November 7, 1902.] 



SCIENCE. 



751 



of a large number of new species as well as 

 full and accurate definitions of the species 

 proposed by Professor Marsh, and setting forth 

 a number of original views regarding the 

 relationship of these animals. As regards 

 the larger relationships of the earliest Ameri- 

 can Carnivora or Creodonts, Wortman believes 

 that they sprang from Metatheria or primitive 

 Marsupials in Huxley's sense, rather than that 

 the Marsupials and primitive Placentals 

 sprang alike from a common marsupio-placen- 

 tal stock, as defined by Osborn. Among the 

 Mesonychidfe especially are found numerous 

 illustrations of the Marsupial relationship, 

 such as evidence of the extreme helplessness 

 of the young at the time of birth. The dogs 

 are clearly carried back into the Eocene, and 

 it is shown that they split up into several 

 series, one type leading to the Amphicyon 

 series of Europe and America. A new genus 

 Oodectes, is proposed; and the position is 

 taken that the descent of the modern Viver- 

 rines is probably traceable to these Eocene 

 types. Similarly the Eelidae, or cats, are 

 provisionally traced back to ^lurotherium. 



The author rejects the homologies of the 

 dental cusps established by Osborn on Cope's 

 tritubercular theory, concluding as follows: 

 * The manner of origin of these cusps having 

 been incorrectly determined, it follows that 

 the homologies are wrong, and the names ap- 

 plied inappropriate and misleading.' Even if 

 this statement were supported by subsequent 

 discovery, it would not justify the further 

 conclusion of the author that the names of the 

 cusps ' should, therefore, be abandoned, since 

 they can be productive only of confusion and 

 error in any attempt at further progress in 

 the subjects' (p. 98). Similarly the author 

 rejects Osborn's views regarding the value of 

 the articular facets in determining the posi- 

 tion of the feet in the early clawed animals, 

 concluding that the ' planes of the artictilar 

 facets, as applied to the feet of the Carnivora, 

 have little or no value in determining whether 

 a given animal is plantigrade or digitigrade.' 



Altogether this paper is of exceptional value, 

 and the authorities of the Yale Museum are 

 to be congratulated upon its publication. It 

 does full justice to the early observations of 



Professor Marsh, which for lack of time were 

 never amplified. Attention may again be di- 

 rected to the extreme importance of inserting 

 museum catalogue numbers of the fossils in 

 connection with all figures and descriptions, 

 especially because this purports to be a more 

 or less final revision of the material. 



A NEW PLEISTOCENE RHINOCEROS RELATED TO THE 

 SUMATRAN FORM. 



Dr. Franz Toula, of Vienna, gives a very 

 full description* of a new species of rhinoc- 

 eros (R. hundsheimensis) found in Austria 

 in 1900, and very closely related to the Suma- 

 tran rhinoceroses. Unfortunately the diagnos- 

 tic anterior portion of the nasal bones is 

 wanting. An especially valuable feature of 

 the memoir is a comparison of a very large 

 series of skulls of the Sumatran rhinoceros, 

 showing the extreme variability in the shape 

 of the anterior horn and in the development 

 of its bony supports; also the variations of the 

 occiput, and of the teeth. The author con- 

 cludes that this species undoubtedly belongs in 

 the series (subfamily Ceratorhinse Osborn) 

 including B. etruscus, B. megarhinus and B. 

 schleiermacheri. These rhinoceroses are char- 

 acterized by long skulls, somewhat elongate 

 limbs, and a pair of widely separated horns 

 on the nasals and frontals. This is further 

 confirmation of the polyphyletic character of 

 the Perissodactyles in general. 



relations op okapia. 

 Dr. E. Ray Lankester has recently com- 

 pleted his memoir t on OJcapia, giving the his- 

 tory of the discovery, an account of the 

 region it occupies, a complete description of 

 the skull and jaws and of the characters pre- 

 sented by the skin and notes on the nature 

 and origin of horns in the Peeora. The 

 memoir is illustrated by three beautiful 

 plates. He concludes that the genus may 

 be characterized as a member of the Giraffidse, 



* ' Das Nashorn von Hundsheim,' Abd. d. K. K. 

 Geol. Reichs, Bd. XIX., Heft 1, Vienna, April, 

 1902. 



t ' On Okapia, a new Genus of Giraflidae, from 

 Central Africa,' Trans. Zool. Soc. of London, Vol. 

 XVI., Pt. VI., August, 1902. 



