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JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY
OF SCIENCES

VOLUME X, 1920

BOARD OF EDITORS

J. Franklin Meyer Robert B. Sosman S. F. Blake

BUREAU OF STANDARDS GEOPHYSICAI, LABORATORY BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY

ASSOCIATE EDITORS

H. V. Harlan S. A. Rohwer

BOTANICAI, SOCISTY ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIBTY

N. HOLLISTER F- B. SiLSBEE

BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY

Sidney Paige J- R- Swanton

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yfi^u)

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. io JANUARY 4, 1920 No. i

MINERALOGY. — Hausmannite in the Batesville district, Ar-
kansas.^ H. D. Miser and J. G. Fairchild, U. S. Geo-
logical Survey.
During the investigation of the manganese deposits of the
Batesville district by the senior author, beginning in 191 8,
particular attention was given to a manganese mineral that has
been previously classed as braunite. The mineral forms a
large part of the marketed manganese ore and, being entirely
free or almost free of chemically combined silica, differs in this
respect from the typical braunite that is found in this district,
as well as at practically all, if not all, other known localities.
The two accompanying analyses by the junior author, taken in
connection with the physical and optical properties of the mineral
under discussion, indicate that it is hausmannite. Since only
one other authentic occurrence^ of hausmannite in the United
States has been reported and since it is, as stated above, one of
the important ore-forming minerals of the Batesville district,
this paper regarding it has been prepared.

The manganese ores of the Batesville district consist of oxides,
of which psilomelane, hausmannite, braunite, manganite, pyrolu-

' Published by permission of the Director of the United States Geological Survey.

- E. S. Larsen reports an occiu'rence from Plumas County, Cal. The optical
properties of the hausmannite from that locality are given on page 6. Dana, in
listing the occurrences of hausmannite in the System of mineralogy, 6th Edition,
says, "Also reported from Lebanon, Pa. (but very doubtful, Genth)."

2 MISER AND FAIRCHILD: HAUSMANNITE

site, and wad have been identified. They generally occur in
rough irregular-shaped masses from less than one pound to 22
tons in weight. Most of the masses are in clay; the others are
in limestone, shale, chert, and sandstone, and there is much evi-
dence that the manganese oxides of which the masses are com-
posed have replaced all of these inclosing materials. The oxides
have been derived from manganese-bearing carbonates near the
surface and have been deposited by cold waters of meteoric
origin. They do not extend below the permanent water level
of the district. The workable deposits occur in the nearly hori-
zontal Fernvale limestone and Cason shale of Ordovician age
and in residual clays which were mainly derived from these two
formations. Most of the masses in the clays are residual, having
been freed from the above-named formations by their decompo-
sition; the others have been formed by the replacement of the
clays by manganese oxides.

The hausmannite is present at a large percentage of the nearly
200 mines and prospects in the district. It occurs partly in the
Fernvale limestone as a replacement material but mostly in clay
as residual masses that have been set free by the decomposition of
the limestone. It has not been found in deposits that have been
formed by the replacement of the Cason shale and residual
clays. This apparently means that there was a smaller supply
of available oxygen for the formation of manganese oxides in the
limestone than in the shale and clays, because hausmannite
contains a smaller percentage of oxygen than the other man-
ganese oxides that are present in the district.

Hausmannite, if chemically pure, would contain 72 per cent
of manganese which is greater than that found in the other
important ore-forming minerals which are psilomelane and
braunite ; but on account of the presence of psilomelane and other
impurities perhaps no sample containing the theoretical per-
centage can be obtained, though the percentage of manganese
in a sample from the W. T. Gray mine of which an analysis is
given on page 4 is 70.76. The presence of hausmannite in the
high-grade ores accounts for the fact that many carload ship-
ments of such ore have contained between 55 and 60 per cent of

MISER AND FAIRCHILD: HAUSMANNITE 3

manganese. These are unusually high percentages for such ship-
ments.

Although several oxides of manganese are present in the Bates-
ville district, psilomelane is apparently the only one with which
the hausmannite is intimately mixed. Much of the hausmannite
is disseminated as large and small grains through compact
psilomelane and specimens are common that show a gradation
from psilomelane with a few grains of hausmannite scattered
through it to a coarsely granular hausmannite with only a small
quantity of psilomelane in it. Of all the specimens of haus-
mannite studied bv the senior author both in the field and in the
laboratory not one was seen that is entirely free from psilomelane.

The hausmannite is a brittle, steel-gray mineral with a chestnut-
brown or reddish brown streak and submetallic luster. It is
finely to coarsely granular but partly crystalline, is translucent
on thin edges, has an uneven fracture, a perfect basal cleavage,
and a hardness of about 5.5, and is weakly magnetic, some of the
finely powdered mineral being picked up by a magnet. The
magnetic property might be thought to be due to the presence
of iron but this can not be so because one of the samples of which
analyses are given in table i contained no iron, and the other
contained only a trace of iron. The specific gravity of the two
samples that have just been mentioned was determined by the
junior author to be 4.836 for one and 4.778 for the other, re-
spectively. The crystals are small and line cavities in the
massive mineral. They resemble octahedra; none have been
found that could be measured. The physical properties of the
mineral as given above agree with those given by Dana^ and
Fermor,^ though these writers do not mention hausmannite as
being magnetic.

The analyses in table i represent the composition of two sam-
ples of hausmannite from two localities, 8 miles apart. Sam.ple
No. I was from the W. T. Gray mine, 4V 2 miles north-northwest
of the village of Pfeiffer on a spur of the Missouri Pacific RaiL

■' System of mineralogy, 6th Edition, 1892.

* L. L. Fermor. The manganese-ore deposits of India. Memoirs Geol. Survey-
India, 37: pt. I, 229. 1909.

4 MISER AND FAIRCHILD: HAUSMANNITE

road, and Sample No. 2 was from the Club House mine, one-half
mile north of the town of Cushman on another spur of the same
railroad. The specimens from which the samples were prepared

TABLE I
Analyses of Hausmannite from the Batesville District

No 1 No. 2

Manganese protoxide (MnO) 91 38 90 . 40

Oxygen (O) 7-78 8 . 87

Iron oxide (Fe203) None

Alumina (AI2O3) None J

Silica (Si02) None o . 10

Lime (CaO) Trace Trace

Magnesia (MgO) Trace Trace

Baryta (BaO) o. 26 None

Total water (H2O) 0.62 i . 03

Summation 100.04 100.88

Manganese (Mn) 70 . 76 70 . 00

Specific gravity at 15.5° C 4836 4-778

No. I . Sample from W. T. Gray mine.
No. 2. Sample from Club House mine.
'' Includes a trace of iron.

for the analyses contain a small quantity of psilomelane and for
this reason the samples were carefully selected, using a pocket
lens, so as to free the hausmannite as far as possible from the
psilomelane. Polished surfaces of these specimens, however,
show the presence of psilomelane as fine, disseminated particles
and as crack-filling material too minute to be observed by a pocket
lens on a rough fractured surface. Some psilomelane was there-
fore present in the samples and the polished surfaces indicate
that there was more of it in Sample No. 2 than in Sample No. i.
There are several varieties of psilomelane, which may be con-
sidered to be a manganese manganate, MnoMnOs, otherwise
expressed as 2Mn02.MnO. In the fundamental formula, the
"Muo" may be replaced by such equivalent groups as Bao,
Cao, K4, H4, etc. The ratio of MnO to available oxygen, which
is here called the ' 'oxygen ratio, ' ' is, according to the above formula,
3 to 2, or expressed more simply; 1.5. The composition shows
13. 1 per cent available oxygen. The oxygen ratio for haus-
mannite (Mn304) is 3, its composition showing 7.0 per cent avail-

MISER AND FAIRCHILD: HAUSMANNITE

able oxygen. By referring to a few published analyses of psilo-
melane, the average ratio for the analyses cited in table 2 is
seen to approach fairly close to the above ratio (1.5).

TABLE 2
Oxygen Ratios of Psilomelane as Shown by Published Analyses

No. Locality

I Ilmenau, Germany

2 Silver CliflF, Colorado

3 Romaneche, France

4 Schneeberg, Germany

5 Balaghat, India

6 Kajlidongri, India

7 Batesville, Arkansas

Average 1.41

1. R. A. F. Penrose, Jr. Manganese — its uses, ores and deposits. Arkansas
Geol. Svirvey, Ann. Rept. 1890, i: 146. 1891.

2. F. W. Clarke. Data of geochemistry. U. S. Geol. Survey BuU. 616: 534.
1916.

3. Idem, 534.

4. R. A. F. Penrose, Jr., op. cit., p. 146.

5. Dana, System of mineralogy, third appendix, p. 39, 191 5. Sample of Hol-
landite.

6. Idem. Sample of Hollandite.

7. R. A. F. Penrose, Jr., op. cit., p. 147.

The analyses of the samples of the mineral in question from
the Batesville district show the following calculated compositions:

Analyst
Clausbruch
W. F. Hillebrand
A. Gorgeu
Clausbruch

Oxygen ratio
I. 18
1.28

1-34
1.36
1-37
1-54
1.83

Wm. Elderhorst

Psilomelane
(Mn2Mn05)

Sample No. i 13 per cent

Sample No. 2 31 per cent

Hausmannite
(MnaOi)

87 per cent
69 per cent

Oxygen
ratio

.65
•30

The analyses show that silica was absent in No. i and that
there was only o.i per cent of it in No. 2. These analyses have
been confirmed by testing for gelatinous silica 12 other samples
from 9 different localities. No silica was found in most of them
and hardly more than a trace was found in the others. On the
other hand, similar tests were made on 5 samples of braunite
from as many different localities in the Batesville district., and
they all yielded fairly large quantities of gelatinous silica. The
test for gelatinous silica is, in fact, the easiest method for dis-

6 MISER AND FAIRCHILD: HAUSMANNITE

tinguishing hausmannite from braunite, though their streaks can

be used to advantage, hausmannite having a chestnut-brown I

streak and braunite a dark brownish black streak.

The optical properties of a specimen of the mineral under !

discussion were studied by E. S. Larsen and he concluded that ■

it is hausmannite. In fact, he expressed this opinion before i

the present writers arrived at their conclusion regarding the iden- i

tification of the mineral and also before the two accompanying
analyses (Nos. i and 2) were made. He has kindly furnished
the following statement giving the optical properties of the j

specimen from the Batesville district and for comparison has
given unpublished data for a specimen from Piumas County,
California :

"Hausmannite from Batesville district, Arkansas; reddish
brown in section and non-pleochroic. Uniaxial — ; col; = 2.45 =*= :

0.02; €Li = 2.15 ± 0.02.

"Hausmannite from Plumas County, California; reddish '

brown in section and non-pleochroic. Uniaxial — ■; tend to lie
on a cleavage normal to the optic axis; o^u = 2.46; ejj = 2.15."

Penrose'^ gives an analysis of a sample of a mineral from the
Batesville district whose description accords rather closely with
that of hausmannite, but the composition of the sample whose
analysis he gives corresponds to the formula Mn203. He there-
fore considered the mineral to be a silica-free braunite and this
opinion has been followed by other geologists who have worked
in the district, though no further analyses were made until the
present investigation was undertaken. For reasons given below •

the writers believe that the sample for Penrose's analysis con-
sisted mainly of hausmannite but contained admixed psilomelane. '
His description of the mineral and the analysis follow: i

"Braunite. — Specimen from the Sullivan Creek fork of Polk Bayou, 10
miles north of Batesville, Independence County. This is a dark ;

iron-gray or black mineral, forming a coarsely crystalline aggregate
with a marked cleavage, the crystal lographic position of the cleavage '

being uncertain; lustre submetallic; streak dark chocolate-brown;
hardness 5 to 5.5. Its specific gravity, as determined by the chemist
of the Survey, is 4.50. '.

* R. A. F. Penrose, Jr., op. cit, pp. 148-149. :

MISER AND FAIRCHILD: HAUSMANNITE 7

"With fluxes it gives manganese reactions; it dissolves in hydro-
chloric acid with the evolution of chlorine.

"The following analysis was made mostly by Dr. R. N. Brackett and
partly by Prof. W. A. Noyes. It shows the composition of the mineral
dried at iio°-ri5° Centigrade.

"Analysis of Braunite from the Batesville Region

Per cent Ratio

Manganese protoxide (MnO) 87 .47 i . 232 2 .05

Oxygen (O) 9 . 62 o . 601 i . 00

Ferric oxide (FcaOs) o ■ 44

Alumina (AI2O3) o . 11

Lime (CaO) o . 34

Baryta (BaO) o . 48

Magnesia (MgO) Trace

Potash (K2O) o . 10

Soda (NaaO) -. 0.05

Phosphoric acid (P-Oi) 0.25

Silica (SiOj) 0.18

99.04

"It will be observed that the ratio of MnO to O is almost exactly
as 2:1, which is the theoretical ratio of manganese sesquioxide
(Mn203). It will also be noticed that the analysis shows less than
2 per cent of ingredients other than MnO and O, and the mineral is
therefore a very pure Mn203. Though the mineral occurs as a com-
pact crystalline aggregate and not as isolated crystals, it seems, judging
from its general appearance and its physical characteristics, to be
homogeneous. In some other specimens of a similar material there
were found some very small crystals, apparently tetragonal pyramids,
suggesting, from their general form, that they might be braunite.
Hausmannite crystallizes in the same system, but the above analysis
does not show any close relation to the composition of that mineral.
The analysis shows a mineral resembling in all respects a braunite
without silica, and the physical features of the specimen, as far as they
can be distinguished, are also those of braunite."

Fermor,'' in his report on the manganese-ore deposits of India,
says that only two published analyses, that have not been
checked by further analyses, show braunite to correspond to the
formula MnoOs. One of these is the above analysis given by Pen-
rose and the other is an analysis by Bechi of a specimen from the
island of Elba.^ Fermor continues, "But it is to be noticed that
another analysis of Arkansas braunite [from the Batesville dis-
trict] shows 9.97 per cent of Si02, the analysis being by W.

* L. L. Fermor. The manganese-ore deposits of India. Memoirs Geol. Survey
India. 37: pt. i, 64. 1909.

" Meneghini, Mineralogical notices. Amer. Journ. Sci. [2] 14: 62. 1852.

8 MISER AND FAIRCHILD: HAUSMANNITE

Elderhorst.*^ Nevertheless, it seems necessary to recognize the
possible existence in nature of a mineral with a composition cor-
responding to the formula Mn203; it must be extremely rare."

Although a mineral with a composition corresponding to the
formula Mn203 may, as pointed out by Fermor, be present in
the Batesville district, its occurrence there is not believed by
the writers to be probable, in view of the facts and conclusions
brought out during the present investigation. Penrose, in a
footnote^ regarding the sample for his analysis, says, "The original
specimen contained inclusions of a massive or semi-crystalline
oxide of manganese, but the sample analyzed was carefully sep-
arated from this and was composed only of the coarsely crystal-
line parts." As he describes^" psilomelane as being a massive
mineral, and as psilomelane appears to be the only mineral that
is intimately associated with hausmannite, the "massive or
semi-crystalline oxide of manganese" in the sample for his analy-
sis may have been psilomelane. The samples for our two ac-
companying analyses (Nos. i and 2) consisted entirely of the
coarsely granular parts of the specimens so far as could be de-
termined by means of a pocket lens, but as previously stated
polished surfaces of the specimens show that it is not possible to
discard all of the psilomelane by this method. A mixture con-
taining about 60 per cent of hausmannite and 40 per cent of
psilomelane (corresponding to the formula 2Mn02.MnO) would
on analysis be found to contain manganese protoxide (MnO)
and oxygen (O) in the ratio of 2 to i , which is the ratio calculated
from the analysis given by Penrose. As specimens are common
showing a gradation from psilomelane with only a small amount
of hausmannite in it to coarsely granular hausmannite with a
very small percentage of psilomelane, a sample containing the
above-mentioned percentages of these minerals could be ob-
tained, but such a sample, it must be admitted, could be ob-
tained only by accident.

* D. D. Owen. First report of a geological reconnaissance of the northern counties
of Arkansas, 164-165. 1858; R. A. F. Penrose, Jr., op. cit., pp. 149-150.
^ R. A. F. Penrose, Jr., op. cit., p. 148.
'" Idem, 145.

BLAKE: REVISION OF THE AVOCADOS 9

BOTANY. — A preliminary revision of the North American and
West Indian avocados (Persea spp.). S. F. Blake, Bureau
of Plant Industry.

For several years Wilson Popenoe, of the Office of Seed and
Plant Introduction, has been engaged in the collection of the
various forms of the avocado, or "alligator pear," which are
found in Mexico and Central America. Man)^ new and valuable
forms have been introduced into the gardens maintained by the
Office, whence they are being distributed among horticulturists,
and a considerable amount of herbarium material has been ac-
cumulated. This material, which has recently been put into
my hands for study, is sufficient, in connection with that already
in the U. S. National Herbarium, to permit a fairly satisfactory
preliminary treatment of the forms of the avocado which occur
in Mexico, Central America, and the West Indies. Mr. Popenoe
is about to extend the field of his investigations by a two years'
trip in Central and South America, in which it is hoped material
will be secured to settle the status of one or two South American
forms, at present too poorly represented in our herbaria to be
disposed of definitely. In the meantime it is desirable to put
on record the information already obtained as to the relationship
of the forms north of the Isthmus.

The latest systematic treatment of Persea americana and its
relatives is that of Mez (1889),^ in his monograph of the Ameri-
can Lauraceae. Mez recognizes, in the small group made up of
the avocados, two species, Persea gratissima Gaertn. f. (Laurus
persea L.) and P. floccosa Mez. Of P. gratissima two varieties
are recognized in addition to the type, P. gratissima schiedeana
(Nees) Meissn. and P. g. drymifolia (Schlecht. & Cham.) Mez.
In a later publication Mez^ has recognized the priority of the
name Persea americana Mill. (1768) over P. gratissima Gaertn.
f. (1807), the name by which the common avocado has generally
been known in literature.

Mr. Popenoe,^ as a result of his extensive field acquaintance

' Jahrb. Bot. Gart. Berlin 5: 145-148. 1889.

2 Arb. Bot. Gard. Breslau i: 113. 1892.

' In Bailey, Stand. Cycl. Hort. 5: 2556. 1916.

-lO BLAKE: REVISION OF THE AVOCADOS

with the avocado, has recognized three chief forms on the basis

of leaf and fruit differences. These he separates by the following

key:

A. Leaves anise-scented : skin of fruit thin and soft, i . Mexican type.

AA. lycaves not anise-scented: skin of fruit thick.

B. Surface of fr. usually smooth: skin leathery, usually not more
than Vi6 in. thick; seed coats frequently distinct, the
outer one adhering to wall of seed cavity; cotyledons often

rough 2. West Indian type.

BB. vSurface of fr. usually rough or warty: skin brittle, granulir,
Vi6 -^/i6 in. thick; seed coats adhering closely to the nearly
smooth cotyledons 3. Guatemalan type.

Mr. Popenoe, moreover, has become convinced that his "Mex-
ican type" represents a distinct species, Per sea drymifolia,
Schlecht. & Cham., and that Per sea schiedeana Nees is a distinct
species. Both of these forms were treated by Mez as varieties
of P. americana.

In the study of the extensive material which has now been
brought together it became clear at once that Mez had erred
in reducing P. schiedeana to varietal rank, since it possesses
definite specific characters, not only in the pubescence of its
leaves and its long pedicels, but also in the technical features of its
floral parts, which were entirely passed over by Mez. P. drymi-
folia is a more doubtful form, not always distinguishable with
certainty in herbarium material, and I prefer, at least for the
present, to treat it as a variety of P. americana. The novel fact
appears, moreover, that the most commonly cultivated avocado
of Florida, known as the Trapp, represents a technically very
distinct and undescribed species, characterized by its sparsely
pubescent perianth and absolutely glabrous pistil and staminodes.
Another new species of the avocado group, characterized by its
glabrous ovary, narrow panicle, and sessile staminal glands,
has been collected by Purpus in Oaxaca and is here described as
P. cinerascens.

While the relationships of the North American forms can be
considered as now established with a fair degree of definiteness,
this cannot be said of the South American types. In addition to
typical P. americana and its variety drymifolia, at least two

BLAKE: REVISION OF THE AVOCADOS II

other forms occur in South America which, through lack of
sufficient material, cannot be definitely placed. One is the
plant described as P. gratissima var. melanocarpa by Philippi,^
a single specimen of which is in the National Herbarium. It
is peculiar in its comparatively large bracts and subsimple pan-
icles shorter than the peduncles. The other, collected by Mr.
Pittier near Caracas (no. 5913), has a glabrous ovary, pubescent
style, and unusually long stipes to the glands of the third series
of stamens. Both these forms are best left in abeyance until
further material becomes available.

The avocados-^ occurring in North America and the West
Indies may be distinguished by the following key :

Perianth densely griseous-puberulous on both sides; staminodes pubes-
cent.
Ovary pubescent; staminal glands stipitate.

Pedicels i to 6 mm. long; staminode with triangular head, much
broader than its stipe.
Branchlets glabrous to pilosulous, leaves glabrous to pilosulous
beneath; filaments 2 to 3 times as long as the anthers; head
of staminode much shorter than the stipe.
Leaves not anise-scented ; perianth deciduous. .1. P. americana.
Leaves anise- (or sassafras-) scented • perianth usually per-
sistent I a. P. americana drymifolia.

Branchlets fulvous- villous ; leaves fioccose-tomentose beneath;
filaments only one-third longer than the anthers; head of

staminode about equaling or exceeding the stipe

2. P. Hoccosa.

Pedicels 8 to 15 mm. long; stipe of staminode twice to thrice as

long and essentially as broad as the elliptic head; branchlets

densely ferruginous-tomentose 3. P. schiedeana.

Ovary glabrous; staminal glands sessile 4. P. cinerascens.

Perianth sparsely pilosulous outside, essentially glabrous within;
pistil and staminodes glabrous 5. P. leiogyna.

* Anal. Univ. Chil. 91: 501. 1895.

* The avocados form a small group of the subgenus Eupersea Mez, characterized
by their comparatively large flowers (usually 6 to 8 mm. long) with equal or only
slightly unequal perianth segments. Of the species here considered, the most im-
portant commercially are P. americana, P. americana drymifolia, and P. leiogyna.
P. schiedeana also has a large and well-flavored fruit, but is of little importance at
present outside of its native habitat. P. cinerascens, and presumably P. floccosa,
bear fruits too small to be of any value.

12 BLAKE: REVISION OF THE AVOCADOS

I. Persea americana Mill. Gard. Diet. ed. VIII. 1768. Common

AVOCADO.

Laurus persea h. Sp. PI. 1: 370. 1753.

Persea gratissiina Gaertn. f. Fruct. 3: 222. pi. 221. 1807.

Persea graiissinm vulgaris Meissn.; DC. Prodr. 15^: 53. 1864.

Persea gratissima ohlonga Meissn.; DC. Prodr. 15^: 53. 1864.

Persea gratissima macrophylla Meissn.; DC. Prodr. 15^: 53. 1864.

Persea persea Cockerell, Bull. Torrey Club 19: 95. 1892.

Tree, up to 20 meters high; branchlets glabrous to finely puberulous
or pilosulous, more or less glaucous; leaf blades 9 to 30 cm. long, 3.5
to 20 cm. wide, oval varying to elliptic or obovate-oval, rarely ovate or
suborbicular, short-pointed, acute, or acuminate, sometimes obtuse,
at base unequal, broadly rounded to cuneate, papyraceous to perga-
mentaceous, feather-veined (lateral veins 5 to 7 pairs) and finely pro-
minulous-reticulate beneath, above deep green, glabrous or sparsely
pubescent along costa, beneath glaucescent, glabrous or pilosulous with
more or less spreading hairs along costa and primary veins, rarely
over whole surface; petioles glabrous or puberulous, 2 to 6.5 cm. long;
panicles densely griseous-puberulous, several or many toward ends of
branches, 6 to 22 cm. long (including the 2.5 to 9 cm. long peduncle);
pedicels 3 to 6 mm. long; perianth (5) 5.5 to 7 mm. long, densely gri-
seous-tomentulose both sides; segments elliptic or lance-elliptic to oval-
ovate, obtuse, the outer i to 1.5 mm. shorter than the inner; stamens
of series I 4.5 to 5.5 mm. long, the slender filaments densely pilose,
3 to 3.8 mm. long; of series II similar, 4 mm. long; of series III similar,
4.5 to 5.4 mm. long, the filaments (3.2 to 4 mm. long) bearing 0.5 to
0.8 mm. above base two rotund obtuse or rounded glands on pilose
stipes of about the same length; staminodes 1.8 to 2.8 mm. long, the
densely pilose stipe i to 1.8 mm. long, the head triangular, acute,
usually apiculate, truncate or sagittate-cordate at base, 0.3 to 1.2 mm.
long; ovary densely pilose, style pilose, about twice as long as ovary.
Type Locality: West Indies.
Specimens Examined:

Vera Cruz: San Pablo near Rio Nautla, June, 1841, Liehntann 13.
Colipa, March, i8di, Liebmann 86. Orizaba, June, 1918, Popenoe
826 (S. P. I.).

Puebla: Atlixco, Dec, 1918, Popenoe 864 (S. P. I.).

Oaxaca: Cafetal Concordia, near Pochutla, May, 1919, Popenoe
825 (S. P. I.).

Chiapas: Tapachula, Nov., 1918, Popenoe 819, 821 (S. P. I.).
Zacualpa, July, 1918, Popenoe 828 (S. P. I.).

Yucatan: Izamal, 1895, Gaumer, 402.

Guatemala: Near Finca Sepacuite, Alta Verapaz, 1902, Cook &
Griggs 20, 322, 564. Guatemala City, Feb., 191 7, Popenoe 758 (S.
P. I.). Antigua or vicinity, Feb., 1917, Popenoe 765, 766, 767, 769,
771 (S. P. I.). Los Verdes, Dept. Amatitlan, Nov., 1893, Heyde c~' Lux
6229. Pacaya, March, 1890, J. D. Smith 1941.

El Salvador: Without definite locality, 1905, Renson 219.

Costa Rica: San Francisco, March, 1897, Tonduz 10999. Port

BIvAKE: REVISION OF THE AVOCADOS

Fig. 1 . — A, Peisea americana Mill. B, P. schiedeana Nees (drawn from Purpus 7074) .
C, P. le-iogyna Blake (drawn from Popenoe 219). a, perianth, X 5; i, stamen ol
series I, X 10; c, stamen of series III, viewed from dorsal side, X 10; d, staminode,
X 10; e, ovary, X 10

14 BLAKE: REVISION OF THE AVOCADOS

Limon, May, 1903, Cook & Doyle 476. San Jose, April, 1903, Cook &
Doyle 2.

Panama: Around Culebra, Jan., 191 1, Pittier 2144.

Bahama Islands: Nassau, New Providence, 1903, Curttss 116.

Cuba: Santiago de las Vegas, 1905, Abasco 4556.

Santo Domingo: Without definite locality, 1871, Wright, Parry,
and Bnimmel.

Porto Rico: Cabo-Rojo, 1885, Sintenis 759, 759^. Ponce, 1903,
Prey 69. Caguas, 1899, Heller 931.

St. Thomas: 1881, Eggers.

St. Croix: Big Princess, 1896, Ricksecker 305.

Martinique: 1871, Hahn 350. Without date, Duss 1948.

Grenada: Belmont, St. Georges, 1905, Broadivay.

Colombia: Vicinity of Santa Marta, 1 898-1901, Herbert H. Smith
1760.

Bolivia: Cochabamba, 1891, Bang 1162.

Brazil: Botanic Garden, Para, 1908, Baker 59.

Philippine Islands: Cultivated, Manila, Luzon, 1919, Merrill
6347-

This is the first known of the avocados, and is by far the commonest
and most widely cultivated in the American tropics and in the tropics
of the Old World. It is undoubtedly a native of tropical America,
but specimens which were certainly indigenous where found are nearly
or quite unknown.

Of the three races distinguished by Mr. Popenoe, whose key has al-
ready been cited, the first or "Mexican type" is here separated as P.
americana drymijolia. The other two races, called by Mr. Popenoe the
West Indian and the Guatemalan, respectively, do not appear to show
distinctive characters of botanical importance, however significant
their dift'erences in fruit and fruiting season may be from the horti-
cultural point of view. At any rate, I have failed to find any differences
whatever in the abundant herbarium material examined, and am con-
sequently compelled to treat the West Indian and Central American
forms as a single species.

Specimens collected by Merrill in Manila, where the plant has re-
cently been introduced, show an interesting abnormality in the floral
structure, one or two of the staminodes being antheriferous in addition
to the normal fertile stamens. They are about 4 mm. long, with the
hairy filaments about 3 mm. long, bearing laterally near the middle one
or two sessile adnate glands; the anthers are 4-celled, with the two lower
cells laterally dehiscent, the upper cells introrse. This occasional con-
version of the staminodes into stamens was long ago noted by Meissner.^
« DC. Prodr. 15I: 53. 1864.

BLAKE: REVISION OF THE AVOCADOS I5

la. Persea americana drymifolia (vSchlecht. & Cham.) Blake. Mexi-
can AVOCADO.

Persea drymifolia 5chlecht. & Cham. Linnaea 6: 365. 1831.

Persea gratissima drymifolia Mez, Jahrb. Bot. Gart. BerUn 5: 147.
1889.

Leaves anise- or sassafras-scented when crushed, usually smaller
than in P. americana, elliptic, and acute or acuminate at each end,
but sometimes as broadly oval as in P. americana, and showing the
same variation in pubescence; perianth equaling that of the larger-
flowered examples of P. americana, its segments usually persistent in
young fruit or even to maturity; fruit thin-skinned.
Type Locality: Papantla, Vera Cruz, Mexico.
Specimens Examined:

NuEvo Leon: Monterey, March, 1891, Dodge 150.

Sinaloa: Above Colomas, July, 1897, Rose 18 13.

San Luis Potosi: Without definite locality, 1879, Schaffner (Vig-
ener No. 572).

Tepic: Between Aguacate and Dolores, 1897, Rose 2013.

Vera Cruz: Fortin, 1883, Kerber 306. Patio of Hotel Colon,
Puerto Mexico, July, 191 8, Popenoe 827 (S. P. L). San Andres Tuxtla,
1918, Popenoe 824 (S. P. L).

State of Mexico: Covoacan, Federal District, Jan., 1919, Popenoe
854, 855, 856 (S. P. L). '

Puebla: Cultivated, Orizaba, 1857, Mohr. Atlixco, Dec, 1918,
Popenoe 857, 859, 860, 861, 862, 863 (S. P. L).

Guatemala: Roadside below Santa Maria de Jesus, Zacatepequez,
Oct., 1916, Popenoe 675 (S. P. L), Feb., 191 7, Popenoe 770 (S. P. L).

Ecuador: Quito, 191 8, Rose & Rose 23556. Cultivated, Ambato,
1918, Rose (J' Rose 22338.

This, the common Mexican race of avocado, is a form of doubtful
rank. In its commonly persistent or subpersistent perianth it departs
not only from its close relative P. americana but from the character
ordinarily given for the genus. This feature is not universal, however,
and the form in the absence of fruit can be distinguished only by its
anise-scented leaves. I can find no differences whatever in floral struc-
ture, and therefore rank it for the present as a variety of P. americana.
Mr. Popenoe, however, who is familiar with the plant in the field, is of
the opinion that it represents a distinct species. Its Mexican name is
given in the original description as "aguacate oloroso."

2. Persea floccosa Mez, Jahrb. Bot. Gart. Berlin 5: 148. 1889.

Tree with fulvous-villous, glabrate branchlets; leaf blades n to 17
cm. long, 4.8 to 7.5 cm. wide, ovate, acuminate, at base obtuse or some-
what acutish, densely ferruginous-lanate on both sides when young,
in age above subglabrate, densely foveolate-punctate, beneath glau-
cescent, floccose-tomentose, loosely prominent-reticulate; petioles up

l6 BLAKE: REVISION OF THE AVOCADOS

to 4.5 cm. long; panicles pyramidate, shorter than the leaves, ochraceo-
villous; pedicels i to 3 mm. long; perianth villous, 5 mm. long, the seg-
ments equal, narrowly ovate, acute; filaments '/s longer than the
anthers, densely long-pilose, those of series III bearing at base two
large sub-globose acute glands; staminodes foliaceous-triangular, not
barbellate at apex, the head slightly longer than the densely long-
pilose stipe; ovars' densely pilose, ellipsoid, about equal to style; fruit
unknown.
Type Local,ity: Chinantla, Puebla, Mexico.

This species, based on Liehmann 85, does not seem to have been col-
lected again. It is said to bear the name "aguacate cimaron." No
material has been seen by the writer, and the above description is trans-
lated from Mez's original.

3. Persea schiedeana Nees, Syst. Laur. 130. 1836. Coyo.

Persea gratissima schiedeana Meissn.; DC. Prodr. 15^: 53. 1864.

Persea pittieri Mez, Bot. Jahrb. 30: Beibl. 67: 15. 1901.

Tree 15 to 20 meters high, rarely to 50 meters; branchlets stout,
densely ferruginous-tomentose, glabrescent; leaf blades 12.5 to 30 cm.
long, 7 to 15 cm. wide, obovate or elliptic-obovate to oval-obovate or
sometimes oval, at apex abruptly short-pointed, obtuse, broadly rounded,
or even subtruncate, at base broadly rounded, cuneate-rounded, or
subcordate, feather-veined (lateral veins 11 to 13 pairs) and rather
loosely prominulous-reticulate beneath, above deep green, in youth
densely ferruginous-tomentose, in age glabrate or merely tomentose
along costa and sometimes along chief veins, beneath glaucous, along
veins and veinlets or over whole surface densely pilosulous with loose
spreading sordid-griseous hairs; petioles stout, densely sordid or ferru-
ginous-tomentose, at length glabrescent, 1.5 to 4.5 cm. long; panicles
densely griseous-tomentulose, nearly equaling the unfolding leaves,
10 to 12 cm. long (including the 4.5 to 6.5 cm. long peduncle) ; pedicels
8 to 15 mm. long; perianth 6 to 8 mm. long, densely griseous-tomentulose
both sides; tube obsolete; segments subequal, lance-elliptic, gradually
narrowed to an acutish tip, 2.5 to 2.8 mm. wide; stamens of series I
3.2 to 3.5 mm. long, the rather slender densely pilose filaments 2 to
2.2 mm. long, the anther 1.3 mm. long; of series II similar, 4 mm. long,
those of series III similar, 3.6 mm. long, the densely pilose filaments
bearing essentially at the base two ovate obtuse pilose glands on pilose
stipes of about the same length to twice as long; staminodes 1.3 to
1.9 mm. long, pilose, the stipes subulate, twice to thrice as long and
essentially as broad as the elliptic obtuse head; ovary densely pilose,
twice as large as in P. americana; style pilose, two-thirds as long as the
ovary.

Type Locality : Misantla, Vera Cruz, Mexico.
Specimens Examined:

Mexico: Zacuapan, Vera Cruz, March, 1914, Purpus 7074. Tree
in forest, probably indigenous, Dos Rios, near Santa Lucrecia, Vera

BLAKE: REVISION OF THE AVOCADOS 1 7

Cruz, April, 1918, Popenoe 830 (S. P. I.). Cultivated, San Anrdes
Tuxtla, Vera Cruz, April, 1918, Popenoe 829 (S. P. I.).

Guatemala: San Augustin, Nov., 1916, Popenoe 741 (S. P. I.).
Near Finca Sepacuite, Alta Verapaz, March, 1902, Cook & Griggs 21.
Sepacuite, May, 19 14, Cook & Doyle 43. Near Finca Sepacuite, Nov.,
1916, Popenoe 745 (S. P. I.)- Common wild and cultivated, Tactic,
Alta Verapaz, March, 191 7, Popenoe 772, 775 (S. P. I.)- Rare, north
bank of Motagua, above El Rancho, Nov., 1916, Popenoe 739 (S. P. I.).

Costa Rica: Without definite locality, 1905, Werckle.

Panama: Foot of El Salto Ravine, El Boquete, Chiriqui, altitude
1000 to 1300 meters, March, 1911, Pittier 3132.

This species, incorrectly treated as a variety of P. americana (P.
gratissima) by Mez, is readily distinguished by its densely ferruginous-
tomentose branchlets, long pedicels, equal perianth-segments, narrow
staminode tips, and short style.

Mr. Popenoe, in the manuscript notes which he has courteously
placed at my disposal, has noted the following names for this species:
covo and coyocte (at Senahu, Sepacuite, Guatemala), kiyo (San Cris-
tobal, Coban), kiyaii (Coban), chucte (El Rancho), chaucte (San
Augustin), shucte (Zacapa), kotyo (Chama, Alta Verapaz) . In Mexico
it is known as chinini. Mr. Pittier describes the tree from which he
collected specimens (no. 3132) as about 50 meters high, 1.2 m. in diam-
eter at base, with brownish yellow flowers. The fruits were said to be
about 10 cm. in diameter, with a thick mesocarp, and of exquisite flavor.
The vernacular name is given as aguacaton.

According to Mr. Popenoe, the flowers are produced from November
to March in Guatemala, and the fruit ripens from July to October.
The flowers are pale greenish yellow, turning crimson at base in age,
or sometimes light rose, the stamens likewise turning crimson with
age. The staminal glands are bright orange. The flowers of P.
americana are described by Mr. Popenoe as pale green, not changing
color in age.

The fruit of the coyo (P. schiedeana) is said by Mr. Popenoe to be
much like that of the common avocado, and equally variable in ap-
pearance and quality. The skin is thick but leathery and pliable,
and the flesh of a brownish white color and a fine oily texture, almost
always penetrated by fibres. The flavor is much like that of the com-
mon avocado, but distinguishable, suggesting that of a ripe coconut.
The cotyledons when cut are rose-pink in color, while they are whitish
in the avocado.

Although the type number of Per sea pittieri Mez {Pittier 11 56,

BLAKE: REVISION OF THE AVOCADOS

from Valle de Rancho Redondo, near Yolcan Irazu, altitude 1500
meters, Costa Rica) has not been available for examination, it is clear
from Mez's full description that his plant is only P. schiedeana. His
error is undoubtedh' due to the fact that he had previously treated
P. schiedeana as only a variety of P. gratissima, and consequently did
not consider it in this connection.

4. Persea cinerascens Blake, sp. nov.

Tree; branchlets of the year densely pilose -tomentose with sordid-
rufescent hairs; older branchlets fuscous, more sparingly pilose-tomen-
tose; leaves alternate, crowded on the young branchlets, the blades 10
to 20 cm. long, 5 to 8 cm. wide, elliptic to oval-oblong or obovate, acute

Fig. 2. — Persea «nerc5cew5 Blake (drawn from Purpus 7671). a, perianth,
X 5; &, stamen of series I, X 10; c, stamen of series III, viewed from dorsal
side, X 10; ^, staminode, viewed from ventral side, X io;_g, ovary, X 10.

or short-pointed but blunt at apex, cuneate at base, chartaceous,
entire, above dull green, rather obscurely foveolate, with impressed
veins, sordidly pilose-tomentose chiefly on costa and lateral veins,
beneath cinerascent, sordidly pilosulous on whole surface but more
densely so on the veins with crisped spreading hairs, prominent-reticu-
late, the 14 to 16 pairs of lateral veins diverging at an angle of 45° to
'60°, the secondaries connecting them nearly at right angles; petioles
pilose-tomentose with sordid-rufescent hairs, 2 to 3 cm. long; peduncles
axillary, 3.5 to 7 cm. long, like the whole inflorescence sordidly pilose-
tomentose; panicles 5 to 7 cm. long, 3 to 4 cm. wide, narrowly subpyr-
amidate, the short branches 3- to 6-flowered toward apex; bractlets
deciduous; pedicels stout, i mm. long; perianth 7 to 8.5 mm. long,
densely pilosulous-tomentose both sides with sordid-cinereous hairs,
the tube about i mm. long, the segments elliptic-oblong, 1.8 to 2 mm.

BLAKE: REVISION OF THE AVOCADOS 1 9

wide, obtusish, the outer i to 1.5 mm. shorter than the inner; stamens
of series I 4.8 mm. long, the densely pilose filaments 3 mm. long, the
slightly broader anthers 1.8 mm. long; stamens of series II similar,
4.5 mm. long; stamens of series III 5.2 mm. long, the densely pilose
filament 3.4 mm. long, bearing 0.7 mm. above base two sessile ovoid
pilosulous glands 0.7 mm. long, the anther 1.8 mm. long, the lower
cells subextrorsely dehiscent, the upper lateral-introrse ; staminodes
3 mm. long, the densely pilose filament 1.7 mm. long, the cordate-
sagittate apiculate gland 1.3 mm. long, glabrous on inner face, dorsally
pilose and barbate at apex; ovary ellipsoid, glabrous, 1.5 mm. long;
style slender, glabrous, 3.5 mm. long; extreme base of calyx segments
thickened and persistent in fruit, forming a saucer i mm. high, 4.5 mm,
wide; berry subglobose, glaucous-blue, about 12 mm. long and thick;
seed globular, 8 mm. thick.

Type in the U. S. National Herbarium, No. 884613, collected at
Zacuapan, Vera Cruz, Mexico, June, 191 6, by C. A. Purpus (No. 7671).
Duplicates in the Gray Herbarium. Also collected in fruit at the same
locality at a later date by Purpus (No. 8144).

This species is readily distinguished by its glabrous ovary, sessile
staminal glands, narrow panicle, and by the pubescence of its leaves.
In Mez's treatment of Persea it seems to come nearest to P. liehnianni
Mez, from the description of which it differs in its larger flowers, longer
anthers, staminodal glands glabrous inside, and larger berry. It is
evidently of no importance as a food plant.

The sheet in the National Herbarium is in bud only, and the complete
description of the species has been made possible through the kindness
of the Gray Herbarium in loaning two sheets of the same number
bearing a few opened flowers, and of Mr. T. S. Brandegee in sending
fruiting material of a later collection by Purpus from the same locality.

5. Persea leiogyna Blake, sp. nov. Trapp Avocado.

Tree about 10 meters high, with broad low head; branchlets stout,
glabrous, glaucous; leaves alternate, the blades 7.5 to 16 cm. long,
4.5 to 8 cm. wide, ovate or elliptic-ovate to oval, acute or short -pointed,
the apex usually blunt, at base unequal, rounded to cuneate-rounded,
pergamentaceous, pinnate-veined (veins 4 to 9 pairs, prominulous-
reticulate beneath), above deep green, glabrous, beneath somewhat
glaucous, glabrous or with very sparse short incurved hairs along costa
and toward base of primary veins; petioles glabrous, 2 to 3.5 cm. long;
panicles axillary, 5.5 to 10 cm. long (including peduncle, this 2 to 4
cm. long), crowded toward tips of branchlets, about twice as long as the
petioles, rather sparsely puberulous with loose curved hairs, not at all
canescent; pedicels 2 to 4 mm. long; perianth yellowish green, 5.3
to 6 mm. long, short-ciliate above middle and sparsely pilosulous out-
side with loosely spreading curved hairs, essentially glabrous inside,
punctate, the segments elliptic-oblong, obtuse to rounded, the outer

20 BLAKE: REVISION OF THE AVOCADOS

4 to 5 mm. long, 2 mm. wide, the inner slightly longer, 5.3 to 6 mm.
long, 2 mm. wide; stamens of series I 3 to 4 mm. long, with slender
sparsely ciliate filaments 1.5 to 2.7 mm. long; of series II similar but
longer, the filaments 2.2 to 2.9 mm. long, the anther 1.3 mm. long;
of series III similar, the filaments 2.5 to 3.2 mm. long, the anthers 1.2
to 1.4 mm. long, the glands borne about one-sixth to one-fifth the length
of the filament above its base, ovate or rotund-ovate, obtuse or ob-
liquely emarginate at apex, cordate-sagittate at base, glabrous, borne
on distinct but shorter glabrous stipes; staminodes glabrous, 1.8 to
2.5 mm. long, the head triangular, narrowed from the base, apiculate,
equaling or shorter than the filament; ovary glabrous, ovoid; style
glabrous, slightly longer than ovary; fruit oblate to globose, 7 to 12 cm
long, light yellowish green outside, with smooth thickish skin ; seed often
loose in the cavity.

Type in the U. S. National Herbarium, No. 1012124, collected in
Charles Deering's grove at Buena Vista, Florida, April 7, 1916, by
Wilson Popenoe (No. 219). Other specimens examined (cultivated):

Florida: Plant Introduction Garden, Miami, April 5, 1916, Po-
penoe 196, 198 (S. P. I.)-

In foliage characters Persea leiogyna is so close to many specimens of
P. americana that the two species can not be distinguished by leaves
alone. In its shorter greenish yellow (when dried) sparsely pilosulous
perianth, its smaller sparsely ciliate stamens, its glabrous staminodia,
and its glabrous ovary, however, P. leiogyna is unique in the group of
species known under the name of avocado.

Persea leiogyna is the commonly cultivated "Trapp avocado" of
Florida, from Fort Pierce to Winter Haven, Bradentown, and south-
ward. The "Family avocado," represented by Popenoe 196, is identical
in botanical characters. The latter is said to be a variety of local
origin, rather extensively propagated.

The material of this species which I have examined consists of that
above cited, and in addition eight branches from different trees of the
"Trapp avocado" collected in the vicinity of Miami in the early spring
of 1919 by Mr. Popenoe. All of these agree precisely with the type in
the diagnostic characters above mentioned. The species flowers from
March to April, and fruits from October to December.

The many thousand trees of the Trapp avocado now in cultivation
in Florida and Cuba have all been produced by budding and grafting
from the single original tree, grown in Florida from seed believed to
have been brought from Cuba, by the late C. L. Trapp, of Cocoanut

BLAKE; REVISION OF THE AVOCADOS 21

Grove, Florida.^ As might be expected from the method of propaga-
tion, they have remained very constant in their characteristics, and
specimens from different trees throw no Hght on the possible origin of
the species. It is of the so-called West Indian race, with smooth,
leathery, thick-skinned fruit and seed commonly loose in the cavity.
Whether it really is a long-distinct wild species, a native of Cuba or
more probably brought there from other regions, whose wild original
is extinct or awaits rediscovery, or whether it is a comparatively recent
mutant under cultivation, or perhaps even a hybrid, are questions
which at present can receive no answer. It is possible that the seedlings
now being grown in South Florida may throw light on the question when
they flower. On the basis of our present information, however, and in
view of its striking and constant technical characters, the species must
be considered one of the most distinct in the genus.

^ The name "Trapp avocado" was given by Prof. R. H. Rolfs (Bur. PI. Indus.
Bull. 97: 119. 1907) in honor of "Mrs. Trapp, Cocoanut Grove, Fla., who owns the
original txee."

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 ijeneral style to those appearing in
this issue.

PHYSICS.- — Reflecting power of stellite and lacquered silver. W. W.
CoBLENTz and H. Kahler. Bur. Standards Sci. Paper 342. Pp. 3.
1919.

It is shown that the reflectivity of stelhte varies somewhat in the
visible spectrum, depending upon the homogeneity and no doubt upon
the exact composition of the alio}".

Data are given on the reflecting power of lacquered silver mirrors,
before and after exposure to ultra-violet light. It is shown that owing
to photochemical action in the lacquer, the silver is turned brown in
color, thus reducing its reflecting power. W. W. C.

CHEMISTRY.- — -Bibliography of scientific literature regarding helium.
Bur. Standards Circular 81. Pp. 21. 1919.
The year 191 8 marks the beginning of a new era in the history and
use of helium. Before that time only a few liters of the gas had been
collected and the cost per liter was enormous. During the war the
development of great fractionating plants capable of separating from
natural gas a sufficient quantity of helium to supply a fleet of airships
has aroused the keen interest not only of engineers and scientists, but
also of the general public, in the unique properties of this gas. This
circular contains a bibliography of the scientific literature relating to
helium prepared for use during the war and now published. Related
papers are grouped together in their chronological order, making the
bibliography, in efi"ect, a brief outline histor}^ of the subject.

E. R. W.

ENTOMOLOGY. — The ants of Cocos Island. William Morton

Wheeler. Proc. Calif. Acad. Sci. [4] 2: Pt. 2, 299-308. June,

1919.

In this, the second publication dealing with the ants of Cocos Island,

the author records seven forms of ants from the island. Two of these

are considered realty endemic and characteristic. "It is evident that

abstracts: entomology 23

the Cocos ants are decidedly tropical whereas those of the Galapagos
are mainly such as belong to subtropical or temperate regions or at
any rate to the cooler or subalpine regions in the New World tropics.
* * * * The data derived from a study of the ants are too meager
to enable me either to accept or to reject Stewart's view that Cocos is a
true oceanic island of more recent origin than the Galapagos and that
it has received its biota as 'Flotsam and jetsam' from the Central Amer-
ican mainland." S. A. RohwEr.

ENTOMOLOGY. — The ants of the Galapagos Islands. WiIvUam
Morton Wheeler. Proc. Calif. Acad. Sci. [4] 2: Pt. 2, 259-297.
June, 191 9.

In the introduction the author gives a history of the development of
our knowledge of the ants of the Galapagos Islands and briefly reviews
the literature of the two opposing theories of the development of the
islands. In reference to these theories he states that "The unbiased
worker can only conclude from what has been written on the subject,
and notwithstanding the many excellent monographs that have been
produced on various portions of the fauna and flora, that we need a still
more intensive and exhaustive exploration of the islands and above all
a much better acquaintance with their geology than we now possess,
before he can definitely accept either of the hypotheses."

The number of ants recorded from the islands comprise 36 different
forms representing 18 species, 10 genera and four of the five subfamilies
of the Formicidae. Only nine species are considered as clearly indig-
enous to the islands and all of these are distinctly Neotropical in their
affinities but all but three or four are either well-known species widely
distributed in tropical and subtropical portions of America or are
merely subspecies or varieties of such forms. The author considers
that no fewer than 26, or 72.2 per cent, of the 36 forms (subspecies and
varieties) are endemic. S. A. Rohwer.

VOLCANOLOGY. — The composition of the gases of Kilaiiea. E. S.
Shepherd. Bull. Hawaiian Volcano Obs. 7: 94-97. July, 1919.
Since 1912, when Day and Shepherd collected the first gas samples
ever taken from the Kilauea crater, work has continued on the com-
position of these gases. Further collection was made in 19 17 and a
shipment of gases collected by Dr. T. A. Jaggar, Jr., director of the
observatory at Kilauea, has just been received. This work presents

abstracts: volcanology

rather unusual difficulties in the matter of collection and also in the
analysis.

This preliminary report is concerned primarily with the 19 17 col-
lection, but includes a new analysis of one of the 191 2 tubes and one
tube from Jaggar's 191 8-19 collection, for comparison. From an ex-
amination of the tables of analyses it appears that the gases from this
volcano varj^ greatly in composition. About the only constituent
which appears in more or less constant quantity is water vapor, which
averages about 50 per cent of the gases given off by the lava. This
refers, of course, to the gases obtained from the inside of flames, i. e.,
before the gas has come in direct contact with air. The remaining
constituents are CO2, CO, H2, No, Ar (trace), SO2, and S2, with
traces of CI2 and F2. The chief ingredients are CO2, SO2, S2, and H2O.
It seems significant that the combustible gases are (at the surface)
relatively small in amount, and this doubtless explains the quiet nature
of Kilauea eruptions — there is little left to furnish an explosion. It is
also probable that with the additional evidence which the gases re-
cently collected by Jaggar and the systematic collection which he pur-
poses for the future will furnish, we shall be able to establish the relative
importance of the several hypotheses thus far proposed to account for
the energy supply of this crater. The analyses of the 191 7 gases are
as follows:

Gases Collected from Kilauea, 19 17

[Volume per cents at i200°C.]

Tube

ii
21

3-
4-
5-
6.

7-
8.

9-
10.

CO2

2.65
17-95
33 48
1 1 . 12

9-54
I .97

17-25

15-27

8.32

1-54

I .04
0.36
I .42
3 92
I . 12
0.82
o .62

0.45
0.82

0.43

4 .22

I -35
1.56
1.42

I 53
0.21
0.76
0.70
1.82
0.37

udt.
udt.
0.45
0.51

0.07
0.18
o. 14
0.29
0.39

SO;

o . 16

3 51
29.83

9.90
0.95
9-75
6.98
16.80

0.70
0.49

1 -79
8.61

2 .72
2 .70
I .07
0.49

2-49
3-56

CI2

udt.
udt.
0.17
o .02

0.25

I .01

I -34

H2O

67
38
17
77
64

89
64

75
59
89

99
48
97
50
71
77
18
08
97
93

^ Tubes I and 2 were analyzed before the calcium tube was added to the apparatus,
so that the rare gases were not determined. Chlorine was not determined in these
tubes (udt.). Other blanks in the table mean that the gas was not present inde-
terminable amounts. K. S. S.

abstracts: chemical technology 25

CHEMICAL TECHNOLOGY.— r/z^ technique of optical glass melting.

Clarence N. Fenner. Journ. Amer. Ceram. Soc. 2: 102-145.

February, 1919. (Geophysical Lab. Papers on Optical Glass,

No. 7.)
The course of melting operations is followed from beginning to end
and the essential features of procedure are described. Details of prac-
tice which are common to all forms of glass-making and are familiar
to glass-makers in general are either omitted or passed over with brief
descriptions, and attention is concentrated on those matters which in
the making of optical glass differs from that of other kinds. Because
of the fact that the purposes for which optical glass is to be used are in
many respects radically different from those of other glasses, and require
that exact optical and other physical properties be maintained and that
certain defects be eliminated, it is essential that manufacturing opera-
tions be controlled throughout by methods of precision. The article
describes the general course which must be followed to accomplish
these results and the effects caused by departures from the standard
of procedure, and takes up in more detail the principal defects which
are likely to occur, and considers their causes and the methods of avoid-
ing them. Some of the subjects discussed are : The effects of different
available batch-materials upon melting operations and the range of
choice in this matter; the necessity of close temperature regulation and
the results of inattention to this; fining operations, especially with
reference to the elimination of bubbles, and the causes and prevention
of bubbles in general ; variations of optical properties from requirements
and to what they are due; differences of procedure required for the dif-
ferent types of glass; stirring operations, and the manner in which they
should be conducted to obtain glasses relatively free from striae.

C. N. F.

CHEMICAL TECHNOLOGY.— y4» improved method of optical glass
manufacture. George W. Morey. Journ. Amer. Ceram. Soc.
2: 146-150. February, 1919. (Geophysical Lab. Papers on
Optical Glass, No. 8.)
Stirring is begun during the fill and is continued during the fining
period. Details are given of changes in procedure following this de-
parture from the usual schedule. The results show that with proper
furnace control, the customary time of manufacture of a pot of glass can
be reduced to 24 hours, with improvement in color due to diminished
pot corrosion. G. W. M.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES.

BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY

60 1 ST MEETING

The 6oist regular meeting of the Biological Society of Washington
was held in the Assembly Hall of the Cosmos Club on November 15,
1919; called to order at 8.10 p.m. by Vice-President Vernon Bailey.
Twenty-six persons present.

Under heading of brief notes Dr. L- O. Howard reported a letter
read before the council from B. W. Evermann in which Dr. Evermann
regretted that he was unable to attend the anniversar}'^ meeting on
November i.

Dr. R. W. Shufeldt exhibited living young of the southern soft-
shelled turtle [Amyda ferox (Schneider) ] and gave an account of the
distribution and habits of this group of turtles.

W. H. Osgood gave a brief synopsis of the meetings of the American
Ornithologists' Union held during the past week in New York City.

A. Wetmore remarked upon the attitude of the male sage grouse
[Centrocercus uropkasianus (Bonaparte)] in strutting, as shown in
motion pictures taken by W. L. Finley.

The regular program consisted of three communications:

N. Hollister: Relative abundance of waterfowl in Wisconsin (il-
lustrated by diagrams). This paper, based on observations made at
Delavan Lake in southeastern Wisconsin, will be published in the Auk.
The paper was discussed by W. H. Osgood, A. Wetmore and V. Bailey.

A. Wetmore: -4 peculiar habit of grebes (with exhibition of speci-
mens). This communication will appear in full in the Condor. The
paper was discussed by R. W. Shufeldt and V. Bailey.

E. O. Wooton: Notes on a short visit to Tamaidipas. Prof. Wooton
gave an interesting account of a trip made during midsummer 1919 to
examine the possibilities of Northern Tamaulipas in regard to agri-
culture and range. Although the time of year was unfavorable for
botanical collecting, 207 species of plants were preserved and of these
several proved to be new to science. • A general account of the region
and of its vegetation was given. The paper was discussed by E. A.
Goldman, V. Bailey and A. Wetmore.

Alexander Wetmore, Recording Secretary pro tern.

* K Y}_3o|

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

At a meeting held on November 25 in the main auditorium of the
New National Museum, Professor Irving Fisher, of Yale University,
addressed the Scientific-Technical Section of the Federal Employees
Union on the subject of "The purchasing power of salaries." The
speaker elaborated his theory of a stabilized dollar, pointing out that
an invariable unit of value is of even greater importance than invariable
units of other quantities, such as length and mass. The Section voted
to appoint a Committee for a study of the proposal for a more stable
unit than the gold dollar, with instructions to report back a resolution
granting or withholding endorsement according to the findings of the
Committee.

Dr. P. G. AgnEw, physicist in the Electrical Division of the Bureau
of Standards, has resigned to become secretary of the American En-
gineering Standards Committee, with headquarters at the Engineering
Building, 29 West 39th Street, New York City.

Dr. Louis A. Bauer, director of the Department of Terrestrial Mag-
netism, Carnegie Institution of Washington, gave an illustrated lec-
ture on "The solar eclipse of May 29, 191 9, and the Einstein effect"
before the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada at the University
of Toronto on December 2, and at the College of the City of New York
on December 4. On December 3 Dr. Bauer, assisted by Dr. S. J.
Mauchly, gave a lecture on the magnetic and electric work of the
Department before a special meeting of the Mathematical and Physical
vSociety of the University of Toronto.

Mr. N. H. Darton, geologist of the U. S. Geological Survey, will
spend two months in the Dominican Republic early in 1920 to investi-
gate oil conditions for a New York company.

Dr. W. S. Gorton has resigned from the Bureau of Standards, where
he has been engaged in work on potential-transformer testing and
automotive engine ignition, to accept a research position with the Wes-
tern Electric Company in New York City.

Dr. Carl P. Hartley, pathologist in the office of Forest Pathology,
Bureau of Plant Industry, resigned in October to accept a position as
pathologist with the Instituut voor Plantenziekten en Cultures, Buiten-
zorg, Java.

Mr. W. B. Heroy, formerly of the U. S. Geological Survey, and re-
cently on the staff of the McGraw-Hill Company, publishers of tech-
nical periodicals, has resigned to accept a position as geologist with the
Sinclair Consolidated Oil Corporation, with offices at 120 Broadway,
New York City.

28 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Messrs. F. L. Hess and R. M. Overbeck, of the U. S. Geological
vSurvey, are on a six months' leave of absence and are engaged in ex-
ploration of deposits of ores of the rare metals in Bolivia, for private
interests.

Miss Martineau Knight, geologic aid of the U. S. Geological Sur-
vey, has been employed by the Roxana Oil Company of California as
office geologist.

Dr. S. KoNiSKi of the Department of Commerce and Agriculture of
Japan, and Technical Adviser to the Japanese delegates at the Peace
Conference, visited Washington in December.

Prof. T. H. Laby of the University of Melbourne visited the scien-
tific laboratories of Washington in December, while on his way back
to Australia from England, where he has been doing research work on
war problems.

Mr. A. G. Maddren resigned from the U. S. Geological Survey in
December, to enter the employ of the Vulcan Oil Company. He will
make a detailed study of part of the Ranger oil field, Texas, under the
direction of Ralph Arnold.

Senator Medill McCormick of Illinois has been appointed a regent
of the Smithsonian Institution.

Mr. John D. McChesney, disbursing clerk of the U. S. Geological
Survey since its organization, died on December 5, 191 9.

Mr. C. C. OsBON, statistical clerk in charge of peat and asphalt in
the mineral resources branch of the Geological Survey, has resigned to do
statistical work for the Marland Refining Company.

Prof. Louis Valentine Pirsson, professor of geology at Yale Uni-
versity, and a non-resident member of the Academy, died on December
8, 1 9 19, in his sixtieth year. Professor Pirsson was born in New York
City, November 3, i860. His entire academic career of thirty-seven
years was spent at Yale. His work was principally in petrology, par-
ticularly of the igneous rocks of Montana and New England. He had
been a member of the Academy since 1900, and was also a member of
the Geological Society of Washington.

Mr. Henry S. Rawdon, ph3^sicist in the metallurgical division of the
Bureau of Standards, went to Europe in November, to spend about
three months in collecting information on permissible limits for sulfur
and phosphorus in steels.

A wireless message from South America states that Dr. Gaillard
Sherburne Rogers, geologist of the U. S. Geological Surv^ey, was
drowned on November 18, 1919. He was engaged at the time in the
examination of oil and gas concessions in Colombia. Dr. Rogers
was born on March 21, 1889, in New York City. He joined the Geo-
logical Survey in 1911 and had devoted his attention particularly to
the geology of oil and gas deposits. He was a member of the Academy
and of the Geological Society.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. io JANUARY 19, 1920 No. 2

MATHEMATICS. — A trigonometric computer. F. E. Wright,
Geophysical Laboratory, Carnegie Institution of Washing-
ton.

The solution of spherical triangles by the logarithmic compu-
tation of trigonometric formulas is at best a time-consuming
process, especially if there be many such triangles to solve.
In case high precision is required no other method is available;
but if only approximate results are desired, graphical methods
may be used, such as an exact projection net; of these the stereo-
graphic net published by G. W. Littlehales^ is the most accurate
and furnishes results correct to about 2' of arc under favorable
conditions. If the results are to be correct within one-half
minute of arc graphical methods are not adequate and recourse
must be had either to computation or to some mechanical device
of high precision.

In crystallographic work the degree of precision is of the order
of magnitude of V^'- In the measurement of the changes in

' Altitude, azimuth, and geographical position. J. B. Lippincott Company.
Philadelphia, 1906.

WRIGHT: TRIGONOMETRIC COMPUTER

crystal angles with temperature the position of each crystal face
is determined on the two-circle goniometer by means of two
angles (polar distance and azimuth). Having given the posi-
tion-angles of any two faces, the angle between them can be
found by the solution of a spherical triangle.

Fig. I. Photograph of trigonometric computer.

In 1913 the writer had occasion to solve many triangles of this
type, and to save time had a mechanical computer constructed
in the instrument shop of the Geophysical Laboratory. This
instrument has proved to be satisfactory in practice for the
solution of oblique spherical triangles in which three of the angles
are given and the value of any one of the three remaining angles
is sought with a precision of about half a minute. The computer
was designed for, and functions best in, the solution of the

WRIGHT: TRIGONOMETRIC COMPUTER 3 1

problem: given two sides and the included angle of a spherical
triangle; find the third side.

Description of instrument. — A photograph of the instrument is
reproduced in fig. i. It consists essentially of three concentric
graduated circles which can be inclined at different angles one
to the other. The inner circle I is horizontal and can be rotated
about a vertical axis. The outer circle III fits in the semicircu-
lar groove D and is free to turn in this bearing, the angle of turn-
ing being read off on the vernier at E, E; the circle in its bearing
can also be rotated about the horizontal axis F, F. The inter-
mediate circle II is not a complete circle and is attached to the
circle I by the horizontal axis G, G, and to the circle III by the
axis H. The angles of rotation and revolution of these circles
can be read off on appropriate verniers. The circles are equipped
with clamp screws and slow-motion devices for the accurate
setting of angles.

The following steps are taken to solve the problem: given two
sides a, b, and the included angle C of a spherical triangle; de-
sired the third side c.

Set the three circles at right angles to each other — all verniers
reading 90°. Turn circle III about the horizontal axis to the
position where it includes the angle C with the horizontal circle I
(angle read off on the vernier of circle II). Turn circle II in its
bearing until axis H includes an angle a with the axis F, F;
turn horizontal circle I about its axis until .axis G, G includes the
angle b with the axis H. The angle H-G is then the desired
angle c. The entire operation requires about one minute and
is simple and readily checked.

The instrument is necessarily one of high precision, and first
class workmanship is required to produce a satisfactory com-
puter. In its construction care was taken to include adequate
adjustment facilities such that the instrument can be readily
adjusted in case of wear. The instrument is mounted on a
heavy cast-iron base. Credit is due to Mr. J. Jost of the me-
chanical staff of the Laboratory for the excellent mechanical
workmanship on this computer.

32 PITTIER: VENEZUELAN MAHOGANY

BOTANY. — The Venezuelan mahogany, a hitherto undescribed
species of the genus Swietenia. H. PiTTiER, Bureau of
Plant Industry.

It is interesting to note how many groups of trees well known
for their industrial or other economic uses have thus far escaped
the attention of botanists. This is especially true in the case
of tropical woods, and the principal reason seems to be that
collectors, taking it for granted that plants universally used by
man are too well known to deserve critical study, seldom secure
the herbarium material which is indispensable for their proper
botanical identification.

Among many examples of this kind may be mentioned the
Venezuelan mahogany, a stately tree which is rather abundant
in the basal region of Venezuela, from sea-level up to about
1,000 meters. Besides being extensively used locally, it has for
some time been exported to Europe and the United States. The
only attempt at its scientific classification was that of Dr. A.
Ernst, who in 1883, inh is report on the Venezuelan National
Exposition, considered it identical with the Santo Domingo
mahogany (Swietenia Mahagoni L.). From this species, how-
ever, it differs widely in the size and dehiscence of the fruit, the
size, shape, and texture of the leaflets, and the details of the
flower structure.

Since 19 13, when for the first time I had an opportunity to
observe this tree in situ, I have been able to study it over an
extensive territory. From the first it seemed to me specifically
distinct from the real mahogany, of which several individuals,
grown from seeds brought directly from vSanto Domingo, are to
be seen in the vicinity of Caracas. I was struck principally by
the dimension of the capsules and by their mode of dehiscence.
Heretofore the basal dehiscence noted in the true mahogany has
been considered one of the diagnostic characters of the genus.
In the Venezuelan species, however, the capsules open as often
from the apex as from the base, and I have noticed that such
is the case also with 5. macrophylla, which I have had occasion
to observe in Panama.

PITTIER: VENEZUELAN MAHOGANY 33

After my first trip to Venezuela the above observations were
reported to the then best recognized authority on the family
Meliaceae, Casimir de Candolle, whose death science has lately
had to lament. Mr. de Candolle's views confirmed mine. In
a letter he referred to the necessity of revising the generic defi-
nition of Swietenia as to the mode of dehiscence of the capsule,
and expressed his intention of describing the Venezuelan species
as new. This he seems not to have been able to do, for which
reason I now proceed to give my own description, dedicating
the species to the memory of that illustrious botanist, whose
friendship I am proud to have enjoyed for nearly forty years.

Swietenia CandoUei Pittier, sp. nov.

A tree up to 40 meters high, the trunk erect, 120 cm. in diameter at
the base, covered with rimose bark, the crown more or less elongate-
ovoid. Leaves abruptly pinnate, glabrous, the rachis 15 to 22 cm.
long, terete, slender, the petiolar part 7 to 8.5 cm. long; leaflets 3- or
4-jugate, opposite, subcoriaceous, inequilateral, the petiolules slender,
canaliculate, 6 to 12 mm. long, the blades ovate to elliptic-lanceolate,
acute or subacute at the base, long and narrowly cuspidate at the apex,
4 to 1 1 cm. long, 2 to 4 cm. broad, shining above, dull and paler be-
neath.

Inflorescence axillary, entirely glabrous, 10 to 15 cm. long, the pe-
duncles 5 to 6 cm. long, the flowers pediceled, yellowish white, the bract-
lets minute, caducous; pedicels 3 to 6 mm. long, slender, erect; calyx
short, cupular, the 5 lobes ovate-rounded, obtuse; petals (imbricate in
bud) inequilateral, obovate, obtuse, 5 to 6.5 mm. long, about 3 mm.
broad, reflexed in anthesis; stamen tube tubular-urceolate, 4 mm. long,
the teeth narrow and acuminate, the anthers subsessile, ovoid-oblong;
disk crenulate, 0.8 mm. high; pistil about 4.5 mm. high, glabrous, the
ovary ovoid, the style rather slender, the stigma discoid, 1.5 mm. in
diameter, entirely exserted from the stamen tube at full anthesis.

Fruiting peduncles 10 to 24 cm. long; capsule distinctly obpyriform,
13 to 14 cm. long, 8 to 9 cm. in diameter, pale brown outside, with a
rugose surface; valves 5, opening mostly from top to base, ligneous,
7 to 8 mm. thick, with a white inner coating adhering loosely to the
seeds; central column about 11 cm. long, club-shaped and 5-winged,
fight and spongy; cells 5, provided at the top with a double series of
spongy, dark brown scales, the 9 to 12 perfect seeds inserted on these
by a hilum at the apex of the wing, 2 to 4 of the upper seeds being
generally undeveloped and imperfect; wing basal, about 7 cm. long and
2.5 cm. broad, papyraceous, thicker on the outer margin, two fibro-
vascular bundles here connecting with the hilum; body of the seed more
or less flattened, rounded at the tip, about 2.4 cm. long, 1.5 cm.
broad, 5 to 8 mm. thick, entirely smooth and of a rich brown color,

34 HOPKINS: BIOCLIMATIC LAW

with an agreeable odor when fresh; embryo 2 cm. long, 1.2 cm. broad,
flattened, yellowish white, with a dark umbilical area on the outer
thicker margin.

Type in the U. S. National Herbarium, no. 601496, collected at La
Trinidad de Maracay, State of Aragua, Venezuela, at an altitude of
about 440 meters, in flower, January 31, 1913, by H. Pittier (no. 5789).

The purpose of the spongy suberose tissue surrounding the embryo
is to store moisture for the promotion of germination.

To my knowledge, Swietenia Candollei is spread in the basal region
all over the coastal range of Venezuela and in the interior valleys
north of the llanos. A tree which is presumably this species is reported
to e^ist in the Orinoco Valley also, and along the foot of the Andes in
the region of Lake Maracaibo, but until we have specimens it is not
possible to affirm that there is but a single species in these regions.
Several other timber trees belonging to diverse genera are in the local
market under the name caoha, which is the Spanish equivalent for
mahogany.

The Venezuelan mahogany is often seen along streets and in parks,
as for instance in Valencia, in the State of Carabobo. It is used also
for shade or as a windbreak in cacao plantations and in former times
was planted extensively in the live hedges bounding the sections of the
larger estates. It strikes root readily from stakes and, as it has proven
profitable in the past, ought to be propagated now, because of its eco-
nomic value.

BIOLOGY.— 7/j^ Bioclimatic Law} Andrew D. Hopkins, Bu-
reau of Entomology.
In 17 18 Dr. Jacob Bigelow, who was then Rumford professor
and lecturer on materia medica and botany in Harvard Univer-
sity, published a paper- based on evidence secured from the
reported dates of the blooming of the peach tree at dififerent
places between Montreal, Canada, and Fort Clairbome in Alabama
Territory. In this paper Dr. Bigelow suggested that the differ-
ence in the time of the event between the northern and southern
extremes of the country was not less than two months and a
half. This suggestion served to stimulate further studies along
this line by botanists in Europe and especially in Germany, and
finally led to the founding of the science of periodical phenomena
under the designation of Phenology.

' Read before the Biological Society of Washington, November 29, 19 19.
2 Memoirs Amer. Acad. Arts and Sciences 4, Part I.

HOPKINS: BIOCUMATIC LAW 35

For a time the study related to plants alone and thus was
associated with botany. Later, animals, and still later, the rela-
tion of periodical phenomena of plants and animals to climate,
were included, and from the first, variation in the time of occur-
rence of periodical phenomena with geographical position was
recognized. Thus the science is founded on and embraces certain
features of biology, climatology, and geography, and involves,
in the consideration of its problems, a number of other branches
of science and practice.

Beginning about 1830, special attention was given by German
writers to a study, first of the rate of variation with latitude,
and later to the variation with altitude, and finally, in 1893, the
discovery was announced of a rate of variation with longitude.

In 1894 the writer noted that the dates of emergence of the
periodical cicada in West Virginia varied with the latitude and
altitude. This, in connection with the announcement by Dr.
Merriam of the relation of cUmate and temperature to the defin-
ing of equal or similar biological associations, designated as life
zones, led to a consideration of the relation within the State of
West Virginia of insect and plant distribution to periodical activ-
ities, temperature, latitude, and altitude. About this time the
Hessian fly was very destructive to wheat throughout the State
and, guided by the findings of Professor Webster that in Ohio there
was a difference in safe dates to sow wheat to avoid damage by
this insect, varying with latitude north and south of Wostor,
an effort was made by the writer to apply the principle in West
Virginia. It was soon found that altitude was equally as im-
portant as latitude, and a detailed study of this new phase of
the problem, aided by phenological observations at different
latitudes and altitudes, resulted in the publication in 1895 of
Bulletin 67 of the West Virginia University, Agricultural Experi-
ment Station, in which it was suggested that the rate of varia-
tion in the safe dates for seeding wheat was about one day for
fifteen minutes of latitude and one hundred feet of altitude. It
was further suggested that this rate of variation was in accord-
ance with natural law, which could be applied in designating the
time of periodical events or practice for any given place in the

36 . HOPKINS: BIOCLIMATIC LAW

State. As an example, and to serve as a guide to the selection
of the time to sow wheat at different latitudes and altitudes
to avoid damage by the fly, a calendar of dates and altitudes
was prepared and issued with the bulletin, to be used in connec-
tion with a map of the State. By means of this map -calendar
the average safe date for any place could be determined by the
farmer. The practical value of this method was recognized,
and demonstrated in the greatly lessened loss from Hessian fly
damage the following year (1896) and even to the present time.

Up to the time the bulletin was published and some years
later the determination by the writer as to the rates of varia-
tion in time with variations in latitude and altitude was entirely
independent of the German literature on the subject, yet the
conclusions were practically identical with those published many
years before.

Recognizing the broad application of a knowledge of the sug-
gested law to science and practice in entomology, general biology,
climatology, and agriculture, the writer has given special atten-
tion to the subject during the past 24 years, as applied more
specifically to forest entomology.

As a result of these studies new facts and evidence have ac-
cumulated which serve to establish a definite interrelation of
organisms with climate and geographical position which we have
designated as the Bioclimaiic Law.

The basic principle in the operation of this law is found in
the character of the responses of the organisms to the complex
elements and factors of its local and immediate environment.
In other words, the organism is utilized as the instrument by
which the climate of a place and other influences on its activities
are determined and the rate of variation in the dates of events
and in latitude and altitude limits of distribution is measured.
This method of studying the relations between life and climate has
the advantage over that based on artificial instruments designed
to record temperature, barometric pressure, humidity, sunshine,
rain, wind, etc., because the organism not only records the in-
fluence of all of these, but that of all other elements, factors, and
forces which affect life activity and which no instruments yet
invented can record.

HOPKINS: BIOCUMATIC LAW 37

It appears that, in general, all organisms that are adapted to
a given environmental influence respond to such influence in like
manner. Therefore single species or groups of species of animals
and plants can be utilized to interpret and measure the char-
acter and intensity of the controlling influences of a place or
region. As sources of evidence and facts for the study of the
broader phases of the problem of responses of organisms in gen-
eral to the controlling influences of the local environment and
regional climate, it has been found that plants, and especially
trees and hardy shrub species, are the most convenient and
reUable.

HOW THE PI.ANT RECORDS AND MEASURES THE INTENSITY OF
THE CONTROIvUNG INFEUENCES

Trees and shrubs record the intensity of the influences which
affect their life processes by means of more or less distinct events in
their periods of activity and rest. In the humid climate of the
north temperate zones the beginning of the period of activity is
simultaneous with the advent of the spring season, in the South in
February, and progressively later northward into June. This
response is manifested by the swelling and opening of the winter
leaf and flower buds, followed by successive events during the
seasons of maximum and minimum activities such as the unfold-
ing of the leaves, opening of the flowers, first leaves full grown,
full foliage, winter buds forming, fruit forming, ripening or fall-
ing, autumnal coloring of the foliage, etc. Each event in each
individual of a species marks both a stage in the development of
the life processes and the advance of the season as related to the
controlling influences of the locality or region.

Variations in the date of a periodical event from a given norm
or constant are a measure, in terms of time, of the intensity of
the controlling influences and forces as related (a) to geographical
position, (6) to the season, (r) to the inherent tendency of species
under the same external influences to vary towards early and
late individual responses, and (d) to early and late responses of
individuals of the same variety under varying local influences.
The variation from a constant in the date of an event also mea-
sures the intensity of the controlling influences in terms of dis-

HOPKINS: BIOCUMATIC LAW

tance as related to feet of altitude or equivalents in degrees of
latitude or longitude.

Studies in the application of these principles show quite con-
clusively that the responses to the controlling influences and
forces are in accordance with natural law, in that (a) the time
of occurrence of a given periodical event in the seasonal activity,
or (b) the latitude limits of distribution of an organism, or (c)
its altitude limits, are determined primarily by geographical
position. Therefore, other things being equal, the variation be-
tween two or more geographical positions bears the same propor-
tion to the distance between them, that 4 days of time bears to
I degree of latitude, 400 feet of altitude, or 5 degrees of longi-
tude. These coordinates of the law and their relations one to
another are shown in table i .

TABLE I

. Coordinates

OF THE BlOCLIMATIC Law

Geographical
coordinates

Geographical

unit
coordinates

Time in

day

coordinate

Distance

in feet

coordinate

Latitude

Altitude

Longitude....

1°

400 ft.

5°

4
4

400
400
400

APPLICATION OF THE LAW

The fundamental principle in the application of the law to
research and practice is that which relates to variations from a
constant.^

In the law as outlined the variation from the base should be
at the rates mentioned. Therefore, on the basis of equal influ-
ence other than that related to geographical position, it is a
simple mathematical problem to compute from the records at
one place, the date, limit, or temperature constant for any other
place. We know, however, that the other controlling influences
are rarely, if ever, equal at two or more places and that, there-
fore, we must expect a greater or less variation from the con-
stants.

^ The constants of the law are the dates and the altitude and latitude limits
that are computed from the records at a given base for any geographical position.

HOPKINS: BIOCUMATIC I^AW 39

Thus the fundamental question to be answered is, what amount
of variation from the constant in terms of days, feet, or degrees
of distance, are we to expect for the varying local and regional
influences which contribute to earlier or later dates, or higher
or lower altitude.

During recent years special efforts have been made to find
a reliable basis for answering this question. The first clue
towards the answer was obtained from a study of over 40,000
reported dates of the beginning of wheat harvest, within the range
of winter wheat culture in the United States. The results showed
that the variations from the date constants, for all of the geo-
graphical units involved,^ were in the same directions in certain
regions of the country.

Throughout the Mississippi Basin from the Great Lakes south-
ward, the reported dates were universally -+- or later than the
computed constants; throughout the Great Plains, Rocky Moun-
tain Plateau and part of the Great Basin, the reported dates
were — , or earher; throughout the Pacific Slope they were later;
and so on. These results were strikingly significant of prevail-
ing influences towards the acceleration in some regions and re-
tardation in others of periodical phenomena as compared with
the time-constant of the law.

Continued investigations along this line involved a detailed
study of the altitude limits of species and of biological associa-
tions of plants and animals as mapped by the federal and state
biological surv^eys and determined in a number of cases by per-
sonal investigations. The results of these later studies served
not only to verify the evidence furnished by the wheat harvest
records but to establish, as a general principle, the approximate
amount of variation we may expect to find in all regions, from
those in which there is no perceptible retarding or accelerating
influence to those where the intensity of the influences reaches
its maximum. As measured in time the variation from the con-
stants is found to range from one to forty, with a maximum of
fifty days at certain points along the Pacific Coast. As mea-
sured in altitude the variations are from 100 to 3000, with a

^ Quadrangle V4 X i degree, and the average altitude.

40 HOPKINS: BIOCLIMATIC LAW

maximum of 5000 feet. In these departures the earUer dates
and higher altitudes are the result of accelerating influences, and
later dates and lower altitudes are due to retarding influences.
In order to gather further facts and evidence on the variations
from the constant and also the rate of advance of the spring
season, as revealed by periodical phenomena, observations were
begun at Brownsville in southeastern Texas and at Palm Beach
and Miami, Florida, in February of the present year (19 19).
These were continued along routes from Brownsville in a general
northeastward direction to the northern borders of the States of
New York, Vermont, and Maine and to above the timberline on
Mount Washington, from Miami north along the Atlantic Coast
to Washington and from Palm Beach across the Florida Penin-
sula to Ft. Wayne, then north to Lake City and west to Pensacola,
and return to Washington by the way of Birmingham, Alabama,
Atlanta, Georgia, and Charlotte, North Carolina. These routes
involved a travel, principally by rail, by Messrs. Griffith, Craig-
head, Snyder, and the writer, of over 20,000 miles and the record-
ing of over 20,000 obserA^ations. The data accumulated by these
investigations has ser\^ed not only to verify the facts and evidence
furnished by the wheat harvest and altitude limit data but has
contributed information towards the solving of many other prob-
lems of scientific and economic interest, relating to the applica-
tion of the law in research and practice, which I hope to discuss
in future papers before this and other societies of Washington.

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.

APPARATUS. — Potentiometers for thermoelement work. Walter P.
White. Bull. Amer. Inst. Min. Met. Bng. 1 763-1 772. Sept.,
1919.
Thermocouple pyrometers are read in three ways. First, by direct
readers where the current, and therefore the deflection, is proportional
to the electromotive force of the couple; second, by potentiometers
where the galvanometer merely helps to balance the electromotive
force of the couple against that of a standard cell by means of known
resistances and a constant battery-current; third, by intermediate
instruments such as the pyrovolter, employing the potentiometer prin-
ciple with a constant battery, but avoiding the standard cell, and
measuring current with a calibrated galvanometer. Similar in result,
but different in principle, is the new Harrison-Foote instrument, where
the circuit resistance can be very quickly adjusted to the correct value.
All these special instruments avoid the main difficulty of a direct
reader, namely, the error from uncertain or variable resistance. It is
necessary to use the regular potentiometer in order to avoid also the
uncertainty (perhaps i per mille) of the calibration of the direct reader.
With a slide-wire a simple and portable potentiometer is made, good
to about 10 microvolts, or 0.25° with most thermocouples. The slide-
wire also permits readings to i microvolt, though not altogether satis-
factorily. Two special designs of potentiometer, the Diesselhorst-
WoLff and the White, enable readings to be made to o.i microvolt or
better, and the White potentiometer is very little affected by corrosive
gases. Both these are deflection potentiometers, enabling part of the
readings to be taken direct from the galvanometer with a gain in speed
and without sensible error. If the potentiometer is arranged as a

42 abstracts: physics

double potentiometer, speed can be still further gained in reading
different instruments simultaneously. The precision of these poten-
tiometers exceeds that needed in ordinary pyrometry, but is useful
in fundamental standardization work, in calorimetry, and in numerous
other applications of the thermoelement. W. P. W.

PHYSICS. — A standardized method for the determination of solidifi-
cation points, especially of naphthalene and paraffin. R. M. WiL-
HELM and J. L. Fenkelstein. Bur. Standard Sci. Paper 340. Pp.
12, figs. 4. 1919.

This paper, after a brief treatment of the definitions of melting and
freezing points both of pure substances and of mixtures, describes a
method of making solidification -point determinations of naphthalene.
This method was recommended at a conference of Bureau of Standards
and U. S. Customs officials, and is based on the well-known cooling
curve or constant temperature method. The method is shown to be
applicable to the determination of the freezing points of paraffin and
other substances. R. M. W.

PHYSICS. — Standardization of the sulphur boiling point. E- F. MUEL-
LER and H. A. Burgess. Bur. Standards Sci. Paper 339. Pp.
21, pis. 2, figs. 2. 1919.
This paper describes experiments made to complete the data which
are required for the standardization of the sulfur boiling point as a
thermometric fixed point. The precision attainable in calibration of
resistance thermometers at the sulfur boiling point is so much higher
than the accuracy of the gas thermometer determinations of the tem-
perature that it was considered desirable to standardize the temperature
corresponding to normal atmospheric pressure by definition at 444.60°,
and the data from which this figure was deduced are given. The rela-
tion between the vapor pressure of sulfur and the temperature, over
the pressure range from 700 to 800 mm., was determined with a pre-
cision of 0.0 1 ° or better. The result of this work is the formula

t = 444.60° + o.o9io(/7-76o) — 0.000049(^-760)^

where t is the temperature in Centigrade degrees, assumed by a prop-
erly shielded resistance thermometer in the standard form of sulfur
boiling apparatus, and p is the pressure, expressed in equivalent milli-
meters of mercury at 0° and under standard gravity (g = 980.665).
In an appendix are given the specifications for a proposed standardiza-
tion of the sulfur boiling point. E. F. M.

abstracts: physics 43

PHYSICS. — Tables and curves for use in measuring temperatures with
thermocouples. Leason H. Adams. Bull. Amer. Inst. Min. Met.
Eng. 2111-2124. Sept., 1919.

Previous publications have called attention to the advantages of
standard calibration tables for translating the electromotive force of
a thermocouple into temperature, and such standard tables have been
given for copper-constantan and for platinum-platinrhodium couples.
It has now been found advisable to extend the range of the copper-
constantan table so that this couple may be available for measuring
temperatures up to 400° and down to — 200° C. A table for chromel-
alumel (the Hoskins couple) has also been worked out and the previous
platinum-platinrhodium table for temperatures between 0° and 1755°
is reprinted without change. The question of fixed- junction correc-
tions is discuised and the best methods for making such corrections
are described in detail. L. H. A.

PHYSICS. — Spectral photoelectric sensitivity of silver sulphide and
several other substances. W. W. Coblentz and H. Kahler. Bur.
Standards Sci. Paper 344. Pp. 18, figs. 17. 1919.

This paper gives data on the change in the electrical resistance of
the sulphides of silver and of bismuth, when exposed to radiations of
wave-lengths extending from 0.6 jj. to 3/i. Measurements were made
also upon galena, cylindrite, pyrite, and jamesonite, which, however,
did not show photoelectrical sensitivity for the highest spectral radia-
tion intensities available.

Both the natural mineral, acanthite, Ag2S, and a laboratory prepara-
tion were examined. The latter material, which was hammered into
a thin plate, was found insensitive photoelectrically, at room tempera-
ture. But at — 157° C. a sharp maximum of photoelectrical sensitivity
was observed for radiations of wave-length X = 1.05/x.

Increasing the intensity of the exciting radiations shifts the maximum
of the photoelectrical sensitivity curve toward the long wave-lengths.

There is no simple law governing the variation in the photoelectric
response in silver sulphide with variation in intensity of the radiation
stimulus. Mechanical working (hammering into a thin plate) appears
to lower the intrinsic photoelectrical sensitivity of acanthite and changes
the position of the maximum of spectral sensitivity. A spectral photo-
electric sensitivity curve of bismuthinite, Bi2S3, was obtained at — ^166°
C. There are maxima of sensitivity at 0.64^1, and i.o8/x, respectively.

W. W. C.

44 abstracts: inorganic chemistry

SPECTROSCOPY. — Measurement of wave-lengths in the spectra of
krypton and xenon. Paul W. Merrill. Bur. Standards Sci.
Paper 345. Pp. 6, pi. i. 1919.

This paper records photographic measurements of wave-lengths in
the spectra of krypton and xenon, principally in the red and infra-red.

In krypton 37 new lines were measured between 6576 A and 8928 A,
and in xenon 52 new lines between 6318 A and 9162 A. In this region
there are numerous strong lines which are probably among the most
important in the spectra of these elements. Notable among these are
xenon lines at 8231 and 8280. These and other lines may be of value
as wave-length standards in the infra-red.

Attention is called to a probable analogy between the spectra of the
rare gases neon, argon, krypton, and xenon which this investigation
has brought to light. P. W. M.

INORGANIC CHEMISTRY.— r/i^ relations between tridymite and
cristobalite. Clarence N. Fenner. Journ. Soc. Glass Tech-
nology 3, Trans. : 116-125. Aug., 1919.
Several articles have appeared recently in French and British jour-
nals, in which some of the conclusions regarding the stability relations
between the various forms of silica, published several years ago by the
author, have been questioned. The principal basis for doubt seems
to the present writer to be not that new evidence has been discovered, but
that the observers have failed to take fully into consideration the rather
remarkable properties of silica, which tend to obscure stability relations
and whose effect was discussed in some detail in the article cited;
moreover, that some of the evidence set forth there has been overlooked
or disregarded, and explanations have been advanced which are in-
consistent with this evidence. For this reason it has seemed well to
take up the matter anew and present the evidence which bears upon
the specific points involved. The points at issue are especially those
which deal with the relations between tridymite and cristobalite. Cer-
tain evidence previously given is repeated in somewhat different form,
and, to support it, further evidence is offered which either has not
been given before in detail or is entirely new. In addition to the
writer's work, other directly relevant information supplied by the
work of Ferguson and Merwin on the system CaO-MgO-Si02 is
cited in confirmation. All of the results are in accord with the con-

abstracts: analytical chemistry 45

elusions previously announeed, and it is believed that the explanations
suggested by the foreign observers are directly at variance with the
experimental evidence. The conclusion is reached, as before, that the
field of stability of tridymite is limited by the temperature of 1470° =•=
10°, and that at higher temperatures up to the fusing point cristobalite
is the stable form. C. N. F.

ANALYTlCAIv CHEMISTRY. — The rapid electrometric determination
of iron in some optical glasses. J. B. Ferguson and J. C. Hos-
tetter. Journ. Amer. Ceram. Soc. 2: 608-621. Aug., 1919.
(Geophysical Lab. Papers on Optical Glass, No. 16.)

The results of the application of the electrometric determination of
iron with stannous chloride and potassium dichromate are discussed
in this paper. The electrometric method enables one to make rapid
and accurate analyses for both ferric and ferrous iron, provided inter-
fering substances are absent. Under favorable conditions, such an
analysis can be made in 10 minutes and may be carried out in glass-
ware. Four different procedures are described for total iron and one
for ferrous iron. A number of analytical results, including many fer-
rous-iron determinations, are given. The ferrous-iron content of the
glasses proved to be dependent upon a number of factors and in some
cases reached values in excess of 35 per cent of the total iron present.

J. B. F.

ANALYTICAL CYL^Ml^T^Y .—Determination of free carbon in rub-
ber goods. A. H. Smith and S. W. Epstein. Bur. Standards
Techn. Paper 136. Pp. 8. 1919.

After a brief review of the literature, a discussion is given of the
difficulties encountered in the use of the nitric acid method. It is
shown that nitric acid attacks the carbon and gives an insoluble com-
pound, with the result that a factor of 1.05 must be used. An experi-
ment is outlined which is taken to prove that bituminous matter is all
removed by the treatment indicated. The effects of various mineral
constituents are discussed and methods are outlined for their removal.

The authors conclude that, though the attack of nitric acid on
carbon makes a very accurate determination impossible, the error
caused thereby when the factor 1.05 is used is sufficiently small
to justify the use of this method at the present time as a routine one
in the rubber laboratory. S. W. E-

46 abstracts: geology and paleontology

GEOLOGY AND FAhZONTOhOGY.— Contributions to the geology
and paleontology of the West Indies. Prepared under the direc-
tion of Thomas Wayland Vaughan. Carnegie Institution of
Washington, Publ. 291. Pp. 184, pis. 53, figs. 8. 1919.

Contents :
Introduction. Thomas Wayland Vaughan. Pp. 5-8.

1. Tertiary calcareous algae from the islands of St. Bartholomew, An-
tigua and Anguilla. Marshall A. Howe. Pp. 9-19, pis. 6.

2. Fossil foraminifera from the West Indies. Joseph Augustine
Cushman. Pp. 21-71, pis. 15, figs. 8.

3. Fossil bryozocTfrom the West Indies. Ferdinand Canu and Ray
S. Bassler. Pp. 73-102, pis. 7.

4. Tertiary mollusks from the Leeward Islands and Cuba. Charles
Wythe Cooke. Pp. 103-156, pis. 16.

5. West Indian Tertiary decapod crustaceans. Mary J. Rathbun.
Pp. 157-184, pis. 9.

This series of memoirs, which has resulted from a minor grant made
by the Carnegie Institution, presents data for the correlation of the
different geologic events in the West Indies. The evidence furnished
by all the classes of organisms studied is in accord. It is expected
that this volume will be followed by others containing accounts of the
fossil corals, the echini, the fossil and living land mollusks, and the
stratigraphy and geologic history of the region.

1. Five species of coralline algae are described: i from the Eocene
of St. Bartholomew, 3 from the Oligocene of Antigua, and i from the
Oligocene of Anguilla.

2. The Foraminifera reported on are the Vaughan collection from
the Leeward Islands, the Maur>' collection from Santo Domingo, the
Johns Hopkins University collection from Bowden, Jamaica, and sev-
eral lots from Cuba. The correlations indicated by the Foraminifera
are discussed and 117 species are described or listed.

3. The Bryozoa described number 42 species; three of them are re-
ferred to new genera. The collections studied include representatives
from the Oligocene of Antigua, Anguilla, and Panama and from the
lower Miocene of Jamaica, Santo Domingo, and Costa Rica. The
stratigraphic position and range of the species is tabulated.

4. In addition to loi species of mollusks, including one new genus,
from the Eocene, Oligocene, and Miocene of St. Bartholomew, Antigua,
Anguilla, and Cuba, two new^ species of brachiopods from the Eocene
of St. Bartholomew are described. The correlations of the formations
are briefly discussed.

abstracts: anthropology 47

Since the completion of this paper, which was written early in 1Q17,
the arbitrary boundary line between the Oligocene and the Miocene
has been shifted a notch or two lower in the time scale, thus placing
the La Cruz marl of Cuba, which had been regarded as Oligocene, on
the Miocene side of the boundary. The fossils from the La Cruz marl are
referred to the Oligocene instead of to the Miocene. This error is one
of nomenclature, not of correlation.

The specimen from Anguilla figured on plate 2, fig. 3, and identified
as Orthaulax pugnax (Heilprin) has proved, on further study, to be an
undescribed species. Excellent specimens of the same species were
recently obtained at several widely separated localities in Santo Do-
mingo, and two fine casts come from the Island of St. Croix. As Miss
C. J. Maury had described in manuscript an Orthaulax from Aguadilla,
Porto Rico, which may be this species, I am refraining from giving my
specimens a name until after her paper has been published.

5. The Crustacea studied are the Decapoda in the Vaughan collec-
tion from Anguilla and Antigua, the Gabb and Maury collections from
Santo Domingo, and one specimen of doubtful origin. Thirty species
are listed, but only 22 are specifically identified. Three new genera
are described. C. WyThe Cooke.

ANTHROPOLOGY. — A structural and lexical comparison of the Tunica,
Chitimacha, and Atakapa languages. John R. Swanton. Bur.
Amer. Ethnology, Bull. 68. Pp. 56. 19 19.
The Tunica, Chitimacha, and Atakapa languages were made the
bases for the Tonikan, Chitimachan, and Attacapan linguistic families
or "stocks" in the original classification of American languages north
of Mexico by J. W.. Powell. Even in Powell's time a reduction in the
number of recognized stocks took place, and the process of reduction,
or attempted reduction, had been markedly accentuated in recent
years. The author believes he has adduced sufficient evidence in
the present bulletin to prove the genetic relationship of the three lan-
guages considered. J. R. S.

ANTHROPOLOGY. — Handbook of aboriginal American antiquities.

Part I: Introductory, The lithic industries. W. H. Holmes. Bur.

Amer. Ethnology, Bull. 60. Pp. 380. 1919.

As explained by the author in his preface, "the present work forms

one of the series of handbooks of the Bureau of American Ethnology,

which was conceived as the natural and necessary outgrowth of the

Handbook of American Indians (Bulletin 30), a comprehensive treatise

48 .VBSTRACTS: CHEMICAL TECHNOLOGY

completed and sent to press while the writer was Chief of the Bureau."
The purposes of the present volume and the natiire of its contents
are also best given in his own words. "This work." he says, "is not
designed as a formal presentation of American archeology- in which the
antiquities are described and discussed countr\- by countr\-. or region
by region, in geographical sequence, but rather as a reference work or
manual, the principal purpose of which is to assemble and present the
antiquities of the continent in such a manner and order as to make
them readily available to the student who shall undertake to present
a comprehensive \-iew of the evolution of culture among men.

■'The present voltmie is, in large measure, introductory- to the sj's-
tematic presentation of the antiquities ; it deals with the scope of archeo-
logic science, the character, extent, and classification of its subject
matter, the progress of research; with the several important problems
which present themselves for solution, including those of race origin,
migrations, cultiu-e evolution, and chronology; with the ethnic charac-
terization areas; with the acquirement of the substances employed in
the arts ; and finally with the manipulation of stone.

"The second volume is to be devoted exclusively to the implements,
utensils, and other minor artifacts of stone. These are given prece-
dence over other grand di\-isions of the subject matter for the reason
that they lie at the foimdation of Stone Age culture, and. for that
matter, at the foimdation of all progress toward the civilized state,
and at the same time are the chief rehance of the historian and chronol-
ogist who seeks to write the early chapters of the stcny- of humanity.
Additional voliunes are expected to treat of all the remaining materials
— mineral, animal, and vegetable — -and it is further planned to give
separate consideration to the more important arts and industries prac-
ticed by the native peoples, as building, sculpture, the textile and
fictile arts, and metalliu-g>-." J. R. Sw.\nton.

CHEMICAL TECHNOLOGY.— Constani-tetnperatttre still head for
light-oil fractionation. Frederick M. Washburn. Bur. Stand-
ards Techn. Paper 140. Pp. 12, figs. 4. 1919.
The three t\-pes of methods generally in use for the fractionation of
light oil for the determination of benzene, toluene, and solvent naphtha
are discussed. An apparatus which is an improvement on the de-
phlegmator of the Wilson and Roberts still is described, and the details
of its operation are given. The apparatus is easily and inexpensively
constructed, and requires no greater attention or time than others used.

abstracts: CERAsncs 49

Exceptionally large volumes of "pure" fractions are obtained which
have a ver\' small boiling-point range, showing that they contain only
negUgible amovmts of impurities. Almost all of each of the components
of the mixtiu-e distilled is obtained in practically the ptu-e state, since
the volumes of each of the intermediate fractions are only about 1.5
per cent of the volume taken for distillation. The composition of each
of the intermediate fractions is actually determined, and the error in-
troduced by this determination is small, since it is apphed to only small
voliunes. The apparatus works well on mixtm-es containing widely
var\"ing percentages of benzene, toluene, and solvent naphtha.

F. M. W.

CERAMICS. — Use of optical pyrometers for control of optical glass
furnaces. Clarence X. Fexner. Bull. Amer. Inst. Min. Met.
Eng. looi-ioii. July, 1919. (Geophysical Lab. Papers on
Optical Glass, Xo. 13.)
Among the features of careful control required in the manufactm-e
of optical glass, that of the regulation of fmnace temperatures is of
high importance. It was fotmd that the thermocouples generally in
use did not come up to the requirements for rapid determination of
temperatvu-es, and it was thought that optical pA-rometers should be
a satisfactory- substitute. Before adopting them for general use, tests
were made to determine to what degree the requirements were satis-
fied. As a result, it was fovmd that the manufacturer's calibration
tables were considerably in error in some cases (which impHes that they
should always be checked \ and that the lu^linosit^• of fmnace-walls
agrees satisfactorily with that of a "black body" under some condi-
tions but departs ver\' widely luider others. The reason for these
results and the factors upon which they depend are discussed. The
manner in which the p\Tometer is used under working conditions is
described. The conclusion is reached that when the readings of the
p^Tometer are properly checked by such tests as these the instrument
gives a ver^* satisfactory- and reliable means of controlling furnace tem-
peratures. C. X. F.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY

339TH MEETING

The 339th meeting of the Geological Society of Washington was held
in the Auditorium of the Cosmos Club on Wednesday evening, Novem-
ber 12, 191 9. President E. O. Ulrich presided. The program was
as follows:

Reginald A. Daly: Changes of land and ocean levels.

Field study of the zones of post-Glacial emergence in the Gulf of St.
Lawrence, along the New England coast, and in northwestern Europe
has suggested two tentative conclusions bearing on general principles
of geology. The first is that a world-wide (eustatic) sinking of ocean
level to the extent of 20 to 25 feet seems to have occurred since the
Wisconsin stage of the Glacial period. Secondly, certain field observa-
tions favor Jamieson's hypothesis that the sinking and rising of the
earth's crust, due respectively to glacial loading and to unloading by
deglaciation, have been accompanied, again respectively, by synchro-
nous rising and sinking in the belt peripheral to the ice-caps ; in other
words, that these isostatic adjustments have been accomplished largely
through viscous deformation of the earth, rather than by purely elastic
deformation of the earth's radii.

The first suggestion has been strikingly enforced by facts recently
ascertained in Florida and in the Samoan Islands, as well as by compila-
tion of the published statements regarding "raised" beaches and allied
forms along the shores of the United States, the Bahamas, Brazil, the
British Isles, Australia, New Zealand, Pacific archipelagoes, and else-
where.

Field evidence for the second suggestion has been secured chiefly on
the Maine coast. There the condition of the shore zone emerged in
post- Wisconsin time can best be explained by postulating uplift of the
continental shelf during the Wisconsin stage, followed by resubsidence
during the Recent isostatic rise of the glaciated region of the continent.
If these synchronous movements were actually due to isostatic, viscous
deformation of the earth's crust, similar movement might be expected
in other parts of the belt peripheral to each ice-cap of the Pleistocene
period. The corresponding test of the general hypothesis involves
questions as to working of the abandoned shore-lines of Lake Passaic
and of the Great Lakes; the origin of the submarine "channel" of the

proceedings: geological society 51

Hudson River across the continental shelf; the origin of the "deeps"
of the Susquehanna River; the cause or causes of many Pleistocene
rearrangements of drainage in Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia,
Kentucky, and Nebraska. The relation of these problems to the gen-
eral hypothesis may deserve discussion by the geologists who are most
familiar with the different parts of this extra-glacial belt. Munthe's
conclusion that Jamieson's hypothesis applies to Recent warpings in
northwestern Europe is another strong reason for its serious considera-
tion in the case of our own ice-cap area in eastern North America.
Similarly, the reported warping of the highest shore-line of Glacial Lake
Missoula (Montana-Idaho) and the problem of the Grand Coulee in
Washington State may possibly indicate still a third ice-cap which
deformed the earth's surface in the way Jamieson imagined.
The paper was discussed by several members of the Society.

340TH MEETING

The 340th meeting of the Society was held in the Auditorium of the
Cosmos Club on Wednesday evening, November 26, 1919. The pro-
gram consisted of the following three papers:

D. F. Hewett: The Heart Mountain overthrust near Cody, Wyoming.

This overthrust, recognized west of Cody by Dake in 191 6, proves
to be much more extensive than was at first suspected. Work in the
region in 191 9 shows that on two of the four principal summits of
McCulloch Peak (6,200 feet) 12 miles east of Cody, caps of Madison
and Bighorn (?) limestone 20 to 80 feet thick rest on beds that yield
Bridger fossils (Upper Eocene). As these residual masses of limestone
lie 28 miles east of the westernmost exposures of the fault, this distance
measures the minimum extent of the overthrust. Data collected to
date do not yield conclusive evidence whether the overthrust took
place before or after the deposition of the andesitic tuff and breccia
that make up the Absaroka Mountains. The extent of the over-
thrust is therefore comparable with the Bannock in southeastern Idaho,
the most extensive known in North America. The Bannock over-
thrust took place before the Wasatch (Lower Eocene) beds were laid
down, whereas the Heart Mountain overthrust can not have occurred
before the deposition of the Bridger (Upper Eocene) beds.

Clyde P. Ross: Geology of the Lower Gila region, Arizona.

The region described lies in southwestern Arizona between Gila and
Colorado rivers, south of Buckskin Mountains and west of Phoenix.
The rock formations are divided into four groups: (i) basal complex;
(2) intrusives of probable Mesozoic age; (3) Tertiary lavas and sedi-
mentary rocks; (4) Quaternary alluvium and basalt. The basal com-
plex is divided into highly metamorphosed schists included in batholithic
masses of granitic gneisses, a thick series of metamorphosed marine sed-
iments unconformably overlying the gneisses, and a series of compar-
atively slightly metamorphosed marine sediments of possible Paleozoic
age. The Tertiary lavas far exceed the sediments in amount, totalling
over 2,000 feet in thickness. They are latites, soda rhyolites, and

52 proceedings: geol,ogicai, society

similar rocks, with some basalts. The sedimentary rocks are, in part,
of terrigenous origin and similar to those being deposited in the present
valleys. There are also limestones containing indistinct fossils which
were deposited in large bodies of brackish water which may have had
connection with the sea through the Gulf of California. In the Quater-
nary, alluviation exceeded volcanism in importance. The sediments
belong to three groups: (i) an older, disturbed and partly consolidated
group; (2) a younger and only locally consolidated group; (3) the de-
posits of the present streams.

Kirk Bryan: Geology and physiography of the Papago country, Ari-
zona.

The Papago country is a large area in southwestern Arizona, lying
south of Gila River and west of Santa Cruz River. Part of the results
of a broad reconnaissance, covering nearly four square degrees, and
made for the purpose of preparing a guide to routes of travel and
watering-places in this desert region, was presented. The work was
done in an automobile between September 4 and December 23, 191 7.
The speedometer mileage was 4,250 miles; logs for 1,920 miles of road
were obtained; 240 photographs taken; and a topographic map con-
taining much new geographic information, as well as a geologic map,
were prepared.

The following broad generalizations can be made: (i) The moun-
tains are not residual mountains in the old age stage of erosion, but the
majority are fault block mountains in youth and maturity, or rejuven-
ated and resurrected mountains; (2) the valleys are with one exception
drained and probably have never contained lakes.

Fifty-four of the sixty-eight mountain ranges and groups of hills in
the area can be divided into three classes:

Class I consists of 21 mountain ranges composed in large part of
alternating beds of lava, tuflf, volcanic conglomerate and agglomerates,
and stream-laid conglomerates, probably of Tertiary age. Two of
these mountains are old volcanoes, 10 are rather simple fault-block and
horst mountains, 11 are complexly faulted mountains and dissected
plateaus with large or small masses of the underlying basal complex.

Class II consists of 17 mountain ranges composed largely of rocks
of the Basal Series: granites, gneisses, quartzites, schists, and phyllites
of pre-Cambrian age; felsites, both intrusive and extrusive, and gran-
ites of probable Mesozoic age; Paleozoic limestones; and Cretaceous
sandstone and shales. While largely composed of rocks of the Basal
Series, these mountains contain patches of lavas of Tertiary age tilted
and dislocated and so disposed as to indicate that uplift followed the
extrusion of the lava, and that the present mountains have been resur-
rected by the removal of a more or less continuous lava capping.

Class III consists of 14 mountain ranges composed wholly of rocks
of the Basal Series, with no known association of Tertiary lavas. The
mountains of this class approach most closely the prevailing concep-
tion of the mountains of the region as old age types. Two of thetn,
however, the Estrella and Tinajas Altas mountains, have on their

proceedings: geological society 53

east flanks upland valleys separated from the lower canyons by steep
grades and falls. Such valleys have been considered by Davis ade-
quate evidence of renewed uplift of a fault-block mountain. Other
ranges may fall in this class solely because they have been inadequately
explored.

The remaining mountains and groups of hills, fourteen in number,
are so little known that they can not be classified. Of the sixty-eight
ranges, forty-two are young, mature, rejuvenated or resurrected moun-
tains.

The intermontane valleys are in part formed of plains cut in rock,
but McGee's estimate of 50 per cent of rock surface is an over-state-
ment. The Gila, Santa Cruz, and Altar valleys are dissected not
only by ephemeral streams which cut the alluvial slopes leading from
the mountains, but by the axial streams. In none of the sections of
the alluvium exposed by this dissection have lake beds been found.
The axial trenches of Santa Cruz and Altar valleys fade out before
reaching Gila River, and the terraces of the upper parts of these val-
leys can not be directly correlated with the terraces of the Gila. The
axial streams of the smaller desert valleys are not entrenched except
near Gila River, and the centers of these valleys are broad plains of
alluviation with, however, no evidence of extinct lakes. The upper
parts of the alluvial slopes are, however, nearly always dissected.
This peculiarly arranged terracing and dissection presents one of the
knottiest problems in the physiography of southern Arizona. On the
successful correlation of the several stages of dissection and alluviation
of these valleys will depend the interpretation of Pleistocene history
in the region. Solution of this problem w411 also throw light on the
validity of climatic terraces.

34 1 ST MEETING

The 341st meeting of the Society was held in the Auditorium of the
Cosmos Club on Wednesday evening, December 10, 1919. Mr. M. R.
Campbell presided.

President E. O. Ulrich delivered the presidential address for 191 9,
entitled : Major causes of land and sea oscillations.

This paper will be published later in the T^'^^pn.^L of the Academy.

After a recess, the twenty-seventh Annual Meeting was called to
order by President Ulrich. The reports of the secretaries, treasurer,
and auditing committee were read and accepted. The balloting on
nominees for oflficers for 1920, proposed by the nominating committee,
resulted as follows :

President, David White; First Vice-President, George W. Stose;
Second Vice-President, W. C. Alden; Secretaries, R. S. BasslER,
Laurence La Forge; Treasurer, George R. Mansfield; Menibers-
at-Large of the Council, C. Wythe Cooke, J. M. Hill, H. D. Miser,
Eugene Stebinger, R. C. Wells.

R. W. Stone, Secretary.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

MATTERS OF SCIENTIFIC INTEREST IN CONGRESS^

The Senate and House adjourned sine die on November 19, and the
Sixty-sixth Congress convened for the regular session on December i,
1919.

The bill to provide for an international conference on international
communication (H. R. 9822), which is expected to have to deal with
many technical questions such as wireless wave-lengths, has progressed
to final action. It was reported in the Senate without further amend-
ment and passed December 8, and was signed by the President on
December 17 as Public Law No. 100.

On December 6 Mr. vSutherland introduced S. 3496: "To amend
an Act entitled : 'An Act to provide compensation for employees of the
United States suffering injuries while in the performance of their
duties and for other purposes,' approved September 7, 191 6." The
importance of this legislation to the members of the scientific bureaus
has been recently emphasized by the accidental death of Mr. E. C.
McKelvy in one of the laboratories of the Bureau of Standards.

The act which it is proposed to amend is Public Law No. 267, Sixty-
fourth Congress. The amendments provide, in addition to minor
changes in details, for an increase of fifty per cent in the maximum
and minimum monthly compensation; continuation of payments to a
widow for two years after her remarriage; more liberal terms of pay-
ment to dependent parents, brothers, sisters, or grandchildren; and
an increase from $100 to $150 per month as the maximum salary on
which compensation to dependents may be computed. New sections
provide for : payment of compensation to the heirs of a beneficiary w^ho
dies before he has received the amount due him; vocational education
of an employee permanently disabled for work at his former occupa-
tion; maintenance of a temporarily disabled employee's right to rein-
statement; and reduction of hazards by the aid of a safety engineer
to be emplo3^ed by the Com.pensation Commission. The bill was re-
ferred to the Committee on Education and Labor.

On December 5 Director Van H. Manning of the Bureau of Mines
requested an appropriation of $100,000 to conduct an investigation
into the ventilation of tunnels and subways for motor vehicles. The
Secretary of the Interior also asked for ^725,000 for the Bureau of
Mines, with which to carry on a fuel inspection service to assure con-
sumers that they get the grade of coal for which they pay.

1 Preceding report: This Journal 9: 645. 1919-

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS 55

On December 8 Major General Sibert, director of the Chemical
Warfare Service, appeared before the Senate Finance Committee and
argued that the building up of a chemical dyestuffs industry is essen-
tial to a complete program of military preparedness.

On November 7 Mr. Dupre; of Louisiana requested and received
leave to print in the Congressional Record an article by Dr. W. B.
Smith, professor of mathematics in Tulane University, entitled "Not
ten but twelve," and recently published in Science.^ The article in
question discusses the advantage of a duodecimal, as compared with
a decimal system of numbers, and the author argues that the English
system of weights, measures, coinage, time, etc., which is prevailingly
duodecimal in character, should be retained pending the adoption
throughout the world of a more perfect number system. The reason
for inserting this article in the Record was stated to be its bearing on
proposed reforms in the coinage system of this and other countries.

The Senate resolution for an investigation of the causes of influenza
(S. J. Res. 76) was brought up on the calendar on October 22 and
December 8, but was passed over. On October 16 Mr. France intro-
duced a more comprehensive resolution (S. Con. Res. 13) providing
for a survey of all governmental agencies concerned with public health,
excepting the Army and Navy organizations. This was reintroduced
onOctober 23,asS. Con. Res. 14, with the A my and Navy exception eli-
minated. The resolution provides for a joint commission of three
members each from Senate and House, "to make a survey of and report
on those activities of the several departments, divisions, bureaus, offices,
and agencies of the Government of the United States which relate to the
protection and promotion of the public health, sanitation, care of the sick
and injured, and the collection and dissemination of information relating
thereto." The commission is directed to report in June, 1920, on the
powers, organization, and coordination of the federal agencies, and
their cooperation with non-federal organizations. The resolution was
agreed to by the Senate on December 16, and was then referred to
the House Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce.

The Senate and House adjourned on December 20, until January 5,
1920.

NOTES

A joint meeting of the local sections of the American Society of
Civil Engineers and the American Institute of Mining and Metallur-
gical Engineers was held at the Cosmos Club on Friday, December 19,
1 9 19. The problem of securing closer cooperation among the engi-
neering societies, both in the United States as a whole and in the Dis-
trict of Columbia, was discussed. At the close of the meeting the
Civil Engineers met for the annual election of officers. The election
resulted as follows: President, David S. Carll; Vice-President, John
C. HoYT; Secretary-Treasurer, James H. Van Wagenen.

2 Science 50: 239-242. 1919.

56 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Dr. L. A. Bauer gave an illustrated address on Observations of the
total solar eclipse of May 2Q, igig, at Cape Pahnas, Liberia, and other
places, before the American Academy of Arts and Sciences at Boston,
Massachusetts, on Januar}^ 14.

Dr. Walter van Dyke Bingham, director of the division of applied
psychology of the Carnegie Institute of Technology, Pittsburgh, has
been elected chairman of the division of anthropology and psychology
of the National Research Council for the term ending July i, 1920.

Mr. R. M. Davis resigned from the Power Section of the Water
Resources Branch, U. S. Geological Survey, in October, to take up
work as statistician for the Electrical World. He takes the position of
Mr. W. B. Heroy, formerly of the Survey, who has entered the employ
of the Sinclair Oil Corporation.

Mr. B. E. Jones of the Water Resources Branch, U. S. Geological
Survey, returned to Washington on November 7, after spending the
season in the St. Mary and Milk River basins in Montana. Mr. Jones
and Mr. S. G. Dawson of the Canadian Reclamation Service, were
engaged in the division of the waters of St. Mary and Milk rivers under
the direction of the International Joint Commission.

An anniversary publication of the American Journal of Physical
Anthropology \s being planned for March, 1920 in honor of the seventieth
birthday of Dr. George M. Kober on March 28, 1920.

Mr. R. S. McBride resigned from the Bureau of Standards on
January 15 to accept a position as technical editor with the McGraw-
Hill Company of New York City. His headquarters will be in Wash-
ington in connection with the Washington office of the company.

Since the return of Mr. Eugene Stebinger from private work in
the Tampico oil field of Mexico he has been appointed chief of the
Foreign Section of the Mineral Resources Branch, U. S. Geological
Sur\^ey.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. io FEBRUARY 4, 1920 No. 3

GEOLOGY. — Major causes of land and sea oscillations.^ E.
O. UivRiCH, U. S. Geological vSurvey.

That the position of the strandline — hence the relation of
land and sea levels — is and has ever been subject to change is
a fact now established beyond all possible contradiction. The
evidence shows that at times the shoreline retreated, leaving such
features as elevated seaplains and cliffs on the enlarged land
areas; at other times the seas advanced on the land, drowning
previous river valleys, cutting new seaplains, and laying marine
deposits much farther inland than before. These frequently re-
curring positive and negative movements of the strandline varied
greatly in amount, but on the whole they were rhythmic in oc-
currence and volume. But neither the record of these move-
ments nor the rhythm that runs through it is at all simple. Most
of the criteria by which we determine that submergence has oc-
curred in one case and emergence in another are relatively sim-
ple and easily applied. But when it comes to correlating the suc-
cessive stages of emergence and submergence in different locali-
ties, or when we seek to arrange the movements in proper sequence
and to determine their relative duration, the problems become in-
volved and often exceedingly complex.

The evidence presented, especially in the past few years, by
Vaughan, Daly, and Barrell seems to prove that at least the

' Presidential address delivered before the Geological Society of Washington,
Dec. 10, 1919.

58 ulrich: major causes of oscillations

marginal parts of the continents have been subjected repeatedly
in recent geologic ages to positive and negative displacements
of the strandline; also that the vertical element of these oscilla-
tions is not uniform in amount at different places. Considering
only the Pleistocene to Recent movements, their differential
character at once suggests that these were in no case wholly due
to either the alternate storing and unloading of water in the form
of ice on the lands or, as Suess and Schuchert have it, to re-
treats occasioned by periodic deformation and deepening of
oceanic basins and ensuing slow submergence by deposition of
land detritus in the seas. Doubtless both of these processes
contributed to the displacements of the strandline — clastic
deposition continuously, and deglaciation more occasionally, in
effecting submergence; accumulation of glacial ice and sub-
marine deformation in effecting emergence. In all cases the
work of these agents tended to produce an even rise or
fall of the sea level. So far then as the coastlands are concerned
the displacement of the strandline by these two causes would
have been essentially eustatic.

But we know that, commonly at least, the displacement of the
strandhne was not entirely eustatic but more or less differential
even in short distances. Other causes, such as deformation by
loading, variable gravitational attraction, etc., must have con-
tributed to produce the complex result. Of these other factors,
1 am sure locally varying movements within the land masses
themselves, including the more or less submerged shelf, are the
most important. What the relative effects of the several factors
in each particular case may have been constitutes a most diffi-
cult and varying problem. These proportions can not possi-
bly have been the same in all cases. Besides only one of the
causes of submergence — namely, the filUng of the sea basins
with deposit — could have been constantly in operation though
obviously most variable in the volume of result. Then, on the
other hand, either sudden or gradual deepening of an ocean
basin would by itself suffice in effecting emergence.

Up to a certain point I agree with the suggestions of Penck,
Daly, and others concerning the competence of the Pleistocene

ULRICH: major causes of OSCIIvIvATIONS 59

ice sheets to effect considerable lowering of sea level ; and the evi-
dence indicating warping of the land surface, because of the un-
even distribution of the ice load, as first pointed out by Jamie-
son, seems to me reasonably compelling. I believe also that in
deglaciation the land surface largely re-established itself by elas-
tic, or rather, isostatic rebound to preceding relief.

Though accepting in modified form the idea of glacial control
of particularly Pleistocene sea levels, it is not to be denied that
the present well-known occurrence in Newfoundland and in re-
mote outlying stations along the coast of New England and the
Maritime Provinces of many plants characteristic of the Coastal
Plain of New Jersey and the south tends, as expressed b}^ Bar-
rell,^ "to rule out the hypothesis that emergence was controlled
only by the level of the ocean water as controlled in turn by
glaciation." The extraordinary distribution of plants referred
to could not be brought about by nattu-al processes today.
Evidently the northern occurrence of this flora is to be v^iewed
as remnants of a preceding continuous distribution established
when the climate of the northeastern coast was warmer and its
coastal strip higher, wider and much less broken by water gaps.
These required land conditions may be readily conceived as hav-
ing obtained during, and as having resulted from, the ice loading
of the glaciated regions to the west and northwest. As the lat-
ter sank under their growing load the continental shelf bulged
its surface above sea level. But whether the plant migration
could have been effected during the maximum extent of the
Labrador Pleistocene ice sheet is so doubtful that BarrelP thought
it necessary to assume delay in the settling back of the up-
warped marginal zone after the removal of the ice sheet. As
defined by Barrell, his hypothesis is "that the weight of the ice
sheets caused crustal depression directly below the load, but
moderate elevation in a wide zone beyond the load. Upon the
removal of the ice it appears the first isostatic upwarping car-
ried up higher this marginal upwarped zone with it. Being al-
ready an upswollen tract the broader regional movement car-

- Amer. Journ. Sci. 40: 17. 1915.
^ Idem. pp. 19-21.

ulrich: major causes of oscillations

ried it up to a level where it became unstable and a slow settling
back occurred as an after-effect, coincident with the last stages
of upwarping over the centers of glacial load. The actual
evidence at hand does not decide between these hypotheses.
The association with the close of glaciation appears to favor a
genetic connection with deglaciation, but, on the other hand, it
remains to be demonstrated why the extra-marginal zone should
rise together with the region directly glaciated, or that the cycle
was restricted to such an extra- marginal zone."

LABRADOR

NEW EN6LAND

COASTAL PLAIN AND
CONTINEKTAL SMEUr

s£^ Lcva.

S£A L£V£L

Fig. I . — Generalized profiles of eastern North America in Pleistocene stages,
indicating isostatic vertical movements of surface of lithosphere in process of de-
glaciation: I, during maximum extent of ice sheet, when the outer part of con-
tinental shelf was emerged; 2, when the ice load had retreated from the present
coastal str P ; 3, a later stage when the ice sheet had been reduced to the area of
Labrador; 4. present relief of land, with submergence of continental shelf. Ap-
proximately similar conditions may be supposed to have obtained in the growing
stages of the ice sheet.

That the eastern margin of the continent, south of Labrador,
did rise to higher levels than the present during the retreat of
at least the last Pleistocene ice sheet seems, with Barrell's in-
terpretation of Woodworth's^ data and conclusions regarding

* N. Y. State Education Department.^Bull. 84: 1905.

ulrich: major causes of oscillations 6r

"Ancient Water Levels of the Champlain and Hudson val-
leys," highly probable. Indeed, supported as this evidence is by
the facts concerning the distribution of the Coastal Plain flora
just alluded to, emergence of this marginal area as this time may
justly be accepted as reasonably established. As will have been
observed in the quotation, Barrell's hesitancy in adopting this
hypothesis arose mainly from the uncompleted demonstration
of "why the extramarginal zone should rise together with the
region directly glaciated."

In thinking this matter over the possible solution of the diffi-
culty somewhat crudely illustrated in figure i has been reached.
The diagram represents in generalized profile four Pleistocene
stages of eastern North America, the profile running southeast-
wardly from Labrador to the edge of the continental shelf. The
stages are represented separately, showing relief of land surface
in each and the extent of the ice sheet in the maximum and two
partly deglaciated stages. The fourth represents the present
condition. One of the new features is that as the ice retreated
the normally positive strip bordering the present eastern shore
responded at once to the release from directly applied weight
pressure by rising. Emergence of this Piedmont and Coastal
Plain strip would be further insured by the necessity of main-
taining isostatic balance with the outer strip of the continental
shelf which had bulged to emergent status by subterranean
flow from beneath the ice loaded land. In consequence, as the ice
sheet retreated the emerged outer part of the continental shelf
began to sink, whereas the strip along the landward side of the
present shore rose. Among the physiographic changes that may
be supposed to have occurred at the time of this southwardly
decreasing elevation of the coast lands north of Baltimore is the
cutting of the now buried deep channel of the lower Hudson;
also the sharp southward deflection of the Delaware and Sus-
quehanna rivers. During the preceding maximum extent of the
ice sheet Maryland is supposed to have stood higher than at
present and the lower stretches of these rivers either flowed north-
eastwardly or they emptied more directly and much sooner
into the sea, which then probably covered the New Jersey part

62 ulrich: major causes or oscillations

of the Coastal Plain and extended widely into the eastern val-
leys of the adjacent Appalachian region. As the ice sheet re-
treated Maryland settled back while the coast lands to the north
rose. The resulting emergence and the reversal of the tilt
of the land surface must have produced corresponding changes
in the direction of flow of affected rivers. Obviously results
like these required practically immediate isostatic response to
both the accumulation and the removal of the burden of ice
and not as Barrell thought, "a deferred intermittent, and possi-
bly oscillatory, readjustment." (Op. cit. p. 21.) On further
retreat of the ice front the upward movement of the latter was
arrested and finally reversed, so that it shared in the general sub-
sidence of the marginal area when the complete withdrawal of
the ice sheet permitted isostatic rebound of the unloaded in-
terior highlands to their preceding and present normal land alti-
tudes.

In consequence of the bulging of the sea bottom adjacent to
shore lines that in the maximum spread of the ice sheets had sunk
beneath the load of ice, the capacitv of the ocean basin must have
been correspondingly lessened. This in turn would have tended
to retard and finally reverse the downward direction of the change
in sea level previously prevailing on account of subtraction of
ocean water for the making of the ice sheet. That is, it would
have caused actual raising of sea le\el except in those parts
of the shore line that were covered by the ice sheet and therefore
directly aftected by its weight. The upward movement of the
sea level thereby occasioned would have been worldwide and
eustatic.

But the displacements of the Pleistocene strandline along the
Atlantic Coast that were in any wise connected with glaciation
nmst. because of varying conditions arising from the fact that
the ice sheets did not reach the shore line south of New Jersey,
have varied greatly in amount and direction at different places.
It was only in the early stages of glaciation, before peripheral
elevation of the surface of the lithosphere with respect to areas
bearing ice loads had progressed to the stage wherein it caused
material lessening of capacity of ocean basins, that the sinking

ulrich: major causes ok oscillations 63

of sea level could have been eustatic. On the reversal of this
sea level movement, when the Pleistocene ice sheet stretched to
the shore and when as stated above, the consequent bulj^inj; of
adjacent parts of the continental shelf reduced the capacity of the
ocean basin, the change in sea level as manifested in the advance.'
and retreat of the Atlantic shore north of, say Cape Hatteras,
was far from eustatic. During this maximum extent of the
Labrador ice sheet, the ice-covered near-shore lands about the
Gulf of vSt. Lawrence must have sustained extensive submergence.
Southwardly from northern Maine to New Jersey the amount-
of this submergence decreased perhaps to its minimum. On
the other hand, in Maryland, which I take to have lain at thai
time within the belt of peripheral isostatic elevation, the land
was pushed up with resultant apparent or relative sinking of sea
level. Farther south, beyond the belt of peripheral bulging, the
Atlantic shore probably shared in the ( ustatic rise of sea level
that prevailed generally because of the temporarily decreased
capacity of ocean basins except in the areas affected immediately
and differentially by the ice sheets.

Correlation of Pleistocene sea beaches in Maryland and Maine
therefore suggests and perhaps requires comparison oT the high
beaches in Maryland with low beaches in New England.

Because of this dissimilarity in manifestation, it seems to me
that it is only in the warm temperate and tropical zones lying
well beyond the areas in which isostatic balance would be ma-
terially disturbed by known ice loading of lands, that the sequence
and amount of the several glacially controlled Pleistocene changes
of sea level are recorded in their proper relations to the actual
fluctuations of the volume of sea water and to the capacity
variations of the basins holding it. But even in tropical areas
the complete sequence of the oscillations and the immediate
cause of each cannot be worked out without taking strict ac-
count of what was happening at the same times in higher lati-
tudes..

In thinking of the progressive and regressive sequences of move-
ments it is well to remember that ice loading and sediment
(rock) loading of epicontinental areas are comparable in their

64 ulrich: major causes of oscillations

deformational effects on the lithosphere only in one respect — that
is, in both cases the loaded area sinks. They differ, primarily,
in that the ice cap originates on, and spreads outwardly from,
normally positive areas whereas the rock sediments are laid only
in areas of relatively negative tendencies. Subsidence because
of ice loading, therefore, is an abnormal process in that it is car-
ried on under unusual conditions, so that normal gravitational
tendencies are reversed; in the other case not only the process
but the results also are perfectly in accord with the normal
gravitational tendencies of the affected areas. Next, they differ
in that the ice sheets presently melt away, whereas the water-
laid rock deposits commonly remain as a permanent asset of the
area covered by them. A third difference is that in the first
cases the removal of the ice load tends to re-establish the nor-
mally positive tendencies of the deglaciated areas, whereas in
the areas loaded with rock deposits their normal negative ten-
dency is not reversed.

Finally, there is the rather generally accepted belief among
stratigraphers and students of paleogeography that in the past
the advances of the sea usually were slow and gradual, whereas
the retreats were more rapid and relatively impulsive. Many
facts in Paleozoic stratigraphy are cited in my Revision in sup-
port of this belief, and Barrell, in 191 5, expressed himself as
favoring the view.

Now, if we accept this conclusion it certainly does not help
the hypothesis of measurable sea level fall by storing of oceanic
waters in continental ice sheets. Obviously, the subtraction
of water from the seas to make the ice sheets must have been a
slow and on the whole gradual process; and the time consumed
in the growth of the ice sheets probably was not materially
shorter or longer than that required in their melting.

From these considerations it is clearly evident how exceedingly
difficult is the proper determination of the part actually played
by glaciation and ensuing deglaciation in the emergence and
submergence of the continental borders. The fall and rise of
sea level directly resulting from the storing of oceanic water
to make a great ice sheet that later is returned to the sea is so

ulrich: major causes of oscillations 65

intricately connected and interwoven with genetically similar
but at times oppositely directed general and local deformations
of land areas and also of sea bottom areas adjacent to the strand-
line, that the reliable valuation of the two or more factors seems
as yet practically hopeless. Moreover, it appears to me that only
the early and the late stages of a period of glacial control could
have made and left anything approaching world-wide and
vertically equal records of consequent displacements of the
strandline. The early stages would be those in which the lateral
growth of the ice sheet had not yet reached the zone in which
the weight of the ice would have caused extramarginal bulging
and apparent lowering of sea level far in excess of the fall actually
occasioned by transferal of water from the sea to the land.
Similarly the later stages would be those following the retreat
of the ice sheet to the same relatively innocuous limits.

It follows, then, that only the eustatic smaller shiftings of
the Pleistocene sea levels may be definitely ascribed to storing
and subsequent release of frozen water on the land. And for
these even it is mainly their occurrence in a known ice age that
induces one to admit their probable glacial origin. However,
the larger and in most instances also much more local Pleistocene
oscillations of the strandline, even granting that their causa-
tion is intimately connected with ice loading and unloading
of land areas, belong to another category. Strictly speaking,
these larger displacements have resulted from truly diastrophic
causes and processes that are concerned with the maintenance
of the isostatic equilibrium of the lithosphere.

Under the circumstances, then, I must agree with Barrell
in concluding that the amount of water taken from the seas for
the formation of the ice sheets was not a direct "major factor
in the control of Pleistocene sea levels." Movements, acting
within, beneath, and upon the lithosphere thus appear to have
been the more effective factors.

That the marginal areas of the continents were at times
elevated and folded is, of course, accepted by all — even by
Suess and his followers, who speak of the continents as having
the character of "horsts" and of the ocean basins as being perma-

66 ulrich: major causes of oscillations

nently "sunken areas." Suess, however, believed that the
median areas of the continents are essentially stable, a view
adopted by Schuchert, who holds "that the continent (North
America) is a horst, that the great medial region remained un-
moved, while the margins were often folded and elevated. The
seas periodically flowed over this medial land — in fact, were
elevated over it — owing to the detrital materials unloaded into
the oceanic areas, thus filling them and causing them to spill
over on to the lands."

I can not subscribe to this opinion. On the contrary, though
accepting the idea of permanent oceans and continents, it seems
to me that the crust of the lithosphere was subject to periodic
movement away from the poles; that the surface of the lands
was exceedingly unstable in the median areas as well as along
the borders of the continents. Schuchert's paleogeographic maps,
indeed, offer convincing proof of such instability; and the more
detailed maps made since his appeared, further substantiate
my claim.

In reaching these conclusions I am mainly influenced by a
lifetime study of Paleozoic formations and their faunas. The
criteria and principles used in the course of these stratigraphic
investigations are defined and discussed in my Revision of the
Paleozoic Systems published in 191 1. In this work more than
100 previously undescribed instances of differential vertical
movements of lands and consequent shifting of seas are dis-
cussed in varying detail. Since 19 10 much additional informa-
tion has been gathered concerning such oscillations in North
America.

On this occasion I shall mention briefly some of the more
convincing of the published cases and in greater detail a few of
the more recently determined instances — enough of both to
show that from the beginning of Cambrian time the surface
of the continents was exceedingly unstable and subject to fre-
quent oscillation, and that the epicontinental seas were corre-
spondingly inconstant, shallow, relatively small and frequently
withdrawn in part or entirely. Even in the same geological
provinces the outlines of the new sea may agree essentially and

uIvRich: major causes of oscil,l,ations 67

often very closely, in parts, with the next preceding or some
earlier sea, but in other parts the new shoreline departs radically
from the older.

These movements occurred in Paleozoic ages which, unlike
the Pleistocene, have left no record of great ice accumulations.
Doubtless even in the Paleozoic there were times of relative
frigidity — ^when some of the higher parts of the marginal lands
were ice-covered, in some instances attaining locally to glacial
conditions. Here and there regular tillites are indicated, nota-
bly, as recently brought out by Dr. Edwin Kirk, in the Silurian
deposits along the coast of Alaska. Occasionally, too, trans-
portation of bulky erratics by heavy shore ice is suggested, as
for instance by the late Ordovician Rysedorph hill conglomerate
near Albany, N. Y., and the great masses of unworn limestone
of Ordovician and Silurian ages found in the early Pennsyl-
vanian Caney shale of eastern Oklahoma. But the Paleozoic
history of North America so far as known affords no suggestion
of icy ages comparable to the Pleistocene period in the amount
of water abstracted for the formation of the ice sheets. More-
over, by far the majority of the displacements of the strand-
line in the continental seas occurred at times and places that
give no indication whatever of particularly cool climates. On
the contrary, the entombed faunas in the overlapping and inter-
fingering marine formations could hardly have lived in the shal-
low seas if the climate of the adjacent lands had not been mild.

With the data in hand I feel warranted in asserting that the
level of the Paleozoic continental seas was seldom appreciably
affected and certainly never controlled by glaciation. Besides,
the apparently irregular, though doubtless rhythmic, shif tings
of the strandline almost without exception indicate local differ-
ential movement in the continental surface. And these move-
ments must have been connected with other more general move-
ments, requiring at times partial or complete withdrawal of the
waters from the land depressions, at other times permitting
readvance in the same or some other newly depressed land basin.

The varying distribution of marine deposits of successive
ages naturally suggests differential upward and downward move-

68 ulrich: major causes of oscili.ations

ment of the lands as the immediate cause. If the submergences
had been occasioned solely by rise of the waters, the successive
submergences would have been always similar in geographic
pattern and different only in lateral extent. In fact, a general
similarity or repetition of old patterns is recognizable, but there
is also exceeding diversity of expression; and often the differ-
ence is greatest when directly succeeding stages are compared.
Often again, when one stage appears to have been very differ-
ent from the next, the following third or fourth may be very
much like the first. Only oscillatory movements or warping
of the land surfaces could produce such results. The area af-
fected by such movements may be very large, as, for instance,
during the middle Ordovician and middle Silurian, when nearly
half of the continent of North America was involved. During
these periods the Gulf waters seem at certain times to have
been completely withdrawn from the southern part of the con-
tinent, the middle and northern parts at such times being tilted
so that the boreal sea extended southward beyond Chicago and
occasionally as far as northern Tennessee.

Strictly, these widely operating movements hardly fall un-
der the category of epeirogenic movements. On the other hand,
they are not truly orogenic, if that term is to be confined to
movements originating in shrinkage of the centrosphere. Ap-
parently they indicate a combination of causes, perhaps begin-
ning or ending v^ith the play of orogenic factors that built moun-
tains in the submarginal areas whereas the warping and deforma-
tion of the more stable interior areas was mainly occasioned
by the necessity of isostatic readjustments to stresses incident
to the greater deformations of the orogenic movements.

Then there were many relatively local changes in the strand-
line of continental seas that may be explained only by assuming
correspondingly local differential, vertical movements of the
lithosphere. I do not refer to movements connected with
volcanism. On the contrary, the best examples of the kind in
mind are found in areas but rarely or not at all directly affected
by volcanism. These dififerential movements indicate actual
elevation of one area while another nearby was sinking. More-

ulrich: major causes of oscillations

over, in the next recorded age the directions of ensuing move-
ments at the two places often were reversed. The phenomenon
might be Hkened to a gently convex platform supported in the
middle and tilted alternately to the east and west and at other
times to the north and south. The condition is recognized by
the alternate presence and absence of sediments of particular
ages on opposite sides of the tilting platform. (See figure 2.)

.•S£:a i-£:vst.

Fig. 2. — Diagram illustrating tilting of interior areas of uplift (for example,
the Cincinnati dome), and the consequent variations in amounts of advance and
retreat of the sea on their opposite sides. Arrows indicate direction of horizontal
stresses. The letters A, A', A", on the one side and B, B' and B", on the other,
mark the same points on the flanks of the dome in all of the three stages. In i the
sea laps equally on both sides; in 2 the elevation of the dome is accentuated and its
summit has migrated to the left, while the sea has advanced much more on the right
side than on the left ; in 3 the summit has migrated in the opposite direction so that
the deposits of the preceding stage on the right flank are largely emerged whereas
on the submerged left flank the new sea widely overlaps the deposits of the two
preceding stages (i' and 2').

Comparative studies of the Paleozoic deposits in the Appa-
lachian Valley region, from eastern Pennsylvania on the north
and central Alabama on the south, have brought out over a
hundred clearly defined examples of such oscillations. They
are manifested by the restricted distribution or local deposition
of many overlapping formations having maximum thick-
nesses of from 200 to over 2,000 feet. In many cases these forma-

yo ulrich: major causes of oscii<lations

tions are wholly or mainly confined to one or more narrow,
trough-like, longitudinal divisions of the Appalachian geosyn-
cline and commonly to one or another of three divisions of the
geosyncline that are more or less effectively separated from
each other by low transverse axes. The most northerly of these
broad axes passes across the valley between Carlisle and Leba-
non, Pennsylvania. It is known as the Harrisburg axis. The
next to the south intersects the valley of Virginia between
Staunton and Harrisonburg. The third or Wytheville axis
passes across southwestern Virginia, which is today the highest
and narrowest part of the great valley. The fourth axis crosses
in a more northerly direction than the others through the belt
lying between Rome, Georgia, and Gadsden, Alabama.

These transverse axes do not cross the longitudinal troughs
of the geosyncline in continuous direct lines. On the contrary,
their course zigzags within the varying limits of a broad band
so that the northern head of a bay in one trough may extend 50
miles or more beyond the latitude of the southern head of an-
other, younger or older, bay in an adjacent trough. The band
is wide enough and was always low enough so that regional
tilting occasionally permitted overlap of edges of formations
transgressing from opposite directions. Often the axis formed
an efficient barrier in one trough and was much less effective
in the one next to the west or east. More rarely, a bay, terminated
at the north by a transverse axis, connected laterally with waters
in an adjoining trough in which the submergence was not stopped
by the axis. Finally, at other times the axis offered no serious
obstacle to the passage of the marine invasion. Of course, the
individual troughs were submerged over and over again, but in
none do we find representatives of all of the formations known
to have been deposited in the Appalachian Valley.

Var^dng geographic expressions Uke these could have been
made possible only by differential vertical movements in the
concerned parts of the lithosphere, and these Appalachian
oscillations in sea level were by no means small affairs. Most
of them are measured by hundreds of feet and some by thousands.

Excellent and very interesting oscillations occurred about

ulrich: major causes of oscillations 71

those more inland and very ancient positive areas known as
the Cincinnati and Nashville domes, the Ozark and Adirondack
uplifts, and the Wisconsin peninsula. Of the many formations
that are found on their flanks and which failed to pass over
them much the greater number are confined to one or the other
side. The sequence of formations on either side therefore
differs greatly from that on the opposite side.

Much space is devoted in my Revision of the Paleozoic Sys-
tems to a description of the inequalities in areal distribution of
the formations that were laid down on the flanks of these epi-
continental domes. With a few corrections and modifications,
in every case tending to emphasize rather than to weaken the
argument based on the observed phenomena, the pubUshed state-
ments concerning them in that work have been further sub-
stantiated by more recent investigations. Instead of over-
stating the number of oscillations in that paper we can now
prove many more instances than were known or even suspected
by me in 19 10.

In New York State alone, the joint investigations carried
on in the Ordovician shales and limestones on the south and west
sides of the Adirondack mass by Doctor Ruedemann and my-
self, and on the Medina and Clinton formations with Mr. Hart-
nagle have increased the established cases of sea shifting im-
plying more or less decided differential vertical movements in
the adjacent land masses to more than twice the number con-
templated when I wrote the Revision.

Similarly, the work of Mr. Charles Butts and myself, on the
Mississippian formations in Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, and
Alabama has developed oscillations of like character that were
scarcely suspected six years ago.

Very notable additions to our knowledge of Cambrian and
Ozarkian oscillations also have been made in the course of my
work on the Paleozoic formations in Wisconsin. Before closing
permit me to give some details concerning at least one of many
similar new discoveries in this and adjoining States.

Only a few years ago the stratigraphy of the Cambrian de-
posits in the upper Mississippi valley was practically unknown

72 UlyRICH: MAJOR CAUSES OF OSCIIvLATlONS

or at best only very imperfectly understood. Because of cer-
tain misapprehensions, now clearly understood, the correla-
tions of the several sections by the State geologists of Wisconsin,
Minnesota, and Iowa were not only inadequate but quite in
error.

So long as the observed variations in character of deposits
and their fossil faunas were supposed to indicate nothing more
than merely local variations in contemporary seas and life it
was almost impossible to work out the true relations of the beds
in the largely drift-covered and hence discontinuous exposures
of the Cambrian rocks. A new viewpoint was required; also
closer investigation of bedding planes, greater accuracy in noting
the vertical and geographic ranges of particular species and
faunal associations and of particular beds. In short, it was
necessary to employ more modern criteria, principles, and meth-
ods than had been used before.

When the work of revising the Paleozoic stratigraphy of Wis-
consin was begun in 19 14, the task seemed relatively simple
in view of the success that had attended our investigations in
the supposedly more difficult fields in tke Appalachian region,
about the Cincinnati and Nashville domes, and the Ozark and
Adirondack uplifts. Indeed, the results of the first season's
work in Wisconsin were so satisfactory to Doctor Walcott that
he decided to publish my revised section in his work on the
DikelocephaHd trilobites.' As therein given, the Upper Cam-
brian series in the Mississippi valley is divisible into six litho-
logically and faunally distinct formations, named from below up-
wards: the Mt. Simon sandstone, which rests on pre-Cambrian
crystallines, followed in turn by the Eau Claire shale, the Dres-
bach sandstone, the Franconia (glauconite bearing) sand-
stone, the St. Lawrence formation of limestone, shale and sand-
stone, and the Jordan sandstone. Above these came the
Lower Ozarkian Mendota limestone and the Madison sand-
stone, the last of which is overlain by the Oneota dolomite of
the "Lower Magnesian" series. Aside from the determination

5 Dikelocephalus and other genera of the Dikelocephahnae. Smith. Misc. Coll.
57: 1914-

ulrich: major causes of oscillations 73

of the lithologic and faunal sequence of the Cambrian in the
western half of the State, the most important improvement
brought about by the first season's work was the proof that the
Mendota Hmestone and Madison sandstone are really post-
Cambrian formations and not, as had been supposed previously,
the eastern representatives of, respectively, the St. Lawrence
limestone and the Jordan sandstone of Minnesota. In fact, it
was then believed and has since been definitely proved that
whereas the St. Lawrence extends uninterruptedly from Minne-
sota and Iowa across the southern half of Wisconsin and under
cover of later formations into northern Illinois, the Mendota
limestone is entirely absent to the west of a narrow trough run-
ning southeastwardly from the southern slope of the pre-Cam-
brain Baraboo quartzite range.

In the following field season of 19 15 doubt arose as to the
eastward extension of the Franconia formation to and beyond
Madison. At this place there is a more or less decidedly cal-
careous sandstone formation, approximately 100 feet in thick-
ness, which lies between unquestionable Dresbach sandstone
and no less certainly estabhshed St. Lawrence limestone and
shale. The intervening formation therefore seems to occupy
the same stratigraphic position as the Franconia. But its
lithological characteristics, except that it also contains consid-
erable, though more disseminated glauconite, are quite dififer-
ent from those of the Franconia ; and whereas good fossil remains
of characteristic types are exceedingly abundant in the Fran-
conia they appear to be much fewer and, so far as could be de-
termined from the handful of fragments then procured, of differ-
ent species.

In casting about for a means of determining the problem I
thought of an old anticline that extends southwestward from
the Baraboo range across southern Wisconsin into IlHnois. This
axis had previously been found to have had an important effect
on the distribution of the Ordovician formations and it seemed
worth while to see whether it had not been in existence, and func-
tioning as a barrier, already in the Cambrian. Accordingly,
a part of the season of 1916 was devoted to following the nearly

ULRICH: major causes of OSCIIvIvATIONS

continuous exposures of Cambrian rocks in the bluffs and valley
walls along Wisconsin River.

Beginning at Boscobel and going upstream, the Franconia, in
typical development, was found to hold its own for a distance
of about 20 miles, when it began slowly to lose thickness by
overlap. The succeeding 15 miles, which brought us to the town
of Lone Rock, sufficed to pinch the formation out entirely.
Beyond Lone Rock, for a distance of about 10 miles, in which we
passed through the town of Spring Green, the Franconia is ab-
sent, the top of the underlying Dresbach sandstone has risen
considerably above the river level and is immediately followed by
characteristically fossiliferous shales and limestone of St. Law-
rence age. (See figure 3.)

SOUTH or BARABOO PRE- CAM BRIAN RANGES

WEST
Mississipp' .■^:vet

Green Vil !age

Madison and
Devils Lake

SHAKOPEE DOLOMITE

SHAKOPCE. OOLjOMITE.

ONEOTA DOU3M1TE

_|npnAN SANDSTONg^
"ST LAWRENCE'

Fig. 3. — Section across southern Wisconsin, showing sequence of Upper
Cambrian (St. Croixan) and Ozarkian formations, the apparently similar strati-
graphic positions of the Franconia and Mazomanie formations, and the absence of
both on the summit of the pre-Cambrian anticline.

Just east of Spring Green the closed contact between the Dres-
bach and St. Lawrence opens again to receive the wedge of mag-
nesian sandstone whose age was the quest of the undertaking.
Where first exposed in the bluffs east of Spring Green the Mazo-
manie sandstone, as the new formation is called, is about 10
feet thick. Four miles east of the town it has thickened to 80
feet, and at Fairy Bluff it reaches 100 feet. Wherever it rises
to considerable heights above the valley bottoms in Dane, Sauk,
and Columbia counties it forms cliffs, which is not at all true
of the typical Franconia.

ulrich: major causes of oscillations 75

But, so far as positive evidence regarding the age relations of
the Franconia and the Mazomanie is concerned, these investiga-
tions of the bluffs along Wisconsin River left the question as
unsolved as before. Nor did we come any nearer to its satis-
factory solution in the course of the following season's work
when a series of sections was made on the south side and around
the eastern end of the Baraboo range. But just before the
close of the field studies in 191 8 some very promising but under
the circumstances inconclusive observations were made in sec-
tioning the outliers and bluffs which dot the sandy plain of cen-
tral Wisconsin. Namely, at one of these bluffs I found a per-
fectly characteristic Mazomanie cliff and beneath it a 2 -foot

NORT H

B AR A BOO

RANGE

WtST

Mississippi River

SHAKOPE-E_

f ilot Knob

Berl::.

ONEOTA DOU

VAOISOM S&

ONTOTA

MADISON^

ikssss?;.;;

Fig. 4. — Section across central Wisconsin, showing greater eastward exten*^
of the Franconia in this part of the State and intercalation of the Mazomanie be-
tween the top of the Franconia and the base of the St. Lawrence.

exposure of reddish sandstone that seemed to me to be of Fran-
conia age.

However, the evidence at this place was not satisfactory to
Doctor W. O. Hotchkiss, State Geologist, and Mr. F. Thwaites,
who accompanied me on this as on most of the other trips through
the State. Their doubts arose mainly from the fact that my
interpretation required the assumption of a fault hitherto un-
suspected between this bluff and Pilot Knob, which lies less
than a mile to the northwest.

76 UlyRICH: MAJOR CAUSES OF OSCILLATIONS

And SO it was left to the work of the past summer to clear
away all doubt, if possible. And it was cleared away. Other
outliers in this vicinity were visited until finally we found two
that were capped by Mazomanie and St. Lawrence and beneath
the Mazomanie showed from 50 to 100 feet of profusely fossili-
ferous Franconia. Incidentally the presence of the fault just
mentioned was unquestionably established. As an interesting
and welcome confirmation of the earlier conviction that the
Franconia is older than the Mazomanie — welcome despite the
fact that it came to light after the case had been proved by
actual superposition — I may add that two entirely new faunas,
one from near the top, the other just above the base of the forma-
tion, were discovered in the Mazomanie. The upper of the two
occurs rather widely distributed but in a sandstone so friable
that it can not be picked up without crumbling in one's hand.
Despite this difficulty a considerable collection was made and
safely transported to Washington by soaking the sand with
shellac.

