At the end of the section is given a carefully revised list of the "affixes" or enclitic stems used in forming the compounds which to so great an extent replace the sentences of other languages. This list some 200 in all-is based on the second part of Kleinschmidt's "Grønlandske Ordbog," but contains, in addition, references to such of these affixes as have been found in the other dialects. The difficulty of recognizing these affixes in the peculiar forms which they assume in the other dialects is well shown in the case of the Point Barrow dialect. Dr. Rink, working with the somewhat crude vocabulary published in Lieutenant Ray's report, finds only to affixes corresponding with those in Greenlandic, while the present writer, working with the material on which that vocabulary is based, has detected at least 90 affixes, of which 70 can be identified with the Greenlandic with reasonable certainty; 5 are doubtful, while the remainder appear unknown in Greenland.

The third and last section of the book is a "Comparative list of the stem-words, or independent stems of the Eskimos dialects, with examples of their derivatives." This comprises all the stems given in the "Grønlandske Ordbog," showing also how they have been recognized in the other dialects and inserting in their proper places the stems found in the other dialects which do not appear in Greenlandic. It is perhaps the most important section of the book, and has been prepared with very great care.

The comparison between the Greenlandic and the dialects of Labrador and the Central Region, which are represented by ample vo cabularies, is very full and complete. That, with the Mackenzie dialect, based on Petitot's "Vocabulaire Français-Esquimau," is less complete, while for the western dialects the material is comparatively scanty, though the vocabularies collected cover a large extent of country. The most extensive of these is that already referred to as published by Lieut. Ray (Report U. S. Expedition to Point Barrow, pp. 51-60). This vocabulary, though quite large-I have been able to recognize in it at least 550 "radicals" or stemwords-is somewhat crude, having been hastily transliterated to a uniform method of spelling from the rough notes of the collectors soon after the return of the expedition. The fact that Dr. Rink was obliged to use the material in this shape has caused him to overlook at least 100 radicals corresponding to the Greenlandic, in addition to those he mentions. A misunderstanding of the use of diacritical marks in writing this vocabulary has also led him in

many cases to represent it as worse than it really is. This is especially the case with the letter û, which really corresponds quite well with the obscure a or e of Greenlandic, but when represented by u, as it is in nearly every instance, it makes the words appear less alike than they really are.

One or two words have been given a place in the list which are really not Eskimo radicals. For instance, "enakotina," quoted from Ray's vocabulary as a North Alaskan word for "red Indian," is really but an Eskimo corruption of the name of a certain tribe in the Tinné language ("Unakhotana" of Dall). The two words. quinuk (kuinya, Pt. Bar.) and quviaq (=kubra, Pt. Bar.), meaning respectively "pipe" and "net," and marked as peculiar to the North Alaskan and Mackenzie dialects, are really Siberian. From a study of the distribution of the peculiar western tobacco-pipe and of the seal-net I had convinced myself that both these inventions were of Siberian origin. I was consequently much gratified at finding these names, which I was unable to identify with any of the known Greenlandic radicals, in Nordqvist's "Tschuktschisk Ordlista" (Vega-Expeditionens Vetenskaplig. Iakttag. i, pp. 373399).

As a whole the vocabulary is remarkably free from inaccuracies, and is admirably fitted to serve as the starting point for future linguistic work. It especially serves the purpose of bringing to our attention the remarkable similarity in the languages spoken throughout such a great extent of country. We may well hope that Dr. Rink may be able to complete the work, which no one else is so capable of doing, by working out the differences between these dialects, so as, if possible, to demonstrate the law that governs these variations.

The book is written in English for the express purpose, as the author states in his preface, of rendering it more accessible to his somewhat limited circle of readers, perhaps the majority of whom are English-speaking people. It is fortunate that he has done so, as the book in its English form cannot fail to attract and interest others outside of the small body of actual workers in the narrow field of Eskimo ethnology.

GAMES OF SENECA INDIANS.

The Seneca Nation of New York Indians had a delegation in Washington in February in reference to intrusions on their reservation in Cattaraugus county. While they were here the writer had a conversation with Andrew John, Jr., a bright and influential member of that tribe. He says that they are skillful silversmiths and many ornaments are yet to be found among them, such as armlets, brooches, earrings, &c., made usually of hammered coin. Some of the Indians slit the outer rim of the ear and on great days pass a thin band of silver around the separated portion spirally and place in it, in an upright position, the feather of an eagle or some bird that lives, they pretend, among the clounds, and only lights on top of a high mountain.

