August 9, 1889.] 



SCIENCE. 



103 



— Frederick Warne & Co. have just issued a " dollar " Shak- 

 speare, printed from readable type on paper of good quality, and 

 neatly bound in cloth. 



— D. Lothrop Company have just ready " Around the World 

 Stories," by Olive Risley Seward, an account of curious things met 

 with in her travels ; " Dear Old Story-Tellers," by Oscar Fay 

 Adams, brief biographies of popular story-writers from .4isop to 

 Laboulaye ; and " Our Asiatic Cousins," by Mrs. A. H. Leonowens, 

 a description of life in the remotest parts of the East. 



LETTERS TO THE EDITOR. 

 A Possible Elephant. 



While examining the bluffs along the Missouri, near Vermillion, 

 Dak., recently, I came upon the remains of what I take to be 

 Elephas Americanus. The bones found all belong to the upper 

 and back portions of the skull, and include most of the upper jaw, 

 containing about a third of the right tooth and all of the left, por- 

 tions, of the tusk tubes, enough of the occipital to give both articu- 

 lating surfaces connecting the skull with the spinal column, and 

 many fragments of the upper portion of the skull. The perfect 

 tooth weighs about twelve pounds, as near as can be determined 

 without detaching it from the jaw. 



The bones are nearly all in a fine state of preservation. Only a 

 small portion of one tusk was found, and that much decomposed. 

 Judging from the tubes, the tusks could not have been less than 

 six inches in diameter. 



The bones lay in a bed of sand and fine gravel (probably Cham- 

 plain) about twenty feet thick. This sand rests directly upon the 

 Fort Benton clays, and is overlaid by one hundred feet of loess. 

 The Elephas bones were near the bottom of the sand, and about 

 ■one hundred feet above the river. They were exposed by a land- 

 slide which carried down with it all of the skeleton except the por- 

 tion of the skull mentioned. G. E. Culver. 



Vermillion, Dak., July 29. 



Are Beech-Trees ever struck by Lightning ? 



On p. 50 of Science for July 19, I notice an article on light- 

 ning striking beech-trees. The following instance has come to 

 my notice. In the summer of 1887 Marcus Grover was at a saw- 

 mill in Rome, Ashta. County, O. Noticing an approaching storm, 

 he, as he supposed, thoughtfully hitched his two-horse team to a 

 small green beech-tree which stood m the mill-yard. During the 

 storm came a sharp crash of thunder and lightning. 



Mr. Grover looked for his team, only to find both horses dead. 

 There were some small holes in the ground, and the hair was 

 scorched a little, but no trace of lightning could be found on the 

 tree. E. E. BOGUE. 



Orwell, Ashta. Co., O., Aug. 2. 



Mosquitoes and Science. 



Referring to the letter of Dr. R. H. Lamborn, on p. 85 of 

 Science for Aug. 2, there would seem to be a choice between two 

 evils. I cannot now lay my hand on the article referred to, but 

 recall the fact that the larvse of mosquitoes were found to be potent 

 agents in diminishing malarial exhalations from stagnant water. 

 The question arises whether it would be better to endure malaria 

 or mosquitoes. EDWARD H. WILLIAMS, jun. 



Bethlehem, Penn., Aug. 5. 



Queries. 



46. Fern's Name. — I send you a small fern which grows in 

 this section of the country, and is said to be a rare specimen. Will 

 you please publish in your Science the name of this fern .' 



Walter W. Francis. 



Idaho Springs, Col., July 23. 



Answers. 

 46. Fern's Name. —The name of the fern submitted for deter- 

 mination is Nothoclcena Fendleri. At Idaho Springs, Col., it has 

 probably been collected near its northern limit, the species being 

 much more abundant farther south. E. J. N. 



Exchanges. 



serted for subscribers free of charge. 

 Hodges, 47 Lafayette Place, New 



alyses for exchange, 

 ie which can be fur- 

 return. Also cabinet 

 .me. Scientific corre- 

 Gue, Orwell, Ashta. 



