a member of the Biological Survey.
He was a member and former secretary of the Biological Society of
Washington. His publications were concerned chiefly with ornith-
ology and economic mammalogy.

Dr. Harrison E. Patten, of the Bureau of Chemistry, Department
of Agricultu7'e, has been commissioned a captain in the Quartermaster
Corps.

Mr. George A. Rankin, of the American University Experiment
Station, has been commissioned a captain in the Chemical Warfare
Service.

Prof. J. E. RowE has returned to Pennsylvania State College after
having spent the summer at the Bureau of Standards working on
problems connected with airplane radiator design.

Mr. E. W. Shaw, of the Geological Survey, has been appointed an
internal revenue agent under the Treasury Department, and is chair-
man of the committee on natural gas taxation.

Mr. H. C. Raven, of the Smithsonian Institution, who for three
years has been collecting mammals and birds in Celebes, arrived in
Washington September 28.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VIII NOVEMBER 19, 1918 No. 19

BOTANY. — Cosmos sulphureus, the xochipalli or flower paint of
the Aztecs. William Edwin Safford, Bureau of Plant
Industry.

Vegetable dyes were used by the aborigines of all parts of
America for ornamenting their utensils, staining their bodies, or
coloring their baskets and fabrics. Many of the textiles found
in the prehistoric graves of Peru are remarkable for their beau-
tiful and permanent colors. Few of these, unfortunately, can be
traced to the plants from which they were derived. The intro-
duction of foreign dyes has been disastrous. Their cheapness
and the facihty with which they can be transported has caused
them to be widely adopted in place of native dyes, the prepa-
ration of which is fast becoming obsolete. The ancient Mexi-
cans made use of a number of beautiful pigments, mostly vege-
table, for the picture-writing of their celebrated codices. Nearly
aU of their colors can be identified. A crimson was obtained
from the cochineal iuvsect, reared upon a cactus {Nopalea cocci-
nellifera). This they called nocheztli, or ''prickly-pear-blood."
With it they sometimes combined other ingredients, especially
the leaves of a Melastomataceous plant called tezoatl, or tex-
huatl. From the reddish-yellow aril of the seeds of Bixa orel-
lana they derived a pigment called achiotl. This is now widely
used throughout the world, and is known commercially as an-
natto, or arnotto. A bright yellow was obtained from a leafless
parasitic plant, Cusciita tinctoria, called zacatlaxcalli. From log-
wood Haematoxylon campechianum, and the closely allied Hae-

613

614 safford: cosmos sulphureus

matoxylon brasiletto, called uitzquauitl, or huitzcuahuitl, they
obtained a purple, and other shades, resulting from various addi-
tional ingredients. The use of this wood is now world wide.
From the twisted pods of Caesalpinia coriaria, called nacasco-
lotl, they obtained a fine black. These pods, known commer-
cially as cascalote or dividivi, are now an important source of
tannin. Another dye-plant, interesting on account of its old-
world affinities, was their xiuhquilitl, Indigofera suffruticosa,
more commonly known as Indigofera anil, and very closely allied
to Indigofera tinctoria, from which most of the commercial indigo
is derived; and another beautiful blue, called mohuitli, was ob-
tained from Jacohinia mohintli and /. umbrosa.

One of their colors, however, which all writers on Mexico
mention, has hitherto remained unidentified. This was called
xochipalli, or ''flower-paint," a name also applied to the plant
itself. It is the object of the present paper to announce its
rediscovery and to give a description, by means of which the
plant can be identified with certainty. The most remarkable
fact in connection with this plant is that, although it was de-
scribed and figured more than three centiu"ies ago, it has re-
mained hitherto unidentified. It is widely spread in Mexico.
In the present State of Guerrero there is a town, Xochipalla, the
name of which signifies ''the place where the xochipalli abounds. "^
The celebrated traveller, Gemelli-Careri, who visited this town
in 1697, while en route from Acapulco to Cuernavaca, passed
through a neighboring district where the girls gathered xochipalli
flowers and made of them a cosmetic paste. The Proto-Medico,
Dr. Francisco Hernandez, who was sent by his sovereign Philip
II in 1570 to New Spain to study its resources, gave the follow-
ing description of this plant, illustrated with a rude« drawing, a
fac-simile of which is here shown (fig. 1).

"Xochipalli is an herb six cubits in length, with sinuous (pin-
natifid) leaves somewhat like those of Artemisia, stems a finger
thick, flowers resembling those of the cempoalxochitl [Tagetes
erecta L.], but smaller and of a reddish yellow color, and roots
slender and long. It is widely spread in the tierras calientes,

* >See Robelo, Diccionario de Aztequismos, pp. 444, 447, 449, 1904.

safford: cosmos sulphureus 615

and is an herb well known to everybody. Only the flower is
used, the which is moderately hot and of an agreeable odor and
taste, comforting the heart, curing maladies of the womb and
ulcers, especially those of the mouth. But the chief use of the
flowers is for dyeing wool and painting images and objects of a
yellow color which in a certain manner verges to red, for which
object they are boiled in water together with an alkali, after
which the juice is expressed and strained, yielding a color which
is used by painters and dyers, for the purposes we have indicated."-

A search for the name xochipalU, or its modern variant, suchi-
pal, in Ramirez and Alcocer's Sinonomia vulgar y cieniifica de
las plantas Mexicanas was without result, nor could it be found
in the Nueva farmacopea Mexicana. In Suneon's monmnental
Dkcionnaire de la langue Nahuail, however (p. 701) the impor-
tance of this plant is attested by the following definitions:
'^XochipalU ou Xuchipalli, Herbe dont la feuille ressemble a celle
de I'artemise et sert a teindre les etoffes en jaune rouge; couleur
rouge, rose. RR. xochitl, palli." Robelo, also, in his Diccionario
de Aztequismos (p. 444) refers to it as follows: "Suchipal (Xochi-
palh: xochitl, flor; palli, color: 'flor-color,' 6 'color de flor').
Yerba cuya hoja se parece a la artemisa, y sirve para tenir las
telas de amarillo, rojo 6 naranjado." On page 447, note 23, he
says: ''Esta planta no esta clasificada;" and on page 449, under
geographical names, he includes ''Xochipala (xochi-pal-la :
xochi-palli, 6 xuchi-palli, suchipal; la, variante de tla, particula
abundancial) :" ''Donde abunda el suchipal."

In response to letters of inquiry the writer received replies
from several Mexican botanists, all of whom, following Hernan-
dez's description, were disposed to refer the plant in question to
the genus Tagetes, which includes the so-called "French" and
"African" marigolds of our gardens, both of which are flowers
of Mexican origin, held in high esteem by the Aztecs and used
by them in certain religious rituals. Dr. B. P. Reko of Oaxaca
referred it to Tagetes paiula and Dr. C. Conzatti thought that it
might possibly be Tagetes multiseta. In a letter dated July 5,

- See Ximenes' translation of Hernandez, Cuatro Libros, Libr. 3, cap. 36.
1615.

616

safford: cosmos sulphureus

1918, Dr. Conzatti says that, although Hernandez declares the
xochipalU to be an herb well known to everybody, no one could
be found who knew it: even the oldest natives in the vicinity of

Fig. 1 XochipalU (Cosmos sulphureus Cavanilles), the "flowor-paint" of thf
Aztecs, as figured by Hei'iiandez in 1576 and published in 1651.

Oaxaca were ignorant of such a plant. Since Hernandez de-
scribed it as having ''flowers resembUng the cempoalxochitl
{Tageies erecta) but smaller," Dr. Conzatti was inclined to refer
it to the smaller cempoalxochitl, Tagetes multiseta, a dried speci-

safford: cosmos sulphureus 617

men of which he enclosed in his letter. That the plant in ques-
tion could not possibly belong to the genus Tagetes was shown '
at once by the fonii of the involucre subtending the flower-head, '
which according to Hernandez's drawing, was not at all cup-
shaped, or tubular like that of Tagetes but composed of several'
distinct linear bracts. A comparison of Hernandez's rude illus-
tration (fig. 1) with herbarimn specimens of Tagetes showed that .
the plant in question could not possibly be included in the same
genus with them. His figure represents a composite with flower--
heads not unlike those of a Coreopsis, but the accompanying
leaves are artemisia-like as stated in the original description.
The widely spread ray-flowers, few in number, are three-toothed -
at the apex. On one of the heads they have fallen off, indicating
that they are not persistent like those of Tagetes. The disk
flowers form an erect cylindrical bundle, while the entire head is
subtended by an involucre not at all like that of the genus Ta-
getes, but composed of a few linear sepal-like bracts as stated
above.

Faihng to find the plant in the genus Coreopsis, the writer^^
carefully examined the plants belonging to allied genera. At*
last, in the genus Cosmos, he came upon a species corresponding
in all respects with Hernandez's figure. The long sought Xochi-
palli proved to be Cosmos sulphureus, a species which, though
figured the latter part of the eighteenth century by two eminent
botanists, had never been associated with the dye-plant described
and figured by the great protomedico a century previously. To
verify the discovery, a decoction of the flowers was made for the
writer by Dr. L. A. Hawkins, Plant Physiologist, of the Depart-
ment of Agriculture. Almost immediately the water became
suffused with an orange tinge, and on the addition of a very,
small quantity of alkali it changed to a rich orange-red, the color
of the xochipalli described by Hernandez.

Though never hitherto connected with the classic "flower-
color" used by the Aztecs in pamting their codices. Cosmos sul-
phureus is not a rare plant. Specimens of it were lacking in the
United States National Herbarium until 1886, when it was en-
countered by the veteran explorer Dr. Edward Palmer in the

Fig, 2. Cosmos sulphureus Cavanilles, a, disk flower; b, achene.

618

safford: cosmos sulphureus • 619

vicinity of Guadalajara, Jalisco; and five years later he collected
it at Culiacan, Sinaloa, bringing back with hun from this locality
seeds from which plants were propagated at Washington. The
account of its introduction into cultivation in the United States
is told by Dr. J. N. Rose in Garden and Forest for December,
1895, where an excellent figure of it was published. It is now
represented in the United States National Herbarium by speci-
mens from many other parts of Mexico: from Durango, Sonora,
Tepic, Colima, Oaxaca, Chiapas, Guerrero, and Morelos. It is
interesting to note that this species, observed by Gemelli-Careri
centuries ago while traveling between Acapulco and Cuerna-
vaca, has been collected at both of these terminals, at Acapulco
by Dr. Palmer, in 1894, and at Cuernavaca by Dr. J. N. Rose, in
1902. Seeds of this classic dye-plant of the Aztecs were recently
obtained by the writer, and he now has a number of vigorous
young plants of the true xochipalli growing in one of the green-
houses of the United States Department of Agriculture.

DESCRIPTION

Cosmos sulphureus is a tall, rank, pubescent annual composite,
growing usually about four to seven feet high, with stems as
thick as the thumb and bipinnatifid or tripinnatifid leaves, not
unlike those of the common Artemisia vulgaris in form. The
flower heads, borne on long slender peduncles, are subtended by
a calyx-like involucre composed of two series of eight bracts
each, the outer bracts linear and green, the inner broader and
scarious. The flowers vary in color from bright orange to deep
reddish orange. The heads are composed of eight broadly ovate
ray-flowers, three-toothed at the apex, spreading at right angles
to the axis and soon falling off, and fertile tubular disk flowers
forming a compact erect cylindrical bundle. The exserted an-
thers are black with orange tips, and the style is branched, ter-
minating in two slender tips. The fruit is a linear akene nearly
an inch long, including the slender barbed beaks, and the pappus
consists of two shghtly hispid awns.

620 maxon: a new polystichum

REFERENCES

Cosmos sulphureus Cavanilles, Icon. PL 1: 56, pi. 79. 1791.
Rose, Gard. & For. 8 : 484, fig. 66. 1895.

Coreopsis artemisiaefolia Jacquin, Icon. PI. Rar. 595; Col.
Suppl. 155. 1791.

Xochipalli . . . folia f evens sinuosa, magna, et Artemisiae
quadantenus similia. Hernandez, in Nard. Anton. Recchi,
Rermn Medic. Nov. Hisp. Lib. 7, Cap. 36. 1651.

In the accompanying illustration (fig. 2) the plant is shown,
slightly reduced, accompanied by drawings of a disk flower (a)
and an achene (b), the two latter enlarged about two diameters.

BOTANY. — A new Polystichum from California.^ William R.
Maxon, National Museum.

In reviewing recently the Polystichums of the Pacific coast
region of the United States as represented in the National Her-
barium and in the very ample collections of the Dudley Her-
barium of Leland Stanford Junior University, the latter lent
for study through the courtesy of Professor LeRoy Abrams of
that institution, it has been found that the plant of the Santa
Cruz peninsula and of two or three localities not far northward
which has commonly been referred to Polystichum aculeatum (or
formerly to its "var. angulare") represents a new species. This
is described below, being named in memory of the late William
R. Dudley, for many years professor of botany in Leland Stan-
ford Junior University.

Polystichum Dudleyi Maxon, sp. nov.

Rhizome stout, decumbent, together with the numerous stipe-bases
densely paleaceous, the inner basal scales mostly linear-lanceolate,
attenuate, dark brown, dull, semiopaque, imbricate, those above spread-
ing, larger and broader, narrowly oblong to ovate, long-acuminate,
up to 2 cm. long, brown to fulvous, concolorous, translucent, mem-
branous, distantly denticulate-ciliolate, extending well up the stipe
but mostly deciduous above the basal third, underlaid by a dense series

1 Published with the permission of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Insti-
tution.

maxon: a new polystichum 621

of small, narrow, attenuate, paler scales, these freely denticulate-
ciliate. Fronds several, erect-spreading, 40-120 cm. long; stipes
stramineous above the dark arcuate base, usually more than half as
long as the blade, sulcate; blades narrowly ovate to narrowly oblong-
lanceolate, very long-acuminate to long-attenuate, 25-75 cm. long,
8-25 cm. broad, bipinnate; rachises densely and subpersistently paleac-
eeous, the scales pale, mostly linear-attenuate, or acicular from a small,
roundish-cordate, fimbriate base; pinnae numerous, the lower ones
slightly apart, spreading, a Uttle shorter than those above, these mostly
contiguous, oblique, often strongly arcuate, linear to narrowly oblong-
lanceolate from a broader, invariably inequilateral base, attenuate
from the middle, the apex rather abruptly acute to long-acuminate;
pinnules numerous, oblique, straight or usually falcate, petiolulate,
obliquely ovate or ovate-oblong from a distinctly cuneate, inequilat-
eral base, the superior basal pinnule much the largest, this obhquely
cleft or with several pairs of nearly free segments, the other pinnules
auriculate, serrate to obliquely incised, the acuminate apex and the
curved serratures rather abruptly short-awned; pinnules with a copious
covering of pale, lax, sinuous, tortuous, filiform scales beneath, a few
similar scales borne on the upper surface; leaf tissue bright light green,
paP3^raceous, the course of the veins evident above; sori numerous,
terminal or subterminal upon the first anterior branch of the oblique
veins, or several pairs borne upon the simple pinnately arranged vein-
lets of the auricles and of the segments of the superior basal pinnules;
indusia orbicular, membranous, copiously long-ciliate, the cilia flaccid,
septate, frequentl}^ equaling in length the diameter of the body of the
indusium.

Type in the U. S. National Herbarium, no. 887829, collected "near
bridge, Peter's Creek," Santa Cruz Mountains, San Mateo County,
California, May 2, 1903, by W. R. Dudley. Three sheets with identi-
cal data are preserved in the Dudley Herbarium, which contains also
numerous other collections b}^ Professor Dudley of the same plant
from the Santa Cruz peninsula, as follows: Near bridge below La
Honda, San Mateo County, March 24, 1894; King's Mountain, San
Mateo County, March 5, 1898; sandstone rocks. Upper Gazos Creek,
San Mateo County, January 1, 1902; cliffs near Camp on Pescadero
Creek, Santa Cruz ]Mountains, San Mateo County, June 19, 1905;
rocky canyon of east fork of Waddell Creek, Santa Cruz County, Sep-
tember 23, 1901; south fork of Big Creek, Santa Cruz County, August,
1903; Los Gatos Canyon, Santa Clara County, April 21, 1895, July 22,
1895. Other specimens from the same or near-by regions are as fol-
lows: Foothills west of Los Gatos, Santa Clara County, Heller 7226;
Hume Canyon, Saratoga, Santa Clara County, alt. 270 meters, Pendle-
ton 1468; Santa Cruz Mountains, Anderson, Miss E. B. Norton, Mrs.
A. E. Bush, Miss Bowles; San Gregorio, San Mateo County, May 31,
1870, Brannan & Kellogg; Ukiah, Mendocino County, May 11, 1869,
Kellogg; above "Grimes," Santa Lucia Mountains, Monterey County,
August, 1903, Dudley; without special locality, Kellogg & Harford 1183.

622 maxon: a new polystichum

Polystichum Dudley i was figured by D. C. Eaton as Aspidium
aculeatum var. angulare in the second volume of the Ferns of North
America,^ but the illustration is defective in failing to show the pin-
nules as distinctly stalked and copiously clothed with filiform scales,
and as sufficiently oblique. In papyraceous texture, fully bipinnate
blades (which are only slightly narrowed at the base), stalked pin-
nules, and terminal or subterminal sori the relationship of P. Dudleyi
is clearly with the European plant called Polystichum. angulare by most
English botanists, Aspidium aculeatum B. aculeatum by Milde, As-
pidium lohatum /S angulare by Luerssen, and Polystichum aculeatum by
Christensen, the last author maintaining P. lohatum (Huds.) Presl as
specifically distinct; but, inordinately variable as the European plant
is, P. Dudleyi is at once distinguished from that by its invariably oblique,
less strongly awned, and more copiously filiform-paleaceous pinnules,
and by its strikingly fimbriate-ciliate indusia. The enlarged superior
basal pinnules are a constant feature not seen in most forms of P.
aculeatum {P. angulare); in this particular alone P. Dudleyi suggests
P. lohatum (the P. aculeaturn or P. aculeatum var. lohatum of British
botanists, Aspidium lohatum genuinum of Luerssen, Aspidium aculeatum
A. aculeatum of Milde), a plant otherwise very different in its barely bi-
pinnate blades (these strongly narrowed downward), its sessile to ad-
nate, less incised segments, its dorsal sori, and its harsh, rigid texture.
It is worth noting also that, so far as specimens at hand and descrip-
tions indicate, the European plants have the indusia entire or, at
most, minutely erose, a marked departure from the conspicuously
long-ciliate indusia of P. Dudleyi. Although the proper classification of
the very nmnerous European forms of this alliance is admittedly a
difficult matter, it appears that related American plants are almost
without exception specifically distinct from them. In the present in-
stance P. Dudleyi may be regarded as an analogue of the European P.
aculeatum, just as P. californicum (D. C. Eaton) Diels, is to a certain
extent, a Cahfornian counterpart of P. lohatum.

2 PI. 02, f. 7. 1879.

SWANTON: CATAWBA NOTES 623

ANTHROPOLOGY.— Catow;6a noies.^ John R. Swanton, Bu-
reau of American Ethnology.

The wTiter spent the greater part of the month of May, 1918,
on the Catawba reservation, South CaroUna, collecting linguistic
material from some of the few Indians still able to use the old
Catawba language. These Indians have been surrounded by
whites and negroes for such a long period and their economic
condition has altered so completely that one feels uncertain
whether the scraps of information regarding the old life and
beliefs now to be obtained had a purely Indian origin, and how
far they may have been colored by external influences. Never-
theless these scraps may have some value for future investigators
who may be in a better position to separate the various elements
entering into them. At any rate such scraps are all that we now
have, outside of the very limited material from earlier writers
such as Lawson, and I give them for what they may be worth.
They were collected merely incidentally in the course of the lin-
guistic investigation, and are principally from an old woman
named Margaret Brown and her son John Brown. An account
of the only important native industry which has come down to
modern times, pottery making, has been omitted, since this has
been treated very fully by Mr. M. R. Harrington^ in a special
paper containing also a few notes on other features of Catawba
ethnology.

Margaret Brown says that when she was a girl the Catawba
Uved, not in frame houses as they do today, but in brush dwell-
ings. According to her description these had a single ridgepole
supported at either end by a forked stick, a roof of pine bark^
and walls of brush. The house was round or oblong, the door
in the latter case being midway of one of the longer sides, and
along the wall opposite to the door was a bed of the usual south-
ern Indian style, a bench of wattle or matting supported by
short poles. The fire was in the middle of the house, and there
was no vent for the smoke except the door.

' Published with the permission of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Insti-r
tution.

^ Harrington, M. R., Amer. Anthrop. n. ser. 10: 399-407.

624 swanton: catawba notes

• Spoons, long trays, and other dishes were made of wood from
the dogwood and cedar trees. Pipes were of pottery or stone,
stone working having been a native industry as well as working
in clay. John Brown can make bone and flint arrow points
with one or more barbs, but I do not think he has acquired his
knowledge from the Indians, or at least from those of his own

tribe.

In making baskets they used the following dyes: (1) a red
dye from a plant called in Catawba wayuk, popularly "coon
roots;" (2) another red dye from the '4'ed root," Catawba tak-
tuwia; (3) a yellow dye from a plant called ItT wiye", '^ yellow
root;" and (4) black from the black walnut. There were prob-
ably others which have been forgotten.

The ancient dress seems to have been practically identical
with that of other southeastern Indians. Margaret Brown
said she had seen aprons in use made of large hickory leaves
pinned together with broomstraw. Small knit caps or hoods for
children were fabricated out of the inside bark of the slippery
ehii, but nothing seems to be remembered about the old mul-
berry-bark textiles. It is, however, recalled that little bags of
sand were placed on the foreheads of infants to give them "a.
heap of sense," an evident reminiscence of the ancient custom of
head-flattening. Adult Indians made a hair-wash out of the
red sap from broken stems of young grapes.

The Catawba had white, yellow, and blue corn, strawberry
corn — corn striped red all over — and popcorn. Which of these
were truly aboriginal it would be impossible to say. The old
native beans (I'^ye nuntce) are said to have been of the size of
lima beans, colored black with white spots. The native tobacco
is reputed to have been about 4 feet high but with broad leaves.
It is thought that the "sow weed" {Oxalis violacea), called by
the Catawba nupai°tare, was sometimes smoked. Like all of
the other southeastern Indians the Catawba pounded their corn
into meal in a wooden mortar, usually of hickory. The inside
was lined with tacks to keep the wood from fraying out and
leaving splinters in the meal. To take off the outer skin of the
corn they put it into a pot over the fire along with wood ashes.

SWANTON: CATAWBA NOTES 625

They also employed a fanner (wuski'), and two sifters, the coarser
known as no°so' kattcigne, and the finer as kus ompa, and the
dishes made from it appear to have been identical with those
known to the other southern Indians. Among them were
hominy (kuspi seratere), cold meal (kus umpasa'), and the fa-
mous dish known to the Creeks as sofki but called by Catawba
Indians kusimeyu. The hominy was also mixed with cooked
beans and squeezed up into cakes called kusta° notcepetco'.
When they ate these they commonly sat in a circle around a big
dish of gravy into which each dipped his cake. Like the other
southern tribes the Catawba also put commeal dough mixed
with beans into cornhusks, and cooked a number of them together
in a pot over the fire. Cornmeal dough was sometimes laid
upon oak leaves which had been placed upon sand, other oak
leaves being raked over the top, and the whole covered with
sand, after which a big fire was lighted over all and the dough
roasted. Again cornmeal dough was sometimes placed on a
short smooth board and cooked in front of the house fire. This
dish was called kusta° i°pite° kisa ikta'*. It was occasionally en-
riched by adding persimmons, the seeds of which had been re-
moved. Parenthetically I was assured that persimmon seeds
make excellent coffee. I learned nothing about the use of hick-
ory and acorn oil, though it was certainly resorted to but a good
flavor was given to hominy by stirring in walnut meats thor-
oughly, while the pot was boiling.

Beef, and at an earlier period venison, was cut into strips and
hung aroung the fire to dry. When any of this was desired a
piece was taken off and broken up fine in a stone mortar with
an iron pestle. The resulting fragments were put into a big
pan, gravy was poured over them, and all sat around and ate
out of the one dish. Meat was boiled in pots hung over the fire
or roasted on wooden spits. Cooking was sometimes performed
at the fire inside of the house, sometimes at a fire out of doors.

Fish were stupefied and then caught in the usual southeastern
style, by pounding up buckeye, devil's shoestring, and some
other plants and throwing them into a pool of water.

626 swanton: catawba notes

Medicines were of the same miscellaneous character observable
elsewhere among Indians, but were mostly from plants. The
following list contains all that I learned of during my short stay,
but there were of course many more. For the botanical identi-
fications I am indebted to Mr. Paul Standley, of the Smithsonian
Institution.

Ya' sua'' witiwa', "rattle snake medicine," Agave virginica,
used, as the name implies, in curing snake bites, but sometimes
in cases of dropsy. In cases of snakebite the roots were mashed
up and put into water, some of which was then taken internally
and some applied externally. For dropsy they selected the
smaller roots, pounded them up, and added them to a glass of
clear water, along with a tablespoonful or two of whisky.
Some was then applied externally to the affected parts, but the
rest taken internally, one tablespoonful three times a day.

Dep6"wa" yisi no°ne'-i, or po^wo'^ yasina', popularly known to
whites as ''Sampson's snake root," was used to stop pains in the
stomach, an infusion, hot or cold, being drunk or the roots chewed.
It was also applied to cure backache.

Wa"sa haone' (or wa°sa hawinon), popularly called ''star
grass," Aleiris farinosa. An infusion was drunk to cure stomach
trouble and dysentery.

Yire"tce witiwa', Cracca virginiana, popular name "devil's
shoestring." In olden times it is said that a tea was made from
the roots of this plant along with those of the low sumac, but it
is not known for what ailment.

Hastuk, Erigeron ramosus. A drink was made of the roots and
taken in cases of heart trouble.

Dopa sTgrlhere, Salvia lyrata. A salve to put on sores was
made of the roots.

Itewarap wetere, Senecio (smallii?), was considered good for
consumption.

Isdawaraphere wetikri°are, "it is good medicine for backache,"
Arnica acaulis, was used, as the name implies, for backache;
the green leaves were crumpled up and laid on sores.

Serak waruwe', Oenothera fruticosa. The roots were used to
wash sores.

SWANTON: CATAWBA NOTES 627

I°yab wap (or warop) kri'^here, "good for toothache," Hy-
poxis hirsuta. The roots were pulled up and chewed and some
of the chewed root inserted into the cavity in the affected tooth.

Witsagua°-i skampatcT'a, Parthenium integrifolium. When a
horse had a sore back the leaves were burned and the ashes ap-
plied to it. People sometimes placed the fresh leaves over burns.

Wete woropkere, Psoralea pedunculata, popularly called "bald
roots." The roots of this plant were scraped fine, beaten, and
stirred up in water and the decoction applied internally and ex-
ternally to sores or cancers. The cure was said to be infallible.

Witi si°ware, "blossoming medicine." This has a flower like
that of self-heal but larger. The roots were used in cases of
backache and by women.

Sureare, Marshallia obovata, a wild clover, used in certain
diseases.

Waswa'^ wetiware. Prunella vulgaris, used in certain diseases.

The bark of the shppery elm was used in cases of consumption.

The itl wiye'', "yellow root," from which the yellow basketry
dye was obtained, was chewed to heal a sore mouth.

The wayuk, or "coon roots," mentioned as used in dyeing
baskets, were also fed to animals to make them lively and im-
prove their appetites.

From broomweed roots they made a drink to administer
to malarial patients, and from its stalks, cut up and mixed with
water, an eyewash.

A few medicines non-vegetal in character, were also spoken
of. It was thought that chills might be cured by swallowing a
grandaddy-long-legs rolled up in dough. Rattlesnake rattles
were hung about the head to cure headache. In order that new-
born babies might have long lives the heart of a "couter" turtle
was dried, beaten fine, and stirred up in water which the child
was made to drink. To improve the speech of a child unable
to talk plainly the green burrs of the sweet gum were taken at
the time when they first come out and burnt to an ash which
the child was made to blow upon.

When a marriage took place among the older Catawba the
couple was seated back to back and a white cloth thrown over

628 swanton: catawba notes

them. It is not believed that the speech of men and women
differed, but the present condition of the Catawba language is
such that this statement has little value.

Bodies of the dead were anciently put under the beds inside
of the houses themselves, some person making a speech on the
occasion. If one died in the morning he was buried the same
evening; if in the evening he was buried next morning. As soon
as a death occurred three live coals were placed upon each piece
of cold bread in the house so that the ghost of the deceased
would not eat it, and no food of any kind was taken by the
people of the household until after the body had been laid away.
In the intervening period they frequently warmed their hands
at the fire and then rubbed their faces with them; otherwise they
feared that the skin of the face would become drawn up and
wrinkled something like the skin of a chicken.

When a partridge (ipaka) went through the yard it was a sign
that someone in the house would soon die. When the calf of
the leg twitched it was a sign that someone was coming. When
the arm twitched it was a sign that someone was coming on
horseback. When the mouth or eye twitched it was a sign that
the person to whom this happened was going to mourn over a
death in the family or some other severe affliction.

A relic of the belief in witchcraft is preserved in the story of
a woman who once turned into an owl, went out of the house
through her chimney, and stole chickens which she brought back
in the same way.

At one place in Catawba River is a row of rocks where noises
are sometimes heard, said to be caused by old Indians crossing
there. At a place near the reserve known as "the old Indian
town" people are sometimes heard dancing and singing. Close
to the river there, a man once saw a woman dressed in the ancient
manner, with a bundle on her back and bow and arrows ( !) . She
disappeared suddenly.

Aside from these tales I learned of only one story that has the
appearance of an aboriginal Indian tale, and of this only in
outline. It relates that a child was once stolen away from its
mother, and the latter began hunting for it. She asked the

SWANTON: CATAWBA NOTES 629

various animals and other living creatures which she encoun-
tered, one after the other, if they could tell her anything of her
child, but in vain. At last, however, she came to the giant red-
headed woodpecker (watcak) who said that he knew and would
inform her if she would give him a pair of earrings. She agreed
and the bird said that the child had been stolen by an old woman,
the owl, who had carried it far north to the other side of the
Cherokee mountains. Upon hearing this the woman gave the
bird her earrings and continued on to the place indicated. After
she had recovered her child, the old woman who had stolen it
began to rise from the ground, and as she ascended her bird
tail grew longer and longer, and finally she became the comet.

Two principal dances, possibly vestigial ceremonies, are re-
membered, the Bear dance and the Wild Goose dance. Orig-
inally they took place out of doors, near the full of the moon, the
former about roasting-ear time, the latter in the fall. In the
later period of dechne they were held indoors in winter. A drum
was used, and the men carried gourd rattles, while the women
had turtle-shell rattles fastened to their ankles in the familiar
southeastern manner. The participants imitated bear and wild
geese as well as they were able, the leaders being chosen in par-
ticular for their skill in representing the parts. Besides these
there is said to have been a black snake dance.

ABSTRACTS

Authors of scientific papers are requested to see that abstracts, preferably
prepared and signed by themselves, are forwarded promptly to the editors.
The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those appearing
in this issue.

BACTERIOLOGY. — A study of the Streptococci concerned in cheese
ripening. Alice C. Evans. Journ. Agr. Res. 13: 235-252, 1918.

Two species of streptococci are distinguished from the well-known
Streptococcus lacticus, and all three species are described culturally and
biochemically.

The most pronounced characteristic which distinguishes S. lacticus
from the other two species is the small quantity of acetic acid which it
produces in milk cultures. Vigorous strains curdle litmus milk in less
than two days, with complete reduction of the litmus beneath the pink
surface layer. Crystals of tyrosin are formed in milk cultures after
several weeks incubation. Peptone yeast broth of a hydrogen-ion con-
centration of Ph = 6.0 is rendered alkaline with a final hydrogen-ion
concentration of Ph = 6.8.

Streptococcus X requires from two to twelve days to curdle milk.
The litmus is not reduced, or is only partially reduced. No crystals
are formed in milk cultures. The hydrogen-ion concentration of
peptone yeast broth is reduced to the same point as in the case of
S. lacticus. Streptococcus X produces a comparatively large quantity
of acetic acid in milk cultures (0.7 to 0.8 gram per liter).

Streptococcus kefir is notable among dairy streptococci because of its
vigorous production of carbon dioxide when gfown in milk containing
peptone, or in trypsin digested milk. It does not produce sufficient
acid in milk cultures to bring the milk to curdling. There is no reduc-
tion of the litmus. No growth takes place in peptone yeast broth.

Experimental cheese inoculated with the three species of strepto-
cocci alone or in various combinations showed that the flavor of cheese
of the cheddar type and of soft cream cheese could be varied according
to the species of streptococci used for a starter. A. C. E.

630

abstracts: botany 631

BACTERIOLOGY.— r/?e bacterial flora of Roquefort cheese. Alice C.
Evans. Journ. Agr. Res. 13: 225-233. 1918.

This paper reports the study of the bacterial flora of imported
Roquefort cheese as compared with the bacterial flora of experimental
cheese of that type made in the Dairy Division of the Department of
Agriculture. The experimental cheese differed from the imported in
being made of cow's milk and ripened in rooms artificially cooled and
moistened, whereas the imported cheese was made of sheep's milk
and ripened in natural caves. The two varieties of cheese are very
similar. The results of the study may be summarized as follows:

The microorganisms essential for the manufacture and ripening of
Roquefort cheese are Streptococcus lacticus and PenicilUum roqueforti.
Streptococcus lacticus decomposes the lactose during the manufacture of
the cheese and thus produces the lactic acid necessary for the cheese
making. These organisms disappear from the cheese after about two
or three weeks, being killed by the high concentration of sodirnn chlorid.
The remaining flora of Roquefort cheese consists of cheese streptococci
and Bacterium hidgaricimi, organisms which are found in all kinds of
ripening cheese. These organisms do not have any significant part to
play in the ripening of Roquefort cheese.

The cheese slime consists of characteristic types of micrococci, rod
forms, and yeast cells. The enzjnnes from the slime do not appear to
be essential to the ripening of the cheese. The flora of both the in-
terior and the slime of the experimental cheese was identical with the
flora of the interior and the slime of the imported cheese.

If the maker of Roquefort cheese will inoculate properly with Strep-
tococcus lacticus and PenicilUum roqueforti, and provide the proper con-
dition of manufacture and ripening, he need have no other concern
about biological ripening agents. A. C. E.

BOTANY. — Eupatorium urticaefolium as a poisonous plant. C.

Dw^iGHT Marsh and A. B. Clawson, Journ. Agr. Res. 14: 699-

715, pis. 52-55. 1918. White snakeroot or richweed (Eupatorium

urticaefohum) as a stock-poisoning plant. C. Dwight Marsh

and A. B. Claw^son. U. S. Dept. Agr. Bur. An. Ind. Circ. 26:

1-7. 1918.

Eupatorium urticaefolium is one of the plants that has been thought

to be the cause of milk sickness, but published accounts of experimental

work have been veiy contradictory. In this paper are detailed experi-

632 abstracts: plant physiology

merits on cattle and sheep which show not only that the plant is poi-
sonous, but that it produces many of the symptoms of milk-sicloiess,
and undoubtedly is the cause of many if not most of the cases of so-
called milk-sickness in cattle and sheep. The symptoms of the poison-
ing and the pathological results are worked out. The dosage is deter-
mined, and it is noted that Eupatorium poisoning is cumulative. It is
not considered by the authors that Eupatorium poisoning explains all
cases of milk-sickness, but it is thought probable that under this term
is included also a bacterial disease.

