Sp. 8. Silurus punctatus, Raf. Body whitish with gilt shades and many brown unequal dots on the sides, 8 barbs, 4 underneath, 2 lateral long and black, dorsal fin 7 rays, 1 spiny, pectoral fins 6 rays, 1 spiny, anal 27 rays, lateral line a little curved beneath at the base, tail forked unequal, upper lobe longer. Sp. 9. Silurus olivaris, R. Body olivaceus, shaded with brown, 8 whole barbs, 4 beneath, 2 lateral thick brown, dorsal fin with 7 soft rays, pectoral fin 10 soft rays, anal fin 12 rays, tail rounded notched, teeth acute. Sp. 11. Catostomus bubalus, Raf. Body oblong, olivaceus brown, pale beneath, fins blackish, dorsal 28 rays, anal 12 rays, snout thick truncated, lateral line straight, tail whitish bilobate. Sp. 12. Catostomus erythurus, Raf. Body oblong conical, rufous brown above, whitish beneath, scales very large, dorsal fin reddish 12 rays, anal fin yellow 7 rays, snout rounded gibbose, lateral line straight, tail forked and red. Sp. 15. Clupea heterurus, Raf. Diameter one-fifth of total length, entirely silvery, a large brown spot at the base of the lateral line, head obtuse, belly serrate, dorsal fin 15 rays above the abdominal fin, anal fin 40 rays, tail unequal, lower lobe the longest, lateral line straight, scales small. 4. Conchology or the Shells. I trust I have discovered likewise the greatest proportion of the shells of the Ohio, having already collected and described over 30 species, the whole of which appear to be new; they consist of 24 bivalve and 8 univalve shells. It is strikingly singular that those shells belong only to 3 genera, that the 24 species of bivalve belong all to a single natural genus; and that those genera are all different from European fluviatile genera, which I have ascertained beyond a doubt by the shells and animals thereof. I shall add the characters of those new genera. I. POTAMILUS.* Bivalve. Shell equivalve unequalateral, commonly transverse, rugose transversely, sloping posteriorly, shape variable, margin thickened, two muscular impressions, an epidermis surrounding the margin by a membranaceous brim, connective oblong convex membranaceous. Ligament with two teeth on one side, and a deep furrow on the other, between two carina in the left *If I remember right this genus is also found in the Hudson river, where 3 or 4 species are to he seen, which have been mistaken for Mya or Cardium shell, while the right shell has two unequal teeth, and two unequal carinas. Animal with a mantle open and bilobe, branchias as a second interior mantle, body compressed tough, two openings or siphons anterior on each side, not tubular, one foot on each side commonly bilamellose, next to the openings. 1. Sub-genus. Shell transverse, not truncated, thick and without knobs; 1. Potamitus latissimus; 2. P. violacinus; 3. P. niger; 4. P. fasciolaris; 5. P. phaiedrus; 6. P. ellipticus; 7. P. zonalis; 8. P. obliquatus. 2. Sub-genus. Shell transverse, truncated posteriorly, thick and without knobs. 9. Polum. retusus; 10. P. truncatus; 11. P. triqueter. 3. Sub-genus. Shell transverse, thin, not truncated. 12. P. alatus; 13. P. leptodon; 14. P. fragilis; 15. P. nervosus; 16. P. fasciatus; 17. P. auratus. 4. Sub-genus. Shell transverse, thick, not truncated, knobby or warty. 18. P. gibbosus; 19. P. verrucosus; 20. P. tubercularis; 21. P. nodosus. 5. Sub-genus. Shell rounded or longitudinal. 22. P. pusillus; 23. P. subrotundus; 24. Potamilus obovalis. Raf. II. G. PLEUROCERA. Univalve. Shell variable oboval or conical, mouth diagonal crooked, rhomboidal, obtuse and nearly reflexed at the base, acute above the connection, lip and columelle flexuose entire. Animal, with an operculum membranaceous, head separated from the mantle inserted above it, elongated, one tentaculum on each side at its base, subulate acute, eyes lateral exterior at the base of the tentacula. 6 species. 1. Pl. retusa; 2. Pl. saxatilis; 3. Pl. fasciata; 4. Pl. coneola; 5. Pl. angulata; 6. Pl. turricula. Raf. III. G. AMBLOXIS. Univalve. Shell thick oboval, mouth oval, rounded at the base, obtuse above with a thick appendage of the lip, columelle flexuose, a small rugose ombilic. 2 Species, 1. A. eburnea; 2. A. ventricosa. Raf. 5. Fossil remains of Animals. These are numberless in the valley of the Ohio, and particularly at the falls; but it is very difficult to ascertain what is new among them, however a great proportion appear to me undescribed. I have already seen or collected about 60 different species, among which are about 12 sp. of Tubiporites, 15 sp. of Madriporites, 2 sp. of Turbites, 12 sp. of Terebratulites, 8 sp. of Gryphistes, 3 sp. of Celleperites, 3 sp. of Encrinites, 1 Eurycephalites, and seve ral unknown shells, besides fossil wood and real petrified walnuts. flat cells beneath and inside, covered above with a thick fleshy epidermis. One species found at the falls of the Ohio floating. Polarcus bicolor, rounded very flat nearly entire, smooth, dark green above, sienna brown beneath. Next to the genus Rivularia of Roth, differing by epidermis only above, &c. 1 remain, respectfully, Gentlemen, Your corresponding member, C. S. RAFINESQUE. 