278 



NATURE L- 



\yan. 23, 1879 



Ijy " individual " fissures, and, moreover, the angle formed 

 between its anterior and posterior extremities is raised, 

 and into this space a small accessory branch from the 

 Fissura rhinalis is directed. 



Tylopoda. — Pronation is so marked that the F. lateralis 

 is actually situated on the median surface. The F. 

 coronalis is directed from the middle line forwards and 

 outvards. 



Suillidoe present several characters in common with 

 the Carnivora. The processus anterior Sylvii is continued 

 into the F. rhinalis, as is also the F. praesylvia. 



The F. diagonalis is constantly joined to the F. supra 

 Sylvia, and the posterior end of the F. coronalis joins the 

 F. splenialis. 



Hippopotamidce. — Like the pig. 



Tapiridce. — Posteriorly the F. coronalis does not join 

 any other fissure, but anteriorly it communicates with the 

 F. praesylvia, a fact which, though frequent in Perissodac- 

 tyls, is rare in Artiodactyls. 

 NasicornidcB are similar to the Solidungulates. 

 Solidungulata. — The peculiarities are very constant. 

 Thu5 there are cross-fissures between F. Sylvii and F. 

 supra Sylvii. Further, there is an accessory longitudinal 

 and parallel fissure on either side of the F. lateralis. 

 Pronation is marked. The F. coronalis is united to the 

 F. supra Sylvii, and the posterior "horn " of the F. coro- 

 nalis is not united to that fissure, but commencing behind 

 and above the anterior end of F. splenialis, runs forwards 

 and outwards, ending before reaching F. coronalis. 



Comparison of the convolutions of the Ungulata with 

 those of the Carnivora shows that in the latter order the 

 first six chief sulci of the Ungulata have undoubtedly their 

 homologues. The question as to whether a F. diagonalis 

 can be said to exist must still be left open, and the re- 

 maining three certainly do not always exist in the brain 

 of the Carnivora, and when present are accessory only. 



Dr. Krueg thinks that possibly the posterior " horn " 

 (Biigel) of the Fissura coronalis is homologous with the 

 Fissura cruciata in the Carnivora, but this is very uncer- 

 tain, for it is questionable whether in the Cavicornia the 

 posterior limb of the F. coronalis is homologous with the 

 distinct one described above in the Equidae. Certainly 

 that of the Perissodactyl is very similar to the Fissura 

 cruciata as regards its relation to the F. coronalis ; but 

 while in the Perissodactyl the posterior extremity begins 

 above the F. splenialis, in all Carnivora it begins below. 

 Further, the anterior end of the F. splenialis turning up 

 to the median border has a plausible homology itself with 

 the Fissui'a cruciata. It would be very interesting to 

 have the time of appearance of the Fissura cruciata 

 fixed, for the latter theory would compare it to the 

 human parieto-occipital fissure. As confirmatory evi- 

 dence regarding the homology of the Ungulate and Car- 

 nivorate Fissurae coronales, we must note the important 

 fact that similar cortical motor centres are situate around 

 them : this is strongly in favour of Dr. Krueg's view. 

 University College, London V. Horsley 



V NOTES 



Prof. W. K. Clifford has arrived safely at Madeira. The 

 voyage was rough and stormy, but we are glad to be able to 

 report that he is markedly better than when he left England. 



A SUBSCRIPTION has been opened by the Dorpat University 

 for the erection at Dorpat of a monument to the late K. von 

 Baer. 



On January 10 the Imperial Russian Academy of Sciences at 

 St. Petersburg held its annual meeting, which was largely 

 attended this year. The meeting was opened with the reading 

 of the long list of deaths of members, foreign and Russian, 

 during last year, and among whom we notice Regnault, Claude 

 Bernard, Granville, and Bienaime, at Paris ; Hugo Ilildebrardt, of 



Jena ; Fiiis, of Upsala ; Tornberg, of Lund ; Lers, of Konigs- 

 berg ; and the well-known Russian archocologift Polyenoff; 

 Kovalsky and Khanykoff, orientalists ; and Davydoff, mathe- 

 matician. Count Orloflf-Davydoff, Baron Biihler, and Col. 

 Prjvalsky were elected honorary members ; and General 

 Maiefsky, mathematician ; General Stebnitzky, geodesist at 

 Tiflis ; Mr. Hind (as noted last week), Dr. John Muir (Edin- 

 burgh), Clausius (Bonn), Boisier (Geneva), Lavrofsky and 

 Veselago were elected correspondent members of the Aca- 

 demy. The report on the museums of the Academy showed 

 several most important acquisitions, among which we notice 

 the immense and very rich collections of birds, fishes, and 

 reptiles brought in from Central Asia by Col. Prjvalsky, 

 daring his second journey ; a collection of skulls and b3nes of 

 Steller's sea-cow, which inhabited, during the last century, the 

 shores of the White Sea, but is now extinct, the collection being 

 made by M. Phillipens on the shores of Behring Strait ; 

 and a complete skull of an Elasmotherium, presented by M. 

 Knoblauch. There were, until now, only some teeth of this 

 immense quaternary horse-like rhinoceros at the museum of the 

 Academy, and a part of a skull at the British Museum, which 

 had offered, we are told, a large sum of money to M. Knoblauch 

 for the rarity. The skull was found close by Sarepta, on the 

 banks of the Volga River. The Academy proposes to open next 

 year for the public a large anthropological museum, the materials, 

 for which are already in the hands of the Academy ; we heartily 

 commend this step, as the museums of the Academy, when open 

 to tlie public each Monday, are visited by masses of people (as 

 many as 12,000 persons daily on holidays). The report on the 

 works of the philological and historical branch of the Academy 

 was presented by Prof. Suklomlinoff, who dwelt at length on 

 the works of Prince Vyazemsky ; and a very interesting paper 

 on the correspondence between Catherine II. and Grimm was- 

 read by Prof. Groth. In this branch we notice a great under- 

 taking by the Academy for the next year, being a dictionary of 

 the Kurd language. This language has been very well studied, 

 but there are no dictionaries of it. Now, the Academy will 

 publish a complete one, the materials for it being given by the 

 French orientalist, M. Szabo, and completed by M. Yulpi, who 

 will be intrusted with this important publication. 



We notice an interesting work, just issued in Russia, by Prof. 

 Rumishevich at Kieff, being a complete catalogue of all the 

 medicinal and veterinary literature pubUshed in Russia during 

 1876. 



We learn that the St. Petersbm-g Academy of Sciences has 

 intrusted M. Keppen with the publication of a complete catalogue 

 of animals living in European Russia. 



Lord Dufferin, Lord Rosse, and Prof. Roscoe received 

 the degree of LL.D. from Trinity College, Dublin, on 

 Tuesday. 



The " Telectroscope " is the name of a new apparatus, the 

 plan of whicWwas, Les Mondes states, recently submitted to MM. 

 du Moncel and Hallez d'Arros by M. Senlecq, intended to repro- 

 duce telegraphically at a distance the images obtained in the 

 camera obscura. This apparatus is based on the well-known 

 sensitiveness of selenium to various shades of light. 



Prof. Edward S. Morse, we learn from the New York 

 Nat on, has written an interesting paper on the " Traces of an 

 Early Race in Japan," which throws light on a subject hitherto- 

 wholly obscure. A race of men called Ainos are believed to 

 have come down from Kamtchatka and to have taken possession 

 of Japan, which they held until displaced in thtir turn by the 

 Japanese from the south. Of the two races, the Ainos and the 

 Japanese, authentic records exist, but nothing has been known 

 cfinceri.ing the .inc'ent people who'-e terrif-.ry w-s appropriated 



