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POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY 



way of result, affecting morals and conduct. 

 In the fifteenth century, as now, these latter 

 were not so much in the direction of that 

 coarseness which somehow or other is often 

 called immorality, but rather in that of a 

 lack of moral discrimination and will. The 

 mediaeval Renaissance found its salvation in 

 the emphasis of individuality, alike in reli 

 gion, in the state, and in industrial activity. 

 At the present we seem tending in another 

 direction, and seeking a positive moral 

 guidance in an enlarged conception of social 

 duty and solidarity ; and the position which 

 employed labor occupies in regard to them is 

 sufficient to insure it sympathetic attention. 



Morocco, by reason of its geographical 

 position and the peculiar distribution of its 

 mountains and valleys, enjoys, according to 

 Mr. Charles Rolleston, the varieties of cli- 

 mate between those of the north of Scotland 

 and the plains of India. Its productions are 

 also varied, and under a good administration 

 would be valuable. With extortionate taxa- 

 tion and the insecurity of property indus- 

 tries languish. The sugar cane was intro- 

 duced by the Arabs during the middle ages, 

 but the profitable nature of the crop exposed 

 the owners to oppression, and the former 

 rich plantations have become things of the 

 past. Most of the country is well adapted 

 to horticulture, but the almost prohibitory 

 export duties prevent a trade which might 

 go far toward supplying the fruit markets 

 of Europe with oranges, lemons, dates, 

 peaches, plums, apricots, grapes, figs, pome- 

 granates, mulberries, and olives. The em- 

 pire is also rich in minerals and in agricul- 

 tural products. With all these munificent 

 resources Morocco has fallen into decadence, 

 simply on account of the vice of its political 

 administration, which does not fulfill a sin- 

 gle function, duty, or responsibility of the 

 government, but is generally mischievous. 



The serpent symbol was described by the 

 Rev. S. D. Peet, in a paper read in the 

 American Association, as prevalent all over 

 this continent. It appears in effigies in 

 Canada, Ohio, Illinois, and Minnesota. Cer- 

 tain myths among the Iroquois and Algon- 

 kins represent the serpent as coming out of 

 the water, fascinating men and turning 

 them into serpents, and taking them below 

 the water — thus reminding one of the temp- 



tation. While in these and other myths of 

 those nations the serpent is the source of 

 evil, in Nicaragua and Yucatan it is the 

 source of good. It is in reality the symbol 

 of the rain cloud, and the crops and the sea- 

 sons are dependent on its appearance. In- 

 stead of antagonizing the chief divinity, it 

 seems to be sailing through the air, bearing 

 that being on its back, or holding vases in 

 its folds that empty water or rain upon the 

 fields. In Nicaragua the serpent appears 

 in sculpture, highly wrought and carved 

 with great force. The sacred books of the 

 Mayas have many representations of ser- 

 pents. Even the hieroglyphics of the Mayas 

 have serpents upon them, forming parts of 

 the glyph. Among the Pueblos the serpent 

 figured in a very interesting way in the cere- 

 monies of the initiation of the youth. 



In his characterizing of the Arctic Seas, 

 Mr. J. Scott Keltie says that to the north of 

 Europe and Asia we have the scattered 

 groups of islands — Spitzbergen, Franz Josef 

 Land, Novaya Zemlya, and the New Siberian 

 Islands. To the north of America we have 

 an immense archipelago the actual extent of 

 which is unknown. It may be that the is- 

 lands of this archipelago are continued far to 

 the north ; if so, they would form convenient 

 stages for the work of a well-equipped expe- 

 dition. It may be that they do not go much 

 farther than we find them on our maps. 

 Whatever be the case, it is important to the 

 interests of science that this section of the 

 Polar Sea be examined ; that as high a lati- 

 tude as possible be attained ; and that sound- 

 ings be made to discover whether the deep 

 ocean extends all round the pole. 



An ocellated lizard which M. Charles 

 Dreaux kept for thirteen years grew to be 

 nearly eighteen inches long and to weigh 

 almost half a pound. Having come from a 

 mild region, it was supposed not to be in 

 the habit of hibernating, and was kept dur- 

 ing the first winter in a warm room. It 

 suffered thereby from the violation of its cus- 

 toms, and, while it continued active, did not 

 eat, and was reduced, when spring came, to 

 a pitiful condition. Kept in a cool room 

 in after winters, it was regularly dormant 

 from the latter part of October till about 

 the middle of March, or between four and 

 five months. Its winter slumbers were not, 



