68 
With the assistance of Mrs. Draper, Mr. George F. Barker was 
accordingly requested to collect from Dr. Draper’s copious notes 
the facts here detailed in connection with his experiments. Some 
supplementary measurements have also been made to test the 
efficiency of the apparatus. —The genus Pyrgulifera, Meek, and 
its associates and congeners, by Charles A. White. These 
molluscan forms, constituting the Bear River Laramic fauna of 
the author, are not found among any other North American 
fauna, either fossil or recent, but appear to have their congeners 
in a fauna still surviving in Lake Tanganyika, Central Africa, as 
well as in the Upper Cretaceous fresh-water deposits of Hungary. 
—On the occurrence of native mercury in the alluvium in 
Louisiana, by Ernest Wilkinson. Native mercury has recently 
been unexpectedly discovered at Cedar Grove Plantation, Jeffer- 
son Parish, Louisiana, where it is found disseminated in small 
globules in the mean proportion of 0°002934 per cent. through- 
out the alluvial soil. It also occurs elsewhere in the same region 
in such large quantities and under such general conditions that 
its presence can hardly be attributed to human agency. Yet no 
other explanation is offered of this curious phenomenon.—Re- 
marks on the series of earthquakes that have recently devastated 
the scuthern provinces of Spain, by C. G. Rockwood, jun.—On 
the structure of the spores or spore-like bodies (Sporangites 
huronensis of Sir J. W. Dawson) occurring in the Devonian 
formations of North America, by J. M. Clarke.—Denudation of 
the two Americas, by T. Mellard Reade. In this paper the 
author follows up the calculations already made by him regarding 
the quantity of matter annually removed in river water from the 
surface in England and Wales and some of the river basins of 
the European continent. Here the Mississippi, Amazons, and 
St. Lawrence basins are dealt with, the results confirming the 
provisional assumption that about 100 tons of rocky matter are 
dissolved by rain per English square mile per annum throughout 
the world. —On Arctic Interglacial Periods, by Dr. James Croll. 
It is argued that the Polar Interglacial periods were more marked 
than the Glacial, and that they neither did nor could exist 
simultaneously in both hemispheres. In a concluding note the 
author remarks that this will probably be his last paper on ques- 
tions relating to geological climate, advancing years and declin- 
ing health obliging him to abandon the subject in order to finish 
some work in a different field of inquiry which has been laid 
aside for over a quarter of a century.—Notes on some 
apparently undescribed forms of fresh-water Infusoria, No. 2 
(with Plate III.), by Dr. Alfred C. Stokes. —Palzeozoic notes ; 
new genus of Cambrian Trilobites Mesonacis, by Charles D. 
Walcott. 
Bulletin de la Socié:é d' Anthropologie de Paris, 4° Fascicule, 
1884.—The sequel to the ‘* Anthropology of California,” by M. 
Ten Kate.—Observations on the anthropological character and 
social conditions of the M’zabites, by Dr. Charles Amat, who 
has added to the results of his personal study of the people a 
brief summary of their history, derived from the chronicle of 
Abou Zakaria, translated by M. Masqueray, while he is indebted 
to a brother officer, M. Motylinsky, for much interesting in- 
formation regarding the language, which differs entirely from 
Arabic, and presents close affinities with the dialects of the 
Berbers. The people, who are a remnant of the ancient sect of 
the Karidjites, retain many traces of pre-Moslem usages and 
forms of belief, follow agricultural pursuits, and are the main 
purveyors of corn inthe Sahara.—Notes, by Dr. Hyades, on the 
Fuegians, considered from a hygienic and medical point of view. 
—On the significance of the name of the Aryans, by M. Ploix, 
who attempts to prove its derivation from a Sanscrit root indi- 
cating ‘‘white.” This hypothesis is very forcibly attacked by M. 
oO. Beauregard, who, in a subsequent communication to the 
Society, brings forward strong evidence to show that the etymo- 
logical meaning of the term is ‘‘noble” or ‘‘ venerable.”—A 
report on the project of instituting an official anthropometrical 
examination of the pupils in the primary schools of Paris, by M. 
Manouvrier.—On the influence of the American medium on the 
races of the Old World, by M. de Quatrefages.—Notes by M. 
