618 SUMMARY OF PROGRESS IN ANTHROPOLOGY. 



Documents imur servir a VHistoirc (hi Mexiqucj piiblislied by Leronx. 

 Dr. Ihintoii furnislios iu Science (Marcli 10) a good account of the mate- 

 rial, and says that all that has been previously written about Mexico 

 has no more im])ortanee than the histories of Egypt, composed before 

 the decipherment of the hieroglyphics. 



In Science Dr. Cresson shows the method pursued by him in his 

 attempt to analyze the Maya hieratic and demotic scrii)t by the pho- 

 netic elements of which it is composed. The Maya graphic system 

 seems to be based upon a primitive ideographism, the elements derived 

 from natural and artificial motives. These symbols received phonetic 

 meanings. This representation of ideas or words by pictures, whole 

 or abbreviated, Dr. Brintou calls the iconomatic stage of writing. 

 Both Mexican and Maya were of this character. The Maya especially 

 had gotten beyond it toward the higher stage. {Science, ^ew York, 

 December 15.) 



Canon Isaac Taylor, reviewing a paper of von der Gabelentz on the 

 probable connection between Basque and Berber speech, says: "We 

 may adhere to the old conclusion that in the more essential points the 

 aftinities of the Basque are with the languages of the Ural-Altaic class, 

 which are totally different from the Berber languages, which belong 

 rather to the Eamitic fam ily. [Acad, 1893, July 20.) 



Since the appearance of Horatio Hale's paper on the possibility of 

 inventing language, nuich has been written on child language, Clark 

 University, at Worcester, has taken up the matter seriously of making 

 a collection of the secret languages of children, of which the old time 

 "hog Latin" is only one example. 



TECHNOLOGY. 



The divisions of primitive technology, out of which all useful human 

 enterprises spring, are the following: 



(1) The study of materials, their qualities and geographical distribu 

 tion. 



(2) The study of the forces of nature, power of man, beast, wind, 

 water, elasticity of rigid substances and gases, electricity, — as they 

 have been subdued and put to work by man. 



(3) Tools, utensils, apjjaratiis, the study of their working parts, 

 their manual and operative parts, their attachments and consequent 

 machines. 



(4) Mechanics, the gradual working out of the inclined plane, lever 

 roller, wheel and axle, pully, screw, and the like, for the conversion of 

 time, directitm of motion, resistance, one into another. 



(5) The processes of work, the manner in which the operations of an 

 industry have been carried on from beginning to end. 



(0) The products of the arts in their designs, structures, functions, 

 and influence on the whole body of human industry. 

 The round through which all these activities go is: 



