May 16, 1902. J 



SCIENCE. 



789 



ornithology, as well as to call attention to the 

 connection between the form and function of 

 these parts. A course of lectures on the birds 

 of spring is announced. The Supplement is a 

 'guide leaflet' to the collection of baskets from 

 the graves of the ancient Indians of southeast- 

 ern Utah, which comprises the oldest known 

 baskets from this continent. 



The Popular Science Monthly for May opens 

 with a discussion of 'The Electronic Theory 

 of Electricity' by J. A. Fleming, while a re- 

 view of the 'Sulfuric Acid and Its Manufac- 

 ture by Contact-process' is given by E. 

 KJneitsch. Carl H. Eigenmann considers 'The 

 Physical Basis of Heredity,' concluding that 

 the chromatic threads are the carriers of hered- 

 itary power ; the article is very clearly written 

 and enlivened with touches of humor here and 

 there. 'Children's Vocabularies' are discussed 

 by M. C. and H. Gale, who show that these are, 

 even for very young children, much more ex- 

 tensive than is generally imagined, and that 

 they largely depend on what the children wish. 

 Havelock Ellis presents an article on 'Mescal: 

 A Study of a Divine Plant,' giving in detail 

 the results of some experiments, and deciding 

 against it as a therapeutic agent. 'Infectious 

 Diseases' and their possible cure is by Alfred 

 Springer and 'The Eelations of Electrically 

 charged Molecules to Physiological Action' by 

 Jacques Loeb, while A. S. Packard describes 

 'An Afternoon at Ohelles and the Earliest Evi- 

 dences of Human Industry in France.' 



Harper's Magazine for May contains an 

 article on 'Marine Fish Destroyers' which 

 fairly teems with erroneous statements and 

 misleading deductions. It is only necessary to 

 cite Dinosaurs one hundred feet in length, 

 with a height of thirty feet and a thigh bone 

 eight feet high, Mosasaurs seventy-five feet in 

 length, and Zeuglodonts with limbs unknown, 

 to show the exaggerated style of statement. 

 The largest Dinosaur actually measured falls 

 inside of seventy-five feet, and the largest 

 femur found is six feet eight inches long, and 

 but a single one of this size has ever come to 

 light. Few Mosasaurs reached a length of 

 forty feet and the vast majority are under 

 twenty-five, while the limbs of Zeuglodon are 



known. The misleading deductions are as to 

 the amount of iish destroyed by these animals, 

 the writer not taking into account the fact that 

 it is by no means proved that all these extinct 

 animals lived so extensively on fish as is stated, 

 and that it is not at all probable that they re- 

 quired a hearty dinner every day, much less 

 obtained one. Worst of all is the inference 

 that since so many fishes perish from natural 

 enemies it makes no difference how many man 

 captures, nor does it do any good to pass laws 

 for their protection. Aside from the universal 

 decrease of anadromous fishes which are par- 

 ticularly open to the attacks of man we have 

 the notable decrease of the whitefish and Lake 

 Trout of the Great Lakes, the noticeable 

 diminution in the size of mackerel brought to 

 market and the fact that the halibut fishery is 

 now prosecuted at depths and distances once 

 undreamed of. It would hardly be necessary to 

 notice this paper at length but for the fact that 

 t|ie position and titles of its writer give undue 

 weight to its statements in the mind of the 

 reader, while its publication in a popular 

 magazine spreads it broadcast and causes it to 

 be read by hundreds who will not know that 

 there is quite another side to the subject. 



SOCIETIES AND ACADEMIES. 



A PACIFIC SECTION OF THE AMERICAN MATHE- 

 MATICAL SOCIETY. 



The mathematicians of the Pacific Coast 

 held a meeting in San Francisco on May 3 

 and formally organized the second Section 

 of the American Mathematical Society, to be 

 known as the Pacific Section. The following 

 officers were elected: Professor Irving String- 

 ham, Chairman; Professor G. A. Miller, Secre- 

 tary; Professor E. E. AUardice, Dr. E. J. 

 Wilczynski and. the secretary, program com- 

 mittee. The following papers were presented 

 during the two sessions of the Section: 



' On a Linear Transformation, with some Geo- 

 metrical applications ' : Professor R. E. Allardice, 

 Stanford University. 



'A Movement whose Centrodes are Cubics ' : Dr. 

 E. M. Blake, University of Califorma. 



' On the Determination of the Analytic form of 

 the Distance between two Points by means of Dis- 

 tance Relations ' : Professor H. F. Blichfeldt, 

 Stanford University. 



