74 



SCIENCE. 



[Vol. XXI. No. 52; 



Professor Hall evidently considers it better to deal with a small 

 number of well-characterized species instead of a large number 

 of ill-de6ned forms, and that such minor structural internal 

 modifications as can be shown to be constant in a recognized geo- 

 logical horizon should be raised to generic or sub-generic rank. 

 The description and portrayal of such generic divergencies afford 

 the best means for general comparison and thus tend to promote 

 a clearer comprehension of the manifold phases of the evolution 

 •of genera. The fact that specific characters sometimes make 

 their appearance in individual development before generic features 

 is most suggestive. For the laws of " science and growth," ' first 

 made known by Heckel, and since extended by Hyatt to the 

 Cephalopoda, Jackson to the Pelycypoda, and Beecher and Clarke 

 to the Braohiopoda, the term ausology' has been lately proposed 

 by English systematists, with some elucidative and etymological 

 modifications in Hyatt's terminology. These principles govern 

 individual and specific development of genera. For genera are 

 stages in the life history of the race as distinguished from the 

 genealogical records of the individual. It would seem, however, 

 that just as the co-existence of a large number of individuals 

 tends to perpetuate specific variation, so the simultaneous occur- 

 rence of abundance of species in one horizon and area is productive 

 of the divergence of genera. 



We cannot enter further into details; enough has been written 

 to show beyond contradiction the value and interest of his " In- 

 troduction to the Study of the Genera of Palseozoic Brachiopoda," 

 with its concise descriptions of genera and passage-forms, their 

 inter-relations, and afilliated species. It is rendered complete 

 by excellent specific bibliographies, well considered genealogical 

 trees, showing the common ancestry, diverging lines of descent, 

 and affinities of genera with their geological range, a register of 

 genera and of species, authors' and general index. The work is 

 most creditable to Professor James Hall and his assistant, Mr. J. 

 M. Clarke, and reflects honor on America in general and the State 

 of New York in particular. It deserves to be carefully studied 

 by invertebrate biologists in both hemispheres. We trust the 

 publication of the second part will be proceeded with, and that 

 by its rapid completion, on similar lines of thought, science may 

 be enriched by a general view of the evolution of the Braohiopoda. 

 It is much to be desired that the relations of the secondary and 

 tertiai'y species should be discussed in a like thorough, philo- 

 sophical, and genei'ally satisfactory manner. 



We have become so convinced of the advantages of this method 

 of treatment, that we have begun to form the nucleus of a col- 

 lection in the Brighton Museum, destined to illustrate the evolu- 

 tion of genera among the Brachiopoda. 



ON THE SO-CALLED INCAS EYES. 



BY W. S. MILLER, UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN, MADISON, WIS. 



At the time of th? earthquake and accompanying tidal-wave 

 which swept over Arica, Peru, August 13, 1868, causing so much 

 destruction of life, property, and shipping, the U. S. man-of-war 

 " Kearsarge " was lying some two hundred miles down the coast. 

 The shock there was comparatively slight to what it was at 

 Arica. Word was received the following morning of the disaster 

 up the coast, and the vessel left immediately to render such 

 assistance as lay in its power. The history of that earthquake is 

 well known. I will refer any who may wish to read an account 

 of the occurrence to an article in Harpers Monthly for April, 

 1869. The late Lieutenant Gardner, U. S. N., was at that time 

 stationed on the "Kearsarge," and it is to him that I am indebted 

 for the material which forms the subject of this article. 



After the officers of the "Kearsarge" had rendered what as- 

 sistance they could towards alleviating the distress caused by the 

 earthquake, they turned their attention to the havoc wrought by 

 the shock and tidal-wave. Prominent amidst the debris, and 

 about a quarter of a mile from the shore, they found a number of 



> aufTj, growth, and Aoyog, science. 



