Miscellanea 471 
The idea of using a scale at a variable inclination is such a simple one, that it scarcely seems 
possible it can be novel, though new to me. Many ideas of considerable antiquity, e.g. "Gunter's 
Lines," come extremely close to it. The advantage, however, of the inclined scale, used direct on 
the drawing board, over the Gunter's lines (scales divided on lines passing through the pivot of 
the carpenter's rule), is very considerable in point of time, the use of dividers being avoided 
altogether. 
Fig. 2. 
V. Albinism in Sicily — A Correction. 
The abstract of Biometrika, Vol. iii. Pt. i. contains this passage : " W. F. R. Weldon shows 
that the data from Sicily provided by Arcoleo are not in accordance with Mendelianism nor with 
the theory of gametic purity." These words fairly give the purport of the article appearing at 
p. 107 of that number, over Professor Weldon's initials. 
On looking into the matter I find that the more serious of the two considerations Professor 
Weldon adduces, namely, the production of two pigmented children as well as three albinos by 
two albino parents, rests on a mistake. His acquaintance with Arcoleo's work is derived from 
Archivio per V Antropologia, I. 1871, but he apparently failed to notice that this was not an 
original communication. The original, from which the Archivio copied a part only, appears in 
Gazeta Clinica dello Spedale Civico di Paleimo, F. ir. (1871). Here Arcoleo states explicitly that 
he never met with any case of an albino child being born to an albino parent. The following 
passages give his words*. 
"Passando all' albinismo della specie umana, si chiede : h anch' esso ereditario? Per dii-si 
ereditario un vizio o un morbo, bisogna che si ripeta nei discendenti nel modo onde esiste negli 
ascendenti. Eppure in 24 famiglie da me esaminate, in nessuna e preesistito un esempio di tal 
genere, \^h nei 24 figli procreati dai cinque albini coniugati ve ne ha uno solo che richiami il tipo 
albino del padre o della madre. Parrebbe adunque che 1' albinismo nella specie umana non fosse 
afiatto ereditario, &c." 
* Pp. 12 — 13 of repiiut. 1 cauuot give the oiigiual pagination. 
