Mat 28, 1915] 



SCIENCE 



783 



his sons, announced recently in a note read at 

 the French Institute, the substance of which 

 is contained in a letter just received from 

 him, was made only a few days before the 

 declaration of war last August. In fact, it 

 was on July 20, 1914, exactly two years after 

 the discovery of Tuc d'Audoubert, that he and 

 his three sons descended by an opening until 

 then unknown into a superb cavern, which in 

 their honor he has named Caverne des Trots 

 Freres. It is about haK way between Tuc 

 d'Audoubert and the cave of Anlene, in other 

 words about a quarter of a mile from each. 

 Count Begouen believes that the three cav- 

 erns are connected by corridors; proofs of a 

 eonection between two are already in hand. 



The exploration was not only difficult, but 

 also dangerous (there are galleries into 

 which he has not yet been able to penetrate), 

 but one is well paid for the effort because of 

 the beauty and elevation of the ceilings as 

 well as " the numerous prehistoric remains 

 encountered there." On the floor were many 

 bones, flint implements and objects bearing 

 man's handiwork. 



The results of their first visits were of such 

 a nature as to foretell an abundant harvest 

 when the work shall have been resumed. 

 Upon a bone fragment there was an excellent 

 engraving of a fish. But the chief display of 

 art was on the walls, especially of the termi- 

 nal gallery, where more than two hundred ad- 

 mirably engraved figures of animals are to be 

 seen. The following species have already 

 been identified: Mammoth, rhinoceros (the 

 first found in the caverns of the Pyrenees), 

 bear, lion, wolf, deer, reindeer, wild goat, 

 horse, bison, chamois, eel and bird. There 

 are also anthropomorphic figures including a 

 curious female type drawn in black; it seems 

 to be walking almost on all fours with the 

 head surmounted by a reindeer horn. It 

 might represent a human figure wearing a 

 mask, or perhaps a figure with mixed attri- 

 butes ; if the latter, then we have a new note in 

 paleolithic art, for until now that art has re- 

 vealed no representations of mythologic crea- 

 tures. 



Most of the mural art in the Oaverne des 



Trois Freres is admirably done; a small panel 

 with reindeer at rest evidently enjoying them- 

 selves is " like a page from an album." From 

 the viewpoint of the engravings this cavern 

 is " certainly the richest and the most beauti- 

 ful thus far known." In addition to the ani- 

 mal and anthropomorphic figures. Count 

 Begouen noted lines, spots of red or black, 

 and red elaviform signs, presumably repre- 

 senting clubs. 



War was declared before excavations could 

 be begun. With two of the " trois freres " at 

 the front since then and the youngest having 

 recently joined them there, it can readily be 

 understood why Count Begouen does not wish 

 to return to the cavern so aptly named until 

 he can do so accompanied by his three boys 

 after the war is over. Let us hope that he may 

 have to wait neither long nor in vain. 



George Geant MaoCuedy 



Yale University, 

 New Haven, Conn. 



SOME EAMTSQUAKE PBENOMENA NOTED 

 IN PANAMA 



In October, 1913, the writer was asked by 

 President Porras of Panama to undertake 

 some investigation into the causes of the earth- 

 quakes which, during that month, were felt 

 almost daily in the Azuero peninsula which 

 forms the south central part of the republic. 



In the course of this investigation two well- 

 recognized geological principles took on a new 

 and impressive significance for the writer, and 

 a vividness that he had never before been able 

 to clothe them with. These principles are the 

 relation of faulting and fracture to earth- 

 quakes, and the elasticity of the earth as ex- 

 pressed in earth-waves. 



Simultaneously with the first and heaviest 

 shock the cable line from Panama up the west 

 coast to California broke at a point where it 

 passes over the submarine escarpment from the 

 continental shelf at about 60 fathoms to the 

 ocean depths at from 700 to 1,000 fathoms. The 

 distance on the chart from the 60-fathoni 

 sounding to the 784-fathom sounding is less 

 than two miles. It is not known, however, 

 whether the slope between these two points is 



