Botany and Agriculiitral Science. n 



knowledge of the flora of this peninsula as the result of his labors. 

 Previously little had been known concerning the flora of the 

 southern portion, and nothing was known relative to the central 

 region, except at a few stations near the coast. 



Another valuable contribution to the flora of Lower California, 

 is a 'list of plants collected by Dr. Edward Palmer in Lower 

 California in 1889/ by Dr. Geo Vasey and Jos. N. Rose, in 

 Proc. U. S. Nat'l. Mus, XL pp. 527-536. Dr. Palmer is 

 known as one of the most thorough botanical collectors, and little 

 escapes his attention. 



Missouri Botanical Garden. — The first annual report of 

 the director, Dr. Wm. Trelease, for 1889, is at hand. It con- 

 tains an outline of the policy of this institution. One of the most 

 practical and directly useful of the steps indicated in this policy, 

 is the provision of scholarships for garden-pupils, and it has 

 been one of the first to receive attention. The management of 

 the garden will be grateful to institutions and investigators for 

 copies of their botanical publications or for additions to the her- 

 barium. 'All feasible assistance will be rendered in the perform- 

 ance of work calculated to advance botanical knowledge.' is the 

 director's closing statement. 



ARCHEOLOGY AND ElHNOLOGy. 



Ethno-conchology, a study of primitive money. — In 

 this paper (Rept. Nat'l. Mus. i886-'87, pp. 297-334,) Dr. Robert 

 E. C. Stearns coins a new term, 'ethno-conchology,' to include 

 the uses made and the purposes to which shells are and have 

 been put by man, other than for food (the latter rather covered 

 by the term mollusk than shell). Dr. Stearns, in this the first 

 of a series which he proposes to contribute to this subject, touches 

 on the ancient history of pearls, the use of the cowry and of wam- 

 pum for the purposes of money, and closes with a very complete 

 treatment of the shell money of the California aborigines, fully 

 illustrated. The Dentalium or tusk-shell, Tivela crassatelloides, 

 Saxidomus aratus, Olivella biplicata, and the Haliotis or abalone 

 furnished the greater part of their material for the coinage of 

 money, which with them were known by the respective names of 

 Haikwa or Hi-a-qua, Kop-kops, Hawock or Hawok, Kol-kol, 

 and uhl-lo. 



Fort Ancient, Ohio. — Warren K. Morehead, (Cincinnati, 

 Robert Clarke & Co.,) had made in this volume a valuable con- 

 tribution to antiquarian literature. Without doubt Fort Ancient 

 is the most remarkable fortification in the land. That no scrap 

 of history or legend gives its date or the names of its builders 

 does not detract- from its interest. It has always been the hope 

 that thorough excavations such as Mr. Morehead has made 

 would reveal something which might definitely fix the date and 

 nationality of its builders. The author says: 'Why it was built 

 and how it was built we can safely say, but who built, and when 



