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Article Reprint: December 29, 1894

In Roger E. Nathan’s impressive book Collectibles of the National Geographic Society he lists over 350 reprints of articles from the magazine. His research was extensive but, by his own admission, the list is incomplete. For example, he missed the Skylab article from the October 1974 issue. I assumed his list of the older reprints was more comprehensive since he relied on the Society’s records in their archives. This assumption was based of the Society’s own statement on the subject.

In the Volume VI administrative brochure (Number 9, October 31, 1895) is posted this regarding “Irregular Publications”, i.e. reprints and article reprint:

In the interest of exact bibliography, the Society takes cognizance of all publications issued either wholly or partly under its auspices. Each author of a memoir published in the National Geographic Magazine receives 25 copies, and is authorized to order any number of additional copies at a slight advance on the cost of press-work and paper. Contributors to the magazine are authorized to order any number of copies of their contribution at a slight advance on the cost of press-work and paper, provided these separates bear the original pagination and a printed reference to the serial and volume from which they are extracted; such separates are, of course, bibliographically distinct. The Magazine is not copyrighted, and articles may be reprinted freely; a record of such reprints, so far as known, is kept.

The implication of this notice is that they kept a record for any article reprint produced at the behest of the contributor and, as best as they could any other article reprint produced. Of course, my assumption about Nathan documenting all older article reprints was wrong, like so many other. Here is an older article reprint that slipped under Nathan’s radar:

Photo Courtesy of Richard Kennedy

Note: The publication follows all the rules set out by the Society regarding pagination and references.

The article is entitled “Laws of Temperature Control of the Geographic Distribution of Terrestrial Animals and Plants”. It is from the Volume VI, Number 7 issue of National Geographic, December 29, 1894, pages 229-238. It contains one chart, and is follow by three color maps of the United States and southern Canada on three single-sided Plates (No. 12, 13 & 14). The article is a transcript of an annual address by Dr. C. Hart Merriam, Vice-President, National Geographic Society.

The tendency of animals and plants to multiply beyond the means of subsistence and to spread over all available areas is well understood. What naturalists wish to know is not how species are dispersed, but how they are checked in their efforts to overrun the earth. Except for oceans, geographic barriers are rare. Another cause must provide this limiting factor. Nearly a century age Humboldt showed that temperature is the most important climatic factors. In the northern hemisphere animals and plants are distributed in circumpolar belts or zones, the boundaries of which follow lines of equal temperature rather than parallels of latitude. They conform with elevation with a particular belt extending further north in the lowlands and pushed further south in the mountainous areas.

Between the pole and the equator there are three primary belts – Boreal, Austral, and Tropical – each of which may be subdivided into minor belts and areas. In the United States the Boreal and Austral regions each have been split into three secondary transcontinental zones. The Boreal are known as the Arctic, Hudsonian, and Canadian. The Austral as the Transition, Upper Austral and Lower Austral.
Several years ago, the author tries to show that the temperature during the period of growth and reproductive activities governed the range of species, more so than the average temperature of the whole year. The period of growth itself varies for different zones. In the topics it is nearly year-round, while in the arctic and very high altitudes it may last only two months. He found it more complex than that. The northern distribution of animals and plants is determined by the total heating throughout that season while the southern distribution of most species is determined by the mean temperature of the hottest part of the year.

Humidity is a secondary factor within belts with some species inhabit humid parts of their zone while others find their homes in the arid parts. Humidity is less potent across zone boundaries. Even if a large region of similar humidity spans multiple belts, temperature determines the northern and southern extents of a particular species.

The three, color maps at the end of the article show how the belts are distributed across the country. The first map shows the total quantity of heat during the season of growth. This defines the northern boundaries of the belts. The second map shows the mean temperature of the hottest six consecutive weeks of the year. This defines the southern boundaries of the belt. The third map shows the actual belts across the country using the information from the other two maps. This is the one I displayed, i.e. Plate 14.

Note: the map displayed is copied from my 1964 Reprint of the December 29, 1894 issue. I didn’t want to risk damaging the article reprint.

Tom Wilson

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