The second paper is a resume of the work on Eupatorium, of a
more popular character than the above, and designed for distribution
among the farmers. C. D. M.

BOTANY. — The ^peanut a great American food. H. S. Bailey and J.
A. LeClerc. Yearbook, U. S. Dept. Agr. 1917: 746. 1918.
The composition and yield of the peanut and the methods of making
peanut oil and peanut flour are discussed. It is shown that the shelled
nuts are a splendid food, cheap and nutritious, and that peanut butter
is highly useful in many ways, being rich in fat and protein. The
methods of using peanut butter, peanut oil, and peanut flour are given.

PLANT PHYSIOLOGY.— TT/jeaf flour substitutes. J. A. LeClerc.
Iowa Coll. Agr. Bull. 16: no. 33. 1918.
This is an address given at the Bakers' Short Course at Ames, Iowa.
History of the use of substitutes was touched upon and likewise a
digest of the food situation prevailing at the time. A discussion of
the wheat kernel and of the composition of the various parts of the
wheat kernel and likewise the losses due to miUing were given. The
speaker compared the amount of food value to be derived from 100
pounds of wheat when milled into white flour and when milled into
graham flour. J. A. L.

PLANT PHYSIOLOGY. — Respiration and catalase activity in sweet

corn. C. O. Appleman. Amer. Journ. Bot. 4: 207-209. 1918.

Respiration in sweet corn in the milk stage is very high when the

corn is first pulled. This liigh rate of respiratory activity falls off

rapidly with storage. Catalase activity in a collateral set of ears

abstracts: anthropology 633

showed a decline with storage which is almost directly proportional to
the decline in respiratory intensity after a like period of storage.

The catalase activity of the expressed juice from both sweet corn
and potato tubers is a fair index of the comparative intensity of respi-
ration in the tissues.

The data seems to justify the general induction that catalase action
in these tissues, at least, is correlated with the oxidative processes
involved in respiration. C. 0. A.

PLANT PHYSIOLOGY.— r/«e effect of sodium nitrate applied at
different stages of growth on yield, composition and quality of wheat.
J. Davidson and J. A. LeClerc. Journ. Amer. Soc. Agron.
10: no. 5. 1918.
This is the second of a series of papers on the same subject. The
first, also published in the above named journal (9: 145. 1917), gave
data regarding the influence of sodium nitrate applied at different
stages of growth on the yield and protein content of the grain. In this
paper a study of the straw is made instead of the grain. The protein
content of the straw shows the same tendency as the protein content
of the grain, viz, an increase of protein content as a result of the appli-
cation of nitrates at the second stage (heading of the wheat). An
increase in yield results when the nitrates are appUed at the first stage.

ANTHROPOLOGY. — An early account of the Choctaw hidians. John
R. SwANTON. Mem. Anier. Anthrop, Assoc. 5: 1-20. 1918.
The translation of part of an unpublished French memoir of uncer-
tain authorship preserved in the Edward E. Ayer collection of Ameri-
cana in the Newberry Library, Chicago. It appears to have been writ-
ten shortly after the middle -of the eighteenth century. Its peculiar
value consists in the fact that, although the Choctaw were the largest
tribe with which the French had intimate relations and although their
customs must have been well known to many Frenchmen, this is the
only lengthy account of them, so far as known, that has been preserved.
In addition to numerous matters of general ethnological interest it
contains unique information regarding the social organization of the
Choctaw nation, something which has hitherto been shrouded in great
obscurity. Both archeologists and ethnologists will be interested in
the mention of pipes which were apparently made of stone obtained
from the famous catlinite quarries in Minnesota. J. R. S.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

The Board of Managers met on October 28, 1918. The Board
adopted the recommendation of the Executive Committee that "those
honorary members of the Academy who are enemy subjects be sus-
pended until the end of the war, and that their cases be again consid-
ered at that time." The pubhcation in January, 1919, of a new edition
of the " Red Book," or directory of the Academy and its affiHated socie-
ties, was approved.

Robert B. Sosman, Corresponding Secretary.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

The Katmai National Monument has been estabhshed in Alaska by
executive order of President Wilson, dated September 24, 1918. It
consists of the volcano of Katmai and considerable outlying territory,
including the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes, which has been visited
by several National Geographic Society expeditions under the direc-
tion of Prof. R. F. Griggs, of Ohio State University. It is expected
by those interested in the establishment of the park that its reserva-
tion as a national monument will have been the first step toward mak-
ing this remarkable region accessible to the public as a national park,
similar to the Yellowstone and the Yosemite.

Dr. Charles W. Richmond, of the Division of Birds, United States
National Museum, has been appointed Associate Curator of Birds in
that Institution.

Mr. Bradshaw H. Swales has been appointed Honorary Curator of
Birds' Eggs in the United States National Museum. This position
has been vacant since the death of Dr. W. L. Ralph in 1907.

Lieut. Henri Cretien, of the French Ministere d'Ai'mament, has
recently come to the Bureau of Standards to carry on research work
in various military problems related to optics. He is the designer of
the Cretien gun sight now universally used on air planes.

Prof. John F. Hayford, dean of the College of Engineering of North-
western University, is engaged in research at the Wind Tunnel Lab-
oratory of the Bureau of Standards. This work is carried on in con-
nection with the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, of
which Prof. Hayford is a member.

Mr. Douglas C. Mabbott, biologist of the Biological Survey, U. S.
Department of Agriculture, was reported in an October casualty list
to have been killed in action in France. He was in the seventy-ninth
company of the Sixth Regiment of the Marine Corps, and took part in
the fighting near Chateau Thierry in July. Mr. Mabbott was born at
Arena, Wisconsin, March 12, 1893, and entered the service of the Bio-
logical Survey in December, 1915. He enhsted in February, 1918. He
was a member of the Biological Society of Washington, and had con-
tributed for publication three papers on American wild ducks and
their food habits.

635

636 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Mr. William deC. Ravenel has been placed in immediate charge of
the administration of the National Museum with the title Adminis-
trative Assistant to the Secretary. The position of Assistant Secretarj^
of the Smithsonian Institution, in charge of the National Museum,
made vacant by the recent death of Dr. Richard Rathbun, has been dis-
continued, effective November 1. Mr. Ravenel has been connected
with the Museum in an administrative capacity since 1902.

Miss McDow^ELL, Professor of Physics at Wellesley College, has re-
turned to the Bureau of Standards on leave of absence.

Dr. F. W. McNair, President of the Michigan School of Mines, is
now at the Bureau of Standards working on airplane engine problems.

Mr. George W. Morey, of the Geophysical Laboratory, Carnegie
Institution, has been given a year's leave of absence and is in charge
of the optical glass plant of the Spencer Lens Company at Hamburg,
New York.

Dr. C. NussBAUM, formerly instructor in physics at Harvard Uni-
versity, has been engaged in the study of aeronautic instruments at
the Bureau of Standards during the past summer.

•

Mr. E. P. Peck, formerly Superintendent of Operation of the Georgia
Railway and Power Company, has recently come to the Bureau of
Standards to assist in work connected with the standardization of
electrical apparatus for the War Department.

Mr. B. H. Rawl, chief of the Dairy Division of the Bureau of Ani-
mal Industry since 1909, has been appointed assistant chief of the
Bureau.

Dr. William H. Ross, of the Bureau of Soils, U. S. Department of
Agriculture, has been commissioned a captain in the Chemical War-
fare Service, and has been assigned to the Edgewood Arsenal, Edge-
wood, Maryland.

JOURNAL ^

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VIII DECEMBER 4, 1918 No. 20

CHEMISTRY. — A note on the precipitation of zirconium phos-
phate. George Steiger, Geological Survey.

The recent interest in the determination of zirconium seems
to justify the publication of the results of some laboratory work
done several years ago to determine the allowable acidity of a
solution in which zirconium phosphate may be quantitatively pre-
cipitated. The work was done to determine more exactly the
conditions necessary when applying this method to the analysis
of rocks, which contain only small percentages of zirconium, and
although the quantities involved were small the work showed
that the composition of the phosphate ranges between limits so
wide that unless conditions of precipitation are fully determined
and rigorously maintained the results of such work can not be
used in a gravimetric determination.

As the main object of this precipitation was the separation of
zirconium from titanium, iron, and other metals in a rock, no
effort was made to determine the conditions under which zir-
conium phosphate of constant composition may be precipitated.

In determining quantities of zirconium so small as those found
in the average rock the analyst can obtain results that are suf-
ficiently accurate by assuming that the composition of the ignited
phosphate is ZrP207, and that it contains 46.32 per cent of Zr02.
The results are given in the hope that they may be of service
to those who are required to determine larger quantities of
zirconium.

637

638

steiger: precipitation of zirconium phosphate

The standard zirconium solution used was made by preparing
from native zircon the double fluoride of zirconium and potassium.
After this salt had been purified by repeated crystallization it
was decomposed with sulphuric acid and the fluorine was driven
off" by heat. Its strength was determined by precipitating the

TABLE I
Precipitation of ZrP207 in Presence of Sulphuric Acid

0
H
0

0
to

6. ,'
0

m

M

m

w

b
0

H
Z
D
O

s

a

o

a

H

CO

«

<

H

3

«

z

1
s

0
u

a
a
s

a

Z

o

a

K
^«

zg

o

1

g
o

Cm

Eh

t>
K

s

z
s

° M
(J w

£ ^

ZrPzO? FUSED WITH

Na2C03 LEACHED WITH

WATER

Resi-
due

Filtrate divided
into two parts

z
a
M

H

o

N

T3CC "t-i

"Mil

O
.■St)

1-

1

•

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

grams

cc.

per
cent

ec.

grams

0.0182

100

1.0

0.0278

None

0.0144

None

0,0182

100

2.0

0.0293

None

0.0182

0.0122

None

0.0182

100

3.0

0.0337

None

0.0180

0.0184

None

0.0182

100

5.0

0.0353

Slight
trace

0.0187

0.0170

None

0.0182

100

9.0

0.0357

0.0011

Lost

Lost

Lost

0.0101

100

0.1

5

Immediately

^ min.

0.0142

None

0.0095

Lost

0.0101

100

0.1

5

Immediatelv

1 min.

0.0138

None

0.0101

0.0030

0.0101

100

1.0

5

1 mill.

5 min.

0.0157

None

0.0103

0.0053

0.0101

100

5.0

5

2 min.

Jhr.

0.0156

0.0008

0.0105

0.0060

0.0101

100

10.0

5

Had not ap-
peared in
1 hr.

Over
night

0.0185

0.0024

0.0099

0.0095

zirconium with ammonia, filtering and igniting the precipitate,
and weighing the residue as oxide. The volume of the solution
finally used in each experiment was 100 cc, and to conform with
conditions met in practice, it was made up in part of hydrogen
peroxide. The sulphuric acid was added to the solution in vary-
ing quantities, and the zirconium precipitated by the addition of
microcosmic salt. The solutions were constantly stirred while

standley: north American species of genipa 639

the salt was added and allowed to stand over night before filter-
ing. The precipitates obtained were weighed, fused with sodium
carbonate, leached with water, and filtered. To determine zir-
conium the insoluble residue was fused with sodium bisulphate,
and the melt was dissolved in water, precipitated with ammonia,
filtered, and the zirconium weighed as oxide. The phosphorus
in the leach water was determined as MgoPcOv after preliminary
precipitation as phospho-ammonium molybdate. Repeated tests
of the leach water for sulphates showed that the precipitation of
the phosphate did not carry down sulphate.

As both iron and titanium may be thrown down with zirconium
phosphate it is desirable to use a solution containing the greatest
possible quantity of free acid, and the titanium must be kept
well oxidized with hydrogen peroxide in order to prevent it from
being precipitated.

Other phosphates than zirconium phosphate, except those of
the rare earth metals, are readily soluble and may be easily
separated in dilute acid solutions.

It is not safe to base definite conclusion on the results of work
involving quantities so small as those used in these experiments,
but those results indicate the formation of a basic salt that ap-
proaches normal zirconium phosphate as the acidity of the solu-
tion is increased. The table given indicates that the solution
employed may safely contain at least 3 per cent and perhaps as
much as 5 per cent of free sulphuric acid.

BOTANY. — The North American species of Genipa.^ Paul C.
Standley, National Museum.

The genus Genipa is a member of the family Rubiaceae, tribe
Gardenieae, being closely related to the genera Gardenia and
Randia. About 15 species are known, most of them American
(chiefly South American), although several have been described
from the tropics of the Old World. From North America 3
species of the genus have been reported heretofore, Genipa amer-
icana L., G. caruto H. B. K., and G. codonocalyx Standi. Genipa

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

640 standley: north American species of genipa

americana L.^ was based upon Plumier's description and illustra-
tion of a West Indian plant. It has several synonyms, but only
one of importance. In 1818 Kunth described' G. caruto, from
material obtained by Humboldt and Bonpland in Colombia and
Venezuela. Genipa caruto has been recognized rather generally
as a valid species, but it differs from the earlier G. americana only
in having copious pubescence, the latter plant being nearly or
quite glabrous. In the absence of any concomitant characters
the presence or absence of pubescence is scarcely a sufficient
basis for specific segregation; consequently it seems preferable
to consider Genipa caruto a synonym or at most a subspecies of
G. americana.'^

This is one of the best known and most interesting plants of
the American tropics. It ranges from southwestern Mexico
(Guerrero to Chiapas) through Central America to Peru and
Brazil, and occurs also in Cuba, Hispaniola, Porto Rico, and the
Lesser Antilles. It is a tree sometimes 20 meters high, with a
trunk up to 50 cm. in diameter, with stout, spreading branches.
The large, entire leaves are usually obovate, and 14 to 35 cm.
long, with a breadth of 6 to 19 cm. The sweet-scented flowers
are borne in small dense cymes, the corollas being salverform,
white or yellowish white, and 2 to 4.5 cm. long. The fruit is
subglobose, 6 to 7 cm. in diameter, or often larger, 2-celled, cov-
ered with a thick, smooth or rough, russet or brownish green
rind. The large, flat, brown seeds are imbedded in a scant,
whitish, acidulous pulp with violet juice.

Through its wide area of distribution many different names are
applied to the plant, some of which are the following: ''Caruto"
(Venezuela, Colombia), ''jagua" (Venezuela, Colombia, Porto
Rico, Panama, Nicaragua, Mexico), ''jagua azul" (Tabasco),
"jagua blanca" (Tabasco), ''guaitil" (Costa Rica), 'Hapaculo"
(Nicaragua,) ''yigualti" (Nicaragua), ''gigualti" (Nicaragua).

2 Syst. Veg. ed. 10. 931. 1759.

s H. B. K. Nov. Gen. & Sp. 3: 407. 1818.

* Schumann (in Mart. Fl. Bras. 6*: 352. 1889) has treated G. caruto as a sub-
species of G. americana, under the name G. americana caruto. The form is of
sufficient importance, probably, to receive nomenclatural recognition. The
pubescent plant occurs in continental North America, while the glabrous form
is found in the West Indies.

standley: north American species of genipa 641

The wood of this tree is soft and fibrous but strong, "elastic,
and resistant, with a specific gravity reported to range from 0.670
to 0.873. In color it is whitish tinged with reddish gray, or
sometimes gray, and is said to take a good poUsh and to resist
the attacks of insects. It has been used in making gunstocks,
axe handles, wagons, and other articles. The bark is astringent
and is sometimes used for tanning. A decoction of the roots
is said to be used for venereal diseases in the West Indies. In
Brazil the leaves are reported to be valuable as forage for cattle,
and the fruits are said to fatten pigs.

The fruit of Genipa americana is doubtless the most important
and widely used part of the plant. It is used in Porto Rico and
elsewhere to prepare a refreshing beverage, and it is also often
fermented to produce an intoxicating drink. When green or ripe
it contains copious juice which imparts to everything with which
it comes in contact a blue, violet, or nearly black stain. Among
the native tribes of tropical America the juice has been highly
esteemed for dyeing cloth and other articles. More important,
however, is its wide employment among the aborigines for paint-
ing and tattooing the skin. For this purpose it is still much used
by the uncivilized tribes of certain parts of South America. It
is said that the Indians paint their skins with it not only for adorn-
ment, but to protect themselves partially against the attacks of
the insects so annoying to human life in humid tropical regions.

Because of the economic importance of the commonest species
of the genus, it is of interest to find in the U. S. National Her-
barium specimens of two rubiaceous plants of Panama, evidently
undescribed, which apparently are congeneric. Diagnoses of
these are given below. Although both are known only from
fruiting material, and it may be that the flowers, when collected,
will show that they are not properly referable to Genipa, they
are certainly closely allied, and agree better with Genipa than
with any other genus of American Gardenieae.

Besides Genipa americana, the other published North American
species of the genus is G. codonocalyx, described^ recently by the
writer from the Pacific coastal belt of Cost Rica. This is known

6 Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 17: 446. 1914.

642 standley: north American species of genipa

only from a single collection, and may be -merely a variant of the
common species.

Genipa maxonii Standi., sp. nov.

Large spreading tree, the wood pinkish, the branchlets glabrous,
with short internodes; stipules lance-oblong, about 3.5 cm. long, filiform-
attenuate, glabrous; petioles about 2 mm. long; leaf blades obovate or
rhombic-obovate, 34-44 cm. long, 13.5-25 cm. wide, narrowed from
below the middle to a rounded or subtruncate base, narrowed to the
apex and subabruptly obtuse-acuminate, chartaceous, bright green
above, reddish along the veins, sublustrous, glabrous, the costa and
lateral veins impressed, paler and reddish beneath, obscurely puberulent
when young, the venation prominent, the lateral veins slender, about
20 on each side, nearly straight, the secondary veins numerous, parallel,
distinct, the ultimate veinlets prominulous, reticulate, the margin plane;
fruit (probably immature) globose, 5.5 cm, in diameter, glabrous, the
pericarp about 4 mm. thick; seeds irregularly rhombic, 1.5-2.5 cm.
long, very thin, black, lustrous, the corklike flesh breaking up into large
fiat irregular sections, each containing a single seed.

Type in the U. S. National Herbarium, no. 675223, collected in forest
along the Rfo Indio de Gatiin, Canal Zone, Panama, near sea-level,
February 17, 1911, by Wilham R. Maxon (no. 4848).

The venation of the leaves is very different from that of G. americana,
and the leaves are narrowed to an obtuse base, rather than to a very
acute base, as in that species. The corklike flesh which envelops the
seeds appears quite unlike the flesh of young fruits of G. americana.

The wood of Genipa maxonii has a beautiful pinkish tint. Mr. H.
Pittier forwarded from Panama a small box made of wood which appears
to belong to this tree, although it may have come from some allied
rubiaceous species. This wood is rather fine-grained, and probably
would take a handsome polish. It agrees in its pink coloration with
the branches of the type specimen of Genipa maxonii. When exposed
for some time to sunlight the wood loses its original color and assumes
a dirty-white appearance, but after being kept in a dark place the former
coloration is finally restored.

Genipa williamsii Standi., sp. nov.

Tree, 10 meters high, the trunk 12.5 cm. in diameter, the branchlets
reddish brown, glabrous, the internodes short; stipules broadly obovate,
1.8 cm. long, 1.2 cm. wide, cuneate at the base, rounded at the apex,
brownish, sparsely strigose outside; petioles stout, 1-2.5 cm. long,
glabrate; leaf blades obovate or oblong-obovate, 12.5-19 cm. long, 6-
9.5 cm. wide, acute or cuneate at the base, rounded at the apex, charta-
ceous, green above, sublustrous, glabrous, the venation plane or promin-
ulous, brownish beneath, strigose along the veins, the costa stout,

bartsch: classification of helicinidae 643

prominent, the lateral veins slender, 8 or 9 on each side, ascending at
a wide angle, nearly straight, laxly anastomosed near the margin;
fruit subglobose, 4.5 cm. in diameter, terminal, solitary, subsessile, the
pericarp very thick; seeds (very immature) numerous.

Type in the U. S. National Herbarium, no. 678301, collected in the
vicinity of Cana, Panama, altitude 1350 meters, in 1908, by R. S.
Williams (no. 814).

A relative of Genipa americana, apparently, but very different in the
rounded apex of the leaves and rounded, obovate stipules.

ZOOLOGY. — Classification of the Philippine operculate land shells
of the family Helicinidae, with a synopsis of the species and
subspecies of the genus Geophorus.^ Paul Bartsch, National
Museum.

The constant demand for determinations of Philippine land
shells frequently makes it necessary to lay aside monographic
work on the mollusks of these islands, in order to straighten out
the nomenclature of a group wholly different from the one upon
which the writer may be engaged. This is true in the present
instance. Several sendings of Helicina, in the old sense of that
term, have made it necessary to subject the whole group, which
is a rather large one, to critical examination. It is believed
that the synopsis of the superspecific groups and the keys and
brief comments on the species and subspecies of the largest genus
of the family in the islands, Geophorus, will prove helpful in
classifying material.

The genus Geophorus is not a difficult one. The greatest
trouble in the past appears to have been the assigning of too
many forms to one name, for frequently in the past authors
have assigned to one species specimens which we now know
belong to different genera. A very careful inventory of all the
characters should enable anyone readily to place any of the
known forms under its proper name by the use of the appended
keys and critical remarks.

In the preparation of this paper, I have been particularly fortu-
nate in having in the National Museum collections a set of Sow-
erby's cotypes collected in the Philippine Islands by Hugh Cum-
ing, and also a set of von Mollendorff's Philippine Island shells,

' Published by permission of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.

644 bartsch: classification of helicinidae

which helped materially in the fixing of the majority of the old
names.

The members of the family Helicinidae found in the Philippine
Islands belong to the subfamily Helicininae, which in turn
breaks up into five genera; namely, Ceratopoma, Pleuropoma,
Sulfurina, Geophorus, and Kosmetopoma.

All of these genera are based upon opercular characters which
appear wonderfully constant. '

Of these genera, Ceratopoma Mollendorff has the least special-
ized operculum, for here we find a simple thin transparent
homy shield without calcareous deposit. The type of this
genus is Helicina caroli Kobelt.

In Pleuropoma Mollendorff the operculum is still simple, i.e.,
a horny shield, but there is in addition a slight deposition of cal-
careous material. A flexuose ridge extends close to the margin
in a sigmoid curve from the columellar border along the parietal
edge. This gives the edge of this portion and in some species
the entire operculum the appearance of being double. The type
of this genus is Helicina dichroa Mollendorff.

In Sulfurina Mollendorff we find the operculum similar to
that of Pleuropoma but the calcification is stronger and the
flexuose line is replaced by a strong raised keel which is usually a
httle farther removed from the edge. The type of this genus is
Helicina citrina Sowerby.

In typical Geophorus the operculum is much thickened by cal-
careous deposits. The columellar border bears a deep groove,
giving this portion the appearance of being double.

This groove frequently extends for a considerable distance
along the two long sides. The outer portion at the columellar
border is frequently a little shorter than the inner, and at times
considerably thickened, particularly at the posterior columellar
angle, where even a knob develops in some forms. The above
characters apply to Geophorus in the restricted sense as typified
by Helicina agglutinans Sowerby, the genotype. There are, how-
ever, two modifications of this form of operculum, one in which the
columellar border is thickened into a strong knob at the parietal
edge on the outside, which is hmited anteriorly by a slit or deeply

bartsch: classification of helicinidae 645

impressed groove. Upon this group I will bestow the subgenerie
name Schistopinax with Geophorus (Schistopinax) siquijorensis
Bartsch as genotype.

The other group has the main portion of the operculum, as in
typical Geophorus, but a strong lamella extends across the oper-
culum on the outside a little distance from the columellar border
dividing this into a large shallow spoon shaped area, and a deep
pit between the columellar border and the lamella. The group of
mollusks having these opercular characters are now assigned to
a new subgenus, Diplopinax, with Geophorus {Diplopinax) per-
acutissimus Wagner as genotype.

Geophorus therefore breaks up into the three subgenera, Geo-
phorus, Schistopinax, and Diplopinax.

The most highly specialized operculum is possessed by the
genus Kosmetopoma Wagner, which has the inside not unlike
Sulfurina, with the internal ridge quite low, while the exterior is
marked on the edge adjoining the outer and basal lip by several
dentate ridges. The type of this genus is Helidna amaliae
Kobelt.

The mollusks of this genus are earth dwellers; i.e., they live
on the ground among the dead leaves about the base of trees
and rocks, but their favored place of abode is found in the
pockets, nooks, and crannies of honey-combed limestone in
shady moist situations. I have, on several occasions, picked
thousands from an area of a few square yards under such cir-
cumstances. During the rainy season they become quite active
and one may then find them crawling up the lower portions of
the bowl of trees and on fallen logs or rocks, while during the
dry period they are neatly wedged away in the crevices of the
rock and between chinks of bark and the leaf or moss-covered
base of trees.

Key to the sections of the subgenus Geophorus

Spiral sculpture present.

Angle at junction of columella and basal lip present I

Angle at junction of columella and basal lip absent II

Spiral sculpture absent.

Angle at junction of columella and basal lip present. Ill

Angle at junction of columella and basal lip absent IV

646 bartsch: classification of helicinidae

In the use of this key care must be taken not to confuse the fine cross-
hatch or crinkly short hnes, which are found in varying strength in all
the members of the genus, with true incised spiral lines. The junction
of the columella and the basal lip in one big series always forms a con-
spicuous angle. Members of this group practically always have the
columella decidedly excavated. In the other series, the columella
passes directly into the basal lip with scarcely an indication of the
junction.

Section I

In this section, fine incised spiral lines are present. The columella
is strongly excavated and forms a conspicuous angle at its junction
with the basal lip. The following key will help in the identification of
the known forms:

Greater diameter more than 14 mm.

Periphery with an obsolete keel hoholensis Bartsch

Periphery with a strongly compressed keel

Base decidedly inflated pachychilus Mollendorff

Base not inflated

Greater diameter more than 16 mm roniblonensis Bartsch

Greater diameter less than 15 mm mindoroensis Wagner

Greater diameter less than 12 mm.

Spire rather elevated negrosensis Bartsch

Spire rather depressed

Shell yellow nitidulus Mollendorff

Shell japan rose versicolor Mollendorff

The specimens of this section fall readily into two groups, one em-
bracing large shells, in which the diameter is always more than 14 mm.,
and one in which the diameter is always less than 12 mm. There are
four species of the larger forms. Of these, the specimens from Bohol,
Geophorus hoholensis n. sp., have the peripheral keel obsolete and the
base decidedly inflated. No depression is present at the junction of
the base and the peripheral keel. This is the largest of the four species.
The type, Cat. No. 104419, U. S. National Museum, has 5.1 whorls
and measures: altitude, 10 mm.; greater diameter, 16.5 mm.

The other three species have the peripheral keel very strongly de-
veloped. One of these, Geophorus pachychilus Mollendorff has the base
strongly inflated and but slightly concaved at its junction with the
peripheral keel. This species comes from the island of Guimaras. A
typical specimen of this species, Cat. No. 258761, has 5.3 whorls and
measures: altitude, 16.3 mm.; greater diameter, 14.7 mm.

bartsch: classification of helicinidae 647

The other two species have the base only moderately convex. The
one Geophorus romhlonensis n. sp., coming from the island of Romblon,
is a rather compressed form, having a very broad peripheral keel, with
a decided depression at the junction of the base and keel. The type
of this. Cat. No. 334254, has 5.5 whorls, and measures: altitude, 8 mm.;
greater diameter, 16.5 mm.

The fourth speciies, Geophorus mindoroensis Wagner which is also
rather depressed, is much smaller than the last and comes from the island
of Mindoro. A typical specimen, Cat. No. 184940, having 5.1 whorls,
measures: altitude, 7.1 mm.; greater diameter, 14.3 mm.

Of the smaller species belonging to this section, three are known.
One of these from the island of Negros, which may be known as Geo-
phorus negrosensis n. sp., has the spire rather elevated. The type of
this. Cat. No. 302751, has 5.5 whorls and measures: altitude, 7.3 mm.;
greater diameter, 10.9 mm.

The other two species have the spire rather depressed. On one of
these, Geophorus nitidulus (Alollendorff) Wagner, the shell varies from
yellow to horn colored. This comes from central Luzon, and is particu-
larly abundant in the region of Montalban. A typical specimen, Cat.
No. 256989, having 5.3 whorls, measures: altitude, 6 mm.; greater
diameter, 10.6 mm.

The last species, Geophorus versicolor MoUendorff, which comes from
the island of Sibuyan, has the whorls japan-rose colored. A specimen of
this species, Cat. No. 195495A, having 5.6 whorls, measures: altitude,
6.8 mm.; greater diameter, 11.9 mm.

Section II

The second section has fine incised spiral lines, but the columella is
not strongly excavated, nor does its junction with the basal lip form a
decided angle, but the columella passes almost without demarcation
into the basal lip. Of this section there are five species.

Shell with a brown band on the base near the periphery.

Greater diameter more than 15 mm worcesteri Bartsch

Greater diameter less than 10 mm . .benguetanus Bartsch

Shell without a brown band on the base near the periphery.

Greater diameter more than 14 mm catainganus Bartsch

Greater diameter less than 8 mm.

Shell decidedly elevated trochulus MoUendorff

Shell depressed monticolus MoUendorff

Two of the five forms of this section have a brown band near the
periphery on the base. One of these, Geophorus worcesteri n. sp., which

648 bartsch: classification of helicinidae

comes from the island of Leyte, is a large form. The type, Cat. No.
184931, has 5.1 whorls and measures: altitude, 8.4 mm.; greater diame-
ter, 15.2 mm.

The other banded form, Geophorus benguetanus, n. sp., is globose and
decidedly smaller. It comes from the mountains of the Benguet region,
Luzon. The type, Cat. No. 239871, has 4.5 whorls and measures:
altitude, 6.1 mm.; greater diameter, 9.4 mm.

Of the five unhanded forms, the largest, Geophorus catainganus n.
sp., comes from Cataingan Bay on the island of Masbate. This is
well elevated and has the base quite convex and a strong depression
at the junction of the base and the peripheral keel. The type, Cat. No.
258768, has 5.1 whorls and measures: altitude, 9.5 mm.; greater diame-
ter, 14.2 mm.

The two remaining forms are small species. Of these, one, Geophorus
trochulus Mollendorff, which comes from the island of Tablas, is decid-
edly elevated. A specimen of this. Cat. No. 195507, has 5.1 whorls
and measures: altitude, 6.2 mm.; greater diameter, 7.4 mm.

The other species, Geophorus monticolus Mollendorff, is rather de-
pressed. A specimen, Cat. No. 184927, from Morong, Luzon, has
4.8 whorls and measures: altitude, 4.5 mm.; greater diameter, 6.4 mm

Section III

This group of Geophorus has no spirally incised lines. The columella
is excavated and forms a decided angle at its junction with the basal
lip. The shells thus characterized fall readily into three groups.

Shell large, broadly conic.

Shell with color bands Group A

Shell without color bands Group B

Shell small, narrowly conic Group C

Group A

Shell large, broadly conic, marked by color bands

Shell decidedly elevated.

The summit of the last whorl falling below the
strong peripheral keel and permitting this

to show as a frill at the suture peracutus Wagner

The summit of the last whorl not falling below the strong periph-
eral keel but appressed to it.

Greater diameter of shell more than 12 mm leytensis Bartsch

Greater diameter of shell less than

12 mm leytensis hasiaoensis Bartsch

Shell rather depressed.

Greater diameter more than 13 mm siargaoensis Bartsch

Greater diameter less than 11 mm... siargaoensis surigaoanus Bartsch

bartsch: classification of helicinidae 649

There are three species and two subspecies of red and yellow-banded
Geophorus which have a granular upper surface, no incised spiral lines,
and an excavated columella that forms a decided angle at its function
with the basal lip. One of these, Geophorus paracutus Wagner, from
the island of Tablas, is a stout conic form, having the whorls but slightly
convex and possessing a strong peripheral keel below which the summit
of the last two turns falls in such a manner as to leave this in the suture
as a frill. The early whorls of this species are yellow while the last
has a zone of yellow at the summit and another at the periphery, the
rest of the surface being red. The lower surface beyond the peripheral
keel, which is of the same color as above, is brown, turning paler at the
umbilical callus, which is pale yellow. The inside is brown while the
peristome is white, washed on the inner border with brown. A speci-
men of six whorls measures: altitude, 8.8 mm.; greater diameter, 14.1
mm.

The banded shells from Jaro, Leyte, Geophorus leytensis n. sp. have
the whorls more rounded than those on Tablas and the summit of the
last whorl does not fall below the peripheral keel, but is appressed to its
edge. The main color of the upper surface is dark red on the later
whorls, edged with a narrow zone of bright yellow at the summit and
the periphery. The lower surface has a yellow peripneral zone fol-
lowed by a broad band of red, while the median half is pale yellow.
The interior corresponds with the external color pattern. The type,
Cat. No. 219023, has 5.5 whorls and measures: altitude, 8.3 mm.;
greater diameter, 13 mm.

Specimens from Basiao Island, off Samar, closely resemble Geophorus
leytensis in outline and coloring but the yellow bands are a Itttle broader
and the shell is much smaller. These may be known as Geophorus ley-
tensis basiaoensis n. subsp. The type of this subspecies has 5.5 whorls
and measures: altitude, 7.5 mm.; greater diameter, 11 mm.

The third species is the most brilliantly colored and beautiful of all
the known Philippine Island Helicinids. The shell is very broadly conic
and but moderately elevated, the extreme apex extending scarcely more
above the periphery than the anterior tip of the columella extends be-
low it. The early whorls are bright yellow. The last has a broad yel-
low band on the summit, which is about two-thirds as wide as the dark
brown band that follows, which in turn equals the bright yellow zone
that bounds the very strongly angulated periphery. The brown band
pales as it passes backward from the aperture which, by the way, it
does not quite reach, for it terminates abruptly a little behind it and

650 bartsch: classification of helicinidae

is quite lost on the second turn back. The base is bright pale yellow
excepting a sharply limited brown zone which is about as broad as the
yellow zone that intervenes between this and the periphery. The in-
terior corresponds with the exterior in coloration, the peristome being
bright pale yellow. This species, which comes from the island of
Siargao, may be known as Geophorus siargaoensis n. sp. The type, Cat.
No. 184,929 has 5 whorls and measures; altitude, 7 mm.; greater
diameter, 13.2 mm.

In the northeast portion of Mindanao, at Surigao, a small race of
this species occurs, which differs from Geophorus siargaoensis chiefly
in its lesser size, but also in having the basal brown band a little nearer
the periphery and not so sharply limited. This smaller race may be
known as Geophorus siargaoensis surigaoanus n. subsp. The type, Cat.
No. 302772, has 5.1 whorls and measures: altitude, 6.3 mm.; greater
diameter, 10.8 mm.

Group B

Shell large, broadly conic, without color bands

Peripheral keel compressed.

Operculum broadly oval ticaoensis Bartsch

Operculum rhomboidal.

Peripheral keel limited on the under side by a strongly incised line.
Middle whorls mustard yellow.

All whorls mustard yellow tantalus tantalus Bartsch

All whorls not mustard yellow, the last turns with a paler zone

at the summit tantalus masbatensis Bartsch

Middle whorls capucine orange.

