1891.] Cup-Stones Near Old Fort Ransom. 461 
elusive and ever unapproachable ancient faiths—the Tree, Ser- 
pent, Phallic, Fire, Sun, and Ancestor worships—and delight in 
the search for analogies concerning them. As regards the cup- 
and ring-markings, he himself adopts the phallic theory for their 
origin. His little book, however, admirably fulfills the promise of 
its title, for it not only includ t that prior writers collected, but 
gives interesting facts not accessible or not discovered when Pro- 
fessor Rau wrote. The most striking piece of new information is 
concerning the cup- and ring-markings on the rocks in the envi- 
rons of Ilkley, Yorkshire,—a new locality. Here the cups have 
been counted into the hundreds in all; many of them are con- 
nected by grooves. 
As regards America, all that this new author finds—and prob- 
ably all there is to find—are two articles in the AMERICAN NAT- 
URALIST. The first one is contained in the number for December, 
1884, and is entitled “ Rock Inscriptions in Brazil,” by J. C. Bran- 
ner. The author does not use the word cups at all, nor do his 
diagrams show any; he only mentions in his text certain “ points 
or indentations,” often arranged in parallel vertical lines, and por- 
trays them in the drawings, where also single circles are shown,— 
mostly provided with a central point. He found, however, “ mor- 
tars ” scooped out on the rocks by the river. The other article 
appears in the number for July, 1885, under the heading of 
“ Ancient Rock Inscriptions on the Lake of the Woods,” by A. 
C. Lawson. Neither does this writer mention cups, but his illus-. 
trations show concentric circles which have the usual central dot, 
Tupelo, Mississippi, February 11th, IQI. 
_ Am. Nat.—May.—4. 