= See a paper entitled " The Terms of Auxology," by S. S. Buckman, F.G.S., 

 and F. A. Bather, M.A., F.Q. S., Londoa, In the Zoologlsoher Anzelger, No. 405 

 and 406, p. 4S ', Nov. 14 and 38, 1898. 



so-called " mummies," which had been exposed by the receding 

 tidal-wave. These Peruvian mummies are not mummies in the 

 same sense that we speak of those of Egypt. The Egyptian 

 mummies were preserved artificially from putrefaction by being 

 embalmed, an art peculiar to the people of that country; but the 

 Peruvian bodies are simply desiccated, the conditions of the at- 

 mosphere and soil being conducive to their preservation. 



The mummies are usually found in vaults or chambers of 

 adobe, roofed with sticks or canes and a layer of rushes; these 

 usually contain several bodies, which are placed in a sitting pos- 

 ture, the chin resting on the knees, the hands being clasped 

 around the knees. Sometimes the face rested on the hands, with 

 the elbows crowded down between the thighs and abdomen. 

 The bodies are wrapped in native cloths and bound with cords. 

 A small thin piece of copper was usually placed in the mouth; 

 this corresponded to the obolos which the ancient Greeks put into 

 the mouths of their dead as a fee for Charon. They were accus- 

 tomed to bury with them such utensils as they were supposed to 

 need in the country to which they journeyed. The farmer had 

 seeds of various kinds and agricultural implements placed about 

 him; the fisherman had his net wrapped about him, and nearby 

 fish-hooks were placed with barbs wonderfully like those in use 

 at the present time. The wealthy had costly articles in pottery 

 and precious metals buried with them, and it is on account of 

 this custom that many graves have been opened with the expec- 

 tation of finding valuables. The women had their spindles for 

 spinning, and in some instances the last thing they did before 

 leaving their work forever, as shown by the unfinished web of 

 cloth placed about them. Flowers were found by Lieutenant 

 Gardner as fresh to the eye as if plucked only a short time pre- 

 vious, but of course in a dried state. 



Articles of the toilet were also found, such as mirrors, combs 

 made of fish bones set in wood, and hollow bones of birds care- 

 fully plugged with cotton and tilled with pigments of various 

 colors, while close at hand was the swab used in applying them 

 to ths face. Rings were in some instances of the precious 

 metals, but all those seen by Lieutenant Gardner were made of 

 copper; he also found implements for sewing. The children 

 were surrounded by toys of native make. 



On account of their nearness to the shore and their surround- 

 ings, it is highly probable that the mummies seen by Lieutenant 

 Gardner were those of fishermen and their families. 



The most interesting thing about these mummies is the finding 

 of the so-called '• Incas eyes." These were of various sizes, cor- 

 responding to the age of the individual. 



These eyes are of an oval outline, flattened at one end and 

 made up of concentric layers deposited about a central point. 

 They are brittle and quite iridescent. They were found in the 

 orbit, being held in place by the cloth which was bound about the 

 head. Lieutenant Gardner was not certain whether they were 

 placed under the eyelid — the eye being removed — or were out- 

 side the lid. His impression was, that they were outside, as 

 they fell out as soon as the cloths which bound the head were re- 

 moved. I cannot find any reason why they were used. 



At first, I thought the eyes were composed of some resinous 

 substance, but as soon as I began to examine them critically, I 

 found that my first impression was erroneous. After examining 

 sections and fragments, softened by long immersion in glycerine, 

 I came to the conclusion they were the crystalline lens of some 

 animal. 



The next point to decide was from what animal they were 

 taken. A clue was given by the fact that fragments left in dis- 

 tilled water for a day or two under a dust-shade, developed an 

 odor which I could compare to nothing but that of old bilge 

 water. Although this was a very questionable clue, yet it led to 

 the successful solution of the question. 



If the eye of a cephalopod be removed and carefully opened, 

 it will be found that the "anterior of the retinal chamber is oc- 

 cupied by a bi-convex lens divisible into a smaller outer and a 

 larger semi-globular internal part, the two being separated by a 

 membrane." The principle of the well-known Coddington lens 

 is the same as that which enters into the formation of this eye. 

 The posterior portion of this eye is the one made use of by the 