- Lulu Hay, secre- 



[Exchanges i 

 Address N. D 

 York.l 



100 botanica 

 Send list of th< 

 Dished, and ret 



specimens and curio^itles tor the sai 

 spondence solicited. — E. E. Boc 

 County, O. 



Lead, zinc, mundic, and calcite. 

 tary Chapter 350, Carthage, Mo. 



I will sell to chapters or individual members of the 

 Agassiz Association, 25 fine specimens of fossil plants 

 from the Dakota group (cretaceous*, correctly named, for 

 $2.30. Send post-office order to Charles H. Sternberg 

 (author "Young Fossil-Hunters"), 1033 Kentucky 

 Street, Lawrence Kan. 



One mounted single achromatic photographic lens for 

 making 4X5 pictures, in excellent condition ; also one 

 "•"new model" double dr>'-plate holder (4" X 5'), for line 

 geological or mineral' .gical specimens, properly classi- 

 fied.— Charles E. Frick, 1019 West Lehigh Avenue, 

 Philadelphia, Penn. 



rimals, birds, insects, and 



:cts for cabinet ; or I will 



h for ten cents in stamps. 



in detail, showing plant, 



, pistils, etc. — Alda M. 



Drawings from nature — 

 plants — to exchange for in 

 send them in sets of ten e; 

 My drawings in botany a 

 leaves, flowers, seed. 

 Sharp, Gladbrook, lo. 



The undersigned wishes to make arrangements for the 

 exchange of Lepidoptera of eastern Pennsylvania for 

 those from other localities. All my specimens are named 

 and in good condition. — Charles S. Westcott. 613 North 

 17th Street, Philadelphia, Penn. 



California onyx, for minerals and coins Hot in my col- 

 lection. — W. C. Thompson, 612 East 141st Street, New 

 York, N.Y. 



Any one who has a botanical box in good condition will 

 please write. I will offer about 30 specimens in ex- 

 ■changc. — C. B. Haskell, Box S26, Kennebunk, Me. 



A few first-class mounted birds, for first-class birds' 

 eggs of any kind in sets. — J. P. Babbitt, secretary 

 Chapter 755, 10 Hodges Avenue, T 



HEAVEN AND HELL, by EMAN- 

 UEL SWEDENBORG, 416 pages, paper 

 cover. Mailed pre-paid for 14 Cents by the 

 American Svvedenborg Priming and Publish- 

 ing Society, 20 Cooper Union, New York 

 -City. 



JUST PUBLISHED. 



iLTEiiTIi CililS OF EIECTHICIT!, 



For the Use of Students and Engineers. 



BY T. H. BLAKESLEY, C.E., 



Kings College, Cambridge, Member of the Physical Society of London, M.I.C.E. 



One Volume, i2mo, Cloth, Price, $1.50. 



SECOND EDITION, ENLARGED. 



EXTRACT FROM PREFACE. 



The following chapters were written to e.xemplify the use of the geometri- 

 cal method in treating problems involving the flow of electricity arising from 

 the existence of sources of electro-motive lorce whose intensity undergoes har- 

 monic variation. 



CONTENTS. 



Chapter I. — Self-Induction. Chap. IF. — Mutual Induction. Ch.^p. III. 

 — Condensers. Chap. IV. — Condenser in Circuit. Chap. V. — Several Con- 

 densers. Chap. VI. — Combination of Cottdensers with Self-induction. Chap. 

 VII. — Condenser Transformer. Chap. VIII. — Distributed Condenser. Ch.\p. 

 IX. — Distributed Condenser {cont.) — Telephony. Chap. X — The Transmission 

 of Power. Ch.'\.p. XI. — Upon the Use of the Two-Coil Dynamometer with 

 Alternating Currents. Ch.a.p. XII. — Silence in a Telephone. Ch.\p. XIII. — 



On Magnetic Lag. 



D. VAN 



NOSTRAND 



PUBLISHERS. 

 23 MURRAY AND 27 WARREN STS., NEW YORK. 



' Copies sent by mail on receipt of price. 



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