I have described the solution of this problem in greater detail
than may seem necessary, first because of its intrinsic value and
interest as a new instance of oppositely overlapping formations,
second because of its bearing on the question of differential
surface movements, and third as an illustration of the thorough-
ness of modern stratigraphic investigations.

The case shows differential movement, first in the fact that the
Franconia is confined to the western half of the State, whereas
the preceding Dresbach was laid down on the east side and
over the south side as well as the west. Next, the very differ-
ent distribution of the Mazomanie shows reversal of the tilt from
the west toward the east. Further — through the fact that the
two formations are separated to the south of the Baraboo rknge
by a broad strip, in which neither is present, whereas to the
north of the pre-Cambrian range both formations were laid
down so that the younger overlaps the older for a distance of at
least 50 miles — it is proved that the movement was not simply
an east-west reversal of tilt but that it was accompanied by ad-
ditional local subsidence on the north where a depression was

ulrich: major causes of osciluations 77

formed that subsequently lodged a considerable embayment of
the Mazomanie sea.

But this does not exhaust the known record of diastrophic
movements of this time in Wisconsin. Uplifts of the relatively
evenly distributed floor of Dresbach sandstone are indicated in
many places; and depressions occurred in other localities so that
the Franconia lapped over in such places on to the pre-Cambrian
rocks. This occurs at Berlin and at Taylors Falls, towns loca-
ted on opposite sides of the area covered by the formation. At
Osceola, on the other hand, there is a narrow ridge on the sur-
face of the Dresbach that completely cuts out the Franconia,
though the formation is well developed both to the north and
south of Osceola. Finally, we recognize two longer upwarps of
the Dresbach floor that extend in a southwesterly direction from
the central pre-Cambrian land mass which formed the backbone
of the Wisconsin peninsula. These buried ridges divided the
Franconia sea into basins sufficiently distinct to show well-
marked differences in their respective depositional sequences
and faunas.

But why pile up the evidence, the sameness of which must
weary you. Suffice it to say that the phenomena indicating
differential vertical displacements of the strandline are every-
where about us, and as abundant and well displayed in the areas
of Paleozoic rocks as in those of more recent ages. One need but
to compare a series of paleogeographic maps which, even despite
their admittedly generalized and synthetic nature, yet show —
unmistakably and clearly — variations in outlines of successive
continental seas that would have been impossible if the land
surfaces periodically invaded by them had not been subject to
frequent oscillation and warping.

Physiographers, apparently, have paid little attention to these
paleogeographic maps and the discussions of stratigraphic cor-
relations that usually accompany them. Perhaps the reason
for this oversight lies in the fact that most of them have been
made by paleontologists — a kind of geologist who should be seen
but not heard on physiographic and diastrophic questions. But,
after all, does not the stratigraphical paleontologist deal with a

78 ulrich: major causes of oscillations

wider range of geological data and criteria than any other specialist
in the science ? Of them all, I regard the stratigraphical paleon-
tologist the best equipped to bring out the dominant facts in
questions of the kind before us. He has the same opportuni-
ties and desire to observe and note the phsyical factors of the
problem, and in addition an appreciation of organic criteria
that may not only be applied directly in the field but the tangible
evidence — in the form of specimens usually small enough to be
collected — may be carried to the laboratory and there be studied
at leisure and as often as desired. I have found this of very
great advantage.

For such reasons I would be disposed to prejudice in favor of
earth students like Vaughan or Schuchert in cases of contro-
versy with others who can not personally take into account and
weigh the organic as well as the physical aspects of a problem.
However, in the present instance, I have gathered so much com-
petent evidence of my own that I feel warranted in reaching the
conviction that the major factors in the control and migration
of the strandline lie and have always lain in deformative move-
ments within the lithosphere. These movements, whether large
or small and whether due to shrinkage of the centrosphere, to
local changes in crustal density, to unequal loading by rock or
ice, or to erosion and further lightening of positive areas, are all
primarily concerned with the maintenance of isostasy.

ABSTRACTS

Authors ot 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.

PHYSICAL CUUMISTRY .—Application of the thermionic amplifier
to conductivity measurements. R. E. Hall and L. H. Adams.
Joum. Amer. Chem. Soc. 41: 1515-1525. Oct., 1919.

As a part of the general plan for the investigation of two com-
ponent systems under pressure, a study is being made of the changes
in solubility of a salt which occur when its aqueous solution, in contact
with crystals of the solid, is subjected to pressure. In order to measure
the changes of concentration which occur in the solution, while leav-
ing it in situ in the pressure bomb, we note the changes in the conduc-
tance of the solution. For the attainment of sufficient accuracy in
these measurements, the telephone which indicates the balance posi-
tion of the Wheatstone bridge must be extremely sensitive since the
allowable current through the network is limited by heating effects in
the conductivity cell. The terminals of the bridge which ordinarily
are connected to the telephone are joined to the "input" of a thermionic
amplifier, of the type used in wireless telephony and telegraphy. The
telephone is then connected into the output circuit of the amplifier.
This arrangement has resulted in effectively increasing by approxi-
mately 50 times the sensitivity of a sensitive high-resistance tele-
phone. Any ordinary telephone becomes a more sensitive instrument
with the amplifier than the best telephones withotit it. R. E. H.

PHYSICAL CWEMISTRY .—Eqtiilibrium studies upon the Bucher
process. J. B. Ferguson and P. D. V. Manning. Joum. Ind.
Eng. Chem. 11: 946-950. Oct., 1919.

An investigation of the Bucher or cyanide process for the "fixation"
of atmospheric nitrogen was undertaken at the suggestion of the War
Department. Experiments wer.e made using pure chemicals and mix-
tures of pure nitrogen and carbon monoxide in known proportions.
Curves were obtained showing (i) the relation between the carbon
monoxide content of the furnace gases and the yield of cyanide, and (2)

8o abstracts: oceanography

the relation between the carbon dioxide content of the furnace gases
and the yield of cyanide, both at two temperatures. The curves indi-
cate that under certain conditions producer-gas may be used in the
process and that the dissociation of sodium carbonate is probably one
of the controlling chemical reactions. J. B. F.

ANTHROPOLOGY. — Prehistoric villages, castles, and towers of south-
western Colorado. J. Walter Fewkes. Bur. Amer. Ethnology,
Bull. 70. Pp. 79, figs. 18, pis. 33. 1919.

This work is intended to meet the demand for information regard-
ing the prehistoric ruins in and about Mesa Verde National Park which
was created for the preservation of the more important remains in
this region. The Bureau of American Ethnology', in cooperation with
the Department of the Interior, has done much by the excavation
and repair of these monuments to increase their educational value,
and in order to make known the nature of that work, the Bureau is
publishing from time to time short papers on these monuments and
their builders. Most of the structures here enumerated have long
been known to cowboys and sheep men, and many have been described
by archeologists, but this knowledge is local or scattered in many
publications, often inaccessible to the general public. It is the purpose
of the bulletin to collect this material in one publication and to show
the relation of towers, castles, and other remains to the great cliff
buildings of the Mesa Verde National Park. Particular attention is
paid to the architecture of the ruins and the fact is pointed out that we
have in buildings an index of the social organization of the people
to whom they owe their origin. J. B. Swanton.

OCEANOGRAPHY. — Physical characteristics of the ocean depths. G.
W. LiTTLEHALES. U. S. Naval Institute Proceedings, 6:45.
Pp. 16, figs. 15. Jan., 1919.

The extent to which the ocean has been sounded and the conforma-
tion of its basins are described. The depth and bulk of the ocean, and
the salinity, density, gases, temperature, pressure, compressibility,
and viscosity of its waters are discussed. The penetration of light into
the depths, oceanic movements and circulation, and marine deposits
on the bottom are subjects also included. G. W. L.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

RECENT ACCESSIONS AT THE NATIONAL MUSEUM

The National Museum has recently acquired, through exchange
with the Carnegie Museum of Pittsburgh, a complete skeleton of
the small extinct camel, Stcnomylns gracilis, one of about forty skele-
tons found in Sioux County, Nebraska. Stenornylus was very abundant
during the Miocene. It was about the size of a large sheep, with the
slender, graceful limbs of an antelope.

A model restoration, of about one-twelfth natural size, of the Amer-
ican mastodon has been acquired by the Section of Vertebrate Paleon-
tology. The original of the model was made by Mr. Charles R.
Knight, the animal sculptor.

240 specimens of Philippine Annelids, including types of several
new species and comprising the remainder of the collection reported
on by A. L. Treadwell and Ruth Hoagland, has been received from
the Bureau of Fisheries. Mr. John B. Henderson has given a collec-
tion of 200 specimens of mollusks comprising 2,3 species of Sphaeridae
and Naiades. Miss Emily A. Clark, of the Sudan Interior Mission,
has presented a collection comprising 18 species of mollusks from
southern Nigeria.

The Division of Birds has received 35 birds sent by Dr. W. L. Ab-
bott from Santo Domingo; and 1,298 birds from the A. H. Jennings
estate. The Jennings collection contains a skin of the extinct passenger
pigeon.

The Mesa Verde collections of Dr. J. W. Fewkes are being classi-
fied by Mr. Ralph Linton, of Harvard University. The Bureau
of Ethnology has also received part of Mr. Jeancon's collection of
pueblo antiquities from the Chama district of New Mexico.

Dr. Walter Hough has arranged a new exhibit showing the develop-
ment of illuminating devices.

An exhibit has been installed in the Division of Medicine to show
the types of balances used in weighing medicines and the progress
which has been made in these balances. The first of the series is a
single beam, double arm prescription balance made about 1840.

notes.
A pre-organization meeting of those interested in an American
Meteorological Society was called by Dr. C. F. Brooks at the Cosmos
Club on December 20, following the meeting of the Philosophical
Society. The Meteorological Society was formally organized at St.
Louis during the meetings of the American Association for the Ad-
vancement of Science, with the following officers for 1920: President,
R. deC. Ward, of Harvard University; Vice-President, W. J. Humph-
reys, of the Weather Bureau; Treasurer, R. E. Horton; Secretary,
Charles F. Brooks, of the Weather Bureau. A coordinate meeting
for presentation of papers was held in New York City on January 3,
1920.

82 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Following the recommendation of the map-making conference,^ a
Board of Surveys and Maps has been created by executive order for
the purpose of coordinating the activities of the map-making agencies
of the Federal Government.

Life memberships in the National Geographic Society "in recogni-
tion of eminent ser\dces for the increase and diffusion of geographic
knowledge" were awarded from the Jane M. Smith Life Membership
Fund on December 22 to the following: Frank G. Carpenter, O.
F. Cook, Robert F. Griggs, Willlvm H. Holmes, Stephen T.
Mather, E. W. Nelson, Joseph Strauss, and Walter T. Swingle.

The magnetic-survey vessel Carnegie left Washington on October 9,
on a two-year cruise of 64,000 nautical miles. She arrived at her first
port of call, Dakar, vSenegal, West Coast of Africa, on November 23,
but on account of the bubonic plague sailed a few da)''s later and is
now enroute to Buenos Aires, Argentina, where she was expected to
arrive about the end of January. The scientific personnel of the pres-
ent cruise consists of the following: J. P. i\uLT, in command; H. F.
Johnston, magnetician, second in command; Russell Pemberton,
surgeon and observer; A. Thomson, H. R. Grummann and R. R.
Mills, observers.

Dr. Edson S. Bastin terminated his work as geologist in charge of
the Division of Mineral Resources of the U. S. Geological Survey on
December 26, 1919, to become Professor of Economic Geology at the
TTniversitv of Chicago. For the present he will retain his Survey con-
nection, on the per diem roll.

Mr, E. F. BuRCHARD, geologist in charge of the iron and steel sec-
tion of the U. S. Geological Survey, has been granted a ten months'
leave of absence and will make geologic investigations in the Philip-
pines.

Mr. A. A. Chambers, chemist in the Water Resources Branch of
the U. S. Geological Survey, has resigned to accept a position with
the Youngstown Sheet and Tube Company as chemist in their steel
laboratory.

Mr. J. C. Crawford resigned from the Bureau of Entomology on
December i, 1919, and has gone into the real estate business in Wash-
ington.

Mr. A. J. Ellis has been appointed assistant chief of the Division
of Ground Waters in the Geological vSurvey and will be acting chief of
the division in the absence of Mr. Meinzer in Hawaii.

Mr. W. A. English, geologist, has resigned from the U. S. Geological
Survey to examine oil lands for the New Zealand government and also
to make oil investigations in the Far East for New York interests.

JSIessrs. O. W. Ferguson and P. M. Trueblood, of the Coast and
Geodetic Survey, have completed a line of precise levels across New
York State, from the northern end of Lake Champlain to Niagara
Falls.

' See This Journal, 9: 605. 1919.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS 83

Dr. J. A. Fleming, chief of the magnetic survey division of the De-
partment of Terrestrial Magnetism, Carnegie Institution, sailed for
Buenos Aires on December 31 in order to meet the Carnegie there,
and will return to Washington by wa}^ of the Department's observa-
tory at Huancayo, Peru.

Mr. Owen B. French, who has been professor of geodesy and prac-
tical astronomy in the Government Institute of Military Surveying,
Peking, China, since April, 191 8, returned to Washington in December,
1 91 9, having completed the work he had under contract. Although
requested to renew the contract, he preferred to return to the United
States to resume his previous occupation as consulting geodesist.

Dr. E. C. Harder, geologist of the U. S. Geological Survey, has re-
signed to become geologist for the Republic Mining and Manufac-
turing Company and associated companies, with offices at 1 1 1 r Harri-
son Building, Philadelphia, Pa.

Mr. K. C. Heald is on leave of absence from the U. S. Geological
Surve}'' and is engaged in oil reconnaissance work in Colombia.

Dr. L. O. Howard, chief of the Bureau of Entomology, Department
of Agriculture, was elected president of the American Association for
the Advancement of Science at the St. Louis meeting in December.
Dr. Howard has been Permanent Secretary of the Association since
1898. Prof. E- L. Nichols, of Cornell University, has been elected
General Secretary of the Association under the new constitution, and
the office of Permanent Secretary will probably be filled by the execu-
tive committee of the Council within a few months.

Dr. Ales Hrdlicka, of the vSmithsonian Institution, left Washing-
ton early in January for the Far East, in the interest of his studies
on the origin of the American Indian, and of the organization of anthro-
pological research in China. He expects to return in May.

Prof. Tamiji Kawamura, assistant professor of zoology in the Im-
perial University of Kyoto, Japan, visited Washington in December,
giving particular attention to the work of the Division of Physical
Anthropology and the Division of Marine Invertebrates of the National
Museum.

Dr. Br.'^dford Knapp, director of extension work in the southern
States for the Department of Agriculture, resigned on January 10,
to become dean of the College of Agriculture, and director of the Experi-
ment Station, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas.

Dr. Adolph Knopf, geologist of the U. S. Geological Survey, has
been appointed lecturer in geology at Yale University for the second
term of the present academic year.

Mr. C. E. Lesher, geologist in charge of coal statistics in the U. S.
Geological Survey, has resigned to accept a position as statistical ex-
pert with the National Coal Association.

Dr. G. F. Loughlin has been appointed chief of the Mineral Re-
sources Division of the U. S. Geological Survey, in the place of Dr.
E. S. Bastin, who becomes professor of economic geology at the I'ni-
versity of Chicago.

84 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Dr. M. W. Lyon, Jr., formerly professor of pathology and bacteri-
ology, George Washington University, and at one time connected with
the Division of Mammals, U. S. National Museum, and Captain in
the Medical Corps during the war, has left Washington to take charge
of pathological work for a group of physicians at South Bend, Indiana.
His present address is 214 La Porte Avenue, South Bend.

Dr. G. P. Merrill, of the National Museum, was elected vice-
president of the Geological Society of America at the meeting at Bos-
ton , December 2 9-3 1 , 1 9 1 9 .

Mr. John Mirguet, of the Division of Marine Invertebrates, National
Museum, detailed to the U. S. Bureau of Fisheries' steamer Albatross
to care for biological material secured, has returned to Washington
after a trip along the southern Atlantic coast down to the Yucatan
Channel.

Dr. Chase Palmer, chemist of the U. S. Geological vSurvey, has re-
signed to accept a position as chief chemist in the fuel oil department
of the Southern Pacific Company, at Bakersfield, California.

Rear Admiral John Elliott Pillsbury, U. vS. N. (Retired), presi-
dent of the National Geographic Society, died on December 30, 191 9,
in his seventy-fourth year. He was born at Lowell, Massachusetts,
December 15, 1846, and graduated from the United States Naval
Academy in 1867. In addition to his varied service with the Navy, he
spent one year at the Hydrographic Office and ten years with the
Coast and Geodetic Surv-ey. During this period he made extended in-
vestigations of the ocean currents off the south Atlantic coast of the
United States.

Mr. S. A. RoHWER, of the Bureau of Entomology, has been appointed
Honorary Custodian of Hymenoptera in the Division of Insects of the
National Museum.

Mr. William L. Sclater, of the British Museum, visited Washington
in December.

Dr. R. H. True, of the Bureau of Plant Industry, Department of
Agriculture, was elected secretary of Section G (Botany) of the Amer-
ican Association for the Advancement of Science, at the St. Louis
meeting in December.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. io FEBRUARY 19, 1920 No. 4

GEOLOGY. — The functions and ideals of a national geological
survey.''- F. L. Ransome, Geological Survey.

INTRODUCTION

During the period of unrest and uncertainty through which
we are still painfully groping, the many distracting calls upon
my time and thoughts have made performance of the duty to
prepare a presidential address particularly difficult. In view of
these circumstances I may perhaps hope for some indulgence
on your part if my effort shows some lack of thoroughness in its
preparation and falls somewhat short of the high standard
set by some of my distinguished predecessors. The subject of a
presidential address to the Academy should, I think, be of wider
interest and more general character than would ordinarily
be an account of work in the speaker's particular branch of
science, and this condition I have attempted to fulfill. Although
what follows will deal especially with national geological surveys
much of it will apply in principle to any scientific bureau con-
ducted as a government organization.

REASONS FOR THE EXISTENCE OF A NATIONAI. GEOI.OGICAI, SURVEY

In the beginning it may be well to review briefly the reasons
for the existence of a national geological survey. Why should
the government undertake work in geology while investigations
in other sciences are in general left to private initiation and enter-

1 Address of the retiring president of the Academy delivered January 13,
1920.

86 ransome;: national geological survey

prise? The reasons that may be adduced will differ with the
point of view. The geologist will suggest that whereas some
sciences, such as chemistry, physics, or astronomy, may be pur-
sued with success with stationary and permanent equipment
at any one of a number of localities, geology is regional in its
scope and is primarily a field science as contrasted with a lab-
oratory science. Geology, it is true, must avail itself of labora-
tory resources and methods, but the geologist cannot have the
greater part of his material brought to him; he must himself
seek it afield. Thus it comes that comprehensive geologic
problems require for their solution the equipment of more or
less expensive expeditions or travel over large areas. Such
projects, as a rule, cannot be undertaken by individual geologists
or by local organizations. The preparation of a geologic map
of a whole country, with its explanatory text, generally recognized
as essential fundamental work, is an undertaking that requires
consistent effort by a central organization extending over a period
of years. Such a map is not likely to result from the patching
together of the results of uncoordinated local effort. From a
broadly utilitarian point of view, the intelligent layman as well
as the geologist must recognize that the development of a coun-
try's natural resources in such a manner as to secure their maxi-
mum use for the greatest number of its citizens necessarily de-
pends upon reliable information concerning the character,
location, and extent of these resources and that this information
should be available before they are exploited, by those who have
eyes only for their own immediate profit, or before they pass
entirely into private control or are exhausted. Such information
can best be obtained and published by an impartial national
organization responsible for its results to the people as a whole.
Such a layman will recognize also that knowledge of the mineral
resources of a country must rest upon a geological foundation.
As Professor J. C. Branner has recently said in his "Outlines of
the Geology of Brazil:"

"After a life spent chiefly in active geologic work and in the
direction of such work, I should be remiss in my duty to Brazil
if I did not use this occasion to urge on Brazilian statesmen the

ransome: national geological, survey 87

serious necessity for the active encouragement and support of
scientific geologic work on the part of the national and state
governments. Knowledge must precede the application of
knowledge in geology as well as in other matters; and unless the
development of the country's mineral resources be based on and
proceed from a scientific knowledge of its geology, there must
inevitably be waste of effort, loss of money, and the delay of
national progress inseparable from haphazard methods. '"-

Finally, the citizen of narrower vision will regard as sufficient
justification for a national geological survey the fact that he
himself can turn to it for information and assistance in the de-
velopment of particular mineral deposits, to his own material
advantage.

As a matter of fact, most of the progressive countries of the
world maintain geological surveys so that the desirability of
such an organization appears to have been generally recognized,
whatever may have been the particular reason or reasons that
set in motion the machinery of organization in each country.

Recognizing the fact that most of the principal countries have
established geological surveys and granting that there are good
reasons for considering the maintenance of such an organization
as a proper governmental function, we may next inquire — ^What
should be the ideals and duties of a geological survey? How
may these ideals be realized and these duties performed?

GENERAL LEGAL FUNCTIONS

The organic act of the United States Geological Survey specifies
indirectly and in general terms the field that the organization
should occupy. It states, with reference to the director, "this
officer shall have the direction of the Geological Survey and the
classification of the public lands and examination of the geological
structure, mineral resources, and products of the national do-
main."

Doubtless the laws or decrees under which other national
geological surveys have been established also prescribe to some

' J. C. Branner. Outlines of the geology of Brazil. Geol. Soc. Amer. Bull.
30: 194. 1919.

88 RANSOME: NATIONAL GEOLOGICAL SURVEY

extent their duties. Such legal authorization, however, is as a
rule so general as to leave room for considerable latitude in its
interpretation. I propose first to discuss the functions of a
national geologic survey without reference to legal prescription
or definition and afterwards to consider the extent to which
some of the actual conditions interfere with the realization of these
ideals.

USEFULNESS IN SCIENCE

It has been the fashion in some quarters of late to emphasize
usefulness as the chief criterion by which to judge the value
of scientific research under government auspices. It has been
intimated that this or that scientific bureau of the government
must do "useful" work if it is to justify its existence and its
expenditure of public funds. The statement is usually made
with an air of finality, as if a troublesome question had been
once for all disposed of and the path of the future made plain.
As a matter of fact, howev^er, when it is said that science must be
useful in order to receive government support we have really
made very little advance. Probably the most idealistic scien-
tific man will admit that ultimate usefulness is the justification
for scientific research, although that end may not enter into his
thoughts when he undertakes any particular investigation with
the hope of increasing human knowledge. Men will differ very
widely, however, as to what is meant by usefulness in science.
It is well known to all scientific men, although not yet as widely
recognized by others as it should be, that the utility of research
is not generally predictable. For example, the investigations
on electricity for hundreds of years preceding the middle of the
nineteenth century had, so far as could be seen, no practical
bearing. The experiments of Volta, of Galvani, and even those
of our own Franklin, outside of his invention of the lightning rod,
were not conducted with any thought of utility and were prob-
ably looked upon by the people of the time as diversions of the
learned, not likely to have much effect upon human life and
progress. How erroneous such a view was it is unnecessary to
point out to a generation accustomed to daily use of the trolley

RANSOME: NATIONAL GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 89

car, telegraph, telephone, and electric light. Not only is the
utility of science not always predictable but it is of very different
kinds. That astronomy has certain practical applications in
navigation and geodesy is well known; but important as these
applications are they seem insignificant in comparison with the
debt that we owe to this science for enlarging our intellectual
horizon. This, too, is usefulness which I venture to think is of a
truer and higher sort than much that passes current for utility.
The classic researches of Pasteur on the tartaric acids, on fer-
mentation, on the anthrax bacillus, on the silkworm disease,
and on rabies, were so-called applied science of the very highest
type, indistinguishable in the spirit and method of their pursuit
from investigations in pure science. They were not merely the
application of knowledge to industry but were extraordinarily
fruitful scientific investigations undertaken to solve particular
industrial and humanitarian problems. They are especially
interesting in the present connection as probably the most con-
spicuous example in the history of research of the merging of
pure and applied science. Pasteur was doubly fortunate in that
he not only enormously enlarged human knowledge but was able
to see, at least in part, the practical application of his discoveries
to the benefit of humanity. The value of his results measurable
in dollars is enormous, yet this is not their only value. Professor
Arthur Schuster, in a recent address, remarks: "The researches
of Pasteur, Lister, and their followers, are triumphs of science
applied directly to the benefit of mankind ; but I fancy that their
hold on our imagination is mainly due to the new vista opened
out on the nature of disease, the marvelous workings of the
lower forms of life, and the almost human attributes of blood
corpuscles, which have been disclosed.

"The effect on a community is only the summation of the effect
on individuals, and if we judge by individuals there can be little
doubt that, except under the stress of abnormal circumstances,
pure knowledge has as great a hold upon the public mind as the
story of its applications."

Quite independently of any recognized usefulness, investiga-
tions that yield results that are of interest to the public are wil-

90 RANSOME: NATIONAL GEOLOGICAL, SURVEY

lingly supported by the people and this fact is significant in con-
nection with what I shall have to say later on the function of
education. As illustrations of this truth may be cited our
government Bureau of Ethnology and our large public museums.
Probably few who read the admirable government reports on the
aboriginal antiquities of our country and on the arts and customs
of the Indian tribes could point out any particular usefulness
in these studies; but they have to do with human life and their
popular appeal is undeniable. The average visitor to a museum
probably has little conception of what to a scientific man is the
real purpose of such an institution. He gazes with interest at
the contents of the display cases without realizing that by far
the greater part of the material upon which the scientific staff
is working or upon which investigators will work in future, is
hidden away in drawers and packing cases. The principle rec-
ognizable result so far as he is concerned is that he is interested
in what he sees and feels that he is being pleasantly instructed.

In other words, it is as important for man to have his imagina-
tion quickened as to have his bodily needs supphed, and in minis-
tering to either requirement science is entitled to be called useful
or valuable.

It may be remarked in passing that Pasteur's work had this
in common with pure science, or science pursued with the single
aim of adding to human knowledge, in that Pasteur himself
could not foresee all of the applications that would in future be
made of his discoveries.

Enough, I think, has been said to show that the term "useful-
ness" as applied to science covers a wide range and that when em-
ployed by people of imagination and liberal culture may include
much more than when used by those whose only standard of
value is the unstable dollar.

FUNCTIONS UNDER AN IDEAL AUTOCRACY

If government were in the hands of a wise and benevolent
autocracy a national geological survey would be so conducted as
to be useful to the people whose taxes go towards its support;
but it would probably be useful in the broader sense that I have

RANSOME: NATIONAL GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 9 1

outlined. It would give the people not perhaps what they think
they want but what, in the wisdom of their government, seems
best for them. I believe that a survey so directed would aim
to encourage and promote the study of geology by undertaking
those general problems and regional investigations that would
be likely to remain untouched if left to private enterprise. It
would lay the foundation for the most economic and efficient
development of the natural resources of the country by ascer-
taining and making known the location, character and extent
of the national mineral resources. As an aid to the intelligent
utilization of these resources, and to the discovery of deposits
additional to those already known, it would properly occupy
itself with problems concerning the origin and mode of formation
of mineral deposits. Last, but not least, it would accept the
responsibility, not only for making known the material resources
of the country but for contributing to the moral and intellectual
life of the nation and of the world by seeing to it that the country's
resources in opportunities for progress in the science of geology
are fully utilized. I may illustrate my meaning by examples
taken from the publications of the U. S. Geological Survey. In
my opinion such works as Button's Tertiary History oj the
Grand Canyon, Gilbert's Lake Bonneville, and the investiga-
tions of Marsh, Cope, and their successors, on the wonderful
series of reptile, bird, and mammal remains found in the Cre-
taceous and Tertiary strata of the west are fully as adequate
and appropriate a return for the expenditure of public funds as a
report describing the occurrence of a coal bed and giving the
quantity of coal available in a given field. Many years ago when
the United States Geological Survey was under heavy fire in
Congress one member of that body in some unexplained way
learned that Professor Marsh had discovered and had described
in a government publication a wonderful fossil bird with teeth —
a great diver up to 6 feet in length. He held this up to ridicule
as a glaring example of the waste of public funds in useless scien-
tific work, quite unaware of the light that this and similar dis-
coveries threw upon the interesting history of the development

92 ransome: national geological survey

of birds from reptiles and upon evolution, or of the intellectual
value of such a contribution to knowledge. The representative
of a people educated in the value of geologic science would, by
such an exhibition of ignorance, discredit himself in the eyes of his
constituents.

FUNCTIONS IN A DEMOCRACY

Our government, however, is not an all-wise benevolent autoc-
racy but is democratic in plan and intent and suffers from certain
well-known disadvantages from which no democracy has yet
been free. The wishes of the politically active majority control,
and these wishes may or may not coincide with those of the
wisest and most enlightened of the citizens. The funds for
government work in science must be granted by Congress and the
vote of each congressman is determined by the real or supposed
desires of his constituents. A national scientific bureau, if it
is to survive, must have popular support, and to obtain and hold
such support it must do at least some work that the majority
of the people can understand or can recognize as being worth
the doing. Here evidently compromise with scientific ideals is
necessary. vSomething must be sacrificed in order that something
can be done. Such concessions and compromises are inseparable
from democratic government and the scientific man of high
ideals who is unable to recognize this fact will inevitably fail
as a director of the scientific work of a government bureau.
Such a man is likely to insist that no concessions are necessary
and that the public will support science that is not interesting
to it or from which it can see no immediately resulting material
benefit. One very eminent geologist with whom I was once
conversing held this view. He said that he had always found
that he could go before a legislative body and secure appropria-
tions for scientific research by being absolutely frank and making
no attempt to show that the results of the work would be what
the average man would term "useful" within the immediate
future. His confidence was possibly well grounded, but I am
inclined to think that the success gained by him was rather a
tribute to his earnest eloquence and winning personality than a

RANSOME: NATIONAL GEOLOGICAIv SURVEY 93

proof that the people are yet ready to contribute their taxes to
the support of investigations that, so far as they can see, are
neither useful nor interesting.

CHARACTER OF COMPROMISES

Lest it be supposed that I am advocating the surrender of the
high ideals of science to the political business of vote-getting,
I hasten to point out that surrender and compromise are not
synonymous and may be very far apart. Some compromise there
must be, but in my opinion the most delicate and critical problem
in the direction of a national scientific bureau is to determine the
nature and extent of this compromise so as to obtain the largest
and steadiest support of real research with the least sacrifice.
Complete surrender to popularity may mean large initial sup-
port, but is sure to be followed by deterioration in the spirit of
the organization and in the quality of its work, by loss of scien-
tific prestige, and by final bankruptcy even in that popular
favor which had been so sedulously cultivated.

The extent to which concessions must be made will depend
largely, of course, on the general level of intelligence of the people
and upon the degree to which the less intelligent are influenced
through the press and other channels by those who are able to
appreciate the value of science. The more enlightened the
people the more general and permanent will be their support of
science.

IMPORTANCE OF POPUI^AR EDUCATION IN GEOEOGY

This leads us to the consideration of what I believe to be one
of the most important of the functions of a government scientific
bureau, namely, education. Of all forms of concession, if indeed
it is really a concession, this is the least objectionable and most
fruitful. Its results are constructive and cumulative. It is not,
like other concessions to popularity, corrosive of the scientific
spirit of an organization and in so far as it calls for clear think-
ing and attractive presentation on the part of those putting it
into practice as well as the ability to grasp and expound essentials,
its educational effect may be subjective as well as objective.
Whatever may be true of other sciences, geologists in this country

94 RANSOME: NATIONAL GEOLOGICAL SURVEY

have shown Httle interest in popularizing their science or in
encouraging its pursuit by amateurs. Such attempts as have
been made have often been inept and unsuccessful and the pro-
fessional geologists have looked with more or less disdain upon
those of their fellows who have tried to expound their science to
the people. They have felt that men with unusual ability for
research should devote all of their energy to the work of enlarging
the confines of knowledge rather than to dissemination and
popularization of what is known to the few. There is undoubtedly
much to be said for this view and when applied to certain ex-
ceptional men it is strictly correct. When, however, we think
of Darwin and compare the magnitude of his achievements with
the pains that he took to make his conclusions comprehensible
by the multitude, we are inclined to feel that only by extraordi-
nary ability and performance in certain directions can an in-
vestigator in natural science be altogether absolved from the
duty of making himself intelligible to more than a few specialists
in his own line. There are undoubtedly many scientific men
thoroughly and earnestly convinced of the importance of their
researches, who would in the long run be doing more for humanity
and perhaps for themselves if they would spare some time to tell
us as clearly and attractively as possible what it is that they are
doing. While I believe this to be true of scientific men in gen-
eral, it is particularly true of those who are officially servants of a
democracy. A democratic government might almost be char-
acterized as a government by compromise, and this is one of
the major compromises that confronts scientific men in the ser-
vice of such a government. The conclusion that a very important
function of a national geological survey is the education of the
people in geology and the increasing of popular interest in that
science, appears to be unavoidable, yet it is surprising how little
this function has been recognized and exercised. The results
of such education are cumulative and a direct and permanent
gain to science, whereas, on the other hand, the consequences of
prostituting the opportunities for scientific work to satisfy this
and that popular demand for so-called practical results in any
problem that happens to be momentarily in the public eye, is a

ransome: national geological, survey 95

kind of charlatanry that is utterly demoralizing to those who prac-
tice it and that must ultimately bring even popular discredit
on science. A bureau that follows such a policy can neither
hold within it nor attract to its service men animated by the
true spirit of investigation.

METHODS OF EDUCATION

It is not practicable in the present address to discuss in detail
the many possibilities of educational work in geology. Only a
few general suggestions can be offered.

In the first place the importance of education by a national
geological survey should be frankly recognized and the idea
that it is beneath the dignity of a geologist to participate in
this function should be discountenanced. A geological survey
should include on its staff one or more men of high ability who
are especially gifted in interesting the public in the purposes,
methods, and results of geologic work — men of imagination who
can see the romance of science ; men of broad sympathy who know
the hearts and minds of their countrymen from the Atlantic to the
Pacific ; men imbued with the truthful spirit of science ; and finally,
men skilled in the art of illuminating the cold impersonal results
of science with a warm glow of human interest.

It should be the duty of these men to see that so far as possible
all of the results of geologic work are interpreted to the people
so that every citizen can benefit to the limit of his individual
capacity. Magazines, the daily papers, moving pictures and
all possible means of publication should be utilized. There
should be close contact with educators and special pains taken
to prepare material for use in schools and colleges. Carefully
planned courses at university summer schools and elsewhere
might be given by members of the educational or publicity staff,
or by certain selected geologists from the field staff.

Geologists in preparing papers and reports should consider
with particular care the question, "Who may be reached by this?"
Some scientific results cannot be popularized and these may be
written in the concise, accurate language of science. Others,
however, may, by taking sufficient care and trouble, be made

96 RANSOME: NATIONAI, GEOLOGICAL SURVEY

interesting to more than a small circle of scientific colleagues.
Every effort should be made to enlarge this circle by simple
and attractive presentation. In some cases I am inclined to
think that a geologist might issue separately or as a part of his
complete report, an abstract or resume in which all effort is
concentrated on an endeavor to be interesting and clear to as
many people as possible. If this were done, I am sure that the
writer would be in a position to appraise more truly the value
of his complete report and might proceed to rewrite some por-
tions of it and to omit others, without loss to science and at a
saving in paper and printing.

RELATIONS WITH UNIVERSITIES

In connection with the subject of education attention may be
called to the fundamental importance of establishing and main-
taining close and cordial relationship between a government
scientific bureau and the universities. The advantages of such
a relationship are so many that it is difficult to enumerate them
all but it may be pointed out that any plan of popular education
in science will be seriously crippled if the professional teachers
whose influence in molding the thoughts and determining the
careers of the young men and women of the country is so great,
are out of sympathy with the government organization that is
attempting to quicken the interest of the people in a particular
branch of science. Moreover, it is vital to such an organization
that it should attract to its service young men of exceptional
ability in science. This it is not likely to do if professors of geology
feel that they must conscientiously advise their most promising
graduates to avoid government serAace. Doubtless some teachers
of geology in the universities fail to realize the necessity for some
of the compromises inevitable in a government bureau, or in their
impatience at some of the stupidities of bureaucratic procedure
are inclined to place the blame for these where it does not belong ;
a few may cherish personal grievances. No class of men is
without its unreasonable members and neither rectitude nor
tact can prevent occasional clashes; but if a national geological
survey cannot command the respect and hearty support of most

RANSOME: NATIONAL GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 97

of the geological faculties of the universities the consequences
to the progress of geology must be deplorable. Any approach
to such a condition demands immediate action with less emphasis
on the question, "Who is to blame?" for in all probability there
may be some fault on both sides, than on "What can be done
to restore relations of mutual regard and helpfulness?"

THE AMATEUR IN GEOLOGY

In the present age of specialization we are apt to forget how
much geology owes to amateurs, particularly in Britain and
France. Sir Archibald Geikie in the concluding chapter of his
"Founders of Geology" dwells particularly on this debt. He
says:

"In the account which has been presented in this volume of
the work of some of the more notable men who have created the
science of geology, one or two leading facts stand out prominently
before us. In the first place, even in the list of selected names
which we have considered, it is remarkable how varied have been
the ordinary avocations^ of these pioneers. The majority have
been men engaged in other pursuits, who have devoted their
leisure to the cultivation of geological studies. Steno, Guettard,
Pallas, Fiichsel, and many more were physicians, either led by
their medical training to interest themselves in natural history,
or not seldom, even from boyhood, so fond of natural history as to
choose medicine as their profession because of its affinities with
that branch of science. Giraud-Soulavie and Michell were clergy-
men. Murchison was a retired soldier. Alexandre Brogniart
was at first engaged in superintending the porcelain manufactory
of Sevres. Demarest was a hard- worked civil servant who
snatched his intervals for geology from the toils of incessant
official occupation. William Smith found time for his researches
in the midst of all the cares and anxieties of his profession as an
engineer and surveyor. Hutton, Hall, DeSaussure, Von Buch,
Lyell, and Darwin were men of means, who scorned a life of sloth-
ful ease, and dedicated themselves and their fortunes to the study
of the history of the earth. Playfair and Cuvier were both
teachers of other branches of science, irresistibly drawn into the

2 Vocations would seem to be the right word here. F. L. R.

98 RANSOME: NATIONAL GEOLOGICAL SURVEY

Sphere of geological inquiry and speculation. Of the whole gallery
of worthies that have passed before us, a comparatively small
proportion could be classed as in the strictest sense professional
geologists, such as Werner, Sedgwick and Logan. Were we
to step outside of that gallery, and include the names of all who
have helped to lay the foundations of the science, we should find
the proportion to be still less.

"From the beginning of its career, geology has owed its founda-
tion and its advance to no select and privileged class. It has
been open to all who cared to undergo the trials which its suc-
cessful prosecution demands. And what it has been in the past,
it remains to-day. No branch of natural knowledge lies more
invitingly open to every student who, loving the fresh face of
Nature, is willing to train his faculty of observation in the field,
and to discipline his mind by the patient correlation of facts
and the fearless dissection of theories. To such an inquirer
no limit can be set. He may be enabled to rebuild parts of the
temple of science, or to add new towers and pinnacles to its
superstructure. But even if he should never venture into such
ambitious undertakings, he will gain, in the cultivation of geo-
logical pursuits, a solace and enjoyment amid the cares of life,
which will become to him a source of the purest joy."

In this country at the present time, as Mr. David White, in an
as yet unpublished address, has, I believe, pointed out, the
amateur geologist, due partly to the way in which the subject
is taught, is rare and few indeed are the contributions made to
the science by those who follow geology as an avocation or hobby.
This is unfortunate and an improvement of this condition should
be one of the major objects of the educational program of a
national geological survey. The science lends itself particularly
to its pursuit as a recreation by men of trained intellect who
must find in the open air some relief from sedentary professions.
In a country still so new as ours geologic problems lie on every
hand and many of these can be solved wholly or in part without
elaborate apparatus or laboratory facilities. The standards
for the professional geologist should be high, but there is no

RANSOME: NATIONAL, GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 99

necessity that maintenance of such standards should be ac-
companied by a patronizing or superciHous attitude toward the
work of the amateur. Rather, let the professional geologist
cultivate sympathy, tolerance, and generosity toward all who
are earnestly seeking for the truth ; let him help by encouragement
instead of deterring by disdain. There is no better evidence of a
wide interest in geology than the existence of numerous amateur
workers and it is decidedly to the advantage of the professional
geologist and to the science to encourage in every way possible
the efforts of such workers and to increase their number.

KINDS OF WORK TO BE UNDERTAKEN BY A NATIONAL GEOLOGICAL

SURVEY

There has been considerable difference of opinion as to the
kinds of work that should be undertaken by a national geological
survey. Shall its field be confined to what may be included
under geology or shall it embrace other activities, such as topo-
graphic mapping, hydrography and hydraulic engineering,
mining engineering, the classification of public lands, the collec-
tion and publication of statistics of mineral production, and the
mechanical arts of publication such as printing and engraving.
These various lines of activity may be divided into two main
classes — those that are more or less contributory to or subordinate
to the publication of geologic results, and those that have little
if any connection with geology.

The speaker is one of those who believe that a geological sur-
vey should be essentially what its name implies — that it should
confine its activity to the science of geology. This opinion is
held, however, in full realization of the fact that here as else-
where some compromise may be necessary. This may be dic-
tated by law or may be determined by policy.

The organic law of the U. S. Geological Survey, for example,
includes among the duties of the organization "the classification
of the public lands." There may be some difference of opinion
as to what the framers of the law meant by this provision, but
it is at least a reasonable conclusion that they intended the sort
of classification adopted by the General Land Office. If so, the

lOO RANSOME: NATIONAL GEOLOGICAL SURVEY

determination of the so-called "mineral" or "non-mineral"
character of public lands is undoubtedly a proper function of the
U. S. Geological Survey, although it is one that was neglected
by that survey for many years and has not yet received the
recognition of a specific appropriation, except recently in con-
nection Mdth the stock-raising and enlarged homestead acts.

TOPOGRAPHIC MAPPING

Inasmuch as the preparation of a topographic map is a neces-
sary preliminary to accurate and detailed geologic mapping, a
geological survey is vitally interested in seeing that satisfactory
maps are available as needed. WTiether a particular geological
survey should itself undertake this mapping depends upon cir-
cumstances. If another government organization is equipped
for doing this work and can provide maps of the requisite quality
when needed, it would appear that the geological bureau should
leave this work to the other organization, particularly as the
maps required to keep abreast of geologic requirements are
likely to constitute only a part of the work of the topographic
bureau. There are certain decided advantages, however, in
having the topographic work done by the geological survey and
these advantages must be weighed against other considerations.
With the topographic and geologic work under a single control,
the geologist is more likely to be assured of getting the kind of
map desired at the time needed. Cooperation between geolo-
gists and topographers is apt to be both closer and more flexible
than were the two staffs in separate organizations. Finally the
field work in topography and geology is in some respects alike
and is carried out by similar methods and equipment. Occa-
sionally the two kinds of work can be combined and carried on
simultaneously.

The general question — whether a national geological survey
shall do its own topographic mapping — appears to be one that
cannot be answered once for all but must be determined for each
country. In an old country where accurate and detailed maps
have long been made by militar}^ and other organizations, a
geological survey may be under no necessity of providing its

RANSOME: NATIONAL GEOLOGICAL SURVEY Id

own topographic base maps. In a new country, where explora-
tion is still in progress, the geological survey may have to make
its own topographic surveys. The main point, as I see it, is
that the geological survey must have maps of the standard
required by it with the least possible delay, but should not under-
take to make them itself if other organizations that can and will
provide the maps needed are already in the field.

We have seen that there is at least a very close connection be-
tween topographic and geologic mapping and that in this rela-
tion may he a sufficient reason why both kinds of work should
be undertaken by the same organization. Is there as good a
reason why the study of geology and the collection of statistics
of mineral production should be united?

STATISTICS OF MINERAL PRODUCTION

When shortly after the organization of the U. S. Geological
Siurvey the collection of statistics was begun, those geologists
who were most influential in urging that the Survey should
undertake statistical work adduced as the principal reason that
the people desired such figures and if the Geological Survey did the
work it would be able to secure larger appropriations than if the
task were left for others. It does not appear to have been thought
at that time that geologists were the only men who could satis-
factorily do statistical work or that it was necessary to impose
this task on them. Subsequently, however, the work was ap-
portioned among the geologists. The reasons for this step ap-
pear to have been, first, that the results of having the statistical
reports prepared under contract by specialists who were not on
the regular staff of the organization had proved unsatisfactory;
second, that by apportioning the work among the geologists
already on the staff not only would the apparent cost in money
be less than under the former arrangement, but it would, in a
bookkeeping sense, be very much cheaper than taking on new
men for this particular work ; finally, it was argued that geologists
could apply their knowledge of the field relations of ore deposits
to improve the character of statistical reports and would them-
selves benefit by additional opportunities to visit and examine
many deposits that they might not otherwise see.

I02 RANSOME: NATIONAL GEOLOGICAL SURVEY

It is undoubtedly true that the statistical reports of the United
States Geological Survey have greatly improved in accuracy,
fullness, and general interest since this plan was adopted. It is
also true that some geologists have turned their opportunities
as statistical experts to good account both in enlarging their
experience and by gathering material that has been worked into
geological papers. Nevertheless, the policy has, in my opinion,
been a mistake both economically and scientifically. It has
insidiously filched the time of highly trained men who have shown
originality and capacity for geologic research and has tied these
men down to comparatively easy and more or less routine tasks.
Some geologists who were once scientifically productive no
longer contribute anything to geological literature but are im-
mersed in work that men without their special geological train-
ing could do as well. To a certain extent the policy is destructive
of scientific morale. A young geologist sees that a man who pub-
lishes, annually or at shorter periods, reports on the statistics of
production of some metal becomes widely known to all inter-
ested in that metal and is considered by them as the United
States Geological Survey's principal expert on that commodity.
This easily won recognition, with all that it implies or seems to
imply in the way of promotion and of industrial opportunity,
must constitute a real temptation so long as a scientific man is
expected to contribute his own enthusiastic devotion to science
as part payment of his salary. The incidental geological oppor-
tunities offered by statistical work are found chiefly in connec-
tion with a few of the minor mineral resources, rather than with
such industrially dominant comm.odities as petroleum, iron or
copper, and these opportunities for the individual geologist
are soon exhausted and are likely to be purchased at a price far
out of proportion to their value. The supposition that geological
training is essential for good statistical work in mineral products
is a fallacy, and no man who shows promise of making real con-
tributions to geologic science should be placed in such circum-
stances that he is virtually forced to worship an idol whose head
may be of gold and precious stones but whose feet are assuredly
of clay. I am emphatically of the opinion that the collection

RANSOME: NATIONAL GEOLOGICAL SURVEY IO3

of mineral statistics is not logically a function of a national
geological survey. If, however, such a survey is committed to
this task by law, by the lack of any other organization to do the
work, or by well-considered reasons of policy, then it is even
more certain that the duty should not devolve upon geologists
at the expense of their own science, but should be cared for by a
special staff. Some cooperation between the statistical staff
and the geologic staff may be advisable but the extent of this
cooperation should be determined by those fully alive to the
necessity of safeguarding geology against encroachments by
statistical work.

WATER RESOURCES

Studies concerned with the occurrence of underground water
are of course as much geological as those concerned with the oc-
currence of petroleum. Investigations of surface waters, how-
ever, including stream gaging and the study of water-power
come within the field of engineering and have so little connection
with geology that it is difficult to see any logical ground for their
inclusion within the group of activities belonging properly to a
geological survey. In an ideal apportionment of fields of en-
deavor among the scientific and technical bureaus of a govern-
ment, stream gaging and estimation of water-power would scarcely
fall to the national geological survey. As it happens, the United
States Geological Survey does perform these functions and I am
not prepared to say that there is not ample legal and practical
justification for this adventitious growth on a geological bureau.
There has been little or no tendency to draft geologists into hy-
draulic engineering and consequently the principal objection
urged against the inclusion of statistical work within the sphere
of a geological survey does not here apply. Apparently the only
practical disadvantages are the introduction of additional com-
plexity into a primarily scientific organization and the conse-
quent danger of the partial submergence of principal and pri-
mary functions by those of adventitious character.

It should be pointed out in this connection that certain studies
of surface waters, especially those that are concerned with the

I04 RANSOME: NATIONAL GEOLOGICAL SURVEY

character and quantity of material carried in suspension and in
solution in river waters, have much geological importance.
Such studies supply data for estimating the rate of erosion and
sedimentation. They are to be regarded, however, rather as an
illustration of the way in which geology overlaps other branches
of science and utilizes their results than as reason for considering
hydraulic engineering as normally a function of a geological
survey.

FOREIGN MINERAL RESOURCES

One of the results of the war was to suggest the advantage to
the citizens and government of the United States of a central
source of information concerning the mineral resources of foreign
countries. The United States Geological Survey undertook to
gather this information, primarily for the specific purpose of
supplying data to the American representatives at the Peace
Conference. As the Director of the Survey states in his fortieth
annual report :

"Two general purposes were ser^'ed — first that of obtaining a
clear understanding of the relations between our own war needs
and the foreign sources of supply from which these needs must
or could be met; second, that of obtaining an understanding of
the bearing of mineral resources upon the origin and conduct of
the war and upon the political and commercial readjustments
that would follow the end of hostilities."

This work, of a kind that so far as known had not been pre-
viously undertaken by any national geological survey, has been
continued with the view that it is important for those who
direct American industries to possess as much information as
possible concerning those foreign mineral resources upon which
they can draw or against which they must compete. The
results aimed at are directly practical and are largely obtained
by compilation of available published and unpublished material
as it is manifestly impossible to make direct detailed investi-
gation of the mineral resources of all foreign countries. Neverthe-
less the work appears to fall appropriately within the field of a

RANSOME: NATIONAL GEOLOGICAL SURVEY I05

geological bureau and if it can be made to furnish the oppor-
tunity, hitherto lacking, for geologists in the government service
to make first-hand comparison between our own mineral de-
posits and those of other lands the experiment will probably
bear scientific fruit.

CHEMISTRY AND PHYSICS

Mineralogy and paleontology are so closely related to geology
that there can be no question of the propriety of including the
pursuit of these sciences within the scope of a geological survey.
The application of chemistry and physics to geological problems
admits of more discussion. Chemical work, however, as carried
on in connection with geological investigations is of such special
character and must be conducted in such intimate contact with
geological data as to make it almost certain that better results
can be obtained with a special staff and equipment than would be
possible were the routine and investigative work in geological
chemistry turned over to some central bureau of chemistry.
The same argument is believed to be applicable also to physics.
Research in geophysics was at one time a recognized function of
the United States Geological Survey but since the founding of
the Geophysical Laboratory of the Carnegie Institution of Wash-
ington, this field has been left almost entirely to that splendid
organization which is unhampered by some of the unfortunate
restrictions of a government bureau. Under these particular
and unusual conditions this course may have been wise, although
it does not negative the conclusion that, in general, investiga-
tions in geophysics are logically and properly a function of a
national geological survey.

SOILS
The study of soils, with reference to origin, composition, and
classification, is unquestionably a branch of geology, but the
geologist, with tradition behind him, generally looks upon soil
as a nuisance and geological surveys have reflected his attitude.
In the United States the classification and mapping of soil
types has for some years been in progress by the Department of
Agriculture. While quite devoid of any enthusiasm for engaging

I06 RANSOME: NATIONAI^ GEOIyOGICAI, SURVEY

in soil mapping, I wish to point out merely that this work, if
its results justify its performance by the government, and if the
classification adopted is based on chemical, physical and min-
eralogical character rather than on crop adaptability, is properly
a function of the national geological survey.

SEISMOLOGY

Another subject that is comparatively neglected by national
geological surveys is seismology. It can scarcely be asserted
that earthquakes have no economic bearing and conspicuous
or destructive examples usually receive some official attention
— after the event. The comparative neglect of systematic study
of earthquakes is probably due to a number of causes. One of
these is that few geologists specialize in seismology — a science
in which little progress can be made unless the investigator
possesses unusual qualifications in mathematics and physics.
Another reason probably is that to most men the difficulties
in the way of gaining real knowledge of the causes of earth-
quakes and especially of predicting with any certainty the time,
place, intensity and effects of earthquakes appear rather ap-
palling. Finally, earthquake prediction or even the recognition
of the possibility of future earthquakes in a particular part of
the country is Hkely to have consequences decidedly unpleasant
to those responsible for the prediction. Experience in Cali-
fornia has shown that a community still staggering from a violent
shaking may insist with some acerbity that nothing of any con-
sequence has happened and that it never felt better in its life.

Notwithstanding these difficulties, I believe that a national
geological surv'ey, in a country where serious earthquakes have
taken place and may occur again, should consider the collection
and interpretation of seismological data as part of its duty.
Such work is regional in scope and cannot be carried far by
local initiative and by individual investigators on their own
resources. In spite of difficulties I believe that it is within the
range of possibility that some day we shall be able to predict
earthquakes with sufficient reliabiUty to give the prediction
practical utility.

RANSOME: NATIONAL GEOLOGICAL SURVEY I07

SUMMARY

Briefly summarizing what has gone before, I conclude that
the chief primary function of a geological survey is geological re-
search and that the spirit of investigation should be the same
whether the work is undertaken to increase knowledge and to
serve as the starting point for further attacks on the unknown,
or is begun with a definite economic or practical result as its
desired goal. Compromise and concession are inevitable but
the necessity for making them should not and need not permit
the real purpose of the organization to sink from sight. If
the members of a scientific bureau can confidently feel that
those charged with its direction make such concessions wisely
with the higher purposes of the bureau really at heart, their
whole attitude towards their work will be entirely different from
that into which they will fall if they become convinced that
scientific ideals receive only perfunctory regard and that the
real allegiance is directed elsewhere.

What may be called the chief secondary function of a national
geological survey is believed to be popular education in geology
both for the benefit of the people and as providing the most
enduring basis for the support of such an organization by a
democracy. Such education should be conducted through every
possible channel and in close cooperation with all of the educa-
tional institutions of the country. One of its objects should be
the revival and encouragement of amateur geological observa-
tion and study. In this connection I heartily approve the
present trend in the poHcy of the American Association for the
Advancement of Science and believe that this great organization
will fulfill its purpose and advance science much more effectively
than at present if it will leave to the various special scientific
societies the holding of meetings devoted to the presentation of
scientific papers, and devote itself to the popularization of science
and to the encouragement of cooperation between different
branches of science.

PERSONNEI.

Finally a few words may be said concerning the relation be-
tween the personnel of a geological survey and the results ob-

I08 RANSOME: NATlONAIv GEOLOGICAL SURVEY

tained by the organization. If such a survey is to attract to its
service men of first rate abihty and to hold these men after their
development and experience have made them of the highest value,
certain inducements must be offered. Salary is unfortunately
the first of these that comes to mind under conditions that
continually force the scientific men in government service to
recognize painfully how inadequate at present is the stipend
upon which he had existed before the war. It is all very well
to insist that the scientific man does not work for money and
should not trouble his thoughts with such an unworthy con-
sideration. Nevertheless if he is to do the best of which he is
capable he must be lifted above the grind of poverty, be able to
give his children those educational advantages that he can so
well appreciate, have opportunity for mental cultivation and
feel his social position to be such that he can mingle without
humiliation with his intellectual peers. If it is destructive to the
scientific spirit to set up material gain as an object it may be
equally blighting to scientific achievement to force the attention
continually downward to the problem of meager existence.
The normal scientific man usually has other human beings de-
pendent upon him and the traditional spirit of self-sacrifice
and the indifference to material reward that are commonly
attributed to the true investigator may, when these members of
his family are considered, come very close to selfishness.

However, salary, important as it is, is by no means the only
determinant. If it is reasonably adequate, most men who are
animated by the spirit of science will find additional reward in
their work itseh if this is felt to be worthy of their best efforts.
A man of first rate scientific ability, however, will not enter an
organization in which consecutive application to a problem is
thwarted, in which he is expected to turn to this or that com-
paratively unimportant task as political expediency may dic-
tate or in which the general atmosphere is unfavorable to the
initiation and prosecution of research problems of any magnitude.
If a man of the type in mind finds himself in such an uncongenial
environment he is likely to go elsewhere. The final effect upon
the organization will be that its scientific staff will be mediocre

RANSOME: NATIONAL, GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 109

or worse and it will become chiefly a statistical and engineering
bureau from which leadership in geology will have departed.

If, on the other hand, a young geologist can feel that every
possible opportunity and encouragement will be given to him
in advancing the science of geology; that results on the whole
will be considered more important than adherence to a schedule;
that imagination and originality will be more highly valued than
routine efficiency or mere executive capacity; that he will not
be diverted to tasks for which, important as they may be, his
training and inclination do not particularly fit him; that those
directing the organization are interested in his development
and will give him all possible opportunity to demonstrate his
power of growth; and that appreciation and material reward
will be in proportion to his scientific achievement; he will then
be capable of the best that is in him and will cheerfully contribute
that best to the credit of the organization that he serves.

A national geological survey should hold recognized leadership
in geology in the country to which it belongs and attainment of
this proud position must obviously depend upon the quality of
its geological personnel. With respect to personnel, at least three
conditions may be recognized — first, that in which the ablest
geologists in the country are drawn to, and remain in, service;
second, that in which geologists perhaps of a somewhat lower
grade as regards scientific promise are attracted to the service
for a few years of training and then pass out to positions where
the opportunities for research or for increased earnings are greater ;
and third, that in which able young men no longer look upon
the geological survey as a desirable stepping-stone to a future
career. Who can doubt that it is the first condition that raises
an organization to pre-eminence in science and the last that
marks opportunities lost or unattained? Those responsible for
the success of a geological survey, if they be wise, will watch the
trend of the organization with reference to these conditions
much as the mariner watches his barometer and, like him, if
the indication be threatening, take action to forestall disaster.

ABSTRACTS

ENTOMOLOGY. — Descriptions of seven new species of Opins (Hymen-
optera-Braconidae) . A. B. Gahan. Proc. Ent. Soc. Wash.
21: 161-170. 1919.

This paper contains descriptions of seven new species of parasites
of Dipterous insects. Five of the new species are from the United
States and two are from Trinidad. S. A. RohwER.

ENTOMOLOGY. — The ants of Borneo. William Morton Wheeler.
Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool. 63: 43-147. July, 1919.

This paper is a systematic annotated catalogue of the ants of Borneo
and contains descriptions of new forms and phases with notes on geo-
graphical distribution and habits. The list records 256 forms repre-
senting 59 genera. Of these 256 forms, 58 are here recorded for the
first time and 23 of these are new to science. S. A. Rohwer.

ENTOMOLOGY. — Two new species of Asaphidion from North America
(Coleoptera, Carabidae). H. F. Wickham. Proc. Ent. Soc.
Wash. 21: 178-181. 1919.

In this paper two interesting new beetles belonging to a genus not
heretofore recorded from North America are described from material col-
lected in the interior districts of the Northwest (Alaska and Yukon
Territory). S. A. RohwER.

ENTOMOLOGY. — Descriptions of new North American Ptinidae, with
notes on an introduced fapanese species. W. S. Fisher. Proc.
Ent. Soc. Wash. 21: 181-186. 1919.

In this article four new species and one new genus of beetles are
described. All the new species are from Texas. Notes on a Japanese
species which was introduced with an exhibit are also published. This
introduced species has been taken in the field since the original discovery
of it, but there is no evidence that it has become a dangerous pest.

S. A. Rohwer.
no

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY

82 1ST MEETING

The 821st meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, October 11, 1919.
The meeting was called to order at 8 p.m. by President Humphreys,
with about 50 members and guests present.

C. G. Abbot: Solar studies in South America.

The author went by way of the Panama Canal to Chile, Bolivia, and
Argentina, returning by the same route. Slides illustrative of the
scenes along the route were exhibited, also slides showing the total
eclipse of the sun and measurements of the variation of the brightness
of the sky during the course of the eclipse phenomena as observed at
La Paz, Bolivia. The solar corona at the time of the eclipse proved
to be of a type intermediate between that of the maximum and mini-
mum period of sun spots and was especially grand on account of the
great number and extent of the streamers of the corona and the immense
prominence which cast a crimson glory over the whole. The point of
observation, at 14,000 feet above sea level, looked out upon a horizon
made up of snow-covered mountains about 20,000 feet high. The sky
was clear, and on the whole the phenomenon was the grandest of the
kind which the observers had ever seen.

A conference was held in Argentina with the Chief and Chief Fore-
caster of the Argentine Weather Bureau, who explained the methods em-
ployed and the success of the results obtained in forecasting by the aid of
daily telegraphic reports of the variations of the sun as observ^ed at the
Smithsonian Institution station at Calama, Chile. They expressed
themselves as very sanguine in regard to the value of the solar radiation
work for this purpose.

Several weeks were spent at the Smithsonian observing station at
Calama, Chile, where fortunately a new method of solar constant de-
termination was worked out which is based upon observations made with
the spectrobolometer, the pyrheliometer and the pyranometer at one
epoch of time. All these observations may be made simultaneously
by two observers within a period of about ten minutes and they are
sufficient to furnish means of computing the solar constant of radiation
which may be finished within two hours by one computer. Thus the
result is obtained with ten minutes of observing and two hours of
computing instead of three hours of observing and fifteen hours of com-

III

112 proceedings: phil,osophicaIv society

puting, as formerly. Variations of the sky which might occur and spoil
the result are avoided. By comparing results computed by the new-
method and by the old method (of six spectrobolometric observations
distributed over several hours), it is found that the deviations between
the two seldom exceed one per cent and almost never exceed two per
cent. When such large deviations are found it is almost invariably
seen that the transparency of the atmosphere was changing during the
day in question so that the result by the old method was either too
high or too low according as the sky was clearing or growing less clear.
Thus the new method appears to be at least as accurate as the old and
appears to av^oid the errors which oftentimes occur when changes of
transparency take place. Furthermore, the new method is applicable
on any day in which a clear space of 30° diameter exists around the sun,
while the old method requires uniform sky and total cloudlessness,
for a period of about three hours, either immediately after sunrise or
immediately before sunset.

The paper was discussed by Messrs. Bauer and Humphreys.

L. A. Bauer: The total solar eclipse at Cape Palmas, Liberia, May
29, 1919.

The station at Cape Palmas, Liberia, was one of five principal sta-
tions at which magnetic and allied observations were carried out by the
Department of Terrestrial Magnetism of the Carnegie Institution of
Washington, in connection with the solar eclipse of May 29, 191 9. Two
of these stations, Sobral, Brazil, in charge of Mr. D. M. Wise, assisted
by Mr. A. Thomson, and Cape Palmas, Liberia, in the author's charge,
who was assisted by Mr. H. F. Johnston, were inside the belt of totality.
A third station, at Huancayao, Peru, north of the totality belt, was in
charge of Dr. H. M. W. Edmonds; the fourth station south of the belt of
totality, at Puerto Deseado, Argentina, was in charge of Mr. A. Ster-
ling; and the fifth, about 100 miles north of the belt of totality, at
Campo, Cameroun, was in charge of Mr. Frederick Brown. Ob-
servations were also made at a secondary station, Washington, by Mr.
C. R. DUVALL.

In addition to these stations, special magnetic observations were
made at the Department's magnetic observatory at Watheroo, Western
Australia, and at observatories all over the globe, both inside and out-
side of the region of visibility of the eclipse. Reports have already been
received from many of these foreign observatories. The reports indicate
that the magnetic conditions were ideal for the detection of a possible
magnetic effect of the order to be expected from the Department's
previous eclipse magnetic observations. As soon as the various ob-
servations have been examined and discussed, a paper will be pre-
sented before the Society upon the results obtained.

The prime object of the present paper was to give a general account
of the expedition to Cape Palmas, Liberia, to relate the phenomena

proceedings: philosophical society 113

observ'ed during the total eclipse, and the experiences encountered en-
route to Liberia and in Liberia itself.

Totality lasted at Cape Palmas about 6 minutes and 33 seconds,
longer than at any other station in the belt of totality. The general
indications, as the eclipse occurred during the rainy season, were that
Cape Palmas would not be a suitable station for the astronomer. How-
ever, for the purpose of the Department's investigations, it did not
matter whether there was a clear sky or not, for a magnetic effect will
pass through any layer of clouds. It happened, however, that in spite
of general expectations, the weather was clear, and this now for the
third time, whereas certain parties at other stations, which appeared
more favorable according to past meteorological records, were un-
fortunate. The observation program included magnetic and electric
observations, meteorological observations, shadow-band observations,
times of contacts, and photographs such as could be obtained with
small kodak cameras. This comprehensive program was carried out
successfully, excepting the atmospheric-electric work which, on account
of the deterioration of the dry-cell batteries purchased in England,
had to be abandoned. Although three observers had been stationed,
no shadow bands were observ^ed this time, even greater precautions
having been taken than at Corona during the eclipse of June 8, 191 8,
where they were observed.

The eclipse of May 29, as observed at Cape Palmas, was not nearly
as dark, in spite of its long duration, as the much shorter one of June
8, 1 91 8, at Corona, Colorado. There was a marked difference in light,
both as seen visually and as shown by the. photographs, between the
inner corona and the outer extensions. The large red prominence
was a startling object.

Clear indications were had with regard to a magnetic effect in ac-
cordance with the results obtained at previous solar eclipses.

There was a steady slight decrease in temperature from 12*^ G.M.T.,
0.7 minute after the first contact, to 12.7^ G.M.T., and then a more
rapid decrease until 14^ G.M.T., when the minimum temperature of
79.4° F. was reached. This time (14.^) was approximately 0.4'' later
than the middle time of totality. The increase in temperature after
14'^ was rapid, the maximum of 82.7° F. being reached at 14. 9*^ G.M.T.
The hydrogram for May 29 showed the following effect: the humidity,
which was 71 per cent at 12*^ G.M.T. , steadily increased to 78 per cent
at 14** G.M.T. There was a more rapid decrease from 14'^ G.M.T.
to 15** G.M.T. when the humidity was 66 per cent. The maximum
humidity, therefore, occurred at 14^ G.M.T. or approximately 0.4
hour later than the middle time of totality. The barogram showed
nothing marked during the time of the eclipse.

D. M. Wise: The total solar eclipse at Sobral, Brazil, May 2g, 1919.

At Sobral, Brazil, the Department of Terrestrial Magnetism carried
out a program of magnetic and atmospheric-electric observations very

114 proceedings: archaeological society

similar to that which it carried out at Lakin, Kansas, during the echpse
of June 8, 191 8. Magnetographs were installed in a basement and con-
trol observations made in a tent nearby. These were operated for ap-
proximately twenty days. Atmospheric-electric observations were
made in an open field formerly used as a race-course. The climate
was dry and exceptionally good for observing atmospheric-electric
phenomena. The mornings were generally cloudy and the total
eclipse was witnessed through an opportune break in the clouds. The
corona was very bright and the prominence gave a distinct lurid tinge
to the light from it. Photographs of the eclipse were obtained with an
ordinar}^ kodak.

All the papers of the evening were illustrated by lantern slides.

Adjournment at 10.20 p.m. was followed by a social hour.

D. L. Hazard, Recording Secretary, pro tern.

ARCHAEOLOGICAL SOCIETY
I 8th meeting

The eighteenth annual meeting of the Washington Society of the
Archaeological Institute of America was held at the residence of the
President, Col. R. M. Thompson, 1607 Twenty-third Street, on No-
vember 21, 1 91 9. Officers for the year 191 9-1 920 were elected, as
follows: President, Robert Lansing; Vice-Presidents, Robert M.
Thompson, Henry White, Miss Mabel Boardman, Mrs. H. F.
Dimock; Secretary, Mitchell Carroll; Associate Secretary, Miss
Helen Wright; Treasurer, John B. Larner; Councillors, Robert M.
Thompson, Willard H. Brownson, Charles Henry Butler, Wil-
liam Miller Collier, F. Ward Denys, John B. Larner, James
Parmelee, J. Townsend Russell; Executive Committee, the above-
named officers and Albert Douglas, Gilbert H. Grosvenor, Mrs.
John Hays Hammond, Martin A. Knapp, Charles Colfax Long
and Mrs. James Brown Scott.

Prof. Morris Jastrow, Jr., of the University of Pennsylvania, gave
an illustrated lecture on The archaeological field in Asia Minor; results
and prospects.

Mitchell Carroll, Secretary.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

A meeting of the Maryland, Virginia, and District of Columbia
Section of the Mathematical Association of America was held in Wash-
ington on December 6, 191 9.

The Physics Club of the Bureau of Standards was re-established in
October, 1919, and the following lectures have been delivered before
the Club since that date: October 27, R. C. Tolman: Similitude;
November 3, 10 and 17, C. W. KanolT: Gravitation and relativity;
November 24, F. C. Brown: Recent development of bomb ballistics;
December i, I. C. Gardner: Optical instruments for military work;
December 9 and 16, R. C. Duncan: Some applications of science to
ballistics; January 5, W. F. Meggers: Aerial photography; January

12 and 26, E. A. EckhardT: Sound ranging and recent developments
in acoustics. F. B. Silsbee is president and H. F. Stimson is secretary
of the Club.

The U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey steamer Isis had to be beached
about five miles south of St. Augustine, Florida, on January 15, on
account of damage due to collision with a submerged wreck. It was
believed that the vessel could be salvaged if the weather remained
favorable.

Representatives J. A. Elston, of California, F. L. GrEEne, of
Vermont, and L. P. Padgett, of Tennessee, were appointed Regents of
the Smithsonian Institution by the Speaker of the House on Januar}^ 9.

The Board of Surveys and Maps recommended by the map-making
conference,^ and recently created by executive order, met on January

13 and elected the following officers: Chairman, O. C. Merrill,
Chief Engineer of the Forest Service ; V ice-Chairman, William Bowie,
Chief of the Division of Geodesy, U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey;
Secretary, C. H. Birdseye, Chief Geographer of the U. S. Geological
Survey.

The following commissioned officers resigned from the Coast and
Geodetic Survey in December: H. R. Bartlett, J. A. Daniels,
G. H. DuRGiN, A. J. Ela, C. G. Quillian and A. C. Witherspoon.

Mr. R. M. Brown, formerly librarian of the Coast and Geodetic
Survey, has accepted an appointment with Rand, McNally and Com-
pany, to prepare and edit material for a new edition of their atlas of the
world.

Mr. Robert Hollister Chapman, topographical engineer of the
U. S. Geological Survey, died on January 11, 1920, in his fifty-second
year, while attending a meeting of the American Alpine Club in New
York City. Mr. Chapman was born at New Haven. Connecticut,

1 This Journal 9: 605. 1919.

115

Il6 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

July 29, 1868. He became a topographer on the Survey in 1882 and had
been with the organization since that date, serving also in 1909-19 10
on a detail to the Geological Survey of Canada. During the European
war he was a major in the Engineer Corps of the Army. He was a
member of the Academy and of the Archaeological, Engineers', and
Geological Societies.

Dr. Paul D. Foote, of the Bureau of Standards, has been appointed
Editor of the Journal of the Optical Society of America.

A Coast and Geodetic Survey party in charge of N. H. Heck has
been locating submerged trees in Lake Washington, Seattle, by the
wire-drag method. The trees, which are a serious risk to navigation,
are then removed by pulling up the trees or dynamiting the tops.
The trees range from 60 to 100 feet in height and their tops are covered
by 6 to 30 feet of water.

Mr. W. B. Hicks, chemist of the U. S. Geological Survey, resigned
on February i to accept a position as chemist with the Solvay Process
Company, of Syracuse, N. Y.

Mr. Andrew Kramer, of the Astrophysical Observatory, Smith-
sonian Institution, has recently completed a graphical computing
machine, containing 8 slide rules, for use in reducing solar radiation
observations.

Mr. George A. Rankin, formerly with the Pittsburgh Plate Glass
Company, and captain in the Chemical Warfare Service during the
war, joined the staff of the Geophysical Laboratory, Carnegie Institu-
tion of Washington, in January.

Mr. R. W. Sayles, of Harvard University, who came to Washington
in Januar}^ to make a study of the National Museum's collection of
slates, is collecting data on the banding of slates and the modes of
origin of banding.

Mr. Daniel E. Wise, of the Department of Terrestrial Magnetism,
Carnegie Institution of Washington, resigned in November to go into
private business at Chambersburg, Pennsylvania.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. io march 4, 1920 No. 5

ZOOLOGY. — On the relations of the sectional groups of Bulimulus
of the subgenus Naesiotu Alters. William HealEy Dall,
U. S. National Museum.

The Naesioti are developed in considerable profusion in the Gala-
pagos Islands. They are related to the small translucent ground
snails of the genus Bulimulus, which are common to the elevated
forest region of South America nearest to the islands and which
were probably transported originally to the Galapagos group by
high winds while attached in a state of hibernation to dead
leaves or similar light material. After reaching the islands their
opportunity for evolution into a variety of types was fostered by
isolation, differences of food supply and the modifications due
to volcanic dust from the disintegrating lavas. In a report to
the California Academy of Sciences on the species collected by
Mr. W. H. Ochsner of their Galapagos expedition, prepared in
191 6, but still unprinted, their relation to situs, distribution
among the islands, and apparent protective modifications are
discussed at length, and in 1896^ some of the probable causes of
the peculiarities developed in such insular faunas were considered.
Nothing in the landshell fauna lends weight to the hypothesis
that these islands were ever connected by land with the continent
of South America. The Tertiary fossils obtained by the Cal-

^ Insular landshell faunas especially as illustrated by the data obtained by Dr.
G. Baur in the Galapagos Islands. Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila. August, 1896, pp.
395 to 459, pi. 15-17. Also supplementary data in the same periodical for 1900,
pp. 88-96, pi. 8.

ii8 daljl: groups of bulimulus

ifomia Academy's Galapagos Expedition also indicate that iso-
lation was complete at least as early as Pliocene time, and present
an interesting admixture 'of west American and Indo- Pacific
types.

By their superficial characters these shells are easily divided
into more or less closely related groups, some of which are re-
stricted in their range to particular islands or groups of islands.
Sectioning reveals that some of these are more emphatically char-
acterized by internal structure, the possession of internal laminae
not visible from the aperture and features of the columellar axis.
Of these groups at least fifteen are recognizable, and several of
them are so well marked as to have received names from the earlier
students. Only in recent years has the fauna been sufficiently
well known to enable the less emphatically characterized groups
to be recognized, and I believe no one hitherto has made a sys-
tematic study of the internal characters of the shells while the
first contribution to a knowledge of their anatomy was contained
in my monograph of 1896. A summary of the groups follows.

Group of N. achatellinus Forbes (Rhaphiellus Pfeiffer, 1851).

This species is strictly arboreal and appears to be rare. As with
the Achatinellas it exhibits more attractive coloration and variability
of pattern than the ground-loving species. The axis is tubular and
quite simple.

Group of A^. nux Broderip (Xaesiotus Albers, 1850).
N. nux Broderip, with five varieties.
N. asperahis Albers (not of Reibisch).
N. bauri Dall.
These are chiefly arboreal, living on trees and bushes but descending
to shelter on the ground, in some cases, for hibernation. They are
confined to Charles and Chatham Islands and their associated islets.
The axis in general is slender, partly twisted and simple, the anterior
portion tubular. The aperture is unarmed, the surface dull and
wrinkled, the form stout, and the shell substance solid.

Group of N. planospira (Granucis n.).

A'', planospira Ancey.
N. rugulosus Sowerby.
N. invalidus Reibisch.
N. approximatus Dall.

This group is confined to Charles Island so far as authentic records
go, except approximatus, which hails from Hood Island and differs
in surface from the others. These shells are more elevated and delicate

dall: groups of bulimulus

119

than the preceding group, the surface spirally more or less sharplv
striate, often forming a fine granulation with the incremental lines.
There is a tendency to banding in the coloration. The axis is solid and
twisted behind, the later part tubular and larger. The aperture is
unarmed. Only approximatus lacks the spiral striation, if the single
specimen available is normal.

Group of N. usUdatns (Nuciscus n.).

N. iistulatus Sowerby, with five varieties.

N . calvus Sowerby, with one variety.

N. elaeodes Dall. I

N. haemerodes Dall. I

N. pallidus Reibisch. '

N. cinerarius Dall (+ cinereus Reibisch).

A'', rugaiinus Dall (+ acutus Reibisch).

N. jacohi Sowerby.

N. tanner i Dall.

N. perms Dall.

This group is near the presumed original ancestor and is most widely
distributed among the islands, being particularly numerous on the largest
island, Albemarle. The shells are small, robust, rather stout and short,
with fine spiral striations to which in dusty situs is added strong cor-
rugation of the surface. There is a tendency to a pale band at the per-
iphery and the species var}- from whitish to brown. They are mostly
ground lovers but ascend the bushes to some extent during the season
of rains. The aperture is unarmed, the axis wholly tubular and hardly
twisted.

Group of A^. hoodensis Dall.

This is represented on the islands, as far as known, by a single species
which resembles the continental type more than the other island forms.
It is rather brightly banded and the adult has a thickened and reflected
peritreme, a feature unique among the island species.

Group of N. unijasciatus (Reclasta n.).

A^. unifasciaiiis Sowerby (not Reibisch).
A^. olla Dall, with one variety.

By their thin and capacious shells these are readily separable from
the other groups. They tend to brownish or dingy olive color with
pale peripheral band. They are well distributed among the islands
and in the active state appear to frequent shrubbery. They are finely
axially wrinkled, polished and obscurely spirally striated with an occa-
sional elevated line of granules which in the 3^oung bear short hairs
which soon drop off. The aperture is unarmed and the axis as in the
section Nuciscus.

Group of A^ escharifertis (Adenodia n.).

A^. eschariferus Sowerby, and one variety, pileatus.
N. ventrosus Reibisch.
A^. subconoidalis Ancey.
A-", perspectivus Pfeiffer.

I20 dall: groups of buumulus

These are residents of the more arid zone, mostly found under rocks,
etc., and, like many of the other ground lovers, sometimes finely gran-
ulose. The shells are thin, slender, elevated, usually polished, but in
the variety pileahis the periostracum is raised into close low dull spiral
lamellae. Traces of these may be noted on some of the polished speci-
mens, and in all the apical whorls are sharply tranversely ribbed.
The peritreme is slightly expanded, the axis tubular, slender, and quite
simple. The distribution is rather scattered.

Group of A^ snod grass: (Stemmodiscus n.).
N. snodgrassi Dall.
N. cucidliniis Dall.
N . galapaganus Dall.

This group is confined to Hood, Gardner, Charles, and Barrington
Islands, and externally is not to be distinguished from Adenodia.
The internal structure is entirely different. The earlier part of the
axis is simple and tubular as in many other Galapagos species, but in
the first half of the last whorl, invisible from the aperture, a semi-cir-
cular disk-like flange projects (in the t3^pe) at right angles to the axis
into the lumen of the whorl and about half way toward the outer wall
of the whorl. This dwindles in front and behind into a short plaitlike
ridge on the axis which does not enter the penultimate whorl or reach
far enough forward to become visible from the aperture. This ar-
rangement recalls the lamina in Phenacotaxus umhilicatellus Pilsbr}%
of Peru, except that it is confined to the first half of the last whorl,
while in the Peru\'ian shell the lamina occupies part of three whorls
and has its major expansion in the penultimate whorl.- In A", cncullinus
the flange is shorter, rounder and less prominent than in A^ snodgrassi,
while in N. galapaganus it is thick and rounded.

Group of A'^. aniastroides (Olinodia n.).
A'^. amasiroides Ancey.
N. nucitla Pfeifi"er.
A^ trogonius Dall.

This group of small greenish-olive, ground -loving species is known
from Chatham, Charles, and Albemarle Islands. It must be rather
close to the presumed ancestral type. The axis is simple, slender and
twisted.

Group of N. simrothi (Saeronia n.).
N. simrothi Reibisch.
N. toriuganus Dall.
A^. albemarlensis Dall.

This is a group peculiar to Albemarle Island and its associate islets

as far as known; ground loving, found under leaves and on low bushes,

and in the grassy zone. They are small, short and stout, dull surfaced,

more or less roughly wrinkled or corrugated, the adults having a

- Smiths. Misc. Coll. 59: No. 14, p. 9, figs. 2. 1912.

dall: groups of bulimulus 121

nodule on the pillar and an inward projection on the middle of the
outer lip. The axis is thin, slender and twisted except in the last whorl
and usually has a purple stain on it not visible from the aperture.
The figures named simrothi in my monograph of 1900, are really taken
from specimens of tortuganus, a correction made possible by the re-
ceipt of authentic specimens of simrothi.

This group initiates the series of species with apertural armature
which renders the group of NaesioUis so peculiar.

Group of N. wolfi (Ochsneria n.).

A'^. akanatus Dall. A^. alethorhytidus Dall.

N. adelphns Dall. N. cymaiias Dall.

N. wolfi Reibisch. N. ochsneri Dall.

N. lycodus Dall. A^ saeronius Dall.

This group is confined to Indefatigable Island, and is a denizen of
the arid zone though occasionally found on trees during the rainy season.
The form is short and stout, the surface more or less corrugated, in
some species to an extraordinary extent; there is a strong nodule on the
pillar, another on the body, both usually more or less prolonged as a
ridge into the interior of the last whorl; and sometimes one on the outer
lip. A^ saeronius is one of the smallest of the Naesioti. All the species
are unusually solid.

Group of A^. duncanus (Granitza n.).
A^. duncamis Dall.
A^ jervisensis Dall.
A^ darwini Pfeiffer.
These species are found on James, Jer\ns, Duncan, and possibly
Bindloe Islands. The shells are large, thin, short, with feeble tubercu-
lations on the pillar, bod}^ and outer lips. The upper part of the axis
is very slender and twisted. Only N. darwini has been found living.

Group of A^. sculpturaUis (Granella n.).
N. sctdptiiratiis Pfeiffer.
A^. rabidensis Dall.
A^. nigiferus Sowerby.
A^. naesioiicus Dall.
N. reibiscki Dall.
N. nudus Reibisch.

These forms are known from James, Rabida (or Jervis) and Inde-
fatigable Islands. The doubtful N . nudus is reported from Charles
Island. They are irregularly axially ribbed, sharply spirally striate,
granulose and corrugated, slender and thin, with unarmed aperture,
slender and more or less solid twisted axis and numerous whorls. They
indicate the transition from the more normally formed species.toward the
peculiarly shaped Pleuropyrgus.

Group of A^ chemnitzioides {Pleuropyrgus Martens).
A^. chemnitzioides Forbes.
A^. lima Reibisch.

122 LAMBERT: CONSTITUTION OF THE EARTH

A', habeli Stearns, and variety ierebra Reibisch.
A'". indefaiigabiUs Dall.

This group appears to be restricted to the arid zone of Chatham
Island, except the last species which is reported from Indefatigable
and James Islands. The species are very slender, with very numerous
whorls usually axially ribbed, with a solid slender and twisted axis
and unarmed aperture.

Group of N. canalifcrus {Pelecostoma Reibisch).
N. canaliferiis Reibisch.

This peculiar species has been found by Wolf only on Chatham
Island on moss and ferns at from 900 to 2000 feet elevation. It has
numerous flat-sided short whorls, a basal attenuation with a relatively
large funicular umbilicus, and a prominent flange on the pillar, which on
sectioning the shell is seen to continue as a strong concave plate, sur-
rounding the axis and continued into the penultimate whorl, gradually
becoming less prominent. Specimens were obtained by Ochsner from
the dry zone, near the beach to 450 feet elevation. Reibisch's second
species of Pelecostoma is TornaielUna chathamensis .

GEOPHYSICS. — The internal constitution of the earth. Wai^ter
D. Lambert, U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey.^

The title of this paper, "The internal constitution of the earth,"
was chosen chiefly for brevity. Many of the topics included
under that comprehensive heading I shall not touch on at all,
and shall deal chiefly with the mechanical properties of the matter
in the interior of the earth, and more particularly with its density
and its elasticity.

The view that generally prevailed down to recent times and
that still persists to some extent as the dictum of popular science
is that the interior of the earth is fluid and fiery hot, like molten
lava. The volcanoes seem to be offering us samples of the matter
within; mediaeval theologians saw in the hot interior of the
earth the future abode of sinners. The molten mass of the
earth is assumed to have cooled to some extent, thus forming on
the outside a crust of undetermined thickness, upon which we
live.

^ The substance of this paper was read before the Maryland-Virginia- District
of Columbia Section of the Mathematical Association of America on December 6,
1919.

LAMBERT: CONSTITUTION OF THE EARTH 1 23

The view that the interior is hot and fluid is certainly not
wholly unsound. First, as to the heat. As far down as borings
have been made into the earth, the temperature increases with
the depth ; the rate is very variable from place to place ; i ° C .
for each 35 meters may perhaps be taken as a fair mean, or in
ordinary units say i ° F. for each 60 feet. The discovery of
radium and of the great quantity of heat given out by even a
minute quantity of it suggests the possibility that the heat sup-
plied by radium may exceed the heat radiated into space
so that the earth may be gaining instead of losing heat.- What
the temperature of the interior is we cannot say. If the rate of
increase of i ° C. for each 35 meters should hold good clear to the
center, the temperature there would be 180,000° C. Such a
temperature does not agree with present ideas. Men of science
do not talk of a solar temperature of millions of degrees, as did
their predecessors of a generation or two ago. They are content
to accept a solar temperature of a few thousand degrees, and our
estimates of terrestrial temperatures must be correspondingly
lowered. It is almost certain, however, that the temperature is
high enough to melt rock under the surface conditions of pressure,
but the increased pressure may raise the melting point so much
that no actual liquefaction occurs. Volcanoes are supposed to
be isolated "pockets" of molten matter unconnected with any
central reservoir.

As far as the fluidity is concerned, if the earth be not fluid, it
acts in some ways as if it were. It seems improbable that a gravi-
tating body the size of the earth and composed of any species of
matter with which we are acquainted should sufflciently resist
as a whole the long-continued action of the stresses that would
arise from any great departure from the conditions of fluid
equilibrium. The flow of rock may resemble that of ice in a
glacier, which is a process of rupture followed by reunion under
pressure. The theory of fluidity, at all events, has served us

- The phrase "gaining heat" is used advisedly instead of "rising in temperature."
For a body sufficiently large, a rise in temperature would accompany a loss of heat,
owing to the gravitational work done in contracting. It is possible that the earth
is large enough for this to be the case, so that a loss of heat would accompany a rise
in temperature and vice versa. See Rudzki, Physik der Erde, p. ii8.

124 LAMBERT: CONSTITUTION OF THE EARTH

well in the past, and is very probably valid, if we understand it
in the above sense, that for large stresses, long continued, the
earth acts on the whole like a fluid body.

The hypothesis of fluidity did not have the field all to itself,
and as a matter of curiosity I will mention some of the more ex-
travagant of the competing notions. Some of you may have
heard of "Symmes's hole,"^ an opening at both poles, admitting
to several layers of habitable spheres in the interior of the earth.
Symmes apparently put forward his idea in all seriousness and
asked for the fitting out of polar expeditions to find the entrance
to this unexplored and desirable territory. Equally strange ideas
have been put forward by men of higher scientific standing than
Captain Symmes. The astronomer Halley supposed the in-
terior of the earth to be hollow, with inner spheres much like
Symmes's, only with no hole to give access to them. These
spheres were assumed to be magnetic, their rotation at a slightly
different rate from that of the outer sphere causing the variation
of the magnetic elements. A contemporary of Symmes, not as
well known as Halley, conceived the idea of a magnetic planetoid
within the earth. Benjamin Franklin, usually level-headed,
supposed the interior of the earth to be filled with compressed
air.^

Let us leave now these airy realms of fancy and consider what
we know of the density of the earth. The rock on the surface
is directly accessible. The extremes of rock density are about
3.3 and 2.1; the mean for the earth's surface as a w^hole may be
put at 2.6 to 2.8. We can judge of the density below the levels
accessible to us only by the mechanical effects of the matter
of these inaccessible regions. One mechanical effect is the at-

^ The Symmes Theory of Concentric Spheres, demonstrating that the earth is hollow,
habitable within, and widely open at the Poles. Compiled by Americus Symmes from
the writings of his father, Capt. John Cleves Symmes. Published at Louisville, Ken-
tucky, in 1878. Capt. Symmes served with credit in the War of 1812.

^ Convenient summaries of early speculations about the earth's interior, with
references to the literature of the subject, will be found in Thiene, Temperatur
und Zustand des Erdinnern (Leipsic, 1907), Chapter i; and in Gunther, Lehrbuch
der Geophysik, Vol. i. Thiene's version of Halley 's ideas is, however, erroneous.
See Phil. Trans., 1692, p. 563.

IvAMBEiRT: CONSTITUTION OF* THE EARTH 125

traction, and from this the mean density of the whole mass of the
earth comes out as 5.5 or 5.6. There are several steps in the
determination of this mean density. We start with the equation
that expresses Newton's law of attraction

where mx and m^ are the masses of two bodies, preferably homo-
geneous spheres ; r is the distance between the centers of gravity
of the bodies, the linear dimensions of which are supposed to be
infinitesimal compared with r, unless the bodies be homogeneous
spheres ; / is the force with which these two bodies attract each
other; and k is the so-called gravitation constant. The first
step in determining the earth's mean density is to determine k
by a laboratory experiment. All quantities that occur in equa-
tion (i) are measured under laboratory conditions, and k is
thus deduced. One form of the experiment, in which we observe
the deflection of a torsion balance caused by the near approach
of a large mass, is known as Cavendish's experiment. In the
second step we use the same equation, with k now supposed
known, to determine the mass of the earth. If mi be taken to
represent this mass and Wo the mass of another body near the
earth's surface, then r is very nearly the earth's mean radius a.
The force of attraction equals nitg where g is the acceleration of
gravity, so that

ni2g = — ^, — (2)

which gives us nn in terms of known quantities. When the earth's
mass is known, its mean density is computed from its known di-
mensions.

Since the surface density is less than the mean density, some-
where below the surface the density must exceed the mean.
Just how that density is distributed from center to surface is a
matter for hypothesis. One hypothesis often made is due to
Legendre"' and is based on the idea of the compression of the mat-

* The law to which this hypothesis leads is often called Laplace's law of density.
Legendre and Laplace reached the same result from different starting points. See
ToDHUNTER, History of the theories of aUraction and figure of the earth, 2: 117 and

126

LAMBERT: CONSTITUTION OF THE EARTH

ter due to the pressure of the matter above it computed as for a
fluid. The modulus of compressibility is assumed to vary as
the square of the density. We naturally expect this modulus,
which measures the resistance to compression, to increase rather
rapidly with the density, and Legendre's assumption is in accord
with this idea and it has the further advantage of leading to
fairly simple and manageable mathematical expressions. The
density of p at any point whose distance from the center is x
(x being expressed in units of the mean radius of the surface),
is given by

Pism{dx)

P =

(3)

X sin 6
where Pi is the surface density and 0 is a constant.

Table i shows the values of the density and also of the hydro-
static pressure p in megabars, a megabar being one million
dynes per square centimeter or nearly one standard atmosphere. "^

TABLE I
Density, Pressure, and Modulus of Rigidity according to Legendre's Law.

Distance

Density
P

Hydrostatic pressure
P

Modulus of rigidity
by Legendre's law "

megabars

C. G. S. units

Center 0 . 0

II .2

3.2 X 10"

41 X lo'i

0. 1

II . I

3.1 X io'5

40 X ID''

0.2

10.8

2.9 X io'5

38 X lo'i

0.3

10.2

2.6 X io«

34 X 10"

0.4

9 4

2.2 X iqI^

29 X 10"

0.5

8.5

1.8 X 10''

23 X lo''

0.6

7 4

1.3 X 10"

18 X 10"

0.7

6.3

0.88 X io«

13 X 10"

0.8

0.56 X 106

8.4 X lo'i

0.9

3-8

0.21 X 10*

4.8 X lo'i

Surface i . 0

2.65

0.00 X 10^

2.3 X lo'i

Mean (with regard

to volume)

558

II. 6 X 10"

" For comparison: Modulus of rigidity of steel = 8 X 10"; of glass
10"; of surface rock (average) = 2.4 X 10"; all in C. G. S. units.

■5 X

337; also Pratt, Attractions and figure of the earth (4th ed.), p. iii. The starting
point here adopted is that of Laplace rather than that of Legendre.

•5 One megabar = 0.987 standard atmosphere of 76 cm. of mercury at sea-level
in latitude 45°.

LAMBERT: CONSTITUTION OF THE EARTH 1 27

The value of 6 used in computing the above table is 2.5066
radians or 143.618°, which gives a flattening of 1/296.5. The
column showing the modulus of rigidity will be explained later.

Another effect of the arrangement of density within the earth
is the precession of the equinoxes. Theory shows that the annual
precession, which is known accurately from the long series of
available observations, is proportional to (C — A)/C, C and A being
principal moments of inertia of the earth. Evidently {C—'A)/C
depends on the distribution of density within the earth. With the
law we have assumed, its value comes out i /304.3 . The observed
precession requires more nearly {C — A)/C = 1/305.3. Agree-
ment between computed and observed values can be obtained by
increasing B a little, thus changing very slightly the quantities
in the above table and making the flattening equal to 1/297.2,
which is in excellent agreement with the flattening derived from
pendulum observations and from triangulation.

It might be supposed that this agreement is at least some evi-
dence that the type of formula assumed for the law of density
is nearly correct. It is a curious fact however, that almost any
law of density will do exactly as well, so far as any of our means
of observation go. That is, assume any type of law that y^ou
please that gives a density decreasing from center to surface,
for example:

p = a — bx' (4)

a, b and c being constants to be determined, assume further that
the hydrostatic equilibrium prevails and determine the constants
a, b and c of your assumed law so that (C—y4)/C shall be equal to
its observed value 1/305.3, then your flattening comes out almost
exactly 1/297.2. This fact was first observed to be true when
various hypothetical laws were tried, and mathematical demon-
strations have been given by Poincare and others." These dem-
onstrations set limits within which the flattening must He for any
permissible law of density, provided (C— A) /C has its observed

^ Poincare. Figures d'equilibre d'une masse fluide (Paris, 1902). Chap. IV.
Veronnet. Journal des Mathematiques. pures et appliquees 77: 331. 1912.
TissERAND. Mecanique Celeste, 2: 221.

J 28 LAMBKET: COKSTITUTIOK OF TllS EARTH

value, and the upper and lower limits are so close together and so
close to 1/297.2 that our determinations of the flattening from pen-
dulum obser\'ations or from triangulaticn are not accurate enough
for us to say that one law of density represents observed facts
better than another.^

We can take hold of the matter by the other end. Let us
assume as the data of observation the values of the flattening, of
{C~A)/C, of the mean density and sm'f ace density of the earth,
and of the ratio of the centrifugal force of rotation to gravity at
the equator, a quantity whose value has already been tacitly
assumed in our previous discussions. Let us see what conclu-
sions about the density are allowable. We are still supposing
hydrostatic equilibrium, and for this to be stable, densities must
increase with depth; let us further suppose that the density
changes continuously and that the rate of increase diminishes
as the depth increases. The limits of density shown in table 2
have been derived by Stieltjes.^

The data assumed as the basis of table 2 are not quite the same
as for the previous table, but the difference is of little conse-
quence.

Before leaving the subject of densities, Wiechert's hypothesis
should be mentioned. Legendre's law of densities and others

* The flattenings so far given have all been computed from formulas that are
accurate only to small quantities of the first order in the ellipticity and the ratio
of the centrifugal force at the equator to gravity there. Since these quantities are,
respectively, about 1/297 ^nd 1/289, it is seen that the terms of the second order,
7. e., in the squares and products of these quantities, might very well affect the tenths
or even tlie units in the reciprocal of the flattening. It happens, however, that in
determining the flattening from the law of density and the rate of rotation, the effect
of the terms of the second order is small, i. e., a few tenths only, and the general con-
clusions hold good as stated. See reference to Veronnet in previous footnote;
also Darwin, The theory of the figure of the earth carried to the second order of small
quantities. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 60: 82. 1900.
Scientific Papers 3: 79. In determining the flattening from pendulum observations
the terms of the second order have a somewhat greater effect.

' Archives neerlandaises (Haarlem, 1884) 19: 456. See also Tisser-'^nd, MS-
caniqne Celeste, 2: 227.

IvAMBERT: CONSTITUTION OF THE EARTH

129

TABLE 2.

Stieltjes' Limits of Density Corresponding to Different Distances from

THE Earth's Center

Limiting densities.

Center

0.0

7.6

12.2

0. 1

7.6

II-3

0.2

7.6

10.4

0.3

7.6

9-3

0.4

7.6

8.9

0.5

7-5

8.3

0.6

6.9

7-8

0.7

6.0

7.0

0.8

5.8

0.9

4.0

4.6

Surface

1 .0

2.6

like it assume a continuous change of density from surface to
center, as of chemically homogeneous matter under pressure.
Wiechert^'^ assumes that the central portion or nucleus of the
earth is of different material from the outer portion or shell,
and that there is an abrupt change in passing from nucleus to
shell. The nucleus is supposed to be of metal, chiefly iron, and
the shell of rock. In the mathematical form of the hypothesis
the density of the iron nucleus is 8.206,^^ its radius 0.78 of the
earth's radius; the shell is homogeneous also and of density 3.2.
These figures are not entirely arbitrary; they are determined by
making the mean density 5.58 and the equilibrium hydrostatic
with both the flattening and the value of (C— A)/C conforming to
their observed values. The supporters of this hypothesis adduce
physical reasons in its favor which are not without weight, but
into which I shall not enter. Apart from these it may be used,
however, merely for mathematical convenience, as a first rough

^0 Nachrichten Kbnigl. Gesellsch. Gbttingen, p. 221. 1896-97.

'' The density of iron is 7.8 under ordinary condition and we may attribute the
extra 0.4 of density to pressure or to slight proportions of heavier elements.

130 LAMBERT: CONSTITUTION OF THE EARTH

approximation to an earth of continuously varying density, and
sometimes it gives very nearly the same results as the hypothesis
of a continuously varying earth. In some problems, particularly
in the elasticity of the earth, the hypothesis is about our only
resource, since the mathematical treatment is either beyond our
powers or excessively complicated.

To sum up : as far as concerns the density, we know the mean
density and the average surface density with some accuracy;
the density at a given distance from the center is not known, and
the prospect of determining it from its gravitational effects does
not seem good. Legendre's law may be taken as, on the whole,
the most satisfactory hypothesis, since it has a certain plausibility
in its physical aspects and is mathematically convenient.

The doctrine of the earth's fluidity did not remain uncontested.
The idea was put forward, and supported by mathematical rea-
soning that the force causing the precession of the equinoxes
could produce the observed result only if the earth were solid or
at least had a very thick and ver}^ rigid crust over its molten
fluid interior. Even Lord Kelvin^- for a while thought the
argument sound but changed his view as the result of a talk with
Newcomb. He says under date of vSeptember, 1876: "But
doubt entered my mind regarding the so-and-so and so-and-so;
and I had not completed the night journey to Philadelphia which
hurried me away from our unfinished discussion before I had
convinced myself that they were grievously wrong. So now I
must request as a favor that each one of you on going home will
instantly turn up his or her copies of the Transactions of the
Royal Society for 1863 and of the first edition (1867) of Thomson
and Tait's 'Natural Philosophy,' Vol. i, and draw the pen
through," etc., etc., naming the passages to be excised. What
Lord Kelvin thought out that night on the train has been worked
out in detail and published by Darwin^ l It appears from their

'- Mathemalical and Physical Papers 3: 320.

^^ Darwin. On the precession of a viscous spheroid and on the remote history of the
earth. Phil. Trans., Part II, 170. 1879. Scientific Papers 2: 36. See also Op-
PENHEIM, Uber die rotation und prazession eines flussigen sphdroids. Sitzungsber.
Konigl. Akad. Wiss. Wien, Math, naturw. Kl. 92: 528. 1885.

LAMBERT: CONSTITUTION OF THE EARTH 13I

work that the precession of a soHd earth would be practically
indistinguishable from that of a fluid one.

The first real evidence that the earth acts like an elastic solid
rather than like a mass of fluid — at least in respect to forces acting-
over a short time only — came from the tides. The tides raised
by the sun and the moon can be decomposed into partial tides
falling into three classes: (i) Partial tides whose period is
nearly a day; (2) partial tides whose period is nearly half a day,
and (3) the so-called long-period tides whose period is nearly a
fortnight or a month for the moon and six months or a year for
the sun. With our present mathematical knowledge, we are
utterly unable to predict, without recourse to observation, the
tides of the first and second classes, the so-called diurnal and semi-
diurnal tides, which are conveniently lumped together under one
heading as the short-period tides. The diagrams in most text-
books on astronomy intended to explain the origin of the tide
generating forces almost inevitably suggest the idea that the tidal
swelling travels round the earth keeping pace with the m.oon
and remaining directly under it. Sometimes this statement is
made in so many words, with qualifications for the effect of land
barriers. This gives a very incorrect idea of the mechanics of
the problem as far as it concerns the diurnal and semi-diurnal
tides. Expressed in more mathematical form, the idea is that
the ocean adjusts itself to the forces so that its surface is always
an equipotential surface for the instantaneous field of force.
The ability of the ocean to adjust itself thus to the forces de-
pends on the depth and the period of the forces, and our actual
ocean is far too shallow to adjust itself even approximately to the
tidal forces with periods of half a day or a day. It appears to
be otherwise with the long-period tides.

Lord Kelvin assumed that we can predict the amount of their
rise and fall for the case of a rigid earth from the known masses
and distances and positions of the sun and moon, because as far
as these tides are concerned, the time is sufficient to allow the
ocean surface to become an equipotential surface for the tide-

132 LAMBERT: CONSTITUTION OF THE EARTH

generating forces. The assumption is not absolutely free from
doubt, but the preponderance both of the argument and the ob-
ser\^ational cAddence is in its favor. ^^

Let us accept the assumption and consider the consequences.
We can predict these long-period tides for the case of a rigid
earth; suppose the earth is not rigid at all but plastic, fluid in
short, with a crust so thin as to yield to the pressure within and
conform to the shape of the fluid within, which itself conforms to
the tidal forces just as the water does. We measure the tides by
the height of the water on the land. If the land yields as much as
the water, no tide at all will be observ^ed. If the earth is rigid, the
full vertical tide should be obsers^ed. If the tidal forces make the
earth yield, but yield as an elastic body, not as a plastic one,
the observed tide will be intermediate between zero and the full
theoretical amount for a rigid earth. From the observations of
the long-period tides in various parts of the world, Kelvin ^-^
deduced a rigidity probably between that of glass and that of
steel.

Mathematically parallel with the tides is the case of the zero
of a pendulum. The tide-generating forces are also the forces
that deflect the plumb-line slightly from its mean position.
Since the surface of a fluid is perpendicular to the plumb-line,
as the plumb-line is deflected, the water tips to follow it so that
in theory the water in a wash basin is subject to tides. Instead
of using a wash basin, Prof. Michelson,^*^ of Chicago, used a long
U-shaped pipe, and measrued the changes in level by a delicate

1* See Darwin's articles Tides in the nth edition of the Encyclopedia Britannica;
also Love, Problems in geodynamics, p. 51 (Cambridge, 191 1). The effect of the
continental barriers is an argument in favor of the assumption, as is also the fric-
tional effect. This effect is underestimated if the coefficient of viscosity alone be
considered. See Harris, Manual of tides, U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, Ap-
pendix 6 to Report of 1907, Part V, p. 273.

15 See Thomson and Tait, Natural philosophy (2nd ed.), 2: 422-60. A much
larger number of observations is discussed by SchwEydar, Beitrage zur Geophysik,
9: 64. 1908.

18 Journ. Geol. 22: 97. 1914. Astrophys. Joum., March, 1914. An important
correction is given in Science, 50: 327. October 3, 1919. See also Astrophys.
Journ., Dec, 1919.

LAMBERT: CONSTITUTION OF THE EARTH 1 33

method, depending on the interference of Hght. We can assert
of the short-period tides of this artificial body of water, or of
their mathematical analogue, the zero of the pendulum, what we
cannot assert of the tides in the ocean, namely, that the water —
or the direction of the vertical — adjusts itself to the forces almost
immediately, so that we can predict even for these short-period
motions of the water and the vertical what they should be for a
rigid earth. Just as before, the observed movement is interme-
diate between the zero to be expected for a plastic earth and the
full theoretical amount for a rigid earth. Interpreted in terms
of the elastic constants of the earth, the short-period tides, the
pendulum, and Prof. Michelson's pipe tides give about the same
rigidity as the long-period tides of the ocean, or a rigidity a little
higher. ^"^

We get information about the rigidity of the earth also from
the phenomenon of the variation of latitude. The history of this
question is interesting. It was shown by Euler^'^ that if by chance
the axis of rotation of the earth should not coincide with the axis
of maximum inertia, the former would shift its position, its pole
describing a circle about the pole of the axis of inertia in a period
of some 305 days, say lo months, the exact period depending on
the principal moments of inertia, which can be found with con-
siderable accuracy from the phenomenon of the precession.^'-*
The astronomical latitude and longitude are dependent on the
position of the instantaneous axis of rotation, and if it shifts,
they change. x\stronomers naturally tried to test the invaria-
bility of these latitudes by observation, but they looked either for
a secular change or for a variation with Euler's period. -'' They
did not find the secular change, but several times they seemed on

'' The rigidity deduced in the article cited in the preceding footnote should be
interpreted in the light of the later correction, and also with reference to what is
said hereinafter in regard to the assumptions necessarily underlying a statement
about the rigidity of the earth.

1* Theoria motus corponun solidanim sen rigidonim. Greifswald, 1765.

''' The number of sidereal days in the Eulerian period is the reciprocal of {C—A)/C,
A and'C being, as before, principal moments of inertia of the earth.

-^ See Helmert, Hdhere Geodasie, 2: 394.

134 LAMBERT: CONSTITUTIOX OF THE EARTH

the point of demonstrating the reahty of Euler's motion, only to
be disappointed each time as the obsen'ations that had looked
so promising ended by negativing the period sought. Finally
S. C. Chandler'-^ undertook the study of old obser\'ations with
no presupposition as to the period, and found evidence of an
annual period and of another period of about 14 months. The
reality of these periods was proved by observations made speciall}^
for the purpose, and the matter is now being studied at a series
of special observ-atories, the functioning of which has been some-
what affected by the war. The annual period-- is naturally
explained by seasonal changes in the distribution of matter,
such as the unsymmetrical growi:h of the load of ice and snow in
the polar regions. The reason for the 14-month period was for a
while a puzzle. The idea of the earth's elasticity was compara-
tively novel then, and astronomers did not realize the natural
consequence of that elasticity in prolonging the ic-month Eulerian
period. Newcomb-^ appears to have been the first to suggest
the idea, and further examination confirmed it. The rigidity
required was rather higher than previous estimates had given,
greater than that of steel by a third to a half.

I have been talking rather loosely of the elasticity of the earth.
What I \vish now to bring out is that what we get directly from
tidal obser\'ations — and with these I include observations of the
zero of a pendulum — and from the prolonging of the Eulerian
period is not the modulus of rigidity or of compressibility of the
earth as a whole or of any part of it,, but simply two numbers —
pure dimensionless ratios — which I shall call Ji and k, following
a certain amount of precedent. To deduce from these numbers
the elastic constants of the earth, we must make hypothesis as
to the law of density within the earth, and as to the relation
of the elastic moduli to each other and their law of variation
within the earth. The theory of the numbers h and k is quite
simple ; their interpretation so as to deduce from them the elastic

21 Chandler's work runs through several 3'earsof the Astronomical Journal, 11-22.
1 892-1 902. The 14-month period is announced in 11, No. 249.
2* The annual period proper, not the "Kimura term."
23 Monthly Notices Royal Astron. Soc. 52: 1892. Astron. Journ. 11, No. 251.

LAMBERT: CONSTITUTION OF THE EARTH 135

constants of the earth is difficult and leads to such intricate
mathematics that we have to be content with very simple hypo-
theses about the elastic constants and with rough approximations.
The forces that deform the earth have a potential variable
with the time and place on the earth. Suppose this potential
to be expanded in a series of spherical harmonics, and let us con-
sider only that portion due to the spherical harmonic of given
order, which we shall denote by W. For the tidal deformation
TT'' is of order two. At the surface of the earth the force acts
against gravity (g) so that the vertical displacement of a single
particle would be W/g. This quantity measures the vertical
displacement of the equipotential surfaces due to normal gravity.
If the earth were covered with a non- attracting fluid whose sole
function would be to make manifest the instantaneous form of
the surface of equilibrium by conforming immediately to the
forces, W/g would be the height of the tide in this fluid at the
time and place in question, and the quantity W/g may be called
the "equilibrium tide," due to the forces given by W. But the
particles disturbed by the action of the forces are not weightless
and non-attracting, which fact gives rise to new forces of the same
type as these represented by IF, but of different magnitude, the
identity of type being, of course, a characteristic of the spherical
harmonic expansion. These new forces cause further displace-
ment which again cause new forces and so on indefinitely. The
aggregate effect is, however, finite; the force called into being
by a displacement of attracting matter is less than the force that
produced the displacement. When equilibrium is attained, —
we suppose that the period of W is long compared with the time
necessary to adjust conditions to momentary equilibrium — the
total vertical displacement of the equipotential surfaces at any
point is no longer W/g, but a quantity of the same kind, hW/g;
this defines h. h is a quantity such that hW/g measures the
actual displacement when the displacement due to the equilib-
rium tide alone is W/g. Further, owing to the rearrangement
of attracting matter, the potential of the force acting is no longer
W alone, but a larger quantity (i + k) W; this defines k. k is

136 LAMBERT: CONSTITUTION OF THE EARTH

SO taken that kW is the potential of the additional forces due to
the rearrangement of matter.

The quantities k and h have no necessary connection with
elastic yielding. The yielding may be a plastic one and the
nature of h and k may be illustrated by using a result about the
figure of the earth that is given in many works on mechanics.'-^
If a spherical body the size of the earth, but with its mass con-
centrated at its center, its outer surface being defined by a non-
attractive fluid existing for that purpose, were set rotating about
its axis in 24 hours, the outer surface would take the form of a
spheroid whose flattening is 1/578 or in more general terms

/ =

co-a

/ being the flattening, g the acceleration of gravity, w the angular
velocity of rotation and a the radius, so that oo'-a is the centrifugal
force at the equator. The disturbing force is the centrifugal
force of rotation, the potential of which is

IT = — cos'</)
2

4) being the latitude. Thus the swelling of the equilibrium tide
at the equator is W/g, as it should be. Our actual earth, however,
does not have its mass concentrated at the center. The rotation
produces a swelling at the equator, which rearrangement of
matter produces a force that draws still more matter to the
equator and so on till equilibrium has been attained. When this
has happened, our actual earth has a flattening of 1/297 instead
of 1/578. The quantity /j represents the ratio of the actual dis-
placement to the equilibrium tide, or h = 578/297 = 1.95,
for plastic deformation. Since the potential is proportional to
the flattening, we have

, 1/297 ~ 1/578

2^ E. g., Pratt, Attrcctions and figure of the earth, 4th ed., p. 101; or Thomson
and Tait, Natural philosophy (2nd ed.), 2: 370 and 394.

LAMBERT: CONSTITUTION OF THE EARTH 137

In the actual case of elastic yielding the variation of latitude
gives us the quantity k by itself. Tidal observations give us
h — k, since the observed motion is to the theoretical motion for
arigidearthin theratio I — (/z— fe) : i. The value of k from the
variation of latitude is about 0.275. There are several diffi-
culties in connection v/ith the values of h — k deduced from
the tides, which I have not mentioned; probabl)^ the best
value is Ji — k = 0.29, from Michelson's pipe.

What we should like to be able to do is to find the theoretical
values of h and k corresponding to any system of values, varying
from point to point, of the earth's density and elastic constants,
so as to find by trial some plausible law of distribution that would
fit the observations. What we are able to do is much less.
The compressibility, in particular, introduces mathematical diffi-
culties and the usual assumption is to make the earth incompres-
sible. The errors due to this assumption are not so serious as
might be supposed at first sight. If we further assume that the
earth is of uniform density and has the same modulus of rigidity
throughout the whole mass, its modulus of rigidity that will
represent the lengthening of the Eulerian period comes out
16.3 X 10^^ C. G. S. units. We can get rid of the assumption of
uniform density by using Wiechert's hypothesis of a metal nu-
cleus and an outer shell of rock, assuming, which is not very
satisfactory, that both nucleus and shell have the same modulus.
The latter must be 11.7 X 10^^ to represent the latitude varia-
tion.-' The hypothesis of a continuous change of density ac-
cording to Roche's law-^ one of the many laws of density I
mentioned earlier and one of the simplest, gives about the same,
still supposing the rigidity constant. Roche's law is the one law
of continuously varying density for which the theory has been
worked out, and a rather formidable theory it is — a differential
equation of the sixth order, and twelve new transcendental
functions defined by infinite series.^"

^ For this result and the preceding one see LovE, Proc. Royal Soc, A, 82: 73.
1909.

-" Roche's law assumes that the density falls from center to surface proportionally
to the square of the distance from the center, or c = 2 in equation (4).

-' HeRGL,OTZ. Zeitschr. Math. u. Physik 52: 275. 1905-

138 LAMBERT: CONSTITUTION OF THE EARTH

Thus we see that if we assume uniform density, we overestimate
the rigidity necessary to produce a given effect; if we assume,
as we have done, incompressibihty also, we underestimate the
rigidity, though as nearly as can be made out not to as great an
extent as we overestimated it in the first case.-^ If we wish to
take account of a variation in the modulus of rigidity as well as
in the density, about our only resource is the Wiechert hypothesis
of density and with different moduli for nucleus and shell. This
introduces an extra unknown, and we cannot determine both
moduH from the latitude variation alone. If we try to satisfy
the tidal observations also, and use the value of h — k = 1/3
formerly current, we get a modulus of 20 X 10^^ for the nucleus,
and I X 10^^ only for the shell. -^ Since a representative rigidity
of natural rock at ordinary pressure is about 2.4 X 10", the
rigidity of the shell seems too low. There seems to be a tendency,
however, towards smaller values of h — k than the 1/3 used above,
of which Michelson's 0.29 is an example.^'' If these smaller
values be accepted, it is easier to reconcile the modulus from the
variation of latitude with that from the tidal observations,
and with the known properties of rock. We should thus get a
value of about 16 X 10^^ for the nucleus and about 4 X 10^ "^
for the shell. You will understand by this time, I think, some-
thing of the difficulties of the subject and the many assumptions
that lie back of the statement, "The rigidity of the earth is thus
and so."

There are, as you know, two theories of elasticity; one favored
chiefly on the continent of Europe, which may be called the
"rari-constant" theory and the other generally accepted in Eng-
land, the "multi-constant" theory. According to the first theory
there is only one independent elastic constant for an isotropic
elastic body, and the modulus of rigidity of such a body is 3/5
of its modulus of compressibility. According to the second, the

-* Love. Problems of geodynamics, Chap. YIll. Cambridge, 191 1.

-3 Love. Proc. Royal Soc. 82: S2. 1909. Scuweydar. Beitnige zur Geophysik.
9: 76. 1908.

5" For a downward revision of Schweydar's h - k, see Mem. Coll. Science and Engi-
neering, Kyoto Imp. Univ., 4: 114. 1912.

LAMBERT: CONSTITUTION OF THE EARTH 139

"multi-constant" theory, there is no necessary relation between
the two moduli. AVithout trying to decide between the two
theories, it may be said that in many cases the relation indicated
by the "rari-constant" theory seems to hold approximately.^^
If _we accept the relation as holding, then any continuous law of
density distribution is at the same time a law of distribution of
the elastic moduli. The law of density gives a relation between
the density (p) and the distance (r) from the center, and is like-
wise a relation between r and p, the pressure of the latter being
hydrostatic, say p — f (r) and p ^ ^p (r). The modulus of com-
pressibility M is defined by

dp _ dp
p ~ M '
By eliminating p and p, we get a relation between M and r,
and 3 '5 of M gives us the modulus of rigidity, m, for Legendre's
law of density. The values of m obtained in this way for Le-
gendre's law of density were shown in table i. Note that
the surface value of n is almost exactly what we have taken as
representing surface rock, and the mean value of m (averaged with
respect to volume) is almost exactly what was deduced from the
variation of latitude with Wiechert's law of density.

These must be taken as of the nature of curious coincidences,
for the logic by which these values of m were found is decidedly
queer at first sight. If we assume hydrostatic pressure, we
thereby assume zero rigidity. The next step is to deduce the
modulus of compressibility from the law of density and the pres-
sure, and to take 3/5 of the modulus of compressibility to be the
modulus of rigidity, thus getting a rigidity quite different from
zero. The contradiction is less flagrant if we take into account
the element of time. The law of density is for pressure extending
over a very long time — geologic time — the compressibility is the
ultimate compressibility for that pressure. The tidal forces and
those arising in the variation have a period of a few da3^s or a

"' That the relation holds good, or nearly so, for the matter in the earth's interior
is confirmed by observations on earthquake waves. See Knott, Physics of earth-
quake phenomena, p. 251. Oxford, 1908. Also a recent paper by him in Proc.
Royal Soc. Edinburgh. 39: 177. 1919.

140 LAMBERT: CONSTITUTION OF THE) EARTH

few months. The modulus of compressibility for these stresses
of short period would naturally be larger than the modulus of
compressibility deduced from stress continuing unchanged over
long periods,^'- and the modulus of rigidity which was zero for
the long-continued forces might well be for the short period about
3/5 of the corresponding modulus of compressibihty. The con-
clusion is that the numbers in the table are too small. The
average of the tabular numbers agrees with what was deduced
from the variation of latitude, but in the latter calculation the
compressibility was neglected, leading to too small a result.
This is another reason for believing the values in the table should
be somewhat increased.

You see some of the difficulties in which the subject is involved.
How much should those numbers be increased? I don't know;
by a variable amount, perhaps not more than twenty per cent,
at a guess. As the conclusion of this discussion of the rigidity
of the earth, I can merely express my opinion or feeling that the
average rigidity of the whole earth is over 12 X 10^ S that the
modulus of rigidity must increase with the depth below the sur-
face, and that probably the figures of table i, all increased slightly,
will give a fair idea of the variations of the modulus of rigidity.

Any discussion of the elastic constants of the earth would be
incomplete without some mention of earthquake phenomena.
Any adequate treatment of this, even a mere outline, would be
impossible in the time available. The nature of the phenomenon
may be described by saying that the earthquake shock is trans-
mitted by radiations or waves analogous to those of sound and
light. An ordinary elastic solid is a less specialized medium
than the ether (if one dare mention the ether in these days of
relativity), which transmits only the transverse vibrations of
light, less specialized also than the air which transmits sound,
for the modulus of rigidity of air is zero, and the air can transmit
only the longitudinal waves (waves of condensation and rare-

'- The modulus is the intensity of force necessary to produce a given deformation,
and if the time be limited, it is natural to expect that the force required will be
greater.

LAMBERT: CONSTITUTION OF THE) EARTH 141

faction, characteristic of sound). The elastic solid can transmit
both kinds of radiation at the same time. There is also a third
kind of wave possible for which there is no familiar analogue.
It is a surface wave whose amplitude diminishes rapidly with the
depth, and its theor>^ was worked out by the late Lord Rayleigh
and by Lamb.^^ Seismologists discern in the records of their
seismographs the preliminary tremors, which are separable into
a first phase and a second phase, and the main shock. The
first and second phases of the preliminary tremors are confidently
identified by seismologists with the arrival of the longitudinal
and transverse waves, which travel through the earth with
velocities of about 12 and 6 kilometers per second, respectively.
If the eai th were homogeneous they would travel in straight lines
but since this is not the case their paths are curv^ed in a manner
analogous to the curv^ature of a ray of light when passing through
air of varying density. At surfaces of discontinuity there would
occur reflections and refractions more complicated than those
of sound and light because of the greater generality of the media.
The main shock, called by seismologists the long waves, is believed
to represent the arrival of the Rayleigh waves which travel more
slowly than the other waves, ^^ and, furthermore, travel around
the surface.

The phenomena of the main shock are probably complicated
by irregular reflections and refractions,^'^ and there is more dif-
ference of opinion with regard to the main shock and its relation
to the Rayleigh waves than with regard to the preliminary
tremors.

From observations at three observatories the focus, or point
of origin, of an earthquake can be determined,^''' and from the
observed time that a tremor takes to travel from the focus to the
point of observation, some interesting conclusions may be drawn
as to the rigidity of the earth.

33 Rayleigh. Proc. London Math. Soc. 17: 4. 1885; Lamb. Phil. Trans. A.
203: I. 1904.

^^ Their velocity is 0.92 times the velocity of the transverse waves, which, as has
been indicated, are in turn slower than the longitudinal waves.

'5 Walker. Modem seismology (Longman's Monographs on Physics), p. 51. 1913.

3« Walker, op. cit., Chap. VIII.

142 LAMBERT: CONSTITUTION OF THE EARTH

To deduce the modulus of rigidity from the earthquake data
we must make certain assumptions, but it may be said that all
results point to a modulus of rigidity increasing with the depth
from that of rock at the surface (2.4 X 10^^ C. G. S. units), to a
value exceeding that of steel (8 X 10^^ C. G. S. units), and per-
haps three or four times as great. ^' It should be noted that
owing to the scantiness of data for a distance from the focus
greater than 13,000 kilometers, the information derived from
earthquake data is limited to an outer shell whose thickness is
about one-half the earth's radius. ^^ This scantiness beyond
13,000 kilometers or even smaller distances has long seemed to
need some explanation beyond that of mere distance and in this
connection attention may be drawn to Knott's recent paper
already referred to (footnote No. 31, p. 139), which is one of unusual
interest. He suggests as a possible explanation that the central
core of the earth, with a radius equal to perhaps 0.4 that of the
earth, may be non-rigid or tiearly so, but highly incompressible.

Even this very summary and dogmatic discussion has not
covered even superficially the entire field. There remains the
further discussion of the problem of the reason for the apparent
fluidity of the earth for long-continued forces, and its rigidity
under the action of forces of short period, also the theory
of "firmo-viscosity" and its relation to the problem of
viscosity and the retardation of the rotation by tidal friction.
There remain also the hypotheses of various layers of fluid matter
interposed between other layers of solid matter to satisfy this
or that real or apparent result of observation. . The subject of
the interpretation of earthquake phenomena, extremely inter-
esting both from a mathematical and a physical point of view,
has been barely touched. Your patience and my knowledge

^' The author has in hand some comparisons of the result of assuming the densities
and moduli to be as given in table i, together with similar comparisons for other
laws of density', but the results are not complete. So far nothing has come to light
to throw doubt on the general correctness of the opinion previously expressed in
regard to the modulus deduced from Legendre's law, at least for the outer parts of
the earth.

^* One-half the; radius is the maximum depth below the surface of a chord of 120°
of great circle corresponding to a surface distance of about 13,000 kilometers.

LAMBERT: CONSTITUTION OF THE EARTH 143

would be quickly exhausted before even a small part of what
remains had been outlined. I can only leave the subject to you
with the assurance that the field is fertile in problems worthy of
the attention of the ablest mathematicians, and extremely
interesting also in their physical aspects.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

138TH MEETING

The i3Stii meeting of the Academy, the 2 2d annual meeting, was
held at the Carnegie Institution of Washington on Tuesday, January 13,
1920. The meeting was called to order by Vice-President W. J. Hum-
phreys. The retiring President, F. L. Ransome, then delivered his
presidential address, entitled: Functions and ideals of a national
geological survey. This address has been published in the Journal, 10: 85.

Following the address a business meeting was held. The Corre-
sponding vSecretary, Robert B. Sosman, reported that 37 persons had
qualified for membership in 191 9 and one former member had been
reinstated. 4 resignations had been accepted, 3 of which were of non-
resident members. The membership of the Academy had increased
during the year by 25, and consisted at the end of the year of 6 honorary
members, 3 patrons, and 532 members, one of whom was a life member.
The total membership was 541, of whom 331 resided in or near the Dis-
trict of Columbia.

The members who died during the year were: Joseph Barrell,
George Ferdinand Becker, James Milton Flint, Mrs. Phoebe
Apperson Hearst (patron), Abraham Jacobi, Ernest C. McKelvy,
Edward Charles Pickering, Louis Valentine Pirsson, Gaillard
Sherburne Rogers.

The Corresponding vSecretary also reported on the activities of the
Academy for the year 1919, and pointed out that the best quantitative
index to the activity of such an organization was to be found in the num-
ber of members per hundred per year who resign or permit their names
to be dropped for non-payment of dues. This index, which reached a
maximum in 191 7 on account of war conditions, fell in 191 9 to the lowest
value in many years.

The report of the Recording Secretary, William R. Maxon, was
read by G. F. Loughlin. The report summarized the 8 lectures that
were delivered during 191 9.

The report of the Treasurer, R. L. Faris, showed total receipts of
$4,929.75 and total disbursements of $3,861.12. The cash balance on
hand at the end of the j^ear was $1,480.02. The net increase in assets
for the year was estimated at about $1,060.00. The investments of the
Academy have a total par value of $15,090.00. The cost of printing
the Journal in 1919 was about $2,550.00.

144

proceedings: biological society 145

The report of the Auditing Committee, consisting of G. R. Mans-
field, William Blum and F. C. Cook, was then read, and the reports
of the Treasurer and Auditing Committee were accepted.

The report of the Editors of the Journal was read by J. Franklin
Meyer.

The committee of tellers, consisting of I. G. Priest, E. Posnjak and
R. B. Sosman, reported that the following officers had been elected for
1920: President, C. L. Alsberg; Corresponding Secretary, Robert B.
Sosman; Recording Secretary, William R. Maxon; Treasurer, R. L.
Faris; Non-resident Vice-Presidents, Jacques Loeb, Elihu Thomson;
Members of Board of Managers, Class of 1923, L. A. Bauer, T. Way-
land Vaughan.

The following Vice-Presidents, nominated by the affiliated Societies,
were then elected: Philosophical Society, W. J. Humphreys; An-
thropological Society, George M. Kober; Archaeological Society, Ales
Hrdlicka; Biological Society, A. D. Hopkins; Chemical Society, C. O.
Johns; Society of Engineers, E. C. Barnard; Entomological Society,
S. A. RohwEr; Society of Foresters, Raphael Zon; National Geographic
Society, F. V. Coville ; Geological Society, E. O. Ulrich.

G. F. lyOUGHLiN, Recording Secretary, pro tern.

BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY

602 D MEETING

The 6o2d regular meeting of the Biological Society of Washington
was held in the Assembly Hall of the Cosmos Club on November
29, 1919.

Under the heading of "Communications," Dr. R. E. Coker presented
a document issued by the Bureau of Fisheries, entitled The life history
of the bine crab, by E. P. Churchill, Jr. In this paper it is brought out
that spawning takes place in the south, so far as Chesapeake Bay is
concerned; the young migrate north. After mating takes place, fe-
males move to the south, and males remain in the north.

Dr. H. C. Oberholser called attention to the appearance on that
day of Volume i, No. i, of the Journal of Mammalogy, the organ of the
recently formed Society of Mammalogists. Mr. Oberholser also men-
tioned, as a marked contribution to ornithological methods, a paper
entitled Bird banding by systematic trapping, by S. Prentiss Baldwin.
Although the experiments have been thus far conducted by a single
individual, yet remarkable facts concerning the movements of birds
have been learned.

Dr. H. M. Smith stated that he had observed a pair of swans and
cygnets in a new nesting place, a small unnamed lake in Yellowstone
Park.

Dr. T. S. Palmer spoke of the condition of Osborn's Caribou. About
100 individuals in Jasper Park, Alberta, are all that are known to exist.
Forty individuals in good condition were recently observed. He also

146 proceedings: biological society

exhibited a copy of the Journal of the Wild Bird Society, a new journal.
Dr. Palmer also spoke of a List of the mammals of Siam by Nils
GyldenstolpE, of Sweden. This is one of a series of memoirs by the
Natural History Society of Siam, and is unusual as a rather complete
list of an extended country.

Regular program: Vernon Bailey, The bean motise of Lewis and
Clark, Maximilian, and others. The speaker exhibited in glass bowls
living individuals of the meadow mouse, white-footed mice, pocket
mice, and a pocket gopher, captured in North Dakota and Minnesota,
and kept alive for the study of their habits. Mr. Bailey told of the
beans procured from the Indians of the upper Missouri Valley by
Lewis and Clark, Maximilian, Father De Swet, and other more recent
travellers, and greatly prized by both Indians and whites as food.
These beans are wild peanuts, growing underground, and gathered by
some mouse or small rodent for a winter store of food. But the Indians
find the food stores and appropriate them to their own use, paying for
them by a return of com or other food. Although the beans thus ob-
tained have been known to white men for over a century, the species of
mouse which stored them has not been determined until the past
autumn, when Mr. Bailey took the mice at their store houses in close
proximity to the stores of ground beans and artichokes. They prove
to be a western form of our common eastern meadow mouse, Microtiis
pennsylvaniais. Mr. Bailey also told of many interesting habits of
other species of the mice and gophers exhibited, and of his plans to
continue the studies of such obscure small mammals in captivity until
something is known of their every-day habits. A full account of these
species will be published in his report on the Mammals of North Dakota.

The paper was discussed by Dr. M. B. Waite, Dr. A. D. Hopkins,
Mr. H. C. Oberholser and Mr. N. Dearborn.

A. D. Hopkins: The hioclimaiic law. Dr. Hopkin's paper, which
was illustrated by maps and lantern slides, has been published in this
Journal, 10: 34-40. It was discussed by Mr. J. Kotinsky, Mr. H. C.
Oberholser, Dr. M. B. Waite, Dr. L. O. Howard and Mr. V. Bailey.

603 D meeting

The 603d regular meeting (the 40th annual meeting) of the Bio-
logical Society of Washington was held in the lecture hall of the Cosmos
Club on December 13, 1919, with President H. M. Smith presiding, and
21 persons present.

The regular order was laid aside and the chair recognized Dr. T. vS.
Palmer, who introduced Mr. W. L. Sclater, of London, Editor of The
Ibis, Recorder for the Zoological Record, and a prime mover for the Sys-
iema Avium. Mr. Sclater spoke of the necessity of clearing the confusion
as to nomenclature of birds which was in evidence in editing Ibis.
Thus an authoritative list, "Systema Avium," as it may be called,
may be prepared to reduce the lack of uniformity as to the names of

proceedings: biological society 147

birds, which is now quite prevalent. Differences of point of view of
ornithologists and technical difficulties seem to be disappearing.
The A. O. U. Check List is in the form desired, and the next edition
should be one of the fundamental volumes. As to the Zoological Record,
which is edited by the Zoological Society of London, a complete change
in the manner of financing and collecting the data was necessitated by
the action of Germany at the beginning of the war, and it was with
great difficulty that the volumes of the Zoological Record for 19 14,
1 9 15, 1 91 6 and 191 7 were issued. The issue for 19 18 is in press. The
subscriptions do not by any means pay for the cost of publication, and
the Zoological Society is not able fully to make up the deficit. It is to
be hoped that subscriptions, at least to the several sections, will be
greatly increased, and that some of the stronger institutions in the
United States may furnish assistance.

On resuming the regular order, reports from the Treasurer, Mr.
Ned Dearborn, and from the Chairman of the Publishing Committee,
Mr. Chas. W. Richmond, were received and accepted.

The election resulted in the choosing of the following officers for 1920:
President, A. D. Hopkins; Vice-Presidents, Ned Hollister, Vernon
Bailey, A. S. Hitchcock and J. W. Gidley; Recording Secretary,
A. A. DooLiTTLE; Corresponding Secretary, Alexander Wetmore;
Treas2irer, Ned Dearborn; Members of the Council, William Palmer,
H. C. Oberholser, E. a. Goldman, H. H. T. Jackson and S. A.
RoHWER. A. D. Hopkins was nominated as Vice-President to represent
the Society in the Washington Academy of Sciences.

A. A. DooLiTTLE, Recording Secretary.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

MATTERS OF SCIENTIFIC INTEREST IN CONGRESS^
Following the rapid increase in influenza that took place in De-
cember and Januar}', Mr. France obtained unanimous consent, on
January 26, to call up S. J. Res. 76, providing for the investigation of
the causes and methods of prevention of influenza. Mr. King opposed
the resolution on the ground that it represented too much interference
by the Federal Government in State afl"airs. Mr. Smoot opposed any
appropriation larger than $250,000 (the original resolution called for
$5,000,000), stating that not more than that sum could possibh' be
spent in preventing the spread of the disease before the epidemic would
be over, or the regular appropriation bill carrying funds for this pur-
pose would be considered; but that, nevertheless, if $5,000,000 were
appropriated, "every dollar of that sum would be spent before the end
of the fiscal year." This apparent lack of confidence in the Public
Health Service was combated, and the resolution supported, by Messrs.
Townsend, Smith of vSouth Carolina, Norris, Chamberlain, and
others. The resolution was finally passed with an appropriation of
$500,000, and was referred to the House Committee on Interstate and
Foreign Commerce.

On January- 7 Mr. Harris introduced S. J. Res. 141 : "To enable the
Public Health vService to cooperate with the States in the investigation
and control of malaria in the United States;" referred to the Committee
on Public Health and National Quarantine.

The Joint Commission on Reclassification of vSalaries, created by Public
Law 314 of the Sixty-fifth Congress, requested in December an ex-
tension of time from January 12 to March 12 in order that it might
complete its report. H. J. Res. 263, introduced by Mr. Good on De-
cember 15 for this purpose, was passed by the House on December 19
and by the Senate on January 6, but not without opposition. Mr.
Mann stated in the House that "This is the most skilfully organized
raid on the Treasury- I have known. If I had my way about it I would
bury the commission and the report beyond resurrection."

The rapid turnover in the Government's scientific bureaus, due to the
lowered purchasing capacity of the dollar, coupled with the difficulties
in the way of making corresponding changes in salaries, is reflected in a
bill introduced on Januarys 15 by Mr. Sterling, S. 3723: "To repeal
the act prohibiting increased pay under lump-sum appropriations to
employ-ees transferred within one year." The bill was referred to the
Committee on Civil Service and Retrenchment.

' Preceding report: This Journal. 10: 54. 1920.

148

SCIEJNTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS 1 49

Volcanologists will be interested in a bill introduced in the House on
January ig by Mr. Raker, H. R. 11890: "For the protection and im-
provement of the Lassen Volcanic National Park, California, and for
other purposes." The bill was referred to the Committee on Appro-
priations. A similar bill was introduced by Mr. Raker during the
First Session (H. R. 1120).

The bill for a tariff on laboratory glass and porcelain ware, optical
glass, and scientific, surgical, and dental instruments (H. R. 7785),
which had been referred to the vSenate Committee on Finance- came up
for a hearing before a subcommittee consisting of Senators Watson,
Curtis and Thomas, on December 12 and 13, 1919. Manufacturers
of glass and instruments were represented by Mr. C. G. Fisher,
President of the Scientific Materials Compan}^; Mr. J. B. O'Brien,
representing glass-blowers' unions; Mr. J. M. Roberts, Secretary
of the vScientific Apparatus Makers' Association; Mr. H. F. Coors,
of the Herold China & Pottery Company; and Mr. H. N. Ott,
of the Spencer Lens Company. Manufacturers of surgical instruments
were represented by Mr. C. J. Pilling, of the George E. Pilling Com-
pany, and Mr. E. J. Sovatkin, of the J. Sklar Manufacturing Company.
Consumers and the public were represented by Lieut. Col. M. A.
Reasoner and Col. F. F. Russell, both of the Medical Corps, U. S.
A.; Mr. H. C. ParmelEE, Editor of Chemical and Metallurgical En-
gineering; Dr. C. E. McClung, of the University of Pennsyh^ania ;
and Dr. C. H. Herty, Editor of the Journal of Industrial and Engineer-
ing Chemistry. Letters were also introduced from a number of manu-
facturers and university professors of chemistry. All of the testimon}-
favored the removal of the duty-free privilege, and the imposition of the
duties on scientific and surgical instruments prescribed in the bill.
Dental instruments were given only passing mention, and no arguments
were introduced for or against their inclusion. Some of the opposing
statements from universities, quoted by the Tariff Commission,''
were repudiated as having come from purchasing agents and not from
members of the faculties. The only opposition to the bill at the hear-
ings came from Senator Thomas, Democratic member of the sub-
committee, who stated his belief that the duties would be of little use
in protecting these industries from German and Japanese competition,
and that only a rigid license system would accomplish their protection
as "ke}^ industries," which was the ostensible purpose of the bill.

Hearings on the various tariff bills were re-opened before the sub-
committee on January 27.

A convention of the National Public Works Department Association
was held in Washington on January 13-14, 1920, to make plans for
expediting action upon the Jones-Reavis bill (S. 2232 and H. R. 6649)
for a Federal Department of Public Works. ^ Ninety-five delegates,

- This Journal 9: 389, 421, 562. 1919.
^ This Journal 9: 562. 1919.
^ This Journal 9: 422. 1919.

150 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

representing 124 organizations with an aggregate membership of over
106,000, attended the conference.

Representatives of Engineering Council appeared before the House
Committee on Mihtary Affairs on Januar}^ 28, and urged, in connection
with plans for the Signal Corps, that technical and scientific graduates
be commissioned in that Corps, and that physicists and electrical en-
gineers be employed to carr>' forward research on its problems.

NOTES

A grant of $5,000,000 has been made by the Carnegie Corporation
of New York to the National Academy of Sciences. A part of the fund
will be used to erect a building in Washington for the Academy and the
National Research Council. The remainder will be made a permanent
endowment for the maintenance of the Research Council and other
work of the Academy.

A popular exhibit of the wireless telephone was opened at the offices
of the National Research Council, 1201 Sixteenth Street, on February
6. The exhibit was installed by the American Telephone and Telegraph
Company and the Western Electric Company, with the cooperation of
the Signal Corps and the Air Service of the United States Army. The
exhibit included special apparatus designed to reproduce the more funda-
mental electrical discoveries of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries
which have made possible the development of the wireless telephone,
and moving line drawings illustrating the action of the wireless tele-
phone.

A serum made in the Bureau of Animal Industry in connection with
experiments on Bacillus hohiUnus, which is suspected of causing "forage
poisoning' ' of horses, was used recently to save the life of one member of
a family in New York who had been poisoned by spoiled olives. The
serum was received too late to save the other members of the family.
Two strains of B. hohilinns have been recognized, and both produce
poisons which have similar effects, but immunization against one does
not afford immunization against the other.

Mr. Albert Hugh Bryan, chief chemist of the firm of Arbuckle
Brothers in New York City, and a non-resident member of the Academy,
died on January 20, 1920, of influenza, in his forty-sixth year. Mr.
Bryan was bom at Indianapolis, Indiana, July 27, 1874. After serving
two years as assistant chemist of the Indiana Agricultural Experiment
Station, and about eight years as chemist of the American Beet Sugar
Compan}^ he became assistant chemist in the Bureau of Chemistry,
U. S. Department of Agriculture, in 1907, and chief of the Bureau's
sugar laboratory in 1909. In 19 13 he resigned to accept a position with
Arbuckle Brothers. He made many contributions to the chemistry
of the sugars, particularly methods of analysis of commercial sugar
products. He was a member of the Chemical Society, and had been a
member of the Academy since 191 2.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS 151

The National Research Council announces a series of public lectures
"for the purpose of stimulating interest in broad scientific research,
and to emphasize the vital connection between so-called scientific and
industrial research." The first lecture of the series was delivered at the
National Museum on February 6 by Mr. John J. Carty, Vice-President
of the American Telephone and Telegraph Company, and formerly
colonel in the Signal Corps, U. S. A., and was on the subject of Science
and the Industries.

Mr. Arthur P. Davis, director and chief engineer of the U. S.
Reclamation vService, was elected president of the American Society
of Civil Engineers at its annual meeting in New York City on Januar\^
21, 1920.

Mr. Gilbert H. Grosvenor, editor of the National Geographic
Magazine, was elected president of the National Geographic Society
on January 21, succeeding the late Rear Admiral John E. Pillsbury.

Mr. H. H. Kimball, of the Weather Bureau, left Washington in
February for an extended trip through the West. He expects to re-
turn about the middle of April.

Mr. Kent K. Kimball, a graduate of the geological department of
the University of Nebraska, has been appointed a geologic aid in the
U. S. Geological Survey.

Mr. John O. LaGorce, associate editor of the National Geographic
Magazine, has been elected to the Board of Managers of the Society,
for the term 1 919-192 1, succeeding the late Rear Admiral John E.
Pillsbury.

Mr. Emory C. Leonard, of the U. S. National Museum, left Wash-
ington in February to spend several months in botanical collecting in
Haiti, in cooperation with Dr. W. L. Abbott, who is continuing his
zoological explorations of the region.

Messrs. William R. Maxon and Ellsworth P. Killit, of the U. S.
National Museum, left New York on February 3 to spend the months
of February and March in botanical explorations in Jamaica. The work
is made possible by the cooperation of several botanical institutions.

Dr. Sylvanus G. Morley, Research Associate of the Carnegie In-
stitution of Washington, delivered a lecture under the auspices of the
Institution on January 23, on the subject. The foremost civilization of
ancient America.

Mr. Arthur H. Redfield, recently engaged in foreign mineral supply
and tariff problems in the War Trade Board and Department of Com-
merce, has been appointed mineral geographer in the Section of Foreign
Mineral Resources of the U. S. Geological Survey.

Mr. Clyde P. Ross, associate geologist, has been transferred from
the Water Resources Branch to the Coastal Plain Section of the Geologic
Branch of the U. S. Geological Surv^ey.

152 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Mr. J. D. Sears has been appointed associate geologist on the U. S.
Geological Surv^ey. He served as geologic aid on the Survey in 191 5
and 1 9 16, and has since been employed by the Sinclair Oil Corporation
in oil work in Costa Rica and Panama, during which time he surveyed
the manganese deposits of Panama for the Survey.

Mr. M. K. Shaler, formerly a geologist of the U. S. Geological
Survey, who cooperated with Mr. Herbert Hoover in Belgian relief
work during the war and has recently been visiting in the United States,
returned to Brussels in January to take up again his geological engineer-
ing work, suspended during the war.

Dr. Roger C. Smith, of the Bureau of Entomology^ U. S. Depart-
ment of Agriculture, resigned in Januan,^ to accept the position of
assistant professor of entomolog}' in the Kansas State Agricultural
College, at Manhattan, Kansas.

Mr. Homer F. Staley, of the Bureau of Standards, has been ap-
pointed editor of the Journal of the American Ceramic Society.

Mr. W. T. Thom, Jr., of the U. vS. Geological Survey, has been
granted leave of absence to spend eight months in Vienna assisting
in relief work under the auspices of the American Friends' Service
Committee.

Dr. John R. vS wanton and Dr. Truman Michelson, of the Smith-
sonian Institution, have recently been made corresponding members
of the Societe des Americanistes de Paris.

Miss Ingeborg M. Toll, a graduate of Brown University, has been
appointed geologic aid in the U. S. Geological Sur\-ey, and will work in
the Section of Foreign Mineral Resources.

Mr. Chester K. Wentworth, assistant geologist in the U. S. Geo-
logical Survey, has been engaged in a survey of .the coal fields of Vir-
ginia in cooperation with the Geological Survey of Virginia.

Mr. W. P. WooDRiNG, who has been recently engaged in oil work for
the Sinclair Corporation in Panama and Costa Rica, has been appointed
associate geologist on the U. S. Geological Survey and will be engaged
in a study of the stratigraphy and paleontology' of the Gulf and Carib-
bean regions.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. io MARCH 19, 1920 No. 6

METEOROLOGY. —A bundle of meteorological paradoxes.^ W.
J. Humphreys, Weather Bureau.

The scientific paradox is only an exception to some famiHar
but too inclusive generalization. It, therefore, has both the ap-
peal of the riddle and the charm of surprise — the surprise, the
instant the truth is seen, of a sudden and unexpected discovery —
and thus affords the same sort of intellectual delight that I
once knew a student of geometry to experience. The proposi-
tion, one of Euclid's best, was the Pythagorean, often carelessly
called the pons asinomm. The boy in question was of that sturdy
type that always insists on being "shown," and not understand-
ing this proposition, flatly refused to accept it. A little coaching
at the blackboard, however, soon got him past his initial troubles
and so fixed his attention that as the truth flashed upon him with
the final "therefore," he blurted out, in the ecstatic surprise of
an Archimedes, and with the same oblivion to his surroundings,

"Well, I'll be damned if it ain't so."

Whether the following paradoxes do or do not evoke such
joyous acclamations as the one just quoted, they, nevertheless
deserve to be concisely stated and fully explained for they ex-
press important facts of nature, unknown to, or, at most, but
vaguely realized by the average person.

AIR PUSHED NORTH BLOWS EAST

This paradoxical behavior of the air is restricted, it should be
said, to the northern hemisphere; but it seems just as contrarious

' Address of the retiring president of the Philosophical Society of Washington,
delivered January 31, 1920.

153

154 HUMPHREYS: MSTeOROI^OGlCAL PARADOXJSS

on the other side of the equator, for there, pushed north it blows
west, pushed south it blows east.

The push that causes the winds to blow is due to the existence
of unequal amounts of air above a given level over adjacent re-
gions— more at the place from which the air is pushed than at the
place towards which it is pushed — and this in turn, usually, is
due to the temperature differences, level for level, between the
atmosphere at the two places. Obviously there tends to be,
and, initially, actually is, a horizontal flow of the air (that is,
a wind) at each level, in the direction of the most rapid horizontal
decrease of presstu-e at that level. Such winds, however, fre-
quently last so long (hours at least) that their directions are pro-
foundly altered by a certain obscure factor, namely, the rotation
of the earth — the secret of the above paradox — which is over-
looked by almost everyone, and overlooked simply because its
effect on the shooting of a marble, the pitching of a ball, and all
the thousand other similar phenomena with which we are in-
timately familiar, is always negligible.

It is easy to demonstrate, as may be found in many books and
articles, that an object moving in any horizontal direction tends so
strongly to turn to the right north of the equator, and to the
left south of it, as to exert a force, against a restraint preventing
such deflection, given by the equation

/' = 2 mojv sin^p,
in which ;n is the mass of the object, v its speed, ^ its latitude,
and CO the angular velocity of the earth's rotation.

Consider, then, the effect of applying a horizontal push of
constant magnitude and constant geographic direction to a mass
of air, m, and assume this air to be free from friction, as it very
nearly is when appreciably above the surface. Let m, figure i,
be this mass of air, initially at rest with reference to the surface
of the earth; let it be in the northern hemisphere, and let p
be the push of constant magnitude and constant direction, north.
Immediately the mass moves it begins to deflect from the north
tdwards the east, and, owing to the curvature of its path, in-
troduces a small centrifugal force. A little later p may be re-
solved, as shown, into two components, one normal and the

HUMPHREYS: METEOROLOGICAL PARADOXES

155

other tangential to the path of travel. The first, like the de-
flective force and the centrifugal force, has no effect on the speed,
being at right angles to the direction of motion, while the second
steadily increases the speed, which, in turn, increases the de-
flective force and the deviation towards the east. In the end,
therefore, the component of p along the path reduces to zero,
and the direction of travel becomes exactly east. Hence winds
that are continuous for even a few hours always blow more or
less closely along isobars, that is, at right angles to, and not in
the direction of, the sustaining force — around centers of pres-
sure minima and maxima and not directly towards or from them.

/> cos a-i-c

Fig. I. Diagram showing deflection of particle of air towards the east.

No matter, therefore, how paradoxical it may be, air pushed
north does blow east (in the northern hemisphere), pushed east
blows south, pushed south blows west, pushed west blows north;
while in the southern hemisphere it blows exactl}^ contrariwise.

RAIN DRIES THE AIR

As everyone knows, there is continuous and often rapid evapo-
ration from practically all parts of the earth's surface. Never-
theless, the atmosphere as a whole never becomes even ap-
proximately saturated. Water, as just stated, is always evap-
orating into the air and thus constantly tending to saturate it;
but, on the other hand, the air is forever being dried by the pre-
cipitation out of it of rain, snow and other forms of condensation.
Whatever the temperature and relative humidity of a given mass
of air at any place along its convectional route, the total of water
vapor it then contains obviously is less, in general, than when

156 HUMPHREYS: METEOROLOGICAL PARADOXES

it left the surface of the earth by the amount of precipitation in
the meantime abandoned by it. That is, on the average, air
descends to the earth drier than it was when it ascended, and
drier solely because of, and in proportion to, the amount of pre-
cipitation that fell out of it during its convectional journey.
In short, as the paradox puts it, rain does dry the air — does pre-
vent it from becoming and remaining everywhere reekingly
and intolerably humid, as it otherwise would be.

