WAYLAYING THE DAWN T HE most beautiful place which can be found on earth of a June morning is a New England pasture, and fortunate are we New Englanders who love the open in the fact that, whatever town or city may be our home, the old-time pastures lie still at our very doors. The way to the one that I know best lies through the yard of an old, old house, a yard that stands hospitably always open. It swings along by the ancient barn and turns a right angle by a worn-out field. Then you enter an old lane leading to what has been for more than a century a cow pasture. Here the close-cropped turf is like a lawn between the gray and mossy old stone fences that the farmer of a century and more gone grubbed from the rocky fields and made into metes and bounds....
With the present day zeal for popularising interest in common things (called nature study) there has arisen the demand for knowledge practically useful and thoroughly up-to-date, yet in a form free from much of the technical terminology and treatment which are essential in the student's more fully developed scientific handbook. The "House-fly" is a fit subject for a simplified study of this kind, and the present booklet is an attempt to afford information very different to that of the "popular" works, which only were accessible to the writer's hands between fifty and sixty years ago; the writers of those old books all followed the lead of the reverend and learned contributors to the famous and monumental "Bridgwater Treatises." "The Wonders of Nature explained," "Humble Creatures" (a study of the earth-worm and the house-fly, in popularised language), "The Treasury of Knowledge," "Simple Lessons for Home Use," were the kind of cheaper...
And why should it not be possible? I asked myself. The picture, divested of the ideas which accompany it, and considered only in its ultimate nature, is but a succession or variety of stronger lights thrown upon one part of the paper, and of deeper shadows on another. Now Light, where it exists, can exert an action, and, in certain circumstances, does exert one sufficient to cause changes in material bodies. Suppose, then, such an action could be exerted on the paper; and suppose the paper could be visibly changed by it. In that case surely some effect must result having a general resemblance to the cause which produced it: so that the variegated scene of light and shade might leave its image or impression behind, stronger or weaker on different parts of the paper according to the strength or weakness of the light which had acted there. Such was...
BY HENRY W. SETZER University of Kansas Publications Museum of Natural History Volume 1, No. 23, pp. 473-573, 27 figures in text, 7 tables December 27, 1949 University of Kansas LAWRENCE 1949 University of Kansas Publications, Museum of Natural History Editors: E. Raymond Hall , Chairman, A. Byron Leonard, Edward H. Taylor, Robert W. Wilson Volume 1, No. 23, pp. 473-573, 27 figures in text, 7 tables December 27, 1949 University of Kansas Lawrence, Kansas PRINTED BY FERD VOILAND, JR., STATE PRINTER TOPEKA, KANSAS 1949 22-6114 Subspeciation in the Kangaroo Rat, Dipodomys ordii By HENRY W. SETZER The geographic range of the kangaroo rats, genus Dipodomys , extends from southern Canada south to the southern limits of the Mexican Tableland and from the Pacific Coast east to the eastern limits of the Great Plains in Kansas, Oklahoma and Nebraska. These animals are usually restricted to sandy soils in semiarid regions....
Bill rather large and strong, with the ridge of the upper mandible curved gradually from the base to the point—ridge of the lower mandible curved upwards. Nostrils at the base of the bill, in rather a large membrane, and partially concealed by projecting feathers. Wings moderate, rather rounded, fourth, fifth and sixth primaries usually longest; secondaries long, exceeding some of the shorter primaries. Tail rather lengthened and rounded; tarsi robust, rather long; toes and claws strong. Head usually with a crest or with the frontal plumes erect and crest-like. Plumage of various colors, mostly with some part of greater or less extent, blue. Exclusively American. Type C. pileatus . (Wagler.) Form. Feathers of the head in front or at the base of the upper mandible, short, erect and rigid—other plumage of the head above somewhat elongated; wings rather short, with the fourth and fifth quills slightly longest; tail ample, and...
Preparation of a handbook of reptiles and amphibians by the junior author has led to a survey of the collections of these animals at Kansas State Teachers College in Emporia. Numerous locality records of interest and importance have been accumulated there through the efforts of the senior author and a number of his students, particularly Mr. Allen Downs. The more important records, including the first record for Kansas of Rana sylvatica , are reported here. We have not mentioned specimens that are from counties from which the University of Kansas Museum of Natural History already has specimens. Specimens examined by Smith are indicated by an asterisk; those identified by the late Dr. F. N. Blanchard are indicated by an encircled period (none of these specimens are now available). All other specimens here recorded have been examined either by the senior author or by Mr. Allen Downs, or by both. Specimen...
Books by Ernest Thompson Seton: Stories in This Book: THESE STORIES are true. Although I have left the strict line of historical truth in many places, the animals in this book were all real characters. They lived the lives I have depicted, and showed the stamp of heroism and personality more strongly by far than it has been in the power of my pen to tell. I believe that natural history has lost much by the vague general treatment that is so common. What satisfaction would be derived from a ten-page sketch of the habits and customs of Man? How much more profitable it would be to devote that space to the life of some one great man. This is the principle I have endeavored to apply to my animals. The real personality of the individual, and his view of life are my theme, rather than the ways of the...
