April 17, 19 13] 



NATURE 



'59 



seventeenth and eighteenth centuries in the history 

 of exploration have been subject to a certain neg- 

 lect, not unnaturally, for the century which pre- 

 ceded them was more brilliant than either. 

 Students of Mr. Heawood's volume will probably 

 rind the narrative to amend their perspective (so 

 10 say), for the stream of geographical exploration 

 flowed so full during the period that there has 

 been some tendency to describe a few of its salient 

 features to the total exclusion of all others. Mr. 

 Hcawood corrects this tendency : though he gives 

 due prominence to so commanding a figure (for 

 •example) as James Cook, he also shows his work in 

 its proper historical setting, with suitable refer- 

 ence to his half-forgotten predecessors (so far as 

 he had any) and followers in the wide field 

 over which he ranged. The book is readable and 

 convenient for reference, and the author appeals 

 also in the rdle of cartographer, for several sketch- 

 maps judiciously illustrating the salient features of 

 earlv maps are by his own hand. The Cambridge 

 series has performed a useful function in present- 

 ing certain aspects of geographical study which are 

 not otherwise easily accessible for study in con- 

 venient form. A reference to its list will demon- 

 strate this, and for the reason above cited 

 the present volume would have been justi- 

 fiably included in the series if on that ground 

 only. 



(4) Mr. Lumholtz offers in the volume under 

 notice a popular account of his geographical and 

 anthropological researches in an area of which 

 relatively little has been known, lying about, and 

 mainly north-east of, the head of the Gulf of Cali- 

 fornia. His results in this account are introduced 

 mainly as incidental to the narrative of his travels 

 and experiences ; we learn that he was primarily 

 concerned to investigate "certain economic possi- 

 bilities " of the region, but these do not find an}' 

 important place in the book. With the in- 

 habitants, however, he established a close ac- 

 quaintance ; he is able to offer by illustration and 

 otherwise considerable insight into their life, 

 customs, and languages, and in an appendix he 

 furnishes a short comparative vocabulary of 

 Papago, Pimo, and Colopa Indian words. He also 

 treats (again with illustrations) incidentally of the 

 antiquarian remains, the vegetation, and the fauna 

 of the region, so that the book will, as a whole, 

 be found to furnish a good general idea of it. 

 There is a large-scale map which is quite effective, 

 and, though still necessarily "sketchy," adds 

 something to the cartographical knowledge of the 

 area, since it embodies material not only from 

 previous work, but also from the author's own 

 surveys. 



NO. 2268, VOL. 91] 



OUR BOOKSHELF. 

 Scottish National Antarctic Expedition. Report 

 of the Scientific Results of the Voyage of s.y. 

 Scotia during the years 1902, 1903, and 1904, 

 under the Leadership of Dr. \V. S. Bruce. Vol. 

 vi., Zoology. Parts i.-xi., Invertebrates, by 

 Dr. C. Vaney, Dr. J. Ritchie, Dr. E. L. Troues- 

 sart, Dr. W. E. Hoyle, and others. Pp. xi + 

 353 -^plates. (Edinburgh : The Scottish Oceano- 

 graphical Laboratory ; Oliver and Boyd ; 

 Glasgow : J. MacLehose and Sons, 1912.) 

 Price 30s. 

 Dr. Bruce is to be congratulated on vol. vi. of 

 the report of the scientific results of his Scotia 

 voyage, for it is very valuable in itself and reflects 

 credit on the leader's energy and skill in organis- 

 ing the collecting. The volume is devoted to in- 

 vertebrates, and it consists of expert reports on 

 very interesting material. It is an important con- 

 tribution to our knowledge of the antarctic fauna, 

 and it adds some interesting material to zoological 

 data in general. Thus we find Prof. Clement 

 Vaney speaking of "une tres importante collec- 

 tion d'Holothuries," Dr. James Ritchie referring 

 to " the enormous mass of [Hydroid] material 

 brought together by Dr. Bruce during his ant- 

 arctic voyages," Messrs. Melvill and Standen de- 

 fining in a supplementary collection of marine 

 molluscs more than twenty new species, Mr. J. 

 Wilfrid Jackson reporting that the Brachiopods 

 collected add materially to our knowledge of the 

 geographical range of certain forms, and augment 

 the antarctic list of species ; and so it is all along 

 the line. 



We may direct attention to Prof. Chilton's fine 

 treatment of the Amphipods, already referred to in 

 Nature, Dr. Thomas Scott's important report on 

 the Entomostraca, and to the short but interest- 

 ing and scientifically cautious report on the 

 Cestodes by Dr. John Rennie and Mr. Alexander 

 Reid. Equally important, so far as the material 

 went, are the reports on Acarina by Dr. E. L. 

 Trouessart, on the Cephalopods by Dr. W. E. 

 Hoyle, and on microscopic fauna by James Murray 

 and E. Penard. 



he Origini Umane. Riccrche Paleontologiche. 



By G. Sergi. Pp. xi + 202. (Torino: Fratelli 



Bocca, 1913.) Price 3.50 lire. 

 In this useful book Prof. Sergi, of the University 

 of Rome, gives a concise statement of the opinions 

 he holds regarding the origin and evolution of 

 human races. His opinions and inferences de- 

 mand the most respectful consideration, for they 

 are founded on the investigations of a lifetime, 

 and have in every phase of his busy life been 

 marked by an independent and courageous judg- 

 ment. Prof. Sergi distinguishes five genera of 

 mankind, and regards each of them as of inde- 

 pendent origin, their relationship being repre- 

 sented, not as diverging branches from a common 

 trunk, but as parallel or collateral stems issuing 

 separately from an ancestral stock. He also 

 regards anthropoids as parallel developments — 



