376 



THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



By 



Prehistoric Remains at Cincinnati 

 Robert Clarke. 



This is valuable as a memorandum of 

 the prehistoric remains found on the site of 

 the city of Cincinnati, which have already 

 been obliterated, or are fast becoming so, 

 by the extension of the city. It shows 

 careful research. The main object of the 

 pamphlet, however, is the vindication of 

 the claims to importance of the " Cin- 

 cinnati tablet " (engravings of which are 

 given) found in a mound on Fifth Street, 

 in 1841, by Mr. E. Gest. One face is 

 sculptured, in low-relief, with hieroglyph- 

 ics, which, from their siugular resemblance 

 to Egyptian carvings, excited much atten- 

 tion. It was accepted as genuine for thirty 

 years, when doubt was thrown upon it by 

 several writers, and since then it has been 

 by many considered as a fraud. Mr. Clarke 

 now brings forward a mass of direct evi- 

 dence to show its genuine character as a 

 true relic of the mound-builders, which it 

 would seem hard to contradict ; and adds 

 that many who for a time believed the tab- 

 let an imposture are now convinced of its 

 genuineness. No explanation of its signifi- 

 cance or use, however, is attempted, except 

 incidentally. Arclneologists will be glad to 

 read this paper. 



The Greenstones of New Hampshire, and 

 their Organic Remains. By George W. 

 Hawes. 



This is reprinted with a colored plate 

 from the American Journal of Science and 

 Arts. The greenstones referred to cover 

 the upper end of the Connecticut Valley, 

 and belong to the Huronian age, but the 

 author considers them to have been formed 

 from fine sedimentary deposits accumulated 

 in still waters ; that the metamorphic action 

 under which they were consolidated was 

 quiet or gentle in degree, far different from 

 that which in the adjoining regions formed 

 mountain-masses of granite and gneiss, and 

 hence that their special location, in connec- 

 tion with the nature of the sediments, has 

 determined the characters of the greenstone 

 series. In certain of these rocks silicated 

 remains of rhizopods and foraminifers are 

 found, and Mr. Hawes figures some as seen 

 under the microscope, with their natural 

 colors. The pamphlet is an instructive one 

 to geologists and mineralogists. 



FiLTn - Diseases and their Prevention. 

 By John Simon, M. D., F. R. C. S., Chief 

 Medical Officer of the Privy Council, and 

 of the Local Government Board of Great 

 Britain. Printed under the Direction of 

 the State Board of Health of Massachu- 

 setts. Boston : James Campbell. Pp. 

 96. Price, $1. 



This book is well recommended by the 

 Board of Health of Massachusetts, as it be- 

 lieves that, " if the practical suggestions 

 made in it were acted on by all citizens, 

 hundreds of lives now annually doomed to 

 destruction would be saved, and the health 

 and comfort of the people greatly increased." 

 The work was originally published in Eng- 

 land as a preface to a volume of excellent 

 reports made by Government inspectors. 

 The author first traces the characteristic 

 diseases due to filth, such as diarrhoea, ty- 

 phoid fever, cholera, etc. ; next, the vari- 

 ous forms under which filth operates ; and, 

 finally, the means to be taken to do away 

 with its effects. He also discusses at some 

 length the different closet-systems. 



Fifty Years of my Life. By George 

 Thomas, Earl of Albemarle. New 

 York: Holt & Co. Pp. 420. Price, 



$2.50. 



The Earl of Albemarle was born in the 

 last year of the last century, and his recol- 

 lections cover much interesting historical 

 ground. The position of his family brought 

 him in contact with royalty from his early 

 youth, and many illustrious persons, civil 

 and military, figure in these pages* The 

 narrative is written in a gossipy and con- 

 tented manner, characteristic of a man who 

 has lived a long and enjoyable life. 



Seventh Annual Report of the State 

 Board of Health of Massachusetts. 



This report is the careful compilation 

 of an able committee, and the popularity 

 which it has obtained is justly deserved. 

 The authors emphasize the fact that " it is 

 expedient to keep practical questions of 

 sanitary law and work constantly before 

 the people ; " and they have accordingly 

 presented the matter very forcibly. Such 

 subjects as " Rivers Pollution " and " The 

 Disposal of Sewage " are treated in their 

 relations to disease. Aside from its local 

 worth, the report is valuable on account of 

 the general principles discussed. 