If you consult encyclopedias and special works in reference to the early history of any one of the sciences,—astronomy, geology, geometry, physiology, logic, or political science, for example,—you will find strongly emphasized the part played by the Greeks in the development of organized knowledge. Great, indeed, as we shall see in the next chapter, are the contributions to the growth of science of this highly rational and speculative people. It must be conceded, also, that the influence on Western science of civilizations earlier than theirs has come to us, to a considerable extent at least, through the channels of Greek literature. Nevertheless, if you seek the very origins of the sciences, you will inevitably be drawn to the banks of the Nile, and to the valleys of the Tigris and the Euphrates. Here, in Egypt, in Assyria and Babylonia, dwelt from very remote times nations whose genius was practical and...
In his Manual of Psychology Dr Stout reminds us that "Human language is especially constructed to describe the mental states of human beings, and this means that it is especially constructed so as to mislead us when we attempt to describe the working of minds that differ in a great degree from the human." The use of the word "territory" in connection with the sexual life of birds is open to the danger which we are here asked to guard against, and I propose, therefore, before attempting to establish the theory on general grounds, to give some explanation of what the word is intended to represent and some account of the exact position that representation is supposed to occupy in the drama of bird life. The word is capable of much expansion. There cannot be territories without boundaries of some description; there cannot well be boundaries without disputes arising as...
Comments on the Taxonomy and Geographic Distribution of North American Microtines BY E. RAYMOND HALL and E. LENDELL COCKRUM In preparing maps showing the geographic distribution of North American microtines, conflicting statements in the literature and identifications that, if accepted, would result in improbable geographic ranges have led to the examination of pertinent specimens with the results given below. The studies here reported upon were aided by a contract between the Office of Naval Research, Department of the Navy, and the University of Kansas (Nr 161-791), by funds provided by the University of Kansas from its Research Appropriation, and by grants for out-of-state field work from the Kansas University Endowment Association. Grateful acknowledgment is made to persons in charge of the collections at each of the following institutions for permission to use the collections under their charge: Biological Surveys Collection, United States National Museum (herein abbreviated USBS); California Museum of...
by W. T. FERNIE, M.D. Author of "Botanical Outlines," etc_ Second Edition. "Medicine is mine; what herbs and Simples grow In fields and forests, all their powers I know." DRYDEN. Philadelphia: Boericke & Tafel. 1897. "Jamque aderat Phoebo ante alios dilectus lapis Iasides: acri quondam cui captus amore Ipse suas artes, sua munera, laetus Apollo Augurium, citharamque dabat, celeresque sagittas Ille ut depositi proferret fata clientis, Scire potestates herbarum, usumque medendi Maluit, et mutas agitare inglorius artes." VIRGIL, AEnid : Libr. xii. v. 391-8. "And now lapis had appeared, Blest leech! to Phoebus'-self endeared Beyond all men below; On whom the fond, indulgent God His augury had fain bestowed, His lyre-his sounding bow! But he, the further to prolong A fellow creature's span, The humbler art of Medicine chose, The knowledge of each plant that grows, Plying a craft not known to song, An unambitious man!" [vii] It may...
Five skins with skulls of Rhogeëssa , collected by J. R. Alcorn in the states of Sonora and Nayarit of western Mexico, were recently received at the Museum of Natural History of the University of Kansas. Two other specimens of the same genus, collected by Walter W. Dalquest in the state of Veracruz of eastern Mexico, also are in the Museum of Natural History. With the aim of applying names to these bats they were compared with materials in the United States National Museum (including the Biological Surveys collection) where there are approximately the same number of Mexican specimens of Rhogeëssa as are in the Museum of Natural History. The three kinds of Rhogeëssa named from Mexico are as follows: R. parvula from the Tres Marias Islands off the west coast of Nayarit; R. tumida from Mirador, Veracruz, on the eastern slope of the Republic; and R. gracilis from Piaxtla,...
The San Gabriel Mountains are approximately sixty-six miles long, and average twenty miles wide. The main axis of the range trends nearly east and west, and extends from longitude 117°25' to longitude 118°30'. The widest part of the range is bounded by latitude 34°7' and latitude 34°30'. The San Gabriel Mountains connect the Sierra Nevada with the Peninsular Ranges of southern California and Baja California. On the west the San Gabriels are bordered by the Tehachapi Mountains, which stretch northeastward to meet the southern Sierra Nevada; to the east, beyond Cajon Pass, the San Bernardino Mountains extend eastward and then curve southward to the broad San Gorgonio Pass, from which the San Jacinto Range stretches southeastward to merge with the Peninsular Ranges. The rocks comprising the major part of the San Gabriel Mountains probably were intruded in Late Jurassic times, with severe metamorphic activity taking place concurrently. A long period...