Last whorl pale capucine orange . tantalus palawanensis Bartsch

Last whorl flesh colored tantalus mansalayanus Bartsch

Peripheral keel not limited by an incised hne on the under

side romhlonensis Bartsch

Peripheral keel rounded agglutinans Sowerby

Sowerby, in describing Helicina agglutinans, listed three varieties.
Of these, variety a comes from the island of Guimaras, variety b from
Bohol, and variety c from Panay. The name agglutinans Sowerby
has since been fixed upon variety c by Wagner. This is a large shell
which has a rounded peripheral keel, with the base somewhat inflated.
There is no depressed area between the periphery and the rest of the base.
The upper surface of the shell is uniformly bright yellow while the lower
has a narrow zone of yellow near the periphery, below which it is suffused
with reddish brown, this color shading gradually to yellow on the middle

bartsch: classification of helicinidae 651

of the base. A cotype collected by Cuming, Cat. No. 302753, has 5
whorls and measures: altitude, 9.2 mm., greater diameter, 17.3 mm.

The shells from the island of Ticao belonging to this section have
the base decidedly inflated and the aperture very high, which gives the
operculum an oval, rather than a trapezoidal appearance. The shells
are large, barium yellow, paling toward the aperture. The upper sur-
face is marked by coarse irregular lines of growth, the suture being ren-
dered irregular and wavy by the coarse sculpture. The peripheral keel
is reduced to a cord, which is limited by a shallow depression on the
under side only. These shells may be known as Geophorus ticaoensis
n. sp. The type. Cat. No. 256999, comes from San Miguel, Ticao.
It has 5 whorls and measures: altitude, 8.9 mm.; greater diameter,
14.8 mm.

The most difficult group of this section is represented in our collec-
tion by a series of specimens from the islands of Mindoro, Palawan,
Samar, and Masbate. This group embraces medium-sized shells having
a moderately elevated spire and a narrow peripheral keel, which is
bounded on the lower side by a well incised spiral line. They represent
a distinct group to which the name Geophorus tantalus n. sp. may be
applied. I have seen good series of specimens from the four above
mentioned islands which demand a further subdivision of this species, as
indicated in the key. The specimens from Samar have the shell mus-
tard yellow and this race may carry the subspecific name Geophorus
tantalus tantalus Bartsch. The type. Cat. No. 288773, comes from
near Catbalogan, has 5 whorls, and measures: altitude, 7.1 mm.;
greater diameter, 10.7 mm.

The specimens from Masbate are of similar coloration as the last
excepting that on the last two turns a lighter yellow zone bounds the
summit. This race may be known as Geophorus tantalus masbatensis
n. subsp. The type of this. Cat. No. 258769, comes from Cataingan
Bay and has 5.5 whorls, and measures: altitude, 6 mm.; greater diame-
ter, 10.2 mm.

The western specimens, i.e., those from the islands of Mindoro and
Palawan, have the extreme tip mustard yellow and the turns immedi-
ately succeeding capucine orange. In the specimens from Palawan the
last turn is pale capucine orange. This species may bear the name
Oeophorus tantalus palawanensis n. sp. The type of this. Cat. No.
334256, comes from Bacuit, has 5.1 whorls and measures: altitude,
6.3 mm.; greater diameter, 10.6 mm.

The shells from Mindoro agree with the last excepting that the last
turn is flesh colored. These may bear the trinomial designation Geo-

652 bartsch: classification of helicinidae

phoriis tantalus mansalayanus n. subsp. The type, Cat. No. 258762.
comes from Mansalay Bay, has 5.6 whorls, and measures: altitude, 6.4
mm.; greater diameter, 10.8 mm.

From the island of Romblon we have seen several lots of shells which
agree with Geophorus tantalus Bartsch in size and general sculpture,
but the peripheral keel is wider and not limited on the basal side by an
incised line. A shallow depressed concave area separates the convex
portion of the base from the peripheral keel. This form also has the
whorls considerably more convex on the upper side than the shells of
Geophorus tantalus and the sculpture is very coarse, while in Geophorus
tantalus it is rather fine. I therefore feel that it is specifically distinct
from Geophorus tantalus and it may be known as Geophorus romhlonensis
n. sp. The type. Cat. No. 208246, has 5.3 whorls and measures: alti-
tude, 7 mm.; greater diameter, 11.5 mm.

Group C

Shell small, narrowly conic

Shell with a deep umbilical pit pseudomphalus Mollendorff

Shell without a deep umbilical pit.

Shell with a strongly compressed peripheral keel

cyrtopomus Mollendorff
Shell with a rounded peripheral cord.
Peripheral cord strong, coarse and wavy

trochaceus calayanensis Bartsch
Peripheral cord well rounded, smooth.
Upper surface coarsely granular.

Greater diameter 8.9 mm trochaceus palauiensis Bartsch

Greater diameter 7.9 mm trochaceus marivelesanus Bartsch

Upper surface finely granular.

Shell elongate conic trochaceus trochaceus Mollendorff

Shell broadly conic .... trochaceus nanus (Mollendorff) Wagner

The small conic granulose Geophorus having an excavated columella
that forms a strong angle at its junction with the basal lip and lacking
spirally incised lines, fall readily into three divisions, which may be
considered species. One of these, Geophorus pseudomphalus Mollen-
dorff, has a strongly impressed umbilical pit. This is so far known only
from the environs of Sibul, Bulacan Province, Luzon. The second
species, Geophorus cyrtopomus Mollendorff, ranges through the moun-
tains of central Luzon at least from Montalban to Morong. It is
characterized by a decidedly compressed peripheral keel and decidedly
less elevated spire than the next species. The third species, Geophorus
trochaceus Mollendorff, has a much wider range in distribution and

bartsch: classification of helicinidae 653

breaks up into a number of geographic races. Geophorus trochaceus
trochaceus jNIollendorff comes from the island of Leyte. It is a very
small shell of elongate conic form, having the peripheral keel rather
rounded and the upper surface finely granulate. A specimen of Geo-
phorus trochaceus trochaceus Mollendorff from Leyte, Cat. No. 302767,
has 5.3 whorls and measures: altitude, 5.3 mm.; greater diameter, 6.8
mm. The most northern race, Geophorus trochaceus calayanensis
n. subsp., comes from Calayan Island, of the Babuyanes group. This
is considerably larger than the typical form with coarser incremental
lines and granulations. The peripheral keel, too, is stronger, irregular
and wavy. The type of this, Cat. No. 334254, has 5.3 whorls and
measures: altitude, 6.2 mm.; greater diameter, 8.1 mm.

Another, Geophorus trochaceus palauiensis n. subsp., recalls strongly
the shell from Calayan. It is almost of the same size but has the pe-
ripheral keel well rounded and is in every way less coarsely sculptured
than the northern representative. It comes from Palaui Island. The
type. Cat. No. 258789 has 5.3 whorls and measures: altitude, 6.2 mm.;
greater diameter, 8.9 mm.

Two additional subspecies occur upon the island of Luzon. One, a
medium sized form, Geophorus trochaceus marivelesanus n. subsp., which
is known from the southern end of the Zambales range at Mariveles.
This, like the Palaui race, has the upper surface coarsely granular, but
it is much smaller. The type. Cat. No. 302774, has 5.3 whorls and
measures: altitude, 5.3 mm.; greater diameter, 7.8 mm.

The smallest race, Geophorus trochaceus nanus (Mollendorff) Wagner,
comes from Sibul, Bulacan Province. This race has a lesser number of
whorls and is a little more finely granular than the other Luzon forms.
A typical specimen, Cat. No. 195491, having 4.5 whorls measures: ali-
tude, 4 mm.; greater diameter, 5.8 mm.

Section IV

Shell banded acutissimus Sowerby

Shell not banded.

Shell broadly conic palananus Bartsch

Shell narrowly conic.

Operculum with a knob at the posterior columellar border

perezi Bartsch
Operculum without a knob at the posterior columellar border

caramoanus Bartsch

The section in which the spiral sculpture is absent and in which the
columella is not excavated and in which there is no decided angle at

654 bartsch: classification of helicinidae

the junction of the columella and basal lip is rather small. It is repre-
sented at present by four forms only, coming from the islands of Luzon,
Pagbilao, and Bohol. One of these three forms has color bands. The
largest, Geophorus acutissimus Sowerby, comes from the island of Bohol.
In this, all but the last turn are pale yellow, the last is flesh-colored.
There is a zone of rose pink at the summit and an equal one near the
peripheral keel. A third cone about twice as wide as these is on the
base separated from the peripheral keel by a narrow light zone. On the
inside of the aperture these red bands are almost scarlet. A cotype,
of this species, Cat. No. 104415, collected by Cuming, has 5 whorls and
measures: altitude, 9 mm., greater diameter, 16.7 mm.

Of the three unbanded forms of this section one, Geophorus palananus
n. subsp., is of medium size, broadly conic, and of quite uniform honey,
yellow. The sculpture of the upper surface is much coarser than in the
preceding. This race comes from Palanan, Isabela Province, Luzon.
The type. Cat. No. 302787, has 5 whorls and measures: altitude, 6.3
mm.; greater diameter, 9.9 mm.

Two of the races have a decidedly elevated narrow conic shell. One
of these, Geophorus perezi, n. sp., comes from the greater Pabgilao Island,
off southwestern Luzon. This is a small form in which the operculum
is very broad and bears a decided knob at the posterior columellar
border. The type. Cat. No. 310058, has 5 whorls and measures: alti-
tude, 5,2 mm.; diameter, 7.6 mm. The other, Geophorus caramoanus
n. sp., comes from Caramoan on the south end of the Caramoan penin-
sula in Ambos Camarines, Luzon. This has the shell a little more ele-
vated than G. perezi Bartsch, with the operculum much narrower and
with a tooth on the posterior columellar end of it. The type. Cat. No.
195504, has 5 whorls and measures: altitude 5 mm.; greater diameter, 6.8
mm.

Schistopinax, new subgenus

In this subgenus, the columellar border is thickened into a strong
knob at the parietal edge on the outside, which is limited anteriorly by
a deeply incised groove.

Greater diameter more than 12 mm siquijorensis Bartsch

Greater diameter less than 8 mm.

Last whorl moderately rounded trochiformis Sowerby

Last whorl very strongly rounded

trochiformis subtrochiformis (MoUendorff) Wagner

Of this subgenus I know only three forms and of these only one from
personal examination; namely, the type of the subgenus, Geophorus

bartsch: classification of heltcinidae 655

{Schistopinax) siquijorensis n. sp. This species, which comes from the
island of Siquijor, is broadly conic and has a brown band on the base
near the periphery. The type, Cat. No. 195499, has 5.5 whorls and
measures: altitude, 7.5 mm.; greater diameter, 12.8 mm.

The other two forms are much smaller and narrowly conic. Geo-
phorus (Schistopinax) trochiformis Sowerby comes from the island of
Negros. Wagner cites 4.5 whorls with an altitude of 5.5 mm. and a
major diameter of 6.5 mm. for the specimen he figures. He states and
shows that this is a little less elevated and has the last whorl a little less
rounded than Geophorus (Schistopinax) trochiformis suhtrochiformis
(Mollendorff) Wagner, which he describes from the island of Marin-
duque, and for which he gives the measurements: altitude, 5.5 mm.;
greater diameter, 7 mm.

Diplopinax, new subgenus

This subgenus is characterized by having the outer surface of the
operculum crossed by a lamella which divides the operculum into a
shallow, large labial portion and a strong pit at the columellar end.
Type: Geophorus (Diplopinax) taghiller anus Bsirtsch.

Incised spiral lines present.

Color band present on the base.

Greater diameter more than 13 mm acutus PfeifTer

Greater diameter less than 11 mm.

albocarinatus (Mollendorff) Wagner
Color bands absent on the base.

Greater diameter more than 17 mm bothropomus MoWendorfi

Greater diameter less than 12 mm.

Spire decidedly elevated conoidalis Mollendorff

Spire decidedly depressed mollendorffi Bartsch

Incised spiral lines absent.
Color bands present.

Greater diameter more than 14 mm peracutissimus Wagner

Greater diameter less than 13 mm.

Interior suffused with red taghiUeranus Bartsch

Interior not suffused with red cumingi Bartsch

Color bands absent.

Shell bfoadly conic lazarus Sowerby

Shell narrowly conic duponanus Bartsch

It is interesting to note that in none of the species so far knawn do
we find the junction of the columella and basal lip forming a decided
angle. The subgenus can be divided into two sections on the presence
or absence of fine incised spiral lines.

656 bartsch: classification of helicinidae

The section in which incised spiral hnes are present embraces five
species coming from the islands of Luzon, Marinduque, Siquijor, and
Cebu, while the six belonging to the section that has no incised spiral
lines come from the islands of Luzon, Negros, Bohol, and Leyte.

Of those having incised spiral lines, two are provided with collar
bands. One of these, Geophorus (Diplopifiax) acutus Pfeiffer, is much
larger than the other. A cotype. Cat. No. 104393, collected by Cuming
at Argao, eastern Cebu, has 5.5 whorls and measures: altitude, 8.3
mm.; greater diameter, 13.8 mm. The smaller banded form, Geophorus
(Diplopinax) alhocarinatus (Mollendorff) Wagner, comes from the
island of Siquijor. A specimen, Cat. No. 195505, having 5.1 whorls
measures: altitude, 6.6 mm.; greater diameter, 10 mm.

Of the three unhanded species one, Geophorus (Diplopinax) bothropo-
mus Mollendorff, is quite large. Of this I have not seen specimens.
Wagner figures the operculum and gives the following measurements:
altitude, 9.5 mm.; greater diameter, 18 mm. It comes from Caramoan,
Luzon. The other two species are decidedly smaller. One of these
Geophorus {Diplopinax) conoidalis Mollendorff, has the spire decidedly
elevated and the base but very slightly rounded. A specimen of this
species. Cat. No. 258786, has 5.3 whorls and measures: altitude, 7.4
mm.; greater diameter, 10.8 mm. The last species, Geophorus {Diplo-
pinax) mollendorff in. sp., has the spire rather depressed and the base
strongly rounded. The type. Cat. No. 195503, comes from the island
of Siquijor. It has 5.1 whorls and measures: altitude, 4.9 mm.; greater
diameter, 9.8 mm.

The section lacking incised spiral lines can be divided into a banded
and plain group. The banded group embraces three forms, of which
Geophorus {Diplopinax) peracutissimus Wagner is quite large. This
species comes from the island of Negros. A specimen. Cat. No. 302777,
having 5.1 whorls measures: altitude, 8 mm.; greater diameter, 14.6
mm. This has a faint brown band at the summit and another above
and below the periphery, a little within the edge. The other two forms
are of medium size. One, Geophorus {Diplopinax) cumingi n. sp., col-
lected by Cuming on Negros, has the color bands as in Geopkprus {Diplo-
pinax) peracutissimus Wagner, but the shell much more elevated. The
type, Cat. No. 302739, has 5.2 whorls and measures: altitude, 7.5
mm.; greater diameter, 11.2 mm. The third banded species, Geophorus
{Diplopinax) taghilleranus n. sp., has the last whorls suffused with red
and the interior of the same color. The type of this. Cat. No. 258760,
comes from Tagbileran, Bohol. It has 5.2 whorls and measures: alti-
tude, 7 mm.; greater diameter, 11.9 mm.

bartsch: classification of helicinidae 657

Two species and a subspecies are known of the unhanded forms. Of
these one, Geophorus (Diplopinax) lazarus Sowerby, is a broadly conic,
medium-sized shell that comes from the region of Bongabong, Nueva
Ecija, Luzon. A cotype of this, collected by Cuming, Cat. No. 302740,
has 4.9 whorls and measures: altitude, 5.9 mm.; greater diameter, 11.6
mm. The subspecies, Geophorus {Diplopinax) lazarus transitans Wag-
ner, which comes from Libmanan, Ambos Camarines, Luzon, is said
to have measured: altitude, 7 mm.; greater diameter, 12 mm. The
remaining species, Geophorus (Diplopinax) duponanus n. sp., has the
shell narrowly conic. The type. Cat. No. 258787, comes from the
west shore of Port Dupon, Leyte. It has 5 whorls and measures:
altitude, 6.5 mm.; greater diameter, 9.4 mm.

In the preceding synopsis of the Philippine members of the genus
Geophorus, all but the following three known forms, of which no speci-
mens were at hand, have been heated. I suspect that all three of these
belong to Geophorus in the restricted sense, but shall refrain from as-
signing them to a definite position until representative material will
make it possible to do so positively. These forms are: Geophorus tro-
ckijormis gihhosulus (Mollendorff) Wagner cited from Tayabas, Luzon;
Geophorus agglutinans solidulus (Mollendorff) Wagner, from the island of
Lubang; and Geophorus acutus intermedius (Mollendorff) Wagner from
the island of Cebu.

ABSTRACTS

Authors of scientific papers are requested to see that abstracts, preferably
prepared and signed by themselves, are forwarded promptly to the editors.
The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those appearing
in this issue.

CRYSTALLOGRAPHY. — The application of optical methods of identifi-
cation to alkaloids and other organic compounds. Edgar T. Wherry.
U. S. Dept. Agr. Bull. 679. Pp. 9. 1918.
The value of optical methods for identifying crystalline substances
is pointed out, and methods for the study of substances such as alkaloids
are outlined. The observations recommended are: I. In ordinary
hght: Color, habit, angles, cleavage, and refractive indices; detailed
directions with respect to the last are given, including the preparation
of special immersion liquids of solutions of potassium-mercuric iodide,
which are required for certain alkaloids. 11. In parallel polarized light:
extinction, double refraction, and sign of elongation. III. In conver-
gent polarized light: class, sign, and dispersion. The details of manip-
ulation are illustrated by describing the procedure in the case of
cinchonine . E. T. W.

CRYSTALLOGRAPHY. — The identification of the cinchona alkaloids hy
optical-cry stallographic measurements. Edgar T. Wherry and
Elias Yanovsky, Journ. Amer. Chem. Soc. 40: 1063-1074.
1918.
The methods described in the paper previously abstracted were
applied to carefully purified cinchonine, cinchonidine, quinine, and
quinidine, crystallized from alcohol and from benzene. The optical
properties of these are presented in a standard formal description and
then tabulated in columns to show the differences. Determinative
tables based on the properties measured are given. The results of
crystallization of mixtures are also described, and a method for the
examination of a medicinal preparation containing these alkaloids
outlined. E. T. W.

658

abstracts: mammalogy 659

CRYSTALLOGRAPHY. — Modern extensions of Hauy's laws of crys-
tallography. Edgar T. Wherry. Amer. MineraL 3: 134-136.
1918.
It is pointed out that many of the modern developments in crystal-
lography represent logical extensions of the laws formulated by Hauy
over 125 years ago. E. T. W.

MAMMALOGY. — The rice rats of North America (Genus Oryzomys),
Edward A. Goldman. N. Amer. Fauna 43 : 1-100, pis. 1-6,
figs. 1-11. September 23, 1918.

The genus Oryzomys, of wide distribution in North and South
America, has, for the systematist, long been one of the most difficult
groups of small mammals; and there has been a considerable difference
of opinion as to the status and distribution of the comparatively few
forms found in the United States, while the intricate maze of species
and subspecies in the Tropics has proved a stumbling block for almost
every worker. In every extensive collection many specimens were
wrongly determined, or simply stored without an attempt at specific
identification.

In the present revision Major Goldman has recognized 51 forms
from Panama northward, 44 of which he places in the typical subgenus
Oryzomj^s, 5 in the subgenus Oligoryzomys, and 2 in the subgenus
Melanomys. Two Mexican subspecies are described as new: Ory-
zomys melanotis colimensis from Armeria, Colima; and Oryzomys fulves-
cens mayensis from Apazote, Campeche. The author predicts that
when many regions now unexplored are carefully worked by collectors,
the forms assignable to Oryzomys will probably far outnumber those
of any other genus of American rodents. More than 150 species and
subspecies have already been described in the genus, many of these
from South America and therefore extralimitary to the present paper.
Some forms have in late years been separated from Oryzomys by the
erection of closely allied genera, and a careful revision of the South
American genera, subgenera, species, and geographical races of Ory-
zomys and its allies, somewhat comparable to Goldman's work, would
be a boon to mammalogists. The relationships between the genera and
subgenera of Oryzomys-like rodents are especially complex and there
will doubtless always be a considerable difference of opinion regarding
the relative values of the named groups, the various sections blending
one into another in an intricate manner. The author calls attention

660 abstracts: phytopathology

to the intimate relationships between Oryzomys and Nectomys, and
other American cricetines, and incidentally expresses the opinion that
Nesoryzomys, based by Heller on rice rats inhabiting the Galapagos
Islands, is a synonym of Oryzomys.

Keys to the forms; lists of specimens examined, with footnote refer-
ence to the museums where the material from various localities may be
found; average and extreme dimensions of specimens; detailed distri-
bution of each form; and, in the plates, nearly 100 well-selected figures
of skulls and teeth; all add to the values of the revision, which is based
on the examination of 1613 specimens assembled from the various
larger American museums, N. Hollister.

PHYTOPATHOLOGY. — Seed treatment control and overwintering of
cucumber angular leaf spot. W. W. Gilbert and M. W. Gardner.
Phytopathology 8:229-233. May, 1918.

The authors give the results secured from small and large scale tests
of disinfecting cucumber seed to control angular leaf spot. The treat-
ments tried consisted in soaking the seed for 5 to 10 minutes in solutions
of mercuric chlorid (1 to 1000), copper sulfate (0.5 and 1 per cent),
and formalin (2 and 4 per cent) and then washing in running water.
Hot water treatment (52°C. for 10 minutes) was also tried. Half-acre
field tests carried on at Madison, Wisconsin, showed conclusively that
all the treatments tried almost entirely eliminated the disease from the
seed. The mercuric chlorid treatment (1 to 1000 for 5 minutes) is
considered the safest, most practical, and most effective method tested.
Both formalin and copper sulfate caused some injury to germination.
The effectiveness of the treatment with mercuric chlorid was further
tested on about 150 cucumber fields in Wisconsin and Indiana, in one
half of which the seed used was treated and in the remainder untreated.
The original seed was from the same source. Observations made near
the end of the season showed a very considerable reduction in the
amount of disease on fields not previously in cucumbers planted with
treated seed. The data secured on overwintering indicate that the dis-
ease does live over in the soil to a considerable extent, making it inad-
visable to plant cucumbers on the same land two years in succession.

Seed disinfection and crop rotation are advised as methods of con-
trolling angular leaf spot. W. W. G.

abstracts: agronomy 661

PLANT PHYSIOLOGY. — Boron: its effect on crops and its distribu-
tion in plants and soil in different parts of the United States. F. C.
Cook and J. B. Wilson. Journ. Agr. Res. 13:451-470. May
27, 1918.

This is the final paper of a series of three deahng with this subject.
The influence of borax (sodiuni borate) and of calcined colemanite
(calcium borate) was studied on various cultivated plants. The ex-
periments in some cases extended over three years and the maximum
amount of borax used was in excess of that which truck growers, in
applying manure treated with borax to kill larvae of the house fly,
might possibly add to their cultivated fields. Soils showed a decided
difference in rendering the added borax nontoxic to plants. There was
a complete disappearance of detectable amounts of soluble borax and
of colemanite, although small amounts of total borax were found. It
is evident that insoluble borax compounds are formed in the soil. The
calcium of the colemanite did not prevent the absorption of borax by
the plants.

The amounts of borax absorbed seemed to vary with the variety of
plant, the solubility of the borax compound used, the amount added
to the soil, the time elapsing after the compound was added to the
soil before planting, the amount of rainfall, etc., and finally with the
character of the soil to which the borax compound was added.

The distribution of the borax in different parts of the various plants
was investigated and results showing the influence on the yield of some
of the crops are included. F. C. C.

AGRONOMY. — Effect of temperature and other meteorological factors on
the growth of sorghums. H. N. Vinall and H. R. Reed. Journ.
Agr. Res. 13: 133-148, pis. 11, 12. April, 1918.

The purpose of this study was to determine the reactions of the
sorghum plant to climatic conditions. Several varieties were grown
under field conditions at Chillicothe, Texas; Bard and Chula Vista,
California; and Puyallup, Washington. The average of the monthly
means of temperatures for the growing seasons at the above points was
75.6°, 81.8°, 62.4°, and 60.4° F., respectively. The percentage of ac-
tual to possible sunshine was 75, 93, 68, and 46. The total degrees of
positive temperature received by the sorghums at Chillicothe was
3028°, at Bard 4236°, at Chula Vista 1895°, and at Puyallup 1615° F.

None of the sorghums matured at Puyallup, but all matured at Chula
Vista with only 280° difference in the total of positive temperatures.

662 abstracts: technology

This would seem to indicate that the amount of sunshine is an impor-
tant factor in bringing sorghums to maturity.

The conformance of the sorghums at Chilhcothe, Bard, and Chula
Vista to Linsser's Law of Growth was remarkable. The "physio-
logical constant" according to this law, for the period from planting
to maturity was for Chilhcothe 0.539, Bard 0.530, and Chula Vista
0.526.

Vegetative characters which are ordinarily considered stable, such
as the number of leaves per plant, varied with the climatic conditions.
Blackhull kafir had 3 arid Sumac sorgo 6 more leaves at Bard than at
Chula Vista. The varieties also showed decided differences in height
and diameter of the stem and in the size of the leaf at these two places.

Studies on the effects of different dates of planting at Bard, indicate
that "more favorable conditions are obtained if the date of planting is
regulated so that the early stages of the plant's development coincide
with a period of high temperatures and the later stages, when the plant
is nearing maturity, come when moderate temperatures prevail."

H. N. V.

TECHNOLOGY. — The milling and baking tests of einkorn, emmer,

spelt, and polish wheat. J. A. LeClerc, L. H. Bailey, and H. L.

Wessling. Journ. Amer. Soc. Agron. 10 : no. 5. 1918.

A description of these various rare wheats is given, and likewise the

composition of the flours and characteristics of the bread made from

the flours of these rare wheats. It is shown that the rare wheats',

emmer and spelt (both free of hulls) and polish wheat can be milled

into a satisfactory flour and the flour used in baking a good loaf of

bread. The results obtained from einkorn (free of hulls) are not so

encouraging. J- A. L.

TECHNOLOGY. — The chemical analysis of wheat-flour substitutes and
of the breads made therefrom. J. A. LeClerc and H. L. Wessling.
U. S. Dept. Agr. Bull. 701. 1918.
The work embodied in this bulletin was started in 1912. Included
are found the chemical analysis of some 30 substitutes which may be
used in combination with wheat flour in the making of bread. There
is also found the analysis of the various breads made from a combina-
tion of three parts of wheat flour and one part of substitute. Photo-
graphs of the different breads as well as certain descriptive physical
characteristics of these breads are given. J. A. L.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

The 124th meeting of the Academy was held in the Assembly Room
of the Cosmos Club the evening of Thm'sday, April 18, 1918, with
President Briggs presiding, the occasion being the fifth lecture of the
series on Science in Relation to the War, by Lieut. Col. X. Reille,
Chief of Artillery in the French Advisory Mission. The address, en-
titled The problem of anti-aircraft firing, has since been published in
the Journal (8: 465-480. August 19, 1918).

The 125th meeting of the Academy was held in the Assembly Room
of the George Washington University Medical School the evening of
Thursday, May 9, 1918, with Vice-president Rose presiding. The
occasion \vas the sixth lecture of the series on Science in Relation to the
War, by Dr. Raymond Pearl, of the United States Food Administra-
tion, entitled Biology and war. This lecture has been published in the
Journal (8:341-360. June 4, 1918).

The 126th meeting of the Academy was held jointly with the Chemi-
cal Society in the Assembly Room of the Interior Department the
evening of Wednesday, May 15, 1918, with Vice-president Powder pre-
siding. The address, by Dr. Arthur A. Noyes, Professor of Theoreti-
cal Chemistry at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Chair-
man of the Nitrate Committee, entitled The nitrogen 'problem in relation
to the war, has been published in the Journal (8:381-394. June 19,
1918). It is the seventh of the series on Science in Relation to the
War.

William R. Maxon, Recording Secretary.

THE ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 316th regular meeting of the Society was held at the hall in the
Perpetual Building Association's building, 1101 E Street, N.W.,
November 6, 1918. There were present 24 members and one visitor.

The following new members were elected: Messrs. O. K. Courtney
and P. W. Mason, of the Bureau of Entomology and Dr. Norman
Perrine, of the Federal Horticultural Board.

The President announced the death of two of our fellow members,
viz., Mr. Frederick Knab and Mr. A. B. Duckett, and the meeting
was, for a short time, turned into a memorial meeting in honor of the

663

664 proceedings: entomological society

deceased. Resolutions on the death of Mr. Duckett were read and a
copy of same ordered sent to the bereaved family. Short remarks
laudatory of Mr. Duckett were made by Messrs. Gahan, Popenoe,
CusHMAN, ScHWARZ, and Snyder.

The President read a short statement by Dr. L. O. Howard on the
life and work of Mr. Knab, after which short but eloquent tributes were
paid to his memory by Messrs. Rohwer, Walton, Ely, and Pierce.
The President announced that he would name a committee to prepare
a short biographical sketch and a bibliography of Mr. Knab's work.

The regular program was as follows :

Mann, Dr. W. M. : Notes on collecting in Fiji. Mr. Mann told of a
collecting trip through the Fiji islands in 1915-1916. The trip was
made as a Sheldon Traveling Fellow of Harvard University, the object
being to study the insect and, as far as possible, other faunae from the
standpoint of zoogeography.

The Lau Archipelago, first visited, was little productive. The visit
was during the dry season but it is probable that at other seasons the
fauna is also poor. These islands are almost entirely coralline limestone
and isolated. In the forests, generally at high altitudes on the larger
islands of Fiji proper, life was abundant and the proportion of endemic
forms large. Considerable material was collected and a report on the
ants is in preparation.

Several points of local distribution were discussed. One moth, the
larva of which bores into coconut leaves on the island of Viti Levu, the
largest island in the group, has weakened the trees so that practically
no nuts are produced. It is remarkable that this species has never
spread to the other islands, especially those near by, considering the
strong winds and hurricanes that are so prevalent in Fiji.

One of the serious insect pests of the coconut is a large phasmid.
This occurs so abundantly that on one plantation where Hindu labor
was employed, phasmid collecting was given to some of the laborers
as a task, and seven pounds weight of the insects required as a day's work.
They collected this amount apparently with little trouble.

Sanford, H, L. : The chnjsanthemum gallfly. Mr. Sanford's paper
dealt with the life-history, distribution, and control of this imported
pest of chrysanthemums, and was illustrated by several interesting
specimens of its work and also by some photographs .

Rohwer, S. A. : Notes on and descriptions of sawflies. (Read by title.)

Green, C. T. : A note on the habit of Pegomyia affinis Stein. (Read
by title.)

Fisher, W. S.: Chrysobothris transquebariea versus impressa.
(Read by title.)

CocKERELL, T. D. A. : Descriptions of new bees. (Read bj^ title.)

MosiER, C. A. and Snyder, T. E. : Further notes on Tabanidae from
Florida Everglades. (Read by title.)

A. B. Gahan, Secretary.

i:>

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. VIII DECEMBER 19, 1918 No. 21

GEOLOGY. — Titanium-bearing corundum spinellite (rock em-
ery): a preliminary statement of its occurrence and co7nposi-
tion in Virginia. Thomas L. Watson, University of Vir-
ginia, and George Steiger, United States Geological
Survey.

It is proposed in this paper to summarize brieflj^ the geologic
occurrence and composition of a type of mineral deposit (rock
emerjO in Virginia that possesses considerable scientific interest
as well as commercial importance. The rock name spinellite
applied in 1893 to certain ore deposits at Routivare, Sweden, is
suggested for the ilmenite-magnetite-conmdum-spinel aggregate
from Mrginia. The geology of the Virginia area, including the
bodies of rock emery, will be treated at some length in a report
of the State Geological Survey, which is in an advanced stage of
preparation.

resume of the areal geology

The area is in the north-central part of Pittsylvania County
near to and along the west side of the Southern Railway, about
40 miles south of Lynchburg, and 20 miles north of Danville.
Whittles, a station on the Southern Railwa}^, 5 miles north of
Chatham, the county seat, is the present shipping point.

As mapped by the Virginia Geological Survey, the area com-
prises approximately 20 square miles. It forms a part of the
crystalline rock complex of the Piedmont Plateau province.
Its surface is maturely dissected, averaging in elevation about

665

666 WATSON AND STEIGER: SPINELLITE from VIRGINIA

850 feet above sea level, and is characterized by the absence of
marked relief.

The rocks are all crystalline and include a variety of metamor-
phic and igneous types that are prevailingly deeply weathered,
so that outcrops, especially of the metamorphic types, are few.
Schists and gneisses, chiefly the former, compose the rock com-
plex into which the igneous masses are intruded. They probably
form as much as five-eighths of the area mapped. Muscovite
schist with or without biotite and common red garnet is the pre-
vailing type, although other varieties of schists occur. The gneiss
is biotite-bearing, in places garnetiferous, and is of granitic com-
position. It was derived probably from an original granite,
while the schists were almost as certainly derived from
sediments.

The strike of the foliation of the schist-gneiss complex is to
the northeast, ranging from N. 10°-85° E., with a probable av-
erage of N. 50° E. ; the dip varies from 40° S.E. to vertical, with
a probable averag-e of 65°.

The igneous rocks, including granite of several kinds, olivine
norite, and olivine and olivine-free diabase, are intrusive into
the schist-gneiss complex. Olivine norite intrudes the granite
and is therefore younger, while the diabase is limited chiefly to
the schist-gneiss complex. With the exception of gneissoid
structure developed in the granite in places, the igneous rocks
are massive. Quartz veins and pegmatites of granitic composi-
tion are abundant. Black tourmaline and red garnet occur in
the pegmatites in several localities.

Of the igneous rocks in the district granite, which probably
forms three-eighths of the area mapped, is the only one that
needs be considered, since the ore bodies are always closely as-
sociated with it and the two are undoubtedly genetically re-
lated. Two varieties of granite which are strongly contrasted
occur: (a) granitite, or biotite-granite, with or without musco-
vite, and (b) muscovite granite aplite-pegmatite. Both are
commonly massive although gneissoid structure may occur
locally. The two varieties appear to be intimately associated
in places and the muscovite aplite-pegmatite may carry minute

WATSON AND STEIGER! SPINELLITE FROM VIRGINIA 667

scales of biotite sparsely scattered through it. The ore bodies
are associated with the aplite-pegmatite and not with the
granitite.

The granite aplite-pegmatite is a white muscovite-bearing rock
which exhibits the usual irregularities of texture of such rocks.
Chemical analyses, as would be expected, show it to be distinctly
more silicic than the granitite. Microscopic study of thin sec-
tions shows the principal minerals to be quartz and feldspar
(orthoclase and albite in varying proportions) with some
muscovite.

The chemical composition of the granite aplite-pegmatite is
shown in table 1 below in the average of three analyses of samples
collected from different parts of the area.

