New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1881-08-20
SCIENCE IN AMERICA.
WORK DONE BY THE ASSOCIATION.

WYNN DUNE by HE ASSOCIATION.
PROTEST AGAINST THE BEsrowAL OLA DEGREE
INDIAN TABLETS DECIPHERED-GEsrURE SIGNS
THE QUALITY OF AMERICAN WINES.
CINCINNATI Aug. 19.--ln the general session
OF the American Association for the Advancement of
Science today the following resolution was submitted
from subcommittee and adopted:
Whereas, Many colleges in the United States in recent
years have conferred the degree Doctor of Phosophy
ho6 by eNamination but honOris oauSa:
American Pathological Assocatom in deprecs Mn t tns
re OF the degree from the class to which belongs
ferred after examination and its transfer to the honor
Resotred That committee of 1--WE including the pres
e1 % tne , hssocauon De appointed by the chair
ca ASSOCIATION in addressing memorial! Boards
cred 10 confer degrees stating the ohections IN cor
ring the degree of PHI D., Eonors camsa and prayipc
leges under their control ' -" '"' 'o'
The first paper by Major William s. Beebe OF
broohyn ON The decpheTment OF inscriptions from tbe
mounds, especially those found Pqua Ohio and
davenport, Iowa" In one mound at Davenport were
found two pieces OF slate which was Inscribed ON
one sdc the other both. The stone inscribed ON hut
one side bore its surface OF concenrc crcea
Between the outer two OF these twelve cauidis
tant signs, presumably the zodiaca signs The whole
slate had two perforations Of its edges evidently
Tor suspension. About two years after the finding
Vi 'heSe states, In digging gravel in an
oiu river Ded at Pqua Ohio, the man at work exhumcu
terra Gotta tablet which was series OF
characters, evidently letters The succeeding day an
other terra Gotta tablet ON which were letter,
similar TO those on the first. On both of these
tablets tho letters were arranged ON
horizontal lines, and in four OF these lines
they were in each case six In number In
the nth and remaining instance there were Ave- but this
arrangement distance in the longitudinal di
rectoh Oh the tablet from the group first men oncd
"mch "ero In both cases written In couples
Major Beebe claimed these groups OF six each
"heh separated INTO alternate threes read right and
left respectively the names OF the eight yodiacl ~
on the davenport slate excepting Capricorn Cancer
ana Libra, which four signs arc represented
i iniUu letters on the back
or one OF the Piquatablcts They rcnreso,t ,ho
North West, South and East rcspectivclv and corro
spond to the world holders" as they were called and
10 "hlch peculiar Importance is attached The most
significant detail OF this Identification Is that the forms Of
eieiters are almost precisely those that occur about the
mediterranean, and whose phonetic values have been
exactly determined by Alos Hess in his standard work
on the classification Of old Spanish coins Slnnll This
MIehncau0n De correct the point arises this
t nac Sn 81 mayor besbe claims to have traced
bols, In which the Significance obtains In 6ntb
European and American forms. Having fixed the sig.
inscription the stone from Grave Greek Wcst viz
slnia and that ON the Pcmberton found at Pcmer
In the section Of anthropology the first paper read
tographs by the Application of Gesture Siens"
ibo was ngny nterestng especially showed
Colonel MaoIy in his paper the prin iSene ~
INC slBhs. lie SAID thai II wen known that
the act OF recording events has never reached nmonc
the noinadic tribes OF the United States that
or apparently syllable form known omnn
the ancient Mcxicans and the Mayas OF Central America
Inc paper elected considerable discussion, The FOL
lowing papers were then read: "somo remarkable
reIlcs from mounds IN Illinois" by William Me Adams:
r 0n the ancient Japanese bronze bells" by
EuWln morse; Animal myths Iro.
qnois," by MIRA EuInenie A. smith; "Was the
antelope hunted by the Indians on the prairies of iii
nois r. by john g. Henderson; Prehistoric Iiero
gypmcs,' by Watson C. Holbrook stone impemcnts
In the DRIFT" by Watson G. Hoibrook In the snh.
section on chemistry the discussion explosion in
the Nova Scotian collcry continued at some
length by Professor Peekham, Of Providence r. l.
Henry H. Parsons, of the Department OF Agriculture
Washington, d. G., read paper entitled The Comm
sition and Quality OF American Wines" The principal
conclusions OF the paper that wines OF American
manufacture are In many as good or better than
more expensive foreign wines OF the same general
fn nnrn,er and that there is for great
Improvement In sweet wines. American cham.
Pagnes arc found surprisingly good in several cases
a. Lawrence smith OF Louisville read paper on
Hiddente, new American gem" He exhibited n sam
pie whichs much like an emerald, very lnstrous brilliant
ana valuable; The next paper on the Natural
and Industrial History OF the White Pine OF Michigan"
~ Winam a. Balleu OF Evanston, Ill. The writer said
at tnongh many billions OF feet OF lumber are still to
rate OF usage it will all disappear " Wv f'