1893.] Proceedings of Scientific Societies. 311 
of the surrounding region. Specimens of insects were exhibited, belong- 
ing to three divisions of the fauna, and many photographs and 
views of the cañon region were shown. 
(No 2.) “ Exhaustion and renewal of soils,’ by Professor Arthur 
Goss. He first described soils chemically, and told where they obtain 
their various constituents. He next divided the productive existence 
of a soil into three periods—1. The pioneer period. 2. The period 
when soiling crops are necessary. 3. The fertilizer period. The 
desired thing in fertilizers is the element or compound which has been 
taken from the soil. The best way to find this is not by chemical 
analysis of the soil, but by judicious experimentation, 
(No. 3.) Professor C. T. Hagerty read a paper entitled “ Computa- 
tion of the Comparative strength of Insects and the Higher Animals.” 
He proved conclusively that the higher animals are much stronger 
than insects in proportion to their size, and readily accounted for the 
apparent superior strength of the latter. In the course of his remarks 
he referred to a computation on the comparative strength of the honey- 
bee and horse, made by Miall and Denny in a work entitled “ The 
Cockroach ” (page 82, edition of 1886), and pointed out an error in 
their computation. They state that the relative muscular force of the 
horse is more than fourteen times as great in comparison with that of 
the bee as it would be if the muscles of both animals were similar in 
kind and the proportions of the two similar in all respects, and he 
showed that according to their own method of solution, it would be 3.08 
instead of 14. Quite a number of specimens of the insect fauna of 
Grand Cañon and the San Francisco Mountains of Arizona were 
exhibited by Professor Townsend, besides some photographs taken 
during the trip. ; 
Dec. 1, 1892.—(No. 1.) Professor Townsend read a paper entitled 
“ Notes on the occurrence of the puma (Felis concolor L.) in Southern 
New Mexico.” The animal was reported on good authority as toler- 
ably common in the Organ Mountains, and still more so farther east on 
the Pefiasco River in Lincoln County. It has killed colts in Soledad 
Cañon (Organ Mts.). Measurements of some large skins are given, 
one of more than eleven feet being vouched for on good authority. 
(No. 2.) Notes on the Ferns of the Organ Mountains, by Professor 
E. O. Wooton, following the distribution zones of ferns as advanced 
by Dr. Underwood in “Our Native Ferns and Their Allies” (pages 
61-65, edition of 1888), he enumerated the various species and genera 
which had been collected on several trips to the mountains without any 
_ idea of such paper in view. Whole number of Genera collected, 7; 
