Dkcemeee 16, 1898.] 



SCIENCE. 



877 



drama. The ground was bare; we were close 

 by and could see every motion distinctly. 

 Nothing more perfect could have been desired." 

 For what followed we can only refer the reader 

 to the book itself, wherein is told even how 

 Ammophila used a tool in perfecting her nest. 



In the concluding chapter the authors write : 

 "Our study of the activities of wasps has sat- 

 isfied us that it is impracticable to classify them 

 in any simple way. The old notion that the 

 acts of bees, wasps and ants were all varying 

 forms of instinct is no longer tenable and must 

 give way to a more philosophical view. It 

 would appear to be quite certain that there are 

 not only instinctive acts, but acts of intelligence 

 as well, and a third variety also — acts that are 

 probably due to imitation, although whether 

 much or little intelligence accompanies this 

 imitation is admittedly difficult to determine. 

 Again, acts that are instinctive in one species 

 may be intelligent in another, and we may 

 even assert that there is considerable variation 

 in the amount of intelligence displayed by dif- 

 ferent individuals of the same species." 



The fact of great individual psychological 

 variation is very clearly demonstrated through- 

 out the book ; but, since all the observations 

 were made in the same immediate vicinity, it 

 has not been possible to determine whether there 

 exist psychological races among wasps, as among 

 ourselves. It will remain for other observers 

 to repeat the work of the Peckhams in many 

 different localities, and see how far each species 

 is constant over a wide range. There can be 

 little doubt that variations in habits, to suit 

 different environments, are much more com- 

 mon than we know ; and it is also evident that 

 psychological and physiological variations, not 

 necessarily accompanied by gross morphological 

 changes, must have a great deal to do with the 

 manner and progress of evolution. Comparative 

 studies in different localities may also explain 

 habits which, studied in one place only, seem 

 useless. Thus the Peckhams cannot explain 

 why Bembex is so careful to hide the entrance 

 of her nest, since in the case of the colony 

 studied (on an island) there is apparently no 

 enemy to be guarded against in this manner. 

 It might prove, by studies elsewhere, that this 

 was a device to conceal the nests from noc- 



turnal mice or some other enemy of which we 

 know nothing. x. D. A. Cockerell. 



Mesilla Paek, N. M., November 10, 1898. 



Four-footed Americans and their Kin. By 

 Mabel Osgood Wright. Edited by Frank 

 M. Chapman. With 73 illustrations by 

 Ernest Seton Thompson. New York, 

 The Macmillan Co. 1898. Pp. 432. Price, 

 $1.50. 



Among the many popular books on natural 

 history that have appeared recently, very few 

 have treated of mammals and none have been 

 devoted exclusively to them. It is, therefore, 

 gratifying to find in 'Four-footed Americans' 

 an attractive, well-illustrated volume containing 

 accounts of common North American mammals 

 — accounts which, though primarily intended 

 for children, must prove interesting and instruc- 

 tive to older persons. 



The book is planned after the manner of 

 'Citizen Bird,'* by the same author, and is 

 evidently intended as a companion volume. As 

 in ' Citizen Bird,' the descriptions and life his- 

 tories are presented by interesting characters 

 in the form of stories, which, though not always 

 spiced with adventure, are well calculated to 

 attract young minds and create a wholesome 

 interest in the animals for their own sakes. The 

 spirit of the title is maintained throughout ; it 

 is emphatically American — an exceedingly 

 creditable feature. In a household where such 

 a book finds a place children are sure to grow 

 up knowing and loving the animals of their own 

 country. 



The book closes with a ' Ladder for climbing 

 the Family Tree of the North American Mam- 

 mals ' (presumably by the editor), which is an 

 abridged and adapted classification, giving a 

 few characters for the larger groups and indi- 

 cating approximately the number of species of 

 each family. In the few jjages devoted to this 

 ' Ladder ' errors in typography and nomencla- 

 ture are not infrequent. Conspicuous among 

 these Eire the use of Manaius instead of Triche- 

 chus, Dicotyles instead of Tayassu, Dorcelaphus 

 for Odocoileus and Alces alces for Alces america- 

 nus. Inaccuracies in the text, also apparently 

 overlooked by the editor, are the statements 

 * Reviewed in Science, November 5, 1897, p. 706. 