The game of Kow-a-sa or snow snake, the national game of the Iroquois it may be called, is still played. A straight, well-beaten road is now usually chosen, though sometimes it is played in the open, as formerly. The "snakes" are brought out, to the great glee of the boys, whose ears are on the alert, when some one says, dan-diwa-sa-ye, "let's play snow snake," because they have the honor to run and bring back for the throwers. The snake is a thin rounded strip of hard wood from seven to ten feet long and one and one-half inches wide at most, made very smooth, shod at the forward end with a pewter nose-piece and not curved upward, Mr. John says. It is balanced on the left hand and held by the tail in the right hand, the fingers being beneath and the thumb above. Holding it thus the player runs three or four rods, and just before he throws he jumps. The stick skips away over the snow like an arrow, or perhaps one could better say like a snake. The skill in the game is in delivering the snake at the best slant, so that none of the original impetus given by the powerful right arm is lost.

The game is usually of "four snakes," that is, the best three throws in four.

When skillful throwers contend, the excitement is very great among the Indians and there is much betting, sometimes for high stakes; in fact, the game is for betting purposes entirely.

Mr. John presented some specimens of silver work to the Museum, and promises to send a snow snake, specimens of which are rare. It is said that even the Iroquois Historical Museum of New York does not possess one.

W. HOUGH.

DISCONTINUITIES IN NATURE'S METHODS.

BY HENRY H. BATES.

The ingenious analogy drawn by Mr. Babbage, in the ninth Bridgewater treatise, from the operations of his calculating machine, to enforce an argument in favor of the conceivability of miracle, by bringing it under the domain of law, has far more of pertinency to illustrate some of the methods of evolution. Discontinuities in the cosmical world are termed catastrophic, and no one doubts that they occur, or that they are under the dominion of law. As not within my present theme I pass over these, as well as that great discontinuity involved in the passage from the inorganic to the organic kingdom, which we also infer to have taken place under operations of law, not yet fully understood; also such apparent discontinuities as the passage from invertebrate to vertebrate life, or from implacental to placental life; with the observation that whenever nature seems to have carried specialization to its fullest extent, and to have exhausted the possibilities by mere differentiation on a certain plan, as of molluscan structure, for example, in its highest type the cuttle-fish, or of articulate structure in the honey-bee, she is found to have laid the foundation for a new differentiation, and a new specialization, with higher possibilities, from a different stem low down in the scale, constituting in its results an apparent discontinuity, on account of the obscurity, and feebleness, and instability of the first unspecialized departures, by which they have been mostly either unobserved or early obliterated through the operation of competition.

Passing over the wide domain of biology, which affords so many instances of this complexity of natural action, illustrations of the same law may be found in the domain of anthropology. The advent of Man, and his means of advancement, afford such examples. The development of the inventive faculty, as the distinguishing characteristic of mind, caused a modification of the old plan of progress by selective extermination, as has been pointed out by Mr. Ward. Instead of being himself modified by nature, as hitherto, man began to act upon nature, both organic and inorganic, as a

modifier. Henceforth, natural selection affected only mental and ethnic qualities, through modification of his nervous structure. Instead of developing specialized organs, he began to construct extraneous ones for his use, having arrived at the specialized hand, by which such a new departure became possible. The discontinuity which especially characterizes man's development after this stage is this mental in place of physical evolution, coupled with evolution by extraneous organs, as it is my object to point out.

To illustrate. The lower animals exhibit constructive faculties in some instances comparable to those of man. Take the beaver for instance. As a natural builder and engineer his judgment and skill are excellent and wonderful. But the development of these faculties in him resulted only in the modification of his physical structure, by the old and slow process of natural selection. He developed cutting tools at one end and a trowel at the other, and the limit of progress was attained. The feline carnivora, type of the militant principle, evolved highly efficient weapons at all extremities, and the lion became the king of beasts. He could not be defeated or excelled in his own line of evolution. The social insects display marvelous faculties for industrial organization, but they have not developed into tool-using animals. They even modify nature to their advantage, as does the beaver, but it is to an infinitesimal degree only. Nature has signally modified them, for caste purposes, by the old principle of natural selection, and they did not reach a stage of development where they could turn the tables and assume control of nature's blind forces. Not only in respect of size, but plan of structure, they became too highly specialized low down in the series.

For man, however, there was a long, unobtrusive preparation. Fostered by a mild climate, abundant food, and an arboreal retreat, with social and inquisitive instincts, the germs of many faculties were simultaneously founded, in a physique of efficient bulk and considerable longevity, without which no high individual development is possible. The cause of the first human differentiations is of course veiled in obscurity, as is the whole subject of variation. Among efficient causes recognized are secular changes of environment, extensive migrations from old habitats into new conditions, and the stress of failure of the customary sources of food supply. Essential variation of species, like the birth of genius, may rise to