cxiv GENERAL SUIVLMARY OF SCIENTIFIC AND 



primeval man. In studying the evidences of progress, the 

 phenomena which might be observed were (1) a continuous 

 succession of ideas, (2) the complexity of the ideas in an in- 

 creasing ratio to time, (3) the tendency to automatic action 

 upon any given set of ideas in proportion to the length of 

 time during; which the ancestors of the individuals have ex- 

 ercised their minds in these particular ideas. Colonel Fox 

 pointed out that the forms of implements used by savage 

 tribes, instead of affording evidence of their having been de- 

 rived from higher and more complex forms, showed evidence 

 of derivation from natural forms, such as might have been 

 employed by man before he had learned the art of modifying 

 them to his own use ; and that the persistence of the forms 

 is in proportion to the low state of culture. The third and 

 concluding part of the paper is devoted to the correlation of 

 modern implements in use among existing savages with those 

 of prehistoric times. 



Dr. Charles Ran, of New York, says: "Anthropology is 

 now the favorite and fashionable study in Europe. Not only 

 savans, but also liberally educated people of all classes join 

 in these interesting pursuits." In almost every Association 

 for the Advancement of Science there is an anthropological 

 section, whose reports are made in the general volumes. An- 

 thropological societies, general and local, publish journals 

 and proceedings. First-class literary papers keep us posted 

 on the meetings of these bodies, and on the latest discov- 

 eries. Popular magazines have a corner for notes on the sub- 

 ject, and even sensational journals are working up the story 

 of prehistoric times. We can do no more in this number of 

 the Record than to draw attention to the principal sources 

 of information. 



The seventh session of the International Congress of An- 

 thropology and Prehistoric Archaeology was held at Stock- 

 holm on the 7th of August. Count Hennino; Hamilton was 

 chosen president. Among the questions discussed were : 

 "What are the earliest traces of the existence of man in Swe- 

 den ?" " Can the precise way in which the trade in amber 

 was carried on in early times be pointed out?" "What 

 characterizes the age of polished stone implements in Swe- 

 den : and can the remains of this a^e be referred to a single 

 race, or are we to suppose that several peoples were inhabit- 



