May 7, 1909] 



SCIENCE 



747 



unknown. Not being able to arrive at any definite 

 type of the " bob-tail," I shall not attempt to 

 describe him. 



From tbis writer it would appear that tte 

 Old English Bob-tail is a recent, or at least 

 variable and poorly characterized breed. 

 Lee' states, however, that Eeingle's picture 

 in the " Sportsman's Cabinet," very early in 

 the last century, is typical of the breed as at 

 present known, showing that this breed has 

 probably existed for at least a century. He 

 further states that it is possibly older than 

 the collie. The varieties in England and 

 Scotland are said to be identical, except that 

 the latter usually has a long tail, the reason 

 attributed for this being that the owners 

 have steadfastly refused to amputate it! It 

 is stated that in England many of these dogs 

 are born either without tails or with very 

 short ones, pups with and without tails usually 

 occurring in the same litter. The tails may 

 be docked so that no one can tell that the 

 animals were not born tailless. They are 

 said to be jet-black at first with white mark- 

 ings, in a few weeks becoming " silvery- 

 Hlac." 



This writer argues that the antiquity and 

 concentration of the strain is shown by the 

 fact that if there is a strain of this breed in 

 such breeds' as the retriever, lurcher or spaniel 

 many generations back, a typical specimen will 

 occasionally appear. 



In the " Dogsi of All Nations " already re- 

 ferred to, which is a standard authority on 

 the good and the bad points in the various 

 breeds of dogs, giving their characterization 

 according to the various dog clubs and breed- 

 ers, a black and tan or brindle coat is con- 

 sidered a fault in the Old English Bobtail 

 breed (I. c, n., p. 471). 



Such remarkable diversity as here described 

 in a single litter of offspring could not be ac- 

 counted for by the effect of external conditions 

 of development and must therefore be due to 

 differences of some sort in the germ cells of 

 either or both parental individuals. No one 



'Lee, Rawdon B., "A History and Description 

 of the Modern Dogs of Great Britain and Ireland 

 (Non-sporting Division), etc.," London, 1899, pp. 

 428. 



character is present in all the offspring to the 

 exclusion of its homologue. There is a de- 

 cided tendency in any given character for the 

 offspring to "take after" one parent or the 

 other, though in certain cases, as in the char- 

 acter of the hair in Nos. 3 and 4, there is a 

 marked departure from either parent. This 

 is perhaps the reappearance of a character de- 

 rived from some cross in the ancestry of one 

 of the breeds. 



One fiirther fact worthy of mention is the 

 disposition of dog No. 1. I had him in my pos- 

 session for several years and often observed 

 the usually very subdued and timid behavior, 

 and at times the sudden and unexpected change 

 to the aggressive attitude of his father. It 

 will be noted that some of the dogs inherited 

 the aggressive disposition of their father and 

 others the timid and gentle disposition of 

 their mother. 



E. E. Gates 



University of Chicago, 

 April 2, 1909 



TRE AMERICAN ASSOCIATION FOR THE 

 ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE 



SECTION E— GEOLOGY AND GEOGRAPHT 



Section E, Geology and Geography, of the 

 American Association for the Advancement of 

 Science, met Monday morning, December 28, 

 1908, at Johns Hopkins University. Tlie section 

 organized at 11 A.M., ' immediately after the ad- 

 journment of the general meeting of the associa- 

 tion. Tlie first five papers of a Symposium on 

 Correlation were given during the morning and 

 afternoon sessions on Monday. This symposiimi 

 was continued on Tuesday and Wednesday under 

 the auspices of the Geological Society of America. 



Professor J. P. Iddings, of Chicago, gave his 

 vice-presidential address, " The Study of Igneous 

 Rock," on Monday, at 2:30 p.m.^ 



According to the custom for several years past. 

 Section E adjourned Monday p.m., but its fellows 

 and members were cordially invited to be present 

 at the sessions of the Geological Society of 

 America, December 29 to 31, 1908, and at those 

 of the Association of American Geographers, 

 January 1 and 2, 1909. 



Following the dinner of the Geological Society 

 of America on Wednesday evening there was a 

 discussion of the relations that should obtain 



'Science, Vol. XXIX., pp. 202-217. 



