148 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. XV. No. 369. 



future, for instance, the maids as to marriage 

 and the matrons as to fecundity. On the 

 whole the Cult des Pierres seems to be 

 feminine. The strange customs long inhibited 

 are still secretly practiced in France and M. 

 Sebillot has handled this delicate subject with 

 great detail and frankness. The paper was 

 illustrated by a large series of photographs 

 of the megalithic monuments, lent by Dr. 

 Thomas Wilson. 



Dr. J. Walter Fewkes in discussing the 

 paper said that he appreciated this great con- 

 tribution to knowledge, and further that a 

 number of customs among the Zuni and Moki 

 are similar to those mentioned by M. Sebillot. 

 Mr. W J McGee and Dr. Thomas Wilson 

 also discussed the question of the worship 

 of stones in America. 



The Society passed a vote of thanks to M. 

 Sebillot and requested the publication of the 

 paper in the Anthropologist. 



Walter Hough. 



DISCUSSION AND CORRESPONDENCE. 



NOTES ON CUBAN FOSSIL MAMMALS. 



To THE Editor op Science: The reported 

 occurrence in Cuba of certain fossil mammals 

 has been used by several geologists, the first of 

 whom was Manuel Fernandez de Castro, as 

 evidence of former land connection between 

 Cuba and the continent of North America in 

 Pleistocene time. 



The fossil mammals reported from this island 

 belong to the genera Hippopotamus, Equus, 

 Mastodon and Megalocnus, a subgenus of 

 Megalonix. Leidy* examined specimens sent 

 him by Poey, and published the opinion that 

 the remains of the horse appear not to differ 

 from the corresponding parts of the recent ani- 

 mal, and it is even doubtful if they are to be 

 considered indigenous fossils. Concerning the 

 hippopotamus remains, which consisted of iso- 

 lated canines, he says that 'they probably also 

 belong to the recent animal.' The same opin- 

 ion was expressed by Pomel.f Vertebrate pa- 



* Proc. of the Acad, of Nat. Sci. Phila., Vol. 

 XX., 1868, pp. 179. 



t Comptes Rendus, Paris, Vol. LXVII., 1868, 

 p. 850. 



leontologists do not consider isolated horse 

 teeth sufficient data for the determination of 

 species. So far as I have been able to glean 

 from the literature, the remains of the so- 

 called fossil horses from Cuba, reputed to be 

 of Pleistocene age, are fragmentary, and there- 

 fore cannot be considered as possessing any 

 paleontologic value. It has been shown that 

 the Mastodon* remains were not indigenous to 

 Cuba, but were contained in a box of fossils 

 from Honduras sent by del Monte to the Eoyal 

 Academy of Sciences of Havana. 



These notes seem to show conclusively that 

 the three mammals considered above were not 

 indigenous to the island of Cuba. 



The fourth genus, Megalocnus, remains to 

 be considered. According to de Castro's first 

 notice,t this specimen was collected at Ciego 

 Montero, a place noted for warm baths, in the 

 jurisdiction of Cienfuegos, by Jose Figueroa, 

 a young student of the Eoyal University. This 

 reference is given as a quotation from a note 

 read by Poey to the Havana Academy in 1861. 

 I have not seen this note by Poey in print. 

 The subsequent publications until 1892 are 

 simply quotations of the above given locality. 

 In the Anales de la Meal Academia de la 

 Hahana, Vol. III., page 656, April, 1871, a note 

 is inserted by Poey asking for information con- 

 cerning the locality of certain large fossils 

 which were sent to de Castro. On page 698 

 of the same volume it is stated that this box 

 of fossils was sent by Leonardo del Monte to 

 the Havana Academy of Sciences and con- 

 tained three fossils from Honduras. Accord- 

 ing to the note of Poey$ this box contained 

 specimens of Mastodon humholdti, but Poey 

 himself does not verify the locality whence 

 the Megalocnus came. 



As there have been so many extraneous fos- 

 sils confused in the so-called Cuban fossil 

 mammalian fauna, it has occurred to me that 



* For note by Poey regarding the original 

 locality of the Mastodon, M. humholdti, see Anal. 

 Real. Acad. Gien. Eaiana, Vol. VIII., pp. 124- 

 126, August, 1871. 



t Anal. Real. Acad. Gien Habana, Vol. I., p. 58, 

 Sept., 1864. 



t Anal. Real. Acad. Cien. Habana, Vol. VIII., 

 pp. 124-126. 



