464 



NATURE 



[April IS, 1875 



mittcd from the North of China by M. de Montigny, M. 

 Fontanier, and M.l'Abb^ Armand David, especially those 

 of the last-named traveller, who devoted several years to 

 zoological researches in the country north of Pekin, and 

 in the distant parts of Mongolia. The series of Mammals 

 here treated of is of especial interest as supplementing 

 the discoveries recently made by Russian naturalists in 

 Central and Eastern Siberia. The forms are chiefly 

 those characteristic of the steppe-regions of the great 

 northern continent of the Old World, such as Si/ihi:ciis, 

 Cricctus, Dipiis, and Spermophilus. A full account is 

 also given of the deer of this district, as also of the larger 

 and smaller cats. Amongst the latter are enumerated the 

 Ounce {Felis irbis), of which examples were obtained by 

 M. Fontanier, and two species described and figured as 

 new, under the names Felis microtis and F. tristis. 

 Lastly, M. Milne- Edwards records the existence in the 

 mountains situated in the east of the province of Tchd-li 

 (as testified by M. Fontanier) of a singular species of 

 ape of the genus Macaciis, which he designates 1^1. tcheli- 

 ensis. Considering that the province of Tchd-li is nearly 

 on the same isothermal line as Paris, the discovery of this 

 animal is not a little remarkable. 



The concluding essay of the volume relates to a still 

 more novel mammal fauna than that of Pekin. Among 

 the Yung-Ling Mountains, in the far interior of China, 

 lies the little-known principality of Moupin, which we 

 have already alluded to. Here the Abbd David, after a 

 slay of several years in Northern China, established him- 

 self for a year in one of the large valleys at an elevation 

 of about 6,000 feet above the sea-level, and in the midst 

 of peaks ranging up to above 1 5,000 feet of altitude. Of 

 the wonderful discoveries which he here made we have 

 already learnt something from the preliminary notices of 

 M. Alphonse Milne-Edwards on this subject. In the 

 present memoir, detailed accounts are given of the many 

 strange forms of which specimens were obtained by M. 

 David in this district. Excellent illustrations, not only of 

 the entire animal, but also of its characteristic parts, add 

 greatly to the value of the descriptions, and we now 

 become acquainted for the first time with the singular 

 appearance of Rhinopithecus roxdlana, a long-haired 

 monkey with a " tip- tilted " rose, which inhabits the 

 mountain-forests of Moupin ; with Ncdogalc clfgans, a 

 new aquatic Insectivore of the same district ; with Scap- 

 ionyx, a new genus of the Mole family, from the confines 

 of Setchuen ; and with Ailuropus mclanoleucus, from the 

 inaccessible mountains of Eastern Thibet. 



The last-named animal, which in external appearance 

 presents some resemblance to a large white bear with a 

 black band across the back, is most nearly allied to the 

 Panda {ALlurtts) of the Himalayas, and belongs to the 

 same peculiar family of Carnivores. Besides these, we 

 • have an account of Elapliodiis, a new genus of ruminants, 

 belonging to the Deer family, but with very diminutive 

 horns ; and of many other new and interesting Mammals, 

 which show that the fauna of this part of Thibet is in 

 many respects akin to that of the southern slope of the 

 Himalayas. On the whole, we think there can be no 

 question that the present work is one of the most im- 

 portant contributions that has lately been made to zoo- 

 logical science, and reflects the greatest credit upon its 

 accomplished authors. 



OUR BOOK SHELF 



An Introdtiction to Human Anatomy. By William Turner, 

 M.D. (Edinburgh : Adam and Charles Black, 1875.) 



Prof. Turner having written the article " Anatomy " in 

 the first volume, recently published, of the ninth edition 

 of the " Encyclopaedia Britannica," has, at the suggestion 

 of the publishers, reproduced it in a separate form, the 

 first half of which we have received as a compact volume 

 of some 400 pages. 



This part contains an account of the skeleton, joints, 

 muscles, nervous system, and organs of special sense, 

 together with a chapter on the minute anatomy of the 

 different tissues of the human body. The descriptions 

 are short and make no pretensions to extreme minuteness, 

 as may be judged from the following reference to the 

 atlas : — " The first (vertebra) or atlas, has no body or 

 spine : its ring is very large, and on each side of the ring 

 is a thick mass of bone, the lateral mass, by which it 

 articulates with the occipital bone above and the second 

 vertebra below." In the account of the muscles also the 

 space devoted to each is frequently little more than that 

 required for the mention of the name : — " The supinator 

 and pronator muscles (of the fore-arm) are all inserted 

 into the radius ; the supinators are the supinator longus, 

 supinator brevis, and the biceps ; the pronators are the 

 pronator teres and the pronator quadratus." The nei-vous 

 system has received more attention, and the general 

 description of the brain, together with that of its more 

 intimate structure, is fairly full. The author's valuable 

 observations on the cerebral convolutions, together with 

 his investigations on the relation of these to the walls of 

 the bony cranium and the sutures, receive their due share 

 of notice, and are here collected together for the first time. 

 The chapter on the organs of special sense are also well 

 worthy of study. In the histology we cannot help think- 

 ing that almost too much credit is given to a young and 

 promising microscopist, some of whose results are still, 

 however, decidedly sui judicc. 



We find it difficult to decide mentally to what class of 

 students the work before us will be of most value. To the 

 ordinary medical student virho has but a couple of years 

 in which to fully master the subject of human anatomy, 

 the detail will not be sufficient, and one of the text-books 

 will be more useful. To the amateur reader there is a 

 mass of technical terms which he will have to attempt to 

 wade through, almost certainly without success, both on 

 account of their number and, to him, their meaningless- 

 ness. To the special investigator of the anatomy of the 

 nervous centres the chapter devoted to that subject will 

 be extremely valuable, as the whole work will be to the 

 advanced student who desires to take a rapid last glance 

 through his subject before competing for a high examina- 

 tion place. 



LETTERS TO THE EDITOR 



[The Editor does not hold himself responsible for opinions expressed 

 by his correspondents. Neither can he undertake to return, 

 or to correspond with the writers of, rejected manuscripts. 

 No notice is taken op anonymous communications.'\ 

 On the " Law of Fatigue " regulating Muscular 

 Exertion 

 In Nature, vol. xi. pp. 256 and 276, Mr. Frank E. Nipher, 

 of the University of Iowa, has published some interesting obser- 

 vations bearing on the " Law of Fatigue " which regulates 

 muscular exertion, and criticises the use which I have made of 

 some experiments published by him, one series of whicli seemed 

 to me to be highly confirmatory of the " Law of Fatigue " which 

 I had previously established on the basis of other experiments 

 carefuliy made, and quite different in principle. 



The " Law of Fatigue " is thus stated by me in " Principles of Ani- 

 mal Mechanics," p. 442 : — "Law III. When the same muscle 

 (or group of muscles) is kept in constant action until fatigue sets 



