ZOOLOGY 393 



it is almost impossible to ascertain whether or not they lose 

 their individuahty. He claims that the urgent need to-day is 

 a knowledge of the relation of chromosomes to the organisation 

 of the resting nucleus and a detailed study of heterotypic 

 chromosomes. 



Other papers include : 



Hsieh, "A Review of Ancient Chinese Anatomy" [Anat. Rec, vol. 20, 

 No. 2, Jan. 1921) ; Lewis, " The Effects of Potassium Permanganate on the 

 Mesenchyma Cells of Tissue Cultures " {Amer. Journ. Anat., vol. 28, No. 3, 

 March 192 1) ; Loeb, " Transplantation and Individuality " (Biol. Bull., vol. 

 40, No. 3, March 1921) ; Patten and Philpot, " The Shrinkage of Embryos 

 in the Processes Preparatory to Sectioning " [Anat. Rec, vol. 20, No. 4, 

 March 1921). 



ANTHHOFOLOGY. By A. G. Thacker, A.R.C.S. 



In the Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society, 

 vol. lix, No. 4, Dr. R. B. Dixon, of Harvard, contributes an 

 interesting and important article on the Polynesians. The 

 reader will remember that the South Sea Islanders have always 

 been classed as a Mongolian race, though they were supposed 

 to possess an admixture of other blood. There is of course 

 no doubt that the Polynesians are mainly Mongolian, but Dr. 

 Dixon has made a serious investigation into the other ingre- 

 dients of the population. He thinks that the first substratum 

 was Negrito, and of this there is to this day a distinct survival 

 in Hawai, The second substratum consists of a Negroid race, 

 akin to the Melanesians and Australians. This element has 

 been recognised before, and survivals of this " Melanesian " 

 race, as we may fairly call it, are to be found in New Zealand, 

 and also in Easter Island. The third element is that of the 

 Malay (Mongolian) stock, which is of course predominant 

 to-day all over the South Seas. Lastly, Dr. Dixon finds traces 

 of an ancient Caucasic population, which he believes to be as 

 old as the Negroids. It is in regard to the first and last of these 

 four elements that the views put forward are novel. The 

 existence of a possibly wide-spread Negrito race, who preceded 

 the supposedly " aboriginal" Melanesians, is certainly extremely 

 interesting, as is also the presence of savage Caucasians in 

 these longitudes. The whole discussion gives one another 

 fleeting glimpse of those great migrations which took place 

 long before the dawn of history. 



The Annates de Paleontologie is an elaborate periodical ; the 

 issue for the half-decade 1 916-21 is now to hand, and it 

 is an excellent and beautifully illustrated publication. There 

 is one article in it which calls for special mention here. This 

 is a contribution by Teilhard de Chardin which is entitled 

 " Sur quelques Primates des Phosphorites du Quercy." It 

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