TABLE 1

Average of Three Analyses of Granite Aplite-Pegmatite, Pittsylvania
County, Virginia. (S. D. Gooch, Analyst)

Per cent

SiOs ■ 76. 19

AI2O3 15. 14

FeaOs 66

FeO 19

MgO ^ trace

CaO ' 47

NaoO 4.16

K:0 2.29

H2O- 05

H,0+ 1.06

TiOj 02

P2O5 11

MnO 02

CO2 none

100.36
Sp.Gr 2.671''

" Average of three determinations on separate rock fragments, ranging from
2.659 to 2.693.

Calculated in the usual way, the principal normative compo-
sition of the rock corresponding to the above analysis is :

Quartz 41.9

Orthoclase 13.3

Albite 35. 6

Anorthite 2.5

668 WATSON AND STEIGER : SPINELLITE FROM VIRGINIA

THE ORE BODIES

From developments thus far made, the emery ore bodies are
quite similar. in mode of occurrence to many titaniferous mag-
netites in gabbroic rocks and to the Virginia nelsonites. They
form sharply defined vein-like masses or lenses which range up to
6 feet across, with the greatest length thus far exposed in prospect-
ing of more than 120 feet. They may occur either in the granite
aplite-pegmatite or in the schist near the granite aplite-pegmatite
contact. In either case the much greater resistance of the ore
to weathering than that of the inclosing rocks has resulted in
the surface being heavily littered with large and small masses
of the emery.

Contacts of the ore with fresh granite have nowhere been ob-
served, since the openings are shallow and are confined to the
residual decayed product of the granite. Along the margins of
the ore bodies there is usually abundant chlorite up to several
inches in thickness. The chlorite may exhibit a rude vertical
banding, the bands of which sometimes alternate with similar
ones of ore, limited in all cases to marginal positions in the ore
bodies thus far developed. Chlorite occurs also in bunchy form
in the ore usually distributed through the marginal portions of
the ore body; and, as a rule, is absent from the other parts of the
rich massive ore bodies but may be an important constituent of
the lean ones. Indeed a characteristic feature of the rich mas-
sive emery bodies is their freedom from micaceous (chloritic)
minerals so common to emery of many localities. Chlorite is
similarly associated with the ore bodies occurring in schist. On
weathering the chlorite is removed and characteristic pitted
surfaces are developed in the ore.

The ore bodies in the schists are genetically related to the
granite aplite-pegmatite and are formed very near to the schist-
granite contact. They range from mere stringers a small frac-
tion of an inch thick to veinlike bodies or lenses 5 or 6 feet across.
They conform closely with the foliation of the schists, although
exceptionally they cut across the schist structure. In the open-
ings thus far made the schists are in an advanced stage of decay,

WATSON AND STEIGER: SPINELLITE FROM VIRGINIA 669

yielding varicolored residual clays, chiefly pink to deep red and
brown, in which the structure of the original schists is usually
completely preserved. The ore bodies have a general north-
easterly strike, with steep dips to the southeast which frequently
approach the vertical. In the thin stringer-like bodies, closely
spaced and alternating with thin bands of schist, many speci-
mens exhibit beautiful folds. Chlorite is similarly associated
with the ore bodies formed in the schist as with those formed in
the granite described above. Marked contact effects on the
schist are shown in places, involving the development of an en-
tirely new set of minerals, including sillimanite and some andalu-
site w4th the ore minerals, spinel and magnetite, and in places a
little corundum.

PETROGRAPHY OF THE EMERY.

The rock emery is a heavy black fine-grained crystalline ag-
gregate that resembles somewhat closely a homogeneous fine-
grained magnetite ore. It is an exceedingly tough rock and is
magnetic from the presence of magnetite as one of its constitu-
ents. A small horseshoe magnet wdll pick up very small frag-
ments of the ore but will usually not lift pieces a half inch or
more in size. The texture of the ore may or may not be entirely
uniform. More often it is uniform but frequently difference in
granularity (size of grain) even in a small hand specimen is
emphasized by sharp usually parallel boundaries which impart
a distinct banded appearance to the ore. This difference in granu-
larity seems to be more frequent in the ore in schist than in the
ore in granite, but it occurs in both. In the coarsest textured
emery the mineral grains do not exceed 2 mm. in diameter,
while in the finer textured rock, which includes most of the ore,
they are under 0.1 mm.

In the most of the ore none of the component minerals can
be distinguished by the naked eye. In the schist occurrences,
however, the ore contains corundum sufficiently coarse to be
readily identified on sight, formed usually in small segregation-
like areas or bunches or as thin light-colored bands or streaks.

670 WATSON AND STEIGER : SPINELLITE FROM VIRGINIA

less often as scattered single crystals. The corundum crystals
measure up to 2.5 cm. long and 1 cm. wide, ]but probably most of
them range from 1 to 3 mm. and under 1 mm. in size. They are
usually clear and nearly white or colorless to light grayish, but
many are light to deep blue. Megascopic corundum, however,
has been identified only in the ore in the schist, none having yet
been observed in the ore in the granite. Otherwise the ore in
its two rock associates is identical in appearance and cannot
be distinguished in either hand specimens or large masses.

As a rule the ore is entirely massive, and is cut by one or more
sets of joints irregularly spaced, which break it into blocks of dif-
ferent sizes. Exceptions, however, are noted in some of the
schist occurrences where thin bands of ore alternate with similar
ones of schist, and in those places where tiny bands of light-col-
ored corundum are developed, or under conditions mentioned
above where difference in granularity is shown. In each case a
rather distinct banded structure is apparent.

Microscopic study of more than fifty thin sections of the ore^
shows it to consist of a fine-grained interlocking aggregate of
spinel (pleonaste), magnetite, and conmdum, 'with some ilmenite,
and in some sections a brown mineral whose identity has not
yet I een established. From the optical data it is possible that
the brown mineral may prove to be a new species. In addition
to the minerals mentioned some sections show sillimanite, anda-
lusite (chiastolite), and a pale-green chlorite, possibly corundo-
pbyllite. The dominant mineral is spinel (pleonaste), which
makes up 50 per cent or more of the rock. All the principal
minerals vary considerably in amount. Corundum, for ex-
ample, may be abundant in some sections and almost or entirely
wanting in others.

The spinel occurs in rich green, sometimes brown, grains, which
may show partial crystal outline, and is, of course, isotropic. In
the coarser grained rock the spinel grains Co not exceed 2 mm.
in diameter, while in the finer grained rock they will average less

1 The microscopic description that follows relates entirely to the schist occur-
rences of the ore; study of thin sections of the granite occurrences of ore has not
been completed.

WATSON AND STEIGER! SPINELLITE FROM VIRGINIA

671

than 0.05 mm. Inclusions of magnetite and corundum, espe-
cially magnetite, are rather common. Thin plate-like interposi-
tions of magnetite or ilmenite oriented with the octahedral cleav-
age are observed in many spinel individuals of some sections.
Also the substance of the spinel is frequently crowded with minute
black dots in such abundance at times as almost to obscure the
host. These are often confined to the central portion of the
spinel individual like the inclusions in some leucite. Alteration
from weathering into a nonpleochroic isotropic reddish brown
substance, the composition of which has not been investigated,
is common in some sections. Usually the alteration product
forms distinct rims which strongly contrast with the unaltered
rich green cores of spinel.

The composition of the spinel is shown in column I of table 2.
It is compared with analyses of spinel of the Peekskill emery,
Westchester County, New York (columns III and IV), and with
an analysis of spinel from the titanomagnetite spinellite of Sol-
nor, Norway (column V).

TABLE 2
Analyses of Spinel from Virginia, New York, and Norway

I"

II

III

IV

V

A1203

FeaOa

FeO

53.52
10.35
24.53

10.02
0.92
0.67

54.39
10.52
24.91

10.18

65.19
20.78
14.03

64.86
21.78
13.36

61.8

4.6

18.1

MnO

1.05

MgO

14.75

Si02

Ti02

100.00

100.00

100.00

100.00

100.30

I. Spinel from Pittsylvania County, Virginia, rock emery area. George
Steiger, analyst.

II. No. 1 calculated to a silica and titania free basis.

Ill and IV. Spinel from Westchester County, New York, Peekskill rock em-
ery area. G. Sherburne Rogers, Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci., 21; 69. 1911.

V. Spinel from titanomagnetite spinellite, Solnor, Norway. J. H. L. Vogt,
Zeitschr. Prakt. Geol., 1900, p. 237.

" Spinel and corundum were obtained as a residue after repeated treatment
with strong hydrochloric acid. Corundum was determined separately and
deducted.

672 WATSON AND STEIGERI SPINELLITE FROM VIRGINIA

The results given in the table above indicate the differences
in composition of the spinel from the three widely separated
localities. By way of comparison attention need only be di-
rected to the closer similarity in composition of the spinel from
Virginia and Norway than that from New York. Upon further
comparison with analyses of spinel from other localities, the Vir-
ginia mineral is remarkable for its comparatively low MgO and
high Fe203.

According to the analysis given in table 2, the Virginia spinel
corresponds to the formula (Fe, Mg)0.(Al, Fe)203, in which FeO
is molecularly greater than MgO and Fe203 is slightly more than
one-eighth of the AI2O3. In the comparatively high Fe203 the
mineral shows similarity to chlorosp'nel, while in the protoxide
ratio (FeO molecularly greater than MgO) approach toward
hercynite is indicated. It is, however, apparently more closely
allied to pleonaste to which it is referred and in which Fe203 on
chemical grounds is shown in this case to be isomorphous with
AI2O3.

The spinel in the New York and Norway rocks is also referred
to the variety pleonaste by Rogers- and by Vogt.^ Williams^ previ-
ously concluded that from low MgO (about 9 per cent) shown on
analysis of the New York spinel, the results of which were un-
fortunately lost, the mineral closely approached hercynite, al-
though on a later page (197) he remarks, in commenting on other
analyses, that in "a very large proportion, if not all, of the New
York spinel, the samples consisted of pleonaste."

Magnetite, the second most important mineral quantitatively,
is usually much less abundant than spinel. It is developed in
grains that often show a strong tendency toward crystal outline,
although good crystals are rare. The grains will average slightly
less in size than those of spinel and are scattered among the
latter with which they are intergrown or interlocked with sharp
angular boundaries, and are also formed as inclusions in both
pleonaste and corundum.

2 Rogers, G. S., Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci. 21: 69. 1911.

3 VoGT, J. H. L., Zeitschr. Prakt. Geol., p. 237, 1900.
* Williams, G. H., Amer. Journ. Sci. 33: 195. 1887.

WATSON AND STEIGERI SPINELLITE FROM VIRGINIA 673

Corundum is subject to wide variation in amount and, with
the exceptions noted above, it is usuaFy not visible megascopi-
cally. It may fail entirely in some thin sections and may be
present in considerable quantity in others. In the bulk sample
of the rock yielding the results on analysis given in table 2,
the corundum was estimated at about 18 per cent. It is devel-
oped both in grains and in distinct crystals of prismatic habit,
which measure up to 0.12 mm. in length. The corundum gen-
erally cuts sharply against the spinel and magnetite, but in
places the boundaries are irregular and rather indefinite, suggest-
ing, in such cases, a form of intergrowth with the ore minerals
indicating approximately simultaneous crystallization. How-
ever, it seems reasonably clear that a part of the corundum crys-
ta lized ahead of the spinel and magnetite.

Inclusions of both spinel and magnetite occur, especially the
latter, which may be grouped at times in areas of minute rounded
black particles in such abundance as almost entirely to obscure
the substance of the coiimdum. Regular rhombohedral parting
is frequently well developed and, as a rule, the individuals are
marked by irregular fractures or cracks.

CHEMICAL COMPOSITION

Composition of the Virginia rock emery is shown in the de-
tailed chemical analysis in column I of table 3. For purposes of
comparison two analyses (II and III) by Rogers of the Peeks-
kill emery, New York, and two of the Naxos emery (IV and V)
by Papavasiliou are tabulated.

The differences in chemical composition of the emery from the
three localities, strikingly shown in a comparison of the analyses,
are differences that express variation in the proportion and com-
position of the minerals that enter into the make-up of the
emery from the different localities. Higher combined iron ox-
ides and lower alumina characterize the Virginia emery. Mag-
nesia in the emery from Virginia and New York, widely variable
in the latter, may be considered low for rocks in which spinel is
a principal mineral, but in each case it can be accounted for on

674 WATSON AND STEIGERI SPINELLITE FROM VIRGINIA

the basis of composition of the spinel, the analyses of which show
FeO in excess molecularly of MgO. It is essentially negligible

TABLE 3

Analyses of Emery from Virginia, New York, and Naxos

Si02...

AI2O3.

FesOs.

FeO...

MgO..

CaO...

Na.O..

K2O...

H2O-.

H2O+.

Ti02..

ZrOa..

CO2...

P2O,..

SO3...

S

■Cr203.

NiO...

MnO..

BaO...

SrO...

Sp. Gr.

I

II

III

IV

2.53

1.93

0.84

3.23

45.38

68.14

59.22

66.16

23.33

1.43

16.66

24.27

17.90

16.25

14.02

3.48

5.71

10.02

3.54

0.38

0.06

trace

trace

1.62

0.20

trace

trace

none

trace

trace

0.33

0.12

0.05

1 0.37

0.99

1.15

2.65

3.72

1.41

3.28

none

0.07

none

trace

trace

none

none

0.05

0.06

0.05

0.04

trace

trace

0.04

0.15

trace

0.06

0.25

none

none

100.46

100.54

100.38

99.76

4.152"

4.064

4.90
63.64
29.61
1.80
0.06
0.45

1.04

0.03

100.53
4.008

I. Rock emery 1§ miles west of Whittles, Pittsylvania County, Virginia.
George Steiger, analyst.

U. Spinel emery, high grade, Buckbee mine, Westchester County, New York.
G. S. Rogers, analyst. Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci. 21; 64. 1911.

III. Pure emery, Dalton mine, Westchester County, New York. G. S. Rog-
ers, analyst. Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci. 21: 64. 1911.

IV and V. Naxischen handelssmirgels nach Oser. S. A. Papavasiliou. Zeitschr.
Deutsch. Geol. Ges., 65:87.

" Average of five determinations made by S. D. Gooch on separate fragments
at 24°C.

in the Naxos emery because of the practical, though not entire,
absence of spinel. Ilmenite, present up to 5 or 6 per cent in the
emery from Virginia and New York, accounts for the appreciable

WATSON AND STEIGER: SPINELLITE FROM VIRGINIA

675

percentages of TiO: in the analyses — a constituent not reported
in the analyses of the Naxos emery.

Pleonaste, corundum, and magnetite with some ilmenite are
the principal minerals in the emery from Virginia and New York,
while magnetite and conmdum are the components of the Naxos
emery, with little or no spinel and ilmenite. The wide varia-
tion in the principal constituents shown in the two analyses of
the Peekskill emery is due directly to difference in the proportion
of the same minerals as expressed in the modes determined by
Rogers." Omitting the less than 2 per cent of quartz, the mode
in each case as given by Rogers is shown in table 4.

TABLE 4

Modes of Peekskill, New York, Emery (Rogers)

Spinel

Corundum.
Magnetite.
Ilmenite. . .

IIP

21.1

45.2

24.1

6.2

» Corresponds to same number in table 3.

The same minerals are shown above to be the chief compo-
nents of the Virginia emery, but the spinel in excess of the other
minerals, is shown to differ from that of the Peekskill emery in
that re203 isomorphous with AI2O3 enters largely into its com-
position. A^ariation in the mineral proportions is likewise an
important factor in explanation of the differences shown in the
analj'ses of the emery from New York and Virginia.

The norm of the Virginia rock calculated by Washington from
analj^sis I in table 3 is:

Norm of Virginia emery

Corundum 45 . 09

Nephelite 0.85

Olivine 6.38

Magnetite 33.87

Ilmenite 0 . 99

(Mg, Fe)0 5.71

Rest 1.48

* Rogers, G. S., op. cit., p. 64.

676 THURAS: RECORDING SEA- WATER SALINITY

Since the spinels are regarded as alferric minerals, the rock
falls in Class III, Subclass V, and in Section I of the C. I. W. P.
system.

THE NAME SPINELLITE

The name spinellite, applied by Peterssen and Sjogren^ in
1893 to the titaniferous iron ore at Routivare in northern Swe-
den composed of the ore minerals magnetite, ilmenite, and
spinel with the silicate minerals olivine and pyroxene, seems
applicable to the Virginia rock. Indeed the name seems more
applicable, since the chief mineral in the Virginia rock is spinel.
Based on the group name spinel, spinellite would have equal ap-
plication to the two rocks, since magnetite and spinel compre-
hended under it are important constituents but their ratio in
the two rocks is reversed.

Since 1893 occurrences of titanomagnetite-spinellite in Nor-
way and Sw^eden have been found to be rather frequent. They
are grouped as magmatic segregation deposits in chiefly gabbroic
rocks and generally contain 7 to 12 per cent of spinel,^ but as a
rule, carry no corundum, which latter is an important mineral in
the Virginia rock. Based, then, on mineral composition, the
Virginia rock in which spinel is the principal component is re-
ferred to spinellite, which would also include the Peekskill, New
York, occurrence.

OCEANOGRAPHY. — An instrument for recording sea-ivater
salinity.^ A. L. Thuras, Bureau of Standards. (Com-
municated by S. W. Stratton.)

In a paper pubhshed in this Journal, 8: 145. 1918, a de-
scription w^as given of an instrument for continuously recording
sea-w^ater salinity. This instrument has been constructed and
tested and experimental data have been obtained giving the
magnitude of the various sources of error. The present paper

« Zeitschr. prakt. Geol., p. 269, 1893; Geol. Foren. Forh. 1893.

^ Beyschlag, Vogt, and Krusch., Ore Deposits, 1: 250 et seq. (Trans, by
Truscott.) 1914.

1 Done under the auspices of the Interdepartmental Committee on Ocean-
ography, subcommittee on instruments, apparatus, and measurements.

THURAS: RECORDING SEA-WATER SALINITY 677

is a continuation of the work on this instrument and concludes
with the measurement of the specific conductivity (conductivity
per cm. cubed) of sea water, in reciprocal ohms, throughout
the range of concentration found in the open ocean.

The author wishes to express his profound sorrow at the
death of his associate, Captain Weibel, who was recently killed
at the Front in France, while engaged in special scientific work.
The loss of his advice and inspiration has been keenly felt in
this development of his suggestions. His perseverance and
encouragement in the preliminary work showing the feasibility
of the method has been of great value to me in carrying out this
work.

DESCRIPTION OF THE METHOD

The method consists in measuring the ratio of the resistances
of sea water in two similar electrolytic cells; one cell is sealed
and contains sea water of average salinity and the other cell has
flowing through it the sea water to be measured. This ratio is
obtained with a Wheatstone bridge, using an alternating current
galvanometer and recorder. A calibration of the apparatus
can be made at any time by using sea water of a known salinity
in the open cell. A compensation for the temperature coefficient
of sea water is made by placing both cells close together in a
temperature bath through which sea water continuously flows.

SOURCES OF ERROR

The preliminary experiments indicated several effects which
might produce errors in measurement. The extent of these
errors has been determined by use of the new multi-tubular
cells in a Wheatstone bridge circuit. A sensitive alternating
current galvanometer, designed by Weibel, greatly facilitated
the balancing of the bridge. An enumeration of the disturbing
effects is given below and is followed by a discussion of the ex-
perimental data obtained.

1. Change in frequency and wave form of the current.

2. Change in the electrical capacity of the cells with change
in current and concentration of the sea water.

678 THURAS: RECORDING SEA-WATER SALINITY

3. Heating produced by the current in the cells.

4. Temperature lag of the sealed cell when the temperature of
the bath suddenly changes .

5. Flow of sea water through the open cell.

6. Time necessary for the resistance ratio to reach its true
value when the sea water passing through the open cell changes
in salinity.

7. Air bubbles in the cells.

Different frequencies and wave forms, of alternating current,
were obtained from a machine giving a good sine wave form at
1000 and 500 cycles and a power circuit giving about 60 cycles.
Successive conductivity measurements on the same solutions
with these three frequencies gave readings none of which differed
by as much as 5 parts in 100,000. The open cell and sealed
cell in the two arms of the bridge contained sea water of a salinity
of 35 and 32 grams per 1000 grams of sea water.

The electrical capacities of the cells were measured in a Wheat-
stone bridge circuit by use of a vibration galvanometer and a
variable inductance. Each cell was placed in one arm of the
bridge in series with a variable inductance which was used to
balance the capacity effect in the cell. Before making the meas-
urements the cells were carefully platinized with a 1 per cent solu-
tion of pure platinic chloride for three hours, reversing the
current every ten minutes. This covered the electrodes with a
firm gray coating of platinum black. The apparent series ca-
pacity of the sealed cell was found to be 11,000 microfarads and
the capacity of the open cell 14,000 microfarads. These large
series capacities are equivalent to small reactances and since
these reactances are in quadrature with the ohmic resistances
they only affect the balance of the dynamometer by reason of
second order terms and are therefore negligible. No variation
in capacity was obtained with sea water of different concentra-
tions. Increasing the current in the cell from 0.05 to 0.25 am-
pere increased the apparent capacity by 30 per cent. However,
since the capacities of the cells are large any change in capacity
may be neglected as may also the reactances of the capacities
themselves, for the accuracy required in this work. The Wheat-

THURAS: RECORDING SEA-WATER SALINITY 679

stone bridge may, therefore, be considered as made up of ohmic
resistance, and only a single balance for resistance, as in a direct
current bridge, is necessary.

The heating coefficient, i.e., temperature rise per watt dis-
sipated in the cell, for a stirred bath was found to be only 0.1 °C.
and did not change appreciably with the rate of 'stirring. In
an unstirred bath the coefficient was about 0.3°'C. For operating
the recorder about 0.05 ampere in the cell is needed. This
will raise the temperature of the sealed cell about one-fortieth
of a degree above the temperature of the bath and open cell.

The differential temperature coefficient which is here ex-
pressed as the per cent change in the ratio of the resistances of
the two cells, containing different solutions, per degree change in
the temperature of the bath in which the two cells are immersed
was found at various temperatures.

The following values of this coefficient were obtained for
salinities of 29 and 32 grams per 1000 in the two cells respectively.

from 0 to 10°— 0.00013
10 to 20°— 0.00009
20 to 30°— 0.00007

From these values a small correction can be appHed if the
temperature of the sea water is different from the temperature
at which the calibration of the instrument is made.

The thermal time constant of the cells, which is the time nec-
essary for the temperature of the cell to approach the tempera-
ture of the bath to 67 per cent of its initial difference in tempera-
ture, was found to be small. For a stirred bath the time con-
stant of the sealed cell is 37 seconds and the open cell 34 seconds,
and as in the case of the heating coefficient these values did
not change much with the rate of stirring. For an unstirred
bath the time constant was 62 seconds. As stated in the previ-
ous paper this small time constant is sufficient to bring the cells
quickly to the temperature of the bath for the maximum change
occurring in the temperature of the sea water.

The effect of flow in the open cell was determined by passing
a thoroughly mixed solution through the cell from a large sup-

680

THURAS: RECORDING SEA-WATER SALINITY

ply. No change in conductivity was obtained up to a flow of as
high as 1 hter per minute.

The efficiency of washing out the cell was obtained by use of
two solutions, one having a salinity of 35 and the other a salinity
of 32. These solutions were passed through the cell simultane-
ously and the resistance of the cell was measured at definite in-
tervals. For a slow flow (100 cc. per minute) the cell washed
out to within 0.01 of the salinity of the second solution, after
400 cc. of this solution had been used. For a rapid flow this
degree of washing-out was attained with only 300 cc. of the solu-
tion. This is much better than was obtained in the preliminary
experiments on other cells; and is sufficiently rapid for the maxi-
mum change in salinity which occurs in the ocean.

X'\

/

»-
(

i

>t

?i

c

i

<b

nj

Fig. 1. Bridge resistances

A few experiments to find the effect of air bubbles showed that
bubbles on the back of the electrodes caused no change in con-
ductivity and bubbles up to 3 mm. in diameter just in front of
the electrodes gave no change in conductivity. A bubble 2 mm.
in diameter in one of the tubes gave a change in conductivity
corresponding to 0.01 in salinity. By tilting the cells 15 degrees
any bubbles which might form in the cells will come to the sur-
face above the electrodes.

Fig. 2. Resistance thermometer, electrolytic cells and bath. Sea water enters
through the pipe (A) and passes by the resistance thermometer which is contained
in the large pipe(B). The sea water overflows from this pipe and passes through
the bath (C) and open cell (D) and then empties into the bilge of the vessel.

681

682 THURAS: RECORDING SEA-WATER SALINITY

ELECTRICAL CONDUCTIVITY OF SEA WATER

The electrical conductivity of sea water was measured in the
sealed cell placed in a stirred bath. The temperature was main-
tained at 25°C. to within 0.01° C. The resistance capacity of the
sealed cell was measured with 1/10 N solutions of potassium
and sodium chloride.^

The electrical measurements were made by substituting an
accurate resistance box in place of the cell in one arm of a Wheat-
stone bridge circuit. The 60 cycle power circuit was used and
no auxiliary capacity or inductance was used to compensate for
the capacity of the cell. The resistance capacity was determined
with one sodium chloride solution and two potassium chloride
solutions. One of the potassium chloride solutions was specially
prepared by the chemical division of the Bureau of Standards
and the resistance capacity given by this solution has been
used to measure the conductivity of sea water. Following are
the capacities obtained with the three solutions at 18°C. using
a frequency of 60 cycles:

I/ION, KCl prepared by the Bureau of Standards 5. 182

1/lON, KCl prepared from Kahlbaum's pure salt 5. 181

1/lON, pure NaCl 5. 178

Unfortunately the specific conductivity of standard solutions,
at a frequency of 60 cycles, has not been measured. The re-
sistance capacities given above are therefore only apparent and
can be used to measure the specific conductivity of sea water
provided the change in resistance with frequency is the same for
a 1/10 normal solution of KCl as it is for sea water which has a
strength of about 1/5 normal. The resistance capacities ob-
tained with 1/10 normal KCl and 1/10 normal NaCl solutions
indicate that the change in resistance with frequency is the same

2 The specific conductivity of these solutions at 18°C. measured by F. Kohl-
rausch and M. E. Mai thy in 1900 are 0.011203 and 0.009202 reciprocal ohms respec-
tively. As prepared by Kohlrausch the 1/10 N solution of KCl used in these
measurements contained 7.445 grams of KCl to one liter of solution at 18°C. and
the 1/10 N solution of NaCl contained 5.848 grams of NaCl to one liter of solution
at 18°C. All weighings were made in air and low conductivity distilled water
was used.

THURAS: RECORDING SEA-WATER SALINITY

683

for different solutions of the same concentration. Previous tests
on the two cells in a bridge circuit also indicate that for small dif-
ferences in concentration (salinity of 35 to salinity of 32) there
was no appreciable change in resistance with frequency. The
sea-water conductivity measurements have therefore been made
with the assumption that the resistance change with frequency
is the same for 1 /lO N, KCl as it is for sea water.

Fig. 3. Electrolytic cells. Mounted in the hard rubber cover of the bath.

The sea water for conductivity measurements was collected
by the U. S. S. Androscoggin on April 9, 1918, in Latitude 30°-4'N
and Longitude Q7°-10'W. This water had a high salinity and
the more dilute samples were prepared from it by adding dis-
tilled water. The one sample of a higher salinity was prepared
by carefullj^ distilling sea water. The distillate was measured for
conductivity and the low conductivity obtained showed that
no chemicals in the sea water were given off.

684 THURAS: RECORDING SEA-WATER SALINITY

RECORDER

To modify the Leeds and Northrup recorder for using alter-
nating current at low frequency the only change necessary is
the substitution of an electro-magnet for the permanent magnet
in the galvanometer. Experiments were performed using a
laminated magnet of 2.5 sq. cm. cross section and containing
2000 turns of wire. All other parts of the galvanometer were
unchanged except that the damping coil on the moving system
was removed. The moving coil has 147 turns, a resistance of 45
ohms and an area of 3.65 sq. cm. The average flux density
passing through the moving coil was found for different currents
in the stationary coil. These are given in table 1.

With this galvanometer and the resistances shown in figure 1,
critical damping of the galvanometer was obtained with 0.65
amperes in the fixed coil (ii) and 0.15 amperes in the bridge circuit
(12). . With a change of 0.03 of an ohm (corresponding to 0.01 in
salinity), in the resistance marked A, the end of the aluminum
pointer of the galvanometer which is 4 cm. long, moved 1.3 mm.
This sensitivity is sufficient to permit recording to 0.01 in sa-
linity on shipboard. Reducing the current in the fixed coil to
0.4 amperes only slightly underdamped the galvanometer and
gave almost the same sensitivity.

The resistances in the two arms of the bridge are a 100 ohm
coil and a resistance determined by the ratio of the electrical re-
sistance capacities of the two cells. This ratio was determined
by repeated measurements of the resistances of the two cells
containing the same solution at the same temperature. The
ratio of sealed cell to open cell gives 104.18 ohms as the resist-
ance of the coil in the second arm of the bridge. The slide wire
of the recorder will have a resistance depending on the accuracy
required in the measurements of salinity. If the salinity is to
be recorded to 0.01 then resistances can be inserted, automatically,
in one of the ratio arms so that the slide wire can be used twice
throughout the range of salinities measured.

THUEAS: RECORDING SEA-WATER SALINITY

685

The densities of the six samples of sea water were measured
at 25°C. by the Bureau of Standards. Table 2 gives the
densities referred to distilled water at 4°C. and conductivities
in reciprocal ohms. The salinities (grams of total salt per 1000
grams of sea water) given are calculated from the densities at
25°C. by means of Martin Knudsen's Hydrographical Tables.

TABLE 1
Flax Density in Coil

CDRRENT, AMPERES

H lines/cm^

0.23

670

0.40

1210

1.00

2400

1.28

2760

1.50

2990

Samples 2 and 3 are from the same sea water which was col-
lected in two bottles. The accuracy of the conductivity meas-
urements is limited by the accuracy of determining the densities,
which is 2 in the fifth decimal place.

TABLE 2
Specific Conductivities at 25° C.

S.4:VIPLE

SALINITY

DENSITY AT 25° C.

SPECIFIC CONDUCTIVITY
AT 25° C.

1

38.46

1.02598

0.05767

2

36.58

1.02456

0.05514

3

36.57

1.02455

0.05515

4

34.52

1.02300

0.05240

5

32.47

1.02146

0.04966

6

30.62

1.02006

0.04711

7

29.15

1.01896

0.04518

The mean temperature coefficient of sea water per degree C.
between 18°C. and 25'^C. expressed in terms of conductivity at
18°C. is 0.02237 for a salinity of 29, and 0.02212 for a salinity of
37.

686 THURAS: RECORDING SEA-WATER SALINITY

CONCLUDING REMARKS

It is quite probable that this recording salinometer and the
recording thermometer mentioned in the first paper can also be
used, with some modifications, to measure the physical properties
of sea water below the surface, at least to moderate depths. This
method of observation at various oceanographic stations would
seem to be far more advantageous than the present instruments
used for this work. These advantages are, first, many more ob-
servations could be made in the same length of time; secondly,
the observations would be immediately available for correlation
and study; thirdly, a corroboration of any doubtful data could
easily and quickly be made.

Recently some other important recording instruments have
been designed and built for oceanographic research. A current
meter, designed by Hans Pettersson,^ has been successfully used
to obtain the direction and velocity of the currents in the North
Sea and along the coasts of Norway and Sweden. This meter
can be suspended at various depths below the surface by means
of a special anchor and buoy and will automatically register
both direction and velocity for a period of two weeks.

R. A. Daly* and H. C. Clark have also designed and con-
structed a deep sea thermograph which will give a high degree
of accuracy. This instrument is also automatic and will give a
record of the temperature at any depth for a period of one week.

Systematic observations with a number of these automatic
thermographs and current meters supplemented with a continu-
ous record of surface salinity and temperature, and also salkii-
ties and temperatures below the surface at various stations,
greatly increase our knowledge of ocean circulation. Such ob-
servations made simultaneously and at definite intervals through-
out the cross-section of an ocean current, as for instance the Gulf
Stream, would yield results of great scientific value.

5 Quart. Journ. Met. Soc. London 1915. Monthly Weather Review, May,
1917.

* Dr. Daly recently informed me that a description of this thermograph will
soon appear in an issue of the Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology,
Harvard University.

THURAS: RECORDING SEA-WATER SALINITY 687

SUMMARY

A new method of obtaining a continuous record of the surface
saHnity of the ocean water by the measurements of the electri-
cal conductivity is described. The various sources of error have
been investigated and were mostly found to be negligible. A
small correction must be applied for the lack of temperature
compensation if a high degree of accuracy is required in the
salinity measurements.

The instnunent will respond rapidly to the maximum rate of
change of salinity or temperature which may occur in the ocean
water in moving, at ordinary speeds, across the boundary of cur-
rents of the greatest difference in salinity. The accuracy of the
method is hmited by the accuracy with which the standard sea
water in the sealed cell is known.

The conductivity of sea water is given throughout the range
of concentration found in the open ocean.

The paper concludes with suggested applications of the salinity
recorder in conjunction with other recent recorders for making
physical oceanographic measurements.

ABSTRACTS

Authors of scientific papers are requested to see that abstracts, preferably
prepared and signed by themselves, are forwarded promptly to the editors.
The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those appearing
in this issue.

CHEMISTRY. — Chemistry and histology of the glands of the cotton plant,
with notes on the occurrence of similar glands in related plants. E. E.
Stanford and Arno Viehoever. Joiirn. Agr. Res. 13: 419^36,
pi. 42-50. May 20, 1918.

The compounds previously isolated were suspected to occur in glands
which are found plentifully in various parts of the cotton plant.
The origin, distribution, structure, and chemistry of these glands were
therefore studied, and are discussed in detail. They are of lysigenous
formation and more or less internally located in the primary and sec-
ondary cortices, foliage, flower, fruit, and seed of Gossypium hirsutum
and Gossypium barbadense. In the parts of the plant exposed to light
these glands contain quercetin, probably wholly or partly in the form of
its glucosides, quercimeritrin and isoquercetin. Under these conditions
the gland is surrounded by an anthocyan-bearing envelope of flattened
cells. The chief content of glands not exposed to light is gossypol; no
anthocyan is found in the flattened cells surrounding such glands.
Gossypol is found in the glands of the developing corolla; on their ex-
posure to light it is replaced by quercimeritrin. In the developing
seedling, the gossypol of the seed is changed without the formation of
quercimeritrin.

Internal glands of this type appear to be universally present within
the genus Gossypium, and occur also in some members of the related gen-
era, Thespesia, Cienfuegosia, Erioxylon, and Ingenhouzia {Thurberia).
The only representative of the latter species, 7. triloba, commonly
known as ''Arizona wild cotton," possesses very conspicuous glands
which are arranged like those of Gossypium.

Gossijpium hirsutum also possesses four sets of nectar glands which
are of an entirely different type, both morphologically and physio-
logically. These glands are briefly described. E. E. S.

688

abstracts: chemistry . 689

CHEMISTRY. — Chemistry of the cotton plant, with special reference to
Upland cotton. Arno Viehoever, Lewis H. Chernoff, and
Carl O. Johns. Journ. Agr. Res. 13:345-352. May 13, 1918.