MORE AIR GOES UP THAN EVER COMES DOWN

This is, perhaps, about as incredible a paradox as can be
found, for it seems flatly to contravene the well known dictum
that whatever goes up must come down. And indeed to make
the explanation of it entirely clear and definite, it will be neces-
sary to consider it independently under two heads : a, when the
air is measured in terms of volume, and, b, when it is measured
in terms of mass.

Measured in terms of volume. — -As everyone knows, the vertical
circulation of the atmosphere is only a gravitational phenomenon
consisting of the sinking of relatively cold, and, therefore, also
relatively dense air, and its consequent lifting or forcing up of
adjacent air that happens to be comparatively warm and light.
In short, contracted air descends and expanded air ascends (is
buoyed up by the descending denser air) . Hence, mass for mass,
the volume of the ascending air is always larger than that of the
descending air. The ratio between the actual ascending and
descending volumes, however, or masses, may be anything, as
illustrated by chimney circulation, in which the ascent is re-
stricted to a comparatively small volume and mass moving rapid-
ly, while the descent extends to a relatively large volume and
mass settling slowly. On the average, though, considering
both velocity of vertical movement and volume occupied, or
velocity times volume, the atmosphere as a whole is always
ascending, a fact not only interesting itself, but also of some
importance to both the aeronaut and the aviator.

Measured in terms of mass. — Whatever the volume relations
between ascending and descending air may be, it would seem

HUMPHREYS: METEOROIvOGICAL PARADOXES

157

that at least the mass that goes up and the mass that eventually
returns must certainly be the same. But, on the contrary, they
indeed are far from it, for one of the important constituents of

/JOO

1100
1000

900
800
700
60O
500
400
300
BOO
100

\
\

' / ^ J ^ 5 e 7 a e 10 II n
Pegrees Cenfigrade

Fig. 2. Vertical temperature gradients of free air.

the atmosphere, water vapor, often amounting, in places, to
I per cent, and occasionally to more than 2 per cent of the whole,
invariably ascends as a gas, as a distinct part and parcel of the
air; but descends, in great measure, not as a gas at all, not as any
part whatever of the air, but as a liquid in the form of rain,
or a solid, such as snow and hail.

Paradoxical, therefore, as it may be, a greater mass of air
actually does go up — more by at least 20 million tons per second,
the measure of world-wide precipitation — than ever comes
down.

TO COOIy AIR, HEAT IT

The air referred to in this seemingly absurd statement is not
that topsy-turvy kind Alice might have found in Wonderland,
but just that ordinary kind in which we have always lived; and

158 HUMPHREYS: METEOROLOGICAL PARADOXES

the phenomenon itself, however contrary to experience it may
seem, one of great importance and almost continuous occurrence.

This paradoxical result is easy to explain with a diagram.
To this end let AB and A'B', figure 2, be two adiabatic gradients
of the free air; that is, let each indicate a temperature change of
1° C. for every 100 meters change in elevation — the relation
between the temperature and elevation of a rising or falling mass
of air that during its travel neither gains heat from, nor loses it
to, any outside object, such as the surrounding atmosphere.
Let EE be any actual temperature gradient (nearly always less
than the adiabatic), in this case i ° C. per 1 20 meters change of
elevation. If, then, under these conditions, a mass of air having
the temperature and elevation indicated by C, say, of the figure,
be heated i ° C, or shifted in the figure to W, it will corresponding-
ly expand and consequently be forced up by the surrounding denser
air — will ascend, as we say. As it rises, it will cool, by expansion,
along the adiabatic gradient A'B', and, therefore, will come into
equilibrium with the surrounding atmosphere where this gradient
intersects the actual gradient EE, or at the level and temperature
indicated by W. Clearly, then, under the assumed conditions,
such as are very common in nature, a mass of air heated 1° C.
rises 600 meters, and in so doing cools 6° C, or to a temperature
5 ° C. lower than it had before it was heated. Of course, the warm
air does not rise strictly adiabatically, though probably very
nearly so; but in so far as it actually does lose heat it comes to
equilibrium at a correspondingly lower level and warmer tem-
perature.

It is precisely this paradoxical process of cooling by heating,
the heating being mainly at the surface, however, that leads to
the formation of cumulus clouds and generates the familiar
"heat" thunderstorm. In fact, it is quite possible to produce
a cumulus cloud, and even a local shower, through the action of a
large surface fire. It should be noted in this connection that
though combustion adds much water vapor to the air, five
ninths the weight of the fuel consumed even in the case of ab-
solutely dry cellulose, nevertheless, the cumulus cloud over the
fire is due essentially to the expansional or dynamical cooling of
the ascending air.

HUMPHREYS: METE;0R0I.0GICAL PARADOXES 1 59

TO WARM AIR, COOL IT

This paradox is the converse of the one just discussed, and is
readily explained in much the same way. Referring again to
figure 2, let a mass of free air having the altitude and tempera-
ttu-e indicated by W in the figure, be cooled i ° C, or its position
shifted to C. It will at once become denser than it was, follow
the adiabatic gradient AB as it falls to lower levels, and, there-
fore, come to rest at the level and temperature indicated by
C, or at the intersection of the adiabatic gradient followed and
the existing gradient. That is, as a result of the initial cooling of
1° C, the given mass of air will fall 600 meters and become
5° C. warmer than it was before it was first cooled. In so far,
however, as the falling air gains heat from the surrounding
warmer atmosphere, it will come to rest at a correspondingly
greater elevation and lower temperature.

This paradoxical phenomenon of warming by cooling is very
frequently and very prettily illustrated by the evening disap-
pearance of small detached clouds, such as alto- cumuli, fracto-
stratus, etc. As soon as the sun has set, these clouds and the air
masses they fill cool more rapidly than does the clear atmosphere.
They, therefore, fall to lower levels, warm up to higher tempera-
tures than they originally had, and evaporate.

It will be interesting, in this connection, to note the logical
effect of a certain ingenious, often proposed, and at least once
experimentally tried, method of artificially inducing rainfall,
namely, the liberal sprinkling of a cloud mass with liquid air.
The result is, of course, an initial cooling of the cloud, followed,
as above explained, by a much greater warming. Instead of rain
being induced by this process, as its many inventors would con-
fidently expect, the chilled cloud is certain to grow warmer and
diminish in size, and, if considerably chilled may grow so much
warmer as to disappear entirely. Indeed, this particular liquid
air scheme is not a rain making process at all, but, on the contrary,
a rain deterrent!

NOT AIR THAT IS HEATED, BUT AIR THAT IS NOT HEATED,

IS THEREBY WARMED

This particular paradox may suggest the superiority of "ab-
sent treatment;" nevertheless, it is perfectly sound. Heated

l6o HUMPHREYS: METEOROLOGICAL PARADOXES

air, as we know, is driven up by the surrounding denser air, and
dynamically cooled, but the air that drives it does so by dropping
to a lower level, where it is more or less compressed and corre-
spondingly warmed. In other words, while the particular air
that was heated rises and gets colder than it was initially, other
air that was not heated at all falls lower and thus gets warmer.
It is not the air that is heated, but air that is not heated, that
gets warmer.

NOT AIR THAT IS CHILLED, BUT AIR THAT IS NOT CHILLED IS

THEREBY COOLED

The explanation of this paradox is very similar to that of the
one just given, and is equally simple. As the chilled air descends,
certain other air is thereby raised and dynamically cooled. That
is, while the particular air that was cooled descends and thus
gets warmer than it was originally, other air that was not chilled
at all is forced up, expands, and gets colder. It is not the air
that is chilled (unless it happens to be on or near the surface
where it cannot fall to a lower level) but air that is not chilled,
that gets colder.

MIXING BRINGS THE AIR TO A NON-UNIFORM TEMPERATURE

To the laboratorian familiar with beakers and calorimeters;
to the housewife skilled in the art of the cups and kettles; and
to all the rest of us, nothing is more certain — nothing more in
accord with daily experience — than that vigorous stirring es-
tablishes a uniform temperature throughout the agitated medium.
And indeed this conclusion is quite correct in respect to the par-
ticular things we are likely to have in mind, but it does not apply
to the open atmosphere. In fact if the temperature of the at-
mosphere were uniform through any considerable altitude, a
complete stirring of it would immediately destroy this uniformity.

Let, then, the atmosphere, whatever its initial temperattue
distribution, be thoroughly mixed without the addition or sub-
traction of heat. This will bring it into such state (that of neu-
tral equilibrium) that any portion of it on being adiabatically
moved to a different place will, on arriving at that place, have
the same temperature as the then adjacent air at the same level.

HUMPHREYS: MBTEOROLOGICAI^ PARADOXES l6l

That is, it will have the same potential temperature throughout,
or same actual temperature when subjected to the same pres-
sure. The truth of the above statement is obvious from the
fact that any temperature difference that might be developed by
a transfer of the kind mentioned clearly could be reduced by
further mixing.

But as a mass of this air is carried to higher levels it continu-
ously expands against the diminishing pressure — diminished
by the weight of the air passed through — thereby does work at
the expense of its own heat energy and correspondingly cools
to lower temperatures. The ratio of this cooling to increase of
altitude evidently depends upon the nature of the gas and the
change of pressure. In the case of our own atmosphere it is
approximately i ° C. per loo meters.

Although, therefore, stirring does bring an incompressible
liquid to a uniform actual temperature, it brings the atmosphere
only to a uniform potential temperature, or an actual tempera-
ture that is very non-uniform.

THE NEARER THE SUN THE COLDER THE AIR

The familiar fact that with increase of elevation and consequent
approach (during the daytime) to the sun, the air nevertheless
gets rapidly colder, at least through the first lo kilometers, is
very puzzling to the average person if he tries to explain it.
Nor, indeed, is the explanation of this phenomenon quite so
simple and obvious as we sometimes are asked to believe. Es-
sentially, however, this temperature distribution depends on
the following facts:

(i) The atmosphere, as we know from observation, is so dia-
thermanous that half, roughly, of the effective radiation re-
ceived from the sun, that is, half of the portion absorbed and
not lost by reflection, goes directly to heating the surface of the
earth. Consequently, it is this surface, where the energy ab-
sorption is concentrated, and not the atmosphere, through which
absorption is diffused, that is most strongly heated by insolation.
The heated surface in turn warms the air above it, partly by con-
tact, and partly by the long wave-length radiation it emits, and

1 62 HUMPHREYS: METEOROLOGICAL PARADOXES

of which the atmosphere is far more absorptive than it is of the
comparatively short wave-length solar radiation.

(2) Furthermore, and this is an equally vital part of the ex-
planation, the lower atmosphere (below about 10 kilometers),
under all ordinary conditions emits more radiant energy than it
absorbs — the difference being supplied by conduction. It is
these two phenomena, (a) the surface heating (warming below),
and (b) the net loss of heat by radiation (cooling above), that
together establish and maintain the vertical convections of the
atmosphere under which, since the descending portions grow
warmer through compression, and the ascending colder through
expansion, the whole of the convective region is made to decrease
in temperature with increase of elevation.

But since the coefficient of absorption of the air, as of other
objects, changes but little if at all with the temperature, while
its emissive power decreases rapidly as it grows colder, and since
the intensity of the incident terrestrial (including atmospheric)
radiation remains roughly constant up to an altitude of many
kilometers, beyond the first 4 or 5, it follows that the upper limit
of the convective region is not, as formerly supposed, the outer-
most extent of the atmosphere, but at that elevation (10 to 12
kilometers above sea-level) at which the temperature is so low
( — 55° C. roughly) that the loss of heat by radiation is no longer
in excess of, but now equal to, its gain by absorption. Be-
yond this level temperature does not decrease, or does so but
slightly, with increase of elevation; nor would it so decrease
(at least at anything like the present rate) beyond any level above
the thin conducting surface layer, at which absorption and radia-
tion became equal.

In short then, the air grows colder with elevation — the nearer
the sun the colder the air — because (i) owing to its transparency
to solar radiation it is heated mainly at the surface of the earth,
and (2) because, at ordinary temperatures, it emits more radia-
tion than it absorbs. These together so affect the density of the
atmosphere as to induce vertical convections, and thereby to
establish and maintain, throughout the region in which they are
active, a rapid decrease of temperature with increase of elevation.

HUMPHREYS: METEOROLOGICAL PARADOXES 1 63

THE COLDEST AIR COVERS THE WARMEST EARTH

This paradoxical statement refers to the air of the stratosphere,
with respect to which it is a well-known truth whatever the ex-
planation may be.

It has doubtless been known since the dawn of intelligence
that the top of a mountain is colder than the adjacent valleys,
and that the highest among neighboring mountains has the coldest
top. And for much more than a century, actually since No-
vember 30, 1784, it has been known from observations by bal-
loonists, that the temperature of the free air also decreases with
elevation, at least up to such altitudes as were attained by manned
balloons. About the close of the last century, however, it be-
came evident, through records obtained with sounding balloons,
that in middle latitudes the temperature of the atmosphere con-
tinuously decreases, on the average, with increase of altitude up
to only 10 or 12 kilometers above sea level, and then becomes
substantially constant. Numerous subsequent records obtained
at many places have shown the additional surprising fact that
this isothermal region, or stratosphere as it is generally called,
begins at a higher level, and is colder, over equatorial regions
than over any other part of the world. Indeed, it seems to be 10°
to 15° C. colder over the equator, where its average temperature
is roughly —70° C, than, for instance, over the polar circles.

The temperature of tlie stratosphere appears to be determined
chiefly by the intensity of the outgoing radiation from the earth
and the intervening water vapor and hence it seems to follow
that this radiation must be less intense over regions near the
equator than over those of the middle and higher latitudes;
a conclusion that merely shifts the burden of explanation from
one paradox to another.

Obviously, the earth as a whole must emit, on the average,
the same amount of radiant energy that it absorbs, but the dis-
tribution of the two certainly is different. In equatorial re-
gions the upward movement of the atmosphere is so general
and so strong that high haze, cirrus, and other types of clouds
are exceedingly common, and the atmosphere necessarily humid

164 HUMPHREYS: METEOROLOGICAL PARADOXES

and, therefore, highly absorptive of earth radiation, to great
altitudes, especially as anticyclones with their extensive regions
of descending air are there unknown. Clearly, then, a large
part of the radiation through the stratosphere of this region
must come from the clouds and from water vapor that are very
high and correspondingly cold, and therefore its intensity, it
would seem, must be correspondingly feeble. The pent up heat
below can find an outlet through horizontal circulation and radia-
tion from lower and warmer levels in higher latitudes.

This, perhaps, is at least the partial explanation of why the
minimum temperature of the stratosphere occurs over the trop-
ical regions — why the coldest air covers the warmest earth.

AS THE DAYS GROW LONGER THE COLD GROWS STRONGER

This old proverb paradox expresses the well-known fact that
our lowest temperatures do not occur at the time of the shortest
days, or when the heat supply from the sun is least, but some
time afterwards, when the days have grown longer and the supply
of solar heat has increased. That is, over a considerable period,
the air grows colder as the sun grows warmer. In the far interior
of continents, especially if arid, this lag may not be more than a
couple of weeks, but on many islands and along several coasts
whose winds are prevailingly on-shore it is from one to two months.

To understand this phenomenon consider an object (repre-
senting the earth) suspended within a thermally opaque shell
(assumed the source of incoming radiation) whose temperature
is everywhere the same. For simplicity let the enclosed object
be a "black body," that is, a full radiator and a perfect absorber.
Let the absolute temperature of the shell be T and that of the
enclosed object T ^ t. Under these conditions the rate of heat
absorption by the suspended body is AKT"^, where A is its
"equivalent" area and K the "black body" coefficient, while
the rate of its emission is AK{T =t t)"^, if^ now, t is small in
comparison with T, the rate of net gain or loss of heat by the
enclosed object is 4AKTH, approximately, and the ratio of its
rate of temperature increase or decrease to the temperature dif-
ference, /, a constant inversely proportional to its heat capacity,
assuming high conductivity. The limiting temperature T

HUMPHREYS: METEOROLOGICAL PARACOXES 165

would, therefore, never be fully attained, but forever approached
asymptotically. Clearly, then, if the temperature of the shell
were T and that of the enclosed object T -\- t, the latter would
continue to grow colder through any finite time unless, and un-
til some time after, the temperature of the shell were raised
above the then temperature of the enclosed object.

The reasoning in this special case applies also to the normal
daily temperature of the atmosphere (substantially that of the
surface of the earth), provided, as will be assumed for the mo-
ment, that there is neither circulation nor any thermal effects due
to water transformations — freezing, thawing, etc. It applies
because the normal daily loss of heat through radiation to space
by any given region is as though it were a full radiator at a cer-
tain temperature, and its normal daily gain of heat from the
outside as though it were completely canopied by another full
radiator also at a certain (generally different) temperature.

During the autumn, therefore, while there is still stored in
the earth much of its summer gain of heat, and while the daily
supply of energy from the sun is growing less and less per unit
area, the average 24-hour temperature of the surface, and of the
surface air, must be appreciably higher than that of equilibrium
with the simultaneous incoming radiation^ — -higher because of
the additional supply of heat by conduction from its reservoir
beneath the surface — and as the summer storage of heat in the
earth is very large and also near the surface (but little penetrating
beyond a depth of 5 or 6 meters) it is obvious, frdm the pre-
liminary explanation above, that the minimum temperature can-
not occur until some time after winter solstice, or when the days
have again grown longer, and that the delay must depend on
latitude, nature of surface, and a number of other factors.

The date of this minimum temperature is still further delayed,
in many places, by the trend of warm ocean currents and the
warmer surface drifts toward the higher latitudes, and by on-
shore winds. It is also affected, though probably but slightly,
by the thermal effects of freezing, thawing, evaporation, and con-
densation.

i66 Humphreys: meteorol,ogical paradoxes

The storage of heat in the earth while the days are long,
its gradual delivery back to the surface while the daily supply
from the sun is comparatively small; and the poleward drift
of warm water at all seasons, together produce, as explained,
the paradoxical result so admirably expressed by the proverb,

As the days grow longer

The cold grows stronger.

AS THE NIGHTS GROW I.ONGER THE HEAT GROWS STRONGER

It will be recognized at once that this paradox is only the
counterpart of the one just discussed, and that it must also have
.substantially the same explanation.

As the days continue to grow longer after the time of mini-
mum temperature, it is clear that from then on for several
months the earth's gain of heat must be at a faster rate than its
loss — that, in terms of the above explanatory hypothesis, the
effective temperature of the shell is T and that of the enclosed
object T — t. Under these conditions the earth, because of its
large but finite heat capacity, must continue to slowly grow
warmer until the incoming radiation has become less, that is,
until the nights have grown perceptibly longer.

This lag, the lag of maximum temperature after the summer
solstice, is also, like the lag of minimum temperature after the
winter solstice, a function of location; generally least in the
interior of continents and greatest on islands and near coasts
whose prec^ailing winds are on-shore.

AS THE SUN DESCENDS THE TEMPERATURE ASCENDS

By this paradoxical expression it is only meant to state tersely
the well-known fact that the warmest time of the day is not when
the sun is on the meridian, or when insolation is greatest, but
sometime in the afternoon when the sun has descended con-
siderably from its maximum elevation. As everyone knows,
night cooling reaches its greatest effect, on the average, just
after daybreak. Hence, as the sun ascends the temperatures
of the warming surface of the earth and of the lower air lag be-
hind equilibrium with the incoming radiation, and continue to
do so until the intensity of the insolation has passed well beyond

HUMPHREYS: METEOROLOGICAL PARADOXES 1 67

its maximum. That is, the temperature continues to rise for
some time, generally 2 to 4 hours, after the sun has crossed the
meridian — as the sun begins to descend from its highest point
the temperature continues to ascend.

THE ABSOLUTE MAXIMUM DIURNAL INSOLATION (hEAT SUPPLY)

IS AT THE SOUTH POLE

If I is the solar constant, or quantity of solar energy per
minute per unit area, normal to the insolation at the limit of the
atmosphere, then the total amount Q of solar energy per any
consecutive 24 hours, per unit area of a horizontal surface, also
at the limit of the atmosphere, is given by the equation

Q = -^ J(sin (f sin 8H + cos <p cos 5 sin H)

in which <p is the latitude of the place in question, d the declina-
tion of the sun at the time, and H the hour angle, in radians,
between noon and sunrise, or sunset.

A great deal of interesting information is contained in this
equation. The most interesting, perhaps, is the fact that if
the value of Q for the equator at the time of the vernal equinox
be represented by 1000, then that of the north pole at summer
solstice is 1202, and that of the south pole at the corresponding
solstice 1284; each being greater than the value of Q at that time
for any other place in either hemisphere. The advantage in
favor of the south pole is owing to the fact that the earth is then
near perihelion, and, therefore, closer to the sun.

Not only does the absolute maximum diurnal insolation at
the limit of the atmosphere occur at the south pole, but, owing
to the great elevation of the south polar region, the dryness of
its atmosphere and its comparative freedom from dust, so also
does the corresponding maximum at the surface of the earth.

The days, however, of abundant insolation at the poles are
comparatively few, nor is this insolation very effective in raising
the temperature, owing to the high reflecting power and great
heat of fusion of the always prevalent ice and snow. And so
it happens that although for a time every year each pole re-
ceives more diurnal insolation than does any other place on the

1 68 Humphreys: meteorological paradoxes

earth, it is always cold; and the south pole, though having- the
greater maximum diurnal insolation, is the colder of the two,
owing to its elevation and greater distance from open water.

THE HOTTER THE SUN THE COLDER THE EARTH

It is not yet universally conceded that this paradox, "the
hotter the sun the colder the earth," really is true; but the evi-
dence in favor of it is already very strong. It is known, for in-
stance, that several extensive studies of the temperature records
of the earth have all shown that on the average, it is a little
colder during the years of sunspot maxima than during the years
of sunspot minima. Furthermore, numerous careful measure-
ments of the solar radiation made during the past dozen years
or more, seem to compel the assumption, at least tentatively,
that the effective temperature of the sun is greater during spot
maxima than during spot minima. If, then, both these con-
clusions are true — if the temperature of the earth is lowest during
spot maxima and the solar constant highest — it follows that the
above paradox is also true.

But by what possible process can the earth get colder when the
sun grows warmer? It has been suggested that the increase of
the solar constant causes a corresponding increase in the atmos-
pheric circulation, and, therefore, a decrease in the surface tem-
perature, owing to the greater flow of cold air from the higher
towards the lower latitudes. But the very great mixing of the
convective portion of the atmosphere, and the consequent pre-
vention of the formation of over- and under-flowing strata, seems
to render this suggested explanation untenable.

The key to this paradox, may, perhaps, be found in the greater
extent and density of the solar corona at the times of spot maxima
than at the times of spot minima. The corona, since in large
measure it is only so much dust about the sun, obviously must
interfere with the passage of radiation through it, and to a far
srreater extent with the ultraviolet radiation than with the visible
and infrared. Hence, during spot maxima, or when the solar
atmosphere is dustiest, the solar energy must, it would seem,
be poorest in ultraviolet radiation.

HUMPHREYS: METEOROLOGICAL PARADOXES 1 69

Now when cold dry oxygen, such as exists in the upper atmos-
phere, is acted upon by certain regions, at least, of the ultra-
violet spectrum, some of it is converted into ozone, a substance
known to be in the upper atmosphere to a far greater extent than
in the lower. Hence when sunspots are most numerous the upper
air should contain a minimum amount of ozone. But ozone is
intensely absorptive of earth radiation and that too in the spec-
tral region of its greatest intensity, and where water is least ab-
sorptive and carbon dioxide not at all. That is, at the time of
spot maxima when the solar constant is (apparently) greatest,
the earth's blanket of ozone is (presumably) least. Even, there-
fore, if the earth should be receiving an increased amount of heat
at this time it might, nevertheless, grow slightly colder because
of the coincident depletion of the heat-conserving blanket of
ozone.

A greater general prevalence of cirrus and cirrus haze during
spot maxima than during spot minima (indicated by certain
observations) would also account for this paradox; because such
clouds, owing to the size of their particles, shut out the short
wave-length solar radiation more effectively than they shut in
the long wave-length earth radiation. And perhaps these
clouds really are generally most prevalent during spot maxima,
and, therefore, at least a contributing factor to the cause of the
corresponding temperature minima. At any rate the auroras
are then most frequent, and they obviously generate nitrous
oxide and other hygroscopic compounds which, because of their
density, slowly fall to the cirrus level where they may produce
cloud particles in an atmosphere whose humidity is much below
that which otherwise would be essential to cloud formation.

The maximum, then, of the cirrus screen and the minimum
of the ozone blanket, coincident with the highest temperature
of the sun, may very well account for the above paradox — the
hotter the sun the colder the earth.

THE COOLER THE SUN THE WARMER THE EARTH

This paradox is practically included in the one just discussed.
It means that at times of sunspot minima, when the solar con-
stant seems to be least, the average temperature of the earth is
highest.

lyo HUMPHREYS: METEOROLOGICAL PARADOXES

At the times of spot minima the solar atmosphere is clearest;
the extreme ultraviolet radiation presumably, therefore, at a
maximum ; the upper atmosphere richest in ozone, and the earth
most conservative of its heat, and, because of the minimum
(if that be the case) of cirrus, also most receptive of solar radia-
tion— so receptive and so conserv^ative, perhaps, as to gain slightly
in temperature despite the decrease in the heat supply.

THE SUN RISES BEFORE IT IS UP

This paradox about the sun rising before it is up is equally
true of the moon and the stars, and is also one of the best known
and easiest explained of all meteorological paradoxes.

Everyone is familiar with the fact that as light passes slant-
ingly from one medium to another, as from air to glass, for in-
stance, it does not continue on in the same straight line, but
abruptly changes direction at the interface according to well-
known laws. And the same thing is true of the rays of Ught
that pass from space into and through the atmosphere of the
earth; except that, in this case, as the density of the atmosphere
gradually increases from zero at its outer boundary to a maxi-
mum at the surface of the earth, so too the change in direction
of the entering light is equally gradual. The total change of
direction by the time the surface of the earth is reached depends
upon the wave-length, or color, of the light ; the slope at which it
enters, or zenith distance of the luminous object; the tempera-
ture and barometric pressure at the place of observation; the
humidity; and several other minor factors. On the average,
however, light from a star for instance, that appears to be 90°
from the zenith, and, therefore, on the horizon — just rising, say^ —
has been bent out of its original course by about 34 '.5. That is,
it comes into view (rises) while actually more than half a degree
below the horizon. And as the angular diameter of the sun
and the moon are each less than this horizon refraction, it follows
that when the sky is sufficiently clear the whole of either lumi-
nary may be seen before even its topmost portion is up; that is,
before it is geometrically above the horizon, or actually within
90° or less of the zenith.

ROHWER: GENERIC NAME CEROPALES I7I

THE SUN SETS AFTER IT IS DOWN

Since the virtual wave-length of a given radiation of celestial
origin and, therefore, the value of its astronomical refraction
is modified by the rotation of the earth, as are also certain scin-
tillation phenomena, it follows that the above paradox is not
identical with the one just explained. Nevertheless, as the
spectra of the stars and other celestial objects all overreach the
visible portion at each end it follows that the Doppler effect
produces no appreciable alteration in the ensemble of the light
from any one — merely a minute shift of its entire spectrum that
can be detected only in the positions of definite lines.

But even this displacement of the spectral lines, due to the
rotation of the earth, is far too small, roughly one three-hun-
dredth the distance between the sodium D's, to affect detectably
astronomical refraction. Hence as the sun, the moon, and the
stars all rise before they are up, so too they must all set only after
they have gone down.

ENTOMOLOGY. — The generic name Ceropales Latreille {Hy-
menoptera). S. A. Rohwer, Bureau of Entomology.

In 1915 Morice and Durrant (Trans. Ent. Soc. Lond.,
1914, pp. 403, 406) synonymize the generic name Ceropales La-
treille with the name Arpactus Jurine and propose an entirely
new name for those interesting Psammocharid wasps which for
more than a century have been known to students under the
name Ceropales. This is only one of a number of most discon-
certing nomenclatorial changes suggested by these authors
because of their study of a discarded book review by Panzer.
While the present author is of the opinion that from the nomen-
clatorial standpoint there is no way to disregard the Erlangen
List, for it is under this name that the Panzerian book review is
now commonly known, he does not believe that all of the changes
suggested by Morice and Durrant are in accord with the various
rules and opinions of the International Commission on Zoological
Nomenclature. Since the receipt of the paper by Morice and

172 rohwer: generic name ceropales

Durrant the writer has spent considerable time investigating
the question and collecting the opinions of the various workers
on Hymenoptera and has completed a statement of the case for
presentation to the International Commission. In the mean-
time, and until it is possible to receive an opinion from the Com-
mission, he has refrained from adopting any of the changes.
The question presented by the genus Ceropales need not, however,
wait for this decision as it is largely a zoological problem which
is satisfactorily covered by existing rules and opinions. Further-
more certain new names have been used for species of this genus,
and it seems desirable to review the case with the hope that by
so doing unnecessary confusion will be avoided.

The answer rests largely on the principle of accepting genera
for which the included species are not mentioned by name, but
also partly on the principle of genotype selection for such genera.
In regards to the first point if the codified rules on Zoological
Nomenclature do not satisfactorily cover the point of accepting
the generic names proposed by Tatreille in 1796, (Prec. Car.
Ins.) opinion 46 is very definite, and it seems to the author that
the question answered under this opinion is entirely analogous
to Latreille's work of 1796. In regard to the validity
of the genera proposed in this work the writer beheves that
according to the International Code they are valid and must
date from 1796, and that the type species must be chosen in
accordance with the conditions specified in opinion 46.

Accepting the validity of the name Ceropales in the 1796 pub-
lication we still have the question of its genotype. If Morice
and Durrant are correct the name would have to be transferred
from the Psammocharid wasps to the Sphecoid wasps. But
even here it seems to the writer they have not used the correct
interpretation of opinion 46 or adhered to all the principles of
genotype selection covered by the Code. The Code specifically
says, "The meaning of the expression 'select a type' is to be
rigidly construed. Mention of a species as an illustration or
example of a genus does not constitute a selection of a type."
Since it is as an example that Latreille referred a species to the
genus Ceropales in 1802 he did not designate its type. Addi-

rohwer: generic name ceropales 173

tional discussion of this point is, however, not necessary for this
particular case because the species referred to Ceropales in 1802
cannot be the genotype in accordance with opinion 46. Briefly
reviewed the case is as follows.

In 1796 Latreille described the genus Ceropales but assigned
no species to it. The description he gave, while rather general
and applying in most points equally well to certain genera in
the families Psammocharidae and Sphegidae, has two charac-
ters (viz. the semi-circular labrum and long hind legs) which as
far as the groups concerned are involved, apply only to the genus
belonging to the Psammocharidae. In 1802 (Hist. Nat. Cms.
Ins., 3: p. 339) Latreille again characterizes the genus Cero-
pales and this time cites the species quinquencinctus Fabricius
and doubtfully "campestris f F." It would appear thus far
that quinquencinctus would have to be the type of Ceropales,
but this species does not agree with the original description in
the following characters: "Levre superieure demi-circulaire"
and "Pattes posterieures longues dans quelques especes." Since
quinquencinctus does not agree with the description it cannot be
the genotype (opinion 46 says, "the genus contains all of the
species of the world which come under the generic description
as originally published") and in fact Latreille corrected his error
in 1804 (Nouv. Diet. Nat. Hist., p. 180) and 1805 (Hist. Nat.
Crus. Ins., 13: p. 283) and placing quinquencinctus in a new
genus, Gorytes, and citing maculata Fabricius as an example of
Ceropales. Added proof that Latreille desired in 1804 to correct
the error of 1802 is found in the fact that in 1804 Ceropales
and Gorytes are the only genera to which species are assigned.
The species maculata agrees with the original generic description
of Ceropales and could correctly be named as the type of the
genus. This is exactly what Latreille did in 1810 (Cons. Gen.
Crust. Ins., p. 437).

It is almost certain and partly confirmed by Latreille' s re-
marks in 1802 (Hist. Nat. Crust. Ins., 3: p. 335) that as
characterized and understood in 1796 the genus Ceropales con-
tained species now placed in Ceropales and also species now re-
ferred to the genus Gorytes {s. I.) but inasmuch as the characte

174 AUSTIN AND GRIMES: BEAT RECEPTION

of the description all apply to Ceropales (as now understood)
and not to Gorytes, and because it is certain that Latreille in-
tended the name for the groups of Psammocharid wasps it does
not seem desirable or justifiable to go against the rules and
opinions governing zoological nomenclature and change the
interpretation of a name which has had standing for more than
two generations. The following synonymy seems to the author
to be correct:

Ceropales Latreille, 1796. Type. — Evania maculata Fabricius.

Agenioxenus Ashmead, 1902. Type. — {Ceropales rufiventris
Walsh) Ceropales robertsoni Cresson.

Ceratopales Schulz, 1906 (an emendation which is accepted by
Banks, Bui. Mus. Comp. Zool., 63: 18 19, p. 248).

Hypsiceraeus Morice and Durrant, 1915. Type. — Evania
maculata Fabricius.

Because of the controversy between Viereck and Ashmead
(see Knt. N., 13: p. 275 and p. 318, 1902) concerning the
generic name Agenoxenus a few words of explanation are neces-
sary. In proposing the generic name Agenioxenus Ashmead
definitely cited as the type Ceropales rufiventris Walsh. This
species has been correctly synonymized with Ceropales robertsoni
Cresson by Fox (Trans. Amer. Ent. See, 19: p. 57, 1892)
and is a true Ceropales. The genus Agenioxenus is, therefore, a
synonym of Ceropales. It so happens, however, that the prob-
able specimen on which Ashmead founded his genus is a male of
the variable Batazonus interruptus (Say.). Ashmead's state-
ment that the specimen he had was probably a cotype of C.
rufiventris is undoubtedly wrong as the specimen will not agree
with the original description and bears only a name label in
Ashmead's hand writing and the printed label "Through C. V.
Riley." This case is covered by opinion 65.

RADIOTELEGRAPHY.-A/'o/^5 on beat reception. L. W. Aus-
tin and W. F. Grimes, U. S. Naval Radio Research Labora-
tory.

Effect of Regeneration.— According to some authorities, the
great sensitiveness of the oscillating tube is mostly due to its

AUSTIN AND GRIMES: BEAT ElECEPTION 1 75

regeneration, while, according to others, the sensitiveness is
inherent in the beat method. With the autodyne the two fac-
tors are impossible to separate, but with the heterodyne this can
be done. The experiment was made as follows: The regular
laboratory long wave set with magnetic back coupling and with-
out grid condenser was used, but with the back coupling much
too loose for local oscillations. Oscillations were then produced
by a separate heterodyne and audibilities taken on Nauen, the
heterodyne coupling being adjusted to give the best signal.
Then the back coupling of the regular set was increased to a
point just before autodyne oscillations were set up and where
with spark signals strong regeneration would be noted, but no
increase in Nauen signals was observed even with retuning.
The removal of the plate coil and bridging condenser from the
receiving set, thus reducing it to a primitive audion, also had no
effect.

Next, with a heterodyne coupling too loose to give the best
signal, autodyne regeneration increased the strength of signal;
that is, it seems that the back coupling of the receiving set re-
generates the local oscillations so as to bring them up to optimum
value, but has no observable effect on the strength of received
signals. It may' be that the resultant increase in sensitiveness
due to regeneration and that due to oscillation is the sum rather
than the product of the two, so that when they are added, the
smaller increase due to regeneration is hidden by the great in-
crease due to the oscillations.

Best Strength of Local Oscillations. — For the range 1-5000
audibility, the best signal is obtained with the same strength of
local oscillations for any given circuit and wave-length. The
optimum value varies with different vacuum tubes and with
different ratios of inductance to capacity, increasing with in-
creasing capacity.

Law of Response and Autodyne and Heterodyne. — In 191 5, it
was discovered (Joum. Wash. Acad., 6: 81. 1916), that the law
of response of the oscillating tube (autodyne) within the Hmits
of obser\^ational error, was linear, that is, that the telephone
current was proportional to the first power of the radio frequenc

176 AUSTIN AND GRIMEJS: BEAT RECEPTION

received current in the antenna, instead of proportional to the
square, as in the non-oscillating tube, the crystal, electrolytic,
etc.

Recently experiments have been made which prove that the
linear response law holds for tubes and also for crystal detectors
when local oscillations are produced by a heterodyne. Dr.
J. M. Miller has suggested that the linear law might not hold if
the local oscillations were very weak, for example, if excited by a
heterodyne with very loose coupling, but experiment shows that
even here there is linear proportionality within the errors of
observation.

Introduction of Resistance in the Oscillating Grid Circuit. —
It was discovered in 1915 that if an oscillating vacuum tube
(autodyne) be coupled to an antenna or loop, any amount of
resistance can be introduced in the secondary circuit without
reducing the strength of signal, provided the back coupling be
strengthened so as to keep the local oscillations at the same
strength. This resistance may amount to many thousand
ohms, while a small fraction of this resistance, if placed in the
antenna or loop circuit, will reduce the signal to silence. Re-
cently it has been found that the same is approximately true
with a plain vacuum tube, and even with a crystal detector,
when excited to local oscillations by a heterodyne.

In the early experiments the phenomenon was ascribed to a
negative resistance action, but this is hardly possible, since the
grid circuit is out of tune with the signal, and of course the ex-
planation could hardly be applied to the heterodyne or crystal.
As a consequence of the above facts, it follows that with an os-
cillating receiving tube connected directly in a loop, the strength
of received signal is independent of the loop resistance. This
has been verified by experiment.

Effect of Varying the Capacity-Inductance Ratio in Os-
cillating Receiving Tube Circuits. — As the vacuum tube is a
voltage operated detector of signals, it has been supposed that
the sensibility will be greater, the greater the inductance capacity
ratio in the grid circuit. It was reported in 191 7 (Proc. I. R. E.
5: 245. 191 7) that the sensibility was independent of this

AUSTIN AND GRIMES: BEAT RECEPTION l^^

ratio. Recent experiments made on Nauen with inductances
varying from 2.5 mh. to 36 mh. again showed no change in sen-
sibiHty, provided the local oscillations were kept at the optimum
value. The telephone current appears to be proportional to the
square root of the antenna watts.

Heterodyne, Autodyne and Sensitizing Circuit. — Commander
A. H. Taylor and also Mr. Israel have found that for long waves
the heterodyne with vacuum bulb is more sensitive than the
autodyne. The explanation being that with the heterodyne
the secondary can be set exactly on the signal wave-length,
while with the autodyne it must be detuned to produce the beats.

In the Research Laboratory it has been found that there is no
difference in sensibility, provided the optimum coupling be-
tween the primary and secondary is maintained in both cases.
With a loose coupling as used by Commander A. H. Taylor,
the signal with heterodyne is stronger unless a sensitizing cir-
cuit is used with the autodyne. The sensitizing circuit reported
in 1915 (Proc. I. R. E., 4: 251. 1916) is a circuit consisting of an
inductance and condenser so coupled to the secondar}-^ that the
latter is given two free wave-lengths, one of which corresponds
to the wave-length of the incoming signal, while the other gives
the beat frequency. With the sensitizing circuit the autodyne
is equal to or better than the heterodyne in sensibility at any
coupling. Probably at the optimum main coupling the antenna
itself acts to a certain extent as a sensitizing circuit.

While the sensitizing circuit has the advantage of being far
simpler than the heterodyne, it is found that the heterodyne is
less subject to interference.

Regeneration of Spark Signals. — It has been suggested that
possibly the strengthening of spark signals observed with the
autodyne when the back coupling is closed to a point just before
the note is roughened by the local oscillations may be due to
very weak oscillations not strong enough to effect the note.
Experiments have, therefore, been made with weak heterodyne
coupling to see if the same phenomenon could be found as with
the autodyne. No strengthening in the spark signal was ob-
served until the note was roughened.

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.

TECHNOLOGY. — Effects of glucose and salts on the wearing quality
of sole leather. P. L. WormelEy, R. C. Bowker, R. W. Hart,
L. M. Whitmore and J. B. ChurchiIvIv. Bur. Standards Techn.
Paper 138. Pp. 38, pis. 2, figs. 23. 1919.
This paper contains a description of the methods used and the re-
sults obtained from the first of a series of tests to be made on this
subject. Four brands of leather were tested; two tannages to which
very small amounts of glucose and salts were added and two tannages
to which larger amounts of these materials were added. The experi-
mental work consisted of actual service tests on shoes, tests on a lab-
oratory wearing machine, water absorption tests and complete chemical
analyses of the original and worn leathers. Results are presented which
show the variation in wear of the different leathers, the variation in
wear of soles cut from different locations on the hide, the water ab-
sorption qualities of the leathers and the variation in chemical com-
position of the leathers in different parts of the hide for both the new and
worn soles. From the results of the test there is no indication that the
addition of glucose and salts is either beneficial or detrimental to the
durability of the leather and it is conclusively shown that the greater
part of the added glucose and salts was lost from the leather during
wear while the other water-soluble materials appeared to be retained
in the leather. P. L. W.

ANTHROPOLOGY. — Native villages and village sites east of the Missis-
sippi. David I. Bushnell, Jr. Bur. Amer. Ethn. Bull. 69.
Pp. Ill, pi. 17, figs. 12.
The material for this paper has been drawn mainly from the writings
of early travelers, supplemented to a large extent by the results of
modern archaeological explorations. A short description of the country
and people, embodying the results of the latest researches, introduces
the subject, and a bibliography of 7 1 titles concludes it.

J. R. S wanton.
178

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

82 2D MEETING

The 822d meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, October 25, 1919,
and was called to order at 8.25 p.m. by President Humphreys. At-
tendance, 52.

J. H. Bellinger: Principles of radio transmission and reception
with antenna and coil aerials.

The paper was illustrated by lantern slides and was discussed by
Messrs. G. W. Littlehales, W. J. Humphreys, C. E. Mendenhall,
William Bowie, and General G. O. Squier. This paper has been
abstracted in this Journal (9: 641. Dec. 4, 1919).

F. L. MoHLER, Paul D. Foote and H. F. Stimson: Ionization and
resonance potentials for electrons in vapors of lead and calcium. This
paper was presented by Mr. FooTE and was illustrated by lantern
slides.

Measurements of electron currents in three-electrode vacuum tubes
of the type previously described have been made in vapors of lead and
calcium. The lead and calcium were boiled in porcelain tubes at tem-
peratures of about 1000° and 900° C, respectively. Current-voltage
curves in lead showed a resonance potential of 1.26 volts and an ioniza-
tion potential of 7.93 volts. Applying the quantum relation Ve =
hv we find that 1.26 volts corresponds, within experimental error, to the
frequency of a strong infrared spectrum line at X = 10,291 A, giving
a theoretical value of the resonance potential 1.198 volts.

In calcium two resonance potentials were found at 1.90 volts and at
2.85 volts, of which the first is the more prominent. Ionization oc-
curred at 6.01 volts. The ionization potential corresponds to the
limit of the principal series 1.5 5, X = 2027 A, giving as the theoretical
value V = 6.081 volts. The first resonance is determined by the Hne
1.5 5 — 2 ^2, X = 6572.78 A, V = 1.877 volts. ^The second resonance
corresponds to the line 1.5 5 — 2 P, X = 4226.73 A, V = 2.918 volts.

The spectral relations of the first resonance potential and ionization
potential are analogous to the relation found with other metals in this
group. Work of other observers shows that both the lines 1.5 vS — 2 P
and 1.5 S — 2p2 appear below the ionization potential in most metals of
this group.

This paper was discussed by Mr. White.

E. C. Crittenden, Corresponding Secretary.

• 179

l8o PROCEEDINGS: PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY

823D MEETING

The 823d meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, November 8, 19 19,
with President Humphreys in the chair, and 55 persons present.

R. W. G. Wyckoff: The nature of the forces between atoms in solids .

This paper, which has since been published in this Journal (9: 565.
Nov. 19, 19 19) was illustrated by lantern shdes and discussed by Messrs.
Sosman, White, Humphreys and Bray.

H. L. Curtis, R. C. Duncan and H. H. Moore: Methods of mea-
suring ballistic phenomena on a battleship. The paper was presented
by Mr. Curtis.

In 191 7, apparatus was designed for obtaining the relative time of
ejections of the three shells, when the three guns of one turret of a battle-
ship were fired simultaneously. The method consisted in having a
condenser charged to a high potential and circuits so arranged that
when the shell emerged from the gun it short-circuited two wires which
were stretched in front of the gun, thus completing the electric circuit
and discharging the condenser through a point on a chronograph drum.
The method was satisfactory although the spark which was produced
was not as vigorous as had been expected. Tt was later shown that this
was caused by the discharge taking place through the hot ionized gas
which preceded the shell. This, however, did not appreciably affect
the results, since approximately the same interval existed in all the
guns.

It was soon found advisable to use a method which would be more
flexible than the spark method outlined above. After careful considera-
tion of the possible methods available, it was decided to use an oscillo-
graph as a timing instrument. An oscillograph is simply a galvanometer
of very high period which is critically damped, and which is arranged
for photographing the movements of the mirror on a moving film.
Three of these galvanometers or oscillograph elements are usually
mounted in one instrument, all giving records on one film. To use this
for timing various events, it is simply necessary to arrange an electric
circuit in such a way that the events will produce a change in the elec-
tric circuit through the oscillograph element, thus causing a deflection
of the mirror of the oscillograph element which is registered on the
photographic film. It is also necessary to know the velocity of the
film.

To obtain the velocity of the film, a tuning fork having small plates
on the prongs is employed. When the tuning fork is at rest, a fine slit
is cut through the two plates. The tuning fork is then mounted so
that a beam of light passes through this slit and makes a line on the
film when both the fork and the film are at rest. If now the fork vi-
brates and the film is in motion, lines will be produced on the film giving
an accurate record of the velocity of the film. This method has already
been described in a paper before the Society.'

The above method has been used to obtain with a single oscillograph

1 Meeting of May 24, 1919, abstracted in this Journal, 9: 642., Dec. 4, 1919-

PROCEEDINGS: WASHINGTON SOCIETY OF ENGINEERS l8l

element a number of time intervals between the closing of the firing
circuit and the ejection of the shell from the gun. It is only necessary
to so arrange the circuits that each event will produce a characteristic
record on the film.

To obtain a record of a motion which is continuous, such as the re-
coil of the gim, a step-by-step method has been adopted. This consists
of a series of contacts so arranged that at definite distances there will
be a sudden change in the resistance of the circuit. This will produce a
small but definite movement of the oscillograph element so that the
time when this occurred is recorded on the oscillograph film. Then,
from the known positions of the contacts, and the measured times,
a curve can be plotted which will show the rate at which the movement
took place.

This step-by-step method has the advantage that both the distances
and the time can be accurately measured. Hence, at the points where
the change in resistance takes place, the position and time are deter-
mined with a high degree of accuracy. If a curve is plotted, using time
and position as coordinates, this curve is very accurate at all points,
excepting where the motion is changing direction. If the total motion
is known, the curve can be made accurate at this point also.

The above method has been used in the design of a recoil-meter.
The steps are not the same throughout the entire length of recoil, but
are shorter during the first part of the curve and longer during the latter
portion. This increases the accuracy during the first part of recoil
where a study of the motion of the gim is most important. Very satis-
factory curves have been obtained.

The same principle has also been employed in the design of a kine-
meter, which is an instrument for obtaining the motion of the gun in a
direction perpendicular to its axis. This instrument is designed on the
same principle as a seismograph, and has also given satisfactory^ results.

This paper was illustrated by lantern slides, and was discussed by
Messrs. L. J. Briggs, White, Hawkesworth and Hull.

The meeting adjourned at lo.io and was followed by a social hour.

S. J. Mauchly, Recording Secretary.

WASHINGTON SOCIETY OF ENGINEERS

Fourteen meetings of the Society were held during the year 1919, as
follows :

January 15, 1919: Charles R. Mann, Professor of Education and
Director of Educational Research, Engineering education.

February 5, 1919: Major C. H. West, Chemical Warfare Service,
U. S. Army, Use of poisonous gases in modern warfare.

February 19, 1919: Brigadier-General Samuel T. Ansell, Acting
Judge Advocate General of the Army, Relationship of the engineer to the
Army.

1 82 proceedings: Washington society of engineers

March 5, 1919: Marshall O. Leighton, Consulting Engineer,
Great Falls water power and its relation to the District of Columbia.

March 19, 1919: Charles H. Paul, Assistant Chief Engineer,
Miami Conservancy District, Dayton, Ohio, Flood prevention works in
the Miami Valley.

April 2, 1919: R. B. Canfield, Electrical Engineer, Development of
electric traction. Motion picture, King of the rails.

April 16, 1919: Rear Admiral C. P. Plunkett, U. S. Navy, The
Fourteen-inch Naval Battery in France.

May 7, 1919: Inspection trip to Camp A. A. Humphreys, Virginia.

October i, 1919: C. T. Chenery, Secretary of Conference on Na-
tional Public Works, A national department of public works.

October 15, 1919: Hon. Louis Brownlow, President, Board of
Commissioners, District of Columbia, The proposed building zone plan
for Washington, D. C. Captain John T. Talman, U. S. A., Plans and
progress of the Key Bridge.

November 5, 1919: H. T. Cory, Consulting Engineer, U. S. Recla-
mation Service, Reclamation of land in the South.

November 19, 191 9: General discussion of preliminary report of
Engineering Council's Committee on Classification and Compensation
of Engineers in the service of the Federal Government, led by John
C. HoYT, Hydraulic Engineer, U. S.j Geological Survey. Members of
all of the affiliated Societies of the jIcademy were invited to attend this
meeting. 4 ^

December 3, 1919: Annual dinner. Speakers: Hon. Edwin F.
Sweet, Acting Secretary of Commerce; Hon. Henry W. Temple,
Member of Congress; Dr. Hollis Godfrey, President, Drexel Institute;
Mr. Philip N. Moore, Consulting Engineer.

December 17, 191 9: Annual meeting for the election of officers.
The following officers were elected for the year 1920: President, E. C.
Barnard; Vice-President, R. L. Faris; Treasurer, G. P. Springer;
Secretary, W. E. Parker; Directors, E. F. Wendt, Morris Hacker,
John C. Hoyt, Oscar C. Merrill, Anthony F. Lucas, C. H. Birdseye,
J. S. Conway, F. W. Albert; Committee on Membership, R. L. Faris,
J. S. Conway, C. H. Birdseye; Coinmittee on Meetings, F. W. Albert,
Oscar C. Merrill, R. H. Dalgleish, B. P. Lamberton, Jr., James
H. Van Wagenen.

W. E. Parker, Secretary.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

The Committee on Nomenclature, of the American Ornithologists'
Union, consisting of Messrs. Wither Stone; (Chairman), editor of
The Auk; Jonathan Dwight, of the American Museum of Natural
History; H. C. Oberholser, of the Biological Survey and C. W. Rich-
mond, of the National Museum, met in Washington on February 11-12,
to consider the revision of the A. O. U. check-list of North American
birds.

The Bureau of Biological Survey, U. S. Department of Agriculture,
has begun a campaign, with State and local assistance, against pocket
gophers in Arizona. The gopher destroys fruit trees and crops and also
does considerable damage to irrigation ditches.

Several European starlings, all captured near the District of Colum-
bia, have been presented recently to the National Zoological Park.
This imported bird is becoming iiacreasingly numerous around Wash-
ington.

A fundamental mercurial standard for testing sphygmomanometers,
used for the measurement of blood pressure, has been constructed at
the Bureau of Standards. There 'c npears to be a great variation in the
different types of blood-pressure ^ ^es now in use, and a fundamental
study of their accuracy and design is needed.

A special camera for taking panoramic photographs of the interior
of gun barrels which have been subjected to firing tests has been de-
signed at the Bureau of vStandards and is now under construction.

Recent investigations at the Bureau of Standards on wood columns
from some of the temporary war buildings erected in Washington,
made of green timber which has warped and cracked in seasoning,
show that when warping and bending have occurred the strength is
considerably reduced, but that cracking due to seasoning does not weaken
the columns as long as they remain straight.

Mr. ly. B. Aldrich, of the Astrophysical Observatory, Smithsonian
Institution, has built and partly tested a new "honeycomb pyranometer"
for measuring nocturnal radiation. Tests so far completed are very
promising. The flat-black surface of the ordinary pyranometer, which
is not a physically perfect "black body" for the long wave-lengths
radiated by the earth, is replaced by a surface made up of about 200
triangular cells, each about 3 mm. on a side by 13 mm. deep. A silvered
mirror below effectively doubles the depth .

Dr. Paul Bartsch, of the National Museum, gave an illustrated
lecture before the Nature Study Section of the Twentieth Century
Club in February on "The ferns of the District of Columbia."

183

184 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Mr. Harvey BasslER, who has held a temporary appointment on
the U. S. Geological Survey since 191 1 while a student at Johns Hop-
kins University, has joined the permanent stafif of the Survey as assist-
ant geologist, and has been engaged in field work in the Virgin River
Oil Field, Utah.

Mr. HoYT S. Gale, geologist in charge of the section of non-metal-
liferous deposits of the Division of Geology, U. S. Geological Survey,
who recently returned from Europe where he examined and reported
on the potash deposits for the Geological Survey and Bureau of Mines,
is on furlough for five months to make an examination of the oil fields
of eastern Bolivia.

Mr. K. C. Heald, geologist of the U. S. Geological Survey, is re-
turning from Bolivia by way of the Amazon to the east coast of Brazil.

Mr. George Livingston, who has been acting chief of the Bureau of
Markets, U. S. Department of Agriculture, since the resignation of Mr.
Charles J. Brand, was appointed chief of the Bureau on January 27.
Mr. Livingston came to the Department in 1915 as assistant marketing
specialist.

Sir Oliver Lodge gave two lectures in Washington on February 10
and 1 1 on psychical subjects.

Rear Admiral Robert Edwin Peary, U. S. N. (Retired), died at
his home, 1831 Wyoming Avenue, on February 20, 1920, in his sixty-
fourth year. Admiral Peary was born at Cresson, Pennsylvania,
May 6, 1856. He began his government service as a draftsman in
the U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, and in 1881 became a lieutenant
in the U. vS. Navy. In 1886 he began the series of Arctic explorations
which culminated in his attainment of the North Pole on April 6, 1909.

Dr. Waldemar T. SchallER has resigned as chemist in the Division
of Physical and Chemical Research, U. S. Geological Survey, and has
accepted a position with the Great Southern Sulphur Company, In-
corporated, of New Orleans, Louisiana, operating at Orla, Texas.

Dr. Charles D. Walcott, Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution,
has been elected a foreign member of the Kungliga Svenska Veten-
skapsakademien (Royal Swedish Academy) of vStockholm.

ERRATUM.
On page 34, line 14 from the bottom of the page for 17 18 read
1817.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. io APRIL 4, 1920 No. 7

MATHEMATICS. — A graphical method for plotting reciprocals.'^
F. K. Wright, Geophysical Laboratory, Carnegie Institu-
tion of Washington.

In the search for a mathematical function which shall represent
satisfactorily the data obtained from a series of experiments
it is convenient in certain instances to plot the reciprocals of
one of the variables and from the curve thus obtained to deduce
the form of the desired equation. Thus a rectangular hyperbola
under these conditions becomes a straight line from the equation
of which that of the hyperbola can be written down directly.
The obvious procedure is either to compute the reciprocals of
the given data or to use paper so ruled that the ordinate-scale
js the reciprocal scale i/y.

A second method may, however, be employed which does not
require special computations. The principle of the method is
illustrated in figure i. Ordinary cross-section paper is used;
the ordinate-scale (F-scale) remains unchanged; the X-scale
(not necessarily x but any function of x which it may be desired
to use) is transferred from the X-axis (OD) to the horizontal
line at unit distance {FA, y = i) from the axis; a series of radi-
ating lines is drawn from the origin through the divisions of the
X-scale, each radiating line {x\) corresponding to the A'-scale
division which it intercepts. The intersection of one of these
diagonal lines (x'l) with the ordinate (^^'i) is the point P' in pro-
jection, just as the intersection of the ordinate (yi) and the ab-
scissa (xi) in ordinary projection fixes the position of the point

' Received February ii, 1920.

185

i86

WRIGHT: METHOD FOR PI.OTTING RECIPROCAL,S

P. In the similar triangles ADO and CED (Fig. i) AD = i,
OD = X, CE = y' = BD = y, and OE = %' ; also OEICE =
ODIAD or

x' = x.y and y' = >'. (i)

The expression for a curve obtained in the one projection can

Fig. I . — In this figure a series of straight lines are drawn through the origin 0 and
the divisions of the ^-scale along FA , which has been displaced to unit distance
from the X-axis. The radiating lines correspond in this projection to the ver-
tical lines in the usual rectangular coordinate projection. Thus the point B of
the curve KB in the ordinary projection becomes the point C (intersection of the
ordinate Y with the radial line OA).

be transformed to that for the corresponding curve in the second
projection by substituting in it for x' the value xy (equation (i))
in the first expression.

To illustrate the method and the significance of the projection
let the encircled points in figure i represent the data obtained in a
series of experiments and plotted in the usual manner on co-
ordinate paper. To ascertain the equation of the curve KB
which passes through these points draw the radiating lines {x')
from the origin through the X-scale plotted on the line (>' = i) ;
find the points of intersection of the ordinates y' (= y) with the

WRIGHT: METHOD FOR PLOTTING RECIPROCALS

187

corresponding radiating lines {x'). In figure i these points of
intersection are indicated by crosses. The curve KB' passing
through the x' points may prove to be a straight hne as in the
case shown in figure i . In this particular case the line intersects
the A'-axis at 2.4 and the Y-axis at 3.0; its equation is accordingly

y = - 1.25X' -f 3.G0.
The equation of the x,y curve is therefore (by equation (i))

y (1.25X + i) = 3.00
the equation of a rectangular hyperbola. In case the line KB'
is not a straight line, but a curve for which the mathematical
expression can be ascertained, this expression can be converted
directly into the desired equation in ordinary coordinates.

Fig. 2. — Illustrating the principle on which the foregoing method of plotting recip-
rocals is based. Thus the rectangular coordinate projection normal to the Z-axis
(front face of cube) becomes a projection with lines radiating from the center in
the projection planes normal to the X-axis or the F-axis of the orthogonal system
of spacial coordinates.

The lengths of the intercepts of the radiating x' lines on
the vertical line at unit distance from the origin (x = i) are,
moreover, the reciprocals of the A'-scale values, or i/x.

1 88 metcaIvF: notes on north dakota plants

The principle of this method of plotting on radiating lines
instead of parallel ordinates becomes clear when it is realized
that all parallel lines in a projection meet at a point at infinity.
If we consider the projection plane to be one of the faces of a
cube in which a sphere of unit radius is inscribed, and each point
in the projection to be the intersection of a line from the center
of the sphere with the projection plane (gnomonic projection);
then an ordinate {CP) in the projection plane normal to the Z-
axis (front face of the cube, figure 2) represents a plane which
contains the F-axis, and hence becomes a radiating line {OD)
in the projection plane normal to the F-axis (top face of the cube,
figure 2).

If the coordinates of the projections normal to the Z-X-Y-
axes be designated x,y, x' ,y' , and x" ,y" , respectively (Fig. 2),
the coordinates of a point P{x,y) become y^= x' /y' = i/x" and
X = i/y' = y" /x" in the other projections, respectively. A
straight line y = ax -\- b (such as GH, Fig. 2) becomes by' =
x' - a and ay" = -bx" -^ 1 (as line HE, Fig. 2), in the other
projections.

BOTANY.— Notes on North Dakota Plants. F. P. Metcai^P,
Biological Survey.

During the summer of 191 7 the writer and D. C. Mabbott
were engaged in conducting an extensive survey of the marsh
and aquatic plants of North Dakota for the Biological Survey,
U. S. Department of Agriculture. This was an exceedingly
valuable opportunity to study intensively the marsh and aquatic
flora throughout the state. The results of this work were so
interesting from the standpoint of plant distribution that it
was thought advisable to make known the most salient features
in a preliminary paper.

Before this work could be completed the writer was called to
the military service and for nineteen months had no time to
think of North Dakota and its plants. This was fortunate for
one reason, at least, in that in September, 191 8, Bergman's
Flora of North Dakota^ was published. This made additional

1 Bergman, H. F. Flora of North Dakota. Sixth Biennial Report, North Dakota
Soil and Geological Survey, 1911-12. Published September, 1918.

METCALF: NOTES ON NORTH DAKOTA PLANTS

189

notes more valuable than if based on the less complete and out-
of-date flora of Bolley & Waldron.^

Eighteen species were observed by us that have not previously
been reported in the state.

Amphicarpa Pitcheri Torrey &

Gray
Carex riparia W. Curtis
Carex scirpoides Schkuhr
Chenopodium humile Hooker
Cornus Amomum Miller
J uncus alpinus Villars
Cyperus diandrus Torrey
Erigeron annuus (L.) Persoon

Najas marina L.

Potamogeton praelongus Wulfen

Prunus Besseyi Bailey

Prunus serotina Ehrhart

Rumex Brittannica L.

Salix prinoides Pursh

Scirpus nevadensis Watson

Sparganium americanunt Nuttall

Suaeda linearis (Ell) Moquin-

Tandon
Utricularia minor L.

The majority of these plants are from stations that fall well
within the range of manuals covering the region, from which
they have been omitted partly by mistake and partly from the lack
of intensive work throughout the state. Erigeron annuus E.,
Carex riparia W. Curtis, and C. scirpoides Schkuhr are exception-
ally good examples of this occurrence. Others of the plants
listed were found on the extreme western border of their known
general range, as Cyperus diandrus Torrey and Juncus alpinus
Villars. By far the most interesting of all, however, were the
plants whose known range previously did not extend into North
Dakota.

Western plants extending

eastward
Scirpus nevadensis Watson

Eastern plants extending

westward
Amphicarpa Pitcheri Torrey &

Gray
Cornus Amomum Miller
Najas marina L.
Rumex Brittannica L.
Sparganium americanum Nuttall
Suaeda linearis (Ell) Moquin-Tandon

No striking northern or southern extensions were recorded.
Of the eastern group, four out of six are known to occur west-
ward to Minnesota or South Dakota and rarely (in one case)

2 Boi^LEY, H. L., and Waldron, L. R. Preliminary list of seed-bearing plants
of North Dakota. North Dakota Agric. Coll. Exp. Station, Bull. 46. 1900.

I90 MSTCAIvF: NOTES ON NORTH DAKOTA PLANTS

to North Dakota, but the other two are extremely unusual,
one, Sparganium americanum Nuttall not having been recorded
west of Iowa and the other Suaeda linearis (Ell) Moquin-Tandon
being known only along the coast and in the extreme southwest.
The appearance of this alkaline-saline-loving plant inland
may very well be compared to that of a few of the salt-loving
plants known only from the coast and isolated inland stations
in Western New York. As an addition to this group should be
mentioned Salix serissima (Bailey) Fernald, and 5. tristis Al-
lioni, both previously known from the state but found by us
growing in localities considerably more western than previously
reported.

Scirpus nevadensis Watson seems to hold alone the distinction
of being a new plant to North Dakota that has a more western
range; this plant is rather common throughout the state and it
appears strange that it has not been recognized before; it is
always restricted to the strongly alkaline-saline lakes. One
may add also three other species known previously in North
Dakota, two of which, however, are here first reported east of
the Missouri River, Munroa squarrosa (Nuttall) Torrey and
Stanyleya pinnata (Pursh) Britton, and one, Thelypodium in-
tegrijolium (Nuttall) Endlicher, which was known from Dawson
but was found in the vicinity of Sink Lake, a few miles farther
northeast.

A number of other records have been given also; these fall

into two main groups, first those of plants that are decidedly

rare throughout North Dakota and for which one or more new

localities are cited, and second those whose distribution in the

state as given in manuals is inadequate and often incorrect.

Listed below are the most important of the first group or rarer

plants :

Arctostaphylos Uva-ursi (L.) Potamogeton zosterifolius Schu-

Sprengel macher

Juncus longistylis Torrey Sagittaria latifolia Willdenow

Opuntia fragilis Haworth Salix Candida Fluegge

Potamogeton Friesii Ruprecht Spiranthes romanzoffiana Cham-

isso

Most of these are rare on account of their restriction to certain

METCALP: NOTES ON NORTH DAKOTA PLANTS I91

definite ecological conditions such as are afforded by sand hills,
swampy bogs or fresh water all of which are only occasionally
or locally found in the state.

The second group, namely, plants of imperfectly known dis-
tribution is taken up in detail in the subjoined list; here also
will be found complete data for all plants mentioned in this ar-
ticle, with actual citations of specimens collected. It may be
well to add that all specimens collected by D. C. Mabbott are so
labeled; the others recorded were obtained by the writer. All
specimens have been placed in the U. S. National Herbarium
at Washington.

There is no doubt in the writer's mind that the number of new
plants added by this paper to the flora of North Dakota is small
in comparison with the number that will be found upon further
collecting. North Dakota is a great field for intensive botanical
field investigation especially in working out interesting problems
in eastern and western distribution.

Grateful acknowledgement is hereby made to Carleton R.
Ball of the U. S. Department of Agriculture, for determinations
of species of Salix and to W. L. McAtee for assistance and timely
suggestions.

LIST OF PLANTS

Sparganhim antencannm Nuttall. Not previously recorded from
the state. Range here greatly extended westward as formerly unknown
west of Iowa. Rather common in Riverside Marsh, Mandan, Morton
Co. (No. 377, Aug. 27, 1917), and frequent along border of Bismarck
Slough, Burleigh Co.

Potamogeton Friesii Ruprecht. Lunell^ reports this from "Jamestown
in James River and Lake Ibsen (extinct)." Bergman, however, does
not give this record. Found only in Upsilon (No. 479, Sept. 8, 1917,
D. C. Mabbott) and Jarves Lakes, Rolette Co., in the Turtle Moun-
tains.

Potamogeton heterophyUus Schreber. Found abundantly in Bismarck
(No. 355, Aug. 24, 1917) and King (No. 345, Aug. 24, 1917) Sloughs,
Burleigh Co.; Max Slough and Big Slough (No. 471, Sept. 6, 1917),
near Underwood, McLean Co. Bergman reports this plant from four
localities (Kulm, Spiritwood, Leeds and Wahpeton).

Potamogeton natans Linnaeus. Frequent throughout the Turtle
Mountains, rare elsewhere. Bergman reports this only from Lake

5 LuNELL, J. "Enumerantur Plantae Dakotae Septentrionalis Vasculares."
Am. Mid. Nat. 4-5: July, 1915-July, 1917.

192 METCALF: NOTES ON NORTH DAKOTA PLANTS

Metigoshe and St. John, Turtle Mountains. Also observed there (No.
544, Sept. 2 1, 191 7) and in Roland Twp.*S. 16, S. 4-9, and Pelican Lakes,
Bottineau Co.; Upsilon (No. 459, Sept. 7, 191 7, D. C. Mabbott)
Carpenter, Crowell and Jarves Lakes, Rolette Co. and Foothill Twp.
S. 20-39, Burke Co.

Potamogeton perfoliatus Linnaeus. Abundant in the northern coun-
ties of the state, less abundant in the southern tier of counties ; prefers
shallow, slightly alkaline or fresh water. This species was represented
by two forms, one of which was characterized by sessile, lanceolate to
narrow ovate-lanceolate leaves with acuminate apex agreeing with P.
Richardsonii (Bennet) Rydberg (P. perfoliatus Richardsonii Bennett) ;
the other with clasping perfoliate, ovate-lanceolate to ovate leaves with
acute apex representing P. perfoliatus L. Every possible intermediate
intergradation between these two forms was found, suggesting that
all should be treated as belonging to a single species.

Potamogeton praelongus Wulfen. Not previously reported from the
state but comes within general range commonly given. Found spar-
ingly in Pelican Lake, Bottineau Co. in the Turtle Mountains (No. 546,
Sept. 24, 1 91 7).

Potamogeton zosterifolius Schumacher. Rather rare, only found in
King Slough, Burleigh Co. (No. 344, Aug. 24, 191 7); Painted Woods
Lake, McLean Co. (No. 440, Sept. 3, 1917) and Jim Lake, Stutsman Co.
(No. 315a, Aug. 14, 1917, D. C. Mabbott). Bergman reports this only
from St. John and Lake Ibsen (extinct).

Ruppia maritima Linnaeus. Abundant throughout the state in
slightly alkaline-saline or saline water. A few plants were noted that
approach very closely to R. occidentalis Watson of Britton and Brown's
Manual (sheaths \^li'-2' and achenes iV2"-2"); others less vigorous
(sheaths 3 "-4" and achenes i") resemble R. maritima; another
approaches var. longipes Hagstrom and one, very much stunted seems
identical with R. maritima var. rostrata Agardh. (Rhodora, Vol.
16, No. 167, pp. 1 19-127). However, the large forms that approached
R. occidentalis were always found in the least alkaline lakes under the
most favorable conditions (Brush Lake, McLean Co., No. 457, Sept.
5, 19 1 7, total concentration of salts 1 103 parts per million and Thompson
Lake, Burke Co., No. 564, Oct. 2, 1917, no fruit); forms representing
typical R. maritima in somewhat similar or slightly more alkaline lakes
(Isabel Lake, Kidder Co., No. 209, Aug. 6, 1917, total concentration of
salts 2512 parts per million; Long Lake, Underwood, McLean Co., No.
405, Sept. I, 1 91 7, total concentration of salts 457 parts per million;
Salt Lake, Dawson, Kidder Co., No. 209, Aug. 6, 191 7, total concentra-
tion of salts 3906 parts per million), while on the other hand the less
vigorous forms, var. longipes Hagstrom were found under adverse con-
ditions in the strongly alkaline-saline lakes (Moon Lake, Barnes Co.,
No. 220, Aug. 3, 191 7, D. C. Mabbott, total concentration of salts
5,779 parts per million), and the most stunted of all R. maritima
var. rostrata was found in the very salt Kellys vSlough, Grand Forks

* Township, Section 16, Section 4-9, etc.

METCALF: NOTES ON NORTH DAKOTA PLANTS 1 93

Co. (No. 507, Sept. 20, 1917, D. C. Mabbott), similar to Minto Lake
with a total concentration of salts of 25,210 parts per million. Un-
fortunately fruit in many cases could not be found but after this sum-
mer's investigation of numerous lakes of extremely different types,
evidence in North Dakota seems to point to the fact that the so-called
species and varieties of this plant are primarily connected with the
concentration of salts in the water. Bergman reports this plant only
from Dawson.

Najas marina Linnaeus. Not previously reported from the state.
Range extended westward as manuals give Minnesota as the extreme
northwestern limit. Only observed in Lake Elsie (No. 60, July 23,
1917) and Mud Lake (No. 148, July 24, 1917), Richland Co., where it
was fairly abundant.

Sagittaria latifolia Willdenow. Rare; only reported from Mud Lake
Richland Co. (No. 135, Aug. 24, 1917); Dawson Slough and Horseshoe,
Lake, Kidder Co. (No. 325, Aug. 18, 1917). Bergman reports this from
Neche.

Elodea canadensis Michaux. Frequent throughout the state in fresh
water ponds and sloughs; observed in Bismarck Slough, Burleigh Co.
(No. 358, Aug. 24, 1917); John Wilde Lake, Emmons Co.; Mercer and
Max Lakes, McLean Co.; Ward Lake (No. 569, Oct. 2, 1917), Clayton
Twp., S. 30-29 Lake (No. 590, Oct. 5, 1917), and Foothills Twp., S. 28
Lake in Burke Co. and Jim Lake (No. 321a, Aug. 14, 1917, D. C.
Mabbott) in Stutsman Co. Bergman records this plant from La
Moure, Jamestown and Leeds.

Munroa squarrosa (Nuttall) Torrey. This plant was found near
Wanitah Lake, Foster Co. (No. 387, Aug. 22, 1917, D. C. Mabbott),
much farther east than hitherto reported. Previously it has not been
observed east of the Missouri River, the only two localities known in
the state being Mandan and Medora, west of the Missouri River
(Bergman).

Sphenopholis ohtusata (Michx) Scribner var. lohata (Trinius) Scribner.
Not previously recorded from the state. Frequent ; Bergman considered
all the material collected as the true species ohtusata; all the plants col-
lected by the writer were clearly the variety lohata; Buckhouse Slough,
Richland Co. (No. 94 and No. 116, July 23, 1917); Moon Lake, Barnes
Co. (No. 212, Aug. 3, 1917, D. C. Mabbott).

Scolochloa festucacea (Willdenow) Link. Very common throughout
the state; the characteristic grass of Mallard Slough; reported from over
twenty-one counties. Bergman lists this plant only from Fargo,
Valley City and Ft. Totten.

Cyperus diandrus Torrey. Not previously reported in the state,
considered here to be at the extreme western border of its range. Found
only along border of Moran Lake, Richland Co. (No. 182, July 27,

1917).

Scirpiis occidentalis (Watson) Chase and Scirpus Validus Vahl.
The former is abundant throughout the state in marshes and sloughs,
and the latter frequent but not clearly distinguishable from 5. occi-

194 METCALF: NOTES ON NORTH DAKOTA PLANTS

dentalis; these two intergrade so completely that it is very doubtful
if 5. occidentalis should exist as a separate species; it is unfortunate that
the majority of the specimens can be referred to the type S. occidentalis
but S. validus having priority must stand. Under favorable conditions
when validus was found in spring}^ places, the soft, light green, thickened
culm was apparent and distinguishable from the much harder olive-
green culm of 5. occidentalis, but here usually this character was too
variable to be used for identifying the two species. Again, the broader
achene and longer spikelet of 5. occidentalis are considered valuable
characters in distinguishing this species from 5. validns. Numerous
measurements and comparisons were made in the field with the result
that all normal or extreme variations of both factors were found in a
single patch that was all of the hard olive-green culm type. The
character of the rays, whether fiexuous or stiff, was subject to the same
variation. In the east such extensive variation has not been observed.
However, in North Dakota, until definite work has been done in growing
these two species under different conditions of alkalinity it is still a
question whether S. occidentalis is a valid species. Present evide^ice
points in the opposite direction.

Scirpiis nevadensis Watson. Not previously recorded from the state.
Rather common throughout, having been reported from 35 lakes in
10 counties. This plant has not been observed previously east of
Wyoming so that its known range is greatly extended eastward.
Specimens collected from Salt Lake, Dawson, Kidder Co. (No. 215,
Aug. 6, 1917); Bird Lake, Dawson, Kidder Co. (No. 263, Aug. 10, 1917);
Smoky Lake, McHenr}^ Co. (No. 426, Aug. 29, 1917, D. C. Mabbott).

Carex cristata Schwein. {Carex cristatella Britton.) Elsie Lake,
Richland Co. (No. 72, July 23, 191 7) and Dion Lake, Rolette Co.
(No. 472, Sept. 8, 1917, D. C. Mabbott). Bergman reports this from
Wahpeton and Walhalla.

Carex diandra Schrank var. ramosa (Boott) Femald. Buckhouse
(No. 93, July 23, 1917) and Stack (No. 169, July 26, 1917), Sloughs,
Richland Co.; Swamp Lake, Logan Co. (No. 195, Aug. 2, 1917); Fal-
kirk Lake, McLean Co. (No. 445, Sept. 3, 1917); Salt Lakes, North of
Ryder, Ward Co. (No. 481, Sept. 11, 191 7). Bergman reports this
from Pleasant Lake and Fort Totten.

Carex riparia W. Curtis. Not previously reported from the state,
which, however, comes within the range commonly given. Frequent
along the border of lakes and sloughs; Arrowwood Lake, Stutsman Co.
(No. 331, August 15, 1917, D. C. Mabbott); Girard Lake, Pierce Co.
(No. 436, Aug. 31, 1917, D. C. Mabbott) ; Hester Lake, McHenry Co.
(No. 445, Sept. 4, 1917, D. C. Mabbott); Rock Lake, Towner Co.
(No. 493, Sept. 13, 1917, D. C. Mabbott). Also observed in Cavalier,
Griggs, Foster and Ramsey Counties.

Carex rostrata var. utricularia (Boott) Bailey {Carex ultriculoria
Boott). Frequent throughout the state; Elise Lake, Richland Co.
(No. 81, July 23, 1917); South Napoleon Lake, Logan Co. (No. 185,
Aug. I, 1917); Isabel Slough, Dawson, Kidder Co. (No. 232, Aug. 8,

METCAI^F: NOTES ON NORTH DAKOTA PLANTS 1 95

1917) ; Arvidson Slough, Burke Co. (No. 567, Oct. 2, 191 7) ; Red Willow-
Lake, Griggs Co. (No. 376, Aug. 20, 1917, D. C. Mabbott). Common
in the Turtle Mountains. Bergman reports this from Ft. Totten,
Leeds and Towner.

Carex scirpoides Schkuhr. {Carex interior Bailey.) Not previously
reported from North Dakota, which, however, falls within the range
commonly given. Only collected from grassy bog along border of Elsie
Lake, Richland Co. (No. 74, July 23, 19 17).

Carex stipata Muhlenberg. Also found at Elsie Lake, Richland Co.
(July 23, 19 1 7). Bergman reports this plant from Fargo and Walhalla.

Lemna trisulca Linnaeus and L. minor Linnaeus. Both of these plants
are common throughout the state in fresh water ponds, sloughs and
springs; the former was reported from over eighteen counties, the latter
from fifteen or more. Bergman gives only three localities for the former
(Grand Forks, Walhalla and Turtle Mountains) and six for the latter.

Juncus alpinus Villars. Not previously reported from the state,
although included within the southern border of its range. Rather
frequent throughout the state in grassy bogs or wet shores bordering
lakes; reported from Elsie Lake, Richland Co. (No. 73, July 23, 1917);
Isabel Lake, Kidder Co. (No. 224, August 8, 1917); Metigoshe Lake,
Bottineau Co. (No. 524, Sept. 9, 1917); Lostwood S. 28-29, Mountrail
Co. (No. 574, Oct. 3, 191 7); Hobart (No. 240, Aug. 4, 1917, D. C.
Mabbott) and Eckelson Lakes, Barnes Co.; Smoky Lake, McHenry
Co. (No. 428, Aug. 29, 1917, D. C. Mabbott) and Upsilon Lake, Rolette
Co. (No. 449, Sep . 4, 1917, D. C. Mabbott).

Juncus longistylis Torrey. Rather rare throughout the state only
being reported from the borders of Lostwood, S. 28-29 Lake, Mountrail
Co. (No. 577, Oct. 3, 1917); Lake George and Round Lakes (No. 396,
Aug. 25, 1917, D. C. Mabbott) in McHenry Co., and McDonough Lake,
Pierce Co. Bergman records this plant from Williston.

Spiranthes romanzoffiana Chamisso. Rare, found along swampy
border of Lake George, Drake, McHenry Co. (No. 421, Aug. 28, 191 7,
D. C. Mabbott). Bergman records this plant from McLeod, Towner
and Devils Lake.

Salix Candida Fluegge. Rather rare, reported from boggy borders of
Lake Elsie, Richland Co.; Camp Lake, McLean Co. (No. 410, Sept. i,
19 1 7) and Coville Twp. S. 1-2, Mountrail Co. Bergman Hsts this from
Valley City, Walhalla and Butte.

Salix prinoides Pursh. Not previously reported from the state.
Rare, only reported from borders of Red Willow Lake, Griggs Co.
(No. 375, Aug. 20, 1917, D. C. Mabbott); Rush Lake, Cavalier Co.;
Denbigh Lake, McHenry Co. ; Upsilon Lake, Rolette Lake and Sweet-
water Lake, Ramsey Co.

Salix serissima (Bailey) Fernald. Very rare, being reported only
from swampy border of Upsilon Lake, Rolette Co. in the Turtle Moun-
tains (No. 464, Sept. 7, 1917, D. C. Mabbott). This extends the known
range of this plant westward as Bergman reports this plant only from
Walhalla, Pembina Co.

196 METCALF: NOTES ON NORTH DAKOTA PLANTS

Salix tristis Allioni. Very rare, found only in Sand Hills, near Lake
George, Drake, McHenr3'' Co. (No. 416, Aug. 28, 1917, D. C. Mabbott).
This extends the range of this plant westward as previously the farthest
westerly record was that of Bergman, namely, Hankinson, Richland Co.

Rimiex Brittannica Linnaeus. Not previously reported from the
state. Range extended westward as manuals give Minnesota-Kansas as
the western limit of distribution. Collected only from border of Camp
Lake, McLean Co. (No. 416, Sept. i, 191 7).

Polygonum amphibium Linnaeus. Rather rare, reported with the
exception of Emmons County, only from the more northern counties —
Ward, Ramsey, Rolette, Towner, Burke and known from but one lake
in each of these. Another form of this species masquerading under the
name P. amphibium Linnaeus Var. Hartwrightii (Gray) Bissel, was rare,
only reported from partially dried out mud flats of Section 13-14,
Frettin Lake, Kidder County and L'psilon Lake, Rolette County.
Still another form of this same species known as P. Muhlenbergia
(Meisner) Watson was common throughout the state growing in water
and in moist meadows bordering fresh water lakes. These so-called
species can only be considered forms of P. amphibium; this species is
very variable, all forms intergrading one into the other, depending on
ecological conditions. Poole has written as follows:^ "The development
of the hvdro-mesophytic mode of life by these species is a fact of every-day
observation. In the marshy areas of the sandhills one can trace a per-
fect series of changes from the typical form called P. amphibium through
P. Hartwrightii and finally to P. emersum {Muhlenbergia). The first
two forms, though often very different appearing plants, may commonly
be collected from the same rhizome. The latter species is almost as
variable and it seems a plain case that these three 'species' are merely
extreme variations that may be found arising from the same rootstock,"
a fact verified by the author in North Dakota. To continue to give
distinct rank to these forms as is done in Britton and Brown's "Illus-
trated Flora" and Gray's "7th Edition Manual" is a mistake.

Chenopodium humile Hooker. Not previously reported from the
state but possibly included rightfully within the species C. rubrum.
On the shores of Middle Des Lac Lake, Ward Co. (No. 561, Oct. i,
1 91 7) were a few plants that were clearly C. humile Hooker but along
with these were a number of forms that represent intermediate steps
between the two species, showing that C. humile was in all probability
onlv a form grooving under unfavorable conditions.

Suaeda linearis (Elliott) Moquin-Tandon. Not previously recorded
from the state. Range extended greatly westward as apparently no
i aland stations are known for this plant. Found along border of
stro- gly saline lakes — Holmes Lake, McLean Co. (No. 466a, Sept. 5,
1917) and Minto Lake, Walsh Co. (No. 511, Sept. 21, 1917, D. C. Mab-
i ott).

Spergularia marina (Linnaeus) Grisebach. Frequent throughout
the state, recorded from Cushion Slough, Burke Co. (No. 583, Oct. 3,

* Poole, Raymond I. A study of the vegetation of the sandhills of Nebraska, p. 287.

MBTCALP: NOTES ON NORTH DAKOTA PLANTS 1 97

1917); Moon (No. 217, Aug. 3, 1917, D. C. Mabbott) and Eckelson
(No. 291, August 8, 1917, D. C. Mabbott) Lakes, Barnes Co.; Addie
Lake, Griggs Co. ; Kellys Slough, Grand Forks Co. (No. 508, Sept. 20,
1917, D. C. Mabbott); Salt and Minto Lakes, Walsh Co. and Stump
Lake, Nelson Co. Bergman records this only from Eckelson and
Kulm.

Ceratophyllum demersum Linnaeus. Common throughout the state,
in fresh water lakes and sloughs ; observed in nineteen counties. Speci-
mens collected from Wallace, S. 27-34 Lake, Kidder Co. (No. 302,
August 16, 1917), Clear Lake, Kidder Co. (No. 323, Aug. 17, 1917)
and King Slough near Bismarck, Burleigh Co. (No. 348, Aug. 24, 1917).
Bergman reports this plant from Lake Ibsen and St. John.

Stanleya pinnata (Pursh) Britton. This plant has not been recorded
previously east of the Missouri River, the only record for the state being
along the extreme western border, namely, Medora, Billings Co., by
Bolley. Specimens were observed or collected from Jim Lake, Stuts-
man Co. (No. 324, Aug. 14, 1917, D. C. Mabbott); Jessie Lake, Griggs
Co.; Round, Brush, Doctor, Hester and Girard Lakes, McHenry Co.
In the vicinity of these lakes the plants were fairly common. The
first mentioned counties are far east of any other known locality and the
latter, McHenry Co., is somewhat farther north than previously re-
corded.

Thely podium integrifolium (Nuttall) Endlicher. Local, only found
on the borders of the following alkaline lakes where it was exceedingly
abundant : Big Alkali Lake, southeast of Dawson, and Sink Lake, north
of Dawson, Kidder Co. (No. 221, Aug. 6, 191 7). It is interesting also
that the only previously known collection of this plant in the state was
near Dawson, by Bolley. One of the two records above is however,
slightly east and the other slightly farther north than that of Bolley
so that its northeastern range has been slightly extended.

Primus Besseyi Bailey. Not previously recorded from the state,
which, however, comes within the general range of the plant as commonly
given. Found only along roadside, 20 miles S. E. of Bismarck, Burleigh
Co. (No. 327, Aug. 24, 1917). This plant was shown to the writer by
Dr. M. R. Gilmore, Curator, State Museum of North Dakota. He
stated that this was the only locality where he knew it east of the Missouri
River, but that he had observed it to be fairly common west of the
river.

Prunus serotina Ehrhart. Not previously reported from the state;
observed only at Elsie Lake, Richland Co.

Amphicarpa Pitcheri Torrey and Gray Not previously reported
from the state; range is extended westward as manuals give S. Dakota
as the extreme northwestern limit. Found along border of Mud Lake,
Richland Co. (No. 136, July 24, 1917) and in Riverside Marsh, South
of Mandan, Morton Co. (No. 382a, Aug. 27, 191 7).

Opuntia fragilis Haworth. Found in sand hills near Lake George,
Drake, McHenry Co. Bergman reports this plant from vSvea and
Dickinson

198 cushman: byram calcareous marl

Cornus Aniomum Miller. Not previously reported from the state;
observed at Riverside Marsh, south of Mandan and also along the
Missouri River, Morton Co. (Aug. 26, 27, 191 7) and Strawberry Lake,
McLean Co.

Arctostaphylos Uva-ursi (L.) Spreng. Found also in sand hills near
Lake George, 15 rniles north of Drake, McHenry Co. (No. 415, Aug.
28, 1917, D. C. Mabbott). Previously reported from three localities:
Walhalla, Milton and Wogansport. Should occur also in the sand hills
near Hankinson.

Utricularia minor Linnaeus. Not previously recorded from the state,
although the range commonly given is exceedingly general. Very rare,
found growing only in Dawson Slough, Dawson, Kidder Co. (No.
255, Aug. 9, 1917).

Aster angustus (Lindley) Torrey and Gray. [Brachyactis angusta
(Lindley) Britton.] Rather common throughout the state, reported
from 13 or more counties. Bergman records this from three localities,
Fargo, Leeds and Dickinson.

Erigeron annuus (Linnaeus) Persoon. Not definitely reported pre-
viously from the state although the range as ordinarily defined covers
the entire northeastern United States. One specimen found near Elsie
Lake, Hankinson, Richland Co. (No. 68, July 23, 19 17).

Bidens comosa (A. Gray) Wiegand. Rather common in northern
part of state, especially in Rolette Co., bordering lakes. Bergman
reports this plant from Fargo and Leeds.

PALEONTOLOGY. — Some relationships of the foraminiferal
fauna of the Byram calcareous marl} Joseph A. Cushman.

Introduction

The Byram calcareous marl as it is exposed at the bridge
over the Pearl River at Byram, Hinds County, Mississippi, is
the type locality for this division of the lower Oligocene.
The formation is mainly a sandy glauconitic marl with thin
beds of impure limestone, clay and sand.

A small sample consisting of a few cubic centimeters of the
marl from the type exposure was examined, and gave 68 species
and varieties of Foraminifera. These are probably not all,
and more will be added by continued search of material.

Notes on the fauna

Of the 68 species which I have found from Byram 27 appear
to be undescribed, and 8 are recorded under the genus only

^ Published by permission of the Director of the U. S. Geological Survey. Re-
ceived February 24, 1920.

•

cushman: byram calcareous marl 199

because specimens were not abundant enough for specific
determination. These may be compared with the data given
by Cooke, ^ who mentions 136 species of mollusks and 6 of corals,
55 of which are pecuhar to the marl at Byram. Most of the
species indicate that they lived in warm water at no great depth.

Distribution of a few of the species

A few of the species found in the Byram marl are especially
interesting in showing relationships of this fossil fauna with those
now living. Of these Textularia folium Parker and Jones shows
this point very well.

Textularia folium Parker and Jones is known only as a living
species with the following records: Mauritius, the Kerimba
Archipelago off southeastern Africa; shore-sands of Melbourne,
Australia; off East Moncoeur Island, Bass Strait, 38 fathoms;
off Raine Island, Torres Strait, 155 fathoms; off Kandavu, Fiji,
255 fathoms; off Levuka, Fiji; Nares Harbour, Admiralty Islands,
17 fathoms; and Honolulu coral reefs, 40 fathoms. Other
records are from the lagoon at Funafuti; off the coast of Victoria;
off Laysan, and numerous localities off the Hawaiian Islands.
Most of the records for this species are in 40 fathoms or less
although a few are at somewhat greater depths. It seems to be
most abundant on tropical coral reefs in the South Pacific, but
as these records show, it is well scattered over the Indo-Pacific
region. The finding of very typical specimens of this species
in the Byram marl has led to the examination of the distribution
of other species found with it. A few of these will be mentioned.

Bolivifia amygdalaeformis H. B. Brady. This is known from
the South Pacific, Australian, East Indian and Philippine regions
at the present time.

Bolivina niiida H. B. Brady. This is a very rare species de-
scribed by Brady from two Challenger stations off Australia,
and not known elsewhere.

Polymorphina regina H. B. Brady, Parker and Jones. This
is known from the Miocene of the Coastal Plain, the Calvert
formation of Chesapeake Beach, Maryland, and from the Duplin

^ This Journal 8: 197. 1918.

200 cushman: byram cai^careous marl

marl of Mayesville, South Carolina. It is unknown from the
Tertiary of Europe but is a typical species in recent seas
in the shallow water of the tropical and subtropical waters of the
Pacific and Indian Oceans.

Discorhis sp. A peculiar species of Discorhis found at Byram is
interesting not only because it is undescribed but because of its
relationships to other species. It is probably nearest in its
affinities to D. corrugata Millett, described from the Malay
Archipelago and recorded by Heron- Allen and Earland from the
Kerimba Archipelago off the southeastern coast of Africa;
from the coast of Burmah; and from West Australia, thus giving
it a wide Indo-Pacific range. In the characters of the ventral
surface it is also related to D. patelliformis H. B. Brady and D.
tabernacularis H. B. Brady, both of which are typical Indo-
Pacific species. This is, then, a representative of a group now
living in the shallow water of the Indo-Pacific.

Hauerina fragilissima H. B. Brady. All the known records
for this species are Indo-Pacific. Brady's records are: Off
Tahiti, Society Islands; off Kandavu, Fiji Islands; and the
northern and southern coasts of New Guinea. Millett records
it from the Malay Archipelago, and Heron-Allen and Earland
from the Kerimba Archipelago off the southeastern coast of
Africa. I have recorded it off the Hawaiian Islands. There
are a number of very typical specimens from the marl at Byram
showing again close relations of the Byram fauna with that of
the Indo-Pacific.

Truncatulina sp. This shows another relation of the fauna
from Byram. It is a species with peculiar lobed chambers
related to two other species I recently described from the Miocene
of South Carolina and Florida.

Truncatulina americana Cushman. This species is known
from the Miocene of the Coastal Plain ; from the upper Oligocene
of the Culebra formation of the Panama Canal Zone; and ap-
pears at least in a modified form in the Byram marl.

Lepidocydina super a Conrad. This is the largest species of
the Byram marl and may be taken as the index fossil as far as the

CUSHMAN: BYRAM calcareous marl 20I

foraminifera are concerned, having been found at no other
horizon. Conrad described it from the upper bed of Vicksburg
which is the equivalent of the Byram marl.

Of the species to be described as new a considerable proportion I

are represented in the Indo-Pacific region by closely allied species.

Relationships to other lower Oligocene formations

A number of the species of the Byram marl are found also in i

the Mint Spring calcareous marl member of Marianna limestone, ;

and a smaller number in the Red Bluff clay formations, which are !

found respectively below the Byram marl in Mississippi. Some
of these are also found in Marianna limestone of Alabama and j

Florida. 1

Summary

The marl at Byram was deposited in warm (tempera- '

ture, 2o°-24° C), rather shallow water (depth, 10-25 \

fathoms = 18 to 46 meters). Its fauna shows that the larger i

proportion of the species are closely related to or identical with ;

those now living in the general Indo-Pacific region. Some of its j

species have persisted from the lower formations of the lower
Oligocene, the Red Bluff clay, the Marianna limestone, and the j

Mint Spring marl member, while some of them have persisted
in the Coastal Plain region, at least into the Miocene.

ABSTRACTS •

ORNITHOLOGY. — Lead poisoning in waterfowl. Alexander Wet-
MORE. U. S. Dept. Agric. Bull. 793: 1-12. PI. 1-2. 1919.

Lead poisoning in water fowl has only recently attracted much at-
tention. It results from the swallowing of pieces of lead in the
form of shot obtained by birds in the mud of their feeding grounds.
As many as 76 pellets of shot have been found in the stomach of a
single duck, but 20 to 25 is the ordinary number. The poisoning
results from particles of lead that have been ground away in the gizzard
and passed into the intestines where they are absorbed. The most con-
spicuous symptom is paralysis of important muscles ; and as the disease
progresses, the bird becomes unable to walk, and rarely recovers. Experi-
ments show that 6 pellets of No. 6 shot are always fatal, and sometimes
death results from a single pellet in the stomach. The following water-
fowl are known to have been affected in the wild state: Anas platy-
rhyncha, Dafila acuta tzitzihoa, Aristonetta valisineria, Olor columhianus,
and Limosa fedoa. In addition to these, Nyroca americana has died
from the same cause in captivity. Although some alleviation by the
administering of magnesium sulphate has been noticed in the labora-
tory, there is really no satisfactory remedy yet known for the disease.

Harry C. Oberholser.

ORNITHOLOGY. — A revision of the subspecies of Passerculus rostratus
{Cassin). Harry C. Oberholser. Ohio Journ. Sci. 19: 344-

354- 1919-
The large-billed sparrow, Passerculus rostratus, has been of much
interest to ornithologists, perhaps by reason of the elusiveness of the
breeding grounds of two of its races. Moreover, this bird has always
presented a difficult problem for the systematist. A large amount of
material has been brought together, by which three recognizable sub-
species are now indicated. The typical Passercidus rostratus rostratus

202

abstracts: ornithology 203

(Cassin) breeds about the Gulf of California; Passerculus rostratus
guttatus Lawrence, with which Passerculus rostratus sanctorum Ridgway
is identical, nests on the San Benito Islands, Lower California; and
Passerculus rostratus halophilus, which proves to be a perfectly good
race, breeds at Abreojos Point, western Lower California. For birds
so well subspecifically differentiated, the subspecies of the large-billed
sparrow occupy exceedingly restricted localities. The most astonishing
feature of their life history is the curious migration of at least two of the
subspecies, for these travel regularly both to the north and south of
their breeding grounds to winter. Such a migration is almost, if not
quite, unique, for no other North American passerine bird follows even
similar routes. H. C. O.

ORNITHOLOGY. — Life histories of North American diving birds,
order Pygopodes. Arthur Cleveland Bent. Bull. U. S. Nat.
Mus. 107: 1-13, 1-245. P^s. 1-55.

The work on the life histories of North American birds begun by
Major Charles E- Bendire has remained unfinished since his death.
The present bulletin is -intended in a sense as a continuation of Major
Bendire's woi-k, although the method of treatment is entirely changed.
This first installment takes up the birds included in the families Colym-
bidae, Gaviidae and Alcidae. Information regarding the life histories
of the species of these families is particularly desirable, since no modern
work treats the North American forms with sufficient fullness. In
the present contribution all the available information regarding these
groups has been brought together and though original data are used in
preference whenever obtainable, these are supplemented by pertinent
quotations from literature. Eacn of the 36 species and subspecies is
treated in detail but undue repetition is avoided. The method of
treatment is decidedly modern, and facilitates reference to any kind
of information desired. The account of each bird is divided into two
parts, one relating to habits, the other to distribution. The data
under the former are presented under the following headings : "Spring,"
"Courtship," "Nesting," "Eggs," "Young," "Plumages," "Food,"
"Behavior," "Fall," and "Winter." The distribution, given at con-
siderable length under the headings "Breeding Range," "Winter
Range," "Spring Migration," "Fall Migration," "Casual Records,"
and "Egg Dates," reflects the present knowledge of this important
subject. Harry C. Oberholser.

204 abstracts: ornithology

ORNITHOLOGY.— r/t^ bi/ds [of Glacier National Park]. Florence
Merriam Bailey. Wild Animals of Glacier National Park,
103-199. 1918.

This is the final report to which the previously published list of the
birds of Glacier National Park was but preliminary. The introductory
matter consists of general information regarding the altitudinal dis-
tribution of birds in the Park, together with a key to the commoner
summer residents. In the main body of the text, the 187 birds now
known from the Park are treated in systematic sequence. Brief de-
scriptions are given of some species, but the annotations consist chiefly
of remarks on habits, records of occurrence, and distribution in the
Park. The accounts of some birds, such as Histrionicus histrionicus
pacificus, Lagopus leucurus altipetens, Pandion haliaetus carolinensis,
Seiurus noveboracensis notabilis, and Cinclus mexicanus unicolor, are
somewhat extended. The illustrations consist of 15 full page plates
and numerous smaller figures, all in black and white.

Harry C. Oberholser.

ORNITHOLOGY.— Notes on Dr. W. L. Abbott's second collection of
birds from Simalur Island, western Sumatra. Harry C. Ober-
holser. Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus. 55: 473-498. 1919.

Simalur Island lies somewhat less than 100 miles off the western
coast of Sumatra, and about 200 miles from its northwestern end.
The collection here discussed was made by Dr. W. L. Abbott in 1902,
and consists of 70 specimens, representing 38 species. Two species
are actual additions to the avifauna of the island, and these, together
with those previously known, make a total of 79 now known to occur
on Simalur Island. In this annotated list the data from Dr. Abbott's
specimens and various critical notes are given. A number of forms
from Simalur Island originally described as species are treated here as
subspecific forms because found to be connected by individual varia-
tion with the typical races of their respective species. A re-examination
of the Ramphalcyon javana case indicates that the identification of the
original description of this bird with the Philippine race is unwarranted,
and that Ramphalcyon javana should still remain the name for the
Bornean race. Only one new subspecies is here described, an interesting
new rail, Hypotaenidia striata reliqua. H. C^O.

abstracts: ornithology 205

ORNITHOLOGY.— Winter birds of East Goose Creek, Florida. R. W.
Williams. Auk 36: 45-56. 1919.
Field observations carried on in November, 191 7, on East Goose Creek,
Wakulla County, Florida, a narrow neck of shallow water situated twenty-
five miles southwest of Tallahassee, show this locality to be an excellent
one for birds. The present list of 90 species and subspecies, combined
with a similar list previously made by L,udlow Griscom, makes a total
of 1 1 1 species recorded in this immediate vicinity during the months of
November and December alone. The annotations of the present list
consist chiefly of remarks on habits and the local distribution of the
various forms. Harry C. Oberholser.

ORNITHOLOGY .—Mtitanda ornithologica. VII. Harry C. Ober-
holser. Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 32: 127-128. June 27, 1919.
The names of the following four species of South American birds
require to be changed because their present designations are preoccupied
by earlier homonyms. The species known as Attila cinereus (Gmelin),
therefore, becomes Attila rufus Lafresnaye; Knipolegus comatus (Lich-
tenstein) must stand as Knipolegus lophotes Boie; Euscarthmus gnlaris
(Temminck) becomes Euscarthmus rufilatus (Hartlaub) ; and Mimus
lividus (lyichtenstein) must bear the new name Mimus antelius. More-
over, the Chilean bird now known as Curaeus aterrimus (Kittlitz) has
an earlier name and must stand as Curaeus curaeus (Molina) .

H. C. O.

ORNITHOLOGY.— ATote^ on North American birds. VIII. Harry
C. Oberholser. Auk. 36: 406-408. July, 1919.
Investigation of the relationships of Anthus rube seen s (Tunstall)
proves that it is clearly but a subspecies of the Old World Anthus
spinoletta, and its name, therefore, should be Anthus spinoletta rubescens
(Tunstall). The Alaskan Acanthopneuste borealis kennicotti (Baird),
although not recognized by most recent authors, proves to be un-
doubtedly a good subspecies, differing from Acanthopneuste borealis
borealis in its somewhat smaller size and more grayish upper parts.
Although Salpinctes guadeloupensis Ridgway was originally described
as a subspecies of Salpinctes obsoletus, it is commonly considered a dis-
tinct species. A careful study of a large series of this and related forms
unquestionably substantiates Mr. Ridgway's opinion in regard to its
subspecific relationship. In all characters the two birds completely

2o6 abstracts: ornithology

inosculate, wherefore the Guadaloupe Island race should stand as
Salpinctes obsoletus guadeloupensis Ridgway; and the form described as
Salpinctes guadeloupensis proximus Swarth should become also a sub-
species of Salpinctes obsoletus. H. C. O.

ORNITHOLOGY.— iya5/«ngtoM region [April to May, iqi8]. Harry
C. Oberholser. Bird-IyOre 20: 303-305.
The height of the spring migration of birds at Washington is ordinarily
from May 10 to 15. The spring of 191 8 was an unusually good season
for birds, although some species were remarkably scarce, notably
Thryothorus ludovicianus , Tringa solitaria solitaria, and Iliornis flavipes.
On the other hand, many were more than ordinarily numerous, such as
Vermivora peregrina, Dendroica castanea, Hylocichla ustulata swainsoni,
and Larus Philadelphia. Several ducks lingered later in the spring
than ever before; and Rallus virginianus until May 11, more than a
month later than its previous latest date — April 6, 1892. Although
some species were late in putting in their appearance, a number of
arrivals were earlier than previously known. In the latter category
are Seiurus motacilla, Riparia riparia riparia, Melospiza lincolnii
lincolnii, Passerina cyanea, Vireosylva philadelphica, Protonotaria citrea,
Peucaea aestivalis bachmanii, and Sterna caspia. H. C. O.

ORNITHOLOGY. — The races oj the Nicobar megapode, Megapodius
nicobariensis Blyth. Harry C. Oberholser. Proc. U. S. Nat.
Mus. 55: 399-402. 191 9.

The Nicobar megapode, Megapodius nicobariensis, is of interest as
marking the extreme western limit of the geographic range of the
Megapodiidae. Its distribution is limited to the Nicobar Islands; and
it is apparently divisible into two subspecies. The birds inhabiting
the southern islands of this group differ from those from more northern
localities in their darker coloration, and will therefore stand as a new
subspecies, Megapodius nicobariensis abbotti. H. C. O.

ORNITHOLOGY. — The geographic races of Hedymeles melanocephalus
vSwainson. Harry C. Oberholser. Auk 36: 408-416. July,
1919.

The separation of Hedymeles melanocephalus into two subspecies was
originally made on the basis of the differences existing between the birds
of California and those of the Rocky Mountain region of the United

abstracts: ornithology 207

States. It has been found, however, that the birds breeding in Mexico
are referable to the CaHfomia race. Since, therefore, the species was
described from Mexico, it becomes necessary to unite the Mexican birds
with those of Cahfornia under the name Hedymeles nielanocepkalits
melanocephalus , of which Hedymeles melanocephalus capitalis Baird
becomes, therefore, a synonym. The breeding bird from the Rocky
Mountains of the United States and southwestern Saskatchewan, which
differs from the typical race in its larger size, particularly of the bill,
becomes, therefore, unnamed, and is here christened Hedymeles melano-
cephalus papago. H. C. O.

ORNITHOLOGY. — The status of the subgenus Sieherocitta Coues.
Harry C. Obe;rholse;r. Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 32: 135-137.
1919.

The subgeneric group Sieherocitta was originally proposed for Aphelo-
coma sieberii and its subspecies. This species proves to be structurally
diflferent from its allies in the genus Aphelocoma, but since it is connected
by an intermediate, Aphelocoma unicolor, it must be separated as a
subgenus instead of a distinct genus, to include Aphelocoma sieberii and
Aphelocoma unicolor, together with their subspecies. It is an excellent
example of the real difference between a genus and a subgenus, for here
two groups which are well characterized by structural differences are
connected by a species that is perfectly intermediate. H. C. O.

ORNITHOLOGY. — Description of a new red-winged blackbird from,
Texas. Harry C. Oberholser. Wilson Bull. 31: 20-23. March,
1919.

A previously unrecognized subspecies of Agelaius phoeniceus from
northern Texas is here named Agelaius phoeniceus megapotamus. It
differs from Agelaius phoeniceus richmondi in its larger size, and, in the
female, in more grayish coloration. It ranges from central southern
Texas to northeastern Mexico. H. C. O.

ORNITHOLOGY. — Another purple martin roost in the City of Wash-
ington. Harry C. Oberholser. Bird-Lore 21: 96-99. 1919.
The behavior of birds at their roosting places is a matter of con-
siderable biological interest. The location of the roost of Progne subis
was changed in 1918 to the vicinity of the Red Cross Building, where
it was under observation from July 19 to August 24, after which date

2o8 abstracts: analytical chemistry

the birds took up their nightly abode on the edge of the Capitol grounds.
The number of birds present at the Red Cross roost reached about 35,000
on August 9, but subsequently there was a gradual diminution. Smaller
numbers of Quiscalus quiscula quiscula, Sturnus vulgaris vulgaris, and
Riparia riparia riparia roosted at times with the martins or in their
immediate vicinity. H. C. O.

ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY.— r/i^ hydrochloric acid color method
jar determining iron. J. C. HosTETTER. Journ. Amer. Chem.
Soc, 41: 1531-1543. Oct., 1919. (Geophysical Lab. Papers on
Optical Glass, No. 17.)

Conditions have been found under which the yellow color developed
by dissolving ferric iron in hydrochloric acid may be used for the de-
termination of iron. The temperature coefficient for this color varies
from 2 to 3 per cent per degree, depending on the concentration of iron
and probably also on the acidity. The color developed by a given
amount of iron varies with the acid concentration, reaching the maxi-
mum intensity at from 26 to 28 per cent HCl. The relative increase
produced by acid is greater the higher the concentration of iron; this
is especially true above 20 per cent HCl, but below this concentration
the relative change is independent of the iron content. Inasmuch as
solutions must frequently be boiled in order to insure the complete
solution of iron present as "scale," the use of constant-boiling acid is
recommended and its use has been found to be altogether satisfactory.
The effects of salts on the color indicate that sulfates cause bleaching
and chlorides intensification; detailed study of the effect of the very
soluble calcium chloride shows that an intensification of 2.5 may be
attained by the addition of this salt; consequently, when testing for
iron in a very soluble chloride the standard iron solution must be made
up to possess the same salt concentration. Some applications of the
method are given and some results are presented. J. C. H.

ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY.— A method for determimtion of the
volatile matter in oxides of lead. Olaf Andersen. Journ. Amer.
Ceram. Soc, 2: 782-783. Oct., 1919. (Geophysical Lab. Papers
on Optical Glass, No. 18.)

The amount of volatile constituents in a sample of litharge or other
oxide of lead can be accurately determined by conversion of the PbO
into PbSiOs. The sample is mixed with a weighed quantity of silica,

abstracts: geology 209

equal to about one-third the weight of the PbO; heated in a platinum
crucible in an electric furnace at 800° to form lead silicate glass; quickly-
raised to 1000° for a few minutes; cooled and weighed. O. A.

PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY.— r/z^ term "inversion." J. B. Ferguson.
Science 50: 544-546. December 12, 19 19.

The diversity among the phenomena which are referred to by the
name "inversion" is so great that at present the word has lost any pre-
cise meaning which it may have had in the past. In this paper the
suggestion is made that inorganic chemists confine the word inversion
to solid single-phase phenomena such as the change of rhombic to mono-
clinic sulfur, and the term transition to phenomena such as an incon-
gruent melting, instead of the present synonymous use of these terms
for all these phenomena. J. B. F.

GEOLOGY. — Artesian waters in the vicinity of the Black Hills, South
Dakota. N. H. Darton. U. S. Geol. Survey, Water-Supply
Paper 428. Pp. 64, pis. 13, figs. 11. 1918.

In the arid plains surrounding the Black Hills of South Dakota the
matter of water supply is one of the most important questions. Sur-
face waters in streams, springs, and shallow wells are meager in volume,
and in most places considerably mineralized. Fortunately the area is
underlain by water-bearing sandstones which receive water at their
outcrops in the Black Hills and will yield it when tapped by wells.
In order to ascertain the position of these sandstones and to delimit
the area of flow the geology of the region has been studied in considerable
detail, and the results are set forth in this report. The general structure
is a monocline dipping away from the Black Hills, and the water-bear-
ing Dakota, Lakota, Minnelusa, and Deadwood sandstones lie at vari-
ous distances beneath the surface of the plains. The stratigraphy of the
various formations from Cambrian to Tertiary is described in consider-
able detail, and in maps and cross-sections the underground relations
of the water-bearing sandstones are indicated. An account is given
of all deep wells and borings in the region, and a resum^ is presented
as to the conditions and prospects in the various districts. N. H. D.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

BOTANICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

137TH MEETING

The 137th regular meeting of the Botanical Society of Washington
was held at the Cosmos Club at 8 p.m., October 7, 1919. Thirty-five
members were present. The following paper was presented:
^ John A. Stevenson: Some botanical aspects of Porto Rico.
i Porto Rico is essentially tropical, lying approximately in 18° 15'
N. latitude. The mean average temperature is 78° F. The rainfall
varies greatly, from 135 inches in the east to as low as 20 inches on the
south coast, with an average of 76 inches. The island is ver}' rugged,
a central range running from east to west, reaching heights of not over
4500 feet. The soil is typically a hea\y red clay.

At the time of its discovery (1493) it was heavily wooded, but with
the rapid agricultural development that took place, was soon practically
denuded. Practically all that now remains of the original cover is the
small area included in the Luquillo National Forest. Most of the island
is devoted to sugar cane, tobacco, fruit, coiTee, and pasture.

Of botanical formations there are notably the coastal mangrove
swamps composed chiefly of Rhizophora, Langiinctilaria , Avicennia,
the dry coastal areas grown up to Coccolobis and various other shrubs,
the limestone hills or foot-hill formation, composed of Psidium, Casearia
spp., many species of Melastomaceae, and other shrubs or small trees.
The rain forest (Luquillo) is of limited area, marked by tree ferns,
mountain palm, and large growing hardwoods {Sideroxylon, etc.).
On the dry south coast an open park-like growth occurs, particularly
marked by shrubby leguminous plants (chaparral) and various cacti.

Following the temporary use of much of the land by peasant farmers
a second growth of shrubs springs up {Eugenia jambos, Casearia spp.,
Psidium, many melastomaceous species and others). Coffee planta-
tions in the uplands are extensive, forming a forest type, with Inga
spp. and Erythrinia spp. as shade. Coconut plantations occur along
the coast. The phanerogamic flora consists of about 2400 species,
the fungus flora of at least 1500 species, with other groups in propor-
tion.

19TH ANNUAL MEETING

The 19th annual meeting of the Society was also held at the Cosmos
Club on October 7, 1919. The following officers were elected for the
ensuing year: President, Haven Metcalf; Vice-President, A. J.
PiETERs; Recording Secretary, Chas. E. Chambliss; Corresponding Sec-
retary, R. Kent Beattie; Treasurer, L. L. Harter. L. H. Dewey was
nominated as Vice-President to represent the Society in the Academy.

210

proceedings: botanical society 211

1 3 8th meeting

The 138th regular meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, at 8 p.m.,
November 4, 1919. Ninety members and five guests were present.

An illustrated paper on The vegetation of New Zealand was read by
Mr. A. D. Cockayne, Biologist of the Department of Agriculture,
Industries and Commerce of New Zealand.

The speaker described New Zealand as being composed of two main
islands located in the South Pacific between latitudes 43° and 33° S.,
being about the size of the State of Wyoming. He described fifteen
principal botanical regions, noting in considerable detail the great varia-
tion in the vegetation. The temperate rain forests, the beech forests
and the grass lands are the most important vegetation types. The
rain forests abound in dense vegetation, including tree ferns; the beech
forests are dominated by a species of Nothofagus; the grass lands are
tussock lands and not prairies.

The land presents every elevation from sea-level to over 13,000 feet,
and every rainfall from 14 inches to 150 inches. One-third of the area
of the islands is in farm lands. The agriculture centers around stock
production and animal products, because of the distance to outside
markets.

New Zealand is preserving large areas of natural parks, containing
her most interesting vegetation, much of which is not open to tourists.

139TH MEETING

The 139th regular meeting was held at the Cosmos Club at 8 p.m.,
December 2, 19 19. Fifty members and four guests were present.
Mr. W. S. Fields, of the Federal Horticultural Board, and Mr. C. C.
Thomas, of the Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Department of Agri-
culture, were elected to membership.

In a paper entitled Mycorrhiza, Cytrids and related fungi in the roots
of our common economic plants, Mr. E. G. Arzberger described, with
the aid of lantern slides, numerous organisms belonging to the little-
known group of endophytic fungi that are found abundantly in the
growing parts of the roots of all cereals, the important grasses, cotton,
tobacco, forage crop plants, hemp, flax and some truck crops.

Mr. L. O. KuNKEL in a paper entitled Wart of potato gave the history
of the discovery of this disease in the United States and described the
great damage done by it to the potato crop in the British Isles and other
European countries. In his variety tests for resistance to this disease,
he found that our best commercial varieties seemed to be immune,
and that several varieties of tomatoes were quite susceptible to the
wart.

I40TH MEETING

The 140th regular meeting was held at the Cosmos Club at 8 p.m.,
January 6, 1920. One hundred members and ten guests were present.

In a paper entitled Parks and gardens of Buenos Aires, Prof. F.
Lamson-Scribner described with the aid of many beautiful lantern

212 proceedings: botanical society

slides this great metropolis of South America as a city of broad avenues
and shaded boulevards and of beautiful parks and squares, varying in
size from parks of two or three acres to the great Palermo Park, con-
taining approximately one thousand acres. Palermo Park is to Buenos
Aires what Bois de Bologne is to Paris, Central Park to New York and
Golden Gate to San Francisco. It contains many drives and walks
and a number of small lakes and an excellent restaurant. Many
kinds of trees have been planted along the drives and about the minia-
ture lakes, and evidently much time has been given to the development
of pleasing landscape effects.

Within the Botanical Gardens have been assembled plants from all
parts of the world. It was planned and directed by Dr. Thays and
will stand as an everlasting monument to him as a scientist and landscape
gardener. Some of the plants are only decorative, but for the most part
the plants and trees have an economic value, or a scientific interest.
There are groups of medical plants, oleaginous species and fiber plants,
narcotic plants and also many valued for their perfume. There are
collections of palms, bamboos and cacti, coniferous species and grasses,
totaling more than 3500 species.

Dr. David Griffith read a paper entitled Experiments in bulb cul-
ture, in which he described the various phases of the bulb investigations
conducted by the U. S. Department of Agriculture at Bellingham,
in the State of Washington, and Arlington Farm, Virginia, using many
lantern slides to illustrate the methods of planting, harvesting, storing
and shipping. The illustrations also showed the bulb plots in bloom
and the results obtained in the production of various varieties of Dutch
bulbs, lilies, etc.

Chas. E. Chambliss, Recording Secretary.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

THE FEDERAL BOARD OF SURVEYS AND MAPS

Acting on the report of the map-making conference which was held
in September, 1919/ the President of the United States issued an
Executive order on December 30, 19 19, creating a "Board of Surveys
and Maps of the Federal Government," to be composed of one repre-
sentative from each of certain Federal organizations, as follows : ( 1 )
Corps of Engineers, U. S. Army (Col. C. O. Sherrill) ; (2) U. S. Coast
and Geodetic Survey (William Bowie); (3) U. S. Geological Survey
(C. H. Birdseye) ; (4) General Land Office (Frank Bond) ; (5)
Topographic Branch, Postoffice Department (J. H. Robinson); (6)
Bureau of Soils (C. F. Marbut) ; (7) U. S. Reclamation Service
(E. C. Bebb); (8) Bureau of Public Roads (C. D. Curtis); (9) Bureau
of Indian Affairs (W. M. Reed); (10) Mississippi River Commission
(R. L. Paris); (11) U. S. Lake Survey (F. G. Ray); (12) International
(Canadian) Boundary Commission (J. H. VanWagenen); (13) Forest
Service (O. C. Merrill); (14) U. S. Hydrographic Office, Navy
Department (G. W. LittlEhalEs). These representatives were
appointed by the chiefs of the several organizations named.

The Board is directed by Executive order to make recommendations
to the several departments of the Government or to the President for
the purpose of coordinating the map-making and surveying activities
of the Government and to settle all questions at issue between the ex-
ecutive departments relating to surveys and maps, in so far as their
decisions do not conflict with existing law. The Executive order also
directs that the Board shall hold meetings at stated intervals, to which
representatives of the map-using public shall be invited for the purpose
of conference and advice; and that the Board shall establish a central
information office at the U. S. Geological Survey for the purpose of
collecting, classifying, and furnishing to the public, information con-
cerning all map and survey data available in the several government
departments and from other sources.

All government departments are directed by the Executive order to
make full use of the Board of Surveys and Maps as an advisory body
and to furnish all available information and data called for by the
Board.

So much of the Executive order of August 10, 1916, as grants addi-
tional advisory powers to the U. S. Geographic Board, is rescinded and
these additional powers are transferred to the Board of Surveys and
Maps. The Executive order in question had granted to the U. S.
Geographic Board advisory powers concerning the preparation of maps

1 See this JoURNAi,, 9: 605-607. 1919-

213

214 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

compiled or to be compiled in the various bureaus and offices of the
Government, with a special view to the avoidance of unnecessary duplica-
tion of work ; and for the unification and improvement of the scales of
maps, of the symbols and conventions used upon them, and of the
methods of representing relief.

The representatives of the Federal organizations mentioned above
met early in January to perfect an organization, and adopted by-laws
and methods of procedure on January i6, 1920. The officers elected
for 1920 are: Chairman, O. C. Merrill, Chief Engineer of the Forest
Service; Vice-Chairman, William Bowie, Chief of the Division of
Geodesy, U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey; Secretary, C. H. Birdseye,
Chief Geographer, U. S. Geological Survey.

The by-laws provide for a number of standing committees, whose
duties are to care for the various phases of the problem of surveying and
map-making. These committees, with their chairmen, are as follows:
(i) Executive, O. C. Merrill; (2) Coordination, C. O. Sherrill;
(3) Cooperation, Frank Bond; (4) Technical Standards, W. M. Reed;
(5) Topographic Maps, E. C Bebb; (6) Highway Maps, C. D. Curtis;
(7) General Maps, J. H. Robinson; (8) Hydrographic Charts, R. L.
Faris; (9) Control, William Bowie; (10) Photographic Surveying,
E. H. Marks; (ii) Information, C. H. Birdseye.

Each committee is composed of five members who are representatives
on the Board of Surveys and Maps or are other officials of the organiza-
tions having representation on the Board. There will be appointed
representatives of organizations interested in surveying and mapping
which are outside of the Federal Government, on each of the com-
mittees except the Executive Committee and the Photographic Sur-
veying Committee.

The Map Information Office was organized, with headquarters at
the U. S. Geological Survey, as directed by the Executive order. The
Office is in charge of J. H. Wheat, of the Geological Survey.

The first stated public meeting of the Board of Surveys and Maps was
held on March 9, 1920, at the auditorium of the Interior Department.
Stated public meetings will be held on the second Tuesday of January,
March, May, September and November of each year. There will be
held executive meetings immediately after the stated public meetings
and also on the second Tuesday of February, April, October and De-
cember. No regular meetings will be held during the months of June,
July and August. W. B.

NOTES

As the result of a conference held on February 24, the Bureau of
Public Roads has begun the standardization of tests and specifications
under which highway testing engineers in most of the States will work.
Confusion and difficulties have arisen in the past from the use in different
States of varying tests of the materials used in road construction.

A new outline base map of the United States on the Lambert zenithal
equal-area projection, scale i : 7,500,000, has been issued by the U. S.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS 215

Coast and Geodetic Survey. This is the first publication of a projection
of this type by the Survey. Besides its useful property of equal area,
the projection has smaller scale and direction errors than the polyconic
projection map which has been used frequently for political, census, or
statistical purposes.

Mr. A. C. Bent, of Taunton, Massachusetts, visited the Division of
Birds of the National Museum on February' 25-27, for the purpose
of picking out eggs to illustrate the second volume of his work on the
life histories of North American birds.

The term of office of Surgeon General Rupert Blue expired by law
on January 15. Dr. Hugh S. Gumming, of Hampton, Virginia, was
nominated as his successor, and the nomination was confirmed by" the
Senate on February 24, 1920. Dr. Blue will remain with the Public
Health Service and will continue his research work on influenza and
allied problems.

Mr. C. F. BowEN, former geologist of the U. S. Geological Survey,
has been appointed chief geologist of the Standard Oil Company of

New Jersey.

Mr. William BaylES Coffman, assistant classifier in the Water
Resources Branch, U. S. Geological vSurvey, died at Emergency Hos-
pital on January 21, 1920, in his twenty -fifth year. He had been with
the Survey since December, 191 7.

Dr. C. Wythe Cooke, of the U. S. Geological Survey, has been
granted leave of absence to accompany Mr. O. B. Hopkins, of the
Imperial Oil Company, on a six months' trip to Colombia.

Dr. AllERTOn S. Cushman, of the Institute of Industrial Research,
will deliver the 1920 course of lectures on "Chemistry and civilization"
under the Richard B. Westbrook Foundation at the Wagner Free
Institute of Science, of Philadelphia.

Dr. Arthur L. Day, director of the Geophysical Laboratory, Car-
negie Institution of Washington, who has been on leave of absence since
October i, 19 18, returned to Washington to resume active charge of
the Laboratory on April i, 1920.

A unique addition to the exhibit of vertebrate fossils at the National
Museum has recently been made in the form of three beautifully pre-
served skulls of an extinct peccary, collected by Mr. J. W. Gidley
from a cave near Cumberland, Maryland.

Mr. Charles S. GrindlE, examiner of interferences in the Patent
Office, has resigned to become a member of the patent law firm of
Watson, Coit, Morse and Grindle (formerly Foster, Freeman, Watson
and Coit) with offices at 916 G Street.

Mr. D. F. Hewett, of the U. vS. Geological Survey, will spend three
months in private work in Cuba while on leave from the Survey.

2l6 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Prof. A. S. Hitchcock of the Division of Plants, U. S. National
Museum, returned from British Guiana on February 17. He left
Washington, October i, 1919. Collections were made at many of the
West Indian Islands. Collections of all the flowering plants and ferns
were made, though special attention was given to the grasses. Over
II 00 numbers were obtained, including 108 sets of grasses.

Mr. O. B. Hopkins, geologist of the U. S. Geological Survey, special-
izing in oil investigations, has resigned to accept a position as geologist
with the Imperial Oil Company, of Toronto.

Mr. Hennen Jennings, retired mining engineer, died at his home,
2221 Massachusetts Avenue, on March 5, 1920, in his sixty-sixth year.
Mr. Jennings was born at Hawesville, Kentucky, May 6, 1854. After
graduation from the Lawrence Scientific School of Harvard University,
he took up mining engineering. His principal work was in South Africa,
where he was connected with mining companies from 1879 until 1905.
He had been a resident of Washington since 1906. He was a member
of the Archaeological, Engineers', and Historical Societies, and had
been a member of the Academy since 1916.

A noteworthy accession to the diatom collection of the National
Museum is from the Lompoc California deposit, sent by Dr. David
Starr Jordan, for a study of the physical conditions connected with
the fossil remains of vast quantities of herring embedded in the diatom
material of this deposit.

Mr. Robert W. Pack, formerly oil geologist of the U. S. Geological
Survey, has been appointed chief geologist of the Sun Company, at
Dallas, Texas.

Prof. W. H. Shiedler, of Miami University, is spending three months
in the study of the fossil bryozoa of the Division of Paleontology, U. S.
National Museum.

Mr. George W. Spier, who has been associated for many years with
the watch-making industry, has been appointed Honorary Custodian
of Watches at the National Museum. Mr. Spier plans to arrange an
exhibit, showing the developments in the watch-making art in the
United States and incidentally showing the development of the in-
dividual mechanisms which enter into a watch movement.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. io APRII, 19, 1920 No. 8

CH'EMIST'RY .—Determining soil acidity and alkalinity by in-
dicators in the field. ^ Edgar T. Wherry, Washington, D. C.

About a year ago the writer^ recorded a series of tests on
soil acidity and alkahnity made by the indicator method'' in
the laboratory, the soil samples having been collected from sta-
tions where forty species of native orchids grew. These sam-
ples exhibited such characteristic differences in reaction that it
seemed worth while to study other groups of plants in a similar
manner. The bringing in of samples of soil in sufhcient number
to make the results significant would have involved, however,
carrying numerous containers on field trips. It was, therefore,
decided to work out a method for applying the tests in the
field, so that only a few bottles of indicator solutions would have
to be carried along.

The following outfit proved to fill the requirements.^ First,
a rectangular box about 3.5 X 5 X 9 cm. in dimensions. In
the box, six vials for the indicators, 1.5 X 5.5 cm., capacity
8 cc, each provided with a cork or rubber stopper, into which is
inserted a glass rod flush with the top of the stopper, and ex-
tending nearly to the bottom of the vial; to prevent undue com-
pression upon inserting the stoppers, a groove may be cut in
the side of each, so as to reach nearly to the lip of the vial.
Then, three or four vials 'in which to extract the soils, about

' Received February 5, 1920.

2 This Journal 8: 589. 1918.

^ Clark and Lubs. Journ. Bacteriology 2: i. 191 7. Gillespie. This
JoimNAL 6: 7. 1916.

^ Sets of indicators similar to that here described are for sale by the La Motte
Chemical Products Co., 13 W. Saratoga St., Baltimore, Md.

217

2i8 wherry: determining soil acidity

2X5 cm., made of heavy glass, to prevent undue breakage;
a container for water, which may conveniently be a screw-capped
jar holding 200 cc. or more, or an aluminum canteen : and a pi-
pette, most simply constructed of two pieces of glass tubing
a few cm. in length, connected by a rubber tube.

The six indicators which have proved most satisfactory in
work with soils are: bromphenol blue, bromcresol purple, brom-
thymol blue, phenol red, methyl red, and o-cresolphthalein or
phenolphthalein. The first three are used, as recommended by
Clark and Lubs^, in about a i per cent solution in water,
titrated with dilute sodium hydroxide to their intermediate
colors; and the phenol red in a 0.5 per cent solution similarly
titrated. The methyl red and phenolphthalein are used as
0.02 per cent solutions in 50 per cent alcohol. It should be
noted here that litmus paper, which is often recommended for
testing soil reaction, is much less sensitive than the above indi-
cators, and may give misleading results.^

Most of these indicators are dichroic, showing different colors
as viewed by reflected and by transmitted light, and in the
writer's paper, above referred to, several of their colors were
rather inaptly characterized. In the new table here the former
descriptions have been improved upon, the colors given being
those produced by adding a drop of each indicator solution to
a few cc. each of buffer solutions with different reactions, as seen
through a i cm. layer against a white background. It has also
seemed desirable to add the numbers assigned to the various
colors in Ridgway's Color Standards; although in two cases,
bromophenol blue in Hquid of specific acidity 1000, and brom-
cresol purple in that of specific acidity 10, the colors are non-
descript and cannot be accurately placed.

The special terms used in this table to describe the reactions
have recently been defined by the writer.' By way of summary
it may be stated here that the specific acidity is the amount of
acid present in a given solution, as measured by hydrogen ion,

^ Journ. Bacteriology 2: 135. 1917.

^ Gillespie and Wise. Journ. Amer. Chem. Soc. 40: 796. 1918.

' This Journal 9: 305. 1919.

wherry: determining soil acidity 219

with reference to that of water as a unit.^ Correspondingly,
specific alkahnity is the amount of alkali, as measured by the
hydroxyl ion, the unit being the same. Specific acidity and alk-
alinity numbers can be readily transposed into P^ values by
anyone preferring that mode of statement. Find the power of
10 corresponding to the number; if acid, subtract from 7; if
alkaline, add 7 ; the result is the P„.

Under the most favorable conditions it is possible by the indi-
cator method to measure acidity and alkalinity with much
greater precision than is here attempted. By treating the indi-
cators with buffer solutions of known ionic concentration, many
hues intermediate between those here tabulated can be dis-
tinguished. On comparing the colors thus produced with those
developed by mixing clarified soil extracts with the same indi-
cators, specific acidities differing by a factor of Vio or 1.59
(Ph = 0.2) can be recognized. In the field, where it is incon-
venient to carry buffer solutions to prepare standards for com-
parison, and where the turbidity of soil extracts is difficult to
remove, it is impracticable to work closer than values differing
by a factor of Vio or 3.16 (Fh = o-5) which is rounded off for
simplicity to 3 -f . This degree of precision is, however, entirely
adequate for the purpose in view, for it has been repeatedly
found that from one to another plant of the same species, or
indeed, from one to another root on the same individual, sep-
arate observations of reaction may differ by a factor of 10 or
more. To give a specific example, a plant of Rhododendron
maximum growing in glacial drift near Williamsport, Pennsyl-
vania, was found to have some of its roots in soil with a specific
acidity of i (neutral), and other roots in soils with acidities of
3, 10 and 30. It seems obvious that nothing would be gained
by measuring the acidity on any one of these to a high degree
of precision, when the soils around the plant as a whole varied
by a factor of 30.

* Only acidity in this sense is considered here; the effect variously termed latent,
potential or negative acidity, and often shrouded in mystery by writers who fail
to appreciate the significance of adsorption and other physical-chemical phenomena,
has no bearing on the problem in hand.

220

wherry: determining soil acidity

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In accordance with the above considerations, a simplification
of the procedure previously recommended has been adopted;
modifications may still be desirable in special cases. But before
giving the directions, a word should be added concerning the
watei used for mixing with the soil. If calcium bicarbonate is
present in this water, the soil acidity will be diminished; while
if neutral salts, such as sodium chloride, and especially calcium
sulfate, are present in any considerable amount, the acidity
will be appreciably increased. The former effect is a direct
neutralization; but the latter is due to the fact that the clay
and the humus^ in the soil adsorb the basic elements from neu-
tral salts, and set the acid free.^° In the laboratory, distilled
water can be used, and to attain the greatest precision, air freed
from carbon dioxide can be blown through it until it reacts
quite neutral; when one is traveling, distilled water can usually
be purchased from a drug store, and will give satisfactory re-
sults without special purification. In the wilds the best that
can be done is to obtain spring or well water rising through rocks
as free as possible from soluble constituents — ^such rocks as sand-
stone, shale or schist. In calcareous regions it may be necessary
to test waters from one source after another until a sample is
found which reacts neutral — ^is colored green by a drop of brom-
thymol blue indicator — and to arrange the trip so that the
water supply can from time to time be replenished from this
source.

With these points in mind, the following approximate direc-
tions have been drawn up :

A sample of soil a gram or two in weight is shaken from listing
roots into an empty vial, and 5 cc. of the most nearly neutral
and salt-free water available is added, the vial being shaken
well to insure complete mixing. After the soil and water are
thoroughly mixed, the soHd matter may be compacted with a
glass rod or a stick, and the vial then supported at an angle of

' Gillespie and Wise, op. cit.

10 This is, of course, the reason that the so-called lime-requirement methods in
which a neutral salt solution is mixed with a soil yield so much higher results than
can be obtained by direct titration of water extracts of the soils.

222 wherry: determining soil acidity

45 ° and allowed to stand until the bulk of the suspended matter
has settled. The more or less clear liquid is then decanted or
pipetted off into another vial, a drop or two of bromthymol
blue or one of the other indicators, the color changes of which
occur near the neutral portion of the table, are added, and the
color assumed is noted. If either of the extreme colors is shown,
the process is repeated with the indicator whose color changes
come next in the corresponding direction; and this is continued
until either an intermediate color of one indicator, or opposing
extremes of two overlapping ones, are obtained, whereupon the
specific acidity or alkalinity can be read off from the table.

The more turbid the hquid, the more indicator must be added,
and the less certain are the results obtained. The turbidity can,
of course, be removed by the addition of coagulating agents or
by filtration through paper; but it is essential to make certain
that these do not in themselves show an acid or an alkaline
reaction. The most satisfactory results of all can be obtained
by running a quantity of the soil through a paper filter until
two successive portions yield the same value when tested with
indicators. But such procedures are more suited to laboratory
than to field studies, and after a little experience one can tell
the indicator color-change with certainty, even in the presence
of considerable brown mud.

To illustrate the procedure followed in actual practice, two
typical cases encountered by the writer may be cited here.

(i) A black soil in pockets in Hmestone rock, supporting
spleenwort ferns, was treated as above, and on testing the soil
extract with bromthymol blue indicator, a strong blue color was
obtained; reference to the table showed that the reaction must
be alkahne, and the value of specific alkalinity 3 or more (Ph =
7.5). The process was repeated with the indicator the color
changes of which lay next toward the alkaline side of the table,
namely, phenol red. With this indicator a clear red color was
obtained, showing the reaction to be actually specific alkalinity

10 (Ph = 8.0).

(2) Soil from a dry blueberry thicket was tested, and, since
upland peat is usually distinctly acid, the first indicator tried

AUSTIN: MUSICAL RECEPTION 223

was bromcresol purple, the color changes of which occur just
to the acid side of the neutral point; with this indicator a yellow
color was obtained, indicating a specific acidity of at least 30.
The soil was accordingly tried again with methyl red, which lies
next toward the acid side, and this gave a violet-red color, cor-
responding to a specific acidity of 300 ot more. It was accord-
ingly necessary to try an indicator working at still higher acid-
ities, namely bromphenol blue; and this yielded a violet color,
indicating 300 or less. The last two indicators agreed, then, in
fixing the reaction of this soil as: specific acidity 300 (Pg = 4-5) •
In spite of certain limitations, this method is capable of giv-
ing definite information as to soil reaction in many cases. And
the results obtained by the writer on a number of species of
native plants, to be described shortly in other communications,
have been of such significance that the method is now published
for the benefit of students of plant distribution and others in-
terested in soil acidity and alkalinity.

RADIOTELEGRAPHY. — Musical reception with continuous
waves without local oscillations, h. W. Austin, U. S. Naval
Radio Research Laboratory.

The principle of what is now known as the slipping contact
detector or ticker, was first applied to the detection of direct
currents with the telephone by the author in 1900^ and later
applied to the reception of radio signals in 1906.^

This does not in general give a musical note in reception either
for damped or continuous oscillation, on account of the irregu-
larity of the contacts. If, however, a toothed wheel or any
equivalent contact maker, such as is shown in figure i, be pro-
vided with a brush bearing on the face of the wheel or axle in
such a way as to produce a steady contact, while a second brush
is adjusted so as to touch the teeth, musical reception
can be obtained with continuous oscillations. For this purpose
the alternating E. M. F. is impressed at DE and the wheel rotated
at such a speed that the contacts of the brush E are made with

' Phys. Rev. ii: Aug., 1900.

2 This Journal i: 6. 1911. Physik. Zeitsch. 12: 867. 1911.

224

AUSTIN: MUSICAL RECEPTION

the teeth at a frequency a Httle greater or less than the frequency
of the appHed voltage. Under these conditions an alternating
current will flow in the telephones of a frequency equal to the
difference in frequencies of the contacts and the applied E. M. F.
The process is shown in figure 2 where the dots represent the
contact points and the broken line the telephone current, the
ripples being smoothed out by the reactance of the telephones.
The resulting tone is not strictly a beat tone, although the result
is exactly the same as though true beats had been produced.
This device produces musical continuous wave reception by
mechanical instead of by electrical means as in the Fessenden
heterodyne.

U/yvs wv^ U/vvv

'J ^

Fig. I . — Diagram of connections for toothed wheel contact maker.

In 19 13, R. Goldsmith devised the first practical apphcation
of this principle in his tone wheel (U. S. Patent No. 1087 113,
Feb. 17, 1914), although the circuits shown in the patent were
somewhat more compUcated. It was used for some time with
the simple circuit described above, both at Arlington and Tuck-
erton in 1914. While entirely successful as a receiver in long
distance continuous wave communication, it was less sensitive
and less adaptable than the oscillating vacuum tube introduced
in 191 4 and was, therefore, generally superseded by it.

Recently the Research Laboratory has again taken up the
study of the simplified tone wheel or musical contact maker

AUSTIN: MUSICAL RECEPTION 225

which was interrupted in 19 14, the object of the present work
being the determination of its sensibiHty, the law of response,
and its general applicability to modem receiving conditions, es-
pecially with amplifiers.

The contact maker used in the experiments (figure i) was an
old tone wheel having a steel disk about 28 cm. in diameter and
754 teeth (with brushes arranged as described above). With

Fig. 2. — Diagram showing contact points and telephone current.

this a contact frequency corresponding to a wave length of
10,000 meters is obtained at a speed of approximately 2400
R. P. M., the power consumed by the motor being about i/io
H. P. In order to reduce disturbances in the telephones, the
steel disk was insulated from the motor, and the frame connected
to ground. With the motor run from a storage battery no
trouble was experienced in keeping a practically constant speed
w4th which the European stations could be read for hours at a
time without speed adjustment. For unsteady sources of power,
a speed regulator is of course required. The telephones em-
ployed were Baldwin's of 2000 ohms resistance. Figure i shows
the circuits employed with radio frequency amplification.

Comparisons of the sensibility of the oscillating vacuum tube
and tone wheel without amplification were made on Annapolis
changing the strength of the signal from 10 audibility to several
thousand by inserting resistance in the receiving loop, and also
in some experiments by varying the main capacity. The results
were as follows :

(i) The sensibiUty of the tone wheel without amplification
varies from 1/6 to 1/3 of the sensibility of the oscillating vacuum
tube, depending upon the tone and brush adjustment.

(2) The law of response between telephone current and radio
frequency current is linear as in the oscillating vacuum tube.

226 ABBOT: SOLAR RADIATION MEASUREMENTS

The tone wheel has, therefore, all the advantages of the latter
in keeping out interference and static. In fact, it seems some-
what superior in keeping out strong interference.

(3) It may be used either with radio or audio frequency am-
pUfiers. Radio frequency amplification is in general to be pre-
ferred on account of possible induction and brush noise.

(4) While less adaptable to wave length changing than the
vacuum tube, this could be accomplished for predetermined wave
lengths by a set of automatic speed regulators.

(5) The brush action would probably be improved by filling in
the spaces between the teeth of the wheel with insulating ma-
terial so as to present a smooth surface to the brush.

METEOROLOGY. — The use of solar radiation measurements for
weather forecasting in Argentina.^ C. G. Abbot, Smithson-
ian Institution.

Mr. H. H. Clayton, the well-known American meteorologist
now in. charge of the forecast division of the Meteorological
Service of Argentina, has employed solar radiation observations
for more than a year as a forecasting element. I am not in-
formed as to the precise details of his methods. In a conversa-
tion I held with him in June, 19 19, at La Quiaca, Argentina, he
told me that he has maintained for years an impartial quanti-
tative mathematical record of both the success and failure of the
Argentine official weather forecasts, and that this record showed
marked and considerable gain in forecasting from the time of
the introduction of this new element. He stated to me quan-
titatively the results before and after this event, but as I do
not fully understand his system of accounting, I will not venture
to repeat them.

This new departure rests on the fact that our sun is a variable
star. This result was reached by the Smithsonian Institution
in its investigations of the intensity of solar radiation. For
nearly 15 years the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory has
maintained a solar radiation observing station at Mount Wil-

' Presented before the Washington Academy of Sciences on January 29, 1920.

ABBOT: SOLAR RADIATION MEASUREMENTS 227

son, California. This station is usually occupied from May to
November. Its main investigation comprises spectro-bolometric
determinations of the so-called "solar constant of radiation" after
the general method of Langley. This term designates the amount
of heat per square centimeter per minute which would be pro-
duced by completely absorbing the sun's radiation outside our
atmosphere at the earth's mean solar distance.

Early results indicated that this quantity is not really a con-
stant, but varies over a range of several per cent, both from
year to year and in short irregular periods of days or weeks.
Confirmation of these results has been secured in many ways,
so that now there remains, I think, but one possible explanation
of the phenomenon other than that the sun itself varies in its
emission by several per cent from time to time. This alterna-
tive possibility is that atmospheric changes occur simultaneously
over the whole earth which lead to variable erroneous determina-
tions of the so-called "solar constant," and that the errors thus
produced are nearly equal and introduce apparent variations in
the same sense, however far apart the two simultaneously ob-
serving stations may be. I believe it is easier to admit that
the sun itself is variable as supposed. Other irregularly vari-
able stars are numerous. There is no reason why the sun, too,
may not be variable.

It is true that recently Dr. Guthnick of the Berlin-Babels-
berg Observatory has made a good many photo-electric measure-
ments of the relative brightness of the planets Jupiter and Sat-
urn compared to reference stars. His results thus far have not
confirmed the variability we have found. But they have not
disproved it. His observations have, heretofore, seldom been
taken on coincident days with ours. This inconvenience we
expect will be remedied for the year 1920. Guthnick's results
show a range of several per cent. This may be in part really
solar. If no solar variation was suspected one would attribute
it to experimental error. If it should prove that Guthnick in
the future finds variations in planetary brightness similar to our
solar changes but not coincident in time, we must recall that
the planets generally lie in different directions. If the solar

228 ABBOT: SOLAR RADIATION MEASUREMENTS

changes are due to what we might call solar cloudiness, the
effects should not occur coincidentally in different directions
from the sun.

One of the most convincing proofs of the essential soundness
of the measurements which indicate solar variability comes from
Clayton's investigations of terrestrial temperatures. These have
been published in Argentina, but also simultaneously by the
Smithsonian Institution in its Miscellaneous Collections. ^

In his first paper Clayton discusses the departures from nor-
mal temperatures for about 30 stations widely distributed over
the earth, as related to the "solar constant" values determined
on Mount Wilson. He does this largely by the mathematical
method of correlations, but not wholly so.

If two quantities vary in the same sense wholly dependently
the one on the other, as for instance the lengths of the radii and
circumferences of circles, they are said to have a correlation
coefficient of +1. If the dependence is complete but the varia-
tions occur in opposite senses, as the widths and lengths of
rectangles of constant area, the correlation coefficient is — i .
Between these limits there are all magnitudes depending on
degrees of dependency between the two variables. If entirely
unrelated, the coefficient is zero. In this method of investiga-
tion, quite common in agriculture, eugenics and other sciences,
we must take account especially of the algebraic sign of the
coefficients and of their magnitude, compared to their probable
errors, in forming an opinion of the nature and degree of depend-
ence of the quaUties examined.

As has been said, the Mount Wilson solar observations indi-
cated irregularly recurring variations sometimes reaching extremes
of 10 per cent in the solar heat available to warm the earth.
These changes often ran their course in a week or ten days.
Ranges of 10 per cent are rare but those of 2 or 3 per cent are
common.

Clayton found that coefficients of correlation ranging from
+0.54 to —0.50 occtured as between solar and temperature
changes. His studies covered not only the day of the solar

2 Vol. 68, No. 3, and Vol. 71, No. 3.

ABBOT: SOLAR RADIATION MEASUREMENTS 229

observation itself, but the five days next following. He found
that the largest temperature effects occurred generally from the
third to the fifth day after the solar event.

Correlation coefficients numerically as large as 0.50 are prac-
tically always certain evidence of strong dependence between
the variables. Clayton, therefore, very justly concluded that for
some regions, at least, the observed variations of the sun so
greatly influence temperatures that the effects are not masked
by terrestrial influences. Furthermore the delay of several days
between the solar cause and the terrestrial effect gave promise
for useful forecasting.

A remarkable result is the opposing signs of correlation. An
increase of solar radiation is attended at some stations by posi-
tive and at others by negative temperatiure departures. Clay-
ton marked his stations on a world map and seemed to find that
while in the tropics and polar zones positive correlations pre-
vail, negative ones are found generally in both north and south
temperate zones.

These early results of Clayton's seemed so interesting and
promising that the Smithsonian Institution appeared justified
in estabhshing a new solar radiation observing station in the
most cloudless available region in the world, in order to furnish
solar values regularly through the entire year. After a disap-
pointing expedition to North Carolina, a region chosen only be-
cause of war conditions, the station was located in July, 19 18, at
Calama, Chile. Two observers, Mr. A. F. Moore, Director, and
Mr. L. H. Abbot, Assistant, have occupied this desert station
continuously up to the present time. Their zeal and success
have been remarkable. The station has not quite satisfied our
hopes for cloudlessness but determinations of considerable weight
have been made on about 75 per cent of all days since July 27,
1918.

In the meantime, Mr. Clayton and his colleagues in Argentina
have diligently continued their computations of the terrestrial
effects produced by solar variations. The results they reached,
up to June, 19 1 9, have just been published by the Smithsonian
Institution.^ They are indeed remarkable, though confined al-

3 Misc. Coll. Vol. 71, No. 3.

230

ABBOT: SOI.AR RADIATION MEASUREMENTS

most exclusively to Argentine weather stations, and mainly to
Buenos Aires.

Clayton carries on the study of what happens after a change
in solar radiation for many days, sometimes even 40 days after
the event. This leads to the surprising result that the largest
effects come not 3 days, but even 10 days and 17 days after the
event. As he has shown this result clearly by the ordinary
method of graphical comparison, not involving mathematical
correlation coefficients, I am able to show you the result with

0 2 4 6 8 10 12 24 16
DAys Elapsed ArTzn. Solar Obsebvation.

Fig. I. — Curves showing departures from mean temperatures at Buenos Aires.

perfect simplicity in figure i, which I have re-drawn on the
Fahrenheit scale from his table II. Three curves are shown
representing the average progress of the departures from mean
temperatures at Buenos Aires. These cover the 10 days next
following dates when the "solar constant" was determined as
2.00, 1.95, and 1.90 calories per square centimeter per minute,
respectively. The ciu^es give the mean results of the years

ABBOT: SOLAR RADIATION MEASUREMENTS 23I

1913, 191 4, 1915 and 1916/ for the months May to November,
The solar observations were made at Mount Wilson. Note the
pronounced and opposite courses of the temperature departures
after high and low solar radiation values, and the nearly normal
temperature following mean solar values. Note, too, that the
temperature departures are not small. They amount to several
whole degrees, not mere tenths of degrees. In fact on the
second, tenth, and seventeenth day after the event, the tem-
perature departure after the high solar radiation differs in each case
more than 6° F. from the corresponding departure after low
values. This corresponds to 5 per cent change in the sun's
radiation. Meteorologists need not be reminded that 6° F.
change in the mean temperature of a whole day is not trifling.
People in general would also very easily recognize a day whose
mean temperature was 90° from one of 84° F., or one of 10° F.
from one of 16° F.

Perhaps equally or more important in Argentina, where there
is hardly adequate rainfall, are Clayton's results on the depend-
ence of precipitation on solar radiation, if confirmed.^ He finds
that heavy rains are apt to occur from three to five days after
large decreases of the solar radiation. He shows this result by
table I.

At times of nearly stationary solar intensities there seems to
be practically no precipitation in these cities of Argentina. In
a few instances precipitation follows large increases of radia-
tion. But almost universally great decreases of solar radiation
are followed in from 3 to 5 days by heavy precipitation. Such
information is of great value for vineyard growers and agricul-
turists in other lines if it proves to be well founded.

These are but specially striking samples of the results which
Clayton lays before us. He has discussed all of the Mount
Wilson and Calama solar observations for their bearing on the

^ Clayton did not have solar results of 191 6 and 191 7 available for study when
he obtained these results.

° Clayton's statement is not specific at this point, but I think his precipitation
table depends only on a few months of observation, not on the mean of 4 years
like the temperature data.

232

ABBOT: SOLAR RADIATION MEASUREMENTS

weather of Argentina. His studies have great variety. They
deal especially with the discovery of periodicities in the phe-
nomena which he treated by harmonic analyses as well as by
simpler methods.

TABLE I.
Relation Between Rainfall and "Solar Constant."

Solar changes in
calories

+0.050 to +0.070
+0.030 to +0.050
+0.010 to +0.030
— 0.0 10 to — 0.030
).030 to — 0.050
).05o to — 0.070

Average daily rainfall in mm.

