398 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. III. No. 63. 



as in religion, mythology, law, art, etc. In 

 primitive conditions man's activities are 

 powerfully influenced by his geographic en- 

 vironment, but this diminishes as culture 

 increases. The proper aim of ethnography 

 is not to search out relations of blood, but 

 similarities of culture. Above these stand 

 the universal traits of human psychology, 

 which can be defined only by careful col- 

 lection and comparison of ethnic details. 

 Degenerations and deteriorations in culture 

 do not belong of right to ethnologic study, 

 becavise this has as its purpose the defini- 

 tion of evolution or the advancement of 

 the species. He refers to Post, Bastian, 

 Ratzel and Andree as the best representa- 

 tives of this new school of ethnology. 



It is proper to add that their opinions 

 have not yet received universal, scarcely 

 general, acceptance from other nations. 



MENTAL VERSUS PHYSICAL IN" WOMAN. 



There is a prevailing impression that 

 women in the higher classes of civilized 

 society are less desirous and less capable of 

 having numerous offspring than those of the 

 lower classes and ruder conditions. In other 

 words, that there is an antagonism between 

 the intellectual culture of woman and her 

 reproductive powers. One or the other must 

 suffer in her education. 



The sociological importance of such a 

 fact, if it is one, can scarcely be over-esti- 

 mated. Were it proved, and no remedy be 

 found, it would mean the gradual extinc- 

 tion of the most cultured classes in the com- 

 munity. The question was presented by me 

 before the anthropological section of the 

 Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, 

 and an abstract published in the Medical 

 News, January IS, 1896, under the title 

 ' The Relations of Race and Culture to De- 

 generations of the Reproductive Organs and 

 Functions in Woman.' I shall be glad to 

 send a copy to any reader of Science who 

 wishes one. D. G. Brinton. 



NOTES ON AGMICDLTUBE AND HORTI- 

 CULTURE. {IV.) 

 TREATMENT OF PEACH ROT AND APPLE SCAB. 



Delaware is a small State, but large in 

 its peach industry. The leading enemy to 

 the peach crop, the fruit rot, naturally is a 

 subject that demands the attention of the 

 Station Mycologist, Prof. F. D. Chester. 

 For several years he has been testing vari- 

 ous fungicides for the rotting of the fruit, 

 and the last bulletin (No. 29), recently 

 issued, gives both the results of the experi- 

 ments and general directions for spraying. 

 It is recommended to remove and burn all 

 di'ied or mummified fruit from the peach 

 trees in winter and to spray the trees 

 in early spring with bluestone solution. 

 When the fruit buds begin to swell spray 

 with the Bordeaux mixture and again just 

 before the buds open. Spray again with 

 Bordeaux when the bloom is falling, and 

 add a little Paris green to keep off the cur- 

 culio. About two weeks later the same 

 treatment is repeated. As the Bordeaux 

 coats the fruit with the lime mixture, for the 

 last two sprayings copper acetate, a color- 

 less solution, is employed. A tenfold in- 

 crease of sound fruit was obtained by this 

 process at a cost of about twelve cents per 

 tree. 



The treatment for apple scab was the Bor- 

 deaux mixture, to which London Purple had 

 been added and applied five times to the 

 trees. The good fruit was doubled by this 

 treatment, while the general health of the 

 apple trees was much improved. 



LEGISLATION AGAINST WEEDS. 



The division of Botany U. S. Department 

 of Agriculture has just issued a bulletin 

 (No. 17), prepared by Mr. L. H. Dewey, 

 " in response to a growing demand among 

 agriculturists and Legislators for data which 

 will enable them to prepare laws better 

 adopted for the control of weeds than those 

 now in use." One per cent, of increase in 