Pietrement in support of his opinions regarding the age of iron, 
which had been called in question by M. Mortillet.—Communi- 
cation, by M. de Rialle, of M. Macey’s account of a grave, 
discovered near Saigon, Cochin China, in 1882. According to 
the opinion of the few natives who are versed in local archzeo- 
logy, this grave, which was discovered twelve feet below the sur- 
face, dates back at leart 4oo years. From the lower of the two 
superposed coffins, besides a few vertebrze and the tibiee, a cranium 
was extracted which presents a deep perforation above the right 
NATURE 
: 
[May 21, 1885 
temporal that may be regarded as the cause of the death of the 
Annamite chief to whom the remains belonged.—Report, by 
M. de Ujfalvy, of the finds obtained from a Celtic cemetery 
near Rosegg, in the valley of the Drave. The tumuli, of which 
there are more than 300, resemble in structure and general con- 
tents those opened at Hallstadt and in Styria, but in addition they — 
have yielded a large number of curious little leaden figures of — 
wheels, birds, men on horses, &c., attached to the surface or 
margins of the various vases.—On some crania from the Mero- — 
vingian graves at Fermes (Oise), by M. de Maricourt, with an — 
extensive series of measurements, which, according to him, — 
afford strong presumptive evidence of diseases having a scrofulous — 
or syphilitic origin.—On the Gallic rock-tumuli of Port Bara 
(Quiberon), by M. Gaillard.—On an elephant’s tusk found in — 
the valley of the Drance (H. Savoie), by M. D’Acy. This find” 
was obtained at 3000 feet above the level of the sea, and is” 
believed to belong toa relatively recent representative of A/ephas — 
primigenius.—On the manufacture of fire-flints still existing in _ 
France, by M. P. Salmon. This industry is chiefly carried on 
near Percheriou (Loir-et-Cher), whence large numbers of flints _ 
are annually exported to supply the demand still existing for 
them among Central African and other savage tribes.—Com- | 
munication, by Dr. Verrier, regarding the work of Dr. Engel- 
mann, of Louisville, on the various modes of delivery prevalent 
amongst women of different races.—On the different powers of 
resisting cold shown by various races, by M. Maurel,—On a. 
placental anomaly in a case of twin-delivery, by Dr. Verrier.— 
Notes on the crania of three idiots, by Drs. Doutrebente and 
Manouvrier.—Obseryations on the static and dynamic conditions 
by which man is enabled to stand erect, by Dr. Fauvelle.—Re- 
searches on the so-called ‘* Maye” of Provence, by Dr. Berenger- 
Ferand. The paper is an enlarged exposition of an earlier 
notice, which appeared in 1883, on the Provenzal customs of 
our own times, in which the author sees a survival of the ancient 
worship of Maia—as are our own May queen, Florrie games, 
jack in the green, and other May festivals—the long ages of 
Christianity having modified but not obliterated the traces of 
paganism. 
Rendiconti del Reale Istituto Lombardo, March 12.—Note on 
the kinetic theory of the gases and on the limits of the terrestrial 
atmosphere, by Prof. R. Ferrini.—On some geometrical, stati- 
cal, and kinematic properties of articulated polygons, hy Prof. 
G. Jung.—A comparison of the respective merits of Bellani’s 
lucimeter and the English heliograph constructed by Negretti 
and Zambra, of London, by Giovanni Cantoni.—On some uni- 
form representations in the higher mathematical analysis, by 
Prof. Giulio Ascoli.—On some remarkable features of the 
stratified rocks in the Valtravaglia district, North Lombardy, by 
Prof. Taramelli.—On the question whether rice should be con- 
sidered as a contraband of war, by Ercole Vidari. 
April 9.—Historical notes on the comet of the year 1472, by 
Prof. G. Celoria.—On the geometrical movement of invariable 
systems, by Prof. C. Formenti.—Remarks on the cholera bacilli 
observed and described by Pacini in his various medical publica- 
tions, by Prof. L. Maggi.—Further observations on uniform 
representations, by Prof. Giulio Ascolii—Note on the traces of 
Roman jurisprudence in the Longobard edicts, by Prof. P. del 
Giudice. —Critical examination of the proposed Italian -penal 
code punishments, by E. A, Buccellati. 
Bulletin de V Académie Royale de Belgique, March 7.—A word 
on the two Balenopterze cast ashore at Ostend in the years 1827 
and 1885, by P. J. Van Beneden.—Observations of Wolf’s 
comet made at the Brussels Observatory (0715 m. equatorial), 
by L. Niesten.—Observations of Encke’s comet made at the 
same observatory, by E. Stuyvaert.—On the early epochs of 
Flemish history, by Alphonse Wauters.—Note on “Louis du 
Tielt, painter and engraver, who flourished at Ypres during the 
seventeenth century, by Ch. Piot. 
SOCIETIES AND ACADEMIES 
LoNDON 
Royal Society, January 22.—‘‘ Observations on the Chro- 
matology of Actiniz,” by C. A. MacMunn, M.A., M.D. Com- 
municated by Prof. M. Foster, Sec.R.S. 
The conclusions arrived at may in part be summed up as 
follows .— f 
(1) Actinia mesembryanthemum contains a colouring matter 
which can be changed into hemochromogen and hematoporphyrin ; 