3 to

4 days later

days later

Mar del

Buenos

Cor-

Corri-

Tucu-

Plata

Aires

doba

Parana

entes

man

Mean

In December, 191 8, Clayton began to employ the results fur-
nished by the Smithsonian observers at Calama, Chile, for actual
forecasting. Fully convinced of the value of such data. Prof.
C. C. Wiggin, Chief of the Argentina Weather Service, arranged
for a daily telegraphic service from Calama to Buenos Aires.
By their great skill and zeal, Messrs. Moore and Abbot, the
Smithsonian observers at Calama, have completely reduced the
"solar constant" value on each day of observation. They send
a code telegram from Calama via Antofagasta and Valparaiso,
Chile, to Buenos Aires on the evening of each observing day.
This states the intensity of solar radiation outside our atmos-
phere, and the quality of the determination. The value is
available in Buenos Aires for the forecasting on the following
morning, within 24 hours of the time of observation.

Fortunately, during my visit at Calama in June, 1919, with
the cooperation of the observer there, I was able to perfect a

ABBOT: SOLAR RADIATION MEASUREMENTS 233

new empirical method of "solar constant" determination, based
upon data obtained by Langley's methods, but independent of
gradual changes of transparency of the atmosphere during ob-
servations. Hitherto it has required several hours of uniform
atmospheric transparency to enable us to make the proper ob-
servations. If the sky was growing clearer our result was too
high, and if more hazy, too low. The new method of "solar
constant" determination is based on the fact that the atmos-
pheric transparency varies in an opposite sense to the varia-
tions of the brightness of the sky. Increased haziness means
more reflecting surface to scatter the solar rays indirectly to the
earth. At the same time it means more obstructing surface to
cut off the direct solar beam. We have found accordingly that
from measurements of the brightness of the sky near the sun it
is possible to infer the atmosphere transmission coefficients at
all wave lengths. In our new process all the observations can
be made in 15 minutes, and the "solar constant" value can be
completely worked out in a couple of hours. The following great
advantages may be claimed for the new method: i. Great sav-
ing of labor. 2. Possibility of making several independent de-
terminations each day. 3. Greater accuracy because independ-
ent of the variability of the atmospheric transparency. 4. Avail-
ability on partly cloudy days. On the other hand the new
method is empirical, and must be frequently checked against the
old to make sure that no new atmospheric conditions have
arisen to invalidate it.

In letters just received from Mr. Clayton, he states that his
most recent studies have but increased his enthusiasm for the
value of solar radiation observations in forecasting. He en-
closes curves showing a striking direct correspondence between
the temperature departure for Buenos Aires and other South
American cities in November and December of 1919, and the
slightly antedating solar radiation changes. The direct tem-
perature effects lag from two to three days behind the solar
fluctuations.

We now come to the most interesting and puzzling feature of
these new discoveries. It is that the dependence between solar

234 ABBOT: SOLAR RADIATION MEASUREMENTS

variations and changes of terrestrial temperatures at Buenos
Aires occur in opposite senses at different seasons of the year.
From October to February, inclusive, low values of solar radia-
tion are followed for several days by negative temperature de-
partures from the normal, and the reverse is true for the months
March to September, inclusive. Naturally the intervals of tran-
sition in March and October from one of these conditions to the
other are periods when the solar radiation results are at present
of little value for forecasting purposes. Besides this inconven-
ience, it occasionally happens in the midst of one of the long
periods of positive or of negative correlation, that a sporadic
regression to the other type of correlation will occur to mar the
forecast. It may be that with further investigation these things
will be understood. Something about the prevailing direction
of the winds or of the condition of the upper air may come to
light to serve as a basis of prediction whether the correlation
will be positive or negative at a given epoch.

It has been mentioned that Mr. Clayton discovered in his
early studies that in different parts of the world correlations of
opposite algebraic signs between solar radiation and temperatures
prevail simultaneously. It must, therefore, be tha tthere are geo-
graphical regions of transition, as well as transition time epochs at
a single region. Hence the new means of forecasting cannot yet be
regarded as either simple or fully satisfactory. Much investiga-
tion must be made before they take established rank in meteor-
ology. Enough has been done to show that there is promise. Before
the promise can come to fruition we must have continuous daily
records of well determined solar constant values. These can-
not be secured with the means now available. The solar radia-
tion station at Mount Wilson is not occupied more than six months
per year, and never yields more than 130 values of the "solar
constant" in that period. Of those not all are good. The sta-
tion at Calama yields about 250 good values per annum now
that the new method of observing is adopted. These are the
only stations of the kind in the world. There should be two
or three others, widely separated in the most cloudless regions
available. I have in mind Egypt, Southern California and Mid-
dle Australia.

ABBOT: SOLAR RADIATION MEASUREMENTS 235

The cost of a solar radiation station need not exceed $25,000,
and its upkeep $10,000 per annum. Since the accuracy of the
determinations of the solar variations would be enhanced by
uniformity in the methods of observing, it is quite desirable that
the measurements at the several stations should be made under
a common control and direction.

The methods of observing and reducing have been devised
and perfected at the Smithsonian Institution but they would
very willingly be communicated to any international organiza-
tion which was prepared to take up measurements of the "solar
constant." On the other hand, if the Smithsonian Institution
had the means, preferably $1,000,000, to devote to the subject,
it would be practical for the Institution to carry on "solar
constant" determinations in perpetuity in such a manner as to
afford a satisfactory groundwork for any application of them
which meteorologists may wish to make hereafter.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

139TH MEETING

The 139th meeting of the Academy was held in the Assembly Hall
of the Cosmos Club at 8.15 p.m., on Thursday, January 29, 1920;
President Alsberg presided. Dr. C. G. Abbot, Director of the
Astrophysical Observe atory, Smithsonian Institution, delivered an illus-
trated lecture on The use of solar radiation measurements in weather
forecasting in Argentina. The substance of the lecture is published in
this number of the Journal.

Discussion. Professor C. F. Marvin, Chief of the Weather Bureau,
presented the following discussion :

We must all admire and commend in the highest terms the persistent
and conscientious effort which Mr. Clayton has expended in carrying
forward for several years the tedious studies he has executed to ex-
hibit a correlation between daily and short-period fluctuations in ob-
served values of intensities of solar radiation and terrestrial tempera-
ture and other phenomena of weather. I wish especially to commend
in the highest terms the splendid work done by the Astrophysical
Observatory of the Smithsonian Institution under the able director-
ship of Dr. Abbot in perfecting methods and apparatus for the exact
measurement of solar radiation intensities, and in securing almost
daily values thereof. I do not know of any one element of observation
possessing greater fundamental importance to theoretical meteorology
than that of the intensity of solar radiation. Dr. Abbot's investiga-
tions command our unqualified appreciation and his work deserves to
be encouraged and extended as far as possible, purely on the basis of
the great value of the work itself.

With reference to Air. Clayton's findings, I feel compelled to say I
cannot at present join with Dr. Abbot in his seeming enthusiastic
acceptance of the former's views. Mr. Clayton's latest paper has been
in my hands only a few days and has received but a very hasty exam-
ination. The hesitation I feel in accepting its conclusions is based on
certain general principles and convictions and may be overcome by a
critical and detailed study which such a paper must receive before its
merits or faults are fully disclosed.

It is obviously impossible, in the few minutes available to me this
evening, to attempt to discuss any details of this highly complex and
intricate problem — I must confine myself to a very few fundamental
considerations and convictions.

236

proceedings: Washington academy 237

There are at least three basic questions which must be answered in
the affirmative before we can accept Mr. Clayton's views; these are:
(i) Are they in accord with the theoretical, physical or scientific prin-
ciples which we believe govern the phenomena? (2) Are the data em-
ployed so entirely free from systematic errors as to be practically un-
impeachable for the purposes for which Mr. Clayton has used them?
(3) Are the methods of analysis and treatment of the data sufficiently
conclusive to command confidence and carry conviction?

From my understanding of the whole question at the present time»
I am obliged to entertain a negative reply to each one of these ques-
tions to such an extent as to make me believe Mr. Clayton's proposi-
tion is not yet conclusively proven, (i) In 1916, I was called upon
to decide concerning the merits of another case of correlation between
terrestrial weather and certain well-known solar features; in this case
the spottedness of the sun. At that time I formulated a physical
principle which seems to me to serve as a guide in questions of this
kind. This was published in the Monthly Weather Review for Janu-
ary, 1 919, and is as follows:

"Meteorologists have long been accustomed to ascribe practically
all atmospheric motions, both local and general, to the gravitational
flow resulting from the local and general contrasts of temperature over
the surface of the earth. The atmosphere derives its heat, not directly
from the sun, except to a small extent, but chiefly from the surface of
the earth itself. The daily sequence of sunshine and darkness; the
varied distribution of clear and cloudy skies; diversities of surface cover
added to contrasts of land and water areas, including the phenomena
of evaporation, condensation and precipitation; the cycle of the sea-
sons, and above all the fluctuating but nevertheless perpetual contrasts
of surface temperatures, ranging all the way from the heat of the
tropics to the intense cold of the polar zones constitute a complex
series of varied and changeable influences seemingly abundantly ade-
quate to cause and explain every feature of our weather conditions,
however changeable we may find them.

"These differences and contrasts on the one hand perpetually disturb
the orderly arrangement of air densities and pressures demanded by
gravity. The latter, on the other hand, as perpetually and continu-
ously sets portions of the air in motion, in order to establish and main-
tain a state of equilibrium, which, however, is never attained, or rather
we must clearly recognize that the ceaseless complex changes in and
motions of, our atmosphere represent in fact the only state of equilibrium
possible between gravity on the one hand and solar heating of the earth
on the other.

"Seemingly with little regard for the considerations just mentioned,
many have sought and still seek to ascribe terrestrial weather — that
is to say, all the characteristic features of atmospheric variations— to
minor features of solar activity, as, for example, to the spots and faculae
of the sun or to its magnetic manifestations, or to the relatively small

238 proceedings: Washington academy

and irregular fluctuations in the intensity of its thermal radiations, or
to some of these variously in combination, etc.

"Even suppose these solar phenomena directly influence terrestrial
weather in some way yet to be proved, is it not plainly most essential
in detecting and analyzing cause and effect relations that we adequately
segregate and make due allowance for the complex phenomena which
clearly must result if solar insolation were perfectly constant and if
the other manifestations of solar activity were entirely absent?

"Those who have been most ready to find convincing evidence of
definite relations between terrestrial weather and minor features of
solar activity have seemingly disregarded the obligation devolving
upon them to make the segregation between the major and the minor
influences. . .

"Variations in the intensity of thermal radiations from the sun must,
of course, be reflected in terrestrial weather phenomena, but such
reflected eft'ects must stand in appropriate relation quantitatively to
the variations themselves."

These considerations prevent me from concurring in Mr. Clayton's
conclusions which he states in his own words as follows:

"The results of these researches have led me to believe: i. That if
there were no variation in solar radiation the atmospheric motions
would establish a stable system with exchanges of air between equator
and pole and between ocean and land, in which the only variation
would be daily and annual changes set in operation by the relative
motions of the earth and sun. 2. The existing abnormal changes,
which we call weather, have their origin chiefly, if not entirely, in the
variation of solar radiation."

Mr. Clayton's paper in no way defines what constitutes a "stable
system" of atmospheric motions nor does it offer a direct proof of these
conclusions. They are simply generalized inferences drawn by him
from his investigations.

I realize that my own statement as well as that of Mr. Clayton is
of a kind that it is difficult or impossible to prove or disprove. They
are contradictory, however, and I leave them to your reflection as to
their physical soundness.

(2) I am most reluctant to raise any question as to the final accuracy
of Dr. Abbot's solar radiation values, because I know the conscientious
care he has taken to eliminate systematic errors due to terrestrial
causes. However, this is a matter about which we must have a definite
answer, yes or no. Dr. Abbot fully recognizes the importance of this
issue, and, in his introductory note to Clayton's paper, he states the
question in this way:

"I now anticipate the question of the reader: .... is it pos-
sible that the apparent variations of radiation were not truly solar,
but were caused by changes in the transmissibility or other properties
of the air which affected the solar radiation measurements in one way
and the temperature and rainfall of the earth in another?"

PROCEEDINGS: WASHINGTON ACADEMY 239

The negative answer he offers to this question in the immediate con-
text is based in part on very indirect evidence drawn wholly from
Clayton's work itself. This is too much in the nature of reasoning in
a circle to carry conviction and can not outweigh the very direct adverse
evidence derived from a critical examination of the simultaneous data
showing atmospheric transmission and solar radiation intensities. A
study of this kind has been carried on at the Weather Bureau for the
past several months by Mr. Clough, whom I regard as a most con-
scientious and astute student of questions of this nature, and I am
unable to refute the results of the studies he has thus far shown me,
and these seem to me to indicate that in at least some of the observa-
tions employed by Mr. Clayton the value of the solar constant comes
out high for low atmospheric transmission, and the value is low for
high transmission. This question of the accuracy of the data must
be removed before Mr. Clayton's views can be established.

(3) Finally, I must express skepticism as to the conclusiveness of a
demonstration resting mainly or alone on correlation coefficients and
the comparison of somewhat similar curves. Correlation coefficients
are quite meaningless without the probable error of the coefficient, and
I notice the probable errors of the correlation coefficients have been
completely omitted from Mr. Clayton's last account of his work. This
makes it impossible to properly weigh the evidence submitted.

Every problem in the correlation of two variables can be graphically
represented by a so-called dot chart in which the position of each dot
with reference to the conventional coordinate axes represents the simul-
taneous values of the two variables. In nearly all problems of this
kind with which I have any acquaintance the dots fall in a widely
scattered "star cluster" sort of arrangement, signifying a large measure
of inconsistency. The correlation coefficient serves simply to define the
straight line of least-square best fit for the given cluster of dots. The prob-
able error of the correlation coefficient is an index of the amount of scatter
of the dots. In a great many cases the clusters of dots are nearly
as broad as they are long, and the direction of the straight line of
best fit in such cases is determined almost wholly by a small number
of pairs of the variables which have extreme high or low values. The
great bulk of the dots serve no other purpose than to fix the origin of
the coordinate axis at the center of gravity of the system. We may
use results of this sort with a high probable error as a basis for rough
estimations, approximations, or even forecasts. But I cannot feel
justified in accepting them as demonstrations of cause and effect re-
lations.

Summarizing my views, I may say, first, I am not convinced of the
entire physical soundness of Mr. Clayton's first and second conclusions
stated. Second, I think it is still possible there may be some residual
error in measurements of solar radiation intensities by which a portion
of those values, sufficient to influence final conclusions, are system-
atically high with low atmospheric transmission and low with high

240 proceedings: Washington academy

atmospheric transmission. Third, I am not convinced of the conclu-
siveness of Mr. Clayton's methods of analysis of the data employed.

In conclusion, I wish to make it very clear that my skepticism is
not in the slightest degree directed against the work of the Astro-
physical Observatory. Dr. Abbot's work should be supported and
extended in the fullest possible manner purely on its own merits and on
account of the importance of observations of intensity of solar radia-
tion to general meteorology. For example, I wish we might have, and
I am ready to recommend urgently that we have, say 12 stations,
maintained throughout the world. These should be located as nearly
as possible in four groups of three each, the three located on the same
meridian of longitude, the four groups separated by approximately 90°
of longitude. Such a system of stations would make possible simul-
taneous measurements of intensity every six hours. This proposal is
submitted largely as a scientific desideratum. It is recognized that
geographical and meteorological conditions operate in a very material
way as obstacles to its complete realization.

Dr. W. J. Humphreys, of the Weather Bureau, said that it is now
quite certain that the sun is a variable star. Explosions, or something
analogous thereto, cause spots in the sun, and naturally lead us to
expect variability in its radiation such as is actually found in Dr.
Abbot's measurements. It is not to be expected that more stations
will disprove the variability of the sun; they will only establish more
accurately its amount. Since all weather phenomena are the result
of the sun's radiation, any change in that radiation must produce a
corresponding change on the earth. The only question is as to the
kind and magnitude of this change. The sun's radiation is partly
reflected from the outer atmosphere, and partly absorbed, mainly in
the lower levels, while the remainder is absorbed at the earth's surface.
If the sun's variability is known, a rough computation can, therefore,
be made of the kind of result to be expected. Abbot and Clayton have
gone far enough to show that there is considerable value in the effort
to correlate the variations in the solar constant and in the weather,
and at least six stations should be established to carry forward the
study of the solar constant.

All of Clayton's deductions, however, are not sound. What he calls
a "stable system" would not necessarily result if there were no varia-
tion in solar radiation. A river with a constant supply of water and
undisturbed at its mouth by tides may still be full of turbulent currents.
The weather cannot be dependent solely on changes in the sun.

The location of Buenos Aires is unfortunate for an attempt to cor-
relate weather and solar variation. An inland high-level station would
be much better. The lower levels of the atmosphere near the sea are
usually moist and dusty and do not respond as quickly as the high levels;
variations in the wind direction, especially as between on and off shore,
are also most disturbing near the coast.

proceedings: Washington academy 241

Dr. C. F. Brooks, of the Weather Bureau, referred to the difficulty
which positive and negative correlations occurring at different seasons
introduce into any attempt to use solar variations in forecasting. In
a lecture before the Academy in 1918 Nansen^ showed how surface
temperatures at different places on the earth varied either directly or
oppositely with the sun spot numbers, and how the direction of varia-
tion changed from time to time, due evidently to shifts in the centers
of action of the atmosphere. There are "fixed" centers of action, as
at the Azores, which control seasonal weather; but it is the moving
centers (the high and low pressure areas) that control our weather from
day to day. If the actual positions of Highs and Lows be taken into
consideration, we may find it possible to predict whether a given varia-
tion in the solar constant will have a positive or negative result at a
particular place. Increasing the strength of a High, for instance, would
have opposite effects on temperature at stations on the east and west
sides of the High.

As an example of a probable correlation between solar and weather
phenomena, the speaker called attention to six successive recurrences
of abnormally high pressures somewhere in the United States or Canada
in the fall and winter of 1917-1918; these recurred at about 2 7 -day
intervals, or about the synodic rotation period of the sun in low lati-
tudes. The maxima occurred, however, at different places.

The time is perhaps not distant when the weather forecaster, having
before him the existing and expected locations of the Highs and Lows,
may be able to use solar constant data to predict most of the now in-
explicable changes in the intensities of those centers.

Dr. L. A. Bauer, of the Department of Terrestrial Magnetism, Car-
negie Institution, made special mention of the achievement of the
Astrophysical Observatory in introducing new methods that so greatly
diminished the time and labor of obtaining solar constant data. He
hoped that a continuous record of the solar constant might some day
be possible.

Dr. Abbot stated his gratification that all the speakers had agreed
on the need of additional stations to obtain more and better values
of the intensity of solar radiation. The data available to Clayton were
far from being completely satisfactory, for the measurements were
frequently interfered with by cloudiness at both Mt. Wilson and Calama.
Nevertheless, he believed the correlation of the radiation and temper-
ature observations too striking to be avoided, whatever the theoretical
application may be. Dr. Brooks' suggestion regarding the movement
of action-centers may well account for Clayton's varying correlations.
In reply to a question by Col. T. L. Casey he pointed out that the
average value of the solar constant has not changed in the right direc-
tion to account readily for the great difference between the winters of
1918-19 and 1919-20 in Washington, but that the weather depends to

1 This JotTRNAL 8: 135-138. 1918.

242 proceedings: Washington academy

a great extent on the direction of wind, and the relation between solar
constant and the direction of wind in Washington may be very com-
plex. The solar constant for the period 1902-1912 averaged 1.93 and
values as low as 1.85 appeared often. During the years 1914 to 1920
it averaged 1.95 and seldom fell as low as 1.90. In September, 1919,
1.93 was again the mean value, while for October, November and
December it had risen to 1.96. Notwithstanding this recent increase
we have a cold winter in the United States.

Robert B. Sosman, Corresponding Secretary.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

MATTERS OF SCIENTIFIC INTEREST IN CONGRESS ^

On February 19 Mr. Tilson introduced a joint resolution (H. J.
Res. 299) "extending the life of the National Screw Thread Commis-
sion for a period of two years from March 21, 1920." The Committee
on Coinage, Weights and Measures reported it in the House on Feb-
ruary 24 (Rep. 671), and it was passed on March i. The Senate
passed the resolution on March 17.

This Commission was appointed under an act approved July 18,
1918, and consists of two representatives each from the Army and
Navy, and four members nominated by the national engineering societies,
with the Director of the Bureau of Standards as chairman. The Com-
mission has investigated and formulated standards of commercial screw-
thread practice which have been made accessible to engineers and
manufacturers and have been tested in use. The life of the Com-
mission is extended in order to give opportunity for minor modifications
in the proposed standards before its final report is promulgated.

The bill for a tariff on scientific instruments, chemical glass and
porcelain, and surgical and dental instruments^ (H. R. 7785) had been
in the hands of the Senate Committee on Finance for several months,
and it had been agreed in the Committee that the dyestuffs bill (H. R.
8078) should have the right of way as the most important of the tariff
bills. An attempt was, therefore, made by Mr. Watson on February
25 to bring the dyestuffs bill before the Senate, but objections were
made by Mr. Poindexter and others on the ground that the other
tariff bills passed by the House (magnesite, scientific instruments,
etc.) had not been reported and that dyestuffs had no right to special
consideration. The result was that no action was taken on any of
the bills at that date. Later, on March 4, the bill for a tariff on scien-
tific instruments, etc., was reported in the Senate without amendment
(Rep. 459) and recommended for passage. The report laid special
stress on the testimony of Mr. J. M. Roberts, Secretary of the Scien-
tific Apparatus Makers' Association, whose figures showed that a tar-
iff of 60 per cent ad valorem would equalize Japanese and American
costs of production on the six items quoted by him, with a maximum
deviation of 8 per cent.

The Patent Office reform bills^ (H. R. 5011, 5012 and 7010) were
combined by the House Committee on Patents into a new bill (H. R.
II 984) "To increase the force and salaries in the Patent Office, and for
other purposes," which was introduced by Mr. Nolan, and passed by
the House on March 5.

1 Preceding report: This Journal 10: 148. 1920.

2 See this JotTRNAL 9: 389, 421, 562. I9i9- 1°: I49. 1920.

3 This Journal 9: 422. 1919-

243

244 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

The Senate Committee on Military Affairs finished in January its
work on the Army reorganization bill (S. 3792) and in the bill as re-
ported in the Senate on January 28 (Rep. 400) the Committee provided
for a separate Chemical Warfare Service in the Army. 126 officers
and 1200 enlisted men are provided in this Service. The correspond-
ing House bill (H. R. 12775) which was reported February 26 (Rep.
680) provides 91 officers and 1500 men. During the debate on the
bill in the House the Chemical Warfare paragraph was criticized as
prescribing no duties for the Ser\dce, but no change was made. The
bill was passed by the House on March 18.

A committee of the House made a tour of inspection to the Govern-
ment nitrate plants near Muscle Shoals, Alabama, in the latter part
of January', to obtain information relative to the feasibility of their
private operation. Hearings on the Senate bilP to establish the United
States Fixed Nitrogen Corporation (S. 3390, Mr. Wadsworth, Novem-
ber 7, 191 9) were begun before the Senate Committee on Agriculture in
the latter part of March.

A new departure in weights and measures is embodied in S. 3943,
introduced (by request) by Mr. King, one of the Senators from Utah,
on February 18. The bill is entitled: "A bill to establish the stand-
ard and decimal divisions of the weights, measures and coins of the
United States." A similar bill, with minor changes, was introduced
in the House by Mr. Welling, a representative from Utah, on March
I (H. R. 12850). The character of the plan may be indicated by the
fact that the English foot is made the fundamental unit, with sub-
divisions into a "decimal inch" which is one-tenth of a foot, and a
"common inch" which is one-twelfth of a foot. This plan of a mul-
tiple set of factors is carried through the system, which is intermit-
tently octaval, decimal or duodecimal. The bills were referred to the
Senate Committee on Standards, Weights and Measures, and the House
Committee on Coinage, Weights and Measures, respectively. Edi-
torial writers in the technical press seem in some doubt as to whether
the bill is a serious proposal, a practical joke, or a "smoke screen" in
anticipation of metric legislation.

Metric legislation has been compiled into the form of a bill, but has
not yet been introduced, at this writing. Meanwhile, an extensive
brief in opposition to the introduction of a "metric system bill" was
submitted in March to the House Committee on Coinage, Weights and
Measures, by the American Institute of Weights and Measures.

The report of the Joint Commission on Reclassification of Salaries^
was presented to Congress on March 12, but at this writing no legis-
lation based on the report has been introduced.

* The House bill is H. R. 10329. See this Journai, 9: 646. 1919.
5 This JoiTRNAL 10: 148. 1920.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS 245

NOTES

The following program of papers was presented at the public meet-
ing of the Board of Surveys and Maps at the Interior Department on
March 9, 1920:

I. Coordination of Government mapping and surveying through the
Board of Surveys and Maps, O. C. Merrill, Chairman of Board. 2.
Report of Joint Committee of Non-Federal Agencies, M. O. Leighton,
Chairman of National Service Committee, Engineering Council. 3.
Need for a general topographic map of the United States and means by
which its preparation may be expedited: (a) From a highways stand-
point, Thomas G. MacDonald, Director, Bureau of Public Roads, (b)
From a railroads standpoint, A. C. Baldwin, Vice-President, Illinois
Central Railroad, (c) From a military standpoint. Col. C. O. Sherrill,
Corps of Engineers, U. S. Army, (d) Present status of map, and rate
and cost of completion, G. O. Smith, Director, U. S. Geological Survey,
and William Bowie, U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey. 4. Extent and
means of cooperation between the Board and other agencies: (a) Federal
agencies, Edwin F. Wendt, District Engineer, Interstate Commerce
Commission. (6) State and municipal agencies, F. W. DeWolP, State
Geologist of Illinois, (c) Non-Governmental agencies, Alfred D.
Flinn, Secretary, Engineering Council. 5. Public needs which a cen-
tral map information office may serve, E. B. Matthews, Chairman of
Division of Geology and Geography, National Research Council. A
general discussion followed the fixed program of the meeting.

International Exchange shipments of publications are now being
made direct to Finland in the care of the Delegation of Scientific So-
cieties of Finland, at Helsingfors.

Brood No. 19 of the 13-year race of the periodical cicada ("seven-
teen-year locust") will be the subject of special observation in Ten-
nessee this spring, to determine the effect of unfavorable weather upon
its development. This brood has been subjected twice in its history
(in 1894 and 1907) to the unusual condition of freezing weather follow-
ing its emergence, in May, causing the death of a large proportion of
the cicadas before they had begun laying. It is possible that the
brood may have been exterminated thereby over a large part of its
original territory.

Dr. C. G. Abbot, of the Astrophysical Observatory, announces that
solar radiation measurements at Calama, Chile, have indicated, almost
without exception, extremely high values since October 7, 1919. At
the same time there has been an unusually severe winter in the north-
eastern United States and extraordinary cloudiness and precipitation
in the Southern Andes.

Mr. Walter M. Berry, Associate Gas Engineer, has been appointed
Chief of the Gas Engineering Section of the Bureau of Standards, suc-
ceeding Mr. R. S. McBride, who recently resigned to join the staff
of the McGraw-Hill Company.

246 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Captain W. R. Birks, of Chatswood, New South Wales, Australia,
visited the Department of Agriculture in February. Captain Birks
has been absent from Australia for nearly five years, being connected
with the British Army on the western front in France during most of
this time. Since the signing of the Armistice he has been studying
agricultural conditions in Europe.

Dr. Rupert Blue, of the U. S. Public Health Service, went to Eng-
land in March to represent the United States at the international con-
ference of physicians, surgeons and hygienists, which convened at Lon-
don on April 12.

Mr. S. R. Capps, geologist in the Alaskan division of the U. S. Geo-
logical Survey, has applied for furlough and will spend several months
in European Turkey studying oil possibilities for the Standard Oil
Company. He will be accompanied by Mr. T. P. Pendleton, topog-
rapher in the Alaskan division.

Mr. W. E. Chambers, microscopist and illustrator in the Bureau of
Plant Industry, U. S. Department of Agriculture, died on March 5,
1920, in his fifty -fifth year. Mr. Chambers was born at Birmingham,
England, in 1866. He had been with the Bureau since August i, 1908.

Mr. Theodore Chapin, geologist of the U. S. Geological Survey
stationed at Anchorage, Alaska, has taken a furlough for four months
and will go to the Tampico oil fields, Mexico, for the Standard Oil
Company.

Mr. N. H. Darton, geologist, is on furlough from the U. S. Geo-
logical Survey, and will conduct reconnaissance geological surveys for
an oil company in northern Mexico.

Prof. Henry S. Graves, for the past ten years Chief Forester of the
Forest Service, U. S. Department of Agriculture, resigned from the
Service in March, giving as his reason for retirement his belief that
"the pecuniary returns afforded professional and scientific men in the
Government service inadequately provide against the exhaustion of
the working powers which must inevitably take place in time, and
entail sacrifices from which employment elsewhere is free."

Mr. Paul Greeley has been appointed an assistant at the Calama,
Chile, station of the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory. He ex-
pected to sail from New York about March 20.

Mr. W. B. Greeley, Assistant Forester, and recently lieutenant
colonel in charge of the forestry service of the American Expeditionary
Forces in France, has been appointed Chief Forester of the Service, to
succeed Prof. H. S. Graves on his retirement on May i.

Dr. Ralph E. Hall, physical chemist at the Geophysical Laboratory,
Carnegie Institution of Washington, resigned in March to take charge
of physical researches for the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company at
Akron, Ohio.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS 247

Mr. E. T. Hancock has resigned as geologist of the U. S. Geological
Survey to represent the Standard Oil Company in Roumania in its oil
operations.

Messrs. A. A. Hansen and F. V. CovillE, of the Bureau of Plant
Industry, and Paul Bartsch, of the National Museum, delivered in
March and April an illustrated lecture course on "Wild Flowers" under
the auspices of the Wild Flower Preservation Society of America in
cooperation with the Community Center Department of the Public
Schools of the District of Columbia.

Mr. John B. Henderson, a regent of the Smithsonian Institution,
who for the past two years has devoted the major part of his time to
molluscan research in the Division of Marine Invertebrates, has gone
to Cuba and Jamaica to secure certain anatomical material of the West
Indian operculate landshells necessary to complete a new classification
of these mollusks, upon which he and Dr. Paul Bartsch are now at
work.

Prof. James T. JardinE, in charge of the Ofhce of Range Research
of the U. S. Forest Service for the past thirteen years, resigned from
the Service in March to become Director of the Oregon State Agricul-
tural Experiment Station at Corvallis. The work of the office of
which he has been in charge embraces a study of the classification, im-
provement, and use of western range lands, and the period of his ad-
ministration has seen the development of fundamental principles in
range management and their application to 153,000,000 acres of graz-
ing lands in the National Forests.

The following hydrographic and geodetic engineers resigned from
the U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey in January and February: G. R.
A. Kantzler, W. H. Overshiner, J. D. Powell, P. M. Trueblood,
E. M. Wilbur, and S. D. Winship.

Mr. W. S. W. Kew, who has been studying the oil fields of Cali-
fornia for the U. S. Geological Surve}^ will take a furlough for six
months to investigate oil fields in Colombia, South America.

Mr. Henry Lindenkohl, cartographer of the U. S. Coast and Geo-
detic Survey, died on February 19, 1920, in his eighty-second year,
after fifty-nine years of service with the Survey. Mr. Lindenkohl was
born in Hesse-Cassell, Germany, January 26, 1839, and became an
American citizen in 1861. He made many contributions to the military
maps of the Federal armies during the Civil War, and had been engaged
in active cartographic work from that date until the time of his death.

Mr. J. B. Norton, physiologist in the Bureau of Plant Industry, has
resigned to go into commercial plant breeding work at Hartsville,
South Carolina.

Mr. Albert F. Potter, Associate Chief of the Forest Service, re-
signed from the vService in March, requesting that his resignation be
made effective April 15.

248 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Mr. E. W. Shaw, geologist, is on leave of absence from the U. S.
Geological Survey for six months and will make a reconnaissance of a
large tract in Bolivia and the Argentine Republic with a view to its
development by an oil syndicate. Messrs. R. H. Sargent, chief
topographer of the Alaskan division, and G. L. Harrington, Edwin
Kirk and C. P. Ross, geologists of the Survey, also on furlough, will
accompany Mr. Shaw.

Mr. Edward A. Sherman, assistant forester, has been appointed
associate forester of the Forest Serv'ice, U. S. Department of Agricul-
ture, to succeed Mr. Albert F. Potter, who resigned from the Service
in March.

Installments of the large collection of Hawaiian marine moUusks
which Mr. D. Thaanum, of Hilo, Hawaii, has donated to the National
Museum in order that Dr. Dall's report upon the molluscan fauna of
the Hawaiian Islands may be rendered complete, began to arrive in
March.

Dr. W. H. Weston, of the Office of Cereal Investigations, U. S.
Department of Agriculture, has completed two years' investigation of
downy mildews in the Philippine Islands and will return soon to the
United States for conference and preparation of additional papers for
publication.

Dr. J. Franklin Meyer, physicist, of the Bureau of Standards, is
acting as secretary of the American Engineering Standards Committee,
during the absence of the Secretary, Dr. P. G. Agnew, who is in Europe
as a delegate to the International Electrotechnical Commission.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. io MAY 4, 1920 No. 9

GEOCHEMISTRY. — -An unusual deposit of aragoniie from sea-
water. Roger C. WeIvLS,^ U. S. Geological Survey.

A few months ago the writer had occasion to examine for the
United States Bureau of Fisheries some samples of standard
sea-water contained in sealed glass tubes as originally furnished
by the Copenhagen Laboratory of the Conseil Permanent Inter-
national de la Mer. The tubes bore the date April 15, 1913, and
had remained at rest, awaiting use, for most of the intervening
interval. A slight deposit had formed on the inside of several
of the tubes, apparently around air bubbles, but nevertheless
insoluble in the water after long agitation. As it was feared that
the chloride content of the water had changed, very careful deter-
minations were carried out by the gravimetric method, which
showed that the chloride content marked on the tubes was sub-
stantially correct, the value 19.386 being found, whereas the
value on the labels was 19379 parts of chlorine per 1,000 parts of
sea-water.

Attention was next directed to the crystals. A few simple
tests showed them to be calcium carbonate. They had a pris-
matic or needle-like appearance and were arranged in stellate
groups. Some of them were a few tenths of a millimeter in length.
Dr. E. S. Larsen of the Geological Survey very kindly determined
their indices of refraction as follows :

a = 1.525 =fc 0.003
/3 and 7 = 1.675 =*= 0.003

The crystals are therefore aragonite, and represent a deposit
under apparently very definite conditions. Some of the crystals

* Published by permission of the Director, United States Geological Survey,
Received March 26, 1920.

250 wells: ARAGONITE FROM SEA-WATER

were well washed with distilled water, dissolved in acid, and
tested for the presence of sulfate. A small amount of sulfate was
shown. This agrees with the results of others on natural aragonite
formed from the sea.^ No lead could be detected, and hence the
possibility that lead carbonate nuclei determined the formation
of the aragonitic form seems to be excluded.

One might account for the deposition of this aragonite on the
theory that the water was originally supersaturated with it.
It seems more reasonable, however, to assume that some change
must have occurred in the water. The most plausible explanation
appears to be that very slow attack of the glass by the water
caused a series of chemical reactions leading to the deposition of
calcium carbonate in the less stable form of aragonite. The carbon
dioxide in sea-water exists principally in the form of bicarbonate
ions, HCOa", which constitute a very small fraction of all the
anions present. Na+ and Cl~ are present in relatively great
excess. The alkali dissolved from the glass yields hydroxide
ions, OH~. The following reactions may be assumed to have
occurred :

OH- + HCO3- = CO3— + H2O (i)

CO3— + Ca + + = CaCOg (2)

Another possible explanation of the deposit is that some of the
carbon dioxide was boiled out of the water before the tubes were
sealed up. This explanation, however, seems less probable than
the other.

Several writers have pointed out that recently formed deposits
of calcium carbonate in nature are likely to be aragonite, whereas
the oldest deposits are principally calcite. The facts here noted
obviously have a bearing on the deposition of aragonite in nature,
the principal difference in conditions being that a loss or gain
of carbon dioxide from the water in the tubes was impossible.
As there is a large literature on the subject of the deposition of
calcium carbonate from sea- water it appeared to the writer worth
while to make further analvtical determinations on this water
with special reference to the question of the solubility of calcium

2 Johnston, Merwin, and Williamson. Anier. Journ. Sci. 41: 508. 19 16.

wells: ARAGONITE FROM SEA- WATER 25 1

carbonate in sea-water. The results of the determination are as
follows. The pu+ value, from which the hydrogen-ion con-
centration of the water may be calculated, was found to be 8.18.
The titration alkalinity of the water was found to be 0.0019
normal, and the alkalinity caused only by carbonates and bi-
carbonates 0.0017. I^^e total carbon dioxide was 0.057 gram
per liter.

The titration alkalinity and total CO2 of this water are lower
than usually found in sea- water. What is really required, how-
ever, to show the degree of saturation with calcium carbonate is
an evaluation of the expression [Ca + + ][C03 ], in which the
brackets represent concentrations of the ions indicated. In the
present state of physical chemistry it is extremely difficult to
make this evaluation with certainty. Nevertheless, by a series of
approximations, the writer has calculated that the expression
indicated has the value 7.2 X io"^°at25°C. for the water under
discussion, as compared with 19. i X lO"^*^ for surface sea-water
studied at the Marine Laboratory of the Carnegie Institution at
Tortugas, Florida. Johnston^ gives for the solubility-product
constant of calcite at 25 ° : i^ = 87 X io~^''.

The above values agree well in view of the uncertainties attend-
ing the calculations for sea- water. As a matter of fact, however,
the solubility-product constant of aragonite is generally thought
to be greater than that of calcite, so that the results do not fall
in the right order. This may possibly be explained by the lack
of information about the temperature to which the tubes con-
taining the standard water had been exposed, or it may indicate
that some error exists in the method of calculating the ionic
concentrations involved. Or, lastly, the results found may
indicate a very slow time adjustment of the solubility. In other
words it may be that the solubility-product constant obtained
after the course of a very long adjustment is lower than the value
deduced from experiments made on fresh material over relatively
short intervals.

It seems inadvisable to enter here into a discussion of all the
rules and assumptions used in making the above calculations.

3 Joum. Amer. Chem. vSoc. 38: 982. 1916.

252 WSL,I/S: ARAGONITS FROM SBA-WATER

What follows is therefore a very brief statement of the methods
employed, which may serve to indicate the nature of the problem
and the methods used. For the most part the ion concentrations
have been calculated from freezing-point data, using certain
empirical equations for the ionic equilibria involved.

The calcium concentration of sea-water [Ca] is about 0.0108
molal. This calcium doubtless exists in sea- water in the form
of various molecules and complex ions, but on account of the
great excess of sodium chloride it seems probable that the other
calcium compounds must be very largely transposed into calcium
chloride. If so, the calcium-ion concentration can probably best
be approximated by considering the equilibrium

CaClo :^ Ca + + -F 2CI- (3)

Neglecting intermediate ions and assuming that the ionization
of calcium chloride is similar to that of barium chloride, as deduced
by G. N. Lewis from freezing-point data,^ the writer has found
that this equilibrium can be represented by the following em-
pirical equation over a moderate range around 0.0 1 molal.

[Ca^^] [Cl-]^

T „,. • = 0.216 (4.)

In order to compute the calcium-ion concentration [Ca ++] by
means of equation (4) it is necessary to assume a value for the
chlorine-ion concentration [Cl~] in sea-water. For the reason
given above a quantity of chlorine sufficient to combine with the
calcium and magnesium may be subtracted from the total
chlorine and the remainder considered to be present as sodium
chloride, ionized and un-ionized. The result is about 0.432 mol
of sodium chloride. From extrapolation of the curve for the
ionization of sodium chloride based on the data of Lewis for dilute
solutions it is assumed that the ionization at 0.432 molal would
be about 55 per cent. This gives 0.237 for [Na + ] and [Cl~],
which is the value that will be used in calculating the extent to
which the ionization of the minor constituents is repressed by the
excess of sodium and chlorine ions in sea- water.

From equation (4) it is calculated that when [Cl~] equals
0.237 and [Ca + + ] -f [CaCls] = 0.0108, [Ca ++] will have the

■* Journ. Amer. Chem. Soc. 41: 1959. 1919.

WELI.S: ARAGONITE FROM SEA-WATe;r 253

value 0.000359. If the assumptions made are approximately
correct this figure shows that the ionization of the calcium com-
pounds in sea-water is enormously repressed by the excess of
chlorine ions.

In the same way, for the equilibrium

NaHC03 :^ [Na+] + [HCO3-] (5)

the following equation was found to hold over a moderate range
around the concentration 0.002 molal. The ionization is taken
as equal to that of sodium chloride at the same concentrations.

[Na+] [HCO3-] ■■ ^ , .,.

r-rr- = 0.746 (6)

[NaHCOg]'"'

This yields, when [Na+] = 0.237, [HCO3-] = 3.15 [Na-
HCOs]'^^ A consideration of the relations required by this
equation shows that the ionization of the bicarbonates in sea-
water must be largely repressed in spite of their low concentra-
tion. For simplicity the un-ionized carbonate and bicarbonate
in the solution under study will be considered to be present as
the sodium compounds, a logical view on account of the great
excess of [Na+].

The ionic concentrations [HCOa"] and [CO3 ] may now be
evaluated from the analytical data for the water under considera-
tion. Let a, b, c, d, and e represent the molal concentrations of
HaCOaCthe free CO2), CO3— , HCO3-, NasCOa, and NaHCOg,
respectively. The following equations are available :

44(a -^b-\-c-\-d-{-e) = 0.057 (?)

2h -\- c -{- 2d -\- e = 0.0017 (8)

c = 3.15 e'-'' (9)

c = 53a (10)

b = 0.00743c (11)

The last two equations are derived from the equations

[HCO3-] = ^il!^?^2d (12)

[H + ]

IH + J
in which ki, the first ionization constant of carbonic acid, has the
value 3.50 X io~^ at 25°, according to Kendall,^ and ko, the

* Joum. Amer. Chem. Soc. 38: i486. 1916.

254 WELI^S: ARAGONITE PROM SEA- WATER

second ionization constant, is given by Seyler and Lloyd ^ as
4.91 X io~^^ The value for [H + ] is 6.61 X io~^ for the water
under scrutiny, which yields equations (10) and (11) given above.

It may be noted in passing that the free CO2, or H2CO3, must
have a very small concentration in this water as [HCO3-],
according to equation (10), must equal 53 [H2CO3], thus requiring
a verj' large proportion of the total CO2.

The solution of equations (7) to (11) gives [H2CO3] =
4.49 X 10-', [CO3— ] = 1.96 X IO-^ [HCO3-] = 2.64 X lo-l

From the preceding data [Ca+^][C03 — ] = 3.59 X lO"^ X
1.96 X lO"^ = 7.23 X io~^° for the Copenhagen water.

The analytical data for unaltered surface sea- water studied at
Tortugas are: Pu+ = 8.20, titration carbonate alkalinity =
0.00223, total CO2 = 0.090 gram per liter. Calculations similar
to those indicated above give the results shown below with the
values first obtained for the Copenhagen water.

[H + ] [HCOj-] [COi — ] [Ca++l|C03--]

Copenhagen water 6.61 X io~^ 2.64 X lo"'' 1.96 X lo"" 7.2 X io~'"

Tortugas water 6.03 X io~^ 6.85 X io~^ 5 33 X lo"^ 19. i X io~i»

It may be noted that there is little difference in [H+] in the
two waters, the principal differences being in the figiu-es for
[HCO3-] and [CO3— ]. This illustrates the buffer action of the
carbonates in sea-water.

With reference to the low "solubility-product" value for the
Copenhagen water, the Tortugas water appears to be fully satu-
rated with calcium carbonate. A similar conclusion was reached
by J. F. McClendon from experiments in which sea- water was
agitated with calcite and aragonite, and the changes in pu+ and
titration alkalinity observ^ed.^ The Copenhagen water, however,
shows a relatively large loss in total CO2. It is hoped that further
data for sea-water collected under definite conditions will be
available shortly. It is also hoped that in a future paper attention
can be given to the possibility of improving the expressions for
the mass-law equilibria used in the present paper.

* Journ. Chem. Soc. London iii: 158. 1917-1918.
^ Carnegie Institution Publication 252: 255.

CLARK: REDUCTION POTENTIALS 255

PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY. — Reduction potentials of mixtures
of indigo and indigo white, and of mixtures of methylene blue
and methylene white. '^ W. Mansfield Clark. Dairy
Division, Bureau of Animal Industry, United States Depart-
ment of Agriculture.

Oxidation-reduction indicators have been used to some extent
in volumetric analysis, but it is in various biochemical studies
that they find their widest and most interesting applications. The
reduction of methylene blue by bacteria in milk is regarded as
one of the first observable evidences of bacterial action. Not all
bacteria reduce this dye, and this differential property is there-
fore used in the identification and biochemical classification of
species. An important class of bacteria seem to require the
complete absence of oxygen before they will grow, and since
reduced methlyene blue and reduced indigo can be used to detect
minute traces of oxygen these indicators have played a most
interesting part in the development of conceptions regarding
the so-called anaerobic state. Anaerobiosis is a large subject
whose various phases have not yet been satisfactorily resolved.
There is abundant evidence, however, that one or another phase
of it is intimately associated with the reducing tendency of
cellular activity in general. The recognition of this tendency has
come about in large measure through the use of reduction indi-
cators such as methylene blue. It has even been claimed that
reduction of this dye by a tissue indicates the presence of life and
the failure of reduction indicates the death of the cells. Yet there
seem to exist different powers of reduction in various tissues, as
was shown in Ehrlich's classic work and confirmed by some of
the more recent staining investigations of the histologists.

So far as the writer is aware such indicators have not been
regarded in their possible relation to oxidation reduction poten-
tials in a manner analogous to the now well-systematized relation
of hydrogen-ion indicators to hydrogen-electrode potentials.
That such a relationship if established will aid in the interpreta-

^ Published by permission of the Secretary of Agriculture. Received February
12, 1920.

256 ClyARK: REDUCTION POTENTIALS

tion of various biochemical phenomena will be evident, but the
significance of such data is of broader scope, because the efforts
that have previously been made to bring organic compounds
within the range of potential measiu-ements have yielded few
data of value.

In a subsequent paper the writer hopes to discuss in detail some
of the theoretical aspects concerned in the measurement of reduc-
tion potentials, together with certain biochemical applications.
But for the present only the data obtained with indigo and
methylene blue will be presented.

The original sample of the indigo used in the following experi-
ments was labeled "Indigo sodium sulfonate dye." Mr. Zoller
made a sulfur determination upon the purified material which
indicated that it was Ci6H9N202S03Na.

Mr. Zoller prepared from the original material some purer
material by precipitating the dye from its aqueous solution with
pure alcohol. This was dried in a current of air and then in an
air oven at 105° C. It was this material that was used in the
following experiments.

The methylene blue was prepared by Mr. Zoller from Schu-
maker and Busch's "medicinal methylene blue." For the puri-
fication the method of Bemthsen- was followed in the main. The
crystals were dried in vacuo over stick KOH and concentrated
sulfuric acid. It thus attained constant weight.

The most convenient form of these two substances is their
oxidized state. Therefore it is required to find a reducing agent
whose own oxidation-reduction equilibrium does not seriously
overlap the range of potential covered by the dyes in question.
Titanium trichlorid has been used by Knecht and Hibbert^ for
the quantitative estimation of methylene blue, indigo, and a
variety of other dyes. However it is customarily used in very
acid solutions and in a range of Ph which would have little sig-
nificance for biochemical studies. Titanium, however, like iron,
enters into complexes with hydroxy-acids and then remains

^ Ann. 230: 139. 1885. •

3 New reduction methods in volumetric analysis.

CLARK: REDUCTION POTENTIALS 257

unprecipitated even in markedly alkaline solution. Citric acid
is one of the hydroxy-acids which form such complexes, and it also
makes an excellent material with which to buffer the hydrogen-
ion concentration throughout a considerable range of Ph- Re-
duced titanium in the form of titanium trichlorid was therefore
added to citrate and the solution was buffered either with citrate
mixtures alone or with citrate in addition to a preponderance
of other buffer mixtures. The buffer salts were kept about tenth
molecular while the titantium was present at about 0.003 ^
concentration. The dye solution containing about the same
normal concentration of the dye was buffered by the salt solution.
Thus a constant pn was guaranteed throughout the titration.
Hydrogen-electrode measurement of these mixtures was imprac-
ticable because of the oxidizing action of the dye in the one case
and of the unreduced titanium in the other. Therefore depend-
ence was placed on the hydrogen-electrode measurements of the
Ph of the buffer solutions made up without the oxidizing and
reducing agents. The addition of these reagents in concentra-
tions of only 0.003 ^ should not have seriously affected the Ph
of o.i molecular buffer mixtures.

The procedure was as follows :

The indicator solution was placed in an electrode vessel similar
to that described by Hostetter and Roberts"^ for the electrometric
titration of iron, but provided with gas-tight connections. The
vessel was then flushed with nitrogen from a tank. This tank
nitrogen contained a little oxygen and was therefore run through
a heated tube containing copper wire previously reduced with
hydrogen. The solution was then boiled in a vigorous current of
nitrogen and while steam was still escaping the tip of the burette
containing the reducing agent was forced into a tight-fitting hole
on the head of the apparatus. There were then passing into the
flask through the "head": The burette tip which delivered the
reducing agent above the surface of the solution; the entering
tube for the nitrogen which delivered the gas above the middle
of the solution surface; the exit for the gas, which was flush with

* Joum. Amer. Chem. Soc. 41: 1337. 1919.

258 CLARK: REDUCTION POTENTIALS

the surface of the stopper; the calomel electrode arm drawn to a
fine gooseneck tip; and the electrode. The electrode was a
platinum wire wound as a spiral and plated with gold. The
electrode itself was kept immersed in the solution. It was fused
into a glass tube carrying a mercury contact. Since it was not the
intention to make a careful study of liquid junction potentials
these were reduced so far as is practicable by the customary use
of saturated potassium chlorid. This was accomplished by employ-
ing directly the "saturated" calomel electrode. Its potential
was frequently checked against that of four very constant and
carefully made tenth-normal calomel electrodes whose average
potential in terms of the normal hydrogen electrode^ was con-
sidered to be +0.3370. Both calomel electrode and titration
vessel were immersed in an oil bath maintained at 30° C. The
potentiometer equipment was that used in the writer's previous
work with the hydrogen electrode. Its principal features were a
Leeds and Northrup type K potentiometer and the same com-
pany's type R galvanometer with a megohm sensitivity of 1973.

The reducing agent, as mentioned before, was titanium in the
presence of citrate and an excess of buffer. Since these solutions
are unstable in the presence of oxygen they were prepared by
adding the titanium to the previously prepared buffer mixture,
quickly bubbling oxygen-free nitrogen through it, and flushing
the whole system, burette and reservoir, with nitrogen.

The titrating vessel was so arranged that it could be thoroughly
shaken after each addition of reducing agent. When this was
done electrode equilibrium was reached within a minute or two
except in certain of the more extreme conditions.

In the following tables there are given in the first column the
number of cubic centimeters of reducing agent added. By plotting
these against the potential it will be found that at certain ^h
values there is not the sharp-end point that occurs at other
acidities. Such relationships will place upon a more quantitative
basis the empirical findings of Knecht and Hibbert, who dis-
covered that a sharp-end point in the titration of many dyes such

* See Clark and Lubs. Journ. BioL Chem. 25: 479.

cIvArk: reduction potentials 259

as indigo can be obtained only in the presence of such substances
as tartrates. Perhaps there is a specific action here to be ac-
counted for, but the more probable explanation is that the proper
relations for a sharp-end point are determined by the hydrogen-
ion concentration, which mixtures such as the tartrates can con-
trol.

In the next column of the tables is given the percentage reduc-
tion estimated from the total amount of reducing agent required
to completely reduce the dye. As was just mentioned, it was not
always possible to estimate with precision the total requirement
by determining the end point potentiometrically. In such cases
the disappearance of color or merely a judgment of the end point
from the form of the titration curve was used. In any case the
error was not large.

In the third column are given the single electrode potentials
observed. These were determined from the potential of the
calomel electrode and the difference of potential between calomel
and gold electrodes. In each case the standard reference value
was used, so that the values given are in terms of the hypothetical
normal hydrogen electrode. The sign indicates the sign of the
electrode.

Since both methylene blue and indigo are reduced in accord-
ance with reactions which may be written as

Dye -f 2 electrons = reduced dye,

the potential equation of Peters becomes at 30° C.

„ , , 7- , 0.06 , [Oxidation product]

E observed = £0 H log —

2 [Reduction product]

The ratios

Concentration of oxidation product

Concentration of reduced product

multiplied by 0.03 are given in column four of the tables. In the
last column are given the values of Eo obtained from the applica-
tion of the equation written above.

It will be seen that there is a substantial constancy in the values

26o CLARK: REDUCTION POTENTIALS

of Eo . Since no correction had been made for the true concen-
tration of these products as influenced by the various factors of
the solution the agreement is remarkable in some instances.

In the case of methylene blue it will be noted that only the
potentials taken during the early part of the titration are given
when the p^ of the solution is greater than 4.55. This is because
in the more alkaline solutions the methylene white base precipi-
tates. During the early part of the titration the solution remains
clear and the potentials follow a smooth curve which begins
normally. The cur\'e of potentials soon tends to flatten and there
comes a moment when the potential rises. It is at this moment
that the reduced compound separates from its now supersatu-
rated solution. Its removal leaves the oxidation product in
greater excess and the potential of the electrode becomes more
positive. Perhaps there is at hand in such phenomena the means
of accurately determining the solubility of such compounds.

When there thus arose the impossibility of obtaining a com-
plete titration curve of methylene blue at the concentration used,
the part of the curve that was obtained was plotted and overlaid
with the theoretical form which applies to all the curves. The
probable position considered in conjunction with the calculated
values of Eo which were obtained, determined the "probable
values" of Eo which are given.

It is sometimes customary to consider a reduction electrode as
a h} drogen electrode under diminished hydrogen pressure.
Although the hydrogen pressures so estimated become impossibly
small in some instances this may be a legitimate way of correlating
reduction potentials at different acidities. We may consider the
relation in the following form.

Suppose our reduction electrode were a hydrogen electrode
under that pressure of molecular hydrogen which is in equilibrium
with the oxidation-reduction products of the solution. Let the
same solution be in contact with a hydrogen electrode under a
pressure of one atmosphere of hydrogen, and let the two elec-
trodes and the solution be connected as in a cell.

CLARK: REDUCTION POTENTIALS

261

The potential of this cell will then be at 30° C.

-Eh = 0.03 log

(H2)

where E^ is the potential of the reduction electrode, E'h that of
the hydrogen electrode and (H2) represents the pressure in atmos-
pheres of the hydrogen at the reduction electrode.

As mentioned before, we cannot accurately measure the hydro-
gen-electrode potential of the mixtures now under consideration,
but the hydrogen-electrode potentials of the buffer mixtures
without the small proportion of the oxidizing agents were care-
fully measured. These are given in table 13 together with the

reduction potentials. The values of log - — - for methylene blue and

(H2)

for indigo differ sufficiently to distinguish between the two sub-
stances, but it may appear that the agreement among the values
for either one of the substances is not satisfactory. However,
when these values are plotted against p^ they will be found to
fall upon a fairly smooth curve.

We may just as well consider only the differences of potential
instead of calculating the hypothetical hydrogen pressure as was

done above, but the values of log — furnish convenient numbers

with which to characterize the intensity of oxidation-reduction

actions.

TABLE I

Reduction of Indigo by Titanium at Ph i-55

Buffer: M/10 KCl with HCl

Cc. Ti

Per cent

E„

0.03 log

fifl

solution

reduction

ox. /red.

0.0

-ho. 338

I .0

6.4

4-0.2517

-I-0.0349

4-(o.2i68)

2.0

12.8

-f 0.2365

4-0.0250

4-(o.2ii5)

19.2

-t-0.2276

4-0.0187

4-0.2089

4.0

25.6

-i-0.2220

4-0.0139

-Ho. 2081

32.1

-I-O.2176

4-0.0098

4-0.2078

6.0

38.5

4-0.2138

4-0.0061

4-0.2077

7.0

44.8

4-0.2104

4-0.0027

4-0.2077

262

cIvArk: reduction potentials

TABLE I — {Continued)

Cc. Ti

solution

8.0

9.0

10.0

11 .0

12 .0
13.0
14.0
15.0

15-5
15.6

15-7

Per cent
reduction

100

+0.2070
+0.2035
+0 . 2000
+0. 1 96 1
+0. I9I7
+0. 1859
+0.1784
+0.1657
+0.1505

End point
+0.1414

0.03 1 g
ox. /red.

0007
0041
0076
01 14

0157
0210
0283

+0.2077
+0.2076
+0.2076
+0.2075
+0.2074
+0.2069
+0. 2067

Average, +0 . 2076

TABLE 2

Reduction of Indigo by Titanium at Ph 2.45

Buffer Solution: M/io Citrate with HCl

Cc. Ti

Per cent

E„

0.03 log

solution

reduction

ox. red.

0.0

+0.3962

I .0

3-6

2076

+0.0429

+ (0.1647)

2.0

1899

+0.0334

+ (0.1565)

10.7

1813

+0.0276

+ (0.1537)

4.0

14-3

1746

+0.0233

+O.1513

17,9

1712

+0.0199

+O.1513

6.0

21.4

1682

+0.0170

+0. 1512

7.0

25.0

1655

+0.0143

+O.1512

8.0

28.6

1628

+O.OII9

+0.1509

9.0

32.2

1605

+0.0097

+0.1508

10.0

35-7

1583

+0.0077

+0.1506

II .0

39 3

1562

+0.0057

+0.1505

12.0

42.9

1541

+0.0037

+0.1504

13.0

46.4

1523

+0.0018

+0. 1505

14.0

50.0

1503

±0.0000

+0. 1503

150

53-6

1484

— 0.0018

+0. 1502

16.0

571

1464

— 0.0037

+O.1501

17.0

60.7

1444

—0.0057

+O.1501

18.0

643

1424

— 0.0077

+0.1501

CLARK: REDUCTION POTENTIALS

263

TABLE 2— {Continued)

Cc. Ti

solution

Per cent
reduction

£h

0,03 log
ox. /red.

£0

19.0

67.9

+0. 1402

— 0.0097

+0.1499

20.0

71-4

+0.1380

— O.OI19

+0.1499

22.0

78.6

+0.1329

— 0.0170

+0.1499

24.0

85-7

+0. 1260

—0.0233

+0.1493

250

893

+0. I2I5

— 0.0276

+ (0.1491)

26 0

92.9

96.4

100. 0

+0.II52
+0. 105 1
+0.082

27.0
28 0

Avei

age, +0.1504

TABLE 3
Reduction op Indigo by Titanium at Pn 2.87
Buffer Solution: M/io Citrate with HCl

Cc. Ti

Per cent

£«

0.03 log

•Eo

solution

reduction

o.x./red.

0 0

0.0

+0.3642
+0.1595

I .0

8.8

+0 . 0305

+ (0.1290)

2 .0

175

+0. 1462

+0.0202

+0. 1260

26.3

+0.1387

+0.0134

+0.1253

4.0

35 I

+0. 1327

+0 . 0080

+0.1247

43-9

+0.1278

+0.0032

+0. 1246

6.0

52.6

+0. 1232

— 0.0014

+0. 1246

7.0

61 .4

+0.1183

— 0.0061

+0.1244

8.0

70.2

+0.1133

— 0.0112

+0.1245

9.0

78.9

+0. 1069

— 0.0172

+0. 1241

9 5

83.3

+0. 1032

— 0.0210

+0. 1242

10.0

87.7

+0.0984

— 0.0256

+0. 1240

10.8

94-7
96.5

+0.08=57

II .0

+0.0808

I I . 2

98.2

+0.0721

"•3
II. 4

99. 1

+0.064

100. 0

+0.055

Avei

age, +0.1246

264

ci^ark: reduction potentials

TABLE 4
Reduction of Indigo by Titanium at Pu 4-55
Indigo and Titanium about 0.003 ^
Buffer Solution: N/io Citrate with HCl

Cc. Ti

Per cent

E„

0.03 log

£<>

solution

reduction

ox. /red.

0 0

0.0

+0.3522
+0.0812

0.5

4-4

+0.0401

+ (0.0411)

I .0

8.9

+0.0566

+0.0304

+ (0.0262)

2.0

177

+0.0427

+0.0200

+0.0227

26.6

+0.0352

+0.0133

+0.0219

4.0

35-4

+0.0291

+0.0078

+0.0213

44 2

+0.0240

+0.0030

+0.0210

6.0

53 I

+0. 190

— 0.0016

+0.0206

7.0

61 .9

+0.0140

— 0 . 0064

+0.0204

8.0

70.8

+0.0085

--O.OI15

+0.0200

9.0

79 6

+0.0021

— 0.0178

+0.0199

10. 0

88.5

— 0.0076

— 0.0266

+0.0190

10.5

92.9

— 0.0152

—0.0335

+0.0183

II .0

97 3

—0.0334

— 0 . 0469

+ (0.0135)

112

99.1

IIO.O

— 0.0510
— 0.0620

II 3

End point

Ave

rage, +0.0205

TABLE 5

Reduction of Indigo by Titanium at P^ 6.69

Indigo and Titanium about 0.003 ^

Buffer Solution: M/io NaaHPO, lf/40 Citrate with HCl

Cc. Ti

Per cent

0.030 log

£»

solution

reduction

ox. /red.

0 0

0.022

0.5

4.6

—0.0588

+0.0397

—(0.0985)

I .0

0.0688

+0 . 0300

—0 . 0988

2.0

18.2

0 . 0802

+0.0196

— 0 . 0998

27-3

0.0895

+0.0128

— 0. 1023

4.0

36.4

—0.0953

+0.0073

— 0.1026

45-5

0 . 0982

+0.0024

— 0.1006

6.0

54-5

0.1038

— 0.0024

— 0. 1014

7.0

63.6

0. 108 I

—0.0073

— 0. 1008

8.0

72.7

— O.II33

— 0.0128

— 0. 1005

CLARK: REDUCTION POTENTIALS

265

TABLE 5— (Continued)

Cc. Ti
solution

9.0
10. 0

10.5
10.7
10.9
II .0

Per cent
reduction

81
90
95
97
99
100

1208
1321
1438
1533
1737
198

0.030 log
ox. /red.

£0

— 0.0196

— 0.0300

0.0397

— 0. 1012

— 0. 102 1

— (0. 1041)

End point

Average,

lOIO

TABLE 6

Titration of Indigo by Titanium at Ph 8.58

Buffer Solution: M/io Borate, lf/40 Citrate with HCl

Co. Ti
solution

0.0
1 .0
2.0
30
4.0
50
6.0
7.0
8.0
9.0
10. o

II. o
12 .0

Per cent
reduction

0.0

8.3
16.7
250
33-3
41-7
50.0

58.3
66.7
750

833

91.7

100. o

074

1266

1398

1466

1518

1563

1603

1647

1694

1743
1814

1931
2438

0.03 log
ox/red.

+0 . 03 1 2
+0.0210
+0.0143
+0 . 0090
+0 . 0044
+0 . 0000
— o . 0044
— O . 0090
—0.0143
— 0.0210

O . 03 1 2

End point

—(0.1578)
— o. 1608
— o. 1609

1608

-o. 1607

-0.1603
-0.1603

-o. 1604
1600
— o. 1604
-(o. 1619)

Average, — o . 1 609

TABLE 7
Reduction op Methylene Blue by Titanium at Ph 1-55
Buffer Solution: M/io KCl with HCl

Cc. Ti
solution

Per cent
reduction

0 03 log
ox. /red.

0.0

4-3

8.6

12.9

+0.4812
+0.4216
+O.4112
+0 . 4050

+0 . 0404
+0.0308
+0.0248

I.O
2.0
30

+0.3812
+0.3804
+0.3802

266

CLARK: REDUCTION POTENTIALS

TABLE 7— {Continued)

Cc. Ti
solution

Per cent
reduction

£h

0.03 log
ox. /red.

4.0

17.2

+0 . 4006

+0 . 0204

+0.3802

21 6

3969

+0.0168

3801

6.0

25 -9

3937

+0.0137

3800

7.0

3909

+0.0109

3800

8.0

3884

+0 . 0084

3800

9.0

3861

+0.0059

3802

10. 0

3838

+0.0036

3802

II .0

3817

+0.0014

3803

12.0

3796

— 0.0009

3805

13 0

3677

— 0.0032

3808

14.0

3755

— 0.0055

3810

15 0

3733

— 0 . 0079

3812

16.0

3712

— 0.0104

3816

17.0

3688

— O.OI31

3819

18.0

3663

— 0.0162

3825

19.0

3632

— 0.0197

3829

20.0

3595

— 0.0239

3834

21 .0

3542

—0.0294

3836

22 .0

3442

—0.0379

3821

2"?. 2

100

-JOQS

Avei

rage, +0.3811

TABLE 8

Reduction of Methylene Blxje by Titantxjm at P^ 2.45

Buffer Solution: M/io Citrate with HCl

Cc. Ti

Per cent

£„

0.03 log

£0

solution

reduction

ox. /red.

0 0

+ 0 /I 2/1 2

:2.o

+ 0

3474

0438

+0.3036

4.0

3354

0343

+O.3011

6.0

3292

0285

+0.3007

8.0

3248

0243

+0 . 3005

10. 0

3215

0209

+0 . 3006

14.0

+ 0

3163

0154

+0.3009

18.0

3129

0109

+0.3020

CLARK: REDUCTION POTENTIALS

267

TABLE 8— (Continued)

Cc. Ti

solution

Per cent
reduction

£h

0.03 lo ;
ox. /red.

£0

22 .0

370

+0.3102

+0.0069

+0.3033

25.0

+0.3086

+0 . 0042

3044

30.0

+0.3044

— 0 . 0003

3047

34 0

+0.3012

—0.0037

3049

38.0

+0.2984

— 0.0073

3057

42 .0

+0.2957

0.0113

3070

46.0

+0.2923

— 0.0161

3084

50.0

+0.2880

— 0.0216

3096

54 0

+0.2805

— 0 . 0300

3105

58.0

+0.2592

—0.0475

3067

59 0

+0.2382

— 0 . 062 I

3003

59 5

100

+0.2272

Avei

-age, +0.3042

TABLE 9

Reduction of Methyi^ene Blue by Titanium at Ph 2.87

Buffer Solution: M/io Citrate with HCl

Cc. Ti

Per cent

E„

0.03 log

E„

solution ,

reduction

ox. /red.

0 0

0.0

+0. '?902

2.0

12.0

+0.2877

+0.0259

+0.2618

4.0

24. I

+0.2763

+0.0149

+0.2614

6.0

36.1

+0.2690

+0 . 0074

+0.2616

8.0

48.2

+0.2636

+0.009

+0.2627

10.0

60.2

+0.2585

— 0 . 0054

+0.2639

12 .0

72.3

+0.2531

— 0.0125

+0.2656

14.0

843

+0.2458

— 0.0219

+0.2677

16.0

96.4

+0.2270

— 0.0426

+0.2696

16.2

97 6

+0. 2207

16.4
16.6

98.8

+0.2096

100.0

+0.1832

Avei

age, +0.2641

2 68

CLARK: REDUCTION POTENTlAIvS

TABLE lo

Reduction of Methylene Blue by Titanium at P^ 4.55

Methylene Blue and Titanium about 0.003 ^

Buffer Solution: M/io Citrate with HCl

Cc. Ti

Per cent

E„

0.03 lo ;

£»

solution

reduction

ox. /red.

0 0

+ 0.275
+ 0.179

0.5

2.9

+0.0459

+ (0.133)

I .0

5-8

+ 0. I617

+0 . 0364

+ (0.1253)

2 .0

II. 6

+ 0.1429

+0.0265

+0 . 1 1 64

173

+0.1385

+0.0204

+0.1181

4.0

23 I

+0.1330

+0.0156

+0.1174

28.9

+ 0. 1287

+O.OI17

+0.1170

6.0

34-7

+ O.I25I

+0.0082

+0. 1169

7.0

40.5

+ O.I218

+0.0050

+0.1168

8.0

46.2

+0. I 190

+0.0020

+0. 1 1 70

9.0

52.0

+ 0. II62

— 0 . 001 I

+0.1173

10.0

57-8

+0.1 136

— 0.0041

+0.1177

II .0

63.6

+0. I 109

— 0.0073

+0.1182

12.0

69.4

+0. 108 I

— 0.0107

+0.1 1 88

130

75 I

+ 0. 1050

— 0.0144

+0.1 194

14.0

80.9

+ 0. IOI5

—0.0188

+0.1203

150

86.7

+ 0.0967

— 0.0245

+ (0. 1212)

16.0

92.5

+ 0.0885

— 0.0327

+ (0. 1212)

17.0

98.3

+ 0.0537

0.0524

+ (0. 1061)

17.2
173

99 4
100. 0

+0.015
0.026

End point

Avei

rage, +0.1 178

TABLE II

Reduction op Methylene Blue by Titanium at Ph 6.69

Buffer Solution: M/io Na2HP04, ilf/40 Citrate with HCl

Cc. Ti
~ solution

Per cent
reduction

£h

0.03 log
ox. /red.

£0

0 0

0.0
2.6

+0.345
+0.0677

+0.0471

0.5

+0.0206

I .0

5-2

+0.0481

+0.0377

+0.0104

2.0

10.5

+0.0351

+0.0280

+0 . 007 1

15.7

+0.0295

+0.0219

+0 . 0076

4.0

20.9

+0.0264

+0.0173

+0.0091

26.2

+0.039

Methylene white precipitate formed.
Potentials unsteady.

CLARK: RKDUCTION POTENTIALS

269

lBLE II — {Continued)

Cc. Ti
solution

Per cent
reduction

0.03 lo^
ox. /red.

£0

18.3
19. I

95-8
100. 0

0.056
— 0. 122
End point

Probable value of E^ + 0.007.

TABLE 12

Reduction of Methylene Blue by Titanium at Ph 8.58

Buffer Solution: M/10 Borate, M/40 Citrate with HCl

Cc. Ti

Per cent

solution

reduction

0.05

0.2

0.5

2 .2

I .0

4-4

2 .0

8.7

130

4.0

17.4

21.7

6.0

26.1

7.0

30.4

+0.0018
— 0.0136
— 0.0190

—0.0244
—0.0278

— o . 0300

—0.0315

—0.0322
— 0.0322

Methylene white precipitate separates.

Potentials unsteady. End point by color about 23.0 cc. Ti.

Probable value of E — 0.050.

0.03 log
ox. /red.

£0

+0 . 0496

— 0.0632

+0 . 0403

0.0593

+0 . 0306

— 0.0550

+0.0247

— 0.0525

+0.0203

—0 . 0503

+0.0167

— 0 . 0482

TABLE 13
Comparison op Characteristic Data of Indigo with That of Methylene Blue

Indigo

1-55
2-45
2.87

4-55
6.69
8.58

H electrode
potential

>.0936
).i47i
).I727
).2737
) . 402 1
>-5i55

Reduction
potential

+0.2076
+0.1504
+0. 1246
+0.0205
O. lOIO

— o. 1609

Difference

0.3012
0.2975

0.3073
0.2942
0.301 1
0.3546

loj 1/Hj

10.0

9 9

9-9

9.8

10. o

II. 8

270

WASHINGTON: ITAUTE

TABLE 13 — (Continued)
Methylene Blue

H electrode
potential

Reduction
potential

Difference

log l/Hj

1-55

—0 0936

+O.3811

0.4747

15-8

2-45

O.1471

+0 . 3042

0.4513

15-1

2.87

—0.1724

+0.2641

0.4365

14.6

4 56

—0.2737

+0.1178

0.3915

131

6.69

— 0 . 402 I

+0.007

0.409

13.6

8.58

0.5155

— 0.05

0.47

153

PETROGRAPHY.— 7to/^7^; a new leucite rock. Henry S.
Washington. Geophysical Laboratory, Carnegie Institu-
tion of Washington.^

Last October, while in Rome, there was brought to my atten-
tion by Dr. G. A. Blanc, of the University of Rome, and Ing. F.
Jourdain, a small piece of a very remarkable leucite rock, that
they had collected from a flow on the west slope of the volcano of
Rocca Monfina, north of Naples. I am indebted to their
kindness for the small specimen and for permission to publish
the results of my study. A full description will be published
later in the American Journal of Science.

The rock is rather coarsely granular and very friable, com-
posed almost wholly (90 per cent) of spheroidal crystals of leucite
from 3 to 5 mm. in diameter. These show the twinned structure
remarkably well and carry few inclusions, these not being regu-
larly arranged. These crystals are cemented by a small amount
of a colorless glass, which contains many margaritic microlites.
There are also present, in very small amount, prismoids of
aegirite-augite and grains of titaniferous melanite, with rare
small crystals of biotite, magnetite, and apatite. The glass and
the microstructure show that the rock is a lava, not a tuff.

Chemical analysis yielded the results shown in table i .

The rock is seen to have a quite exceptional composition, and
shows the highest percentage for K2O yet recorded, the next
highest (11.91) being that of an orendite from the Leucite Hills,

1 Received March 30, 1920.

WASHINGTON: italite;

271

closely followed by some Italian leucite trachytes and tephrites.
The noselite, whose presence is indicated by the SO3 and high
CaO, probably forms part of the glass, as does melilite, the pres-
ence of which is also indicated by the norm.

In the quantitative classification the position of the rock is
shown by the symbol I.9.1.1, and the new perpotassic subrang
is called monfinose. No rock at all analogous to this is repre-
sented in the usual or modal classifications and, though the name
"leucitite" might logically be applied to it, implying a rock com-
posed essentially of leucite, as suggested by Cross many years
ago, this name cannot be used, because of its present connotation
and the inadvisability of redefining old names. The new name
given the rock is italite, after the country in which it occurs, and
which is so famous for its abundance in leucitic lavas.

A partial analysis (made on 0.0639 gram) of the garnet showed
that it is a highly titaniferous melanite, analogous to schorlomite.
Its refractive index, n = 1.94, is remarkably high, in which it
resembles other titaniferous garnets, whose refractive indexes
have also been recently determined by Merwin.

TABLE I
Analysis op Italite

Si02 51 02

AI2O3 22.21

Fe203 1 . 48

FeO 0.57

MgO 0.14

CaO 2.31

NasO 1.67

K2O 17 -94

H2O + 0.82

H2O- O.II

CO2 None

TiOa 0.57

Zr02 o . 06

P2O5 o . 02

SO3 0.76

CI 0,08

(Ce,Y)203 Trace

MnO 0.01

BaO 0.20

99-97

Supplementary Note. — While the above was in press I have
studied another similar, remarkable leucite rock, that forms an
"ejected block" at Monte Somma. It is much like the italite

272

WASHINGTON: ITALITE

just described, both megascopically and microscopically, the
leucite crystals being almost identical. Small crystals of greenish,
non-pleochroic augite are, however, more abundant, and there is
considerable melilite, in thickly tabular crystals interstitial
between the leucites and in cavities in the specimen. The rock
contains no glass, the melilite taking its place, and neither garnet,
biotite, nor olivine is present. The rock contains about 65 per
cent of leucite, 18 of melilite, 20 of pyroxene, and 2 of magnetite.
An analysis gave the results shown in table 2.

TABLE 2
Analysis of Vesbite

Si02 45 49

AI2O3.

FeoOs.

FeO..

MgO.

CaO.

NajO.

K2O. .

17.66
0.81

1-45

4.27

16.72

1.66

11.44

H.2O+ 0.93

HaO" o . 05

Ti02 0.13

P2O5 0.16

SO3 None

CI 0.03

MnO Trace

100.80

This rock is essentially a melilite italite, and the name of
vesbite (from a Latin name of Vesuvius) is given it. Vesbite is
intermediate between italite and venanzite, and is also related to
the melilite leucitites or cecilites, to use an old name of Cordier
for them. It falls in the position II. 9. 2. 2, of the quantitative
classification, and the name vesbose is given to this subrang.

ABSTRACTS

PALEONTOLOGY. — A catalogue of the Mesozoic aitd Cenozoic plants
of North America. F. H. Knowlton. U. S. Geol. Survey Bull.
696; Pp. 815. 1920.

This volume contains a bibliography of 32 pages, a catalogue of 618
pages, biologic classification of genera, index of genera and families, and
floral lists of the North American Mesozoic and Cenozoic plant-bearing
formations, covering 118 pages. It is an extension or up-to-date edition
of 5w/tom 752 published in 1898. This catalogue should be of inestim-
able value to paleobotanists. R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — Conservation through engineering. Franklin K. Lane.
U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 705. Pp. 38. 1920.

The annual report of the Secretary of the Interior to the President
contained a plea for constructive policies that deser\-es a hearing also
by the engineers and business men who are developing the power resources
of the country. The largest conservation for the future can come
only through the wisest engineering of the present. The conditions
under which the utilization of natural resources is demanded are out-
lined by Secretary Lane, who recommends a program that calls for
the cooperation of engineer and legislator.

The Secretary advocates saving coal by taking more power from each
ton, and using each kind of coal for the particular purpose to which it
is best adapted. He believes that our water power should be developed
and hydro-electric power used instead of coal, and that all power
plants serving a common territory should be coordinated. Our petro-
leum supply is exhaustible and the oil problem should have deliberate
attention. A rigid policy of saving oil is urged, and it is argued that we
should have a foreign supply of petroleum.

To bring this power inventory to the attention of the men who
furnish the country with its coal and oil and electricity, this extract
from the Secretary's administrative report is reprinted as a bulletin of
the United States Geological Survey.

R. W. Stone.
273

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

BOARD OF MANAGERS

The 234th meeting of the Board was held on November 24, 1919.
In accordance with a suggestion transmitted by the Librarian of Con-
gress, a set of the pubHcations of the Academy was sent to the hbrary
of the University of Lou vain, destroyed by the German army in 19 14.
At the 235th meeting, on December 22, 1919, a committee consisting of
R. L. Faris, a. Knopf, S. A. Rohwer, and R. B. Sosman was appointed
to revise the "free Hst" of the Journal. At the 236th meeting, held
on January 26, 1920, the budget for 1920 was adopted, and the following
appointments for the year 1920 were announced:

Executive Committee: The President, Treasurer, and Corresponding
Secretary, ex officio; William R. Maxon and T. Wayland Vaughan.

Committee on Meetings: H. H. Kimball, CJtairman; W. S. Eichel-
BERGER, H. L. Shantz, J. R. SwANTON, and R. C. Tolman.

Committee on Membership: L. A. Fischer, Chairman; W. M.
Clark, S. A. Rohwer, J. N. Rose, and Carl Voegtlin.

Editor of Journal, 1920-1922: Alexander Wetmore.

The Board elected the following Vice-Presidents to represent societies
which had not presented nominations at the Annual Meeting : Botanical
Society, Lyster H. Dewey; Institute of Electrical Engineers, Francis
B. SiLSBEE; Columbia Historical Society, Allen C. Clark; Medical
Society, Francis R. Hagner.

At the 237th meeting, held on February 9, 1920, the Board voted
funds in payment for the publication of the Preliminary Report of the
Federal Government Section of Engineering Council's Committee on
Classification and Compensation of Engineers, published by Mr. J. C.
HoYT with aid from several of the affiliated societies of the Academy,
and distributed to all of their membership. The Standing Rules of the
Board were amended to provide for the appointment of the Committee
on Meetings in June, instead of in January, as heretofore.

274

proceedings: philosophicaIv society 275

The following persons have become members of the Academy since
the last report in the Journal:

Mr. Samuel Trask Dana, U. S. Forest Service, Washington, D. C.

Mr. Earl H. Frothingham, U. S. Forest Service, Washington, D. C.

Dr. Francis R. Hagner, 900 17th Street, Washington, D. C.

Mr. Edmund Cecil Harder, care Republic Mining and Manu-
facturing Company, 11 11 Harrison Building, Philadelphia, Pennsyl-
vania.

Dr. Alexander Wetmore, Bureau of Biological vSurvey, U. S.
Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C.

Robert B. Sosman, Corresponding Secretary.

PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

824TH MEETING

The 824th meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, November 22, 19 19.
President Humphreys in the chair; 56 persons present.

Mr. R. C. Tolman presented the first paper on A conception of the
business of mathematical physics.

Like other sciences. Mathematical Physics is in a process of develop-
ment from a descriptive to a deductive form. As soon as the main
body of a science can be handled deductively, it becomes desirable to
pick out the most suitable deductive system for this purpose.

In performing this task for Mathematical Physics, use should be made
of the methods developed for handling deductive systems, by Pierce,
Royce, Mrs. Ladd-Franklin, Russell, Whitehead, and Meinong. The
universe of discourse in such systems should be generated from a set
of indefinables. These indefinables should be chosen so as to be suffi-
cient for defining all the concepts in the particular branch of inquiry,
and, if possible, should be few in number, simple in nature, familiar to
previous workers in the field, independent of each other, of course
should be applicable, not merely to the generation of the universe of
discourse, but also applicable to the particular field of science under
discussion.

After the definition of the concepts in the universe of discourse has
been completed, a set of postulates should be chosen from which the
various theorems of the logical system can be deduced. These postu-
lates should be chosen so as to be sufficient for deducing all the theorems
desired, so as to be consistent with one another, if possible, so as to be
independent from one another, few in number, simple in nature, self-
evident if possible, familiar, and of course must be true, i. e., applicable
to the particular field under investigation.

For defining the subject matter of Mathematical Physics, the funda-
mental relation "is greater than," five fundamental kinds of magni-
tude— mass, length, time, charge, entropy — ^and five fundamental

276 proceedings: phil,osophicai. society

operations— addition, multiplication, inner multiplication, outer multi-
plication, and differentiation— may be chosen as indefinables.
As postulates for Mathematical Physics, we may choose:

1. The principle of dimensional homogeneity.

2. The principle of the relativity of size. (Similitude.)

3. The principle of the relativity of motion.

4. Hamilton's principle. (Corollary Conservation of Energy.)

5. The principle of the constant velocity of light.

6. The principle of the indivisibility of the electron.

7. The principle of entropy increase.

8. The principle that crystals have zero entropy at the absolute zero.

9. Some principle for quantum action which is not yet known.
These postulates furnish the methods of operation for handling the

greater bulk of the material treated in Mathematical Physics.

Discussion: The paper was discussed by Messrs. Humphreys,
Hawkesworth, Lloyd, Hull, Foote, Bauer, White, Agnew, and

TUCKERMAN.

Mr. E. F. Mueller next presented a paper on The standard scale
of temperature by C. W. Waidner, E. F. Mueller, and P. D. Foote.

The standard scale of temperature which it is attempted to realize
in practice is the centigrade thermodynamic scale. Owing to the
experimental difficulties involved in the use of the gas thermometer,
it is necessary to establish a working scale, which should represent the
thermodynamic scale as closely as is possible in the light of existing
knowledge. It is equally important, however, that the working scale
be characterized by a high degree of definiteness and reproducibility.
The working scale is defined by means of certain fixed points, such as
freezing or boiling points, and by specifying the method of interpolation
between the fixed points. In 1914, the three leading national labora-
tories, the Physikalish-Technische Reichsanstalt, the National Physical
Laboratory and the Bureau of vStandards had practically agreed on the
details of a working scale. While the scale was not formally adopted,
each laboratory has adopted it independently, there being only minor
difi"erences between the three. In the interval — 190 degrees to +450
degrees, the fixed points are those defined by the boiling point of oxygen,
sublimation point of CO2, freezing and boiling points of water, and the
boiling point of sulphur, and the platinum resistance thermometer is
used as the interpolation instrument. In the interval 450 degrees to
II 00 degrees the platinum — 90 per cent platinum, 10 per cent rhodium
thermocouple is used as interpolation instrument, being calibrated at
the freezing points of zinc, antimony and copper. A number of fixed
points in addition to those given were also agreed upon.

In the negotiations between the laboratories, no attempt was made to
define a scale above iioo degrees. Present practice, however, tends
toward using the disappearing filament type of optical pyrometer as an

proceedings: entomological society 277

interpolation instrument, using one or more metal freezing points for
calibration. An outstanding discrepancy of 7 degrees in the values
obtained by different methods for the melting point of palladium makes
the adoption of uniform scale for temperatures above 1200 degrees a
difficult matter at present.

Discussion: The paper was discussed by Messrs. White, Adams,
ToLMAN, and Tuckerman.

The Society adjourned at 10.06.

S. J. Mauchly, Recording Secretary.

ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

322ND meeting

The 322nd regular meeting of the Society was held in the auditorium
of the Cosmos Club on May i, 1919. Vice-President Walton was
in the chair and there were present sixteen members and one visitor.

The regular program was as follows :

A. B. Gahan: The black grain-stem- saw fly of Europe in the United
States. This paper dealt with Trachelus tabidus (Fab.), the establish-
ment of which in the United States has been recently discovered. This
insect may become a serious pest of small grains, especially wheat.
Some of the points discussed were distribution both in the United States
and in the Old World, character of injury, description of adult and larva,
and a comparison with related species, suggestions for control, and
bibliography. The illustrations consisted of drawings of the adult,
the larvae of this and two allied species of similar habit, and a map of
the distribution in the United States.

In the discussion Mr. Walton stated that Mr. McConnell of the
Bureau of Entomology had discovered a parasite that killed as high as
30 per cent of the sawfly larvae. Dr. QuainTance remarked that this
appears to be one of the few cases in which the necessary means for
insect control conflict with good agricultural practice, the rotation of
clover and wheat being undoubtedly good agricultural practice and also
favoring reproduction of the insect. Mr. Walton took exception to
this, stating that forage experts claim that better clover can be grown
on plowed land; but planting on stubble is easier and cheaper. Mr.
ROHWER stated that sawflies are sluggish fliers and was of the opinion
that if in the rotation, fields to be planted to grain were far apart, the
infestation would be considerably reduced. Mr. Gahan thought that
the fact that the species is already widely distributed in both mountain
and plains regions indicates considerable ability to spread. Winds as
a means of spread being suggested, Mr. Rohwer stated it as his experi-
ence that sawflies seek shelter in high winds. He also stated that the
species is possibly more widely distributed than outlined by Mr. Gahan,
inasmuch as he has a larva from near Parkersburg, West Virginia, that
is probably this species.

278 proceedings: entomologicaiv society

Notes and Exhibition of Specimens

Mr. ScHWARZ gave an account of a recent visit which he and several
other entomologists had made to the Florida everglades and keys. He
described the topography and flora of the region, especially contrasting
the character of the everglade keys with the Florida Keys. He spoke
of the occurrence in semitropical Florida of the coleopterous genus
Dendr acinus (family Scolytidae). The type of this genus, D. glohosus
Eichoff, was described in 1868 from two specimens said to have come
from "North America," but the correctness of this locality has always
been doubted. However, during this visit to Florida Mr. H. S. Barber
found an undescribed species of the genus at Marathon (Key Vacas)
boring in the solid wood of Bourreria havaniensis. This species differs
greatly from D. globosus and the other species of the genus, and Mr.
Schwarz presented a description of it for publication in the proceedings.

Mr. CusHMAN discussed the larva of the spider parasite, Polysphineta
texana Cresson, describing its method of maintaining its hold on its
host.

Dr. Baker discussed the probable synonymy of Neotoxoptera violae
Theob. of Egypt with Rhopalosiphum violae Pergande of America on the
ground that forms similar to the former can be produced in greenhouses
in this country. Mr. Rohwer thought that the fact that a form of the
American species resembling the African form can be produced in green-
houses was no proof that the American and African forms are the same
species. He objected to the synonymizing of the two until further proof
of their identity is obtained. In support of his contention he cited the
case of the so-called Cladius pectinicornis , one of the rose-slugs, stating
that the American form, which has heretofore been considered as the
same as the European species, is specifically distinct. Mr. Heinrich
agreed with Mr. Rohwer, stating that in the Microlepidoptera American
species are being rapidly found distinct, so that the European names are
taken out of American literature.

323D meeting

The 323d regular meeting was held at the Cosmos Club on June 5,
1 91 9. President Sasscer presided and there were present twenty-four
members and six visitors.

The program offered was as follows :

R. H. Hutchinson: Experiments with steam disinfection in destroying
lice in clothing. Mr. Hutchinson prefaced his paper with some remarks
about the louse, showing lantern slides illustrating sexual characters,
eggs, hatching, and the effect of steam on eggs. Further slides were
then thrown on the screen showing field laundry units and a large
delousing station used at debarkation camps, the speaker explaining in
detail all the different processes and apparatus.

Major Harry Plotz, U. S. Army, told of some of his experiences in
connection with this work in Bulgaria in the early part of the war. Dr.
Baker was interested in the presence, mentioned by Mr. Hutchinson,
of the peculiar yellow body in the nymphs of the louse and the fact that

proceedings: entomological society 279

it has not been recorded in the Hterature of the louse. A similar body,
he said, always occurs in several groups of Homoptera that he had
studied. Its forerunner is present in the egg and is carried to the
interior at the time of invagination. In parthenogenetic forms its his-
tory is associated with the development of the ovaries. Buckner con-
sidered it a commensalistic organ, but this view is not held by all embry-
ologists.

A. N. Caudell: Notes on Zoraptera. A discussion of the biology
and systematics of this peculiar group of insects. Points of particular
interest were the finding of winged forms by Mr. H. S. Barber and the
fact that the insects have the habit of dealation.

G. C. Crampton: Phytogeny of Zoraptera. Presented by title.

324TH MEETING

The 324th regular meeting of the Society was held October 2, 1919,
in the auditorium of the Cosmos Club. Vice-President Gahan presided
and there were present twenty-three members and six visitors.

The following program was given :

Harry F. Dietz: Notes on the insect fauna of Panama.

This was an account of Mr. DiETz's observations in the canal zone,
especially on the scale-insects Aleur acanthus woglumi and Coccus viridis,
and on termites of various species. The talk was copiously illustrated
by lantern slides.

In the discussion of this paper Mr. Schwarz spoke of the entomologi-
cal exploration of the Canal Zone, especially of that by Motschulsky
and Leconte and the collaborators of the Biologia Centrali-Americana,
as well as the more recent Smithsonian Expedition including Messrs.
Schwarz and Busck.

H. F. Wickham: Two new Carabidae from Alaska.

In presenting this paper Mr. Schwarz spoke of the knowledge of the
Coleoptera of Alaska, dwelling more especially on the collections made
by Dr. Eschscholtz and those made under the guidance of Count von
Mannerheim. He pointed out that all the early explorations were on
the southern coast of Alaska including the islands of the Bering Sea.
The two species of Tachypus described in Prof. Wickham's papers were
collected in the interior, where the fauna is radically different from that
of the coast region. Mr. Schwarz also gave a short account of Mot-
schulsky's trip to North America as published by that author in his
letters to Menetriez.

Dr. Howard introduced Dr. S. I. Kuwana, the famous Japanese
entomologist, who addressed the Society briefly in Japanese and in
English in appreciation of his trip about the United States in search
of entomological methods and ideas.

Notes and Exhibition of Specimens

Dr. Aldrich spoke of the problem in distribution offered by the
Ephydrid fly, Lipochaeta slossonae Coq. This fly lives along the margin
of the Atlantic Ocean from New Jersey southward and along the Gulf
coast, reappearing at Long Beach in Southern California. He did not
know whether it occurs around the coast of South America or if its
distribution is discontinuous.

28o PROCEEDINGS: ENTOMOlrOGICAIy SOCIETY

Dr. Howard reported that Mr. Austin H. Clark had taken a specimen
of the West Indian moth, Thysania zenohia, in Washington on Septem-
ber 29, and that another specimen had been reported on September 22.

325TH MEETING

The 325th meeting of the Society was held in the Lecture Hall of the
Cosmos Club on November 6, 191 9. President Sasscer presided and
there were present thirty- three members and four visitors. New mem-
bers elected: LESTER L. Spessard and Henry Y. Gouldman of the
Federal Horticultural Board; Charles H. Richardson and Ernest
L. Chambers of the Bureau of Entomology; and Ryoichi Takahashi
of the Forest Experiment Station, Meguro, Tokio, Japan.

The regular program was as follows :

L. O. Howard: On entomologists. This paper was an historical
review of the development of entomology from the purely systematic
museum work to the intensely scientific biological and economic phases
of the science of the present day. Taking as a text "The systematic
entomologist must be an all-round entomologist; the economic ento-
mologist must be an all-round entomologist; and both systematic and
economic entomologists must be all-round men," Dr. Howard showed
the interdependence of all phases of the science, and the fact that the
economic entomologists are coming more and more to realize their
dependence upon the systematists. The change in the attitude of other
branches of science and of the layman toward the entomologist and the
factors that have caused the change were also brought out.

Many of the members of the Society expressed their appreciation of
Dr. Howard's paper. Dr. Quaintance thought that economic ento-
mology has kept pace with other branches of science. When the experi-
ment stations were established there were no trained entomologists
and it was necessary to call on men in other professions who had a gen-
eral knowledge of biolog\\ In course of time textbooks were published,
courses were established in colleges, and entomological papers improved.
In more recent years entomologists have contributed some of the best
biological papers in any line. As for personal characteristics he thought
there was no more wholesome and sociable group of men. Mr. Schwarz
stated that some of the earliest American entomological publications,
even catalogues, contained items on the economic phase of the science.

Dr. Hopkins commented on the contributions of entomologists to
biolog>' and paid a personal tribute to Dr. Howard in the following
words: "Dr. Howard has not referred to the entomologist who has done
more to command the recognition of the broad aspects of entomological
research as related to other sciences and to practice in agriculture and
medicine, and who has also done more to command respect for ento-
mology and entomologists by scientists and the public in general than
any other. Dr. Howard, through his liberal policy as Chief of the
Bureau of Entomology, and his helpful personal interest and counsel,
deserves far more credit for the achievements of other entomologists in
and out of the Bureau than has been recognized or perhaps ever will be.

proceedings: entomological society 281

He has not only offered unlimited opportunities for the exercise of
initiative and the pursuing of original lines of research leading in all
directions, and sometimes penetrating deeply into his own fields of
investigation, but has given personal advice and made suggestions that
have pointed the way to rapid progress in the achievement of results.
We are all (especially the older members of the Society) familiar with
the very large number of contributions in Insect Life, bulletins of the
Division and Bureau of Entomology, and his monumental work, sys-
tematic and economic, on parasitic Hymenoptera and mosquitoes, and
on other insects in their relation to the health of man, which stand as
striking examples of the service entomology has rendered to humanity
and to the general advancement of biological knowledge. I want to
take this opportunity to acknowledge and express my gratitude and
appreciation of the opportunities and facilities that have been offered
to take up and pursue the lines of work that have been of greatest
interest and pleasure to me."

Dr. Baker called attention to the change in the attitude of medical
men brought about by the war and to the function of entomologists in
the war in connection with camp sanitation. Mr. Rohwer told of an
entomologist of the old school who complained that taxonomy is not
what it formerly was. Mr. Rohwer agreed but stated that the taxono-
mist has progressed and broadened. Mr. Heinrich feared that the
greater recognition of economic entomology would prove disadvanta-
geous to taxonomy and that the taxonomist of the future will have to
be very self-sacrificing from a financial standpoint. Dr. Howard took
exception to this, stating that the economic men appreciate the need of
accurate taxonomic work.

The second paper on the program was as follows :

Carl Heinrich : A new genus of Oecophorid moths from Japan.

Notes and Exhibition of Specimens

Mr. Hyslop called attention to the recent death of Mrs. C. H. Fernald,
author of the "Catalogue of the Coccidae of the World."

Mr. Heinrich exhibited photographs of the camp where Emerson
L. Diven, who had been engaged in aeroplane scouting in connection
with the work on the pink boll-worm of cotton, and his pilot were killed
in an aeroplane accident.

Mr. Caudell told of stridulation by the severed legs of the common
house centipede and also of the stridulation of a cockroach. The legs
of the centipede move very rapidly for a time after being removed from
the body, the sound being caused by the rubbing of a spine on the basal
joint against the next joint. Dr. Hopkins and Mr. Schwarz spoke of the
stridulating organs of the scolytid beetles, some of which have these
organs on the sides of the body while others have them on the head.
In some species the males have these organs on the head and the females
have them at the anal end.

282 proceedings: entomological society

Mr. ScHWARZ told of a monument erected to the boll weevil in Ala-
bama.

Dr. Baker spoke of finding an aphid on chestnut at Falls Church,
Virginia, which was otherwise known to him only from one slide of
specimens taken on guava, and that it had since disappeared from
chestnut. This reminded Dr. Hopkins of a gnat that was discovered
associated with potato-scab that had never been rediscovered.

Dr. Quaintance called attention to the change of habit of the codling
moth in attacking walnuts in California. It has become a serious
problem and is revolutionizing the industry.

Dr. Hopkins stated that if an insect common to several hosts breeds
for a number of generations on one host it will not go to another. This
fact is taken advantage of in forest practice against certain scolytids.

Dr. Craighead told of his experiments in transferring cerambycids
from one host to another and of the difficulty in inducing them to go
back to their normal hosts.

Mr. Heinrich stated that the codling moth belongs to the most
plastic group in the microlepidoptera, and cited as an example the
eastern Evetria fntstrana, which if transferred to the western Jack pine
develops into Evetria bushnelli.

Dr. G. P. Engelhart of the Brooklyn Museum was introduced by
the president and addressed the Society briefly concerning his work at
that institution.

Mr. RoHWER criticised the lack of short notes by the younger mem-
bers of the Society. These men, he thought, being largely engaged in
field work, should have opportunity to make many observations of
interest and should present them at the meetings.

R. A. CusHMAN, Recording Secretary.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Ground was broken on April 5 for the new building of the Medical
Society of the District of Columbia, to be erected on M Street between
Seventeenth Street and Connecticut Avenue.

The Weather Bureau's earthquake summary shows that 87 earth-
quakes of appreciable intensity occurred in fhe United States in 19 19,
as compared with 127 in 1918. As usual, a considerable number of
quakes (10) during this year occurred in the Mississippi Valley region.
One earthquake occurred near Front Royal, Virginia, but was less
intense than the one of 19 18 which was central in the same general
region and which was felt in the District of Columbia.

During the development of an optical method for studying recording
instruments, it has been found at the Bureau of Standards that the
photographic records obtained furnished incidentally an excellent
means of determining the uniformity of motion of the clockwork used
to drive the recording mechanism. A study of this feature has been
undertaken using clockwork of foreign and domestic manufacture, and
it is believed that the method will prove to be directly applicable to
clu-onographs.

The Bureau of Standards has completed arrangements to test the
comparative durability of upper leather made from shark and porpoise
skins as compared with that from calfskin and cowhide. The coopera-
tion of the National Boot and vShoe Manufacturers' Association has been
secured in the making of the necessary shoes for the tests.

Dr. Lyman J. Briggs, formerly physicist in the Bureau of Plant
Industry, U. S. Department of Agriculture, who has been on temporary
assignment to the Bureau of Standards for research on aeroplane
problems during the war, was transferred permanently to the staff of
the Bureau of Standards in January.

Mr, John B. Ferguson, formerly of the Geophysical Laboratory,
Carnegie Institution of Washington, and now a member of the research
department of the Western Electric Company of New York City, has
accepted a position as Associate Professor of Chemical Research at
the University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada. He will assume the new
position in July.

Mr. L. H. Greathouse, of the U. S. Fixed Nitrogen Research Lab-
oratory, resigned on March 3 1 to accept a position with the Atmospheric
Nitrogen Corporation in New York City. This corporation has been
organized by the General Chemical Company and the Semet-Solvay
Company.

Dr. P. J. S. Cramer, of Java, known for his studies on the culture of
rubber, visited Washington in March.

283

284 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Mr. H. D. McCaskey resigned from the U. S. Geological vSurvev itr
March to assume charge of the Bora Da Orchards at Central Point,
Oregon.

Prof. E. B. M.ATTHEWS, of the National Research Council, and Mr.
M. O. Leighton, National Ser\dce Representative of Engineering
Council, have been authorized by the recently created Board of vSurveys
and Maps to organize an advisory council to the Board, consisting of
representatives of engineoring, geographic and other organizations,
which shall represent the pubtic and the professions in the presentation
and discussion of unofficial demands and needs in connection with the-
mapping work of the United States.

Dr. M. E. Pennington, formerly chief of the food research laboratory
of the Bureau of Chemistry, U. S. Department of Agriculture, has^
become manager of the research and development division of the
American Balsa Company, Inc., at 50 E. 42d Street, New York City.

Dr. H. C. Puckett, of vSeattle, Washington, visited the laboratory
of the Division of Physical Anthropology, Smithsonian Institution, in
March, for the purpose of examining the teeth in skulls of various
primitive peoples, and gathering information which will aid in deter-
mining the cause of early decay in human teeth. He finds but little
indication of decay in the teeth of aborigines, a fact accounted for, he
believes, by the coarseness of the food they consumed. White flour,
soft foods and insufficient mastication are considered by him to be
responsible for the relatively large proportion of defective teeth among
highly civilized peoples.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. io MAY 19, 1920 No. 10

PHYSICS. — A simple substitute for a cathetometer } J. B. Fer-
guson, New York City.

A cathetometer is often used, especially by investigators of
problems involving gases, when a pressure reading is desired
with an accuracy of o.i mm. or better. This instrument is,
however, very cumbersome and also expensive. It may be
replaced to advantage by a "micrometer depth gauge," which is
an inexpensive- machinists' tool of small size capable of giving
readings with an accuracy of o.oi mm. or 0.0005 inch.

These gauges usually consist of a vertical rod, with a sliding
head mounted perpendicular to the rod and provided with a
micrometer or a vernier. The head has a polished surface about
^/o inch (13 mm.) in width, which is sufficient to enable one to
make an accurate setting by sighting across it against a mercury
meniscus.

To illustrate the possibilities of such an instrument, one was
set up in a retort stand with the head opposite the two surfaces
of mercury in a partly-filled U-tube, and various observers
determined by it the position of one mercury meniscus. Read-
ings were made first with the gauge in front and then behind
the U-tube. The results are given in table i . This instrument
was graduated in inches, but instruments graduated in milli-
meters are also obtainable.

' Received April 6, 1920.

- A four-inch instrument would cost not over ten dollars.

285

286 BLAKE: REVISION OF MAHOGANIES

TABLE I

EADINGS

ON Mercury Meniscus,

Made by Different

Reading

Observer

inches

Position of gauge

0.631

In front of tube

0.6315

In front of tube

0.6335

In front of tube

0 6335

In front of tube

0.626

In front of tube

0.624

In front of tube

0 3229

Behind tube

0.321

Behind tube

0.325

Behind tube

0.324

Behind tube

0.3234

Behind tube

0.315

Behind tube

0.315

Behind tube

0.314

Behind tube

0.3209

Behind tube

0.319

Behind tube

0.319

Behind tube

Observers

The different observers apparently did not all set alike, but
each was able to repeat his own measurements with sufficient
precision so that each could have measured a pressure difference
to ^o.ooi inch or about ±0.02 mm.

The above-mentioned use is but one of the many to which such
a useful little instrument can be put and no doubt specially
shaped heads could be obtained for particular purposes if desired.

BOTANY. — Revision of the true mahoganies {Swietenia). vS. F.
Blake, Bureau of Plant Industry.^

The genus Swietenia, from which the true mahogany of com-
merce is derived, was described by Jacquin- in 1760. His single
species, Swietenia mahagoni, was based on a reference to plate
81 of the second volume of Catesby's Natural History of Caro-
lina. This plate is also the basis of Linnaeus' Cedrela mahagoni,^

^ Received March 12, 1920.
^ Enum. PI. Carib. 4: 1760.
* Syst. ed. 10. 940. 1759.

BLAKE: REVISION OF MAHOGANIES 287

the first binominal name given to the mahogany. Catesby*
gives a fairly good plate showing the fruit and leaves of the
mahogany, with a figure of some withered flowers, and describes
its manner of growth in the Bahamas.

About 1836 a second species, 5. humilis, was added to the genus
by Zuccarini,^ described from specimens collected in Tehuantepec,
Oaxaca, by Karwinski. For many years this species has re-
mained comparatively little known. Recently, however, Harms^
has referred to 5. humilis a species grown in the Botanic Garden
at Victoria, Camerun, West Africa, from seeds collected by
Preuss near San JuHan, El Salvador, on June 9, 1900. Preuss,^
in his book on Central and South America, mentions in several
places a mahogany which he calls Swietenia bijuga, a name never
used by any other author (except as cited by Harms from Preuss'
book), and not defined by Preuss. Under this name he refers;
not only to the species from El Salvador, discussed by Harms,
but also to a mahogany from Venezuela, which is presumably
the species recently described by Pittier^ as 5. candollei. Harms
describes the species grown in Camerun as having leaflets la
to 12 cm. long, 4 to 5 cm. wide, thus much larger than those of
Zuccarini's original 5. humilis, but he does not consider the plant
botanically distinct. Specimens from Chiapas, collected by
Seler (no. 192 1), from Guerrero, collected by Langlassc (no. 132),
and from Michoacan, collected by Endlich (no. 1335), are also
referred to 5. humilis by Harms. None of this material has been
examined by the present writer, but it is clear from Harms'
description of the Camerun material that it at least belongs to
the species described below as 5. cirrhata.

A third species, Swietenia macrophylla, was described and
figured by King-' in 1886, on the basis of trees grown in the
Botanic Garden at Calcutta from seed supposed to be from

''Nat. Hist. Carol. 2: 81. PI. 81. 1743.

5 Abh. Akad. Muench. 2: 355. PI. 7. 1835-36.

^ Rep. Sp. Nov. Fedde 12: 210-21 1. 1913.

' Exped. Centr. u. Suedamer. 112, 432, 433, 440, 442. 1901.

* Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci. 10: 32,. 1920.

" Hook. Ic. 16: pi. 1550. 1886.

288 BLAKE: REVISION OF MAHOGANIES

Honduras. It is now known in the wild state from Tabasco
and Campeche to eastern Guatemala and Honduras, and is
evidently the only species of the genus on the eastern coast of
Central America.

Swietenia candollei, recently described by Pittier,^" is pre-
sumably the only species of Swietenia native in Venezuela. It
is easily distinguished from 5. mahagoni by its much longer
leaflets and larger flowers, and from 5. macro phylla by its longer
petiolules and obtuse capsules.

A fifth species, not hitherto described, is represented in the
National Herbarium by fine flowering material collected in
Michbacan by Nelson, and by foliage material collected in Sinaloa
and Oaxaca. This species has the subsessile leaflets which dis-
tinguish 5. humilis from all other Swietenias hitherto described,
but these are much larger than in that species and are provided
with a very long twisted cusp formed by the excurrent midvein.
To it evidently belong the specimens mentioned by Harms as
grown at the Botanic Garden of Victoria in Camerun, from seeds
collected by Preuss in Kl Salvador.

An interesting account of the history of the three species of
mahogany previously recognized has been published by R. A.
Rohe in a recent number of the Kew Bulletin, ^^ with references
to illustrations and to much of the literature relating to the sub-
ject.

The distribution of the five species of Swietenia now known may
be summarized as follows : Swietenia mahagoni is the only species
known from the West Indies, Bermuda, and the Bahamas,
as well as the keys of southern Florida. It has been introduced
into Trinidad, Venezuela, and the Hawaiian Islands, and is
recorded by Casimir DeCandolle from Peru, but the latter record
is certainly very questionable. Swietenia candollei is a native
of Venezuela. Swietenia macrophylla is the mahogany of the
eastern coast of Central America, from Tabasco to Honduras,

10 Joum. Wash. Acad. Sci. lo: 33. 1920.

11 Kew Bull. 1919: 201-207. 1919-

BLAKE): REVISION OF MAHOGANIES

289

and is also cultivated in botanic gardens at Trinidad, Buitenzorg,
and Calcutta. Swietenia cirrhata is known in the wild condition
from Sinaloa, Michoacan, Oaxaca, and El Salvador, and has been
introduced into cultivation in the Botanic Garden at Victoria
in Camerun. Swietenia humilis is known as a wild species from
the coast of Guerrero, Oaxaca, and northwestern Guatemala.
The distribution of these species, so far as it is now definitely
known, is shown on the accompanying map. It remains to deter-
mine the identity of the mahoganies growing between Honduras
and Colombia, and also that of the mahogany recorded from Peru
as 5-. mahagoni in DeCandolle's monograph, at a time when only
two species of the genus were known from America.

I. — Map showing range of the species of Swietenia. i, S. humilis; 2, S. cirrhata;
3, 5. macrophylla; 4, S. candollei; 5, 5. mahagoni.

(Note. — The southernmost locality shown on the map in the ranje of No. i, S.
humilis, belongs properly to No. 2, 5. cirrhata.)

As is well known, the name mahogany is applied in the trade
not only to the wood furnished by various species of Swietenia
but also to similar woods derived from a considerable number of
other trees, in some cases belonging to widely separated families.
In fact, the bulk of the "mahogany" annually brought to market

290 BLAKE: REVISION OF MAHOGANIES

is derived from other trees than Swietenia. Of the true mahog-
anies, belonging to the genus vSwietenia, 5. macrophylla is prob-
ably the one of most importance at the present time. This species
grows on the Atlantic coast of Central America from Tabasco
to Honduras and for an undetermined distance southward,
and is shipped from Belize, Puerto Barrios, and various other
points. 5. mahagoni, of much importance in early days, is
probably now marketed in less quantity than 5. macrophylla.
The species of western Mexico, 5. cirrhata and 5. humilis, are
at present little utilized, and the same is true of the Venezuelan
species, 5. candollei.

Swietenia Jacq. Enum. PI. Carib. 4. 1760.

Mahagoni Adans. Fam. PI. 2: 343. 1763.

"Roia Scop. Introd. 226. 1777."

Suitenia Stokes, Bot. Mat. Med. 2: 436, 479. 181 2.

Trees with hard and heavy red wood, glabrous throughout except
for the sometimes ciliolate calyx and corolla; leaves alternate, abruptly
pinnate, or sometimes odd-pinnate, the leaflets 2 to 6 pairs, opposite
or subopposite, elliptic to oval, strongly inequilateral, subsessile or
petiolulate; panicles axillary, pedunculate, many-flowered, the flowers
whitish or greenish yellow, short-pedicellate; calyx (4 or) 5-lobed for
one-third to one-half its length, the lobes semicircular or deltoid,
broadly rounded to barely acutish ; corolla imbricate in bud, the petals
(4 or) 5, oblong-oval or obovate-oval ; staminal tube (8 to) lo-toothed
at apex, the teeth triangular, acute; anthers borne inside the tube at its
apex, alternating with the teeth, subsessile, oval-oblong, obtuse; disk
crenulate, about half as long as ovary or less; ovary (4 or) 5-celled,
the cells bearing about 12 ovules in two rows of 6 or 7 each; style col-
umnar, about as long as ovary or slightly longer ; stigma discoid, thick-
ened, crenulate, about as broad as ovar>'; capsule ovoid, rounded or
umbonate at apex, septicidally dehiscing from the base or apex, with
thick woody exocarp and much thinner leathery endocarp, the valves
and seeds eventually deciduous leaving the persistent pentagonal
narrowly 5-winged receptacle; seeds imbricate, about 12 in each cell,
with more or less quadrangular body and much longer slightly broader
wing thickened on the chalazal margin ; embryo transverse, with broad,
flat, oily cotyledons and minute radicle, and scanty albumen.

BLAKE: REVISION OF MAHOGANIES 29 1

Type species Swietenia mahagoni Jacq.

Key to Species

Leaflets subsessile; seeds light brown.

Leaflets 5 to 9 cm. long, 0.8 to 3 cm. wide i. 5. hmnilis.

Leaflets 8.5 to 14 cm. long, 3 to 5 cm. wide 2. 5. cirrhata.

Leaflets distinctly petioluled; seeds dark chestnut-brown.

Petals and sepals ciliolate; leaflets 6 to 18 cm. long; capsule 9 to
15 cm. long; seeds 7.5 to 10 cm. long.
Petiolules 1.5 to 7 mm. long; capsule umbonate at apex

3. 5. macro phylla.
Petiolules 6 to 12 mm. long; capsule obtuse. . . .4. 5. candollei.
Petals and sepals not ciliolate; leaflets 3.5 to 7.5 cm. long;

capsule 4.5 to 7 cm. long; seeds 2 to 4 cm. long .5. 5. mahagoni.

I. Swietenia humilis Zucc. Abh. Acad. Muench. 2: 355. PI. 7.

1835-36.

Tree 7 to 10 meters high, about 6 dm. in diameter, with dense head;
branchlets gray; leaves with 2 to 5 pairs of leaflets; petiole 3.5 to 5 cm.
long, the rachis 1.5 to 7 cm. long; leaflets 5 to 9 cm. long, 0.8 to 3 cm.
wide, elliptic-lanceolate to elliptic-ovate, attenuate at apex and pro-
vided wnth a flattish cusp 3 to 7 mm. long, cuneate to rounded at base,
subsessile, prominulous-reticulate both sides, somewhat paler green
beneath; panicles pyramidal, 4 to 12.5 cm. long (including the 2.5
to 5.5 cm. long peduncle); pedicels 0.5 to 3 mm. long; calyx i mm.
long, 5-lobed about to middle, the lobes deltoid, obtuse to acutish,
papillose-ciliolate ; petals obovate-oval, emarginate at the broadly
rounded apex, ciliolate throughout, 5 mm. long, 2.8 mm. wide; staminal
tube glabrous, the teeth lance-ovate, acute; disk crenate, papillose,
about two-fifths as long as ovary; style shorter and stigma narrower
than the ovary; fruit 15 to 20 cm. long, 10 to 12 cm. thick, ovoid,
obtusely umbonate at apex; seeds about 10 in each cell, light brown,
6 to 9 cm. long, 2 to 2.5 cm. wide.

Type Locality : Dry sunny places near Tehuantepec, Oaxaca, Mexico,
altitude about 300 meters. Type collected by Karwinski.

Specimens Examined:

Guerrero: Acapulco, 1894-95, Palmer 405.

Oaxaca: Taretan, 1883, Duges (Gray Herb.). Chivela, April 26,
1910, Orcutt 3190. Tonameca, altitude 25 meters, November 9, 1917,
Reko 3549.

Chiapas: Between Santa Catarina and Santa Lucia, December,
1906, Collins (photog. of leaves and fruit).

Guatemala: Near Nenton, Huehuetenango, altitude 915 to 1220
meters, December, 1895, Nelson 3533.

292 BLAKE: REVISION OF MAHOGANIES

The description of the floral details, which differs in some
minor features from that of Zuccarini, has been that drawn up
from the sheet in the Gray Herbarium collected in Oaxaca by
Duges, which was originally recorded in the Botanical Gazette. ^■-
Prof. Duges gives the native name as "cobano." The species is
easily distinguished by its comparatively small and attenuate
subsessile leaflets.

Solereder^^ has made a careful microscopical examination of
seeds of this species purchased of a drug-dealer in the Puebla
market, and said to be very poisonous. Solereder finds that
what had previously been described as albumen is in reality a
part of the cotyledons. He finds, however, that a small amount
of true albumen is present in the seeds.

Rose^^ states that the seeds of a Swietenia, referred to this
species with some doubt, were sold by Indian peddlers near
Acaponeta, Tepic, and were made into a tea which was taken for
pains in the chest. The native name was given as "flor de
venodillo (venadillo) . ' '

2. Swietenia cirrhata Blake, sp. nov.

Tree; branchlets grayish brown, lenticellate; leaves with 3 to 6 pairs
of leaflets; petiole 3 to 7.5 cm. long, the rachis 9 to 20 cm. long, termi-
nated by a cusp 2 to 7 mm. long; leaflets 8.5 to 14 cm. long, 3 to 5 cm.
wide, subopposite below, opposite above, obliquely ovate or elliptic-
ovate, acuminate, tipped by a filiform twisted cusp 3 to 13 mm. long,
acute to rounded at base, subsessile, pergamentaceous to subcoriaceous,
pale green, glaucescent especially beneath, prominulous-reticulate on
both sides, with 9 to 10 pairs of lateral veins; panicle 23 cm. long (in-
cluding the 8 cm. long peduncle), 15 cm. wide; pedicels 1.5 to 2 mm.
long; calyx 0.8 to i mm. long, 5-lobed to middle, the lobes broadly
deltoid or suborbicular, broadly rounded, ciliolate; petals 5, oval-
oblong, rounded, erose-ciliolate throughout, 4.8 mm. long, 2.8 mm.
wide; staminal tube glabrous, 3.8 mm. long, the 10 teeth triangular-
ovate, acutish; disk crenulate, papillose, half as long as ovary; pistil
4.5 mm. long; style about a quarter longer than ovary; seeds light
brown, similar to those of 5. hiimilis.

T3pe in the U. S. National Herbarium, no. 399294, collected at La
Salada, Michoacan, Mexico, March 15 to 22, 1903, by E. W. Nelson
(no. 6925).

1' Bot. Gaz. 10: 430. 1885.

*' Archiv. Pharm. 229: 249-258. PI. 1891. '

1* Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 5: 229. 1899.

BLAKE: REVISION OF MAHOGANIES

293

Fig. 2. — Swietenia leaflets, natural size, a, S. hiimilis Zucc. (drawn from Reko 3459) ,"

b, S. cirrhata Blake {Nelson 6925) ; c, S. macrophylla King {Blake 7866) ; d, S.

candollei Pittier {Pittier 5789); e, S. mahagoni Jacq. {Ricksecker 247).

294 blrake: revision of mahoganies

Other Specimens Examined:

Sinaloa: Lodiego, October, 1891, Palmer 161 6. On road between
Rosario and Colomas, July 13, 1897, -^^^^ 3186.

Oaxaca: Chicapa, February 17, 1904, Goldman 738.

This species, whose range partly overlaps that of 5. humilis, is
most closely related to that species, but may be distinguished by
its much larger leaflets which are usually, long cuspidate. vSeeds
collected by Palmer under his no. 16 16 are not distinguishable
from those of 5. humilis, but are too fragmentary to afford any
measurements.

3. Swietenia macrophylla King, Hook. Ic. 16: PI. 1550. 1886.

Honduras Mahogany.

Tree; branchlets grayish or fuscous, lenticellate ; leaves with 3 to 5
(or "6") pairs of leaflets, abruptly pinnate or sometimes odd-pinnate;
petiole 4 to 8 cm. long, the rachis 4.5 to 15 cm. long; leaflets 6 to 18 cm.
long, 2 to 7 cm. wide (the lowest sometimes slightly smaller), elliptic
to elliptic-ovate, oblong, or oblong-ovate, short-pointed to acuminate,
the terminal cusp 2 mm. long or obscure, cuneate to rounded at base,
subcoriaceous, deep green both sides, reticulate, the veinlets impressed
or slightly prominulous above, obscure or prominulous beneath; petio-
lules 1.5 to 4 (rarely 7) mm. long; panicles 13 cm. long (including the
4.5 to 7 cm. long peduncle) ; pedicels 2 mm. long; calyx sinuately 5-lobed
about one-third its length, 0.8 mm. long, the lobes semicircular, broadly
rounded, ciliolate; petals oval-oblong, truncate-rounded at apex, finely
ciliolate, 4 mm. long, 2.2 mm. wide; staminal tube glabrous, equaling
pistil, shorter than corolla, the teeth lance-ovate, acuminate; disk
crenulate, about one-half as long as ovary, papillose; style once and a
half as long as ovary; stigma crenulate, broader than ovary; fruit
15 cm. long, 7.5 cm. thick, ovoid, subacutely umbonate, rufous-fuscous,
tuberculate; seeds deep chestnut-brown, 7.5 to 10 cm. long, 2 cm.~vvide
or more.
Type Locality: Cultivated at Botanic Garden, Calcutta, India, from

seed supposed to be from Honduras.
Specimens Examined:

Tabasco: Common in the vicinity of Tepetitan, February 14,
1888, Rovirosa 181.

Campeche: Apazote, near Yohaltun, December 31, 1900, Goldman

571-

Guatemala: Santo Tomas, near Puerto Barrios, June 4, 1919,

Blake 7866. Las Playitas, Dept. Izabal, May 12, 1919, Whitford &

Stodtmiller 48.

Honduras: Clearings, Swan Islands, April 7, 1913, G. Nelson 125
(Gray Herb.). Hacienda El Limon, Dept. Copan, May 7, 1919,
Whitford & Stadtmiller 27.

Cultivated: Botanic Garden, BeHze, British Honduras, December,
1905, Kellerman 5747. Panama Agricultural Experiment Station,

BLAKE: REVISION OF MAHOGANIES 295

Groth. Botanic Garden, Port of Spain, Trinidad, December, 1913,
Mell. Botanic Garden, Buitenzorg, Java, 1903 ("e Calcutta").

The genus Swietenia has generally been described as having
abruptly pinnate leaves. Many of the leaves of the writer's
no. 7866, however, are odd-pinnate, with the unpaired terminal
leaflet smaller and somewhat less asymmetric than the next
pair, and borne on a prolongation of the rachis about 2 cm.
long. A few of the specimens of 5. mahagoni show similar leaves.

Specimens with leaves and fragmentary fruits in the Gray
Herbarium, collected on low hills in the valley of the Rio Negro,
Guaguaqui, Boyaca, Colombia, July 14, 191 7, by H. N. Whitford
& J. Pinzon (no. 10), and recorded by Macbride^^ as S. macro-
phylla, probably belong to this species but are too incomplete to
be satisfactorily determined. The local names are given by
Whitford as "cedro caoba" and "cedro mondi." Material in the
Kew Herbarium, said to have been collected by Antoine at
Cartagena, Colombia, has been referred to this species by Rolfe
in his recent paper on the genus.

4. Swietenia candoUei Pittier, Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci. 10: 33. 1920.
Venezuela Mahogany.
Tree up to 40 meters high; branchlets gray, lenticellate, those of the
year fuscous green, glaucous; leaves with 3 to 5 pairs of leaflets; petiole
6 to 9.5 cm. long, the rachis 5.5 to 20 cm. long; leaflets 6.5 to 13 cm.
long, 2.5 to 4.5 cm. wide (the lowest pair sometimes only 5 cm. long),
oval or oval-ovate to oblong-elliptic, short-acuminate and usually
falcate at apex, with a flat or slightly twisted cusp 3 mm. long or less,
cuneate to rounded at base, prominulous-reticulate on both sides, paler
green beneath; petiolules slender, 6 to 12 mm. long; panicles axillary,
9 to 18 cm. long (including the 5 to 8 cm. long peduncle), 3 to 6 cm. wide,
loose; pedicels 2 to 4 mm. long; calyx i mm. long, 5-lobed for about
one-third its length, the lobes semicircular," broadly rounded, finely
erose-ciliolate; petals yellowish white, 4.5 to "6.5" mm. long, 2,-3 mm.
wide, oval-oblong, broadly rounded, unequally and broadly cuneate at
base, finely erose-ciliolate throughout; staminal tube 3.8 mm. long,
glabrous, its teeth triangular-ovate, acuminate; disk crenulate, papillose,
nearly half as long as ovary; pistil 3.5 mm. long; ovary 5-celled, the
ovules in two rows of 6 or 7 in each cell ; style columnar, slightly shorter
than ovary; stigma large, barely crenulate, slightly broader than ovary;
fruit 9 to 14 cm. long, 6 or 9 cm. thick, ovoid, obtuse, dehiscing usually
from the apex; seeds deep chestnut brown to ferruginous, 9 to 9.5 cm.
long, 2.5 to 3 cm. wide.

15 Contr. Gray Herb. N. S. 56: 54. 1918.

296 BLAKE: REVISION OF MAHOGANIES

Type Locality: La Trinidad de Maracay, Venezuela.
Specimens Examined:

Venezuela: La Trinidad de Maracay, altitude 440 meters, State
of Aragua, January 31, 1913, Pittier 5789 (type).

Distinguished from 5. mahagoni by its larger leaflets, longer
petiolules, larger flowers, and larger fruits and seeds; from 5.
macrophylla by its mostly smaller, paler, and thinner leaflets,
and longer and more slender petiolules.

5. Swietenia mahagoni Jacq. Enum. PI. Carib. 20. 1760. West
Indian Mahogany.

Cedrela mahagoni L. Syst. ed. 10. 940. 1759-

Cedrus mahogani Mill. Gard. Diet. ed. 8. no. 2. 1768.

Swietenia mahogoni Desr. ; Lam. Encycl. 3: 678. 1791.

"Swietenia fabrilis Salisb. Prodr. 317. 1796."

Suitenia acuiifolia Stokes, Bot. Mat. Med. 2: 479. 181 2.

Swietenia mahogani C. DC. Mon. Phan. i: 730. 1878.

Tree; branchlets gray or fuscous brown, lenticellate ; leaves abruptly
pinnate, with 2 to 6 pairs of leaflets, or rarely odd-pinnate ; petiole 3 to
6.5 cm. long, the rachis 2 to 14 cm. long; leaflets 3.5 to 6 (rarely 7.5)
cm. long, 1.3 to 2.5 (rarely 3.3) cm. wide, elliptic to ovate, acute to
acuminate, with a terminal cusp 3 mm. long or less, cuneate to rounded
at base, papery or chartaceous, prominulous-reticulate on both sides,
paler green beneath; petiolules slender, 2 to 7 mm. long; panicles 4 to
8 cm. long (including the 2 to 4 cm. long peduncle) ; pedicels 2 to 4 mm.
long; calyx 0.8 to i mm. long, 5-lobed about one-third its length, the
lobes semicircular, broadly rounded, erose, glabrous; petals yellowish,
2.5 to 3 mm. long, obovate-oblong, broadly rounded, glabrous; staminal
tube glabrous, its teeth deltoid, acutish; disk about one-third as long
as ovary; style as long as ovary; stigma narrower than ovary; fruit
ovoid, broadly rounded at apex, 4.5 to 7 cm. long, 3 to 5 cm. thick,
grayish brown, verrucose, dehiscing from the base or from both ends;^*^
seeds 2 to 4 cm. long, i to 1.3 cm. wide, deep chestnut-brown.

Type Locality: Bahama Islands.
Specimens Examined:

Florida: Lignum Vitae Key, 1877, Garher; 1892, Simpson 485.
Coral soil. Umbrella Key, Cnrtiss 411.

Bermuda: Flatts Village, 1905, Harshberger.

Bahama Islands: Crow Hill, Andros Island, 1910, Small & Carter
8743. Nassau, Providence Island, 1913.

Cuba: Without locality, Wright 1153. Cayo Sabinal, Camagiiey,
1909, Shafcr 1105. La Gloria, Camagiiey, 1909, Shafer 37Q. Cayo
Coco, Camagiiey, 1909, Shafer 2723. South of Holguin, Oriente, 1909,
Shafer 1342.

^^ See ROLFE, Kew Bull. 1919: 203. 1919.

BLAKE): REVISION OF MAHOGANIES 297

Isle of Pines: Ensenada de Siguanea, 19 16, Britton, Wilson, &
Selby 14529.

Jamaica: Berwich Hill, altitude 765 meters, 1899, Harris 7710.
Papine, near Hope, altitude 240 meters, 1909, Harris 1082 1.

Santo Domingo: 1871, Wright, Parry & Brvtmmel. Lopez, 1887,
Eggers 1836. Barahona, 1910, Fuertes 223. Azua, 1913, Rose, Fitch, &
Russell 4082.

St. Thomas: 1881, Eggers.

St. Croix: Bassin yard, 1896, Ricksecker 247.

Antigua: 19 13, Rose, Fitch, c~ Russell 3313.

Martinique: 1881, Duss 1497.

Grenada: 1905, Broadway.

Cultivated: Little River, Florida, Richer 4066, Tidestrom 4178..
Near Ponce, Porto Rico, 1886, Sintenis 4939. Botanical Garden, Port
of Spain, Trinidad, 19 13, Mell. Gamboa, near Caracas, Venezuela,
1918, Pittier 7947 (introduced from vSanto Domingo). Oahu, Hawaiian
I-slands, 19 11, Curran 115.

Although the first binomial given to this species was Cedrela
mahagoni L-, the parenthetical authority cannot be used for the
name Swieienia mahagoni Jacq., since Jacquin makes no direct
reference to the earlier name of Linnaeus.

Descourtilz'" states that the bark of S. mahagoni is used as a
tonic and astringent in the West Indies, and that it is often
substituted for that of quinine, without, however, possessing
the virtues of the larter. He also says: "C'est Lid'Oubouheri
des hommes caraibes, and Liacaicachi des femmes." Solereder^^'
states that a purgative known as "karapatoel" is extracted from
the seeds.

Among some fruits of this species collected from a planted
tree near Caracas, Venezuela, by Mr. Pittier, is one which has
only four valves and four rows of seeds, and which must have
come from a tetramerous flower. I have seen no other evidence
in the genus of deviation from the pentamerous type. De
Candolle,^-' however, describes the flowers as 4-or 5-merous.

•' Fl. Med. Ant. "2: 125. 1822 ;" ed. II. 2: 125. Pi. 99. 1833.
'* Archiv. Pharm. 229: 256, footnote. 1891.
'^ Prodr. i: 625. 1824.

ABSTRACTS

ENTOMOLOGY. — Note on the European corn barer (Pyrausta nubila-
lis Hiihner) audits nearest American allies, with description oj larvae,
pupae, and one new species. Carl Heinrich. Journ. Agric. Res.
i8: No. 3. Figs. 35, pis. 5. 1919.

This paper was written to enable positive identity in larval, pupal,
and adult stages of the European corn borer, Pyrausta nuhilalis Hiibner
to be made. The genus Pyrausta is fully characterized. All the generic,
family, and larger group characters are given for the adult, larva, and
pupa. Full specific descriptions and tables are also given of the larvae,
pupae, and adults of Pyrausta nuhilalis and its two nearest American
allies, P. penitalis Grote and P. ainsliei Heinrich, the latter is here
erected as a new species for part of the material hitherto included under
the name penitalis Grote. The name penitalis is restricted to the
Nelumbo feeding species; nelumhialis Smith remaining a synonym of
penitalis. Male and female genital characters are used for the first
time in separating and defining these species. Five plates containing
thirty-five figures of the structural characters illustrate the article.

C. H.

ENTOMOLOGY.— 77z^ ants of the British Solomon Islands. Wil-
liam M. Mann. Bull. Mus. Gomp. Zool. No. 7. Pp. 273-
391. Figs. 59, pis. 2.
An account of the ants of the islands based on collections made by the
author in 191 6. The ant fauna of the Solomons had been almost entirely
neglected, less than a half dozen species being known from there, so a
number of forms among the 144 listed in the present paper are new to
science. A new Ponerine genus (Wheeleripone) is described and several
new subgenera proposed. Practically the entire list of species belong
to Indo-Malayan genera and, in the introduction, the Solomon Islands
are considered zoogeographically to be the eastern limits of the Papua-
sian region.

A cm-ious new exudating habit in the workers of Rogeria stigmatica
Emery and nesting habits of several species of Polyrhachis are noted.
In one of the latter, P. osae Mann, two females combine and start a

colony jointly. S. A. RoHWER.

29S

abstracts: chemistry 299

CHEMISTRY. — The determination of celhdose in rubber goods. S. W.
Epstein and R. L. Moore. Bur. vStandards Tech. Paper 154.
Pp. 16. 1920.

After a discussion of the value of a procedure for determining eel
lulose in rubber goods and consideration of the literature on the subject,
the proposed method is discussed.

Method. — Sample is digested with cresol at 160-185° C. for 4 hours
to dissolve the rubber. Filtration is facilitated by addition of 200 cc.
of petroleum ether. After washing with benzol, 10 per cent solution
of hydrochloric acid, water and acetone, the material is dried and
weighed. It is then acetylated by heating for 30 minutes at 75° C.
in a mixture of 15 cc. of acetic anhydride and 0.5 cc. of concentrated
sulphuric acid. This is filtered on a weighed Gooch, washed with
90 per cent acetic acid and then with acetone and dried and weighed.
Loss in weight is recorded as cellulose. S. W. E.

ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY.— T/^e analysis of silicate and carbonate
rocks. W. F. HillEbrand. U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 700. Pp.

285, figs. 23. 1919.

This book, which is the fourth edition of Dr. Hillebrand's treatise,
sets forth the modern methods of procedure to be followed or the pre-
cautions to be observed in rock analysis. The author advocates that
rock analyses should be made as complete as possible, and not stop
with determinations of silica, alumina, the oxides of iron, lime, magnesia,
the alkalies and water; and suggests that, whenever possible, a thorough
microscopic examination of the rock in thin section should precede the
chemical analysis. Useful appliances and apparatus are described and
illustrated. R. W. StonE.

CHEMISTRY. — Estimation of nitrates and nitrites in battery acid.
L. B. Sefton. Bur. Standards Tech. Paper 149. Pp. 38. 1920.

From among the various methods suggested for the estimation of
nitrates and nitrites in small amounts, and admitting of a sulphuric
acid medium, three methods for the determination of nitrates — the
Diphenylamine, the "Hydrostrychnique," and the Brucine — and three
for the determination of nitrites — the Iodide, the Indol and the Di-
methylaniline — were selected and studied with reference to their use
in testing battery acid.

300 abstracts: engineering

The Diphenylamine test for nitrates and the Iodide test for nitrites
were found to be wholly unreliable. It was found impossible to es-
timate nitrates in the presence of nitrites; the "Hydrostrychnique"
and the Brucine test reacted with nitrites in the same way as with
nitrates so that the results of these methods must be expressed in
terms of nitrates and nitrites. In the absence of iron, the "Hydro-
strychnique" or a modification of the Brucine test is recommended.
In the presence of iron, only the original Brucine test may be used.

It was found that nitrites could be estimated in the presence of
nitrates and best by the Dimethylaniline method. L- B. S.

PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY. — Hydrogen ion concentration in dry cells.
H. D. Holler and L. M. Ritchie. Bur. Standards Sci. Paper
364. Pp. lo, figs. 3. 1920.

The potentials of electrodes consisting of mixtures of Acheson graphite
with three different manganese ores and a chemically prepared oxide
were measured in ammonium chloride solutions of different hydrogen
ion concentrations. The potential of the electrodes containing the
ores was found to be a logarithmic function of the hydrogen ion con-
centration, while the potential of electrodes containing the chemically
prepared oxide was found to be independent of hydrogen ion concentra-
tion. The potential of the ores was found to decrease in acid solution
and to increase in alkaline solutions. The relation found between
the potential of the manganese dioxide electrode and hydrogen ion
concentration, explains variations in open-circuit voltage of dry cells
containing a given ore, and also accounts for a portion, at least, of the
polarization of dr\- cells on discharge. H. D. H.

ENGINEERING. — The accuracy of commercial electrical measure-
ments. H. B. Brooks. Advance Paper, Trans. A. I. E- E.
1920. Presented February 20, 1920.

The paper discusses the accuracy required in commercial electrical
measurements, and the means of obtaining it, namely, proper choice,
installation, use, and maintenance of instruments. The effect of room
temperature change is discussed in detail, with special attention to fea-
tures and methods of design which will minimize this effect. The effect
of stray magnetic field is discussed from the same viewpoint.

Considering electrodynamic instruments as reducible to a pair of coils
capable of relative motion, it is shown experimentally that the errors

abstracts: geology 301

introduced by accidental bending of the index will be least if dM/d9
is constant over the whole range of moyement, M being the mutual
inductance of the coils and 9 the angle by which one is turned with
respect to the other.

Features of design which affect the accuracy are briefly discussed.
These include permanent magnets, springs, and ratio of the torque of
the moving element to its weight.

When a direct-current voltmeter is connected to two points on a
network, the reading is in general not a measure of the previous po-
tential difference of the points because the voltmeter takes a current
and thus alters conditions in the network. By taking a second reading
with the voltmeter shunted by a resistance equal to its own and using
a simple formula, this potential difference may be found. Similarly,
when a direct-current ammeter is inserted in one branch of a network,
the currents in the network are altered by the addition of the resist-
ance of the ammeter. By taking a second reading after adding extra
resistance equal to that of the ammeter, the same form of expression
will give the current in the branch before inserting the ammeter.

The electrodynamic wattmeter is treated in considerable detail.
An equation by Laws is developed into a general correction formula for
the effect of both self and mutual inductance, from which the effect of
either can be found.

The principal sources of error in electric energy meters and features
which should be improved in these and other electrical measuring in-
struments in the near future are briefly discussed. H. B. B.

GEOLOGY. — Bibliography of the metals of the platinum group — osmium,
platinum, palladium, iridium, rhodium, ruthenium, 1 748-191 7.
Jas. Lew^s Howe and H. C. HolTz. U. S. Geol. Survey Bull.
694. Pp.555-

The first edition of this bibliography, by Dr. Howe, was published
in 1897 as a volume of the Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections and
gave a list of the articles on the metals of the platinum group found in
scientific literature to the end of 1896. A supplement to this edition,
prepared by Dr. H. C. Holtz, of Amsterdam, brought the record down
to 19 10 but was never published. Dr. Howe received the manuscript
of this supplement and has filled its gaps and brought the record down
to the end of 191 7. The 450 pages of bibliographic references are fol-
lowed by an author index and a subject index. R. W. Stone.

-202 abstracts: technoi^ogy

PHYSICS. — Preparation and reflective properties of some alloys of alum-
inum with magnesium and with zinc. R. G. Waltenberg and
W. W. CoBLENTz. Bur. Standards vSci. Paper 363. Pp. 5, figs.
I. 1920.

This paper gives the manner of preparation and determination of
the spectral reflective properties of alloys of aluminum with magnesium
and with zinc.

The reflectivity measurements were made with a spectroradiometer
consisting of a mirror spectrometer, a fluorite prism and a vacuum
bismuth-silver thermopile. It was found that all of these alloys tar-
nish in time and hence are not suitable for mirrors where permanency
is of prime importance. The compound of aluminum and magnesium,
Al,3Mg4, deteriorates less rapidly than any of the other alloys examined
and could be used in apparatus where a highly reflecting mirror is
desired for a short time. A reflectivity of 92 per cent at 0.7^1 was
obtained with this compound.

The zinc-aluminum alloy has a minimum of reflectivity at 0.9 /x.
An examination of pure zinc disclosed a similar reflectivity minimum at
I. oil. R. G. W.

TECHNOLOGY.— C^m^n/ for spark plugs. Homer F. Staley.
Bur. Standards Tech. Paper 155. Pp. 10. 1920.

The use of cements for sealing electrodes into spark plug porcelains
has been found to be attended by serious difficulties in high tempera-
ture engines such as airplanes. Among these are: Promotion of
oxidation and destruction of the electrode wires by reactions taking
place in the cement and between the cement and electrode wires;
breaking of spark plug porcelains caused by difference in coefficients
of thermal expansion of electrode wires and porcelain; and cracking of
cement, with consequent gas leakage, due to the same cause. A cement
composed of silicate of soda and raw kaolin has been found to give little
trouble from chemical action. In order to avoid the difficulties at-
tending the use of any form of cement, the use of a mechanical seal
at the top of the porcelain has been tried with promising results.

H. F. S.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

ANNUAL MEETING, 1919

The 825th meeting and 49th annual meeting of the Society was held
at the Cosmos Club, December 6, 1919. President Humphreys
presided, and 21 members were present. In the absence of the Re-
cording Secretary, the Corresponding Secretary was appointed to act
in his stead.

The minutes of the 48th annual meeting were read and approved.

The reports of the Secretaries were read by the Corresponding
Secretary. These reports showed that the present active membership
is 194, the net gain for the year being 13. Of the active members two
died during the year, namely, James M. Flint and E. C. McKelvy.
31 new members were elected and qualified, 2 were transferred to the
active from the absent list, while 16 were transferred to the absent list,
one resigned, and one was dropped.

During the year the Society held 13 meetings for the presentation of
papers, in addition to one joint meeting with the Washington Academy
of Sciences. At these 13 meetings 27 papers were presented, 4 being
by non-members. The average attendance was 53.

It was moved and carried that the reports of the Secretaries be ac-
cepted.

The report of the Treasurer, Mr. E. F. Mueller, was presented,
and showed receipts of $1,145.17 from dues ($518.75) and interest
($626.42), while disbursements for current expenses were $833.70, and
outstanding bills are estimated at $75. The cash on hand is $393.33.
bills receivable amount to $59.25, while securities held amount to $13,000
par value.

The excess of income over expenditures for the year was $312.47.

The report of the auditing committee, W. F. Meggers and C. R.
DuvALL, was presented by Dr. Meggers, and indicated that the report
of the Treasurer was correct in all essential respects.

Moved and carried that the reports of the Treasurer and of the
auditors be accepted.

The report of the tellers, H. F. Stimson and R. C. Duncan, was
presented by Dr. Stimson. 47 nominating ballots were received.

The Society proceeded to the election of officers, which resulted as
follows :

President, Robert B. Sosman; Vice-President, R. L. Paris; Corre-
sponding Secretary, D. L. Hazard; Treasurer, Jno. A. Fleming; Mem-
bers-at-large of General Committee, Walter P. White, E. F. Mueller.

303

304 proceedings: biological society

Under the head of discussion of Society poHcies and recommenda-
tions to General Committee, there was considerable discussion involving
criticism of the method now used to nominate officers. It was moved
by E. F. Mueller that the General Committee be requested to consider
the matter and report its findings to the Society. Motion carried.

Rough minutes of the meeting were read and approved.

At 9.45 the Society adjourned.

E. C. Crittenden, Corresponding Secretary.

BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY

604TH MEETING

The 604th regular meeting of the Biological Society of Washington
was held in the lecture hall of the Cosmos Club, January 10, 1920.
Dr. A. D. Hopkins, President, called the meeting to order at 8.05 p.m.,
with 45 persons present. Mr. Jacob Kotinsky, of the Bureau of
Entomology, was elected to membership.

The President announced the appointment of the standing com-
mittees as follows: Publication Committee, Chas. W. Richmond, J. H.
Riley, Ned Dearborn, Alexander Wetmore. Conmittee on Com-
munications, S. A. RoHWER, Chas. E. Chambliss, R. E. Coker,
Francis Harper.

Under the heading of Brief notes and exhibition of specimens. Dr.
Walter P. Taylor stated that in making observations on Mt. Rainier
for the Biological Survey during the summer of 19 19, he received
reports of mammals existing far above timber line and even upon the
summit. These reports were verified between August 6 and September
26, in most cases by specimens trapped, as to the Whitefooted Mouse,
Peromysciis manicidatus areas; a Chipmunk, Etitamias amoenus subsp.;
Douglas Squirrel, Scuirus douglasii; the Western Bushy-tailed Wood Rat,
Neotoma cinerea occidentalis ; and the Large-footed Field Mouse, Mi-
crotits richardsoni arvicoloides. These animals seemed to subsist chiefly
upon lichens among boulders and snow. All were observed at altitudes
of 10,000 feet, and some at the summit, over 14,000 feet in altitude.
The altitudes attained by these mammals are not so remarkable in them-
selves, but the chief interest is in the fact that the trees of Mt. Rainier
stop at about 6,500 feet, and that the mammals here mentioned as
seen upon Rainier were observed from 3500 to nearly 8000 feet above
timber line. More complete notes are given in the Journal of Mam-
malogy.

Dr. T. S. Palmer remarked that 1920 marked the 50th anniversary
of the description of fossil birds from America. In 1870 Dr. O. C.
Marsh described 7 species, 5 from the Cretaceous of New Jersey.
Two years later the toothed birds of Kansas were discovered. It was
emphasized that by far the larger number of the birds from the older
deposits were described in the early part of this 50-year period. About
125 fossil birds have been discovered since, but most of them from
later deposits.

proceedings: biological society 305

Regular Program

T. H. Snyder: An account of the habits of Termites or White Ants.

Injury caused by termites to buildings, etc., in the United vStates is
often supposed to be caused by species imported from the tropics, but
this is not the case. There are 39 species representing 10 genera in
the United States, more than the known species of such tropical coun-
tries as Japan, Cuba and Hawaii combined, or of Japan, the Re-
public of Panama and Hawaii combined. Termites occur far north in
North iVmerica and also at great altitudes.

While Nearctic termites are not as spectacular as the tropical species
(they do not construct mounds, but nest in the earth or wood), there
are many interesting species with peculiar habits among them.

Many of the habits of the social insects have been attributed to such
instincts or feelings as parental feelings of man. Such "anthro-
pomorphisms" are as a rule false. Many of the instincts of insects,
such as the care of the brood, queen, etc., can te explained by purely
selfish motives, e.g., eagerness for body exudates, while other instinctive
behavior is due to odor of body, contact, etc.

There is considerable damage to the woodwork of improperly con-
structed buildings by termites in the United vStates; new as well as old
buildings are infested. Much of the damage to the woodwork of
buildings in the United vStates by termites {Reticidiiermes spp.) can
be prevented by completely isolating all wood in contact with the ground.
When once this source of moisture is shut off, the soft-bodied termites
soon disappear.

Instead of one type of "queen" mother there are several types of
"queens" or reproductive forms of termites. Wliile studies of termites
have been made in many countries for hundreds of years, knowledge of
the biology is far from complete.

Mr. vSnyder illustrated his paper with lantern slides of several forms
of termites and of their work. The paper was discussed by L. O.
Howard and Wm. Palmer.

William Palmer : Some birds of the Chesapeake Bay.

An account was given concerning the occurrence and habits of some
thirty species of birds, mostly water birds, that have been observed
during several years along some twenty miles of the Calvert Cliffs of
the Western Shore of Maryland. One species, the Shearwater, seen
in summer, was a straggler from the ocean ; while another, a land species,
chuck-will's-widow, was mentioned as a regular summer resident,
the northern range of the species being greatly extended. Mention was
also made of the regularity of the coloring of the toad, Bvfo fowleri,
occurring along that part of the Coastal Plain, as contrasted with the
great diversity of the same species about Washington, D. C. It was
also mentioned that some unknown cause had brought about the
death of numerous cats in the farmhouses of northern Calvert Countv;

3o6 proceedings: biological society

in one instance eight had died in one house during one week of Decem-
ber, 19 1 9. The principal bird facts of the paper will be published in
the Auk.

605TH meeting

The 605th regular meeting was held in the lecture hall of the Cosmos
Club on January 24, 1920. President Hopkins was in the chair and
85 persons were present. On recommendation of the Council the fol-
lowing were elected to membership : J. S. GuTSELL, Bureau of Fisheries ;
R. W. Williams, Department of Agriculture; A. H. Hardisty, Bio-
logical Survey.

Under the heading of Informal comnninicaiions , Dr. Barton W.
Evermann, former president of the Society and Director of the Mu-
seum of the California Academy of Sciences, stated that an aquarium,
which had been greatly needed, had been provided for at the IMuseum,
by a gift of $250,000. Several habitat groups had been installed in
the Museum, such as that of the Roosevelt Elk and the White Pelican.
The White Pelican had an extensive breeding establishment upon
Arabo Island, Pyramid Lake, Nevada. Their number is about 10,000.
The assumption that these pelicans ate many valuable fish caused
considerable destruction of them, but the situation was saved by
showing that their food was chiefly suckers and chubs. Dr. Evermann
showed a reel of moving pictures illustrating the breeding grounds
and the environment of the pelican in Pyramid Lake, the young, their
feeding, and the adult. There were also included in the films pictures
of California Gulls, Duck Hawks, and Cormorants, which are found
at this lake.

Later in the evening Air. Bailey discussed the paper and Mr. Ernest
Thompson Seton made the observation that in Yellowstone Park a
campaign was waged against the pelicans there on the ground that they
ate valuable fish. It developed that the pelicans ate only diseased
fish, a fact which led to their protection.

Regular Program

Ernest Thompson Seton : The habitat and home life of the Kangaroo
Rats of our Western Desert {illustrated) .

Mr. Seton's studies were made in the Mojave Desert, typical of the
western deserts; a level stretch dotted with sage bush with an occa-
sional outstanding yucca and a rim of blue mountains tipped here
and there with a store of snow. Although it is the dryest region in the
LTnited States, there is an astonishing amount of animal life, not always,
however, in evidence. It is at night that from every bush its animal
tenant emerges, leaving its trail or other record. Some 30 species were
mentioned. Attention was given to the Kangaroo Rat, a large species,
rather scattered and rare, yet should the census of the area 100 feet
square which was intensively studied, hold for the area over which
the Kangaroo Rat lives, there would be 750,000,000 of them.

proceedings: biological society 307

One burrow was carefully studied; its galleries totaled 75 feet, mostly
on a level of about two feet below the surface. Store rooms with but
little in them (May 15), a nursery and a relatively large empty room,
were found, also compartments for gathering feces, one especially for
the young, near the nursery. There were 9 or 10 openings, 2 or 3 of
which were vertical shafts used apparently only for ventilation.

The nocturnal habits of the Kangaroo Rat are necessarily hard to
follow. They jump 8 to 10 feet regularly, perhaps 15 feet in an emer-
gency. They travel considerable distances, a mile, perhaps, for food
such as alfalfa when it is available. They have great ability to find
their way home and through their galleries, and a corresponding de-
velopment of the semicircular canals of the ear as in the homing pigeon
and other animals with greatly developed sense of direction. Between
the shoulders of both sexes is a gland of considerable size. The suppo-
sition that this gland is rubbed on branches or elsewhere for purposes
of communication or identification in a manner comparable to that of
some ungulates could not be confirmed. They communicate very little
by squeaks or other recognizable means. The Kangaroo Rats dig
in the open places among the bushes. Search in such places revealed
a few insects, mostly beetles. Perhaps this is the only source of fluid,
other than that released by oxidation of carbohydrates, for a large
part of the year. There is evidence that these animals have games
at their gatherings in open places among bushes. In the burrows are
some symbionts, mostly beetles, but no rattlesnakes or other large
animals.