This paper represents the first part of a chemical and biological
investigation of the cotton plant (species of Gassy pium), undertaken
with the purpose of isolating and determining the nature and location
within the plant of the substance or substances which prove so attractive
to the boll weevil. The isolation of an ethereal oil from different parts
of the plant is described. Upon investigation the Bureau of Ento-
mology found this oil to be decidedly attractive to boll weevils. This
volatile oil showed characteristics different from those of an ethereal
oil obtained from the rootbark of Gossypium herbaceum. It distills
mainly between 200° and 300°C., the lower fractions having a yellow
to greenish yellow, the higher fractions a light green to xlark blue color.
The plants contained an average of 0.0015 per cent of the ethereal oil,
the squaring plants apparently yielding the largest amounts.

The isolation from Upland cotton of the glucosides quercimeritrin
and its isomer isoquercitrin, formerly found in other types of cotton,
is also discussed. In the leaves and flowers, with petals removed,
quercimeritrin was found, while from the petals both quercimeritrin
and isoquercitrin were obtained. The glucoside gossypitrin and its
product of hydrolysis gossypetin, both found in other types of cotton,
could not be isolated from Upland cotton. The chemical results throw
an interesting light on the relationship of different species of cotton..

A. V. and C. 0. J..

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

The Mission of French Scholars to the United States visited Wash-
ington on November 18, 1918. The visiting members were: Professors
Emanuel de Martonne, Fernand Baldensperger, and Charles
Cazamian, of the University of Paris; Dr. Etienne Burnet^ of the
Pasteur Institute; Dr. Theodore Reinach; Mr. Charles Koechlin;
and Mr. Seymour de Ricci.

A new Hygienic Laboratory of the PubHc Health Service will be
built on the grounds occupied by the present Laboratory at Twenty-
fifth and E Streets, The new laboratory will cost approximately
$250,000.

Mr. Robert Somers Brookings, of St. Louis, chairman of the price
fixing committee of the War Industries Board, has been elected by the
Senate to succeed the late Charles W. Fairbanks as a regent of the
Smithsonian Institution.

Major Samuel Avery of the Chemical Warfare Service has been
permitted by the War Department to resign his commission in order to
resume his duties as chancelor of the University of Nebraska.

Mr. H. S. Bailey has resigned from the Bureau of Chemistry, U. S.
Department of Agriculture, and is with E. I. du Pont de Nemours &
Co., of Wilmington, Delaware.

Dr. William N. Berg, of the Bureau of Animal Industry, has been
commissioned a captain in the Sanitary Corps, and has been detailed
to the Yale Army Laboratory School at New Haven, Connecticut.

Brig. Gen. William H. Bixby, U. S. A., Retired, formerly chief of
engineers, has been relieved from emergency duty at St. Louis, and
has been transferred to Chicago.

Mr. H. E. Howe, formerly manager of the commercial department
of Arthur D. Little, Inc., of Cambridge, Massachusetts, has been ap-
pointed consulting chemist to the Nitrate Division, Ordnance Depart-
ment of the Army.

Mr. Edwin Henry Ingersoll, chemist in the Bureau of Animal
Industry, U. S. Department of Agriculture, died of influenza on No-
vember 5, 1918. Mr. Ingersoll was born in the District of Columbia

690

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS G91

in June, 1887. He was a graduate of George Washington University
and had been in the government service for thirteen years, acting also
as instructor at the University during a part of that time. He was a
member of the Chemical Society.

Mr. Frederick Knab, of the Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Depart-
ment of Agriculture, died on November 2, 1918, in his fifty-fourth
year. Mr. Knab was. born at Wiirzburg, Germany, September 22,
1865. He was engaged in entomological work in Massachusetts and
Illinois for a number of years, and then entered the service of the Bu-
reau of Entomology in 1906. His scientific studies and publications
were concerned chiefly with the coleoptera and diptera. He was a
member of the Biological and Entomological Societies of Washington.
In his will, dated July 6, 1918, he bequeathed funds to the Entomologi-
cal Society for its publication fund, and his library and collections to the
National Museum.

Lt. Col. Gilbert N. Lewis has returned from France and has been
in Washington for several weeks on business connected with the Chem-
ical Warfare Service.

Dr. Artemas Martin, of the U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, died
on November 7, 1918, in his eighty-fourth year. Dr. Martin was
born in Steuben County, New York, August 3, 1835. He had been
connected with the Coast Survey since 1885. For many years he had
been a frequent contributor to mathematical journals, and he also
edited and published the Mathematical Visitor and the Matheviatical
Magazine. His writings dealt chiefly with properties of triangles,
logarithms, properties of numbers, diophantine analysis, probability,
and elliptic integrals. He was a member of the Philosophical Society
of Washington and of many American and foreign mathematical
societies.

Colonel John Millis, of the Corps of Engineers, U. S. Army, has
been transferred from the Engineer Office at Savannah, Georgia, to the
Headquarters of the Central Department, at Chicago, Illinois.

Dr. Charles Reitell, formerly Professor of Economics and Cost
Accounting at the WTiarton School of Finance and Commerce, Uni-
versit}^ of Pennsylvania, has recenty been appointed Economist at the
Bureau of Standards.

Dr. Charles Richard Van Hise, President of the University of
Wisconsin, and a nonresident member of the Academy, died on No-
vember 19, 1918. President Van Hise was born at Fulton, Wisconsin,
May 29, 1857. His entire academic career was spent at the University
of Wisconsin, where he became successively professor of metallurgy,
professor of mineralogy and petrology, professor of geology, and finally

692 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

president of the University (in 1903). He was associated also with the
Wisconsin Geological Survey and the U. S. Geological Survey. His
publications, which include several monographs of the U. S. Geological
Survey, were concerned chiefly with metamorphism, ore deposits,
structural and Pre-Cambrian geology, and, latterly, conservation and
economics. He was a member of the Geological Society of Washing-
ton, the National Academy of Sciences, and many American and
European scientific societies.

Dr. Edward Haslam Walters, formerly a biochemist in the Bureau
of Plant Industry, U. S. Department of Agriculture, died in France of
bronchial pneumonia on September 25, 1918. Dr. Walters was born
December 12, 1891, graduated from the Utah Agricultural College and
the University of California, and entered the Bureau of Chemistry in
1910. He was transferred to the Office of Soil Fertility Investigations,
now a part of the Bureau of Plant Industry, in 1913. In December
1917 he was commissioned a first lieutenant in the Sanitary Corps,
N. A., and was assigned to the Central Medical Department Labora-
tory of the American Expeditionary Forces in France. He was the
author of several papers on the isolation of certain organic compounds
in soils. He was a member of the Chemical Society.

INDEX TO VOLUME VIII

An * denotes an abstract of a published paper. A t denotes an abstract of a paper presented before
the Academy or an affiliated Society. A § Indicates an Item published under the head Scientific
Notes and News.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED SOCIETIES

Anthropological Society of Washing-
ton. Proceedings: 21, 69, 208,
256, 331.

Biological Society of Washington.
Proceedings: 25, 40, 73, 138, 177,
211, 330, 413, 542.

Botanical Society of Washington.
Proceedings: 42, 140, 214, 457.

Entomological Society of Washington.
Proceedings: 179, 217, 459, 610.

Geological Society of Washington.
Proceedings: 98, 410.

Philosophical Society of Washington.
Proceedings: 73, 102, 180, 251, 504.

Society of American Foresters. Pro-
ceedings: 218.

Washington Academy of Sciences.
Proceedings and Notes: 20, 67,
98, 135, 177, 208, 251, 330, 457,
504, 567, 634.

AUTHOR INDEX

Adams, L. H. fMeasurement of the
compressibilities of solids under
hydrostatic pressure up to 12,000
megabars. 102.

fPolymorphism of the oxides of

lead. 75.

Adams, E. Q. Note on the funda-
mental polyhedron of the diainond
lattice. 240.

Adams, O. B- *Lambert projection
tables for the United States. 405.

fLambert's conformal conic

projection. 104.

AiNSLiE, C. N. fNotes on the eco-
nomic importance of Samia
cecropia. 610.

Alden, W. C. *The Quaternary
geology of southeastern Wisconsin,
with a chapter on the other rock
formations. 537.

Allen, Eleanor C. tWax models of
fleshy fungi. 139.

Allen, W. F. Sensory fibers in the
mesencephalic root of man and
the guinea pig. 15.

Ami, H. M. fNotes on the geology of
Asia Minor. 99.

Appleman, C. O. *Respiration and
catalase activity in sweet corn.
632.

Ashley, G. H. *Cannel coal in the
United States. 502.

AuLD, S. J. M. Methods of gas war-
fare. 45^ t69.

AuLT, J. p. fCruises III and IV of
the yacht "Carnegie" in the
Arctic and Sub-Antarctic regions,
1914 to 1917. 370.

Austin, L. W. New method of using
contact detectors in radio meas-
urements. 569.

Resonance measurements in

radiotelegraphy with the oscillat-
ting audion. 498.

693

2^/^^r

694

INDEX

Babcock, W. H. fSome anthropo-
logical and national factors in the
present war. 333.

Bailey, H. S. *The peanut a great
American food. 632.

Bailey, Veknon. fHow the pine
squirrels help to feed the bears of
the Yellowstone Park. 28.

Baird, G. W. fAn unusual human
specimen. 28.

Baker, O. E. *Geography of the
world's agriculture. 449.

Ball, C. R. fThe grain sorghums:
a botanical grouping of varieties
cultivated in the United States.
295.

Barrett, O. W. fA promising new
source of sugar. 212.

Bartsch, Paul. *Additions to the
Haitian avifauna. 133.

Classification of the Philippine

operculate land shells of the
family Helicinidae, with a synop-
sis of the species and subspecies
of the genus Geophorus. 643.

A key to the subspecies of

, Leptopoma nitidum Sowerby of the

Philippine Islands. 532.

A key to the Philippine sub-
species of Ohha marginata with
notes on their distribution. 60.

Land moUusks of the genus

Obba from the islands of Bohol
and Pangalao, P. I. 16.

The land shells of the genus

Amphidromus from the islands of
the Palawan Passage. 361.

Bassler, R. S. fPaleozoic rocks and
fossils on the Piedmont of Mary-
land. 411.

Bastin, E. S. fGenesis of the ores at
Tonopah, Nevada. 101.

Bates, P. H. *The properties of
Portland cement having a high
magnesia content. 250.

Bauer, L. A. fCorresponding

changes in the earth's magnetic
state and in solar activity, 1888-
1916. 506.

Beal, C. H. *Geologic structure in
the Gushing oil and gas field,
Oklahoma, and its relation to the
oil, gas, and water. 172.

Becker, G. F. §The one hundredth
anniversary of the founding of the
American Journal of Science.
263.

Birdseye, C. fThe fur industry of
Labrador. 28.

Blackwelder, Eliot. New geolog-
ical formations in western Wyom-
ing. 417.

BowEN, C. F. *Phosphatic oil shales
near Dell and Dillon, Beaverhead
County, Montana. 248.

BowEN, N. L. *Adirondack intru-
sives. 206.

Crystals of barium disilicate in

optical glass. 265.

*The problem of the anortho-

sites. 205.

The significance of glass-making

processes to the petrologist. 88.

Bowie, William. fPrimary triangu-
lation and precise leveling as
done by the United States Coast
and Geodetic Survey. 105.

Bowles, Oliver. *The structural
and ornamental stones of Minne-
sota. 453.

Bownocker, J. A. *The coal fields
of the United States. The coal
fields of Ohio. 451.

Bragg, J. G. *Tests of large bridge
columns. 609.

Brooks, Charles. *Irrigatioii ex-
periments on apple-spot diseases.
563.

Brown, Nellie A. *Some bacterial
diseases of lettuce. 564.

Bryan, Kirk. fClassification of
springs. 412.

Campbell. M. R. *The coal fields of
the Ujiited States. General intro-
duction. 502. .

fSubdivisions of the Allegheny

Plateaus. 410.

INDEX

695

Canfield, G. H. *Mining develop-
ments and water-power investi-
gations in southeastern Alaska.
171.

Carroll, Mitchell. jThe story of
Greece. 22.

Chapin, Theodore. *Mining develop-
ments and water-power investi-
gations in southeastern Alaska.
171.

Chase, Agnes. *Axillary cleistogenes
in some American grasses. 561.

Chesxxjt, V. K. fPapain from
Carica papaya grown in Florida.
458.

Church, Margaret B. *Aspergillus
fumigatus, A. nidulans, A. terreus
n. sp. and their allies. 576.

Churchill, E. P., Jr. fThe life
history of the blue crab. 297.

Clapp, E. H. fForest products and
the war. 219.

Clark, A. H. *The unstalked cri-
noids of the Siboga expedition.
503.

Clark, W. O. *Ground water for
irrigation in the Morgan Hill
area, California. 128.

Clarke, F. W. Note on the inorganic
constituents of two small crus-
taceans. 185.

Clawson, a. B. *Eupatorium urti-
caefolium as a poisonous plant.
631.

Coblentz, W. W. *The photo-elec-
tric cell and other selective radiom-
eters. 536.

*The photoelectric sensitivity

of bismuthinite and various other
substances. 574.

— *Spectro-radiometric investiga-
tion of the transmission of various
substances. 574.

Collier, A. J. *The Bowdoin dome>
Montana, a possible reservoir of
oil or gas. 36.

Collier, A. J. *The Flaxville gravel
and its relation to other terrace
gravels of the northern Great
Plains. 249.

tA formation hitherto unac-
counted for in North Dakota.
412.

Collins, G. N. fMaize: Its origin
and relationships. 42.

CoMPTON, A. H. Size and shape of
the electron. 1.

Cook, F. C. *Boron: its effect on
crops and its distribution in plants
and soil in different parts of the
United States. 661.

Cook, O. F. The maho, or mahagua,
as a trans-Pacific plant. 153.

Cook, R. C. The maho, or mahagua,
as a trans-Pacific plant. 153.

Cooke, C. W. Correlation of the
deposits of Jackson and Vicks-
burg ages in Mississippi and
Alabama. 186.

— — *Deposits of Claiborne and
Jackson age in Georgia. 540.

— ^ *Orbitoid foraminifera of the
genus Orthophragmina from
Georgia and Florida. 96.

Crawley, Howard. *The zoologi-
cal position of the Sarcosporidia.
39.

Crooker, S. J. fExperiments on
direct-current corona. 73.

Cushman, J. A. *Orbitoid foramini-
fera of the genus Orthophrag-
mina from Georgia and Florida.
96.

Cushman, R. A. fA convenient
method of handling large numbers
of individuals in life-history
studies. 376.

fCocoon spinning habit of two

species of braconids. 610.

Dall, W. H. The origin and early
days of the Philosophical Society
of Washington. 29.

696

INDEX

Darton, N. H. *The structure of

parts of the central Great Plains.

503.
Davidson, J. *The effect of sodium

nitrate applied at different stages

of growth on yield, composition,

and quality of wheat. 633.
Dayton, W. A. fCoUecting data on

National Forest range plants.

457.
Dellinger, J. H. fThe principles of

electrical measurements at radio

frequencies. 293.
DoRSEY, N. E. fRadium luminous

materials. 74.
Doyle, C. B. fSome agricultural

and botanical features of Haiti.

139.

fBotanical aspects of Haitian

agriculture. 44.

DuFRENOY, Jean. The biological
significance of false witches-
brooms in erjcaceous plants. 527.

Dunn, Joseph. fScotland. 208.

Eakin, H. M. *The Cosna-Nowitna
region, Alaska. 502.

— — *Mining developments and

water-power investigations in
southeastern Alaska. 171.

Edwards, J. D. *Determination of
■ permeability of balloon fabrics.
566.

*Gas interferometer calibration.

248.

Eggleston, W. W. fNathaniel Jarvis
Wyeth and his influence on west-
ern botany, with a sketch of his
return trip from Oregon in 1833.
457.

fThomas Nuttall's trip to Ore-
gon in 1834, with notes on the
route. 375.

Ely, C. R. fRecent entomological
chemistry. 179.

Emerson, B. K. *Geology of Massa-
chusetts and Rhode Island. 204.

Emerson, W. B. *Spectro-radio-
metric investigation of the trans-
mission of various substances.
574.

English, W. A. *Geology and oil
prospects of the Salinas Valley-
Parkfield area, California. .539.

Enlows, Ella M. A. *A leafblight
of Kalmia latifolia. 563.

Evans, Alice C. *The bacterial flora
of Roquefort cheese. 631.

*A study of the streptococci

concerned in cheese ripening. 630.

Fath, a. E. *Structure of the north-
ern part of the Bristow quad-
rangle. Creek County, Oklahoma,
with reference to petroleum and
natural gas. 37.

Fenner, C. N. *The ternary system
H.O-KsSiOs-SiOa. 203.

Ferguson, J. B. *The iodometric
determination of sulfur dioxide
and the sulfites. 203.

Fewkes, J. W. A unique form of
prehistoric pottery. 598.

Finch, V. C. *Geography of the
world's agriculture. 449.

Fisher, D. F. *Irrigation experi-
ments on apple-spot diseases.
563.

Folkmar, Daniel, f Japan: people
and policies. 70.

FooTE, P. D. An optical ammeter.
77.

fCritical potentials for elec-
trons in metallic vapors. 73.

fElectronic frequency and

atomic number. 374.

flonization and resonance po-
tentials for electrons in vapors of
magnesium and thallium. 373.

— — Low voltage discharge in sodium
vapor. 513.

*Resonance and ionization po-
tentials for electrons in cadmium
vapor. 328.

Some peculiar thermoelectric

effects. 545.

INDEX

697

Foster, W. D. *Life history of
Ascaris lumbricoides and related
forms. 38.

*Oil of Chenopodium and chlo-
roform as anthelmintics. 38.

Frachtenberg, L. J. fPoland and
the Polish question. 208.

Gabrielson, I. N. *A criticism of
two recent lists of Iowa birds.
540.

*A list of the birds observed in

Clay and O'Brien counties, Iowa.
603.

• — ■ — *Some notes on Connecticut
birds. 541.

Gahan, a. B. fA synopsis of the
species belonging to the chalcidoid
genus Rileya Ashmead. 610.

Gardner, M. W. *Seed treatment
control and overwintering of cu-
cumber angular leaf spot. 660.

GiDLEY, J. W. tSegregation an im-
portant factor in evolution, with
its special bearing on the origin
and distribution of mammals.
331.

Synopsis of the supergeneric

groups of Rodents. 431.

Gilbert, W. W. *Seed treatment
control and overwintering of cu-
cumber angular leaf spot. 660.

Gillespie, L. J. *The action of
neutral salts on humus, and other
experiments of soil acidity. 577.

*The growth of the potato-scab

organism at various hydrogen-ion
concentrations, as related to the
comparative freedom of acid soils
from the potato scab. 562.

*Hydrogen-ion concentration

measurements of soils of two
types: Caribou loam and Wash-
burn loam. 578.

*The possibilities and limita-
tions of the Duclaux method for
the estimation of volatile acids.
577.

Giuffrida-Ruggeri, v. fThe origins
of the Italian people. 259.

Goldman, E. A. *The rice rats of
North America (Genus Oryzomys).
659.

GoLSAN, L. S. *Further notes on
Alabama birds. 541.

GoocH, S. D. Vivianite from the land
pebble phosphate deposits of
Florida. 82.

Gore, J. H. fBelgium and the Bel-
gians. 23.

Gorton, W. S. fX-ray protective
materials. 251.

Gregory, H. E. *Geolog3^ of the
Navajo country: A reconnais-
sance of parts of Arizona, New
Mexico, and Utah. 64.

Griffith, J. H. *Tests of large
bridge columns. 609.

Griffiths, David. fUlustrations of
the conspicuous groups of Opuntia.
216.

Hale, G. E. fAstronomy and war —
some examples of the close paral-
lelism between the methods and
work of the astronomer and those
of the military engineer. 291.

Hall, M. C. *A further note on the
life history of Gongylonema scuta-
turn. 19.

*Oil of Chenopodium and chlo-
roform as anthelmintics. 38.

Harder, E. C. *Geology and iron

ores of the Cuyuna district, IMin-

nesota. 18.
Harper, R. M. A phytogeographical

sketch of southern Maryland.

581.
Harrington, G. L. *Gold placers of

the Anvik-Andreafski region,

Alaska. 248.

fLate Tertiary and Quaternary

history of the lower Yukon River
region. 413.

Harrison, T. R. Some peculiar ther-
moelectric effects. 545.

698

INDEX

Harter, L. L. *A hitherto unre-
ported disease of okra. 565.

Haupt, Paul. fMesopotaraia and
Palestine. 331.

Hawes, a. F. fForestry and the
fuel problem. 218.

Hazard, D. L. fThe magnetic survey
of the United States. 369.

— — *Terrestrial magnetism, United
States magnetic tables and charts
for 1915. 575.

Headlam, John. Developments in
artillery during the war. t291,
301.

Heald, K. C. *Geologic structure
of the northwestern part of the
Pawhuska quadrangle, Oklahoma.
249.

Heinrick, Carl. fOn the lepidop-
terous genus Apostega and its
larval affinities. 180.

Heller, Edmxjnd. fThe Chinese
border land of Tibet and Burma.
298.

Herschel, W. H. *The determina-
tion of absolute viscosity by
short-tube viscosimeters. 250.

Hewett, D. F. *Anticlines in the
southern part of the Big Horn
Basin, Wyoming: A preliminary
report on the occurrence of oil.
204.

■ et al. *Possibilities for man-
ganese ore on certain undeveloped
tracts in Shenandoah Valley, Vir-
ginia. 450.

Hitchcock, A. S. fThe alpine flora
of the Adirondacks and the White
Mountains. 26.

fGeneric types. 375.

*Generic types .with special

reference to the grasses of the
United States. 562.

Holmes, W. H. fMan's place in the
Cosmos as shadowed forth by
modern science. 68.

Holt, E. G. *Further notes on
Albama birds. 541.

Hopkins, O. B. *The Corsicana oil
and gas field, Texas. 36.

*Tiife DeSoto-Red River oil and

gas field, Louisiana. 35.

*Oil and gas possibilities of the

Hatchetigbee anticline, Alabama.
173.

*The Palestine salt dome,

Anderson County, Texas: The
Brenham salt dome, Washington
and Austin counties, Texas. 173.

HosTETTER, J. C. *The ferrous iron
content and magnetic suscepti-
bility of some artificial and, natural
oxides of iron. 328.

A silica-glass mercury still. 11.

*Zonal growth in hematite, and

its bearing on the origin of certain
iron ores. 329.

Howard, L. O. fSome points for
consideration in a discussion of
the problem of accidental intro-
duction. 41.

Hrdli6ka, Ale§. fBohemia and the
Bohemians. 21.

tWar and race. 71.

Humphreys, W. J. fBarometric

ripples. 182.

fFog and cloud. 504.

Hurst, L. A. *Hydrogen-ion concen-
tration measurements of soils of
two types: Caribou loam and
Washburn loam. 578.

Imes, Marion. *The sheep tick and
its eradication by dipping. 66.

Johnson, Amandus. jThe Scandi-
navian peoples. 69.

Johnson, B. L. fThe Valdez delta.
410.

tChalmersite, Cure2S3, a new

ore of copper. 99.

Johnston, A. W. *Geology and iron
ores of the Cuyuna district, Min-
nesota. 18.

Kadel, B. C. tA simplified form of
Robinson's anemometer. 255.

INDEX

699

Katz, F. J. fPleistocene shore lines
in Maine and New Hampshire.
410.

Kearney, T. H. Phmt life on saline
soils. 109, t214.

Keith, Arthur. *Tin resources of
the Kings Mountain district,
North Carolina and South Carolina,
129.

Kellogg, V. L. fPossibilities of
entomology in the war. 217.

Kendall, W. C. fSome unrecognized
anatomical facts and their rela-
tions to fish-cultural practices. 213.

KiESS, C. C. *Wave lengths in the
red and infra-red spectra of iron,
cobalt, and nickel arcs. 575.

Knopf, Adolph. *Strontianite de-
posits near Barstow, California.
94.

Knowlton, F. H. *Geology and
paleontology of the Raton Mesa
and other regions in Colorado
and New Mexico. 451.

LaForge, Lawrence. fThe occur-
rence of "Springs" in place names
in the United States. 101. ,

LeClerc, J. A. *The chemical anal-
ysis of wheat-flour substitutes and
of the breads made therefrom.
662.

fThe composition of the soy-
bean and its use in breadmaking.
142.

*The efTect of sodium nitrate

applied at difTerent stages of
growth on yield, composition, and
quality of wheat. 633.

*The peanut a great American

food. 632.

. *Wheat flour substitutes. 632.

et al. *The milling and baking

tests of einkorn, emmer, spelt,

and polish wheat. 662.
Lee, C. F. Aviation and the war.

225, t291.

Lee, W. T. *Geology and paleon-
tology of the Raton Mesa and
other regions in Colorado and New
Mexico. 451.

fCeology and scenery of the

Rocky Mountain National Park.
99.

Lincoln, F. C. *A review of the
genus Pedioecetes in Colorado.
133.

Long, M. B. *Spectro-radiometric
investigation of the transmission
of various substances. 574.

Loughlin, G. F. fThe relation of
copper and zinc in the carbonate
ore at Ophir, Utah. 98.

*Zinc carbonate and related

copper carbonate ores at Ophir,
Utah. 129.

LuPTON, C. T. *Anticlines' in the
southern part of the Big Horn
Basin, Wyoming: A preliminary
report on the occurrence of oil.
204.

Lyman, G. R. fPlant Disease Survey
work on the Physoderma disease
of maize. 43.

Lyon, Martha B. fFauna of the
human eye. 414.

Lyon, M. W., Jr. fThe relative resist-
ance of the red blood corpuscles
of the sheep, ox, and hog. 42.

Mann, W. M. fCoUecting in Fiji.
610, 664.

Marlatt, C. L. fNotes on the work
of the Federal Horticultural Board.
180.

fThe pink boUworm of cotton.

40.

Marsh, C. D. fThe cause of milk
sickness or trembles. 330.

*Eupatoruwi urticae folium as

a poisonous plant. 631.

Matson, G. C. *The Corsicana oil
and gas field, Texas. 36.

*The DeSoto-Red River oil and

gas field, Louisiana. 35.

700

INDEX

Matson, G. C. *Louisiana clays,
including results of tests made in
the laboratory of the Bureau of
Standards at Pittsburgh. 205.

Matthes, F. E. tThe preglacial his-
tory of Yosemite Valley. 98.

Matjchly, S. J. fA study of pressure
and temperature effects in earth-
current measurements. 371.

Maxon, W. R. a new Anemia from
Mexico. 199.

A new Polystichum from Cali-
fornia. 620.

McAtee, W. L. *The shedding of the
stomach lining by birds, partic-
ularly as exemplified by the
Anatidae. 606.

§7V sketch of the natural his-
tory of the District of Columbia.
415. .

*Some local names of birds.

541.

*Winter birds about Washing-
ton, D. C, 1916-1917. 407.

McBride, R. S. *Gas mantle light-
ing conditions in ten large cities
in the United States. 456.

McIndoo, N. E. tThe senses of in-
sects. 138.

McKeehan, L. W. fDiffusion of,
and recoil from, actinium emana-
tion. 74.

Meggers, W. F. jThe refractive
index and optical dispersion of air.
181.

*Wave lengths in the red and

infra-red spectra of iron, cobalt,
and nickel arcs. 575.

Meinzer, O. E. *Geology and water
resources of Big Smoky, Clayton,
and Alkali Spring valleys, Nevada.
95.

• — — tThe glacial history of Colum-
bia River in the Big Bend region.
411.

*Ground water for irrigation in

Lodgepole Valley, Wyoming and
Nebraska. 65.

Mendenhall, C. E. tDetermination
of the constant C2 of Planck's
law. 292.

Merica, p. D. tThermal expansion
of alpha and of beta brass. 293.

*Thermal expansion of alpha

and of beta brass between 0-600°C.
573.

Merriam, J. C. tCave-hunting in
California. 542.

Merrill, G. P. tThe rarer constit-
uents of meteorites. 98.

Merrill, P. W. *The application of
dicyanin to stellar spectroscopy.
405.

Mertie, J. B., .Jr. *The gold placers
of the Tolovana district, Alaska.
454.

Merwin, H. E. tComplementary
colors and the properties of pig-
ments. 254.

tPolymorphism of the oxides of

lead. 75.

Metcalf, M. M. Opalina and the
origin of the ciliate Infusoria.
427.

tOpalina and the origin of the

Ciliata. 414.

Filler, G. S., Jr. Synopsis of the
supergeneric groups of Rodents.
431.

Miser, H. D. *Gravel deposits of
the Caddo Gap and De Queen
quadrangles, Arkansas. 538.

Mohler, F. L. tlonization and reso-
nance potentials for electrons in
vapors of magnesium and thallium.
373.

Mohler, F. H. Low voltage dis-
charge in sodiuin vapor. 513.

MoREY, G. W. tQuantitative appli-
cations of the phase rule. 75.

*The ternary system H20-K2Si03-

SiOa. 203.

Morrison, Harold. tNotes on the
Virgin Islands. 299.

Morse, W. J. tMorphoIogical char-
acters and food value of soy-bean
varieties. 141.

INDEX

701

NanseN; Fridtjof. fChanges in
oceanic and atmospheric temper-
atures and their relation to
changes in the sun's activity.
135.

Nelson, J. A. fA microcephalic

drone bee. 376.
Notes, A. A. , The nitrogen problem

in relation to the war. 381, t663.
Oberholser, H. C. *The birds of

the Anamba Islands. 131.

*Autumn water-bird records at

Washington, D. C. [1916] 602.

*Second annual list of pro-
posed changes in the A. O. U.
check-list of North American
birds. 96; third annual list. 608.

*The birds of Bawean Island,

Java Sea. 132.

*Birds collected by Dr. \V. L.

Abbott on various islands in the
Java Sea. 605.

[Birds of the] Washington

region. 134, 174, 407.

*A cooperative bird census at

Washington, D. C. 97.

*Description of a new sub-
species of Perisoreus obscurus.
174.

Diagnosis of a new genus of

Anatidae from South America.
571.

- Diagnosis of a new genus of
Timaliidae. 394.

- *The Great Plains waterfowl
breeding grounds and their pro-
tection. 605.

- *New light on the status of
Empidonax trailii (Audobon).
608.

A remarkable martin roost in
the city of Washington. 175.

The migration of North Amer-
ican birds, I. Five swallows.
207.

- *Mutanda ornithologica, I.
134; II, 408; III, 604.

Oberholser, H. C. *A new subspecies
of Geolhlypis beldingi. 175.

*Notes on North A -nerican

birds, II. 130; III, 176; IV, 607.

*Notes on the subspecies of

Numenius americanus Bechstein.
604.

*A review of the subspecies of

the Leach petrel, Oceanodroma
leucorhoa (Vieillot). 174.

*A second bird survey at Wash-
ington, D. C. 603.

Osborne, N. S. *Latent heat of
vaporization of ammonia. 202.

*The latent heat of pressure

variation of liquid ammonia. 201.

fLatent and specific heats of

ammonia. 103.

*Specific heat of liquid am-
monia. 201.

Paige, Sidney. fCoal and iron in the
terms of peace. 101.

Fluorine in sericitization. 234.

Palmer, T. S. *Costa's humming-
bird— its type locality, early his-
tory, and name. 602.

• • tA key to ornithological liter-

.ature. 26.
Pardee, J. T. *The Dunkleberg

mining district, Granite County,

Montana. 249.

*Manganese at Butte, Montana.

450.

— — *Ore deposits of the north-
western part of the Garnet Range,
Montana. 290.

Pearl, Raymond. Biology and war.
341, t663.

Peters, C. G. fThe refractive index
and optical dispersion of air. 181.

Peters, J. L. *The Porto Rican
grasshopper sparrow. 133.

Peters, O. S. *Ground connections
for electrical systems. 576.

Peters, W. J. fNotes on dip-of-
horizon measurements made on
the "Galilee" and "Carnegie."
505.

702

INDEX

Pierce, W. D. fMedical entomology,

a vital factor in the prosecution

of the war. 376.
Piper, C. V. fThe botany and eco-
nomics of the tribe Phaseoleae.

140.
PoPENOE, C. H. tEradication and

control of the sweet potato weevil.

459.
Preble, E. A. *Winter birds about

Washington, D. C, 1916-1917.

407.
Priest, I. G. fA precision method

for producing artificial daylight.

254.

*The work of the- National

Bureau of Standards on the estab-
lishment of color standards and
methods of color nomenclature.
247.

Purdue, A. H. *Gravel deposits of
the Caddo Gap and De Queen
quadrangles, Arkansas. 538.

QuAiNTANCE, A. L. fRecently intro-
duced fruit insects. 40.

RAM.SEY, G. B. *Influence of tem-
perature and precipitation on the
blackleg of the potato. 565.

Rand, F. V. fThe Shaw aquatic
gardens. 296.

Ransom, B. H. *Life history of
Ascaris lumbricoides and related
forms. 38.

*A further note on the life his-
tory of Gongylonema scutatum..
19.

*The occurrence in the United

States of certain nematodes of
ruminants transmissible to man.
39.

*Recent progress in the devel-
opment of methods for the control
and treatment of parasites of
live stock. 66.

Rawdon, H. S. *Typical cases of
the deterioration of Muntz metal
(60-40 brass) by selective cor-
rosion. 406.

Reed, H. R. *Effect of temperature
and other meteorological factors
on the growth of sorghums. 661.

Reeside, J. B., Jr. *The Helderberg
limestone of central Pennsylvania.
172.

Reille, X. The problem of anti-
aircraft firing. 465, t663.

Reinicker, C. E. *Gas mantle light-
ing conditions in ten large cities
in the United States. 456.

Rhoads, a. S., et al. *Host relation-
ships of the North American rusts,
other than Gymnosporangiums,
which attack conifers. 564.

Richmond, C. W. *Descriptions of
two new birds from Haiti. 408.

*Generic names applied to birds

during the years 1906 to 1915,
inclusive, with additions and cor-
rections to Waterhouses' "Index
Generum Avium." 131.

RiCKER, P. L. A sketch of botanical
activity in the District of Colum-
bia, I. 498; II, 516.

A synopsis of the Chinese and

Formosan species of Albizzia.
242.

Riley, J. H. *Three remarkable new
species of birds from Santo
Domingo. 131.

RoHWER, S. A. JNotes on the nest-
ing habits of the social wasps.
211.

Rosenbaum, J. *Influence of tem-
perature and precipitation on the
blackleg of the potato. 565.

Safford, W. E. Chenopodnim nut-
tailliae, a food plant of the Aztecs.
521.

Cosmos sulphureus, the xochi-

palli or flower paint of the Aztecs.
613.

fEconomic Phaseoli of the an-
cient Americans. 215.

fNatural history of Paradise

Key, Florida. 179.

INDEX

703

Salkover, B. Note on the inorganic
constituents of two small crus-
taceans. 185.

Sanford, H. L. fThe chrysanthe-
mum gall fly. 664.

Sasuly, M. fA general system of
approximate integration formulae.
371.

Schad, L. W. *Thermal expansion of
alpha and of beta brass .between
(K600°C. 573.

fThermal expansion of alpha

and of beta brass. 293.

ScHLiNK, F. J. *Stabilized-platform
weighing scale of novel design.
368.

— — • Variance of measuring instru-
ments and its relation to accuracy
and sensitivity. 395.

Schrader, F. C. *Quicksilver de-
posits of the Phoenix Mountains,
Arizona. 538.

