422 



SCIENCE. 



[Vol. V., No. 120. 



phia academy, consists of a broken cranium, 

 some fragments of antlers, and two metacar- 

 pals. Assuming the correctness of this iden- 

 tification, a very short examination of the 

 Princeton skeleton suffices to show that the 

 species in question is most distinctly not a 

 Cervus at all, but is much more like an Alces. 

 It is, however, sufficiently different from the 

 last-named form to necessitate the formation 

 of a new genus for its reception. For this I 

 have proposed the name Cervalces, which 

 serves to indicate its relationship. The spe- 

 cific name given hj Harlan must, of course, be 

 retained, so that the full name will be Cerval- 

 ces americanus. 



HEAD OF CERVALCES FROM THE FRONT, REDUCED 1-25. 



Cervalces was a ver} r large animal, with large 

 head, short neck and trunk, and exceedingly 

 long legs (much longer than in the great Irish 

 deer). The antlers are palmated, though far 

 less so than in the moose, as in that form the} T 

 have horizontal beams, no brow- antlers, and a 

 dichotomous division of the tines ; but they do 

 possess, as the moose-antler does not, a bezant- 

 ler, and a posterior tine given off from the beam 

 opposite to it. These processes occur in the 

 antlers of Dama (the fallow deer) and Mega- 

 ceros (the extinct Irish deer). In Cervalces 

 the two tines named are connected b} T a flaring 

 process of bone, which descends below the level 

 of the eye, and present a most peculiar type 

 of antler, altogether different from any thing 

 known in any member of the deer tribe. 



The nasal bones are much longer, and the 

 nostrils much smaller, than in the moose, 

 showing that there was no such proboscis-like 

 snout as in that animal. The premaxillae are 

 shaped as in the stag, and join the nasals. 

 The skull is broader and shorter than in the 

 moose, and iamany respects like that of the true 

 deer. There are also cervine features in many 

 parts of the skeleton, together with peculiar 

 characters. Cervalces agrees with the moose, 



and differs from the stags, in having the lower 

 ends of the lateral metacarpals present (Tele- 

 metacarpalia of Brooke) . 



Altogether, the fossil gives us much welcome 

 light on the obscure relationships of the moose 

 to the other members of the deer family, show- 

 ing that that curious form was derived from a 

 type veiy like Cervus, but having the lateral 

 metacarpals complete throughout. Cervalces is 

 not one of the steps of direct descent, but it 

 shows what that descent must have been. 



It is certainly a very remarkable fact that an 

 animal which in quaternary times was proba- 

 bly most abundant in this country should be 

 represented in the collections by only two 

 specimens. The superb specimen at Princeton 

 is practically a perfect skeleton ; for, except 

 two or three caudal vertebrae, the few missing 

 bones are represented by their fellows of the 

 opposite side. The skeleton has been most 

 skilfully restored and mounted by Curator F. 

 C. Hill. A full description, with plates, will 

 shortly appear in the Proceedings of the Phila- 

 delphia academy. W. B. Scott. 



(reological museum, Princeton, N.J. 



GEOGRAPHICAL NEWS. 



Kev. William E. Fay of the west central African 

 mission contributes three small maps of the route be- 

 tween Benguela and Bihe to the Missionary herald. 

 The trail was surveyed with a prismatic compass, 

 the distances determined by the pedometer, and alti- 

 tudes along the line checked by observations for the 

 boiling-point. The route was passed over four times ; 

 and the maps, while confessedly approximations only, 

 form a distinct advance over the reconnoissance made, 

 by Cameron, which, up to the present time, has been 

 the only authority for this region. The new sketches 

 coveran area about sixty miles wide north and south, 

 and extending some four degrees in longitude. The 

 changes of scenery between Benguela and the inte- 

 rior are numerous and striking. First, the route 

 passes along the level sands of the coast, under a 

 tropical sun. From Catumbella it strikes inland, 

 ascending the highlands at once, and traversing a 

 rocky desert which separates the coast from the fer- 

 tile lands beyond, rich in tropical verdure. Still 

 ascending, the well-remembered features of the tem- 

 perate zone are seen on every side. Descending, at 

 the eastern foot of the range are the first human 

 habitations. About one hundred miles from the 

 coast, the Bailombo Kiver, in wet seasons, is spanned 

 by a native bridge, whose builders take toll, as in 

 more civilized lands. The mission village lies in 

 about east longitude 16°, and south latitude 12° 15', 

 south-east from the ombola of Kwikwi, ruler of the 

 Bailundu region. This is a broad and beautiful val- 

 ley, densely populated, and lying eastward from a 