Mr. Seton's paper was discussed by Vernon Bailey, E. W. Nelson,
H. H. T. Jackson, L. O. Howard, and the Chairman.

The Chairman of the Committee on Communications, S. A. Rohwer,
announced that the suggestions which had been laid before the Society
relating to the meetings had been taken under consideration, and that
the subject of submitting questions for answers was especially discussed
with a view of puting the suggestion into effect.

606TH MEETING

The 6o6th meeting of the Biological Society of Washington was held
in the lecture hall of the Cosmos Club at 8 p.m. February 7, 1920, with
Dr. A. D. Hopkins in the chair, and 45 persons present.

Under the heading of Brief notes, Dr. W. P. Taylor made inquiry
regarding the flocking habits of certain species of small birds in the
woods of the northwest coast, such as the Western Golden-crowned
Kinglet, Chestnut-backed Chickadee, Shufeldt Junco, Red-breasted Nut-
hatch, and Townsend and Lutescent Warblers. Reasons suggested for
these interspecific associations, such as sociability, protection from
enemies, and more efficient food getting, may partially account for the
flocking but are not fully satisfactory.

3o8 proceedings: biological society

Dr. T. S. Palmer commented upon the feeding of quail during the
inclement weather then prevailing. He stated that the Metropolitan
Police, the Audubon vSociety, and individuals were actively cooperating
in the work in a number of widely scattered places. Advantage is taken
of the opportunity to count the number of covies and individuals.
In 1 918 about 1200 quail were reported; this year, incomplete returns
show an increase in several precincts.

' Dr. Hugh M. Smith stated that the Alaskan fur seal herd is rapidly
increasing under international protection forbidding sealing at sea,
and restricting killing upon land. The recent sale of one-fourth of the
catch of 1918, consisting of 9,100 skins, yielded $1,282,000.

Dr. R. E. CoKER stated that a valuable mussel pearl fishery exists
in certain rivers of the United States, especially in the Mississippi
River system. The value of the fisheries is several hundred thousand
dollars, one-half of which is in the shells. Photographs of peculiar and
interesting forms of pearls from mussels were exhibited, and also photo-
graphs showing several stages in the metamorphosis of the Acorn
Barnacle.

Dr. Paul Bartsch remarked that the feeding of quail calls attention
to the value of water. In the city limits birds generally have great
difficulty in finding water. ^Many more birds will visit drinking foun-
tains than feeding troughs.

Regular Program

C. DwiGHT ]Marsh: Some poisonous plants and their effects. (Il-
lustrated.)

The number of plants which are poisonous, in the usual sense of the
word, is greater than commonly supposed. One published list gives
25,000 poisonous species. The Department of Agriculture is gathering
data in regard to the effect of such plants on animals. The studies are
chiefly in the West, where grazing animals have access to poisonous
plants in great numbers, and the losses reach great economic importance.
As a means of determining some of the causes and effects of poisonous
plants upon stock, there have been established field stations at suitable
places where chemist and pharmacologist ma}- have immediate access
to fresh cases, and may conduct experiments. It is not probable that
animals instinctively avoid poisonous plants, but that they reject
them on account of distasteful properties which the plants usually
possess. Animals will, however, eat them when pressed by hunger,
and sometimes develop a passion for certain of them. The data gath-
ered are definite, but are only preliminary to the real problem, which is
to prevent losses from such poisonous plants.

Dr. Marsh exhibited lantern slides showing field stations near Denver
and in the Wasatch IMountains, the facilities for handling poisoned
animals, and the poisoned animals themselves as affected in character-
istic manner by different plants. A long series of poisonous plants,
many of them in their habitat, both eastern and western species, were
shown with comments.

proceedings: biological society 309

Paul Bartsch: Oh;- poison gas detector and how it was discovered.
(Illustrated).

Dr. Bartsch first described the nocturnal mating habits of Limax
maximiis, a common garden slug, illustrating the successive acts with
photographs taken by flash-light. The slugs, which are bi-sexual,
climb trees at night; a pair will twist themselves together, spin a mucous
thread, and hang suspended. The genitalia are protruded, and after
exchange of products, accompanied by characteristic activities, the
pair ascend the thread and retire to their usual retreats where the eggs
are deposited.

Some vears ago, Dr. Bartsch continued, a number of aninfals of this
species which were under observation in his home, escaped from their
box in which they had been confined. Observations on their behavior
in the furnace room were recalled when need for a gas detector arose in
connection with the great war. A very brief period of experimentation
revealed the extraordinary sensitiveness of Limax maximus to mustard
gas, and in an incredibly short time the information, invaluable for
detecting the gas, was in the hands of the Allies and American forces
in Europe. The tentacles of Limax are sensitive to a dilution of i to
10,000,000 of mustard gas, and characteristic responses indicate the
degree of dilution. vSince man reacts at a dilution of i to 4,000,000,
Limax proves to have ample margin of delicacy. Moreover the species
is European, and. abundant in the region of the fighting.

Dr. Bartsch pointed out how incidental, even accidental, observations
years ago furnished immediate answer to the problem calling for reliable
sensitive detectors of certain gases during the war.

The paper was discussed by Dr. H. M. vSmith.

607TH MEETING

The 607th meeting of the Biological Society of Washington was held
jointly with the Washington Academy of vSciences in the lecture hall
of the Cosmos Club at 8.15 p.m., February 21, 1920. President Hop-
kins presided, and 75 persons were present.

Upon recommendation of the Council, Miss Doris Lang worthy, of
George Washington University; Mr. K. P. Schmidt, of the American
Museum of Natural History, and Miss Marion Pellew, were elected
to membership.

The address of the evening was given by Dr. Alfred G. Mayor,
Director of the Division of Marine Biology, Carnegie Institution of
Washington, and Lecturer in Zoology at Princeton LTniversity, upon
the subject: The coral reefs of American Samoa.

The Island of Tutuila in its relation to its marine environment was
described, and the distribution of the various reef -forming algae and
corals. The island is very old as is shown by geological evidence. The
reefs were described, including rate of coral growth, and the conditions
prevailing, and the various theories of reef formation were discussed
in the light of the observations made at Tutuila. Though none of these

3IO proceedings: biological society

theories is wholly satisfactory, it was possible to review the history
of the island in its essential features. The lecture was illustrated with
numerous maps, diagrams, and photographs of reefs and corals and the
more general landscape features. These were supplemented with pic-
tures of natives and their homes.

The paper will appear in the Proceedings of the American Philosophical
Society. It was discussed by Dr. T. Wayland Vaughan.

A. A. DooLiTTLE, Recording Secretary.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS.

Lectures before the Physics Club of the Bureau of Standards have
been deHvered as follows since the preceding report in the Journal:^
February 2 and 16, L. J. Briggs: The resistance of the air; February
9, J. S. Ames: Einstein's gravitation; March i, W. J. Humphreys:
The physics of thunderstorms; March 15, R. W. Wood: Spectroscopic
phenomena in very long vacuum tubes; March 27, Saul Dushman: The
ionization gage; March 22 and 29, and April 5, M. D. Hersey: Irrever-
sibility in physics, with special reference to elastic lag; April 12, M. D.
Hersey, J. R. Freeman, and others: Symposium on irreversibility
in physics; April 19, and May 3 and 10, Edgar Buckingham: Elements
of theory of dimensions.

Messrs. W. L. Abbott and E. C. Leonard report from Haiti that a
successful collecting trip to Gonave Island has been completed. Rain-
fall on that island has been very deficient for three years, and the
original forest has practically disappeared and been replaced by grass
lands.

Dr. John Alfred Brashear, astronomer and manufacturer of
astronomical instruments, and a non-resident member of the Academy,
died at his home in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on April 8, 1920, in his
eightieth year. Dr. Brashear was born at Brownsville, Pennsylvania,
November 24, 1840. He began life as a blacksmith in a Pittsburgh
mill, but his interest in research soon led him into the manufacture of
astronomical and physical instruments, a vocation which he combined
with astronomical research, particularly upon the sun and moon.
His work had been recognized by his election to honorary member-
ship in a number of American and foreign astronomical societies.
His interest in recent years had been mainly with the advancement
of educational facilities. He became a member of the Academy in
1 9 15, and was elected a non-resident vice-president in 19 19.

Dr. Austin H. Clark, assistant curator in the Division of Marine
Invertebrates of the National Museum, has been appointed curator
of the Division of Echinoderms.

Mr. E. H. Finch, geologist of the Land Classification Board of the
U. S. Geological vSurvey, resigned at the -end of March to accept a
position with the California division of the Dutch Shell oil corporation
and has left Washington for California.

Mr. Gerard Fowke, a collaborator of the Bureau of American
Ethnology, left St. Louis on April i for Honolulu. He will make an
archeological reconnaissance of the Hawaiian Islands with a view to
future intensive Avork by the Bureau.

^ This Journal 10 : 115. February 19, 1920.

311

312 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Mr. D. F. Hewett of the U. S. Geological Survey will make a special
examination of certain manganese claims in Cuba for the War Minerals
Relief Commission, beginning about April 15.

Mr. Frank Leverett of the U. S. Geological Survey, stationed at
Ann Arbor, Michigan, is engaged in an investigation of road materials
for the Michigan State Highway Commission.

Dr. W. M. Mann of the Division of Insects, U. S. National Museum,
has returned from a two months' trip through Spanish Honduras,
where he visited the principal fruit growing districts and made collec-
tions of economic insects, especially those attacking fruits.

Messrs. William R. Maxon and Ellsworth P. Killip of the
National Museum returned to Washington on April 16, after spending
two months in botanical exploration in Jamaica.

Messrs. O. E. Meinzer and J. C. Hoyt of the U. S. Geological
Survey returned to Washington from Hawaii in the latter part of April.

Mr. H. D. Miser of the U. S. Geological Survey went to Fayette-
ville, Arkansas, on May i, to fill, until the end of the college term,
the position left vacant by Professor Drake in the Department of
Mining and Geology of the University of Arkansas.

Mr. W. E. Myer of Nashville, Tennessee, has been at work in the
library of the Bureau of American Ethnology, putting into form many
years' field notes on the mounds and artifacts of Tennessee.

Mr. Cyril S. Taylor resigned from the Bureau of Standards in
April to accept a position in the research bureau of the Aluminum
Company of America at New Kensington, Pennsylvania. He expects
to begin work in the new position in June.

Mr. F. G. Tryon has been appointed Mineral Geographer on the
U. S. Geological Survey, and has been assigned to the Fuel section
of the Mineral Resources division.

Mr. D. E. Winchester has returned temporarily to the U. S.
Geological Survey to finish his manuscript on "Oil shales of the Rocky
Mountain region."

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. io JUNE 4, 1920 No. 11

'E^TOMOhOGY .—Description of a new species of Sphenophorus
from Florida (Coleoptera) . F. H. Chittenden, Bureau of
Entomology.^
Recently, during studies of the weevils of the genus Spheno-
phorus, an undescribed species collected in Florida by Hubbard
and Schwarz has come to my attention. This may be known
from the following brief description:

Sphenophorus deficiens Chittenden, sp. nov.

Body more than twice as long as wide. General color black, mod-
erately shining. Head finely, sparsely, punctulate. Rostrum half as
long as thorax, feebly arcuate, rather wide, moderately, nearly equally
compressed, this compression more pronounced at the base; base much
widened but not dilated in front of scrobes, flattened, not sulcate,
interocular impression shallow, foveate; apex feebly dilated; surface
finely not deeply punctulate, at base moderately punctate, punctures
shallow and sparse. Thorax one-fourth longer than wide, posterior
half with nearly parallel sides, very little narrower at base, anterior
half narrowing toward apex, which is very feebly constricted at sides and
scarcely above; surface coarsely irregularly punctate, punctures
finest and sparsest just in front of middle where there is a short, nearly
smooth, but scarcely elevated space representing the median vitta;
a little coarser each side of the middle on the posterior half in what
corresponds to the lateral vittae; the surface between these vittae
very coarsely irregularly foveate-punctate, some of the punctures
contiguous and some confluent ; a shallow fossa each side of the vittae
there caused by the coarse punctures coalescing at these points. Elytra
one-fifth longer than thorax, subovate, at base distinctly margined, at
humeri broadly rounded, gradually narrower toward apex; surface
uneven, distinctly finely striate, striae interrupted by large, rounded,
moderately deep punctures; intervals flat, of unequal width, but not

' Received May 3, 1920.

314 MINGAYE: IRON METEORITE FROM YENBERRIE

alternate; the third interval widest, the sutural faintly regularly uni-
seriately, the others very faintly irregularly sparsely, punctulate.
Pygidium moderately coarsely, sparsely punctate, strongly narrowed
at apex, which is rounded and without visible tufts of hair at sides.
Ventral surface very coarsel)' punctate ; on prosternum deeply sparsely
punctate at middle, less deeply and more sparsely at sides; on meso-
sternum very coarsely punctate at middle which is deeply concave,
more sparsely at sides, and finely on lateral margins of the concavity,
coarsely on first abdominal, less coarsely on last segment, finely and
sparsely on middle of second, third and fourth segments. Second
abdominal segment connate with first except for a depressed line each
side of middle not extending to margin of elytra.

The anterior coxae are more widely separated than is usual in this
genus. The anterior tibiae are obliquely truncate, without spur; the
middle subtruncate, a little prolonged at apex; the posterior rounded,
feebly spurred, and with a small inner tooth. Tarsal joints equal,
feebly fimbriate.

Length 9.5 mm.; width 3.8 mm.

Crescent City, Fla. (Hubbard & Schwarz). Also collected in Florida
by Prof. W. S. Blatchley.

Type No. 23076, U. S. National Museum.

This species has somewhat the appearance of Sphenophoms
lilkei, but the resemblance is entirely superficial, as it has char-
acters that distinguish it from any other known in our fauna,
as may be seen at a glance. It is to be regretted that the type
is somewhat defective, as it lacks the antennal club and the
anterior tarsi.

PETROGRAPHY. — On an iron meteorite found at Yenberrie,

Northern Territory of Australia. John C. H. Mingaye,

Department of Mines, New South Wales. (Communicated

by Geo. P. Merrill, U. S. National Museum.) ^

The iron meteorite described below was found on July 30,

1918, by Mr. John Hoare, embedded in sandy soil about 20

miles south southeast of Yenberrie. The entire mass weighed

about 291 pounds, of which a portion weighing some 28 pounds

passed into the hands of Mr. Watkin-Brown of Sydney, by whom

it was sent to the United States National Museum, where it

was divided among the three museums of Chicago, New York

and Washington, in the proportions respectively of 4500, 3760,

' Received April 14, 1920.

MINGAYE: IRON METEORITE FROM YENBERRIE 315

and 3320 grams. Before being forwarded a portion of the
mass was removed for analysis.

Clean turnings from the facing machine, representing the
metalHc portions only, were analyzed with the results given in
table I.

TABLE I
Composition of Metallic Portion of Meteorite

Fe 92.350

Ni 5 980

Co I .430

Cu 0.017

P 0.161

S Trace

C 0,073

CI 0.003

Pt Traces"

Si02 o . 140

100.154
Sp. gr. (average of two determinations), 7.304.
"100 grams of the iron gave 0.00026 gram of platinum. This is the first reported
case of platinum in an Australian meteorite. No tin nor gold could be detected.
Partial duplicate determinations gave: Ni + Co, 7.46; P, 0.195; C, 0.065.

From a dark nodule in the center of the meteorite were found
pieces of metal coated with a black brittle substance which
yielded the analysis given in table 2, after the metallic portions
had been removed so far as possible.

TABLE 2
Composition of Black Coating

Fe 65.38

Ni 6.10

Co 0.37

Cu Trace

P 414

S 13 06

C • 4-94

CI 0.08

Ca 0.23

Mg None

Cr None

Oxygen 5 .70

100 .00

3i6 hull: transmitter of modulated waves

This can be accounted for only as a mixture of sulfide and
phosphide, and oxidation products intermingled with carbon.

Small plates including lath shaped pieces, extremely brittle
and strongly magnetic, of a brownish color were detached in the
process of cutting. These yielded the analysis given in table 3.

TABLE 3
Composition of Brittle Portion

Fe 73 22

Ni 6.35

Co ^ 0.25

Cu 0.02

P 5 02

S None

C 2.51

CI Not determined

SiO-. 0.28

Ca 0.20

Mg o .07

Cr None

Oxygen 12 .08

100.00

The analysis in table 3 shows that the material is largely
schreibersite and magnetite coated with little carbon.

On crystallographic grounds the iron will be classed as a
broad, or coarse, octahedrite. The taenite plates are very thin
and in the 3320-gram piece retained in Washington, there seems
a tendency for both the taenite and schreibersite granules to
gather in the outer portion of the iron, leaving the interior nearly
free.

RADIOTELEGRAPHY.— Aw electron-tube transmitter of com-
pletely modulated waves. '^ Lewis M. Hull, Bureau of
Standards. •

In order to utilize a radio-frequency oscillation of given power
most effectively in a non-oscillating receiving system, it must be
completely modulated, the periodic reduction of the current

^ Received April 12, 1920. Published by permission of the Director of the "Bureau
of Standards.

HUIylvl TRANSMITTER OF MODULATED WAVES 317

to zero occurring at a suitable audiofrequency. Radio-fre-
quency harmonics, manifested by distortions in the shape of
the radiofrequency or carrier wave, Hmit the total power radiated
by a transmitter at a single frequency to which the receiver is
tuned. Audio-frequency harmonics, manifested by distortion
in the envelope of the radio-frequency oscillations from sinu-
soidal form, determine the response of any amplifying and rec-
tifying detector.

There are two possible methods of operating an electron-
tube generating system so as to furnish a completely modulated
output: (i) The use of a direct supply voltage in connection
with a mechanical interrupter or "chopper," which periodically
breaks the supply circuit, causing the antenna current to be
reduced to zero; (2) the use of an alternating audio-frequency
supply voltage. If the frequency of the supply voltage be F
and the peak value Et, then the plate is positive with respect
to the filament F times per second while the supply voltage
rises from o to Eb volts, and negative F times per second while
the supply voltage falls from o to —Ei, volts. The antenna
current is maintained for a half cycle when the plate is positive
and is reduced to zero a greater part of the half cycle when the
plate is negative.

The first method requires a source of high direct voltage
which may be inconvenient if high power tubes are used. With
the second method the whole system can be operated from any
audio-frequency generator with suitable transformers for the
high-voltage plate and the relatively low-voltage filament.
The note produced by telephone receivers actuated by the rec-
tified output from the transmitter corresponds to the frequency
F. Consequently a desirable value for F would be 800 cycles
per second since most audio-frequency receiving apparatus is
designed for best operation at about that frequency. If no 800-
cycle generator is available, a 500-cycle machine can be used.

A transmitter of this description has been designed and built
at the Bureau of Standards. The set fulfills the following re-
quirements: (i) Use of a single, type "P" pliotron, with
500-cycle, 150-volt alternator; (2) power output exceeding 200

31 8 hull: transmitter op modulated waves

watts in an antenna having 8 to 15 ohms resistance and a natural
wave-length below 200 meters; (3) a readily adjustable range of
wave-lengths from 500 to 1000 meters; (4) transmission of com-
pletely modulated waves, making possible their reception with
crystal detectors; (5) sharply tuned waves, in order to avoid
excessive interference over long series of tests. The set has been
used in fog signaling and direction finding experiments, and in
transmission tests carried out as part of an investigation of
wave propagation.

In designing the set the average power output in a given
antenna was taken as the criterion of its merit as a transmitter
of radio waves. The kind and degree of modulation of the waves
radiated determine to a large extent what type of receiving cir-
cuits should be employed to utilize this power effectively. How-
ever, if it be understood that an appropriate receiving circuit
is to be used, the effective current output in an antenna of given
radiation resistance at a given wave-length determines the merit
of any transmitter of modulated or unmodulated waves.

Figure i is a diagram of connection of the final form of this
transmitter as put into service for radio direction finding and
fog signaling.

Owing to the fact that the 500-cycle voltage, when using a
2 kw. alternator, dropped enough to decrease the filament cur-
rent by as much as 15 per cent when the load was thrown on in the
plate circuit, it was found necessary to include in the filament
transformer a series compensating winding. This is rendered
doubly imperative by the fact that when operating a tube at
high plate voltage, the power output changes to a much greater
extent with slight changes in emission than when operating at
lower plate voltages. The system is always kept adjusted for
maximum output at the maximum safe filament current, /,
effective = 3.6 amperes, and even a slight decrease in this cur-
rent decreases the power output considerably, and the current
output to a corresponding extent. In order to be able to adjust
this transformer to give suitable compensation for the drop in
primary voltage, and still be able to use it at different values of
generator voltage, when it is found desirable to transmit at

hull: tr.\nsmitter of modulated waves

319

reduced power, it is necessary to make the number of turns in
the compensating winding adjustable. The compensating wind-
ing of the transformer is composed of 100 turns No. 16 d. c. c.

/Jutematic Sender

ISO volt

500 cuc/e

Genera toih

Fig. I. Diagram of connections of modulated- wave transmitter. — A.
Plate and grid coupling coils. Continuous coil wound on fibre tube 5 'A" in diam-
eter. 80 turns No. 18 solid wire spaced Vs" apart; and taps brought out every 5
turns on grid side and every ten turns on plate side of coil. B. Antenna switch.
D. Generator field rheostat. E. Electron tube, type P pliotron. F. Antenna-coil;
30 tums-litzendraht, wound on fibre tube (i^ j ^' in diameter; taps brought out every
two turns; mounted so as to slide over coupling coil, in order to vary mutual induc-
tance. G. Stopping condenser ; mica ; C = 0.004 ™fd. H. Automatic sender, driven
by D. C. motor, which is supplied from the field circuit of alternator. L2. Filament
ammeter, /i. Antenna ammeter. R. Filament rheostat. T. Supply transformer,
2 kva.; ratio of turns, 40/1 ; full load voltages, 160/6500. Tj. Filament transformer,
special construction. The main windings consist of 200 turns No. 16 d. c. c. wire
on the prirnary side, connected across the 180- volt supply, and 120 turns No. 16
d. c. c. wire on secondary side, connected to filament circuit.

wire, with a tap every twelve turns from 30 to 100. The fila-
ment rheostat makes it possible to adjust the filament current
for any steady value of primary voltage on the transformer;
the series compensating winding makes it possible so to adjust
the transformer to the supply circuit that the filament current

320 hull: transmitter of modulated waves

reaches a safe maximum when the load is thrown on. If suffi-
cient power is available from the generator it is advisable to
over-compensate the transformer, making it possible to heat the
filament at reduced current except when the key is pressed.

The transmitter described in this paper was designed to
operate at short wave-lengths. The performance of such a
system at short waves is limited by two factors; first, the elec-
trostatic capacity between elements of the electron tube, which
may provide a reactive shunt for the oscillatory circuit; second,
the approximate linear relation between power output, resistance,
and capacity. Consider any short portion of the wave train
when the amplitude of the supply voltage may be considered
constant so far as the radio frequency oscillations are concerned.
It has been shown^ that the output power is given for any tube
by

where R, L and C are the resistance, inductance and capacity
of the antenna and / is a function which depends upon the char-
acteristics of the tube and upon the plate and grid coupling.
Over a certain range of operation the function /, which involves
the oscillating grid voltage as dependent upon the antenna ctu--
rent and coupling is found to be a direct linear function. Then
the output power varies inversely with the antenna capacity
and with the antenna resistance. Assuming constant L, since
a change in L involves a change in the function /, it is evident
that if C is made small, as is the case at short wave-lengths,
R must be increased, in order to obtain maximum output. It
may be impossible to obtain maximum output from a tube in
a given antenna of low resistance at short wave-lengths, par-
ticularly in view of the fact that the total effective resistance
decreases with increasing frequency.

When supplying an antenna having a capacity of approxi-
mately 0.004 microfarads and a resistance of 10 ohms, this set

^ Hull, L. M. Determination of output characteristics of electron-tube generators.
Bur. Standards Sci. Paper 355. 1919.

hull: transmitter of modulated waves 321

gave a power output in the antenna of 286 watts, at 600 meters
wave-length, using an effective value of filament current of 3.5
amperes, and operating at an overall efficiency of 35 per cent,
alternator terminals to antenna inclusive. This efficiency takes
account of the power expended in the filament supply trans-
former and in the filament. No data are available on the effi-
ciency of the tube alone, as ordinarily computed in terms of
input to the plate and output in the antenna. It was impossible
to adjust the coupling so as to obtain maximum output at the
shorter wave-lengths.

TRANSMISSION AND RECEPTION TESTS

Signals from this set, which suppHed 5 amperes effective
current to an antenna approximately 50 feet high in Washington
were copied at a distance of 100 miles by using an antenna 60
feet high, with an audibility of 10,000, using an autodyne re-
ceiving circuit with a two-step audio-frequency amplifier. Sig-
nals from this set working under the same conditions were re-
ceived through heavy interference by using a six-foot coil aerial
and a similar detector and amplifier, at a distance of 225 miles.

It has been found in other tests that waves modulated in this
fashion cannot be received with high efficiency with a simple
non-oscillating detector. The voltages induced in a receiving
antenna by a logarithmically modulated wave will give a re-
sponse on the output side of the detector greater than that in-
duced by a sinusoidally modulated wave train radiated from
antennas in which the effective antenna current is the same,
provided always that we confine our attention to short wave-
lengths. The truth of this statement has been proven experi-
mentally by direct comparison of two such transmitters. It is
beyond the scope of the present paper to discuss quantitatively
the effects of sinusoidally and logarithmically modulated wave-
trains upon receiving antenna with rectifier and phones. How-
ever, a possible reason for such a behavior is suggested by the
accompanying diagram, figure 2, upon which are plotted to
the same scale the envelopes of spark and sinusoidally modulated
wave trains emitted by two transmitters operating at 500 cycles

322

hull: transmitter of modulated waves

and supplying the same antenna with the same efifective antenna
current. Although the logarithmically modulated wave train
persists only about one-twelfth as long as the sinusoidally modu-
lated wave train, yet it rises to a peak value over thirteen times
as great. In order to give some idea of their relative number of
radio-frequency oscillations per cycle the vertical lines have been
so spaced that each one represents a complete radio-frequency
cycle.

«o-

60-

Lo^ariihmic
Modulation

ENVELOPES OF ff/IDlO FR€QU£NCY /INTSNNJf
CURRENTS HAVING S/tM£: ff.Af.6. V/ILUC

la ^^ /Jrnperes RMS.
X ■- 535 Meters.

■« 560,000 cyc/es
A/ = SOO y/eye trains per seconds
6 -- .089

Time, seconds x JO'*
Fig. 2 — Comparison of antenna currents from spark transmitter and modulated-

wave transmitter.

It is not to be inferred from this diagram that the trains of
voltage waves applied to the rectifier in a receiving circuit have
an envelope precisely similar to the exponential envelope shown
here for the wave train transmitter from the spark set. Nor
should the assumption be made that diaphrams of the receiving
telephones when acted upon by a strong voltage impulse lasting
for one ten-thousandth of a second are distorted a proportion-
ately greater amount than when acted upon by a weak impulse

hull: transmitter of modulated waves 323

lasting for a thousandth of a second. Undoubtedly, however,
the voltage impacts acting upon the telephones are very much
the more intense, though lasting for a shorter time, with the wave
train of higher peak value, and it is possible that this is the correct
explanation of the louder signal furnished by the logarithmically
modulated wave train with simple rectifying detector. If the
same power be radiated at long wave-lengths it is quite possible
for the peak value of the logarithmically modulated wave train
to be so reduced in magnitude that the average value of their
square (which is the measure of the output voltage of the de-
tector) is equal to or even less than similar values for the sinu-
soidally modulated waves. It is likely also that if the wave-
lengths of transmission be sufficiently increased the same re-
sults in receiving the signals with a rectifying detector can be
obtained with the tube transmitter as with a similar spark
transmitter.

In summarizing the foregoing discussion the following essential
points appear: (i) It has been found that an electron-tube
transmitter operated wholly from an alternating-current source
can be made to compare favorably in operating efficiency with
a similar transmitter operated from a direct-current source;
(2) it possesses the advantage of not requiring a high-voltage
battery or generator; (3) the added advantage over a continuous-
wave transmitter is that signals may be received over a limited
distance with a non-oscillating detector.

A more complete description of the experiments made in
developing this transmitter, and of the theory of its operation
will be published at a later date as a Scientific Paper of the
Bureau of Standards.

ABSTRACTS

FHYSICS.— Ionization and resonance potential for electrons in vapors
of lead and calcium. F. L. Mohler, Paul, D. Foote and H. M.
Stimson. Bur. Standards Sci. Paper 368. Pp. 14, figs. 2. 1920.

Measurements of electron currents in three electrode vacuum tubes
of the type previously described have been made in vapors of lead and
calcium.

The lead and calcium were boiled in porcelain tubes at temperatures
of about 1000° and 900°, respectively. Current voltage curves in
lead showed a resonance potential of 1.26 volts and an ionization
potential of 7.93 volts. Applying the quantum relation Ve = hv we
find that 1.26 volts correspond within experimental error to the fre-
quency of a strong infra-red spectrum line at X = io,29iA, giving a
theoretical value of the resonance potential 1.198 volts.

In calcium two resonance potentials were found at 1.90 volts and
at 2.85 volts of which the first is the most prominent. Ionization oc-
curred at 6.01 volts. The ionization potential corresponds to the
limit of the principal series 1.5 S, X = 2027, A giving as the theoretical
value V = 6.081 volts. The first resonance is determined by the line
1.58 — 2p2, X = 6572.78 A, V = 1-877 volts. The second resonance
corresponds to the line 1.58 — 2 P, X = 4228.73 A, V = 2.918 volts.

The spectral relations of the first resonance potential and ionization
potential are analogous to the relation found with other metals in this
group. Work of other observers shows that both the lines 1.5 S — 2
P and 1.5 S — 2p2 appear below the ionization potential in most metals
of this group. F. L. M.

PHYSICS.—^ new interferential dilatometer. Irwin G. Priest.
Bur. Standards Sci. Paper 365. Pp. 10, fig. i. 1920.

This paper describes new instruments and methods for measuring
very small changes in the lengths of samples which are too small to
be examined by the Fizeau interferential method. Only a single small
pin is required as a sample.

The method of measurement depends upon the change in width of

324

abstracts: physics 325

interference fringes instead of their displacement as in the Fizeau
method. The outHne of the method on this basis is briefly :

1. One of a pair of nearly, but not quite parallel interferometer
mirrors is supported at one point by the sample and at two other
points by a standard substance of known expansivity, the perpendicular
distance from the bearing point of the sample to the line connecting
the bearing points of the standards being known.

2. The standard and the sample are so adjusted that the fringes
are parallel to the line connecting the bearing points of the standard.

3. Any difference in expansivity of the sample and the standard
causes the interference fringes to change their widths with change in
temperature. The number of fringes between two fixed reference lines
on one of the mirrors is determined at each of the two temperatures in
question.

4. From the above data the difference in the expansion of the standard
and the sample can be computed.

The new method gives results of the same accuracy as the Fizeau
method, while it has marked advantages over the latter. I. G. P.

PHYSICS. — Co«/ra5/ sensibility of the eye. Enoch Karrer and E.
P. T. TyndaIvL. Bur. Standards Sci. Paper 366. Pp. 14, figs.
10. 1920.

A knowledge of the contrast sensibility of the eye is very essential
to the proper understanding of the theory and use of searchlamps and
searchlight illumination.

The searchlamp is used at night when the eye is generally adapted
to low levels of illumination. If the observer is far removed from the
searchlamp the illumination may be simply that from the moon and
sky. If he is near the lamp, however, he must look through the dif-
fused light along the beam.

In order to be visible, the target must be illuminated to a degree
that will make sufficient contrast in brightness or color between it
and this surrounding field. Data are given showing the relationship
that exists between the brightness and the size of the target and the
brightness of the surrounding field.

In these experiments a large surface painted white was illuminated
with an incandescent lamp. The target consisted of a rectangular
spot of this surface more brightly illuminated by means of a projection
lantern, equipped with a simple bilateral slit. The image of the slit

326 abstracts: geology

determined the boundaries of the test spot or "target," the length of
which could be varied by varying the slit width. Precautions were
taken to have the brightness across the image of the slit uniform. The
brightness of either the test spot or field could be varied by means of
sectored discs, so that any desired contrast between them could be
obtained for any given brightness of field.

Curves are given showing the relation between the length of the
test spot and the brightness of the field for various contrasts, and also
curves showing the relationship between the length of test spot and the
contrast between field and spot for various values of the field bright-
ness. E. K.

GUOLOGY.— The Porcupine Gold Placer District, Alaska. H. M.
Eakin. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin 699. Pp. 28, pis. 8.
1919.

The Porcupine gold placer district lies in the headwater region of
Chilkat River, near the British Columbia boundary, about 100 miles
northwest of Juneau, or 25 miles west of Skagway. Productive mining
began here in 1899 and continued so successfully that the district has
ranked as one of the most important placer fields in Alaska. This
district was visited by Geological Sur\^ey parties in 1899, 1903, and 1916,
and the present bulletin gives a summary of the knowledge thus ob-
tained. It includes a geologic map and several views of the district.
The total output to the end of 1916 is estimated at $1,200,000.

The bed rock consists mainly of limestones, slates, and other sedi-
mentary rock, intruded by diorite of the Coast Range belt. Small
diabase dikes also intrude the bedded rocks locally. The placer gold
is derived mainly from mineralized belts of sedimentary rock carrying
small quartz and calcite veins and in which sulphide minerals are
abundant. R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — Our mineral supplies. H. D. McCaskey and E. F.
BuRCHARD. U. S. Geological Survey Bulletin 666. Pp. 278,
pi. I. figs. 6. 1919.

This bulletin consists of short papers prepared and published in
191 7 on about 30 minerals to meet a demand from the public and from
other Government bureaus for information and advice concerning
these minerals. Each separate chapter discusses the source of supply
of the mineral, its uses both in peace and war, and the normal demand.

abstracts: paleontology 327

The papers are here assembled and to them is added a bibUography of
Survey publications on the minerals considered in the volume.

R. W. Stone.

PALEONTOLOGY. — Pliocene and pleistocene fossils from the Arctic
coast of Alaska and the auriferous beaches of Nome, Norton Sound,
Alaska. William HealEy Dall. U. S. Geological vSurvey
Prof. Paper 125-C. Pp. 23-37, pis. 2.

Describes briefly the Tertiary geology and indications of changes
in elevation and climate. The intercommunication of Atlantic and
Pacific faunas in Pliocene time and the routes of migration of faunas
are considered.

The author concludes that neither the Aleutian chain nor Bering
Strait has offered a bridge between continents since Miocene time and
it is evident that postulated land bridges must have existed in some
other place or the assumed migration must have taken place over the
ice of the strait when frozen. The Pliocene fauna indicates a more
temperate sea than at present and there is evidence that a freer con-
nection probably existed in Pliocene time between the North Atlantic
and the Bering Sea regions.

Species collected on the Northern Alaska coast are listed and new
species described. R. W. Stone.

PALEONTOLOGY. — Sofne American Jurassic ammonites of the genera
quenstedticerds, cardioceras, and amoeboceras, family cardio-
ceratidae. Jno. B. Reeside, Jr. U. S. Geol. Survey Prof.
Paper 118. Pp. 38, pis. 24, fig. i. 1919.

Gives systematic descriptions of several new species of ammonites
obtained mostly from the Sundance formation of Wyoming. The
numerous plates are exceptionally fine illustrations of the material
described, faithfully reproducing the minute details of structure and
form. R. W. Stone.

PALEONTOLOGY. — Reptilian faunas of the Torre jon, Puerco, and
underlying upper Cretaceous formations of San Juan County, New
Mexico. Chas. W. Gilmore. U. S. Geol. Survey Prof. Paper
119. Pp. 68, pis. 26, figs. 33. 1919.

This paper is based on the best single collection of fossil turtles
that has ever been made in the southwestern United States. The

328 . ABSTRACTS : TECHNOLOGY

recovery of nearly perfect individuals forms a distinct contribution to
our knowledge of the skeletal anatomy of these extinct turtles.
The faunas of the various formations are discussed, following which
there is a systematic description of the specimens, including sixteen
new species. The illustrations are excellent reproductions from photo-
graphs of the turtle shells. R. W. Stone.

PALEONTOLOGY. — An Eocene flora from Trans-Pecos, Texas.
Edward Wilber Berry. U. S. Geol. Survey Prof. Paper 125-A.
Pp. 9 (1-9), pis. 3, figs. 2. 1919.

Six forms of fossil plants, two of them palms, are described. They
point to warm temperate climatic conditions with abundant precipi-
tation and plentiful ground water. They enable the assignment of a
definite age to the beginning of the igneous activity of the region and
establish correlations between the floras of the Mississippi embayment
and the Rocky Mountain region. It is concluded that the basal tuffs
in the Barilla Mountains, in which this flora occurs, are post-Cretaceous
and pre- Wilcox in age, and that they and the volcanic activity which
they represent were probably contemporaneous with the floras and.
similar volcanic activity reflected in Raton and Denver formations and
elsewhere in the Rocky Mountain region. R. W. Stone.

TECHNOLOGY. — The properties of American bond clays and their
use in graphite crucibles and glass pots. A. V. Bleininger. Bur.
Standards Tech. Paper 144. Pp. 52, pi. i, figs. 23. 1920.

The properties of American bond clays are described in detail and
expressed through characteristic numerical values with special reference
to their burning behavior. It is shown that materials equal in quality
to those formerly imported from Germany are available and that by
suitable blending any desired combination of properties can be readily
produced. The characteristics of natural and artificial graphite are
described and means suggested for the control of crucible mixtures.
The fact is brought out that the main advantage in the use of German
glass-pot clay consists in its low fire shrinkage and suggestions are made
for obtaining similar conditions with the use of domestic materials
and with increased resistance to corrosion. The compositions and the
preparation of semi-porcelain and porcelain glass pots are given. The
method of casting glass pots as practiced at the Pittsburgh laboratory
of the Bureau of Standards is also described. A. V. B.

ABSTRACTS: CERAMICS 329

TECHNOLOGY. — Location of flaws in rifle-barrel steel by magnetic
analysis. R. L. Sanford and Wm. B. KouwEnhoven. Bur.
Standards Sci. Paper 343. Pp. 21, pis. 3, figs. 13. 1919.
This paper describes an investigation which was undertaken for the
purpose of determining whether an appHcation of magnetic analysis
was practicable for the detection of flaws in rifle-barrel steel. By means
of apparatus especially constructed for the purpose a large number of
bars were explored for magnetic uniformity along their length. In
spite of the fact that these bars were taken from material which had
previously been rejected as the result of drilling tests, not one was
found which contained a pipe. The results obtained, however, demon-
strated that the method is amply sensitive to detect and locate flaws.
Further study is necessary to determine to what degree the sensitivity
of the apparatus should be reduced in order not to cause the rejection
of material which is satisfactory for all practical purposes and also to
determine the type and magnitude of the effect which will be produced
by a pipe. For this reason the work is being continued by the Win-
chester Repeating Arms Company who cooperated in the investigation
and at whose plant the apparatus has been installed. R. L. S.

CERAMICS. — The cooling of optical glass melts. Howard S. Rob-
erts. Joum. Amer. Ceram. Soc. 2:543-563. July, 1919. (Geo-
physical Lab. Papers on Optical Glass, No. 14.)

The conditions to be attained when a melt of optical glass is cooled
in the pot are: (i) that neither ream nor bubbles shall be introduced
during the cooling, nor carried into the middle of the melt; (2) that
the glass shall not become inhomogeneous through the precipitation of
a crystalline phase; (3) that the bulk of the cooled melt shall be found
cracked into large, reasonably rectangular blocks, having smooth, flat
surfaces; and (4) that these blocks shall be sufficiently free from strain
to cleave readily with a smooth fracture.

The appearance of ream in the middle of the melt, vacuum bubbles,
or a crystalline phase, can be discouraged by rapid cooling, preferably
from the bottom of the pot, while the glass is still soft; and by insulating
its top surface as soon as the melt is set out of the melting-furnace.

The cold melt shows cracks of two types: "spherical cracks" and
"plane cracks." The presence of either type of crack in the melt
reduces the tendency for the other type of crack to form. As the frac-
ture due to spherical cracks is rough and the pieces formed are irregular,
while that due to plane cracks is entirely satisfactory, it is desirable to
maintain the temperature gradient at a low value by slow cooling, and to

330 ABSTRACTS : CERAMICS

prevent its decreasing much below its maximum until after the forma-
tion of plane cracks has begun. This can be accomplished by increas-
ing the cooling rate at the proper time.

The cooling rate can be reduced (i) by heating the surroundings of
the melt, i. e., placing it in a heated kiln; and (2) by surrounding it
with an envelope of some such insulating material as sand or kieselguhr.
Variations of these two methods are described and time-temperature
data given. H. S. R.

CERAMICS. — Thermocouple installation in annealing kilns for optical
glass. E. D. Williamson and H. S. Roberts. Bull. Amer. Inst.
Min. Met. Eng. 1445-1453. Aug., 1919. (Geophysical Lab.
Papers on Optical Glass, No, 15.)

During the war-time rush to prepare the glass necessary for the needs
of the Army and Navy, the problem of the temperature control of the
annealing kilns became most serious. This paper gives a short account
of the system evolved by the members of the Laboratory staff who
were cooperating with the Pittsburgh Plate Glass Company at its
Charleroi plant. The points which are most specifically treated are:
(i) The advantages of the thermocouple over other devices for this
type of work. (2) Choice of material for thermocouples. (3) Choice
of measuring instrument. (4) Arrangement of leads and other apparatus.
(5) The general problem of annealing optical glass. E- D. W.

CERAMICS. — The volatilization of lead oxide from lead silicate melts.
Olaf Andersen. Journ. Amer. Ceram. Soc. 2: 784-789. Oct.,
1919. (Geophysical Lab. Papers on Optical Glass, No. 19.)
Experiments were made on the amount of PbO volatilized from the
surface of lead silicate glasses at temperatures from 900° to 1400° C.
It was found that the volatilization from an unstirred glass in 15 min-
utes took place at practically the same rate as from a stirred glass
heated for a longer period. The rate of volatilization falls off consid-
erably during a long heating if the glass is not stirred, as a film con-
siderably lower in PbO forms on the surface of the melt, into which
PbO must diffuse from below before it can escape. The rate of vola-
tilization of PbO at the temperatures usually employed in optical glass
manufacture would seem from these experiments to be small enough
so that variations in refractive index due to volatilization are not to
be expected if the procedure is reasonably constant from melt to melt,
but large enough to cause considerable variations in index if the melt-
ing schedule is changed. O. A.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF vSCIENCES

I37TH MEETING

The 137th meeting of the Academy was held at the Cosmos Club at
8.15 p.m. on Tuesday, May 27, 1919. Major A. O. Leuschner, Acting
Chairman of the Division of Physical Sciences, National Research
Council, and professor of astronomy in the University of California^
delivered an address, illustrated with lantern slides, on The determina-
tion of the orbits of comets and planets.

(Proceedings of the 138th and 139th meetings have already been
published in the Journal.)

140TH MEETING

The 140th meeting was held jointly with the Geological Society of
Washington at the Cosmos Club at 8.15 p.m., Thursday, February
19, 1920. President C. L. Alsberg presided.

Alfred H. Brooks, of the U. S. Geological Survey, formerly lieu-
tenant colonel and geologist on the General Staff, American Expedi-
tionary Forces in France, delivered an address, illustrated with maps
and diagrams, on The application of geology to war.

Geology finds application to war both in the rear areas and in the
theatre of operations. The work in rear areas relates to water supply,
drainage conditions, road metal, etc., at mobilization and training camps,
and in connection with various other military projects. Above all it
involves the determination of sources of minerals which the exigencies
of war have made specially important. This field will be of equal and
may be of greater importance than that of the more purely military
application of geology in the theatre of operations. The latter use of
geology was first developed during the late war and is the subject of
this address.

It will be shown that there are many military applications of geology.
The usefulness of the science was recognized by nearly all the great
powers before the close of the war by the organizing of geologic staflFs.
Modern scientific warfare compels an army to seek every possible ad-
vantage by making full use of all sources of information about the
physical conditions within the theatre of operations. Of two opposing
armies the one having the most complete knowledge of the terrain will
have an advantage and at times a decisive advantage. vSuch a com-
plete knowledge is, however, only possible by use of geology.

Geology finds its principal direct application to war in forecasting
the physical conditions that will be met with in the execution of certain
military projects, such as fortifications, maneuvering of troops, erection

33^

332 proceedings: Washington academy of sciences

of engineering structures, etc., and in determining the sources of water,
road metal, etc. It will be evident that as both strateg>^ and tactics
must take account of the physical features of the terrain all great
military leaders have made at least a subconscious use of geologic
facts. Most of them have, however, failed to recognize that geology
makes it possible to predict, often with a high degree of accuracy, the
physical conditions that influence and often control certain military
operations.

Any engineering project involving excavation must take account of
the underground physical conditions, or, in other words, of the geology.
This is specially true of fortifications, for protection against modern
high-power artillery cannot be obtained by surface structures no matter
how strongly built. Adequate cover demands deep works protected
by virgin ground. The deeper the excavation the greater the geologic
control. Even the construction of the relatively shallow trenches,
however, is to a great extent controlled by geology. In these the depth
to hard rock, the permeability of the soil, and the stability of the slopes
are important and often decisive factors. There are many examples
during the late war where positions have been lost and lives sacrificed
because of the ignorance of commanding officers of the fact that en-
trenchment was impossible at the selected site within the time and with
the equipment available. Again, many dugouts have been built
only to be useless because of flooding by underground water. In most
cases such blunders could have been avoided with only an elementary
knowledge of local geology. Military mining is usually impossible
where geologic conditions are unfavorable, yet no mention of this fact
is made in the many manuals devoted to this subject.

Geologic facts, together with those relating to seasonal precipitation,
also serve in the classification of the terrain with reference to the physical
conditions of surface, which determine its passableness for infantry,
artillery and tanks. A land surface that would have been no obstacle
in former wars, with their relatively small number of troops and light
equipment, might prove almost impassable to the great concentration
of men and heavy artillery and tanks demanded by present tactics.

The supplying of the huge modern armies with water is one of the
largest tasks of the military engineer. The great utility of geology in
this field needs no argument. Geology also finds an important use in
helping to locate sources of road metal and other structural materials.
The principal subjects in which geology may be of military service are
summarized as follows:

I. Field works. (Trenches, dugouts, and mines.)

1 . Siting of field works. Location will take advantage of .favorable
geologic conditions as far as tactical situation permits.

2. Trenches. Physical character of material to be excavated;
depth to hard rock; stability of slopes; surface drainage; under-
ground water.

3. Dugouts and mines. Lithology and structure of rocks; ground
water; water-bearing strata.

proceedings: anthropoIvOGical society 333

II. Maneuvering. (Infantry, artillery, and tanks.)

Physical character of surface formation, including seasonal varia-
tions; river crossings; interpretation of maps.

III. Water resources.

Distribution of springs; underground water; volumes of streams
with seasonal fluctuations.

IV. Transportation.

Road metal; railroad ballast; depth to hard rock; stability of
slopes; river crossings.

V. Construction.

Material for concrete ; building stone ; stability of slopes ; character
of foundations.

VI. Mineral resources.

Mineral fuels in theatre of operations ; location of centers of enemy
mining industry; mineral resources of enemy.

VII. Earth telegraphy and listening-in devices.
Determination of localities of favorable geologic conditions.

VIII. Camps, cantonments, aero fields. Munition and engineer
dumps.

Drainage and character of soil and subsoil, as well as water supply.

IX. Areas of possible artificial inundation.
In part based on geology.

As in all other fields of applied geology the first essential for its mili-
tary use is a geologic map. A geologic map once made with necessary
structural sections and tables of sequence can be interpreted for the
various military uses above referred to. Should warfare continue to
develop on the scale and with the scientific refinement witnessed by
the last five years, geologic maps will in time be considered almost
as essential to offensive and defensive operations as are topographic
maps.

It is evident that the use of geology must be considered a part of the
preparations for war. Such preparation will take account of the follow-
ing propositions :

1. The general principles of geology and their application to war
must be made a part of military education.

2. Peace-time preparation should include the collection and coordi-
nation of geologic data relating to all possible theatres of operation.

3. A staff of geologic engineer reserve officers should be organized.
It should be selected from experienced professional geologists and should
receive a special peace-time training necessary to develop its full useful-
ness when called into active service.

ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY

538TH AND 539TH MEETINGS

The 538th meeting of the Anthropological Society of Washington
was held in room 42-43 of the National Museum, at 4.45 p.m. on Tues-

334 PROCEEDINGS: ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY

day, October 21, 1919. The meeting was devoted to discussion of
Field experiences and the results of the anthropological work of the
past year. The discussion was continued at the 539th meeting, held
at the same place and hour, on Tuesday, November 4, 19 19.

540TH MEETING

The 540th meeting was held in room 42-43 of the National Museum,
at 4.45 p.m. on Tuesday, December 9, 1919. Program:

Philip Ainsworth Means: The Department of Piura, Peru. (Il-
lustrated with lantern slides.)

54 1 ST MEETING

The 541st meeting was held in room 42-43 of the National Museum,
at 4.45 p.m. on Tuesday, January 6, 1920. Program:

J. Walter Fewkes, Chief of the Bureau of American Ethnology,
The genesis of the cliff dwellings. (Illustrated.)

The speaker pointed out the characteristic architectural features of
the highest type of cliff dwelhngs as illustrated by Square Tower House,
a ruin situated in the Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado, excavated
and repaired last summer in continuation of the development of the
educational research of the Park by the Smithsonian Institution and
Department of the Interior. This ruin belongs to what is called the
pure type of pueblo, which differs from other types in our Southwest
and from other cliff dwellings in the world in the style of construction
of the sacred room or kiva, which is prehistoric and now extinct. The
differences of this type from others' were shown by views of a model
made for that purpose. In no other ruins in the Mesa Verde is the
vaulted roof of a kiva of this kind so well preserved as in Square Tower
House.

The speaker said we need not look outside the area characterized
by this type of kiva for a record of its evolution, and that it developed
in the same geographic area in which it occurs, before it became ex-
tinct. The earlier stages in its evolution, previously unknown in the
Mesa Verde National Park, were discovered last summer among the
cedars at the head of the trail to vSquare Tower House. These buildings,
the speaker claimed, may be regarded as prototypes of the unit type
kivas of the cliff dwellings having likewise affinities with habitations of
non-pueblo peoples from which the cliff dwellers were descended.
One of these, called Earth Lodge A, a view of which was shown, was
thoroughly excavated. Its essential difference from earth lodges of
non-pueblos is the existence of stone bins made of slabs of stone on edge.
Between Earth Lodge A with its rude vertical stone slabs and vSquare
Tower House with its regular horizontal masonry and multiple unit
type kivas is a series of buildings awaiting investigation and illustrating
the evolution of cliff dwellings.

Dr. Fewkes considers that the stone cysts of the basket makers of
Utah and the slab-house people of the same locality are products of a
people of similar archaic culture, preceding those who constructed the

PROCEEDINGS: ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY 335

horizontal kiva masonry, but not the work of peoples of a distinct
culture that disappeared. These house builders employed adobe or
rude mud walls with brush and logs in the construction of their dwellings
and introduced cysts made of vertically placed stones for storage,
burial or other purposes. They were not replaced by another people
but gradually improved in their craft, passing step by step into struc-
tures of cut stone with regular horizontal masonry characteristic of the
excellent work of the cliff dwellers. Pari passu they made synchronous
advances in the excellence of their pottery and other artifacts, although
certain weapons like the "throw-stick" were replaced by the bow and
arrow.

The earliest stage in the genesis of the Mesa Verde cliff dwelling
was an earth lodge constructed of adobe walls accompanied by cysts
made of vertical stone slabs; the last member of the evolution series
being the pure pueblo with unit type kivas situated in caves or on the
plateau.

The culmination of the series flourished and disappeared before the
advent of European historians. It illustrates a middle phase of pueblo
development, but, although now extinct, degenerate forms of the unit
type kiva characteristic of the Mesa Verde cliff dwellings still survive
in the sacred buildings of the modern pueblos, where the type is modi-
fied by mixture with other architectura' features.

542ND MEETING

The 542nd meeting was held in room 42-43 of the National Museum,
at 4.45 p.m., on Tuesday, January 20, 1920. Program:

Gerard Fowke : Explorations in caves in the Ozark region of Mis-
souri.

In the hilly portions of Missouri south of the Missouri River, es-
pecially in the Gasconade limestone formation, are thousands of caverns.
Most of them are small, or at least have small entrances; others are
large, extending beyond the point to which any visitors have ventured.
Many of them have the front portion much expanded, with an opening
which admits ample light; and these were often resorted to by abo-
rigines for shelter. Owing to various causes not many of them were
suited for permanent occupation; the floors may be rough or uneven;
water m.ay drip from the roof or flow along the bottom; the entrance
may not be easily accessible ; no stream or spring may be near ; or other
reasons may make them undesirable as places of abode. Occasionally
one of them offers exceptional advantages for residence; and in such
cases the primitive dwellers in the region availed themselves of the
opportunity to secure a good home without labor.

The most noteworthy habitations of this character are along the
lower portions of the Osage and Gasconade Rivers and their tributaries,
especially in Phelps and Pulaski Counties. Some of these have been
carefully explored recently, with interesting results. It is evident that
they were continuously occupied for a long period. In one, the ashes

336 proceedings: anthropological, society

from campfires were fully eight feet in depth; in another, the ashes
over an area of 50 by 100 feet had an average thickness of 4V2 feet,
and in all this mass there was not a barrow load of earth; the entire
deposit was of pure ashes. In others, masses of talus at the entrance
contained from top to bottom refuse thrown out by the inmates. The
objects of artificial origin comprised mortars, pestles, hatchets, flint
implements of various forms and sizes, bone and antler tools of diverse
shapes, quantities of animal bones and mussel shells, and a large amount
of broken pottery. Articles of a decorative or ornamental character
were almost entirely lacking. Human remains were, in every case
examined, buried in different positions but never at any considerable
depth, seldom as much as 3 feet. The skulls indicated a low order of
intellect; this, with the absence of ornaments, and some evidences of
cannibalism, shows a very low grade of culture.

Specimens found, at whatever depth, were uniform in character.
Though the amount of material would require centuries for its accumu-
lation, there was no trace of advancement or improvement during the
entire period.

When the remains ceased, they ceased absolutely and at once; below
a certain level nothing whatever occurred.

F. Neumann, Secretary

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

THE AMERICAN GEOPHYSICAL UNION

The first annual meeting of the American Geophysical Union was
held on April 23, 1920, at the offices of the National Research Council.
At this meeting the permanent organization of this body was com-
pleted, amendments to its statutes were adopted, by-laws were enacted,
and officers of the Union were elected. Brief reports were submitted
by the American officers of the sections of the International Geodetic
and Geophysical Union describing the progress made in the organiza-
tion of the international sections.

A brief exposition was given of the status and functions of the Ameri-
can Geophysical Union, on the one hand in relation to the parent
bodies, e. g., the International Research Council, the National Research
Council and the International Geodetic and Geophysical Union, and
on the other in relation to the branches of science embraced under the
term "geophysics" and specifically included in the sections of the
Union.

For each of the Sections brief addresses were made by the chairmen,
setting forth in outline various problems of interest to the Sections.
These addresses constituted brief surveys of the research needs of the
various branches of geophysics. They will be prepared for publica-
tion and issued at a later date.

Officers were elected to serve from July i, 1920, as follows : American
Geophysical Union — Chairman, William Bowie, for two years; Vice-
Chairman, L. A. Bauer, for two years; Secretary, H. O. Wood, for three
years.

Sections : (a) Geodesy : Chairman, William Bowie ; Vice-Chairman,
J. F. Hayford; Secretary, H. O. Wood, {h) Seismology: Chairman,
H. F. Reid; Vice-Chairman, J. C. Branner; Secretary, H. O. Wood.
(f) Meteorology: Chairman, C. F. Marvin; Vice-Chairman, W. J.
Humphreys; Secretary, A. J. Henry, (d) Terrestrial Magnetism and
Electricity: Chairman, L. A. Bauer; Vice-Chairman, W. F. G. Swann;
Secretary, J. A. Fleming, (e) Physical Oceanography: Chairman,
G. W. LiTTLEHALES; Secretary, J. T. Watkins. (f) Volcanology:
Chairman, H. S. Washington; Vice-Chairman, R. A. £)aly; Secretary,
H. O. Wood.

The Union authorized the formation of a new section, (g) Geophysical-
chemistry, covering researches in physics and chemistry as related to
the problems of the earth. H. O. W.

notes

The National Academy of Sciences has purchased the block bounded
by Twentieth, Twenty-first, B and C Streets, opposite the Lincoln
Memorial in Potomac Park, and will erect a building on the site as a

337

338 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

home for the Academy and the National Research Council. Plans
for the building were made public on April 26, at the annual meeting
of the Academy, by Dr. James R. Angell, Chairman of the Council.

The National Academy of Sciences, at its meeting at the National
Museum on April 26-28, elected the following new members: J. R.
Angell, psychologist, Chairman National Research Council; H. P.
Armsby, agricultural chemist, State College, Pennsylvania; W. D.
Bancroft, chemist, Cornell University; M. F. Blichfeldt, mathe-
matician, Leland Stanford, Jr., University; A. J. Carlson, physiolo-
gist, University of Chicago; William Duane, physicist, Harvard
University; L. R. Jones, plant pathologist. University of Wisconsin;
E. P. KoHLER, chemist, Harvard University; C. K. Leith, geologist.
University of Wisconsin; C. E. McClung, zoologist. National Research
Council; E. V. McCollum, biological chemist, Johns Hopkins Univer-
sity; G. W. Pierce, physicist. Harvard University; H. J. Ryan, elec-
trical engineer, Leland Stanford, Jr., University; JoEL Stebbins,
astronomer. University of Illinois; Bailey Willis, geologist, Leland
Stanford, Jr., University.

The following foreign associates were elected: F. D. Adams, geolo-
gist, McGill University; Camille Jordan, mathematician. College de
France; Francois Lacroix, mineralogist, Mus^e d'Histoire Naturelle,
Paris; H. Kammerlingh Onnes, physicist. University of Leyden; Sir
David Prain, botanist. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, vSurrey; Santiago
Ramon y Cajal, histologist, University of Madrid.

The thirteenth Annual Conference of Weights and Measures Offi-
cials was held at the Bureau of Standards on May 24-27.

The sixty-eighth annual meeting of the American Pharmaceutical
Association was held in Washington on May 5-10. The National
Association of Boards of Pharmacy and the American Conference of
Pharmaceutical Faculties, organizations affiliated with the Association,
also met.

The United States Pharmacopoeial Convention met on May 1 1 for
the tenth decennial revision of the United States Pharmacopoeia under
the presidency of Dr. Reid Hunt. The first convention met in
Washington in 1820. The ninth met in 19 10, and its work was em-
bodied in the Pharmacopoeia which became the official standard on
September i, 1916.

The second annual convention of the Association of Scientific Ap-
paratus Makers of the United States of America w^as held in Wash-
ington on April 22 and 23, under the chairmanship of C. S. Stoelting.
Calibration of apparatus, standardization of designs for glassware,
guaranteed chemical reagents, and pyrometer materials were among
the subjects discussed. The Association elected the following officers:
President, M. E. LEEDs; Vice-President, H. N. Ott; Secretary-Treasurer,.
J. M. Roberts.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS 339

A new exhibit has been arranged in the department of geology of
the National Museum, consisting of portraits of early American geol-
ogists and copies of the first editions of their works, arranged to show
the history of the progress of mineralogical and geological science in
America.

A shipment of over 12,000 publications, the largest single consign-
ment ever forwarded through the International Exchange vService of
the Smithsonian Institution, went forward to Belgium in April, to
aid in the restoration of Belgian libraries.

A complete working model showing the mining and preparation of
the commercial forms of salt, made and presented by the Worcester
Salt Company of New York, has been set up in the division of mineral
technology of the National Museum.

Dr. James R. AngELL, Chairman of the National Research Council,
and professor of psychology in the University of Chicago, has been
elected president of the Carnegie Corporation of New York. This
corporation, to which the late Andrew Carnegie gave the greater part
of his property, is chartered "For the purpose of receiving and main-
taining a fund or funds and applying the income thereof to promote the
advancement and diffusion of knowledge and understanding among
the people of the United States, by aiding technical schools, institu-
tions of higher learning, libraries, scientific research, hero funds, useful
publications, and by such other agencies and means as shall from time
to time be found appropriate therefor." Its present assets are about
$130,000,000.

Dr. N. L. BowEN, formerly of the Geophysical Laboratory, Carnegie
Institution of Washington, and recently professor of mineralogy at
Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, rejoined the staff" of the Labora-
tory on May i.

Mr. Spencer A. ColvillE, formerly with the New Amsterdam Gas
Compan}^ has been appointed associate gas engineer at the Bureau
of Standards. He will assist in investigations leading toward a na-
tional gas safety code, which have been arranged for with the co-
operation of the American Gas Association and the American En-
gineering Standards Committee.

The nomination of Dr. F. G. Cottrell, assistant director of the
Bureau of Mines, to succeed Dr. Van H. Manning, resigned as director
of the Bureau, has been sent to the Senate by the President.

A new record in precise leveling was made on March 9 by a Coast and
Geodetic Survey party in California in charge of C. A. Egner. In
eight hours of actual leveling the party ran 25.7 miles of single line.

Mr. Neil M. Judd, Curator of American Archeology, U. S. National
Museum, left Washington on May i for the purpose of continuing his
archeological investigations of the region north and west from the

340 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Rio Colorado. The present reconnaissance will be conducted chiefly
in northwestern Arizona. At the request of the National Geographic
Society, the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution has granted per-
mission for Mr. Judd to direct the Society's archeological reconnaissance
of Chaco Canyon, New Mexico, during the present summer.

Dr. Van H. Manning, Director of the Bureau of Mines, has pre-
sented his resignation, to be in effect June i, and will become director
of research in the American Petroleum Institute. Dr. Manning has
been with the Department of the Interior since 1886, and became
director of the Bureau of Mines after the death of Dr. J. A. Holmes,
in 1915.

Mr. T. Matsumoto, of the Imperial Geological Institute, Tokyo,
Japan, visited Washington in April.

Mr. O. E. Meinzer, of the Water Resources Branch, U. S. Geological
Survey, recently addressed the Southern California members of the
American Society of Civil Engineers, at Los Angeles, and also the sec-
tion of the Society at San Francisco, on "An outline and glossary of
ground- water hydrolog>\"

Mr. G. W. MoREY, of the Geophysical Laboratory, Carnegie Insti-
tution of Washington, who has been on leave of absence and in charge
of the optical glass plant of the Spencer Lens Company of Buffalo, New
York, since November, 1918, returned on May i, 1920, to resume his
research work at the Laboratory.

Dr. W. C. Phalen, formerly geologist in the U. S. Geological Survey
and mineral technologist in the Bureau of Mines, has been engaged
as geologist by the Solvay Process Company with headquarters at
Syracuse, New York.

Mr. R. Luther Reed, who aided Secretary S. P. Langley in his
work on aerodromes, died on April 26, 1920, after forty years of service
with the Smithsonian Institution.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. io JUNE 19, 1920 No. 12

SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH. — The economic importance oj the
scientific work of the Government.'^ E. B. Rosa, Bureau of
Standards.

SCIENCE IN THE WAR

I. The Great War was based very largely on science and
engineering. During the twenty-five years preceding the out-
break of the war the enemy had developed science and the
practical applications of science in a wonderful way. He had
fostered the industries, developed shipping and foreign trade,
and promoted scientific research and education until the German
nation stood in the forefront of the nations of the earth. With
a complete misunderstanding of race psychology and an utter
lack of appreciation of moral values, the enemy had prepared
for a sudden attack with crushing force when a favorable occa-
sion should arise. When the blow fell the allied nations were
unprepared, not only for lack of armies and munitions but for
lack of industrial equipment, transportation facilities and
scientific development. Holding the enemy at bay under fear-
ful odds while they built up their armies and their industries,
the allied and associated powers utilized all the resources of science
and engineering and a vast amount of accumulated treasure to
make good their initial deficiencies and gain strength enough to
wear out and overcome the enemy. In this titanic struggle
scientists, engineers and captains of industry were mobilized by

' A lecture given before the Washington Academy of Sciences on May 20,
1920.

341

342 rosa: scientific work of the government

the tens of thousands, and men and women in the industries by
the tens of milUons, in order that the soldiers and sailors in the
armies and the fleets might be adequately supplied with food,
munitions and equipment. The wonderful achievements of
science under the pressure of necessity demonstrated the economic
possibilities of scientific research. This demonstration was not
altogether new, but the war brought it home more forcefully,
and at its close one felt that never again would anybody ques-
tion the importance and economic value of scientific investiga-
tion.

NECESSITY FOR INCREASED PRODUCTION

2. The war was conducted on such a gigantic scale that the
world's supply of raw and manufactured materials was
largely exhausted. The increased demand thus caused for
labor and commodities, together with the inflation of currency
and credit, and in many cases the reduced efficiency of labor
have raised prices beyond all precedent. Hardship and suffering
have come to hundreds of millions of people throughout the
world and political and economic confusion generally has
resulted.

The cost of living during the war increased considerably,
but wages were so high that many classes of workers were more
prosperous than ever. The government directed the channels
of trade and controlled the . supplies of materials with much
success, and prices in most cases were kept within bounds. With
the end of the war came an end of governmental control, and
also, with many, an end of economy and thrift, and for these and
other reasons, prices have been mounting steadily ever since.
Increased costs led to industrial unrest, strikes, high wages and
further rise in prices. Profiteering has been denounced in the
press and sought out by the government, but the average of
prices continues to rise. It is generally agreed that in order to
bring down prices it will be necessary (i) to contract currency
and credit, (2) to economize in the use of necessities and luxuries,
and (3) to utilize raw materials and labor more effectively and
expand the production of commodities. The first remedy must

ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT 343

be worked out by financiers and economists. The second might
be accomplished by a nation-wide campaign for thrift and
economy; and the third would be greatly aided by cooperative
study and scientific and technical research on a comprehensive
scale.

THE GOVERNMENT AND INCREASED EFFICIENCY

3. There is a shortage of labor in the country, and a tendency
to shorten rather than to lengthen the hours of labor. If, there-
fore, production is to be increased without increased labor, it is
necessary to increase the productivity of labor. To economize
in the use of staple commodities and luxuries, to reduce the waste
of raw materials, to make use of cheaper materials, to increase
the efficiency of men, of machines and of processes, on a nation-
wide scale and at an early date will call for intelligent and ener-
getic efi"ort, comparable in difficulty and importance with the
task before the country in 191 7 when we entered the World War.
It is not merely in order to reduce the cost of living to those
millions whose incomes have not increased in proportion to the
rise in prices, and who in many cases are suffering hardship and
distress ; but it is to allay industrial discontent and forestall
economic and political disturbance or even disaster. The con-
fusion and inequity that have resulted from the rise of prices
threaten the stability of society. The governments of the world
are face to face w4th the problem of improving conditions and
allaying discontent. To hold that governments cannot or should
not deal constructively with the most serious problems of society,
but that such matters should be left to chance, without organized
effort or leadership, is not a satisfactory- position to take after
the successful experience with government leadership in the war.
The old idea that the less government we have the better, no
longer applies, if it ever did. Society is made up in part of a
multitude of groups, some of which are highly organized, and
many are seeking the advantage of the group rather than of
society as a whole. The government represents the interests of
society as a whole, and its problems and responsibilities have
increased enormously in recent years.

344 ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT

THREE KINDS OF GOVERNMENTAL FUNCTIONS

4. Henry C. Adams, in his treatise on the Science of Finance,
classifies governmental functions into three groups, namely,
(a) The protective functions of government, (b) the commercial
functions of government, and (c) the developmental functions
of government.

(a) The protective functions of government are divided into
three principal classes: (i) Protection against invasion or en-
croachment from without is provided by the army and navy,
and this has always been an important and relatively expensive
department of a national government. (2) Protection of life,
property and reputation, which is accomplished through police,
fire departments and the courts. (3) Protection against the
spread of disease, either physical or social. As crime is looked
upon as a phase of social disease, this will include prisons, asylums,
sanitary provision, public charities, etc.

(b) The commercial functions of government include those
which render a service for which payment is made by the in-
dividuals served, and are in general self-supporting. They
address themselves primarily to the personal needs of the citizen
rather than to the social needs of the state, and are performed
by the state because it can render the service better or cheaper
than private agencies. Examples are the post office, and in some
cases railways, canals, telegraphs and other public utilities,
patents and insurance.

(c) The developmental functions of government "are such as
spring from a desire on the part of society to attain higher forms
of social life." Society is not merely a collection of individuals,
but is a conscious organism and the interests of society require
collective action in developing itself. This includes: (i) Public
education, (2) public recreation, (3) providing those legal and
administrative conditions in which private business will be
conducted in a just and equitable manner, (4) public investiga-
tion and control of public utilities, (5) developing the resources
and wealth of the state, which includes scientific and industrial
research.

ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT 345

DEVELOPMENTAL FUNCTIONS OF THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

5. These three classes of functions are exercised to some
extent by municipal and state governments as well as the federal
government. The powers of the federal government were
delegated to it by the states, and were intended to be those
required for the exercise of sovereignty by the nation in its rela-
tion with other nations, the maintenance of a national army and
navy, the provision of a national currency, a common postal
system, a uniform system of weights and measures (although
this was not carried out as intended), the regulation of interstate
commerce, etc.

In the early years of our history, society was relatively simple,
communication and travel were infrequent, and each community
was comparatively independent. Hence local governments
w^ere, in many respects, more important than national. With
the developments in transportation and communication which
have resulted from steam and electricity, the forty-eight states
have come very close together, commerce and industry have
much in common everywhere, uniformity of practice and uni-
formly good practice are generally desired, and it has been a
problem how to avoid confusion of administration and indus-
trial practice when there were so many legislatures and adminis-
trative bodies acting independently of each other. This has
been partly accomplished by the cooperation of federal agencies
with state bodies, leaving the legal authority with the states.

Many protective and developmental functions have long been
exercised by the federal government because they were of com-
mon interest to all the people, and they could be performed
more effectively and more economically by the federal govern-
ment than by the several states, and there was no practicable
way of getting all the states to work in harmony on a common
program. The people w^ho support the federal government
are the same people who support the forty-eight state govern-
ments, and hence the plan of acting together through the federal
government in performing functions of interest to all is not only
economical and efficient but logical and just.

346 ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT

SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH A LUXURY OR A NECESSITY?

6. For many years the revenues of the federal government
were ample and easily obtained. Taxation was indirect and not
felt and many of the developmental functions of the government
were exercised with little question or objection. The Great
War involved enormous expenditures and increased the fixed
charges due to the public debt and other war obligations to
several times the former budget. The result is that expenditures
for education, scientific research and development work are
severely scrutinized, and the question is raised as to whether
we can afford to carry on such wOrk on a generous scale. It is,
of course, proper that every item in the national budget be closely
scrutinized, and that nothing be passed which cannot justify
itself. It is desirable, therefore, to inquire whether scientific
research as carried on by the federal government is a luxury or a
necessity; whether it is something to be enjoyed when taxes are
light and curtailed when taxes are heavy ; or whether it is creative
and wealth-producing, and therefore to be increased and developed
when expenses are abnormally large and a heavy debt must be
liquidated. The question is. in short, whether scientific and
industrial research and education are like good seed and fer-
tilizer to a farmer, which are essential to the best success; or
whether they are as luxuries to the rich which consume but do
not produce, and which should be curtailed when necessary
expenses increase.

THE NATIONAL BUDGET

7. In order to discuss the question concretely and with refer-
ence to actual conditions, let us examine the national budget as
it stands for the current fiscal year, with appropriations amount-
ing to a total of $5,686,005,706, as given in the regular supply
bills and three deficiency bills prior to May i, 1920. For con-
venience, we may divide it into six parts as follows :

ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT

347

Group II.

Group III.

Group I. Obligations arising from recent and pre-
vious wars, including interest on the
public debt, pensions, war risk insur-
ance, rehabilitation and care of sol-
diers, deficit in the operation of rail-
ways, expenditures of the Shipping
Board, European food relief and the
bonus to government employees to
partially cover the increased cost of
living due to the war, a total of $3 , 855 , 482 , 586

War and Navy Departments, expenses
somewhat above a permanent peace-
time basis 1 ,424, 138,677

Primary governmental functions, in-
cluding Congress, President and White
House staff, courts and penal estab-
lishments, departments of Justice,
State, Treasury, Interior, Commerce,
Labor, Interstate Commerce and other
commissions, one-half the District of
Columbia, including all the necessary
functions of government other than
defense, except the commercial activi-
ties of Group V and the research, edu-
cation and developmental work of
Group VI

Public works, including rivers and har-
bors, public buildings, reclamation
service, post roads, national parks and
railway in Alaska

Commercial or self-supporting activities,
including the Post Office, Patent
Office, Land Office, Panama Canal,
and Housing Corporation, which
taken together earn their expenses ....
Group VI. Research, educational and develop-
mental, including the wide range of
work of the Agricultural Department,
Geological Surve}', Bureau of Mines,
Coast and Geodetic Survey, Bureau
of Standards, Bureau of Fisheries,
Bureau of Foreign and Domestic
Commerce, Bureau of Labor Statis-
tics, Women's and Children's Bureaus,
Vocational Education, Colleges for
Agriculture and Mechanic Arts, Li-
brary of Congress, Smithsonian Insti-
tution and the Public Health Service . . 5 7 , 093 , 66 1

Group IV.

Group V.

181,087,225

168,203,557

Total $5,686,005,706

348

rosa: scientific work of the; government

one per cent for research, education and deveeopmentai^

work'
8. The first two groups together amount to 92.8 per cent of
the total; pubHc works amount to 3 per cent, primary govern-

Fig. I. — Distribution of government appropriations for the fiscal year 1920 (July i,
19 19 to June 30, 1920, inclusive). See table on page 380 and summary on page 382.

' For the next fiscal year, the appropriations needed for the railroads and
Shipping Board, and for the Army and Navy, will be very much less than for the
current fiscal year. The Treasury Department, therefore, expects to be able to
make a very substantial reduction in the floating debt, now amounting to nearly
three billions of dollars. The appropriations for Group VI for the next fiscal year
are substantially the same as for this year. The ratio of Group VI to the total
will, therefore, be substantially the same as at present (namely, one per cent), if
we include, as we should, the payments on the floating debt and sinking fund in Group
I, and if the total revenues for next year are approximately the same as for this year.

ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE! GOVERNMENT 349

mental functions 3.2 per cent, and research, education and
developmental work i per cent. The population of the country
being about 1 10,000,000, the total budget is about fifty dollars per
year per capita, of which fifty cents per year per capita is expended
for the wide range of research, education and development work
included in Group VI. That is, of the fifty dollars per year per
capita collected for all purposes, a dollar and a half per year per
capita is spent for what is here called the primary functions of
government; nearly as much more is put into public works, and
fifty cents per year is put back into research, educational and
developmental work, to promote scientific research, to increase
production and efhciency, to develop wealth, to promote the
public health, and to conserve our natural resources. This is
a very small part of the total, hardly enough to be regarded as a
burden on the nation. Indeed, one is led to wonder whether the
total burden of taxation would not be lighter if the expenditure
for scientific and developmental work were increased; if, for
example, it were one dollar per year per capita instead of fifty
cents. In other words, if $110,000,000 were expended annually
for this creative and productive work, w^ould it not be easier to
collect the five and a half billions for other purposes ? To answer
this question intelligently, it will be well to look a little closer
into how the fifty cents per capita is expended and what is accom-
plished thereby.

WORK OF THE AGRICULTURAL DEPARTMENT

9. Nearly two- thirds of all the expenditures made under
Group VI are for the work of the Agricultural Department.
Agriculture is the most important industry of the nation. Agri-
cultural and animal products amount possibly to twenty-five
billions of dollars per year. Food has risen in price in recent
years along with other products, partly because of higher wages
and higher cost of machinery and supplies used by farmers, but
largely because the urban population has increased faster than
the rural and the demand for food products has increased faster
than the supply. It is of prime importance to city dwellers that
food products be produced in greater quantity, and this requires

350

rosa: scientific work of the government

an increased efficiency or an increased rural population, or both.
The Agricultural Department carries on a wide range of educa-

Fig. 2. — Distribution of appropriations for research, education and development, Group

VI. See summary on page 38 1.

tional and experimental work in order to increase the production
of farm products and to promote the interest of the farmer in
his work, as well as to make life on the farm and in rural com-
munities more attractive. This not only benefits the farmer but
tends to keep food prices within reason for city dwellers. It is
therefore serving all the people, and its work was never so much
needed as at the present time. It is spending about $1.50 for

ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE; GOVERNMENT 35 1

every $i,ooo of value of agricultural and animal products, and
without doubt the results achieved pay many times the cost
of the work. The work of the Forest Service is nearly self-
supporting, and might have been put into Group V. This year,
owing to unusual forest fires, its deficit is larger than usual.
Ultimately it will be more than self-supporting. The work of
the various bureaus is of great importance and absorbing interest,
but time does not permit even a brief description.

THE GEOLOGICAL SURVEY AND THE BUREAU OF MINES

10. The Geological Survey and the Bureau of Mines are con-
cerned with the mineral industries of the country: coal, iron,
copper and the other industrial and precious metals, oil, gas
and the water supply and the topography of the land. Our
country is rich in these natural resources and we are spending
them in prodigal fashion. It is the business of these two biu-eaus
to survey and map the distribution of metals and minerals; to
look for new sources of supply ; to gather statistics and to increase
safety and efficiency in the mining and metallurgical industries;
and to consider what can be done to conserve these natural
resources which, unlike the products of agriculture, are not
reproduced in annual cycles, but when once used can never
be replaced. In addition, topographic and water power surveys*
are made and mapped. The products of the mineral industries
of the country amount possibly to six billions of dollars per year.
They are indispensable to our manufactures, and a most impor-
tant part of our national wealth. If these two bureaus were to
spend in this important work of research and development, an
amount equal to one dollar in a thousand of the annual value of
mineral products, it would amount possibly to six millions of
dollars per year, which is more than double present expenditures.
Can there be any doubt that such a sum expended in the interest
of the public that pays the entire cost, and must bear the burdens
of any inefficiency that exists in the industries, would be amply
repaid .-^ For example, millions of dollars are worse than wasted
every year in accidents that could be prevented. Mining is
one of the most hazardous of industries. The Bureau of Mines

352 ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT

has done a great deal of valuable work, both in research and
education, to make mining safer; but there is need for a great
deal more than it has been able to do. The results of such work
are available in all the states where mining is carried on. It
can generally be done better, and far more economically, than if
done by the states unaided by the federal government. These
two bureaus are doing a work of great economic importance at a
cost to the people of this country- of three cents per capita per
year. If it were doubled the burden would be only slightly
increased, but the servdce rendered in the increased efficiency
of production and fewer accidents and more intelligent use of our
natural resources would be very considerable. This is a splendid
example of the economic and social value of cooperation of all
the people through the agency of the federal government in doing
efficiently what is needed by all.

THE BUREAUS OF STANDARDS AND OF FOREIGN AND DOMESTIC

COMMERCE

II. The Bureau of Standards develops and maintains the
standards of length, mass, volume, temperature, electrical and
optical measurements, prepares standard chemicals and does
many other kinds of fundamental work; it does testing for the
government and the public, and it carries out scientific and indus-
trial researches to develop the industries. A very large amount
of work is done for the army, navy and other departments and
for state institutions, so that not more than one-half of its total
expenditures can properly be considered as done for the develop-
ment of the industries. Excluding food products, tobacco and
liquors, the annual value of manufactured products in this
country, over and above the value of the raw materials entering
into them, is possibly $12,000,000,000. The Bureau of Standards
spends this year a sum not more than 15 cents per $1,000 of
manufactured products in all its work, and as stated above, not
more than one-half of it is for the purpose of developing these
manufactures. If this sum could be considerably increased, it
would enable a much larger amount of work to be done and the
work could be carried on more efficiently. I shall give examples

ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT 353

presently of such work, and you may judge whether it would be
profitable.

While the Bureau of Standards maintains and makes available
the standards of measurement, of quality, of performance, and
of practice, for commerce and the industries, and engages in
research to develop the industries, the Bureau of Foreign and
Domestic Commerce is concerned with the development of
commerce and our export trade. The importance of foreign
trade to a great nation, and the opportunity and duty of the
government in fostering that trade in all legitimate ways, need
no emphasis on this occasion. In view of the position of America
as a world power, and in view of the general desire that our
foreign commerce may be not only profitably but creditably
conducted, it would seem that this function of the government
would be developed and strengthened.

THE COAST SURVEY AND THE BUREAU OF FISHERIES

1 2 . The Coast and Geodetic Survey is one of the oldest branches
of the government doing scientific and technical work, and until
the establishment of the Bureau of Standards, kept the standards
and did the testing of weights and measures. It is charged with
the survey of the coasts and rivers to the head of ship navigation,
and the publication of charts, giving the results of base measure-
ments, triangulation, topographic and hydrographic surveys,
deep sea soundings, temperature, magnetic observations, gravity
research, determination of heights, latitude, longitude, and
reference points for state surveys. The work is very funda-
mental and important and has been done with a high order of
precision and thoroughness, and with marked credit to the govern-
ment.

The object of the Bureau of Fisheries is the stimulation of the
production and consumption of fish as an important source of
food. To stimulate production, scientific research on the habits
and propagation of fish is carried on. The breeding of fish and
their distribution into lakes and streams is done on a large scale.
In all of this work, but particularly in connection with the prop-
agation of fish and the protection of fish against lawlessness,

354 ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT

the Bureau cooperates with the various states. The responsibihty
of the government for work of this kind is obvious, and there can
be no doubt as to its being profitable.

THE BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS, THE WOMAN IN INDUSTRY
SERVICE AND THE CHILDREN'S BUREAU

13. The Bureau of Labor Statistics gathers the statistics of
wages in the various industries and the cost of living, and pub-
lishes much valuable material of interest to labor and capital.
The prosperity and happiness of all the people depend to a con-
siderable extent upon industrial peace and freedom from strikes
and disorder. Industrial peace and contentment require justice
and fair dealing between employers and employed. In order
that both may know what is just and fair, statistical information
as to wages and changes in prices and the cost of living is
essential. It is probable that the greatest obstacle to a good
understanding between employers and employed is lack of infor-
mation. Suspicion and prejudice often give way to sympathy
and understanding when full information, including information
about what others are doing, is made available. The good results
achieved by generous treatment of labor should be put before
all employers, and if the government would spend more on re-
search and education in this important field, might it not save
much that is now spent in other directions? And might not the
public be saved much both in expense and inconvenience that
results from industrial warfare? This subject is of such tre-
mendous and far-reaching importance that one is led to ask
whether the government is doing as much as it should in this
connection.

The work of the Children's Bureau and the Woman in Industry
service is relatively new, but of great importance. Women are
employed in the industries more than ever before, and the high
wages and shortage of labor increases the pressure for the work of
children. In the interest of the state, apart from considerations of
humanity, women and children should be protected in the indus-
tries ; and the work of these two bureaus is therefore of funda-
mental importance. It seems likely that it will grow rapidly in
magnitude and occupy a larger place in the public's thought.

ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT 355

EDUCATIONAL WORK

14. The Bureau of Education collects and disseminates infor-
mation concerning educational matters. The federal govern-
ment has never taken a very active part in the educational work
of the country. Whereas cities spend an average of $6 per year
per capita for education and the states and private agencies
about $3 per year per capita, the federal government spends
only 6 cents per capita per year, including the sums expended
in vocational education and assistance granted to colleges of
agriculture and mechanic arts. Common schools and high
schools are maintained by towns and municipalities, with some
aid from the state. Normal and secondary schools, colleges and
universities are maintained by the states and private agencies.
Indeed private schools and privately endowed colleges and
universities constitute a very important part of our educational
system. The federal government, on the other hand, has no
national university, and spends no money in the District of
Columbia on higher education, except for Howard University for
colored students. The Bureau of Education has for many years
been doing a valuable work in keeping a record of the educational
work of the country. Its support might well be greatly aug-
mented, its scope broadened, and its activities and responsibilities
correspondingly increased. We believe thoroughly in this coun-
try in popular education. We believe that the welfare of the
state demands an intelligent electorate, and that material pros-
perity goes with education. The war revealed an unsuspected
percentage of illiteracy in the men examined for military service.
A million men in the draft could not read and write. The federal
government might well take greater responsibility in matters of
education and cooperate more actively with the states, setting
standards for educational work and giving direction and encour-
agement where they are needed. A Department of Education
with a cabinet member at the head, has more than once been
proposed, and is even now being discussed.

Better facilities for higher education in the District of Columbia
would be of great value to thousands of federal employees, as

356 ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE) GOVERNMENT

well as to other residents of Washington. The desire of federal
employees for educational advancement should be encouraged
and the needed facilities supplied, partly for their own sake and
partly because they would thereby be enabled to render better
service to the government. Washington is the proud capital
of the richest nation on earth, and yet there are few cities in
America and few capitals anywhere in the world where so little
is done for higher education.

Recently, the Federal Board for Vocational Education has
been established, and a substantial sum placed at its disposal.
The need for vocational training was emphasized by the results
of tests made in the army. Of men claiming expert knowledge
of the skilled trades, only six in a hundred were found to be
really expert. The Board assists the states financially and
otherwise in developing and maintaining a system of vocational
training. Such work is greatly needed as industry itself fails
to supply the training necessary.

For many years the government has been cooperating with
the states by paying a certain sum of money each year to one
college in each state for the teaching of agriculture and mechanic
arts. This was provided for under the Morrill act, and these
payments now amount to $2,500,000 per year. In most cases
these sums are a very substantial help to the institutions receiving
them, and undoubtedly do a very great deal of good in the aggre-
gate.

An English journal, commenting on the increased sums allotted
in the English budget for next year to scientific and industrial
research, has this to say: "Education and the financing of that
education are important subjects. Indeed, we do not hesitate
to say that upon the right method of instruction being followed
depends very largely the future prosperity of the nation."

THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS AND THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION

15. The Library of Congress is a great national institution,
corresponding to the British Museum and the Bibliotheque
Nationale. It is properly grouped with the educational institu-
tions of the government, and it is an institution of which all

ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT 357

Americans are proud. It is a great library, housed in a beautiful
building, useful to thousands, enjoyed by hundreds of thousands.
The country approves a generous policy toward this activity of
the government, devoted as it is to art and education.

The Smithsonian Institution and the National Museum are
national institutions devoted to science, art, and natural history.
The Smithsonian Institution has a private endowment, but the
greater portion of its funds comes from the government. It
carries out scientific researches in the physical and natural sciences
and has extremely valuable collections in its museums and art
galleries. The government has not done as much in promoting
art and collecting works of art as have many other governments,
and it is to be hoped that much may be done in the future to
compensate for past neglect of these matters.

THE PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE

16. The Public Health Service is one of the most important
of the agencies doing work of research and education. It main-
tains supervision over incoming vessels to prevent the introduc-
tion of diseases; to prevent the spread of diseases between the
states it makes inspections and cooperates with the state depart-
ments of health ; statistics of diseases are collected and interpreted,
and scientific research is carried out to develop methods of pre-
venting the spread of disease.

The Service has recently formulated a comprehensive health
program to be carried out on a nation-wide scale by the active
cooperation of federal, state, and local authorities and voluntary
organizations. That these needs are urgent is shown by the
fact that more than one-third of all men examined under the
draft during the war were rejected for physical defects and
diseases. The Surgeon General states that in large measure
these defects and diseases could have been prevented had proper
attention been given to them, especially in childhood. This
unsatisfactory condition of the public health shows the need of
greater attention on the part of the federal government, and more
systematic cooperation between local and national agencies.

358 ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT

This systematic cooperation is obtained by the federal aid exten-
sion principle, as in the construction of good roads, and agricul-
tural education.

A large amount of most valuable medical, statistical, and
research work is carried on by the Public Health Service, which
has been greatly developed in recent years. The opportunities
presented in this work for growth and increased usefulness are
almost boundless. In addition to its work in connection with
the public health, a large amount of work is done in the care and
rehabilitation of sick and wounded soldiers.

The foregoing brief outline of the activities of the various
government agencies included in Group VI gives a very incom-
plete statement of the research and educational work done by
the government. It is, however, intended to convey some idea
of the wide range and important character of this work, and its
great possibilities for development if more adequate provision
could be made for its support. A portion of the work of the
Bureau of Chemistry, the Bureau of Standards, the Coast and
Geodetic Survey and other bureaus of Group VI would have
been included in Group III if the work of the bureaus had been
split up and the classification had been more detailed and exact.
On the other hand, a portion of the work of the Naval Observ^a-
tory, the Bureau of the Census, and other bureaus in other groups
is scientific and educational. It is not possible to make a simple
classification that is perfectly exact, but it is believed that the
one given is sufficiently exact for the purpose. The Public Works
group has value in economic development, but it is not research
and educational, and is quite different from most of Group VI.
It is now proposed to speak more in detail of one important kind
of scientific research, namely, that designed to develop the
industries of the country. This work is done primarily in the
public interest, although it is generally helpful and beneficial to
the individual owners.

COOPERATION BY THE GOVERNMENT IN INDUSTRIAL RESEARCH

AND STANDARDIZATION

17. The success of industrial research work by the government

ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT 359

has been amply demonstrated. That government laboratories
have done scientific and technical work of the highest quality,
and done it efficiently and acceptably to the public, is generally
admitted. Their efficiency will not suffer in comparison with
that of commercial organizations. It is doubtful if any com-
mercial organization could approach the performance of govern-
ment laboratories if the board of directors had maintained an
inflexible and inadequate salary scale for all the more responsible
technical and administrative positions as the government has
done.

Scientists and engineers in the service of the government
appreciate the opportunity of carrying on researches and con-
structing public works in the public interest, and of being able
to make investigations and publish results unfettered by com-
mercial considerations. In consideration of these ad^^antages,
many are willing to remain in the government service at less
salary than could be earned elsewhere. Until recently the
government has been able to retain its able men on the average
nearly as well as the colleges and the industries. During the
past few years, however, circumstances in this respect have
changed. While the cost of living has nearly or quite doubled,
and salaries in the industries and in many of the colleges have
been considerably increased, government salaries have increased
very little and in the higher grades not at all. The result is
that in many cases men cannot support their families, and are
obliged to seek employment (or accept emplo3^ment offered or
urged upon them) at a living salary. In many cases men who
are making a splendid success and have regarded the govern-
ment service as their career, leave their positions from necessity
and with the greatest reluctance. Often these positions cannot
be filled and the work suffers or ceases altogether. It is believed,
however, that this condition will not continue indefinitely. A
readjustment of the salary scale must be made if the government
is to have the services of a competent and permanent staff to
conduct its scientific and administrative work. In view of the
splendid success achieved in the past, it does not seem possible
that this essential part of an effective government will be allowed

360 ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVTSRNMENT

to disintegrate and go to pieces. Industrial research conducted
by the government with the active cooperation of the industries,
and in some cases of the states, may be made even more impor-
tant and successful in the future than in the past ; for it is needed
now more than ever, and is appreciated as never before.

In order to give a more concrete idea of the practical usefulness
and economic importance of research and standardization, a
number of special cases will be cited in the field of the Bureau of
Standards. These cases are chosen partly because I am espe-
cially familiar with the work of this Bureau, and partly because
there appears to be at this time especial need of the kind of con-
structive scientific research in the manufacturing industries
which it is one of the functions of this Bureau to carry on. Equally
striking examples could be cited in Agriculture or Mines or other
lines of government research.

STANDARDIZATION AND RESEARCH IN THE BUILDING INDUSTRIES

18. For several years recently the building of homes has been
almost suspended, and now there is a scarcity of houses in many
cities. Meantime the cost of building has increased enormously,
due to the greatly increased cost of labor and materials. In
consequence real estate and rents have risen beyond all prece-
dent. There never was a time when it was so necessary' to
use building materials intelligently, to reduce waste, to simplify
design and construction, to standardize dimensions and methods,
to make parts interchangeable and fit together readily, so as to
economize labor and reduce costs. If standard specifications
could be prepared and agreed upon in a much larger number of
cases than has yet been done it would greatly facilitate the work
of architects and builders; and if building methods and the
requirements of city building codes could be thoroughly studied
and revised this also would aid in reducing building costs. It
seems probable that hundreds of millions of dollars could be
saved within a few years if a comprehensive and intelligent
study were made of all phases of building, including fire preven-
tion and the plumbing, heating, lighting and hardware equip-
ment of buildings. It would also reduce the cost of repairs and

'^osa: scientific work of the government 361

maintenance of these buildings; partly because deterioration
would be slower and failures would be less frequent, and partly
because repairs would be easier and cheaper to make. The
government would do only a portion of this work of research
and standardization, as many engineering societies, industrial
organizations and manufacturers would cooperate. But the
government should take the lead, and do an important part of
the research work, and nothing which the government could do
would be more useful and constructive, or would be more appre-
ciated by the building industries and the public. Standardiza-
tion work of the kind suggested has great educational value
to architects, to builders, to manufacturers, to jobbers, to building
owners. Is there any good reason why such a constructive
program of cooperative study should not be undertaken? Can
the people of this country afford to go on without it under present
conditions ?

STANDARDIZATION AND TESTING OF AUTOMOBILES

19. The automobile industry is one of the most important
of our industries, and motor vehicles of all kinds play a most
important part in the business and social life of the people.
Several billions of dollars are expended each year in the pur-
chase and maintenance of motor vehicles. Great improvements
have been made in recent years in their design and construction;
on the other hand, the quality of materials and workmanship
has in many cases gone backward. Much progress has been
made toward the standardization of the materials and parts of
motor vehicles, and great credit is due to the automobile industry
therefor. But there is great need for further systematic study
and the preparation of specifications and tests, and the encour-
agement of testing so that purchasers may know better what
they are buying and selling agents may describe their machines
more precisely. The interests at stake are so enormous, and the
possibilities of service to the public are so great, that it seems
imperative that more should be done by the government to
assist the industry in its great task.

362 ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT

GASOI.INE AND MANUFACTURED GAS

20. Gasoline is getting scarcer and dearer every year, and
yet not enough is being done in a systematic way to show how to
economize in the use of gasoHne. A thorough investigation of
carburetors and fuels, and certified tests of the performance of
all makes of automobiles, would be of great value in economizing
in the use of gasoline, and giving the public as much service as
possible for a given expenditure. The Bureau of Mines and the
Bureau of Standards have studied different phases of this ques-
tion, but neither has been able to do as much as should be done.
With millions of automobiles in daily use, and gasoline con-
stantly rising in price and deteriorating in quality, can the public
afford to have the government fall short in a matter of so great
economic importance, and of serious personal concern to so
many?

Manufactured gas is used for cooking and lighting by many
millions of people and by the industries for scores of uses. A
large part of this gas is made by the use of petroleum oil to enrich
blue water gas of low heating value. Recently this gas oil has
become scarcer and dearer, and it threatens to become still more
expensive and perhaps impossible to get in sufficient quantity.
That will necessitate the use of lower grades of oil, or the pro-
duction of lower grades of gas, or a change of manufacturing
equipment at enormous expense. Individual gas companies
cannot study so fundamental a question comprehensively;
individual cities or states cannot assume the responsibility of
solving the problem for the entire country. The proper agency
to take up this question is the federal government, with the
cooperation of the gas companies and the oil companies and the
state and municipal authorities. Such a comprehensive and
constructive study would be of great value and would have the
S}'mpathy and support of all the important interests. It should
include the matter of raw materials, manufacturing methods,
and the relative usefulness of the various grades of gas that can
be produced.

ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT 363

PUBLIC UTILITIES

21. The government should cooperate actively with gas and
electric and railway and telephone companies in the study of
the many engineering questions involved in rendering good
service to the public. The changed economic conditions of
recent years have made it impossible for many public utility
companies to meet expenses. In some cases they have gone
into the hands of receivers, in many other cases they escape by
putting up rates. But advancing the rates beyond a certain
point reduces the sales and does not give a proportionate benefit.
The public in the end must pay all the cost, and the public is
vitally concerned in having efficient and economical management
of these utilities. If the government could help the companies
to help themselves, it would often be better than an increase in
rates. The government could render a service of immense use-
fulness and importance by studying the problems of the public
utilities and helping the companies to secure more efficient opera-
tion and a better understanding by the public of their difficulties
and their needs. The utilities are a special kind of partnership
between their owners and the public, in which the owners agree
to furnish the plant and the service and the public grants a
monopoly privilege and agrees to accept the service rendered
and to pay the cost. If the company's credit is impaired or
it fails altogether the community, as well as the company, suffers.
It is evident, therefore, that the public should take a keen and
intelligent interest in public utility problems, and especially in
the situation which has resulted from the rising cost of labor
and commodities, for which the companies are not responsible.
The government has been rendering important service of this
kind, enough to demonstrate its value and to show that coopera-
tion in this work is practicable. But it could render a ser\dce of
vastly greater importance to the utilities and to the public, by
an expenditure, say, of one million dollars per year for research
and education on utility problems. That would be only one
cent per year per capita of the country's population, whereas the

364 ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT

value of the service that would be rendered to the public would
possibly be fifty or a hundred times the cost.

STANDARDIZATION OF ELECTRICAL BATTERIES

22. One of the most productive lines of research at the Bureau
of Standards recently has been a study of electrical batteries,
primary and secondary. They are used in great numbers for
starting and lighting automobiles, for tractors and other electric
vehicles, for electrical power stations, for telephone exchanges,
railway signals, door bells, flash lights and a hundred other pur-
poses. No adequate specifications or methods of test had ever
been generally agreed upon when the Bureau took up the work.
They were sold without guarantee or adequate statement of per-
formance, and the purchaser had no way of ascertaining just
what he was getting. The manufacturers have cooperated cor-
dially and intelligently in the study that has been in progress,
and in time it is expected that a complete set of specifications and
methods of tests will be developed. In the meantime the manu-
facturers have derived important benefit from the investigation
and the public is getting a better product. Possibly a hundred
million dollars worth of these batteries are made and sold each
year, and if this work could be carried on more adequately and
as thoroughly in all lines as it has already been in some lines, it
seems a safe statement to make that the public would be benefited
not less than five per cent on the entire product. This would
amount to five million dollars per year, which is several times
the cost of all the work of the Bureau of Standards, and more
than a hundred times what the battery work would cost. This
kind of research and educational work is like seed that falls on
good ground and springs up and bears fruit, some thirty, some
sixty, and some a hundred fold.

TESTING OF GOVERNMENT SUPPLIES

23. For many years electric lamps purchased by the govern-
ment have been systematically inspected at the factory and
samples selected for life test in the laboratory. The information
so obtained is utilized in the preparation and periodical revision

ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT 365

of standard specifications which are used in the purchase and
testing of lamps. Formerly lamps were bought by each depart-
ment or government establishment separately, without specifica-
tions or tests. The prices were relatively high and the quality
of the lamps often uncertain or poor. Electric lamps are made
by highly specialized technical processes. It is very easy to
make lamps that will give light, but difficult to make lamps of
high quality. Since government purchases of lamps have been
consolidated into large contracts and lamps have been tested
according to proper specifications, the prices have been the lowest
and the quality of the lamps the highest that the market affords.
The ordering of lamps by each department is now a simple
routine operation, whereas formerly the separate purchasing
of lamps involved dealing with agents of various manufacturers
and guessing as to who offered the best values. The systematic
testing of lamps by the government not only protects the govern-
ment in its purchases, but it protects the public in large measure,
for the testing tends to keep up the quality of the entire product,
and so benefits the public. The value of this work, which puts
the purchase of lamps by the government on a business basis,
and protects the manufacturer of a high-grade product as well as
the user, is many times the cost of the work. The influence of
the government, instead of being hurtful as it formerly was, is
thus stimulating and helpful to the industry, tending to raise
the quality of the product and to improve business methods.

The testing of paper for the government is another example
of constructive work which puts the government's purchases on
a business basis and tends to help the industry instead of degrade
it. Formerly the government bought paper in great quantities
on incomplete specifications with inadequate tests. Manufac-
turers knew^ that they could supply something different from
what was specified, and one who was willing to do so had the
advantage over one who supplied what was called for. This
was an intolerable situation which was corrected when the
specifications were made adequate and tests were complete and
systematic.

366 ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT

The value of such work is incomparably greater than its cost,
and it would be well if all government purchases were as intelli-
gently and systematically handled as lamps and paper and cer-
tain other products now are. It is proposed to establish a cen-
tral purchasing bureau and to have supplies purchased and
delivered in wholesale quantities and tested as to quality, instead
of ordering small lots separately that cannot be inspected or
tested systematically. This would be a long step forward in
putting the business of the government on a business basis.

TEXTILES

24. The textile industrv- is one of the largest and most impor-
tant of our industries and one which concerns every man, woman
and child in the country. If textiles were standardized, so that
they could be bought and sold on adequate and intelHgent speci-
fications, and consumers as well as wholesale and retail dealers
could know what they are buying and could get what they pay
for, it would be of enormous benefit to all. Suppose the brand
or name of every textile product was defined in such a way as to
convey precise information, and the same name always meant
the same quality. And suppose that dyes were tested and cer-
tified, and one could depend on the mark as to their permanence,
and were told what conditions they would stand or would not
stand. Would it not be worth hundreds of millions of dollars
every year to the public to have such information? And would
it not be a boon to honest dealers, both wholesale and retail?
The only class to be injured by such a situation would be those
w^ho thrive by misrepresentation or by selling inferior goods on
their appearance without representation. It seems almost
certain that money intelligently spent in research and education
along the lines indicated would yield results of very great value,
and while it would involve some expense and trouble, it would be
constructive and wealth-producing and would raise the standards
of business. It seems certain that it would be as useful as the
grading of lumber, or cattle, or wheat.

ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT 367

THE CHEMICAL INDUSTRIES

25. Rubber, leather, paints and the chemical industries
generally, include a vast number of products which should be
standardized and described in intelligent specifications. In
many cases the product can be materially improved with little
or no expense, if available information is utilized. Often it is
the difficulty in securing information and not reluctance to use
it that explains the poor quality. There are great numbers of
small manufacturers who would avail themselves, if they could,
of information to improve their product, but who cannot afford
to engage in expensive research to get the information. The
government could supply thousands of small manufacturers
with information on hundreds of subjects if an adequate staff
were made available to do the work, and this would be of direct
benefit to the public which pays the cost. This is cooperative
work of the most practical sort, and it has been done already in
enough cases to demonstrate how productive of good results it is.

SCIENTIFIC INSTRUMENTS

26. The manufacture of scientific instruments has recently
come to be an important industry in this country. This is partly
owing to the greater use than formerly of scientific instruments
in the industries, and partly to the war which has largely reduced
the importation of scientific apparatus from abroad. An increased
protective tariff is proposed to encourage and protect American
manufacturers of such apparatus, but if there are no standards
of excellence set up and no adequate specifications or guarantees,
the purchaser will often be uncertain of what he is getting when
he buys such apparatus. The government would do well to
cooperate actively with the manufacturers and with scientific
and engineering societies in standardizing and describing scien-
tific apparatus, so that the manufacturer will know better the
properties and capabilities of his own output of apparatus, and the
purchaser will know how to select apparatus and whether he gets
what he orders. In other words scientific apparatus should be
scientifically described and intelligently used, and the govern-

368 ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT

ment could render an invaluable service in aiding to bring this
about. The manufacturers of this apparatus are eager for in-
formation, and will do their part in such work. They are calling
for greater ser\dce from the Bureau of Standards in instru-
ment testing than it is able to render because of lack of men
to do the work.

SAFETY RESEARCH AND THE PREPARATION OF SAFETY CODES

27. One of the most valuable opportunities for cooperative
work by the government is in safety research and education;
that is to say, in studying methods of reducing accidents in the
industries and in every-day life, in formulating sets of safety rules
or codes, and in assisting the state industrial commissions in
adopting them and manufacturers in complying with them.
More than 3,000,000 industrial accidents occur every year, of
which 25,000 are fatal. Many millions of dollars are expended
annually by employers for accident compensation, and many
millions more are lost by injured employees in wages not com-
pensated. Nearly every state has an accident commission which
supervises the collection of compensation for accidents, but many
of them do very little to reduce accidents. A few states have
provided their commissions with generous sums to enable them
to prepare safety rules and put them into effect, and valuable
results have been secured by such efforts. Recently a com-
prehensive program of safety work has been prepared in which
many agencies will cooperate. This work includes the prepara-
tion of nearly a hundred different safety codes, covering the
hazards of manufacturing in many dift'erent industries, trans-
portation, mining, and the use of electricity, gas, machinery, and
explosives by the general public. These safety codes are more
than mere sets of safety rules, often amounting to a standardiza-
tion of engineering practice in many aspects of an industry, and
being of great value in promoting efficiency and good practice
as well as safety. They are prepared by the active cooperation
of all the interests concerned, including engineering societies,
industrial and insurance associations, state accident boards,

ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT 369

manufacturers of machinery and appliances, and the federal
government. The work of preparing the codes involves study
and discussion, a comparison of experience and a consideration
of the best operating methods. Efficiency and good service are
considered as prominently as safety. Some of the more impor-
tant examples of these codes are the Steam Boiler Code of the
American Society of Mechanical Engineers, the Electrical Fire
Code of the National Fire Protection Association, the National
Electrical Safety Code of the Bureau of Standards. A national
elevator code, codes for steel mills, blast furnaces, foundries,
machine shops, textile mills, saw mills, and dozens of other
industrial establishments are being prepared or are under con-
sideration. The government is rendering a valuable service in
this work, but the work suffers for lack of funds. The indus-
tries, the engineering societies, and the state commissions are
doing their share of the work. The government's share is im-
portant and should be well done. The cost of the work is trifling
in comparison with its value, and it does not seem possible that
this work will be allowed to lag or cease for want of funds if the
general public could but understand its immense importance
and usefulness. Aside from questions of humanity and the
economic value of human life, the losses in wages and the damages
paid in compensation amount to so many millions annually that
the small amounts required for the government's share of the
work are insignificant in comparison. Probably no work of the
government is more useful or more productive in proportion to
its cost, and none is more needed by the country at large. The
states and the industries are waiting to put these safety codes
into effect, and the great advantage of national uniformity will
result if they are prepared so well that they can come into general
use. The work should be strengthened and enlarged at an early
day, as a measure of efficiency and economy as well as of human-
ity and good government.

METALLURGY, CERAMICS, AERONAUTICS, ETC.

28. Many other examples of the economic importance of
scientific research and standardization could be cited, if time

370 ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT

permitted. The metallurgical industries have been greatly
developed in recent years through scientific research, and there
is now greater activity than ever in this field. The metallurgical
division of the Bureau of Standards works in close cooperation
with the engineering societies and manufacturers, and is doing
work of very great industrial importance. The manufacture of
glass, porcelain, tile, and other clay products has been greatly
stimulated during the war by the cooperation of scientific labora-
tories, and vast benefit would be derived by these industries if
this cooperation could be continued and even increased. The
measurement of temperatures and especially high temperatures
is a problem of continually increasing importance in the indus-
tries, and many scientific investigations are continually arising
in this connection. The intelligent and efficient development
of aeronautics depends on the possession of full and reliable
information as to the properties of materials, the accurate mea-
surement of the performance of machines, experimental researches
in mechanics and aerodynamics, and the most intelligent utiliza-
tion of existing and newly developed information. Considering
the amount of money that is being expended in the development
of aeronautics it would seem that a very considerable amount
should go into scientific research. The measurement of color
and of illumination and of the optical properties of materials
and the development of optical methods and instruments form
together a field of investigation of great scientific and economic
value. It is impossible even to mention all the subjects of
importance in this connection, but enough has been said to show
how vast the field and how practical the results that are obtained
whenever science is appealed to in answering the problems
arising in the industries.

RESEARCH BY LARGE CORPORATIONS

29. The Standard Oil Company has attained a wonderful
reputation for its technical and commercial success in deriving
valuable products from petroleum, a result which could never
have been reached without extensive scientific research.

ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT 37 1

The General Electric Company has achieved notable success
in the development of electrical instruments and machinery,
electric lamps, steam turbines, the applications of electricity
to ship propulsion, etc., and a very large part of this success may
be credited to its scientific and development work. Its research
laboratories have turned out many valuable contributions to
science, in addition to the results of direct application in their
business. The American Telephone and Telegraph Company,
and its subsidiary, the Western Electric Company, have achieved
a world-wide reputation for their development of long distance
telephony, multiplex telephony and telegraphy and radio teleph-
ony as well as for the development of many of the engineering
features of telephone practice of the present day.

These and other great corporations carry on research work
on a generous scale and derive great commercial advantage
therefrom. But thousands of smaller companies cannot do what
they do. The smaller companies are, however, rendering the
public a service that is very essential, and the public will serve
itself by helping them to improve this service. This does not
mean that they will have their burdens carried for them by the
government, but rather that the government as the agent of the
public should participate in research and standardization work
(in cooperation \vith manufacturers' associations and engineering
societies) in order that the public may be better served and in
order that the public may judge more intelligently of the quality
of the product or the service rendered. It is the open door
method of doing business as opposed to the method of keeping
the government and the public in partial ignorance. The
burden of this work when borne by over a hundred million people
is very light; the benefits far outweigh the cost. The American
Telephone and Telegraph Company's research laboratories
employ more research workers in their single field of investiga-
tion than the Bureau of Standards does for all its many lines of
work for all the industries of the country. The results obtained
justify the large expense for research in the telephone field. The
splendid results obtained are not due merely to the fact that
work is well managed and is done by a great corporation; but

372 ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT

rather to the fact that abundant resources (pro\dded of course
by the pubHc) are made available and an adequate scale of salaries
is paid. Government laboratories could do as well if they had
an equal or nearly equal chance ; but they cannot work miracles.

THE ECONOMIC VALUE OF STANDARDIZATION

30. The American Engineering Standards Committee has
recently been formed to promote engineering and industrial
standardization. Five engineering societies and three depart-
ments of the government were represented initially in its mem-
bership. Several additional member societies have just been
added and others will be added from time to time. The Com-
mittee is already actively at work in selecting sponsor societies
for standardization work and approving standards. The govern-
ment is rendering a valuable ser\dce to the industries, and thus
to the people, by cooperating actively in this constructive and
useful work. Manufacturers have not cooperated with one an-
other in the past in standardizing designs as much as they could
have done if there had been some practicable way of cooperating.
They have resented government dictation and control, but they
welcome government cooperation in constructive work that
benefits both them and the public. In many cases the designs
and sizes of machines and materials manufactured by different
concerns are different because development has been independent.
In other cases it is in order to have something upon which to base
a claim of superiority. In either case, too many sizes and
designs and lack of interchangeability increase the cost to the
manufacturer, to the distributor and to the user. Nothing
promotes economy and efficiency in the use of raw materials
and finished products more than intelligent standardization.
It reduces the varieties and sizes of materials that must be
supplied by the manufacturer, lessens the stocks that must be
carried by the distributor, makes the cost of the finished product
less and reduces the trouble and expense to the user in caring for
and keeping in repair machinery and equipment of all kinds.
The high cost of the services of the plumber have been proverbial
for years. Standardization in plumbing fixtures and fittings,

ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT 373

and interchangeability of parts could be carried further than it
has been. This would greatly reduce the charges for time and
material in making repairs as well as in the original installation.
The enormous and confusing variety of lighting fixtures, and the
bad design of many, are due to utter lack of standardization or
cooperation of the manufacturers with one another. Inefficient
and dangerous gas appliances have been sold to the public for
years, and many are still in use. The manufacturers cannot
be blamed, for they cannot separately engage in expensive
research to arrive at correct designs. The only practicable
way is for all to cooperate and for the government to take an
active part, helping the manufacturers to study these problems
of design and standardization intelligently and thoroughly.

THE DUTY AND OPPORTUNITY OF THE GOVERNMENT

31. Such work is constructive and wealth-producing, and
yields returns a hundred-fold upon the investment. The benefit
is almost immediate and not only are there material returns in
decreased costs and improved service, but such cooperation
between the government and the industries raises the standards
of business and is helpful both to the government and to the
industries. It emphasizes good quality and good performance
and good service, and reduces misrepresentation and exaggera-
tion in selling. Is it not the duty of the government to cooperate
more actively in this constructive way with the industries? No
other agency can perform this important function. The govern-
ment would do only a part of the work, but that part is of great
importance. Engineering societies, manufacturers' organiza-
tions, and individual manufacturing companies will do their
part, and in many cases the greater part. But if the govern-
ment refuses to do its part on the ground that it would increase
taxation, the public will not be satisfied with the reason given
when it knows that at the present time out of $50.00 per capita
per annum collected by the government for all purposes, scarcely
more than one cent per capita per annum is expended by the
government for this important work, and five cents per year per

374 ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT

capita would accomplish wonders. The matter is of so fundamental
importance, and promises results of so great economic and social
value, that it is to be hoped that some more adequate effort
along this line may be made. It seems impossible that such
effort would not succeed at least in part, and even a partial
success would more than repay the cost.

The English journal previously quoted says this of the govern-
ment's part in scientific research: "The endowment of research
and the financing of scientific investigation are essential in any
progressive nation, and if the money is well spent no amount allo-
cated to these branches can be too great at the present stage in our
country s history.''

In Great Britain the Engineering Standards Association is
largely financed by the government, while the Department of
Scientific and Industrial Research is a government body financed
entirely by the government. The American Engineering Stand-
ards Committee and the National Research Council (of America)
are financed entirely without government aid. This is an addi-
tional reason why government research institutions in America
should be so well supported that they can do their full duty in
cooperation with privately supported scientific and industrial
institutions which are doing work in the interest of the public.

GOVERNMENT LABORATORIES AND THEIR TRAINED PERSONNEL

AVAILABLE FOR WAR

32. The war called for scientific research in connection with
the standardization and making of munitions, finding and
using substitute materials, locating enemy guns by sound and
flash ranging, locating submarines, building and equipping ships
and submarines, building and equipping airplanes, dirigibles
and balloons, and many other major subjects as well as countless
minor ones. This called for well-equipped scientific laboratories
and the trained personnel of research workers and assistants.
The government laboratories were utilized to the limit of their
capacity, and all kinds of makeshift facilities were pressed into
service. If preparations had been begun several years before,

ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT 375

it is needless to say results would have been obtained sooner and
the war appreciably shortened. In view of this experience, and
the probability that science and technology wull be no less im-
portant in the future than in the past, the question naturally
arises whether the government is making adequate preparation
for scientific research as a part of its program of military pre-
paredness? In time of war the civil branches of the government
will be called upon immediately, and they will be able to render
invaluable service if they are adequately equipped and manned.
In the meantime, pending the arrival of the war, which we hope
will never come, they wall be able to render useful service in civil
problems and so be more than self-supporting. This kind of
preparation for war, which adds nothing to the military budget
if the civil departments are adequately supported, should appeal
to all as practicable and desirable.

SUMMARY OF THE ARGUMENT

33. The federal government, having emerged from participa-
tion in the World War, finds itself with a large debt and heavy
annual charges caused by the war. These together with the
current cost of the army and navy amount for the present fiscal
year to 92.8 per cent of the total budget. The cost of public
works and the necessary administrative cost of the federal
government amounts to 6.2 per cent of the total. There remains
one per cent for a large number of governmental activities
classed as research, educational and developmental. The ques-
tion arises whether in the interest of economy and efficiency
the one per cent shall be decreased ; or because this work is con-
structive and of great economic value it shall be increased,
possibly doubled. The arguments in favor of increasing it may
be summarized as follows :

(i) The government should be constructive and helpful to
the people and to business wherever possible. It should carry
on scientific research, promote education, develop the industries,
assist in improving commercial and industrial methods, and
furnish technical information to manufacturers and others, as

376 ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT

well as develop agriculture and the public domain. Such service
by the government tends to establish good relations with busi-
ness, to elevate business methods, to increase efficiency and to
educate the public. The many services thus rendered cost very
little in the aggregate as compared with the total expense of the
government, but they are of great practical value and are appre-
ciated by the people. One per cent of the total expenses of the
government spent in this constructive way seems a very small pro-
portion in view of the wide range and the economic value oj such
work.

(2) But a part of this one per cent is incurred in behalf of the
government itself, to enable the government to purchase its
supplies intelligently and to do business in a businesslike way.
Without this research and testing work the government would
waste more in buying than it would save by eliminating the
research and testing. Making purchases without full technical
information is embarrassing to public officials and unsatisfactory
to business; whereas by always using intelligently drawn speci-
fications and making adequate tests, the government can save
money, elevate its own service and improve business methods.
Much but not enough of this kind of work is now done. It is
the duty of the government to set a good example before the
business world of efficient and intelligent methods and fair
dealing; neither accepting goods below the specified quality nor
demanding more than is specified. The government would spend
less for its purchases if it spent more in standardizing the products
purchased and in testing deliveries systematically.

(3) But apart from the service the government can render its
citizens, and the benefit to the state resulting from scientific,
educational, and developmental work, and apart from the
benefit to the government of having the results of such work in
constructing buildings and other public works, and carrying on
its business, this kind of work develops wealth, and the increased
wealth can be taxed, and hence there is a third reason for increas-
ing such work. The war has made it necessary to raise many
times the revenue formerly required, and the taxation is now an
important issue. Economizing in the use of raw materials, using

ROSA; SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT 377

cheaper materials, reducing waste, developing the public domain,
increasing manufacturing efficiency, reducing distribution costs,
all tend to create wealth and to make it easier for the government
to raise the needed revenue. Therefore, if there were no other
reason, this consideration should appeal to legislators and busi-
ness men alike ; namely, that research and development work by the
government develop wealth, and the burden of taxation is thereby
lightened.

(4) But there is another powerful economic reason for increas-
ing the productive developmental work of the government.
The rising cost of living not only leads to hardship and distress,
but to industrial unrest, strikes, disorders and great economic
losses to the nation. In order to check rising prices, and if possi-
ble bring down prices, it will be necessary to increase production.
To do this it is necessary to reduce waste and increase efficiency.
This requires greater intelligence and fuller knowledge, and calls
for education, the results of scientific investigation and of intelli-
gent and extensive industrial research. The government could
not and should not do it all. But neither should it refuse to do
its part, and its part often is to take the lead in a constructive
and statesmanlike way. It is stupid and blind to think that
because taxes are heavy we cannot afford to do things intelli-
gently. If a farmer's barn burns down, he would not sell half
his supply of seed and fertilizer to buy lumber, and then plant
only half a crop. He would, if necessary, borrow money to buy
more seed and plant a larger crop than usual, in order to increase
his income and pay for the new barn more easily. Intelligent
research by the government, in cooperation with the industries, is
like seed and fertilizer to a farmer. It stimulates production and
increases wealth, and pays for itself many-fold. It is as produc-
tive and profitable in peace as in war.

(5) Finally, if the reasons already adduced are not sufficient,
there remains the military reason. The development of our
intellectual, moral, and material resources is the best prepara-
tion for war. Food and manufacturing facilities, and adequate
supplies of raw materials and transportation systems and scien-
tific attainments and the equipment and trained personnel

378 ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT

available for military^ research, these together with an intelligent
citizenry and a just cause are the best preparation for war. A
standing army and fleets of battleships are necessary but not a
sui!icient preparation, even if the army is armed to the teeth and
the battleships are the heaviest or the swiftest in the world.
The Great War demonstrated that modem wars are not of armies
but of peoples, and their resources and their intellectual and
industrial resourcefulness are more important than the initial
equipment of armies and fleets. Therefore, a government that
pays much attention to education and research and industrial
developmental work is making the best preparation for possible
wars of the future. This fortunately produces good results if war
never comes. By increasing the power and prestige of the nation,
such preparation tends to prevent war, and so pays for itself twice
over.

CONCLUSION

34. Probably everyone will grant the principle that a govern-
ment should do something to educate the people, and to develop
the industries and the natural resources of the country. It is
only a question of the scope and extent of such work. The
government has already done much, but in comparison with
the needs and the opportunity it is inadequate. Cooperation
of all the people in developing themselves and improving their
condition and securing protection against the selfish and unfair
efforts of individuals or corporations or groups, is more necessary
in the modern state than formerlv. And when the state con-
tains a hundred million people and covers a continent, effective
cooperation in many cases can be attained only by government
assistance and leadership. Friendly governmental cooperation
and constructive assistance in the industries are more welcome
than regulation and repression. We must have the latter in
some cases, and that is an additional reason why we should have
a generous measure of the former. How far we should go experi-
ence alone can determine. But we should have the courage to
face the facts, to analyze them correctly and, both in the govern-
ment and in the nation, to do as well as we know how. We should

ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT

379

strive for a higher and truer efficiency, for efficiency in the govern-
ment, efficiency in labor, efficiency in business; and the govern-
ment should not fail to do its part, which in many cases is to take
the lead. If the government will cooperate with the industries
in peace as earnestly and effectively as the industries cooperated
with the government in war, it would be of vast benefit to the
public, which pays all the costs.

JSJ4

JS20

17
JET

^J0

Fig. 3. — Diagrammatic comparison by groups of appropriations for the fiscal years

1914 and 1920.

380 ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT

Appropriations for Fiscal Year Ending June 30, 1920

(As given in the regular supply bills and three deficiency bills prior to May i, 1920.)

Group I. — Expenditures Arising from Recetit and Previous Wars:

Interest on the Public Debt" $1 ,076,637,000.00

Pensions 216,382 ,540.00

War Risk Insurance (estimated expenses above receipts

$102,000,000) 120,852 ,806.00

Federal Board for Vocational Education (rehabilitation) 30,000,000.00

Public Health Service (care of soldiers, etc.) 25,901 ,517. 14

Soldiers' and Sailors' Homes, Cemeteries, etc 14,639,010.00

Federal Control of Transportation (deficit and advances)''. . . i ,550,000,000.00
United States Shipping Board (estimated expenses, including

funds reappropriated) 685 , 842 , 000 . 00

European Food Relief 100,000,000.00

Other Expenditures due to Recent War 4,467,712.46

Bonus to Government Employees 30,760,000.00

67-81%, $3,855,482,585.60
" Disbursements for interest on public debt for the fiscal year 1920 will be some-
what less than appropriations.

'' Appropriations to Railroads include $300,000,000 loan, but do not include
the deficit from March i to June 30, 1920.

Group II. — War and Navy Departments (somewhat above permanent peace-time ex-
penditures) :"

War Department — Military $797,913,898.95

Civilian 6,373,949. 12

S 804,287,848.07

Navy Department — Military 617,621 ,353 56

Civilian 2 ,229,474.94

619,850,828.50

25.02%, $1,424,138,676.57

" Disbursements for fiscal year 1920 will exceed by about one billion of dollars
the above appropriations for the War and Navy Departments because of balance
of appropriations carried over from 1919.
Group III. — Primary Governmental Functions:

Legislative $ 10,837,936.47

Executive (President and White House Staff) 224,080.00

Judicial (federal courts, penal establishments, etc.) 12 , 124,884. 24

Department of Justice 4 , 483 , 67 1 . 70

State Department 1 2 , 33 1 , 37 1 . 97

Treasury Department:

General, including Collection of Customs $ 29,065,653.22

Internal Revenue Service 29, 751,1 70. 00

Coast Guard 8 , 880 , 523 . 33

Bureau of Engraving and Printing 7,810,425.00

74.707,771-55

ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT 38 1

Department of Interior:

General, including Alaskan Expenditures $ 1,940,684.92

Indian Office and Indian Service 11,437,187.00

$ I3-377. 871-92

Department of Commerce :

General, including Bureau of Navigation 920,725.52

Bureau of Lighthouses 8,411, 030 . 00

Steamboat Inspection Service 995 > 890 . 00

Bureau of Census 1 7 , 55o , 000 . 00

27,877,645.52

Department of Agriculture :

Meat Inspection Service 3 , 000 , 000 . 00

Department of Labor — Immigration, Naturalization, Em-
ployees' Compensation, Conciliation, etc 5.464,337-32

Interestate Commerce Commission 5,313,086.90

Federal Trade Commission i , 205 , 000 . 00

Civil Service Commission 543 . 700 . 00

Joint Commission on Reclassification of Salaries 50,000.00

U. S. Tariff Commission 300,000.00

Bureau of Efficiency 145,000.00

One-half District of Columbia, Hospitals, etc 9 , 100 , 867 . 82

3.19%, $ 181,087,225.41
Group IV. — Public Works:

War Department — Rivers and Harbors $ 43 > 456, 653 . 15

Treasury Department — Public Buildings (equipment and con-
struction) 10,319,076.11

Repairs and Maintenance of Public Buildings in D. C i , 139,633.20

U. S. Reclamation vService 7 - 5 1 1 . 000 . 00

Department of Agriculture — Rural Post Roads 99,000,000.00

National Park Service 777 . i95 00

Construction of Railroad in Alaska 6,000,000.00

2.97%, $ 168,203,557-46
Croup V. — Commercial or Self-Supporting Government Activities:

Post Office Department, surplus, 1919 $ 2,342,851.96

Department of Interior:

Patent Office, surplus, 1919 106,654.10

General Land Office, estimated surplus,

1920 1 ,500,000.00

U. S. Housing Corporation, estimated oper-
ating surplus, 1920 1 ,012 ,973 .00

Panama Canal, estimated deficit, 1920. . . . 3, 297, 337. 00

Group VI. — Research, Educational and Developmental:
Department of Agriculture:

Forest Service — Less Receipts of $4,750,-

000.00 $ 4,191,869.00

Bureau of Animal Industry 5 , 783 , 23 1 . 00

States Relations Service 4 , 905 , 820 . 00

382

ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT

Bureau of Plant Industry $ 3 ,379,638.00

Cooperative Agricultural Extension Work 3,080,000 00

Bureau of Markets 2,811, 365 00

Weather Bureau i , 880 , 2 1 o oc

Bureau of Entomology i >37i ,360.00

Bureau of Chemistry i ,391 ,571 .00

Bureau of Biological Survey 742 ,170.00

Bureau of Public Roads 594,320.00

Bureau of Soils 49 1 , 235 00

Bureau of Crop Estimates 372,484.56

Bureau of Farm Management and Farm

Economics 302 ,590.00

Horticultural and Insecticide Board 252 ,940 00

Miscellaneous Investigations 2 ,589.400 00

General Administration i , 7 1 5 , 626 58

S 35 , 855 , 830 . 1 4

Department of the Interior:

Geological Survey i , 661 , 353 . 50

Bureau of Mines 1 , 2 1 6 , 897 , 00

Bureau of Education 241 ,960.00

Howard University 1 2 1 , 937 75

3.242,148.25

Department of Commerce:

Coast and Geodetic Survey 1 .925 ,370.03

Bureau of Standards i ,892,260.00

Bureau of Fisheries i ,274,490.00

Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Com-
merce 9 1 2 , 5 1 o 00

' 6 . 004 , 630 . 00

Department of Labor:

Bureau of Labor Statistics 32 1 ,690 00

Children's and Women's Bureaus 320, 140.00

64 I , 830 . 00

Treasury Department — Public Health Service 4.025,440.00

Federal Board for Vocational Education 3 , 182 ,000.00

Colleges for Agricultural and Mechanic Arts 2 ,500,000.00

Library of Congress 925 ,825 .00

Smithsonian Institution 7 ' 5 > 957 5 1

1.01%, S 57 -093 ,660.93
Summary
Group 1. Expenditures arising from Recent and

Previous Wars $3 , 855 , 482 , 585 . 60 67 . 81 %

Group II. War and Navy Departments i ,424,138,676.57 25.02%

Group III. Primary Government Functions 181,087,225.41 3 19%

Group IV. Public Works 168,203,557.46 2.97%

Group VI. Research, Educational and Develop-
mental 57.093.660.93 I 01%

Total $5,686,005,705 97 100.00%

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

THE MEYER MEMORIAL MEDAL

Frank N. Meyer was an agricultural explorer in the Office of For-
eign Seed and Plant Introduction, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S.
Department of iVgriculture. For thirteen years he searched through
China, Turkestan and other parts of Asia, for plants which might be
valued additions to American agriculture and horticulture. When he
lost his life on the Yangtze River in 1918,' he left a bequest of a thousand
dollars to the staff of the Washington Office. The individuals of the
Office have put the bequest into a permanent tribute to his memory,
in the shape of a medal, designed by Theodore Spicer-Simson, which
is to be awarded for distinctive service in plant introduction. The
awards are to be made by the Council of the American Genetic Asso-
ciation.

The first award was made on May 3, 1920, when the medal was
presented to Mr. Barbour Lathrop. Dr. David Fairchild, in behalf
of the Council, presented the medal. Mr. Lathrop had a large part
in the founding of the Office of Foreign Seed and Plant Introduction,
and has been intimately connected with it since. He and Dr. Fair-
child comprised one of the first exploration expeditions, and visited
the West Indies, South America, Europe, Egypt, India, Ceylon and the
East Indies. Many introductions now growing in this country were
secured on this and subsequent trips which Mr. Lathrop conducted
and financed. The first seed of the Egyptian cotton, the culture of
which now amounts to $20,000,000 a year in Arizona, was brought in
by them. The tropical mangos, now an industry in Florida; the Per-
sian Gulf dates, peculiarly successful in the Imperial Valley; Sumatra
wrapper tobacco, now famous in Connecticut; the first large collection
of Japanese flowering cherries; Rhodes grass, which has been called
the timothy of the South; and varieties of soy beans and the oriental
timber and edible bamboos of Japan, which are now represented by
groves in various parts of the South, were also secured.

NOTES

With a view to determining the exact routes followed by migratory
birds, their speed of travel, the causes of unusual movements by such
birds, and many other questions of interest to naturalists as well as to
the public, the Bureau of Biological Survey, U. S. Department of
Agriculture, has taken over the work heretofore carried on by the
American Bird Banding Association, which has headquarters at the
American Museum of Natural History, New York City. This work
includes the trapping of birds and the placing of identification bands
on their legs, after which the birds are released. Subsequent discovery
of these bands on trapped or dead birds is reported by the finders to
those in charge of the work. The Biological Survey asks the coopera-

^ See This Journal, 8: 463. 1918. 9: 559. 1919.

383

384 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

tion of all former members of the Bird Banding Association and the
public in general, particularly persons in a position to establish trapping
stations. Arrangements are being made to supply volunteer coopera-
tors with numbered aluminum bands.

Dr. N. E. DoRSEY, physicist in charge of investigations of radio-
active substances at the Bureau of Standards, resigned from the Bureau
in April. He expects to complete his work at the Bureau by the end of
June, and will then go into private consulting and testing work. He
will give especial attention to those physical problems that are of in-
terest to members of the medical profession.

Mr. E. D. Gordon of the Weights and Measures Division, Bureau
of Standards, resigned on Alay 31 to accept a position as sales engineer
with the General Automatic Scale Company of St. Louis.

Mr. C. H. KiDWELL, Chief of the Water Resources Laboratory, U. S.
Geological Survey, resigned in May to accept a position with the
Solvay Process Company at Syracuse, New York.

Dr. F. KOLPIN Ravn, of Denmark, visited the Bureau of Plant
Industry in May. He was in the United States in the interests of
Danish potato growers, as considerable quantities of potatoes are being
shipped from Denmark and have to pass certain inspection regulations
before being permitted to enter the country-. Dr. Ravn, when in the
United States in 1915 as a guest of the Department of Agriculture, dis-
covered the stripe rust of wheat in Arizona and later in other western
States. 1

Mr. Cephas Hempstone Sinclair, hydrographic and geodetic
engineer in the U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, died on May 16,
1920, in his seventy-third year. Mr. Sinclair was born at Charlottes-
ville, Virginia, December 4, 1847. After graduating from the Uni-
versity of Virginia he entered the Coast and Geodetic Survey as an aid
in 1873, ^nd had been in the service since that date. For a number of
years, ending in 191 3, he was in charge of a party engaged in the survey
of the boundary between the United States and Canada. He was a
member of the Academy, the Philosophical Society, and the Society
of Engineers.

Dr. Alexander Wetmore of the Biological Survey, U. S. Depart-
ment of Agriculture, has gone to Buenos Aires in connection with an
investigation into the status of certain of our migratory birds that pass
a part of the year in southern South America. Extended field observa-
tions to determine local conditions affecting these birds, covering ap-
proximately a year, will be made in Argentina and adjacent countries.

1 After this item went to press word was received that Dr. Ravn died on May 24,
at East Orange, New Jersey.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. io JULY 19, 1920 No. 13

GEOCHEMISTRY.- — Analysis of a brine from the Ligonier well
in Pennsylvania. C. H. KidwELL, Water Laboratory, U. S.
Geological Survey. (Communicated by C. 'E. Van Orst-
rand.)^

By the courtesy of Mr. J, B. Tonkin, Vice President of the
Peoples Natural Gas Company, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania,
a sample of a brine obtained at a depth of 6,184 feet in the
Ligonier well was furnished to the U. S. Geological Survey for
analysis. The Ligonier well, the Peoples Natural Gas Com-
pany's well No. 1588, is located less than one mile northwest of
Longbridge, Pa., in Westmoreland County, between Loyalhanna
Creek and the Lincoln Highway. It is the fifth deepest well
in the world at this time and drilling is to be continued. With
one exception, which will be considered later, no other analyses
of ground water from this depth are available. Collection of the
sample was made February 20, 1920. A half million cubic-foot
flow of gas was encountered in the well at a depth of 6,822 feet.
Results of an analysis of the water are given in table i.

Reference to the table of reacting values (table 2), in which the
values of the radicals are arranged in order of descending magni-
tude, shows that practically all the constituents of the brine are
present in the form of chlorides, and although the fallacies of
hypothetical combinations of the constituents of a water con-
taining several different acidic radicles are too well established
to warrant making hypothetical combinations as a general rule,
in this case it happens that if the chloride were distributed among

' Published by permission of the Director, U. S. Geological Survey. Received
May 8, 1920.

385

386

KEDWEI^I/ :• ANALYSIS' OP A BRINE

the basic radicles as they are arranged in the table of reacting
values, the approximate percentages of the principal salts could
be easily calculated because the chloride represents practically
all the acidic radicles.

TABLE I
Chemical Analysis op Water prom Ligonier Well

Grams per liter

Silica

Iron

Aluminum

Titanium

Manganese

Calcium

Strontium

Barium

Magnesium

Lead

Bismuth

Sodium

Potassium

Carbonate radicle. .
Bicarbonate radicle.
Phosphate radicle . .

Chloride radicle

Sulphate radicle

Nitrate radicle

Bromide radicle

Iodide radicle

Radium"

Sum

0.008

0.084

0.057

None

0.014

8.68

0.68

0.13

1.42

None

30.13
0.63
None
None
None
67.14
0.033
Trace
None
0.022
No appreciable quantity de-
tected by gold-leaf electro-
scope

109.028

T-" lids, converting Al to AI2O3 and Fe to FeaOs 109 . 114

SpecJ^ gravity at 23.4° C i .0777

Temperature of water at point of entrance into well, 67.3° C.^
The brine was slightly acid to methyl red and possessed a "stale" odor.
" Determined by Dr. L. I. Shaw, Bureau of Mines, Washington, D. C.
* Estimated for 6,184 feet from a series of temperature measurements made from
depths of 100 to 6,000 feet by Mr. C. E. Van Orstrand, U. S. Geological Survey.

A comparison of the analysis of the brine with that of an
average analysis of sea water- shows that this brine is over three

2 Clarke, F. W. The data of geochemistry, U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 695: 123.
1920.

kidwell: analysis of a brine

387

times as highly mineraHzed as ocean water. It is remarkable
in its content of iodide in the absence of bromide, and to a lesser
extent in its content of barium, manganese, and strontium.

According to Dr. Charles Butts, ^ Geologist, U. S. Geological
Survey, the brine probably issued from shales representing the
top or middle of the Hamilton formation of the Middle Devonian.

TABLE 2
Reacting Values in Milligram Equivalents per Liter"

. 1307-6;

•• 1893.35

433 13

SO4

0. 6864

116.58

0.1733

16.109

15-517

1 . 898

0 . 5096

Total acidic radicles

Total basic radicles*... .

1891.3836

1894.2097

° The reacting value of an element or radicle is obtained by dividing its valence
by its molecular weight and multiplying the resultant quotient by the number of
milligrams of the element or radicle obtained analytically. It may be defined as its
equivalence in capacity for chemical reaction to 1.008 milligrams of hydrogen or
8.000 milligrams of oxygen.

* Fe and A' are considered to be present as Fe203 and AI2O3 and therefore do
not enter into the sum of reacting values.

Many hypotheses have been proposed to explain the origin of
deep-seated brines. Several investigators have assumed that
they represent entrapped ancient sea waters the composition
of which has been altered by such agencies as precipitation,
reactions from contact with basic magmas, evaporation, and
leaching of sedimentary beds by percolating ground waters.

Such hypotheses are inadequate for the explanation of differ-
ences in the chemical character of deep-well brines and the ocean
as it exists at the present time or as it existed in the past. The
chemical composition of the Devonian sea is conjectural. It
may have contained either more or less calcium and magnesium
than the present ocean and the predominance of magnesium over
calcium that now obtains in the ocean may have been reversed

^ Personal communication.

388 KID well: analysis of a brine

in the ancient sea on account of a lesser number of calcium-
secreting organisms, or the fact that they had not been active
for a sufficient period of time to decrease the calcium content
of the old ocean comparable to that of the modern sea. It is
difficult to believe, moreover, that organisms could exist in a
brine as concentrated as the one here described.

In order to explain satisfactorily the reversal of the calcium-
magnesium ratio in brines of this nature as compared with sea
water, the greater concentration of salts in the brines, the higher
ratio of calcium to chloride in the brines, and the fact that mere
concentration of water such as now constitutes the ocean will
not form brines similar to those obtained from supposed fossilized
oceans, it must be assumed that extensive alterations of the old
ocean waters have occurred since the time of their inclusion.
This has been discussed in a most excellent paper by R. Van A.
Mills and Roger C. Wells ^ who advance the hypothesis that
deep-seated brines are derived in part from waters of sedimenta-
tion, often described as "connate waters," and in part from
meteoric waters the mixture of which in the lapse of geologic
time has suffered vast changes through such geophysical and
geochemical changes as concentration, evaporation, leaching of
sediments, reduction of some constituents by organic matter,
heat, pressure, incursion of petroleum, rock movements, and
cementation. Concentration and evaporation have been ma-
terially assisted by the expansion or movement of gases through
underground passages which have absorbed some of the water
as moisture during their contact with it.

Several possible explanations are offered by Mills and Wells for
the predominance of calcium over magnesium in deep-seated
brines. At moderate temperatures hydrolysis may occur and
the magnesium be precipitated as hydroxide, basic carbonat or
carbonate. According to Hunt,^ magnesium silicates and calcium
chloride are formed when magnesium chloride reacts with calcium

* Mills, R. Van A., and Wells, Roger C. The evaporation and concentration
of waters associated with petroleum and natural gas. U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 693.
1919.

5 Hunt, T. S. Chemical and geological essays, p. 122. 1878.

CHITTENDEN: SPECIES OF PHYLLOTRETA 389

silicates. Magnesium may have been separated from solution
by this process.

Only one other analysis of a brine from a depth comparable to
that from which this brine was obtained has been made, as far
as is known. It was made by George Steiger^ and represents a
brine that is similar in chemical composition to the one reported
here. The principal points of dissimilitude are that Steiger
reported no silica, aluminum, or manganese, and only a trace of
barium, all of which were obtained in small quantities in this
analysis; he found bromide to be predominant over iodide, while
in this brine iodide occurs to the exclusion of bromide; and he
determined the total solids to be 263.64 grams in 1,000 grams.

ENTOMOLOGY.— A new species of PhyllotretaA F. H. Chit-
tenden, Bureau of Entomology. (Communicated by L. O.
Howard.)
In studying the injurious genus Phyllotreta accumulated in
the U. S. National Museum and Bureau of Entomology, a species
is found which is new to science. Like others of the genus, it
attacks and undoubtedly breeds on cruciferous plants and is at
least a potential pest. The description follows:

Phyllotreta utana Chittenden, sp. nov.

Elongate oval, moderately convex, shining black except last ventral
segment which is opaque ; thorax and elytra variably black or aeneous ;
elytral vittae very narrow, pale yellowish. An-
tennae less than half as long as body, joints 2
to 5 usually honey yellow, i and 6 either black
or partly pale, remainder piceous. Each elytron
with a very narrow v-tta, moderately sinuate,
curvature scarcely reaching beyond middle of
elytron either at base or apex; each vitta with
a short broad post-humeral branch. Tibiae
piceous, tarsi fuscous.

Male: Last ventral segment large, concave,
nearly as long as segments 2-4 combined, mod-
erately impressed at apex with a short median
impressed line at base. Antennal joints 2-3-4 Fig- 1.— Phyllotreta utana

® Clarke, F. W. Water analyses from the laboratory of the United States Geolog-
ical Survey. U. S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply Paper 364: 9. 1914.
^ Received June 8, 1920.

390 CHITTENDEN: SPECIES OF PHYLLOTRETA

subequal in length ; 3 and 4 subtriangular ; 3 distinctly wider ; 4 much
wider ; 5 depressed, wider than 4, about one-half longer than wide, ante-
rior ace shorter than posterior, nearly straight ; 6 short, basal part gen-
erally pale and apical piceous.

Female: Last ventral segment simple and shorter. Antennae as
in zimmermanni and vittata.

Length, 2.5-3.0 mm.; width, 1.4-1.5 mm.

Logan, Utah (type locality), July 9-12, 1906; June 20, 1904; Alta,
Utah, June 29 (E. D. Ball and E. G. Titus); Park City, Utah, June 17,
(Hubbard & Schwarz); Elko, Nev.; Corvallis, Ore. (C. F. Moznette.)

Type No. 23114, IJ. S. National Museum.

A good series of specimens shows considerable variation. One
individual has all antennal joints piceous and another has bluish
elytral humeri. The general appearance and punctation are
similar to zimmermanni. In addition to the distinctive characters
of the antennae (the fifth joint is flat, not bowed) and last ventral
segment of the male, the elytral vittae are quite difTerent from
other species, approaching zimmermanni, but pale, not distinctly
yellow as in that species. It is also larger than the latter, which
measures only 2-2.5 mm.

This species was observed by Prof. E. G. Titus and Dr. E. D.
Ball at Logan, Utah, in June, 1904, attacking sugar beet. It
was abundant in a beet field overgrown with hedge mustard, on
which it was also taken.

ABSTRACTS

BOTANY. — Germination of barley pollen. Stephen Anthony and
Harry V. Harlan. Journ. Agric. Res. 18: 525-536. 1920.

The paper reports the first artificial germination of barley pollen
and gives in detail the methods by which this was accomplished. It
was found that barley pollen was extremely sensitive to moisture, so
sensitive that it could be killed by blowing one's breath upon it. It
was equally sensitive to dryness, shrinking perceptibly in two min-
utes when exposed to free air. A few minutes of such exposure resulted
in death. All attempts to germinate the pollen in solutions or upon
media or membranes, resulted in failure. Germination was finally
accomplished by exposing the pollen to an atmosphere in which the
humidity gradually increased. Growth of lengthy tubes occiured in
five minutes. H. V. H.

BOTANY. — The genera of grasses in the United States with special
reference to the economic species. A. S. Hitchcock. U. S. Dept.
Agric. Bull. 772. Pp. 307, pis. 20, figs. 174. 1920.

This paper contains an introduction on the scope and plan of the
work, including an economic classification of grasses based on uses;
a description of the grass family; descriptions of the subfamilies with
keys to the tribes, and under each tribe, keys to the genera and descrip-
tions of the genera. The arrangement of the tribes differs from the
usual presentation in that the more primitive are placed first, thus:
Bamboseae, Festuceae, Hordeae, Aveneae, Agrostideae, Nazieae,
Chlorideae, Phalarideae, Oryzeae, Zizanieae, Melinideae, Paniceae,
Andropogoneae, Tripsaceae. Under each genus is given a technical
description, with synonymy. The type of each genus is selected whether
the names are valid or cited in synonymy, and the reasons for the selec-
tion are given in all cases. Following this under each genus is given
information on all species that are likely to have attracted the atten-
tion of agriculturists. Each genus is illustrated by one figure and the
larger genera by more than one. There are 144 genera described.

A. S. H.
391

392 abstracts: botany

BOTANY. — Efeci of the relative length oj day and night and other fac-
tors of the environment on growth and reproduction in plants. W.
W. Garner and H. A. Allard. Journ. Agric. Res. 18:
553-606. 1920.

It is found that the relative length of the day to which the plant is
exposed is in many species a factor of great importance in growth and
development, especially as regards sexual reproduction. While early,
medium, late and very late maturing varieties of so3'beans required at
Washington about 26, 62, 73 and no days, respectively, to attain the
flowering stage when exposed to the full seasonal length of day of the
summer, all of these varieties flowered within 28 days when the daily
light exposure was reduced to 12 hours or less. Certain varieties of
tobacco, aster, ragweed, ttc, behaved similarly. On the other hand,
certain plants, as Raphanus, Hibiscus, and Mikania, flowered only
under a relatively long daily light exposure. By suitable control of
the daily light exposure certain annuals were forced to complete two
cycles of alternate vegetative and reproductive activity in a single
season. It was found, also, that flowering may be delayed more or
less indefinitely when the length of the exposure is unfavorable, and
this may result in a corresponding prolongation in the period of growth.
By use of tungsten filament electric lamps to increase the illumination
period of the short winter days the results obtained with several species
were similar to those obtained during the natural long days of summer,
i. e., the vegetative or the reproductive phases of development were
initiated or inhibited, depending on the specific requirements of the
plants used. With an illumination period favorable both to vegetative
and reproductive activity there was a marked tendency in several
species toward the "ever-blooming" or "ever-bearing" habit. In all
species studied the rate of growth (increase in height) was proportional
to the length of the daily period of illumination. Although the length
of the daily illumination period may exercise a controlling influence on
the attainment of the reproductive stage, it appears from experiments
detailed in this paper that differences in light intensity ranging from
full normal sunlight to less than a fourth of the normal do not greatly
affect this phase of plant development. Hence it is concluded that,
within the range indicated, the total quantity of solar radiation re-
ceived by the plant daily during the summer season is of little impor-
tance directly as regards attainment of the flowering stage. The term
photoperiodism is suggested to indicate the response of the organism to
the relative length of day and night. W. W. G.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES
WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

141ST MEETING

The 141st meeting of the Academy was held jointly with the Biolog-
ical Society of Washington at the Cosmos Club, at 8.15 p.m. on Satur-
day, February 21 1920. Alfred G Mayor, Director of the Depart-
ment of Marine Biology of the Carnegie Institution of Washington,
delivered an address, illustrated with lantern slides, on The coral reefs
of American Samoa. A brief abstract of the address has been pub-
lished in the proceedings of the Biological Society (see this Journal,
10: 309. May 19, 1920).

142D meeting

The i42d meeting was held jointly with the Anthropological Society
o.' Washington in the auditorium of the National Museum, at 8.15
p.m. on Saturday, March 6, 1920. President G. M. Kober of the
Anthropological Society presided. W. H. R. RivERS, of St. John's
College, Cambridge, England, delivered an address on Ethnology: its
aims and needs.

143D MEETING

The 143d meeting was held at the Cosmos Club at 8.15 p.m. on
Thursday, March 18, 1920. President C. L Alsberg presided. J.
Walter Fewkes, Chief of the Bureau of American Ethnology, Smith-
sonian Institution, delivered an address, illustrated with lantern slides,
on American archaeology: its history and technique.

144TH MEETING

The 144th meeting was held jointly with the Chemical Society of
Washington (the local section or the American Chemical Society) at
the Cosmos Club, at 8.15 p.m. on Thursday, March 25, 1920. Presi-
dent C. O. Johns of the Chemical Society presided. E. T. Wherry,
of the Bureau of Chemistry, U. S. Department of Agriculture, delivered
an address, illustrated with lantern slides and experiments, on Soil
reaction and plant distribution.

The methods used in testing soils, and a proposed method of state-
ment of acidity and alkalinity, have already been published in the
Journal,^ and a paper on the subject for one of the botanical journals
is in preparation.

1 This Journal, 9: 305-309. 1919. 10:217-223. April 19, 1920.

393

394 proceedings: academy

i45th meeting

The 145th meeting of the Academy was held jointly with the Medical
Society of the District of Columbia and the Anthropological Society
of Washington on Wednesday March 31, 1920. The meeting was
called to order at 8.20 p.m. in the assembly hall of the Carnegie In-
stitution of Washington by President F. R. Hagner of the Medical
Society. Sir Arthur Newsholme K.C.B., formerly Chief Medical
Officer of Health of the Local GoYcrnment Board of England, and
during the past season Professor of Hygiene in the School of Public
Health of Johns Hopkins UniYersity, Baltimore, Maryland, deliYered
an address on The uational importance of child welfare work. The
address was illustrated with lantern slides.

