March 25, 1904.] 



SCIENCE. 



515 



of its ' Miscellaneous Collections,' ' designed 

 chiefly to afford a medium for the early publi- 

 cation of the results of researches conducted 

 by the Smithsonian Institution and its 

 bureaus, and especially for the publication of 

 reports of a preliminary nature.' The first 

 number of the Quarterly Issue is a double 

 one and contains seventeen articles, ranging 

 in size from 1 page to 73 pages, in addition 

 to notes on the activities of the institution, its 

 collections, etc., the whole accompanied with 

 fifty-six plates and numerous text figures. The 

 scope of the journal is broad, the first issue 

 embodying articles on mammalogy, astro- 

 physics, paleontology, archeology, geology, 

 ornithology, ichthyology, ethnology, etc., thus 

 covering a considerable range of scientific 

 subjects. The number in hand opens with a 

 description of ' Seventy New Malayan Mam- 

 mals,' by Gerrit S. Miller, Jr., based on col- 

 lections made and presented to the National 

 Museum by Dr. W. L. Abbott. Mr. C. G. 

 Abbott presents the results of ' Recent Studies 

 of the Solar Constant of Radiation,' conducted 

 at the astrophysical observatory of the institu- 

 tion, under the direction of Secretary Langley. 

 Another paper by Mr. Abbott describes ' The 

 New Ccelostat and Horizontal Telescope of 

 the Astrophysical Observatory,' in which are 

 given the results obtained with a device de- 

 signed by Secretary Langley for the purpose 

 of ' churning ' a column of air traversed by a 

 solar beam, with the view of reducing the 

 ' boiling ' or confusion of all parts of the solar 

 image due to variability of the strata of air 

 traversed. Dr. F. W. True presents some 

 photographic illustrations of ' Living Finback 

 Whales from Newfoundland,' these being the 

 first photographs of living whales in American 

 waters that have thus far been published. 

 Brief descriptions of ' A Skeleton of Hesper- 

 ornis,' and ' A New Plesiosaur,' by Mr. Fred- 

 eric A. Lucas, are given with plates, and Mr. 

 W. H. Holmes illustrates and compares the 

 designs on some remarkable ' Shell Ornaments 

 from Kentucky and Mexico.' A noteworthy 

 specimen of a ' Glacial Pothole in the Na- 

 tional Museum ' is described by Mr. George P. 

 Merrill, who explains the method by which 



the specimen was procured. ' Some Notes on 

 the Herons of the District of Columbia,' by 

 Mr. Paul Bartsch, who made a systematic 

 survey of two heron colonies and conducted 

 experiments with a view of solving some of 

 the problems of bird life, is of special interest. 

 Dr. J. Walter Fewkes gives a ' Preliminary 

 Report on an Archeological Trip to the West 

 Indies,' in 1903, describing particularly the 

 remarkable objects of stone, bone, shell, wood 

 and pottery which he collected during the trip, 

 and giving an insight into their various uses. 

 Dr. C. M. Child, of Chicago University, de- 

 scribes the ' Form-regulation in Ccelentera and 

 Turbellaria,' of which he made a special study 

 during his occupancy of the Smithsonian seat 

 at the Naples Zoological Station, and Dr. 

 Carl H. ~Eigenmann introduces some ' New 

 Genera of South American Fresh-water 

 Fishes, and New Names for Some Old Genera.' 

 Of timely interest is the account of 'Korean 

 Headdresses in the National Museum,' by the 

 late Foster H. Jenings, in which are described 

 and illustrated twenty-four varieties of 

 Korean hats and other headgear, including 

 headband buttons and hatpins for topknots. 

 A brief history of the ' Hodgkins Fund of 

 the Smithsonian Institution,' and of what has 

 been accomplished with its income toward 

 ' the increase and diffusion of more exact 

 knowledge in regard to the nature and prop- 

 erties of atmospheric air in connection with 

 the welfare of man,' bears the name of Helen 

 Waldo Burnside, and is accompanied with an 

 illustration of the beautiful Hodgkins medal. 

 Mr. A. B. Baker gives an account of ' A 

 Notable Success in the Breeding of Black 

 Bears,' which is of special interest to those 

 having charge of animal collections. Of 

 quite a different theme is Dr. James M. 

 Flint's ' Chinese Medicine,' which briefly ex- 

 plains the origin of medicine and the theory 

 of disease in the Celestial Empire. The last 

 of the series of articles consists of ' Notes on 

 the Rocks of Nug'suaks Peninsula and its 

 Environs, Greenland,' by W. C. Phalen, the 

 remaining pages of the journal being occupied 

 by brief descriptions of various activities of 

 the institution and their results. 



