860 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. II. No. 51. 



that a higli area acts as a carrier to a cold wave. 

 The most severe cold waves are those in which 

 the low area extends in a long and narrow, 

 trough-shaped depression from the northeast to 

 the southwest. 



Dr. Frankeufield regarded the question of 

 drought purely as one of distribution. The 

 rainfall might be normal during a year, yet 

 there would be a severe drought at a certain 

 season of the year, simply because the rainfall 

 was unevenly distributed, being excessive in 

 some months and deficient in others. 



Its effect upon the corn crop was illustrated 

 in the case of the present year, where there was 

 a general deficiency of rainfall and yet sufiicient 

 precipitation in the late spring and early sum- 

 mer to insure the safety of the crop. Com- 

 mencing in August, there was an abnormal de- 

 ficiency, but this was too late to affect the crop. 



Mr. Allerton S. Cushman gave an informal 

 talk on the present state of our knowledge re- 

 garding Helium, showing that it has been defi- 

 nitely proved that Helium is not a simple ele- 

 mentary gas, but in all probability a composi- 

 tion of two or more elementary gases. 



A. "W. Douglas, 

 Recording Secretary. 



SCIENTIFIC JOURNALS. 



THE AMERICAN GEOLOGIST, DECEMBER. 



The first article is by Prof. N. H. Winchell, 

 and is devoted to the comparative taxonomy of 

 the rocks of the Lake Superior region. This is 

 the last in a series of ten papers under the head- 

 ing ' Crucial Points in the Geology of the Lake 

 Superior Region,' the object of which has been 

 to review and criticise the Correlation Papers on 

 'Cambrian' and on ' Archean and Algonkian,' 

 by Messrs. Walcott and Van Hise respectively. 

 Aside from questions of nomenclature, in which, 

 as noted in these columns before, Prof. Winchell 

 differs from those authors, he emphasizes two 

 fundamental differences between his classifica- 

 tion and that proposed in the Correlation Papers. 

 First, he maintains the absence of a great erosion 

 interval between the upper sandstones of the 

 Keweenawan and the horizontal sandstones 

 (Upper Cambrian) of this region ; and secondly, 

 he separates from the Keweenawan certain 



igneous rocks, especially the gabbros, which 

 have usually been included in that formation. 

 The paper is accompanied by a table giving a 

 comparison between the classification adopted 

 by the author and that used by the United 

 States Geological Survey. 



Mr. Oscar H. Hershey discusses the history 

 of the river valleys of the Ozark Plateau from 

 Jurassic time to the present day. He recognizes 

 several periods of depression and deposition 

 and of elevation and erosion, and summarizes 

 these periods as follows : 1, Jura-Cretaceous 

 peneplain ; 2, Teritary valleys ; 3, Lafayette 

 formation ; 4, Quaternary valleys ; 5, Columbia 

 formation ; 6, the present valleys. 



Prof. F. W. Cragin, in a paper of nearly 

 thirty pages, gives a careful account of the 

 Belvidere (Comanche Cretaceous) beds of south- 

 ern Kansas. The typical section noted is called 

 the Elk-Otter section, and this is described in 

 detail, and the fossils characterizing the different 

 beds are listed. The paper includes a statement 

 of the classification of the Comanche divisions- 

 and terranes as adopted by the author. 



Under ' Correspondence ' Prof. G. Frederick 

 Wright presents the views of Dr. N. O. Hoist 

 on the continuity of the Glacial period as ex- 

 pressed in a recent paper by that author entitled 

 ' Has there been more than one Ice age in 

 Sweden ? ' The usual reviews of current geo- 

 logical literature, list of recent publications, 

 and personal and scientific news are given ; 

 under the latter is a statement concerning the 

 operations of the Geological Survey of New 

 York during the year. 



NEW BOOKS. 



Lehrbuch der Botanik. Drs. Strasburger, 

 Noll, Schenck and Schimper. Second edi- 

 tion revised. Jena, Gustav Fischer. 1895. 

 Pp. vi + 556. M. 6.50. 



Lehrbuch der Entwicklun'gsgeschichte des Menscheit 

 tind der Wirbelthiere. Oscar Hertwig. 

 Fifth edition revised. Jena, Gustav Fischer. 

 1895. xvi + 612. M. 11.50. 



Geological Survey of New Jersey : Annual Report 

 of the State Geologist for 1S9J,. Trenton, The 

 John L. Murphy Publishing Company, 

 Printers. 1895. Pp. ix + 303. 



