The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1902-12-28

PLACE NAMES IN THE UNITED STATES.

States. from which few instances are given
below. Chicago 10 an Indian word meaning
wild onion or skunk weed: Chesapeake Is also
Indian and 10 variously interpreted as highly
salted water. great waters or country on a
great river. Chautauaua In also an Indian
word and has had several interpretations. as
foRgy place. a bag tied in the middle ire
ferrins to the shape Of the lake). place where
q child was washed away. where the fish are
taken out. place OF easy death. or. finally.
place where one was lost. Dies Moines 4
USUALLY supposed to refer only 10 The Trappist
monks but II Is also connected with an Indian
word meaning the road. Niagara Is an
Indian word sisnifyinR across the strait. or
at the neck. ehenand bah is Indian and means
side Of high hills. Massachusetis means
near the great hills. or the HI shaped like an
sissippt means great water. or gathering In
OF all the waters. or an almost endless river
spread out.
PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY OF THE RED RIVER or
THE NORTH.
The physical geography Of the Red River
region has lately been studied by DR.. Do%ling.
who finds that part Of Manitoba has been twice
submerged beneath the sea and finally ele-
vated before the glacial period The ice then
travelled southwark tin II completely filled
the Red River Valley and even extended over
Minnesota. As the ice melted large lake
was formed along its southern margin. which
increased In extent as the ice retreated north
ward and beaches were formed along its
shores. The lake first drained southwark to
the Mississippi. but later the water found other
outlets. probably toward Hudson's Bay. and
gradual contraction Of the lake ensued in which
successive beaches mark the separate sta grs
The present lakes Of Manitoba are the remains
OF this great AXE OF former time, through who's
waters the bowlder clay and other sediment
were constantly sifted and distributed over
the whole region thus ca using the wonderfui
fertility that characterizes most of the Red
River Valley.
TOPOGRAPHIC SURVEY OF THE UNITED STATES
The United States Geological Survey is
dill gently prosecuting its topogra phical sur
vey Of the United States Besides the topo-
graphic sheets there are sheets for Ia nd ella ssi-
ication. geology. dc. The atlas sheets are
1871 by 20 inches. engraved on copper and
printed in three colors The cultural features
such as roads. railways. cities. a.. as well az
all letterings. are black all water features are
blue. and the hill features are shown by brown
contours The sheets can be bought for five
cents. or in quantities for tw cents per sheet
During the last fiscal year. 35.ioa square
miles were surveyed in thirty-two States and
Territories, ~ &07 miles OF levels were run.
.a3s permanent bench-marks established. 4
IN Alaska $500 square miles were mapped
the area Of the United States have been sur
veyed-about 20 per cent OF its surface
GLACIERS.
The problem Of piercing n glacer by inca rs
OF boring has at last been solved with results
OF real scientific interest in experiments made
Ia st August on a glacier near Vent, in the
Tyrol At q di-tince of about one and quar-
ter miles from the tip OF the clioier where
its breadth Ia ?,i3o feet and the height Of its
surface above sea level s.53a feet. a boring in
the middle reached rock at depth OF 500
feat To ban nj D To 80
rate OF movement. surface melting and tenn
perature the experiment nabled the follow =
ing conclusions to be drawn. Pirst-The
Temperature OF the ice Is at the melting pOnt
throughout the whole mass Oh the tongue OF
the glacier Second-The bed of q g gla cier
is trough-shaped. n ird-The ice moves
more slowly NJ the botto ON than at the surfa &c
The bore oles were filed up with pieces OF
wood. which will serve for mnny years TO
come az indexes OF. the rate OF movement and
OF surface melting.
RECENT ELEVATION OF THE COAST OF THE
GULF or MEXICO.
The observations of MIR. Vaughan on the
coast Of the Gulf Of Mexico, south Of TalLa
hassee. Fla. show that the coast in that vi
entity has been perceptibly elevated In very
recent times. At st. Marks. in Wakulla
county. there II an old house built on pill, =
beneath which the water at high tide form~rl,
passed into POND In the fields beyond. Tits
il now no LONGER the case, even at spring
tides, unless n strong southerly wind has
been blowing for two or more days. neap
Of fo shs s s Snrai
1850 or therea bouts has been from twelve to
eighteen inches, or from two TO three feet per
century. Observations by other persons In
Texas tend to support this conclusion.
THE NATURAL BASIS OF PORN ~ GREEK
ARCHITECTURE.
At recent meeting OF the Hellenic Society
MIR. Jay Hambidge read a suggestive paper
on the natural basis Of form in all Greek art
especially In the architecture of the parthenon
The symmetrical forms found in nature
those OF crystals. plants. butterflies and the
like-shows that the proportions and curves
involved in these forms may he arolyzed
by "a primary series of circles which stand
to each other In a binary rela tion-i: 24s 4 -
combined with t2, a secondary series of circles
derived by using "a radii the sides OF ~ til
an gles squares. penta CONS or hexaRtnS in
scribed In the circles Of the primary series
The proportions OF symmetrical natural OBJ
jects can all. he says. be expressed in terms
OF circles standing to each other in this re-
can be analysed by series of osculat,I g
In passing that the series OF primary circles
have radii that form series each term
author inter poates at least four new terms
between each pair Of primary terms. By
choosing the latter ClOee together u set OF
secondary terms are obtained which vary
so slowly that u shall go hard II some one Of
them cannot be found to IT. any measure
ment that one wishes to explain The writer
goes on TO say that the same binary. system
can be used to annlyze the proportions and
curves Of the Parthenon down to the minutest
detail
The use of the principle involves only the
simplest geometrical methods His inference
IL that the Greek architect used a Reometric
process Of this kind and refined his, curves
on the system lust defined. thus uncon-
sciously followin the system on which natu
he says. builds M her symmetrical forms
Here we may pause to remark that the
variations in natures proportions are very
great indeed. A tigers mar kings d der from
those Of another tiger Of the same species
by huge percentages. q butterfys proper
tions from that Of his fellow by very large
amounts. IN his Interpretation OF Natures
sciousiy allowed himseifa wide license His
primary series Of radi are almost arbitrary.
then, They are supplemented by con-
siderable number of derivatives. What won
der H. at the end. the investi gntor finds pro-
portions and outlines In Greek vases and in
other works OF art that closely approximate
70 "a canon that seems strict, but that is. in
Parthenon Is only the most striking and
tiful in art involves adherence probably
lnconsciousl to the same Law that underlics
the beautiful In nlture, A reference to the
measurements Of animals, &c. of the same
species BY DR.. Russell Wallace would show
that there 10 no single law OF proportion in
nature.
THE GRAND CANYON or THE COLORADO.