August i, 1901] 



NA TURE 



^iiZ 



and the same is true for the eland in Cape Colony. The head 

 of a female of the latter with an abnormal form of horn is 

 figured. In the same journal Dr. Finsch continues his cata- 

 logue of the Leyden bird collection, dealing in this section with 

 the bee-eaters. 



Another ruminant-the Louisianian representative of the 

 white-tailed deer — receives a new name in the June number of 

 the American Naturalist. Recently some American writers 

 announced that the proper specific name of the Virginian white- 

 tail was aniericanus, instead of the time-honoured virginiaiius, 

 and the former name has consequently been generally adopted 

 in literature. Others say they were wrong in the change, 

 and propose to revert to virginiamts. Nothing can be more 

 unsatisfactory than such perpetual changes, and it is far better 

 to adhere to one name, even if it be not w-hat is called the right 

 ■one. To the same journal Dr. R. W. Shufeldt contributes a 

 paper on the affinities of the American birds commonly known 

 as screamers (Palamedeae). While admitting their affinity with 

 the duck tribe, he suggests that they may be the survivors of 

 the common ancestral type of both the anserine and the gal- 

 linaceous birds. In all their characters these birds are archaic, 

 -and the author is of opinion that they serve to connect the duck 

 tribe with the ostrich group. 



Ix launching a new periodical, the Museums Journal, of 

 which the first number is dated July, the Museums Association 

 has full justification, and the venture has our best wishes. It is 

 edited by Mr. E. Howarth, of Sheffield, with the cooperation 

 of other museum officials from England, Germany, the United 

 States, Australia, the Cape and New Zealand ; and by this 

 wide basis any danger of cliquism gaining a predominance 

 in the new journal should be obviated, while it will ensure 

 ■attention to the needs of museums in all parts of the world. 

 Following the introductory notice is an address on the museums 

 of Edinburgh by Sir William Turner, the president of the 

 Museums Association, whose portrait forms the frontispiece to 

 this issue. Next comes a specimen museum label, to be followed 

 by others month by month. This label, which deals with 

 British pottery, is, in our opinion, too long and too verbose. 

 In order to avoid wearying museum visitors, it should clearly 

 be divided into two — the first descriptive and the second dealing 

 e.xclusively with the various British potteries. The part closes 

 with a series of general notes, of which one section is devoted to 

 home and the other to foreign museums. 



Some interesting conclusions have been arrived at by Dr. 

 ford, of the McGill University, Montreal, in the course of his 

 investigations on the bacteriology of the healthy organs of 

 animals. The liver and kidneys of a number of rabbits, 

 guinea-pigs, cats and dogs were examined, and at least eighty 

 per cent, were found by Dr. Ford to contain bacteria. This is 

 contrary to the results obtained earlier by Neisser and Opitz, 

 who in similar examinations found no bacteria. This apparent 

 discrepancy in the two series of investigations is explained by 

 Ford as due to Neisser and Opitz only cultivating the organs 

 examined by them for two, at most three, days, whereas it is 

 necessary, Ford states, to leave them for several days, a week, 

 and even two weeks to obtain the development of the bacteria 

 present. Each animal, regardless of its species, showed its 

 distinct bacteriology, and as a rule the Carnivora — dogs and 

 cats — e.xhibited bacteria similar to each other, but absolutely 

 different from those obtained from the Herbivora — rabbits and 

 guinea-pigs. These results are quite consistent with the differ- 

 ence in the food used by the animals, which would determine to 

 a large extent the intestinal flora. Dr. Ford's paper is published 

 in the Transactions of the Association of American Physicians. 



The Rez'ue gdncrale des Sciences for June 30 and July I J 

 contains an article by Dr. Cureau on the geography of equatorial 

 NO. 1657, VOL. 64] 



Africa. The subject is well treated in its most general aspects, 

 and a number of interesting sections, particularly of the Nile- 

 Congo region, are given. The second article deals with the 

 population. 



The new number of the Mitteihtngen aus den deiitschen 

 Schntz^ebieten contains two important series of determinations 

 of heights in Togoland. Dr. A. Liibbert contributes a paper on 

 native treatment and medicines in German South-west Africa, 

 and a report on the system of land surveying employed in Cape 

 Colony and its application in modified form to German South- 

 west Africa. From German East Africa Captain Priissing writes 

 on the Rufiyi delta, and Dr. Kandt on Ruanada. Dr. Pfliiger 

 contributes some notes on the geology of the Bismarck Archi- 

 pelago. 



The Zeitsclirift of the Berlin Gesellschaft fiir Erdkunde con- 

 tains an important report by Dr. von Oppenheim on his journey 

 in Asiatic Turkey during 1S99. The region traversed is of 

 special interest in relation to the proposed railway from Con- 

 stantinople to Bagdad, and the paper discusses the best available 

 route for such a railway, and the prospects of its financial success. 

 Dr. VV. Brennecke gives, in the same number of the Zeitsclirift, 

 the results of Prof. Philippson's determinations of heights in the 

 neighbourhood of Pergama. 



In Peterinanti s Mitteihtngen, M. Gentil-Tippenhauer continues 

 his papers on the geology of Haiti. The present instalment 

 deals with the mineral deposits of Terre-Neuve and Gonaives. 

 Prof. Supan contributes a paper, read at the recent Geograph- 

 entag at Breslau, on the climate of the Antarctic, in which he 

 discusses the results of recent observations as establishing the 

 existence of a permanent polar anticyclone, surrounded by a 

 ring of \o\\ pressure. Dr. Franz Schaffer gives an account of 

 studies in the geotectonics of south-eastern Anatolia, made during 

 journeys in the spring and autumn of 1900. 



Those of our readers who are interested in the Farthest East 

 should consult the Mittheilwigen der deiUschen Gesellschaft fiir 

 Natur- und Voliierkiinde Ostasiens (Tokyo, also at Asher and 

 Co., Berlin). In vol. viii. part 2 of that journal will be found 

 an account of the existing and proposed state and private rail- 

 ways in Japan, by Inspector F. Baltzer. The ancient national 

 bon-festival is described by Dr. H. Weipert and illustrated by 

 nine plates drawn by Japanese, which present existing and 

 former aspects of certain ceremonies and dances connected with 

 the festival. The bon-dance has been handed down from the 

 mythical period, and the primitive Ainos have a very similar 

 dance. The Rev. A. Lloyd has a paper, in German, on 

 dogmatic anthropology in Buddhism. Prof. Aoyama writes on 

 the plague. The number concludes with a short communication 

 by Prof. Dr. E. Balz on the racial elements in Eastern Asia, 

 especially in Japan. Recharacterises (l) the Mongolo-Malayan 

 type ; (2) the Korean-Mandschurian type ; (3) the Aino type. 

 The latter are, according to Biilz, the remains of a " Caucasian 

 or Caucasoid race " that was widely scattered throughout the 

 whole of the north of Asia. 



The current volume (vol. iii. ) of the Bulletin o[ ihe Free 

 Museum of Science and Art of the University of Pennsylvania 

 has several interesting articles, mainly on collections that have 

 been presented to the Museum. We have previously directed 

 attention to this Museum, which has greatly prospered under 

 the curatorship of Mr. Stewart Culin, and is rapidly becoming 

 an important centre of research and instruction. A copiously 

 illustrated account is given by Mr. Culin of a summer trip 

 among the Western Indians, being a narrative of the Wanamaker 

 Expedition. In addition to much interesting information gained 

 on this trip, large numbers of specimens were obtained, many of 

 which were of objects the use of which has all but died out. 

 Pendant-shaped stones with a groove encircling one end are 



