district, and the facility with which they could be smelted and metal obtained, Sir John thought it probable that these stone axes belong to a time before the natives of this place became acquainted with the art of smelting iron. On a recent Examination of British Tumuli and Monuments in the Hebrides and on the Western Coast of Scotland, with suggestive Inferences. By J. S. PHENÉ, F.G.S., F.R.G.S., Member of the British Archæological Association. The object with which the investigations had been conducted was the observance of natural physical circumstances of position in conjunction with the oldest archæological remains; more especially where the author had been so fortunate as to meet with undisturbed relics of prehistoric art. The first object of interest to which he directed attention was the tumulus in the larger Cumbrae, in the Firth of Clyde, of the different parts of which photographs were exhibited. It contained five stone cists, each formed of four slabs of red sandstone, with a large overlying slab for a cover. Within the cists was a layer of fine white pebbles. The cists were in an apparently studied position, the largest being placed nearly north and south, and on each side one of smaller dimensions tending towards the east and west; the two latter contained bones apparently burnt, with an incinerary urn of one of the oldest types of British pottery in each. To the rear of the first was, a small cist containing the skull and bones of a child, and on the western side of that one in which there were no remains. The first and largest cist contained the bones of a large man. In the small cist, with the bones of a child, were portions of a broken urn, and in the western one a clean and empty urn only. There was a uniformity about the whole mound which pointed clearly to the cists being of one date, and that they represented one funereal operation. By the permission of the Earl of Glasgow, he made a cutting through the tumulus, and found abundant proof that the mound had been raised by art. The position of the remains the principal tomb having on each side one with evidences of cremation, of persons, as the bones indicated, of less stature than the occupant of the central cist, and therefore probably of women; that of the youth at the rear, and the presence of the empty cist or cenotaph-suggested the idea, admitted by Dr. Wilson in his 'Prehistoric Annals of Scotland,' of the custom of immolation on the death of a chief or archpriest. The next object to which the author called attention was a tumulus at the northern end of Cantire, which is still under investigation, in which was discovered an urn similar in design to the principal one from Cumbrae. Like results had attended his researches in the vicinity of Cuff Hill in Ayrshire, of Berigonium in Argyleshire, and in the island of Arran; in each case pottery of the same type was discovered. Referring to the archæological indications, a similar repetition of memorials occurred again in the direction of the Crinan Canal. Other discoveries were referred to by the author, who stated that on the western coast and islands up to Durness, by Cape Wrath, indications of a Pagan race were to be found; not the least remarkable amongst which were some specimens of serpent mounds and constructions, identical with those of Ohio and Wisconsin. His investigations had so far terminated at the remarkable cruciform temple in the island of Lewis, which he considered displayed striking indications of astronomical arrangement. Contents of the Cumbrae tumulus, from examinations by Professor ALLEN THOMSON and Dr. YOUNG, of the University of Glasgow. Centre Tomb. Right femur, 18 inches long, but wanting the head; with this it might be 191 inches. Adherent calcareous matter near the lower end. Adult male. Portion of the lower jaw of a man, near the chin on the right side, containing the canine, two premolar, and the anterior molar teeth; the first three only slightly worn, but the anterior molar worn down flat into the dentine. The sockets of the middle molar and the outer incisor broken through; the mental angle very prominent. A remarkably strong jaw, 12 inch deep to the point of the canine tooth. North Tomb.' Anterior permanent molar of the two sides. Posterior or large infantile molar of one side. Upper half of the parietal bone. All of a child of about four or five years of age. S.E. Tomb. A large number of fragments of bones, probably of the human adult, viz. :— Upper border of the right orbit, part of malar, small part of superior maxillary, fragments of the parietal and other tabular bones of the cranium. Parts of several dorsal and lumbar vertebræ. Fragment of the sacrum. Very numerous small fragments of the long bones, especially of the femur, tibia, and fibula; small part of an upper rib. Some bones or fragments of the tarsus. There are to be remarked conchoidal fractures across the compact parts of the shafts of the long bones, and frequently also longitudinal fissures externally. S.W. Tomb. Numerous fragments