133 



Mr. S. Ferguson read the continuation of his paper on 

 the Antiquity of the " Boomerang." The author exhibited 

 a tabular digest of the significant synonymes of a variety of 

 words, all of them necessarily involving the idea of curva- 

 ture. These he arranged according to their palpable re- 

 semblances ; and gave it as his opinion, that the indices or 

 characteristic syllables of the classes so resulting were uni- 

 formly identical with the roots of the names by which the 

 curved weapon and spear have been known. 



Mr. Ferguson stated, that the transit of these names 

 from the one class of weapons to the other, appears to have 

 taken place through the medium of the amentum, or attached 

 sling, by which the spear was originally thrown. He sug- 

 gested a similar mode of throwing the Australian instrument, 

 and illustrated it from a British coin of Cunobeline. 



From an investigation of the relations observable among 

 the nations which appear to have used weapons of this de- 

 scription, the author concluded that the use of them in 

 Europe was in great measure peculiar to the Gomarite 

 branch of the Japetian family. 



DONATIONS. 



Comptes Rendus Hebdomadaires des Seances de VAca- 

 demie des Sciences. Premier Seraestre, 1838. Nos. 1, 2, 3, 

 and Tables Alphabetiques. Jan. — Jun. 1837. Presented by 

 the Academy. 



The Phrenological Journal and Magazine of Moral 

 Science. Vol. XI. No. 44. New Series, No. 1. Presented 

 by the Phrenological Society. 



Ordnance Survey of the County of Londonderry. Colonel 

 Colby, R. E., F. R. S. L. and E., M. R. I. A., Superintendant. 

 Volume the First. 4to. Presented by his Excellency the 

 Lord Lieutenant. 



The Ordnance Maps of the Counties of Sligo, in 49 sheets : 



