662 
[October, 
Analyses of Books . 
down a solid foundation for the chemistry of the carbon com- 
pounds, and we warmly recommend their work to the scientific 
world. 
Bulletin of the Philosophical Society of Washington . Vols. I., 
II., and III. 
We have here the proceedings of a learned society founded in 
1871, and extending from that date down to June 19th of the 
present year. The papers read are naturally of a very mixed 
nature. Some which, judging from their titles, must be exceed- 
ingly interesting are merely mentioned, — e.g., one on the 
“ Origin of the Chemical Elements,” by Mr. L. F. Ward. 
Others, on the contrary, which, whatever their value, seem to us 
more suitable for a Chamber of Commerce than for a Philo- 
sophical Society, are inserted in full, and occupy a very large 
share of space. . n , „ _ 
We may mention a memoir, very briefly given, on the Geo- 
graphical Distribution of Mammals,” by Mr. T. N. Gill. The 
author concludes that at a remote epoch Australia, South Ame- 
rica, and Africa had been colonised from one common source, 
and'might be grouped into the division Eogaea, contrasted with 
the rest of the world, named Pleiogaea. Of the Eogaean regions 
Africa has received the greatest number of intrusive elements. 
The Glacial epoch and its causes appear to have been the 
subject of frequent discussion. 
The paper “ Common Errors respedting the North American 
Indians,” by Mr. Mallery, contains much interesting matter for 
the consideration of ethnologists. It retains and consecrates, 
however, the greatest error — the application of the term 
“ Indians ” to the aborigines of the Western continent. 
The following extradl from the opinions of the late Professor 
Joseph Henry, the first President of the Society, deserves quota- 
tion : “ When, from the likeness between the Infinite Mind and 
the finite minds made in His image, it was sought by a priori 
logic or by any preconceived notions of man to infer the methods 
of the Divine working, or the final causes of things, he sus- 
pected at once the intrusive presence of a false as well as 
presumptuous philosophism, and declined to yield his mind an 
easy prey to its blandishments. To his eyes much of the free- 
and-easy teleology with which an under-wise and not over- 
reverent sciolism is wont to interpret the Divine counsels and 
judgments seemed little better than a Brocken phantom.” 