of the bones of an adult, apparently not of large size. Parts of the pterygoid process of the skull, part of the mastoid bone, and tabular bones of the skull. Processus dentatus and portion of the axis vertebra. Fragments of the long bones, viz. femur, humerus, radius, ulna, tibia, fibula. Fragment of the ischium (?). On a Flint-flake Core found in the Upper Valley-gravel at Salford, The rivers Irwell and Mersey, from Manchester to Liverpool, flow down a wide valley, eroded through beds of Keuper or Bunter sandstone. The present river-bed is of moderate width to Runcorn-gap, below which it becomes a wide estuary. In earlier times this estuarine character may have extended inland even to Manchester, for wide tracks of gravels, sands, and silt spread away from the river banks on either side; under these lie the Boulder-clays and sands of the Postpleiocene or glacial drifts. The oldest sands and gravels of estuarine origin lie the highest and most distant from the river, except over places where the Bunter beds crop out in high banks, in some places 200 feet above and a mile beyond the river; and from these beds are a series of well-marked river-terraces, dropping inwards towards the river. These are composed of old alluvium with smooth, flattened, and iron-stained pebbles in layers of sand and fine silt. The lowest terrace is meadow land, at times deeply flooded, and receiving new layers of silt. In the great flood of November 1866 three inches were deposited in twenty-four hours. The oldest sands and gravels may possibly be related to the age of the high-level gravels of the river Somme, and to the flint-weapon gravels of the south-east of England. Lancashire is a county almost devoid of flints, either natural or artificial; and thus weapons of the paleolithic age are altogether absent from its drifts, and not more than a score of weapons of the neolithic age have been to the present discovered in its drifts and cave-deposits. These later stone weapons are also poor in make, and have no racial peculiarities. The only exception of a weapon with paleolithic features is the one now described, which fortunately was taken from the bed of drift in my presence, July 1869. It was lying in a four-feet bed of laminated sandy silt, under six feet of river-gravel and yellow clay, with rough gravels and the boulder-clays below. The excavation was near the Ordsall Lane railway-station, about 1000 feet from the banks of the river, and nearly 108 feet above the river level, the average level of the middle terrace higher up the valley. The deposit where the flint-core lay probably represents the age of the river when it flowed over the middle terrace. The flint-core bears the size and shape of a horse's hoof; from the front curved face five fine flakes have been struck, and smaller ones from other parts. The original surface is shown in three places, and encrustations derived from the soil adhere very firmly on the fractured parts, supplying a strong proof that, whatever may have been its origin, it had long lain in its bed under the river-gravels. On a Wooden Implement found in Bidston Moss, near Birkenhead. On certain remarkable Earthworks at Wainfleet, in Lincolnshire. These works consist of a series of mounds, about forty yards long and twelve feet high, lying parallel to the sea front, which is now two miles from them, but which in Roman times came close up to them. A Roman sea bank runs along their face, and appears to take its shape from the contour of their front. The Roman station of Vanonia, according to Camden and Stuckley, lies about a mile to their rear. Traces of these mounds can be discovered over a mile and a half of ground. At the north and south ends they have been much mutilated. A central piece, about 300 yards long, remains entire. This block of mounds is divided into five separate groups, the divisions between them being marked by narrow watercourses running at right angles to the general direction of the mounds, and terminating in well-marked regular depressions, which, on the supposition of this being the site of dwellings, might have been freshwater-tanks. The mounds at this point extend backwards from the ancient shore-line a space of 400 yards, standing, with little interval between them, one behind the other, as many as twelve or fourteen in number. No traces of remains or human handiwork have been observed in these mounds, though they are being constantly dug down and removed for one purpose or another. They are composed of the soil on which they stand, though there is an account that some of them are of a black peaty soil, which, however, can be found within a short distance. No mention has been made of these mounds either by Camden or by Dugdale in his 'History of Draining,' which treats largely of this neighbourhood; but their antiquity is undoubted, if only on the evidence of their local name-the Hilly Tofts. The popular account of their use is that they are the remains of ancient salt-works, though the method by which salt was