868 



SGIENGE. 



[N. S. Vol. IV. No. 102. 



by Dr. Meumann, as well as all formal as- 

 semblies of the members of the Institute are 

 held in room 6. Here, too, are the central 

 batteries and the larger pieces of apparatus 

 for demonstration. On the other side of 

 the corridor is the cloak room, marked E, 

 serving also as a storeroom for the charts 

 and diagrams used in the lectures. No. 7 

 is the First Assistant's room. 



Eooms 8 to 12 are arranged more espec- 

 ially for work in acoustics. In No. 8, for 

 instance, the large phonometer is set up as 

 a fixture. In room 9 are placed various 

 acoustic instruments ; the room is, more- 

 over, connected by telephone with No. 12. 

 Eooms 10 and 11 are for a variety of uses, 

 for chronometric work, or for experiments 

 such as those on ' Zeitsinn.^ Next to room 

 11 is a small protective antechamber leading 

 to No. 12, the silent room with double par- 

 titions and doors. Besides the transmis- 

 sion of sound by telephone, these acoustic 

 rooms permit direct air communication by 

 means of lead pipes. In some cases the 

 pipes are bent around an intermediate 

 room, passing, for instance, from No. 9 

 around No. 10 to No. 11. In others the 

 pipes pass without bend, directly from one 

 room to the other. 



In room 13 are lockers for tools and for 

 chemicals. No. 14 is the well-lighted lib- 

 rary and reading room. 



George M. Stratton. 



University of Califoenia. 



AMERICAN ORNITHOLOGISTS' UNION. 



The Fourteenth Congress of the Ameri- 

 can Ornithologists' Union convened in Cam- 

 brige, Mass., Monday evening, November 

 9tli. The business meeting was held at the 

 residence of Mr. Charles F. Batchelder. 

 The public sessions, lasting three days, were 

 held in the Nash lecture room of the Uni- 

 versity Museum, commencing Tuesday, 

 November 10th. 



William Brewster, of Cambridge, Mass., 



was reelected President ; Dr. C. Hart Mer- 

 riam and Mr. Robert Eidgway, of Wash- 

 ington, Vice-Presidents ; John H. Sage, of 

 Portland, Conn., Secretary ; Wm. Dutcher, 

 of New York, Treasurer ; Charles F. Batch- 

 elder, Major Chas. Bendire, Frank M. Chap- 

 man, Chas. B. Cory, Drs. Jonathan D wight, 

 Jr., A. K. Fisher and L. Stejneger, mem- 

 bers of the Council. One active and seventy- 

 eight associate members were elected. 



By a change in the by-laws ex-Presidents 

 of the Union are now ex- officio members of 

 the Council. 



Mr. Wm. Dutcher, Chairman of the 

 Committee on ' Protection of North Ameri- 

 can Birds,' read an interesting and most 

 valuable report of the work done by his 

 committee during the past year. This re- 

 port will be published in The Auk and re- 

 printed as a separate pamphlet. 



The Union was honored by the presence 

 of Miss Maria E. Audubon, granddaughter 

 of the renowned naturalist. In her behalf 

 Dr. Elliott Coues exhibited some -recently 

 discovered manuscript journals of John 

 James Audubon, including the one giving 

 an account of his famous trip up the Mis- 

 souri river. A vote of thanks was ten- 

 dered Miss Audubon for her kindness in 

 allowing the manuscript to be seen. 



Under the title ' Ornithological Publica- 

 tions, Present and Prospective,' Dr. Elliott 

 Coues laid before the Union an advance 

 copy of the ' Eeport of the World 's Fair 

 Ornithological Congress,' and stated that 

 he was engaged in the preparation of a new 

 edition of his ' Key to North American 

 Birds.' He also mentioned other works 

 that would soon be given to the public. 



A prominent feature of the Congress was 

 the open-air talk by Mr. Abbott H. Thayer, 

 demonstrating his theory of the principles 

 of protective coloration. 



Mr. Thayer placed three sweet potatoes, 

 or objects of corresponding shape and size, 

 horizontally on a wire a few inches above 



