758 



THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY, 



Bdlletin of the Buffalo Society of Nat- 

 ural Sciences. 1875. Buffalo, N. Y. : 

 The Courier Company, Printers. Pp. 

 120. 



This issue is No. 4 of Yol. II., and com- 

 prises nine articles, with an index to the 

 volume. The articles are No. 16 to No. 24 

 of the series, eight of which are upon sub- 

 jects of entomology, and all of value to 

 specialists in that science. 



No. 18 is a check-list of the North Ameii- 

 can sphinxes by Aug. R. Grote, and No. 20 

 is a valuable paper by Dr. Scudder, being 

 a synonymic list of the butterflies of North 

 America north of Mexico. 



Article No. 22, by M. C. Cooke, M. A., of 

 London, is a synopsis of the disconiycetous 

 fungi of the United States, in which very 

 full credit is given to American mycologists 

 (or assistance rendered. 



Necessity of a Mechanical Labor.vtort. 

 By Prof. R. H. Thurston. Pp. 10. 



Prof. Thurston here defines what a 

 mechanical laboratory ought to be, its 

 province and its methods. Such a labora- 

 tory the trustees of the Stevens Institute 

 of Technology, he informs us, have con- 

 sented to establish. Such bodies as the 

 Railway Master-Mechanics' Association, the 

 Society of Civil Engineers, and the Iron 

 and Steel Association, have pledged them- 

 selves to give aid and advice in promoting 

 the enterprise. 



Some Account of Zapus Hudsonics and 

 Lagopus Leucurus. By Dr. E. Coues. 

 Washington : Government Printing- 

 Office. Pp. 14. 



Zapus is the name given by Dr. Coues 

 to a genus which includes only one species, 

 the "long-legged mouse of Hudson's Bay." 

 This animal, usually referred to the Muri- 

 dce, differs from the Muridse, says Dr. Coues, 

 to a degree warranting the recognition of a 

 family Zapodidce. With respect to Lagopus 

 leucurus (the white-tailed ptarmigan). Dr. 

 Goues remirks upon its breeding-habits, its 

 nost, and its eggs. 



The Mammoth Cave of Kentucky. By 

 W. S. FoRWooD, M. D. Philadelphia: 

 Lippincott. Pp. 241. 



This is an excellent account of the great 

 Kentucky Cave. It is not only a trustworthy 

 guids for the visitor, but something far better 



than an ordinary guide-book an historical 

 and descriptive account of the Mammoth 

 Cave, giving explanations of the causes con- 

 cerned in its formation, its chemisti-y, geol- 

 ogy, etc., together with full scientific details 

 of the eyeless fishes. The volume has 

 twelve lithographic illustrations, also an 

 original map. 



Geological Notes. By Prof. William B, 

 Rogers. Pp. 13. 



The two papers contained in this pam- 

 phlet are reprinted from the " Proceedings 

 of the Boston Society of Natural History." 

 The first of the papers treats of the New- 

 port conglomerate, and the second of the 

 gravel and cobble-stone deposits of Vir- 

 ginia and the Middle States. 



Weights, Measures, and Monet, of All 

 Nations. By F. W. Clarke, S. B. 

 Pp. 117. New York: D. Appleton k. 

 Co. Price, $1.50. 



This is a very useful little volume, en- 

 abling the reader to reduce to United 

 States standartls the money, measui-es, and 

 weights of every commercial nation in the 

 world. The work is divided into two parts, 

 in the first of which we have a classifica- 

 tion according to countries, arranged alpha- 

 betically, and, in the second, a set of tables, 

 giving the value of each unit both in Eng- 

 lish and in metric standards. 



PUBLICATIONS KECEIYED. 



Washington Astronomical and Meteoro^ 

 logical Observations (1873). Washington : 

 Government Printing-Ofiice. Pp. 429. 



Reconnoissance of Northwestern Wyo- 

 ming. By W. A. Jones, U. S. A. Washing- 

 ton : Government Printing-Ofiice. Pp. 332. 



Algebraical Equations. By J. Macnie, 

 A. M. Pp. 194. New York : A. S. Barnes 

 & Co. Price, $2.50. 



History of the United States. By J. A- 

 Doyle. Pp. 404. New York : Holt & Co. 

 Price, $1.40. 



Beliefs of the Unbelievers. By 0. B. 

 Frothingham. New York : Putnams. Price, 

 $1. 



French Political Leaders. By E. King. 

 Pp. 326. Same publishers. Price, $1.50. 



