140 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. III. No. 56. 



when 8,000 people participated and 20,000 rab- 

 bits were taken. 



Rabbit driving lias declined in the San Joa- 

 quin Valley during the last three years, but is 

 now beiug actively prosecuted in northeastern 

 California and in certain parts of Oregon and 

 Idaho, while thousands of rabbits are killed an- 

 nually in the Colorado and Utah hunts. Drives 

 can only be used in the case of Jack- rabbits, 

 which do not burrow, but under favorable cir- 

 ■cumstances afford a most efficient means of 

 keeping the animals in check. 



Dr. V. A. Moore read a paper on The Nature 

 of the Flagella of Motile Bacteria with special 

 reference to their value in differentiating species. 



The paper was a summary of the present 

 knowledge of the nature and significance of the 

 flagella, or organs of locomotion, of motile bac- 

 teria. A method seems not to have yet been 

 formulated whereby uniform results can be 

 obtained by different investigators. This fact 

 renders the assertions of a few writers that the 

 flagella are of specific diagnostic value some- 

 what questionable. The test of the differential 

 importance of these filaments was applied to 

 Baccillus coli communis, B, typhosis and B. cliol- 

 erse suis, three species of bacteria closely related 

 morphologically, but readily differentiated by 

 meaus of physiological properties and their 

 pathogenesis. The differences in the flagella 

 of each of these species as found by different 

 observers are as great as those found between 

 the different species. The same is true of the 

 Spirilla. The proposed classification of bacteria 

 by Messea was shown by illustration to be of 

 secondary importance, and the statements here- 

 tofore made concerning the specific value of the 

 flagella were shown to be unreliable. The 

 author favored the disposition of the flagella, 

 as polar or diffuse, made by A. Fisher, who in- 

 cludes them in the characters of his subfamilies. 

 F. A. Lucas, 



Secretary. 



NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC SOCIETY. 



At the regular Friday evening meeting of the 

 ISTational Geographic Society held in Washing- 

 -ton, D. C, January 10, Mr. Wm. Ellery 

 Curtiss, of Washington, delivered a lecture, 

 illustrated by lantern slides, on Venezuela ; 



her government, people and boundary. The 

 lecturer, who was formerly Chief of the 

 Bureau of American Republics, discussed the 

 form of government and institutions of the 

 country and the character, manners and cus- 

 toms of the people. He dwelt particularly, 

 however, on the boundary question, in certain 

 of its phases, and set forth both the British and 

 American contentions in the pending dispute. 



GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON. 



At the fortieth meeting of the Society, on 

 January 9th, the first paper read was by Mr. R. 

 T. Hill, of the U. S. Geological Survey, On the 

 Agassiz Expedition, to Panama and Costa Rica. 



Mr. Hill gave results and methods of studies of 

 the geological structure, paleontology and geo- 

 morphology of the Isthmus of Panama, based 

 upon observations made by him last year, when, 

 under a furlough from the Survey, he spent sev- 

 eral mouths in the work, under the auspices of 

 Prof. Alexander Agassiz. Mr. Hill supple- 

 mented his remarks by calling attention to the 

 great work Prof. Agassiz is doing for science in 

 working out the geology of Tropical America, a 

 region having the greatest bearing upon the in- 

 terpretation of our whole continental history. 



The speaker made acknowledgment to the 

 following specialists who had determined for 

 him the many different types of material enter- 

 ing into this complicated section : To Dr. 

 Wm. H. Dall, of the Geological Survey, for a 

 report upon the Tertiary mollusca ; to Prof. R. 

 M. Bagg, of Johns Hopkins University, for in- 

 teresting determinations of the Tertiary For- 

 aminifera ; to Prof. J. E. Wolff, of Cambridge, 

 to whom the petrographic specimens were as- 

 signed ; to Mr. H. W. Turner, of the Geological 

 Survey, for minute examination of certain im- 

 portant and apparently indeterminate earths ; 

 to Mr. Ahc Sjogren, of Stockholm, Sweden, late 

 of Costa Rica, for carefully prepared sections 

 and collections ; and to Mr. T. Wayland 

 Vaughan, of the U. S. Geological Survey, for 

 determination of the fossil corals. The reports 

 of these specialists, together with Mr. Hill's 

 discussion of the structure, history, and physical 

 geography, have been prepared and are nearly 

 ready for publication. 



Three geologic sections of the Central Ameri- 



