788 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. XXI. No. 542. 



record for the genus and class for the District 

 of Columbia and the third for North America. 

 This was followed by remarks on the structure 

 of the tardigrades, their distribution and 

 classification. 



Although these animals have been shifted 

 about from place to place until they now are 

 regarded by most as Arthropoda, rather more 

 closely related to the Arachnida than any 

 other group, it was pointed out that such a 

 disposition of them is incorrect. Except in 

 number of appendages they show no resem- 

 blance to the Arachnida, nor can they be ap- 

 proximated to any other arthropodan group 

 unless it be the Onychophora. Their rela- 

 tionship with the latter, even, is very distant, 

 and in spite of the small number of species 

 the Tardigrada should stand by themselves as 

 a distinct class. It even may be necessary to 

 place them alone in a distinct phylum as the 

 supposed presence of segmented appendages in 

 the genus Lydella, and the general possession 

 of what are regarded as Malpighian glands 

 only entitles them to a position among the 

 Arthropoda. 



In the second paper Mr. Wilfred H. Osgood 

 discussed the characters and relationships of 

 an ' Extinct Rimiinant related to the Musk- 

 Ox.' A specimen of a nearly perfect skull 

 found in the Klondike gravels near Dawson, 

 Yukon Territory, appears to represent an 

 animal somewhat similar to the recent musk- 

 ox (Ovibos) but generically distinct from it. 

 It is evidently congeneric with Ovihos cavi- 

 frons of Leidy. The specimen, however, is 

 much more complete than the remains studied 

 by Leidy and presents many characters hither- 

 to unsuspected. The animal was apparently 

 larger than Ovibos; the general contour of 

 the head was very different; and the horns, 

 though directed downward, were more slender 

 at the base and more divergent at the tips. 

 The teeth were very large, even larger than 

 those of the American bison (Bison bison), 

 and were in fact more similar to those of the 

 bison than to those of the musk-ox or the 

 sheep. None of the characters suggest any 

 connection with the sheep, but some of them 

 might be taken to indicate relation to the 

 bison, oxen, etc. There are, however, reasons 



for supposing that the present musk-ox has 

 descended from an ancestor farther removed 

 than either the oxen or the sheep. 



That the extinct form bears an ancestral 

 relation to the recent musk-ox, there can be 

 little doubt. Interesting in this connection is 

 the fact that some of the characters in the 

 adult fossil form are found in the recent form 

 only before it has reached maturity. 



The third paper was by Dr. Barton W. 

 Evermann, on the ' Trout of the Kern River 

 Region.' This paper was illustrated by water- 

 colors, proofs (in color) and lantern slides. 

 Dr. Evermann said: 



The Kern River flows nearly due south 

 through a deep canyon with abrupt walls sev- 

 eral hundred feet high. The tributary streams 

 from the east as well as from the west flow 

 across the high mountain plateau in a rela- 

 tively gentle course, then drop in one or more 

 considerable falls from the high plateau to 

 the floor of the Kern canyon. These falls are 

 at present usually so great as to form impass- 

 able barriers to the ascent of fish, and as a 

 result many of the streams are wholly without 

 fish of any kind. But in others, as Volcano 

 Creek, Soda Creek, Coyote Creek and others, 

 trout found their way and subsequently the 

 falls became greater and the trout became 

 isolated. In this way, although originally 

 peopled from Kern River, each of many of 

 these smaller streams came to have in it a 

 colony of trout wholly segregated from all 

 other trout and in time the trout of each of 

 these streams became differentiated and now 

 can be readily distinguished from those of 

 other streams. Among those which are best 

 differentiated are those of Volcano Creek, 

 South Fork of Kern and Soda Creek. These 

 must be regarded as three distinct species, 

 only one of which has as yet been named. 



E. L. Morris, 

 Recording Secretary. 



THE CLEMSON COLLEGE SCIENCE CLUB. 



The fifty-second regular meeting was held 

 on February 17, at 8 p.m. Professor T. G. 

 Poats presented a paper on 'Radium and 

 Radioactive Substances ' which was exten- 

 sively illustrated by lantern slides, exhibition 



