Decembeb 14, 1906.] 



SCIENCE. 



779 



as in the determination of generic types, elim- 

 ination is simply the application of the most 

 fundamental of nomenclatural rules, the law 

 of priority. 



J. A. Allen. 

 American Museum of Natural Histort, 

 New York. 



misrepresentations of nature in popular 

 magazines. 



In the December number, 1906, of The 

 Wide World E. W. G. Wesson claims to have 

 passed by boat on the Colorado River through 

 the Grand Canyon. The greater part of his 

 descriptive matter has been taken, paragraph 

 by paragraph from R. B. Stanton's account 

 of the descent made years ago by Stanton's 

 second party, and of the descriptions which 

 are original with Wesson, some are so original 

 as to be totally outside of the realm of truth. 



That he never made the journey which he 

 claims to have made is evident, and the maga- 

 zine which publishes such falsehoods does 

 much harm and discredits itself. 



A. R. Crook. 



SPECIAL ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY OF THE GAS- 

 TEROPODA OF THE UNITED STATES LEIDY. 



A CORRECTION. 



To THE Editor of Science: Through an 

 oversight when preparing a bibliography of the 

 late Professor Joseph Leidy's contributions 

 to science, published (1904) under the auspices 

 of the Smithsonian Institution and incorpo- 

 rated in a publication under the title ' Re- 

 searches in Helminthology and Parasitology 

 by Joseph Leidy, M.D., with a bibliography 

 of hia contributions to science,' 1904, the 

 writer neglected to incorporate the title to a 

 work on the ' Special Anatomy of the Gastero- 

 poda of the United States,' Boston, 1851, pp. 

 65, plates 16, published in conjunction with 

 the work of Amos Binney and W. G. Binney, 

 entitled * Terrestrial Breathing Mollusks of 

 the United States and Adjacent Tei*ritory of 

 North America,' edited by A. A. Gould, Bos- 

 ton, 1851-9. 



The work of Leidy devoted to the special 

 anatomy and physiology of various gasteropod 

 mollusks may be found in section 11, Vol. I. 



The writer regrets the oversight, particu- 

 larly as it is a work to which frequent refer- 

 ence is made by investigators along similar 

 lines of research, and more so since the publi- 

 cation was well known and special care was 

 taken to see that it appeared in the original 

 bibliography. 



Joseph Leidy, Jr. 



early types of man in iowa. 

 To THE Editor of Science: In connection 

 with the article on the discovery of an early 

 type of man in Nebraska, I wish to call atten- 

 tion to what seem to be similar types from 

 mounds in Iowa. In the proceedings of the 

 Davenport Academy, Vol. VI., is a paper by 

 Professor Frederick Starr on a * Summary of 

 the Archeology of Iowa,' in which are figured 

 two skulls, said to be of the Neanderthal type. 

 One of these was found in a mound in 

 Chickasaw County and the other in Floyd 

 County. While it is difficult to decide from 

 the illustrations, as to whether these skulls are 

 of the Neanderthal type, it is obvious that 

 they bear striking resemblances to it. It is 

 also suggestive that these skulls should be 

 found west of the Mississippi and in a part 

 of the same geographical area from which 

 comes the Nebraska man. 



C. W. 



MALAY AND FILIPINO BASKETRY. 



To THE Editor of Science: No doubt this 

 will fall under the eyes of more than one who 

 has examined Malay or Filipino basketry. 

 Everywhere in Malaysia is to be found a knot 

 in coarse or fine splits and stems of tough 

 and pliable plants, used in place of nails, 

 screws, pegs and the like. This knot is prac- 

 tically two round turns and two half hitches. 

 It may be described thus: (1) Pass the free 

 end of the split or other binder toward the 

 right to where the knot is to be tied; (2) then 

 under and around these parts and behind the 

 standing-part; (3) pass the free end again 

 around in the same direction, bringing it this 

 time in front of the standing-part and under 

 the two round turns toward the right; (4) 

 take a half hitch around the standing-part 



