230 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. XI. No. 267. 



inspection the mineral proved to be allanite, and 

 as it has not yet been recorded from this region, 

 it seems of interest to note the fact. 



The rock forming the walls of the Yosemite 

 is a grano-diorite according to Turner (17th 

 Ann. Rep. U. S. G. S., pt. I., p. 710). Travers- 

 ing this in many directions are veins of pegma- 

 tite, which are sometimes straight and un- 

 broken, at others curved, branched, or even 

 broken into. These pegmatite veins are very 

 prominent on the face of EI Capitain, and also 

 in the rock forming Eagle Peak. It was in the 

 talus at the foot of the latter that the allanite 

 was found, and while the mineral was at times 

 abundant in the pegmatite blocks, still none of 

 it was noticed in the grano-diorite. In only 

 one instance was a distinctly bounded indi- 

 vidual found, and on this a combination of 

 orthopinacoid and base were recognizable. The 

 other specimens were irregularly bounded 

 grains that varied from a sixteenth to a quarter 

 of an inch in diameter. 



In addition to the quartz, muscovite and 

 orthoclase present in the pegmatite, there were 

 a number of radiating masses of epidote, which 

 were evidently of primary origin ; but in two 

 instances the epidote occurred as a coating on 

 hornblende and then seemed to be secondary. 

 None was found in association with the allanite. 



In conclusion, it may be said that it is inter- 

 esting to find that allanite is evidently not the 

 rare mineral that it was formerly considered to 

 be, and that a careful watch is beginning to 

 show its presence at many localities in the 

 United States. Alexis A. Julien, 



Secretary of Section. 



ONONDAGA ACADEMY OF SCIENCE. 



At the January meeting the following officers 

 were elected : President, John Van Duyn 

 Vice-President, J. D. Wilson ; Recording Sec 

 retary, E. N. Pattee ; Corresponding Secre 

 tary, H. W. Britcher ; Treasurer, Miss L. W 

 Roberts ; Librarian, Mrs. L. L. Goodrich ; Conn 

 cilors, G. A. Dakin, H. A. Peck and W. M 

 Beauchamp. 



The annual report of the Geological Section 

 showed that several investigations of local 

 problems are being carried on and that some 

 have been already completed during the year. 



The report of the Zoological Section noted 

 the occurrence within the county during the 

 past year of the Bohemian wax wing, Ampelia 

 garrulus, the jumping mouse, Zapus hudsoniua 

 and the hairy-tailed mole, Parascalops bretveri. 

 Additional localities were indicated for pla- 

 naria, bryozoa and hydra. During the year 

 fifty moths were taken, thus bringing the num- 

 ber of Lepidoptera of the county to over 600. 



The report of the Botanical Section added 

 the following plank to the county list : Hysso- 

 pus officinalis, Ohenopodium anthelniinticum and 

 Polygonum lapathifolium with new stations for 

 Crepis virens, Glaucium glaucium and Scolopen- 

 drium. 



At the January meeting of the Geological 

 Section, Professor E. N. Pattee reported on the 

 progress of the investigations of the iron com- 

 pounds of the county. The chief sources of 

 these compounds are the red shales of the Sa- 

 lina formation, yielding small scales and flakes 

 of haematite, the Coruiferous, yielding crystals 

 of pyrite and the Oriskany sandstone, yielding 

 from one to five per cent, of iron, the color of 

 the stone being, however, no index to the 

 amount of iron, existing as a cement, which 

 the rock contains. jj_ -^, Beitcheb, 



Corresponding Secretary. 



THE TEXAS ACADEMY OF SCIENCE. 



During the last quarter of 1899 regular meet- 

 ings of the Texas Academy of Science were held 

 in the chemical lecture room of the State Uni- 

 versity on the second Friday evening of each 

 month. 



On October 13th, after a proper tribute to the 

 worth and work of the late Dr. W. W. Norman, 

 Professor of Animal Biology in the University 

 and one of the most active members of the 

 Academy, in which Messrs. Bray, Harper, Gar- 

 rison, Sutton and others participated. Dr. 

 Frederic W. Simonds, the incoming president, 

 read his inaugural address, ' From the Stand- 

 point of a Man of Science,' in which he made a 

 vigorous protest against sham in all things, but 

 especially in science, and an earnest effort to 

 explain many of the popular misunderstandings 

 of science and misconceptions concerning men 

 of science and their work. 



At the October meeting, Professor W. 8. 



