578 
“The higher we ascend in the scale of 
humanity the more perfect does this con- 
trol become, and the more do the instincts, 
emotions, passions and appetites become 
subordinated to the self-conscious principle 
which regulates our judgments and beliefs. 
It will, therefore, now be a matter for 
scientific inquiry to determine, as far as the 
anatomical condition will permit, the pro- 
portion which the association centers bear 
to the other centers, both in mammals and 
in man, the period of development of the 
association fibers, in comparison with that 
of the motor and sensory fibers in different 
animals, and, if possible, to obtain a com- 
parison in these respects between the brains 
of savages and those of men of a high order 
of intelligence. 
“The capability of erecting the trunk, 
the power of extending and fixing the knee 
joints when standing, the stability of the 
foot, the range and variety of movement of 
the joints of the upper limb, the balancing 
of the head on the summit of the spine, the 
mass and weight of the brain and the per- 
fection of its internal mechanism, are dis- 
tinctively human characters. They are the 
factors concerned in adapting the body of 
man, under the guidance of reason, intelli- 
gence, the sense of responsibility and power 
of self-control, for the discharge of varied 
and important duties in relation to himself, 
his Maker, his fellows, the animal world 
and the earth on which he lives.” 
The address was illustrated with numer- 
ous lantern-slides which served to render 
perfectly intelligible some of the more in- 
tricate anatomical points involved in the 
comparative study of the anthropoids, the 
human young and the various races of 
men. 
12. A Demonstration of the Utility of the Spi- - 
nal Curves in Man. PRoressor ANDERSON 
STUART. 
By means of a most ingenious machine, 
in which were a straight brass rod and a 
SCIENCE. 
[N. 8. Von. VI. No. 146. 
curved one, made so as to be subject to 
concussion, Professor Anderson Stuart 
showed what would have been the result 
had the human spine been perfectly straight. 
The skull would have been broken. 
18. The Causes of Brachycephaly. PROFESSOR 
A. MacatistER. 
14. Notes on the Brains of Some Australian 
Natives. Prorrssorn A. MACALISTER. 
After noting the great prevalence (seem- 
ingly irrespective of race) of brachycephaly 
among infants, Professor Macalister empha- 
sized the importance of brain-growth as a 
determining factor in head form; the in- 
creased bulk of the frontal lobes, which 
grow most rapidly and largest in the higher 
races, causes brachycephaly. Photographs 
of Australian brains were exhibited and 
explained to illustrate the points of differ- 
ence between savage and civilized man. 
15. On Some Uses of Trepanning in Early 
American Skulls. Dr. W J McGee. 
By means of an exhibit of pre-Incan Pe- 
ruvian skulls, Dr. MeGee discussed and ex- 
plained the nature, process and probable 
uses of trepanning, the implements employed 
and the probable causes of the incisions. 
About 50% seemed cases of survival, but 
he did not care to credit the old Peruvians 
with very great surgical knowledge. ‘Tre- 
panning began in the taking of trophies ; 
the head dwindled to a piece cut out of the 
skull, and passing through vicarious and 
sortilegic stages reached a stage of more or 
less blundering surgery. 
In the discussion which followed the 
reading of the paper, Sir W. W. Turner 
seemed inclined to rank higher the surgical 
skill of the ancient Peruvians, and Pro- 
fessor Macalister stated that out of 87 
Peruvian skulls he had examined two were 
trepanned, approximately the same number 
(2%) as Dr. MeGee had found. 
16. Mental and Physical Deviations from the 
Normal Among Children in the Public Ele- 
