1892.] Geology and Paleontology. 1029 
ïi, 13 mm. ; diameters of pm. iv; longitudinal 4 mm.; anteroposte- 
rior, 10; transverse, 8. Diameters of pm. iii; longitudinal, 17 mm. ; 
anteroposterior (partly restored), 28; transverse, 15. The species is 
as large as the spotted hyena, and was the scavenger of the Blanco 
Fauna. 
Another interesting carnivore is a weasel of a new genus and spe- 
cies, which it was proposed to call Canimartes cumminsii after its 
discoverer. The genus Canimartes is allied to Mustela, differing only 
in the presence of two superior true molars. Metaconid of inferior 
sectorial well developed ; talon of the same trenchant. The species is 
as large as the fisher. 
A third carnivore is a cat, provisionally referred to the genus Felis 
under the name of F. hillianus, after Prof. Robert T. Hill, the well- 
known geologist. This cat is about the size of the cheetah, and has 
large canine teeth without grooves, and the feet are shorter than in 
modern cats—E. D. Cope. 
Geological News, General.—Mr. Hilgard’s notes on the Ciene- 
gas of California show them to be of considerable economic import- 
ance. A cienega is a limited area showing a growth of water-loving 
plants, appearing sporadically in otherwise arid surroundings. Obser- 
vation shows this area to be a débris fan or cone, having its apex near 
the mouth of a cafion. The débris consists of alternate deposits of 
rounded gravel and cobble, fine silt, and even clay. These deposits 
form a natural storage reservoir for the flood waters of the cafion, 
annually replenished, provided an open cobble surface is maintained at 
the apex of the cone. The conditions necessary for cienega formation 
