July 6, 1888.] 



SCIENCE 



some branch of science, fine scientific instruments, curios or bric-a- 

 brac, is prepared in the club-liouse. Some of tliose of the past 

 season have been exceedingly interesting and instructive. The 

 privileges of the club are extended to all scientific and literary men 

 from a distance who visit Washington ; and one meets there dur- 

 ing the season, besides the members, scores of people one likes to 

 know. 



Two or three years ago the Cosmos Club extended its house by 

 adding a fine assembly-hall, and in this the several scientific socie- 

 ties hold their meetings without expense for rent, etc. Although 

 this hall communicates directly with the club apartments, and, 

 when not occupied by one of the societies, is used as a reading- 

 room, it has an independent entrance from the street. 



The Washington scientific societies have, until the past season, 

 published nothing but their proceedings, including the briefest ab- 

 stracts of the papers presented ; but last fall the Anthropological 

 Society began the issue of a quarterly, in which have appeared 

 some of the most important papers read before the society, printed 

 in full. The Biological and Chemical Societies have concluded to 

 begin similar publications next season, and the others will prob- 

 ably follow their examples at an early date. The entire scientific 

 community in Washington has been interested in the abstracts of 

 the more important papers read in the meetings of these societies, 

 that have appeared in Science during the past few months. 



The three older societies established two years ago the free 

 courses of popular scientific lectures that are given in the audito- 

 rium of the National Museum on Saturday afternoons during the 

 winter and spring. They have been successful and thronged 

 from the beginning, and were noticed editorially in Science re- 

 cently. 



The coming decade is to be the seed-time of science in Washing- 

 ton. The material for study comes pouring into the scientific 

 bureaus like a flood, more rapidly than it can be' handled. Con- 

 gress is disposed to be liberal in granting money for this work, 

 having confidence that it is wisely and economically done. In 

 certain branches there is far better and more abundant material 

 for study than elsewhere in the countr}', — as good, indeed, as there 

 is in the world. — and the Washington scientific societies promise 

 to do their full share in giving to the w'orld some knowledge of our 

 scientific treasures and what they teach. 



Micraac Pictographs. 



In introducing the narrative of his investigations in Nova Scotia, 

 and afterwards in Maine, last year. Col. Garrick Mallery, of the 

 Bureau of Ethnology, says that he does so with the more satisfac- 

 tion because he is alone in that field. No one before him has ex- 

 amined or discussed the pictographs of the Micmacs or Abaki, or 

 indeed published any allusion to them, except in some incidental 

 and unappreciative manner. 



" The Micmacs," he says, " were an important tribe, occupying 

 all of Nova Scotia, Cape Breton Island, Prince Edward's Island, 

 the northern part of New Brunswick and the adjacent part of the 

 Province of Quebec, and ranging over a great part of Newfound- 

 land. ... In 161 1 the Micmacs were estimated at 3,000 to 3,500. 

 In 1760 they were reported at nearly 3,000, but had lately been 

 much wasted by sickness. In 1766 they were again placed at 3.500; 

 in iSSo they were officially reported at 3,892; and in 1884 they 

 numbered 4.037. Of these, 2,197 were in Nova Scotia, 933 in New 

 Brunswick, 615 in Quebec, and 292 on Prince Edward's Island." 



After quoting from the writings of missionaries and others refer- 

 ences to the picture-writings of the Micmacs. and giving accounts 

 of several attempts to reduce these to a system, and even to print 

 books in them. Colonel Mallery continues: " So far, my examina- 

 tion of the Micmac hieroglyphs shows that the best mode of inter- 

 preting the aboriginal characters involved in them is by the sign- 

 language. This does not now prevail as a matter of general use 

 among the Micmacs ; but stories and traces of it survive, and the 

 gestures of other members of the Algonkin family can be applied. 

 Quite a number of the Micmacs remember the use of marks or de- 

 vices on birch- bark in their common details of life, such as notices 

 of departure, and warning of danger. 



