72 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. VIII. No. 185. 



den, Assistant in the Zoological Institute at 

 Tiibingen, repels with a keen pen and abun- 

 dant knowledge an attempt of an anthro- 

 pologist to shove her sex into the back- 

 ground hj an appeal to ' the laws of nature. 



ON STONE PENDANTS. 



There is a class of stone relics polished 

 on the surface and pierced with an orifice. 

 They were evidently intended to be worn 

 around the neck. For this reason they are 

 in Europe classed as amulets, with us as 

 ' gorgets.' In the Prdhistorische Blatter, 

 Ko. 3, Professor Mehlis describes and 

 figures several found in the Palatinate. 

 They closely resemble American types, and 

 are about two inches in length. 



In an excellent article by Professor 

 Sophus Miiller in the Memoires of the Eoyal 

 Society of Danish Antiquaries, 1897, the 

 author reviews a number of new types of 

 artefacts from the Stone Age. Among them 

 is a series in amber of perforated objects 

 evidently intended to be worn by sus- 

 pension. The two most remarkable identi- 

 fied by him as amulets are faithful copies 

 of the stone axe of the period ; and Pro- 

 fessor Miiller considers them ' of particular 

 importance as showing that the axe served 

 as a symbol during the Stone Age." 



The same fact has been recently demon- 

 strated of some American stone pendants 

 by Mr. F. H. Gushing, quite independently 

 of Professor Miiller's observations. 



D. G. Brinton. 



University of Pennsylvania. 



SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS. 



SCIENTIFIC SOCIETIES AFFILIATED WITH THE 



AMERICAN ASSOCIATION FOR THE 



ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE. 



The scientific societies meeting before or si- 

 multaneously with the Association and more or 

 less closely affiliated with it are as follows : 



The American Mathematical Society will meet 

 on Friday and Saturday, August 19th and 20th, 



in room 11, Rogers Building, Massachusetts In- 

 stitute of Technology. F. N. Cole, Columbia 

 University, Secretary. 



The American Forestry Association will meet 

 on Tuesday and Wednesday, August 23d and 

 24th, in Horticultural Hall, 101 Tremont street, 

 Boston, the official headquarters of this Associa- 

 tion. Francis H. Appleton, Boston, Mass., 

 President. 



The Geological Society of America will meet 

 on Tuesday, August 23d, at the same time and 

 place with Section E. J. J. Stevenson, New 

 York, N. Y., President; H. L. Fairchild, Ro- 

 chester, N. Y., Secretary. 



The American Chemical Society will hold its 

 seventeenth general meeting on Monday and 

 Tuesday, August 22dand 23d. The first session 

 will convene immediately after the organization 

 of Section C of the A. A. A. S., and in the same 

 room, on Monday morning. On Monday after- 

 noon at 4.30 the Society will give place to Sec- 

 tion C, in order that the chemists may all have 

 the opportunity of listening to the Vice-Presi- 

 dent's address before that body. The whole of 

 Tuesday will be devoted to the American 

 Chemical Society, and the remainder of the 

 week to Section C. Charles E. Munroe, 

 Columbian University, Washington, D. C, 

 President; Albert C. Hale, 551 Putnam avenue, 

 Brooklyn, N. Y., Secretary. 



The Society for the Promotion of Agricultural 

 Science will meet in Horticultural Hall, 101 

 Tremont street, on Friday and Saturday, Au- 

 gust 19th and 20th; C. S. Plumb, Lafayette, 

 Ind., Secretary. 



The Association of Economic Entomologists will 

 hold its tenth annual meeting in the Natural 

 History Building on August 19th and 20th. 

 Herbert Osborn, Ames, Iowa, President; C. L. 

 Marlatt, Washington, D. C, Secretarj\ 



The Botanical Club of the Association will 

 meet at a time to be announced. 



The Society for the Promotion of Engineering 

 Education will hold its fifth meeting in room 22 

 of the Walker Building of the Massachusetts In- 

 stitute of Technology, August 18th, 19th and 

 20th. J. B. Johnson, St. Louis, Mo., Presi- 

 dent; Albert Kingsbury, Durham, N. H., Sec- 

 retary. 



The American Folh-Lore Society will meet 



