592 
of an adult and two infants. With the bodies 
were fabrics, pottery, gourds, a basket of two 
compartments containing a thorn needle, 
thread, red pepper and spinning apparatus. 
The presentation was further illustrated with 
plates from Reiss and Stiibel’s ‘Necropolis of 
Ancon.’ 
W. H. Holmes presented a valuable paper 
on ‘The Peopling of America,’ in which a 
wide range of topics was discussed and illus- 
trated by diagrams. It wasaimed especially to 
bring forward the various problems involved in 
the new light thrown upon them by recent 
geological research. The biological problems 
were presented with the aid of a diagram out- 
lining the history of the species and fixing the 
apparent position of the American people among 
the races of the world. Problems of chronology 
were elucidated by means of a diagram in which 
the genetic tree of the hominids was made to 
traverse the geologic time scale. Taking root 
in Tertiary times, the human stem is believed to 
have sent out four or more branches during 
Glacial and post-Glacial times, the latter period 
probably witnessing the specialization of the 
present American branch. The various views 
with respect to the geographical position of the 
cradle of the race were reviewed, and distribu- 
tion and differentiation were discussed. Prefer- 
ence was given to the view that the eastern 
rather than the western continent was the 
original home of the group. 
In the fourth section, the bridges and ferries 
by means of which America could have been 
occupied were passed in review, and the con- 
clusion was reached that, so far as the present 
populations are concerned, they must have ar- 
rived by way of Bering Strait and that they 
were thus necessarily of Mongolian stock. Pos- 
sible interference of the glacial ice sheet was 
considered, and the probabilities of pre-Glacial, 
inter-Glacial, and  post-Glacial migration 
weighed. 
The seventh section dealt with migration and 
the laws that govern movements of faunas and 
peoples, and the effects of movements of human 
groups from Asia to America by Bering Strait 
upon somatic and cultural conditions were care- 
fully presented. 
The eighth section included a comparative 
SCIENCE. 
(N.S. Vou. XIII. No. 323. 
study of American culture with reference to 
questions of origin ; and the concluding section 
presented the archeological and paleontological 
evidence with the view of determining, as far 
as possible, its bearing upon questions of time, 
people and culture. It appeared that, although 
many phases of the investigation are yet in the 
speculative stage, comparative anthropology 
and geology are gradually but surely bringing 
order out of chaos. 
Major Powell, in discussing Professor Holmes’s 
paper, urged strongly that the tendency in cul- 
ture development is toward integration and 
not toward differentiation. He pointed out 
that the number of languages in America evi- 
dences a low culture status, and affirmed that 
a similarly low status had been observed among 
certain tribes of Indians, as to artifacts. These 
remarks were in support of Major Powell’s hy- 
pothesis that the precursor of man entered 
America destitute of speech and arts and ata 
period when Alaska was a land area coincident 
with Asia. 
Mr. McGee said, in reference to the chronol- 
ogy of the hominidz, he would place the pre- 
cursor well down in the Glacial period, when 
the change began from divergence to integraz 
tion. He said that development is by that 
process, and instead of representing the races 
by a number of radiating lines, he would show 
the divisions of the human race by converging 
lines developing toward unity. 
Professor O. T. Mason, whose work on these 
problems is well known, was unfortunately un- 
able to be present. WA EOnGE 
BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON. 
THE 334th meeting was held on Saturday 
evening, February 9th. H. C. Oberholser 
spoke on the subject of ‘A Naturalist in the 
Catskills,’ describing at some length the topog- 
raphy of the region, the character of the vege- 
tation and the more prominent birds and mam- 
mals, illustrating his remarks with numerous 
lantern slides. The remainder of the evening 
was devoted to a continuation of the discussion 
of the question of previous land connections be- 
tween Asia and North America. Theo. Gill 
reviewed the evidence presented by the fossil 
mammals and existing fishes, saying that there 
