980 The American Naturalist. [November, 
After the discussion of the vertebra] column, Jekel makes some re- 
marks on the ribs, limb-skeleton and the dermal covering, and con- 
cludes his paper with a short summary of his results. I hope that 
Jekel in his final monograph on Archegosaurus will give up the 
absolutely unfounded opinion of the homology of the intercentrum of 
Archegosaurus with the centra of the higher Vertebrata.—G. B. 
Reconstruction of Phenacodus primzvus, the most Primi- 
tive Ungulate."—This paper was accompanied by the re-mounted 
skeleton of Phenacodus and a wax model executed by Charles Knight. 
As originally mounted in Professor Cope’s laboratory, the famous 
skeleton of Phenacodus primevus conveyed a very imperfect impres- 
sion of its actual form and proportions. Several serious errors were 
committed by the restorer, the most important of which was the im- 
planting of two of the cervical vertebra in the tail, The author, there- 
fore, considered it advisable to completely re-mount the animal, and 
this has been done by Mr. Adam Hermann and Mr, Martin, of the 
American Museum, at an expenditure of five months time. The animal 
is placed as nearly as possible in a natural position, It shows that the 
feet were not plantigrade, or soled upon the ground, but digitigrade, as 
in the tapir. The body is characterized by the great convexity of the 
back, characteristic of the Carnivora and of all the early ungulates. A 
further unguiculate feature is the great development of the hind quar- 
ters and of the tail. The disproportion between the hind and the fore 
quarters is heightened by the extremely small size of the head, contain- 
ing a brain which was about the size of that of the opossum, as fully 
described by Cope.—H. F. OSEORN. 
BOTANY. 
Observations on the Distribution of Plants Along Shore 
at Lake of the Woods.'—Professor MacMillan’s paper upon the 
vegetation of the shores at the Lake of the Woods is the most import- 
ant contribution to American phytogeography since the Metaspermse 
of the Minnesota Valley of the same author, In this paper, as in the 
latter work, the elements of the flora have been determined with almost 
13 Read before the British Association at Toronto 
1 MacMillan, Conway : Observations on the Distribution of Plants along Shore 
at Lake of the Woods. Minnesota Botanical Studies, I, 949, 1897. 
