140 



KNOWLEDGE. 



April, 1911. 



bv many workers, and a scientific pathway begins to 

 open up before us. 



(2l In eluc-idatint,^ the relations of front and liind 

 limbs: Professor Bowditch. of Harvard, wrote to me 

 that he had earl\" begun an enquiry into this subject. 

 It promises to yield results of interest, but more 

 workers are required. 



(3) In identif\ang for life insurance, pensions, 

 passports, affidavits, cheques, signing deeds, and so 

 on. Again, in identif\'ing the dead b\- former 

 records, after battle, flood, fire or earthcpiake. 



(4) In identif\'ing old convicted criminals who 

 have assumed other names. 



(5) In testing e\idence of bodily presence at a 

 scene of crime by bloody finger-marks, sweaty or 

 greasv smears on glass windows, wine glasses, lamps. 

 or cash boxes and the like, or indented impressions 



on putty, wax, paraffin and so on. Faint impresses 

 can be revived ; invisible ones quite clearl_\- brought 

 out b\- chemical means : imprints in relievo may be 

 photographed and made clearh' intelligible to a jury. 

 (See figure 5 — a smudge from a finger.) 



The last, and I think b\- far the least, of these 

 once potential, now actual, utilities has taken the 

 deepest hold of the popular imagination, and has 

 seemed, to me at least, to threaten some danger to 

 the innocent bv its often ignorant and unscientific 

 application. The method is not " mathematical " as 

 certain officials are ne\-er tired of repeating, but 

 demands common sense and the use of their own 

 eyesight and mother wit b\' the plain men in the 

 jur\- box. It is essentialh- English, and ever\- accused 

 person in the dock is as able as a judge, or counsel, 

 or official witness, to test its validity. 



W () U N D S IN TREES. 



Some interesting illustrations are given in the 

 March number of The Cmintiy Home of wounds in 

 trees that have successfully closed o\er. and others 

 which will never properh' heal, ^^'e are enabled to 

 reproduce some of the pictures here, b'igure 1 

 shows a well-healed wound. In I'igure 2, the 

 process of healing having been slow, the exposed 

 wood has rotted awa\- and, there being nothing 

 to keep the healing tissues in their proper place, 

 \he\ are turning inward, with the result that if the 

 wound is left to itself it will never heal. Figure 3 

 depicts a branch on which a snag has been left, 

 and, so long as it remains, it will pre\ent the 



edges of the healing tissue from meetmi 



The 



article emphasises the need for more attention 

 to be paid to trees, on account of the danger 

 caused by their unexpected fall. Mention is also 

 made of the \\ork of the tree doctors, whose 

 advertisements are seen in the columns of 



American news- 

 papers. Their 

 services would 

 be useful at a 

 time when the 

 trees are lopped 

 in the first in- 

 stance, and also 

 to repair the 

 damage caused 

 b }• ignorant 

 labourers, who 

 are o n 1 \' too 

 commonh- em- 

 ployed to cut 

 trees, regardless 

 of the fact that 

 the\' are living 

 creatures. 





A wound 

 not heal. 



The Cftuntry llonw. 



that will 



By the courtesy o/ I'hi- Count7y Home. 



FiGURi-: 1. A wL'll-lR-uk'd wuiind. 



By the courtesy of The Country Home. 



FiGUKi-: J. A snag which pix-\cnts healing. 



