78 



SCIENGE. 



[Vor.. I., No. 3. 



deposits of small basins without outlet, — fine, loose, 

 light-yellow silt, white when dry. In both of these, 

 the coarser beds wedge out away from their source. 

 The old Playa beds, indicating a time of desiccation, 

 may be covered with true lake-beds, showing a more 

 moist climate. — (Pop. sc. monthly, Jan., 3883.) 

 W. M. D. [219 



GEOGRAPHY. 

 {Arctic) 

 Nelson's explorations in the Yukon delta. — 

 The long residence of Mr. E. W. Nelson at St. 

 Michaels, Norton Sound, Alaska, and the large col- 

 lections obtained there by him for the National 

 museum, are matters generally known, not only to 

 those immediately interested, but also to the general 

 public. His report has been anticipated with much 

 interest. Unfortunately a too enthusiastic applica- 

 tion to study, on his return, acting on a constitution 

 perhaps somewhat weakened by past hardships, pro- 

 duced symptoms which rendered a change of scene 

 and climate imperative as a preventive of worse 

 evils. Mr. Nelson is now recuperating in Colorado, 

 and is still working on his report, which will appear 

 among the professional papers of the signal-corps 

 of the IT. S. army, but will be somewhat delayed. 

 During his service as signal-coi-ps observer at St. 

 Michaels, he took part in several long sledge expedi- 

 tions over little-known jjarts of the Yukon delta, 

 and was able to gather a large amount of informa- 

 tion on the geography of an area in regard to which 

 no authentic data are on record. This information 

 is, of course, of an approximate nature only; but, 

 such as it is, it forms an important and valuable 

 addition to our knowledge. Most of Mr. Nelson's 

 notes were placed in the hands of the authorities of 

 the U. S. census, and form the larger proportion 

 of the new information contained in the map of 

 Alaska lately issued by that office. Pending the 

 publication of his complete report, he has prepared 

 a brief account of the most important of his expe- 

 ditions made in December and January, 1878-79, 

 which has just appeai-ed in the proceedings of the 

 Royal geogi'aphioal society of London (November 

 number), together with a map embodying his addi- 

 tions to the geography of the Yukon delta. The 

 jouriiey in question extended from St. Michaels along 

 the coast to the trading-post of Andreievski, at the 

 northernmost mouth of the Yukon, thence by the 

 Kusilvak mountain, across the delta to the vicinity 

 of Cape Rumiantzoff, then near the coast and par- 

 allel with it to Cape Vancouver, and around to the 

 mouth of the Kuskokvim River, the western banlc 

 of which was traversed some fifty miles northward ; 

 then the party struck across the portage to the 

 southern bend of the Yukon, which was descended 

 to Andreievski, after wliich the original route was 

 followed to St. Michaels. Among the more impor- 

 tant features developed wej'e the form of the coast 

 about Cape Rumiantzoff; the number and approxi- 

 mate position of the streams and inlets entering the 

 coast between that point and the mouth of the Kus- 

 kokvim; the insulation of Cape Vancouver, which 

 forms part of a large island separated by the large, 

 newly named Baird Inlet, and two broad but proba- 

 bly shallow channels from the mainland ; and the 

 approximate location of numerous inland lakes, 

 streams, and villages of natives. Numerous ethno- 

 logical details appear in the narrative. The island 

 off Cape Vancouver has appropriately been named 

 Nelson Island, and a bay north of it Hazen Bay, 

 after the present enlightened head of the signal- 

 corps, who has done so much to promote research and 

 exploration in these northern regions, w. h. d. [220 



{North America.) 

 March of the centre of our population. — This 

 question is discussed by L. Simonin on the basis of 

 our census-reports ; of which he says, "Four or five 

 years are given to discussing the data, formulating 

 the results, and illustrating them with splendid maps, 

 making a number of magnificent folio volumes, which 

 are distributed very generously." After describing 

 the exceptionally rapid growth of population, and the 

 westward advance of its centre at the rate of fifty miles 

 a decade from the Chesapeake in 1790 to Cincinnati 

 in 1880, he asks, " When will the centre of poiDulation 

 agree with the centre of surface, and what will the 

 population be then ? " The answer is: in 320 years, 

 or in 2200 A.D., this change will be accomplished, 

 with a total of 1,600,000,000 souls, —more than the 

 present estimated population of the world. There is, 

 of course, much chance of error in the calculation. 

 It was objected, that Africa might some day turn away 

 the tide of emigration from the United States ; but 

 M. Simonin thinks it will not be Africa's turn till 

 America is filled, and that it will never offer the 

 opportunities found here. It was further objected, 

 that Chinese immigration might vitiate the calcula- 

 tions. M. Simonin answers, that this source of increase 

 has been but small, and is now stopped by law. Emi- 

 gration from the United States is not considered 

 sufficiently probable to affect the result. — (Bull. soc. 

 geogr. Paris, 1882, 557.) w. M. D. [221 



(JSurope.) 



Finland. — Max Buch prefixes an historical account 

 of the political condition of Finland, with a brief 

 description of the country. On the north-west, where 

 highest, two peaks rise to about 2,000 feet altitude; 

 thence to the south-east the country descends, the 

 heights generally wooded, and the valleys well culti- 

 vated. The numerous lakes are mostly narrow, and 

 are dotted over with countless little wooded islands. 

 Of these. Lake Saima serves as a type, extending from 

 latitude 61° to 64°, and yet often no wider than an 

 ordinary river. Besides these larger lakes, there are 

 countless smaller ponds, often separated only by nar- 

 row necks of land. The streams are rapid, with 

 numerous falls; those of the Imatra, the outlet of 

 Lake Saima, being renowned. The shore-line is 

 deeply indented, giving many harbors, which are 

 further protected by a fringe of plentiful islands. 

 The climate is relatively mild, the average tempera- 

 ture of Abo, on the southern coast, being 4.6° C, 

 and that of the northern coast —2.6° C. In climate 

 and vegetation Finland differs less from Italy than 

 from southern Greenland, though in the latitude of 

 the last-named country. The population is about 

 2,060,000, with 40,000 more women than men.— 

 (Ausland, 1S82, 910.) w. M. D. [222 



Hungarian census. — Tables and charts prepared 

 by Ignaz Hatsek from the census of 1880 show a total 

 population, under the Hungarian crown, of 15,642,000, 

 with 236,000 fewer males than females (1,000 to 1,031) ; 

 a total area of 324,000 D kilometres ; and an average 

 of 48 inhabitants to the a kilometre, — an average 

 increase of 1.4 per cent since 1870. One-half the 

 population belong to the Roman-catholic church; 

 next come the Greek oriental, the reformed, the Greek 

 catholic, and the Augsburg evangelical. Hungarian 

 is spoken by four-tenths of the population, Croato- 

 Servian and Rumanian by one-seventh each, Ger- 

 man and Slovak by one-eighth. — (Peterm. mittheil.. 

 1882,447.) w. M. D. [223 



{Asia.) 



Russians and SngUsh in vrestern Asia. — The 

 reading of an account of Lessar's second journey in 