The lecturer sketched briefly the history of the development of child
welfare work in England. It arose out of the gradual awakening of the
people to the risks of unhygienic euYironment, emphasized by the
ravages of the great plagues such as cholera and typhus fever. The
growth of industrialism and the increasing population of the cities are
really at the bottom of this awakening. The health reforms of the
past seventy years are a part of the attack made on the problems
raised by these two conditions.

The study of these problems and their remedies has increasingly
emphasized the fact that the death rate in childhood is unnecessarily
high. The study of the death rate of children carries us still farther
back and shows that the care of the mother immediately before and
after the birth of the child is as necessary as the care of the children
themselves.

To reduce this needless loss of mothers and children, which is com-
parable in magnitude with the loss of life in the Great War, the follow-
ing conditions must be ameHorated: (i) Careless, shiftless, or im-
moral motherhood or fatherhood. (2) Ignorance, especially of civic
duties, of the most desirable ideals of family life, and of the elementary
methods of proper housekeeping and cooking. The ignorance of the
poor is more serious than the ignorance of the rich, since the ignorance
of the rich can be made up for from without. (3) The lack of the
essentials of life and health such as proper food and clothing and expert
assistance at critical periods. (4) Ignorance of the public and its
eaders as to the actual conditions in the community, which can be
remedied either by surveys in specialized fields, or, better, by com-
petent statistics which are in reality a continuous survey. It is in this
feature particularly that the public health movement in the United
States is hitherto lacking. The statistics of birth and puerperal
diseases are most strikingly inadequate in the United States, and no
solid progress can be made until the data by which such progress can
be measured are made more complete and dependable.

Nutrition is the be-all and end-all of a child's life up to the age of
seven, and all other things must be subsidiary. The agencies to be
considered and improved are play, sleep, cleanliness, exercise, food, and

PROCeeoiNGS : PHIIvOSOPHICAL SOCIETY 395

shelter. The lecturer exhibited a series of tables, curves, and columnar
diagrams illustrating the statist cs that have been obtained on these
subjects in England, and the decrease in infant and child mortality
that has followed improvements in the conditions. An item of particu-
lar interest in this series of data dealt with the effect of diminished
infant mortality on the death rate of the community as a whole. It
has been urged by many that the saving of infant lives works directly
against that process of natural selection which is assumed under the
conditions of civilized life to continue to weed out unlit individuals
early in life. If this were the case it is to be expected that com-
munities having a high infant mortality should show a decreased
mortality in part or all of the subsequent age periods. The statistics
show that exactly the contrary is the case. Individuals in a com-
munity with high infant mortality have a smaller expectation of life
throughout their entire period of life than do individuals in a com-
munity with low infant mortality. In other words, any action of
natural selection that continues is so small a factor under present condi-
tions that it does not appear on the curves. The same preponderant
effect of evil environmental circumstances persists in the successive
years of life as was evidenced in infancy.

The lecturer then showed a series of diagrams illustrating the various
agencies that have been developed in England to remedy the conditions
described.

The discussion was participated in by Drs. Wall, J. A. Foote),
G. M. KoBER, Livingston Farrand, and T. A. Williams.

Robert B. Sosman, Corresponding Secretary.

PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

The 826th meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, Dec. 20, 1919, with
President Sosman presiding and 34 persons present. The minutes of
of the 823rd and 824th meetings were read 'n abstract and approved.

The first paper was by Mr. J. Warren Smith on Predicting minimum
temperatures,^ and was illustrated by lantern slides.

This paper was a mathematical discussion of the relation between
the relative humidity in the late afternoon and the variation of the
minimum temperature during the coming night from the afternoon
dewpoint temperature, when radiation conditions prevail. The study
shows that there is a well defined relation which can be expressed by the
curve for a parabola. This curve can be constructed by the "star
point" method of curve fitting instead of by the more tedious well
known least square method.

The equation used is written v = x -{- by -\- cz \n which v is the
variation of the minimum temperature from the evening dewpoint;
h is the evening relative humidity, and c is the square of the relative
humidity, x, y, and z are the three unknowns, which are evaluated

^ Full publication in Monthly Weather Review Supplement, No. 16, pp. 6-19.
1920.

396 proceedings: philosophical society

from three normal equations which are readily written by the star
point method after the data have been properly charted. The results
are remarkably accurate. The studies show that the minimum tem-
perature can be closely predicted n the orchard at a considerable distance
from the observing station; that the hygrometric observations made at
noon may be used quite as well in some instances as those made in the
evening, and that the equation will sometimes apply as well to cloudy
as to clear nights.

By using the depression of the dewpoint instead of the relative
humidity in correlating with the variation of the minimum temperature
from the dewpoint there is, in some instances, an even closer relation
shown. In this case a straight line from the equation v = x -\- yd
fits the data fully 83 per cent of the time. In this equation d is the
depression of the dewpoint, v is the variation of the minimum from the
dewpoint, and x and y the two unknowns.

Discussion: Mr. Abbot exhibited a slide indicating a relation be-
tween solar-constant variations and minimum temperatures.

Mr. Brooks spoke of the effect of snow cover in lowering the minimum
temperatures.

Replying to question by Mr. Sosman, Mr. Smith stated that the
protection afforded to orchards by the use of heating pots was not due
to the smudge produced but to an actual increase of from 4 to 8 degrees
in the temperature of the air.

Mr. Humphreys showed that the artificially heated air in an orchard
does not rise far on account of a marked temperature inversion.

The second paper was by Mr. Charles F. Brooks on Clouds and
their significance,- and was also illustrated by lantern slides.

When closely observed, clouds are remarkable indices of atmos-
pheric processes and movements. Their forms and motions may be
used not onl}- directly in determining what general winds and turbulence
exist at different levels, but also in surmising the vertical distribution
of temperature and humidity. Here without the expense of apparatus
are the means for discerning what is happening in he atmosphere up to
great heights, and, therefore, the means for determining the causes of
certain features of our weather, and for forecasting local changes.
Also, the effect of cloudiness on the temperature and humidity of the
lower air is not to be overlooked.

The cloud transformations and movements during the passage of a
strong low-pressure area in winter give a fairly clear picture of the
internal dynamics of such a storm. As the low approaches, a relatively
warm southerly wind enters like a sideways-moving wedge over the cold
surface air, and under the westerly upper wind. The lower surface
of contact is frequently marked by stratus clouds formed by mixture,
and the upper by alto cumulus clouds formed by thermal convection
due to the warmth of the southerly wind relative to that above. Later,
the warm wind reaches the earth's surface. The lines of appreciable

* ThispaperwaspublishedintheMonthly Weather Review, 48: 26-28, Jan., 1920.

> PROCEEDINGS: PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY 397"

wind convergence are marked by nimbus and more or less continuous
rainfall. Where such nimbus is formed the forced ascent of the air
may go to great heights and thus supply the fast upper winds with the
material for the drawn-out cirrus and cirro-stratus clouds that go far in
advance of the storm and later for the heavy alto-stratus. As the
center of lowest pressure goes by, perhaps not far to the north, an
underrunning wedge of cold air may, by raising the warm moist south-
westerly current above, bring on a few more hours of rainfall. This
cold wind carries strato-cumulus clouds, formed by the turbulence and
thermal convection, for perhaps a day, while the last of the long SW.-
NE. lines of alto-stratus and cirro-stratus clouds, forming by the under-
thrust of the lower wind which lifts the higher moist layers, gradually
pass over the eastern horizon.

It is evident from studies of the appearance and transformations of
cloud forms that the different types of clouds are very closely inter-
related and pass from one form to another without any recognizable
dividing line.

Since our weather is largely the result of the interaction of over- and
underrunning winds, clouds as indices of such are valuable in showing
what is going on and what is to be expected. Cloud observations are
finely complementary to pilot-balloon observations, for which there
must be clear air and a lack of even intermittently intervening clouds.
The whole domain of meteorology has no easier, more interesting, or
more promising aspect for observations and study than clouds.

Discussion: In response to a question by Mr. Fenner, Mr. Brooks
stated that the cloud sequence during the progress of a cyclone was
different for different parts of the country. Mr. Humphreys called
attention to the unsatisfactory nature, from the scientific point of view,,
of cloud nomenclature.

The meeting adjourned at 10.03 p-ni.

S. J. Mauchly, Recording Secretary.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

MATTERS OP SCIENTIFIC INTEREST IN CONGRESS^

The bill for a tariff on scientific instruments, etc. (H. R. 7785)^ was
brought up on the Senate calendar on April 5, but was passed over.
On April 28, Mr. Knox offered an amendment providing for the exemp-
tion from import duty of "guaranteed disks, ten inches or more in diam-
eter, for astronomical telescopes."

The Second Deficiency bill for 1920 (H. R. 12046) passed the House
on February 5, and the Senate on February 20. After two conferences
the House and Senate agreed to final passage on March 2 and 3, and
the bill became Public Law 155 on March 8. A proposed appropriation
of $100,000 to enable the Bureau of Mines to investigate gases in
vehicular tunnels,^ in anticipation of the construction of such a tunnel
under the Hudson Ri\-er, was thrown out by the Senate on a point of
order.

The widely differing viewpoints of members of Congress regarding
research were brought out in discussions of certain paragraphs of this
bill and other appropriation bills. Three principles that are more or
less obvious to workers in scientific subjects are far from being uni-
versally accepted in Congress, namely: (i) that a successful research
institution is a result of years of growth, and continuity is essential to
its success; (2) that any nation which expects to keep to the front in
world competition must encourage research; and (3) that, when ac-
counting is made in terms of decades rather than years, research is the
best paying business in the world. Mr. Mann, for example, in objecting
to certain appropriations, says on February 2 : "The Coast and Geodetic
Survey is a good service. It is mainly scientific. They do good work,
but a good deal of it is useless. Very little of it is absolutely necessary

to-morrow If we are ever to ha v^e economy we have got to

commence on these things which are not essential." Mr. McLaughlin
of Michigan, on the other hand, discussing an item for chemical research,
says on February 11: "In regard to this, as in regard to other highly
scientific and investigational matters, it is difficult for the Committee
to determine whether or not the money is needed or whether or not
the work done by the expenditure of the money is satisfactory. We
all know that wonderful results have followed experiments and scientific

investigations Splendid results have been found in the

most unpromising field, and when scientific gentlemen in whom we have
confidence come before us and ask for appropriations to enable them
to carry on work, we are loath to refuse them as we hesitate to criticize
the work they are doing."

1 Preceding report: this Journal, 10: 243. 1920.
* This Journal, 9: 454. 1919.
^ See this Journal, 10: 54. 1920.

398

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS 399'

The appropriations in the Second Deficiency Act include: $75,000
for continuation of the investigation of the mineral resources of Alaska,
to be available also during 192 1; and $47,100 for the continuation of
magnetic and geodetic work by the Coast and Geodetic Survey.

The legislative, executive, and judicial appropriation bill (H. R.
1 26 10), carrying appropriations for the Bureau of Standards, passed
the House on March 4, and the Senate on April i. After agreement
to the conference reports the bill was sent to the President, carrying
an amendment introduced by Mr. SmooT on April i to the effect that
no government journal, magazine, or periodical should be printed,
issued, or discontinued without the approval of the Joint Committee
on Printing. On account of the inclusion of this amendment the
President vetoed the bill on May 13. The objectionable paragraph
was eliminated and the bill repassed and signed as Public Law No. 231.

The act includes $432,360 for salaries at the Bureau of Standards,
together with many special research items of which the following are
examples : fire-resisting properties of building materials, $25,000 ; develop-
ment of color standards, $10,000; optical glass, $25,000; metallurgical
research, $25,000; sugars and sugar-testing apparatus, $30,000; high
temperature measurement and control, $10,000. Total for the Bureau,
$1,217,360.

Hearings on the Jones-Reavis bill (S. 2232)'' for a Federal Depart-
ment of Public Works were held before the Senate Committee on Public
Lands on February 11. The bill was supported by M. O. Leighton,
Chairman, and C. T. Chenery, vSecretary, of the National Public Works
Department Association; J. Parke Channing, Chairman of Engineering
Council; G. F. Swain, of Harvard University; F. L. Cranford, Presi-
dent of the General Contractors' Association; Colonel F. M. Gunby;
C. W. Baker, Consulting Editor, Engineering Nevus-Record; Francis
Blossom, of the War Department; C. W. Whitaker, Editor, Journal
American Institute of Architects; W. F. Willoughby, Director, Institute
for Government Research; and P. N. MooRE, mining engineer.

A joint resolution looking toward an even more comprehensive
reorganization of the executive departments than that contained in
the Jones-Reavis bill was introduced as H. J. Res. 353 on May 7 by
Mr. Madden. The resolution provides for a Joint Committee on
Reorganization consisting of three members each from House and
Senate. Referred to the Committee on Rules.

Another reorganization and consolidation measure is S. 4369, intro-
duced by Mr. Henderson on May 12: "To create a Division of Mines
and Geology in the Department of the Interior." The proposed
Division would be under the direction of an Assistant Secretary of the
Interior, "technically qualified by experience and education," at a
salary of $10,000. The powers and duties of the present Geological
Survey and Bureau of Mines, and any powers and duties of other

* This Journal, 9: 422. 1919.

400 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

federal agencies relating to mining, metallurg>^ mineral technology,
geological surveying, land classification, or mineral resources, would be
transferred to the new Division. The bill was referred to the Com-
mittee on Mines and Mining.

The recommendations of the Reclassification Commission were
embodied in a bill (S. 4106) introduced in the Senate by Mr. Jones
of New Mexico on March 22. A very thorough review of this legislation
was given in the Senate by Mr. Henderson on April 29.

More liberal prov-isions regarding inventions by members of the
Government bureaus than are provided by existing law are contained
in H. R. 9932 and S. 3223: "Authorizing the Federal Trade Commis-
sion to accept and administer for the benefit of the public and the en-
couragement of industry, inventions, patents, and patent rights, and
for other purposes."'^ The Senate bill, after reference from the Com-
mittee on Patents, was debated on March 22, and was amended by the
insertion of a provision that the Commissioner of Patents should grant
patents of the type described in the bill without the payment of any
fee. The bill passed the Senate on March 22 and was referred to the
House Committee on Patents, from which it was favorably reported
on May 12.

One of the periodical attempts to reform the calendar is contained
in H. R. 13574, introduced by Mr. Sch.\ll on April 12: "To provide
for a modification of the tijne calendar now in general use in the United
States, the miodified form to be known as the Liberty Calendar." The
modified calendar divides the year into 13 months of 28 days each,
with a New Year Day which is not included within any month, and
likewise a Leap Year I3ay in every fourth year, both of which are legal
holidays. The bill was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.

A special research of a geological character is planned for in S. 3829
(Mr. Phipps, February' 2): "Making an appropriation for the investi-
gation of underground currents, particularly shallow underground
waters, and artesian wells in eastern Colorado." Referred to the
Committee on Public Lands.

notes

A joint conference of national, state and regional engineering socie-
ties met at the Cosmos Club June 3-4, for the purpose of organizing
to carry into effect the plans of development committees of the national
societies. About 140 delegates, representing about 70 engineering
organizations throughout the country, were present. The confer-
ence resulted in the formation of the "Federated American Engineering
Societies," under the management of a representative body to be known
as the "American Engineering Council." The principal discussion
was on the resolution: "That it is the sense of the Conference that the

* For an analysis of the bill see Science, 51: 421-427. 1920.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS 4OI

proper organization should be an organization of societies and affilia-
tions and not of individuals." This was opposed principally by repre-
sentatives of the American Association of Engineers, but was finally
unanimously adopted.

The fifteenth annual meeting of the American Association of Museums
was held at the Natural History Building of the National Museum
on May 17-19. Announcement was made of the incorporation of the
Association.

A scientific congress has been organized to meet at Honolulu August
2-20. Its object is to outline scientific problems of the Pacific Ocean
region, suggest methods for their solution, make an inventory of ex-
isting knowledge, and devise plans for future work. The program
is in charge of the Committee on Pacific Exploration of the National
Research Council. Among those in attendance from Washington
will be: Paul Bartsch, of the National Museum; William Bowie,
of the Coast and Geodetic Survey; T. Wayland Vaughan, of the
U. S. Geological Survey; H. S. Washington, of the Geophysical Lab-
oratory, Carnegie Institution of Washington; and H. O. Wood, of the
Research Council.

A laboratory for research on dyestuffs and explosives has been es-
tablished at George Washington University. The laboratory, which
is under the general supervision of Professor H. C. McNeil, will be in
charge of Mr. G. W. Phillips, formerly of the Chemical Warfare Service.
Dr. C. E. MuNROE, of the National Research Council, will be consult-
ing chemist of the laboratory.

The Bureau of Mines has completed arrangements for a coopera-
tive research on the carbonization of lignite. $200,000 is to be sup-
plied by private parties for the erection of a plant at New Salem, North
Dakota. The Bureau will be in charge of the technical and experi-
mental side of the investigation.

A new solar constant observing station is being established on the
Haqua Hala Mountains near Wenden, Arizona, which will be equipped
with apparatus now in use at Mt. Wilson, California. At the same
time the Calama, Chile, station is being removed to the summit of a
mountain about ten miles south of Calama, where it will be about
10,000 feet above sea level and free from interference due to the dust
and smoke from the town and mine.

Messrs. Carleton R. Ball, A. S. Hitchcock, and R. A. Oakley,
of the Bureau of Plant Industry, received the honorary degree of Doc-
tor of Science from Iowa State College in June.

Dr. Harvey Bassler, form.erly paleontologist with the U. S. Geo-
logical Survey, is now engaged in exploratory work for the Standard
Oil Company in South America.

402 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Prof. Marston Taylor Bogert, of Columbia University, has been
given a recess appointment by the President as a member of the U. S.
Tariff Commission. Doubt has been raised as to the legaUty of the
appointment, based on the fact that this and other appointments
had been submitted to the Senate but no action was taken before ad-
journmicnt.

Mr. Eugene Sewell Bruce, special inspector for the U. S. Forest
Service, died on June 8, 1920, in his sixt^^-first year. He had been
with the Service since 1900, having previously been connected with
several large lumber companies. He was a member of the Society
of American Foresters.

Prof. H. A. BuMSTEAD, professor of physics and director of the Sloane
Physical Laboratory, Yale University, has been elected Chairman of
the National Research Council for the year ending July i, 1921.

Dr. H. D. Curtis, of the Lick Observatory, has been appointed
director of the Allegheny Observatory at Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Dr. Keivin Burns, recently of the Bureau of vStandards, will be as-
sociated with Dr. Curtis in the work of the Observatory.

Mr. B. S. Butler has resigned his position as geologist on the U. S.
Geological Survey to take up private work, and has been associated
since July i with L. C. Graton in making surveys of copper proper-
ties in Michigan.

Mr. S. H. Cathcart is resuming his work in Alaska for the U. S.
Geological Survey.

Mr. C. F. Choate, Jr., has been made a regent of the Smithsonian
Institution by Public Resolution No. 37, passed by the Senate on
March 3 and the House on April 5.

Mr. William Churchill, Associate in Primitive Philology, Carnegie
Institution of Washington, died on June 9, 1920, in his sixty -first year.
Mr. Churchill was born at Brooklyn, New York, October 5, 1859.
He had been consul-general in Samoa and Tonga, and had been a mem-
ber of the editorial staff of the New York Sun for 13 years, before
joining the Carnegie Institution in 191 5. During the war he was in
charge of the division of foreign language publications of the Com-
mittee on Public Information.

The Willard Gibbs medal of the Chicago Section of the American
Chemical Society "in recognition and encouragement of eminent re-
search in theoretical and applied chemistry" was presented to Dr.
F. G. CoTTRELL, of the Bureau of Mines, onMay 21.

Dr. J. Walter Fewkes, chief of the Division of American Ethnology,
left Washington in June to continue his archeological work on the ruins
in Mesa Verde National Park. Unusual storms in the Rockies rendered
roads in the Park inaccessible during the spring.

Dr. Gordon S. Fulcher, of the Research Information Service,
National Research Council, resigned on June i to join the research
staff of the Corning Glass Works at Corning, New York.

SClKNTlIfIC NOT^S AND NEWS 403

■ Mi". J. M. Hill, geologist of the U. S. Geological Survey, was trans-
ferred on July I to the Survey's office in San Francisco, in order to be
more directly in touch with western metalliferous mines.

Mr. E. A, HoLBROOK, formerly superintendent of the Pittsburgh
branch of the Bureau of Mines, has been transferred to Washington
as assistant to the Director, Dr. F, G. Cottrell, whose nomination
has been confirmed by the Senate.

Mr. Charles M. Hoy, who is collecting for the Smithsonian Insti-
tution in Australia, reports that within the past few years many of
the characteristic mammals of Australia have been rendered extinct
or nearly so as a result of the introduction and rapid multiplication of
foxes and cats.

The University of Arizona has conferred the honorary degree of Doc-
tor of Laws on Dr. T. H. Kearney, of the Bureau of Plant Industry,
in recognition of his work on the breeding of Egyptian long-staple
cotton in Arizona.

Prof. Vernon Kellogg, professor of entomology at Leland Stanford,
Jr., University, has been elected secretary of the National Research
Council for the year ending July i , 1 92 1 .

Mr. W. S. W. Kew, of the U. S. Geological Survey, is studying the
oil conditions of northwestern Mexico for private parties while on fur-
lough from the Government service.

Dr. F. Lamson-Scribner, of the Department of Agriculture, has
received the degree of Doctor of Philosophy from the University of
Maine.

Prof. John Campbell Merriam, professor of vertebrate paleon-
tology at the University of California, and recently acting chairman
of the National Research Council, was elected president of the Carnegie
Institution of Washington on May 25, to succeed Dr. R. S. Woodward,
who retires at his own request after sixteen years of service in the
presidency. Dr. Merriam will assume office January i, 1921.

Dr. John R. Mohler, chief of the Bureau of Animal Industry, U. S.
Department of Agriculture, received the degree of Doctor of Science
from Iowa State College on June 9.

Mr. R. M. Overbeck has returned from Bolivia and will resume
his work in Alaska for the U. S. Geological Survey.

Dr. C. L. Parsons was appointed as delegate from the National
Research Council to the meeting of the International Chemical Union,
held in Rome during the last week of June. Dr. Parsons went to
Europe in April on private business, expecting to remain until after the
meeting in Rome.

Prof. H. PoSTMA, of Feist, Holland, visited Washington in May
and examined materials in the Division of Physical Anthropology of
the National Museum.

404 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Mr. M. J. ProFFitt, formerly of the Great Western Sugar Com-
pany, Denver, Colorado, has been put in charge of sugar technology
at the Bureau of Standards.

Dr. Brayton H. Ransom, of the Bureau of Animal Industry, has
been elected a corresponding member of the Societ6 de Pathologic
Exotique of Paris.

Mr. Edward Sampson, of Princeton University, has been appointed
assistant geologist in the metalliferous section of the U. S. Geological
Survey.

Mr. Eugene Stebinger, geologist in charge of the Foreign Section
of the Mineral Resources Branch, U. S. Geological Survey, has been
granted furlough from June i, in order to go to South America for an
American oil company. He is accompanied by Harvey Bassler
and J. B. Mertie of the Survey.

Mr. Henry Earl Surface, formerly chemist in the U. S. Forest
Service, and recently transferred to the Treasury Department, was
killed in a railway accident near Schenectady, New York, on June 9,
1920. Mr. Surface joined the Forest Service in 1907, after graduation
from Ohio State University. He went to Madison, Wisconsin, in
June, 1 9 10, when the Forest Products Laboratory was transferred to
that place. In 191 9 he was transferred to the Bureau of Internal
Revenue in connection with the valuation of forest lands. He was a
member of the Chemical Society.

Dr. W. van BemmelEN, director of the magnetic and meteorological
observatory at Batavia, Java, spent several weeks in Washington in
June, visiting the laboratories of the city.

Secretary Charles D. Walcott, of the Smithsonian Institution,
left Washington on June 19 to spend the summer in geological field
work in the Canadian Rockies.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. io August 19, 1920 No. 14

ETHNOLOGY. — International and interclass misunderstandings.
John R. Swanton, Bureau of American Ethnology.^

Both individually and in the mass man tends to see in the
world about him, animate and inanimate, what he feels within
himself. If "God made man in His own image," it is equally
true that man has ever since insisted in making over God into
his. Not only so but, until the most recent times — and even
now more than we are willing to admit — man has made over
nature. In scientific terminology he has "anthropomorphized"
it. The student of primitive mythology is familiar with this
process, and the student of the child knows how natural it is
to an immature mind. But while those of us who esteem our-
selves "civilized" no longer see human personalities in the animals,
plants, and natural phenomena, and refrain from worrying our-
selves about hatreds or friendships on their part which are
nothing more than reflections of our own psychological processes,
we are far from having conquered the same tendency as it is
applied to our fellow man. Of course our fellow man does
have mental processes similar to ours, and it is therefore possible
for us to interpret them to our mutual advantage. We do this
daily. What I have reference to is the tendency that each
evinces to interpret the thoughts and actions of another, not
in terms of human mental processes in the broad sense, but in
terms of his own individual processes. We are familiar in daily
life with the man who suspects everyone of insincerity or dis-
honesty because he is insincere or dishonest himself, and to a
somewhat less degree with the man who is easily cheated because

' Received June 14, 1920.

405

4o6 swanton: internationaIv misunderstandings

double-dealing has no abiding place in his thoughts. The
problem of rendering justice to the intentions of our immediate
neighbors and associates is, however, a matter of individual
ethics and must be considered by each as his personal problem.
What I wish to call attention to here is a similar attribution of
motive as between groups of people, races, nations, classes,
because in it is to be found the source of endless misunderstand-
ings and the seed-bed for a large part of the controversies and
wars which have afflicted mankind.

Every human group assumes that its peculiar views and cus-
toms are the normal, sane views and customs which everyone
should hold, and that the deviations which are observed among
its neighbors are departures from that norm which prove them
to be inferior creatures, to be tolerated, if necessary, and sup-
pressed, if possible. The home people being normal and the
foreign people abnormal, one should expect in the latter not
merely abnormal ideas and actions but even abnormal physical
characteristics. Hence those persistent reports of cannibals,
Amazons, centaurs, men with eyes in their breasts, and so on.
Within the memory of the writer a book of African travel pub-
lished by Harper Bros, was advertised to contain arguments
for the existence of "tailed men" in Africa. It is only in recent
years that the world has been obliged to content itself with
pygmies and give up all of the other abnormal races for which
it had been eagerly looking. In abandoning its mythic race
with physical tails, however, the world has been unable or un-
willing to give up its men with mental tails, i.e., mental ab-
normalities. Even neighboring, cultured peoples are called
"queer," or "funny," simply because they are different, and
there is nothing that the average civilized human being is un-
willing to believe regarding the more primitive peoples of the
earth. This view was unintentionally encouraged by some early
anthropologists who in their heroic efforts to divest themselves
of preconceived ideas regarding the lower races almost removed
the latter from the human category. They deceived themselves
and their readers alike, by assuming that to be most primitive
which was most diverse from that to which they and their own

swanton; international misunderstandings 407

particular branch of civilized humanity were accustomed. Tat-
tooing, head-flattening, labret-wearing, scarification, marriage
by capture, "totemism," apparently meaningless taboos, san-
guinary rites — if such could be found — although these did not
occur in one and the same tribe and frequently not in those
most primitive, were dragged from their natural connections and
mercilessly heaped upon a theoretical "primitive man" who never
had any objective existence. The origin of each of these peculiar
customs was then made the subject of voluminous studies and
accounted for in ways no less peculiar, all tending to mystify
the already over-stimulated public in a very much greater degree.

That all of these things may be accounted for by referring them
to common human instincts acting under diverse conditions
is more and more clearly apparent the farther ethnological studies
are pursued. We have only the same mind expressing itself
diversely, the divergencies being added to and acquiring the
sanctity of custom and law, generation after generation, until
they present themselves to other races as bizarre and unnatural.

While all such collective beliefs and customs are not of equal
value and some are of no value at all, it must be remembered
that this applies to peoples alike. Civilized man, having had
the benefit of a greater accumulation of experience, longer in
time and drawn from a wider area, naturally has more well-
grounded ideas and better tested customs, or perhaps one ought
to say fewer ill-grounded ideas and badly established customs,
than his savage brother, but he must remember that his advan-
tage is only one of degree. He and his do not constitute a norm
from which all other races and peoples are to be judged. Just
as the Copemican and evolutionary theories disillusioned him
regarding his physical immutabilit}^ so he must disillusion him-
self regarding his psychical immutability. There is no more
singularity in having a black skin and frizzly hair or a yellow
skin and straight black hair than in having a fair skin and wavy
hair. It is no more odd to pierce the nose and deform the head
than to pierce the ears and deform the waist. To acquire one's
name from one's mother's family is even less unnatural than to
take it from the father's kin. Paint as a personal adornment

4o8 swanton: international misunderstandings

is common to both savage and civilized society, and the "full
dress" of a primitive belle is often more ample than that of her
civilized counterpart. It is no more depraved to abandon the
aged and infirm to die — especially when other members of the
band may have difhculty in keeping alive themselves — than it
is to allow thousands of one's fellows to be born into the slums
found in some of our great cities and drag out there the miserable
existence to which they are condemned. The savage sometimes
fasts and scarifies himself in the hope of obtaining help from
imaginary beings and becoming thereby rich and successful,
but this infliction is temporary and rarely results in permanent
injury to the devotee, while civilized men in pursuit of fortune
throw over their health and everything else that would make the
fortune worth having. The savage sometimes resorts to human
sacrifice, generally of men from other tribes, but for his own
self-advancement; the white man too frequently permits a slow
sacrifice of other members of his own nation.

Aside from misunderstanding the natm-e of savage customs
and beliefs in themselves and an accompanying obliquity re-
garding the customs and beliefs of his own people, civilized man
constantly does injustice to his primitive brother by interpreting
customs as exhibitions of wilful moral depravity. The immo-
bility often displayed by Indians on meeting after a long period
of separation is attributed to coldness of disposition. The
great numbers of tasks which savage women perform are thought
to be arbitrarily imposed upon them. The indignities heaped
upon captives or persons cast away among primitive people by
accident are cited as proofs of a brutal and bloodthirsty dispo-
sition. And the ease with which such peoples credit the pro-
nouncements of their medicine-men is, of course, a clear demon-
stration of an innately "superstitious" temperament. All of
these things are held up as so many evidences of "naturally"
depraved minds. One writer, observing that the Indians among
whom he was traveling applied the terms "father" and "mother"
to a number of different people, inferred that the relationship
was in doubt and that their morals must be of the loosest char-
acter, being entirely ignorant of the fact that these terms were

swanton: international misunderstandings 409

extended as "etiquette terms" over a great number of persons
of the same clans as those to which the true father and mother
belonged. Depravity there is among primitive people as among
civilized races, and, as with us, too much has from time to time
become embodied into custom and law. However, it would
certainly not be just to assume that any people are depraved
merely because they conform to the customs and laws in which
they have been brought up. Particularly, it would not be fair
to interpret customs and laws which are the expressions of one
interpretation of morality in terms of customs and laws repre-
senting different interpretations.

Unfortunately this lack of appreciation of primitive mentality
has resulted in an ignorant impulse on the part of representatives
of so-called higher races to take such esteemed backward peoples
under surveillance with the idea of making them over into at
least outward conformity with civilized views of what is right
and proper. They must be given civilized dress, taught to live
in civilized houses — however unsuited to their climate — made
to marry and rear families in accordance with the paternal cus-
toms and ideas of the higher race, and proselytized into the
religion or religions dominant among the latter. Particularly
they must be kept in "tutelage" until they are "fitted for self-
government" — which can only mean a government after the
pattern of one of the more developed states, with all its uses and
abuses — for, until the white race came in upon them, there was
not a single people that did not ordinarily govern itself.

"Tutelage" of a primitive people has just this meaning and
just this justification, that, since the peculiar civilization of
western Europe has in the last four centuries spread so rapidly
that it is invading all corners of the earth, between their past
isolation and their future adaptation to this culture the backward
peoples must experience a transition period which may be one of
"tutelage" or not, but should at any rate be one of sympathetic
appreciation on the part of the culture-bearing powers, not the
product of a desire to profit by the ignorance and helplessness
of the peoples whose well being is professedly desired.

Unfortunately for this wished-for consummation the first

4IO swanton: international misunderstandings

information that an American or European gets regarding the
backward peoples is apt to be sensational reports of their most
peculiar customs, sweeping condemnations of their physical and
moral condition, and usually lurid accounts of barbarities in-
flicted upon representatives of civilized races who may have
chanced to stray among them. This distorted publicity is due
partly to the willingness of newspapers and journals in Europe
and America to cater to the love of the marvelous — their ex-
pectation, as goes the Spanish proverb, of "distant countries,
big tales" — and partly to the desire of commercial interests to
force an intervention which will render available to them the
natural riches of a virgin but helpless land.

Inability or unwillingness to understand the other man's point
of view has a second, and perhaps more dangerous, development
here in our midst. It is the failure to understand the thoughts
and actions of men of a different class or social stratum. This
has some slight excuse when it concerns the representatives of
distinct races living among us, but it is also maintained toward
individuals of different classes whether foreign or not. Upper,
middle, and lower classes attribute to each other vices of which
they profess to be free themselves, and look upon actions which
tend to run counter to the views or curtail the comfort of them-
selves, as evidences of wilful evil intent. Opinions of this kind
are particularly dangerous because most people associate famil-
iarly with only a restricted class, and when one hears the same
stock accusations repeated over and over he comes to assume
their absolute truth without giving himself the trouble to in-
quire further. Responsibility for this state of affairs rests upon
all classes alike, but by far the greater measure must be shoul-
dered by those most abundantly endowed with wealth, power,
and intelligence because they also have better opportunities for
ascertaining actual conditions. Too much reading and too
many exchanges of opinion are for the purpose of re-enforcing
prejudices rather than establishing truth and rendering justice,
and in this connection I cannot refrain from expressing the
opinion that the public press in America is altogether too ready
to cater to the partisan demand. What we find in the news

bowen: ANTHOPHYLUTE 411

columns is frequently rather a garbling of events than a record of
events, the whole thrown purposely out of perspective in order
to cater to the "policy of the paper," the prejudices of the com-
munity which it serves, or the known attitude of the financial
interests supporting it or represented in its advertising columns.
And such misrepresentation of the facts is still further exag-
gerated by the choice and placing of the heads and sub-heads,
and by the editorial utterances.

I have spoken of willingness to entertain and promote mis-
representation as "dangerous." It is dangerous because mis-
understanding and misrepresentation destroy sympathy be-
tween peoples of different nations, and where persisted in within
the borders of any one nation tend to weaken the ties which
bind classes together and, more than any other single thing—
except palpable and wide-spread injustice — pave the way for
those disturbances which may lead to civil war and revolution.

MINERALOGY.- -Op//ra/ properties of anihophyllite. N. L.
Bowen, Geophysical Laboratory, Carnegie Institution of
Washington.^

In minerals of variable composition (solid solutions) a knowl-
edge of the corresponding variation of optical properties is
often of great importance, particularly since it renders possible
the determination of chemical composition by optical measure-
ment alone in cases where no other means may be available.
In attempting to check the optical properties of the pure artificial
magnesian amphibole, kupfferite, against those of natural antho-
phyllites the writer encountered a discrepancy in the data for
the natural mineral from Franklin, North Carolina. Penfield,
in his description of the Franklin crystals, gives two different
values for fi as determined by different methods."^ The attention
of Professor Ford was called to this matter and he kindly sent
me the original Penfield material, including oriented plates and
wedge. The wedge, which was made by polishing natural
prism faces, suffices for the measurement of two refractive in-

1 Received June 19, 1920.

2 Amer. Journ. Sci. 40: 396. 1890.

412 bowen: anthophyllite

dices by the method of minimum deviation, and by this method
the writer obtained exactly the same values as Penfield: 7 =
1.6404, a = 1. 6301. The method is so thoroughly dependable
that there is no reason for doubting the value of /3 so obtained.
The other value of /S given by Penfield was calculated from
measurements of the optic axial angle on oriented plates in an
immersion medium. The relation between the angles so ob-
served and the true angle is given by the equations

and

sin //„ = — sin V

sin /f o = — sin (90 - V)

whence by dividing one obtains the relation

sin Ha

= tan V.

sin Hg

Therefore, by measuring both the obtuse and the acute optic
axial angle in an immersion medium one can calculate the true
angle without any knowledge of the index of the immersion
medium. The method is very accurate and there is no reason
for questioning the value of 2 F so obtained. On the other hand,
if one wishes to calculate ii from such measurements, an accurate
knowledge of the refractive index of the immersion medium is
required. The liquid used by Penfield was potassium mercuric
iodide solution, and though he gives the index of his solution,
the assumption that this was in error, since it may change so
readily by evaporation, is the most reasonable method of ac-
counting for the great discrepancy between the value of (3 so
calculated (1.6353) ^-^d that measured by minimum deviation
(1.6301). Penfield evidently placed greater dependence upon
the former value (1.6353), for he used it in calculating a, ob-
taining the result 1.6288. On the other hand, if the latter value
of 0 ( 1. 6301) is used, the calculated value of a is 1.6 195. The
whole question can best be decided by direct measurement of a.
This was done in immersion liquids with Na light on a rather
thick cleavage plate ||oio, under which conditions the method

bowen: anthophyllite

413

is very sensitive. The first trial, with a Hquid of index 1.622,
showed that a. was distinctly lower and on making up a liquid of
index slightly less than 1.620, no difference in refraction of liquid
and mineral was observed. The determination therefore checks
with the calculated value <x = 1.6 195. A rough determination

/,6¥o

/.62.0

'/t^FeSCOj

Fig. I. Reflection indices of anthophyllite.

of the birefringence of the plate which gave the value 0.021 is
also in accord with this lower value of a. From these determi-
nations it may be stated, then, that the indices of anthophyllite
from Franklin, North Carolina, are

7 = 1.6404, |S = 1. 6301, a = 1. 6195.

The optic axial angle is 88° 46' and the birefringence 7 — a =
0.0209. Ill the text-books the erroneous value a « 1.6288 is
given as well as the correspondingly erroneous value of the bire-
fringence 7 — a = 0.0116. The new values of the indices as

414

bowen: anthophylIvITE

given above are in accord with those observed in the pure arti-
ficial mineral and in another natural anthophyllite whose AI2O3
content is low enough to admit comparison. The relation be-
tween refractive indices and FeSiOa content is shown in table
I and graphically in figure i.

TABLE I. — Chemical Composition and Optical Properties of Anthophyllite.

Si02

AI2O3

FeO + MnO 15 04

MgO

II.

III.

Congsberg"

Franklin

Artificial

55 16

57.98

60.00

2.65

0.63

15 04

10.70

23 19

28.69

40.00

I 657

I .6404

1-597

I .642

I .6301

I 633

I .6195

1.584

° Michel-Lew and Lacroix, Les Mineraux des Roches, p. 150.

The indices given for the artificial kupfferite are redetermined
values and are slightly higher than those given in an early paper
from this Laboratory.^ The artificial material is not very
satisfactory for index determination, but the above values are
observed when grains are used that are free from the dusty
effect produced by contamination with excess silica/

* Allen, Wright and Clement. Amer. Journ. Sci. 22: 410. 1906.

* Bowen and Andersen. Amer. Journ. Sci. 37: 492. 1914.

ABSTRACTS

ANALYTICAL CHUMISTRY .—Application of the interferometer to
gas analysis. Junius D. Edwards. Bur. Standards Techn.
Paper 13L Pp. 19. 1919.

One of the most useful of the physical methods applicable to gas
analysis is that of gas interfe^omet^^^ By the application of a new
method of calibration, previously described in Scientific Paper 316,
the use of the gas interferometer has been simplified and extended.
The relation between the refractivities of the gases and the indications
of the interferometer is discussed for various typical cases and illus-
trative calculations given. The determination of helium in a mixture
of gases is one case of interest which is discussed. It is of importance
because of the scarcity of analytical methods for determining helium.
Other cases discussed are the eff'ects of variations in the composition of
air where it is a component of mixtures under test, the analysis of flue
gases, the relative sensitivity of the interferometer for different gases
and points about the operation of the interferometer. J. D. E.

BIOCHEMISTRY. — Biochemical studies of the saliva in pellagra.
M. X. Sullivan and K. K. Jones. PubHc Health Reports 24;
1068. No. 20, May 16, 1919.

In pellagra the condition of the mouth, and especially of the tongue,
is of considerable importance in establishing a correct diagnosis. The
true pellagrous tongue is vividly red and more or less swollen. The
literature also speaks of salivation as a symptom of pellagra. In care-
ful quantitative studies at the pellagra hospital, Spartanburg, South
Carolina, it was found that, though there were cases of increased sali-
vary flow, the salivation spoken of by the patients was often apparent
rather than real and was seemingly due to some inhibition of swallowing
combined with a peculiar ropy change in the saliva or high content of
mucus which made the presence of saliva in the mouth more obvious.
Occasionally also the flow was very slow, but in general it was within
normal limits, which vary considerably. The specific gravity of the

415

4i6 abstracts: metallography

saliva of the pellagra patients tended to be higher than that of the con-
trols. The total solids, ash, organic matter and mucin of the saliva
was greater for the pellagrins than for the controls, but bore no rela-
tion to the mouth symptoms. The diastatic power of the saliva of
pellagrins varied within the limits established by the controls. The
sulfocyanate content was much less marked in the saliva of pellagra
patients than in that of normal people. The reaction of the saliva in
pellagra was found to be somewhat more alkaline than that of normal
saliva. M. X. S.

METALLOGRAPHY. — Constitution and metallography of aluminum
and its light alloys with copper and magnesium. P. D. Merica,
R. G. Waltenberg and J. R. Freeman, Jr. Bur. Standards
Sci. Paper 337. Pp. 14, pis. 8, figs. 19. 1919.

The temperature-solubility curves of CUAI2 and of Mg4Al3 in alumi-
num were determined by the method of annealing and microscopic
examination. Aluminum dissolves about 4.2 per cent of copper as
CUAI2 at 525° C. and about 12.5 per cent of magnesium as Mg4Al3 at
450° C. The solubility of both compounds decreases with decreasing
temperature. At 300° C. aluminum dissolves only i per cent of copper
as CuAl2 and slightly less than 5.9 per cent of magnesium as Mg^Als.

The structural identification of the various constituents, FeAls,
CuAl2, Mg4Al3, found in alloys with magnesium and with copper, is
described, and a constituent is noted in all light aluminum alloys con-
taining magnesium which is believed to be Mg2Si. The solubility of iron
as FeAls in aluminum is at all temperatures less than 0.15 per cent.
Small amounts of silicon up to 0.12-0.20 per cent are dissolved by
aluminum at the eutectic temperature but are reprecipitated upon
cooling, corresponding to the diminished solubility for silicon of alumi-
num at lower temperatures. Silicon in the usual commercial amounts is
probably present as a compound of iron and silicon, together with some
aluminum. The composition of this compound is not known but it
separates out with aluminum and FeAls at an invariant point at 610° C.

R. G. W.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

BOARD OP MANAGERS

At the 238th meeting of the Board, held on March 8, 1920, changes
in the free Hst of the Journal were considered. Mr. F. V. Coville
was appointed as the Academy's representative at the inaugural
meeting of the Board of Surveys and Maps. Nominations to mem-
bership were considered at the 239th, 240th and 241st meetings, held
on March 22, April 5, and April 26. Reports from the committee on
preservation of the Shaw lily-ponds were presented at the 242d meeting,
on May 24, and it was voted that these reports be brought to the at-
tention of the Engineer Commissioner with the endorsement of the
officers of the Academy and of other affiliated societies that might be
interested. At the 243d meeting on June 28, Dr. S. F. Blake, of
the Bureau of Plant Industry, was appointed editor of the Journal
to fill the unexpired term of Dr. Alexander Wetmore, who had
resigned on account of expected absence from Washington for a year.

The following persons have become members of the Academy since
the last report in the Journal (May 4, 1920, p. 275):

Dr. Elliot Q. Adams, Bureau of Chemistry, U. S. Department of
Agriculture, Washington, D. C.

Mr. S. Henry Ayers, Bureau of Animal Industry, U. S. Department
of Agriculture, Washington, D. C.

Dr. Norman L. Bowen, Geophysical Taboratory, Carnegie Insti-
tution of Washington, Washington, D. C.

Dr. Fay Cluff Brown, Bureau of Standards, Washington, D. C.

Dr. Nathan Augustus Cobb, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S.
Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C.

Mr. W. D. Collins, Bureau of Chemistry, U. S. Department of
Agriculture, Washington, D. C.

Mr. Leon Dominian, Department of State, Washington, D. C.

Dr. W. E. FoRSYTHE, Nela Research Laboratory, National Lamp
Works of the General Electric Company, Nela Park, Cleveland, Ohio.

Mr. Willis Ray Gregg, Weather Bureau, Washington, D. C.

Dr. Ralph Edwin Hall, Firestone Tire and Rubber Company,
Akron, Ohio.

Dr. David Breese Jones, Bureau of Chemistry, U. S. Department of
Agriculture, Washington, D. C.

Dr. George W. McCoy, Hygienic Laboratory, Public Health Ser-
vice, Washington, D. C.

Mr. Curtis C. McDonnell, Bureau of Chemistry, U. S. Depart-
ment of Agriculture, Washington, D. C.

417

4i8 proceedings: anthropological society

Dr. Edward Browning Meigs, Dairy Division, Bureau of Animal
Industry, U. S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C.

Dr. John R. Mohler, Bureau of Animal Industry, U. S. Depart-
ment of Agriculture, Washington, D. C.

Dr. Clarence Aurelius Skinner, Bureau of vStandards, Wash-
ington, D. C.

Dr. Thomas Elliott Snyder, Bureau of Entomology, U. S. De-
partment of Agriculture, Washington, D. C.

Mr. Louis Bryant Tuckerm.\n, Bureau of Standards, Washington,
D. C.

Robert B. vSosman, Corresponding Secretary.

ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY

543D MEETING

The 543d meeting of the Anthropological Society of Washington was
held in room 42-43 of the National Museum, at 4.45 on Tuesday,
February 3, 1920. Program:

Sylvanus Griswold Morley, Associate of the Carnegie Institution
of Washington: The foremost civilization of Central America. Mr.
Morley traced the rise and fall of the Maya empire and by means of
charcoal drawings explained the calendar systems of the ancient
Yucatecans.

544TH meeting

The 544th meeting was held jointly with the Washington Academy
of Sciences in the auditorium of the National Museum, at 8.15 p.m.
on Saturday, March 6, 1920. Program:

W. H. R. Rivers: Ethnology, its aims and needs.

545TH meeting

The 545th meeting was held jointly with the Washington Academy
of Sciences and the Medical Society of the District of Columbia in the
assembly hall of the Carnegie Institution of Washington, at 8.15 p.m.
on Wednesday, March 31, 1920. Program:

Sir Arthur Newsholme: The national importance of child welfare
work. (See proceedings of the Academy for an abstract of the lec-
ture K)

546TH meeting

The 546th meeting was held at the National Museum at 4.45 p.m.
on Tuesday, April 6, 1920. Program:

J. A. Jeancon: Antiquities of the Jemez Plateau, New Mexico.

Among all of the areas of the Southwest which offer material for
the study of American archaeolog}^ there is not one which presents to
the man engaged in research of that kind a finer and more responsive
field than the Jemez Plateau of New Mexico. Some work has been

1 This Journal, 10: 394. 1920.

proceedings: anthropological society 419

done, but there remains such a vast field that many men could engage
in the work for a long period, and still there would be room for more.

We are satisfied that the dwellings in the cliffs and mountain fast-
nesses were occupied by some of the ancestors of the people who now
dwell in the Rio Grande valle}^ and the contiguous country. Ample
legendary information is at hand; the similarity of artifacts found,
and those still in use in the villages, go to prove their relationship.
Inter-marriage with other peoples, and Spanish influences, have pro-
duced differences which are very apparent, but granting all of these,
the pre-Columbian people did not differ a great deal from the present-
day Pueblo.

There are three distinct types of dwellings on the Plateau: (i)
the cavate lodge, (2) the large communal house, and (3) the small
structures of only a few rooms which are supposed to have been the
earliest habitations.

The pottery found in the ruins presents a great variety of form and
design, but it is unlike that of other areas. Occasionally we find
outside influences creeping in and occurring in a local product, but,
as a rule, the pottery is pronounced and distinct.

There is every reason to say that the old peoples originally came into
the Rio Grande country from the north, possibly from the Mesa Verde
region of southwestern Colorado. The knowledge of place names in
the Montezuma Valley by the Tewa Indians is only one of the indi-
cations that the Rio Grande people came from the north. There are
many other reasons. (Author's abstract.)

547TH MEETING

The 547th regular meeting (41st annual meeting) of the Anthro-
pological Society of Washington was held at the National Museum
at 4.45 p.m. on Wednesday, April 28, 1920. The meeting was devoted
to reports and election of officers.

The Secretary reported that while during the year 191 8 the greater
part of the lectures had dealt with the races of the Near and Far East,
the program for 191 9 was entirely devoted to papers dealing with
anthropology and prehistoric archaeology. An innovation was pro-
vided in the first three meetings, which were devoted to field experi-
ences of those members of the Society who had been on active field
work during the preceding year. The Society lost no members by
resignation or death and four new members were elected.

Officers for the season 1920-21 were elected as follows: President,
C. Hart Merriam; Vice-President, Neil M. Judd; Secretary, J. P.
Harrington; Treasurer, J. N. B. Hewitt.

Felix Neumann, Secretary.

420 proceedings: botanical society

BOTANICAL SOCIETY

141 ST MEETING

The 141st regular meeting of the Botanical Society of Washington
was held at the Cosmos Club at 8 p.m. Tuesday, Februar}^ 3, 1920.
Seventy members and six guests were present. Messrs. R. P. Mar-
shall, E. W. Brandes, Henry F. Bain, S. D. Gray, E. G. Arzberger,
Geo. M. Reed, and O. F. Berger, of the U. S. Department of Agri-
culture, and Prof. Richard E. Schuh, of Washington, were elected
to membership.

As the retiring President for 1918, Mr. Walter T. Swingle gave an
address on Chinese botany and Chinese botanists. It was illustrated
with lantern slides and by an exhibit of books. The speaker sketched
the study of Chinese botany and the study of European plants and
outlined plans for a more effective study of the Chinese flora.

As the retiring President for 19 19, Dr. Karl F. Kellerman gave
an address on The effects of salts of boron upon the distribution of desert
vegetation. He stated that it appears that the portions of the deserts
completely devoid of vegetation are in many cases contaminated with
borax deposits. It also seems clear that the salts of boron must be
regarded as of fundamental importance in considering ecological re-
lationships of native plants, and also in considering the agricultural
use of land or water in regions containing natural deposits of these
salts.

142D meeting

The 142nd regular meeting of the Botanical Society of Washington
was held at the Cosmos Club at 8 p.m. Tuesday, March 2, 1920. Ninety-
seven members and ten guests were present. Dr. F. E. Kempton,
of the U. S. Department of Agriculture, w^as elected to membership.

Brief notes and reviews of literature

Mr. M. B. Waite exhibited a number of panicles of Paulownia
tomentosa, commonly planted as an ornamental tree in Washington,
D. C, and often escaping from cultivation. This tree, a native of
Central China, not Japan, as often stated, is remarkable in that the
flowering panicles, often a foot in length, fully formed in summer with
large naked buds, go through the winter with no protection except the
wool on the calyx. The statement of Mr. W. T. Swingle at a previous
meeting that this tree was an immigrant from the tropics into the tem-
perate regions of China, might explain the origin of the peculiar naked
panicles. This Paulownia has evidently been able to make the neces-
sary physiological adjustments to become cold-resistant, standing
temperatures of 0° to possibly —15° F., but has not made the usual
morphological adjustments of temperate-zone trees by covering its
cluster-buds or individual flower buds with protective bud scales.

Mr. C. V. Piper exhibited specimens of bastard toad-flax (Comandra
pallida A. DC.) which has recently been found parasitic on the roots of

proceedings: botanical society 421

apple trees in orchards at Wenatchee, Washington, where it has occa-
sioned alarm. This species occurs over the region from Minnesota to
the State of Washington, south to New Mexico, but not in California.
No data concerning its natural host plants are available in the litera-
ture, but herbarium labels record Ouercus and Cercocarpus positively,
and with some doubt Pinus and Populus. Doubtless the hosts are
numerous. The eastern analogue, C. umbellata, has never been re-
corded as attacking cultivated plants. It is of interest that the nuts
of C. pallida are edible. Palmer, in 1878, states that the Pah-ute
Indians eat the fruits, and Piper, in 1901, records that they are eaten
in Washington by children as well as by swine.

Dr. David Griffiths reviewed the first volume of The Cactaceae
by N. L. Britton and J. N. Rose (Carnegie Institution, Publication
No. 248). He referred to the treatment of Opuntia lindheimeri as char-
acteristic: "Certain forms have been described which in cultivation
we have been able to recognize as possibly distinct; but in the field
they seem to intergrade with other forms. In fact, all the plants de-
scribed as species which are cited above in the synonomy grow within
a relatively small distributional area." This small distributional
area extends from the Coast to the highlands of the Lower Pecos, and
from the alluvial saline delta of the Rio Grande to the cretaceous of
the Edwards Plateau, and a similar distance in the other direction to
Tampico. The species, according to the monograph, extends over
close to 75,000 square miles of territory. It was the conclusion of the
late lamented Professor Bernard Mackensen, that each change of
soil produced a different cactus flora in southern Texas. But Professor
Mackensen, after making his field studies, grew the plants in his garden,
a practice which the authors appear to think is likely to lead the sys-
tematist into error. The type locality of 0. Undheimen is the detritus
at the base of the Edwards Plateau. Two colored illustrations are
given. They are both from the delta of the Rio Grande, 260 miles
distant.

0. leptocarpa, of Mackensen, is considered by the authors to be a
hybrid between 0. lindheimeri and 0. macronhiza — a hybrid which
the reviewer had not been able to produce artificially. The reasons
given for the supposed hybridity are two in number, (i) The three
species are often found growing together and (2) the supposed hybrid
is intermediate in stature between the other two. The so-called hybrid
reproduces true from seed. The parent plants of the synonomy of
0. lindheimeri are reproduced with remarkable fidelity from seed.
Cross-pollinations on 0. lindheimeri have produced nothing but
maternal inheritance thus far.

Dr. Griffiths also exhibited a few colored illustrations of the species
included in 0. lindheimeri. The eleven plates that were displayed
constitute about one-third of the illustrated evidence available on this
remarkable species. Two colored plates illustrating 0. hasillaris
also were shown. The authors have decided that one of these is an
anomalous form of the other.

422 PROCEEDINGS: BOTANICAL SOCIETY

Regular Program

Mr. IvAR TiDESTROM read an illustrated paper on the Flora of Utah
and Nevada. He said that no region within the limits of the tlnited
States is marked by a more diversified flora than that of the Great
Basin. Its plains and desert areas are found at an elevation of 600
to 1,500 meters above sea-level while its numerous mountain ranges
rise in some instances above 3,900 meters altitude. Within this region
we find the northern boundary between the flora of Mexico and that
of western North America. This line coincides with the upper limit
of Covillea glutinosa, Yucca mohavensis and Cleistoyucca arborescens.

In the West-American Dominion there are several characteristic
belts, the lowest of which is dominated by Artejntsia tridentata. The
latter has a wide range as it ascends to 3,000 meters elevation or more
on exposed slopes. At 1,500 meters above sea-level, the pinon and
its associated Juniperus species becomes the dominant element. Above
the pinon, especially on the plateau, Pinus scopidonim rules. This
species forms forests in New Mexico and Arizona. Adjoining the
pinon and ascending higher (2,700 meters or more) the aspen becomes
the dominant element. In central Nevada Cercocarpus ledifolius
replaces to a large extent the aspen. At 2,700 meters above sea-
level Picea engelmanni and associated Abies species forms the spruce-
belt. The belt is succeeded by the alpine flora of which many species
are circumpolar.

Dr. P. J. S. Cr-\mer, Chief of the Division of Plant Breeding, De-
partment of Agriculture, Java, spoke on Problems in tropical plant
breeding. He confined his remarks principally to breeding with the
rubber plant Hevea brasiliensis, giving a brief description of the cultural
methods employed. He stated that good strains may be developed
from seedlings but more success may be expected from budded plants
if buds are used from the highest yielders. Budded rubber plants
sometimes show a tendency to low branching, but proper selection of
buds will prevent this. If the top of the branch is used as a scion the
graft will not develop a stem, but if the top of the stem or leader is
used, a normal tree is obtained.

Chas. E. Chambliss, Recording Secretary.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

MATTERS OF SCIENTIFIC INTEREST IN CONGRESS^

The Agricultural Appropriation Bill for 1920-21 (H. R. 12,272)
passed the House on February 14, and passed the Senate, with amend-
ments, on March 26. Three conferences were necessar}' before the
final agreement was reached on May 29. The bill was approved on
May 31 as Public Law No. 234.

The Department of Agriculture, which receives, according to Dr.
Rosa's figures recently published in this Journal,- 63 per cent of the
Federal Government's appropriations for "research, education and
development," is granted $31,475,368 by this Act. The bureaus which
are devoted entirely or in part to scientific work receive the following
appropriations, stated in round numbers:

Weather Bureau 1.9 million

Bureau of Animal Industry 5.5 million

Bureau of Plant Industry 2.8 million

Forest Service 59 million

Bureau of Chemistry 1.3 million

Bureau of Soils 0.5 million

Bureau of Entomology 1 . i million

Bureau of Biological Survey 0.8 million

States Relations Service 4.9 million

Bureau of Public Roads 0.5 million

Bureau of Markets 2.5 million

The Sundry Civil Bill for 1920-21 (H. R. 13,870) passed the House
on May 11, and the Senate on May 26 (with amendments); the con-
ference report was agreed to on June 2 and the bill became Public
Law No. 246, on June 5. This Act includes appropriations for the
Public Health Service, National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics,
Smithsonian Institution, Geological Sur\'ey, Bureau of Mines, Recla-
mation Service, Coast and Geodetic Survey, Bureau of Fisheries,
and Bureau of Standards.

The Public Health Service receives approximately 8.6 million,
including 0.3 million for "investigations of diseases of man and con-
ditions influencing the propagation and spread thereof," and $45,000
for the maintenance of the Hygienic Laboratory.

The National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics receives 0.2
million for research in the field of aeronautics.

The Smithsonian Institution receives approximately 0.75 million,
including $44,000 for ethnological researches, $13,000 for the Astro-
physical Obsenatory, and $80,000 for additional land for the National
Zoological Park.

* Continued from page 400,
^This JouRNAi., 10: 350. 1920.

423

424 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

The Geological Survey receives approximately 1.7 million, including
$125,000 for investigation of the so-called "super-power project"
for a comprehensive system of electrical power generation and dis-
tribution in the Boston -Washington industrial district.

The Bureau of Mines receives approximately 1.3 million, including
about 0.4 million for investigations of the causes of mine explosions
and the study of methods of mining.

The Reclamation vSer\nce receives approximately 8.5 million for
its engineering work.

The Coast and Geodetic Surx-ey receives approximately 2.0 million,
including about 0.4 million for surveys and resurv^eys of coasts, and
about 0.1 million for geodetic and magnetic work. The title of "super-
intendent" of the Sur\^ey is changed to "director."

The Bureau of Fisheries receives approximately 1.2 million, in-
cluding $45,000 for "inquiry into the causes of the decrease of food
fishes in the waters of the United States," and a reappropriation of
unexpended balance for cooperative work with the Bureau of Standards
on "new aquatic sources of supply of leather."

The greater part of the Bureau of Standards' appropriations are
carried in the Legislative, Executive and Judicial Act,^ but the present
Act carries additional items of $40,000 for the testing of large scales
and $47,272 for the purchase of additional land; it also directs the
Bureau to investigate the quality and cost of gas in the District and
make a report thereon in December, 1920.

The salaries of commissioned officers of the Coast and Geodetic
Surv^ey are increased through Public Law No. 210, "An Act to increase
the efficiency of the commissioned and enlisted personnel of the Army,
Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, Coast and Geodetic vSurvey, and
Public Health Serx'ice," which provides that commissioned officers of
the vSurvey "shall receive the same pay and allowances as now are or
hereafter may be prescribed for officers of the Navy with whom they
hold relative rank." The director of the Survey holds the rank of
captain in the Nav\^ The Comptroller of the Treasury has ruled
that the change of status takes effect from the passage of the Act,
but the pay increases are in effect from January i, 1920.

The Army Reorganization Bill'* (H. R. 12,775) passed the Senate on
April 20, and after two conferences, was agreed to on May 29 and be-
came Public Law No. 242 on June 4. The Act establishes the Chem-
ical Warfare vService as a separate service in the Army, under the direc-
tion of a Chief with the rank of Brigadier General, and x\ath 100 officers
and 1,200 enlisted men. The Service is "charged with the investiga-
tion, development, manufacture, or procurement and supply to the
Army of all smoke and incendiary materials, all toxic gases, and all
gas-defense appliances; the research, design, and experimentation
connected with chemical^ warfare and its material; and chemical pro-

3 This Journal, 10: 399. 1920.
* This Journal, 10: 244. 1920.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS 425

jectile filling plants and proving grounds ; the supervision of the training
of the Army in chemical warfare, . . . ; the organization, equipment,
training, and operation of special gas troops. . . ."

H. R. 9,781, to permit the transmission of poisons througli the mails
by physicians and chemists, by amending Section 217 of the Criminal
Code, Act of March 4, 1909, passed the House on April 5, and the
Senate on May 3; the conference report was agreed to on May 18,
and the bill became Public Law No. 216 on May 25.

The Nolan bill (H. R. 11,984) to increase the force and salaries in the
Patent Office^ passed the Senate on June 4, with S. 3,223 (authorizing
the Federal Trade Commission to accept and administer inventions
and patents for the public)^ added as an amendment. The bill as
thus amended met with opposition from industrial chemical interests
on the ground that it would give undue advantage to Government
inventors. At the request of Mr. Nolan, a committee consisting of
Messrs. F. G. Cottrell, C. h- Alsberg and Andrew Stewart, have
undertaken to draft further amendments.

The general subject of the nitrogen fixation plants was made the
subject of an investigation by a select committee of the House, which
rendered a report in May.^ The committee divided in its report and
recommendations on strictly political lines.

A hearing was held on May 21 on S. Res. 165 concerning the Botanic
Garden.^ Dr. N. h- Britton, director of the New York Botanical
Garden, and a number of Washington botanists, attended. Removal
of the Garden to Mt. Hamilton, in the northeastern part of the Dis-
trict, was strongly recommended by members of the Fine Arts Com-
mission. On the occasion of the looth anniversary of the Garden in
June, Representative Nelson, of Missouri, secured leave to print in the
Congressional Record a speech opposing the removal of the Garden
from its present site.

The Second Session of the Fifty-Sixth Congress adjourned sine die
on June 5. The next regular session will begin on December 6, 1920.

notes

The name of the Maryland State College of Agriculture, at College
Park, near Washington, was changed on July i to "The University of
Maryland." The institution was merged with the older University
of Maryland, which had medical and law schools in Baltimore. The
Board of Trustees of the State College becomes the Board of Regents
of the University, and the headquarters of the University will be at
College Park.

5 This JoxjRNAL 10: 243. 1920.

* This Journal 10: 400. 1920.

^ See This Journal 8:646. 1919; 10:244. 1920. A thorough summary of
the report was published in Chem. Met. Kng. 22: 993-996. May 26, 1920.

* This Journal 9: 563. 1919.

426 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

A party of twenty Czecho-vSlovak professors and teachers, officers of
Czecho-Slovak troops on their way back to Europe, visited Washington
on July 3 to study the educational institutions and museums of the
city.

Mr. H. S. Bailey, formerly of the Bureau of Chemistry, U. S. De-
partment of Agriculture, resigned his position with E. I. du Pont de
Nemours and Company on July i, to take charge of research for the
Southern Cotton Oil Company at Savannah, Georgia.

Dr. Elmer D. Ball, of the Iowa Agricultural College, has been
appointed Assistant Secretary of Agriculture, and assumed office on
June 12.

The degree of Master of Science was conferred on Major Edward
Hall Bowie, forecaster of the U. S. Weather Bureau, at the Com-
mencement of vSt. John's College, Annapolis, Maryland, on June ii.

Dr. Alfred H. Brooks, of the U. S. Geological Survey, received in
June the honorary degree of Doctor of Science from Colgate Uni-
versity.

Dr. Arthur F. Buddington, of the Geophysical Laboratory, Car-
negie Institution of Washington, has accepted the position of assistant
professor of geology at Princeton University.

Mr. Earl P. Clark, assistant in chemistry at the Rockefeller In-
stitute for Medical Research, New York City, has joined the chemical
staff of the Bureau of vStandards.

Mr. W. D. Collins, of the Bureau of Chemistr}^ U. S. Department
of Agriculture, has been appointed chief of the quality-of-water divi-
sion of the U. vS. Geological Survey.

Dr. F. G. CoTTRELL, of the Bureau of Mines, was elected chairman
of the Division of Chemistry and Chemical Technology of the National
Research Council for the year ending July i , 1 92 1 , at the annual meeting
of the Division held on May 7.

Dr. N. E. DoRSEY, who recently resigned as chief of the radium and
X-ray section of the Bureau of Standards, in order to take up private
consulting and testing work, has been retained by the Bureau in the
capacity of consulting physicist, while continuing his private work.

Mr. W. F. FosHAG, of the division of mineralog^^ U. S. National
Museum, spent May and June in collecting minerals in California.

Mr. Andre Goeldi, of Para, Brazil, has presented to the grass
herbarium of the National Museum an exceptionally complete and
well-prepared collection of grasses from Brazil, consisting of 299 speci-
mens.

Major General William Crawford Gorgas, U. S. A. (Retired),
formerly surgeon general of the United States Army, and a resident
member of the Academy, died in London, England, on July 4, 1920,
in his sixtv-sixth year. General Gorgas was born at Mobile, Alabama,
October 3, 1854, and was appointed a surgeon in the United vStates

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS 427

Army in 1880. He became widely known by his work in eradicating
yellow fever from Havana after the waf with Spain, and malaria and
yellow fever from the Canal Zone during the construction work on the
Panama Canal. He reorganized the Medical Corps for the war with
Germany, and in 191 9, after retirement from the Army, became director
of the International Health Board of the Rockefeller Foundation.

Dr. Franklin L. Hunt, physicist in the aeronautic instruments
section of the Bureau of Standards, who has been detailed to Paris,
France, for a period of twelve months, to serve as the Bureau's rep-
resentative in relations with the scientific and aviation authorities of
England, France, Italy, Belgium and Holland, is expected to return
about the first of October. The exchange of technical information in
connection with aviation matters has been greatly facilitated through
courtesy of the Commercial Attache Service of the Department of
Commerce.

Dr. H. R. Kraybill, assistant physiologist in the Bureau of Plant
Industr>% U. S. Department of Agriculture, has resigned to accept the
position of professor of agricultural chemistry and head of the depart-
ment of chemistry at the Experiment Station of New Hampshire State
College, Durham, New Hampshire.

Col. Arthur B. Lamb, director of the U. vS. Fixed Nitrogen Research
Laboratory, American University, will return to Harvard Uni\'ersity
as professor of chemistry, on September i. Major R. C. Tolman, at
present associate director, will at that time become director of the
Laboratory.

Mr. O. C. Merrill, formerly chief engineer of the Forest Service,
has been appointed executive secretary of the newly-established Federal
Power Commission, which will administer the Water Power Act passed
in June by Congress. The members of the Commission are the Sec-
retaries of War, Interior, and Agriculture.

Dr. E- W. Nelson, chief of the Bureau of Biological Survey, U. S.
Department of Agriculture, received the honorary degree of Master of
Arts from Yale University in June.

Mr. Helge Ohlsson, of the Royal Hydrographic Service of Sweden,
visited the United States in June for the purpose of studying the hydro -
graphic, geodetic, and magnetic work of the U. S. Coast and Geodetic
Survey.

Dr. Harrison E. Patten has resigned from the Bureau of Chemistry,
U. S. Department of Agriculture, to accept a position as chief chemist
with the Provident Chemical Company of St. Louis, Missouri. Dr.
Patten will also do consulting work in food chemistry and chemical
engineering.

Mr. Waldemar T. SchallER, who has been engaged in work for the
Great Southern Sulphur Company, at Orla, Texas, for the past few
months, has severed his connection with that company and has resumed
his work in Washington.

428 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Dr. George Otis Smith, director of the U. vS. Geological Survey,
received the honorary degree *of Doctor of Laws from Colby College
in June.

Professor Augustus TROWBRiiXiE, professor of physics at Princeton
University, has been elected chairman of the Division of Physical
Sciences of the National Research Council for the year ending July i,
1921.

Dr. Rodney H. True, of the Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. De-
partment of Agriculture, resigned in July to accept the position of
professor of botany at the University of Pennsylvania.

Correction: The Journal was in error in an item on p. 402 of the
preceding issue, in stating that there was doubt as to the legality of
the recess appointment of Professor M. T. Bogert to the Tariff Com-
mission. We are informed that this appointment had not been before
the Senate, and there could therefore be no question of its implied
rejection through lack of action by that body before adjournment.
Professor Bogert has decided not to accept the appointment.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. io September 19, 1920 No. 15

PHYSICS. — Methods of increasing the precision of thermostats.
Walter P. White, Geophysical Laboratory, Carnegie
Institution of Washington. (Communicated by Robert B.
Sosman.)^

In the July number of the Physical Review I published the
abstract of a paper on the performance of mercury-contact thermo-
stat regulators. Further work has brought out additional facts
which are of considerable importance where a practical applica-
tion is desired. It therefore, seems best to present at once
briefly the subject as modified by these facts, without waiting
for the final publication.

The only phenomenon peculiar to the thermostat is the back-
lash of the mercury contact; the mercury, descending, clings
to the wire and then drops away, so that the temperature of the
make is higher than that of the break. The thing of direct im-
portance is the corresponding bulb temperature difference, A^b,
the temperature change required to move the mercury meniscus
from the break to the make position. Since the effect upon
this AL'b of a change in the backlash can be completely offset
by a corresponding change in the length of the bulb, a knowledge
of the magnitude of the backlash is not important in a brief
discussion, though desirable for efficient designing. The back-
lash can probably be kept as small as iO;u, and the largest prob-
able value is only 6 times as great as that.

The lag also has a profound influence on the constancy of the
thermostat temperature. Sligh- has given a formula which,

1 Received July 17, 1920.

^ T. S. Sligh, Jr. Some characteristics of the Gouy thermoregulator . Journ.
Amer. Chem. Soc. 42: 66. 1920.

429

430 WHITE: PRECISION OF THERMOSTATS

simplified, is as follows:

A^P = A0B + VL,
where Adp is the periodic oscillation performed by the bath as
the heat goes off and on ; L is the lag ; V is the rate of tempera-
ture change due to the interrupted, or regulated, part of the
heating. A^p is ordinarily the largest variation or error in the
bath temperature. This equation, therefore, measures the effi-
ciency of the thermostat. It reveals one fact which is true even
where the equation does not apply, namely, that the rate of
heating, V, is quite as important as the lag, L.

My other paper presented a formula, more rigorous but more
complicated that Sligh's, which often gives results very different
from his.

It was further pointed out, however, that where the two for-
mulas disagree seriously, neither one applies, as a rule. The
reason is that both treat the lag as a single quantity, which is
equivalent to assuming that the fluid in the bulb is always at a
practically uniform temperature. But for rapid alternations
of bath temperature the temperature change travels into the
bulb as a damped wave, and the middle portions of the fluid
may take no appreciable part whatever in the periodic oscilla-
tion. It is evidently proper to use a formula based on the damped
wave; a sufficient approximation, probably, is the well-known
formula for plane waves due to harmonic oscillations:

e = doe-"' sin f -? t - ax) (i)

where 20o is the temperature range at the margin ; T the period ;

~ 7. O'T)

X distance measured into the body; a = Xy-i^, with h^ the

diffusivity. A very probable value of V is o.oi° per minute;
with it a temperature fluctuation of o.ooi° may correspond to
an oscillation of 24 seconds period. The effective penetration
of such an oscillation into gasoline or toluol is of the order of
0.5 mm., and the dimensions of the bulb must be chosen ac-
cordingly. In mercury the penetration is 5 times as great, and
the resulting expansion, therefore, about the same per unit of

WHITE: PRECISION OF THERMOSTATS 431

surface. The interior portions of bulb fluid are largely inert,
but the detrimental effect of bulb wall expansion, if that is
present, increases with the volume of the bulb.

There are, however, two further considerations not treated
hitherto. One is the fact that the effective or integrated tem-
perature of the bulb fluid is zero only one-eighth of a period before
the maximum temperature is reached at the surface . Hence if the
bath lags only 3 seconds behind the heater, the bulb, no matter
how sensitive it is, cannot possibly function normally and regu-
larly for a constancy of 0.001° Avith a rate, V, of 0.01° per
minute, and similarly for other lags.

A second consideration is the damping and delay of the wave
as it goes through the bulb wall,^ which still further cuts down
the efficiency, more with mercury than with gasoline, and much
more with glass than metal for the bulb wall.

If the rate, V, is made smaller, which can be done by dimin-
ishing the room-temperature fluctuations, then the period for
any given precision becomes longer, and the effect of all lags,
in the heater, in stirring, and in the bulb, may become very
much less. Thus, if the bath is put in a large packing box, or
in a space inclosed by curtains, and the air temperature in this
space is controlled by another simple regulator, V can often be
made over fifty times as small. This means that a precision
of o. 001 ° can be reached with the heat going on or off only once
in ID minutes or so. The lag effect, which is LV, is now far
smaller than before even with the lag somewhat larger, hence
large and, therefore, sensitive bulbs can be employed, and a pre-
cision beyond 0.001° can be thought of. Another advantage
peculiar to this method is the diminution of differences between
one part of the bath and another. Inclosure, however, is often
inconvenient.

This cascade thermostat is one means of securing high
precision. A second, giving practically no short-period tem-
perature oscillations at all, is the Gouy, or oscillating-wire,

3 The mathematical problem presented by this additional complication has
been seldom, if ever, treated in the literature. Prof. L. B. Tuckerman has worked
out for me a number of solutions for different cases, an account of which will belong
in a more complete publication.

432 piper: new leguminosae

thermostat, for which SHgh has given an equation. From this
equation it follows that the length of stroke usually employed,
20 or more times the backlash, makes the variation from day
to day much greater than in the previously discussed type. It
also follows, however, that the error can be diminished by short-
ening the stroke, by using an excess of heating power, and by
enlarging the bulb. How far these expedients can be carried
without introducing irregularity of action has not yet been
worked out.

A third means for increasing precision is to put the heater
very near the regulator bulb. This is like the Gouy regulator
in making the oscillations of the heating current so rapid and
small that the oscillations of the bath become negligible. It is
well known, and is often hailed as a complete solution of the
problem of temperature regulation. What is not nearly so
well known is that this method is also like the Gouy in giving
relatively large variations from day to day. This is because
the bulb is intermittently bathed in water considerably warmer
than the rest of the bath. Hence as the amount of heat re-
quired varies, the relative temperature of bulb and bath, and
therefore, the absolute temperature of the bath, varies also.

BOTANY. — A new genus of Leguminosae. C. V. Piper, Bureau
of Plant Industry.^

In a study of the genus Canavalia, to which the cultivated jack
bean and sword bean belong, it has become evident that the
generic characters will need some revision. Among the speci-
mens referred to this genus in the U. S. National Herbarium was
found the new species herewith described, diverging so much
from any other as to necessitate the proposal of a new genus
for its reception. Superficially, it has much resemblance to
Canavalia, but the floral characters indicate that its relationship
is much closer to Dolichos.

Monoplegma, gen. nov. »

Leaves palmately trifoliolate ; leaflets entire, 3 -nerved from the base
the two lateral nerves nearly as large as the midrib ; flowers in racemes,
' Received July 21, 1920.

piper: new leguminosaE 433

each pedicel with prominent glands at the base; calyx campanulate,
2-lipped, the upper lip broad, emarginate, as long as the tube, the lower
lip with 3 broad ovate lobes nearly as long as the upper lip, the median
lobe smallest; standard orbicular, emarginate, biauriculate at base,
short-unguiculate, a narrow thick gland near the middle of the petal;
wings spatulate, unguiculate, obtuse and hooded at apex, without
median auricle; keel geniculate, unguiculate, blunt at apex, as long as
but broader than the wings; stamens diadephous, the vexillar one free;
anthers small; style hairy on the inner side; stigma lanceoloid, terminal;
pod large, woody, i- or 2-seeded, a small longitudinal ridge on each
valve very near the ventral suture, the inner layer of the pod not
separating at maturity; seed globose, the narrow linear hilum covered
with spongy tissue and extending three-fifth of the circumference.

In the Englerian classification this plant would fall in the group
Papilionatae-Phaseoleae-Phaseolinae.

Monoplegma sphaerospermum Piper, sp. nov.

Probably a tall climbing vine; stems woody, terete, thinly strigillose
when young; stipules persisting, oblong, acutish, strongly and promi-
nently 5-7 nerved, 3-4 mm. long; petioles terete, shorter than the
leaflets, sparsely pilose, especially at base; stipels like the stipules but
longer and narrower, curved; petiolules fleshy, sparsely pubescent;
leaflets very thin, narrowly ovate, conspicuously acuminate, but the
acumination often blunt, rounded at base, 3-nerved from the base,
reticulate-venose, very sparsely strigillose on both surfaces, 6-10 cm.
long; peduncles densely puberulent; racemes 15-30 cm. long in fruit,
apparently io-20-flowered; pedicel as long as the calyx; calyx ciliolate;
upper calyx lip emarginate, 7 mm. long; lower lip with 3 broadly ovate,
obtuse lobes, the lateral ones slightly larger and nearly as long as the
upper calyx-lip; corolla (not fully open) 10 mm. long; standard orbicular,
notched at apex, short-clawed at base between two narrow basal auricles,
a narrow thick swelling near the middle; wings spatulate, obtuse,
hooded at apex, without a lobe in the middle; keel as long as the wings,
blunt at apex, sharply genticulate in the middle; mature pods oblong,
woody, each valve with a single longitudinal ridge very close to the
ventral suture, the dorsal suture prominent and acute, glabrous but
at first strigillose, 5-9 cm. long, 3-4 cm. broad, tipped with a straight
beak, 6 mm. long; seeds usually 2 in each pod, nearly spherical,
black, somewhat shiny, the longest diameter 2 cm.; hilum narrowly
linear, white, somewhat spongy, extending three-fifths of the circum-
ference.

Type in the U. S. Natioxial Herbarium, no. 577,636, collected in
thickets at Las Vueltas, Tucurrique, Costa Rica, November, 1898
(flowers), and April, 1899 (fruit), by A. Tonduz (no. 12,743).

Other Specimens Examined:

Costa Rica: Baru, Pacific slope, January 28, 1898, Pittier 11,958.

434 SCHAUS: NEW TROPICAIv butterfues

ENTOMOLOGY. — Descriptions of two new species of butterflies
from tropical America.'^ W. Schaus, U. S. National Museum.

Recently the National Museum has received two new butter-
flies, from the tropics of the new world, which are of more than
usual interest. It is desirable that names for these be made
available and for this reason the following descriptions are pre-
sented.

Anaea suprema Schaus. sp. nov.

Fore wings arched and falcate, the outer margin deeply incurved.
Hind wings with the outer margin rounded, the anal angle slightly
produced.

Ma/^.— Palpi and head reddish brown irrorated with white. Collar
and thorax olive-brown. Wings black faintly tinged with deep blue.
Fore wings: a scarlet fascia from base, filling the basal fourth of costa
and the basal third of inner margin, narrowing towards apex, its an-
terior edge following below subcostal to near termen, its hind edge some-
what dentate, especially between veins 5 and 8; the apex and terminal
line reddish brown; a black streak on discocellular. Hind wings with
the outer margin rather broadly reddish brown. Wings below dark
reddish brown glossed with iridescent lilacine and mottled with yel-
lowish striae. Fore wings: a transverse dark shade in cell, and a sim-
ilar smaller shade on discocellular; a postmedial fuscous shade, vertical
to vein 5, outcurved to vein 3, vertical to vein 2 and inbent to inner
margin; an ochreous line from apex joining the postmedial at vein 4
and edging it to inner margin ; an oblique dark shade on costa beyond
postmedial. Hind wings: a dark transverse shade in cell; a dark
median streak below costa, and a fine line on discocellular; an irregular
postmedial fuscous line; a fuscous line from costa before apex to inner
margin just above anal angle.

Female. — Wings black. Fore wings with the fascia broader and
shorter, orange-red, crossed by a thick black line on discocellular, end-
ing somewhat beyond, followed by a large irregular and elongated
deep yellow spot between veins 5 and 7; a similar upright spot from
vein 2 to above vein 3, and a streak above submedian; marginal tri-
angular orange-red spots, their base resting on a terminal reddish brown
line. Hind wings with large postmedial deep yellow spots not reaching
inner margin, the black beyond them forming triangular spots, their
apices touching black marginal spots and enclosing large subterminal
brownish yellow diamond -shaped spots; a terminal reddish brown
line. Wings below to postmedial line maroon striated with yellow,
beyond postmedial ochreous-yellow striated with maroon; the spots
and lines as in male, but better defined; fore wings with a darker tri-
angular space before apex; an incurved subterminal maroon shade from

* Received July 21, 1920.

FOOTE AND MOHLER: IONIZATION 435

apex to submedian; hind wings with a subterminal maroon line shaded
with fuscous. The gloss on underside more of a steel color.

Expanse: male 65 mm. ; female 74 mm.

Habitat: Serra da Mantiqueira, Brazil.

Type. — Cat. no. 23,349, U. S. National Museum.

Unlike any described species.

Actinote calderoni Schaus, sp. nov.

Male. — Head, collar and thorax black, some white scaling on vertex;
a silvery shade on tegulae. Body whitish. Wings thinly scaled,
grayish white, the veins fuscous brown. Fore wings with short terminal
gray streaks on interspaces, longer above vein 5 and 6; the interspaces
between veins 8 and 11 suffused with gray. Hind wings with gray
streaks on interspaces from near cell to termen; a short streak in cell
before discocellular. Wings below similar; a small ochreous spot at
base of hind wing.

Expanse: 43 mm.

Habitat: Ateos, Salvador.

Type. — ^Cat. no. 23,348, U. S. National Mjiseum.

Received from Mr. Calderon, head of the Agricultural Laboratory
in Salvador, in whose honor I take great pleasure in naming this species.

THERMOCHEMISTRY. — The thermochemistry of ionization of
vapors of certain compounds.'^ Paul D. Foote and F. L.
MoHLER, Bureau of Standards.
Two general types of ionization of compound molecules in
the gaseous phase are known. In one mode of ionization the
molecule preserves its general structure, simply losing a nega-
tive charge and becoming a positive ion. It seems probable
that materials capable of ionizing in this manner should possess
a characteristic spectrum, as for example, carbon monoxide.

In the second type of ionization the molecule is dissociated
into a positive and a negative ion. Materials which are ionized
in this manner probably do not possess characteristic spectra in
the ordinary sense. Radiation of a single frequency, usually in
the extreme ultraviolet, may he emitted, however, when the two
ions recombine to form the neutral molecule. We have found evi-
dence that hydrogen chloride exhibits this form of ionization,^
being without doubt dissociated on electronic impact of 14.0
volts into a hydrogen nucleus and a negative chlorine ion.

* Published by permission of the Director Bureau of Standards. Received
Aug. 21, 1920.

2 FooTE and Mohler. Journ. Amer. Chem. Soc. September, 1920.

436 FOOTE AND MOHIyER: IONIZATION

Alkali halides. — Compounds of the alkali metals and the
halogens probably show a similar behavior, the ionization of
the vapor consisting in the production of positively charged
metal ions and negatively charged halogen ions. Thus the
ionization of NaCl into Na"*" and Cl~ would give rise to no spec-
tra characteristic of NaCl (except possibly the single frequency
above mentioned), but rather to the spectrum of sodium pro-
duced by recombination of the sodium ions and free electrons.
If positive salt ions were formed, on recombination with elec-
trons spectra of the salt would appear. No emission spectra
characteristic of the alkali halides have been observed.^ Further-
more, the flame emission spectrum characteristic of the metals
is suppressed by the presence of an excess of the halogen in the
flame. Kaiser and Runge^ concluded from this that an undis-
covered spectrum of the salt must exist, but the theory that NaCl
ionizes into Na"*" and Cl~ and hence has no spectrum except a
single line is a more probable explanation. The presence of
an excess of halogen gas in the flame simply reduces the pro-
portion of free sodium ions, which combine with chlorine ions in-
stead of electrons. The sodium spectrum is accordingly sup-
pressed.

This type of ionization of the vapor is precisely that obtained
in the electrolytic dissociation of the fused salt, thus suggesting
that there may be a much closer relation between electrolytic
conduction and gaseous conduction than is ordinarily supposed.

If a material in the vapor state ionizes by dissociation it is
sometimes possible to compute from chemical and physical data
the value of the ionization potential. As an example, we shall
illustrate the method of computing the work necessary to ionize
a gram mol of sodium chloride vapor.

Let

[ ] denote solid phase or crystalline state.

( ) denote gaseous phase.

D = heat of dissociation of V2 gram mol halogen gas into
monatomic gas.

' Kaiser and RungE- Handbuch der Spektroskopie.
* Loc. cit. 6: 127.

foote; and mohIvEr: ionization 437

S = heat of sublimation at absolute zero of i gram atom

metal or gram molecule of salt.
Q = heat of formation of the salt.
/ = work necessary to ionize i gram mol salt or i gram atom

metal.
E = electron affinity referred to i gram atom halogen gas.
The following thermochemical relations may be written:
[NaCl] + QNaci = [Na] + (V2CI2)
(V2CI2) + Z^ci = (CI)
[Na] + 5Na = (Na)
(NaCl) - 5Naci = [NaCl]
(Na) + /Na = (Na) +
(Cl) - Eci = (Cl)-

Adding :

(NaCl) + QNaCl + ^Cl + ^Na + ^Na " EqI - S^^ci =

(Na)+ + (CI)- (i)

Equation (i) accordingly gives the amount of energy /Naci
required to ionize i gram mol of sodium chloride vapor. Whence :

/(NaCl) = 0NaCl + DqI + vS^a + ^Na ~ -Ecl ~ -JNaCl (2)

A similar relation holds for any salt of compositions R X where
R is an alkali metal and X a halogen. For the greater portion
of these salts, all the terms on the right of equation (2), with the
exception of the heat of sublimation of the salt are known.
Hence a determination of the heat of sublimation would permit
the computation of the ionization potential of the vapor of the
salt.

On the assumption that, in addition to the ordinary Coulomb
force of repulsion or attraction between the charges on the ions
forming the crystal structure of these salts, there exists between
two ions a repulsive force, the potential of which is inversely
proportional to the ninth power of the distance apart, Born^
has computed the grating energy of the crystal, i. e., the work
U necessary to convert i mol of the crystal into free positive
.and negative ions — a purely electrostatic problem. The phys-
ical significance of the quantity U is apparent. It may be con-
* Born. Verb. d. Phys. Ges. 21 : 16. 1919.

438

FOOTE AND MOHLER: IONIZATION

sidered as representing the work required to first sublime a mol
of crystal and then ionize each molecule by dissociation. Or,
in terms of thermochemical data, it represents the heat of forma-
tion of a mol of the salt, plus the heat of dissociation of one-half
mol of halogen gas, plus the heat of sublimation of a mol of metal,
plus the work of ionization of a mol of metal, minus the work
represented in the electron affinity of a gram atom of halogen
gas; the end products of either transition being identical.

Accordingly equation (2) may be expressed in the following
general form:

UiRx] = J(Rx) + 5[Rx] = 0[Rx] + S[R] + D(x) - E(x) + /(R) (3)

Table i gives the values of the grating energies computed by
Born, from which the ionization potentials may be obtained di-
rectly if the heat of sublimation of the salt were known :

TABLE 1
Born's Values of Grating Energies

Vapor

-^(rp) + 5[rf]

Vapor

-^(rc1) + 5[rc1]

Vapor
LiBr

-^(RBr)+ •5[RBr]

V por

•/(ri)+-S[r,]

LiF

231

LiCl

179

167

Lil

153

NaF

220

NaCl

182

NaBr

168

Nal

158

210

KCl

163

KBr

155

144

RbF

RbCl

144

RbBr

140

Rbl

138

CsF

CsCl

156

CsBr

150

Csl

141

The numbers in this table are expressed in kilogram calories
per mol. Equation (4) gives the relation between kilogram
calories per mol and potential in volts.

kilogram calories per mol = 23 . i X volts (4)

Halides of the second group. — The ionization of vapors of these
halides may be very much more complicated than those of the
alkali halides because of the higher valence of the metal. The
grating energies of the salts have not been determined. As a
particular example of the possible conditions to be expected, we
shall consider the ionization of mercuric and mercurous chlorides.

The mercuric chloride molecule consists of a doubly posi-
tively charged mercury atom and two negatively charged chlorine'
atoms. Ionization may result in the following immediate con-
ditions :

FOOTE AND MOHIvER: IONIZATION 439

(i) A positively charged molecule (Hg Cl2) +

(2) A positively charged molecule of mercurous chloride and
a negatively charged chlorine atom (Hg CI) + + (CI) ~

(3) A doubly positively charged mercury atom and two nega-
tively charged chlorine atoms (Hg)++ + (Cl)~ + (Cl)~

Since the chlorine is undoubtedly bound to the mercury as
atoms rather than as a molecule there would not be an imme-
diate production of molecular chlorine. If molecular chlorine
were produced it would require a secondary reaction of two
chlorine atoms, quite apart from the phenomenon of ionization.
The ionization by method (3) would appear improbable in low
voltage arcs. The two chlorine atoms are probably joined to
opposite sides of the mercury atom. Hence in order that the
impacting electron may eject both chlorine ions, it must first
collide with the molecule and eject one chlorine ion, then pass
through the mercury atom before its electric field may exert an
appreciable influence on the second chlorine ion. But to pass
through the mercury atom would require a velocity approaching
that of a beta particle. Hence while this type of ionization might
exist in cathode ray phenomena it would not appear possible
at one collision in ordinary arcs.

The production of a doubly charged mercury atom, however,
might be developed by successive collision or by absorption of
radiation followed immediately by collision in an arc of high
current density. The process occurs in two steps. A colli-
sion with an impacting electron of suitable velocity or the ab-
sorption of radiation of the proper frequency may cause the
ejection of one chlorine ion resulting in ionization by method
(2). Before the positively charged mercurous chloride thereby
produced, recombines, it may collide with a second electron
and lose the second chlorine ion. Hence even if ionization
finally resulted in a doubly charged mercury ion and two chlorine
ions, measurements of ionization potential of mercuric chloride
would show two inelastic collisions, the first giving the energy
required for the step (HgClo) — ^ (HgCl)+ -f (CI)- and the
second for the step (HgCl)+ — ^ (Hg)++ + (CI)-.

In general, since this latter step is a secondary process which

440 FOOTE AND mohIvEr: ionization

in ordei to occur at all must immediately follow the first step,
it is a very improbable condition in low voltage arcs. Ioniza-
tion resulting in the production of a positively charged mercuric
chloride ion is considered later.

It would appear that a very probable type of ionization of
mercuric chloride results in the production of a positively charged
mercurous chloride ion and a negatively charged chlorine ion.

The ionization of mercurous chloride may result in the fol-
lowing immediate conditions:

(i) A positively charged molecule (HgCl) +
(2) A positively charged mercury atom and a negatively
charged chlorine atom (Hg)+ + (Cl)~

We would expect to find both types of ionization present.
That the first type may occur is reasonable since positively
charged mercurous chloride ions may be produced in the ioniza-
tion of mercuric chloride. The second type of ionization is in
direct analogy to that of the alkali halides.

The thermochemical relations may be written for the above
modes of ionization.

Let J'ugci represent ionization of type (Hg)+ + (Cl)~
J Hgci represent ionization of type (HgCl) "^
/'Hgchi^epresent ionization of type (Hg)"^"*" + 2(01)"
/ Hgch represent ionization of type (HgCl) + + (CI) ~
J'ug represent ionization of type (Hg)++ x

J Hg represent ionization of type (Hg) +
[ ] denotes soHd phase, ( ) gaseous phase, and no sign, liquid
phase.

L = latent heat of fusion per mol.

Accordingly we have for the ionization of (HgCl2) into (Hg)++
and 2(C1)~:

[HgCl2] + Qngch = Hg -f (CI2)
Hg - LHg = [Hg]

[Hg] + 5Hg^ = (Hg)

(Hg) + /'Hg = (Hg)

(CI2) + 2Dci = 2 (CI)

2 (CI) - 2£ci = 2(C1)-

(HgCl2) - Sngcb = [HgCl2]

FOOTE AND MOHLER: IONIZATION 44 1

Adding :

(HgClo) + QhsCU - ^Hg + 5Hg + /'hs + 2^01 - 2Eci " SusCh =

(Hg)++ + 2(C1)- (5)

For the ionization of (HgClo) into (HgCl)+ and (CI)- we ob-
tain:

[HgCl2] + QngCb = Hg + (CI2)

Hg + V2(Cl2) - Qngci = [HgCl]

(HgCl2) - 5HgCl. = [HgCl2]

[HgCl] + 5Hgci = (HgCl)

(HgCl) + /HgCl = (HgCl) +

72(02) + Dcx = (CI)

(CD- - Eci = (Cl)-
Adding :

(HgCl2) + QugCh — QngCl — 5"HgCl2 + -SHgCl +

/HgCl + -Del - Ed = (HgCl)+ + (CI)- (6)
For the ionization of (HgCl) into (Hg)+ and (CI)- we obtain:
[HgCl] + Qngci = Hg + V2(Cl2)
Hg - Lng = [Hg]

[Hg] + 5Hg = (Hg)

V2(Cl2) + i^c. = (CI)
(Cl)-itci = (Cl)-

(Hg) + Jug = (Hg) +
(HgCl) - 5Hgci = [HgCl]
Adding :
(HgCl) + Qngci - Lu, + 5Hg + /Kg + Del -

Eci -5Hgci = (Hg)++ (CI)- (7)
The works of ionization in the manner indicated are given by-
equations (5), (6) and (7). Accordingly

J'ugch = Qngch — ^Hg + ^Hg + J'ng + 2Da. —

2Eci - SngCh (8)

JugCh = QngCb ~ ^HgCl ~ ^S^HgCh + -S^HgCl +

/HgCl + ^Cl - Ecl (9)

/'HgCi = QHgCi — Lhs + Sng + Jug + Del — Ecl — Sugci (10)

The heats of sublimation may be derived from the vapor
pressure data by means of the formula*^:

p^T = Ce~^^^'^, where R = 1.985 g. cal.
^ Stern. Phys. Zeit. 14:629. 1913.

QugCl

Sug

Del

Jhs

240

119

5"HgCl

^^HgCIi

Q-HgCh

Eug

442 FOOTE AND MOHLER: IONIZATION

These data, plotted logarithmically, give a straight line, the
slope of which determines 5. The following values expressed
in kg. cal. were used in the above computations.

Landolt-Bornstein-Meyerhoffer Tab.
From data in Kaye and Laby
Pier

Mohler and Foote, et al.

Bom (confirmed experimentally by Foote and
Mohler)

From data of Stelzner and Niederschulte
From data of Stelzner and Niederschulte
Landolt-Bornstein-Meyerhoffer Tab.
Kaye and Laby, actually 0.6
On substituting these data in equations (8), (9) and (10) we
obtain :

y'Hgci = 203 kg. cal. =0= 8.8 volts (11)

Jugch = yngci - 42 =^ Uugci - 1.8) volts (12)

/Hgci. = /'ng - 79 - (123451'. 10-8 + 7.0) volts (13)

where

V = i.5g», since J'^g = Jug + i2345j'.io-^
The value of the spectral frequency v = 1.5^ for mercury
does not appear in the literature, although Sommerfeld^ has
determined this frequency for zinc as 159000. It represents
the frequency of the quantum involved in the removal of the
second electron from the metal ion.

It would therefore appear that mercurous chloride may be
ionized by dissociation into (Hg)+ and (Cl)~ at 8.8 volts. A
second type of ionization, Jugch into (HgCl)"*" may occur, but
the value cannot be computed by the methods outlined. This
would require a knowledge of spectral series of HgCl, which at
present is not available.

The ionization of mercuric chloride into (Hg)"*"^ and 2 (CI)"
requires an amount of work eV where V = (123451'. io~^ +
7.0) volts and v = 15^, but this type of ionization could not
exist, in ordinary arc phenomena, except by a two-stage process,
and then but rarely. A far more probable type of ionization is

'• Referred to by Born. Zeit. f. Phj'sik 1: 252. 1920.

FOOTS AND MOHLER: IONIZATION 443

by dissociation into (HgCl)+ and (Cl)~. The ionization poten-
tial corresponding to this type of inelastic collision differs by
1 . 8 volts from the ionization potential (without dissociation) of
mercurous chloride. An ionization potential may exist corre-
sponding to the removal of the second chlorine ion from the mer-
curous chloride ion, but this type of ionization is statistically
improbable in low voltage arcs. This potential would have a
value equal to the difference of the complete and partial ioniza-
tions, viz., J'ngci, - Jugch = (i2345''-io-s + 8.8 - Jugci)
volts. Finally, an ionization potential may exist corresponding
to the formation of a mercuric chloride ion. Evidence for this
would be the existence of spectra characteristic of HgClo as dis-
tinguished from HgCl, but no spectral relations of this type are
established.

Relations analogous to those described for mercuric chloride
probably hold for the other chlorides of this group and the halogen
compounds. Even though such compounds as ZnCl are incapa-
ble of existing to any stable degree there is no apparent reason
why they may not exist momentarily as a product of decomposi-
tion, and especially so as positive ions. In fact, the existence
of ZnCl"^ is recognized in electrolytic dissociation of ZnCl2.

Lohmeyer^ has studied in some detail the emission spectra
of the mercuric halides. Each shows a characteristic com-
plicated band structure. This gives further evidence that ioniza-
tion of HgXo into Hg++ and 2X~ is at least not predominant,
for then, as with the alkali halides, we would expect to find
no spectrum characteristic of the salt. Whether the observ^ed
spectra rise from the ions (HgX) + or (HgX2) + remains an open
question.

Hydrogen-chloride, -bromide and -iodide. — -The ionization of
these gases has been considered by Born, Fajans, and others.^
The thermochemical relations are as follows:

(HCl) + Ohci = 'MB.,) + V2(Cl2)

V2(H2) + I^H = (H)

* Diss. Bonn, 1906. Zeit. Wiss. Phot. 4: 367. 1906.

^ Series of papers in Verh. d. Phys. Ges. 1919-20. See also FooTE and
MoHLER. Journ. Amer. Chem. Soc. September, 1920.

444 FooTE AND mohler: ionization

V2(Cl2) + Z^Cl = (CI)

(H) + 7h = (H) +

(Cl)j- .Ed = (Cl)-
Adding :

(HCl) = Qhci + Dn-h Del + Ju - ^ci = (H)+ + (Cl)-
/hci = Qhci -\- Dn -{- Dci + /h — ^ci (14)

= 22 + 45 + 56 + 312 - 119
= 316 kg. cal. - 13.7 volts
Value observed by Foote and Mohler^" = 14.0 volts.
Similarly

JhBv = QhBv + Du + Dbt + /h - £^Br (iS)

= 12 + 45 + 23 + 312 - 84
= 308 kg. cal. o 13 .3 volts
Similarly

7hi =~QIT+ Pn + A + /h - £1 (16)

= ..^ +451+ 18 + 312 - 77
= 299 kg. cal. <> 12 .9 volts

Hydrogen Sulphide. —On the assumption that hydrogen sul-
phide may be ionized by dissociation, Bom and Bommann^^
have computed the ionization potential to be about 31 volts.
The thermochemical relations are as follows:

(HaS) + Q(H.s) = (H2) + [S]
(Ho) + 2Dn = 2(H)
2(H) + 27h = 2(H) +

[S] + 5s = (S)

(S) - £s = (S)-

Adding :

(H2S) + Qh.S + 2Dh + 2 J,, + 5s - Es = 2(H)+ + (S) —

/h^S = QhjS + 2L>H + 27h + 5s - £s
= 5+90 + 624 + 59-50

= 728 kg. cal. ^31.5 volts
The above examples suffice to show that an investigation of
the ionization potential of vapors of various compounds is of
exceedingly great interest from the thermochemical standpoint.

10 Loc. cit.

" Zeit. f. Physik 1: 250. 1920.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON.

3 2 6th meeting.

The 326th regular meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, Dec. 4,
1919, with Pres. Sasscer in the chair, and 31 members and 5 visitors
present.

Officers elected for 1920: President, W. R. Walton; First Vice-
President, A. B. Gahan; Second Vice-President, A. G. Boving; Re-
cording Secretary, R. A. Cushman; Editor, A. C. Baker; Corresponding
Secretary-Treasurer, S. A. Rohwer; Members at Large of Executive
Committee, A. N. Caudell, A. L. Ouaintance, and E. R. Sasscer.
S. A. Rohwer was nominated as a vice-preident of Washington Acad-
emy of Sciences.

program.

Wm. ScHAUS, Collecting in the American Tropics.

Mr. Schaus told in a most interesting way of his experiences during
his many years of collecting in South and Central America. He de-
scribed most vividly the plant and animal life of the tropical forest,
his description of night in the jungle being most impressive.

In the discussion on this paper, Mr. Caudell spoke of insects as food,
especially of the grasshoppers and caterpillars used by the American
Indians. He also told of a mantid that is found in Texas and Brazil
but has not been found at points between. Dr. Aldrich spoke of the
stenoxenid fly, Stenoxenus johnsoni Coq., described from the Delaware
Water Gap, that has since been found only in Costa Rica. Mr. Schwarz
stated that there are only two spots in the United States where tropical
species occur, southern Florida and Brownsville, Texas; and told of
some of his experiences collecting in those localities and in the tropics,
comparing the faunas of the regions. Dr. Howard commended Dr.
Schaus highly on his paper.

Under the heading of Notes and Exhibition of Specimens, Dr. Hop-
kins exhibited a sweet potato mined by a scolytid beetle. Platypus
compositus Say, which ordinarily breeds in hardwoods. The galleries
in the specimen already contained a growth of the ambrosia fungus.
Another and undescribed species of barkbeetle, he stated, had also
been found attacking sweet potato.

Retiring president Sasscer then presented to President-elect Walton
a gavel made of two pieces of wood beautifully engraved by the bark-
beetle Leprosinus aculeatus Say. This had been made by Mr. H. W.
Clark and presented by him to Dr. Howard, who in turn presented it
to the Society. President Walton then took the chair.

445

446 proceedings: entomological society

Mr. MiDDLETON spoke of finding on certain sawfly larvae two oval
slits on the abdominal segments and inquired of Dr. Mclndoo if these
might be olfactory pores. Dr. McIndoo stated that he could not
speak with certainty but thought they might well be of that nature.

R. A. CusHMAN, Recording Secretary.

327TH MEETING.

The 327th regular meeting of the Society was held at the Cosmos
Club Jan. 15, 1920, with Pres. Walton in the chair, and S3 members
and 5 visitors present.

The recording secretary, Mr. Cushman, presented his annual report
on the activities of the Society for 19 19. Embodied in this report
were statistics concerning attendance at meetings, programs presented,
and members taking part in discussion, and altogether it was shown
that 1 919 had been a profitable year. The report was accepted with
the thanks of the Society.

Mr. BuscK, for the auditing committee, reported the books of the
Treasurer correct and complimented the Treasurer on the neatness and
system of his accounts.

The Corresponding Secretary-Treasurer, Mr. Rohwer, submitted
liis report for 1919, sho\\'ing that for the first time in several years the
Society has no outstanding indebtedness, all expenses of publication
of the Proceedings being paid up, including the indices to Vols. 18-21.
He also stated that the expense of publication of the proceedings would
show an increase in 1920 of about 13 per cent and reported a change in
policy adopted by the Executive Committee whereby the entire ex-
pense of separates will be borne by authors. The report was accepted
with the thanks of the Society.

In the absence of the Editor, Dr. Baker, Mr. Rowher reported the
Proceedings up to date.

New members elected: F. B. PIerbert, Forest Insect Laboratory,
Los Gatos, Calif.; and J. C. Evenden, Ashland, Oregon.

PROGRAM.

E. R. Sasscer, a Brief Resume of the Family Coccidae. (Presidential
address.)

Mr. Sasscer discussed briefly the history of the study of the Coccidae;
distribution and number of species; economic loss caused by these in-
sects; useful products such as shellac, cochineal and other dyes, wax,
and ground pearls, the last the empty shells of the genus Margarodes;
habits in relation to oviposition, part of plant attacked, and gall-
making; methods of distribution; natural enemies; and works on the
family. Of special interest was the suggestion that Cryplophyllaspis
liquidambaris, which forms galls on the leaves of sweet gum, may be a
form of Aspidiotus ancyhis, which is always found on the twigs of trees
bearing galled leaves.

proceedings: entomological society 447

A discussion of the Periodical Cicada followed under the following
headings :

R. A. St. George, Notes from Virginia. — Mr. St. George opened the
discussion with notes made at Falls Church, Va., and vicinity, supple-
mented by further observations secured by Mr. Snyder. The first
adult cicada was observed on May 14th, and the first appearance in
numbers was on May 22nd. Mating and oviposition were observed on
May 31st, and oviposition has ceased by June 12th. By June 20th
adults were practically all gone and the last one heard was on July ist.
From caged material the first €:gg hatched between July 1 6th and 20th
and hatching continued until Aug. 12th. Numerous records were
taken associating the phenological events in plants and the cicada to
serve as an index as to when the various stages of the cicada should
appear in later generations. Observations were also made on the re-
lation of temperature to the cicada song. These observations show that
the cicada began to sing when the temperature ranged from 60 ° to 66 °
F., at no time below 60°. During two nights, when the temperature
ranged from 62 ° to 74°, it is believed that they sang all night. On one
occasion a concert that lasted 5 minutes was started by causing a
captive cicada to sing.

R. E. Snodgrass, Biological and anatomical notes.

Mr. Snodgrass continued the discussion by recounting some observa-
tions made at Somerset, Md., on the habits and the anatomy of the
cicada, the latter being illustrated by many beautiful drawings
for which Mr. Snodgrass is noted. He also exhibited plaster casts of
the chambers that the cicadas form when they come up near the sur-
face in the spring. The longest of these measured 6 inches. Mr.
Snodgrass was able to distinguish four songs of the larger form and
discussed the entirely difi"erent song of the smaller form. Oviposition
of the adult and emergence of the pupae and shedding of the pupal
skin were discussed briefly corroborating earlier observations. The
young cicadas hatch in a membrane with pouches for the appendages
and the speaker commented on the resemblance of the shedding of
this membrane to a true molt. The functional mouth of the adult is
reduced to a narrow median tube between the closely appressed epi-
pharynx and hypopharynx. The setae arise from pouches behind the
lateral wings of the hypopharynx, and therefore neither pair can repre-
sent the mandibles as commonly supposed. Mr. Snodgrass was in-
clined to believe both pairs maxillary. The abdomen in both sexes
is almost filled by a large air-sac, crowding the viscera into very nar-
row spaces around the periphery^ What appears to be the intestine
from its position at the end of the stomach is really a long coiled tube
that returns and rejoins the stomach at a point near the opposite end,
while the true intestine originates at the anterior end of the stomach
near the oesophagus.

448 proceedings: entomoeogicai^ society

Mr. MiDDLETON suggested the purpose of the air-sac to be for break-
ing the pupal shell, but Mr. Snodgrass thought not, because of its
absence in the pupa. Dr. Boving agreed with and emphasized the in-
terpretation of the mouthparts as given by Mr. Snodgrass.

Mr. W. T. Davis, of Staten Island, N. Y., the well known specialist
on cicades, told of the feeding of adults of the periodical cicada; he had
observ'ed their preference for white birch and sweet gum. The trans-
parent cicada, C. heiroglyphicus, feeds on pine. He had received a
specimen of the small form of the periodical cicada from Missouri as
late as the latter part of October.

Dr. Hopkins told of records of emergence of the cicada kept by mem-
bers of one family in West Virginia for 119 years, and commented on
the small variation in the dates of emergence shown by these records.
He also described the song of the cicada.

Dr. Vernon Kellogg addressed the Society briefly, expressing grati-
fication at being able to get in touch with entomology once more and
his hope of again taking up his work in the science.

R. A. CusHMAN, Recording Secretary.

vSCIENTlFiC NOTES AND NEWS

According to a ruling of the Comptroller of the Treasury, the newly-
established Federal Power Commission is without authority to build
up its own organization, and is dependent for its personnel upon such
help as may be loaned by the War, Agriculture, and Interior Depart-
ments. No provision for the employment of personal services, with
the exception of the salary of the Executive Secretary, was made in
the act appropriating funds for the Commission.

A projection of the whole sphere on an equivalent, or equal-area
system, devised by Aitoff, has been issued by the U. S. Coast and
Geodetic Survey. The sphere is represented within an ellipse with
major axis twice the minor axis. The network is obtained by the
orthogonal, or perpendicular projection of a Lambert meridional
equal-area hemisphere upon a plane making an angle of 60° to the
plane of the original. As used for a map of the world, this projection
is well adapted to replace the Mercator projection in atlases of physical
geography or for statistical purposes, and has the advantage over
Mollweide's in that its representation of the shape of countries far
east and west of the central meridian is not so distorted, because merid-
ians and parallels are not so oblique to one another.

Through the Chamberlain bequest the Department of Geology of
the U. S. National Museum has been able to purchase a beautiful
series of cut stones and crystals which have for several years been on
deposit in the gem and mineral collection.

At the request of the National Park Commission, tests are being
made at the Bureau of Standards to determine the best surface treat-
ment for sandstone to prevent its disintegration by weathering, with
special reference to the preservation of ancient inscriptions on a mesa
near El Morro, New Mexico.

The section of photography of the National Museum has received
apparatus used by Edward Maybridge, "the grandfather of motion
pictures," in his experiments in 1872.

Simultaneous nightly tests by 50 radio stations on the fading of
radio signals were conducted from June i to July 17 by cooperative
arrangement between the Bureau of Standards, the Naval Air Service,
the Department of Terrestrial Magnetism of the Carnegie Institution
of Washington, and the American Radio Relay League. Further
tests will be run in October, January, and April.

Recent appointments to the geologic force in the U. S. Geological
Survey have been made as follows: Chester R. Long well and
Gail F. Moulton, assistant geologists; Harold S. Cave, Waldo

449

450 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

GivOCK, Robert Webb, Preston James, and William Russell,
geologic aids.

Messrs. J. B, Baylor, J. B. Boutwell, and E. F. Dickins, officers
of the U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, have been placed on retired
status under the Retirement Act.

Dr. William Mansfield Clark, physical and biological chemist at
the Dairy Division, Bureau of Animal Industry, U. S. Department of
Agriculture, was appointed Professor of Chemistry and head of the
chemical division of the Hygienic Laboratory on July i.

Mr. T. Nelson Dale, geologist of the U. S. Geological Survey, has
retired from active service, under the provisions of the Retirement
Act.

Mr. J. S. DiLLER, of the U. S. Geological Survey, who was taken
seriously ill while on field work in Arizona, has recovered after an
operation and is in New England recuperating his strength.

Mr. Arthur Jackson Ellis, geologist in the Water Resources
Branch of the U. S. Geological Survey, died on July 22, 1920, after
undergoing an operation for acute appendicitis. Mr. Ellis was born
January 6, 1885, in Sedgwick County, Kansas. After completing his
work at the University of Illinois and Northwestern University, he
entered the Geological Survey in 191 1 and devoted himself to the
economic geology of ground water, chiefly in Arizona, California, Con-
necticut, and Montana. During the war he was acting chief of the
Division of Ground Waters, in the absence of 'Mr. O. E. Meinzer,
and made numerous reports on water supplies for the Army and Navy.
He was a member of the Academy, the Geological Society, and the
Society of Engineers.

Dr. Walter Faxon, until recently curator in charge of mollusca and
Crustacea at the Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard Uni-
versity, and a non-resident member of the Academy, died on August
10, 1920, in his seventy-third year. Dr. Faxon was born at Roxbury,
Massachusetts, February 4, 1848. He had been associated with the
University since his graduation therefrom in 1871, having been in-
structor and assistant professor of Zoolog>' as well as curator in the
Museum. He was a member of the Biological Society of Washington
as well as of the Academy.

Sr. J. de Sampaio Ferraz, director of the Brazilian Meteorological
Service, Rio Janeiro, visited the scientific institutions and laboratories
of Washington in June.

Mr. HoYT S. Gale, who recently returned from a six months'
trip in Bolivia, resigned from the U. S. Geological Survey on August 3,
to take up private work.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS 45 1

Mr. A. M. Heinzelmann, specialist in inks and varnishes at the
Bureau of Standards, has resigned to enter private employment.

Mr. Frank L. Hess has returned from South America, and resumed
his work at the U. S. Geological Survey early in August.

Mr. B. Iv. Johnson, geologist, has been appointed acting chief of the
Foreign Section of the Mineral Resources Branch of the U. S. Geo-
logical Survey, in the absence of Mr. Eugene Stebinger.

The Division of Birds of the National Museum has recently received
496 bird skins from Mr. C. Boden Kloss, from his recent explorations
in Siam, Cochin China, and Southern Annam. Mr. Kloss's explora-
tions were partially financed by Dr. W. L. Abbott.

Messrs. M. O. Leighton, C. T. Chenery, and A. C. Oliphant have
formed a co-partnership under the name of M. O. Leighton & Company,
with offices at 700 Tenth Street, for the purpose of engaging in general
engineering practice and industrial representation before the depart-
ments of the Federal Government.

Mr. E. C. Leonard, of the Division of Plants, U. S. National Museum,
who accompanied Dr. W. L. Abbott to Haiti in February for botanical
explorations, returned to Washington on July 30.

Messrs. R. B. Moore and Dorsey A. Lyon, of the Bureau of Mines,
made an inspection trip through the southern States in July, with the
purpose of selecting a site for the new non-metallic mineral station of
the Bureau.

Mr. Sylvanus G. MorlEy, of the Carnegie Institution, returned to
Washington in July, after several months spent in archeological re-
search in Central American countries.

Mr. James T. Newton, Commissioner of Patents, resigned on July
19, after thirty years of service in the Patent Office.

Mr. R. M. OvERBECK, geologist, has resigned from the U. S. Geo-
logical Survey to accept a position with an oil company.

Mr. David J. Price, engineer in charge of grain dust explosion in-
vestigations at the Bureau of Chemistry, U. S. Department of Agricul-
ture, has been appointed chief of the newly organized "development
section" of the Bureau.

Prof. Joseph F. Rock, formerly professor of botany in the College
of Hawaii, Honolulu, spent several days in July at the National Her-
barium, prior to leaving upon an extended trip of agricultural explora-
tion in eastern Asia for the Office of Foreign Seed and Plant Introduc-
tion, U. S. Department of Agriculture, with which he has recently
become connected.

452 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

While in charge of a Coast and Geodetic Survey subparty working
in New Mexico, Mr. R. L. Schoppe was struck by lightning and seriously
burned, but is recovering.

Dr. JOHS Schmidt, director of the Carlsberg Laboratory, Copenhagen,
visited the Division of Fishes of the U. S. National Museum in July.

Mr. Edward Schramm, formerly on the chemical staff of the Bureau
of Standards, has left the research laboratory of the Bridgeport Brass
Company, to take charge of research for the Onondaga Pottery Company
of Syracuse, New York.

Mr. A. H. Taylor, of the photometer section of the Bureau of Stand-
ards, has resigned to accept a position at the Nela Research Laboratory
of the General Electric Company, at Cleveland, Ohio.

Mr. W. T. Thom, Jr., of the U. S. Geological Survey, has returned
from Austria, where he was engaged in relief work.

Mr. F. H. Tucker, associate chemist at the Bureau of Standards,
has resigned to take up research work at the New York laboratories
of the Chile Exploration Company.

Mr. R. G. WalTENBERG, member of the physical staff at the Bureau
of Standards, has been appointed an industrial fellow of the Inter-
national Nickel Company, and will continue his researches at the
Bureau on the properties of nickel and monel metal.

Dr. L. F. Witmer, formerly associate chemist at the Bureau of
Standards, has been appointed professor of chemistry at Lafayette
College, Easton, Pennsylvania.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. io October 4, 1920 No. 16

BOTANY. — New or noteworthy plants from northwestern Ontario.
I.^ O. E. Jennings, Carnegie Museum. (Communicated by
A. Wetmore.)

During the past few years the writer has worked over and
named several thousands of specimens from among the collec-
tions which were made by Mrs. O. E. Jennings and himself
during five summers spent botanizing in Ontario to the north and
northwest of Lake Superior.

Among the plants named are several which are believed to be
undescribed and a few others which are particularly noteworthy
for one reason or another. Rather than wait indefinitely for the
final completion of the work of studying and naming the rest of
the collections, it is thought best to publish some of the more
important items at this time.

Lysias orbiculata var. pauciflora Jennings, var. nov.

Leaves broadly elliptic, 6-7 cm. wide and about 14 cm. long, the
apex shortly acute; flowers few, about 6, the lip about 14-15 mm.
long, and the spur about 2.5 cm. long.

Type collected in spruce-birch woods along the inlet at Magenet
Point, near the tip of Black Bay Peninsula, northwest Lake Superior,
Ontario, O. E. & G. K. Jennings, No. 4130, August 14, 1913. Her-
barium of the Carnegie Museum.

Lysias orbiculata is quite variable as to the size and shape of the
leaves and the length of the spur. The common form, which we take
to be the typical form of the species, has large round leaves, and the
spurs of the flowers are not much longer than the combined length of
the pedicel and the ovary. The form here described as var. pauci-
flora presents a combination of differences from the typical form which
might easily characterize a species, but because of the occasional occur-
rence of forms of intermediate character it is thought best to regard
it, for the present at least, as a variety.

1 Published by permission of the Director of the Carnegie Museum. Received
May 27, 1920.

453

454 JENNINGS: PLANTS FROM NORTHWESTERN ONTARIO

Kneiffia depauperata Jennings, sp. nov.

Stems wiry, flexuous, decumbent to ascending or almost erect, 1-1.5
dm. long, moderately appressed- pubescent with fine white hairs,
brown, sublustrous, rarely with a few branches; leaves finely appressed-
puberulent; rosette leaves 2-3 cm. long, 6-9 mm. wide, spatulate-
oblong, rounded at apex, gradually narrowed to a margined petiole;
stem leaves mostly bunched in about the middle third of the stem,
linear-oblong, about 1.5-2.4 cm. long, 4-6 mm. wide, entire or slightly
undulate, rounded to bluntly acute, tapering below into a short mar-
gined petiole, light green above, paler below, often strongly tinged with
rose-purple ; upper part of stem with few or no leaves below the flowers ;
flowers 1-4 on stem and 1-2 on branches, the floral bracts, if present,
similar to leaves, but smaller, usually shorter than the capsule; capsule
5-6 mm. long, oblong-club-shaped, winged on the angles, sparsely
glandular-puberulent, tapering below into a pedicel 4-8 mm. long;
seeds brown, dull, narrowly ovoid, about i mm. long, minutely pitted.

Type growing in matted brownish and partially decayed leaf-
remains along the shore of a boulder-strewn bay of the lake northeast of
Sioux Lookout, northwestern Ontario, O. E. & G. K. Jennings, Sept.
7, 1914, No. 7,501. Carnegie Museum Herbarium.

This species resembles a weak sprawling specimen of Kneiffia pumila,
but the leaves are rather strongly appressed-pubescent with fine rather
stiff hairs, and the capsules are usually exceeded in length by their
pedicels. From A', linearis it differs in having the capsules glandular-
puberulent and the pedicels longer, the plant having the pubescence
distinctly appressed on stem and leaves. K. depauperata is perhaps
most nearly related to the decumbent plant of the sands of eastern
Long Island, A.'. Alleni (Britton) Small, {Oenothera fruticosa var.
humijusa Allen), but the minute pitting on the seeds of the Ontario
plant appears not to be in distinct rows, and in shape of capsule also
there appears to be a difference.

Pjrrola uliginosa var. gracilis Jennings, var. nov.

Differing from the typical Pyrola uliginosa Torrey in its more
slender form, the pedicels longer than the bracts, the veinlets towards
the margins of the leaves excurrent into the crenulate teeth.

The leaf blades are about 2.5-3.5 ^m. long by 2.1-2.4 cm. wide,
varying from emarginate to slightly acute at the apex, rather stiffly
membraneous, sub-lustrous to dull, marginally crenulate, at the base
gradually tapering into margined petioles which are slender and 3-5
cm. long; scape 2.5-3 cm. high, bearing 5-8 scattered flowers on slender
pedicels about 8 mm. long, in the axils of lanceolate acuminate bracts
about 5 mm. long; calyx -lobes acute, ovate-lanceolate, about 2.5 mm.
long by 1.5 mm. wide just above the base; petals obovate-oblong, ob-
tuse, about 7-8 mm. long, spreading rather widely; anthers about 2.5
mm. long, distally mucronate, the pores terminating short curved tubes,

JENNINGS: PLANTS FROM NORTHWESTERN ONTARIO 455

the filaments dilated below; style slender, declined, curved, about 8
mm. long, the apical collar narrower than the length of the stigma.

Growing in sphagnum moss in a bog near the Indian Mission, south
of Fort William, Ontario, O. E. & Grace K. Jennings, No. 1493, July
30, 1912; type consisting of four specimens on one sheet in the Car-
negie Museum Herbarium.

Pyrola compacta Jennings, sp. nov.

Perennial with a stiff woody rootstock about 1.5 mm. in diameter,
often forking at the apex; leaves forming a rather dense rosette, 5-12
mm. long, leaf -blades broadly oval-elliptic or obovate, abruptly rounded
at the base into and acutely tapering into the margined petiole, blades
up to 4 mm. long by 3.2 mm. wide, rounded and often apiculate at apex,
thin but stiff and sub-lustrous above, the marginal veinlets ending in
very fine crenulate teeth; veins fairly prominent, often light colored
above and purplish beneath; scape with inflorescence 6-11 cm. high,
with usually one bract, stiff, strongly angled; flowers usually six to
eight, drooping, borne on pedicels about 2.5-3 mm. long, shorter than
the subtending bracts; flowers 12-15 mm. wide; calyx-lobes about 2
mm. long, triangular-ovate, acuminate or acute, a little narrower than
long, widest just above the base; petals thick, somewhat concave but
widely spreading, veiny, often apiculate, about 7-9 mm. long; filaments
dilated below, the anthers usually erect or almost so, with a short curved
tube at the proximal end and a slender purplish mucro at the distal
end, 6-8 mm. long, often forked; style stiff, declined and curved, the
expanded collar usually wider than the length of the stigma; fruit not
seen.

A compact rosette plant in a low boggy pasture near Six-mile Lake
(Louise Lake), Thunder Cape, northwestern Lake Superior, Ontario,
O. E. & Grace K. Jennings, August 20, 191 2. Type specimens in
Carnegie Museum Herbarium.

This species is unique in its compact form, partly apiculate petals,
and long mucronate anthers. Its flowers are very fragrant and in
their dried condition indicate that they were probably purplish or rose
color. The species resembles most closely Pyrola ellipHca Nuttall and
P. uliginosa Torrey.

P3rrola chlorantha var. revoluta Jennings, var. nov.
Perennial, with a slender sparsely branching rootstock, the stem above
ground short or none, usually caespitose and with rather numerous
(5-11) densely clustered leaves; petioles 5-12 mm. long, channeled,
leaf-blades rounded-ovate, 1-2.5 cm. long, coriaceous, dull and grayish
green above, much paler beneath, glabrous throughout, margins mi-
nutely crenulate and closely revolute, veins not prominent, apex obtuse
to acute, base rather abruptly narrowed to the petiole; scape with
inflorescence 1.2-1.8 dm. high, stiff, usually reddish below, 3-8 flowered,
naked or with one bract; pedicels and their bracts about 3-5 mm. long;
flowers drooping, about 1.2 cm. wide, light-colored, drying light yellow;
calyx 4-5~5-o ^^- wide, the lobes ovate-triangular, rather obtuse

456 JENNINGS: PLANTS FROM NORTHWESTERN ONTARIO

about 1.2 mm wide and long; petals oblong to narrowly obovate, obtuse,
6-7 mm. long, rather widely spreading; filaments dilated below; anthers
about 3 mm. long, distally mucronate, light yellow, the tubes nearly
I mm. long, curved, orange-colored and obliquely porous; style stiff,
strongly declined and curved, about 7-8 mm. long, dilated above into
a ring wider than the length of the stigma. Fruit not seen.

Growing among huckleberry bushes on the sand of open Banksian
pine woods (barrens) at Slate River Station, Canadian Northern Ry.,
about ten miles west of Fort William, Ontario, O. E. & G. K. Jen-
nings, July 4, 1913, No. 3378. Type consists of three specimens on one
sheet in the Carnegie Museum Herbarium.

At first glance the inflorescence suggests Pyrola chlorantha, but in
the character of the leaves, more or less acute to both ends, the re-
semblance is rather with the plants known as P. picta Smith and P.
dentata Smith, lacking however, the mottling of the former, and not
conspicuously wider above the middle as in the latter. P. chlorantha
var. saximoniana Femald (Rhodora 22: 49-53, March, 1920) is closely
related but appears from a study of a specimen from Leigh's Lake,
Wyoming {Merrill C" Wilcox, No. 11 20), to have thicker, more broadly
rounded calyx lobes and more deeply colored petals than in var. revoluta.
The leaves of var. revoluta superficially resemble quite closely those of
Pyrola secunda var. obtusata Turcz.

Ledum groenlandicum Oeder.

Throughout almost the whole region covered in our investigations
this plant shows considerable variation, yet the limits of this variation
scarcely permit one to subdivide the species even into well-defined
varieties. The rather concise description of the North American
species of Ledum in Small's treatment in the North American Flora
(Vol. XXIX, 1919, pp. 36-38) apparently draws the limits of L. groen-
landicum too close. Instead of acute or acutish sepals the material
from northwestern Ontario has rounded sepals, as indeed has also the
material of this species in the Herbarium of the Carnegie Museum
from a number of localities from northeastern North America, so that
apparently this does not constitute a difi"erence between L. groenlandi-
cum and L. pacificum Small. The number of stamens per flower
varies indefinitely from 5 to 9, and the capsules vary in the same manner
from oval or ovoid to oblong-cylindric, from subacute to obtuse, and
from 4.5 to 6.5 mm. long. These limits of variation show a distinct
trend in one direction towards L. pacificum Small, reported from Sitka
and Japan, and a slight trend towards L. decumhens (Alton) Loddiges
of more distinctively arctic regions, but there seems to be little indica-
tion of any well-defined form or variety in the material thus far studied.

Scutellaria lateriflora Linnaeus.

Falls of the English River, Jarvis Lake, Hunt, C. G. Ry., Ontario,
O. E. &G. K. Jennings, No. 15,272, August 26, 191 7; Black ash swamp
at upper end of Pelican Lake, Sioux Lookout, O. E. & G. K. Jennings,
No. 7,436, Sept. 5, 1914. Specimens in Carnegie Museum Herbarium.

JENNINGS: PLANTS FROM NORTHWESTERN ONTARIO 457

General Distribution : Newfoundland to British Columbia and south
to Florida, New Mexico, and Oregon. Northwards Macoun notes
that it reaches Lake Athabasca.

Scutellaria lateriflora var. axillaris Jennings, var. nov.

Similar to Scutellaria lateriflora Linnaeus except that the flowers are
single, and in the axils of the large stem leaves, and of the leaves on the
slender branches, these latter leaves being ovate and longer than the
flowers even at the tips of the branches.

Found in but one locality, a black ash swamp at the upper end of
Pelican Lake, Sioux Lookout, Ontario, O. E. & G. K. Jennings, Aug.
18, 1916, No. 11,022. Type in Herbarium Carnegie Museum. Typical
lateriflora had been found in the same swamp in 1914 and from these
the specimens collected in 191 6 difi"er quite markedly in being somewhat
larger, much more branched, the leaves of the branches being mainly
large like the stem leaves with single flowers in their axils, the ovate
leaves being longer than the flowers even towards the tips of the branches.

Stachys palustris Linnaeus.

The writer has not seen from North America what he would regard as
the typical form of this species, but it seems to be well shown by a
specimen studied from Bex, Canton Vaud, Switzerland, Aug. 15, 1887
(Herbier Mouillef arine) . In this form the stem is more or less com-
pletely covered by a fine and decidedly appressed pubescence, mixed
on the angles of the stem with longer stiff and spreading or reflexed
hairs. None of the plants found in northwestern Ontario agrees in
these characters with the typical form, and there seem to be further
differences in the characters of the leaves and flowers also. The tenui-
folia-aspera type, such as comprises most of the Stachys specimens seen
from Western Pennsylvania, appears not to be present in the region
north and west of Lake Superior, but in that latter region the plants
seem best to be regarded as varieties of one widely distributed and
variable species, and are perhaps best grouped with the forms described
by Rydberg and by Greene (5. ampla Rydberg, 5. teucriformis Ryd-
berg, and 5. scopulorum Greene) from the western plains and Rocky
Mountains of the United States and Canada. The accompanying
key will serve to differentiate the three forms found in northwestern
Ontario :

Key to Stachys in northwestern Ontario.

Bright green; leaves rather sharply acute to acuminate, the larger
ones bright green about 8 cm. long by 2 cm. wide, appressed-
pubescent above S. palustris var. pubenda.

Bright or light green; often decumbent, stem smooth on lower part;
leaves obtuse to bluntly acute, smooth above, on flowering stem
not over about 6 cm. long by i .6 cm. wide. . 5. palustris var. macrocalyx.

Whole plant ashy-green; the fine whitish pubescence, more or
less glandular-puberulent above; leaves obtuse to bluntly acute,
rather finely crenate-serrate, not over 7 cm. long by 2 cm.
wide 5. palustris var. nipigonensis.

458 JENNINGS: PLANTS FROM NORTHWESTERN ONTARIO

Stachys palustris var. puberula Jennings, var. nov.

Angles of the stem with stiff hairs as in 5. palustris but with the
minute pubescence of the sides of the stem loose and spreading and
often partly glandular-puberulent.

Perennial, stoloniferous, the stems erect, simple or branched, usually
4-6 dm. high; leaves of the main stem lance-oblong or lance-ovate,
the largest in about the middle of the stem reaching a length of about
8-9 cm. and a width of 2-2.5 cm., crenate-dentate, acute at the apex,
narrowed to a rounded or obscurely subcordate base, the upper prac-
tically sessile, the lower and median with flat petioles from 1-4 mm.
long; leaves bright green above, lighter beneath, and with scattering
stifi" appressed hairs above' and spreading hairs at least on the veins
beneath; branches often numerous, sometimes arising from the axils of
practically every leaf up to the inflorescence about two-thirds of the
way up the stem; these branches slender, bearing flowers towards the
apex, but especially noteworthy in that the basal and median leaves
of these branches are often somewhat oblanceolate and narrowed
below to a more slender petiole; inflorescence an interrupted spike up
to 2-3 dm. in length having usually 5-6 flowers at each node, the foliose
bracts of the lower nodes far surpassing the flowers, the upper lance-
ovate and but little if any longer than the calyx; calyx 6-8.5 rnni. long,
usually densely finely puberulent and with some gland-tipped hairs in
addition to the coarser stiffer hairs on the nerves, practically sessile,
strongly nerved, the teeth usually purplish, strongly bristly and spinose-
tipped and about the same length as the tube and almost erect in fruit ;
corolla 12-16 mm. long, widely gaping, the upper side and usually
the medium portion of the lower lip more or less puberulent outside;
the middle lobe of the lower lip about twice larger and longer than the
lateral lobes, and considerably exceeding the upper lip; seeds dark
brown, obovoid, about 2 mm. long and 1.5 mm. thick, dull.

Type in Carnegie Museum Herbarium, two sheets of specimens col-
lected along the marshy shore of Jarvis Lake, Hunt, Ontario, Can.
Gov. Ry., Aug. 19, 191 7, O. E. & G. K. Jennings, No. 15052.

The common form of Stachys palustris in the black-ash swamps,
marshy borders of lakes, and other wet but apparently not boggy
(sphagnous) habitats in western Ontario differs considerably from the
typical form of the species, in which the stem is more or less completely
covered with a fine appressed pubescence, together with which there
are on the angles of the stem longer, stiff, spreading or reflexed flowers.
Stachys palustris var. macrocalyx Jennings, var. nov.

Erect or decumbent, the base of the stem leafless and more or less
swollen, glabrous, sending up erect branches; the upper, or in the de-
cumbent stems, the erect portion of the stem 2-2.5 dm. long, rather
weak, smoothish below, above furnished with a fine loose and more or
less glandular puberulence mixed on the angles of the stem with sparse,
spreading, hispid hairs; leaves oblong-lanceolate, the median 3-5.5
cm. long by 1-1.5 cm. wide, glabrous above, marginally ciliate and with

JENNINGS: PLANTS FROM NORTHWESTERN ONTARIO 459

a few spreading hairs on the veins beneath, thin, shallowly crenate-
serrate, bluntly acute, rounded or truncate below into a flattened
petiole 1-2 mm. long; leaves on shoots arising from the decumbent or
lower part of stem often larger, very thin, sometimes oblanceolate,
and more gradually narrowed at the base into a longer (1-4 mm.)
and more slender petiole; inflorescence consisting of 5- 11 whorls, about
1-1.3 dm. long, lax, the lowest whorls situated in the axils of the upper
leaves; calyx more or less black-dotted, campanulate, 7-9 mm. long,
sparsely glandular-puberulent and sparsely longer-hispid on the nerves
and teeth, the teeth moderately spreading and with somewhat spinose
tips; corolla widely gaping, the tube often a little shorter than the
calyx teeth, puberulent on upper side, slightly so below, about 13-15
mm. long, the rounded terminal lobe of the lower lip at least twice
longer and twice wider than the lateral lobes.

Collected in two places in a black-ash swamp at the east end of
Pelican Lake, Sioux Lookout, Ontario, O. E. & G. K. Jennings, Aug.
18, 1914, Nos. 11,031 (type) and 11,015. Carnegie Museum Herbarium.

In four of the five specimens collected, the short erect portion of the
stem arose from a somewhat swollen prostrate stem from 3-5 dm. long
rooted only at the lower end but presenting the appearance of having
wintered under water, and sending up during the following season the
terminal flowering shoot and also the axillary larger-leaved shoots from
along the stem itself.

Stachys palustris var. nipigonensis Jennings, var. nov.

Ashy green in color, with a whitish pubescence; but lower part of
stem, axis of inflorescence, and the calices usually more or less purple;
stem 3-7 dm. high, simple or rarely branched above, rather slender,
covered especially above with a more or less glandular whitish puber-
ulence mixed on the angles of the stem with slender but stiff, jointed,
spreading hairs; basal leaves small, linear-oblong to oblong-oval, the
median leaves 4-7 cm. long by 0.8-2 cm. wide, narrowly oblong to oval-
oblong or oblong-obovate, abruptly rounded to a subcordate base with
a short (1-3 mm.) petiole, strongly margined and often with one or two
pairs of lateral veins, running independently down to the stem; leaves
thin, shallowly crenate-serrate, finely appressed-hispidulous above,
below with spreading hairs on the veins, the apex of the lower leaves
obtuse, the middle and upper leaves bluntly acute; inflorescence some-
times short, but usually later elongated occasionally reaching a length
of 14 cm., widely interrupted below, denser and spicate above, the lowest
whorls often in the axils of the comparatively large uppermost leaves;
the floral bracts mainly about the same length as the calyx, lanceolate
and often reflexed; calyx practically sessile, about 7 mm. long, narrowly
campanulate, more or less glandular-puberulent and with stiffer hairs
on the nerves and teeth; teeth spreading, two-thirds to three-fourths
the length of the tube, narrowly triangular, moderately spinous-tipped ;
corolla 12-15 rn^- ^ong, more or less puberulent and glandular-puberu-
lent on the upper side and somewhat so beneath, widely gaping, the lower
lip spotted, the lateral lobes about one-third as wide and one-third|as
long as the middle, rounded lobe.

460 eigenmann: fish fauna of Bogota

Inhabiting the boulder-strewn or sandy, but low and marshy shores
at points along Ombabika and Orient bays, Lake Nipigon, Ont. The
type is our No. 6,944, from the marsh at the head of Ombabika Bay,
north end of Lake Nipigon, Ontario, O. E. & G. K. Jennings, Aug.
15, 1914; other collections are 6,633 ^^^ 6,636, O. E. & G. K. Jennings,
Aug. 6, 1 914, and No. 7,001, O. E. & G. K. Jennings, north shore of
Ombabika Bay, Aug. 16, 19 14. Specimens in Carnegie Museum Her-
barium.

ICHTHYOLOGY.— r/j^ fish fauna of the Cordillera of Bogota.^
Carl H. Eigenmann.

The Cordillera de Bogota (or Oriental of Colombia) extends
from the equator northeastward to about the seventh degree of
north latitude. It is continued northward as the Sierra de
Perija to the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta and northeastward
as the Cordillera de Merida to Barquisimeta. The Maracaibo
basin lies between the Cordilleras de Perija and Merida. It
rises to a height of over 10,000 feet and forms an effective barrier
to the intermigration of lowland forms for its entire length
from near the equator to the Cordilleras of Perija and Merida.
The Cordillera of Perija is the chief barrier between the Mara-
caibo basin and the Magdalena and the Cordillera of Merida
between the Maracaibo and the Orinoco. It contains a series
of highland plateaus or parks, of which the Plain of Bogota near
its center, with an elevation of about 9,000 feet, is the best known.
Its fresh-water fish fauna consists mostly of various species of
Astroblepus and Pygidium, three species of Pseudancistrus, a
Chaetostomus, and two species of Hemibrycon, all of which are
mountain genera, the latter most frequently dipping into the
lowland. Two genera, Grundulus and Eremophilus, are peculiar
to the highland plateaus. Very few lowland genera and species
ascend some distance on the slopes of these Cordilleras. Far-
lowella acus causes some surprise on the eastern slope at 4,500
feet. It is usually found much lower. Creagrutus magdalenae
and Argopleura cause greater surprise at Alban, at over 7,000
feet. These genera are usually found in much lower altitudes.
The greatest surprise is furnished by Creagrutus bent at San Gil.

* Contribution from the Zoological Laboratory of Indiana University, No. 178.
Received July 26, 1920.

EIGENMANN: fish fauna of BOGOTA 461

It belongs to the eastern slopes of the Andes from the Rio Beni
to Central Colombia at least. San Gil at 3628 feet in the Mag-
dalena basin is its only record west of the Cordilleras. No low-
land genera or species are found on the heights. So many of
the lowland genera and species of the Magdalena to the west of
it are identical with those of the Orinoco to the east of it, that
it seems very probable that the formation of these young Cordil-
leras has cut a former continuous fauna in two. Is it possible
that the presence of Creagrutus beni at San Gil indicates a late
route of migration?

Our knowledge of the fauna of the Cordillera de Bogota is
based on :

1. The observations of Humboldt during a stay at Bogota.

2. Collections received by the British Museum from different
collectors.

3. Collections made by Mr. Manuel Gonzales, my servant
during my ichthyological reconnaissance of Colombia in 191 2.
He collected for me in the Cordillera de Bogota within a
radius of a few days riding from Bogota. He gathered
specimens in the quebradas along the route from Facatativa
on the Plain of Bogota northwestward to Honda on the
Magdalena, the western base of the Cordillera. Also along
the route northward from Bogota, from Suescum north through
Susa, Chiquinquira, Quebrada, Ropero, Guadalupe, Mogotes,
San Gil, and Capitanejo in the territory embraced by the Rio
Sagomoso and the Rio Suarez and finally southeastward from
Bogota along the route from Bogota to Villavicencio.-

4. Very valuable collections made for Hermano Apolinar
Maria, Director of the Museum of the Instituto de la Salle,
on the Plains of Bogota and at the eastern base of the Cordillera
of Bogota, at Cumaral and Carneceria. I have received a series
of these fishes. Most of the species at Villavicencio, Cumaral and
Carneceria more properly belong to the fauna of the Llanos of
Colombia and Venezuela than to that of the Cordilleras.

5. Extensive collections were made by myself near Bogota.

* Mr. Gonzales also collected at Barrigon on the Meta but this locality is beyond
the mountains. Other collections made by Gonzales were unfortunately lost by
the carriers after reaching New York.

462 eigenmann: fish fauna of Bogota

I. LIST OF ALL SPECIES RECORDED FROM THE CORDILLERA DE

BOGOTA

ASTROBLEPIDAE

A family of catfishes of one genus, found exclusively in the
Cordilleras from southern Panama and Merida south to Lake
Titicaca, from the highest elevation down in places to 300 feet.
It has not been recorded from the Plain of Bogota but in all
directions from it. The species have a large sucker mouth and a
peculiar adaptation to take in water at the dorsal end of the
gill slit to pass it out below while they hold fast to rocks with
their mouths. The ventrals are freely movable backward and
forward, enabling them to hunch forw^ard. They are able to
climb vertical and even overhanging walls.

Astroblepus Humboldt.

A. unifasciatus Eigenmann. North and west of Bogota, up to
7,258 feet; also on the Pacific slope in the Rio Dagua.

A. santanderensis E. North of Bogota up to 5,600 feet. Santander.

A. frenaius E. Known from a single specimen. North of Bogota,
6,534 feet. Santander.

A. micrescens E. Principally north of Bogota, sparingly west and
east of it. 8,471 feet. It is the principal species of Santander.

A. chotae (Regan). North and west of Bogota. 7,400 feet. South
to Ecuador.

A. longifilis (Steindachner). North and south of Bogota. Abun-
dant from Peru to Panama.

A. homodon (Regan). West of Bogota. 7,258 feet. It is the char-
acteristic species between Facatativa and Honda.

A. grixalvii Humboldt. Sparingly west of Bogota. Widely dis-
tributed in southern Colombia and Ecuador. The present identifica-
tion may be questioned.

A. latidens E. Characteristic of the eastern slope east of Bogota
between 1,500 and 5,300 feet.

PYGIDIIDAE

A familv of South American catfishes w^ith about a hundred
species of very divergent habits.

Pygidium Meyen.

Found in all mountain streams of South America from the highest
elevations to sea level. Short eel shaped. Bunches of erectile spines
on its opercles enable it to maintain itself in the swiftest currents or
to hunch itself forward between rocks or to burrow in sand, gravel, or
mud.

Eigenmann: fish fauna of Bogota 463

P. hogotense E. Plains of Bogota to the Santa Marta mountains. '

P. venulosum Steindachner. Paramo de Cruz Verde at the eastern i

edge of the Plain of Bogota. 10,000 feet. . j

P. stellatu'))i E. Western slope of the Cordillera de Bogota.

P. striatum Meek and Hildebrand. North and west of Bogota.
Southern Panama and Rio Dagua on the Pacific slope of Colombia. 1

P. straminhim E. North of Bogota. Santander.

P. nigromaadatum (Boulenger). North of Bogota, to Santa Marta. 1

P. vanneaui E- Near Honda, west of Bogota.

P. latistriatum E. North of Bogota. Santander.

P. dorsostriatum E- East of Bogota at Villavicencio.

Eremophilus Humboldt. '

E. midisii H. "El Capitan," the only food fish of the plain of Bo- !

gota. The genus and species is all but confined to the plain of Bogota.
It differs from Pygidium in having no ventral fins. It burrows in the |

banks and bottom in ponds and rivers.

LORICARIIDAE !

A South American family of armored catfishes, principally \

of the lowlands, a few species ascending to 7,000 feet or more. I

Pseudancistrus Bleeker.

Snout granular, with a large sucker mouth and bundles of spines
on the interoperculum, both adjustments to torrential conditions.

Ps. setosus (Boulenger). North and west of Bogota u p to 7,400 j

feet. On western slopes only. 1

Ps. dagtiae E. East of Bogota and in the extreme west of Colombia.
Both slopes of the Andes. j

Ps. pediculatus E. East of Bogota. Eastern slopes.

Chaetostomus Tschudi. i

Snout naked. A large sucker mouth and interopercular bristles. 1

Chaetostomus thomsoni Regan. West and north of Bogota up to i

7,258 feet. ;

Farlowella Eigenmann and Eigenmann. :

Long slender fishes with no suggestion of adaptations to mountains. j

F. acus (Kner). East of Bogota up to 4,500 feet. 1

CHARACIDAE

A very large family with the widest possible adaptations.

Hemibrycon Giinther.

From sea level to 7,000 feet. No particular structural adaptation
to high elevations.

H. colomhianus E. North and west of Bogota, 4,620 feet. San-
tander. I

H. tolimae E. North of Bogota and widely in the west of Colombia '

to 7,000 feet. j

464 eigenmann: fish fauna of bogota

Creagrutus Giinther.

In swift brooks, widely distributed.

C. magdalenae E. West of Bogota. Chiefly in swift lowland brooks.
C. beni E. East and north of Bogota, to 3,628 feet. On both slopes.

Argopleura Eigenmann.

Colombia west of the Cordillera de Bogota.

A. diquensis E. West of Bogota, lowland to 7,258 feet.

POECIUIDAE

Rivulus Poey.

Marine brackish and fresh water. South America to Buenos Aires.
R. magdalenae E. & H. West of Bogota, to 3,372 feet.

II. THE FISHES OF THE PLAIN OF BOGOTA

The Plains of Bogota are drained by the Rio Funza or Bogota
which leaves the plateau by the Tequendama falls, 418 feet
high. It empties into the Magdalena near Girardot.

The Plains of Bogota (locality No. i), at about 9,000 feet
elevation, harbor but few species. Eremophilus muiisii, "El
Capitan," which has elsewhere been recorded only from Chiquin-
quira, just north of the Plain; Pygidium hogotense, which is not
distinguished by the local fishermen from the young of E. mutisii,
extends north to the Santa Marta mountains; and Grundulus
hogotensis, the "Guapuche" elsewhere taken only in the Quebrada
Zuaita, wherever that may be. These three species were found
in abundance everywhere I was able to fish,

"El Capitan" is found in the lakes as well as in the streams and
the fishwomen in the markets point out lake forms from river
forms. There was evidently considerable variation but whether
this was correlated with localities I can't say. Three specimens
were sent me recently, one of them white, one of them blind,
and the third piebald. The specimens suggest that there is a
white blind species which at times hybridizes with the normal
form.

In addition to the three very common species Gonzales got
Hemihrycon tolimae at Suescum at the extreme northern edge
of the basin of the Rio Funza or Rio Bogota. Steindachner
has recorded Pygidium venulosum from the Paramo de Cruz
Verde at about 10,000 feet. This Paramo lies along the crest

Eigenmann: fish fauna of Bogota 465

southeast of Bogota. I do not know in which direction, east
or west, the stream flows from which it was taken, and I am
giving it the benefit of the doubt and am placing it in both Hsts.

III. THE DISTRIBUTION OF THE FISHES ALONG THE UNE BE-
TWEEN THE RIO SECO NEAR HONDA AND THE PLAIN OF
BOGOTA, NEAR FACATATIVA

Specimens were reported from the localities listed below. The

longitude is from Bogota. The numbers refer to the species listed below.

I. Plains of Bogota. See Part II. 2. Sargento, 4,000 feet, i, 2,

4, 5, 6, 8. J. Guadual, Rio. i, 2, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9. 4. Guaduas. Between
0° and 0° 14' W., 5° 7' and 6° N., 3168 feet, i, 2, 5, 6, 7, 12. 5.
Guamal, i, 2, 4, 5. 6. Villeta. 0° 24' 30" W., 4° 56' 30" N., 2,760
feet. I, 8, 12. 7. Chimbe. Near Alban. 2, 4. 8. Alban, 7,258
feet. Formerly Aqua Larga. i, 3, 4, 6, 8, 10, 11. p. Chamisal.
Exact locality not known. 4, 6, 9, 12. 10. Pacho. 0° 5' W., 5°
2' 25" N., 5,893 feet.

The last named locality is not in line with the rest, being north-
east of Alban. As far as I am able to locate the localities they
run in the order given from Sargento to Alban. There are crests
between Sargento and Guaduas and between Guaduas and
Villeta. The entire territory drains into the Rio Negro and
through it into the Magdalena.

SPECIES TAKEN BETWEEN HONDA AND FACATATIVA

The numbers following the names refer to the localities enumerated
above.

I. Astroblepus homodon, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8. 2. A. unifasciatus, 2, 3, 4,

5, 7. 3. A. micrescens, 8. 4. A. chotae, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, g. 5. Pygidium
selelatum, 2, 3, 4, 5. 6. P. striatum, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9. 7. Pseudancistrus
setosus, 4. 8. Chaetostomus thomsoni, 2, 3, 6, 8. 9. Hemihrycon colom-
bianus, 3, g. 10. Creagrutus magdalenae, 8.^ 11. Argopleura diquensiSy
8.^ 12. Rivulus magdalenae, 4, 6, g.

