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SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XLIX, No. 1264 



lected with Professor Mudge in the Cretaceous 

 chalk of Kansas. In 1877 he was sent by- 

 Professor Marsh to the Morrison, Canyon City 

 and Como quarries to cooperate with Pro- 

 fessors Lakes and Mudge and Mr. Heed in 

 taking out the types of Atlantosaurus, Diplo- 

 docus and other sauropods. In Professor 

 Marsh's laboratory WiUiston worked on the 

 dinosaurs. In the field in 1878 he helped to 

 collect the " Jurassic Mammals " and some 

 of the smaller dinosaurs. For nine years 

 (1876-85) he worked in Professor Marsh's lab- 

 oratory, where he became closely associated 

 with Marsh's other assistants, especially 

 Harger and Baur. 



While acting as assistant in paleontology 

 he studied medicine at Tale, received the 

 degree of M.D. in 1880, continued his post- 

 graduate studies, and received the degree of 

 Ph.D. at Tale in 1885. He then became 

 demonstrator of anatomy (1885-86) and pro- 

 fessor of anatomy (1886-90) at Tale and 

 practised medicine in ITew Haven, where he 

 was health officer in 1888-90. In 1886 he pub- 

 lished some criticisms of Koken's work on 

 Ornithocheirus hilsensis which give us some 

 hint of his abiding interest in Kansas fossil 

 reptiles, an interest which was soon to bring 

 great results. 



The turning-point in his scientifi.c career, 

 from anatomy and medicine to paleontology, 

 came at the age of thirty-eight, when he 

 returned to the University of Kansas as pro- 

 cessor of geology. Kansas was the scene of his 

 first inspiration in paleontology, and here his 

 fossil studies and vigorous health marked the 

 happiest period of his life. He taught both 

 vertebrate and invertebrate paleontology, anat- 

 omy, and medicine, and several of his stu- 

 dents have achieved distinction in these fields.^ 

 With respect to the breadth of his studies and 

 of his influence at this time, his life was com- 

 parable only to that of Joseph Leidy, who, 



3 Among these paleontologic students, wlio have 

 since become known for their researches, were: E. 

 C. Case, C. E. MeClung, Roy L. Moodie, Herman 

 Douthitt, Alban Stewart, Elmer S. Riggs, Barnum 

 Brown, M. G. Mehl, E. B. Branson and E. H. 

 SeUards. 



it will be recalled, was at once an anatomist, a 

 physician, a paleontologist and a mieroscopist 

 of distinction. He soon began to publish 

 studies on the Cretaceous reptiles of Kansas. 

 Henceforth Kansas plesiosaurs and turtles, 

 mosasaurs and pterodactyls, were the subjects 

 of a long list of papers mostly in the Kansas 

 University Quarterly, from 1890 to 1899, with 

 occasional articles on Kansas fossil mammals 

 {Platygonus, Aceraiherium, Teleoceras fos- 

 siger). Meanwhile he made many explora- 

 tions of the Cretaceous of Kansas for fossil 

 reptiles. At Kansas University WiUiston also 

 kept up his two avocations of anatomy and 

 dipterology; he served as professor of anatomy 

 and dean of the medical school. He also con- 

 tinued to publish many papers on recent 

 diptera. He accomplished a great work on 

 this group and became the leading dipterol- 

 ogist of the United States. His studies cul- 

 minated in the preparation of his " Manual 

 of North American Diptera," a book which is 

 indispensable to a beginner in dipterology and 

 a very great convenience to advanced workers. 



PALEONTOLOGIC WORK IN KANSAS* 



Williston's paleontologic contributions on 

 the Cretaceous fauna of Kansas began in 

 1879 with a short paper entitled "Are Birds 

 Derived from Dinosaurs," and included fifty- 

 three communications, chiefly to the Kansas 

 Academy of Science, the Kansas University 

 Quarterly, and the University Geological Sur- 

 vey of Kansas; also three volumes on the 

 " Cretaceous Fishes " in cooperation with Al- 

 ban Stewart; and " Paleontologry (Upper Cre- 

 taceous)," Part I., Volume TV., of the Uni- 

 versity Geological Survey, which was chiefly 

 prepared by Williston with the assistance of 

 his students Adams, Case and MoClung, and 

 is a thorough review of the geologry and 

 marine fauna of the Cretaceous seas, contain- 

 ing the first clear distinctions and restorations 

 of the great Kansas mosasaurs, Clidastes, 



* These notes on Williston's work on fossil rep- 

 tiles and amphibians have been prepared in col- 

 laboration with Professor W. K. Gregory of the 

 American Museum of Natural History. 



