February 28, 1895] 



NATURE 



429 



lowest human cranium which has yet been described. It pre- 

 sents many Neanderihaloid characters, but stands very nearly as 

 much below the Neanderthal skull a? the latter does below the 

 ordinary European skull. The similarity in form which it 

 presents to the microcephalic cranium, with which it has been 

 compared, is undoubtedly interesting, but on this account we 

 are not to conclude that it belon(;ed to a person of feebler in- 

 tellect than others of the same race. The Neanderthal skull 

 was supposed by certain observers at one time to have been 

 (hat of an idiot, but this idea was disposed of when other 

 crania, presumably belonging to the sauie geological period, and 

 possessing similar characters, were discovered. That the fo.ssil 

 cranium should in many respects resemble certain microcephalic 

 skulls, is not surprising : indeed, to some extent it was to have 

 been expected, seeing that a considerable number of this cla^s 

 of idiots present undoubted atavistic characters in so far as brain 

 and cranium are concerned. 



Dubois, in his description of the fossil cranium, institutes a 

 close comparison between it and the crania of the higher apes, 

 and only incidentally touches upon its relationship with the 

 human cranium. He asserts that no good could aiise from a 

 comparison between it and the Neanderthal and Spy remains, 

 seeing that the latter are pathological. It is not within the 

 scope of an abstract, such as thi--, to take up the gauntlet on a 

 question of this kind. It will be sufficient to assert an entire 

 accordance with the views so ably advocated by Prof. Huxley, 

 viz. that the Neanderthal and Spy crania are typical of the 

 earliest human race with which we are acquainted. 



It is not necessary to delay over the lemur. That it is 

 human in every respect, no one could for a single moment doubt. 

 Further, it is curious to note that its form and proportions are 

 tnore those of a modern than of a prehistoric thigh-bone. It 

 presents none of the characters which distinguish the Spy femora. 

 Its length is 455 m m., therefore the height of the individual to 

 whom it belonged mu-;t have been 1654 mm., or, in other words, 

 about the same as that of an average Frenchman.' From the 

 fact of the femur being found at a distance of from 12 to 15 m. 

 from the place wh'-re the cranium was discovered, as well 

 as from other considerations, it is very unlikely that the two 

 specimens belonged to the same individual. 



The tooth is undoubtedly a very remarkable specimen. Its 

 great size and strong divergent fangs are characters which at 

 first sight appear to separae it widely from an ordinary human 

 upper wisdom tooth. Hut we know that in low races, such as 

 the Australian and the Negro, and also in the ancient rNfeander- 

 thaloid race, the wisdom tooth has not undergone the >ame 

 retrograde changes which we observe in the European and 

 other mesogna'hic or orthognathic people. If we take the 

 mean of the antero-posterior and the transverse diameters of 

 the crown of the fossil tooth, we get a result of 1 3 '3. A right 

 upper third molar extracted from the jaw of a negro, treated in 

 the same way, yields a result of 11 '5, whilst three Irish upper 

 wisdom teeth, selected at random, give an average of 9. The 

 negro tooth is thus seen, in p int of size, to be as far removed 

 from the European tooth as the fossil tooth is from it, and the 

 same may be said for the condition of the fangs. The fossil 

 tooth, so far as one can judge from the figure, is fashioned more 

 after the human model than the simian. The variability of an 

 upper wisdom tooth in man is very remarkable, not only in 

 regard to size, but also in the disposition of its cusps and 

 fangs. '^ 



From what has been said, it will be seen that the skull and 

 the tooth, even granting that they are from the same individual, 

 present no such characters as would warrant the formation of a 

 new family. The cranium at least is undoubtedly human. Most 

 certainly they are not derived from a transition form between 

 any of the existing anthropoid apes and man ; such a form 

 does not and cannot exist, seeing that the divarication of the ape 

 and man has taken place low down in the genealogical iree, and 

 each has followed, for good or bad, iis own path. The so-called 

 Pithecanthropus is in the direct human line, although it occupies 

 a place on this considerably lower than any human form at 

 present known. 



* Topinard givts the .iverageli'-ight of the French as 1650 m.m. 



• III the museum of the Dublin School of Denial .\iia omy there is an 

 upper wisd >in t .oth e<ctr.icted from rhc maxilla of an Irish nan, the crown of 

 wvhic I prcsenlsa lran>vcrse di.i neler of 13 m. 11., anj an antero-po-tcrior 

 dum Icr of 12 in.m. (mcin rcsu't t2'5i: wSich pos-cs.cs seven cusp- and 

 four siO'it fangs; two of ine laiter hcini; partially fused. Tftis t oth is 

 ¥try little smaller than the wisdom tooth of the fossil form, and is more remark- 

 able in the way of cu>ps and fangs. 