IV. THE FISHES OF THE HIGHLANDS OF SANTANDER

Most of the localities in this area, all of them draining into
the Suarez and thence into the Rio Magdalena, are small que-
bradas not given on any maps available.

3 I have no reason to doubt these localities, especially as the two species were not
taken elsewhere by Gonzales. But it is certainly remarkable that they should be
found at Alban at over 7,000 feet and not between Alban and Honda.

466 eigenmann: fish fauna of Bogota

The first eighteen, Nos. 11-28, are "Astroblepus brooks,"
probably very swift, from which Astroblepus can easily be caught
from under rocks with a dip-net. In these brooks Pygidium
has rarely been taken either because it is rare or absent, or
because Pygidium is not so readily taken in such streams.

The next eight are preeminently "Pygidium brooks," possibly
with pools that could be seined. Pygidium can readily be taken
in pools in which Astroblepus would not be found.

Zuaita of this group is notable as containing Grundulus, other-
wise only found in the Plain of Bogota.

The most interesting place is San Gil, containing Creagnttus
beni, otherwise not found west of the crest of the Cordillera of
Bogota.

Localities and their location north of the Plain of Bogota,
mostly in the Province of Santander

The longitude is measured from Bogota. The numbers following
the names of the localities refer to the list of species below.

II. Ducho, Rio, I, 4, 5. 12. Labaja, Quebrada, r. 13. Callejona,
Q., 2. 14. Charala, Q., near Ocamonte, 2, 8. 15. Guadalupe, 0°
20' 42" E., 6° 2' 30" N., 5,400 feet, 2. 16. Guapota, 0° 25' 10" E.,
6° 7' 45" N., 3,300 feet, 2, 5. 17. Mogotes, 6° 16' N., 0° 42' 42" E-,
5,626 feet, 2, 6. 18. Pava, Q., 2, 5. iq. Pelada, Q., 2, 4, 5. 20.
Varriri, Q., 2, 5. 21. Cabarachi, Q., 4. 22. San Joaquin. Near San
Gil, 6,534 feet, 3, 4. 23. Densino, Q., 4. 7. 24. Potrero, O., 4.
25. Siachia, O., 4. 26. Susa, 0° 4' 45" E., 5° 54' 35" N., 8,471 feet,
4. 27. Arguello, Q., 5. 28. Baipe, Rio Boyaca, 7,400 feet, 5, 14.
2g. Pinchote, 0° 2,2,' 45" E., 6° 19' 25" N., 4,150 feet, 5, 11. 30. Oca-
monte, 6° 9' 45" N., 0° 35' 35" E., 4,620 feet, 7, 19. 31. Honda, Q.,

7, 10. 32. Mango, O., 7. 33. Zuaita, Q., 7, 16. 34. Piedras, R.,

8, 19. 35. Capitanejo, 6° 18' 40" N., 1° o' E., 3,867 feet, 9. 36.
Raya, O., 9. 37. Hato.^ Between 0° and 1° E., and 4° and 5° N.,
4,300 feet, 12. 38. Ropero, O., about 5° 43' N., 12, 15. jp. vSan
Gil, 3,628 feet, 12, 14, 15, 16, 19. 40. Suescum, 5° 2' 25" N., 0° 11' E.,
7,073 feet, 16, 18. 41. Chiquinquira, 1° 56' 45" E., 5° 32' 20" N.,
8,626 feet.

It will be noted that only San Gil is credited with more than

three species. 13 (Eremophilus) otherwise only in the Rio

Funza basin.

* There is another Hato near San Gil.

Eigenmann: fish fauna of bogota 467

List of the species along the heights north of Bogota with
their specific locahties by number.

ASTROBLEPIDAE

I. Astroblepus unifasciatus, 11, 12. 2. A. santanderensis, ij, 14,
75, 16, ly, 18, IQ, 20. 3. A. frenatus, 22. 4.. A. micrescens, 11, ig,
21, 22, 23, 24, 2j, 26. 5. A. chotae, 11, 16, 18, ig, 20, 27, 28, 2g. 6.
A. longifilis, ly.

PYGIDIIDAE

7. Pygidumi straminium, 23, 30, 31, 32, 33. 8. P. hogotense, 14, 34.
9. P. nigromaculaium, 21, 35, 36. 10. P. hanneaui, 31. 11. P. latis-
triahmt, 2g. 12. P. striatum, 37, 38, 3g. 13. Eremophilus niutisii, 41.

LORICARIIDAE

14. Psendancistrus setosus, 28, 3g. 15. Chaetostomus thomsoni, 38,
39-

CHARACIDAE

16. Gnindidus bogotensis, 33, 40. 17. Creagrutus bent, 3g. 18.
Hemibrycon tolimae, 40. 19. H. colonibianus, 30, 34, 3g.

V. THE FISHES AND THEIR DISTRIBUTION ON THE EASTERN
SLOPE BETWEEN CHOACHI AND VILLAVICENCIO

Locahties and their location. The longitude is east from
Bogota.

42. Paramo de Cruz Verde. ^ 43. Choachi, 0° 9' 40" E-, 4° 32'
55" N., 6,200 feet, I. 44. Caqueza, 0° 7' 40" E., 4° 25' 15" N., 5,300
feet, 3, 4, 4j. Fosca, 0° 9' 15" E., 4° 20' 35" N., 4,500 feet, 2, 3, 4,
7, 9. 46. Naranjito, 4. 47. Marcetita, 3 and 4. 48. Perdices, 4.
4g. Chirajara, 4. jo. Susumuco, 4 and 8. 57. Piperel, 4. 52.
Villavicencio, 0° 30' E., 2° 15' 10" N., 1496 feet, 2, 4, 6, 8, 9, 10. 55.
Cameceria, i, 3, 7. 54. Rio Rontador, 4, 10. jj. Tengavita, 4, 8.

The species with their specific localities on the eastern slope

are:

I. Astroblepus grixalvii, 43, 53. 2. A. micrescens, 45, 52. 3. A.
longifilis, 44, 45, 47, 53. 4. A. latidens, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 4g, 50, 51,
52, 54, 55. 5. Pygidiiim vemdosum, 42. 6. P. dor so striatum, ^2.
7. Pseudancistrus dagtiae, 45, 53. 8. P. pediculatus, ^0, j2, ^j. 9.
Farlowella acus, 45, 52. 10. Creagrtitus beni, 52, 54.

This list gives a glimpse of the fauna of the upper slopes of
the eastern face of the Cordillera of Bogota.

Of the localities I have not been able to place the Rio Rontador.
The fact that Creagrutus beni is found there, places it probably

^ As stated elsewhere, I am not sure whether this drains to the east or the west.
It lies between Bogota and Chipaque on the road to Villavicencio.

468 eigenmann: fish fauna of Bogota

near Villavicencio. Tengavita is more uncertain. The fact
that it contains Ps. pediculatus probably places it near Susumuco
and Villavicencio. I have taken Marcetita of the maps to be
Marutiba as made out from the labels. Cameceria is a day's
journey north of Villavicencio. Villavicencio is given as 150
kilometers from Bogota or about 90 miles. Choachi is directly
east of Bogota at a distance of 30 kilometers or 18 miles. Ca-
queza is 24 miles southeast of Bogota. Fosca is south of Ca-
queza. The line between Choachi, Caqueza and Fosca is nearly
meridional. Naranjito or Naranjal, Marcetita, Perdices, etc.,
follow each other in order on the trail from Quetame, which
is a few miles east of Fosca to Villavicencio.

All of the localities are drained into the Rio Meta and through
it into the Orinoco.

There are other species of Pygidium (metae, kneri), at Bar-
rigon, at the head of navigation on the Meta and others probably
occur in the localities listed.

Of the species taken, Astrobelpus grixalvii, micrescens and
longifilis, Pseudancistrus daguae and Creagrutus beni also occur
west of the crest.

A. grixalvii is found in streams of southern Colombia to
northern Peru. A. micrescens in Santander. A. longifilis
occurs all the way from Panama to Peru.

Pseudancistrus daguae is abundant in the Rio Dagua on the
Pacific slope and Creagrutus beni is recorded in this paper from
Santander.

The one species characterizing the slope is Astroblepus latidens,
which is known only from this slope, and everywhere on the
slope except at Cameceria.

I suspect that the recorded absence of Pygidium from the
higher slopes of the eastern side is due to incomplete collecting.

ABSTRACTS

APPARATUS. — A new form of vibration galvanometer. P. G. Agnew.
Bur. Standards Sci. Paper 370. Pp. 8 (37-44). 1920.

Vibration galvanometers are very useful in a. c. null measurements,
but have not been much used in industrial laboratories on account of
their being sensitive to external vibrations and requiring delicate ad-
justments. The present instrument, which has a sensitivity higher
than other forms of the moving-iron type, but less than that of the
most sensitive forms of the moving-coil type, has the advantages of
sturdiness, quick responsiveness, and freedom from the effects of ex-
ternal vibration. It consists essentially of a fine steel wire mounted
on one pole of a permanent magnet and so arranged that the free end
of the wire may vibrate between the poles of an electromagnet through
which flows the current to be detected. The motion of the wire is
observed with a microscope.

The "resonance range" is about one per cent; that is, if the frequency
of the current is one per cent, above or below the frequency of reso-
nance, the amplitude of vibration will be half as great as at resonance.
The sensitivity is such that with a i-ohm winding an e. m. f. of 3 micro-
volts may be detected, and with a 270-ohm winding a current of 0.05
microampere can readily be detected. P. G. A.

ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING.— Lra/^ag^ resistance of street rail-
way roadbeds and its relation to electrolysis of underground struc-
tures. E. R. Shepard. Bur. Standards Tech. Paper 127. Pp.
39, pi. I, figs. 9. 1919.

Electrolytic damage to underground piping systems is caused by
the escape of current from the rails of electric lines and the resistance
of the roadbed is an important factor in the amount of current which
may escape.

Short sections of fourteen common types of roadbeds were constructed
on the grounds of the Bureau of Standards and resistance measure-
ments under varying weather conditions were carried on for a period
of three years. Some measurements were also made on a number of
city lines in and about Washington, both open track and several types

469

470 abstracts: geodesy

of roadbed in paved streets being investigated. Through the co-
operation of the United States Forest Products Laboratory at Madi-
son, Wisconsin, measurements were also made on several sections of
test track on the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway where
railroad ties subjected to several different kinds of preservatives were
employed. The results of these measurements are given in tabular
and graphical form. E. R. S.

GEODESY.- — .4 shidy of map projection in general. Oscar S. Adams.
Special Publication 60. U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey Serial
113. Pp. 24, figs. 15. 1919.

A study of some of the general properties of map projections is at-
tempted in this short publication. The intention is to illustrate in
simple form both the difficulties to be met with and the way in which
certain properties are attained at the sacrifice of other desirable features.
Of necessity there is always a compromise in any given method of
mapping, for the spherical surface of the earth cannot be truly repre-
sented upon a plane surface. Throughout the whole paper the aim
has been to present the considerations in the simplest possible terms,
so that the subject matter may be readily intelligible to any reader
without the necessity of following intricate mathematical developments
or, in other words, the purpose has been to present things in a popular
style so that he who runs may read with full understanding. The rela-
tively large number of illustrations should serve as aids in making clear
the statements of the text. O. S. A.

GEOLOGY. — Deposits of manganese ore in Southeastern California.
Edward L. Jones, Jr. U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 710-E. Pp. 24
(185-208), pi. I. 1919.

This bulletin describes the manganese deposits in the desert region
west of Colorado River, which in 191 7 and 191 8 yielded over 6,000 tons
of high-grade ore and in which at least 30,000 tons is available. The
costs of mining, transportation to the railroads, and shipment to fur-
naces east of Mississippi River are high, and when high-grade foreign
ores are available these deposits can probably not be worked at a profit,
unless a nearer market can be found.

The manganese deposits occur in veins and brecciated zones in sedi-
mentary and igneous rocks ranging in age from pre-Cambrian to prob-
ably Quaternary.

abstracts: geology 471

The manganese ore consists of the oxides, of which psilomelane,
pyrolusite, and manganite have been determined. Psilomelane is the
dominant oxide in all these deposits. It occurs in many forms but most
commonly in laminae deposited along the walls of fissures. Psilomelane
is more abundant in the surficial ores of the deposits; with increasing
depth the softer oxides, pyrolusite and manganite, become increasingly
abundant. Associated with the manganese oxides are calcite and sub-
ordinately, iron oxides. Calcite is universally present in the ores, though
it varies largely in quantity. Quartz was nowhere observed as a pri-
mary constituent of the manganese deposits, although the ore generally
carries a small quantity of silica from the inclusion of fragments of
siliceous wall rock. No manganese mineral other than oxides was
recognized in any of these deposits, but none of the workings had passed
through the oxidized zone.

The manganese deposits of southeastern California examined in
this reconnaissance are similar in type and mineralogy to the deposits
in southwestern Arizona, but in each locality the source of the man-
ganese oxides is obscure. However, it seems probable that the man-
ganese oxides are the decomposition product of manganiferous calcite
deposited by rising hot solutions in the fissures, or that they were
deposited with calcite in the fissures by meteoric waters which obtained
the oxides from the decomposition of manganiferous minerals of the
surrounding rocks. The evidence for either hypothesis is not conclusive,
and definite proof can probably not be obtained until the deposits are
explored below the zone of oxidation. R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY. — Surface formations and agricultural conditions in the south
half of Minnesota. Frank Leverett and F. W. Sardeson.
With a chapter on climatic conditions by U. G. Purssell. Minne-
sota Geol. Survey Bull. 14: 8-148, map, pis., figs. July, 1919.

This is the third of a series of three bulletins which treat of the sur-
face geology of Minnesota. The first (Bull. 12) deals with the north-
west quarter of the State, and the second (Bull. 13) with the northeast
quarter. Although published by the State of Minnesota, these bul-
letins represent results of a cooperative survey between the United
States and the Minnesota Geological Surveys.

Each of the bulletins contains a discussion of the physical features
and climatic conditions of the entire State. In bulletin 14 a chapter

472 abstracts: geology

is given to an outline of the extent and character of each of the drift
sheets, the loess, and the alluvium. The detailed descriptions then
follow, county by county, and under each county appear tables show-
ing the percentages of each class of land, and farm and crop data,
the latter being taken from the reports of the Federal Census of 1910.
The percentage of improved land ranges from about 7 per cent in Pine
and Crow Wing Counties to over 80 per cent in each of a dozen counties in
the south end of the State. The relatively stony red drift of the north-
eastern part of this area, with its cover of forest and brush, is less at-
tractive to the farmer than the more clayey gray drift of the remainder
of the area which is largely in prairie or oak openings. Consequently
the red drift has correspondingly slight development. The extent of
swamp land is shown for each county, and is found to be much greater
in the forested than in the prairie counties. A small map is included
to show the distribution of forest and prairie. F. L.

GEOLOGY. — Nickel deposits in the lower Copper River Valley, Alaska.
R. M. OvERBECK. U. S. Geol. Survey BuU. 712-C. Pp. 8 (91-98).
1919.

Nickel deposits have been found in the valley of Canyon Creek, a
small stream that enters Copper River 6 miles below the mouth of
Chitina River. The country rock is light-gray limy and quartzose
schist, into which peridotite has been intruded. The peridotite is rather
strongly mineralized in places with sulfides, with which the nickel is
associated. The peridotite is highly altered and coarse grained. 16
nickel claims have been located, but very little development work has
been done. At present, the known nickel deposits of Alaska probably
could not compete on the basis of nickel content alone, with the de-
posits of Sudbury, Canada. R. W. Stone.

GEOLOGY AND HYDROLOGY.— 6^wmwc/ water in the San Jacinto
and Temecula Basins, California. Gerald A. Waring. U. S.
Geol. Survey Water-Supply Paper 429. Pp. 113, pis. 14, figs.
15. 1919.

Observations on the ground- water level during 1904-1916 are given,
with mention of the relation of the changes in level to rainfall and to
irrigation development. Areas of flowing artesian wells are outlined,
and the possibility of obtaining flows in other localities discussed.
Analyses of well waters are given, with a discussion of their use and
adaptability for irrigation. A map (PI. Ill), shows the general geology

abstracts: geology and hydrology 473

to consist of ancient igneous and metamorphic rocks, overlain on the
lower slopes by clays, shales, and gravels of early to late Tertiary age.
The valley lands are covered with sandy soils, chiefly derived from
alluvium. A chapter on pumping tests, by Herman Stabler, con-
tains tables of value in determining the proper size of pumps and
prime movers for specified lifts, and acreages to be irrigated.

G. A. W.

GEOLOGY AND UYDROhOGY.— Ground water in Reese River
Basin and adjacent parts of Humboldt River Basin, Nevada. Ger-
ald A. Waring. U. S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply Paper 425-D.
Pp- 35 (95-129), pis. 6, fig. I. 1918.

Reese River drains a long, narrow basin in central Nevada, and flows
northward to Humboldt River near Battle Mountain. The region has
long been devoted to stock-raising, but there is possibility of increasing
the present areas of hay lands, irrigated by flood water, by developing
ground water for irrigation. There are well-developed alluvial fans
along the valley borders, and several playas (dry lakes), in the lower
parts of the valleys. A geologic map (PI. VIII), based on the work
of the Fortieth Parallel Survey, shows the mountains to consist of
ancient granitoid rocks and Tertiary lavas, with sedimentary rocks of
Paleozoic and Mesozoic ages. In the valleys there are Tertiary lake
deposits in addition to Quaternary lake and stream materials.

G. A. W.

HYDROLOGY.— SoM^/t^rw California floods of January, IQ16. H. D.
McGlashan and F. C. Ebert. U. S. Geol. Survey Water-Sup-
ply Paper 426, Pp. 80, pis. 17. 1918.

The 1916 flood, especially in San Diego County, Calif., was probably
the maximum since 1862. For nearly a month San Diego was prac-
tically cut off from communication with the rest of the State, except
by steamer.

The important feature of this report is the very complete record of
precipitation and run-off. Rainfall records, covering the flood period,
are given for 156 points well distributed throughout this limited area,
complete monthly records for San Diego, Los Angeles, and Santa
Barbara, and a discussion of the intensity and distribution of rainfall
in southern California. There are complete records of daily discharge
for nearly all of the important streams, and tables of crest discharges
and run-off summaries which give drainage areas, run-off per square

474 abstracts: radiotelegraphy

mile, mean rainfall, and depth in inches on drainage areas. The com-
plete base data are published in order that independent studies may
be made in greater detail. For purposes of comparison, there are
records and information covering all floods since the country was first
settled. H. D. McG.

RADIOTELEGRAPHY.— .4t>^/aM^ antenna constants. J. M. Cork.
Bur. Standards Sci. Paper 341. Pp. 14, figs. 12. 1919.

This paper contains data observed by the writer while an officer in
the Signal Corps, U. S. Army, and is published by permission of the
Chief Signal Officer. The purpose of this work was to devise a method
for measuring airplane antenna constants (i. e., capacity, inductance,
natural wave length) under conditions of actual flight; and to use this
method to obtain data on various forms of fixed and trailing wires.

The principle of the method involves a continuous wave oscillator
feeding directly into the antenna and substituting for the antenna a
variable calibrated condenser and adjusting for the same wave length
as with the antenna in the oscillating circuit. The result obtained is the
eff^ective capacity of the antenna. Having found this, a variable cali-
brated non-inductive resistance is varied until the D. C. component of
the plate current reads the same as for the real antenna. This gives the
effective antenna resistance. Knowing the eff"ective values of capacity
at various wave lengths, the true capacity, inductance and natural
wave length are readily found.

By this method results were obtained with various forms of fixed
wires, and one, two and four trailing wires of various lengths, are sum-
marized.

A method for finding the directional transmitting effect of various
antennas is also described. In order to compare the amounts of energy
received, a detector tube with a three-stage audio amplifier is used. A
transformer is placed in the plate circuit of the last amplifier tube, the
secondary of which is connected to the heater coil of a thermocouple
connected to a D. C. micro ammeter. This when calibrated is free
from many of the uncertainties of the ordinary audibility meter. A
typical directional curve of the trailing wire antenna is included in the
paper. J. M. C.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFIUATED

SOCIETIES

PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

827TH MEETING

The 827th meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, January 3, 1920,
with President Sosman in the chair and 55 persons present.

Mr. Enoch Karrer presented two papers, the first being on Diffusion
of light along a searchlight beam.

The importance of the light diffused along a searchlight beam is
pointed out. It aids in the directing of the beam, and makes it possible
to use searchlight beams as land marks for service on land and in
the air and perhaps as beacons in the lighthouse service. On the other
hand, this diffusion means loss of light and interferes with the dis-
cerning of the target from positions near the searchlight. Data on
the brightness of the diffused light for various angles along the beam
were given as well as data on the per cent of plane polarized light in
the diffused light. An explanation was offered of the apparent ending
of the searchlight beam, and of the curving of it under certain condi-
tions.

Discussion: The paper was discussed by Messrs. Crittenden,
Humphreys and Sosman.

Mr. Karrer' s second paper was on The contrast sensibility of the
eye under low illumination.

Data on contrast sensibility were given that were obtained under
conditions simulating those that actually obtain in the use of search-
lamps. An illuminated strip was projected on a field of known bright-
ness. The length of the strip was increased from zero to a length just
visible to the observer. The results obtained are expressed by curves
showing the relation between (i) strip length (visual angle) and field
brightness, for constant contrast between strip and field; (2) strip
length and contrast between field and strip, for constant values of field
brightness. These curves lie in groups consistent with each other, and
those obtained for two observers are similar. Examples were given
of how these data together with the data on diffused light may be
applied.

Both of the above papers were illustrated by lantern slides.

The next paper was by Mr. F. E. Wright, on The contrast sensibility
of the eye as a factor in the resolving power of the microscope.

In this communication attention was directed to three factors which
are of importance in high-power microscope work, namely: (a) The
use of a polarizing prism to eliminate that part of the field light which

475

476 proceedings: philosophical society

does not contribute to the diffraction pattern in the image and hence
tends to reduce the contrast and to decrease the sharpness and crispness
of the image. This phenomenon arises because diffracted beams which
emerge from gratings whose interv^al is of the order of magnitude of
half a wave length of light, are sensibly polarized in a plane normal to
the lines of the grating, (b) A diaphragm of the rectangular type is
recommended for use in the image plane of the eyepiece in order to cut
out all light except that from the particular object under examination.
This device allows the eye to work at best efficiency because it is not
disturbed by extraneous light provided, of course, the field of view
covers an angle of lo degrees or more, (c) The importance of a field
intensity of illumination approaching that of daylight and best adapted
for the eye at any particular time is emphasized; the simplest method
for securing this is by means of a substage polarizer in conjunction with
the polarizing prism; the polarizer can be rotated and with it the inten-
sity of illumination of the field varied. These factors are not important
for ordinary' observations because the resolving power there required
is not great; but in high-power, critical work they are significant and
enable the observer to accomplish with comparative ease that which
under other conditions is a matter of difficulty.

Discussion: At this stage Mr. Karrer's second paper and also that
of Mr. Wright were discussed, Messrs. Crittenden, Sosman,
Humphreys, and LittlEhales participating in the discussion.

The last paper of the evening was by Mr. L. A. Bauer, on Further
results of observations of the solar eclipse of May 2Q, IQIQ.^

A complete series of photographs of the solar eclipse of May 29, 1919,
taken by the various astronomical expeditions (Smithsonian Institu-
tion at La Paz, Bolivia; Rio de Janeiro Observatory at Sobral, Brazil;
and British at Sobral and Isle of Principe, Africa; and the geophysical
expeditions of the Department of Terrestrial Magnetism, at Sobral,
Brazil, and Cape Palmas, Liberia) was shown. It was shown that the
type of the corona was approximately of the intermediate type between
that which is seen during years of minimum sunspot activity, when
there are great equatorial extensions of the corona, and that shown
during years of maximum sunspot activity, when streamers of about
the same length extend from the sun in every direction.

The great red prominence seen at the author's station (Cape Palmas,
Liberia), on the southeast limb of the sun turned out to be the largest
prominence thus far photographed. At the time of totality it was about
100,000 miles high and had a base of about 300,000 miles. With the
aid of the data supplied by the Yerkes Observatory it was found that
the mean heliographic latitude of the prominence during the eclipse
was about 18 degrees south, and on the east limb. With the aid of
measurements on the various photographs, the mean heliographic
latitude of the pronounced V-rift in the solar corona on the west limb
turned out to be about 45° degrees south. Practically diametrically
opposite was a less-pronounced rift somewhat in the shape of the letter
U.

1 This Journal 10: 112. 1920.

proceedings: philosophical society 477

In conclusion, graphs were thrown on the screen exhibiting the de-
flection of the rays of Hght as shown especially by the observations
made by Dr. A. C. D. Crommelin of the British party at Sobral. The
detailed data as well as a photograph showing the deflected star images
had been courteously supplied the author by the Astronomer Royal,
of England, Sir Frank W. Dyson, in time to be presented at the meeting.

Discussion: Mr. Bauer's paper was discussed by Messrs. Hull
and Humphreys.

82 8th meeting

The 828th meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, January 17, 1920,
President Sosman presiding and 35 persons present.

The program was devoted to the general subject of Physical labora-
tory methods applied to aircraft power plants.

The first paper was by Mr. D. Mackenzie on The velocity of flame
propagation in gas-engine cylinders.

For many years automotive engineers have discussed the probable
velocity of the flame in the compressed and burning gas in the cylinder
of an internal combustion engine. Many have maintained that this
velocity was comparatively low and that in a high speed engine, in
order to obtain maximum efficiency and power, at least two spark plugs
must be used. It has been maintained by these engineers that by
igniting the mixture at two points in the cylinder, the necessary time
for complete combustion would be greatly reduced as compared with
that needed when but one spark plug is used. However, until very
recently, no measurements have been made in an actual engine and the
determination of this velocity has always been considered to present
extreme difficulties.

For several months, the Bureau of Standards has been investigating
this subject. A single cylinder gasoline engine, the combustion space,
valves, piston, etc., of which are identical with those used on the Liberty
aircraft engine, has been employed in this work. Three spark plugs
are placed in the cylinder; the first is used to ignite the charge and is
connected to the regular ignition system of the engine, the other two
plugs are connected at approximately the proper time to a source of
direct current, the voltage of which is insufficient to break down the
gap between the sparking points of the plugs while under compression,
but which is sufficient to cause a spark to pass as soon as ionization of
the gap occurs, due to combustion of the surrounding mixture. These
spark plugs are so connected with an oscillograph that the time when the
flame reaches them is recorded on a strip of photographic film. The
distance between the plugs is accurately known and the speed of the
oscillograph film is also easily determined. It is obvious, therefore,
that by measuring the distance between the points on the film indicating
discharge of current across the gaps, the average speed of the flame
between these points may be measured.

478 proceedings: philosophical society

Determinations have been made of the velocity of flame propagation
under many conditions of fuel-to-air mixture ratio, compression, speed,
etc. The velocity appears to vary greatly under different conditions
and to increase as the flame spreads through the combustion space.

The paper was illustrated by lantern slides.

Discussion: The paper was discussed by Messrs. Hawkesworth,
White, Humphreys, Sosman and James.

The second paper was presented by Mr. S. R. Parsons on Cooling
radiators for aircraft engines, and was illustrated by lantern slides.

Airplane radiators absorb engine power because of air resistance and
weight, and the most efficient radiator will dissipate heat at the re-
quired rate with a minimum absorption of power.

For the high rates of flow of water used in aeronautic practice, heat
transfer under given conditions of temperature and air flow is practically
independent of the rate of water flow; but the heat transfer is largely
influenced by conditions of the flow of air through the radiator, and
is found under given temperature conditions to be practically definite
for a given mass flow of air, whatever combination of density and linear
velocity produces that mass flow. The individual air streams passing
through the air tubes of cellular radiators appear to show turbulent
flow, and spiral vanes or other devices for increasing turbulence, while
they may increase the heat transfer, result in every case tested at the
Bureau of Standards in decreased efficiency, because of a dispropor-
tionate increase in air resistance. High thermal conductivity is of
negligible importance in the thin metal walls separating water passages
from air passages, but is of some importance in projecting "fins."
Highly polished surfaces dissipate heat more rapidly than surfaces only
ordinarily smooth.

Air resistance is caused by impact on the front face of the radiator,
skin friction in the air passages, and suction on the rear face, the relative
importance of the three parts varying widely with different types of
construction. Skin friction appears to follow roughly the laws for
long tubes. For minimum air resistance, straight and smooth-walled
air passages are essential, for anything that deflects the course of the
air adds considerably to the resistance. The effects of forms of en-
trance to and exit from the air passages are of importance, but are not
well worked out.

Conditions giving maximum mass flow of air through the radiator,
and to that extent tending to increase heat transfer for a given flying
speed, are identical with those giving minimum air resistance.

Radiators for use on planes flying at the higher speeds should be
characterized by straight and smooth-walled air passages, and mini-
mum obstruction of frontal area for a given amount of cooling surface.

The discussion is directly applicable only to radiators in "unob-
structed" positions on the airplane, where other parts of the structure
do not affect the flow of air through the radiator.

proceedings: philosophical society 479

829th meeting

The 829th meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, Jan. 31, 1920,
with President Sosman presiding and 42 persons present.

Prof. W. J. Humphreys, retiring President, delivered an address on
A bundle of meteorological paradoxes. The paper was discussed by
Messrs. Abbot, Kimball, Bauer, Pawling and Brooks. It has been
published.^

D. L. Hazard, Corresponding Secretary.

2 This Journal 10: 153. 1920.

NOTE. — I regret that ignorance of the prior publication of
FoppP on the fundamental polyhedron of the diamond lattice
prevented me from giving due credit to him in a recent note- on
that subject. Eluot Q. Adams.

Bureau of Chemistry.

1 LuDWiG FopPL. Der Fundamentalbereich des Diamantgilters. Phys. Zeitschr.

15: 191-193- 1914-

2 Elliot Q. Adams. Note on the fundamental polyhedron of the diamond lattice.

This Journal 8: 240-241. 1918.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Dr. C. Wythe Cooke has returned to the Geological Survey from
private work in Colombia.

Mr. a. E. Fath, geologist in the oil and gas section of the U. S. Geo-
logical Survey, has taken furlough for three months to engage in private
work in foreign lands.

Mr. Charles S. Howard, formerly instructor in electrical engineering
and physics at the U. S. Naval Academy at Annapolis, has been ap-
pointed junior chemist in the quality -of-water division, of the Water
Resources Branch, U. S. Geological Surv^ey.

Dr. Joseph Paxson Iddings, formerly professor of petrology at the
University of Cliicago, and until recent years geologist with the U. S.
Geological Survey, died at his home at Brinklow, Maryland, on Sep-
tember 8, 1920, in his sixty-fourth year. Professor Iddings was born
at Baltimore, Maryland, January 21, 1857. He entered the Geological
Survey as assistant geologist in 1880, shortly after its foundation, and
retained his connection therewith while professor at Chicago in the
years 1892 to 1908. Since 1908 he had devoted his attention entirely
to independent petrologic and geologic work. He was the author of
two text-books and many papers on the mineralogy and petrology of
the igneous rocks. He was a member of the Academy and of the
Geological Society of Washington.

Mr. Paul Moore, Director of the Information Bureau of the War
Trade Board, has been appointed Secretary of the Division of Research
Extension of the National Research Council.

Dr. F. Hastings Smyth, formerly captain in the Chemical Warfare
Service, joined the staff of the Geophysical Laboratory^ Carnegie
Institution of Washington, in September.

Dr. Samuel Mills Tr.\cy, agronomist with the U. S. Department
of Agriculture, died on vSeptember 5, 1920, in his seventy-fourth year.
Dr. Tracy was born at Hartford, Vermont, April 30, 1847. He was
professor of botany and agriculture at the University of Missouri from
1877 to 1887, director of the Mississippi Agricultural Experimental Sta-
tion from 1887 to 1897, and was appointed special agent in forage crop
investigations with the U. S. Department of Agriculture in 1897. His
research work was specially directed to the botany of the Southern States.

A new "division of non-ferrous metallurgy" has been created in the
Bureau of Mines. Mr. A. E. Wells, of the Bureau's staff, has been
placed in charge. The headquarters of the division will be at Salt
Lake City, Utah.

Mr. R. M. WiLHELM, chief of the thermometer laboratory of the
Bureau of Standards, resigned in September to accept a position with
the C. J. Tagliabue Manufacturing Company, of Brooklyn, New York,
manufacturers of thermometric apparatus.

Mr. W. p. Woodring and a party from the U. S. Geological Survey
have left for Haiti to conduct a reconnaissance geologic examination of
the Republic of Haiti at the request of that government.

480

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. io • October 19, 1920 No. 17

BOTANY. — The ejject of salts of boron upon the distribution of
desert vegetation,^ Karl F. Kellerman, Bureau of Plant
Industry.

The disastrous experiences of the past two seasons in the use
of fertilizers contaminated with varying percentages of borax^
has sharply drawn attention to the importance of considering
boron compounds not only in fertilizer investigations but in in-
vestigations of alkali deposits wherever agricultural develop-
ments are to be considered. While geologists are familiar with
commercial developments of borax, it has not been generally
appreciated by botanists or others interested in the vegetation
of the desert regions that extensive deposits of borax are recorded
in many localities in the western United States.

It is true that, in reports of early explorations of the West

and Southwest, reference is made to the occurrence of borax and

also to the barrenness of some of these regions. For example,

the following quotation is made from the article^ entitled "Borax

in America" by W. O. Ayers, M. D.:

"A glance at the map of the State of Nevada shows a large number
of dotted spots, individually of no great extent, scattered over the
desert regions east of the Sierra Nevada. Most of them are without
designation, but a few are marked 'Soda Flat,' 'Salt Marsh,' etc.
They all have probably a common origin; they are places which long
ago (how long we cannot tell) were covered with water, since removed
by solar evaporation. Each consists of an extent of entirely flat sur-

' Address of the Retiring President (19 19), of the Botanical Society of Wash-
ington, February 3, 1920. Received Aug. 24, 1920.

2 ScHREiNER, Brown, Skinner, and Shapovalov. Crop Injury by Borax in
Fertilizers. U. S. Dept of Agric. Circular 84.

3 Popular Science Monthly 21: 358. 1882.

481 •

482 kellerman: effect of boron on vegetation

face, of dried mud, sometimes absolutely bare, sometimes covered with
saline deposits. It had been known for years that these deposits were
both what is there universally called 'alkali' (carbonate of soda) and
salt. But it was not until 1871 that much attention was drawn to the
fact that several of them contained also deposits of borates, though
published mention had been made some time earlier that these existed
there.

"The number of these 'marshes,' which are marked by borate de-
posits, it is impossible to state, as so large an extent of that arid region
remains as yet very imperfectly known."

The earliest records pointing to a rather wide distribution of
compounds of boron on the Pacific Coast are shown in the follow-
ing quotation from the Proceedings of the California Academy

of Sciences, contribution by J. A. Veatch, January 17, 1859:

"The existence of boracic acid in the sea-water of our coast was
brought to my notice in July, 1857, I had, in the month of January
of the previous year, discovered borate of soda and other borates in
solution in the water of a mineral spring in Tehama county, near the
upper end of the Sacramento Valley. Prosecuting the research, I
found traces of boracic acid — in the form of borates — in nearly all
the mineral springs with which the State of California abounds. This
was especially the case in the Coast mountains

" This led to an examination of the sea-water, and

a detection of an appreciable quantity of boracic acid therein. It was
at Santa Barbara, where I first detected it, and subsequently at var-
ious points, from San Diego to the Straits of Fuca. It seems to be in
the form of borate of soda, and perhaps of lime. The quantity dimin-
ishes toward the North. It is barely perceptible in specimens of water
brought from beyond Oregon, and seems to reach its maximum near
San Diego.

"This peculiarity seems to extend no great distance seaward. Water
taken thirty or forty miles west of San Francisco gave no trace of acid."

It is perhaps a question whether the desolate character of some
of the western and southwestern deserts can be directly corre-
lated with the occurrence of borax in quantity within these areas.
Apparently no such correlation has been suggested, either by
ecologists or by engineers or agriculturists interested in reclama-
tion and irrigation problems in these regions. The Smoke Creek
Desert, the Carson Desert, Death Valley, and the Mojave Desert
are remarkable for their barrenness ; and in view of the occurrence
of borax in these regions, it would seem to be a fair question as
to whether the contamination of borax in the soil might not be
responsible to as great a degree as the low rainfall, for the absence

kellerman: effect of boron on vegetation 483

of vegetation. Furthermore, those familiar with the topography
of these deserts will recall the peculiar absence of vegetation from
mud fiats even when these are gradually drying out; they occa-
sionally dry into perfectly level plains, hard and smooth, appar-
ently not badly troubled with alkali but with no sign of vegeta-
tion. These play a formations in the vicinity of Hazen and Fallon
in the Truckee- Carson region, have been given more or less
consideration with studies of the alkali difficulties of the Truckee-
C arson irrigation project. While some of the reasons for the
refractory character of these soils have been traced to the im-
permeability of soils, ^ other areas that appeared too low in total
salt concentration to be dangerous to crop production were not
complicated by unusual colloid problems and yet remained
practically barren.

In view of the records of the lather wide distribution of borax
in this region, it seems not unreasonable to suggest that the
irregular and rather definitely located occurrence of borax may
explain the injury to plants on these small areas. The number of
localities in which commercial borax production has been at-
tempted in the West will be surprising to most people. The
areas in which commercial borax development has taken place
within recent years or is now under way are well set out in the
section on borax from the 19 13 report on "Mineral Resources
of the United States."^

It should be remembered, however, that the deposits of borax
ordinarily are not recorded either by the geologists or com-
mercial prospectors unless of considerable magnitude. It is not
improbable, therefore, that the areas now recorded as showing
borax report only a small fraction of the deposits which, from
an agricultural or botanical point of view, are of prime significance.
From the data reported by Mr. Yale and Mr. Gale, and from
reports of other investigators, the following list apparently repre-
sents the areas in the United States where compounds of boron
have been found.

^ KjellERMAN, Karl F. The relation of colloidal silica to certain impermeable
soils. Science 33: 189. 191 1.

^ Yale, Charles G., and Gale, Hoyt S. The production of borax in IQ13. Min-
eral Resources of the U. S., 1913 — Part II. 1914.

484 kellerman: effect of boron on vegetation

California: Furnace Creek, Death Valley; old abandoned borax
claims in the Amargosa Canyon ; colemanite discovered in Tick Canyon,
a branch of Soledad Canyon, 40 miles north of the city of Los Angeles,
and 5 miles from Lang Station, on the Southern Pacific; Slate Rajge
Marsh, San Bernardino; in Inyo County 100 miles north of the Slate
Range District; at the mouth of Furnace Creek and Resting Springs
in Death Valley ; Mono Lake ; Owens Lake ; Clear Lake ; small quantities
in spring at Red Bluff, Tehama County; Tuscan Springs, Tehama
County, 8 miles east of Red Bluff; near the mouth of the Pitt River;
40 miles north of the Tuscan Springs several similar localities too small
to be of any practical importance; a reconnaissance of the "coast range"
of mountains, from the neighborhood of Shasta over a length of some 30
miles towards the South brought to light borates in the numerous small
springs abounding in that locality but only in minute quantities; other
localities between Clear Lake and Napa City; in Siegler Valley there
is a hot spring containing borate of strontia and other borate salts;
a borate spring in Suisan Valley; Kern County, 10 miles from Kalienti;
20 miles west of San Bernardino ulexite occurs in the Cane Spring
District; Lake Elsinore, Riverside County.

Nevada: Ulexite occurs abundantly in the Arizona Desert, and
near Wadsworth, Nevada; on the eastern slope of the Sierra Nevada,
near Walker's Pass, borax is found; also in Panamint and Death Valley
in Lower Nevada; borax found in Esmeralda County in Fish Lake
Valley, Clayton Valley, Big Smoky Valley (locally known as the San
Antonio Marsh, in the Silver Peak Quadrangle), Teels Marsh, Rhodes
Marsh, Fish Lake Pond; at Sand Springs in Churchill County, 100
miles from Columbus Marsh; Hot Springs, 50 miles farther to the north-
west; mud lakes in the western part of the State, one in the vicinity
of Ragtown, Churchill County; in Humboldt, Land, Whitepine and
Lincoln Counties there are beds of salt containing borax.

Oregon: Curry County; Harney County, extending over 10,000
acres south of Lake Algord.

Wyoming: Salts in Union Pacific Lakes, called Big Lake, Track
Lake, and Red Lake, vary from 1V2 parts per thousand to ^l\ part
per thousand of borax.

In addition to these localities, I have personally collected small
samples in the alkali spots in Kern County, Calif., where plants
were either dying or completely absent. Borax percentages of

kellerman: effect of boron on vegetation 485

significant size were found in these samples, although, with the
rather high content of the white alkali salts in these spots, it is
difficult to determine the relative importance of borax and the
other salts in the alkali injury. Somewhat similar conditions
exist in regard to Lake Elsinore, in Riverside County. The
water of Lake Elsinore shows an appreciable percentage of borax
and this suggests the possibility that the destructive injury fol-
lowing the use of Lake Elsinore water in irrigation may be
partly due to borax poisoning, as well as to injury from other
alkali salts. In this connection it is worthy of note that the
lakes of the Southwest, famous for the remarkable clearness of
the water, in many cases at least are more or less strongly im-
pregnated with borax. It is true that the salt content in Lake
Elsinore is high in relation to the percentage of borax; in the
case of Clear Lake, Owens Lake, and Mono Lake, the com-
parison with the other salts is much higher. I am inclined to sug-
gest, therefore, that wherever there are lakes in which the tem-
perature of the water is sufficient for satisfactory development
of aquatic plants but which remain free of vegetation, they should
be prospected for the possible occurrence of borax.

Plant physiologists have frequently included boron compounds
in determining the toxicity of various compounds upon plants,
both in water cultures and in sand and in soil. As is the case
with the very scattered literature dealing with field applications
of borax to crop plants, there are some contradictions and differ-
ences of opinion regarding the toxic action both of borax and
other boron compounds. A fairly complete review of this lit-
erature up to 1 9 14 has been published by Dr. Brenchley, of the
Rothamsted station. Following this review Dr. Brenchley con-
cludes that boric acid seems to be less harmful to the higher plants
than compounds of copper, zinc, and arsenic; and, further, that
below a certain amount of concentration boron compounds exert
a favorable influence upon plant growth.

From a review of much of the literature reported upon, I am
inclined to doubt the validity of this last opinion, considering

486 KELLERMAN: EFFECT OF BORON ON VEGETATION

the stimulating effect to be due to a suppression of the growth
of competing organisms such as bacteria and molds on the con-
trol plants of water cultures and the bacteria and protozoa in
the sand and soil cultures. It may be doubted also whether the
• conclusion regarding the relative toxicity of boron compounds
and compounds of zinc and copper is valid. If one is considering
plants growing in natural soil, zinc and copper compounds are
certain to become transformed into insoluble compounds much
more rapidly and completely than is the case with boron form
deposits that represent natural accumulations. Therefore, it
may not unfairly be presumed that boron will prove to be a
more toxic element than either zinc or copper.

The toxicity of boron compounds to different crops under
field conditions has not been adequately investigated. It will
almost certainly be found that different crops will show a great
range in their resistance to borax poisoning, and it is probable
that there may be found to be some direct correlation between
the action of the plant in absorbing boron compounds and the
limit of the toxic concentrations. In rather extensive experi-
ments upon the efifect of manure treated with different com-
pounds of boron, Dr. Cook makes the following statement :''

"It apparently made little difference in the quantity of boron ab-
sorbed by the plants tested whether boron was added to the soil as
borax or as calcined colemanite. The addition of lime with borax
had no definite effect in preventing the absorption of boron. Wheat
and oats absorbed very little boron, while leguminous and succulent
plants absorbed comparatively large amounts."

It seems clear that much additional investigation, both in the
field and laboratory, is necessary before it will be possible to
determine the significance of borax either in its relation to
natural vegetation or its bearing upon agricultural development
in irrigation projects or in the use of fertilizers. In taking up
new studies it should be emphasized, however, that the inves-
tigator should not remain blind to other compounds that might
prove even more important in their relation to vegetation than
compounds of boron ; for example, in several of the regions where
borax has been produced commercially, quicksilver ores also occur.

6 Cook, F. C. Journ. of Agric. Res. 5: 888.

wherry: sulfide minerals 487

MINERALOGY. — The nomenclature and classification of sulfide
minerals. Edgar T. WhERRY, Washington, D. C.^

In a paper published in this Journal over 3 years ago^ the
writer put forward a plan for the nomenclature and classification
of the native elements, based in a general way upon that fol-
lowed in Dana's System of Mineralogy (6th edition), but differ-
ing in certain important respects. The fundamental rules of
nomenclature are as follows: If only one form of an element
is known, the chemical name is used ; polymorphous forms are
named by applying crystallographic adjectives to the chemical
names; and varieties based on isomorphism are also described
by adjectives, constructed by adding the suffix iferous to the
names of the elements present in the lesser amounts. The rules for
classification are: Two main divisions, non-metals and metals,
are recognized, and these are subdivided into groups on a
strictly crystallographic basis. For use with minerals composed
of two or more elements in combination, this plan obviously
requires some modification, and in the present paper a set of
rules applicable to the sulfides and related minerals is formulated.

Nomenclature. — The name first proposed for each mineral is
adopted, foreign names being translated or transliterated. The
ending ite is added in every case, except where some name with-
out such ending is in common use. Separate mineral names are
used for polymorphous forms. ^ In minerals in which one ele-
ment is clearly essential and others replace it isomorphously, in
widely varying but never significant amounts, the plan adopted
in the preceding paper is followed: the name of the replacing
element, with the suffix iferous, is used as an adjective. On the
other hand, in minerals which belong to complete isomorphous
series, single names are given to the series, and separate ones to

^ The data for this paper were assembled while the writer was Assistant Curator
of the Division of Mineralogy and Petrology in the U. S. National Museum. Re-
ceived July 26, 1920.

2 This Journal 7: 447-456. 191 7.

2 The use of Greek-letter prefixes, which has certain advantages, has not been
introduced systematically, since it is ordinarily limited to discussions of stability,
relationships, etc.

488 wherry: sulfide minerals

their end-members, if these are well known as individual species.

Classification. — With the sulfides proper are ranged all other
compounds of analogous character, comprising not only the
selenides, tellurides, arsenides, antimonides and bismuthides,
usually so treated, but also the oxysulfides, nitrides, phosphides,
carbides, and silicides, which are not as a rule assigned any definite
status. These are separated first on the basis of the metallic or
non-metallic character of the more basic element concerned, and
next into chemical divisions, depending on the ratios of the basic
to the acidic elements present. The divisions are finally sub-
divided into groups on a crystallographic basis, as was done with
the elements. As before, the order in which groups are taken
up is that of decreasing crystallographic symmetry (trigonal,
however, preceding tetragonal), the final group in most divisions
including amorphous, colloidal, and cryptocrystalline, meta-col-
loidal, members, together with those of which the crystallization
is as yet unknown; and the order of the individual minerals
within the groups is based on the positions of the constituent
elements in the Periodic System.

While there is nothing particularly novel about these rules,
they do not appear to have been applied consistently heretofore.
In the present work exceptions are admitted only for especially
urgent reasons, and the tabulation, which follows, is accordingly
uniform and systematic to an unusual degree. Discussion lead-
ing to its further improvement is, however, invited.

The first column of the table contains the names of the species
and varieties recognized, worked out in accordance with the
above principles. No new names are proposed in this paper,
although a few old ones are redefined. The second column con-
tains the composition of each; isomorphous replacement^ is repre-

* Isomorphism was formerly considered to exist between single bivalent elements
and pairs of univalent ones (for instance, Pb and Ag2) but recent studies have
shown supposed instances of this to be mixtures. Only isomorphous replacement
of elements of like valence is here admitted. It may also be noted that the
argentite and galena groups are here widely separated, since their structures must
be entirely different.

wherry: sulfide minerals 489

sented by a comma, the element present in largest amount being
placed first; and in the case of complete isomorphous series and
double compounds the formulas are written separately, with a
period between, not implying any particular interpretation of
structure of the crystal, but so as to bring out to the best advan-
tage the numerical relationships between the constituents.
Variability in composition aside from typical isomorphism is
frankly admitted, and a dash placed between the numbers repre-
senting the limiting amounts of the variable elements. The
third column contains explanations of changes from current usage,
important synonyms, references for minerals omitted by Dana,
etc.

SULFIDES, OXYSULFIDES, SELENIDES, TELLURIDES, AND CARBIDES OF
NON-METALS AND SEMI-METALS

X: I DIVISION New; ratio X ranging from i + to 3.

(New; placed by Dana after the "stibnite
group," but the formula-type is quite
different.

f Synonyms: "gruenlingite," "joseite," (Dana

Wehrlite Bii-2(Te,Se,S) \ No. 32), "oruetite," and "pilsenite;" com-

[ position widely variable.

NON-CRYSTALUZED GROUP New.

(Hydrocarbons) H^C Chiefly cryptocrystalline.

f Has been grouped with native elements, but
Quisqueite C2-3S { is apparently a compound; amorphous,

[ colloidal.

4:3 DIVISION New.

DIMORPHITE GROUP. ORTHO-
RHOMBIC New.

Has been confused with orpiment, but is

Dimorphite AS4S3 1 evidently distinct.

1:1 DIVISION New.

MOISSANITE GROUP. TRIGONAL,- New.
HEMIMORPHIC

fMeteoritic; the name "carborundum" has
priority, but was proposed for an artificial
product.
REALGAR GROUP. MONOCLINIC.

Realgar AsS

490

wherry: sulfide minerals

2:3 DIVISION New.

TETRADYMiTE GROUP. TRIGONAL . Separated but not named by Dana.

Tetradymite Bi2S3.2Bi2Te3

J Dana's "tetradymite, variety i ;" name a
TeUurobismuthite . . . BisTes j translation of "telkirwismuth."

HYDROUS ARSENIC SULFIDE-

GROUP. TETRAGONAL New.

Described, without name, by E. Monaco,
Ann. Scuoli Agric. Portici, [2], 4:7-11.
1903. Sometimes indexed by the Ger-
man name "arsenschwefel," but this is
not a satisfactory mineralogical term.

(Hydrous arsenic

sulfide) AS2S3.H2O

STIBNITE GROUP. ORTHORHOMBIC.

Crystallization monoclinic, but peri-rhom-
bic.
Included here for simplicity.
"Antimonite."

Orpiment AS2S3

Kermesite Sb203.2Sb2S8

Stibnite Sb2S3

Bismuthinite Bi2S3

Antimoniferous

var (Bi,Sb)2S3

Guana juatite Bi2S3-2Bi2Se3

Distinctness aflfirmed by Murdoch, Micr.
detn. opaque min., p. 131. 1916.

Selenobismuthite.. . .Bi2Se3

(Amorphous or-
piment) AS2S3.XH2O

Name an abbreviated translation of "selen-
wismuthglanz."
NON-CRYSTALLIZED GROUP New.

Probably the form of arsenic sulfide which
occurs in hot-spring deposits; not yet as-
signed a special name; not in Dana.

Metastibnite Sb2vS3.xH20

Karelinite Bi203.2Bi2S3

Amorphous, colloidal.
f "Bolivite;" an oxysuLfide of uncertain homo-
\ geneity; classed by Dana as a variety of
[ bismite.

1:2 DIVISION New.

MOLYBDENITE GROUP. TRIGONAL.

Molybdenite M0S2

NON-CRYSTALLIZED GROUP. .... .New.

J Cornu, Z. Chem. Ind. KoUoide, 4: 190, 1909;
Jordisite M0S2 j (^ot in Dana) ; amorphous, colloidal.

Tungstenite WS2

I :X DIVISION New; ratio X ranging from i -f to 6

NON-CRYSTALLIZED GROUP New.

[ Sometimes grouped with the native ele-
Arsensulfurite ASS4-6 \ ments, but the constituents seem likely

[ to be combined.
Patronite VS3-4

wherry: sulfide; minerals

491

X:i DIVISION.

SULFIDES, OXYSULFIDES, SELENIDES, TELLURIDES, NITRIDES, PHOS-
PHIDES, ARSENIDES, ANTIMONIDES, BISMUTHIDES, CARBIDES
AND SILICIDES OF METALS

New; ratio X ranging from 3 to 11 ; part of
Dana's "basic division."

New; included by Dana with native ele-
COHENITE GROUP. ISOMETRIC. . . j ^^^^^^ ^^^ evidently compounds.

Cohenite (Ke,Ni)3-4C Meteoritic ; includes "chalypite."

STUETZITE GROUP. HEXAGONAL . New.

Stuetzite Ag3-4Te

SCHREIBERSITE GROUP. TETRAG- / New; included by Dana under isometric
ONAL. \ native elements.

Schreibersite (Fe,Ni)3-4P Meteoritic; includes "rhabdite."

NON-CRYSTALLIZED GROUP New.

I "Darwinite;" homogeneity affirmed by Mur-
doch, op. cit., p. 74, but discredited by
Borgstrom, Geol. for. fork. 38: 95. 1916.

Homogeneity affirmed by Borgstrom, loc.

cit., but questioned by Murdoch, op. cit.,

P- 37-
Homogeneity affirmed by Murdoch, op. cit.,

P- 135-
The formula AgeBi often given does not

agree with the analyses; homogeneity

affirmed by Murdoch, op. cit., p. 125.

3 : 1 DIVISION New; part of Dana's "basic division."

DYSCRASITE GROUP. ORTHORHOMBIC.

Crystallization peri-hexagonal; includes
"condurrite," "keweenawite," "ledoux-
ite," "mohawkite," "orileyite," "stibio-
domeykite," etc., the heterogenous char-
acter of most of which has been shown
by Murdoch, op. cit., pp. 38-39.
"HuntiHte."

vStibiotriargentite ;" includes "animikite,"
"chanarcillite" and "stibiohexargentite,"
impure forms.
5 : 2 DIVISION New; ratio somewhat variable.

NON- CRYSTALLIZED GROUP New.

f "Maldonite;" included by Dana with native
j elements, but has as much right to be

"WMtneyite CugAs

Algodonite CueAs

Horsfordite CueSb

Chilenite AgnBi

Domeykite CusAs

Arsenargentite AgsAs

Dyscrasite AgsSb

Bismuthaurite Au2-3Bi

Ferrosilicite Fe2-3Si

called a compound as other members of
this division.
Meteoritic ; Shepard, Amer. Jour. Sci. [ i ] 28:
259- 1859.

492

wherry: sulfide minerals

Siderazotite ^e^No

"Silvestrite;" ending ite added for uniform-
ity; included by Dana with native ele-
ments, but evidently a compound.

2 : 1 DIVISION New; part of Dana's "monosulfides, "

ARGENTiTE GROUP. ISOMETRIC. . New; part of Dana's "galena group."

The stable form at high temperatures, prob-
ably represented in massive occurrences
of "chalcocite;" not yet assigned a sep-
arate name.

(Isometric chal-
cocite) CujS

J "Jalpaite;" distinctness affirmed by Mur-
\ doch, op. cit., p. 140.

Compare Quercigh, Riv. min. crist. Ital.,
44: 26. 1915.

Eucairite Cu^Se. Ag-iSe

Argentite AgaS

Cupriferous var. (Ag,Cu)2S

Aguilarite Ag2(S,Se)

Naumannite AgaSe

Hessite AgzTe

CHALCOCITE GROUP. ORTHORHOMBIC.

Chalcocite CU2S

Stromeyerite CU2S. AgaS

Acanthite Ag2S

NON-CRYSTALUZED GROUP New.

Berzelianite CuaSe

Crookesite 7Cu2Se.Tl2Se

f Occurrence in nature affirmed by Cornu.
(Amorphous ar- ^ ^ ^;,^^ j^^^ Kolloide 4: 187. 1909;

g^^t'^^) ^^^^ [ not in Dana; not yet named.

Petzite aAgaTe.AuoTe

4:3 TO 8:5 DIVISION New.

BORNITE GROUP. ISOMETRIC New.

(Isometric high-
sulfur chalco-
cite) CU2S1-1.2

Compare Posnjak, Allen, and Merwin, Econ.
Geol. 10: 492. 1915; not yet named.

Bomite Cu5FeS4

The old formula CusFeSs, has been dis-
credited.

MAUCHERITE GROUP. TETRAG-
ONAL New.

{ "Placodine," artificial; "temiskamite;" the

Maucherite NisAs* { formula has been suggested to be Ni4As3

[ by Palmer, Econ. Geol. 9: 664. 1914.

HIGH-SULFUR CHALCOCITE GROUP.

ORTHORHOMBIC New.

(High-sulfur chal- Compare Posnjak et al, loc. cit.; not yet

cocite) CU2S1-1.2 named.

wherry: sulfide minerals 493

NON-CRYSTALLIZED GROUP New.

Umangite CusSci

Rickardite Cu4Te3

Kalgoorlite (Ag,Au,Hg)3Te-2 Homogeneity uncertain.

I : I DIVISION New; part of Dana's "monosulfides. . ."

GALENiTE GROUP. ISOMETRIC. . .Part of Dana's "galena group."

J Meteoritic, placed by Dana after sphalerite

^1<^^^^*« C^S 1 group, but not tetrahedral.

Galenite PbS "Galena."

f Includes "zorgite" (Dana No. 52), an im-
Clausthalite PbSe [ ^^^^ ^^^^

Altaite PbTe

I Placed by Dana after sphalerite group, but
Pentlandite xFeS.j'NiS i not tetrahedral; regarded as an iso-

[ morphous series; end-members unknown.

SPHALERITE GROUP. ISOMETRIC-
TETRAHEDRAL.

Sphalerite ZnS "Cleiophane."

Cadmiferous var(Zn,Cd)S "Przibramite."

J "Blende;" includes "marmatite," "cristo-

Ferriferous var. . (Zn,Fe)S 1 i-. ... u- u • • *•

^ ' ' [^ phite, etc., high-iron varieties.

Metacinnabarite HgS

Tiemannite HgSe

Alabandite MnS

I Dana's "cinnabar-wurtzite-millerite group"
covELLiTE GROUP. HEXAGONAL. *j is here separated into several on the basis

[ of crystallization.
Covellite CuS

_ I Meteoritic ; owes its i : i ratio to its forma-

Troilite FeS 1 *• • .^u f

[ tion in the presence 01 excess iron.

Niccolite NiAs

Arite xNiAs.yNiSb An isomorphous series.

Breithauptite NiSb

WURTZITE GROUP. HEXAGONAL-
HEMIMORPHIC.

Wurtzite ZnS

Manganiferous J "Erythrozincite;" distinctness affirmed by

var (Zn,Mn)S \ Murdoch, op. cit., p. 148.

Greenockite CdS

MILLERITE GROUP. TRIGONAL-
RHOMBOHEDRAL.

Millerite NiS Includes "beyrichite" (Dana No. 76).

494

wherry: sulfide minerals

GUADALCAZARITE GROUP. TRI-
GONAL-HEMIMORPHIC.

Guadalcazarite HgS

CINNABARITE GROUP. TRIGONAL-
TRAPEZOHEDRAL.

Cinnabarite HgS

HAUCHECORNITE GROUP. TETRA
GONAL

Hauchecomite 4NiS.NiBi

CHALCOPYRITE GROUP. TETRA-
GONAL-SPHENOIDAL

I Has been confused with metacinnabarite,
1 but differs in crystallization and important
I physical properties; compare the writer,
[ Amer. Min. 5: 35. 1920.

The ending ite is added for uniformity.

New.

Composition uncertain.

Chalcopyrite CuS.FeS

Stannite 2CuS.SnS.FeS

Zinciferous var. . 2CuS.SnS.-
(Fe,Zn)S.

CHALMERSITE GROUP. ORTHO-
RHOMBIC

Chalmersite CuS.2FeS

Empressite AgTe

Muthmannite xAgTe.yAuTe

Teallite SnS.PbS

(Orthorhombic

pyrrhotite) . . . FeS

NON-CRYSTALLIZED GROUP

(Amorphous co-

vellite) CuS

Voltzite Zn0.4ZnS

(Amorphous

sphalerite).. . .ZnS

Xanthochroite CdS.xHaO

(Amorphous cin-
nabarite) HgS

Onofrite sHgS.HgSe

Coloradoite HgTe

Lehrbachite jcHgSe.j'PbSe

Marked off though not named by Dana.
f Includes "barnhardtite," "barracanite,"
I "cubanite" (Dana No. 81) and "cupro-
pyrite," impure forms, Murdoch, op. cit.;
formerly regarded as a cuprous-ferric sul-
fide, but X-ray study shows the Cu and
Fe to have analogous positions.

Hydrotroilite FeS.xHjO

Jaipurite CoS

New.

'Krennerite" in part.

Artificial; "a-pyrrhotite."
New.

Occiurrence in nature affirmed by Cornu,
loc. cit.; not in Dana; not yet named.
Included here for simplicity.

Mentioned but not named by Dana.
Rogers, Journ. Geol. 25: 524. 1917.

Occurrence in nature affirmed by Cornu,
loc. cit.; not in Dana; not yet named.

An isomorphous series.

I Sidorenko, Mem. soc. nat. Nouv. Russie
\ 24: 97, 1901; Neues Jahrb. Min. Geol.

[ 1902, II, ref . 397 ; not in Dana.

whkrry: sulfide minerals

495

5:6 TO 3:4 DIVISION

UNNEITE GROUP. ISOMETRIC.

Linneite C0S.C02S3

Siegenite .

.a;(CoS.Co2S3).-

3'(NiS.Ni2S3)

Polydymite NiS.Ni2S3

PYRRHOTITE GROUP. HEX-
AGONAL

Pyrrhotite FeSi-1.2

STERNBERGITE GROUP. ORTHO-
RHOMBIC

Stembergite AgFe2S3-4

Leucopyrite FeAs.Fe2As3

Daubreelite FeS.Cr2S3

1:2 DIVISION

PYRITE GROUP. ISOMETRIC-
PYRITOHEDRAL

Hauerite MnS2

Pyrite FeS2

Nickeliferous

var (Fe,Ni)S2

Arsenof errite . . ^ FeAs2

Smaltite C0AS2

Cloanthite NiAs2

Laurite RuS2

Sperrylite PtAs2

COBALTITE GROUP. ISOMETRIC-
TETARTOHEDRAL

Part of Dana's "intermediate division."
Marked off but not named by Dana.

"Linnaeite;" includes "carroUite" (Dana
No. 82), shown to be a mixture by Mur-
\ doch, op. cit., p. 37; also "sychnodymite,"
which is apparently similar; compare Zam-
bonini, Riv. mitt, crist. Ital. 47: 40. 1916.

Regarded as an isomorphous series, of which
the preceding and following are end mem-
bers.

f Has been assigned another formula, but the
\ analyses agree as closely as could be ex-
[ pected with this one.

New.
"/3-pyrrhotite."

.New.
f "Argentopyrite," "frieseite," etc.; composi-
{ tion not certain; compare Zambonini,
[ loc. cit.
Included by Dana under loellingite, but
apparently independent.
Meteoritic; shows cleavage in one direction

. Dana's "disulfides "

Part of Dana's "pyrite group.'

"Bravoite;" the so-called "cobalt-nickel-
pyrite" contains cobalt also.

Includes "bismutosmaltite" and "chathara-
ite," apparently mixtures.

{ This and the preceding form limited iso-
{ morphous mixtures, but the series has
[ not received a separate name.

I New; includes minerals of this division con-
taining two different non-metals; compare
Bragg, X-rays and Crystal Structure, p.
154. 1916.

496

wherry: sulfide minerals

I The variety of pyrite showing this sym-
{ metry probably contains arsenic or some

other element isomorphously replacing

part of its sulfur.

Includes "corynite" (Dana No. 91), an im-
pure variety.

/ This and the preceding form limited iso-
I morphous mixtures.

(Tetartohedral

pyrite) Fe(S,X)2

Cobaltite CoSAs

Gersdorffite NiSAs

Ullmannite NiSSb

WiUyamite CoSSb

Kallilite NiSBi

MARCASITE GROUP. ORTHO-
RHOMBIC.

Krennerite xAgTe2.3'AuTe2 An isomorphous series.

Calaverite AuTe2

Nagyagite (Pb,Au)-

(S,Te,Sb)2. Composition uncertain.

Marcasite FeS2

Arsenopyrite FeSAs "Mispickel."

Loellingite FeAs2

The ending ite is added for uniformity, in-
cludes "danaite" and "alloclasite" (Dana
No. 102), an impure form, Murdoch, op.
cit., p. 37.

Includes "badenite," apparently an impure
form.

Wolfachite NiSAs Only known in impure form.

Rammelsbergite NiAs2

SYLVANITE GROUP. MONOCLINIC.

Sylvanite AgTe2.AuTe2

Melonite NiTe2

NON-CRYSTALLIZED GROUP New.

f In part amorphous and in part metacol-
Melnikovite FeS2.*H20 | j^j^^j^ cryptocrystalline.

I :X DIVISION New; ratio X ranging from 2+ to 3.

SKUTTERUDITE GROUP. ISO-
METRIC PYRITOHEDRAL NeW.

Skutterudite C0AS2-3 Includes much so-called "smaltite."

(High-arsenic / Analogous to the preceding; not yet assigned

cloanthite) NiAs2-s \ a separate name.

Glaucodotite xCoSAs.yFeSAs 1

Saflaorite CoAs.

Includes "goldschmidtite," a variety of un-
usual habit.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

830TH MEETING

The 830th meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, February 14, 1920.
President Sosman presided and 38 persons were present.

The first paper by Messrs. W. F. Meggers and Paul D. Foote
on A new microphotometer for photographic densities was presented by
Mr. Meggers.

The new microphotometer for measuring photographic densities is
essentially the micropyrometer described in the Bulletin of the Bureau
of Standards (9: 475. 1913) except that a microscope of higher power
is used. The photographic plate is mounted just below the objective
of the microscope on a horizontal bed movable with a graduated screw
and is illuminated beneath by an intense beam of light from a tungsten
ribbon lamp. Light transmitted by a small portion of the photographic
plate, the image of which is adjacent to that of the tip of the pyrometer
lamp, is matched with equal filament brightness by adjusting the cur-
rent through the lamp. The ammeter readings are readily translated
into measurements of photographic densities. If the tip of the pyrom-
eter lamp filament be regarded as a filar in the eye-piece, the relative
positions or wave lengths of spectral lines on a plate are measured at
the same time that their photographic densities are measured.

An example of the use of this microphotometer for measuring wave
lengths and densities of spectral lines is given and it appears that the
visually estimated intensities of such lines are a geometric series in
accordance with Fechner's law.

Illustrations of this microphotometer's application to the measure-
ment of energy distribution in a broad spectral line and to the meas-
urement of spectral sensitivity of a photographic plate are given.

Measurements of photographic density when the plate is illumin-
ated by parallel light are found to be much larger than when the illum-
ination is diffuse. This experience calls attention to the importance
of specifying the character of the illumination when measurements are
made on light transmission of diffusing media. The paper was illus-
trated by lantern slides.

Discussion. — The paper was discussed by Messrs. Sosman and Hum-
phreys.

The second paper, also by Messrs. FooTE and Meggers, was pre-
sented by Mr. FooTE. The title was Atomic theory and low-voltage
arcs in caesium vapor. The paper was illustrated by lantern slides.
Full publication may be found in Phil. Mag. Series 6, 40: 80. 1920.

The above paper was discussed by Messrs. Sosman and Tuckerman.

497

498 proceedings: philosophical society

The final paper by Messrs. E. F. Mueller and M. S. Van Dusen,
on Heat of combustion of volatile liquids, was presented by Mr, MuELLER.
The paper was illustrated by lantern slides and the burner used by the
authors was exhibited. Messrs. FooTE and Sosman discussed this paper.

83 1 ST meeting

The 831st meeting was held at the Cosmos Club March 13, 1920,
with President Sosman presiding and 60 persons present.

The first paper was by Mr. E. D. Williamson on Earthquakes and
the elastic properties of the earth.

Data from geographic and astronomic sources have established some
qualitative measure of the earth's rigidity, average density, and the
distribution of the earth's mass. Earthquake records, properly in-
terpreted, give us an immediate check on the conclusions which have
been reached.

Two of the types of waves propagated as the result of a seismic dis-
turbance travel through the earth with velocities in each case inversely
proportional to the square root of density but depending in one case
on the rigidity and in the other on both the compressibility and rigidity.
It is necessary then to find the relation of the velocity of the wave
to the depth beneath the surface of the earth to get further information
as to the variation of these other quantities. Wiechert at Gottingen
first solved the problem by graphical means, but since then more direct
analytical methods have been developed to find from a transit-time
curve, the path of the wave through the earth and its velocity at var-
ious points.

The results to which the writer and L. H. Adams were led by their
investigations are outhned in the second paper, presented by Mr. L. H.
Adams on The nature of the interior of the earth. It has long been known
that since the average density of the earth (5.5) is so much higher than
the density of ordinar>^ surface rocks, the central portion must have a
very high density — probably lo.o or more. To account for this in-
teresting fact we may assume either that the center of the earth is
composed of relatively hea\'y forms of matter or that the extreme
pressures in the interior — two or three millions of atmospheres — have
compressed the ordinary rock material to one-third to one-quarter of its
original volume. With regard to the second hypothesis, we have
no information to guide us in forming an opinion concerning the behavior
of matter at these enormous pressures so far beyond the range of labora-
tory experimentation. Fortunately, however, the data on the propa-
gation of distant earthquakes may be made to shed some light on this
important question. Starting with the known velocity v of the trans-
verse vibrations at the distance r from the center of the earth, the
density p produced by cotnpression alone may be calculated by graph-
ical integration and successive approximation, using the equation :

log, ^ =hC
Po J r

Po J r^ r^ v^

proceedings: philosophical society 499

in which nt denotes the mass contained within the sphere of radius r,
and h is a constant.

The results of this operation show that it is impossible to account
for all of the excess density in the interior by compression alone. It
does account for a surprisingly large part of it, however. The differ-
ence must be attributed to a segregation toward the center of heavy
material, presumably metallic iron, and we thus have a quantitative
measure of the amount of this segregation.

Finally, mention is made of the fact that from the center of the
earth out to about 0.5 of the distance to the surface, the properties of
the material composing this central portion of the earth are such that
transverse vibrations are not transmitted. This part of the earth,
therefore, is lacking in rigidity; in other words, it is not a solid and
therefore must be considered in spite of its high density to be either a
gas or a liquid, depending on whether or not the temperature is above
the critical point, liquid-vapor, of the material.

Both the above papers were illustrated by lantern slides.

Discussion. — Both the above papers were discussed after the read-
ing of the second, Messrs. Beall, Spencer, Bowie, Lambert, Humph-
reys, Todd, Hawkesworth, and Sosman participating in the discussion.

The last paper of the evening by Messrs. H. C. Dickinson and
C. H. Meyers on A ly atmosphere manometer and a lOO-atmosphere
piston gage was presented by Mr. Dickinson.

A fifteen-atmosphere mercury manometer and a one hundred-atmo-
sphere piston gage were described. The manometer consists of five
glass U-tubes 250 cm. long, connected in series, each of which may be
by -passed by a valve. Four of these tubes may be used to measure
multiples of three atmospheres, while any fraction of three atmospheres
may be measured on the fifth. To avoid rusting of steel parts and
fouling of mercury surfaces, pure ethyl alcohol is used to transmit
the pressure, between tubes. The pressure transmitting liquid may be
admitted into the manometer between any two U-tubes. The tem-
perature of the manometer is measured by a thermometer which has
a bulb located behind the center of the manometer and of the same
length as the U-tubes. The accuracy of the manometer-temperature
measurement is improved by an air circulating fan which keeps the
room temperature very uniform.

The piston gage consists of a hardened steel piston of approximately
one square centimeter area, floating on oil inside a hardened selel cylinder.
A dead weight load is applied to this piston through a plunger specially
designed to transmit only a vertical force component to the piston.
For the purpose of cutting down leakage past the piston at higher
pressures, the cylinder has been made with a re-entrant part which
encircles the piston so that the pressure is applied to the outside as well
as the inside of the cylinders. A mechanical device has been applied
which rotates the piston slowly, without producing any uncertain

500 proceedings: botanicai^ society

axial forces exceeding 0.05 gram under regular operating conditions.
An auxiliary U-tube partly .filled with mercury, separates the oil in the
gage from the pressure to be measured and indicates any movement
of the piston. This manometer has a range of about fifty grams per
square-centimeter, hence the use of weights smaller than 50 grams is
avoided.

Comparisons of the piston gage with the manometer, which were
made before the present rotating device was used, give 1.3031 square
centimeters at the efi"ective area or 1.1302 centimeter as effective
diameter at 25 degrees C, whereas direct measurements of the diameter
of the piston give 1.1298 centimeters. The results of the comparison
up to 15 atmospheres showed variations from the mean, due to both
gages combined, corresponding to 1.5 mm. pressure. Further compar-
ison at pressures above 15 atmospheres will be made.

The gage described in this paper was exhibited and operated by the
authors at the close of the meeting.

Discussion. — The paper was discussed by ISIr. White.

S. J. Mauchly, Recording Secretary.

BOTANICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

I43RD MEETING

The 143rd regular meeting of the Botanical Society of Washington
was held at the Cosmos Club, 8 p.m., April 6, 1920. Sixty members
and thirty-three guests were present.

Under "Brief Notes and Reviews of Literature," Mr. F. L. LewTon
exhibited three specimens of the fruit of a large leguminous tree, Andira
excelsa HBK, known in Tabasco, Mexico, as "Macayo." The seeds
contain a poisonous alkaloid. They are used locally as a vermifuge
and purgative, but because of their poisonous nature, have been the
subject of several articles sounding a warning against the careless use
of them. The fruits are oval, 8-12 centimeters long, and grooved on
one side with a roughened surface resembling the convolutions of the
brain.

Prof. A. S. Hitchcock read an illustrated paper on A botanical trip
to British Guiana. He stated that British Guiana has an area of about
90,000 square miles, extending back from the coast about 400 miles.
The climate is strictly tropical, the temperature at Georgetown varying in
summer from 82° at night to 88° in the day, and in winter from 78°
to 84°, F. The rainfall at Georgetown averages about 90 inches, distrib-
uted somewhat vaguely into two wet and dry seasons. In the interior
the distribution is nearly normal for Tropical America, the wet season
being from April to August. The vegetation is characteristic of the

proceedings: botanical society 501

lowland tropics. Mangrove formations line the sea coast and extend
up the rivers 30 miles or more. In the main the country is covered
with forest, but the Venezuelan savannas extend across the southern
part of the Colony.

Prof. Hitchcock collected all kinds of flowering plants, though special
attention was given to the grasses. About 1 100 numbers were obtained,
including 108 sets of grasses. The trip was made under the auspices
of the U. S. Department of Agriculture, the New York Botanical
Garden, and the Gray Herbarium.

144TH MEETING

The 144th regular meeting of the Botanical Society of Washington
was held at the Cosmos Club, 8 p.m.. May 4, 1920. Thirty-two mem-
bers and four guests were present.

Under "Brief Notes and Reviews of Literature," Dr. C. D. Marsh
discussed the peculiar appearance of defoliated aspens which he had
observed in the Wasatch Mountains. The trees had put out their
foliage on certain branches, only producing dense clusters of very
large leaves, which gave a "witches-broom" effect.

An illustrated paper on The phytogeography of the Coeur d'Alene basin
of northern Idaho was read by Dr. H. B. Humphrey. He explained
that in pre-miocene times that fork of the Columbia River draining the
western slopes of the Bitter Root Mountains flowed northward through
the Purcell trench. Eruptions of lava which crept up the valley ob-
structed the flow of the river, but through long-time erosion the stream
reopened its channel and was probably active until the recent ice age.
The retreating glaciers of the ice age left a dam of pleistocene gravel
in the valley at the head of the present Coeur d'Alene Lake. The
average elevation of this gravel dam is 2,155 ^^et above sea level.
This deposit of gravel caused the Coeur d'Alene basin to fill and form
a lake of great extent.

Ancient markings indicate that the surface elevation of this lake was
approximately 2,135 f^^t above sea level, or approximately 20 feet
lower than the crest of the gravel dam. This lake subsequently found
an outlet through the present Spokane River.

Excessive deposition of silt brought down from the mountains resulted
in the development of river banks throughout the length of the east
and southeast arms of the lake. The seasonal inundations have grad-
ually raised the floor of the basin. Aided by the accumulation of
vegetable detritus, tievelopment of meadows followed. The filling-in
process has progressed slowly, leaving at the upper reaches of the old
lake arms a flood plain of highland meadows and typical mesophytic
vegetation, which tapers off into lowland meadows and marshes fol-
lowed by common hydrophytes such as Sparganium, Acorus calamus,
Equisetum fluviatile, Sagittaria, etc., and finally by such plants as
Potamogeton, Utricularia, Nymphaea, etc.

502 proceedings: botanical society

That the development of the present flood plain has taken place
within relatively recent times is supported by the fact that the bottom
of these tributaries of the Coeur d'Alene basin as far as investigated
has been found to be cored by a deposit of almost pure diatomaceous
sediment varying in depth from a few inches to several feet. The
early development of river banks throughout the Coeur d'Alene and
St. Joe arms of the lake furnished channels down which vast quantities
of silt have been conveyed. Only at the height of the spring flood,
therefore, is there an appreciable deposition over areas beyond the con-
fines of the river banks. As a result the soil of the meadows is very
largely composed of diatomaceous earth and muck in various stages of
development.

In a short paper on Plant pathology in Denmark in recent years,
Dr. F. KoLPiN Ravn, professor of plant pathology in the Royal Agri-
cultural College of Denmark, Copenhagen, described the organization
for investigational work in plant pathology provided for at the Royal
College of Agriculture and Experiment Stations. The College also
conducts winter schools and extension work. The plant inspection
service is under a special commission which inspects and certifies plant
products exported to foreign countries and acts as a judicial body in
connection with a new system of seed certification which guarantees
the purity and viability of practically all the seed sold in Denmark.

Chas. E. Chambliss, Recording Secretary

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Mr. Rkeves W. Hart has recently resigned from the Leather
Section of the Bureau of Standards, to become research chemist at the
Benicia tannery of Kullman, Salz and Company, at Benicia, Cahfornia.

Mr. Mayo D. Hersey, chief of the Aeronautic Instrument Section
of the Bureau of Standards, resigned in October to take the position
of Associate Professor of Properties of Matter, in the department of
physics of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He will be
succeeded at the Bureau by Dr. F. L. Hunt.

Major Lawrence Martin, of the General Staff, U. S. Army, has
been ordered to report to the Secretary of State for temporary duty
to assist in preparing a report to the President on the proposed western
boundaries of Armenia.

Mr. Kenneth P. Monroe has resigned from the color laboratory of
the Bureau of Chemistry to accept a position at the Jackson Labora-
tory of E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company, Wilmington, Dela-
ware.

Professor Harmon Northrop Morse, professor of inorganic and
analytical chemistry and director of the chemical laboratory of Johns
Hopkins University, and a non-resident member of the Academy,
died on September 8, 1920, at Chebeague Island, Maine, in his seventy-
second year. Professor Morse was born at Cambridge, Vermont,
October 15, 1848. He became connected with Johns Hopkins Uni-
versity in 1876, shortly after completing his academic and scientific
education at Amherst and at Gottingen, and was connected with the
institution from that date until the time of his death. His publica-
tions covered a wide range of inorganic, analytical, and physico-chemical
subjects, but his attention was particularly directed during recent years
to the measurement and theory of osmotic press,ures.

Dr. C. NusBAUM, formerly of the Magnetic Section of the Bureau
of Standards, has been appointed research associate in the Division of
Industrial Research and Cooperation of the Massachusetts Institute
of Technology.

Dr. P. V. Wells is returning to the Bureau of Standards after com-
pleting his investigations on the stratification of thin soap films, which
he has been carrying forward at the laboratory of Professor Perrin
in Paris. Dr. Wells attended the recent meeting of the British As-
sociation.

503

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. io November 4, 1920 No. 18

BOTANY. — The North American species of Agonandra. Paul
C. StandlEy, U. S. National Museum.^

While working with the woody plants of Mexico, the writer
has segregated from time to time from the undetermined Mexi-
can plants in the National Herbarium a rather large number of
sheets which evidently belonged to one genus. The specimens
come from many widely separated localities, and although of
rather characteristic general appearance, it is remarkable to
find that none has ever been named generically or even referred
to a family. Recently the writer determined that one of the
forms had been named by DeCandolle, who applied the name
SchaeJJeria racemosa, basing his description upon one of Sesse
and Mocino's sketches of Mexican plants. It was evident,
however, that the plant had nothing in common with the genus
Schaefferia, which belongs to the family Celastraceae.

Careful examination of the Mexican material and comparison
with the herbarium specimens available show that the former
belong to the genus Agonandra, a member of the family Opiliaceae.
Neither the genus nor the family has been reported heretofore
from North America. Only one species of Agonandra has been
described, a native of Brazil and Colombia, and it has been the
only known American representative of the family, the other

' Published by permission of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution. Re-
ceived September 21, 1920.

505

506 STANDLEY: the species OF AGONANDRA

genera of the small group being restricted to Africa, Asia, Aus-
tralia, and the East Indies. The occurrence of the genus in
Mexico is a matter of considerable interest, atid it is still more
interesting in view of the fact that three species, apparently,
are represented in Mexico. These are described below.

Agonandra Miers (Ann. Nat. Hist. II, 8: 172, nomen nudum. 1851);
Benth. & Hook. Gen. PI. i: 349. 1862.

Shrubs or small trees, glabrous or pubescent; leaves alternate, petio-
late, estipulate, entire, somewhat succulent, with inconspicuous vena-
tion; flowers ver}^ small, green, usually dioecious, racemose; calyx
minute, cupular, obscurely 4 or 5 lobate ; petals 4 or 5 in the staminate
flower, narrow, the stamens 4 or 5, opposite the petals, alternating with
conspicuous scalelike glands of the disk; petals none in the pistillate
flower, the disk urceolate, surrounding the ovary; fruit a drupe, the
seed erect.

KEY TO SPECIES

Leaves acute or acuminate at apex, or sometimes obtuse and abruptly

pointed ; young branches glabrous i . A. racemosa.

Leaves rounded or obtuse at apex; young branches finely puberulent.

Fruit 8 mm. long 2. A. obtusifolia.

Fruit 15 mm. long 3- A. conzattii.

I. Agonandra racemosa (DC.) Standi.
Schaejfferia racemosa DC. Prodr. 2: 41. 1825.

Shrub or small tree, 4 or 5 meters high, glabrous throughout, the
branches very slender, green when young; petioles 4 to 9 mm. long;
leaf blades lanceolate to broadly elliptic-ovate or even rounded, 4 to
7.5 cm. long, I to 4.5 cm. wide, cuneate to broadly rounded at base,
pale beneath; racemes longer or shorter than the leaves, the flowers
pedicellate , bracts acute or acuminate, covering the buds but caducous
in anthesis; petals about 2.5 mm. long; fruit subglobose, about 8 mm.
long.

Specimens Examined:

Sonora: Sierra de Alamos, 1890, Palmer 298.

Sinaloa: La Rastra, alt. 600 meters, 1899, Goldman 361. Along
road from Culiacan to Las Flechas, 1899, Goldman 313.

Tepic: Maria Madre Island, May 11, 1897, Malthy.

Colima: Manzanillo, 1890, Palmer 1009.

Michoacan or Guerrero: Sierra Madre, alt. 480 meters, in
granitic soil, Langlasse 860. San Marcos to Copala (Guerrero), alt.
60 to 150 meters. Nelson 2290.

standley: the species of agonandra 507

Langlasse's specimen is remarkable for its narrow leaves; the ver-
nacular name is given as "palo de golpe." One of Goldman's specimens
(no. 313) bears fruit and staminate flowers upon the same branch,
but all the other specimens of the genus examined are from dioecious
plants, so far as the specimens show.

Some of the specimens agree excellently with Sesse and Mocino's
plate,^ upon which the species was based. This is far superior to many
of the plates of the series, and shows plainly the scalelike glands of the
disk in the staminate flower.

Agonandra racemosa is more nearly like A. hrasiliensis, the type of
the genus, than is either of the following species. In A. hrasiliensis
the staminate flowers are densely glandular-puberulent rather than
glabrous.

2. Agonandra obtusifolia Standi., sp. nov.

Shrub, I to 3 meters high, with long stout spreading branchlets,
these green, striate, and finely puberulent, the older branches gray;
petioles 2 to 4 mm. long, puberulent; leaf blades narrowly oblong to
oblong-ovate, 2 to 5 cm. long, 0.6 to 1.5 cm. wide, cuneate at base,
glabrous; staminate racemes i to 2 cm. long, glabrous, borne on old
wood, the flowers short-pedicellate; stamens 3 times as long as the
petals; fruit subglobose, yellow.

Type in the U. S. National Herbarium, no. 572649, collected in
the vicinity of Victoria, Tamaulipas, Mexico, altitude 320 meters,
in 1907, by Edward Palmer (no. 421).

Additional Specimens Examined:

Tamaulipas: Vicinity of Tampico, 19 10, Palmer 507. Buena
Vista Hacienda, June 16, 191 9, Wooton.

Veracruz: Vicinity of Pueblo Viejo (near Tampico), 1910, Palmer
423-

Palmer gives the vernacular name as "granadillo," and Wooton
as "revienta cabra." Palmer reports that the shrub grows in hedge-
rows or in rich wooded bottom lands; the leaves are light or dark green.
The abundant fruit, he states, appears as if covered with honey dew;
it has a sweet, watery flavor, but is not eaten by the natives.

Agonandra obtusifolia is easily distinguished from ^4. racemosa by
the characters given in the key. The leaves average much smaller
and narrower than in the latter species, and the petioles are relatively
much shorter. The coarse, stiff branches indicate a different habit of
growth.

2 A. DC. Calq. Dess. Fl. Mex. pi. 169, pi. V, B.

5o8 rohwEr: notes on sawfliEs

3. Agonandra conzattii Standi., sp. nov.

Branches stiff, the young ones green, striate, minutely puberulent,
the older ones grayish; petioles slender, 2 to 3 cm. long, minutely
puberulent; leaf blades lance-oblong to oblong-ovate, 2 to 3 cm. long,
cuneate-acuminate at base, rounded or very obtuse at apex, glabrous;
fruit subglobose, i .5 cm. long, the stout pedicels 5 to 6 mm. long.

Type in the U. S. National Herbarium, no. 1012311, collected at
Portillo de Coyula, Distrito de Cuicatlan, Oaxaca, Mexico, altitude
1600 meters, April 23, 1919, by C. Conzatti (no. 3558).

A sterile specimen from Tehuacan, Puebla {Rose & Rose 11 221),
is probably the same species. Prof. Conzatti gives the vernacular
name as "maromero."

Agonandra conzattii is related to A. obtusifolia more closely than to
A. racemosa. It differs chiefly in the size of the fruit, which is twice
as large as in A. obtusifolia. Several fruiting specimens of the latter
species have been seen by the writer, and in all of them the fruit is
very uniform in size; therefore it seems probable that the much larger
fruit of the Oaxaca plant is a character of specific value.

ENTOMOLOGY. — Notes on the Harris collection of saw/lies,
and the species described by Harris. S. A. Rohwer, Bureau
of Entomology.^
Harris wrote four papers- dealing with sawflies. Two of these

were mere lists of the species and published as a part of a list
of the animals and plants of Massachusetts. In these lists
occur a number of new names unaccompanied by descriptions
which stood as nomina nuda for many years. Later, in 1841,
Harris characterized a few of these species but many of them
remained nomina nuda until many years later, when Norton
studied the Harris collection and described the new species.
The unfoitunate thing about this was that in describing the
species Norton accredited the species to Harris and there has

1 Received June 8, 1920.

2 List of the insects of Massachusetts, in Hitchcock's Rapt. Geol. Mineral. Bot.
and Zool. Mass., 566-595. 1833. Sawflies treated on p. 586.

Ibid., second edition, enlarged, 553-601. 1835. Sawflies treated on pp.
582-584.

A report on the insects of Massachusetts, injurious to vegetation. Cambridge,
1 84 1. Reprinted in 1842, second edition in 1852.

Sawfly of the raspberry; Selandria (Hoplocampa) rubi, New Engl. Farmer
II, 2: 33. figs. 1850.

rohwer: notes on sawfi^ies 509

been some confusion as to whom the species should be accredited.
Most of the species hsted by Harris had been examined by Say
and the names pubHshed by Hairis were manuscript names
supphed by Say. It is very fortunate that in describing the
species Norton chose to use the names first proposed by Say.

In treating the species described by Harris it has been con-
sidered desirable to list all of the names for which no author was
given, published in the second (1835) edition of the Insects of
Massachusetts, and to make notes as to the present status of
these names. Certain notes on the types of species described
by Harris are also added, and notes on a few of Norton's species,
the types of which are in the Harris collection, are appended.

The Harris collection of sawflies is now housed, in one drawer,
in the Museum of the Boston Society of Natural History, Boston,
Massachusetts. The specimens are carefully cared for and
with the exception of damage done years ago are in a fair state
of preservation.

Besides containing specimens determined by Norton and
Harris there are in the collection specimens of certain species
determined by Say. Some of these specimens belong to species
which were previously described by Say. These specimens
were years ago labeled as Say's types. They are not types in
the usual understanding of the word, although certain of them
might well be chosen as neotypes.

Mr. C. W. Johnson has kindly looked over the manuscript
for this paper and under date of May 9, 191 8, states he has
marked the specimens here designated as types.

SPECIES LISTED IN 1835 CATALOGUE

Cimbex ulmi Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 586, nomen nudum. 1833;
ed. 2, 582, nomen nudum. 1835; Ins. Injur. Veget. 374. 1841.

In the last reference the female is described, and the statement is
made that the name is that used in the manuscript lectures of Peck
and that "the male is Cimbex Americana of Dr. Leach."

Type female with no. 128 in Harris collection. Mr. C. W. Johnson
has kindly examined this specimen and says it runs to var. decimaculata
in MacGillivray's key.^

^ Conn. Geol. Nat. Hist. Survey Bull. 22: 104. 1917.

5IO rohwer: notes on sawflies

Tenthredo (Schyzocera) calceola Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 582, nomen
nudum. 1835.

This name was never published in connection with any description,
but in the manuscript Hst of Harris under no. 173 the name is hsted as
having been suppHed by Say. To this Harris has added a note that
it is not a Schizocera but belongs to Lophyrus. Later Harris described
part of the material under his number 173 as Lophyrus ahietis, q. v.

Tenthredo (Lophyrus) flavida Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 582, nomen
nudum. 1835.

A nomen nudum and not now represented by specimens in the Harris
collection. %

Tenthredo (Hylotoma) scutellata Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 582, nomen
nudum. 1835.

Hylotoma scutellata Say, Boston Journ. Nat. Hist, i: 211. 1836.
Not Lepeletier, 1823.

A rather common species now known as Agre sanguinea (Klug.).

Tenthredo (Allantus) sambuci Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 586, nomen
nudum. 1833; ed. 2, 582, nomen nudum. 1835.

Allantus epinotus Say, var. a (.4. sambuci Harris) Norton, Boston
Journ. Nat. Hist. 7: 258. i860.

Macrophya epinotus Say, Norton, Trans. Amer. Ent. Soc. i: 268.
1867, where sambuci is quoted in synonymy. Not Macrophya
sambuci (Latrielle. 1805).

Norton in i860 gave standing to the manuscript name sambuci of the
Harris catalogue by associating it with variety a of Macrophya epinota
(Say). The type specimen, no. 269 Harris collection, is apparently
what I consider Macrophya mixta IVIacGillivray, but inasmuch as the
name sambuci is preoccupied there is no change necessary.

Tenthredo (Allantus) media Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen
nudum. 1835.

Described by Norton in i860 as a variety of Macrophya bifasciata
(Say) and now considered as a synonym of it.

Tenthredo (Allantus) tacita Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen
nudum. 1835.

Described by Norton in i860 and now considered a good species in

Strongylogaster.

Tenthredo (Allantus) melisoma Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen
nudum. 1835.

rohwer: notes on sawflies 511

A name given standing by Norton in i860 when he considers it a
synonym of Strongylogastroidea terminalis (Say).

Tenthredo (Allantus) trosula Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen
nudum. 1835.

A species described by Norton in i860 and now considered a good
species of Macrophya.

Tenthredo (Allantus) trisyllabus Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen
nudum. 1835.

A species described by Norton in i860 and now considered a good

species of Macrophya.

Tenthredo (Allantus) atroviolacea Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen
nudum. 1835.

A species described by Norton in i860 and now considered a good
species in the genus Lagium.

Tenthredo (Allantus) obesa Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen
nudum. 1835.

A species described by Norton in i860 and now^ considered as the
correct name for Eriocampa rotunda (Norton) .

Tenthredo (Allantus) marginicollis Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen
nudum. 1835.

Described by Norton in 1861 and now known as Periclista margini-
collis (Norton). The type, in Harris collection under no. 268, lacks
antennae but is otherwise in good condition.

Tenthredo (Allantus) coronatus Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen
nudum. 1835.
A name given standing by Norton in i860 when he quoted it in
synonymy with {Allantus) Tenthredo hasilaris Say. Type in Harris
collection under no. 310.

Tenthredo (Allantus) tarda Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen
nudum. 1835.
A species described by Norton in i860 and now placed in the genus

Lagium.

Tenthredo (Selandria) vitis Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 586. 1833;
ed. 2, 583. 1835; Ins. Injur. Veget. 378. 1841. Norton, Proc.
Boston Soc. Nat. Hist. 8: 219. 1861.
Selandria vitis Harris, 1832. A discourse delivered before the Mass.
Soc. on fourth anniversary, published in New England Farmer. Page
and reference unknown. See account in 1841.
■* MacGiluvray, Can. Ent. 40: 368. 1908.

512 rohwer: notes on sawflies

This species has usually, and correctly, been accredited to Harris
and is, as pointed out by Norton, a synonym of Erythraspides pygmaea
(Say). Type, allotype, and a paratype male under no. 172 in Harris
Collection.

Tenthredo (Selandria) barda Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen
nudum. 1835.

Described by Say in 1836 and now referred to the genus Tomostethus
where it is a good species.

Tenthredo (Selandria) pygmaea Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583. 1835.

This refers to Erythaspides pygmaea (Say), described in 1824.

Tenthredo (vSelandria) halcyon Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen
nudum. 1835.

A species described by Norton in 1861 and now considered a good
species in Hoplocampa. Type in Harris collection under no. 266,
nothing but wings and enough of thorax and legs to keep them on pin.

Tenthredo (Dosytheus) aprica Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen
nudum. 1835.

A species described by Norton in 1861 and now known as Dolerus
apricus (Norton). Type in Harris collection under no. 311.

Tenthredo (Emphytus) tarsata Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen
nudum. 1835.

Described by Say in 1836 and now known as Macremphytus tarsatus
(Say).

Tenthredo (Emphytus) mellipes Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen
nudum. 1835.

Described by Norton in 1861 and now known as Emphytus mellipes
Norton. Type in Harris collection under no. 122. The Maine specimen
is so badly damaged that the specimen from New Hampshire is chosen
as lectotype.

Tenthredo (Emphytus) aperta Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen
nudum. 1835.

Described by Norton in 1861 and now known as Emphytina aperta
(Norton). Type female and allotype male in Harris collection under
no. 178.

Tenthredo (Nematus) Integra Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen
nudum. 1835.

Described by Say in 1 836 and now known as Pteronidea Integra (Say) .

rohwer: notes on sawfues 513

Tenthredo (Nematus) melanocephala Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583,
nomen nudum. 1835.

Never described, name used by Hartig in 1837.

Tenthredo (Nematus) ventralis Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen
nudum. 1835.

Refers to a species described in 1824 by Say and now known as

Pteronidea ventralis (Say).

Tenthredo (Nematus) palUcornis Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen
nudum. 1835.

Described by Norton in 1861 and treated by Marlatt as Pontania.
Marlatt is in error, the type is in Harris collection and bears no. 183.
It is synonymous with Diphadmis appendiculatus (Hartig).

Tenthredo (Nematus) fulvipes Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen
nudum. 1835.

Species described by Norton in 1861 but name preoccupied by Fallen.
The type of Norton's species is under no. 357 in Harris' collection and
is a single male in poor condition. What Marlatt considered as this
is now known as Amauronematus semirufus Kirby. Norton's type is
not Amauronematus, but the name fulvipes is preoccupied,

Tenthredo (Nematus) labrata Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen
nudum. 1835.

Described by Norton in 1861. The type is under no. 182, Harris
collection, but notes have been lost and standing of species will have to
be investigated.

Tenthredo (Nematus) stigmatus Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen
nudum. 1835.

Described by Norton in 1861. The type is a single female with the

head and thorax badly eaten and is under no. 435 in Harris collection.

It is what is now known as Pachynematus extensicomis (Norton) and is

a synonym of that species.

Tenthredo (Nematus) monochroma Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583,
nomen nudum. 1835.

Described by Norton in 1861. The type is under no. 436 in Harris
collection. It has only thorax, right wings (except apex) and right
hind leg to tarsus remaining. These remains do not indicate that
Marlatt was correct in placing this species in Pteronidea. It seems that
it is Amauronematus and Dyar^ was probably correct in 1894 when
he considered the species which Marlatt later described as Amaurone-

* Can. Ent. 26: 187. 1894.

514 rohwer: notes on sawflies

matus dyari as this species. The thorax, however, also suggests that
it may be Pachynematus but in that genus there is nothing which
monochroma can be; P. apiceae Rohwer comes nearest. Until what
remains of the type has been carefully compared with a number of
different species the standing of monochroma Norton must remain
uncertain.

Tenthredo (Cladius) isomera Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen
nudum. 1835.

Described by Norton in 1861. The type is a rather dirty female
under no. 185 in the Harris collection. In 1892 Riley synonymized
Norton's species with the common European species, Cladius pectin-
icornis (Foucroy), but a recent study of American and European ma-
terial demonstrates that the two are not the same and makes it neces-
sary to reinstate Norton's name. The differences between the two
forms are discussed in detail in a paper on the Cladiinae now in press.

Tenthredo (Lyda) maculiventris Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen
nudum. 1835.

Described by Norton in 1869. There is no specimen of this species
in the Harris collection and there seems to be no doubt that the type
is lost although it is possible that the paratype is in the Cambridge
Museum. MacGillivray® recognizes this species and places it in
Itycorsia.

Tenthredo (Lyda) ochracea Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen
nudum. 1835.

Described by Norton in 1869 and now placed in the group Itycorsia.
Not in Harris collection but a specimen from "Mass." in Academy of
Natural Sciences of Philadelphia is undoubtedly the type.

Tenthredo (Lyda) rufofasciata Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen
nudum. 1835.

Described by Norton in 1869 and now correctly treated by Mac-
Gillivray^ as Anoplolyda. The type is somewhat imperfect and is
no. 382, Harris collection. Paratypes are in Philadelphia. The type
locality is, according to Harris' manuscript list, Dublin, New Hamp-
shire.

Tenthredo (Lyda) calceata Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen
nudum. 1835.
This has never been described.

6 Conn. Geol. Nat. Hist. Survey Bull. 22: 2,2>. igi?-
^ Conn. Geol. Nat. Hist. Survey Bull. 22: 41. 1917-

rohwer: notes on sawfues 515

Xyela infuscata Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen nudum. 1835.

Described by Norton in 1861 and correctly treated by MacGillivray^
as Macroxyela. The type is no. 186 in Harris collection. It is in good
condition and according to Harris' manuscript list was collected April

25, 1827.

Cephus abbreviatus Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583. 1835.

This was described by Say in 1824.
Cephus integer Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 583, nomen nudum. 1835.

Described by Norton in 1861 and now correctly treated as Janus.
Type a single female in good condition under no. 354 in Harris collec-
tion.

Cephus heteropterus Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 584, nomen nudum.
1835-
Described by Norton in 1861. The type is lost, but a paratype which
lacks the head and has part of the thorax eaten away is in Harris col-
lection under no. 314, and according to Harris' manuscript list came
from Dublin, New Hampshire. This species is undoubtedly synon-
ymous with J amis abbreviatus (Say). The differences mentioned by
Norton are not specific as they exist in a reared series now in the Na-
tional Museum. The venation of the paratype is abnormal.

Cephus filicornis Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 584, nomen nudum. 1835.
This was given standing by Norton in 1861 in connection with the
description of Cephus integer. The specimen he examined is damaged
and is in the Harris collection under no. 283. It is, as stated by Norton,
the male of integer.

Xiphydria albicornis Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 584, nomen nudum.
1835; Ins. Injur. Veget. 392. 1841.

This species is correctly synonymized with Xiphydria maculata
Say. The type is the New Hampshire specimen under no. 302 in Harris
collection. The type locality is Dublin, New Hampshire, according
to Harris' manuscript list. Type locality determined by list and
published statement that he is indebted to L. W. Leonard for the speci-
mens.

Xiphydria mellipes Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 584, nomen nudum.
1835; Ins. Injur. Veget. 392. 1841.

Type a single female under name Xiphydria tibialis Say and bearing
8 Conn. Geol. Nat. Hist. Survey Bull. 22: 32. 1917.

5i6 rohwEr: notes on sawfliEs

Harris' no. 303 in Harris collection. This specimen, according to
Harris' manuscript list, was collected by L. W. Leonard at Dublin,
New Hampshire (the type locality test, the published statement that
Harris was indebted to Leonard for specimens), and was sent under
no. 1457. This specimen is in fair condition but lacks the antennae,
except the right scape and pedicel.

This species has been synonymized incorrectly with Xiphydria
maculata Say. It is the same as and will replace the name of the species
which the author^ treated under the name provancheri Cresson.

Oryssus haemorrhoidalis Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 584, nomen nudum.
1835; Ins. Injur. Veget. 394. 1841.

The type is in good condition but mounted on a pin which is badly
verdigrised. It is in Harris collection under no. 304 and according
to the Harris manuscript list was collected at Dublin, New Hampshire,
by L. W. Leonard. The type agrees with the treatment given by the
author^" in 19 12, but in a paper now in press the necessity of uniting
terminalis and haemorrhoidalis is pointed out."

Oryssus maturus Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 584, nomen nudum. 1835;
Ins. Injur. Veget. 394. 1841.

The type is in good condition and in the Harris collection under
his no. 305. It and a paratype under no. 1033 were collected at Dublin,
New Hampshire, by L. W. Leonard, according to the manuscript list
of Harris. No specimens agreeing with the type or paratypes have
been seen and although this is very likely sayii Westwood, it seems best
to delay a definite statement.

Oryssus aflinis Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 584, nomen nudum. 1835;
Ins. Injur. Veget. 394. 1841.

Type in good condition, except that the apices of the antennae have
been eaten, in Harris collection under no. 306. According to the
manuscript list the type was collected at Dublin, New Hampshire, by
L. W. Leonard. This is undoubtedly the same as sayii Westwood,
as treated by the writer. ^^

Sirex abdominalis Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. 584, nomen nudum. 1835;
Ins. Injur. Veget. 392. 1841.

Three males under no. 355 in the Harris collection. According
to the manuscript list these were collected at Boston, Cambridge and

^ Ent. News 29: 109. 1918.
1" Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus. 43: 151. 1912.
" Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus. 43: 152. 1912.

rohwer: notes on sawfliejs 517

Milton (1832) and are all the same species, although one of them is
smaller and lacks the head. These agree with Bradley's interpretation
of the species,'^ and are the same as flavicornis (Fabricius).

OTHER SPECIES DESCRIBED BY HARRIS

Besides the species listed in the 1835 Catalogue, many of
which were not described by Harris, certain other species were
described by Harris in some of his economic papers. A list of
these with notes on the types follows:

Urocerus nitidus Harris, Ins. Injur. Veget. 391. 1841.

Type a badly eaten specimen in the Harris collection under no. 448
and with name label cyaneus. That this is the type is proven by
the manuscript list, which also adds that it was collected at Dublin,
New Hampshire, by L. W. Leonard. What is left of this specimen
proves that it is correctly synonymized with Sirex cyaneus Fabricius
by Bradley. ^^

Lophyrus abietis Harris, Ins. Injur. Veget. 376. 1841.

Under this name in the Harris collection there are two males and
two females. One of the females is on a long pin and bears no number
label and has not been considered as part of the type material. The
other three specimens bear the no. 173 which in the Harris manuscript
list refers to "Schyzcera calceola S. n. sp." with the added note that Say
is wrong and that it "belongs to Lophyrus." There is also an account
of one specimen collected on pitch pine and specimens reared from larvae
on fir. One of the males is a Monoctenus, the other is Diprion but
badly eaten. The remaining female, which is without appendages,
must be the type. It is the same as that treated by Norton and is the
one now treated under that name. The species will be treated in more
detail in a later paper.

Selandria rosae Harris, Ins. Injur. Veget. 380. 1841.

The type of this species seems to be lost, but, in view of the de-
scription and biological notes, there can be no doubt that it is Caliroa
aethiops (Fabricius) .

Selandria rubi Harris, Address N. Darling, New Haven, 13. 1845;
Norton, Proc. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist. 8: 221. 1861. (Treated.
in subgenus Hoplocampa.)

'2 Joum. Ent. Zool. 5: 18. 1913.
13 Journ. Ent. Zool. 5: 14. 1913.

5i8 rohwer: notes on sawelies

The type is a single female specimen in the Harris collection without
a number but with a name label which is folded to hold a detached
wing. This specimen is badly broken but enough remains to make it
certain that our present understanding of it as Monophadnoides rubi
(Harris) is correct.

OTHER TYPES IN HARRIS COLLECTION

Besides the types and species listed above the Harris collection
also contains certain other types. These are listed below.

Trichiosoma bicolor Norton, Proc. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist. 8: 150.
1861.

The specimen mentioned in the original description as in the Harris
collection is a paratype and is now in the Harris collection under no.
511. According to the manuscript list this came from Maine (Randall
1836). This specimen is the same species as described by MacGillivray^'*
under the name conjusum.

Allantus dubius Norton, Proc. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist. 7: 241. 1861.
Two specimens, both which lack head and most of the abdomen,
are in the Harris collection under no. 393 and are types.

Nematus bivittatus Norton, Proc. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist. 8: 158.
1861.
Type a single female in Harris collection under no. 184, in good con-
dition, except that it is dirty and on a disk so it cannot be seen well.
There is another different female, under no. 184, which is not a type.
This species is correctly treated by Marlatt.

Allantus tricolor Norton, Journ. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist. 7: 247. i860.

Type in Harris collection under no. 515.
Allantus angulifer Norton, Journ. Bos. Soc. Nat. Hist. 7: 252. i860.

Paratype in Harris collection under no. 430.

Allantus mellinus Norton, Journ. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist. 7: 248.
i860.
Type and allotype in Harris collection under no. 516.

Allantus signatus Norton, Journ. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist. 7: 247.
i860.
Type and one paratype (broken) in Harris collection under no. 431.
According to Harris' notes the type locality is Hallowell, Maine.
1* Conn. Geol. Nat. Hist. Survey Bull. 22: 103. 1917.

ABSTRACTS

GUOLOGY. —Geothermal data of the United States. N. H. Darton.
U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 701. Pp. 97, pi. i, figs. 3. 1920.
A compilation, by States, of all available data on observations of
temperatures below the surface of the earth. Several hundred of
these were taken by the writer and his associates with the Darton
maximum self-registering thermometer, a slight modification of that
used by William Hallock. The geologic relations of the wells in each
State are discussed. In most wells that penetrate sedimentary rocks
not greatly disturbed, there seems to be no distinct relation between
the formation penetrated and geothermal gradient. A striking ex-
ception is the Des Moines well in Iowa which shows a sudden change
from a rate of increase of i ° in 75 feet above the Devonian to i ° in
272 feet below the top of it. The Comstock Lode, Nevada, is noted
as a well-known instance of the influence of hot volcanic material
below the surface in raising the geothermal gradient. In the State
of Washington heat from old lava flows is assumed to be the cause of
unusually hot flows of water from wells. Unusually low gradients
in the Northern Peninsula of Michigan have been ascribed to the
proximity of Lake Superior. By means of a map it is shown that in
South Dakota the temperature gradient increases very regularly with
the depth below the surface of the granite and quartzite bedrock floor
on which the Upper Cretaceous was deposited.

M. I. Goldman.

GEOLOGY. — Oil in the Warm Springs and Hamilton domes near
Thermopolis, Wyoming. A. J. ColuER. U. S. Geol. Survey
Bull. 711-D. Pp. 13 (61-73), pis. 4, fig. I. 1920.

The Warm Springs domes are two high places on the east end of the
Thermopolis anticline and the Hamilton dome is a short distance
west of its west end. The Thermopolis anticline is a well-known and
well-marked arch of the rocks extending about 22 miles northwest

519

520 abstracts: geology

through Thermopolis, where it has some large hot springs and travertine
deposits near its crest. The antidine is not symmetrical, since the
dips are about 45° on the south side and 7° on the north side. The
rock formations involved belong to the Cretaceous, Jurassic, Triassic,
and Carboniferous systems. In the Warm Springs domes about 4
miles east of Thermopolis the Chugwater, a Triassic formation, is
exposed at the surface, and the oil sand is reached in the Carbon-
iferous-Embar group. In the Hamilton dome the rocks exposed at
the surface are Cretaceous, and the productive sand is in the Triassic-
Chugwater formation. Unlike the light high-grade Cretaceous oils
found in Wyoming the oil from the Warm Springs domes is heavy and
dark. Its specific gravity is about 19.1° Baume. That produced in
the Hamilton dome is of a little better grade than the Warm Springs
oil, having a gravity of nearly 23° Baume. The production of the
Warm Springs domes is given as about 1000 barrels per day. No
production is given for the Hamilton dome, as the oil had been struck
too recently to justify an estimate. A. J. C.

GEOLOGY. — Gas in the Big Sand Draw anticline, Fremont County,
Wyoming. A. J. Collier. U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 711-E.
Pp- 9 (75-83), pi. I, figs. 2. 1920.

The Big Sand Draw anticline, 18 miles southeast of Riverton, Fre-
mont County, Wyoming, is so largely concealed by overlying rocks
that it was impossible to say whether it was a pitching fold or one of
the most promising anticlines of the region.

The rocks involved are the Tertiary, White River and Wind River
formations which unconformably overlie the Cretaceous, Mesaverde,
Steele, Niobrara, Carlile, and Frontier formations. At the north end
of the anticline the Mesaverde formation and Steele shale are exposed,
showing on the west limb a dip of 43° and on the east limb a dip of
25°. Farther south there are occasional exposures of the Steele shale
showing dips to the east. The overlying Wind River formation is
apparently also folded into an anticline but with very low dips.

In 19 1 8 two wells were put down, striking gas rated at 7000 and 10,000
cubic feet per day. The gas is contained in one of the Frontier sands
locally called the Wall Creek sand.

The field will be tested further to determine whether or not oil may
be found either in the wells already drilled or in wells lower down on the
flanks of the anticline. A. J. C.

abstracts: geology 521

GEOLOGY. — The Abram Creek-Stony River coal field, northeastern
West Virginia. George H. Ashley. U. S. Geol. Survey Bull.
711-F. Pp. 19 (85-103), pis. 2. 1920.

The report describes the Abram Creek-Stony River coal field in Grant,
Mineral and Tucker counties, West Virginia. The area is of special
interest because it contains a large body of low-volatile semi-bituminous
coal nearer to tidewater than any other Appalachian coals except those
of the Georges Creek and Upper Potomac fields. The field is unde-
veloped and without railroads but requires only a few miles of branch
roads to connect with Baltimore and Newport News. The coals are
found in the Pottsville, Allegheny and Conemaugh formations; they
occur in a score of beds ranging in thickness from 1V2 to 20 feet, of
which three beds are widely minable in the area studied. All the
beds are more or less broken up by partings. A number of analyses
are given, and show that the coals of this field are of lower grade than
any of the competing coals now on the market, averaging 1 1 .4 per cent
of ash and 2.31 per cent of sulfur, with a heating value of 13,100 B.t.u.
The estimated recoverable tonnage of the three principal beds is 422,760-
000 tons. J. D. Sears.

GEOLOGY. — Geology and oil and gas prospects of the Huntley field,
Montana. E. T. Hancock. U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 711-G.
Pp. 44 (105-148), pis. 4, figs. 2. 1920.

The Huntley field, in Yellowstone and Big Horn counties, is in reality
an eastward extension of the Lake Basin field, described by the same
author in U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 691-D. Rich alluvial deposits
and gravel terraces border the Yellowstone, while south of the river
the interstream areas are commonly high table lands. Surface rocks
include strata of the Colorado, Eagle, Claggett, Judith River, Bearpaw,
Lance and Fort Union formations, with later gravels and alluvium.
The long narrow zone of faults extending across the Lake Basin field
was observed to continue eastward across the Huntley field, demon-
strating a belt almost 100 miles in length. The structure of the area is
considered in its relation to the major uplifts of south-central Montana
and central Wyoming. A few structural features are pointed out which
seem favorable for accumulations of oil and gas, and a discussion is
given of the factors that should be considered by anyone who contem-
plates drilling in this field. J. D. Sears.

522 abstracts: geology

GEOLOGY. — Preliminary report on the chromite of Kenai Peninsula,
Alaska. A. C. Gill. U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 712-D. Pp.
31 (99-129), pis. 3. 1919.

The chromite deposits of Kenai Peninsula are situated at two locali-
ties near the southwest end of the peninsula. One of these, the Claim
Point property near the coast, is the only producer of chrome ore in
Alaska, and furnished about 1000 tons yearly in 191 7 and 191 8. The
chromite occurs in masses of dunite, which are surrounded by beds
of more or less metamorphosed clastic rocks, chiefly slates and gray-
wackes. The outstanding peculiarity of the Kenai Peninsula chromite
bodies is their continuity for considerable distances in the shape of
bands or layers, as contrasted with the "pockety" character exhibited
by such ores at most localities. Estimates of exportable ore are:
Port Chatham (at coast), above tide level, 32,300 tons; below tide
level, 12,600 tons; Red Mountain (interior) 195,600 tons.

J. D. Sears.

GEOLOGY.— P/ace-r mining in the Tolovana District, Alaska. R. M.
OvERBECK. U. S. Geol. vSurvey Bull. 712-F. Pp. 8 (177-184).
1920.

Mining in the Tolovana district in 1918 was practically restricted
to the gold placer deposits in the vicinity of Livengood, north of Fair-
banks. Other minerals occurring in the district, not yet known in
sufficient quantity to be of economic importance, are chromite, scheelite,
stibnite, and possibly platinum. The value of the output of placer
gold in the Tolovana district in 1918 was about $875,000, compared
with $1,160,000 in 1917. This is about 15 per cent of the total placer
gold production of Alaska in 19 18, and gives the Tolovana district
second place. The deposits of Livengood Creek and its branches are
described, of which most are buried or bench placers. The paper is
supplementary to a report on "The Gold Placers of the Tolovana Dis-
trict" by J. B. Mertie, Jr. (U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 662: 221-277,
1917). J. D. Sears.

GEOLOGY. — The Upton-Thornton oil field, Wyoming. E. T. Han-
cock. U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 716-B. Pp. 18 (17-34), pi. i,
fig. I. 1920.

The report deals with an area on the southwest flank of the Black

abstracts: geology 523

Hills at the boundary of Weston and Crook counties in northeastern
Wyoming. Of the rocks exposed the highest is about 1200 feet above
the base of the Upper Cretaceous Pierre shale, the lowest about 100
feet above the basal Upper Cretaceous Dakota sandstone. From the
records of nearby borings about 2830 feet of rocks beneath this, to a
depth of 398 feet in Mississippian limestone, are described. The
structure is represented by contours at 50-foot intervals and by dia-
grammatic cross sections. The general southwest dip of the region is
interrupted in the Upton and Thornton domes which lie along a com-
mon axis trending parallel to the general strike. Dips range from a
few degrees to 25 °. The Thornton dome is about 2 miles wide by 6
long and rises about 500 feet above the syncline which bounds it on
the east. The Upton dome is about 1V2 miles wide and 4 long, and
about 100 feet high. The only developments on these domes are two
dry holes apparently well located and drilled to the red beds, but a
number of wells are daily producing 5 to 10 barrels of high-grade light
oil from a sandstone immediately above the Greenhorn limestone,
lying 450 to 850 feet below the surface in a structural terrace about a
mile long and wide just beyond the northwest nose of the Thornton
dome, which is the more northerly of the two domes.

M. I. Goldman.

GEOLOGY. — The Sunset-Midway oil field, California. Part II.
Geochemical relations of the oil, gas and water. G. S. Rogers.
U. S. Geol. Survey Prof. Paper 117. Pp. 103, pis. 2, figs. 8.
1920.

Part I of this paper describes the general geology of the Sunset-
Midway region and the development and underground conditions
in the productive field, and discusses also the origin and migration
of the oil. California petroleum differs in many important respects
from the varieties produced in other parts of the United States, and a
considerable amount of chemical study has been devoted to it. Part
II describes the chemical and physical properties of the California
oil and gas, and discusses the relations of these properties to the geologic
occurrence, emphasizing especially the importance of the chemical
action of mineralized water as a cause of variation in gravity of the
oil and the formation of carbon dioxide in the gas. The paper includes
also some figures on the geothermal gradient, and a discussion of the
occurrence and nature of oil-field waters and their invasion of oil sands.

J. D. Sears.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY

83 2ND MEETING

The 832nd meeting was held at the Cosmos Club, March 13, 1920.
President Sosman presiding and 35 persons present.

W. W. CoblEnTz : Some characteristics of spectro-photoelectrical sen-
sitivity in solids.

In introducing the subject the speaker said that numerous solid
substances, which have a low electrical conductivity in the dark, have
a high electrical conductivity when exposed to light, selenium being
the most widely known example. This photo-sensitive property is a
function of the temperature of the substance; also of the intensity
and of the wave length of the thermal radiation stimulus. It is found
that the photo-electrical response of substances in general is fairly
regular throughout the visible spectrum, terminating in a band or
bands of high sensitivity in the extreme red or near infra-red spectrum.
On decreasing the temperature of the substance, its intrinsic photo-
electrical sensitivity is greatly increased throughout the whole spec-
trum and the point of maximum sensitivity is shifted toward the short
wave lengths.

On a few rare occasions experimenters have observed that on ex-
posure of selenium to light from an incandescent lamp the galvanometer
gave a negative deflection, indicating an apparent rise in resistance
which is higher than that which obtains in the dark, whence the name
"photo-negative response." In one case, using light dispersed into a
spectrum, it was observed in a sample of stibnite (Sb2S3) that this
photo-negative property is caused by yellow and green light (wave
lengths less than o.Gsn), whereas the red and infra-red rays produced
a photo-positive reaction.

Molybdenite is a natural sulfide of molybdenum, some samples
of which mineral are photoelectrically sensitive. In addition to the
photo-positive properties just described, the speaker presented ob-
servations on a photo -negative reaction which was found localized
in a small spot, perhaps i mm. in diameter, in the crystal. This photo-
negative property appears to depend upon the magnitude of the po-
tential applied to the cr^'^stal, and is produced by wave lengths less than
0.65/i. Furthermore, this photo-negative property seems to depend
not only upon the magnitude of the potential applied but also upon the
direction of the current through the crystal. The photo-positive
action is the same as a resistance decrease caused by a rise in tem-
perature of the molybdenite. The photo-negative reaction is similar
to the building up of a counter e. m. f.

524

proceedings: philosophical society 525

In this work the radiation stimuH of different wave lengths were of
equal energy value. Hence, if this phenomenon were the result of
heating and of electrolytic action, the photo-positive response
should occur in the short wave lengths where the absorption is the
greatest in the cr^'stal, and the photo-negative response should occur
in the long wave lengths, where the photo-electric reaction is the greatest.
In this respect, the observed phenomena are just the reverse of what
one would expect.

Discussion: This paper was illustrated by lantern slides and was
discussed by Messrs. Sosman and Hawkesworth.

S. M. Burka: Hyper sensitizing commercial panchromatic plates.

Ordinary photographic plates, which owe their sensitivity to the
silver halides alone, are sensitive only to the violet and blue regions of
the spectrum. If, however, suitable dye-stuffs be added, either by the
laboratory method of bathing the plates in a solution of the dye, or
by the commercial method of incorporating the dye in the emulsion,
the plates become sensitive to other regions.

The effect of ammonia on the sensitivity of commercial plates con-
taining dyes was investigated. As a result of numerous trials, using
varying concentrations of ammonia, the procedure finally adopted
was to bathe the plates before exposure for four minutes at 16° to
18° C. in a solution of 3 cc. ammonia (20 per cent NH3) in 75 cc. water
and 25 cc. ethyl alcohol and dry as rapidly as possible. They were then
exposed in a grating spectrograph and the spectral sensitivity deter-
mined. In a number of cases the speed was also determined by a
sensitometer of the Chapman Jones type, and by the Hurter and
Driffield method.

The sensitivity of orthochromatic (sensitive to green and yellow)
plates showed, with one exception, no appreciable change. Every
panchromatic (sensitive to all colors) plate tried (nearly a dozen different
brands) had its speed increased at least 100 per cent to white light and
over 400 per cent to red. The sensitivity was also extended 100 or
more Angstrom units into the red. The strong minimum in sensitivity
in the green shown by most plates was to a great extent smoothed out.
The most striking increase in sensitivity was shown by a Wratten and
Wainright panchromatic plate which was used three years after its
"expiration" date. The speed was increased over 600 per cent through-
out the region from H^s to beyond Ha.

The action of the ammonia seems to be specific towards the pinaverdol
and pinacyanol series of dyes. Practically all orthochromatic plates
are dyed with erythrosin. The exceptional plate mentioned above is a
pinaverdol plate.

Bathing a plate after exposure but before development has no effect
on the speed.

The ammoniated plates deteriorate rapidly, showing chemical fog
in development, so that most brands are useless four or five days after
treating. The plates should, therefore, be used a day or two after

526 proceedings: entomological society

ammoniating and overdevelopment should be avoided. They should
also be kept cool. If the plates are used immediately after drying,
greater increase in sensitivity can be obtained by omitting the alcohol
from the bath and using 3V2 cc. ammonia to 100 cc. of water.

Discussion: This paper was also illustrated by lantern slides and
was discussed by Messrs. Sosman, White, Humphreys and Miss
Kleinschmidt.

H. S. Boyd and C. G. Peters: The calibration of precision end
gages. The paper was presented by Mr. Boyd. Precision end stand-
ards or gages, which are blocks of hardened steel or of other materials
made with two opposite faces plane, parallel and a specified distance
apart, are used as master gages for precise mechanical work. The
fact that these gages are made so nearly perfect that it is impossible
to determine their errors with any contact micrometric instrument has
necessitated the use of interference apparatus and methods for their
calibration. With these methods, developed at the Bureau of Stand-
ards, the above mentioned properties of gages can be determined with
an error of only a few millionths of an inch. In testing the planeness
of the gage surface a plane glass test plate is placed in contact with the
surface and illuminated with monochromatic light. The planeness of
the surface is determined from the shape of the interference fringes.
The length of the gage is obtained by comparison with the standard
light waves. An interferometer mirror is placed in contact with each
end of the gage, thus forming a Fabry and Perot interferometer. The
length of the gage is then determined from the number of waves of
known length between the two interferometer plates. When the
interferometer constructed in the manner just described is viewed in
parallel monochromatic light, the parallelism of the gage surfaces can
be determined from the expansion or contraction which takes place in
the ring system when the eye is moved perpendicular to the line of
sight. After gages of various sizes have been standardized other
gages can be calibrated by comparison with these standards. To
accomplish this a standard and an unknown gage are placed in con-
tact with a plane plate of glass. Another plane plate of glass placed
over the gages is illuminated with monochromatic light to show straight
fringes. The diflference in the length of the two gages is determined
from the relative displacement of corresponding fringes.

Discussion: The paper was illustrated by lantern slides and was
discussed by Messrs. White, Peters, Mueller, Sosman, Ferner,
TucKERMAN and L. J. Briggs. A number of gages were exhibited

S. J. Mauchly, Recording Secretary.
ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

3 2 8th regular MEETING

Held February 5, 1920, at the Cosmos Club, with President Walton
presiding, and 30 members and 3 visitors present.

proceedings: entomological, society 527

The recording secretary made a statement regarding the importance
of speakers furnishing him with abstracts of their remarks and an-
nounced that hereafter speakers will be furnished with blank forms for
abstracts

New member: Edward A. Chapin of the Biological Survey.

The regular program was as follows:

N. E. McIndoo: The olfactory sense in Orihoptera. In making a
comparative study of the disposition of the olfactory pores in Orthoptera,
both sexes of 21 species belonging to 20 genera and representing the
6 families were examined. Olfactory pores are more widely distributed
in Orthoptera than in any of the higher orders of insects. They are
always found on the legs, antennae, and anal stylets; usually on the
wings (if present), abdominal segments, cerci, head, and all the mouth-
parts; and sometimes on the thoracic segments and ovipositor. Rel-
ative to the antennae a few usually lie on the first segment, but always
many on the second segment. In regard to the total number of pores
found, mantids and phasmids have the smallest number, certain acridids
have the largest number, while the remaining species have a median
number of about 1000. The newly hatched croton bug has 44.5 per
cent as many pores as the adult female, and also the pores in the six
instars of the grasshoppers gradually increase from 46 per cent in
the first instar to 100 per cent in the adult female. Externally these
organs are usually oblong, sometimes almost slit-shaped, but the eye-
shaped type is the most common. Internally each one has a spindle-
shaped sense-cell whose peripheral end unites with the pore aperture
in the chitin, thus allowing the external air to come into direct contact
with the nerve. Experiments were performed on grasshoppers and
crickets to determine whether the so-called olfactory organs on the
antennae receive olfactory stimuli. Since the antennae were cut off
just distal to the olfactory^ pores on the first and second segments it
appears from the reaction times obtained that the remainder of the
antennal segments, which bear the so-called olfactory organs, do not
serve as an olfactory receptor as other investigators claim.

In answer to questions by various members. Dr. McIndoo stated
it as his belief that the antennal organs commonly supposed to be
olfactory are tactile, and serve for the detection of air currents; that
evidence of the olfactory nature of the organs he had discussed was
obtained by removal of appendages and painting over the other organs
with beeswax and vaseline; and that in order to eliminate the element
of shock he had delayed his experiments for 24 hours after mutilation.
ISIr. MiDDLETON questioned Dr. McIndoo on whether all the types
of organs represented (those he interpreted as olfactory and those
believed by others to furnish insects with that sense) were found mixed
together in the same locality or cluster, suggesting that if not, by elimi-
nating certain types of organs by coating those portions of the body wall
containing them, the true organs might be determined and that
some further information on the constitution of an odor might be

528 proceedings: entomological society

arrived at through a study of the structure of the organs whose irri-
tation or disturbance gave rise to reactions indicating olfactory sense.
Dr. BoviNG discussed certain organs on coleopterous larvae the function
of which he did not know. These structures are similar in form to
certain of the organs discussed by Dr. McIndoo. Dr. QuaintancE
thought that such studies should lead to practical use of the knowledge
gained and suggested that some substance distasteful to bees might
be placed in sprays and thus eliminate the serious loss in hives due to
bees feeding on sprayed flowers.

Symposium on laboratory methods and devices for breeding and rearing
insects.

J. A. Hyslop: Subterranean insects. The technique described was
developed during ten years of biological and ecological investigations
on the coleopterous family Elateridae with occasional studies on other
insect groups. The unit system universally used in library indexing
was found to be admirably adaptable to this work. Each specimen
on being received at the laboratory was isolated in an individual cage
and given an accession number in chronological sequence. A 3 X 5
card bearing this number was prepared and all collecting data were
recorded. Subsequent notes were recorded on. similar cards and the
cards filed in numerical order. The cages were tinned salve boxes
ranging in size from one inch in diameter and one-half inch in depth
to two and one-half inches in diameter and one inch in depth, depending
upon the size and nature of the material. These cages were arranged
in numerical order in shallow galvanized iron trays measuring 18 X 24
inches and the trays filed in sequence in slide stacks below the work
bench in the laboratory insectary, each tray bearing on its exposed
edge the first and last accession numbers contained in that tray. By
systematizing the method of procedure in examining this material
and in making notes it was possible, with two inexperienced laboratory
assistants, to keep careful daily records of over four thousand specimens.
The significant feature of this method of handling insectary material
is the absolute systematizing of the routine work, the reduction of the
size of the cage to a minimum and its style to the greatest possible
simplicity. Laboratory conditions were made absolutely artificial,
no attempt being made to reproduce a natural environment indoors.
The data collected by this process was very accurate for the existing
known conditions, and field observations and notes were very easily
correlated with this data so that it could be applied to normal field
conditions. Mr. Hyslop stated that "our experience has convinced
us of the feasibility of the following biological laboratory law: The
accuracy of biological laboratory observations is inversely proportional to
the size of the cage and directly proportional to the thorottghness of the
system of observing."

F. C. Craighead: Wood-boring insects. In the past five years the
author and several assistants have reared a great many coleopterous
larvae. Stress was laid on the fact that the best results were secured

PROCEKDINGS: ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY 529

through the reproductions of conditions, as near as possible, to those
existing in nature. Humidity was found to be the most important
factor and by regulating this to a practically constant degree throughout
the year the best results were obtained. To secure this result those
types of cages which could be tightly closed were found most satis-
factory, such as museum jars, fruit jars, and smaller phials with screw
tops. For successful breeding of these insects it is necessary to know
beforehand certain conditions under which they live. For instance,
in each species of wood-boring beetles a decided preference is nearly
always shown for a particular condition of wood. It may be green
wood, that which is thoroughly seasoned, or perhaps that which has
undergone a certain stage of decay. In such cases it is absolutely
necessary to exactly duplicate this condition in order to propagate the
species.

E. R. Selkregg: Fniit-infesting Lepidoptera. The larvae of the
codling moth and similar larvae are allowed to spin cocoons in pupation
sticks where their transformation to pupae can be observed. These
pupation sticks, one of which was exhibited, consist of a strip of wood
with numerous sawcuts part way through, over which is placed a strip
of transparent celluloid and then an uncut strip of wood. Glass bat-
tery jars are the most convenient rearing cages, furnishing approximately
natural conditions for development of various stages. They are easily
handled and quickly moved about the insectary. The insects develop
in these jars at the same rate as in nature, according to definite observa-
tions.

R. A. Cushman: Hymenopterous parasites. Rearing of these
insects is very easy with almost any sort of jar, box, or phial, depending
on the size of the specimen or amount of material. Moisture should
be very sparingly employed. Host remains and cocoons of parasites
should always be preserved as from them can be learned much re-
garding the habits and development of the parasite. Breeding of
parasites as distinguished from rearing is a much more difficult matter.
These insects are so strongly heliotropic that they spend practically
all of their time in crawling about the top of the cage. The best results
were obtained with small cages which brought the material to be
parasitized close to the top and sides of the cage. Various types of
small cages were described and exhibited and the method of handling
them described. A small cage entirely of glass for photographing
living insects was also described and photographs of cages and living
insects were exhibited. After oviposition has been segured the treat-
ment depends almost entirely on the nature of the host, and since
insects of practically all sorts are attacked by parasites, the worker
with parasites is perhaps more largely benefitted by the ideas brought
out in such a symposium as this than any other.

S. A. Rohwer: Insectaries. The speaker stated that in constructing
insectaries efforts should be made to approximate natural conditions,
and as the amount of time available for discussion was limited he only
called attention to a few points which had been gained from his experi-

530 proceedings: entomological society

ments in constructing insectaries at the Eastern Field Station of the
Bureau of Entomology. It is important to confine the work done in an
insectary to one type of rearing or to rearing of insects of one order.
The cone type roof with broad eaves is much more satisfactory than
any other type used. Illustrations and blue print plans of the insec-
taries of the Eastern Field Station were exhibited. The use of hinged
wooded doors to afford protection and permit changes in ventilation
was emphasized. It was pointed out that such means of protection
is much more satisfactory^ than canvas curtains. Graphs showing how
the temperature of an insectary protected by canvas curtains departed
from the temperature of the surrounding air and varied much more
than that of an insectary protected with wooden doors were presented.
These graphs showed that even under the most favorable conditions of
ventilation the temperature of the insectary protected with canvas
curtains showed an unusual range and often departed as much as
15 degrees F. from the surrounding air. This forces the conclusion
that unless it is possible to be at hand continually and alter the canvas
curtains the use of canvas in the construction of insectaries is unsatis-
factory. Mention was made of the value of a vestibule entrance for
insectaries containing exotic insects, and also of the use of a dark
room, with only one source of light, in removing insects from cages.
It was recommended that an effort be made to standardize insectaries
and that they be built on the sectional basis.

In discussing the preceding papers on rearing cages and devices,
Mr. RoHWER called attention to the apparent differences in opinion
between the previous speakers. One speaker had stated that he had
better success under most artificial conditions; another speaker had
emphasized the great importance of duplicating natural conditions;
another had implied that humidity had but little effect. From the
standpoint of the taxonomist it seems to be of great importance to
know under what condition material was reared because there seems
to be more variation in color in reared hymenoptera than in collected.
The only way to explain this great variation in some forms is to assume
that there was a difference in conditions under which they were reared.
We know from experiments on Lepidoptera that melanistic or albinistic
races can be produced by changing humidity. It is therefore only fair
to the taxonomists that records of the kind of rearing devices and
approximation of natural conditions be recorded.

Dr. QuAiNTANCE described briefly the ingenious device perfected by
Mr. R. L. Nougaret for the study of the grape phylloxera in California.
The vines are planted in two large flower pots, one above the other and
the whole placed in a deep pit. When it is necessary to examine the
colonies of phylloxera the pots are raised out of the pit by means of a
derrick. Tvlr. Heinrich emphasized the necessity of having the food
furnished to larvae in its natural condition, citing the formation of
poison in the leaves of wild cherry after they are picked. Mr. Greene
stated that to rear diptera successfully natural conditions must be
maintained. R. A. Cushman, Recording Secretary.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

The Division of Mechanical Technology of the National Museum
has constructed and placed on exhibition a model of the flying machine
designed and constructed in 1491 by Leonardo da Vinci.

An unexpected result of the National Prohibition Act is the acquisi-
tion by the National Museum of an excellent skull of the mammoth,
Elephas primigenius, the second specimen of its kind ever found in the
United States. It had long been exhibited in a Cincinnati bar-room
and the proprietor had refused all ofi"ers for it until prohibition ren-
dered it valueless in its existing location, when it was acquired for a
small sum by the Museum.

Mr. A. V. Bleininger, ceramic chemist and head of the ceramic
division of the Bureau of Standards, resigned in September to become
research chemist for the Homer-Laughlin China Company, of East
Liverpool, Ohio.

The Carnegie Institution of Washington published in September the
second volume of The Cactaceae, by N. L. Britton and J. N. Rose.
An abstract of the first volume appeared in this Journal for August,
1919. Two other volumes are yet to appear.

Dr. Norah E. Dowell, formerly instructor in geology at Smith
College, has beeen appointed assistant geologist in the U. S. Geological
Survey for duty as office geologist and research assistant in the Ground
Water Division.

Dr. J. W. Fewkes, of the Bureau of American Ethnology, spent
August in the excavation and repair of Cedar Tree Tower in the Mesa
Verde National Park, Colorado.

Dr. August F. Foerste, of Dayton, Ohio, spent the summer in the
Division of Paleontology of the National Museum, cooperating with
Dr. R. S. Bassler on a monograph of the Silurian cephalopods.

Mr. J. W. GiDLEY, of the section of vertebrate paleontology, U. S.
National Museum, visited Williamsburg, Virginia, in September, to
investigate the discovery of remains of an extinct species of whale,
reported by Dr. Donald W. Davis, of the College of William and
Mary\ Material was secured for the Museum, although not sufficient
for a skeleton mount.

Mr. A. K. Haagner, director of the zoological park at Pretoria,
South Africa, visited Washington in September, on his way to London.
Mr. Haagner came to the United States in charge of a shipload of
African animals which had been collected at Pretoria during the war
for various American zoological parks, and which arrived at Phila-
delphia in September.

531

532 SCIENTIFIC NOTBS AND NEWS

Dr. Rodney B. Harvey, formerly plant physiologist in the Bureau
of Plant Industry, U. S. Department of Agriculture, has resigned to
accept the position of assistant professor of plant physiology at the
University of Minnesota and assistant plant physiologist at the Minne-
sota Experiment Station.

Mr. P. C. HoLDT has been appointed research associate at the Bureau
of Standards, representing the American Paint and Varnish Manu-
facturers' Association.

Dr. T. Harvey Johnston, of Queensland, visited the National
Museum in September, on a mission to various parts of North and
South America for the purpose of studying the cactus and means of
controlling it.

Mr. Benjamin R. Jacobs has resigned from the Bureau of Chemistry,
U. S. Department of Agriculture, to become director of the National
Cereal Products Laboratories, with ofhces in Washington.

Mr. Neil M. Judd, Curator of American Archeology, U. S. National
Museum, returned to Washington October ist, after having spent the
spring and summer months in the Southwest, engaged in archeological
research for the Bureau of American Ethnology and the National
Geographic Society.

Mr. Alan Leighton, formerly chemist with the Bureau of Mines at
Pittsburgh, has been transferred to the Bureau of Animal Industry,
U. S. Department of Agriculture.

Dr. William A. Locy, professor of biology at Northwestern Uni-
versity, and author of Biology and its makers, spent the summer in
Washington in historical research, chiefly in the library of the Surgeon
General's Office.

Mr. H. C. Raven, zoological collector and naturalist with the Smith-
sonian African Expedition under the direction of Mr. Edmund HellER,
returned to Washington on September 21.

Mr. E. J. RuH has been appointed research assistant at the Bureau
of Standards by the International Nickel Company.

Miss Lily B. Sefton, formerly of the Bureau of Stndards, has been
appointed assistant professor in the department of chemistry of the
University of West Virginia, at Morgantown, West Virginia.

Dr. R. J. TiLLYARD, director of the Cawthron Institute of Scientific
Research at Nelson, New Zealand, visited Washington during the
summer. Dr. Tillyard has spent seventeen years in Australia, de-
voting himself to research on the Neuropteroid insects, recent and fossil.
He returned to New Zealand in October.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. io November 19, 1920 No. 19

CIVIL SERVICE REFORM.— A reorganized Civil Service. Ed-
ward B. Rosa, Bureau of Standards.^

I. INTRODUCTION

The United States Government may be likened to a great
business organization of which Congress is the Board of Direc-
tors and the taxpayers are the stockholders. The various
departments, bureaus, and other branches of the government
are managed by secretaries, directors, division chiefs and various
assistants, the chief executive officer over all being the Presi-
dent. There are altogether several thousand men in responsible
administrative positions in the government's complex organiza-
tion who are concerned with probleihs of administration and
business management, and who at the present time are specially
interested in the employment policy of the government. There
are several hundred thousand employees of the government who
are not only interested in this question, but vitally concerned,
and are calUng the attention of Congress and the public to the
fact that the government's employment policy needs revision
and bringing up to date. The administrative officers of the
government, like the managers of a business, represent the em-
ployer, and think first of the question from the standpoint of
the management, not, however, overlooking the interests and
the rights of the employees. The representatives of the em-
ployees properly think first of the interests of the employees,
but they should not and do not overlook the interests of the
government, and they are rendering a great service at the present
time in publicly discussing the questions at issue.

^ An address delivered before the Washington Academy of Sciences on October
23, 1920.

533

534 ROSA: REORGANIZED CIVIL SERVICE

This paper is a discussion of the government's employment
poUcy from the administrative standpoint, but with careful
regard for the interests of employees. The cardinal principle
underlying this • discussion is that in the government ser^dce,
even more than in private business, administration should be
reasonable and just, and administrators competent and efficient.
Officers should be held responsible for results and should be
given sufficient authority and means to work with, so that there
can be no excuse for failure or for inefficiency. But autocracy,
irresponsibility, and selfish interest have no place in the public
service. The question, therefore, is — What changes in the em-
ployment policy of the government should be made in order that
the government service may be put on a very high plane, that
it shall offer so attractive a career that able men and women may
be secured and the best retained in the service, and that it shall
rank with the very best organizations anywhere in the integrity,
ability, and efficiency with which it is conducted? There is very
much in the government service now to be proud of, more than
many people think. But there are serious handicaps to efficiency
which can be removed, and the government's haphazard employ-
ment policy is one of them.

2. NEED FOR IMPROVEMENT

The administration of the Civil Service on the merit system,
free from patronage and politics, has been steadily extended until
it covers a very large part of the federal government. In this
extension the Civil Ser\dce Commission has been an effective
agency, in spite of a serious handicap arising from an insufficient
personnel. The Commission has ample authority as well as the
good- will of administrators and the moral support of the public,
and has done a work of immense importance. Nevertheless, it
cannot be denied that there are serious defects in the Civil Service.
Charges are sometimes made of favoritism in appointments and
promotions, and of too little consideration of the employee's
point of view. In many cases insufficient means are provided
for learning whether the employees are satisfied, and of answering
complaints. On the other hand, the standard of the personnel

ROSA: REORGANIZED CIVIL SERVICE 535

throughout the government service is not what it should be,
the quantity and quaHty of work done in many cases is unsatis-
factory, experienced and competent men and women are leaving
the service in large numbers, and their places are being taken
by others, on the average less experienced and less competent.
Owing to an inadequate and irrational salary scale, many branches
of the government serAdce are so unremunerative and unattrac-
tive that their administrative officers have much difficulty in
keeping positions filled. Under such circumstances it is impos-
sible to maintain proper discipline or a high standard of efficiency,
and the consequences of a lowered morale are plainly evident.
The situation is far more serious than it was eighteen months
ago when Congress appointed a special commission to study and
report upon it.

3. LEGAL DIFFICULTIES

The merit system presupposes an honest, unbiased, and com-
petent administration of the personnel; appointments without
favor, promotions when earned, security of teniu-e, opportunity
to make good, recognition of work well done. The government
should be a just and reasonable employer, if not indeed a model
employer, and the administrative officers of the government
should not only be authorized and required to deal justly and equi-
tably by the employees under their supervision, but they should
be empowered to do so. In general, this is far from being real-
ized, and the greatest handicap to good administration is not in
the faults and frailties of administrative officers (serious as they
may be in some cases) but in the laws and limitations imposed
upon the administrators, which tie their hands and make good
administration exceedingly difficult; and in the lack of adequate
personnel in the Civil Service Commission, which makes it im-
possible for it to cooperate with administrators as effectively as
it should, or to exercise the supervision over appointments and
promotions which the law contemplates and which administrators
would welcome.

The most serious of these legal difficulties are the following :

(i) The system of statutory positions with inflexible and generally
inadequate salaries, which often make appointments and promotions
difficult or impossible.

536 ROSA: REORGANIZED CIVIL SERVICE

(2) Unequal salaries in different serv^ices for a given kind of work
and degree of responsibility.

(3) The legal prohibition of transfer and promotion from a position
in one department to a lump-fund position in another at a higher
salary, no matter how much such promotion is merited or how strongly
it is recommended by the administrative officers concerned.

(4) The legal restriction requiring three years' service before trans-
fer from one department to another in Washington.

(5) The apportionment system which often makes it impossible to
appoint the most competent eligibles, and sometimes rules out all the
applicants from several states.

(6) The entire lack, until very recently, of a retirement system for
aged or disabled employees, which made it necessar}' to retain thou-
sands who under other conditions would have been retired to the
advantage of the ser\dce.

4. STANDARDIZED CIVIL SERVICE

If the classification of the Civil Service as proposed by the Con-
gressional Commission is effected, so that there will be a stand-
ardized system of positions and titles, with systematic specifica-
tions of qualifications and duties, and salaries that are uniform
throughout the service for comparable duties and respon-
sibilities, then it would be possible to dispense with the present
inflexible statutory positions and the unrestricted and unstand-
ardized lump-fund positions and replace both by the new stand-
ardized and classified system of positions, which would be defined
and authorized by law. This would do away with the first two
of the above-named legal limitations, and remove the reason for
the third and fourth, which could then be repealed.

The fifth difficulty probably cannot be entirely removed, al-
though more active recruiting of eligibles from States below
their quota would furnish better material and so satisfy the
apportionment law without lowering the standards of the serv-
ice, at least not as much as would otherwise be inevitable. The
tendency of the apportionment system is necessarily to lower
the service in Washington, because very often the best men in
distant States cannot afford to come to Washington at consider-
able expense, in view of the inadequate salaries paid by the gov-
ernment. The result often is that inferior men who need a job
are certified from distant States and are appointed ahead of
abler men from nearby States that have their full quota.

ROSA: REORGANIZKD CIVIL SERVICE 537

Active recruiting by representatives of the Civil Service Com-
mission in those more distant States would perhaps go far tovi^ard
remedying the difficulty, but it would involve some expense.

The last difficulty mentioned has lately been partially met, al-
though compulsory retirement on $30 to $60 per month, accord-
ing to length of service, is not an attractive proposition in the
higher grades of the service, especially when it is learned that
the salary deductions (to be credited to the pension fund) are
proportional to the salary, but the benefits are not. For exam-
ple, the deductions for a $4800 position are four times as much as
for a $1200 position, but the retiring allowance is no more than
for the latter position. -

If through the adoption of a budget system or otherwise, funds
are made available so that adequate salaries can be paid and
promotions can be made systematically and without undue de-
lay, and work can be planned ahead and carried out consec-
utively by those who plan and begin it, the most serious handicaps
to efficiency will be removed and a long step forward in good
government will have been taken. One of the greatest handi-
caps to good administration is the lack of inducement for a career,
arising from inadequate salaries for administrative positions in
nearly all branches of the government service. Adequate sal-
aries which would be an incentive for the best to remain in the
service of the government would be of great value to the service,
and would remove many difficulties arising from inexperienced
men filling responsible positions. With so great a turnover in
the personnel, including administrative officers, mistakes in ad-
ministration are to be expected. It is no more possible to operate
an important department of the federal government satisfactorily
with a large proportion of inexperienced officers and employees
than it would be to operate a bank or a great mercantile estab-
lishment successfully with inexperienced officers and employees.
The wonder is in some cases that the government departments

- So far as the higher positions are concerned, therefore, the retirement law offers
no incentive for entering the government service, but is one more reason for in-
creasing salaries. For the deductions from salary, coming after so many increases
in the cost of living, are in many cases like the straw that breaks the camel's back.

538 ROSA: REORGANIZED CIVIL SERVICE

do as well as they do. Many men of ability and experience are
serving the government at salaries below a living wage. But
the losses to the service due to resignations of such men in re-
sponsible positions are very serious and the situation is steadily
growing worse. ^ Paying low salaries to men in important ad-
ministrative positions leads to inefficiency and waste rather than
economy.

5. FUNCTION OF CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION

The function of the Civil Service Commission as an employ-
ment agency is to be of maximum service to the executive de-
partments in filling positions and administering the personnel.
In addition to safeguarding the interests of the public and of
the employees by keeping the service free from the effects of
politics and favoritism, it is able to render great assistance to
administrative officers by finding men and women who are
qualified for the various positions to be filled, taking full account
of the needs of the service and of the importance in many cases
of special training and experience. In the case of supervisory
and technical positions, administrative officers and their trained
assistants who know the requirements of the work and the quali-
fications needed, and who are responsible for the results obtained,
should be given a large measure of authority as well as of re-
sponsibility in making appointments and promotions. The Civil
Service Commission should, however, be closely in touch with
the bureaus and departments and should be so well acquainted
with the needs of the service that it can advise, or overrule, if
necessary, intelligently and sympathetically. The experience of
the Civil Service Commission shows that administrative officers
as a rule welcome its assistance and advice when they can deal
directly and can understand one another. Difficulties, when they
occur, are generally caused by lack of understanding from lack
of contact. Prompt and efficient administration is important ;
excessive formality and routine, involving unbusiness-like delay
and unnecessary expense, should be avoided.

^ See editorial in Chicago Evening Post, Sept. 8. 1920, page 44, concerning "Young
Men in Government Service."

ROSA: REORGANIZED CIVIL SERVICE 539

The entire government service may be likened, not to a single
large corporation which has one employment agency, but to a
large number of corporations of many different kinds associated
in a great group by a holding corporation. An employment
agency maintained by the holding corporation would not select
the personnel nor make promotions for every separate company.
The officers of the separate companies in intimate contact with
the personnel and the work would do that. But the central
agency could be of great service in finding men, arranging trans-
fers from company to company, formulating policies, checking
the practice of the several companies, and cooperating with and
advising and educating their employment officers. Such a case
is not perfectly analogous to the federal government, but it is
nearer to it than a single corporation having one employment
agency.

6. EXTENSION AGENTS AND ADVISORY COUNCIL

Extension agents of the Civil Service Commission located in
the departments or going about from bureau to bureau would
be able to render important assistance to administrators and to
keep the Commission informed as to the operation and the needs
of the service. Personal contact between the representatives of
the Civil Service Commission and administrative officers is very
essential to avoid misunderstanding and ungrounded suspicion,
as well as to give the Commission fuller knowledge of the needs
of all branches of the service, and to give administrative officers
more intimate knowledge of Civil Service procedure and the
practice of other branches of the service.