ScHULTZ, A. R. *A geologic recon-
naissance of the Uinta Mountains,
northern Utah, with special ref-
erence to phosphate. 453.

Schwartz, Benjamix. *Serum ther-
apy for trichnosis. 39.

ScHWENNESEN, A. T. *Ground water
in San Simon Valley, Arizona and
New Mexico. 128.

ScoFiELD, C. S. fGeographical as-
pects of Haitian agriculture. 44.

Shaw^ E. W. tThe "lakes" of north-
eastern Arkansas, and some fea-
tures of the work of the Missis-
sippi River. 99.

Shearer, H. K. *Deposits of Clai-
borne and Jackson age in Georgia.
540.

Shoemaker, D. N. jThe American
species of the genus Phaseolus.
214.

Shufeldt, R. W. fBiological abnor-
malities as exemplified by the
collection in the Army Medical
Museum. 212.

tNotes on some United States

batraohians. 26.

Silsbee, F. B. *A method for test-
ing current transformers. 247.

Smith, P. S. *The Lake Clark-Central
Kuskokwim region, Alaska. 453.

Smither, F. W. *Comparative tests
of chemical glassware. 578.

Snodgrass, R. E. fThe value of pic-
torial charts in extension ento-
mology. 299.

SosMAN, R. B. *The ferrous iron con-
tent and magnetic susceptibility
of some artificial and natural
oxides of iron. 328.

§The Petrologists' Club of

Washington. 261.

A silica-glass mercury still. 11.

Zonal growth in hematite, and

its bearing on the origin of certain
iron ores. 329.

Spaulding, Perley. fSome biolog-
ical aspects of the spread of the
white-pine blister rust. 40.

Spencer, A. C. *The geology and ore
deposits of Ely, Nevada. 455.

Speek, p. a. fThe problems of race
and nationality in Russia. 210.

Staxdley, p. C. Blepharidium, a
new genus of Rubiaceae from
Guatemala. 58.

Omiltemia, a new genus of

Rubiaceae from Mexico. 426.

A new species of Rondeletia

from Mexico. 126.

The North American species of

Genipa. 639.

Steiger, George. Fluorine in seri-
citization. 234.

A note on the precipitation of

zirconium phosphate. 637.

Titanium-bearing corundum

spinellite (rock emery). 665.

Sterrett, D. B. *Tin resources of
the Kings Mountain district,
North Carolina and South Caro-
lina. 129.

Stiles, C. W. fHaak as author of
Brisson's 1762 edition of Regnum
Animale. 42.

704

INDEX

Stone, R. W. fThe development of
valuable magnesite deposits in
the State of Washington. 99.

Stringham, Emerson. jNotes on the
speed of fishes, especially the
alewife. 178.

SwANTON, J. R; Anthropology as a
corrective of provincialism. 286.

*An early account of the Choc-
taw Indians. 633.

— — Catawba notes. 623.

SwiCK, C. H. *Descriptions of tri-

angulation stations in Georgia.

35.
Tate, J. T. fCritical potentials for
. electrons in metallic vapors. 73.

*Resonance and ionization po-
tentials for electrons in cadmium
vapor. 328.

Taylor, W. P. fExhibition and dis-
cussion of distribution of marmots
from the State of Washington.
41.

Thom, Charles. *Aspergillus fumi-
gatus, A. nididans, A. terreus n.
sp. and their allies. 576.

• fFermented soy-bean products.

142.

Thom, W. T., Jr. *The Flaxville
gravel and its relation to other
terrace gravels of the northern
Great Plains. 249.

Thuras, a. L. An electrical instru-
ment for recording sea-water
salinity. 145.

An instrument for recording

sea-water salinity. 680.

Todd, W. E. C. *New genera, species,
and subspecies of South Ameri-
can birds. 134.

*Preliminary diagnoses of ap-
parently new birds from Colombia
and Bolivia. 133.

♦ Tool, A. Q. fThe constitution of the
gas ion. 506.
True, R. H. fNotes on the early his-
tory of the pecan in America.
297. .

Ulrich, E. O. fThe limitations of
fossils in correlation. 99.

Van Dusen, M. S. *Latent heat of
vaporization of ammonia. 202.

— — *The latent heat of pressure
variation of liquid ammonia. 201.

fLatent and specific heats of

ammonia. 103.

- *Specific heat of liquid am-
monia. 201.

Vaughan, T. W. Correlation of the
Tertiary geologic formations of
the southeastern United States,
Central America, and the West
Indies. 268.

fSummary of results of study of

marine bottom samples from
Murray Island, Australia, the
Bahamas, and Florida. 99.

ViNAL, G. W. fSome electrical prop-
erties of silver sulphide. 294.

ViNALL, H. N. *Effect of temper-
ature and other meterological
factors on the growth of sorghums.
661.

Walker, P. H. *Comparative tests
of chemical glassware. 578.

Walters, E. - H. *The possibilities
and limitations of the Duclaux
method for the estimation of
volatile acids. 577.

Waring, G. A. *Mineral springs of
Alaska. 171.

Washington, H. S. *Chemical anal-
ysis of igneous rocks published
from 1884 to 1913, inclusive. 66.

*Persistence of vents at Strom-

-boli and its bearing on volcanic
mechanism. 207.

Watson, T. L. Pyrolusite from
Virginia. 550.

Titanium-bearing corundum

spinellite (rock emery). 665.

Vivi^nite from the land pebble

phosphate deposits of Florida.
82.

INDEX

705

Webster, D. L. fEmission quanta
phenomena in X-rays. 292.

Weeks, P. T. fThe efficiency of pro-
duction of X-rays. 253.

Wegmanx, C. H. *The Salt Creek
oil fjeld, Wyoming. 538.

Weibel, E. E. An electrical instru-
ment for recording sea-water
salinity. 145.

Wells, P. V. Note on the periodic
system of the elements. 232.

Wells, R. C. *New determinations
of carbon dioxide in water of the
Gulf of ]\Iexico. 539. *

fTungstonite, disulphide of

tungsten, a new mineral. 98.

Wessling, H. L. *The chemical anal-
ysis of wheat-flour substitutes
and of the breads made therefrom.
662.

Weston, W. H. fThe downy mil-
dews of maize: their origin and
distribution. 43.

Wetmore, Alexander. *An abnor-
mal egg of Fulica americana.
407.

*A new cuckoo from New Zea-
land. 409.

*The birds of Desecheo Island,

Porto Rico. 607. i

*0n the fauna of the Great

Salt Lake. 409.

*A new honey-eater from the

Marianne Islands. 409.

fLead poisoning in waterfowl.

374.

*The relationships of the fossil

bird Palaeochenoides mioceanas.
408.

*0n certain secondary sexual

characters in the male ruddy
duck, Erismatura jamaicensis
(Gmelin). 409.

— — *Winter birds aboxit Washing-
ton, D. C., 1916-1917. 407.

Wherry, E. T. *The application of
optical methods of identification
to alkaloids and other organic
compounds. 658.

The assignment of crystals to

symmetry classes. 480.

*The identification of the cin-
chona alkaloids by optical-crys-
tallographic measurements. 658.

*Modern extensions of Hauy's

laws of crystallography. 659.

— ■ — PjTolusite from Virginia. 550.

— — • The reactions of the soils sup-
porting the growth of certain
native orchids. 589.

Certain relations between crys-
talline form, chemical constitu-
tion, and optical properties in
organic compounds. I, 277; II,
319.

fCertain relations between

optical properties and crystal
form, and their bearing on the
question of "crystal molecules"
in organic compoimds. 180.

Wilcox, T. E. fOccurrence of the
California vulture in Idaho. 25.

Williams, E. T. fThe origins of the
Chinese. 257.

Williamson, E. D. fMeasurement
of the compressibilities of solids
under hydrostatic pressure up to
12,000 megabars. 102.

tQuantitative applications of

the phase rule. 75.

Wilson, J. B. *Boron: its effect on
crops and its distribution in plants
and soil in different parts of the
United States. 661.

Winchester, D. E. *Oil shale of the
Uinta Basin, northeastern Utah,
and results of dry distillation of
miscellaneous shale samples. 501.

Wise, L. E. *The action of neutral
salts on humus, and other experi-
ments on soil acidity. 577.

706

INDEX

Yanovsky, Elias. *The identifica-
tion of the cinchona alkaloids by
optical-crystallographic measure-
ments. 658.

ZiMMER, J. T. fAn intensive feeding
habit in young herons. 296.

ZoLNAY, G. J. fRoumania and her
people. 24.

SUBJECT INDEX

Agriculture. fHaitian agriculture,

botanical aspects of. C. B. Doyle.

44.

fHaitian agriculture, geographical

aspects of. C. S. Scofield. 44.

See also: Geography.

Agronomy. *Sorghums, growth of, as
afTected by meteorological fac-
tors. H. N. ViNALL and H. R.
Reed. 661.

Anthropology. fAnthropological and

national factors in the present

war. W. H. Babcock. 333.
Anthropology as a corrective of

provincialism. J. . R. Swanton.

286.
fBelgium and the Belgians. J. H.

Gore. 23.
fBohemia and the Bohemians.

Ales Hrdlicka. 21.
Catawba notes. J. R. Swanton.

623.

fChinese, origins of. E. T. Wil-
liams. 256.
*Choctaw Indians, early account of.

J. R. Swanton. 633.
fGreece, the story of. Mitchell

Carroll. 22.
fltalian people, origins of the.

V. Guiffrida-Ruggeri. 259.
tJapan: people and policies.

Daniel Folkmar. 70.
tMan's place in the Cosmos as

shadowed forth by modern science.

M. H. Holmes. 68.
fMesopotamia and Palestine. Paul

Haupt. 331.
tPoland and the Polish question.

L. J. Frachtenberg. 208.

fRoumania and her people. G. J.

ZoLNAY. 24.

fRussia, problems of race and
nationality in. P. A. Speek.
210.

jThe Scandinavian peoples. Am-
ANDUs Johnson. 69.

tScotland. Joseph Dunn. 208.
fWar and race. Ales Hrdlicka.

71.
See also: Ethnology.

Artillery. Problem of anti-aircraft
firing. X. Reille. 465, t663.

Astronomy, f Astronomy and M^ar.
G. E. Hale. 291.

Aviation. Aviation and the war. C.
F. Lee. 225, 1291.

Bacteriology. *Roquefort cheese, bac-
terial flora of. Alice C. Evans.
631.
*Streptococci concerned in cheese
ripening. Alice C. Evans. 630.

Biology. fAbnormalities exemplified
in Army Medical Museum collec-
tion. R. W. Shufeldt. 212.

Biology and war. Raymond Pearl.
341, t663.

§District of Columbia, sketch of
natural history of. W. L. Mc-
Atee. 415.

False witches'-brooms in ericaceous
plants, significance of. Jean

DUFRENOY. 527.

fParadise Key, Florida, natural
history of. W. E. Safford. 179.

fPests, accidental introduction of.
L. O. Howard. 41.

INDEX

707

Botany. Albizzia, synopsis of Chi-
nese and Formosan species of.
P. L. RicKER. 242.

fAlpine flora of Adirondacks and
White Mountains. A. S. Hitch-
cock. 26.

Anemia, a new species of. W. R.
Maxon. 199.

Blepharidium, a new genus of
Rubiaceae. P. C. Standley. 58.

Chenopodium nuttalliae, a food plant
of the Aztecs. W. E. Safford.
521.

*Cleistogenes, axillary, in some
Amei'ican grasses. Agnes Chase.
561.

Cosmos sulphureus, the xochipalli
or flower paint of the Aztecs.
W. E. Safford. 613.

*Eupatorium urticaefolium as a poi-
sonous plant. C. D. Marsh and
A. B. Claw.son. 631..

District of Columbia, sketch of
botanical activity in. P. L.
RiCKER. I, 487; II, 516.

*Generic types, with reference to
United States grasses. A. S.
Hitchcock. 562.

Genipa, North American species of.
P. C. Standley. 639.

fGrain sorghums: botanical group-
ing of varieties. C. R. Ball.
295.

*Haiti, some agricultural and bo-
tanical features of. C. B. Doyle.
139.

fMaize: its origin and relation-
ships. G. N. Collins. 42.

tNational Forest range plants, col-
lecting data upon. W. A. Day-
ton. 457.

Omiltemia, a new genus of Mexican
Rubiaceae. P. C. Standley.
426.

tOpuntia, conspicuous groups of.
David Griffiths. 216.

*Peanut, the, a great American
food. H. S. Bailey and J. A.
LeClerc. 632.

fPecan, early history of. R. H.
True. 297.

*Phaseoleae, botany and economics
of. C. V. Piper. 140.

fPhaseolus, American species of.
D. N. Shoemaker. 214.

tPhaseolus, economic kinds of the
ancient Americans. W. E. Saf-
ford. 215.

Phytogeographical sketch of south-
ern Maryland. R. M. Harper.
581.

Plant life on saline soils. T. H.
Kearney. 109, t214.

Polystichum, new species of, from
California. W. R. Maxon. 620.

Rondeletia, a new species of. P. C.
Standley. 126.

fShaw aquatic gardens. F. B.
Rand. 296.

*Soy-beans, morphological charac-
ters and food value of. W. J.
Morse. 141.

tWyeth, Nathaniel Jarvis, and his
influence on western botany.
W. W. Eggleston. 457.

See also: Agriculture; Bacteriology;
Economic Botany; Ethnobotany;
Geography; Mycology; Nomen-
clature; Phytopathology; Plant
Physiology.
Chemistry. Barium disilicate crys-
tals in optical glass. N. L.
BowEN. 265.

*Duclaux method for estimation of
volatile acids, possibilities and
limitations of. L. J. Gillespie
and E. H. Walters. 577.

*Ferr.ous ion content and magnetic
susceptibility of certain oxides of
iron. R. B. Sosman and J. C.
Hostetter. 328.

Gas warfare, methods of. S. J. M.
Auld. 45.

708

INDEX

*Ioclometric determinations of sul-
fur dioxide and the sulfites. J.
B. Ferguson. 203.

fMeteorites, rarer constituents of.
G. P. Merrill. 98.

Nitrogen problem in relation to the
war. A. A. Noyes. 381, 1663.

fPapain from Carica papaya grown
in Florida. V. K. Chesnut. 458.

*Soy-bean products, fermented.
Charles Thom. 142.

*Soy-beans, composition of and use
in breadmaking. J. A. LeClerc.
142. I I 1

♦Ternary system H20-K2Si03-Si02»
G. W. Maroy and C. N. Fenner.
203.

Zirconium phosphate, precipitation
of. George Steiger. 637.

See also: Crystallography; Electro-
chemistry; Geochemistry; Geol-
ogy; Mineralogy; Physical Chem-
istry; Technology.
Climatology. *Changes in oceanic and
atmospheric temperatures and
their relation to changes in the
sun's activity. Fridtjof Nan-
sen. 135.
Conchology. The genus Amphidromus
from islands of the Palawan Pas-
sage. Paul Bartsch. 361.

Leptopoma nitidum, key to sub-
species of. Paul Bartsch. 532.

The genus Obba in the islands of
Bohol and Panglao, P. I. Paul
Bartsch. 16.

Obba marginata; key and discussion
of the Philippine subspecies.
Paul Bartsch. 60.

Philippine Helicinidae, classifica-
tion of, especially Geophorus.
Paul Bartsch. 643.

Crystallography. *Alkaloids, optical-
crystallographic identification of.
E. T. Wherry. 658.
Assignment of crystals to symmetry
classes. E. T. Wherry. 480.

fCertain relations between optica
properties and crystal form. E.
T. Wherry. 180.

*Cinchona alkaloids, optical-crys-
tallographic identification of. E.
T. Wherry and Elias Yanovsky.
658.

Diamond lattice, fundamental poly-
hedron of. E. Q. Adams. 240.

*Hauy's law, modern extensions of.
E. T. Wherry. 659.

Organic compounds, relations be-
tween crystalline form, chemical
constitution, and optical proper-
ties in. I, II. E. T. Wherry.
277, 319.
Economics. fCoal and iron in the
terms of peace. Sidney Paige.
101.

fFederal Horticultural Board, work
of. C. L. Marlatt. 180.

See also:. Forestry.
Economic Botany. fSugar, promising
new source of. O. W. Barrett.
212.
Electricity. *Current transformers,
method for testing. F. B. Sils-
bee. 247.

See also: Engineering.
Electrochemistry. fSilver sulphide,
some electrical properties of. G.
W. Vinal. 294.
Engineering. *Bridge columns, tests
of large. J. H. Griffith and J.
G. Bragg. 609.

*Electrical systems, ground connec-
tions for. O. S. Peters. 576.
Entomology. fApostega, larval affin-
ities of. Carl Heinrick. 180.

fChalcidoid genus Rileya, synopsis
of the species. A. B. Gahan.
610.

fChrysanthemum gall fly. H. L.
Sanford. 664.

fCocoon spinning habit of two
braconids. R. A. Cushman. 610.

fDrone bee, a microcephalic. J. A.
Nelson. 376.

INDEX

709

fEntomological chemistry, recent.

C. R. Ely. 179.
fEradication and control of sweet

potato weevil. C. H. Popenoe.

459.
jFiji, collecting in. W. M. Mann.

610, 664.
fFruit insects, recently introduced.

A. L. QUAINTANCB. 40.

fMedical entomology a vital factor
in prosecution of the war. W. D.
Pierce. 376.

fMethod of handling large series of
individuals in life-history studies.
R. A. CusHMAN. 376.

fPictorial charts in extension ento-
mology. R. E. Snodgrass. 299.

fPink bolhvorm of cotton. C. L.
Marlatt. 40.

fPossibilities of entomology in the
war. V. L. Kellogg. 217.

]Samia cecropia, economic impor-
tance of. C. N. AiNSLiE. 610.

*Senses of insects. N. E. McIndoo.
138.

fSocial wasps, nesting habits of.
S. A. ROHWER. 211.

fVirgin Islands, notes on insects of.
Harold Morrison. 299.
Ethnobotany. Trans-Pacific plant,

maho or mahagua, as a. O. F.
Cook and R. C. Cook. 153.
Ethnology. Prehistoric pottery, a
unique form of. J. W. Fewkes.
598.
Evolution. tSegregation an impor-
tant factor in evolution. J. \V.
GiDLEY. 331.
Forestry. fForestry and the fuel prob-
lem. A. F. Howes et al. 218.

fForest products and the war. E.
H. Clapp. 219.
Geochemistry. Fluorine in sericitiza-
tion. Sidney Paige and George
Steiger. 2.34.

*Hematite, zonal growth in, and its
bearing on the origin of certain
iron ores. R. B. Sosman and J.

C. HOSTETTER. 329.

Inorganic constituents of two crus-
taceans. F. W. Clarke and B.
Salkover. 185.
Geodesy. *Lambert projection tables
for the United States. O. S.
Adams. 405.

fPrimary triangulation and precise
leveling as done by the United
States Coast and Geodetic Sur-
vey. William Bowie. 105.

*Triangulation stations in Georgia.
C. H. SwiCK. 35.
Geography. fCave-hunting in Cali-
fornia. J. C. Merriam. 542.

fChinese borderland of Tibet and
Burma. Edmund Heller. 298.

fNuttall, Thomas, trip to Oregon
in 1834. W. W. Eggleston. 375.

t" Springs" in place names in the
United States. Lawrence La-
Forge. 101.

tVirgin Islands, notes on the. Har-
old Morrison. 299.

*World's agriculture, geography of.
V. C. Finch and O. E. Baker.
449.
Geology. fAllegheny Plateaus, sub-
divisions of the. M. R. Camp-
bell. 410.

*Anticlines in Big Horn Basin,
Wyoming: preliminary report on
oil. D. F. Hewett and C. T.
LxjPTON. 204.

jAsia Minor, Geology of. H. M.
Ami. 99.

*Bowdoin dome, Montana, a pos-
sible reservoir of oil or gas. A. J.
Collier. 36.

*Bristow quadrangle (northern
part), Oklahoma, with reference
to petroleum and gas. A. E.
Fath. 77.

*Cannel coal in the United States.
G. H. Ashley. 502.

*Carbon dioxide in water of the
Gulf of Mexico, new determina-
tions of. R. C. Wells. 539.

*Central Great Plains, structure of
parts of. N. H. Darton. 503.

710

INDEX

*Coal fields of Ohio. J. A. Bow-

NOCKER. 451.

*Coal fields of the United States.
General introduction. M. R.
Campbell. 502.
fCorrelation, limits of fossils in.

E. O. Ullrich. 99.
Correlation of deposits of Jackson
and Vicksburg ages in Mississippi
and Alabama. C. W. Cooke.
186.

Correlation of Tertiary formations of
the southeastern United States,
Central America, and the West
Indies. T. W. Vaughan. 268.

*Corsicana oil and gas field, Texas.
G. C. Matson and O. B. Hopkins.
36.

*Cosna-Nowitna region, Alaska.
H. M. Eakin. 502.

*Cuyuna district, Minnesota, geol-
ogy and iron ores of. E. C.
Harder and A. W. Johnston. 18.

*Deposits of Claiborne and Jackson
age in Georgia. C. W. Cooke
and H. K. Shearer. 540.

*De Soto-Red River oil and gas
field, Louisiana. G. C. Matson
and O. B. Hopkins. 35.

*Dunkleberg mining district, Mon-
tana. J. T. Pardee. 249.

*Flaxville gravel and relation, to
other terrace gravels of northern
Great Plains. A. J. Collier and
W. T. Thom, Jr. 249.

*Geologic structure in the Gushing
oil and gas field, Oklahoma. C.
H. Beal. 172.

*Geology and oil prospects of the
Salinas Valley-Parkfield area,
California. W. A. English. 539.

*Geology and ore deposits of Ely,
Nevada. A. C. Spencer. 455.

*Geology and paleontology of the
Raton Mesa and other regions in
Colorado and New Mexico. W.
T. Lee and F. H. Knowlton.
451.

*Geology rand water resources of
Big Smoky, Clayton, and Alkali
Spring valleys, Nevada. O. E.
Meinzer. 95.
fGlacial history of Columbia River
in Big Bend region. O. E. Mein-
zer. 4ll.
*Gold placers of the Anvik-Andreaf-
ski region, Alaska. G. L. Har-
rington. 248.
*Gold placers of the Tolovana dis-
trict, Alaska. J. B. Mertie, Jr.
454.
*Gravel deposits of Caddo Gap and
De Queen quadrangles, Arkansas.
H. D. Miser and A. H. Purdue.
538.
*Ground water for irrigation in
Lodgepole Valley, Wyoming and
Nebraska. O. E. Meinzer. 65.
*Ground water for irrigation in the
Morgan Hill area, California. W.
O. Clark. 128.
*Ground water in San Simon Valley,
Arizona and New Mexico. A.
T. Schwennesen. 128.
*Hatchetigbee anticline, Alabama,
oil and gas possibilities of. O. B.
Hopkins. 173.
*Helderberg limestone of central
Pennsylvania. J. R. Reeside, Jr.
172.
*Lake Clark-Central Kuskokwim
region of Alaska. P. S. Smith.
453.
t" Lakes" of northeastern Arkansas.

E. W. Shaw. 99.
*Louisiana clays, including results

of tests. G. C. Matson. 205.
fLower Yukon River region, late
Tertiary and Quaternary history
of. G. L. Harrington. 413.
fMagnesite deposits in Washington,
development of. R. W. Stone.
99.
*Manganese at Butte, Montana.
J. T. Pardee. 450.

INDEX

711

*Manganese ore, possibilities for, in
Shenandoah Valley, Virginia.
D. F. Hewett et al. 450.

fMarine bottom samples, summary
of results of study of. T. W.
Vatjghan. 99.

*Massachusetts and Rhode Island,
geology of. B. K. Emerson. 204.

*Mineral springs of Alaska. G. A.
Waring et al. 171.

*Mining developments and water-
power investigations in south-
eastern Alaska. Theodore Chap-
in et al. 171.

*Navajo country, geology of. H. E.
Gregory. 64.

New geological formations in west-
ern Wyoming. Eliot Blackwel-
DER. 417.

fNorth Dakota, formation hitherto
unaccounted for in. A. J. Col-
lier. 412.

*Oil shale of the Uinta Basin, north-
eastern Utah, and results of dry
distillation. D. E. Winchester.
501.

*Ore deposits of northwestern part
of the Garnet Range, Montana.
J. T. Pardee. 290.

fPaleozoic rocks and fossils on the
Piedmont of Maryland. R. S.
Bassler. 411.

*Pawhuska quadrangle, geologic
structure of northwestern part of.
K. C. Heald. 249.

*Phosphatic oil shales, Beaverhead
County, Montana. C. F. Bowen.
248.

fPleistocene shore lines in Maine
and New Hampshire. F. J. Katz.
410.

fPreglacial history of Yosemite
Valley. F. E. Matthes. 98.

Pyrolusite from Virginia. T. L.
Watson and E. T. Wherry.
550.

*Quaternary geology of south-
eastern Wisconsin. W. C. Alden.
537.

*Quicksilver deposits of the Phoe-
nix Mountains, Arizona. F. C.
Schrader. 538.

jRocky Mountain National Park,
Geology of. W. T. Lee. 99.

*Salt Creek oil field. Wyoming.
C. H. Wegemann. 538.

*Salt domes, Palestine and Bren-
ham, Texas. O. B. Hopkins.
173.

tSprings, classification of. Kirk
Bryan. 412.

*Stones of Minnesota, the structural
and ornamental. Oliver Bowles.
453.

*Strontianite deposits near Barstow,
California. Adolph Knopf. 94.

*Tin resources of Kings Mountain
district. North Carolina and
South Carolina. Arthur Keith
and D. B. Sterrett. 129.

Titanium-bearing corundum spinel-
lite (rock emery) . Thomas T. Wat-
soNand George Stbiger. 665.

*Uinta Mountains, Utah, geological
reconnaissance of, with reference
to phosphate. A. R. Schultz.
453.

fValdez delta, the. B. L. John-
son. 410.

*Zinc carbonate and related copper
carbonate ores at Ophir, Utah.
G. F. Loughlin. 129.

See also: Economics; Geography;
M'neralogy; Petrology.
History. Philosophical Society of
Washington, origin of. W. H.
Dall. 29.
Mammalogy. fBears of Yellowstone
Park; food partly furnished by
pine squirrels. Vernon Bailey.
28.

tMarmots, distribution of, in Wash-
ington. W. P. Taylor. 41.

*Rice rats (Orozomys) of North
America. E. A. Goldman. 659.

Rodents, synopsis of the super-
generic groups of. G. S. Miller,
Jr., and J. W. Gidley. 431.

712

INDEX

Mathematics, flntegration formulae,
approximate, a general system of.
M. Sasxjly. 371.
fLambert's conformal conic projec-
tion. O. S. Adams. 104.

Metallography. *Muntz metal (60-40
brass), deterioration of, by selec-
tive corrosion. H. S. Rawdon.
406.
fThermal expansion of alpha and
of beta brass. P. D. Merica and
L. W. ScHAD. 293.

Metallurgy. *Copper. (Bur. Stand.
Circ. No. 73.) 537.

Meteoralogy. Fog and cloud. W. J.
Humphreys. 504.

Mineralogy. fChalmersite, a new

ore of copper. B. L. Johnson.

99.

fCopper and zinc, relation of, in

carbonate ore at Ophir, Utah.

G. F. LOUGHLIN. 98.

Pyrolusite from Virginia. T. L.
Watson and E. T. Wherry.
550.

fTungstenite, a new mineral. R. C.
Wells. 99.

Vivianite from land pebble phos-
phate deposits of Florida. T. L.
Watson and S. D. Gooch. 82.

Mycology. *Aspergillus fumigatus, A
nidulans, A. terreus n. sp. and
their allies. Charles' Thom and
Margaret B. Church. 576.

^National Research Council, war
organization of. 337.

Nomenclature. fGeneric types. A. S.
Hitchcock. 375.

Oceanography. An instrument for re-
cording sea-water salinity. A. L,
Thuras. 680.

Sea-water salinity, instrument

for recording. E. E. Weibel and
A. L. Thuras. 145.

Ordnance. fDevelopment of artillery
during the war. John Headlam.
*291, 301.

Ornithology. *Alabama birds, further
notes on. L. S. Golsan and E.
G. Holt. 541.

*Anamba Islands, birds of. H. C.
Oberholser. 131.

Anatidae, new genus of, from South
America. H. C. Oberholser. 175.

*A. O. U. check-list, second annual
list of changes in. H. C. Ober-
holser. 96; third list, 608.

*Autumn water-bird records at
Washington, D. C. [1916]. H. C.
Oberholser. 602.

*Bawean Island, Java Sea, birds of.
H. C. Oberholser. 132.

tCalifornia vulture, occurrence in
Idaho. T. E. Wilcox. 25.

*Clay and O'Brien counties, Iowa,
bird list of. I. N. Gabrielson.
603.

*Connecticut birds, notes on. I.
N. Gabrielson. 540.

*Cooperative census of birds at
Washington, D. C. H. C. Ober-
holser. 97.

*Costa's humming bird — its type
locality, early history, and name.
T. S. Palmer. 602.

*Cuckoo, new, from New Zealand.
Alexander Wetmore. 409.

*Desecheo Island, Porto Rico, birds
of. Alexander Wetmore. 607.

*Empidonax trailii, status of. H.
C. Oberholser. 608.

*Egg, abnormal, of Fulica ameri-
cana. Alexander Wetmore. 407.

*Fossil bird Palaeochenoides mio-
ceanus, relationships of. Alex-
ander Wetmore. 408.

*Generic names applied to birds
during the years 1906 to 1915,
inclusive. C. W. Richmond. 131.

*Geothlypis beldingi, a new sub-
species of. H. C. Oberholser.
175.

*Great Plains waterfowl breeding
grounds and their protection.
H. C. Oberholser. 605.

INDEX

713

*Great Salt Lake, fauna of. Alex-
ander Wetmore. 409.
*Haiti, two new birds from. C. W.

Richmond. 408.
*Haitian avifauna, additions to.

Paul Bartsch. 133.
tHerons, an intensive feeding habit

in young. J. T. Zimmer. 296.
*Honey-eater, new, from Marianne

Islands. Alexander Wetmore.

409.
*Iowa birds, two recent lists of.

I. N. Gabrielson. 540.
*Java Sea, bird collections, by Dr.

\Y. L. Abbott. 605.
tKey to ornithological literature.

T. S. Palmer. 26.
*Leach petrel {Oceanodroma leu-

corhoa), review of subspecies of.

H. C. Oberholser. 174.
fLead poisoning in waterfowl.

Alexander Wetmore. 374.
*Local names of birds. W. L.

McAtee. 541.
*Martin roost in Washington, D. C.

H. C. Oberholser. 175.
*iMigration of North American swal-
lows. H. C. Oberholser. 207.
*AIutanda ornithologica. H. C.

Oberholser. I, 134; II, 408;

III, 604.
*New birds from Colombia and

Bolivia, diagnoses of. W. E. C.

Todd. 133.
New genus of Timaliidae. H. C.

Oberholser. 394.
*North American birds, notes on.

H. C. Oberholser. II, 130; III,
■ 176; IV, 607.
*Numenius americanus, subspecies

of. H. C. Oberholser. 604.
*Pedioecetes, review of the genus in

Colorado. F. C. Lincoln. 133.
*Perisoreus . obscurus, a new sub-
species of. H. C. Oberholser.

174.
*Porto Rican grasshopper sparrow.

J. L. Peters. 133.

*Ruddy duck (Erismatura jamai-
censis), secondary sexual char-
acters in male of. Alexander
Wetmore. 409.

*Santo Domingo birds, three re-
markable new species of. J. H.
Riley. 131.

*South American birds, new genera,
species, and subspecies of. W. E.

C. Todd. 134.

*Stomach lining, shedding of, by
birds, especially Anatidae. W. L.
McAtee. 606.

*Washington, D. C, a second bird
survey at. H. C. Oberholser.
603.

*Washington region. H. C. Ober-
holser. 134, 174, 407.

*Winter birds about Washington,

D. C, 1916-1917. W. L. McAtee
et al. 407.

Paleontology. *Foraminifera (genus
Orthophragmina) from Georgia
and Florida. C. W. Cooke and

J. A. CUSHMAN. 96.

Parasitology. *Ascaris lumbricoides
and related forms, life history of.
B. H. Ransom and W. D. Foster.
38.

*Gongylonema scutatum, life history
of. B. H. Ransom and M. C.
Hall. 19.

*Live stock parasites, development
of methods for control and treat-
ment of. B. H. Ransom. 66.

*Nematodes of ruminants trans-
missible to man; occurrence in
the United States. B. H. Ran-
som. 39.

*Oil of Chenopodium and chloro-
form as anthelmintics. M. C.
Hall and W. D. Foster. 38.

*Sarcosporidia, zoological position
of. Howard Crawley. 39.

*Sheep tick; its eradication by dip-
ping. Marion Imes. 66.

*Trichnosis, serum-therapy for.
Benjamin Schwartz. 39.

714

INDEX

Pathology. fAn unusual human speci-
men. G. W. Baird. 28.

fMilk sickness or trembles, cause of.
C. D. Marsh. 330.
Petrology. *Adirondack intrusives.
N. L. BowEN. 206.

*Anorthosites, problem of. N. L.
BowEN. 205.

*Chemical analyses of igneous rocks
from 1884 to 1913. H. S. Wash-

]NGTON. 66.

Glass-making processes; their sig-
nificance to the petrologist. N.
L. BowEN. 88.

§Petrologists' Club of Washington;
review of its work. E. B. Sos-
man. 261.
Physical Chemistry. *Gas interferom-
eter calibration. J. D. Edwards.
248.

fLead oxides, polymorphism of.
H. E. Merwin and L. H. Adams.
75.
■ fPhase rule, quantitative applica-
tions of. G. W. Morey and E. D.
Williamson. 75.
Physics. fActiniiim emanation, diffu-
sion of and recoil from. L. W.
McKeehan. 74.

fAmmonia, latent and specific heats
of. N. S. Osborne and M. S.
Van Dusen. 103.

Ammeter, an optical. P. D. Foote.
77.

tAnemometer, Robinson's, a simpli-
fied form of. B. C. Kadel. 255.

tBarometric ripples. W. J. Hum-
phreys. 182.

fCompressibilities of solids under
hydrostatic pressure, measur-

ment of. E. D. Williamson and
L. H. Adams. 102.

*Color standards and methods of
color nomenclature. I. G. 'Priest.
247.

fColors, complementary, and the
properties of pigments. H. E.
Merwin. 254.

fDaylight, artificial, precision
method for producing. I. G.
Priest. 254.

fDirect-current corona, experiments
on. S. J. Crooker. 73.

fEarth-ciirrent measurements, pres-
sure and temperature effects in.
S. J. Mauchly. 371.

fElectrical measureinents at radio
frequencies. J. H. Bellinger.
293.

Electron, size and shape of. A. H.
Compton. 1.

fElectrons, critical potentials for,
in metallic vapors. J. T. Tate
and P. D. Foote. 73.

tGas iron, constitution of the. A.
Q. Tool. 506.

flonization and resonance poten-
tials for electrons in vapors of
magnesium and thallium. P. D.
Foote and F. L. Mohler. 373.

*Latent heat of pressure variation
of liquid ammonia. N! S. Os-
borne and M. S. Van Dusen.
201.

