48 



THE AMERICAN MUSEUM JOURNAL 



dont group shows three of these so-called 

 tortoise-armadillos. The largest and most 

 complete is the Panochthus of Argentina, of 

 which the carapace, head and tail have hereto- 

 fore been on exhibition in a separate case. 

 The limbs and feet are now placed in position 

 and add to the oddity of its make-up. The 

 massive powerful hind legs support the main 

 weight of the body. The fore limbs show that 

 the animal walked upon the tips of the claws 

 like the little modern armadillos, instead of 

 resting upon the sole of the forefoot, as one 

 might expect in a beast so massively pro- 

 portioned. A remarkably perfect carapace 

 found in Mexico two years ago by Mr, 

 Barnum Brown, is now exhibited for the first 

 time. The third and smallest glyptodont is 

 from northern Texas, found by Mr. J. W. 

 Gidley in 1901, and has been on exhibition 

 separately in a case. 



This wonderful extinct fauna, so different 

 from those of the rest of the world, is further 

 illustrated by the magnificent sabre-tooth 

 tiger skeleton, the casts of skeletons of 

 Toxodon, Macrauchenia and Hippidium (the 

 last to be transferred from the horse evolu- 

 tion alcove) and a large series of skeletons, 

 skulls, limbs, etc. of the various extinct ani- 

 mals characteristic of South America already 

 emplaced or in preparation for the walls and 

 table cases. 



The recent acquisition by the New York 

 Aquarium of a lobster weighing twenty-one 

 pounds calls to our attention the fact that 

 the American Museum has the largest known 

 mounted specimens of lobsters in the world, 

 one weighing when caught thirty-four pounds 

 and the other thirty-one. Both were caught 

 off Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey, in 1897. 

 Although they are abnormal as to size, they 

 seem to be perfectly normal in every other 

 way, their proportions being not at all out 

 of the ordinary. The specimens are exhibited 

 in the Darwin hall of the department of 

 invertebrate zoology. 



Mr. John D. Crimmins has recently 

 presented to the Museum a large mounted 

 specimen of the rare silver-fish Hynnis 

 cubensis taken at Palm Beach, Florida, in 

 February, 1913. 



Dr. C-E. a. Winslow delivered the presi- 

 dential address before the Society of Ameri- 

 can Bacteriologists in Montreal, Canada, 



January 1, 1914, on the "Characterization 

 and Classification of Bacterial Types." Dr. 

 Winslow together with Prof. J. G. Adami of 

 Montreal and Prof. E. O. Jordan of Chicago 

 have been appointed members of an Inter- 

 national Commission on the Classification of 

 Bacteria, which is now being organized. It 

 is hoped that the American Museum collec- 

 tion of living bacteria will prove of peculiar 

 value in the work of this commission. 



The following lectures to take place on 

 Thursday evenings at 8:15 have been ar- 

 ranged for the Members' course: Februarys, 

 "Among the Wild Tribes of the Philippine 

 Islands," Dean C. Worcester; February 19, 

 "Seals and Other Animals of the Pribilof 

 Islands," Frederic A. Lucas and Roy C. 

 Andrews; February 26, "Fertile Argentina 

 and its Vast Patagonian Pampas," Charles W. 

 Furlong; March 5, "The Ascent of Denali 

 (Mount McKinley)," Archdeacon Stuck; 

 March 12, " Mexico and Her People," Fred- 

 erick I. Monsen. 



The children's course of lectures open to 

 all school children who are accompanied by 

 their teachers and to children of members on 

 the presentation of a membership ticket has 

 been arranged as follows: March 2, "The 

 Coming of Columbus," Agnes L. Vaughan; 

 March 4, "Geography of the United States," 

 G. Clyde Fisher; March 6, "The Panama 

 Canal," Agnes L. Vaughan; March 9, 

 "Exploration of the West," Agnes L. 

 Vaughan; March 11, "River Highways," G. 

 Clyde Fisher; March 13, "Glimpses of South 

 America," Charles H. Rogers; March 16, 

 "Settlement of New England," Roy W. 

 Miner; March 18, "The Mountains," 

 Albert E. Butler; March 20, "Scenes in 

 Asia," G. Clyde Fisher; March 23, "Inside 

 the Indian's Wigwam," Alanson Skinner; 

 March 25, "The Great Plains," G. Clyde 

 Fisher; March 27, "A Summer Trip to 

 Europe," Agnes L. Vaughan; March 30, 

 "Early History of New York," Roy W. Miner ; 

 April 1, "Our Great Northern Territory," 

 Agnes L. Vaughan; April 17, "African Desert 

 and Jungle," G. Clyde Fisher; April 20, 

 "New York City To-day,'' Roy W. Miner; 

 April 22, "The Forests of Our Country," 

 George H. Sherwood; April 24, "Mexico and 

 Central America," Charles H. Rogers. The 

 hour of the lectures is four o'clock. 