The meeting together of such a body of liaison officers for con-
ference and to report to the Commission would enable each one
to become acquainted with the best administrative methods pre-
vailing in the departments, and to carry back to the department
or establishment he was serving information and suggestion of
the greatest value to administrators. Such extension agents
should be men of high character and attainments, possessing
tact and talent for dealing with men, and with considerable ex-
perience in the government service. They would acquire an

540 ROSA: REORGANIZED CIVIL SERVICE

intimate knowledge of the quality of the personnel of their
respective departments, and would serv^e an important function
in helping the Commission to keep the salary scale equalized
in the various departments.

They would keep in touch with the eligible lists of the Com-
mission, and would be able to advise administrative officers as
to the qualifications of the men available for appointment or
transfer, and whether the standard for promotion in a given
bureau or department was in agreement with the service gen-
erally. Indeed, without the coordinating influence of such
liaison officers, it is difficult to see how a standardized service
could be kept standardized and uniform.

An alternative method would be for the bureaus and depart-
ments to employ expert personnel officers (corresponding to em-
ployment managers in the industries) who would keep in close
touch with the Civil Service Commission, and thus secure the
close personal contact and cooperation between the Commission
and the departments which is so necessary. Of the two, it would
seem that the extension agents of the Commission are to be
preferred, although in any event the employment of trained
specialists as personnel officers or employment managers in the
bureaus and departments should be encouraged.^

* To realize how utterly impossible it is for the Civil Service Commission at
present to perform all the functions described above, one has only to consider the
low salaries paid and the inadequate staff provided. Whereas many other branches
of the service pay their most responsible officers $3000, to $4500, and in some cases
$5000 to $7500 or even more, the Civil Service Commission has only two positions
(aside from the Commissioners themselves) paying more than $2400, namely the
chief examiner at $3500 and the secretary who gets $2500 and no bonus. They
have a lump sum of $100,000 for salaries, carrying a provision that no salary higher
than $1800 shall be paid therefrom. 358 clerks and examiners have an average
salary of $1311 (besides the bonus). Included in this number are 41 college grad-
uates averaging $1602. These are the men who examine and rate those entering
the service, even in the highest grades, including all the technical services, and who
are supposed to supervise the administration of the government's employment
policy, approve promotions and transfers, and see that the law is obeyed.

The Civil Service Commission maintains 12 district offices and holds examina-
tions all over the United States, and because of the great turnover in the service
was called upon to recruit 200,000 new employees last year in spite of the fact that
the whole number of employees was reduced by 100,000 during the fiscal year.
But for lack of funds to pay salaries, they are obliged to operate these offices largely

ROSA: REORGANIZED CIVIL SERVICE 541

A Civil Service Advisory Council composed, as proposed by the
Congressional Commission, of representatives of the administra-
tors and of the employees, could render a very important service
in connection with administrative questions/^ It could be of
great service to the Commission in connection with current
administration and also in connection with modifications of pro-
cedure, revision in classification, or recommendation to Con-
gress regarding changes in the scale of pay. It could serve as a
channel of communication between the Commission and the con-
stituencies represented by the members of the Council, bringing
suggestions or criticisms or complaints and taking back the
views or the answers of the Commission.

Although it would have no authority or administrative func-
tion, it would serve a useful purpose in keeping the Commission
in closer touch with administrators and employees, and afford
an opportunity for exchange of views on all questions of common
interest. This is one of the most progressive features of the
Commission's bill, and if the members of the Council take the
matter seriously and attend meetings regularly, as it seems cer-
tain they would do, they could not fail to exert helpful influence.
Such a Council is indeed a departiu-e in practice, but it seems
abundantly worth trying, with the hope that it will aid materially
in promoting a good understanding between employees, admin-
istrators, and the Civil Service Commission, and a better under-
standing of the truth about the service by the general public.
There is a great deal of suspicion in the public mind, and fre-
quent irresponsible and exaggerated statements about politics
and inefficiency in the public service are made ; and such a Council

with men and women borrowed from various departments, 222 such people being
detailed to field offices at the present time. Being away from their home stations,
and often overlooked when promotions are made, these men cannot be expected
to take a very lively interest in their work, or make a great success of it.

It is not more law or more authority that the Civil Service Commission needs,
but an adequate and well paid permanent staff. This would make it possible for
the Commission to discharge with credit and success the high duties resting upon it
and to raise the tone of the government service everywhere.

5 The Council is to consist of twelve members, six to be appointed by the Pres-
ident to represent the administrators and six to be elected by the employees from
among their own number.

542 ROSA: REORGANIZED CIVIL SERVICE

if wisely constituted could accomplish much in removing doubts
and creating confidence.

7. EFFICIENCY RECORDS

An efficiency record should be kept, at least for all employees
below the senior grades, and promotions made in the light of
this record. When employees of the senior grades for whom no
regular efficiency record is kept are recommended for promotion,
a very full statement should be made to the Civil Service Com-
mission as to the quality of the work done and degree of re-
sponsibility carried and any other reasons for making the pro-
motion. A statement of this kind supported by documents, when
practicable, would be the full equivalent of an efficiency record.
Such a system of efficiency ratings, if intelligently and system-
atically carried out, would be a stimulus to employees and an
important element in a real merit system. The form in which
such efficiency ratings are expressed may be prescribed by the
Commission in order that they be uniform and comparable.
But the method of arriving at the ratings and details of the
record kept may be left to the various bureaus and departments.
These will naturally vary according to the kind of service and
grades of personnel in the different services, but in every case
they should take account of all elements that determine the effi-
ciency of employees.

In many cases formal examinations are held to qualify men
and women for higher positions, especially in connection with
systematic courses of instruction and training. Such examina-
tions, which are usually optional and competitive, are useful
in making efficiency ratings preparatory to promotion. Com-
pulsory examinations of a formal character will not generally be
necessary or desirable in making promotions if an effective sys-
tem of efficiency ratings is maintained. In some cases, how-
ever, they will be necessary, and hence provision should be made
for such examinations whenever desired by the responsible ad-
ministrator or the Civil Service Commission. Possibly it would
work out that they would be useful and practicable in many
cases.

ROSA: REORGANIZED CIVIL SERVICE 543

8. PROMOTION ON MERIT

Promotions should be made when merited. In the case of
younger employees, at least, frequent promotions by small steps
are better than infrequent promotions of larger amount. Pro-
motions are made in recognition of increased earning power and
to avoid losing employees through resignation. The government
is in competition with business and educational institutions both
in appointing and holding its employees. In most cases it pays
relatively low salaries for special qualifications, and imposes
conditions as to hours of service and limitations as to one's free
time which are often a real hardship.*^ Moreover, men in the
scientific and technical branches of the government service
acquire information and training of great value in the business
and educational world, and they are eagerly sought for at a
much higher rate of compensation. This is one of the most se-
rious obstacles to efficiency and success in the government ser-
vice and must be faced squarely if the government's work is to
be conducted on a high plane.

It is not expected ever to have salaries so high in the govern-
ment service that such a flow of able men out into commercial
and educational work would be prevented. Indeed, it is not
desirable to try to prevent it altogether. But enough good sal-
aries should be provided so that a reasonable proportion, at least,
of able and experienced men could be retained, to serve as ad-
'ministrators and educators to the rising personnel. In many
cases the work is so important or so technical that only men of
special training and considerable experience are competent to
undertake it. In these cases the salaries should be such as to

8 Scientists and engineers in the service of the government work six days a week,
eleven months in the year or more, often putting in a great deal of overtime without
extra pay, and are restrained from accepting retainers or extra compensation from
outside sources which would be perfectly proper in private employment. The
absence of Sabbatical years and of the generous retiring pensions of the colleges
are a further deterrent to men of standing from entering the government service
from the colleges. These facts in conjunction with the inadequate salaries of the
government explain why it is generally impossible to recruit the higher positions
from the colleges, and why administrators are so anxious to retain able and success-
ful men who have been developed in the government service, and why it is so im-
portant to be able to select good material for the entering grades.

544 ROSA: REORGANIZED CIVIL SERVICE

make it possible to build up and maintain an able and experienced
staff. The needs of the government service should be the first
consideration. Training men for the industries should be in-
cidental. The present inadequate salary scale in many depart-
ments leads to resignations in a great many cases just when the
men are becoming really useful. This makes the work unsatis-
factory and its costs excessive. It is one of the most important
causes of inefficiency in the government servdce.

It is so important and yet so difficult to keep men of first-class
ability, that promotions which are deserved but which would
otherwise be deferred are often made on short notice to avoid
a loss that would be hard to remedy. So long as the pay in
many classes of the service is below the market, it is important
to permit promotions to be made at any time, always provided
that they are merited and the Civil Service requirements are
satisfied. A systematic review of the entire personnel of a
bureau or administrative unit with respect to promotions should
be made at least once each year. In many cases this is done
twice a year or oftener, although of course only a part (and often
a small part) of the employees are promoted at each promotion
period.

The government service should offer a career to those who are
competent and ambitious and desire to remain in the service.
Advancement of men to higher places made vacant by resigna-
tion or promotion is a normal procediue. On the other hand,
it is frequently necessary to bring in new men of special training
or quaUfications from outside in order to keep up the standard
and prevent inbreeding. The administrative officer responsible
for results is more anxious than anyone else to keep his staff
satisfied and to keep up the quality of the personnel. No rules
of procedure should be made which will embarrass wise adminis-
tration. On the other hand, the Civil Service Commission should
have full information and be in position intelligently to approve
or to withhold approval if necessary.

In many cases appointments and promotions are so carefully
and competently handled that such approval would be prompt
and nominal. But when complaints were made, or when care-

ROSA: REORGANIZED CIVIL SERVICE 545

less or biased administration was shown in any given branch of
the service, investigation of each case would be made until im-
provement in conditions made it unnecessary. It would be
physically impossible for the Civil Service Commission to give
the careful consideration to every case that is usually given by
administrative officers in the bureaus and departments. This
is, however, quite unnecessary. But to be in a position to advise
and approve, and to investigate when need be, is possible and
very necessary.

9. APPOINTMENTS, TRANSFERS, AND REINSTATEMENTS

The method heretofore in use by the Civil Service Commis-
sion of certifying names for appointment upon request should be
continued. Such names will be taken from registers established
by examinations (assembled or non-assembled) or from lists of
persons eligible for reinstatement or transfer. Appointments
should be made at salaries that are just and in accord with the
standardized scale. Credit should be given for experience or
qualifications in excess of the minimum required for appointment
to any given class.

A requirement that appointments be made always to the low-
est grade of the class entered, and hence that men and women
of widely varying qualifications be graded together and given
the same salary upon entrance, or any other limitation that
prevents doing justice to new appointees, will result in serious
injury to the service without any compensating advantage.

It is impossible always to rate men accurately on entering,
and a careful appointing officer, no matter how conscientious, will
often find that he has given a man on entering less than he
deserves. When it is demonstrated that such is the case, the
error should be corrected, and hence it will sometimes be neces-
sary to advance the pay sooner than usual. On the other hand,
it will sometimes be necessary to reduce the pay and grade.

In some branches of the service new appointees are of prac-
tically no value to the government until they have gone through
a course of special instruction to qualify them for their duties.
Their entering salaries are less than would otherwise be given.

546 ROSA: REORGANIZED CIVIL SERVICE

For six months or a year in such cases even well educated men
or women are really going to school in the laboratory or training
class. Some progress rapidly and at the end deserv^e a con-
siderable advance in pay in recognition of their ability and use-
fulness. Others deser^^e smaller promotions, or perhaps have
demonstrated their incapacity and are dropped. Any arbitrary-
rules about promotion that prevent the proper recognition of
different degrees of progress and usefulness would be very un-
desirable.

In certifying persons for reinstatement or transfer, an effort
should be made to find positions which the applicants are thor-
oughly competent to fill, and where they are needed and will be
welcomed. A transfer from one department should require
sufficient advance notice so that the vacancy created by the
transfer may be properly filled unless the consent of the heads
of the bureaus or establishments concerned is secured for an
earlier transfer. No other barriers should be interposed pro-
vided all rules of the classification authorized by the law and of
the Civil Service Commission are complied with. If the trans-
fer is to a position of higher salary, qualification for such posi-
tion must be clearly established.

At present, transfers between departments to positions at
higher salaries are forbidden by law, unless the position is a
statutory one. If a man or woman is unfortunate enough to get
into a position where promotion is impossible, and the salary is
inadequate, the law forbids correcting the injustice by transfer
to a lump -fund position at a just salary, but requires that the
injustice be continued for at least a year in the new position.
This is one of the most serious defects of the present system, and
every consideration of justice and good administration requires
that it be corrected.

A transfer register maintained by the Civil Service Commis-
sion would contain the names and qualifications of all applicants
for transfer. Only those giving satisfactory reasons for seeking
a transfer would be placed on the register. In some cases such
application would reveal causes for dissatisfaction which could
readily be remedied without a transfer. In other cases, the inter-

ROSA: RE;0RGANIZED CIVIIv SERVICE) 547

ests of the service, as well as of the individual, will be promoted
by a transfer. In every case an effort would be made to do
justice to the employee without sacrificing the public interest.
This will contribute to making the government service more
attractive, and in helping to raise the standard of the personnel
and to increase its efficiency.

lO. PERSONNEL COMMITTEES

Personnel committees should be established in every bureau
or administrative unit to assist in the administration of the per-
sonnel. The composition and duties of these committees will
vary considerably in different cases, but they should consist of
administrators or their assistants. If the organization is such
that the employees feel the need of a committee of their own,
to present their point of view to the administrators, it should be
provided. Such representatives should, as a matter of course, be
chosen by the employees themselves. Even though the method
of handling the personnel is satisfactory to the employees without
a special committee of their own, there should be provision for
giving them an opportunity to be heard on all matters affecting
salary, promotion, character of work, and working conditions
generally. Every effort should be made to make the govern-
ment service satisfactory to employees and creditable to the
government. To remove sources of complaint, to make the work
and the working conditions attractive, to interest employees in
their work, and to make them feel that they are a part of the
government; all this will make it easier to retain the most desir-
able employees, and hence will aid in improving the service.
The golden rule can be applied in the government service as
well as in industry, and with just as good results.

It is probable, however, that a large majority of complaints
of favoritism in promotions are not well founded. Employees
sometimes overestimate their own worth or underestimate their
fellows. It is only natural that men or women who are not pro-
moted because they are not doing as well as the average should
feel that their worth is undervalued, or that someone who is
given rapid promotion is favored. If provision is made for hear-

548 ROSA: REORGANIZED CIVIL SERVICE

ing and answering such complaints without needless publicity,
it will help administrative officers who are faithful and com-
petent. And if through oversight an injustice has been done,
it can be corrected. No administrative officer intends to do an
injustice, but he cannot have perfect knowledge and he cannot
escape mistakes occasionally. A willingness to review a decision
if requested, and to explain the reasons for such decision, will
promote good relations. The existence of such committees gives
the administrative officer a chance to explain ; without them it is
more difficult either to ascertain the need or to make the expla-
nation.

II. COOPERATION BETWEEN EXECUTIVES AND THE CIVIIv SERVICE

COMMISSION

The constant aim throughout the servdce should be to secure
an intelligent and sympathetic handling of personnel problems.
While on the one hand avoiding autocratic methods, we should
not go to the other extreme of taking away authority from those
who are responsible for results. To develop enthusiasm and
loyalty, and to build up an efficient organization will be impos-
sible if employees are dissatisfied with their treatment or if
controversy and conflicts occur. Cordial cooperation between
the executives of each department and the Civil Service Com-
mission is absolutely necessary. The primary thought and duty
of the Commission should be, not to prevent administrators from
doing wrong, but to assist them in handling personnel problems
and in raising the morale and efficiency of the employees. If
the legal impediments to good administration could be removed,
the staff of the Civil Service Commission greatly strengthened,
and the Commission assisted by an able and representative Ad-
visory Council, it would be found that the executive departments
would welcome the greater cooperation of the Civil Service Com-
mission, and that there would be no need for drastic rules to
prevent bad administration. The various features outlined
above combined with our present system would, it is believed,
provide a practical and thoroughly satisfactory Civil Service
system, and in connection with a budget system and detailed and

ROSA: REORGANIZED CIVIL SERVICE 549

systematic public reports by the Civil Service Commission and
the Budget Bureau would accomplish wonders in the government
serv'ice.

12. THE RECLASSIFICATION REPORT

Many of the changes suggested above are contained in the
bill drawn up by the Congressional Reclassification Commission,
and given in its report. The outstanding features of that re-
port, which are also given above, are as follows :

(i) The standardized system of positions, with duties defined and
compensation fixed, applying to all departments alike and taking the
place of present statutory and lump-fund positions.

(2) Provision for amending the specifications or adding new posi-
tions from time to time as needed.

(3) The rates of compensation provided in the schedule which are
made a part of the bill are more nearly adequate than those now in
effect, although the increase over present compensation, estimated by
the Commission to be on the average less than ten per cent, is certainly
conservative.^

(4) Provision for a Civil Service Advisory Council of a representative
character and of personnel committees in the various departments and
subdivisions thereof.

(5) Provision for appeals and the hearing of complaints on any mat-
ter coming under the jurisdiction of the Civil Service Commission.

(6) Removal of present restrictions covering transfers from one de-
partment to another.

(7) Provision for efficiency ratings upon which increases or decreases
in compensation shall be made.

These important provisions constitute the main features of
the reorganized civil service, and it is believed that the diffi-
culties discussed below can be easily remedied without injury to
the system, but on the contrary with great benefit to the service.
Congress is entitled to the thanks of the executive departments for
creating the Reclassification Commission and giving an oppor-
tunity for a thorough study of its report. The Commission has
done a service of tremendous importance, and presented a plan
that merits most careful consideration. Neither Congress nor
the Commission, however, would wish to have it enacted into
law unchanged if it can be shown that some of its provisions
would be detrimental to the best administration. The follow-

' The Bureau of Labor Statistics and the National Industrial Conference Board
find that the cost of living has increased a hundred per cent since 1914.

550 ROSA: REORGANIZED CIVIL SERVICE

ing suggestions are made after very careful study and conference
with many experienced administrators as well as with others
who look at the matter from other points of view.

13. INITIAL COMPENSATION AND RESTRICTION ON PROMOTION

Section 7 of the bill provides in paragraph (a) that "upon ap-
pointment to a position in a class, an employee shall be paid at
the minimum rate prescribed for such class."

It is a well established custom to appoint men receiving high
rank in competitive examinations to positions at higher salaries
than are given to those who get middle or low grades in the
same examination. These grades depend in part on the formal
examination (when such is held) and in part on the training and
experience of the men as shown in their papers. For example,
an examination may be held for associate physicist or chemist
at salaries ranging from $2000 to $2700 (according to present
salary scales), and a considerable number of men may pass the
examination with grades ranging from, say, 95 down to 70 per
cent. Several of the highest may be offered the maximum sal-
ary, and others $2400, $2200 or $2000. Finally, when all posi-
tions of associate physicist are filled, there may be some men
at the lower end of the register who are glad to accept a position
as assistant physicist at $1800, hoping to get an early promotion
to associate physicist at $2000 or more, for which they have
qualified. The new proposal is to make a very radical departure
in practice and to group all new appointees together and give
them the lowest salary in the class, in this case $2000. More-
over, it is provided that men cannot be promoted oftener than
once a year. It would, therefore, require several years for a
man to get up to the $2700 for which he was qualified upon
entering. The result, of course, would be that the better men
who deserved more than the minimum salary would refuse the
position, and less competent men would be appointed at the
lowest salary. The only way the $2700 men could be obtained
would be to grade them higher than would otherwise be neces-
sary, and rate them as physicists at $3000 and so pay them more
than they deserve in comparison with others, or induce them to

ROSA: REORGANIZED CIVIL SERVICE 551

take $700 less than they deserve and wait several years to get
up to what they should receive at the start. Either alternative
is bad. The only fair and businesslike method is to do what
has long been done, namely, to give men on entering salaries
that are as nearly just and equitable as it is possible with lim-
ited information to do, and if subsequently they are found to
have been rated too high or too low to remedy the error at an
early date. The same principles apply to clerical positions, to
the skilled trades, and the other classes of positions.

If men develop rapidly and deserve promotion more frequently
than the average they should receive it. By refusing to grant it
we not only do them an injustice, but we frequently drive them
out of the service and so do the government an injustice. More-
over, we discourage the ablest men by such a method and put
a premium on mediocrity. A system which requires the appoint-
ment of men and women of widely different merit at the same
salary, and refuses to recognize adequately exceptional ability
or achievement, cannot be a success in the government service
any more than it would be in private employment. Testimony
on this point is unanimous and to impose such a system upon the
executive departments would be a long step backwards.

14. REPORTING OF EFFICIENCY RATINGS

It is doubtful whether the provision of Section 8 (b) that effi-
ciency "ratings for each class be open to inspection dining regu-
lar office hours by any employees of such class" is a wise one.
It is like the marking system of school days, but goes further
and would permit busybodies to go to the office and get the marks
of all the men and women of a given class and make any use of
them they see fit. The theory of the provision is that if the ratings
are perfectly just the administrative officer can have no objec-
tion to their being made known; moreover, the employees wish
to know if they have been given the credit they deserve. If
they are not just and impartial, a complaint may be filed and
the matter be investigated. Unfortunately the rating of human
beings by other human beings is not a measurement of precision,
and if it were, the persons being rated would not agree with one

552 ROSA: REORGANIZED CIVIL SERVICE

another as to whether the ratings were just. It seems probable that
this provision would give rise to misunderstandings, heart-burn-
ings, and ill feelings, without doing any good. It would seem
to meet all requirements of the case if the record is always open
to the Civil Service Commission and any employee can learn
his rating if he desires it. It will be time enough to enter com-
plaint if employees are dissatisfied with the promotions, or with
the explanation or lack of explanation if promotions are not
made. EflEiciency ratings are not ends in themselves, but means
to an end. They are to assure systematic consideration of each
employee with respect to his work and his usefulness, and to
be a shorthand record of the judgment reached. The judgment
will appear publicly from time to time when promotions are made.
If the ratings are made pubUc before the promotion period, there
would be efforts made by some to get their ratings raised in order
to increase the chances of promotion. This would throw an
intolerable burden on personnel officers. If several hundred
thousand efficiency ratings of government employees were regu-
larly transmitted to the Civil Service Commission, a very large
number of clerks would be required to handle and file and study
them; and if administrative officers were to be overruled by
clerks on the evidence of such records, without personal con-
tact with such officers and without personal knowledge of the
employees, no end of trouble would be caused. It seems far
better not to transmit the efficiency records to the Commission
but to have them accessible to the representatives of the Com-
mission at all times, and made use of whenever complaints are
made and the Commission has any doubts about the merits of
a proposed promotion. They would also be examined for the
purpose of testing the completeness of the records of a given
unit of the service, and to see whether the ratings were in accord-
ance with the general system. In forming such a judgment it
would be necessary to confer with personnel officers and be able
to get full information about the men and women and their work.
It is therefore suggested that Section 8 (c) be omitted and that
the second sentence of Section 8 (6) be changed to read as follows :
"Such current ratings shall be open to examination by the repre-

ROSA: REORGANIZED CIVIL SERVICE 553

sentatives of the Civil Service Commission; and the rating of
any employee shall be given him on request."

15. METHOD OF APPOINTMENTS AND PROMOTIONS

Section 9, entitled "Promotion Appointments," describes an
elaborate method of filling vacancies or new positions and of
making promotions from one class to another. It is provided
that upon request from the head of a department the Commis-
sion shall certify :

(i) The names of employees available for transfer from some other
department, "one of whom shall be appointed unless the Commission
approves the appointing officer's written objections to such appointment."

(2) In that case the names of persons available for reinstatement are
certified, and must be investigated and one appointed, or all rejected
with reasons in writing.

(3) Then, if no appointment is made, a competitive examination shall
be held for the given position, open to anybody in the government service
qualified to compete.

(4) Finally, if none of these methods provides a satisfactory ap-
pointee, names may be certified from an eligible list established by
examination of applicants not in the government service.

This complicated and time-consuming process gives prefer-
ence to persons seeking a transfer or reinstatement over those in
the same bureau and in line for promotion. It violates one of
the most important principles of good administration, namely,
that when a man deserves promotion to a higher position in the
same line of work and for which he has been preparing, he should
receive it rather than a stranger who is brought in and put over
him. If the method were carried out as described, it would not
only be cumbersome and time-consuming, but would destroy the
morale of the service. It seems far better to continue to do as
heretofore, namely, to promote within the Bureau if there are
men who are competent and deserve promotion; if not, to apply
to the Civil Service Commission for eligibles, and these may in
the discretion of the Commission include the names of persons
eligible for reinstatement or transfer. Such a method, if intel-
ligently and conscientiously administered (as it is fair to assume
it would be under the improved conditions expected under the
reorganized service), would afford competitive promotion based
on efficiency, without the formality and delay incident to special

554 ROSA: REORGANIZED CIVIL SERVICE

examinations. If a man does not measure up to the prevailing
standard for promotion to the next higher grade or class (which
standard is determined by the best average of others in the same
class), he would not receive such promotion. He, therefore,
knows that he is in competition with others, and it is an effective
stimulus. On the contrary, he knows that if he makes good,
his position is secure, and he can be promoted without fear that
someone from a distance (who might be able to pass a better
examination) can take his position away from him. The following
paragraph is suggested as a substitute for (a) of Section 9 :

Section 9 (a). Whenever the head of a department desires to fill a
position othenvise than by promotion, he shall request the Commission
to certify the names of persons eligible to fill such position. Names
so certified may include those eligible for reinstatement or transfer
from one bureau or department to another. Any employee may apply
to the Commission for transfer, but transfers will be made only with
the approval of the Commission.

It is suggested that paragraph (c) of Section 9 be omitted, as
it describes a class of cases of rare occurrence, and the Commis-
sion can make rules for such cases without it being set forth in
detail in the law.

16. TRANSFERS

Section 10 provides for the transfer of an emplo3^ee from a
position in one class to a vacant position in the same class at
the same rate of compensation in some other department, with
the approval of the Commission. The approval of the admin-
istrative officers or heads of departments concerned is not re-
quired. At present such approval is necessary and it seems
desirable that this practice be continued, where a transfer on
relatively short notice is desired. Very seldom, if ever, would
it be refused under the new conditions assumed, if the reasons
for the transfer were such that the Civil Service Commission
would give its approval. It would appear desirable, however,
not to limit transfers to positions in the same class and at the
same salary. Ver>^ frequently men and women accept positions
in the government service below what they are qualified to fill,
and at salaries which are inadequate. They do so in order to get

ROSA: REORGANIZED CIVIIy SERVICE 555

a start, hoping for an early improvement in status. When an
opportunity occurs for a transfer to a higher position for which
they have already qualified, they should be permitted to accept
the better place, with the approval of the Commission. To
adjust misfits and correct injustices is a pleasure to administra-
tive officers as well as a duty, and it would be a misfortune to
have any impediment in the law to doing justice in such cases.
If it is suggested that advantage would be taken, if this were
permitted, to make undeserved transfers to positions at higher
salaries, the answer is that the Civil Service Commission must
approve the transfer. It is an open transaction, complaint can
be made by any employee who feels that he is injured, and it is
very improbable that such cases would occur often, if ever.

17. SYSTEMATIC STUDY OF PERSONNEL TURNOVER

The losses in the personnel due to resignations and dismissals,
and the transfers from one branch of the service to another,
should be systematically tabulated and studied by the Civil
Service Commission. There are many causes for such resigna-
tions and transfers that are inevitable and proper, and the re-
sultant resignations and transfers do not reflect upon the gov-
ernment's employment policy or upon the administration of the
service. However, resignations or applications for transfer due
to inadequate salary, too slow promotion, dissatisfaction with
working conditions or with the administration of a particular
unit of service should be investigated, and the information so
obtained would be of the greatest value in improving the service.
This would be a very effective method of locating and correcting
unfair or incompetent administration of the personnel.

Two of the most difficult questions to handle in the proposed
new system will be those involving modifications in the classifica-
tion and adjustments in the salary schedules. The government
is in competition with the industries, the colleges, and all ether
employers, and the scale of wages and salaries is partly deter-
mined by this competition. Conditions will vary from time to
time, and if the Civil Service Commission makes a systematic
and scientific study of the government's employment problems

556 ROSA: REORGANIZED CIVIL SERVICE

and policies and gives the administrators, individually and col-
lectively, the benefit of that study, it could not fail to raise the
standard of administration and benefit the service enormously.
The Commission could embody the results of this study in its
annual report so that Congress and the public would have a more
accurate knowledge of the conditions of the service, and any
recommendations to Congress respecting changes in classifica-
tion or in salary schedules could be supported by very full and
reliable data from actual experience. This kind of work could
be done by the Civil Servdce Commission better than by anyone
else, if a competent and adequate staff could be provided for the
purpose; and it is very essential that it be done competently, if
at all.

18. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION

In conclusion, it cannot be too strongly emphasized that the
breakdown of our present Civil Service system, in so far as it has
failed, is not due to the system itself but to the unfavorable
cohditions existing, which have made it impossible to carry out
the system properly. In the reorganized Civil Service system
described above, the main featiu-es of the Civil Service law and
procedure would be the same as now, but there would be eight
additions to procedure or improvements in conditions which
would together be of immense importance. These eight im-
provements in procedure and conditions are as follows :

(i) A system of standardized positions with more adequate salaries,
and provision for revising it and keeping it up to date.

(2) An enlarged and strengthened Ci\'il Service Commission.

(3) An Advisory Council to the Commission consisting of representa-
tives of employees and administrators.

(4) Civil Servdce extension agents or liaison officers detailed to the
various departments.

(5) Personnel committees made up of administrative assistants in all
the various bureaus and departments to assist in the administration
of the personnel.

(6) Employees' committees and systematic provision for hearing and
answering complaints.

(7) Efficiency ratings and promotions based on the same.

(8) The removal of restrictions on transfers and the provision of a
transfer register at the Civil Service Commission to facilitate deserved
and desirable transfers.

ROSA: REORGANIZED CIVIL SERVICE 557

These additions and improvements would complete and greatly
strengthen the present Civil Service system. So long as the
Civil Service Commission does not have the staff to advise and
cooperate effectively with administrative officers, and to coor-
dinate the system as a whole, it cannot be expected that it will
work satisfactorily. With an utterly inadequate scale of gov-
ernment salaries and a rapidly changing personnel among admin-
istrators as well as among employees generally, it cannot be
expected that administration will be entirely successful or satis-
factory. With no adequate provision for hearing and answering
complaints and correcting errors or injustices complained of,
it cannot be expected that employees will refrain from criticism.
Congress and the public hear not only of many ^well-grounded
complaints, but also of many that have little basis in fact. What
we should do is not discard a practicable and well-tried system,
nor discredit administrators who are today confronted with an
impossible task, nor add burdensome restrictions and cumber-
some routine which would make that task more difficult; but we
should, after removing the legal difficulties, round out and com-
plete the present system, educating and helping administrative
officers instead of hampering them in their work, and above all,
refrain from burdening the Civil Service Commission with an
enormous mass of routine administration which it would be im-
possible to handle successfully.

The responsible administrative and technical officers who con-
duct the various branches of the executive departments of the
government represent collectively more of ability, integrity and
lo3^alty, than they are commonly given credit for. They realize
more fully than those outside the government the defects and
inefficiency of the government service, although these are grossly
exaggerated in the press and on the platform. They also realize
better than outsiders the tremendous handicaps to efficiency which
are beyond their control. No private business could succeed
with such handicaps as well as the government does, and very
many do worse, as it is. If the executive departments could
have a fair chance for a few years, with a reorganized Civil

558 ROSA: REORGANIZED CIVIL SERVICE

Service system and a budget, they could show the country results
which would be both creditable and gratifying.

The United States government is the greatest business organ-
ization in the country. It employs more than half a million
men and women in hundreds of different kinds and grades of
work. The Civil Service Commission is doing its best to super-
vise the administration of the personnel of this great business,
which is not only larger but more complex than any other in the
country. If the Commission could have a larger and better paid
staff, its work would be done more adequately, the personnel in
all departments would be better handled, the service would be
elevated and the government would be enormously benefitted.
Surely no one can question the importance of this great task,
and no one doubts the need for improvement. Before adopting
a more complicated method of administration which will enor-
mously increase the difficulties of the Commission, let us have
a more adequate operation of the present system, with such im-
provement in conditions and in details of operation as can
readily be provided. It is believed that the changes suggested
above, and summarized below, in the administrative proposals
of the Congressional Reclassification Commission are justified
by experience, and that they would simplify and improve the
procedure proposed and remove the most serious difficulties to
the Report as presented.

WST OF CHANGES PROPOSED IN THE BILL OF THE RECLASSIFICA-
TION COMMISSION (S. 4106, March 22, 1920)

1. Sections {d). Omit second sentence. (Section complete
without this sentence.)

2. Section 7 (a). Omit last sentence.

(b). Omit last sentence.

3. Section 8 (6). Change second sentence as indicated on page

552.

(c). Omit entire paragraph.

4. Section 9 (a). Substitute paragraph on p. 554.

(c). Omit entire paragraph.

5. Section 10 (a) . Change so as to permit transfer at a different
salary in the same class or to another class.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. io December 4, 1920 No. 20

GEOCHEMISTRY. — Notes on the analysis of mineral sulphide
water. ^ J. G. Fairchild, U. S. Geological Stir\^ey.

In the course of analysis of a sample of water from the Texas
oil field which was highly charged with alkaline sulphide, the
author was at a loss to find a method of detecting and estimating
not only the total sulphide sulphur but also the carbon dioxide
as half bound and wholly bound. When the soluble salt of a
heavy metal, such as cadmium chloride, is added to an alkaline
sulphide water an insoluble sulphide is formed and an amount
of hydrochloric acid is liberated equivalent to the sulphide pres-
ent; thus,

MvSH + CdCl, = CdS + MCI + HCl

where M is an alkali metal.

If only the total sulphide and carbonate are to be determined,
the problem is very simple, for all that is necessary is to intro-
duce into a measured quantity of the mineral water undergoing
analysis the soluble salt of a heavy metal, acidify the water with
a small quantity of acetic acid, and absorb the liberated carbonic
acid in the usual way, but if the presence of bicarbonate is to be
determined, then a modification of this procedure becomes neces-

' Published by i)ermission of the Director, U. S. Geological Survey. Received
Oct. 15, 1920.

559

560 fairchild: mineral sulphide water

sary. As soon as the sulphide is precipitated the Uberated acid
immediately breaks up all the carbonate, or at least an uncertain
quantity of it.

A series of synthetic waters was prepared, each being the ap-
proximate counterpart of the mineral water under examination.

TABLE I

Analysis of the Texas Mineral Water in P.\rts per 100,000

Positive

ions

Negative

ions

2480.0

4231 0

261 .3

SO4

131 9

46.9

40.0

None

C03
HC03

28.7
9 7

This ratio of S to total COo is 1.4 to i.o. Tests were first
made on water containing only sodium hydrosulphide and
sodium carbonate. In preparing the sodium hydrosulphide, 100
cc. N/io NaOH was saturated cold with hydrogen sulphide, then
heated to boiling in a current of hydrogen sulphide and cooled.
A few cubic centimeters of this liquid remained neutral to phenol -
phthalein for a few seconds. This solution was then mixed with
one containing o.i gm. NaoCOs, and the whole was diluted to i
liter with water free from carbon dioxide. The percentage of
total sulphur, as determined iodometrically, was 0.369 gm. per
liter. This amount was confirmed gravimetrically by precipitat-
ing the sulphur as cadmium sulphide, which was in turn converted
to and weighed as cadmium sulphate. The result showed 0.388
gm. of sulphur per liter, or a somewhat higher figure for the
giavimetric method. However, the difference between the two
methods was only 5 per cent and could easily be accounted for
by slight impurities in the cadmium sulphate or by difference
in the samples taken. The sulphur content of the natural min-
eral water at the time of determining the alkalinity was found
to have changed to 0.156 gm. of sulphur per hter. The total
alkalinity as determined by N /20 HCl was equivalent to 0.600

fairchild: MiNERAiy sulphide: water 561

gm. NaOH per liter. This amount was divided as follows:
NaOH equivalent to S", 0.195 gm. per liter; NaOH equivalent
to CO3", 0.382 gm.; NaOH equivalent to HCO3', 0.064 gm. — a
total of 0.641 gm. NaOH per liter, or a difference of 6.4 per cent
from the titration value.

The apparatus for determining carbon dioxide was of the
usual form, a good illustration of which can be found in figure
21 (page 218) of Bulletin 700 of the United States Geological
Survey. The only change made was the substitution of a Peligot
tube containing K2Cr207 + H2SO4 for the calcium chloride tube
which is attached directly to the water condenser. This mixture
was preferred for oxidizing traces of hydrogen sulphide and ab-
sorbing moisture and fumes of ammonia as explained further on.

The method. — Briefly, the method used is based on the expul-
sion of half bound carbon dioxide together with volatile hydro-
gen sulphide from the sample by boiling it for 5 minutes in a
rapid current of pure hydrogen, and fixing these products in an
absorbing solution composed of ammoniacal chlorides of cad-
mium and barium. This is the first operation. The second
involves the separation of these volatile products by acidifying
this ammoniacal mixture with acetic acid in order to liberate
again the carbon dioxide while the hydrogen sulphide remains
fixed as cadmium sulphide. The ammoniacal absorbing solu-
tion is composed of 10 cc. strong ammonia, freed from CO2 and
containing a few cc. of BaCl2 solution, about 5 cc. CdCl2 solution
(i cc. = o.oi gm. S), and about 20 cc. water free from CO2.
This solution is contained in a Peligot tube which is attached
directly to the water condenser. A 100 cc. sample of the arti-
ficial water was taken by means of a pipette and introduced into
the boiling flask. A stream of purified hydrogen (from Zn -f-
HCl) was passed rapidly for a few minutes through the appa-
ratus; then heat was applied to the flask, which was boiled
vigorously for 5 minutes and allowed to cool fior half an hour
in the current of hydrogen. The Peligot tube containing CdS
and possibly BaCOs was then substituted for the flask whose
remaining sulphide content was precipitated by the addition

562 fairchild: mineral sulphide water

of a solution of 5 cc. CdClo and set aside for the moment
and stoppered. Connection was then made to the regular
carbon dioxide train (with the chromic acid tube), air free
from carbon dioxide was drawn through the train and 15
cc. i-i acetic acid was introduced into the ammoniacal cadmium
chloride, partly precipitated as cadmium sulphide together with
barium catbonate, by means of a small separatory funnel attached
to the Peligot tube. The tube was immersed in a boiling water
bath, and the aspiration continued for 30 minutes. Any un-
neutralized ammonia fumes may now be caught in the chromic
acid. After the test the soda-lime tube showed no increase in
weight. The flask containing the non- volatile hydrogen sul-
phide and carbon dioxide was next replaced, 4 cc. i-i acetic acid
was added to decompose the normal carbonate, and the solution
was boiled for a few minutes and cooled 30 minutes more in a
current of air free from carbon dioxide. The soda-lime tube
showed a gain of 0.0407 gm., whereas 0.0415 gm. was present.
Therefore no carbonate formed in this water, a fact confirmed
by repeated tests.

Inasmuch as no half-bound carbon dioxide was formed in the
above mixture a new solution was made up of a like amount of
sodium hydrosulphide, but containing 0.84 gm. of NaHC03 per
liter, the chemical equivalent of the sodium hydrosulphide pres-
ent. The first test on 100 cc. boiled as above described in a
current of hydrogen showed that 0.0078 gm. CO2 had been
driven over into the Peligot tube, as against a possible 0.022 gm.
An iodometric determination of the volatilized sulphide gave
0.0098 gm., or 38.8 per cent of the total present. Below is a
table of the results obtained by decreasing the ratio of the sul-
phide to the bicarbonate present in the generator. This ratio
was effected by using smaller aliquot portions, and at the same
time keeping the amount of sodium bicarbonate nearly constant.
Although the water mixture was kept under a layer of toluol in
a well-stoppered bottle, its sulphide concentration grew less
within a week, hence an occasional check on the sulphide value
was necessary.

fairchild: mineral sulphide water

563

TABLE 2

Table Showing the Behavior ok NaSH and NaHCOa Alone When Boiled

IN Hydrogen

Fixed CO-2

Volatile S (by difference)

No. of test

Quantity in
grains

Percentage

Quantity in
grams

Percentage

I«

4
5

0.044
0.044
0 . 044^
0.066
0.055

86.3
80.0
72 .2b
83.2
86.3

0.0253
0.0126
0.0159

0.0157
0.008

38.8
46 -5

74-9'^
675

a Same room temperature for 1^/4 hours: CO2 87.7; S 24.4.
b Very rapid boiling.
c Hi.ffh.

The percentages shown indicate that the fixed COo remains
fairly constant. The figure for volatile COo ranged from 0.006
to 0.014 gm., depending on the rate of boiling and the flow of
hydrogen. This rate has a more marked effect on the amount
of volatile sulphide as well. An effort was therefore made to
pass the hydrogen at as nearly a uniformly rapid rate as possible.
In all the tests made the sum of fixed and volatile COo was
within 0.00 1 to 0.003 g^i- of the total present. The quantities
of sulphide were in closer agreement with the total present,
about o.ooi gm. Because of the greater ease in dealing with the
fixed sulphide left in the flask, this portion was determined iodo-
metrically, and the volatile sulphide was obtained by difference.
From time to time blank tests for COo were made in order to
check up the apparatus, no blank of more than o.ooi gm. being
accepted. Most blanks were nearly zero.

Another solution was now prepared, containing magnesium
chloride in an amount equal to that present in the natural water
to be analyzed, namely, about 3.3 gm. MgClo.6HoO per liter.
It was thought possible that such a solution might on boiling
show hydrolysis of the MgClo, the effect of which would be to
liberate more half -bound COo than had been recovered above.

564

fairchiIvD: mineral, sulphide water

TABLE 3
Table Showing the Additional Effect of MgCU

Fixed CO;

Volatile S

No. of Test

Quantity in
grams

Percentage

Quantity in
grams

Percentage

I
2

0.044
0.044
0.077

66.3
71. 8
76.6

0.0243
0.0126
0.006

11 1
73-5
66.6

The alkalinity of this water as determined by titration with
Ar/20 HCl was equivalent to 0.928 gram NaOH per liter. This
amount was divided in terms of NaOH as follows :

TABLE 4
Equivalent Radicals in Terms of NaOH in Grams per Liter

COs"

HCO3'

Total

0.253

0.068

0.672

0.993

The difference between the two totals obtained is only 6.5
per cent, a fairly close agreement after the errors liable to occur
in individual determinations are taken into consideration.

A final solution containing 4.7 gm. MgS04.7H20, 7.3 gm. an-
hydrous CaClo, 100 cc. AVio NaSH, 0.84 gm. NaHCOs, and 15
gm. NaCl per liter was prepared. An excess of CaCOs separated
out, leaving the solution saturated with calcium bicarbonate.
The carbon dioxide remaining in solution was 0.313 gm. per
liter, and the sulphur was 0.278 gm. per liter. A test on 100 cc.
of this solution gave: fixed CO2, 73.5 per cent; volatile sulphur,
89.2 per cent. Upon comparing all the figures obtained, it will be
observ^ed that although no relation exists between the total car-
bonate and the total sulphur, yet a relation does exist between
the fixed or volatile sulphur and the total sulphide.

Summary. — The alkahnity of a water containing a mixture of
the sulphohydrates and bicarbonates of the alkalies and alkahne
earths appears to increase continuously with the escape of hydro-

bartsch: northwest coast mollusks 565

gen sulphide or with the precipitation of atomic sulphur. In
such a water, therefore, the number of bicarbonate ions is grad-
ually decreasing as the number of the hydroxyl ions is increasing.
The acidity of calcium and magnesium chlorides toward the
alkaline sulphides is pronounced but has less effect on the bi-
carbonates.

Although the addition of a few cubic centimeters of neutral
barium chloride solution to an ordinary carbonate water aids in
breaking up the bicarbonate ions, it has no such effect if the
water contains a considerable quantity of alkaline sulphides.

Hydrogen sulphide is volatilized much quicker and more com-
pletely at boiling than at room temperature, but a certain per-
centage is not expelled by a rapid current of hydrogen even after
one or two hours.

A discussion of the reduction of sulphates by organic matter
has been published by C. E. Siebenthal.^ The author has been
able to produce noticeable amounts of H2S in a hydrogen gener-
atorcontaining about 20 per cent H2SO4, about 0.5 gm. NaCl,
some KI and SnCl2, some CaS04 and organic matter derived
from the oxidation of fruit in nitrosulphuric acid. The H2S was
sufficiently strong to mask the Gutzeit test made for arsenic.

Acknowledgment is due to Dr. Chase Palmer, recently of the
United States Geological Survey, at whose suggestion and with
whose cooperation this work was undertaken and carried out.

CONCHOLOGY. — The Caecidae and other marine mollusks from
the northwest coast of America.'^ Paul Bartsch, U. S.
National Museum.

The "Summary of the Marine Shell Bearing Mollusks of the
Northwest Coast of America," by Dr. William H. Dall, about to
be published by the U. S. National Museum as Bulletin 112,
contains references to a number of species, of which no descrip-

2 U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 606: 62-66. 1916.

1 Published by permission of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution. Re-
ceived October 22, 1920.

566 bartsch: northwest coast moli^usks

tions have as yet been published. I have therefore briefly char-
acterized these forms in the present paper to give a proper status
to these names.

The family Caecidae is being subjected to a thorough revision
at the present time by the writer, and only those West American
forms which are listed in the above mentioned summary are con-
sidered here. The species belonging to the region farther south
will be dealt with in the fuller report. ,

Key to the Genera of the Family CAEcmAE

Operculum conic Brochuia.

Operculum flat or concave.

Sculpture absent (excepting incremental lines) Farlulum.

Sculpture not absent.

Sculpture of raised spiral ridges only Elephantulttm.'^

Sculpture not of raised spiral ridges only.

Sculpture of raised spiral ridges and axial r'mgs... Elephantanelhmt.
vSculpture of axial rings only.

Axial rings strong and distantly spaced Caecum.

Axial rings slender and closely spaced Micranelhim.

Fartulum Carpenter, Cat. Mazatlan Shells, 525. 1856.

Shell smooth, excepting microscopic incremental lines. Type Caecum
laeve C. B. Adams.

The genus Fartulum is represented by four species in our Northwestern
waters, of which three are undescribed. (^f these, F. orcutH Dall is
the smallest and has the aperture slightly contracted. It is also some-
what laterally compressed, which lends the aperture an oval outline.
The other three species are circular in section. Of these, F. occidentale
is the largest. This has scarcely an indication of a lateral spur to the
plug, while in F. hemphilli and F. bakeri a well developed claw-like
spur is present. Fartulum hemphilli is always larger in equivalent
stages and lighter colored than F. bakeri.

^ Since the early whorls are coiled in planorboid fashion, and the adolescent and
adult stages are simply portions of the solutely coiled part, it is proper to refer to
the sculpture that coincides with the incremental lines, that is parallels the aper-
ture, as axial, and that at right angles to this as the spiral. The latter, therefore,
coincides with the long axis of the adolescent and adult shell. This nomenclature
is used in conformity with that employed in all my former papers on Gastropods.

bartsch: northwest coast mollusks

567

TABLE I
Additional Data Pertaining to the Above Fartulums

Fartuliun orcutti, Dall

Fartuliun occidentale, sp. nov .
Fartulum hemphilli, sp. nov.. .
Fartulum bakeri, sp. nov

Cat. No.

U. S. N. M.

60927 Type
152 166 Type

340728 Type

340729 Type

Height
in mm.

2 . I

31
2-5

Diameter
in mm.

0.7
0.9
0.7
0.6

Type
locality

San Diego.
San Pedro.
San Pedro.
San Pedro.

Fartulum orcutti Dall is the most abundant species on the West
Coast; thousands of specimens have been examined. It ranges from
vSan Pedro to Lower California. F. occidentale Bartsch is also abundant,
and ranges from San Pedro to Lower California. F. hemphilli Bartsch
is rather rare, and occurs from San Pedro to Lower California. F.
bakeri Bartsch is very abundant, ranging from San Pedro to Lower
California.

Elephantanellum, gen. nov.

vSurface of shell marked by raised ridges which coincide with the
long axis of the shell; annulations strongly develooed; operculum thin,
corneous, concave. Type Caecum hexagonum Cpr.

The genus Elephantanellum has a number of representatives in the
more southern waters of the Pacific. From north of San Diego, only
a single species is known, Elephantanellum carpenteri, sp. nov. This
is a large thin shell, in which the segments of all stages are marked by
very fine spiral sculpture and a little stronger incremental lines, while
the last portion of these stages bears well developed annuli. These
increase in number in succeeding stages. The type, Cat. No. 340726,
U. S. N. M., comes from San Diego and measures: length, 4.8 mm.;
diameter, 0.9 mm. We have seen it from various stations from San
Pedro south to Lower California.

Caecum Fleming, Edinb. Encycl. 7:97. 1817.

Brochus Brown, 111. Rec. Conch. Great Britain, 124-125, in part.

1827.
Cornuoides Brown, 111. Rec. Conch. Great Britain, 125, in part. 1827.
Odontina Zborzewski, Mem. Soc. Nat. Mosc. 3: 310. 1834.
Odontidium PhiHppi, Moll. Sci. Utr. i: 102. 1836.
Anellum Carpenter, Cat. Mazatlan Shells, 319. 1856.

Surface of the adult shell marked by numerous axial annulations.
Operculum thin, corneous, concave. Type Dentalium trachea Montagu.

568

bartsch: northwest coast mollusks

Five species of Caecum are known living on our Pacific shores north
of San Diego. Four of these are undescribed. Some of the unnamed
forms have at times been Hsted under names bestowed by Carpenter
and Adams upon species occupying a more southern habitat. Three
of these five species, Caecum californicum, C. dalli and C. grippi are
robust forms and are much larger than the other two, C. licalum and
C. diegense. Caecum californicum is larger than C. dalli and C. grippi
and has about forty strong annuli, separated by narrow spaces, while
C. dalli and C. grippi are of about the same size ; the former has about
twenty annuli on the last segment, while the latter has only about
fifteen. While the annuli are of almost the same width, the spaces
between them are much wider in C. grippi than in C. dalli. Caecum
licalum has about eighteen broad annuli, while in C. diegense about
twenty narrow slender rings are present.

TABLE 2
Additional Data Pertaining to the Above Caecums

Caecum dalli, sp. nov

Caecum grippi, sp. nov. . . ,
Caecimi licalum, sp. nov. .
Caeciun diegense, sp. nov.
Caecimi californicum Dall.

Cat.

No.

U. S. N. M.

340724

Type

206961

Type

340725

Type

340726 Type

15719

Typel

Height
in mm.

2.5
2-3
2 .2
2 .0
2.8

Diameter
in mm.

0.7
0.7

0.5
0.4
0.8

Type
locality

San Diego.
San Diego.
San Diego.
San Diego.
San Diego.

Caecum californicum Dall is the most abundant West American
Caecum. It is known from many stations from Monterey, California,
to Lower California. C. dalli Bartsch is known from many stations
from San Diego to Lower California, C. licalum Bartsch from San
Pedro and San Diego. C. diegensis Bartsch has only been reported
so far from the littoral zone at San Diego. C. grippi Bartsch was
dredged in 15-20 fathoms off' San Diego.

Micranellum, gen. nov.

Surface of the shell marked by closely spaced, slender, axial annula-
tions; operculum thin, corneous, concave. Type Caecum crebricinctum
Carpenter.

Seven species of Micranellum are known living in northwestern
America. Five of these have the plug at the truncated apex forming
an attenuated, obliquely placed spur, the base of which is narrower

bartsch: northwest coast moi^lusks

569

than the diameter of the plug. Of these three — Micranelluni ped-
roense, catalinense, and profundicolum — have the anterior portion of
the adult shell bulbously expanded, while in the other two, M. barkley-
ense and oregonense, the diameter does not increase at the anterior ter-
mination. Of those with the bulbously expanded anterior portion, M.
pedroense has very fine closely spaced annulations, there being about
a hundred present in the adult segment of the shell, while in M. cata-
linense and profundicolum the annuli are less numerous and more pro-
nounced, there being about seventy-five in the last segment. The
shell of M. catalinense is shorter and stouter than that of M. profundi-
colum. The two species which lack the bulbous anterior expansion,
M. barkleyense and oregonense, are distinguished from each other at
once by their great difference in size, M. barkleyense being both longer
and thicker than Micranelluni oregonense.

Two of the seven species, M. rosanum and crebricinctum, have the
spur of the plug expanded basally to cover the entire width of the
plug. Of these, M. rosanum is easily distinguished from M. crebri-
cinctum by being much longer and having the annuli much more distinct
than M. crebricinctum.

TABLE 3
Additional Data Pertaining to the Above Micranellums

Micranellimi pedroense, sp.

nov

Micranelliim catalinense, sp.

nov

Micranellum profundicolum,

sp. nov

Micranelluni barkleyense, sp
nov

Micranellum oregonense, sp
nov

Micranellum rosanimi,sp. nov.

Micranellum crebricinctum
Carpenter

Cat. No.

U. S. N. M.

Height
ia mm.

Diameter
in mm.

Type locality-

346723 Type

5-3

1-5

San Pedro.

211331 Type

4-5

1-3

Off Santa Rosa Is-
land.

209960 Type

5-5

1-3

Off San Diego.

211589 Type

6.2

1.6

Barkley Sound,
Vancouver Id.

216413 Type

4.6

I .2

Forrester Island,
Alaska.

211859a Type

6.9

I .2

Off Santa Rosa Is
land.

14930 Type

6.2

1-3

San Diego.

57 o bartsch: northwest coast mollusks

Micranelhim pedroense Bartsch is a shallow water form known to
range from San Pedro to San Diego. M. catalinense is a deep water
species, known from about 50 fathoms from Santa Rosa and Catalina
Islands. M. profundicolwn is a deep water form known from 55 to
199 fathoms off San Diego. M. harkleyense has so far been recorded
only from Barkley Sound in 8 to 32 fathoms, M. oregonense only from
shallow water, at Forrester Island, Alaska, and M. rosanum only from
a station off Santa Rosa Island in 48 fathoms. M. crehricinctum Car-
penter is a shallow water species abundantly distributed from IVIon-
terey to Lower California.

Turbonilla (Chemnitzia) engbergi, sp. nov.

vShell small, elongate conic, thin, semitransparent, bluish white.
Nuclear whorls decollated. Postnuclear whorls moderately rounded,
appressed at the summit, marked by broad, slightly protractively slant-
ing axial ribs, of which fourteen occur upon all of the remaining turns,
except the last, on which there are sixteen. These ribs are a little
broader than the spaces that separate them, and they become slightly
flattened and weaker toward the summit. The intercostal spaces are
deeply depressed pits, which terminate somewhat posterior to the
summit of the succeeding turn, leaving a broad, smooth band at the
suture. Suture strongly constricted. Periphery of the last whorl
well rounded, not crossed by the strong axial ribs. Base short, well
rounded, marked by incremental lines only. Aperture subquadrate,
posterior angle obtuse ; outer lip thin ; inner lip slightly sinuous, decidedly
obliqueh' inserted, the inner edge having a decidedly protractiye slant;
parietal wall deyoid of callus.

The type and another specimen, Cat. No. 334489, U. S. N. M., were
collected by Dr. C. C. Engberg at San Juan Island, in the Gulf of
Georgia. The type has almost 8 whorls remaining and measures:
altitude, 3.7 mm.; diameter, i.i mm. Four additional specimens from
the same station are in Dr. Engberg' s collection.

This species occurs considerably farther nbrth than any heretofore
known Chemnitzia.

Odostomia (Amaura) engbergi, sp. noy.

Shell elongate oyate, yellow, a little paler toward the tip. Nuclear
whorls eroded in all the specimens seen. Postnuclear whorls narrowly
tabulatedly shouldered at the summit, quite strongly roimded, marked
by yer}^ fine slightly slanting lines of growth and equally fine spiral
striations, the combination, when yiewed under the microscope, giving
to the surface a cloth-like texture. Suture strongty marked. Periph-
ery of the last whorl inflated, strongly rounded. Base strongly
rounded. Aperture narrowly oyate; posterior angle very obtuse; outer
lip thin ; inner lip short, very oblique, somewhat sinuous, reflected over

bartsch: northwest coast mollusks 571

the base and appressed to it except at the extreme tip, which alone is
free; a strong fold is present on the inner lip a little anterior to its
insertion; parietal wall covered by a thin callus.

The type and three additional specimens, Cat. No. 334492, U. S. N.
M., were collected by Dr. Engberg ofif vSan Juan Island, Gulf of Georgia.
The type has a little more than 5 whorls and measures: altitude, 7
mm.; diameter, 3.4 mm. Eight additional specimens from the same
station are in Dr. Engberg's collection.

Odostomia (Amaura) sanjuanensis, sp. nov.

Shell elongate ovate, wax yellow. Nuclear whorls decollated. Post-
nuclear whorls narrowly tabulatedly shouldered, moderately rounded,
marked by regular retractively slanting lines of growth and fine spiral
striations, which give to the surface a cloth-like texture when subjected
to high magnification. In addition to this sculpture, the surface of the
shell is marked by strong incremental lines and more or less irregular
and irregularly distributed spiral threads, which produce a malleated
pattern. Suture strongly marked. Periphery of the last whorl well
rounded. Base moderately long, well rounded, marked like the spire.
Aperture obliquely ovate; posterior angle obtuse; outer lip thin; inner
lip very obliquely retractively slanting, somewhat flexuose and pro-
vided with a strong fold at its insertion ; parietal wall covered by a thin
callus.

The type. Cat. No. 334491, U. S. N. M., was collected by Dr. C. C.
Engberg near San Juan Island, Gulf of Georgia. It has 5V 2 whorls
and measures: altitude, 7.2 mm.; diameter, 3.5 mm. Another specimen
from the same locality is in Dr. Engberg's collection.

Odostomia (Amaura) washingtonia, sp. nov.

Shell moderately large, broadly elongate conic, pale horn colored.
Nuclear whorls too eroded to permit of description. Postnuclear
whorls strongly tabulatedly shouldered at the summit, moderately
rounded, marked by decidedly retractively slanting lines of growth and
numerous very finely incised spiral striations. vSutures conspicuously
marked by the tabulated summit. Periphery of the last whorl inflated,
strongly rounded. Base short, inflated and strongly rounded, marked
like the spire. Aperture rather large, almost subquadrate, slightly
oblique; posterior angle obtuse; outer lip thin; inner lip flexuose, re-
flected over the base, but not appressed, the axis being decidedly pro-
tractively slanting. A strong columellar fold is present at the um-
bilical chink. Parietal wall covered by a thick callus.

The type. Cat. No. 334490, U. S. N. M., was collected by Dr. C. C.
Engberg at San Juan Island, Gulf of Georgia. It has 7 whorls and
measures: altitude, 8.7 mm.; greater diameter, 4.2 mm. The decidedly
turreted outline of this shell, together with its broadly conic shape, will
distinguish it at once from any of the other West Coast Amauras.

572 bartsch: northwest coast mollusks

Alaba catalinensis, sp. nov.

Shell elongate conic, milk white, early whorls well rounded, the
succeeding turns a little less so. All whorls polished, appressed at the
summit, and marked by fine retractively slanting lines of growth.
Beginning with the second turn, varicial thickenings make their appear-
ance; these are ver}^ feeble on the early whorls, but increase steadily
in strength until on the last turn they form decidedly raised sinuous
ridges. The last whorl, too, shows well marked malleations. Aperture
oval; posterior angle obtuse; inner lip curv^ed and reflected, but not
appressed to the base; parietal wall covered by a thick callus.

The type. Cat. No. 213369, U. S. N. M., was collected by Dr. vS. S.
Berry in 40 fathoms, off Catalina Island, California. It has ten and
a half whorls and measures: length, 5.3 mm.; diameter, 1.9 mm. It is
at once distinguished from the other two West American species by
the absence of incised spiral lines.

Cyclostremella concordia, sp. nov.

Shell ver>' small, planorboid, hyaline, semitransparent. Early
whorls eroded in all the specimens seen. Yhe last two whorls curve
suddenly to the deeply channeled suture on the upper surface; the rest
gradually, evenly rounded. Periphery of the last whorl well rounded,
Base openly umblicated. The entire surface of spire and base is marked
by rather strong, irregularly developed incremental lines and more or
less equal and equally spaced fine spiral lirations. The intersections
of these two sculptural elements give to the surface of the shell the
characteristic beaded sculpture of the genus. Aperture very broadly
ovate, almost subcircular, the narrower portion being at the posterior
angle; peristome thin, not reflected; parietal wall covered by a thin
callus. Operculum thin, corneous, paucispiral.

The type and two additional specimens, Cat. No. 340862, U. S. N.
M., were collected by Professor Carl C. Engberg at Olga, Washington.
The type measures: altitude, i mm.; diameter, 2 mm. Two additional
specimens from the same locality are in Professor Engberg' s collection.
The Museum also has specimens from Friday Harbor, Washington.

This species has been known from the last named locality under the
names of Skenia, and Skeniopsis planorbis Fabr.

It is easily distinguished from its nearest neighbor, Cyclostremella
californica Bartsch, by its smaller size, more robust form and weaker
sculpture.

ABSTRACTS

Authors of scientific papers are requested to see that abstracts, preferably
prepared and si^ed by themselves, are forwarded promptly to the editors.
The abstracts should conform in length and general style to those appearing in
this issue.

GEOLOGY. — Deposits of manganese ore in Nevada. J. T. Pardee
and E. L. Jones, Jr. U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 710-F. Pp. 34
(109-242), pi. I, figs. 2. 1920.

The report describes between twenty and thirty deposits rather
generally distributed over the State of Nevada, from which about
25,000 tons of manganese ore were produced during the war. Under
the head of "Deposits formed by replacement of country rock by car-
bonate or silicate minerals that have become partly or completely
oxidized," are described the Siegel mine, near Schellboume, and several
deposits elsewhere, that show a characteristically cavernous texture
in the oxidized zone and are dense below it, where they consist largely
of carbonate and silicate of manganese. Like the metalliferous quartz
lodes of the surrounding region, to which these bodies are closely re-
lated, their origin is ascribed to solutions ascending from intrusive
magmas.

Deposits formed by replacement of country rock by oxide minerals,
as typified by the Three Kids deposit near Las Vegas, consist largely
of somewhat porous but not cavernous masses of wad and other soft
oxides. The origin of the manganese is obscure in these and in several
bodies near Golconda that are classified as silicate and carbonate
lenses in metamorphic rocks.

Minerals of special interest mentioned in the report are alabandite,
a sulfide of manganese which is found rather plentifully in the Siegel
mine, and exceptionally bright colored rhodonite that is abundant in
the O'Brien and Tucker deposit near Golconda. J. T. P.

GEOLOGY. — Deposits of manganese ore in Costa Rica and Panama.
J. D. Sears. U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 710-C. Pp. 31 (61-91),
pi. I, figs. 28. 1919.

During the war the Geological Survey investigated deposits of ore
of metals used in the manufacture of ferro-alloys, pig iron, and steel,
and made estimates of tonnage available as substitutes for foreign
ores. This paper describes forty deposits of manganese oxide in the

573

574 abstracts: technology

Province of Guanacaste, on the Pacific Coast of Costa Rica, and two
recently discovered deposits in Panama. The Costa Rican deposits
are widespread, but most of them are either of low grade or of small
extent, and in October, 191 8, ore was being produced at only three
localities. Development of ore bodies of any reasonable size could be
done at low cost, but only one other group of prospects seems promising.
The two deposits examined in Panama are northeast of the Canal
Zone on the Atlantic side, and the ore in sight was estimated at 25,000
to 30,000 tons. An assay of the ore from one deposit showed 55 per
cent of manganese. J. D. S.

GEOLOGY. — Peat in the Dismal Swamp, Virginia and North Carolina.
C. C. OSBON. U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 711-C. Pp. 19. (41-59),
pis. 3. 1919.

The peat deposits of the Dismal Swamp lie in shallow basins that
originated in an extensive depression of the Columbia group of forma-
tions. The Dismal Swamp covers approximately 2,200 square miles,
of which a little more than 700 square miles has been permanently
drained to a depth of 3 feet or more by Dismal Swamp Canal and smaller
ditches. Much of the drained land is farmed. In the remaining
1500 square miles peat deposits ranging in depth from i foot to 20 feet
are found. The thickest beds lie in the region east and northeast of
Lake Drummond, where peat 18 feet deep was exposed by compara-
tively recent excavations. The peat in this area is black and low in
inorganic impurities and is probably the best in the swamp. In gen-
eral, the depth of the peat gradually decreases toward the edge of the
swamp, where the peat finally merges into the sands of the adjoining
areas. It is estimated that the average thickness of the peat is 7 feet.
On the assumption that the uncultivated area of the Dismal Swamp
is 1,500 square miles, that about one-half of this area is covered with
peat averaging 7 feet in depth, and that 200 tons of dry peat per acre-
foot may be obtained, the^j the total available peat in the Dismal
Swamp is 672,000,000 tons. R. W. Stone.

TECHNOLOGY. — The MacMichael torsional viscosimeter. Winslow

H. Herschel. Journ. Ind. and Eng. Chem. 12: 282. 1920.

The MacMichael viscosimeter contains a pendulum hanging at the

center of a motor-driven cup. Near the upper end of the pendulum is a

disk graduated from zero to 300, on which readings may be made of

abstracts: technology 575

deflections up to 600 M (MacMichael degrees). On adjusting the
speed of the instrument used in these tests, as directed by MacMichael,
it was found that a speed of 1 14 revolutions per minute was required to
give a deflection of 10 M with water at 20° C. One series of tests gave
for viscosities over 0.15 poise, the equation

absolute viscosity in poises = /x = 0.0042 (M— 17) (i)

while a second series with variable speed gave

M = 1.95 ju w + 0.000833 7 n~ (2)

where n is the speed in r. p. m., and 7 is the density in g/cm^. These
two equations are not exactly equivalent, the difference being at least
partly due to the fact that the torsion wire was removed and replaced
between the two series of tests. The method of fastening the wire in
the pendulum does not permit an accurate adjustment of its length.
For this and other reasons the above equations are not intended for
application to all instruments with medium-sized wires. Each instru-
ment should be calibrated by the operator with liquids of approximately
the same density as those to be tested. Water is objectionable on
account of its high density and the small deflection. The Bureau of
Standards is prepared to certify to the viscosity of calibrating liquids
having a viscosity not exceeding 20 poises. W. H. H.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED

SOCIETIES

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

146TH MEETING

The 146th meeting of the Washington Academy of Sciences was
held at the Cosmos Club on Thursday, April 15, 1920. Dr. Vernon
Kellogg, Chairman of the Division of Educational Relations, National
Research Council, delivered an address on Europe's food in war and
armistice.

147TH MEETING
The 147th meeting was held at the Cosmos Club on May 20, 1920.
Dr. E. B. Rosa, of the Bureau of Standards, delivered an address
entitled Economic importance of the scientific work of the government.
This has since been published.^

148TH MEETING

The 148th meeting was held at the Cosmos Club on June 15, 1920.
Dr. W. VAN BemmelEn, Director of the Magnetic and Meterological
Observatory of Batavia, delivered an illustrated address entitled The
volcanoes of Java.

Java, the most important, though not the largest island of the Malay
Archipelago, is chiefly of volcanic nature. It possesses about 50
volcanoes, with their lateral cones, of which about 20 are more or less
active. They may be called the rulers of the island, since the climate,
weather, agriculture, and soil are largely dependent on them. The
fertile alluvial plains have been formed by their "ejecta" and "ef-
flata."

In contrast with the intricate features found in mountain folding, in
the realm of the volcanoes, such geometrical patterns are met with as
the straight line, the circle, and the oval. The reason for this is that
the causes which produced them were simple, just as in the case of the
geometrical line. It is, therefore, comparatively eas}^ to understand
their life stor}^ Javanese volcanoes are especially instructive in this
regard.

In 1883, Mt. Krakatoa gave the world an interesting lesson in
volcanology, when by its terrible eruption two of its secondary cones
were blown up and a lateral cone rent asunder. Careful soundings
have been made in the newly-formed basin, the bottom of which is
280 meters below sea level, whereas previously the central cones, Per-
buwatan and Danan, rose to altitudes of about 250 meters and 450
meters, respectively. The return of the flora and fauna has been
studied.

1 This Journal,, 10: 341-382. June 19, 1920.

576

proceedings: Washington academy of sciences 577

It is a well-known fact that a lava mountain has often been formed
by magma squeezed out of the earth's interior in a comparatively
quiet way. An interesting instance of this occurred in 1919, when, in
a crater of Mt. Galungun, a flat dome 400 meters in diameter and 100
meters in height was built up in a period of three weeks.

Mt. Merapi, now 3,000 meters high, built up repeatedly a heap of
lava blocks in its crater, alternately with severe eruptions. The
present lava cone began to form in 1883, and has now attained a height
of 300 meters. It fills the crater completely, and red-hot blocks are
being hurled over its rim and fall down the slopes of the mountain.

One of the most terrible volcanoes of Java is Mt. Kloot, because it
has a crater-lake which has been repeatedly thrown out by the explo-
sions of the crater furnace. Thirty-eight million tons of water, mixed
with volcanic ash and erosion products of the ravines, flow down to
the plains as a terrible mud-stream. This happened four times in
the course of the nineteenth century, and again in 1901 and 191 9.
Soundings with a maximum thermometer in 191 6 revealed no indica-
tion of a rise in temperature, and the native official who visited the
lake weekly reported no activity. Shortly after the 1919 eruption
an attempt was made to drain the lake, so as to prevent the formation
of the destructive mud-stream in case of a future eruption. The boring
of a tunnel, at the level of the crater bottom, through the crater wall,
has been started, notwithstanding the tremendous difficulties involved.

Another dangerous crater lake is that of Mt. Idjen, the most easterly
of Java's volcanoes. Its water is of great acidity, containing in solu-
tion about 6 per cent of hydrochloric acid and about 2 per cent of sul-
furic acid, besides many other chemical compounds. The acid stream
which drains this lake is neutralized by another containing lime.
However, when the lake overflows, the neutralization is insufficient and
the acid water does much damage in the coastal plain. A sluice has
been built to remedy this evil. Layers of sulfur are found in the crater
walls, and natives cross the lake in canoes to dig out the sulfur. In
191 6 soundings were made in the lake and its temperature was investi-
gated by means of a batho thermograph of new design, by which water
pressure and temperature were registered simultaneously. In the
central pool, 260 meters in depth, concentrated acid at a tempera-
ture of about 100° C. was encountered. The work had to be discon-
tinued, however, owing to the loss in the pool of both the thermo-
graphs and the maximum thermometer. When new instruments had
been made by Dr. J. Boerema, of the Batavia Observatory, renewed
activity of the crater prevented the resumption of the work.

149TH MEETING

The 149th meeting was held in the auditorium of the New National
Museum, October 23, 1920, at 8.15 p. m., the occasion being an address
by Dr. E. B. Rosa, of the Bureau of Standards, entitled A reorganized
Civil Service. The address was published in the last number of this

578 proceedings: biological society

Journal (pp. 533-558). It was discussed by Col. W. B. Greeley,
Chief of Forest Service; Dr. George Otis Smith, Director of the U.
S. Geological Survey; Dr. F. G. Cottrell, Director of the Bureau of
Mines; Hon. Martin Morrison, President of the Civil Service Com-
mission; and Mr. Lewis Meriam, Assistant Director of the Institute
for Government Research.

\\'iLLiAM R. Maxon, Recording Secretary.

BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY

608TH MEETING

The 608th meeting was held at 8.30 p.m., March 6, 1920, in the
lecture hall of the Cosmos Club, with Vice-President \"ernon BailEy
in the chair and 50 persons present. The minutes of the meetings held
on February 7 and February 21 were read and approved. On recom-
mendation of the Council, Mr. Tracey I. Storer, of the Museum of
Vertebrate Zoolog\% Berkeley, Calif., and Miss Penelope Brown,
East Falls Church, Va., were elected to membership.

Under the heading of Briej notes and exhibition of specimens, Dr.
M. B. WaiTE exhibited the panicled buds of Paulownia tomentosa, call-
ing attention to the rather unusual feature of naked buds, without
winter scales or special protection. This is an example, as has already
been pointed out, of a tropical tree which had adapted itself physio-
logically rather than structurally, in spreading northward, to more
severe conditions.

Prof. A. vS. Hitchcock gave a brief account of his itinerary in his
winter's investigation in British Guiana and the biological conditions
pre\ailing there, and the opportunities for collecting and study, as yet
difficult to use to full advantage.

Regular Program

W. P. Taylor: The birds and mammals of Mount Ranier National
Park.

Air. Taylor spoke on the birds and mammals of Mount Ranier, his
communication being illustrated by sixty-four stereopticon slides illus-
trating features of the flora, glaciers, scenery, and more especially the
birds and mammals of Mount Ranier National Park. Half a dozen
of the latter were posture studies of mounted birds or mammals in their
natural surroundings, prepared by Prof. W. T. Shaw of the State Col-
lege of Washington. All the remainder were from life, being taken
principally by W. L. FinlEy of Portland, Oregon, W. T. Shaw and J. B.
FlETT of the National Park Service. Especially noteworthy w^ere the
photographs of the Cony, Marmot, Chipmunk and Black-tailed Deer.
{Author s abstract.)

Mr. Taylor's paper was discussed by Prof. A. S. Hitchcock.

D. R. Crawford: The life history of the spiny lobster.

The spiny lobster iPanulirus argus) is of considerable economic im-
portance. The value of the catch brought into Key West in 19 18 was
$58,000. The fishermen employ wire traps and the bully net, which

proceedings: biological society 579

is a modified dip net, the hoop of which is set at right angles to the pole.

The spawning season is in the spring from the latter part of Febru-
ary to the first half of May. The act of spawning was observed at the
biological station. The female remains in an upright position, and the
seminal vesicle is scraped off by using the fifth pair of dactyls just
before the eggs are extruded. The eggs are all laid in about six hours.
They are carried on the last three pairs of pleopods, but it is not known
how they are attached. The incubation period was observed to be
eighteen days. The eggs change in color from red to gray as the yolk
material is absorbed. The eggs were hatched at Key West in McDon-
ald jars and the first larv^a or phyllosome was recovered.

The female molts from seven to ten days after the eggs hatch and
mating occurs while the shell is still soft. The copulation act follows
Astacus in details more closely than Homarus or Cambarus, the female
lying on her back with the male standing over her.

The molting act was observed, the shell splitting along the sides of
the carapace and rising upward and forward as the cephalothorax is
withdrawn. The shell hardens in from eighteen days to three weeks
to the extent that it cannot be indented by the fingers. {Author's ab-
stract.)

The paper was illustrated by lantern slide views of lobster houses,
eggs, larvae, and adult lobsters. Mr. Waldo Schmidt discussed the
paper, showing by means of a map the distribution of the larvae of
the spiny lobster off the southern California coast.

609TH MEETING

The 609th meeting was held March 20, 1920, in the lecture hall of
the Cosmos Club. Dr. A. D. Hopkins called the meeting to order at
8 p.m., with 47 persons present. The minutes of the 6o8th meeting
were read and approved. Upon the recommendation of the Council,
Miss K. G. Symmonds of Washington was elected to active membership.

Under the heading of Brief notes and exhibition of specimens, Dr. R.
W. vShuf^ldT exhibited a specimen of the Moloch {Molochius horridus),
a lizard from Australia. It is fairly common and feeds upon ants,
especially upon a certain malodorous form which infests houses. These
lizards are sometimes encouraged to live in houses to keep the houses
free from the w^orse evil. Thousands of ants may be eaten bv the
lizard at a meal.

Dr. L. O. Howard commented upon the severe cutting back of the
sycamore trees on a portion of Eleventh vStreet, said to be done on ac-
count of a blight. Dr. M. B. Waite further remarked that the blight
of sycamore was common in the District, causing long shoots. It is
not known that the cutting of the trees back in such drastic manner
will control the blight, yet the trees will endure the treatment and
develop symmetrical leafy tops.

Mr. Thomas E. Snyder exhibited a photograph of a nest of an ant.
The nest is similar in external appearance to the nests of some termites
which build above ground.

580 proceedings: biologicai^ society

Regular Program

F. L. Scribner: The lure of Rock Creek Park.

A brief history of the development of Rock Creek Park was given
and its main geographical features described. Then a very extended
series of colored lantern sUdes was shown, making a tour of the park.
Many general views were shown of the roads, bridges, and plant asso-
ciations, in different seasons, and also portraits of some of the indi-
vidual blossoms or clusters.

Mr. Scribner's paper was discussed by Prof. A. S. Hitchcock, Dr.
R. W. ShufeIvDT, and Dr. M. B. WaiTE. In response to a question,
Mr. Scribner said that some of the pictures referred to as showing
extreme detail were taken by a miniature focusing camera, whose
plates were about one and one-half inches in length.

Thomas E. Snyder: The lead cable borer.

With but few exceptions injury to metal by insects is accidental ; the
metal blocks the emergence of an adult or is in the path of a burrowing
larva. Lead is the metal most commonly injured but tin, zinc, quick-
silver, etc., are also damaged. Bullets, roofing, piping and lining of
tanks are some of the large variety of products damaged.

One of the most serious cases of direct injury to metal by insects is
that done to tubular lead telephone fuses by the beetle Dermestes
vulpinns Fab. The purpose of the fuse is to protect apparatus from
high currents; it melts or "blows" and "grounds" the high current.
By eating through the lead (alloy) tape of the fuses, the insects neces-
sitate replacement, as if blown out.

A much more extensive and serious type of injury is that caused to
the lead sheathing of aerial telephone cables in California by the beetle
Scobicia declivis Lee. This beetle normally breeds in recently felled
cord wood piled for fuel, "powder posting" the wood. Another abnor-
mal habit is to bore through the staves of wine casks. This beetle
attacks the cable in the summer where it lies in contact with the metal
suspension ring, which affords it a leverage in boring. The hole allows
moisture to penetrate the insulation and numerous widely, separated
"short circuits" are caused all at once during the fall rains. A high
percentage of "wire trouble" is caused by this beetle.

No remedy has as yet been found. Chemical repellants, various
different types of suspension rings and hard tin and antimony alloys
have proved ineffective. Infested cordwood should be burned before
the middle of April. {Author's abstract.)

Mr. Snyder's paper was discussed by Dr. L. O. Howard.

610TH MEETING
The 6ioth regular meeting was held in the lecture hall of the Cosmos
Club, April 3, 1920, at 8 p.m. President Hopkins called the meeting
to order with forty-two persons present. The minutes of the 609th
meeting were read and approved. Upon recommendation of the Coun-
cil, Mr. Emerson Stringham of the U. S. Patent Office was elected to
membership.

proceedings: biological society 581

Regular Program

R. W. Shufeldt: Observations on the cervical region of the spine in
chelonians .

A series of lantern slides was shown which presented photographs
of the cervical vertebrae of an adult specimen of Amyda cartilaginea
from Japan ; a photograph of a drawing by Dr. Shufeldt showing the
lateral view of the skull of Amyda Jerox and different views of its leading
cervicals ; and, finally, sagittal sections of the neck of the young Amyda
Jerox, showing the leading vertebrae of the cervical region in that
chelonian. These sections were furnished by Dr. C. Judson Herrick,
Director of the Hull Laboratory of Anatomy of Chicago University,
and were made expressly for Dr. Shufeldt's demonstrations from ma-
terial supplied by him. Various authorities were cited, as Giinther,
Claus, Sir Richard Owen, Hay, Boulenger, Raynolds, and others, who
in their writings contended that chelonians generally possessed but
eight cervical vertebrae in the neck, and that the bone found in this
region of the spine, between the atlas and third vertebrae, was not a
vertebra but an independent bone, which they designated as the
"odontoid bone." Dr. Shufeldt, in partial agreement with Professor
Huxley, contended that this so-called "odontoid bone," inasmuch as
it possessed an odontoid process in Amyda jerox, and was developed
in the notochord, as in the case of the axis vertebra in other vertebrata,
was, in fact, the second vertebra of the neck in chelonians, notwith-
standing the fact that, for some reason or other, its processes had, in
time, disappeared. It had not, however, lost its usual articulations
with the atlas and the third cervical vertebrae. This point having
been demonstrated, it gave chelonians nine cervical vertebrae instead
of eight, as usually stated in works upon the osteology of those animals.
{Author's abstract.)

Dr. Shufeldt's paper was discussed by Mr. J. W. GidlEy.

W. C. KIendall: Trout of the Great West.

The ancestral Salmonids were marine forms which gradually acquired
an anadromous habit, and some of them later a permanent fresh water
abode. They had invaded every accessible region suitable to their
existence, which their present distribution and the structure of the
various species indicate must have been during a time of free inter-
communication of oceans, and comparatively uniform conditions in
those portions of all seas in which they lived. The latest period when
free intercommunication and comparatively uniform conditions ex-
isted was during the Tertiary. Paleontology and recent faunas indi-
cate that it could not have been prior to the Tertiary.

The ancestral Salmonids may have occupied the Pacific, Arctic, and
Atlantic Oceans, or may have been restricted to the Arctic. Changes
which were evidently initiated as early as the Miocene may have
pushed some Arctic ancestors southward into the Pacific, if they did
not already occur there. It is well established that in the Pliocene the
Pacific was cut off from the Arctic by land connections between Alaska
and Siberia. The Salmonids were then actually segregated into two

582 proceedings: BIOL,qGICAL SOCIETY

groups, Pacific and Atlantic, with no possible means of intercommuni-
cation. With the closing of the Arctic-Pacific gateway, two indepen-
dent lines of development began.

The original ancestral forms doubtless occupied a northern zone,
the southern limit of which was a temperature barrier. The advancing
glacial conditions pushed the zone southward and formed a northern
border -barrier beyond which no aquatic animal could pass.

The evolution of the environment was accompanied by evolution of
the occupant, with the very evident result that there now exist groups
of fishes adapted to different environmental conditions. Authorities
have indicated that the different environmental conditions are most
clearly defined by range of temperature. The different groups of Sal-
monids are most clearly determined by range in number of scales and
vertebrae.

The Pacific vSalmonidae, with the exception of the chars, which are
probably of Atlantic origin, are sharply defined from the Atlantic Sal-
monidae by cranial characters. The changing environmental condi-
tions and the indirect barrier of distance, which had preceded the
Pacific- Arctic separation, had effected a partial segregation and modi-
fication of the ancestral form, which the previously mentioned land
barrier and the glacial period carried on to the results manifested by
present distribution of more or less differentiated forms.

It is a well known fact that, as a rule, northern fishes are character-
ized by smaller scales and more numerous vertebrae than those of the
south.

The present conditions necessary to the existence of the trouts indi-
cate that the trouts were evolved in and synchronously with the changes
of environmental conditions, culminating in those of the present time.
As the environmental zone and its subordinate zones moved northward
with the recession of the glacial conditions, the occupants of the re-
spective subordinate zones entered accessible fresh waters.

It could not have been until the recession of the glacial conditions
that the marine trout were able to permanently occupy inland waters,
so as northern waters became accessible they were occupied by trout.
Inasmuch, however, as all regions were not provided with accessible
fresh waters, the present faunas represent only those which were de-
rived from the respective subordinate zones reaching the outlet of the
inland region at the time of accessibility. Such outlets may have been
accessible to one or two zones, and not to remaining zones. The trout
of present inland isolated waters indicate by their structure from which
zones they were populated and by what routes they probably reached
these waters. (Author's abstract.) The paper was illustrated by maps,
diagrams, and photographs of the trouts discussed.

611TH MEETING

The 6 nth regular meeting was held April 17, 1920, at 8 p.m., in the
lecture room of the Cosmos Club. Dr. A. D. Hopkins called the meet-
ing to order with 80 persons present. The minutes of the 6ioth meet-

proceedings: biological society 583

ing were read and approved, and on the recommendation of the Coun-
cil, Mr. Raymond A. St. George of East Falls Church, and Miss
Patty Thumb Newbold of the Bureau of Plant Industry, were elected
to membership.

The following informal communications were presented : Dr. Alex-
ander Wetmore exhibited a lantern slide prepared by Dr. M. W. Lyon,
Jr., former Recording Secretary, showing mounted portions of (i) the
beef tape worm and (2) the fish or broad tape M^orm. The latter is a
rare parasite of man in this country, though common in the region sur-
rounding the Baltic Sea. Most specimens taken in this country are
from immigrants from that region, though the species is apparently
established in the Great Lake Region. The specimen exhibited had
an entire length of 6.250 millimeters. (See Lyon, Journal of the Amer-
ican Medical Association 74: 655.)

Mr. W. P. Taylor reported a third mammal seen upon the summit of
Mount Ranier, 7000 feet above timber line. A black bear, probably
lost during a snow storm, was wandering upon the summit.

Dr. Paul Bartsch stated that a new subgenus of Teredo had been dis-
covered in Dutch Guiana, especially important as infesting greenheart
wood, formerly supposed to be immune, making long burrows 4 to 5
feet long. Prof. A. S. Hitchcock brought out the fact that the green-
heart wood in question was that of British Guiana and valuable for
marine construction, not that of Dutch Guiana, which is not valuable.

Dr. R. W. Shufeldt showed lantern slides of an insect which he
found infesting sycamore trees, commonly known as beech blight.
The insect occurs in immense numbers and is covered with white fibers.
It is hard to combat mechanically or with sprays. A predaceous cater-
pillar tangles them in a web and feeds upon them.

Dr. Alexander Wetmore read a letter from Mr. George Haley,
Teacher for the Bureau of Fisheries at St. Pauls Island, Alaska, ad-
dressed to the Bureau. It was stated that native song birds were be-
coming very scarce, as the Aleutian Wren, the Rosy Finch, and the
Pribilof Snowflake. Only the Alaskan Longspur, a summer migrant,
seems to be holding its own.

Regular Program

Dr. H. M. Smith: Address of the retiring President, Some biological
problems in the Yellowstone Park.

The speaker mentioned the unrivalled facilities afforded by the park
for the study of wild animals and the many thousands of visitors who
in recent years are becoming acquainted with its biological and other
attractions. The anticipated large increase in visitors in the next few
years will create a situation that demands attention, especially because
of the heavy drain that will be made on the game fishes. The speaker
had made two official trips to the park, the last in 1919, and brought
to the notice of the society some of the practical biological problems
confronting the government authorities — problems that particularly
concern the fishes but are not restricted thereto.

584 proceedings: biologicai. society

After alluding to the origin of the fish life in the park, to the limited
number of native species (ten), and to the successful introduction of
five trouts of America and Europe, the speaker discussed the following:

(i) The problem of keeping out obnoxious fishes. The introduction of
predatory fishes like the pikes, pike perches, and basses would be un-
wise and might be a calamity to the trouts and grayling. Two plant-
ings of black bass in 1 893 and 1 895 were, fortunately, unsuccessful, but
in waters where the black bass were said to have been deposited the
speaker found a great abundance of yellow perch (Perca flavescens),
whose introduction was apparently without official record or sanction.
(2) The problem of food for the native and introduced trouts. There is a
scarcity of food for adult trouts in Yellowstone, Lewis, and Shoshone
lakes; cannibalism prevails; and the fish are driven at times to a diet
consisting almost exclusively of caddisflies caught singly at the surface.
It is proposed to introduce small cyprinid and other non-predatory
fishes in the expectation that the lakes may support a more numerous
supply of trouts. (3) The problem of parasitism of the native trout.
The tapeworm parasite that, in its larval stage, infests a large propor-
tion of the redthroat trout {Salnio lewisi) in Yellowstone Lake, passes
its adult stage in the white pelican. The trout could be freed from the
parasite by the eradication of the pelican, and the intensity of the
parasitism might be reduced by diminishing the number of pelicans
and by providing other fish on which the pelicans and trout could in
part subsist. This problem merges into the next. (4) The problem of
the pelicans. The pelicans present a double problem: responsibility for
the parasitism of the trout and destruction of large numbers of trout.
The speaker's census of the pelicans in the park in 1919 indicated not
over 1,300 adult and young birds. The consumption of fish by peli-
cans was regarded as not inordinately large, in proportion to the size
of the waters and the abundance of the redthroat trout, which is the
chief food of the pelicans. The statement of Mr. Ernest T. Seton
before the Biological Society on January 24, 1920, that the Yellow-
stone Park pelicans eat only diseased trout and therefore do no harm
was controverted. The extermination of the pelicans was not advo-
cated by the speaker, who had recommended to the park authorities
that the birds be kept under close observation and their number be
reduced by destroying a part of their eggs, after it had developed that
they were taking an unduly large toll of trout and were counteracting
the government's fish-cultural work. (5) The problem of maintaining
the fish supply in the park. The fishes are the only wild vertebrates in
the park whose deliberate and general killing by visitors is allowed and
encom-aged. The maintenance of the fish supply in the smaller waters
against yearly increasing destruction constitutes a serious practical
problem. The restrictions on fishing now imposed — size and string
limits — may have to be extended, but, in the opinion of the speaker,
the situation for the present may best be met by increasing the abun-
dance of fish by artificial means rather than by further curtailing the
anglers.

proceedings: biological society 585

The address was concluded by an account of the fish hatching carried
on in the park by the Bureau of Fisheries, and attention was drawn to
the great debt that the country and the park owe to fish culture and
fish acclimatization for making the park a veritable anglers' paradise,
affording probably better and more varied trout fishing than can be
had elsewhere in the United States. Some of the advantages of arti-
ficial propagation over natural propagation were pointed out.

Numerous colored lantern slides of streams and lakes in the park
served to indicate the extraordinary attractions among which fishery in-
vestigations and fish culture are conducted; and there were shown also
colored views of geysers and hot springs in some of which collections
of sediment and algae had been made. Among some of this material
that had been obtained for and examined by Dr. N. A. Cobb there were
nematodes representing undescribed species — the first recorded from a
hot spring. (Author's abstract.)

612TH MEETING

The 6 1 2th meeting was held in the lecture hall of the Cosmos Club,
May I, 1920. Dr. T. S. Palmer presided, calling the meeting to order
at 8 o'clock with 30 persons present. The minutes of the 6 nth meet-
ing were read and approved. Upon recommendation of the Council
Dr. J. N. Aldrich of the National Museum and Eric D. Reid of the
Fish Division, National Museum, were elected to membership.

Under the heading of 5m/ notes and exhibition of specimens, Dr. R. W.
Shufeldt, having collected all the salamanders known to occur in the
District of Columbia except the Cave Salamander, exhibited lantern
photographs of six of them. He exhibited two specimens of the spotted
trumpet leaf {Sarracenia variolaris) in full bloom, from near Orlando,
Florida. The specimens have been accepted by the Botanical Gardens.

Dr. T. S. Palmer mentioned the tendency of animals in semi-domes-
tication or protection to breed earlier than in the wholly wild state.
Thus bison in the west have been born in April, where in the wild state
they are born in June. Pelicans in Florida normally have two breed-
ing seasons. May and November. Recently, under protection, the
birds arrive earlier and begin to breed in September.

Dr. C. D. Marsh stated that loco weed is now common in
New Mexico and Arizona. The stand is quite heavy for that plant.
The plant periodically recurs, since the seeds are practically water
proof and withstand several seasons of moderately dry weather but a
few wet seasons will cause them to germinate.

Regular Program

Prof. A. S. Hitchcock: Floral aspects of British Guiana.

An account was given of Prof. Hitchcock's recent trip to British
Guiana for the purpose of studying the grasses and collecting the flow-
ering plants and ferns. The work was cooperative between the U. S.
Department of Agriculture, the Gray Herbarium, and the New York
Botanical Garden. About three and one-half months were spent in

586 proceedings: biological society

the colony, from October to February. The geographical features of
British Guiana and the meteorological conditions, especially as to their
ecological relations, were described, also the distribution of population,
the general conditions of living, and the commercial products. Prof.
Hitchcock also described his itinerary, illustrated his remarks with
photographs of plants observed and botanical conditions. In answer
to questions it was brought out that Prof. Hitchcock's sample of sugar
cost ten cents per pound, and that mosquitoes occur everywhere but
not so abundantly as in our north. Malaria occurs.

A. A. DooLiTTLE, Recording Secretary.

613TH meeting

The 613th meeting was called to order by Past President Palmer at
8.20 p.m., May 15, 1920, in the lecture hall of the Cosmos Club, with
47 persons present. The minutes of the preceding meeting were read
and approved.

Under the head of general notes Dr. Palmer referred to the recent
meeting of the American Society of Mammalogists and the wealth of
material presented in papers on 20 topics. Then followed remarks by
Dr. Wetmore on a collection of bones taken by H. E. Anthony from
Porto Rican deposits and submitted to him for identification. Several
species proved to be new and the collection as a whole tends to fill
gaps in the known distribution of birds.

Regular Program

Alexander Wetmore: Use of powder down feathers in birds. This
paper will appear in full in Condor.

W. P. Taylor: Habits of the kangaroo rat in Arizona.

The big kangaroo rat {Dipodomys spectabilis) , the large rounded mounds
of which are so conspicuous a feature in many localities in the southwest-
em United States, is found to be of considerable economic importance.
Its habit of food storage is of particular interest, as it hoards large
quantities of the seeds or crowns of several kinds of grama grasses and
needle grasses, including some important forage species. Although
considerable information on the life history and habits of the animal
has been acquired, further investigations are necessary, if a thorough
understanding of its relation to its environment is to be gained. Dis-
cussed by Messrs. Wetmore, Goldman and Marsh.

E. A. Goldman: The elk of the Jackson's Hole region in Wyoming.

Forage conditions were very adverse in Jackson Valley and the win-
ter unusually long and severe. There was some starvation of elk at
certain outlying points, but the main herd wintered fairly well through
feeding carried on by the Biological Survey and the State of Wyoming.
An emergency purchase of hay by the Biological Survey undoubtedly
saved the lives of thousands of elk. Discussion by Drs. Shufeldt
and Marsh.

E. A. Goldman, Recording Secretary, pro tern.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

A general plan to coordinate the work of the various associations
interested in changes in the executive departments of the Federal Gov-
ernment was set on foot on October 5, when John T. Pr.\tt, former
Secretary of War Stimson, Herbert Hoover, PauIv M. Warburg,
M. O. LEighTon and C. T. Chenery met and decided to call a meet-
ing of representatives of all interested organizations on October 14. A
general plan will be submitted by the National Committee on Gov-
ernmental Economy.

The following educational courses are being given at the Bureau of
Standards: H. L. Curtis: Advanced electricity and magnetism, h. B.
TuckERMAn: Theory of functions. L. H. Adams: Physical chemistry.
I. C. Gardner: Optical instruments and lens design.

At the regular meeting of the Board of Surveys and Maps on Octo-
ber 12, the committees on Coordination, Highway Maps, and Hydro-
graphic Charts made complete reports, which are being prepared for
distribution.

The National Academy of Sciences has purchased the block bounded
by B, C, Twenty-first, and Twenty-second Streets, N. W., near the
Lincoln Memorial. The site will be used for the erection of a home
for the Academy and the National Research Council. Funds for the
building have been allotted by the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

The representatives of the various organizations constituting the Fed-
erated American Engineering Societies met in Washington on Novem-
ber 18-19.

The Grass Herbarium of the U. S. National Museum has recently
received from the Berlin Botanic Garden two consignments of grasses,
consisting of 100 specimens from Africa and South America, and 126
specimens nearly all of which were types of species described from
South America, " chiefly the Andean region, by Dr. Pilger. In pro-
portion to its size, the collection is the most valuable ever received by
the Herbarium.

The mounted skeleton of an extinct Pleistocene wolverine from a
cave near Cumberland, Maryland, has recently been added to the
paleontological exhibits at the National Museum.

At a meeting at the Chemists' Club in New York City on October
15, Dr. C. L. Alsberg, Chief of the Bureau of Chemistry, and Dr.
F. G. CoTTRELL, Director of the Bureau of Mines, presented the Gov-
ernment's arguments in favor of the bill concerning patents by Federal
employees (H. R. 9932 and S. 3223).^ Representatives of the chem-
ical industries opposed the bill but offered no substitute to accomplish

' See this Journal 10: 400, 425. 1920.

587

588 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

what Messrs. Alsberg and Cottrell deemed very desirable and neces-
sary objects, namely, the development of inventions and discoveries
which are made by employees incidentally to the regular work of the
scientific bureaus, as well as the protection of such inventions against
unfair exploitation to the detriment of the public.

The U. S. Department of Agriculture has become a member of the
American Engineering Standards Committee. This committee con-
sists of representatives from the five large engineering societies, the
Army, the Navy, and the Department of Commerce, and several organ-
izations dealing with safety codes and fire protection. Messrs. A. T.
GoLDBECK, of the Bureau of Public Roads, D. J. Price, of the Bureau
of Chemistry, and E. H. Clapp, of the Forest SerAdce, have been ap-
pointed to represent the Department of Agriculture.

An "Industrial Alcohol and Chemical Division" and a "Permit
Division" were established on October 15 in the prohibition unit of the
Bureau of Internal Revenue, to divide and handle the work of the former
Division of Technology. Mr. J. M. Doran has been appointed head
of the Industrial Division, and Dr. A. B. Adams will be in charge of the
Permit Division.

The publication and information work of the Department of Agri-
culture has been reorganized, and Mr. Harlan Smith has been ap-
pointed Director of Information to have general supervision of all these
activities both in Washington and in the field.

Dr. C. L. Alsberg, chief of the Bureau of Chemistry, U. S. De-
partment of Agriculture, was elected president of the Association of
American Dairy Food and Drug Officials at the recent convention of
the Association at St. Louis.

Dr. Henry M. Ami, who has been since January, 191 7, at the British
Embassy in Washington in charge of matters concerning war metals,
minerals, etc., returned to Ottawa in September to resume his pale-
ontological and geological work with the Geological Survey of Canada,

Mr. William B. Brown, associate physicist, of the aeronautic power
plants section of the Bureau of Standards, has resigned to become in-
structor in physics at the Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio.

Mr. J. P. CocKEY has been appointed research associate at the
Bureau of Standards by the Super Cement Company, Limited, and will
study methods of using oil in connection with portland cement.

Dr. Whitman Cross, of the U. S. Geological Sur\'ey, has been ap-
pointed Honorary Associate in Petrology at the National Museum,
succeeding the late Dr. J. P. Iddings.

Mr. Hubert M. Freeman, associate physicist of the radio section.
Bureau of Standards, has resigned to accept a position with the West-
inghouse Electric and Manufacturing Company, East Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania.

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS 589

Mr. Victor R. Gage, mechanical engineer, of the aeronautic power
plants section of the Bureau of Standards, has resigned to accept a
position in the Department of Experimental Engineering, Cornell
University, Ithaca, New York.

Mr. C. W. GiLMORE, of the Division of Paleontology, National
Museum, through the courtesy of Mr. O. H. Reinholt, of the Treasury
Department, was enabled to visit the cave recently discovered in the
limestone rocks in the vicinity of Keedysville, Maryland. It was
hoped that the remains of extinct animals might be found, but none
were discovered. Though not as extensive as the Luray caverns,
the cave contains several lofty rooms and passages, decorated with
various forms of stalactitic incrustations.

Dr. AivES Hrdlicka, of the U. S. National Museum, is delivering a
course of lectures on man's antiquity and on the origins of the more
important existing races and nations, at the American University, 1907
F Street.

Dr. Carl O. Johns, chief of the color laboratory at the Bureau of
Chemistry, U. S. Department of Agriculture, resigned in November to
become director of a newly-established department of general research
for the Standard Oil Company of New Jersey.

Dr. Adolph Knopf, formerly of the U. S. Geological Survey, has
been appointed associate professor of physical geology and petrology
at Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut.

Mr. J. O. Lewis, chief petroleum technologist of the Bureau of
Mines since 191 8, resigned on November 15 to take up private work
as petroleum technologist. Mr. A. W. Ambrose, superintendent of
the Bureau's experiment station at Bartlesville, Oklahoma, has been
appointed to succeed Mr. Lewis.

Mr. S. K. LoTHROP has returned to Washington after spending
the summer at the British Museum and other English institutions. Mr.
Lothrop will resume his studies on the Central American pottery in
the division of American Archeology of the National Museum,

Major Lawrence Martin, of the General Staff Corps, U. S. Army,
is giving the inaugural series of the Gilman Memorial Lectures on
Geography, at Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore. The general
subject of the series is Geographic factors affecting foreign trade.

Mr. T. W. NoRCROSS, assistant chief engineer of the Forest Service,
U. S. Department of Agriculture, since 191 3, has been appointed chief
engineer of the Service to succeed O. C. Merrill, who resigned recently
to accept the secretaryship of the Federal Power Commission.

Mr. Samuel R. Parsons, associate physicist, of the aeronautic
power plants section, Bureau of Standards, has resigned to accept a
position as instructor in physics at the University of Michigan, Ann
Arbor, Michigan.

Mr. Albert B. Peck, associate physicist of the cement, sand and
stone section, of the Bureau of Standards, resigned on September 15,
to become assistant professor in the Department of Mineralogy,
University of Michigan.

Mr. H. PiTTiER, of the U. S. Department of Agriculture, who is at
present in Venezuela, will accompany a party of vSwiss engineers who
are expected in Venezuela in January for the purpose of investigating
doubtful points of the Venezuela-Colombia boundary as recently arbi-
trated by the King of Spain. The Commission will traverse the terri-
tory extending from a point on the Rio Meta to the headwaters of
the Guainiia in the Rio Negro basin, a region which has probably
never been visited by naturalists.

Mr. Daniel H. Simpson has resigned from the chemical staff of the
Bureau of Standards to accept a position in the sales department of
the Edison Electric Appliance Company, Inc., of Chicago, Illinois.

Messrs. E. N. Turnquist, physicist, and G. G. Sward, physical
chemist, have been appointed research associates at the Bureau of
Standards by Sears, Roebuck and Company of Chicago, to study the
methods of standardization of mechanical devices and commercial arti-
cles on a physical and chemical basis.

Mr. H. M. Westergaard has been appointed a research engineer
at the Bureau of Standards by the American Concrete Association, to
investigate the properties of flat-slab concrete and tile structures.

Mr. G. M. Williams, associate engineer of the cement, sand and
stone section of the Bureau of Standards, has resigned to accept a
position as professor of civil engineering at the University of Saskatch-
ewan, vSaskatoon, vSaskatchewan.

Dr. Sadao Yoshida, of the Department of Pathology, Osaka Medical
College, Dr. T. Minowa, now at Cold vSpring Harbor, Long Island,
and Prof. Hiko Matsumoto, of Sendai University, \'isited Washington
in October.

JOURNAL

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Vol. io December 19, 1920 No, 21

BOTANY. — The history of kidney cotton. Frederick L. Lew-
TON, U. S. National Museum.^

It is often difficult to determine the botanical identity of the
cultivated forms of an important plant like cotton, on account
of the extensive transport of seed from one country to another
which has taken place, the changes brought about in these
forms while adjusting themselves to the new conditions, and
the results of natural or artificial crossing. In the case of cotton
the meagre and incomplete descriptions of cotton plants usually
given in books of travel, and found even in many botanical
works, make it extremely difficult to trace the origin and dis-
tribution of a large number of distinct species and varieties.
The type of cotton, however, known as kidney, chain, or stone
cotton, in which the seeds of each cell adhere firmly together
in the form of a kidney-shaped mass, instead of lying separated
from one another enveloped in more or less cotton lint, has such
a unique and constant character in its clusters of seeds that its
identification in even very incomplete descriptions is a com-
paratively easy matter.

What appears to be the earliest account of this species was
given by Jean de Lery' in his history of a voyage made to the
land of Brazil in 1557, which was written in French and pub-
hshed in 1578. Under the name of John Lerius, his history
was translated and reprinted by Purchas^ in the fourth book
of his "Pilgrimes." In this account Lerius tells of the Bom^>

' Received October 30, 1920.

- Lery, Jean de. Histoire d'lin voyage fait en la terre du Bresil, aiitrement dite
Amerique, ed. i, 208. 1578.

3 PuRCHAS, Samuel. Piirchas his Pilgrimes, ed. 3, 4: i333- 1625.

591

592 lewton: history of kidney cotton

basin cotton shrubs with seeds "close joined and verie much
pressed together after the form of a man's kidnie." He says
ft was known to the barbarians by the name of ameniiou, a
name which is still used in practically the same form by the
Tupi tribes of Brazil. L'Obel,^ in 1576, endeavored to improve
on the pictures of the Levant cotton published some years
earlier by Fuchsius and by Matthiolus, by adding a figure of a
cluster of seven seeds arranged in a kidney-shaped mass. He
must have become familiar with the seed arrangement in Bra-
zilian kidney cotton through material brought to Europe by
traders or explorers, and thought that this was true of all cottons.
The earHest accurate description and illustration of kidney
cotton seems to be that given in 1675 by Giacomo Zanoni,^
who calls it "Bambagia arborea di Pernambuco." His figure
is reproduced on the opposite page. This cotton, undoubtedly
a native of Brazil and Guiana originally, was soon spread over
the tropical regions of the world by the aerly Portuguese navigators,
and became thoroughly estabHshed in Africa, India, Siam, the
Philippines, and many other countries. Sir Hans Sloane tells
in 1696 of kidney cotton having been brought to Jamaica from
Brazil by James Lancaster after the defeat of Pernambuco in

1594-

JuUus Philip Benjamin von Rohr carried on in the island
of St. Croix, between 1786 and 1790, a most extensive series
of cotton experiments, an account of which he published in
1 79 1 and 1793 under the title "Anmerkungen iiber den Cattun-
bau zum nuzen der Daenischen Westindeschen Colonien."
He grew and examined as many kinds of cotton as he could
obtain by travel in the West Indies and South America, and
by the help of friends in other parts of the world. He made
notes on the character and behavior of these cottons, recorded
their yields, and carried out extensive breeding experiments
and fertilizer tests. Rohr describes under the names Guiana
cotton, Brazil cotton, and Porto Rico cotton, three types in

* L'ObeIv, Matthias de. Plant, seu Stirp. Hist., 370. 1576.
^ Zanoni, Giacomo. Istoria Botanica, 40-44. PI. 16. 1675.

lewTon: history of kidney cotton

593

Fig. I. — The earliest illustration of a plant of kidney cotton. From Giacomo Zanoni,

Istoria Botanica, pi. i6. 1675.

594 lEwton: history of kidney cotton.

which the seeds adhere together. The following are descrip-
tions, condensed from Rohr, of three types of cotton which
have their seeds adhering together in clusters :^

"Guiana cotton, the seed ver\^ black and rough like fine chagrin,
those of each lock adhere together in the form of a long, narrow pyra-
mid. The kind most prized in Europe on account of its whiteness,
strength and length. Known in Europe as Cayenne, Surinam, Deme-
rara, Berbice and Essequibo. Planted all over Guiana. This is the
kind seen and described by all writers and travelers in this region.
It does not do so well in the West Indies. Yields two harvests yearly.
In Martinique called coion a pierre, in Jamaica, kidney cotton, also
link cotton. Grows lo to 12 feet wide if the ground is good. Nine
to eleven seeds in each lock.

"Brazil cotton, the seed black and rough like those of Guiana cotton.
The seed of each lock adhere together in the form of a short, broad
pyramid. Only found in Brazil, imported into St. Croix by Dr. Peter
Duncan. Seven and not over nine seeds in each lock. I have often
found the seeds of the Guiana cotton in commerce, but never those
of the Brazilian. After growing the Brazilian cotton in St. Croix,
I saw no evidence of its changing into the Guiana kind.

"Porto Rico cotton, the seed in each lock adhere together in the form
of a long, narrow pyramid, and are entirely covered with 'filz.' I have
known this kind for a long time. Very much like the Guiana cotton
in growth, size, shape of the tree and all its parts. It only bears with
me once a year. For the planter the only distinguishing character is
the entirely fuzzy seed. The wool is as hard to take off as that of the
Guiana cotton."

The eccentric American botanist C. S. Rafinesque, in his
"Sylva Telluriana," published in 1838, proposed Latin binomial
names for the cottons described by Rohr.^ For the Guiana
and Brazil cottons he proposed the name Gossypium guyanense
and distinguished them as varieties verum and braziliensis .
For Rohr's Porto Rico cotton he proposed Gossypium rohrianum.

F. R. de Tussac, a French colonist who settled in the Island
of Santo Domingo, and eventually lost his fortune there, pub-
ished in 1808 to 1827 his "Flore des Antilles." In this work,
devoted mainly to the botany and agriculture of the islands
of Santo Domingo (Hayti), Martinique and Guadeloupe, the

^ Rohr, Julius Philip Benjamin von. Anmerkungen iiber den Cattunbau
zum nuzen der Daenischen Westindischen Colonien. i: 38-39, 45, 72-80, 1 20-121.
1791.

' Rafinesque, C. S. Sylva Telluriana 16, 19. 1838.

lewton: history of kidney cotton

595

author describes one indigenous and four introduced species
of cotton. Of one of the latter he speaks as follows:

"The culture of another species, which differs
but little from the preceding, has been adopted
by some colonists, it is called the Stone cotton,
Cotonnier pierre {Gossypium lapideum Tussac),
or cotton of Cayenne. In this species the seeds
are strongly united together and form a little
block which is easily separated from the wool.
This is composed of very long and very strong
filaments, and on this account it gains in weight
.what it loses in fineness."^

From the settlements of the Portuguese
in India, and the activities of the East India
Company in bringing seed from South
America for planting on the coast of Coro-
mandel and in Bengal before 1780, kidney
cotton became thoroughly established in
India, as shown by specimens in European
herbaria collected by Dr. Hove as early as
1787. It thus attracted the attention of W.
Roxburgh, who, in his "Hortus Bengalensis"
of 1 8 14, catalogs a species of Gossypium as
G. acuminatum, but gives no description.^ In
Roxburgh's "Flora Indica," however, which
appeared in 1832, he gives enough description
to show that he intends this name for kidney
cotton, the specific name "acuminatum"
being chosen because of the "much pointed" capsules. ^'^ Rox-
burgh believed this cotton to be uncultivated and a native of
northwestern India.

John Vaupell, an Englishman who traveled throughout Guzerat
in western India in 1838, published" two years later an account
of the cottons of that region, and mentions having found several

» Tussac, F. R. de. Flore des Antilles 2: 67. 1818.

' Roxburgh, W. Hortus Bengalensis 51. 1814.
^^ Roxburgh, W. Flora Indica 3: 186. 1832.

'• Vaupell, John. Cottons of Guzerat, Trans. Agric. Hort. Soc. Bombay.
1840.

Fig. 2. — Seed clusters
of two varieties of
kidney cotton which
were distinguished
by Rohr (1791) and
named by Raf-
inesque (1838).

a . The Guiana variety :
Gossypium guyanense

verum Raf.

b. The Brazihan var-
iety : G. guyanense
brasihense Raf.

Original drawing from
photograph of seeds
planted in Arizona,
1908.

596 lewton: history of kidney cotton

unusual cotton plants growing in a temple yard at Sidhpoor.
He planted seeds of these near Bombay, and obtained plants
which he described as a new species under the name Gossypium
imhricatum, from the imbricate arrangement of the seeds. In
the meantime, however, John Graham, the superintendent of
the botanical gardens of the Agri-Horticultural Society of
Western India, in Bombay, published "A Catalogue of the
Plants Growing in Bombay and its Vicinity," in which he de-
scribed^^ under the name Gossypium vaupellii the cotton brought
from Sidhpoor in Guzerat by Vaupell.

Two or three years before the names proposed by Graham
and by Vaupell for this type of cotton were published, there
appeared the "Flora of Jamaica" by James Macfadyen, founded
largely on the work of Sir Hans Sloane. Under the name Gossyp-
ium brasiliense, Macfadyen gives a much better description
of the kidney cotton than those appearing in earlier works,
and says that "In the time of Sloane as well as in that of Edwards
it was known by the name of Brazilian cotton." ^^

Since 1814 the following names have been published as applying
solely to kidney cotton:

Gossypium lapideum Tussac, Fl. Antill. 2: 67. 181 8.

Gossypium acuminatum Roxb. Hort. Beng. 51, nomen nudum. 18 14;

Fl. Ind. 3: 186. 1832.
Gossypium arboreum Veil. Fl. Flum. 7: pi. 4g. 1827. Not L. 1753.
Gossypium brasiliense MacFad., Fl. Jam. i: 72. 1837.
Gossypium perenne Blanco, Fl. Filip., ed. i, 537. 1837.
Gossypium guyanense Raf. Sylva Tell. 16. 1838.
Gossypium vaupellii Graham, Cat. Plants Bombay and Vicinity,

15- .1839.
Gossypium imbricatum Vaupell, Trans. Agric. Hort. Soc. Bombay.

1840.
Gossypium conglomeratum Wiesner, Die Rohstoffe des Pflanzf., ed.

2, 2: 236. 1903.

Of these, Tussac's name, although antedated by that of
Roxburgh, is the first name which was associated with a de-
scription sufficiently clear to identify the species intended.

^2 Graham, John. A Catalogue of the Plants Growing in Bombay atid Its Vicin-
ity 15. 1839.
" Macfadyen, James. Flora of Jamaica i: 72. 1837.

MERRILL: PLATINUM IN METEORIC IRONS 597

Until such time as the Guiana and Brazihan forms shall be
considered as_constituting two distinct species, the scientific
name of kidney cotton should be Gossypium lapideum Tussac.

PETROGRAPHY. — Platinum in meteoric irons: a correction.

Through a misreading of Dr. Mingaye's notes it was stated
in the issue of this Journai^ for June 4 last,^ with reference
to the Yenberrie iron: "This is the first reported case of platinum
in an AustraHan meteorite." As a matter of fact platinum
has become one of the well-recognized constituents of meteorites
and has been detected by Dr. Mingaye himself in those of Bar-
rata, Cowra, Delgate, Gilgoin, Molong, and Mount Dyrring.

Geo. p. Merrill.

' This Journal, 10: 315. 1920. Note a to Table I.

ABSTRACTS

CEOLOQY.—The Mule Creek oil field, Wyoming. E. T. Hancock.
U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 716-C. Pp. 19 (35-53), pl- i, %• i-
1920.
The bulletin discusses an area containing two well-developed anti-
clines about 30 miles S. S. E. of the Black Hills, near the east edge of
Wyoming in Niobrara County. Upper Cretaceous beds from the
top of the Niobrara formation down into the Mowry shale are exposed,
a stratigraphic thickness of about 1600 feet. The subsurface section,
compiled from records of drill holes in this and adjacent areas, includes
about 2700 feet of beds and extends 398 feet into the top of the Missis-
sippian. Structure is represented by contours at lOO-foot intervals.
The two anticlines described lie along the general trend of the Hartville
uplift, which connects the Front Range with the Black Hills, and strike
nearly due north. The length of one anticline is about 4 miles, of
the other more than 7 miles; the widths range from 2 to 5 miles or
more. The dips average from 5° to 15°, reaching a maximum of 26°.
No faults are noted. Active production in the field began early in
1919. The producing wells average 125 to 150 barrels and the total
production of the field early in 1920 exceeded 1000 barrels a day, of a
paraffin oil of low specific gravity. Tests on one of the anticlines had
been unsuccessful when the report was prepared. The writer lays
much stress as a possible oil horizon on what he calls the Newcastle
sandstone, about 175 feet above the Lakota sandstone and 50 feet
below the Mowry shale. In the discovery well he believes the pro-
iductive sand is in the Lakota sandstone about 435 feet below the
Newcastle sandstone. Testing for possible deeper sands had been
carried into the "Red beds" (Spearfish formation, Triassic?) with the
ntention of going still deeper. M. I. Goldman.

598

SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

The American Ornithologists' Union met in Washington on Novem-
ber 9-1 1.

The seventh revised edition of the Smithsonian Physical Tables,
after considerable delay due to printing difficulties, appeared in October.
It contains about 100 more pages and 170 more tables than the sixth
revision.

An Advisory Board on the subject of highway research, under the
chairmanship of Dean Marston of Iowa State College, has been organ-
ized by the Engineering Division of the National Research Council.
Money will be provided for a salaried technical director of the Board
who will give his whole time to the work. The U. S Bureau of Public
Roads will cooperate in this work.

A cryogenic laboratory for the study of liquefied gases, including
hydrogen and helium, is being installed at the Bureau of Mines. The
laboratory will be under the direction of Dr. R. B. Moore.

Contracts were let in November for the construction of five rein-
forced concrete buildings for the new Naval experimental and research
laboratory to be established at Belleview, D. C, on the east bank
of the Potomac River, south of Washington. The laboratories are
to cost about $650,000. The funds are provided from a war appro-
priation authorized by Congress on the recommendation of the Naval
Consulting Board.

An illustrated lecture on The stereographic method as applied to
photographic mapping and the apparatus used in connection therewith
was given in the auditorium of the Interior Department on Saturday,
November 13, by Mr. N. Sandor, of Jena, Germany, a representative
of the International Stereographic Central, under the auspices of the
Topographic Branch of the U. S. Geological Survey.

Mr. H. D. Foster has been appointed research associate at the
■ Bureau of Standards by the Hollow Building Tile Association.

Dr. Ralph E. Hall, formerly of the Geophysical Laboratory of
the Carnegie Institution of Washington, has resigned from the Fire-
stone Rubber Company, of Akron, Ohio, to accept a position with
the Koppers Company, manufacturers of by-product coke ovens, at
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Mr. Elmer D. Merrill, Director of the Philippine Bureau of
Science, spent two weeks in Washington during November.

Mr. Harry S. Mulliken, a consulting and metallurgical mining
engineer of New York City, has been appointed technical assistant
to the Director of the Bureau of Mines.

599

600 SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS

Dr. HiDEYO NOGUCHi of the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Re-
search, New York City, gave a lecture at the National Museum at
4 p. m., Wednesday, November 17, on Recent studies of yellow fever.
The lecture was given under the auspices of the Army Medical School.

Messrs. Charles Resser and R. S. Bassler of the National Mu-
seum have prepared an exhibit of fossil plants, arranged biologically,
in the paleobotanical hall of the Natural History Building. This is
the first systematic exhibition of its kind in the Museum.

Mr. Bert Russell, formerly of the Patent Office, left the service
of Prindle, Wright and Small of New York City on December i, to
accept a position with R. F. Steward, chemist and patent attorney,
of Washington.

Messrs. P. S. Smith of the U. S. Geological Survey, and E. A. HoL-
brook and O. P. Hood of the Bureau of Mines, have been appointed
by the Secretary of the Interior to serve on the American Engineering
vStandards Committee, of which the Department has become a member.

Mr. Nelson R. Wood, for over thirty-two years a taxidermist in
the National Museum, died on November 8, 1920.

ERRATA

6oi

ERRATA

VOL. 9, 1919
P. 668, second col-
umn, line 20. . . . For Frederick B. LaForge read Laurence LaForge

VOL. 10, 1920

P. 15, line 4 Vox drymifolia read drimyfolia

P. 35, line 25 For Wostor read Wooster

P. 327, line 14 f. b. For quenstedticerds read Quenstedticeras

P. 339, line 15 f. b. For ColvillE read Covell

P. 413, Legend, Fig.

I For Reflection read Refractive

P. 498, line 6 For March 13 read February 28

P. 578, lines 28 and

33 For Ranier read Rainier

P. 587,lines 28-30 This should read "consisting of 100 speci-

mens from Africa and
126 from South Amer-
ica, the latter being
types of species de-
scribed by Dr. Pilger,
chiefly from the Andean
region."

INDEX TO VOLUME X

An * denotes an abstract of a published paper. A t denotes an abstract of a paper presented
before the Academy or an afEliated Society. A § indicates an item published under the head
Scientific Notes and News.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY AND AFFILIATED SOCIETIES

Archaeological Society. Proceedings:
114, 333, 418.

Biological Society of Washington. Pro-
ceedings: 26, 145, 304, 578.

Botanical Society of Washington. Pro-
ceedings: 210, 420, 500.

Entomological Society of Washington.
Proceedings: 277, 445, 526.

Geological Society of Washington. Pro-
ceedings: 50.

of Washington.
179, 275, 303,

Philosophical Society
Proceedings: 111,
395, 475, 497, 524.

Washington Academy of Sciences. Pro-
ceedings and Notes: 144, 236, 274,
331, 393, 417, 576.

Washington Society of Engineers. Pro-
ceedings: 181.

AUTHOR INDEX

Abbot, C. G. Solar radiation measure-
ments for weather forecasting in
Argentina, the use of. 226, 236.

fSolar studies in South America.

111.

Adams, L. H. jEarth, the nature of
the interior of. 498.

*Thermionic amplifier, applica-
tion of the, to conductivity measure-

' ments. 79.

-^ — *Thermocouples, tables and
curves for use in measuring tem-
peratures with. 43.

Adams, O. S. *Map projection in
general, a study of. 470.

Agnew, p. G. *Vibration galvanom-
eter, a new form of. 469.

Ai^LARD, H. A. *Plants, effect of rela-
tive length of day and night and
other factors of the environment
on growth and reproduction in.
392.

Andersen, Olaf. *Oxides of lead,
method for determination of the
volatile matter in. 208.

*Volatilization of lead oxide from

lead silicate melts. 330.

Arzberger, E. G. fMycorrhiza, Cy-

trids and related fungi in the roots

of our common economic plants.

211.
Ashley, George H. *Coal-field, the

Abram Creek-Stony River, West

Virginia. 521.
Austin, L. W. Musical reception with

continuous waves without local

oscillations. 223.

Beat reception, notes on. 174.

Bailey, Florence Merriam. *Birds

of Glacier National Park. 204.
Bailey, Vernon. fBean mouse of

Lewis and Clark, Maximilian, and

others. 146.
Bartsch, Paul. Caecidae and other

marine mollusks from northwest

coast of America. 565.

fPoison gas detector and how it

was discovered. 309.

BasslER, Ray S. *Bryozoa, fossil,
from the West Indies. 46.

6o2

AUTHOR INDEX

603

Bauer, L. A. fSolar eclipse of May
29, 1919, further results of ob-
servations of. 476.

fSolar eclipse, total, at Cape

Palmas, Liberia, May 29, 1919.
112.

Bent, Arthur Cleveland. *Pygo-
podes, order, life histories of North
American diving birds. 203.

Berry, Edward Wilbur. *Eocene flora
from Trans- Pecos, Texas. 328.

Blake, S. F. Avocados, preliminary
revision of North American and
West Indian. 9.

Mahoganies, true (Smetenia),

revision of. 286.

Bleininger, A. V. *Clays, properties
of American bond and their use
in graphite crucibles and glass pots.
328.

BowEN, N. L. Optical properties of
anthophyllite. 411.

BowKER, R. C. *Sole leather, effects
of glucose and salts on wearing
quality of. 178.

Boyd, H. S. fCalibration of precision
end gages. 526.

Brooks, Alfred H. fGeology, appli-
cation of, to war. 331.

Brooks, Charles F. fClouds and
their significance. 396.

fWeather forecasting, use of

solar variations in. 241.

Brooks, H. B. *Electrical measure-
ments, the accuracy of commercial.
300.

Bryan, Kirk. fGeology and physiog-
raphy of the Papago country,
Arizona. 52.

BuRCHARD, E. F. *Mineral supplies,
our. 326.

BuRKA, S. M. fHypersensitizing com-
mercial panchromatic plates. 525.

BusHNELL, David I. *Native villages
and village sites east of the Missis-
sippi. 178.

Caudell, a. N. fZoraptera, notes on.
279.

Chittenden, F. H. Phyllotreta, a new
species of. 389.

Sphenophorus (Coleoptera) de-
scription of a new species of, from
Florida. 313.

Churchill, J. B. *Sole leather, effects
of glucose and salts on wearing
quality of. 178.

Clark, W. Mansfield. Indigo and
indigo white, reduction potentials
of mixtures of, and of mixtures of
methylene blue and methylene
white. 255.

CoBLENZ, W. W. *Aluminum, prepara-
tion and reflective properties of
some alloys of, with magnesium
and with zinc. 302.

*Reflecting power of stellite and

lacquered silver. 22.

*Spectral photoelectric sensitivity

of silver sulphide and other sub-
stances. 43.

fSpectro-photoelectrical sensitiv-
ity in solids. 524.

Cockayne, A. D. fVegetation of New

Zealand. 211.
Collier, A. J. *Gas in the Big Sand

Draw anticline, Fremont County,

Wyoming. 520.

*Oil in the Warm Spring and

Hamilton domes near Thermopolis,
Wyoming. 519.

Cooke, Charles Wythe. *Tertiary
mollusks from the Leeward Islands
and Cuba. 46.

Cork, J. M. *Airplane antenna con-
stants. 474.

Craighead, F. C. fLaboratory meth-
ods of breeding and rearing wood-
boring insects. 528.

Cramer, P. J. S. fTropical plant
breeding, problems in. 422.

Crawford, D. R. fLobster, spiny, life
history of. 578.

Curtis, H. L. fMethods of measuring
ballistic phenomena on a battle-
ship. 180.

^y/6

6o4

AUTHOR INDEX

CusHMAN, Joseph Augustine. t(For-
aminiferal fauna of the Byram
calcareous marl, some relationships
of the. 198.

*Fossil foraminifera from the

West Indies. 46.

CuSHMAN, R. A. fLaboratory methods

of breeding and rearing Hymenop-

terous parasites. 529.
Dall, William Healey. Bulimulus,

on relations of sectional groups of,

of subgenus Naesiotiis Albers. 117.
*Pliocene and pleistocene fossils

from the Arctic coast of Alaska

and the auriferous beaches of

Nome, Alaska. 327.
Daly, Reginald A. fChanges of land

and ocean levels. 50.
Darton, N. H. *Artesian waters in

the vicinity of Black Hills, South

Dakota. 209.

*Geothermal data of the United

States. 519.

Dickinson, H. C. fManometer, a

15-atmosphere, and a 100-atmos-

phere piston gage. 499.
DiETz, Harry F. jliisect fauna of

Panama, notes on. 279.
Duncan, R. C. fMethods of measuring

ballistic phenomena on a battle-
ship. 180.
Eakin, H. M. *Porcupine Gold Placer

District, Alaska. 326.
EbERT, F. C. *Southern California

floods of January, 1916. 473.
Edwards, Junius D. *Interferometer,

application of the, to gas analysis.

415.
EiGENMANN, Carl H. Fish fauna of

the Cordillera of Bogota. 460.
Epstein, S. W. *Cellulose in rubber

goods, determination of. 299.

*Free carbon in rubber goods,

determination of. 45.

Fairchild, J. G. Hausmannite in the
Batesville District, Arkansas. 1.

Sulphide mineral water, notes on

analysis of. 559.

Fenner, Clarence N. *Optical glass
melting, technique of. 25.

*Optical pyrometers, use of, for

control of optical glass furnaces. 49.

*Relations between tridymite and

cristobalite. 44.

Ferguson, J. B. *Bucher process,
equilibrium studies upon. 79.

Cathetometer, a simple substitute

for. 285.

*" Inversion," the term. 209.

*Optical glasses, the rapid elec-

trometric determination of iron
in some. 45.

Fewkes, J. Walter. fCliff dwellings,
genesis of. 334.

*Prehistoric villages, castles and

towers of southwestern Colorado.
80.

FiNKELSTEiN, J. L. *Standardized
method for determination of solidi-
fication points, especially of naph-
thalene and paraffin. 42.

Fisher, W. S. *Ptinidae, description
of new North American, with notes
on Japanese species. 110.

FooTE, Paul D. Ionization and res-
onance potentials for electrons
in vapors of lead and calcium.
tl79. *324.

Ionization of vapors of certain

compounds, the thermochemistry
of. 435.

fMicrophotometer for photo-
graphic densities, a new. 497.

tStandard scale of temperature.

276.

FowKE, Gerard. fExploration in caves
in the Ozark region of Missouri.
335.

Freeman, J. R. *Aluminum and its
light alloys with copper and mag-
nesium, constitution and metallog-
raphy of. 416.

Gahan, a. B. fBlack grain-stem saw-
fly of Europe in the United States.
277.

AUTHOR INDEX

605

*Opius (Hymenoptera-Braconi-

dae), description of seven new
species of. 110.

Garner, W. W. *PIants, effect of the
relative length of day and night
and other factors of the environ-
ment on growth and reproduction
in. 392.

Guiv, A. C. *Chromite of Kenai
Peninsula, Alaska, preliminary re-
port on. 522.

GiLMORE, Charles W. *ReptiHan
faunas of the Torrejon, Puerco, and
underlying upper Cretaceous forma-
tions of San Juan County, New
Mexico. 327.

Goldman, E. A. fElk of Jackson's
Hole. 586.

Griffiths, David. fBulb culture, ex-
periments in. 212.

— — • \Opuntia lindheimeri and other
species (review of the Cactaceae
by Britton and Rose) . 42 1 .

Grimes, W. F. Beat reception, notes
on. 174.

Hancock, E. T. *Oil and gas pros-
pects of Huntley field, geology and.
521.

• *Oil field, the Upton-Thornton,

Wyoming. 522.

■ *The Mule Creek oil field, Wyo-
ming. 598.

Harlan, Harry V. *Germination of
barley pollen. 391.

Hart, R. W. *Sole leather, effects
of glucose and salts on wearing
quality of. 178.

Heinrich, Carl. *European corn-borer
(Pyrausta nubilis) and its nearest
American allies, note on. 298.

Herschel, Winslow H. *Viscosim-
eter, the MacMichael torsional. 574.

Hewett, D. F. fHeart Mountain
overthrust near Cody, Wyoming,
the. 51.

Hillebrand, W. F. *Silicate and car-
bonate rocks, analysis of. 299.

Hitchcock, A. S. fBotanical trip to
British Guiana. 500.

fFloral aspects of British Guiana.

585.

^Grasses of the United States,

genera of, with special reference
to economic species. 391.

Holler, H. D. *Hydrogen ion con-
centration in dry cells. 300.

Holmes, W. H. *Handbook of abori-
ginal American antiquities. Part
1, Lithic industries. 47.

HoLTz, H. C. *Bibliography of metals
of the platinum group: osmium,
platinum, palladium, iridium, rho-
dium, ruthenium. 301.

Hopkins, Andrew D. Bioclimatic law,
the. 34.

HosTETTER, J. C. *Hydrochloric acid
color method for determining iron.
208.

*Optical glasses, the rapid elec-

trometric determination of iron
in some. 45.

Howard, L. O. jEntomologists. 280.

Howe, James Lewis. *Bibliography
of metals of the platinum group —
osmium, platinum, palladium, irid-
ium, rhodium, ruthenium. 301.

Howe, Marshall A. *Tertiary cal-
careous algae from the islands of
St. Bartholomew, Antigua and
Anguilla (West Indies). 46.

Hull, Lewis M. Electron-tube trans-
mitter of completely modulated
waves, an. 316.

Humphrey, H. B. fPhytogeography
of the Coeur d'Alene Basin of
Northern Idaho. 501.

Humphreys, W.J. M eteor ological para-
doxes, a bundle of. 153.

Hutchinson, R. H. fLice in clothing,
experiments with steam disinfec-
tion in destroying. 278.

Hyslop, J. A. tLaboratory methods
of breeding and rearing subter-
ranean insects. 528.

6o6

AUTHOR INDEX

JEANCON, J. A. *Antiquities of Jemez
Plateau, New Mexico. 419.

Jennings, O. E. Plants from north-
western Ontario, new and note-
worthy. 453.

Jones, Edward L. *Manganese ore in
Nevada, deposits of. 573.

*Manganese ore in southeastern

California, deposits of. 470.

Jones, K. K. *Pellagra, biochemical
studies of the saliva in. 415.

Kahler, H. *Reflecting power of stel-
lite and lacquered silver. 22.

*SpectraI photoelectric sensitivity

of silver sulphide and other sub-
stances. 43.

Karrer, Enoch. Contrast sensibility
of the eye. 325.

fContrast sensibility of the eye

under low illumination. 475.

fDiffusion of light along a search-
light beam. 475.

Kellerman, Karl F. Boron, effect
of salts of, upon the distribution
of desert vegetation. t-i20, 481.

Kendall, W. C. jTrout of the Great
West. 581.

Kid WELL, C. H. Analysis of the brine
from the Ligonier well in Pennsyl-
vania. 385.

Knowlton, F. H. *Mesozoic and Ceno-
zoic plants of North America,
catalogue of. 273.

KouwENHOvEN, William B. *Loca-
tion of flaws in rifle-bkrrel steel,
by magnetic analysis. 329.

Kunkle, L. O. fWart of potato. 211.

Lambert, Walter D. Earth, internal
constitution of. 122.

Lamson-Scribner, F. fParks and gar-
dens of Buenos Aires. 211.

tRock Creek Park. 580.

Lane, Franklin K. *Conservation

through engineering. 273.
LeverETT, Frank. *Surface forma-
tions and agricultural conditions
in the southern half of Minnesota.
471.

Lewton, F. L. ]Andira excelsa, poi-
sonous seeds of. 500.

Kidney cotton, history of. 591.

LiTTLEHALES, G. W. *Physical char-
acteristics of ocean depths. 80.

Mackenzie, D. fVelocity of flame
propagation in gas-engine cylinders.

477.

Mann, William M. *Ants of British
Solomon Islands. 298.

Manning, P. D. V. *Bucher process,
equilibrium studies upon. 79.

Marsh, C. Dwight. fPoisonous plants
and their effects. 308.

Marvin, C. F. fSolar radiation mea-
surements in weather forecasting
in Argentina. 236.

Mayor, Alfred G. fCoral reefs of
American Samoa. 309.

McCaskey, H. D. • *Mineral supplies,
our. 326.

McGlashan, H. D. *Southern Cali-
fornia floods of January, 1916.
473.

McIndoo, N. E. fOrthoptera, the
olfactory sense of. 527.

Meggers, W. F. fMicrophotometer
for photographic densities, a new.
497.

Merica, p. D. *Constitution and
metallography of aluminum and
its light alloys with copper and
magnesium. 416.

Merrill, Paul W. *Measurement of
wave lengths in the spectra of
krypton and xenon. 44.

Metcalf, F. p. Notes on North
Dakota plants. 188.

Meyers, C. H. fManometer, a 15-
atmosphere, and a 100-atmosphere
piston gage. 499.

MiNGAYE, John C. H. Iron meteorite
found at Yenberrie, Northern Terri-
tory of Australia, an. 314. Correc-
tion, 596.

Miser, H. D. Hausmannite in the
Batesville District, Arkansas. 1.

AUTHOR INDEX

607

MoHLER, F. L. tlonization and reso-
nance potentials for electrons in
vapors of lead and calcium. 179.
*324.

Ionization of vapors of certain

compounds, the thermochemistry
of. 435.

Moore, H. H. fMethods of measuring
ballistic phenomena on a battle-
ship. 180.

Moore, R. L. *Cellulose in rubber
goods, the determination of. 299.

MoREY, George W. *Optical glass
manufacture, improved method
of. 25.

Mueller, E. F. *Sulphur boiling
point, standardization of. 42.

■ fTemperature, standard scale of.

276.

Newsholme, Arthur. fChild welfare
work, national importance of. 394.

Oberholser, Harry C. *Blackbird,
redwinged, new, from Texas. 207.

*Hedymeles melanocephalus, geo-
graphical races of. 206.

*Martin, purple, roost in City

of Washington. 207.

*Mutanda omithologica VII.

205.

*Nicobar megapods, Megapodius

nicohariensis , races of. 206.

*North American birds, notes

on. 205.

*Passerculus rostratus, revision

of subspecies of. 202.

*SieberociUa, status of the sub-
genus. 207.

*Sumatra, notes on Dr. W. L.

Abbott's second collection of birds
from Simalur Island. 204.

OsBON, C. C. *Peat in the Dismal
swamp, Virginia and North Caro-
lina. 574.

OvERBECK, R. M. *Nickel deposits in
the lower Copper River Valley,
Alaska. 472.

*Placer mining in the Tolovana

District, Alaska. 522.

Palmer, William. fBirds of Chesa-
peake Bay, some. 305.

Pardee, J. T. *Manganese ore in Ne-
vada, deposits of. 573.

Parsons, S. R. fAircraft engines, cool-
ing radiators for. 478.

Peters, C. G. fCalibration of pre-
cision end gages. 526.

Piper, C. V. Monophlegma, a new
genus of Leguminosae. 432.

PiTTiER, H. Swietenia, the Venezuela
mahogany, new species of. 32.

Priest, Irwin G. *Interferential dila-
tometer, a new. 324.

Ransome, F. L. Functions and ideals
of a national geological survey. 85.

Rathbun, Mary J. *Tertiary decapod
crustaceans. West Indian. 46.

Ravn, F. Kolpin. fPlant pathology
in Denmark in recent years. 502.

Reeside, John B. * Jurassic ammonites
of the genera Qtienstedticeras, Car-
dioceras and Amoeboceras, family
Cardioceratidae. 327.

Roberts, Howard S. *Optical glass
melts, cooling of. 329.

*Optical glass, thermocouple in-
stallation in annealing kilns for.
330.

Rogers, G. S. *Sunset-Midway oil-
field, California, pt. II. — Geochemi-
cal relations of the oil, gas and
water. 523.

ROHWER, S. A. Ceropales Latreille
(Hymenoptera), the generic name.
171.

Harris collection of sawflies, and

the species described by Harris.
508.

flnsectaries. 529.

Rosa, Edward B. Economic impor-
tance of the scientific work of the
government. 341.

Reorganized Civil Service, a. 533.

Ross, Clyde P. fGeology of the lower

Gila region, Arizona. 51.
St. George, R. A. fPeriodical cicada.
447.

6o8

AUTHOR INDEX

Sanford, R. L. *Location of flaws
in rifle-barrel steel by magnetic
analysis. 329.

Sardeson, F. W. *Surface formations
and agricultural conditions in south-
em half of Minnesota. 471.

Sasscer, E. R. fCoccidae, brief re-
sume of the family. 446.

ScHAUs, William, fAmerican tropics,
collecting in. 445.

Butterflies, two new species from

Tropical America. 434.

Schwartz, E. A. ^Dendrochius in
semitropical Florida. 278.

ScRiBNER, F. L. See Lamson-Scribner.

Sears, J. D. *Manganese ore in Costa
Rica and Panama, deposits of. 573.

Sefton, L. B. *Nitrates and nitrites
in battery acid, estimation of. 299.

Selkregg, E. R. tLepidoptera, lab-
oratory methods of breeding and
rearing fruit-infesting. 529.

Seton, Ernest Thompson. fKangaroo
rats of our western desert, habitat
and home life of. 306.

Shepard, E. R. *Leakage resistance
of street railway roadbeds and its
relation to electrolysis of under-
ground structures. 469.

Shepherd, E. S. *Gases of Kilauea,
composition of. 23.

Shufeldt, R. N. fChelonians, observa-
tion on cervical region of spine in.
581.

tMoloch lizard from Australia.

579.

Smith, A. H. * Determination of free
carbon in rubber goods. 45.

Smith, H. M. fObnoxious fishes, keep-
ing them out of Yellowstone Park.
584.

fPelicans in Yellowstone Park.

584.

fTrout, food and parasitism of

native and introduced in Yellow-
stone Park. 584.

fYellowstone Park, biological

problems in. 583.

fYellowstone Park, maintaining

fish supply in. 584.

Smith, J. Warren. fPredicting mini-
mum temperatures. 395.

Snodgrass, R. E. jBiological and
anatomical notes on the cicada.
447.

Snyder, T. E. tLead cable borer. 580.

fTermites or white ants, habits

of. 305.

Staley, Homer F.
plugs. 302.

Standley, Paxjl C.

*Cement for spark

Agonandra, Nortti
American species of. 505.

Stevenson, John A. fBotanical as-
pects of Porto Rico. 210.

Stimson, H. F. flonization and reso-
nance potentials for electrons in
vapors of lead and calcium. 179,
*324.

Sullivan, M. X. *Pellagra, biochemi-
cal studies of saliva in. 415.

SwANTON, John R. *Languages, a
structural and lexical comparison
of the Tunica, Chitamacha and
Atakapa. 47.

International and interclass mis-
understandings. 405.

Taylor, W. P. fBirds and mammals
of Mt. Rainier National Park. 578.

fKangaroo rat in Arizona. 586.

TiDESTROM, IvAR. ]V\ordL of Utah and

Nevada. 422.

Tolman, R. C. fConception of the
business of mathematical physics.
275.

Tyndall, E. p. T. fContrast sensi-
bility of the eye. 325.

Ulrich, E. O. Major causes of land
and sea oscillations. 57.

Van BemmelEn, W. fVolcanoes in
Java. 576.

Vaughn, Thomas Wayland. * Geology
and paleontology of the West
Indies, contribution to. 46.

Waite, M. B. ]Paulownia tomentosa,
naked panicles of. 420, 578.

SUBJECT INDEX

609

WaIvTEnberg, R. G. *Aluminum and
its light alloys with copper and
magnesium, constitution and metal-
lography of. 416.

*Aluminum, preparation and re-
flective properties of some alloys
of, with magnesium and with zinc.
302.

Waring, Gerald A. *Ground water
in Reese River Basin and adjacent
parts of Humboldt River Basin,
Nevada. 473.

*Ground water in the San Jacinto

and Temecula Basins, California.
472.

Washburn, Frederick M. * Constant
temperature still head for light-oil
fractionation. 48.

Washington, Henry S. Italite: a new
leucite rock. 270.

Wells, Roger C. Aragonite from
sea-water, unusual deposit of. 249.

Wetmore, Alexander. *Waterfowl,

lead-poisoning in. 202.
Wheeler, William Morton. *Ants

of Borneo. 110.

*Ants of Cocos Island. 22.

*Ants of Galapagos Islands. 23.

Wherry, Edgar T. Determining acid-
ity and alkalinity of soil by indi-
cators in the field. 217.

Sulfide minerals, nomenclature

and classification of. 487.

White, Walter P. * Potentiometers
for thermoelement work. 41.

Thermostats, methods of increas-
ing the precision of. 429.

WhiTmore, L. M. *Sole leather, effects
of glucose and salts on wearing
quality of. 178.

Wickham, H. F. *Asaphidion (Coleop-
tera-Carabidae), two new species
of, from North America. 110.

fCarabidae from Alaska, two

new. 279.

Wilhelm, R. M. *Standardized
method for the determination of
solidification points, especially of
naphthalene and paraffin. 42,

Williams, R. W. *Winter birds of
East Goose Creek, Florida. 205.

Williamson, E. D. fEarthquakes and
the elastic properties of the earth.
498.

Wise, D. M. fSolar eclipse, total at
Sobral, Brazil, May 29, 1919. 113.

Wright, F. E. fContrast sensibility
of the eye as a factor in the re-
solving power of the microscope.
475.

Graphical method of plotting

reciprocals. 185.

Trigonometric computer, a. 29.

SUBJECT INDEX

Agriculture. *Grasses of the United
States, genera of, with special
reference to economic species. A.
S. Hitchcock. 391.

§Meyer memorial medal. 383.

*Barley pollen, germination of.
Harry V. Harlan. 391.

*Surface formations and agricultural
conditions in southern half of
Minnesota. Frank Leverett and
F. W. Sardeson. 471.
Analytical Chemistry. *Carbonate and
silicate rocks, analysis of. W. F.
HillEbrand. 299.

*Hydrochloric acid color method for
determining iron. J. C. Hostet-
TER. 208.

* Interferometer, application of the,
to gas analysis. Junius D. Ed-
wards. 415.

*Lead, method for determination of

the volatile matter in oxides of.

Olaf Andersen. 208.
*Optical glasses, rapid electrometric

determination of iron in some.

J. B. Ferguson and J. C. Hos-

TETTER. 45.

6io

SUBJECT INDEX

*Rubber goods, determination of free
carbon in. A. H. Smith and S.
W. Epstein. 45.

*Silicate and carbonate rocks, analysis

of. W. F. HiLLEBRAND. 299.

Anthropology. *Aboriginal American
antiquities, handbook of. Part I.
Lithic industries. W. H. Holmes.
47.

fCaves in the Ozark region of Mis-
souri, explorations in. Gerard
Fowke. 335.

fChild welfare work, national im-
portance of. Arthur Newsholme.
394.

tCliff dwellings, genesis of. J. Wal-
ter Fewkes. 334.

International and interclass misunder-
standings. John R. Swanton.
405.

*Languages, a structural and lexical
comparison of the Tunica, Chiti-
^ macha and Atakapa. John R.
Swanton. 47.

*Lithic industries, Part I of hand-
book of aboriginal American anti-
quities. W. H. Holmes. 47.

*Villages and village sites, native,
east of the Mississippi. David I.
BUSHNELL. 178.

*Villages, castles and towers, pre-
historic, of southwestern Colorado.
J. Walter Fewkes. 80.
Apparatus. fManometer, a 15-atmos-
phere, and a 100-atmosphere pis-
ton gage. H. C. Dickinson and
C. H. Meyers. 499.

fMicrophotometer for photographic
densities, a new. W. F. Meggers
and Paul D. Foote. 497.

*Potentiometer for thermoelement
work. Walter P. White. 41.

*Vibration galvanometer, a new form
of. P. G. Agnew. 469.
Astronomy. fSolar eclipse of May 29,
1919, further results of observa-
tions of. L. A. Bauer. 476.

fSolar eclipse, total, at Cape Palmas,

Liberia, May 29, 1919. L. A.

Bauer. 112.
tSolar eclipse, total, at Sobral, Brazil,

May 29, 1919. D. M. WiSE. 113.
fSolar studies in South America.

C. G. Abbot. 111.
Biochemistry. *Pellagra, biochemical

studies of the saliva in. M. X.

Sullivan and K. K. Jones. 415.

Biology. Bioclimatic law, the. An-
drew D. Hopkins. 34.
fYellowstone Park, biological prob-
lems in. H. M. Smith. 583.

Botany. Agonandra, North American
species of. Paul C. StandlEy
505.

^Andira excelsa, poisonous seeds of.
F. L. Lewton. 500.

Avocados, preliminary revision of
North American and West Indian.
S. F. Blake. 9.

Boron, effect of salts of, upon the
distribution of desert vegetation.
Karl F. KellERMan. t420, 481.

fBritish Guiana, a botanical trip to.
A. S. Hitchcock. 500.

fBritish Guiana, floral aspects of. A.
S. Hitchcock. 585.

f Bulb culture, experiments in. David
Griffiths. 212.

f Flora of Utah and Nevada. Ivar
TiDESTROM. 422.

*Grasses of the United States, genera
of, with special reference to eco-
nomic species. A. S. Hitchcock.
391.

*Growth and reproduction in plants,
effect of the relative length of day
and night and other factors of the
environment on. W. W. Garner
and H. A. Allard. 392.

Kidney cotton, history of. Freder-
ick L. Lewton. 591.

Mahoganies, true {Swietenia) , re.Yi?,\on
of. S. F. Blake. 286.

§Meyer memorial medal. 383.

SUBJECT INDEX

6ii

Monophlegnia, a new genus of Legu-
minosae. C. V. Piper. 432.

fMycorrhiza, Cytrids and related
fungi in the roots of our common
economic plants. E. G. Arzberger.
211.

fNew Zealand, vegetation of. A. D.
Cockayne. 211.

North Dakota plants, notes on.
F. P. Metcalf. 188.

Ontario, northwestern, new and note-
worthy plants from. O. E. Jen-
nings. 453.

\Opuntia lindheimeri and other species
(Review of the Cactaceae by
Britton and Rose). David Grif-
fiths. 421.

fParks and gardens of Buenos Aires.
F. Lamson-Scribner. 211.

^Paulownia tomentosa, naked panicles
of. M. B. Waite. 420, 578.

Persea (Avocados), preliminary re-
vision of North American and West
Indian. S. F. Blake. 9.

fPhytogeography of the Coeur d'Alene
basin of northern Idaho. H. B.
Humphrey. 501.

fPlant breeding, problems in tropical.
P. J. S. Cramer. 422.

fPlant pathology in Denmark in re-
cent years. F. Kolpin Ravn.
502.

fPoisonous plants and their effects.
C. DwiGHT Marsh. 308.

*Pollen germination of barley. Harry
V. Harlan. 391.

fPorto Rico, botanical aspects of.
John A. Stevenson. 210.

t Potato, wart of. L. O. KunklE.
211.

fRock Creek Park. F. Lamson-
Scribner. 580.

Swietenia, the Venezuelan mahogany,
new species of. H. Pittier. 32.

Swietenia, true mahoganies, revision
of. S. F. Blake. 286.

fTropical plant breeding, problems in.
P. J. S. Cramer. 422.

Ceramics. *Optical glass, thermocouple
installation in annealing kilns for.
E. D. Williamson and H. S.
Roberts. 330.

*Optical glass melts, cooling of.

Howard S. Roberts. 329.
*Optical pyrometers for control of

optical glass furnaces, use of.

Clarence N. Fenner. 49.
*Volatilization of lead oxide from lead

silicate melts. Olaf Andersen.

330.

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