*Latent heat of vaporization of
ammonia. N. S. Osborne and
M. S. Van Dusen. 202.

Mercury still, of silica glass. J. C.
Hostetter and R. B. Sosman.
11.

Periodic system of the elements.
P. V. Wells. 232.

*Photo-electric cell and other selec-
tive radiometers. W. W. Cob-
lentz. 536.

*Photoelectric sensitivity of bis-
muthinite and other substances.

W. W. COBLENTZ. 574.

fPlanck's law, determination of the
constant C2. C. E. Menden-
hall. 292.

*Radio instruments ^nd measure-
ments (Bur. Stand. Circ. No. 74).
368.

fRadium luminous materials. N.
E. Dorsey. 74.

INDEX

715

fRefractive index and optical dis-
persion of air. W. F. Meggers
and C. G. Peters. 181.

*Resonance and ionization poten-
tials for electrons in cadmium
vapor. P. D. Foote and J. T.
Tate. 328.

*Specific heat of liquid ammonia.
N. S. Osborne and M. S. Van

DtlSEN. 201.

*Spectro-radiometric investigation
of the transmission of various
substances. W. W. Coblentz et
al. 574.

*Thermal expansion of alpha and of
beta brass between 0°-600°C. P.
D. Merica and L. W. Schad. 573.

Thermoelectric effects, peculiar. P.
D. Foote and T. R. Harrison.
545.

Voltage discharge, low, in sodium
vapor. P. D. Foote and F. L.
MOHLER. 513.

fX-rays, efficient production of.
P. T. Weeks. 253.

fX-rays, emission quanta phenom-
ena in. D. L. Webster. 292.

fX-ray protective materials. W.
S. Gorton. 251.

See also: Crystallography; Elec-
tricity; Radiometry; Radioteleg-
raphy; Soil Physics; Spectroscopy;
Terrestrial Magnetism.
Physiology. Mesencephalic root of
'man and the guinea pig, sensory
fibers in. W. F. Allen. 15.

fRed blood corpuscles of the sheep,
ox, and hog; their relative resist-
ance. M. W. Lyon, Jr. 42.
Phytopathology. *Apple-spot diseases,
irrigation experiments on.

Charles Brooks and D. F.
Fisher. 563.

*Bacterial diseases of lettuce.
Nellie A. Brown. 564.

*Blackleg of the potato, influence of
temperature and precipitation on.
• J. Rosenbaum and G. B. Ramsey.
565.

*Cucumber angular leaf spot. W.
W. Gilbert and M. W. Gardner.
660.

fDowny mildews of maize; their
origin and distribution. W. H.
Weston. 43.

*Host relationships of North Amer-
ican rusts (other than Gymno-
sporangiums) attacking conifers.
A. S. Rhoads et al. 564.

*Leafblight of Kalmia latifolia.
Ella M. A. Enlows. 563.

*Okra, hitherto unreported dis-
ease of. L. L. Harter. 565.

fPhysoderma disease of maize. G.
R. Lyman. 43.

*Potato-scab organism, growth of.
at various hydrogen-ion concen-
trations. L. J. Gillespie. 562.

fWhite-pine blister rust; biological
aspects of its spread. Perley
Spaulding. 40.

Plant Physiology. *Boron: its dis-
tribution and effect on crops.
F. C. Cook and J. B. Wilson.
661.

Reactions of soils supporting certain
orchids. E. T. Wherry. 589.

*Respiration and catalase activity
in sweet corn. C. O. Appleman.
632.

*Sodium nitrate, effect of, on yield,
composition, and quality of wheat.
J. Davidson and J. A. LeClerc.
633.

*Wheat flour substitutes. J. A.
LeClerc. 632.
Radiotelegraphy. Contact detectors
in radio measurements, new meth-
od of using. L. W. Austin.
569.

Resonance measurements in radio-
telegraph}^ with the oscillating
audion. L. W. Austin. 498.
Scientific notes and news: 76, 107,
143, 184, 221, 260, 300, 334, 377,
415, 460, 508, 543, 568, 579, 611.

716

INDEX

Soil Physics. *Hydrogen-ion concen-
tration measurements of soils of
two types. L. J. Gillespie and
L. A. Hurst. 578.
*Neutral salts, action of, on humus.
L. J. Gillespie and L. E. Wise.
577.

Spectroscopy. *Dicyanin, application
to stellar spectroscopy. P. W.
Merrill. 405.
*Wave lengths in the red and infra-
red spectra of iron, cobalt, and
nickel arcs. W. F. Meggers and

C. C. KiESS. 575.

Technology. *Balloon fabrics, deter-
mination of permeability of. J.

D. Edwards. 566.

*Gas mantle lighting conditions in
ten large cities. R. S. McBride
and C. E. Rexnicker. 456.

*Glassware, chemical, comparative
tests of. P. H. Walker and F.
W. Smither. 578.

*Household materials (Bur. Stand.
Circ. No. 70). 456.

Measuring instruments, variance of,
in relation to accuracy and sensi-
tivity. F. J. Schlink. 395.

*Milling and baking tests of certain
cereals. J. A. LeClerc et al.
662.

*Portland cement having high

magnesia content, properties of.

P. H. Bates. 250.
* Viscosity, absolute, determination

by short-tube viscosimeters. W.

H. Herschel. 250.

*Wax models of fleshy fungi.
Eleanor C. Allen. 139.

*Weighing , scale, stabilized plat-
form, of novel design. F. J.
Schlink. 368.

*Wheat-flour substitutes, chemical
analysis of. J. A. LeClerc and
H. L. Wessling. 662.

*Wire gages, combined table of sizes
in (Bur. Stand. Circ. No. 67.) 566.

Terrestrial Magnetism. fCorrespond-
ing changes in the earth's mag-
netic state and in solar activity,
1888-1916. L. A. Bauer. 506.

fCruises III and IV of the yacht
"Carnegie" in Arctic and sub-
Antarctic regions, 1914 to 1917.
J. P. AuLT. 370.

fDip-of-horizon measurements made
on the "Galilee" and "Carnegie."
W. J. Peters. 505.

fMagnetic survey of the United
States. D. L. Hazard. 369.

*United States magnetic tables and
charts for 1915. D. L. Hazard.
575.

Volcanology. *Vents at Stromboli,
persistence of; bearing on vol-
canic mechanism. H. S. Wash-
ington. 207.
Zoology. fBatrachians, notes on cer-
tain United States species. R.
W. Shufeldt. 26.

jBlue crab, life history of. E. P.
Churchill, Jr. 297.

Ciliate Infusoria, origin of. M. M.
Metcalf. 427.

*Crinoids, unstalked, of the Siboga
expedition. A. H. Clark. 503.

fFauna of the human eye. Martha
B. Lyon. 414.

fFish, unrecognized anatomical
facts as affecting cultural prac-
tices. W. C. Kendall. 213.

fFishes, speed of. Emerson
Stringham. 178.

fFur industry of Labrador. C.

BiRDSEYE. 28.

jHaak as author of Brisson's 1762
edition of Regnum Animale. C.
W. Stiles. 42.

fOpalina and the origin of the
Ciliata. M. M. Metcalf. 414.

See also: Biology; Conchology; En-
tomology; Evolution; Mammal-
ogy; Ornithology; Paleontology;
Parasitology; Pathology; Physiol-
ogy.

Vol. VIII No. 1

January 4, 1918

JOUKNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS
N. Ernest Dorset Adolph Knopf A. 8. Hitchcock

BUREAU or BTANDABDS QBOLOaiCAI. BUByBT BUBBAU OF PLANT IZtDUBTBT

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

BT THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION
WILLIAMS & WILKIN3 COMPANY

BALTIMORE, MD. .,^

Entered aa Becond-cUwa mmttex July 14. 1011, at the post ofiSoe at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of

July 10. 1804

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
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Address of the retiring President of the Academy, Dr. W. H. Holmes: "Man's

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CONTENTS

Original Papers

Page
Physics. — The size and shape of the electron. Arthur H. Compton 1

Chemistry. — A silica-glass mercury still. J. C. Hostetter and R. B.

SOSMAN 11

Physiology. — Sensory fibers in the mesencephalic root of man and the guinea
pig. William F. Allen 15

Conchology. — The land mollusks of the genus Obba from the islands of Bohol
and Panglao, P. I. Paul Bartsch 16

Abstracts

Geology 18

Parasitology 19

Proceedings

Washington Academy of Sciences 20

Anthropological Society 21

Biological Society 25

Vol. VIII No. 2

January 19, j9]S

JOUENAL

OP THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY
OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS
Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock J. Fkanklin Meyek

GEOLOGICAL 80BVBT BUBEAD OF PLANT INDUaTRi; B0BEAO OF BTAilDARDa

PUBLISHED SEMI-MONTHLY
fiXCEPT IN JULY, AUGUST, AND SEPTEMBER, WHEN MOSTHI,lr

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OFFICE OF PUBLICATION

WILLIAMS & WILKINS COMPANT

BALTIMORE, MD.

Entered as second-class matter July 14, 1011, at the post o6&ca at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of

July 18, 1894

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the oflScial organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific v?ork in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (I) short original papers, written or communicated by mem*
bers of the Academy; (2) a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington; (3) short abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
affiliated Societies; (5) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash-
ington. The Journal is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each month, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
feature; a manuscript reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the
month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the

JOURNAI,.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Boardof Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illuslrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined tc text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to detray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in final
form; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

Authors' Copies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may deuire at ten cents each. Reprints will be
'urmshed at the following schedule of prices:

4 pp.

60 copies $1.08.

100 copies 1.30.

Additional copies, per 100 45.

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article., with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
$1.00 per 100.

As an author may not see proof, his request for extra copies or reprints should
invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume is $6.00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,
Wnshington, D. C. to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenmount
nve., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agents: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and MUller, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchanges. — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
mtidt within thirty days after date of the following issue.

•Voiumt I, however, from July 19, 1911, to December 19, 1811, will bo sent for $3.00. Special ratat
ftra giTau to lasmber* of scientific societies afiiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERLY PRESS

BALTIMORE, U, 8. i^.

8 pp.

12 pp.

16 pp.

$1.95...,

,.. $2.93....

.. $3.80

2.40....

,.. 3.60....

.. 4.70

90....

.. 1.35....

... 1.70

ANNOUNCEMENT OF MEETINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND

AFFILIATED SOCIETIES'

Saturday, January 26: The Biological Society, at the Cosmos Club,

at 8 p. m.
Tuesday, January 29: The Anthropological Society, at the Public

Library, at 8 p. m. Program:

Dr. Leo Frachtenberg : Poland and the Polish question.

Saturday, February 2: The Pliilosophical Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8.15 p. m. Program:

W. S. Gorton: Investigations of X-ray protective materials.
P. T. Weeks : The efficiency of production of X-rays.

1 The programs of the meetings of the affiliated Societies will appear on this page if sent to the
editors by the thirteenth and the twenty-seventh day of each month.

CONTENTS

OniGiNAL Papers

History.— The origin and early days of the Philosophical Society of Washing-
ton. William H. Dall 29

.'Abstracts ^

Geodesy 35

Geology 35

Parasitology ., 38

Pkoceedingk

Biological Society 40

Botanical Society 42

Vol. Vni No. 3

February 4, 1918

JOURNAL

OP THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS
Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock J. Frankun Mbteb

OXOLOOICAL StTBVKT B^BX^U OF FLikNT INDU8TRT BUUBAtTOr STANDABOS

PUBLISHED SEMl-MONTHLV
EXCEPT IN JULY. AUGUST, AND SEPTEMBER, WHEN MONTHl-T

BY THB

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCEjJ

OFFICE OF PUBLlCAriON

9FILLIAM3 & WILKINS COMPANY

BALTIMORE, MD

Esteied at Becond-olaas matter July 14, Iflll, at the poet ofiSce at Baltimore, Maryland,' under the Aet of

July 16, 1804

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (I) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington; (3) short abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
affiliated Societies; (5) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash-
ington. The Journal is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each month, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
feature; a manuscript rencbmg the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the
month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the
Journal,

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication

Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined tc text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in final
form; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

Authors^ Copies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten ' opies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may deyire at ten cents each Reprints wil Ve
furnished at the following schedule of prices:

4 pp 8 pp. 12 pp. 18 f

50 copies $1.08 $1.95 $2.93 $3.80

100 copies 1.30 2.40 3.60 4.70

Additional copies, per 100 45 90 1.35 1.70

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article,, with inclusive •
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covere
$1.00 per 100.

As an author may not see proof, his request for extra copies or reprints shou'd
invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume i$ $6 .00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences, '
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bov^^ie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,
Wflshington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenmount
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agents: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and Miiller, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchanges. — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Miatins Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim it
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

• Voium<3 1, however, from July 19, 1611, to December 19, 1911, will be sent for $3.00. Special rate.-^
vro .uv:)u:o xn«mber* of soicntifio societies affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERLY PRESS
BALTIMORE, U. 6. A.

ANNOUNCEMENT OF MEETINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND

AFFILIATED SOCIETIEP»

Tuesday, February 5 : The Botanical Society, at the New Ebbit JSotel,
at 8.15 p. m. Program:

The retiring President, T. H. Keabney, will deliver an address on Plant life on
saline soils.

Saturday, February 9: The Biological Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8 p. m.

Tuesday, February 12: TRe Anthropological Society, at the Pubhc
Library. Program:

Joseph Dunn: Scotland.

Wednesday, February 13 : The Geological Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8 p. m.

Thursday, February 14, at the Cosmos Club, at 8 p. m. Program:

Grinnell Jones, of the Tariff Commission: Work of the Tariff Commission and
its relation to the chemical industries .

D. B. Jones, Bureau of Chemistry: Hydrolysis of Kafarine.

Saturday, February 16: The Philosophical Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8.15 p. m. Program:

H. E. Merwin, of the Geophysical Laboratory: Complementary colors and the
properties of pigments. 30 min.

I. G. Priest, of the Bureau of Standards: The photometry of lights of different
colors. Illustrated. 20 min.

B. C. Kadel, of the Weather Bureau : Some simpliiications in recording instru-
ments. 15 min.

> The programs of the meetings of the affiliated Societies will appear oq this page if sent to the
editors by the thirteenth and the twenty-seventh day of each month.

CONTENTS
Original Papers

Pae<

Chemistry. — Methods of gas warfare. S. J. M. Auld 45

Botany. — Blepharidium, a new genus of Rubiaceae from Guatemala. Paul C.
Standley 58

Zoology. — A key to the Philippine subspecies of Obba marginata with notes
on their distribution. Paul Baetsch 60

Abstracts

Geology 64

Petrology 66

Parasitology 66

Proceedings

Washington Academy of Sciences .- 67

Anthropological Society 69

Biological Society 73

Philosophical Society 73

SciENTiPic Notes and News 76

Vol. VIII No. 4

Februaby 19, 2918

JOURNAL

OP THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS
Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock J. Franklin Meyeb

OEOLOQICAL BURVBT BUREAU OF^FLAMT INDUSTRX BUREAU 'OW BTAMDAKOS

PUBLISHED SEMl-MONTHXy^
EXCEPT IN JULY, AUGUST, AND SEPTEMBER, WHEN MONTm.ST

BT IBB

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION

WILLIAMS & WILKINS COMPANY

BALTIMORE, MD.

Entered as Eecond-olass matter July H, 1911, at the^poet office at BaltimoTe.'Maryland, under the Act o'

July 16. 1894

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the oflScial organ of the Waahington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2)_a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington; (3) short abstracts of certain ot
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
aflSliated Societies; (5) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash-
ington. The JotjnNAL is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each month, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
feature; a manuscript reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of thr
month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the
Journal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication

Illustrations will be used onlj' when necessarj' and will be confined tc text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon £xn author to dofray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
author.^ unless requested. It is urged that manuscript oe submitted in final
form ; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

Authors' Copies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may dedre at ten cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices:

4 pp. 8 pp. 12 pp. 19 pj .

50 copies $1.08 $1.95 $2.93 $3.80

100 copies 1.30 2.40 3.60 4.70

Additional copies, per 100 45 90 1.35 1.70

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article,, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Addltfonal covers
$1.00 per 100.

As an author may not see proof, his request for extra copies or reprints should
invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume is ; $6 .00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Sui"vey,
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenmount
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agents: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and Miiller, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str,, Berlin.

Exchanges. — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

' Volume I, however, from July 19, 1911, to December 19, 1911, will be sent far $3.00. Special rates
are givea to membera of soientifio societies affiliated with the Aoademy.

THE WAVERLY PRESS

BALTIMORE, U. 8. A.

ANNOUNCEjMENT of MEETIInUo ur TiiE ACADEMY AND

AFFILIATED '^OCIETIE?^>i

Thursday, February 21: The Washington Academy of Sciences, at
^ the Cosmos Club, at 8.15 p. m. Progi-am:

Dr. George E. Hale: Astronomy and the War.

Saturday, February 23 r. The Biological Society, at the Cosmos Club,
, at 8 p. m.

Tuesday, Februsry 26: The Anthropological Society.

> The programs of the meetings of the affiliated Societies will appear on this page if sent to the
editors by the thirteenth and the twenty-seventh day of each month.

CONTENTS

Original Papers

Page
Physics.^An optical ammeter. Paul D. Foote 77

Mineralogy. — Vivianite from the land pebble phosphate deposits of Florida.
Thomas L. Watson and Stapleton D. Gooch 82

Petrology. — The significance of glass-making processes to the petrologist. N.
L. BowEN 88

Abstracts

Geology 94

Paleontology 96

Ornithology 96

Proceedings

Washington Academy of Sciences 98

Geological Society 98

Philosophical Society 102

Scientific Notes and News 107

Vol. VIII No. 5

Makch 4, 1918

JOUENAL

OP THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS
Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitcbcock J, Fhanklin Metee

OEOLOaiCAL SUBTET BITBBAU OF FT.AMT INDUSIBT BUBEAU 'OF BTAKDABDS

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

BY THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OP SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION

•WILLIAMS A WILKIN8 COMPANY

BALTIMORE, MD.

Entered as second-class matter July 14, 1911, at the post office at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of

July 16. 1894

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This JouRNAiy, the oflBcial organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
«nd it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communirated by mem*
bers of the Academy; (2) a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington ; (3) short abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
afBliated Societies; (5) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash-
ington. The Journal is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each month, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
feature; a manuscript reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the
month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the
Journal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illuslrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined tc text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at tfieir discretion, may
eall upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge*
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in final
form ; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

_ Authors' Copies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and ae
many additional copies as he may deaire at ten cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices:

4 pp. Spp. 12 pp. 19 t->: .

50 copies $1.08 $1.95 $2.93 $3.80

lOOcopies 1.30 2.40 3.60 4.70

Additional copies, per 100 45 90 1.35 1.7C

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
$1.00 per 100.

As an author may not see proof, his request for extra copies or reprints should
invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume is $6.00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences, '
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenmount
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agents: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and Mtiller, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchangea.— The Joubnal does not exchange with other publications.

Mitring Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

'Volume I, however, from July 19, 1011, to D«oember 19, 1911, will be aant for $3.00. Special rates
are given to members of soientifio sooieties affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVBRLY PRESS

BAHTIMORC. U. S. A.

ANNOUNCEMENT OF MEETINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND

AFFILIATED SOCIETIES^

Tuesday, March 5: The Anthropological Society.

Tuesday, March 5: The Botanical Society, at the Cosmos Club, at
8 p. m.

Thursday, March 7: The Washington Academy of Sciences, at the
Cosmos Club, 8:15 p. m. Program:

Col. C. F. Lee, of the British Aviation Mission: Aviation.

Saturday, March 9 : The Biological Society, at the Cosmos Club, at
8 p. m.

Wednesday, March 13: The Geological Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8 p. m.

Thursday, March 14: The Society of Foresters. Program:

E. H. Clapp, H. S. Betts, and^RoLF Thelex: Forest products and the war.

Saturday, March 16: The Philosophical Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8 p. m. Program: »

J. H. Dellinger/ of the' Bureau of Standards: The principles of electrical
measurements at radio frequencies. (Illustrated)

P. D. Merica, of the'Bureau of Standards: Relative thermal expansivities of the
constituents of brass. (Illustrated)

G. W. ViNAL, of the Bureau of Standards : Some electrical properties of silver
sulfide.

> The programs of the meetings of the affiliated Societies will appeal on this page if sent to the
editors by the thirteenth and the twenty-seventh day of each month.

CONTENTS
Original Papers

Botany. — Plant life on saline soils. Thomas H. Kearnbt 109

Botany. — A new species of Rondeletia from Mexico. Paul C. Stand ley. . . 126

Abstracts

Geology 128

Ornithology 130

Proceedings

Washington Academy of Sciences 135

Biological Society 138

Botanical Society 140

Scientific Notes and News 143

Vol. VIII No. 6

March 19, 1918

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS
Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock J. Fkanklin Meyeb

OKOLOOIOAL BUBTBT BURKAU 07 PLANT INDC8TRT BUREAU 'OF BTAMDABDa

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

BT THII

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION

WILLIAMS it WILKIN8 COMPANY

BALTIMORE, MD.

Entered as eeeond-class matter July 14, 1911, at the poet office at Baltimore, Maryland, uader the Act of

July 10, 18M

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the oflScial organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aima to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
•nd it publishes: (I) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington; (3) short abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
affiliated Societies; (6) notes of events connected with the scTentific life of Wash-
ington. The Journal is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each month, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an esscntiftl
feature; a manuscript reaching the editors on the second or the eevenf eenth of the
month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the
Journal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined tc text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript oe submitted in final
form ; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

Authors' Copies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive giatis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may deuire at ten cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices:

4 pp. 8 pp. 12 pp. 16 pp.

50 copies $1.08 $1.95 $2.93 $3.80

100 copies 1.30 2.40. 3.60 4.70

Additional copies, per 100 46 90 1.35 1.70

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
$1.00 per 100.

As an author may not see proof, his request for extra copies or reprints should
invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume is $6.00*

Semi-monthly numbers .25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenmount
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agents: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and MQller, Prim Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchanges. — ^The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

' Vohime I, however, from July 10, 1911, to December 19, 1011, will be eent (or 13.00. Special rataa
are given to members o( loientifle soeieties afiSliated with the Aoademjr.

THE WAVERLY PRK88
BALTIMORE. U. B. A.

ANNOUNCE^IENT OF MEETINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND

AFFILIATED SOCIETIESi

Tuesday, ^March 26: The Anthropological Society, at the West Study
Room of the Public Library, at 8 p.m. Program:

Dr. V. GirrrFRiDA-RuGGERT, Professor of Anthropology at the University of
^■^nples. The paper will be read by Dr. Austin H. Clark, U. S. National
Museum: The origins of the Italian people.

Thursda3% March 28: Society of American Foresters. Program:
Raphael Zon: The forest resources and timber trade of the world after the ivar.

Thursday, ^larch 28: The Washington Academy of Sciences, at the
, Cosmos Club. Program to be announced later.

Saturday, -\Iarch 30: The Philosophical Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8:15 p.m. Program:

D. L. Hazard, of the U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey: The magnetic survey

of the United States.
3. P. Attlt, of the Departnient of Terrestrial Magnetism, Carnegie Institution:

Cruises III and IV oj the Yacht Carnegie in the Arctic and Sid) -Antarctic

Regions, 1914-1917.
(Illustrated with slides and moving pictures.)

Tuesday, April 2: The Botanical Society, at the Cosmos Club, at
8 p.m.

Thursday, April 4: The Entomological Sodety.

* The programs of the meetings of the affiliated Societies will appear on this p^e if sent to the
editors by the thirteenth and twenty-seventh day of each month.

CONTENTS

Obioinal Papers

Page

Oceanography. — An electrical instrument for recording sea-water salinity.
Ernest E. Weibel and Albert L. Thxjras 145

Ethnobotany. — The maho, or mahagua, as a trans-Pacific plant. 0. F. Cook
and Robert Carter Cook 153

Abstracts

Geology 171

Ornithology 174

Proceedings

Washington Academy of Sciences 177

Biological Society 177

Entomological Society 179

Philosophical Society 180

Scientific Notes and News 184

Vol. VIII No. 7

April 4, 1918

JOUENAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS
Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock J. FRANKLm Meteb

SKOLOOICAI. SUBTBT bureau of plant INDUBTBY BUBBAU of 8TANDABDfl

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

BY THB

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OP PUBLICATION
WILLIAMS & WILKINS COMPANY
BALTIMORE, MD.

Entered as second-class matter July 14, 1911, at the post office at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of

July 16, 1894

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington; (3) short abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
affiliated Societies; (5) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash-
ington. The Journal is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each month, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
feature; a manuscript reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the
month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the
Journal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no_ charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof/ — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in final
form; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

Authors' Copies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may desire at ten cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices :

4 pp. 8 pp. 12 pp. 16 pp.

50 copies $1.08 $1.95 $2.93 $3.80

100 copies 1.30 2.40 3.60 4.70

Additional copies, per 100 45 90 1 .35 1 .70

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
$1.00 per 100.

As an author will not ordinarily see proof, his request for extra copies or re-
prints should invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume is $6 .00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenmount
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agents: William W^esley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and Miiller, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchanges. — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty daj's after date of the following issue.

• Volume I, however, from July 19, 1911, to December 19, 1911, will be sent for S3.00. Special rates
are given to members of scientific societies affiliated with tiie Academy.

THE WAVERUY PRESS
BALTIMORE. U. S. A.

ANNOUNCEMENT OF MEETINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND

AFFILIATED SOCIETIEgi

Saturday, April 6: The Biological Society, at the Cosmos Club, at
8 p. m.

Tuesday, April 9 : The Anthropological Society, at Pubhc Library, at
8 p. m. Program:

Paul Haupt, Professor of the Semitic languages and Director of the Oriental
Seminary in the Johns Hopkins University: Mesopotamia and Palestine.

Wednesday, April 10 : The Geological Society, at the Cosmos Club, at
8 p. m. Program:

Edwin Kirk: Paleozoic glaciation in Southeastern Alaska.

H. E. Merwin and E. Posnjak: The iron-hydroxide minerals.

J. B. Mertie : Repeated stream piracy and other physiographic anomalies in the
Tolovana district, Alaska.

Thursday, April 11: The Chemical Society, at the Cosmos Club, at 8
p. m.

Thursday, April 11: Society of American Foresters. Program:

Benton McKate and L. S. Murphy: Colonization and management oj forest
lands after the war.

Saturday, April 13 : The Philosophical Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8 p. m.

Monday and Tuesday, April 22 and 23: The National Academy of
Sciences, at the Smithsonian Institution. A cordial invitation is
extended by the President of the National Academy of Sciences to
the members of the Washington Academy of Sciences to attend the
scientific sessions and the pubUc lectures.

The William EUery Hale Lectures will be given by Professor John C. Merriam,
Professor of Paleontology, University of California, on the subject: The Be-
ginnings of Human History from the Geologic Record.

These lectures will be held at 8 p. m. on Monday and 4 p. m. on Tuesday.

Important reports on the work of the National Research Council will be pre-
sented at the scientific sessions.

I The programs of the meetings of the affiliated Societies will appear on this page if sent to the
editors by the thiiteenth and twenty-seventh of each month.

CONTENTS

Original Papers

Page
Geochemistry. — Note on the inorganic constituents of two small crusta-
ceans. F. W. Clarke and B. Salkover 185

Geology. — Correlation of the deposits of Jackson and Vicksburg ages in
Mississippi and Alabama. Charles Wythe Cooke 186

Botany. — A new Anemia from Mexico. William R. Maxon 199

Abstracts

Physics 201

Chemistry 203

Geology 204

Petrology 205

Volcanology 207

Ornithology 207

Proceedings

Washington Academy of Sciences 208

Anthropological Society 208

Biological Society 211

Botanical Society 214

Entomological Society 217

Society of American Foresters 218

Scientific Notes and News 221

Vol. VIII No. 8

April 19, 1918

JOUENAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS
Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock J. Franklin Meter

GEOLOGICAL SURVET BUBEAU OP PLANT INDUSTRY BUBEA0 OP STANDARDS

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

BT THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION
WILLIAMS & WILKINS COMPANY
BALTIMORE, MD.

Entered as second-class matter July U, 1911, at the post ofiee at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of

July 16, 1894

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it pubh'shcs: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington; (3) short abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
affiliated Societies ; (5) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash-
ington. The Journal is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each month, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
feature ; a manuscript reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the
month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the
Journal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors ; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof.— Tn order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in final
form; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

Authors' Copies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may desire at ten cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices :

4 pp. 8 pp. 12 pp. 16 pp.

50 copies $1.08 $1.95 $2.93 $3.80

100 copies 1.30 2.40 3.60 4.70

Additional copies, per 100 45 90 1.35 1.70

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusire
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
$1.00 per 100.

As an author will not ordinarily see proof, his request for extra copies or re-
prints should invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume is $6 .00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey.
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenmount
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agents: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and Miiller, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchanges. — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim ia
mode within thirty days after date of the following issue.

• Volume I, however, from .Tuly W, 1911, to December 19, 1911, will be sent for $3.00. Special rates
are given to members of acientific societies affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERLY PRESS

BALTIMORE, U. S. A.

ANNOUNCEMENT OF MEETINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND

AFFILIATED SOCIETIES^

Saturday, April 20: The Biological Society, at the Cosmos Club, at
8 p. m.

Tuesday, April 23 : The Anthropological Society, at the Public Library,
at 8 p. m. The Annual Meeting.

The retiring President, William H. Babcock, will deliver an address on Some
ethnological and national j actors in the -present war.

Thursday, April 25: The Chemical Society, at the Cosmos Club, at 8
p. m.

Thursday, April 25: The Society of American Foresters, Program:
J, G. Peters, Austin Gary, and W. R. Mattoon: Southern forestry ■problems.

Saturday, April 27: The Philosophical Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8 p. m.

Thursday, May 2 : The Entomological Society.

Saturday, May 4: The Biological Survey, at 8 p. m., the place to be
announced later.

Tuesday, May 7: The Botanical Society, at 8 p. m., the place to be
announced later.

Monday and Tuesday, April 22 and 23: The National Academy of
Sciences, at the Smithsonian Institution. A cordial invitation is
extended by the President of the National Academy of Sciences to
the members of the Washington Academy of Sciences to attend the
scientific sessions and the public lectures.

The William Ellery Hale Lectures will be given by Professor John G. Merriam,
Professor of Paleontology, University of Galifornia, on the subject: The Be-
ginnings of Human History from the Geologic Record.

These lectures will be held at 8 p. m. on Monday and 4 p. m. on Tuesday.

Important reports on the work of the National Research Gouncil will be pre-
sented at the scientific sessions.

> The programs of the meetings of the affiliated Societies will appear on this page if sent to the
editors by the thirteenth and twenfl^-soventh <rf each month.

CONTENTS

Obiginal Papers

Page

Aviation.— Aviation and the war. C. F. Lee 225

Physics. — Note on the periodic system of the elements. P. V. Wells 232

Geochemistry. — ^Fluorine in sericitization. Sidney Paige and George

Steigbr 234

Crystallography. — ^Note on the fundamental polyhedron of the diamond

lattice. Elliot Q. Adams 240

Botany. — A synopsis of the Chinese and Formosan species of Albizzia. P.

L. RiCKEB 242

Abstracts

Physics 247

Electricity 247

Physical Chemistry 248

Geology 248

Technology 250

Proceedings

Washington Academy of Sciences 251

Philosophical Society 251

Anthropological Society 256

Scientific Notes and News 260

Vol. VIII No. 9

May 4, 1918

JOUENAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS
Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock J. Franklin Meyer

OEOLOOICAL 6URVBT BUBEAC OP PLANT INDU6TBT BTTBEACT OF eTANDABDS

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

BY THH

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICB OF PUBLICATION
WILLIAMS & WILKINS COMPANY
BALTIMORB, MD.

Entered aa eecond-claaa matter July 14, 1911, at tha post o95oa at Baltimore, Maryland, under tha Act of

July 16, 1894

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it pubh'shes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington; (3) short abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
affiliated Societies; (5) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash-
ington. The JouHNAii is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each month, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
feature; a manuscript reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the
month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the
Journal.

Manuscri'pts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors ; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable orm for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof.' — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in final
form; the editors will exercise due care n seeing that copy is followed.

Authors' Copies and Re-prints/ — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may desire at ten cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices :

*pp.

50 copies $1.08

100 copies ^ 1.30

Additional copies, per 100 45

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
$1.00 per 100.

As an author will not ordinarily see proof, his request for extra copies or re-
prints should invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume is $6.00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenmount
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

Eurnpean Agent : William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and Miiller, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchanges. — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty day-5 afte date of the following issue.

• Volume I, however, from July 19. 1911, to Desember 19, 1911, will be sent for $3.00. Special rates
are given to members of Hcienti&c societies affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERLY PRESS
BAUTIMORE, U. S. A.

8 pp.

12 pp.

16 pp.

$1.95...,

... $2.93...,

... $3.80

2.40....

,.. ;.60....

,.. 4.70

• •■••• • *J\J • • • «

... 1.35....

... 1.70

ANNOUNCEMENT OF MEETINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND

AFFILIATED SOCIETIES^

Tuesday, May 7 : The Botanical Society, at 8 p. m.

Thursday, May 9: The Washington Academy of Sciences, at the
George Washington Medical School, at 8.15 p. m. Program to be
announced later.

Thursday, May 9: The Chemical Society. The regular meeting has
been replaced by the joint meeting with the Washington Academy,
May 15.

Saturday, May 11: The Philosophical Society, at the Cosmos Club,
at 8.15 p. m. Program:

A. Q. Tool, Bureau of Standards: The constitution of the gas ion. (Illustrated) ,
L. A. Bauer, Department of Terrestrial Magnetism: Corresponding changes in
the earth's magnetic state and in solar activity, 1888-1916. (Illustrated).

Wednesday, May 15: The Washington Academy of Sciences and the
Chemical Society, joint meeting at the Interior Department, 18th
and F Streets, at 8.15 p. m. Program:

Arthur A. Notes, Massachusetts Institute of Technology: The determination
of crystal structure by x-rays.

Saturday, May 18: The Biological Society, at the Meeting House,
Friends' School, 1809 I Street, at 8 p. m. Program:

Dr. J. C. Merriam, Professor of Paleontology, University of California: Cave
hunting in California.

> The proerams of the meetings of the afiGliated Societies will appear oa this page if sent to the
editors by the thirteenth and twenty-seventh of each month.

CONTENTS

Original Papebs

Page

Chemistry. — Crystals of barium disilicate in optical glass. N. L, Bowen. 265

Geology. — Correlation of the Tertiary geologic formations of the south-
eastern United States, Central America, and the West Indies. Thomas
Wayland Vaughan 268

Crystallography. — Certain relations between crystalline form, chemical con-
stitution, and optical properties in organic compounds, — I. Edgar T,
Wherrt 277

Anthropology. — Anthropology as a corrective of provincialism. John R.