6. Botany. The vegetation of the Western States has some peculiar features-the most striking is its monotony, a few species being spread by millions over large tracts of country, while but few spots rich in a variety of plants, are to be met with. I have collected, however, a rich herbarium both on the Ohio and in crossing the Alleghany mountains. On those mountains 1 found the following new species. Uvulana angulata, Streptopus undulatus, Viola gibbosa, V. nephrodes, Prunus cuneatus, For the American Monthly Magazine and Trillium lirioides, Delphidium flexuosum, Dentaria parvifolia, Agrestis viridis, &c. I believe I have altogether already 4 new genera and 35 new species of plants, among which are the following. Staelry longifolia, Podostemon repens, Hieracium striatum, Plantago compressa, Aira compressa, Scutellaria parviflora, Scutellaria macrophylla, Agaricus ellipticus, Gratiola cataracta, Alyssum gracile, Silene miniata, &c. My new genera are the following: 1. G. ENDIPLUS. Calyx 5 sparted. Cor. tubular campanulate, 10 angular, 5 fid, a longitudinal oblong bilamellar nectarium under each division. 5 Stamens equal jutting, filaments bearded in the middle. Style long, 2 stigmas. Ovary hairy. Fruit a double capsul, the exterior one monolocular bivalve hairy; the interior one bilocular bivalve 4 seeded, seeds one above the other. This genus has much affinity with Hydrophyllum, Phacelia, and Decemium, it contains only 1 sp. E. bifidus. Leaves pinnate, pinnules ovate lanceolate entire or divided, glaucous underneath. Flowers purplish blue. 2. G. TORREYA. Calyx quadrifid, unequal nearly labiate. Corolla labiate, upper lip concave entire, lower lip trilobe, lobes notched. 4 Stamina didynamous, antheras monolocular mucronate beneath, hairy, connected. Stigma bifid. Four naked seeds. The type of it is the Torreya grandiflora, which is perhaps the Lamium hispidulum of Michaux, but not a Lamium. 3. G. CYANOTRIS. Perigone 6 parted persistent, membranaceous, petals equal open linear, spatulate. 6 Stamina, filaments filiform smooth, ovary trigone, style filiform, stigma trifid. Capsul trigone, oblong, trilocular, trivalve, trispermous. One species Cyanotris scilloides, with a long raceme of blue flowers, bracteas scariose shorter, leaves radical oblong lanceolate. Affinity with Nolina. 4. G. POTARCUS. A fleshy fluviatile substance, flat, without fibres, with a few Critical Review. Facts concerning the Engrafting of the Capt. Shaw brought from New-Orleans, in May, 1818, to New-York, a Barndoor-Cock (Phasianus gallus,) that was reported to bear upon his head a pair of horns. availed myself of the opportunity to exI was requested to see the bird, and I amine the head, in the most satisfactory manner. There were two excrescences of a horny nature, about three inches long, and of a curved figure. They inclined to the right and left one each way. They did not grow side and side, but one was in front of the other. but were merely rooted in the flesh of the I became satisfied that the horns as they were called, and believed by the owner to be, were the spurs of another cock, that had been amputated and transplanted. In their living and bleeding state it is easy to comprehend how the woundintention, and the spurs of one cock ed surfaces may have united by the first grow upon the comb of another, as the teeth of one human being may be associated with the jaw of another. case, that the inoculated or transplanted It is worthy of remark in the present spurs, had received nourishment and acquired growth, in their new situation. They were longer and stouter than the leg-spurs of the individual cock himself; and indeed of any cock I had ever seen. They were also more crooked, and less pointed. Their form and magnitude had both been changed by their translation from the legs to the comb. fectly healthy. 1818. Museum of Natural History. odd, as he exhibited his horny excres cences. The appearances were, in all the memorable particulars, exactly like those which I observed in the cock brought last summer, from New-Orleans, by Mr. Giraud, to New-York. In that breed, all the facts and circumstances were substantially the same as in this. The horns were loose in the comb, and had no connection with the cranium. Their size and figure, however, were somewhat The health was changed from spurs. good, and the most striking incident was the whimsical appearance. It would appear probable from these two cases, that there is an operator in Louisiana, who is very successful in these experiments upon cocks. On the Mongrel Races of Animals. In a I cannot forbear to give you an ac- The other five were perfect dogs, as to feet, tail, hair, shape, &c. to the foreshoulders which resembled a pig's; the head was short like a dog's, the eyes and nose exactly in appearance like a pig, except as I observed before, rather shorter. They resembled a pig in nothing, except the shape of the nose, the appearance of the eyes, and the shape of the foreshoulders; they were all born alive, four of them died in fifteen minutes. But the most perfect of the dogs and the pig, lived and sucked until several hours elapsing, were killed by the owner, and to all appearance would have lived to arrive at maturity. The sow was a likely young white animal, this being her first litter, and was put with a male equally well formed and handsome. About the time she went to the male, the owner had a bitch, and the yard was frequented for a number of nights, by numbers of dogs, 357 recollect attending. I