NO. 1322, VOL. 51] 



UNI VERS! TV AND ED UCA TIONA L 

 INTELLIGENCE. 



Oxi'ORD. — The Biological Club held its jubilee meeting on 

 Saturday last, when the professors of the biological lacul ies in 

 the Univ rsity were cntettained to a commemorative dinner 

 given in Merton College. The ravages of influenza unfortun- 

 ately deprived the Club of the presence of several familiar 

 membersand of more than one expected guest ; but the prestnce 

 in Oxford of Prof. Baj ley Balfour gave the Club an opportunity 

 of extending its welcome to an old friend and an additional 

 distinguished visitor. In the absence of Mr. G. C. Bourne, 

 the presidential chair was taken by Mr. Henry Balfour, of 

 Trinity. Profs. Bayley Balfour and Lankester replied for the 

 guests. 



In accordance with a recommendation from the Board of 

 Faculty of Natural Science, the Council has approved of the 

 subject of Astronomy being added to the list of subjects which 

 may be offered in she Honour School of Natural Science. For 

 a reason which is not very obvious at first sight, a can lidate 

 who offers A-tronomy as a final subject must have obtained 

 honours in the first or second public examination, but need not 

 have passed any of the preliminary science examinations ; and 

 a candidate who has passed the science preliminaries is not 

 eligible to compete in the H-mour School of -Astronomy unless 

 he has obtained honours in ihe first or second public examina- 

 tion. The object of this rule, which places the Schonl of 

 Asironomy in a position different to that of any o her science 

 school, is to compel candidates to take Honours either in 

 .Mathematical Moderations or Finals before entering on 

 Astronomy. But the object is not attained, for as the s'alute 

 now runs, a man « ho has taken honours in Classical Muderatons 

 or in any Final H mour School may enter for the Astronomical 

 School, whilst a man scientifically trained cannot. It may be 

 hoped that the rule, which as it stands is absurd, may soon be 

 reciilied. The subject of Asironomy has long been an op ional 

 or additional subject in the Honour School of Natural Scence, 

 but like other additional sulijects, has not attracted sludenls. 

 Asironomy having asserted its claims to recognition. Anthro- 

 pology has followed its lead, and the Faculty of Natural 

 Science has by a large majority sent up a recommendation to 

 Council that the subject of Anthropology should be added to 

 the Finrl School. The answer of Council has not yet been 

 received. 



In a Congregation held last week, the Curators of the Univer- 

 sity Chest were empowered to make sundry payments to the 

 Curators of the Botanic G^irden, to bring up the whole income 

 of the Garden during eath of the next four yeais to a sum 

 sufficient to defray its expenses. 



Mr. G. C. Bourne. Fell)W of New College, has been elected 

 a Delegate of the University Musfum, in place of .Mr. E. 

 Chapman, Fellow of Magdalen College, resigned. 



Cambridge. — The vacancy in the Sadlerian Professorship, 

 caused by the death of Ur. Cayley, has been filled up by the 

 election o( Dr. \. R. Forsyth, F.K.S., University Lecturer in 

 Pure M.ithematics. Dr. Forsjth is well known as ihe author 

 of standard text-books on Differential Equations and the Theory 

 of Functions, and of many p.npers on tf^e higher b'anchc-s of 

 pure mahemaiics. He is a Fellow of Trinity, and a member 

 of the Council of the Senate. 



Dr. Charles Waldsiein, R-ader in Classical Archaeology, 

 has been elected to the .SUde Professorship of Fine Art, vacant 

 by the r lirement of Prof. Middlelon. 



A shower of "fly-sheets" has fall'-n on ihe Universily on 

 the question of requiring further evidence of power to write 

 essavs in the various degree examinations. The q le lions will 

 be decided by the vole of the Senate on Thursday allernoon. 



Since 1892 there has been a decrease in the numtier of 

 candidatrs lor entrance into the Central Techr.ical College at 

 .South Kensington. But though fewer candidates have pre- 

 sented themselves, the numlirr adnitted is about ihe same, 

 indicatng either that the examii ers lowrred the in micnlati m 

 standard, or that candidates were better prepared for ihe ex- 

 amination. In the refiort of the work of ihe College during 

 ihe session 1893-94. vaiiois cau-es are given 10 .Tccoiint for the 

 din.inulion ol can iida'es One is ihe great inc ea^e of lacili- 

 ties for obtaining technical education 1.1 London and m the 

 provinces since the College opened. To what extent this in- 



