The Mounds of the Mississippi Valley, historically considered. by Lucien Care, Peabody Museum. Cambridge, Mass. Pp. 107.
This essay, which, forms a part of the "Memoirs" of the Kentucky Geological Survey, is an argument in favor of the theory that the mound-builders were the ancestors of the present Indians. The advocates of the theory that the mounds were built by some other race rest to a large extent upon the assumptions that the Indians were not sufficiently advanced to execute the works that have been examined; that they were not agriculturists, as the mound-builders must have been; and that they were not subject to such central authority, or controlled by any such impelling motive, as seems to have been necessary for the construction of such extensive works. Mr. Carr's effort is to controvert these assumptions. He argues, with the aid of many citations from historians, chroniclers, and travelers, that the Indians of the Mississippi Valley lived in fixed villages, which they were in the habit of fortifying by palisades; that they raised corn in large quantities and stored it; that they all worshiped the sun, as the mound-builders are supposed to have done; and that works similar to those of the mound-builders, if not quite as extensive, are known to have been erected by Indians.
A Practical Treatise on Materia Medica and Therapeutics. By Roberts Bartholow, M. A., M. D., LL. D. Fifth edition, revised and enlarged. New York: D. Appleton & Co. 1884. Pp. 738.
The appearance of a new edition of this well-known work so soon after the edition of 1881 is due, in part, as the author tells us in his preface, to the recent changes in the "United States Pharmacopoeia." Although the work has been adapted to the new official standard in general, we fail to find any reference to the changes in the morphia strength of the opium preparations, and the doses prescribed are the same as in the earlier editions. This is the more to be regretted since the new Pharmacopoeia does not itself give any doses.
Many additions demanded by the advance of science have been made in the body of the work, so that nearly one hundred pages in all have been added to the book, making it a complete exponent of the present state of knowledge in this direction.
In Part I the routes by which medicines are introduced into the organism are classified and briefly described. Under this head the author treats insufflation, the use of the nasal douche and atomizers, etc., and gives a valuable chapter upon hypodermatic (hypodermic) methods, with a list of the remedies, solutions, and doses employed, and cautions as to the points to be avoided in hypodermatic injections. Then follows an article on transfusion, with references, as in other cases, to the authorities consulted. In Part II the actions and uses of remedial agents are very fully described. In this part we find the uses of water, externally and internally, of heat, of air, and of massage, discussed, as well as the actions of drugs in general, and the effects of various kinds of aliments and beverages. Formulæ are given for the preparation of animal broths and diet-drinks; the koumiss-cure, whey-cure, and buttermilk-cure, each receive some attention. Directions are also given for the preparation of gruels, jellies, peptonized milk, and other restorative agents.
The various pharmacopœal preparations are briefly mentioned, their strength noted, and the dose given, while their physiological and therapeutical use receives more attention. Processes for their preparation are not given.
In addition to a very copious general index, the work is provided with a very full "clinical index," which will serve to suggest the remedies that may be employed in any particular disease, but which may also prove an injury in other ways as furnishing an aid to quackery, and offering an encouragement to "counter-prescribing" by druggists.
Human Proportion and Anthropometry. By Dr. Robert Fletcher. Cambridge, Mass.: Moses King. Pp. 37, with Plates.
This is a lecture delivered at the National Museum, Washington, D. C, and includes an examination and explanation of the ancient Egyptian and the Polykleitan canons of proportion, with a review of the results of recent anthropometric measurements.