" My search for petroglyphs. or rock-carvings, in the land of the 

 Micmacs, or, as the railroad-guides now call it in honor of Long- 



fellow, the land of Evangeline, was unsuccessful, except in one 

 notable instance. Nevertheless I am confident, from ascertained 

 traditions, that there are more to be found. Much of the territory 

 is yet unexplored, and the inhabitants are wholly neglectful of such 

 subjects. The nearest neighbor, a middle-aged farmer who has 

 lived all his life at the same spot, about three miles from the unique 

 and probably most important pictured rocks to be described, had 

 but a vague knowledge of them, and had some trouble in piloting 

 me through them. These rocks are on the margin of a lake which 

 is almost on the boundary-line between Annapolis and Queen's 

 Counties. 



" The proper literation of the name of the lake called ' Cegema- 

 caga'in More's 'History of Queen's County, N.S.,' according to 

 Dr, Silas Rand's work, ' First Reading-Book in Micmac Language, 

 comprising Indian Names of Places,' is ' Kejimkoojik,' translated as 

 'swelled parts,' doubtless referring to the expansion of the Liver- 

 pool River, which forms the lake. 



" The Fairy Rocks, as distinct from others, are three in number, on 

 the east side of Kejemkoojik Lake, on the south of the entrance of 

 Fairy Lake, the northernmost of the three rocks being immediately 

 at the entrance. The westernmost and central one of the rocks, 

 saving a small surface, at high water, and at the highest water, are 

 entirely submerged. 



" Three other rocks are about two miles south of the above, at 

 Piel's Point ("a corruption of ' Pierre's Point '), opposite an island 

 called Glode's or Gload Island, probably named from a well-known 

 Micmac family. These are virtually a continuation of the same 

 formation, with a depression between them. All of these rocks are 

 of schistose slate, Silurian formation, and with so gentle a dip that 

 their magnitude varies greatly in accordance with the height of the 

 water. On Aug. 27, 1887, when, according to the reports of the 

 residents, water was at one foot above the average summer level, the 

 unsubmerged portion of the central rock then surrounded by water 

 was an irregular oval, the dimensions of which were forty-seven by 

 sixty feet. The highest points of the Fairy Rocks at that date were 

 not more than three, and few were more than two, feet above the 

 surface of the water. The inclination near the surface is so small 

 that a falling of the water of one foot would probably double the 

 size of that extent of the surface which by its smoothness and soft- 

 ness was fit to be marked upon by scratching. The inclination at 

 Pierre's Point is steeper, but still allows a great variation of exposed 

 surface in the manner mentioned. 



" Mr. George Creed of South Rawden, who, I believe, is the only 

 intelligent man in the peninsula who ever visited Fairy Rocks be- 

 fore me, did so in July. iSSi, and accompanied me last year. His 

 attention was entirely directed to the northernmost one, which was 

 then much more exposed above the water than in September, 1 S87, and 

 much of the inscribed portion seen by him in 1881 was underwater 

 in 1887. That the parts of the rocks adjoining those exposed are 

 inscribed, is evident, as the inscriptions were seen in iSSi by Mr. 

 Creed through the water, and again through a water-glass in 18S7. 

 His recollection of the inscribed dates seen in i88t is that a num- 

 ber were of the last centur)', and some with French names attached 

 were earlier than 1700, the worn appearance of which justified the 

 correctness of the date. A number of markings were noticed by 

 him which are not found in the parts now exposed, notably among 

 which were fishes and whales. There were also wigwams and 

 native animals, evidently of more ancient marking than the etchings 

 of horses, ships, houses, and other European objects which are 

 more frequent on the constantly exposed surface. A noticeable 

 point was that the large surface where the rock was smooth was 

 completely marked over, no space of three inches square being un- 

 marked ; and over nearly all the surface there were two. and in 

 many cases three, sets of markings, above one another, recognizable 

 by their differing distinctness. It also seemed that the second or 

 third marking was placed upon localities where the earlier mark- 

 ings have been nearly smoothed out or obliterated : therefore the 

 antiquity of the earliest must be considerable. With pains and 

 skill the earliest markings can be traced, and these are outlines 

 from which intrinsic evidence is obtained that they were Indian ; 

 whereas the later and more sharply marked outlines are obviously 

 made by civilized men or boys, the latest being mere initials or full 

 names of persons, with dates attached. 



