294 



DISCOVERY 



comments on a curious phenomenon in this respect. 

 ^^'hen he cut off his oxygen, at over 27,000 ft., he found 

 himself suffering from a lack of decision. He hesitated 

 in the choice of hand and foot holds in a strange way. 

 On turning on the oxygen he became normal at once. 

 Oxygen increases the climber's speed, but seems to 

 result in greater exhaustion aftenvards. 



Fatigue is a serious obstacle. It is clear that a 

 climber, however fit he may be, who exerts himself 

 in gaining a great height is not likely to be of use 

 for another great effort for some time. In view of 

 the shortness of the climbing season, this means that 

 there is no certainty that a climber can be relied on 

 for two great efforts in one season's work. 



The weather conditions seem to provide the greatest 

 obstacle. The strong winds and the great cold are 

 very trying. Even at Camp III, at 21.000 ft., the 

 warmest night had a temperature only one degree 

 above zero Fahrenheit : on one occasion a tempera- 

 ture of — 29° F. was recorded. This means the cer- 

 taint}' of some casualties through frostbite. There are 

 probably only some four or iive weeks, just before 

 the break of the monsoon, when the climb can be 

 undertaken. For its successful accomplishment four 

 consecutive fine days are necessary. Such conditions 

 would appear to be very rare. This year's expedition 

 never had more than two continuous days of fine 

 weather. 



The surface difficulties of the mountain did not 

 prove greater than were anticipated, but the 1,700 ft. 

 that remain to be covered appear to present some big 

 obstacles. Mr. Finch wrote [The Times, July 18) as 

 follows : " From the highest point reached on the 

 mountain an excellent close-up view of the final ridge 

 leading to the summit was obtained. The opinion was 

 formed that though this final ridge is almost certainly 

 climbable, it contains two severe obstacles in the 

 nature of steep steps, the ascent of which entails not 

 only difficult and steep rock climbing, but also very 

 probably a considerable amount of step-cutting at 

 altitudes above 28.000 ft." 



We are glad to learn that, in spite of all difficulties, 

 another attempt to reach the summit is to be made 

 next year. It is to be hoped that this spirited adven- 

 ture will be crowned with the success it merits. 



DISEASE AND PERSONALITY 



Encephalitis Lethargica, or Sleepy Sickness, has again been 

 brought to the pubUc notice by the appearance of the Ministry 

 of Health's report on this subject. The striking drowsiness to 

 which it owes its name is an example of how the nervous 

 system reacts consistently to the disease attacking it. In 

 one form a patient is emotional and cheerful ; a patient with 

 palsy is melancholic ; while the general paralytic is over- 

 whelmed with pride and self-importance. Some remarkable 

 examples of this principle have been related by Dr. Head — 

 cases in which, after the isolation by wound or disease of 



[Continued at foot of p, 30S. 



The Antiquity of Man in 

 America — II 



By E. N. Fallaize, B.A. 



Hon. Sec. Royal Anthropological Institu'e 



{Continued from October No., p. 268) 



When' we turn to South America, the question of the 

 antiquity of man assumes a very different aspect. 

 In North America, finds are few and scattered, and 

 geological data are either absent, or meagre, or fail 

 to carry conviction ; in the southern half of the con- 

 tinent the geological evidence is at first sight more 

 full, though also far from satisfactory ; but finds 

 attributed to early man in the form of skeletal 

 remains, stone implements, pottery, and the like, 

 have been brought to light, literally, in thousands. 

 The distribution of these finds has also played a part 

 in the elaboration of theory. With the exception of 

 human remains, assigned by some to the Quaternary 

 Age, from the cave of Lagoa Santa in the province of 

 Minaes Geraes in Brazil, and some skulls from the Rio 

 Negro, Patagonia, the evidence in question is all 

 derived from Argentina and, for the most part, from 

 the province of Buenos Aires, which has, therefore, 

 been regarded as the place of origin of man in South 

 America. The remains which constitute this evidence 

 were found in the loess-like formation ' known as 

 Pampsan which overlies the crystalline rocks of the 

 continental surface. The stratification of the loess 

 indicates an alternation of aridity and humidity 

 which corresponds in a general way with the variations 

 in the extension of the ice cap in the northern part of 

 the continent during the Ice Age. The Upper and 

 Middle Pampaan are assigned to the Quaternary, the 

 Lower to the Tertiary Age. It must, however, be 

 said that there is a serious difference of opinion as to 

 the relative chronology of some of the geological 

 strata : some, which one school would assign to early 

 Tertiary times, being regarded by others as " recent." 

 It would be impossible to deal here in any detail 

 with these data. For nearly forty years they were 

 studied by the late Seiior F. Ameghino, who, as each 

 fresh discovery was made, added to his theory 'of 

 Early Man until he had elaborated a complete exposi- 

 tion of his line of descent and place of origin. It^will 

 be sufficient to mention here the principal finds' upon 

 which this theory was based. 



1 This loess formation is composed of aluminous clay, 

 siliceous sand, and oxide of iron, the result of the process of 

 denudation of the upper watersheds, gathered, brought down, 

 and distributed by rivers. The muds thus deposited, when 

 dried, have been subjected to prolonged wind-sifting and have 

 become uniformly fine in texture. 



