January 22, 1903] 



NA TURE 



2b 7 



coloured plates, all of which were drawn with great care 

 by Mr. P. J. Smit from actual specimens, and are excel- 

 lent representations of the species they portray. Special 

 interest attaches to the reproductions of radiographs of 

 the skeletons of three mummified baboons, as affording 

 an instance of the author's thoroughness and per- 

 severance. Finding that he could not obtain permission 

 to remove the bandages from the mummies, Dr. Anderson 

 called in the aid of the radiograph, and by this means 

 was enabled in some instances to identify the species to 

 which they belonged. 



The mention of baboons reminds us that Dr. Anderson 

 devoted an immense amount of labour and research to 

 the elucidation of the complex synonymy of this puzzling 

 group, and it is satisfactory to find that he has succeeded 

 in clearing up several doubtful points, although others 

 still remain for his successors. 



The yellow baboon, commonly known as Ptrplo babuln, 

 he has identified with the Simla cynocephalus of Linnwus, 

 and the species should consequently in future be known 

 as Papio cynocephalus . If we understand him rightly, 

 he regards the Abyssinian thoth baboon {P. thoth) as 

 specifically inseparable from the former. Here we may 

 venture to refer to what is, in our opinion, the one fault 

 of the work, namely, its excessive verbosity, whereby it is 

 sometimes by no means easy to arrive at the author's true 

 meaning. A concise summary of conclusions at the end 

 of each description, in which difficult questions are dis- 

 cussed at great length, would have been of inestimable 

 value. 



Several other emendations of current nomenclature 

 occur in the course of the work, to a few of which special 

 attention may be directed. For the wild cat of Egypt, 

 commonly known as Pells manlculata, the earlier name 

 F. lyblca (or, correctly, libyca or llblca) 1 is adopted, and 

 it is important to notice that the so-called Kaffir cat of 

 South Africa is regarded as nothing more than a local 

 race of this species, under the name of F. lyblca obscura. 

 It may be suggested, however, that if this species be, as is 

 commonly supposed, the progenitor of the domesticated 

 cat of Europe, its proper title is domes/lea instead of 

 libyca. That the use of a name originally applied 

 to the domesticated representative of a species is not 

 repugnant to the author and editor is proved by their 

 employment of the name aslnus instead of taenlopus 

 for the wild ass of this part of Africa. Another change 

 of more far-reaching import is the replacement of the 

 name Dipus, in common use for the jerboas, by the 

 earlier Jaculus, this change likewise involving the sub- 

 stitution of the family name Jaculidas for the familiar 

 Dipodidx-. Brief references may likewise be made to 

 the replacement of the name Halicore tabernaculi, 

 hitherto universally used for the Red Sea dugong, by 

 H. hemprichi. 



In regard to the nomenclature of the Canidae, we 

 notice that the fennecs and foxes are separated from the 

 typical genus as Vulpes, whereas in a paper on the 

 African members of that group, contributed in 1898 by 

 Mr. de Winton to the Zoological Society's Proceedings, 

 both groups are classed as Canis. We presume this is 



r In the case of this species, the author adopts the incorrect spelling of it s 

 original describer, whereas the Libyan striped polecat is termed fctonyx 

 libyca. 



NO. 1734, VOL. 67] 



not a change of front on the part of the editor, but 

 merely a desire not to interfere with the views of the 

 original author. 



In an earlier part of this review, we have had occasion 

 to mention that zoology is not a stationary science. An 

 exemplification of this is afforded by the fact that even 

 on its publication the work under consideration is in one 

 small detail out of date. In the text, it is considered 

 that no distinction can be drawn between the northern 

 and southern representatives of the African aard-wolf 

 (Proleles crlstatus). Mr. Rothschild, in a recent issue of 

 Novitates Zoologicae, has shown, however, that three 

 local races of this curious animal are distinguishable, 

 namely, the large and fully striped typical Cape form, 

 the more sparsely striped Angola race and a Somali 

 race. 



It may be added, in connection with taxonomy, that 

 the author divides the bats into a much larger number of 

 family groups than is the usual practice of naturalists, 

 making the genus Noctilio the type of one family, 

 Rhinopoma of a second and Molossus of a third. 



Regarding the work as a whole, it may be safely said 

 that not only is it an excellent and exhaustive account of 

 the mammals of the area of which it specially treats, 

 but that it is also a rriost valuable contribution to the 

 study of mammals in general, its value in the broader 

 sense just referred to being partly due to the character 

 of the work itself and partly to the circumstance that 

 Egypt forms a portion of the border-land between the 

 Holarctic and Ethiopian regions, and thus presents a 

 mixed fauna of more than ordinary interest. It is a 

 subject of congratulation to all concerned that the 

 authorities in Egypt have taken great interest in, and have 

 done all in their power to assist the work, which will 

 long remain the standard authority on the subject, and 

 forms, as already stated, a worthy and lasting memorial 

 of its learned and lamented author. R. L. 



TP1E TERPENES. 

 The Chemistry of the Terpencs. By F. Heusler, Ph.D. 

 Translated by F. J. Pond, M.A., Ph.D. Pp. xv + 457. 

 (London : J. and A. Churchill, 1902.) Price 17.?. net. 



' I "'HIS work stands out as a monument to specialisation. 

 J- A few years ago, the possibility of writing long 

 memoirs upon any one branch of chemistty — especially 

 organic chemistry — would have been out of the question, 

 but to-day we are bombarded right and left with mono- 

 graphs upon this and that branch of chemical science. 

 It is truly remarkable, considering the great array of 

 books upon specialised subjects which are published in 

 Germany, that publishers can be found willing to under- 

 take the risk of bringing them out. But as the writing 

 and publishing of these works goes on with unabated 

 vigour, evidently they must find a sufficient circle of 

 readers to make them a profitable investment, both from 

 the point of view of the author and publisher. One 

 rather wonders how it is that very few books on specialised 

 subjects, which can to any extent be called exhaustive, 

 are published in England. If we desire to study any 

 special branch of science, we are bound either to go to 

 the original publications or to consult foreign compilations 



