18 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. VIII. No. 183. 



accepted by the Association a satisfactory com- 

 bination of scientific and social interest may be 

 confidently anticipated. 



AWARD OF THE LOUBAT PRIZES.* 



The undersigned, a committee appointed in 

 1895 to examine and report upon the various 

 monographs submitted in competition for the 

 Loubat prizes to be awarded in 1898, beg leave 

 to report that they have carefully considered 

 the different works received, and have also, in 

 accordance with the rules governing the compe- 

 tition, examined such other works relating to 

 American archaeology as have been published 

 in the English language during the three years 

 ending with the first day of April, 1898. In 

 their consideration of these monographs the 

 Committee have taken into account not only 

 the scientific value of the work, but also the im- 

 portance of the subjects treated, the methods of 

 investigation pursued by the authors, and the 

 ai'tistic and literary excellence of the presenta- 

 tion. 



The monographs that were formally submit- 

 ted for examination were the productions of 

 eight different authors. Of these the commit- 

 tee have selected as being the most meritorious, 

 and as most fully complying with the conditions 

 prescribed for the competition, the treatise 

 offered by Mr. William Henry Holmes, Curator 

 of the Department of Anthropology In the Na- 

 tional Museum at "Washington. The title of this 

 treatise is ' Stone Implements of the Potomac- 

 Chesapeake Tide-Water Provinces.' 



This volume may be held to mark an epoch 

 in American archffiological research, by inter- 

 preting the remarkably abundant artifacts of 

 a typical region in the light of previous studies 

 of actual aboriginal handiwork, and thus estab- 

 lishing a basis for the classification of the stone 

 art of the entire western hemisphere. It is the 

 result of many years of personal study, numer- 

 ous experiments and close typographical anal- 

 ysis, and is supplied with a wealth of illustra- 

 tive material that gives it most exceptional 

 interest and value. The Committee, therefore, 

 recommend that the first prize of $1,000 be 

 awarded to Mr. William Henry Holmes. 



*Eeport of the Committee to President Low, of Co- 

 lumbia University. 



The elaborate monograph entitled The Social 

 Organization and Secret Societies of the Kivakiutl 

 Indians, by Dr. Franz Boas, of the Metropolitan 

 Museum of Natural History of New York City, 

 is a remarkably complete descriptive and an- 

 alytic treatise setting forth the characteristics 

 of a well studied tribe in such a manner as to 

 offer a model for students and raise the stand- 

 ards of ethnological work. Its information is 

 derived from personal research conducted on 

 the very best scientific principles and dealing 

 with a wealth of carefully collected material. 

 Your Committee, therefore, recommend that 

 the second prize of $400 be awarded to Dr. 

 Franz Boas. 



Of the remaining authors represented in the- 

 competition the Committee desire to single out 

 for especial mention Dr. Karl Lumholtz, who 

 presented a treatise entitled Objective Symbolism- 

 of the Huichol Indians ; Mr. Frank H. Cushing, 

 who offered a manuscript interpretive of ab- 

 original art and industry under the title Toma- 

 hawk and Calumet, Shield and Gorget; and Dr. 

 Walter Hoffman, whose extended memoir em- 

 bodies a careful study of the Menomini Indians. 



The Committee desire also to mention with 

 especial commendation a work by Alfred P. 

 Maudslay, of London, dealing with the arche- 

 ology of Central America. This work was not 

 submitted by its author in the competition, aud- 

 it has not yet been completed in publication; 

 but its great merit is such as to demand some 

 especial mention on the part of this Committee. 

 All of which is respectfully submitted. 

 Committee: H. T. Peck, Chairman. 

 D. G. Brinton, 

 W J McGee. 



May 21, 1898. 



new gases in the atmosphere. 

 A FURTHER communication of great interest 

 on the occurrence of hitherto unsuspected ele- 

 ments in the atmosphere was made, according 

 to the London Times, to the Eoyal Society by 

 Professor Ramsay and Mr. Travers, on June 

 16th. Since the discovery of argon it has al- 

 ways been a question whether the gas isolated 

 by Lord Kayleigh and Professor Ramsay was in 

 reality a single uniform substance, a point- 

 which was verj' difiicult to settle owing to th& 



