72 



SCIENCE 



[Vol. LV, No. 1412 



ing, to succeed Professor Alexander J. Wurtz, 

 who has been made research professor in the 

 new research division of the institute. 



Dr. J. A. GuNTON has been appointed head 

 of the chemistry department in Transylvania 

 College, Lexington, Ky. Dr. Gunton recently 

 received his doctorate of philosophy from the 

 University of Illinois. 



De. Clifford S. Leonard, for the past year 

 fellow in chemistry to Sweden on the Amer- 

 ican-Scandinavian Foundation, has completed 

 his research at the Karoline and Nobel Insti- 

 tutes of Stockholm and has been appointed 

 research instructor of pharmacology at the 

 University of Wisconsin. 



Dr. R. H. Adees Plimmer has been ap- 

 pointed by the Senate of London University 

 to the university chair of chemistry, tenable at 

 St. Thomas's Hospital Medical School, begin- 

 ning with the new year. At present he is head 

 of the biochemical department of the Rowett 

 Research Institute at the University of Aber- 

 deen. 



DISCUSSION AND CORRESPOND- 

 ENCE 

 SEARCH FOR THE RECORD OF ROBERT 

 HANHAM COLLYER, M. D. 



De. Collyee was registered as practicing 

 medicine in London as late as the year 1878. 

 After this it is believed he returned to Ameri- 

 ca. Long previous to this, namely, in 1867, 

 he had announced in the Anthropological Re- 

 view a very important discovery, — a pre- 

 historic jaw-bone of gi'eat geologic age. Of 

 this Mr. J. Reid Moir of Ipswich, England, 

 writes : 



I am of the opinion that if the Foxhall jaw- 

 bone could be reexamined now, it would be pos- 

 sible to say with considerable certainty as to 

 whether it was derived from the Crag, or not. But, 

 unfortunately, the specimen cannot now.be found, 

 and advertisements placed by me in various news- 

 papers and other journals have failed to bring it 

 to light. Owing to the kindness of the acting 

 registrar to the General Council of Medical Edu- 

 cation and Registration of the United Kingdom, 

 I have been informed that Dr. Robert Hanham 

 Colh'er was registered in England on the 23rd of 



June, 1868, with the qualification M.D., Medical 

 College, Pittsfield, Massachusetts, 1839. His 

 application for registration is dated the 23rd of 

 October, 1867, when he gave his address as 40, 

 Carlton Hill, St. John's Wood. At the time of 

 his registration he was at 1, Norman Terrace, 

 Stockwell, which he subsequently changed to 199, 

 Brompton Road, S. W., which was his registered 

 address in 1878, in which year his name lapsed 

 from the Medical Register in consequence of this 

 address having been found to be inaccurate by 

 means of an inquiry under Section 14 of the 

 Medical Act. According to the American Medical 

 Directory, the college from which, apparently, he 

 obtained his degree is described as the Berkshire 

 Medical College, Pittsfield, Massachusetts, an 

 institution which is classed with those which are 

 extinct — or merged with other colleges. There is 

 reason to believe that CoUyer returned eventually 

 to America, taking the Poxhall jaw-bone with 

 him. It would seem unlikely — in view of the 

 importance he attached to the specimen — that no 

 instructions would be left by him for the preserva- 

 tion of the specimen after his death, and I hope 

 that the pubtieity now given to this matter may 

 result in the FoxhaU jaw-bone being once more 

 brought to light. 



There are several clues to aid our search. 

 First the records and graduates of the Pitts- 

 field Medical College. Some member of Dr. 

 CoUyer's class may have left descendants. Or, 

 some member of his family may recall him. 

 Or, the Philadelphia Academy of Natirral 

 Sciences may find letters from Dr. Collyer to 

 Dr. Samuel G. Morton, the distinguished an- 

 thropologist of that institution. 



Henet Faieeield Osboen 

 American Museum of 



Natural History, 

 New York City 



THE PROTECTION OF MICROSCOPIC SEC- 

 TIONS 



Repeeeing to Professor Long's suggested 

 method for protecting microscopic sections 

 from mechanical injury in Science of Octo- 

 ber 7th., may I suggest the following, which 

 will remedy the diflculty without resorting to 

 the use of a thin film of parlodion. 



Instead of using the natural Canada balsam 

 for mounting (which does remain fluid for 

 years), use balsam prepared by heating the 



