August 4, 1905.] 



SCIENCE. 



159 



sequently determined. At the recent Portland 

 meeting there was an attendance of 1,714 mem- 

 bers. The association authorized the publi- 

 cation of a medical directory of the country 

 and the purchase as the basis for it of the 

 ' Standard Directory.' This national medical 

 directory is to contain an abbreviated biog- 

 raphy of all physicians of the United States. 

 Among other topics taken up by the house of 

 delegates was the exclusion of advertisements 

 of nostrums from the journal of the associa- 

 tion and the question of incorporation by con- 

 gress. The American Medical Association 

 has a large budget, especially in connection 

 with its weekly journal, the publication ex- 

 penses last year amounting to $181,298. 



A MEETING was held at Toronto, on July 13, 

 for the purpose of extending a formal invitation 

 to the British Medical Association to meet in 

 Toronto in 1906, indorsing the action of the 

 Canadian Medical Association. Mr. I. H. 

 Cameron was delegated to present this invi- 

 tation at the approaching meeting of the asso- 

 ciation. 



The fourteenth International Congress of 

 Americanists will be held at Quebec from 

 September 10 to 15, 1906. Dr. Eobert Bell, 

 director of the Geological Survey of Canada, 

 is president, and Dr. N. E. Dionne, librarian 

 of the Legislative Assembly, Quebec, is secre- 

 tary. The work of the congress will have 

 reference to : (a) The native races of America, 

 their origin, geographical distribution, history, 

 physical characters, languages, civilization, 

 mythology, religions, morals and habits. (6) 

 The indigenous monuments and the archeol- 

 ogy of America. (c) The history of the dis- 

 covery and European occupancy of the New 

 World. The meetings of the congress will 

 take place in the legislative building. De- 

 tails pertaining to receptions, entertainments 

 and excursions will be given in a later an- 

 nouncement. It is probable, however, that 

 after the close of the sessions of the congress, 

 an excursion to Lake St. John, including a 

 visit to a camp of Montagnais Indians of the 

 region, will be organized. Excursions in the 

 neighborhood of Quebec will be made during 

 the week of the congress. 



A PRELIMINARY program has been issued for 

 the next International Medical Congress that 

 will be held at Lisbon from April 19 to 26, 

 1906. 



The Experiment Station Record states that 

 an act recently passed by the state legislature 

 of Massacluisetts makes provision for the ap- 

 pointment of a superintendent for suppress- 

 ing the gypsy and brown-tail moths, and out- 

 lines the duties of cities and towns in that 

 connection and the conditions under which 

 they may be reimbursed in part for the ex- 

 pense of suppression. The bill appropriates 

 $300,000, of which $75,000 may be expended 

 during the calendar year 1905, $150,000 dxiring 

 1906, and the remaining $75,000, with any un- 

 expended balances, up to May 1, 1907. An 

 additional sum of $10,000 in each of the three 

 years may be expended for experiments with 

 parasites or natural enemies for destroying 

 these moths. A. H. Kirkland, a graduate of 

 the Massachusetts Agricultural College, and 

 formerly connected with the gypsy-moth work 

 of the state, has been appointed superintendent 

 at a salary of $5,000 a year. 



According to an abstract in the Geographical 

 Magazine the report for 1903-4 of the New 

 Zealand Lands and Survey Department shows 

 satisfactory progress in the way of mapping 

 and defining areas and of the appropriation of 

 the land. There were, in 1903-4, 2,813 new 

 selections comprising over 1^ million areas, 

 an increase of 35,279 on the area of land 

 selected in 1902-3; 432 of the selections were 

 less than 1 acre each, and 166 reached 1,000 

 acres and upwards, the average selection meas- 

 uring 677 acres. Under the Village Settle- 

 ment system there were, on March 31, 1904, 

 2,014 settlers holding 43,146 acres, an average 

 of 21| acres each. In view of the great shrink- 

 age of land inviting settlement and other draw- 

 backs, the record of land operations must be 

 accounted satisfactory. The gross total of 

 milling timber on Crown lands is estimated at 

 21,000 million superficial feet. Nelson district 

 heading the list with a volume of about 6,000 

 million superficial feet of all varieties, closely 

 followed in order by Westland and Welling-ton. 

 The Crown kauri timber in Auckland is foi;nd 