SWANTON 286

Abstbacts

Geology , 290

Proceedings

Washington Academy of Sciences ' 291

Philosophical Society 292

Botanical Society 295

Biological Society 296

Entomological Society 298

Scientific Notes and News 300

Vol. VIII No. 10

May 19, 1918

JOUENAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS
Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock J. Franklin Mbtbb

asoLoaiCAL scbtbt bubeax; of plant INDUSTBT BUBXAO Of stakdabiw

PUBUSHED SEMI-MONTHLY
SXCBFT IN JULY. AUGUST. AND SEPTEMBER, WHEN MONTHLY

BT THB

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION
WILLIAMS 3c WILKINS COMPANY
BALTIMOBB, MD.

Entarad as seoond-claas matter July 14, 1911, at tha post o'Bco at Baltimoro, Maryland, under thi Aot o^

July 10, ISM

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington; (3) short abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
affiliated Societies; (5) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash-
ington. The Journal is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each month, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
feature; a manuscript reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the
month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the
Journal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in final
form; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

Authors' Copies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
man^y additional copies as he may desire at ten cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices :

4 pp. 8 pp. 13 pp. 18 pp.

60 copies $1.08 $1.95 $2.93 $3.80

100 copies 1.30 2.40 3.60 4.70

Additional copies, per 100 45 90 1.35 1.70

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
$1.00 per 100. _ _

As an author will not ordinarily see proof, his request for extra copies or re-
prints should invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume is $6.00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenmount
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agents: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and Miiller, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchanges. — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing^ Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

• Volumo I, however, from July 19, 1911, to December 19, 1911, will be seat tor 83.00. Special rstea
are eiven to member* of Rcientifio societies affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERLY PRESS
BALTIMORE, U. 8. A.

ANNOUNCEMENT OF MEETINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND

AFFILIATED SOCIETIES^

Saturday, May 25: The Philosophical Society.
Thursday, June 6: The Entomological Society.

1 The proBnuna of th» meetings of the affiliated Soeietiea will appeal on thia page if aent to the
editora by the thirteenth and twenty-eeventh of each month.

CONTENTS

Oriqinax. Papers

Page

Ordnance. — Developments in artillery during the war. John Headlam.. . 301

Crystallography. — Certain relations between crystalline form, chemical con-
stitution, and optical properties in organic compounds, — II. Edgar T.
Wherry 319

Abstracts

Physics 328

Geochemistry 328

Proceedings

Washington Academy of Sciences 330

Biological Society 330

Anthropological Society 331

Scientific Notes and News 334

Vol. VIII No. 11

June 4, 1918

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS
Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock J. Franklin Meyeb

OEOLOQICAL SOBTBT BCBBATT Or PLANf INDTnTBT BTJBaAO OF STANDABSB

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

BT THS

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION
WILLIAMS * WILKINS COMPANY
BALTIMOBB, MD.

Eatered as second -claas matter July li, 1911, at the post ofBce at Baltimore, Maryland, under tb« Aot of

July 16. 18M

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the oflBcial organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) a complete list of references to current scientific articles
published in or emanating from Washington; (3) short abstracts of certain of
these articles; (4) proceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and
affiliated Societies; (5) notes of events connected with the scientific life of Wash-
ington. The JouuNAL is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of
each month, except during the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only.
Volumes correspond to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential
feature; a manuscript reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the
month will ordinarily appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the
Journal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should^ appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with f he manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in final
form ; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

Authors' Copies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the nmnber containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may desire at ten cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices :

4 pp. 8 pp. U pp. 16 pp.

50 copies $1.08 $1.95 $2.93 $3.80

lOOcopies 1.30 2.40 ;^.60 4.70

Additional copies, per 100 .45 90 1.35 1.7(J

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
$1.00 per 100.

As an author will not ordinarily see proof, his request for extra copies or re-
prints should invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume is $6.00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenmount
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agents: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and MuUer, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchanges: — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

* Volume I, however, from July 19, 1911, to December 19, 1911, will be seat for $3.00. Special ratea
are given to memherg of erientifio societies affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERLY PRESS
BALTIMORE, U. S. K.

CONTENTS

Original Papers

Page

Biology. — Biology and War. Raymond Pearl 341

Zoology. — ^Land Shells of Palawan Passage. Paul Bartsch 361

Abstracts

Electricity 368

Technology 368

Proceedings

Philosophical Society 369

Biological Society 374

Entomological Society 376

Scientific Notes and News 377

Vol. VIII Ko. 12

June 19, 1918

JOUENAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS
Adolph Knopf A.S.Hitchcock J. Franklin Metbb

QBOLOOICAL BUBVKT bURBAi; OP PLANT IMDUBTBT BUBSAO OF STANDABD»

PUBLISHED 8EM-M0NTHLY
EXCEPT IN JULY, AUGUST. AND SEPTEMBER, WHEN MONTHLY

BT TBB

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PXTBUCATION
WILLIAMS & WILKINS COMPANY
< BALTIMOBB, MD.

Eotered aa second-class matter July 14, 1911, at the post o£Bce at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of

July 16, 1894

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the oflEicial organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) short abstracts of certain of these articles; (3) pro-
ceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and affiliated Societies; (4)
notes of events connected with the scientific life of Washington. The Journal
is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of each month, except dur-
ing the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only. Volumes correspond
to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential feature; a manuscript
reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the month will ordinarily
appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the Journal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, al hough no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in finer
form; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

Authors' Copies and Refrints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may des're at ten cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices:

4 pp.

50 copies $1.08

100 copies 1.30

Additional copies, per 100 45

Covers bearing the name of the autho" and title of the article, with inclusivs
pagination and date of issue, will be S2.00 for the first 100. Additional covere
$1.00 per 100.

As an author will not ordinarily see proof, his request for extra copies or re-
prints should invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rale of Subscription per volume is $6.00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenmount
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agent : William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and Muller, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchanges. — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

• Volume I, however, from July 19, 1911, to December 19, 1911, will be sent for $3.00. Special rates
are given to memhera of Rcientifio societies affiliated with the Academy.

8 pp.

IS pp. 16 pp.

; $1.95...,

... $2.93 $3.80

2.40..,.

.. 3.60 4.70

• *•••• •K/\J» • • «

... 1.35 1.70

THE WAVERLY PRESS
BALTIMORE, U. S. K.

CONTENTS

Original Papers

Page
Chemistry. — The nitrogen problem in relation to the war. Arthur A.

Notes 381

Ornithology. — Diagnosis of a new genus of Timaliidae. Harry C. Ober-

HOLSER 394

Technology. — Variance of measuring instruments and its relation to accuracy

and sensitivity. Frederick J. Schlink 395

Abstracts

Geodesy 405

Spectroscopy 405

Metallography 406

Ornithology 407

Proceedings

Geological Society 410

Biological Society 413

Scientific Notes and News 416

Vol. VIII No. 13

July 19, 1918

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF EDITORS
Adolph Knopf A. S. Hitchcock J. Fbanklin Mbyeb

OBOLOaiOAI. aVBYXT BDBXAU 07 PLANt IHOUITBT BUBBAO OT BTAMDABDI

PUBLISHED 8EMI.M0NTHLY
BXCSFT IN JULY, AUGUST. AND 8EPTBMBBR, WHEN MONTHLY

BT TBB

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OmCB 07 PTTBUCATION
WILLIAMS A WILKIN8 COMPANY
BALTIMOBB, MO.

Eatared m seoond-class matter July U, 1911, at the port offioa at Baltimore, Maryland, undar the Act of

July 10. 1804

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) short abstracts of certain of these articles^ (3) pro-
ceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and affiliated Societies; (4)
notes of events connected with the scientific life of Washington. The Journal
is issued semi-monthly^ on the fourth and nineteenth of each month, except dur-
ing the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only. Volumes correspond
to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential feature; a manuscript
reaching the editors on the second orthe seventeenth of the month will ordinarily
appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the Journal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The ediitors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no^ charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in finer
form ; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

Authors' Copies and Reprints. — On request tne author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may desire at ten cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices :

4 pp. 8 pp. 13 pp. 16 pp.

50 copies $1.08 $1,95 $2,93 $3.80

100 copies 1.30 2.40 3.60 4,70

Additional copies, per 100 45 90 1.35 1.70

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, vdll be $2.00 for the first 100. Aaditional covers
81,00 per 100,

As an author will not ordinarily see proof, his request for extra copies or re-
prints should invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume ts $6.00*

Semi-monthly numbers. 25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, "William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenmount
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agents: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and Miiller, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchanges. — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

• Volums I, however, from July 19, 1911, to Dooeraber 19, 1911, will be sent for $3.00. Special ratea '
fwa givea to memhen of wiientifio aooieties aSSliated with the Academy.

THE VVAVERLY PRESS
BALTIMORE. U. S. A.

CONTENTS

Original Papers

Page

Geology.— New geologic formations in western Wyoming. Eliot Black-
welder .' 417

Botany. — Omiltemia, a new genus of Rubiaceae from Mexico. Paul C.

Standley 426

Zoology.-^Opalina and the origin of tlie ciliate Infusoria. Matnard M.

Metcalf 427

Zoology.— Synopsis of the supergeneric groups of Rodents. Gerrit S.

Miller, Jr., and James W. Gidlet 431

Abstracts

Geography \ 449

Geology 450

Technology 456

Proceedings

Washington Academy of Sciences 457

Botanical Society 457

Entomological Society 459

Scientific Notes and News 460

Vol. VIII No. 14

August 19, 1918

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

Adolph Knopf

GEOLOGICAI. SDBVET

BOARD OF EDITORS

A. S. Hitchcock
bxtbxat; of plant inoustbt

J. Franklin Meyeb

BDB£lik.U or BTAM0ABD8

ASSOCIATE EDITORS

N. HOLLISTER

BIOLOGICAL SOCIETT

J. B. NORTRON

BOTANICAL SOCIETY

Sidney Paige

GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY

F. B. SlLSBEB

PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY

R. B, SOSMAN

CHEMICAL SOCIETY
J. R. Sw ANTON

ANTHBOPOLOGICAL SOCIETY

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

BY TBS

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION
WILLIAMS & WILKINS COMPANY
BALTIMORE, MD.

Entered as second-class matter July 14, 1911 at the postofEce at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of
July 18, 1881. Acoeptanse for mailing at special rate of posta<;e provided form Section 1103,
Act of October 3, 1917, Authorized on July 3, 1918

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem»
bers of the Academy; (2) short abstracts of certain of these articles; (3) pro-
ceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and affiliated Societies; (4)
notes of events connected with the scientific life of Washington. The Journai,
is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of each month, except dur-
ing the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only. Volumes correspond
to calendar 5'ears. Prompt publication is an essential feature; a manuscript
reaching the editors on the second orthe seventeenth of the month will ordinarily
appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the Journal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The eaitors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in finer
form; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

Authors' Copies and Re'prints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution find as
many additional copies as he may desire at ten cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices:

< pp. 8 pp. IS pp. 10 pp.

50 copies $1.08 $1.95 $2.93 $3.80

lOOcopies 1.30 2.40 3.60 4.70

Additional copies, per 100 45 90 1.35 1.70

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
$1.00 per 100. ... * ..

_As an author will not ordinarily see proof, his request for extra copies or re-
prints should invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume is $6.00*

Serai-monthly numbers .25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenmount
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agent : William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and Miiller, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchanges. — The Journal does not exchaige with other publications.

Missing Narnbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty .days after date of the following issue.

• Volums I, however, from July 19, 1911, to December 19. 1911, will be sent for $3.00. Special rate*
an Kivea to meinh«r« of acientifio societies affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERUY PRESS
BALTIMORE, U. 8. A.

X

CONTENTS
Oeiginal Papbbs

Page
Artillery. — The problem of anti-aircraft firing. X. Reillb 465

Crystallography. The assignment of crystals to symmetry classes. Edgab

T. Wherry 480

Botany. — A sketch of botanical activity in the District of Columbia. I.

P. L. RiCKER 487

Radiotelegraphy. — Resonance measurements in radiotelegraphy with the

oscillating audion. L. W. Austin 498

Abstracts

Geology ^. 501

Zoology 503

Proceedings

Washington Academy of Sciences 4 . . . . 504

Philosophical Society of Washington 504

Scientific Notes and News 508

Vol. VIII No. 15

September 19, 1918

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

Adolph Knopf

OXOLOaiCAL aUBTXT

BOARD OF EDITORS

A, S. Hitchcock

BVBaAU OF PLANT INDUBTBT

J. Franklin Metbb

BtTBKAU OF BTANSABDS

ASSOCIATE EDITORS
N. HOLUSTER

BIOLOGICAL 80CIBTT •

J. B. Norton

BOTANICAL BOCIETT

Sidney Paige

GBOLOGICAL BOCIETT

F. B. Silsbee

PHILO8OPBI0AL SOOISTT
R. B. SOSMAN

CHEMICAL BOCIETT
J. R. Sw ANTON

A NTHBOPOLOQICAL BOCIETT

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

BT IBB

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION

WILLIAMS & WILKINS COMPANY

BALTIMORE, MD.

Entered as seoond-olass matter July 14, 1911 at the itoatoffice at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of
July IS, 1S64. Aooeptance for mailing at special rate of postai^e provided for in Section 1103,
Act of October 3, 1917, Authorized on July 3, 1918

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) short abstracts of certain of these articles j (3) pro-
ceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and affiliated Societies; (4)
notes of events connected with the scientific life of Washington. The Jotjknal
is issued semi-monthly^ on the fourth and nineteenth of each month, except dur-
ing the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only. Volumes correspond
to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential feature; a manuscript
reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the month will ordinarily
appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the Jouhnal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. Jt is urged that manuscript be submitted in finer
form; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

Authors' Copies and Rc'prinis. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may des re at ten cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices:

4 pp. 8 pp. IS pp. 10 pp.

50 copies .$1.08 $1.95 $2.93 $3.80

too copies 1.30 2.40 3.60 !.70

Additional copi;s, per 100 45 90 1.35 1.70

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
81.00 per 100.

As an author will not ordinarily see proof, his request •'or extra copies or re-
prints should invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume is $6.00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenmount
Ave., Baltimore, Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agents: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and Muller, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin.

Exchanges. — The JournaIi does not exchange with other publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made wifhin thirty 'days after date of the following issue.

• Volume I, however, from July 19, 1911, to Docombar 19, 1911, i^ill be sent for tS.OO. Special rate*
ar« ipvea to njerT\W«r» of wientifio societies aiBliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERLY PRESS

BALTIMORE, U. S. A.

CONTENTS

Original Papers

Page
Physics. — Low voltage discharge in sodium vapor. Paul D. Foote and

F. L. MoHLER 513

Botany. — A sketch of botanical activity in the District of Columbia, — II.

Bibliography. P. L. Ricker 516

Botany. — Chenopodium nuttalliae, a food plant of the Aztecs. W. E.

Safford 521

Biology. — The biological significance of false witches '-brooms in Ericaceous

plants. Jean Dufrenoy 527

Zoology. — A key to the subspecies of Leptopoma nitidum Sowerby of the

Philippine Islands. Paul Bartsch 532

Abstracts

Radiometry 536

Metallurgy 537

Geology 637

Ornithology 540

Proceedings

Biological Society of Washington 642

SciENTiPic Notes and News \ 543

Vol. VIII No. 16

October 4, 1918

JOUENAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

Adolph Knopf

asoLoaiOAL subtet

BOARD OF EDITORS
A. S. Hitchcock

BOBBAtr or PLANT INDCSTBT

J. Franklin Metbb
bt;bsau of btandaros

ASSOCIATE EDITORS
N. HOLLISTEB

BIOLOOICAI. aOCIBIT

J. B. Norton

BOTANICAI. 80CIBTT

Sidney Paige

OaOLOGIOAL BOCIETT

F. B. SiLSBEB

PHIL080PHICAI, BOCfTBTT
R, B. SOSMAN

CHEUICAL BOdXTY

J. R. SWANTON

ANTESOPOLOGICAL SOCIBTT

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

BT THB

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION

Wn,LL^MS & WILKINS COMPANY

BALTIMORE, MD.

Entered aa second-class matter July 14, 1911 at the postoffice at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of

July 16, 1864. Acceptance for mailing at special rate of postage provided for in Section 1103,

Act of October 3, 1017, Authorized on July 3, 1018

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) short abstracts of certain of these articles^ (3) pro-
ceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and affiliated Societies; (4)
notes of events connected with the scientific life of Washington. The Journal
is issued semi-monthly^ on the fourth and nineteenth of each month, except dur-
ing the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only. Volumes correspond
to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential feature; a manuscript
reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the month will ordinarily
appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the Jottenal.

Manuscripts Diay be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will he used only when necessary and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The eaitors, &t their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in finer
form; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

Authors' Copies and Reprints. — On reauest the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may desire at ten cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices :

4 pp. 8 pp. IS pp. 16 pp.

50 copies $1.08 $1.95 $2.93 $3.80

100 copies 1.30 2.40 3.60 4.70

Additional copies, per 100 45 90 1.35 1.70

Covers bearing the name of the autbo" and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
$1.00 per 100.

As an author will not ordinarily see proof, his equest for extra copies or re-
prints should invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume ts $6.00*

Semi-monthly numbers > 25

Monthly numbers. 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, William Bowie, Coast and Geodetic Survey,
Washington, D. C, to Williams & Wilkins Company, 2419-2421 Greenmount
Ave., Baltimore. Md., or to the European Agents.

European Agent : William Wesley <s Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London, and
Mayer and Miiller, Prinz Louis-Ferdinand Str., Berlin

Exr-hangps. — The Journal does not excha ge with -ther publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without cha-ge, provided that claim is
made wiihin thirty day-; after date of the following issue.

• Volume T, however, from July 1!), 1911, to December 19, 1911, will be sent for S3.00. Special rate*
art siven to laemher* of nrientiOo societies affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERLY PRESS
BALTIMORE. U. 6. A.

%

CONTENTS

Original Papers

Paca
Physics. — Some peculiar thermoelectric effects. Paul D. Foote and

T. R. Harrison 545

Geology and Mineralogy. — Pyrolusite from Virginia. Thomas L. Watson

and Edgar T. Wherrt 550

Abstracts

Botany 561

Phytopathology 562

Technology 566

Proceedings

Washington Academy of Sciences 567

Scientific Notes and News 568

Vol. VIII

No. 17

October 19, 1918

JOUENAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

■ OF SCIENCES

Adolph Knopf

GBOLOaiCAI, SUBVET

BOARD OF EDITORS
A. S. Hitchcock

BUBBAU OF PI.ANT INDttSTBT

J. Franklin Meteb

-aUBEAU OF BTANDABDS

ASSOCIATE EDITORS

N. HOLLISTER

BIOLOGICAI. 80CIBTT

J. B. Norton

BOTANICAL 80CIETT

Sidney Paige

OBOLOOICAL SOCIETT

F. B. SiLSBEE

PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIBTT

R. B. SOSMAN

CHEMICAL SOCIETT

J. R. Sw ANTON

ANTHBOPOLOGICAL SOCIETT

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

BT THB

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION

WILLLVMS & WILKINS COMPANY

BALTIMORE, MD.

V--

Kntered as second-class matter July 14, 1911 at the postoffice,at Baltimore, Maryland, under tbe Act of
July 16, 1864. Acceptance for mailing at special rate of postage provided for in Section 1103,
Act of October 3, 1917. Authorixed on July 3, 1918

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To thjs
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) short abstracts of certain of these articles; (3) pro-
ceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and affiliated Societies; (4)
notes of events connected with the scientific life of Washington. The JotjRNAL
is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of each month, except dur-
ing the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only. Volumes correspond
to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential feature; a manuscript
reaching the editors on the second o the seventeenth of the month will ordinarily
appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the Journal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearlj' typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Ilustratinns will be used only when necessary and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in final
form; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

Authors' Co-pies and Reprints. — -On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may desire at 'ten cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices :

4 pp. 8 pp. 12 pp. 16 pp.

'50 copies $1.08 $1.95 $2.93 $i.80

100 copies 1.30 2.40 3.60 4.70

Additional copies, per 100 45 .90 1.35 1.70

^ Covers bearing the nangie of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional cover
$1.00 per 100. ' .

As an author will not ordinarily see proof, his request for extra copies or re-
prints should invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume is $8.00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, R. L. Faris, Coast and Geodetic Survey, Wash-
ington, D. C.

European Agent: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London.

Exchanges. — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

• Volume I, however, from July 19, 1911, to December 19, 1911, will be sent for $3.00. Special rates
are given to membersofscienfihc societies affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERLY PRESS
BALTIMORE. U. S. A.

A

CONTENTS
Original Papers

Page
Radiotelegraphy.— New method of using contact detectors in radio meas-
urements. L. W. Austin 569

Ornithology. — Diagnosis of a new genus of Anatidae from South America.
Harry C. Oberholser 571

I

Abstracts

Physics 573

Magnetism 575

Spectroscopy 575

Mycology 576

Engineering 5'< 6

Chemistry 577

Soil Physics 577

Technology 578

Scientific Notes and News ^ 579

Vol. VIII

No. 18

November 4, 1918

JOUENAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

Adolph Knopf

OBOLOOICAL SURVET

BOARD OF EDITORS
A. S. Hitchcock ^

BUBKAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY

ASSOCIATE EDITORS
N. HOLLISTER

BIOLOGICAi SOdlfTT

J. B. Norton

BOTANICAL 80CTETT

Sidney Paige

GEOLOGICAL BOCIETT

J. Franklin Mbtbb

BUREAU OF 8IANDABD8

F. B. Silsbeb

PHILOSOPHICAL SOCrETT

R. B. SOSMAN

CHEMICAL SOCIETY
J. R. Sw ANTON

ANTHSOPOLOGICAL SOCIOETT

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

BT TBB

WA3HINGT0N ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION

WILLIAMS & WILKINS COMPANY

BALTIMORE. MD.

Entered as second-claaa matter July 14, 1911 at the postoffice at Baltimore, Maryland, under tbe Act of

July 16, 18M. Acceptance for mailing at special rate of postage provided for in Section 1103,

Act of October 3, 1917, Authorized on July 3, 1918

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) short abstracts of certain of these articles; (3) pro-
ceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and affiliated Societies; (4)
notes of events connected with the scientific life of Washingtori. The Journal
is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of each month, except dur-
ing the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only. Volumes correspond
to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential feature; a manuscript
reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the month will ordinarily
appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the Journal.

Ma?iuscri'pts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Ilbistrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in final
^orm ; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

Authors' Copies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may desire at ten cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices :

4 pp. 8 pp. 12 pp. 16 pp.

SOcopies $1.08 $1.95 $2.93 $3.80

100 copies 1.30 2.40 3.60 4.70

Additional copies, per 100 45 .90 1.35 1.70

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covefs
$1.00 per 100.

As an author will not ordinarily see proof, his request for extra copies or re-
prints should invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume is $6.00*

Semi-monthly njimbers 25 -

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, R. L. Faris, Coast and Geodetic Survey, Wash-
ington, D. C.

European Agent: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London.

Exchanges. — The Journal does not exchange with Other publications.

Missing Nw}ibers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

• Volume I, lioweyer, from July 19, 1911, to December 19, 1911, will beaent for $3.00. Special rates
are given to members of scientific societies affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERLY PRESS
BALTIMORE. U. S. A.

CONTENTS

Original Papers

Page
Botany. — A phytogeographical survey of southern Maryland. Roland M.
Harper ; 581

Plant Physiology. — The reactions of soils supporting the growth of certain
native orchids. Edgar T. Wherry 589

Ethnology.— A unique form of prehistoric pottery. J. Walter Fewkes 598

Abstracts

Ornithology 602

Engineering 609

Proceedings

Entomological Society of Washington 610

Scientific Notes and News. . .7 611

Vol. VIII

No. 19

November 19, 1918

JOUENAI

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

/

Adolph Knopf
acoLoaiCAL scbyet

BOARD OF EDITORS
A. S. Hitchcock

BVBSAU or PLANT INDUSTBt

J. Franklin Meybh

BCBEAU OF 6TANDABD9

ASSOCIATE EDITORS

N. HOLUSTER

BIOLOQICAI. BOaXTt

J. B. Norton

BOTANICAI. SOaBTT

Signet Paige

OEOLOGICAI, SOCIETY

F. B. Silsbee

PHILOSOPHICAL eOClETT

R. B. SOSMAN

CHEMICAL 80CIETT
J. R. Sw ANTON

AMTHBOPOLOGICAL 80C1BTT

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

BT THB

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION

WILLIAMS & WILKINS COMPANY

BALTIMORE, MD.

Enteretl aa second-class matter July 14, 1911 at the postolTice at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of

July 16, 18M. Acceptance for mailing at epecial rate of poetaee provided for in Section 1103,

Act of October 3, 1917. Authorized on July 3, 1018

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This JotJKNAL, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to i)resent a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) short abstracts of certain of these articles; (3) pro-
eeedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and affiliated Societies ; (4)
notes of events connected with the scientific life of Washington. The Journal
is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of each month, except dur-
ing the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only. Volumes correspond
to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential feature; a manuscript
reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the month will ordinarily
appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the Jotirnal.

Manuscripts may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewrit l^n and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
Tlie editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illvstrations will be used only when necessary an'd will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors imless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in fflial
form; the editdfs will exercise due care in seeing that copy is ToUowed.

Authors' Copies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may desire at ten cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices:

4 pp. 8 pp. 12 pp. 16 pp.

50 coi>ies $1.08 $1.95 $2.93 $3.80

100 copies 1.30 2.40 3.60 4.70

Additional copies, per 100 45 .90 1.35 1.70

• Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive

J)agination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
;i.00 per 100.

As an author will not ordinarily see proof, his request for extra copies or re-
prints should invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume is $6.00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, R. L. Faris, Coast and Geodetic Survey, Wash-
ington, D. C.

Kwnpean Agent: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London.

Exchanges. — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.
, Missing Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

• Volume I, however, from July 19. 1911, to December 19, 1911, will be sent for $3 .00. Special rates
are given tqmemberB of scientific societies affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERLY PRESS
BALTIMORE. U. S. A

ANNOUNCEMENT OF MEETINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND

AFFILIATED SOCIETIES^

Saturday, November 23: The Philosophical Society, at the Adminis-
tration Building, Carnegie Institution of Washington, 16th and P
Streets, at 8.15 p.m. Program:

W. F. Meggers: Photography of the red and infra-red solar spectrum. Illus-
trated. 30 minutes.

A. J. Henky. The hot spell of August, 1918. 20 minutes.

Saturday, December 7: The Philosophical Society, at the Adminis-
tration Building, Carnegie Institution, at 8.15 p.m. Forty-eighth
annual meeting, for the election of officers.

' Tha pro-jrataa of tha mtjetiass of the affiliated aooieties will appear oa this page if sent to the
editors by the firtt and fifteenth days of each month.

CONTENTS
Original Papers

Page

Botany.— Cosmos stdphureus. The xochipalli or paint flower of the Aztecs.

William Edwin Safford 613

Botany.— A new Polystichum from California. William R. Maxon 620

Anthropology. — Catawba notes. John R. Swanton 623

Abstracts

Bacteriology 630

Botany 631

Plant Physiology 632

Anthropology 633

Proceedings

Washington Acad^nay of Sciences 634

Scientific Notes and News 635

Vol. VIII

No. ^20

December 4, 1918

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

OF SCIENCES

Adolph Knopf

QEOLOGICAL SUBVBT

BOARD OF EDITORS
A. S. Hitchcock

BOBBiD or PLANT INDD8TBT

ASSOCIATE EDITORS

N. HOLUSTER

BIOLOGICAL SOdBTT

J. B. Norton

BOTANICAL SOaBTT

Sidney Paige

OBOLOGICAL 80CIBTT

J. Franklin Meter

BUBEAU OP 8TANDABDS

F. B, SlLSBEE

PHILOSOPmOAL 80CIETT
R. B. SOSMAN

CHEMICAL SOCIBTT
J. R. Sw ANTON

AMTBBOPOLOGICAI, SOCIBTT

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

BY THB

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION
WILLIAMS & WILKINS COMPANY
BALTIMORE. MD.

Entered as aecond-cJass matter July 14, 1911 at the pwstoffica at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of

July 16, 1864. Acceptance for mailing at special rate of poetace provided for in Section 1103,

Act of October 3, 1917, Authorized on July 3, 1918

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Journal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) short abstracts of certain of these articles; (3) pro-
«eedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and affiliated Societies ; (4)
notes of events connected with the scientific life of Washington. The Journal
is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of each month, except dur-
ing the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only. Volumes correspond
to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential feature; a manuscript
reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the month will ordinarily
appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the Journal.

Manuscripts ?iay be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illustrations will be used only when necessary and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authors unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in final
form; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

Authors' Copies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may desire at ten cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices :

4 pp. 8 pp. 12 pp. 16 pp.

50 copies $1.08 $1.95 $2.93 $3.80

100 copies 1.30 2.40 3.60 4.70

Additional copies, per 100 45 .90 1.35 1.70

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
$1.00- per 100.

As an author will not ordinariFy see proof, his request for extra copies or re-
prints should invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume is $6.00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthly numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, R. L. Faris, Coast and Geodetic Survey, Wash-
ington, D. C.

European Agent: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand,_London.

Exchanges. — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing^ Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

* Volume I, however, from July 19, 1911, to December 19, 1911, will be Bent for $3.00. Special rates
are given to members of scientific societies affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERUY PRESS

BALTIMORE. U. S. A.

\

».

CONTENTS

Original Papers

Page
Chemistry. — ^A note on the precipitation of zirconium phosphate. George

Steiger 637

Botany. — The North American species of Genipa. Paul C. Standley 639

Zoology. — Classification of the Philippine operculate land shells of the family
Helicinidae, with a synopsis of the species and subspecies of the genus
Geophorus. Paul Bartsch 643

Abstracts

Crystallography 658

Mammalogy 659

Phytopathology 660

Plant Physiology 661

Agronomy ._^ 661

Technology 662

Proceedings

Washington Academy of Sciences 663

Entomological Society of Washington ' 663

^

J>t

^

V

/

Vol. VIII

No. 21

December 19, 1918

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY

• OF SCIENCES

Adolph Knopf

OBOLOQICAL 8URTET

BOARD OF EDITORS
A. S. Hitchcock

BURCAO or PLANT INDU8TBT

ASSOCIATE EDITORS

N. HOLLISTER

BIOLOGICAL 90CJBTT

J. B. Norton

BOTANICAL SOCIBTT

Sidney Paiois

OEOLOOICAL BOCIETT

J. Franklin Meter

BUBEAU or STANDARDS

F. B. SlLSBEE

PHILOSOPHICAL 80CIBTT
R. B. SOSMAN

CHEMICAL SOOIBTT
J. R. Sw ANTON

ANTHBOPOLOGICAL BOCIETT

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

BT THB

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

OFFICE OF PUBLICATION

WILLIAMS & WILKINS COMPANY

BALTIMORE, MD.

Entered as second-claAS matter July 14, 1911 at the poBtoffice at Baltimore, Maryland, under the Act of

July IS, 1804. Acceptance for mailing at epecial rate of postage provided for in Section 1103,

Act of October 8, 1917, Authorized on July 8, 1918

Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences

This Jqdrnal, the official organ of the Washington Academy of Sciences,
aims to present a brief record of current scientific work in Washington. To this
end it publishes: (1) short original papers, written or communicated by mem-
bers of the Academy; (2) short abstracts of certain of these articles; (3) pro-
ceedings and programs of meetings of the Academy and affiliated Societies; (4)
notes of events connected with the scientific life of Washington. The Journal
is issued semi-monthly, on the fourth and nineteenth of each month, except dur-
ing the summer when it appears on the nineteenth only. Volumes correspond
to calendar years. Prompt publication is an essential feature-; a manuscript
reaching the editors on the second or the seventeenth of the month will ordinarily
appear, on request from the author, in the next issue of the Journal.

M anv.'^hripls may be sent to any member of the Board of Editors; they should
be clearly*typewritten and in suitable form for printing without essential changes.
The editors cannot undertake to do more than correct obvious minor errors.
References should appear only as footnotes and should include year of publication.

Illnslratinns will be used only whfen necessary and will be confined to text
figures or diagrams of simple character. The editors, at their discretion, may
call upon an author to defray the cost of his illustrations, although no charge
will be made for printing from a suitable cut supplied with the manuscript.

Proof. — In order to facilitate prompt publication no proof will be sent to
authoTs unless requested. It is urged that manuscript be submitted in final
form; the editors will exercise due care in seeing that copy is followed.

_ Authors' Co-pies and Reprints. — On request the author of an original article
will receive gratis ten copies of the number containing his contribution and as
many additional copies as he may desire at ten cents each. Reprints will be
furnished at the following schedule of prices :
*

4 pp. 8 pp. ' 12 pp. 16 pp.

50 copies $1.08 $1.95 $2.93 $3.80

100 copies 1.30 2.40 3.60 4.70

Additional copies, per 100 45 .90 1.35 1.70

Covers bearing the name of the author and title of the article, with inclusive
pagination and date of issue, will be $2.00 for the first 100. Additional covers
$1.00 per 100.

As an author will not ordinarily see proof, his request for extra copies or re-
prints should invariably be attached to the first page of his manuscript.

The rate of Subscription per volume is $6.00*

Semi-monthly numbers 25

Monthl jf^ numbers 50

Remittances should be made payable to "Washington Academy of Sciences,"
and addressed to the Treasurer, R. L. Faris, Coast and Geodetic Survey, Wash-
ington, D. C.

European Agent: William Wesley & Son, 28 Essex St., Strand, London.

Exchanges. — The Journal does not exchange with other publications.

Missing^ Numbers will be replaced without charge, provided that claim is
made within thirty days after date of the following issue.

• Volume I, however, from July 19, 1911, to December 19, 1911, will be sent for $3.00. Special raras
are given to members of scientific societies affiliated with the Academy.

THE WAVERUY PRESS
BA1.TIMORE, U. 8. A.

REPRINT OF LECTURES ON SCIENCE IN RELATION

TO THE WAR

A series of public lectures dealing with the scientific and {engineering
aspects of the war was given under the auspices of the Washington
Academy of Sciences during the winter and spring of 1918. The lectures
as pubhshed in the Journal are as follows:

Major S. J. M. Auld, of the British" Military Mission: Methods of
gas warfare.

Col. C. F. Lee, of the British Aviation Mission: Aviation.

Maj. Gen. John HeadlaM; C.B., D.S.O., of the British Artillery
Mission : The development of artillery during the war.

Lieut. Col. X. Reille, Chief of Artillery in the French Advisory
Mission: The problem of anti-aircraft firing.

Dr. Raymond Pearl, of the U. S. Food Administration: Biology
and war. •

Prof. Arthur A. Notes, of the Massachusetts Institute of Tech-
nology : The nitrogen problem in relation to the war.

The Academy has reprinted in collected form a hmited edition of
these lectures. Copies of the brochure, substantially bound in flexible
cloth covers, may be purchased of the Treasurer, Mr. R. L. Faris,
Coast and Geodetic Survey, Washington, D. C, at seventy-five cents
each (postage included) .

«

CONTENTS

Original Papers

Page
Geology. — Titanium-bearing corundum spinellite' (rock emery). Thomas
L. Watson and George Steiger 665

Oceanography. — An instrument for recording sea-water salinity, A. L.
Thijras .- 680

Abstracts
Chemistri' 688

Scientific Notes and New6 690

Inbex
Author Index 693

Subject Index 706

■iiiii'

JJH Iflxs X