326 ANNUAL OF SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERY. 



eggs which she is about to lay and which are arranged in her ovary in 

 the order of their maturation. Xow, in such a case, if the theory is 

 exact, the first egg laid ought always to produce males and the others 

 females without any possibility of the inversion of this order. This 

 is very near what has been observed by Messrs. Coste and Gerbe 

 (French naturalists) . 



A hen, separated from the cock at the time of her first laying gave 

 five fertile eggs in the space of eight days. The egg laid on March 

 loth produced a male ; that on March 17th a male ; that on the 18th 

 a female ; that on the 20th a male ; that on the 22d a female. A 

 characteristic fact in this experiment is the production of a male after 

 a female, which ought not to have taken place according to the theory. 

 But is it only a simple exception ? Or is it necessary to consider the 

 fact a radical objection ? We may learn by and by on this point, from 

 the researches in which Mr. Gerbe is now engaged. 



On the occasion of the preceding note, Flourens recalled an experi- 

 ment which he made 30 years ago. Aristotle had observed that the 

 pigeon ordinarily lays two eggs, and that, of these two eggs, one 

 commonly produces a male and the other a female. He wished to 

 know which was the egg that gave the male, and which the one that 

 produced the female. He found that the first egg always gave the 

 male, and. the second the female. I have repeated this experiment as 

 many as 11 times in succession, and 11 times in succession the first 

 egg gave the male and the second egg the female. I have seen again 

 that which Aristotle saw. 



ZOOLOGICAL SUMMARY. 



The Extinction of an Aboriginal Race. The race of Tasmanians, 

 or inhabitants of Van Dieman's Land, are now reduced to four indi- 

 viduals ; an old man and three old women. The entire race, sup- 

 posed to have been from 5,000 to 7,000 in number, at the time of the 

 first settlement of the island, has been destroyed, partly by disease, 

 partly by drink, partly by the loss of their means of subsistence, but 

 chiefly by violence. They managed very early in the history of the 

 colony to excite a profound hatred and fear among the settlers, and 

 were hunted down without mercy. About 1829 the last survivors 

 were taken to Flinders Island, where they were kindly treated, but 

 died off with astounding rapidity. It seems probable that in half a 

 century more there will not be one aborigine left in Australia. 



Vitality of the African Race. Dr. Livingston, in a paper read 

 before the British Association, 1864, on his recent African explora- 

 tions, stated of the African, "that it was his opinion, that neither 

 drink, nor disease, nor slavery can root him out of the world. He 

 never had any idea of the prodigious destruction of human life that 

 takes place subsequently to the slave-hunting till he saw it ; and as 

 this has gone on for centuries it gives a wonderful idea of the vitality 

 of the nation." 



Mortality among the Pearl Oysters. At the last meeting of the 

 British Association, M. Buckland, the well-known naturalist, stated 

 that an event, which ladies would most appreciate, had taken place 

 in Ceylon, viz : the sudden death, from unknown causes, of whole 

 banks of the pearl-bearing oysters, the consequence of which would 

 be that the price of pearls must be enormously increased. 