regret I was unable to dissect those Your obedient servant, Description of a Phoca Vitulina, or Com- The length was 5 feet and 6 inches, and There were no external ears, but only The animal could live more than three minutes under water, without breathing. the extremity of the snout was so conTo enable it to sustain itself in this way, curately closed at pleasure, and thereby to tracted as to enable the nostrils to be acexclude the liquid element. The back was of a dusky or iron gray when out of water and dry; though much gray, or dirty white. Both have an undarker when immerged. Belly whitish Under the chin and dulated variegation of hue, in a transverse direction. along the throat, the hair is rather longer, Head and face roundish. Neck thick and approaches nearer to a cream colour. Whiskers and round, though susceptible of much elongation and contraction. Eyes globose, nearly black, and capable stiff, thick and plaited in five or six rows. of being accurately covered by the lids. Above each eye a patch of about five bristles. The anterior extremities about ten inches long, and capable of being employed to scratch the head and the side. They are capable of being so expanded as to answer the double purpose of feet and fins: have on each five distinct white nails, obliquely situated. Resemble the fins of the marine tortoise. The posterior extremities terminal, and webbed like the feet of a water fowl. When at rest, their soles touch each other. There are on each five nails, the middle one of which is situated on a toe shorter than the rest. Tail flat and tapering, but not more than four inches long. Mouth capacious, teeth small and sharp. The creature devours herrings with voracity. Two teats on the abdomen, which are retracted within the skin. There are several varieties, such as that found in the gulf of Bothnia, in lake Baikal of Siberia, in the Caspian sea, and in the ocean, more especially the north Atlantic, and of very different sizes and colours. ART. 4. ORIGINAL COMMUNICATIONS. The Progress of the Human Mind from Rudeness to Refinement; exemplified in an Account of the Method pursued by Colonel Benjamin Hawkins, under the Authority of the Government of the United States, to civilize certain Tribes of Savages within their Territory; drawn up by Samuel L. Mitchill, M. D. LL. D. &c. &c. those they were resisted and compelled to retreat to their present settlements. This nation possessed a tract of country about three hundred miles square. It is for soil and climate, as well as natural advantages in general, not surpassed perhaps by any spot of equal extent, upon the face of the earth. The number of warriors at the last enumeration amountHE war which in 1814 led the inha- ed to about four thousand Their settle Tbitants of Tennessee and Georgia, ments have been surrounded for many to destroy, in their own defence, a considerable part of the Creek nation, has been interpreted by some persons as proving the inutility of attempts to civilize savages. This conclusion is incorrect. The Cherokees have been initiated into the arts of improved life as well as the Creeks; and yet the Creeks only have engaged in hostility against the United States. There must therefore have been some other cause than the lessons they have learned from our agents. And this was probably the instigation of our secret and avowed enemies. Until this extirminating warfare arose, the great problem of civilizing the abo rigines was believed by many to have been in a fair way of being solved, or rather that it was already solved in the United States. The subjects of this philanthropic and instructive experiment were the Creeks and Cherokees. The former of these nations of Indians came from the west of the Mississippi. There is a tradition among them, that there are in the fork of Red-River, two mounds of earth, and that at that place the Cussatuhs, Cowetuhs and Chickasaws found themselves; that being distressed by wars with red-men, their forefathers crossed the Mississippi, and travelling eastward, they passed the falls of Tallapoosa above Tookaubatche, and settled below the rapids of Chatapooche. Hence they spread out to Ocmulgee, Oconee, Savannah, and down the sea coast towards Charleston, where they first saw white people. By years by the Americans, the French, Spaniards and English. They were tempted in various ways to be concerned in the leagues and stratagems of their neighbours, who wished to get possession of their lands. They, however, generally conducted themselves with remarkable prudence, and avoided such alliances as might implicate them in depopulating wars. Accordingly, they preserved their national existence, and at the commencement of our federative government, attracted a large and early attention. The greatness of their numbers, the value of their lands, and their contiguity to the colonies of the enterprising nations of Europe, made it necessary to have a seasonable and full explanation with them. At that time George Washington was President of the United States; and the Creeks were in an hostile mood. Congress was sitting in the city of NewYork; and the principal subject then under consideration was, whether they should be treated by forcible and warlike operations, or by gentle and pacifie means. The considerate statesmen of the United