PROCEEDINGS. 35 



Prof. Gill read a paper entitled On the Affinities of the 

 " Great Swallower," Chiasmodus niger.* He stated the genus 

 Chiasmodus to be the representative of a peculiar family, Chiasmo- 

 dontidce, and not at all allied to the Gadidce. Its first dorsal has in- 

 articulate spines and its ventrals are of the Acanthopterygian type. 

 The group is indeed related to the Harpagiferidcz and Chamichthyida 

 and should have been referred by Dr. Giinther to his heterogeneous 

 "family Trachinidce." 



Twentieth Meeting, December 23, 1881. 



The President occupied the chair. Thirty members were present. 



Dr. R. W. Shufeldt, U. S. A., read a paper entitled On the 

 Osteology of the Glass Snake, (Opheosaurus vENTRALis.)f 

 Prof. Otis T. Mason read a paper entitled The Invasion of the 

 Domain of Biology by Anthropologists. Mr. Frederick W. 

 True read a paper entitled The Land Tortoises of North 

 America. J 



Twenty-First Meeting, January 6, 1881. 



(Second Annual Meeting.) 



The President occupied the chair. Thirty-five members were 

 present. 



The following officers were elected for the year 1882 : 



President — Prof. Theodore Gill. 



Vice Presidents — C. V. Riley, Prof. J. W. Chickering, Jr., Les- 

 ter F. Ward, and Henry Ulke. 



Secretaries — G. Brown Goode and Richard Rathbun. 



Treasurer — Robert Ridgway. 



Members of Council — Dr. J. H. Kidder, U. S. N. , Dr. George 

 Vasey, Dr. T. H. Bean, Dr. D. Webster Prentiss, Prof. O. T. 

 Mason. 



*i879. Gill, Theodore. The Great Swallower. <Forest & Stream. XIII. 

 1879, p. 906, (Dec. 18,) with figures. (A part only of the remarks made to the 

 Society.) 



f 1882. Shufeldt, Robert W. Remarks upon the Osteology of Opheo- 

 saurus ventralis. ^Proceedings U. S. National Museum. IV. 1882. pp. 

 392-400. Nine figures. 



\ 1882. True, Frederick W. On the North American Land Tortoises 

 of the Genus Xerobates. ^Proceedings U. S. National Museum. IV. 1882. 

 PP- 434-449- Three figures. 



