34 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XXV. No. 627 



announcements evolve something like this? — 

 and then everybody will be happy. 



T. C. M. 

 Dresden, 



November 12, 1906 



IS THERE DETERMINATE VARIATION? 



Professor Kellogg has presented some very 

 interesting- facts and arguments regarding the 

 variation of Diahrotica soror, under the above 

 title (Science, November 16, p. 621) ; but I 

 venture to think that the dilemma has more 

 horns than he has credited to it. 



He shows (Fig. 7) that the Sierra Morena 

 collection contains a very large proportion of 

 fused-spots specimens. This material is from 

 a locality about three miles from Stanford 

 University campus. Now why is it not pos- 

 sible that a distinct Sierra Morena strain 

 exists (perhaps the prevalent form of higher 

 levels throughout the region), and that this 

 has in recent years invaded the campus of 

 Stanford University? If this is likely, or 

 even possible, the whole matter may assume a 

 different aspect. 



If there exist different strains of D. soror, 

 some free-spotted and some with a prevalence 

 of fused spots, it is altogether likely that they 

 differ in other characters, e. g., power of re- 

 sistance to particular forms of disease. If, 

 in certain parts of the world, people with light 

 complexions have supplanted those with dark, 

 we are not obliged to assume that complexion 

 is in itself a common cause of survival, or 

 else abandon the idea of selection. We know, 

 on the contrary, that the familiar color-char- 

 acteristics accompany many others, some of 

 which, singly or in combination, may have a 

 high selection-value. 



T. D. A. Cockerell 



University of Colorado, 

 Boulder, Colo., 



November 18, 1906 



SPECIAL ARTICLES 



the advancing malaspina glacier' 



The Malaspina Glacier lies at the seaward 



base of Mount St. Elias in Alaska, where a 



^ Published by permission of the director of the 



United States Geological Survey. I wish to ao- 



number of large valley glaciers descend from 

 the St. Elias Alps, and coalesce at the moun- 

 tain base to form a great ice plateau some 

 fifteen hundred square miles in area. The 

 characteristics of this piedmont ice plateau, 

 the Malaspina Glacier, have been made known 

 to us mainly through the splendid work and 

 descriptions of the late Professor Kussell." 



One of the striking features of the Malas- 

 pina Glacier, as described by Russell and 

 others, was its smooth surface due to the 

 general absence of crevassing. So well de- 

 veloped was this characteristic that the glacier 

 has served as a highway of travel for a num- 

 ber of expeditions having for their object the 

 ascent of Mount St. Elias. Twice Eussell 

 himself used the Malaspina for this purpose; 

 Prince Luigi Amedeo, Duke of the Abruzzi, 

 made use of the same highway on his suc- 

 cessful ascent of St. Elias; and Mr. H. G. 

 Bryant also traveled across the glacier toward 

 Mount St. Elias. Each of these expeditions 

 crossed the Malaspina Glacier on the side 

 toward Takutat Bay where my studies have 

 been carried on. Other expeditions have 

 crossed the glacier further west. In these 

 expeditions it was found possible not only 

 to move freely over the ice, but also to draw 

 loaded sleds across it. 



A second characteristic feature of the Malas- 

 pina Glacier is the presence of a moraine- 

 veneered margin, developed by melting of the 

 ice and concentration of the included rock 

 fragments at the surface. In places, this 

 veneer of moraine soil is so thick, and the ice 

 under it so stagnant, that forests have de- 

 veloped upon it. 



In the summer of 1905 I looked down upon 

 the Malaspina Glacier from several high 

 points in Takutat Bay; and late in August 



knowledge in this work the assistance of Lawrence 

 Martin and B. S. Butler, in 1905, and of the 

 latter, together with O. VonEngeln, J. L. Rich, 

 and R. R. Powers, in 1906. A paper, with photo- 

 graphs and map illustrating the changes described 

 below, will appear in the forthcoming number of 

 the Bulletin of the Geographical Society of Phila- 

 delphia. 



' Nat. Geographic Mag., Vol. III., 1891, pp. 53- 

 204: Thirteenth Annual Report U. S. Geol. Sur- 

 vey, 1891-2, Part II., 1893, pp. 1-91. 



