November 10, 1905.] 



SCIENCE. 



597 



mens, representing the various classes of this 

 valuable animal. The leading article in the 

 Children's Museum section is a sketch of 

 ' King Cole,' a live crov?, vphich v^as for some 

 time an object of interest in the museum. 

 Lecture courses are announced for both mu- 

 seums. 



SOCIETIES AND ACADEMIES. 



THE ELISHA MITCHELL SCIENTIFIC SOCIETY OP 

 THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA. 



The 161st meeting of the society was held 

 in the chemical lecture room on Tuesday (7 :30 

 P.M.), October 17, 1905. The follov?ing papers 

 vpere presented: 



Professor H. V. Wilson : ' On the Formation 

 of Regenerative Bodies of Sponges when kept in 

 Confinement.' 



Professor A. S. Wheeler : ' Paper Making.' 

 Alvin S. Wheeler, 

 Recording Secretary. 



DISCUSSION AND CORRESPONDENCE. 



MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS OP MALAYSIA AND THE 

 WEST COAST OP AMERICA. 



To THE Editor of Science: A short time 

 ago the National Museum received from Mr. C. 

 Boden Kloss, curator of the Johore Museum, 

 No. 40 of the Journal of the Straits Branch of 

 the Royal Asiatic Society, for Jime, 1904, 

 containing an illustrated catalogue of the 

 ethnographical collection of the Sarawak Mu- 

 seum, Part I., Musical Instruments, by E. 

 Shelford. 



On page 29, Mr. Shelford thus describes a 

 flageolet of the tribe called Murut, in Borneo : 



a. Murut— Flageolet. (Plate VIII., figs. 7 

 and 8.) 



Distal end open and cut square, proximal end 

 closed by the natural septum, the bamboo has not 

 been cut flush with this but projects considerably 

 beyond it; in the wall of this projecting part a 

 small hole is bored quite close to the septum, and 

 a groove rvms on the outside of the flute from this 

 hole to the sound-hole, the groove being covered 

 by a slip of bamboo luted on with dammar. The 

 edge of the sound-hole is sharpened by a piece of 

 palm-leaf stuck on. The sound-hole is 5 centim. 

 from the proximal end; there are two stops 8.5 

 centim. apart, bored with a red-hot iron in a 



flattened strip on the same side as the sound- 

 hole, the upper one is 32 centim. from the sound- 

 hole. Total length 52.5 cm.; diam. 2.5 cm. 



Catalogue No. 1291. F. J. D. Cox, Esq. (P. 

 viii 03 ) . From the Trusan river. 



This is precisely similar to the mystery 

 flute of some of the early writings about the 

 North American Indians. The Museum has 

 just received an additional example from Ari- 

 zona, through E. IT. Nelson. They are usually 

 made of cane, having a closed joint at or near 

 the middle. A hole is pierced on either side of 

 the septum of the joint through the walls of 

 the cane and an air channel cut on the out- 

 side from one hole to the other. If the upper 

 hole and the channel are covered by a band- 

 age or the finger as far as the lower face of 

 the septum and the upper tube blown into, it 

 gives a whistling sound. In the lower section 

 three or four finger holes are made. If more 

 than that number, it shows a European in- 

 fluence. If an instrument of this kind that 

 has no bandage is handed to one ignorant of 

 its characteristics, he would not be apt to 

 place a finger in the precise spot required to 

 make a sound, and how to sound it would be 

 a mystery to him. Some of the North Amer- 

 ican Indians construct bone whistles in the 

 same manner. Eor the reason that this 

 method of construction is seldom seen else- 

 where, the instrument is supposed to have 

 been original with the Indians of North 

 America.^ 



This is another interesting connecting link 

 between Malaysia and the w^t coast of 

 America, because of these two identical in- 

 struments in regions far apart. A search for 

 the cause of this identity will be interesting to 

 ethnologists. E. H. ITawley. 



the bureau op soils. 



To the Editor of Science : Mr. F. H. King, 

 in the last number of Science, reviewing the 

 work done by Dr. Buckingham and published 

 by the Department of Agriculture, makes use 

 of the following expression: 



He is well aware too that my object in having 

 him called to the bureau was that he might make 



^ See George Catlin Indian Gallery, Smithsonian 

 Report, 1S85, p. 395 and Plate 93 g. 



