50 SCIENCE: 
countries to consent to such material passing by sample 
post.” The circular, on the contrary, stated that this 
Academy had ‘‘ resolved to address the various scientific 
bodies, with which it is in communication 77 ¢hose countries 
whose governments have voted against the proposition,” and it 
is these societies only which the Academy has addressed 
on the subject. Puivip P. CALVERT. 
Philadelphia, Jan. 13, 1804. 
The Climbing Habits of the Soft Shell Turtle ( Aspidonectes 
spinifer). 
WHILE making observations on Mud Creek at Ravenna, 
Nebraska, in the interests of the U. S. Fish Commis- 
sion last August, I chanced upon an interesting sight. A 
dam extended across the creek which had been con- 
structed of two-inch plank placed side by side, but instead 
of placing the edges all in the same vertical line the plank 
above had been drawn back a little each time, so that the 
dam presented a series of very narrow steps leading up 
stream. The slope was gradual, except the last two planks 
at the top, whose edges were placed in the same vertical 
line, thus making here a step of four inches instead of 
two, and, more than that, this four-inch step was allowed 
to extend out over the one just beneath it for a short 
distance. ‘The dam was about twelve feet high, and the 
angle was enough to place the top of the dam two feet 
farther up the stream than the base. As Il approached from 
below my attention was called to a soft-shelled turtle that 
was protruding his head from the water at the base of the 
dam. I did not think that such a clumsy animal would 
attempt a climb of twelve feet on a very poor road, but 
presently he ventured out, and by careful feeling was soon 
up two feet, but at the next step he tumbled back into the 
water. He was no more down when he started again, 
only to receive another tumble. Several times this 
occured, but the last time he had reached the last step, 
when he met the projecting four-inch step. It was too 
bad to see him tumble after so much hard work, but the 
last projection was too much for him, and down he fell 
twelve feet into the water. He seemed discouraged and 
not inclined to try it again, although I watched for some 
time to see what he would do. In addition to the steep- 
ness of the steps there were little streams of water flowing 
over here and there, some of which struck the turtle as it 
>was climbing up. 
I saw a common snapping turtle (Chelydia serpentina) at 
the foot of the dam, and while it would thrust out its head 
and look longingly above it did not attempt to climb. 
Utysses O. Cox. 
Mankato, Minn. 
A Rope of Insects. 
In response to the letter of Mr. Lynds Jones in Sczence, 
Dec. 29, I quote the following, concerning the family 
Mycetophiidae from the Standard Natural History, I1., 
408 : “ The larvae of one genus, at least (Scava), have 
long been known for their gregarious habits. They are 
often found in dense patches under the bark of trees and, 
what is more interesting, when about to change to the 
pupa state, will congregate in immense numbers, forming 
processions that have been observed four or five inches 
wide and ten or twelve feet long. They travel in a solid 
column from four to six deep, ‘over each other, advancing 
about an inch a minute. From this peculiar habit, they 
have been called the army-worm in Europe. Similar 
habits have been observed in this country among our 
species. One species of this genus (.S. mad?) is known to 
feed in numbers in the interior of apples in this country.” 
This peculiar habit will be found commented upon in many 
other popular works on insects. Joun B. Smiru. 
Rutgers College, New Brunswick, N. J. ; 
Vol. XXIII. No. 573 
Note on the Shoulder-Girdle of the Man-o’-War Bird. 
For publication in another connection, I have recently 
written out a complete account of the skeleton of the 
man-o’-war bird (/vegata aguila), and have been in- 
terested in what my friend Professor Alfred Newton, 
F.R.S., says of its shoulder-girdle in the ‘‘ Dictionary of 
Birds,” now passing through the press. In the work 
named, Professor Newton remarks : ‘‘In one very re- 
markable way the osteology of Aregata differs from that 
of all other birds known. ‘The furcula coalesces firmly at 
its symphysis with the carina of the sternum, and also with 
the coracoids at the upper extremity of each of its rami, 
the anterior end of each coracoid coalescing also with the 
proximal end of the scapula. - Thus the only articulations 
in the whole sternal apparatus are where the coracoids 
meet the sternum, and the consequence is a bony frame- 
work which would be perfectly rigid did not the flexibility 
of the rami of the furcula permit a limited amount of 
motion.” (Part I., pp. 293, 294.) 
At this writing I have at hand a very perfect skeleton 
of #egata, kindly loaned me by the United States National 
Museum, and in it the scapule are perfectly free and artic- 
ulate, as usual with the coracoids, and it is only the 
furcula that fuses with the coracoids above and with the 
sternal keel below. Knowing what an accurate observer 
and describer Professor Newton is, I repaired to the 
National Museum, and through the kindness of Mr. Lucas, 
the curator of the Department of Comparative Anatomy in 
that institution, I was shown the shoulder-girdles and 
sterna of a number of specimens of /yegafa, but in each 
and all of them the scapule freely articulated with the 
coracoids in a manner common to the class Aves. We 
must believe then that when Professor Newton wrote out 
his description of that part of the skeleton of the species 
in question, he must have had before him an abnormal ex- 
ample of the bones to which we refer. My work when 
published will give a very full and accurate description of 
all the ‘bones in the skeleton of this very remarkable 
species, comparing them with the corresponding bones 
represented by an unusually fine series of the skeletons 
of other Stegarcopodes. R. W. SHUFELDT. 
Takoma, D. C., Jan. 19, 1894. 
Volcanic Rocks of the Huronian. 
In Mr. U.S. Grant’s interesting note on volcanic rocks 
in the Keewatin of Minnesota, which appeared in Sczence 
of Jan. 12, he writes : ‘* That the Keewatin rocks north- 
west of Lake Superior are to a considerable extent com- 
posed of volcanic (effusive) material has been stated 
already by G. M. Dawson, A. C. Lawson and N. H. Win- 
chell.” It will be found, however, on referring to the 
descriptions above cited, that a large part of the forma- 
tion as it occurs in the vicinity of the Lake of the Woods 
is actually composed of volcanic breccias and volcanic ash 
rocks, though materials of effusive origin are also abun- 
dant. A 
The breccias or agglomerates are often very coarse, and 
the circumstances are such as to indicate that there must 
have been several volcanic vents even in thisregion. See 
“* Geology and Resources of the Region in the Vicinity of 
the Forty-ninth Parallel’”’ (1875) pp. 51-52 ; Geological 
Magazine, Dec. 11, Vol. IV. (1877), p. 316 ; ‘‘ Annual Re- 
port of the Geological Survey of Canada” (1885), pp. 
49CC. et seg. GrEOoRGE M. Dawson. 
Geological Survey of Canada, Jan. 24, 1894. 
Secret Language of Children. 
A cuRioUs instance of child language, different from 
any mentioned by Mr. Chrisman in a recent issue of 
Science, has come under my own observation. It was 
