418 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. LIII. No. 1374 



The work very properly begins with, an an- 

 notated translation of the Monaco and Geneva 

 Agreements for the Unification of Anthro- 

 pometric Measurements. There follows a con- 

 cise treatment of the preliminaries of the 

 subject, such as preparation, instruments, 

 landmarks, recording grouping of subjects, 

 estimation of age, admixture of blood, patho- 

 logical conditions, etc. The various topics are 

 handled with clarity and include much orig- 

 inal data in regard to general methods. There 

 is a sane appraisal of the various anthropo- 

 metric instruments and accessories employed 

 in investigations. 



The section on the anthropometry of the 

 living deals with a selected list of the most 

 important measurements and observations as 

 determined by the experience of the author. 

 The directions given are very clear and in- 

 clude many practical suggestions tending to 

 promote facility of observation and accuracy 

 of result. 



The anthropometry of the skeleton is satis- 

 factorily treated and includes a description of 

 the invaluable system of visual observations 

 elaborated by the author. In the opinion of 

 the reviewer this standardization of morpho- 

 logical observations constitutes a contribution 

 to antluopometric method of first importance, 

 and the section dealing with it might advan- 

 tageously be expanded. It is to be hoped that 

 Dr. Hrdlicka may find time to publish else- 

 where a series of articles illustrating the nor- 

 mal or medium development of the various 

 morphological characters and the extremes of 

 their variations. Such illustrations, together 

 with a discussion of the extent and signifi- 

 cance of variations, would provide a standard 

 basis for judging the degree of development 

 of immensurable characters. At the present 

 time the value of such observations is depend- 

 ent upon the accuracy and experience of the 

 individual investigator. It is becoming ap- 

 parent to physical anthropologists that mor- 

 phological differences of detail that do not 

 lend themselves to measurement are of pri- 

 mary importance in distinguishing races. 

 Many important functional adaptations be- 



long also to this category of features which 

 must be described rather than measured. 



Perhaps it may be said that the greatest 

 value of this work on anthropometry lies in 

 the fact that it represents the perfected 

 methods of one of the most skilled and best 

 qualified practitioners of the science. Experts 

 may differ as to the value of this or that 

 measurement, or may prefer their own tech- 

 nique in individual cases, but this book, is in 

 general reliable and conclusive. A careful 

 follower of its methods can not fail to secure 

 completely adequate physical data in any 

 general anthropometric investigation. 



E. A. HooTON 



Haevakd Univeesitt 



SPECIAL ARTICLES 



SUBEPITHELIAL GLYCOGEN CELLS IN EMBRYO 

 AND RECENTLY HATCHED FISH 



In April, 1912, while studying the develop- 

 ment of the yellow perch (Perca flavescens) I 

 discovered numerous cells filled with glycogen 

 located just below the flat epithelium cover- 

 ing the surface of the embryo. The embryos 

 in which I demonstrated these cells had been 

 developing in the laboratory for twelve days. 

 Upon the addition of a few drops of tincture 

 of iodine to the water in the saucer in which 

 the embryos were contained it was noticed, 

 upon microscopical examination, that there 

 were many round or oval cells, stained a red- 

 dish brown, scattered over the surface of the 

 embryo, and especially marked in the fins. 1 

 have repeatedly studied these cells in the 

 yellow perch and some other species of fish 

 since I first observed them, and I have found 

 them so interesting that I wish to make a 

 record of some of my findings. 



The embryos of the yellow perch are espe- 

 cially well adapted for microscopic examina- 

 tion, as they are exceedingly transparent, and 

 retain their transparency to an advanced stage 

 of development. The development of the eggs 

 takes place rapidly at the ordinary tempera- 

 ture of the laboratory. At the end of the 

 fourth or the beginning of the fifth day after 

 the first division of the egg the embryo begins 

 to make spontaneous movements of its body. 



