932 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. XXI. No. 54G. 



valley of Mexico may correspond with the 

 large skull in the National Museum. Of 

 great interest is the skull of a very large true 

 cat, puma-like, found in the excavations of the 

 Grand Canal. 



From the Pleistocene near Zumbango, state 

 of Mexico, remains of a large undescrihed 

 bear have been found. Here also is the type 

 of Ghjptodon mexicanus. A complete shield 

 of the same animal is reported to be in the 

 collection of the school of mines. In the 

 same collection is found a fine specimen of 

 Bison latifrons and remains of fossil horses. 



The gravigrade sloths are represented by 

 teeth from Tequixquiac. 



From the state of Chihuahua, northern 

 Mexico, are remains of Upper Pliocene or 

 Pleistocene horses and llamas. Fossils are, 

 however, most abundant in the Lower Pleisto- 

 cene of Puebla near the city of Puebla in the 

 village of Totemehuacan. A fine collection 

 from this locality was lost by fire while on its 

 way to the United States for study. An older 

 horizon is also represented here. The masto- 

 dons were very widely distributed, teeth com- 

 ing from Hidalgo, from the valley of Toluca, 

 from Teul in the state of Zacatecas. Abun- 

 dant elephant teeth are also reported by Mr. 

 C. "\V. Beebe from the Lower Pleistocene, near 

 Guadalajara. 



In 1903 the Mexican government made pro- 

 vision for the increase of the staff of the 

 Geological Institute which had been created 

 by congress in 1888. The staff now includes 

 the director. Dr. Jose G. Aguilera, an assist- 

 ant director, six geologists, three assistant 

 geologists, one chemist and assistant, three 

 topographers. The director is now giving his 

 most active attention not only to the actual 

 field work of the survey, but to the extension 

 of the library and to the arrangement of the 

 collections, in preparation for the visit of the 

 International Geological Congress. 



H. F. O. 



MVHFAJM PUBLICATIOXS. 

 The Annual Report of the Director of the 

 Field Columbian Museum for 1903-1904 

 chronicles the steady growth of this great 

 museum and emphasizes the necessitj- for 



having its collections transferred to perma- 

 nent quarters as soon as possible. 



This museum probably has the largest and 

 best display of botanical material of any insti- 

 tution in the United States, and judging from 

 the plates the specimens are very well exhib- 

 ited. The collections illustrating mineralogy 

 and economic geology are also large, well dis- 

 played and well labeled. But when it is stated 

 that 500 labels were needed to complete the 

 labeling of the gold and silver ores alone, it 

 leads one to ask if there may not be such a 

 thing as displaying too many specimens. We 

 have all heard of the man who could not see 

 the forest for the trees, and there is danger 

 that the museum visitor may fail to grasp a 

 few general and important facts on account of 

 the number of details. The modern tendency 

 of museums is to lessen the amount of ma- 

 terial on exhibition and to increase its educa- 

 tional value, and there is no doubt that a 

 small number of specimens well displayed and 

 well labeled are more effective than a multi- 

 tude of objects. 



The list of Museum Publications is a strong 

 one and the two volumes of Elliot's ' Land and 

 Sea Mammals of Middle America and the 

 West Indies ' were most acceptable. Zoologists 

 may not agree with Mr. Elliot in all his con- 

 clusions, but it remains to be said that no one 

 but he has had the courage to attempt the 

 task of bringing together and systematizing 

 the present knowledge of the mammalian 

 fauna of North America. 



The Prize Essay Contest, published by the 

 Carnegie Museum, forms a pamphlet of 68 

 pages, containing the addresses delivered on 

 the occasion of awarding the prizes, with lists 

 of the prize winners and contestants; although 

 the essays themselves are not printed as has 

 heretofore been the case. 



Undoubtedly these contests do much, to 

 bring children to the museum, but it is a little 

 questionable if they do not think more of the 

 possibility of winning a prize than of the ob- 

 jects in the collections, and it would be inter- 

 esting to know how many go again. 



It is surely a good thing to induce the public 

 to visit a museum, but might not the ma- 

 chinery of the Prize Essay Contest have 



