contrasting in color with those forming the ground. These diagonals are derived from the diagonal rafters of the peculiar "long houses" of the Iroquois. Other well-known conventional symbols represent hearts, houses, lands, the "peace path," etc. One of the belts exhibited was itself a historical record of some interest, as it depicted a proposal of conversion to Christianity made by the early Jesuit missionaries to the Indians, the message being effected by working into a wampum belt a symbolic group consisting of the lamb, the dove, and several crosses. The investigations made by Mr. Hale seem to show that the "Penn Belt," which is now in New England, is not a record of the famous scene depicted by Benjamin West, but of a more obscure treaty concluded with Iroquois chiefs. The intrinsic evidence afforded by the belt convinced Mr. Hale that it was made by Iroquois. In this way anthropology has been able to correct history. The speaker also illustrated the use of wampum belts as records in modern times, exemplified by the annual meeting of chiefs, at which all the belts are carefully gone over, in order that events of tribal importance may be kept green.
Elephants in a Lumber Yard.—No work done by elephants perhaps requires at once greater intelligence and strength on their part than that of those which are used in unloading and piling up timber in the lumber yards of Burmah. The most important of these lumber yards, at Rangoon, receives the timber that comes down from the immense forests of the Irrawaddy, with the great logs lashed together into huge rafts. The workmen cut the cords, and the task of the elephants begins. Plunging without hesitation into the muddy waters of the river, they go at once toward the logs. Each animal selects a stick, pushes it with his trunk to the shore, picks it up, and lands it, all that his driver has to do being to indicate what log he wishes taken. Twelve of these animals, according to M. Charles Marsillon, eleven males and one female, work constantly in the yard. The female is the most intelligent of all of them. At the sawmill she places the piece to be cut before the saw. She uses her trunk as a hand; takes the boards away as they are made, and piles them symmetrically in the drying heap. As the sawdust accumulates and threatens to cover everything up, she blows it away with her powerful nostrils, keeping the place cleared so that the work can go on unobstructed. When the dinner bell rings, nothing—neither threats nor caresses—can keep her in the yard, industriously as she has worked till then. She seems to see to it too that her companions also stop. The elephants return to work immediately the signal is given. Sometimes one of them comes upon a stick that is too heavy for him to handle alone; and then one of his companions, perceiving his trouble, will come to his assistance. It seems to be one of the easiest things in the world for these animals to arrange and straighten the pile of logs whenever it begins to take a crooked or uneven shape. If they are not able to do this with their trunks, they use their tusks until the pile is got into order. They work willingly and with interest, call for help when they need it, and respond to one another's appeals.
Substitutes for Glass in Germany.—An interesting account of glass substitutes is given in a recent copy of the Journal of the Society of Arts. Tectorium, which is used in Germany as a substitute for glass, is a sheet of tough, insoluble gum—said to be bichromated gelatin—about one sixteenth of an inch thick, overlying on both sides a web of galvanized iron or steel wire, the meshes of which are generally about one eighth of an inch square. It feels and smells similar to the oiled silk that is used in surgery. It is lighter than glass, tough, pliant, and practically indestructible by exposure to rain, wind, hail, or any shock or blow which does not pierce or break the wire web. It may be bent into any desired form, and when punctured can be easily repaired. Its translucency is about the same as that of opal glass, with a greenish amber color, which fades gradually to white on exposure to the sun; so that while arresting the direct rays of sunshine, it transmits a soft, modulated light, which is said to be well adapted to hothouses and conservatories. It is a poor conductor of heat and cold. Its surface is well adapted for printing in oil colors, and is thus valuable for decorative purposes. The objections against it are that it is inflammable, and is apt to sot ten in warm weather. For hot-