made upon them by evaporation of sea-water is not very clearly made out. If this theory of their use be the true one, they are interesting as being probably the source of supply of salt to the Roman settlements all along the east of England. Another theory is that the mounds are to be connected with the Danish invasions of England. It is a plausible suggestion, but founded on no evidence, that the hollows between the mounds were used as places to lay up the Danish ships while their crews made their advance inland. The name Tofts points to some connexion with Danish occupiers; but if that name really indicates "an inhabited spot," the Danes, whether they used the mounds as dry docks or not, may have found them occupied by human dwellings. In spite, therefore, of all absence of remains, it is possible that we have here the site of an ancient British fen-village, raised on mounds, as the Swiss lake-dwellings were on piles, above the watery waste around them. On the Use of Opium among the Chinese. By G. THIN, M.D. The Mental Characteristics of the Australian Aborigines. The chief inference to be drawn from the mental characters exhibited by the aborigines of Australia is that they are children whose intellect has, by the exigencies of their situation, been continually exercised, and therefore become more than ordinarily keen and active, while the moral nature has remained almost wholly in abeyance. From the data furnished by the paper, it is evident that the Australian aborigines occupy the lowest position in the scale of humanity, and that they show what must have been the condition of mankind in primeval times. The Physical Characters of the Australian Aborigines. The most striking peculiarities presented by the external physical characters of the aborigines of Australia are:-the great prominence of the brow, associated, among some tribes, with shortness of the lower jaw; the wide expansion of the nostrils, combined with great depression of the nose at the base; the extreme width of the mouth; the absence, sometimes observable, of any difference between the incisor and canine teeth; the straightness and silkiness of the hair, except among certain tribes in the north and north-west; and the hairiness of the entire body, which is a phenomenon apparently not uncommon. On an Implement of Quartz from St. George's Sound. The author drew attention to a crystal of quartz, having its terminal planes preserved at both ends, which was found by his colleague Mr. Thomas Davies among a number of other minerals in the British Museum forming part of the old Sloane collection. The interest attaching to the specimen is of two kinds: it is, first, of historic interest, for upon close examination there was found inscribed upon it in ink (in Capt. Cook's writing), "St. George's Sound, N.W. coast of America: Capt. Cook," thus proving it to have been brought home by that illustrious explorer; and, secondly, it is of prehistoric interest, for the crystal had been employed to bore or pick holes in the ice by the Esquimaux, as proved by the notches made in its sides for fixing it securely in some handle of wood. Such implements are used at the present day by the Esquimaux to bore holes in the ice to catch fish in winter. GEOGRAPHY. Address by Sir RODERICK IMPEY MURCHISON, Bart., K.C.B., D.C.L., LL.D., F.R.S., F.G.S., President of the Section. WHILST wars have from time to time changed the political geography of foreign states, we, who happily live in our sea-girt isle, possess frontiers which for many long years have been preserved intact; and now that we meet again, for the third time, in this rich and enterprising seat of commerce, we may tranquilly take note of any changes which may have been lately made in the boundaries of other kingdoms. But such changes in political geography, though specially to be delineated on maps, need scarcely occupy attention at a Meeting of the British Association, and we may hand them over to the politician. Our chief duties are to receive and discuss all communications which reveal to us new discoveries in Physical Geography and the affiliated branches of Science in all parts of the globe. This Section E had for many years the title of Geography and Ethnology; but the latter term has recently been abstracted from us, Ethnology having been relegated to the newly constituted comprehensive Section of Biology. Now, although I have often presided over this Section when it possessed its double title, I admit the value of the change, seeing that we are relieved from the duty of receiving and discussing those anthropological memoirs which are intimately connected with physiology and comparative anatomy. Such memoirs could not be adequately discussed by geographers, and they are now submitted to competent judges. At the same time I earnestly hope that papers relating to Ethnography, including accounts of the language and customs of distant peoples, and which is intimately bound up with the physical geography of countries, will, as heretofore, flow into