SCIENCE PROGRESS 



The correlation of the human relics with these glacial and interglacial epochs 

 is an interesting if difficult subject. There is no unanimity yet among scholars, 

 but here, as elsewhere, the author represents the dominant school. The Heidel- 

 berg Jaw is placed in the first interglacial phase, and the Chellean and Acheulean 

 cultures flourished in the second genial interval, which was very long and warmer 

 than the present day. The M-ousterian implements carry us through the third ice- 

 age to the next interglacial epoch, at the end of which the more advanced 

 Aurignacian and Solutrean cultures appeared. The Magdalenians lived through 

 and during the decline of the fourth glacial epoch. Then comes the hiatus 

 between Palaeolithic and Neolithic man, which the author regards as a reality in 

 Northern and Central Europe, if not farther south, the so-called Azilian culture 

 being typically Neolithic. The Neolithic tribes appeared, however, before the 

 fifth ice-age. It is unfortunate that the author groups the two oldest cultures, 

 the Mesvinian and Strepyan, with the Chellean. The Mesvinian implements 

 have been placed by some writers in the first interglacial epoch, and since they 

 are the oldest artifacts generally recognised as such, we should have welcomed a 

 discussion of their exact age. We infer that Geikie places them in the second 

 interglacial epoch with his comprehensive " Chellean," but the point is not 

 discussed. 



We think the anatomical summary is too meagre even for the author's special 

 purpose, and we find it stated on p. 47 that the Magdalenians were short. One 

 of the Magdalenian races no doubt was short, but there is strong evidence 

 (accepted by most writers) that the tall " Cro-Magnon " race was living during 

 this period, and Prof. Geikie ought certainly to have given his reasons for 

 dissenting from this view. 



The book closes with the usual guesses at the duration of the various epochs 



in years, the Heidelberg Jaw being given an antiquity of about half a million 



years. 



A. G. Thacker. 



The Childhood of the World. A simple account of man's origin and early 

 history. By Edward Clodd. New and revised edition. [Pp. xiii 4- 240. 

 With 26 figs.] (New York : The Macmillan Co., 1914. Price 4s. 6d. net.) 



This well-known and successful little work, first published in 1872, is divided into 

 three parts, dealing respectively with man's physical and material evolution, 

 his mental and religious development, and with his advance in scientific ideas. 

 The book's success (it has been translated into seven languages) is no doubt 

 largely due to the author's admirable style of writing, which, being both simple 

 and graphic, enables him to reach not only the general public but even juvenile 

 readers. Occasionally, however, in aiming at simplicity he becomes almost 

 unintelligible, as in his avoidance of the word " Pleistocene." The work of 

 bringing the book up-to-date has been fairly thoroughly done, but there are a 

 few rather serious mistakes. For instance, the erroneous impression is given 

 that the distribution of land and sea in N.W. Europe was almost constant during 

 the Paleolithic Age ; the phylogenetic tree of the higher Primates on p. 14 is 

 misleading and inadequate, the subdivision of the Old Stone Age on p. 50 is 

 quite out-of-date, and we are told that there are no fossils known from Pre- 

 cambrian rocks. The section dealing with religion is written from the naturalistic 

 standpoint. There is a good bibliography appended. 



A.G.T. 



