;o8 



NA TURE 



[November 25, 1922 



this suggestion on the ground that " the 

 difference is so fundamental that it is difficult to find 

 any single point of agreement." But from Prof. 

 Osborn's own account of this tooth, which appeared 

 in Nature of August 26, p. 281, it is a no less difficult 

 matter to discover harmony between this tooth ami 

 the molars of any of the primates, living or extinct. 

 We cannot escape the conclusion, in short, that the, 

 evidence as to the true character of the Nebraska 

 tooth has been only partly sifted. Before we can 

 consider ourselves in possession of the whole of the 

 evidence it must be carefully compared with worn 

 teeth of Ifyamaretos. and its near allies. Radio- 

 graphs of such teeth are essential. For the moment 

 the material for such a comparison is, doubtless, 

 limited : but even this can, and must, be taken into 

 account. We trust that Prof. Osborn will see his way 

 to supplement the able summary he gave us in Nature, 

 in August last, wherein he contrasts the tooth of 



Hesperopithecus with the teeth of chimpanzee and 

 Pithecanthropus, by a similar pictorial comparison 

 between this remarkable tooth and the teeth of the 

 fossil bears, or at least a Hyaenarctos. 



The extremely worn condition of this tooth compels 

 caution in every statement made concerning it : and 

 more especially on the part of those who have never 

 seen and handled the actual specimen. The danger 

 of dogmatising on the evidence afforded by photography 

 and casts alone, was forcibly illustrated in the case of 

 the skull of Piltdown man. But it is also imperatively 

 necessary, in the interests of science, that even remotely 

 possible relationships should be seriously examined. 

 It is always unwise to assume that what ought to be, 

 must be. We cannot help feeling that this applies very 

 pertinently in the case of the Nebraska tooth : and 

 that therefore it would be wise at any rate to entertain 

 the suggestion, that it may, after all, represent one 

 of the UrsidK, instead of one of the Hominida?. 



Obituary. 



Mrs. A. D. Waller. 



THE announcement of the death on October 22, at 

 sixty-three years of age, of Mrs. Waller, widow of 

 the late Dr. A. D. Waller, must have been noticed 

 with regret by many workers in the world of science. 

 Alice Mary Palmer, which was Mrs. Waller's maiden 

 name, had early aspirations towards a medical career, 

 and after matriculating in the University of London 

 she took up her medical course at the London School 

 of Medicine, where she became the pupil of Dr. Augustus 

 Waller, then lecturer in physiology at the School. 

 Miss Palmer was appointed his demonstrator — a post 

 wdiich she filled with enthusiasm. His original and 

 stimulating lectures were a great delight to her, and 

 the relationship of teacher and pupil riperjted rapidly 

 into a closer one. 



Husband and wife had much in common : both cared 

 intensely for education and worked throughout their 

 lives for what they considered its best interests. After 

 her marriage Mrs. Waller's chief concern was for her 

 husband's work. In all that he did she had her part ; 

 she enjoyed the whole technique of laboratory work, 

 owning apologetically that even a bit of " mere " 

 anatomy never came amiss to her. The house in 

 Grove End Road, which soon became such a centre 

 for scientific interests, was secured for the young 

 couple early in their married life. It was an unusual 

 household, being at once both laboratory and home, 

 and its ways were unconventional ; hut to those 

 w-ho caught the spirit of the place, the charm of its 

 hospitality was irresistible. All who cared for scientific 

 work were welcomed there, and to the student who 

 sought her advice Mrs. Waller became at once friend, 

 champion, and helper. Foreign friends, distinguished 

 and undistinguished, made Weston Lodge their resting- 

 place when visiting London, and much good talk was 

 heard within the walls of the old study — great were 

 the discussions, vigorous the arguments, and over all 

 debates played the gentle humour of the hostess, 

 softening the sometimes mordant wit of her husband. 



During the latter years of their lives the centre 

 of interest was transferred, for the Wallers, from 

 Weston Lodge to the University Laboratory at South 



NO. 2769, VOL. I lo] 



Kensington. That laboratory fulfilled to a large 

 extent the purpose for which it was founded. Many 

 will remember it as a place of help, inspiration, and 

 fruitful work, and it may safely be said that there 

 are none who ever worked there but will remember 

 with affectionate gratitude the gentle woman who 

 cared so greatly for the destinies of the laboratory 

 and for the welfare of each of its individual workers. 



Lady Herdman. 



In educational and scientific circles widespread sym- 

 pathv is felt with Sir William Herdman at the death 

 of Lady Herdman on November 7. His loss is shared 

 by all who knew Lady Herdman, as well as by many 

 others to whom her life and work were both a stimulus 

 and a standard. Lady Herdman was a daughter of 

 the late Mr. Alfred Holt, and was a student at Uni- 

 versity College, Liverpool, when Sir William Herdman 

 was professor of natural history there. She graduated 

 in science at London University in 1891, with first-class 

 honours in physics, and in the following year became 

 the first president of the Women Students' Repre- 

 sentative Council at Liverpool. She was thus an active 

 worker in the University College of the city before it 

 became the University of Liverpool in 1903 ; and in 

 promoting this development, as well as since, Lady 

 Herdman was closely associated with her distinguished 

 husband. The scientific world gratefully remembers 

 how in 1916, in commemoration of the death of their 

 brilliant son George in the battle of the Somme, they 

 gave the sum of 10,000/. to the university for the 

 foundation of the George Herdman chair of geology, 

 and three years later founded and endowed the chair 

 of oceanographv in the university. In these and 

 many other ways, as, for example, by devoted service 

 on the Liverpool Education Committee, of which she 

 was a co-opted member, Lady Herdman exercised an 

 influence which was always beneficial and often more 

 far-reaching than she herself ever conceived. She 

 possessed wisdom as well as knowledge, and the re- 

 membrance of her life will long be cherished with 

 affection, to console as well as to inspire. 