States were divided in opinion on these points. Some were in favour of the exterminating, and others of the conciliatory plan. Among the latter was Benjamin Hawkins, then a Senator in Congress from North Carolina, whe dissuaded in strong terms the project of hostile operations against the Creeks. By his interference a military expedition was withheld until a negotiator could be sent into the nation, and invite them to a peaceful parley. The man selected for this service was Marinus Willet. He was employed in preference to a clergyman whom it was originally intended to send. Willet penetrated their country, obtained a hearing, and brought with him M'Gillivray, and a deputation of the nation to New-York. Here a treaty was held, and a peace established in the year 1794. The meditated war having thus failed, the next thing to be done was to regulate trade and intercourse between the red men and the white. For this purpose Congress passed a law directing the manner of dealing with them, delineated the boundaries, and appointed an agent to superintend the department of Indian affairs south of the river Ohio. This was during the administration of Mr. Adams. Mr. Hawkins was appointed the manager of this business. He had previously acted a distinguished part in several negotiations with the natives, and had acquired much knowledge of their situation, their wants, and the mode of doing business with them. Accepting the commission, this gentleman left the Senate, quitted polished society, and entered upon the arduous work of protecting and civilizing the Indians. An undertaking of this sort has of late been deemed chimerical or impossible. The labours of the zealous Jesuits and the industrious Moravians had so frequently proved abortive, that few even of the well wishers of the experiment entertained much expectation of its success. The agent however was sanguine in the cause, and the government seconded his views. In the course of about ten years, he succeeded in advancing some of these people from the state of hunters to those of herdsmen, cultivators of the soil, and manufacturers; and the changes in their moral, intellectual and social disposition, have been effected without the assistance of other missionaries, and of scholastic Indeed Mr. or collegiate education. Hawkins entertained an opinion that an introduction to the mysteries of religion, and an acquaintance with the intricacies of literature, ought to follow, and not precede, an initiation into the more useful and necessary arts, such, for example, as those of procuring food and clothes. This active reformer did not commence his undertakings by teaching his pupils the shapes and sounds of letters in the alphabet, nor the dogmas and doctrines in the catechism. He omitted these things altogether; or rather he studiously forbade their introduction. He adhered to a rule of interdiction against all preachers of every sect, from holding converse with the Creeks, but treated members of the church with great politeness, in other respects, whenever they visited the agent at the factory; and for several years, the alarms of the natives were not excited by the discipline and lessons of schoolmasters. When Mr. H. first presented himself among the Indians, and talked to the assembled chiefs on his project of civilizing them, they replied to him in the most insulting terms, reprobated his scheme with great bitterness; and concluded by uttering sounds of the most contemptuous signification around the circle. After their disgust and merriment had in some measure subsided, he told them in a mild and frank discourse, that he was now done with the men; but that, as he was by no means discouraged, he should quit them, and address himself to the other sex. This he soon found means to accomplish; and by soothing arts, by kind treatment, and by assuring them that he could teach them how to procure plenty of provisions and clothes with their own hands, he gained the confidence of several To them he imparted girls and women. the arts of carding, spinning and wearing; and to these they became soon attached, because petticoats, jackets and other articles of dress could thereby be easily procured. But it was not possible to make all the females spinsters. Some for want of in clination or opportunity, and others through lack of machinery, could not practise those domestic employments. They still laboured, after the manner of Indian women; and among other cccupations tended a little patch of maize for subsistence. Finding that sometimes, the women had a surplus of corn, the agent's next point was to teach them to exchange it for something to make petticoats, and other raiment. With this view he instructed them in the use of measures, and these he reduced to an intelligible value in money. A bushel of corn, for example, was valued at a quarter of a dollar; and where this precise coin was not at hand, the sign of it was a single white mark, called a chalk. This word thence became a nominal coin, or rate of value; and as a chalk of corn denoted a "bushel," so a chalk of calico, tobacco, or any thing else would signify as much of either of these articles as could be bought by a quarter of a dollar, the estimated value of a bushel of corn. While this agent was proceeding by these means to improve and enlarge the |