February i, 19 12] 



NATURE 



441 



the story of its discovery and exploration. Tlie ex- 

 treme eastern portion, Nova Scotia, is next treated, 

 and its character and development are traced step by 

 step from its first settlement at the beginning of the 

 seventeenth century until the present time, when its 

 greatest activity centres in the city of Halifax. 



Joining this eastern region to central portions of 

 the Dominion is the important province of New Bruns- 

 wick, which unites the estuary of the St. Lawrence 

 to the Atlantic coast of the Bay of Fundy, and pro- 

 vides Quebec with valuable southern lines of com- 

 munication without passing into the territory of the 

 United States. To the north of the St. Lawrence 

 lies a barren region between it and Hudson Bay, of 

 '.\ hich the development has been restricted to Labrador, 

 • \\< eastern coast, and even here resident fishermen 

 and traders, with a thousand or two Eskimos, make 

 ill! the population. Quebec and Ontario are the two 

 itres about which the history of the middle eastern 

 jiiition of Canada centres, and in each the story of 

 .1 steadily advancing utilisation of the land's resources 

 i- unfolded. The prairie lands of the middle west 

 ar(> described in their different categories with their 

 natural features and resources, and we see the gradual 

 opening up of the region by the early hunters, who, 

 from Canada and from Hudson Bay in the first 

 instance, were followed later by settlers along the 

 same water routes. 



At the present day the grouping of the immigrants 

 of different nationalities along the various railway 

 lines furnishes an interesting case of special geograph- 

 ical distribution of new settlements. The far west, 

 and the north-west, where settlement is still pressing 

 into unopened regions, present a different problem 

 from the last, since the great ranges of the west cover 

 a vast tract of country. 



\ final essay deals with the civilisation of the far 

 >>vst. Within this moderate compass we have a most 

 complete account of the entrance into this vast region 

 immigrant peoples from the east, their gradual 

 iblishment, and their utilisation of its resources. 

 Tlieir movements largely controlled by the physical 

 features of its surface are well described, and 

 their relation to these features is brought out. 

 A most valuable aid to the student is the 

 ample references which are given throughout, and 

 these show what an immense amount of research 

 Mr. Rogers has devoted to the subject. The geo- 

 graphical descriptions of the various regions contain 

 ; a considerable amount of geological information, but 

 fliiy might usefully have been carried further in 

 <li scribing the land features, and the part that the 

 different erosive agencies have played and are play- 

 ing in modelling the surface of the land, for much 



relating to the human occupation is closely concerned 

 with these. TTie whole question of relief is but lightly 

 dealt with, and might have advantageously been 

 shown cartographically. 



The volume which deals with Newfoundland shows 

 a similar wealth of historical reference and research, 

 presenting with great clearness the gradual develop- 

 ment of the colony of fishermen which grew up by 

 Itself alongside other fishermen who came yearly to 

 NO. 2205, VOL. 88] 



fish, but returned without establishing themselves 

 there. The wealth of the fishing industry has hindered 

 the development of the colony's resources, and kept 

 human activity close to the sea coast and the innu- 

 merable creeks which indent it. The long Anglo- 

 French duel is discussed in detail, with ample refer- 

 ences to all authorities, and is followed by an in- 

 structive chapter on the progress which has taken 

 place by land between 1818 and 1910 in developing 

 the natural resources of the interior. The historical 

 aspect is naturally predominant, but a rather fuller 

 treatment of the land surface and its special character 

 would have been a useful introduction to the history 

 of the colony. H. G. L. 



ALBINISM. 

 A Monograph on Albinism in Man. Bv Karl Pearson, 

 F.R.S., E. Nettleship, and C. H. Usher. Part i., 

 text, pp. viii + 266; atlas, plates A — Z and AA — ZZ. 

 (Department of Applied Mathematics, University 

 College, University of London : Drapers' Company 

 Research Memoirs, Biometric Series, vi.) (London : 

 Dulau and Co., Ltd., 191 1.) Price, part i., text and 

 atlas, 355. net. 



THIS is the first part of a monograph on albinism 

 which promises to be the most complete pre- 

 sentation, as yet produced, of what is known on this 

 interesting subject. The subject of abnormal pig- 

 mentation is important, not only in itself, but also 

 because its elucidation is certain to throw a great deal 

 of light on the still more important question of normal 

 pigmentation. 



In the present volume, the authors deal with the 

 history and geographical distribution of albinism, 

 the albinotic skin, leucoderma, and partial albinism; 

 in subsequent volumes they propose to deal with the 

 albinotic eye and the albinotic hair in man and in 

 the lower animals. The atlases accompanying the 

 present and subsequent volumes contain numerous 

 illustrations of albinotic subjects, maps, pedigrees, 

 &c. 



Though an enormous amount of labour has been 

 expended in collecting the materials for this volume, 

 we are somewhat surprised, after having read it, to 

 find how little is definitely known about the subject. 

 Taking the question of the geographical distribution 

 of albinism, there appears to be only two countries 

 in Europe, naroely, Norway and Italy, in which any- 

 thing approaching an exact census of the number 

 of albinos in the population has been taken. In the 

 former country the proportion is given as i in 10,000, 

 and in the latter i in 20,000. It would be very 

 dangerous to rely on these figures as showing a real 

 difference in tlie susceptiblity of the Nordic and 

 Mediterranean races of Europ-' 



The chapter on the albinoli- it lins a very 



complete account of the mon nuni investigations 

 that have been made to ascertain the nature and 

 origin of the pigment of the skin. We find, however,, 

 that the leading authorities on this question are still 

 so much at variance that it is impossible to come to 

 any decisive opinion. We have, on one hand. 



