New-York tribune., 1872-08-27

hands OF tie General Government, and Congress- should
were fhorou sh and naps were fully representative OF
asoertaned facts, pilot would soaroey DC nsoessaIS
Siiy in had weather The worst rocks have generally
been discovered by the misfortune OF strklhg upon
them Under such circumstances the pilot becomes
more accurate than the plummes OF the Coast
Survey This was curiously illustrated, by Instances
vey and asxed TO have a pummet dropped at spot
apparently out at sea with nothing TO guide H. ana tno
Surveying parties have found this strange instructive
knowledge Of the pilot fixed the very spot OF DANGER
sunken rock which could never pave Deen ionu S
otherwise. The pilots discovered that by putting uow
every rock that they knew Of they made maps tnn'
frightened the captains OF vessels into employ i
Hence these practical observers have added Immensely
TO the number OF facts accumulated by the Coast
Prof Pierce explained why he considered IL ,ba
sary to carry out az present SO ar coast The
needs of the OF the coast is the sI s ook
which n9 % WORK SI s tSa te Hsssor expedition
the expense Of private individuals ESgrnment
ton and was not at the Of the coast survey
by the determination OF fixed points Ior sno General
terror topographcal ana gS0ogS eced in these o6serva
tions so that the whole United Stales WIZ oveptnaly
them; and the points WIN DC ley tsaSn cS the whole
contnent passing through eacm S'to toke " Century
~ ~, ,r t Prof Pierce that this survey Will not
only be the best in the world but that lts ues & &
such that before long there N S Da1 DT % everywhere AS
TO the higher operations OF the Coast o9Iiey not t
mate expression will be an accurate rS e a epsod
w O1T is NOT vet actually known 1t is one of an
infinite number of possible figures eaCn hear an no da
sold of revolution This question may utlaVeS Do o
termined by observations ON TINS cOnIinent'
tions here are more sucoessu anu Yf thora are some
such local irregularities herenotaDV one near %
where there is some strange deVaton oI uenSiS "oo
the surrounding country. . ,, -.
Prof g. w. Hough, Director OF the Dudley oDserVa1
tow road a paper on RefractiOn Tables, modified
eOI{ from Bessels formula to be used without
logarthms, computed with the Sehentz IaDulallng En-
ene These tables are ior the use OF pIac'ga %
which was used for making the computations Is oWneu
by the Dudley Observatory ana Is tne & Gy ny @ 8e aS m D
l. e. in the Registrars General once London Inc ma, ma
chine WI enonds and Print the result at the
same time Specimens of macbine-printlng were shown
oo comnntation at least one half OF what is
Quired by the tables In general use
A NEW SPECIES FOSSIL ELEPHANT.
Prof. J. W. Foster of Chicago, in introducing to the
Convention the new species Of fossil elephant which he
calls the Elephas MsssSippesis, said it well known
to the American comparative anatomst that while the
osteologv of the mastodon in almost every stage OF
rovvtb ia pre4tv thoroughly understood, many OF our
museums being enriched with nearly perfect skeetohs,
our knowledge Of the Osteoogy OF the fossil eephans rs
extremely restricted Thus far In the United States only
detached portions Of his skeleton have been met WILL
and those are often abraded as II by running wafer fo
the most part too, they are found in gravel PiS sr ag
therefore under conditions uaYOraDie 10 tnctd - ore
preservation. While the skeletons OF the a
found principally in peat swamps and almost ehIIo ~
though the animal had died on the spot wheIe & hls
remains are found entOmbed and therefore unuer qc
condons those OF elephants are chiefly dsc9yereu
in detrlta deposits and In the form OF dtee % t
though after death and dissolution the detached Sg
ments had been Oated by currents more or less tu
lent to their present place Of sepulture we nave, S
true succeeded in recovering the ribs the cerVlca uO
sal and lumbar vertebre the scapula claylce teu, h,
phaianges etc. together with the tusks ana teesn D
NOT the Uranium, except in fragmenary oondluionu
which night If complete so far toward IN h
specific differences We are on ne tnskS and
teeth and these present VIDE III C1S
Species our conclusions are arrived at with hesitation
In communication to this Association in 1856, DR..
