924 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XXX. No. 782 



man. It was secured by a farmer, who pre- 

 sented it to the university museum through 

 Dr. A. H. Van Vleet. Its skeleton has been 

 preserved, and a life-like model, full size, was 

 made and is now in the university museum. 

 The specimen was a female, slightly over four 

 and one half feet in length from tip to tip. 

 It had been seen in the locality where taken, 

 by a number of persons at various times for 

 at least three years previous to its capture. 



There is no record nor tradition of an alli- 

 gator ever having escaped or been liberated 

 (or even held captive) in this vicinity, and it 

 is quite unlikely that such a thing could have 

 occurred in what was formerly the Indian 

 Territory. It seems altogether probable, there- 

 fore, that this individual had traveled up the 

 Arkansas River to the mouth of the Canadian, 

 and thence up the latter to the vicinity of 

 Norman, some three hundred and fifty to four 

 hundred miles west of the Arkansas-Oklahoma 

 state line. The Canadian River is not a navi- 

 gable stream and for most of the year is only 

 a small meandering creek in a wide valley 

 well filled up with sand. It is subject to 

 numerous freshets, and frequently changes its 

 course, so that " lakes " or bayous are numer- 

 ous. The larger of such bayous apparently 

 would make an admirable habitat for this 

 species. 



It is useless to speculate on the causes which 

 impelled this individual to make such a jour- 

 ney, but it is important that it was apparently 

 successfully maintaining its existence in its 

 new station until man's interference put an 

 end to one of nature's experiments. 



H. H. Lane 



State University of Oklahoma, 

 Norman, Okla., 

 November 26, 1909 



QUOTATIONS 



PRESIDENT SCHURMAN AND THE FUTURE OF 

 CORNELL UNIVERSITY 



President Schurman is determined to put 

 every department of Cornell University under 

 the control of the Legislature at Albany. He 

 has hinted such a purpose in the past, and 

 now he makes it clear. The first title in his 

 report to the Board of Trustees is " State 



Support and Control of the University." 

 Under this heading the president indicates 

 that he would welcome state control and 

 shows how it may easily be brought about; he 

 does not explain how state support may also 

 be obtained, but leaves it to be inferred that 

 he thinks the state will inevitably support 

 what it controls. 



The president has done well to bring this 

 question into the open. The alumni of the 

 university are entitled to a voice in deciding 

 so vital a matter of policy. Will they be 

 found to favor the president's plan? We 

 think not. But if they are opposed to it they 

 must make themselves heard, or the president 

 will unquestionably take their silence for con- 

 sent. The alumni have representatives on the 

 Board of Trustees whose opinion they, pre- 

 sumably, can sway, but this question is too 

 important to be debated and decided behind 

 closed doors. It should be discussed in the 

 open. There are difficulties and dangers in 

 the university's path if it follows President 

 Schurman on his road to Albany. Are there 

 substantial rewards at the end of the journey ? 

 The university will hope to make the state its 

 benefactor. But will it not put behind it for 

 all time the hope of any substantial benefac- 

 tions from private sources? Which road 

 shall we take? This paper hopes to have an 

 opportunity to print some opinions on the 

 subject. — Cornell Alumni News. 



SCIENTIFIC BOOKS 

 Life Histories of Northern Animals: An Ac- 

 count of the Mammals of Manitoba. By 

 Ernest Thompson Seton, Naturalist to the 

 Government of Manitoba. With 68 maps 

 and 560 drawings by the author. New 

 York, Charles Scribner's Sons. 1909. Two 

 volumes, royal 8vo. Vol. I., Grass-eaters, 

 pp. i-xxx, 1-673, pll. i-xlvi, text illust. 1- 

 182 and maps 1-38. Vol. II., Flesh-eaters, 

 pp. i-xii, 6Y5-1267, pll. xlvii-c, text illust. 

 183-267 and maps 39-68. $18 net per set. 

 The secondary title of Mr. Seton's great 

 work, " An Account of the Mammals of Mani- 

 toba," more definitely expresses its scope and 

 character than the leading title, " Life Histor- 



