482 
living near the Park object to the protection of 
wild animals in their vicinity. 
Mr. J. G. JACK opened, on September 18th, 
a course of lectures at the Bussey Institution, 
Arnold Aboretum. The lectures are popular 
in character and are followed by field meetings 
in the Aboretum. Subsequent lectures will be 
given on the following subjects: September 
22d, maples and cherries; September 29th, 
thorns, locusts and hollies; October 2d, ashes 
and sumachs; October 6th, walnuts and hick- 
ories; October 9th, cornels and viburnums ; 
October 13th, elms ; October 16th, oaks. 
THE September number of the American Nat- 
uralist is the first to be edited by Dr. Robert P. 
Bigelow, of Boston, assisted by an Editorial 
Board, the names of whose members are not 
given, and a number of associate editors. To 
these have been added since the last issue of the 
journal, Messrs. G. Baur, C. H. Beecher, D. H. 
Campbell, J. H. Comstock, W. M. Davis, D. 8. 
Jordan, C. Palache, H. M. Richards, W. E. 
Ritter, F. Russell, W. Trelease, S. Watasé. 
The strong hand of Professor Cope will be 
greatly missed in the Naturalist as elsewhere, 
but the continued usefulness of the journal ap- 
pears to be assured under its new management. 
There is undoubtedly room in America for a 
monthly journal devoted to the natural sciences, 
in addition to the special journals devoted to a 
single science. With the American Journal of 
Science occupied more especially with the phys- 
ical and geological sciences, the American Natu- 
ralist for the natural sciences and special journals 
for each of the sciences, America is admirably 
provided with the means of publication so essen- 
tial for the advancement of science. 
WE quoted recently an editorial article from 
the Journal of Geology, on the debasement of 
the Missouri Geological Survey. The current 
number of the American Geologist also contains 
an editorial on the subject, from which it ap- 
pears that Governor Stevens appointed a board 
consisting of political workers of the lowest 
type, Professor E. M. Shepard, of Drury Col- 
lege, Springfield, the only scientific member of 
the board, having resigned, and that the State 
Geologist appointed by them has no scientific 
qualifications of any sort. The records and 
SCIENCE. 
[N. S. Vou. VI. No. 143. 
cabinets of the Survey, which have been accu- 
mulating for the past eight years, under the pres- 
ent law have been consigned to the attic of an 
old building ; all field work has been abandoned 
and several pieces of work, almost ready for 
publication, have been thrown aside. The. 
work of the Survey at present appears to con- 
sist of drawing the usual salaries from the State 
Treasury. We believe that public sentiment, 
when expressed, is sufficient to prevent the sub- 
version of science and education to politics, but 
it is often difficult to secure the expression of 
this sentiment, especially in cases which appear 
to be local in character. 
From the Sydney Morning Herald, Natural 
Science condenses the following information re- 
garding the second expedition to make deep 
borings into the coral atoll of Funafuti, which 
set sail from Sydney on June 3rd: Toward the 
expense of the expedition, Miss Eadith Walker, 
of Yaralla, has contributed £500; the govern- 
ment of New South Wales has lent a diamond 
drill ; the Hon. Ralph Abercromby has furnished 
an oil-engine at a cost of £100; the Hon. H. 
C. Dangar and Professor T. P. Anderson Stuart 
have provided a fine boat; the Royal Society, 
London, contributes £100 directly, and proba- 
bly another £100 through its coral-boring com- 
mittee ; finally, the London Missionary Society 
has offered to bring the party back to Sydney 
in September. The expedition is under the 
auspices of the Royal Geographical Society of 
Australasia, and its leader is Professor T. W. 
KE. David, of Sydney. He and Mr. G. Sweet, 
of Melbourne, are going at their own expense, 
and will take charge of the borings. Mrs. 
David accompanies them as store-keeper and 
botanical collector. Mr. W. Poole, an engineer 
of Sydney University, will manage the light 
boring apparatus, and will be aided by Mr. 
Woolnough, who also takes charge of the zo- 
ological collecting. These gentlemen give their 
services free. The large diamond drill is in 
charge of Mr. Hall, a foreman of considerable 
experience, who has under him two sub-foremen 
and three drill-workmen. In view of the diffi- 
culties already met with at Funafuti, a special 
boring plant has been provided under the di- 
rection of Chief-Inspector W. H. J. Slee, and 
weighs over 25 tons. The main bore, on the 
