804 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. IV. No. 100. 



itself is affected in the same way by its own 

 venom. Pure venom is not as speedily fatal as 

 when mixed with normal salt solution. The oval 

 corpuscles of the frog's blood are rendered 

 more circular and the nucleus is thrown out. 

 When fed by the mouth there is no action from 

 the poison. Immunity had been produced in 

 rabbits against ten times the lethal dose. 



NOVEMBER 10, 1896. 



Dr. Harrison Allen presented a paper for 

 publication on Tarsius fuscomanus. In a verbal 

 synopsis he exhibited the undissected half of 

 this curious little creature from the eastern 

 Malayan Islands, pointing out its anatomical 

 peculiarities. In referring to the muscular 

 structure, he called attention particularly to the 

 large muscle on the fore part of the thigh, which 

 in the human subject, it is claimed, is necessary 

 to maintain the erect position, but Tarsius, in 

 which animal this muscle is greatly developed 

 upon a relatively very long thigh, is unable to 

 assume an erect position, the leg being flexed 

 against the thigh and the possible divarication 

 slight. He referred to the species Tarsius spec- 

 trum, lately the subject of investigation by Hu- 

 brecht. Dr. Allen pointed out some differences 

 between Burmeister's description of the same 

 species and those of T. fuscomanus, the result of 

 his own dissection. The upper molars of T. 

 fuscomanus exhibit meta-conules and para-co- 

 nules. These are absent in Anaptomorphus. 

 Dr. Allen claimed that Burmeister and Specht 

 were in error in representing the hind foot as 

 having a transverse grasp. The foot has a longi- 

 tudinal grasp, as correctly delineated by Cuvier. 

 Tarsius, he said, though generally classed with 

 the lemurs, in the opinion of some naturalists, 

 should be classed separately next to the apes. 



Dr. Calvert stated that while at Utrecht the 

 past summer he had the pleasure of meeting 

 Prof Hubrecht, and with him examining his 

 specimens of Tarsius, which included both ana- 

 tomical and embryological preparations. He also 

 referred to the contention that the line of descent 

 to man was from the lemurs or the Eocene repre- 

 sentative of Tarsius, Anaptomorphus, and through 

 the man-like apes, to man, leaving the other 

 Old and New World monkeys as side branches. 



Mr. Vaux reported that the fossil tree at Lin- 



denwold, N. J. , is a conifer completely silicified, 

 measuring 26 feet in length and 7^- feet in diam- 

 eter at the base, tapering to 5 feet 12 feet up, 

 where it branched. It was, however, so fragile 

 that it was impossible to get a section of it for 

 the Academy. Edw. J. Nolan, 



Recording Secretary. 



THE ACADEMY OF SCIENCE OP ST. LOUIS. 



At the meeting of the Academy of Science of 

 St. Louis on the evening of November 16, 1896, 

 Dr. Charles E. Keyes, the State Geologist of 

 Missouri, read a paper entitled ' How shall we 

 subdivide the Carboniferous ? ' and Prof. J. H. 

 Kinealy exhibited a chart for determining the 

 number of square feet of low pressure steam 

 heating surface required to keep a room at 

 70° r., and gave a description of the method of 

 making the chart. 



Two active members and one life member of 

 of the Academy were elected. 



William Trelease, 



Recording Secretary. 



NEW BOOKS. 



Electro-physiology. W. Biedermann. Trans- 

 lated by Frances A. Welby. London and 

 New York, The Macmillan Co. 1896. Vol. 

 L Pp. xii+517. $5.50. 



Grasses of North America. W. J. Beal. New 

 York, Henry Holt & Co. 1896. Vol. II. 

 Pp. viii. + 706. $5.00, net. 



Allgemeine Erdkunde. J. Hann, Ed. Bruck- 

 ner and A. Kirchhoff. 5th Edition, 1st 

 part. Die Erde als Ganzes, ihre Atmosphare 

 und Hydrosphare, Dr. J. Hahn. Prag, 

 Wien, Leipzig, F. Temsky. 1896. Pp. 336. 

 M. 10. 



Versuch einer Philosophischen Selektions Theorie. 

 Johannes Unbehaun. Jena, Gustav Fischer. 

 1896. Pp. 150. 



Erratum : In the last paragraph of the review by 

 C. S. M., on page 764, the quotation marks should in- 

 clude the last four words, making the paragraph read: 



The note of personal exultation predominates in 

 the pamphlet, and the author closes with the follow- 

 ing words : ' ' All the things mentioned above, and 

 many more, are in agreement with the view of an 

 antithetic alteration as underlying Metazoon devel- 

 opment and — where are the facts that are opposed to 

 it ? And echo answers — ' where?' ' ' 