Cueva de San Josecito in the province of Aramberri, near the town on Aramberri, Nuevo León, México, is at an elevation of approximately 7400 feet above sea level on the east-facing slope of the Sierra Madre Occidental in a limestone scarp. The dominant vegetation about the cave is the decidedly boreal forest association of pine and live oak. Additional information concerning the cave is provided by Miller (1943:143-144). Animal remains recovered from San Josecito Cave are among the most important Pleistocene finds in México, and include the most extensive collection of Pleistocene geomyids. The vertebrate remains are probably late Pleistocene in age; certainly they are post-Blancan, since the genera Equus , Preptoceras , Smilodon , and Aenocyon (all Pleistocene genera) are present. According to Miller's ( loc. cit. :145) extensive report on the avifauna, the bird remains from the cave are a remarkable assemblage and beautifully preserved. Most of the...
“ ’Tis a quaint thought, and yet perchance, Sweet blossoms, ye have sprung From flowers that over Eden once Their pristine fragrance flung. ” “In the beginning God created the heaven and earth. And the earth was without form and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light!” There is no greater mystery than the mystery of creation. Nowhere is its story told more eloquently and more scientifically than in the opening words of Genesis. All the fruitage of centuries of research but reaffirms this ancient narrative. In the early days of this planet, when its crust was scarcely hardened from the molten state, there reigned what might be called the age of water. The entire surface of the globe was covered with a sea...
BY LORENZ OKEN, M.D. PROFESSOR OF NATURAL HISTORY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF ZÜRICH; &c. &c. FROM THE GERMAN ALFRED TULK, MEMBER OF THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF SURGEONS OF ENGLAND. LONDON: PRINTED FOR THE RAY SOCIETY. MDCCCXLVII. C. AND J. ADLARD, PRINTERS, BARTHOLOMEW CLOSE. "Of all truths relating to phenomena, the most valuable to us are those which relate to the order of their succession. On a knowledge of these is founded every reasonable anticipation of future facts, and whatever power we possess of influencing those facts to our advantage. Even the laws of geometry are chiefly of practical importance to us as being a portion of the premises from which the order of the succession of phenomena may be inferred." John Stuart Mill. Begun in the autumn of the year 1845, without the cognizance, or at the suggestion of a single human being, the present Translation is due to the...
Walking through the early October woods one day, I came upon a place where the ground was thickly strewn with very large unopened chestnut burrs. On examination I found that every burr had been cut square off with about an inch of the stem adhering, and not one had been left on the tree. It was not accident, then, but design. Whose design? A squirrel’s. The fruit was the finest I had ever seen in the woods, and some wise squirrel had marked it for his own. The burrs were ripe, and had just begun to divide. The squirrel that had taken all this pains had evidently reasoned with himself thus: “Now, these are extremely fine chestnuts, and I want them; if I wait till the burrs open on the tree, the crows and jays will be sure to carry off a great many of the nuts before they [p...
BY DAVID WILSON METHUEN & CO. LTD. 36 ESSEX STREET W.C. LONDON First Published in 1910 This book may be translated into any language without payment. The ideal hunter, like the ideal soldier or mountaineer, seaman or worker of any kind, “leaves nothing to chance”; yet in anticipating events he realises the limits of human foresight and remains continually wide-awake. Wellington has quoted Marshal Wrede’s report of Napoleon’s way of doing—to do from day to day what the circumstances require, but never have any general plan of campaign. That was how to rule circumstances by obeying them, as a seaman steering through the storm may be said to rule the waves. There are some occupations that allow more room for somnolence than others. Like the seaman afloat and the soldier in war, the man who is hunting big cats can ill afford to be caught napping. The consequences are apt...
LETTER FROM THE SECRETARY OF THE TREASURY, IN RESPONSE TO A resolution of the House of Representatives transmitting the observations and notes made during the cruise of the revenue-cutter Corwin in 1881. March 3, 1883. —Referred to the Committee on Commerce and ordered to be printed. Treasury Department , March 3, 1883. Sir : I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of resolution of the House, dated March 3, 1883, requesting that the Secretary of the Treasury furnish, as soon as convenient, to the Speaker of the House copies of documents in the possession of the Treasury Department containing observations on glaciation, birds, natural history, and the medical notes made upon cruises of revenue-cutters in the year 1881. In reply, I transmit herewith the observations on glaciation in the Arctic Ocean and the Alaska region, made by Mr. John Muir; notes upon the birds and natural history of Bering...
[This essay is taken from 'The Descent of Man and Selection in relation to Sex' by Charles Darwin where it appears at the end of Chapter VII which is also the end of Part I. Footnotes are numbered as they appear in 'The Descent of Man.'] The controversy respecting the nature and the extent of the differences in the structure of the brain in man and the apes, which arose some fifteen years ago, has not yet come to an end, though the subject matter of the dispute is, at present, totally different from what it was formerly. It was originally asserted and re-asserted, with singular pertinacity, that the brain of all the apes, even the highest, differs from that of man, in the absence of such conspicuous structures as the posterior lobes of the cerebral hemispheres, with the posterior cornu of the lateral ventricle and the hippocampus minor, contained...