August 19, 1892.] 



SCIENCE. 



105 



kind he had worked on at home. Fortunately, however, it was 

 found that the mice at Athens were even more susceptible to 

 inoculation and also to infection through the alimentary 

 canal than those in Germany. This fact was established in 

 a few days by inoculating and feeding the mice in the 

 laboratory with cultures of the organism. Preparations for 

 experiment on a large scale were at once made, and LoefHer, 

 Dr. Abel, and Dr. Pampoukis, director of the bacteriological 

 laboratory in Athens, set sail on April 16 for Volo, and went 

 by rail from thence to Larissa, the capital of Thessaly, 



LoefBer had found that the micro-organism, Bacillus typhi 

 murium,' grows very well in a decoction of oat and barley 

 straw to which 1 per cent of peptone and J per cent of grape 

 sugar have been added. So a large amount of this liquid 

 was prepared and inoculated. Pieces of bread about the 

 size of a finger were soaked in these cultures after abundant 

 growth was secured, and the bread was then distributed in 

 the openings of the burrows of the mice. A number of 

 mice were also inoculated and turned loose ; this was done 

 because the mice eat the bodies of those that die, and spread 

 contagion in this way. It had been amply proved by ex- 

 periment that the bread soaked in the culture could be eaten 

 by man and various domestic animals with perfect im- 

 punity. 



In a few days after the holes had been baited, news came 

 from all sides that the infected bread had disappeared from 

 the holes. This news was very satisfactory, as it could by 

 no means be certainly counted upon beforehand that the 

 mice would eat the bread, surrounded as they were with 

 abundance of fresh food. A visit to Bakrena, about nine 

 days after the experiment had been started at that place, 

 showed that the mice had ceased their activity entirely. In 

 two other places, Nochali and Amarlar, a similar result was 

 obtained. Several burrows at these places were opened and 

 found to be empty or to contain sick, dead, or half-eaten 

 mice. There were sick and dying mice sticking in many of 

 the openings. A number of sick and dead mice were car- 

 ried to Larissa, and examined. They were found to present 

 all the characteristic lesions of the typhoid fever of mice, 

 and to contain the organism in their internal organs. 



Reports from other places which Loeffler subsequently re- 

 ceived, were all satisfactory. SoLoeffler is justified in closing 

 his very interesting account of his expedition with the fol- 

 lowing words: "The science of bacteriology has thus again 

 proved its great practical significance, and hence also its 

 right to be specially cultivated and advanced." 



LETIERS TO THE EDITOR. 



»*» Correspondents are requested to be as brief as possible. The writer's name 

 is in all cases required as proof of good faith. 



On request in advance^ one hundred copies of the number containing his 

 communication loill be furnished free to any correspondent. 



The editor willbe glad to publish any queries consonant with the character 

 of the journal. 



The Ancient Libyan Alphabet. 



In Science, Aug. 13, Piofessor Keane oflfers some inquiries and 

 statements relating to a note of mine on the Libyan alphabet. 



The note referred to was partly based on an article by Dr. CoUig- 

 non, as was indicated. Dr. C'olliguoQ is one of the highest author- 

 ities living on north Af dean ethnography and archseolngy, as Pro- 

 fessor Keane doubtless knows. He would not make the following 

 statement unless he had good grounds for it: " Quant a la forme 

 meme des caracteres libyques, on ne peut nier qu'elle ne remonle 

 a une haute antiquite; elle est, en tout cas, anterieure a. Carthage." 

 Of course, Dr. CoUignon is aware of the common theory that the 

 letters were of Punic origin; but considers it time to discard it. 



' Centralblatt f. Bacterlologle und Parasltenkunde Bd. tX., No. 3. 



As to Professor Keane's suggession of the origin of the name 

 tifinar, from Finagh = Phoenician, it is purely fanciful, and his 

 assertion that the stress "still falls on the rootftn," is utterly in- 

 correct, as it falls on the last syllable, and not on the penult (see 

 Hanoteau, "Grammaire Tamachek," p. 5). 



It is true that in loose language the whole alphabet, or any 

 alphabet, is called tifinar ; and it is not quite correct to say that 

 all the tiddebakin are vowels. The proper distinction is thus 

 given: " Les signes exclusivement traces en traits sont nommes 

 tifinar; ceux traces avec des points sont nommes tiddebakin." 



How Professor Keane, quoting Hanoteau's "Grammaire Tama- 

 chek," can deliberately write that in the Libyan alphabet " curves 

 occur quite as frequently as straight lines," can only be explained 

 by the supposition that he never saw the book he quotes. It is 

 before me now, and out of the thirty-five simple and compound 

 letters only three are curvilinear, and all of these are recognized 

 as mere variants, and placed after the true rectilinear forms. I 

 refuse to think that this is a fair example of the accuracy of Pro- 

 fessor Keane's quotations. 



Whether they were derived from a rectangle or not, has some- 

 thing more than theoretical importance in relation to their 

 possible derivation from Egyptian forms; but it need not be in- 

 sisted on. That all the original forms were composed of right 

 lines is a point of considerable interest, which has not been dis- 

 proved. 



As to what writers may be considered specialists in the study, 

 there is room for legitimate difference of opinion. When Pro- 

 fessor Keane rejects Duveyrier, he rejects the author who beyond 

 all others has a practical acquaintance with the written speech of 

 the Touaregs — the only tribe who still use the tifinar. Professor 

 Newman's works have been laid aside as substantially useless, on 

 account of their phonetic system, by the best French scholars — 

 notably Rene Basset; and Dr. Oudney never claimed to be an 

 adept in the tongue. D. G. Brinton. 



Media, Pa., Aug. 15. 



Remarks on the Migration of Coleopters. 



One might suppose, on simply looking at the map of the earth, 

 that the animals of the northei'n hemisphere would exhibit a greater 

 structural uniformity than those south of the equator. 



In the north the continents on one side are separated only by 

 the narrow Behring's Strait, on the other tiie Gulf Stream, and 

 the prevailing west-east storms connect both continents, making 

 migration of insects a possibility. 



The similarity of climates of the northern half of the continents 

 is less favorable to the production of generic varieties than are the 

 southern lands, isolated by vvide troughs of the ocean, with a 

 variety of climes and altitudes; and, indeed, as we go northwards 

 the varieties decrease in number. 



If we abstract from the coleopterous groups genera which 

 are most likely to migrate from one continent to the other by 

 commerce, such as the Staphilinidfe, the Silphid». or the phyto- 

 phagous insects, transportable in their food-plants, the rest of the 

 forms will represent the aboriginal masses of 400 years ago. 



In the far north above latitude 50°, and where Asia approaches 

 so near to the American shores, the indigenous genera of both 

 continents differ comparatively little; the genera are common, 

 and some species are identical in both continents. Commerce in 

 these regions was slight, even up to our days, and an uninter- 

 rupted natural development manifests itself everywhere. 



True northern genera, such as the Carabus. Calosoma, and Cy- 

 chrus, have species of strict similarity, sucli as Calosoma syco- 

 phanta, indagator, etc., extending from the Atlantic to the Pacific 

 in the eastern continent, and Cal. scrutator, caliduni, and wilcoxii 

 in America; Carabus cancellatus, clathratus, and monilis on one 

 side, Car. serratus, limbatus, and vinctus on the other, and Car. 

 truncaticollis on both sides of Behring Sea. 



If we assume that the land holding the greater number of species 

 of one genus constitutes a centre of development, that is the birth- 

 place of that genus. Accordingly, the genera Cychrus and Calosoma 

 are to be taken as of American origin : the first being represented 

 in Europe and Asia by four and in America bVj^thuty species, the 