Foster has set forth his views respecting the range OF
age of the deposits in which the remains are found He
is only inclined to modify those opinions 80 Iar a.
the great pachyderms. Hitherto there has been recog
nzed but one SPECIES Oh SepIa % on aOIs 'S Of
the Post Phocene epoch nearly alhed 10 the beph1S
PimtgeniS of Europe and Siberia and described by Dc
KAY as ElephGs Anlercanus. Prof. Owen declines TO
accept the alleged distinctions between the species, ana
regards them as Identical Dr. Foster is inclined in
General terms to admit the correctness of this
view regarding the differences as In some
Measure e consequences of isolation between members
of The same species upon European and American shores,
though having common ancestry, The dlnerences IN
tbes from northern latitudes and the African types
differ most from those of Central and south America
| The megatherum, megaonyx, mylodon, and gryptodon
| nj tbe Western Hemisphere had congeners in the
Eastern Continents the mas0dOns OF the two great
divisions are specifically distinct The range OF the
mastodOn seems TO have been restricted TO the Tenn
perate Zone while the elephant appears to nave been
only limited by the borders OF the Arctic Sea- hence we
might expect less conformity III the species making
| the latter family OF pachyderms.
fossil tooth then presented by DIT Foster 70 the
Association which he regarded differing specifically
from that OF any other fossil elephant hitherto observed
snecmen was found in Indiana and placed in DR.. Fos
ters hands by Mr. John COlett, gentleman OF note in
geological investigations. careful analysis OF the
Doints wherein this specimen differed from all others
was then given. 1t shown that not only was this
tooth admirably adapted to the threeold WORK OF crush
inc grinding and riturating the food II passed. In the
various stages of mascation, through the mouth, but
there seemed to be high ridges OF enamel and deep val
eys of cement in it which lent peculiar efficiency to its
wor-the arrangement of the teeth and Jaws being Ike
curously devised hopper with an upper and neither
millstOne which the coarsest hbrous materials could
be reduced TO pupy mass The chaIacterstGs OF Ihe
teeth Of all known species OF eephahts FOSSIL or sur
| yiying, were then brought into comparison with
the tooth in question: ana tranSSeLse S-od SSecuOn
Except as TO size they as unlike In shape as fun
mel is TO barrel The differences were hed to be sur
cent TO constitute the species OF EIephGS AissSp
penSis whose hight did not probably exceed SIX 1eeti
being dipunitive IN comparison Win the gigantic
EIephGs Prim0entus but nevertheless equally nanl-
NAL the Post Pocene epOeh deserving OF tne closest
study by American pal9OntoOgsts. The specimen was
found Terre Haute, Indiana The drawings on the
blackboard to illustrate this subject were made Dy tne
sllfu hand Of Prof Morse but as he drew them upon
the back Of the board which was subsequently reversed
swinging upon pyots so as 10 race the AUDIENCE ne was
In discussion which followed this fact was alluded TO-
and the drawings criticised Prof Morse stated tbat IN
head With this explanation the dsputants expressed
| themselves satisfied
| THE GLACIAL DEPOSITS OF NORTHERN oHlo
Prof. John E. Perry delivered few remarks upon the
glacial deposits Of Northern Ohio He remarked that he
had been 80 situated that he has had good opportunity
to study this subject The lakes bordering Ohio make 1T
favorable site for such investigation He has examined
all the evidence he could get in connection with the in
YesffRaon Of the elevation theories On the seaboard
no such elevation is found TO be needfu and study has
satisfied him that the is true OF Ohio The valley
OF the Hudson is example Suppose an ice sheet 70
have swept over that valley southwardy, it would have
| t0 SCOOP out the rocks entering the sea to
| ffnd an escape. Assuming that to be true,
there is no reason why such masses OF moving Ice
houd not gouge out those valleys lower than the pres
ant level of the ocean The basin between the Rocky
and Allegheny Mountains could have been found by the
moving mass of ice southwark. without an elevation
Gunnose a body or water snow fall upon plain, II
viii iow off III IL be CONCEALED mass OF course II will
move slowly II there should be slight incline the mo.
fion Tould be percept1Dle Perpetual Ice ~Oud