our hall, and thus render our meetings on this occasion as successful and popular as they have been during past years. In the course of the present Meeting a paper will be read from that distinguished geographer Colonel Yule, which precisely illustrates my meaning. It is on the analogies of manners between the Indo-Chinese races and the races of the Indian archipelago; and is exclusively written for our Section by its learned author, who expresses, as you will learn, his astonishment that such subjects, so inseparably connected with Geography, should ever be severed from it in the proceedings of the British Association. Geography in a broad sense is so closely allied to many researches, that, since the foundation of the British Association, it has at times been coupled with different sciences by our legislators. At first it was very naturally grouped with my own peculiar subject, Geology, which may well be termed the Comparative Physical Geography of byegone ages. But this union did not last long, because my brethren of the hammer, ever producing more memoirs than could be discussed at any one Meeting, the Geographers, who were desirous of having much time and attention allotted to themselves, withdrew and no longer took part in Section C. In those days Geography could not find a separate place in the list of sections; for it was a canon in the constitution of the British Association, that the number of sections was to be for ever limited to seven. But as time wore on, changes, of necessity, occurred. The first of these took place in Section B, which began by including Chemistry and Agriculture. But this connexion of a pure Science with the practical objects of proprietors and farmers could not be permanent; and the cultivators of the soil (finding no space for their exhibitions, and taking the British Association as a model) established that most important national body, the Royal Agricultural Society. Next the medical men, finding that no adequate justice could be done in one section to their diversified subjects, separated from us, and at the suggestion of my lamented friend Sir Charles Hastings, founded the great Medical Association of Britain. Through this withdrawal of medical science, the Section denoted by the letter E remained for some time a blank, without any scientific duties attached to it; and it was only in the year 1851 that, on my own suggestion, and at the Ipswich Meeting, the blank Section was refilled under the title of Geography and Ethnology. Under this title I have read addresses to the Section at Leeds in 1858, at Oxford in 1860, at Newcastle-on-Tyne in 1863, and at Bath in 1864. In alluding to such written addresses, it is well to remind the younger members of our body that during twenty-five years they formed no part of our Proceedings. These preludes to the business of each Section were for the first time introduced in the year 1856, and the person who led the way in these useful and now necessary parts of our duties was the present Earl of Derby, who then, as Lord Stanley, presided over the Statistical Section at Cheltenham. I cannot advert to this fact, so highly creditable to my noble friend, who is now a Vice-President of our whole body, without reminding you that his illustrious father, whose name will ever be revered in British history, and whose beneficent deeds will ever be gratefully remembered in Lancashire, was himself an admirer and patron of geographical explorers, and a Fellow of the Society over which I preside. I refer you to my last Anniversary Address to the members of the Royal Geographical Society for the expression of my admiration of his character. Before I speak of some few of the contributions which will, I trust, be brought under our consideration, let me glance at the rapid progress of discovery in recent years, and, first of all, at the great and important additions to pure Geography which have been made in Central Asia both by Russian and British explorers. With all the western portion of that vast region in which lie the Khanats of Khiva, Bokhara, and Khokan, some of you may now be acquainted, through the accounts of Russian observers, who have already fixed the correct positions of the chief towns, mountains, and rivers of Western Turkistan. Proceeding eastwards from the Sea of Aral, the Russians have, for the first time in history, rendered the River Syr Daria (the Jaxartes of Alexander the Great) navigable by steam-vessels of a limited size, and fixing military posts on its banks, have ascended towards its sources and taken possession of the populous and flourishing city of Tashkent, a great mart of caravan commerce. Again, Russia has triumphed over the Khan of Bokhara, the savage ruler who in years gone by barbarously put to death two British officers, Stoddart and Conolly, and who has now met with a due humiliation. As peace has been concluded between the Emperor of Russia and those turbulent chiefs, who have now been rendered subordinate to a great civilized nation, we may hope that the |