SCIENCE. 



SCIENCE: 



A Weekly Record of Scientific 

 Progress. 



JOHN MICHELS, Editor. 



Published at 



229 BROADWAY, NEW YORK. 



P. O. Box 8838. 



SATURDAY, JULY 3, 1880. 



To Correspondents. 



All communications should be addressed to the Editor — Box 3838, P. 

 O., New York — with name and address of writer, not necessarily for pub- 

 lication without consent. 



Scientific papers and correspondence intended for publication, should be 

 written legibly on one side only of the paper. Articles thus received will 

 be returned when found unsuitable for the Journal. 



Those engaged in Scientific Research are invited to make this Journal 

 the medium of recording their work, and facilities will be extended to 

 those desirous of publishing original communications possessing merit. 



Proceedings of Scientific Societies will be recorded, but the abstracts 

 furnished must be signed by the Secretaries. 



Both questions and answers in " Notes and Queries " should be made 

 as brief as possible ; an answer appearing to demand an elaborate reply, 

 may be written in the form of an article. 



To Subscribers. 



Terms of subscription for Science will be $4 a year, payable in advance. 

 Six months, $2.50. Single copies 10 cents. 



Subscriptions forwarded by mail should be addressed to the Editor, 

 Box 3838, P. O., New York, and Post-office orders made payable to 

 " John Miche's." 



To Advertisers. 



Terms for advertising may be obtained at the office of Journal, 229 

 Broadway. 



SALUTATORY. 



In presenting to the public the first number of 

 •'Science," we would briefly define its aim and scope, 

 so that its position in the periodical literature of the 

 country may be clearly understood. 



While Literature proper, and Art, both ornamental 

 and useful, nay, almost every distinctive social and 

 economic interest in the United States, have their 

 several organs for the interchange of views or the dif- 

 fusion of information, Science still remains without 

 any weekly journal exclusively devoted to the 

 chronicling of its progress, and the discussion of its 

 problems. 



This may be stated without disrespect to many ex- 

 cellent weekly journals restricted to special branches 

 of Science, or allied to trade interests. 



The field being thus open, after consultation with 

 many of the leading scientists in this country, it has 



been decided to publish " Science " in its present 

 form. Its aim will be to afford scientific workers 

 in the United States the opportunity of promptly 

 recording the fruits of their researches, and facilities 

 for communication between one another and the 

 world, such as are now enjoyed by the scientific men 

 of Europe. 



A distinctive feature in the conduct of this Journal 

 will be that each department of science will be 

 supervised by some recognized authority in that field 

 of research, and it is believed that the names of these 

 Associate Editors will be a guarantee that accuracy 

 be maintained so far as possible. 



There will be a department of " Notes and Queries" 

 which cannot fail to be of benefit to those engaged in 

 original research. By this means many may attain 

 the speedy solutions of difficulties which otherwise 

 might cost them much unprofitable labor. 



It is the desire of the Editor that "Science " may, in 

 the United States, take the position which "Nature" 

 so ably occupies in England, in presenting immediate 

 information of scientific events ; the Smithsonian Insti- 

 tution and other scientific bodies have promised their 

 co-operation in this respect, and representative men in 

 all branches of science have cordially volunteered 

 their aid towards making " Science" as useful as its 

 foreign contemporary. 



We shall supply with each volume a comprehensive 

 Index. The size of the journal is convenient for 

 binding, and it should form a valuable work of re- 

 ference in every library. 



A short time must elapse before our arrangements, 

 at home and abroad, can be completed, but we 

 trust that this journal, even in its earliest stages, will be 

 welcomed by all interested in scientific progress. 



As one of its " Occasional Papers " the Boston Society 

 of Natural History has published a volume of great value 

 on the " Geology of Eastern Massachusetts," by W. O. 

 Crosby. It is evidently the result of long and competent 

 investigation, is well illustrated, and contains a large and 

 well-printed geological map of the region treated of. 



Interesting discoveries are reported from Italy. Near 

 Este, in the Venito, at the foot of the Eugancian Mount- 

 ains, Prof. Prosdocismi discovered a prehistoric burial 

 ground with many bronze and clay vessels. Eighty-two 

 tombs were found, of which forty-four seemed to have 

 been opened already by the Romans, while the contents 

 of the others seemed untouched. The urns belong to 

 three different periods ; some are stained black with 

 linear ornaments ; others are striped red and black. 

 Some vases are of such exquisite workmanship that they 

 could, even to-day, serve as patterns. A small case of 

 bronze is adorned with human and animal figures. 



